> Blazing Life In Equestria
>  by CroisSunnyPlay
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1 - Broken
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's the end of the school semester. The teens all cheered as they exited the school and all headed their ways. One of these teens was me. Hello there, my name's Bruce. Not the Hulk one. I am normal guy of fair skin, dark brown hair and light brown colored eyes. I am 19, almost 20 years old, but despite that, I already have my own job and home. My family is- or at leas was- big, consisting of me, my two younger brothers, my youger sister, my big sister and our parents. I work on my late grandfather's general store called Mix Point, because it sells almost anything you need. Food? We have it. School material? This way please. Snacks? Right here. Utilities for your home? You came to the right place. We even had tools for taking care of a garden, and I must say I really like the folks who come by.

My grandparents died of old age four years ago, so I had to take responsibility for the business when I was still 15. I had my father and younger brother to help me sometimes, but it was mostly me. Everyone said I didn't have to do that, but the loss of my grandparents hit me the worst out of everyone. I loved to spend time with them and most of my time was passed on their house. When they died, I lost all that happiness, like a piece of myself had been torn away. I became distant. Everyone was worried about me, but I mostly ignored them. The only time when I felt slightly better was when I was running my grandfather's business. The rest of the family decided to let me and my big sister have their house, just so I could keep running the business. My big sister, Anne, moved away when I was 17, so the house was left for me. My mother and father divorced, and each moved away to a different city. They didn't hate each other, they still were friends, but their relationship just wasn't working out anymore. They asked me if I wanted to go with one of them, but I refused.

I regretted that decision.

Some months after they moved, I was traveling to my mother's house, because it was the day which we agreed to have a family meeting so we all could see each other again. I was two hours late because the guy at the station was doubting I was old enough to travel by myself, and I had forgotten my wallet home. When I finally got my ticket for the train, I boarded and sat down on an empty seat by the window, taking out my phone to check the messages. There was only one from my father.



Hey Bruce

I already arrived and am catching up with your mom and siblings. We are all eagerly waiting your arrival, so we hope you can make it. Be careful while you come, alright?

Love, Dad.



I smiled and turned off the phone to save battery and relaxed on the seat, deciding to take a quick nap. There was just something soothing about traveling on a train, the rhythmic clack clack of the weels, the scenery passing by... I much preferred traveling by train than plane. Those things make me a little uneasy.

When the train finally arrived at the station, I ran out and made a beeline for my mother's house, I was late enough as I was, didn't want to be even more. So, running as fast as I could, and apologizing to anyone I bumped into, I arrived at the right street, expecting to see my family talking and waiting for me.

But I didn't expect what I found.

My mother's house was surrounded by muttering people and some policemen, as a group of them led two persons outside in cuffs. These persons looked to be dressed in rags, possibly bandits. In the front yard, there were six lumps covered in a fabric. I started feeling cold as dread made its way into my being, and shakily approached one of the policemen.

"E-excuse me, c-can you please tell me what h-happened, sir?" I asked, barely keeping myself composed. He looked at me for a few seconds before answering.

"These two bandits invaded this house and were planning to steal everything, but apparently there was resistance, so they just killed everyone. A neighbor heard the commotion and called us, but we arrived too late."

The cold intensified, but I had to make sure. "C-can you tell me who w-was in there?"

He sighed. "We have confirmed the dead to be two adults, one teenager, and three kids. They were apparently a family. Why, are you related to them? If yes, you have my condolences..." He said before walking away, but I didn't notice after he confirmed my suspicions. The rest of my family was dead.

My world stopped. My heart broke into a million pieces. I felt empty. But that emptiness gave way to a new feeling.

Rage.

I looked at the bandits and saw red. It was their fault! They wont get away with that! With a scream that startled everyone, including the policemen, I tackled one of the bandits to the ground and started pummeling him. I punched and punched and punched until my hands where covered in blood. But it wasn't my blood, no, it was his. It took the combined efforts of three policemen to prie me apart from the bandit. I literally beat him within an inch of his life. His face was unrecognizable after that.

Slowly but surely, the red haze lifted from my vision as my anger evaporated and I broke down. I cried and cried until I had no more tears to cry. Some of my mother's neighbors tried to comfort me, but it was of no use. I was instructed to return to my town by them, which I reluctantly did. I still wanted to get revenge on the bandits, but didn't have the energy to do so.

After that, I fell into depression. I wouldn't talk with anyone, I pushed away my friends, and even closed down the Mix Point for a few months. Bills began to pile up however, forcing me to open it again so I could make the money to pay them.

I was a broken mess. I had no drive to continue. I was ready to end everything, until I found it on the internet. My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic. I was just browsing online on YouTube when I came across some of the fan animations, which I found really nice. So, out of curiosity, I searched and watched the first episode of season one. At first I thought it was a show for little girls, until I watched the second episode. By the fifth, I was very engrossed in it, and before I knew it, I watched the entirety of season one. I couldn't believe it, how could a show for little girls be so enrapturing? I decided to watch season two. I really liked Discord, he was one of the most fun villains I have ever seen.

This became one of my favorite shows. I even found out that a lot of grown men and women also loved the show. I liked that. I decided to be one of them too. On that day, I became a Brony, as they call it online. I even saved money to go to conventions when there was one close by. I also made my very own original character, which I named Lightning Blaze.

Blaze is the pony equivalent of a vampire, or a vampony if you will. According to online theories, they are a subspecies of Thestrals, or bat ponies. She is a filly that has grey colored fur, her mane is a two tone light blue and dark blue, which slightly covers her right eye, and she had bat like wings and fangs. Her eyes are a different color from each other, while her left one is an ocean blue, the right one is crimson red in color. She never met her parents, having been kidnapped when she was a foal to be experimented on. She grew up on the laboratory, and due to that, she has learned a lot about technology and chemistry. The experiments on the laboratory gave her the ability to control Fire and Lightning, which she was trained on using. Despite having made some friends on the laboratory, she hated the place because it continuously kidnapped young foals for they twisted experiments. So, one night, she has told all her friends to evacuate the place and take the foals with them. They hesitantly obeyed, and she got to work. She went to the reactor room and used her powers to overheat it, triggering a massive explosion that destroyed the laboratory. Who didn't die by the explosion, died by the debris. Blaze surprisingly survived, but lost both forelegs. She was given cybernetic replacements by her friends, and with her knowledge in technology, she herself has modified them to be stronger, lighter and more practical, so if she is ever caught on a bad situation, she will be able to defend herself. Though she doesn't know it, she also has the ability to control Darkness, a very fearsome ability, and due to it being that dangerous, her friends thought it better not to tell her. She has decided to travel on her own after that.

Many thought the story behind her was brilliant, a few thought it was rather dark, but I didn't pay much attention to them. Slowly but surely, the show and the Brony community were healing my broken heart, I didn't become as cheerful as I was before, but I also didn't went around moping at the corners. My family would want me to move on, and if I couldn't do it for me, I would do it for them. I reconnected with my frieds, and they forgave me for pushing them away. I was surprised to hear that some of them were Bronies too. So, we sometimes would meet up to watch some episodes together or to just chat about it.

When I got home after school, I sighed in relief, putting my backpack to the side of the door and going to the kitchen for a snack. School wouldn't be back for some months, and it left me with a lot of free time, which I was thankful for. It's NOT fun to arrive home from work and have to immediately prepare for school. But now I wouldn't have to worry about that, now I can relax all I want. After having a PB&J sandwich and a glass of orange juice, I got my laptop and went to the living room to play some games. After beating the CPU once again on MUGEN (difficulty on Hard 9), I received a call from one of my online friends, Q.

Q never told me his real name, much less showed me a picture of how he really is, but we have been online pals for months now. He speaks a bit like Discord, and I could swear that he really sounded like John de Lancie on the voice chats. We talked over his favorite social network, Discord. I found that rather ironic. So, putting on my headphones, I answered the call.

"Yo Q, how's it going?" I asked, setting the call for background and going online the check what's new.

"Hello there, Bruce! I am as chaotic as I have ever been. What about you?" He loves the word chaos.

"Same old, same old. Summer just arrived though, so I am now on vacation from school for a few months." I tell him while I look over some artwork from Mlp. I should see if I can draw too, would be fun.

"Oh, that's wonderful! It means I can finally come over to spend time with you!" He said cheerfully.

"Hehe, I guess I can finally see how you look, eh?" I still wonder why he didn't let me see how he looks like, even his profile picture is the word "Chaos" made of a mish mash of different things.

"Hmm, how about I come over right now?" Hey, that's some pretty good art of Rarity and-

"Wait, what?"

My question went unanswered as a flash of light in the middle of my living room blinded me. I covered my eyes with one arm in surprise, and no matter what anyone says, I will forever deny I yelped like a girl in that moment. I slowly lowered my arm as my vision returned and my jaw dropped at what was in my room. Or rather, who.

"It's nice to finally meet you face to face, Bruce." It was fricking Discord, in the flesh! Here! In my living room! With wide eyes, my brain almost shut down as my mouth did a very good impression of a fish. I don't drink, so I can't be drunk and seeing things. I also don't smoke and don't do drugs, so I can't be having a high dream. Am I hallucinating? No, the medic said that despite the trauma of losing my entire family, my mind was perfectly healthy. But, this can't be real. Discord is a TV character! How is he here!? This makes no sense!

"Oh ho ho Bruce, what is the fun in making sense? And I can assure you, I am very much real, and you're not having an hallucination or a dream." Wait, did he read my mind? "Yes."

"Gah! Don't do that! It's creepy!" I said, shaking my head.

"Oh sorry. As fun as it was to see you mimicking a fish, I really came over to spend time with you." He said while floating horizontally in the air.

"So you're actually Q? Huh, I am both surprised and not surprised at the same time... Who would have thought I am online friends with Discord? You must be from post season three then. By the way, why did you decided to become my online friend? I won't ask how you talked to me, since... Well, all the reality bending powers, so why?" I asked as I took off my headphones and placed them on the table.

"Well, dear Fluttershy suggested that I make more friends, so while looking for ways to do that, I came across this interesting network with my name on it! Of course, everything with my name on it must be really good, and I gotta say I am not disappointed! I have been to the human world before, so I made myself one of these things you call 'laptop' and installed the application on it. I made the profile with the name Q because apparently my name was already being used by the administration, so I made something original. I randomly searched for friends and found you! Isn't that great?" He said, snapping his eagle claw to make appear his laptop and showing me his profile on Discord. Haha, Discord using Discord. How confusing is that?

"Heh, that's really great. So, since you came to spend time with me, can I offer you anything to eat? Or drink?" I asked, standing up and going to the kitchen.

"Chocolate milk would be very appreciated!" He called.

Taking two cups from the cupboard, I opened the fridge and took the carton of chocolate milk out, filling the cups and putting it on the fridge again. Going back to the living room I gave one cup to Discord as I sipped from mine. We talked about random things, with no specific subject really. I discovered that besides himself, only Pinkie Pie knows their world is a TV show on other dimensions. Big surprise. I also presented him to some games he could install on his laptop, to play when he was bored. He is a very cool guy. We spent hours talking, and soon, he said he needed to return to Equestria.

"Well, it was fun spending time with you, Bruce. I wish I could stay more, but I have to return now before something bad happens. Dimension jumping is dangerous, even when I myself do it." He said with a nod. Huh, it must be really serious then if he admitted that. Nonetheless, I gave a nod, and extended my fist, which he bumped with his lion paw.

"S'cool. I can understand. Will you come visit another time?" I asked with hope.

"Most certainly. Now, toodles!" He waved and snapped his claw.

...

"Uhhh, you're still here..." I said to Discord, who was still floating in my living room. I was expecting him to have teleported back to Equestria already.

"Hmm, it must be out of batteries." He said, raising an eyebrow at his claw. Snapping it again only produced a tiny spark. "Well, let's try the other one then!" He lifted his paw and snapped.

...

He was still there.

"Errr, can I help somehow?" I asked awkwardly. He shook his head in frustration and frowned at his appendages.

"Alright, this is getting ridiculous! Very well, I'll try both now!" He said getting ready to snap both his claw and paw.

"W-wait, is that really a good idea-"

*SNAP*

*FLASH*

A portal suddenly appeared in front of us, creating a huge suction force that started dragging everything in my living room inside it.

"Discord, what did you do!?" I asked, trying to keep my footing against the strong winds being generated.

"I don't know! This has never happened before!" He answered frantically before being dragged into the portal himself.

I tried hold onto something, but nothing was in reach, so I soon found myself getting closer and closer to the portal. I still tried to crawl forward, but as I looked up, I saw my couch flying in my direction.

...

"Bollocks."

It smashed me directly into the portal.

And I blacked out.
> Chapter 2 - Identity
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Darkness.

"B...ce..."

I'm surrounded by darkness.

"Wa...e u...!"

I can't see, I can't feel, I can't smell, I can't hear.

"Br...e!"

There's only darkness.

"Come ba...k!"

No, there's also a voice.

"Bruce!"

A light appeared. I touched it.





I gasped and opened my eyes, before slamming them shut again due to the light of the sun assaulting my vision. I was breathing heavily, whatever that darkness was, it was so... Suffocating is the best word I can think of. I brought a hand to my face and tried to ignore the sound of metal shifting, but paused when I felt not the contact of skin against skin, but the cool touch of metal against hair. Slowly this time, I opened my eyes expecting to see the normally light skin on my arm. Instead, the glint of metal greeted me. The breath caught in my throat. I moved my arm and the thing in front of me mimicked it.

I hurriedly sat up, ignoring how I was doing that similar to a dog, and started examining my body. My body was now small and covered in grey fur, and both my arms were replaced with cybernetic hooves. A mass of blue slightly covered my right eye, which I'm guessing is my now long hair. Looking behind me, I could see a pair of bat wings that were twitching slightly and further back there was a two tone blue colored tail. I... I became my OC. I became Blaze! Before I could start panicking again, someone started shaking me. It turned out to be none other than Discord.

"Bruce, snap out of it! I'm all for chaos and losing your mind, but this is just sad..." He said in a- surprisingly- concerned tone.

"D-Discord..." The voice of a little girl- my voice, came out barely above a whisper. "W-what happened...?"

He seemed to be struggling with his words. "Well, how do I tell you this... As I was about to leave your world, something called a nuclear bomb was launched..."

I looked at him in abject horror of what he was trying to tell me. "N-nuclear bomb!?"

He nodded slowly. "Yes... Multiple of these things were launched all around your world, and that was the cause of my magic acting up like that. Naturally, the first thing I tried to do when we landed was try to send you back but..."

He snapped his fingers and a window appeared in front of me. It was my world but... Not. The land was scorched, the plants were dead, the water mostly evaporated, and there was no one in sight. It was a giant radioactive wasteland. It was almost... No... It was EXACTLY like...

"...The Fallout..." I whispered in horror.

"The what?" He asked.

"The event in where nuclear bombs destroy the world... Everything becomes a wasteland, the ground stops being fertile making grow food almost impossible, most of the animals go through horrible mutations to adapt to how the world became, and worst of all... Almost all living beings that don't become mutats die due to either the explosion or the radiation..." I answered in a dead tone.

"Oh... I'm... I'm sorry..." Discord was... Saying sorry? I guess I have seen everything now...

While staring at the window showing my destroyed home, the reality of the situation slowly descended on me. I lost everything. My home. My planet. My people. My friends... Dear god, my friends. They all must have died too... My friends, who saved me from the darkness my heart was in, are gone... I even lost my humanity. My heart broke into a million pieces. Tears flowed from my eyes, but I didn't utter a sound. I had nothing that I could come back to. My drive to continue died along with my friends. I fell into darkness again. I want to end everything. I just need a weapon. A gun or a blade will suffice. The sound of metal shifting against metal brought my attention to my hoof, and when I looked down I saw a shiny blade coming out of a socket in it. I decided to not question this, it wouldn't matter in a few seconds anyway. I faintly heard someone calling my name and asking what I was doing, but I was too numb to the world to be able to respond. So positioning my hoof, I uttered one last sentence.

"Wait for me everyone, I will join you all soon..."

I plunged the blade on my chest.

And blacked out in pain.





{Third Person}

Discord gasped as Bruce tried to kill himself, but thankfully, he was close enough that Discord managed to hold his hoof and make the blade not pierce anything important, but he was still bleeding badly. Discord desperately clicked his fingers attempting to heal Bruce, but for some reason, his magic wasn't working on him. Cursing silently to himself, he picked Bruce's small form up and rushed to Ponyville Hospital. Bursting through the door, all the nurses and doctors that were in the lobby yelped in surprise of the Spirit of Chaos appearing like that, but Discord was having none of that.

"NEED SOME HELP HERE!" His yell brought the attention of the closest nurse, who took one look at the filly in his arms and gasped.

"Bring me a stretcher! We have to take this filly to the surgery room!" She shouted and in seconds there were nurses and doctors stumbling around before one of them brought a stretcher, on which Discord was instructed to put the filly on. Discord complied and watched as they took Bruce to surgery, before he was approached by one of the nurses, who seemed hesitant about asking him something. He sighed and motioned for her to speak.

"D-Discord, right? May I ask what happened to that filly?"

Discord was about to tell her but hesitated. If he told them that Bruce tried to kill himself with a blade that came from his own hooves, most would probably blame him, saying that he 'Messed with the filly's head!', and worse, Bruce would probably be taken away to some place for "rehabilitation", where he would no doubt try to kill himself again. But... Why was Discord caring so much about what would happen with Bruce? Was it because he was 'reformed'? Was it because Fluttershy would be angry at him if he didn't?

...

No... It was because Bruce has truly became his friend. And he would do anything to make sure he is safe. So with that in mind, he had to think about a cover story for this.

"I don't know..." He started. "I was on my way to visit my friend Fluttershy when I came across the poor dear, and she was bleeding a lot from a wound that seemed to have been caused with a sword. I rushed her here and you know the rest." Lying came naturally to Discord, so it was no wonder that the nurse believed every last bit of what he said.

"I see. Don't worry, we'll take care of her and contact her parents as soon as possible." The nurse said, walking away. Had she stayed, she would have seen Discord's nervous face. He knew that they wouldn't find any information on either Bruce or his parents. He worried what would happen if he were to be taken to an orphanage, but he could do nothing at the moment. So, albeit reluctantly, Discord snapped his fingers and made a chair for him to sit and wait for news on Bruce, since barging into the operation room wouldn't be very appreciated. Again, he wasn't sure why he cared about that, but it was definitely something he would look on later, after all, if Bruce's friendship meant so much to him, then he would do anything for him.

"Please don't die..."





{Bruce's POV}

I was floating on darkness again, still in my pony form, but this time, I wasn't alone. I was seeing things, these things being my memories. Was I already dead? Maybe what they say of you seeing your life fly past your eyes when you are dying is true. But... The memories were so confusing. They kept shifting for some reason. There was a memory of me, running on my two feet after my friends and laughing happily, which turned into a memory of me, running on my four hooves away from dark equine shaped shadows in white lab coats, crying in fear. A memory of me sleeping on my bed with a happy smile on my face as I spread my arms and legs under the warm covers turned into a image of me laying on the ground of a white cell and grimacing as I kept my hooves tucked close due the the cold. Everything kept shifting. It was like I was living two lives at the same time. But that was not possible, was it? I know who I am. I am...

Bruce Blaze Bruce Blaze Bruce Blaze Bruce Blaze Bruce Blaze Bruce Blaze Bruce Blaze Bruce Blaze!!!

I grabbed my head in pain and screamed. It was like these two names were trying to forcefully imprint themselves on me at the same time. The memories I was seeing started to shift more violently. I kept screaming, feeling I was being torn apart, it was an excruciating pain, unlike any other I have ever felt. I wanted it to stop. Stop!

"STOP!!!"





I jolted to a sitting position with a gasp and started breathing heavily. I lifted my cybernetic hooves in front of my face and saw how badly I was trembling. It... It wasn't a dream. Everything truly happened... Then, why am I still alive...? The blade was sharp enough to cut into me no problem. Did... Did someone save me...? But why? Why!?

"WHY WOULD THEY DENY ME THE COMFORT OF DEATH!!!" I screamed out loud, my mind drowning in sorrow and anger. Next thing I know, a pony nurse with a white coat and light pink mane rushed through the door and started to ask me what was wrong as she tried to comfort me. Emphasis on 'tried'. Like I said, only death would bring me peace now, so I stood there in silence with fresh tears running from my eyes. I must have been trembling very badly again, because she wrapped her arms around me and started whispering soothing words to me. It partially worked as at least I stopped crying, but I gave no other reaction. She tried talking to me again but as she saw that I was still unresponsive, she gave up and left the room, saying that I should call her with the button next to the bed if I needed anything.

I don't know how long has passed. I have been sitting there on the bed staring at nothing, trying to think of why someone would bother with saving me, and who. The only one with me at the moment was... Discord, right? Does this mean he was the one to bring me to the hospital? But why? How would this benefit him? I sighed and looked at my right cybernetic. I'm alone now, so I could probably try it again... But I'm too emotionally drained now. I don't even have the energy to kill myself anymore...

"Please don't try that again..." I heard from my right. My breath stopped for a moment before I looked to the side of the bed, seeing Discord with that concerned expression that seemed so out of place on him. I relaxed and flopped down on the bed.

"...Why shouldn't I...? I have nothing to live for anymore..." I said in a broken tone.

"Maybe not for your old life."

I lifted my head a little and stared at him. "...What you mean?"

"I mean that you can think of this as a second chance, Bruce. You're young again, you could make new happy memories to fill the void left by the destruction of your old ones..." He said, sounding desperate to convince me that I shouldn't kill myself. I just sighed.

"Since when did you become so philosophical? There's not a 'void' left, Discord. My old memories weren't completely destroyed. But they are utterly broken now, just like my soul..."

"Then why not let Equestria mend the pieces back together? Just give this a chance, please." He pleaded. I rolled my head a little and stared at him from the corner of my crimson colored eye.

"...Why do you care?" I asked in almost a whisper. That gave him pause and he himself looked like he didn't know the answer for a moment, before he closed his eyes and sighed. I opened my mouth to ask again but he interrupted me.

"It's because... Besides Fluttershy, you're the only one true friend I have..." He said finally, and the response threw me for a loop.

It... Actually makes some sense... If you look deep at his background, Discord is a very lonely guy, so he turned to the jovial chaos being everyone knows to try and fill that void he feels in his heart. It probably wasn't working, and at first he didn't knew why, but that must have changed when he met Fluttershy. He would do anything for Fluttershy, as she was the only one who truly befriended him, the others merely tolerated him as long as he didn't step out of line. But now, I have made the same, I truly accepted him as a friend and he now wants my wellbeing, just like with Fluttershy.

I looked at Discord... At my friend and decided my course of action. "I... Think you are a great friend too, Discord. And... I think I'll give Equestria a chance. For you." I lifted my hoof to him, signaling for a hoofbump. He let out a sigh of relief at my response before smiling and bumping his eagle talon with my cybernetic.

"I'm glad to hear that, Blaze." He said in his usual jovial tone. I rolled my eyes, but that is actually a good sign. I was still feeling pretty broken, but at least I wasn't curling up on a corner and moping.

"Guess I'll have to use that name to avoid suspicion, eh?"

"It's for the best, but don't worry. I'll use your real name when we are alone." He patted me in the head. I frowned a little at that, after all, both names felt like my real name.

"Thanks..."

"Now come, I convinced the staff to let me take you for a walk around town, but advised that you not strain yourself so the wound won't open again." He probably didn't notice the frown on my face, but it was for the best. I carefully stood up and climbed down the bed, letting go as soon as my back hooves touched the ground and waiting for myself to fall forward on my front hooves.

...

I remained standing.

"Wha...? Shouldn't this, y'know, feel uncomfortable?" I asked Discord in bewilderment. He scratched his goatee in thought.

"Well, maybe your body is used to it? I mean, I have seen a lot of ponies who have no problem walking on their hind legs. That Lyra mare is one of them."

"The one the fandom says is obsessed with humans? Oh god, let's keep our distance from her, I'm not eager to find out what she would do if she found a human who's been turned into a pony A.K.A me." I said with a shudder as we walked out of the hospital room, me still as a bipedal. I received a lot of stares because of that, and unconsciously tried to make myself seem smaller.

A few more excruciating seconds of stares, which felt like an eternity to me, and we were outside. But apparently we weren't alone. A certain group of mares and a dragon were waiting for us. The mane six and Spike themselves. I looked inquisitively to Discord, who just smiled sheepishly at me.

"I may or may not have told them I found you bleeding and brought you to the hospital. They apparently came to see if I was telling the truth..."

I groaned and looked back to the ponies and dragon, but all I saw was pink and blue.

"Hi!"

I screamed in fright and did one of the worst sins in brony fandom, one of the sins that would guarantee a one way trip to brony hell.

I punched Pinkie Pie in the face.
> Chapter 3 - Darkness
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

{Bruce's POV}

I stared in horror, hoof still stretched, as Pinkie flew into a wall with her nose bleeding. How strong am I!? The others too stared in shock, before looking back at me. Rarity and Twilight were in disbelief. Fluttershy seemed scared, but worse of all were Rainbow Dash and Applejack, who were outright glaring at me. I took a step back and tried to form words to apologize, but couldn't. Rainbow decided to get in my face.

"Hey, what did you do that for!? We came here to check in you, you know? Is this how you repay us!?"

I was about to apologize again but a sharp pain shot through my head again. I grabbed it, faintly aware of my screaming as the scene in front of me started to shift and change into something similar but different.

It was a memory.


***


{Blaze's POV}

I was trembling, having accidentally punched one of the scientists on the face... H-he seemed to have a broken muzzle from the strength of my punch... Oh no... There's no way I am getting out of this without punishment... The rest of the scientists rounded on me, anger clear on their eyes. I knew exactly what their intention was, but I begged nonetheless.

"P-please, I'm sorry! I-I was just startled, that's all! I didn't mean to-"

"Subject B14-Z3!" I flinched as the lead scientist used my full designation. His name was Dr. Drip, he was a brown pegasus stallion with a black name, his eyes were a deep red and his cutie mark was a drop of blood. "I am very disappointed in you, we came here to check on you, you know? Is this how you repay us!?"

I shrunk back from the anger on his eyes. The doctor is normally a calm and collected stallion, and not much seem to phaze him. But every time he gets angry, it was like being face to face with a Timberwolf...

"I-I..." Was all I managed to croak out, but it didn't seem to be enough for him, as he pulled out of his lab coat what we all here in the lab call 'The Dreaded Red Button'. My eyes widened as I started to unconsciously claw at the metal collar around my neck. "W-wait! Please no! Forgive me!" But my begging fell on deaf ears. Drip pressed the button.

And then all of my world was pain.


***


{Third Person}

Rainbow Dash flew back in shock as the filly grabbed her head and started screaming, eyes scrunched as if in terrible pain. She didn't even touch her! Was this some sort of acting to escape punishment? If so, it was very convincing. At that moment, the rest of her friends seemed to register the situation.

"Rainbow Dash, what did you do!?" Twilight asked in panic.

"Hey, I didn't even touch her!"

As the two of them started to argue, Discord looked in concern at Bruce- no, Blaze. He should start using his- now her- new name to prevent slip ups. If his theory was right, then Bruce's memories are conflicting with Blaze's... Since the two are one and the same, her very being is at war with itself, trying to imprint forcefully the correct memories in her. That was not healthy, if this keeps going, there's a risk her mind will break, making her go into either a coma or insanity, none of which Discord wished upon his friend.

His train of thought derailed completely when he noticed the air around Blaze began to shift. The shadows around her seemed to stretch closer to her hooves as a faint purple smoke began to flow from her closed eyes, and a dark aura seemed to wrap itself around her body. When Discord finally understood what was happening, he was thrown back by a wave of Dark Magic, being the closest one at the time. This didn't go unnoticed by the ponies present, and Twilight gasped as she looked at the filly.

"That's... Dark Magic!" She said in shock, making the rest of her friends go wide eyed.

"Ya mean like that Sombra had? This here filly can use it too!?" Applejack asked in surprise. The only response she got was a gulp and a fearful nod.

"It hurts!" Blaze screamed. "It hurts so much! Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP!!!"

Nopony could do anything when the Dark Magic exploded outwards from her body, trapping everypony on the blast radius into their worst nightmare. From an outsider perspective, a black dome had suddenly formed in front of the hospital, scaring anypony who was luck to not be caught into it. Discord had rapidly teleported a few feet away, only catching a glimpse of Twilight hastily throwing up a shield around herself, which he was sure would not last long under the onslaught of all that Dark Magic. He would have tried to do something, but the reason why his magic didn't work on Blaze, was because Chaos Magic had no effect on Dark Magic. He could only try to contain it from outside the dome to prevent it from spreading further over the town and hope Blaze came to her senses before she lost herself...


***

(Inside the dome, Bruce's POV)

It's so... Dark in here... The pain is still there, I can feel it, but... It's lessened now. There's no sound in here. No light. And yet I could still see and hear myself. For how long have I been floating here? Seconds? Minutes? Maybe even hours...? It's hard to tell. Where even is here?





...






Do I even have to care?






This Darkness... It's different of the one from before... It's soothing... And making the pain lessen even more... My thoughts are still all jumbled, but I don't care. I don't need to think right now. I can just let the Darkness take my problems away... I finally noticed how tired I felt. Not physically, but emotionally. The Darkness is calling out to me. It's telling me to go to sleep. It will take all my worries away. I would be at peace. Peace is good. I want peace. I started closing my eyes. I can finally rest...

"You can't..."

I opened my eyes with a start. I heard a voice, and it came from behind me. Doing my best to maneuver myself around, I came face to face with... Myself. Well, not exactly myself, but Blaze. There she was, floating in front of me, a perfect copy of this body. Only, she seemed to be wearing a sort of metallic collar around her neck , and she also seemed a little... Transparent. My mouth worked up and down, but no sound was made. She gave a sad smile.

"Howdy..."

"..." I could only stare at her. Am I going crazy?

She shook her head. "You're not crazy..." That startled me a little. Did she read my mind? "Yes..."

"Gah! Don't do that!"

She giggled at my reaction. I rolled my eyes but couldn't help letting out a short giggle too. She walked- well, more like floated- in my direction. We stared at each other for what felt like ages. Her mismatched eyes looking into mine in a staring contest that seemed to go on until-

Boop

Scrunch

"..."

She... She booped me. I went cross-eyed to stare at the ethereal limb poking my muzzle, having scrunched it instinctively. Blaze was smiling innocently. Slowly, the realization settled in. I have been booped. I have been booped! I flopped on my back and flailed my hooves around while I screwed my eyes shut and shouted up to the darkness.

"REEEEEEEEEE!!!"

Childish, I know, but I really didn't like being booped. Blaze herself was giggling uncontrollably, but I don't blame her, were our roles inverted I would be giggling too. We calmed down after a full minute and went back to a sitting position to stare at each other. I had several questions, but two jumped to the forefront of my mind.

"How and... Why are you here...?"

She smiled sadly. "Since we're basically one and the same, I managed to establish a link between our souls to talk to you."

"S-so you're-"

"No," She interrupted me. "I'm not dead. I am you after all, but... It's complicated..."

In that I could agree. Everything about this was extremely complicated, and I don't think my poor head would be able to handle any complex explanation.

"As for why... There's a few reasons actually. First, I must tell you to try and control your power, you're hurting others..."

I would have dropped to the ground if I wasn't already sitting. Not even a day in Equestria and I was already causing trouble... I was snapped out of my darkening mood by a hoof on my shoulder.

"It's not your fault, you don't know how to control it..." I nodded hesitantly before she continued.

"Second..." She bit her lip and looked away. That didn't sit well with me. "I'll... I'll have to lock away some of your memories..." There it was. That scared me, but I kept from reacting too badly. I needed to know the reason.

"Why and... Which ones...?"

She considered my reaction- or lack of- for a moment before answering slowly. "Future knowledge is dangerous... I'll have to lock all your memories of the show... But don't worry. Messing with someone's brain may be dangerous if not done properly, but I know how to make it safe. I'll still allow these memories to 'leak' through the lock, so you'll experience them as visions. It will not only be safe, but useful." She gave a tentative smile. I considered what she said. On one hand, I really didn't want my brain messed with, safe or not. On the other, I could understand why she needed to do it. Where I to be captured by someone who can read minds, they could easily use the information they find to drastically alter the future. Me being here has probably changed enough things as is...

"Alright, I understand... It's for the best, isn't it...?" I said with a sigh.

She frowned. "Just because it's for the best, doesn't mean we must like it." She said, making me smile faintly. She looked around the darkness before sighing. "Our time is running short, I won't be able to maintain this connection for much longer, so I'll tell you one last thing." She waved a hoof, a map of Equestria appearing in front of me. "To the Frozen North, in a cave close to the Crystal Empire there's something that will help you..."

"Wait, you don't mean..."

She nodded. "You will find Sombra's horn in there, the last piece of him that's left. As soon as you touch it, your own Dark Magic will be able to revive him, but don't worry. The light of the Crystal Heart has purified his spirit, so he won't be evil when you bring him back. He'll help you control your dark powers so something like this," She waved a hoof at the darkness around us. "doesn't happen again."

I nodded hesitantly. Bringing Sombra back could spell a whole lot of trouble for me if I did it, but it's not like I'm not in trouble already. I did basically assault one of the mane six and used Dark Magic on the others, however unintentional as it was. Having someone to teach me how to control it will be beneficial though, even if getting there will be a hassle. I just hope I'm not banished somewhere if I get caught... Blaze floated over and hugged me. I stood there for a moment before returning the hug.

"There's one thing I want to do before I go..." She whispered on my ear. I pulled back slightly and looked at her.

"What is i-" I didn't get to finish as I suddenly had the sensation of a pair of lips against my own. My eyes went wide, my breath stopped, and I'm pretty sure I heard the sound of glass shattering somewhere. Blaze is kissing me. Like a god damn professional too! This is SO wrong...

Brain, status report please?

'Blarghflurgenta...'

Thankfully, before my brain could short circuit completely, she pulled back. She giggled a lot at my confused and slightly horrified face before speaking.

"I have ever wondered how it would be like to kiss myself." She said smugly.

Oh, that cheeky-


***


The black dome slowly began to recede, revealing four of the mane six shivering on the ground with tears on their eyes and a panting, wide eyed Twilight inside a severely cracked shield, sweat dripping down her face.

I gently floated down to the ground as the dark energy wrapped around me like a calm flame before seeping into my body harmlessly. Were I to look at my eyes in a mirror when I opened them, I would see the blue haze seeping from the sides for a moment before it stopped.

The ponies that didn't get caught inside the dome all stared at me uneasily, making me squirm a little. I glanced at Discord, seeing him sigh in relief that no one was hurt seriously. I turned my attention to the mane six, wincing as I saw them shivering on the ground before my gaze locked on Twilight. Many emotions were running behind those purple colored eyes, confusion, curiosity, concern, fear, but none of that really registered as I focused on something else behind those eyes.

A small spark of anger.

I couldn't take all this, I muttered a quick 'I'm sorry' before turning and taking off towards the Everfree Forest...
> Chapter 4 - Blood
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

How long has it been? Minutes? Hours? I don't know. I was exhausted. But I kept running. Why? I was hearing hoofbeats on the ground after me. Sometime during my escape, they started chasing me. I can hear them shouting angrily at me to stop, so I kept to the denser parts of the forest just so the fliers couldn't get me from upwards. I'm scared. I didn't mean to. It's not my fault. I kept running. I want to stop. I cannot stop. I'm tired. If I stop I'm in trouble. I have to keep going. My body is aching. My cybernetics are somehow hurting.

I tripped.

I was falling. Why was I falling? My thoughts are all messed up. I saw something. A... Cliff? Was I running towards a cliff? My wings opened by themselves. It made me jerk up from the fall, slowing it, but I still hit the ground hard, landing painfully on my left wing and carving a small thrench because of the force. It hurts. My body hurts so much. I am tired. I am hungry. I am thirsty. My body refuses to move. My head feels heavy... I want to lie here and rest... My ear twitched. Someone was approaching. Moving my head with some difficulty, I could make out the form of somepony exiting the bushes. It was Fluttershy.

"Oh my, a-are you okay? I know w-we have to bring you to the princesses, b-but maybe I could patch you up first... I-if you don't mind that- EEP!"

She stepped on a sharp rock by accident, getting a cut. I wanted to ask if she was okay, but a delicious smell had filled my nose suddenly. My mouth watering, I could hear my belly demanding sustenance. Ignoring the pain I was feeling, as well as the red haze descending on my vision, I stood slowly. Fluttershy glanced at me stepped back as I unconsciously peeled my lips back to expose my fangs. Had I been in a more sound state of mind, I would notice them grow slightly longer. As it was, I was slowly losing myself to base instincts. There was only the smell, and the hunger. But what was in front of me could sate it. I want it. I need it. Not knowing what else to do, I just let myself go.

I'll forever regret what I did in that moment.

My body lunged forward faster than she could react, knocking both of us down to the ground. We rolled around for a moment, but I eventually came out on top. Fluttershy was under me with wide, frightened eyes as I hissed in her face, but that didn't matter at the moment. So, lifting my head, I shot down towards her neck. A scream could be heard through the forest at that moment, catching the attention of five other individuals and making them rush towards the location.

My fangs easily penetrated the skin, and as the first drop of something hit my tongue, I started drinking eagerly. The taste of iron filled my mouth as I gulped down the life fluid, making the hunger slowly diminish. Fluttershy had stopped screaming after a moment, seemingly in shock of what was happening. I was about to stop, feeling I was finally full, when a purple beam blasted me off. Still being guided by my instincts, I flipped in midair and used my wings to catch myself, landing on top of a tree nearby and crouching, hissing threateningly. My ear twiched and I jumped down just in time for a rainbow blur to slam on the branch I was. My ear twitched again and I dashed to the side as I pair of orange hooves impacted the tree I was in front of, cracking the bark. I heard a bush rustling behind me and jumped into the air just as Pinkie flew past me, having tried to catch me by surprise from behind. A mix of a blue and purple aura suddenly held me in place on the air, and I looked to see the unicorns of the group with their horns alight.

They sighed in relief, thinking they had finally caught me, but I was already tired of this song and dance. So, taking a deep breath, I opened my mouth and screeched loudly. I heard shouts of surprise and pain as I was let go. Looking at the downed and disoriented ponies holding their ears, I took a moment to glance at Fluttershy, who looked up at me frozen in fear.

"In time you shall awaken to serve me, my loyal minion... Now rest, soon you shall become more than you are now."

Her eyes turned red for a moment before closing as she passed out.

{Third Person}

Blaze observed the ponies glaring angrily at her through their pain before flying off, leaving them behind. It was a few minutes later when they all recovered to stand, that they started panicking over their passed out friend. Checking her pulse, Twilight let out a sigh of relief.

"It's okay girls. She's alive, just passed out."

The others let out their own sighs before Rainbow stomped one hoof angrily.

"I knew that... Thing was trouble! It was brought by Discord after all! We should go after it and make it pay for what it did to Fluttershy!"

"Simmer down, sally. Ah also want to knock some sense into 'er, but Ah reckon we should take Shy here to the hospital first." Applejack reasoned, getting mumbled agreements and an angry snort from her still conscious friends.

"Most importantly though, we'll need a plan next time we confront her. I mean, she easily dodged Rainbow's and Applejack's attacks, avoided getting grabbed by Pinkie of all ponies, and managed to screech loud enough to break mine and Rarity's concentration after we caught her. She's not only agile, but she's intelligent and seems to have a certain awareness of what happens around her." Twilight said as she gently levitated the shy pegasus on AJ's back and they started to trek back to town.

"I know! It's like she has her own Pinkie Sense!" Pinkie Pie said through the bandage on her muzzle, hopping along with them. Not even an almost broken muzzle seemed to dampen the party pony's cheerful mood.

"By the way Pinkie, how's you muzzle doing?"

"Oh, it will be fine! The doctor said that I was lucky it wasn't broken, since I got hit with metal apparently. I like to think that filly just didn't want to hurt me!" She finished with a giggle.

"Hey, that's right. Why do y'all think she has those weird things on her forelegs? Made it seems it was made completely of metal." AJ asked her smart unicorn friend, but only got a sigh as Twilight looked down in contemplation.

"I'm not sure. There are many possibilities as to that. From being a fashion choice to potential loss of limbs..."

Her speculation made the group blanch a little. Sure, they currently weren't the best fans of the filly, but to probably have lost both forelegs at such a young age? As for Rarity, she almost fainted at the suggesting those garish things were a fashion choice. That was simply a crime, and should never be allowed to exist! After walking in silence after that last comment, they finally arrived back at town and Twilight turned to the others.

"I'm going back to the library to send a message to the Princess informing what happened. Rarity and Applejack, you two take Fluttershy to the hospital and make sure she's fine. Rainbow Dash, I want you to find Discord, we have some questions to ask him."

The group nodded and split off to do as they were ordered. None of them ever noticed the mark of a black lightning fading into existence on Fluttershy's neck.

{Blaze's POV}

I dry heaved, trying to make my body reject something it shouldn't even be able to ingest in the first place. I could still taste the iron of the blood on my tongue. And it tasted so good, which is what scared me the most. If I was really a vampire- vampony in this case- I would have problems in the near future. I can only be thankful that the sun doesn't seem to hurt me... But that was the last of my concerns right now.

"I hurt Fluttershy... I drank her blood... I'm a monster..."

These three sentences came out of my mouth again and again, in a seemingly endless loop. After I was far enough away from the mane six, the red haze slowly lifted from my vision. It was like slowly waking up from a dream, where things slowly faded back into focus for me. I could only remember bits and pieces of what happened back there, but the most horrifying thing I did was as clear as day. I had willingly hurt Fluttershy in one of the worst ways possible. I might just be the vilest creature under the sun right now...

I started wandering around aimlessly through the forest. Predators always seemed to linger on the edge of my vision, but whenever I turned to them, they would simply recoil from view. The could smell how dangerous I was, and I was thankful for that small blessing.

I don't know for how long I have been walking. With it being always dark inside the Everfree Forest, and my apparent night vision making me see clearly, I couldn't tell if it's still early in the day, of already late at night. The Forest itself seemed to be messing with my perception of time. I could even have been up all night for all I knew. In hindsight, maybe running into the Everfree to escape wasn't the best idea, but what's done is done, all I can do now is make the best of what I have, which is going to take a monumental effort, what with me currently feeling like shit.

As I was walking around, the air seemed to get colder suddenly. As if all warmth was slowly draining from my body. I had a bad feeling on my gut, but it's not like I knew where I was to turn back, so I just took a deep breath and kept walking. Fog started rolling in from somewhere, causing me to lose sight of what was in front of me and making me occasionally bump into random trees. A few minutes of walking like this, I finally had enough and instinctively opened my wings, flapping them in the hopes of blowing the fog in front of me away. Much to my surprise, the fog slowly parted in front of me, revealing something that gave me pause.

I don't know how and when, but right now, I was looking at a small village, visible through a gap between the trees. Walking closer, I looked around, finding a sign with a slightly faded text and read it aloud.

"Welcome to Sunny Town."
> Chapter 5 - Blank
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

{Third Person}

Applejack and Rarity stood in the waiting room of Ponyville's hospital, waiting for news on their shy pegasus friend. A heavy, worried silence hung over them, leaving only the normal sounds in the hospital to fill it. Each one desperately wanted something to break that silence, but the events that happened earlier were still firmly imprinted on their minds, constantly reminding them why Fluttershy was in this predicament in the first place. Deep down, none of them wanted to believe a young filly could be capable of such a vile act, but here they had witnessed just that.

They were broken out of their reverie when Dr. Stables finally approached them after having gone check on Fluttershy. The two of them stood, fearing any sort of bad news, but those thoughts were dashed when the saw the reassuring smile he had on.

"You can calm down now, ladies. We did a full examination on your friend, but besides a little exhaustion due to loss of some blood, which is curious since we didn't find any wound on her, Miss Fluttershy seems to be in perfect health." The two of them let out a relieved sigh, but still wanted to find out a little more.

"Are y'all sure about that, doctor?"

Dr. Stables hummed as he took a moment to clean his glasses. "One hundred percent. It's quite an interesting fact to be honest, we scanned and inspected her completely, but nothing turned up. She in fact woke up halfway during the tests and seemed confused about an apparent lack of a wound on one of her front hooves, according to her own account she stepped onto a sharp rock and cut herself. Sadly it seems she has a short term memory loss, as she says that she can't remember anything past that point."

The first thought that Rarity and Applejack had was that the strange filly used that dark magic of hers to manipulate Fluttershy in some way. They would have to get Twilight to check that.

"So, how is she at the moment?" Rarity asked.

"Right now she's sleeping, like I said she had some minor exhaustion, but she should be good for visits in a few hours max. You are welcome to wait here if you wish, and I'll have the staff inform you two if she wakes up."

"Thank you doctor, we're going to do just that." Rarity said, nodding in thanks to the doctor. Stables nodded back and trotted off to continue his work as the two mares sat back down, this time with lighter hearts knowing that their friend is alright. Now they just had to wait for the others to show up and explain what the doctor just told them.

Meanwhile inside the room, Fluttershy shivered a little as a second mark of a lightning bolt faded in besides the first, right before a pair of tiny, almost unnoticeable fangs grew on her mouth.





Discord sighed. He felt guilty for abandoning his friends like this, both the old and the new one, and it deeply hurt him to watch Fluttershy get hurt like that. But despite all that, he couldn't interfere. Not this time. Some time after Blaze (Bruce) ran into the forest, Blaze's (pony) spirit appeared before him. It would be confusing for any other, but he was the Spirit Of Chaos. He ate confusion with chocolate milk.

Back on topic, Blaze had explained the situation to him, and strictly prohibited him from helping. Apparently, all of what's currently happening must happen, so her souls can finally merge properly. Even if this wasn't supposed to happen in the first place, Blaze now had two souls in her body, and the dissonance between her human and pony soul could eventually kill her. She must learn how to dominate all of her powers alone, so the magic could fuse the souls into one properly as it should have been.

It wad a hard decision to make, but for his friend, he had to do it. From time to time he would open a magic window to observe Blaze's progress through the forest. Right now she seemed to be in front of a town in the middle of the woods, which shouldn't have worried him all that much, since he was very knowledgeable about the areas around Ponyville and the Everfree Forest by now. But still, he was worried, and his worry came from the fact him, Discord, in all his knowledge...

...had never heard about a village in the Everfree Forest.





Sunny Town... I don't remember hearing anything about this. I know I was still fairly new in the fandom, but I'm pretty sure there wasn't a mention of a town inside the Everfree Forest anywhere. Well, I'm still quite tired, so resting in a town, even if it's still inside the forest, seems better than the alternative. Remembering what I did a few probable hours prior still made my insides twist with guilt, and with a small sigh, I stepped past the sign.

Looking around showed the place to be apparently abandoned, but everything seemed to be in good enough condition. Maybe everypony is just asleep? I took a deep breath to calm down the trepidation I felt. Why does this place feels so... Off?

Ignoring that feeling doesn't seem to be a good idea, but I'm tired... Spotting a cart full of hay, I approached and hopped inside it, curling up tightly. My cybernetics felt pleasantly cool to the touch, but not enough to make me shiver. I noticed that I can still feel things with them, but it was a little dulled, like picking things up while wearing gloves. Somehow I knew the reason for that was because they were linked directly to my nervous system. Clearing my mind from that train of thought, I let sleep take me.

I floated in a void. I was back in the darkness, but this time there was no call. It was just... There. I didn't feel any fear, I didn't feel that I was suffocating like the first time, and most importantly, I didn't feel so tired anymore. I know it's a weird concept, but this time... I felt like the darkness was stroking me. Unseen limbs ran through my head and back in comforting motions, and I also felt like I was being gently held by someone. I could hear silent whispers on the edge of my perception, and even thought I couldn't distinguish them, they still gave me a sense of safety.

D̶͔̦̏̔̈́͊̄̓͝o̴̡̪̙̯̺͋̃̈́̅̈́̆̉̏̈́̕ͅǹ̸̛̩͒̈́͂͂̏͗̊̿̄̊̋̋̿͆̚̕'̸̹̗̳͚̦̘͍̪̗̜̦̜̃͋̔̀̄͛̀̅͛́̀̎̈͝t̷̡̢͖̳̥̻̹͇̘̓̔̚ ̸͖̼̥̫̠̹͕̯̼̆͛f̵̨̯͉̫̜͎̖͚̟̪̻̉̔͜e̷̢͎̻̰̝̖͕͖̭͔̹͇̰̝͍̊̉̏̚̚ͅa̸̩̫̞̼͍͈̼͔̪̟̥̦̯͕͓̎͑̿̂̂̂̀̒̉͆͊͂̅̐͋̈́̿̈́̚͜r̵̛̖͈̮̲͔͕̖̘̠͔̓̌̒̓̎̑͆̎̾̈́́͆͆̋͂̕̕ͅ ̷̜̰̻̟̗̗̫̘̳̒̓͐̾̈́͂͆̕͜͝͠ͅû̵͔̤͔̼͙͙͉̟̹͈̘͙̪̮̥̯̝̖̞̏̽̋͋̈̒͒͗̀̚s̷̢̢̛̻̥̱̳͉̻̿.̵͕̮̤͍̠͚̦̗̠̪̣̗̤͊͗̈́̽͌͗̓̔̓̏͘͝ͅ.̷̢̞̪͙̮͉̫͙̯͖̘̠͈̔̆́̍̐̌͆̒̇̉̈͒͂̅̋̾̕͘͠.̴͕̻͓͍̺̫̼̠̻̥̝͌̈́́̆̃̀̓̀͋͒̊̐͗̆͠͠

Ẅ̸̨̧̨͚͓̦͇̦͓͇͚̬̦̯̼́͒̽̌͐̓͒̒e̷̱̠͔͋̈͂͗͑̓̔͋͝͝͠'̴̤̣̻̟̫̳̟̰̹͗̐̚ļ̵̦̩̟̟̗̫̗͈̙͇̘͓̳͒͊̈́̒̏̊̍̒̊̉͒̈̽̕͘͝l̴̨̛͗̊͂ ̴̹̼̙͈̬̠̞͕͔͕̹̠̹̼̪̃̿̈̂̒͆͛k̴͔̲̦͈̠͙͕̅̃͆̉͂̃͠͝ę̶̡̧̹͖̙̮̹̤̙̭̲̗͓͙͛͊͝e̵̡̩̙̞̫͂̿̈́͂̾̓̔̂̔̚͝p̷̮̟̣̩̦͉̦͎̪̟̚ ̷̖̏̐̒̅̂́́͗̅͌̐͌͌̕̕y̶̨̗̲̖͔̩̠̠̼̤͙̋ǫ̸̠͉̦̳̝͍̙͗͌͋̀͒́̊͜ư̷̫̪̣͖̙̬̜͓̥̘͈͖̩͗̊̂͂͐̃̉̏͗͐̽͊̄͘͠ ̶̣̩͉̖̫̻̼͉͎͉̇̀͒͗̒̽̃̅̾̔̎̃̏͘̚͝s̸̛̳͎̹̖̺͐̀̽a̵̡̧͍̞̹̲͚̘̜̙̐͜͠f̷̢̡̨̛̛̫̦̬̙̰͖̞̟̹̤͓͍̿͆͛̈́̀͗͆̾͝ͅe̶̢̧̲̪̠̭̳̤̰̟̦̘͈̮̓͊̌͑͋͒͠͝ͅ.̷̡̜͖̣̰̣̟͉͓̖̭̾̏͆̑̂̅̔͜.̸̩̍̐̏̇̆̃͂̏.̵͚͕̗̖̖̺̳̯̲̼̹̯͍͕̩̔͊͗̄̈̄̊̚͘͘

Y̴̠̹̯̪̦̫̏̓̂͘͘͝ͅò̵̯͖̮̫̹͙̩̠͈͉̦̺͑̒̉́͝ͅͅų̸̨̺̘̯̻͑̑͒̀̀̈́̓͝͝͠ ̵̨̒̋̾͆̅̏͋̏d̷͔̙̳̗̙̑̎͂̑̀͜ơ̸̥̭͖̱̜͎̜͈̰̘̥̟̝̌͌̀̔͊͑̀̽̌̎̅͂̋́͜n̸̡̛̞͓͈̗͉͖̗͓̟̮͚͗̓̿͂̀͝ͅ'̶̢̦̋̄͠t̵̛̞͇̪̦͕̩̣̭͙̲̍̐̑̿͑̑͑̄͌̃͂͗͜͠͠͝ ̵̗̩̘̮̱̳̩̼̰̫̬̩̄̈́̓̈́̓͊͊̕̚͜͝͠ͅn̶̢̧̨̰̬̭̪̞̭̲̝͙͓͆̒̀͌́͐̅̃͛͗͝͝ę̸̧̧̥̩̟̞̬̠͗͂͆͗̅͝͠ͅę̷̡̧̗̘̝͚̱̥͈͐̂͋̿̾d̴̪̼̲̯̲͈̅̈́͛̚ ̷̢̪̫͎̩̬̠͇̼̝̩̼̖̥̇̔̐̈́́̇̅̈̔̑͝͝͝t̶̡̧͕̮͔̳̥̱͔͔̻̭̘̃̌̂̐̌̊̏́̌͛̃̂̈́͗͝o̷̧̯̭͎̼͚̮̪̖͇̣̩̘͋̎͑͗̀̈́̄̑́̄̿͑̿́͜͝ͅ ̶͉̮̦͉̣̩̪̪̐̋̒̈́͘͠ͅb̴̫̪̼̙̺͈͙̐͛̔̂̋̋̍̾̽̈́̑̓͝e̶͚͈̹̞͔̦̮̹͒̃ͅ ̴̡̺̙̭̝̰̥̪̮̤͙̪̻͖̉̌̆̿͜a̴̡͈̋̈́̏̅̎͋͌͂̑̂̌̉̚͠f̵̡͍̟̺̭͉̯̺̦͕̻͖̰͖̱͒͐̓͗̊̌́͗͘r̴̢̛͎͙̲͎̩͈̪͔̝̖͓̪̳̬̮̆ạ̸̮͔̳̻̖̠̩̳́͛̓̽͆̏͂͜ͅî̵̧̢̩̩̘̪̜̙͐͆̈́̓̓̋̏̏̎͐̐̚͜d̵̺̻̟̯͙͙͔̮̓̈́̓̑̕̚͠ ̴̳͍͙̥̤̖͉̖̪̠̮̓̊̈́̓̎̾͒͐̒̄̕ͅȍ̵͍̝͓̯̥̙̘̀f̸̨̜͓̞̲̦͇̘͈͉̟̹̝͍̙̭͊͆͘ ̵̨̤̮͓̟̪̮̮̭͔͙͇̃t̶̡̹͙̙̓͗͐̈́̀̽̽̈́̅͝ͅȟ̸̝̯͓̬͆̋e̶̡̹̺̘̯̳͎̝̠̱̲̙͇̣̐̓͋̈́̈͜ ̵̰̪̲̥̤̩̝̟̲̼͈̭̦̏̈́̑̏̔̆͛͛̈́̀̾̾̕̕͘ḑ̶̞͚̝͎̲̰̫̬̟̝͚̝̥̹̪̽̎̆͝a̵̡̛̱̮͎̮̟̝̝̖̲͍͈̟̳̲͂́̓̅́̆̈́̕ͅŗ̵̢̫͚̜̭̜̱͎̌̂̇̀̈̆͑̾̋͝k̷̢̡̛͚̟̮̰̭͐̍̋̾͒̄̉̋̂͜ ̵̛͕̺̐̀͗͋̈́̒̋́̍͋̾̚ą̶͓̣̗̒̃̋̑̀͑̽͌̓̔̔͊̇̍̚ņ̵̪̩̟̪̠͈͙̦̲͈̉́͋̔̑͗̚͜͠͠͝y̶̖͍͙͇͊m̸̺̠̜̙͎̹̬̱͈͙͎̓̽̎̄̃̽̚͜͝ô̸̢̡̢̨̼͉̫̞̫̙̱̟̞̳͎̈́̽ŗ̸̰͉̗̲͕̝͙̙̜̞̳͎͔̞̔̊̃͛̀͘e̵̡̨̛̛͈̳̠̠̹͈̞̳̓͋́͌̽̏̂͂̀̌̈́͋͠͠.̶̺̬̈́̾̂͑͛̾͂̍̒̏̕͘͝.̶̱̒̎̒̂̽̾́͘.̴̧̱̗̰̗̮̬̀͑͂̎

B̴̨̳̭̣̻̫͚͕̮̘͙̤̠̬͌̌̐̈́̕ͅe̵͔̠̙̙̪̭̞̰̞̰̜̎̆̒̈̚c̴̨̗͇̭̺͕̉̆̆́͒̉̔͑͠ǎ̸̧̛͉̹͉̱̬̓͂̑̃̇̐̽̆͋͘͝͠͝u̷̡̢̡̦̩̰͎̦̮̫̳͉̬̪͌͌͊̀̓̈̿̈́̋͘͝ş̴̡̘̥̜̖͎̠͍̜̦̪̻̈́͐̃̽́̋̎͘ȩ̴͉̰̭̘̙̜͍͍̼̜̹͒̽̄̄̄̅̏͌̋͗̀̏̕͝ ̷̢̡̛̣̲̬̤͇̼̙͔̤̹̼̀͋͛̏̉̌̾͘͝͝t̵̢̙͖̳̭̓̉͊̄̍̊͊͗͂̄̊̈́h̵̢̙̺̹̙̥̪͙͎̳̱̳͙̩̳̯̐̐̌̅͝e̶̡̧̺̮͖̍ͅ ̵̍͊͒̈͐́̿̋͆̈́͒͘ͅd̸̖̱̬͙͑̓͗̋̔́̆͂ą̸̯͖̐ͅr̶̟̳̖̹͚̞͚͋̐̆̃̄̐͊̽̈́͑k̵̰̫̭̫̝̳͉̲͔̻̤̝̲̤͎̐̂̓̿́̕ ̴̤͚̩̟̜̹͔̪͓͈̙͍͇̏̓̀̓̐̓͋͑̀̀͝ì̷͎͓̤̭͇͙̙̠̭̼̻͔̳̖̽̊͑̉̾̂̒̃̿̆̒͘͜s̴̘̥͍̪͖͖̦̗͑͐̓́̆̈͒̉͝ ̷̛͇͈̯̲̥͙̝̣͎̔̇͂͆̑̄̊̂̂̓̔̕̚͜͠y̴̧̧͎̙̲̠͔̞̪͎̼͖̻̐͂̑ọ̶̢̣͕̣̬̺̯̹͖̣̇̅̓͒̏̈͊̿ͅu̶̢̹̝̲̰̦̎̈́r̷͔͕͍̬̳̲̓s̴̯̤̦̗͗͛̇̽̌͆́̒̓̏̀͑̚͠ ̵̭̏͑̉͂̄̍̎̀̅̍t̷̲̪̼̟̊̑̆̑́̌̋̎͒̍̾͑̈́͠͠ỏ̴̳͎̺̲͍̝̀̓̀̀͑̍̔̕͜ ̸̨̺͍͚̼̺̗͐͝c̴̫̄ỏ̸͔̮̟͊̒͠ḿ̸̡̡̠̪̪͇̣̱͖̘̗̗͉͑̌͝m̴̧̨̯̬͔͙̦͇̤͆͌̄͆̃͌̒̅͛͒̍͝á̷͙̗̓̋̈͠͠n̵̪̖͍̣̺̫̞̈́̽̆̑d̴̛̫͍̺͙̙͈̂̿̈́̑͐̓̈̿͊̉̈̋̈́͘͜ͅ.̷̧̖̬̣̹̳̤̦͔̗̪͖̞͇̯̇͂̄̈́͛̈͊͂͛̓͑̈́͜.̵̨̖̼͙͓̮͔͉͗̚ͅ.̴̭͍̓̿̈̒͋̈̂̔͠

I sighed in contentment. The dark... Doesn't seem so scary anymore.





Meanwhile deep into the darkness, two glowing orbs floated, one a cyan blue and the other a deep red, connected to one another by thin strands of light.

Suddenly, one of the strands glowed a little more brighter before becoming slightly more thick, causing the two orbs to drift slightly closer to each other.





Morning arrived far too fast for my liking. Sunlight hit my closed eyes, causing me to let out a groan.

"I'm a nocturnal creature now sun, leave me alone..." I mumbled.

"Hello!"

"WAUGH!!!"

The sudden voice beside my ear startled me to the point my wings shot open, flinging hay everywhere. After calming down from my Jackie Chan moment, I turned to look at the one who disturbed my rest, only to come muzzle to muzzle with green. Green everywhere. The eyes, the mane, the face, everything was just different shades of green. I jerked back slightly to glance at the pony better while she (the eyelashes were visible) just kept smiling at me. I decided to respond as eloquently as I could at the moment.

"Abuh...?"

Indeed, eloquently.

"My name's Green Forest, and I'm the official town greeter! And right now I'm greeting you! Greetings!"

Wow, I would have never guessed it. I took a deep breath before stretching for a moment to give my brain time to properly asses the situation, then jumped down from the hay cart and turned to face the pony. Actually scratch that, I was just facing her chest. Gotta remember I'm small now, barely half the size of an adult pony. Yes, I made Blaze that small because I thought it looked cute, had I known this would happen I would have made a teen instead of a filly...

I tilted my head up to give her my name, but I was swept off my hooves and into a hug before I could.

"Awww, you're so adorable!" I heard Green Forest squeal in my ear. "With you fluffy ears and your little bat wings!"

Now let me tell you this. Sensitive hearing can be a good thing for most, except when a shrill noise goes off right next to your head. Her squeal felt like it was stabbing into my ears. Thankfully, before I could go deaf, we were interrupted by somepony else.

"Greenie, could you maybe not squeal in the little one's ears like that? Look, she seems to be in pain."

"Oh no!" Green gasped before dropping me and apologizing. "I'm sorry, I just ge excited around new ponies!"

Sounds like a distant relative of a certain pink mare...

"It's fine..." I said, rubbing one of my ears. "I'm Lightning Blaze by the way."

The stallion nodded and stepped forward. "I'm Wave Ocean, and as I'm sure you already know, this is Green Forest."

Wave was a blue pegasus stallion with a deeper blue mane that had faint white streaks on it, like ocean water. I feel like I should be sensing a pattern here, but I'll shelve that for later.

"Now that we have properly introduced ourselves, mind explaining what a little filly like you was doing sleeping in that hay cart?" Wave asked.

Now that question got me. I can't exactly tell them I was chased out of Ponyville because of a string of incidents that were out of my control. I don't want to lie to these ponies that are being so nice to me, but I guess I have no other choice. I decided to go with something that would be believable, and patly true.

"I... Was strolling through the woods and got lost... I found this town, but I think everypony was asleep, so I climbed on this hay cart to rest and ended up falling asleep..." My ears even flopped back against my head for added effect. Damn, I'm surprised at my own acting.

"Oh poor dear!" Green said, once again sweeping me off my hooves. "Don't worry, you can stay here in the town for as long as you like! Oh, I gotta present you to everypony!"

After that she started dragging me from place to place, listing off names like Cool Edge, Diamond Dust, Marble Garden, Spring Yard, Mistic Cave, and others. I had the sensation I was missing an inside joke somewhere. That aside, everypony seemed really friendly here, but some smiles seemed forced for some reason. Although I could swear there were a couple of red eyes watching me from the darkness, I dismissed it as there was something else bothering me.

Adults and foals alike, none of them, not a single one...

Had a Cutie Mark.
> Chapter 6 - Crimson
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The ponies of Sunny town welcomed me with open hooves. It was such a refreshing change of airs, or at least it would be, if it wasn't for that nagging detail that kept demanding my attention.

The utter absence of cutie marks.

No pony, not the foals, not the adults, not even the elders had a cutie mark to speak of. For some reason, that left me feeling mildly unsettled. I'm trying my best to not say anything about that, as I didn't want to somehow offend them in anyway. Perhaps it was just some sort of custom? Although quite a weird one if that's true...

I let out a sigh, shaking my head a little. "Maybe I'm just thinking too hard about this..."

To distract myself, I decided to take a stroll through town by myself, just take in the sights. I would pause every now and then as the faint feeling of being watched would wash over me, but looking around showed nothing. Maybe I'm just being paranoid and it's just a bird or something else, so I tried to ignore it and go about my day. It's not like there's a terrible secret in this town or something right?

...Right?

"Hello!"

"Gah!" The sudden voice to my left caused me to miss a step and faceplant on the ground. I laid there for a moment or two, just existing on the dirt and contemplating why, and how, ponies keep sneaking up on me like this.

"Are you okay? Need some help?" I glanced up from my position on the ground to the owner of the voice. She seemed to be a young filly, her fur was a dark red color while her mane was pink, and her eyes were a shade of bright red, which sent shivers down my spine for some reason. She was also slightly bigger than me.

"I'm fine..." I said while sitting back up and looking at her expectantly. She seemed to catch on quick to what I wanted to know.

"My name's Ruby! Nice to meet you!" She held out a hoof for me to shake.

It took me a moment to return the gesture because a few things struck me as odd. Firstly, her name seemed a little out of place for some reason. I can't put my finger- err, hoof on it, but it didn't seem to fit in with... Something, I don't know how to explain. Secondly, there was a strange black mark on her neck. I couldn't see it properly but I'm sure it was in the shape of something. And thirdly...

She had a cutie mark.

Right there, proudly emblazoned on her flank, were three little gems, one blue, one green and one yellow, framed by a pink heart. I introduced myself and we engaged in a mildly awkward conversation, as I tried to not let my eyes wander towards it too much. I mean c'mon, it's basically on her butt, and I sure as hell didn't want to be seen as a creep, especially not towards a filly.

Yet it was so odd, so out of place, so unusual, so unique. Everypony I have seen in Sunny Town so far had no cutie mark to speak of, and yet here is a filly who just randomly has one. The nagging feeling I was having earlier return and started to grow on the back of my mind. The longer me and Ruby talked, the more that feeling grew, and it wasn't long before the question finally spilled from my lips.

"Hey Ruby, how come nopony in the town has a cutie mark except for you?"

The smile she gave me had a weird undertone to it. It's almost like she was... Waiting for that question?

"Come to the cabin on the edge of the town at nightfall. Alone." She said.

I tilted my head a little. When I asked 'Why?', all she said was:

"You'll understand when you get there." And then she turned and started walking off, leaving me with even more questions in my head.

Just who are you, Ruby...?

Sighing, I tried to go about my day as normal, yet this encounter kept replaying itself in my head over and over. On the outside I kept a smile so as to not worry anypony though, it wouldn't do to cause them concern over what is probably nothing...

Just have to wait and see what happens I guess.





Princess Luna stood on the balcony of her room, waiting for her sister to lower the sun so she could raise the moon. Her mind however seemed to be elsewhere as she stared in the direction of the Everfree Forest, recalling the contents of the letter that her sister's student had sent.

"A filly with bat wings and metal legs..."

It had to be a coincidence. The description matched that of the one missing foal from an accident where a building exploded for apparently no reason. But that couldn't be possible. The accident happened years ago, before she was even back from what Celestia told her.

Luna let out a sigh before refocusing her attention when she noticed the sun getting lower. She glanced at her sister's balcony, seeing her with her horn alight before turning to the horizon and doing the same. She slowly lifted her head, the moon peeking out of the mountains before rising along with her movement.

When it was at a good enough height, she released her magic and let the moon start it's trajectory through the night sky by itself before turning and walking back into her room. She walked by her mirror before pausing for a moment to glance at it.

Bright crimson eyes stared back at her for a brief second before she blinked, her normal blue iris returning after she did so. She nodded before turning and heading off to meet with her sister for dinner before she went to start Night Court.





Something was wrong...

I had been wandering around town and listening to the background noise that was the ponies going about their days, but the moment night fell, things just stopped... Not stopped as in, froze in time, but more like, all sound and activity just ceased to exist.

It was utterly silent, and there was nopony around anymore, like they just vanished into thin air. Fog hung close to the ground, and a strange chill went down my spine.

"Hello? Anyone around?" I called out, but got no response.

Gulping, I decided to see if at least Ruby was around. She did tell me to go to the cabin I saw on the far edge of the town after all. Maybe she could tell me what is happening? Yeah, it's probably just a tradition of theirs to head inside the moment night falls...

As if.

The walk towards the cabin was nerve wracking. I kept glancing around for some sign of life, but it was almost like I was in a ghost town. Do ghosts exist in Equestria? I know that one episode talked about Wendigos, but are they considered ghosts?

I stopped that line of thought when I noticed that I had arrived at the cabin. The air around it was so cold, making me shiver for a moment. There was a feeling of dread emanating from the cabin, and it took a monumental effort to keep from running away in fear and hiding inside a pile of hay.

What's wrong with me? Why was I so afraid of a cabin?

No one answered my questions this time, giving me a small sense of comfort that for once there wasn't anyone listening to my thoughts. Shaking my head and stepping closer, I looked up to the door and raised a hoof to knock, only to almost jump out of my skin when it opened out of its own accord.

"Because that's not creepy at all..."

Steeling my nerves, I stepped inside the cabin, only to jump as the door slammed closed behind me. Of course it did... Forcing down another shiver that was threatening to make itself known, I turned my attention to the room around me.

There wasn't much to look at really, just things you would find in a living room of any home. A couch, a coffee table, some bookshelves, the works. Everything however was covered in a layer of dust, looking like it hadn't been cleaned for months. Everything that is, except for one single book on the nearest bookshelf.

I don't know why, but that book stuck out to me like a sore thumb. It just so happened that the book was at perfect eye height with myself, and was probably the only book that didn't have faded writing on it's side.

"'It's Our Secret'..." I read the title out loud. Tilting my head slightly, I tried to imagine what kind of book it was. Maybe a romance of some kind? I was never one for that type of books, but it's not like I have anything to do at the moment as it doesn't look like Ruby had arrived yet.

Sticking my tongue out in concentration, I opened one wing and used it to try and pull the book out of the shelf, since I still had no idea how to pick things up with hooves. When being delicate didn't move the book even an inch, I frowned and tried to apply more force, finally making some progress before once again meeting resistance.

Getting frustrated, I tried to yank the book towards me on to be surprised as a loud 'Click!' sounded. Letting go of the book, I scrambled back as the entire bookshelf rumbled before starting to slide to the side. I stood there for a minute or two just staring at the new opening before hearing the bookshelf rumbled again as the passage started to close.

I don't know what compelled me to do so, but I jumped through the passage right before it closed behind me, skidding to a halt and barely managing to stop myself from rolling down the stairs that presented themselves before me on the other side.

Glancing back at the seemingly smooth wall behind me, I let out a sigh before proceeding the only direction currently available: forward and down. Let me tell you something, walking downstairs as a pony makes you extremely self-conscious. I could feel myself blushing slightly as I felt my posterior higher than the rest of me.

On the third step, I decided that no, screw walking down like this! I am not going to be that degraded! I opened my wings and just pushed off, gliding down the rest of the way. Sighing in relief, I decided that I would never, EVER walk down a set of stairs again.

On the bottom of the stairs there was a fancy looking door. Is that dark wood? No matter, I guess I'll just check what's inside. Who knows, maybe the townsfolk are actually gathered in here to throw me a welcome party!

Smiling faintly, I put a hoof on the door, blinking as a strange red rune glowed on it for a moment. Shrugging that strange happening aside, I pushed the door open only for my good mood to dash away completely, as behind the door there was no party waiting.

What I found instead, was single unicorn stallion. Pure white coat, jet black mane, blood red eyes, cutie mark of a fancy looking sword covered in blood. He was also holding a sword similar to his cutie mark in his levitation, pointing it at a cage before him. And inside said cage was...

"Diamond Tiara!?"

My outburst had the unintended effect of drawing both their attention to me. One pair of eyes looked at me with hope, the other with barely contained annoyance.

This is most definitely NOT what I was expecting out of my unintentional tour of the Everfree Forest.