Anon slowly trudges down the streets of Canterlot. It's the middle of the afternoon now, but the energy in the city hasn't faded whatsoever. Ponies are still joyously celebrating their newfound freedom, even days after acquiring it. Those that aren't in a state of joy are still grinning ear to ear as they go about their business. To Anon, it all just seems forced and unnatural. It doesn't help that the only time those smiles fade is when they see him passing by. Try as he might to blend in, the tall, well-built human can't exactly hide in plain sight. It certainly didn't make his job as an "enforcer" any easier, and it apparently isn't helping his new pardoned life either.
Mindlessly, he returns to the hotel he had been staying in. It's a run-down and shoddy little place, but it's the only hotel that would let him stay. After the third hotel he went to rejected him, he considered just threatening his way into a room, but these ponies seem to have grown a massive ego the second Nightmare Moon was taken down. They no longer treat him with the respect his status under Nightmare Moon afforded him, and instead look at him like he's trash.
Isn't that a familiar feeling?
"Hahaha! Well well well, color me impressed. You actually did it."
Nightmare Moon looks down at Anon from her throne, her head lazily resting on a hoof. A wicked smile is plastered across her face as her blue, intimidating eyes stare directly into Anon's. For his part, he simply stares back at her with an unreadable expression.
"Is that really so surprising?"
"That wasn't meant to be a real mission, human. It was meant to be an execution."
Anon blinks.
"Excuse me?"
"You annoyed me, and the punishment for that is death. However, I thought it might make for a bit of fun to send you on a job you certainly couldn't accomplish. Trust me, if I were so inclined, I could have gotten through that invisibubble very easily. If I was feeling particularly cruel, I could have just starved them out. But by sending you in there, I could break their spirits. What is this mysterious assailant? What terrible forces does Nightmare Moon command? They would still kill you, of course, but their nerves would be shattered. It would make it all the more satisfying when they finally fell."
"..."
"Imagine my surprise, then, when I was informed that you not only took out the invisibubble, but you also escaped with your life. My soldiers capitalized on that, of course. That little rebellion is a thing of the past now. Still, that's entirely thanks to you."
"When I say I'll do a job, I do the job."
"...Hm. Interesting. Perhaps you are worth keeping around." Her mouth curls into a sharp, toothy grin. "What is your name, human?"
"Anon."
"Very well. Anon, then." She makes a sort of whistling noise, and a servant quietly approaches from a nearby hall. She wears clothes made of varying hues of blue and purple. Her coat is white, and her purple mane and tail are tied into buns. "Rarity, show the newest member of our ranks to his quarters."
"Which ones, your majesty?"
"...Give him my sister's old room, just down the hall from mine."
"Of course."
The mare gives Nightmare Moon a bow before looking towards Anon. Her expression is perpetually blank, which throws Anon off.
"She'll show you where you will be staying. I'm providing you with nice accommodations. I expect you to repay me in kind."
Anon stares at her for a moment. Mere moments ago, she said that she sent him off to die. Now she's giving him a nice room? Did he really make that strong of an impression on her? Anon is so lost in thought, it takes him a second to recognize the growing feeling of warmth in his chest. Did he actually impress her?
It feels nice.
"Th-thank you, Nightmare... er, my lady?"
"Hmhm, good to see you know your place. Now, both of you, shoo. I expect you to report to me first thing tomorrow morning. I have more for you to do."
"Yes, your majesty," Anon and Rarity say in unison.
Without any further delay, Rarity sets off down a nearby hall. She doesn't even acknowledge Anon, but he follows her regardless. She is showing him the way to his room, yes?
The two continue for some time, causing Anon to realize just how large and labyrinthine the castle is. On top of that, there are more than a few places where it looks a bit dilapidated. In fact, the parts that don't look like they're falling apart seem to have been refurbished only recently. However, Rarity looks like she knows where she's going.
Despite that, it's a long walk to wherever they're headed. Rarity never says a word, nor does she even glance in Anon's direction or emote whatsoever. Anon knows a cold shoulder when he sees one. He's quite used to the feeling, after all, and although he would normally not care either way, he still doesn't really know much about his situation. As such, he decides to break the silence.
"So. How did you end up here?"
"..."
"...Alright, be that way."
"Tsk." For the first time, Rarity's expression changes. She's gone from completely emotionless to extremely frustrated. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourself involved in."
"What do you mean?"
"Nopony is here by choice. Either we bend ourselves to her will, or her magic forcefully does it for us."
"Magic?"
"A minor mind control spell. It works better when the victim is stressed, and since we're all in constant danger of immediate execution at the hooves of an alicorn, you can understand why we might be a bit on edge."
"And I take it that since you're telling me this, you haven't had your mind controlled?"
"No, I haven't. You would though, if not for your weird magic resistance."
"What makes you say that?"
"She doesn't need a valid reason. I can tell she doesn't like you."
"I disagree."
"Peh. How would you know?"
"The fact that she's open about her feelings is all I need. Plus, apparently I'm getting some sweet quarters."
Rarity lets out a sigh of frustration.
"Yes, you are. And all you had to do to get it was destroy our only hope of salvation."
Anon opens his mouth to speak, but he closes it again. This isn't an argument he wants to have. Not here. Not now.
Eventually, the pair make it to a grand hallway. There are only two doors in this hallway. One is marked with a large crescent moon, while the other has no markings at all.
"That one is yours," Rarity says while pointing to the unmarked door. "If you don't want to die, I suggest you wake up at the crack of dawn."
"W-wait, how will I know when that is if it's always night?"
Rarity has already turned and started to walk away.
"That's the question, isn't it?"
Without another word, she disappears around a corner. Anon, now alone with his thoughts, simply shakes his head and enters his new quarters. The room is large and circular, with all manner of furniture. There's a vanity, a large dresser, a few cabinets and shelves, even a walk-in closet. It's a lot to take in, but most notable to Anon is the massive bed in the center of the room that looks like it's fit for a princess. Getting to sleep on a mattress at all is a luxury for Anon. Never in his life has he ever even dreamed about getting to sleep in a bed like this. As a result, he doesn't hesitate for a second before throwing himself onto the wonderfully soft sheets and drifting to sleep in mere moments.
When he awakens, the first thing he does is clean up and try to remember the way back to the throne room. However, it's like the halls themselves have shifted around. He's not sure if his memory is poor or if he's just losing his mind, but either way, a weight begins to settle in his stomach. He really doesn't want to be late, and he doesn't even know how long he slept for. There was no clock in his room, and with no sun outside, it becomes easy to lose track of time.
However, just as he starts to feel a nervous sweat begin to form on his brow, he turns a corner and slams face-first into-
"Y-your majesty!"
Anon looks at Nightmare Moon, and for the first time in a long time, a wave of dread overtakes him. She slowly turns to look at him, her eyes narrowed and angry. When she speaks, her voice is calculated and intimidating.
"...You're early."
"I... I am?"
Her eyes briefly glance out of a nearby window, which provides a few of the perpetually moonlit Everfree Forest.
"I suppose you wouldn't know that. Hm. I'll have to get you an alarm." To Anon's surprise, she turns away from him and continues in the direction she was going when he ran into her. "Walk with me." After just a moment's hesitation, Anon hastily scrambles to her side and begins to walk. He doesn't dare speak first. "I am impressed, Anon."
"You are?"
"I received a full report on the status of the school about an hour ago. Your actions, as well as your intel, allowed my soldiers to capture every single one of those rebellious fools." Anon's mind briefly drifts back to the previous night. For some reason, his thoughts keep lingering on that terrible, horrified look he was given before escaping. "Well, all except for one, it seems."
"One got away?"
"Twilight Sparkle. My dear sister's faithful student." Nightmare Moon clicks her tongue. "I can already tell she's going to be a thorn in my side."
"..."
"Regardless, the operation was a success, and the rebellion is no more. I even got a few of them to... 'come to my side.'"
"And those you didn't?"
"I'll leave that to your imagination."
Nightmare Moon laughs a dark, cruel laugh. To her surprise, Anon joins in. And unlike her other "loyal" subjects, he sounds shockingly genuine.
"Good. They probably had it coming."
"...Yes. Yes they did." Nightmare Moon glances at Anon. A tiny, slightly less cruel smile has made its way to her face as she looks him up and down. "And today, we'll see if you can keep up that momentum. I have another job for you."
"You name it, I'll take care of it."
Once again, Nightmare Moon looks at him with a mixture of surprise and amusement.
"...I think I like you, human. Hmhm, this should be interesting." The two continue walking down the hall as Nightmare Moon explains what his next job will be. "Today, I'm sending you to a little rock farm in the middle of nowhere."
Anon exits the old hotel after having gathered his few belongings. He no longer has any business in Canterlot. He isn't sure where he should be, but he'd rather not spend more time here than necessary. Too many ponies for his tastes. Too much noise.
"HI!"
Speak of the devil.
Anon barely makes it down the street before a mare throws herself in front of him. She's bright pink, with an equally pink, poofy mane to match. A glance is all it takes for him to be able to tell that this mare has energy in spades. What's surprising, however, is that she had the gall to approach him. Does she really have no idea who he is?
"Uh... hi."
"It's nice to finally meet you properly, Mr. Anon!"
The mare holds out a hoof. Anon raises an eyebrow, a look of distrust on his face as he carefully reaches out and shakes said hoof.
"So you do know who I am."
"Of course I do! Everypony knows who you are, silly! Besides, we've met before! I'm Pinkie Pie, remember?"
"I know. You were one of the mares that killed Nightmare Moon."
"K-kill is a strong word. Besides, we met way before that!"
"We did?"
"Yeah! Back at my family's rock farm!"
"...Oh."
The rock farm. He remembers that job. It was the second job Nightmare Moon ever sent him on. Apparently, she wanted to relocate them. She needed the Pie family to act not as rock farmers, but as stonemasons. A lot of structures needed to be built in a lot of places, she told him. Apparently, the Pie family is quite talented at that, and she wanted them to be on it full-time. However, they ignored her demands. As such, she sent him there to "convince" them to do as she commands, and to perhaps make an example out of them.
They wanted nothing to do with him, of course. The two owners of the farm weren't willing to budge, but they were also too old to really stand up for themselves. As a result, that responsibility fell to their four daughters. Of them, one was unwilling to engage with Anon at all, and merely hid behind her sisters. Meanwhile, another had a very short temper and demanded that he get off of their property. He refused, and she seemed as though she was about to get violent. It wasn't until the pink one interrupted and tried to mediate that she backed off. Of course, Anon wasn't ordered to negotiate. He reaffirmed his demands, telling the pink mare that he had no intention of budging on them. He assumed her chipper attitude was an act to get him to lower his guard, and he wasn't falling for it. One little threat later and her mane seemed to deflate like a balloon. That was all the justification her angrier sister needed to throw herself at him, but one quick sidestep and a slash of his dagger was all it took to bring her to the ground. Not dead, of course. She can't be a stonemason if she isn't alive. However, the cut was deep enough and long enough to make her think twice about doing that again.
Then, the fourth Pie sister, who had a purple mane and blue shirt, silently kicked a large boulder in his direction. He had almost no time to react. He saw the boulder coming, but that was it. He wouldn't be able to get out of the way. In that brief moment, he realized just how out of his depth he truly was. If a regular farmer like her was capable of a feat of strength like that, what could a guy like him possibly hope to accomplish?
There was the sound of a large crash. Anon felt something massive slam into him.
But he was still alive.
He opened his eyes. He had been brought to the ground, and surrounding him on all sides were the settling remains of a shattered boulder. He looked down at himself. That hurt. Like, a lot. However, it should have killed him, shouldn't it? Anxiously, he stood back up. He looked at the mare that threw the boulder at him, who for the first time, appeared mildly surprised (by her standards anyway). Out of curiosity, he reached for a boulder lying next to him. To his shock, he picked it right up. It was definitely heavy, but it looked too heavy for him to carry. And yet, he lifted it anyway. With a shrug, he tossed the boulder in the mare's direction. Reacting quickly, she punched right through it.
Which was exactly what Anon was expecting. Having followed the boulder through the air, she found him already directly on top of her. Just like he had done with Moondancer, a swift kick and a bit of technique was all it took to knock her unconscious. He looked down at his hands. He didn't know where that strength and resilience came from. Is this world just... softer than his old one? Or perhaps there's something more to his magic resistance? He shook his head, deciding that it didn't really matter. Either way, that information was going to be useful.
With that, the two aggressive sisters were taken care of, the peppy sister was too drained of energy to resist, and the quiet sister never even tried. He had succeeded, and the farm's owners reluctantly agreed to listen to his demands on the condition that none of them be killed.
Back in the present, Anon looks down at that peppy sister, who has clearly gotten her energy back.
"Yeah, I remember you."
"Great! Now come on!"
With a level of force he wasn't expecting, she yanks him down a nearby road into what appears to be a large party. No, not like the celebrations happening around the city. This is a real, proper party, with ponies dancing left and right, food and balloons and streamers and anything else you could imagine as far as the eye can see.
"What is all this?"
"A party! Duh!"
"..."
"You know, to celebrate our freedom!"
"Pinkie, I don't think I'm welcome here."
"Why not?"
"Because you're celebrating your freedom from me."
"No, we're celebrating our freedom from Nightmare Moon!"
"You mean the mare that I served dutifully for four years? The mare that I loved?"
"W-wait, you loved her?"
"And she loved me."
"I... wow, I didn't know that." For a moment, Pinkie looks conflicted. However, her smile quickly returns to her face. "Well, either way, we're here now! The princess pardoned you, remember?"
"For better or worse," he mumbles.
"And that attitude is EXACTLY why you should be here! Come on, have a cupcake! Celebrate a little!"
Anon, whose patience has been wearing increasingly thin, suddenly kneels down and places himself mere inches from Pinkie's face. When he speaks, his voice is low, serious, and mildly threatening.
"You listen to me. I have nothing to celebrate. My lady is dead because of YOU. You and your stupid friends. Yet, you expect me to PARTY with you? Why?"
Pinkie looks back at Anon silently for a moment. She isn't smiling, but she isn't frowning either. Eventually she speaks up again, her voice filled with just as much energy as ever.
"Because I forgive you. Parties are better the more partygoers you have, after all!"
"That doesn't mean I forgive you." Pinkie can see the quiet, burning rage rising in Anon's eyes. "You stole everything I care about."
"...You did it first."
"..."
Without another word, Anon stands up, turns around, and walks away.
Pinkie makes no effort to follow him.
Unfortunately nobody gets that he loved her and since she trying to forget everything that happened while nightmare moon he can't recover from his broken heart.
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There's a real big difference between classes and actual combat.
That interaction with Pinkie at the end was top notch. I can't wait to see where the next chapter goes.
Great chapter and story so far
What did he possibly steal from Pinkie? Sure he injured Limestone and Maud but they are still alive, what did he possibly steal or take from her?
That bit with Pinkie Pie is confusing. Did he do something else off screen? Sure he injured two of his sisters, but they should still be alive, no? I wouldn't expect Pinkie to be so savage like that. Really against her character.
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Her way of life. Celestia's Sun and her her rock farm.
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There's probably more that has yet to be revealed, but right now I'm imagining that his actions under NMM sucked all the laughter and joy from her life after his visit to the farm. But then again, all we know for sure right now is that Pinkie is still alive.
And I don't see it as intentionally savage as much as it being how Pinkie always talks, without a filter.
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All plans go out the window the instant you get punched in the face.
As I said with Twilight in the last chapter, you must’ve done something right/wrong for her to rub you the wrong way. Now it wasn’t exactly that extent here with Pinky, but that energy is still there. Ooh, can’t wait to see everyone else’s reaction!
"And l wouldn't have had to do that, if you had simply obeyed your Queen's command.... You refused, and were justly punished for it."
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Their home, they were forced to relocate and work for nightmare moon, honestly it quite minor outcome it why pinkie can forgive him, she got off easy didn't even lose any family members
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Uhh what, her family was forced off their property and into conditions we don't know. They were forced to do a trade they could have hated because a monarch wanted them too.
Aunque comprendo a Anon por perder a su Ăşnico amor y ser importante; el en verdad no parece arrepentido por sus acciones, no sabemos que más hizo en su servicio con Nightmare Moon, pero ya tengo suposiciones y con las tenemos nos muestra a un Anon frĂo serio que no le importa a los ponys y si lo viera necesario matar o torturar a alguno de ellos para cumplir su misiĂłn, lo harĂa seguramente.
AsĂ que veo difĂcil si el autor quiere que la Prince Luna y Anon se hagan pareja (si es que eso quiere)
11733262
They knew, but being nerds their fighting was based on magic and probably direct magical attack is more efficient than just tossing a brick with TK at high speed. Such combat would probably assume that the enemy also has magic and could catch the brick and toss it back. Anon is unique with his complete immunity to magic.
This is like if someone IRL was completely immune to bullets. Sure, there are other ways to take him out, but the element of surprise my last long enough for him to complete his mission (in this case disabling the forcefield and letting NM soldiers move in).
So he's basically Superman in Equestria? He's just invulnerable to everything? It seems more like you made Maud look bad. This seems like a response to all the "just throw stuff at Anon and he'll die" comments from the previous chapters.
I'm interested in seeing why Anon just didn't start killing the second Nightmare Moon was defeated.
Aldo, I really don't like the Nightmare and Luna are separate entities theory. Luna got enraged, she used too much dark magic to make herself taller and stronger, she briefly had second thoughts as it surged, but then she liked how it felt and decided to roll with it and give herself an edgier name. Luna was never possessed by anything. This story should end with Luna confessing this and admitting she is the same pony who fell in love with Anon, but she was pretending not to be to escape punishment. After this, she and Anon are banished from Equestria and live happily ever after in Griffinstone or Saddle Arabia or somewhere else.
That long, in couples of years later the world will become an ice age.
Oh wait, the first chapter: "A Shining Sun"
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"I was just following orders" said every soldier after commiting atrocities.
I'm beginning to think many people are forgetting that Nightmare Moon is horrible tyrant. She can have a different attitude towards certain individuals but that doesn't change the fact about what she did to everyone else. Hell, anyone who uses mind control magic can immediately rot in hell as far as I'm concerned.
Gotta say, in-universe politics aside, Anon is taking this whole business a lot better than I would, especially since he actually has the ability to survive in both physical and magical combat.
"Hello. My name is Anon. You killed my love. Prepare to die."
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The losing side's soldiers are punished for following orders.
The winning side's soldiers are punished for not following orders.
"War crimes are for losers."
1. Agreed
2. According to the official comics, Celestia used mind control and memory editing to end a rebellion after NMM was banished. (It isn't explained, but it's shown: angry anti-Celestia armed mob rioting and burning things, Celestia does magic, suddenly-happy ponies are immediately fine with everything.)
I can't help but chant "Be bitter, stay bitter" for Anon. I hope he honestly never forgives them.
I'm sorry, but I am not on Anon's side at all on this. All you've shown me is that he was Harley Quinn to Nightmare Moon's Joker, except with zero fucking character development.
Are we supposed to be unhappy for him? He loved Nightmare Moon! Great! Fine. Whoop-de-fucking-doo! I bet all the tyrants of Human History had people that loved them as well.
Are we still glad they're dead and gone to the point where we we'll happily dance on their grave? HELL TO THE FUCK YES!!
Nightmare Moon took over the world, stole the sun, and enslaved people. We're supposed to feel sorry for her chief enforcer after he willingly served a monster? After all he did in her name? HAHAno.
This is fucking Felix in Miraculous Ladybug all over again and its pissing me off.
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Ayyy a Redwall PFP, love that series.
I like multiple interpretations of the NMM situation, but yours would be an interesting direction for the story to go
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Same here. Sometimes, it's really fun to be bitter.
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Isn't the character development happening as the story goes on? Not every character has to be a good guy to be interesting.
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Its the presentation so far. All we're presented to this point with is Nightmare Moon being evil, and sending Anon to do evil things. And then suddenly he's joining in her mwahahahas.
Nightmare Moon has shown no sympathetic qualities. And the way this is written, its seems we're supposed to sympathize with Anon, when I see no reason to sympathize with him.
I am standing by my comparison to Felix from Miraculous Ladybug.
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I don't know who felix is, but you are right that Nightmare in this is evil. That's not really the point of the story though, the point is the bond that Anon and her made and how he lost her. What we know is that Anon didn't have ANYTHING before meeting her, but his own shady past allows him to find a place near her, and we're learning more about them with each chapter. Character development takes time, and it's happening, just give it time and don't look at it as though it's supposed to be about the good guy.
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I'm giving the story a chance. I like Runic's writing. But I'm not liking this so far.
FINNALLY A ASSHOLE WHO STAYS AN ASSHOLE STORY SOMETHING I'VE WANTED FOR A LONG TIME!!!!!!
We're not even five chapters in yet, give it a chance.
In the caaaas-tle of glass
Give him a cutter and a privacy in bathroom🤡 Nonny2Edgy4Pinkie anyway.
I quite like this. A bitter mc thats not just another pizza cutter. And honestly I can see the mc staying bitter cause its impossible for the ponies to understand or want to understand just how much NM meant to him.
11734420
Bingo!
That's a good comeback.
I can understand being pissed at Celestia, Luna and Twilight, but he was just a full-blown asshole here. Pinkie deserved none of that.
And yet you have the sheer fucking gall to traipse Nighmare Moon's lobotamized, mind-fucked, physically-retarded body in front of him as a trophy of conquest- and you call HIM the evil one.
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Oh, now that's a good point I hadn't quite registered. Luna then doesn't look like Luna now.
What Anon loved:
derpicdn.net/img/2019/2/24/1970123/medium.png
What Anon sees now:
derpicdn.net/img/2015/3/2/840933/medium.png