Some time ago.

Sun Strike sat in a dark room. Just sat. This was not the first time, nor the last time he would contemplate taking his own life.

He stood up.

He held his sawed-off with a level of honor and respect that only a weapon that has never failed in it's life time gets. He wanted to die. He was done. Tired. Defeated.

He placed the firearm in his mouth, filling it with the taste of metal. He removed it and placed it on his temple. Then lowered it again. He again, just sat. He wanted to end himself. But pulling that trigger was hard. A good part of him didn't want to take the easy way out. The other part knew that being murdered by some monster would most likely be much slower and significantly more painful.

“Sunfall...” a soft voice echoed in the silence.

Sun reacted instantly. He aimed the weapon directly at the source of the sound. He pointed the sawed-off directly at the head of princess Luna. Who didn't even flinch. She just looked at him with sad eyes.

“Luna? Shit! Bring your Night Guard? Bad idea, nopony should have come here.” he said with murder in his flaming sapphire eyes.

“There is no hit squad Sunfall. I come in peace.”

“Yeah, and ponies enjoy their stay in hell.”

“Please, I need your help.”

“I'm not helping you with shit.”

“Why not? Is it not a Seekers duty to hunt down the wicked.”

“Yeah, it is. But did your sister taint you too? Apparently nopony but my own damn bloodline remembers what happened. You went Nightmare, we got blamed for it. Maybe not to the public, but Celestia's wraith is something you don't want gunning for your head. Your sister Celestia blames this bloodline for everything. EVERYTHING. She thinks we not only gave you the idea to turn nightmare, but she also thinks we turned you into Nightmare Moon. Nearly everything that these.... things that haunt this world kill, we get blamed for! We've been her fucking scapegoat for nearly a thousand years. I have so many warrants for my arrest, and so many prices on my head that its fucking sad that I haven't been caught and executed yet. Worse part is that I was fucking born with these targets on my back. I didn't even know I was a wanted criminal until I was almost arrested for what seemed like no reason. We've done nothing but kill the fucked up shit she refuses to see, and yet were still her number one enemy. Bullshit! You're playing some game you bitch!” his gun never dropped away from her head.

“There is a colt.” the princess replied coldly

“What?”

“There is a colt in this town. His mother was killed and replaced by a ghoul. He will die next, unless you save him.”

“Not falling for it, send your guards.”

“How? Tell them that a type of undead goblin has eaten a mare, taken her form, and now plots to eat and replace her entire family? Even if they would believe me, they wont be able to kill it. It will move far to fast, and they don't even know how to kill it. I don't even know how to kill it. You are an expert, your blood has been the expert. I need you. This colt needs you. This world needs you.”

“Bullshit. Fuck you, this is fucking twisted.”

“He isn't far, not more then an five minutes trot from here. I can't go, I'd get in a lot of trouble if any of this... Seeker business was brought into the public eye.

Sun glared at Luna. He lowered his gun. He looked to the floor.

“Shit!” He grabbed his trench coat and began to put it on in a rush. As he left, he pretended to ignore Luna's words.

“We need ponies like you Sunfall. Be careful where you point that gun.”

If this world needs ponies like me, then this whole world is doomed. He thought to himself as he galloped out of the door of his cheap motel.

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Now

Sun was happy. He was living the way he never, for a single moment, thought he would. He was afraid that he would bring the end of the world. He contemplated taking his own life, or just fleeing and hiding away. But for all he knew that would bring the end. So he just stayed in the shadows, only emerging to spend time with his friends. He made his decision. No matter what would happen, he would stand by his friends, do his very best to undo everything that the end would bring. Even if it cost him his life. Other then that, he kept to his normal "fairly standard" life.

He enjoyed visiting Applejack's farm. He would help her around the farm, bucked apples, did some hay lifting, played with Winona, rebuilt the mare's barn. He was there to help, and idly chat with Applejack from time to time. They mostly just talked about what the was happening around the farm. He had a great respect for Applejack and the pride she kept for her farm, family, and work. He remembered that she was the first mare he met when all this started. He remembered thinking how he assumed she was just a pretty face with no brains. He know know that she is not only a real work horse, but also pretty smart. They had a real friendship. A real bond. Applejack saw him nearly the same way. She had this admiration for what he did. Respecting him for it, but also knowing that she would fair horribly if they switched places. She knew that she did what was considered hard labor, but fighting the things Sun Strike fought on a regular bases was terrifying. She had no idea how he was so unphased by everything he saw. More than the anything else, she respected how he fought for everypony, not just his friends, but every single pony, no matter the cost to himself. It was that pure goodness she saw in him that made her really appreciate that she got to be his friend. Some ponies may think that nearly dying for random ponies was a terrible life decision. Neither Sun or Applejack would agree with that.

He also visited Pinkie Pie, which really surprised them both. Sun and Pinkie were two very different ponies. Sun was serious, Pinkie was... well, Pinkie was Pinkie. They were closer to opposite then anything else. However, the night with the Lycan ordeal changed things a bit. Pinkie saw some dark things that night. She understood how a life time of that could make a pony... serious. She also did her best to help him. She saw how he fought, and how dedicated to his cause he was. She admired that. Admired him. Sun, saw good in Pinkie too. He saw that if and when things get bad, she would try to help, it may have been in her uniquely Pinkie Pie way, but she did help. He also lightened up around her after that. He could understand how she lightened somber moods. That if things are scary, having someone who is relaxed and funny, can calm things down. They had a good friendship, if a bit awkward from time to time.

Rainbow Dash and Sun Strike also had a odd relationship when they first got to know each other well. Not so much from how they saw things at a near polar opposite like Sun and Pinkie. Moreover that they just had virtually nothing in common. Rainbow Dash really didn't care for him to much when they first met. His general personality just rubbed off on her the wrong way. Sun really didn't care either way. Then the Angel Witches happened and everything changed. She saw how he fought for her, not due to their friendship or his own personal gain. But because it was the right thing to do. She saw him fight hard, and when she saw that she could help, she saved him. When Rainbow saved him, it made Sun really wish he inherited his father's bat pony...ness. Wings really seemed nice. He rather liked Rainbow after that. He respected her loyalty to both him and Twilight. She went out of her way to help hum, put herself in danger to help him. He admired her. The two soon found that they could talk about the various training regiments they did to keep in shape. They had a good friendship, they knew they could rely on each other.

He had mixed feelings about helping Fluttershy. Mostly due to the fact she always lectured him about his smoking and drinking habits. Also he was pretty sure that her pet bunny wanted him dead. But he knew all her nagging came from a good place. She just wanted him to be healthy. He helped her take care of the animals she normally treated alone. His very... home-brewed remedies were rough at times, but very effective. Fluttershy saw him in a much more heroic light then he would have approved of. She also had something of a crush on him, not that she would ever act on it. She was far too shy to do that, and for Sun well... oblivious was too nice a word. She didn't really mind though. She was happy to see him get along so well with Zecora. Perhaps a bit disappointed, but she knew that they would still be friends, she knew there were plenty of other stallions with significantly better health habits out there. They had a friendship based in few words and kindness. They cared for one another.

He and Rarity had a stressed relationship. Mostly due to the fact that 99% of what Rarity wanted to talk about with him was his time with Zecora. Which was something that he was not only very private about, but he was also extremely bad at explaining his feelings. Talking about his emotions was on the long list of things that Sun never learned how to do. There was also the fact that he wore the same trench coat and hat literally all the time. They had both gotten filthy and blood stained. And the closest thing that Sun did to washing clothes is when he'd jump in the river to bathe, which he usually did fully clothed. Sun really didn't understand Rarity and her clothing styles. Ponies generally don't ware clothes. They only weighed you down. But they could also hid things, like scars or weapons. But clothing designed to look nice just seemed silly to him. He had a good coat and a hat, that was all he needed. The eye patch just hid his gross scared eye hole meat. But even then, through all the differences Rarity was ready and willing to make him new eye patches and hats, (which he never wore) and he was ready to be a bodyguard or hired “muscle”. For the seamstress, everything he did with Zecora was like her soap operas. Where her to favorite characters were obviously in love, but neither of them would act on it. It drove the crazy. They had a rather odd relationship, but they were friends nonetheless.

Then there was Twilight. She was the last of her friends to be directly affected by something and have to completely rely on Sun Strike to save her. She was in a grim situation. She came very close to some very dark and fucked up shit. She saw the horror in front of her, she knew what she saw was something that she would never forget. But she not only saw Sun fight as hard as he could, but also save a lot of mares in the process. She was then given a lot of personal information from the Seeker, and she knew that he trusted her. He did, he believed that she would be the reason Celestia would spare his life, he believed that the magic of friendship would save him. He trusted Twilight, and cared for her, he wanted to protect her, and keep her safe. She may have been Celestia's student, but that did not change the way he felt about her. They were both good friends.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders were also a strange case. He spent a good portion of his time with the three fillies. He had also taught them several things, like how to steal, and fight dirty. He was far from the greatest teacher on morality, but he did explain that one should only steal as a last resort. At the very least, he tried to teach them good things.

The biggest concern with the Crusaders was Scootaloo. He may have been oblivious, but Scootaloo did a very bad job hiding her feelings for him. He knew that she had a crush in him, and he had absolutely no idea how to deal with that situation in any way at all. So he figured that one of the mares would deal with that situation for him.

The other big concern was, that they had come to expect a certain level of his being with them. He was afraid of how they would feel after he left, or when he died. It was feeling like this that made him want to stay away ponies in the first place. The idea of hurting those you care about and being hurt by them, scared him. This was his first real experience with it after all.

He really like Zecora, he just felt comfortable around her. Perhaps it was because they were both Seekers. Or that they just interacted well. Or it was much simpler then all that. Maybe she was just hot. He was unsure. But he still really like being with her. She felt the same way. She was unaware of how, and why these feeling developed, and where they even came from, but she really didn't mind that they were there.

He and Midnight has the most uneasy relationship by far however. Midnight was an abusive father, who let his older son call the the younger one a monster for being born. Midnight had never technically stopped caring, he just wanted his kids to be tough so that they could survive, like his late wife wanted. Unfortunately this lead them to become Seekers, who had a nasty habit of dying on the job. After an argument over potential vampires, Sun had had enough and wanted out. He didn't want to stop seeking, he just wanted to quit his “family”. Sun still believes that this was the best decision in his life, outside of not killing himself, and going to Ponyville. He was compelled to finish the research his brother had started on the Immortal Metal, but he figured it didn't matter because he killed the Metal anyway.

After losing his wing, Midnight just up and left. He was gone for some mysterious reason, and left no word of where he was going. No goodbyes, he just trotted off somewhere.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sun sat on his bed, cigarette in his mouth. He just rested on his back, enjoying the smoke and the peace. We wasn't sure how many cigarettes he'd get to smoke once the world ended. He just spent a day working with Applejack and wanted to rest up for awhile, just take it easy for a bit. That plan was going well until he heard a rapid knocking on his door. He lazily got up and trotted to the door. The knocking only sped up. As soon he fiddled with the door, it was pulled open by Twilight's magic. She looked horrible, worried, and exhausted. Like she hadn't slept in days. Like she could barely stand.

Sun was immediately refocused. Realigned.

“Sun Strike, something is going on! We need you! Follow me!” was all she stated before a flash of her horn gave her a head start. Sun grabbed his trench coat and Radiance before galloping off to help Twilight with whatever was going on.

They both galloped hard. Twilight was not as fast as Sun, so to keep ahead, she regularly teleported ahead. She was in such a rush, it made Sun worry about what could be happening. Their hoofsteps were the only noise down the late evening streets and roads of Ponyville. The pleasant breeze and winds were deceptively comforting. There was a intensity in the air, so thick that it felt like wading through water. This was a intensity that Sun did not sense in such a rush. He just galloped as fast as he could, so he could save as many as he could.

The galloped hard, They rushed passed the marketplace. They rushed pass the town hall. They ran into the Everfree. They kept going. They went deep. With a flash Twilight completely disappeared from Sun's field of view. All was silent. There was no noise as he galloped. He stopped. Waiting.... listening. Couldn't see far past the thicket of trees, and the foliage of the deep forest. His breath was hard and labored. He swallowed.

Then he heard it. The sound of magic. His stomach clenched as he felt his body lift into the air. He lost his senses when his flipped upside down. He felt a slight tingle. His entire body was slammed into a thick tree. Then he shot upward, and slammed back down into the ground. He felt at least two of his ribs break. He felt his body lift up again. His vision was shaky, he was dizzy from the sudden impact and the uncontrollable movements. He blinked away some tears and saw her. The Goddess. Great Goddess of the Sun. Princess Celestia.

“It is time to finally pay for your evil treasonous ways.”

Fuck

Their eyes met. She glared. He felt a fear unlike one he had ever felt. The ice of her stare bit into his heart. Her eyes were full of anger, hate, and violence. She had been waiting far too long for this. He always assumed that this day would come.

A tiny orb of light appeared simultaneously with her grin. Sun tried to look about. He had a hard time figuring out what directions was up. With a slight turn, he saw Twilight. Looking at him. It may have only been a moment. But their eyes met. Both their hearts sank.

The orb boiled and groaned. An explosion of light followed. Sun didn't remember falling down, or being on, or being knocked down to his back. But the terrible burning sensation overpowered all other thought in his mind. His torso that was facing the orb was scalded badly. He had no fur there anymore, and the skin was burnt a bright red. Breathing became much harder.

Sun pushed his body on it's side. He looked down at his own legs. He saw tiny rings of white light circle his ankles. He tried to get up. He might have been able to, but the light shackles burned as they met his flesh. He cringed and fell again. He tried to find a way out.

The trees around him had fallen. Uprooted and shoved down to the ground, it was as if a great wind forced down the trees around him. The parts of the tree that met the explosion were singed black. What he saw next hurt more the the burning of his chest or ankles. He saw his "friends". Every Element of Harmony just watched him. They watched him lay on the earth, and suffer. They saw him wrongly accused of treason among various other crimes they knew he didn't commit. They all held their tongue. None stood up for him. He couldn't comprehend why. Why was it, that his closest friends, the only ponies he had ever trusted, would simply watch him at a time like this.

The shackles around him burned deep into him. He could smell his own burning fur and flesh. Then it him, the realization of what was happening. The betrayal. The agony of utter hopelessness. He knew everything now. Damn, was he an idiot. That stallion that talked to him... it was Sunset Eve, and he had been right all along. This was happening because he trusted those mares. He knew, he understood, and now so too did Sun Strike. He wanted to laugh at the utter irony of it all.

The heat around his ankles began to grow. As did the pain. The shackles began to glow bright and burn not just his ankles but his legs in their entirety. The rings of light began to tighten. The pain grew worse. It was so bad that he wanted to vomit. The white hot unimaginable pain filling his entire body.Yet the utter sadness that he was now feeling from this kind of betrayal hurt a thousand times more. It hurt more then he ever imagined possible. It was the worst pain he had ever felt. He hurt deep in the core of his body. He just couldn't understand how they would let him die like this, even though he had done so much for them.

The pain grew worse. Light began to grow over where leg met torso. The terrible burning scorched his legs. He was able to see his own burnt bones. The pain brought him to the edge of consciousness. He wanted to let the dark bordering his vision take over. He wanted to black out and forget the pain. He wanted to scream out in pain. He was in pure utter agony. Yet he somehow held it in. He refused to give them his scream. He refused to die screaming. He was going to die fighting.

“Sister... That's enough... just end it....”

The sound of Luna's voice didn't help Sun feel any better. Even she who had kept him from taking his own life. Her words just hurt. Everything just hurt. The betrayal, the burning. His heart, his head, his body. His mind. He was done. He wanted to die. He was defeated.

“Very well, this scum must be purged from our world.” Celestia's words were hard and bitter.

With a glow of her horn, the rings of light faded back to their normal size, then moved to fit around his neck...

Only Celestia looked... everypony else... they all felt the shame.

Celestia held a very large grin. Her horn glowed once more.

A claw made of living shadows shot out the ground and grabbed the ring of light. A single claw quickly became six. The Claws were jet black, like looking at a place where no light could ever reach, darkness danced around them like steam over a hot cup of coffee on a cold winter morning. The living shadows caused the light to fade, and the ring was gone.

Celestia was in shock. “What black magic is-”

Her words were cut off when the earth beneath her began to shake. An earthquake.

Everypony fought to keep their balance, their attention going to the fissure ripping it's way to the surface of the earth, putting a gap between The Princesses , the mares, and Sun Strike. Dark light began to glow from the fissure. A Maniacal insane laugh filled the air along with the sound of the earth ripping itself open. A blood crimson mare, with a mane and tail of living dancing shadows, and wings made of scorched bones emitting dark light, and a horn like a twisted double helix floated up from the fissure with gentle motions of her wings. She was the same size as Celestia. Her eyes opened and burned bright, they were like small pockets of magma.

“I AM FREE AHAAAHAHAHAHAHA!” She took a deep breath, and had an eerie smile on her face. The quake finally stopping.

“Who ar-”

“SILENCE, this is my world now!” The Crimson Mare roared interrupting Celestia. Her helix horn glowed with that eerie dark light. The fissure below her roared, and a pillar of living shadows burst from the ground. Launching itself into the sky. The shadows spread throughout the sky, turning everything a dismal dead gray. It was like watching the near opposite of a Sonic Rainboom. It was an explosion devoid of color, it ate away the sky.

The mares looked in horror, but the Princesses acted, with a flair of their horns, A beam of magic shot forward. Their powers intertwined, swirling about each other as they shot for the Crimson Mare. The attack hit perfectly, hitting the mare so hard that she fell to the earth limply.

“Oh no I can't.... Nope.” The Crimson Mare shot back up with a face of a mare who just saw the funniest comedian in Equestria. She burst into laughter. “You call that an attack?! Ha?! You couldn't beat my demons off with that magic!” She laughed out loud, completely unharmed.

“What is she!?” Luna asked, shooting a look of panic at her sister.

“I don't know!” was all she could say

“Speaking of demons, why don't I show you real power! AHAHAA!” The Crimson Mare jumped up and stomped on the soil, sending her claws of living darkness to every nearby fallen tree. The claws grabbed each of the fallen trees by it's roots, then began to drag them together. The shadows pushed the trees together, and began to dig inside of them.

Before long, the trees had become a shadowy figure, some kind of shadow treant. It laughed as is made its way toward the princesses. It slowly lumbered toward them, yet the Princesses found themselves unable to move. Roots of living shadows had locked them, and the mares of harmony, in place.

The lumbering treant shambled toward the princesses.

An unearthly roar shook the earth. It was so glaringly loud that it made everypony's ears whine. Twilight tried to get her vision straight again, the roar knocked her senses loose, blurring her vision and forcing her to hear only a high pitched ringing. She bit down and tried to refocus. When she blinked away the fog in her vision, her jaw dropped. Pulling itself from the fissure, some”thing” was pulling itself out.

A giant claw made of living shadows shredded the soil looking for something to grab. The claw touched the treant. In an instant it stretched back and the shadows shifted. It took a second to really register what it became, but the closest thing that can be used to define it would be the head of dragon, with several gaping maws. The “dragon” 's giant maws crunched down on the treant and pulled it back down the fissure.

With another stomp, the fissure closed. The Crimson Mare laughed.

“That's the level of power between us “Goddesses”, Game Over, I win.” The mare laughed more and more. The claws still kept the everypony bound to the dirt of the forest floor.

“What or who are you?” Celestia growled out, as she struggled against the claws that held her.

“Do I really have to explain? I got tons of names, Queen of Pain, Baroness of Misery, The Iron Maiden, Lord Dead, The Dark Lord, God of the End. Personally, I don't remember what my real name was. I like going by Apocalypse, and/or Rapture. Yeah, let's go with Rapture .Those... just flow so well don't you think?” She replied casually.

Celestia just replied with a glare. She was scared, but wouldn't let “Rapture” see it.

Luna just looked to her sister, she had know that something like this was plausible, but she never thought she would see it first hoof. She blamed herself for letting it happen.

The mares were horrified. They felt miserable, and feared that the end may be near.

Sun Strike just laid there. He was fighting a losing battle against his body. His body was gone, it wanted to die. He wanted to die, but the will of a Seeker was stronger. He clung to life, but the blackness was slowly but surely winning. He could barely comprehend what was going on.

That stallion in chains... Sunset Eve was warning me this whole time..... he knew this would happen.... he tried to get me away from this.... how did he know.... what happens next.... am... am I going to die... No... not yet.... keep fighting... stay awake.... stay awake......stay....awake dammit!

Rapture trotted calmly toward the semi-conscious Sun Strike. She took a seat by him, looking over his horrible burns.

“Shit, you got roasted dude! That's fucking hardcore! Shit, you just don't die huh?” Rapture held back her laugh and waited for some kind of response. Sun's eye moving to her's was the closest thing she got.

“That's cool, you don't have to say anything sugar.” She gave him a very... sultry look with her glowing eyes and moved her body closer to his.. “I can make it all stop honey bunny, all the pain, the heart break....” She nearly whispered the words into his to his ear. She moved very close to him, her shadowy tail danced about playfully.

Sun's eye locked with her's, she respected his tenacity, he'd work perfectly. He could barely understand her. But he knew what she was saying. She had gotten his attention. She stood, and slowly began to trot about him as she spoke. She made sure that her flank was not only noticeable, but always in his sight.

“Listen, I know we just met, but I know how you got here, you know how I got here. Which I must admit, was pretty genius because it was easy. All did is switch a two names, you were the “One True Light” of the prophecy but only in the very last part of it, figure by the time anypony noticed, that it would be too late. I was pretty right, but really. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING, was more helpful than this “Goddess” Hating you because she couldn't accept that she hadn't been there enough for her sister when she needed her the most. Shit did that make things easy for me. I was afraid that great great-whatever grandfather of yours might ruin everything for me, but you didn't listen so thats good... Enough about me though, I want to talk about you.” She once again waited for a response she didn't get.

“OK then... Let me just show you that I want to help you...” She suggestively trotted toward him, that sultry look still in her eyes.

Shadowy claws picked up his head with a intention to remain gentle. She leaned in slowly, and pressed her lips against his. Her dark magic flowed over his body. Starting from his lips, cobwebs of shadows spread over the surface of his body, resembling broken glass. They wrapped into his burns and bruises. In the next instant, all of his injuries were gone, there weren't even scars. Sun was amazed that he stood up, perfectly healthy. Everypony gazed in amazement.

With a bit of hesitation, he felt at his eye for a moment, and dropped the eyepatch to the dirt. Her magic brought back, even his eye.

“See...”- She grabbed and held his forehooves with her own -”I want to help you.” she was pouring honey in his ear.

“Why?” Sun asked with a level of fear and confusion.

“I'm a cold hearted bitch and a master of hate and evil. Revenge is mostly all of those things.” she said straightly.

“Revenge?” Sun didn't understand. She hadn't let go of his forehooves.

“This world has treated you like shit, beat you down, gouged out your eye, eaten you literally, you've been eaten several times!... You've been through so much shit... Aren't you angry? Don't you wanna get even! Everypony has done everything they can to fuck you over for their own gain!”

Pinkie gave a cross look. “Hey that's a Li-” Claws shot out of the ground, they wrapped around all the captured mares muzzles. Silencing them.

“But.... That.... It's not....” sun mumbled unable to process the information.

“It's true! And you know it is! These mare's had you kill everything that threatened them, then once the smoke cleared they sold you out! These bitches fucked you over! They lied to you, they aren't your friends their bitches! Every. Single. One. At least I'm honest with you!”

“But... I saved them....” he stated, moving his eyes to the ground...

“Exactly, that's all you were to them... a tool for their own gain. Me, I want you. I want to give you power, unimaginable power. Make you a fucking God! Like me! We can rule everything together!”

“Why do you need me?” said suspiciously his gaze never meeting her's.

“I don't.... But ruling the world is a lot of work, and I may need help. Who else better then the pony who has a reason to hate every other pony. It's Perfect. You and me. Gods. We wont just tear apart the world, we'll bend the world over and fuck it in the ass! We'll make the world and every last pony in it our little bitch!”

“....” Sun pushed Rapture away. And stared at the floor.

“... What do you say.... Did you want to die with all these cunts who stabbed you in the back, oh excuse me, I mean burned your legs off. Or did you want “me?” Oh and you also get to become a God.” She gave him a lustful look.

Sun just looked into all of his “Friend's” eyes. He saw His father and Zecora laying in wait in the trees not far away.... His mind immediately jumped to a dark place. They just WATCHED. I WAS BEING BURNED INTO DUST, BOTTOM UP, AND THEY JUST WATCHED. He thought to himself with pure anger. He had several feelings. He was experiencing new emotions. He didn't really know how he felt. But there was one emotion he felt familiar with. And he had a lot of it built up.

Anger. Pure, Bitter, Hate.

He gave each mare an angry hate filled glare.

“Yeah... Fuck these “ponies” They're all the same. Scum worse then the monster that hunt them down. At least some monster try to kill you honestly. With all the secrets and lies.”

“What is a pony? Just a miserable pile of lies! They are are nothing. They are”- She interrupted herself by kissing him again.

The waves of darkness completely coated his body. He screamed from under the layer of darkness.

Like jet black butterfly, he emerged from the cocoon of shadows. He was the same size of the other Alicorns. He didn't have a horn. Instead he had large antlers like a ram. He stretched long giant leathery wings. His body was completely coated in those living shadows. He was jet black. His eye's opened, exploding with a now literal flaming sapphire. He had a large set of claws instead of hooves. Even Radiance had transformed. The once thin, glowing white rapier, was now a large burning fiery sapphire Claymore. The large blade matched his eyes. They both burned like fire.

Sun let out a long deep laugh.

“They are beneath you....” Rapture finished.

“This is what it feels like to be a God?“

"Its amazing right!?"

"IT GLORIOUS!"

“Wanna test your might? Why don't you smite those cunts who fucked you in the ass?”

“With pleasure, M'Lady.” Sun spoke as he calmly trotted past Rapture.

“M'Lord...” She grinned a sinister smile.

Sun just trotted to group of mares. He walked with a swagger of pride and new found power. He loved the feeling he got while looking down to Celestia. They both knew that he could easily kill her. It would be like stepping on a bug. Easy.

“Kneel before me.” Her stated with a flap of his new wings.

The mares all obeyed, Luna knelt down. Twilight knelt. Rainbow knelt. Rarity knelt. Fluttershy knelt. Pinkie knelt. Applejack knelt. Shadowy claws stretched out and dragged Midnight and Zecora beside the none-alicorns. They both knelt. They all fought back tears. Save for Celestia, who glared at him. She did not kneel. Taking notice, Sun Strike trotted to her.

“Need I repeat myself?”

“I shall not bow to the likes of you!” Celestia spat. Sun just gave a small chuckle.

“Bow? I SAID KNEEL!” His claws erupted with blue eldritch fire as they wrapped around Celestia's neck. He choked her for a while, then processed by slamming her face into the ground, then a sapphire flame wrapped around her knees, forcing her to kneel.

“You are all in the valley of MY shadow now!” He growled. His the fiery rage pushing him past boiling point.

His anger pushing through his action, he firmly grasped her bowing head with a claw. A glowing pure white light began to flow from Celestia into his leg and body. He was draining her of her power. It started with her size. She shrank down to the average mare's size. Then her mane stopped flowing like light, and the extra colors in her mane began to blur and fade away. Her mane was drained of it's luster and color until all that was left was a bright pink. She looked like a pink maned pony, with nubby wings and a tiny horn. Her golden accessorizes fell to the floor.

Everypony stared in horror. He just stole the power of Celestia. As a result he had grown in size, and his mane of living shadows grew longer. His leathery wings grew large enough to hide his entire body.

“What have you done to my sister!?” Luna demanded fighting back the tears, as Celestia fell limply to the floor from exhaustion.

“Same thing she did to me, take away everything I ever had.” He replied meeting Luna's glare.

“Ooooo, buuuurn bitch!” Rapture added in.

“Shut your mouth!” Luna spat.

Sun replied for Rapture. Lifting a claw into the air, he gave a giant grin. It combusted into sapphire flames. He laughed as he slapped Luna across the face with the backside of his claw. The hit was hard enough to force the alicorn to the ground. Rapture just laughed.

“You're next.” Sun said calmly as his claw grasped Luna's head the same way he grasped Celestia.

The mares watched in utter horror. While both looking and feeling completely helpless. Zecora and Midnight looked to the floor in shame.

Rapture stomped the ground and sat down. As she let her body sit, a throne of molten rock shot up out of the earth, it cooled quickly turning into a shining obsidian. She sat on her black throne.

A slightly blue aura flowed into Sun's body from Luna, just as the light had done with Celestia. Just like her sister, her body shrank. She was now actually a bit shorter then most mares. The “stars” in her mane vanished, it stopped flowing out, and it lost it's luster. And lastly, her wings and horn shrank as well. She too, fell to the ground from utter exhaustion.

Sun's body was now even larger, his mane was now alive, as the darkness danced about his body. His wings also began to emit the shadows, coating his body in more living moving shadows. He let out a maniacal laughter as he reared up. His eye's were bright enough to blaze through any darkness.

He trotted over to the mares now. Evil grin still on his face. Rapture just watched from her throne. She was savoring this victory.

“I gave you all everything I had... EVERYTHING.” Sun roared his rage baring out. “ I stared death in the face, time after time I looked death right in the eyes. I never even blinked. Even when I lost one of my eyes! IT WAS CUT IN HALF. MY FUCKING EYE WAS CUT IN HALF AND I COULD FEEL EVERYTHING. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH THAT HURTS! THEN I BURNED IT SHUT MYSELF. I NEARLY BLACKED OUT FROM PAIN. I did that for ALL of you... and yet.... and yet you all stood silent as your princess tried to turn me into ash. FUCK YOU, FUCK ALL OF YOU. I've had to spit out the bitter taste of my hatred for so long... WELL NO MORE. NO MORE. All the blood I've spilled for ponies like you... what a waste. Fuck ponies like you all. Fuck you. That blood is on the world's hooves now. As is all the blood I'm going to spill. I'm God now, and now I am going to rain fire down upon all those who have crossed me! I WILL SMITE ALL OF THE PONIES WHO CLAIM TO BE INNOCENT, WHO CLAIM TO BE GOOD, AND YET DO NOTHING, WHO REFUSE TO SEE THE SHIT AND BILE THIS WORLD TRULY IS. WHEN THE WORLD LOOKS UP TO ME AND REALIZES THAT THEIR SAVIOR NOW STANDS OVER THEM, AND IS NOW THEIR GOD I'M GOING TO LOOK DOWN AND LAUGH! Trust me... I am a cruel and angry God.” he ranted...

“Not everypony betrayed you!”

“Yeah, punish all of us if you're going to hurt anypony!”

“We are the one's who deserve it, leave the others alone!”

The Crusaders... the three fillies stared down Sun Strike. Who just suppressed a laugh. Rapture was much worse at suppressing that laugh.

“And why do you think that is a good idea?” Sun asked sarcastically.

“Because you taught us that we need to stand up for ourselves, and those who can't stand up for themselves!” Scootaloo shouted.

The two, a filly and a God traded glances. Sun just laughed.

“I was lying, everypony is terrible. Me for example. I spent my life fighting for others, yet I got stabbed in the back. So now I'm going to crush everything.” With a powerful flap of his wings, a wave of living shadows pushed forward on the fillies. Hitting them like a brick wall, they were easily rendered unconscious before they hit the ground from the knock-back of the attack.

Sun and Rapture just laughed.

“I don't think you lot have all realized that you are all nothing but insects beneath my hoof, its not much more then stomping down on you now!” Sun added with a maniac's cackle.

His dark claws reached out, stretched out, like the heads of a hydra, they multiplied and grasped firmly onto each mare's throat. With a pop, their Element of Harmony appeared, each unique to it's barer. Lights drained from each one and all the way back into Sun Strike's body. The power of the Elements of Harmony were being drained into him. He drained each one dry. When he was finally done, the Elements were all a dull gray, and lacked any shine. They looked like a filly's rhinestone toy.

Sun laughed as each mare fell to the ground, his claws were the only thing holding their bodies up. Unlike the princesses, the six who bare the Elements of Harmony could not handle the essence drain. Each one blacked out upon being drained. Sun however, was now much larger, his body grew massive. His shadows spiraled with energy. Radiance blazed like a sapphire inferno. The massive blade and his size matched perfectly. The aura of both was melting away the trees and ground scape.

“Alright, now I know this is a bit rushed, but I want you to kill that Zebra. And your father, I don't want them trying to stop us. No offense, but Seekers can be a pain.” Rapture stated as she trotted over to the two she wanted dead, both completely unable to stop her or the rampaging Sun Strike.

“Well... The goddesses can wait. Anything you wish.” He finally drew the new Radiance. It burned with anticipation, Radiance was burning with passion, and couldn't wait to fight. He dragged the blade along the floor as he trotted forward. It both burned and sliced through the earth, leaving a hot scar on the trail behind him. He trotted until he was just feet away from Zecora and Midnight. His claw dug into Zecora's face as he suffocated her.

He was a master at this. He withdrew his claw once he knew she was also unconscious.

He glared at Midnight.

Midnight glared back.

Sun got a better grip on his blade.

Rapture was close. She wanted to watch this.

Sun braced for the swing.

Midnight did not drop his glare.

With his entire body, and all of his newfound godhood. He swung the blade. It's flaming passion leaving a trail behind it as it was swung through the air. To Midnight the attack moved as if it was in slow motion. It swung around straight for him. He closed his eyes, waiting for death.

However. Midnight was not the target.

Sun swung Radiance completely around his body. Slicing the majority of Rapture's neck clean through. Her head rolled back, only staying attached due to the bit of meat he missed.

She flicked her head back on with a jerk. But Sun was already acting. He plunged Radiance through her entire body. Her black blood dripped down her neck. Her hooves grasped at the blade. Her shadowy claws all reached to rip out Sun's throat, but his own shadows protected him.

“What the FUCK I MADE YOU A GOD” that sweet voice burnt into an unequine bellow of rage.

“In this life I may choose desolation... I can destroy what I fought for with my own hooves! But if I turn to the light, I know that I can protect those who I care about. Everypony that matters to me shall not die in vain!"

“YOU'RE A FOOL, YOU CAN'T KILL ME!”

“I know that you wouldn't give me the power to best you, and I knew that the princesses, nor the Elements of Harmony can kill you! But what if I used all of them, and the power you gave me, and send it straight through that gaping hole you call a heart!”

“IT WONT WORK!”

“THIS IS THE BEST I CAN DO, I WILL STOP YOU, EVEN IF IT KILLS ME!”

“FOOL, FOOL YOU HAD EVERYTHING, I GAVE YOU EVERYTHING, WHY WOULD YOU GIVE ALL OF THAT UP!”

“DID YOU THINK THAT I WOULD BETRAY MY FRIENDS FOR YOU? WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM?”

With the push of his blade, sapphire flames blazed through Rapture's body. Sapphire flame roared through her eyes, mouth, ears, and nose. She screamed in agony as she was cooked by the flames. With drawing the blade, Sun made another giant swing. This time, Radiance easily sliced Rapture's head clean off. Her black blood spattered down.

Tendrils of living shadows acted like spider legs that poured out the base of her head. Lifting the severed head up on new legs. The head itself bloated into terrible mass, it bloated to the size of two or three ponies. It boiled with rotten flesh and pus. More living shadows crawled along it's surface. Her eye's were gone, replaced by oozing pus and every aspect that made the head “equine” in any way was gone. It was now a bloated... thing with a mouth and eye holes walking with spider-like legs.

“Decapitated, I still live. I still haunt. I Still Breath. Sanctify your weapon at hand. Sun Strike! I BRING YOU DEATH.”

Sun plunged Radiance deep into the bloated “thing”. He roared as it's fire blaze through the monstrosity. He cringed, as if knowing what would come next...

He whispered lowly, only he heard his words.

“...sometimes... we must purge.... things from our... world that... should not exist...”

It was just for a moment... an impossible moment. An instant. Just long enough to seem like the imagination. Midnight thought he saw somepony else... a red stallion. A blood red stallion... Sunset Eve.....

With all of his might he pushed forward. He channeled everything he could through Radiance. The powers she had given him, the powers he stole from the Princesses. The power of the Elements of Harmony. All of the light he had left to burn he used.

The resulting explosion was like fifty rainbooms... In a single spot. All at once. The wall of rainbow fire surged out. Repainting the world with color and light. Burning away the the gray. The blast was said to be heard from all corners of Equestria.

Sun stood holding the hilt of Radiance. Radiance was gone. She died so that Rapture could be defeated. He had returned to his standard size. He had no idea where his hat and coat were. The Everfree had nearly been leveled. It seemed like every tree for a solid mile all around them had been uprooted and thrown back. He slowly looked around. He gave a small smile when he saw the only ponies he ever cared about stir in their unconsciousness.

There was nothing left of Rapture or her throne. He wasn't sure if she was dead, or just got sent back to where she came. He didn't care. She was gone. He had done it. He had protected those he loved. He gave a grin, he was woozy.

It came quickly.

Sun dry heaved. Then heaved again. Then he vomited his own blood. A lot of it. Then he vomited blood again... and again. He fell to the ground, his body seizing and jerking wildly. He couldn't catch his breath, he kept coughing, he was choking on the blood.

Celestia pulled herself from the ground. She looked to her sister, who had been rendered unconscious from the explosion of light. She looked to her little ponies. The stirred, they were hurt, drained, but they would be fine. She looked to the convulsing Sun Strike on the floor. And all the blood.

She forced herself up. She felt weak, small. She could still feel the burns on her knees and neck. She slowly trotted toward him. But was too weak. She fell to her knees. Her only pink mane getting in her face. She ignored it, pulling herself along. She refused to let it happen like this.

Sun's body seized horribly. He felt rotten inside. It felt like his whole body wanted to rip itself apart. He tried to hold in his guts. He tried to hold on to consciousness. He tried desperately. He didn't want this... He didn't want this...

Celestia finally got to him. She grabbed his body and pulled it into an embrace, stopping his body from convulsing out of his control. She was crying... She held him close. She could feel his warm blood soaking into her fur. She looked down at him, still crying... still full of sorrow. His body wanted to move. Wanted to seize out of control. But he contained it. She helped him contain it. He gave her a cocky grin as she cried down at him.

“I got that cunt....... see I'm a good guy.........”

“I know...”- she had to choke back the tears, her hoof stroked his mane gently -“then you knew this would happen?”

For the first time, she realized how much Sun Strike had really given up. He had no life.... no friends.... no family.... all he was.... was a Seeker.... all he ever saw was the worst the world had to offer... yet.... yet he nearly died for it on a regular basis.

“Figured... as... much.” He whispered though fits of bloody coughs.

“That kind of power... flowing through a single pony.... through a mortal pony.... then storing it all... then losing it all at once....”

“Yeah, I'm... dead” He whispered sadly..

“Maybe... maybe I can save you.....” She told him.

“Hurts... it hurts all over....... Fuck it hurts....” he wanted to cry

“I know my little pony.... I know.....”

She held him as close as she could. She embraced his body tightly against her own.... She hated herself... This was all her fault... she believed that if she hadn't been so blind... none of this would have happened... and Sun would be ok...

“I... can't... feel.... anything.... tell the fillies that............ I'm sorry I yelled at them, gotta put on a show.... I'm so sorry.... sorry I wasn't good enough to stop all this.... good enough for them to actually care about me....”

She couldn't reply....

She kissed his forehead....

She felt his body finally stop.

She felt him breath his final breath.

She felt him go limp...

She felt the greatest hero in a long time die in her hooves.

He was just... gone.

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It had been whole year since that day. An entire year since the day “When the Light was Stolen Away.” And it felt like a lifetime since the light was returned by “Sun Strike, of the Sunfall Clan. Equestria's Hero.” The day when Sun Strike was wrapped up completely, and his corpse burned into ash, so that nothing could ever take his body for any use.

The Elements of harmony eventually returned to their full power. As did the strength of the two Princesses.

When Sun Strike died, the gravity of his death weighed heavily upon his friends. Especially when they heard his last words. Ultimately, Sun had blamed himself for their betrayal. He thought that if he had just been a better pony, they would have cared more. He died assuming he was a bad friend. He died for the ponies who he cared for. He knew that if he did kill Rapture, there was no way his body could have survived. He knew that if he couldn't kill her... he would die by her might.
He was in a lose lose situation, unless he worked with Rapture... but that was never something he would ever do.

He got dealt a terrible hand. He could have folded, he could have switched to a Royal Flush... but instead, he played that hand.... so he could save his friends...

The mares felt terrible...

After Twilight sent that letter, Celestia bolted to Ponyville with Luna. Celestia told them that he was a criminal. A wanted Stallion. He was held responsible for a large number of grizzly deaths, several cases of grave desecration, he was even being held responsible for a large number of ponies who went missing, the list went on and on. Too many crimes to list. They all knew that the grizzly deaths were more than likely the ponies he failed to save, and that he hated himself for failing them. The graves must have been bodies he had dug up so he could burn their bones and free their spirits. They all knew that while he was being blamed for so much, that the cases where he succeeded vastly outnumbered his failures. They wanted to tell Celestia, but she was in such a righteous stallion-hunt, it didn't matter if they said anything. Rather than say something and become a target of her anger they just held their tongues.

Once he was gone, Celestia finally listened to their stories. For the first time in what seemed like an eternity, Celestia stopped turning a blind eye to Seekers, and the seeming endless battle of light vs darkness. Luna explained to her how that it was nothing but loyalty that attached the Sunfall to Nightmare Moon, and the two sisters had a very long overdue chat about how Nightmare Moon came into existence. They both cried, they both felt better after.

Realizing her anger had consumed her, similar to the way Luna's rage had. She decided to do everything she could to make it up to the Sunfall, even if they were all gone. “The Day the Light was Stolen Away” was a mystery for the common folk, and it even concerned the world for a while after it happened. Looking weak, Celestia knew she couldn't show herself right after the event. She waited two days, by then, her size had mostly returned. With a bit of makeup, hair dye, and wind magic. She looked like her natural self. She told Sun Strikes story, glorifying him like some storybook hero. The day he died became a national holiday. Sun Strike was turned into a humble hero, who gave everything he had so that the world may be mended. Everypony loved him. Loved the idea that when the world was in peril, it wasn't the Goddess Celestia, or those who bare the Elements of Harmony. It was a normal pony, an earth pony to boot, who gave up everything he had for the world.

Nopony knows whatever happened to Midnight. He failed. He failed his only love, because of him, both her children were dead. He failed his children because he felt if he had been a better father, they would have survived. When everypony regained consciousness, He was just gone. Gone, and nopony ever saw him again.

Zecora was left rather broken hearted, but she worked harder so that no more ponies died. But she knew that she couldn't let his death be for nothing. She started a town guard for Ponyville. Being so close to uncharted territory was dangerous. Under her leadership. The town was protected from the wild unknown of the Everfree.

The girls still mourn for him. Still cry about that day. They drink whiskey together from time to time to commemorate him. They even let the Crusaders take a sip.

The Crusaders didn't take the news badly. He had told them several time that he would die. He told them he would more than likely die for them.

If I go and kick the bucket.... don't waste your time mourning me, you're three young beautiful girls, you have too much life to lead to waste time on some buck. Go live, go live and be happy.

They were ready for it. It still hurt, they still cried. Save for Scootaloo.

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“Scootaloo, it's ok to cry.”

“Cry for what, he told us a thousand times that he was going to die. He wouldn't want me to feel sad anyway. Besides, he isn't really dead.”

“Scootaloo...”

“Well he IS dead, It's just that.... well real ponies never really die, even when they've been killed get it?”

“Scootaloo... that doesn't make any sense.“

“Well... Sun Strike is dead, that hurts. But he's not gone. He's everypony's hero now. Everything he died for is still here. He wants us to be happy, and I want to be happy... Well for a lot of reasons for that, but also because he wants me to be happy. He taught me tons of stuff, he taught all of us a whole bunch, and as long as we remember his words, and everything he taught us... he really won't be gone.... He's here with us. In our hearts and stuff.” Scootaloo spoke with pride in her heart, and a tear in her eye. She put on Sun Strike's desperado hat. She liked wearing it. She didn't fit the trenchcoat just yet. She kept all of his old belongings. His sawed-off, his Seeker's journal. Even Radiance's hilt.

All in all, it was a long, and sad couple of years. But it was also a good number of years. And happy years. The mares enjoyed life a little more now that they nearly lost everything. They would always cherish the time they spent with Sun Strike. Even the scary parts.

Within the year, the girls were kept up to date on the Sunset Squad, named after Sun's mother. Celestia's new secret service. A group of knights that had been trained in Seekerhood. It was a rather large organization now, and was doing a great job killing and seeking out things lurking in the shadows. They had saved thousands of ponies in the first few months of operation.

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Celestia had called all of those involved with Sun Strike to a great meeting, where they would have a feast to honor him. It was a great meeting. Midnight didn't show up. Everypony drank, and ate well. They talked of their lives, and of pleasant memories of Sun Strike.

Like when he was working with Rarity, and Sweetie Belle thought it would be funny to make him try on every dress to see if they fit properly. He wore every single one she gave to him.

Or when he helped Rainbow set up a awesome new trick, and Scootaloo convinced him to lite the whole thing on fire to make it more “Radical”

Or when he spent the weekend at Twilight's, rearranging the library again and again with her.

Or when he made cake (cake being only a technical term, it was really more of an anthropomorphic gray ooze) with Pinkie Pie and everypony got sick because nopony wanted to tell how bad it was.

Or when he had to take care of Fluttershy's pets because she was sick. And Angel Bunny harassed him the whole time

Or when he was bucking apples, but had to tone it done so he didn't outshine Applebloom.

Everypony enjoyed it.

When being escorted out the castle, The group saw a member of the Sunset Squad trot to Celestia, whisper something to her and trot away. The group said their goodbyes to the princesses, and made their way back home. It was a happy train ride back home. Save for Scootaloo... she was lost in thought.

Only Scootaloo noticed it. She was very unsure.

The Sunset Squad are all dressed the same. Covered head to hoof in jet black armor, coated with a black trench coat lined with weapons, and cloaked by a hood. This way they didn't stand out much in a crowd, while they hid their weapons from the public. The only part of them even remotely noticeable was their eyes, and only their eyes.

It made sense as she pieced things together in her mind silently.

How could Celestia set up such an effective Seeker organization in such a short amount of time unless she had someone, one of the best, working with her. How could they be so good... hell how would they even know how to kill anything. Scootaloo personally had his Seeker journal. Why would Celestia name the elite Seeker squad after Sun's mother instead of after Sun Strike himself. Sun blamed himself for his mother death, this could be his way of giving her new life.

However, she was grasping at straws and she knew it. She also knew that Midnight could still be out there. And that he was one of the best. He could have helped Celestia with all these things. He could have trained recruits, after all, he trained his sons. And having failed his wife, could naming the best Seeker squad in history after his dead love might be a form of redemption.

She had no way of knowing for sure. It was impossible. She had never actually seen Sun Strike's dead body. And she never saw Midnight again either. Hell, they might even be working together on the Sunset Squad.Living in secret.

She also knew that Sun didn't think he was good enough for his friends, and that he would do anything to help keep them safe... even faking his own death so he could make this Sunset Squad with the princesses.

But as she trotted out that castle, everypony saw the stallion trot up to Celestia. But only Scootaloo noticed his eyes. His blue eyes. His burning blue eyes. More than blue, his burning Sapphire eyes. She stared directly into them for an instant. A single instant, they stared at each other. Just long enough to make the argument that it was her imagination. She saw his burning sapphire eyes.

Of course she knew that he wasn't the only pony with those kind of eyes. She wasn't the only mare with her off-purple eye color. But off all the ponies who would go and talk to Celestia directly.... there was that chance.

Or was she making all of this up? How could he have survived? It wasn't like somepony else could die for him... Did she just want to have some reason to think he was alive? She didn't know. She kept asking herself that. She didn't know how to answer. She gave up, she didn't care. To her... Sun Strike was alive and watching over her... a guardian angel. Protecting her. Keeping her safe. Keeping all of her friends safe. He was still out there somewhere. The pale blue cowpony in the desperado hat in ponies' dreams. The fighter in the shadows. The Hero of Equestria When the Light was Stolen Away.

Real Ponies never really die. Even when they are killed.