> Once a Shadow
>  by Jaeger Donutt
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> The Accident
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mid-October, 2014

Location: Charlotte Motor Speedway during one of the final races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup

"And there goes none other than #21 Landon Flash taking the lead during the turn! He's proving to be a natural just like his father!" the announcer yelled

'Shut the hell up already.' I thought.

"Alright Landon, you're doing well, just maintain your speed and watch yourself on the next turn." My pit crew chief, and best friend, Barry, informed me.

"Roger that Houston, I got this." I said

"Don't get cocky dude, we're only halfway through the race, and I don't need to remind you that this is your first cup.”

"Yeah, yeah, I got it; I'm coming in for a pit stop so get ready."

"Alright, get over here and we'll fix you up."

I went into the pit stop, and at once my crew got to work on the car. Half of these guys were new to the scene, so even though it frustrated me to no end that they were so slow, I understood. While they did their thing, another guy brought me a bottle of water, which I immediately downed. It's hot as hell out here.

"Landon," Barry said, barely audible over the cheering crowd and roar of the other engines. "even though you're doing great, there's still half a race to go, and I don't want you to let it get to your head."

"You worry too much man, there's no one else out there that can match my speed."

"Just watch yourself Landon, I don't want your dumb ass doing anything reckless. This is your first cup, so don't fuck it up."

"Whatever you say. I gotta get back to the race, see ya!"

I ran and hopped into my car, strapped in, and took off. The race went on, going back and forth between me and one of the veterans of the track. I swear the guy had something against me, because every time I passed him or he passed me, he'd get as close to my car as possible to get me to drop back or swerve away.

On the next-to-last lap, going around one of the turns, I heard a loud BANG. "Landon, get to the pit! You have a blowout!" Barry yelled

"No! I have to win this! I can do it!"

"Damnit Landon, I told you not to get cocky! Now get your ass in here before I kill you myself!"

I turned off the radio, what would he know? This wasn't his first cup; this wasn't his time to make an impression on everyone. If I won this, it would create a name for me. I had to do this, never quit, that's what I learned from watching Rainbow Dash on My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. She never gave up on anything, when anything bad happened, she would just get back up and try again. I could never stop now, not even if I wanted to. And because I want to show that vet that the rookie can kick his ass.

I cut my radio back on to hear if Barry was still bitching. "-on of a bitch get out of there now!" That's a yes.

"No can do Barry, this is my time."

Irony decided to be a bitch as I came up on my next and last turn before the finish. I started the motion I was accustom to, easing in to it, when my wheel jammed. Time slowed down there. I was sent flying and spinning in the air. I could see the crowd's appalled expressions. As I continued my flipping, I could hear Barry screaming something else to me. It was probably 'I told you so'. They say your life flashes before your eyes when you die, well, I don't know where people came up with that, but I did have time to think since my adrenaline was going insane, speeding up my thought process.

Since this was going to be the end for me, I thought about how I wasn't going to win, and that other jackass taking first place. I thought about the life I'd never have, filled with glory and all the perks it comes with. I thought I could screw with Barry's mind one last time. Time sped up a little bit.

"Hey Barry, if you play anything boring at my funeral, I'm haunting your ass."

Well, this is gonna hurt.

Just then my car got low enough to get smashed into by another car with a speed that was easily 160mph. I heard the sound of impact, and then everything went black. I opened my eyes to a blinding whiteness.

"I'm pretty sure more than just me saw that one coming." A booming voice said. It was the kind of voice that made you want to kneel in respect and shit your pants at the same time.

"Wait, who the hell are you, and where the hell am I? Did I just die?" I demanded

"As for whom I am, you probably already have a decent guess to that, and as for where you are, this is purgatory. It is where all souls go at first after they depart. And yes, you are dead."

"Well shit. Okay then, what happens next?"

"Next, we review your 'file' per say, and I determine if you are worthy to go into the realm of what you love the most, or unfit to go there, and in which case, you go straight to hell.

"Wait, I've never exactly been your avid Church-goer. Shouldn't I be sent straight to hell?"

"No. Just because you don't go to a large auditorium every Sunday for two hours, that doesn't mean I'm going send you into eternal hellfire.

"Oh...alright. Sweet."

While I couldn't see him, I could tell he was reviewing my 'file'. What did he mean 'realm of what I love the most'? Was he talking about heaven? Or was he talking about-no fucking way. Holy shit hot damn!

"The swearing is unnecessary, just so you know."

Wait, he can read my mind?

"Yes, I can read your mind. If I can do all the stuff you think I can, this should be pretty easy would it not?"

Well, I had to admit he got me there.

"So what did you determine about me?"

"I've determined that you are reckless, foolish, and a danger to yourself, but also, a genuinely kind person who would protect others from harm when put in that situation. So I've determined that you may go into the realm of which you love most."

"YES, FUCK YES, HOLY SH-"

"Watch it."

"Err… right, sorry."

"Are you ready?"

"Yeah, just one thing, could you send me as a Pegasus?"

"Sure, just do me a favor and cut down on the swearing."

I grinned, "No promises"

I was then enveloped in an even greater brightness than this place had. I closed my eyes. I couldn't believe it. I was going to Equestria!

So guys, how'd I do for my first story? Leave a review for me so I can improve on things. This first chapter took me about 45 minutes to do, tell me if I should make the chapters longer, I just didn't want to write too much at first, in case you guys don't like it. I'm also going to do a quote of the day like SupahBrony300 did during his story, Savior Rising. Great story, definitely worth the read. Anyways, I'll let all of you get back to life.

Quote of the day: "So help me God I will tie your penis to a horse's tail and throw a sugar cube across the room!"- My friend to another friend that was singing in a god awful voice and wouldn't stop.

> Arrival
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: ?

Location:?

Why is it so loud? My ears feel like they're exploding, and on top of that, I'm feeling a lot of pressure. Oh, OH SHIT, I'M FALLING!

"FUUUUUCCCKKKKKK" I yelled as I quickly descended to the ground.

I was pretty high off the ground to not be able to make out the details, I started flailing my hooves-wait, hooves? Holy shit, I have hooves! Wait, what's that? Wings? Oh thank you God.(Even though you teleported me like 30,000 feet off of the damn ground.) I focused as much as I could on my wings to make them open, but nothing was happening.

"COME ON, OPEN DAMN IT! Don't tell me I'm going to die when I just fucking got here!"

It was definitely looking that way, even though I tried as hard as I could to open my wings. The ground was getting a lot closer. I was probably only about a mile off of the ground now.

"Come on! Come on!" I yelled as I continued to struggle.

Just then, I saw and felt my wings move.

"Yes, just a little more! Almooosst!"

My wings spread out a little more, and I started gliding through the air incredibly fast. I was no longer in any danger of dying, but still in danger of some serious hurt. I looked around, and I could tell I was next to Ponyville, because I was shooting passed a certain familiar apple far- damn it, focus! I'm still in some serious trouble, I need to try and flap my wings as fast as possible to slow myself down. I once again focused on my wings, but they weren't responding.

I was now flying above Ponyville itself, and still about to cripple myself. I was probably 20 feet off of the ground now, and it looked like I was about to slam into that big ass tree! Wait, that's the library! 

Ponies were now taking notice of me, probably because of my screaming. At that moment, a small purple and green dragon opened the door to the library.

"OH SHIT, LOOK OUUT!" I screamed at him

His eyes shot open when he saw me rapidly approaching and reached for the doorknob.

"NO, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON'T CLOSE THAT DOOR!" I screamed.

Either he didn't hear me, or he ignored me, because he slammed the door as soon as I approached. It didn't do much to stop me though, because I blasted through the door and slammed into a bookshelf, making all of the books tumble down, as well as the shelf itself, which in turn slammed into another, and another, and another...whoops. Oh well, I think I'll take a nap now, I'm pretty tired...and hurt.

When I came to, I was on a couch in what looked like the library, with books and bookshelves all over the ground. Looks like I'm still in Equestria. I'd be jumping for joy if I wasn't in so much pain.

"What the hay was that all about?" A purple unicorn yelled at me

"Ughhh, my frigging head....and hooves....and wings."

"Sigh*, we'll get to that later I suppose, are you okay?"

"I don't know, I just fell from over 30,000 feet, slammed through a very sturdy door, and smacked into an equally sturdy bookshelf, what do you think?"

"You should lose the sarcasm, seeing as how I decided not to throw you on the street for wrecking my library."

"Yeah, sorry, I just went through a lot at once quite recently, and that fall didn't really help a lot." 

"Speaking of which," Twilight started to say, "why were you falling? You're a pegasus."

Does she have a thing for asking stupid questions? Because she's making it really hard not to use my sarcasm. Oh well, I guess I shouldn't be too short with her. She did at least not throw me out.

"Well, it's a pretty funny story actually, you see-" Oh shit, she'd probably think I'm insane if I tell her what just happened to me.

"Go on." Twilight said

"I- I was training, and then I guess I blacked out, next thing I know I'm sailing through your door and against a bookshelf." I lied

"Training? What for?" She inquired

"I was uhhh, training for the...Wonderbolts! Yeah, that's it!" That's actually not a bad idea since I'm here.

"Wow, really? I can honestly say I know only one other pony that wants to get in that group, and that's Rainbow-"

"Dash" I finished

"How did you know that?" Now she was suspicious

Oh fuck, why did I open my mouth? Quick, think of something! Anything!

"Oh, well, I know of Rainbow Dash because of the Young Flier's Competition." That's good, keep going.

"And, not many pony's names start with Rainbow that want to get into the Wonderbolts." That sounded believable didn't it?

Twilight stared at me a moment longer before speaking up again.

"Okay, so what's your name?"

"My name..." Oh shit, I haven't thought about a name

"Yes, your name, you do have one right?"

I looked at a mirror across from me, and I noticed that I had a jet black coat, with the same color in my mane and tail, but they were outlined by crimson. I also noticed I had no cutie mark. Right, so what name can I make off of Landon Flash, or the colors on me?

"Yeah, I do, it's...Shadow Flash." That was good enough, right? (Hot damn, I'm original.)

"Okay, so Shadow Flash...where are you from?"

Now this was an easier question, since I'm such a pro at Equestrian geography. (obviously)

"I'm from Cloudsdale, and if you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" I asked as I sat up, holding my head.

I need to make it seem like I don't know shit about this place as best I can to avoid suspicion.

"My name is Twilight Sparkle, and the baby dragon over there is my number one assistant Spike."

I looked around. Huh, I really did make a mess in here. I guess I should offer to help clean it up.

"I'm sorry about this Miss Sparkle, I-"

"Call me Twilight please, titles make me uncomfortable."

"Right, so anyways Twilight, I'm sorry about the mess, is there any way I could help?"

She seemed to brighten up a bit at that.

"I'm glad you asked, seeing as how it's your fault, you can start by picking up all of these books."

"Right away then, by the way, is there anywhere I can stay here? I plan on staying for a small duration, and I'm pretty low on bits." I gave a sheepish smile

"Well, I don't have any spare rooms here, and I'm pretty sure Rarity or Fluttershy don't. And I know you don't want to stay with Pinkie Pie. So it would either be Rainbow Dash or Applejack. While you clean up here, I'll go and get them so you can meet each other."

"Thank you Twilight, I appreciate it."

"Don't mention it, I'll be right back with those two, while I'm gone, you help Spike clean up this mess."

"Can do." I said before I gave a salute

Spike just groaned and picked up a broom. Twilight trotted out the door, so that left me and Spike in an awkward silence before I decided to break the ice.

"So Spike, how long have you known Twilight?"

"I've known Twilight ever since I was hatched, no lie. One of her trials to get into magic school involved hatching me, I won't go into detail, but she did it, and I've been with her ever since. Long story short, she impressed Princess Celestia herself and got to be her own star pupil."

"That's incredible! So I'm guessing she can do some amazing magic huh?"

"Of course, you don't get to be Princess Celestia's star pupil for nothing."

We cleaned and talked for about another half hour, I had an even harder time trying to use my hooves than I did with my wings. Seriously, how did ponies pick stuff up with those things? I had to use my mouth instead of my hooves, and during that time, I was trying to focus on moving my wings. I think I got the movements down. I can fly a little bit, but probably only really slow.

Twilight arrived after that half hour was up along with Rainbow Dash and Applejack. Applejack immediately trotted up to me and took one of my hooves in both of her's, and started shaking it with a death grip.

"Well howdy partner, nice to meet ya. My name's Applejack, and ah help run Sweet Apple Acres."

"Uh, hi, my name is Shadow Flash." 

Jesus, she has a grip

Applejack finally released my poor hoof and backed away. Rainbow Dash hovered over to me with her usual confidence.

"What's up, I'm Rainbow Dash, the fastest flier in Equestria, and future member of the Wonderbolts!"

"My name's Shadow Flash, probably slowest flier in Equestria, and I too would like to be in the Wonderbolts."

She gave me a strange look, then fell on the ground laughing as hard as possible.

"Gee, you sure know how to give ponies a vote of confidence."

She rose up and wiped a tear off.

"Sorry, but you definitely don't look like the type to be a Wonderbolt."

Ouch. Well, two could play at that game.

"Is that so? You don't exactly look like the type to be one either." I stated while smirking.

That looked like it got to her.

"Oh yeah? Is that a challenge?" She said, her expression becoming serious.

"Alright, quit flirtin' you two." Applejack butted in.

Rainbow Dash stammered, and I looked surprised as well.

"Wh-I-sh-shut up Applejack! I wasn't flirting!" Rainbow stammered.

"Mhm, I'm sure ya weren't Rainbow." Applejack said while rolling her eyes.

That made Rainbow blush. I continued to sit there in stunned silence. Me and Rainbow Dash? But she's a pony, and I am, well a pony too, but still, this didn't seem right. Even though she was pretty cute. Twilight noticed my wide eyes and decided to speak up.

"Right, well Shadow here doesn't have a place to stay, and I was wondering if one of you two had a place for him to stay while he's in town."

"I'm sorry sugarcube, but I don't have any spare room at the farm."

I looked at Rainbow Dash and gave a small, hopeful smile.

"Ugh, fine, I guess you can stay the night on my couch."

I gave her a thankful smile. "Thanks, I really appreciate it."

"Right, no problem. Uh, so my place is this way." She said as she trotted towards the door, slightly blushing.

"Okay, nice meeting you all! Thanks again for not throwing me out Twilight." I said exiting with Rainbow.

"Don't mention it, just try not to fly through my door again." She said as she rolled her eyes.

I nodded and waved as I walked through the door with Rainbow Dash ahead of me. She turned around and started to speak.

"So, while we fly back to my place, tell me about yourself. Where are you from?"

"I'm actually from Cloudsdale, same as you from what I know."

"You look like you're about my age, why didn't I ever see you there?"

Uh-oh, time for another lie made up on the spot!

"I was usually out of town most of the time, I used to travel a lot."

"So where's your family?"

I stopped flying, even though she couldn't possibly know, I was still upset.

"That's a sore subject with me, maybe another time."

"Oh, sorry."

"Don't worry about it, you didn't know."

That pretty much killed the conversation, so we flew on in silence for a couple of more minutes. She hesitantly started to speak again.

"Uh, so why don't you have a cutie mark?"

"Oh, that's just because I never really found out my talent." 

Here, that is, I doubt they have NASCAR in this place.

"You don't seem too bothered by it." She stated.

"Should I be?"

"Well, most ponies that don't have one are always scared that they will be made fun of."

"I'll be fine. I could care less what other people-er-ponies, think of me."

"Okay, well, here we are."

I looked around, this place was absolutely huge! How the hell could anyone or anypony afford this? Even I would have had trouble affording it, and not just because it's made of clouds. We stepped in the enormous house, and she turned to speak to me again.

"Well, home sweet home, you can stay over there on the couch."

"Okay, thanks Rainbow Dash, I'll make it up to you somehow."

"Eh, don't sweat it."

"Seriously, this is really kind of you, I'll go job hunting tomorrow and try to pay you when I get some income."

"I said don't sweat it." She said again, more insistent.

"I'm never in debt, and I intend to pay this one off like any other."

She just rolled her eyes and sighed at that, and I gave her a quick hug.

"I mean it, thanks."

That definitely caught her off guard, because she was blushing and staring off into space for about thirty seconds. I chuckled a little. I guess it was okay since I was a pony too, even though I still had a few convictions.

"You okay there Rainbow Dash?"

"Uh, yeah, so, goodnight!" She yelled, then flew to what I assumed was her room with lightning speed.

I smiled and got myself comfortable on the couch.(which was made of cloud.) Holy shit, cloud was softer than I ever imagined. This was better than my expensive-ass bed! I thought about what I would do tomorrow. 

Well, I did tell Rainbow Dash I was going job hunting tomorrow, so I guess that's what I'll do.

I closed my eyes and smiled to myself. This was going to be awesome.

And that's a longer chapter for chapter 2! I realize this chapter didn't have quite as much comedy in it as chapter 1, and I promise to make it up to you guys in the next chapter. Also PLEASE review or comment! I want to know what I can do to make this story as interesting as possible for you guys! Now it's off to the gym with my lazy ass, so I'll leave y'all with the quote of the day.

Quote of the day: " Do it motherfucker! I dare you!"- My brother's wasted friend with his dick on my stairs daring people to step on it.
> The First Real Day
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Damn, I slept well, seriously, cloud was freaking comfy. I opened my eyes to find two huge magenta eyes staring down at me.

"Ah!" I yelled raising my head up as fast as possible, which in hindsight wasn't a good idea because my head collided with Rainbow Dash's.

I rubbed my head. "Well that hurt. You okay?" I asked Rainbow

"Yeah, I'll live." She said while holding her head.

"What was that all about anyways?"

She turned away and blushed.

"I was walking by when I tripped, that's all."

I thought for a second and decided not to press on and changed the subject.

"Right, so I need to get to town and start my job hunt, I'll see you later." I said as I got off of the couch.

"Oh, okay. I guess I'll hang around here and practice my moves."

"Alright. Thanks again for letting me stay. I'll be back later."

I trotted out of the door and spread my wings. I took off in the direction of town. I was starting to get the hang of these things. I bet with some practice, I could be a match for any Wonderbolt. I picked up speed, and in about three minutes, reached the middle of town. As soon as I landed, I saw a pink blur racing towards me. Oh shit, it's-OOF. It tackled me to the ground, knocking the wind out of me.

"HI WHATSYOURNAME IMPINKIEPIE IHAVNTSEENYOUBEFORE THATMEANSYOU'RENEW GASP* IHAVETOGOSETUP APARTYNOWBYE!"

And just like that, she was gone, I still couldn't breathe, and I was shaking. I got back up and looked around. Apparently Pinkie tackling new ponies wasn't that new because hardly anypony paid any attention. Right, so where should I start my job hunt? I started to explore around town a bit.

Somewhere around 2 hours later, because I can.

I'd been searching for hours, and was just about to give up hope until I spotted a bar that had a help wanted sign. I looked at the name of the place, 'Silver Thunder Bar'.I smiled and walked in. The place looked like a hard rock bar, except there was no hard rock. Did Equestria even have hard rock? Or any kind of rock for that matter? There was a small stage with a band on there playing stuff that resembled Johnny Cash's music.

I could work here. I walked up to the bartender, who was a unicorn that had a tan coat and silver mane and tail, with a mug filled with what looked like beer for a cutie mark. He looked up at me expectantly.

"Can I help you?" He said.

"Yeah, I'm here about that help wanted sign out front."

"You need to talk to the manager then, his office is by the stage, beside the busted light."

"Got it, thanks, uhh-"

"Silver will do." he finished for me.

Well then, I don't suppose they give a shit about my age.

"Okay, thanks again." I said as I trotted towards the manager's office door.

Manager's Office

Current Manager:

Thunder Gunner

I knocked on the door.

"Come in." came the response from a deep voice.

I walked in to find a medium sized office, with a few filing cabinets in the corner, and a few papers on the floor. The manager, Thunder Gunner I assumed, was sitting behind his desk looking like he was in deep thought. He was a large earth pony with a dark blue coat, and a crimson mane and tail like the outline I had on mine. I couldn't tell what his cutie mark was, because it was concealed by the desk.

"What can I do for you, Mr..."

"Shadow Flash." I said.

"Of course, so what can I do for you Mr. Shadow Flash?"

"Well, I came about that help wanted sign out front, and was hoping you would have a job for me."

He seemed to blank out for a moment in thought, then spoke up.

"Oh that, you're the first one to actually answer that thing in months. You see, this place isn't exactly overflowing with occupants."

He's right, I hadn't paid attention that much on my way in, but this place did seem pretty empty.

"And," he continued, "I would only be able to pay you minimum wage for now, since we're a little low on income at the moment." He said, looking slightly depressed.

"That's fine, I just need a job right now, by the way, if you hired me, what would I be doing?"

"Well, you would mostly be cleaning up around here, and maybe helping Silver out there if we somehow got busy."

I smiled, "I'll take the job then." I said extending out my hoof

He looked somewhat relieved at that. He shook my hoof and smiled too. "Great, you can start tomorrow, be here at 10:00 AM."

"10:00 AM, got it, see you then Mr. Thunder." I said as I exited.

He held up a hoof waving me out. As I walked out, I noticed this place could definitely use some more customers, it was probably only filled to a sixth of its capacity. I walked out of the door, and decided I would head back over to Rainbow's. I opened my wings and took off. I flew as fast as I could to her place, and arrived in a couple of minutes. I knocked on the door, and she answered shortly.

"Oh, hey Shadow, I was just about to head over to Twilight's, wanna come with? And why do you look out of breath?"

"Yeah, I'll come with you, and I'm out of breath because I flew as fast as I could here to try and get my speed up."

"You may be fast, but I bet you can't beat me in a race!" She said looking cocky

"I bet I cou-WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" I shouted pointing my hoof behind her.

"What? What is it?" She asked turning around. "I don't see anything...HEY!"

By the time she noticed I was gone, I was easily 500 feet ahead of her, laughing like a maniac. I looked back to see if she was still there. Holy shit she was gaining fast! I picked up my pace as she did the same.

"Get back here Shadow! I need to whack you for cheating!"

"No way, and I wasn't cheating, I was being resourceful!"

"I'll show you resourceful when I catch you!"

"Whoa, Rainbow Dash, I know you like me, but isn't that a bit much?" I teased, looking back.

Her cheeks went from cyan to solid red.

"Oh, that's it!" She shouted, and just like that, she shot forward with tremendous speed right for me!

Oh shit! Not good! She tackled me onto a nearby cloud. We tumbled around for a bit before she ended up standing over me. I better think of something fast before she hits me!

"Now, what was that you said earlier, becau-MMPHH." was all she got off before a gave her a surprise kiss. That stunned her long enough to turn the tables with me standing over her instead.

"No fair! That was cheap!" She said while still blushing.

"All's fair in love and war." I said while smirking.

"Well in that case..." She said while grabbing my head and pulling me in for a long kiss.(dayumn!) Now it was my turn to be surprised. She took advantage of my stunned expression and once more turned the tables with her on top again. I decided to speak up.

"How about we call a truce?" I said with a sheepish grin.

"You can get off easy this time, next time you won't get so lucky."

And damn was I lucky

"Right, help me up?"

She helped me up and our eyes met for a brief moment, then we blushed and turned away. I spoke up.

"So, this mean you wanna go out?" I said.

She grinned and gave me another kiss.

"I'll take that as a yes then." I said, giving the dumbest grin imaginable.

A couple of minutes later, we arrived at Twilight's. Rainbow Dash didn't bother knocking and walked in ahead of me.

"Hey, hold up!" I yelled.

I walked into the library, but all the lights were off. I looked around wondering what was going on.

"SURPRIIIIIISEEEE!" A lot of ponies yelled as the lights cut on and confetti rained down.

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!" I fell over and yelled in surprise, getting a shocked look from a few ponies. I rose up, and gave a sheepish grin.

"Uhh, sorry, just startled me is all." I think I just had a fucking heart attack!

Pinkie Pie bounced over to me. "Did we surprise ya? Did we? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

"I'd say surprising me is an understatement Pinkie." 

I'm still fucking shaking!

She grinned wider than I thought physically possible and sped off in another direction. Rainbow walked up to me with the Mane 6 save for Pinkie.

"Shadow, I'd like you to meet my friends: Rarity, and Fluttershy. You've already met Twilight and Applejack."

"Hello darling, my name is Rarity, and I run the Carousel Boutique. If you ever need a set of clothes, you come find me, your first set is free." She said while extending her hoof.

I gently took her hoof and gave it a polite shake. "It's good to meet you Miss Rarity, my name is Shadow Flash, and thank you for the offer, but I'm afraid I have to decline. I can't accept such a generous gift."

"Such manners! Nonsense, though! They're free whether you like it or not." She sternly said

"Well, in that case, thank you kindly." I said with a smile.

"Right, well that's Rarity, and now I'd like you to meet-wait, where's Fluttershy?" Rainbow said, looking around for Fluttershy. She looked around a bit longer before spotting a pink mane rising just above the punch bowl. She flew over, and I heard an audible 'eep' shortly after. Rainbow then flew over, dragging Fluttershy with her. Fluttershy opened her eyes, staring directly at mine, before panicking again. She started to dart off again before I stopped her with a hoof.

"Hi, my name's Shadow Flash, what's your's?" I said, putting on my friendliest smile.

"I-I'm Flutt-Fluttershy."

"It's nice to meet you Fluttershy, are you okay? You seem a little panicked."

She seemed to lighten up a bit after realizing I wasn't some kind of monster bent on world domination.

"I, I think I'll be fine." She quietly said.

Just then, the loudest BANG I'd ever heard sounded outside, startling most ponies, and making Fluttershy faint on the spot.

"What the fuck was that?!" I yelled

"I don't know, lets go find out!" Rainbow said.

Me, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Twilight, and Pinkie ran outside to see what it was while Rarity tended to Fluttershy. What we saw surprised us all. There was a crater about twenty feet wide with smoke rising out of it. We looked inside, and to our shock, saw an unconscious unicorn in the middle. We ran into the crater to try and help. Twilight lifted the unicorn with her magic and brought him inside. She cleared a spot on the couch and set him down. Almost all of the ponies that weren't myself, or the mane 6 were gone by now.

I took a closer look at this unicorn, He had a neon green coat, with neon orange mane and tail. Something else was strange though, he had no cutie mark!

"Applejack, get the first-aid kit!" Twilight yelled.

Applejack quickly did as she was told and returned to Twilight.

Twilight leaned in to clean his wounds. She treated him for about another five minutes before he shifted. It looked like he was trying to say something, I leaned in closer. I could just barely make out the words 'kill', 'you', and 'Landon'. That made me freeze in place with a wide- eyed expression on my face.

"Shadow? What's wrong?" Rainbow said.

"It-it's nothing, I just think we should help him as fast as possible."

"I've done all I can. His injuries weren't that serious, but he needs time to rest. You can come back tomorrow to see how he's doing." Twilight responded

"Okay, well me and Shadow will head back to my place...you coming Shadow?" She asked, looking worried.

"Uh, yeah, coming." I said, snapping out of my trance.

Who the fuck is that? How did they know my name? Could it have been coincidence? I hope it was, and what was with the word 'kill'? Arrrrrgh this is to much for one person to figure out!

I shook it off walked up behind Rainbow, who was exiting the library. I took one more look back before exiting as well. We took off towards her place. We flew for about a minute in silence before Rainbow spoke up.

"Are you okay Shadow? You look like you've seen a ghost since we brought that strange unicorn in."

"Yeah, I'll be fine." I lied.

"Whatever you say."

I decided to change the subject.

"I got myself a job at the Thunder & Silver Bar. Now I can start paying you for letting me stay at your place."

"I told you not to sweat it." She said

"And I told you I'm never in debt." I said as I smirked.

"Since we're going out, I don't think that's necessary." She countered.

"Maybe I could repay you with this then." I said before I gave her another kiss.

She was ready this time, and kissed back. When we finished, we flew back to her place, and stepped inside.

"Goodnight Rainbow, I'll see you in the morning." I said pulling her in for a hug.

"''Nite Shadow." She responded

We broke the hug, and she trotted upstairs. I walked over to the couch, and got myself comfortable.(Which was easy to do on clouds) 

My thoughts were going wild. Who the fuck was that? I guess I can find out after work tomorrow. I closed my eyes with one thing on my mind: dafuq just happened?

This chapter was slightly longer than chapter 2, and if you haven't noticed, I will be updating frequently as long as nothing comes up. Who is this mysterious new unicorn? Will he turn out to be friend or foe? Find out next time on Dragon Bal-whoops, wrong story, find out next time on Once a Shadow! (Review or I will destroy you)

Quote of the day: "Drop the plant or I'll kill your family!"-My friend when I pick up one of the plants in his place.
> Reunited
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Ugh, I did not sleep well this time. What time is it?" I glanced over at the clock across from me.

"9:55 AM...that's nice...wait...OH SHIT! I'M GONNA BE LATE!" I jumped up off of the couch and ran to the door. I almost got there before Rainbow called my name.

"Shadow? You okay down there?"

"Yeah! I'm just late for work, I get off at 6:00, I'll meet you at Twilight's then! Later!"

"Wait! I forgot to tell you that-"

"Sorry, no time!"And with that I rushed out of the door and flew as fast as possible to town. Shit, I need to hurry! I arrived at the Silver Thunder Bar, and rushed inside to meet with Thunder. I arrived at his door, hoping I wasn't late. I walked in, and at once he noticed me.

"Shadow, you're early."

"What? You said 10:00 AM." I said while gasping for breath.

"I did, but right now it's 9:00 AM." He said showing me a clock.

…...fuck. I guess that's what Rainbow was trying to tell me. That's so weak.

"Sigh*, I can start a little early then, if that's okay."

He gave a little chuckle. "Yeah, go ahead, there's a broom over there. Just sweep up around here, and come to me when you finish."

"Sure thing." I trotted over to the broom and picked it up by wrapping my hooves around it, because I still didn't know how to pick stuff up with the flat end of my hoofs yet. I decided to increase the time I can fly by doing my job while hovering. I still couldn't believe my bad luck with arriving early. I did my best to shake it off, but it still bugged me. I mean seriously, what were the chances? I bet Rainbow did it as a prank. I swept up around the place, and before I knew it, it was lunch time. I walked back to Thunder's office.

"Hey Shadow, go ahead and take off for lunch, you get 45 minutes."

"Alright, I'll be back soon then." I said as I walked out the door.

Maybe Rainbow would want to go out for lunch? I flew around town looking for her, and found her napping on a cloud. I decided to have some fun. I lay down next to her, where our faces were only inches away. I gave her a little touch on her nose and she opened her eyes.

I grinned "Asleep on the job, eh?"

She jumped back. "Don't do that! You scared me!"

"That was the point." I said, maintaining a smirk.

"I'll get you back, you can count on that. So what's up?"

"I just got my lunch break, and I was wondering if you wanted to go to lunch with me."

She gave a smile. "Yeah, I'd like that."

"Okay then, you pick where we go, I don't know any restaurants around here."

"I know just the place, follow me."

I did as she said, and followed. She turned around to ask me something.

"So what did your boss say when you arrived an hour early?"

"Yeah, about that, you could have said something!"

She rolled her eyes."I tried to tell you that my clock was an hour ahead, but you rushed out before I could say something!"

"I think you did that on purpose to prank me."

She raised an eyebrow. "If I wanted to prank you, it would have been better than setting my clock back an hour."

Damn, she got me.

"Anyways," she continued "here we are."

I looked up at the restaurant. It looked like a cafe of some kind. We were met by a waiter wearing a fancy suit, with one of those weird curly mustaches. I chuckled a little to myself.

He gave me a little glare. "Something the matter sir?"

"It's nothing, I was just thinking how there are so few ponies with great mustaches such as your's nowadays. It is a true shame." He brightened up and smiled at that.

"I couldn't agree more! It's as if culture is fading right before our eyes! Thank you for the compliment sir!"

He led us to a secluded table in the corner of the candle-lit building. Me and Rainbow took our seats, and the waiter gave us our menus.

"Now what can I get you two to drink today?" he asked

"I'll just have water thanks." Rainbow said

"I'll have water as well." Seeing as how I had no idea what kind of drinks were served here. For all I knew, they served their own piss...okay maybe not that bad...why the hell did I think of that anyways?

"Alright, I will give you two a moment to look over the menu, and I will be back shortly with your beverages." the waiter said as he walked off.

"So what are you getting?" I asked

"I'm thinking about getting the daisy and lettuce sandwich, how about you?"

Daisy? I guess that makes sense, maybe my taste buds have changed since being transformed into a pony. I've only eaten apples since I've gotten here, I guess I could give it a shot.

"I'll probably get the same thing." I responded, just then, the waiter came back with our water, and took out a notepad.

"Now what can I get you two to eat?" he asked

"We'll both have the daisy and lettuce sandwich." I answered

"Very good, could I take your menus for you?"

I passed him the menus. "Thank you, and your food will be out shortly."

He walked away, and me and Rainbow continued to talk until the waiter came back with our food.

"Here you two are, is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No thanks, I think we're good." I responded

He nodded and trotted off. I stared at my sandwich questioningly before finally take a bite. This is incredible! I destroyed the rest of the sandwich in seconds while Rainbow chuckled to herself. I looked up.

"What?" I asked

"Oh nothing, daisy face." she said, holding in laughter

I felt on my face, and felt a daisy on there. I gave a small blush and ate it.

"Oh yeah? Well you've got something on your face too."

"Huh? Where?"

"Right here." I said, giving her a peck on her cheek. She smiled and blushed.

We finished eating, and I signaled the waiter for the bill.

"Can we get the bill please?" I asked

"Oh no, I simply cannot accept your money sir, you are one of few who truly appreciate a good mustache."

"Oh, thanks a lot." That settled it, I was growing a mustache, wait how the hell did he even grow a mustache? He's a friggin pony! Is it fake? Meh, I guess I'll find out after I don't shave.

Me and Rainbow walked outside and gave each other a goodbye hug before flying away. I flew back to the bar and got back to work. I was just cleaning for about another twenty minutes, before a familiar neon green pony walked through the door and took a seat at the bar.

"Give me your strongest drink." he said to Silver

Silver nodded and prepared a drink for the pony, which he downed.

"Another." he said

Silver made him another drink which the strange pony instantly downed again. The strange pony paid him plus a small tip and started to walk out before something caught our ears.

"Get away from me you creep!" a white coated mare with a rose for a cutie mark shouted to a much larger buck with a black coat and a snake with a cutie mark. Well that's just creepy.

"Shut up!" he yelled, slapping her.

That's it, I'm stepping in, wait, what's the strange pony doing? He calmly walked over to the mare, and helped her up.

"Are you okay?' he asked

"Y-yes, thank you." she said, wiping a tear from her eye

"Right, go ahead and get out of here, I'll handle this creep."

She nodded and ran out the door. The buck with a snake for a cutie mark looked down at the strange pony.

"What do you think you're doing shrimp? You better apologize and walk away now!"

"Yeah, that's not happening, know why? Because-" and just like that, he gave the huge buck a sucker punch! It seemed like it worked for a moment, but he quickly recovered and gave the strange pony what looked like a pretty damn painful applebuck, making the strange pony fly past me. Okay, NOW I'm helping. I flew full speed and charged into the buck, we tumbled around for a little bit until he shoved me off.

I landed next to the strange pony.

"I didn't ask for your help." he said

"You didn't need to, if anyon-anypony hits a mare, they aren't getting away with it."

His eyes glanced down for a moment. Wait, was this guy checking me out?

"You have no cutie mark." he said. Well, at least he wasn't checking me out, I hope.

"Yeah, we can talk later, because here comes snake flank!" I yelled as snake flank charged at us. We side-stepped out of the way, and we each gave him a solid punch to the face, stunning him. I grabbed him tightly and let strange pony give him another good hit to knock him out. As soon as he fell down, Thunder walked out of his office with an eerie calm about him. He looked around, and his eyes fell on the three of us.

"Shadow, care to explain what just happened?"

"I was just taking out the trash sir, thing is, I needed help with this particular piece."

He gave a short glance at snake flank and turned away. "Right, I'll be in my office if you need me."

Thunder has to be the coolest boss ever.

Me and strange pony just looked at each other and sat down. Okay, I need a name, calling him just 'strange pony' was weird.

"So, what's you're name?" I asked

"Mint Barry." He said, after thinking for a moment.

"HAHAHAHAHA! That's fucking hilarious!" I yelled while rolling on the ground

"Oh shut up, I bet your name isn't any better." he said

"It's a hell of a lot cooler than your's bro, it's Shadow Flash."

"Wow, you have a jet black mane, and you're a pegasus, who would have thought. I only knew one other person with the last name Flash, and he was probably just as stupid as you."

"Wait, did you just say person?" I said, the gears in my head started shaking off the cobwebs and turning.

"Uh, you must be mistaken, I said pony." he stammered

"No, you said person, and how is it you spell your last name?"

"B-A-R-R-Y. Why?"

Ho-ly shit.

"Wait, Barry? Barry Johnson?"

His eyes widened. "How do you know that name, who are you?"

"Dude it's me! Landon!"

"Landon?" he paused for a moment, then hit me as hard as he could. "You dumb son of a bitch! You fucking just HAD to not listen to me! And look where it fucking got you! You died you dumb ass!"

I rose up, rubbing my jaw where the punch landed. "No shit? I kinda figured that out after getting smashed in my own car. What are YOU doing here for that matter? It's only been like two days since the accident.

His eyes widened in shock. "Dude, it hasn't been two days, it's been ten years."

"Okay, I may get wasted from time to time, but never have I been on a ten year drinking binge." I said

"Time must somehow work differently for these two worlds..." he mused

"Wait, what happened after I died? And why are you here after only ten years?"

"Well, after the accident, it devastated your father-"

I snorted "Like he gave a shit."

"He really did care Landon, he just never got a chance to say anything."

"Bullshit, he had eighteen years to fucking do it. Just finish your story."

"Sigh*, anyways, after the funeral-"

"Wait, one more thing, did you play a boring song? Because if you did, I'm gonna have to punch you."

"No Landon, because believe it or not, I believed you when you said you would haunt me, because you're the only person that would rise out of hell to haunt me for something that stupid."

"So what did you play then?"

"We played Anthem of the Angels by Breaking Benjamin, happy?" (Look it up if you're curious, it doesn't really matter if you do or don't)

"That's good enough I suppose."

"ANYWAYS, I was officially out of a job. I was kicked out of my apartment because I couldn't afford rent anymore. Your dad offered to help me out since me and you had known each other since we were kids. I had to decline because I just couldn't take his charity. I ended up as an entertainer in a club not unlike this one playing a guitar, since I was always pretty good at that. It was going well, until someone stormed the place with a gun and shot me in the fucking face. Next thing I know, I'm in fucking Purgatory while 'God' gives me a chance to come here, so I took it. As soon as I wake up, I'm in the Ponyville Library with a serious need for a drink. So here I am."

"Well, since you are here, you're going to need a place to stay, and a job. I can probably get you a job here if you want. As for the place to stay, I know you can't live with me and Rainbow because of the cloud-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you and Rainbow Dash are..."

"Nothing like that, we're just going out as of now, so calm down. Anyways, the only other place I can think of would be Twilight's. I know she didn't have any spare room when I first got here, but maybe she can find a spot for you."

"Sounds good, I guess I'll head back there now. I'll talk to you later then. And it's good seeing you again Landon, even if you are a pony."

"Alright, I'll meet up with you at Twilight's after work, which is actually only a few more minutes, and I'll talk to my boss about getting you a job."

"Okay, see you then." Barry said as he trotted out.

"Ughhhhhh" came a groan beneath me. I looked down, oh, I forgot about this douche, I guess I should drag him out.

I finished dragging him out, and headed over to Thunder's office to turn in.

"Hey Thunder, my friend back there could use a job, and he does know how to play guitar..."

"Say no more Shadow, he's hired."

"Just like that?" I asked, slightly surprised.

"Just like that." he responded

"Okay, well I guess I'll see you tomorrow then, see ya."

"Goodbye Shadow."

I walked out and headed towards the library. I actually managed to catch up to Barry.

"Hey man! Wait up!" I yelled as I flew next to him.

"Oh hey Landon."

"About that, call me Shadow when we're around other ponies, I don't think they'll exactly understand if we tell them we're actually a different species, and also died."

"Good point." Barry said as we arrived at the library.

We opened the door and walked into pitch blackness.

"SURPRIIIIIIIISE" A bunch of ponies yelled as the lights cut on.

"GOD DAMN FUCK!" me and Barry yelled in unison.

"Fuuuuck, not again!" I said as I recovered. I glanced at Barry, and I think he had it worse. I suppose it's harder the first time.

"You okay Mint?" I asked Barry

"Yeah, I think my heart just started beating again."

"I know how you feel, I'll leave you to get acquainted with everypony while I talk with Rainbow." I said as I trotted away.

"Sorry Shadow, we didn't think you would fall for this again." Rainbow said

"Well I did, at this rate you ponies are going to give me heart troubles."

"Don't be a baby Shadow."

"Easy for you to say."

The party continued on for about three hours before everypony started to leave, leaving just me, Barry, and the Mane 6.

"Hey Twilight, do you think you could find a spot for Mint here to stay?" I asked

"I guess I could find a place for him." she responded

"Thank you Twilight." Barry said

"You're welcome. Now it's getting pretty late, so we should all turn in now."

We all agreed and went our separate ways. Before I left, I told Barry about his new job. He was actually pretty excited about that. When me and Rainbow arrived back at her place, we gave each other a good night kiss, and she went to bed. I walked over to my spot on the world's most comfy couch, and got comfy. 'Got to see my best friend, not a bad day at all' I said to myself before drifting off.

Okay, this chapter took me a long time to do, I would write a page, then decide I didn't like it, and start over. I try to make this story as good as possible for you guys, I guess this is what you guys like, since I hardly have any reviews to go on. Anyways, if it may seem like I'm dragging this out, and not getting to the wonderbolts fast enough, that's because I don't actually have any end in sight to this story. I can go a lot of directions with this story, and with all of the things I have in mind, it will take a while to get there.

Quote of the day: "I'm going to burn your house down you slimy dick!"-My friend to me after I prank him by secretly putting a very spicy pepper is his food.
> Crusading for Love
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Please let it not be five minutes until work." I said to myself as I rose up. I glanced at the clock. 10:30 AM it said. Right, so it's actually 9:30. That gives me thirty minutes to get to work. I walked into the kitchen rubbing my eyes along the way. I opened the refrigerator, (which was made out of cloud...I'm not even going to give myself the headache by thinking about it.) and looked around for some breakfast. I found some orange juice and poured myself a glass.(which thankfully wasn't made of cloud)

I sat down at a table and drank my juice while thinking about what was in store for me today. There better not be any more surprises, I was starting to hate that word. I looked up and saw Rainbow trotting in. "Morning Shadow, sleep well?"

"Yeah, I guess I slept well, what about you?"

"I slept well too. So what are your plans for today?"

"Well, after work, I guess I'll just go around town to get a feel for things."

"That's cool, I don't really have any plans for today, so I'll be here after work."

"Alright, well I guess I'll head out now, see ya later." I said as I gave her a goodbye kiss.

"Okay, bye Shadow."

I trotted out the door and took flight towards the bar. I got there in no time at all. I walked in and headed towards Thunder's office. I went through the door to find Barry talking with Thunder.

"Okay, so all you have to do is play about five songs, then you get a ten minute break. Any questions?"

"None at all, I'll get to work then." Barry responded to Thunder. Barry nodded to me on his way out while I headed up to Thunder.

"Okay Shadow, all you have to do today is sweep up and clean the tables."

"Yes sir, I'll see you at lunch." I trotted outside to Barry playing the music he was instructed to play. He seemed to be a little rusty, but then again, getting a new body will do that. No one seemed to really care that he would miss a note or two. He seemed to be enjoying himself. I guess I better get to work too.

While cleaning the tables, to my surprise I saw Twilight walk in. She took a seat close to the stage and watched Barry play for a while. She would be the only one to applaud after he finished a song. When he got a ten minute break, he walked over to Twilight, and they talked for a bit. I smiled to myself. It looked like Barry was finding that special somepony already. When they finished talking, Twilight walked out, and I trotted up to Barry.

"So are you two going out yet?" I said with a smirk

"Shut up."

"Aw come on, I'm just having fun. No need to get so serious."

"I'm going back to work." Barry said as he headed towards the stage

"You know that I'll find out Barry! You can't hide these things from me!" I yelled after him

He knows I'll find out. I don't even know why he bothers to keep it from me. Maybe it's because he knows that I'll tease him. Or it could be that one time I told his girlfriend that he had an STD. I only did it as payback because he stole my bag of chips though. An eye for an eye right? Okay, maybe I went a little too far, but come on! They were B-B-Q! Ugh, I guess I should get back to work too.

It was soon lunch time, and I headed over to Thunder's office.

"Hey Shadow, go ahead and take the rest of the day off, I can manage things here."

"Wow, are you sure? I mean, I appreciate it, but you really don't have to-"

"Things are fine here, go enjoy the day off."

Best. Boss. Ever.

"Thanks, I'll see you tomorrow then!"

Right, well what should I do with my free day? I walked around outside for a little bit, before bumping into a little filly. I looked down to see it was Apple Bloom.

"I'm sorry mister, I didn't see ya there."

"Don't worry about it, it was my fault for not paying attention."

Her eyes darted towards my flank, and her eyes went wide. "How come you don't have a cutie mark?"

"That's just because I never found my talent."

"You should come with me! I was just on ma way to a CMC meetin'!"

"CMC? What's that?" I asked, playing dumb.

"It means Cutie Mark Crusaders! There's only three of us so far, but if you came with me, you could be our newest member!" Oh boy...well, I don't have anything better to do.

"Why not?" I said with a smile. This should be good. Besides, how could I resist this epic level of cuteness?

"Alright! Right this way mister!" she said as she trotted in the direction of what I assumed was the CMC clubhouse.

"My name is Shadow Flash by the way."

"Oh, you're that new pony that everypony's talkin' about!"

"I didn't know I was so popular." I replied

"Oh sure, lots of folks are talkin about the new pony with no cutie mark suddenly arriving in town and going out with Rainbow Dash. By the way, watch yourself around Scootaloo, she might not like it when another pony is getting Rainbow Dash's attention."

"Got it."

"Well, here we are Mr. Shadow!" Applebloom said, pointing her hoof to the tree house.

"Impressive." I said

She smiled. "Thank you Mr. Shadow."

"Please, call me Shadow."

She nodded and led me up to the tree house, where Scootaloo and Sweetie Bell were waiting. Scootaloo saw me and spoke up.

"Hey, what's the big idea Applebloom? What are you doing bringing a non-member here?"

"That's why I brought him here, so he can become a member of the Cutie Mark Crusaders!"

"Wait, you're the buck that's going out with Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo said

"That is correct, is there something the matter?"

"Thanks to you, Rainbow doesn't want to hang out with me anymore!"

"You two didn't hang out anyways." Sweetie Bell said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, but now she'll never hang out with me!"

"If it makes you feel any better Scootaloo, I can hang out with you if I become a Crusader. And besides, if I'm cool enough for Rainbow, shouldn't that mean I'm cool enough for you?"

She thought about that for a moment, then silently nodded.

"Right, now that that's out of the way, I'd like to welcome the newest member to the Cutie Mark Crusaders: Shadow Flash!" Applebloom said.

"So what now?" I asked

"Now, we try to get our cutie marks as chiropractors!" Applebloom said while looking at me.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked as the three Crusaders stepped towards me.

Oh shit...

One (very painful) hour later...

"Ah was sure that we would be good chiropractors!" Applebloom said, looking disappointed.

"You're just not suited for this. You will find your talent, but being a chiropractor isn't it." I said holding my back. You wouldn't think they could hurt you that bad, being little. I've never been more wrong in my life. I won't be sleeping right for weeks!

"Shadow's right girls! We just need to keep trying. Let's go see if we would make good dentists!" Sweetie Bell said.

Fuck no. Before they had a chance to look at me, I was long gone. I flew over to the library because Barry should be off of work by now. I trotted in the library only to see spike cleaning up around the place.

"Hey Spike, is Mint here?"

"Yeah, he's upstairs with Twilight right now in some kind of study session."

Oh the scandal! I'm going to bust his ass so bad right now!

"Thanks." I said with a large grin on my face. I flew up to what had to be Twilight's room and put my ear to the door.

"Why does it have to be so hard?" I heard Twilight say.

"You get used to it" Barry said

"Arrgh, this is driving me insane!"

"You just have to stick with it, it gets easier"

Okay, I'm on the verge of crying I'm laughing so hard right now. I walked in the door without knocking.

"Barry you son of a bitch, you said-" I took a closer look around, and I saw their heads stuck in books.

Oh.

"Something I can do for you Shadow?" Twilight said, poking her head up from the book.

"Uhh, no, I just..I thought that..."

Barry rolled his eyes. "No Shadow, we were studying, it turns out that I'm not the only one interested in learning."

"Mint, you are seriously the only one in the world that would be studying instead of having a good time."

"Believe it or not Shadow, this IS having a good time. I bet even you would enjoy it if you tried." He said, holding up a book that had way to many equations on it.

"AHHH! MATH! GET IT AWAY!" I yelled as I flew away.

Well, there goes hanging out with Barry, no way in hell am I sticking around to do advanced freaking math. Maybe I'll go see what Rainbow is up to. I changed direction towards Rainbow's. I walked through the door and called out to see if anyone was here.

"Hello? Rainbow you home?"

"Yeah, I'll be down in a sec."

She walked down a moment later. "What's up?"

"I'm bored, you wanna fly around for a bit?"

She smiled "Yeah, I'd like that."

"Alright lets have a race." I said as we walked outside

"Where to?"

I glanced around, there was a darker cloud than most about two thousand feet away. "That dark cloud over there." I said, pointing my hoof towards it.

"You're on."

"3, 2, 1, GO!"

We took off in the direction of the cloud, and within moments arrived.

"HA! I beat you!" Rainbow said.

"I'm pretty sure I'm the one who won that one."

"No way! I arrived at least half a second before you did."

"Okay, okay, how about another race?"

"Where to?"

"How about to Sweet Apple Acres?"

"Alright."

"3, 2, 1, GO!"

We darted over to the apple farm, which was probably three miles away. Me and Rainbow kept changing positions, she would be ahead for one second, then it would be me. I got an idea. I flew closer to Rainbow and gave her one of my surprise kisses. That made her slow down enough to pull ahead just enough to win.

"No fair! I told you to quit cheating!"

"And I told you all's fair in love and war."

"One more race, to determine who really is the best!"

"It's up to you if you wanna lose again." I said while holding my famous smirk.

"Okay, let's race back to my place this time. And loser has to sleep on the couch"

"I can't lose on this one, I've been sleeping on the couch since I've gotten here."

"Then you won't mind taking the bet."

"Okay, lets do it."

"3, 2, 1, GO!"

Once again, we flew side-by-side in a race to determine who was faster. And once again, it was going back and forth between us. This time, however, she caught me off guard and gave me a kiss just before reaching our destination. She waited for me at the door, with a smirk on her face.

"Well, I guess you win, I get the couch again."

She trotted closer to me and gave me a long kiss. "How about we call it a draw?"

I gave a stupid looking smile "Sounds good to me."

We went up to her bedroom, and both got in the bed. We lay there in silence for a while before Rainbow spoke up.

"Hey Shadow, do you care about me?"

"..."

"Shadow, I'm serious, do you really care about me?"

"...Zz..."

"Huh?"

"...ZzzZZzzZzz"

She chuckled to herself. "I'll ask you another time then. Goodnight Shadow."

To my surprise, Slipknot did NOT turn out to be a wise music choice while writing, who woulda thought? I'll stick with some lighter music next time when I write. Anyways, it looks like Shadow and Rainbow are getting closer to each other, and the same could be said for Barry (Mint) and Twilight. Now I'm going to pass out because I'm very tired, and don't forget to review and comment! Goodnight everypony! (Even though it's like 3:00 PM for me)

Quote of the day: "I was NOT over-doing it! That thing was in my ROOM!" -My friend to me after I asked him why he tortured a large roach by gluing it to a piece of paper and lighting matches and putting them out in it, then giving it a viking funeral in his toilet.
> Good News, Everypony!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up with a cyan pony holding me. I gave a light chuckle, and did my best to get out of bed without waking her. I crept downstairs and made myself some breakfast that consisted of apples and oranges. I went ahead and made Rainbow some breakfast as well, seeing as I still had 40 minutes until work. I put the breakfast on a trey,(made of cloud...that's it, this place wins, I'm officially confused about how clouds work here.) and brought it up to Rainbow's room. I gave her a little kiss to wake her up.

"Ughh, five more minutes."

"No can do Rainbow, I made you breakfast."

She looked at the food "I don't think cutting up some fruit counts as making breakfast, but thanks." she said as she took the trey

"You're welcome. You enjoy your breakfast, I guess I'll head to work."

"Alright, see you later Shadow."

"Later." I said as I exited.

I took flight and headed towards the bar. After I arrived I went ahead and grabbed a broom, and got to work. After five minutes, I saw Barry walk in.

"Ugh, I stayed up all night with Twilight last night"

"Right, so how much fun was it?" I said, giving my world-famous smirk.

"We were studying genius, not having sex."

"You know something? I believe you."

"I know that's an insult, but I'm too tired to care. I'll be on the stage if you need me." he yawned as he trotted off

Right, work for me as well. I swept around the place, then once more for good measure. I heard some yelling outside the door. I looked up only to see snake flank and apparently some of his goons walk through the door. For some reason, I doubted they were here for a drink. Barry noticed too, and hurried beside me.

"There they are! Get 'em!" snake flank yelled

This was gonna suck. There were five of them total, including snake flank. The two ponies next to him, who were almost as big as him, charged at me and Barry. I flew up to avoid one of them, and crashed down full force on his back. Hopefully I didn't break anything. I know he's trying to hurt me, but I didn't want to paralyze him for it. That seemed to do the trick and he collapsed on the ground. Barry had lifted the other one up with his magic and threw him across the room. I looked at him in surprise.

"What? Math wasn't the only thing I was studying."

Just then, the last three, including snake flank, charged at us. I don't think we can take on three of them at once. Just then, Thunder charged out of his office. "Get the hell out of my bar!" he roared as he charged into snake flank. Did I mention he was the best boss ever? Because he is, not to mention the guy can kick ass! He got behind snake flank, picked him off the ground, and slammed him on his back, instantly knocking him out. He took one look at the other two that weren't knocked out yet, and they looked at each other and ran like hell! He grabbed one of them in a head(hoof?)lock, and held it until the pony passed out. He looked at the last one, who instantly ran like hell."If you ever assault my staff again, I'll make sure your heads are on my bucking wall!" he turned to us. "You boys okay?"

"Uhh, yeah, thanks Thunder." I said

"Don't mention it."

Now that I payed closer attention, Thunder's cutie mark was the silhouette of one pony knocking the hell out of another pony. Seems about right really, seeing as how he just kicked some serious ass.

"Now, go ahead and drag these idiots out, I'll be in my office if you need me again."

"Got it."

I gave Barry a brohoof before dragging the goon squad out. I seriously need to kick ass like that. If I learned how to do the stuff that Thunder did, then he wouldn't need to come to the rescue again. That settles it, I'm going to learn how to do that shit. I finished dragging the last one out, and went back inside. Well, looks like I have more to clean thanks to those jackasses because they caused a mess. I sighed and got to work. By the time I finished, it was lunch. I trotted into Thunder's office.

"Shadow, going to lunch?"

"Actually, I was wondering if you could teach me how to kick ass like you do." I said with a hopeful smile

he laughed "I might as well, seeing as how I won't be around to protect you boys forever."

"By the way, where did you learn to fight like that?"

"It comes from being the Equestrian Royal Guards' top hoof-to-hoof fighter since Buck Norris (yes I did).

"You were on the Royal Guard?" I asked in disbelief.

"Sure was, for about 25 years. I was offered captain rank more than once, but that would have meant less time hanging out with my friends."

"This is giving me even more reason to want to learn from you. But why did you leave?"

"Same thing that happens to all of us, I got old. So I decided to open up this bar with my best friend Silver."

He gave a deep chuckle. "Things have been going well so far, even with the occasional fool trying to start something in here. Anyways, this isn't going to be easy, but I promise, you will know how to defend yourself and more when I finish with you."

I nodded "Got it."

"Okay then, from now on, you bring your lunch with you, and you now get five minutes for lunch, the rest of your break we train, plus one hour after work."

"Yes sir!" This was going to be so friggin epic.

Sorry, but I'm going to have to skip the training scenes, because I myself don't know how to write a training scene for sophisticated hoof-to-hoof combat. Ahem* one training session later...

Owww, when he said he wanted to train me, I didn't think it involved being a punching bag! It also didn't help that I'm still feeling the effects of the CMC's chiropractor attempts. I did my best to shake it off and get back to work. Before I knew it, it was the end of my shift, which meant another hour training with Thunder. I'm excited and terrified at the same time. Oh well, lets do this.

After that training session, I'm way to tired to fly. I guess I'll head to the library then. I dragged myself out of the bar and headed there. In about ten minutes, I was there. I trotted on in since Twilight and Spike knew me.

"Oh hey Shadow, what's up?" Spike asked as I went in.

"Nothing really, just checking in on things."

"Well, Twilight just called the rest of the girls over here, so they'll be here shortly. She wants to tell everypony something. Just take a seat on the couch until she gets back."

"Don't mind if I do." I said as I collapsed on the couch. It wasn't cloud, but it would do.

I guess I dozed off, because when I opened my eyes, I saw that Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rarity were already here. I gave a yawn and sat up.

"Well glad to see yer awake Shadow." Applejack said

"Sorry, I'm just tired. So Rarity, how's business?" I said, deciding to make small talk while the rest of the mane 6 arrived.

"It's going marvelous, thank you for asking."

I turned to Fluttershy, who seemed to be a little more comfortable around me now. "And how how are you today Fluttershy?"

"I-I'm fine, thank you."

"What about you, Applejack?"

"Ahm doin' fine over at the farm, thank you."

We made small talk for about ten more minutes before everypony else showed up. Twilight walked in with Barry shortly after.

"Thank you for showing up everypony, as you all know, the Grand Galloping Gala is only five days from now. I also just received tickets from the Princess herself."

That made everypony get excited, even me and Barry.

"As I was saying, there are two extra tickets this year, one for the date of Rainbow Dash, Shadow Flash, and the other for my date, Mint Barry." She said, levitating the tickets over to me and Barry. Our faces lit up, and we gave each other a (manly) hug. "Also this year is going to have a costume theme, so be sure to bring a costume."

"Sweet! You can actually come with us to Canterlot for the Gala! I'm pretty sure you've already been there before though, because you said you used to travel a lot, right?" Rainbow said

"Uhh, that's right, although I've never actually been to the Gala before."

Someday I'll tell her, but now isn't the best time.

"This is going to be so awesome!" Rainbow exclaimed

"Right, now that that business is concluded, Rainbow, you said you had something to announce?"

"That's right, I almost forgot! This year, actually, three days from now, or two days before the Gala, is the Young Flier Competition, and I've been asked to be a judge this year along with the Wonderbolts Spifire and Soarin!"

"That's incredible Rainbow!" I yelled as I picked her up in a hug.

"Easy there Shadow. Also, I wanted you to enter this year's competition. If you won, it would give you big points for the Wonderbolts. And before you ask, I can't give you a perfect score just because we're going out."

"Well there goes my cheating idea." I said, rolling my eyes "Nah, I prefer to win a competition fairly."

"Well that's good then. We leave in two days for Cloudsdale, so be sure to tell your boss."

"Got it, I will."

I trotted over to Rarity "Excuse me, Rarity? I was wondering if you could make me a costume for the Gala." I said with a smile on my face.

"Of course, darling, run by my store tomorrow, and I'll do some measurements, and bring a sketch if you want something specifically."

"Thank you." Oh I know exactly what I want

"The same goes to you Mint." She said

"Okay, thank you."

"Alright, me and Shadow are going home, see you girls later." Rainbow said

"Bye guys" they responded

"So do you have any ideas for a costume?" Rainbow asked as we took flight

"I have a few." I said with a smirk.

"Really? Like what?"

"That would ruin the surprise."

"Aww come on, you can tell me. I want tell anypony!"

"Sorry Rainbow. No can do."

She pouted "You're no fun"

I gave her a kiss on the neck that sent shivers down her spine. "Are you sure about that?" I asked, smirking

"Okay, I take it back, but still."

"I know you want to see what it's going to be, but you have to wait like everypony else."

"Fiiiine." she groaned

I chuckled. "So another one of the prizes for winning the Young Flier Competition was getting to be a judge on the next year's panel?"

"Actually, no. It was just that everypony was so impressed with me last year, they asked me to be a judge."

"That's great! It figures though, I mean how would you NOT want the second fastest flier in Equestria on the panel?"

"Second? What are YOU talking about?"

"Second to me, of course." I said, giving a smirk

"I'm pretty sure I won our last race."

"As I recall, you said it was a draw."

"But-that's because- you know I'm getting you back, right?"

"I'm terrified."

"That's it, come here!"

"Uh oh!" I flew away as fast as possible, but I was still sore from training with Thunder! I did my best to keep away, and pretty soon, we arrived back at Rainbow's. I opened the door to run in, only to be tackled by Rainbow, pushing us both inside.

"Okay! Okay! I'm sorry!" I yelled

"Oh no, you don't get off easy this time."

"Aw come on! It's been a long day! I was a punching bag for a very large pony!"

" I told you that you wouldn't get off easy the next time."

I braced for a punch or something like that, but was shocked when I felt her kissing me. We pulled each other closer, our kiss getting more passionate. We broke the kiss about a minute later before we stood up.

"I told you, you weren't getting off easy the next time."

My eye twitched. If I had known this would have happened, I would have insulted her a long time ago! Rainbow chuckled. "Come on Shadow, lets go to bed."

All I could do was nod as we went into her room and got comfy on the bed.

"So, if I annoy you at any time, I get punished by making out with you? Because that seems more like a reward to encourage said behavior."

"Nah, just that once. You got off lucky again because you're cute when you're scared."

"That doesn't sound right, but thanks for the compliment."

"Goodnight Shadow."

"Goodnight Rainbow."

And that's a 5:00 AM chapter for you guys, because I love you, and because I woke up early too. It looks like we've got some special events coming up! First the Young Flier Competition, then the Gala. And I have a feeling a lot of people will like the costume I have in mind. Well, that does it for me, I'm going back to sleep.(Yes, I'm a very lazy bastard)

Quote of the day: "I think I just drank piss!" My friend as he drinks from his bottle that my other friend filled with piss while he was in the bathroom.
> Price of Deceit
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I opened my eyes and looked around...yep, still in Equestria, still a pony, and still going out with Rainbow Dash. I got out of bed and went downstairs. I looked at the clock,- which I made sure to set right-and I had an hour to work. Looks like I woke up a little early. Oh well, that gives me time to work on the sketch for my costume for when I go to the Gala. I looked around for some paper (I'm going to hurt a small animal if I have to write on cloud) and something to write with. After a few moments of searching, I found what I was looking for(lucky for that small animal it was real paper and pencil), and I got to work.

As it turns out, drawing using your mouth is pretty damn difficult, but I got the important stuff down somehow. I grabbed my saddlebag that I bought two days ago and put the sketch in and headed out the door. Rainbow knew I would be at work, then go to Rarity's today to drop off my sketch. Hopefully that was it, and nothing...'interesting' would happen. Knowing my luck, something would. I flew over to the bar, and got to work. At lunch I (painfully) trained with Thunder. When I finished, I went to have a word with Barry.

"Are you going to support me at the Young Flier Competition?"

"Yeah, I'll be there, as long as Twilight can perform that spell to allow non-pegasi the ability to walk on clouds."

"So do you know what you're going as for the Gala?"

"I do, but if you're not telling, I'm not either."

"Okay, if we tell each other, we won't tell anyone else, deal?"

"Deal."

"So who are you going as?"

"None of the ponies will get it, but I'm going as Slash."

"HAHAHAHA! You like nothing like that guy! Not to mention you're nowhere near as good!"

"Maybe that's because I'm a fucking pony? So who are you going as Mr. Smartass?"

"Pffff, I'm not telling you."

"...It's my own fault for not seeing this coming..."

"Yes it is. Now if you will excuse me, I need to get this sketch to Rarity after I go train with Thunder again."

"Don't talk to me."

"Don't act butt hurt, like you said, it's your own fault for not seeing this coming. Anyways, later."

After yet another painful training session with Thunder, I trotted off to the Carousel Boutique to turn my sketch in. I walked in the door and rang the bell at the desk. "Just one moment!" Rarity called from a room in the back.

She trotted out and smiled. "Ah, good to see you Shadow, do you have that sketch with you?"

I held it up. "Right here."

She looked at it carefully. "This is incredible! How did you come up with this?"

"Oh, I have my sources."

"You certainly do. Now if you'll follow me to the back, I need to take some measurements."

"Lead the way." I said pointing my hoof towards the back.

After Rarity took her measurements, she lead me back to the front.

"You're costume will be ready the day before the Gala, and I look forward to this challenge."

"Thank you, Rarity. I guess I'll head back to Rainbow's now."

"Goodbye Shadow."

I nodded and trotted out of the door. This day went off perfectly! That's a pleasant surprise for m-just then, a pegasus that looked like he was middle- aged with the exact opposite color-scheme as me landed in front of me. Where I had a black coat, his was solid white. Where my mane and tail were black, and outlined with crimson, his were crimson, and outlined by black. Oh, and he had not fucking cutie mark to top it off. "Have you seen my son?" he asked

Fuck, I just HAD to fucking jinx it didn't I? "Uhh, depends, what's your son's name?"

"Now this may sound strange lad, but I'm from a different world. After I died, I requested to be sent to the same world as my son, I should have known he picked this one. And my son's name is Landon Flash."

No...nonononononononononono FUCK NO! "DAD?"

"Junior? Is that really you?"

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"That's no way to greet your father boy."

"WHAT. THE. HELL. ARE YOU DOING HERE?"

"Looking for you, of course. I thought you would have been happy to see me after all of these years."

"First off, it's only been a few days for me. Second I came here because it was the place I thought you would never come to. Third, you never once cared about me! All you ever did was keep me in your shadow!"

"Shadow, are you okay?" Rainbow Dash said as she flew towards me.

Oh no, not now. Please not now...

"And who is this Landon?" my dad said

"Who is Landon? This is Shadow." she replied

"Wait, gimmie a-" I started to say

"I'm pretty sure I remember my own son's name, thank you."

"This is your dad Shadow? And why is he calling you Landon?"

"I am his father, and that's because that's his name of course." my dad answered

"Wait, you're dad doesn't have a cutie mark either...and neither does Mint, and you act like you've known Mint for a long time...who are you?"

"Rainbow, let me explain, I-" I said, extending my hoof

"Get away from me!" she yelled and swatted my hoof away. She spread her wings and flew away to Twilight's.

"She acts like she loves you or something. But something like that could never happen. Let's go Junior."

"Don't. Fucking. Touch me."

He recoiled in shock

"Do you have any idea what you just fucking did? You just single-handedly ruined my life for a second time! Because of you, you just chased away the only mare I love! No, I'm not letting you win this time! I'm going after her whether you like it or fucking not!" I shouted as I flew off towards Rainbow.

I landed outside of the library, and knocked on the door. Twilight answered it. "What?"

"Twilight, give me and Barry a chance to explain."

"And why should I? You two lied to us!"

"If you give us just one chance to explain, we will never bother you again. Just please, if it's going to end for us, let us end it with a clean conscience."

She thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, you two get one chance to explain yourselves, then we're through."

"That's all I'm asking."

"Come in then, I'll send for Mint."

I trotted in, and found Rainbow on the couch, with her head in her hooves, crying.

"Rainbow, I'm-"

"Don't talk to me!" she snapped

"I know, I'm sorry Rainbow, when Mint gets here, we'll explain everything. I know I don't deserve to be trusted right now, but that's the truth."

A moment later, Barry trotted in. He looked like he knew what was happening. He sat on the couch next to me, while Rainbow got up and walked next to Twilight.

"Start talking. Now." Twilight said

Me and Barry looked at each other, and I nodded.

"What we say may sound absurd, but it's the absolute truth. Me, and who you know as Mint, aren't from this world. We are originally from a different world called Earth. There, my name was Landon Flash, and his was Barry Johnson. And, well- we died."

I got the expected reaction from the two, which was disbelief mixed with shock. I continued.

"I was involved in an accident where I was crushed, and Barry here got murdered in a shooting. After dying, I received the chance to start a new life in this world. I jumped at the opportunity. Two days later, or ten years later in my world, Barry was murdered and he too received the chance to come here. As soon as we arrived, we instantly fell in love with you two. But about an hour ago, my dad came here and ruined everything...we would have told you eventually, but it didn't see like the right time, and for that we are truly sorry. I know it's too late for apologies, but you should still know, we are. Come on Barry, let's go." Barry nodded and followed me.

We left the library without a word of goodbye, because we knew we didn't deserve it from them. We walked to the Silver Thunder Bar and trotted in. We headed to the bar and took a seat. Silver walked over to us.

"You guys look like hell, what happened to you two?"

I'm being lazy again, sorry.

I started to explain what happened, and when I got to the part about being dead, and he called Thunder over. After he showed up, I restarted my story for him. When I finished he looked at me with a calm expression.

"Either you boys are on the strongest drug ever found, or you're telling the truth. Because you two aren't the type to do drugs or lie about something like that. I can help you out, but you're gonna have to come in an hour early for the next two weeks, excluding your vacations to Cloudsdale and the Gala."

Our ears perked up. "How could we possibly get them back after what we did?" Barry asked

"It's going to take some creativeness, but I think we can pull it off. I'm still calling you Shadow by the way, but Shadow, can you sing well?"

"I took choir for a while in high school."

"Good enough. Silver, can you still drum?"

"Sure can."

"Where are you going with this Thunder?" I asked

"Nothing says sorry like playing a song right? And you must have all kinds of music that say that where you come from."

"Thunder, that's- that's brilliant (obviously)! But wait, how could we get the girls here, and how would Silver know how to play a song he's never heard?"

"While I get the girls here, you show Mint and Silver the song you're talking about and rehearse it a couple of times."

"Got it."

"And Shadow?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't screw up your life again." Thunder said as he walked out the door.

I immediately knew the song I wanted to play. I told Barry, who agreed, and we practiced for a while with Silver until Thunder got back.

"Okay, the girls are on their way, I told them that you two morons were drowning in booze and they had to come pick you up."

"You couldn't have made up a better story than that?" I yelled.

"You can't have expected this plan to be perfect." he replied

About ten minutes later, Rainbow and Twilight walked in. Thunder closed the door behind them, and stood in the way.

"What do you think you're doing? Let us out!" Twilight yelled

"Not until you listen." he replied

"Listen to what?"

Tonight we drink to youth
And holding fast to truth
(I don't want to lose what I had as a boy.)
My heart still has a beat
But love is now a feat.

Sometimes when I'm alone, I wonder
Is there a spell I'm under
Keeping me from seeing the real thing?

Love hurts...
But sometimes it's a good hurt
And it feels like I'm alive
Love sings,
When it transcends the bad things,
Have a heart and try with me,
'cause without love I won't survive.

I'm fettered and abused,
I stand naked and accused
(Should I surface this one buck submarine?)
I only want the truth
So tonight we drink to youth!
(I'll never lose what I had as a boy.)
Sometimes when I'm alone I wonder,
Is there a spell that I'm under
Keeping me from seeing the real thing?

Love hurts...
But sometimes it's a good hurt
And it feels like I'm alive.
Love sings,
When it transcends the bad things,
Have a heart and try with me,
'cause without love I won't survive.

We finished the song, and Rainbow and Twilight were stunned. Me and Barry walked off of the stage and up to them.

"We know we did you girls wrong, but we want to make it up to you. If you give us another chance we will never betray you again."

They looked at each other, then gave us a hug. We hugged for about a minute before Thunder cleared his throat.

"Right, lets go back home. Twilight and Barry, I'll see you tomorrow."

They nodded as me and Rainbow flew back home.

"I'm sorry Lando-Shadow...I should have tried to understand more. I never thought about how much you were hurting."

"You have nothing to apologize for Rainbow, I should have told you from the start who I was. I was just so worried that you would reject me and call me insane."

We arrived home and walked upstairs.

"No, I do have to apologize. I should have been more understanding, I should hav-mmf"

I silenced her with a kiss. She closed her eyes and kissed me back. For about three minutes we just kissed, then we got under the covers.

And Ima stop it right there :D. For 2 reasons: 1, this isn't a clop-fic (for now.). 2. I wouldn't know how to write one.(Nothing against cloppers, it's just not my thing.) Also, this is going to be one of few serious chapters. I won't do a lot, but there will be some. Next chapter will be funnier, I Pinkie Pie promise.(By the way, that song was Love Hurts by Incubus). Anyways, I'll leave you guys with the famous comic-relief of the quote of the day!(Review or be destroyed)

Quote of the day: "You think they'll sign my tits?"- Me to my friend when discussing the possibility of backstage passes to a concert.
> To Cloudsdale!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yesterday was the worst and best day of my life. Make that both of my lives. I nearly lost the one I love, but sang a song and got laid instead. Did I mention I love it here? I opened my eyes to find Rainbow huddled next to me. She was awake.

"Morning Shadow." She said with a smile

"Good morning yourself."

"I love you."

This would be the moment when a lot of guys would run like hell. I didn't hesitate with what I said next.

"I love you too Rainbow, I love you more than anything." I said as I pulled her closer

"So what are we doing today?" she asked

"Aren't we going to Cloudsdale today?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that."

"When do we leave?" I asked

"We don't have to leave for another four hours I believe."

"I guess I'll go get a training session with Thunder then."

"Alright, be sure to thank him for me."

"I owe him a thanks as well."

"Alright, I'll get a few things together while you're gone."

"Alright, see you in a few." I said as I trotted out the door and walked downstairs. I grabbed an apple to eat on the way and went outside. I flew to town, trying to do some tricks along the way. I have a few things in my arsenal. Maybe they might get me first place. I finished my apple just before arriving at the bar. I trotted inside to have Silver wave at me.

"Hey Shadow, when you get a chance, you need to give me some more of those songs! A few young folks outside heard your little performance last night and demanded to hear more. If you give us those songs, it will get this place going again."

"You're gonna have to ask Mint for those, I only picked the song last night. He's the one that knows how to play them.."

"Alright, thanks Shadow."

"Anytime."

I trotted to Thunder's office and walked in.

"Shadow, I'm guessing things went well with your girl last night. It looks that way, judging by the stupid smirk on your face."

Have I been smirking the whole time? Oh well. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. Thanks again for helping my sorry ass save my relationship."

"It was the least I could do, plus I didn't want to see you and Mint doing nothing around here but stay depressed the whole time. That would be bad for business. Speaking of business, you and Mint attracted us a whole new group of customers with your music!"

"Yeah, Silver told me when I walked in."

"So what can I do for you today Shadow? I gave you almost a week off for your trip to Cloudsdale and Canterlot."

"Yeah, before I leave for Cloudsdale, I was hoping to get in another training session with you."

"Alright, but before we start, from now on, things won't be as easy. Up 'till now, I've only been warming you up for the more difficult stuff."

"You mean that stuff we were doing was the easy shit?"

He chuckled "That's right. You see, there are four levels to this style of training. The last couple of days, you were training on the beginner's level, which is for basic self defense only. What I'm going to train you in now will get you on par on hoof-to-hoof combat with your average royal guard. This stage is called the adept's training level."

"Wait, if level two would put me on par with a royal guard...WHAT THE HELL COULD THE OTHER TWO DO?"

"Easy there. This is probably as hard as the training will get. Very few make it passed stage three, and there are only four in the history of Equestria to make it through stage four."

"Okay, so let me get this straight, level one will get me basic self defense training, and level two is royal guard training. So what would levels three and four be compared to?"

"I doubt you will get that far, but level three would put you in the top five deadliest warriors in Equestria. Level four is even more legendary, not even I myself have even attempted it. Mainly because I don't know how to, and only a pegasus can master it. Level three and four's title always associates itself with the wielder's name. Level three takes your first name, and adds on the word beast. The title itself is translated however. Take my title for example, Thunder Beast. After translation, it sounds like Tonitrua Bruti.

Did he just translate to Latin? They probably call it something different here. Also, Latin makes everything sound bad ass for some reason.

"Okay, so what is the title for stage four?"

"The title for stage four is something you should expect. It is Daemon."

"Daemon...Demon?"

"That is correct, and rightfully named. Things may seem peaceful now, but long long ago, the world was chaos. Equestria was very young at the time. We were constantly being drawn into conflict by nearby territories. We needed a way to assassinate their leaders to calm things down, and at the same time, it would divert pressure away from us. We needed the Fugiens Mones. "

Thank God I took Latin in school. "That means Flying Demons right?"

He nodded "There were four pegasi so deadly, so stealthy, so gifted in the art of combat, they could bring down legions of enemies before needing to retreat. Most importantly though, they served Equestria. The enemy didn't know this however, and that resulted in other nations calling a truce with each other to unite against this threat. Soon, they came to Equestria to join the alliance of nations to hunt down the threat of the Fugiens Mones."

"It was a sudden turn of events for Equestria, because nopony would have thought the other nations would actually ally with each other. The leaders of Equestria warned the Fugiens Mones that Equestria would be allying with the other nations to prevent destruction. The Fugiens Mones understood that it was for the good of the country, and they went into hiding. Nopony has ever seen them since. Some say they died out long ago, others say they still exist, blending in with modern society."

"How do you know all of this?"

"Well, it's not because I'm one of them, it's just because you can find lots of dirty little secrets when given captain class access to things, also, you need to be a pegasus."

"So why tell me?"

"Because I know you can keep it to yourself, and because no one would believe you even if you did tell them. Who knows, you might actually beat stage three. But I doubt you will even get passed this stage of training. That was just a little fun story I never got the chance to tell before. Anyways, let's begin!"

That was a pretty kick ass story. I wonder if the Fugiens Mones still exist...maybe if I train hard enough, I could become one! But wait, that wouldn't work. One reason was because they might not exist anymore, and second, I need to join the Wonderbolts. That doesn't mean I can't get through stage three of my training though, and be able to kick some serious ass!

"Yeah, let's go!"

Two very painful hours later

"Fuuuuck, how the hell am I going to keep this up?" I groaned as I walked out

"That was twice as bad as the other training! If this training was bad, I can only imagine how bad stage three training is, not to mention stage four! Fuck that."

My ranting continued until I noticed quite a few ponies were staring at me. "Uhh, sorry, don't mind me." I said to them

They just turned away and went about their business. I guess I could go make sure my friends are going to support me at the competition tomorrow. I decided to head in the direction of Twilight's. I arrived at the library and walked in. I found Barry just relaxing on the couch.

"Hey Landon, what's up?" he asked

"I came here to make sure that you're going to Cloudsdale to back me up during the competition."

"Of course, just don't do anything to get your sorry ass killed again. You may not care about yourself that much, but you care about Rainbow and your friends. So think about that before risking your life."

"You know Barry, no one likes a Buzz Killington."

"And no one likes a dead friend or lover, or whatever."

"Fine, I won't do something suicidal."

"Thank you. Is there anything else you wanted?"

"Nah, I'm gonna head back to Rainbow's, then go over to Cloudsdale."

"Alright, I'll see you at the competition then."

"Later man." I said as I trotted out.

Right, so now it's off to home. I need to get used to calling it that. I headed off to 'home' and arrived in about a minute.

"Hey Rainbow, you home?" I said as I opened the door.

"Yeah, I'm just packing a few things, come on up."

I trotted upstairs to find Rainbow just packing things in some suitcases...made of cloud. My head just exploded from confusion and passed out. I woke up to find Rainbow looking worriedly at me.

"Shadow? Shadow are you okay?"

"...clouds..."

"Huh?"

"Everything is made of fucking clouds...how does it work?

She rolled her eyes and got back to packing. I just sat there for about another five minutes trying to keep my head from blowing up again.

"Right, so I finished packing Shadow, you ready to go?"

"...Sure..." I said as I stared at the cloud bags like they were an ancient evil wanting to consume me.

Rainbow didn't seem to notice. "Right, so lets go."

I shook it off and nodded. "Alright, how long is it to Cloudsdale?"

"It's gonna be about 45 minutes for us."

"That's not too bad."

"Right, so lets get going."

We walked outside and I let Rainbow take off first, because I didn't know where the hell Cloudsdale was located. After she took off, I followed close behind her.

"So why don't you get along with your father?" She hesitantly asked

"It's okay now, I don't mind you asking. I'll explain why I don't like him for you. When I was very young, around two years old, my mom died. My dad was left with me. One other thing, we have this sport called NASCAR, and it involves racing of a kind. Well, he was one of the participants of it, actually, he was the best racer the sport had ever seen. We may have had money sure, but what good is money if you don't have anyone to enjoy it with? My dad never talked to me, the closest thing I ever did with him was ride with him on the way to the races."

"No one ever paid me any attention, the only friend I had was Barry. All I was was his shadow. That's what partially caused my death. I become obsessed with escaping his shadow. I soon became NASCAR's new racer. I was in my first cup, I was doing great, until the accident...well, there you have it, that's why I don't like my dad. He never paid attention to me, and I was left in his shadow."

"I, I'm sorry to hear that Shadow."

"Don't be, none of this is your fault."

We still had about thirty minutes until our arrival to Cloudsdale. Most of that time was spent with her begging me what my costume for the Gala would be, and every time she asked I would tell her she had to wait. We finally arrived in Cloudsdale. It was a lot cooler up close than it was on the TV that's for sure. Not to mention this place is fucking huge!

"I know this place is impressive Shadow, but don't fall behind."

"Can't I explore a little bit?"

"We can go out to eat after we get to the suite I've been given."

Did she just say suite? "Meh, exploring is overrated anyways."

She laughed "Alright then, follow me and we'll go to the suite."

I did so as she lead the way to our hotel. Which made of cloud...wait, this whole place is made of cloud! Fuuuuck, just don't think about it Landon, don't think about it...

"Equestria to Shadow, we're here." Rainbow said as she waved her hoof in front of me.

"Oh, right, I knew that."

She just rolled her eyes. "Lets go."

I nodded and followed her in. The interior wasn't made of cloud. How the fuck was the exterior cloud, and the interior solid? At this rate I'm going to have a fucking brain aneurism. Rainbow trotted up to the front desk.

"Uh hi, I have a suite on reserve for Rainbow Dash."

"One moment please." the receptionist said as she looked through names on a book.

"Ah, here we are, you're on the top floor, room 2203. Here's your key."

"Thanks." Rainbow said as she took the key.

She trotted up to me. "Alright, lets head up."

Instead of waving her hoof in front of me to snap me out of my cloud-induced trance, she just slugged me on my head.

"Owww, dafuq Rainbow?"

"If you continue to go out of it like that, I'm going to continue doing it, now lets go."

I rubbed my head and followed her up to the room. Rainbow unlocked the door and we trotted in. This place was enormous! It had a living room, two bathrooms, two bedrooms, and...wait whats that? Oh shit! This place had a bar! I flew over to the bar and poured myself a drink. Rainbow laughed and trotted up beside me.

"I take it you like this place?"

I downed my drink before speaking. "This place is awesome!"

"Glad you like it. Let's catch some shut eye, you're gonna need it for tomorrow."

"Alright. By the way, what time is the competition?"

"It's at 2:00. Why do you ask?"

"Because, I still want to explore this place."

"When we wake up, we'll look around, go eat, then go to the competition. How does that sound?"

"That sounds great!" I said as I poured another drink

"If you drink too much, you're going to be hungover Shadow."

"Nah, I'll be fine."

She rolled her eyes. "Okay Shadow, whatever you say."

"Come have a drink with me." I said, raising my glass.

"I'm good, I don't need a hangover."

"Come onnnn, one drink ain't gonna kill ya."

"Fine, ONE drink, that's it."

"Of course." I said as I poured her a drink

I handed her the drink, and we started drinking together.

She finished her drink and sat up.

"One more?" I asked

"No more Shadow."

"Please?" I said with puppy dog eyes.

"Fine, one more." She said as I smiled and poured her another one

5 strong drinks later

"Ugh, I think thatsh enough..." Rainbow slurred

"Alright, go...go ahead and go ta sleep...I'll be there ina bit."

"Oh-hic*- okay." Rainbow said as she stumbled to the bed.

"I can probly haz a few more..."

Slam! Was the last noise made that night as I passed out, and my head slammed into the bar.

And that's the end of that drunken night. What did you guys think about the story with those elite pegasus warriors? I have plans having to do with it, but that was just foreshadowing for the sort of near future. I thought it could give you guys something else to look forward to. By the way, I'm going on vacation to the beach in a few days, so I will give you guys a few more chapters before then. I'm going to end it the chapter before the Gala, and work on that chapter in my free time at the beach. It's going to be a long one. Consider it thanks for sticking with me.

Quote of the day: "Are you sad? Lonely? Depressed? You know those are the signs of genital herpes." - My friend to me at the most random moment.
> Young Flier's Competition
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

…..Maybe Rainbow was right. I have a hangover. Fuuuck I feel like my head's about to explode. I fumbled around on the ground trying to find something to pull myself up with. I eventually found the bar stool and grabbed on. I almost got on my hooves until my grip slipped and I fell back, smacking my head against the floor. Why my fucking head? That only multiplied my headache to the point where I had to close my eyes for a few minutes.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw Rainbow trot out of the bedroom holding her head. She glared at me. "I'm never listening to you again when it comes to drinking Shadow."

"Hey, you agreed to do it, I can't be the one held responsible here."

She responded by smacking me on my head.

"Ahhh! Fuck Rainbow! My head is killing me!"

"That was for being a smart mouth."

I didn't listen, I was too busy holding my poor head.

"Right, so you said you wanted to explore this place before the competition?"

"Yeah, I guess." I said, still holding my head

"Okay then, you clean up around here, and I'll head out. I'll meet up with you later."

"Fine, but you owe me an extra point for cleaning up."

She chuckled. "We'll see, if you're good enough, you won't need the extra point."

"Couldn't hurt, could it?" I said with my patented smirk.

"Just start cleaning, I'll see you later."

"Alright, later Rainbow." I said before giving her a quick kiss.

She trotted out, leaving me to clean up our glasses and making the bed. Wait, doesn't this place have maids or something for that shit? I don't want to take any chances around Rainbow again, or she'll hit my aching head again, and I did not want that right now. I trotted to the glasses and put them in the sink across from the bar. Then I headed over to the bedroom to make the bed. Screw this, this is boring. I stopped what I was doing and trotted out of the door. I went downstairs and headed outside.

Right, so what should I do first. Should I go to the Rainbow Factory? Nah, I saw that one youtube video, I'd be too creeped out if I went there. I guess I could just fly around for a bit, and see if I run across anything interesting. That's what I would do. I lifted off of the cloud ground, and flew around from street to street.

For those interested, the youtube video is Rainbow Dash Presents: Captain Hook the Biker Gorilla.

I was just about to go back to the suite, when I heard Rainbow's voice. I couldn't make out everything, but I could make out a few things.

"...you three leave me alone?"

"Why should we Rainbow Crash?"

Uh oh, there's only one goon squad that says that. I flew in the direction of Rainbow's voice, and found three bucks that had her cornered. I flew down towards Rainbow.

"Hey! You got a problem with Rainbow? You take it up with me."

"Shadow, I really don-"

"And what are you gonna do about it?" Hoops said

"I would really rather avoid a confrontation right now, so please leave us alone."

"Why should we, and why would anypony defend this loser?"

"Listen asshole, I'm trying to be nice since there is a lady here. Not to mention she's my mare friend, so think before you decide to insult her again."

They all laughed. "Rainbow Crash is your mare friend? Who would have thought she'd be desperate enough to find a pony that's an even bigger loser than her?" Dumbbell said

I turned to Rainbow and nodded, then turned back to the three stooges. "Alright, just remember, I tried to be nice, so don't hold this against me."

"Oh yeah? We'll show you! Get him guys!" Hoops said

The three of them charged at me. It was a good thing I had some training. Score tried to applebuck me. I responded by grabbing his rear hooves and slinging him into Hoops. They fell back and Dumbbell charged at me.

"You're gonna pay for that!"

He brought up his hoof to punch me. I brought up one of my hooves to deflect it, then gave him a headbutt, knocking him out. I stood before the unconscious idiots before me. It looked like I won. I collapsed on the ground. Fuck, why did I decide to headbutt the last one? That was not smart on my part. Rainbow flew to me.

"Shadow! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just a headache."

"Good. You didn't have to help me you know."

"Actually I did, I had to make sure those idiots never insulted you again. Besides, I tried to be nice."

"Sigh*, right, lets go to the Cloudiseum. I need to get to the judge's panel, and you need to go sign up."

"Okay, I'm ready to win." I said with a smile on my face

"That's the spirit! Now let's go."

I nodded, and we flew off to the Cloudiseum. On the way there, we spotted our friends walking inside. We flew down to catch up with them.

Twilight noticed and turned around. "Look! It's Shadow and Rainbow!"

We landed in front of them and Barry spoke up. "Hey guys. Shadow, are you heading to the sign-up area?"

"Yeah, I'm just about to."

"Rainbow, besides you, who are the judges for this year?" Twilight asked

"Besides me, the judges are going to be Spitfire and Blaze."

"I'll see you guys after the show, I need to go sign up." I said as I flew off.

"Alright, good luck Shadow! We're rooting for you!" Rarity said.

I nodded, and flew up to the sign up area. There were only about twenty other ponies here. There were two booths, one for single entries, and another for pairs. Huh, I didn't know this thing could use pairs. Oh well. I trotted up to the single entry booth, before a certain unwanted pony called my name.

"Landon! Over here boy!" My dad called

"Dad, how many times do I have to tell you? Go away!"

"Okay now look, I'm sorry about that drama with your...mare friend. I have come to terms with that. I'm sorry I never paid you as much attention as I should have on our world. I want to make it up to you, so I signed us up for a pair team!" He finished with a smile.

"You, you WHAT?"

"I thought this would help make us become closer."

"...I hate you."

"You say that now Landon. Come now, you might have fun with your old man! I even took time to learn how to fly."

"Wait, how did you even know about this place?"

"When you saw that one episode of your show on the television, you couldn't stop talking about it. When I died, I asked to be in the world you went to, so I ended up here. I asked around, and I found out about this competition, and that it had a pair entry. So I took it upon myself to learn how to fly. When the time came, I signed us up."

I collapsed on the ground. I was about to enjoy myself! Now this guy is going to drag me down, and prevent me from winning! And the worst part is, I can't do shit about it!

"Oh get up Landon. The competition is starting. Let's head over to the starting area and watch the other contestants."

I groaned and got up to follow him. We were the last ones on the list. That bothered me because it meant I had to spend more time with this jackass.

"So, what's her name boy?"

"What?"

"Your mare friend, what's her name?"

"What do you care?"

"Well, I was wondering when I get to formally meet my son's love."

"It's Rainbow Dash, happy?"

"No need to be so hostile."

"Are you kidding me? You never once tried to act like a dad, now you expect me to just act like you didn't ignore me for eighteen years, and suddenly accept you? Go to hell."

"I know I never tried before Landon, but I'm trying now. I didn't realize how important you were to me until you were taken away in that car accident."

"Funny how it took my death to see that."

He didn't respond. We just sat there in silence as it got closer to our turn. Eventually, the pegasus in front of us was called. We were after her.

"When we go out there, stay out of my way. I can do this on my own."

"We are a pair for a reason. We are going to have to work together if we want to win."

"Number twenty!" The mare with a clipboard called.

That was us.

"Lets go boy."

I followed in silence. We arrived to the starting area. I looked around at all of the pegasi, I saw my friends in the distance. I looked around some more, and I saw Rainbow and the other two judges. I also saw Princess Celestia.

"Begin!"

We flew out. My dad tried to chase me. I was managing to stay away from him. Looking back, I was flying so fast, I was leaving a trail of black outlined with crimson. When my dad flew threw, it turned the streak into a black, crimson, and white stripe. I guess it was cool, because the crowd was cheering. I was flying in all kinds of directions, but the old bastard was still following me! How the hell was he this fast?

Time to lose him for good. I stopped in mid-air and started flying straight at him. He barreled away at the last moment, and he got right back to following me.

"Go away!" I yelled, audible only to him over the screaming crowd.

Over to Barry, Twilight, and Friends.

"What are they doing?" Applejack asked.

"Is this part of the performance?" Twilight added

"I don't think so, it looks like he's trying to keep away from him. The crowd doesn't seem to know that though. I honestly don't think Landon planned on being in the competition with his father." Barry said

Back to Shadow and his dad.

Alright, let's see how this asshole likes high altitude. I flew straight up for about a minute. I saw that my dad was still pretty close. I kept flying up. It was getting difficult to breathe now. My dad was still behind me.

"Fuck off!"

I flew straight down. The air stinging my eyes as I descended. I couldn't look back to see if my dad was still behind me. The air was exploding in my ears. I continued flying down. Then out of nowhere, the sound stopped. I couldn't hear anymore! Oh shit! Did I just go deaf? Wait, what the hell is this? I noticed there was a cone of black and crimson around me.

Holy fucking shit! Did I just do a sonic rainboom?

2 minutes ago, back at Barry, Twilight, and Friends.

"Where are they going?" Fluttershy asked

"If I were to guess, I'd say Landon hopes to lose his dad in extremely high altitude." Barry said

"Wait! Is that Shadow?" Twilight said

They watched in awe as a cone of black and crimson began to form around me, then suddenly have my speed twenty-fold in an explosion of black and crimson. If the ponies didn't know where it came from, they would think a bleeding shadow was enveloping the land.

"Wow, Landon really doesn't like his father." Barry mused

Back to the high speed chase of Shadow and father.

Yep, I think I did do a sonic rainboom. So now comes the question: HOW THE FUCK DO I SLOW DOWN? I beat my wings furiously to slow down, but that only worked a little. Great, it was getting teleported here for the first time all over again. I tried spreading my wings to catch as much air as possible to slow down. That seemed to work. I was rapidly slowing down. When I was at a comfortable speed, I flew back over to the starting area. My dad arrived shortly after. The crowd was going wild. Even the Wonderbolts in attendance were applauding.

"That was quite impressive boy. Where did you learn how to do that?"

"I never learned it, I was trying to get away from you."

"Good one boy! Like anyone hates their dad that much."

I rolled my eyes. Maybe I was being a little hard on him...maybe I should give him one chance.

"SHADOW!"

I look up to see a rainbow blur flying at me. It tackled me to the ground.

"That was incredible Shadow! You did a sonic rainboom!" Rainbow said

"I wouldn't call it a sonic rainboom, since it wasn't a rainbow."

"What would you say it was then? You get to name it since you did it."

"How about a shadow pulse?"

"That's an awesome name, I love it!"

Just then, Spitfire, Blaze, and Princess Celestia trotted over.

"Congratulations to you and your father Shadow, I name the both of you this year's champions!" the Princess said.

I bowed. "Thank you Princess Celestia." I said as she placed the trophy on my head.

"You're welcome. I must go now, but I look forward to seeing you all at the Gala in two days. Congratulations again." Then she flew away escorted by two of her royal guards.

Spitfire trotted up to me. "Congratulations Shadow Flash."

I blushed and looked away. There is a difference between royalty, and a star. Royalty demands to be looked at. A star makes you stammer like a moron looking for the right words. "Uhh, thanks. I appreciate it."

She turned to Rainbow. "I see you two are together. I'll tell you what. Since both of you are now among the fastest fliers in Equestria, I'll give you two V.I.P. Passes for the Gala. That way, we have more time to hang out."

Rainbow fainted, and I just stood there.

Spitfire laughed. "Right, I'll take that as an 'I accept'. I'll see you two at the Gala!" She finished as she flew away.

Rainbow Dash was still unconscious by the time our friends arrived. "Shadow, that was amazing!" Twilight said.

"Thanks, I actually didn't plan on using it." Because I had no idea how.

"That was the most amazing thing I've seen since Rainbow Dash did a sonic rainboom! I need to throw a party for you Shadow!" Pinkie said

"How about we wait on the party Pinkie, the Gala is in two days."

"No can do Mr. Downer Pants." What did she call me?

"Okay, but can it wait until AFTER the Gala? Please?"

"Fine, only because you asked nicely though!"

"Thank you. So are you guys going back to Ponyville?"

"Yeah, we're just about to leave. What about you two?" Barry said

"Me and Rainbow still have another night to stay in our suite, so that's where we'll be."

"Okay, we'll see you guys tomorrow. Congratulations again Shadow!" Twilight said as they all trotted off to their balloon.

My dad trotted up to me. "I think I'll head back with them Landon. If I'm stuck here, I might as well find somewhere to stay."

"Alright."

"Goodbye son." My dad said as he trotted away.

"Goodbye dad..." I couldn't see his face, but I'm pretty sure he smiled when I said that.

Rainbow finally regained consciousness. "Ugh, what happened?"

"Spitfire gave us V.I.P. access to the Gala, and you passed out."

"Ohmygosh!" she exclaimed before she passed out again.

I laughed and rolled my eyes. I flew over to her and picked her up in my hooves. She was pretty light. I guess you have to be light in order to fly though. I flew back to the suite with her in my grip. I got us inside and set her down on the bed. I put the blanket over her, and the pillow under her head. After I did that, I trotted over to the bar. I needed a drink...

So what did you think about the shadow pulse? I thought about it, and decided to put some comedy in there, rather than make it all serious. You guys get two more chapters before I go on vacation. Then you get the long chapter at the Gala. I put the V.I.P. Part in there as well so it would give me more to write about. Review or I'll kill your family ;)

Quote of the day: "I'll burn you alive you asshole!" My friend to me as he tries to hit me. He was throwing eggs at passing cars, and I threw an egg at the back of his head, causing him to literally shit his pants thinking a car hit him.
> Wrenches, Wrenches Everywhere
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up and looked around. I didn't have a headache. I learned from my last experience and only had one drink before going to bed. I looked beside me. Rainbow was still asleep. I got out of bed and trotted to the bar. I was really going to miss this thing when we left. They kept this thing stocked with some quality booze. I made myself a light drink since it was pretty early.

I guess the noise I made woke Rainbow up, because she hovered out of the bedroom rubbing her eyes."Morning Rainbow. Care for a drink?"

"Not this early Shadow."

"Alright, this is the only one I'm having before you say anything."

"I wasn't planning to."

"Okay. By the way, when do we have to leave here?"

Rainbow glanced over at the clock before answering. "It's 9:30 now, and we have to be out of here at 10:30, so an hour from now. Why?"

"Just curious. So what do you want to do until then?"

"Come lie down on the couch with me."

I wasn't about to pass this up, so I followed her over to the couch and got comfortable. Rainbow spoke up."That was really something. What you did at the competition I mean."

"Thanks, but you've already done something like that before. It's nothing new."

"It was though. If all of us didn't know that you caused that explosion of black and crimson, it would have caused mass panic."

"Why is that?"

"Because, if a pony does a sonic rainboom, it fills ponies with joy seeing those colors. If somepony does one of your shadow pulses, it looks scary."

"Gee, thanks."

"I don't mean it that way Shadow. What would you think to yourself if you saw an explosion that looked like a shadow covered in blood was enveloping the land?"

"I would probably fly as far away as possible screaming like a filly. Damn it Rainbow, you are a surprising buzz kill."

"I'm just saying, be careful if you ever decide to use it again."

"Alright, I'll only use it in special circumstances. Although I don't see what would make me have to go several times the speed of sound."

"Good. Now lets go home. We may have about 45 minutes left here, but there's nothing to do now."

"Alright, lets go."

We got off of the couch and went out of the door. We exited the main lobby and went outside. I was really going to miss that bar. We took flight in the direction of Ponyville. Most of the flight we were silent before I spoke up.

"So how do you get into the Wonderbolts? Do they have to personally invite you or something?"

"Something like that. You need to have a recommendation from at least three different Wonderbolts. Then they grant you a tryout. If you do good enough at your tryout, then you're in."

"What does the tryout involve?"

"I don't know, it's a secret. Only ponies invited to the tryout and the Wonderbolts themselves know what it involves."

"That sounds a little strange if you ask me. Why would they need to guard a secret as trivial as that?"

"Because if anypony else found out what it was, then it would be a common practice for ponies wanting to get in. If that happened, the Wonderbolts would have to invent an entirely new tryout."

"Got it."

That was it for the conversation. For the last fifteen minutes we flew back in silence. When we finally arrived home, we went inside and I made myself a sandwich. Rainbow just grabbed an apple.

"So what are you about to do Shadow?" Rainbow asked before she took a bite of her apple.

"I guess I'll go train with Thunder, then I'll go to the Carousel Boutique to see if my costume for the Gala is ready."

"That's cool, and I just thought about this. If you performed a sonic rainboom, or shadow pulse in your case, how come you didn't get a cutie mark?"

I never paid attention to that. "Oh shit, you're right. If I don't get my cutie mark by doing that, what the fuck do I have to do to get one?"

"Maybe speed isn't what you're supposed to be good at."

"Why the hell not? I'm now one of the fastest fliers in Equestria, and I don't get my cutie mark because I shouldn't be that fast?"

"Calm down Shadow, maybe it just means that you have more than just one talent."

"I guess, but I still don't like it. That's pretty messed up though." It does seem my luck though.

"I'll see you later then?"

"Yeah, later." I said as I trotted out.

I flew over to the bar to get in another training session with Thunder. The things this guy puts me through are ridiculous. How do I become a better fighter by doing things that involves a monkey wrench and a magical blowtorch? As long as I can kick ass, it shouldn't matter, but still, a monkey wrench?

I walked inside and noticed there was a band playing some of the music Barry gave this place. This place also had more ponies in it than usual. Most of them were around my age. I trotted over to Thunder's office and went in.

"Here for more training Shadow?"

"You know it."

"I like the attitude. THINK FAST!" he yelled as he threw, you guessed it, a monkey wrench at me.

It hit me directly on my forehead and I went down.

"Ahhh! Fuck!"

"If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a punch."

"You crazy bastard! You just threw a wrench at me!"

"Plenty more where that came from, now get up."

I struggled to get up, holding my head that has been abused over the last couple of days.

"Right, now let's begin for real."

2 hours and many more wrenches to the face (and one to the nuts) later.

"We really need to work on your dodging."

"Fuck. You." I said holding my crotch

"Walk it off."

"Yeah, because I can definitely- you know what? Fuck it, I'll walk it off. Away from you, you crazy asshole." I said as I limped away.

"THINK FAST!" he yelled as he threw one more wrench at the back of my head.

"AH! You fucker!" I yelled as it took me down.

After some crawling, I finally managed to get away from him and outside. I was going to be feeling this for days. My face probably looks like hell, and I hope my gems are still intact. I limped over to the Carousel Boutique and walked in.

"Welcome to the Carousel Bou- Oh my goodness! Shadow, what happened?" Rarity said

"I just had a crazy bastard throw a bunch of wrenches at me, you know, the usual."

"Are you going to be okay?"

"I've had worse...I think. I don't know, I might have brain damage now. And a missing tooth...and a fractured skull...yeah I'm not okay."

"You must let me take you to the doctor then!"

"No, that's alright, I'll be fine."

"Are you sure? I don't want you hurting if I can help it."

"It's fine, thanks. I actually came here to check on my costume."

She smiled when I brought that up. "It's done, I finished it only a few hours ago. I really enjoyed working on this piece. The designs were magnificent! I had to make a few alterations though. This costume does have everything you asked, but there were some things I had to change. For safety reasons mostly. I also don't think the guards would allow a pony with actual weapons inside. You still have them, they're just made out of a softer material than actual steel."

"Thank you Rarity. Can I see it?"

"Of course! Right this way!"

We went through the back. There were several other costumes here as well. They were probably for other customers and our friends. We got to the back of the room, and there it was. My costume.

"So what do you think?" Rarity asked

"It's amazing! I love it!"

"You're quite welcome Shadow."

I reached into my saddlebags. "How much do I owe you?"

"Put your money away Shadow, I told you it would be free."

"I can't just accept something this perfect for free."

"You can and will. Come by tomorrow before we leave for the Gala, and I'll let you change into it."

"Thank you, I really appreciate it."

"Once again, you're welcome."

"I guess I'll go back to Rainbow's now. I'll see you tomorrow Rarity."

"Alright darling, and go to the doctor about those injuries!"

"No promises!" I said as I walked out.

"THINK FAST!" was all I heard before a wrench hit me right between the eyes.

I rolled on the ground for a while before recovering. I'm getting him back. I don't care if it's the last thing I ever do, but I WILL get him back. I got up, then spread my wings. I lifted off of the ground and flew back home. I walked in, and Rainbow was on the couch reading a Daring Do novel. She glanced up. My face must be pretty bad to make her scream and charge at me with a conveniently placed wooden bat. That was one sturdy bat.

"Ahh! Fuck Rainbow, it's me! It's Shadow! Fucking knock it out!"

"Shadow? Ohmygosh I'm so sorry! I didn't recognize you!" She said as she put the bat away.

"Why does everypony take every chance they get to assault my head?"

"What happened to you anyways?"

"Wrenches."

"Wrenches?"

"Wrenches."

"Uhh, okay. We should probably get you to the doctor."

"Nah, I'm good, I-" was all I said before tripping and hitting my head on a table, knocking me out.

I woke up in a bright room with a pony in a white coat staring down at me, writing things on his clipboard."Ah, good to see you're awake mister Shadow." he said.

"What the hell happened?"

"You tripped and hit your head. It knocked you unconscious, and your mare friend brought you here."

"So what's wrong with me?"

"You mean besides your concussion?"

"You know what, don't tell me."

"As you wish. I'll go tell everypony you're okay."He trotted out of the room, and a moment later, Rainbow, Barry, and Twilight trotted in.

"Shadow, are you okay?" Rainbow asked.

"I think I'll be okay as long as no more wrenches or baseball bats hit me on the fucking head."

"What's with that anyways dude?" Barry asked

"Our crazy ass boss threw wrenches at me!"

"Really?"

I just glared at him.

"Okay, so you're not lying."

"Why the hell would I lie about that?"

"I don't know, you say some messed up shit. I just figured that this might be another one of those times."

"The doctor said you can go when you're ready." Rainbow said"Good, because I hate doctor's offices and hospitals."

"Why is that?" Twilight asked.

"I hate needles. There's something evil about those things."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say."

I got out of the bed and walked over to Rainbow."Are you ready to go home?"

"Yeah, lets go."

"Thanks for coming you two." I said to Barry and Twilight

"Don't mention it. See you tomorrow." Barry said

"Later."

Me and Rainbow got outside. I saw something in the corner of my eye and ducked. The wrench bounced off of the building behind me and fell to the ground.

"Take that you old asshole!" I shouted in the direction the wrench came from.

Just then, another wrench hit me on the side of the head from a different direction.

"I am going to fucking kill him." I said, holding my head.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. After holding my head for a minute, we flew back home. We trotted upstairs and got in bed.

"Are you sure you'll be okay Shadow?"

"Not really."

"Sleep it off, you'll feel better."

"Right. Goodnight Rainbow."

"Goodnight Shadow." she said as she snuggled next to me.

I liked writing this chapter. I've written too few comedy chapters, so this is my way of making it up to you. By the way, I know I promised you guys two more chapters before I go on vacation, but I'm going to give you a choice. If I did write another chapter before I go on vacation, I could only write up to the point where everypony arrives at the Gala, and no further. Would you guys rather have a short chapter before no story for a week, or would you rather I merge that chapter with the long Gala chapter, making it even longer? Respond to me in the comments. Be sure to tell me before Monday, because that's when I leave. If you guys want the much longer chapter, I'll see you in a week. Shadow Brony out.

Quote of the day: "If you don't do it, I'll shoot you, you sorry dickwheel."- My friend to my other friend. He told him that he had to flip off every car that passed by, and every time he didn't, he'd shoot him in the head with a very strong bb gun. (Which he did.)
> A Special Day Indeed
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm back people! Now the moment (some) of you have been waiting for! Ahem* the Grand Galloping Gala!

Ugh. My head is fucking killing me. It hurts just as bad, if not worse than what it did when I had that hangover. Fucking wrenches and crazy-ass bosses...

Headache aside, I feel pretty good. Today is the day of the Grand Galloping Gala! I'm going to party like it's-wait, what year is it here anyways? I need to ask about that sometime. I glanced over at the clock, it said it was only 7:30. Damn, I woke up early. I guess that gives me more to do, because I don't exactly feel sleepy enough to go back to sleep.

I got out of bed and did my best to not wake Rainbow up. I trotted downstairs and made myself a small breakfast with fruit and (hay) bacon strips. God I miss real bacon...

I also took notice that the cooking equipment was made of cloud. I would bet anypony my life savings that I go insane in a year because of this. I sat down and ate my breakfast. I looked at the stairs and saw Rainbow emerging from them.

"Morning Dash."

"Hey Shadow." she responded

"Want some breakfast?"

"Nah, I'll just eat an apple."

"Alright, tell me if you change your mind."

"Thanks, but I'm good."

"Okay. So when do we leave for the Gala?"

"We don't have to leave until 5:30. We would arrive there in two hours."

"Okay, that gives me around nine hours to do a few things around here."

"Like what?"

"Well, as much as I hate it, I need to go see that crazy wrench throwing bastard to train some more."

"Do you really have to?"

"I guess I don't HAVE to, but I do WANT to. I want to learn how to kick some serious ass."

"Are you planning on stopping soon?"

"Not really. I kinda like doing it. Maybe if I keep doing it, I'll get my cutie mark."

"I thought you said cutie marks don't matter when I first met you."

"Yeah, but now I do. I want something that says I have a talent."

She laughed a little.

"What?"

"It's nothing, don't worry about it."

I raised an eyebrow. "If it were nothing, you wouldn't be laughing."

"It's just how much you've changed over many days I've known you. For the better. When we met, you were sort of closed off. Now that you have actual friends here, you seem much happier."

"I never thought about it, but I guess I am much happier."

We ate our breakfast for a little bit before Rainbow spoke up again.

"So after your training, what are you going to do?"

"I guess I'll go pick up my costume from Rarity."

"So I finally get to see it?"

"You are correct. After I pick it up from Rarity's and bring it here, I should have around six more hours before we leave. I'll probably hang around with Barry a little bit, then come here for the last couple of hours."

"Okay. I'll meet you back here then. I'll go out and take my daily nap in the clouds."

I gave a light chuckle. "Alright, I'll see you later."

"See ya Shadow."

I trotted out of the door and started flying towards the bar. The first sight of a wrench thrown at me, he was going to have to dodge a knife. I trotted in the bar, and Silver gave me a nod. I gave him one back, and hovered over to Thunder's office. I went inside and he greeted me without any wrenches surprisingly.

"No wrenches?" I asked

"Not today. While we may come back to that every now and then, I can't do it everyday. If I did, you'd get used to it."

"You're an evil bastard, you know that?"

"Don't blame me for not knowing how to dodge. THINK FAST!"

The wrench hit me right on the mouth, and I hit the ground holding it.

"AH! FUCK! You said you weren't doing that today!"

"All the more reason for you to keep your guard up."

"Go to hell."

I rose up. I think that asshole just chipped a tooth!

"So are you ready for your training today?"

"As long as there are no more wrenches, you crazy bastard."

"Nah, that last one I did was more for my amusement than actual training."

Did I mention I'm going to kill him one day? Because I will.

I just groaned and nodded.

"Alright, today we're going to work on how fast you can attack."

"Okay, how do we do that?"

"When you are able to directly hit me in the face, that means you're faster."

"We're doing this here?"

"Of course not, follow me."

He lead me outside of the bar, and out back. There was a large shed out there. I hope it isn't Fluttershy's. Fuck this if it is.

Most of you probably have, but if you want to get the reference, go watch all of the .MOVs on youtube. BACK TO ADVENTURE!

He unlocked a few locks on the shed, then opened it up. It had a few pieces of training equipment in it, including punching bags, some weights, and an arena in the middle. (Pretend it's a really big shed)

"Not bad." I said

"Glad I have your approval." he said with a roll of his eyes.

We went up to the arena and got in it.

"Okay, you ready for this Shadow?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"Alright. Begin!"

I gave a direct charge at him. He easily stepped to the side and clotheslined me, knocking me to the ground.

"What was that about?"

"Just because I said your objective was to hit me, doesn't mean I can't hit you."

Great. This just got even more difficult. I got up and charged at him again. This time at the end, however, I flew up five feet before I met him, then came crashing down on him. He responded by grabbing one of my hooves and slamming me down.

"Not a bad idea, but not going to work on me." he said

I got up again. I spread my wings and hovered about three feet off of the ground. I flew at him, and at the last second, I flew around. I had him now. Right before I hit him, he gave me a very painful applebuck to my gut.

"You're learning, at least. You use your superior agility against a slower opponent."

I rose holding my gut. "I'm not out of this yet." We kept up our fighting for about ten minutes.

Alright, I'm done playing around. I charged at him, and instead of adding a trick at the end, I just started swinging at him. Not wildy though, these punches were precision strikes. He was striking back, but thanks to the army of wrenches yesterday, I was avoiding his punches. He was starting to back up. Eventually he was at the ropes. I acted like I was going to give him a left hook, he responded by blocking on that side. That hook never came, instead, I gave him a headbutt, sending him over the ropes and out of the ring, and giving me a severe headache.

He rose up, dusting himself off. "Excellent! It looks like those wrenches worked after all!"

I hate to admit it, but they did. I slid out of the arena, and trotted over to him.

"You're getting better. I never thought you would, but you are doing very well in this training."

"Thanks. I have you to thank for that I guess."

"Don't sell yourself short. It takes skill to do what you're doing. Now lets go back to the bar."

I nodded and followed. We went back to his office.

"We'll continue your training when you get back from the Gala. Have fun."

"Thanks, I'll see you later then."

"Yeah. Goodbye Shadow."

I left the bar and headed over to the Carousel Boutique. I opened the door and saw Rarity at the desk.

"Ah, hello Shadow! Here to pick up your costume?"

"That's right."

"One moment please. I'll go get it for you."

She went into the back and emerged with my costume.

"Here you are darling." she said, holding up a large box.

"Thank you Rarity."

"It's no problem Shadow. How is your head by the way?"

"It's slightly better, thanks."

"That's good to hear."

"I'll see you when we go to the Gala, thanks again."

"Okay Shadow, goodbye."

I trotted outside, and flew back home. I went inside, and once again found Rainbow reading a Daring Do book. She looked up and noticed my box. She set the book down and flew over to me.

"Is that your costume in the box?" She said excitedly.

"Yes it is."

"Take it out! I want to see!"

"I don't know...you don't exactly look like you want to see it that bad."

She gave me a long kiss. "How about now?"

I had a stupid look on my face. "Okay." was all I said.

I opened the box, and held up my costume. The outfit and armor of an assassin. It was the armor from the cover of Assassin's Creed II. With a few modifications of course. For starters, the outfit had to fit a pony. Next were the weapons. While I still had two hidden blades, they weren't steel, and they weren't blades. They were now made of something that resembled steel, but wasn't as sharp and hard. It still had the same shine though. Next was where all of the Assassin's Guild crests would go. I left those blank. Whenever I got my cutie mark, I would have them put on there for any future events where this thing is needed. Next there was a space for my wings to fit through. Lastly, the colors were different. The main color was now deep black, but I still kept the red on there.

"So what do you think?"

"That's- that's so awesome!"

"I know it is." I said as I put the costume back in the box

"How did you come up with something like that? This seems TOO awesome."

"What? I can't be that awesome?" I said sarcastically

"You know what I mean."

"I'll tell you what I told Rarity; I have my sources."

She rolled her eyes.

"Okay, It's still around six hours until we leave, so I guess I'll go hang out with Barry for a few."

"Alright, see you."

I flew out of the door in the direction of the Library. I walked in to find Spike cleaning around the place.

"Hey Shadow, what's up?"

"Nothing much. Is Barry around here?"

"Actually, he's at Sugarcube Corner with Pinkie and Twilight."

"Alright, thanks." I said as I trotted out

I headed to the bakery. I walked inside and found Barry and Twilight at a table. Pinkie was nowhere to be seen. Oh God, it's just like that one Chuck Norris fact: If you can see him, he can see you. If you can't see him, you may only have seconds left to live. Maybe she wouldn't kill me, but still.

"HI SHADOW!" Pinkie yelled as her face appeared right in front off me.

"SHIT!" I yelled as I fell back.

"Oh hey Landon." Barry said.

"Did you know about this?"

"Not really. She said she had to go somewhere, took two steps away from where I was looking, and disappeared."

"Disappeared?"

"It's Pinkie Pie, what the hell do you expect?"

"Good point. So do you wanna hang out before we go to the Gala?"

"Yeah, sure. Me and Twilight were just about to go back anyways."

"I'll meet you back at the library Twilight." Barry said

"Okay, see you then." she responded

Me and Barry walked outside. "So where are we going?"

"I was thinking we went to Sweet Apple Acres."

"What for?"

"Iunno, I'm just bored."

"That's as good a reason as any, I suppose."

We trotted up to Sweet Apple Acres and found Applejack working in the fields and went over to her.

"Hey Applejack, what's up?" I said

"Oh, howdy Shadow, you too Barry. What can I do ya for?"

"We're just bored, and we're wondering if you have anything for us to do before the Gala."

"I reckon I do. Follow me."

She turned and started heading to the barn.

"So are you two excited fer the Gala?"

"You know it."

"What costume do you have?"

"It's kinda hard to explain, you'll see before we leave."

"Oh, okay."

We arrived at the barn and she turned around.

"If you two are lookin' for somethin' to do, then you can replace a few boards on the barn. There are some nails and hammers over 'yonder." she said, pointing to a corner

"This will pass the time I guess, thanks AJ."

"I should be the one thankin' you sugarcube."

I smiled and nodded. She returned it and trotted back off into the fields.

"You're really going to make me work?" Barry said

"You're really going to bitch?" I responded

He sighed and got to work. I did the same. More than a few times, I came close to putting a nail through my hoof. Barry actually did manage to hurt himself. It wasn't with a nail though. He brought his hammer back too far one time, and hit himself on the head.

"Oh shit are you okay?"

"Yeah, I guess."

I started laughing at him.

He lightened up and joined in. Once we decided we had spent enough time on Applejack's barn, we went to go talk to her again. We found her in the apple tree field again.

"Hey Applejack, me and Barry are going to go get ready for the Gala, we'll see you in a few."

"Alright. Thanks fer fixin' up the barn for me."

"No problem Applejack."

Me and Barry trotted back to town and arrived at the library pretty soon.

"Alright, I'll see you at the Gala." Barry said

"Okay, later man." I replied.

Barry went inside the library, and I took flight back home. I arrived back and trotted inside.

"Rainbow, you home?" I called out.

"Yeah, I'm upstairs. Come on up." I trotted upstairs and came across Rainbow in the bed.

"Why are you in bed?" I asked

"Because I'm bored, thats why."

"Gotcha. Mind if I join you?"

She didn't answer. Instead she smiled and made room for me. I got in next to her.

"We still have two hours until we leave." she whispered seductively.

"Well in that case, come here."

1 hour and 45 minutes of bowchickabowow later.

"That. Was. Awesome." Rainbow said.

"Yeah." was all I could manage.

"Well, we have fifteen minutes left. We should get ready."

"Alright." I said as I struggled to get up.

I trotted over to the box containing my costume. I opened it and took out my assassin armor. It was actually pretty difficult to put on. I've never had to put on any clothing as a pony. Eventually I was able to get it on.

"You ready Shadow?" Rainbow asked.

"Wow, you look fantastic." I said. Her costume was a slightly modified Wonderbolt uniform. For starters, it had no goggles. It also had nothing covering the face, so you could still see who it was, and had her cutie mark designed on her flank as well.

"Thanks. You don't look bad yourself."

"Ready to go then?"

"Yeah, lets go to the train station and meet up with the others."

We trotted outside and flew to the train station. Everypony was waiting for us.

"There you are. Where were you guys?" Barry asked

"We were grabbing a bite before we left." I lied. Personally I didn't care, but it would probably embarrass Rainbow, so I didn't say anything more.

"Oh, okay."

We all got onboard the train. We sat in pairs. Pinkie Pie with Applejack, Rarity with Fluttershy, Barry with Twilight, and me with Rainbow.

"AALLLLLL ABOARD!" the conductor yelled.

The train started up, and we all got settled in. It was a two hour ride to Canterlot after all.

"So you decided to dress like an assassin?" Barry asked.

"No, I decided to dress like the master fuckin chief." I said sarcastically

"Alright, alright...dick."

I laughed "Don't ask stupid questions then."

I never really paid attention, but I was now noticing everypony's costumes.

Fluttershy was dressed like a bunny rabbit.(hnnnnnnngh) Rarity was dressed in a very fancy dress. Applejack was dressed fairly similar in what she had on season 1's finale. Pinkie Pie was dressed like a cupcake. Twilight was dressed like who I guessed was a pony version of Albert Einstein. Rainbow had her modified Wonderbolt costume, I had my assassin armor, and Barry was dressed like Slash. I fell out laughing at Barry.

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up asshole."

I wiped a tear from my eye. "Sorry, you just look so stupid."

"Go to hell."

"I believe I went here instead." I said with a smirk.

He just turned away to talk to Twilight instead of responding.

I turned to Rainbow myself.

"Did you enjoy yourself earlier." I whispered

She blushed. "Lets not talk about this now in front of everypony."

I chuckled. "Alright, have it your way."

While everypony was talking, me and Rainbow went to sleep. We were pretty tired from earlier. I woke up just as we were entering Canterlot. This place is amazing. The city is beautiful. The train pulled up to the station and called out it was time to depart.

"Right, well lets get going." Twilight said.

We all exited the train, and started trotting to the royal palace.

"So how long does the Gala last?" Barry asked

"It usually lasts until 1:00 AM, although I imagine we will be gone by then."

"Thats plenty of time to party." I added in.

We all arrived at the palace pretty soon. This was the coolest place I've ever seen! It looks just like it did in the cartoon, except somehow even better. Probably because it's real this time.

"Coming Shadow?" Rainbow asked, snapping me out of my trance.

"Yeah, wait up." I said as I hurried to catch up.

We were met by a royal guard at the entrance. He let everyone through until he got to me.

"Halt! Submit your weapons!" He said, raising his spear.

"What? Oh, these aren't real." I said holding one of my hidden blades up.

"Yeah I bet. Submit them or I will be forced to detain you!"

"I'm serious! Look!" I said as I hit it against my arm. It didn't cut anything, because it was fake, but he still wasn't convinced.

"Last warning. Hand them over!"

"You gotta be kidding me. Here, take one of them and see for yourself." I said as I took one off.

He took it from my hoof and inspected it closer. After a moment of looking at it, he handed it back to me with a blushed look on his face.

"Uh, sorry sir, I thought it was real. Please forgive me, go on in."

"It's all good, you were just doing your job." I said as I trotted past.

He smiled and nodded, then went back to guarding the entrance.

"You alright Shadow?" Rainbow said

"Yeah, I'm fine. I guess these things look pretty real then, huh?"

"I'll say."

The first thing we had to do before we all went our separate ways was greet the princesses. We trotted up to the thrones of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.

"Welcome, Twilight Sparkle and friends, to the Grand Galloping Gala!" Princess Celestia said.

We gave a bow, and each went up to personally greet the princesses. It was my turn to greet Princess Celestia. I knelt down.

"Welcome Shadow Flash. It is good to see you again."

"Thank you, your majesty. The pleasure is all mine."

"There's no need to be so formal you know."

"Sorry, I just feel I should be respectful to you."

"It's fine, please, enjoy yourself."

"I will, thank you."

I went over to Princess Luna next. I knelt down just as I did before.

"You're name is Shadow Flash, correct?" She asked

"That's correct Princess."

"We are impressed with what you call the 'shadow pulse.' That was most unexpected from someone who isn't orginally one of us."

"You mean you know?"

"Of course, did you think that we were ignorant of your situation?"

"Sorry, but kinda, yeah." I responded

"We know who you really are Landon Flash, but that is not the reason I'm interested in talking to you. It is the fact that you can perform a feat that so few in history have been able to do."

"It was actually pretty simple, sorry for bragging, but it was."

"Is that so? Perhaps he could..." She thought aloud.

"I'm sorry?"

"It's nothing young one, go enjoy yourself at the party."

"Okay, well, nice meeting you Princess Luna."

"Yes...you as well..."

That was strange. Oh well. I decided I would hit up the bar.

"What can I get for you sir?" the bartender asked

"I'll just have a beer for now, thanks."

He pulled out a bottle, popped the top, and handed it to me. "Thanks." I said.

I took a drink. I looked at the bottle. It read 'Colt Lite'. It was pretty good. I paid the bartender plus a decent tip.

"Thank you."

"Anytime." I said as I trotted away the my beer.

I met up with Rainbow.

"Hey, you wanna go talk to the Wonderbolts?" I asked

"You bet!"

"Lets go then."

We trotted over to the V.I.P. Section, and I showed the guard our passes. He let us through, and we trotted by.

"There you two are!" Spitfire said, trotting over to us. She had her Wonderbolt uniform on.

"How's it going Spitfire?" I said, holding up my beer.

"It's going pretty well. How about you Rainbow Dash? Nice costume by the way. Maybe in time, you can have a real one."

"You really mean it?" Rainbow said, having a fangasm on the spot.

"Of course, along with us and Shadow here, you're one of the fastest fliers in Equestria."

"Don't faint again Rainbow." I teased

She responded by slugging me on the head.

"Ow, easy on the head!"

Spitfire chuckled. "Follow me, you can meet Soarin and Blaze."

"Alright, cool."

Rainbow could only nod and follow.

We arrived and found Soarin and Blaze just chatting. Soarin turned to me.

"Hey, nice costume." He said.

"Thanks, I appreciate it." We gave a quick bump of hooves.

Blaze trotted up to me. She looked pretty similar to Spitfire, except she didn't have lighter orange streaks in her hair. She also looked much younger from what I could tell.

"What's up?" she said

"Nothing much with me. You look pretty young for a Wonderbolt you know."

She smiled. "That's because I'm fourteen. I'm the youngest Wonderbolt ya know."

"Impressive. You must be quite the flier to make it for your age."

"That's right. So you're trying to get into the Wonderbolts too, eh?"

"That's right. Both me and Rainbow Dash here."

"You don't look like much, but looks can be deceiving. I of all ponies know that, not to mention I saw that little shadow pulse of yours, and her sonic rainboom."

"So you think we could become Wonderbolts."

"I wouldn't be surprised if you did, but you'll have your work cut out for you. Who knows, you might even get to be one of the few."

"One of the few?"

Spitfire popped Blaze on the back of the head.

"Ow, what was that for?" Blaze shouted

"Nothing. And what she means is one of the few ponies who are the best of the best fliers in Equestria."

"Oh, okay." I decided not to press.

Soarin whispered something in Spitfire's ear, and she turned to me. "I agree. I think it's about time we added some new members."

"Wait, do you mean-?" I started

"That's right, for both you and Rainbow. Any objections Soarin or Blaze?"

"None here." Soarin said.

"Let's give 'em a shot." Blaze said.

"Alright then. It's settled. You two will receive a tryout in ten days."

"Ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmy-"

"Easy there Rainbow." Soarin said

"Right, sorry. It's just that I can't believe it, I'm finally getting my chance!"

"It's not a guarantee you know. I don't want you to get your hopes up for nothing." Spitfire said

"I can't help it. I've been waiting for this opportunity for years!"

"I understand, I just don't want you to get hurt."

"She'll make it, and I will too. You guys won't regret this." I said.

"That's the spirit!" Blaze said.

"In ten days, come to our building in Cloudsdale. We'll be there."

"Alright, sweet." I responded.

"Well it was great talking to you guys. I'm going to hang out with the others now. See you guys later, and thanks for the tryout!" Rainbow said

"Take it easy Rainbow." Spitfire said

Rainbow trotted away after giving me a quick kiss.

"Hey you three, would you mind doing me a favor?"

"That depends, what did you have in mind Shadow?" Soarin asked

I leaned in and told them.

"Nice. We'll do it, but you'll owe us." Blaze said

"Alright, thanks. Just wait until we go outside."

"Sure thing. See you then." Spitfire said

I waved as I trotted away. I got quite a few compliments on my costume. There was still one special feature that nopony knew about except me and Rarity. She had to know about it since she was designing it. She loved the idea and agreed without hesitation. I looked around. I saw Rainbow talking with Barry and Twilight. Applejack was talking to Fluttershy. Pinkie was God knows where, and Rarity was trotting away from some high society ponies. I trotted over.

"Oh, hello Shadow. Have you showed off that special feature from your costume yet?" She asked with a hopeful look.

"Not yet, I'm waiting until we are outside. I have a surprise for everypony."

"I'm looking forward to it. I'm proud of you, just so you know."

"Thanks, you can say it later too."

"I certainly hope so."

"I'm going to the bar. I'll be there if anypony needs me." I was done with my Colt Lite anyways.

"Will do Shadow."

"Thanks."

I trotted back to the bar and requested another Colt Lite. I sat at the bar for a little while longer until Rainbow trotted over.

"Hey." She said

"Hey yourself." I responded

"How's it going?"

"Pretty well. I think we should go outside for a bit."

"Okay, that sounds cool."

We headed outside, and I nodded to Spitfire, Soarin, and Blaze. They nodded back and went through a different exit. I also nodded to Rarity, who gathered the rest of our friends to go outside as well.

Me and Rainbow arrived outside. "So what's up?" she asked

"Rainbow, do you love me?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course. I also remember asking the same question myself, but you were asleep."

Our friends arrived next to us then.

"What's everypony doing here?" Rainbow asked

"Look up." I said

She looked up, along with everypony else. Just then, Spitfire, Soarin, and Blaze flew overhead in a specific pattern. They left a trail of electric smoke behind them. When they finished, the words Will You Marry Me Rainbow? were floating. Rainbow looked back at me in shock. I activated a hidden button on my armor. My chestpiece opened up, revealing a bracelet. It was made of gold, with some gems on it. Rainbow was stunned.

"I- I don't know what to say."

"You could say yes." I said with a smirk.

She jumped over to me and gave me a long passionate kiss.

"Yes, I will!" She exclaimed.

I held up her hoof and placed the bracelet on her wrist. All of my friends, including the three present Wonderbolts, gave a few stomps of applause. Me and Rainbow turned to face everypony.

"Rainbow, I'm so happy for you!" Fluttershy said.

"We all are Rainbow. Congratulations to the both of ya." Applejack added.

"Yes, congratulations, to the both of you." Princess Celestia said as she walked out.

We gave a quick bow before she continued. "As a present, how about I let you two hold your wedding here in the castle?"

"That-that's great! Thank you Princess Celestia!" I exclaimed.

"You're quite welcome Mr. Flash. When would you two like to hold your wedding?"

"If it's okay with you Rainbow, I was thinking somewhere around a month or so."

"Anytime is fine with me." Rainbow said, putting her two front hooves around me.

"It will be in exactly thirty days from now, if that is fine." Princess Celestia said

"Yes Princess, thank you." I said

"You're welcome. I must get back to my guests now, but good luck you two."

We bowed once more before she went back inside.

"This is the best day of my life!" Rainbow exclaimed

Spitfire trotted over to us next. "Way to go you two."

"Thanks. I appreciate the favor."

"You're welcome. Just remember, you owe the three of us a favor."

"As long as it isn't insanely outlandish, I'm happy to oblige. You guys did just get me engaged, and probably laid tonight."

She laughed. "Well we're about to head out. Congratulations again." She said as she flew away with Blaze and Soarin.

"So Shadow, I really don't feel like taking a long train ride back tonight. How about we just get a hotel room for tonight?" Rainbow said

"You read my mind. So you guys, me and Rainbow are going to get a room. We'll see you tomorrow."

Barry had a large grin on his face, Twilight, Applejack, and Rarity were smiling. Pinkie Pie was asking what was so funny about us being tired, and Fluttershy was blushing furiously.

"Alright, have fun you two." Barry said.

Rainbow and I just smiled and flew away as fast as possible. We arrived at a fairly nice hotel and hurried in to talk to the pony behind the counter.

"Do you have any rooms available?" I asked

"Yes, but all we have is a one bed room." she replied

"That's all we need." I replied.

"Oh, I see." She said, blushing. She looked and noticed the bracelet on Rainbow's hoof. "Ah, congratulations you two. Take the room complimentary."

"Wow, thanks." I said.

"It's no trouble. Your room number is 804."

We waved and headed up to our room. We went inside and Rainbow headed to the bathroom. "I need to get out of this costume. One sec."

"Alright, I'll be here."

About three minutes later

"Okay, are you read-what the hay?" Rainbow said as she trotted out.

"ZZzzzZzzZzzzz"

"You gotta be kidding me."

I know everypony was missing me. Don't try to deny it. I was in Destin, Florida for those who weren't paying attention. I didn't have as much free time in the place I was staying as I thought I would. I would go out all day, get drunk, go back to condo, sleep, repeat. I probably spent a total of three hours on this there, which surprises me that I got this much done. I also didn't realize that I COULD have made another chapter before I left :3, so sorry about that. I wrote more than I thought I would before everyone arrived at the Gala. I can also start writing longer chapters, the catch would be that it would take a bit more time to write. Tell me in the comments if you would rather have the average length chapter like I've been doing, or start writing slightly longer chapters that could take a little bit more time. One more thing, then you can get back to your lives. If anypony wants to play xbox with me let me know in a pm. I would like to know my fans a little bit more. I mostly play Guitar Hero III, MW3, MW2, any Halo game, Resident Evil 5, The Orange Box, and Left 4 Dead 2. (Also, if you haven't noticed yet, some of these notes don't exactly apply anymore, and that's because this story was originally just on fanfiction. I'm just too lazy to edit these things.)Now the long-awaited quote of the day!

Quote of the Day: "This is a leprechaun's cherry." -My friend says holding up a green cherry that came with his drink in a certain Irish pub while I was in Destin.
> Secrets Revealed
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I awoke next to my favorite cyan pegasus. She was asleep but had a sour look on her face. I wonder wh-ohhhhh shit. Yep, I passed out before sex. I'm fucked, and not in the literal sense unfortunately. I'll do what I always do when I'm in trouble; don't worry about it until I need to cross that bridge. That always works, right?

I started to sneak out of bed when two cyan hooves reached around me and pulled me back. "NOOOOO! Don't harm my beautiful face!"

I covered my head with my hooves for the inevitable smack across the face. It never came.

"Huh?" I said as I looked up.

She just looked at me and sighed.

"Okay, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have passed out last night, but I was just really tired, an-" My eyes shot wide as she silenced me with a kiss.

"I'm not mad, Shadow. Yesterday was the best day of my life. I got a tryout for the Wonderbolts, and got engaged to you. Not to mention we can have our wedding in the Royal Palace!"

"So you're not going to hit me?"

"Do you want me to?"

"Not really. How about I make up for last night?"

"That's fine with me." She whispered in my ear as we got closer to each other.

Still not writing clop :P (Oh, and twenty minutes later)

Okay, this was seeming a little too good to be true. I got engaged to the most beautiful mare in Equestria, got a tryout for the Wonderbolts, I'm training on how to kick some ass, and I just got laid...again. I couldn't possibly be any happier.

"Ready for the next round?" Rainbow whispered

Okay, scratch that, NOW I couldn't be any happier.

1 hour later (That's right, no joke or anything, just the point of saying an hour later)

"So are we going to head over to the train station now?" Rainbow asked.

"Yeah, we might as well. Lets go home." I said as I got out of bed.

We went downstairs, and out of the building. We started trotting to the train station. The train was supposed to leave in a few minutes, so we started flying there. We decided to take a shortcut through an alley. I heard something behind me and ducked down just in time to dodge a knife. I whirled around.

I looked across the alley and saw a silhouette of what looked like a griffin. "What the hell?" I yelled

It didn't respond. It started coming closer. I turned to Rainbow. "Run."

"No way! I'm not leaving you!"

"Don't even try to argue this with me, now go!"

She gave me a worried look, then took flight.

I turned back to face the griffin, but it was gone. I looked around, then felt a sharp pain in my back. I turned and saw the griffin had gouged me with a talon. I charged the griffin and gave it a headbutt. It staggered back, but recovered quickly. It swung a talon at me again. I ducked and gave it an applebuck, knocking it to the ground. It rose up and charged at me. I caught it in a bear hug and slammed it head first into the ground. I heard a very sickening crack. I looked down. It had stuck that knife into my chest.

At least I took it down. It's neck was completely twisted. I started staggering away, then heard something. I turned around to see it rise up! It's neck started slowly aligning again. It started walking to me. This was it, I'm done. I've lost too much blood, and I had no idea how to fight something that could heal itself. I closed my eyes as it rose a talon. I'm sorry Rainbow...

I waited for the blow, but nothing was happening. I opened my eyes to see what looked like a pegasus holding it back! Another pegasus flew down and snapped its neck again. A third pegasus appeared. It slowly walked up to the griffin.

"Accipies non vivit hodie, bestia." The pegasus said before stabbing it in the heart with a short sword. The griffin shrieked and started to melt. Yep, I'm either really fucking high, or I've lost too much blood. The last thing I saw before passing out was Spitfire cleaning off the sword while Soarin released the griffin and Blaze coming to check on me.

Some time later.

I opened my eyes to a very bright room.

"He's waking up! Get the doctor!" somepony yelled.

"Ugghhh, I swear to God if I died again." I groaned as I rose

"You didn't die asshole, but you came pretty close to it." Barry said

"Please tell me Rainbow is okay."

"She's fine. She just went to go get something to drink right now. She'll be back in a bit."

"Does anypony know what happened?"

"Rainbow said you were attacked in an alley. You told her to run away, and she went to go find help." Barry started to say.

"The first ponies I ran into were three of the Wonderbolts. I told them what happened, then they took off in your direction. When I finally caught up, there was some weird goo on the ground, and you were on Soarin's back and unconscious." Rainbow finished as she trotted in.

"Okay, and where are they now?"

"After they brought you here, they said they had to go check on something, and flew away."

"Well well Mr. Shadow, you're pretty lucky it seems." An earth pony with a white lab coat said as he trotted in.

"I just got stabbed and I'm lucky?"

"No, you're lucky because you should be dead. When you arrived here, you had several lacerations over your body, a punctured lung, and if that wasn't enough, you had lost blood far passed the point any normal pony would have bled out at."

"You forgot the part where I made a perfect recovery, and can leave anytime I want."

He rolled his eyes. "Do you have any idea how long you were out?"

"I'm guessing a few hours?"

"You were out for seven days Mr. Shadow."

I sat back. "Well damn, I was only off by a little."

"He almost dies and he's sitting here cracking some damn jokes." Barry said.

"I joked about it last time, why wouldn't I do it again?" I said with a smile.

"By the way, can I leave now?" I asked.

"Even if I said no, you would probably leave anyways, from what your friends tell me." The doctor said

"And they're right." I said with a grin

He sighed. "Just try not to lose almost all of your blood again."

"Why make a promise when I'm not sure I can keep it?" I said as I rose out of bed.

"You got lucky this time. Next time you might not be as lucky."

"Only time will tell then."

"Shadow, I really think you should stay the night here." Rainbow said.

"No way, I've already lost seven days, and I'm not losing any more."

"At least come home then."

"Sorry, but I need to go to Cloudsdale."

"Why Cloudsdale?" She asked

"I need to see the Wonderbolts."

"I know they saved your life, but we are going to see them in three days."

"This isn't something that can wait Rainbow, I'm sorry."

I left the building before anyone else decided to argue with me. I want to know what the fuck happened before I passed out.

I took off in the direction of Cloudsdale going full speed and arrived in twenty minutes. I flew high above the city, and looked for the Wonderbolts HQ. I spotted a large building with a larger training area behind it. It also had the Wonderbolts insignia on it. I flew down and went inside. There was a receptionist to greet me.

"Hello, and welcome to the Wond-"

"Is Spitfire, Soarin, or Blaze here?"

"Soarin and Blaze are out, but Spitfire is here. If you want to see her however, you're going to have to set up an appointment."

"Okay, do you mind if I ask where she is though?"

"I guess that's okay, she's at the training area out back."

"Thanks."

I trotted out and flew around the building to the training area. I found Spitfire resting at some bleachers...made of cloud...I'll worry about that later.

Spitfire looked up and smiled. "Hey there, glad to see you're alright."

"What. The fuck. Happened."

She sighed. "So you didn't lose consciousness fast enough. That's unfortunate."

"What the hell are you talking about, and what the hell attacked me?"

"If you calm down, I'll tell you."

"Look at it from my perspective; I got stabbed and battered by some weird looking griffin, and almost bled out. But before I could, you arrive with Soarin and Blaze. Soarin holds it back, Blaze snaps its neck after I already did that, then you speak something in Latin and stab it in the heart, making it melt. Don't tell me to calm down."

"We would have told you later, but it looks like you have to find out earlier than we thought."

"Who is we?"

"Myself, Soarin, Blaze...and Princess Luna."

"Princess Luna?"

"She's the one who gives us our orders, so yes."

"Orders for what?"

"Orders to protect Equestria from any threat to much for the public or royal guard."

"Who are you?"

"I'm a member."

"A member of what?

"A member of the Fugiens Mones."

"Well fuck me, so you do still exist."

"That's right."

"Are there any more of you?"

"No, there can only be five of us; three members, one captain, and Princess Luna."

"So who's the fourth member?"

"That's what the tryout I gave you was for. I was going to tell you then. You were going to try out for the Fugiens Mones."

"Why me?"

"On top of being one of the fastest fliers in Equestria, we have reports of you training with hoof-to-hoof master Thunder Gunner. They also say that in a month, you will have surpassed your mentor and beyond."

"What's that mean?"

"It means that you would be ready for the stage four training."

"Wait, wait wait wait. I havn't even completed stage two training, and you're saying you can tell I can train at stage four in less than a month?"

"Bingo."

"How? I havn't even touched stage three."

"You will, don't worry."

"What do you do? Specifically."

"As I said earlier, we protect Equestria from threats. Sometimes that involves going to foreign places, sometimes the threat is more domestic, such as the one you faced yourself."

"What the hell was that anyways?"

"That was what we call a regenerans bestia."

"A regenerating beast?"

She nodded. "It can shift forms like your average Changeling, but not as well. It can take the basic shape of something, but remains a color of pitch black. They are also nearly indestructible. The only way to kill them is by piercing their heart. Injure anything else on them, and it only slows it down."

"And what was one doing in a Canterlot alley?"

"It was probably trying to gather information on our capital. You must have accidentally stumbled across it, and it attacked to prevent being discovered."

"Where do they come from?"

"Nopony knows. The only thing we know about them besides their shapeshifting is that it's impossible for there to be more than five in a one hundred mile radius. We discovered this over time."

"How long have you been active since you went into seclusion?"

"Only since Princess Luna returned. We have existed all this time, but have only recently been active."

"What happened to your fourth member?"

"He died, of course."

"How?"

"Being stupid, he tried to take on five regenerans bestia plus an additional two hundred enemy soldiers. He managed to kill three of the regenerans bestia and over a hundred soldiers, but ultimately was killed."

"When was this?"

"Just before we went into seclusion, around a thousand years ago."

"How do you know that if it was that many years ago?"

"Because I was there."

"So you're telling me you're over a thousand years old?"

"Mhm."

"And how is that possible?"

"I can't tell you until you join."

"That makes sense...not really. What about Soarin and Blaze, are they that old too?"

"Soarin is, Blaze joined us about a year ago."

"So what would I be doing if I joined?"

"You would be protecting Equestria by eliminating any threat to it."

"And why would I want to join?"

"To become stronger and protect the ones you love."

"I guess. I don't want to run across run of those monsters again unprepaired. I want to be able to protect Rainbow."

"This would be your best way to do it."

"I'll do it then."

"Not yet, when you finish your current stage of training, we will train you in the next two stages."

"Fair enough."

"According to the reports, you'll be done in two days. Three days from now is your's and Rainbow's official tryout for the Wonderbolts. That's when we'll officially name you a member."

"Do the other Wonderbolts know what you are?"

"Yes, while they aren't actual Fugiens Mones, they know. They help me, Blaze, and Soarin keep a low profile somewhat. Every fourty years or so we change our identities."

"Well, I think my mind has been raped enough for one day, I think I'll head home." I said as I rose.

"I'll see you in a few days then." Spitfire responded.

"You will. I need to go think about what you just told me. Later."

"See ya."

I flew away and headed home. After about thirty minutes of flying, I arrived. I went inside and sat down on the couch."

"Shadow, is that you?" Rainbow called from upstairs.

"Yeah, it's me."

She trotted downstairs and got on the couch next to me. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

"I'm fine, it's probably just the massive loss of blood." I said with a grin.

"Why would you make me fly away? Why wouldn't you let me help?"

"Because I didn't want you to get hurt. I would do anything to protect you, even die."

"You're to awesome to die, and you know that."

"I guess you're right." I said, pulling her closer.

"Come on, lets go to bed."

"Alright." I said as I rose. We went into her room and got on the bed.

"Goodnight Shadow."

"Nite." I have way too much to think about right now to sleep peacefully. From best day of my life to fucking strangest.

Yes, this chapter was different I know. It's also what I was planning on doing. I've been wanting to put the Fugiens Mones in for a while, but the time never seemed right. It did this chapter, so I did. I realize this might alienate some viewers, but this is what I'm going with. Sorry if you don't like it, but I'm doing it. It won't be completely about the Fugiens Mones for now, but they will be in it. You know the drill, review or comment for me, and pm me for some xbox ;)

Quote of the Day: "You are what you eat...wait...AH FUCK!" -My friend to me after I called him a dick.
> Knock Knock
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I didn't sleep well at all, I had way too much on my mind. I just need to get this straight, I got attacked by a regenerating monster, the Fugiens Mones still exist, they want me to become a member, Spitfire and Soarin are around a thousand years old, and Princess Luna commands them...please let me be high.

I turned to see an empty space in the bed next to me. That's weird, I usually wake up before her. I got out of bed and trotted downstairs.

"Rainbow, you here?"

No response. She's probably hanging out with Twilight or something. I went into the kitchen and found a note that said Rainbow was going to be at Twilight's all day. It also said she wanted me to go there after I finished with my day. I grabbed an apple to eat on the way to the bar. I trotted outside and took flight. Maybe some work will take my mind off of things. I landed outside of the building and went inside. Silver was at the bar to greet me.

"Hey Shadow, how ya feelin'?"

"I've been better."

"I'll say, you look like hell. Here, have one on the house before getting to work."

"Thanks Silver." I said as I grabbed the beer.

"Don't mention it."

I quickly drank my beer and got to work. I gave the place a good sweep. When I finished, I saw Thunder trotting up to me.

"Shadow, I need to talk to you."

"Sure thing."

"In private."

"Lead the way then."

He turned, and I followed him back to his office. He closed the door and locked it.

"What happened?" he asked

"What?"

"I know you met the Fugiens Mones Shadow. What happened?"

"Wait, how do you know?"

"Because I have connections. Lets just leave it at that."

"Fine. I was just on my way out of Canterlot with Rainbow. We were going to be late for the train, so we took a shortcut through an alley. When we were almost clear, someone threw a knife at me. I turned and saw a griffin figure, but it wasn't a griffin, it was a-"

"A regenerans bestia."

I raised an eyebrow. "You seem to know more about this than you let on."

"Like I said, I have connections. Continue."

"...Like I was saying, it attacked me and Rainbow. I told Rainbow to fly away. I took on the regenerans bestia by myself. I managed to snap its neck, and found out the hard way thats not how you kill them. I had already lost a lot of blood as it was. I was just about to die when the Fugiens Mones flew down and killed it."

"Interesting. Did you see who they were?"

I lied. "No, I didn't. I lost consciousness before I could get a good look."

"Oh yeah, how are you by the way?"

"I'm fine, aside from a massive loss of blood and a punctured lung I feel fine."

"Right, so are you ready for training today?"

"Sure, what are we doing this time?"

"This time, I'm going to teach you how to run fast."

"Why do I need to run when I can fly?"

"Thats the thing though, if your wing ever gets injured and you can't fly, you're going to need some ground speed."

"Fair enough, what are we going to do for it?"

"Follow me."

Thunder unlocked the door and trotted out. I followed, and we were soon in a residential area.

"Now do as I do."

Thunder went up to one of the houses. He knocked on the door then ran ridiculously fast into a bush. An earth pony with a brown coat, mane, and tail appeared. He had an hourglass as his cutie mark. He looked around for a second, then angrily went back inside. Thunder came out from the bush laughing.

"THIS is your plan?" I said

"Of course, it's fun, and most importantly, it teaches speed. Now it's your turn."

"Okay, which house?"

"The same one."

"What? No way, he'd be expecting it!"

"Which is why you should be going even faster."

"Ugh." I groaned as I trotted over to the door. I gave a knock and ran like hell to a bush. I peeked my head out and the same pony as last time answered.

"Once I can handle, twice is going to far." He said as he pulled out some weird looking device.

Before I knew it, the bush I was hiding behind disappeared!

"There you are!" He said as he started running for me.

"Oh shit!" I yelled as I took off.

I eventually lost him. Thunder found me pretty soon.

"Alright, next house." He said

"What? You want me to do another one?"

"A couple more actually."

I groaned and nodded. He led me up to a fairly large house and pointed to it. I walked up to the door. I knocked and ran into a nearby bush.

"Who'sh there?" A purpleish pony looking quite drunk said as she opened the door."

"I kno youz kids ish out there somewhere!" She yelled as she threw her bottle into my bush, hitting me in the head. I did my best not to cry out in pain as it busted across my face.

The drunk pony went back inside, and I trotted out of the bush up to Thunder.

"Not bad, but there's one more house we're visiting today."

"Which one?" I said rubbing the impact area from the bottle.

"It's a surprise." He said with a grin.

"I hate surprises."

"Then you'll hate this one."

I'm pretty sure what we just said was backwards, but whatever. We went up to the final house, and I trotted up to it. I knocked and ran into a nearby bush. A mare with a light aquamarine coat and same color mane and tail except with white highlights trotted out. She also had a harp as her cutie mark. Oh shit, is that-

"I. SMELL. A HUMAN!"

"Fuck me." I said as I took off.

"THERE YOU ARE!" She yelled as she went after me.

"YOU'RE A HUMAN, I KNOW IT, COME BACK HERE!"

"Hell no!" I called back.

I turned back in front of me only to see that I was about to smack into a building. The impact stunned me giving enough time for Lyra to grab my hooves.

"You're coming with me!" She said excitedly.

"Noooo! I'm too young to die...again! Thunder, help me!" I wailed as Lyra dragged me back to her house.

He didn't answer, but I knew I could hear laughter in the distance. Wait...that son of a bitch! He knew what would happen! Lyra finally finished dragging me inside her house and throwing me on a couch. She locked the door behind her, then turned to me.

"You're a human! I can tell! You are aren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about! You just abducted me!"

"Lyra, what's going on?" A pony who I'm guessing was Bon Bon trotted in.

She saw me curled up in a fetal position and sighed. "Lyra, not again."

"Bon Bon, I know this looks bad, but this one is really a human!"

"For the last time Lyra, humans don't exist." Bon Bon said calmly.

"I know I've been wrong before, but I'm sure about this one." She turned to me. "You ARE a human, aren't you?"

Time to make myself look like a pony. "What the hay is a human!"

"What did you do to THIS one Lyra?"

"Nothing! All I did was..."

"Waassss?" Bon Bon pressed.

"Ponynap him..."

"I thought so." She trotted up to me. "Are you okay?"

I didn't answer, I was too shaken up.

She turned back to Lyra. "I'm through. I can't live like this Lyra."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm leaving. This was the last straw. I can't take the constant ponynappings and babble about humans!" Bon Bon yelled as she stormed out the door.

"Bon Bon wait!" Lyra cried out.

Lyra started sobbing and sank down on the couch next to me. "I'm sorry, you can leave now."

Well shit, I guess this is partially my fault. I'd feel too guilty if I let this go. I got up and walked on my hind legs over to Lyra. "You're right."

She gasped. "You mean-"

"That's right, I was originally human."

"Then that means...I was right all along!" She quickly sank back down though. "And all it cost me was Bon Bon.." She said as she broke into sobs again.

"If I could prove I'm human, do you think she would come back?"

"I don't know, maybe. How would we do that though?"

"Leave that up to me. I'm going to need a few things though."

"Anything if it gets Bon Bon back."

"Alright then."

I leaned in and told her what I needed. She nodded and went out to get the supplies. I took a seat on the couch and took a notepad and a pencil. I'm so glad that I was a social studies guy. I wrote down a few things. Lyra trotted back in carrying a bag.

"Is this it?" She asked.

"That's right. Now I'll just need a moment to prepare."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to give a brief description of my planet and a little history of one of our countries. I'll need you to get Bon Bon here."

She smiled and nodded. She went out of the door. I opened the bag and pulled out a dry-erase board, some markers, and some erasers. I started writing, and pretty soon Lyra arrived with Bon Bon.

"Nothing will change my mind Lyra." Bon Bon said.

"Just please listen to him, and then I'll leave you alone. I promise."

"Fine."

Bon Bon looked at me. "You really told her that you're a human?"

"I told her because it's the truth, and I'm about to prove it the best I can." I said

Warning: Long education sequence ahead, enjoy if you like history, if not, you have been warned.

"Humans have had a relatively brief existance compared to other things. We live on a planet called earth in the Milky Way Galaxy. Our solar system has eight planets orbiting our sun-"

"Wait, your planet orbits the sun and not the other way around?" Bon Bon asked.

"That's correct. All of our planets do. Earth is the third planet from our sun. It is comprised of seven continents and four large oceans. The continents are known as Australia, Antarctica, Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, and North America. The oceans are the Pacific, Atlantic, Arctic, and Indian. I used to live on the North American continent." I said as I drew a rough sketch of the world on the board.

"Did you have countries?" Bon Bon asked.

"Of course, mine was known as the United States."

"And how do I know you're not just making this up on the spot?"

"Because I'm about to give you a brief history of my country's struggle for independence. It was a relatively young country compared to the others. It was a little over two hundred years old when I was born. Our country was originally a bunch of colonies. We were part of the most powerful country in the world known as Great Britain. As time went on, the British were imposing unfair taxes on the colonies, and also took away some of their rights as British citizens. As a result, tension started to rise. That eventually lead to armed revolution against this menace. I'll even go into more detail for you."

I took a deep breath and continued. "The vote for independence had to be unanimous among the thirteen colonies. Twelve of the colonies voted for revolution, while only one respectfully abstained. It was decided, revolution it was. The first official battles were known as those of Lexington and Concord. I'll tell you some other things. The head general was a man by the name of George Washington. The colonies were about to go up against the most powerful military known to man. As the war raged, it became clear to one of Britain's rivals, France, that we had a good shot for winning. The French would help supply a navy and troops for us."

I took another breath and continued. "Time goes on, a betrayal occurs, more battles are fought, and eventually the United States and France have the enemy general, General Cornwallis, trapped in a bunker at a place called Yorktown. The general is forced to surrender. He is so ashamed that he sends out a subordinate to wave the white flag for him. America had won its independence."

"That's quite a lot, and I highly doubt you made it up." Bon Bon said.

"I could go into much greater detail,(I really could, cuz I'm a nerd.) but that would take too much time. And that was only the revolution era."

"I suppose you're right."

"So do you believe I'm a human?"

"There's no other explanation." She turned to Lyra. "I'm so sorry I didn't believe you Lyra, could you find it yourself to forgive me?"

"You don't even need to ask." Lyra said as she pulled Bon Bon in for a hug.

They broke the hug and turned to me. "Thank you. You helped prove my theory that humans do exist, and most importantly, you got my best friend Bon Bon back." Lyra said.

I smiled. "Don't mention it."

"Do you mind if I ask one more thing?" She asked

"Depends, what is it?"

"Could you come over some other time and explain more about your history?"

"Sure, I'd love to. I've always been a big history nerd."

She hugged me. "Thank you."

I blushed a little. "No problem."

I started to trot out of the door before Lyra called out. "Wait, what's your name?"

"It's Shadow Flash." I said as I flew away.

Well that was an experience. "I'm so going to get that asshole Thunder back."

I flew over to the library. I opened it up and trotted inside.

"SURPRIIIIISE!" Everypony yelled as the lights turned on.

"..."

Rainbow trotted up to me. "Did we scare you again?"

"...sniff..."

"Are you crying?"

"Of-sniff*- of course not!"

"Good, because then I would be calling you a chicken."

"Yeah, it's a good thing I'm not. Will you excuse me for a second?"

"Uh, sure."

I didn't respond, I ran outside and threw up in between sobs.

"Oh God...sniff*...I think my heart really did stop that time! Why me?"

I was outside for about five minutes before I finally shook it off and trotted back inside.

"Are you sure you're okay Shadow? You don't look so good." Rainbow said.

"Never better...what's this party for anyways?"

"It's a party to celebrate our tryout for the Wonderbolts."

"Wouldn't it make sense to wait until after we make it?"

"You would think, but that's not how Pinkie does things."

"I guess. I'm going to go get a drink."

"Okay."

I went over to the booze and started drinking away. I want to forget what just happened.

I'm going to stop it there so it sets up my next chapter nicely. To answer some possible questions; yes, I really am a history nerd, the Lyra and Bon Bon part was to help set up a good relation with the townsponies, and the crying after the surprise part was there because I thought it was funny. Leave a review or comment for me or I'll force you people to have more education, and nopony wants that. (I'll seriously do it too.)

Quote of the Day: "...After I get out of the hospital, I'm going to rape and devour your soul." -Me to my friend after he trips me before some stairs. The fall broke my left arm and gave me a mild concussion.
> Conflictions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I opened my eyes and noticed I was in a grass field. I also felt I had a massive headache. "Ugh, I drank too much again, what, whats that? Ahhhh fuc-" Was all I got off before a cow decided shit right on my face and getting some in my mouth.

"Oops, didn't see ya there dearie." She said.

I didn't respond, I was to busy vomiting. When I finished I wiped my face all over the ground to get the shit off. It worked well enough. Where was I anyways? I know I'm in a pasture or something, but where specifically is the question. I trotted up to the cow that shit on me.

"Where am I?"

"Oh you're in a pasture just outside of Manehattan you are."

"Thanks, wait WHAT?!"

"Manehattan dearie."

I nodded and trotted away. "Well fuck me."

I pulled out a map from my saddlebag. Here I am, just north of Manehattan. I put the map back in my-"Wait, what's this?" I said aloud as I pulled out something else from my bag. It was a pair of some really nice shades. Huh, when did I get these?

"Well if I'm going to get some answers, I guess I'll start with Manehattan."

I took flight towards Manehattan. I was only about five minutes from it. This place was even bigger than Canterlot! How the hell am I going to find some answers here? Oh well, I gotta start somewhere. I flew into the middle of the city and landed. I started trotting around to hopefully find some answers. Every now and then I would get a strange look from some ponies. I shook it off and kept on going. I eventually came across a large apartment building that I guessed was for rich ponies. There were a few police officers outside of it.

I trotted up to one of them. "Excuse me, but what's going on here?"

"Somepony stole something very precious from one of our favorite residents, thats what."

"Really? What happened?"

"All we know is that somepony stole Vinyl Scratch's famous shades."

Oh boy.

"Why would anypony want to do that?"

"Money probably. Those things would probably sell for over a million bits."

Holy shit thats a lot of money. Maybe I should-no, I can't do that. These belongs to Vinyl Scratch and I need to return them.

"Where is she now?"

"Vinyl Scratch? She's up in her apartment. If you have any information on the shades, report it to us immediately."

"Will do."

I trotted inside the building and went up to the receptionist. "Excuse me, but which apartment does Vinyl Scratch live in?"

"I'm sorry sir, but we're not allowed to- wait, I know you!"

Fuck.

"You do?" I asked nervously.

"Yeah, you're the pony who won the Young Fliers' Competition and got a tryout for the Wonderbolts!"

I'm coming way too close to having heart failure nowadays.

I smiled. "Yeah, that's me."

"Since you're famous and all that, she's probably expecting you. Go on up, her apartment is on the 18th floor. Her name is on the door, so you can't miss it."

I'm a star now? "Thanks."

"Anytime Mr. Shadow."

I headed up to the 18th floor, and found the door with Vinyl Scratch's name on it, just like the receptionist told me.

I knocked on the door. "Who is it?" Somepony called out.

"My name is Shadow Flash, and-" The door opened, and Vinyl ran to me and gave me a hug.

Wat.

"I'm glad it's you Shadow, please, come in."

"Uhh, okay."

I trotted inside and she closed the door. Since she didn't have her shades on, I could see her moderate cerise colored eyes.

"I thought you were going back to Ponyville. I'm glad you came back."

"Uhh, right."

"Yeah, it was a pretty big bummer. I'm glad you're here though. I just need somepony to talk to."

"Uhh, this might sound a little strange, but I don't remember you at all."

"What do you mean?" she asked

"I was kinda wasted last night, and I have no idea what happened after 6:00 PM. I woke up in a field north of Manehattan only to have a cow lay a turd on my face."

"Wow, I know I get wasted sometimes, but not that badly. Why did you drink that much?"

"I almost died."

"That's reason enough I guess."

"Could you tell me what happened last night?"

"I'll tell you everything I know then."

"Thanks." I responded

"Okay, well you see..."

Flashback to last night. By the way, when Shadow gets drunk, he doesn't act stupid. He'll actually be acting very cool, and just pretend when he does get drunk, he'll somehow forget various things, but remember others. This is how he will act when he gets drunk. This is also going to be told in 1st person from Vinyl's perspective, so don't get confused.

"One more drink, then I'm out of here." I told the bartender.

"Sure thing Miss Scratch." The bartender said as he handed me another drink.

I was about halfway done with it when a very cute pegasus with a pitch black coat, and pitch black mane and tail with a crimson outline trotted in. He trotted over and took a seat next to me.

"I'll take a Colt Lite." He said.

The bartender nodded and handed him his beer.

He turned to me. "Hey, what's up?" He said.

"Nothing much, just drinking my last beverage before leaving." I responded

"That's too bad."

"Why's that?"

"Because it's always nice talking to a cute girl."

I blushed a little. "You don't look so bad yourself."

"Thanks. Do you mind if I buy you another drink?"

"I'd appreciate it." Meh, why not? It's not often I can have a normal conversation anymore.

He waved the bartender for another drink and handed it to me. "Thanks."

"No problem."

"So where are you from?" He asked.

"Born and raised here. What about you?"

"That's a little complicated."

"What's so complicated about where you're from?"

"Lets just say I'm not from around here."

Weird. "Okay. Where do you live then?"

"I live in Ponyville."

"I've been to Ponyville once. It's a pretty cool town, very laid back."

"Yeah, it's pretty nice. What's your name?"

Here we go, as soon as I tell him, it's going to be all about wanting an autograph. Oh well. "It's Vinyl Scratch."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Shadow Flash." He responded.

I knew it-wait, what did he say? "You're not going to beg me for a picture or an autograph or something?"

"Wasn't planning on it. You don't look like you could use that annoyance anyways."

"So you know who I am?"

"Of course. You're the world-famous DJ-PON3, but just because you're famous, it doesn't mean you can't get tired or anything from the same shit every day."

"...Thank you."

"Hm?"

"Thank you."

"For what? All I did was say you probably didn't feel like being harassed by a fan."

"Yeah, but you're one of the first ponies who have actually understood that."

"It wasn't that hard to figure out. I can tell you're tired."

"You know, this place is about to close, why don't you come back to my place?"

"Sure, I got nothing better to do."

I smiled. "This way then." I said as I got off of the stool. He followed me out of the door and we headed for my apartment in the massive rainstorm outside.

We were almost there when a pony holding a knife jumped out in front of us. "All I want is your money, play along and nopony has to die."

I was about to give him the money when Shadow trotted in front of me. "What are you doing Shadow? Just give him the money and he'll leave us alone!"

He ignored me. He trotted up to the pony with a knife. "Leave."

"What did you say?!"

"I said leave. I don't want to hurt you, but I will if you threaten me, and that goes double if you threaten a beautiful mare. Last chance, walk away."

"Wrong choice pal!" The thief with a knife yelled as he lunged at Shadow.

I cringed. I finally meet a pony that understands me, and now he's going to die.

Shadow destroyed that thought as he caught the knife with his teeth. He yanked it away and spat it out. "I warned you."

Shadow headbutted the pony and gave him a powerful punch in the throat. The thief fell to the ground gasping for breath. It all happened in a single, loud roar of thunder.

Shadow turned to me. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I looked at the thief. "Is he going to die?"

"Nothing so drastic. All I did was stop his breathing for a few seconds. He'll be like that for a few more seconds, but this will knock him out long enough for the police to show up."

Shadow trotted over to the thief and applebucked him in the face, knocking him out.

"Thanks for helping me out there."

"Don't mention it. Nopony has a good reason to threaten others."

This guy is amazing. "Uhh, right. Well my apartment is this way." I said as I starting heading to my apartment again. "We're getting soaked too, so we should hurry."

I started walking and noticed the rain had stopped, wait, that's not right, it just stopped raining on me. I looked beside me and saw that Shadow had one of his wings over me.

"Is that better?" He asked.

I blushed. "Uhh, yeah. Thanks."

He nodded and we continued walking. We eventually reached my apartment building and went up to my place.

I went to grab a bottle of water. When I came back, I noticed that Shadow was looking at my awards.

"These are very cool."

"Thanks."

I was trotting up behind him when he turned around, leaving our faces only inches apart.

"Sorry, that was an acc-" His eyes went wide as I silenced him with a long kiss.

When we broke the kiss, I led him to my bed. We got on it and started making out.

Clop file not found. Error: 1337

"That was amazing." I said.

He smiled. "Yes it was. Thank you for the night Vinyl, but I need to get back to Ponyville." He said as he got out of the bed.

"Wait! I want you to have something before you go."

"What's that?"

I pulled my shades out. "I want you to have my shades."

"I couldn't take something like this from you."

"Please. I want you to have them to remember me by."

"I see. Well thank you in that case, thank you."

I smiled. "You're welcome." I gave him a hug. "And thank you."

He returned the hug. When we finished he just trotted out without another word.

End current flashback.

"We had sex?!"

She nodded. "We sure did, and it was the best."

I started trotting back and forth. "Nononononono, this isn't good. Fuuuck."

"What, what's so bad?"

"You don't understand. I'm engaged, I can't have sex with other ponies!"

She frowned. "Oh. I see."

"I'm so fucked! What am I going to do?!"

"That's up to you Shadow. You either tell her or you don't."

"I can't just lie to her!"

"Then tell the truth. If she loves you, she'll keep you. You were drunk after all."

"Wait, you're right. If I was drunk, it didn't mean anything!"

"Yeah...it didn't mean anything..."

Fuck me and my stupid ass mouth. "I'm so sorry Vinyl, you really are amazing, but I'm engaged. Please don't be angry with me."

"I'm not angry with you Shadow. I understand last night wan't intentional, no matter how much I want it to be."

I pulled out the shades. "Here, these are your's."

She smiled. "Keep them. I meant what I said. Hold on to them and don't forget about me."

"I guess this is it then." I said as I trotted into the hallway just outside the door.

"Wait, before you go." She said as she went up to me.

I was expecting a hug, but was surprised when I got a kiss.

"I just needed one more. Goodbye Shadow." She said before closing the door.

Well, I certainly feel like shit right now. If I had met Vinyl first, I probably would have fell in love with her instead of Rainbow. Vinyl is amazing and everything, but Rainbow is the one I love in this world. That still doesn't prevent me from feeling bad for Vinyl though. I know I can't make up for breaking her heart, but I could at least give her free tickets to any Wonderbolts show.

Well recent drama aside, I need to get back home to Rainbow. I have some explaining to do. I went downstairs and out of the building. I looked at my map and from the looks of things, it would be a one and a half hour flight back. "Well, better get started." I said to myself as I took off.

I really don't think singing a song is going to make up for this one.

When I finally got back home, I went inside.

"Rainbow, you home?" I called out.

She raced down the stairs and wrapped me up in a hug. "Where were you? You disappeared last night.

I sighed. "Alright, here's the truth."

I'm too lazy to write all of that again.

"And she gave me her shades as a parting gift. I know being drunk isn't an excuse, and saying sorry won't do anything. But know I am, and I'll never do it again."

"I think you should stay the night somewhere else Shadow."

"I understand. I'll see you tomorrow at the Wonderbolt tryout though. I love you." I finished as I trotted out. I flew on the opposite side of town and found a cloud to go to sleep on. Troubled dreams await.

And there's a hangover chapter, except not as funny and more serious. I did warn you there would be serious chapters.

Quote of the Day: "Ahhh! The fires of Mount Doom are erupting from my bowels!"- My friend screaming from the bathroom after having some very spicy food.
> A Long Day
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'd like to thank Dragon'z Wrath (of fanfiction)for the idea that I'm about to go with. I'd hug you now for the idea. (A manly hug of course.) Now on with the chapter!

Well I could have slept better. Actually I couldn't, because I didn't sleep at all. All I could think about was how much I fucked up. Why would I do such a thing even if I was drunk?! Oh well, I might as well get on with my day because staying pissy won't help anything. After work I'll go do my initiation or whatever for the Fugiens Mones. Hopefully I can get Rainbow to forgive me there, even though I don't deserve her forgiveness.

I spread my wings and flew down into Ponyville. I flew over to the bar and went inside. Barry saw me and trotted over.

"Dude, what the fuck is wrong with you? You get engaged to Rainbow then you cheat on her?"

I didn't say anything. What could I say? Nothing would make up for the shit I pulled. I just trotted passed him and headed to Thunder's office. He looked up at me.

"Before you bring your attitude in here, just know that I helped you once, and I won't help again. You leave all of your personal life out of our business. Clear?"

I nodded.

"Good. I don't mean to sound like a jackass, but we can't afford any distractions. Now that aside, today is your last day of stage two training."

It looks like Spitfire was right on the money. "Okay, so what are we doing?"

"We're just going to do some simple sparring. I know you have your initiation today."

"How do you know this?"

"I have my-"

"Sources, got it." I finished for him.

"Right, well let's get started."

One sparring session later.

"I thought you would have dodged that wrench." Thunder stated.

"You didn't throw that one at me! You smacked me across the damn face with it!" I yelled holding my jaw.

"You should have dodged it if it hurts so bad then."

I really will kill him one day. "So is that everything?"

"That's it, you're done with stage two training, and can now keep up in a hoof to hoof fight with your average royal guard. I gotta say, you surprised me. I never expected you to get this far."

"Well I did, even though you did your best to stop me with those damn wrenches."

He let out a small chuckle. "Congratulations I guess, because I no longer have anything to teach you. You need to learn the rest from the Mones."

"When I finish my training, I'll be sure to pay you back for the wrenches, you crazy bastard." I said with a smirk.

"You couldn't beat me when I'm dead Shadow."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night."

"Yeah, yeah. Lets go."

I nodded and followed him back to his office.

"Well good luck at your initiation. I'll see you tomorrow for work."

"Thanks, see you later."

I went outside and took flight to Cloudsdale. After about thirty minutes I finally arrived to the city made of clouds. I located the Wonderbolts' HQ and flew down. The same receptionist as last time was there to greet me.

"Hello Mr. Shadow. The Wonderbolts who recommended you are just out back in the training area."

"Thanks." I said as I trotted back out.

I flew around the building and went to the training area. I found Blaze, Soarin, and Spitfire waiting for me in the bleachers.

"There you are Shadow. How's it going?" Spitfire said

"I've been better. Has Rainbow already been through here?"

"Yeah, she's already taking her trial, but are you ready for your's?"

"As ready as I'll ever be. What is it going to be?"

"Follow us."

I nodded and followed them. They led me back inside the building, and into what looked like their locker room. Soarin went up to one of the lockers and opened it, revealing a once hidden staircase.

"Nice." I said aloud.

"Just wait. You havn't seen anything yet." Blaze said.

I followed them down the staircase, which lead to a massive cave (of cloud) with all kinds of weird symbols and stuff. It had a large arena, a large table, a map of Equestria and surrounding lands, and a memorial of some kind.

"What is this place?"

"This is the Fugiens Mones hideout. It's hidden in the heart of Cloudsdale."

"Couldn't anypony just fly through the walls by accident?"

"Not possible. A long time ago, this place was enchanted by Princess Luna herself to prevent anypony entry except for those that take that staircase up there."

"Cool, so what now?"

"Now you take your trial."

"Which is?"

"Last five minutes in the arena with me." Blaze spoke up.

"Really? I'm not so sure about this. I'm not really comfortable with hitting kids, or ladies for that matter."

"Oh don't worry about me. It's you who you should be worrying about."

"Go ahead and get in the arena." Spitfire said.

We went into the arena, which was a round structure with a closed dome roof. It was probably thirty feet tall, and a hundred yards wide, probably to allow easy flight maneuvers. There was a gate that closed behind us.

Soarin's voice called out. "All you have to do is last five minutes without giving up, and you're one of us. BEGIN!"

I turned to Blaze. "Look, I don't wanna hurt you, so why don't we jus-" Was all I got off before Blaze delivered a hell of an uppercut, sending me flying back.

"I told you not to worry about me." she said.

"It's on now." I said before I charged her.

She smiled. "That's more like it."

I readied my hoof for a strike, but she ducked down and delivered an applebuck to my gut, knocking the wind out of me, and a little blood. I rose back up. She flew at me, and swung a hoof. I ducked at the last second, only to have her do a backflip and knock the hell out of my jaw that was already abused by a wrench earlier today.

"Easy on the jaw! I've already been hit with a wrench today by a crazy old bastard!"

She responded by flying up to me and giving me a hook right on the jaw.

"Ah, dafuq?! I said easy on the jaw!"

"You shouldn't tell an opponent any of your weaknesses."

"And you need to not be so serious!" I said as I rose.

I flew at her and went for a straight jab. She reacted quickly and caught my hoof, bringing me in close. I was ready for this, and delivered my special hard-headed headbutt. She staggered back and I took advantage by giving her an applebuck to the chest, making her fly back.

"Don't underestimate me." I said with a smirk.

"I won't from now on." Blaze said as she rose.

She flew at me we delivered a punch at the same time, cancelling each other out. We jumped back to catch a quick breath. I flew at her once more. She readied herself for an attack, but instead of striking her, I grabbed her and picked her up to slam her into the ground. Before I could, she flapped her wings furiously, lifting us into the air. I tightened my grip and flew straight for the ground. Right before we hit it, she did the unthinkable; she kneed me in my gems! I let go and fell to the ground, holding my precious parts. "That was seriously uncalled for!"

She shrugged. "Oh well, you do what you do to win."

"Thats enough! The match is over!" Soarin yelled as he and Spitfire flew down.

Spitfire flew to Blaze, and Soarin over to me.

"Don't feel bad, Spitfire did the same to me when I joined." Soarin whispered.

"Why would they do such a thing?!"

"Beats me, some things are just going too far, and they don't get that."

"I'll say." I groaned as he helped me up.

Spitfire and Blaze trotted over.

Blaze held out her hoof. "That was a good fight, maybe we can do it again sometime."

I shook her hoof. "As long as you don't pull anything like that again, sure."

"Well, it looks like you're an official member since you can last at least five minutes against one of our own." Spitfire said.

She then adopted a more serious look. "Now you need to know the last secret."

"Secret to what?"

"How we've lived so long, me and Soarin that is."

"What, is it like some kind of immortality potion?" I said with a grin.

"Pretty much." She replied.

"Shoulda known." I said with a roll of my eyes.

"Seriously though, you can't tell anypony about this. If it falls into the wrong hooves, the results would be catastrophic."

"So you're going to make me immortal?"

"Not precicely. While the potion does completely stop the aging process, you can still die by injuries."

"So the only way I'll die is if I get killed by a weapon or something in combat?"

She nodded.

"That's cool, but wouldn't that be kinda depressing? Like me outliving all of my friends?"

"That's the price of immortality. Nothing is free."

"Will it do anything besides letting me live forever?"

"It will increase your strength beyond all measure and make your bones nearly indestructable."

"Wow. But when you say those things, how much specifically would it enhance me?"

"Your strength is multiplied by a large bit, and your bones would withstand falling on concrete while in terminal velocity."

"Lemme guess, there's a catch." I said.

"Not really anything bad though. The nearly indestructable bones part is applied instantly, but the strength part not so much. When you first drink the potion, your strength will be multiplied by only ten. When you finish stage three training, that will multiply your strength by thirty. Finish stage four, and it goes up to a hundred. Somehow reach captain of the Fugiens Mones, that shoots up to two hundred times your normal strength."

"And how would I reach captain?"

"The only way to take my rank away is if I die, and it's a unanimous decision by the other members and the Princess."

"Oh, got it."

"I'll be back with the potion in a bit." Spitfire finished as she flew away.

"So what's this stuff tastes like anyways?" I asked Blaze.

"Truthfully, it tastes like ass."

"Wonderful." I said as I rolled my eyes.

"Seriously, you won't taste anything worse in your immortal bucking life."

"How'd it taste for you, Soarin?" I asked

"I couldn't tell you Shadow. It's been over a thousand years."

"The way Blaze makes it out to be, you should remember something that nasty."

Spitfire flew back down with a bottle with some kind of black liquid in her mouth. She motioned for me and I held out my hoof. She let it go and I caught it.

"Drink that, and forever join our ranks."

"Come on Spitfire, there's no need for theatrics, I recommend you down it as fast as possible by the way." Blaze said.

"Well, here goes nothin'." I said as I popped the cork.

I took a small sip...and it tasted great! I immediately downed the rest and dropped the bottle.

I belched. "Immortality tastes pretty good."

Blaze was awestruck. "He's...he's not real. There's no way he liked that crap!"

Soarin laughed and patted me on the back. "Welcome to the Mones, Shadow."

"Thanks." I said as I noticed Blaze take a curious sniff of the bottle before her eyes shot wide and flew away to go barf.

We all had a good laugh before I remembered something slightly important. "Is Rainbow still here?"

Spitfire shrugged. "Maybe, if she is, then she's at the training area."

"Thanks." I said before I flew up the stairs and out of the locker room.

I flew around to the training area and saw Rainbow resting on the bleachers.

I flew down in front of her. "Before you say anything you fully have the right to say, just know I'm still sorry."

She looked down like she was trying to ignore me.

"How did your tryout go?"

"I'm in." She said in a dull tone.

"That's great Rainbow! I'm so happy for you!"

"Being a member and all, they told me what you were actually doing."

"Oh...well I know that you also have the right to be mad at me for that, but I did it so I can protect you-"

"Just shut up! I'm tired of the lies!" She calmed down a little. "I think it's best if we start seeing other ponies Shadow."

"What?! No! Rainbow, I love you!" I yelled as the tears started appearing.

"How do I know that's not a lie?!" She yelled, forming tears herself.

"Because...you're right. I can't do anything to prove how much I love you right now. I mean look at me, I've been lying to you for a long time and cheated on you too. I'm sorry Rainbow, I'll leave you alone."

I hung my head and flew away. I don't have anywhere to go except for one place. I turned east and started heading for Manehattan.

A little comedy, a little heart break. Be sure to comment/review, but don't bust a nut over what's happening just yet, because this isn't the end of the story.

Quote of the Day: "You're just jealous cuz my tits are bigger than your's." -My large friend to some bitches that were making fun of him.
> A New Friend
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up on a couch that wasn't made of cloud this time. While it was comfortable, it wasn't the same. Vinyl agreed to let me stay with her as long as I needed, and promised to give me some time if we went into a relationship. I'm really thankful to her for that, because I still can't give up on Rainbow. I got off of the couch and gave a stretch and yawn.

I saw Vinyl trot out of her room rubbing her eyes. She let out a long yawn. "Morning Shadow."

"Morning."

"How ya holding up?"

"I'll be fine, I just need some time."

"It's all good Shadow, take as much time as you need."

"Thanks."

"No problem. So what are you doing for today?"

"Well I'm going to spend most of my day at work and Wonderbolts practice. What about you?"

"I've got a gig downtown. After that I'll probably go hang with Octavia."

"Alright, see you then."

We gave each other a hug, and I left the building. I spread my wings and took flight towards Ponyville. I'm really going to stay in shape if I fly long distance like this. My daily routine is almost always going to be from Manehattan to Ponyville to Cloudsdale to Manehattan again. All over Equestria, just like a said I did when I first met everypony.

I eventually arrived at the bar and instinctively went to Thunder's office.

"You know you don't have to come in my office everyday now, right?"

"Oh yeah, sorry, forcive habbit."

"How'd your tryout go?"

"I'm in, but it cost me a knee to my gems."

He laughed. "Is that what they do for initiation? If so, I can see why their numbers were always so few!"

"Laugh it up jackass. No, that wasn't the initiation. The initiation is to fight the junior member for five minutes without giving up."

"That so? Well you did good if you lasted that long."

"Thanks, I guess. I suppose I'll get to work then."

"Hop to it then."

I nodded and left the office. I picked up my broom and started sweeping around. I was almost finished when somepony tapped my back.

"Yeah, just a minute, I'm almost done."

They tapped my back again.

"I said just a minute."

They did it again.

I whirled around. "What the hell do you wa-...whoa."

I turned around to see a black pegasus stallion with equally black mane and tail, except with streaks of red in them. In a way, he looked somewhat similar to me, except the part where he had some massive ass wings that looked like the combination of a dragon's and bat's.

"Dude...that's bad ass."

"Thanks I guess. They don't freak you out?"

"Dude, I'm an immortal that recently got attacked by something that can regenerate after snapping its neck, nothing freaks me out anymore."

"I guess you have a point there. I'm actually here because Spitfire sends a message."

"Wait, so you're with the Mones?"

"Not with you specifically. I'm the captain of the Fugiens Mones' reconnaissance squad, Night Wing."

"I didn't know the Mones had multiple squads."

"You havn't been here very long then. We have the recon team, lead by me, the long range archers, led by a captain only known to the Princess, and your squad, the infiltration squad, led by Spitfire."

"So you're immortal as well?"

"In the sense that you're asking in, yes. However, only your squad, and the captains of the other two squads have the potion in their blood."

"That's cool I guess. So what was this message from Spitfire you wanted to tell me?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. The message is that you leave on your first assignment in a month."

"What's the assignment?"

"You'll have to ask Spitfire for more details."

"Wait, Spitfire made you fly all the way out here when she could have told me that when I see them later today?"

"...You're going to see them later today?"

"I'm going to be seeing them every day from now until I finish my training. I think she just played you bro."

"...Crap. It's probably payback from the time I accidentally called an all clear, leading her and her team into an army."

"That seems like a pretty big fuck-up, don't you think?!"

"It wasn't really a problem for them, it just increased the mission time by a few hours. Seriously, who holds a grudge for two hundred years?"

"Don't feel bad bro, just do what I do when I'm put in a situation I don't want to be in."

"And what's that?"

"Don't think about it until you cross the bridge of confrontation.."

"...You have problems don't you?"

"A lot of problems my friend. Now I need to get back to work, and you have a long flight ahead of you."

"Sigh*, yeah, you're right. Nice meeting you Shadow."

"Later bro."

He waved and trotted out the door. He spread his-holy shit those wings are bigger than I initially thought. Anyways, he flew away.

Well that was interesting. Poor guy had to fly all the way out of here because of a prank. I had to give it to Spitfire though, it was pretty good. Right, back to work.

I picked my broom back up and finished up my sweeping. When it was lunch time, I went out to that restaurant me and Rainbow went to when I first arrived.

The same waiter as last time was there. "Ah, good evening to you sir! I was hoping you would return!"

"Why is that?"

"There are so few ponies with true class in this town, and you are one of them."

"Thanks I guess."

"You're quite welcome sir. Is it just you, or is the lovely mare from last time here as well?"

"No, it's just me..."

He saw the look on my face. "My apologies sir, I meant no offence."

"None taken, you didn't know."

"I'll show you to your table. Right this way."

I followed him to the same table me and Rainbow sat at when we last came here. It was probably an accident that he lead me here, but still. I sat down and he gave me a menu.

"I don't need a menu, thanks. I'll just have the daisy and lettuce sandwich with water." I said as I handed back the menu.

He nodded and trotted off. The nostalgia is killing me right now. I would do anything to make it up to Rainbow, but that's the thing though. I can't make up for what I did. I need to think of something so I don't lose her forever though! Ugh, I'm getting a headache. I just need to eat first, then think about it.

As if reading my thoughts, the waiter arrived with my meal. "Here you are sir, and if I may offer some advice..." He said leaning in closer.

I put my ear closer, maybe he'd have a good idea.

"Grow a moustache."

I looked at him and he smiled and nodded.

"Uhh, thanks. I'll think about it."

"Anything for you sir." He said before trotting away.

I shoulda known. Oh well, time for food. I devoured my sandwich and downed the water. I left the money on the table, plus a large tip for the waiter. He was clueless, but nice. I'm still curious on how ponies grow moustaches. Maybe I'll ask him one day.

I flew back to the bar and got back to work. Time flew by, and before I knew it, it was time to go to Cloudsdale. I went took the back entrance since it was closer into the dark alley behind the building.

"Hey! We saw you talking to that freak earlier! You're with it aren't you?!"

I turned around. Well if it isn't snake flank. I smiled. "Oh hey, I havn't seen you since I kicked your ass. How ya been buddy?"

"Shut up! You got lucky last time! This time nopony is here to protect you! Isn't that right boys?!"

Just then, somewhere around twelve more goons came trotting into the alley.

"Get about a hundred more, then it will be a fair fight." I said with a smirk.

"You won't be so cocky when you're begging for mercy! Get him boys!"

They all charged at me. Well at least this is a chance to test out my new powers. I cracked my neck just before the first one swung at me with a bat. It shattered off of my head, and I smiled at him. "You're going to need something stronger than that to break my hard head."

I reached out and grabbed him and another pony next to him and lifted them into the air with ease. I slammed them together and threw them behind me.

"You see?! This is what happens when you insult nice ponies!" I yelled out.

Another one of them charged me with a chain. I punched him square in the face, sending him flying back, knocking over three others. That leaves seven including snake flank.

Three of them charged me carrying knives. "At least you're getting smarter." I said wih a smile.

I readied myself for the attack, but just before they got to me, a dark figure landed in front of me, took one of the ponies, and flew away. We were all distracted by it for a moment.

"What was that?! What did you do?!" Snake flank yelled.

"Hey, I'm just as confused as you."

Just then, the dark figure reappeared and started fighting five of them at once. Two of them lunged at it with knives, and it ducked down just in time, making those two stab each other. The other three charged him head on, and it waved a huge wing over them. When he finished, they were on the ground.

"Dude, that was fucking sick! You just pulled some serious batman shit right there!"

The dark figure raised its head, revealing Night Wing's face. He smiled. "I try to please."

We both turned to snake flank, who was starting to back up. "What are you freaks?!"

Night Wing sighed. "It's always the same. Freak, animal, monster, almost everywhere I go. You really can't get more creative, can you?"

"Get away from me!" Snake flank yelled.

Night Wing was slowly advancing on him. When he finally reached him, he waved his wing. There was a scream, and Snake flank was on the ground, unconscious.

"Bad. Fucking. Ass." I said.

He let out a laugh. "Thanks, I guess."

"What are you doing here anyways? Shouldn't you have left hours ago?"

"I was, but I overheard this one talking with others about ambushing you for associating with me. I waited here the rest of the day, and struck when they attacked."

"Thanks, but I could have handled myself you know."

"Probably, but I felt like I owed you for standing up for me."

"No problem Night Wing-"

"Please, call me Ni."

"Okay, well Ni, I would stand up for any genuinely nice pony. Nopony has any reason to pick on another."

He smiled. "Thanks. You're one of the first ponies to accept my appearance."

"Why would ponies give you hell just because of the way you look anyways?"

"I don't know. Being picked on had a good bit to do with joining the Mones. They actually didn't care what I looked like. As long as I can defend Equestria, they could care less honestly."

"Wanna discuss this back on the way to HQ?"

"Nah, I've got other places to be. Goodbye Shadow."

"Take it easy."

We both took flight. I headed to Cloudsdale, and he took off in another direction. After some time, I arrived at the Wonderbolts HQ. I went to the locker room, and opened the locker with the hidden passage. I went downstairs and found only Spitfire here.

"Oh hey Shadow. Ready for your first day of stage three training?"

"I guess. By the way, what assignment are we going on in a month?"

"Wait, does this mean Night Wing actually flew all the way to Ponyville?"

"Kinda, yeah."

"Hahahahahaha! I can' t believe he'd actually do that!"

"Ahem*"

"Oh, right, sorry. Anyways, yeah, we're going to the nation of griffins next month."

"Really, what's that place like?"

"In a way, it's pretty similar to Equestria, but there are some differences though."

"Like what?"

"Well, don't expect a friendly welcome there. Most griffins aren't that friendly to ponies. Second is that there is a civil war going on there."

"Is that what the assignment is about?"

She nodded.

"What does this have to do with Equestria?"

"Tensions have always been high between us and them. The current government is trying their best to maintain their relations with us, while the rebels want to invade us after they take over."

"Why would they want to invade us?"

"For something stupid."

"Like what?"

"Our gem deposits. You see, we have the largest gem deposits in the world, and if anypony, or griffin, were to get ahold of them, then they would be very, very wealthy."

"Are they really that important?"

"They're one of our primary exports, so yes, they are."

"Well now there's a similarity." I said.

"What do you mean?"

"It was the same B S on my planet, people invading other people for something as stupid as money."

"That so?"

"Yeah, it looks like no matter where you go, you can't escape greed."

"Looks that way. Anyways, lets begin your training. Just so you know, this is going to be much more difficult than your stage two training."

I smirked. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

She smiled. "To the arena then."

We trotted in the arena and began my training.

Skipping yet another training session.

I was on the ground in a fetal position.

"Maybe I went a little too hard on you for your first time."

"There were...so many sharp objects..."

"Yeah, guess I got carried away. That is a key difference between stage two and three though."

"You mean the key difference is going from dodging wrenches to dodging sharp objects?!"

She shrugged. "Pretty much."

"I hate you, and I hate Thunder!"

"Oh shake it off wimp."

"You didn't just have a bunch of knives thrown at you! I have a right to be freaking out!"

She didn't say anything. She just rolled her eyes and trotted off.

After shaking for about five more minutes, I got up and started for the stairs. I'm going to need therapy after that shit. I did my best to shake it off as I went outside and flew back to Manehattan. I went up to Vinyl's apartment and found her passed out on the couch. She must have had a long day. I grabbed a blanket and placed it over her and went over to a smaller couch next to her. I relaxed and went to sleep.

A big thanks to Dragon'z Wrath (of fanfiction :P) for letting me use his OC Night Wing. Go read his story: A Stranger's Love, or I'll...well I guess I can't hurt you if you don't read it because I don't know where you live. Fuck you, go read it.

Here's something different too, since I'm running out of quotes:

Chuck Norris fact of the Day: Chuck Norris can blow bubbles with beef jerky.
> Forgiveness
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I opened my eyes to something I wasn't exactly used to. I was still in Vinyl's apartment. No offence to her, but I wish it was Rainbow's home. I groggily got up from the couch. I noticed that Vinyl was still asleep as I trotted passed the couch she was sleeping on. I went into the kitchen to grab some breakfast. I made my almost usual breakfast of hay bacon strips(this is your weekly hay bacon moment :P), biscuits, and coffee. I also made some extra for Vinyl in case she woke up.

I took my breakfast and set it on the table in front of the couch I slept on. The smell must have gotten to Vinyl because she started to stir. She opened her eyes and looked around.

"Morning. I made breakfast." I said before taking a bite of a biscuit.

"Thanks." She said, half talking, half yawning.

"No problem."

She got up and trotted over to the kitchen to get her a plate of food. When she finished she trotted over and sat down beside me to eat.

"So how'd your day go yesterday?" She asked.

"It was okay, I guess. The short story is that I met a new friend, we got ambushed by some not-so-smart ponies. We kicked their asses, I went to Wonderbolt practice, then flew back here."

"Why'd you get attacked?" She asked with a touch of concern.

"They didn't like the appearance of my new friend, so they attacked me when they thought he was gone because I was associating with him."

"That's so stupid."

"Tell that to them."

"So who's this new friend of your's, and why would they not like his appearance?"

"Well you see, it's because-"

I was cut off by a knock at the door.

"I got it." Vinyl said as she got up.

She trotted over to the door and opened it. I couldn't see who it was from where I was at.

"Hey Shadow, I think I just met your new friend." Vinyl called out

"That's cool, wait, what?"

"You're friend is the one with the really cool wings right?"

I got up. "Yeah, that's him."

I trotted over to the door where Ni was standing outside of. "What's up Ni? Why are you here?"

"We need to discuss a few things."

"Can't it wait until after breakfast dude? I'm pretty hungry."

"Actually, it-" Ni was cut off by his stomach growling. He gave a small blush.

"It looks like you could use some breakfast to. Come on in." Vinyl said.

Ni smiled and nodded. He trotted in and Vinyl closed the door behind him.

"There's some extra food left, help yourself. Have a seat on the couch over there when you get your plate." Vinyl said.

"Thank you, I will."

Me and Vinyl trotted back over to our couch and continued eating until Ni arrived with his food.

"Does this have something to do about yesterday?"

"No, nothing like that. This is about your first Wonderbolts performance."

"Oh okay, what about it?"

"It's in two days at Fillydelphia, and Spitfire wants you to bring the costume you used for the Grand Galloping Gala there."

"What for?"

He shrugged. "Dunno, I'm just relaying the message."

"I still can't get why anypony would attack you just because of the way you look." Vinyl blurted.

"I've never figured that out myself. It doesn't phase me as much anymore. What does phase me would be ponies like you and Shadow that could care less how a pony looks."

"You shouldn't be judged just on how you look. That's just messed up."

Ni smiled and rose. "Well that's all I had to tell you." He turned to Vinyl. "And thank you for the food, it was the first time in a long time anypony has ever invited me in their home."

"Eh, don't mention it. Nice meeting you Ni."

"The pleasure was all mine. I'll see you later Shadow." Ni said as he trotted to the door.

"Yeah, later."

Ni trotted out and closed the door.

"So is he with the Wonderbolts?" Vinyl asked.

"Yeah. He helps set up some of our events."

"That's cool. So what are you about to go do?"

"I'm just going to go to work I guess. Since I'm a Wonderbolt now, I'll be paid very nicely. I'm going to quit my job after today." And sever my ties with Ponyville... "What about you?"

"I don't really have any plans for today. I was just going to just chill here."

"Alright. I'm going to Ponyville now, I'll see you when I get back."

"Later."

"Bye." I replied before trotting out the door.

I went outside and took flight towards Ponyville. I landed in the center of town and looked around. This was it, my last day in Ponyville. I started trotting over to the Silver Thunder Bar. After work, I guess I'll say my goodbyes. When I arrived at the bar, I went right to work. The day went on without interruption, Barry stuck to himself and his playing, Thunder was in his office, and Silver just served drinks.

When my shift was finally over, I trotted to Thunder's office.

"What can I do for you Shadow?"

"I'm here to turn in a resignition."

He raised an eyebrow. "Giving up already?"

"Don't give me that. I fucked up beyond all recognition, and now I'm paying the price."

"Maybe, or maybe you just didn't try hard enough to get her back."

"And what the fuck would you know?!"

"Shadow, take it from an old buck who lost his shot at love. Don't give up."

"What?"

"You heard me. I used to be in love too. I loved her more than anything, even life itself. And you know what I did? I messed up, just like you did. I also did what you are about to do, and gave up. I could have at least had a shot at redeeming our relationship, but I waited too long. When I finally worked up the nerve to try again after three years, she was dead. She had died from an illness that she'd had since birth."

He continued. "Listen Shadow, don't screw up like I did. Do everything in your power to get her back. That's all."

"There's the resignition, take it easy Thunder." I said before trotting out.

I heard a sigh behind me as I closed the door to his office. I trotted over to Barry.

"I'll see you later man. I'm leaving."

"Whatever."

"Take care bro."

I trotted passed Silver and nodded. He nodded back and that was it. I trotted out of the door. I started to head towards Rarity's to say bye to her next. Along the way I passed Applebloom.

She looked up at me. "Hey there Mister Shadow! Do ya wanna come with me to the next club meetin'?"

"Sorry Applebloom, but I'm leaving Ponyville."

Her ears drooped. "Oh, okay."

"I'm sorry, but it's time for me to leave this town. Take care Applebloom."

I continued on my to Rarity's. When I arrived I went inside.

Rarity was surprisingly at the front desk instead of being in the back.

"Ah, hello Shadow. What can I do for you?"

"I just came to say my goodbyes. I'm leaving Ponyville. Thanks again for the costume."

"I see...goodbye Shadow."

I nodded and trotted out of the door. The closest place from here is the library. I started heading over there. Along the way there though, I saw Fluttershy buying some animal feed from a stand. I trotted over to her.

"Uh, Fluttershy?"

"Eep!" She squeaked.

"It's just me, Shadow."

"Oh, I'm sorry Shadow."

"It's okay. I just wanted to let you know I'm leaving Ponyville."

"Why would you leave?"

"Since separating from Rainbow, there's nothing for me here anymore."

"Oh..."

"Goodbye Fluttershy."

She gave me a hug. "Goodbye Shadow. Stay safe."

"No promises..."

I trotted off to the library and knocked on the door.

Spike answered it. "Hey Shadow. What are you doing here?"

"I'm just here to say goodbye to you and Twilight."

"Oh, okay. Come on in."

Spike moved and let me in. I sat down on the couch I woke up on when I first got here. Twilight trotted downstairs.

"Shadow, what did you need?"

"I wanted to say goodbye."

"Oh, you're leaving?"

"Yeah. I don't have anything left in this place."

"If that's the case then, please take this." She said as she levitated a book over to me.

I looked at the book. The title was called Dealing with Guilt. I chuckled a little."I appreciate the gesture Twilight, but I'd rather figure this out on my own." I said as I put the book down.

I rose up. "Goodbye Twilight."

Twilight led me to the door. "Goodbye Shadow."

I turned around after exiting the library. "Oh, and thanks."

"For what?" She asked with a confused look.

"For not throwing me out after wrecking your library."

My next stop was Sugarcube Corner. On my way there, I ran into Lyra and Bon Bon.

Lyra turned to me. "Oh hey Shadow. How have you been?"

"I've been better honestly. Right now I'm just going around saying my goodbyes."

"You're goodbyes?" Bon Bon asked.

"That's right. I'm leaving Ponyville."

"Why would you leave?"

"I lost the pony I love. So now there's nothing left here."

"You shouldn't give up. You of all ponies should know that. After all, you helped get Bon Bon back for me. I thought it was over for us, but then you showed me I can't give up."

"I appreciate it you two, but I really think this is the end. See ya." I finished as I trotted off.

I arrived at Sugarcube Corner and went inside. "Hey Shadow! How ya doin!?" The party pony screamed at me.

"Sigh*, I just came here to say goodbye."

"What?"

"I'm leaving."

"You're...leaving?" Pinkie's mane and tail started to deflate.

"I'm sorry Pinkie, but this is for the best. If I ever come back, you should throw a huge surprise party for me."

She smiled a little. "Don't you worry about that! I'll have the most super duper bestest party ever!"

I nodded with a smile on my face and trotted outside. Applejack is next. I flew over to Sweet Apple Acres and scanned for Applejack. Once again, I found her working the fields. I flew down to meet her.

She turned around. "Oh, howdy Shadow, what can I do for ya?"

"I was going around town to say goodbye to everypony, and you were next on the list."

"I heard from Applebloom. Take care of yerself Shadow."

"You too."

I turned around and took flight. There was just one more pony to say goodbye to. I landed in front of Rainbow's door and knocked. No answer.

I called through the door. "Rainbow, I know you're in there. I just wanted to say goodbye. And I know that you've heard it before, but I'm sorry. I never did deserve you, and I get that now. I was hoping to see you one more time for real before you're forced to see me at a Wonderbolts event, but that's okay." The tears starting building up now. "I'm not going to beg for you to take me back, because I have no right to. I'm going to live in Manehattan now, so I'll only see you when we do an event for the Wonderbolts. Goodbye Rainbow, and I love you."

I spread my wings and prepared to take flight. Right before I did, I heard a door open behind me. I turned around to see Rainbow looking at me through the tears in her eyes.

"Rainbow, I-" I was cut off by a whack on the head.

"Ow! You know not to hit me there Rainbow!"

"You're too hard headed to get hurt there."

I gave a small smile, and she gave one too. She ran over and wrapped me up in a hug.

"I'm sorry Shadow. I should have known how much you were hurting."

"Don't even think about apologizing. The fault is all with me, and I won't let you take any blame for my mistakes."

"You're right, what was I thinking? I'm too awesome to make mistakes."

I laughed. "That's more like it."

We finally broke the hug. Rainbow motioned for me to go inside. I followed her and we went upstairs to the bedroom.

Aren't I just the greatest ball-buster when it comes to cutting these things out? Anywho, it looks like Shadow keeps Rainbow after all! I was never planning on keeping Vinyl even though she is one of my favorite ponies. We'll cross the bridge of separation in the next chapter for Shadow and Vinyl. One more thanks to Dragon'z Wrath(still of fanfiction :D) for the idea. P.S. Sorry for the shorter chapter.

Chuck Norris fact of the Day: Chuck Norris is the only man able to punch you in the back of the face.
> Back to Normal?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Today's gonna be a good day. Even though it was only a few days, it felt like an eternity since I was with Rainbow. Everything can slowly start going back to normal, well, except the part where I'm immortal. It doesn't matter though, as long as I'm protecting Rainbow, anything is worth it. I looked beside me. Rainbow was still asleep. I snuck out of the bed to get a pen and sheet of paper. I left her a note saying where I'd be and went outside.

I jumped off of the cloud and did a flip before spreading my wings and heading towards Manehattan. I wonder what Spitfire wants with my costume tomorrow when I go to Fillydelphia. I guess I'll find out when I see her again.

When I finally arrived in Manehattan, I went up to Vinyl's apartment and knocked.

"Who is it?" Came a call in a voice that wasn't Vinyl's behind the door.

"Uhh, it's Shadow Flash. I'm a friend of Vinyl Scratch."

I heard the door unlock before the door opened, revealing the grey earth pony Octavia.

"Hi, is Vinyl here?"

"I'm afraid not. She just went somewhere for a moment. She'll be right back though. You can come on in if you want, I'm sure she wouldn't mind."

"Okay, thanks."

I trotted in and Octavia closed the door. I headed over to a couch and she took the one adjacent to me.

"So you're the famous cello player huh?" I asked.

"That's correct, although I wouldn't say famous."

"That's the same way I am, or going to be anyways."

"Why's that? Are you famous?"

"I guess I'm about to be. I just joined the Wonderbolts."

"Impressive. So how do you know Vinyl?"

"It's a little complicated. The best way I could put it is that we're close friends. What about you? How do you know her?"

"Well we have a long history together. I first met Vinyl at one of my concerts."

"What was she doing at a classical music concert?"

"Supposedly, somepony told her there was going to be free nachos."

"I'd go if that were the case. Nachos rule."

"I suppose they do. Anyways..."

We are going back in time once more, your vision is getting blurry, and everything I say is echoed. Oh, and this is 1st person (pony?) from Octavia's Point of view.

After my concert, I went backstage and just sat down in my room. I picked up my cello again and started playing a melody I was making up as I went along based on the emotions I was feeling. I lost myself for a moment, but came to when there was a knock at the door.

"Yes? Who is it?"

"I'm here for the nachos?"

"What?"

"Somepony told me there were nachos if I came here."

You must be joking. "Sigh*, I'll be right there."

I put my cello down and trotted over to the door. I opened it, revealing a white coated unicorn mare, with cobalt blue hair, and brilliant cyan stripes, and a pair of expensive looking custom shades. She also had a smirk I don't think I'll ever forget.

"Is this where I can get the nachos?" She asked.

"I'm afraid you came to the wrong place if you want nachos miss...?

"Vinyl Scratch. So there aren't any nachos?" She asked in a disappointed tone.

"I don't know where you heard that there are nachos here, sorry, there aren't."

"Oh, well thanks anyways. What's you're name?"

"My name is Octavia, it's a pleasure."

"Ya know, you talk funny." She said with that grin.

I know I should be irritated by that question, but for some reason I can't be.

"Oh yeah, you were the pony playing that big violin thing."

"That would be a cello."

"Yeah, that''s it! Hey, is that it in there?" She said trotting passed me.

"Hey! You know it's rude to enter other pony's rooms without permission, right?"

"This instrument is huge! How do you play it?" She said. I wasn't sure if she ignored me, or didn't here me.

"It's easier than it looks, let me show you." I said before closing the door and taking my cello.

I got on my hind legs and held my cello close. I closed my eyes and started playing what I was earlier. I relaxed and let my emotions control what I was doing. When I opened my eyes, I saw a worried look on Vinyl Scratch's face.

"Hey, are you okay?"

"Yes why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you're crying?"

She's right! I didn't notice it when I was playing, but I was crying. Why would I cry though? Was it because that was a slightly depressing melody? Or was it something else?

"Yes...I'm fine, thank you."

She raised her shades, showing me her cerise eyes. They had worry on them.

"Are you sure? Because you don't look fine."

I figured it out now. This was the first pony to not judge me right off the bat. She's not like the other high-society ponies, that judge my every move.

"Yes...I'm sure."

"Heyy, I think somepony needs a hug." She replied with a grin.

"I think I'm fine."

"Not from what I can tell. Now com'ere."

She wrapped her hooves around me and pulled me in for a hug. That did it. I broke down there. I had never had a pony sincerely care about me before, with the exception of my sister whom I havn't seen since she moved to Ponyville.

We broke the hug and I stopped crying.

"Better?" Vinyl asked.

"Yes...thank you."

"Hey, anytime. I gotta go now. Maybe I'll see you later." She said, heading to the door.

"Wait!"

She turned around. "Yeah?"

"How about I pay you back with some nachos?"

She smiled. "Now you're talking."

Blurry vision, echos, and shit.

"And that's how I met her." Octavia finished.

"That's quite the story."

"Yes, I suppose it is."

There was a noise at the door, and we turned our heads to see Vinyl trotting in.

"Oh hey there Shadow."

"Hey Vinyl."

"You look like you have some bad news. Wanna tell me?"

"Well, it's just that me and Rainbow got back together, and-"

"Hey, it's all good. I understand."

"You do?"

"Of course. She's the one you love, and I get that."

"Vinyl, you never told me you were in a relationship." Octavia said.

"I didn't? Huh, I must have been drunk."

"Yeah, that was the main reason I came here. Thank you for being so understanding Vinyl."

"Eh don't mention it."

"It was nice meeting you too, Octavia."

"Yes, you too."

"Goodbye Vinyl, and thanks for everything."

"Take care Shadow."

I gave one final wave before leaving Vinyl for good.

I guess my next stop is Twilight's library. Rainbow said she was almost done with her Daring Do book and wanted to get the next one. I took flight back towards Ponyville.

My flight was going pretty smoothly. I was almost there when something landed on my back. I flipped out and did all kinds of crazy maneuvers and said probably every swear in the book, and maybe a few the book didn't even have.

"Whoa, calm down Shadow, it's just me."

"Night Wing? What the fuck?! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

He laughed. "Sorry, sneaking up on you was just too irresistable."

"...Dick."

He laughed even harder. "So where are you headed Shadow?"

"I'm going to the Ponyville library for a book. Wanna come with?"

"I suppose. I don't have any other duties to perform today."

"Alright, cool. By the way, how did you get above me anyways? We're probably somewhere over fifteen thousand feet off the ground!"

"That's because I normally fly at fifty thousand feet."

"How the hell can you do that? You shouldn't even be able to breathe that high up!"

He shrugged. "That's just my normal flight altitude. It helps me stay away from other eyes, and it's also very handy on recon missions."

"I guess, but still. Anywho, we need to start reducing altitude, we're almost at Ponyville."

He nodded and we started descending. We landed outside of Twilight's door. I was just about to open it before I thought of something. I told Pinkie to throw me a surprise party. Everypony is probably behind this door, waiting to make my heart stop. Oh no, not again. This is also a good chance to get payback on Ni.

I opened the door, and let him enter first. I went in behind him and prepared myself.

"SURPRIIIISEEEE!" Everypony yelled just as I predicted.

What I didn't predict was Ni getting freaked out so bad, that he would extend his big ass wings the fucking speed of light, and send my flying outside.

Well, I might as well take advantage of this once in a lifetime moment. "It looks like Shadow Flash is blasting off again!" I yelled as I was flying back (without my wings) into the middle of town. I landed in a fountain, except hit the part made of solid stone before landing in the water itself.

"Fuuuuuck..." I groaned.

I'm never going to say that I'm going to have a good day ever again. I wonder if I'll get in trouble if I pass out in a public fountain. Only one way to find out.

I woke up on Twilight's couch. "Huh, this is familiar."

"It would be, if my library was destroyed again. How are you feeling?" Twilight replied.

"Been better, been worse. What happened to Ni? I need to kick his ass..."

"Your friend brought you back from the town's fountain, he left."

"Where'd he go?"

"I don't know, but he did say he was sorry before he left. He also answered a few questions about his wings, he seemed pretty happy about them."

"I probably know why. Anyways, where is everypony?"

"They all left after Ni did. Rainbow said she'd meet you back at her place."

"Okay, thanks Twilight."

"You're welcome."

I rose up and started trotting to the door. "Oh wait, I almost forgot. Rainbow said she was almost done with the Daring Do book she's reading, and was wondering if she could get the next one."

"Sure, here you go." Twilight said as she levitated the book to me.

"Thanks, see you later."

"Bye Shadow."

I trotted outside and took flight to Rainbow's. When I arrived, I walked inside just as Rainbow was trotting downstairs.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" She asked.

"Meh, I've had worse. Here's your book."

"Oh thanks, I've been meaning to get that from Twilight."

"No problem."

"So our first Wonderbolts performance is tomorrow, you excited?"

"You better believe it! I can finally show Equestria I'm the best it has to offer!"

"Don't forget second to me."

"Yeah, you wish. Nopony is faster than me."

"We'll see tomorrow then, won't we?"

"You bet we will."

"How about we make a little wager out of who gets the loudest cheers?"

"What did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking if you lost, you have to admit that I'm more awesome than you."

"And if I win?"

"I don't know, take your pick."

"How about if I win, you have to tell me TRUTHFULLY whatever I want to know from you."

"Deal, now let's go to bed, I've had a long day."

"Yeah, okay."

I went upstairs with Rainbow and got in bed.

Today was a shitty day...

I normally have something to say here, but I don't this time. Oh well. You know what to do, review/comment or I'll (insert graphic death threat here) to you.

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Chuck Norris's nicknames for his testicles are the good, the bad, and the ugly.
> First Performance
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Today's a big day. Me and Rainbow get to go to our first Wonderbolts performance in Fillydelphia. I hope irony is listening, because what could possibly go wrong today? Actually, I take it back, please don't fuck me over irony, it was a joke. I looked around and saw Rainbow was out of bed.

"What are you doing up before me?" I asked.

"Too excited, I couldn't sleep."

"I can see where you're coming from I guess."

"You're not excited?"

"Oh, I didn't say that, of course I'm excited. I just know how to deal with pressure and all. I did used to be pretty famous. You know what? Scratch that. I don't know how to properly deal with pressure, because last time I actually got killed. So yeah, this ought to be a fun experience."

"How can you joke about dying so easily?"

"It's easy. Right before I did die, I joked about how if my funeral was boring, then I was haunting Barry."

She rolled her eyes. "You're insane."

"Guilty as charged." I replied with a grin. "By the way, have you ever been to Fillydelphia?"

She shook her head. "I never have."

"This is going to be a first for both of us then."

"Do you have any plans before we go there?"

"Not really, no. Did you want to do something?"

"Just that we chill here for an hour before we leave."

"Sure, okay."

My stomach growled. "Uhh, after I eat some breakfast."

She gave a chuckle. "Okay, that's fine."

We went downstairs and instead of making a large breakfast, I just grabbed a couple of apples. I sat down on the couch next to Rainbow and took a bite of apple.

"So you promise if I win, you'll hold true to our bet last night?" Rainbow asked.

"No point, becaush ahm the one going to win." I said with my mouth full

"Come on Shadow, I want the truth."

I swallowed. "Okay, I promise Rainbow. If, and that's if you won, what would you ask?"

"You'll see after I win." She said with a smile.

"Yeah, yeah. Oh, before I forget, I need to grab my costume from the Gala."

"Why would you need your costume?"

I shrugged. "Iunno, Spitfire said she wanted me to bring it."

"Why would she want you to bring your costume?"

"I have no idea, but give me a sec, I need to go get it." I said before I got up and trotted upstairs.

I went inside mine and Rainbow's room and looked under the bed. I pulled out the box containing my costume and opened it. Yep, still here. My custom assassin armor costume. I put the top back on and slid it in my saddlebag. I trotted back downstairs and sat next to Rainbow again.

"Did you find it?"

"Sure did."

"Hey, did you want to go ahead and fly to Fillydelphia? There isn't really much to do right now."

"Yeah, I guess we could. Let's go to our first event and show them all what the two newest members of the Wonderbolts have to offer."

We got off of the couch, and headed for the door. We trotted outside and took flight towards Fillydelphia. About halfway there, I looked over at Rainbow, and she was looking a little worried.

"Hey, you gonna be okay?" I asked.

"I'll be fine, just a little nervous."

"There's nothing to be nervous about, trust me."

"What if I mess up though? Everypony will be there to see it!"

"Rainbow, calm down. You won't screw up, because you're better than that, and you know it. It's my first time to, so if you screw up, I'll screw up right along with you to get the pressure off."

"Thanks, but I don't want to drag you down because of my mistake."

"Then don't screw up." I said with a small smile.

She sighed. "Gee, thanks."

"That's what I'm here for."

"Whatever you say. You give weird pep talks, you know that, right?"

"Of course, that's how I get my point across better, by being weird."

She laughed. "I guess that's true."

We continued the rest of the flight by just making small talk. When we finally arrived, we looked for the stadium we were supposed to perform in. When we found it, we flew over to it. This stadium was almost as large as the Cloudiseum, which was pretty damn big. We flew down to the entrance and found a brown earth pony security guard at the door.

I trotted up to him. "Uhh, hey. My name is Shadow Flash, and this is Rainbow Dash. We're supposed to be in the performance in a little bit, and I was wondering if you could show us where the rest of the Wonderbolts are. This is our first time here, so we're not exactly sure where to go." I finished with a nervous smile.

"Of course! But do you mind if I ask a favor?"

"Depends, what did you have in mind?"

"My son is a very big fan of the Wonderbolts you see, and his birthday is today, so I was hoping that I could get your autograph for him."

"Instead of doing that, how would you like it if I went to visit him instead? I got a feeling that he'd appreciate that even more."

"That-that would be great!"

I smiled. "It's settled then, after our performance, meet me outside of my room, and you can lead me to your son's birthday party."

"Yes sir! Oh, and your rooms are this way."

He turned and led me and Rainbow down a few hallways. When we were in the dressing room area, he turned to us and nodded before taking his leave.

Rainbow turned to me. "That was pretty awesome for you to offer to go to his kid's birthday party."

I shrugged. "Meh, I got nothin' better to do after this, and besides, it would be cool to hang out with the fans."

"You got a point I guess."

Just then, Spitfire, without her Wonderbolt uniform on, trotted around the corner with a couple of boxes.

"Hey you two, I got something for ya." She said.

"And what's that?" I asked.

"These." She said before opening the boxes, revealing two Wonderbolt uniforms, one larger one for me, and another smaller one for Rainbow.

"Yes!" Rainbow screamed.

"Nice." I said at the same time.

"Glad you like them."

"I'm gonna go ahead and change into it. Thanks Spitfire!" Rainbow said before rushing to her room.

"You're welcome." She turned to me. "Did you bring your costume from the Gala?"

I pulled out the box from my saddle bag containing my costume. "Right here. Why did you want this anyways?"

"Because, I'm going to get it modified."

"Modified?"

"That's right. I'm going to take it to a pony around here that makes all of our weapons and armor. I'm going to get him to put real armor on this thing, and real weapons."

"Holy shit, epic."

She laughed. "Glad you like the idea. Follow me and I'll take you to meet him."

"Alright, cool."

I put the box containing my costume from the Gala, and my Wonderbolt uniform in my saddle bag, and followed Spitfire. She led me outside of the building, then we took flight. We flew to what appeared to be a downtown area. I looked at Spitfire, and she motioned to start flying down. I nodded and we started descending. We landed in front of a small building wedged between two larger ones. The sign above it said: Brawny Hooves Smithing.

We trotted inside, and up front was a large olive green earth pony, with olive green mane and tail. His cutie mark was a hammer and anvil. He turned to us. "Oh, hey Spitfire, is this the new member?"

"Yep, this is him."She said.

He trotted over to me and held out a hoof. "Pleasure to meet ya! I'm Brawny Hooves!"

I took his hoof and shook it. "Shadow Flash."

"So what can I do you two for?"

"I have a 'special request'." Spitfire said.

"Oh? And what would that be?"

She pulled out the box containing my costume from my saddle bag and opened it. "This."

He let out a whistle of appreciation. "Now what have we here?"

"Well, it's currently just a costume, but I would like you to modify it into real armor and weapons for Shadow here."

"These designs and weapon capabilities are extraordinary! Where did you come up with such a thing?"

I shrugged. "Just some sources."

"Those are some impressive sources then. Oh, I'm going to enjoy this one. Come back in about a week, and I should be done."

Spitfire nodded. "Alright. Thanks Brawny."

"Oh no, I'm thanking you on this one. Nice meeting you by the way Shadow."

"You too."

Me and Spitfire left Brawny to get to work with my costume, and flew back to the stadium.

She turned to me. "Alright, I'm going to get ready for the performance, you should do the same."

"Got it. And thanks."

"For what?"

"For the kick ass armor of course."

She chuckled a little. "You're welcome."

She turned and trotted away. I went into the dressing room next to me. I pulled out the Wonderbolt uniform from my bag and put it on, leaving the goggles just above my eyes. This uniform is pretty damn comfortable. I trotted outside and knocked on Rainbow's room.

"Yeah? Who is it?"

"Incredibly charming stallion." I said, smiling to myself.

The door opened. "Sorry, but I think I already have one of those." She said with a smirk.

"Mind if I come in?"

"Sure."

She moved from the entrance and I trotted in and she closed the door.

"So what do you think?" She said.

I looked at her, she was wearing her Wonderbolt uniform. Goggles and all.

"Wow, that looks good on you." I said.

"Thanks, you don't look bad yourself."

"Well at least I don't look like shit."

She laughed. "Nah, not that bad."

There was a knock on the door. "Five minutes! Get ready!"

Rainbow's smile disappeared, and she started shaking.

"Hey, come on Rainbow, just remember what I said. Everything's going to be fine. I'll be right there with you."

"Yeah...you're right. Thanks."

"Anytime. Now lets get out there and show this crowd what the new ponies can do!"

"Alright! Lets go!"

We exited the dressing room, and met up with the rest of the present Wonderbolts. Spitfire was at the head of us.

She turned back. "Alright everypony, we're opening like we always do. After that, do you're own thing, then reform with the rest of us. After that is the race between our fastest ponies. Which would be Fleetfoot, Rapidfire, Rainbow Dash, and Shadow Flash. Next thing is going to be the rest of us doing coordinated maneuvers while the racers take a breather. After that, we all fly out here one more time and finish like we started. Questions?"

There were none.

"Alright, lets go!"

We took flight side by side. The moment we entered the main area, the crowd went wild. After we got about a quarter of the way across, we banked straight up. A ways up, we branched off, each of us going our separate ways. This was the part where we did our own trick. I decided to try something new. I flew higher up, and, flying incredibly fast, did several twists, turns, and flips, then flew back to rejoin the group. Looking back, I had written Shadow Flash with a trail of black and crimson, which the crowd went insane at.

Everypony that wasn't myself, Rainbow, Fleetfoot, or Rapidfire went back to the entry area for Wonderbolts. There was a track for us that had been prepared. We lined up at it. There was a whistle, and we were off. The four of us staying with each other at first. Rapidfire started falling back a little, but not by much. On our last turn, me and Rainbow managed to pull ahead in front of Fleetfoot. When we crossed the finish line, the crowd erupted.

"And the winner is...well, it's a tie! The two new ponies, Rainbow Dash and Shadow Flash have tied folks!" The announcer yelled.

We flew back to rest while the others did their thing.

"It was a tie?! How does that happen?" Rainbow asked.

"Simple. We're each the same speed. I guess I was wrong after all."

"Yeah, because that's a rare occurrence." Rainbow said with a roll of her eyes.

Fleetfoot, one of the Wonderbolts we raced, trotted up to us. She had, from what I could tell, a sky blue coat, and white mane and tail. "Great race you two."

"Thanks, you too."

"You know we'll have to hold a rematch though, right?"

I smiled. "Of course, how else can I prove that I'm one of the fastest Wonderbolts?"

"That's the spirit. Well, here come the others, so get ready to finish up."

I nodded and she went back to talking with Rapidfire. The rest of the Wonderbolts flew over, and we got ready for the last part of the show. We all gave one more fly-over for the crowd before returning.

"Alright, good job everypony! That's all here!" Spitfire called out.

Everypony parted and went to their dressing rooms. Spitfire trotted over to me and Rainbow.

"Great job out there, you two. Congratulations, because it looks like you're now the fastest ponies in Equestria. Officially that is." Spitfire said before trotting off.

Rainbow gave me a hug before going inside her dressing room. I did the same and shed my uniform, except for the goggles, they were cool, so I left them on above my eyes. I slid the rest of my uniform in my saddle bag. I left my room and headed to Spitfire's. I knocked a couple of times.

She answered. "Shadow, need something?"

"Yes, actually. Do you have any season tickets I can have?"

She smiled. "Yeah, I forgot to give them to you. Here's ten sets of season tickets. You get ten more after each season."

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

"No problem."

She closed her door and I trotted to Rainbow's room and knocked.

She opened the door.

"Hey Rainbow, I'm about to go to that security guard's kid's birthday. I'll meet you back home."

"Alright, see you then Shadow."

We gave each other a kiss, and she closed the door.

And right on queue, the security guard trotted down with a large grin on his face.

"Hey Mr. Shadow. I'm here to show you to my kid, if that's okay with you."

"Relax. Of course it's okay, I said I would. Oh, and just call me Shadow by the way."

He nodded. "Uhh, thank you...Shadow."

I smiled. "There, that's better."

He led me out of the stadium, and passed the fans cheering and screaming my name when they saw me. I smiled and waved back to most of them, even making a few mares faint, which was pretty funny. We arrived in what was apparently a residintial district, and the security guard led me up to his home. It was a fairly nice sized home, with a large yard.

He turned to me. "My kid is out back, along with a few of his friends."

"Okay, hey by the way, how old is your kid today?"

"Today is his twelfth birthday."

"Alright, what's his name?"

"It's Little Boulder."

"Alright, cool. I'll be there in a bit. Go on ahead, and make sure not to tell him I'm here."

He nodded. "Of course, whenever you're ready Miste- I mean Shadow."

He trotted in his back yard, and I readied myself. I was about to do something similar to what I did earlier, so lets see if I can do it again. I flew up onto the roof, and peeked over into the back yard. I could see the security guard, and a few kids in the back. There were also some decorations. Alright, time to make myself 'friend of the people.' I blasted off the roof full speed, and did a few maneuvers in mid-air. When I finished, I had written Happy twelfth birthday Little Boulder.

I flew down, and the kids ran over to meet me.

"Wow! You're a real Wonderbolt! That's so cool!" They shouted.

One of them that had the same color scheme as the security guard ran over to him and hugged him.

"Dad, this is the best present ever!"

"Thank you son, I'm glad you like it."

I trotted over. "How would you like to ride on my back for a few tricks?"

The kid's smile, if at all possible, multiplied to match even Pinkie's. He turned to his dad. "Can I dad? Please? Can I?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"YES!"

I knelt down. "Hop on."

Little Boulder climbed on and clung to my neck.

"Grab on tight. Are you ready?"

"Yeah!"

"Alright, here we go!"

I took flight and flew up about fifty feet into the air. I did a few flips and basic things, so the kid didn't fly off.

"This is awesome!" He yelled.

"Glad you like it, now get ready, because we're about to go fast."

He held me more tightly, and I flew straight down. When we were about five feet off of the ground, I leveled off exactly ninety degrees to the ground. I slowed down, and landed back in front of his dad. Little Boulder climbed off and went over to his dad.

"Hey, before I go, I got something for ya."

I reached into my bag and pulled out two of the season ticket passes and gave them to him.

"There you go, two season ticket passes to the Wonderbolts! It also comes with a backstage pass, so if you ever make it to a show, be sure to come backstage, and we'll hang out. Sound cool Little Boulder?"

"This is the best day of my life!" He screamed.

I laughed. "I'll take that as a yes then."

His dad trotted up to me with a large smile on his face. "Thank you, it means a lot to me, and even more to my kid that you would do this."

I held out my hoof. "Don't mention it."

He shook my hoof, and I gave one last nod before flying away. I flew back home and went inside. Rainbow was on the couch waiting for me.

"So how'd it go?"

"Pretty smoothly. It was a nice family. It looked like it was just the dad and his son though."

"So you had fun?"

"Sure did."

"Hey, since we tied in our race, where does that leave us in the bet?"

I sat close to Rainbow. "The way I see it, you beat me by a hair, so ask away."

She smiled and gave me a hug. "Okay, here it is. Will you always love me?"

I rolled my eyes. "You can ask any question, and you ask the one with the most obvious answer. Yes Rainbow, no matter what happens, I will always love you. I will protect you with my life, and if anypony hurts you, they're going to feel the wrath of an immortal."

She didn't say anything. She just held me close. For a time, we just sat there like that. I looked over and saw she was asleep. I smiled and picked her up. I brought her into the bedroom and placed her on the bed. I put a blanket over her, and got in bed myself.

Well, it looks like irony decided to fuck off today.

There's a longer chapter to make up for my shorter chapters recently. How was the first Wonderbolts performance for Shadow and Rainbow? Let me know in the comments!

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Chuck Norris invented every single color in the spectrum, except pink. Tom Cruise invented pink.
> First Real Battle
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Okay, so today I have...nothing actually. I'm completely free for a day, since like...since I got here actually. And I'm already bored. Also, why do I feel so tired even though I got my sleep? Ah well, guess I should go find something to do. I snuck out of bed and went downstairs. I went outside and took flight. Wait...somethings off. Ah fuck, it's still night time! No wonder I'm still tired!

Wow, I'm so tired and lazy, I don't feel like flying back and trying to go back to sleep. Well, what is there to do in the middle of the night? …...Nothing actually. Screw it, I'll just fly around town until something interesting happens.

I started flying just above building level, just scanning for something to do. I heard a scream from a mare, and I darted in that direction. I came across town hall, and looked through one of the windows. Oh shit! It looks like Mayor Mare is getting it on with...DAD?! AHHHHHH! FUCKING SICK! I fell to the ground holding myself.

"Kill me...kill me...kill me." I repeated over and over again.

After about thirty minutes of holding myself, I heard something behind me. I turned around to see a dark figure approaching me. This better not be another regenerans bestia. I jumped up and readied for a fight.

"Whoa, it's just me Shadow. It's Ni."

"Ni? What the hell are you doing here?"

He shrugged. "Just a leisurely flight around the area. Hey, what's wrong with you? You look pretty bad."

I shuddered. "I...don't want to talk about it."

"Oh no, you saw one of your parents having sex, didn't you?"

I slowly nodded and started sobbing.

"Hey, it's okay Shadow, we've all been there."

"Why? Why would they make so much noise?!"

"Sigh*, come on, lets fly around a little bit to get your mind off of this mess."

I nodded, and we took flight.

"So...where are we going?" I asked.

"Nowhere in particular, we're just flying around."

"Oh...okay."

"Stop thinking about it."

"What?"

"You're thinking about what happened back there. Stop it."

"Oh, you have no idea how much I wish I could."

"Just focus on something else. What did you do yesterday?"

"I...went on my first Wonderbolts performance."

"Yes, and?"

"It...was fun. Me and Rainbow tied in a race, and I went to a nice kid's birthday party afterwards. Then I went home, then I went to sleep then I woke up and found my da- OH GOD WHY?!"

I started hyperventilating.

Ni smacked me with one of his wings, knocking me out of my episode.

"...Thanks."

"You're welcome. Now lets just focus on this flight, okay?"

"Yeah, I can do that..."

We flew for about another fifteen minutes until one of us spoke again.

"So did you ever have a family?" I asked.

"I did, yes."

"What happened? Well, besides the immortality thing."

"Not much to tell really. My dad left my mom when she was pregnant. When I was somewhere around eight, my mom died, and I became an orphan."

"That's rough."

"A way of putting it, but yes it was...rough. Wait, do you see that?"

"See what? It's the middle of the night, and we're above the Everfree Forest."

"Down there, in those ruins."

I took a closer look. I could make out the ruins, but not much else. "All I can see is the ruins."

"That's because you're not used to seeing in the dark like I am. Regenerans Bestia, three of them."

"Really?"

"Hold onto me, we're going down."

"Whoa, whoa, I don't roll that way dude."

"Not like that, idiot. I can turn invisible at night, and if another pony is touching me, they turn invisible with me."

"Oh, okay. That sounds better."

He rolled his eyes. "Just grab on."

I put a hoof on his back, and we descended closer to the ruins.

When we landed, I noticed that I could still see myself and Ni.

"Hey, aren't we supposed to be invisible?"

"You can still see yourself, but they can't see you."

"Well that's convinient."

"Sure is. Now lets move up and get a closer look."

I nodded and we moved in. One of the regenerans bestia was on patrol around the perimeter. We snuck by him when he was turned the other way, just to be safe. When we got inside the ruins themselves, we saw some construction platforms.

"What would they want with this place?" I asked.

"It would give them a good base close to Ponyville if they manage to fortify this place." Ni whispered back.

"Well in that case, lets kill them all and get out of here."

"Not so fast Shadow. You can't handle three of these things by yourself."

"If they're planning on attacking Ponyville, then that's a risk I'm willing to take."

"Okay Shadow, you might kill one, two at the most, but three is too much for you."

"Then what the hell do we do?"

"We need to report this to your squad, they would be best suited for this."

"...Fine, lets go."

We snuck back outside, and we flew away from the ruins, and towards Cloudsdale. When we got to the Wonderbolts HQ, we took the secret passage behind the locker. We found Soarin and Blaze at the large table, but not Spitfire.

Soarin looked up. "Oh hey, hows it going guys? You look pretty serious."

"Is Spitfire here?" I asked.

"No, but I can go get her."

"Do it, we have something to report."

"Sure thing. Be right back."

Soarin got up and flew to the stairs.

Me and Ni took a seat at the table. Ni offered me the seat next to him.

"No thanks, I need to sit at least one space from you."

"And why is that?"

"It's no offence to you, but that's guy code where I come from."

"Guy code?"

"If you ever go to a place that requires you to have a seat, always sit at least one space apart from your guy friends if possible."

"That's a weird thing to do."

"To you maybe, but this is how I've done it for a while."

(I'm gonna go ahead and clear the air here. I'm not a homophobe or anything. This is just how me and my friends act, so sorry if I offend, because it's unintentional.)

"What did you guys want to report anyways?" Blaze asked.

"When Soarin and Spitfire get here, we'll tell you." I responded.

"Fiiine." She groaned.

Was I that impatient when I was fourteen? Wait, I'm still that impatient, nevermind.

Spitfire trotted downstairs with Soarin, and they took a seat at the table.

"Okay, so what did you two have to report? Because if it's not important, I'm going to hurt all three of you for waking me up."

"All three?" I asked.

"You, Night Wing, and Soarin."

"Wait, why me?!" Soarin complained.

"Because you're the one that woke me up."

Soarin groaned and just buried his head in his hooves.

"Right, well, me and Ni were just flying around the Everfree forest, when Ni spotted something in the ruins. We went down to get a closer look, and we found something."

Ni spoke up. "They were regenerans bestia. Three of them. It looked like they were fortifying the old ruins there."

"And you're sure about this?"

"Of course. I wouldn't have told you if I weren't sure." Ni responded

"Alright then. Soarin, Blaze, Shadow, lets go. Captain Night Wing, you too."

"Wait, why me?" Ni asked.

"Because, if somepony gets injured, we're going to need you to fly them out of there."

"Right, got it."

"Okay, move out!"

We turned and started to move.

"Shadow, wait!" Spitfire called out

I turned. "Yeah, what's up?"

"Catch." She said as she threw a couple of daggers at me.

"Oh shit!" I yelled as I dodged them.

"You were supposed to catch them."

"Yeah, I'm not doing that."

I looked down, there were three daggers. She must have accidentally thrown me an extra. Oh well, I picked them up and put them in my bag.

"Alright Shadow, lets go."

I nodded and we trotted up the stairs. We went outside and took flight to the ruins in the Everfree Forest, where the others were waiting.

"Okay, here's the plan." Spitfire whispered. "Captain Night Wing, you stay up here. If you see anypony that gets injured, fly down and get them out of here."

"Got it."

"Okay, the rest of us we infiltrate the base, and try to take out the three bestia there without a noise. I'll take one, Soarin, you take another, and Blaze and Shadow, you take the one guarding the perimeter."

"Sure thing." Blaze said.

"Alright, everypony ready?"

We nodded. "Alright, let's move."

We flew down close to the ruins. When we were on the ground, Spitfire and Soarin went to look for the other two bestia. Me and Blaze were behind a bush only about twenty feet from the closest one. It looked like this one was transformed into a griffin, just like the one I fought.

"Okay, you get its attention, while I sneak up on it, and kill it from behind." Blaze said.

I nodded, and Blaze flew off.

I peaked over the bush, and saw that Blaze was ready. I gave a cough, and the regenerans bestia turned to my direction, it started walking toward me. When it was just on the other side of the bush, Blaze swooped down and pierced its chest from behind.

"Nice one." I said.

"I try to please."

One thing we didn't think of though, was that these things could make noise. It let out an incredibly loud shriek, and melted.

"That's not good." Blaze said.

"What isn't good?"

Blaze pointed back to the ruins. "That."

Just then, we saw two more regenerans bestia emerge, one looking like a pony, the other a griffin, and charge at us.

Blaze turned to me. "Okay, here's the plan-"

"LEEEEROYYYYY!" I yelled as I charged, cutting her off.

"Damnit Shadow!" She yelled back

On my charge to meet them, I pulled out two of the daggers Spitfire gave me. I took flight before meeting them, and lunged at the griffin one. It dodged me, and raked my back, making me bleed a lot.

I turned back to them. "Alright, I was reckless there, but you won't get me again!"

I went for the griffin again. It tried to decapitate me with a claw, but I ducked and gave a powerful cut with a dagger, slicing part of it's arm off. With the second dagger, I shoved it in its head. It let out a shriek, but didn't melt. It's arm started to regenerate, and the dagger was getting forced out of its head! I jumped back, and got ready for the next attack.

This time, however, the pony figure charged me. I flew up to avoid it, but it jumped up at the last moment, and delivered a powerful punch to my ribs. They didn't break, thanks to the potion, but it didn't mean that it couldn't hurt like hell. I fell to the ground, and coughed up some blood. I struggled to get back up. I'm not out of this yet. I reached in my saddle bag, and pulled out the third dagger and placed it in my mouth.

Alright, lets see how using three daggers works for me. "You fuckers aren't going to touch Ponyville!" I yelled as I charged at the pony figure, but when it tried to dodge, I moved with it, and shoved the daggers in my hooves in its eyes. While it was stunned for a moment, I shoved the dagger in my mouth into his heart. It let out a loud shreak and melted. I looked up, and readied myself for the griffin's attack, but was pleasantly surprised when it meled, thanks to a surprise attack from Blaze.

"I should have let you fight them on your own, ya know." Blaze said

"Yeah, but you didn't. Because everypony knows that if I died, there would be so much lesss sarcasm in the world."

She slugged me on the shoulder.

I laughed. "After the shit we just went through, I can't feel anything short of getting stabbed."

Spitfire and Soarin trotted over next. "What happened here?" Soarin asked.

"When we took out the first one, two more appeared." I answered.

"And you got them. Not bad." Spitfire said.

I put my daggers back into my bag.

"Thanks, but could I go to a doctor or something?"

"You look fine to me." Blaze replied.

"Yeah...I'm not. You know, that was pretty fu-" I said before I passed out.

Nice action scene right there, huh? I hope it was, because it was the first one I've written with actual weapons. Review/comment or Shadow is coming after you next with those three daggers!

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Chuck Norris won a staring contest with Medusa.
> Recovery Day
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I opened my eyes to a blinding light.

"I'm just curious Mr. Shadow, why do you insist on losing almost all of your blood? Is it fun? Or do you just want to see how much you can lose before you die?" A familiar voice asked.

My vision cleared a little bit, and I could make out the doctor that helped me out when I first fought a regenerans bestia.

I forced a smirk. "The latter, of course."

He rolled his eyes. "Maybe I should scan your brain for problems as well."

"Nah, I'm good. So what was wrong with me this time doc?"

"Besides losing almost all of your blood again, you have some bruised ribs."

"That's not so bad."

"Whatever you say Mr. Shadow. I'll tell everypony outside you're awake now."

"Fine by me."

He nodded and trotted out of the door. A few moments later, Rainbow, Twilight, Barry, and Ni trotted in.

"Oh hey guys, is it my birthday or something?"

"Can you do anything besides joke when you come close to dying?" Barry asked.

I shrugged. "Not really. This is how I cope."

Rainbow trotted next to my bed. She just sat there for a moment in silence.

I could make out a few tears going down her face. I pulled her close to me. "It's okay. I'm fine Rainbow. I'm still here."

I held her for a little while longer before breaking the hug.

She looked at me. "Why?"

"Huh?"

"Why do you keep putting yourself in danger?!"

"Because it's to protect everypony." I replied calmly.

"We can protect ourselves!"

"I'm sorry Rainbow, but that's where you're wrong. From the kind of threat I faced last night, there was no way Ponyville would have been fine by itself. Please try to understand, I'm doing this because I want to, and to protect Ponyville."

"Just...please stay safe the next time something like that happens."

"That would be an empty promise Rainbow. I can promise I'll do my best to come back alive, but not much more than that."

"Then promise!"

"...I promise."

She didn't say anything else. She just laid her head on my chest.

I looked up at Ni. "So what happened last night?"

"Well after you passed out from severe blood loss, I swooped down to pick you up, but not before one more regenerans bestia attacked me. After I dealt with it properly, I was able to fly you back here."

"And what about the other Mones?"

"They flew back to Cloudsdale. Spitfire said to talk to her when you can."

"Okay. Anything else?"

"Not really."

"Alright."

"I just stayed here to make sure you were okay. I'm going to head out now. Glad you're okay Shadow." Ni said as he started to trot out.

"Alright, thanks for saving my sorry ass."

He laughed. "You're welcome. Now get some rest Shadow." He finished before finally trotting out.

"So you're going to be okay then?" Twilight asked.

"Until he pulls something stupid like that again." Barry added.

"That sounds about right." I said with a smirk.

"Sarcastic asshole." Barry said rolling his eyes.

"Aww, come on Barry. You know that's why everypony loves me."

"You wish."

"Come on, bring it in bro." I said, opening up for a hug.

He let a smile slip. "Ahhhh there it is! You really do care!" I teased.

"Just shut up and go to sleep."

"Nah, I feel like I have so...much...energy..." I looked up and saw that the doctor had slipped me a sedative in my bag thingy above my bed.

"Ass...holes...ZzZzzZzzz"

I had some nightmares. I saw the base we had taken out go untouched. I saw the regenerans bestia launch an assault on Ponyville. They massacred everypony in sight. Just before they were about to kill Rainbow, my eyes shot open.

I looked around the dark room. Everything was nice and quiet. I looked down, and saw that Rainbow had fallen asleep on my chest. I smiled and gently stroked her mane. After about five minutes of that, I drifted back to sleep.

I had good dreams this time. I dreamed that me and Rainbow had become famous Wonderbolts. We had our wedding in Canterlot, and we grew old together. When that happened I woke up.

I looked down at Rainbow. She was still asleep. That last part of my dream is impossible. I'm going to have to watch Rainbow die someday. I'm going to have to watch everypony I care about die someday...

I choked back a few tears.

"Shadow? Are you okay?" Rainbow asked, making me jump a little bit.

"Uhh, yeah. I'm fine."

"I know when something's up Shadow. Tell me what's wrong."

"It's nothing. This is my burden to bare."

"You can't keep facing your problems without help Shadow."

"I know. But please, let me deal with this one myself."

"..."

"Trust me. This is for the best. Now lets think of something happier. How much longer until our wedding?"

"It's in thirteen days Shadow."

"That soon?"

She nodded. "That soon."

"Wow. I've really lost track of time."

"Yeah, I'll agree with you on that one."

"What time is it right now?"

"It's about 7:30 AM. Why?"

"Just curious." I said as I rose out of bed.

"What are you doing? You can't leave yet Shadow."

"There isn't much to do here. I'm gonna fly to Cloudsdale and talk to Spitfire about whatever it is she wanted to talk about."

"Sigh*, just please be careful Shadow."

"I will. I'll meet you back home. I love you."

"I love you too."

I shed my hospital gown and opened the room's window. I somewhat painfully spread my wings and took flight. It feels like every time I flap my wings, I'm getting a hammer to my back. After about fourty minutes of fighting to stay in flight, I finally reached Cloudsdale. This time I just landed at the edge of the city so I didn't have to fly anymore to avoid more pain.

I limped my way through the city and to the Wonderbolts HQ. I went to the locker room and struggled down the stairs. When I got downstairs, I saw Spitfire taking a nap on the central table.

I cleared my throat, making her jump awake.

"Shadow? What are you doing here?"

"Ni said you wanted to see me when I was able."

"Exactly. When you were able. You look like hell right now Shadow. It has to be painful just to stand right now."

"I've had worse."

"Is that always your excuse? That you've had worse?"

"If I didn't have an excuse, then all I would to is stay in bed all day. If I have an excuse not to, then I'll take it."

She sighed. "Well, you've got determination. I'll give you that."

"Thanks I guess. So what is it that you wanted to see me about?"

"I wanted to talk to you about your training."

"What about it?"

"Although we havn't trained you that much in the third level of combat that much, you seem to have fought exceptionally well against those bestia yesterday."

"Thanks, but where are you going with this?"

"I'm saying that with the level of training that you were on, you shouldn't have been able to last long at all with two bestia, let alone kill one of them. Needless to say, I'm impressed."

"So I get a cookie or something now?"

"No you moron. What happens now is that I start training you to be a full-fledged member of the Fugiens Mones."

"Wait, so you're going to-"

"Start training you on level four, yes." She finished for me.

"Cool, so when do I start?"

"Not now, if that's what you're thinking. First of all, I'm sleepy. Second, you still need to recover from your injuries. Last, you need to have the second potion so you can multiply your strength further."

"There's a second potion?"

"Well, there's actually four. One for when you first join, another when you finish phase three training, another after phase four, and one more for the captain."

"So what's this one supposed to do?"

"It will increase your strength like I told you. You see, after you complete a phase of training, you don't get increased strength by default."

"Because that would just be silly." I said with a roll of my eyes.

"Watch it. Anyways, you need to drink a stronger version of the previous potion to gain more strength."

"And why can't I just drink them all?"

"Because, there are limits. The only reason that I'm not giving any of you the strongest potion is because you would most likely die."

"What?"

"This is the reason we set up phases of training. If you are able to complete the first two phases, you can drink the first potion and survive. Complete the third, and you will most likely survive."

"Most likely?"

She nodded. "Your chances of survival dwindle the more potions you take. The first one is guarenteed for survival. As you progress however, your chances of death increase. This is why you must complete training first, because you'll have a better chance of survival."

"Just out of curiosity, what are the chances of survival for the potions?"

"Well, if you complete training like you're supposed to, the one that you would be drinking next, you would have a ten percent chance of mortality."

"And I have to take these potions?"

"If you want to progress any further, yes. We won't force you to take it, but it's highly recommended you do."

"Okay, what about the other two potions?"

"After stage four training, that potion leaves you with a fifty percent chance of mortality."

"Damn. What is the captain's chance?"

"My chances of survival were fairly slim. I had only a twenty percent chance of surviving."

"I really don't have any comment about that one. Well this is a first. I'm out of sarcasm."

"Apparently not, because you're still talking."

"Thanks, I appreciate you making me feel better."

"How Rainbow Dash wants to marry you, I'll never know..."

"Everypony loves the sarcasm Spitfire, even you." I said with a smirk.

"I highly doubt it." She said, rolling her eyes.

"So do I get to drink my potion now?"

"Yeah, sure. Be right back, I'm going to go grab it for you."

I nodded and sat down until she came back. About five minutes later, she flew back with another vial of that delicious fluid.

"Where do you keep that stuff anyways?"

"In a safe back there. Now are you sure you want to do this even though there's a chance you could die?"

"The way I see it, I'll die if I don't do it anyways, so lets go."

She nodded and handed me the bottle. I popped the cork and downed it. Seriously that stuff tastes incredible! It tastes just like bacon would if it were liquid!

After I finished, I let out a loud belch and dropped the bottle.

"Feel okay?" Spitfire asked.

"Oh yeah. I'll risk death any day if I can have another bottle of that stuff."

"Glad you like it."

"Well, I guess since we're done here, I'll limp back upstairs and fly home."

"You'll be fine you wuss."

I smiled and started trotting away.

"Oh, and Shadow!" Spitfire called out.

I turned around. "Yeah?"

"If you ever wake me up again, I'll make sure you'll never have kids. Are we clear?"

"What the hell kind of threat is that?!"

"A serious one." She suddenly smiled and waved. "Bye Shadow! I hope you feel better!"

I turned around and started speed trotting. I'm getting the hell out of here ASAP!

After struggling up the stairs, I made it outside of the building. I spread my wings and started flying home. After a while, I arrived back home and went inside. Rainbow was waiting for me on the couch.

"Hey Rainbow, how are ya?" I asked

"I should be asking you that question Shadow. Are you still hurt?"

"Eh, I'll be fine."

"If you're fine, you won't mind if we have some fun will you?"

"Fun?...Oh! Hell yeah! I like fun!"

She giggled. "I'm glad you do. Now let's go upstairs."

I nodded and followed her back upstairs for our 'fun time.'

Eeyup, I'm still busting your balls when it comes to this. Maybe I'll actually write through with something like this soon, I don't know, we'll see. Anywho, this was a pretty slow chapter, I know, but that was on purpose because you guys had action last chapter. This is supposed to be a little cool-down. Review/comment for me. That's right, I've actually run out of death threats for the time being. Do it anyways though :P

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Ozzy Osbourne once bit the head off of a bat. Not to be outdone, Chuck Norris bit the head off of Batman.
> Meeting with Royalty
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I like fun time. It's nice and...fun really. Everyone and everypony likes fun time. I probably have a bigger smile than Pinkie Pie herself right now. That's right, I'm that happy. Too bad that I need to do a few things today, so I can't continue with Rainbow.

I looked over at Rainbow. She had her eyes closed, but she was smiling too. "Hey Rainbow?"

"Hmm?"

"I need to go do a few things right now. I'll see you when I get back, okay?"

"Alright, thats fine. I'll see you later, and don't do anything stupid please."

"Now you're just asking me to not be myself." I replied with a grin.

"Shadow..."

"Ugh, fine. I won't do anything too stupid, but that's all I can promise."

"I guess that will have to do."

"Okay then, I'll see you later."

"Later."

I trotted downstairs and grabbed an apple before heading out the door. I spread my wings and took flight in the direction of Cloudsdale. I feel a lot better than I did earlier. I guess it's the bacon potion. How the hell could Blaze not like it? Maybe it's because ponies are herbivores, but I mean really, how can you not like bacon? Even if you are a pony?

Sometime during my thought process about bacon, I arrived at Cloudsdale. I had also accidentally flown past the Wonderbolts HQ. I groaned and turned around to go back to my destination. I got back to the HQ, and took the secret passage downstairs. I was taken back a little by what I saw. Princess Luna herself was here! Also present were Soarin, Blaze, Spitfire, Ni, and a few other ponies I havn't seen.

Princess Luna turned to me. "Ah, hello there young Shadow. Give us just a moment, we are discussing some important matters."

I gave a bow. "Yes your majesty, I'll wait upstairs if you prefer." Something I learned growing up, always show respect to a superior, or get your ass handed to you.

"That's quite alright. You are a member now. Please, take a seat so we may continue."

I nodded and found an empty seat between Ni and Blaze. Luna sat at the head of the table, with Spitfire and Soarin sitting at her sides.

Ni leaned in and whispered to me. "I thought this was against your 'guy code.'"

"Not now smartass." I whispered back.

Princess Luna cleared her throat before proceeding. "Yes, as we were saying, your next mission is coming close. Your objective is to end the griffin's rebellion as soon as possible while minimizing casualties on both sides. I do not want there to be bloodshed if at all possible. Captain Night Wing?"

"Yes your highness?" he answered

"You and your team will be departing a week before the assassins, the medics, and the archers so you can scout ahead for them."

"Yes Princess Luna."

I leaned in and whispered to Ni. "I thought you said there were only three groups of the Mones?"

"Did I? Huh, must have slipped my mind. There are actually four, my bad."

"No big deal I guess."

I sat back in my chair to continue listening to the princess. "I will now allow Spitfire to explain her squad's objective."

Spitfire rose. "Thank you, your majesty. Now for my squad, a week after Captain Night Wing's squad departs, we will make our way to the land of griffins as well. Once there, we will report to an envoy personally assigned to us by the head general of the griffin's loyalists. After he gives us our briefing, we will depart for our objective. If needed, we will have support from the archery squad. Any questions?"

We shook our heads. "Good. Captain Night Wing, you have the floor." Spitfire said as she took her seat.

Ni rose up and looked at a few of the ponies in the room. "My squad, our objective for this mission is to give recon for the area before any other teams proceed. We will attempt to gather what information we can on the rebels, and look for any weak points in their defenses. In order to do that, myself, and the captain of the medic squad will be posing as mercenaries in the rebel army. Once we have the information we need, we will report to the loyalist envoy, and give him whatever information we have. While me and the captain of the medics are behind enemy lines, I want the rest of you to blend in with the local populace and gather what information you can on the enemy. How about it, can I count on you squad?"

"Yes sir!"

Wow, Ni actually sounds like a real military guy when he's serious. Then again, I stop being sarcastic when I get serious. (obviously.)

Ni sat down and the princess rose up once more. "Our business here is concluded everypony. You may take your leave now!"

Everypony rose up and bowed, then trotted to the exit. I started doing the same until the princess called me.

"Shadow Flash, we would speak with you."

I turned around and trotted back to the princess. "Yes, your highness?"

"Walk with us, so we may discuss a few things."

I nodded and started walking beside the princess around the massive hidden temple.

"Captain Spitfire says that you handled yourself very well when fighting those regenerans bestia while only training on the third level."

"I wouldn't say I did that great actually. I barely managed to survive two of them and killed only one. If it weren't for Blaze, I probably would have died."

"You give yourself too little credit Shadow Flash. While you barely survived destroying one of those monsters, we strongly believe you wouldn't leave this world so easily, especially without a fight. It is our belief that you would go to great lengths to protect others, and that is just an understatement."

"Thank you, Princess Luna, but I'm really not comfortable with all the compliments."

"I am merely stating the facts Shadow Flash. A compliment would be saying that you have the potential to surpass your captain and become the strongest fighter in history."

"I apologize beforehand Princess, but do you mind if I speak my mind?"

"Of course."

"Thank you. Now did you really mean what you said about me being the strongest fighter? Or were you just saying that?"

"We cannot be sure. You have potential Shadow Flash. You very well may surpass Captain Spitfire one day, and so long as you continue your devotion to protecting Equestria and your training, I have no doubt you will."

"And how do you know this?"

"It is in our best judgement you will."

"And do you think I'll survive the next potion? Or even the captain's potion if it came to that? Spitfire said I would have about a 50/50 shot on the next one, and a twenty five percent chance of living on the captain's potion."

"Is that what she told you?"

"You mean I'll live if I take any of them?"

"That is not what we are saying. The chance of death is very real on these potions. But something your captain left out is that your chances of survival also depend on your will to live."

"My will to live?"

She nodded. "For example, if you were to drink one of these potions without the will to live, you would die. On the other hoof, if you took it with a strong will to live, you would most likely live. Even on the second potion where your basic chances are ten percent death, and you have no more will to live, you would most certainly die."

"And how do you know these things?"

"Because we helped create this potion."

"You did? Along with who?"

"Maybe some other time we will tell you."

"Oh, okay. Do you mind if I ask you a question Princess?"

"What is it?"

"Does Princess Celestia know about all of this?"

"...No, she does not."

"I see. And what would happen if she found out?"

"She will not."

"Okay then."

"You must understand, it is not that we like keeping secrets from her, it's just for the better. We let her believe that the problems this world has always solve themselves-"

"But in reality, the Fugiens Mones are fixing them. You are also doing this for your sister aren't you?...Sorry."

"No... it is quite alright. And it is as you say. We help fix this world's problems for Equestria's sake...and for Tia's."

"And who do you do this more for? Equestria, or Princess Celestia?"

Just then, her eyes started glowing white, and she started shouting in her royal Canterlot voice."WE WILL NOT CONTINUE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS THAT HARASS US! HOW DA-..." She cut herself off, and closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes again, they were normal. "We...apologize Shadow Flash."

"No, I'm sorry for pushing you like that. But do you mind if I ask one or two more questions?"

"As long as they don't pertain to the previous conversation, yes you may."

"They don't. I'm just curious, why weren't the captains of the other two squads at the meeting?"

"They were off doing other things I had assigned them with."

"Oh, okay. Do you mind if I ask who they are?"

"The captain of the medics you most likely know, but the seclusive archery captain you might not."

"I might know the captain of the medics and the captain of the archers?"

"You might not. There is a very slim chance you do, but it is quite possible. Now for the archery captain, nopony but myself and his squad know who he is. Although he has been captain for a short amount of time, he is one of the strongest ponies in Equestria. You should have an interesting time meeting him if you haven't actually already."

"And why is that?"

"He is...different from most of the ponies you will ever meet."

"Is he that mysterious?"

"That is one way of putting it, we suppose."

Wow, this guy must be like a hardass or something. Maybe he's one of those guys that is the strong and silent type but really kick ass in a fight. "Okay, when do I get to meet them?"

"Well if nothing unpredictable happens, such as you just bumping into each other, you should get acquainted sometime during your mission."

"Okay then. Is that all Princess?"

"That is all we have to say for now, yes."

"I'll be on my way then. It was nice talking with you." I said as I turned to the exit.

"It was...interesting. Take care Shadow Flash. We hope to see you again soon." The princess then turned to the memorial structure in silence, lost in thought.

I continued on my way upstairs, leaving the princess to stare at the memorial thing behind the table. I wonder what that's all about.

I left the Wonderbolts HQ building, and saw Ni waiting for me outside.

"Hey Ni, what's up?"

"I guess your feeling better now, huh?"

I motioned up and took flight. He did the same and flew next to me. Next to me being a good distance away so he didn't smack the hell out of me with his wings.

"Yeah, I'm feeling better, what of it?"

"Nothing, just glad to hear it."

"Yeah, that potion helped me out pretty nicely. All it took was a few rounds of sex to kick in."

"Something I didn't need to hear, but good to know."

I laughed. "Sorry, I can't help it."

"I'm really not doing anything tomorrow, did you want to spend some time together?"

"What? Like hang out?"

"Exactly."

"I don't know, I might be busy with Rainbow. Don't you have a marefriend or something?"

"Well...not really."

"Oh that's cool. How about I help you get one tomorrow?"

"That's okay, I don't really-"

"When's the last time you got laid Ni?"

He mumbled something I couldn't make out.

"What was that? I didn't hear you."

"...never.."

"One more time dude."

"Never! I've never been laid!"

"Oh shit! For real?!"

"...Yeah."

"Hey, nothin' to be ashamed about Ni, because your best bud Shadow is going to get you laid tomorrow!"

"Shadow, really, I'm fine."

"Oh hell no you're not! I'm not taking no for an answer! Me, Soarin, and Barry will help you out tomorrow! You can count on that!"

"..."

"No need for a thank you Ni, just be at the sanctuary tomorrow at noon and I'll get Barry and Soarin there as well! You'll see dude, tomorrow, you will be a virgin no more!" With that, I branched off and flew home. I walked in it looked like Rainbow wasn't home, or she just wasn't in the living room.

"Rainbow, you here?"

No response. Eh, she's probably hanging out with Twilight or one of the other elements. I'm pretty tired so I guess I'll go to bed.

I trotted upstairs and got myself comfortable on the bed. Tomorrow I'm going to do my duty as a friend and get another friend laid.

So how about it? :P. Tell me your thoughts on the conversation with Luna, and the chat with Ni by leaving a review/comment. Next chapter will make you laugh. Sorry for the long wait for this chapter by the way, I was just lazy.

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Rainbows are what happens when Chuck Norris roundhouse kicks Richard Simmons.
> The Four Hundred Year Old Virgin
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Damn, I had trouble sleeping last night. I have no idea what it was, but I just couldn't. I didn't have nightmares or anything, so why couldn't I sleep? Meh, I shouldn't read too much into it. Right, so what's on the agenda for today? Oh! That's right! I'm going to get Ni laid today! Now lets see if I can't set this guy up with a nice mare. I wonder who I could set him up with. Oh well, I guess I should ask him what he's into first.

I looked beside me, and Rainbow, as usual, was still asleep. I kissed her on the head before sliding out of the bed and going downstairs. I raided the fridge and emerged with an apple and some water. This should keep me filled up for a while. Right, so now I need to go get Barry to come with me.

I walked outside with the apple in my mouth and the water in my hoof. I spread my wings and took flight for Twilight's library. When I reached it, I munched down the rest of my apple and knocked. Spike answered the door for me.

"Oh hey Shadow, whats up?"

"Is Barry here?" I asked.

"Sure is. Come on in and I'll get him for you."

"Okay, thanks."

He turned and moved away from the door to let me in. I trotted inside and closed the door behind me.

"I'll be right back with Barry." Spike said.

I nodded and trotted over to the couch to have a seat. A few moments later, Barry trotted down.

"Hey Landon, what did you need?" He asked.

"I need some help."

"With what?"

"I'm going to try and help a friend get laid, and I need you for it."

"Dude, I'm with Twilight right now. I'm pretty sure you know this."

"No, not like that dumbass. I need you to help me help him get a date."

"That's all you had to say, ya know."

"Yeah, yeah. So will you help me?"

"Sure, why not? I really wasn't planning on doing anything else today. Where's your friend at?"

"He should be in Cloudsdale right now."

"And how am I supposed to go to Cloudsdale?"

"You could get Twilight to give you that spell to allow you to walk on clouds."

"Okay, and how would I get there?"

"I fly you there."

"That doesn't exactly sound safe..."

"Ah, don't be a wimp."

"Easy for you to say."

"I'm not going to drop you or anything."

"Ugh, this is gonna suck..."

"So you'll do it?"

"I guess. Let me get Twilight to cast the cloud walking spell on me. I'll be right back."

"Alright. I'll be right here."

Barry left me and trotted back upstairs. A few moments later, he came back down. "Alright, I'm ready. Lets get this over with."

"No need to look so glum, today is going to be a pony's best day ever!"

"Whatever."

"You're a bummer, you know that?"

"Lets just go already."

"Fine."

We trotted outside and I spread my wings again.

"Alright, hop on."

"Dude..."

"Shut up and get on."

He breathed a heavy sigh and climbed on. "Alright, make sure to hold on tight, I don't wanna drop you."

"That doesn't make me feel better about this."

"It wasn't supposed to. It's just a warning. Here we go!"

I jumped off the ground and started flapping my wings. We rose up in the air and I turned towards Cloudsdale. This is pretty easy to handle, thanks to my super strength. It's like Barry's not even there. I turned back to check on him.

"How are you back there?"

"Terrified."

"You'll be fine."

"So uh, where at in Cloudsdale are we meeting your friend."

Well, it looks like I get to tell him now. "Did Thunder Gunner ever tell you the story about those Fugiens Mones?"

"Yeah, he did. I also know you're one of them."

"You do?"

"Yes I do. Rainbow told Twilight, and Twilight told me. Honestly, how long did you think you could keep a secret as big as it is?"

"I was hoping at least until a special circumstance, such as getting a friend laid. Oh well, this saves me the trouble of explaining everything to you."

"Sarcastic even in what's supposed to be a serious moment...unbelievable."

"Who said this moment was supposed to be serious? Besides, everyone needs a little humor to lighten up."

"Whatever."

"Seriously, why are you so pissy?"

"It could have something to do with me being over a mile above ground and me not having wings."

"Fine, I'll drop the subject of you being so pissy. Anyways, we're going to the headquarters for the Wonderbolts. If Ni really does want to get laid, he'll be there. I'm also going to get Soarin to help out."

"Why Soarin?"

"Just seems like a good time to get to know the guy better, that's all."

"Fair enough. Are we almost there?"

"Not really, no. We still probably have around twenty minutes, so get comfortable."

"I'd rather not."

"Oh shut up."

I was surprised when he didn't say anything back. That's good though. At least I can have a quiet flight now. The time flew however, and we were soon in Cloudsdale. I landed next to the Wonderbolts' HQ building and let Barry hop off.

"You're terrible traveling company, you know?"

"You're one to talk."

"I'm just going to let this argument slide and move on with what we're here for, and that's to help out a friend in need!" I finished, pointing to the sky.

"You make yourself sound so heroic for doing this..." Barry said.

"That's because it is dude! This is the best thing a friend could do! Now lets go!"

I marched into the building with Barry mumbling something behind me. I don't even care actually.

I turned to Barry. "Alright, stay here. I'll be right back."

"I might as well."

"I won't be long."

I turned away and headed into the locker room. I trotted downstairs into the sanctuary and found Ni waiting at the table.

I smiled. "Alright! You showed up!" I exclaimed.

He gave a small smile in return.

"Trust me dude. We'll get you a date tonight for sure! That's a promise!"

"Thanks, I guess."

"No need for thanks Ni. Do you know where Soarin is?"

"Yeah, he should be out back at the training area."

"Alright. Come on upstairs, I want you to meet my bud, Barry."

"Okay."

Ni got out of his chair and trotted over. I turned and we went up the stairs and back into the lobby of the Wonderbolts's HQ where Barry was waiting.

"Barry, I'd like you to meet Night Wing. Night Wing, this is Barry."

Barry trotted over and the two shook hooves.

"I'm Night Wing, but you can just call me Ni." Ni said.

"Mint Barry, you can just call me Barry."

I chuckled a little. Mint Barry was still a pretty funny name to me.

"Alright, I'll let you two get acquainted while I go out back and get Soarin." I said.

I turned and headed out of the building. I flew around back to look for Soarin. I spotted him taking a breather from his training on the bleachers. I smiled a little and flew down.

He looked up and noticed me approaching. "Hey Shadow, what can I do you for?"

"Soarin, what is the most important thing a friend can do for another friend?" I asked.

"Uhh, is it being there for them?"

"Wrong! It's getting them laid!"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Did you know Captain Night Wing is a virgin?"

"No way! Seriously?!"

I nodded. "That's right, and it's our duty as his friend to set him up with a good date!"

"Shadow, I don't exactly roll that way..."

"Not like that you idiot! Seriously, is it that hard to understand what I'm saying?"

"Sorry, but you're not exactly being clear."

I sighed. "Okay, how about this? I need your help to help get Ni a good marefriend. Is that clear enough?"

"Much better. And yeah, I'd be glad to help out the good captain."

"Fantastic! He's waiting for us in the main building with one of my friends."

"Alright, lets go."

I nodded and we flew back around to the front. Ni and Barry were waiting just outside the door. I trotted over to Ni while I let Soarin and Barry introduce themselves.

"So are you ready to get yourself laid?"

"A marefriend would be fine as well."

"Of course! We'll set you up with a great mare that you can relate with! Don't worry Ni, this is going to be the best day of your long ass life!"

He chuckled. "Alright then."

"Okay, lets go get you a date! Come on you two, we're leaving!" I yelled out.

I let Barry climb on my back and we took flight.

"So uh, where are we going?" Ni asked.

"We're heading to Baltimare." I said.

"Why Baltimare?" Soarin asked.

"Because there are supposed to be some awesome clubs there, and I've never been, so this is a good excuse to."

"Who are you going to set him up with?" Barry asked.

"We'll see. We're going to hang out at one of the clubs there. There's bound to be somepony that Ni likes."

"I'm not really comfortable with crowds Shadow." Ni said.

"You'll be fine. Me and Soarin should draw most of the attention away since we're Wonderbolts. You and Barry can do some scouting while everypony is distracted."

"What if I don't like any of the mares there?" Ni asked.

"Then we move on to more clubs until you find a mare you like. Simple as that."

"You make it sound so easy..." Ni said.

"Because it is. Don't worry, this is going to end nicely for you."

"If you say so."

"I know so. Now Soarin you've been to Baltimare right?"

"Yeah, I go there for some performances every now and then."

"Good, because I have no idea where I'm going, could you lead the way?"

"Sure, I guess."

"You were going to take us to a place you don't even know the way to?" Barry asked.

"Yes I was. Is there something wrong with that?"

"Yes, yes there is, but you don't see the problem with it, so I'll drop it."

"So how far away is Baltimare?" I asked Soarin.

"It should be around an hour or more until we arrive as fast as we're going." He responded.

"Okay, that's fine with me. How ya doin back there Barry?"

"I'm still here, and not falling to my death if thats what you mean."

"Okay, good. I'd hate to explain how I let you die to Twilight."

"I'd so haunt your ass if I died."

"Fine, I won't let you fall."

"Good."

And that was pretty much it for the conversation. We mostly flew the rest of the way in silence. After a while of flying I saw some lights in the distance.

"Hey Soarin, is that Baltimare?"

"Sure is. We're finally here. Get ready guys, because we're about to party it up."

"Hell yeah! Lets go get Ni laid!"

"You say that like every ten seconds." Ni replied.

"I say it because I mean it. Now lets go."

We descended towards the big city and Soarin turned his head around to say something.

"I know a pretty good place to hang out. Follow me."

We nodded and he took us around a few buildings. He stopped and landed in front of a place called The Undertow.

"This is a great place to do what we're about to do." Soarin said.

"Alright, cool."

We trotted up to the entrance, and passed up a bunch of ponies waiting in line up to the bouncer.

"Oh hey Soarin! Go on in." The large bouncer pony said.

"These guys are with me, could you let them through as well?" Soarin asked.

"Sure thing. You three are good to go if Soarin says you are."

We trotted in, and nodded to the bouncer as we passed him. When we walked in, there were flashing lights, and a massive dance floor in the middle. There was a dj playing music that from what I could tell was dubstep. We trotted over to the bar and took some seats.

"What can I get you four gent- oh! You two are the Wonderbolts Soarin and Shadow Flash!" The tan unicorn bartender said.

"That's correct." I said.

"What can I get you guys?"

"I'll stick with a Colt Lite." I said.

"I'll take the same." Soarin said.

"And what about you two?" The bartender asked Barry and Ni.

"We're good, thanks." Barry said.

The bartender nodded and handed me and Soarin our beers.

"So do you see any cute mares in here Ni?" I asked.

"There are some beatiful mares, I won't lie, but how are their person(pony? I'm seriously confused by this one)alities?" He replied.

"Go talk to them then."

"I don't really-" He started to say.

"Go talk to them." I said, giving him a shove to get him closer to a yellow mare with a purple mane and tail. She had a flower for her cutie mark.

I leaned in to hear what was said.

The mare looked up at Ni. "Hi, I'm Purple Lotus, what's your name?"

"Oh, I'm Night Wing."

"It's nice to meet you Night Wing. I havn't seen you here before. Are you new to this place?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm-" Ni was cut off by a large white earth pony with a black mane and tail that cut between him and Purple Lotus.

"Are you trying to steal my marefriend big guy?" The jackass said.

"We were just talking. There is no need to get upset friend."

"Don't call me your friend."

"Blinding, he's right, we were just talking." Purple Lotus said to the jackass who's name was apparently Blinding.

"Did I say you could talk to somepony else?" He said.

"Okay, you can't tell me who I can and can't talk to Blinding!"

Soarin downed his drink and sighed. "Don't worry, I got this one."

"The hell I can't!" Blinding yelled, raising his hoof to strike Purple Lotus.

His hoof came down, and Lotus flinched. Before it connected however, Soarin had caught Blinding's hoof.

"I think you've had enough. Go home." Soarin said.

"Bastard!" Blinding yelled, swinging his other hoof at Soarin.

Soarin caught that hoof as well and twisted, making Blinding cry out.

"I'll say it once more, go home." Soarin said, this time throwing him through the door.

Soarin went up to Purple Lotus. "Are you okay miss?"

"You're...Soarin the Wonderbolt aren't you?"

"I am, but that's not important. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Thank you."

"Good."

They continued to talk, and Ni trotted back over. "Well that was bad. I guess that does it for this place."

"Come on, that was only your first attempt. You actually got a nice mare, but it looks like Soarin gets this one. You just need to keep trying is-" I was cut off by another voice.

"Excuse me, but aren't you that new Wonderbolt, Shadow Flash?" A green pegasus mare with a darker green mane said. She had a set of glasses as her cutie mark.

"That's right. And who might you be?"

"My name is Eye Drop, and I was wondering if I could get an autograph from you." She said with a large smile.

"Of course. Do you have something to write with and some paper?"

"Sure, here you go." She said, handing me a Wonderbolts poster and a black marker.

I took them from her and signed the poster, then handed them back.

"Oh my gosh! Thank you so much!" She yelled, putting her items back in her saddle bag.

"It's no trouble. Oh, and before you go, this is my friend Night Wing. He's a pretty nice guy and do you think you could talk to him for a bit?"

"Sure! Hi there Night Wing, it's nice to meet you!"

"Pleasure's all mine. So which profession do you specialize in?"

"I'm an eye doctor. What about you?"

"I..help set up some of the Wonderbolts performances."

"That's so cool!"

I laughed. "I'll let you talk some more, I'm going to get myself another drink."

I got up and trotted a few stools over and waved the bartender over for another drink. He gave me another beer which I got to work on.

About a minute later I heard a scream where Ni and Eye Drop were. I looked over and saw Ni trotting back rubbing the left side of his face.

"What the hell happened?" I asked.

"She saw my wings and panicked. This is why I don't go to public places Shadow. I scare ponies." He started looking depressed.

"Whoa, whoa, it's all good Ni. We'll leave this place and go somewhere else, how's that sound?"

"Whatever you say Shadow..."

Damn, I'm losing him. I need to think of something quickly before he gives up.

Just then, a grey pegasus mare with a blonde mane and tail sat next to us.

"Can I get a water please?" She asked.

Huh, it looks like thats Derpy Hooves. I wonder what she's doing in Baltimare. I looked at Ni, he wasn't saying anything. He was too busy staring at her.

Ohh shit, he likes Derpy! Sweet, now it's time to make some magic happen!

I turned to Derpy, but Ni cut me off before I had a chance to say anything.

"Excuse me?" Ni said.

Derpy turned around and looked at Ni with her googly eyes. "Yes?"

"Umm...what's your name?"

"I'm Derpy Hooves the mail mare!" She said with a large smile.

Ni didn't say anything, he was still staring at her.

"Why are you staring at me? Is it because my eyes are funny looking?"

"No! That's not it at all!"

"It's okay. That's all everypony else looks at when they see me..."

"I was just admiring how beautiful they were."

"Really? Do you mean that?"

"One hundred and ten percent, yes. You are one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen."

Derpy blushed. "Thank you. Nopony has ever actually complimented me like that before."

"I have no idea why they wouldn't."

"Thank you...do you mind if I ask what your name is?"

"My name is Night Wing."

"That's a nice name."

"Thank you."

"So why do you want to talk to me? Nopony ever wants to talk to me unless it's something about my eyes or how I've messed up."

"You're actually not the only pony who has trouble talking with others."

"Why? Do ponies make fun of you too?"

"No, it's worse. Ponies ignore me, and are usually too scared to come near me."

"Why?"

"Please don't scream..."

"Why would I-"

Derpy was cut off by Ni extending his wings more and more until they were fully extended.

Her eyes shot wide.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to scare you."

She smiled. "I'm not scared Night Wing, I think those wings are really cool!"

"You do?"

She nodded. "I mean it."

Ni smiled. "Thank you Derpy Hooves."

"Call me Derpy, it's easier to do that."

"In that case, just call me Ni."

"I have a few more deliveries to make. Do you think you could come with me for the rest of them?"

"I'd love to."

Derpy's smile shot even larger. "Thank you! This way then!"

Ni got up and followed her. Before he left the building with Derpy, he looked back at me and gave me a smile and nod. I held up my beer and nodded back.

"Well what now?" Barry asked.

"We go home. Our job here is done."

"Why do you sound so dramatic?"

"Let me have my moment Buzz Killington. Now as I was saying, ahem*, our duty is done, let us depart."

"What about Soarin?"

"I really have no idea where he went. I also don't see Purple Lotus. Well it looks like this was a fun night for two ponies tonight. Lets get going, it's a long way home."

We trotted outside, and I let Barry hop on my back.

I changed my voice and spoke. "Baltimare, we'll be-"

"Say it and I'll fucking murder you."

"Fine, Mr. Killington."

"Thank yo-"

"WE'LL BE BACK!" I yelled before taking off.

"...Fuck you."

I started laughing. "If it annoys you so much, you're free to hop off."

"Don't talk to me."

"Hahahaha!"

He didn't say anything else. He just shut up, which made me laugh even harder. I eventually stopped laughing. A while after that, we arrived back in Ponyville. I flew in front of the library, and let Barry climb off.

"Later Barry."

He sighed. "Later."

"Thanks for helping my friend out."

"I didn't really do anything, but you're welcome. 'Night."

"'Night."

I jumped off the ground and flew back home. I went inside and went upstairs. It was probably around midnight right now, so I wasn't surprised when I saw Rainbow already asleep. I yawned and climbed in bed next to her. I might not have gotten lucky tonight, but at least I helped Ni out. Have fun buddy.

I apologize for the lack of chapters recently, but I've been pretty busy. I start school back up Tuesday, and I've been trying to get my shit together for it. I have also been watching A LOT of Bleach. I will probably be putting out even less chapters then, but they won't stop. Maybe one every three days or so. (Also, this is the last chapter in the massive upload I'm doing here to fimfiction :P)

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Champions are the breakfast of Chuck Norris. (I actually have a shirt that says that :P
> Thinking of the Future
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up and smiled a little to myself. Yesterday was a good day. I did my job as a friend, and got my buddy laid. I got out of the bed without making a noise to avoid waking Rainbow up, and trotted downstairs to grab some breakfast. I made myself some toast and hay bacon. (This is your weekly hay bacon moment.) When that was finished I opened up the fridge and pulled out some orange juice. I poured myself a glass and sat down to eat.

Sometime during my eating, I got lost in thought. I wonder what I'm doing today. Maybe I'll talk with Ni and ask him how his night went. That would only last a short time though. What else could I do? I mean I guess I could train, but that would also only be a short time. Maybe I could just fly around again and hope something happens. I really hope I don't see Mayor Mare and Dad...OKAY thinking about something else now! Preferably something not having anything to do with my previous thoughts. I breathed a sigh of relief when I finally was able to take my mind off of it when I heard Rainbow trotting down.

I turned away from my meal to greet her. "Morning Rainbow. Sleep well?"

"I didn't sleep enough." She said as she rubbed her eyes.

"I know how ya feel. Hungry?"

"Nah, I'll just stick with some orange juice."

"Suit yourself." I said as I took a bite out of my toast.

"So what are you doing today?" She said before giving a long yawn.

"I'm really not sure what I'm going to do today. Maybe I'll just go train and come back early. What about you?"

"I've got plans with the girls today. We're going to chill at the spa, on the condition that all I have to do is just lie down and not get a hooficure."

I chuckled. "Alright, I guess I'll head out now. I'll see you when I get back then?"

She gave me a quick kiss. "Yeah, see you then Shadow."

I got up and put my dishes (made of cloud...) up. I gave Rainbow a hug then trotted outside. I spread my wings and took flight in the direction of Cloudsdale. When I arrived at the HQ building, I trotted inside and went into the locker room. I opened up the locker revealing the secret passage of stairs to the sanctuary. When I got down there, I saw Spitfire, Soarin, and Ni at the table. I laughed when I saw Soarin with an icepack on his head.

"Drink too much Soarin?"

"Not so loud Shadow..."

"Haha, sorry. What about you, Ni? How was your night, and how was doing it with Derpy?"

"We didn't have sex."

"Damn right you didn't have sex-wait what? You didn't have sex?"

"That's right."

"What the hell did you do then?"

"When she finished her last deliveries, we went back to her place and just talked."

"Talked?"

He nodded. "That's right. We just talked about each other the whole time. There was no sex involved."

"Please tell me you at least made out."

"We kissed, yes."

"At least I helped you get that far, not to take credit away from you. I'm proud of you Ni, you got yourself a marefriend."

He smiled. "Thanks Shadow."

I waved a hoof. "Don't mention it. So I'm just curious, but did you two sleep together?"

"Yes, we did actually."

"Nice. So when do you plan to see her again?"

"We actually made some plans for later today. We are supposed to go eat out together."

"And you're not uncomfortable with that? Being around all of those ponies I mean."

"Normally I would be, but I don't think I am going to be this time. This time is going to be different."

"Well good for you then. It sounds like you really care about her."

"Of course. We really connect with each other. The only thing I'm really worried about is if I out-"

"Don't say it." This is me about to snap.

"Wha?"

"You were gonna say 'if you outlive her'. Don't say that. Don't ever say that." Almost snapped.

"But it's true Shadow. There is always a very strong possibility that we out-live them, and-"

"Shut up! Shut up Ni! You don't know that! You don't know when we'll die! It could be tomorrow for all we know!" I shouted. Yep, I snapped.

"Yes, that's always a possiblity, but it's also a possibility we live another thousand years. I know it's painful Shadow, the thought of watching everypony you care about pass before your eyes, while you are helpless to do anything about it. Just remember, you will always have us, your second family."

"He's right Shadow, we'll always be here for you. We won't be going anywhere anytime soon." Spitfire said.

"If you manage to keep it down, I'll be here for you too." Soarin added while holding his head.

"You see Shadow? You will never be alone. You will always have us. That's actually a big reason I joined the Mones as I believe I told you before. I don't like being alone. The Mones were here for me, and they gave me a place to live, but most importantly, they became my family." Ni said.

"I...thanks. To all of you. I needed that slap to the face. It's just the thought of losing-"

"It's okay Shadow. We've all gone through it before. Yes, it's very tough, but you become stronger for it. Just remember why you drank that potion in the first place. You did it to protect Rainbow Dash and everypony else. You couldn't protect her before, but now you can, and you'll only get stronger." Spitfire said.

I sighed. "You're right...can we train or something right now to take my mind off of things?"

"Yeah, sure. Come on, I'll teach you some advanced grapple techniques today."

"I'm going to get ready for my date with Derpy. See you guys later." Ni said.

I nodded and me and Spitfire started trotting to the arena.

"Good, now I'm going to find a nice quiet spot to take a nap..." Soarin said as he rose from his chair.

I chuckled a little. They were right. No matter how much age separates us, or how different we are, we're family. We may not be related by blood, but I don't think anything could separate us. This is my home for the rest of my life...

"Shadow, you alright there? You went blank for a second." Spitfire said.

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks. I was just thinking about something."

"Alright. Step on inside the arena and we'll get started."

"Okay." I said as I lazily trotted in the arena.

"Are you sure you're okay Shadow?"

"Honestly? No, I'm not. But I can't let this distract me, so lets go."

"Shadow..."

"I said lets go."

She shrugged. "If that's what you want, then okay, lets get started."

A training session later

"You were surprisingly focused on your training considering what happened." Spitfire said.

"Like I said, I can't let it distract me."

"I guess. What's next for you?"

"Dunno, I guess I'll just fly home and hope something else comes up to give me something to do."

"Okay, well take care Shadow, and I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye." Was all I said before leaving.

I went outside and took flight towards Ponyville. I'm guessing it's somewhere around 3:00 PM now. So what else is there for me to do? I guess I could go talk to Barry. I recall Rainbow saying her and all of the girls would be at the spa today, so he shouldn't be doing anything. It's decided then, I'll go bug Barry.

When I arrived at the library I gave a knock. Barry answered this time instead of Spike.

"Hey Landon, did you need something?" He asked.

"Not really, just wanted to see if you wanted to hang out or something. I'm pretty bored right now."

"I guess we could. Come on in."

He moved away from the door and I trotted in.

"You know, I just thought of something." Barry said.

"Yeah? What's that?"

"Your wedding is in ten days, correct?"

I nodded. "That's right, why?"

"Dude, you need to have a bachelor party!"

I facehoofed. "Why the hell didn't I think of that?! That's an awesome idea!"

"Of course it is, because someone other than you thought of it."

"That hurts bro."

"I bet. Now where is the best place to go for a bachelor party?" Barry asked.

"Uhh, Las Vegas, but there isn't a Vegas here dude. And I'm also sure that there's no Hollywood or Los Angeles."

"No, but there is a Los Pegasus." He said with a grin.

"Holy shit, yes."

He laughed. "Alright, now that leaves the problem of paying for a room."

"Dude, I'm a Wonderbolt, even if I don't get comped a room, I have more than enough money now."

"Good point. That leaves two questions."

"Which are?"

"When should we go, and who should we bring?"

"We could go in five days I guess, and we could bring Soarin and Ni. It could be the four of us."

"Alright then, sounds like that will work. I've always wanted to see Hollywood, I guess this will have to do."

"It's settled then. Tomorrow I'll tell Soarin and Ni that we're going to Los Pegasus!"

"This is going to rule."

"You're damn right it is. I guess I could fly over there right now and set up a reservation at a nice hotel."

"Good idea. I'll see you when you get back?"

"Nah, I'll probably just head straight home afterwards."

"Alright then, see ya."

"Later."

I trotted outside and took flight. It was sometime around five minutes that I realized I had no idea where I was going. I groaned and flew back to the library. Barry was waiting outside with something in his hoof.

I flew down to him and he handed me a map of Equestria. I gave a shy smile and flew away. Okay, according to this map, if I skirt along the edges of the San Palomino Desert, I should arrive in Los Pegasus eventually. Good enough for me.

After about an hour of flying, I could see something forming in the distance. It looks like a city! Sweet! I'm finally here! I picked up my pace and flew full speed towards the city. When I flew into the city, I looked to my right and saw the word APPLEWOOD in gigantic white letters on a mountain. Alright, since this is a pretty similar place compared to Los Angeles, then I should know the location of a good hotel. I took flight in a specific direction, and soon arrived at the Four Seasons Los Pegasus. I landed and trotted inside. I walk up to the front desk to be greeted by a young white mare pegasus with silver hair.

"Hello, and welcome to the Four Seasons Los Pegasus, how may I help you?"

"I came here in hopes to make a reservation."

"Thats fine. Now when would you like to stay here, and in what kind of room?"

"I was hoping you could have a suite in five days."

She opened up a book and flipped through it. "Wow, looks like it's your lucky day. There just so happens to be a suite available for just that day."

"Heh, I guess I am lucky then."

"Indeed you are. Now I just need to get your information. Name please?"

"Shadow Flash."

"Alright, and profession?"

"Wonderbolt."

She dropped her pen and looked up at me. "Oh my gosh, it is you! I knew the name sounded familiar, but when you said you were a Wonderbolt, I knew it who it was! It's such an honor mister Shadow!"

"Relax, it's nice to meet you too. I take it you're a fan?"

"Of course! I have always loved the Wonderbolts, but when you made your appearance a few days ago, you became my instant favorite!"

I smiled. "Thank you, that means a lot. I'm glad you think so."

"So uh, do you mind if I ask what the occasion is? I'm not aware of a performance here anytime soon."

"Nah, I'm just here for a bachelor party."

"Oh, and who is the party for?"

"Me."

"You're getting married?"

I nodded. "That's right."

She gave a slightly disappointed look. "Oh, okay. Well, I'm glad to have met you mister Shadow Flash, and I hope you enjoy your stay in a few days."

Ah hell, I hate it when girls get like this. I reached into my saddlebag and pulled out one of nine of my remaining season tickets. "Here, take this."

She gasped. "Thats a season ticket to the Wonderbolts! Are you sure?"

"I wouldn't have offered if I wasn't."

She slowly took the ticket from my hoof. "I...thank you."

"You're welcome. I guess I'll be going now. Maybe I'll see you at a performance soon. Later."

I trotted off and I heard a thud from the direction behind me. I chuckled a little to myself, it looks like I made her faint.

I exited the extremely nice hotel and took flight towards home. After another hour of flying, I finally arrived home. I trotted inside and gave a stretch and yawn.

"Rainbow, you home?" I called out after finishing my stretch.

"Yeah, I'm upstairs." She called back.

I trotted upstairs and got in the bed with her.

"So what did you do today?" I asked.

"I just spent all day with the girls, what about you?"

"After hanging out in Cloudsdale a little, I made a reservation in Los Pegasus for me, Barry, Soarin, and Ni for my bachelor party."

"Sounds interesting. When are you leaving?"

"About five days from now. Now that I think about it, I also have a good spot to make reservations for our honeymoon."

"Oh? And where would that be?"

"You'll see."

"Ugh, you love keeping me in the dark don't you?"

I chuckled. "Well maybe a little."

I was thanked with a pop on the head. "Son of a bitch Rainbow! I told you that shit hurts!"

She laughed, and that made me laugh too. We just closed our eyes and fell asleep in each others' hooves.

IMPORTANT AUTHOR NOTES, PLEASE READ!

Okay, I'd first like to start out by once again apologizing for the lack of chapters, but school has started up for me again :/ so I won't be putting out chapters like I used to. Next thing I wanted to tell you was that I recently got the idea to write another story. Now that doesn't mean I will stop this one. What I will probably do is work one week on this, and one week on my other one. The other story I'm planning on writing is a MLP/Bleach crossover, and I hope you'll check it out for me. I have a good feeling about it. I should be putting it out in a couple of days or something. All of the characters I will have made up, and have probably never been seen (or read) before. I would really appreciate it if you guys would go give it a shot after I post it here. Now there's one more thing I wanted to say. If anypony out there that thinks they can draw, please send me a pm. I'm hoping to make a few requests for some art about this story, and maybe a little bit on my next one. Seriously, if you think you can draw pretty nicely, please message me. Don't be shy, because I wouldn't be asking if I didn't draw like shit :P 

Chuck Norris Fact of the Day: Chuck Norris's preferred golf kart is a monster truck called The Violator.
> The Black Hoof
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A word of warning. The violence and death and such begins in this chapter. If you're uncomfortable with that, then I recommend you leave. If not, then welcome to the first actual action chapter of the story :D

I woke up in the arms(legs I guess?) and hooves of my favorite cyan pegasus. I guess I could wait here until she wakes up, which shouldn't be too long. So, the wedding is in nine days, my bachelor party is in four, and my armor should be ready pretty soon if it isn't already. I wonder how much longer I get the chance to just lie down in bed next to her like this...

Rainbow interrupted my thoughts by stirring a little and opening her eyes. "Ugh. Good morning Shadow."

I smiled. "Good morning. Sleep well?"

"Didn't sleep enough. I think I'm going back to sleep now."

I gave a light chuckle. "Alright. I'll see you later then."

Rainbow said something else, but it was impossible to understand since she was talking into her pillow.

I kept my smile and trotted out of the room and downstairs. I made my usual breakfast of hay bacon strips and toast and sat down to eat my meal after it was prepared. I have still yet to figure out how they are able to make a toaster out of fucking cloud, let alone everything else in this place.

Sometime during what must have been my tenth crazy thought train about how clouds worked in this world, I realized that I had eaten all of my food already. I picked up my dish and set it in the sink. After cleaning it off, I trotted outside and took flight towards Cloudsdale once more. When I arrived in the sanctuary, I saw that everypony was there, which were Soarin, Spitfire, Blaze, and Ni.

"You guys start a party and didn't invite me? What gives?"

"Actually, we are here because we are going to do a little mission." Spitfire said.

"A mission? Like what?"

"Some good old fashioned infiltration and sabotage." Soarin replied with a grin.

"That so? Care to explain?"

"Yeah, take a seat." Spitfire said.

I took my seat and Spitfire started to speak. "We found a secret facility hidden in the Haysead Swamps, which is a little ways south of Baltimare."

"Okay, what is being researched, and who is doing the researching?" I asked, a little curious.

"We are quite sure that they are researching new spells that would interfere with the fundamental laws of nature. Necromancy."

"Well that's interesting." I said.

She nodded. "And as for who is doing the research, they call themselves the Black Hoof. (Hooray for Elder Scrolls references :D) They are a very dangerous cult of unicorns that are rarely seen. The last time they showed themselves to the public, it was in a massive attack on Canterlot. It was a hopeless battle for them, and there was no way they didn't know it. Even though they had a large force, the entire might of the Equestrian Royal Guard was more than enough to stop them. That was around two hundred years ago, and to this day I have no idea why they pretty much committed suicide. They still live on, however, and we need to put a stop to them once and for all, or else they could become a serious threat to Equestria and her residents."

"What are we going to sabotage, and how?"

"There are bound to be research notes and such there, and we are going to burn the place down. We are also going to take down as many of those necromancers as possible."

"Take them down? You mean kill them?"

She nodded. "You may have conflictions about this Shadow, but trust me when I say this. Do not show mercy on them, because as soon as you do, they will kill you without a second thought. They are ruthless murderers, and would enslave the world if they could. I'll say it again to be clear with you. Do. Not. Show them. Mercy."

"But..."

"Just remember, they aren't ponies, they're monsters. You're doing this to protect Equestria, so you have to do it."

"...Okay."

"I know it's going to be hard for you, but this is for the best. Now before we go, I have something for you."

"And what might that be?"

"I'll be right back. Stay here."

"Wasn't planning on leaving." I said as I kicked up my hooves on the table with a yawn.

She shook her head and flew off. I looked at Ni. "Hey Ni, got any plans after this is over?"

"Not really. Did you want to do something?"

"I have an idea. What if we had a double date? It would be me and Rainbow, and you and Derpy."

He rubbed his chin. "I like it. Sure, it's a deal, but it has to be tomorrow though. I have a feeling I'm going to want some rest after this mission."

"I hear you, it sounds like those necromancers mean business."

"That's an understatement Shadow. The Black Hoof are one of the most evil groups in Equestrian history. This will be particularly dangerous for you and Blaze, since you two haven't fought them yet." Soarin said.

"You don't have to worry about me. I'm good and ready to fight and die for Equestria!" Blaze said proudly.

I nodded. "That's right. We are ready to give our lives if need be to protect our loved ones. Not that something like that will happen, mainly because I don't feel like it, and Blaze is too hard-headed to die."

"Hey!" Blaze yelled.

Soarin chuckled. "I'd say both of you are hard-headed, especially you Shadow, considering I've seen you constantly headbutt enemies in fights. You always hurt yourself, but you keep doing it."

"That's because my skull is the thickest part of my body." I said smiling and tapping my head.

Soarin smiled along with Blaze and Ni. I looked up and saw Spitfire flying back with something in her hooves. Oh shit, is that what I think it is?

"Here you are Shadow, one custom suit of armor made from your Gala costume, what do you think?"

I grabbed the armor and inspected it. It was real armor now! But what is this material used to make it? It doesn't feel like steel. It feels lighter.

Spitfire noticed my confused look and spoke up. "Instead of using steel, we used a special and very rare element for your armor. It's called Magicinium. As you could probably guess, it has to do with magic. The thing with Magicinium is that if you put any enchantment on it, it multiplies that spell tenfold. The thing is though, is that only one enchantment can be placed on it. After that first enchantment, the armor will absorb that spell and will not recognize any other. We haven't enchanted it yet because we figured that you would prefer to pick which one yourself. In addition to all of that, it's about 1.5 times stronger than steel, and even lighter."

"Kick. Ass. What enchantments can I choose from?"

"You have three choices. The first is incredible strength. If you put that enchantment on your armor after drinking the potion before the captain's, your strength would be one thousand times your normal strength."

"Holy shit, that's strong. What are the other two though?"

"The second choice is having your intelligence multiplied by fifty, making you literally the smartest pony of all time. If you needed to come up with a strategy to take down a country within a week, it would be just as easy as flying to you. This enchantment is best suited for leaders, but the choice is your's."

"Nah, as cool as that sounds, I don't think I'd want to be that smart. I really think that enchantment is more dangerous than the strength one."

Spitfire smiled. "That was a pretty intelligent response, you surprised me there."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

She laughed. "Oh nothing. Anyways, your final choice is agility."

"Agility?"

She nodded. "That's right. Putting the agility enchantment on there would make you move faster than anything in the world if you complete your training."

"How fast are we talking here?"

Just then, Spitfire disappeared and reappeared right next to me from over a hundred feet away in no time! "That fast." She said into my ear.

"I think I'll take that one." I said with a grin.

She laughed. "Good choice. Soarin here picked the strength one, and Blaze hasn't put an enchantment on her armor yet."

"None of them suit me, whenever there's one that's more my style, come talk to me." Blaze said.

"So what now? How do we enchant it?"

"Well first off, we're going to need a very powerful spellcaster."

"Like who?"

"Princess Luna."

"Princess Luna?! Really?"

"You're not upset, are you Shadow Flash?" A voice said from the direction of the stairs.

I looked over and saw Princess Luna trotting over. "Uhh, that's not what I meant Princess, it's just that I didn't expect you to personally enchant the armor."

"There are only three ponies in all of Equestria capable of casting an enchantment of this magnitude, which are myself, Tia, and the young Twilight Sparkle, even though she hasn't realized her full potential yet."

"So what does the enchanting process involve?"

"Just this." She said as she trotted over to my armor on the table.

"The agility enchantment, correct?"

I nodded.

"Very well." She turned back to the armor, and she closed her eyes and began to concentrate. Her horn was starting to glow, and getting brighter with every second. She then touched her horn to the armor, and it began to glow. My armor then turned into a pitch black color. It looked as if were a black hole disguised as an armor piece, and to go anywhere near it would mean getting sucked in. I looked at my ebony colored armor in awe. Everything on it was that nothingness color. The armor, the cape, even the weapons. They were all that color of emptiness.

Princess Luna backed up and smiled. "There you are Shadow Flash, one set of agility enchanted armor. The color was my own personal touch though. It is to strike fear into your enemies."

I could see that. To any other pony, it would look as if I were a void coming to swallow them into an abyss. That shit looks creepy to even me. "Uhh, thank you Princess, I'm very thankful for this."

"You're quite welcome Shadow Flash. I would stay longer, but I should get back before I'm missed in Canterlot. I expect to see you soon." She said before teleporting away.

I went over to my armor and inspected it some more. I looked at my weapons. There were four hidden blades, one for each hoof. There was some smoke bombs, real bombs, and a dagger, all in that pitch black color. I reached to tap one of the hidden blades to test how sharp it was.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Spitfire said.

"Why not?"

"Because all of those blades have been dipped in an everlasting poison, meaning it never wears off of the blade. If something gets struck by those blades, even if the cut didn't kill them, the poison will. There's an antidote in your equipment bag though. I recommend you take a swig of that before using those things."

I reached into my gear bag and pulled out a vial containing a clear liquid. I opened it and took a drink, then put it back in my bag, then put my equipment on. The armor is actually pretty comfortable. I looked up and noticed that everypony else also had armor of some kind on. Soarin had on a helmet that looked like something from the middle ages. It completely covered his head, save for a line cut out for him to see. Blaze had on her Wonderbolt uniform, Ni had on armor that looked like a royal guard's, except pitch black, yet not as dark as my armor. I saw Spitfire wasn't wearing any kind of armor.

"You're not going to wear armor?" I asked.

"I don't need it."

"Oh, okay then. Alright, I guess I'm ready."

"Okay then. Alright everypony, we get to the secret base, find out where they do their research, and burn the place down, killing as many of the necromancers as possible."

I cringed a little at that last part. I'm still not comfortable with the thought of killing another pony, even if they are bad. I hope I don't run into any of them there, but I'll do what I have to in order to get back to Rainbow.

"Time to go everypony!" Spitfire yelled.

We all trotted and followed her out of the building and took flight towards the Haysead Swamps. We were flying with Spifire in the front, Blaze and Soarin beside each other behind her, and me and Ni next to each other behind them.

I looked at Ni. "So have you ever come across these necromancers before?"

"Once, in the battle for Canterlot two hundred years ago. I shouldn't even call it a battle, it was a slaughter. They didn't stand a chance, but fought to the last pony. Like Spitfire said, we don't know why they were so determined to sacrifice themselves in a single hopeless battle. Maybe we can find some answers at their hideout."

"Maybe..."

We flew on in silence until we reached the swamps, and Spitfire turned to us and stopped.

"Okay, their base is hidden about a mile in. As soon as we enter, there should be four paths. I'll go down one by myself. Soarin and Blaze go down the next, Captain Night Wing go down the third, and Shadow you take the fourth. Am I clear?"

We nodded. "Good, then lets go!"

We followed her about a mile in, then landed in a part of the swamp that looked just like the rest of it. It did until Spitfire trotted up to an old, very large, dead tree, and punched a hole in it, revealing that it was hollow. She stuck her hoof in the hole, and moved her hoof around until she hit something to make the tree open, revealing a secret passage of stairs. Huh, where have I seen that before? I thought sarcastically to myself.

We trotted in single file and went down the stairs for what felt like forever. When we finally got to the bottom, we reached a large room made of stone. It looked like an ancient temple of some kind. There were four passages for us to take, just like Spitfire had said.

"You know what to do. Meet back here when your objective is done. If you aren't back here when this place is about to blow, we're leaving you. Ready?" She said.

We nodded and trotted down our paths, Sptifire down the far left, Soarin and Blaze down the second, Ni down the third, and me down the last one on the right.

The tunnel here is pitch dark. I can't see shit!

Something was reading my mind, because as soon as I thought that, a bunch of torches lit up around me, revealing the passage. It extended further than I could see.

"Uhh, on second thought, I'd rather have this place pitch black than have my mind read like that."

Just then, the torches went out. "Okay, okay, I take it back!"

The torches lit up once more. "Well this is going to be interesting at the least."

After about five minutes of trotting down the seemingly never-ending tunnel, I began to hear laughter. I looked around, but it was just me and the ten foot tall, ten foot wide hall made of stone. This is fucking weird.

"Uhh, anypony there?" I called out.

Instead of getting an answer, the laughing increased. "Yep, fucking weird."

Just then, about ten feet ahead of me, a side door opened, and something in a black robe came out. I tried to get a better look, but it was covered by the robe, and I couldn't see anything past the cloth. It looks like it's a pony, but something feels off.

"Uhh, hi?"

It took a step towards me.

"Can you say anything?"

It took another step.

"Anything at all?"

Another step.

"Don't make me hurt you. Stay where you are!"

And another.

"I mean it!"

One more step and it was four feet away from me.

"Take one more step and I'm taking you down!"

As soon as they started to take another step, I charged and gave it a punch, making it fly back. During its fly back there, the robe came off, revealing nothing but a skeleton of a pony!

"Uhh, what the hell is this?"

The skeleton rose up and looked at me. "This is your death. Do not resist, you can be just like us." It said in a voice that sounded like a thousand voices talking at once.

"Uhh, no thanks, I like having skin."

"Then you will DIEEEEE!" It screeched as it charged me.

I took my dagger in my mouth and charged as well. It tried to grab me, but I ducked and stuck the dagger in its neck and pushed, causing its head to come off.

After it collapsed to the ground I sheathed my dagger. "What the fuck? Necromancers are weird." Just then, I heard more laughter as dozens more side doors opened up ahead of me, and more robed figures started coming out of them.

I popped my neck. "Alright, let's go."

Over to Ni. (First person, pony, whatever. It's from his point of view.

I looked around my tunnel. It was pitch dark, but that wasn't a problem for me. I can see perfectly well in the dark. There's something off about this place, and it's not just the fact necromancers are here. This place is strange. I'd prefer to get out of here as soon as possible. I can tell that this place is pure evil. Just then, some strange laughter interrupted my thoughts.

I looked around, and unsheathed my sword I had beside me. Up ahead of me, a side door opened, and a hooded figure emerged from it. I decided to not take any chances, and charged at the figure.

It looked in my direction and jumped. It took off the hood, revealing a pink unicorn mare. "Wait, please stop!" She cried out, stopping me in my tracks.

I held up my sword to her. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"I..I don't know. I was with my family here in the swamp. We were just observing the local wildlife, next thing I know, I wake up on some strange stone table in these strange robes. There were...skulls there. Please help me. I'm scared, and I just want to go home with my family. Please." She started tearing up.

I lowered my sword. "Is your family still here?"

"I don't know if they are or not. They might be."

"Stay close to me. We'll find them."

"I want to go..."

"Stick with me, you might run into something on the way back, and I won't be able to protect you."

"O-okay."

"Alright, stay behind me." I said as I sheathed my sword.

She nodded and got behind me.

We trotted on for about five minutes, and she spoke up. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For being such an easy target." She said as she stuck a dagger through my neck.

She started laughing like a maniac, but froze in horror when my body disappeared and I reappeared behind her with me holding her with one hoof, and my sword at her throat. "Tell me what I want to know, and I don't drag this sword across your throat."

"How did you-"

"NOW!"

She yelped. "A-at the end of the hall, th-there are s-some research no-notes on what we've b-b-been working on. Please...don't kill me."

I gave her a hard elbow on her head, knocking her out. I sheathed my sword once more and continued onward.

Back to Shadow.

I looked at the piles and piles of bones behind me. They may look really creepy, but they're extremely weak and brittle. I put my dagger up and continued down the hallway. About ten more minutes of trotting down the never ending hallway, another side passage opened up. I pulled out my dagger and got ready to attack. What happened next had me stunned. I saw a cyan hoof take a step out of the door, then another cyan hoof, revealing a mare with rainbow hair.

"Rainbow?"

She turned to me. "There you are! I was so scared Shadow! They took me when I was asleep! I managed to get away from them, and kept running. I'm so glad I found you!" She finished as she threw her hooves around me.

Her eyes went wide and looked down at the dagger I had placed in her heart.

"Wh-why?"

"Because you're not Rainbow. I'm smarter than that. You can go ahead and show me what you really are now."

I pulled my dagger free and backed up a little. Rainbow gave me a smile. "Well well, you are smarter than you look. It had to have been difficult to stab your fiance just like you did."

"Well you're not the mare I love, so I found it easier than you think. Are you going to show me what you really are? Or do I get to kill you without you even putting up a fight? Because I'd prefer a fair fight."

She laughed. "There's no need to be so eager to die. I'll do as you wish though."

I watched as the surface of the Rainbow Dash imposter started melting away. As that happened, the figure started growing. It stopped growing at about seven feet. Is that what I think it is?

"This is my true form. Take it in, because it's the last thing you'll ever see!" The behemoth of a changeling yelled as it charged me.

It punched out with its massive hoof and struck at me with it. I caught the hoof with just one of my own with a slight struggle.

I looked up at it. "Is that all? Is it my turn yet?"

"Shut up!" It yelled as it swung another hoof at me. I jumped back and hovered a few feet over the ground. I flew at the monster and sliced its chest with one of my hidden blades. It roared and looked at me. "It's going to take more than that puny dagger to bring me dow-" It said before collapsing.

"What...is this..."

"Poison, plain and simple."

"Damn...you.."

"Tell me what I want to know and I'll give you the antidote."

It laughed. "You think dying is bad? This is nothing compared to what those necromancers would do to me if they found out I helped you."

"Last chance. I don't think that poison will wait for the antidote much longer."

"Go..to hell..."

"I see. I'm sorry it had to end this way then. Rest in peace." I said as I trotted off.

As I trotted, I had heard the sounds of struggling stop. I closed my eyes."You should have taken my antidote. I would have preferred to have let you live." I said to the changeling that was no longer here as I continued trotting.

Over to Ni.

I stepped over the pony I knocked unconscious and continued on my way. A few minutes later, a couple of unicorns with black robes like the pony back there trotted out of some side passages. They turned to face me.

"You will pass no further." They said in unison. Their horns began to glow, and I readied myself. But instead of attacking me, they created a clear wall of magic. I trotted up to the wall. I inspected it and gave it a tap. Yep, it's solid alright.

I heard something behind me and I turned around to see several more side passages opening up. My eyes widened as I saw that what was coming out of those doors were skeletons. There were dozens of them, maybe even hundreds. I pulled out my sword and charged them. They were fairly weak, as my swings cleaved them in two with a single hit. They might wear me down with time however, so I need to think of a way to get passed that barrier.

After about ten minutes of continuous fighting, they still kept coming, and I was getting a little tired. The pair behind the wall started laughing. "It's best to give up now. If you do, we promise you a quicker death as opposed to a slow and painful one." They said in unison again.

I ignored them as the skeletons kept coming out. Wait, would that work? I fought through a bunch of skeletons and arrived at a side door. I rushed in and found that there was a clear path this way. I ran about twenty feet in that direction, then barged through back in the hallway, right behind the two unicorns. They whirled around and prepared to cast another spell, but were interrupted when a swing from my sword decapitated both of them. When that happened, their shield dropped, and the rest of the skeletons went back into the side passages. I cleaned my sword off and continued onward without a word.

And back to Shadow.

It's been about twenty minutes since I came across that behemoth of a changeling, and I haven't run into anything else since then. What are these necromancers planning next? My question was answered when I saw another side door open.

"Alright, more skeletons? Another imposter? Whad'ya got?"

I froze in place from what I saw next. What is that thing?! It looks like a bunch of body parts of different ponies stitched together to make one pony!

"What...what are you?"

"This is one of our prized creations, a true marvel really. This is what we just like to call an abomination." I voice called out. I couldn't tell where from.

"Abomination seems right. Why would you want to make anything this horrible?!"

"Horrible you say? We don't see anything wrong with it. That's why we exist. There should be no limits on what we can do. You're just another pony who thinks that they can look down on progression!" The voice called out.

"Progression?! You call this monstrosity progression?! Get your ass out here and I'll show you some fucking progression!"

Just then, the abomination that was easily over fourty feet away was right in front of me.

My eyes widened. "What the-" I said as I looked into its eyes. It gave a smile that was scarier than Death himself. It struck me with one of its stolen hooves, sending me against the wall, leaving cracks in it.

I rose up and shook it off. "Alright. Time to put you down."

It looked at me curiously as I flew up a little above the ground and activated my hidden blades on my front hooves. I charged at it and tried to stick one of the blades in its neck. It responded by catching my hoof and slamming me into the wall. It didn't let go this time, and slammed me back and forth from one wall to the other. When it finished, it gave me a powerful punch to the gut, forcing blood out of my mouth, and threw me against the ground.

This thing is more than just a monster. This thing needs to be destroyed and forgotten. But how can I fight this thing? It's impossibly fast and strong. Just then, I noticed my ebony armor starting to glow, and I suddenly felt a surge of power rush through me. I rose up and looked at the abomination.

It got ready to charge again, but right before it did, I was in its face and delivered a headbutt that sent it flying against the wall. I followed up by rushing over to it and delivering a barrage of punches, blasting chunks out of the rock around it. I activated my hidden blade, and sent it through its skull, making it go limp. I pulled my blade free and watched as it slumped to the ground.

"I'm sorry for what happened to all of you ponies. Maybe now you can rest in peace."

I left the abomination and continued down the passage, I readied myself as I saw another side passsage open.

Perspective changes, perspective changes everywhere. (Over to Ni again.)

I left the headless corpses of the necromancers and traveled onward. What was next? Only one way to find out though, and thats to continue onward. I wonder how everypony else is doing. Hopefully this passage isn't much longer.

After about fifteen minutes, a side passage opened, and a lone skeleton trotted through. After shattering it with a single blow, I looked at the side passage. This is strange, because most of the time, these things close after something comes through them. This is obviously a trap, but I guess this will at least keep things interesting. I went into the side passage, and as soon as I was in, the door closed behind me.

I started down the path in front of me. This passage is similar to the main passage, with the exception of skulls impaled on spears all along the walls. A ways down, another side passage opened up, but nothing came through it. I decided to indulge whoever was pulling the strings a little bit longer, and trotted through it. When I got on the other side, I was in what looked like a normal passage like mine earlier.

I heard something behind me and raised up my sword to block a dagger just in time. I looked up at the figure that attacked me. I couldn't tell what it was, because it was covered up by a robe, but whatever this thing is, it's strong!

I shoved with my sword to get some distance, and swung at it. It ducked and charged at me with its dagger. I jumped to the side just in time to avoid being pierced through my skull.

To Shadow.

I watched as I saw a robed figure trot out of the side passage on my left. I decided not to take any chances with this one and charged at it with my dagger. It looked like it wasn't paying attention, which means this is all the easier for me. Right before I connected, however, it whirled around and blocked me with a sword at an incredible speed.

It shoved at me with the sword and swung at me. I ducked and charged it. Right before my dagger was able to go through its face, it stepped to the side and came crashing down with its sword. I held up my hidden blade gauntlet to block it. If I didn't have these gauntlets, that swing would have cleaved me in two, strong bones or not. I noticed my hoof was pointed at his while blocking, and activated my hidden blade, striking it through its robe, and managing to jab it. Good, its just a matter of time now.

To Ni.

After I stepped to the side, I swung down with my sword, but it blocked me with its wrists! How the hell is that possible to block this thing with bare wrists?! I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my hoof, and pulled back. What did it just do? I'm bleeding, but I didn't see anything. I feel a little strange now, but I have to brush that aside.

I swung my sword at it, and when it blocked me with its dagger, I gave it a sharp kick to the gut, stunning it. I swung with my sword again, and right before I split its skull, it jumped back just as my sword passed its face.

To Shadow.

It jumped back after I hit it, and swung with its sword again. I blocked with my dagger, and as soon as I did, it gave me a powerful kick to the stomach, knocking the wind out of me. I looked up and jumped back just in time as its sword came down across my face, leaving a clean cut all the way down my face.

I'm surprised this thing isn't dead yet with my poison, considering how fast that changeling died after I hit it. There's something off about all of this. My thoughts were interrupted as it swung at me with its sword again.

To Ni.

It jumped back after my swing, and seemed to just stop for a moment. What was it doing? There's nothing that can be stupid enough to lower its guard in mid-combat. There is something strange about all of this, but I'll find that out after I take this thing down. I swung my sword at it again, and it blocked it with its wrist again. This time however, I gave it a headbutt. I instantly regretted that decision as my head collided with its head. What the hell is that thing made of? Steel? That's the hardest head ever! Wait a second. This is far-fetched, but I'm going to give it a shot.

To Shadow.

When I blocked its swing with my gauntlets again, it gave me a headbutt. Too bad for it, because that made it recoil and hold its head. When it shook it off, the damn thing went invisible! I looked around, and got ready for another attack. I suddenly felt a hoof wrap around my neck, with its sword at it.

To Ni.

I went invisible and snuck around. I wrapped my hooves around its neck, and yanked its hood off, revealing Shadow! The rest of his robes disappeared as he struggled.

To Shadow.

After it had me, it made some kind of weird motion with its hoof in front of me. When it did, it let me go and started making weird gestures. If its going insane, thats its problem. I charged at it with my dagger once more, and it held up its hooves in a flailing motion, as if telling me to stop. Right before I connected, it collapsed and started twitching on the ground. It looks like the poison finally caught up to it. I might as well see who's beneath here. I reached forward and removed the hood.

To Ni.

I let go after I saw it was Shadow. "Shadow?! What are you doing?! What's gotten into y-" I was cut off by him charging me with his dagger.

"Wait! It's me! It's Ni-" I suddenly fell limp and started twitching on the ground. Damnit...it's his poisoned blades, that sting earlier must have been a hidden blade. He trotted over to me and made a weird gesture in front of my face.

To Shadow.

I removed the hood, and I saw Ni's face behind the hood! As soon as I did, the rest of the robe disappeared.

"NI?! What the fuck dude?! Why'd you attack me?!"

He didn't answer, he struggled to speak but couldn't.

"Oh fuck, my poison!"

I opened up my equipment bag and pulled out my antidote and handed it to him. He took it with his shaking hooves and poured some down his throat. After handing it back to me, his shaking calmed down, and he rose up.

"You look better, now would you mind telling me what the fuck just happened?"

"I could ask you the same thing. I go through one of those side passages, and before I know it, I'm attacked by somepony in a hood and robes."

"You were the one in a hood and robes Ni, not me."

He put his hoof to his chin. "Hmm, that would explain why we attacked each other. We must have both appeared to the other as having that outfit on, and when we took the hoods off of each other, we could see who it was.

"So that's what you did when you caught me and put your hoof in my face? Remove my hood?"

He nodded.

"When did you figure out it was me?"

"After I headbutted you, I was pretty sure. Nopony has as hard of a head as you."

"I'm going to take that as a compliment. Now we really should get to the end of this hallway and meet up with the others."

"Yeah, lets go."

We trotted down the hallway. We finally reached the end of it, and when we did, it led to a very, very large room that looked like a modern laboratory. There were just a few things different, the first is that there weren't any computers, the second is that there were corpses of hooded unicorns everywhere.

"What the hell happened here?" I asked.

"It's about time you two showed up." Spitfire said as she trotted over.

"What happened here Spitfire?"

"They were necromancers, so I killed them."

"You killed all of these unicorns?"

"I know you find it hard to believe, but trust me, they would have done the same to me and the same to you if given the chance."

That wasn't what I meant, but I didn't say anything else. What I meant is that she single-handedly killed over thirty powerful unicorns. Her strength is truly terrifying. Talk about the expression to look like a butterfly and sting like a bee.

"Is that everything?" Soarin asked as he trotted over with Blaze.

"Just one more thing." Spitfire said.

She walked over to one of the torches on the wall, took it, and threw it on what looked like some spilled oil, lighting up a large fire.

"That's everything. Come on, lets get out of here before we burn alive."

There were no arguments and we flew as fast as possible down one of the paths that led here. We eventually reached the stairs and went up them to get back to the swamp.

"That wraps everything up guys, good work. I'll see you tomorrow I guess." Spitfire said.

We nodded and everypony but me and Ni flew off.

I turned to Ni. "So uh, sorry about earlier."

"It wasn't your fault, don't worry about it."

"Thanks, so are we still doing our double date tomorrow?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Run by the sanctuary tomorrow and I'll have a time for you."

"Alright, cool. I'll see you later then."

"Bye."

We jumped up and took flight, each of us going a different direction. After an hour of flying, I finally reached home and went inside. I took my ebony assassin armor off and set it on the couch. I went upstairs and found Rainbow in the bed giving me a very seductive look.

"Do you want to have a little fun time Shadow? It feels like so long since we have."

My eyes were wide open. "Yes, please."

She giggled, and lifted up the covers to allow me to enter the bed.

Not a bad day at all.

My friend- "You like to cockblock people don't you?"

Me- "You're goddamn right I do."

Lol, so what do you guys think about that action filled chapter? Well, action for the most part anyways. I'm not that bad of a guy am I? You guys may have had to wait a while for this chapter, but at least it was a long one. Review/comment or you're not getting the antidote to the poison you just drank.

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Chuck Norris owns a Swiss Army knife that contains a colander, a flamethrower, and a Snuggie.
> A Day Off
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shit, did I really help take down a secret compound full of evil necromancer ponies with the Wonderbolts who are secretly assassins that have eternal life? Fuck...I did. Not that it isn't cool, but there goes my shot at writing an autobiography. Did I seriously just think about writing something because I actually wanted to? I never thought something like that would happen. I always hated doing reports for school back in the day.

So what's on the old agenda for today? I think it's just that double date with Ni and Derpy. Have I even told Rainbow yet? Guess I'm about to find out. I looked over to see if Rainbow was awake. My question was answered when a snore came from her. I chuckled a little. It can wait for a little while. I need to eat breakfast anyways. I snuck out of bed and trotted downstairs. I rummaged around the fridge and found some eggs. Huh, that's weird, don't eggs count as meat? Oh well, I'll take it.

I put the eggs on a frying pan(made of cloud) and found some cheese in the fridge while they heated up. I made myself a tasty cheese omlet complete with orange juice and sat down to eat. As predicted, Rainbow trotted down while I was eating. I performed my usual courtesy of asking her if she wanted anything, and as predicted, she said no thanks, and stuck with an apple. Why does she buy these things if she doesn't eat them? Maybe she just does it for me. Oh yeah, I almost forgot about the double date.

"Hey Rainbow, did I say anything about the double date yet?"

"No, I think you failed to mention a double date to me. Care to tell me about it?"

"Would you like to go on a double date with Ni and Derpy?"

"Derpy Hooves and Ni are together?"

I nodded.

"Who woulda' thought those two would make a match? Okay, I'll do it. When is it?"

"I'm going to find out when I fly to Cloudsdale in a bit."

"While you're there, you think you could find out when our next Wonderbolts performance is?"

"Yeah, I will. I'm getting a little excited."

"About the wedding?"

"That, and my first big Fugiens Mones mission. Don't get me wrong Rainbow, I'd easily choose our wedding over my mission, but it's just that bringing down a rebellion in a foreign country should be interesting."

"It's cool Shadow, I understand. You can go on ahead to Cloudsdale, I'll clean your plate."

I got up and gave her a kiss. "Thanks, you're the best."

"I know. I'll see you in a bit."

"Bye." I said before leaving. I jumped and took flight towards Cloudsdale. I did what I had quickly grown accustomed to and went inside the Wonderbolts HQ, go into the locker room, take the secret entrance behind one of the lockers, go into the sanctuary, and have a seat at what I dubbed the Round Table. It was round, and it had important figures at it, so I said 'Eh, why the hell not?'. It was just me, Ni, and Spitfire here for now.

I looked at Spitfire. "So where are Soarin and Blaze?"

She shrugged. "Don't know, don't care."

"Okay, here's another question; what happened to the leader of those necromancers?"

"...He got away."

"Well it looks like we haven't finished up with the Black Hoof then."

She nodded. "Unfortunately, you're right. I expect their leader to make a move within the next two months."

"What's that guy's deal anyways?"

"He says that we should have no boundries on what we research. That we should learn what we can, whenever we can, no matter how immoral it is. When his ideals were rejected by Princess Celestia, he went even more insane if that's possible. He founded the cult known as the Black Hoof and proceeded with his foul experiments anyways. When Princess Celestia caught wind of what they were doing, she ordered their extermination. Right before a team was dispatched to do it, the attack on Canterlot happened. It was like they wanted to be killed off. I actually have a bad feeling we'll find out why soon enough."

"Just out of curiosity, what's his name?"

"Sorrow Curse."

"You mean to tell me that the leader of a bunch of necromancers has a creepy name? What a shocker."

"You're telling me? I actually laughed it was such a cliché."

"Well, for a change of subject, Ni, when did you want to go on that double date?"

"ZzzZ"

"NI!"

He jumped up. "Look out mister banana, the evil desk is right behind you! Huh? Oh, hey Shadow."

"What the fuck were you dreaming about Ni?"

He blushed. "Uhh, it was nothing, don't worry about it."

"Did the banana get away from the desk?"

"Yeah yeah, get your fill. What did you need?"

"What time did you want to do that double date?"

"I'm not sure. Uh, how's six sound?"

"Alright, where at?"

"Me and Derpy will make a trip to Ponyville and we can eat at that place you and Rainbow like so much."

I nodded. "Sounds good to me."

"Okay, now I need to see what happens to mister banana, so I'm going back to sleep." He said as he put his hands in his arms (legs? Seriously, someone help me out here.) and went back to sleep.

I laughed. "Hey Spitfire, can we do some training today?"

"Yeah, sure. Come on, I'll show you some new tricks you can do with speed."

"Sounds cool."

"Oh it is, now let's head to the arena."

Still won't write training scenes, mainly because I can't think of anything to write for it.

Spitfire and I trotted out of the arena. "I think you're ready." She said.

"Ready? For what?"

"The next potion."

"Do you have a good will to live?"

I thought about my upcoming date, bachelor party, wedding, and mission. I nodded. "Hell yeah."

She smiled. "That's what I like to hear. I'll be right back." She said before flying off. About a minute later, she came back with a vial containing a familiar black liquid and gave it to me.

I popped the cork. "Well, bottoms up." I said as I downed it. When I finished it, I gagged. "Ugh! That was fucking sick! What the hell did you do to that? Shit in it?!"

Spitfire fell out laughing. "Well, I did get that stuff from a sewer!"

"...Ahhhhh! Fucking gross! What the fuck Spitfire?!" I barfed all over this place, feeling like I was going to die. Spitfire continued her laughing spree, but stopped when I aimed at her on my next burst.

"Oh you're so dead!" Spitfire yelled as she wiped my vomit off.

I must have been quite the sight there, because I was flying, laughing, and vomiting all at the same time. Some of it accidentally landed on Ni while he was asleep, causing him to jump up out of his sleep again. "I returned the sacred cloud to the hidden banana temple! Wait, is that vomit? Ahhh gross! It is vomit! I think I'm gonna.." He said before blowing chunks all over the round table.

That only made me laugh harder, but I then realized I actually drank a mixture of ponies' shit, and threw up yet again. That one made my stomach burn, so I eased myself down, clenching my stomach.

Spitfire landed next to me. "Tr-truce?"

"Tru-" I started to say before vomiting once more. "Truce."

"Okay. Ni, clean this up."

"Why do I have to clean this mess up?!"

"Because I want you thinking about something else besides getting sacred clouds back to the hidden banana temple."

He sighed. "Fine..."

Spitfire laughed and looked at me. "But seriously, here's the real bottle." She said before tossing another vial to me.

When I opened it, I gave a sniff to make sure it wasn't another vial full of shit.

"It's the real deal Shadow, I don't want Ni to clean up even more than what he has to."

"Yeah, please don't make me clean up more than I already have to." Ni called out.

I stared at it suspiciously for a couple more seconds, then downed it. Good, it tasted like bacon and not a bunch of different ponies' shit.

I'm actually surprised I'm still alive, considering I'm not sure how much I wanted to live after what just happened. Oh well, I guess it's a good thing I am.

"Congrats Shadow, you're now a full-fledged member of the Fugiens Mones." Spitfire said.

"I'd feel better if I hadn't just downed a bottle of...gag*...nothing, I just want to forget what happened."

"Congrats anyway. I'll be honest, I didn't think you would make it this far."

"Yeah, I got a lot of that from Thunder Gunner." Speaking of that asshole, I haven't seen him in a while. Maybe I'll go pay him a visit when I go back.

"You have my apologies for underestimating you. As of now though, you are one of the most powerful creatures in the world."

"That doesn't exactly give me a bunch of pride. To me, all that means is I have a lot more responsibility."

"You catch on pretty quickly. Go on home, I'll make sure Ni cleans up around here."

"Alright, and before I forget, when is the next Wonderbolts performance?"

"Six days."

"Alright, thanks."

I looked over at Ni, who now had a mop. "Hey Ni, I'll see you at six!"

"Okay, bye Shadow." He looked at Spitfire. "Can you please just get the janitor?!"

"No."

"Why not?!"

"Because I don't want him freaking out about a secret underground sanctuary for assassins led by Princess Luna."

"Oh..."

I laughed a little as I trotted up the stairs. When I got outside of the building, I spread my wings and took flight back to Ponyville. I guess I'll pay Thunder a visit. I haven't seen him in a while.

I flew to my old workplace and went inside. I expected a warm reception, but alas, I was greeted by a wrench to the face. I dropped to the ground holding my eye. "MOTHER FUCKER! I may be immortal, but that still fucking hurts you crazy old bastard!"

"Get up you wuss, you're fine."

I got up, still holding my eye. Oh yeah, I forgot I was going to kill him one of these days.

"So how are you Shadow?"

"I'd be better if I wasn't in pain from a wrench to the eye."

"You sure you're a member of the Mones? Because you whine more than you should."

"..." I hate him.

"Is there something you needed Shadow?"

"Yeah, I guess. I was wondering if you'd like to come to my wedding in eight days. It's going to be at the royal palace."

"Sure. I'll be there to watch you lose your manhood."

"You say I'm losing my manhood, I say I'm becoming truly happy."

"I'm only joking Shadow. I'm happy for you, I really am."

"Thanks. Listen, I need to get back to Rainbow, but I'll see you at the wedding right?"

"Yeah, I'll be there."

"Okay, and tell Silver he can come if he wants."

He nodded. "I will."

"Alright, see ya Thunder." I said as I trotted out.

"Take care kid."

I went outside and flew back home where Rainbow was waiting.

"Hey Shadow, what's the word?"

"It's at six, and at our favorite restaurant."

"Alright, cool. It's three now, so that gives us three hours of free time." She finished with a wink.

"Free time eh? Good thing you got me, cuz I'm nothin' but fun." I said with a large grin.

She laughed and got closer to me.

Cockblock*

"This never gets old." Rainbow said.

"I'm glad you think so, because I'd be pretty depressed if it ever did."

She laughed a little and whispered in my ear that sent shivers down my spine. "Doing what we just did will never get old."

I smiled. "So how much time do we have until we have to meet Ni and Derpy?"

"About twenty minutes. I guess we should clean up a little, huh?"

"Yeah, we don't want to go into a nice restaurant smelling like sex."

"Well I don't mind the smell." She said.

"I know that, but I think other ponies will."

We finished cleaning ourselves up and went outside.

"Alright, lets go." I said.

"Right behind you."

We took flight towards our favorite restaurant, and met with the waiter. I looked around. It doesn't look like they're here yet. I can go ahead and get us a seat though.

I looked at the host. "There's going to be two more."

"Very well sir. Right this way." He said as he grabbed four menus and trotted inside.

We followed him to a table somewhere in the middle. I was hoping for a table by the window, but I guess this will do. I wish moustache pony was here.

"I can go ahead and take your drink order if you'd like." The waiter said.

"I'll have water." Rainbow said.

"Water as well please."

The waiter nodded and trotted off.

"I guess they're on their way. We are about ten minutes early." I said.

Rainbow looked up. "Speaking of whom, there they are over there."

I looked up and saw Ni and Derpy trotting in. I waved them over and they sat across from me and Rainbow.

"Hey you two, how's it going?" Rainbow said.

"It's going well." Ni responded.

"So have you two made sweet love by the fire-ow!" I started to say, but was interrupted when Rainbow kicked my leg under the table.

"What he's trying to ask is if you two are close."

They blushed. "...I guess you could say that." Ni said.

"Bowchikabowo-ow! Damnit Rainbow!"

"Keep your voice down Shadow." She said.

"Just having some fun. So Ni, how was cleanup duty?"

"Shut up."

I laughed.

"What? I don't get it." Derpy said.

"It's okay, it was just something funny that happened earlier today. So how are you Derpy? This is our first chance to officially meet." I held out my hoof. "Shadow Flash."

She shook my hoof. "Derpy Hooves."

Rainbow and Derpy bumped hooves. "Hey Derpy, I haven't seen you in a while." Rainbow said.

"Yeah, I've just been busy with my deliveries lately, and I haven't had a chance to take a break."

"It's okay."

The waiter came up to us. "May I take your orders?"

"I'll start. I'll take a hay bacon sandwich." I said.

"I'll just have a salad." Rainbow said.

"I'll take a daisy and lettuce sandwich and water." Derpy said.

"And I'll have the hay burger with a coltacola." Ni finished.

The waiter nodded and took our menus. "Your food will be out shortly."

He trotted off and we got back to our conversation.

"When is your wedding again, you two?" Ni asked.

"In eight days, I'll be the happiest stallion in the world. You two are coming, right?"

"We'd be happy to, where is it?" Derpy answered.

"It's going to be held at the Royal Palace in Canterlot." Rainbow said.

"Oh, wow. That sounds fantastic." Derpy said.

We continued talking until our food arrived, then we dug in. When we finished, the waiter brought us our ticket.

"I got this." I said as I took the bill.

"Nah, I got it." Ni said, taking it from me.

"I make a better income. A much better income. I've got it." I said, yanking the bill back.

"Consider this a wedding gift." He said, tugging on it.

"Would you two just shut up and split it?" Rainbow and Derpy said in unison.

Me and Ni looked at each other and nodded, slowly setting the bill down.

"Why do things always have to be so dramatic with you Shadow?" Rainbow asked.

"Because I think it's fun and funny."

Rainbow rolled her eyes.

"Well, I guess that's it. Everypony ready?" Ni asked.

I got up. "Yeah, I'm getting tired."

Everypony else got up, and we trotted outside.

"I'll see you tomorrow Ni, and don't forget we're going to Los Pegasus in three days, and we'll be staying there for two nights, three days."

"Sounds fun. Count me in."

"Alright, I'll see you two later. Have fun."

Rainbow hit me on the head. "Damnit Rainbow, cut it out!"

"You first."

I grinned took a stance. "My sarcasm will never die! Muahahaha-ah, fuck!" I said, holding my head from yet another whack.

Ni just rolled his eyes, and Derpy chuckled a little.

"Bye you two. Me and mister sarcasm are going home." Rainbow said.

"Cool! Can you call me that from now on- gah, son of a bitch Rainbow! I said knock it off!" I yelled after being hit yet again.

Derpy and Ni smiled and flew off, and Rainbow and I did the same. When we got home, we went upstairs and got in bed.

"Why do you always hit me when I'm being sarcastic?" I asked.

"Because it's all I can do to keep me from laughing." She said with a smile.

"You know you owe me, right?"

"Oh? And what do I owe you?"

I got closer to her. "What do you think?"

Rainbow giggled. "I think I can make it up to you then."

Lol, another cockblock for you guys :D. That was a nice, funny chapter for all of you. Now, on fanfiction, I have now put up a poll asking people if they wanted a clop scene. Depending on how the poll goes, next time you might not get cockblocked :D. Now the Chuck Norris fact I'm about to leave you with is one of the funniest I've seen.

Chuck Norris fact of the day: When Chuck Norris plays peekaboo with a kid, the child disappears forever.
> Assault on the Fortress
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A warning on this chapter, this one is not for the faint of heart. Enter the world of Once a Shadow at your own risk.

I opened up my eyes and smiled. Yesterday was pretty cool, well, not really. The last part of it was, but the vomiting and the wrenches? Not so much. I snuck out of bed to avoid waking Rainbow. I trotted downstairs to fix myself a breakfast. I made the usual and sat down to eat. When I finished, I cleaned my plate off and trotted outside. Rainbow would know where I'm at. I jumped and flew off towards Cloudsdale. When I got there, I went inside the HQ and trotted down to the sanctuary where Ni, Spitfire, Soarin, and Blaze were sitting and the Round Table.

"Another mission?" I asked.

"Nah, we're just hanging out here for a little while." Blaze answered.

"Alright, good, because I'm still tired from two days ago."

"You're a bad liar Shadow. You should have felt ready to go on another mission right after our previous one was concluded. That potion isn't just for show." Spitfire said.

"Physically yes, but mentally, no. Just because I can fight for a long time, doesn't mean I want to."

"Well said." Spitfire replied with a grin while kicking her hooves on the table and leaning back in her chair.

"Did you just test me?" I asked.

"Sure did." Spitfire said before yawning.

"You know what? I don't care. I got laid last night. 'Aint that right Ni?"

Ni laughed. "I don't want to know Shadow. Leave me out of this one."

"Nah, you need to back me up."

Just then, a pegasus I had never seen before trotted in and went up to Spitfire. He whispered something in her ear which gave her the creepiest smile. Then he left without a word, but not before giving me a weird glance.

"Who was that guy?" I asked.

"Nopony you need to know yet. You'll get the chance to know him soon enough."

"Uh, okay."

"But nevermind that. He just gave me a lead on Sorrow Curse. He's hiding out on the outskirts of the San Palamino Desert to the southwest of here. Looks like you have to do some fighting after all Shadow. Think you're up to it?"

I sighed. "I guess, as long is it's some evil douche that's zombifying ponies, then I suppose I'm ready to fight him."

She nodded. "Good. I want you to go get your armor. The rest of us will wait for you outside of Appaloosa."

I nodded. "I'll see you there then." I said before trotting out. I flew back home and grabbed my equipment. Something's different about it though...wait, why's it crimson all of the sudden? I'm pretty sure it was black. I'll have to ask Spitfire when I get a chance. I put on my gear and trotted upstairs to check on Rainbow. She was still asleep, so I started to trot back downstairs.

"Shadow?" She said, opening an eye.

"Yeah?"

"Be careful."

"Aren't I always? Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"I love you."

"Love you too Rainbow. I'll be back later." I said before going downstairs.

I went outside and pulled out my map. After taking a look at it, I folded it back up and flew to Appaloosa. After about thirty minutes of flight, I reached my destination. I looked down and found my team in full gear waiting for me so I flew down to meet them.

"Spitfire, why is my armor suddenly crimson?"

"Because when you drank that potion, your strength increased."

"Uh, so?"

"Meaning that Princess Luna apparently put an additional minor enchantment on the armor to change the color when you got stronger. Hell, ask her if you're so curious."

"Yikes, I got it."

She didn't say anything to me, instead, she turned to the team in general. "Alright, everypony's here, so let me explain what we're doing." Spitfire said. "Our objective here is to eliminate the Black Hoof leader known as Sorrow Curse. His base should be exposed and easy to find according to my source."

"So he wants us to find him." I said.

She nodded. "It would seem that way. This is an obvious trap, but we may not get another oppurtunity like this. I'm sorry for making you walk into a trap like this, but-"

"We understand Spitfire. We knew the risks when we signed up." Blaze said.

Spitfire smiled. "Good to hear. So we go in, take down Sorrow Curse, and get home in time for dinner. Questions?"

"Yeah, what's with the overused line about being home before dinner?" I asked.

"...Shut up Shadow."

Blaze and I laughed.

She rolled her eyes. "Alright, lets move!"

When she said that, we jumped up off of the ground, kicking up a lot of dust when we did, and sped in the direction Spitfire was heading in. After flying top speed for ten minutes, we came across what looked like an old European style fort. Like something you would see in a movie, complete with drawbridge and moat. Oh wait, the moat is filled with blood, so nevermind.

I took a look at the moat. "Well that's cute."

"Yeah, it doesn't look like he'll get a good resale value for that." Soarin said.

"Alright, that's enough jokes. We came here for a reason, so focus." Spitfire said.

We cut the chatter and flew over the fort, but we were blocked by a magical barrier.

"Now what? I don't think we can get through this thing, it seems pretty solid." I said.

"Ah, here are my guests. How are you doing everypony?" A voice said from inside the barrier. Just then, a pony in a black robe trotted out on top of one of the towers on the corner.

"Is that-" I started to say.

"Sorrow Curse." Spitfire said.

"Don't act so sour Spitfire. I thought you would be happy to see me."

"Come out of that barrier and I'll show you just how happy I am."

He laughed. "Violent as ever I see." He shifted his gaze towards me. I couldn't see his face, but I could see the red eyes glowing in the darkness created by his hood. "You must be Shadow Flash. A pleasure to finally meet you."

"Oh, the pleasure's all mine."

"I see you finally decided to recruit somepony with manners Spitfire. It's about time, I was wondering if you were planning on always being rude."

"Enough of this! Soarin, break the barrier down!" Spitfire yelled.

Soarin flew up to the barrier, and readied himself to punch it.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Sorrow said.

"And why is that?" Soarin asked.

"Because I have a hostage. A sweet mare, this one. It would be a shame if her blood was on your hands."

Soarin looked at Spitfire.

"If you want a shot at beating me without killing the hostage, you have to play by my rules."

"And how do we know you aren't lying about the hostage?" Spitfire said.

"Of course, how silly of me. How can I expect you to play along if I don't have any proof of the hostage? One moment please." He said before lowering his head. I saw his horn glow under his hood, and just then, an earth pony mare appeared. She had a tan coat with silver hair. She was tied up and had tears in her eyes.

"You sick bastard..." I said.

He smiled. "I appreciate the compliment. I found this one wandering too far from Appaloosa and figured I could put her to good use. So now that you see I have a hostage," He said before teleporting her away. "you should play my game if you value her life in the slightest."

We looked at Spitfire for an answer. "...We'll play your game."

"Excellent! Let me lower the drawbridge so you may enter." He said before disappearing.

We flew down in front of the drawbridge as it opened.

I looked at Spitfire. "Are you sure about this? How do we know he won't just kill her anyways?" I asked.

"We don't, but any chance I get to save a life, I'll take it."

"Okay. Any decision you make, I'm right behind you." I said.

"Good. Now get ready, the drawbridge is almost all the way down."

We quit talking and we looked at the drawbridge. When it finished lowering, we trotted over it across the blood moat. I'm pretty sure I saw a bone in there. When we were inside the fort, the drawbridge raised.

Sorrow's voice spoke up. "Now in front of you, there are five doors leading through five different tunnels. You will each take a different one."

"I don't like this Spitfire." Ni said.

"I hope you don't think I do. This is the only way to save a life, and I don't see another choice. Everypony, be especially careful when dealing with this guy. Please."

We nodded.

"Okay, I'll see you all on the far side." Spitfire said.

We then split up and went into our own doors.

I trotted through my door, and when I went inside I noticed a spiral set of stairs going up. I went up the stairs and emerged on a very large roof easily going a thousand yards in both directions. This is weird, I don't recall seeing this place on the outside.

"You're probably saying to yourself that this place wasn't here earlier. Well you would be correct. This is an illusion I've created to give you space for what you are about to face." The voice of Sorrow Curse said.

"And what will I be facing exactly?"

"You will have three rounds of competition. You will find out the identities of your opponent if you defeat the previous challenger. As a show of good will, I'll allow you five minutes of rest should you make it past a round."

I rolled my eyes. "That's very generous of you."

"I know. Now prepare yourself young one. Your first challenger approaches. Good luck."

When he finished speaking, a hole opened up in the roof about fourty feet in front of me. I watched in horror as five abominations crawled out of the pit that had appeared.

There are going to be a lot of perspective changes again, so bare with me. The ones with Shadow and Ni will be told from first person, while Soarin, Blaze, and Spitfire will be told in third, so don't get confused. Over to Ni.

I trotted down a set of stairs in front of me, and when I got to the bottom, what was in front of me was a very long hallway. It was probably twenty feet wide.

"Captain Night Wing. Welcome. You're challenge is slightly more difficult than the others. In front of you lies a hallway rigged with several traps. Make it to the end, and you win. Simple right? Oh, and promise you won't get mad, but I may have added on a bit more difficulty than I should have." Sorrow said.

I gave a stretch. It doesn't matter what challenges this sicko throws at me, I can take any obstacle course he throws at me, especially with plenty of room to fly. I jumped in the air and spread my wings, and as soon as I did, I noticed that I had been standing on a pressure plate. As soon as I got off of the plate, it rose up.

Well this can't be good. I listened and watched for what was coming at me. It's too dangerous and reckless to simply fly through there. My ear twitched, and I ducked just in time to avoid an axe that swung from the wall. I wasn't safe yet though, because as soon as I ducked, a few spikes shot out of the ground which I was able to avoid by flying forward. Okay, I need to move, forget what I said earlier!

I took flight down the hallway. I winced as my right wing accidentally touched the wall. When it did, a bunch of panels slid open on the walls, ceiling, and floor. Behind them were hundreds of tubes. Uh oh. I flew as fast as I could to get away from the arrows firing at me. Once I was past the arrows, I continued flying onward. This isn't too difficult, why would Sorrow Curse say this was more difficult than the othe-"

"Somepony please help us!" cried a voice in the distance.

No...he didn't do what I think he did. I flew ahead as fast as I could and came across a little filly who couldn't be older than nine, and a very old looking colt.

The filly looked at me in horror, and the older colt moved in front of her. "Stay away from my grandaughter you monster!" He said in a raspy voice.

That sick son of a bitch brought innocent fillies and elderly into this!

I landed. "Please, I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to take out the pony causing all of this, and save anypony along the way that I can."

"I don't believe you! You want to turn us into one of those abomination creatures!"

"I'm begging you, please let me help you."

The green coated pegasus filly with a purple mane and tail went around her grandpa and went up to me.

"Peep, don't go near him!" The grandpa called out.

"It's okay grandpa, I think he really does want to help." She trotted closer to me. "You are here to help right?"

I nodded. "That's right. I want to save you."

"Peep!"

"Grandpa, if he wanted to hurt me or you, he would have done it already!"

"...I guess you're right Peep." The older colt trotted up to me and held up a hoof. "I apologize for my behavior, I'm just very protective of my grandaughter Peep. Name's Shifty Levers."

I shook his hoof. "Night Wing. Now do you know what happened to you?"

He shrugged. "Me and Peep live in Appoloosa, we were just about to make a trip to Dodge Junction to visit some relatives. We suddenly blacked out, and next thing we know, we're trapped in this very large hallway. We thought it best to just stay put and wait for help."

"Good call. This hallways is completely covered in traps."

"So how are you going to get us out?" He asked.

I thought for a moment. My thoughts were interrupted by a loud sound coming from behind me. I peered into the distance behind me. The walls behind us had started slamming against each other!

Shifty sighed. "I knew something would happen eventually. I want you to take Peep and get her out of here, understand me son?"

Peep ran up to clench her grandpa. "No grandpa! You need to come with us! I won't leave you!"

Shifty picked her up and hugged her. "There there Peep. I've lived a good long life, and I have no regrets. Now I want you to go with mister Night Wing here, okay?"

The filly broke out in tears. "Please grandpa! Don't go!"

He then gave her to me. She was struggling to break free. "Go on, if you wait too long, you won't be able to save either of us."

"I'm sorry. Please forgive me for not making it here fast enough."

"Don't blame yourself son. It 'aint your fault there are just plain evil ponies out there. Now get out of here and keep my grandchild safe!"

I trotted forward. The smashing walls were getting closer. I looked back at Shifty. He smiled and nodded just before disappearing between the slamming walls. I jumped in the air and flew full speed away from the smashing walls.

"Grandpaaaa!" Peep screamed with the tears flowing from her eyes. "Let me go! Let me go back to my grandpa!"

I tucked her closer to me. "I'm so sorry kid. I'm so, so sorry."

To Shadow.

The abominations charged me at once. I jumped into the air and came down on one of their skulls with one of my hidden blades, killing it instantly. That leaves four. They were each on different sides of me. They charged me at once again. This time, I jumped into the air and flattened out, sticking my legs directly at their faces and activating all four of my blades, causing them to drop instantly.

"Now, that was very impressive. Congratulations mister Shadow, you made it to round 2. That wasn't much of a challenge, but the next one will be harder. I promise. Also as promised, you get a five minute break." Sorrow Curse said.

Sick fuck...

To Soarin.

Soarin trotted through a second door, which led to a very large room with four support columns in each corner. On the far side of the room, a door opened up, and a pony in a black robe walked in.

"Hello mister Soarin. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lord Sorrow Curse's right hoof pony, Ruined Soul. I'll be keeping you company in this place."

"Keeping me company eh? Did you bring some coffee? A board game, maybe? I do like a good game of checkers." Soarin said.

Ruined Soul laughed. "My my, you are quite the comical pony. Alas, I'm afraid all I've brought is myself and superior knowledge of forbidden magic. Do forgive me, because games that involve forbidden magic are all I know."

"Oh that's fine. Care to enlighten me on the rules?"

"What kind of host would I be if I kept the rules from you? The rules are quite simple really. All you have to do is survive."

Soarin cracked his neck. "Alright, ready when you are."

Ruined Soul gave an evil grin. "Begin."

As soon as he said that, Soarin charged in with incredible speed. Right before he landed a punch on Ruined Soul, his eyes and horn began to glow white, and he unleashed a charge of energy. Soarin had to barrel out of the way before the beam hit him and back up.

"It's going to take more than a direct charge to get to me. Go ahead, make your next move, I'll wait." Ruined said.

Soain didn't say anything, he just flew at Ruined again, and when he shot another beam at Soarin, he reared back and punched it into nothing.

"Impossible!"

"Looks like I win." Soarin said as he prepared the final blow.

"Fool!" Ruined yelled as his horn was enveloped in a black aura. It spead across his whole body, making even his eyes turn black.

Soarin backed off as a precaution.

"What's the matter? Is it my appearance?" Ruined said, sounding like the first skeleton Shadow fought, with thousands of voices speaking at once.

Soarin didn't say anything. 'Okay, I'm guessing that aura is some kind of barrier.' Soarin thought. 'And I get a feeling my natural strength won't be enough for this guy. Only one thing to do then.' Just then, Soarin's helmet started emitting a dark blue aura, which soon surrounded Soarin. 'One hundred times normal strength should be sufficient.'

"It appears I'm not the only one with a card up the sleeve. You better give it your all if you're honestly thinking of another direct charge you fool!" Ruined said.

"Nah, ten percent should be enough." Soarin calmly replied.

Ruined laughed. "If you want to die, be my guest!"

Soarin didn't say anything more. He closed his eyes and the blue aura surrounding him concentrate around his right foreleg. He took off and charged once more. Ruined responded by letting out a solid black energy wave, which Soarin simply flicked with his right foreleg to destroy. Ruined's eyes got wide.

"Wha-what are you?!"

"I'm a Wonderbolt." Soarin said before punching Ruined Soul into oblivion, literally sending pieces of him everywhere. After a few seconds, the pieces disintegrated in a black aura.

The blue aura disappeared from Soarin's leg and he trotted onward.

To Shadow.

"Ding! Five minutes are up! Get ready for your next challenge mister Shadow!" Sorrow's voice called out.

I hope I get to fight that jackass for the third round.

I heard a very loud roar come from the pit. That better not be what I-...I'm going to cut myself off right there, because I'm probably only going to jinx it.

The roar got louder, which means it's getting closer. Pretty soon, I saw the solid black dragon crawl out of the hole in the middle.

Fuck, I was right. Sort-of anyways. I thought it was a dragon, but I didn't think a regenerans beastia would be here. This is worse than a dragon.

It looked down at me and roared, nearly deafening me.

"Okay, I get it! You're a fucking dragon, now quit yelling!"

It suddenly inhaled very deeply.

My brain: dragon + deep inhale=...fuck.

I flew out of the way just in time to avoid the solid black flames erupting from its mouth. It looked at me, and spewed more flames at me. I dodged and wove my way around the dragon. When I got to the back of it, I pulled out a dagger, and stabbed it into it, getting a roar. I didn't stop there. I gripped the dagger tightly, and began slicing across.

I was jerked as the thing took flight, and turned itself upside down, leaving me at the bottom now. I yanked my dagger free, and jumped off just in time to avoid getting crushed. It quickly recovered and started spewing more flames at me.

Damnit, how can I take down something this big with just a few daggers? Wait, maybe I can attack a soft spot.

I jumped out of the way to avoid another spew of flames, and charged at its eye. I got my dagger ready and jabbed it straight on his left eye, making it roar in pain. I then dragged my dagger from one side of his eye to the other, making it go ballistic. It reached a claw for me, but I jumped away.

It was screaming in pain..wait, maybe that's how I can beat it, but fuuuck do I really want to do something that gross? I better do it before my window closes and that eye heals and it can attack again.

On it's next roar of pain, I flew straight into its mouth. After a while of flying through the throat, I cut my way out of it. I flew around its body, slicing up anything I could find. After a while of searching, I finally found its heart. I pulled out a second dagger and jabbed both of them into the heart. I completely rended it. When that was finished, I began to cut my way out. When I got outside, I saw that the beastia was on the ground, and unmoving. It then disintegrated and disappeared forever.

I wish I could say the same about all of this blood and guts on me. This is so weak.

"My my, you actually killed it. Aren't you the special one? Five minutes before your final challenge. This last one's a doozy."

I sighed and sat down in wait.

To Blaze.

Blaze continued on her way through a pitch black tunnel. She was a little nervous, because she hadn't been on that many missions. She was also slightly irked by the fact that Shadow had already passed her up in terms of skill. It was expected though. She was only 15, so it's only natural a little jealousy showed. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard something beside her. The torches suddenly cut on and illuminated a very large underground arena. There was a thin layer of sand covering the area.

At the other end of the arena, there was a large gate. It opened up, and a pony with necromancer robes trotted out.

"So you're a necromancer I get to kill? Cool, because I've been looking for something to do ever since I got here."

The necromancer didn't say anything. His horn started glowing a black aura, and a black void easily fifteen feet tall, and ten feet wide appeared in the middle of the arena. Something with a massive grey hoof reached out of it and grabbed the side of the void. Another reached out and grabbed the other. Its face emerged first. It was a scaley demon with red eyes that appeared to leave a trail of light behind him when he moved his head. Then the rest of his body appeared. It had four large legs, each ending with a hoof. The parts of his body not cased in armor were grey and covered in scales. It's like something you'd see in world of warcraft or something like that, except real, and pissed. Pissed probably isn't the right word, more like hungry...for life...your life.

Blaze took a step back. "You're...big. Like really really big."

The necromancer smiled behind his hood. "Allow me to introduce you to the anima interfectorum."

"The soul killer huh?" Blaze said to herself. She smiled. "Awesome! When I take this thing down, I'll get some recognition for sure!"

The necromancer laughed again. "A little cocky aren't we? You are about to see how wrong you are to get over-confident before the fight even begins, especially against a demon."

"Oh yeah? Well-" Blaze's eyes shot wide as the giant demon was in her face in less than a second.

"How-" Was all Blaze got off before being picked up and slammed against the ground.

Blaze scrambled off and flew away just in time to avoid being crushed by a mace the demon was carrying.

'Damnit! How is this thing so fast?!' Blaze thought to herself. 'How the hell can I fight something that's a lot bigger than me, and just as fast-' Blaze's thoughts were cut off by the demon as it grabbed her in between two of its front hooves. It started squeezing. Blaze cried out in pain.

The demon looked at Blaze for a few seconds, then threw her on the ground full force, breaking her back, strong bones or not, you were getting some bones broken from that. The impact knocked Blaze unconscious.

"Finish it!" The necromancer yelled.

The demon raised its mace to deliver the final blow, and came down with his mace, slamming onto Blaze.

The necromancer smiled. "Well, I guess she was just unlucky to have come across me. Eat her soul and you can go home soul killer."

The demon knelt down to the impact area.

The necromancer was trotting away when he heard the demon roar. He whirled around in time to see the demon's head slide off. "What is this?!" He yelled.

Spitfire appeared in front of him with a cold look. "Your end." She said before punching a hole straight through his chest and tearing out his heart. It was black.

Spitfire dropped the black heart on the ground as the necromancer fell. She rushed to the spot she had set Blaze down after saving her before the demon's mace hit her.

Spitfire checked for a pulse, and concluded that she was still alive. Spitfire breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you're alive." Spitfire said quietly. "I'll get you home after our mission is done. You've earned a rest kid." Spitfire finished. She picked up Blaze and carried her onward.

To Shadow.

"Ding! Time's up! If you'll direct your attention to the hole in the roof, your next challenge emerges." Sorrow said.

I got up and prepared myself. What's worse than a regenerans bestia transformed into a dragon? Well, unfortunately that question was answered when the mare we all saw from outside the fortress was raised up, strapped to a table, with two necromancers standing on opposite sides. She had tears in her eyes.

"Are you ready for your final challenge Mister Shadow Flash?" Sorrow's voice said.

"No...don't do this!"

"I'm afraid it's too late for that. Would you two gentlecolts be so kind as to use the spell?"

The two necromancers turned to the crying mare. Their horns became coated in a black aura, which soon enveloped their bodies. The aura then left them and went to the mare, completely shrouding her. The two necromancer ponies dropped dead, and I could hear the mare screaming behind that curtain of shadow.

I snapped out of my trance and flew over to the table the mare was strapped to. I couldn't see her, but I undid her restraints, and the mass of blackness fell to the ground. Please be okay...

I heard something come from the mass of blackness, and jumped back just in time to avoid a spike looking object. The black veil was lifted, and I could see that the mare from earlier was no more. What was left in her place was a nightmare. Her tan coat was now white, and her mane and tail were black. She had the same lifeless look in her eyes like the abominations. In addition, her body was covered in fleshy spikes.

"This...is my fault." I said, dropping down. "I could have done something, but I was too scared to move..." I shook my head. Those thoughts will have to wait for later.

I got off of the ground and looked at the former mare in front of me. "I'm sorry I couldn't make it to you in time. Please forgive me from what I'm about to do."

I charged at the mare and activated the hidden blade on my right foreleg. Right before I hit her, a couple of those fleshy spikes lunged at me, forcing me back. I gritted my teeth and looked at the cut one of the spikes left on my left foreleg. This is going to be difficult.

The creature charged at me, and several of the spikes extended and bent towards me. I jumped out of the way as they assaulted the spot I was just at. I flew up behind her and prepared to stab her once again, but more spikes shot out of her to keep me at bay. She charged at me again, and I flew into the air to avoid her. Two spikes shot out of her body and extended well over sixty feet to attack me. I deflected one of them, but the other managed to pierce my left wing. I winced in pain and quickly lowered myself to the ground. She anticipated this and charged at me with five extended spikes. Well fuck.

Just then, my armor started glowing again like it had once before. Also like before, I felt a surge of energy rush through me. I moved to the side with literal lightning speed, and went towards the mare. The spikes shot out at me, but to me, it looked like they were going in slow-motion. I easily avoided them and stuck a dagger in her back.

After that, everything went back to normal speed. The mare collapsed on the ground, and the spikes started receding. Her coat was also returning to its original tan color, and her mane and tail were turning silver again. She looked at me and struggled to smile. "Thank you."

I shook my head. "Please don't thank me, I'm the one who did this to you."

"You didn't turn me into a monster. You saved me. Please don't blame yourself." Her eyes started to close.

"Don't die on me! Do you hear me?! Hey!" I yelled.

"Thank...you..." Were her last words before her eyes closed forever.

"FUCK! DON'T DIE!"

It was too late.

I yelled. "COME OUT HERE YOU SORRY SON OF A BITCH SORROW CURSE!"

His laughter filled the air. "I'm afraid I'll have to decline. You Fugiens Mones don't dissapoint though. I didn't expect all of you to survive. I'll have to rethink my plans now. Thank you, you were excellent test experiments. Ciao."

"YOU FUCKING COWARD! GET BACK HERE!"

There was no response.

"Shadow..." A voice said. I whirled around to see the team watching me. Spitfire was carrying Blaze, and Ni was holding a filly.

The tears started. "I'm so sorry...I couldn't save her. I should have done something, I should have-"

Spitfire cut me off with a hug. "It's okay Shadow. You did your best."

"My best wasn't enough. I did my best and I still couldn't save her!"

"Come on Shadow. Let's get out of here." Spitfire said, breaking the hug.

"You know what the worst part is? I didn't even learn her name. I killed her, and I didn't even give the fucking courtesy of learning her name!"

"That's enough Shadow. I'd like to get this filly to some kin." Ni said.

I took a deep breath. "Alright..."

"Do you know anywhere some family is?" Spitfire asked her.

"I don't wanna go live with my aunt! I'd rather stay with you guys!"

"What?"

"I...I wanna give that mean pony some justice! He...he killed my grandpa! I wanna make sure he never hurts another pony again!"

We looked at her in surprise. All of us except Spitfire anyways.

Ni looked at Spitfire. "Wait, Spitfire, you're not seriously considering this are you?"

"Why shouldn't I? She's only nine at the most, yet she already understands revenge isn't the right path. Do you know how rare that is? It's rare even for adults. If she wants to make sure somepony doesn't hurt others again, who are we to stop her from trying?"

"..."

Spitfire knelt down in front of the filly. "If you really want to do this, you can't have any contact with your family or friends. Officially, you died here. If yes, we will take you, and shape you into a protector of Equestria. The chance of death is likely all along the way. Knowing this, do you still want to continue?"

The filly thought for a moment, then looked up. "I want to help other ponies, and make sure nothing happens to them like what happened to my grandpa. Can you please help me to do that?"

Spitfire nodded. "We can. Welcome to our little family. What's your name little one?"

"It's Peep."

"It's Solemn Justice now, got it?"

The green and purple filly thought for a moment, then smiled and nodded. "I like it."

"Climb on top of Night Wing's back, and we'll get out of here."

Night Wing knelt down and allowed Solemn Justice to climb on his back.

Spitfire turned to me. "We'll handle things from here Shadow. Go home and get some rest. You deserve it."

"Yeah...sure." I said before spreading my wings. I took one more look at Solemn Justice before taking flight home.

When I got back, it was dark inside. I took off my now crimson armor and set it on where I thought the couch was. I trotted upstairs, careful not to trip.

Why is it so dark? "Rainbow?" I called out.

No response.

I made it upstairs and went into the bedroom to find Rainbow in bed giving me a very seductive look.

"Rainbow?"

"Shadow, come here, I need to tell you something."

I trotted up to the bed, and she leaned in and whispered, "How long can you last?"

I gulped and got in bed.

And there you have it, my first clop scene. (Removed it because it was, simply put, horrible. Be thankful if you never read it.) Was it worth it? It was my first attempt at one, so don't bust my bawlz. I won't be doing to many of these, so don't expect one every one or even five chapters. That's not to say this is going to be the only one, it's just not going to happen that often. Anywho, what did you think of the chapter itself? Was it good? Bad? Okay? Best thing ever? This story just gave me cancer? Lemme know in the comments ;)

Chuck Norris Fact of the Day: Early church fathers omitted the part of the Bible when Chuck Norris rappelled down into the Last Supper, karate chopped the table in half, and teabagged Judas.
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Oh God, I feel so awesome right now. Five rounds. I smiled to myself. I snuck out of bed and trotted downstairs. I'm not really hungry, so I think I'll skip breakfast today. I trotted outside and took flight to Cloudsdale. I went through the secret entrance and trotted downstairs to the sanctuary. Everypony was there, including our new member Solemn Justice.

I went over to the round table and took a seat one space away from Ni, and one space away from Soarin. Ni rolled his eyes.

"Good morning Shadow, feel better?" Spitfire asked.

"I guess." I turned to Blaze, who didn't have any signs of injury except a few bruises. "What about you Blaze, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine. I'm going out to the training area." She said before storming off.

Spitfire sighed.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked.

"She's probably jealous of you." Spitfire said.

"Why would she be jealous of me? Why would anypony be jealous of me?"

"Think about it Shadow. She's taken a year to become a full fledged member of the Mones, while you took less than a month, and you're not even originally a pony. You're superior at fighting in every way, and her loss against that demon only damaged her pride further."

"Why doesn't she get her armor enchanted?"

"She says it's because there aren't any that suit her personality."

I thought for a moment. "What about fire control?"

Spitfire facehoofed. "Why didn't I think of that before..."

I smiled and rose. "I'll go talk to her. We'll be back shortly." I turned to Solemn Justice. "And we'll discuss a few things as well."

The green and purple filly nodded.

At that, I left the sanctuary and trotted upstairs. I went around back and found Blaze on the bleachers with her face in her hooves.

I flew down next to her. "Blaze, you okay?"

"What do you want?"

"C'mon Blaze, I'm sorry if I've upset you. We're family, remember?"

"Would a family member make another member ashamed? Go away."

"Blaze...I can't help what I am. While I had every intention of wanting to go to Equestria, I did not see this coming. The last place I thought I'd be is a secret sanctuary for an ancient order of assassins working for Princess Luna."

Blaze smiled a little.

"I can understand how you feel. I'm only one or two years older than you after all. I completely understand what it's like to feel like you're left in the shadow of another."

Blaze looked at me. "Thanks Shadow."

I smiled. "No problem." I held my forelegs out. "Hugz?"

She laughed and hugged me.

We broke the hug and I spoke up. "Come on, I helped think of an armor enchantment for you."

"Really? What is it?"

"Well, if Princess Luna can do it, fire control."

"Fire control?"

I nodded. "That's right. If the enchantment does what it's supposed to, you will be able to control fire."

"Awesome! Let's go!" She said before flying off back towards the sanctuary.

I smiled and flew back as well. When I trotted downstairs, everypony was chatting. Princess Luna was there as well.

She saw me and smiled. "Come, Shadow Flash. We would like a word with you."

"Yes Princess." I said before trotting next to her.

"Spitfire tells us your last mission was a failure."

I looked at the ground. "She's right. Our target got away, and two civilians died in the process."

"While we are deeply sorrowed by the loss of innocent lives, was your mission truly a failure?"

"What do you mean Princess?"

"It looks like none of you died, and it also looks like you even managed to save a little filly, and recruit her at that."

"I guess..."

"Do not be so hard on yourself Shadow Flash. There are some things that are just out of anypony's conrol, even mine. If Captain Spitfire said there was nothing that could have been done, she meant it."

I sighed. "You're right..bu-" I was cut off by Blaze.

"Hey Princess Luna, do you think you could do that enchantment now?"

Princess Luna smiled. "We'll talk later." She turned to Blaze. "Coming."

Luna walked over to Blaze's Wonderbolt uniform, and touched it with her horn, causing it to glow. When she finished, Princess Luna backed up. "There you are, one enchanted uniform."

"Thank you Princess." Blaze said.

"It was no trouble. We need to get back to Canterlot, but we will be back." Princess Luna said before disappearing.

"Congrats Blaze." I said.

"Thanks." She replied, smiling.

I turned to Solemn Justice. "Come with me."

"What for?" Ni asked.

"Relax, I just want to talk to the kid."

The fillygot out of her seat and trotted over. "Sir?"

"Let's go upstairs. Here, climb on my back, it will be quicker."

She nodded and climbed on my back. I went upstairs and went over to the bleachers behind the HQ building.

I set the filly down and looked at her. "So lets start with formally introducing ourselves. I'm Shadow Flash, originally a different creature from a different universe, died, and got sent here. Oh, and I'm 17. How about yourself?"

The filly looked shocked for a moment, but shook it off. "I'm Pe- I mean Solemn Justice. I lived with my grandpa most of my life. My real parents died in a train accident when I was just a foal, so my grandpa took me in. I'm nine years old."

"I'm sorry to hear that Solemn. Away from that depressing subject though, Spitfire tells us you're very mature for your age."

The filly blushed. "I guess."

"Have you made any living arrangements yet?"

"No, I haven't, why?"

I smiled. "Great! You can come live with me and my fiance!"

If she had water or any beverage in her mouth, she would have spit it out in shock. "What?!"

"You don't have to. I just thought I'd throw that offer out there. We could officially adopt you. You'd be an official member of my family. I guess you could say you already have a family with us, but I'm talking about an official family, with a dad and mom."

The filly started tearing up.

"What's wrong? You don't have to come live with us if you don't want-" I started to say.

She shook her head. "That's not it. It's just that anypony who looks after me seems to die. I don't want anypony to die because of me." She said before she started to cry.

I put my foreleg around her. "Don't say things like that. We're not going anywhere, I'll make sure of that. Besides, I've had my fill of death to last me for a long, long time." I smiled. "You'll have a family with us. You won't go hungry, you'll be well protected, and most importantly, you'll have me!" I finished with a large grin.

Solemn stopped crying and laughed.

"Whad'ya say Solemn? Wanna be my daughter?"

I didn't get a yes, instead, she jumped over to me and gave me a big hug which I returned.

"Welcome to my family Solemn."

"Thanks...Dad."

That word made me ridiculously happy. Dad...sigh*...I guess I'll go see where I can find him and invite him to the wedding. I've been putting it off for a while now.

We broke the hug, and I let Solemn climb on my back again. We went downstairs again, and trotted over to the round table, where I let Solemn off.

Ni noticed how happy we were and spoke up. "You two seem pretty happy, what did you talk about?"

Solemn bounced up and down. "I get to go live with dad now!"

"Dad? You mean Shadow?"

The filly nodded. "That's right! He offered to adopt me, and I said yes!"

Everypony smiled.

"That's great! We're all happy for you Solemn." Ni said.

"Yeah, that's great kid." Soarin said.

Ni walked over to me. "So why did you offer to adopt her?" He whispered.

"Because she obviously needs a real home, and also because she's friggin' adorable!"

"Is there any other reason?"

"Yeah, there is. I think I'm the only one here that might be able to make a parental connection with her. I grew up hating my dad Ni. I don't want her to not even have one. It's more than just an obligation, I want to do this. I want to raise her."

Ni smiled and patted my back. "That's probably the most mature thing I've ever heard you say."

"Yeah, try and keep what I said secret."

"I'll try." He said, rolling his eyes and trotting back to the table.

"Well guys, I guess I should go now. Come on Solemn, I'll let you see your new home and mom."

She smiled really big and I let her climb on my back again. "We'll be here again tomorrow."

"Good, because she starts her training tomorrow." Spitfire said.

I nodded. "Understood."

I trotted out with the filly on my back and took flight towards home.

Solemn spoke up about halfway there. "So did you really mean what you said to Mister Ni?"

"You heard that? I thought I was whispering."

"I picked up bits and pieces. I have really good ears."

I shrugged. "I guess it doesn't matter if you heard. Yeah Solemn, I meant every single word."

She didn't say anything else, but I could tell she was on the verge of crying from happiness. I'm glad I decided to offer. There's just the question of what Rainbow's reaction will be. I swear to God if she hits me over the head again...I'll...I'll bitch! I mean it!

We arrived back at the house of cloud, and I let Solemn off, who was looking at the place in awe. "This place is huge!" She said.

I smiled. "Glad you like it. C'mon, I'll introduce you to Rainbow Dash."

I opened the door and trotted in with Solemn. The living room was empty, so I called out. "Hey Rainbow, you here?!"

"Yeah, I'm upstairs!" She called back.

"Come downstairs then! I have a surprise for you!"

I heard trotting, and Rainbow soon emerged from the stairs. She saw Solemn and spoke. "Is this one of your special fans Shadow? She sure is a cute little filly."

"Mind if I speak to you for just a sec Rainbow? Solemn, you wait here for a second."

Solemn nodded and Rainbow trotted with me over to the kitchen.

"So what's her name?" Rainbow asked.

"It's Solemn Justice. I guess I should explain things. On my mission yesterday, myself and a few other ponies went to infiltrate a base where somepony evil was hiding. While we were there, we faced gruesome challenges, such as creatures called abominations. Well, when I finished up with my fighting, Ni comes up along with the rest of the group, but he's holding a little filly, her. Ni said that her grandpa had given her to him just before getting killed in order to save her. We asked if she wanted to go live with some kin, but she refused, saying she wanted to join us. Spitfire let her join, and today, well...I sorta' offered to adopt her."

"...That's a long story Shadow. Let me ask this; why do you want to adopt her?"

"Like I told Ni, I'm the only one there that could have probably made a parental connection with her, and I grew up hating my dad, so I can't imagine what it would be like to grow up without one altogether. I really do want to raise her Rainbow."

"..Okay."

"Really?"

"C'mon Shadow, I'm not going to turn down the kid a new home and life after what she's been through. We'll raise her together, okay?"

I kissed her and smiled. "Okay."

We trotted back to Solemn who had taken a seat on the couch.

Me and Rainbow extended our hooves. "Welcome to the family Solemn." I said.

The little filly smiled larger than Pinkie Pie herself and ran over to hug us. We had a good group hug, then parted.

"Now there's the matter of a room. Would you rather have your own room, or would you rather sleep with us?" Rainbow said.

"I'll take my own room if that's okay."

"Sure is, right this way." Rainbow said, leading her off.

I smiled. This is going to prove to be a good decision.

I waited around for about another minute before Rainbow and Solemn trotted back.

"Hey you two, I need to go take care of something, I'll be back in a bit." I said.

"Alright Shadow, see you then."

"Bye Dad!"

It's going to take some getting used to being called that. I used to associate that word with jackass, but not anymore. I nodded and left Rainbow and Solemn to get to know each other better, and flew to Mayor Mare's home. I gave a knock, and she answered.

"Hello? What can I do for you?"

"Yeah, is my dad here?"

"Your dad? I don't think-"

"Junior! There you are!" My dad yelled from inside.

"Hey, can you come outside for a sec? I need to talk to you about something."

"Of course." He said, trotting over. "Please excuse us Miss Mare."

The Mayor nodded and left me and my dad alone.

"I haven't seen you in a while junior."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I've been...busy."

"So I've heard. It sounds like you've found this place's equivalent of NASCAR. At least they have some form of it here. But that aside, what's on your mind son?"

"Well, I have two things to tell you. The first is...I'm getting married."

I expected him to blow up again, but was surprised when he smiled and hugged me. "Congratulations son! I'm proud of you!"

"You're not upset?"

"I've grown to accept everything the way it is now. Just ask the Mayor in there, because we like to-"

"Nonononononooooooo that's okay dad, you don't have to tell me. The other thing I wanted to tell you is that I just adopted a little filly, or girl. She's nine years old, and her name is Solemn Justice."

"So, I'm a grandpa now?"

"Technically, yes."

"She's cute though?"

"Exceedingly. She's my new daughter after all."

"I can't wait to meet her. When is the wedding?"

"It's six days from now, in the capital of Equestria, Canterlot. I'm sure Mayor Mare would be glad to show you the way. You can tell her she's invited as well."

"I will. Is that all you wanted to talk about son?"

"Yeah, that's it. I'll see you later though."

"Alright son, take care."

I nodded and flew off back home. When I walked inside, Rainbow and Solemn were chatting on the couch. They looked up at me when I trotted in.

"Hey Shadow, I guess we should go ahead and go over to the adoption agency huh?"

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. You ready Solemn?"

She smiled and nodded.

"Alright, hop on." I said, kneeling down so she could hop on my back.

When she climbed on my back, I trotted outside with Rainbow.

"It's this way." Rainbow said, taking flight.

I jumped up and flew behind her. We arrived at a fairly large building that looked to be made of marble on the outside. We trotted in, and there was a red coated mare with a blue mane and tail to greet us behind a table. She had a motherly feeling about her.

"Hello, welcome to the Ponyville adoption agency! My name is Tender Heart. How may I help you?"

"Me and my fiance here would like to adopt the cute little filly on my back." I said, kneeling down so Tender Heart could see her.

"She is cute. All I'll need is consent from her parents, and we can begin the paperwork."

"That's the thing, we found her all alone in a Baltimare alley. We thought about it, and decided we should give her a good home."

Tender Heart looked at us for a moment before speaking up again. "Well, you two certainly don't look like you're dishonest, and the little one does seem to be quite happy. Very well, I'll go get the paperwork." She said before trotting through a back room.

She came back a few minutes later with a clipboard and a pen and set it down on the desk. "If you two will just fill that out, you will officially have a new daughter." She finished with a smile.

Rainbow and I took a look at the paperwork. It wasn't much. I decided to let Rainbow fill out most of it, and all I had to do was sign my name. When the paperwork was done, Rainbow gave the paperwork back to Tender Heart.

While reviewing it, her eyes shot wide. "I didn't realize you two were Wonderbolts! I remember now! You two were in Baltimare! I loved your performance."

"Thanks." Rainbow and I said in unison.

"You also work at a foster home don't you Tender Heart?" Rainbow asked.

"I do, why?"

"How many kids live there?"

"About twelve, why?"

Rainbow nodded to me, and I got what she was saying. I reached into my saddlebag, and pulled out six more season passes for the Wonderbolts. Rainbow pulled out seven, one extra for Tender Heart. We set them on the table.

Her eyes went wide. "These...these are-"

"Thirteen season passes to the Wonderbolts, all for you and those kids." Rainbow said.

"I...this...thank you. Thank you so much! The kids will love this!"

"I'm sure they will. Take care." Rainbow said as we trotted out.

"You three as well!" She called back.

When we got outside, we took flight back home.

"That was really nice." I said.

"Those kids deserve a kind gesture." Rainbow replied.

"Yeah, you're right. So are you excited Solemn? You're officially a member of our family now."

"I am. Thank you two so much!"

"No need to thank us Solemn. You're our daughter after all."

She responded by hugging me tighter.

When we arrived home, we all took a seat on the couch. We were all tired, it was probably around 8:30 now.

"How about we go to sleep now?" I suggested.

"Is it okay if I sleep with you two for tonight?" Solemn asked.

"You know you don't have to ask. Come on, lets go to bed." Rainbow said.

Solemn smiled and we all trotted upstairs and got in bed. She made herself comfortable in the middle. I've never been so happy to be cock-blocked in both of my lives.

There's a dawww chapter for you guys :P. What do you think about what went down? Do you like the conversation with Blaze? Like her new power? What about adopting Solemn Justice? Going to the west coast tomorrow! (Shadow is, not me. No, I get to stay where all of the hurricanes are on the Gulf Coast xp)(Another side note, for those who read my other story, Bleach: Equestria, I'm putting it on a hiatus. I'll get back to it eventually, but I'm considering starting up a side project. Anywho, I won't be submitting too many chapters very fast for the next few months. SO MANY NEW GAEMZ TO PLAY.

Chuck Norris Fact of the day: Chuck Norris's beard is pure matter, while his chest hair is pure antimatter. If the two ever meet, the universe will explode.
> To Applewood!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up sooner than I intended, because something was touching me. I opened one of my eyes and saw that Solemn had her forelegs wrapped around one of my forelegs. Meh, I can stay in bed a while longer. I like this picture. Me in bed with my family. It's a big day today. Solemn starts her training, and I, along with Ni, Barry, and Soarin go to Los Pegasus. This should be an interesting day indeed.

I think I have an idea on how to get away from the bed. I softly took one of Rainbow's forelegs, and carefully removed mine from Solemn's grip. I then put Rainbow's foreleg in place of mine. After my success, I snuck out of bed and trotted downstairs. Stealth level over 9000 for sure.

I trotted into the kitchen, and made a large breakfast consisting of, you guessed it, hay bacon, eggs, and toast. After once again contemplating suicide because of the spatula made of cloud, I set everything out. I heard hoofsteps coming from the stairs and looked over to see Rainbow and Solemn trotting down.

"Something smells good." Rainbow said.

"That would be the best breakfast ever prepared. I promise I went easy on the rat poison this time."

"You're hilarious." Rainbow said as she got a plate made of cloud.

Don't kill yourself Landon, you just got a daughter... "So how did you sleep Solemn?"

She rubbed her eyes. "I slept pretty well. Thanks for making breakfast Dad."

I smiled. "You're welcome. When you finish, I'll take you to the sanctuary so you can start your training."

"Alright. How long does training take?"

"I'm really not sure. I'm guessing it changes depending on the individual. It might also take you a little longer, given your age."

"How long did it take you?"

"About a month. I was a rare exception apparently, because I'm just that awesome." I finished with a smirk.

"Alright Mr. Awesome, sit down and eat with us." Rainbow said.

"Let me enjoy myself a moment longer." I said with my eyes closed and a smile on my face.

"...Dad, are you okay?" Solemn asked.

"...And self love moment over. Alright, lets eat!" I said before sitting down.

"Does he always do that?" Solemn asked Rainbow.

"Sigh*. Yeah. It's part of why I love him though, I guess. You'll get used to it Solemn."

"I'm just curious, and please don't hit me, but why are you different from when I first met you Rainbow?" I asked.

"I don't know. I guess I grew a little more mature to counter your immaturity."

"Imma-what?" I said with a mouth full of hay bacon.

Rainbow laughed. "Nevermind."

"You'll miss me when I'm in Los Pegasus."

"If you say so." She said, rolling her eyes.

"Well, I guess I should get going. Come on Solemn." I said, getting up.

"Coming Dad." She replied.

"Wait outside. I need to talk to Mom for a little bit."

"Alright." She said before walking outside.

Me and Rainbow kissed each other for a few seconds. "I'll see you in a few days." I said.

"Alright. Have fun Shadow."

"You know I will. Love you."

"I love you too."

I trotted outside, and allowed Solemn to hop on my back. I flew us over to Cloudsdale, and went down into the sanctuary underneath the Wonderbolts HQ. The squad was there at the Round Table.

I trotted over, and let Solemn off at one of the chairs.

I looked at Soarin and Ni. "So are you two ready for some serious fun?"

Soarin grinned. "You know it."

"Now that's the spirit!"

I looked at Spitfire. "Hey, you'll make sure Solemn and Rainbow stay safe while I'm gone, right?"

"You don't even need to ask. Don't worry, they'll be fine." She replied.

I nodded. "Thanks. Well, come on you two, lets fly over to Ponyville and pick up Barry."

I looked at Solemn. "Be good. I'll be back in a couple of days."

Solemn got up and trotted over to give me a hug. I knelt down and returned it. "Take care." I said.

"Alright, bye Dad."

I nodded, and trotted upstairs with Ni and Soarin behind me. When we got outside, we took flight towards Ponyville.

"So Ni, how are things with Derpy?" I asked.

"Things are going great, actually. She's letting me live with her."

"Where did you live before?"

"A cave on the mountain that houses Canterlot."

"What the hell bro? Why didn't you tell me? I would have hooked you up."

"I thought it was cozy. Trust me, if I wanted a house, I would have bought one. Like I told you before, I normally prefer solitude. Until you came along, I hardly went out unless it was for a mission. You helped me get out more and find a mare, so thanks."

"Don't thank me dude. I'm glad I was able to help. But what about you Soarin? Did you ever end up contacting that mare from Baltimare again? What was her name? Purple Lotus?"

"Yeah, that's her. No, I haven't by the way. I'm not really looking for long-term relationships. I doubt I ever will. I don't think I could live with myself if a pony I loved for years died. Well, again anyway. That's why I'm worried about you two. I'm sorry to say this, but when the time comes, and they do pass on, come find me. I'll help you out. I've been through that depression once, and how I coped with her loss wasn't exactly the best thing I could have done."

"What did you do?" I asked.

"The first thing I did was try to commit suicide, but the potion won't let you die unless it's in battle. After suicide didn't work, I started drinking. A lot. Turns out that after a while, all that does is multiply your pain. Sure, it helps at first, but that doesn't last long."

"So how'd you overcome your depression?"

"I moved away to the Griffin Kingdoms. I went to a very bad part there, where there was all kinds of war and crime. Every single day there, I would kill. I must have killed over a hundred griffins. Not good ones I told myself. They were all thieves, killers, and rapists. They deserved to die. Turns out that murdering a bunch of people doesn't do much for coping either. After a month of living there, Spitfire found me in an alley just as I was tearing a griffin in half that had stolen from a merchant. After beating the hell out of me, she said something I'd never forget, even after hundreds of years went by. 'If we all fell apart like this after somepony we hold dear died, then there wouldn't be any society. We all go through a severe pain like this at least once in our lives. I'm sure that if she could see you now, she'd be sickened. You know she wouldn't want you to do this to yourself. The only thing you can do is move on. Don't drink to forget, don't kill to forget. Set aside room in your heart, and always remember her. It hurts to remember, I know, but things will get better. I promise.'

"After that, she brought me back home, and got me a place to stay. She knew that I was still depressed, so she tried to keep me busy with missions. There were only two things in the end that helped me. My best friend, and time. A lot of time. That's why I don't look for anymore long term relationships. I doubt I'd be able to deal with something like that a second time and come out sane."

"That's quite a lot. I do appreciate the concern Soarin, but I guess we'll have to see where it goes. In all honesty I'd rather not think about it right now." I said.

"I don't blame you. I didn't either. Just enjoy your time with her. Don't let a single second go to waste."

I nodded. "Easy enough. Let's descend a little, we're almost in Ponyville."

"Alright. Just remember what I said."

"I will, don't worry about me."

We arrived in Ponyville, and we flew over to the library.

I knocked on the door, and Barry answered.

"You ready for this?" I asked.

He grinned. "Damn straight. One sec though." He said before closing the door.

A minute or two later, he trotted outside and closed the door behind him. "Sorry about that, I had to say bye to Twilight."

"Did you use tongue?" I asked.

"Shut up."

"If you won't answer, I'll ask Twilight." I said as I trotted over to the door.

"What are you-" He started to say.

I banged on the door. "Hey Twilight! Did you and Barry use tongue?!"

"What the hell man?! Yes! We fucking used tongue!"

I grinned. "That's hot."

Soarin was holding back a laugh, and Ni was shaking his head.

"Go die."

"Meh, I'd rather go to Los Pegasus. Hop on Ni's back. He's the strongest flier here."

"Fine."

When Barry climbed on Ni's back, we took flight to the west.

"So Soarin, you've probably been to Los Pegasus, what's it like?" I asked.

"It's just like any other big city I suppose. I guess Applewood is the thing that stands out the most. We're bound to bump into a few celebrities."

"Like who?"

He shrugged. "You name 'em. Any movie star, maybe a few Wonderbolts, political figures, etc."

"What would you say is the most fun thing to do there?"

"It's a big city, there's tons of stuff to do. We won't run out of fun."

"Alright, cool. Hey Ni, why did Sally drop her ice cream cone?"

"Aw come on Lando-" Barry started to say.

"Nonono! Let him speak! Well Ni?"

"I don't know. Why did Sally drop her ice cream cone?"

"She got hit by a..." Fuck, this place doesn't have vehicles. "...by a train." Close enough.

"That's terrible."

"Knock knock."

"...Who's there?"

"Not Sally."

Soarin fell out laughing, and Barry and Ni shook their heads.

"Aw come on, Soarin is the only one here with a sense of humor!"

"You have a messed up sense of humor Landon." Barry said.

"Fine, stick to your 'clean' humor." I said with my tongue sticking out like I was sick.

"Yeah, we'll do that."

"Alrighty then Buzz Killington, lets hear a clean joke that's actually funny."

"Alright, why didn't the skeleton cross the road?" Barry asked.

"I don't know, why?"

"He didn't have the guts!"

"...Ni, fly faster and get away from me now. I can't be held responsible for what I'm about to do to Barry."

Barry gave a bad poker face. "Uhh, I think he's serious. GOGOGOGOGOGO!"

Ni took off flying incredibly fast, leaving me and Soarin behind.

I grinned. "Alright, let the dirty jokes commence!"

About thirty minutes of horrifyingly dirty jokes later.

Soarin and I were wiping the tears off when we finally caught up to Ni and Barry.

Barry rolled his eyes. "So did you two enjoy your jokes?"

"Yes, yes we did. We lol'd out loud. How did you two enjoy your not funny clean jokes?"

"We didn't tell jokes, we just talked about the future and-did you just say lol out loud?"

"Damn straight I did." I replied.

"This is gonna be a long couple of days..." He murmured.

"I hope it will be. This is my party, and I want you three to remember it forever." I said, bringing everypony in with my hooves.

"Yeah, you can let us go now." Barry said.

"Shhhhh, don't ruin the moment."

Barry lifted my hoof off of him, and I decided to let Ni and Soarin go.

"Onward!" I yelled, dramatically pointing my hoof in the distance.

"You're acting pretty...weird. You feeling okay, Shadow?" Ni asked.

"Never better! Just excited is all."

"If you say so..."

That was it for the conversation until we could see Applewood in the distance about two hours later.

"Finally here. Welcome to Los Pegasus everyone!" I said with a large smile on my face.

"Wow, it looks just like a slightly smaller version of Los Angeles." Barry mused.

"You're right about that. Let's fly in and get to our hotel room."

He nodded and we flew into the city. We flew over to the Four Seasons Los Pegasus and trotted inside. The white mare pegasus from when I visited a few days ago was behind the counter. She looked up and smiled when she saw me.

"Mr. Shadow! Here for your party?" She said.

I nodded. "That's right. Would you mind giving me the key and room number please? We're looking to relax for a bit after that long flight."

"Of course!" She reached somewhere behind the counter and pulled out a card key. "This is a new kind of key. By magically imprinting a code on it, your door will open only to this key, and no other."

Magi-technology eh? Nice. Hopefully they stick to conveniences and not weapons. "Alright, thank you."

"It's no problem, I'm very happy to help. Your room number is 1512." She said before giving me the key.

"Thanks. Have a good day." I said before trotting off with everyone.

"You too Mr. Shadow."

We went up to the fifteenth floor, and found our room. I slid the card key in the slot, and unlocked the door. I opened it and we trotted in.

"Holy shit this place is big." Barry said.

"I'll say. This place is big even for me." Ni replied.

It had one large living room, around the size of a small house. The two bedrooms had two large beds, with a desk in between. There was also a bathroom connecting to the bedrooms. There was a spare bathroom connecting to the living room. The kitchen was fairly large, with an island counter in the middle. Then I witnessed the best part. The bar. Hell yeahhhhh. I'll enjoy some of that later. The living room also had a fantastic view of the city. It was starting to get dark.

I looked at everyone. "Alright, call your rooms, unpack whatever crap you brought, and meet back on the couch right here when you finish."

Everypony nodded, and went to their room. Barry went into a room with Soarin, so I guess that means Ni is my roommate. When everyone finished unpacking, they took a seat on the U shaped couch.

"So did you three want to go and do something today? Or are you too tired to do anything?" I asked.

"How long are we staying here? Two nights?" Ni asked.

"Yep. So we'll have all day tomorrow, and part of the day two days from now. I don't care either way."

"I'm actually pretty sleepy right now." Soarin said, rubbing his eyes with a foreleg.

"Fair enough. Alright everyone, let's turn in for the night. We'll hit up the city tomorrow."

We got up from the couch and headed to our rooms. I took the bed next to the window, and Ni took the one closer to the door and bathroom. I yawned and crawled into bed.

"Hey Ni, ready to dream about the hidden banana temple?" I asked.

He chuckled. "Nah, that ended already. I'm about to dream of the potato and the lost city of copper."

"Oh okay, at least that one makes sense."

"You know it." He yawned. "Night Shadow."

"Night.."

I closed my eyes and went to sleep.

….....................................................................................................................................................

When I opened my eyes, I was in front of Rainbow Dash. She had on a beautiful dress that had rainbow streaks going through it. Wait, is this my wedding?

I looked around, and saw Princess Celestia and Princess Luna to my right, and a bunch of ponies to my left. Rainbow's friends were there, some ponies I had never seen before, and everypony I invited. Dad, Mayor Mare, Thunder Gunner, Silver, a few of the Wonderbolts, Lyra, Bon Bon, the CMC, and more.

"Do you?" Princess Celestia asked, as if she was repeating herself.

"I'm sorry?"

"Do you take Rainbow Dash to be your wife?"

I don't know what's going on, but screw it. "I d-" I was cut off by the sound of explosions outside of the palace.

A bloody royal guard burst through the door. "The city-it's...it's the-" He expired before saying anything else.

Everypony started to panic.

"Everypony, please calm down! You will remain safe here."

Princess Luna leaned in and whispered in my ear. "He's here. I will teleport your equipment to you when you get outside."

I nodded, not really understanding what the hell was going on, but ran off in the direction of the exit. I was stopped by a pony holding onto my back with a foreleg. It was Rainbow Dash. She had tears in her eyes.

"Please be safe..." She said.

"I'm not really sure what's going on right now, but yeah, I promise. You stay safe too. I'll be right back." I said before running off.

When I got outside, my armor appeared on me, and the rest of the group was with me. Spitfire, Ni, Soarin, Blaze, and myself, all wearing our armor.

A lot of the city was on fire, and we could hear screams in the distance.

"What the fuck is going on?!" I yelled.

"He's here." Spitfire said.

"Who the fuck is he?!"

"Sorrow Curse."

"What?! Why is he here? And now of all times?!"

"He probably figured it was best to wait until we were all gathered together in a single place, but that's where he's wrong."

"What's attacking the city anyways? I don't see any necromancers."

"No, we killed most of them. It has to be something else. Something like...oh no. This is very bad."

"What? What is it?"

Just then, a skeleton blasted out of the ground, and charged Spitfire, only to be obliterated by a punch from her.

"All of those necromancers years ago...they lost on purpose."

"Why? Why would they do that?"

"At the time, we didn't care much for what became of them, so we just burried them where we found 'em. That was the biggest mistake we've ever made. What just happened, what you just saw, was one of the necromancers killed over a hundred years ago. This was their plan all along. They never intended to win all those years ago! They were planning to win over a hundred years in the future! Damnit! Why didn't I ever think about this?!"

Just then, dozens more necromancer skeletons shot out of the ground.

"We need to defeat them all! Move!"

We split and started fighting the skeletons. These feel...different from the ones I've fought before. They're much stronger for one. It's like I'm fighting abominations, not skeletons. How did they get so strong?

My thoughts were interrupted when I had to duck just in time to avoid being decapitated. I shoved a hidden blade in its neck, and snapped the head off. It fell limp, and I moved onto the next one.

After finishing the last of them in the area, I heard screams coming from inside the palace building. I rushed inside just in time to see Rainbow getting stabbed in the neck by a skeleton, and see the life fade from her eyes.

............................................................................................................................................

I flew up wide awake in bed, sweating and panting heavily. What the fuck was that?! That was way too real for a goddamn nightmare! Was that a vision or something?

I put my head back down on my pillow and closed my eyes. If that was a vision of the future, I sure as shit won't let anything happen to Rainbow, even if it costs me my life.

Yep, so there ya go. This chapter took much longer than it should have. I worked on the last fourth of it for over four hours, and only did thirty minutes of actual story writing. I'm a world class procrastinator, alright? Also, if it seems like the emotions jump around a lot, it might have to do with me listening to music. (For example, when Tenacious D is playing, I'm feeling humorous. If Breaking Benjamin, Rammstein, or Dragonforce is playing, I'm feeling badass. Slipknot if it gets dark, and if the Red Hot Chili Peppers are playing, I'm feeling chill.) So that was more of a rundown of some of the bands I listen to. It was more to make myself feel special than to be informative. Hooray for brutal honesty! (to myself :P) (Another side note, do you guys like the new story pic? Cuz I think it's BAD ASS!)

Chuck Norris fact of the day: For an extra kick, Chuck Norris spikes his aftershave with just a splash of battery acid.
> No Rest for the Not-So-Wicked
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I did not sleep well at all. Having that nightmare definitely ruined my night, even though I dreamed of something different when I went back to sleep. I looked across the room and saw that Ni was still asleep. I heard commotion coming from the main area of the suite, and got out of bed to investigate. I opened my door and saw Soarin and Barry chatting idly.

Barry turned to me. "Hey, sleep well?"

"No, not really."

"Oh, well is Ni awake?"

"Nope."

Soarin grinned. "Good."

Barry gave Soarin a confused look. "Why exactly is that good?"

"Because we're going to prank him, obviously."

"That got my attention. What do you have in mind?" I said.

"I'm thinking of a classic. Are there any eggs in the fridge left over from last night Barry?"

"Why would there be eggs in the fridge?" I asked.

"Because Barry and I couldn't sleep for a while so we just decided to go pick up a few things to cook with. We thought it better to get it over with."

"That's...a little weird, but okay."

"We're good. There's eight eggs left." Barry said.

"Good. Now bring me an egg."

Barry did as he was told and brought Soarin an egg.

"You gonna smash it across his face?" I asked.

"I would to any other pony, but this is a special case. Ni sleeps a lot in our meetings, and after enough time passed, I noticed he breathes only through his nose when he sleeps."

"So?" I said.

"So watch this." Soarin said before trotting in mine and Ni's room.

Barry and I snuck in behind him so we didn't wake Ni up. Soarin was hovering above Ni with the egg at this point. Soarin cracked open the egg, and the yolk fell right on top of Ni's nose. Suddenly, on his next inhale, he breathed in the entire yolk through his nose!

His eyes shot wide and he started panicking. "AHHH! WHAT WAS THAT?! What the hay did you just do to...oh Celestia...I'm gonna-"

"Go to the bathroom if you want to puke." I said quickly.

He zoomed to the bathroom and we heard the sounds of his heaving. We were in tears by the time he exited.

"What. The. Hell." Ni said.

That only made us laugh more.

When we calmed down, Soarin wiped a tear from his eye and spoke. "I'm sorry, but there was no way I could resist. I cracked open an egg above your nose, and you inhaled it."

"Is that what that was?! That's disgusting! It mixed with my mucus and some of it got in my mouth!"

That caused us to bust out laughing again. He just groaned and trotted out of the bedroom.

When we calmed down, we trotted out to meet up with Ni. He was sound asleep on one of the couches.

"We'll let him enjoy this one. Shadow, can you cook?" Soarin said.

"Depends what you want me to make."

"Just some eggs and hay bacon."

I grinned "That's my specialty."

I trotted to the cabinets and pulled out a pan. I turned the stove on and busted open some eggs. When they were done, I laid down some strips of hay bacon. (This is your weekly hay bacon moment mother f(*squee*)ker. So relax and enjoy it...alright, hay bacon moment over.) When everything was ready, I let everypony get themselves a plate of food. Ni was awake by now and dug in.

I was just relaxing on the couch when Barry trotted over. "What? You're not hungry?"

"Meh, I don't have much of an appetite."

He shrugged. "More for us."

When everypony finished eating, we all sat down on the couches.

"So what are we doing today Shadow?" Ni asked.

"It's a pretty big city, and we've got all day today and tomorrow. I guess we could go to Applewood and check out that place today."

"Sure, that sounds good."

"Let's get moving then." I said before heading to the door.

I opened the door, and everypony followed me out. I made sure to close the door and keep a key with me. When we got downstairs, we trotted outside of the hotel.

"Alright Soarin, you've been here before, so lead the way to Applewood I guess." I said.

He nodded and got in front of us.

Ni must have noticed something by the expression of my face and got closer for a private talk. "Hey Shadow, are you okay? You look troubled."

"Was it that obvious?"

"There's been a look of seriousness mixed with confusion on your face. Those are emotions I rarely see coming from you. Mind telling me what's up?"

"I don't wanna bum you out. We're on vacation, just forget about it."

"Shadow, I'm your friend. You can talk to me."

I sighed. "Alright. Last night I had a dream, or maybe it was closer to a vision. Anyway, it was my wedding. We were at Canterlot, and I was just about to say 'I do' to Rainbow. Right before I did, a bloody guard barged in and died. We took action immediately and flew outside to find the threat. Well, it was the necromancers. Skeletons were popping out of the ground, and Spitfire said they were the necromancers from over a hundred years ago that were killed and burried where they were found. There were screams from inside the palace, and when I ran inside to see what was wrong, Rainbow..."

"It's okay Shadow. Calm down, it didn't really happen."

"But everything felt so real. My wounds felt real, my devastation seeing Rainbow die...was real. Dreams aren't like that."

Ni seemed to be in deep thought for a moment. "Alright. When we get back, I'll let Spitfire know about this. If what you're saying is true, then there could be a very real threat. If there is any attempt on Canterlot, we'll be prepared."

"Thanks Ni."

"No problem. Now relax will you? This is your party, so have some fun."

"You have no idea how much I want to right now."

"Here we are, Applewood." Soarin said, thankfully pulling me from my thoughts.

I looked up a little and saw the sign 'APPLEWOOD' in the distance.

"How about we hit up the walk of fame first?" Barry suggested.

"Sure, right this way." Soarin replied.

We started walking along, passing up the various buildings that had been built over the years.

"Psst! You right there!" A voice whispered from one of the alleys.

I stopped and looked around. The others didn't seem to hear it and continued walking without me.

"Yes, you. Come here."

This isn't a trap at all. Ah fuck it.

I walked into the alley and looked for the source of the voice. There was a shuffle behind a dumpster and a pegasus dressed like a ninja stumbled out.

"I finally got you right where I want you Shadow Flash!"

"Um, do I know you?" I asked.

"You will after you feel the wrath of my blade! Take this!" He said before charging at me with a katana.

He must have not seen the banana peel in front of him because he stepped on it and slipped, sending him into the wall.

"Are um...are you okay?"

He quickly got up. "Don't feign sympathy with me you monster!"

"Right...well I guess I should go now. Nice meeting you I guess." I said before turning to the exit of the alley.

"Oh no you don't! You won't escape that easily!" He yelled before once again charging me. This time his legs got tangled together and he face planted.

It looked like that one knocked him out. That was a little weird. I guess I should get back to the guys now.

I left the alley after taking one last look at the guy that attacked me, or tried to attack me anyway. After a few minutes, I caught up to the guys.

"Where were you?" Barry asked.

"I thought I saw someone familiar."

"Who the hell would you recognize here?"

"You're right, I guess I didn't recognize anyone." I said before we continued along.

"Idiot...wait, did I just get mind-fucked?"

I held back a chuckle. I'm a little rusty, but it's been a while since I've mind-fucked someone. Feels good.

A few hours later after taking in some of the sights, we decided to hit up a close-by bar called The Motherland. (Yes, I'm a terrible person for continuing to stereotype good drinkers. Maybe it can be a German next, but hey, at least it isn't negative. Well, I don't think it is anyway.)

Once inside, we saw that it looked more like a local joint than a big place. There were maybe ten other ponies in here, all of them pretty tough-looking. The walls were decorated with various pieces of interesting things, such as bear claws and hunting equipment. I didn't think ponies hunted. Guess this guy's different from the rest.

We trotted up to the large brown earth pony behind the bar and he greeted us. "Welcome my friends to The Motherland. What can I get for you?"

"What would you recommend?" Soarin asked.

He smiled and reached under the bar to pull out a large bottle. "This my friends, is what I call the Bottle of."

"Bottle of...?"

"That's it. Just Bottle of."

"Why's that?"

"Because after the first sip, you'll forget what you were saying you were taking a drink of."

Soarin smiled. "Sounds good to me!"

"Excellent! You three will want some as well. This first round is on the house."

I pulled up a stool. "Thanks, it's appreciated."

"Anytime my friend."

"Shadow Flash." I said, holding my hoof out.

He shook it. "You can just call me Hammer. I run this bar with my brother Sickle." (See what I did there?)

"Is your brother here?"

"He went out on a few errands. He will be back shortly I trust." He said before pouring us our drink.

I looked at my glass for a moment before taking the shot. "Whoa, now that's a powerful kick."

"Powerful kick indeed." Ni said after taking his.

Hammer smiled. "There's plenty more where that came from." He said before pouring us another.

"So are you from Equestria?" I asked.

"No, I come from land far away from here. My brother and I named this bar The Motherland to remind us of our old home."

"Do you like it here?"

"Most of the time, yes. The ponies here are usually very nice, with the exception of a few."

Just then the door to the bar opened, and a black pegasus with an eyepatch trotted in. His cutie mark was an iron maiden. That's not creepy at all.

Hammer got a serious look on his face. "What do you want Umbra?"

"I've just come to inform you that you are once again late on your payment. This time we've decided to hold onto your brother until you pay us as a little...motivation."

Hammer slammed his hoof on the counter. "You bastard give me my brother back now!"

"Now now, there's no need to get upset. Just remember this could have been avoided if you kept up your payments. If there is no money by tomorrow, then I'm not sure if your brother will make it out in one piece."

"Get out of my bar."

The pony gave an evil looking grin and nodded before leaving.

Once he was gone, Hammer let out a long sigh. "I apologize my friends, I did not mean for you to see that."

"Care to explain what that was all about?" Soarin asked.

"I suppose there is no harm in it. Many years ago, when my brother and I arrived here, we were very poor. One day we hear of some ponies that will loan money as long as you pay it back on time. Being foolish enough, we borrowed enough money to start up this bar."

"And you can't afford to pay them back?" I said.

"Oh no. We paid them back everything plus accumulated interest. Now they charge 'protection fees' to us. I couldn't afford it last time, and now they've taken my brother. I'm going to have to sell the bar to get him back now."

I looked at Soarin, Barry, and Ni, and we nodded.

"We'll get your brother back."

"I appreciate the offer my friends but Umbra, the leader of that operation, has well over thirty ponies in his hideout. There is no way the four of you would stand a chance."

"Who says all four of us need to go? Only one of us needs to go." I said.

"You think you can take on all of those men by yourself?"

I smiled. "Lets just say I'm special forces and leave it at that."

"You're not going in there by yourself Shadow." Soarin said.

"I'll be fine, and besides, it's the best thing for my plan to work. Hammer will take me to their hideout and say that I'm the one holding the money. When they open up, I get as deep into their place as I can and take out their leader. I'm betting they would never open up for more than two ponies. That sound like a plan to you, Hammer?"

"How will you be able to take on all of those ponies? I can fight, but I don't think I can take down over thirty guards, even with the help of another."

"Trust me, I can fight. All you need to do is get me inside."

"I will not put the entire burden on another kind enough to help my brother. I will fight with you comrade."

"If you really want to, that's fine with me."

He nodded. "Very good. I will fill my saddlebag with some bits, at least enough to make it seem like I'm paying them anyways."

I turned to my three friends. "I want you three to wait at the hotel, I'll be back in a couple of hours."

"Are you sure you want to do this alone?" Soarin asked.

"I'm sure. Like I said, I'll be fine."

"...Alright, just don't get too carried away out there."

"I won't kill anypony, relax."

"You may not have a choice."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it. We'll go to the hotel now. See you soon." Soarin said before walking off with the others.

"Spitfire still hasn't told him?" Ni whispered to Soarin.

"No, and he doesn't need to know, not yet anyway."

I heard a few whispers coming from Ni and Soarin, but decided to ignore it. Probably something about me being reckless.

I turned to Hammer. "Alright, lead the way, and I'll help you get your brother back."

"One moment, I'm going to grab those bits." He said before trotting through a doorway.

A few moments later, he returned with a saddlebag. "Take this bag."

I nodded and took the bag. He led me out of the bar and down the street. It's starting to get dark now.

We trotted to a downtown area, and found what looked like an abandoned building. It had a steel door guarded by two ponies.

"Looks like you're not as stupid as we thought you were after all Hammer." The guard on the right said.

"Hey who's the one beside you?!" The other demanded.

"He is holding the money. None of you get it until I have my brother back."

The guard on the left laughed. "Alright. I doubt he'll be able to do much if the boss decides to kill you anyway. Go on through." He said before knocking on the steel door.

You could hear the noise on the other side from removal of all of the locks and latches in place on the door. It opened and revealed a white earth pony with a green mane and tail.

He motioned for us to follow him and turned around. We followed him to a cellar door and he opened it for us, revealing a set of stairs. We followed him down the stairs, and when we reached the bottom, there was a tunnel waiting for us lit by torches.

"All the way down the tunnel on the left." The pony said before trotting back upstairs.

Hammer and I continued trotting through the tunnel and eventually came across two paths; one to the left, and one to the right. As directed, we took the left path and soon reached a wooden door. We trotted through the door and found Umbra relaxing in a wooden chair surrounded by over twenty guards. In the corner of the room there was a yellow earth pony with a red mane and tail in a cage who I assumed to be Hammer's brother, Sickle.

"You shouldn't have come here, Hammer!" Sickle yelled.

"Shut up Sickle, I came here to help you, not listen to you complain. Now Umbra, you will give me my brother back, or I will hurt you."

I wonder how long it took for Umbra to nail that evil laugh, because it was beatiful. And by beautiful, I mean perfect. "Those are some very big words Hammer, but that's enough of that. Give me the money, and your brother can live."

"No. I will no longer be threatened by you. Now give me my brother back, or face my friend here."

I took that as my cue and stepped up.

Umbra laughed a little more. "This one pony is your ace in the hole Hammer? I must say, I'm disappointed. Oh well, kill them both."

Four of the guards rushed us with knives. I effortlessly flew from one to the other and snapped their hind legs in half.

Umbra looked awestruck, and the same could be said for Hammer and Sickle, as well as the other guards.

"D-don't just stand there! Get them!" Umbra screamed.

The rest of the guards charged us, and I got ready to take them down. All of the sudden, I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I started screaming. I didn't even notice the dozens of ponies beating me relentlessly. In addition to the pain in my chest, it felt as if my head was splitting in two. I let out one more scream then blacked out.
------------------------------

I shot out of my bed, sweat pouring down my face.

"Relax Shadow, you're okay." A familiar voice said.

I looked at Soarin. "What happened?"

"You blacked out."

"What?"

"Hammer said right before you were swarmed, you started screaming and blacked out. Thankfully, I didn't go back to the hotel and decided to go down there myself."

"Hammer's okay then?"

He nodded. "His brother too."

"Good...what about those gang ponies?"

"...Arrested. I took them down and then alerted the guards."

I looked around, we were in the hotel suite. "What's wrong with me?" I asked.

"...Nothing. It's a common side effect from the immortality potion. Sometimes it's possible to experience severe headaches and heart pain. While that does sound serious, it's nothing that will kill you."

"That's good I guess. I still feel like shit though."

He laughed. "Not surprising. I'll leave you alone for a while. When you're feeling up to it, meet the rest of us in the living room, or go to sleep."

I nodded, and he left the my room, closing the door behind him.

Severe headache and heart pain eh? That about sums it up. That friggin sucked. Good thing Soarin followed me, or else I would've been done for.

After about thirty minutes of thinking to myself, I started to doze off. Right before I did however, there was a noise coming from the window. I watched it slide open, and a familiar ninja dressed pony stumbled through. I didn't notice earlier, but in my room's light, I could see he had a steel colored coat, and a bright green mane and tail with black streaks going through them.

"You may have escaped earlier Shadow Flash, but now you've nowhere to go!" He said.

"Oh, it's just you. I was worried there for a second."

"Hey! Do not mock me! I am the great Nesral!"

"It wasn't my intention to mock you, sorry. I'm just not in the best of moods right now."

"I will forgive you this once, but only because I respect a man that stares death in the face so easily." He finished before unsheathing his katana.

I let out a yawn. This guy says he wants to kill me, but I just can't seem to take him seriously. Normally this guy would be out the window with that katana up his ass, but for some reason I don't have it in me to beat this guy up. "So your name's Nesral is it?"

"That is correct."

I reached on the nightstand next to me, and grabbed a bottle of Applejack Daniels that Soarin had left for me and took a swig. I looked at Nesral. "Want some?"

"Grr...why don't you take me seriously?! I'm about to end your life and you are so calm!"

His face was starting to get red, and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. He then passed out on the floor next to my bed.

I poked him to make sure he was still alive. He must have gotten dizzy and passed out. I feel bad for this guy. I guess I can help him out a bit.

I got out of bed and lifted him onto Soarin's bed, then got back on my bed.

A few minutes later, he woke up and looked around in a panic. "What have you done to me? Where am I?!"

"Relax, you passed out so I just put you on a bed right there."

"You're foolish. You could have seized that rare opportunity and assassinated me right there, but you chose to spare me."

I didn't say anything, I just offered him the bottle of Applejack Daniels. He eyed it curiously.

"It's not poisoned, if I wanted to kill you, like you said, I could have done it when you passed out."

He took the bottle and carefully took a sip, then a swig after realizing I didn't poison it. He handed it back to me, and I took a swig as well.

"This changes nothing between us Shadow Flash. Next time I see you, you are mine."

"Oh I'm sure, but for now, lets just enjoy this drink."

"Very well." He said before taking another swig and passing it back.

When the bottle was empty, he stumbled trying to get up.

"Are you good to fly?" I asked.

"I will be fine." He said before falling down and getting back up rapidly.

"See ya." I said before he flew out of the window.

I wonder why he wants to kill me, and why does he call me a monster? He doesn't seem like a bad guy, and he doesn't exactly make for the best assassin.

I guess I'll go to sleep now. Before me and the guys leave tomorrow, I'll drop by Hammer and Sickle's bar to check up on them. I pulled up the covers and went to sleep.
---------------------

"Don't just stand there, get them!" Umbra yelled.

The guards swarmed Hammer and I. Right before they got to me, I felt a surging headache and heart pain.

"Stop struggling, you only delay the innevitable." A voice said.

I let out a scream and collapsed. The guards were watching me, wondering why I suddenly fell over. I suddenly got up, and laughed like a maniac. No, I wasn't laughing, something else was laughing in my body. I'm not in control of my body!

"What are you waiting for?! Kill him!" Umbra yelled.

The guards resumed their charge.

I smiled broadly, giving a crazed look. "So these are the first to die, excellent!"

I activated my hidden blades, and a split second later, a dozen bodies littered the room, some with their throats slit, some with their necks snapped, and others with no head at all. I stood covered in blood and licked the area around my mouth. "A little rusty, but that will pass soon. I just need to kill more! Yes! More!"

The guards gave a terrified look and began to back up. I shot toward one of them and punched a hole clean through his side. He gasped and collapsed. The others threw down their weapons and tried to run away. It was too late though, because whatever was controlling me picked them off one by one. I got to the last one besides Umbra, and this one was crying. He looked no older than sixteen.

"Please don't kill me! I just did this for the money!" He begged.

"You're greed sickens me, but...crack*...no longer." I finished as I dropped him after crushing his skull in my hooves.

I then slowly trotted to the cowering Umbra. He tried to crawl away, but I simply broke his legs one by one.

I gave another evil broad smile. "I wonder how much you can take before dying! Let's find out shall we?!"

"No! Stop!"

I ignored his screams as I tore off his right wing completely.

"AHHHH! STOP!"

"What's that?! I can't hear you over the sound of your other wing being ripped off!" I yelled before tearing his other wing off.

Blood was now everywhere, and it looked like he wouldn't be alive for much longer.

"Aww, giving up so soon? Very well." I said before picking him up.

His screams got louder and louder as I began to slowly pull him apart. His body eventually gave, and I tore him completely in half.

I then turned to Hammer, who was trying to free his brother. I slowly started to trot toward him.

"You may rest easy. My time of control is at its end for now. Quite the lucky ones you are." I said before collapsing. I lost consciousness just as the silhouette of a pegasus in a wonderbolt uniform was approaching.

I once again shot up in my bed. Two nightmares like that in a row? Now I'm worried. That one was a little different this time though. This time I wasn't controlling my actions, something else was. Is that what really happened? Did I really kill all of those ponies? What the fuck is wrong with me?!

Looks like something pretty fucked up is happening to Shadow. Keep an eye open for more. Also, no amount of sryz can be said for making you guys wait this long, so I'll only say it once; I'm sorry. Due to many circumstances, such as school, all these new games, a brief period of lack of interest for this story, and learning how to play guitar, I found little time to actually work on this. But I know you guys are glad I'm back, because I'm glad I'm back. Special thanks to Supahbrony300(from fanfiction) for the idea of the character Nasrel, our little failure of an assassin. Speaking of Supahbrony, for my story 'From War to War', I'm going to turn that into a collab with him, so expect some new things to be added. But wait there's moar! It's actually my birthday today, so if you don't wish me a happy birthday or give me a present, I'll give you AIDS ;D(No homo, if that's even possible.)

Chuck Norris fact of the day: The movie King Kong is loosely based on an incident in which Chuck Norris killed a 900-foot gorilla and had sex with the Coors Light twins on top of the Empire State Building.
> The Hidden Truth
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well I didn't sleep well. Well, that's actually understatement of the year. The entire time I slept, I was re-living the slaughter of all of those ponies. I was forced to memorize every detail of how I killed them all. From smashing that guy's head to ripping Umbra in half. I have no idea how Soarin got me up here without somepony freaking out about all of the blood that must have been on me. The worst part about it is not knowing if I actually did all that, and I'm fucked up, or if I didn't do all of that, and I'm fucked up for dreaming of that over and over again. It's a lose-lose for me in this case. I'd still prefer the latter to the former though. I'd rather be just insane than an insane murderer.

I just want to leave this place. I figured having this bachelor party would be a good idea, but boy was I wrong. Hopefully the others had more fun than me.

I looked across from me, and found Soarin's bed empty. That does make me curious, why did he put me in his room? Screw it, I'm not figuring anything out by just laying around.

I groggily got out of bed and let out a huge yawn. Ugh, I need more sleep. More sleep with less nightmare/creepy-ass visions anyway. I lazily walked over to the door and opened it. Everypony else was awake and on the couch.

"Morning." Ni said.

I nodded to him and went over to the coffee. Thank God they have coffee here. I poured myself a cup and sat down with the rest of the guys.

"Sleep well?" Soarin asked.

"No."

"I'm sorry to hear that." He replied. The surprising part about that comment was that he meant it. There was no sarcasm about it, which made me a little uneasy.

"I'm fine, really."

"No, you're not, really. When we get back to Cloudsdale today, Spitfire can explain why you keep having nightmares."

"How did you-"

"She'll explain everything. For now, just relax and enjoy your coffee."

"Easy for you to say..." I said before taking a sip.

"We only have a few hours until we have to check out. Anything else you guys wanted to do?" Soarin asked, choosing to ignore me in order to drop the subject.

"Not really, I'm ready to see Twilight again." Barry said.

"Yeah, I think I'm ready to go home to Derpy." Ni said.

"I guess we're all ready to get back to our marefriends, and in my case, fiance and kid." I said.

"You guys had enough 'bro time' then?" Soarin asked.

"Do you mind if I ask a question?" I asked Soarin.

"Shoot."

"Okay, well if you're so scared of falling in love again because the mare would eventually die, why don't you hook up with Spitfire?"

The question took him completely off guard, and he fell backwards in his chair, laughing. He got up, and wiped a tear from his eye. "Sorry, but that's the first time ANYPONY has said something about the two of us hooking up. Nah, I don't think it'd work between us. She's my best friend, and that's about it. I don't think I could ever picture us actually together."

"Really? That response surprises even me, and I've known you guys for hundreds of years." Ni said.

"So you two are completely oblivious to each other, huh?" Barry added.

"Seriously, what's keeping you from asking her out? It's obvious you like her, I've seen the way you look at her."

He sighed. "...Because i'm too..." He mumbled

"What was that?"

"I said I'm too..." He mumbled once more.

"Mumble again and it's your balls."

"I SAID I'M TOO SCARED!" He realized what he said and quickly covered his mouth.

"So THAT'S why you won't ask. Hell, can't say I blame you. She IS pretty damn scary, and that's aside from being more powerful than any of us. If you really do like her though, you should go ahead and ask if she likes you as well." I said.

"I don't know..."

"C'mon dude! You've been picking up mares for over a century, but you're too scared to ask the one that really matters?"

"I agree with Shadow. If you don't ask, you'll only be hurting yourself. You never know if she feels the same way." Ni said.

"...Okay. I'll ask."

"There you go! I'll get you're back bro! Except not really, because I don't wanna be within five miles of you if she takes it the wrong way." I said.

"Gee, thanks."

"Don't mention it buddy. Now that our business here is concluded though, should we depart?"

"Yeah, sure, lets go." Barry said.

We got up and got our stuff packed, and headed downstairs. I trotted up to the front desk, which was being worked by a different mare this time.

"Enjoy your stay sir?" She asked, putting on a friendly face.

"I did, thanks."

"My pleasure. Say, you look familiar."

Here we go...

Over to Soarin, Barry, and Ni about twenty feet away.

"...but why Shadow? It hasn't happened once in over nine hundred years, but it somehow affects one of our strongest?" Ni said.

"As I recall, it happened to one of our strongest, and I'm not sure why it happened to him. Hopefully Spitfire can shed some light on this." Soarin replied.

"I mean it just doesn't seem fair to the guy, he's getting married in a few days, and just adopted a kid..."

"We won't let anything bad happen to him. We're his friends, and I'll be damned if we sit back and do nothing while this happens to him."

"Wait, what the hell are you two talking about?" Barry asked, completely confused.

"Don't worry about it, it'd be too difficult for you to grasp, since you don't know much about us."

"He's my friend too."

"I understand that, but trust me on this, you don't want to know what is really wrong with him."

"Now that got me even more worried."

"Better drop it, here he comes." Ni said.

Back to Shadow.

After talking to yet another star-stricken mare, I trotted back over to the group. "Alright, you guys ready?"

"Sure..." Barry said.

"You alright Barry?" I asked.

Soarin nudged Barry, making him speak. "Uh, no, I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Alright then."

We trotted outside, and Barry climbed on Ni's back. We took off and started flying home. I gave a disappointed sigh as we ascended, because as soon as we lifted off, Nesral had made a lunge for me, only to miss and have his face slide on the pavement. That had to suck.

After thirty minutes of flying, I began to have a slight head pain. I decided to ignore it at first, but the pain started to get worse. Now, I heard ringing in my ears, and I can't see straight. I slowed down to a stop, trying to regain my senses. I could see the blurry visions of Ni, Soarin, and Barry calling out to me, but I couldn't hear them. They seemed so far away, and pretty soon they faded completely. My vision was now black.

"Hello Landon, it's good to finally talk to you." A menacing voice said. Scratch that, both menacing AND insane sounding.

"Wha? What the hell is going on?! Show yourself!" I demanded. I was in a pitch black room, but I could still see myself.

Just then, a weird bubbling came from the ground, and a pegasus with a crimson coat and crimson mane and tail with a black outline appeared.

"What the fuck? You look just like-"

"You?" He gave a creepy looking grin. "Except opposite color scheme? My, aren't you the observant one!"

"Alright fucko, who the hell are you?"

He laughed. "Is it really that difficult for you to figure out? Alright, how about this? Everybody, or pony, has a dark side to them. It doesn't matter who you are, there are no exceptions. For some people, their nicer side is the one in control, for others, their dark. However, even though one side is in control, that doesn't mean that the other side is weak. Quite the opposite in fact, it's stronger. Much stronger."

"Hold up a second, are you saying that you're me? Only a douchebag version of myself?"

He grinned.

"And that voice...YOU SON OF A BITCH! YOU KILLED ALL OF THOSE PONIES!"

He raised his front right hoof and smiled. "Guilty as charged. Now, before you decide to do something stupid, remember what I told you. The opposite side is stronger. There's no need for you to hate me though. What is the most important goal in your life right now?"

"...To protect Rainbow and Solemn with my life, no matter what."

"And there's the problem. With your life. What you don't realize is that it's OUR life. If you die, I die. Same way vice-versa. Also, you just may have to end up giving your life. I don't want that to happen. You need power to protect those two, and I can offer it. All you have to do is give me control."

"You're fucking high if you think that's gonna happen!"

The ground below him started bubbling, and he started sinking through it. He gave me an insane look with wide eyes. "You may not have a choice in the near future. I'll be waiting for an opening, and then I'll be the one in control. See you soon Landon." He finished before disappearing in the ground.

My vision started to clear up, and I could tell I was on somepony's back. I let out a groan.

"Good, you're awake." Soarin said.

"What the fuck happened?" I said, holding my head in my hooves.

"You passed out mid-flight. I flew down and caught you before you hit the ground. You've been out for the majority of our flight. We'll be in Cloudsdale in about ten minutes."

I looked around and noticed Barry and Ni weren't with us. "Where are Barry and Ni?"

"Ni went to take Barry home in Ponyville."

"...Why didn't you take me home as well?"

"Because I imagine you want answers as to what's happening to you."

"You mean you know?"

"I may know what's happening to you. You've tried to hide it, but you did rather poorly with that."

"So you had a good guess as to what's wrong with me, and you didn't tell me?!"

"I know how much that party meant to you, and I didn't want to ruin things for you, or make things worse anyhow. I figured it could wait."

"...I killed all of those ponies didn't I?"

"...That wasn't you Shadow, that was something else."

"He said he was a part of me..."

"Wait, you mean you tal-"

"Talked to him? I guess. That's what I was doing while I was passed out. He said that whether I wanted to or not, he'd gain control eventually."

"Not if we have anything to say about it."

"We?"

"The rest of the Mones. We look after our own, Shadow. Here, we're at Cloudsdale now. I'll let Spitfire explain it better."

"So she knows what's going on then?"

"She knows more than I do about this. That's all I can really say."

Just then, we arrived at the Wonderbolts HQ, and I crawled off of Soarin's back. We trotted inside, and went down into the sanctuary. Spitfire was the only one at the table, so we trotted over to her.

Soarin went up to her and whispered something in her ear. Her eyes widened for a second, but she quickly regained her composure.

"You're sure?" She said to Soarin.

He nodded. "Even Ni agrees with me that it's happening to him."

She sighed. "Alright, thanks. Shadow, walk with me for a sec." She said before getting out of her seat.

I walked over beside her, and we started our walk.

"Soarin said you might know what's happening to me."

She nodded. "I do."

"So you know that I apparently have an evil side that killed a bunch of ponies and wants control of my body?"

"I do."

"Then you'll know how I can get rid of it, right?"

"..."

"Please tell me you can help me."

"I-...I'm sorry Shadow. I never expected this to happen."

"Why are you apologizing? This isn't your fault."

"That's the thing...it is."

"Wait, what?! Are you saying you did this to me?!" I said, taking an aggressive stance.

"Not directly. There is something I didn't mention before you joined us. About the potion..."

"This is gonna be good. What's your excuse for making me a multi-personality murderer?"

"The potion has more than one possibility of a side effect. There are two that are much more dangerous than the rest. First, obviously, is the chance of instant death."

"And the other?"

"Can make your opposite's powers grow substantially, resulting in a take-over of your body."

"WHAT?! There was a side effect that serious and you didn't fucking tell me?!

"None of us told you because the chances of the side effect actually happening are less than a hundredth of a percent. In the entirity we've existed, only one of us has ever had the side effect."

"Who was it?"

"...Me."

"You? You had the side effect?"

She nodded. "Around nine centuries ago, I took the captain's potion. A little more than a week later, it happened."

"What did you do when you got the side effect?"

"I thought I was going insane at first, but I was unfortunately wrong in that assumption. After the first week, I had my first contact with my evil side. Three days later, it took control of me. Before it did, however, I warned the other Mones at the time to seal me up in a room located in this sanctuary. Not just any room though, this room was enchanted by the Elements of Harmony themselves to seal away any magic, whether it come from unicorn, alicorn, zebra sorcery, or even a potion. I stayed in that room for six months, trying to fight back against my evil side. It wouldn't budge, even with the Elements' power beating at it. On the sixth month, it took control of me..."

"What happened after that?"

"You know how I told you one of the original four of us died from taking on four regenerans bestia?"

"Yeah..."

"That was I lie. I...killed him. I broke out of the enchanted room, and my fellow Mones tried to stop me, including Soarin. After killing Thundercloud, that was his name, Soarin, and the other member, Supersonic, managed to restrain me. Both of them took the strength potion, but even with both of them, they had trouble holding me down."

"So how did you defeat your evil side?"

"War within my own mind. Literally. I battled against my evil side, and won. When I came to, I was...horrified. I'd killed one of our own members, whom I considered family to me. I couldn't just leave though. Soarin and Supersonic needed me as much as I needed them. So I stayed."

"...What happened to Supersonic?"

"...Another time Shadow."

"Okay then. But what you're saying is, I have to fight this evil side of me in my own mind? How the hell do I do that?"

"You don't get to choose when you fight. It does. If you've been having the nightmares for two days now, I expect it to make its move within a week."

"But I have a wedding in a few days! What if it happens there?!"

"Then you must be ready to fight it. If you don't win the battle, then I'm sorry, but I'll have to kill you. Because if I don't, then you would kill everypony at the wedding, Canterlot, Equestria, and the world."

"...I understand."

"I'm glad you do. I really hope it doesn't come down to that Shadow, because you're family to me."

"I hope it doesn't come down to that either...Will I continue having nightmares until it happens?"

"If you can sleep, yes."

"Oh, well fantastic then." I said with a roll of my eyes.

"The nightmares are the least of your worries Shadow."

"If you say so, they just seem so...real."

"I've been there too. You're not alone in this."

"Thanks Spitfire. I guess I'm gonna fly home back to Rainbow and Solemn. Oh wait, how has Solemn been doing?"

"She's been good. Right now, we're just working on weapon safety. When she's nine, I'll teach her hoof-to-hoof combat. And when she turns thirteen, I'll train her with actual weapons."

I nodded. "Alright. Thanks for telling me what's wrong. At least I know I'm not insane now, instead I just have an evil, mass murdering side to me that wants control."

She rolled her eyes. "Bye Shadow."

I grinned. "Later." I said before trotting upstairs and exiting the building. I took flight and headed home.

It's only been two days, but I miss the hell out of Rainbow and Solemn.

I picked up my pace, the faster I fly, the sooner I get to see them.

When I arrived, it was probably 10:00PM. I trotted upstairs and found Rainbow already asleep. Solemn must be in her room, so I'll let her sleep. I trotted over to the bed and snuck in beside Rainbow. I closed my eyes and let Rainbow's soft snoring help me drift to sleep.

/././

I slowly trotted away from Canterlot Castle as it burned, stepping over the bodies that littered the streets that had fallen to my blades. Among the bodies were that of the elements, the cmc, Thunder Gunner, Dad, Mayor Mare, Blaze, Soarin, Ni, Spitfire, the princesses, and...wait...no! No, goddamnit, no!

I gained control of myself and ran over to the bodies of Rainbow and Solemn.

I broke down right there. "Why...why?! I couldn't protect you...I'm so sorry! I couldn't even protect you from myself!" I punched the ground, leaving a hole where my hoof hit.

The ground bubbled beside me, and my opposite slowly rose out of the abyss.

"YOU!" I growled. "You did this, you son of a bitch!" I yelled as I charged him with my blade.

He effortlessly caught my left foreleg and snapped it like a twig. I cried out in pain but swung at him with my other hoof anyways. This time he caught it and brought me in close, and gave me a jab to my chest, breaking several ribs. I fell to the ground, but still tried to reach for him.

"You are no match for me Landon. Soon I will have control, and this will not be just a vision." He gave me that crazy grin. "See you soon, Landon!"

I felt the pain getting worse, and it was getting harder to breath. I think part of a rib was shoved into my lungs. My vision blackened as the life faded from me.

/././

I shot up in bed, panting heavily. Damnit! These nightmares are getting worse and worse!

"Shadow, are you okay?" Rainbow whispered.

I looked at her. "Yeah...it was just a bad dream, go back to sleep."

She wrapped a hoof around my chest and slowly pulled me down until my head was on my pillow facing her. She pressed her mouth against mine and gave me a brief kiss.

She smiled. "I'm glad you're back Shadow."

"Me too."...For how long, I don't know...

I surprised myself on how much I got done by just sitting down and spending quality time on this. Well there's an early(ish) chapter for you guys. Supah (Originally from fanfiction. He just made an account on here. It's SupahBrony301. He should be posting his story pretty soon, so you should go follow him. He's ALMOST as good as me.) and I should have the next chapter of From War to War out pretty soon. It's the first time either of us has collabed, so it's taking some time. Enough about that dickwheel though, what did you guys think of this chapter? The clock is ticking on Shadow, and things can only get worse. G'night everypony!

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Chuck Norris's family crest is a picture of a barracuda eating Neil Armstrong. (R.I.P. To the guy btw, no disrespect meant, this is just hilarious.)
> Time Flies
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I rose up in bed and gave a stretch. That asshole wants to fuck with my dreams? Fine, I just won't sleep, which is exactly what I stopped doing about five hours ago. I just stared at the ceiling the entire time, thinking of what the future might hold. If my twisted reflection effortlessly defeated me like that, what chance will I have when he attacks for real? I need to train more. I refuse to let that son of a bitch win!

I looked over at Rainbow, who was still sound asleep. I gave her a small kiss on the forehead and got out of bed. I trotted over to Solemn's room to make sure she was up, and knocked on the door.

"Hey Solemn, you up?"

"Yes. I'll be downstairs in a little bit." She replied in a tired voice.

I trotted downstairs and into the kitchen. I fixed up the usual breakfast, (Weekly hay bacon moment mother bucker. Throwin' in some greasy hay bacon flips and sh(*squee*)t.) made enough for all three of us. After about twenty minutes, Solemn soon trotted down with Rainbow, and sat down at the table as I was setting everything out.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" I said to Rainbow.

"The smell sure did. I like to sleep, but I like a good breakfast even better." She said as she picked up a piece of hay bacon.

I sat down, and started to eat as well.

I turned to Solemn. "So how have you been? Spitfire says you've been good, but I'd like to hear it from you."

"I've been good, Dad. I've mostly been training with Spitfire."

"I just thought about something. We need to enroll you in school."

She looked apprehensive, as I figured she would. "Uhh, no thanks Dad. I think I should just stick to training hard."

I let out a small laugh. "I'll be honest Solemn. I absolutely hated going to school, but I did anyway. Do you know why?"

She shook her head.

"Because I was forced to. I didn't really see the point of it, since I was going into a professional sport anyway. My dad never let me quit though."

"Are you gonna make me go to school?"

"Hmm...alright, how about this? You go to school for today only. If you don't make any friends at all today, you won't have to go to school ever again."

"What happens if I do make friends?"

"You can still leave, although I doubt you'd actually want to."

"So if I go today, I'll never have to go again?" She said in a hopeful voice.

"That's right. If you don't like it, you can just stick to training with Spitfire more often."

She nodded with a smile and continued to eat her meal.

I held back a smile myself. Me-1 Solemn-0. She doesn't have a cutie mark, which means that the cmc will want to hang out with her. She'll make friends in no time at all. Wait...I forgot about Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara. Oh well, I think I'll be able to talk them into leaving my kid, and the cmc, alone for good.

When we finished our food, I picked up the dishes and put them in the sink. I tried to turn the faucet, but it wasn't cutting on. I opened the door beneath the sink to check the pipes...made of cloud.

I calmly closed the cabinet door under the sink, and trotted over to Rainbow and Solemn. I picked them up with one hoof each, and gently set them down outside and softly closed the door.

3rd pony (yep, I'm going with pony. NO MOAR TEARING MY OWN BRAIN IN HALF FOR ME!) perspective.

"Mom? Why did Dad just set us down outside?" Solemn asked Rainbow.

She let out a sigh. "Cover your ears Solemn."

"Huh?"

"I knew this day would eventually come. Cover your ears."

Solemn nodded, and did as she was told. Rainbow braced herself. She knew what was about to come.

Slight profanity warning ;)

"SON OF A MOTHER F(*squee*)ING GOD(*squee*) C(*squee*)K SUCKING MOTHER F(*squee*)KER! SUCK MY C(*squee*)K YOU SORRY PIECE OF SH(*squee*)T! I'LL SLICE YOUR C(*squee*)K OFF YOU (*squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee*)

Rainbow listened, making sure there was no more before she gave Solemn the all clear. Before she could, however, the door opened, and Shadow carefully picked them both up again, closed the door behind them, and softly set them on the couch with a world class poker face.

Back to Shadow's perspective.

"So are you ready for school, Solemn?" I said, putting on a smile.

"Uhh, I guess?"

My eye twitched.

"I mean yes! I can't wait!"

"Awesome! That's great to hear! Just wait outside, and I'll bring you a lunch!" I said as I trotted over to the kitchen.

Solemn gave a scared look, and nodded before trotting outside.

Rainbow walked up to me. "Did you get that out of your system finally?"

"I have never felt better in all of my days."

"Well at least that's over."

"Oh don't be so sure. If I spot something else made of cloud when it shouldn't be, I'll probably bash my head in with a nearby blunt instrument."

"Yeah, well good luck with that." She said with a roll of her eyes.

I laughed. "I should be going now I guess. Bye Rainbow."

She wrapped a hoof around my neck, and pulled me in for a surprise kiss.

After a solid five minutes, we thought it was time to break it.

"Well, that brought back a good portion of my senses. I guess I shouldn't keep Solemn waiting any longer. I'll see you later Rainbow."

She laughed. "Alright, bye Shadow."

I left the house, and found Solemn waiting rather impatiently.

"There you are, I've been out here for like ten minutes!"

"Uhh, sorry about that Solemn, that goodbye lasted longer than I thought it would." I said, scratching the back of my head.

"Right, well next time, could you not take so long to make out with Mom?"

If I had something to drink, I would have spit it out. "I, uh, uh, don't know what you're talking about." I said with a poker face that would have made Clint Eastwood proud. (obviously)

"Whatever you say Dad. Just don't keep me waiting forever next time."

Talk about awkward. "Uh, okay. Hop on my back." I said, before getting down to her level.

She climbed on my back, and waited for her to get settled. "Holding on tight?" I asked.

She nodded, and I spread my wings and took flight.

Within a few minutes, we were at Ponyville's schoolhouse. School probably won't start for another thirty minutes, but hopefully Cheerilee is here.

I troted up to the door, with Solemn still on my back, and gave a knock.

"Comiiing." A cheery voice called out.

The door opened, and Cheerilee appeared with a smile. "Hello sir, how can I help you this morning?"

She's obviously a morning person. I have no idea how people do it. "Yeah, I was hoping that I could enroll my daughter here."

"Of course! Step inside, and we'll get her signed up." She said, turning around, leading me inside.

"Alright, great!" I said with a smile, and followed her inside.

We walked over to Cheerilee's desk, and she pulled out a clipboard. "All I need you to do is fill out a few things."

I took the clipboard. "Sure thing."

Cheerilee looked at Solemn, who was now standing beside me. "You're so adorable! And I bet you're very smart too. I think you'll fit in very well here.

"Do you really mean it?" Solemn asked.

Cheerilee nodded. "I most certainly do."

I finished the paperwork, and handed the clipboard back.

She smiled and looked at Solemn. "Welcome to school! You may as well stay here, seeing as class will begin shortly. There's an empty seat over there by Sweetie Bell's desk, so you can sit there."

I looked to Solemn. "Have fun kiddo, I'll see you after school."

"Alright, bye dad."

I nodded to her and Cheerilee, and trotted outside just as Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were making their way into the building.

"Oh look, it's that blank flank adult!" Silver Spoon said.

"Yeah, why are you here blank flank?" Diamond Tiara added.

I put on my best fake smile. "I just enrolled my daughter here, so I expect all of you to get along just fine."

"Why? I bet she's a blank flank too." Diamond Tiara said.

I slowly trotted over to the two, knelt down, and brought their heads in slowly with my forehooves, my smile still present. "I have seen things you two couldn't even begin to comprehend. I've witnessed multiple innocent lives taken. I've even killed a bunch of ponies. I fight a cult that would tear your heads off and use them as trashcans. If it weren't for me and my group, you would all be dead. All I want is for my daughter to be safe, and bully-free. The same goes for any other pony. If I hear, that you two have picked on another pony, or try to tell an adult what I just said, I'll find you. Am I clear?"

The two frantically nodded their heads. I rose up, never letting up on my smile. "Alright then! Great chat you two! I look forward to hearing about how great my daughter's day went!" I said before flying off.

I probably just scarred them for life, but meh, they had it coming. I was lying about hunting them down anyway, but they don't need to know that.

I continued on my way to Cloudsdale, and eventually arrived at the Wonderbolt HQ. I trotted inside, and went down into the sanctuary.

The whole team was down here. Soarin, Spitfire, Blaze, and Ni.

"Hey Shadow, how's it going?" Ni asked.

"Pretty good, all things considered. I figured I'd let Solemn go to school today and see if she likes it."

"That's good to hear."

"I assume you'll be taking her here after school then?" Spitfire said.

"Yeah, don't worry. I won't let this interfere with her training."

She nodded. "Good. Now is there something you needed Shadow?"

"Yes, actually there is."

"And what might that be?"

"I'd feel a lot more comfortable if there were more members of the Mones around Canterlot during my wedding..."

She raised an eyebrow. "Is this about that dream you had of the necromancers attacking and rising out of the ground?"

"Yes it is. It felt like more than a dream though. It was more like a vision. Please, if not for my paranoia, then for the safety of Canterlot."

Spitfire thought for a moment, then sighed. "Alright Shadow. I'll post Ni's squad and the medic squad around Canterlot. Ni, you and your top three troops will be planted inside the wedding, while the rest will be in various places around Canterlot. This will be the same case with the medic squad. The captain of the squad will be planted inside the wedding, along with his top three troops, while the rest remain around various places in Canterlot. I'd send the archer squad in as well, but they're on a mission to hunt down a group of marauding dragons in the Badlands."

I sighed in relief. "Thank you. This means a lot to me."

"Don't sweat it. If Sorrow Curse thinks he can take us by surprise, then he has another thing coming."

"...So the captain of the medics, huh? I've never seen him or the archer captain before. What's the medic captain like?"

She smiled. "He's like you in a few ways. Strong, compassionate, and daring. There's also one more thing about him, but I'll let you find that out for yourself."

"So how will I know him when I see him?"

"You've seen him once or twice, although you didn't really speak to each other much."

"Wait, I've seen the captain of the medics before?"

"It's been a short while, but yes, you have. That was before he was captain though, he was only promoted recently. I'd say he climbed his way to his current level almost as fast as you did. I told him to come with us in our assault on that fortress in the desert. He took down Sorrow's right forehoof pony by himself."

"Awesome, I can't wait to officially meet the guy. I actually wouldn't mind going one-on-one with him..."

Spitfire chuckled. "Glad to see you haven't lost that spirit. Is that all you came for by the way?"

"Yeah, that's it. Thanks a lot Spitfire, see you guys later." I said before leaving the sanctuary.

"Now, what to do?" I thought aloud as I exited the Wonderbolts HQ building.

I've got an idea. I think I'll go visit a certain somepony, and hopefully it won't be awkward as hell.

I took flight, and flew to the east.

A few hours or so later.

Knock* Knock*

I backed away from the door, and waited for the response.

"Be there ina sec." Called the voice from behind the door.

After listening to the unlocking of the door, it opened.

I smiled. "Hey Vinyl."

I got a hug in response. "Hey Shadow! What brings you to Manehattan?" She said before breaking the hug.

"I wanted to ask you and Octavia something, if you don't mind."

"Sure thing, come on in." She said, making her way inside.

I followed her, and closed the door behind me.

Octavia looked up from a book she was reading. "Oh, hello Shadow. What brings you here?"

"Well, I probably have no right to ask, but I was hoping I could get a favor."

"A favor? Like what?"

"How do you two feel about Canterlot?"

"Well, I personally adore Canterlot, but I'm not to sure on Vinyl's feelings."

Vinyl shrugged. "It's just another city to me. Why, what's up?"

"Well, I'm getting married to Rainbow in two days, and I was wondering if you two would like to play at my wedding in Canterlot."

Octavia smiled. "I always love to perform in Canterlot. The crowds there are always so receptive."

"Thank you, I want to have an awesome wedding, so I think a classical touch will do nicely." I turned to Vinyl. "And I want you there so we have somepony to follow up Octavia with some awesome beats."

Vinyl grinned. "Look no further. The best dj in Equestria will be there."

"Thank you, you two. This means a lot to me, if there is anyway I can repay you..."

"Well, now that you menion it..." Vinyl said in a suggestive tone while brushing her tail against me, making me gulp.

"Vinyl, that's enough." Octavia said.

"I know, I know, I was just having some fun. I know you're a one mare stallion now, Shadow. I won't lie though, that was one of the best nights of my life."

I blushed. "Heh, well thanks I guess."

"I should thank you."

"I uh, I guess I'll be going now. I need to get back to Ponyville."

"Alright Shadow. Thank you for stopping by, and don't worry, we'll be at the wedding." Octavia said.

I smiled. "Thanks again. I'll see you two in a couple of days." I said as I trotted back out.

"Okay, take it easy Shadow." Vinyl said before closing the door.

I smiled, pretty satisfied on how that meeting went, and left the apartment building. I stretched my wings out, and lifted off the ground in the direction of Ponyville.

When I got back home, I trotted inside, and found Rainbow and Solemn on the couch.

"Hey you two. How did school go Solemn?"

She smiled. "It was great! I made friends with a few ponies on my first day!"

"I'm glad to hear it. What were their names?"

"Sweetie Bell, Scootaloo, and Applebloom! They noticed I didn't have a cutie mark, and I got worried at first. Then they said they didn't have a cutie mark, and they wanted me to join their club! Then they said you were a member, and-"

I laughed. "Alright, take a breath. I'm very happy for you Solemn. I'd imagine you're tired though, am I right?"

"Are you kidding? I feel like I could stay up for another-ZZzzZzz..." Solemn started to say before abrubtly falling asleep.

Dash and I laughed a little.

"I'm not surprised this happened, she's been bouncing up and down for a while now, eager to tell you about her day." Rainboow said.

"I can see it went well. How was your day?" I said before giving Rainbow a kiss.

"It went pretty well. Me and the girls just spent a portion of the day together before I picked up Solemn and flew her to Cloudsdale for her training. How was yours?"

"It was pretty nice. I guess you're pretty tired, huh?"

She let out a yawn. "Yeah, I am pretty beat. You wanna head up to bed?"

"I'll head up to bed later, you go on ahead."

"Alright, don't stay up to late, okay?"

"I won't. See you in a bit."

She nodded and trotted upstairs. When she was out of sight, I calmly went trotted outside, and flew into the Everfree Forest.

Eventually, I came upon the ruins. This spot will do. Since I can't sleep without dreaming of death and destruction, I'll spend my time training.

I found a support beam, which was no longer supporting anything. Guess I'll start here.

I punched the column once. Then again, and again. My punches getting faster and more frequent. I imagined the beam was Sorrow Curse. My hooves were now a blur to the naked eye. The beam was starting to crack.

Then the image of Sorrow Curse spoke. "You'll never be able to kill me Shadow. I'll have your precious wife and child on a cold, concrete slab, and slowly pull each of their organs out. One. At. A. Time."

I screamed and punched through the column, causing it to collapse. I sank down, heavily panting.

"I figured you'd come here. It's the last place anypony would think to look for you." A voice said behind me.

A whirled around, ready to attack. I saw who it was, and relaxed. "What are you doing here, Spitfire?"

"Shadow, I understand what you're going through, but you don't have to do it alone. Let me help you."

"I don't want anypony else getting mixed up in my affairs. Besides, I thought I've already finished my training."

She smirked. "Is that what you think? Just because you became a level four fighter, doesn't mean there is nothing left to learn. There is always something to learn. Let me show you a move you've never seen before."

I sighed. "Alright, if you think it will help."

"Good. Now what I'm going to show you should only be used in an absolute emergency situation, understood?"

I nodded.

"Alright then. There are two pre-requirements to learning this move, both of which you meet. It's called the-"

Several hours of training later.

I slumped down on the ground next to Spitfire. Both of us were exhausted.

"I think you finally got it down." Spitfire said, turning to me.

"I think I have too. Thank you, Spitfire."

"Anything for family."

I smiled. "I appreciate that. I should probably get back home before Rainbow and Solemn wake up. Thanks again." I said before flying off.

When I got home, I slowly opened the door, and trotted upstairs to the bedroom. Rainbow should still be asleep, since it's four in the morning.

I opened the door, thankful to find that I was right. I snuck in bed, just as Rainbow wrapped her hooves around me in her sleep.

"I love you Shadow.." She said, still asleep.

I smiled. "I love you too Rainbow, and I'll gladly give my life for you." I said to myself before closing my eyes.

Something decided to fuck off this time, because all I dreamed about was Rainbow and Solemn. My life, and my loves.

After the next chapter, it's the big finale, the wedding chapter! I know you guys have been looking forward to it for a while, and so have I. Curious about that move Spitfire taught Shadow to use only in emergencies? Good, it'll be all the sweeter when he uses it in the future. Sorry for this pretty short chapter, but hey, at least it's a chapter, eh? I figured I'd put out one more chapter before the zombie apocalypse on the 21st. Goodnight, and if the apocalypse really does happen, I'll see you all in hell, or a safe haven I created from the zombie infested world. ;).

Chuck Norris fact of the day: Chuck Norris's motorcycle has 4-wheel drive. (Credit to Supah on that one.)
> Anxiety
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I awoke from my first peaceful sleep in days, and looked to see Rainbow cuddling next to me. Tomorrow will be the greatest day of my life. Hopefully it will be the greatest of hers as well. Well, so long as there aren't any interruptions. Anything that tries to ruin my wedding will have made the greatest mistake humanly, or ponyly...ly possible.

I snuck out of bed, and prepared breakfast. (Weekly hay bacon moment mother f(*squee*)ker. Enjoy it, or I'll come for you. We aint no little b(*squee*)tches in this kitchen. ) When I finished, I laid everything out, and left a note to Rainbow saying I had to leave early, and asked for her to take Solemn to school and training today.

After writing the note, I grabbed a few pieces of hay bacon and left. I sighed and took flight for the San Palamino Desert full speed.

When I arrived at the desert, I flew a few miles in, and came across a familiar fortress. As I neared the fort, I noticed the blood moat was gone, and that there was no shield around the place. Good, maybe I can get a few answers.

I flew over the wall, and landed on one of the towers.

Just then, the apparition of Sorrow Curse appeared, and I activated my hidden blades, but he seemed to just ignore me as he spoke. "Of course, how silly of me. How can I expect you to play along if I don't have any proof of the hostage? One moment please."

Just then, a familiar tan earth pony appeared next to him, also partially see-through. Wait, is this a flashback? It is! This is what happened when we attacked this place. If these two are here, then that means-

"You sick bastard..." My apparition said.

I looked up, and saw myself and the rest of my team outside of the shield.

The see-through ponies started to blur, and faded completely within a few seconds.

I stared at the non-existent apparitions a moment longer before continuing onward. I flew off of the tower, and down to the ground. In front of me were five tunnels.

The apparitions of me and my squad appeared again. They nodded to each other, and went down a path. I followed my apparition into the tunnel as it slowly faded away.

Why am I seeing this? I was here, I know what happened. I only came here to see if I could find something else out about Sorrow Curse.

As I continued down the long, dark path, I got to thinking about my first encounter here. If I remember correctly, it should be the-

I was interrupted by the shrieking of five abominations as they charged in my direction. I readied myself, only to have them pass right through me. I lowered my guard as I watched my apparition kill four of them at once with all four of his hidden blades.

"Now, that was very impressive. Congratulations mister Shadow, you made it to round 2. That wasn't much of a challenge, but the next one will be harder. I promise. Also as promised, you get a five minute break."

"Sick fuck."

"Sick fuck." Me and my apparition thought aloud in unison.

My apparition faded, and I sat down. Five minutes until my next challenge.

What am I doing here? Do I really think I'll find something useful here? I might as well try though. At the least, if I pay attention, I could pick up on something I failed to notice before. The thing is, I don't want to pay attention to what happens at the end...

"Ding! Five minutes are up! Get ready for your next challenge mister Shadow!"

My apparition reappeared, and I watched as the regenerans bestia dragon soared over my head. I watched as I dodged and weaved away from the flames it was spewing forth. I watched as I shoved a dagger in its eye, and then flew inside of it. A moment later, the dragon shrieked, and collapsed on the ground. A few seconds passed, and I saw myself re-emerge from the beast covered in blood and guts.

That was a lot more fun watching than it was doing. Especially getting covered in guts.

The regenerans bestia evaporated, and Sorrow's voice spoke."My my, you actually killed it. Aren't you the special one? Five minutes before your final challenge. This last one's a doozy."

My apparition sighed and faded away once more.

My duty is to protect Equestria and its citizens. What is about to happen proves how I don't deserve to be a member of this group. Spitfire says the mission was a partial success, but I beg to differ. Any mission with a casualty is a failure in my book. I have to work harder, get stronger, and ensure every mission from now on is a success. I promised I'd give my life for Rainbow and Equestria, and maybe I can give more. What if I can-

"Ding! Time's up! If you'll direct your attention to the hole in the roof, your next challenge emerges." Sorrow's voice cut my thoughts off.

I held a tear back as I watched the innocent mare raised up, and strapped to a table.

This is it.

"No, don't do this!" My apparition yelled.

Why did I just stand there?

"I'm afraid it's too late for that. Would you two gentlecolts be so kind as to use the spell?"

"MOVE YOU DUMBASS!" I shouted to my apparition.

My apparition was still unmoving, watching as the necromancers performed their spell. The mare was enveloped in a black aura, and screaming as it happened.

"GODDAMNIT, I SAID MOVE!" I screamed once more, as if I were now able to change the outcome.

My apparition rushed over to the mare, and undid her restraints. The black aura fell to the ground, and a monster appeared where a living creature was just at. The monster I'll never forget. Its pale white coat, black mane and tail, and those lifeless, pupiless eyes that scream for blood.

"This...is my fault." My apparition said, dropping down. "I could have done something, but I was too scared to move..."

I remember that moment. The overwhelming fear of seeing something so innocent converted into a monster.

My apparition got off of the ground. "I'm sorry I couldn't make it to you in time. Please forgive me from what I'm about to do."

I watched as my apparition charged the monster, only to get cut by one of the fleshy spikes on its body. I saw its superior agility against my own. When it managed to pierce one of my wings, I saw the fear in my eyes. I knew I was going to die, and there was nothing that could have been done about it. I wasn't afraid of death itself, but rather the thought of being parted from Rainbow forever. That killed me on the inside.

Thankfully, my armor was there to save me. It started to glow, and less than a quarter of a second later, I was behind the monster, and had a dagger in its back.

The monster collapsed on the ground, and I watched as it slowly turned back into that innocent mare.

She smiled. "Thank you."

"Please don't thank me, I'm the one who did this to you."

"You didn't turn me into a monster. You saved me. Please don't blame yourself." Her eyes started to close.

"Don't die on me! Do you hear me?! Hey!

"Thank...you.."

"FUCK! DON'T DIE!"

The mare closed her eyes for good.

My apparition screamed in rage. "COME OUT HERE YOU SORRY SON OF A BITCH, SORROW CURSE!"

"I'm afraid I have to decline. You Fugiens Mones don't dissapoint though. I didn't expect all of you would survive. I'll have to rethink my plans now. Thank you, you were excellent test experiments. Ciao."

"YOU FUCKING COWARD! GET BACK HERE!"

I watched as my apparition let out one final scream before disappearing.

...I understand now. I know why I was so upset about that mare's death. More than the fact she was innocent, I was thinking as if that were Rainbow Dash. I kept imagining if that was Rainbow rather than that other mare. More than just being upset, I was angry. I wasn't angry at Sorrow Curse though, I was angry at myself. I was angry because if I couldn't protect that mare, how was I supposed to protect Rainbow herself?

The ground in front of me started to bubble, and my twisted reflection appeared.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" I spat.

"What's with the hostile attitude? You'll never make friends that way." He replied with an evil grin.

"I'm not in the mood to put up with your shit, I've got enough to worry about tomorrow. I'm pretty sure my wedding is going to get crashed by a bunch of necromancers."

"I know, who do you think sent you that vision?"

"Wait, you gave me that vision? Why would you do that?"

"Like it or not, we're tied together. If you die, I die too. I wouldn't want that to happen. Don't mistake this as compassion, I just did it to protect myself."

"Wait, so how do you know about the necromancers' plans?"

"Oh come on, you can't be that dumb."

"Huh?"

He sighed. "I guess you are. If you paid attention at all, you would have figured it out. Why the hell else would necromancers let themselves be killed so easily? The vision you saw was what I guessed would happen at first."

"Wait, you GUESSED that Rainbow would die?!"

He shrugged. "It isn't my fault you can't save your wife, or even one innocent mare." He finished with a grin.

"Shut up!" I yelled as I charged him. I swung a hoof, and it went right through him.

"I'm not really here, you idiot. You won't get the chance to throw a punch at me until I decide it's time. Don't worry, it'll be sooner than you think." He said as the ground beneah him started to bubble once more. His eyes shot wide, and he gave me his insane look. "And then your body and this world will be mine!" He yelled before disappearing into the ground.

Silence returned to the area, and I sighed. I guess I won't get anything out of this place except bad memories.

I got up, and went back the way I came. When I got to the exit, I noticed a note by it.

"This wasn't here before.." I thought aloud.

I picked up the note and read it.

Shadow,

I've been watching you ever since you first arrived in this world, and I knew from the start you would become one of the Mones. I've been helping you in situations ever since you first started fighting, secretly lending aid whenever possible. I know you're about to go through a tough time, and I wish you luck in your endeavors. Expect to here from me again soon.

-S.S.

"Great, another mystery added to the list." I said as I folded the note up and left the fortress.

When I got ouside, I spread my wings and took flight for Canterlot.

When I arrived, I headed for the royal palace. The guards recognized me, and let me pass. Walking inside, I took notice that wedding décor was starting to get put up. I saw Princess Celestia sitting at her throne.

She saw me and smiled. "Hello Shadow Flash, excited for your wedding?"

"You know it. I can see the preparations are already being made."

"The certainly are."

"Again Princess, I can't thank you enough for letting Rainbow and I have our wedding here at the palace."

"It's the least I could do for Rainbow Dash. She, along with her friends have saved Equestria numerous times. It's the least I could do for you as well, since you also work to protect Equestria."

I was temporarily stunned. "What uh, what do you mean, Princess?"

"I'm not as naïve as you and Luna may think me to be. I am fully aware of the activities you participate in."

"Then why-"

"Because I don't want my sister to worry."

"Funny, that's what your sister said to me."

"I figure if this gives Luna a sense of accomplishment in keeping me in the dark on these matters, then I'll leave her to it."

"There's more to it than that, you're highness. She just doesn't want you to worry, and would rather maintain the illusion of peace for you, than introduce you to these terrible things that are out there."

She sighed. "Perhaps you're right. I'll keep pretending that I know nothing of what is going on in order to keep my sister happy."

"You're a good sister to not even be angry at her keeping you in the dark like that."

She saddened, and her eyes went to the ground. "I'm not, really."

Fuck, me and my big mouth. "You did what was necessary, and your sister knows that. She's already forgiven you, so isn't it time you forgave yourself?"

"It is easier said than done..."

"I know Princess, what you did will always haunt you unless you put it behind you. Luna is here once more, and everything is fine. Trust me, she's doing everything she can for you. The Fugiens Mones are a testament to that."

She smiled a little. "You're right. Thank you Shadow Flash."

"No need to thank me Princess, I'm just helping a pony who's a little down. I'm gonna head to Cloudsdale now, so I'll see you tomorrow." I said as I turned to the exit.

"Alright. One last thing though."

I turned to face her. "Princess?"

"I'd appreciate it if you kept this conversation our little secret."

I nodded. "Consider it done."

She nodded, and I turned away and exited the palace. I then took flight, and headed to Cloudsdale. When I got to the sanctuary, I found Ni and Soarin were the only ones at the table. I raised my eyebrow as I looked at Soarin, because he had a black eye.

"What the hell happened to you?" I asked.

"I took your advice, that's what happened."

"Huh?"

"I asked Spitfire to go out with me, and she gave me a black eye."

"Yikes, that's one hell of a rejection. Sorry dude."

He sighed. "It's okay I guess. I didn't have high hopes for her saying yes anyway."

"Props for trying at least. I'm too scared to even ask her if I can go to the bathroom." I said as I walked over and took the seat across from him, and two seats away from Ni.

"Yeah, you've got a nice trophy for being so bold." Ni joked.

"Alright Ni, you can expect poison in your next meal."

"Too bad it won't work, me being immortal and all."

Soarin gave an evil grin. "It's a special kind of poison."

"That sounds bad, but all jokes aside, how are the preparations for tomorrow coming along?" I asked.

"Pretty well actually. We've notified the medic squad, and they'll be in position during the wedding." Soarin said.

"And I've informed my squad. If there's an attack on Canterlot, we'll be prepared." Ni said.

I nodded. "Alright, thanks you guys. I can't thank you enough."

"Don't worry about it. You're family, and I'll be damned if I can't protect you during your wedding." Soarin said.

Ni nodded. "That's right. We've got your back Shadow. Nothing bad will happen on our watch."

I smiled. "Thank you. By the way, is Solemn here?"

"Yeah, she's training with Spitfire right now actually. They should be done pretty soon now that I think about it." Soarin said.

"Speaking of which." Ni said.

I looked up and saw Spitfire trotting over with a tired Solemn on her back. I trotted over, and let Solemn hop on my back.

"Hey there kiddo, how was your day?" I asked.

"It was pretty good." She said before giving a yawn.

"You look pretty tired. I'll take you home now so you can get some rest."

She didn't say anything, instead, she just gave another adorable yawn, making me smile.

I looked at Spitfire. "I'll be going now."

"Alright Shadow. Go home and get some rest, you've got a big day tomorrow."

"No arguments here. See you tomorrow guys." I said before trotting upstairs, and outside.

I spread my wings and took flight towards Ponyville.

"So, how'd your day go Solemn?" I asked.

"ZzZzzZz."

I gave a light chuckle. I'll let her sleep I guess.

Once we arrived home, I noticed Rainbow reading a book on the couch.

She looked up from her book and smiled. "Hey you two. How was your day Shadow?"

"Oh ya know, same old stuff."

"Right, like I'm supposed to know what the same old stuff is."

"I'm not that different from the average pony, Rainbow."

She raised an eyebrow in response.

"Okay, maybe I am. But that's a good thing, right?"

She chuckled. "I guess it is. I hope you're ready for tomorrow."

"Oh, more than you know."

"Good. Go ahead and take Solemn to her room. I'll wait for you in bed." Rainbow finished in a seductive tone.

I rushed upstairs and put the still sleeping Solemn in bed, then rushed into mine and Rainbow's room to find her seductively staring at me.

Oh thank you God.

Short chapter, I know. Actually, a very short chapter. Apologies, but next chapter will make up for it. The finale chapter is next you guys, and it's gonna be kick ass. I'm out of school for the next two weeks, so I've got nothing but time on my hands. I'm gonna make you guys a promise, and that is the following: the finale chapter will have 12k words or more. (Also, I think this chapter puts me at over 100k words for the story. It does for fanfiction anyway. I edited out a lot of stuff before first submitting my story here. Wow. I couldn't have gotten this far without all of your support, so thanks. Expect another 100k words and beyond from me, because I'm just getting started.)Probably more. I've got LOTS of stuff planned for the finale, so I will most likely go over my quota. Look forward to it, because I do too. I'm going to sleep now, because I can barely see straight now. G'NITE EVEREHPONY!

Chuck Norris fact of the day: If you have $5, and Chuck Norris has $5, Chuck Norris has more money than you. (P.S. I got a Chuck Norris bobblehead for Christmas, and I'm SO happy right now.)
> Breaking Point
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hopefully this goes without saying: Twilight is NOT an alicorn in this story, and probably never will be. Now read.

So this is how it ends? I never thought it would happen this way. Heh, irony's funny like that I guess. So tired now....huh? I think I hear someone calling me. Leave me alone, I want to rest now. I think I've earned one.
/././

I woke up from a good night's rest, and Rainbow's hooves wrapped around me. It's today, isn't it? Holy shit, it is. Wedding day. Heh, I never thought it'd get here so soon. It's not a bad thing either. I finally get to seal the deal with Rainbow, and I couldn't be happier. I'm glad I got the chance to be here.

Rainbow shuffled next to me, and slowly opened her eyes before letting out a small yawn.

I smiled. “Good morning, Rainbow. Sleep well?”

“Yeah, I did. What about you?”

“Best sleep I've had in a while.”

“That's good to hear. Excited for today?”

“Oh hell yes.”

She giggled. “Glad to hear it.”

“Speaking of which, what time is the wedding?” I said sheepishly.

“You forgot what time your wedding is?” She said with a small amount of annoyance.

I held my hooves up. “Sorry, I just got so caught up in things that I forgot.”

She sighed. “I forgive you. The wedding is at six o' clock by the way. It's eight right now, so we've still got a while. We don't have to be in Canterlot until four, and it will take an hour or two to get there, so we'll leave around two, two-thirtyish. That gives you six hours to do whatever you want until then.”

I nodded. “Alright. First thing's first, I need to take Solemn to school.”

“It's Saturday, Shadow.”

“Oh, well in that case, I'll take her to Cloudsdale for training.”

I really do lose track of time, don't I?

“Alright, that's fine. So who do you have picked to be your best stallion and groomsmen?”

I facehoofed.

“You don't know, do you?”

“I know who I want, it's just that, well....-”

“You haven't told them.”

“Yeah...Well, I should probably go do that then.”

“Yeah, that would be best.”

I sighed. “Alright, I'll be back in a bit. See you then.” I said before getting out of bed.

“Alright, see you in a few.” Rainbow replied before getting out of bed as well.

Rainbow and I went up to each other and embraced in a passionate kiss.

After once again losing track of time thanks to a kiss, we finally broke it.

I smiled. “Later.”

She smiled as well, and nodded.

I left the room and went over to Solemn's.

I knocked on the door, and the door opened, revealing Solemn. “Hey, ready for training?”

She yawned. “I guess.”

“Alright, I need to make a stop at the library before we head to Cloudsdale. It won't take long though.”

“If you say so Dad. You just need to make sure you aren't late to the wedding.”

“No need to worry, I wouldn't miss it for the world.”

“Alright, you just need to make sure you can back those words up.”

“I will, I will.”

When the hell was a six year old able to talk like that? Whatever, I need to get to the library so I can talk to Barry before he leaves for Canterlot along with Twilight and Spike.

We trotted downstairs and left our cloud home.

I knelt down. “Alright, hop on, and I'll get you to Cloudsdale.”

She nodded, and climbed on my back.

I looked back. “Holding on tight?”

She nodded, and I took off towards the library. 

When we got to the library, I knocked on the door.

“I got it, Twilight!” Spike's voice called out.

A few seconds later, the door was opened by the little purple and green dragon. “Hey Shadow, hey Solemn, need something before we head off to Canterlot?”

“Just a quick word with Barry.”

He nodded. “Sure thing, come on in, and I'll go get him.” He said as he stepped to the side.

I trotted in, and he closed the door behind me before rushing upstairs. While he was getting Barry, I decided to look through a few books.

“Dad, can we check out one of those Daring Do books that Mom likes to read?”

“So you like the series too, do you?”

She smiled and nodded. “Yeah! They're really cool!”

“Alright then, I'll check one out for you after I talk to Barry.”

“Yay!” She yelled before hugging my back.

Heh, to say no to her is as impossible to me as impossible it is for a pegasus to use magic.

I heard foot (hoof....damnit, I just mind-fucked myself again.) steps coming from the stairs.

I turned around, and saw the neon green coat that belonged to Barry begin to emerge, along with his neon orange mane and tail. “Hey, you needed me?”

“Yeah, I may have forgotten to mention this before, but you're gonna be my best man, or stallion, or whatever.”

“Really?”

“Really to me wanting you as my best man, or really to me just now telling you?”

“Both.”

“Yes and yes. Sorry I didn't tell you earlier, but it slipped my mind given a few recent events. I need to hurry on now, but I'll see you in a few hours. Oh, and before I forget, do you think I can check out one of these Daring Do books for Solemn here?”

He looked at Solemn and smiled. “Sure, for her I think that can be managed.” He said as he picked up one of the various Daring Do books.

I looked back at Solemn. “Does it matter which one?”

“I've read the first one, so whichever is the second one is the one I want.” She responded.

Barry nodded and picked up the book she requested and hoofed it to me. (Yep, hoofed from now on. Screw it.)

I looked at the title. “Daring Do and the Temple of the Diamond Skull.” Well Solemn, get ready for disappointment.

“Is that everything you two needed?” Barry asked.

I nodded. “Yeah, that's it. Thanks man, I'll see you at my wedding as my best man.”

“Got it, see ya then.”

I trotted outside, and took off for Cloudsdale.

“When will I be able to read the book?” Solemn asked.

“Whenever the wedding finishes, you'll get your chance. Until then, you'll be training and at the wedding.”

She groaned. “Fiiine.”

I chuckled. “The day will be over before you know it, Solemn.”

Instead of saying anything else, she just groaned again.

I smiled and continued towards Cloudsdale.

When we arrived, I trotted into the sanctuary to find the entire team plus a few extra faces I haven't seen before.

Spitfire trotted up to me. “I'll take Solemn off your hooves Shadow. In the meantime, I'd like to introduce you to a few ponies. Medic squad, say hi to the fastest pony to climb the ranks since myself a millenia ago.” She said as I gave her Solemn.

One of the ponies trotted over to me. His muscular features and steel colored coat along with his dark blue mane and tail made me think of this guy as the pony you didn't want to fuck with in a bar brawl. He held out a hoof. “Nice to meet you, name's Bloodbank. I've got advanced first aid training, but nothing much more than that in terms of being a medic. I can fight though, so I guess it makes me more like the group's 'bodyguard'.”

I shook his hoof. “Shadow Flash. Good to meet you.”

Bloodbank rejoined his group, while another pony trotted up to me. His white coat and red mane led me to believe he's more the medic type than Bloodbank. He shook my hoof. “Bandages. I've got more training than Bloodbank when it comes to being a medic, but that doesn't mean I'm helpless in a fight. If you get hurt in the midst of combat, I'm the one who's got your back.”

I nodded. “Good to hear. I look forward to working with you in the future.”

Bandages trotted back to his team, and an average sized pony came up to me. The guy had marks all under his eyes on his face, like somebody had carved up tally-marks through his dark green coat, and straight to the skin. He shook his black and green mane out of his eyes to see me better. “Sawbones. I'm the squad's lead surgeon. I've got over three hundred years of experience, so you won't find a better doctor in all of Equestria. It sounds like boasting, but I'm just stating the simple truth. That being said, I'm not much of a fighter. If possible, I stay out of the combat.”

I nodded. “If you don't mind me asking, why does it look like somepony carved up tally-marks on your face?”

“These? I put them there.”

“Why would you do that?! There are like forty!”

“Forty-six to be precise. Although I'm the best doctor in Equestria, that doesn't mean I can heal any wound. There are some beyond my capabilities, and each of these marks is a pony I've failed. They remind me to get better, and be able to heal any injury.”

Talk about hardcore. “Uh, right. I look forward to serving with you.”

Sawbones nodded and went back to his group, and another pony trotted up to me and sized me up. This guy seems different than the last three. More hardass-ish looking with his Big Mac build, brown mane, and red coat. But hey, looks can be deceiving. When he finished, he smiled and held out a hoof. “So you're the one Hornet told me about, huh? Call me Buckshot. You look like you can handle yourself in a fight pretty nicely, so that makes you alright in my book. Honestly, I'm pretty new to this whole Fugiens Mones thing, but I'm no stranger to a fight. I've also got more than twenty years' experience as a combat medic, so I guess this squad suits me more than your spec ops team, or assassins, or whatever your squad is called.”

I smiled and shook his hoof. “You don't look like you're bad in a fight either. There's something different about you, but I can't quite figure it out...”

He grinned. “You're also sharper than you look. I'll let my 'captain' tell you.” He said captain with a hint of reluctance. I wonder why....wait, did he say captain?

Buckshot trotted back to his group, and the last one, this one with a brown coat, approached me with a smile on his face. One of his red eyes was covered up by his half black and half red mane. Wait...whoa, what the fuck happened to this guy? He's got griffon wings instead of normal ones, and some sharp ass teeth. Are those from a dragon?

When he got up to me, I was still staring at his wings. He cleared his throat to get my attention, and I jumped. “Uh, sorry about that.”

“No problem. To be honest, this feel is still new to me. It was a pretty recent incident that made me have to get a few 'changes' made to my body.”

“Wait a sec...I've seen something similar to this before.....necromancy!” I jumped back and activated my hidden blades. “You're an abomination!”

His group got ready to move, but he held up a hoof for them to stop. “Yes, I'm an abomination now. Believe me, I didn't see myself becoming an abomination three days ago, but here I am. I'm not an average abomination though. I've still got my mind, and I know where my loyalties lie. If you calm down, I'll explain.” 

I retracted my hidden blades and slowly nodded.

“Thank you. I know my appearance is pretty unsettling to say the least, and I realize that. An accident happened a few days ago, causing me to nearly die. Before I did, however, a known rouge necromancer saved me the only way she could; she killed me and turned me into an abomination.” His eyes lowered. “I know it may sound far-fetched, but this is the truth. I owe my life to that necromancer, because she was kind enough to save it.”

I relaxed a little bit, but still remained cautious. “A rouge necromancer? I'm not sure if I believe you.”

He gave me an apologetic smile. “Yes. I knew it would be a little too much to try and believe given your history with them, so I'll let her speak for herself.” He said before a robed unicorn mare with a white coat and golden mane trotted from behind the medic group.

It took every ounce of control in me not to slash her throat right there. That aside, it was obvious that I was very agitated.

“It's okay Shadow. This is Crystal Tears. She's the necromancer that saved me.” The captain said.

She trotted closer to me, and I kept my eyes on her, just daring her to make a move.

“I understand what you must feel right now, but believe me when I say this; I'm not with them.”

I raised an eyebrow. “And how am I supposed to believe that? What if you just fixed up the captain here so you could get close to our base?”

“That's enough, Shadow.” Spitfire said as she trotted over.

“You believe her, Spitfire?”

She nodded. “I do.”

I sighed. “....Alright.” I turned to Crystal Tears. “But just so we're clear, I'm watching you.”

She nodded. “I understand.”

Just then, the captain let out a breath he was apparently holding in. “Well now that we've got the fact that I'm an abomination out of the way,” He held out a hoof. “I'm the recently promoted captain of the medics, Hornet.”

I thought for another moment, then finally decided to shake his hoof. “If Spitfire vouches for you two, you can't be that bad. Wait, have I seen you before, or is it my imagination?”

“You've seen me before, although it was before I had this happen to me.” He said, gesturing towards his teeth and wings.

“Really? When?”

“It was only briefly, and we didn't speak. I was the one who delivered the information to Spitfire about the necromancers' hideout in the desert while you were present.”

I thought for a moment. “Oh yeah, I think I remember now. You know, I gotta say those griffin wings are barely noticeable, which helps explain why I didn't recognize you.” I said with a bit of sarcasm.

“Thanks, and your big head doesn't make you look like any less of an ass.”

“Now you two-” Spitfire started to say, but was cut off by the Hornet and I bursting into laughter.

We bumped hooves and laughed for a moment longer. “I think we're gonna have a good friendship going Hornet.”

“Heh, I couldn't agree more. Oh, and before we continue on with our conversation, there's one more thing you need to know about me. Well, me and Buckshot.”

I raised an eyebrow. “What is it? It can't be more surprising than you being an abomination.”

“Well, me and Buckshot here are uh, how do I put this so you don't freak out? Well, there's no way to do that, so I'll just say it.”

Oh God he better not be coming out.

“We're human.”

“....Come again? It sounded like you just said you and Buckshot over there were human.”

“Because I did.”

I rubbed my temple with my forehooves. “Ugh, why couldn't it have been something as simple as coming out of the closet?”

“No you ass, I'm not gay. I'm going out with Spitfire.”

My eye twitched. Yep, surprise overload. I think I'm gonna faint now.....aaannyy second....ah, now.

Thud*

I groaned, and could make out a few voices.

“Is he gonna be alright?” One voice asked.

“He'll be fine, he's just being melodramatic.” Another voice said.

“I don't know, Soarin and Ni fainted too.” A third voice said.

I struggled to open my eyes and found Spitfire, Crystal Tears, and Hornet looking down at me.

“See? He's fine.” Spitfire said.

“Ughh...too many surprises...”

Spitfire rolled her eyes. “Yep, definitely fine.”

I sat up and looked at Hornet. “...So you used to be human, eh?”

He nodded. “I won't go into much detail, but I'll tell you the basics. I'm former military, and I was flying a jet fighter before being attacked and killed. I got the chance to come here, so I took it. Soon after, I'm in the Mones. As time passed, Spitfire and I got closer to each other.”

I got back up on all fours. “I never thought Spitfire was going out with someone, because I definitely wouldn't have told Soarin to ask her out if I did.”

“So you're the one who told him to ask me out, huh?” Spitfire said, getting closer to me.

I frantically backed up. “Uhh, what I meant to say was that I-ow!” I was cut off by Spitfire pounding my head

I rubbed my head. “Owww, what was that for?”

“It wouldn't be fair if I hit Soarin, but not you.”

I sighed. “You're not nice, ya know that?”

She shrugged. “I never said I was.”

“Heh, I guess you're right.” I turned to Hornet. “So meeting you means that there's only one more captain for me to meet. Given each of you captains had your own little surprise about you, I'm guessing the archery captain is no exception?”

Spitfire smiled. “Depends on what your definition of the word 'surprising' is.”

“I'll take that as a yes. Oh well, it can't be any more surprising than a former human, now part pony, griffon, and dragon.”

“You say that now.” Spitfire said, grinning.

“Okay, now I've gotta know. What does the archery captain look like?”

“You'll get to see him soon enough.”

I hung my head. “Man, this is gonna drive me crazy trying to figure out what's up with the last captain.”

“You'll get over it. Now, you were out for a couple of hours, so I recommend that you rush back to Ponyville ASAP.”

I looked at a conveniently placed clock on the wall next to me. It's two' o clock, so that gives me....shit.

I jumped up and ran for the exit. “Oh, when Soarin and Ni wake up, tell them they're my groomsmen! Also Spitfire, I need you to take Solemn to the wedding when she finishes training!” I shouted before Spitfire could protest, and left the sanctuary. 

When I exited the Wonderbolt HQ, I spread my wings and flew full speed back to Ponyville. I can't believe I was out for that long. I'll have to pick up the pace though, because I need to be back in less than thirty minutes.

Twenty nine minutes later, or somewhere around that.

I panted as I reached the front door. “I...made it...oh God...” I said before collapsing, trying to collect my breath. Just as I did, the door opened, revealing Rainbow.

She raised an eyebrow. “What are you doing?”

“I..*pant*...was...*pant*-”

“How about you get some water first? You look pretty beat if you ask me.”

Instead of saying anything, I just nodded and trotted inside. I got myself a glass of water and downed it.

“Better?” Rainbow asked.

I nodded. “Better.”

I'm still pretty damn tired, though.

“Well, we need to get to Canterlot now. Let's get going Shadow.”

I hung my head. “Okay...” I'm so damn tired...

I got up, and trotted over to the door with Rainbow.

She turned to me. “One more thing, I think you need to go on ahead without me, and I'll go with the girls.”

“Huh? Why?”

She shrugged. “Fluttershy and Rarity kept insisting it was bad luck or something like that to see the bride in the final moments before the ceremony. Twilight said the same thing, but she was reading from a book when she said it.”

I smirked. “A bit superstitious are we?”

“Who knows? Could be true. I'll go with the judgement of my friends and trust what they have to say.”

I sighed. Looks like I'm flying to Canterlot solo. I brought Rainbow in for a kiss, and she gladly  returned it.

We parted for a breath. “I'll see you soon.”

She smiled. “Alright. I love you, Shadow.”

“And I love you too, Rainbow.”

We trotted outside, and flew our separate directions. Rainbow flew towards Ponyville, while I flew towards Canterlot.

I've got a pretty long flight ahead of me, so I might as well tune out from my surroundings for a bit.

Meanwhile, elsewhere.

Sorrow Curse smiled as he rose from his throne made of skulls. He had been waiting in his personal sanctuary ever since the encounter in the San Palomino Desert, thinking over his plans again, and again, and again.

He gave a malicious smile. “The time is nearly at hand. After years-no, centuries of planning, it is almost time to put everything into play.”

He stared into the eyes of the terrified, and bound, yellow coated mare in front of him. He wiped away a tear that had reached her cheek. “Shhh, there there.”

He gave her a kind smile, but she still whimpered slightly.

“There is no need to be upset my dear. I will offer up a prayer for your soul specifically for being so kind as to donate me your blood.”

His smile grew more evil, and quickly began to show his teeth.

The mare panicked, and the tears began flowing. She was hastily silenced by a dagger through her throat.

Sorrow levitated the mare so the wound was just above a small bowl, allowing the blood to drip into it.

Once he was satisfied with the amount of blood in the bowl, he tossed the body away from him as if it were a worthless animal unworthy of existence. He took the bowl, and carefully emptied it out into the air, but using his magic, he kept the blood itself levitating. Once the bowl was empty, he dropped it, and began chanting in a strange language. The blood began to glow, and take shape in various letters to a language long dead and forgotten.

Sorrow stopped his chanting and smiled. “It looks like even the dark gods agree with me. Shadow Flash will die, along with this place's only hope for a savior.”

Back to Shadow.

I gave a powerful sneeze. Probably Rainbow talking about me. Or somepony else. Meh, I'm popular. I do have an uneasy feeling though. I'm hoping my twisted reflection was just fucking with my mind by showing me that vision of my wedding getting crashed by the necromancers. But then again, what reason would he have for lying? We are connected after all, so it would give him no benefit. So, he's either telling the truth, or he's wrong. Oh God please let him be more wrong than he's ever been.

Hopefully we're prepared for that scenario though. After all, three captains, along with their top soldiers will be in attendance, including the princesses themselves, and the royal guard. They may not be as strong as a member of the Mones, but they should be able to hold their own in a fight. Ugh, I wish I could just enjoy my wedding day, rather than have an anxiety attack.

I sighed. Oh well, complaining won't do anything. I should be arriving in Canterlot pretty soon. And speaking of which, I can see it coming up in the distance.

I picked up my pace so I could arrive quicker. Pretty soon, the lone mountain's size gradually increased. The city itself is now visible to me. A few moments later I was in front of the Royal Palace itself.

I landed and trotted over to the main gate, guarded by a couple of, well, guards. They crossed their spears in front of the entrance. “Halt! State your business.”

“I'm here for my wedding.”

“I remember you Mr. Flash. Go on in, and congratulations.” The guard on my left said before nodding to his partner.

They moved their spears to allow me entry. “Thanks, and be on the lookout for any....strange activity.”

The one on the right raised his eyebrow. “Why? Is something going to happen?”

“I hope not, but if you see anything particularly out of the ordinary, don't hesitate to barge in to tell us, got it?”

“Uhh, sure. Is everything okay?”

“For now. Just remember what I said.” I finished as I trotted by them, and into the castle itself.

I was amazed at the décor of the place. There were golden banners on every support beam of a cyan colored pegasus with rainbow hair next to a black pegasus with black and crimson hair. Along with the banners, there were flowers of almost every color in various places. There were wedding pews set up, which were set to face the stand where Rainbow and I will seal the deal. (Not really sure if the place where the groom and bride stand has a specific name.)

There were a few ponies in here still working on everything, but even though it isn't quite finished, it's more than I ever expected.

“Hello Shadow Flash.” A voice behind me said.

I turned around. “Princess Luna. How are you?”

“A difficult question. We are happy for you and Rainbow Dash, but worried about the possible invasion.”

I sighed. “Yeah, it's hard to be excited with all of this tension in the air, isn't it?”

She nodded. “It is very unfortunate, because this is a most joyous occasion.”

“You're tellin' me? I don't think I'll be able to enjoy my own wedding thanks to the crap that's going on.”

“Rest assured, all precautions are being taken. The wedding is to begin in three hours. You may explore the city for two hours, after that, you need to get back here for your wedding.”

I nodded. “Two hours, got it.”

“Remember Shadow Flash, you have the most powerful fighting force Equestria has ever seen at your back.”

“I know, but I'm worried it's not enough.” I said as I turned and left the castle.

Alright, I've got two hours to do whatever. What to do first I wonder?

“Hey!” A voice called out.

A turned and looked for the source of the voice.

“Right here.”

I turned, and came face to face with none other than Shining Armor. “You're the captain of the royal guard, Shining Armor, right?”

He nodded. “That's me. You're Shadow Flash, aren't you? The pony who's gonna marry Rainbow Dash today?”

“Sure am. What can I do you for?”

“Well surely you aren't going to go to your wedding without letting me buy my litte sister's best friend's fiance a drink first, right?”

I grinned. “I wouldn't dream of it.”

“Alright! Follow me, I know just the place to get one.”  He said, turning to lead me to the place where my drink awaits.

He turned to me. “So are you ready to kiss your freedom goodbye?”

“Is marriage really that bad?” I asked.

He chuckled. “Nah, I'm just messing with you. Marrying Cadence was the best thing that has ever happened to me. I've got zero regrets with it. The only problem was the wedding day itself. I wish it could have been done without all of the drama.”

I nodded. “Yeah, I know what happened. It made a wedding to remember though, didn't it?”

He laughed. “It certainly did. Look, here we are.” He finished, pointing up at the sign of the building.

Das Wasserloch (I told you guys I was gonna stereotype Germans next.)

Now it's German ponies? Nice.

We trotted inside, and I took a look around. The floor is made of a polished wood, and the walls appear to be made of the same kind of wood as the floor. The place has a pretty simple design. It's a big square with booths lining the outside, with a square bar in the center, surrounded by stools. The place seems pretty empty. There's probably only five or six other ponies here. Probably because it's still pretty early for drinking.

“Ah, herzlich willkommen! Shining Armor, I see you've brought a friend.” The bartender stated in a German accent. The earth pony looked like the German flag. His coat is black, while his mane and tail are red with golden stripes.

“Hey Chugger, how's it going?” Shining asked.

“Mir geht es gut, everything is going well. So, what can I get you two?”

“We'll both take some of your own special brew.”

He smiled. “Wunderbar. Coming right up.”

Shining and I pulled up a stool as the bartender known as 'Chugger' got our drinks.

He got two large mugs, and went over to a barrel and got them filled with beer. He came back and hoofed us our drinks.

“Thanks Chugger.” Shining said before taking a sip of his beverage.

Chugger nodded, and trotted off to attend to another pony.

I took a sip of my beer. “Hmm, not bad.”

“Pretty good, eh?” Shining asked.

“I'll say.” I said before taking another sip.

A silence took over for about five minutes. During that time, we just took a drink of our drinks every now and then.

I decided to break the silence. “So, what'd you really need me for?”

“I'd like you to tell me what you know about the threat presenting Canterlot.”

“So, you know then?” I asked, slightly surprised, but doing my best not to show it.

“Being captain of the Royal Guard, I have many sources of information.”

I chuckled. “More sources than I would've thought. I can't tell you everything, you know. My organization has rules.”

“Then tell me what you can so I can protect these ponies.”

“All I can say is that during my wedding, keep your eye on the ground.”

“What's that supposed to mean?”

“Exactly what it sounds like. Don't take your eyes off of the ground during my wedding. Hopefully I'm wrong, but just in case I'm right, I just saved your life.”

“Is there nothing else you can tell me?”

“I'm afraid not.” I said before getting up.

“...”

“Thanks for the drink.” I said before walking to the door.

“Shadow.”

I stopped.

“Your life belongs to Rainbow now. If you die, you might as well let her die too.”

“....Got it.” I said before leaving.

That killed about half an hour, and a little bit of my happiness. Now what else can I do for an hour and a half that doesn't annoy me?

I trotted down the streets of Canterlot, looking for something to do. Pretty soon, I came across a familiar alley. I went over to the spot where I had my first run-in with regenerans bestia. Looking at the ground, I can still see some of my blood stained into the ground. This is where it all began, where Spitfire, Soarin, and Blaze saved my life. From there, I was to become a member of the Fugiens Mones.

I heard a noise come from behind me, and I whirled around to see a pegasus holding a knife up to me. “Give me all of your money, and I don't hurt you.”

I took a good look at him. He had a snow white coat, blonde mane (which was in a ponytail...heheh...ponytail) and tail. His cutie mark, which was a blue shield with a gold heart on it, along with innocent his appearance made me assume he wasn't used to the whole mugger thing. That, and he was holding the knife wrong.

I raised my eyebrow. “You don't exactly look like the mugger type. Why don't you put the knife down, and just go home?”

“Shut-up! Give me your money now!”

I sighed. “Alright, if you insist.”

“Good, wait, wha-”

I cut him off by sweeping his legs out from under him, and then knocking the knife away.

I stood over him. He had a look of dismay and sadness on him, but no anger at all.

He started tearing up and punched the ground. “Damnit! I can't even do this right...”

I held out my hoof, making him look at me cautiously.

I nodded, and he took it. I helped him back onto his hooves, and he spoke. “I...I'm sorry.”

“Everything okay? Besides just now, you look like you've had a bad day.”

“Yeah...”

“Go ahead, I've got time.”

“You mean you'd listen to a guy who just tried to mug you?” He asked with confusion.

“You don't look like a bad pony, so I'm curious as to what made you turn to crime. What's your name?”

“It's Pureheart.”

“Yep, not exactly a thug's name. Tell me about yourself, and what led you up to this point.”

He took a deep breath. “Alright. I guess the first thing you should know is that growing up, I never imagined myself in this position. I grew up in a middle class family here. I live with my mom and little sister. My dad died of illness six years ago when I was thirteen, so that left all the pressure on my mom to take care of two kids by herself. I felt like I couldn't leave that pressure all on my mom. I had been studying and training to become one of the Royal Guard. I had just received my cutie mark too. We were just about to have to sell the house, when a pony approached me offering 'work'.”

“I think I can see where this is going.” I said.

He nodded. “Yep, turns out he worked for a crime organization. Everything was going fine at first. All I would do was steal a few things here and there, and get paid good money for it. About a year ago though, my sister came down with a bad cough. At first my mom and I thought it was a bad cold. We soon discovered that wasn't the case at all. She started showing all of the same symptoms of the illness that took my dad. Thing is though, there's a cure now. The catch is that it costs more than my mom could make in a year. I begged my boss for a loan. After days of constant begging, he agreed. The condition was that I have the money back for him within ten months. Well, my time expired two months ago, and I still didn't have the money. Now he's holding my sister and won't give her back unless I come up with ten thousand bits. My mom is in complete despair, because she doesn't know what happened to her.”

Tears started flowing from his ice blue eyes, and he started gritting his teeth.

He took a breath, but it didn't help much. “She's only fourteen, and now I don't think I'll ever see her again. I thought about getting the royal guard, but what would they do to help a criminal? I've become the opposite of my hero, Shining Armor.”

“So, you want to be a royal guard captain like Shining Armor, and your sister is being held by thugs that won't let her go until you pay up ten thousand bits?”

He solemnly nodded.

“I think I can help you there. With both of those problems.”

He looked up, surprised. “You can help me with both things? How?!”

I reached into my saddlebag, and pulled out a pouch and tossed it to him.

He looked at me. “What's this?”

“Ten thousand bits.”

“Bu-how-”

“Being a Wonderbolt, that's not much.”

“You're a Wonderbolt?!”

“Sure am. Shadow Flash, at your service.”

“I think I've heard about you somewhere before....Oh yeah! You're one of their new additions, but you're supposed to be really good!”

“Heh, thanks. As for that other thing, I happen to be an acquaintance of Shining Armor's.”

“You really know Shining Armor?!”

“I do. You've got a good heart, but I think you might be a little confused right now. I'll tell ya what. You go give that money to your boss, get your sister back, then I want you to leave Canterlot and head to Ponyville for a day.”

“What? Why?”

“This place might get attacked later today.”

“What, by who?!”

“I can't say much, but I really recommend you take your family and get out of here as soon as possible. I'm warning you, you don't wanna be here later. Tomorrow, if I'm still alive, I'll find you and your family. I'll teach you how to fight, and you'll be closer to becoming a Royal Guard. I know this is confusing, but trust me. You do not want to be here tonight. I'll explain everything tomorrow if you do as I say.”

He was speechless for a second, then spoke. “...Alright. I'll go get my sister, then get my mom and go to Ponyville. I think I can trust you after saving my sister.”

I nodded. “Good. Hopefully I'll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah. Thanks again.” He said before walking off.

“Good luck man....” I said before taking a seat on the ground.

I might have found another recruit. He looks like he can do so much more for the world than he currently is. And it wouldn't help to have a captain of the royal guard as a personal acquaintance after Shining Armor passes the torch.

I sighed. “Well, I better get back to the castle.” I said to myself as I got up.

I trotted back over to the castle, my mind switching between thoughts of Pureheart and his sister, my wedding with Rainbow, Sorrow Curse, and my twisted reflection. When I arrived, I gave a nod to the guards, and trotted on in.

I trotted back into the castle, and scanned for nopony in particular. My eye eventually found Ni just wondering around, looking at the décor.

I trotted over to him. “Hey Ni, if you're here, does that mean the others are here as well?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I've got my top three guys scoping out the rest of Canterlot along with the medic squad. Spitfire, Soarin, and Blaze are somewhere else in the castle. I decided to stay here and keep an eye out for you.”

“Why's that?”

“Because you need to get dressed for the ceremony, you fool.”

I gave a sheepish smile. “Oh, heheh.”

He rolled his eyes. “C'mon, I'll take you to your room.” He said before turning around, and leading me into a long hallway.

“So I should probably just wear my armor, huh?” I asked.

“Well, so it's not too obvious, we modified it slightly.”

“Like how?”

“We just stitched a suit over it. It's still your armor, but it just looks like a tux now. Of course it'll probably get shredded in battle, but for now, its got style.”

“Heh, nice.” I said as he stopped in front of a door.

“Here's your room. I'll let you get ready.”

I nodded and trotted in my room. It was a pretty modest room. It had a chair in front of a mirror, a line to hang clothes, a small bar that had various beverages, and a couch along with various other decorations and wall paintings. Okay, so maybe it isn't that modest.

I saw my suit/armor on the chair in front of the mirror, and went over to it to get dressed. I slipped it on, and trotted back outside, where Ni was waiting for me.

“Alright, so what now?” I asked.

“We've got an hour until the wedding, and the guests are starting to arrive. Rainbow is in her own room along with her friends, and in addition to that, we're on high alert for unusual activity.

“Good, keep it up.”

“Well, we may as well stay here at the castle, seeing as how we've only got an hour until the wedding.”

“Well, I did spot a small bar in my room...”

He grinned. “Why not? I could use a good drink right about now.”

“Right this way then.” I said, leading him into my room.

When we were inside, I trotted over to the bar and got out a couple of mugs. “Colt Lite or Dos Ponis?”

“Dos Ponis of course.”

“Dos Ponis it is.” I said before filling our mugs and hoofing his to him.

He held his mug up. “Cheers Shadow. Congratulations on finding yourself a bride.”

“I'll toast to that.” I said before knocking my mug against his, causing a bit of beer to spill out.

We took a big drink, and took a seat on the couch.

“Hypothetically speaking, what's the plan if we get attacked?” Ni asked.

“Kill 'em all.”

“That's your plan?”

“That's my plan. Well, that and protect everypony.”

“Easier said than done.”

“Yes, but not that much harder. Besides the archers, the entire Mones are here. I don't think it'll be much trouble if we get attacked.”

Ni took another sip of his beer. “You say that now. Careful not to jinx it.”

I shrugged. “It'd probably happen without the jinx. If I jinxed it now, it'd probably mean a fifty foot demon would appear from the sky and rain fire down on the city.”

“....If that happens, I'll know who to blame.”

I laughed. “I'm just sayin'.”

About an hour of chatting idly while sipping on their beers later. I don't really have an hour's worth of dialogue, so there ya go.

There was a knock at the door.

“Who is it?” I asked.

“It's Barry. Get your asses out here, the wedding is starting.”

“Alright, I'll be right there.”

Ni looked at me. “Well that hour went by pretty fast.”

“Sure did. Time to get married.” I said as I rose out of the couch and set my mug on the table in front of me.

Ni followed behind me as I exited the room. Soarin and Barry were waiting for us.

I looked at Soarin, and saw he still had his black eye. I held back a laugh when I saw him.

“Laugh it up Shadow. I want you to savor the next meal you have, poison and all.”

“Heheh, you can't blame me for laughing. See? Even Ni and Barry are laughing.” I said, gesturing towards the two.

Soarin looked at them, and sure enough, they were holding back some laughs.

“You will all die horribly.” Soarin said before trotting off.

We couldn't take it anymore and burst into laughter as Soarin continued on his way to the ceremony.

“All-heheh-alright guys, I think everybody is waiting on us.” I said.

“You're right, lets go.” Barry said.

We all trotted down the hallway, and eventually came to the door leading to the throne room, which is now the ceremony room. I opened the door, and was amazed at the turnout. Tapestries were hung from the ceiling, along with gold and red streamers. Banners were on every column leading up to the pedestal which Celestia was waiting behind. The place was absolutely filled with ponies. Everypony was in attendance. There's the Mane Six of course besides Twilight, there's Dad, Spike, Solemn, Hornet and his squad, Spitfire, Blaze, Shining Armor, Lyra, Bon Bon, Octavia, Vinyl, a few members of the Wonderbolts, Cheerilie, Derpy, Berry Punch (probably because this will be a good opportunity to get wasted), for some reason Dr. Whooves, Silver, Thunder Gunner, the CMC, Colgate, Carrot Top, Fancypants, Jeff Letrotski (It's The Dude!!! Also whatever the ponied names are for Walter, Donny, and The Jesus.),Mr. and Mrs. Cake, their twins, Princess Cadence, Princess Luna, Roseluck, Granny Smith, Big Mac, Cloudchaser, and so on.

I continued on my way with the guys behind me, and walked up the stairs across from the Mane Six, with an absent Twilight, and next to Princess Celestia. She smiled and nodded to me, and I turned to face the main entrance. Music started playing, and everypony got silent and watched the main doors open. Rainbow Dash started walking down the aisle along with Twilight.

Rainbow's dress was stunning. Probably made by Rarity. The bulk of the dress looked as if it were an extention of her mane, matching each individual color and section of her mane to do so. Her veil was the color of a cloud, not completely white, but mostly there. She was smiling the entire way down. She continued walking down the aisle with Twilight until they reached the stairs. They nodded to each other, and Rainbow joined me next to Princess Celestia.

Rainbow and I turned to Princess Celestia, and she began. “Mares and gentlecolts, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Rainbow Dash and Shadow Flash. Before I continue further, does anypony have an objection?”

So help me God...gah! Motherfucker!

I groaned and rubbed the side of my head, trying to soothe the pain of a wrench thrown by Thunder. I then promptly caught a dagger thrown by Nesral and threw it back at him, purposely hitting him in the face with the hilt, and sending him into sweet unconsciousness.

Princess Celestia coughed. “Well...now that we have those 'objections' out of the way, I'll continue.”

Over to Sorrow Curse.

Sorrow Curse rose from his throne literally made of the skulls of other ponies, and walked down to a door. He entered, and trotted along the hallway in front of him. Torches lined the path, and lit with an unnatural blue flame as he passed them.

'It's time.' Sorrow thought as he continued down the hallway.

He finally came to the end of the hallway, where a large door loomed. He chanted a pass-phrase, and the door opened. He walked in, and walked over to the large stone meeting table in the middle of the otherwise bare room. He took his seat at the head of the table, and looked at the three hooded figures also at the table.

“I know you three have been waiting patiently for this day to come. Your patience has paid off, and you three can now destroy this society. I realize we don't have the same end goals in mind, and two of you three have your own personal reasons for doing what you're doing, but your assistance will ensure my support for your future endeavors. We depart immediately, but before we do, one more thing; Shadow Flash is mine. You can kill to your heart's content, but leave that one for me.”

A smile was seen behind each of the hoods, and all four of them then vanished in black flames that erupted from them.

To Shadow.

“...I'll continue.” Princess Celestia said.

Jesus Christ, that wrench hurts like a bitch.

“Their commitment is clear, and their love, undeniable. Would the two care to state their vows?”

I nodded to Rainbow, and she began to speak. “Shadow, I-”

“Princess...Celestia! The...city is under....attack!” A bloody guardpony said as he barged in, interrupting Rainbow, and the wedding entirely for that matter.

“Fuck me...” I muttered under my breath.

Everypony gasped, and Princess Celestia rushed to the guard. “Who is attacking us?!”

“The....robed figures....”

A lot of ponies started panicking when the guard expired.

“Everypony remain calm! Guards, form a defensive line at the door! Protect everypony in here!” Celestia yelled.

Luna rushed up to me. “They're here, you know what you must do.”

I nodded. “Yes Princess.”

I looked at Soarin and Ni. “Where's Spitfire, Blaze, and Hornet?!”

“They left as soon as the guard barged in. They'll be fine, but we need to get out there as well.” Soarin replied.

I nodded. “Let's go!”

Soarin and Ni nodded, and flew around back for an exit.

Rainbow ran up to me. “Wait, Shadow!”

“I need to go Rainbow, for you, Solemn, and everypony here.”

She looked at the ground. “I know...that's why I want to come with you!”

“Come again?”

“You heard me! I won't let you go out there alone!”

“Rainbow, you know I can't let you go out there. Stay here with the princesses, they'll keep you safe.”

She shook her head. “I can't just stay here and do nothing!”

“Please Rainbow. For me, stay here. Solemn needs you here with her.”

She started to tear up. “But-”

I silenced her with a kiss. While her eyes were closed, I set her hooves down that were locked around me, and slipped away.

I flew towards the exit that Soarin and Ni took, watching for anything that might attack me.

“I'm sorry Rainbow...” I thought aloud.

Alright guys, the rest of this chapter will now be typed in 3rd pony/person perspective, so don't explode.

Over to Ni and Soarin.

Ni and Soarin rushed through an exit in the back, and were shocked at what they saw; buildings on fire, ponies lying dead in the streets, some with heads, others without, and skeletons rising from the ground.

Ni and Soarin quickly snapped out of their trance, and rushed to help a group of children being protected by a lone guard against two skeletons.

“Get back kids!” The guard yelled as he sweated, knowing he'd probably die in the next few seconds.

The skeletons rushed the guard, who managed to avoid the first skeleton's attack, but was stabbed in his side by the other, making the guard grunt in pain.

He raised his sword. “You will not harm these children!” The guard yelled as he deflected another strike by one of the skeletons, and then decapitated the other. The remaining skeleton shoved its dagger into the guard's leg, making him lose balance and fall.

Just as the skeleton readied the final blow, it was interrupted by a literal bone-crushing blow from Soarin's hoof.

The children screamed, and the guard looked up, curious as to why he wasn't dead yet. What he saw was a pegasus in some kind of metal helmet, unable to see the pony's face.

“I don't know who you are, but you have my thanks for saving these kids.”

“You and these kids get inside the castle, it's safe in there.”

He nodded, and tried to rise, but quickly fell over, cursing his wounds. Soarin removed some bandages, and patched up the guard so he would stop bleeding.

“There's not much more I can do for you, other than repeat what I just said.”

The guard nodded. “I'll crawl back there if I have to if it means getting these kids to safety.”

“Good luck.” Soarin said before flying off.

Ni was watching from a distance, but quickly caught up to Soarin. “What now?” Ni asked.

Just then, a large blue explosion was seen behind several buildings.

“That answer your question?” Soarin replied.

“I guess it does.” The black armored Ni replied.

The two turned and flew towards the spot of the explosion, reluctantly ignoring the hundreds of skeletons on the streets. Once they reached their destination, the first thing they noticed was a one hundred foot wide, twenty foot deep crater. The second thing they noticed were the scattered blue flames in and around the crater. The last thing they took notice of was the lone robed figure in the middle. The two nodded to each other and flew down to confront the pony.

The figure looked up at the two. “Are they here to play with us too?” The figure said in a small colt's voice.

“They look like they will have fun with our game, unlike all those other ponies.” A second voice behind the robe said, also belonging to a small colt.

Ni and Soarin looked at each other, then back at the figure. “Uhh, hello?” Ni asked.

A large smile was seen behind the hood. “Yes! These two will play with us!” Two voices said in unison from behind the robe.

“I'm not sure about this Soarin, it sounds like there's two kids behind that robe.” Ni said.

“Those are Necromancer robes Ni, don't let your guard down.” Soarin replied.

“Then what do we do?”

“It's their game for now, lets see what they have in store for us.”

“Yaayy! You're gonna play with us! This game is simple, but for some reason none of the other ponies liked it. All you have to do for this round is not get caught on fire!”

“Wait, wha-”

“Ready! Set! Go!” The voices yelled before a large blue flame erupted from the hood of the figure. The flame picked up rock, dirt, and everything in its way as it expanded.

Ni cracked his neck before standing in front of Soarin. “Do you mind?” Ni asked.

“Not at all.” He replied.

As the flame neared the two, Ni spread his two enormous wings, and brought them down in a powerful motion. This created a massive shockwave, making the flames disappear, along with the ground beneath Ni's wings, creating a pony sized crater beneath him.

“Oooohhh, these ponies got past round one! You two are the first since Mister Sorrow Curse!” The voices from behind the robe said.

“Whatever. What's next?” Ni said.

The robed figure was suddenly less than six inches from Ni. “TAG!!!” The figure yelled as it punched Ni, sending him flying a good thirty feet, making him bounce along the way.

“You're it!” The figure finished.

“Ni!” Soarin yelled.

Ni rose up, slightly bleeding. “I'm alright.”

Soarin breathed a sigh of relief. “Good.”

“It'll take more than that to bring me down. Now as I recall, I'm it?”

Soarin grabbed Ni's 'shoulder' with his hoof. “You're really going to charge him?”

Ni grinned. “The game is tag isn't it?” He said before flying after the figure.

“Here he comes! Let's go!” The figure said before running away at a breakneck speed, but still staying inside the crater.

Ni quickly followed, almost catching up to the pony.

The pony turned its head. “Oh no! He's almost here! Lose him!”

Another blue flame erupted from the figure, and Ni readied himself. Instead of being hit however, the figure had teleported on the other side of the crater.

“Wow, you almost got us that time!” The figure yelled across the crater.

Ni grinned. “On the contrary, I did get you.”

“Huh? You're over there! Wait, where did the other pony go?”

“Right here!” Soarin's voice yelled from the ground.

Soarin erupted from the ground, giving the robed figure one hell of an uppercut, and sending it flying back. The attack had also knocked the robe off of it. The robe slowly descended onto the ground, while the silhouette of a pony hit the ground with a thud, kicking up dust to obscure him.

“Think you got him?” Ni asked.

“I'm not sure, I'm going to go che-”

“You two are clever, aren't you?” One of the colt's voices said from behind the dust.

“So that's a no...” Ni said.

“We can't punish you for breaking the rules, because the one with the helmet grabbed your shoulder, making him it. We see now...”

Suddenly, two pairs of red eyes were seen behind the dust. “Well then, on to round three! All you have to do is-”

The pair of eyes disappeared, then instantly reappeared in front of Soarin. Time slowed down for Soarin, and he had only a split second to observe his enemy. It had the basic shape of a pony, but that was where its 'normalness' ended. The creature was about Soarin's size, a tail that looked like it was made of what appeared to be several hundred string-like bones. Its body had no fur or hair at all. Its skin was warped beyond any measure. Twisted and mangled flesh dominated it. That wasn't the worst part though. The worst part was the two faces it had. Once face was on the left, the other on the right. These faces each had their own horn, too.

Time sped back up, and the creature continued. “LIVE!” It yelled before its two horns glowed.

Soarin was enveloped in a blue flame, making him disappear from sight.

“Soarin!” Ni yelled.

The creature turned. “Too bad, it looks like that one lost. We heard you two calling each other by name. You're Ni, right? Well, we don't really go by our individual names anymore, but Mister Sorrow Curse usually calls us Subject Zero. We aren't really sure what it means, but it sounds funny, and we like it!”

“Subject Zero? As in a test subject?”

“No way! We hate tests! We like games!”

“So Sorrow Curse even stoops so low as to experiment on children...” Ni thought aloud.

“Well it looks like your friend wasn't good enough for this round. We hope you are though!”

Ni looked at the pillar of blue flames, and then back at Subject Zero.

'I take it he's taking a moment to think. Alright Soarin, I'll hold these kids off while you come up with a plan.' Ni thought.

“Anyway, it's your turn now! Here we come!” Subject Zero said before charging at Ni.

Ni ducked to avoid a blow from Subject Zero, but was kneed in the jaw as he did so. He quickly recovered, however, and gave Subject Zero a solid punch to the ribs. This caused Subject Zero (Alright, I'm just gonna call him Sub Zero now for 2 reasons. Reason 1 is because typing Subject Zero every two seconds is getting old. 2Nd is because c'mon. Sub Zero. And to be honest, I didn't realize whose name I spelled until five minutes after I'd done it, but I'm sticking with it anyway.) to  recoil, giving Ni enough time to deliver a follow-up punch to the face. Sub Zero's faces screamed and its horns began to glow. This time, instead of blue flame erupting from Sub Zero's horn, it started to erupt from the ground.

Ni quickly jumped into the air to avoid the flames, and gave a quick glance at the pillar of flames that had caught Soarin. 'C'mon Soarin, hurry it up.' Ni thought.

That glance cost him though, because it gave Sub Zero an opening. Sub Zero jumped ten feet into the air, coming face-to-face with Ni, and grabbed him. He then threw Ni into the ground (and flames)full force before landing on the ground himself.

Sub Zero peeked into the dust cloud that had been created, curious if the job had been done. “Hey, are you already done? Because that wouldn't be very fun if you are.”

“I'm far from it!” Ni's voice called out from the dust cloud.

Sub Zero's faces smiled. “Yay! We knew you couldn't be finished so soon! Let's play some more!”

Ni popped his neck. “Sure, why not?” He said before once more charging at Sub Zero.

Just as Sub Zero started to jump back from one of Ni's punches, Ni revealed a dagger he was hiding, and stuck it right inside of Sub Zero's neck. Sub Zero's eyes shot open, and Ni delivered a devastating kick, sending him flying a good thirty feet away.

Sub Zero got up, and pulled the dagger free. He made no movement at all, and just stood there.

'Something isn't right. That thing doesn't even look like it's paying attention anymore. As soon as I put that dagger in his neck, it completely spaced out. It's like it's acting subconsciously now. Or maybe something else is happening...' Ni thought.

Sub Zero put a hoof to the hole in its neck, getting a lot of blood on it.

“What is this stuff? Wait....” Sub Zero started to say before its pupils shrank.

“Ahhhh!!!!! IT'S OUR BLOOD!!!” Sub Zero's faces screamed. It started thrashing around in panic.

Just as sudden as their screaming started however, it stopped. Sub Zero stood there, completely motionless. Then, without warning, Sub Zero's faces let out a deafening wail. Their horns started to glow, and the neck wound was covered in blue flame, searing it closed. The wails didn't stop, however, and a blue flame the size of the point of a pen appeared between their faces. Half a second later, the flame was half the size of the crater. Ni reacted quickly, and darted into the air, only to meet Sub Zero hovering with wings made of blue flame. Sub Zero shot at Ni with incredible speed.

'Damn! He's too fast! It's like that thing is now going on pure animal instinct!' Ni thought before receiving a barrage of punches and kicks from Sub Zero.

It was impossible for Ni to block. The blows were coming at him too fast, making it impossible to keep up with Sub Zero's movements. Suddenly the punches stopped, only to be replaced by a direct flame blast.

Ni was hurled into the ground, putting another small crater in the larger crater. Ni wasn't allowed any time to recover, however, and as soon as he hit the ground, Sub Zero was already on top of him, and delivered another barrage of attacks.

'What the hell is Soarin doing?! I can't hold out for much longer...'

Sub Zero then delivered a powerful blow to Ni's chest, breaking at least three ribs, and making him cough up large amounts of blood.

'Is this it? Is this where I die?.....NO! I can't die here! I've got too many ponies depending on me! I refuse to die at the hands of a monster! I won't leave my friends, or Derpy so easily!'

Sub Zero struck at Ni once more, making sure it would be the final blow. Just before it connected, however, it was caught by Ni's hoof. Sub Zero struck again, but with the same result. Sub Zero then delivered a barrage of punches, only to have each one deflected. Ni then spread his wings and swung them at Sub Zero with massive force, sending it flying back.

Ni rose out of the crater, and Sub Zero noticed something different about Ni. His black armor was emitting a black aura much like the color of his armor around him. Sub Zero didn't know what it meant, though. One reason being it had never seen it before, and the other because it was now being controlled by animal instinct alone.

“You must be wondering why my armor is emitting an aura. You see, each member of the Fugiens Mones has their own special armor with a unique ability. Soarin has his raw power, Shadow has his blinding speed, Blaze has her fire control, and I...”

Sub Zero whirled around to come face to face with Ni. “can duplicate myself!” He yelled before delivering a solid punch to one of Sub Zero's faces, knocking the figure back.

Sub Zero quickly recovered, only to receive an uppercut by another Ni, sending it into the air where ten more Ni's were waiting. They each delivered a barrage of blows. They number of hooves combined with the speed behind them made it impossible to count just how many hits Sub Zero was receiving. They then swung down at the same time, and sent Sub Zero sailing towards the ground back-first. Just before Sub Zero hit the ground, however, another Ni appeared below Sub Zero, and punched upward, catching Sub Zero, and also snapping its spine in half.

Blood flew out of Sub Zero's mouths, and the creature hit the ground with a thud.

The real Ni started trotting over to where Sub Zero was now at. The clones started disappearing one at a time until only the real thing remained, looking down at the creature. Ni noticed the crazy look in the two faces was gone now.

“Did we....lose the game, brother?” One face said.

“Yeah....I think we did.”

The faces looked up at Ni. “We aren't sore losers, we know when we lose.” The face on Ni's left said.

“That's right. We had fun though, didn't we?” The other face said.

“We sure did. I don't think we've had that much fun since...ever, actually.”

“I'm sorry I had to do this.” Ni said.

“Why are you sorry?”

“Yeah, you were following the rules.”

“Why would you kill ponies and claim it was for a game?” 

“Mister Sorrow Curse said they were all playing, and that the ponies we killed weren't actually dead. He said that they were just playing dead because that's what you do when we get you, and that they get up when we leave. When we questioned him, he cast some kind of spell on us. It hurt a lot.”

“That's right, but I guess we were tricked, huh brother?”

“It looks like it. We know you won't believe us, but we never actually meant to hurt anypony. We're sorry.”

“It's...fine.” Ni replied.

“The game still isn't over yet. You still haven't killed us.”

“But....there's no way I could do that!”

“You may as well. We can't feel most of our body now that our spine is broken. And we doubt that we can have normal lives being as we are.”

“Brother is right. I don't want to go on if I can't play anymore. Please?”

“....Alright.”

The faces smiled. “Thank you, Mister Ni. For playing with us, and for helping us go see Mom again. It has been a long time, but we just want to be with her now.”

Ni shakily brought a dagger out, and looked at the two, hoping they'd change their minds. They nodded, however, and Ni stuck his dagger in their heart. They gasped, and then let the last breath they had out.

When the life faded from their eyes, the blue flames around the crater went out.

“I'm sorry, you two.”

Ni sat next to Subject Zero for a moment later before realizing he forgot something. “Soarin!”

Ni rushed out of the small crater he was in, and rushed over to Soarin, who was laying on the ground, unmoving.

“Soarin! Get up Soarin!”

No response came.

Ni fell to the ground. “I thought you were biding your time, thinking of a plan. I had no idea....SOOARRRIN!!!!” Ni screamed into the sky.

“...Zzz”

Ni's ears twitched, and he looked at Soarin.

“ZZzzZzz...”

“What the...”

“ZZzZZzZzZZz”

Ni's eye twitched, and he punted Soarin across the crater. “YOUR ASS WAS SLEEPING?!?!?!”

“Ahhhhh!!!” Soarin screamed before slamming into the side of the crater opposite of Ni.

Ni sighed and flew over to the impact area.

Soarin dug his head out of the ground and glared at Ni. “What the hell, Ni?!”

“What do you mean, 'what the hell'?! I almost died and your ass was asleep!”

“Relax, I knew you'd be okay! Besides, I hardly got any sleep last night!”

“So you manage to go to sleep in some freaky blue flames while I fight a monster?!”

Soarin shrugged. “I saw it as my best opportunity to get some shut-eye.”

“.....Five.”

“Huh?”

“Four.”

“What are you-”

“Three.”

“Are you-”

“Two.”

Soarin's eyes shot open. “Oh shit!” He yelled before flying off.

“One! Get your ass back here Soarin!” Ni yelled as he chased him.

Over to Blaze.

As soon as the guard pony barged in, Blaze, Spitfire, Hornet, and his squad were on the move.
They rushed out of the building, and instantly came up against dozens of skeletons.

“Clear these skeletons out! We need to make sure that none of them get inside!” Spitfire yelled.

The group nodded in response, and began to fight the skeletons. Spitfire took on about twenty by herself, Hornet took on around fifteen, Blaze battled a dozen, and Hornet's squad took on the other thirty.

Blaze rushed over to the dozen skeletons that were rushing to the castle's doors, and grabbed two of the skeletons' heads. She then slammed them together, completely smashing them into dust. The other ten reacted quickly, and soon had her surrounded. They all growled at her, waiting for her to make a move. Instead, Blaze calmly awaited their move. Three of the skeletons got impatient, and rushed her.

The first one that reached Blaze swung at her with its strange curved sword. Blaze responded by ducking the attack, and after it passed her, it continued right into the skeleton next to her, decapitating it. The third skeleton went in to grab her, but Blaze jumped into the air, making the skeleton miss. She then came down with an elbow(knee, whatever.) and crushed the skeleton's skull. The last one that remained brought its sword down in a vertical motion, only to have it caught by Blaze with her left forehoof. She took advantage of the moment and closed the distance between her and the skeleton, and snapped its neck.

The remaining seven realized what happened, and then swarmed her. She flapped her wings in a powerful motion, and shot up ten feet into the air. She then unsheathed a scimitar that she had.

'Time to see if all of that training with this thing against Spitfire paid off.' Blaze thought.

Blaze then flew at the crowd of skeletons below her. They raised their swords for her attack, but with one horizontal motion with her scimitar, she cut every one of their rusty weapons in half, rendering them useless. Blaze wasn't finished, however, and flew back to the skeletons. The first skeleton she came across, she decapitated. The second attempted to swing at her with a hoof, but she barreled away and gave it a powerful kick to its back, snapping it in half. The last five weren't about to give her the chance to attack again, so they jumped into the air around her and prepared to strike.

Blaze smirked at their stupidity, and did a barrel roll (stfu Slippy, this wasn't for you) with her scimitar extended out. After she passed by the skeletons, she landed and sheathed her blade, and started to trot back to the others, ignoring the several pieces of skeleton falling around her. It appeared that the others were also done with their fights.

“Alright, good job everypony, we've secured the castle courtyard. We need to move out and deal with the rest of these things. Hornet, your squad is with me. Blaze, you think you can handle yourself?” Spitfire said.

Blaze nodded. “Of course. I'll be a bit lonely, but not much thanks to my new companion.” She responded, gesturing towards her scimitar.

Spitire chuckled. “Right, how could I forget? I did introduce you two, after all.”

“That's right. After I felt so useless that time you saved me from that demon, I wanted to learn how to use a weapon. Thanks for teaching me.”

Spitfire waved a hoof. “Just looking after family. Now, we need to get a move on. Good luck, kid.” She said before flying off.

'Well, I guess I should be off too. Let's see if I can't save anypony.' Blaze thought before flying off in a separate direction.

Blaze scanned over the area below her. Several buildings were on fire, and skeletons littered the streets. Corpses were everywhere, and she couldn't seem to find anypony that was alive. Just then, a large blue explosion caught her eye. She stopped, and looked in the distance in the direction towards the explosion. She could make out two figures flying in the direction of it.

Blaze smiled. 'Those two can handle that I guess. I'll continue looking for survivors. Good luck Ni and Soarin.'

Blaze continued onward, continuing to scan for survivors. She suddenly heard something to her left, and froze just in time to let the arrow fly less than two inches from her face. She then quickly flew in the direction the arrow came from; the city's park.

When she landed next to a large oak tree, she scanned for the shooter.

“You dodged my arrow, just like I predicted you would.” A stallion's voice said.

Blaze jumped back just in time to avoid another arrow.

“And you avoided that one as well, as I predicted.”

“Where are you?!” Blaze demanded.

“Can you really not tell where I'm at by now? Sigh* Alright, I'm coming down.” The voice said.

Just then a rustle came from the tree above her, and a robed figure jumped down. The figure landed ten feet away from blaze, levitating a strange looking crossbow.

“Those robes....you're a necromancer, aren't you?”

“Nah, nothing so dramatic. Yeah, I've got the robes, but only 'cause that Sorrow Curse guy wants me to look the part while I'm here.”

“If you're not a necromancer, why align yourself with Sorrow Curse?”

The figure shrugged. “There are four of us. Sorrow Curse, Subject Zero, Whatshisface, I forget his name, and myself.”

“Right...and what's your name then?”

The figure raised a hoof, making Blaze raise her guard.

“Relax, I'm only taking my robes off. They aren't my style anyway.”

The figure grabbed his robe, and began to pull it off.

'What's this freak gonna look like, I wonder? Most of these guys have some weird appearance behind their robes.' Blaze thought.

Her eyes widened at what she saw. “But...there's-”

“No, there's nothing wrong with me, jeez. Why you ponies always assume there's a hideous monster behind these robes, I'll never know.”

He was right, he looked like a regular stallion. His coat was black, while his mane and tail were a deep purple. His mane was styled in a ponytail, which went around his head, and hung slightly lower than the left side of his face. His cutie mark was a magnifying glass.

“...”

“Oh come on, is it really that shocking?”

Blaze shook her head. “Yeah, it kinda is.”

He rubbed his forehead. “Even though I knew you'd say that, it's still annoying.”

“Alright, what's with you saying that you knew I'd do something?”

“Because I do know what you're going to do. My special power is the ability to see into a pony's future. A pleasure to meet you, and to answer your earlier question, my name is Providence.” He said before giving a slight bow.

“You don't seem anything like the necromancers. Why join up with them?”

“As I said earlier, there are four of us. I guess you could call Sorrow Curse our 'leader', but I use the term loosely. All he really did was bring us together. All of us except Subject Zero have our own personal goals. We saw that it was best to unite, and work together to help each other out.”

“Then....what are your goals?”

“I'll tell you what. You beat me, and I'll tell you.”

“You want to fight me?”

“It's nothing personal, and to be honest, there's nothing I hate more than having to fight a girl. Then again, there's nothing more interesting than it. But orders are orders whether I like them or not, and you look the type that can interfere. Sorry, but I can't let you live.”

Blaze unsheathed her weapon. “I'm guessing there's no peaceful solution to this?”

“Afraid not.” He said before aiming his crossbow at her.

An eerie silence took hold, but was soon shattered by the sound of the crossbow going off.

'He isn't telling me everything-whoa!' Blaze thought.

Whoosh*

Blaze raised her scimitar and deflected the bolt. “You're gonna have to do better than tha-”

Whoosh*

Blaze raised her scimitar just in time to deflect the second bolt. “What kind of crossbow is that? It just fired a second bolt without you having to reload!”

Providence smirked. “This here is my own creation. It has three hidden chambers in it, allowing me to fire three bolts before having to reload.”

“But you only fired-”

Whoosh*

Blaze deflected the bolt. “Alright, I believe you now.”

Providence then levitated out a cluster of three bolts, opened the top on his crossbow, placed the bolts in, and slammed the lid closed in less than three seconds before once more taking aim at Blaze.

Blaze jumped into the air as Providence fired more bolts at her. 

'Damn, he's accurate. It's difficult to avoid these things. I need to come up with a plan, and fast.' Blaze thought.

Meanwhile, Providence continued firing his crossbow with an almost bored expression. “You can't keep this up forever, ya know.” He said.

'He's right. At this rate he'll just end up hitting me. I need to find a way to close the gap between us. But how-”

Blaze yelped as a bolt pierced her left wing, causing her to make a hard landing. Blaze clutched her bleeding wing.

Providence sighed. “Look, I honestly don't want to kill you. Promise to leave here, never come back, and I won't kill you.”

Blaze grinned. “It's gonna take a lot more than this to make me give up!”

“As you wish.” Providence said before aiming his crossbow.

'It takes him three seconds to reload that crossbow of his. He has already fired two bolts of the current cluster. When he fires that next one, I'll rush in. I'm not sure if I'll make it to him in time though, thanks to my current inability to fly.'

Whoosh*

'This is it!' Blaze thought before charging the bolt. She deflected it with her scimitar, and headed straight for Providence.

“I've got you now!” Blaze yelled as she swung her scimitar at Providence's neck.

“Is that what you really think?” Providence said before pulling out a bolt and using it to deflect Blaze's attack.

“Wha-”

“These bolts aren't made of ordinary material just so you know. They're made from a rare element, and individually enchanted to have a greater density.”

Providence then took a cluster of bolts and reloaded his crossbow using his horn, then aimed it right at Blaze's head.

She jumped back just as the crossbow fired, narrowly avoiding death.

Blaze panted. 'The way this keeps up, I'll be dead within the next five minutes. I guess I have no choice.' She thought before lowering her scimitar.

Providence raised an eyebrow. “Have you finally accepted your fate?”

Without a word, Blaze's Wonderbolt uniform started to glow. She then placed a hoof on her scimitar, and then slowly moved her hoof from the hilt to the tip. As she did so, her hoof left fire in the place of metal.

Whoosh*

Blaze raised her scimitar that was coated in fire, and the bolt disintegrated.

“Hmm, I saw it happen before I fired my bolt, but I just wanted to test it for myself...” Providence said.

“Apparently those bolts don't do so well in temperatures that exceed ten thousand degrees fahrenheit.” Blaze commented.

“Well then, since you're not holding back anymore, I guess I shouldn't either.”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh come on, you should've known I was going all out against you. That's certainly an impressive power, but mine is better. I've only been toying with you the whole time, hoping you'd come to your senses and just leave. Obviously that isn't going to happen, so now I think I'll use my farsight ability to its fullest.”

Blaze rushed over to Providence, and swung her fire coated scimitar at him. He ducked, and shot an arrow at her. Blaze extended the flames on her scimitar to loop around and catch the bolt. He then jumped back, attempting to gain some distance.

“Oh no you don't!” Blaze yelled before extending the flames of her scimitar once more. Instead of attacking Providence, she dragged the fire on the ground around the two, carving it up and leaving fire in its place. When she was done, a giant circle of fire was created, trapping Providence.

Blaze once again tried to close the distance between her and Providence. She extended the flames of her scimitar, and swung at him. As if knowing what she'd do, Providence avoided her attack, and fired another bolt; this one hitting her in the side.

Blaze gasped and jumped back. She looked at her wound. It was deep. A good portion of the bolt was stuck inside of her. 'I can't fight with this damn bolt in my side, and I can't pull it out without bleeding out. Ugh, this is gonna suck, but it needs to be done.'

She then grabbed the bolt, and yanked it out, making her scream in the process. She then grabbed a small amount of fire from her sword and placed it against her oozing wound, searing it shut. The pain was almost unbearable for her, but she managed to push through it.

Providence raised an eyebrow. “You're persistent, I'll give you that. You might as well just give up and let me finish you. I promise to make it painless. You're no match for me.”

'Looks like he's not in the sparing mood anymore. Not that it matters, because I wouldn't give up anyway. I need to think. If he can read a pony's future, I wonder if there's a limit on it. Or maybe...that might be it! I need to test my theory though. Well, here goes nothing.' Blaze thought. 

Blaze once more charged at Providence with her fire coated scimitar, but this time she was being more cautious, looking out for another counter-attack. Instead of thinking about her next attack, she let it come subconsciously, that is to say she attacked based on instinct rather than planning her moves out. She was surprised when she struck a glancing blow against Providence, inflicting a small cut on his right foreleg.

Providence's eyes widened and promptly jumped back.

Blaze smirked. “I think I figured you out finally.”

“Is that so?”

“That's right. I figured out you can't read the future at all, you can only read a pony's complicated thought pattern. Yes, that is still very helpful, but only if your opponent hasn't figured it out. You can't detect my basic instincts at all. That is another reason I'm the perfect opponent for you; I was trained in both thinking my attacks through, and attacking by letting my instincts flow.”

Without another word, Blaze jumped in the air, and extended the flames on her blade to go underneath her. She landed on the flames, and extended the blade further, shooting herself at Providence at an incredible, and deadly, speed. When she came within two feet of him, she jumped off of the flames, and began attacking based on her instinct alone. Providence managed to deflect a lot of the attacks, but every now and then, an attack would land. It wouldn't be a serious wound, but she was hitting him nonetheless.

'Damn! She's got me figured out! How was she able to figure me out so soon? What is she? No normal pony could possibly figure that out so soon while being under a barrage of arrows! This is the first pony to ever figure me out! I never thought I'd see the day!' Providence thought as he struggled to block Blaze's attacks.

He was steadily growing tired, and realized he wouldn't be able to keep up his defenses for much longer. He eventually missed a block, and Blaze gave him a solid fiery slash across his body and a jab in his side. The blow staggered him, and Blaze pressed her attack. She gave him deep gashes in each of his legs, making him fall to the ground.

Blaze stood over him. “This is it for you.”

“Heheh...”

“Wha-”

“Hahahahahaha!”

Blaze was confused by the sudden outburst of laughter by Providence. Was he going insane? Or did he have something else up his sleeve?

Providence slowly regained his composure, but couldn't help the smile on his face. “Yeah, ya got me. Ya really got me. I believe I said I'd tell you what my goal was if you beat me, didn't I?”

Blaze nodded.

“Heheh, alright. Lean in, and I'll tell you. These wounds you gave me were pretty fatal, so you might wanna hurry if you're so curious.”

Blaze cautiously leaned in for Providence's words. “The main goal I had was...”

Blaze's eyes went wide as Providence told her his ultimate goal. “That's insane! Why would you-”

Blaze frowned at the now dead pony in front of her. She sighed and picked him up. She carried him over to the tree that had somehow remained intact during their battle and leaned him against it before trotting off.

'All he wanted was to find a pony that could outsmart him. You idiot....there were better ways to go about it. Then again, maybe he wanted to be outsmarted in combat. In the end though, all he wanted was to find a pony smarter than him. I guess some ponies are too stubborn in their ways though. Goodbye Providence. At least you died with a smile on your face.'

Over to Shadow.

After leaving the building, Shadow continued flying towards town. Something caught his ear; the sound of clashing steel. He looked in the direction the noise came from and rushed over a block or so to find two guards attempting to hold their own against three skeletons. He wasted no time in rushing in to help. Before the skeletons even had time to react, one of them had already been decapitated by him. The other two skeletons turned around to face Shadow, only to end up letting their guard down, allowing the guards to vertically slice through their skulls.

The two guards looked at Shadow, and the one on his left spoke. “Hey, aren't you Shadow Flash?”

“Huh? Oh, it's you two.”

The former castle entrance guard nodded. “Yeah, it's us. We weren't really sure why you said to keep our eyes on the ground, but we had a feeling it was best to be on the safe side. After waiting around for a while, the ground started to tremble, and around five or six of those creepy skeletons rose out of the ground. Thanks to us being more prepared than most other guards, my partner and I managed to take down two of the skeletons before they completely emerged. The remaining skeletons drove us over here, where we managed to take down two more. The last three, however, were going to be too much, even for us. Lucky you showed up when you did. We owe you.”

Shadow smiled and shook his head. “You don't owe me anything. As soon as you catch your breath, you need to get inside the castle to help defend all of the civilians in there.”

The guard on his right nodded. “Good idea. We'll head there as soon as we're able.”

Shadow turned. “Alright. Good luck.”

“Wait!”

Shadow stopped and turned.

“Where are you going? While it's apparent you can handle yourself in a fight, I doubt you'll be able to take on all of those things by yourself!”

Shadow smirked. “That's why I've got a team.” He said before flying off, leaving the two guards to watch him as he disappeared from sight.

Shadow flew over the city, which was now largely destroyed. Without warning, a large blue explosion occurred near him, and he instinctively raised a hoof to shield his eyes.

“What the hell was that?!” Shadow yelled aloud.

He took a closer look and saw a robed figure standing in the middle of the crater. Before he got the chance to rush over to it, however, Ni and Soarin were already there.

Shadow knew that they could handle themselves, so he continued onward.

As he continued to scan the ruins of the city, he eventually came near the park. He halted in mid air when a gigantic ring of fire was formed in it.

'Damn, it looks like Blaze is at it too. I wonder how Hornet and Spitfire are doing...' Shadow thought.

“Help us!”

Shadow turned his attention from the park to a young earth pony mare and stallion. The stallion was the only thing standing in between who appeared to be his marefriend, and a couple of skeletons. Shadow then wasted no time in rushing to the ponies' aid. He activated the hidden blade on his left forehoof, and jabbed it into the back of the skeleton's skull on his left. The skeleton fell, and before his partner could react, Shadow was behind him as well. He grabbed its neck, and with a clean motion, snapped its neck, making it turn a full 180 degrees.

Shadow looked at the two ponies he had saved. The stallion had been stabbed in his left hindleg, and slashed across his back. The mare seemed relatively unharmed save for a scrape or two.

“Can you move?” Shadow asked the young green and white stallion.

“Ugh....yeah...damnit! It hurts, but I think I can move.”

“Good. Get to the castle as quick as you can, the path there should be clear.”

“You-you're sure it's clear?” The mare worriedly asked.

Shadow nodded. “I wouldn't tell you to go to the castle if I didn't think the way was safe. The guards and ponies are all rallying there, so it should be safe.”

The stallion nodded. “Alright, thanks.” He said before struggling over to his marefriend and onward to the castle.

Shadow ascended into the air and looked for anyone else he might be able to help. He soon came across what appeared to be a town square. Four large streets met at it, and it had a large fountain in the middle. In between the roads that connected in the center was several shops and cafes, now mostly rubble. He landed next to the fountain and looked around.

“Well well, I finally found you Shadow Flash.” A voice above said.

“That voice....” Shadow looked up to see the smiling, and levitating, Sorrow Curse.

Every logical thought that Shadow had instantly evaporated, and rushed Sorrow Curse with absolute blinding speed and swung the hidden blade on his left forehoof at him, only to have his hoof caught.

“Tsk tsk Shadow. You're much better than this. Well, I'd hope so anyway. After all, aren't you supposed to avenge that pretty little civilian I had converted into an abomination back at the fort?”

“SHUT UP!” Shadow screamed as he struck out with the hidden blade on his right forehoof, only to have it caught as well. 

“You're gonna have to do better than that, Shadow.”

Shadow continued to struggle in an effort to free himself, when it finally dawned on him; he has the hardest head in the world. Shadow reared his head back and slammed it full force against Sorrow's, making him recoil in pain and loosen up his grip on Shadow. Shadow took advantage of Sorrow's temporary predicament and delivered a solid jab to the gut. Sorrow's eyes widened as the blow forced blood out of his mouth. Shadow then did a flip and brought his rear legs down on Sorrow's head, launching him into the ground. Dust and pavement shot up due to the crater created by Sorrow's body.

'Did I get him?' Shadow thought.

The dust cleared within seconds to answer Shadow's question.

“Not bad. Not bad at all.” Sorrow said as he dusted himself off.

The previous blow had knocked Sorrow's robe off, giving Shadow a clear view of Sorrow Curse. His coat was a dark shade of green, while his mane and tail were an average shade of red. The things that really caught Shadow's eye were his features though. His eyes were bloodshot red for one. His cutie mark was that of a pony walking on its hind legs while the forelegs were outstretched, giving the impression of a zombie. The most notable things though, were the various places on his body that were missing skin, muscle, or blood vessels. All you could see on those patches was bone.

“What the...” Shadow started to say.

“Startled by my appearance?” The green and red unicorn asked.

“I'd say that's an understatement...”

“Nothing much to say, really. A spell backfired, and did this to me. While it did make my appearance rather....different, it did make me immortal.”

“Well that explains one thing at least...”

“Indeed. Now, where were we?” Sorrow said before swiftly levitating up to meet Shadow.

Shadow rushed Sorrow, and the two barraged each other with kicks and punches faster than the untrained eye could keep up with. Sorrow managed to land a punch on Shadow's neck, making him gasp for air. Sorrow wasted no time in taking Shadow's right foreleg, and snapping it like a twig.

Shadow cried out in pain, taking his leg back from Sorrow. Sorrow then went for a punch, but had it blocked by Shadow's gauntlet. Shadow then roundhoused in the air, giving Sorrow a deep cut along his face thanks to the hidden blade Shadow had.

Sorrow jumped back to hold get a moment of reprieve.

“It won't be long now until you're dead.” Shadow said as he held his broken foreleg.

“And why is that?”

“These blades are all coated with a special poison. You'll be dead in minutes. I've won.”

“....heheh...”

“Wha-”

“HAHAHAHA!! You honestly think you can kill me with poison? No, however, keep talking like that, and you might make me die from laughter!”

“But how will the poison not kill you?!”

“If you haven't noticed, most of my body is already dead, so there isn't much for your poison to kill. No Shadow Flash, you are the one who is about to die. With that broken foreleg, you won't last much longer.”

'Damn, he's right. I won't be near as effective now that my right foreleg is broken. I'm not sure how to activate my armor's power either. I'm just going to have to figure out a way to beat him...' Shadow thought.

“Trying to come up with a plan, are we?” Sorrow asked in a mocking tone.

Shadow readied himself. “I don't need a plan to defeat the likes of you!” He yelled before charging at Sorrow.

“Oh Shadow Flash, you couldn't be more wrong.” Sorrow said before readying himself for Shadow's attack.

As Shadow approached Sorrow, Sorrow raised his forelegs in anticipation of a punch. Instead of punching him, however, Shadow wrapped his legs around Sorrow, even though it was especially painful for his right foreleg.

“What are you doing?!” Sorrow yelled, attempting to break free from Shadow's grasp.

Shadow silenced Sorrow with a massive headbutt. He then flipped the both of them upside down, and flapped his wings furiously. Sorrow tried in vain to break free of Shadow's grasp as the ground approached them at over one hundred miles per hour. 

“TAKE THIS!!!” Shadow yelled before Sorrow's head was pile-drived into the ground, making Sorrow's body go limp.

Shadow finally released Sorrow's body, and let himself fall to the ground next to Sorrow's limp body.

Shadow panted for breath. “It's...it's over....I did it.”

“Did what, exactly?” Sorrow's muffled voice said from the ground.

Shadow's eyes widened. “No...there's no way! Your skull should be in pieces!”

Sorrow freed his head from the ground. “Oh, it most certainly was. Being immortal does have its perks, however.”

Sorrow slowly approached Shadow, who was still lying on the ground. “Make your peace, Shadow Flash. This next blow will be the last.”

'Shit! He's almost here! C'mon you friggin' armor, work! Work, damnit!' Shadow frantically thought.

Sorrow reached Shadow, and his horn started to glow red. The spell discharged, and completely enveloped Shadow. When the beam evaporated, nothing was left.

“It is done. Now to finish off the rest of them.” Sorrow said before turning around.

“What's done, exactly?” Shadow's voice said in a mocking tone.

“Wha-” Sorrow was cut off by a right hook from Shadow. Sorrow flew across the ground, bouncing as if he were a rock skipping over a pond. He was finally caught by the fountain in the middle of the square.

When Sorrow emerged from the fountain, he noticed a couple of things about Shadow. The first was that Shadow had regained the use of his right foreleg. The second was the ebony and crimson aura around him.

'So this must be his armor's power activating.' Sorrow thought.

An instant later, Shadow was right in front of Sorrow.

'He's fast!' Sorrow thought before receiving a barrage of punches and kicks that was impossible for him to keep up with.

With every punch, Shadow broke another bone in Sorrow's body. If the bone that was struck was already broken, it just broke into smaller pieces. If one of those pieces was struck again, it would simply turn into dust. Sorrow Curse was absolutely helpless against Shadow's superior speed and strength.

Shadow decided to get one more blow in. He grabbed Sorrow's head, snapped it around one hundred and eighty degrees, then threw him by the head with all of the strength he could muster into the ground. The crater that was formed was easily twenty feet deep.

'He'll be back up again soon.' Shadow thought.

As if on queue, a blinding beam of red erupted out of the crater. Once the beam was gone a few seconds later, a skeleton with a green mane and tail, and a torn robe, rose out of the crater.

“Wha....where's Sorrow?!” Shadow demanded of the levitating skeleton in front of him.

“You mean you don't recognize me? I'm hurt, Shadow Flash.” A familiar voice said.

“SORROW CURSE?!”

“Of course. I didn't see anypony else in that hole, did you?”

“What happened?!” Shadow demanded.

“You pushed me to my limit. Congratulations on that. However, you won't get any further.”

“We'll see about that.”

Sorrow's horn glowed, and a strange black aura enveloped each of Sorrow's hooves. “Have at me then.”

Shadow zoomed over to Sorrow in fractions of a second, and went in for a jab with his right foreleg, only to have it caught by Sorrow.

“Last time I broke your leg. This time I shall eliminate it entirely.”

Shadow's eyes widened as the aura that surrounded Sorrow's hooves began to creep up Shadow's right foreleg. As the aura continued up, it left nothing behind it.

Shadow quickly jumped back and watched in horror as his right foreleg continued to completely disintegrate.

'It won't stop! At this rate, there will be nothing left of me!'

Then, without hesitation, Shadow used the hidden blade on his left foreleg and cut off his right foreleg just before the aura reached his body. The rest of the right leg fell, and soon disappeared from sight as the aura finished eating it. Shadow then tore the hood off of his armor, and used it as a makeshift bandage for his wound.

“Not bad Shadow Flash. You realized what was happening and wasted no time in removing your leg. However, it won't do you any good in the long run.”

“What the hell was that anyway?! What the fuck did you do to my leg?!” Shadow demanded.

“Ah yes. This aura around my hooves is due to a spell I cast from down in that crater you helped create. Anything these hooves touch, if I so will it, will disintegrate entirely. I can control it, yes, but the spell itself does have a price. For instance, look at my body. If a normal pony tried to cast the spell, they would die. Not me, however. Thanks to being immortal, I can survive the disintegration of all of my skin, muscle, and organs. Another drawback about the spell, is that I only get two hits out of it. I don't mind telling you this, because even if I do end up taking only another leg from you, it'll still be all over”

“That's....terrible actually. You aren't even a pony, you're a monster...”

“I'm wounded by your words, Shadow Flash. In fact, I might just explode in anger at them!” Sorrow yelled before charging towards Shadow.

Shadow frantically dodged Sorrow's attacks, knowing that if even one blow connected, he was a goner.

'Shit! Even with my armor's power, I'm still having trouble in keeping up with him! And there's also the trouble of my missing leg! If I keep this up, I'll bleed out, even with my makeshift bandage!'

'Then let me take over. I can handle him.' Another voice in Shadow's mind said.

'No way! I'm not letting you take over my body, you psycho!' Shadow thought back at his mirrored self.

'You won't have a choice pretty soon. I'll be waiting for my opportunity. Good luck out there, tough guy.'

Shadow could tell that the other side of him was gone for now. However, it still didn't help. In fact, it made things worse. Now Shadow had to worry about Sorrow's attacks as well as his mirrored self's attempts to gain control.

The rapid attacks from Sorrow Curse continued, and slowly but surely, Shadow was getting tired. Shadow prepared to dodge another of Sorrow's punches, but was surprised by a headbutt from the skeleton.

The blow not only stunned Shadow, but it also probably fractured his skull as well.

Sorrow knew Shadow would be unable to dodge his next blow, so he delivered another headbutt, this time making Shadow go still. He stopped flapping his wings, and fell to the ground with a thud.

Sorrow descended to the ground right next to Shadow. Without a word, Sorrow raised his left foreleg in preparation for a finishing blow.

'I...can't move...that last headbutt did something to me...'

“Now die, Shadow Flash!” Sorrow yelled as he brought his hoof down.

Just before Sorrow's hoof connected, however, something hit it, redirecting the blow to the ground inches from Shadow's face.

'What the hell just hit Sorrow's hoof? Was that.....no way...'

Sorrow Curse turned to see what had prevented him from finishing off Shadow, and saw a dark blue earth pony with a crimson mane and tail. What struck Sorrow as odd though, was that he was carrying a sack of wrenches.

“As entertaining as it might be to watch somepony take my apprentice down a notch or two, I can't let you kill him. If you really want to make an impact, throw a wrench or two. That usually works when I want him to get something done, or I think it's funny.” The pony said.

“And who might you be to interrupt this battle?” Sorrow asked, more curious than angry.

“Name's Thunder Gunner. And the idiot you're beating up on is my former apprentice. I'd appreciate it if you stopped.”

“And if I refuse?”

“Well, then you'd have some angry ponies on your hooves.”

Sorrow laughed. “And what 'angry ponies' might you be talking about?”

Thunder pointed behind Sorrow. “Those ponies.”

Sorrow turned around to look at the several not so happy ponies. Some he recognized, others he did not. Of those he recognized were Ni, a few of Ni's men, Blaze, and Princess Luna. He did not recognize the purple unicorn, the large white unicorn with royal guard armor, or the rainbow maned pegasus.

Princess Luna stepped forward. “Former Head of Research Sorrow Curse, for crimes against Equestria's citizens, along with the murders of several others, we sentence you to death!”

Sorrow stared at her for a moment, then laughed. “Forgive me Princess, but the death penalty doesn't exactly apply to me any more!”

“In that case, we'll just destroy you outright!” The princess yelled before everypony charged at Sorrow Curse.

Twilight and Shining Armor charged their horns as they sprinted towards the skeleton, and unleashed a combined spell at him. Sorrow's horn glowed, and a red barrier formed in front of him. With a slight struggle, the barrier warded of the spell. Then, Twilight, Shining Armor, and Princess Luna charged a spell, and aimed it at Sorrow. Sorrow raised another barrier just before the spell struck him. For a few seconds, it looked as if the spell might break through. That hope was quickly shattered, as the barrier prevailed, and sent the powerful bolt of magic into the sky.

“My turn now!” Blaze yelled before unsheathing her scimitar and coating it with fire.

She closed in on Sorrow, and slashed at him several times, each of her attacks missing. Sorrow then decided he'd had enough of her, and gave her a powerful elbow to her skull, knocking her out. 

“Blaze!” Ni yelled before his armor started to glow.

Ni created around ten copies of himself to distract Sorrow while another clone got Blaze to safety.

'Why are they even trying? Don't they know it's pointless? He can't be killed. It's not possible...' Shadow thought as he watched his friends try in vain to defeat Sorrow Curse. He closed his eyes for a few minutes, due to a severe migraine.

After a few minutes, Shadow forced one of his eyes open to see the last of Ni's clones, as well as everypony else, get defeated.

As Ni fell, a rainbow blur rushed to Sorrow. For a while, Rainbow Dash actually managed to avoid getting elbowed by Sorrow. It didn't last, however, and she was soon thrown back.

After seconds of tumbling on the ground, Rainbow ended up next to Shadow.

“Shadow...are you still alive?” Rainbow struggled to say.

No answer came from Shadow.

“....Shadow? Please answer me...”

Sorrow Curse, now free of distraction, trotted passed all of the ponies he had defeated on the ground, and up to Shadow and Rainbow. “Now that we have that out of the way, I think it's time I finished you.”

“Not so fast, you foul demon! Shadow Flash is my prey!” Nesral yelled as he jumped out of nowhere and landed on Sorrow's back.

“Get off of me you idiot!” Sorrow yelled before levitating Nesral off of his back, and throwing him into a nearby building.

“Waaahhhh!!!” Nesral yelled as he flew towards the building before crashing against it.

“Shadow...everypony here is trying to help you. Now you have to help us...please. Shadow! Wake up!” Rainbow continued to yell as Sorrow once more started to trot over to the two.

/././

Shadow slowly looked around. It looked like he was still in Canterlot, but with nopony around. All of the buildings appeared intact as well.

Shadow sighed. 'So this is how it ends? I never thought it would happen this way. Heh, irony's funny like that I guess. So tired now...huh? I think I hear someone calling me. Leave me alone, I want to rest now. I think I've earned one...'

“So you're giving up now, is that it?” Shadow's mirrored self said as he appeared.

Shadow looked at him. “Oh, it's just you. I think I've earned a rest now, don't you?”

“Is that how you're gonna be? You make it this far only to give up? Man, I'm ashamed to be part of you.”

“And what the fuck do you know?! You haven't been the one fighting!”

“I know that I wouldn't give up when the going got tough you little bitch!”

“....Why are you so smart one second, then completely insane the next? Answer me that.”

“I'm not just one personality opposite from you. I'm many personalities that you don't show, wisdom and insanity being the two strongest. Both of which have a strong desire to be free.”

“.....Part of that first sentence was an insult, but I'll ignore that for now.”

“Look, I need you to live. If you die, I die. I don't want that happening. You've got a lot of ponies counting on you, and you don't want to let them down. How about we make a deal; you give me temporary control of your body, and I'll deal with Sorrow Curse. How does that sound?”

“And how do I know you won't try and keep control?”

“You don't have any more options. Either let me have temporary control, and have a chance to live, or don't, and get yourself, and everybody you love, killed. You might wanna decide fast, too, because Sorrow Curse is standing right above us.”

“.....”

“Well?! What's it gonna be?! You need to decide now!”

“Alright! Do it! Save my friends and family!”

Shadow's reflection grinned, and then disappeared from sight.

“I hope I made the right decision...” Shadow said to himself before having a seat.

/././

'Finally, no more interruptions. I can finally do what I came here to do.' Sorrow Curse thought as he stood above Shadow's body.

“No...leave him alone!” Rainbow, who was still next to Shadow, yelled.

“Oh don't worry young one. You'll be joining him soon enough.”

A tear rolled down Rainbow's face, and with all of her strength, she threw herself on top of Shadow to form a human (pony) shield for Shadow.

“If you don't move, you'll taste death sooner rather than later, now out of my way!” Sorrow commanded, his patience now worn out.

Rainbow shook her head defiantly. “No! As long as I can still move, I won't let you hurt him!”

Sorrow's horn glowed, and raised Rainbow off of Shadow up to Sorrow's eye level. Rainbow Dash looked dead in the face of the skeleton, defiance still in her eyes.

“As I said, you-” Sorrow was cut off by Rainbow spitting on his face.

“If that's how you're going to be, then I won't mind seeing you devoured alive by my spell! Now die like your precious Shadow Flash!”

Before he was able to strike Rainbow with his hoof, however, something that sounded like an explosion erupted right next to him. Sorrow turned his head to see that Shadow was gone. Sorrow quickly realized what happened.

“You may be alive Shadow, but your marefriend won't be for long! Lets see if you stay sane after seeing the one you love rot in front of you!” Sorrow yelled before swinging his hoof at Rainbow Dash.

Sorrow's hoof was caught by a crimson hoof. Sorrow, as well as Rainbow, turned their heads to look at the owner of the hoof.

Rainbow was stunned. The pony had a crimson coat, as well as crimson mane and tail, with a black outline on them. He wore an armor that both of them had only seen on one other pony. Another thing about the pony; he was missing his right foreleg.

“Sh-Shadow?” Rainbow managed to say.

Shadow ignored Rainbow, and kept his focus on Sorrow. Then, he suddenly gave an insane smile to Sorrow. “Sane you say? Sane....sane.....nope! Nobody sane over here!” He yelled before grabbing Sorrow's horn with his left foreleg, and ripping it off. Rainbow fell to the ground now that the magic was broken, but couldn't move due to the pure shock from what she was seeing.

Sorrow roared in pain, but soon stopped as his horn grew back. “You will pay for that, you worthless maggot!” Sorrow yelled before striking at Shadow with an aura coated hoof.

Shadow caught Sorrow's hoof without so much as a struggle.

Sorrow grinned. “Not exactly the smartest move you could have made. Now you will be disintegrated!”

After a few seconds of nothing happening, Shadow took Sorrow's leg that struck at him, and broke it completely in half.

Sorrow gave a small scream of pain before jumping back. “Why...why were you not eaten by my spell?!”

Shadow stared at Sorrow with a bored expression. “Because you're not the only one who has a strong aura.”

Sorrow took a closer look at the hoof that he had struck, and noticed something he thought impossibe; his spell getting beat back by another pony's aura. “But...that's not possible!” Sorrow yelled.

Shadow shrugged. “Apparently it is. As long as my power is equal to or stronger than yours, then your spell will have no effect against me. Well, that was my guess anyway.”

“You mean you'd risk death over a gamble?!”

Shadow shrugged and grinned. “Maybe. It did seem to pay off though. I didn't much feel like turning into dust anyway.”

“The insolence...” Sorrow murmured.

Shadow closed his eyes for a second, then the insane smile appeared again. “You're boring me though, so I think I'll just go ahead and kill you!”

“Wha-” Before Sorrow could even finish his first word, Shadow was already in his face and delivering a series of punches and kicks.

Even with a missing leg, it was impossible for Sorrow Curse to dodge or block all of the attacks he was receiving. The green maned skeleton did all he could to deflect the barrage, just barely keeping up. However, Sorrow soon slipped up, and allowed a blow to get passed him.

'Damn!' Sorrow thought before the blow connected. It stunned him, giving Shadow enough time to close the distance and unleash a hell like no other upon Sorrow Curse. Once Shadow broke a bone belonging to Sorrow, it didn't heal.

“What is this?! Why am I not regenerating?!” Sorrow yelled while still being thrashed.

Shadow, never losing his psychotic smile, or stopping his punches, spoke. “Aww, what's the matter?! Can't regenerate your limbs?! Hahahaha! That's because my power is so strong, that every punch I throw is breaking your bones down on a molecular level! Sure, you can regenerate large pieces of yourself at once, but what happens when I break you down molecule by molecule?!”

If Sorrow had a face, it would be one of terror. 

'No! This isn't possible! There's no way that I can be beaten! I've still got so much to do!'

By this point, Shadow had broken down Sorrow's entire body save for his skull. Shadow grabbed it, and threw it into the ground. He then approached it, ready to deliver the finishing blow, until Sorrow spoke.

“You think....this changes anything? This...changes....nothing. I was....only the first....of many. Enjoy this small victory while you can....because even though it won't be me to do it......another will kill you. It has been foretold.....heh....heheh....HAHAHA-” Sorrow's laugh was cut off by Shadow crushing his skull.

Shadow didn't stop there, however, and continued pounding at it. “Heheheh! Again! Again! I want to kill him again! Give me something else to kill! Hahahaha!”

Rainbow couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was Shadow going insane? Did he defeat one of the greatest threats Equestria has ever seen only to go mad?

Shadow finally finished punching what little remained, when he frantically looked around. “More...heheheh! More! More to kill!” He yelled while looking around before his eyes finally settled on a cyan pegasus. He slowly started to trot towards her, his mad giggles still going on.

Rainbow lay there helpless as Shadow approached her.

“Shadow?” Rainbow said in a scared voice.

Shadow now stood over Rainbow Dash, and stared down at her with his smile.

“Sha-” Rainbow was cut off by Shadow grabbing her by the throat and holding her in the air.

Rainbow struggled for breath as Shadow never loosened his grip. Tears started streaming down her face. “Sha-Shadow....please....stop...it's me....Rainbow Dash....”

Shadow's eyes shot open, and released Rainbow from his grip. He then collapsed on the ground next to her.

/././

Shadow's mirrored self appeared in front of a Shadow more pissed off than the chimp you flipped off at the zoo that one time. (Seriously though, he's pretty damn pissed.)

“YOU....YOU GODDAMN PIECE OF SHIT!!!” Shadow screamed as he flew at his mirrored self, blades drawn.

(Gonna call Shadow's mirrored self Shadow's mirror from now on.)

Shadow's mirror grinned insanely as he easily caught Shadow's attack. “You...you interrupted me before I got to taste her blood....now I think I'll taste yours!” He screamed before biting Shadow's neck.

Shadow screamed and did his best to get his Mirror off of him. He managed to get his Mirror off, but not before he ripped a chunk of flesh off of Shadow's neck.

Shadow instinctively grabbed his wound and tried to keep it from bleeding further.

“Heheheh! This blood...it's delicious! I mean, it's technically my blood, but it's so amazing!” Shadow's Mirror said before licking his lips clean of blood.

'What the fuck?! Do I really have a side of me this insane?' Shadow thought.

Shadow's mirror then flew at Shadow, screaming maniacally. His Mirror then delivered a series of blows to him. Shadow was frantically trying to keep up with his enemy's movements, but it was nearly impossible.

“Hahaha! This is exactly what happens when your own reflection is faster than you! Yes, now die! Die, die, die! Hahahaha!”

Shadow was slowly being pushed back, and slipped up in one of his blocks, allowing his Mirror to get in a shot with the hidden blade on his left foreleg. Shadow quickly jumped back to make sure his wound wasn't serious. Thankfully, it was just a scratch. It was hardly even bleeding.

'Thank God for that lucky break...'

Before Shadow could set his attention back towards his opponent, he was already once more being assaulted. Shadow dodged punch after punch, already being backed into a corner.

Shadow's reflection grinned, and then delivered a jab to Shadow's ribs, cracking at list three of them. He then used his hidden blade to stab Shadow in the side. Shadow grunted in pain and then flew into the air.

Shadow's mirror just watched as Shadow ascended higher and higher. “Where ya going?! There's nowhere to run in this place!”

Shadow turned around, clutching his stab wound. “And who says I'm running?!”

/././

Two days ago, while training with Spitfire

“There are two pre-requirements to learning this move. It's called the Inner Fire. Well, that's what I call it anyway. You might need to change the name, because it won't suit you.” Spitfire told Shadow.

“Why? What are the two pre-requirements, and what is the technique?” Shadow asked, now curious.

“The first pre-requirement of this move is to be a level four member of the Fugiens Mones, because your body wouldn't be able to handle the move otherwise. The second pre-requirement is the ability to perform a sonic rainboom, or in your case, a shadow pulse. In my case, a fire bomb.”

“Wait, you can perform one of those?” Shadow asked, slightly surprised.

“Of course, you didn't think I got captain of the Wonderbolts because I'm a captain of the Mones did you?”

“Well...kinda.”

Spitfire rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I'm about to teach you how to harness your shadow pulse. By that I mean I'll teach you how to control it, and absorb its power.”

Shadow's eyes went wide. “You...you can do that?”

Spitfire nodded. “Sure can. Watch and learn.” She said before ascending into the air.

Once she was a good couple thousand feet off the ground, she divebombed. Within seconds, she broke the sound barrier. The explosion behind her looked like a freakishly large bomb went off. As Spitfire continued to fly down, it looked as if she left the air she touched on fire. She approached the ground without showing any signs of stopping.

Shadow went wide eyed as Spitfire continued her divebomb towards the ground. She was showing no signs of stopping. He cringed when she did hit the ground, a large explosion appearing when she did. Shadow was awesruck at what he just saw.

'Did something just go wrong? There's no way she can still be alive after that! She flew into the ground at speeds easily over mach 20. Wait, is that...' Shadow's thought process was completely shattered when he saw the dust clear.

As the dust settled, Spitfire became visible. But there was something different about her that, as observant as Shadow was, noticed.

“Holy shit it looks like you're on fire!” Shadow yelled in surprise.

“It looks that way because I'm still technically doing a fire bomb. If I choose to, I could fly from here, punch Soarin in the face at Cloudsdale, and be back here within half a minute.”

“But...Cloudsdale is hundreds of miles away!”

“Exactly.”

“....TEACH ME!” Shadow yelled as he got down on his knees and kissed the ground beside Spitfire's hooves.

“Alright, getting kinda creepy there Shadow.”

Shadow rose up. “Eheheh, sorry.”

“And yes, I will teach you. The first thing I need to tell you about it is how it's basically done. You watched me, but now I need to explain it. The first step is breaking the sound barrier. The second is flying full force into the ground. You cannot afford to lose any speed when doing so. Third, the ground should slow you down fast enough to give you exactly two seconds to focus. Lastly, when you get focused, you channel the power released from the explosion you created when you broke the sound barrier, and harness it. However, once you get it right, you're gonna have to call it something other than you're inner fire.”

Shadow grinned. “And I think I've got just the name.”

/././

Back to Shadow's mind, present day.

“And who says I'm running?!” Shadow yelled as he turned back towards the ground.

Shadow built up his speed to the point just before breaking the sound barrier. He then pushed a little harder to create an explosion of black and crimson behind him.

'What's he planning?' Shadow's mirror thought as he watched the spectacle unfold in front of him.

Shadow was now rapidly approaching the ground, not showing any signs of stopping.

'He's crazier than I am!' Shadow's mirror thought as Shadow slammed through the ground.

Shadow's mirror approached the dust cloud that was created, looking for any sign of movement. 'Did he just willingly give me control of his body? No...he wouldn't do that....then why-' Mirror's thoughts were cut off by a hoof that reached out of the dust cloud that grabbed his neck.

Shadow's face soon emerged from the dust, with a black and crimson aura around him. Shadow then completely stepped out of the cloud, looking as if a black fire were evaporating from him.

“Wha-what the hell did you do to yourself?! What is this?!”

“My inner demons.”

Shadow's mirror's smile disappeared from his face for a second, but quickly reappeared. “Inner demons you say? I dare say you're staring at them!” He yelled before headbutting Shadow.

He then grabbed Shadow's hind legs, and slammed him into the ground. Shadow quickly recovered just in time to block an uppercut. Shadow then grabbed his Mirror's head, and gave him a fierce knee to the face. He then wrapped his left foreleg around his Mirror's head, and fell backward, slamming his head into the ground. He wasn't finished there, however, and pulled his Mirror up by the mane. Shadow then tossed him up in the air, then quickly took flight after him. He flew just above his Mirror as he was still rising from Shadow's toss, and then delivered a mid-air applebuck to the gut, sending his Mirror back into the ground.

Shadow's mirror quickly flew out of the dust cloud created with his hidden blades activated. Shadow then wasted no time in reaching into a pouch on his armor with his mouth, and pulled out a dagger just in time to meet his Mirror's hidden blade.

Various flashes of light were seen across the battlefield, followed by the clashing of metal. Neither one of the two allowed themselves to get a scratch on them. That was until a cry was heard. It froze Shadow completely in his tracks, for he'd  heard the voice before.

'Was that Rainbow's voice?!'

“Shouldn't leave you're guard down!” Shadow's mirror yelled as he brought his blades down on Shadow.

Shadow managed to hold back most of the force, but not all of it. Shadow's mirror's blade was brought down where the tip was dragged vertically across the middle of Shadow's face. Shadow shook it off, and tried to focus on his opponent, but the cries of Rainbow only grew louder.

“Those cries are quite the distraction aren't they? Whaddya say you hurry up and let me finish you so I can go slice up that pretty mare next?”

Shadow's black and crimson aura exploded, making his Mirror shield his face. “YOU WILL NOT TOUCH HER!” Shadow screamed before rushing at his Mirror. His mirror brought up his blades in defense, only to have them break as Shadow brought the dagger in his mouth down.

“What?!” Shadow's mirror yelled in surprise.

“I told you, you will not harm her!” Shadow yelled as he stuck the dagger held by his mouth in his reflection's chest. Then, keeping the dagger in his mouth, flipped around his opponent, and stuck his hind legs' daggers inside his Mirror's back.

“Now die, you psychotic fuck!” Shadow screamed before bringing the blade on his left foreleg across his Mirror's neck, and then jumping off.

Shadow's mirror tried desperately to cover up the slash across his neck, but didn't realize the cut had actually went through half of his neck, making his head flop to one side. With a few more gurgles, Shadow's mirror went down, struggling until the end.

/././

“Shadow! Shadow! Please wake up!” Rainbow cried into Shadow's chest.

Cough* Cough* Cough*

Rainbow gasped and looked at Shadow as he coughed up blood. She was about to cry even more, until she saw him open his eyes.

Shadow looked over at Rainbow and smiled. “So...we getting married or what?”

Rainbow giggled, a few tears still rolling down her face. “You idiot...of course we are.” She said before putting her lips against Shadow's.

Everypony that had been defeated by Sorrow gathered around the couple. Ni was the first to speak. “I think we should get these two some medical treatment.”

“Say no more.” A voice behind the group said.

Everypony turned to see Hornet and his squad, along with Spitfire.

“Don't worry, we've got 'em.” Hornet said as Bloodbank and Bandages trotted passed him to look at Rainbow Dash and Shadow.

Spitfire looked around. “Where's Soarin at?”

“After giving him a second black eye for a reason I'd rather not think about at the moment, we agreed to split up. I was to come here, and he was to go back to the castle and make sure it was secure.” Ni replied.

Spitfire nodded. “Good.”

“Where were you though? You weren't here to help us fight Sorrow Curse! Everypony here was nearly killed, and Shadow lost a leg!”

“Speaking of that missing leg, Sawbones, I think you should get Shadow to surgery ASAP. I don't know how, but he's still alive after taking some pretty serious punishment.” Bandages called out.

“On it.” Sawbones said as he rushed over to Shadow.

Spitfire looked at Ni. “Hornet's squad and I had our own fair share of trouble. Besides, I had faith you could do it.”

“If you say so...”

“C'mon, we need to see everypony here to some medical treatment. Let's get out of here.”

Ni nodded. “No arguments here.”

/././

Within a few days, most of the damage had been cleared from Canterlot thanks to everypony pitching in. There was a service held for those that lost their lives during the invasion two days after it happened. All three princesses spoke at it. There wasn't a dry tear in the audience that attended. A lot of ponies had lost their son, their daughter, their mom or dad, their brother or sister, their grandchild, or their grandparents. The service was concluded with a memorial erected in town square, so nopony would ever forget.

Three days after the service

“...I now pronounce you mare and colt.” Princess Celestia concluded.

The crutch-supported and bandaged Shadow Flash leaned over to meet Rainbow in a passionate kiss before turning to the cheering crowd.

“IT'S TIME TO PARTY EVERYPONY!” The pink ball of energy yelled.

And queue the theme song I decided on for this story.

Search for the answers I knew all along
I lost myself, we all fall down
Never the wiser of what I've become
Alone I stand, a broken man

“Never leave me again, Shadow.” Rainbow said.

Shadow laughed. “I don't plan on it.”

All I have is one last chance
I won't turn my back on you
Take my hand, drag me down
If you fall then I will too
And I can't save what's left of you

“So Hornet, does this give you any ideas?” Spitfire asked.

“Yes, does it?” Crystal Tears added in, both mares eyeing him seductively.

“Uhh, look over there!” Hornet yelled, making the two mares turn their heads before dashing off.

Sing something new
I have nothing left
I can't face the dark without you
There's nothing left to lose
The fight never ends
I can't face the dark without you

A tear hit the floor.

“Grandpa? Are you okay?” Solemn Justice asked her adoptive grandfather.

“Yes....in fact I couldn't be happier.”

'Our boy's all grown up now, Abby. I know the circumstances are unusual, but I hope you're watching.'

Swallow me under and pull me apart
I understand, there's nothing left
Pain so familiar and close to the heart
No more, no less, I won't forget 

“Sigh*”

“What's wrong, Vinyl?” Octavia asked.

“It's nothing.”

Octavia frowned. “You're not upset that it isn't you up there, are you?”

“Of course not! It's just...that was the funnest night of my life, and I can't even screw with him now that he's married!”

Octavia rolled her eyes. “You worry me sometimes, Vinyl...”

Come back down, save yourself
I can't find my way to you
And I can't bear to face the truth

Soarin chuckled and took a sip of whiskey. “Congrats, Shadow. I'm happy for ya. I wish you two the best of luck. Just remember my words when the time comes though...”

Sing something new
I have nothing left
I can't face the dark without you
There's nothing left to lose
The fight never ends
I can't face the dark without you

“They make a good couple, wouldn't you agree Shining?” Princess Cadence asked.

Shining Armor nodded his head in agreement before taking a drink of his beer. “They sure do.”

“They already have a kid, ya know.”

“PBBFFTH!” Shining spit his drink all over an annoyed Cadence before giving a shy smile.

I wanted to forgive
I'm trying to forget
Don't leave me here again
I am with you forever, the end 

“Well sister, I guess I have some explaining to do.” Luna said.

“No need. I already know everything.” Celestia replied.

“Wha-...but how?!”

Celestia grinned. “I'm the goddess of the sun, Luna. It isn't that hard for me to figure out one of my little sister's secrets.”

Luna stared at her sister with a speechless face, making Celestia giggle.

Sing something new
I have nothing left
I can't face the dark without you
There's nothing left to lose
The fight never ends
I can't face the dark without you 

“Why don't we just take him by force?” One voice asked.

“Because he's earned himself a rest. Besides, it's a happy occasion, so drink up.” Another voice replied.

“Have you forgot that we have a mission?”

“Relax, the note I left him back at that old fort is probably still fresh in his mind. He'll figure out whose initials they are sooner or later. Besides, it's not like we have a time limit on our mission. Our employers don't exactly age too much.”

Holding the hand that holds me down
I forgive you, forget you, the end
Holding the hand that holds me down
I forgive you, forget you, the end

Shadow and Rainbow parted from another kiss, still embracing each other.

“I love you Shadow.”

“And I love you Rainbow.”

Do you have feels yet? You fucking better, because I just typed ten thousand words over my quota. Anywho, that's the finale chapter you guys. To answer the question that might be floating around there, no, this is not the end of Once a Shadow. I kinda set that up with the mysterious note at the fort and whatnot. I'd like to give a very special thanks to Toshiro121 (fimfiction) for actually writing a side story to this. I was quite surprised when I saw that someone actually wanted to write a sidestory to this of all things. I strongly suggest you all go read it. Hornet, and his entire squad are oc's developed by him, and if you want to actually see the battle they went through with the last robed guy, you'll need to read his story. The next thing I'm going to do is edit the first few chapters, because I think they are very bad. I also would like to apologize for how long this chapter took to release. It has been nearly two full months, when I probably...actually definitely could have released it by the 20th of January if I really wanted to. It's just that my procrastination level is ridiculous, so forgive me. I'll also hopefully be posting the next chapter of From War to War pretty soon, so look forward to that. Also for those interested, that song was 'Without You' by Breaking Benjamin. It actually gives you even moar feels if you listen to it while reading that last bit. Alright guys, I've taken up enough of your time now, so I'll let ya get back to it. Shadow Brony, AWAAAYYYYY!!!!


OC's:

Shadow Flash, along with most others-Mein

Ni-Dragon'z Wrath (fanfiction)

Hornet-Toshiro121 (fimfiction)

Nesral-SupahBrony300 (fanfiction) Also has a fimfiction, SupahBrony301

Pureheart-Llink148 (fanfiction)


Uber special thanks (in addition to the oc people):

Battle Damage (fanfiction)


Normal special thanks (feel bad ;)

Straight Edge Assassin (fanfiction) Also on fimfiction, Straight Edge

DarkRabbit77 (fanfiction) Also on fimfiction, Demon Lord Inganno

Finaleon9 (fanfiction) Also on fimfiction, Silverwing Strong

whynotzoidberg (fanfiction)

JohnyBGoodpro (fanfiction)

Spider-Man (fimfiction) And as some of his comments suggest, yes, he is the one from several of my most fucked up quotes.

AfterTouch (fimfiction, and also because even though I've played like 0 minutes with you, you were still the only one who wanted to play xbox with me. That'll have to change soon.)

And last but certainly not least, all of you beautiful people who took the time to read my story, or stories. I wuv u all, and I'll see you again soon. (fanfiction and fimfiction)


Chuck Norris fact of the saga: In one episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Chuck Norris replaced Carlton for a whole scene and nobody noticed.

Quote of the saga: “Wanna see a magic trick?” -An aquantance of mine to a girl during his P.E. Class. He pulled out his dick through his pocket somehow, and promptly got expelled. 
> New Problems
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Once A Shadow 2nd Saga: Mortality


I gave a yawn as I awoke next to my beautiful wife, Rainbow Dash. Looking over, I saw she was still asleep. I stroked her greyed mane as I lay in bed, thinking of my past. It has been fifty years since my fight with Sorrow Curse, and time quickly flew by. About a year or so after the battle, and still with no right foreleg, Princess Luna came through for me. Implementing new magi-technology, a special replacement limb was forged for me. It's made of the same material that my armor is made of, which means my leg got its own enchantment. I asked for a special enchantment of my own devising. Princess Luna thought it was rather odd, but thankfully it was within range of her powers.

Solemn Justice became a full-fledged member of the Mones about twenty years ago. It looked like she stopped aging after she hit twenty or so. I personally trained Pureheart, and we planted him in the Royal Guard when he finished his training thirty years ago. When Shining Armor retired ten years ago, Pureheart was promoted to Captain. Nesral still keeps failing at assassinating me, which is getting pretty ridiculous. I mean, the guy has to be at least seventy now, but he keeps going at it just like he did fifty years ago.

About twenty five years ago, it came time for me, Spitfire, Soarin, Blaze, and Ni to go underground. Being a Wonderbolt was fun while it lasted, but I guess that time is over. Now, for the time being, we're all going to lay low for another thirty years until everypony forgets about us before getting back out. Rainbow Dash was immediately offered the position of Captain of the Wonderbolts when we went underground, which made her unbelievably ecstatic. She retired around ten years ago, though. We still live in our same old place, but when I go out, I have to wear a disguise like a coat or something to remain incognito. Solemn doesn't live with us anymore. She moved into the Sanctuary about the time she turned thirty.

When Blaze turned around forty or so, Soarin asked her out. He said that since she would always look like she was twenty, that it was a pretty nice win for him. He promptly got punched in his gems, which was hilarious at the moment. Blaze helped him up, however, and surprised him by planting him a huge kiss. They never officially got married, because they would rather not have to have a ceremony in a dark sanctuary. I guess I can't blame them, though. About a year after Rainbow and I got married, Ni tied the knot with Derpy. He moved in with her at her place in Ponyville, and they've lived here ever since.

Over the years, I've completed various missions in foreign lands. My first mission, which was the one in the Griffin Kingdoms, was a total letdown. I was only there for a few days, and all of the sudden the rebel faction surrendered. On top of that, I didn't get to see the captain of the archer squad. Spitfire wanted him to remain in the dragons' territory to help maintain order. He's still there, I'm pretty sure. Not long after my wedding with Rainbow, Twilight became an alicorn princess, and was informed of the details of the Fugiens Mones. Since Twilight became a princess, that meant that her husband became a prince. Yep, Barry is a prince now. At least it didn't go to his head. Then again, Barry isn't like that. My dad is also still living in Ponyville with Mayor Mare. They're ridiculously old, but still kicking.

Now for the sad part. Granny Smith died about forty years ago. The same goes for Applejack, Mr. and Mrs. Cake, Rarity, Thunder, and Silver. Applejack had family from far away come in and take over as per her request before she passed. The twin Cakes moved off somewhere long ago, Pinkie Pie still watches over the bakery, Rarity spent her last years in Canterlot as a dressmaker for the princesses themselves, Fluttershy still lives in her cottage tending to her animals, and Thunder and Silver ran the bar until they passed. They actually left the Silver Thunder Bar to me in their will. I swear when I attended Thunder's funeral, a wrench hit me in the face just before they buried him. Rainbow thought I was crazy, but got freaked out when I developed a black eye a few minutes later. Every now and then when I do something stupid, it feels like a wrench smacks the hell out of me. The old bastard tortures me even after he's dead.

Rainbow is getting up in her years, and it has become increasingly difficult to accept that she'll die soon. I've secretly been looking for ways to prevent that, but I've been unsuccessful so far. I'll find a way, though. I won't let her die. I know I shouldn't be doing this, but I can't help myself. If there's a way to save her, I'll do anything.

For the last ten years, I've been having these weird flashes. By flashes, I mean images. Images of my mirrored self. At first I thought I'd get over it, but the flashes progressively got worse. At first, it was just images of me fighting him. As time went on, he would talk to me. He'd say that my time is almost up, and soon he'd be in control. Probably the freakiest part is that when I see him talk to me, he's exactly how I left him; bloody and scarred, with half of his neck cut clean through, making his head tilt back.

I haven't told anypony about these occurrences; namely for two reasons: First, I'd sound insane. Thinking about it, if I told anypony that, they'd put me in a mental institution. Second, I don't want to worry anyone. Even if somebody did believe me, they'd freak out. No, I have to solve this on my own. I'll figure this out.

Well, I guess I'll sneak out and head on over to the Sanctuary. I slowly slid out of bed, so I didn't wake Rainbow, put a robe on to remain incognito, and snuck out of the house. When I got outside, I spread my wings and flew towards Cloudsdale. The route had grown all too familiar with me. So familiar, in fact, that I could close my eyes and know exactly what to maneuver around. After daydreaming for thirty minutes or so, I opened my eyes as I trotted inside the Wonderbolt HQ. The receptionist nodded to me as I went into the locker room. I went through the secret entrance, and trotted down to the Round Table, where Ni and Soarin were hanging out.

Soarin looked over, "Hey Shadow, how's it going?" He asked as he reclined back in his chair. I trotted over and took the seat across from him, "Pretty well, I suppose. How are things on your end?" I responded before giving a yawn.

Soarin let out a yawn as well, "Ugh, don't do that. I'm tired enough as it is. Anyway, things are pretty good I guess." Soarin looked over at Ni, "Hey, didn't you have something you wanted to tell Shadow, Ni?"

Ni nodded, "Yeah, I did. I wanted to talk to you about this." Ni said as he pulled out a note. I raised my eyebrow, "Something about the note, I take it? Lemme see." I said before reaching over to Ni, who handed me the sheet of paper. I read the note aloud, "Shadow Flash, it has been some time since I last contacted you. You may not remember, but I left you a note a while back before your battle with Sorrow Curse. I'm glad you survived, because now I must speak to you of something most urgent. Whenever you get a chance, please meet me at the Everfree Ruins and we'll discuss a few things. I'll be there every night at midnight for the next seven days. I hope I'll see you there. Signed, S.S...who the hell is S.S.?" I finished, looking at Ni.

He shrugged, "'Dunno, I was hoping you did. This guy said he left you another note before. Do you remember anything like that?" Ni replied as he took the note back. I thought for a moment, "Come to think of it, yeah, I do. He left me a note of encouragement a few days before I fought Sorrow. I couldn't think about it much at the time, with so much on my mind."

Ni nodded, "I understand. Do you have any idea as to who our mysterious pony might be?" He asked, hoping for something. I shook my head, however, "Your guess is as good as mine. I figured you might know more than me, seeing as how this guy is obviously something else, since he's still kicking after fifty years."

Ni thought for a moment, but finally shrugged, "I've got no clue. So what are you going to do about this?" Ni asked, curious for my answer. I grinned, "Go meet him, of course." I said before kicking my rear legs up onto the table. Ni leaned forward, "Just like that? You're not even worried?"

"Why would I be? Even if this guy has hostile intentions, I'm pretty sure I could handle myself." I said before giving another yawn. Ni nodded, "That's true, I guess. Well, I guess today is your last chance to meet him then. I held onto this letter for six days, so tonight is your last chance to meet him."

"Why would you keep this from me, Ni? Why didn't you tell me sooner?" I asked, more curious than angry. He calmly looked at me, "Because, when I found this note, it was sitting right in the middle of the table."

That shocked me a little, "Wait, so you're saying somebody got into the Sanctuary even though it has a protection spell, walked in and put a note on the table, and then walked right back out without even being seen? How the hell is that even possible?"

Ni looked down, "I don't know. There's an enchantment on this place to keep any non-authorized ponies out of this place. The only ponies allowed in are fellow Mones, or the princesses. The only thing I can think of is that this guy has some powerful magic with him. So after hearing all of this, do you still want to go meet him?"

I wasted no time in responding, "Hell yeah I do! I'm more interested than ever now! Besides, doesn't that Nesral guy get in here sometimes anyway?" I finished with a grin on my face.

Ni and Soarin looked at each other, then back at me, then sighed, "Yeah, but that's different!...alright, Shadow. Well at least let one of us go with you when you meet this guy." Ni said as he reclined in his chair.

I shook my head, "Nah, I'll be fine. The guy said for me to come, and that's what will happen. I, and I alone will go. So what if the guy can get into our base? All that really says is that he's sneaky, so I'll be on my guard at all times. Nobody will get the drop on me."

Ni was about to protest, but was interrupted by a voice that was new to the conversation, "My dad's right, Ni. He can handle himself, and doesn't need anypony going with him." Solemn Justice said as she trotted in with Blaze. The latter of the two nodded her head in agreement, "She's right, Ni. Shadow has proven himself more than capable." Blaze said before taking a seat with Solemn.

Ni looked around, and ultimately sighed in defeat, "Looks like I'm outnumbered here. Alright, fine. You can go by yourself Shadow. Just do me a favor and be careful. You don't know what this guy is capable of."

I waved my hoof, "You worry more than my daughter does, Ni. Speaking of whom," I said as I turned my head to Solemn, "how's your day been so far?" I said, hoping for a change of subject. Having Ni worry about me is nice of him, but unnecessary

Solemn opened her mouth, but looked down and blushed. I raised my brow in response, "Okay, I was feigning curiosity at first. Now I'm genuinely curious. What happened?" I said, waiting for a response. Solemn continued her fit of silence, making Blaze roll her eyes and speak for her, "Either you tell him or I do, Solemn. It'll be easier if you get this out of the way now."

Solemn glared at Blaze, but sighed and looked back at me, "Okay, fine. Dad, I wanted to tell you that I had a pretty awesome day yesterday. I met a stallion, and-"

"Nope." I said flatly, making everyone in the room look at me curiously. Solemn raised a brow, "What do you mean, 'Nope'?"

"Nope."

"Bu-"

"Nope nope nope nope nope nope nope nope nope." I said as I got out of my chair and headed for the stairs.

That struck a nerve in Solemn, "Quit being such a jackass, Dad! I'm fifty-seven years old! I think I can-wait, why are you laughing?"

It was true, I was laughing my ass off. I just couldn't hold it in anymore, "I'm sorry Solemn." I said before wiping a tear and trotting back to my seat, "I've been waiting to do that for fifty years just to screw with you. I would've kept it going longer, but you were already getting pretty steamed."

Everypony, excluding myself, then literally fell out of their chair in response. Solemn climbed her way back up to her chair, "I even rehearsed an entire defense against you..." She said before finally getting back to her seat.

I chuckled, "You honestly thought I'd be upset? Quite the contrary, actually. It's your life, Solemn. What's his name?" I said with a smile on my face.

Solemn smiled in response, happy to hear that I was so accepting, "His name is Lunar Storm, and he's a pegasus. He's got a dark purple coat, with an even darker shade of purple, almost black mane and tail. His cutie mark is a storm cloud over a full moon, and-"

"Easy there, Solemn." I cut in, "I get the picture, and I'll have to meet him sometime soon." I said, honestly a little eager to meet this guy. I'm interested in what he's like, but the main reason I want to meet him is so I can fuck with his mind.

Solemn looked at me with a questioning look, "How are you going to meet him, Dad? You're supposed to be laying low for a while, remember?" She said, thinking I had forgotten that I was supposed to remain hidden for many years to come.

"Have you mentioned anything at all about a father? Have you told him I'm dead or anything else pertaining to such?" I asked, hoping the answer was a no. If it was, I'd have to come up with another way to meet him.

She shook her head, "I haven't. Why? What do you have up your sleeve?" She asked, now curious as to what was going on in my head.

I grinned, "Oh, nothing. I want you to tell him your father is interested in meeting him. Tell him that we'll go to a nice restaurant here in Cloudsdale, my treat. Don't worry about my appearance, because I'll have a disguise."

Solemn raised her eyebrow, "A disguise, huh? I'm not sure if I should be reassured or worried about that. Please don't do anything to creep him out or scare him Dad." Solemn said while looking at me with a worried expression.

I raised my hoof, "Relax, Solemn. I wouldn't do anything to embarrass you in front of a pony you like." It took everything in me not to burst out laughing again, because that was the most blatant lie I've ever told. There's no way I'm not going to screw with this guy. I may be around seventy years old, but I don't look like it, and sure as hell don't act it. Why start now?

Solemn breathed a sigh of relief, "Good. Thanks for that." She said before turning to Blaze to talk to her, leaving just me, Ni, and Soarin once more.

I stood up and gave a stretch, followed by a yawn, "I'll see you guys later. I guess I'll go home now and rest up before I meet our mysterious pony." I said before heading towards the exit.

"Alright. Be careful, Shadow. Fill us all in on what happens in the morning." Ni said after turning around in his chair.

I nodded as I trotted out. When I was outside, I spread my wings and flew towards Canterlot. I'm not ready to go home just yet; I need to look into something. Hopefully I'll find what I'm looking for, and if I don't, I'll look elsewhere.

As I entered Canterlot, I headed for the Royal Palace. I didn't catch too much attention, thanks to the robe I was wearing. I kept my head down under my hood, looking up only every now and then to make sure I wasn't going to bump into anything or anyone. I eventually came across the palace, and was stopped by a couple of guards.

They used their spears to block my path, "Halt! State your business!" The one on my left commanded. I reached for my saddlebag, making them raise their spears at me. I then calmly removed a badge very slowly so I didn't provoke them further. The one on my right quickly realized what it was that I was holding, and quickly stood attention. He looked at his companion, "What are you doing?! Stand at attention, you moron! He's holding the Royal Seal of Princess Luna! That means he's to be treated the same way we'd treat the Princess herself!"

His companion gulped, and swiftly followed his partner's example by standing at attention, "Sorry about that, sir. You're clear to enter. Please enjoy your stay here." The guard had a few noticeable beads of sweat going down his face. I just grinned under my hood and patted him on the back before trotting forward.

Before I entered the castle itself, I pinned the Royal Seal on my robe to make sure I wouldn't be bothered by any more guards. After doing so, I went inside the castle, and took a left. After weaving my way through the castle, I finally found what I was looking for: The Royal Library. I looked around, and came across the classified section of the library. The guard saw the Royal Seal on my cloak, and stood at attention. I paid him no mind as I trotted passed.

Once I was where I wanted to be, I started looking through the titles of the books. Many of the things I went through were important documents. Things such as secret wars or a list of names of Equestrian Spies. These weren't what I was looking for, however, and continued my search. As I looked, I spotted something that caught my attention; a book titled Forbidden Magic of the Ancients by Sorrow Curse: Volume 1.

"The fuck..." I quietly said to myself before removing the dusty tome from the shelf. I blew on it, removing a thick layer of dust. I looked around to make sure nobody was looking, and opened the book. The first page was blank, so I turned it. The second page was blank as well. I flipped through the book only to find that the whole damn thing was completely blank!

In my frustration, I threw the book at the ground, only to have it levitate before touching the floor. Before I could say anything, the world around me melted away into the same yellow-brownish color of the pages of the book. As for the book itself, it began to glow, eventually getting so bright I had to shield my eyes. When the light faded, I looked in awe and horror at what was in front of me, "Sorrow Curse..."

Sorrow Curse grinned, "Hello, Shadow Flash. How have you been?" He said as he gave a stretch. When I recovered, I drew one of my daggers, but he simply sighed, "There's no need for that, Shadow. I'm dead, and hitting me with that dagger won't make it any more true."

I eyed Sorrow cautiously, "And how do I know you aren't lying? How do I know you aren't just trying to drop my guard and kill me?" I said, still holding onto my dagger.

Sorrow Curse eyed me as if I were stupid, and spoke, "If you truly believe me to still be alive, then you are admitting your own insanity. What you see before you is the result of one of the many 'forbidden' spells in this tome. Now it's my turn to ask you a question, Shadow Flash; why are you here?" Sorrow Curse finished with an evil grin.

I thought about it, then spoke, "I need the recipe for the immortality potion."

Sorrow looked at me, and it sounded like he was saying something. Upon listening further, I discovered he was laughing, "HAHAHAHA! This is too much! Just how long has it been since my death? Ten years? Twenty? Forty?"

"Fifty." I answered for him in an annoyed tone. I'm starting to think that opening this book was a big mistake.

Sorrow quieted down, but kept a grin, "Ah, so your dear wife must be coming close to her end, and you want old Sorrow Curse to help you make an immortality potion. I've got it all figured out now." Sorrow Curse finished smugly.

"Shut up. All I want to know is if you'll tell me how to make the potion or not." I said, getting impatient with this asshole.

"I will. Not because I want to, mind you, but because I'm part of the book, and it's my duty to give information to the reader. There is something else you should know, however: this potion is not the potion that is used by you Fugiens Mones. This is a potion of my own devising, and will require different...ingredients than the potion you are used to."

"I don't care, I just want to keep Rainbow alive at any cost." I said, more to assure myself than Sorrow Curse.

Sorrow Curse smiled evilly "Very well then. There are three ingredients for my potion. I will only tell you one ingredient after you have found the other, however. The first thing required for this potion is the heart of a regenerans bestia. Not just any regenerans bestia, however. You will need to acquire the heart of a top tier bestia. The only place I know where you can find one is beneath the Crystal Empire. That's all I have for you now. I'll speak to you again when you acquire the essence. Good luck." Sorrow Curse finished with an evil grin before melting away.

The world around me melted away once more, but this time it returned to the library. I looked at the ground, and spotted the tome. I looked around to make sure nobody was watching, and then picked the book up and placed it in my saddlebag. I trotted back out the way I came, and before I knew it, I was flying away from Canterlot.

"Well, I wanted the immortality potion, and it looks like I'm about to get it. I just hope this doesn't come back to bite me in the ass. This business with Sorrow Curse aside; it's getting late. I suppose I should head to the Everfree and meet this mysterious person. This ought to be interesting." I said aloud before changing my course from Ponyville to the Everfree Ruins.

By the time I got to the edge of the Everfree Forest, daytime had long since been gone, and I figured it must be pretty close to midnight. I flew deeper into the forest, getting the uneasy feeling of being watched as I continued on my way. A bit more time went by, and I finally saw the Everfree Ruins in the distance. I picked up my pace a bit, and the ruins soon came into full view. I figured the most likely meeting place would be the highest point, so I glided over to a still standing tower that was slightly taller than the trees belonging to the forest.

I touched down on the top of the tower, and looked around to see if anyone else was around. The top of the tower itself was fairly large, but it was flat. Once I concluded that nobody else was here yet, I trotted over to the edge. I took a seat, leaning up against a parapet, and buried my face in my forelegs. I figured I might as well get some rest while I wait, so I shut my eyes, and let sleep take hold.

Before I even had time to dream, it seemed, I felt something poking my metal foreleg. I groggily looked up, and came face-to-face with a crimson face, "Gah!" I yelled, jumping into the air, "Who the hell are you?!" I demanded, still shocked from that encounter. It was like something Pinkie Pie would've done.

"So Maelstrom wasn't lying when she said your right foreleg was metal..." The pony mused aloud, ignoring my question. He swept his silver mane out of his eye and looked up at me, "How's it goin', Shadow Flash?"

I calmed down, and landed in front of him, "I take it you're the one who sent the note?" I asked, now fully composed.

The crimson pegasus nodded, "I am indeed. I have to admit, I was starting to think that you wouldn't come. I almost didn't come this time. I don't care much for this place, but it is nice and secluded; perfect for a secret meeting, wouldn't you agree?"

"I would've come sooner, had the letter not been withheld from me until earlier today. So what is it that you wanted? You left me a note fifty years ago, yet you haven't left me a single form of communication since then. Well, until now. So what gives? What do you want from me?"

"Easy. I'll explain what I can. I've been watching you ever since you got here. I know that you're from another universe. I also know a great deal more about you. That isn't relevant, however. The first thing I'd like to ask you is why you have that book with you." The crimson pony finished, pointing at my saddlebag.

My eyes shot wide, "How-how do you know about that? I just got it..." I said, instinctively placing a hoof on my bag.

The pony smiled, "I have multitudes of spies, Shadow Flash. An ant wouldn't get around without me knowing about it. Now why don't you answer my question?"

"If you have so many spies, then you should know what I'm doing with it." I said, glaring at him.

He stared at me intently, before finally bursting into laughter, "Yes, I suppose you're right, aren't you? Well said. Now then, are you just naïve or insanely desperate?"

I looked at him questioningly, "What do you mean?" I said before taking a seat. I was still pretty tired, so I just decided to relax a little.

"Do you honestly believe that Sorrow Curse will hold up to his end of the bargain? He slaughtered countless ponies, performed insane rituals, and tried to kill you. For some reason or another though, you think that he'll actually do what you want. You clearly have less wisdom than I initially thought."

"It's not like I have a fucking choice! You have absolutely no idea what this means to me, so don't condescend when you're completely ignorant on the matter!" I snapped at him, jumping up, "You have no idea-" I froze, feeling my sanity swiftly begin to wane away. A voice spoke to me in my head, "Yes, keep it up, Landon. Fuel me with your anger. Hahahahaha!" I noticed the crimson pegasus giving me a strange look. It was also then that I realized the pegasus had a large sheath on his back.

He reached behind him, and pulled out a very large sword that emitted a gold aura. What the hell is he doing? Does he think I might attack?! I started to say something, but my mirrored self prevented me from doing so, bombarding my mind in an attempt to assume control of me. I collapsed on the ground, holding my head and screaming in agony. The crimson pegasus just stood there, glowing blade at the ready.

I spoke inwardly to my twisted reflection, "Get. The. Fuck. Out of. My mind!" And just like that, my massive headache was gone, and my thoughts were my own again. I looked up at the pegasus, "You're welcome to put that big ass sword away at any time, you know."

He was about to say something, but silently nodded and sheathed his sword strapped to his back once more. Neither of us spoke for a while, as we just sat there in the darkness. He finally decided to break the silence, "So...what just happened to you? I felt another presence, but it was coming directly from you."

"I have an insane side of me that wants to take over my body and kill a bunch of innocent people, to sum it up." I answered flatly.

My response didn't seem to phase him much, however, "I see." Was all he said on the matter. He sighed, and turned around, "I'm sorry to cut this short, but I'm needed elsewhere. I'll be going now. We'll meet again in the near future, Shadow Flash. Remember what I said about Sorrow Curse not being able to be trusted. Farewell." He said before spreading his wings.

"Wait!" I called out, making him stop. He didn't turn around or speak. He waited to hear what I had to say, "What's your name?" I asked.

"Another time." He said before lifting into the air. He took off to the east, and quickly disappeared in the moonless night.

I sighed and picked myself up, "Just another day..." I said to myself before taking off myself. I flew home and crept inside. I trotted upstairs and walked into the bedroom, where Rainbow was already asleep. I got in bed next to her, and she unconsciously wrapped a wrinkled hoof around my chest. I softly grabbed her hoof with my own, and shut my eyes, "Goodnight, Rainbow."
> Denial
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	I cracked my eyes open against my will. As much as I'd like to sleep another five hours, I have to meet up with Twilight for what she called "an important experiment". A massive yawn escaped my mouth as I did my best to get out of bed without waking Rainbow. I quietly made my way out of the room and made my way downstairs. After making my very common breakfast of eggs and hay bacon strips, (Hay bacon moment mother f**ker) I trotted outside and stretched my wings before taking flight in the direction of Canterlot.

I wonder what kind of experiment the good princess has in mind, and why she needs me. This better not involve being a test subject or something. I've learned over the years to never be her test subject, because more than half the time something goes wrong. I sighed as I continued my flight, switching the subject on my mind to my old life, surprisingly. It has been a long time since I thought about my past life as a human.

I don't even remember what I used to look like at this point. As good as my life is here, I do have to admit I had a fairly decent one back then. Yeah I practically hated my dad, but aside from that, I was the talk of the NASCAR community. I had a fair amount of friends, a good education, nice home, and the fans. I'm gonna miss that last part. I always loved the adoration of my fans. Ironic that almost nobody knows of my exploits now. Maybe I'm always destined to be just a shadow.

Looking up, I noticed Canterlot in the distance. I picked up the pace a bit to arrive there a bit faster. When I landed, I pulled my cloak and (recently bought) fake white beard out of my saddlebag, and put it on. As I made my way through the city, not many ponies paid me any attention. I cut through an alley to speed my trip to the palace. Unfortunately and unsurprisingly, it backfired and I soon found myself surrounded by a few street thugs.

One with a mohawk and aluminum bat approached me with a grin on his face, "Looks like you took a wrong turn, pops. Unfortunately, there's a toll on this alley, and I'm here to collect."

"I see," I said in the best raspy voice I could manage, "and how much would this toll be?" Looking around, I counted four goons in all.

"Everything on you, gramps."

"Oh my, that's quite a steep toll. This must be a nice alley with so much upkeep being paid to it." I said as I pulled out a bag full of bits.

The mohawk goon held out his hoof, "Of course. I always respected you elderly, ya know? You guys always know what's best and who's in charge."

I grinned, "You're too kind. Now that you have the toll, may I pass?"

The goon looked inside of the pouch I gave him, making sure it was actual money, "Now I know that this is real money, but unfortunately this isn't exactly a 'legal' operation. I'm afraid we're going to have to make you disappear, gramps." He finished as the four started to surround me.

I started chuckling. At first it was quiet, but it progressively got louder and louder. The goons looked at each other, then at me, "What the hell is so funny, old man? Have you finally gone insane in your old age?"

"Heheh, oh no, nothing of the sort. I was just laughing at the irony. You see, I was really going to let you keep that money so I didn't have to waste time in dealing with you. Now that you're going to assault me, I'm not so inclined to let you leave here conscious anymore."

A vain made itself visible on the mohawk goon's forehead, "You better watch what you say old man!" He yelled before swinging his bat at me. I raised my left foreleg in front of me and caught his bat mid-swing. He tugged at it, but I wasn't letting it budge, "What the hell? Let go!" He yelled as he struggled to get the bat free from my grip.

"As you wish." I said as he pulled with all his might. I let go, and the momentum from his pull made him fall over. The two goons behind me then lunged at me. I ducked and caught their hooves with my own. With a good bit of force, I threw their hooves back into their own faces, knocking them unconscious. The mohawk goon had recovered by now, and swung his bat at me again, expecting different results from his previous attempt. He was right, in a way. This time, instead of catching his bat, I took it from his grip and snapped it in half right in front of him and his friend. His friend panicked and fainted on the spot. The mohawk goon fell back and frantically backed up away from me. Unfortunately for him, he backed up against a wall.

He looked up at me with the obvious fear in his eyes, "Who are you, old man?!" I picked him up and gave him a fierce headbutt, sending him into unconsciousness, "Oh just some old shadow." I said before dropping him on the ground, "Ah, almost forgot." I said as I reached down and picked my bag of coins off of the goon.

As I trotted through the alley, I noticed a homeless stallion staring at me slack jawed at what he just saw. I looked over at him, causing him to flinch, "Please don't hurt me!" He begged.

After a minute of shaking, he looked up, shocked to see a large smile on my face, "How could a little old man like me hurt someone a third my age?" I said before tossing my recovered pouch of money at him. He caught it and looked at the money in his grasp. When he looked back up, I was nowhere to be seen. He rubbed his eyes and looked around. When he saw that the money was still there in front of him, a tear dropped down onto it. I was already around the corner, but I still heard the soft 'thank you' escape from his mouth. That was enough to bring a smile to my face.

I continued down the streets of Canterlot, eventually coming across the palace. I flashed my seal to the guards, who immediately saluted and parted, allowing me entry into the castle. Conveniently enough, Twilight was walking out of one of the many hallways the led to the grand hall. She glanced my way as she entered, and smiled, "Ah, there you are, Shadow. How are you today?"

I continued to stare down and spoke in my old man voice, "My name isn't Shadow, young lady. I'm just some old man." I finished, causing Twilight to roll her eyes, "Your lame disguise may work on the townsfolk, but not me."

I laughed as I removed my beard and cloak, "And here I thought I could fool anybody with this thing. Oh well, I still feel like Gandalf when I wear that beard."

Twilight raised a brow, "Who?"

"Er, nobody important." I quickly said. A thousand years can go by and I still won't forget one of my favorite movies of all time. I coughed, "So, what'd you wanna show me?"

She smiled, "Follow me to my quarters. We need to be secretive about this, because it may or may not 'safe'."

I grinned in response, "You're not thinking of what I think you are, huh?" It took her a while to think about it, but when she got it, she immediately flushed, "I'm already married to Barry, Shadow! And you have Rainbow!"

I laughed, "I know, I know. I'm just messing with you. Lead the way so I can see what you have planned." I said, motioning for her to lead the way. Her face returned to its normal color, and she began walking down one of the many hallways. I followed close behind her, so I didn't get lost in this labyrinth of a castle.

Eventually, we came across a large door, with two guards stationed on each side. They noticed Twilight and saluted. She nodded back to them, and we entered her room. Looking around, the place was furnished with all sorts of expensive looking vases and tapestries. Two dressers faced each other on opposite sides of the room, separated by a large bed with undrawn curtains around it. The lower half of the walls were impossible to see, thanks to the many bookshelves that lined them. Right across from me, a set of glass doors led to a balcony that had an amazing view of the city. Lastly, a door to what I assumed would lead to a bathroom was placed on the left side of the bed.

Twilight closed the door behind her, and I turned to face her, "So where is Barry anyway?" I asked, causing her to shrug, "I think he's just walking around town. He does that often."

I nodded, "Okay then. Well now that we're alone, what did you want to show me?" I asked, making a small smile appear on her face, "I've got a teeeeeny favor I need to ask."

I thought for a moment, then my eyes shot wide, "NO. No way in hell am I being your guinea pig for another spell experiment! The last time I was, it took me a month to regrow my mane!" I finished, covering my head with my legs as if to protect it.

"It's nothing like that! I promise, this one is perfectly safe, and I've already tested it on Spike." She said, attempting to reassure me.

"A pony might not yield the same results as a big ass dragon, ya know. What's this spell supposed to do anyway?"

"If I'm correct, which I'm pretty sure I am, this spell will temporarily morph you into an earth pony." She finished, the glee practically oozing from her.

I raised an eyebrow, "An earth pony? Why the hell would I want to transform into an earth pony?"

"It'd only be temporary; a day at the most. The reason I'm so excited about this is because this a spell of my own creation, in addition to being able to being able to take and give horns. Pleaaaaaase Shadow, will you do this for me?" She asked with ridiculously large eyes.

I groaned. Damnit, who could resist that? I sighed, "Fine, I'll do it. What do you need me to do?"

"You don't have to sound so solemn about it. Don't worry, I'm 99.9% sure this won't go wrong. I just need you to stand right over there." She finished, pointing in front of her.

"I would have preferred a hundred percent, but whatever." I said as I moved to where she directed.

She lowered her head, and her horn started to glow, "Alright, here we go." She said just before a purple beam shot from her horn, enveloping my entire body. I could notice that everything around me was getting bigger, or rather, I was getting smaller! I noticed the spell had worn off, and I stopped shrinking. Twilight raised her head, and immediately cringed. Uh oh, I don't like that look on her face. I better ask what's wrong, "Ribbit."...What the fuck just came out of my mouth?

I looked down at my body. It was green and slimy and...motherfucker! I shot Twilight a death glare, and I didn't have to talk for Twilight for her to get was I was thinking. She held her hooves up, "Don't worry Shadow, I can fix this! Just stand still for a moment." She said before lowering her horn and charging up another spell. I was soon enveloped in another light. I grew slightly larger, but not by a whole bunch.

"Meow?" Goddamnit Twilight! Fucking get it right!

Twilight was starting to panic, "Don't worry! I'll fix this!" She yelled before charging her horn yet again.

"Moooo" TWILIGHT!

Flash*

"Ssssss!" QUIT!

Flash*

"Arf!" FUCKING

Flash*

"STOP!" I yelled. Wait, I yelled? Fucking finally! I'm back to a pony. Wait, what's with that look on Twilight's face? I swallowed, "Uh, Twilight? You okay?" I asked, somewhat lessening Twilight's shocked appearance.

"I'm fine, it's you I'm worried about." She said, looking concerned.

"Me? What are you talking about? I feel fine. You finally morphed me back into a damn pony."

She blushed and looked around, avoiding my face, "Uhh, not exactly." She finished, pointing at a mirror on one of the dressers. I looked at the mirror, and studied myself. With two legs, a torso, two arms complete with hands and fingers, and a head to top it off, I knew exactly what I was,"Oh Twiliiiight?"

She looked up, thankful I wasn't shouting, "Yeah, Shadow?"

"Why the FUCK AM I A GODDAMN HUMAN?!" I bellowed loud enough to cause the guards to knock on the door, "Princess? Is everything alright in there?!"

Twilight covered her ears, "Yeah, everything's fine!"

I probably just made her deaf, but it'd serve her right. I knew this shit was a bad idea, "Now then, Twilight, before I pop any more blood vessels in my forehead, please turn me back into a pony."

"I-I can't." She managed to get out of her mouth.

"Come again?"

"I'm sorry Shadow, but casting that spell even once is pushing it. Casting it all of those times put a large strain on my body. I'm afraid you'll just have to wait until the effects of the spell wear off."

I groaned, "And how long will that be?"

"It shouldn't last any longer than one day."

"At least there's that..."

Twilight looked at me curiously for a moment, "Um, Shadow?"

"What is it?"

"Who is that on your shirt?"

I gave her a confused look and looked down at my shirt (thank God I'm not fucking nude) and noticed I had on my favorite shirt I wore before I died. I also had on a pair of inexpensive blue jeans and white tennis shoes. Looking back at the mirror, I still had the same hair I did before I died. It's dark brown, and the length goes a little past my shoulders. I laughed a little at the nostalgia when I saw my shirt, "It's something that doesn't exist in your world. Technically he doesn't exist in mine, either, but that's a discussion for another time. He's known as Ichigo Kurosaki, and he's a really big hero where he comes from."

"I see, but what is that mask he's wearing? If it weren't for that, he'd look very similar to a human. And to be honest, it's a little scary."

I chuckled a little. I guess it does seem kinda spooky to someone who doesn't know what it is. Him wearing his arrancar mask and being surrounded by black lightning would do that I suppose. "I never really thought about it until now, but he and I are actually alike in a way. That mask he's wearing gives him amazing power. At first, it came with a price. He had to fight his own inner demons, and ultimately emerged victorious. He learned to control that amazing power, and used it to save people. That's where our differences end, however. I couldn't control my power, so I had to destroy it."

Twilight looked sad, then smiled at me, "Maybe it was for the best. It's not like anything too bad has happened since then, right?"

I nodded, "Yeah, you're right. Well now that you've effectively taken my best means of transportation, would you mind teleporting me to the entrance of the Fugiens Mones hideout?"

Twilight blushed in embarrassment, "Yeah, sorry about that again. While morphing you into a different creature would be impossible for me right now, I can still get enough out of my horn to teleport you before I need to pass out on the floor."

"Not to sound like an ass, but you kinda deserve that."

Twilight sighed, "I know...Well, get ready." She said before charging her horn.

I was soon enveloped in a familiar light, and before I knew it, I was right in front of the door to the Sanctuary. I opened the door and took my first step through, "Hey guys, I-WHOA WHAT THE FUCK?!" I yelled after a dagger flew at me and stuck in the wall two inches from my face.

Soarin and Ni flew in front of me, their weapons at the ready, "What the hell are you and how did you get in here?!" Soarin yelled.

I rolled my eyes, "I'm after your Lucky Charms, and- WOULD YOU QUIT THROWING FUCKING DAGGERS NEXT TO MY FACE?!" I bellowed as yet another dagger flew next to me. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down, "Okay, it's me. It's Shadow."

Soarin scoffed, "Yeah, because I believe you! I don't know how you got here, but it's time to say goodbye!" Soarin yelled before flew towards me at incredible speed and kicked me into the air before flying up and slamming me to the ground further in the Sanctuary. I got up and groaned, "Fuck, that hurt. Alright, Soarin. If you wanna play like that..." I said while digging out a couple of my daggers from my saddlebag that was thankfully still on me.

Alright, hopefully I still have all my skills I had as a pony, or this is gonna be a very short fight. Soarin flew at me again, but this time I jumped on top of him as he neared me, and brought my leg down on his head, sending him into the ground. I jumped off just before he did so, but didn't have time to relax as two copies of Ni appeared in front of me. They spread their ridiculously oversized wings and took flight. I jumped as high as I could into the air (which apparently was a good fifty feet) and jammed my daggers into their necks, making them disappear.

Looking down, Soarin and the real Ni flew at me and got on opposite sides of me. They let out a barrage of blows which I had trouble keeping up with. Only thanks to my incredible agility was I able to block or dodge their attacks. Deciding it was time to go on the counterattack, I turned towards Soarin and locked my legs around his throat, then did a backflip, slamming his head into Ni's, and sending them both to the ground.

I landed next to them as they quickly got out of the small crater I created with them, "Now if you guys will just calm the fuck down, I can explain things!"

"We have nothing to listen to." Soarin said as his armor began to appear on him. Looking at Ni, his was too.

Ohhhh fuck. This doesn't look good, and I can't even use my damn armor since it's tailored to a fucking pony. The combo in front of me started building up their power, and the entire place started shaking. Cracks started appearing in the ground and walls as their auras started to become visible. Soarin shoved his forehooves in the ground, and with hardly any effort at all, he pulled out what must have been a two ton boulder. Ni started multiplying off the fucking charts like he was a couple of rabbits. Then everything was still.

I coughed, "So uh...you can keep your Lucky Charms." I said with a bad poker face. They immediately charged at me, and I braced myself. Out of nowhere, however, an orange blur got between us and knocked Soarin and Ni to the wall a good forty feet away.

Soarin looked up, "What the hell, Spitfire?! Why'd you protect that guy?!"

Spitfire facehoofed, "That guy is Shadow, you idiots."

Soarin and Ni looked at each other, then at Spitfire, then at me, "HUH?!" They yelled in unison.

"I told you assholes I was Shadow!" I yelled from behind Spitfire, who looked at me with an annoyed look, making me shrink away.

Spitfire then glared at Soarin and Ni, "You two get over here and clean this mess up."

The two groaned, "Why the hell do we have to clean this up?!" Soarin complained.

"Because you're the idiot who tore a huge chunk of rock out of the ground. And Ni because you helped him."

I laughed, "Serves you jackasses right!"

Spitfire looked at me, "I'm not sure why you're laughing, Shadow, because you're helping them."

"But...I...they...okay..." I sighed in defeat.

Spitfire nodded, "Good. You all have one hour to get this place cleaned up. Princess Luna is coming by in a few hours and I want this place to look nice and neat. She said before flying off, leaving the three of us to do our work.

We all groaned and found a broom. I looked over at Ni and Soarin as we started to sweep the place up, "Jackasses." I said before rolling my eyes.

"Hey, you should have said something." Soarin replied like he really believed what he was saying.

"...I might murder you anyway." I said before letting out a breath, "Whatever. Let's just get this mess cleaned up so Spitfire doesn't tear our nuts out."

Ni and Soarin cringed, then nodded before getting to work. Once Soarin got the large hole in the ground plugged up, Ni looked at me, "So this is what you looked like before coming here, huh?"

I shrugged, "Right before I came here, I imagine that a bone or ten might have disintegrated. Thankfully I have my bones intact."

"That's right. You died once, didn't you?"

I nodded, "Sure did." I replied as I continued sweeping around the place.

Ni rubbed his chin, "So what was it like? It must've sucked, huh?"

I stared at him, "No Ni, dying doesn't suck at all. It was so fun, that I might just pick a fight with Spitfire to prove to you how much fun it is. All joking aside though, yes. Dying does in fact suck. At least the way I died did. Getting crushed wasn't necessarily my ideal way to go."

He held his forelegs up defensively, "Alright, alright. I get it. Don't get crushed in the near future."

When he said that, I couldn't help but glance at Soarin and the newly filled hole from which he pulled a boulder from. Wow, getting crushed must be a thing for me.

We soon finished our job, and I decided to head on out. I got to the stairs before realizing one thing: I couldn't fly. I face palmed, "Son of a bitch, how am I supposed to get home now?" I said aloud.

Just before Ni could say something, there was a flash of light, and Princess Luna soon emerged from it. The light soon vanished, and she glanced over at me for a moment. I gave a sheepish smile, "I-"

"Don't even want to know, Shadow." She said, cutting me off and making me slightly surprised she knew it was me. She cleared her throat and continued, "Anyway, we are here for a different reason."

"And what would that be, Princess?" Soarin asked as he trotted over with Ni.

"We have a mission for you. Not just any mission, however, but a joint operation between you all four main squads of the Fugiens Mones." When she finished, the mood in the room turned dead serious.

Soarin spoke up, "There hasn't been a joint mission like this since-"

"Since before the Fugiens Mones were driven into hiding over a thousand years ago; when the Mones were assassinating foreign leaders left and right. The only two remaining members of the Fugiens Mones that remember this are yourself and Spitfire." Princess Luna finished, looking at Soarin.

Soarin rubbed his chin, "So if there's going to be a joint op on this scale, this has to be a mission where the very existence of Equestria is threatened..."

Princess Luna nodded solemnly, "Unfortunately, you are correct. If this mission fails, Equestria itself may be destroyed."

"Alright, so what's the mission?" I asked, wondering how something could pose such a threat to Equestria.

"That will need to wait until all members of the squads are assembled here. The archers will have returned here from their mission in three days. Once they get back, you will all get your briefing. I just came by to inform you ahead of time."

My curiosity peaked, "So I finally get to meet the archer squad? It's about time. It has been fifty years, after all."

Princess Luna gave a ghost of a smile, "That's because the archers go on twice as many missions as any of the other squads. Their skills are quite useful for many missions."

"I have to admit though, I'm curious about the somewhat newly promoted captain of the archers." Ni said.

"You'll get to meet him soon enough. Now that our business is concluded, we shall be returning to Canterlot." Princess Luna said before charging her horn.

"Wait!" I called out, making her look at me. I gave a sheepish smile, "Well, I don't exactly have wings right now. Do you think it's possible that you could teleport me to Ponyville?"

Princess Luna covered her mouth to stifle a giggle, "Very well. Here we go." She said before aiming her horn at me. I was soon enough engulfed in a light. When it vanished, I saw that I was right in front of the Ponyville Library. I should be able to stay the night here tonight, thanks to the inability of me not having wings to get home. Plus, Twilight still runs this library and visits it often, so it should be okay with her if I stay over.

Ready to just get the day over with, I started towards the door. Just before I got my hand on the handle, I was tackled to the ground by a mint-green blur, "Ow, damnit Viola, just because you share your grandmother's obsession with humans doesn't mean you have to tackle me to the ground."

The spitting image of Lyra (save for the cutie mark which was what you'd expect it to be) thought for a moment, "Wait, is that you, Shadow?"

"Yes it is. Now as much fun I'm having with you crushing me, I'd appreciate it if you'd get off."

Viola blushed and smiled before helping me up, "Sorry, Shadow. I just saw a human and completely lost it. Speaking of which, why are you a human?"

"Well, you already know that I was once a human, so that simplifies things at least a little. Anyway, long story short, our wise Princess Twilight Sparkle decided to do an experimental spell on me, resulting in this." I finished as I motioned towards myself.

"Oh. Well, would you let me make it up to you?"

"No thanks. I'm pretty sure examining me isn't an apology for tackling me to the ground."

"Awwww, pleeeeeease?" She begged with the largest eyes I've seen since the CMC.

"...Fine. But you don't get to take my shirt off."

Viola huffed, "Fiiine." But she immediately smiled again and grabbed my arm, "Let's go!" She yelled before taking off the speed of light. Before I knew it, I was on her couch with her examining me with a magnifying glass. I just sat there awkwardly while she inspected every inch of my arms and face. I soon felt something off, and noticed she was sneakily trying to raise my shirt up.

I pulled my shirt down quickly, "No Viola. I told you that the shirt stays on, along with the rest of my clothes. Besides, I have a wife." I finished with a grin.

Her cheeks immediately went solid red, "Sh-Shut up! This is all for scientific reasons!"

I laughed, "I know, I know. I'm just messing with you. Speaking of which, are you done yet?"

Viola sighed, "I guess, although I really want to examine you more thoroughly."

"You know, the first time I met your grandmother, I was freaking out as she dragged me into her house against my will." I mused aloud.

The mint green unicorn chuckled, "Yeah, Grandma Lyra told me about that. If she hadn't, I probably would have dragged you off the same way when I saw you earlier."

I mentally cringed, "Yeah, thankfully you know more restraint than she did." I said before we both shared a laugh.

Viola sighed, "I miss her a lot." She said before looking at me, "How do you do it?"

"Do what?" I replied.

"How do you live, knowing that everyone you know will eventually die?"

I sighed, "That's just the thing Viola, I don't. I'm scared shitless every day of my life, worrying that it might be the day somebody close to me will die."

"But how do you-"

"Act so normal all the time? I have to. If I always look like I'm on the edge of a mental breakdown, then it won't just affect me, but the ones I care about."

Viola looked at me with sympathy, and placed a foreleg on my shoulder. That did it for me, and I completely broke down in front of her, sobbing uncontrollably into her shoulder as she held me, "I hate living like this, Viola! I fucking hate it so much! I'm so terrified when I wake up that that very same day might be the day when Rainbow dies! It eats at me every single day, and the worst part is that I can't even kill myself thanks to a stupid fucking potion!"

Smack*

I held my face in stunned silence as I looked at Viola, who also had tears in her eyes. Her expression softened a bit, "I'm sorry, but please don't talk like that. You may not know this, but two years ago my brother committed suicide after his marefriend of ten years died from an illness."

My hand slowly lowered back down to my side, "Viola..."

A tear rolled down her cheek, "It devastated my family. Before his marefriend died, and when we lived in Manehattan, he had always put on such a strong face for her. I'm sure she saw through it, because I could as well. After her funeral, my brother, Guilty Heart, locked himself in his room for days. One night I decided to pick the lock to his door to talk to him. When I got in, I found him sitting on the edge of his window, looking at the hundred feet to the ground. When I called his name, he turned around and mouthed four words. As soon as they left his mouth, he jumped."

Viola held back her tears and looked at me, "Do you know what those four words were?"

I shook my head and she finished her sentence, "I hope you'll understand." She said before the tears freely streamed down her face. She looked up at me, "I don't understand. I never did and I never will understand! I know it's painful to lose a loved one, but I don't see why taking your own life would solve anything! Death is a natural part of life, and not accepting that will only result in a horrible case of denial. Just because somepony is physically gone from the world, that doesn't mean they've vanished altogether. That's what memories are for." She finished as she looked at me, "You have to be prepared, Shadow. If you aren't, then I can tell you that it will destroy you."

I looked down, causing my hair to cast a shadow over my face, "I appreciate the talk, Viola. I'll see you later." I said before walking to the door.

"Shadow..."

BOOM*

I jumped slightly, then sighed. That was thunder, which means it's probably now storming outside. Viola walked up beside me, "I completely forgot that it was supposed to storm today. Sorry about that, Shadow. You can stay on the couch if you'd like."

"Yeah...thanks..." I said as I made my way back to the couch and made myself comfortable.

"Well...goodnight, Shadow. I'm off to bed as well."

" 'Night.." I said before shutting my eyes. Viola's full of shit. Why should I have to accept death as an inevitability when I'm immortal? I just need to collect a few things, and I'll have saved Rainbow.

Thoughts like that crossed my mind all night long, but the worst of it was that in the back of my mind, I knew Viola was right.
> Useful Idiot
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	I slowly cracked my eyes open from a rough sleep on a couch. I let a deep yawn escape my mouth as I rose from the uncomfortable couch that Viola let me sleep on.I should at least thank her later, but I'm pretty sure she's still asleep. I'll do it another time. As I stood, I noticed that I had hooves in the place of hands, and felt relieved Twilight was correct that the spell would last only one day. I made my way over to the door, and entered the quiet streets of Ponyville. Noticing that the sun was just now starting to rise, it made sense that things were so calm right now.

Figuring I'd start my day off a tad early, I lifted off of the ground and took off in the direction of Cloudsdale. Thinking of what I should do for the day, my thoughts drifted towards Princess Luna informing me and everyone else about a joint op with the rest of the Mones. Just thinking of something dangerous enough that threatens all of Equestria, and requires the entirety of the Fugiens Mones to deal with sends a chill down my spine. Sure, the last big threat to Equestria required three squads of us, but the archers are supposedly just as strong as the assassins, and I even heard of their captain being just as strong as Spitfire. Now that scares the shit out of me. Not just that there could be two Spitfires, but the fact that it would take two of them to face a single threat scares the shit out of me.

I guess that could be both good and bad news. Yeah, this threat could take two Spitfires, but at the same time, whatever the threat is gets to have the shit kicked out of it by two Spitfires. Now that's a sight I'd like to see. If the archer captain likes to hit me as much as Spitfire though, then I'd rather the destruction of Equestria. Getting punched with the force of a battering ram almost every other day is really starting to take its toll on me.

I continued along in my flight, with my thoughts shifting back and forth from the mission briefing in two days, to when and if I'd ever get my cutie mark. I know that they aren't that important, but c'mon, it has been fifty years. I wonder if-

“Shadow Flash.” A voice called out.

I froze mid-flight, “Who's there?” I asked, looking for the source of the voice.

Answering my question, a white light blinded me momentarily. When my vision was regained, I was face to face with Princess Celestia. I tilted my head a bit, “Princess Celestia? Why are you here?”

“I am here to ask a favor of you, Shadow Flash.” She said in a serious tone.

Feeling that she wasn't in a joking mood, I got serious, “What's the favor?”

“I realize that you only have to answer to my sister, but I need your help for a very important matter. I will go ahead and get to the point. As you may or may not be aware, Equestria was founded after the overthrowing of Discord when he was a tyrant. To make it official, those who founded the country created a document stating the creation of the country. It was then enchanted with the power of the elements of harmony themselves in order to make sure that even if Discord were to return, he would never again reach his full power. I come to you today Shadow Flash because that very same document is in danger of being destroyed.”

I raised an eyebrow, “And how would a document this old and important come to be in danger?”

The princess sighed, “The cause eludes me as well. The document, according to my agents, is in possession of a few Discordian Cultists, who hope to destroy the document, thus allowing Discord to regain his full power.”

“Wait, didn't Discord agree to not be evil anymore or something like that?” I asked, slightly confused.

Celestia nodded, “Indeed he did, but I fear the temptation of this opportunity would be too great for him to resist.”

I sighed, “Alright, where is the document now? I'll get one of my team to come with me and retrieve the document before I set out.”

She nodded, “Very well. The document is being held in a secret hideout, within the sewers of Canterlot. Normally I'd just send in royal guards after it, but I fear harm would befall them if I did. That is why you are a perfect candidate for this mission, seeing as how strong you are. I wish you luck in your mission, Shadow Flash. Before I go, however, take care not to harm the cultists too much. They have yet to actually harm another pony, but I just want to be on the safe side by sending you.”

“Sure thing. Just count on me and I'll have your Declaration of Independence back to you in no time.”

Celestia smiled and nodded, then flashed out of existence, leaving me alone in the open sky. Well, it looks like I now have something to do today. Deciding not to waste time, I flew at a brisk pace and arrived at Cloudsdale within another ten minutes or so. I made my way through the city with my disguise, and soon arrived at the sanctuary. Looking around, Ni appeared to be the only one present, and he was asleep with his head on the Round Table.

With a devious smile spreading across my face, I crept up next to him and slightly tapped my hoof against his cheek. He swatted it away with a light groan before continuing to snore. I did it again, and in response, he swatted my hoof away again, this time with a louder groan and a bit more force. Deciding that once more would be enough, I did it again to achieve my desired effect. This time he punched the spot where my hoof was so hard, it knocked him out of his chair. I fell to the ground right next to him with tears in my eyes from laughter.

Ni just lay there while holding his face and glaring at me, not needing to say anything as the death threats were quite evident in his eyes. I laughed a bit more before picking myself up and clearing my throat, “Haha, so how was that nap, Ni?”

He groaned as he got up, “It was fine until you made me punch myself in the face, jackass.”

“C'mon, you gotta admit that was a good one.” I said, barely containing myself from another outburst of laughter.

“Say another word about this and I'll make you disappear.”

I held my hooves up with a grin still on my face, “Alright, alright. No more.”

“Good. Now what do you want?”

“Feel like helping me out a bit?” I asked, hoping he wouldn't hold what just happened against me.

Ni shrugged, “That depends, what is it? Besides, I may not feel like helping you after what you just pulled.”

“Princess Celestia asked me for a favor, and I figure you'd be good backup. The document officially declaring Equestria an independent nation from Discord was stolen and is being held by a few cultists. If they destroy it, Discord will be able to reach his full power, and might not feel inclined to remain an ally anymore. It's being held at a hideout in the sewers of Canterlot.”

Ni raised a brow, “Really? As I recall, that is one of the most heavily guarded objects in Equestria. Are you sure you heard right?”

I nodded, “Yeah, I'm positive. I don't have the imagination to make something like that up.”

Ni nodded in response, “I'm tempted to disagree on that. Whatever, I guess I'll help you. You'll owe me though, especially after earlier.”

I laughed, “Alright, fair enough. Let's get going to re-steal the Declaration of Independence.” I said as I headed over to the exit.

Ni quickly followed suit and soon enough, we were in the air and flying towards Canterlot. Ni looked over at me, “So how long do we have? Do you know?”

I shrugged, “I'm not sure, but I'm guessing a few hours until their unicorns are able to destroy the document.”

“Alright, that gives us a bit of time. It should take about another thirty minutes to reach Canterlot, and then we can just hurry from there. Do you know anything about these cultists, by the way?”

I shook my head, “Not much, unfortunately. Supposedly, according to Princess Celestia, they haven't actually harmed another pony in any way. For that reason she asked that there be no killing, no matter how dangerous things get.”

Ni shrugged, “I can't complain. It's been to long since I've had a mission that didn't involve death.”

I nodded in agreement, “Definitely. If only more missions could be like this...”

“That aside, is there anything else you can tell me about them?”

I shook my head, “Afraid not. We'll just have to settle for having little information.”

“Yeah, these guys must be pretty secretive if I've never heard of them.”

With that, Ni and I were left to our own thoughts as we continued to Canterlot.

I wonder what's in store for the two of us at this place. Hopefully they aren't anything like the necromancers. Hopefully I never have to fight against those guys again. It's a relief that I haven't heard anything from them since I killed Sorrow Curse (Excluding Sorrow Curse himself, of course). Princess Celestia did say they haven't harmed anyone yet, so that's a plus, at least.

“Alright,” Ni said, dragging me from my thoughts, “we're here. Where to now?”

“I guess just the closest sewer entrance.”

“Okay. I see one down there. Let's move.” Ni said before descending onto an uncrowded street.

I followed Ni down to the street, where we landed next to a manhole that was covered up. I moved the top aside, and we entered the sewer before I placed the cover back on the hole.

“Ugh, it smells so bad in here, and I can't see a thing. Where's Blaze when you need her...” Ni complained.

“It wouldn't be much of a sewer if it didn't smell bad. I think I see torchlight up ahead anyway, so lets go.” I said before making my way to the light in the distance, careful to stay on the walkway and not to fall in the sewage that divides the two paths.

“Do you have any idea where to start at, at least?” Ni asked.

“Follow the torches. I'm pretty sure there shouldn't be torches down here, so we could start by following them.”

“I guess so. Lead the way.”

I took the lead, and led us to the first torch, which was the marker of a T intersection. Looking left and right, I saw torchlight on my left, so I took the turn and went along the path.

“So,” Ni started, “do you think if given the opportunity, would Discord really attempt to conquer Equestria again?”

I shrugged, “I can't say for sure. I'd like to say no, but I've got my doubts. There's no guarantee that an all powerful spirit wouldn't jump at such an opportunity, but I also don't think that after fifty or so years of living peacefully, he'd turn on us. Hopefully we reach the document in time, and this won't even be an issue anymore. Wait, do you hear that?” I quickly finished, looking at Ni.

Ni paused for a moment, then nodded, “Yeah, I can. It sounds like voices. Lets move closer.” Ni whispered.

The two of us crept closer to a four-way intersection, and slowly poked our heads around the corner. We saw two figures sitting at a torch lit table. It must be a checkpoint. Listening in, we could make out what they were saying, “...o fish. So why do you think she sent us down here of all places?” One figure said.

“I'm not sure. It smells terrible down here. Maybe somepony is supposed to know about what's down here?”

“That makes sense I guess. But how would somepony know what we have down here?”

“I couldn't tell you. We only have an hour left anyway, and then it's all over.”

I looked at Ni, who nodded back at me.

“Remember, no killing.” I whispered.

Ni nodded, and we lifted up to the ceiling. We quietly made our way to the guards at the checkpoint, who were too busy with their game and talking to notice us. Ni and I nodded to each other, and we dropped down on top of the two guards. We both put them in a sleeper hold, and quickly sent them into unconsciousness.

We dropped them and Ni spoke up, “Alright, lets keep going. Where's the next torch?”

I looked into the distance, and spotted a faint light coming from another intersection. I pointed in the same direction, “Over there. Lets move.”

We began along the path again when Ni spoke, “Those guys didn't seem all that bad to me.”

I shrugged, “They were talking about how it's all going to be over in an hour, and also mentioned a she. Do you think they were talking about their leader?”

“It's possible. Well, if we only have an hour, we'd better get moving.”

I nodded, and we picked up our pace. For a good twenty minutes, we just went from checkpoint to checkpoint, silencing any guards along the way.

We soon reached a large iron door with torches on either side of it. Ni looked at me, “You think this is it?” He asked.

I nodded, “It has to be. Either that or it's just a door that leads to another tunnel.”

I slowly pushed open the door, making it give something that resembled a death scream every inch of the way until it was wide open. Ni and I trotted through the door, only to have the door slam shut behind us, leaving us in a pitch black room.  The darkness was only temporary, however, as torches lit up one at a time. This revealed an unusually large dome shaped room.

I was looking around the room when something in the middle caught my eye. I nudged Ni, “Hey, Ni, is that the declaration on the pedestal over there?” I asked, pointing towards an old parchment atop a four or five foot pedestal.

“It looks that way. Where are the guards, though? Didn't you say that there would be some unicorns here or something, attempting to destroy the declaration?”

I shrugged, “That's what I was told. Ah well, let's go get the document.”

“What if it's booby trapped?” Ni said, grabbing my shoulder.

“Meh, YOLO.”

“I don't even know what that means, but for some reason I have an irresistible urge to snap your neck.”

I chuckled, “That just means you're sane. Now I'm going to grab the declaration.” I replied before lifting off of the ground, and flying over to the pedestal. Ni sighed and did the same, and we were soon hovering right in front of the Equestrian Declaration of Independence.

I reached out for the parchment, but just before I grabbed it, however, a yellowish forcefield appeared around it. I rapidly drew my hoof back, because the forcefield itself must have been hot enough to melt steel.

“It's good to see that you two made it this far.” A woman's voice echoed throughout the room, causing Ni and I to immediately scan for its source.

“Who's out there?!” Ni demanded.

“Yes, so many possibilities, aren't there?” The voice said in a condescending tone.

I thought for a moment, “That voice....Princess Celestia?”

A bright light shined above Ni and myself, outlining the silhouette of what could only be an alicorn. The light dissipated, revealing none other than the ruler of Equestria herself, Princess Celestia.

“What the hell, Princess?!” I exclaimed, “What is this about?!”

The princess chuckled, “Oh Shadow Flash, this was all a trap. Did neither you nor your friend Ni figure that out? I must say, I'm disappointed in you.”

“So wait, the Equestrian Declaration of Independence isn't real? And what do you mean by 'trap'?”

“Oh, the Equestrian Declaration is quite real, I assure you. What lies beneath that barrier is the real thing. As for a trap, I intend to kill you. You as well.” She finished, looking at Ni.

“Why do you want to kill us?” I asked, completely confused.

“Why else? With my sister's precious Fugiens Mones, I have no real power anymore. With her 'ultimate fighting force', my sister has all of the real power, and could usurp me at any given moment. I have no intention of letting that happen. I'm sure if more than two squads of you were to attack me I would no doubt fall. This is why I'm relying on preemptive strike. When you two go missing, nopony will suspect a thing.” She finished with an evil grin.

Ni glared at the princess, “What if I think you aren't really Princess Celestia? What if I think you're some sort of impostor like a changeling?!”

Princess Celestia smiled, “You're free to believe what you wish, but your fate will be the same no matter what. Now....DIE!” She screamed as a wave of magic erupted from her horn and slammed Ni and I to the ground.

It honestly felt like I was getting crushed by gravity. Honestly, what is it with me and getting crushed? Unfortunately, I'll have to think about that another time if I want to get out of here alive.

I struggled with all of my might, but found it impossible to move. Looking over at Ni, it appeared he was having the same problem as well. He nodded to me, and I did the same, knowing what he wanted to do. Using all of his strength, Ni opened his saddlebag with his teeth, and shoved his head into it. When his head emerged, he was wearing his helmet, which completed his set of pitch black royal guard armor. He let out a battle cry that shook the ground, and made two copies of himself which appeared to have split from the real Ni. Before Celestia could do anything about it, Ni had broken free from the spell, and charged at the hovering alicorn above us.

Celestia and Ni's two copies collided in the air. The two, or four I guess I should say, appeared to be an even match. Ni's speed and clones were being negated by Celestia's powerful magic. Every time Ni or a copy would manage to get behind Celestia, her horn would flare up and shoot Ni back.

Deciding that it was time to join the fight, I concentrated and activated my armor's power. Within seconds, I had the strength to break free from the gravity spell that was holding me down. To the untrained eye, it would appear that I completely vanished. If that same untrained eye were to look around, it would see that I was face to face with Celestia, and slamming both of my forehooves (which includes the hard as hell prosthetic) on her head, rocketing her into the ground.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem to do the trick, as Celestia swiftly rose from the miniature crater that had been formed. She flew back up to meet us, but before she could, a pair of hooves appeared out of the dust cloud that was created and grabbed Celestia's hind legs. The hooves then slammed Celestia back into the ground. The copy of Ni then flew out of the dust cloud and slammed his hooves down on Celestia's back, receiving a loud crack* in response.

Feeling that the fight was finished, Ni and I switched off our powers, and descended to the ground in front of Celestia, who was unmoving.

I looked at Ni with a puzzled look, “Uh, Ni? Dafuq just happened?”

Before Ni could answer, a low, deep chuckle came from Celestia. She began to rise as the wounds on her body began to close up. She looked down on Ni and myself with a smile, “Oh my, I must say that this has been quite entertaining.” Celestia said in a voice that didn't sound like hers at all. In fact, it kinda sounded like-

“Discord?!” Ni finished my thought aloud.

“In another pony's flesh.” Celes- err, Discord replied with a bow. He then morphed into his original form before continuing, “Now I know you two are probably confused as to what just happened, so I shall endeavor to explain things to you."

"Yeah, please do, because my head is about to explode right now." I said as I glared at Discord.

Discord chuckled before explaining, "You see, things have just been soooo boring lately. Pranking Celestia is getting old, and frankly I feel that she's getting close to following through with her promises of sending me to the moon. So naturally, I needed to find another source of entertainment. With my genius mind, I soon devised a plan that was sure to amuse me. All it required was stealing Equestria's Declaration of Independence, and putting the higher-ups in a panic. That last part is just a bonus, by the way.”

Discord took what had to be a thirty second inhale before continuing. I mean his body inflated like a damn balloon, “That was just a bonus, however, as my real plan involved Lulu's precious Fugiens Mones. I picked out the one that would be the most fun to mess with, which would be you, Shadow Flash. I then took Princess Celestia's form and instructed several dozen royal guards to remain on high alert in the sewers of Canterlot under the pretense that somepony was going to attempt a robbery on the treasury, which, by the way, is somewhere in these sewers. I told them to wear robes because they were less likely to get, well, you-know-what on their coats while stationed in the sewers. That also explains why I asked you not to kill them. I imagine things would have gotten pretty awkward if you had. Well, once I had everything set up, I went to you, Shadow, and informed you of my little mission. Once you entered the sewers with your friend, I kept my eye on you, laughing every step of the way. Although some of these things may not appear funny to the average eye, they are to me. Especially so because I can read your thoughts. You should know, Shadow, that Ni is now planning to dunk your head in the sewage for revenge about earlier.”

I gave a sharp look at Ni, who held his hooves up in a shrug, “Hey, don't look at me. You started this.”

I continued glaring at Ni, “If you don't want sewage in your bed, I suggest that you not attempt what you're thinking.”

Ni just smiled and looked away while whistling in response, making me weary of what he plans to do. Discord just chuckled and snapped his griffin claws in what appeared to be a moment of realization, “I almost forgot!” Discord said as he levitated over to the Equestrian Declaration of Independence. The spell that protected the document had apparently vanished sometime during this conversation, as there was no longer any sign of a barrier. Discord grabbed the document and levitated back down to Ni and myself, “Here you are.” Discord said as he held out the Declaration to me.

I gave him a questioning look, “Why are you giving this to me?”

“If you take this document, then you'll get your cutie mark.” Discord replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

“Really?! Sweet! I bet it's something like a quill and parchment or a blade or something if I get it now!”

Discord snickered, but I ignored it as I snatched the document from him. As soon as I did, Discord burst out laughing and began rolling around on the floor. I looked at him strangely, “What? Did I not get my cutie mark or something? Did you just lie to me?”

Discord began tearing up and just shook his head before pointing to my flank. I moved part of the armor that covered my flank, curious as to what he could be talking about. As I lifted it, I began to make out a figure. Oh shit! It's my cutie mark! I hurriedly removed the armor in excitement before going completely motionless. I stared at my cutie mark for what must have been an hour with a completely blank expression.

Ni began to get a little worried and stepped over, “Uh, Shadow? You okay?”

“why?” I mumbled something to Ni.

“What was that?” He asked.

“....why?”

“One more time?”

“WHY IS NIC CAGE MY GODDAMN CUTIE MARK?!” I bellowed, probably loud enough to be heard by all Equestria.

Discord once more fell out into laughter, and I rushed over to him, “DISCORD! YOU KNEW DIDN'T YOU?! YOU FUCKING KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN!” I screamed as Discord continued to laugh.

I raised my hoof as if meaning to strike him, but I just sighed and turned around towards the exit, “Whatever....I think I'll go drown out my sorrows with some alcohol now...”

Before I could make it to the exit, however, I felt something being placed in my saddlebag, along with Discord's voice whispering in my ear, “Wait until you are alone to look at what I've given you.”

I continued standing still a moment longer before making my way out of the sewers without Ni. I'm sure he can manage not to get lost....hopefully, anyhow.

Once out into the streets of Canterlot, I spread my wings and lifted off the ground. I flew back towards Ponyville, and towards my home. Once I made it home, I looked inside my saddlebag. Inside it was a gift box with “From: Your best friend Discord” on it. I groaned as I glanced at my cutie mark of Nic Cage's smiling head. I temporarily shoved the thought aside as I opened the box. Inside it contained what looked like part of an antler. Is this Discord's?

I then felt the book, Forbidden Magic...call to me, along with Sorrow Curse's voice, “The piece of a spirit. One of the three ingredients needed for my potion. It seems that Discord favors you, Shadow Flash. Luck is on your side, as you now only have two ingredients to go.”

'Great. One extremely rare ingredient down, two to go. And I'm even willing to bet that the third I don't know about risks my life in some way.' I thought back. All I got in response was a sinister chuckle.

“Well, it's a start I suppose. I need a nap...” I said before covering the box back up.

Meanwhile, over the dragon lands:

“No.” A mare's voice said.

“Are we there yet?” A stallion's voice asked.

“No.”

“Are we there yet?”

“No!”

“Are we there yet?”

“So help me Luna, Orange Crest, if you don't shut up right now, I'm going to-”

“Both of you, shut up! This trip back to Canterlot is long enough without you two pestering each other the entire way home! Now please, we are almost always on a mission, and I'd like to just get a little quiet...” A third voice belonging to a stallion yelled.

“....So are we there yet, Death?”

“THAT'S IT, YOU'RE DEAD!” The mare yelled before charging at her friend.
> The Gathering Storm
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

So before let you guys get to the chapter, I'd like to once again apologize for the long overdue wait. I've never been so busy in my life ;-; Well now that I got that outta the way, please enjoy this chapter. Also, a part in this chapter is kinda dark, but that's what the tag is for :P

I tossed and turned throughout the night, unable to get any sleep. I glanced at the clock, and saw that it was barely three in the morning. Fuck it. I can't sleep, so I may as well just fly around to stretch my wings a bit.

I once again slid out of bed, careful not to wake Rainbow, and made my way outside. I didn't bother with my disguise, seeing as how it's still at least three hours until the sun rises. I closed my eyes and adjusted myself to the cool night air before spreading my wings and taking off. 

Not exactly having a specific destination in mind, I just lazily flew towards the Everfree Forest. My thoughts during this time alternated between my anxiety for the upcoming meeting with all members of the Fugiens Mones, my search for the ingredients of an immortality potion, and my anguish that Nicolas Cage's face was forever plastered on my flank. I mean seriously; after over fifty years of doing all of this badass stuff for a secret organization, my cutie mark ends up being Nic Cage because I had to attempt to steal The Declaration of Independence. How the hell do cutie marks even work for that matter? I'm almost positive Nic Cage isn't part of this world, so.....I'm just gonna stop now before I break myself, much like the time when I snapped from the dreaded functions of cloud.

As I flew, lost in my thoughts, I came to realize that I somehow had ended up deep in the Everfree Forest. I looked around, trying to figure out exactly where in the forest I was. Unfortunately, there was no kind of distinctive landmark to help me get my bearings, “Well......shit.” I said aloud.

Deciding that staying in the same place would get me nowhere, I simply picked a direction and started flying. I sighed, “Great, now I'm lost. Hopefully I'm heading the right way back to Ponyville. I doubt I'm that lucky, but who knows?” I said aloud to myself, hoping to keep my spirits up.

About two hours later, the sun was beginning to rise over the horizon. Before yelling in frustration, I finally found what I was looking for – the edge of the forest, “Finally. It took a lot longer to get out of here than it did to get in.” I said in relief.

“Wait a second....this doesn't look like the area around Ponyville. There's too much sand.....Did I just end up where I think I did?” I took a closer look around the area and slumped, “I just flew south instead of west. Son of a bitch! I just ended up near Dodge Junction!”

“Excuse me, but did you say this is the area near Dodge Junction?” A voice next to me asked. I looked up to see a pegasus with a hood pulled over his head.

“Yeah, I'm pretty sure anyway. Who are you, exactly?”

“Ah, right, the hood. I can see how that's kinda weird.” The pony said before taking the hood off. His bright orange and silver striped mane landed in front of his eyes. He swept it to the side and continued, “Name's Orange Crest. What's yours?” The white coated pegasus said as he extended his left foreleg with a smile.

“Shadow Flash.” I said, shaking his left forehoof with my right one.

“Shadow Flash, huh? Now where have I heard that name before....aha! That's the name of a former Wonderbolt!”

Oh fuck, why did I have to open my big mouth? Orange Crest thought for a second before continuing, “Yeah, you definitely look too young to actually be the Shadow Flash. Did your parents name you after him or something?”

Well, at least he doesn't know about immortality. I smiled, “Yeah, my parents named me after him in hopes the name would make me a strong flier.”

“That's pretty cool. By the way, I hope this isn't too personal, but I noticed that your right foreleg is made of some kind of metal. Is that the new magi-technology I keep hearing so much about?”

I looked at my prosthetic leg and spoke, “Yeah, it is. I lost it in an accident a long time ago. What about you? What happened to you?” I asked, trying to change the subject.

Orange Crest looked confused, “What do you mean?”

I smirked and pointed towards his eye. His black eye to be more precise. He coughed and looked around like he was too embarrassed to say, “I, uh...got it from a friend of mine.”

“Oh....well...so why did you want to know that this was near Dodge Junction?” I asked, changing the subject.

Orange Crest perked up at this, “Well, I've been away from home for a really long time. I was making my way to Cloudsdale to visit my family. Now that I know I'm in Dodge Junction, it shouldn't be too long until I'm home again.”

“That's cool. I know what it's like to miss home. Before you go, I've got a question to ask.”

Orange Crest raised an eyebrow, “What might that be?”

“You think I could come with you to Cloudsdale? I've got business there, and it wouldn't hurt to have a bit of company.”

Orange Crest smiled, “I don't mind at all! Traveling alone is always boring. Having someone to talk to always passes the time more quickly. C'mon, let's go!” Orange Crest said before flying off to the northwest. I quickly followed suit, and quickly caught up to him.

It didn't take long for the conversation to rekindle, as Orange Crest spoke up, “So, where are you from Shadow?”

“I'm from Cloudsdale, same as you. I live in Ponyville though.”

“That's cool. What about your career? What might you do for a living?”

“I'm...uh, part of the Ponyville Watch.”

“Protecting others, eh? Not a bad profession at all. I don't really have a profession myself. I'm more of a traveler, just visiting different lands all the time, and doing odd jobs here and there to make enough money to eat.”

I nodded, “That's pretty interesting. Earlier you said your friend gave you that black eye. Does that mean you weren't traveling alone?” I asked, curious if Orange Crest had any more companions.

Orange Crest smiled, “That's right. There's four of us. I'm not with them because uh, they wanted me to go on ahead without them. One of them thought I was getting a little 'too' annoying and gave me this black eye. That incident combined with almost being home made me want to go ahead of the group. We're all supposed to meet up in Cloudsdale, though. I do consider them my family as much as my other family in Cloudsdale. What about you, Shadow? Do you have any family?”

“Yeah. I've got a wife and kid. We're pretty happy.”

“That's good to hear. You do look pretty young to have a kid, though.”

I chuckled, “She's adopted, although I look after and care for her like she's my own. My daughter and wife are the two things I love most in this world.”

Orange Crest nodded, “I understand. It must be nice to have some roots put down. I love traveling, don't get me wrong. It's just that I sometimes can't help but wonder about just settling down somewhere....” Orange Crest trailed off. 

That did it for the conversation, as it left us with our own thoughts. It did kinda take a deep turn.

After about an hour or so left to our thoughts, Orange Crest and I heard a commotion town by the river we were flying next to, “Do you hear that?” Orange Crest asked.

I nodded, “Yeah, it sounds like screaming. It's coming from down there.” I said before pointing my hoof towards what appeared to be a small encampment near the river.

Orange Crest's face turned serious, “It's bandits. The screaming is coming from who I'm guessing are their prisoners. I don't want to put you in harm's way since you have a family, Shadow Flash, so I'll go down there and check things out. Don't worry about me, I've picked up a few skills during my travels that will protect me.”

I shook my head, “No way am I letting you go down there without backup. I'm part of my town's watch, and I won't sit by idly when I see ponies in need of help.”

Orange Crest smiled and nodded before signaling for us to descend. We did so, and landed behind a couple of large trees right next to the bandits' camp next to the river. Based on what I'd seen on my way down, I counted over twenty bandits, five large tents, and about five prisoners, all mares. I looked for Orange Crest, and found out that he'd vanished. Dafuq? Well, hopefully he's just scouting around.

I was about to look for him when a large brown earth pony carried two bound mares over to the same tree I was at. I hid on the other side of it, listening in to what he was saying, “...cry less than the other mare, because I had to cut her tongue out. Now which one of you wants ole Stonehead in them first?” The pony said before reaching for a beige mare with a black mane and shoving her against the tree.

Fuck. No. He is not going to do what I think he is. I'll be damned if I let that happen. I peeked around the tree and whistled to get the bandit's attention, “Hey, you wouldn't happen to know how to get to Ponyville from here, would you?” I whispered, catching his and the weeping mares' attention.

The pony that referred to himself as 'Stonehead' looked up, “Eh?! Who the hell are you?!” He said before rushing around the tree. When he was out of sight from the camp, I quickly grabbed him and slammed his head against the tree, causing it to shake a little, and knocking the dipshit rapist out. I then snuck back around the tree and behind the mares. I put my forehooves over their mouths, so that their screams wouldn't alert the whole camp. I then put my hoof over mouth, signaling them to be silent. They nodded, and I helped them around to the back of the tree.

I untied the two mares who still had tears in their eyes. When I did, they both hugged me and quietly wept into my neck. I patted them on the head before asking what I needed to, “I know you two are still in a lot of shock, but can you tell me where the other mares are being held at?”

The beige mare nodded, “Most of us are being held in the tent by the river. Wild Flower though....the leader of the bandits took her in his tent about an hour ago, and she hasn't been seen since.” The mare said before breaking down again.

“I know this is hard for you. Can you tell me which tent Wild Flower is being held?”

The mare shakily nodded before pointing to the tent in the very center of the camp.

I nodded, “Thank you. Now please wait here behind this tree. I'll be right back, I promise.”

They nodded silently as tears still poured from their eyes, and I crept over to the nearest tent which was on the edge of the encampment. I opened the flap at the bottom and found myself in a tent with about six sleeping bandits. Deciding I didn't want them waking up anytime soon, I gave each one a swift elbow to the head, sending them even deeper into unconsciousness. Once I was done with them, I made my way out of the tent, only to find myself surrounded by what must have been every guard in the camp.

I popped my neck and legs before speaking, “So, let's go ahead and get something straight. If you wish to get off with just a broken leg, feel free to sit this one out. If you wish for me to break more than a few of your ribs, all of your legs, and fracture your skull, then by all means, come attack me.”

Sure enough, every bandit charged at me. They can't say I didn't warn them. The five closest to me jumped at me, which I avoided by hovering in the air. I then picked one of them up and used him like a baseball bat, battering the other four that jumped at me before they could even get back up. Once I was satisfied I shattered enough of their bones, I dropped my makeshift baseball bat. The other bandits, figuring out I wasn't a pushover, pulled out weapons that ranged from daggers to a crossbow.

“Those five got off with broken bones. If you use a weapon on me, you better be ready to say goodbye to your life.” I threatened as I glared at them. A few bandits looked a little uneasy, but they held onto their weapons, thinking they could beat me. Before they attacked, however, I felt something inside of me snap. It's a feeling I haven't felt in over fifty years......insanity.

The bandits charged me, and the first to get to me swung a one handed sword. I ducked out of the way and elbowed him in the face, causing him to recoil and drop his sword. I then kicked his legs out from under him before finishing him by stomping on his throat. He gasped for air a few times before going silent. 

Four more bandits with daggers soon reached me. They all aimed for my head, but when they got to me I blocked all of them with my metal foreleg. I turned to the pony on my far right and yanked the dagger he had from his mouth, and stabbed it into his cheek, making him recoil in pain. I followed up by taking the hilt of the dagger and, using my strength, cut his head off from his bottom teeth up. The top half of his head fell off before the rest of his body collapsed on the ground.

The other bandits with daggers, having recovered, lunged at me again, hoping for different results than last time. They were right, in a way. This time, I picked the one in the middle up, and swiftly flew about fifty feet into the air. His face was nothing but sheer terror as I let go and let him fall to his death. After seeing him hit the ground I cracked a wide smile, and flew back down to the battlefield. The remaining two bandits with daggers turned and fled, but they didn't get far. I rushed after the closest one and jumped off of his back towards the next bandit, but not before snapping his neck 180 degrees. When I neared the other fleeing bandit, I came down hard on his back, most likely breaking it in half. I then crushed his head with my metal foreleg, just to be sure. I didn't even care about the blood and brain matter that covered me after that. I just needed more things to kill.

Lucky for me, there were still ten bandits left. They were starting to get scared now, but not scared enough to back off. That filled me with a pleasant feeling. Nine of them rushed at me, while one stayed back with a crossbow. Once the group neared me, the bandit with a crossbow fired at me. He was quite surprised when I caught the bolt. After doing so, I sliced the closest bandit's throat, splattering my face with blood. I then jammed the bolt deep into another bandit's head before stabbing it into another bandit's heart. I pulled the bolt out and ducked under the horizontal slice of a sword. When I came back up, I jammed the bolt under its wielder's chin all the way to the top of his head.

When that one collapsed, I licked the crossbow bolt clean of blood, savoring the sweet taste it created for me. The five remaining bandits dropped their weapons and scattered into the woods. I frowned at this, but my smile picked back up after seeing the bandit with a crossbow remained. Even though he remained because he was frozen with fear, it warmed my heart that he would let me have more fun. As I neared him, he regained enough sense to reload his crossbow.

The bandit fired, and I caught the bolt with my free foreleg. He dropped his crossbow and fell backward, shaking with fear. I neared him and smiled, “It looks like you can't quite lift yourself up. Allow me!” I yelled before jamming both crossbow bolts into each of his eyes, careful not to go into his brain. 

He screamed and flailed in agony as I used the bolts to lift him off of the ground, “PLEASE! STOP! I DON'T WANNA DIE!” He cried. Quickly growing bored of his screams, however, I simply tilted the bolts upward, causing his head to slide further into the bolts. When the bolts reached his brain, he fell limp. I released my grip of the bolts, and thought about how my fun was over.

I soon perked up, however, because I remembered that there was still the bandit leader. With glee I sped over to his tent, blood flying off of my soaked coat along the way. I opened the flap, apparently interrupting the bandit leader with his current rape. The yellow coated missing mare was still screaming in agony when the bandit leader pulled out and faced me. He gave her a fierce slap to make her quiet before speaking, “You being here tells me all that I need to know. I guess those idiots can't even handle killing one damn pony.” He said before walking over to a weapon rack and grabbing an oversized war axe.

He rushed at me with his axe as I remained still with an unamused smile. When he swung at me, I lazily blocked it with my metal foreleg. I even let him swing it a few more times just to prove to him how futile it was to fight me. He backed up, out of breath, “You....what the hell are you?!” He managed before dropping the axe.

I slowly walked up to him, and picked up the large axe he dropped. I looked down on him and spoke, “Your right foreleg. Put it out. Now.”

“Wha-”

“NOW!”

He hesitated, but eventually put his foreleg out. I wasted no time in severing it from his body with the axe I held. He screamed in pain as he tried his best to back away from me. As he was doing so, I moved around behind him, and cut both of his hind legs off with one swing. Now all he had was his left foreleg. It wouldn't matter soon anyway, because he looks like he's about to bleed out.

He looked at me, the fear evident in his eyes, “Please....just let me go....”

I held the axe out over him, “Those who beg for mercy, do not deserve it.”

“NO WAI-AHHGGHHH!” He began to speak before I cut him completely in half, causing his guts to spill out. His body twitched a few times before going still.

I dropped the axe, and feared once again that I was out of things to kill. To my knowledge, however, there were still around five prisoners left. Damn, looks like I'll have to savor the kill as much as possible. I looked at the mare who was being raped. She was terrified and crying in a corner of the tent. I spoke as I made my way to her, “Now as you've seen, it's best you don't resist. Don't worry, I won't rape you like he did. I'm not a monster. I'm just going to kill you.” I finished with a grin on my face.

Just as I reached down to grab the mare with my blood soaked hooves, however, I felt something pointing at the back of my head. I sighed and spoke, “Orange Crest, based on what you've seen, you should know it isn't wise to point an arrow at me. And to think I was going to let you live for keeping me company.”

“Don't move an inch, Shadow Flash, for your own sake.”

I chuckled, “For my sake, you say?”

“Don't do it.”

“I dare say it's for your own sake!” I yelled before whirling around to face Orange Crest, only to find only an empty tent.

I looked around, “What is this?! Where are you?!” I yelled before feeling another arrow at my throat.

“I warned you. Sorry for this.”

“Wha-” My eyes shot wide as I was cut off by a sharp pain. I looked down to see an arrowhead sticking out of my throat. The last thing I saw before blacking out was Orange Crest putting his hood back on, and holstering his odd looking bow.


I slowly regained consciousness, and as I did, I heard voices around me.

“He'll be okay then?” One voice I recognized as Solemn's asked.

“He will. Orange Crest purposely missed his esophagus and hit cartilage. That's still bad, but not as bad as what could have been.” Another voice I recognized as Hornet's spoke.

“I knew that he was starting to lose control again, but I didn't think it had gotten this bad...” Another voice, Spitfire's, said.

“It was good that you brought him here as fast as you could, Orange Crest.” I heard Hornet say.

“I guess. I had hoped he wouldn't try anything. I didn't want to shoot him. I'm glad I knew what was going on, though. Spitfire's letters kept me and the others posted and many things, including Shadow's 'condition.' I observed him as he killed off the bandits, and figured out the best way to approach him.” Orange replied.

“He's waking up!” Solemn said excitedly, “Dad? Are you okay?”

I groaned and opened my eyes. Taking in my surroundings, it seems like I'm in the Sanctuary's med bay. It was filled to its capacity with five ponies, including myself on the operating table.

“Shadow, are you okay?” Hornet asked.

“Ugh...yeah, I guess. Aside from the hole in my neck, anyway.”

Orange Crest looked at me, “Shadow, I'm sorry about-”

I raised my hoof, cutting him off, “I understand. Thanks for doing it. I don't think I would have stopped if you weren't there. How are the mares that were prisoners?”

“They're fine. They got captured during a raid on their caravan. The bandits killed the men, the mares...well, you know. I escorted them safely to a nearby village. They should be fine now.”

I nodded, “That's good to hear....”

“So...I guess now would be a good time to tell you I'm part of the archer squad.”

I laughed, “I figured that much. Fortunately I didn't figure that out until I woke up. I, or rather my Mirror, wouldn't have underestimated you back there if I had known.”

Solemn spoke up, “So...I guess now wouldn't be the best time to ask if you and Mom wanted to have dinner with me and Lunar Storm tonight at Red Apple in Canterlot?”

“Red Apple, huh?” I said rubbing my chin before grinning, “Sure thing. I'll be there. Just know that your mom can't come because she has business in Baltimare. Something about a speech. What time though?”

“Seven o' clock sharp. Please don't be late, and more importantly, please don't creep out Lunar Storm.”

“I'd never dream of it.” I replied, holding back a laugh. This is going to be perfect.

Solemn eyed me for a moment before nodding, “Good. Well, I need to get going. I'm glad you're okay, Dad.” Solemn said before exiting the cramped room.

“I need to go, too. Just take it easy for a few days, Shadow. The immortality potion should speed up your healing process, but I'd rather you didn't push it.” Hornet said.

I nodded, and Hornet left the room as well. Spitfire was the next to speak, “Alright Orange Crest, let me show you to your room before I attend to more business myself.”

Orange Crest nodded and followed Spitfire out, leaving me alone. Well, time to go home and prepare for tonight.

I made my way out of the sanctuary, but not before grabbing my saddlebag that had been removed from my person. After checking the bag to make sure its contents were untouched, I flew off for home. 

As I soared though the clear skies, I began to wonder as to why I lost control like I did back at the bandit camp. Before, when my Mirror wanted to gain control of me, there was a power struggle involved. This time, however, there was nothing. What I did just seemed...natural.

A voice chuckled in my head, “Very observant, Shadow Flash. And do you know why there was no struggle?” Sorrow Curse's voice asked me.

I thought for a moment, and my eyes went wide when I thought of an answer, “No way...”

Sorrow's voice erupted with laughter, “Yes, that's correct! You are slowly but surely merging with your Mirror. Very soon his personality will overcome your own, and you will not so much as hesitate to slaughter anything and everything around you! There's nothing you can do to stop it.”

I held my head and shut my eyes, “No...there's got to be a way, anyway, to prevent this from happening. I beat my Mirror before, and I can do it again!”

“You don't get it, do you? You can't fight your Mirror like you did last time. You may be physically capable of beating him, but mentally? It's simply not possible. Not unless...forget it, you're too much of a fool to consider yourself.”

“What are you talking about? How can I stop this?!”

I couldn't see him, but I could tell that somehow, Sorrow Curse was grinning, “A sacrifice.”

“Forget it! There's no way in hell that I'll sacrifice someone for my own sake!”

“Fine then. Just know that your Mirror will completely merge with you before you even have a chance to finish the immortality potion for your precious wife. Not to mention if you don't do this, it is likely hundreds, even thousands will fall to your murderous self. Your wife, your friends, the princesses, and your daughter. Oh how I long to see your mental turmoil when you kill them.”

I thought for a moment before coming to a decision. A tear rolled down my face, “.....Alright....I'll do it....who do I have to sacrifice?”

Sorrow Curse chuckled deeply, “In due time, Shadow Flash. I'll let you worry about it later. You do have a dinner to attend, after all.”

I felt Sorrow Curse's presence fade away, leaving me alone in the sky above Ponyville. I softly sighed before descending towards my home. For now, I'll try and put what just happened out of my mind. I don't want to make Solemn worried about me when we're supposed to have fun tonight.

I made my way into my home, and walked upstairs into Rainbow's and my room. I opened my closet and looked around for something to wear. My mouth widened into a broad smile when my eyes rested on an outfit; one I had custom made by Rarity years ago for a Nightmare Night party, “Oh yeah, this will do nicely.” I said aloud before taking it out of the closet.

I quickly got changed and looked at the clock. I've got about an hour before I need to be at Red Apple, so I better get a move on. Just as I made my way downstairs, someone knocked on the front door. I opened it to meet none other than Prince Barry himself, “Hey dude, do you......why are you dressed like Gandalf the White?” He asked.

It was true. I had a complete Gandalf outfit. I even had a staff and beard. I stroked said beard while replying, “I have no idea what you're talking about, Master Barry. I'm simply on a quest to the lone mountain, for I must attend dinner.” I said, putting on my best Gandalf voice. Surprisingly enough, it wasn't that bad.

“....Goddamnit Landon.”

“So, what can this old wizard do for a prince of Equestria?” I asked.

“First off, stop talking like you're Gandalf before I have you executed. Second, I'm here to apologize on Twilight's behalf for turning you into like six different animals. She would have come here herself, but she was busy and stuck at Canterlot. Not having anything better to do, I decided to do this myself.”

“The apology is accepted. Now, seeing as how I have to go to Canterlot anyway, would you care to join this old wizard for a journey?” I replied, never breaking my Gandalf voice.

Barry was about to say something, but just sighed instead, “Fine...get on my chariot.” Barry said before moving out of the way, revealing his chariot that had four royal guards pulling it.

“Nice. Uh, I mean, very well, Master Barry. Let us be off.” I said as I made my way to the chariot.

Barry did the same, and the guards pulling the chariot took off. Barry looked at me, “So, what's this about you going to Canterlot?”

“I shall be having dinner with my daughter and the young man who is courting her.”

“I guess that explains the costume....sorta. And please stop talking like you're Gandalf.”

“I know not what you are talking about, master Barry. I am a great wizard by the name of Gandalf, so of course I talk like him.”

“....I'm going to murder you.”

I laughed, “I've slain a Balrog, master Barry. I don't think you could do the same.”

A vain made itself visible in Barry's forehead, but he just took a deep breath and tried to calm down. He was about to succeed, but I prevented that from happening, “Would you happen to be my faithful steed, Shadowfax, by chance?”

“That tears it! I'm going to murder you!” Barry yelled before jumping at me.

One eventful ride to Canterlot later.

The chariot pulled up by the Red Apple, and I made my way out. I bowed, “Thank you for your hospitality, Master Barry. I do apologize for the black eye.”

Barry huffed, “And I do apologize for not having you executed...later, Landon.”

I nodded to Barry, and the chariot took off towards the castle. I turned towards the restaurant and made my way inside, but not before getting in my old man stance. I made my way through the double doors that had apples for door handles, and found Solemn and who must be Lunar Storm waiting next to her. Solemn had on a violet dress that matched her equally violet mane. Her date had on a black suit like many of the other stallions in the restaurant. His coat was a deep shade of purple, while his mane was an even darker purple, almost black. Maybe Gandalf robes weren't the best choice for this, but we'll see about that. Solemn spotted me and rushed over, “Hey dad, thanks for coming. I'd like you to meet my coltfriend, Lunar Storm.”

Lunar Storm smiled and held out his hoof, “It's a pleasure, mister....?”

“Call me Shadow, youngster.” I said before handing Lunar Storm my staff, rather than shake his hand.

Solemn looked at me, “Dad, you can carry your cane.”

“It's no big deal, Solemn. I don't mind holding it for your dad.”

“That's right, he sure doesn't.” I said to Solemn, my smile invisible behind my fake beard.

Solemn Justice groaned, “Fine. Our table is over here, by the way.” She said before leading Lunar Storm and myself through the dim lit restaurant. It had an air of snobbishness to it, mainly because of all the rich ponies who probably think they're better than anyone else. Everything in the restaurant was either black, white, or red, and a live performance by a few ponies playing violin was on near the front of the place.

When we got to our table, Lunar Storm pulled my chair back for me before doing the same for Solemn Justice. I grumbled as I sat down, “I don't need your help to sit down, boy.”

“Dad!” Solemn more or less exclaimed, “He was just being polite.”

Lunar Storm shook his head, “It's okay, Solemn. I understand. Your dad is independent, which is a good thing.” He said, trying to calm Solemn down.

A waiter came with and handed us a few menus before pulling out a notepad and pen, “May I take your drink orders?”

“I'll take water.” Lunar Storm said.

“Water as well.” Solemn said.

I grinned behind my beard, “I'll take the strongest drink ya got.”

“Dad!” Solemn exclaimed.

The waiter ignored Solemn and nodded before taking off to get our beverages. Lunar Storm coughed before speaking, “So, mister Shadow, Solemn tells me that you used to be on the Ponyville watch.”

“What's that supposed to mean, eh? Think I'm too old to still be on it?!”

Lunar Storm cringed and waved his hooves, “No, that's not what I meant! I just-I mean-it's what Solemn told me, and-”

“Your drink orders.” The waiter interrupted Lunar Storm, saving him from further stuttering. He handed us our drinks, mine being a large glass with a clear liquid. A mini umbrella completed it. The waiter then pulled out his notepad and pen again, “And what will you three be having for dinner?”

“I'll have a lettuce and daisy sandwich with the vegetable soup.” Lunar Storm responded.

“I'll take a salad with no dressing.” Solemn said.

“And I believe that I'll have a steak.” I said before handing my menu to the now disturbed waiter. Some places did serve steak around here, which are mainly for griffons. It's very unusual for a pony to want meat, and it's a slight social taboo for high society especially. I pulled out a 100 bit piece and placed it in the waiter's coat pocket, “To everyone's knowledge, it's a griffon ordering the steak. I'd rather finish my meal in peace, understand?”


The waiter shook his head and nodded, “Of course, sir.” He said before taking our menus and rushing off. Judging by Lunar Storm's expression, I had accomplished what I intended: eat a delicious steak, and weird him out. Nothing like killing two birds with one stone. 

I waved my hoof in front of Lunar Storm, shaking him out of his trance. He jumped before speaking, “Sorry, I uh, need to go to the restroom for a second. I'll be right back.” He said before taking his leave, leaving just me and Solemn Justice.

Solemn glared at me, “What the hell, Dad? You said that you wouldn't do anything weird!”

I shrugged, “Eating a steak isn't weird to me. As for the other stuff, I kinda lied.”

“You...I...UGH!” Solemn managed before I chuckled.

“Relax, Solemn. I'm only having a bit of fun. It's not like I have anything against your date. He seems like a nice enough guy.”

Solemn rolled her eyes, “Gee, glad you think so.”

Lunar Storm made his way back to the table, and sat back down. Alright, now for the kill. I took my drink, and took the longest and most painful series of gulps of my life, completely emptying my glass that held probably around a liter of strong alcohol. I may not have a throat anymore, especially after what happened earlier, but it was worth it to see the shock on Lunar Storm's face. Looking at Solemn, she seemed just as surprised, with her mouth agape.

Doing my best not to cry from laughter or pain, I managed to struggle out, “I need another.” before setting my glass down.

After about a minute of Solemn's and Lunar's stunned expressions, Solemn finally managed to say something, “I'm sorry for my language, but Dad? What. The. Fuck.”

Lunar Storm remained in silence a while longer before speaking, “That...was amazing! Please teach me!” He said, surprising both me and Solemn.

“I don't drink a lot, but that was by far the most impressive thing I've ever seen.” Lunar said, a smile on his face.

I couldn't help but smile as well, “It's all practice, boy. We'll start you off with whiskey, then you'll work your way up to whatever the hell it is that just disintegrated my esophagus. Think you're up to it?”

Lunar Storm nodded, “Yes sir!”

I grinned. This is going to get interesting. I waved to the passing waiter, “Get us two shots of whiskey, two shots of vodka, and two of that very strong drink I just had!”

“I'm sorry sir, but we don't just sell shots of whiskey and vodka. This is a respectable establishment.”

I put two more 100 bit coins in his pocket, “Still too respectable now?”

I could see the bit signs light up in the waiter's eyes, “Not at all, sir. I shall return momentarily.” He said before departing.

He soon came back with the drink order, and laid it out in front of the three of us. I could tell Solemn was about to flip, but I just smiled as I handed Lunar his share of the alcohol.

We picked up our whiskey shots and toasted.

“CHEERS!” We yelled in unison.
> MUST BE SEEN BY READERS
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I tried. I really did, you guys. I just can't write this story anymore. Believe me, it sucks so hard for me, too. Especially after all of the time I spent on this fic, wanting it to develop into something huge. Looking at it honestly, it truly has exceeded my own expectations. I never thought so many people would enjoy this story, with as many flaws it has. I have you guys to thank for everything. But I think it's time I finally close the book. I posted my first chapter of this story on fanfiction just a little more than two years ago. I was sixteen at the time. I got criticized pretty hard at first, but I was so into writing Once a Shadow, I published 7 chapters in under a week. I think it was my rapid updates that got me so much attention at first, not the quality of the story. I honestly didn't even think of the Fugiens Mones part until the moment I typed it. This story was completely winged in the full sense of the word for about the first twenty chapters. That's hilarious now that I think about it. But back to the main point. I can't write this story anymore. When I finish typing this up, I'm clicking the 'cancelled' button for this story. That being said, there are two more things left for me to say. The first of which is I will be happy to hand this story off to someone else. I think it'd be interesting to see how the story would go from there. The second thing I'd like to say is if nobody would like to continue Once a Shadow in my place, I'd be happy to post my ultimate plans for the story. Meaning I'd post a full description of what would happen from now until the very end of the story. I will not be officially ending my writing career just yet, however. I will keep my other two stories on hold, just in case. But for now, this is goodbye. Thank you all so much for supporting me through this. (I'm actually tearing up a bit as I write this ;-;) Anyway, thank you all. You're all awesome, and if you ever go to a bronycon or something, look for a guy with his nametag as 'Donutt'. Say hi to me in that case ;). Thanks again, and goodbye. /)
> Story Line
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alright, nobody felt like taking on my story, which is fine. That being the case, I will now post my entire plans for what would have been for the entirety of Once a Shadow. I had planned to have the story total out with 3 sagas. Meaning that yes, I had planned to write soooo much more initially. Now for the story:

>Rest of archer squad shows up.
>Captain is a dragon. One of his armor enchantments is the ability to resize himself at will.
>Meeting begins, target of assassination is former Fugiens Mones Captain, Supersonic.
>Everyone thought he was dead, even Spitfire, who is the one doing the briefing. The evidence that he is alive is highly refutable, but she wants no chances taken.
>Shadow remembers him as his appearance is described. It's the crimson pegasus with the big ass sword from earlier. He doesn't say anything.
>Supersonic kid(foal)naps Rainbow. Leaves note for Shadow that he'll have his chance for revenge.
>Shadow goes to get the second piece of the potion from the regenerans bestia. 
>Sorrow tells Shadow the sacrifice for his sanity must be made soon.
>Fast forwarding a bit, the Mones get a solid lead on Supersonic. All out assault on his base ensues, imagine bad assery of all kinds, lol. Shadow makes it to Supersonic, who is next to an unconscious Rainbow.
>Sorrow Curse then tells Shadow that the sacrifice must be Rainbow. Naturally, he refuses, but his mirror (Not knowing about the sacrifice, as Sorrow spoke directly to Shadow's sane mind) takes over and stabs her before Supersonic can react.
>Shadow sees blood on his hooves, goes berserk, fights and beats Supersonic. Shadow calms down slightly, and realizes Rainbow is dead.
>Supersonic, while badly injured, tells him it isn't over. Knowing that Shadow was looking to make an immortality potion for Rainbow, Supersonic tells him the last ingredient is the blood of an innocent.
>Shadow gets some of Rainbow's blood in a vial, and combines it with the other ingredients. Pours it into Rainbow's mouth.
>While waiting for a response, Supersonic reveals that there is an enemy behind the scenes pulling all of the strings. He wishes Shadow luck, and dies.
>Saga ends with Rainbow's eyes opening.

>Saga 3, 400 years later. (This saga wasn't as planned out as the last one)
>Magi technology is in full blast. Most towns/cities look futuristic n' stuff.
>Dissatisfied ponies rise up in rebellion.
>Unknown figure behind them.
>Villain revealed to be spirit of evil(Spirit like Discord, but legitimately evil). Also known as the Dark God.
>Special training given to Shadow by Spitfire before she sneaks off in an attempt to kill the Dark God.
>Spitfire killed by Dark God.
>Epic vengeance training ensues.
>Discord says only way to kill a spirit is for another spirit to kill them.
>Discord gives all his power to Shadow.
>Later, fight with Dark God ensues.
>Pushed to the brink, Shadow gathers all of his energy, including his life energy, into a single attack.
>Dark God is slain, at the cost of Shadow's life. Tears n' stuff. Shadow then dies.
>Appears before God again.
>God, who liked how Shadow defended innocents for so many years without wavering, offers him another chance to go anywhere he wants.
>Shadow grins, "I don't suppose there are any secret immortal organizations in Pokemon, huh?


THERE YOU HAVE IT, THE BEST FANFIC OF ALL TIME THAT NEVER WAS. lol. Thanks again for all of your support guys. If you have any questions, just drop 'em in the comments or in a pm. I might have left a few holes in my description, but like I said, that's just the main plot. BAI BAI.