> Fullmetal Pony
>  by clearshot01
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Prologue: My life before

Hi, my name's Stephen Cleary, but my friends call me Clearshot. Reason: I always seem to give them a clear chance to take a shot at me, whatever I say or do. It's all in good fun though, so I laugh along with them. I'm also a brony (someone who likes My Little Pony for those who don't know what that means, although I doubt that'll be the case), but I don't tell most people. I definitely don't tell my sister cause she would never let me hear the end of it. My favourite pony? Probably Twilight, since I'm a lot like she was at the start of the series. I don't really spend much time making friends, and the ones I do have I only really get to see in college. I always have my face buried in a book too. I always preferred reading to socialising, seeing as I never really felt I could relate to others. Only recently learned that I had aspergers, which sort of explains my dislike of social interactions.

So anyway, it's a normal weekend day. In other words I'm doing what I always do. Slept in till 9am (Yes, I consider that sleeping in), had some cereal for breakfast, read some books, grabbed my iPod, phone, keys and wallet, and got the bus into the city center.

As usual, the front seat is unoccupied, and it's my favourite spot on the bus, though I still don't know why. Anyway, after about 10 minutes, I arrive at my destination and I immediately head to Patrick Street. I instinctively bob and weave through the crowds, having had much practice doing so while reading on the move, and it's even easier when I can actually watch where I'm going. I walk past the street performers and go straight for the local bookshops. I spend a good few hours just looking at the books on offer, then I see someone I didn't expect to see at all. My friend Christian, and what does he do? He calls out my name and runs over, playfully punching me on the arm. I don't mind though, because although sometimes he can seem a little random, he's always there for anyone who needs him, never turning away anyone who asks for his help. So, I spend the next hour walking around the shops with him. I look at my watch and decide to head for the bus. As we get to the traffic lights however, I start feeling dizzy, and my vision starts playing tricks on me. I could swear that for a few seconds, instead of humans, the town was filled with ponies. Then my vision clears, just in time for me to get hit by a van, sort of. (Somehow, all that gets hit is my arm, but the impact spins me right into a pole, and that's what knocks me out. Christian however, took the full force of the accursed vehicle.)
> First impressions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

When I finally start to wake up, I find myself in what appears to be a hospital bed. I hear voices, the most distinguishable being Christian, and from what I hear, he's either in immense pain, or he's immensely teriffied of something, so I will myself out of bed to try and get there to help him. When I get up, I'm surprised to hear the clop clop sound you'd hear when a horse or pony walks across a hard surface. I find a mirror, and to my surprise, see that I've somehow turned into a pony, (a unicorn to be more specific). My body is grey, my mane and tail are black, I have a golden sword strapped to my side, my front half is heavily bandaged, and my right foreleg is completely gone. 

That's not what teriffied me most though. No, what sends my common sense, and myself, jumping out the window, is the entrance of a very large white pony with wings. a horn, a picture of the sun on her flank and a multicoloured mane, wearing a necklace and a crown.That's when my instincts had me jumping out the window and galloping as if my flank had just been set on fire. I didn't even wait to see her face soften, or to hear her apologise and ask if I was feeling better.

After running a few miles, I took a rest, and after managing to calm myself down sufficiently, realised just why that pony seemed familiar. It was none other than Princess Celestia, the ruler of the day. And that meant that somehow, I was in the land of Equestria. I couldn't belive it. I was actually in Equestria, and judging from my surroundings, I was in none other than Ponyville. I was still afraid after finding out I was down an arm, or leg as it were, but not as much as I had been when I woke up and actually saw it. 

I decided to just rest a little longer and then try to figure out if I was dreaming, dead, or if I had really somehow travelled to an alternate reality. (I was hoping for the latter, cause then it might mean I had a chance to get home to my sister). So, I decided to make the library my next stop after my rest. Then, I heard shouts and saw multiple ponies in medical attire running around, probably looking for me. I decided to take a rain check on that rest, and started running.

It only took me a few minutes to find it, although it felt like hours. When I got there though, I couldn't see anypony inside. As I approached however, I could hear voices, which I recognised as Twilight and Spike. The latter suddenly burst out the door with a big grin on his face. Then he noticed me, or to be more precise, he noticed the fact that I was missing a leg and carrying a sword, and his grin was replaced by a very nervous smile. 

All he said was “H-Hi there, you n-need anything?”. I shook my head. 

“Ok then, s-see ya”. And he was off. I guess I looked worse than I felt. I walked nervously to the door, half expecting something bad to happen when I touched the door. What I didn't expect was for the door to slam into me at incredible speed. I hit the floor like a sack of apples. The last thing I heard was “Oh my gosh, I am so sorry” and then I slipped into unconsciousness. Again.
> What is it with me and unconsciousness?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up in a daze with a bandage covering my head, and my vision was very weak. Everything was a blur, but I could still make out that one blur was purple, and a part of it was glowing. I closed my eyes for a few seconds and when I opened them again, everything was back to normal. In that I could see properly. And I found that the purple blur was none other than Twilight Sparkle herself. When she saw I was awake she just started going “Oh thank Celestia you're alright” over and over again until I put a hoof over her mouth and asked “What happened?”.

I was surprised to find my voice was still the same as normal, I half expected it to sound like it did when I was a kid. Anyway, Twilight explained what happened after she knocked me out (It had been an hour more or less). Apparently, she took me into the library and started treating my head injury, cleaning and disinfecting it, then putting the bandage on. A while later, she noticed several ponies from the hospital running past. A few even came to her door asking if they'd seen, well, me, and if so to please infrom them immediately. However, against her better judgement (Which I am more than thankful for), she said that she had seen nopony at all. 

After telling me all this, her face became serious, and I was more than a little frightened. She asked in a very calm, yet firm voice, that I explain myself before she put me at the mercy of the hospital. I explained as best I could. 

“I have no idea. All I know, is I woke up in a hospital, and found that somehow, I had turned into a pony. Then, as if I didn't feel crazy enough, a pony with a horn and wings shows up, and all I could think was, Oh God, I am so dead. So I jumped out the window and ran, acting solely on survival instincts. Then I realise where I am and who I just ran from, and now I think I've lost my mind and “ Now she placed her hoof over my mouth and told me to calm down and slow down. 

So I took a deep breath and began again, taking care not to speak too quickly. When I was finished, all she could say was “Well that's.... different”. All I could think was She probably thinks I'm crazy, and I don't blame her, I'd probably feel the same way if I was in her position. 

But then she said “Sorry, but I'm just a little surprised by all this. I can't believe that there are actually other realities, let alone that travelling to those realities is possible”. I nodded and said “Same here. So, any ideas on how I got here or what I'm gonna do now?” “Well.....” 

Twilight and I had been talking for about an hour discussing possible explanations for my sudden appearance in Equestria when suddenly, I heard the door open and shut and the unmistakable voice of a baby dragon “Hey Twilight, there's a huge commotion outside, something about some three-legged pony with a sword running around causing trouble and....” That's when he noticed Twilight's suddenly less than comfortable guest. 

“Ah, it's you! You're the one I saw outside. Don't worry Twilight, I'll save you” And with that he jumped at me, claws out, only to be stopped as Twilight used her magic to stop him. 

“Spike, stop that. Stephen is our guest.” 

I saw Spike's jaw drop “G-g-guest? Him? And Stephen? That's a weird name”. 

But Twilight seemed to ignore his remark and continued “As long as he's staying with us, you are to be nice, understand?” The poor purple and green dragon could only nod at Twilight's stern face. 

But his gaze never left me, and he left the room saying “I've got my eyes on you...”. Twilight apologised, but I told her it was ok saying “Don't worry about it, I'm used to stuff like that by now. Anyway, the fact he's suspicious of me only says that he cares about you. I think”. 

She laughed at this and said “Maybe so, but he should know by now that I can take care of myself, and he's technically still a baby dragon.” 

“Well, he reminds me of someone I used to kno....” was all I managed to say before I suddenly lost consciousness.
> Tea and stories
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

When I managed to get up, I noticed that Twilight and Spike weren't the only ones in the room with me. The entire mane 6 were there, looking at me with a mix of confusion, worry and suspicion. 

The first to speak was Rainbow Dash, and I doubt I'll ever forget what she said. “Ok buster, I don't know who you are, but unless you wanna experience a  fall from cloudsdale at sonic rainboom speeds, you're gonna explain who you are, where you're from and why all those doctor guys are looking for you, you got that”. 

All I could do was stare at her. Then Applejack stepped in before she could make good on her threat. “Hold on there sugarcube. Ah'm sure if we give him a chance to calm down, he'll be more than happy to explain the situation, right?”. 

Once again, I could only stare. It was as if somehow I'd lost my voice and my ability to control my own motor functions. The next one to speak sounded more dignified. “Honestly Rainbow, there's no need for such vulgarity. Applejack is right. Just let the poor dear calm down and explain himself at his own pace”.

Then a softer voice. “Um, I agree with Rarity on this one Rainbow. We should give him a chance to calm down, he looks teriffied”. 

“Yeah, and then we can PAR-TAY!”. This was quickly followed by four of the five telling Pinkie in no uncertain terms to “CALM DOWN!”.

At this, I suddenly lost control and started laughing. I had no idea why I was even starting but once I had, I couldn't stop. All 6 turned to look at me with looks that all said the same thing. They thought I'd gone crazy, if I wasn't already. Twilight was the first to speak after I finally managed to calm down from my laughing episode. 

“Ok, why don't I make us all some tea, and then we'll talk, does that sound alright to you girls?”. Everyone agreed to let the questions wait until after tea.

I drank my tea in silence, my head flooded with questions, both for Twilight and her friends, and for myself. The most obvious of which was still How the buck did I get here and how in the name of Celestia do I get home? But the more important of which (to me anyway) was Is my sister alright? Are they worried about me? Or did reality rewrite itself so that it was as if I never existed or something? 

However, I was willing to wait and answer their questions before I asked my own, despite how excited I was to be in their presence. I could see a mix of emotions as they all looked at me while they drank. Twilight and Fluttershy looked concerned more than anything, and Rainbow looked like she was ready to take me down the second I tried anything. Applejack looked at me with eyes that seemed to pierce my very soul. Rarity seemed to be torn between suspicion and concern while looking at where my arm Leg now dammit! used to be. She also occasionally glanced at my sword, which was propped against the wall. 

I hadn't really taken a close look at it myself, but now that I actually had time, I noticed that the sheath and the hilt of the sword were golden in colour. There were two jewels set into the sheath. 

I remembered how much she liked jewels, so I took a deep breath and said “If you want, I don't mind loaning you the sword for so you can take a closer look. After all, I don't think I can use it anyway in my condition” and I gestured to my missing limb to emphasise my point. 

She took one look at me and said “Oh heavens no, dear, I couldn't possibly. I was just admiring it. Are those amethysts in the sheath?”. 

I scratched my head and told her “I honestly don't know. Other than today, I don't even remember ever seeing a real sword. I don't even know where it came from”. 

I felt kind of stupid admitting that, but when I saw the way they were looking at me, I relaxed. None of them seemed to think any less of me from what I could tell. Then Rainbow decided to give her two cents. 

“Ok, so you're saying that you have absolutely no memories at all from before today? That sounds suspicious to say the least”, to which I replied “I didn't say I had no memories at all, I just said I didn't remember anything involving that blade. I told you I'd try and explain all this after we were finished, and I don't plan on backing out now. I wanna figure this out just as badly as you, maybe more so”. 

She looked like she was about to say something else, but she just sighed and sat back down. We then continued to drink our tea in silence. After we finally finished, I got up and began to explain as best I could what happened to me. 

“Ok, once I start, I don't want to have to stop, so if you have any questions, ask them now, or wait 'till I'm finished. Is that ok with you?” They all agreed to my condition, with Rainbow's impatience at waiting for an explanation getting the better of her. 

“GAH, just hurry up and tell us already!”. I sighed and got started. 

They all listened intently as I told them a little about myself and my sister, who I've been taking care of ever since our parents passed away. I explained what had happened to me and my friend Christian and my sudden awakening in this world. I even mentioned my not so comfortable first meeting with Celestia. That one got a laugh from Rainbow, who shut up pretty quickly when Twilight looked at her with a face that could have caused hell to freeze over. And that made me chuckle a bit. Afterwards I continued with my explanation, up to the point where I woke up to find them staring at me. I let out a deep breath, as if expelling the air would somehow make this feel less crazy. 

I hadn't realised that I had closed my eyes when I had recounted the story, however. I guess it was my way of trying to remember more accurately, or maybe I was just hoping that when I opened them I'd be in my room, thinking it had been some crazy dream. When I opened them again, their expressions all said one thing. They believed me. I couldn't comprehend it. Here I was, telling a story that would've gotten most people locked in a mental institution, and they actually believed me. Just goes to show how you can always be surprised. They're faster to believe this than I am. I'm still not convinced this isn't just some crazy dream. 

After that last thought, all the fatigue I had put out of my mind suddenly caught up with me, and I felt the warm embrace of unconsciousness again...
> Magic and the plan
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

This time I woke up in a bed, much like the first time. Except this bed was normal, not one of those hospital ones with those pulley things that can adjust the angle. I got up and walked downstairs, noticing as I did that there was some sort of metallic sound as I walked. It wasn't till I tripped and fell down the stairs that I realised what it was. I noticed as I got back up that I had my right foreleg back. Well, not exactly. This one was made of metal, yet it felt like it was a part of me. It felt so light, yet at the same time I could feel some sort of power coming from it. Like it had been made by..... and then it hit me. 

Magic. Twilight must've managed to make this for me. But where did she even learn to make something like this? I decided to ask her myself. When she noticed me she smiled and asked me how I was feeling. I told her that I was alright and then I asked her about the leg. She turned away, as if she was ashamed of something. 

And then she told me “I-I'm sorry, but when you were asleep I noticed something attached to your sword, so I removed it and it was actually blueprints for the leg I made for you. I didn't actually have all the parts I needed for it, so I had to make most of them myself with magic. But because of that, it's actually a lot stronger and lighter than the original one from the blueprints, so you should be able to move faster than you would with the original and then I used my magic to make your sleep deep enough so that you wouldn't feel any discomfort when I attached it and...” 

She stopped rambling as I wrapped my forelegs around her and said “Thank you”. She only blushed as I released her a moment later and apologised for embarassing her like that. She only said that I hadn't embarassed her, that she was glad to help. Then Spike called out that breakfast was ready from the kitchen. Our awkward moment forgotten, we proceeded to the kitchen for breakfast.

Breakfast apparently consisted of hay and milk. Twilight happily started eating, while I, unsure of how exactly I was meant to act, never having eaten as a pony before, sat there trying to figure out what I was going to do. 

“Stephen, are you alright? You're not eating” Twilight's concern broke me out of my stupor and I apologised. 

“Sorry. Just a little...lost in regards to Equestrian table manners”. 

She looked at me once and gave a small chuckle. “Just use your magic to control the hay and bring it to you, it's easy. Anypony can...” 

She stopped as she remembered what I'd told her, then immediately began to apologise while her face started to turn red from embarrassment. 

“I'm so sorry, I forgot that you weren't a pony before and I should've realised that you wouldn't know how to use magic yet and...” 

Once again, I stopped her saying that there was no harm done. 

“Ok, so, can we just get to using it in a way that keeps me from starving for now” I asked with a smile. “Of course, just focus on the hay and imagine it floating in the air”. 

I closed my eyes, did as I was told and sure enough, as I opened my eyes I could see the hay floating in midair, and there was a slight glow from my horn. 

“Impressive Stephen” I smiled at the compliment. 

If learning magic is gonna be this easy for me I thought maybe I can figure out a way home sooner than I thought.

“So, what're you gonna do now, Stephen?” I smiled at Spike and told him my plan.

“I'm gonna go get Christian out of that hospital, that's what. I'm not leaving him in there when I know for a fact he's probably scared out of his mind. And after all, he wouldn't leave me there. It's just not who he is. I can't call myself his friend if I'm willing to leave him behind”. 

Spike actually grinned at me. “Well then, guess we've got a friend to help out, huh?” 

I was a little taken back by his response. 

“We? No way, this is my problem, not yours”. 

“Yeah, but you're still recovering, and I happen to know someone who can get us in no problem”. I gave up the argument, feeling sure that there was no way I was gonna convince him not to get involved and instead just asked “Who do you have in mind?”

He smiled and whispered his plan to me. It was only sheer willpower that kept me from calling him crazy, but then again I still wasn't sure I was sane myself. I just walked and listened while he continued with explaining his insane plan.
> Hospital Break-Out
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Special Delivery! It's one of the patients birthdays, and the Cakes asked me to deliver this big scrumptious birthday cake to them” Pinkie Pie exclaimed with absolute glee in her voice. 

This is so not gonna work I thought, hidden in the extremely large cart carrying the extrememly lage tray. 

“Who is the patient?” The doctor asked. 

Pinkie just smiled and said “Red Rocker of course silly filly”. 

The doctor's heart actually seemed to skip a beat. “Oh, well alright then. I was sure his birthday wasn't until next week, are you sure...” 

But Pinkie was already gone, bounding through the hospital doors with mirth. 

“Okie dokie Loki, so where's this Christian guy? Oh, I love a good rescue mission”.

“I don't know, but I think he was in the room next to mine”. 

“Wait, so you don't even know which room he's in? Uh, and here I thought you actually had a plan for when you got in” “I did Spike, if I had just gone by myself, as I had originally intended, I was gonna find the window I'd jumped out of, get back in, and from there, find Christian and get him out. I certainly had enough practice at being unremarkable back home to be able to get in without causing a panic”. 

“Says the guy with a metal leg, and a sword?”

“Oh shut up”

Suddenly, the cart stopped. “Found him! So, did I win?” 

I felt myself tense up. “Are you sure that it's his room Pinkie?” 

“Yup, it says right here on the door that the patients name is Christian, and I've never heard of anyone named Christian before, or Stephen either, say what other funny names do you use, cause I could...” 

I got out and shoved my biological hoof across her mouth and said “Calm down Pinkie. Now, let's just get Christian and get out.” 

I opened the door, not knowing what to expect. What I saw somehow didn't surprise me that much. After all, Christian always did say he wanted to fly. So when I saw a dark red pegasus with a maroon mane and tail, I didn't freak out like I did when I first woke up. Instead I felt strangely calm, and relieved to know that he was alright. 

I also noticed that I wasn't the only one who somehow got a weapon when he arrived. Christian had a hunting knife strapped to his neck, in a position that allowed him to draw it with his teeth. He always did like knives I thought as I went to wake him up. When I did, I half expected him to lash out. What I didn't expect was to be locked in a massive bear hug when he opened his eyes and somehow recognised me. 

“Dude, what happened? And can we get some pie, I'm starving!” Yup, definitely Christian.

So there we were, me getting hugged until I almost passed out from lack of oxygen, Christian looking mortified and repeating “Guess I don't know my own strength” What is that his motto or something?, Pinkie with a now empty tray (She must've eaten it while Christian was hugging me) and Spike, with a pretty good poker face in place. That was when I heard the doctor coming to the room, and a shadow I recognised all too well, a shadow that made me think of what a jackass I'd made of myself after waking up in the hospital. And they were walking through the door right now.  

“So you see Princess Celestia, we still haven't managed to find the other one, but never fear, we have everyone working on this, so it's only a matter of time before we...” And that's when he saw me. With my new leg and everything. 

“What are you doing here? Guards, apprehend them at once!” 

That was all I needed to hear before I repeated the action that made me look like a jackass the first time. The only difference was this time I actually took a moment to address the Princess. 

“Sorry ma'am, places to go, ponies to see and stuff”. She chuckled, amused at my comment. Then the four of us (Me, Christian, Pinkie and Spike) were out the window and headed for the library.
> Painful memories
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I finally convinced Pinkie to go home to Sugarcube Corner and to pretend that she'd been there all day (She only agreed once I made it sound like a game, she was more than happy to after that) while Spike and I brought Christian to the library. When we got there, 

I heard Twilight talking to Applejack. “Are you sure that's a good idea AJ?” “Why ah'm more than sure Twilight. I'm absolutely positive. They should earn their keep after all, and this place is too small for you to have any more guests”. 

They stopped talking when I came in the door with the semi-conscious Christian. 

“Well, this is the second time I've jumped out a window in front of Princess Celestia. At least this time, I wasn't too teriffied to actually say something to her”. 

They both looked at me with mixed reactions. Finally, Twilight asked “What exactly did you say Stephen? I hope you didn't insult her....." 

The look in her eyes was enough to convince me that if she thought I had insulted her, even indirectly, I was a dead man. 

“Basically, I said sorry ma'am, but I had things to do, and that's when I jumped out the window”. 

She seemed to accept my explanation, although she looked like she was about to blow a gasket. Just then, there was a knock at the door. Twilight went to see who was there and I caught the words “Princess Celestia” before I headed for the window with Christian, only to find they had suddenly locked. I turned around to see her staring at me with a look of amusement on her face. 

And then she spoke. “So, I take it you're the two newcomers who've been causing trouble for everypony at the hospital. And may I ask why you're staying at my faithful student's home?”. 

Suddenly, I got a really bad headache, and I started seeing...memories. But I wasn't the only one seeing them, judging by the looks on everypony's faces. It was as if the memories were a movie and I was the projector. Pretty short film, it just showed me and Christian getting knocked out, then me waking up in the hospital, and then it was over. My headache immediately disappeared after that. And then I fell asleep...

I woke up to hear Twilight talking with Princess Celestia. Applejack had gone home, and Christian was still asleep. 

“Hmm, I see, and you say he is from another reality?” 

“Yes, and we're trying to figure out how he could've gotten here And I'm also the one who made him that metal arm he uses”. I walked in at that moment and they both turned to look at me for a second, and then Princess Celestia continued. 

“I see, well, don't worry, I hereby pardon your new friends of any and all misdimeanours they may have comitted since their arrival. However, I want you and your friends to keep a close eye on them my faithful student, just to make sure they stay out of trouble”. 

I was about to say something, but Twilight gave me a look, and I smartly kept my mouth shut, although I still had a question to ask the princess. I decided to go outside and wait until she had finished speaking. I brought my sword, feeling that if it appeared when I arrived, then I should learn how to use it. The only problem... How in the name of Celestia and Luna am I gonna use it? Am I gonna hold it in my mouth? Or what? 

I then remembered what Twilight had said to me when she taught me how to levitate my breakfast. Ok, all I need to do is adapt that so that I levitate the blade instead. Simple.

I focused as hard as I could, imagining the blade sliding out of its sheath and floating in front of me. I felt as well as saw my horn glow and then my blade was in front of me. 

“Quite impressive, I must say, young Stephen”. 

I turned to see none other than Celestia herself looking at me in a way that suggested that she was impressed. I immediately lost my focus and dropped the blade. 

“Uh, thank you ma'am. Although I think I still need to work on my concentration. After all, if I can get distracted enough to drop it after recieving a compliment, no doubt I'll drop it in a fight, and that's where I really need to keep my focus”. 

She laughed and for a second, I saw something weird. I could've sworn that I saw my mom standing where Celestia was. But then the illusion ended, and my mom disappeared. Celestia looked at me with a puzzled expression. 

“What's wrong? You looked lost for a second”. 

“I'm sorry, I-I have to go”. And I ran, ran before the painful memories could surface. I ran and didn't stop until I was just too tired to run anymore. And then I began to weep, remembering the most painful days of mine and my sister's lives. The deaths of our parents. I wept until there were no more tears. Afterwards, I just lay down and slept.
> New Living Arrangements
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up to see Celestia herself standing over me, and I immediately got up and backed away, fearful that more unwanted memories would surface, like they did the last time. But none came, and I finally started to calm down. That was when I noticed it. She looked like she had been crying. 

“I saw the memories. It seems that you and your sister have both gone through painful times as well”. 

That caught me off guard. But then I remembered. She has a sister too. She became consumed by darkness once, and Celestia lost her for a thousand years. I keep forgetting that I'm not the only one in the world who knows what it feels like to lose someone. 

I was about to ask her if she wanted to talk about it, but then there was a bright flash. I couldn't open my eyes for a while, but when I did, there were two ponies on the ground between us. One had a light blue body and a yellow mane, and the other had a white body and a brown mane. The blue pony was first to wake up, and I recognised her voice immediately. 

“Ow, feels like I jumped  in front of a bus”. I was stunned, but only for a second. 

“Meadhbh? What the? How'd you get here?”. 

“Stephen, do you know this pony?”. 

“Of course I do, she's my sister!”. Celestia actually seemed surprised by this. 

“What about the other one?”. 

That one I didn't know, but I got to know him soon enough. 

“Hi, I'm Riley. Nice to meet you. So, I'm guessing you're her brother? She was looking for you and I said I'd help her out”. 

He seemed to be completely unfazed by the fact that he had turned into a pony. 

“Uh, yeah, I am. So, how'd you guys get here?”. 

“Dunno. She was looking for you, but everyone was looking at her like she was crazy, saying they'd never heard of you. I went up and offered to help. So we went to the city center, then we lost consciousness, and now we're here”. 

I still couldn't believe he was so calm telling me all this. 

“So, Stephen, shall we take your sister and your new friend back to the library?”. 

I nodded, not needing to be asked twice. “Lead the way ma'am”. And off we went. Back to the library, which was already past full capacity. Little did we know, we were being watched by five shadows. Shadows, which by all accounts, should never have been part of this world, but which somehow came into being with the arrival of myself, Christian, Meadhbh and Riley. They watched us leave, then departed for a long forgotten location.

When they arrived, Twilight, her friends, and Christian were all waiting at the library. They all seemed relieved to see us, but they didn't seem surprised to see the two extra guests. That's when AJ stepped forward. 

“Listen Stephen. The gals and I have been talkin', and we thought your sister and friends could each stay with one of us, seein' as how there's barely enough room for you, Twilight and Spike to stay here. Your sister could stay with Rarity, Christian could stay with Rainbow Dash, and Riley could stay with me and my family at Sweet Apple Acres. You could stay with Twilight if you want, since we all noticed you eyein' those books like Rainbow Dash at a Wonderbolts show”. 

“Oh, yeah, I always was the kinda guy who preferred books to people. My school days didn't help much with that”. 

Twilight decided to change the topic, probably noticing I was uncomfortable talking about school. 

“Then it's settled. You'll stay with me, Meadhbh with Rarity, Christian with Rainbow and Riley with Applejack”. 

I smiled. Sometimes I'm surprised at how much they're helping us. Then again, I didn't get much help back home with my own problems. Actually, it's more like I refused it. Too stubborn to acknowledge when I needed it. 

“Uh, Stephen, you ok dude?” 

I snapped out of my thoughtful trance to see Christian looking at me worriedly. 

“Oh, yeah, just thinking you know. It's sort of what I do best, remember?”. 

“Yeah, but you haven't zoned out like that in a long time. The last time was a few years ago at least”. 

I just smiled and told him I was fine. He dropped the subject and turned to face RD. 

“So, which way to your place then?”. 

“Over there” she pointed to a small place in the clouds. I  knew where this was going. 

“Ten cloud pies say I can beat you there.”. 

“Oh yeah? YOU'RE ON!”. And  off they went. 

“Well, your friend Christian certainly is... spirited”. 

“More like hyper. Sometimes I think he eats too much pie and is constantly on a sugar high”. 

Everyone just smiled sheepishly, except for Celestia who was in the process of stifling a chuckle. 

“I see. Well, I'd better get back to tending the animals. I'll see you girls later” And with that Fluttershy took off for home. 

“OH! I forgot I have to help the cakes with a super-duper special rush order, bye!” And she was off like a rocket. A  pink,sugar fueled, party rocket. 

Applejack then started leading Riley away. “Ok Riley, time to show you where you'll be staying while you're here”. 

He smiled and went without a hint of protest. 

“Alright Meadhbh, shall I show you where you'll be staying. After all, it's getting dark, and a lady should never stay out too late”. 

“Ok, that sounds good. Thank you miss Rarity”. 

“Oh please, just call me Rarity my dear”. 

“Ok then Rarity”. And with that, my sister was off to her new, temporary home at Carousel Boutique. 

That left me, Twilight, Spike and Celestia. 

“Well, I really should be getting back to Canterlot. I trust you can handle things from here my faithful student”. 

“Yes Princess Celestia. I won't let you down”. 

“I know you won't. And Stephen”. She turned to look at me, and I felt nervous.

And then she smiled slightly. “Keep practicing with that blade of yours, and maybe if I can find some free time, I can give you some pointers. Until then”

And with that said she took off for Canterlot, leaving me and Twilight alone outside the library. She turned to face me, and for a while I thought she was going to start yelling at me, but she was smiling. 

“Wow, she offered to help you practice your swordsponyship. She must really see a lot of potential in you”. 

“You think so? Wow, I used to learn how to use swords back home, never with real ones, mind you, just wooden practice blades, but I didn't actually think I'd ever end up using those skills in real life. It was just something to keep me occupied”.

“Ok, well it's getting late, so we should get some sleep. Agreed?”. 

“Agreed”. 

“Yeah. Let's hit the hay”. And so, the three of us  went into the library for some much needed rest. Still unaware that the shadows were watching us, waiting for the chance to make their move.
> The Ponyville Plague
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


1 WEEK LATER


I woke up in a really good mood. Man, that was a weird dream. 

I wonder who that blue pony was. I feel like I know her from somewhere. 

I decided to talk to Twilight about it after breakfast and my morning practice session. I'd been practicing my bladework for an hour every morning and evening with Christian, while my sister had been practicing her skills with her club and Riley with his dual pistols. 

Seriously, where in the name of Celestia did these weapons come from? 

Not that I was complaining. It gave me something to focus on, something to keep me from going insane thinking about how it was possible that we got sent to another reality. Once again, not that I'm complaining. Being in a new reality was pretty amazing. It's just kind of a hard concept to wrap your head around. But at least my new friends were helping me and my old friends get accustomed to how things worked around here. I was helping Twilight around the library, Christian had joined the weather team with Rainbow Dash, Riley was helping Applejack around Sweet Apple Acres, and Meadhbh was assisting Rarity at Carousel Boutique. All in all, everypony was adapting well. I for one, was adapting better than I thought I would. It was the first time I had felt like I was accepted by the community in general, despite my....issues. It felt right, like I had previously been in a world I wasn't really a part of, but that I had finally found one I was meant to be in. 

“Stephen?” I jumped slightly. I turned to see Twilight looking concerned. 

“Are you alright? You looked like you were lost in thought there”. 

“Sorry. Just thinking about how I feel more at home here than I do in my own reality. Humans have a hard time accepting people for being... different. Even with Christian as a friend, and he's helped me out of more problems than I care to admit, it's hard to feel happy sometimes”. 

“Oh, I'm sorry to hear that” She looked sad after hearing my opinion. 

“Hey, cheer up. No use worrying about stuff we can't change.” 

I gave her my best fake smile, and she chuckled. “Alright, then how about we get back to work?”. 

“Sounds good to me. Let's do it. But first, I saw a strange blue pony in a dream last night. She had wings and a horn like Celestia, but her cutie mark was of the moon. Any ideas who it was. I swear I've seen her somewhere before but for the life of me I just can't remember.”.

”Stephen, that was princess Luna, she's Princess Celestia's younger sister”. 

“Oh, then that explains why I felt like I knew her, but then why did I see her in my dream? And how come I couldn't remember her when I saw her? And also, she was saying something about peparing, but preparing for what? Oh well, I'm sure I'll remember it at some point. Anyway, should we get back to work?”. 

Twilight seemed concerned, but didn't press the matter further. 

“Ok, Stephen. Let's do that”. 

And with that, we got back to work, my less than fortunate past forgotten. At the end of the day we  said our goodnights and proceeded to rest for the coming day, although Spike was being difficult in that he wanted to stay up late, though he wouldn't say why. Twilight managed to make him sleep with the promise that she'd buy some gems from Rarity for breakfast the next day. We had no idea however, that the shadows had begun a plan that would make the next day into something none of us could have foreseen.

I woke up in the library, and had a look around. All in all, it seemed to be a normal morning. Then I noticed what time it was. 

Oh sweet Celestia, Twilight is gonna kill me!

I had slept in, and I was supposed to go with Twilight to get supplies for next week. She had already left by the time I got downstairs. 

“Hey Stephen, Twilight was pretty mad when she couldn't wake you up to go get supplies with her. I'd hate to be you when she gets back”. 

“I know Spike. I am so dead”. 

“Well, not dead Stephen, just in really big trouble”. 

“Not making me feel better Spike”. 

“Sorry. I'll be quiet now”. 

Oh well, might as well get some practice before I die I thought as I grabbed my sword and went outside to practice. A few minutes later, I saw Twilight running to the library with a look of pure terror in her eyes. 

“Stephen! You have to help! They did something. Something terrible!” She looked like she was about to faint. 

“Hold on Twi. What's going on? Who are they?” I was starting to panic now, sweating as Twilight told me what was happening. 

“The shadows”. Shadows? This cannot be good.

“They came and released some sort of plague. It's dreadful” 

We ran to the town square to find Meadhbh and Christian fighting two ponies. The first was a white unicorn with black eyes and a black mane and tail. He was wielding two blades with deadly skill, but Christian was wielding his knife with just as much skill. And his flying speed made him difficult to target. The second was another unicorn with a white body and black eyes, but this one's mane and tail were red like blood. He was wielding a guitar in a melee style, while my sister was using her club. The two pairs seemed evenly matched. 

“Twilight” I said with absolute seriousness. “No matter what happens, do not get involved, do you understand”. 

“But Stephen I-”. 

“NO BUTS. Something tells me that this is our fight and ours alone. There's no point in you getting hurt over this” 

She seemed to be preparing to try and change my mind, but suddenly just nodded silently and stepped back. I ran in, sword drawn only to be attacked from above by a third white unicorn, this one with a light brown mane and tail using nunchucks. 

“Well, if it isn't the guest of honour. How's things Stephen?” She said with a malicious grin. 

“How do you know my name?”. 

“Oh we know everything about you and your friends. After all, it was your arrival here that brought us into existence. Thanks for that by the way. Name's Meg”. 

“What do you mean?”. 

“All in good time Stephen, all in good time. But for now, you're gonna have to find your fifth friend who arrived here. Don't worry, it won't be that hard, you'll find him on the way to face us. You can find us at the old castle ruins. Your friends the Bearers of the Elements can tell you exactly what we're talking about. Oh, and one more thing.” 

Her voice dropped all traces of humour. “If the Bearers and the Princesses aren't with you when you face us, the Ponyville Plague will be the least of your worries. Bye for now losers”.

And with that she disappeared. And so did the other two. 

“Ok Christian, Meadhbh, what is going on? Any ideas?”. Christian was the first to speak. 

“Yeah, sort of. I was clearing the skies with RD, and this guy shows up out of nowhere, introduces himself as Marco, and attacks us. I felt like he was familiar somehow, so I told RD to stay out of it. She started to protest, but I told her in no uncertain terms that I wasn't gonna let her get involved. After that, I just started fighting. Good thing I trained so hard, or else I'd probably be...” 

He didn't finish the sentence, there was no need. Meadhbh spoke next. 

“I was cleaning up the Boutique with Rarity when I heard Christian shouting at Rainbow, so I ran out and there he was fighting that guy. So I ran to help but then I got attacked by the one with the guitar. He said his name was ParallelTraveler, but that he preferred Para. Anyway, I told him I didn't care about that and just started fighting. Other than that I didn't really see what happened. I'm sorry”. 

“It's ok, I'm just glad you two are alright”. Just then, Riley came running up with Applejack in tow. 

“You all look like hell. Did you guys get attacked too?”. 

“Yeah, so Riley, was your opponent a white unicorn with black eyes?”. 

“Well, except for the unicorn part, you're right, my opponent was a pegasus. Said her name was Magsimum Impact, but to call her Mag. She used some sort of bow thing attached to her right foreleg. Anyway, she showed up out of nowhere and attacked me. I got AJ to run for help. But suddenly she just up and left. We came here straight after, but all the other ponies are sick or something. They're all asleep and won't wake up.” 

Riley was close to having a nervous breakdown. 

I grabbed him and  said “Calm down Riley. Getting worked up isn't going to help anypony. Now, there's still one more friend we have to find, at least that's what the one called Meg told me. Apparently we'll find him on the way to these old catle ruins. She said you guys, as the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, would know what that meant. So, what is it?” 

“Well, there's only one such place that comes to mind. Those horrid old ruins where we faced Nightmare Moon”. 

“I see. Then that's where we'll go. But there's one problem”. And then I explained their conditions. 

“What in tarnation, you mean we have to bring the princesses with us. What do those varmints have planned?”. 

“Doesn't matter. Whatever it is, we'll make sure it doesn't work. We're going to stop them. We're going to stop this plague. We're going to protect everyone. That's a promise”. 

“Yeah, they try to get to you, I'll shoot 'em down”. 

“I'll give 'em a taste of the Red Rush”. 

“I'll take them down if they even think about hurting anypony else”. 

And with that, our flanks started to glow. And then our cutie marks (if they can be called such) appeared. Mine was the symbol for bushido, the way of the warrior. Riley's was a bullseye. Christian's was a knife with wings. And Meadhbh's was a club in front of a shield. 

“Well, looks like ya'll have found your special talents. Now how's about we put those talents to use and save the world?”. 

“Sounds good to us AJ”. 

“Ok, I'll send a letter to Princess Celestia immediately, we can't leave until she and Princess Luna arrive, after all”. 

“Alright, but in the meantime, everypony get ready. Something tells me this is gonna be brutal”. 

And so we left to prepare for a battle that would not only decide the fate of  Ponyville, but the fate of all of Equestria...

Author's Note: This chapter I owe to Christian, he's the one that gave me the idea to add a plague to the story. He even wrote a rough draft for it. True, I extended it, but the credit for this one goes to Christian. after all, I couldn't have even come up with what I did for it if he hadn't pitched the plague idea in the first place. Thanks Christian. I owe you big time for this.
> A new friend
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Ugh, how much farther? My wings are cramping up!”. “Rainbow Dash, you've been saying that non-stop since we left. Give it a rest already 'afore I hogtie that big mouth of yours”. This had been going on since we left. We managed to get prepared rather quickly and Celestia sent a letter back almost immediately saying that she and Luna would meet us in the Everfree Forest. We left right after she read it aloud. Christian was playing with his knife, spinning it like Krauser from RE4. Meadhbh was just walking with her eyes closed, her usual I'm thinking so don't talk to me expression plastered to her face. Riley was cleaning his guns. Twilight and her friends were just talking, except for RD, who wouldn't stop complaining. Well, at least she's not running ahead and getting herself into trouble “I'm gonna go scout ahead. See you slowpokes later”. I facehoofed. Me and my big thoughts. “Well, you're not going by yourself. Christian, go with RD, make sure she doesn't get herself into trouble”. “Got it, I'll stick to her like I did to that pie last year” He said with a grin. I couldn't help but smile as I remembered how he somehow got stuck to a giant pie that year when we were visiting a festival. “Alright, just don't make us call the paramedics this time”. “Uh, what the hay is a paramedic?”. “It's not important”. “Ok, if you say so”. “Can we just get going. I can't stand the waiting”. “Ok Dashie”. “Don't call me that. Only Pinkie can call me that”. “YEAH. Only I get to call Dashie by her super-duper funeriffic nickname”. “CALM DOWN PINKIE!”. “Oh. Sorry everypony, gonna be quiet now.” “Ok, now that that's over with, can we please get going before I die of boredom?”. “Sure, just take it slow”. “Slow? Did you forget who you're talking to? I'm Rainbow Dash, the fastest flier in all of Equestria. Slow isn't even in my vocabluary”. And then she was off, with Christian following closely behind. “Ok, so should we keep going or wait for them to come back with their report”. “I say we keep going. Rainbow Dash will be able to find us from above, and besides, there's the matter of finding that fifth friend of yours”. “Yeah, except I don't really have any friends other than Christian back home. I have no idea what this guy might even look like”. “Well I doubt we'll have a hard time finding him”. “I guess you're right”. That was when RD and Christian came back. “Uh guys, you may wanna see this” What now? I didn't have to wait long to find out. A few hundred feet ahead in a clearing was an unconscious earth pony. His body was yellow and his mane and tail were brown. He also had a scythe strapped to his back. They weren't kidding when they said finding him wouldn't be hard, though this seems a little too easy I was proven right almost immediately when he woke up and slammed his head right into my face shouting “Bring it on,  Reaver”. And then he decided to see who he attacked. “OhCrapIAmSoSorryIThoughtYouWereOneOfThoseShadowGuysWhoAttackedMeEarlierAndWhyAmIAPonyDoYouKnowAndDoYouThinkYouCanChangeMeBackA..mmph”. “Dude, calm down, you're going a mile a minute. Now, who are you and how'd you get here?”. “Ok, so, my name's Claudius, but everyone calls me Conduit for some reason. Never asked why, didn't seem important to me. Anyway, I was just walking along, minding my own business, and suddenly I wake up in this forest, and I realise I turned into a pony. Don't know how, don't care at the moment. Anyway, I'm attacked by this guy called Reaver who uses a combat staff. It's a special staff that can be fitted with various implements for battle. He also had daggers, though he seemed loathe to use them. Oh well, that's my story, so who are you guys?” The whole time he was speaking he had a huge grin on his face. Man, the way he talks, he could be Pinkie's stallion countepart or something. “OhOhOH!!”. “What Pinkie?”. “How could I be a stallion? I'm a mare silly!”. “What the? Pinkie, how did you know what I was thinking? Is this some sort of Pinkie sense thing?”. “No silly, you were just mumbling what you were thinking and I heard it” She gave a huge grin, and I couldn't help but start to grin too, and pretty soon we were all laughing as if we'd been been best friends our whole lives. It was getting late so we decided to spend the night in the clearing we had found Claudius in. I had no idea what was coming when I went to sleep that night. I was completely unaware that everything was about to change even more than it already had.

Author's Note: I know this one is shorter than the rest of them, but it was meant solely to introduce Claudius. The next one should have some more length, and trust me, you're not gonna believe what happens next. (Or maybe you will, who's to say)
> Revelations
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up to hear Meadhbh and Twilight talking in hushed tones. “How? How is that possible? And are you sure that Rainbow is”. “ Yes I'm sure Twilight. I don't know how it's possible, but you have to promise me you won't tell Stephen, I can't let him find out yet”. “Alright, I promise”. “Pinkie Promise?”. I could see her rolling her eyes. “Yes”. I saw her make the motions and as usual, she managed to hurt her eye performing the final action. “OW, how do I always manage to do that?”. “I dunno Twi, but it's funny. And thanks”. “No problem. I don't want to see Stephen get hurt either”. I heard them go back to sleep, but I lay awake, my head spinning. What were they talking about. What could it be that would hurt me so badly that she keeps it a secret. I knew I wasn't going to get any answers just sitting around thinking about it. But I had no idea how to find out what it was they were talking about, short of actually asking them, and I was pretty sure that they wouldn't tell me willingly. I decided to try and put it out of my head. But that proved next to impossible, because I was afraid. I was afraid that, if I found out, something terrible would happen, but I was more afraid that not knowing would drive me insane and cause me to hurt the people around me. I decided that once this fight was over, I would confront them and ask them what secret they were keeping from me. In the meantime, I decided to sleep. My dreams actually helped me to calm down, and then I realised why. Someone was here with me, someone I had seen just the night before, under similar circumstances. There, standing not ten feet in front of me, was Princess Luna.

“Greetings Stephen, I trust you are well”. Her speaking style is slightly different than usual, I think. She doesn't refer to herself as we. I wonder what changed, or if that was ever how she really spoke? I guess it doesn't matter. “Yes Princess, but I”. “Please, call me Luna. I would prefer my friends drop the royal title when I speak with them”. “A friend? Me?”. “Yes. I was wary of you and your friends at first, but after seeing you all and how close you came to be with the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, I decided to ask you if you would consider being my friends. But that is not the only reason I am here tonight. Something troubles you, does it not?”. “Yes, actually. My sister is hiding something from me. I heard her and Twilight talking, and she made Twilight Pinkie Promise to keep it secret, saying she didn't want to hurt me”. “I see. And you worry that if you do not find out what it is they hide, that you will begin to lose your sanity and try to hurt them?”. “Yeah, that's it exactly, it's like you can read my mind or something”. “That is not entirely false. As it is with all living beings, whatever is most prominent in your mind is visible to anyone who can enter dreams, although there are few other than myself who have that ability. I saw what you feared would happen. So in a way, I guess you could call it mind-reading”. “Sounds complicated”. “It is. But I have strayed from the matter at hand. You must try not to worry about this. Doing so will only push you closer to losing your sanity, and none of us want to see that happen to you”. “But what if...”. “There are no 'what ifs', you must simply leave the matter for now, and focus on the task ahead. My sister and I have almost reached you and your friends. We will be there by the time you awake”. “Alright. Thanks Luna”. “You are welcome. And before we go, will you consider our offer of friendship?”. She looks hesitant, as if she's afriad I'll say no. “Nothing to consider. Welcome to the gang, Luna, though I think we still need a cool team name”. She chuckled. It actually calmed me down. “Thank you, and I'll try to think of one on the way". And with that, she was gone, and I was alone in my dreams.

We all woke up relatively refreshed. It seemed that when Luna entered my dreams she did something, cause I felt better than I had in a long time. Luna and Celestia were both asleep beside each other close to our campsite. The mane 6 were all stretching the sleep out of their bodies. Christian was looking around for something Probably dreaming about pie again, he always starts looking around as if he's gonna find that dream pie. Riley was cleaning his pistols. Claudius was scrawling what looked like a recipe for some sort of cake in the ground. Meadhbh was just sitting, staring off into space. She gave a smile when she saw me, but I could tell it was forced. Twilight saw that I was up and went to wake Celestia and Luna. “Well, are we ready to move on? Those shadows aren't going to beat themselves”. “True, so let's get to it”. So we set off, for what we hoped would be our final battle against the shadows.

As we walked through the forest to the castle ruins, I started to hear something strange, something that seemed out of place in the forest. “Do you guys hear that?”. “Hear what? I sure can't hear anything”. “Are you girls sure? I can hear something, but maybe my hearing's just a little bit better than yours”. “Rainbow, I swear, I'm gonna hogtie that big mouth of yours if you don't cut it out”. “Stephen, what is it?”. “It sounds like....music?”. It was faint at first, but it gradually got louder. Where is it coming from? But finding out where it came from suddenly lost all importance when I realised I had hear it before. No, it can't be, it's just not possible. But it was. It was a song my mother had used to sing to me whenever I refused to sleep, for fear of the monsters that I was sure hid in my closet and under my bed. No matter how afraid I was, that song would always make me feel safe. I turned to ask them if they could tell where it was coming from. But as I looked, I realised that none of the others could hear it. None except for Celestia and Rainbow Dash. They both looked pale, as if they had seen (or rather heard) a ghost. Wait, do they recognise this song? No way, it's not possible. My mom made this song up when I was a kid, I haven't heard it since... I shifted my focus towards finding the source of the music, not wanting to dwell any more on bad memories. But then an immense pain surged through my head, and I felt memories float to the surface of my mind. But theses memories were alien to me. They were my memories, but at the same time they weren't. First I saw myself jumping across trees, dressed in some sort of strange uniform, with a sword on my back and a strange mask covering my face. Then it shifted to an entirely different scene. I was walking with two strangers, one a short boy with blond hair in a ponytail, wearing a red cloak, while the other was in a full suit of armour, and I had a metal arm again, except this one was made of normal steel. Even though I had never met them before, I felt like I knew them. More and more images flooded my mind. A younger version of me, looking at a burning house where his family had all died (from the world where I wore the strange uniform). Me, standing in an endless expanse of nothingness, except for a strange door I'd never seen before. I could see the others watching, afraid to step close. Finally, I saw the one memory I hoped never to see again. But this time it was different. It was the true version, not the one my subconscious had created in an attempt to keep me sane.

We were driving home, and Meadhbh was beating me at the silent game. As usual. “Argh, I hate the silent game. You think I'd be good at it, seeing as I don't like talking to people, but I can't stop thinking of stuff and then just blurting it out. So annoying!”. “Woah, calm down kiddo, we're almost there, so don't blow a gasket, or we'll have to send you for repairs” Typical dad, still can't make any good jokes I thought, although I still forced a small chuckle, to keep him from taking desperate measures (Namely, singing badly on purpose, when he had a great talent for singing). “Ok, so, what do you wanna have for dinner?”. “Pizza”.” No, I can't stand the sauce, remember?”. “Oh shut up, Stephen, quit being such a baby”. “I am not a baby Meadhbh, I'm two years, eight months and eighteen days older than you” I said proudly. Jeez, how do I remember it down to the number of days? “Ok, enough you two, or I'm gonna take off my seatbelt, go back there and”. She never finished that sentence. It was at that moment that another car, seemingly out of nowhere, just rammed straight into us. I didn't hear it. I was already unconscious. I don't even remember how that happened in the first place. The next thing I knew, I was in a stretcher, being led into a waiting ambulance. The paramedics were covering up three bodies, one of which, was smaller than me. NONONONONONO! This can't be happening. Please tell me this is some sort of nightmare.  Please just let me wake up in my bed. PLEASE! But it wasn't a nightmare. And that made it more painful, because I knew that this was going to haunt me worse than any nightmare ever could, because at least with a nightmare, you wake up and it's over. This was worse because I had to wake up and live my life knowing that this would never be over, that I'd never be able to see my family again. I spent the next year of my life just going through the motions, very  rarely stopping to talk to anyone, and even then only briefly. Even so, I made a friend, Christian. But I never told him of my past, and he never pressed the issue. I think I went insane for a time, in fact I'm sure I did, because I started seeing my sister when I was at home, not as how she used to be, but as how she would have been if she had grown up. I refused to tell anyone about this, instead just trying to ignore it. It was the day that I finally decided to say something that I wound up in Equestria, to find that my memories were no longer the same (not that I noticed it), that I couldn't remember that my sister had died that day.

I turned to face my so-called sister, with the rage inside me evident for all to see. “Who are you?” I asked. “Stephen, calm down, you need to”. “WHO ARE YOU?”. She cringed. “I wanted to wait until after the fight to explain, but I guess that isn't an option anymore, huh?”. “Shut up and talk. NOW”. “Alright. I am your sister, and at the same time, I'm not”. “That doesn't make any sense”. “Ok, ok. When I....died, most of my soul left my body to be reborn. Yes, when someone dies they are reborn. The rest of my soul just stayed with you. I guess it was trying to keep an eye on you. And you weren't exactly going crazy when you saw me. The part of me that remained managed to partially manifest itself a few times, though never for very long. And I couldn't actually say anything, no matter how hard I tried. Either that or you just didn't hear me”. “Oh yeah, and what did you have to say?”. “I was trying to tell you to move on. Did you think we wanted you to act the way you'd been acting since we died YOU IDIOT?”. I just stared at her. I had nothing to say. “Well, we didn't, and that's why I showed up. To get you to stop moping and move on. I'm not saying I want you to forget about us, just to stop feeling like life is never gonna be ok anymore because no matter how bad things are” Typical, her catchphrase makes a comback “it could be worse”. Somehow, hearing her say that made me laugh, and all my hostility towards her suddenly vanished. “Alright, but how'd I forget about what really happened? And what about Riley?”. “ To answer your first question, that was my fault. When you arrived, I got separated from you and sent back to our original world, and I kinda took that piece of your memory with it. You subconsciously replaced the missing piece with a false version, I think. In regards to Riley, I finally figured out how to manifest myself physically, don't ask how, so I found him and recruited his help. And you know the rest”. “Ok, well, that makes more sense than I thought it would. So, what happens now?”. “Well, none of you can ever return home to the world you came from, seeing as the thing that brought you here in the first place made irreparable changes that resulted in, well, let's just say it's as if you guys never existed. On the bright side, I learned something cool”. “Oh yeah? What?”. “Everyone that exists in one reality has alternate incarnations of themselves in other realities. You know those weird memories? Well, they were of you, but from other realities. You even merged with your alternate selves from this world when you got here.”. “Wait, does that mean” “Yup, there's another incarnation of me and mom too. I tried finding out about dad, but, well, he's not around anymore in this world”. “Oh. Well, any ideas who your alternate self is?”. “Yup, but you're probably gonna think I'm crazy when I say this. And just so you know, I didn't merge with my alternate self because it's only possible when the soul is whole, not broken into pieces”. “Just stop beating around the bush and tell me who it is already!”. “Ok, ok, jeez, you're an even bigger killjoy than you were back home. Anyway, my alternate self is actually RD”. Everypony except Twilight gasped. She just looked as if it was just a casual comment. That must've been what they were talking about. RD looked like she was about to charge at Meadhbh. “Wait, you mean this guy, who I still think is kinda crazy, is supposed to be my brother or something? Are you nuts?”. “No, and I'll explain how I know this. Before I died, I was a lot like you are now. I was kind of cocky, overconfident, and prideful, but I always stuck up for my friends. True, I got in trouble a few times at school because of it, but I didn't care, cause I was glad to help them out. Also, when I met you, I saw something. I guess you could call it a flashback. Anyway, I heard a lullaby being sung, one I hadn't heard since I was 7. But it wasn't me being sung to. It was you. You were the one that the lullaby was meant for. That's how I know that you and I are counterparts”. “Ok, somehow I managed to follow that, and for some strange reason, I'm gonna go out on a hoof here and say I believe you. So, can you tell me who your mom's alternate is?”. “No, the one who brought us here is keeping that particular information from me”. “Ok then, we just have to find this guy, kick his tail and then, everything goes back to normal right?”. “Pretty much, except you will actually remember who your mom is, and she'll remember you, so, what happens from there is up to you”. “Well then, now that we're all up to speed, how about we get going and finish this mission?”. “Alright, Twilight”. And so we set off again. I looked to the others, wondering why none of them said anything even once. Even Pinkie Pie looked lost in thought, and she's, well, Pinkie Pie. Maybe they're just too shocked to speak. Somehow, I doubted that, but I decided to just put it out of my head for the moment, and get on with the mission. Stopping those shadows came first, and then the one who brought us here. That guy had a lot of explaining to do.
> Team names, party plans and smack talk
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Jackass Kickers”. “No”. “Dimensional Twisters?”. “No”. “Ponyville Elite Squadron?”. “No”. Sweet Celestia, how many more can he possibly have thought of? Christian had gotten bored, and had apparently decided to alleviate his boredom by coming up with random names for us to call ourselves. He'd been going on for a half hour, and my patience was wearing thin. Please let us arrive at the castle ruins soon, or else I'm probably gonna do something I'll regret. “Oh, the reality smashers!”. “No”. “Then maybe....the sendaways?”. “No, and I swear Christian, unless I actually like the next one, you won't be flying again anytime soon”. He actually went pale at this, which surprised me I haven't seen him look like that since he ate that bad piece of pie. I still don't know how he managed not to get sick. Oh well, maybe he'll actually shut up now. “I got it!” Or maybe not. “The Incarnations!”. Wow, that one actually sounds....not that bad. “Fine, if it'll shut you up, we'll call ourselves the Incarnations. Just stop torturing me with your constant barrage of random team names, please!”. Christian just looked at me and laughed. Then we all started laughing. The only one who wasn't was Rainbow Dash, who was just looking at us like we had all lost it. Eventually she started smiling, but that was the most we could get from her. I guess she's still trying to process everything Meadhbh said too. Her method seems to be to retreat inwards, same as mine would've been before I came here. I went over to her, half expecting her to tell me to get lost or something like that. Instead, she just looked at me with tears in her eyes. She was the one who broke the silence. “You know, I can't even remember anything about my family. Sure I remember  flight camp and stuff like that, but I never actually remember anything from before that, nothing  about my parents, or if I had any siblings. And now, I find I've got a brother from another reality. It's really doing a number on my head. I'm still thinking this might just be some crazy dream”. “Honestly, I'd be glad if it turns out not to be. I mean, my family is gone. Sure I have my friend Chris, but I could never really open up to him. Half of the time after what happened was spent trying to decide whether or not I should just take my own life”. “That's horrible Stephen. How could you even think something like that?”. “Yeah, I know, it's bad. I won't deny that. What I will say is that I felt like nothing would ever be ok again. Seeing your entire family die right in front of you will probably do that to you. But after coming here, I don't feel that way anymore. You and everyone else helped me feel happy again, when I thought I never would. You guys became my family. It's been way too long since I've felt like things would work out, but now they are, and I have all of you to thank for it”. “Yeah, well, don't go getting all emotional on me. If you are my brother, you're gonna have to start being more awesome, after all, anything you do reflects on me too. So if you look bad, I look bad”. “Got it, I'll try not to make you look bad...sis”. She stopped with a surprised look on her face for a few seconds, but then she ran up beside me again, with Meadhbh in tow, and both were smiling. They spoke together. “Alright then, bro. Let's get to kicking those shadows and the guy who brought you here out of Equestria”. “Agreed”.

It was another ten minutes before we finally reached the ruins. By then, Dashie and I (that's right, she actually let me use her nickname) had exchanged several embarassing stories. Hers were mostly about her experiences in flight camp, while mine were more about awkward situations I'd gotten myself into at school. By the time we were done, we were laughing so hard that our sides hurt. Everyone else was laughing too, though not as hard. Even Celestia and Luna were chuckling, though they did their best to hide it. But we all became silent when we saw the ruins. “Oh my, what have they done to this place? It's so...different”.”Yeah, it looks like new? Ooh, maybe they'll let me throw a Nice-Job-Fixing-Up-These-Old-Ruins Party”. “Pinkie, we're not here to party, we're here to buck these here shadows out of Equestria”. “Yeah, and the guy that brought my bro and his friends here”. “Maybe, but I still want to ask them something first”. “And that would be?”. “Their reasons. I refuse to believe they'd do all this without a reason, unless they're somehow linked to Discord or something”. “Doubtful, the last I saw, Discord was still imprisoned in stone since the Elements of Harmony defeated him, just as Tia and I did centuries ago”. “Those were the days, eh, Lulu?”. “Yes, those were the days”. Tia and Luna chuckled. Guess it must be an inside joke. “Well, if we're all done gawking, I think it's time we got some answers. Don't you?”. “Yeah, let's go Stephen”. “So, when we win, I get all the pie I can eat, right Pinkie?”. “Oh yeah, almost forgot about the OMIGOSH!”. “What? Pinkie, did something happen to the pie?”. “No, Chris. I just remembered I totally forgot to throw you guys a Welcome-To-Ponyville-From-Another-Reality Party. And when this is done, I'm gonna have to throw the best ever Thanks-For-Saving-Equestria-From-A-Bunch-Of-Meanie-Shadows-And-Their-Plague-Thingy Party too!”. “Ooh, can I help you make the cakes? I love making happy cakes!”. “Sure Claudy, I'd love to see how cakes are made by somepony from an alternate reality”. “Claudy? I like it! Sounds like cloudy!”. “Oh yeah, it does doesn't it?”. “Ok Pinkie, looks like we've got another reason to win, huh?”. “Yupperooni”. “Alright, I guess we should get going then, I mean, if you want to?”. “Shy, no worries. I won't let you guys get hurt no matter what. Sounds cliched, but I promise, I won't let you guys down. Right?”. “Oh yeah, I'm bringing the Pie of Pain”. “And I'm feeling pretty trigger-happy”. “I'm gonna enjoy serving up a slice of revenge to these guys”. “And I'm gonna look out for you like I did for the past few years, except this time, I'm not gonna let you lose another limb”. I smiled a bit at that. It was almost as if nothing had changed. That was when Celestia spoke up “Well, my little ponies, it's time to end this, is it not?”. We just nodded in agreement, and with that we went in, to face the shadows and their master. I don't know why you brought us here, but I swear, you're gonna tell me everything, and them I'm taking you down.

“Well, took you losers long enough. Bet you couldn't wait to behold my sexiness, huh?” That Meg certainly is full of herself I thought. We made it all the way into the throne room before Meg and her fellow shadows showed up. All of them were looking at us with a mix of contempt and smugness. So, they think they've already won do they? Well, if this theory of mine is right, they're in for a big surprise. No, can't think about it now, gotta focus on the task at hand, getting answers, beating these guys, and saving the world. Man that sounds so cliched My thoughts were becoming more scattered as they continued to watch us. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. “Alright, we're here, now, are we gonna get this over with, or do you plan on waiting until we die of old age? I wanna get this over with so I can get my pie”. “Aww, don't be like that, I'm sure once you see my skills with this guitar, all your thoughts of pie will end, along with your lives”. “Shut it Para, let's just get to the fighting”. “Fine Reaver, but you know the rules”. “Fine, I'm on it”. Suddenly, there was a sudden flash, and when we were able to see again, Twilight and the other Bearers were trapped in some sort of dome. Whatever it was, we couldn't even hear them through it. What the hell is that thing made of? “It's a special barrier, made from darkness, though it may not look like it. They can't get out of it until this fight is finished, and you can't hear them, but they can hear you. If you're wondering why the princesses aren't sealed in it too, it's cause the boss wants to have a private word with them”. Suddenly, Celesia and Luna disappeared, teleported by an unseen force. “Don't worry, he won't harm them, he's gonna save the pleasure of ending their pathetic lives until we've finished you off first. So, here's how it works. Stephen, you're paired off against me” If looks could kill, she'd be six feet under by now. “Aww, don't give me that face. After all, I'm sexy and I know it, so you know you're gonna enjoy it” “Enough with your crappy jokes, get on with it”. “Fine, jeez, don't get your knickers in a twist. Christian, you're fighting Marco, Claudius, you're against Reaver, Riley, you're facing Mag, and Meadhbh...” She smiled sadistically as she said my sister's name “You're battling Para. Hope you don't mind bad music, it's all you'll get from him”. Para scowled at Meg “Shut up, you don't know anything about music. Anyway, I hope you're ready, I've already got your funeral music prepared Meadhbh”. “Yeah, I don't think so, but I'll be sure to play a recording of it at yours jerk”. “Well Chris, you ready to die?” “Not gonna happen. I won't die when there's pie on the line”. “Well Claudius, you ready to meet your maker?”. “Nah, but I'll make sure to give you some cakes to share when you go see him”. “Well, Riley, from one sharpshooter to another, you'd better not hold back, this won't be any fun otherwise”. “Yeah, I don't give a damn about fun, so I'll be sure to make this quick”. And with our pre-battle banter finished, we drew our weapons and circled each other. Even though I couldn't see them, I felt like Celestia and Luna were observing, albeit unwillingly. Please let them be alright. I can't let them get hurt. I have to help them, no matter what. I won't lose the ones I care about, not again. And with that, I began the battle, hoping, no, praying that they would be alright when we finally joined up with them again.

Author's Note: I'll be covering the fights individually, and they'll be done from the perspective of each member of the Incarnations. Also, I may or may not ask my friends, who helped me with this in the first place, to write their own fight scene, so the writing style may seem different for each fight. If each of them agrees and there are two versions of each fight, I'll put both versions up, and you can decide which one is true to the story, I will reveal the shadow's backstories after the next chapter. Also, if anyone is interested in having a character in this fic, leave a comment or message me. I've already got an idea for how I'm gonna introduce the character for Zoom_The_Kid, but if anyone wants, I can write them into it as well. And just so you know, if I do write you into the story, my plan is to have you in it for the rest of it, so if I decide to make a sequel, you will be in it if you make an appearance in this one. Oh and one more thing: If any of you are wondering about the 'theory', that'll be revealed during the final battle. Sorry if you feel like I'm leaving you hanging, but I want it to remain a secret until I'm sure about where I'm gonna go with it.
> The fights
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Stephen VS Meg

I just stood  in the center of the arena with my blade drawn, trying to make her get impatient so she would make the first move. I had already decided not to attack her until I could get an accurate sense of her fighting style. Suddenly, she disappeared, and I instinctively ducked just before her nunchucks passed through the space where my head had been. “Pretty good reflexes, loser. And by the way, your blade got a name?”. “What kind of question is that?”. “You just seem like the type to name your weapons”. “Well, yeah, it has a name, but I think it chose the name itself”. “Oh, what is it then?”. “The Gilded Talon”. She just laughed and said “That's the dumbest name I've ever heard! You really are a loser!”. “You won't be saying that when I kick your ass, Ms. I think I'm sexy!. Yeah, right. About as sexy as a wet mop!”. Her face turned from one of smugness, to one of absolute rage. “OH, THAT'S IT, YOU ARE SO DEAD!”. So she stopped mouthing off and started attacking like crazy. I dodged most of her swings, but the rest were too fast for dodging to work, and I was forced back step by step until I hit the wall. She smiled, sensing victory. What happened next was something none of us could've expected, except maybe Pinkie Pie, cause, well, she's Pinkie Pie. My blade started to glow, and there was a sudden flash of light, and when I could see again, I was in an empty world, and my original blade was gone, but in it's place were two new swords. They were twin blades. What the hell? What are these blades? Why do they seem so familiar? “Been a while, huh Stephen?”. “What the? Who's there? Show yourself!”. “Jackass, we're right in front of you! Pay attention! This is the last time we can ever have a conversation with you so don't start being an idiot now!”. “Wait a minute, the blades are talking to me? I've gone insane, haven't I? And what do you mean this is the last time?”. “No, you're not crazy, but I'm guessing that you probably don't remember us. You can blame Akumu for that. And this is the last time because after this our spirits are gonna fade, but we'll last long enough to help you in this fight”. “Ok, but who's Akumu?” “Oh, sorry, you probably don't remember him either. Well, we'll leave that for later. Anyway, it's time”.“Time? Time for what?”. “Time for you to take up your birthright”. Suddenly, the blades in front of me somehow strapped themselves to my side. “Ok, now what?”. “What do you think? You fight, and you win! Oh, and remember to tell your mom we said hi”. “Wait, you know who my mom is in this world? Tell me!” “Can't. Only Akumu can reveal that, and that'll only happen if you win. So don't go getting yourself killed. Oh, and one more thing”. “What?”. “Might as well let you know this now. You weren't originally from where you thought you were. You wanna' know more, ask Akumu, cause we can't say anything more on the subject”. With that, I was suddenly back in the arena, only this time I had the two blades drawn, and Meg looked surprised. “What the? Where did you get those blades?”. “Oh, you mean these? Apparently they're my birthright”. “Oh yeah? They got names too?”. She was trying to sound cocky, but I could detect the fear in her voice. “Yeah, they do”. And I shouted their names for all to hear “上昇! 太陽と月の目!”. (Jōshō = Rise!)(Taiyō to Tsuki no me = Eyes of the sun and moon). I charged her, letting my instincts, or rather the blades' instincts, guide me. She swung, and I somersaulted over her and struck, knocking the nunchucks away with Tsuki no me, and Bringing Taiyō no me to her throat. She just stood there speechless. I smiled.”What the hell was that?”. “Game over, I win”. And then I put my blades away. “Why didn't you finish me off, loser?”. “Unlike you, I have no desire to take anypony's life”. “You think we wanted this? That's a laugh”. “Then why are you doing this?”. “Cause Akumu is the reason we're here, and we have no choice but to obey him, or die. He even warped our personalities to make us more 'effective', as he put it.”. So she told me the story of how the shadows became what they are now...


Christian VS Marco

I stared at Marco, and he stared at me. There would be no words exchanged between us. We both knew what was going through each other's minds. I am not gonna die here. My friends are counting on me, and that's all I need to know. He's going down. I rushed him, knife in mouth, and slashed quickly before he could draw his two swords. But he dodged and countered almost immediately, and I barely managed to avoid getting cut in half. I took to the air, hoping to use my speed to throw him off balance. As I was flying I noticed a weakness in his attacks, his right flank being completely exposed. I rushed to use that opportunity and attacked. Marco stared at me repeating the words “Ae shala sahs”. Little did I know that the whole time he was playing a mind trick on me, and suddenly he was gone. As I looked around trying to figure out what had happened, he attacked me from behind, giving me a deep cut on my back. I went into a rage, and started slashing around with my knife, but this was what he had wanted, and he easily dodged my uncoordinated blows, and inflicted several more wounds on my body. I thought to myself I need to calm down! This is the kind of weakness that he expects from me! After that I got my cool back, slowed down, and started analysing his movements. I slashed above his head a few times and made a cut on his face. He just said “Nice try, but that stroke of luck is going to be your last!” Then he started to say those words again. “Ae shala sahs”. But before he could play another mind trick on me I gave him two hooves to the face. He was lying on the floor for a couple of seconds before rushing at me with a fury of attacks. I flew up, easily getting out of reach, despite the pain my sudden movements caused. While I was thinking how to defeat him he was trying to get me with his swords. Then I thought of it. Sonic boom! I flew as close to him as I could without getting slashed and performed the sonic boom. Marco flew 6 feet backwards saying the words “I’ll be back! Count on it meathead!” before he hit the wall and lost consciousness. I looked at everyone and thought to myself… I haven’t disappointed them… I turned to see Stephen talking with Meg. What the hell? Does he have the hots for her or something? Nah, couldn't be. I know for a fact he's crushing on Twi, he's just too embarassed to admit it. Not surprising though, the last time he asked a girl out, she just laughed and called him a freak, but she had to shout it out to the whole school, didn't she? I doubt I'd want to ask someone out if that happened to me. But never mind, “I wonder what they're talking about?” “I'll tell you, though you probably won't believe me”. I turned to see Marco getting back up, though he was having trouble doing even that. “Alright, what's the deal?”. So he told me how he came to be a shadow...


Meadhbh VS ParallelTraveler

I looked Para, and all I could think was He thinks he's so great, probably thinks he's quite the ladies man. Yeah right. I'm gonna knock him off his high horse. Damn that pun was bad. Oh well, better get to... oh shi- I just barely dodged as his guitar crashed down where my head had been only a second earlier. “Ha, with reflexes like that, I'm gonna win for sure!”. “We'll see about that!”. I got my club out and swung it at his head. He just avoided it and started playing his guitar. “What the hell? Is this a fight or a kid's music recital?”. “Shut up and enjoy. After all, this is the last song you'll ever hear”. I kept swinging and he just kept dodging and playing. After a while, I started to feel really dizzy. My swings kept getting more sluggish, and he started to drive me back, making more than a few hits on me. Then his words finally made sense to me. The guitar's music is messing with my head! So it's more than just a source of annoying noise? Well, this just got fun! After figuring out his little trick, I knew just what to do. I struck out at his head, and he relflexively brought up his guitar to shield himself. But that's where I caught him! I had temporarily added a blade to the club with magic and I drew the newly constructed blade along the strings, severing them. He just stared at me with murder in his eyes. “YOU OWE ME A NEW GUITAR!”. He charged me, but in his haste he failed to notice my club before it smacked his head into the ground. “So sue me, dumbass”. I saw the others still fighting, so I just sat down next to his unconscious body, and while I waited for him to wake up I thought about what Akumu said before he sent me here, praying that it was a lie...


Riley VS Magsimum Impact

I drew my pistols and prepared to start shooting, and Mag did the same with her Yatekko. We stood there, waiting for the other to make a move. She shot first, and I created a wall to stop the shots. Good thing I learned how to create stuff using what was around me, gotta remember to thank Twi for that. I jumped out and began firing, my bullets heading right at their designated target. But they never made it to her. They just stopped in mid-air, mere centimetres from her face. “What the? How'd you do that? Those were dead-on!”. She just smiled sadistically. Alright, now I'm pissed! But I didn't have time to think as she immediately took up the offensive, forcing me back behind my makeshift wall. I needed time to think, so I turned it from a single wall into a hollow cuboid. Four walls, all the way up to the ceiling. That should give me time to figure her out. Ok, have to think, how did she stop my bullets? She's a pegasus, so that rules out magic. No, wait, not necessarily, not if she has a...that's it! I know what to do now! I could hear her, still trying to break through. And it was showing. The pillar was ready to collapse. Ok, let's see how you like it when I take away your little toy! Just as the first hole appeared in the wall, I dove out, barely avoiding her arrows. I took a quick look and found my target, a small bracelet attached to her left foreleg. I knew it! A shield charm! I took aim, and fired. It was a one in a million shot, hitting the bracelet dead center, shattering it. She was shocked to say the least. “That's impossible! How did you?”. “Nopony is a better marksman than me. Don't mean to brag, but I grew up learning the art of the marksman, and I'll be damned if some shadow is gonna show me up!”. I focused my energy into the pistol and created a tranq round. Even if she is with the bad guys, I won't take anypony's life willingly. I fired, and she crumpled to the ground, unconscious. I looked to see everypony else was still fighting. I decided to take the time to come up with a new battle strategy, for when this big boss of theirs finally decided to make an appearance...


Claudius VS Reaver

I stared at him with a weird smile, thinking What kind of cake should I bake with Pinkie for the victory party? He interrupted me by saying “Hey weirdo, we gonna do this or what?” “Yeah, just a second! So many types…. So many flavours!”. “What the hay are you on about? Ah forget it, just die!”. He charged at me, but I swiftly dodged it and continued to mutter to myself: “Maybe marzipan covered? Or fudge?” Just then I saw Pinkie Pie standing in front of me. I looked at her with a slight surpise. “Pinkie? What are you…?”. I suddenly got whipped in the head with a staff and I realised that wasn’t Pinkie, but Reaver  himself. I realised he had transforming abilities! “Cool! Do me, do me!” He sighed and turned into a figure which resembled me! “Eh, I’ve seen better”. Then I wacked him with my scythe across the face adding a small cut below his eye. I charged at him, thinking about cake, when it hit me! Not the idea but Reaver’s staff. “Ouch! Ok you jerky-jerk-head! THE FOAL GLOVES ARE OFF!” I became enraged and smacked him with my hooves, almost knocking him out. I slowly approached him saying “You should have let me think about my cakes! Now you will meet your shadow maker!”. I smacked on the ground with my scythe as hard as I could, but I realised that I have only bumped his forcefield. He got up shooting magic at me, but I swiftly dodged it. Just then I thought up an epic and physics defying idea! Boomerang scythe! I tossed my sytche as hard as I could. I heard Reaver laughing at me “Hahahaha! Is that the best you got? Man, you su…!”. He never finished that sentence as the scythe smacked him in the head. “Boom headshot! Hehe!”  And he was therefore knocked out, while I looked around and then it hit me! Not the staff but the idea! Triple fudge brownie cake!! I cheered myself and looked around only to see the others fighting. Should I help them? I thought to myself… Nah, they got it! I’ve gotta make a list of the ingredients! And so I started making a list…..

Author's Note: Thanks to Chris for writing the fights between himself and Marco, and between Claudius and Reaver. I had hoped to get some written by the others, but they were unavailable. Sorry about that. And If you're wondering why I haven't written anything about Pinkie breaking the fourth wall, it's because I'm never any good at writing that kind of stuff, it always ends up looking like someone gave a monkey a typewriter and told it to use it's ass to write the stuff. Anyway, now we can move on with the story, but I'll probably get in trouble with my parents since, while I was working on this, I was supposed to be studying for my college exams, which are on this whole week, but oh well. Could be worse. Anyway, I'll try to have the next chapter up ASAP. And to Zoom_The_Kid. The next chapter is where you make your appearance, so I hope you are able to read this! Till then "KEEP KICKING ASS!". "What the buck Pinkie. That's my catchphrase! You can't jsut steal it!". "Well you let Chris use my lines from when we fought those changelings. think of it as poetic justice". "Fine, now, can I please get back to finishing these notes?". "Can I do it? PLEEEAASSSSE?". "Fine". "YAAAAAAAYYYY! OK EVERYPONY, Mr Grouchy over here says that if I don't make this short, he won't let me be in charge of the victory party, so I hope you enjoy this". "Thanks Pinkie". "Okie-Dokie-Loki".
> Before they were Shadows...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


A/N: This is just to give a little backstory on how the shadows came to be. I'm currently working on the next chapter, but I decided to upload this separately. So don't worry Zoom_The_Kid, your big appearance is just over the horizon (God that sounded better in my head)



Meg's POV

I was with Ryan, Marco, Paul and Maggy, doing the usual thing. Shoplifting, pickpocketing,  all sorts of stuff that was frowned upon in society, though we did these things not out of rebellion, but out of necessity. All of us had grown up in the orphanage together, and when we left, we swore we'd never go back. We still haven't. Paul doesn't want anything to do with the orphanage. He went through the worst of it, always being told his dreams of being a musician were nothing but a waste of time. He never let it disuade him though. He always kept practicing with his guitar. Marco was always using those two wooden swords he made. Laughed my ass off when he knocked out the orphanage's biggest bully with one blow, and all he said was “How the fuck did I do that?” before he got dragged away for 'Discipline', or as we called it, the 'Drowning Game'. They'd put us in the tub and submerge our heads until we lost consciousness, those bastards. Maggy was always using that yatteko she had, being paid to perform amazing feats of marksmanship, such as shooting apples off people's heads with plungers for arrows at various distances, and more often than not, shooting miniature self-made arrows into the arses of wankers. She always did like to make those assholes suffer. Ryan, he was always adamant about getting some practice with his battle rod, as he called it. All of us had something left to us by our parents, and they were important to us, but that staff seemed to mean the world to him. I know Paul's dad bought him the guitar before he died, Mag got the yatekko from her mom, Marco had two real blades which, unsurprisingly, he never used, and even I had a pair of nunchucks my dad got me from a trip he took. But that staff, it was apparently a family heirloom. It even had his family crest on it, a shooting star. From the looks of it, it was supposed to be able to be fitted with various implements for use in a fight, though I doubt he'd actually use them. He just wasn't the type. He rarely made trouble, and even when he did, it was never that much trouble. He was the voice of reason in our little group. He was the one who suggested we just leave, stating that no matter what we said, the police wouldn't listen to us. He was right too, the last time the police had been called over, the poor kids who'd blown the whistle had been told off by the cops for lying, when  everything they'd said had been true. The worst part was, afterwards, they were made to play the Drowning Game, then thrown out into the street. Somehow they managed to survive, and we even met them occasionally when either side needed some help. But enough about our pasts. We'd been having an off day. People had become more alert and cautious, so we found ourselves more often than not running from some pretty angry people. It wasn't a total waste though, since we managed to scrounge up enough money to keep us from starving for another day. So we went to our favourite spot. NO, I'm not gonna tell you which spot, that's our secret, for us to know and you to not find out. Anyway, we got our usual order, and after a good hour of eating, drinking milkshakes and being as merry as we could, we left to head to our makeshift shelter. By then, a storm had come in, and it was bad. We made it about halfway home, taking the shortcut through the park, when we heard a loud SNAP! We turned around just in time to see this massive tree falling down on top of us, and all we could think was Fuck it! A tree? We nearly get drowned almost every night in that damn orphanage, we barely manage to avoid being hit by cars when we run from angry people and cops, and this is how we die? Crushed by a goddamn tree? The last thing I remember adding to that thought was Well, at least I was still sexy when I died And then there was nothing but the blackness of oblivion.

I woke up in a huge white expanse. I looked around to see the others were here too. They were still asleep, so I woke them up the only way I knew how. “HEY GUYS, I'M SEXY AND I KNOW IT!”. It had the desired effect. They all woke with a start, all mumbling something about 'Inflated egos'. It was then that we noticed our gear. We had the last things our parents had left us. My nunchucks, Paul's guitar, Ryan's battle rod, Maggy's yatteko, and Marco's twin blades. While we were wondering what happened and whether or not we were dead, some old guy dressed in pitch black robes appeared and started talking. “Good, it seems my new shadows have awoken”. They all looked to me. God, I hate being the diplomat, but I'm the only one sexy enough to do it, I guess “Alright, I think I'm speaking for everyone when I ask who the fuck are you, where the fuck are we, and how the fuck did we get here?”. Too much emphasis on the f word, I know, but I was pissed, understandable, right? I mean, it's not every day you die, and find yourself staring at a creepy old guy and being called his shadows. “My apologies, but I need some individuals that meet, 'Specific' requirements, so that I can fulfill my goal, and you five happened to fit the bill perfectly, so I organised your little 'accident'”. “YOU BASTARD! WHAT KIND OF SICK FUCK KILLS A BUNCH OF KIDS?”. “You're not dead, you're just going through a form of rebirth. When you awake, you will be in a new land, and you will have new forms and abilities. All I ask is that you eliminate a certain, 'acquaintance' of mine. He will have allies, but you can do with them what you want. Just kill that one boy, and I will return you to your world, with much better circumstances than you lived in previously. So, do we have a deal?”. “NO FUCKING WAY! I DON'T KNOW YOU, I DON'T TRUST YOU, AND I DEFINITELY DON'T KILL PEOPLE, SO YOU CAN GO FUCK YOURSELF!”. “Fine, I guess I have no choice”. He raised his hands, and suddenly we all convulsed in agony. “When I am done, your personalities will be what I want them to be, and you will obey my orders without question. If you try, you die, simple as that”. It took so long I thought we'd never see the end of the agony he was forcing us through. But eventually we could move again, but when we did, we weren't who we used to be. He'd warped our personalities to suit his sick, twisted desires, and we became his shadows. That's when he sent us to Equestria. With one simple order: “Kill Stephen Cleary”.
> Hello and Goodbye
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So, he killed you, then brought you back as his shadows? All just so he could kill me?”. “That's how I see it, no matter what he says, but it seems whatever control he had on us got broken when you all knocked us out. I don't know how, and I don't care. All I want is to make that old bastard pay!”. “Well then, truce?”. “Truce, but don't go getting any ideas. I may be sexy, but I've already got my eyes on someone”. “Is it Para?”. “What the? How'd you-”. “I saw you smiling when you mentioned him. It doesn't take a genius to figure it out”. She blushed slightly, but quickly regained her composure, so we went to the center of the arena where everypony was already waiting. We informed them of the situation. Chris spoke up. “Alright everypony, seeing as we're forming an alliance, we need to decide on who's in charge. I say it should be Stephen and Meg, seeing as they were in charge of the individual groups, so who better to lead than them? First things first though, let's get the others out of that barrier thing”. Meg stepped forward. “Allow me”. Her horn started to glow, and the barrier started to shake. Eventually it broke into pieces, and Twilight and the others came rushing up to meet us. RD just tackled me saying “That was AWESOME! For a while it looked lie you were gonna lose but then that bright flash happened and then you had two swords and you totally kicked flank. You have to at least 20% cooler after that!”. “Thanks sis, means a lot hearing that”. “Oooh! Claudy, you wanna help me plan the victory party after this? We need to make some super delicious cakes, and I definitely want your thoughts on them! Not literally of course, who ever heard of putting thoughts on a cake, but how cool would that be if we could put thoughts on a cake”. “BUCK YEAH! IT'S GONNA BE EPIC!”. “DON'T FORGET THE PIE!”. “Ok Chris, we won't!”. “So Riley, what are ya gonna do when this is over?”. “I dunno. Would it be alright if I continued to live with you guys?”. “Well sure, I don't have a problem with it, and I could always use an extra pair of hooves during applebuckin' season”. “Cool, thanks! I'm gonna be the best applebucker you ever saw!”. “Well I don't know about that, but you're welcome to try”. “Well, shall we get going? I do so hate to be pushy, but all this dirt is messing up my mane and tail!”. “Alright then everypony, we have to find the princesses and take down this guy-” “Akumu” I interrupted. “Akumu?”. “It's Japanese, literally means 'nightmare'. My guess is that he's either some sort of reincarnation of the nightmare that took over Luna all those centuries ago, or he's just some sort of ancient spirit that decided he liked the name or something”. She looked worried when she heard my first theory, but she managed to hide it pretty well. “Um, Twilight, a-are you o-ok?”. “Yes I'm fine Fluttershy, I'm perfectly fine. Alright then, let's go save the world!”. We turned to start looking, but I noticed Meadhbh standing off staring into space, so I went over to her. “What's wrong?”. “Sorry, I'm just nervous, you know?”. “Come on, I may not be that good at reading people, but even I can see something's bothering you, so spill it”. “Alright. Before I got here, Akumu appeared before me, and he said something that chilled me to my very bones”. “What? What did he say?”. “He said 'Those closest to you will be the first to die, and I will enjoy watching you descend into the depths of insanity as their lives spill from their bodies, especially that of your brother”. I was shocked to say the least. “Listen to me, no matter what happens, I am not gonna die, you got that? I will not lose, I will not let anypony get hurt, and I will not let that stupid geezer get away with what he's done”. She smirked a little. “Typical, you always have to make your speeches too long. Try being normal for a change”. “But you wouldn't like me if I wasn't me!” I said jokingly. She just laughed. “Fine, now let's go end this!”. “Agreed”. And so we ran to join up with the others, all of us now focused on the task ahead.


Akumu's Sanctum

“Look at that, an alliance. I'm surprised, but not that surprised. So, what do you two think? Do they really have a shot of defeating me?”. Celestia was the first to speak “Yes they do, my little ponies will not fail. They haven't before, and they won't now, especially now that they have allies from another world helping them. Your days are numbered Akumu”. He just smiled. “Oh Tia-”. "Don't call me that, you lost that right a long time ago, when you killed my son!”. Luna was surprised to hear this. “Tia, you had a son?”. “Yes Lulu, his name was Shadow Knight. I called him that because somehow he could literally jump into a shadow and appear from another, even if the shadows were'nt connected in any way. But this monster killed him when he was still a foal. It's been 16 years, and I still can't stop shaking when I remember it”. Luna then turned to Akumu with fury in her eyes. “WHAT KIND OF MONSTER ARE YOU? WHAT COULD POSSIBLY POSSESS YOU TO KILL A FOAL?”. Akumu just kept smiling, which only further angered Celestia and Luna. “So you still believe he's dead? Oh Tia, I thought you were smarter than that?”. Celestia just looked at him, puzzled. “What are you talking about? Are you saying he's alive?”. Akumu looked at her and laughed. “You still haven't recognised him? After all this time you don't recognise him? I'm disappointed in you Tia”. “I don't understand”. “Fine, if you really can't figure it out on your own, I guess I have to spoil the surprise and just tell you”. He leaned in next to Celestia and whispered something in her ear. Her eyes went wide with shock, and Luna started to worry. “How? How did you-”. “When you thought I had killed him, I had actually sent him to another world entirely, I even altered his body and the memories of the people I sent him to, so that they would think he had always been their son. Fun, huh?”. “Fun? FUN? YOU THINK TAKING SOMEPONY FROM HIS MOTHER, SENDING HIM TO ANOTHER WORLD AND MAKING HER THINK HE WAS DEAD IS FUN? YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!”. Akumu was shocked, not by the outburst, but by who had made it. It was Luna. “YOU TOOK MY SISTER'S SON FROM HER, AND PLACED HIM IN A WORLD WHERE HE SAW THOSE HE KNEW AS HIS FAMILY DIE! HE ALMOST TOOK HIS OWN LIFE BECAUSE OF YOU, AND YOU HAVE THE NERVE TO STAND THERE AND SMILE? YOU MAKE ME SICK! I HOPE THEY SHOW YOU NO MERCY!”. Akumu then glared at Luna. “I think I want you quiet until the adults are finished talking”. And with that, Luna lost consciousness. “Now, where were we Tia?”...

I ran through the hallways with everyone, hoping that Celestia and Luna were alright. Meg was running beside me, so I decided to ask her “Meg, why don't any of the others talk that much besides you? I mean, when you guys were controlled by Akumu, you were really shooting your mouths off, but now, you're all so quiet. I'm sorry if it's a touchy subject or anything, but I just felt I had to at least ask”. She turned to me and smiled. “No, it's not a touchy subject, they just usually let me be the speaker, seeing as I'm somehow the one who's most likely to win an arguement”. “I see...”. “Don't worry about it, when this is over, they'll be shooting their mouths off like there's no tomorrow”. “I don't know whether that's a good thing or a bad thing”. “Trust me, for us shooting our mouths off means just talking at all, it's just how we lived. Didn't speak to many people, never had the need to, so we just learned to keep our mouths shut unless we were eating”. “Um, I hope I'm not interrupting anything, b-but I think we're here”. We stopped in front of a huge door. I touched it, and suddenly, all of us except for Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie, were in a huge room,  and at one end of it, Akumu was standing over celestia and Luna, and both of them were unconscious, but unharmed, as far as I could tell. We could hear the three outside. “What is going on in there, I demand that you open this door and release our friends this instant you uncouth ruffian!”. “OOH, I can't open it, and I can't use my amazing fourth-wall breaking powers to get past! This meanie door just refuses to open!”. “Um, I don't mean to be rude, but would you mind letting our friends go please?”. “Enough, you three aren't welcome at the moment, when I'm done with these ones, then I'll come finish you off. In the meantime...”. Akumu snapped his fingers and the room became soundproofed. “There, now we can get down to business”. Twilight, AJ, and RD stepped forward. “Alright, why are you doing this?”. “Ah'd like to know that too. Just what in the hay do you think you're up to?”. “Yeah, whatever it is, it's not cool!”. Akumu just stared at them, a look of amusement on his face. “You want to know what I'm up to? Why don't you ask Stephen over there? Or should I call you Shadow Knight?”. I was confused. The name sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite remember how. It must have shown on my face, because a few seconds later, he continued “Ah, I see you still don't remember. Well, allow me to enlighten you. Stephen, you weren't born in the world you grew up in. You were born here, under the name Shadow Knight. And you wanna know something else?”. He took a second to register my shocked expression, and finished “Tia over here is your mother, and for the past sixteen years, she thought you were dead. Granted, I had a little hand in that part, but what most of you probably don't know is that Tia had twins”. All of us felt our jaws drop from that revelation. He smiled, satisfied with the effect. “The reason that none of you actually remember this is because I found it necessary to remove the memories of Tia's beloved daughter from any and all who knew of her existence. But somehow, she never ceased to be anything short of remarkable. Even though she had no family as far as she knew, she still kept trying to make something of herself. Stephen, you were told that Rainbow Dash represented your sister in this reality, when in actual fact Meadhbh was the one who represented your true sister in the reality you spent the past sixteen years in. That's right, you and Rainbow Dash are Celestia's children”. “So wait, what about my parents”. “Oh, you mean the ones you grew up with, the ones you had believed to be your parents? They were just some random humans I dropped you off at, I altered their memories so they truly believed you were their own flesh and blood. What I didn't count on, was Meadhbh over there being able to see you for who you truly were, or her decision to protect you, or her ability survive in a spiritual form after my last attempt to do away with you failed. That's guardians for you. Oh well, live and learn!”. His words struck a nerve. “You caused that car crash? You killed the people I knew as my family? YOU WERE BEHIND IT ALL?”. “Of course, it's my job to kill anyone who can threaten my existence as the original Nightmare”. “The original? I thought the Nightmare was born when Luna was overcome by her jealousy?”. “No, that's not true at all. In fact, she would never have become Nightmare Moon at all, if I hadn't given her a little helping hand”. Now it was Celestia's turn to get pissed off. “YOU DID THAT? YOU TURNED MY SISTER INTO NIGHTMARE MOON? YOU WERE THE REASON I HAD TO BANISH HER TO THE MOON FOR A THOUSAND YEARS?”. “Of course, one cannot simply become a Nightmare, they need my help to transform into one. Otherwise they would simply just let the negative emotions go, and let's be honest, I love the pain and suffering it caused too much not to take the oppurtunity to create more when it arises”. A sudden blast knocked him into the wall. We all turned to see Twilight, her horn glowing furiously, her coat turned completely white and her mane and tail on fire. “YOU HURT MY TEACHER! YOU TRIED TO HURT MY FRIENDS! YOU TOOK HER SON AND DAUGHTER FROM HER! YOU TOOK HER SISTER FROM HER! I'M GONNA MAKE YOU PAY!”. Akumu wasn't laughing. “ENOUGH!”. And with that, Akumu teleported Twilight, and AJ outside, noticing that AJ had tried to sneak behind him to buck him where it counts. “I'll deal with them later. Now, I'm going to do something I should have done a long time ago. I'm going to kill you Stephen, and I'm going to do it personally!”. I say him create a massive sphere, composed entirely of darkness. “When this hits, your body and soul will be completely obliterated, there won't even be enough to identify you!”. He launched it. Celestia and Luna were teriffied. Chris and the others, Shadows included, were trying to move, but they were held in place by Akumu's magic. I couldn't move. I had no control over my body. All I could do was close my eyes and hope it was over quickly. “NOOOOOOOOO!”. Suddenly I was shoved to the side. It hurt, but I was able to move again, and I turned my head to see Meadhbh standing where I was only a moment ago. She was smiling. “Meadhbh, why?”. She looked at me as if I was an idiot. “Because dumbass, you've got a family to protect. I've got a family to go back to myself. Do me a favour. Give mom and aunt Luna over there a hug when this is over. I'd do it myself, but I don't think I'm gonna last long enough for it”. I started crying, slowly at first, but then it all came out faster than rapids. “Ok, I'll do that, just as long as you do the same to them for me”. She smiled a little wider. “Count on it. And one more thing. Akumu”. He stared her straight in the eyes. “What”. “You know the rules in regards to guardians. I die, someone else comes in my place. Someone of my choosing. So I'm gonna choose an old friend. Hey Stephen, remember Luke?”. “Yeah, he always had that book which he used to make notes about fire shouts, and he was always shy around everyone, it took months for him to be comfortable around us. Why?”. “Cause he's my replacement. Be nice, I don't want you screwing up like the time you fell on his lunch”. “Aw come on, that was ten years ago!”. She just laughed and started chanting. I couldn't make it out, but I knew what it meant, somehow. She was creating a portal. Suddenly, she was gone, and so was the sphere. In their place was a green bodied earth pony with a yellow and red mane, and a red tail. It's cutie mark was a lighter. He looked confused for a second, then noticed me, somehow recognising me, despite the fact I still wasn't human. He just ran up and hugged me. “Stephen! Been too long. Why am I a pony? Never mind, you can explain later. So, what's happening? Lemme guess, saving the world?”. “Yeah, and no, this is not a dream, nor a hallucination. This is real, so if you die here, you die for real. Got it?”. He seemed a little taken back, but otherwise nodded “Cool, so how do you wanna do this?”. “You have your notebook I see”. “Of course, never leave home without it”. “Good, you're gonna need it. You're gonna be able to use those fire shouts for real. Think you're up for it?”. He just beamed as if someone told him it was gonna be Christmas every day for a year. “No way! SWEET! I am gonna enjoy this”. “Good, just hit the robed geezer, and don't, I repeat don't, hit any other ponies. Got it?”. “Yup. You have my word”.  Akumu just stared at us, completely dumbstruck as to what was going on, much to my enjoyment. “Ok, on three...”. Akumu was starting to get pissed off now. He was just about to fire another sphere at us when I shouted “THREE!”. He was caught off guard and the sphere disappeared with his concentration. We charged. The final battle had begun...
A/N: Ok Zoom_The_Kid, this is your intro. I hope you like it. I just started it a few hours ago, and I just kept writing till my brain ran out of ideas. Anyway, I may or may not get back to writing more, since I'm trying to obtain a part time job for the summer. Also, I need to study for my repeat exams in August for the subjects I failed during last week (Computer Architecture and Java Programming). Anyway, remember ZTK, now that you're part of the story, you're in it forever! "FOOREEVVEEEERRR". "Pinkie, what the buck, did we not have a long conversation about breaking the fourth wall?", "Nope". "Oh, well alright then, continue". "Okie-Dokie-Loki. OK, I'm allowed to end the Author's note on one condition. I have to keep it short and sweet, like my cupcakes! Anyway, hope you enjoyed reading this, and, um Stephen?". "Yeah". "Can I say it? PLEEEEAAAAASSEEE?". "Ok, since you said please, I'm giving your permission to use my catchphrase, but pony version only!". "YAAAAYYYY!. Ok everypony, KEEP KICKING FLANK! THAT IS ALL!".
> Revealing the unseen
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: This may seem random, and to be honest, even I feel like it is so, but this is what I thought of, so this is what I wrote.
Luke immediately began bombarding Akumu with his fire shouts, and while he was distracted, I took the oppurtunity to attack from behind. The blade struck a barrier, however, and Akumu started laughing. “Did you really think it was going to be that easy? You're almost as much of an idiot as that ninja version of you. But enough talk, it's time to get this over with”. He blasted us both back into the wall, dazing me and Luke. Just as he was about to strike, Meg's nunchucks hit him sqaure in the face. “What the? How did you undo the paralysis?”. “Duh, nothing can hold me down, I'm just too sexy!”. She rushed him, teleporting randomly to keep him guessing where she would stirke from next. It was amazing. Her movements were precise, not a single action wasted. It was like a dance. No, I'm not falling for her. I like Twi, I just haven't told her yet. Maybe if we survive this, but until then, shut up! She was tiring though. Her movements started to slow down, and Akumu started getting closer to landing a blow each time. Suddenly she lost her balance, and Akumu took the oppurtunity to Kick her straight into the wall, rendering her unconscious. Para got really pissed, and he broke the paralysis spell, charging Akumu with a fury that I've only ever seen once, when my 'mom' beat a man to within an inch of his life when he held a knife to me and demanded money from her. “YOU BASTARD! I'M GONNA KILL YOU!”. He took his guitar and threw it at Akumu, who shattered it with a single blast. But it was only meant as a distraction. He created a blade with magic and slashed Akumu across the torso with it, leaving a wound deep enough that it most assuredly slashed across his heart. But Akumu just stared at the wound and chuckled. “You can't kill me Para. None of you can. You're just not strong enough. And now your weakness is going to cost you your life!”. I got up, and so did Luke. We exchanged a glance. He knew what I was thinking. “You're crazy, you know that?”. “Yeah, but if it works, we'll at least save Para, and hopefully undo the paralysis on the others. Isn't it worth the risk?”. “Fine, but don't come crying to me when you end up in the hospital. You sure you're gonna even survive?”. “Yeah, something tells me this is gonna work, so just trust me”. “Fine, so on three again?”. “Yup”. Akumu was standing over Para, a dark blade in his hands. Just as he was about to bring it down, he was distracted by our simultaneous shout of “THREE!”. “This again?”. I rushed him, and he poised, ready to deflect the fireball he thought Luke was gonna throw at him. What he wasn't expecting was for Luke to set my body on fire as I slammed into him. This caught him off guard, but what caught him even more was what happened the moment we made contact. The flames jumped from my body and engulfed Akumu. He roared, not so much from the pain, but from surprise that he had actually fallen for our ruse. I took the opportunity to buck him back into the wall, and I impaled his arms in an attempt to immobilise him and buy time for Para to get himself out of harm's way. “PARA! TELEPORT OUT OF HERE, AND TAKE THE OTHER SHADOWS WITH YOU!”. “What, why?”. “Don't argue, just do it!”. He nodded and his horn glowed slightly, and after a bright flash and his words of encouragement “Give him hell for me!”, he and the other shadows were gone. I looked around and saw that Christian and the others were already getting ready to join the fray. Something seemed different about them though. I could feel like something in them had changed, as if they had somehow become more powerful. Then I noticed it. Christian's knife was glowing, and suddenly shards of ice were being fired out of it, straight towards Akumu. He was surprised, but he still managed to block them. “Interesting, I knew that all ponies could use magic in one way or another, but I've never seen a pegasus that could use an external object as a focusing point in the same way that a unicorn uses their horn. Impressive”. “Shut up and go down already!”. Chris continued his barrage of ice shards, and Akumu continued to block them. He didn't notice Riley taking aim until he had already fired. Akumu simply teleported away, but suddenly the bullets changed direction and started following him. “OH YEAH! HOMING BULLETS! TAKE THAT DUMBASS!”. Realising he couldn't dodge them, he simply stopped and quickly erected a shield to block them. What happened next surprised all of us. I turned to see Claudius staring at the shield, his brow furrowed from intent concentration, and suddenly the shield shattered, just as the bullets were about to hit. “EPIC! I CAN BREAK SHIELDS BY FOCUSING! Wonder what else I can break?”. He then proceeded to break a pillar directly behind Akumu, and the pillar came crashing down on top of him. “Nice one Claudius, really brought the house down with that one”. Dammit, that's the best I could come up with. Meadhbh was right, I am terrible at being funny. I refocused on my task, taking him down. I walked toward the rubble, both blades drawn. He dragged himself out, and I raised both blades. I looked at RD, and Luna, and Mom, both of whom had just woken up. I hesitated. It was only for a second, but that was all it took. He blasted me into the far wall. My body went limp. I was unable to move. He walked towards me slowly, enjoying the feeling of his impending victory. I tried to get up, but my body wouldn't respond. The only thing I could do was look at him. He raised his dark blade. “Since you're going to die, you might as well know something about your two blades. They were from a world where people were protected by beings called soul reapers. They are Zanpakuto. I've seen soul reapers perform amazing feats with them. Too bad you'll never get to realise their potential”. He brought the blades down. I heard mom scream. There was a flash of light...

I was back in that white expanse again, and I was human, as far as I could tell. I was dressed in a black kimono with a white sash, and I had some sort of armband on my left arm. And there, floating right in front of me, were Taiyō no me and Tsuki no me. “What the? You guys said you were gonna fade after your last conversation! What gives?”. “Oh yeah, that. Sorry, we knew Akumu was listening, so we said what we had to in order to keep him from guessing our true motive”. “And that would be?”. “To teach you the most powerful technique available to a soul reaper. Bankai, the final release”. “Wait, but I'm not a soul reaper. How can I-”. “Huh, you really are dense sometimes, you know that? Of course you're a soul reaper, how else could you have a Zanpakuto? Anyway, down to business. We're gonna teach you how to perform Bankai. Your other self had already attained this, but you have to learn it all over again. And there's only one way to do that”. “And that way would be?”. “You have to fight and defeat us”. “Wait, what? I'm about to die at the hands of that psycho, and now I have to fight you guys too? How the hell are we gonna do that before he finishes me off?”. “Simple, this realm exists outside of time, so as long as you are here, time is at a standstill in the world you're currently in. It means we have all the time in the world to teach you. So, are you in?”. “Do you really need to ask? I have to beat Akumu, for my friends, for mom and Luna, for my sister. If learning Bankai will help me do that, then I have to master it! So let's get to it!”. “Good answer. Seeing as we have to go all out, at least if you want you to be able to bring out your Bankai's true potential, we might as well use the most powerful forms we can, just don't hold back., Kage Kishi”. “Why do you think I'll hold back, and why are you calling me that?”. “We're calling you that because that's your name. Kage Kishi means Shadow Knight. And we're asking you not to hold back because we're pretty sure you'll be hesitant to face us in the forms we choose, but if you don't give it everything you've got, not only will you not attain Bankai, you will die!”. “Die? Meh, could be worse”. “Oh, and how's that?”. “It could be my friends and family that die, but there's no way I'm gonna let that happen, not again”. “Alright”. There was a bright flash, and standing in front of me were mom and Luna. “What the? Mom? Luna? What are you doi-”. I was cut off as they attacked with blades that appeared out of nowhere. I barely managed to avoid being beheaded by the double attack. “We told you not to hold back. And we also told you you'd be hesitant to face us like this”. “ Taiyō no me? Tsuki no me? How did you two-”. “We are the eyes of the sun and moon. While most Zanpakuto have a unique physical form when they are summoned by their soul reaper for the purpose of attaining Bankai, we do not. But we can copy the physical forms of others. And who would be more appropriate to test you then the Princesses of the Sun and Moon?”. “I see. Testing my conviction as well as my strength. Gotta hand it to you, you don't do anything half way”. “If we did, you would never attain the true potential of your Bankai. Now, enough talk. Fight us, or die!”. I nodded silently and drew my blades. I then noticed that both of their blades were mirror images of mine. No surprise there, seeing as they are Taiyō no me and Tsuki no me. I should expect that they'd be able to wield themselves in battle. And facing off against my mom and aunt. This'll be really tough. But I can't afford to lose! I immediately went on the offensive, making my attacks as unpredictable as possible, but they still managed to dodge every single one of them. They knocked me back several feet and lunged. Just before they hit I heard a conversation from the memory of another one of my alternate selves, the one from the world of shinobi...


Flashback to Konoha!

I was sparring against a blonde teenager with orange and black clothing, and a black headband. He was really going at me with those shadow clones of his, except he couldn't even land a hit. I substituted too fast for him to even react before my sword was at his throat.
KageKishi: Nice try Naruto. You lasted a few minutes longer this time. Just try to keep your eyes on your surroundings next time.
Naruto: Yeah, yeah. Hey, KageKishi, mind teaching me how to use ninjutsu without the handsigns? And can you teach me how you use that celestial style jutsu?
KK: Sorry Naruto, I can't.
Naruto: AWWW, COME ON!
KK: Naruto, it was those experiments that Orochimaru performed on me. They're the reason I can use jutsu without handsigns. Just like my ability to copy those Kekkai Genkai. All because of those damn experiments. And as for the Celestial Style jutsu, I don't know why I'm able to use it. I just draw in energy from the sun and moon and picture what I want to do. That's how it works. Kakashi seems to think it's a Kekkai Genkai.
Naruto: Oh, ok then. And Kishi, sorry about bringing up the past like that, I didn't mean to upset you. You still miss her, huh?
KK: Yeah. I still can't believe she's gone though. She shouldn't have had to die. I should've been able to save her.
Naruto: Kishi, you can't blame yourself. If anyone's to blame, it's Orochimaru, and he's gonna pay for what he did, BELIEVE IT!
KK:Yeah...

Flashback is over!


That's it! I focused, picturing myself appearing behind them, with a log in the spot I used to be in, and sure enough, I was suddenly behind them. I immediately charged at them while they looked at the log in confusion, using a technique my other self had learned from Yugao Uzuki, the head of the ANBU. “Leaf Style! Crescent Moon Dance!”. Out of nowhere, there were three clones of me charging them both from different angles. Or so they thought. They failed to notice the two attacking from above. We both dealt heavy blows to each of them before they could react. But the battle was far from over. “Interesting. You've learned to call upon the abilities of one of your alternate selves. But let's see how good those techniques really are”. And there were suddenly a thousand of them, all around me. Each wielding a copy of either  Taiyō no me or Tsuki no me. But I noticed that all the Luna copies held Taiyō no me and the Celestia copies held Tsuki no me. They're making this too easy. What am I not seeing here? I found out the hard way, when I got too close to a clone trying to pass it. It exploded, sending me flying back several feet. I decided to put another of the powers of my alternate self to use. The ability to copy bloodline traits. I decided to go with an old favourite. “Sharingan!”. I could tell which ones would explode immediately, and plotted a path through them. Guess something good did come out of those experiments. Doesn't mean I won't wring Orochimaru's neck if I ever see him though. I found the originals near the far edge of the sea of clones. Alright, time for some payback! “Water Style! Oil Dome technique!”. A dome of oil encased the two. “Fire Style! Fireball technique!”. BOOM! The oil ignited, causing a massive explosion. I was sure that I'd beaten them, so I was surprised to hear them behind me. “Very impressive. But we expected as much. Well, except for the eyes”. “Yeah? Guess the experiments performed on him had their benefits, though I doubt they outweighed the negatives”. “You'd be right. But enough about that. This last fight will be one on one”. “Alright, so who's my opponent, or are you two gonna merge or something?”. “Actually that's exactly what we're going to do. And trust us when we say you ain't seen nothing yet!”. With that, the entire world seemed to shake. Tsuki no me was absorbed into  Taiyō no me, and they morphed into something else entirely. They had made themselves into a giant black and white dragon. “If you think facing us was tough when we were separate, then this'll be brutal!”. They moved faster than I thought possible for a creature their size. I barely managed to avoid the lethal blows, but the minor ones were starting to take their toll. I was slowing down, and each second brought me closer to defeat. I realised it was now or never. I focused my energy into one last strike. I made a horizontal slash with Taiyō no me, and a vertical slash with Tsuki no me. The two waves of energy from the two seperate slashes combined into a cross. “天体クロス!” (Tentai Kurosu – Celestial Cross!). The resulting blast wave blew me backwards a few metres. I was also slightly blinded by the bright flash it caused when it hit. When I could see again,  Taiyō no me and Tsuki no me were back in their sword forms. “Wow, you did it. Not surprising, though your alternate slef did it a little faster”. “Yeah, yeah, so I can use Bankai now?”. “Yup. Now go kick his ass for us!”. “Happy to oblige!”. Taiyō no me and Tsuki no me started to glow, and the next thing I knew, I was on my feet, facing Akumu. The look on his face was enough to tell me he was shocked. “HOW? HOW ARE YOU ALIVE, AND HOW DID YOU BECOME HUMAN AGAIN?”. “Easy,  Taiyō no me and Tsuki no me brought me into some weird world that exists outside of time, and taught me how to use one of my alternate self's most powerful technique”. “No. You can't be serious. That's-”. “Impossible? Improbable? Both? Sorry to disappoint, but I learned how to access my alternate selves abilities!”. I drew my blades, and shouted “BANKAI! 太陽と月の賢明な目! (Taiyō to Tsuki no kenmeina-me! = Enlightened eyes of the sun and moon!).

A/N: Aright, I'm just gonna skip the boring commentary and argument. Pinkie, it's all yours. "THANKS! Okay everypony, I have to keep my end of the deal, so KEEP KICKING FLANK! Also, I'll be holding a huge party afterwards. Just don't tell Stephen. He's a bit of a buzzkill!" PINKIE! "Oops, gotta go! BYE!"
> Demolition Duty
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

        There was a huge surge of energy & a bright flash, & when everyone looked at me, I was different outfit. My pants were a dull grey and my shoes were black, but my shirt was two completely different colours. The right half of the shirt was orange, with a symbol for the sun, while the left half was light blue, with a symbol for the moon. My two blades were strapped to my back, and I had wings, one red, one blue.

        
I didn't stop to admire myself. I'm not that vain. Ok, maybe I might be, but considering the circumstances I can put whatever vanity I have aside. I activated the Sharingan I had recently learned to access, just in case I needed it. Hmm, wonder if I can use Mangekyo sharingan? Meh, I'll figure it out when I need to. Akumu was just staring at me the entire time. 

"So, are you going to fight me, or just stand there twiddling your newly reacquired thumbs?". "Don't worry, I'll fight you, but first, I have something to do". 

"And that would be...?". 

"Getting my mom, aunt Luna and my friends out of here". 

"And how do you plan to do that?". He was smirking. 

"Easy. And guys, you may wanna' stand back. That door isn't gonna be there for much longer!". 

They saw that I was being completely serious and backed away very quickly. I mentally kicked myself for what I was about to do. Sorry Claudius, but this is the only way I can think to get the door open and give everyone else a chance to escape. Please don't hate me for this. 

"HEY PINKIE!".

"YEAH?".

"CLAUDIUS BROKE A PINKIE PROMISE!".

"WHAT!?" The effect was instantaneous. The door blew apart in a storm of broken wood and metal, and Pinkie had her party tank's turret aimed squarely at Claudius, who was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. Dabuq, a freaking tank? Where does she keep all this stuff?

"WHY YOU NO GOOD-" 

"Pinkie-" 

"PROMISE BREAKING-" 

"Pinkie-" 

"SACK OF- 

"PINKIE PIE!". 

"WHAT!?". 

"It was a false alarm. Turns out I was mistaken. Claudius hadn't broken a Pinkie Promise. Sorry...". 

She looked like she was gonna turn the turret on me for a second, but then she just smiled. 

"Okie-dokie-loki. Just one thing". 

"Yeah?". 

"If you ever say someone broke a Pinkie Promise ever again when they didn't-" Her mane and tail went flat, and she had a look in her eyes that screamed You mess with me and you're dead, and it will be a most painful death. 

"I will END YOU!". 

She said it quietly and with a straight face, but it felt like her voice was booming from within my very soul. It was all I could do to just nod and not break down right there. She went straight back to her happy, random, energetic self. 

"Okay, now that we've cleared a path, everypony else, get out of here. This is between me and Akumu, and I don't want you guys getting caught up in it". 

Rainbow Dash immediately started to argue with me. "NO WAY! I JUST GOT REUNITED WITH A FAMILY I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW I HAD! I AM NOT LEAVING YOU BEHIND SO YOU CAN FIGHT HIM ALONE!". 

Mom and aunt Luna were also adamant about staying. "I am not losing my son or my daughter again. If anything happens to either of you, I'll never forgive myself". 

"And I will not allow my sister's children to get hurt fighting the monster that turned me into Nightmare Moon. Call it selfish, but I want payback. But more than that, I want to protect you both". 

I sighed, knowing that any argument I made to get them to leave would be either ignored, or completely shot down by a counter-argument. 

"Fine, but don't hold back. And Dashie-"

"Yeah, bro?"

"I know you wanna kick his flank, but I'm asking you to stay back for this one."

"WHAT!? BUT I CAN-"

"NO! DON'T SAY IT. I WANT YOU TO STAY BACK. I JUST LOST MY SISTER TWICE! I'M NOT ABOUT TO LOSE HER AGAIN!"

She scowled, but nodded. 

"Fine, but if I think for a second something's gonna' happen-"

"It won't. Pinkie Promise." She chuckled a bit. 

Then everypony left, while Chris and Luke came up to me, speaking at the same time. 

"Dude, we're not just gonna leave and twiddle our thumbs while you fight him. We're not gonna stay here, but we're not leaving. We've got a plan!". 

"And your plan is?". 

"Two words. DEMOLITION DUTY!" I barely managed to contain my laughter. 

"Alright. Just don't blow anypony’s arms off, like you did to that poor man made of pie, Chris." 

"Hey, in my defence, he was giving me dirty looks, and he was made of shit!". 

"Dammit Chris, just because you didn't like the flavour doesn't mean he was made of shit!"

"Yes it does. I am the pie master. Nopony knows shitty pies better than me`, except maybe Pinkie and Applejack. They can probably spot a shitty pie anywhere." 

"Dammit Chris, just call them bad pies, stop using the 's' word. It's an insult!"

"Jeez, never thought you'd get obsessed with the feelings of pies." 

"I'm not, but calling them shitty is insulting to everypony that makes them." 

"Fine, we'll go now, and start the destruction. You four better have him beaten by the time we're done." 

RD, mom, Luna and I just smiled and said together "WE WILL!" And with that, they left, and the four of us turned back to face Akumu.

"Are you four done with all your happy little conversation, or are you gonna start a musical number next?". 

Luna spoke up. "No, but we'll gladly arrange for one at your funeral. Just don't expect anypony to show up for it".

 Akumu looked pissed at this comment. "You really think you can kill me? Did you forget what I said. None of you are strong enough". 

"Yeah, and I'm the Queen of England!". 

This got a few confused looks from mom, Luna and RD. "Um, Shadow, you don't look like a Queen, and what in the hay is England?". 

"Sorry, England is a place back in the world I got here from. The queen of England is technically more of a figurehead than an actual ruler, sort of a way of keeping long-standing traditions alive. And I was trying to make a joke out of his declaration of being unbeatable with that reference". 

"Oh, sorry". 

"No worries. Now enough talk. Time to get serious". 

I didn't wait to hear the snide remark Akumu was sure to have come up with in reply. Instead, I just drew Taiyo no kenmeina me and Tsuki no kenmeina me, and launched a Tentai Kurosu at him. He dodged it, only to be hit by a combined blast from mom and Luna. He got knocked into the wall, leaving a large dent in it. We didn't give him an opportunity to recover. They charged up for an even stronger blast, while I prepared one of my more powerful techniques. 

"Ok, then when you launch your attack, get into the air, ok? That includes you Dashie.". 

They nodded, though I was sure that they were more than a little confused by my request. This suspicion was confirmed by Luna. 

"What exactly are you planning?". 

"Wait and see". They didn't seem satisfied by my answer, but they all agreed nonetheless.

Akumu had lost his patience, however, and attacked us with a massive ball of shadows, at the exact moment that mom and Luna launched their own co-operative attack. The resulting shock wave knocked us all backwards. Luna moved to clear Dash out of the way, just as I regained my balance in time to use the attack I had been charging. I slammed my blades into the ground, creating a massive surge of energy.

"Tentai Shogekiha!" (Celestial Shockwave).

To say the room was damaged by the resulting explosion of energy would be to say that Chris only likes pie. It was a disaster area. Most of the floor was cracked if not completely demolished, and the same could be said of the walls. Akumu, however, wasn’t even phased. Sure, he had massive burn marks all over his body, but he didn’t even notice it. And I was spent. I’d put everything into that attack, and he was still standing, while I was on one knee panting heavily, and gripping my chest, my blades clattering uselessly to the floor. His smirk grew bigger as he took slow, deliberate steps towards me. Mom, Luna and RD rushed to my side as my transformation faded and I turned back into a unicorn. By some miracle, just as he was about to reach us, the castle started to shake, and parts of the ceiling started to fall.

“What? What’s going on? WHAT DID YOU DO YOU INSOLENT WORM!” Akumu screamed, stepping back just before a massive piece of debris fell through the space he had occupied only moments before.

I smirked as I replied, “Don’t thank me. This was all Chris and everypony else.”
__________________________________________________________________


The destruction of the castle (Chris’ POV, written by the mare herself (Sorry Chris, Star and I couldn’t resist. Just know it was my idea, not his. He just came up with better words than I did. Oh...don’t drop the soap.)


Luke and I ran out the door and informed everypony what was going on. We had a job to do and we weren’t gonna let down the whole of Equestria!

I lined everypony up, telling them their assignments. “Twi, you’re going to help me make those bombs!, Fluttershy, you are going to place those bombs! Everypony else, wait until further instructions!”

I grabbed a nearby lantern and tore off a piece of cloth I got from the ever so popular banner of Akumu. I was happy to rip it to shreds. Necessary shreds! Everypony looked at me like I was some mad scientist. I finished the bomb and showed it to them, it was basically a lantern filled with cloth and mysterious powder. At first, they all burst into laugh, but then I called up Luke so he can demonstrate how these babies work. “Luke! Cast one of your fire spells from you fancy book.”

He looked at me with a sarcastic grin, and began shouting his words for the spell. And then… BOOM! The castle shook, I bet Stephen felt that too! Everypony realised that the bombs were a threat, and stood in line and looked at me with respect. “Alright Twilight, you ready?” “Yes, but what do I have to do?” “Alright take this lantern, stick this cloth in it so it catches on fire, and take this bag of powder” “Alright….”. Applejack spoke up: “Uhh sugarcube, what are we supposed to do while you make your doo-hickeys?” “Ransack it, find more cloths and lanterns if possible, we will need it!” “Alright, but this better be worth it!”. The others went to find supplies, while Twilight and I worked hard to make those bombs.

“That should do it!” I said with excitement, as my eyes went aflame like a mad scientists. “Yes,yes… These should do!” Everypony else came back from the castle, and reported their findings. Pinkie Pie spoke up: “ Oh, I found nothing in the party room! At least I think it was the party room! It was big! Had some balloons! Oh and streamers!!” She burst into an uncontrollable laugh. Applejack spoke next: “I found nothin’. Like nothin’, nothin’. Guy must be a ghost, he owns nothing at all”. Fluttershy spoke up next: “Umm… I found….Nothing, oh please don’t be mad!!” “It’s okay I’m not mad..? I’m curious.. Akumu has a huge castle and you’d expect to find something in those halls of his… This is weirding me out…” Luke spoke up: “Maybe he wasn’t a collector? Maybe he….”. We all heard a noise, sounded like screams. Maybe it was coming from Akumu’s throne room? “I hope Stephen is okay, he’s my best friend, I wouldn’t want anything to happen to him…”

“But nevermind that! We need to get to work everypony! Fluttershy! Take a pack of those bombs and place them on the weak spots in the castle! Applejack, you take a swing or two on those poles in the courtyard to weaken them, that way the whole place will collapse when we detonate! Rarity, use your magic and help carry the load!” 

“Oh, alright but I do not wish to get dirty! I am a lady after all!” 

“Pinkie Pie, use your party cannon and fire the bombs to unreachable places” 

“Okie dokie loki! Party cannon ARMEEED!” Again, she burst into a laugh, with no means of being stopped. I wondered how Stephen was doing. I hope he and the gang are okay! But we need to get back to work!

“Twilight, I need you to help me carry the load, and detonate it after we place it” 

“Alright, I hope this plan of yours works, I wouldn’t want anything to happened to them” 

“Don’t worry, it’ll work, I have total confidence!”


Several minutes later


Applejack came up to me looking worried. “Uhh we got a problem. Pinkie Pie prematurely detonated one of the bombs using that gosh-darn cannon of hers” 

“WHAT?!”

“I think the whole castle is starting to collapse!”

I got up on a pedestal and spoke up: “LISTEN UP EVERYPONY! ONE OF THE BOMBS GOT DETONATED PREMATURELY AND THE CASTLE IS STARTING TO COLLAPSE!” Pinkie Pie blushed like a strawberry and screamed “I’m sorry!!” Across the whole room. “THIS MEANS WE NEED TO STEP UP OUR GAME! I WANT TO SEE THOSE ASSIGNMENTS DONE IN THE NEXT MINUTE ,STAT!”

Everyone rushed on, feeling nervous as the whole kingdom of Equestria is going to fall under Akumu’s reign if we don’t do this right. They were right. Without this Stephen cannot secure the fight with Akumu. So I rushed on by, carving places for the bombs in the pillars and boards with my knife. As promised, all was done in a minute but we still had to take care of the outside of the castle. We got the inside secured, but with the outside still standing the walls would deflect the explosion, leaving only the inside harmed! I won’t let that happen! I gathered all my flyers, including the shadows, and left off, leaving the other ponies in the castle.

“Alright everyone, here’s a knife!” I tossed everyone a knife. “ I want you to use this to carve the space for the bombs! Hurry up, time is of the essence!” Everyone nodded, and got to work, carving the spaces and putting the bombs in there. After we were done, the outside looked like a nest of fireflies. The shine of the lanterns making the castle seem like a place you can actually live in. But I knew what I had to do, and I was gonna do it. Me and my flyers got back to the ponies in the Great Hallways where we left them. “Alright guys, this is it. The final stand. You all did an outstanding job, and I am so proud of you!” A little tear showed up on my eye, and everypony looked at me with respect. 

“Twilight, this is it…. 3, 2, 1….!”

A/N: Ok, this is the last chapter that will follow this storyline. After that, I'm rewriting it. If anyone is disappointed, I will be putting the original documents on a separate Google Doc, and possibly continuing them on Google Docs.

> Alterations
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello everybody. Sorry I haven't been updating this for ages, but I wasn't able to think up anything to write, and I didn't put it on hiatus cause I kept assuming I would come up with something the next day. Obviously that didn't happen. Anyway, I have an announcement to make. I'm gonna be rewriting the story. There's not gonna be any major changes to the chapters I've already done, mostly I just plan on maybe merging some chapters, adding some new ones trying to, as has been suggested, add depth to the characters and the relationships between them. If anyone has any ideas for the story, the link to the folder I keep them in is here