A Survivors Guide to Equestria

by Onomonopia

First published 15th of July, 2014

A lone human in a world of ponies.

A regular human arrives in Equestria and to most it would be a dream come true. But this human knows pratically nothing about the ponies or their world. With no home to return to, he is forced to brave this new world. So he does what any human in his situation would do. He survives.

Rated teen for swearing, blood and how it gets kinda dark. Written after season two. Updated after season 4.

Ashes

It was all burning.

Fire and death were all around him as he watched his world burn. He could see the people screaming, all of them running to somewhere safe. But nothing in the world was safe. Not anymore. The majestic city in the background, called the zenith of human ingenuity and unity, was now a burning flare, signaling to the rest of the world that its time had come. The fire that consumed the city now consumed the world. Nothing was left untouched, not even the ocean, which boiled like magma and damned all to a terrible fate--who were unfortunate enough to be trapped within its roiling maw. Then the next thing he knew, he was falling. The fire faded into darkness and the sounds of screaming died into silence. He knew not for how long he fell, but to him it was like sinking into an ocean...an ocean that had no bottom. Then, he surfaced.

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The human awoke, but did not open his eyes. He was afraid that if he opened them, he would have to witness the terror that had become his reality all over again. So instead of seeing, he decided to let his other senses work. He felt the cool breeze of the night air as it gently slid over his face. He could feel the damp, cool grass on his back. He pushed his hand into the ground and found he gripped freshly dewed grass. He felt no heat, no fire. He then let his ears take over. He could hear the sounds of crickets chirping in the distance, as well as howls and hoots from other nocturnal animals. He heard no screaming. Finally, he started to smell the surrounding air. It smelled like the air one would breath from a field or a grassland. He inhaled deeply and smelt the scent of nature...nothing else.

Now that he knew he was no longer where he had previously been, the man decided to finally open his eyes. He was, as he had already concluded lying on his back, looking up at a majestic night sky. It was the kind of sky no one seemed to notice anymore. With this sky, he could clearly see each and every star, all of them glowing with power. And then he looked at the queen of the night herself, the moon. It was full, glorious and shone with a pale light upon the land, allowing him to see much farther than he should have been able to do. But what he noticed the most was that there was no fire; no sign of fire anywhere. It was peaceful--no screaming; no burning; just...peace.

Realizing that he couldn't sit there and stare at the moon forever, the human sat up. The moment he did so, a wave of nausea rolled over him. He felt vomit leap into his mouth and he was forced to fight it back down. He sat in place for a minute, waiting for the nausea to end. When it did, he gingerly rose to his full height.

'Where am I,' he thought to himself. 'And on that note, who am I?' He felt his first rush of fear since he had arrived in this new land. He didn't even remember his own name. He tried to think of it, but every time he did, a sharp pain would surge through his head. He had just about given up when the answer, like with most riddles, simply came to him.

Ryan.

Ryan. That was his name, huh? It was alright. Ryan slowly looked around, finding himself in a clearing in what seemed like a massive forest. He didn't know of any forests that were as large as this one, but then again he knew little about forests in general. After observing his surroundings, he decided to take a look at himself. He was wearing a dark, zipped-up jacket with a hood in the back, black sweat pants, a simple pair of sneakers and a back pack. He realized that bits of his jacket were smoldering slightly, reminding him that the fire hadn't been part of the dream. The back pack was what intrigued him the most at the moment, so he carefully slipped it off and laid it upon the forest floor. He unzipped the top and started to pull items out.

The first item was an odd black stick with a handle and wires running up the top of it. He immediately identified it as a stun baton. He grasped its hilt and flicked the switch to turn it on. Nothing. With a shrug he placed the baton at his side and pulled out the next item--a bottle of water. THAT might be something he'd need to survive. He continued to rummage through the bag, pulling out all sorts of goods. A pen half full of ink, a few protein bars and a whole roll of bandages. After inspecting each of these items individually, he pulled out the last item from the bag. It was a photo. Looking at it in the light of the moon, he found that it was taken with him standing with another person. That other person wore a lab coat, a pair of thin glasses and had a goofy smile on his face. The name underneath read 'Chris'.

'Chris,' Ryan thought, his memory starting to come back to him. 'Oh God, Chris!' His mind was instantly filled with flash backs...the burning building, the explosions and fire. But worst of all, what had happened to Chris..?

Ryan shook his head, trying to clear it. He couldn't think of such things now, he had a bigger problem to face. If he remembered anything from Boy Scout training, it's that he needed water and shelter. He picked up the items and placed them back into his bag--except for the stun baton, which he now held. Taking a look at it, he couldn't help but smirk.

"Giving me an electric weapon with no power in it. That is just like you, Chris," he said aloud to himself. Taking his eyes off the weapon and towards the forest, he steeled his nerves. He had no idea what awaited him in the forest, but he was going to find out. Taking in one last breath of the grassy air, he began his slow march into the darkness.

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The forest had looked a lot better from the safety of the meadow than it did from within. The tree tops were so thick that they practically blocked out the moonlight. The cool breeze that he had felt was now stifled, which helped to unnerve him a bit. But the worst part was the eyes. He could see them as he trekked through the forest, all of them watching this newcomer to their forest. Some he recognized as nocturnal creatures, such as owls and badgers, but other eyes were like nothing he had ever seen. He took note that the same pair of green eyes seemed to be following him throughout the forest.

Ryan continued to wander for what felt like hours. He had no idea where he was going and had no set destination in mind. But he knew that going back was no longer an option, so he had to continue going forward. He came to a small grotto and found that there was more moonlight here than the rest of the forest. He was considering spending the night here when he heard a sound that all who travel through the forest dread--the sound of howling. He quickly spun around to find a pack of wolves slowly approaching him from the grotto's edge. As they entered the moonlight, his eyes widened in shock when he got his first glimpse at their true forms.

Each of the wolves was covered in what looked like bark, as well as leaves on different spots on their bodies. The wolves were also larger than any wolf he had ever seen, the tallest reaching what he assumed to be three and a half feet. The fact that he was five foot eight meant little to the wolves--and he knew what they were thinking: He was prey. Ryan slowly grasped the stun baton in both hands, preparing himself for the inevitable fight. For the second time since he had awoken, he was afraid. Fighting four normal wolves would be insane, but these wolves would be impossible to defeat. The alpha wolf let out a howl and rushed him.

Ryan dodged out of the way of the pack leader's initial lunge and raised his weapon over his head, poised to bring it down on the wolf's head. But before he could, a second wolf lunged at him from the side and nearly succeeded in ripping a hole in him. Ryan rolled to his side and quickly rose to his feet, but the wolves had him surrounded now. He quickly looked back and forth, trying to predict from where the next attack would come. One wolf lunged at him from behind, but he expected this and spun around to deliver a heavy blow to the beast's skull. The wolf went down with a yelp, but the moment Ryan turned his back on the other members of the pack, they took that chance to strike. One wolf sunk its fangs into his arm, causing blood to spout from his wound. He cried out in pain and fell to one knee, trying to shake the wolf that had him by the arm.

As he continued to struggle, the pack leader jumped onto Ryan's back and sunk its fangs into his shoulder. Ryan cried out weakly and shook with all his remaining strength, trying desperately to get away. The pack, sensing that their prey was defeated, slowly advanced towards him. He gazed at them weakly, not believing that he had escaped one death, only to be instantly killed in another world. The leader snarled at him and went in for the killing blow.

WHAM!

An attack from the shadows sent the pack leader sprawling across the grotto. The rest of the wolves turned towards their new foe, snarling at it. Ryan looked over at the shadow that stood in the darkness. It stepped forward and Ryan's world was rocked. Standing on its hind legs was a zebra. The zebra also held what looked like a bamboo staff in its front hoof, twirling it in a very dangerous manner. What surprised him the most though, was that the zebra then proceeded to speak.

"Timberwolves are not welcome here. Get out now or I'll show you something to fear." Ryan didn't know if it was from the loss of blood or the terrible pain that racked his body, but he was pretty sure that he had just heard the zebra speak in rhyme. The wolves showed no intention of leaving and they slowly advanced towards the lone zebra. Much to Ryan's surprise the zebra smiled.

"So you chose to come and battle me? You will regret this decision for eternity." The first wolf snarled and lunged at her. Then the 'beat down' commenced. The zebra placed the staff on its shoulders and quickly spun, knocking the wolf out of the air. Before that wolf had even hit the ground, the zebra dashed over to another wolf and placed her hoof between its eyes. There was a loud crack as the wolf's face shattered apart and it burst into a pile of twigs. She slammed the end of her staff into the ground and used it as a pole to swing herself into a third wolf. The poor thing didn't even have time to react as the zebra placed another bark-shattering hoof into the beast's chest. The force of the impact blasted the wolf into twigs, which fell to the forest floor. And all the while, Ryan watched from his knees, unable to comprehend what was going on. The zebra landed next to its staff and picked it out of the ground, turning to face the pack leader, who was slowly getting up from where the zebra had smacked him. It groggily turned to face the zebra, who simply gave it another smile.

"Do you wish to give up? Or shall I bring your corpse back to my hut?" The wolf turned on its heels and ran off into the forest yelping at the top of its lungs. The victorious zebra let out a laugh before turning her attention to Ryan. Ryan's vision was blackening from the loss of blood at this point. He knew that he was powerless to stop this zebra even if he could fight. He felt his eyelids get heavier as the zebra approached, and he fell over just as it reached him. Before he passed out, he heard it mumble,

"I have never seen a creature such as you around. But I don't think you should lay there passed out on the ground."

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The first thing Ryan felt when he awoke was an odd tingly sensation running through his body. He gingerly moved the arm that had been bitten and found to his confusion that it no longer hurt. He slowly opened his eyes and found himself to be staring at what looked like the roof of a hut. He slowly sat up and found that he was lying on a cot of sorts. He noted that his jacket had been taken and was replaced by some of the bandages from his bag. He looked to his left to find said bag resting upon an odd table in the middle of the room. Ryan then looked around the room and what he saw frightened him a little. There were various jars and vials of unknown substance on almost every corner of the room. A giant pot sat in one corner of the room, and something foul smelling was being cooked inside of it. He barely had time to note the tiki mask when a voice practically gave him a heart attack.

"It took you forever to finally awake. I was certain that you were going to sleep forever, for goodness sake." Ryan turned his head quickly to see the zebra from the wood entering the hut. She carried jars of something in one saddle bag and his coat in the other. Now that he wasn't being mauled by wolves, he had the chance to observe it in greater detail. The zebra was around three and a half feet, slightly smaller than the wolves that had tried to turn him into dinner. It wore some sort of odd golden rings around its neck and two others hung from its ears. Before he could make any other observations, it began to speak.

"Why do you stare at me like that, you weird boar? Have you never seen a zebra before?" she asked with a joking smile. Ryan did not return the smile. Instead, he looked over at where his stun baton lay, wondering if he could get to it fast enough before the zebra could react. It had saved him, but he still didn't trust it. Right before he made his move, the zebra frowned and shook her head.

"Do you take me for one of the fools? Did you not see what I did to the timberwolves?" That stopped him in his tracks. Now that his element of surprise was gone, he stood no chance against her. Ryan slowly got to his feet, eyeing her carefully. The zebra smiled again and tried to get him to open up.

"If I tell you mine, you must do the same." Only after he nodded did she continue. "I am called Zecora; that is my name."

"Ryan," he muttered, not liking the fact he had to give his name to someone he didn't trust. Zecora smiled once again and placed his jacket on the table.

"I had to remove this to help you heal. The medicine works fast, as I'm sure you already feel." Ryan picked up his jacket and put it back on again. He found that Zecora had even mended the tears in it. That prompted him to ask his first question.

"Why did you help me?" he asked in a small voice. Zecora was placing the jars she was carrying on whatever empty space she could find. Only when she had finished did she answer.

"If I did not intervene, you would have most likely died. But since I helped, you survived. It is in my nature to help all who are in danger. Even one like you, who is a total stranger." She walked over to the steaming pot and emptied a jar of nastiness into its depths. She picked up a spoon and began to stir, ignoring the look of disgust on Ryan's face.

"There is a town near the edge of Everfree. There you will find the supplies you need," she informed him. "They are kind souls who help the lost or sick, but sometimes they can be a little thick. If you find anything interesting, bring it to me. I will tell you what it is, completely for free." Ryan wasn't sure if he could trust this information, but he had nothing better to go on at the moment. He picked up his stun baton and slid his backpack over his shoulders. He took two steps towards the door before stopping and looking back at Zecora.

"Thanks," he muttered, before heading back into the forest. Outside he found that he was in a much clearer part of the forest, as daylight could be seen creeping in through the trees. If it was daylight already, that meant that he had been out for hours. Shaking his head and looking down, he found that a path led from Zecora's hut. He figured that if he followed it, it would probably lead him to that town of which Zecora had spoken. With one last look at the odd zebra's hut, he turned and headed off towards the town.

First Impressions

Ryan felt relieved as he finally exited the forest that had nearly claimed his life and happy when he felt the rays of the sun on his face. The sunlight gave warmth to his body, washing away the dread of death. He didn't know who was watching over him, but they must really like him. It's not every day that a person has two near-death situations in the span of one day. Those wolves had been something else entirely and were like nothing he had ever seen. He knew for a fact that regular wolves weren't made of lumber and didn't have glowing green eyes. Then there was that zebra, Zecora. A talking zebra went against everything that he had learned throughout his life, but one that performed the most advanced martial arts? Insanity.

His walk took him to the top of a small hill with a view, allowing him to see off into the distance. Ryan noted that Zecora had been telling the truth, and that there was a town near the outskirts of the forest. But she had failed to mention what kind of town it was. Was it filled with more of those wolves or just more zebras like her? One way to find out. As he continued towards the small town, he wondered what it would be like, an entire village full of zebras like Zecora? Truth be told, Zecora scared him much more than the Timberwolves, as she called them. The wolves were just acting on instinct, but Zecora was...different. That was the only way he could describe her at the moment. She was different.

Upon reaching the outskirts of the town, Ryan noted two equine creatures talking to each other. After stopping to stare in disbelief, he realized what they were: Ponies. Ponies were the creatures that inhabited the town. And they could talk. Sure, why not? After Zecora, he figured not much else would surprise him. One of the them was small and an odd shade of gray...blue-gray? Ryan couldn't tell. What was much more interesting was that the pony had some odd marking on its flank that was in the shape of...scissors? Odd. Taking a look at the taller, yellowish one, he found that it too had a marking on its flank. This marking looked like a snail. Ryan wasn't sure what to make of them. He flipped up his hood and slowly approached them. Upon getting closer, he picked up on a little of their conversation.

"-and it wasn't even my fault! All I said was..." Ryan watched as the one with the scissors mark stopped dead as he approached. Ryan stood over the two, who were now gazing at him in fear, and tried to ask a question.

"Excuse me, I'm-"

"A MONSTER!" The one with the snail screamed and tore off in the opposite direction. His friend also screamed and bolted, leaving a confused human behind him. Unfortunately, all those who had been within range of the two's voices were now coming to where the screams had come. Ryan watched in growing dread as a few ponies showed up to investigate, only to take off screaming after taking one look at him.

"That's not good," he muttered to himself, taking off back towards the forest. In a few minutes the town was in an uproar, everypony looking around for the monster that was supposed to be around. But none of them ever found him.

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Only when night had finally fallen upon the land did Ryan come out from his hiding place in the woods. During the day, he had watched these...ponies run around their town trying to find him. One or two had gone into the forest, but they had entered far away from where he was hiding. Ryan thought back to the earlier encounter with the two little ones and how they had reacted to him. Apparently, he was seen as a monster and if he knew anything about natives and monsters, they would try to bring him down as soon as possible. That would mean he'd have to avoid all contact with them while he snuck into the town. He had chosen to wait until the cover of nightfall before he would try to sneak in. He didn't want to, but he knew he would need those supplies as soon as possible. Whatever medicine Zecora had used to heal him was wearing off and he could feel the pains of his battle coming back to bug him.

'Wonder where Zecora got to?' he muttered to himself, having gone back to her hut for help to find her gone. 'Kinda could use some advice right now.' When he felt that it was time, he quietly slipped into the town.

Upon reaching the first building, he immediately kept to the shadows. His dark clothing would help him blend in with the shadows, reducing the chance of him being seen. So he hoped. As he snuck through the streets, he noted that most of the ponies that had been running around during the day were gone. In fact, the streets were almost empty. That was a small comfort to him, for he had seen a few things that had shocked him while he was hiding. From his protection amongst the trees, he had seen pegasi roam the sky and unicorns searching for him. The fact that this world had not only talking ponies, but also unicorns and pegasi as well, greatly unnerved him.

'Regular ponies I might be able to handle, pitifully, but pegasi and unicorns? I'm out of my league,' he thought to himself. He flattened his body against the side of a building and slowly peeked around the corner. There were no ponies in sight, but plenty of lights were still on in many of the houses, indicating that their residents weren't asleep yet. The only house that he saw with no lights on was an odd tree in the center of the street. He figured that it would be a good place to start. After checking both ways, as well as the sky above him, Ryan quickly raced across the open ground. The moment he reached the tree, he hid himself in its shadows. He had expected to hear the sounds of shouting and his imminent capture to follow, but none of those things happened. He slowly placed his hand on the door, preparing himself for what was to happen next. If there were a pony in the room, he would have to incapacitate it before it saw him...any way he could. He counted to three and pushed on the door. Much to his surprise, he found that the door silently swung open.

'Do these ponies leave their houses unlocked just so someone like me could walk in? Well, I'm not complaining.' Ryan slipped inside and gently closed the door behind him. The moment he was inside, he looked around the room. With the moonlight streaming in through the windows, he could see fairly easily. He was in a library, with mountains of books piled on the floor everywhere. The shelves were the only place that no books seemed to reside. Taking his eyes off the books, he scanned the room, looking for anything that might be of use.

Then he heard voices, voices coming from right outside the door. As adrenaline shot through his body, he desperately searched for somewhere to hide. One mound of books was larger than the rest, so it would have to do. He rushed behind them and had just crouched down when the door opened. He was too afraid of being spotted to poke his head out, so he was forced to just listen.

"Alright Spike, you watch over the library. I'll be back a little later," he heard a female voice instruct.

"Come on Twilight, why do you have to go back out? You looked everywhere for this monster and you didn't find anything. It's late; can we just go to bed?" This voice sounded younger and much more childish than the other, but at the moment Ryan was concerned with what they were discussing. If either of them turned on a light and even glimpsed at where he was, game over.

'Please say no, please say no!' Ryan begged to himself, his heart racing in fear.

"Sorry Spike, but if there is a monster running around Equestria, then I need to find it," the one called Twilight informed Spike.

'Thank you.'

"Alright, I'll be back within the hour. Try not to destroy the place while I'm gone." Ryan heard the sound of the door being closed and the Spike mumbling to himself.

"Yeesh, you set fire to the library one time and they never let you forget it." Ryan's heart leapt in his chest when he heard a flick and the lights to the library came on. He started to plan what he would do if Spike came over to where he was hiding. If Spike walked over here, it would be best to knock him out before being seen. If that didn't work, he may have to resort to...extreme measures. But Spike never even glanced towards the book mound where Ryan hid. Instead, he pulled out a frost gem from the fridge and sat himself down to enjoy his meal. Ryan, who heard the sounds of crunching and guessed that Spike was eating, decided to take a peek at his company.

He saw a small, purple dragon sitting at a table eating what looked like a chunk of ice. A dragon that eats ice. Sure. While the dragon was interesting, he was also preventing Ryan from moving. He might be safe at the moment, but when the other one returned, his chances of being found would skyrocket. He needed to remove the dragon from the equation. Sticking his head out from the side of the book mound, he glanced around the room for anything that might distract or incapacitate Spike. His eyes fell upon an open door that led down a staircase into a basement. A small smile spread across his face as an idea popped into his head. Making sure that the dragon wasn't looking, he hefted one of the larger books onto his shoulder. The next part would require precise aiming. Once he had lined up the book with the staircase, he let the book fly. Just as he had hoped, the book sailed through the open door and straight down the stairs.

KKRRRRAAAASSSSHHHH!

Added bonus, the book seemed to have broken something when it landed. Ryan watched with a smile as Spike shot into the air and quickly hid under the table. He stuck his head out and slowly got out from under the table.

"H-hello, is some pony there?" he stammered, baby-stepping towards the basement. Ryan slowly moved from behind his cover and stealthily walked over to the chair that Spike had been sitting in. He lifted it and waited.

"A-any pony?" Spike sputtered, taking a few tentative steps down the stairs.

WHAM!

Ryan slammed the door behind Spike and quickly wedged the chair under the handle, preventing it from being opened.

"Hey, let me out!" Spike yelled, banging on the door to no avail. Now that the dragon was out of the way, Ryan was free to explore the library at his own leisure...for a while anyway. He naturally went to the ...fridge? These ponies had refrigerators? Odd. He opened the fridge to find a multitude of salads, apples and grass. He looked at the salad to find that there was bits of straw in it. Salad's out. He grabbed two of the apples and placed them in his backpack. He tried his best to ignore the pounding on the door and walked over to a desk. What was on the desk was a bright blue crystal, a blank book and an ink bottle with the words 'inkfinity' on its side. Stooping over to get a better look at the ink, he was intrigued to find that the ink was an odd reddish color.

"Inkfinity ink? Does that mean it never runs out?" he mused to himself. He put a cork on the ink pot and placed it in a side pocket, planning to examine it more later. The crystal was his next priority. He carefully reached down and touched it.

BOOM!

A bolt of lightning surged through Ryan's body and blasted him across the room into a bookshelf, before he slumped to the floor. He groggily pulled himself to his feet, trying to shake the numbness out of him limbs.

"Okay, that hurt," he groaned, shaking his head.

"W-whoever you are, you'll be sorry once Twilight gets back!" Spike shouted out from behind the door. Ryan ignored him and cautiously examined the crystal again. On closer inspection, he saw little bolts of electricity running around inside of it.

'That explains the thunderbolt.' Taking his stun baton out of his pack, he used its insulated handle to push the crystal into his bag. Finally, there was the blank-paged book. There was nothing special about it, but what the heck, it would be good to write some things down. Ryan wanted to continue searching, but another voice outside the library forced him to change his plans. Searching around the room, he spied a window on the far side of the library. He made his way over to it as the voices got closer.

"I can't believe Spikey-wikey would just forget that he was supposed to help me," Rarity said to Applejack as the two entered the library.

"Ah reckon he had a good reason," AJ guessed, when they both heard a loud banging sound.

"RARITY! APPLEJACK! Let me out of here!" The two rushed over to the door and removed the chair, finally allowing Spike to push the door open.

"Spike, what happened?" Rarity asked in shock.

"Some pony broke in here and locked me in the basement!" he exclaimed. Applejack and Rarity looked around the room, but there was no sign of any pony. The only thing that looked different was that the back window was open.

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Ryan counted his blessings that none of the ponies had seen him when he had left the small town. He had heard Spike and the other two ponies searching for him, but by then he had already left and was almost back to the forest. He planned to have some words with Zecora, especially for her not telling him how the inhabitants would react to him. He followed the dirt path to her hut and opened the door. The weird lighting was on, but Zecora wasn't home yet. Ryan shrugged and turned around to find the zebra standing right behind him.

"Gah!" Ryan jumped backwards and knocked himself over on Zecora's table. It must have been quite a spectacle, because when he got back to his feet, Zecora was laughing so hard tears rolled down her face.

"Glad to see I could provide some entertainment," he growled at her. Zecora eventually stopped laughing enough to answer him.

"I did not mean to make you move in such haste, but you should have seen the look on your face," Zecora smiled, trying to repress the laughter. Ryan scowled and brought his backpack onto the table. He emptied the items that he had gathered onto the table for Zecora to see.

"I got these from the town that you said would help me," he muttered angrily. "What you failed to mention was that everyone there would call me a monster and try to hunt me down." Zecora looked over each item with interest.

"Endless ink and a crystal of electricity. You have been to Twilight's house, I believe." Ryan cast her a wary look.

"How'd you know that?" Zecora chuckled at his expression.

"Twilight is the only pony who finds interest in these. I also guessed and your reaction told me." Ryan scowled again as he realized that he had been outsmarted by Zecora. She was very clever; another reason not to completely trust her. He looked at the items and remembered what he wanted to ask her.

"So is this really infinite ink? Or just a shrewd business con?" Much to his surprise, Zecora picked up the ink bottle and after removing the cork, turned it upside down. Ink began to pour out of the bottle and it showed no signs of stopping. After a few seconds, she up righted it and placed the cork back in.

"It seems legit. What I want to know is how you got it," she said sternly, giving him a questioning glance. He shrugged.

"Since I was met with less than a warm reception, I was forced to...steal to survive," Ryan explained. Zecora narrowed her eyes at him, but eventually just sighed.

"Stealing is wrong, no matter why. But I can forgive you for doing it to survive."

"Well if you hadn't vanished when I came back for help, I wouldn't have had to. Where were you?"

"Neither here nor there." she responded with a sly smile. "But without me it seems you have no prayer. I can go to Ponyville for you and set the record straight. Or would you rather prefer that I wait?" Ryan thought about it for a moment before shaking his head.

"I'd rather they'd just forget about me for the time being. I need time to...get things straight."

"Very well. About you, I will not tell."

"You called this a crystal of electricity. Does that mean it literally stores lightning in it?" Zecora nodded, careful not to get too close to the crystal. Ryan looked at the crystal, then back to his baton, an idea forming in his head. He opened the stun baton's flap where the batteries were supposed to go and used Zecora's wooden spoon to carefully push the crystal into the slot. He closed the flap and then with a bit of hesitation, turned on the power. Both he and Zecora jumped as electricity crackled through the baton, giving it a blue glow. Ryan smiled at his now operational weapon, whereas Zecora just raised an eyebrow. Ryan turned off the power and started placing items back into his back pack, when a thought occurred to him.

"Do you have a place where I can stay," he reluctantly asked Zecora. Zecora pondered for a minute, before shaking her head.

"I cannot think of a place for you to stay. As to Ponyville, there is no way," Zecora answered him. He frowned, but he had already received a lot of help from Zecora. He couldn't impose himself upon her further. He may not trust her, but she had saved his life. He was indebted to her. So with a sigh, he slipped his bag onto his shoulders and headed for the door. When he grabbed the handle, Zecora made one last suggestion.

"Actually, with so many places to roam, you could try to make Everfree your home." Ryan sighed.

"I was afraid you would suggest that." He stepped out of Zecora's hut and headed back into the darkness with one last. "Thanks."

Shelter

For the third time in two days, Ryan found himself heading into the place that had nearly claimed his life. Even though he did his best not to show it, he was afraid of the forest and what lurked within it. This time he stuck to a well-worn path, even if he didn't know where it led. The moon was once again full and bright, giving him some light in the darkness. He gripped his charged stun baton tightly; fairly certain that he would need to use it again soon.

He had no idea where the path was taking him, for he rarely looked ahead. Instead, he was looking all around, making sure that there was no ambush set up for him. If he knew the creatures of the forest, it wouldn't be long before others tried to add him to their diet.

And he was correct. About twenty minutes into his exploration of the forest he heard a large growl, followed by the sounds of something moving through the trees. Spinning towards the source of the noise, his heart sank when he saw the beast that advanced from the bushes. It had the head of a lion, the tail of a scorpion and the wings of a bat. It was even taller than he was, something Ryan found discomforting. But most importantly, when it saw him it licked its lips and started to advance. Ryan didn't know what this creature was, but he knew his chances of beating it were slim. But maybe he didn't have to beat it; maybe he just had to convince it that he wasn't worth its trouble. He held the stun baton out and pointed it at the creature's head, flicking on the power switch.

BBBZZZZTTTT!!!

Ryan smiled when he saw the creature jump back in shock at the weapon, which now crackled with electricity. Ryan saw the creature's eyes look from him to the weapon, and then back again. His plan worked and the beast turned around, heading back into the forest. Ryan watched it go until he could no longer see it, before shutting off his weapon. He didn't know how long the crystal's charge would last, so he didn't plan on wasting it. While he was looking at the baton, an old saying flashed through his mind.

'Simple solution to a complicated problem.'

Ryan chuckled at that, remembering how Chris used to say that all the time when he continued to screw up. As Ryan turned back towards the way he had been heading, his mind flashed back to Chris and the first time he had met the crazy guy.

/\
\/

Ryan's flashback began at a university, where some of the brightest minds in the country went to school, in order to prepare themselves for the day they graced the world with their intellects. Not that Ryan was one of these brains; he was just the night watchman, the guy who roamed the school after hours. One particular night, he had just about finished his rounds in the science section when a loud crash came from one of the laboratories. Drawing his taser, Ryan slowly advanced towards the room from which the crash had come. He flattened his back against the wall, and then spun into the room, aiming the taser at anything that moved.

The scene that met his eyes was so ridiculous that he didn't know whether to laugh or sigh. A man in a white lab coat, with skewed glasses and messed hair, had somehow gotten himself tangled up in the cables on the ceiling. Ryan watched as the man struggled to free himself, but to no avail.

"Lab hours are over. Right now you're trespassing," he called out to the man. The guy looked up (or down) at Ryan and smiled.

"Thank goodness, I thought I was going to be up here all night. Would you kindly help me down?" he asked.

"First, tell me who you are and what you're doing here after hours."

"Oh, alright. My name is Chris Emmer and I am a student at this establishment. I WAS trying to get some more work done on my project when one of the power cables on the ceiling went and short-circuited. I climbed up to fix it and then, I'm dangling upside down talking to a watchman." Chris took in a breath. "So, about that help...?"

Ryan shook his head and walked over to where the scientist was hanging. How could these guys be so smart and at the same time so damned stupid? After a few tugs, Chris' foot slipped and he fell to the floor with a thud. Ryan watched with some amusement as the man sprung right back up and dusted himself off with a huge smile on his face.

"Thanks. Although I'm fine with sleeping on the ceiling, I really do need to finish these calculations." Ryan shook his head.

"Sorry, but you'll have to go. The lab closed two hours ago. How you managed to sneak in here is beyond me."

"Oh, come on! I'll only be another thirty minutes. It's not that long," Chris begged.

"No."

"My work could benefit humanity for years to come!"

"No."

"Please?" Chris begged, getting on his knees.

"I said no."

"Oh pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleas-"

"Fine!" God, just shut up." Chris sprung back to his feet with another huge grin on his face.

"Thanks. You're a good guy," Chris said, giving Ryan a thumbs up. Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Thirty minutes ONLY. If I come back in thirty and you're still here, I'll kick you out personally." Chris let out a laugh.

"If I can't finish these equations in thirty minutes, I'll kick myself out." Ryan rolled his eyes again and left the crazy scientist to his work.

/\
\/

Ryan was snapped out of his flashback by something looming on the horizon. He couldn't see it in the dense forest, so he ran forward until he finally ran out of the forest and arrived at the edge of a huge chasm. Looking across the mist-filled chasm, Ryan believed for a moment that his eyes were playing tricks on him. Looming over him was a monster of a castle, even larger than the ones he had seen on those TV series when he was younger. Looking up at the castle, he noted that the only way to it happened to be a very old rope bridge with a few planks missing.

'Of course, it wouldn't be easy to get to. Why would it?' Ryan took a moment gathering his courage before he placed one foot on the bridge. It creaked and groaned, but much to his surprise, the bridge held. He took another deep breath and placed his other foot ahead of his first. When for the second time the bridge didn't collapse, he felt a little safer. He gripped the rope railings tightly and slowly began his walk across the bridge. His pulse rocketed every time a gust of wind made the bridge sway, and at one point a plank broke under his foot. If he hadn't been holding on to the rope, he probably would have fallen.

After five minutes of slow crossing, Ryan finally made it to the other side. The moment his feet touched solid ground, he fell to his knees and kissed the ground, hoping he wouldn't have to do that again. He realized what he was doing and quickly stood up, looking around to make sure no one had seen that. He shook his head and walked up to the large wooden doors. He placed both hands on them and slowly pushed the doors open.

'This place is a dump.' That was the first thing to enter his mind when he first got a good view of the interior. The castle was a wreck, with half the ceiling missing, cobwebs everywhere and plants growing inside. Ryan looked around at all the decay, indicating that no ponies or any other creature had lived here for a long time. He noted a staircase at the end of the hallway and started to make his way over to it. He was just about to head up the stairs when his foot caught on a root and he was forced to grab onto the wall to keep from falling.

TOCK.

Ryan looked at the wall where he had placed his hand in confusion. It was a solid brick wall; it shouldn't make a hollow sound. Unless, it wasn't a solid wall at all. Ryan swiftly began to examine the wall and found a small crack in it. He got as good a grip as he could and pulled. With a low rumbling, the wall slowly swung open, revealing a passageway. Ryan took a step back and looked at the passage in interest.

'The only reason someone makes a hidden passage is so that others don't find what's inside. Let's see where this goes.'

Since there was no light in the hallway, Ryan used his stun baton's electrical power to act as a flashlight of sorts. The corridor was long and barren, the only decorations being cobwebs of spiders that had managed to sneak in. He crept along as silently as he could. Even if nothing lived here, it didn't hurt to be cautious. Another door greeted him at the end of the hallway, although it was in much better condition than the rest of the castle--probably because it was out of the way of the elements. He pushed it open and examined the room inside. The room was no larger than a bed room and contained a desk, chair and a candle on one side of the room. Much to his surprise, a small window was high up on the wall. Other than that, there was nothing special about the room. It was perfect.

Ryan sat down at his new living quarters and started to empty his backpack onto the desk. The desk seemed old, yet it was still sturdy and held up nicely. He placed the inkfinity next to the candle, which hadn't been used in quite a while it seemed. He took one of the apples and quickly ate it. He hadn't realized how hungry and tired he had been until he had sat down. Ryan also downed half of his water, making a mental note to find a stream or another source of water tomorrow.

Finally, he emptied the book and the pen onto the table. He didn't know why this Twilight would have a book without words, but whatever. He could use it as a journal. He opened to its first page and found it said title, with a line next to it. After a moment of thinking, he smiled and wrote a title for his book.

A Survivor's Guide to Equestria.

At least he thought that Twilight had called this place Equestria. Didn't matter now. He flipped to the next page and stared at the blank paper. If he was going to survive in this new land, he would probably need some maps. So with his pen in hand, Ryan began to draw out as much of the land that he remembered. He first drew the path from the castle to Zecora's in great detail, and then on the other page drew a more aerial view of the forest. His arts skills crap, but that meant little to him. He then connected the forest to Ponyville. Then he turned a page and wrote 'world map' at the top. He figured the more he'd explore, the more of this would be filled in.

Next, since he was bound to meet a variety of colorful characters, Ryan figured he'd start writing down some information on them. After taking a moment to alphabetize the pages, he flipped to the back and started with the only per-...zebra he had met. On the left hand page, he drew a detailed sketch of her and on the right hand side, he started with the information.

Name: Zecora.

Species: Zebra.

Sex: Female.

Age:?

Bio.

Zecora is a zebra that can speak the human language. She seems to be a master of multiple forms of martial arts (God knows how) and is proficient in medications. She lives in a hut in the Everfree Forest, where she seems to be a witch doctor of sorts. Speaks only in rhymes, seems incapable of normal speak. Also skilled in stealth, although not sure how skilled.

Personal opinion.

Zecora scares me. I'm not sure what to make of her. She always seems so carefree and happy, but something about her felt "off." He had no idea what; she didn’t seem that bad. But when she fought those wolves I could feel her...power.

Threat ranking: 1.

After he finished writing about Zecora, Ryan closed the book and went over to a corner to lie down. Only after he was comfortable did his nerves finally get the better of him. He looked down at his hands to find they were both trembling uncontrollably. His mind began to race with all the different things that had happened to him--the timberwolf attack, meeting the rhyming zebra, being hunted by a town full of ponies; then came the burning. An the pain and the laughter, which he wasn't sure was his own or-. Using his mental strength, Ryan clenched his fists and gritted his teeth in anger.

'You know what you must do.'

'End it all.'

'You shouldn't be alive.'

'You should have died with them!'

'Shut the hell up!' he roared, the thoughts echoing across his mind and getting rid of the voice. He slumped against the wall and closed his eyes, knowing full well what the voices had meant by end it all. 'No, I'm not going to die yet. I can't. Not yet...not yet. I have to know, have to make certain.'

'Yes. But if I'm wrong.'

'Maybe.'

"Just focus on living for now," he told himself as he shivered, but not from the cold. "Just bury it...bury it and make it look like nothing’s wrong. Have to keep going. That's all I can do." He then collapsed to the ground, exhaustion finally getting the better of him. Yet despite falling asleep almost immediately, he found no solace in his dreams. Only more pain.

/\
\/

Ryan's day started off the same way it had yesterday. Terrible. He woke up stiff, sore and hungry. A single apple and the rest of his water was all he had for breakfast--a perfect way to start the day. After placing his guide and his stun baton into his backpack, he crossed the rickety bridge he hated and started his trek to Zecora's. Ryan had found a small stream on his way to Zecora, so at least he had fresh water. He hoped that it would be an uneventful trip to her hut. He was wrong.

Ryan heard very familiar growls and turned to find more of the timberwolves that had attacked him the previous day. Their eyes gleamed with malice and they began to circle him. Ryan counted five of them and then slowly drew the baton from the backpack, since it didn't completely fit inside the bag, and flipped on the power. While the sudden crackling and electrical show startled the wolves, they didn't run like the previous threat. He narrowed his eyes and prepared for the fight.

'Screw it. I'm dead anyway.'

Ryan surprised the timberwolves by being the first to attack this time. He rushed straight at the smallest one and smashed his electrified baton into its face. The timberwolf let out a yelp and ran off into the forest. He barely had time to spin around when another timberwolf tackled him to the ground. The wolf went for his throat, but Ryan managed to get the stun baton into its mouth, keeping the wolf from biting down. The electricity barely seemed to bother the wolf and Ryan had to keep his legs moving to keep them from being clawed.

"I can't believe they attacked you again. They really don't like you, do they my friend?" Ryan looked out of the corner of his eye to find Zecora standing off to the side, watching him struggle. The timberwolves hadn't noticed her yet, all of them watching him fight. His twisted the wolf's head to the side and pushed it off of him with his legs, allowing Ryan to get back to his feet. He swatted the wolf with the baton and sent it sprawling.

"A little help?" he grunted as another wolf slammed into him. He remained standing and swung the rod at the wolf, driving it back.

"You seem to have it under control, but I would recommend that you roll." Ryan registered what she meant too late and the wolf he had attacked slammed into his back, knocking him to the floor. His gripped slipped and the baton rolled out of his hands, forcing him to grab the timberwolf's jaws to try and keep it from mauling him.

"Zecora, help me dammit!" he growled, moving his head out of the way of the wolf's fangs. Zecora let out a sigh.

"I was being nice and gave you some advice. You chose not to listen to me and now you’re fairing quite poorly."

"ZECORA!"

Zecora chuckled and slowly walked over to the wolf that had pinned Ryan. She exhaled and thrust one hoof into the timberwolf. The force of the impact blasted the wolf backwards and smashed it into a tree. She sprinted like lightning to the next wolf and smashed her hind leg into the wolf's jaw. The wolf's eyes rolled back into its head and it collapsed to the forest floor. She turned to face the last wolf, which had recovered from the baton smash. It looked at Zecora, then to its fallen comrades, putting two and two together. It roared and charged straight at her. She flashed a smile at it and Ryan felt chills go up his spine.

There it was, that feeling from Zecora that terrified him. Her dangerous aura. Zecora closed her eyes and took an odd stance. The wolf leapt into the air and straight down towards her. Right before it reached her, her eyes snapped open and she delivered a powerful fore-hoof straight into the wolf's chest. Ryan watched as the shockwave blasted the wolf into saw dust, not even leaving any twigs. She slowly exhaled and turned towards Ryan with a smile. He eyed her from under his hood carefully for a minute, waiting to return to normal.

"Thanks," he muttered at last. Zecora turned and started to head back to her hut, but Ryan stopped her with a question.

"Could you teach me how to do those...moves?" he asked awkwardly, his head held low. Zecora turned around, a bit surprised. She had never expected Ryan to ask her for anything, let alone training from her. She had to hear his reasoning.

"My training is tough as could be. Why do you wish to learn from me?"

"Because...because if I’m going to survive here, I need to learn how to fight. The second encounter with the timberwolves showed me just how weak I actually am. So...I need your help," he asked through gritted teeth. Zecora raised her eyebrows at his request, not sure what to say. It had taken a lot of humility from the human to ask for help, and she knew he didn't trust her. Then she thought about it some more and realized the real reason he had asked. He was scared. While she knew he'd never admit it, she could feel it from his aura. He had been helpless in the fight with the wolves and it scared him.

"Your reason and heart seem true. I shall pass my skills onto you." She wasn't surprised in the least when Ryan raised an eyebrow at her, waiting for the catch. She gave him another smile.

"Of course, my teachings don't come free. There are some things you must do for me." Ryan sighed and prepared himself mentally.

"Alright, what do you need?"

Hidden Dangers

Ryan covered his eyes with his hand and looked up at the sun, which now rested directly above him. He growled, realizing that he had spent the past two hours looking for the location Zecora had mentioned. He was still tired from his fight with the wolves and the lack of food did nothing to help his mood. He did his best to recall her words that she had told him (sort of) in which direction to go, and also what she had wanted.

"What I seek is water that is the best. You will find this water in a giant tree to the west," she had explained to him. Ryan raised an eyebrow at her.

"That's it? That's my first "quest"? No, 'I'm walking into a death trap' or 'I will probably lose both my legs in the process'?" Ryan asked sarcastically.

"Whether you escape unscathed depends solely on you. Follow your gut and remember to stay true."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means you are taking too long. Now, hurry up and be gone!" she yelled with a laugh, haven giving him the 'get out' hoof motion.

After two hours of searching, he was lost. All the forest looked the same to him, no matter which way he headed. He had no compass, nor was there any way of telling which way was west. He cursed the zebra and opened his pack, fishing out some food. Zecora had been nice enough to pack some food for him on his journey, even though he didn't recognize any of it. He popped one of the items in his mouth and bit down. He had expected it to taste terrible, but much to his surprise and enjoyment he found the treat had a tangy taste. After he finished chewing, he felt energy flowing through his body again. He had to give Zecora credit, she knew her meds. He stowed a few more of the snacks in his jacket, then he closed his pack and began to think.

Now that he had the energy to think clearly, he walked over to the nearest tree and quickly scaled it. Once he reached the top, he started looking for parts of the forest where certain trees were taller than others. If this water was supposed to be inside a giant tree, then he'd simply look for the tallest tree. Spotting a section of the forest where the trees seemed taller than the rest, he smiled and climbed back down. Once down, he started to make his way over to where the tall trees were.

His walk took him another ten minutes, until he finally arrived at what looked like an odd gorge with trees growing all around. Looking over the edge, Ryan saw a vertical drop into darkness and mist. He kicked a stone down into the hole and waited to hear a noise. Nothing. Ryan shook his head and looked up, trying to see through the mist to the other side. He wasn't sure why, but he felt as if he was heading the right way. Maybe he was getting that 'sixth sense' everyone on Earth seemed to take so much interest in? After a moment of trying to figure out how to cross, he happened to look up. There was his solution...and his problem. The trees were growing out of the sides of the gorge, forming an odd branch bridge of sorts. He could use those to get across if he could climb up. The problem was he had never jumped from branch to branch before.

'Yeah, now I see what you meant by it being up to me if I'd live or not,' he grumbled to himself, remembering what Zecora had said. Ryan walked over to the closest tree to him and hoisted himself up onto its first branch. He looked out to the next branch, trying to figure how hard he'd need to jump to reach it. He also was using all his willpower to avoid looking down. There's no getting up from a drop like that. Tensing his legs, Ryan aimed his body at the next branch, and with one final farewell to his sanity, he launched himself at the branch. His timing was perfect and he landed stomach-first onto the branch, before quickly wrapping his arms around it. Panting, he looked up at all the other branches he'd need to cross. One down...

Ryan mustered his courage once again and propelled himself to the next branch. After a few jumps, he felt that he was ready to try and land one on his feet. So he took aim at the next branch and jumped. Bad idea. The moment his feet hit the branch, they slipped off and tossed him over the abyss. In pure fear-fueled adrenaline, he managed to reach out his hand and grab onto the branch from which he had slipped. The adrenaline pumping through his veins gave him a death grip on the tree branch, so he didn't slip into the black oblivion. Swallowing his fear, Ryan pulled himself back up onto the branch.

"Ryan, you are not that good yet. You can't do that kind of crap after only a few tries," he told himself, still shaking from the adrenaline boost. Slowly getting back into the crouch position, he continued across the branches in the manner he had before, landing stomach first. While this hurt him to a degree, it was infinitely better than the alternative. He had proceeded halfway when he came across something that stumped him. It was a branch with the leaves facing down. While this shouldn't have been a problem, something just felt wrong. He looked back at the branches he had been jumping on and found all their leaves were pointing up. He looked back at the branch with the down leaves, wondering why it felt off. It was an easy jump, even for him. He looked a little to the right and found a branch that he could also jump to, with all of its leaves facing up.

"I don't know why, but I get the feeling if I go on that branch it won't end well." Even though it was harder, Ryan managed to leap to the branch with the leaves facing up. And it was a good thing he did. When he looked back at the other branch, he watched with wide eyes as it slowly slithered back into the tree.

"Okay, Zecora was right in telling me to listen to my gut. Zecora: 3; Me: zero," he said to himself with a small smirk. Ryan proceeded across the rest of the branches with little incident, although he was aware of every time he had to avoid one of the down-leaved branches. After about forty branches and what felt like a shattered rib cage later, Ryan finally made it to the other side. He landed with a thud and rolled onto his back, trying to regain his lost breath.

"Good God, that hurt," he groaned, unzipping his jacket and lifting his shirt to see what the damage was. He winced as he saw the bruises on his chest and abdominal area. THAT he would feel in the morning. Ryan opened his bag again, wondering if Zecora had given him anything to treat injuries. He fished out a jar of a weird blue cream that had no label on it, but he could see some writing scrawled on the side.

"This will heal you whenever you are hit. I packed it because I knew you would need it."

Ryan smirked at the writing. Even when she wasn't near him, she found a way to mess with him. He opened the lid and took a finger full of cream. He gave it a curious look, but since Zecora hadn't failed him yet, he applied the cream to a particular bad area. Again to his surprise, the pain faded away almost instantly, as if his body had absorbed the healing medication. Looking down, he realized that his body HAD absorbed it. After applying the cream to the rest of his injured front, he zipped his jacket back up and turned around. Before him was a long pathway under the root of a massive tree, though he couldn't see how very far down it went because of the mist. But that was the direction which indicated a giant tree, and towards a giant tree was where he needed to go, so with a deep breath, he started walking.

/\/\/\
\/\/\/

After a short walk through the massive root, he found on the other side one of the most spectacular sights he had ever seen. A glorious oak tree ascended into the heavens, and the way the light fell between the leaves was something of pure beauty. To his sides were trees so close together that only small animals would be able to fit and each of those trees were nearly as tall as the oak, but the oak was magnificent--and it was HUGE. Ryan wouldn't have been surprised if the oak's roots reached for miles, it was that large. After a minute or two of marveling, Ryan snapped out of his daze. If his thinking was correct, he would bet that the water Zecora wanted was somewhere inside that tree, so he needed to find a way inside.

He walked up to the massive trunk and looked up. A multitude of vines hung from the trunk, all of them leading upwards. He looked to find where they originated and found what looked like an entrance. He was too far away to be certain, but it was his best bet at the moment. Ryan grabbed one of the vines, half expecting it to bite him. He tugged a few times and after making certain it was secure, began his climb up. He had never really rock-climbed or anything along those lines before, but he knew how to properly do it. He pulled up when he took a step, keeping a steady rhythm. When he had made it half way up, he felt his arms begin to burn. Ryan swore to himself and wrapped the vine around his wrist, allowing him to use his other arm to reach for one of the snacks he had put in his coat. He popped the small seed-like thing into his mouth and felt energy flood through him again. He smiled and resumed his climb, feeling energized. He noticed that he had reached where this vine was growing from the tree. No problem, he would just grab another vine and-

HHHHIIISSSSSSSS!!

Ryan quickly let go of the vine that he had just grabbed to find that he had actually grabbed onto a giant snake. The creature's head emerged from within the vines and it slowly turned to face him, its tongue flickering in a threatening manner. Ryan grabbed onto his vine with both hands and slid back down to the forest floor. The snake let out a loud hiss and slithered down the tree after him. He turned to face the monstrosity, not liking his chances. The snake was at least fifty feet long, a foot and a half in diameter, and looked to be of the constrictor family.

"Well, I guess I'm screwed then," Ryan said with a smirk, doing his best to suppress his fear while drawing his stun baton at the same time. Although he had no idea how the little weapon would be of any help against this beast, it was still better than nothing. The snake rose up to its full height and eyed the human carefully, its tongue smelling the air. It could smell the fear coming off of this strange beast, the same fear that all its other prey secreted. The serpent reared its head back and lashed out. Ryan just barely rolled out of the way of the attack, watching as the serpent's head slammed into the ground. It shook its head and rose back up to its full height, its head swaying back and forth, eyeing the human.

"Whoever's been watching over me so far, I could really use some help right now!" Ryan yelled up at the sky. But instead of help, he received another attack by the snake and had to roll across the forest floor to stay alive.

"Fine! I'll deal with it myself!" he yelled at the heavens, flipping his hood up. This time when the snake lunged, Ryan only half jumped out of the way. When the serpent's head slammed into the ground this time, Ryan was close enough to bring his weapon down upon its head. Unfortunately, the baton bounced off the serpent’s scales, not damaging it in the least. Ryan was not so fortunate, as the serpent swung its tail into him and launched him across the forest floor. He landed on his back with the wind knocked out of him, miraculously holding onto his weapon. The serpent sensed victory was near and slowly slithered over to him. Ryan looked up to watch the serpent draw back before lashing out one last time.

He had planned it perfectly. The moment the serpent had launched him across the ground; Ryan realized that he would need to hit the serpent somewhere that hurt...somewhere major. So he played possum and acted like he couldn't move, getting the snake to lower its guard. The moment it had gone for the killing blow, Ryan rolled out of the way and watched it again slam its face into the ground. Then it was his turn. Ryan flipped the power switch on and drove the weapon into the snake's one weak spot--its eye. The beast roared with pain as electricity flooded through its vision. Before it could get back up, Ryan gripped the baton with both hands and rammed the baton through the snake’s eye. Blood gushed from the wound as the serpent lashed back and forth in agony, while Ryan rolled away from it to a safe distance. The snake retreated into the forest surrounding the tree, its wails of agony echoing throughout the area.

"Yeah...that's right...you'd better run," Ryan panted, falling onto his rear in exhaustion. He spent a while after that try to calm his nerves. He looked down at his blood soaked baton, thanking his lucky star that he had it. He didn't even think of what the outcome would've been if he had to use his fist on it.

"First Timberwolves, then talking zebras and now giant snakes. It seems like I'm destined to fight everything in this Godforsaken land," he panted. After a quick reprieve and another one of Zecora’s energy snacks, Ryan turned his attention back to the vines. He made a promise when he grabbed the first vine that if another snake came out he was going home. He tugged on it like before and then started his climb back up.

Unlike his previous climb, this one, while tiring, was uneventful. When he had finally reached what had looked like the entrance, Ryan found to his surprise that he had only made it a fraction of the way up the tree. But he had at least reached an entrance and this was definitely the biggest tree in the forest. He gazed at the hole in the tree in amazement since it was even bigger than the serpent. He hoped that there wasn't a nest of those things in there. He walked inside and then proceeded to slump to the floor. He was tired, hurt, and now covered in blood. It was safe to say he was having a bad day. He took a full half hour to rest before applying more of Zecora's medicine to where the snake had hit him and hauled himself up.

Ryan kept his stun baton out as he walked deeper inside the tree, waiting for something to leap out at him. And something did, but it was nowhere near what he expected. The interior of the tree was like a massive skyscraper, just going up and up. Ryan craned his neck back to get a better view of the place. Sunlight shone in through the leaves near the top and cast a warm yet soothing glow all over the tree. Branches, surprisingly, grew on the inside of the tree, although they were not as large as the ones on the trunk. However, near the very top seemed to be some sort of platform. Was that where the water was being held? He really didn't want to climb up there, but if he had to-

Suddenly, a loud shriek filled the center, echoing off the walls. Ryan turned on the power to his stun baton and glanced around, trying to find the source of the noise. While he was looking around, he felt something slam into his back and knock him to the floor. He quickly sprang back up, but saw no sign of the attacker. Then with dread he realized that he felt a lot lighter than before. He looked over his shoulder to find that his backpack was missing. He snarled and looked forward, only to be attacked again from behind. This time he used his hands to catch himself, even if he had to drop the baton to do it. He looked up just in time to see his attacker take his baton.

His attacker was a monkey.

Training

"Get back here you damned, dirty ape!" Ryan yelled at the monkey, sprinting as fast as he could after it. The monkey that held his stun baton laughed at him and started to climb up the branches on the inside of the tree. Ryan watched it ascend up the tree, where it joined its brethren at the platform near the top. He noticed that another monkey had his backpack and was taunting him by waving it in the air at him.

"When I get up there, YOU ARE ALL DEAD!" he roared in rage, jumping onto the first branch. The monkeys above jeered at him as he slowly made his way up to them, branch by branch. He was probably a third of the way there when a monkey dropped down onto the branch in front of him. It watched him struggle to remain standing on the branch, before laughing at him like the rest.

"Think I'm funny, do you? We'll see how well you laugh with a busted face," he growled, jumping towards the next branch. What happened next caught Ryan completely off guard. The monkey lashed out with an open palm that connected with Ryan in mid jump and the force of the impact launched him back to the previous branch. He landed on his stomach and managed to wrap his arms around the branch to keep from falling, but both his chest and his pride had been injured.

"What in the hell...?" he asked in disbelief to himself. Then he examined the monkey a little closer and realized that it wasn't just standing on a branch, it was in a stance. These freakin' monkeys knew martial arts! Ryan's rage grew even greater when he realized that Zecora had probably known that as well.

"So is this what you meant by training me Zecora? Letting a bunch of damn monkeys steal my stuff and embarrass me?" Ryan pulled himself back up onto the branch and eyed the monkey cautiously. He wasn't much of a martial artist, but if he had to guess, he figured it was fighting using the 'monkey style'.

'A monkey using the monkey style. Why not, first thing that makes some sense since I got here.' He carefully watched the monkey’s movements, trying to figure out a pattern to them. Much to his surprise, the monkey stopped moving and started to leap up the branches back to the top. Actually, all the monkeys headed up to the platform, leaving him a clear path to the top.

"That's odd..." Ryan began climbing again, but this time he wasn't interrupted by any monkey attacks. Branch after branch he made his way higher and higher up. While was climbing (or leaping) he noticed that the air up here felt...different. He could feel an odd sort of energy, similar to the energy Zecora gave off. After another five minutes of leaping, Ryan finally reached what he assumed to be the top. With one last jump, he landed face first on the platform. He was pretty much exhausted, but he had to get his stuff back. So Ryan lifted his head and allowed his jaw to drop to the floor from what he saw.

In front of him were at least one hundred monkeys, each of them sitting on branches and watching him curiously. He saw the two that had taken his stun baton and his backpack, but those two were minor now. What caught his eye was a magnificent fountain of wood, with the purest water he had ever seen flowing down it. The fountain was formed inside the very tree and looked to be connected to all parts of the giant oak.

'That must be the water Zecora wanted," Ryan mused, standing up slowly. He started to carefully walk forward, keeping his eyes on the monkeys. None of them bothered to stop him, but instead continued to watch with curious eyes. When he had almost reached the water, he turned and jumped back when he found another monkey standing in front of him. This one was much different than the other ones. He was definitely older, as most of his fur was silver and it had a slight hunch in its back. It held an oddly carved staff in its right hand and wore some sort of orange monk robes. Wait...a monkey wearing monk robes. Monk robes. Monkey. Monk-ey.

"Oh, good God," he sighed to himself, not BELIEVING the pun that he had created. The elder monkey was examining him curiously, just like all the others. After a moment of examining him, the monkey gently placed its staff on the floor and placed both hands behind its back. Ryan wasn't sure what to make of it.

"Um, do you mind if I take some of that water behind you?" he asked awkwardly. The monkey said nothing, but continued to examine him in interest. He wasn't sure what to do, so he tried to walk around it as quickly as he could.

WHAM!

Ryan was sent sprawling across the platform, landing ten feet away in a mess. He clutched where the monkey had struck him, his stomach, and tried his best not to throw up. He managed to fight his way to his knees before the pain overtook him again and doubled him over. The monkeys were all jeering and applauding now, getting ready for the fight. Ryan managed to get to his feet, glaring at the elder in rage. The elder smiled and simply retook his stance.

"You want a fight, old man? I’ll give you a fight!" Ryan roared, sprinting over to the elder. Ryan brought his fist back and punched the monkey straight in his chest. Ryan smiled for half a second, until he was hit with a force five times as hard. As he was once again doubled over, Ryan couldn't believe it. This elder withstood his strike, only to deliver a much stronger hit. This wasn't ending well. Ryan got to his feet as fast as he could and delivered a strong kick to the monkey’s stomach that would've felled a normal human. But instead of the monkey feeling pain, Ryan felt a spike of agony shoot up his leg. He could barely even register what had just happened when the monkey sent a kick of its own right into his gut, once again knocking him back. As Ryan struggled to get up, he tried to make sense of what had happened.

'Okay, I just got my ass handed to me be an ancient monkey. That happened. But what was that with my leg? It was like I kicked something made of stone,' he thought, keeping his distance from the elder. 'Wait, I remember something about a style of fighting called 'Stone Monkey'. Is that what I'm fighting? The Stone Monkey style? Only one way to find out!'

Ryan raised his fist to protect his face and rushed back into the fight. He began with a feint to the right and went downstairs with a knee to the lower area. But just like before, the elder monkey didn't even flinch. Ryan knew that the monkey would retaliate and managed to get clear of the counter-attack. He didn't like the way this fight was going. He was already tired from the climb up and the monkey using his face to clean the floor wasn't helping. Also, the monkey didn't seem to feel any of the blows he was delivering, whereas the elder’s moves devastated him. This was a fight he couldn't win, but his pride refused to let him give in.

Ryan picked himself up and rushed the elder one last time. He went in for a punch to the face, putting all his remaining strength into the punch. He got destroyed. The elder blocked his punch and delivered five devastating shots to his chest and stomach area. The final blow connected square in the chest, resulting in Ryan coughing up blood. He collapsed to the ground, barely able to move. He pushed himself away from the elder as fast as he could (which wasn't that fast) and shakily rose to his knees. He looked at the elder, who was still eyeing him curiously, and made the sign to bring it on.

"I know I can't win, but I'm not going to give in. Bring it," he coughed out, barely able to stand. 'Not like I care if they finish me.' He had expected the elder to finish him off, to end him. Instead, he heard applause, applause coming from all the monkeys. Ryan looked at them with confusion, wondering what was going on. The elder smiled and picked up its staff, then walked over to him.

"What's going on?" Ryan asked slowly, still looking around the room. The elder smiled at him again.

"We are congratulating you," he responded in a wise voice. After Ryan got over the initial shock of the elder being able to talk, he stared at him in confusion.

"What do you mean, congratulating me?"

"You are the first in many years to take such a terrible beating and still find the strength to stand. The first to not cower before an unbeatable foe. The drive to never give up. That is the first step to becoming a true fighter." The elder held out his hand, which Ryan took after a second.

"So this was a test, huh?" Ryan asked. The elder nodded.

"Our previous pupil came by a day ago and told us to set up this test for you. She seemed confident that you would pass."

"Zecora," Ryan growled to himself. That zebra had gone ahead and set up a test for him without bothering to tell him. The elder clapped his hands and a door near the end of the platform opened, revealing a hidden courtyard. The elder and Ryan both walked outside, the latter looking around in amazement. It was a training courtyard, with practice dummies, rope climbs and a sparring circle. In the center were stone monkeys that were each in a different pose.

"So, what do I get for passing the test?" Ryan asked.

"You get to train."

"Can I have my stuff back?"

"No."

Ryan scowled and walked to the edge of the courtyard. He was surprised to see that the courtyard was actually a flattened part of a ginormous branch of the massive oak, which spiraled down into the forest. He also realized that the leaves on this tree acted as a camouflage, making the top of this tree look like a bunch of little trees. These monkeys must really like their privacy.

"Ryan," the elder called out, signaling for Ryan to join him by the stone monkeys. Ryan raised an eyebrow and walked over. So they knew his name, huh. Damn that zebra.

"So," he began, once had joined the elder, "what kind of training will I start with?"

"In order to deliver a blow, our style teaches that you must learn to take one first," the elder answered.

"So I get to be beaten on some more. What a valuable learning experience this has turned out to be."

"Did you come here to learn or crack jokes?" the elder asked in an annoyed tone.

"Meh, fifty-fifty."

The elder took up a stance in the center of the courtyard and signaled for Ryan to do the same. Once Ryan had taken the pose, the elder began to teach.

"The secret to this style is learning how to redirect pain and how to hit even harder than your advisory. How to take their strongest blow and then to retaliate with an even mightier one."

"So, take a hit to score a hit?"

"Exactly. Follow my motions, I will teach you how to feel your Ki." The elder began to perform a series of stances and arm movements, which Ryan followed to the best of his ability. Much to Ryan's surprise, when he tried the movements for himself he felt an odd energy begin to flow through him. The elder also noticed this and gave Ryan an intrigued look.

"It seems you have a good connection with your Ki. Now I want you to use that energy you feel to block out all feeling in your body. Let it flow throughout your body, until it has reached everywhere." Ryan did as he was instructed, allowing the energy he felt to numb his body. He was too busy concentrating to notice it when the elder delivered a powerful palm strike to his stomach. Ryan opened his eyes as he felt the pain and quickly backed away from the elder.

"What the hell was that for?" he growled. The elder gave him another smile.

"That blow I just gave you leveled you when we fought mere minutes ago. But now that you can access your Ki, you still stand strong." Ryan looked down at where the elder had struck him, realizing that what he said was true. He still felt the pain, but it was nowhere near as bad as it had been a few minutes ago.

"Now we will test your striking power," the elder said, walking over to the stone statues. Ryan followed, now taking a deeper interest in what the elder was telling him.

"Channel your Ki through your hands and unleash the energy into this statue." Ryan concentrated once again until he felt the energy build up in his hands. He took the stance he had been shown and drove his fist into the rock.

CRACK!

Ryan howled in agony as his fist crumpled against the stone. He clutched it close to his chest, swearing up a storm. The elder looked from him back to the statue, evidently confused. He ordered for the other monkeys to bring Zecora's healing supplies from his bag to them. After ten minutes of care, Ryan's hand felt better.

"I do not understand. With your level of Ki control that you showed, you should have been able to crack that rock with ease..." the elder mused out loud. Ryan used that new Ki-numb technique on his hand.

"Well, I sure as heck didn't break the statue, but I'm happy to announce that with your training, I managed to fracture my hand." The elder smacked Ryan in the back of his head with his staff. While Ryan spat out some more curses, the elder had an experiment to try.

"Ryan, I want you to use all your Ki that you can on your stomach area. Can you do that?" Once Ryan had set his Ki in place, the elder delivered a much more powerful punch to Ryan's stomach.

"How did that feel?"

"Barely felt a thing."

"Curious. It seems you have talent for numbing pain and avoiding injury, but none what so ever for offensive purposes. This will make for some interesting training."

"So where do we go from here?" Ryan asked in mock interest. After giving Ryan another smack in the head, the elder brought the cursing Ryan over to the sparring circle, where a multitude of monkeys awaited.

"You will practice sparring against these warriors. Do not let their looks deceive you; they are each a powerful opponent that will test you mentally and physically."

"I'll take your word for it," Ryan muttered as he entered into the arena. A monkey from the side stepped into the arena as well and took its place in front of him. The elder signaled for the match to start, to which the monkey across from him bowed. Ryan awkwardly returned the bow and immediately received a kick in the jaw that knocked him over.

"What the hell was that!?" Ryan yelled, trying to numb the pain in his jaw. The elder chuckled at his frustration.

"I had begun the match. You must pay close attention to your adversary and remain alert. Being crafty in a fight is just as important as being skilled. If you can out think your opponent, then victory is already yours." Ryan stood up and got back to his place. The elder again signaled for the match to start and the monkey bowed again. Ryan didn't fall for it and he went for a kick to the head. However, that was also a trap that he had fallen for. The next thing he knew, he was once again lying on his back. He sat up to see the elder laughing at him.

"You see what I mean? Your opponent knew that you would not fall for the trick a second time, so he bowed again to set up a trap. One that you fell for gloriously." As much as the elder was getting on his nerves, Ryan did begin to see what the elder was implying. He was trying to show Ryan that fighting was as much a mental game as it was a physical one. Ryan got back up and faced his opponent once more.

"Alright, I think I'm beginning to see what you're getting at. Let me try one more round." The elder looked at the other monkey, who nodded in agreement and began the match again. This time, when the monkey started to bow, Ryan took his jacket off and tossed it over the monkey. In that brief moment of confusion, Ryan managed to get in and deliver a good shot to the monkey's face. However, the monkey had also been trained in the same style and was a much better practitioner. And it was angry.

"...And cease!" the elder called out. The monkey got off of Ryan, who was lying beaten on the floor, and joined its brethren on the sidelines. Ryan gingerly got to his feet, trying to block out as much of the pain as he could.

"I must admit, you have quite a remarkable pain tolerance, and you seem to be able to mentally block out most of the physical pain you endure. It's almost like you're experienced at it." Ryan thought back to the pain he had to block out before he had met the monkey. The all-consuming fire, the screams of those dying in the streets, the destruction of those that--

"Yes, I have blocked out pain before," Ryan answered, shoving those kinds of thoughts aside. The elder gave him a curious glance.

"Well then, I would recommend that you stay with us a while longer. Unless you have anything else to do?" Ryan pretended to think about it for a moment.

Fears

One month later, a similar scene was unfolding on the giant oaks training yard. Ryan was once again facing another monkey, but this time the battle was much more intense. Ryan went in with a strong reverse punch to the monkey’s stomach and immediately went for the sweep, keeping the pressure on. The monkey flipped backwards onto the side of the tree and launched itself back at Ryan. He had been watching carefully, so he grabbed the monkey’s shoulders and placed his foot into its stomach while rolling backwards, delivering the aptly named monkey flip. The monkey landed on its feet and spun around with a roundhouse.

"Nice try," Ryan said with a smile, catching the monkey’s leg and going for a toss. However, monkeys have tails and this monkey wrapped its tail around Ryan’s arm. So when he tossed the monkey, he went along for the ride. The two of them both hit the floor and rolled, but the monkey was faster. It tackled Ryan back over and started trying to deliver shots to the face. Ryan grabbed both its arms and pulled it down into a head-butt. The monkey staggered back and Ryan stumbled to his feet, both of them feeling the effects of the head-butt. This time Ryan recovered first and kicked the monkey in the back. His opponent rolled out of the kick and spun around to see Ryan going for a straight punch to the face.

Only when he was committed to the attack did Ryan realize that it was a setup. The monkey jumped onto his arm and twisted, tossing Ryan head over heels onto his back. The monkey landed on its back with Ryan’s arm trapped in its grip. It wrenched the arm and agonizing pain shot through it, forcing Ryan to cry out. He fought it for as long as he could, but he was eventually forced to tap. The elder raised his hand to stop the match and the monkey with the arm bar let go, helping Ryan back to his feet.

"I must admit," the elder began as Ryan shook out the pain in his arm," that for training with us for just a month, you have shown exceptional growth and development."

"I'm a fast learner," Ryan grimaced, using his Ki to numb his arm a little. In the past month, he had practically mastered the basics of the style he was taught and had been proven to be skilled at ignoring pain and damage. He still couldn't control his Ki well enough to destroy stone, but he was improving. Throughout his training, he had learned (to a degree) how to fight on tree branches and how to traverse them more easily. His reflexes had improved as well and he was a lot more alert. All this he accomplished in a month.

"So, what's next on my training agenda?" he asked the elder, finally able to feel his arm again.

"You're done." Ryan slowly looked at the elder in confusion.

"What do mean I'm done? There are still many skills that I need to master and..." He was cut off when the elder raised his hand to silence him.

"We have given you a starting point, but now you must go and find your own path. If we were to show you where to go, it would not be your own path. Plus, Zecora sent us a message saying that she wished to continue your training herself."

"Of course she did," Ryan sighed. "So, does that mean I finally get my things back?"

"You are correct." Ryan let out a sigh of relief.

"Finally," he exhaled. The two went back inside and after a month of waiting, Ryan finally got his back pack and stun baton back. He slipped the backpack over his shoulder and held the weapon that had saved his life in his hands once again. He was so overjoyed that he had almost forgotten why he had come in the first place.

"If it's not too much trouble, can you give me some of that water from that fountain-looking thing?" The elder smiled and picked a small jar off the ground and filled it halfway with water. He handed it to Ryan and the two bowed to each other. After placing the jar in his bag, Ryan turned and started to leave. As he left, he heard the elder’s voice one last time.

"It has definitely been...an experience. If you ever need a refresher, you know where to find us."

"That I do."

He quickly descended down the inner branches and reached the area where he had fought the giant snake. He quickly traversed the branches that led to the place, making sure to avoid the ones with the downturned leaves, and found himself back in the Everfree Forest. He inhaled the scent of the forest and then ascended a nearby tree, leaping from branch to branch in a much more skilled manner as he headed for Zecora’s.

\/\/\/
/\/\/\

With the skills taught to him by the master, Ryan was easily able to move through the forest. He was amazed at how fast he could now move when he put his abilities to the test. He had grown tired of leaping from tree to tree and had decided to swing instead. There was something liberating about being able to move like that through the forest.

He was maybe a few minutes away from Zecora’s when he heard a sound that was familiar to him. He heard Timberwolves growling. He looked around him, noting that they didn't seem to be after him this time. They must be hunting something else. Whatever it was, he felt sorry for it since he knew firsthand how nasty they were to fight. He was just about to leave when he heard another sound that sent chills up his spine. Someone was screaming.

Ryan changed course and headed to where he had heard the Timberwolves and the screaming, figuring the two would go together. When he arrived at the source in a small opening in the forest, an interesting sight met his eyes. A grey pony with yellow hair was surrounded by a swarm of Timberwolves, nearly TWENTY! He noted that the Pegasus had somehow gotten one of its wings trapped under a sizable rock. The poor thing didn't stand a chance. He wouldn't stand a prayer against ten wolves, let alone twenty. He shook his head sadly and turned to leave, when he was stopped by a plea.

"Some pony, any pony, HELP!" the pony cried out in fear. Ryan looked back, trying to reach a decision. He knew he should help the grey pony, but that number of Timberwolves would rip him apart--not to mention he was somewhat scared of them. He turned to leave one last time when his conscience took over. Barely a month ago, it had been Ryan in that situation and someone had come to his aid. While it may not be the same person that had saved him, it was time to return the favor. He flipped up his hood.

Ryan turned around and leapt from branch to branch until he was right on the edge of the clearing. He watched as the alpha of the pack went in for the kill right as he jumped into the air. Time seemed to slow down as the he slowly headed for the wolf. He watched as the pony closed its eyes, bracing for the end. The timberwolf, sensing victory, lunged for the neck.

Ryan had timed his jump perfectly. He had planned to land in front of the pony and turn the Timberwolves' focus on him. But due to the alpha's sudden lunge, he instead landed feet first on the wolf's head. The blow knocked the wolf out, but forced Ryan to roll to recover. The snarling and the screaming stopped as both the wolves and the pony looked at him in awe. He slowly rose to his full height and turned around. From under his hood, he glanced at the pony. Besides being scared out of her wits, she seemed alright. He pulled his baton out of his back pack and switched it on.

BBBBZZZZTTTT!

A smile creased his lips as the wolves and the pony jumped back in surprise while electricity crackled through the weapon. He watched as one of the dumber wolves growled and charged at him. He spun on his toes and caught it in the jaw with a kick. It stumbled back and shook its head before trying again. This time, Ryan finished the wolf with a powerful strike to the head with his baton. He looked up at the other wolves, eyeing them carefully. His initial shock factor had worn off and the wolves had begun to circle him. Before he got mauled to death, he had to help the pony. He quickly moved to its side and pushed the rock off of its wing. It looked at him in confusion.

"Um, thanks?" it weakly said.

"Leave. Now," he told it, turning back to the advancing Timberwolves.

"But-"

"Now." Ryan heard the sounds of wing beats and a moment later, he saw the pony flying overhead. The wolves didn't pay it any mind, their focus was on him. He watched as the second-in-command gave the signal and the wolves attacked. Ryan intercepted the first one's attack with a baton to the face. Another wolf lunged at him from the side, but he managed to catch that one on his shoulders and toss it over him. He saw another attacking from behind, so he spun and drove the baton into the wolf's mouth. Electricity flooded through the creature, knocking it out. As it fell over, Ryan got blindsided and knocked to the ground. The alpha wolf was back up and was mad. Its attack had put a small gash into his side, which was starting to bleed. He channeled his Ki to the wound and temporarily numbed it, hoping that it would buy him some time.

He slowly got to his feet, looking around at the twenty-some wolves that had surrounded him. He was in a very bad situation and to top it off, the wolves were getting smarter. When they attacked again, it was in teams of three. When one went for his throat, he knocked it away and swung the baton around to catch the second one in mid leap. The third got in close and bit into his ankle, restricting his movement. He kicked it off and used his teachings to deliver a punch twice as strong into the wolf's face. The wolves retreated, but three more took their place. He looked around slowly, noting that the alpha in the back was content with watching him suffer.

"Heh, some leader you are. Why don't you face me yourself?!" Ryan yelled out to the wolf. Without his knowing, he had challenged the leader of the pack to a fight. The other wolves backed off as the alpha slowly made its way over to Ryan. Ryan was grateful for the chance to rest, but he was not looking forward to what was to come. The leader was bigger than the rest of the wolves and was covered in scars, meaning it had survived some nasty fights. The other members of the pack formed a circle around the two.

The alpha made the first move. As Ryan had expected, it attacked like all the other wolves and rushed straight at him. When it lunged, Ryan ducked under it and drove his baton into the wolf's stomach. While the electricity didn't affect the wolf, since its skin was made of wood, it did knock the wolf out of the air and cause it to land on its back. The alpha quickly got up and snarled at Ryan, going back to circling him. Ryan had to finish the fight and fast. He was starting to get a little woozy from the loss of blood and a prolonged fight was something he couldn't afford.

This time it was Ryan who rushed the wolf, bringing his baton back as if to swing. The wolf dodged out of the way and went in for another killing blow. Now came the painful part. Ryan blocked the wolf's bite with his left arm, bracing himself for the pain. He ignored the agony the best he could when the fangs sank in and engaged the next part of his plan. While the timberwolf had its fangs in his arm, Ryan brought the baton back and rammed it into the wolf's slightly open mouth.

Ryan howled in agony along with the wolf as electricity coursed through the both of them. The wolf's jaw was shattered by the impact and it let go of him, howling in agony. Ryan Raised his baton over his head with his good arm and swung with all his might down upon the alpha's head. The wolf's head splintered under the impact and its body fell to the ground, quickly turning into twigs. Ryan slowly looked up at all the other Timberwolves, each of them looking at him with a new emotion: fear.

"That's right, I beat your leader! WHOSE NEXT?!" he yelled at them. The wolves looked at the twigs where their leader had fallen and then back to Ryan. Slowly, the first wolf turned and headed back into the forest. After the first one left, the others began to follow, until there were no wolves left in the clearing. Ryan looked around and raised his baton triumphantly into the air, before collapsing on his face unconscious.

/\/\/\/\
\/\/\/\/

Ryan awoke to the familiar image of the ceiling of Zecora's hut. He looked down at himself to find that once again his jacket was gone and he was covered in bandages. He knew that Zecora must have used some of her special medicine on him, because he didn’t feel any pain in the areas where he had suffered damage. He slowly sat up, attracting the attention of the other two occupants of the room.

"I see you're finally awake. What a troublesome guest you make," Zecora said to him with a smile, handing him his jacket. Ryan slipped it back on and noticed the pony that he had saved earlier looking at him with curious eyes. His eyes were curious as well. Neither of them faced forward, one faced up and the other looked down. Odd.

"What?" he eventually asked. He noted the pony's face turned red when it realized it had been staring.

"Oh, um, I-I'm sorry," she stammered. Ryan raised an eyebrow.

"What are you apologizing for?" The pony stuttered out something that Ryan couldn't make out, so he gave her another raised eyebrow.

"How long was I out?" he asked, turning to face Zecora.

"Only for a few hours this time. It's thanks to this pony that you're fine. She came and informed me of your plight. When we found you, you were quite a sight. Very few survive one timberwolf encounter, let alone three. Either you are very stubborn or very lucky."

"I'd say half-and-half. Also," Ryan began, turning towards the grey pony, "thank you."

"W-why are you thanking me? You saved my life," she asked.

"And in return you saved me. Which begs the question, why did you save me?" Ryan asked in confusion. He had come to believe that none of the ponies liked him, or they were afraid of him.

"W-well, you came to my rescue. Not only did I get trapped underneath that rock, but then those Timberwolves showed up. I was certain that I was going to die! But, then you showed up and saved me. You stayed behind and allowed me to get away, even though there were like...hundreds of them!"

"I think hundreds is a bit of an exaggeration, but what I meant was...why did you save ME? I'm a monster to you ponies, some sort of beast...I'm different."

The pony giggled and gave him a smile. "Yeah, you are different than other ponies. But then again...so am I," she smiled, pointing a hoof at her eyes. Ryan took a bit of interest in this pony. People on Earth had a hard time accepting one another, let alone an alien of sorts. Were all ponies this accepting?

"What's your name?" he asked her.

"Ditzy D. Doo," she replied with another smile.

"What's the D stand for?"

"Derpy."

"I should have known," he said with a sigh. This pony had a bubbly personality--probably why she had that tattoo on her flank. Zecora took this lull in the conversation to speak.

"I noticed that you found the monks of Everfree. Your skills must have grown exponentially. Their training is tough and only for the best. That reminds me, did you pick up my request?" Ryan just now remembered the water and went to his back pack to get it. He found his bag beside on table, with his guide lying beside it. He picked up the book, wondering how it could have gotten out.

"I flipped through it while you were 'catching Z's.' So you truly are afraid of me?" Ryan turned to face her with rage on his features.

"I did not say you could read this," he spat. Zecora simply shrugged her shoulders.

"You were out cold on my bed, unable to tell me that it could not be read." Ryan growled at the zebra’s logic, but he couldn't stay angry. She was right about him never telling her and plus she had once again saved his life. He dug the jar of water out and tossed it to her.

"So what's so special about this water," he asked. Zecora gave him a sly smile.

"It is water of the purest blue, helpful when making the perfect stew."

"WHAT!? You're telling me that I had to fight my way through giant snakes, death branches and Kung-Fu monkeys in order to get you water for a STEW?!" Ryan exploded, glaring daggers at the zebra. Ditzy backed up a bit, but Zecora simply laughed.

"You got some training as we agreed. I said my training doesn't come for free." Ryan couldn't even respond he was so furious. Zecora poured the perfect water into the water already in her massive pot and started to add ingredients.

"As for my stew, there is plenty for both of you. We can have a meal for three, if the both of you agree."

"Sounds great!" Ditzy said with a smile. Ryan growled as his answer. Zecora smiled and lit a fire underneath the pot.

"I hope we can be civilized. It would be bad if-"

CRASH!!

Zecora and Derpy both turned around to face Ryan, who had knocked over a shelf of Zecora's incidents.

"Have you gone mad?! Pick those up, you cad." When he didn't answer, Zecora looked into his eyes and was shocked when she saw pure fear. His eyes were unmoving, locked on to one sight. She followed his gaze and found he was staring at the fire. She quickly doused it. The moment the fire was out, Ryan blinked and seemed to come back to reality.

"What happened?" he asked the two. Zecora gave Dinky the signal to not say anything.

"You seemed to have gone a little haywire. Why did you not tell me you were afraid of fire?" Ryan gave her a look.

"I'm not afraid of fire. Don't know what you're thinking." Zecora looked into his eyes and found he was telling the truth.

'He does not know he is afraid. Very interesting.'

"Well, that was weird," Derpy said, trying to break the tension. Zecora shrugged and turned back to her stew.

"Soup's off, I'm afraid. You'll have to try it another day." Ryan shrugged and gathered up his things, preparing to leave.

"Wait, I never got your name!" Derpy exclaimed. Ryan looked over his shoulder at her.

"Name's Ryan," he eventually said. "Also can I ask a favor. Don't tell anyone else about me. I'd like to be left alone for a while."

"Okay, but if you need anything, feel free to ask. I am a mail carrier," Ditzy said with another smile. Ryan smiled back and walked over to the door.

"Then for now, I will say 'adieu.' Come back tomorrow and I will have something else for you."

"Maybe," he answered and headed out the door, starting his way back to the castle.

Derpy said farewell to Zecora and also headed for home. Zecora waved goodbye to her, but when she had left Zecora turned her attention back to the pot. Ryan's reaction had surprised her. It wasn't odd for some pony to be afraid of fire, but the fact that he didn't even know about his own fear interested her. Then, there were his eyes. His eyes had told her that he had witnessed something terrible, something that had forced him to repress his fear.

'What could have happened in your life before that would scar you to your very core?'

Four Heads Are Better Than One

As Ryan pushed open the door to his chamber in the ancient castle, he let the exhaustion overtake him and he slid to the floor. He couldn't believe the wolves had once again ripped him to shreds, even after he had gone through all that training. And then there was that grey pony, Ditzy or Derpy, whatever her name was that he had bailed out earlier. That reminded him; he needed to add a few new pages to his guide. He went over to the desk and sat down, flipping the book open to the character bios. Pulling out his pen, he began to write.

Name: Derpy (Ditzy)

Species: Pegasus

Sex: Female

Age: Unknown (18-20?)

Bio.

Grey pegasus with a weird way of talking and unset eyes. Seems to be incredibly friendly and takes well to strangers. Job is a mail carrier who isn't too bright. Nice enough though and has a heart of gold.

Personal opinion.

Derpy, while not the brightest pony, is nice and cares for others. Even brought Zecora to save my life even though I was different. Possible ally?

Threat ranking: None, harmless.

Ryan looked at the bio and after making some minor changes, started drawing Ditzy's picture on the opposite page. He had to start with her eyes, the eyes that seemed to make her who she was. He started with the one facing down, and then drew the one facing upwards. Once the eyes were complete, he started on the rest of her. Funny face, huge smile and the bubbles completed the things that made her different. The rest of the body was easy to draw, even though he had trouble with the wings. Once her picture was completed, he flipped to the map and spent a minute drawing in the new area he had discovered. The monkey's tree was placed in the west, next to a waterfall he had come across. Finally, he flipped to a new section and named it survival tricks and hints.

Tip 1=Timberwolves are insanely difficult to fight if you're not prepared. Do not get encircled by them.

Tip 2=Ponies may not be all afraid of humans. Still advise avoiding them for now.

Tip 3=Don't let Zecora near this book.

Once he was satisfied with the new additions, he closed the book and walked over to the spot in the room where he slept. He collapsed down to the ground on his back with his head on his arms, trying to make sense of the past month. Training with monkeys had been crazy and he'd probably be sore for at least a month. But he had learned valuable technique's that would be great help in his survival in this new land. He was grateful too, if not still a little mad at, Zecora for showing him where to find them. Not that he'd tell her.

Then his thoughts shifted to the grey pony that he had saved and in returned saved him. He was still confused as to why she had accepted him so fast. Sure if she had gotten to know him over the course of a few days, he could understand her learning to accept him. But she had accepted him right off the bat, without any hesitation. Sure he had saved her life, but that didn't mean that she should like him right away.

Ryan looked out the window at the full moon, feeling the exhaustion coursing through him. His thoughts shifted back to Zecora's offer from earlier. He didn't know what she wanted, but he knew that it would probably be insanely difficult and probably be dangerous to his health. But he did owe her again for saving his life and he repaid life debts. Maybe he could haggle with her and see if he could get some supplies out of the job. Even if she could outsmart him at every turn, it would be worth trying.

Ryan's thought went back again to the battle in the woods and his saving of Ditzy. Why had he saved her? A sane person would've seen all those wolves and would have gotten out of there. HE should've gotten out of there and save his own skin. He wouldn't feel like a scratching post right now if he had and he wouldn't have needed more medical treatment that put him even further in Zecora's debt. He should've just left.

Ryan sighed and knew the reason why he had gone back. Because he wasn't a sane person. Because of what happened to him was probably one of the worst things that could have happened. He got to live. And as he thought about that he also thought back to Chris and all of the crazy things he had done in the year they had known each other. And as he closed his eyes to go to rest, the dreams about his past returned, even if he didn't want them to.

{-------}

Morning. Ryan opened his eyes and started to get up, trying to move as slowly as possible to avoid causing any further damage. But much to his surprise, he found that his body barely hurt at all. He unzipped his jacket and looked down at his chest. Much to his surprise, the wounds from the other day had completely healed. Odd, did he heal faster in this land or was he just that tough?

Ryan re-zipped and stood up while grabbing his baton and all his other supplies, but left the book behind. He opened the door to his chamber and left the castle, heading for Zecora's. Yesterday she had said she had another job for him and he wanted to trade. So he'd have to probably endure yet another grueling task before this day was done. The day was just beginning, as the sun's rays delivered its necessary light all over the land. He crossed the bridge from the castle, soaking in the sun's rays. he scampered up the first tree he got to and leapt from branch to branch. making his way to Zecora's.

He landed in a branch on a tree near Zecora's hut. From his perch, he could see inside her house through a window, where the zebra was balancing on a poll with her head. He prayed that he didn't have to do anything that ridiculous when another sound caught his attention. Hoof steps. He moved in closer to the more shady part of the branch and looked to where the steps were coming from.

'Crap.' The pony walking down the path with fire in her eyes was none other than the Twilight pony he had "met" a month ago. She was fuming for some reason and stormed up to Zecora's hut. Ryan turned to where Zecora was balancing one the poll and prepared himself for an interesting conversation. Then he saw it. Right before Twilight slammed open the door to the hut, Zecora smiled, if only barely. Then the door slammed open and Zecora toppled off the pole to the ground. While Twilight rushed over to her side, Ryan narrowed his eyes. He may not have been a studier of the acting arts, but he knew that was a performance. Zecora had purposely fallen to make it look like Twilight had startled her. Now why would she do that?

"Zecora, are you alright?" Twilight asked. Zecora shook her head and stood back up.

"Yes, I am fine. What do you need, friend of mine?" she asked with a smile. Twilight let out a sigh of frustration and started to pace across the floor.

"I can't believe it. It's been nearly a month and still no update on who broke into my house. I mean, they didn't take anything of real value, the ink was probably the most expensive, but why would any pony do that?" Ryan smiled a little at her report. Apparently there were no leads on him or the fact that he was living nearby.

"However, I assume that it's the work of that monster that showed up a month ago. It can't be coincidence, it show's up then I'm robbed. It makes sense." Ryan sighed when he heard the pony's theory. She was right, but the worst part was that they hadn't forgotten him yet. He'd have to be even more cautious.

"I know not of this monster of which you speak. Now was it a conversation or advice that you seek?" Zecora asked with a smile, looking out her window at Ryan and winking. While Ryan tried to understand how she had seen him, Twilight began to talk again.

"Zecora, if you see anypony that's strange, would you tell me?"

"If a weird pony I see, I will tell you immediately." Twilight seemed content with Zecora's words and she left the hut. Once she was out of sight, Ryan dropped down from the tree and entered the hut. Zecora didn't even turn around when he entered, she went straight to business.

"You are here for my request, I see. What items do you ask from me?" Ryan didn't even bother with surprise; at this point he had assumed Zecora was a mind reader.

"If I'm going to be working with you, I'll need better equipment. Rope, medicine, anything you can offer." Zecora nodded and went into her back room, emerging a few seconds later with rope, more medicine and some weird eggs.

"What are those?" Ryan asked her when she had placed all the items on the table.

"Eggs of scent and lightning. Very good for escaping."

"Care to elaborate?"

Zecora picked up the yellow egg and held it with care. "This is the egg of a lightning insect. When smashed into the ground, it has an interesting effect. Lightning bugs emerge in a flash of light, robbing enemies temporarily of sight." She handed the egg to Ryan, who carefully slipped it into a side pocket.

"This is a stinkbug egg. I figure there's nothing else I need to say?" Ryan understood what see meant and placed the stinkbug egg in a separate pocket from the lightning bug egg. He didn't want to get the two confused in a fight. He picked up the rope, which was about thirty feet in length, and the medicine, slipping the two of them in his bag. Once he was prepped, he sat down for the job.

"What do you need?" Zecora smiled and placed a map on the table.

"Pay attention to the map so you do not get lost. Here in the bog I need a rare breed of moss. It is just west of here, but within the bog are creatures many fear," Zecora told him with a smile.

"Well at least you're telling me the truth this time," Ryan muttered, making mental notes and memorizing the map. "Alright, I'm off. If I don't come back, this is your fault."

Zecora rolled her eyes with a smile as Ryan exited the hut and headed off to the west. She wondered if he could handle the task the awaited him at the bog.

{_____Z_____}

'Boggs suck.' That's all that Ryan could think to himself as he sloshed through the murky water and the low hanging trees, trying to find anything that remotely resembled a rare moss. He once again cursed the zebra for sending him to this place, even if she had given him a few new tricks. The entire place stunk, the mud clung to his pants and those damn frogs wouldn't shut up. So it was safe to say when he found a small island in the middle of the bog he counted himself lucky and climbed up onto it. It was higher up than the rest of the area, so he found that he could see a lot further than normal. Actually, he could see really far. It was like he was going up and up and...

Shit.

Ryan looked down at his feet to see that the "island" was slowly rising out of the swamp. Acting on instinct, he jumped off the island and landed in the bog with a splash. He turned around to see a giant head rise out of the swamp, towering above him. The head was definitely a serpent of sorts, but it was yellow and had green eyes. It glared down at him and hissed with evil intentions.

"That is not good," Ryan whispered to himself, pulling out his stun baton. The water next to the head bubbled and another serpent head burst from the water, joining its brother to tower above Ryan.

"That's even worse."

As if he wasn't outclassed enough, a third head burst out of the water with a vicious roar.

"That's just not fair!"

Then the fourth head came out. Rain began to fall as the four headed hydra began to climb out of the swamp. Ryan, who was both scared and angry, went with the only thing he could do in this situation. Blame Zecora.

"ZECORA!" he roared into the skies as the hydra fully emerged from the swamp. The head with the most scars chuckled at the tiny human and managed to get the other three to laugh at him as well. Looking up, he measured that the creature was at least forty feet tall and made the snake he had fought previously look like a worm. Ryan looked up at the heads, wondering how the hell he was going to get out of this, when he noticed something resting top the hydras head. A small piece of moss rested square on the scarred hydra's head. THAT was the moss Zecora wanted him to get?

"Zecora, if I get out of this alive, I'm going to kill you," Ryan promised to himself, flipping up his hood and activating his stun baton, preparing for one hell of a fight.

My Insurance Company Hates Me

Ryan did his best to avoid breaking anything as he was tossed through the air by the shockwave created by the Hydra's foot as it tried to stomp down on him. Unfortunately, he landed on his back and felt his breath leave his lungs. He shook his head and looked up at the sight of a massive foot coming down on top of him. He managed to avoid being crushed, but the impact of the foot hitting the ground tossed him back into the air. This time he was fortunate enough to land back in the swamp, but that was a minor comfort. He quickly surfaced, hacking and coughing, as the hydra tried to locate him again.

"Okay...can't keep this up. I need a plan," he coughed, desperately thinking of some way to try and bring down the hydra. His stun baton was useless; all he had was the bug eggs Zecora had given him and the rope. He'd either have to run or make do with those. He dove back under the water to avoid detection, swimming to the other side of the swamp to get some distance between him and the hydra. He surfaced as quietly as he could on the other side, looking around the bog for anything that could be useful. His eyes fell upon a boulder balanced precariously on a cliff at the end of the bog. That's where he needed to go. The hydra spotted him and started to charge him.

"Bring it," he growled, turning around and tearing off towards the end of the bog. With its longer legs, the hydra was able to quickly catch up with him. Ryan needed to by himself some time, he needed a trick and he needed it quick. Oh God, he was rhyming. The hydra over took him and skidded to a stop in front of Ryan. He dove to the side as one of the hydras heads slammed into the ground right beside him. It shook its head and slowly picked its head back up, eyes rolling in its head. Ryan noticed that when the hydra had tried to flatten him it left its mouth open. THAT gave him an idea.

"Come on, you stupid snake! Is that all you got?" The hydra's eyes narrowed and the head that had previously attacked him reared back before lashing out. Instead of rolling out of the way, he plucked the stinkbug egg from his pocket and tossed it straight into the hydras gaping maw. It exploded in a cloud of smoke, creating a terrible stench cloud. The hydras eyes widened in shock and it reared its head back, roaring in agony. The stench was so strong that tears fell from its eye and the other three heads gagged as well. Even Ryan had to cover his nose from the ungodly smell. The head cried out one last time, before it slumped over unconscious.

"HA! One down, one to- OH SHIT!" Ryan screamed, throwing himself out of the way of another head. The remaining three shrieked at him and charged, working together to try and devour him. He dived by one of the heads and watched the hydra smash through a decent number of trees. The three heads snarled and began to fight amongst themselves.

'So they're not that bright, huh? I can use that to my advantage.' While the heads were busy fighting, Ryan pulled out the rope and wrapped it around the base of two of the larger trees. That had been the hard part. Getting the hydra over to it would be easy. He whistled at the hydra and the three heads snapped towards him, renewed rage in their eyes. He flipped them the bird and took off running, hearing the thudding footsteps as the beast chased after him. He hopped over the rope and kept sprinting, waiting for the fall of the giant. The hydra ran straight into the rope, tripping the massive beast and causing it to fall to the ground with a BOOM!

"Take that!" he screamed with joy, watching the hydra's heads slam into the ground. While they were dazed, Ryan sprinted to the closest head and pulled himself onto it. He pulled out the stun baton and charged it to full power. He looked right into one of the eyes with a grin and drove the baton straight into the pupil.

"GGGGRRRRAAAAOOONNNNN!"

The hydra screamed in agony, tossing its head back in pain and tossing Ryan back into the swamp. He surfaced with a smile, placing the baton back in his pack as the hydra lumbered around the swamp in pain. He had taken out two of the heads, but there was still the other two as well as the giant beast. Ryan pulled himself back out of the swamp and sprinted back towards the rock wall at the end of the bog. The remaining two hydra heads glared at him in sheer loathing and let loose a scream of fury into the sky, lunging at the human in utter abandon. Ryan had managed to make it to the end of the bog, where he placed his back to the wall and waited for the hydra to reach him. He smiled as the beast charged straight for him, not caring for the wall or the boulder positioned on the top.

"That's right, you stupid snake. Come get me!" The hydra obliged, lowering its remaining heads and charging straight at him. He took a few steps left and threw himself over to the left. The hydra stormed past him and ran heads first into the wall, the impact knocking the hydra to the ground. As it struggled to get up, the boulder at the top of the rock wall had been of set and it slowly rolled itself over the edge. The hydra had gotten back to its feet and had just turned around to face Ryan when the boulder landed on the hydra.

BBBBBOOOOMMMM!!

"Down goes Frazier! DOWN GOES FRAZIER!" Ryan yelled with a laugh, watching the hydra fold like paper underneath the boulder. It collapsed to the ground with all four heads laying out from underneath the rock. Ryan smiled and walked over to where the hydra lay, making his way over to the head with the moss on it.

"And now to claim my prize," he said with a smile. He reached up to the moss and reached out. The moment he did, they hydras head sprang to life and it wrapped its jaws around his body. He swore as the hydra began to crush down, nearly snapping his spin and all of his ribs. He could barely see as the pain flooded throughout his body, with hydra smiled in what it thought was certain victory

BONK!

A piano fell from the sky and landed straight on the hydras head, knocking the creature for a loop and causing it to release its grip on Ryan. He fell to the ground coughing, looking up to the sky to see what had happened and where the package had come from. A smile spread across his face when he saw the grey pegasus from yesterday fluttering there with a grin.

"Thanks for the save," he managed to gasp out. She smiled at him and reached inside her mail bag, retrieving a package and tossing it to Ryan. He caught it with ease and looked back up to the grey mare. She saluted with a smile and flew off into the distance. Ryan looked down at the package, which had the words "Ditzy's Air Delivery" written on the top. He placed the box in his wet backpack with a smile before getting back up and walking over to the unconscious hydras head. He did his best to ignore the piano and spent his time going through the debris, looking for the moss. He found it under the 8th note and placed it inside his bag as well.

"Well, that about wraps things up here. I'd better get back to Zecora's," he said aloud, turning around and heading back to the hut. He was lucky that he had left his journal back at the castle; the swamp water would've ruined it. While he headed back, Ryan examined his body for damage. He was wet, tired, smelled like swamp and felt like he had been hit by a truck. Not bad considering what he had fought against. After he picked back up the now torn rope, he headed back for Zecora's and wondered what else the crazy zebra would have for him to do. He wasn't looking forward to it.

{+++++++++}

Zecora had to admit, Ryan was a sight to behold. He had slammed open the door to her hut with such force that it had knocked over some of her jars. She had turned to scold him, but the moment she saw what state he was in laughter once again overcame her. He was soaked, had teeth marks in his jacket and if looks could kill, she'd be ash. He scowled at her while she laughed at him and threw his backpack onto the table.

"I'm sorry, but your appearance has me at a loss. I hope you managed to retrieve the moss?" she asked with a laugh. Ryan pulled the moss out of his bag and tossed it onto the table. Zecora smiled and picked the moss up, placing it on one of her shelves. Ryan sat down at her table and placed his head on it with a thump.

"So...what's next?" Ryan asked wearily.

"This next part will be better for your health. I will now teach you a few tricks in stealth." Ryan lifted his head half way off the table, waiting for Zecora to finish.

"You will head to Ponyville immediately and write up a bio on the Elements of Harmony." Ryan slammed his face back down onto the table.

"Who the heck are the Elements?" he asked through the wood.

"Twilight, Rainbow Dash and Rarity, along with Applejack, Fluttershy and Pinkie," Zecora answered, following with descriptions of each of them. "This will test if you can avoid being seen. Here are some tricks to avoid making a scene. Stick to the shadows and try not to move. Ponies don't see in dark as well as you. Barrels and dumpsters are your friends. Hide on them to avoid your end." Ryan made a mental note of all the tips and waited to see if Zecora had more.

"Finally, avoid the princesses at all cost. If they catch you, you are lost. In order to research properly, you will need to see. To see extra far, use these." Ryan stood up and picked up the binoculars that Zecora had placed on the table, sticking them in his bag. He then slid the backpack on and headed out the door. Ryan headed off in the direction of Ponyville, wondering how on...wherever he was how he was supposed to get in and out of the city unseen. He supposed that elevation was his friend, so he'd stick to the tops of buildings or the shadows of the streets. Now that he had a plan, he was ready for Ponyville.

(_____++++_______)

Sneaking into the town was a lot harder than sneaking out of it. Ryan was lucky that the day had clouded up, blocking the sunlight and allowing him to blend in easier. His dark hoodie and pants helped him mix in with the shadows, but he still had a few close calls. A lot of ponies were out on the streets today, making him pick and choose his times to move. Ryan had made his way to the part of town where the buildings were closer together, allowing him to scale one of them and giving him access to the roofs. He carefully moved along them, making sure to watch the skies for pegasi. He had made it to the center of the town, where all the ponies had gathered.

"Alright, this is where the ponies all seem to be. Let's hope I can find the ones that Zecora mentioned." He took the binoculars out of his bag and placed them to his eyes, scanning the town's populace. He saw a huge variety of ponies, of large and small. He turned a little to the left and spotted one of the Elements...at least he thought she was one. She had a purple mane and a white coat, gems on her flank. That fit the description of Rarity, Element of Generosity. Ryan watched as the mare called out and her assistant ran over. He realized that the assistant was Spike, the dragon from the tree house. He was nearly buried under an avalanche of clothing supplies, but he had a huge smile on his face as he followed her around.

'She seems to be a fashion designer or some sort of fashion model. Spike appears to be her servant.' Ryan watched as the two ran around excitedly door a few minutes, until a loud trumpet sounded off. Ryan looked around in fear, wondering if he had been seen. No, it wasn't him for all the ponies were lining up on the side of the street. When they had parted, Ryan noticed a banner at the end of the street near the center building. It read.

Welcome Princess Celestia.

Fuck.

Ryan looked to the sky to see a golden chariot descend upon Ponyville, heading for the center where the ponies were gathered. Ryan went prone in the shadows, hoping that the princess or the flying guards hadn't seen him. Once the chariot had landed, Ryan crawled over to the edge of the building he was on and looked through the binoculars at the scene below.

A massive white horse with pegasi wings and a unicorn horn had stepped out of the chariot. All the ponies around her bowed down, confirming Ryan's suspicions. This was one of the princesses, one of the creatures that Zecora had warned him about. He backed up a bit before continuing his observations. The princess walked up to a pony that he recognized as Twilight and smiled at her. Twilight responded by face planting the ground with a bow, an action that Celestia laughed at. Two more ponies came up to greet her. One was an orange regular pony. Applejack. The other was a pink pony. Pinkie.

'So these two are also Elements of Harmony along with Twilight and Rarity.' He continued his observations for nearly an hour. Twilight seemed to panic over the slightest things, constantly checking up on the princess to make sure she was okay. Twilight also ran around refilling drinks and taking notes on everything. OCD much? Applejack seemed to be the sensible one, taking everything that happened in stride. She kept her cool, even when the princess teleported herself around the room, causing Twilight to go into panic mode. And with that Pinkie pony, that was a feat. Pinkie bounded around the place with boundless energy, bothering every pony and creature in sight. What scared Ryan the most was that every once in a while she would look over to where he was hiding. She would stare for a minute, but he was too well hidden for her to find him.

After watching the party outside for a half hour, Ryan figured that he had taken enough chances and chose to move. There were two Elements left, Fluttershy and Rainbow. He placed the binoculars inside his bag and slowly slipped backwards, climbing back down the building. According to Zecora, she was located at the end of the town. He slipped back into the shadows and made his way to the village.

()()
()

Fluttershy was interesting, to say the least. He had made his way to her house on the edge of town with only one incident. A massive red stallion had spotted him in an alleyway and had tried to chase him down. Ryan had taken Zecora's advice and had hidden inside of an open barrel. He couldn't believe it when the stallion ran right by him, completely ignoring the barrel. He had managed to slip away and make his way to the edge of town.

He was using the binoculars to watch Fluttershy from a distance, although he had to keep moving in order to keep a line of sight. She was a pale yellow with a pink mane and nervous as hell. She jumped at the slightest noises and sometimes looked around when there was nothing there. Then again, he was watching her. Maybe that's what set her off?

She lived up to Zecora's description though, as she defiantly embodied the Element of Compassion. Throughout his entire time watching her, she was always taking care of animals. Birds, bunnies; every animal was under her roof. Besides that, there was not much else to say about her. He slipped away into the shadows, making his way back to town. He had found magic, honesty, compassion, generosity and laughter. Who was he missing?

Beat the Rainbow

Ryan sat on one of the swings on the small playground, collecting his thoughts from the day's work. He had managed to make some mental notes on five of the six ponies, leaving the rainbow one out. Zecora had told him to gather some information, not to write an autobiography. What he had learned would have to be enough.

He pulled himself off of the seat, one problem still nagging at the corners of his mind. It was the way the ponies added up. While he had been gathering information, he had found two regulars, two unicorns, but only one pegasi. If his math was correct, that would make the last bearer of the elements a pegasus also. But why hadn't he seen her at the party? Nearly all the ponies had shown up, why hadn't the rainbow one? She wouldn't have missed the princess on purpose, so she'd have to be...

Shit.

As if on cue, he felt a wall of muscle slam into him from behind. The items inside of the backpack saved his spine from being crushed, although he still had to roll to keep from face planting. He spun around in a crouched position to face his attacker, already knowing who it was. His guess was right and a pegasi with a rainbow mane was standing behind him in a fighting stance, glaring daggers at him. Rainbow Dash. He slowly rose to his feet, slipping the stun baton out of his bag.

"So you're the shadow, huh? You don't look that tough," Rainbow Dash taunted, smirking at his build. What had she called him, the shadow? So, he had a nickname around these parts? Maybe he could use that to intimidate the pony so she wouldn't want to fight. It was a long shot, but he had to try.

"What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" she continued to taunt, sticking out her own tongue at him. He said nothing in reply, but flipped on the switch to his stun baton. A small smile crept to his face as he saw the pony jump from the now bright blue baton. He swung it in his hand once and pointed it a Rainbow Dash's chest before pointing it back at Ponyville. RD got the message.

"You want me to RUN? Sorry pal, but I don't run from a fight," she smirked, reassuming her fighting stance. Well, he had tried. Ryan flipped up his hood and took his own fighting stance. He began to circle her, trying to figure out his best plan of at- Ryan barely tossed himself to the ground as the blue pony nearly took his head off with a charge. He rolled and came up to a knee, not believing her speed.

"I'm sorry, am I too fast for you? Tough." Ryan had to readjust his attack strategy to factor in her insane speed. He rushed towards her as a ruse and waited for her to react. When she did, by charging at him, he swept his own feet and stuck a leg where he had previously been standing. He smiled when he heard his leg connect with a whack and immediately cringed when he felt the pain rush up his leg. He landed on his back while RD landed on her hooves a good ten yards away.

"Okay, Ow. I guess you can fight a little," she said with a frown, standing up on two hooves. Ryan got to his feet as well, raising an eyebrow at the ponies stance. If she was trying to fight him in a human's battle, she was in for a shock. He closed the gap between the two and went for a swift punch to the gut. Imagine his surprise when she caught his punch with her hoof and flipped him head over heels. He managed to land on his feet and swing a kick at her head, which she blocked and slammed her elbow into his bag. The pack caught the brunt of the attack and he was able to drop down and sweep her feet. While that would have knocked over a ground foe, Rainbow Dash used her wings to remain vertical. She flew above Ryan and went for a hoof dive, forcing him to roll to avoid it. He spun to his feet and spun back around to face the pony.

"I’ll give you credit, you're good. But it takes more than good to beat me." To prove her point, Rainbow quickly flew between his legs, knocking him into the air. Before he could respond, she delivered another elbow into his sternum. Ryan felt the wind leave his lungs as he collided with the ground, rolling onto his stomach. He struggled to both breath and get up, trying to shake the spots from his vision.

"Aw come on, don't give up. I was starting to have fun." RD said with a laugh. Ryan looked up at her, weighing his chances. He still had his baton, but she was faster, stronger and arguably a better fighter. But from watching the ponies, he had learned that they weren't dirty fighters. And that was one area humans couldn't be beat. He jumped back to his feet and resumed his fighting stance, give her the bring it sign. She snorted at him and charged straight into his stomach, which he used his arms to block. He felt his arms nearly give and he landed on his back with a thud. He lay motionless as Rainbow got back to her hooves.

"Like I said, good just isn't enough," she said with a smile. When he didn't respond or failed to move, she started to get a little worried. RD began to walk over to his body, not noticing his hand grab a handful of dirt.

"Hey, are you alright? Oh my gosh, you're not dead are y-?" Ryan suddenly sat up and tossed the dirt in his hand straight into Rainbow's eyes. She screamed in pain and backed up, trying to rub the dirt out of her eyes. Ryan didn't even give her the chance to do that, as he swung his baton right into her nose. She staggered back screaming and started to throw haymakers, trying to land a lucky blow. Ryan rolled back and dropped the baton into his bag, switching it for the rope that Zecora had given him. He rushed RD with rope in hand, rolling under her blind punch and getting behind her. Once he was there, Ryan tossed the rope around her neck and pulled.

It was like hanging onto a bucking bronco. The pony bucked and kicked in desperation to get him off. On the other hoof, Ryan was doing everything in his power to hang on. He had to wrap the rope around her neck twice just to keep it on her and her kicking wasn't helping. He was pretty sure that she had busted on of his knees with one of her kicks and he wasn't sure if he could hold on for much longer. So he did something stupid. Ryan jumped on RD's back and wrapped his legs around her wings, using his weight to pull her to the ground.

"Give up, damn you!" Ryan grunted while pulling on the rope even harder. He actually started to believe that RD couldn't be stopped when he felt Rainbow Dash begin to tire out. Her kicks were losing their strength and she had to be running out of air. After a few more tense seconds, she finally went limp. Ryan still held on, seriously debating what to do next. If he let her go, she would probably tell the other ponies about his existence and it would make his life even harder...but he wasn't a killer, even if she was a pony.

He let the rope go slack and quickly unwrapped it from her neck. He checked to see if she was breathing and once he had confirmed she was, he kicked her for good measure.

"Yeah...that's right...you ain't got-oh God," he half taunted before falling over. He pulled himself back to his feet and began to stagger from the battlefield. Dear God, did he hurt. His body felt like he had been hit by a truck, one he had forgotten to get the license plate number. His knee was really bad; it could barely hold him after that kick to his knee. The rest of him was bruised and battered, with a headache that would bother him for days. That pony really did a number on him. If another pony was to find him, he would be helpless to fight back. He needed to get to Zecora's hut.

Fortunately, he managed to drag himself to the forest, but it was not easy. His adrenaline rush from the fight had worn off and he hurt like hell. Even the advanced training couldn't help him numb all the pain, but he clenched his teeth and continued on. He eventually reached the zebra's hut and placed his hand on the door, trying to focus through the pain. He wondered if Rainbow Dash had come to yet. If she had, he wouldn't be surprised if an angry mob swarmed the forest looking for him. An angry mob of multicolored ponies? That he would like to see...Ryan stumbled against the door and pushed it open, then immediately blacked out.

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When Ryan awoke for the fifth time in Zecora's hut, he noticed that like all the past time's he had awoken in here, the pain was gone. He slowly sat up from the zebra's table and looked at Zecora, who was standing next to him with an annoyed look on her face.

"And here I got up to answer the door, then you collapsed on my clean floor," she said with a sigh. Ryan groaned and pulled himself off the table, not bothering with a response. He instead walked over to the table where his bag had been placed and opened it. He pulled out the package that Ditzy had given him, tearing off the tape and pulling it open. The item inside the cardboard looked to be a thin vest fitted to his size. He pulled it out and a note fell to the ground. He bent over and picked it up, reading what was written.

'Dear Ryan (it read), thanks again for saving me the other day. I had this made for you in case you ever found yourself in another bad spot. It's made of dragon scale and can protect you from most attacks. I had it designed just for you. Thanks again!

From, Ditzy D.

P.S. Dinky, my daughter, says thanks as well.

Ryan looked at the note with a smile. Ditzy hadn't needed to go through the trouble to get him this, but it was appreciated none the less. He hadn't known that she had a daughter. He realized that if he hadn't jumped in, not only would she have died but her daughter would be motherless. He was really glad now that he had chosen to help. He folded up the note and put it in his jacket, which he then slipped off so he could out on the vest. He slipped the silver vest over his shoulders, feeling practically nothing. It wasn't heavy, it actually felt lighter than his jacket. He also realized that this vest is probably what kept Rainbow from breaking his spin. That was twice now she had saved him in one day. He'd have to think of a way to pay her back.

"So how did the day go? I would like to know," Zecora asked him. He but his jacket back on and glared at the zebra.

"Well, sneaking in was easy enough thanks to your advice, but there were a lot more ponies out and about than I thought. After getting onto the roof tops, I had the privilege to see that Celestia princess. I got a little bit of data on the Elements, but had to leave after a while. I think the pink one...saw me."

"That Pinkie sense can be a pain in the rear. What else happened before you got here? You had multiple wounds on your face and back. Was it Rainbow Dash or Applejack?" She had known he'd run into one of them? Of course she did, she had probably planned it this way.

"Rainbow Dash and I hate to admit it, but it was with dumb luck that I managed to win," he said in a small voice, not liking that he had almost been captured.

"Dumb luck it could be or it could have been skill and ingenuity." He thought about that and realized that the zebra was right once again. He had gone up against a superior advisory, but by relying on his brain and tricks, he had managed to win. The medicine Zecora had used completely repaired Ryan's body. In fact, he was feeling better now than he had when he first went to Ponyville. When he brought this up with Zecora, she rolled her eyes and explained.

"In order to heal you I need a higher quantity, so now my medical reserves are running empty." He knew why she was upset. His constant medical needs had been the source of her shortage of medical supplies. She had saved his life at least four times now, using her own supplies and time to heal him. Yet he continued to be a jerk. It was time to pay her back.

"Can I help you replenish your stocks?" he asked. Zecora turned to face him with a raised eyebrow, a small smile creeping onto her lips.

"There may be a way you can help after all. There is a mushroom I need by the endless falls. It is the last item needed to complete my medicine, but one mistake could put you in heaven." Great, another life or death situation to do more of the zebra's shopping. But he did owe her and so far all her missions had been beneficial, so he figured it was best to help her.

"Fine, where is this endless falls you mentioned." The smile she gave him would haunt his nightmares.

"It is near the end of Everfree, at where the forest merges with eternity. The falls are bottomless and to fall in would be your end. Down into these falls you must descend."

"Fine, sure. Not like it's any more dangerous than anything else you've sent me on," he muttered. Ryan put his jacket back on and slipped the backpack over his shoulders. Zecora offered him her last medicine jar, but he declined. He had already used so much of the stuff that he couldn't let her give him more. Besides, he probably wouldn't need it. The waterfall might be dangerous, but it couldn't be that bad.

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He was horribly, horribly wrong. As Ryan started down to where the water from the falls headed, he realized that Zecora had not been lying when she had said that it was bottomless. The falls were located near the farthest northern part of Everfree, inside of a circular chasm that seemed to have no end. The water fell into sheer nothingness, how that worked he had no idea. Ryan crouched on the edge of the cliff opposite the falls and looked through his binoculars that he had brought. There was no bottom. That fact is what bothered him the most. He dropped, he died. Ryan scanned the rock wall until he found what he was looking for; a tiny cave hidden by the mighty falls. That was where he needed to get to.

He stood up and put his binoculars back in his bag. Ryan let go of his sanity and swung his legs out over the chasm, beginning his descent.

Crystal Cavern

'This is nuts.' That was all Ryan could think to himself as he gripped a small hand hold in the side of the rock face, doing everything in his power not to look down at the endless drop. He looked around the rock face to find his next hand or foot hold, trying not to think about how tired his arms were or how sweaty his palms had become. After about ten minutes of heart racing climbing, Ryan had made it maybe half way to the cave on the other side of the endless drop. The weight of the backpack was constantly in the back of his mind, but the small handholds and the wet rocks were murder.

"This is the stupidest things that I have ever done. Ever. In the history of my life," he growled to himself, looking around for the next hand or foot hold. A small rock jutted out of the cliff face, a bit of a stretch for him to reach. Fortunately, a foothold was right below, so he placed his foot on the rock carefully, gently shifting his weight just in case the rock broke. It held and he placed his full weight on it, reaching for the hand hold. With an effort, his hand grasped the rock and he pulled himself to a better position. He looked around again, groaning when he realized he'd half to jump up to reach the next rock.

"There has got to be a better way," he grunted, launching himself towards the grip. One hand managed to grab it, but his left missed and hit the rock wall instead. Ryan clenched his teeth as he hung on to the grip with only one hand. As he grip began to slip, he desperately clawed at the cliff face, trying to find anything to give him something to hold onto. Ryan kicked one of his feet in and found a small crack he could slip his foot into. With the foot rest, he was able to stabilize himself and take a breather. He looked at his location on the wall, noting that he was about two thirds of the way across.

"Can't quit now." He continued moving across the wall, avoiding bad hand holds and keeping his eyes vertical, never once looking down. After ten more minutes of tense moments and almost certain death slips, he managed to make his way above the cave's entrance. He slowly moved in behind the massive waterfall, which had half hidden the cave. He smiled as he slowly began his descent, believing that he was finally finished. It was then his luck gave out. His foothold shattered under his weight and his grip slipped, resulting in a ten foot drop straight onto the caves slight extended platform. He landed on his back with a thud, rolling onto his side.

"Damn it...that hurt," he groaned as he slowly sat up. The fall had knocked the wind out of him, but that vest Ditzy had given him and protected his bones. But while his skeletal structure was safe, his hands had been skinned in the fall and he had banged his knee on a rock, tearing the pants leg. While he would normally ignore the pain, the blood loss would become a problem later. Taking a moment to rest and recover, Ryan reached inside his back pack and pulled out a much smaller role of bandages. He wrapped them around both his hands and his bloodied knee. As he patched himself up, he regretted not taking them medicine. It would have come in handy. Once he was in satisfactory condition, Ryan pulled himself back up and stared at the cave entrance. It was dark, foreboding and reeked with an odd smell.

"Seems nice enough," he said with a small laugh and headed inside. After a few steps, the cave nearly turned pitch black. Ryan didn't like to do it, but he pulled out his stun baton and flipped it on, holding up the electrified rod to light his way. Ryan continued to walk, noticing that the wall were bare and empty. When he had been walking for a few minutes, he reached a step descent in the cave. Ryan only gave it a small thought before walking down the slippery slope. He descended even farther into the depths, eventually reaching a small hole in the floor. He could still see the bottom even when he stood above it, meaning that the fall wasn't that far. He placed the baton back in his bag and jumped down.

Incredible. That was the only word that could describe the corridor he landed in from his drop. When he had landed and pulled his baton back out, the light from it was immediately reflected off of thousands of crystals. The blue light reflected in thousands of different patterns, resulting in a multitude of rainbows on the walls and ceilings. Ryan looked around at the crystals, finding that he could only advance forward. Ryan pushed in, keeping away from the crystals. He didn't like to touch crystals, since the last one he had touched blasted him across a room. He continued to move and advance until he reached something that always annoyed him. Something that wanted to kill him.

He had entered a circular chamber with crystals all over the walls. These crystals ranged in color from red to the weirdest purple, creating a room of rainbows. But none of the beautiful crystals or the massive door at the end of the room interested him at the moment. No what had his attention was the massive crystal centipede in the center of the room. It was about his size, but had a lot of legs and was a deep blue in color. The moment he laid eyes on it, it spun around and saw him, screeching at him in a threatening manner.

"Well, you must be what tries to kill me t-" Ryan couldn't even finish his sentence as the creature went straight into attack mode. He rolled to the side as the centipede barreled by him. He came out of the roll and brought his baton up, watching as the insect ran up the side of the wall and redirected itself back towards him. He watched it carefully as it charged straight at him, waiting for his chance to strike. He jumped to the side as it thundered past and brought his baton down upon its head with authority, having the surprising effect of cracking the creature’s skull. It shrieked and backed off, giving Ryan a chance to speak.

"Ha, not so tough, are you? This'll be-" He was cut off mid-sentence as the centipede screeched and suddenly disappeared into thin air. Ryan immediately started looking around, wondering where the hell it had gotten to. He heard a movement behind him and he turned around just in time to be flattened by the insect. It's hundreds of legs trampled him, but the vest protected his body and he put his arm over his head. When he was done getting stomped on, he quickly got to his feet and looked around the room, but the centipede was once again gone.

"Alright, you S.O.B, where are you?" he muttered, looking around the room carefully. He had figured that the centipede’s crystal body allowed it to blend in with its environment, giving it a natural camouflage in this kind of environment. Ryan had been fine with fighting it head on, but fighting it blind would be too much for him. He heard the sound of feet behind him again and he tossed himself to the side instinctually, the centipede thundering past and vanishing into the crystals. Ryan picked himself up, knowing that he only had a short amount of time until the beast attacked again. Just like with all his other fights, he needed a plan. Ryan looked at the multitude of crystals, noticing that each of them was a different color. The centipede must be able to blend in by shifting it's colors to match the crystals. But he had only seen it as one color, not six or seven colors. Maybe it could only be one color at a time? Ryan looked to the center of the room and noticed one massive crystal sitting on the floor, not too far from him. He looked from it to his baton, an idea forming in his head.

"If this doesn’t work, I'm screwed," he muttered, rushing over to the center crystal. He heard the centipede start it's attack again, knowing it was going to finish him off. He raced straight up to the crystal and rammed his stun baton right into its center. The light show that followed was spectacular. Rays of lights shot out in every direction, creating a cascade of colors that bounced all over the room. As more of the rays ricochet from the crystals, more and more of the rays struck Ryan and the centipede. While Ryan was unaffected, the centipede was bathed in a multitude of colors, rendering it's camo useless. Now that Ryan could see it, he could finish it.

"Now it's mine turn." He rushed straight towards the centipede and brought the weapon down on the insects head again. The crack from the previous blow spread out even further, causing the centipede to screech and retreat back into the room. It climbed up the wall until it was out of sight.

"That could've gone better," Ryan muttered, stretching out his injured body parts. It had been a learning experience that was certain. The creature had created away for it to use its environment to its advantage and Ryan had to overcome that. Had Zecora meant for him to learn how to use the environment to his advantage or to come out of nowhere and be unpredictable? Regardless, the bug was gone and the door stood before him. Ryan placed his hands on the door and pushed it open, preparing for whatever was on the inside.
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He had not been expecting this. As he walked past the doors and into the inner room, he was greeted by a huge underground lake with soft lights reflecting of the ceiling and the water. He slowly moved forward, drinking in the sight. Fireflies of all sorts floated above the lake, giving a sense of serenity to the room. Like the previous room there were crystals everywhere, but these were much smaller than the other room. He thought he saw something in the center of the lake and he moved forward to investigate.

"Hi!"

Ryan swung his baton over his head and his eyes scanned the room, looking for the source of the voice. He didn't see anything besides the fireflies, but it's was possible his ears had heard something. He lowered his baton and went to switch it off. He brought his baton in front of him to find a small creature sitting on his weapon.

"What's your name?" it asked him. Ryan processed what was happening on an unemotional level. A creature that was small with glittering wings was sitting on the end of his still electrified baton, apparently not affected. Judging from its small feature and fascinating wings, he assumed it was a fairy. That was what went through his mind as he saw the creature. What he did was to toss the baton into the air and leap backwards, tripping over a crystal.

"You're funny!" the now hovering fairy laughed at him as he brought himself back to its feet. He hated it when creatures surprised him like that. He got back to his feet and reclaimed his baton. The fairy flittered around him while he walked to the edge of the lake. He pulled the binoculars out of the bag and used them to look towards the center. Yep, there was a small pedestal in the center of the lake, with something placed on the top of it. He couldn't make out what it was, but he figured that it was the mushroom Zecora wanted. Ryan placed the binoculars back in the bag and was about to take a step into the water, when the fairy flew in front of him.

"Sorry, but that water isn't for swimming. You have to find another way," it told him with a smile.

"The hell do you mean, find another way?" he asked it. He hadn't risked his life climbing over a bottomless pit and fighting a crystal centipede to be told there was another way. He shook his head and tried to sidestep past the fairy, but it flew in front of him and placed a tiny hand on his chest.

"I said no," it said in a more serious voice. He rolled his eyes and went to push his way through, but the fairy applied a little more pressure and tossed him across the room. He slammed into the wall, the vest once again saving him, and slid to the floor. Why? Why was everything in this world infinitely stronger than him?

"Fine...you win. What's the other way?" he asked it with a groan, getting back up. The fairy smiled again and flew over to him.

"Alright, but before I tell you that, what's your name?"

"...Ryan."

"Okay Ryan, I'm Silverstar. Now, as to the lake, it's actually a test, same with the bug you fought back there. Kudo’s for managing to beat it. Now, the trick is to find a way to get to the item from the center without touching the water. Also, no flying or magic," she said with a frown. "Finally, you can ask me one question. But only one."

Great, he had to find a way to get to the mushroom in the center without being able to swim. She didn't even need to bother with the mention of no magic or flying, since he couldn't do either. Ryan sat down on the edge of the lake and shrugged his back pack off. He wasn't sure how to get to the center, but he needed to.

He sat there for hours, not a single idea coming to him. There weren't enough crystals on the ceiling for him to try and use them as hand holds, plus he probably wouldn't be able to hold on. Swimming was out and his rope would never reach the pedestal. And to top off his annoyance, the stupid fairy wouldn't shut up.

"You know, you can still ask me a question," she whispered in his ear. He ignored her the best he could and focused on the problem at hand. Nothing he thought of would work. And the fairy just continued to talk away, as if trying to keep his attention on her...Wait, that might work. Or it would fail horribly. Only one way to find out.

"...Alright, here's my question." The fairy floated in the air next to him, waiting for his question. "Can you get whatever's over there for me?...Please?" He waited for her reaction, fairly certain that he had wasted his question. But to his surprise, the fairy let out a happy laugh and flew around his head.

"I don't believe it! One hundred years I've been down here and nopony has ever asked for my help! As a matter of fact, nopony still has because you're technically not a pony!...But to answer your question. Yes, I will get it for you, but only because you're cute." With a wink, Silverstar flew out across the lake and came back a few seconds later with a strange silver armband with a blue sapphire in the center. She dropped it into his hands with a smile, while he stared at it in confusion.

"What's this?" he eventually asked. Silverstar looked at him in equal confusion.

"It's the anti-magi's armband, the one that can cancel out any magic that touches the wearer. I've guarded it for years. Isn't it what you came her for?"

"No, I came to find some sort of crystal mushroom, not this armband," Ryan informed her, turning over the item in his hands. The fairy looked at him for a moment before shaking her head.

"The mushrooms you're thinking of grow back at the top of the waterfall. If those were what you were after, why'd you come down here?"

"Because, I was told that the mushrooms were..." Then Ryan realized that Zecora had never specifically told him that the mushrooms grew inside the cave at the falls. She said that they were there, but not inside. She had KNOWN he would descend into the cave to find them. She had tricked him once again!

"ZECORA!" he yelled, jumping back to his feet in a rage. He placed the armband into his bag and started to head back to the entrance. However, Silverstar flew in front of him and held out her hand.

"If you're planning to go out the other way, I wouldn't recommend it. Since you didn't kill that centipede, it will be back with reinforcements. You'd be slaughtered."

"So what do I do?" Silverstar smiled and snapped her fingers. One bright flash later, Ryan found himself standing above the falls, next to a number of mushrooms made of blue crystals. He looked back to the smiling fairy, not believing how powerful she was. He crouched down and picked one of the mushrooms, placing it in his bag.

"...Thanks for your help," Ryan said to Silverstar. She smiled in return before looking around at the forest.

"Well, now that I no longer need to guard that armband, I'm gonna go see the world."

"Hold on, you said that this arm band will stop ALL magic, correct?"

"Yup, as long as you're wearing it, you're essentially magic proof. It's great when messing with unicorns!" She gave him one last wink and took off into the sky, leaving a confused Ryan watching her go. He shook his head and pulled the armband back out, looking at it in interest. Magic proof, huh? That might come in handy later on. Ryan slipped the band onto his shoulder and froze while an odd sensation, like cold water running through his veins, gripped his body. Once the feeling had passed, he turned towards Zecora's hut and headed off.

Pony with the Harp

Ryan had a lot to think about as he walked, mostly on what had happened that day. What his attention was most focused on was Rainbow Dash, who had practically kicked the crap out of him. She had laughed at his attempts to fight back and only saw him as a source of entertainment. Yet she had been worried when she thought that she had killed him. Why was that? And had she told her friends about him? If she had, the forest would definitely become livelier.

Ryan had reached around the center of the forest when he heard something interesting. It sounded like a crying wolf. What was that all about? Ryan scaled a tree and proceeded to jump from branch to branch, seeking out the source. He landed in a branch near a fairly sized hole in the ground. Standing on the edge of the hole was a timberwolf, pacing back and forth with a (what he assumed was) a worried look on its face. Ryan heard another cry and this time he realized that the cry had come from the hole. He slipped around to a closer tree to get a better look, slightly surprised at what was inside.

A young timberwolf was sitting in the center of the hole, crying out at the other timberwolf. Ryan put two and two together and figured that the pacing wolf was the young ones mother, worried sick over her child. Ryan scanned the surrounding bushes, a bit surprised to see no other Timberwolves. Normally they traveled in huge packs; at least they did whenever he ran into them. Had they simply grown tired of waiting for the mother and her pup and abandoned them? Or had this mother left the pack to try and find the pup? Both were reasonable assumptions, but didn't matter much. The situation was a pup was stuck and the mother apparently couldn't get it out.

As the mother continued to pace, he turned to leave, remembering what the wolves had done and had tried to do to him. He owed them nothing, especially after they had tried to eat him and maul him. Then the pup let out another sad cry and Ryan's conscience once again kicked him in the gut, forcing him to act. He dropped out of the tree and instantly caught the attention of mama wolf, which turned towards him and snarled. Ryan held up both his hands and slowly walked forward, trying not give off any signs of being afraid.

"Look, I know you don't like me, but I can help you get your kid out of there," he slowly said, gesturing to the hole where the pup was trapped. The mother looked from him to the crying wolf, obviously weighing her options. After what felt like forever, she stepped aside and let him pass. Ryan walked past her (always aware of her eyes on his back) and walked to the edge of the hole. He looked inside and finally saw the young timberwolf up close. It was actually pretty cute, with big green eyes and little twigs over its body. It looked up at him with interest in its eyes. Not fears, just interest.

A small stump next to the hole gave Ryan an idea on how to get down there. He pulled the rope out of his bag and spent a moment tying it around the stump. He tossed the remainder of the rope down the hole and started his climb down into the hole. As he slid down the rope, the bandages helping to avoid rope burn, the wolf pup ran up to meet him with a pup smile on its face and its tongue hanging out. He let go of the rope and landed in front of the puppy, who jumped onto his legs and tried to climb up them. He shook his head and picked the young wolf, flinching as it bit his hand. He growled and placed it into his back pack, where it stuck its head out of the top and started to look around. He gripped the rope and started to climb back out. He almost let go of the rope when he reached the top and came face to face with the mother. It eyes him carefully before looking at the pup in his bag.

Ryan finished climbing out and took the wolf out of his bag, placing it on the forest floor. The creature’s paws had barely hit the ground before it took off to its mother, tackling her. He smiled as he saw the mother reunited with her cub as he pulled himself out, but the smile quickly turned to a frown as the mother looked at him and snarled. She took a protective stance in front of her pup, snarling at him.

"Look, I don't want any trouble, I just wanted to get your pup out of the hole," he said carefully, slowly pulling up his rope while keeping an eye on the wolf. She looked from him to her pup with a snort, giving him one last growl before turning around and heading off into the forest. Ryan sighed in relief and finished pulling up his rope, wrapping it around his arm and placing it in the bag. After placing his bag back on his back, he turned to head back to Zecora's and came to a dead stop. Standing in front of him was a pony in a silver hood and cape, the hood covering her face so that he could barely see her eyes. Her whole body glowed silver and she radiated power, something that he didn't like. She turned her head to the left and nodded before looking back to him. Ryan slowly reached up to grab his baton when she vanished, no flash or puff, just vanished. He blinked once before looking around the forest to see where she had gone, but she had simply vanished.

"That was weird," he muttered to himself as he let go of his baton, looking to where she had nodded. It was obvious that she wanted him to go that way, but was it a trap or something that would help him? While he did need to get back to Zecora, he figured that a small detour wouldn't hurt. So he started the trek through the forest, sticking to the shadows just in case it was a trap. When he had been walking for around ten minutes, he heard the sound of something struggling. Peeking through the trees, he saw a pony with a harp on her flank stuck in a spider's web upside down and desperately trying to get out. He wasn't sure why she was here, but the size of the web unsettled him. If the webbing was big enough to ensnare a full grown pony, he didn't want to see the spider that made it. He turned to leave, accidently stepping on a twig and sending a crack through the trees.

"H-hello? Is some pony there?" the pony called out, the desperation apparent in her voice. "Please, help me!" Ryan sighed to himself, figuring that the pony didn't stand a chance if he left. So he took in a deep breath as he flicked up his hood and stepped through the trees, preparing for the worst. He watched with a thin smile as the pony's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates, stopping all of her struggling as she saw him walk towards her. He felt her eyes still on him as he walked up to the web, looking at it carefully before planning his next move.

"Oh my gosh," the pony whispered once he had gotten closer to him. "You're...you're..."

"If you want to get out alive, you'll stay quiet until I have you out," he growled before she could continue. She immediately shut her mouth, but kept her awe filled eyes on him the entire time. He had told her to be quiet so that he could listen if she tried anything. After Rainbow attacked him, he was even more on guard from any pony and especially unicorns with their magic. He bent down to pick a stick off the ground and poked the web with it, feeling only a bit of resistance as he pulled back. Hopefully that meant that the web wasn't too strong and he might be able to pull her off. "Alright, I'm going to try and pull you off. Do you think your magic can help us?"

"W-what? Oh right, my magic," she said as he placed his hands on two of her legs.

"Alright on three. THREE!" Ryan pulled back as the pony used her magic on herself to pull against the web, slowly pulling her from its grasp. A few seconds later, the webbing holding her snapped and she went tumbling across the forest floor. She groaned and rubbed her head as she looked up at Ryan, who looked down at her from under his hood. She said nothing as he looked over her for any signs of injuries and could only watch as he turned and headed back towards the forest.

"Do me a favor and don't tell any of the ponies where you found me," he said as he walked away into the trees. Realizing what she was letting happen, she got back up and ran into the forest after him, only to realize that he was gone.

"No wait! Come back...HUMAN!" she screamed into the forest as she looked around for him.

"How do you know what I am?" She gasped as the electricity from his baton crackled under her throat, his face next to hers so that she could see his eyes. "How do you know?" She ducked under the baton and backed herself into a tree, her eyes glued to his crackling weapon as he pointed it at her while slowly walking towards her.

"H-humans are my specialty!" she stammered out in fear, noticing that he had stopped advancing towards her. "I know all about them. Well, more than any pony around. Y-you're the first real human that I've seen in a while! Please don't hurt me!" Ryan narrowed his eyes at her, not sure whether he should believe her or not. But her eyes showed him that she was at least scared for her life and probably wouldn't be lying to him. So he slowly sheathed his baton and turned back into the forest, heading towards Zecora's. Much to his annoyance, the pony decided to follow him instead of running back to the village.

"I'm Lyra by the way. Lyra Heartstrings," she said with a smile. Ryan ignored her and kept walking, looking to the plants to try and figure where to go next. "Um, when a pony introduces themselves, it's custom to return the courtesy," she said with a weaker smile. Ryan spotted a familiar tree that told him he was heading the right way and took a left, making the ignored Lyra a little angry. "Hey, I'm trying to be nice here, but even I have my limits." She growled in frustration as he continued to ignore her, but the frustration faded away when she noticed that he was heading towards Zecora's hut.

"Wait, is Zecora your friend?" she asked him.

"No, not my friend. Just a business partner," he replied quickly before. Lyra frowned at his rudeness but at least he had bothered to answer this time. Ryan grabbed the handle on the door and threw it open, storming inside and walking over to the zebra that was standing in front of a large cauldron.

"I see that you have not fallen to your doom," Zecora said with a smile as he walked over to her. "Did you make it back with the mushrooms?"

"Yeah, I got your mushrooms," Ryan said with a scowl as he reached inside his bag and throwing the mushrooms on her table. "And maybe next time you can inform me of whether or not I need to climb down a cliff to grab them." Zecora chuckled as she scooped up the mushrooms and walked over to one of her many shelves.

"Climbing that cliff was to help you train. And I trust what you found inside was richer than any oil vein?" she asked with a knowing smile, looking at the bracelet on his arm.

"Yeah it was. So are we even for the medicine now or is there another quest to my death I need to go on?" he asked her with a growl, but to his surprise she grabbed a staff off the wall and motioned for him to follow her. He followed her out of the hut and to the back, where a training circle had been set up. Zecora stood in the center and motioned for him to join, which he did so warily.

"As a thanks I believe it's time I trained you myself, though I warn you now it may not be good for your health," she said with him with a coy smile, waiting to see what his answer would be.

"When is anything you've done or sent me to do been good for my health?" he asked her as he pulled out the baton, flicking it on as he prepared to fight her. "If I end this day with only a few broken bones I'll consider it an improvement." Lyra said down outside of the circle, happy as could be that she was going to get to see a human fight.

"Whenever you are ready, we can begin," she said to him as she waited for him. "But please fight me as if you're trying to win."

"Zecora, I get to attack you at full strength knowing that you asked for it. I'm out for blood," he said with a roar as he came at her, leaping into the air to deliver a kick. She smirked at his attack and struck him three times quickly in the gut, causing him to freeze in midair for a moment before he collapsed to the ground and struggled to get up. "The...hell...was that?" he asked weakly.

"You left yourself open to my pressure point attack, which was able to keep you back," she said with a smile as she offered a hoof to help him up. Remembering what the monkeys had taught him, he instead threw his coat at her and followed it up with a baton strike from below. Zecora caught the jacket on the end of her staff, blocked the strike with the other end and then swung the staff around to strike Ryan in the face with his own jacket. He flew back a bit and collapsed to the ground, where he remained for a good minute.

"Zecora!" Lyra yelled as she rushed to Ryan's side, trying to wake him up to see if he was alright. "You can't be that brutal with him, he's the only human alive today! What if you killed him?!"

"Trust me, he has been through far worse than that. in fact, he's getting up for another attack," she replied, Lyra looking down at Ryan to see that he was indeed getting back up, although he looked a lot more groggy than before.

"Come on you stupid zebra, is that all you got?" he asked her as he reached for his baton, only to realize that it was a good ten feet from him. He turned to walk towards it, only to have his feet swept out from under him and to land on his back, looking up to see Zecora standing over him with her staff placed on his throat.

"We'll have a lot of work to do in the coming weeks. In the meantime get used to constant defeats," she said to him as she offered him another hoof to get up, yet again he ignored it, knowing all too well what she might try. Lyra went back to the sidelines as the two continued to train, watching Ryan get beaten down again and again only to keep getting up, even though the time between him getting knocked down and getting up got longer with every strike. It was only after he started talking like Zecora did she finally call off the training for that day.

"Yes, there is certainly much room to improve, but do not worry as I believe in you," she said to him as she tapped ice to his head, Ryan not really sure where he was.

"Yer the best, you know that?" he asked before falling head first onto the ground. Zecora shook her head at him before gathering up his things and placing them into his backpack, before placing him onto her pack.

"I will take him to where he rests, but I would like you to listen to my request," she said to Lyra as she got up as well. "Do not tell the others of meeting him today, as for meeting other ponies I do not believe his is ready."

"That wasn't a rhyme," Ryan mumbled.

"I guess I can keep it a secret, but I still want to meet with him from time to time," Lyra said as she tried to examine him more, only to pout when Zecora moved him away from her. "But don't worry, I won't tell a soul that I got to meet an actual human." Zecora nodded to her and went on her way, heading towards where the abandoned castle was, knowing that was where he rested.

'You can take a beating, that is for sure,' she thought when he fell off of her back and rolled down a hill. 'But I wonder what you are really here, good sir?' She leapt down the hill after him and bent over to pick him up, but her attention was grabbed by a small mound of dirt that had a single stone marking it. Zecora shook her head with a sigh as she hoisted Ryan onto her back again. 'I am sure you think I treat you like a cur, but I do all of this so you do not end up like her.'

This Isn't What It Looks Like

The next month flew by like a blur, but Ryan was certain that was because he was unconscious for half of it. The training with Zecora was far beyond any kind of training he had before, but he could slowly feel himself getting better and faster. He still couldn't fight worth a damn but he was getting good at predicting attacks and avoiding hits that would take him down. Until Zecora got serious. And with all of the times she had to heal his wounds, her supplies of medicine were running low once again. And that is why he found himself running out of a manticore nest as fast as he could with six of the things chasing him.

"Goddamn...evil...ZEBRA!" he yelled to the skies once he had finally escaped them, looking down at his shredded coat and pants with amazement that he was still alive. "Oh sure, just go into this area and grab me a couple of the flowers. Is it dangerous? Nah, you'll be fine if you remember your training. Didn't know she was training me to be monster food." He sat down by a spring that rested near a cave, drinking as much water as he could carry before he leaned back against a rock and stared up at the sky. "She's going to get me killed one day. Not that I care, but I wish that I didn't have to go like this. I would have been fine going like everyone else..."

'Care to explain what you meant?' He was too tired to jump to his feet, so all Ryan could do was turn his head to see a silverfish pony sitting next to him by the spring, looking at him with her empty eyes. 'Is there a story behind your words there or where you just venting your frustrations.'

"Doesn't matter now that I've been caught with my pants down," he said with a weak smile as he looked up at the sky again. "So, is there an angry mob waiting for me at the edge of the forest or did you come alone to kick my ass, just like everything else has in this forsaken world?" The silver mare raised a hidden eyebrow at his words, but she shook her head with a small laugh as she looked into the spring.

'No, I have no plans to mess with you, I am simply here because you interest me,' she said to him with a smile, but he couldn't see it under her hood. 'I have be working on something for a few years now and I need a rest every once and a while. But while I was here I discovered that you somehow managed to get to this land despite having no powers or being skilled in any sort of magic. Care to tell me how you got here?'

"Nope," Ryan said as he leaned back against the rock some more, feeling himself beginning to calm down. "So what the hell are you? I've seen mostly all of the ponies and none of them look as weird as you. You some sort of ghost or god or something?" The silver mare took a moment to ponder what he said, never really having to think about what she was before.

'I am more a specter than a ghost, but you can say that I am all that remains of what used to be a pony,' she said in a cryptic voice, Ryan rolling his eyes at her "answer". 'But what I am does not concern you at all. I am simply here to relax, although I have found that observing you has been very entertaining. Why do you bother fighting the zebra if she continues to defeat you?'

"Because I enjoy the pain," he said in a sarcastic tone. The silver mare said little as she looked around Everfree forest, vague memories coming back to her as she did.

'It is nice to see the forest again,' she said aloud, though Ryan did do his best to ignore her. 'I haven't seen it since it was wiped off the face of the planet.' Ryan wondered just what the hell she was talking about before he heard a gasp from above and he spun around to see a Pegasus floating above them. She let out a gasp before she flew back off towards Ponyville, saying something about how she found the shadow.

"Well, I better get out of here before the angry mob arrives," he said to the silver mare as he got up, looking down at her as she remained seated. "Not getting up?"

'I will be gone by the time they get here,' she said to him. Ryan shrugged as he turned to leave, but then he looked into the cave near the spring and the wheels in his head began to turn. If that pony told the others where she had seen him, they would assume that he lived here and would come out in force to capture him. But since he knew that, he could use their knowledge to his advantage. He turned to leave before looking back to the cave once more, an evil smile spreading one his face when he thought about what he could do.

//||\\

Night had fallen before the Pegasus had finally returned to the town, telling the mayor what she had seen. Upon hearing that the creature in the forest had been found, the ponies all gathered together in front of the town hall, where the mayor had gathered the Elements of Harmony on the stage as she stood before the ponies and began to speak to the crowd.

"Ponies of Ponyville, at last we have finally found where the creature is that has been hounding our town for so long!" she said to them, getting a roar of approval in return. "Now I have talked with Twilight and the other Elements of Harmony and I have come to a decision on what our course of action should be. I believe that it is in our best interest to...form a giant mob and go drive that pony out of our forest!" Twilight face hoofed as the crowd cheered before she walked over to the mayor.

"Mayor, I thought I said that I just wanted the Elements of Harmony to go into the forest and find the creature?" Twilight said to her as she looked to the crowd, seeing that they already had torches and pitchforks. "There is no need for the town to get involved. According the Rainbow Dash, the creature isn't particularly strong or fast."

"Nope, this is obviously the most sane and safe course of action," the mayor said before she hopped off the stage and grabbed a pitchfork as well, leading the crowd of ponies into the forest. Twilight let out a sigh of exasperation as the other Elements walked up to her and shook their heads at the sight.

"They're helpless," Applejack said as the crowd began to head towards Everfree.

"So what's the plan Twilight?" Rarity asked.

"We should probably go with them, Celestia knows what might happen to them if we don't," Twilight said as she and the others followed the crowd into the forest. The crowd got lost a few times within the forest, but the number of ponies plus the torches and yelling kept the monsters away. The Pegasus that was leading them had gotten them lost a few times, but eventually she had managed to get the massive crowd to the spring near the cave where she had found the creature.

"Alright ponies, let me handle this," Twilight said as she began to look around, the crowd, despite having superior numbers, was still somewhat terrified of the creature called the shadow. Twilight didn't find anything of interest as she looked around the spring, but she saw something inside the cave, where she motioned the Elements to join her as she went inside.

"Is that it?" Rainbow asked as she saw something laying in the darkness. Fluttershy hid behind her friends as twilight went over to investigate.

"It's just a piece of paper?" she asked as she picked it up, reading it by the glow of her horn while her fiends crowded around her to read over her shoulder.

"So what's it say?" Pinkie asked, Twilight snarling to herself as she crumpled it up with her magic.

"Riddle me this. When is the best time for someone like me to visit Ponyville?" she repeated, causing all of them to look at her funny as she threw the paper and ran out of the cave. Rainbow picked up the paper and uncrumpled it to finish reading the paper while Twilight ran as fast as she could to Ponyville.

"When there are no ponies in it."

/V\

Ten minutes earlier.

'This has probably been the smartest thing I've done since I got here,' Ryan thought to himself as he slipped into the bakery, looking around quickly to make sure that he was the only person...pony in the building. He had gone through two buildings already with no one in them, but they had nothing of value to him. But he figured that the bakery would have at least something, hence why he was in there now. He first crept up the stairs and slightly opened the door, looking inside to see a pair of ponies sleeping in their beds. While he was a bit surprised that not all of the ponies came after him, as long as he remained quiet they wouldn't wake up.

'At least I hope that happens,' he thought to himself as he took his backpack off of his back and placed it gently on the center table in the kitchen before he slowly opened one of the drawers. He found nothing of interest as he looked through that one and thought his luck would continue as the others provided the same, but then his luck turned around when he found a very large knife inside one of the drawers. 'This is probably for large cakes or pies,' he thought as he slipped the knife inside one of the pockets of his bag. 'Hope they don't miss it too much.'

He continued his search through the rooms, but he kept a wary eye on the clock on the other side of the room. The ponies could be back at any time and he knew they would catch him if he was still here. He also grabbed a candle, figuring that a secondary light source wouldn't hurt. He finished taking the last of the food that he needed and was taking one last look through a cabinet when he heard a sound.

"Gah." Ryan spun around and pulled out his stun baton, looking around the room as the electricity crackled along it. His eyes scanned the room while looking for the source of the sound, but he couldn't see anything that might have caused it. He took another look at the clock and figured that he had pushed his luck enough, so he put the baton next to the knife and hefted the bag onto his back.

'Heavier than I remember, really loaded up this time.' He slipped out the back window and slowly closed it behind him, keeping to the shadows as he slipped through the town. Despite there barely being any ponies, he still worried about being spotted. Some would call it paranoia, but he called it paranoia that would keep him alive. He didn't leave the shadows until he reached the edge of town and even then he took the long way back to the forest. 'And I good thing I did, she looks pissed. Wonder if she got my note?' he thought as from the safety of a tree he saw Twilight racing back towards the town. He smirked at the sight before he turned and headed into the forest, the castle being his destination.

'I probably should check in with Zecora, but I am far too tired,' he thought as he jumped from tree to tree, doing much better than he had a few months ago. 'Plus, she'd probably want to train me in some bullshit like fighting when I'm exhausted. Every time she teaches me something new I can feel a bit of me die inside.' He sipped through the forest while on alert, afraid that a pony might have stayed behind to see if they could find him. But the rest of the journey back to the castle was uneventful and as he crossed the bridge he allowed himself to relax, walking into the ruined castle with a bit of peace in his heart.

"Home sweet home," he said aloud as he headed for his room, moving the wall and walking down the corridor to his room. He took off his backpack and set it on the table, opening the guide and writing some new information in it.

Name: Lyra.

Species: Unicorn.

Sex: Female.

Age: 18-22.

Bio:

A unicorn who got caught in a web and had to be freed. She knows a good deal about humans and seems to be friendly for the most part, though it was fairly easy to convince her to be quiet about my presences. I have a bad feeling that I'm going to be seeing more of her, whether I want to or not.

Personal Opinion:

She's obsessive, very obsessive.

Threat Level: Low.

He closed the book as he wrote this and sat down against the wall, figuring that he could empty his backpack later. He closed his eyes and thought back a bit to his world and his friend.

TOT

"You're crazy," was all Ryan could say to Chris when he heard what the guy was building in a school funded lab. "A portal to another world? You really think, that despite how insanely stupid that sounds, that you can build one of these in the lab of a school?"

"Hey, I'm getting fairly close," Chris said with indignation, but then went back to working on the machine. "Most of my calculations are correct and I've gotten really close to having all the materials that I need. As soon as I have them all, I will be able to create a portal that will take me as far away from here as possible." Ryan snickered at the idea, but he had no idea what else this material could be used for. Then again, he wasn't a scientist.

"Care to tell me why you want to leave the comfort of your own home and get whisked away to Narnia?" Ryan asked as Chris ran over to another part of the room and began to work on something. "Because last time I checked, interdimensional transportation isn't exactly the safest career option."

"I want to see what lies beyond this realm," Chris said with a smile as he looked off into the distance, losing himself in his memories for a minute. "Can you think of it, worlds beyond anything that we have seen, creatures that the human mind can't even imagine? Doesn’t it sound like an amazing ride?"

"I prefer reality, where I can know what's going to happen and not get ripped apart by a lion or witch," Ryan said with a shake of his head. "If you manage to get that thing to work then more power to you, but I think I'd rather stay here and deal with this world before heading off to any others."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Chris said with a laugh, before a more somber look appeared on his face. "Not to mention, I'm not really sure how safe my own home is anymore. You've heard about how the talks with China have been going right?"

"Of course I have. It's all gone to-"

"Gah!"

TOT

Ryan's eyes snapped open as he heard the sound and he immediately shot to his feet, eyes scanning the room for the sound. But he didn't need his ears as his eyes were fully capable of seeing that something was moving around in his backpack. He slowly raised the stun baton and advanced towards the bag, gently unzipping it before throwing it back and preparing to strike, only to be stopped dead in his tracks by what he saw.

"Goo?" the little unicorn with the carrot colored mane asked as it looked up at him, it's only focus on the shining baton and it reached for it with awe filled eyes. But whereas the baton was the only thing the baby cared about, there was only one thought going through Ryan's mind as he realized what this would do to his relationship with the ponies. And just like every terrible thought that crossed his mind, he said it out loud.

"Ah fuck."

Escape From The Colorful Ponies

"Well if they didn't hate me before, they'll be after my head now," Ryan muttered as he bounced the baby pony on his knee, the little one giggling as he tried to figure out what to do next. 'It's too late to try and go back to drop her off and I'm not even sure they'll let me get close enough to do so if I try again now.' The baby let out a burp and floated off of his knee, Ryan looking at it in shock as it floated up to the ceiling and giggled down at him as he shook his head.

"I should probably take you to Zecora," he muttered as he picked her up and placed her into the backpack, sighing slightly as he looked at most of his supplies resting on the table. It would be too dangerous to keep them in there with the baby, so he was going into the woods with only his baton and the eggs that Zecora had given him. He arranged the baby so that her head and front two hooves poked out of the back as he left the castle, the baby giggling as he moved through the forest, the night just beginning. He had barely been in the forest at night, but it felt more dangerous than it did during the day. He could see eyes watching him and the child from the shadows, unnerving him a bit as he headed to the zebra. He made it there with no interruptions, but he was aware that he was being watched the entire time.

"I swear it is too late for this crap," Zecora grumbled as she opened the door as he knocked, looking at him with an annoyed look before she saw the baby that was in the backpack. "Tell me now what are you doing with that?"

"It's a story and one I really don't feel like telling out in the forest," Ryan said as he looked behind him, Zecora nodding and moving so the two could come inside. Ryan took off the backpack and gently rested it on the table, allowing the baby to crawl out and look around the room, Zecora giving her something to entertain herself with while she talked to the human. "So, when the ponies "found" where I was staying, they decided to create a giant mob to get rid of me, it worked out great, and while they were doing that I took the time they weren't in Ponyville to go through the houses and...Borrow some more supplies." Zecora raised an eyebrow at the borrowed line, but she said nothing to interrupt him. "So I made my final stop in the bakery and grabbed some food along with a knife before I heard a sound, though when I turned to see what it was no one was there."

"Yet it is now obvious who snuck or teleported into your bag," Zecora said as she patted Pumpkin on the head. "So things for you are getting bad."

"That's what I was thinking they’ve got to notice that she's gone by now and it's likely that they'll kill me if they find me," Ryan said with a sigh as he sat back in his chair, looking at the ceiling with a frown. "Ugh and I was hoping that they'd just forget about me and let me fade into oblivion, but now they're going to hunt me down."

"They are not as evil as you believe, but they only know you as a creature from Everfree," Zecora said as she looked down at Pumpkin, who was trying to get to her staff on the table. "If getting caught bothers you to no end, how about I drop her off in Ponyville instead? I can say that I took her after I beat you, which judging from your bruises would be true." Ryan thought about it for a few minutes, but he shook his head at the idea.

"No, if you do that they might figure out that you've been helping me," he said to her as he looked outside at the rising moon. "You've helped me out far too often for me to ask you to do this. Besides, this would be something that I think you would consider good training." Zecora smiled as he said that before he stood up and sat against a wall, closing his eyes as he began to doze off. "Wake me in an hour or so and then I'll get the pony back to her home." He began to softly snore after he said this, leaving Zecora to sing the little pony to sleep before she looked out towards the town.

{}{}

Ryan narrowed his eyes as he looked at the town from the edge of the forest, seeing that there were only a few lights on in the town. That at least told him that he wouldn't have to deal with the entire town this time and while he expected the parents of the filly to be up due to worry, he hoped that he could get her back and leave before they noticed him.

'If not, I get to tell God that I died by colorful ponies,' Ryan thought to himself with a shake of his head, focusing back on the task at hand. He waited another minute to see if any more lights came on before he moved from his cover, silently moving across the field towards the town and when he reached the town he immediately stuck to the shadows. As he silently moved through the streets, he noticed that there were guards in the town now, though there weren't that many it still put him on edge.

'I should probably thank Zecora for putting Pumpkin as she called her to sleep, I hate to think how shitty this would go if I had an awake baby on my back while doing this,' he thought as he slipped past a guard and moved closer to the bakery, seeing that he had predicted right about the parents as the lights were still on. He waited until he guard closest to him went around a corner before he moved, silently running to the front door. He then slipped his backpack off and gently took out Pumpkin, the plan being to leave her on the door step, knock, then run like hell. He had placed her down and was about to knock when he heard voices talking.

'I really should leave' he thought to himself before placing an ear to the door to hear what they were saying.

"...But she's our baby! We just can't sit here while she's out there in the claws of...whatever the shadow is!" he heard one of them say, figuring that it was the father by his tone and voice.

"Don't worry, I promise that we'll get her back," another voice said, but this one he recognized as the unicorn from the library.

"Then make sure that you save the shadow for me, because I'm going to tear him apart when I get my hooves on him!" The mother.

"How do ya even know where to begin looking?" a pony with a southern accent asked and he figured this was Applejack.

"I've found a footprint every once in a while, but I've noticed that it never seems to be far from the edge of the forest," Twilight said to her friends, Ryan beginning to worry about his safety. "And while I may not know where it lives, I have figured a few locations that might work. The field, the old castle or even the abandoned village might be a few places that could be housing him." Ryan could feel himself slightly beginning to sweat and he realized that he might have underestimated their thinking ability. "Yes Pinkie, you have a question?" he heard Twilight ask.

"I'm just wondering why you're talking about finding his home when he's right outside?"

"Ah fuck," Ryan said before he turned around and sprinted as fast as he could, almost to the houses across the streets before he heard the door get torn off its hinges and the exclamation of the mother as she saw her child. He chanced a glance behind him to see that while the mother and child may have reunited, the ponies were now chasing after him with the rainbow one he choked out flying at him with speeds he didn't think possible.

"Come here you!" she yelled as he reached inside of his bag and pulled out one of the smoke bombs that Zecora had given him, throwing it at his feet to create a massive cloud of smoke. Rainbow flew right through the smoke and slammed into a building, but she was up a few seconds while she looked around for the human.

"He went this way!" Pinkie yelled as she hopped towards a section of the town. Ryan was running as fast as he could, not caring in the least if he ran past guards on the way there. He knew that ponies were faster than him and that the flying ones could probably catch him in seconds, so he'd have to use his only advantage. His trickery. He had just turned a corner when a bolt of magic flew by his head and he saw Twilight running towards him.

"Halt!" she yelled as she ran after him, but he spun on a dime and wall kicked up to the top of a building, jumping from rooftop to rooftop as Twilight tried to follow him on hoof. What bothered him more than the ponies chasing him was all the lights coming on in the houses and he knew that if all the ponies came out he was screwed.

'Need...to make an escape,' he thought before he dove off the roof and rolled as he landed on the ground, spotting a window and opening it to climb inside. He closed it behind him and waited in the darkness, hearing Twilight and the others run past. He thought for a minute that he had lost them when he heard Pinkie say that they had passed him. 'Is that damn pony a psychic?' he asked himself as he threw another smoke pellet out the window when he heard them get close, escaping through the front door while the ponies tried to clear the smoke. 'I can't keep this up much longer. I need to think of a way to get rid of them all at once,' he thought as he saw Twilight create some kind of barrier to push through the smoke. He reached into his pocket to see that he had only two eggs left, which meant he had maybe one last chance.

"Will you slow down!?" Rainbow yelled as she flew at him at full speeds. Ryan ducked and rolled to avoid her attack, but then he saw his shield go up to deflect whatever kind of magic Twilight was trying to use. He heard her gasp in disbelief and the momentary distraction gave him a moment to think. He saw that he was almost to the forest, but knew that they would continue to follow him in there. He needed to at least get some distance before they could get inside. So he did what any sane person would do. He stopped running and turned to face the ponies.

"So, you've finally decided to stop?" Twilight asked him as she and the other five stopped beside her, although Fluttershy and Rarity stayed further back he noticed. "Since you obviously have no place left to run to, how about I ask you some questions? Like why did you foal nap a filly only to return her later that day?" Ryan said nothing in reply, but he placed his hands in his pockets as he waited for the right moment to move.

"Okay, so you don't like that one? How about who are you, what are you doing here and why have you stolen from us?" Twilight asked, walking slightly ahead of the others. "Because what you have done is not only against the law, but has also endangered many other lives with your actions. I know that you are an intelligent creature and are capable of understanding what I am saying so I ask that you at once-"

"Shut the hell up," Ryan said, smiling the moment their eyes went wide before he whipped out the lightning bug egg and stinkbug egg and threw them both at the ponies hooves as he covered his eyes. The ponies both shielded their eyes and began to gag as the twin eggs went off at the same time, leaving them both unable to see or think straight due to the smell. It took them a few minutes before they were able to see again and when they could they found the human long gone.

"Curses! We lost him again!" Twilight yelled, but Pinkie ran by her and waved for the others to follow her.

"Come on girls, my Pinkie sense is telling me he went this way!" she yelled, the others congratulating her as they followed her into the forest. To their shock however they found that their run took them to Zecora's hut, where the zebra answered sleepily when they knocked at the door.

"Why am I bothered at this time of night? Could this not wait till tomorrow Twilight?" Zecora asked the ponies, but Twilight quickly explained to her what had happened. "I have seen no dangerous monster come by. And no Pinkie, I do not lie."

"Can we at least check your place? To be safe?" Twilight asked. Zecora thought about it for a moment before she moved to the side and allowed the ponies inside. "Now Pinkie, are you certain that your Pinkie sense felt him come this way?" Twilight asked her friend as she looked under a table.

"Well, I've never used Pinkie sense to chase a human, so it might be a bit off," Pinkie muttered as she looked inside the cauldron to see a murky brown stew. "But I thought for sure he went this way." Applejack opened the closet to find only some weird voodoo stuff and she shook her head at Twilight, who sighed before turning to the zebra.

"We're sorry to bother you Zecora, but we need to catch this creature," Twilight said as her and the other ponies left the hut. "Let us know if you see anything weird." Zecora nodded and waited a moment before she looked to the cauldron.

"They are gone, you can come out." Ryan burst through the murky stew and hung over the side of the cauldron, breathing heavily as he looked up at her with both surprise and rage in his eyes. "Now kindly get out of my breakfast you lout." Ryan pulled himself over the edge and collapsed to the floor, Zecora walking over him as she looked inside the cauldron. "It seems some jerk has ruined my stew. Now what should I do for my brew?"

"Start by adding more flavor, that shit sucked," Ryan panted as he pushed himself back up, looking down at his soaking clothes. "Though I got to admit, that was a much better hiding place than the closet. You knew they would look there, didn't you?" Zecora smiled as she reached under a hidden floorboard and pulled out his backpack, which she then tossed to him as he got up.

"I know many things, yet I do not know the pain you bring. I have knowledge of many things yet to come, yet I do not know what you have done. You hate yourself for some reason being, but whatever it is I am not seeing."

"Care to tell me how you know so much about me?" Ryan asked her.

"Only if you reveal the cause of your dread, otherwise I'm going back to bed," she said sleepily and Ryan took the hint.

"Thanks for saving my ass back there, I don't know if I could have gotten out of it without your help," Ryan said to her as he headed for the door, the zebra nodding before she blew out her candles. He had to move by the light of the moon, but it was enough so that he could find his way back to the castle, though he was constantly on guard in case Twilight did try to seek him out there. Once he had arrived back at the castle, (with no Twilight to his thanks) he picked up his guide and went to light the candle on his desk...before he felt a cold sensation wash over him and he moved his hand away from the stick.

'There's plenty of moon light, I don't need the candle,' he thought as he added to the Elements of Harmony pages, adding the bits about Pinkie's sense and how Rainbow was so damn fast. 'Yet I have the ominous feeling that my life is going to get harder from now on. Guess I shouldn't complain though, it's better than being dead...right? Ha...I should be dead, I shouldn't have survived. I don't deserve it.'

The Fire Still Burns

Ryan had to stay in hiding for a few days after the events of Ponyville since Twilight was on a warpath to find him now. He constantly had to look over his shoulder when he was moving and once she had almost caught him when he was filling up his water bottle. The only reason he got away was because he had headed into the deepest part of the forest, where she didn't dare follow. Unfortunately for him, he didn't know the layout there as well and the ground gave out under him as he fell into an underground cave system. A vine grabbed his leg and prevented him from falling to his death, but he knew that it had been broken.

'And that is why I find you like this?' the silver mare asked him as he hung upside down, gritting his teeth as he tried to cut through the vines with his knife. 'I must admit that you have a good deal of luck, more so than most others I have met.'

"Oh yeah, I'm really lucky," Ryan growled as he missed a swipe with his knife and nicked his leg, causing him to swear as the silver mare shook her head at his antics. She began to glow as she healed his leg wounds (both of them) before turning her magic to the vine, causing it to recede and drop him to the ground at the same time. He growled as he got up, but he looked down at his leg and moved it around. "Thanks for healing me, but now I need to find out how the hell I get out of here."

'Then allow me to accompany you, for it seems that anything you do ends up with you in pain,' she said, Ryan frowning at her before moving deeper into the cave system. The silver mare followed him inside and while at first he thought that he could use her as a light source, he found while she was shown she gave off no light.

"So why the hell don't you create shadows?" Ryan asked her as he held his hand next to her but didn't see his shadow on the wall. "You give off light but you don't create shadows."

'I...do not know myself,' she said with a shake of her head as she lifted a hoof to look at it, Ryan placing his hand on the wall to feel what felt like bricks. 'I myself am not one hundred percent certain what I can do yet. These powers are still...strange to me.'

"Heh, some god you are," Ryan muttered as he felt his way along the wall, turning on his stun baton to light the way for the both of them. The silver mare laughed at his statement, which caused him to turn around to look at her. "Did I say something funny or are you just nuts?"

'I am no god, trust me on that one,' she said as she followed along besides him, Ryan looking for any kind of exit in this hallway while the silver mare spoke. 'I have met a god and my power now is nothing compared to the power he has...I do not know why I am saying this to you though, you are not even one of the champions. I should be assisting the last one.'

"You still talking crazy?" Ryan asked her as he tried a door handle that he had come across, only to snarl as it refused to budge. He tried kicking it only to fall over holding his leg, the door refusing to budge. "I have no idea what you mean by gods or champions, so unless you want to give me your life story can you start talking sense?" The silver mare blinked twice as she looked at him, wondering how he could call her crazy when some of what he said made little sense. He stopped talking at that point and continued to move, smiling when he saw a light coming from around the corner. "And while I enjoyed this little talk, I need to get out of-" He froze the moment he turned the corner, leaving the silver mare to look at him in confusion.

'Human?' she asked him as she looked into his face, confused to see that he was completely frozen in place. She looked down the hallway only to find that there was nothing there except darkness that was occasionally broken up by torches on the walls. 'Has something happened? I see no reason for you to be acting like this.' Ryan still didn't move and the silver mare frowned at him, before letting out a sigh and looked into his mind for a moment to see what he was seeing. To her surprise she found that all of his focus was on the torches in front of him, more specifically the fire.

'You have a fear of fire?' she asked him with a chuckle. 'You, who have taken on a hydra and a giant serpent with nothing but your wits is afraid of fire?' She said this in a joking tone, but found that he still wasn't responding. She tilted her head at this, figuring that he would have insulted her a bit for that remark, but...nothing. She frowned and cast a gust of wind down the hall, blowing out all of the torches. The moment the fire went out Ryan blinked and looked down at her.

"What are you looking at?" he asked her before continuing on like nothing had happened, intriguing the silver mare. If he had any idea of what just happened, he sure wasn't showing it. "So do you know how to get out of here or am I just going to wander around to till I die of boredom?"

'I suppose that I could teleport us out,' she said, causing Ryan to look back at her with shock.

"You can teleport us?" he asked her, growling when she nodded and placing a hand on his face. "And I suppose you enjoyed just watching me walk around aimlessly?"

'A bit,' the silver mare said with a smile. 'Now take off that artifact and I will remove us from this cavern.' He did so hesitantly and she cast a silver light around them, causing them to vanish from the underground cavern.

:":

"I hate pony magic," Ryan muttered after he was done throwing up into a bush, the silver mare just having finished snickering at him.

'I must admit, you are the first human I have met who has had that kind of reaction to magic,' she said with a smile, but it vanished when he saw Ryan's eyes widen in shock.

"There are more humans here?" he asked her with what sounded like...desperation to her. "Where are they? How many are there?"

'Calm yourself, there are no more human on this world,' she said to him, causing him to glare at her.

"But you just said-"

'I can travel between realities, with many worlds and many outcomes,' she said to cut him off. 'Those are the worlds that I have met the other humans, not this one. The only reason I am here at all is because you are so horribly lost without somepony to help you.' Ryan opened his mouth to answer, but then he remembered just how many times Zecora had saved him. Hell, even Derpy had saved him a while ago.

"So what are you then if you're not a god, some kind of interdimensional cop helping those in need?" he asked her, surprised when he only got silence as her answer. "Or are you some kind of villain that is collecting people to use in an evil plan? Just because you ponies don't look evil doesn't mean you can't be, Zecora's a great example of that," he grumbled.

'No, I am just a concerned pony trying to save her world,' she said before turning her head to the side. 'Come, I will escort you back to Zecora.' Ryan wanted to know more, but she said nothing else as they walked through the forest. The two came to a stop outside of Zecora's hut, where she came out to greet Ryan once he had knocked.

"Hello my friend," she said as she saw him. "Still haven't met your end?" Ryan growled at the usual greeting he got when he returned from one of her errands, but before he could answer he saw the silver mare turn to leave. He opened his mouth to say something, but she shook her head.

'Do not say anything, as I am cloaked from all who I wish not to see me. Zecora cannot see me and you would look like a crazy person if she saw you talking to nothing,' the silver mare said with a chuckle.

"Oh quite contraire my friend of silver light. You have not escaped my sight," Zecora said with a wicked smile. Ryan looked at her with a raised eyebrow, but that was nothing compared to the reaction that the silver mare had.

'How?' she whispered, Ryan figuring that there would be horror beneath her hood if he could see her face.

"I have trained myself to see the unseen. Now won't you both please come in for some tea?" Zecora asked as she turned to leave, the silver mare remaining dumbstruck in place.

'How could she do that? Not even Black Adam can see through my guise,' she whispered to herself. Ryan turned his head at what she said, wondering if he had heard that name before. He shrugged it off and followed Zecora inside, the silver mare hesitantly doing so only after a few moments of remaining in place. 'It should not be possible, not with the creation magic that flows through me. How?' Zecora sat the silver mare down and poured her some tea, but when she looked at Ryan another one of her wicked smiles was on her face.

"Training time?" Ryan asked with masked fear.

"Training time," Zecora said, Ryan doing his best not to break out into tears as she lead him out to the back. The silver mare levitated her tea and followed to the two outside, her eyes locked onto the zebra the entire time as she slammed her staff into the tree, vines falling down when she did so.

"Please tell me we are not doing tree battles," Ryan whispered.

"Oh don't be a coward and flee. Now get your ass in that tree," Zecora said with a laugh as she shot up the vines and rested on one hoof on the branch above them. Ryan, after taking a moment to steady himself, climbed up after her, balancing on the tree fairly well. "Now then, the key here is to balance. Can you do that without your usual defiance?"

"Yeah, I can do it," Ryan grumbled as he got up, drawing his stun baton and pointing it at the zebra. "So I take it that you're just going to forget all of the telling me what to do and instead kick my ass until I get your lesson?"

"See, you can learn. And you may take the first turn." Ryan cursed his luck as he looked at a vine next to him that lead to her tree and he quickly grabbed it, using the vine to swing towards her. She shook her head at him and went to chop the vine when he pulled out one of the smoke pellets and tossed it onto her branch, blinding the zebra.

"That was not part of the fight! How cheap of you to take my sight," Zecora said as she tried to clear the smoke from her eyes.

"Screw you, I'll take whatever advantage I can get!" Ryan yelled as he swung back around and let go of the vine, heading right towards Zecora. He saw her smile too late to stop and could only watch as she spun around and kicked him below the belt, causing him to miss his branch and collapse to the ground below. "So will you continue fight unfairly? Or am I going to have to get scary?" she asked with a grin.

"Not...a rhyme," he wheezed as he picked himself up, climbing back up onto the branch and trying to figure out another attack pattern. He placed a hand on the trunk and realized that the tree he was on had to be really old. He looked down at the stun baton and realized that Zecora's tree looked as old as his. With a smile, he figured out what to do. 'Let's see that zebra burn.' He leapt from tree to tree as he got close to her, smiling when he noticed that Zecora was shielding her eyes a bit more in case he tried that trick again.

"Burn!" he yelled as he struck the branch she was standing on, nearly snapping it off as it erupted into flames from the electricity. Zecora saw the fire and leapt off the collapsing branch, rolling onto the ground before turning towards Ryan while preparing herself to fight him...only to see that he was lying under the branch, looking up at the flames with the same petrified look on his face as when she had lit the fire.

'He truly does not know that he is afraid,' she thought to herself before she saw that the branch was about to fall onto him. 'But that means little if he doesn't live another day!' She ran forward as she said this and dove towards him, kicking the flaming branch into a pool of water before landing in front of Ryan, watching as his expression returned to normal.

"What happened?" he asked her as he looked down at the ground. "Did you make me black out again, because eventually the brain damage is going to become a problem?"

"We are done for today, now please go away," she said in a very serious tone, raising a hoof to silence Ryan when he tried to ask her a question. He looked at her with a shake of his head before he walked over to the silver mare, who had finished her tea despite not needing to drink.

"Well she's gone crazy, so I expect to be dead by the end of the week," he said to the silver mare, who still continued to look at Zecora with a scared stare on her face. "Are you still upset about what happened back there? Trust me, that damned zebra can probably see into the future if she wanted to, don't take it so hard."

'But not even the most powerful beings could see me when I did not wish to be,' the silver mare said quietly as she stood up, shaking her head as Ryan shrugged and headed back to the castle. The silver mare then walked over to Zecora, who was making a list of sorts. 'Care to tell me how you can see me or why you are so powerful?' Zecora didn't answer for a moment before she looked at the mare and raised an eyebrow.

"I will tell you how I see, but only if you do something for me," Zecora said as she looked at Ryan, who had just vanished into the forest. "That man carries with him a burden that he will not explain, but even with his carefree attitude I can tell it causes him pain. If you can find why he is so pained, then as for how I can see you I will explain." The silver mare nodded and vanished into nothingness, leaving Zecora to finish her list.

:":

Ryan let out a sigh as he finished the page for the silver mare, having a great deal to write about her despite to her mysterious nature. He looked out the window at the rising moon and wondered to himself why Zecora had called off the training early. He placed a hand on the back of his head to make sure that there was no wound she wasn't telling him about before shrugging and rested against the wall.

'I wonder why she could see the silver mare since that pony was so certain that she couldn't be seen?' Ryan thought to himself before shrugging and closing his eyes. 'Whatever, I can ask her if she's still here in the morning.' He fell asleep a few minutes later, so he never noticed the silver mist that went inside of his mind to see what scared him so.

Buried Deep

Ryan had spent the next week just wandering around the forest and making some more notes in the guide, since it seemed that Zecora was far too busy with something to teach him at the moment. He wondered what had set her off like that since she barely reacted to him doing something stupid, although that silver mare might have played a part in it. He didn't skip on his training and he practiced what she had shown him, though that only helped a bit.

'I can't believe though just how boring it is without that zebra kicking me around,' he thought to himself as he rested against the wall of his room, looking out the window at the starry sky above him. 'Maybe I should go make nice with those ponies, since according to Zecora they are all supposedly nice...no, you know better than that, you know what humans like you are capable of. You deserve to be alone for what you did.'

'Yet I was not responsible,' another part of his brain said, but he quickly shunned it before it could continue. Memories of the past began to flow to the surface of his mind, but he took up a meditative state and closed his eyes, emptying his mind until there was nothing left. He opened his eyes again sometime later and sighed, standing up to head out when he felt something weird. 'Is that a draft? But it's not coming from the door,' he thought as he held his hand out, surprised when he followed the draft back to a small, but very straight, crack in the ground. He narrowed his eyes at it before he began to try and pry it open with his fingers, his efforts rewarded when he pulled back a trap door that revealed a ladder that went down into nothingness.

"Sure, you're already in a hidden room, so why shouldn't there be a hidden room in a hidden room?" he asked himself before he grabbed his backpack and climbed down the hole, using the baton as a light. The ladder was a long one, though his biggest surprise came when he saw another source of light down below him. "Shining crystals? I should take one or two of these," he muttered when he saw strange crystals giving off light in a cavern. He grabbed a few and began to walk around, finding a stone bridge that took him over a hidden waterfall. "Okay, the hidden room within a hidden room I was fine with, but why is there a desk down here?"

He walked over to the desk as he said this, wondering who would have left a perfectly good desk like this just lying under a castle. On the top of the desk lay a single book, but before he looked at that he opened one of the drawers and found two very interesting items.

"A pistol?" he asked in confusion as he pulled out a very old looking pistol, but despite its age there was no rust on it. He pulled out the clip to see there were about five shots left. The design looked weird to him, but he wasn't going to pass it up because of that. He placed it in his bag before looking at the other item, a photograph. "A human photograph," he muttered to himself as he looked at the picture of a man with his wife and child. "And they were in Japan if the background is correct. How the hell did the ponies get this?" If there was any place he was going to get answers, it was going to be the book. He placed the picture beside it and opened it up, surprised to see that there were only a few entries.

May 20th,

The strangest and most saddening event happened today. A bipedal creature of unknown origin appeared in the center of Canterlot and began to attack ponies with an unknown weapon. The princess was able to deal with it fairly easy, the projectile weapon stopped by her shields, but then the creature did the unthinkable when it took its own life when the princesses went to capture it. They have been trying to calm the masses down while I have been placed in charge of examining the creature’s weapons.

May 24,

What strange weapons this creature has. Aside from a blade I do not recognize any of them. The long projectile weapon has shown itself to be able to punch through armor like nothing and a small sphere actually killed two of the ponies that were testing it in a massive explosion. I have decided that these weapons are far too dangerous to try and mass produce or even let the public know they exist and Celestia agrees with me. I will keep them locked away in the vault until we know what to do with them.

May 25,

The creature had a picture on it and I am saddened to say that it looks like it had a family. While it did kill at least ten ponies before it died, I cannot say that I blame it. I myself have to ask what I would do if I woke up in a strange land if I had been in the middle of a war. I should mention that, we found patches and other items indicated that this creature was part of a military. I will try to find out more about the creature.

December 30,

Humans. That is what they are called. And apparently this is not the first one to show up in Equestria. Many years before, back when Celestia and Luna were still sisters, a human in a suit of armor appeared in our land. Unlike this one however, he died when he fought a dragon that had been attacking a town of ponies. The princesses never got to meet him, but they found out that he was called a knight. Yet I have also found out that any information on humans is to be given to the princess and then it is never to be spoken of. It makes me wonder how many other incidents has she shushed up? But what can I do, now that I have been asked to do the same? All I can do is leave this in a place that the princess will not find it and return home. Maybe somepony can make more use of it than me.

Draco Heartstrings.

Ryan didn't know what to think as he looked down at the book, but after a while he closed it and placed it in his bag as well, wondering if he should give it to Lyra. He then picked up the picture and looked down at it again, now knowing what era this was from and that it belonged to a soldier that was probably MIA.

"But it doesn't matter," he said with sudden rage filling up his heart as he looked down at it, tears forming in his eyes. "Your sacrifice was for nothing. All of theirs was." It took him a few minutes to calm down after that thought, though when he did he did his best to forget that it ever happened. Ryan then stood up and walked tow the ladder, closing the trapdoor behind him when he left. He looked out at the night sky and wondered if he should risk getting this to Lyra.

"What the hell? Nighttime is probably the only time that I'm going to get to do this," he muttered before he left the castle. Just like he predicted, he reached the town with little effort although he did have to knock out a guard before he was safe. He had just reached the center of town when he realized that he had no idea where Lyra lived. He smacked his forehead for being an idiot before he turned to leave, only to see the shadows of an alicorn advancing towards him. He slipped to the shadows as fast as he could, barely making it in time to see the alicorn walk into the streets. She was a midnight blue color with a long dark mane, but what made him nervous was that she was looking around, probably for him.

"We know that you are out here human," she said to the darkness. "Do not believe that you can hide from us. We have no intention to hurt you, despite the minimal harm that you caused our subjects. Just come with me peacefully to Canterlot and I promise you will not be harmed." She waited for a moment before sighing, her horn beginning to glow as she began to illuminate the area, when a smoke pellet smacked her in the side of her face and caused her to start coughing. When she could see again, she could see the human running far off, causing Luna to smile as she spread her wings.

"Thank you human, I thought tonight was going to be boring," she said as she took to the skies, able to catch up with the human in almost no time. Ryan saw this when he looked back to see where she was and he barely had time to roll out of the way as she fired a spell at him. Despite his armband protecting him, he didn't want to push his luck.

"You cannot escape us human, we know that you are not fast enough to outrun us, the other ones were not," Luna said with a laugh as she caused the ground to raise up from under him, Ryan barely able to escape by kicking off the side of a building and rolling across a rooftop before he ran towards a balcony.

'What is with these ponies and trying to blast me or beat me senseless?' he asked himself as he spied an open window and dove into it, rolling across the floor and coming face to face with Lyra.

"Ryan?" she asked him before he reached inside his bag and pulled out the book.

"Here this is for you no time to talk running for my life bye!" he said in one breath as he threw the book at her before diving out another, leaving the confused unicorn to look at the book before looking at where he had left. Ryan sprinted down the street while Luna chased after him, laughing all the while as she fired spells around him.

"Come now human, surely you must realize that you cannot escape!" Luna said with a chuckle as she aimed her horn at him. "I am simply too fast for-" Her words were cut off as she saw a silver pony in the street, which caused her to pause as she felt the tremendous power overwhelm her. "Who are-?"

'I am sorry my friend,' the silver mare said before a flash of light went off, blinding Luna and causing her to come to a stop. When she opened her eyes again, she found that both the human and the mare were gone.

"It seems that the human has a few allies here, but I have never seen nor felt a pony like that before," Luna said with a shake of her head as she opened her wings and flew back to Canterlot. "Maybe we can set up a little trap for him at our upcoming event...when we finally get to see his home."

//; ;\\

"Thanks for the save, but why are you still here?" Ryan asked the silver mare as the two of them headed back to Zecora's hut the following day. "I mean, you said something about champions and I'm not one of them, so shouldn't you be helping them out instead of me?"

'I will need their help yes, but they cannot obtain the power they need if I am there guiding them all the time,' the silver mare responded as they reached the hut. 'But you are in such desperate need of help that I am surprised that you are not dead yet.' Ryan grumbled at what she said as he went to open the door. 'Chris was a good friend. You are lucky to have known him.'

"Yeah? Me being his friend didn't really work out for him, did it?" Ryan snarled back before he kicked open the door and walked inside, though to his shock he found that the zebra wasn't there. "Great, the one time I actually want to meet with her and she's nowhere to be found. Not mention I've got this pony to keep me company until she gets back. Some days I really hate being here."

'I do not see what you have to complain about, you are alive,' the silver mare said, but that only riled up Ryan even further.

"Yeah? Well maybe I shouldn't be. Maybe I should be like the rest of my friends!" he roared at her, but this time the mare was not surprised by his sudden mood change. "And I'm not particularly fond of you jumping around in my head and looking through my memories! Especially like the ones that I keep locked up for a reason!"

'Yet keeping those memories locked up is why you do not know that you have a horrible fear of fire,' the silver mare retorted, Ryan sneering at her with disbelief. 'What happened to you traumatized you more than you could imagine, but due to your own guilt you do not allow yourself to think about what has happened and instead you act like a jerk.'

"News for you shiny, I am a jerk!" Ryan said as he growled at her. "I constantly berate you and the ponies and in case you haven't noticed I'm not exactly the nicest of guys!"

'You are right there; I have met better than you.'

"See, even you admit it. I shouldn't be here," he said with a sigh, the rage leaving him as the sorrow returned. "I should have burned with the rest of them."

'Is that why you hide behind this false face? You pretend that you care about nothing and that you are always annoyed, yet I have seen the true you and that person is guilt ridden despite having no reason to be,' the silver mare said in an angry tone of her own, her forming shimmering as she argued back. 'You have an incredible gift of luck Ryan. Some of the things you have been through would have killed a regular pony or human yet you survived. There is a reason you are alive and that is because your friend believed that you had a reason to live!'

"And look what it cost him," Ryan said with scorn as he turned away, memories filling up his mind. "I took his dream, what he spent all those hours working towards. And it's my fault he's gone!"

'Do you think that you are the only one who has suffered loss?' the silver mare said with rage. 'I am the reason my sister is dead and I am the reason that my mother is walking down a dark path with only destruction at the end! Yet I bear my pain and try to do something about it! I blame myself but I also know that there is a reason I am still alive and that reason is to save my world!'

"Then you are a stronger person...pony than me," Ryan said with a smirk as he rested against Zecora's wall. "Because I still blame myself. Chris should be here, not me."

"And yet here you are." The two turned to see Zecora walk into the room, placing a steam cup of something on the table. "Yet with that mentality you will not get far. The time has come to advance your training, but to do so we must remove the pain you have been restraining. Drink the brew in front of you and for my final challenge I will test you." Ryan looked at her with a dumbfounded look, but he eventually grabbed the drink and, after one last glare at the sliver mare, drank the sludge. He gagged once before putting the cup back down on the table, looking at the zebra with raised eyebrows.

"So what was that supposed to do, make me vomit?" he asked her. "Because it sure doesn't seem to be doing anything-" He fell right on his face as he said this and remained silent on the floor, leaving Zecora to finish up what she was doing. The silver mare looked up at her for a moment before she was waved away by Zecora. The mare vanished into the air, leaving the zebra lone to prepare.

Through the Fire and Flames

"It's all just going to hell," Ryan said to Chris as he watched the TV, knowing that everything was about to come crashing down despite the "peace talks" that were going on. Chris said nothing in reply as he was too busy working on the machine, but he did glance up every once in a while to see the television. "I'm surprised it didn't come sooner actually, we've been sitting on these weapons for years. It was bound to happen."

"That's why it's the best time to get out of here," Chris muttered as he continued to work on the machine. Ryan said nothing, but he looked over at the table next to his friend, seeing a backpack laying there with some supplies next to it. "I need batteries for the baton, but other than that there are some supplies there to last a while. All I need now is some more time to complete the machine and then I'll be able to-" His words died as the two of them could hear a sound that shook them both to the bone. It was the sound of a siren. A siren that could only mean one thing.

"Do we run?" Ryan asked with a hint of fear in his voice as he did his best not to panic, but Chris shook his head.

"What would be the point, there'll be nowhere to run once this gets started," Chris said with a smirk as he made some modifications on the machine. "You've seen the movies and generally those have an optimistic approach to how a nuclear holocaust would go. This machine might be the only way out of this mess, provided that it doesn't send us to some place with zombies or like Fallout." He then pushed all of the supplies on the table into the backpack as the sirens got louder and screaming could be heard in the streets, looking up at Ryan as he looked out the window. "You seem awfully calm about this."

"Don't let the mask fool you, I'm panicking on the inside," Ryan said with a lot more fear in his voice. "It's fortunate for me that I have no family or friends to rush into the streets to find or else I wouldn't be here." Chris frowned slightly before he began to enter inputs into his machine, the ground beginning to shake as the giant circle rose off of the ground and stabilized itself when it was completely horizontal. Ryan's eyes went wide as a giant blue spiral of energy appeared in the center of it, showing him what looked like the multiverse.

"Hey Ryan?" Ryan looked over at Chris, who tossed him the backpack before smiling at him. "Just in case we don't make it out of this, I just wanted to tell you something. I know we haven't known each other long, but I'm glad that I met you. You're really the only friend I've had. My parents didn't like me, my family didn't like me. But you're the only one who really...helped me to feel like a person. Thanks for all the good times." Ryan smiled back at him as well before the ground shook again and the sounds of the sirens got a lot louder. "There's no time to waste. Get into the portal."

"Is this tested?" Ryan asked hesitantly as he looked at Chris, who shrugged his shoulders in response. Ryan took in a deep breath and stepped into the vortex, feeling what felt like ice water seeping into every part of his body as he did so. Just when he thought he would be consumed by the vortex, he opened his eyes and saw that he was on the other side, with nothing there. "Chris, there's nothing over here! What's going on?"

"Hold on, I have to set a destination for you," Chris replied, but Ryan also noticed that he was typing with one hand, while the other one was pressed down on a button. Ryan turned around when a green spiral appeared behind him before he looked back at his friend. "I have no idea where this one leads, but it's your only chance right now. Go!" Ryan looked at him with disbelief, planning on running back through the portal and grabbing his friend when he realized that his hand was still on the button.

"You're not coming," Ryan said in a deadpan voice as he realized why his friend hadn't moved. Chris looked up at him with sad eyes and an even sadder smile as he shrugged.

"I needed more time to finish it," he said as he looked down at the machine, but then through the window they both could see a giant mushroom cloud going off in the distance. Chris sighed as he looked back at Ryan, who tried to run back through the portal only to find that he couldn't get through. "Right now the only way it'll stay open is if I hold down this button. And it only responds to my DNA, so I can't put a rock on it or something. That's what I get for being so smart. Sorry I didn't tell you."

"You damned fool!" Ryan yelled as he slammed his fist into portal, tears running down his face as he tried to push against it. "It was your dream to travel the multiverse and see all that the worlds had to offer! You should have let me do this in your place!" Chris sadly looked down as he said this, but then he looked back up at Ryan with a smile.

"Then you'll just have to live for the both of us. But it's like you told me," Chris said as he began to close the portal to his world. "You're a survivor. You take whatever the world can dish and you give it a snarky remark. So I know that you'll survive. For the both of us." Ryan slammed his fist into the portal one last time as a massive flash went off and before the shockwave threw him through the portal he saw one last image that would be burned into his mind forever.

It was of his only friend burning.

\\ //
//; ;\\

Ryan groaned as he slowly felt himself returning to his sense, but as those sense returned he realized that it was infinitely hotter than it should have been and he looked up through bleary eyes to see that he was in the center of a massive circle of fire. His phobia kicked up again and he practically froze in place, but while that happened a creature jumped through the flames, holding a staff with flames burning at both ends of it while it wore a horrifying mask that also spit fire.

"The fuck is that?!" he yelled as he tried to scramble away, but the flames shot up behind him and images of his friend burning flashed through his mind, causing him to cry out with emotional pain as he covered his eyes. The creature leapt through the air and went to strike him with its flaming staff, Ryan just barely getting out of the way. But no matter where he looked he could only see flames and with all the fire he could only see his world burning.

"Why do you resign yourself to fate?" the creature asked as it slowly turned and began to walk towards him, the flaming staff spinning behind her. "Why are you filled with so much internal hate?" Ryan's eyes snapped open as he heard the rhyme and he looked at the creature to see a zebra's lower half.

"Zecora? What are you-?" he tried to ask her but then the flames shot up again and he had to cover his eyes, the images blazing through his mind. With all of the fire around him giving him no place to look, Ryan finally understood why Zecora and the silver mare had said that he had a fear of fire. "What is all of this? Why are you doing this?"

"Your must overcome your fear of the flames," she said as she vanished into the flames, but her voice echoed all around him. "But to do so you must remove your repressed pain. I have seen what has caused you to be so charred, but all of those thoughts you must discard. You did not let this land claim your life despite its many tests, so use that will to win this internally contest."

"I...I don't know if I can," he said in a defeated voice, the images beginning to overpower him once again. "What if I can't?!" He cried out in pain as a flaming blow sent him sprawling across the ground and he shakily pushed himself to his knees to see the masked Zecora standing over him, staff pointed down at him.

"These negatives thoughts and memories you must defy," she said in a deadly voice as she allowed him to get up, before she took a fighting stance that he had never seen her use before. "Because if you don't, you will die." She lunged at him as she said this and unleashed hell itself upon him with her flaming blows. Ryan barely got out his stun baton to deflect a few of the attacks, but he was quickly overwhelmed by both her and the images that flashed through his mind. A devastating blow with her hoof sent Ryan straight to the ground and he realized that her threat was not an empty one. She was fighting to kill.

"You continue to endure this pain, even if it is a lie. But you now need to do what your friend asked you and survive!" she yelled as she threw herself at him again, Ryan rolling out of the way off her attack and kicking her in the back of the leg. Zecora spun around and brought the staff down towards his head, Ryan blocking with the baton before kicking her back. She landed in a handstand and flipped above him, shooting balls of fire from her masks that he barely managed to dodge. "I had thought that all of my training would make you stronger, so why do you allow yourself to continue to suffer? What have you done that causes you so much strife? Why do you believe you should not have your life?"

"Because it should have been me that died!" Ryan roared as he attacked her, tears in his eyes as he fought through the memories and drove his baton at her heart. Zecora blocked it and swept his feet to send him air born, before flipping above him and kicking him back to the dirt. He got up with pain in his eyes as he continued his attack, but Zecora felt no strength behind his blows. "He was the one that wanted to see the multiverse, not me! Yet he allowed himself to die, to lose his dream, so that I could live. I lost my world, my home, my family and my best friend!"

"Chris allowed himself to die so that you would not meet your end!" she yelled back at him and she delivered a devastating blow to his right arm, shattering the bone and causing him to drop his baton as he cried out in pain. "That was him being a truly amazing friend! How is this your fault, I cannot see! Why do you feel so guilty?"

"Because I could have done something," Ryan said weakly as he tried to grab his baton, but Zecora took out his feet again and sent a flaming staff strike to his midsection, the armor stopping his ribs from breaking. "It didn't have to end the way it did. If only I had..."

"What could you have done?" Zecora asked him with scorn in her voice as she looked down at him. "What could you have done against weapons that mimicked the suns? Not one of your race could stop the end, so what could you have done my friend? You have nothing to be guilt or upset about. Are you listening to what I am saying or do I have to shout?"

"But I should have died with them," Ryan said in a weak voice as he fell to his knees in front of the zebra, looking down at the ground with defeat in his eyes. "The only reason I'm alive is because my friend allowed himself to die. But I don't deserve it. I'm not a genius like him or a good person. I should have been the one to die." Zecora looked down at Ryan and could only see defeat in his eyes, so with a shake of her head she lifted her staff over her head.

"I wish that it did not have to come to this, but I never lie," she said with a sad shake of her head when Ryan refused to move. "Prepare yourself human, for now it's time you die." She went to strike with her staff, but as she did time slowed down to barely a crawl and Ryan looked around in confusion.

'Why is this happening?' he asked himself as he looked at the barely moving zebra. 'Why aren't I dead yet?'

'Because you do not live for yourself alone,' a voice in the back of his head said. 'You are the only survivor of the human race. You do not just live for yourself, but for the memory off all those who have died. If you are to die, then who will remember the fallen, who will keep the knowledge of humanity arrive. Who will keep the memory of your friend alive?'

'Should I care? It’s my fault their dead,' he asked himself, only to hear his own voice chuckle.

'Do you truly think you are enough of a threat to be responsible for the destruction of the human race?' he said, laughter echoing through Ryan's mind. 'No, you are nothing in the grand scheme of things. But you have to and are going to live for them, because that's the kind of person you are. You don't know when to quit.'

'Are you trying to imply that I'm someone special?' Ryan asked, only to get more laughter

'No, you are no special one or chosen hero. You are just the only one who survived,' he said with a laugh. 'Now the question is are you going to lie down and die or are you going to live? Are you going to endure the pain and keep going, just like Chris would have wanted?'

'I...I don't know,' he replied. 'I'd have to be crazy to move on.'

'Then do it.' Ryan looked up in surprise, finding a fractured version of him looking down at him. 'Embrace the madness. Let the crazy flow. That's how you'll survive. By being crazier than anyone else. And you had better think quick,' his voice said with a laugh. 'Because that damn zebra is about to knock your brains out.' Time returned to normal as these words were spoken and Ryan looked up to see the staff coming down towards his head. He reached up and grabbed it with his good arm, surprising Zecora enough so that she jumped back.

"What is this, I thought that you had lost the will to fight?" she asked him as he slowly got back up, grabbing the baton with his good arm before looking at her. "So why do I see in your eyes a new light?"

"Because I think I finally get what you were preaching," he said with a menacing laugh that chilled the zebra. "It isn't my fault that my world is gone or that my friend is dead. But that doesn't mean I won't blame myself for feel enraged that Chris had to die, because those feelings will never truly leave. I'd be crazy to say that those feelings would eventually go away," he said with an evil smile as he pointed the baton at her, Zecora noticing that his eyes had changed. "But dammit all, I'm already in a world where nothing makes any goddamn sense! Talking animals, magical fairies; it's a world gone mad! So since I can't beat you crazy sons of bitches, I'll join you in the insanity. So come on you damned zebra, let's do this to the death, but I warn you now. I'm going to survive."

Zecora narrowed her eyes at him, this not being the response she had wanted. She had believed that with enough pushing he could overcome his fears and guilt, but to her it seemed that all she had done was drove him mad. But at the same time, there was a light in his eyes now, a light that told her he had found his strength. Maybe in his insanity would he find peace. It would have to do.

"Good," Zecora said, causing Ryan to look at her in confusion before she slammed her hooves together, extinguishing all the flames around them. The moment the flames were gone, she took note that his eyes went back to the way they were before, only with the light still there. Odd. "You have finally passed my test. You are the first to do so, so consider yourself blessed."

"I must have missed something, weren't we both about to fight to the death?" Ryan asked her as he lowered his arm, Zecora chuckling as she took off her mask. "I thought you were going to kill me?"

"In the state you were in you were already dead," Zecora told him as she extinguished her flaming staff. "You allowed your mind to tear you to shreds. I had to push you to your breaking point to see what you would do. Would you lie down and die or would your stubbornness shine through. Only when your life was on the line would you face the truth and you did exactly what I knew."

"So this was all a test to see if I could let go of my guilt of surviving and find the will to live?" he asked her in disbelief. "You know you could have told me that instead of kicking the shit out of me. And technically I didn't let go of it, I went slightly mad."

"Good enough. And actually, this is a rite of passage from my race, though you are the first outsider to not suffer disgrace," she said as she took off the mask. "It is a test to face your inner self and come back stronger than before. So through the fire and flames you waged your internal war. But during the battle you found the survive and because of that you came out alive."

"Was all the fire necessary, because I think I've got third degree all over," Ryan groaned as he held his arm, the pain beginning to come back now that his adrenaline had worn off.

"The fire was an element you feared, so it was only natural that it appeared," Zecora said as she showed him the mask, which he noticed looked like a snarling zebra. "For the mask I had to be a bit more crafty, but I was fortunate to know of your fear of me."

"You think that I'm afraid of you?" he asked her as he tossed the mask behind him.

"I said I know not think. Now kindly take this drink," she said as she offered him some sort of juice that helped his burns when he drank it. "Now that you have moved past your guilt can the true training begin. But I will warm you now the chances of surviving are slim. Is that a risk you want to take or would rather cower there and shake?"

"It's like I told you Zecora," Ryan said as he threw the drink behind him and smirked at her. "I'm going to survive you and I'm going to survive this world. Because I'm nucking futs."

Who Needs An Invitation?

Ryan had spent the next few weeks training with Zecora and learning all of her more advanced techniques despite the beatings he constantly received while he trained. The training was working though and he found himself able to start to hold his own against Zecora until she got serious and even then he could at least get a few strikes in.

'But there is a problem that I have to face eventually,' he thought to himself one bright afternoon as he sat in a tree and worked on the map of the Everfree forest and the surrounding area. He sighed slightly before looking over to Ponyville, wondering how he should go about doing this. 'I know that eventually I'm going to have to talk to the ponies and at least show them not I'm not too bad a guy. But with my past encounters with them I don't know if they will even give me the chance to talk. Ugh, I should ask Zecora for advice, she's pretty good at dealing with them.'

He hopped out of the tree as he thought this and used a vine to slide to the forest floor, where he began to sprint through the forest with relative ease. Fallen trees, holes in the ground and the wild creatures meant little to him now as he was agile and fast enough to avoid all of them. The hut came into view within ten minutes and he came to a stop outside of it, but when he went to knock the door opened before he could and Zecora walked on out, a number of bags on her back as well as he staff.

"Going somewhere?" he asked her once she had greeted him.

"Into town for some shopping today and there is something I must repay," she said to him as she walked by before motioning a hoof to her hut. "You are free to stay here if you wish, but please do not touch the dish. There is something in it you will not like as it is for a Dragon named Spike." Ryan nodded to tell her that he understood and she walked off with another wave, humming to herself as she walked towards Ponyville.

'It has certainly been an eventful past months that is certain, but of his future that is what I am uncertain,' Zecora thought to herself as she entered the town, waving to all of the ponies that greeted her. 'There is something calming about seeing all of the ponies happy in this town, but I am also glad that Ryan no longer wears a frown. From what the mare told me his life has been one of great pain, so I am happy that I was able to help keep him sane. He has certainly added a new element of adventure to this place and they might be friends if only the ponies would stop giving chase.'

She headed into the marketplace and bought some of her supplies, but when she moved on to the next stop she stopped when she was waved over by a yellow Pegasus that she knew well.

"Hello Fluttershy, lovely day today," Zecora greeted her as she helped Fluttershy with some of her bags, balancing them on both ends of her staff. "What are the bags for, if I may?"

"Oh, nothing too important, just grabbing a number of different foods to place in the Everfree forest," Fluttershy said with a shy smile, causing Zecora to raise an eyebrow.

"Are you trying to feed the beasts that live within or is it another prize you are trying to win?" Zecora asked her, causing Fluttershy to hide behind her mane. "Because there are plenty of creatures in the forest and park or are you looking for the creature that hides in the dark?" Fluttershy could only nod under Zecora's look and the zebra smiled slightly when Fluttershy confirmed her thoughts. "Care to tell me why you seek it out because this is a plan I doubt."

"It's just...after seeing the creature up close I've come to believe that it isn't evil or mean, it's just lost and confused," Fluttershy said as she looked to the forest, getting a snicker out of Zecora at calling Ryan lost and confused. "I know that Twilight's still mad at it for stealing from her and Rainbow hasn't recovered her pride since it beat her, but I truly believe that it's a good creature."

"Perhaps you are right, but if you're wrong that will put you in a terrible plight," Zecora said. "It could be a terrible creature of darkness that likes to hurt. If it is-"

"Then you would have beat it into the dirt," Fluttershy finished for her with a smile. "You always help to keep the more dangerous creatures from getting into the town. Some of the animals I've talked to have told me so. But they've also said that you have talked to the shadow before." Zecora raised an eyebrow at the Pegasus before chuckling.

"We have met and just as you said I beat it good." Fluttershy giggled at the response before looking at the zebra with relief.

"I'm glad you're feeling better. I remember when you caught that disease a year ago and you cut yourself off from us. We were all worried about you."

"Er, yes, I'm glad I'm better as well...wait a moment, traffic at this hour? Ah hell," Zecora said as the two of them reached the center of the town, where a large number of ponies had gathered around a Royal Guard. The crowd was so thick that Fluttershy couldn't get through and Zecora couldn't get though without at least one pony losing some teeth. "Excuse me, but I'd like an explanation if you would," she said to the pony in front of her.

"The guard just came down from Canterlot and said that there's really big news!" one of the ponies said to her in an excited tone, pointing to one of the many posters that had been hung up around the town. Fluttershy looked at the guard with interested eyes while Zecora simply raised an eyebrow as the guard cleared his throat and began to speak.

"Attention to all ponies of Ponyville, tomorrow there will be a very special event at the castle," he said in a loud voice. "As you may be aware, there has been a strange creature running around the forest near to your home and many of you have sent the princesses letters of concern of worry. However, there is no need to fear. The creature is called a human and while it may be crafty, it is of no or little threat to any of you. The princesses would like to say that most any pony would be able to fight it off if they stay calm."

'Maybe a month ago this would be true, but now he would kick the crap out of even you,' Zecora thought to herself with a smirk as the guard kept reading.

"However, after a while of research, the princesses have found the creature’s home world and are going to try to open a momentary portal there." The crowd gasped as he said this and even Zecora raised both eyebrows in shock at the news. "Now this will be nothing more than a viewing portal so that no ponies can get through, but they have decided that it is time that you saw just how normal this creature is. That is all for now, though they recommend any pony that can come do so."

He left the podium he had been speaking on and began to head for the train station, the other ponies dispersing as well while they talked to each other about the human and what this event would be at the castle. Fluttershy tried to get Zecora's attention to see what her reaction was to this news, but the zebra was far too lost in thought to listen to her.

'I am amazed that the princesses are doing this bold a move, since they generally keep hold of this news. The only reason that they would announce this aloud is to draw Ryan into a trap. And if he gets hold of this news I know that he would go there, since he can be such a sap,' she thought to herself before a large smile crossed her face. 'Then perhaps I should be the one to tell him. Then the real fun can begin.' Zecora said her farewells to Fluttershy as she gave her back her bags and began to head back to her hut, when she noticed that Lyra and Derpy were following her.

"We figured that Ryan should be told," Lyra said when Zecora gave them a look. "I mean, the princesses are going to have a portal to his home and he has a right to know. You can't keep it from him Zecora," Lyra said, Derpy nodding in agreement with her. Zecora held a hoof to her lips and motioned for them to follow her into the Everfree forest.

"I had planned to tell him as well, but you do realize that all that awaits him there is hell," Zecora told them as they walked through the forest, giving them serious looks as she did so. "When we tell him he will go up to that castle and Celestia knows getting out of there will be quite the hassle."

"But he deserves to know what happened to his home and to see if he can get back," Lyra said, only to be silenced by a look that Zecora gave her.

"He knows full well what happened to his home and there is nothing left of it, except his tome," Zecora said to the both of them in a deadly serious voice, causing them to keep quiet until they had reached her hut. When Zecora opened it they found Ryan asleep in one of the chairs and from the looks of how he was sleeping he was about to fall off.

"We should wake him gently," Derpy said, to which Zecora's reply was to walk over and kick the chair out from under him, causing the human to crash to the floor. "Hey, that was a bit rude don't you think!?"

"My father taught me that tough love is best love," Zecora said with a smile as Ryan picked himself off the floor, Lyra making sure to write down all of the swears and insults he said to the zebra. "Now then Ryan, we have news to tell you of."

"Please tell me that you've caught a terminal dieses and the effects will be long and painful," Ryan growled at her as he pulled himself back up to a standing position, but the rage faded away as Derpy reached into her mail bag and pulled out a flier for him. He took it and glanced down at it, only to have his eyes go wide when he saw what was written on it.

"This is most likely be a trap," Zecora said to him before he could speak. "And knowing you it will end in a scrap. Don't give the princesses what they want and stay away. That is my advice for you today." Lyra and Derpy both went to say something, but then Ryan held out a hand to silence them before he lowered his hand and began to think long and hard about it.

"You're probably right Zecora, you usually are," Ryan said to her when he looked up again, but he grabbed his backpack all the same and slung it over his shoulders. "But I never truly found out what happened to my home or if any of my race survived. All I have confirming their death is the word of a glow in the dark pony, so I'm not too sure I should trust that. I have to see for myself, not just to know, but to finally have some closure."

"I figured that would be your reply, so I made you this so you will not die," she said as she offered him a blow gun with three darts. "These darts hold a poison that causes sleep fast, but I recommend you save this weapon for last. These effects are strong and last a while, but the vomiting after waking up is vile."

"Well, I know that I'm going with you," Lyra said to him as he slipped the blowgun and the darts into his bag. "I'd love to see your world and what the other humans look like. Is it true that some have horns and tails?"

"Only the evil ones did," Ryan retorted as he saw that the ate was for tomorrow. "And I don't care if you come with me, but I probably won't be seen with you. The princesses have made it very clear that they want to catch me and I'd hate to get any of you arrested on charge of helping me. Except you Zecora, I'd like to see what happens if you were to fight the princesses."

"Do you have a plan that won't get you beaten with staffs and if so tell me, I could use a laugh," Zecora said with a smirk, getting the middle finger from Ryan.

"You can take the train in the morning," Derpy offered, turning all eyes to her. "The ponies there don't really check for stowaways too well and if you sneak on the back there would be no pony there to really bother you until you got to Canterlot. I would recommend getting out early, the guards at Canterlot can be thorough."

"Thanks, I'll probably do that then," Ryan said with a nod to her before he looked up at the sky and saw that the sun was almost in the center of the sky. "I'll go in the morning, I have a few things that I want to get done before go." He walked past the three of them and headed into the forest, the two ponies watching until they could no longer see him while Zecora had turned away and went back to her brew.

"Think that he'll make it there alright?" Lyra asked as she paced nervously, Derpy wondering the same thing.

"He will be fine, you'll see," Zecora said with a smile as she worked on the brew for Spike. 'In fact, he might just be the key.'

\\ //
//; ;\\

"Do you think he will come sister?" Luna asked Celestia as the white alicorn looked down upon the town of Ponyville, but more accurately the Everfree forest, where her ponies had all but confirmed was where he was staying. "Fluttershy did say that Zecora would probably relay the message to him, but I still do not see why we do not just fly down there and search the forest for him? Or we could make Zecora tell us where he is?"

"No sister, this human is different than the other tow that came here," Celestia said with watchful eyes as she looked down upon the land. "He has barely bothered the ponies and most of the times he has fought has only been in self-defense. And I know that you are comparing him to the soldier that came here a while back, but you forget that the knight was a good man who saved many. I just cannot place this one."

"Well that is why we are gathering the Elements of Harmony as well as any guards that we can muster," Luna said as she joined her sister on the balcony overlooking the land. "If you are right about this plan, when he shows up he will not be able to escape all of us. My magic alone was enough to cause him to run and with the eight of us..."

"We must hope that it does not come to that," Celestia said as she walked away from the balcony and headed back to her chambers to prepare for the coming day. "I simply wish to talk to him, but if he resists or tries to hurt any of the ponies to escape...only then may we use force against him." As Celestia left, Luna looked back down at the forest with narrowed eyes and a smile on her face.

'Tomorrow human, I get my rematch,' she thought with a smile.

What Could Go Wrong?

From one of the bushes near the station Ryan watched the ponies with keen eyes, waiting for Derpy to make her move before he tried to sneak onto the train. The sun had just risen over the horizon, but an unexpected complication had come up during the time he had been waiting. A lot more ponies were heading to Canterlot than he had been expecting, so he had to wait for a more ideal opportunity to sneak on.

'Then again, when have any of my plans ever gone the way I want?' Ryan thought to himself as he looked down at the flier again, seeing now that he had only two hours left to get to the castle in time to see if his world was still standing. Then he saw a grey Pegasus make a waving motion and he knew it was time to act. As fast and silently as he could he ran across the open ground before rolling behind one of the cars, hoping he hadn't been seen.

'Okay, according to what she told me there should be a pony in the caboose for another ten minutes, so all I have to do is wait...' He stopped thinking for a moment when he heard the conductor say all aboard and heard the sounds of ponies scrambling to get on. Then he looked down at the wheels in front of him to see that the train was now moving. He began to weigh his options as the train began to pick up speed. He couldn't get into the caboose without being seen, but that would mean he would have to hang on the train until the pony moved. And that was just crazy.

'Ah what the hell?' Ryan thought as he reached out and grabbed a pole on the side of the train, getting dragged along by the moving train before he pulled himself onto the side. Within a few minutes he realized what a terrible mistake he had made as he struggled to hold onto the side. That left him with very limited options and by the way that a tunnel in the distance was getting closer to him, he had to make it fast. With a growl he opened the window to the caboose and threw himself inside, turning around to see the tunnel that would have scraped him off go flying by.

"And now to deal with you," he muttered as he turned around, ready to deal with the pony that was back here. But to his shock instead of a mail carrier pony he found one of the Royal Guard, who was looking at him with a wicked smile on his face.

"Yes, time to deal with you," the pony said as he pulled out a blade with his magic and attacked Ryan. Ryan swore as he grabbed the railings above him and pulled himself out of the way of the attack before kicking the pony in the face, dropping onto the ponies back while he staggered and went to hit him in the back of the head. The guard threw himself back and slammed Ryan into the side of the car, causing the human to grunt as he lost his grip and fell to the floor. "Are all of you humans so weak?" the pony asked as he went to stab him again.

"Please, I'm just going easy on you!" Ryan retorted as he pulled out the stun baton and turned it on, smiling as the pony backed away from it as the electricity crackled along it. The guard when to attack, but Ryan flipped over his blade and drove the baton into the pony's leg, causing him to cry out as he fell to the ground. "What happened to all of that confidence that you had a moment ago? Don't tell me that you're being beaten by such a weak human?"

The pony roared and threw himself at Ryan, slamming into his mid-section and drove him in the side of the train. Ryan felt the window break behind him as his back slammed into it, but he managed to break free of the pony's grasp by grabbing a piece of glass that was imbedded in his bag and stabbed the pony in the leg. The pony yelled as the blow drew blood but Ryan was surprised how the glass shattered against his leg.

"Sorry human, we're a bit tougher than you thought!" the guard yelled as he spun around and drove both of his hind hooves into his chest, sending Ryan crashing into the luggage. Ryan picked up one of the suitcases and threw it at the guard, smirking as the luggage bounced off his head.

"I was trying to take a nice, relaxing train ride and you just had to come over and ruin it," Ryan said with a smirk. The guard snarled and pulled out from under a suitcase a crossbow, which he aimed right at Ryan's head.

"Fuck!" Ryan yelled as he threw himself out of the way of the first bolt, barely dodging the shot. The pony smirked as he reloaded the crossbow with his magic in a matter of seconds, telling Ryan that this was not a fight that he could win in these confined spaces. "Sorry, but you're being mean and I want no part of this!" Ryan said as he kicked the back door open and dove out of it, kicking off the rail onto the roof as a bolt flew by him.

"Get back here and fight!" the guard yelled as he used his magic to float on top of the train car, where Ryan looked at him with a smirk. The guard fired another bolt at him, but the intense wind caused by the two of the standing on top of the train caused it to veer off course. The guard yelled and charged at Ryan, but Ryan let out a laugh as he threw himself to the roof, the guard wondering what he was doing before a low hanging branch took him right off the roof. He screamed at Ryan as the human waved at him, before getting back into the caboose and enjoying the rest of his trip.

\\ //
//; ;\\

The guards at Canterlot swarmed the train when it pulled into the station, but Ryan had bailed long before the train had gotten to the city. So while the ponies were searching the train for him, Ryan snuck into the city through the sewer system, which he was still surprised that they had. Although he wished that it hadn't taken him an hour to find his way there, as the smell had almost been his downfall.

"This has really gone to shit," he said with a smirk, but the humor left him as the smell overwhelmed him. Salvation came in the form of a sewer lid and Ryan quickly scaled the ladder, gently lifting it so that he could look around to see what was going on. There weren't many ponies in the streets, so he hoped that he would be able to get to the castle without being seen. When the streets were empty he shot out of the sewer and made it into an alley way, giving him a moment to breathe before he looked up at the castle.

"Alright, there's where I need to go without getting taken down, but if Zecora is right, which she is, then this is a trap," Ryan muttered as he tried to move into another alleyway, but he found that there were guards stationed in them. 'And they know just how I'm going to try to get to the castle. Those princesses are smarter than I thought.' He figured that he would try the roof next and when he climbed up there he found a number of Pegasus ponies flying around. 'Great, they even have air support. Now how am I going to get there?'

An idea came to him and he moved back out into the streets, where he saw a pony simply walking along. 'This is either going to get me killed or it will be the greatest idea I have ever had,' he thought to himself. He took in a deep breath and walked right up to the pony, who froze at the sight of the human as it walked up to him with a huge smile on his face.

"Hey there, how you doing?" Ryan said to the pony with a huge smile as he wrapped an arm around the pony's shoulder, the pony looking at him with terrified eyes. "Just came over to say hi and see how you were doing. Now I know that you seem to be afraid of me and everything, but there's no need to be since there's a number of guards right over there in that alleyway. Well I'm glad to see that you're doing so well, I'm going to be over by that park. Later."

Ryan walked around a corner before he looped back around behind another building, where he sat with a smile as the pony ran over to the guards and got all of them to run to where he had told them he was going. Now that they were out of the way, Ryan strutted over through the alleyways, making great time to the castle. He also noticed that the Pegasus had gone over to where the guards had run off to. Added bonus.

"All that's left is to get into the castle," Ryan muttered as he looked up at the castle with a frown. 'Now I'm not sure what to do here. The princesses have shown they know how I think and what I'm going to do, so it is highly possible that they have all of the windows and back entrances covered. And now that I've gotten the guards mixed up in this I really don't have much time to do this. I guess the garden is my best chance.' He moved past the main gates (where he noticed there were no guards) before he slipped into the garden, where he found a number of statues that looked really weird and strange.

"And who are you supposed to be?" he muttered aloud as he looked up at a weird statue that looked like a mix and match of a number of different animals into one. He shook his head at it as he spied an open window that he could slip in. Once again he noticed that there were no guards there and he was on guard as he slipped inside. The castle looked gorgeous, but he couldn't focus on that as he slipped through the halls.

'And still no guards,' he thought to himself as he moved through the castle, not sure if he was getting closer to the grand hall or not due to how large the place was. Then he could hear them, all of the ponies that had gathered to see his world. He could hear them murmuring out in the hallway and he now knew that he was getting close. He walked over to the massive pairs of doors, noticing that there were slightly open. He knew that it was too good to be true, but he figured that he had come this far. And it he had survived worse than anything the ponies could do to him. So his slipped inside a braced himself for a massive battle. But to his surprise he found that all of the ponies were looking forward in the massive room and the princesses were focused on whatever Twilight was doing, giving him a brief moment to slip behind a pillar to hide. He could see that all of the Elements were up on the stage as well, including the pink pony that he did not like.

'That was either an incredible stroke of luck or they're just toying with me,' he thought to himself as he looked up at the stage, seeing how Twilight was creating some sort of field with her magic. 'Alright then princesses, you got me all the way up here, now I want to see if you can deliver the goods. Show me what happened to my home.'

"Hello ponies of Canterlot and Ponyville, we are glad to see so many of you here today," Luna said to them as she scanned the crowd for the human, Ryan wisely hiding behind the pillar until it was time to start. "We know that many of you are concerned about the shadow as he has been called, but he is no threat to you. In order to prove this to you, we are going to show you his world where there are millions of these creates that live without magic." The crowd let out a chuckle at this, wondering how any creatures could survive without magic.

"Yes and today the pony performing the magic will be my very own assistant Twilight Sparkle!" Celestia said with a smile as she turned to face Twilight, who was waving at the crowd with a blush on her face. "Go on Twilight, I know you can do it." Twilight nodded and turned towards the magical portal, closing her eyes as she channeled her magic into the portal. The crowd began to ooh and awe as the magic opened an incredible spiral that Ryan noticed was similar to the one that he had used to get there.

"And...tada! Twilight yelled as the portal opened, only for her and the entire crowd to be struck dumb by what they were looking at. The portal had revealed a room that was consumed by fire, with once great buildings laying in ruin and the smoldered remains of cars littering the streets. There was no plant life anywhere and the skies were covered in a black ash, but what terrified the ponies the most was the bodies, the skeletons that lined the streets. All that was left of some of the bodies was a black ash outline against a wall or car, but there was nothing alive.

"How can this be?" Celestia asked herself in a whisper as she and the others looked upon the destruction with horror. Ryan on the other hand had nothing to say about the devastation in front of him. All he did was place his head in his hand for a moment, knowing that was what he was going to see. He could see the fire again as the images of his world vanishing in a flash shot to the surface again, but he simply let them play out as he sighed slightly. He knew now that there was no reason to stay anymore, not that he should have bothered in the first place.

'I just...wanted to know,' he thought to himself as he prepared to leave. 'I needed to know if there was a chance.' The ponies all murmured to themselves as they looked upon this sight, but a certain pink pony was feeling a tingling in her mane and that could only mean one thing. She looked away from the portal to the very back of the room, where she saw a human in a black coat about to slip out.

"Hi there Mr. Human!" she said to him with a wave. The moment she said this every head in the room spun around to look at him, a massive gasp spreading as the ponies all saw that he was there. Ryan, who had been about to slip out of through the door, jumped back as it was slammed shut by magic and he slowly turned around to see everypony in the room looking at him.

"Well then, it seems the guest of honor has arrived," Luna said with a smile, despite still being shaken up about what she had seen. Ryan could hear what sounded like a large number of guards taking up positions in the hallway beyond the doors and he looked up at the Elements to see that they were all focused on him. "Anything that you'd like to say to this large crowd?" Luna asked.

"Well fuck me," Ryan muttered.

It Takes A City...

Celestia and the others waited to see what the human would do, seeing if he would try to fight his way through a pointless battle or if he would give up quietly. He did neither of those things. What Ryan did was rush to the closest pony and kick them out of their chair, which he then grabbed and threw out one of the windows. Celestia yelled to stop him right before he threw himself out the window as well, sliding down the slanted roof towards the ground.

"Shit shit shit!" Ryan yelled as he fell of the roof and crashed into a cart carrying jars. He cursed his luck as he forced himself back to his feet and sprinted through the streets, turning his head slightly to see a rainbow blur coming after him. "And now she's chasing me again. This day just gets better and better!" He threw himself to the ground as a bolt of rainbow streaked by him, coming to a stop in front of him as he got back to his feet.

"You're not getting away this time!" Rainbow said to him with a growl.

"You ponies keep saying that yet I keep getting away," Ryan retorted with a smirk as he pulled out his baton. Dash took up a fighting stance and prepared to fight, but Ryan switched tactics and threw a smoke pellet into her face. Rainbow has just started to cough when Ryan ran forward and drove his knee into her face, dazing her as he then continued to run for his life. Ponies in the streets panicked as he flew by, but he looked down at the shadows on him to see that both of the princesses were about to catch up with him. He dove into an alley to temporarily lose them as he darted around.

'Got to lose them. Can't keep this up forever,' Ryan thought to himself as he looked around the crowded city streets, searching for anyway out. He had to start running again as he heard the ponies approaching from behind and he darted into the crowd, pushing the ponies out of the way or vaulting over them as he ran, noticing that Rainbow was back in the chase along with the two princesses. He slipped out a firefly egg and threw it on the ground as he covered his eyes, not sure whether or not the swarm of fireflies that erupted from the egg blinded them or not. However, due to him covering his eyes he had no idea where he was going and he ran right off the edge of the level he was on.

"Fuck me!" he yelled as he bounced off a flag pole and landed in a pool, Ryan gasping as he fought back to the surface and dragging himself out of the water. He groaned before sprinting again, finding that he was in a less populated area than the upper level. 'I need to hide, if only temporarily. Come on, give me something I can use!' A number of barrels rested by a wall and he figured that would be his best bet and he slipped into one of them as best as he could. He held his breath as he heard the sounds of wings and hooves run by, waiting a moment before he looked out of the barrel. While the princesses and the Elements had passed him by, there were still guards in the streets not too far from him.

'Maybe these barrels can be used for more than just hiding,' he thought to himself as he slipped out of his barrel and pulled out the knife that he kept in his bag, using it to cut the rope that kept all of the barrels rested against the wall. He then kicked them all over before he got back into his barrel as it began to roll. 'This is probably going to hurt!' he thought as the barrels began to roll. He could hear the guards yelling at the ponies to get out of the way as he rolled and Ryan found to his amazement that none of them were bothering to stop the rolling barrels. He and the other barrels came to a stop at the end of the road, where he fell out and lay on the ground while trying not to throw up.

"That...urp...was a bad idea," he muttered as he held a hand to his mouth, looking up the street to see that the guards hadn't spotted him yet. With a small smile he got up and started to head towards the sewer entrance, but then he found to his horror that Pinkie was streaking right towards him at speeds that would make Rainbow jealous. "These ponies are all insane!" he yelled as he began to run again, though he was aware that his stamina was beginning to waver. 'Need a plan, need a plan! Blowgun. That might work. Then again,' he thought as he turned around to see the pink dash practically flying at him as he pulled out the blow gun. 'I don't know if anything can stop her.'

Pinkie was practically on top of him when he brought the gun to his mouth and fired out a single dart, hitting Pinkie right in the chest. To his amazement Pinkie went down almost immediately, skidding to a stop in front of him while snoring softly. Ryan looked down at her for a moment before he let out a sigh of relief, a sigh that was quick lived as he saw Twilight charging down the road after him.

"Give me a break," he muttered as he turned to continue running, watching as spell bolts flew by his head as he ran. Despite him not having much knowledge of Canterlot, he did noticed little patterns as he ran that told him when there was a turn coming up that he could take or whether it would lead to a dead end.

"Get back here human!" Twilight yelled out as she tried to grab him with her magic, but she found that the armband rebounded her magic and blasted her with her own spell, causing her to hang in mind air as she struggled to get down. Ryan smirked at his good fortune as he continued to run, finding a garden that he ran in to, taking a moment to hide in a bush and breath.

'Can't keep running, no stamina left,' he thought to himself as he did his best not to breathe too loudly, so he wouldn't give away his position. Once he had spent a few minutes recovering, he stood back up and turned to leave only to come face to face with a yellow Pegasus. "The hell?" he yelled as he went to strike her with his baton, but one look into her eyes told him that she wasn't going to fight him. "Out of my way."

"I don't mean to bother you, but I'm just wondering why you're doing this?" Fluttershy said to him a soft voice that almost got him to stop being angry. Almost. "I mean, we're not going to hurt you and all we want to do is talk."

"Sorry, but for personal reasons I have no desire to be near you ponies, now if you would kindly move out of the way," he growled, but she moved in front of him. "Seriously, I will knock you out if you keep this up. Just ask you rainbow friend what happened when she tried to mess with me."

"If what she told me is true then you were being beaten until you threw dirt in her eyes and cheated to win," Fluttershy replied.

"Yep. Now out of my way or I'll do the same to you," he said as he tried to walk around her, but she moved in front of him. He debated whether to knock her out or not, but something wasn't adding up in his mind. Fluttershy was supposed to be a coward afraid of her own shadow and yet where bigger ponies had been afraid of him she hadn't so much as flinched. Why would that...?

"You son of a bitch," he muttered before he turned around in time to receive two orange hooves to the face, knocking him out without another sound.

"That's fer calling mah friend that," Applejack said as she kicked him again, but Fluttershy stopped her before looking down at the human.

"I'm sorry it had to come to this," she said with a sad shake of her head.

\\ //
//; ;\\

Ryan groaned as awoken, blinking twice when he realized he was in a room with really bright light. What concerned him the most at the moment was that he couldn't feel his nose, but that leapt to a lower part of the list when he looked up to see Princess Celestia looking across a table at him, her eyes telling him that he was in deep shit.

"You finally awaken," she said to him in a calm voice, which only made him more nervous of her. "You have given us quite the run around today and I must commend you for your ability to think on the fly. I have had Pegasus that have been caught faster than you and they can fly." Ryan said nothing, but he moved his hands to see that they weren't bound or in cuffs. While he was grateful for the chance to see if his nose was still there, he wondered why they hadn't bound him. His backpack was gone, but he still had the armband on under his jacket, another item that they had not taken.

"Are you comfortable?" Celestia asked him, knowing that his silence meant that he wasn't going to talk easily. "If you are hungry or thirsty you can always ask, I do not wish to be a rude host." Ryan responded with silence again, causing Celestia to sig as she took on a more serious face. "Alright then human, I have a lot of questions for you and I expect answers."

"Three days, forty two and penguins," Ryan said with a smirk when he saw Celestia's confused face. "There, I answered your questions. Can I go?" He heard a scoff outside the room and he looked at a mirror on the wall, telling him that the other ponies were out there listening to what he was saying.

"Very funny," Celestia said after a moment. "But I will still ask my questions. We'll start simple. What is your name?"

"I don't feel like telling you my name nor what is my quest," Ryan responded with a smirk. "But I will tell you the air speed velocity of an unladen swallow." Celestia raised an eyebrow at him and he rolled his eyes at her missing the joke, but then she cleared her throat as she looked at him.

"Alright, let me make this clear. The Elements of Harmony, the strongest weapons we have, and my own sister are standing outside that door," she said as she pointed to the door behind him that he had missed. "I am trying to be nice since you have done nothing to my subjects that would make me perceive you as a high level threat. But I know that you are dangerous, so if you want to get out of here you would do well to tell me what I want to hear."

"Fine. Yes, you need to go on a diet, you look massive," Ryan responded with a sigh, causing Celestia to burn with internal fury as he looked at her with a confused face. "Wait, did you say WANT to hear or NEED to hear? I wasn't paying attention."

"You are trying my patience human," Celestia said in a less than friendly tone. "Is there a reason you choose to be...funny as oppose to answering the most basic of questions."

"Actually there is," Ryan responded as he put his hands behind his head as he smirked at Celestia. "It's to show you that I don't want to talk to you or answer your questions. But I will tell you this much. Despite your best, I don't want to talk to you or your ponies nor do I want to be around you or your ponies. I want to be alone. Got it?"

"You are a strange one," Celestia said with a shake of her head. "Do you not realize that we may be your only chance of getting home?"

"You saw my home princess. Does it really look like I want to go back there?" Ryan asked her with a snarl before he lowered his head, causing Celestia to frown slightly.

"What happened to the Earth? What evil creature could have done that to such an advanced race as the humans?" Celestia asked Ryan, getting no response. "Alright, if you do not answer this time, I will be forced to resort to cruder methods. And trust me, it is pain beyond what you know," she said, hoping the threat would scare him. But then she and the other ponies watching outside of through the glass to back away a bit as Ryan began to laugh, throwing his head back as he did so. But it wasn't a dry chuckle or a laugh of joy. It was an insane laugh, the laugh of a man who wasn't all there.

"Oh, it was no evil monster or unstoppable nightmare that killed us, Celestia," Ryan said when he started to calm down a bit. "WE wiped ourselves out. A nuclear holocaust that wiped my race right out of existence! Billions dead in a matter of days as they burn in a fire that will take a very long time to go out! My friends, family and the rest of humanity gone...just like that, leaving me as the sole survivor! So do you see why I don't fear you or your petty threats? Because by killing me you'd be doing me a favor! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Celestia looked at the human in front of her with fear in her eyes as he laughed again, now seeing how he could handle be captured so well or surviving in this new land after his world burned. Because he was pretty much gone.

"You think that any physical pain you do to me could ever come close to the pain I feel for surviving? For getting to live while my friends burned in a world of fire?" Ryan asked her once he had calmed down the point where he could talk again. "Do you think you could put me through a greater hell than that ZEBRA!? No Celestia, you know nothing of my pain...though I'd be willing to share. Interested?"

"No human, I know now what I must do," she said as she stood up with sadness in her eyes as she pointed her horn at his chest. "You have suffered enough already. I am going to put you into an eternal trance, where you need not relive these memories or the pain. You no longer need to suffer." Ryan raised an eyebrow as she said this, because he wasn't looking at her so much as behind her, where a silver pony stood watching him.

'Time to go,' she said to him.

"About damn time," he said as he stood up, causing Celestia to look at him in confusion before a blinding flash of white went off, causing Celestia and the others to cry out as they shielded their eyes. The moment the flash went off Ryan threw himself into the door and bashed it down, scanning the room in seconds to see his backpack laying on a table. He rushed over to it and slipped it on while reaching inside to throw another smoke-bomb into Luna's face for good measure.

"You couldn't just teleport me out?" Ryan asked the silver mare as he began to sprint again, the mare leading the way as they ran through the hallways. He pulled out his baton when a number of guards rushed him, but in another flash the silver mare had stuck them to the wall and allowed the two to rush past.

'You are still wearing the armband that prevents me from using my magic on you,' the silver mare said as she created a key for the front door, sliding it in to have the door open immediately. 'The next time you want me to use my magic to aid you, take that off and try saying please. It's amazing how far it will get you. Now hurry to the edge of the city, I am going to activate the defenses.'

"And what are those?" Ryan asked before she could vanish.

'Trust me when I say you do not want to be inside when they activate,' the silver mare said as she vanished, leaving Ryan to sprint as fast as he could into the streets, rushing by ponies and guards without stopping. He had no idea how long he ran, but his lungs burned as he did so. He turned around when he heard ponies gasping and saw that Princess Celestia was now chasing after him, eyes narrowed as she followed him. He ran with everything he had, but he knew that even if he reached the edge of the city she would still catch him. That was until he saw the giant shield being lowered upon the city.

"Who!? Who is activating the changeling shield at a time like this?!" Celestia yelled, Ryan being close enough to hear her, the shield was coming down fast so with one last push he threw himself to the ground, rolling up to his knees as the shield slammed to the ground right behind him, trapping Celestia inside while he was on the outside. "NO!" Celestia yelled as she came to a stop. Ryan stood up panting and looked up at the princess with a smile, before he gave her a one fingered salute. He then turned around and ran down the tracks back to Ponyville, causing the princess to growl with rage.

"Do not worry human, we will meet again," Celestia said as she looked off to the abandoned castle that rested in the forest. "Soon."

\\ //
//; ;\\

'Feel all of that delicious chaos,' a voice said in the echoes of his own mind as he heard the chaos going on around him as the ponies tried to catch a single human. 'And if all it took last time to get out was three fillies, then I should be able to-!' The stone casing shattered as Discord broke free, giving him a chance to stretch as he looked back at the pedestal where he had stood. "Now then, it simply wouldn't be polite to ruin one of the princess’s statues without replacing it. Oh I know."

He snapped his fingers as he said this and a copy of him in statue form appeared on the pedestal, allowing Discord to laugh maniacally as he shot into the air and turned into a number of butterflies as he flew away. For he needed a bit of time to rest and to plan, but he knew that this time he would not let the ponies get the better of him. Because this time he had his own Element. Surprise.

A Divine Appointment

"While I am sad that you left without a scrap, I am glad to see that you escaped," Zecora said as she hoofed a number of supplies to Ryan, who was busy trying to regain his breath that he still hadn't caught since his marathon from Canterlot. Most of the day had gone by as he ran down the mountain while avoiding guards and the princesses. "But what happened to the silver mare? After helping you did she vanish into thin air?"

"She said something about helping her criminal redeemed or something along those lines," Ryan muttered as he counted his supplies, making sure that they were all there.

"I can't believe that you managed to escape," Lyra said with a shake of her head. "I mean, I took the train home and the guards were insane to deal with. How did you manage to escape without being seen?"

"Because I'm awesome," Ryan said, but Zecora laughed at him as she rearranged some supplies.

"More like you're lucky and barely made it out," she said with a smile, Ryan glaring over at her. "That is the only way without a doubt. You would not get away from the princesses without aid. And with the Elements there your best bet was to pray." Ryan growled at her as Zecora walked over to Lyra and Derpy, giving the both of them some tea. "Despite how strong he looks he is a fool. I know smarter beings that are mules." Ryan snarled at her and prepared for a jump kick, but Zecora threw one of her knives and pinned his sleeve to the wall.

"Glad to see that you get so much enjoyment from my pain," Ryan growled as he pulled the knife out of the wall and hurled it at the zebra, who simply caught it and placed it back on her shelf. "Now if you will both excuse me, I'm going back to me hole in a wall and I'm going to sleep today off like a bad hangover."

"That's probably a good idea, I need to get home and take care of my daughter," Derpy said as she got up, Lyra nodding as she followed suit. Ryan (the great guy that he was) allowed them to open the door for him as he walked outside, but the zebra cleared her throat to stop him.

"Be careful tonight, friend of mine," she said in a cryptic voice that caused Ryan to lift an eyebrow at her. "I fear that there will be something divine." Ryan nodded as he slowly backed away from the crazy zebra before closing the door behind him, looking at the two ponies who were looking up at him.

"What?" he asked them.

"What do you think she meant by divine?" Lyra asked him.

"Hell if I know, that zebra is crazy," Ryan muttered as he headed off towards his small room. "One hell of a fighter, but crazy none the less. See you two around provided that one of those Ursa's I've heard about don't eat me."

"Hey Ryan? I've...I've been working on a spell that I want to show you. Would you mind...?"

"Meh." That was all he said to them before he headed off, walking through the darkening forest until he reached the castle. He headed inside and slipped into the secret room, closing his eyes once he had a moment. He then took the guide off of his backpack and placed it on the table, about to do the same with his bag before he heard a sound outside. The faintest sound, but a sound none the less. A hoof step.

The door burst open a few moments later and Celestia entered with her horn aglow, yet as she looked around the empty room she snarled to herself, wondering if she had guessed wrong again until she saw the book on the desk.

"What be this?" she asked herself as she flipped open the book, surprised to see that it was a journal of sorts of not just her, but everypony of importance in Equestria, along with a fairly detailed map of Everfree and Ponyville. 'So the human has been keeping tracks on us, has he? Wonder what he has to say about us then.' She flipped until she found her page, which she scanned over quickly.

Name: Celestia.

Species: Alicorn, unicorn pegasi mix?

Sex: Female.

Age: Over a thousand according to the zebra.

Bio:

Have barely seen her but what I have heard of her indicates that she is a very powerful alicorn who can raise the sun and moon. She is also said to be over one thousand years old and has probably acquired a great deal of knowledge in that time. With that power, frontal interactions are suicide; recommend sticking to the shadows or just avoiding her altogether.

Personal Opinion.

Shit. She can control the sun AND the moon? Well consider me fucked if I have to go up against her because she'd probably burn me to ash in a matter of seconds. If I had to face her, God help me, then I would have to go for a kill shot almost immediately. If that fails, I run for my life.

Threat level: 2.

Celestia smiled to herself as she saw that the human did consider her a high level threat, but something that confused her was that she was only the second highest threat. As she began to flip through the pages, she wondered who was first to him. Discord maybe? Luna potentially? Celestia eventually found her sisters page, but was surprised to see her at the third highest while Discord was a foot note. Then she found the page with the highest and it confused her greatly.

Name: Zecora.

Species: Zebra.

Sex: Female.

Age: 35 (took her forever to tell me)

Bio.

Zecora is a zebra that can speak the human language. She seems to be a master of multiple forms of martial arts (God knows how) and is proficient in medications. She lives in a hut in the Everfree forest, where she seems to be a witch doctor of sorts. Speaks only in rhymes, seems incapable of normal speak. Also skilled in stealth, although not sure how skilled.

Additional info.

She is very skilled, insanely skilled. At everything. Kicks the shit out of me on a regular basis and then heals me up with whatever miracle she feels like working that day. No idea how she got this skilled but apparently she's been training ever since she was little. Of course, even though she says she's thirty five I have a feeling that she's actually hiding her real age. Makes me wonder why.

Personal opinion.

Zecora scares me. I'm not sure what to make of her. She always seems so carefree and happy, but something about her felt "off." She seems to be able to see the future a bit, making sneaking up on her a pain.

Additional input: She's beyond scary now, she's not...like any living being that I have come across. Able to move the sun, sure, I can cope with that. Barely. But Zecora is something else. Wonder why no animals come around her hut? Because they are afraid. I saw a glimpse, only a glimpse mind you, when she used some martial arts move on me that shattered my chest. Her power...God her power...she isn't a regular zebra. I'm not even sure she's of this planet. All I know is, I'm glad that she's on my side or else...I have no plan to beat her, no idea on how to stop her if she turned all that power against me. I'd run until either I collapsed or she dealt with me.

Threat ranking: 1. Always 1.

That confused Celestia. She had heard from Twilight about Zecora and her mystical ways, but this human was terrified...no, reading his words he was beyond terrified of her. Death barely bothered him yet this zebra had terrified him beyond belief. She was wondering if she should go see Zecora herself when she heard a chuckle and the snapping of a pair of fingers, then her world went black.

\\ //
//; ;\\

Ryan had no idea how long he was in that hole for, but he managed to spend most of the time trying to get his pistol working again with mixed success. He also looked around the hidden chamber a bit more, though he found little else of interest down there. Training helped to pass the time, but most of the time he was just waiting. Waiting for Celestia and her troops to break through the wall or something and take him, despite the fight he would put up.

'Alright, I can't take this place anymore,' he thought to himself when he heard three separate voices talking in his head at the same time, telling him that he had been down there for far too long. When he had gathered up as much of his courage as possible, he threw open the trap door and flung himself out. He was surprised to see that there were no ponies in his hole in the wall, but he saw that his journal had been left as well. 'Strange, thought for sure Celestia would have taken this,' he thought as he went to pick it up, only to see what was going on outside.

'Wait...is it raining chocolate milk?' he asked himself in disbelief as he looked up at the sky, amazed at what he was seeing. The clouds were raining chocolate milk and the sky had turned into a strange pink, while he could just barely see buildings floating off in the distance. He put down the book as he headed for the door, needing to talk to the zebra. 'I need to get to Zecora. She'll know what's going on.' He ran out of the castle and came to a stop when he saw a small grey filly.

"You!" she yelled as she saw him, Ryan growling as he expected her to start screaming. But to his surprise, she ran over to him and looked up at him with tear stained eyes. "Please, you have to help me! You're the human my mother told me about, right?!" Ryan nodded once, before looking around to see that even the forest looked weird. "Something is happening to my home! Please help me!"

'Hell no,' Ryan thought to himself as he remembered what happened the last time he had gone into Ponyville, but he saw the desperation in the filly's eyes and he nodded his head with a sigh. The filly took off as he nodded and he chased after her, able to keep up with her fairly well as they ran to Ponyville. Ryan wished he could have talked to Zecora before he had to come here, but he couldn't think about it long as he saw what state the town was in. It was in a purple bubble, but he could still see ponies inside and what he saw made him sick.

"What happened to them?" he asked the filly as he looked through the bubble at the ponies, all of who had dead looks in their eyes and moved without much life.

"I happened to them." The two spun around to see Twilight floating above them, but even as the filly cried out in joy at seeing her Ryan drew his baton. Twilight looked different, crazy different, and from the way she looked like she was about to shoot him it made him nervous. "This land and all other lands belong to the Elements of Chaos now! You will join my ranks," Twilight said as she fired a bolt of magic that hit the filly, causing her to look like the others. "And you...will die!" Ryan barely had any time to react before the spell his him in the chest and he was surrounded by whiteness.

====---====

Ryan groaned as he felt feeling return to him and he lifted his head to see that he was in what seemed to be a massive desert, with nothing for miles on any side except in front of him. From what he could make out through the blowing sand there were a number of pillars in front of him. Since he had no idea how he had gotten here or no idea where Twilight had gotten, he decided that it would be in his best interest to head for them.

'Wonder what happened?' he thought to himself as he walked, putting up his hands to block out the sand. 'Twilight didn't seem that evil last time we met and there is no way that she could cause whatever happened to the sky. Not to mention she's an Element of Harmony and not Chaos, unless I overheard them wrong. What is going on?' He continue to think along the same lines as he moved forward, eventually reaching the pillars which turned out not to be just pillars, but instead pillars to a massive temple. And when he entered it, he found to his shock that he was not alone.

On five separate seats sat five creatures of light. One of them was a pony of sorts that radiated a power that made even Ryan back away a bit, while the griffon that sat next to him looked down at him with proud and true eyes. The changeling (the word appeared in his mind when he looked at her) gave him a smile that comforted him a bit until he looked at the odd dog sitting next to her, who had eyes that looked through him and all of his deceptions. Finally there was a dragon who scared Ryan the most, yet with a snap of his fingers the sand was gone, revealing a glowing white palace.

"What. The. Fuck?" Ryan asked them as he looked up at their five glowing forms, amazed at how much they looked like the silver mare.

'No, we are not associated with her,' the pony said, causing Ryan to groan as he realized that he was dealing with a mind reader. 'But she is the reason that we have brought you here. You have seen the state that Ponyville and the rest of Equestria is in, have you not?'

"Be kinda hard to miss it, considering it's only affected all of the land," Ryan muttered. "Are you saying that she caused it?"

'Not intentionally, but she was the reason for the spirit of chaos to escape again,' the griffon said as it waved it's wing, allowing Ryan to see the weird statue creature he had seen floating around wreaking havoc on the land.

'But it all honesty, it is not her fault entirely,' the dog said as it snarled down at Ryan. 'This is also your fault as well.'

"Well fuck you too," Ryan snarled back, but the dog let out a bark that flung the human into a pillar, where he staggered back to his feet. "Well if that's your bark, your bite must be shit." The dog looked like it was ready to maul him, but the pony held out a wing to stop him as the pony looked down at the human.

'Yes human, though you had no idea what you were doing,' the pony said to him. 'The chaos that you caused in Canterlot allowed Discord to escape his prison, though this time he is far more dangerous than he was when he last escaped.'

"Still little idea who Discord is," Ryan said.

'He is a god of chaos, who loves messing with living beings far more than anything else,' the dragon said as he showed what Discord had done in the past. 'This is what you released upon the land when you failed to follow your destiny.' When Ryan raised an eyebrow at the dragon he snarled a bit. 'You were supposed to die, along with the rest of your race.'

"Last time I checked destiny could eat shit," Ryan muttered, which got a chuckle out of the dragon.

'Yes, you can rarely trust her but she is generally very good at her job,' the dragon said before turning the floor over to the changeling.

'Despite you being destined to die, you survived and made it to Equestria thanks to your friend,' she said in a bubbly tone that reminded Ryan of Derpy. 'However, by doing this you have allowed this world to fall along a different path than it normally would. You have allowed it to move towards its destruction instead of how it would have normally played out. Discord now has the Elements under his command as well as the queen of the sun, allowing him to take control of all the races with ease. He now essentially rules the world.'

"Well I'm an asshole for screwing this world, but that's a fact we've already established," Ryan said as he looked up at them. "So why are you telling me this? Not like I can do anything unless you want me to go up against a god and his army of psycho ponies?" When he saw all of them look at him he backed away with a shake of his head. "Oh no, I'm not doing that. I promised my friend that I would survive for the both of us and throwing myself at this would certainly get me killed. I'm not fighting this fight." He turned to leave as he said this but the pony's voice rang out as he spoke.

'I am not so certain of that,' the pony said. 'Isn't it your greatest guilt that you could do nothing to save your world when it faced destruction? Yet know there is a world that will suffer the same fate, yet you can do something to change it. You can help the ponies avoid what happened to you and the rest of mankind." Ryan cursed the pony out in his head as he thought about what the pony had said, remembering have told Zecora not that long ago the very same thing. How he hated how he had failed. And the promise that he made that no one else would suffer like he had. That no one would have to lose everything.

"Fine. Fine. What the hell do you want me to do?" he asked them with a growl. The dragon snapped his fingers again and Ryan saw two new batons appear in his hands, both of them solid gold and crackling with power as he swung them.

'These are tools that we have crafted with the little power of the Elements we have left,' alicorn explained. 'You may not be worthy of any of the actual Elements, but these should have a similar effect.'

'These new items will allow you to combat the Elements of Chaos, yet in order to defeat Discord you will need to use your ability,' the dragon said as Ryan looked up at him. 'You will need to survive whatever he throws at you.' Ryan gave them an evil smile as the dragon said this.

"Oh don't worry; I can do that just fine. But I'll warn you now, I won't make nice with them."

"Then find the princess of the night. She will aid you in your fight." The dragon nodded as he snapped his fingers, causing Ryan to vanish in a flash of light. Once he was gone, the dragon looked to the others.

'I have felt what has happened in the other world. Should we stop the silver one now?'

"No, her plan is done,' the pony said with a sad shake of her head.’She tried her best, but now she cannot re-forge our Elements in time. Our best bet for now is for us to try to find somepony that can wield the Element of Acceptance. But that will be the hardest one to find.' The five vanished as they said this, leaving the temple to be consumed by the sand once again.

On The Dark Side Of The Moon

Ryan let out a moan as he picked himself out of what he hoped was mud, wiping it off of his jacket as he looked around to find that he was in the Everfree forest once again. His armband and batons rested in the dirt in front of him. He grumbled something about how this could only happen to him as he bent down to pick them up before he turned around to find the silver mare standing behind him, though her form was now more black than it was silver.

"Great, now you show up," he grumbled as she said nothing, though she did twitch a bit. "I just met your god friends and once again I've been dragged into something dangerous."

'I need your help,' she said in a very strained tone, causing Ryan to raise an eyebrow at her as he chuckled.

"No thanks, I've just been dragged into a "save the world" plot by five deities who seem to enjoy watching me suffer," Ryan said with a smirk as he turned to leave. "Besides, with all your powers I doubt that you would need my help. Why don't you just use your mystic talk that makes little sense on them? I'm sure that they won't be able to-" Ryan was cut off as a blast of silver hit him in the back and sent him flying into a tree. He groaned as he started to get up before silver energy grabbed him by the throat and lifted him up.

'I do not have time for your smartass bullshit!' the silver mare yelled at him as she burned with power, flying over to him so he could look her in the eyes. They were blazing with power and for the first time he was actually afraid of her, though he noticed that she didn't seem quite on the same level as the deities he had just met. 'I have just lost the one chance that I had to save my world and I am not in the mood for your typical crap! I need your help!'

"You really know how to ask, you know that?" Ryan asked with a smirk. "Seriously, lifting me by the throat after throwing me into a tree? So polite." The silver mare roared in rage as she threw him into another tree, where he hit back first and slid to the ground. "Really, you are just a prime example of etiquette right now."

'Is this all that this situation is to you?! A joke?!' she roared as she stalked towards him, the wildlife around her seeming to grow at extreme rates as her magic touched it. 'There are millions of lives at stake! Not just here but across all of the worlds and all you do is remain a smart ass! A good man just died and I could not save him, meaning that I am now down a champion and ponies have been left heartbroken! And with the end of my world coming on faster than expected I need your help!'

"So I'm a replacement then?" Ryan asked as he picked himself off the floor. "But if I recall you said that I had no chance in hell of being one of your champions, so why bother with me now? Can't you go get another champion if you're so desperate?" The silver mare began to burn with a power than he had never seen before as he braced himself for pain, before she went dark and hung her head.

'Do you think it is that easy?! To find somepony or one who can take on such power without destroying the world that needs to be saved?! Do you think I want another Hyperion?! Do you think I enjoy this?! To constantly risk destruction all on the chance that one of the heroes might be someone who can help me!?...No, I cannot. There is no more time. My reckoning is almost upon me,' she said in a quiet whisper, Ryan noticing that her glow seemed to be fading. 'Mother...sister...I have failed you.' Ryan raised an eyebrow with caution in his eyes as he looked at her barely glowing form, before he heard the faint sounds of her crying. Feeling just a bit guilty he cautiously walked over to her and sat down, waiting until she finished before he spoke.

"Alright, I'm going to cut my act but in return you need to level with me," he said in a no joking tone. "What is going on with your world? And why are you gathering up these...champions to help you?" The silver mare took in a deep breath before she stood up again, her glow returning for a moment.

'I am sorry for the outburst, it's just that...it has been so hard to remain positive in light of my recent failures,' she said softly as she walked through the forest to the edge of a cliff, where she sat down at the edge and looked over the crazy land with a sad sigh. Ryan sat down next to her, though he refrained from saying any of his usual snark. 'With the death of Victor and the knowledge that the destruction of my home is near...'

"Will you just tell me the problem already?" Ryan asked.

'When I came into existence, I had a vision,' the silver mare said as she looked off into the green sun. 'That my world would face destruction from an unstoppable foe. The only way to save my world and all the other ones that would be affected is if I gathered six champions who were worthy of a power to fight the darkness. However, after getting five of them the sixth one died in battle with Sombra while I was held off by another.'

"First question. Why not just tell the princesses or whoever runs your world the problem and get them to help?" Ryan asked, but he got the silver mare to snicker by saying that.

'I have tried, but unfortunately a vision can be interpreted different ways,' she said with a sad shake of her head. 'And it seems that Teth believes that the vision meant that I am trying to destroy the world he protects, meaning that he now hunts me as I try to complete my plan. And he has more than enough power to destroy me.'

"Second question. What do you mean your reckoning?" Ryan asked. The silver mare's response was to remove her hood so that her mane flowed down, but it also allowed Ryan to see that bits and pieces of her were missing.

'The sphere that gives me the magic that I need to remain alive was damaged in a battle with...someone far stronger than me, meaning that it is running out of power,' she said sadly as she looked over the horizon again. 'I do not know how much longer I have, but I know that it is not that long.' Ryan let out a sigh as he leaned back and looked up at the sky before he stood up and shrugged.

"Alright, I’ll help" he said, causing the silver mare to look up at with what he hoped was confusion on her emotionless face. "Once I save this world, if I can save it and if I live, then I’ll come help out. You saved my ass on a number of occasions and I always repay my debts. But first I need to help this one if I can. If you want to aid me it would be appreciated." Ryan turned and began to pick up his supplies, the silver mare getting to her hooves.

'Just like that? Are you certain that you don't need time to think about it?' she asked.

"Like I said, I repay my debts," he said as he finished packing up. "Besides, if I don't you'll probably just throw me into another tree or into the sun. Speaking of sun, what happened here? I heard from the gods something about Discord, but I have no idea who that is. You got any idea?"

'Discord is a god of chaos, though depending on the reality he can be good or evil,' the silver mare explained. 'From what I see of this world, it seems that he is evil and needs to be stopped.'

"Great. You know I never thought I would see the day were an ancient deity like yourself would ask for my help."

'I'm twenty three, not ancient.'

"The gods also said something about rescuing the princess of the night, which probably means that we have to save Luna," Ryan muttered as he climbed up a tree to see Canterlot, frowning as he saw that it was surrounded in a sphere of fire and magic. "And I am not going to be able to get through that. Any ideas."

'That I can more than help you with,' the silver mare said as she began to glow with power. 'Please remove your magical protection.' Ryan did so with a sigh, knowing what was coming. He was right as a flash of silver went off and he felt like he was being ripped apart before being reassembled. The moment it ended he found a corner of whatever room he was in to throw up, the silver mare shaking his head at Ryan as he did so. 'Again, you have the least resistance to magic I have seen.'

"Whatever, where are we?" he asked weakly as he looked around, seeing a large number of cells that went on for a while. "Oh great, in order to save the princess I had to go where she was trying to throw me. So why is she in her own dungeon if my assumption is right and that's where we are?"

'I believe that she being kept here by Discord, though I have no idea why,' the silver mare said before she looked at the roof with a bit of worry. 'We should find her quickly, I do not wish to battle with Discord again. Shall we?' Ryan nodded as he moved as silently through the cells as he could, surprised that most of them were empty until he and the mare came to the last one, where they found the princess of the night laying on her side as she stared out the window.

"Rise and shine princess," Ryan said as he hit the cell bars with his baton, causing the princess to shoot up as she turned around to face him. He noticed that she had a strange device on her horn and he assumed that was what was keeping her in the cell.

"You?" she asked with more confusion than rage, though Ryan was fully aware of the rage in her voice. "What are you doing here human? Come to gloat over seeing me like this?"

"Nah...Okay, just a bit," Ryan said as he made a face at her before looking down at the lock that he assumed was magic based. He bashed it once with his armband to get rid of any magic before he hit it a few times with his baton. When that didn't work he looked to the mare, who burned it off with a blast of fire. "Thanks, I was starting to look bad there."

"Why are you helping me and who are you talking to?" Luna asked him as she walked cautiously out of her cell. Ryan looked down at the mare and figured that she was pulling her invisibility trick, causing him to roll his eyes.

"I'm talking to an invisible pony that enjoys making me look like a fool," Ryan responded, causing Luna to raise an eyebrow at him.

'Just a bit.'

"And why I'm busting you out should be obvious," Ryan said as he aimed his baton at the metal on Luna's horn, knocking it off with a well-aimed shot. "Your world is falling to chaos and neither of us wants that. Now you can beat the crap out of me if you want or we can save your home and then you can kick the crap out of me." Luna looked at him for a moment with sheer confusion on her face before she shook her head at him.

"You are insane," she muttered.

"That is the correct answer," Ryan said with a smirk. "So, why are you the only one in a dungeon? You have a sister or did Discord not believe her to be a threat?" Luna lowered her head as Ryan said this and he bit his lip, figuring that the worse had happened.

"No, he...he has turned her to his side with his magic," Luna said with a sad sigh, which actually comforted Ryan a bit since he had thought Celestia was dead. "The reason that I am in here is because he wanted to do the same to me when he had gathered enough power to do so."

'Then we should leave,' the silver mare said to Ryan, who nodded in response.

"Alright then, we should probably leave," Ryan said to the princess, who smirked as she shook her head.

"There is no way out, Discord has placed a barrier around the city that...wait a moment, how did you get through the barrier to begin with?" Luna asked him, just now realizing what he had done. Ryan smirked at her before he jerked his thumb down to an empty space next to him.

"Remember that silver pony that you called me crazy for talking about?" Ryan asked as silver energy began to surround the both of them, causing Luna to look at the energy in shock as Ryan simply laughed at the look on her face. "Now I might be out of my mind, but I'm not hallucinating just yet. Come on, let's go beat chaos." The silver energy completely consumed the two of them at this point and they all vanished, leaving the chamber empty.

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"I will admit that I have never seen anypony have that kind of reaction to magic," Luna muttered once Ryan was done emptying his stomach before she looked down at the silver mare standing next to her, not sure if she believed she was real. Luna could see her, but she felt otherworldly, like something that wasn't supposed to exist but did. "Well, now that we are out of the castle, do you have a base of operation that you can take us to? Like where you have been staying?"

"I've been living in a hole in a wall for the past months," Ryan said to her with a smile, surprising Luna. "But I do have an ally that might help us...or she might curb stomp me. We'll see how she's feeling." He turned and headed into the Everfree forest, Luna following behind him with shock at how easily he navigated the woods that confused many a pony.

'You would do well not to underestimate humans,' the silver mare said to her without moving her mouth, creeping out Luna. 'They might not all have the same magical power as you or wings like the pegasi, but they are very good at staying alive. And those are the ones without powers like yours...or greater.'

"Are you speaking of yourself?" Luna asked her as Ryan got bitten by a giant Venus flytrap. "You are not exactly a weakling either...in fact, I have no idea what you are supposed to be. You are not living, yet you live."

'Heh, if you can call this living,' the silver mare said with a shake of her head as Ryan fought his way out of the plants mouth, beating it back with his baton before he flipped Luna and the mare off. 'No, I can assure you that I am mostly dead. Only my soul lives on in this body and even then I am not certain that I am alive.'

"Can we save the am I a real boy talk for later?" Ryan asked. "Kinda have a world to save. It's not even my world and yet I'm putting more effort into this than both of you. Come on, we're nearly there." The two followed him without another word, but to Luna's surprise she found herself at a small hut in the center of the forest. Ryan raised his hand to knock before he stopped and looked back to them. "Now both of you be careful. She is very dangerous."

And with that warning he knocked on the door.

The Six Agents of Chaos

"Hello again Zecora," Luna said with a smile when the zebra opened to door, Zecora smiling up at Luna as she moved to the side to allow the three of them inside. The silver mare gave Zecora a look as she passed, still not liking the fact that the zebra could see through her strongest spells.

"Hello there, princess of the night," Zecora greeted back as the three entered, Ryan surprised to see that Lyra was sitting in Zecora's hut as well. "I probably shouldn't ask if everything is alright. The clouds in the sky act of their own accord, which can only be the cause of the annoyance Discord?"

"You have nailed the problem yet again my friend," Luna said with a sigh as she sat down on a chair that Zecora provided for the princess, Ryan looking from her to Zecora with a raised eyebrow.

"You two actually know each other? And here I thought that you had no friends." Luna chuckled a bit at the string of insults Ryan said to Zecora as he clutched the back of his head, Zecora smiling as well as she leaned her staff back up against the wall.

"Yes, I often come to her for advice when I am dealing with a problem that I do not know the answer to," Luna said with a sad look as she looked out Zecora's window to see buildings floating off in the distance. "In fact human, you were the most recent problem that had to come see Zecora for advice. She told me that if I was patient enough that you would come to us eventually, which you did so not too long ago."

"Wait a minute, you're the reason that they set up that trap for me in the first place?" Ryan asked Zecora in disbelief

"I simply said if they baited you would come."

"I'ma gonna kill you zebra!" Luna prepared to help Zecora fight off the human, but she disposed of him so quickly and efficiently that all she could do was look down at the crumpled body of who she used to consider a dangerous threat.

"I'm glad to see that at least a few of my subjects made it away safely," Luna said as she looked over at Lyra, who looked from the human picking himself off the floor to the princess. "I had thought that all ponies of Equestria had fallen to the Chaos Elements spell, but how did you manage to escape?"

"Honestly your highness, it's because I was here with Zecora when the whole thing happened," Lyra said. "I could see Discord and the Elements using their power on the land, but for some reason neither he nor they came to the Everfree forest. I just assumed it was because that they didn't care about the creatures or Zecora living here. Ryan, are you alright?" Lyra asked the human as he finally got vertical.

"Please, I've gotten used to having my ass kicked by everything in this world," Ryan grumbled as he looked at the princess with a smirk. "Actually princess, I've been beaten up by a regular pegasi and by a tiny fairy, yet you and your sister are the only beings that haven't beaten me yet. Heh, guess you're not so powerful after all."

"If you wish to hit him, be my guest," Zecora said as she hoofed out tea to all of her guests. "It is a great way to relieve stress."

"You're a shitty teacher, you know that?" Ryan asked her with a growl. "And that wasn't exactly a rhyme."

"Do I have to get the staff back out?" Zecora retorted as both Ryan and Zecora started to fight again while Luna watched, the last piece of the puzzle falling into place for her. She had wondered for a while how the human had managed to survive the Everfree forest for so long by himself, without heading into Ponyville for supplies and food. He would probably have died a long time ago if it hadn't been for Zecora's kindness.

"Ryan," Luna said, causing both Ryan (who was in an armbar) and Zecora to look over at her. "I believe that is what Lyra called you. Is that your name?" The look Ryan gave Lyra confirmed this for the princess. "Do not worry. I Pinkie promise that I will not reveal your name to another unless I have your permission. But what I wanted to ask you was what is your plan for dealing with the Elements of Chaos? Ryan kicked Zecora off of him as he stood up, frowning as he rested against the wall.

"Honestly, I'm not that certain what we're going to do," Ryan muttered. "I don't know these ponies or what strengths or weaknesses that they have. More information on them would be nice, but right now my biggest concern is where did they go? When Twilight was blasting me apart she mentioned about how Ponyville was now hers."

"That is where I can help." Luna created a map with a frown, showing six separate areas of what Ryan assumed was Equestria. "While I was confined by my own dungeon, that infernal Discord came to my cell and bragged about how he converted the Elements to his side. He then went on to say how each one of them had taken a separate section of Equestria to spread his chaos, meaning that they have spread out across the land."

'So we know where they are, but there is still the issue of mo...Celestia.' Lyra fell out of her chair as the silver mare seemed to materialize out of nowhere, getting a chuckle out of Ryan before Luna spoke.

"My sister was the first one corrupted by Discord's power. She has placed all of Canterlot under her control and now she rules over it as the Solar Empress." Luna looked away with tears in her eyes while Ryan looked at the map and took a closer look at the six separate areas, each of which had an Element matching to its wielder.

"We should liberate Ponyville first," Ryan said with a nod as he looked at the others. "Twilight, according to the little I know about her, is the strongest magically of the group and we could use someone like her on our side."

"Yet as the strongest, you do know that she will be the hardest opponent to fight?" Luna asked, Ryan smirking as he pulled out the twin golden batons that caused the ponies around him to back away.

"Please, I've got the gods on my side for once. There's little chance that I can lose to anypony now," he said with a grin, before Zecora cleared her throat and gave him a look. "I said anypony, not zebra. We all know that you'd win, so stop bringing it up."

"Then we have a plan, but in their corrupted state I'm not sure if the Elements will go easy on us," Luna said as she stood up. "We cannot hold back against them though. Everything depends on whether we can defeat them and restore Harmony back to the land of Equestria."

"Fine with me, I still owe Twilight for trying to tie me up when I got chased out of the village," Ryan said with a smirk as he placed the batons back in his bag. Zecora took up her staff again and added a number of vials off her shelves to her repertoire, but Lyra remained seated with a nervous look.

"I might just stay here." All eyes turned to her and she lowered herself a bit under the others looks. "I mean, I'm not powerful like Luna and I can't fight like Zecora. I don't even know who the silver pony is, but I know that she's powerful. And I can't take a beating like Ryan." Ryan grumbled about how that was the only skill others spoke of when they talked about him. "I feel like I'd just hinder everypony in this battle."

"Probably would. Let's go."

"Just because you cannot fight does not me you cannot aid us in our plight," Zecora said to Lyra with a comforting smile while Ryan hopped up and down holding his foot, swearing at the zebra. "We will need all the help we can get if Discord we are to restrain. We all fight for the same cause, even if some of us are a pain."

"You want pain? Try having your everything broken by a crazy zebra."

'As much as I enjoy watching this spectacle, I believe that it is time we made a plan,' the silver mare interjected. The other members of the group agreed and they all gathered around her. 'Luna, out of all of us you know the best about this worlds Twilight. Please tell us what she's like.'

"Great, they're all rhyming now. Just tell us her strengths without using similar sounding words."

"I can do better than that, I can also tell you her few weaknesses," Luna said with a smile. "And they are fairly easy to exploit."

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This was not how Ponyville was supposed to look. Despite having been there only a few times and spent most of those times running for his life, Ryan could tell that this wasn't how things were supposed to be. The streets were empty, even though there were ponies walking down them. But there was no one home. Ryan considered the streets empty even with the ponies, because they barely made a difference.

"How could this have happened in such a short time?" Luna whispered to herself, Ryan able to hear the sadness in her voice. He could feel his own rage boiling a bit at this site. These ponies were innocent, having done nothing to evoke the pain that had been brought down upon them. Humanity had sealed their fate long ago, but the ponies...they still had a chance to live.

"It doesn't matter how it happened, all that matters is that we put a stop to it," Ryan said with little emotion, steeling himself as he walked past Derpy, the same pony that had given him the armor he wore under his jacket. He never really repaid her for doing that and Ryan hated not repaying his debts. 'This can be how I do it. By saving her and the rest of this land.'

"We know where she will be, but I see she has made some improvements to her tree." The group looked to where Zecora was pointing to find that their task had just gotten a lot more difficult. The tree that used to be the library was now a massive castle, with books flying around it as if they were birds of the skies and spell potions walked around with a broom, reminding Ryan of a movie he had seen a long time ago.

"With Discords power flooding through her along with her own Element she will be even stronger than before," Luna said as she looked back at her group. "If any of you do not wish to undertake this task, I am more than willing to face this trial by myself. It is my fault that I could not stop Discord in the first place, so I should be the one to pay."

"And give Discord another alicorn to turn even evil? No thanks, I'm already dreading the fight that I'll have with your sister," Ryan said as he walked by her with a antagonist smirk, causing Luan to flair her nostrils as she and the others followed him up to the gates of the library castle. Ryan placed a hand against the door and was throw backwards by a sudden gust of magic, the silver mare moving to the side so he wouldn't hit her as he fell.

"Alright, which one of you has the magic hocus pocus that's going to get us through this door?" Ryan asked as he pulled his body off the ground.

'I believe this is where I can help.' The silver mare glowed with a power of the unknown as she placed a hoof against the door, sending her own spells spiraling up the gate as they cast off the enchantments that had been placed upon it. She turned back to the group with a hidden smile as a creaking could be heard and the gates began to raise themselves, allowing the five to enter the castle as each of them prepared for battle in their own way.

"So this is what it would look like if these cute and cuddly creatures went bat shit crazy," Ryan said as a number of dancing candlesticks marched by him and upon one of those sticks he burned his foot when he tried to walk past.

"I never imagined that she had such a side," Luna muttered allowed as her eyes looked around the room in awe, seeing ponies from all over taking the flying books out of the air and placing them in bookshelves that reached the roof. Parchments flew back and forth across the room as the group moved on, Luna discovering that they held instructions to be carried out by the ponies and all of them were signed by Empress Sparkle. "Or that she had such a huge obsessions with books and order."

"We should probably tread lightly. Upsetting one of these might prove unsightly," Zecora warned the group as she gently moved around a shelf that was in the center of the room, the others doing the same despite Ryan's sudden urge to kick it over. Ryan spotted among the hypnotized ponies the dragon known as Spike, who was lifting far more than he should have been able to as he moved books to another section of the castle.

"Is...Is this where Twilight is?" Lyra stammered as they all spotted the gargantuan doors that had magnificent carvings on the front that showed images of Twilight in all of her glory, with the other three princesses under her hooves as she lifted both the sun and the moon.

"Man does she have an ego."

"There is a key hole here, but I spy no key far or near," Zecora muttered as she pointed out the hole in the moon. "What do you think, oh silver one. Can you undo what her magic has done?"

'I am...not certain,' the mare said as she approached the door and placed her hoof against it, channeling her magic into the door but found that this one resisted with far greater force than the previous one had. 'I do not know if I possess the destructive magic necessary to break through these enchantments.'

"Stand back everyone, I believe that I've got just the thing," Ryan said as he pushed past the ponies, taking off his armband and spinning it around his finger as he showed the glowing gold item to the others. "The gods that kidnapped me said that they upgraded all of my tools with super magic, so I bet that I can use this to fuck up whatever spells that unicorn is using. Stand back!" He drove the armband into the lock as he said this and a loud shattering sound could be heard as the magic barrier shattered. Ryan took a step back to admire the destruction before the twin doors slowly creaked open, revealing a blinding light that cast itself down upon the group.

"Oh, it seems that I have visitors," the voice said from the other room, but all of those who heard it knew who it belonged to immediately. Yet it sounded slightly different than the Twilight they were used to, for this voice sounded more demented, more like Ryan when he lost his mind. "I apologize for not cleaning up, but I thought that all of you were already under my control. But we can fix that right away. Please," she said as a staircase descended down in front of the group that led up into the light. "Step into the light."

"I hope you realize that when we get up there you're in for one hell of an ass kicking!" Ryan yelled up, only to be met with an insane cackle that echoed throughout the entire castle. Once the laugh died down the five began to climb the stairs, while Twilight allowed one last sentence to echo across her castle.

"You are welcome to try."

Magic Undone

The group looked up at the unicorn sitting upon her throne made of books with each of them thinking along different lines. Some of them thought of a friend who had fallen to the power of chaos and how they did not want to do this. One of them saw her as a sister that she had not talked to in so long, but couldn't say anything. And one of them only thought of how much of a pain this fight against her was going to be.

"I am surprised to see that master Discord let you out of his cell," Twilight said to Luna as she flicked her tail, her eyes glued to the book she was reading. Ryan didn't waste any time in drawing his weapons and taking a step forward, but a shriek rose to the skies as hundreds of books shot off of the shelves and began to encircle the group, Twilight sighing as she looked up from her book. "Now look what you've done. Do you know how long it takes to get those back on the shelves after they've ripped a pony to shreds?"

"Twilight, please. This is not you," Luna said as she tried to reason with Twilight, but all her words did was make her the target of the books. The most eager of the books that attacked first were struck down by both Ryan and Zecora, the zebra fighting off the other books while Ryan looked back at Luna with a smirk.

"You really think that talking to her and telling her that this isn't her is going to snap her out of it?" Ryan asked as he spun and turned two books to ash with the lightning that came from the batons. "I've seen this situation plenty of times and only one thing is going to snap her out of it. Placing my foot in her face."

"I really do not wish to do this," Twilight said as she whistled, the books ceasing their attack as they flew over to Twilight where they rested around her while making odd sounds. "You could all just surrender."

"Just shut up and fight!" Ryan roared as he charged at the pony, leaping into the air as he went to strike her down. Twilight laughed as a shield of violet light intercepted the humans strike, but to both groups surprise the shield shattered from the twin baton strike, through Ryan did go tumbling to the floor.

"How can this be?!" Twilight screamed as she shot into the air to get away from the human who was pulling his head out of a pile of books. "My power comes from my Element AND the power of chaos! How can you break it with such ease?!" Ryan didn't reply as he went on the attack again, but Twilight's horn glowed as she shot her magic all around her. Thousands of pieces of paper began to swirl around them as if they were in a storm before the unicorn looked down at them with oddly colored eyes. "Very well then. I will put you all down myself."

"Try it!" Ryan yelled before he took a dictionary to the face that sent him sprawling. Zecora laughed as she used him as a springboard to propel herself into the air, bouncing from book to book as she charged at the unicorn. Twilight began to open fire with a number of spells that even Luna hadn't seen, yet Zecora managed to deflect the attacks of evade them with her staff.

"Come now Twilight, is this all you can do?" Zecora asked as she propelled herself off of a tome and struck at Twilight who defended herself with a barrier that cracked from the blow. "Then it will not take long before you are through," Zecora said with a crazy laugh as she rolled down to the ground.

"I am the strongest and most talented unicorn in all of Equestria!" Twilight roared as she unleashed hellish magic upon the group, Zecora flipping as she avoided the fire balls while Ryan took shelter behind his armband. Luna found that her own magic was not doing much in holding back Twilight and she knew that it was time for her to enter the battle. "No other pony is as skilled as me!"

"Are you certain of that Twilight?" Twilight turned to receive a blast of lunar energy that introduced her face to a bookshelf. Twilight turned around with wrath in her eyes as she looked to the lunar mare, who gazed down with regal power in her eyes as well as dark magic swirling around her horn. "Last time I checked the princesses were the strongest in this land."

"Well then, I suppose that I'll have to get rid of those princesses!" Twilight roared as she flung herself at the princess. Luna summoned her magic as she prepared to clash with a pony close to her, but before either could cast a spell Twilight took a human to the side of the head. The pair crashed to the ground though Ryan had the good sense to roll before he could break anything.

"DAMMINT ZECORA! When I said to throw something at her I didn't mean use me!" Ryan yelled at the zebra as he resumed his attack, Twilight creating another barrier to deflect the twin baton strikes. But just like before the godly magic that flowed through the sticks shattered the magic that Twilight used, allowing Ryan to strike her in the side of the head. "Alright, the gods said that I just had to hit her with these and it should get rid of the chaos...I think?" He struck Twilight in the head again for good measure and looked down at her as he waited to see the results.

"RRRRAAAAHHHH!"

"Shit." An explosion of purple magic shot into the air that blew all of the ponies off of their hooves, while the force of the blast sent Ryan crashing into a bookshelf and to the floor, where all the volumes of Daring Do buried him alive. "Ugh....well once again the gods have screwed me and their damned weapons only succeeded in pissing her off," Ryan growled as he destroyed the great works to escape their pages, looking up at the glowing unicorn who now had wings made of what looked like broken and discolored stain glass.

"You will all pay!" Twilight roared as she let her magic shoot into the sky and a corrupted crown descended from the shattered skyline. Her power seemed to increase when the crown rested upon her head and she turned her chaotic eyes towards the human, who slowly placed his back against the bookshelf as his mind prepared mentally for the pain he was going to have to endure. Twilight unleashed the fury of magic corrupted towards the human, who was sure he would have died on the spot if a bolt of silver had not taken hold of floor beneath him and yanked him out of the side.

'You still alive?' the silver mare asked Ryan as he shot back up to his feet, giving her a quick nod before watching as Luna and Zecora engaged the corrupted unicorn. 'I see that Discord has corrupted the Element itself. That must be how he is controlling them, by using their Elements.'

"Alright, then I know what to aim for," Ryan said as he looked to the mare. "I need you to use your power to blast Twilight out of the air and while she's down I'll take out her Element."

'I cannot.'

"Bull, you kick the crap out of me on a regular basis," Ryan snarled as he glared at her while Luna was introduced to Twilight's Star-Swirl novels. "Why can't you use your godly powers to knock her ass out so I can get close?"

'Because my power can mostly only be used for creation or helpful purposes, not destruction,' the silver mare replied with bitterness in her voice at her own powerlessness. 'I can use my magic offensively but even when I used it at full power all it did was knock Hulk over, barely even hurting him. At her current level it will at most only annoy Twilight.' Ryan growled at her as he looked back up at Zecora holding her own against the unicorn, trying to think up a new plan while contemplating what she meant by "Hulk".

"Then I guess we have to go with the tried and true method of getting close," Ryan began as he slipped off the magic protector and mentally braced himself for a world of hurt. "Throw me." The silver mare picked him up without a moment's hesitation, aiming him right at the crown. "Whoa, aren't you supposed to try and talk me out of this or offer to do it yourself?!"

'I'm just following your lead!' the silver mare yelled as she flung the human with all of her magical might towards the unicorn, chuckling to herself at the string of obscurities that Ryan got off before he was out of earshot. He growled as he aimed both batons at Twilight's crown and bit down as he prepared to strike.

"Yo crazy!" he yelled, getting Twilight to turn around. "Eat shit you-" His words were cut off as Twilight levitated two giant dictionaries and sandwiched Ryan in between the both of them, the group all wincing at the impact as the human's broken body fell to the ground below. Twilight let out an insane laugh as she summoned a swarm of quills that tried to bury themselves in the skulls of her opposition. While Luna shielded Lyra and Zecora, the silver mare retrieved the broken human and brought him behind Twilight's giant diary for protection.

'What's broken?' the mare asked as she scanned his body, whistling at the damage and the fact that he was still among the land of the living.

"My everything is broken! You threw me face first into two of the biggest books she had," Ryan growled despite the pain. "Work on your aim!"

'Well you have broken everything except you jaw. Pity,' the silver mare said as she used her glowing magic to repair all of Ryan's bones, though he noticed that while she did this her form began to flicker wildly and she grunted when she finished.

"Something the matter with you?"

'Remember that power I told you about that can only heal?' she asked as her form continued to appear and vanish. 'It seems that soon I won't be able to do even that.'

"Great, so you can go sit with Lyra in the useless corner over there," Ryan said with a smirk before gazing upon the destructive force that was tossing books at them while cackling menacingly, Luna doing all she could to avoid being overwhelmed and Zecora protected Lyra from the great works of literature. "She's far too focused now. I don't think that I'm going to be able to sneak up on her and my magic armband won't protect me from War and Peace. What to do?"

'Perhaps there is a way we can distract her?' the silver mare suggested as comic book characters began to leap off their pages and come rushing at the group. 'This Twilight is a bit different from the one I grew up knowing, so I'm not sure what worked on her will work here. Do you have any ideas?' Ryan and the mare both began to fend off the characters while Ryan's brain scrambled to come up with an idea that wouldn't end in books.

'Wait a second,' he thought to himself as he looked up at the books that Twilight was using, noticing how despite her using them as weapons she still placed the back on her shelves with loving attention when she was done with them. His evil side surfaced and a wicked smile broke out across his face as the perfect distraction appeared in his brain. "Hold her off, I think I know what will rustle her feathers."

"Where is he going?" Luna asked when the silver mare brought the fight over to her so the both of them could combine their strengths against the forces.

'He said that he had a plan, so for now I guess with have to trust him,' the silver mare replied. The pair fought off the comics as best as they could, but it was clear that they were simply both outmatched by the numbers and Twilight's own power. Twilight descended upon them with her magical might, ensnaring the two of them within the pages of one of her spell books, where she used her magic to keep them bound with words.

"Do you fools see now, my chaos is absolute," Twilight said with mirth as she floated Zecora and Lyra over as well, both of them have caught in the pages between cheesecake and chocolate pudding recipes. "But where is that annoying human?...and why do I smell smoke."

"Hey Twilight!" Twilight and the others all turned their heads towards the voice, where they found the human standing like a king on top of a large pile of books...that were on fire. So was everything else behind them. "You see all those books that you loved and cherished? WELL I SET THEM ALL ON FIRE!" It took a moment for the image to register with Twilight but then with a shriek of a mother going to rescue her children she flung herself towards the books, firing extinguishing spells everywhere while Ryan cackled maniacally.

While she was distracted, Ryan raced over to the others and did his best to free them from the horrible trap of literature, though great works had always been a weakness of his. Only when he erased most of the sentence with strikes from his batons did the words finally let up and he was able to help the others escape.

"How did you manage to do that so fast?" Zecora asked him as she helped to free the others.

"Apparently the batons shoot lightning when I put them together," Ryan said with very crazy eyes as he combined them and allowed lightning to shoot from his batons, tearing up more of the library to Twilight's dismay. "Guess I finally have something to one up you with, eh Zecora?"

"I suppose that I should say wow. Maybe you can last five seconds now!" Ryan snarled at her faked enthusiasm and found it more insulting than her actually insults. He turned his focus towards Twilight instead of continuing his argument with the zebra since he could feel the waves of hatred washing over him and from the look Twilight was giving him she wouldn't stop at just killing him.

"You. Will. Pay," Twilight whispered with venom dripping from every word.

"Only got ten bucks on me. Will that be enough?" Ryan replied with his usual snark, enraging the unicorn even further. With a scream that would shake demons to their core she flung herself at the human, tearing out chunks of the ground as she used herself like a ballistic missile. The silver mare teleported the group out of Twilight's war path (except for Ryan who had to throw his own ass to the side) and reappeared in time to watch her bring down a wall with her own body. "What's the matter, you seem like you're burning up. Almost like you're on fire." Twilight must have taken those words to heart because with a scream of fury she erupted into a hellish fire the disintegrated all objects around her. Ryan was able to feel the heat generated as she pierced him with her eyes, making him feel like he would burst into flames at any moment. But instead of crippling him like the flames once did, his eyes instead lost some focus and a wide smile grew on his face.

"Can you please stop taunting the insane, chaos driven pony?!" Lyra yelled at him as Twilight let out another shriek.

"I make no promises." Twilight howled with rage as she concentrated her magic into her horn, causing most of the group to gasp as they same tendrils of flames emerge from the bodies of all the ponies around them and gravitate to her horn, as if she was drawing in their power to use as her own. A sphere of boiling magic began to take shape on the edge of her horn and she threw her head back as the death ball grew larger and larger.

"What magical power," Luna whispered with dread as she realized what that amount of magic would do to all of them. "That is beyond anything that I can muster. That-"

"Is my moment! Now!" he yelled to the silver mare as he flung himself into the air, the mare catching him with her magic before hurling the human towards the crazed unicorn with incredible speed. Ryan drew both of his stun batons and aimed them right at the crown on Twilight's head, smirking as the unicorn realized what was happening but knew she could do nothing as all her effort was in her spell. So with a cry of victory Ryan drove both batons into the crown, smiling as the dark energy surrounding it shattered and revealed a glowing crown beneath. Then everything exploded. Flashes of energy shot off in every direction as Twilight screamed, the chaotic energy being expelled from her body and from the land around her. Ryan crashed into a book shelf in a piled heap, but the room around the group began to spin as chaotic magic exploded all around them.

'Get close to me!' the silver mare yelled as she threw up a barrier around the group, her silver energy barely able to withstand the sheer amount of chaos that battered against it. When all of the magic had died down the group saw that Ponyville had returned to its normal state, with the ponies that had been mind controlled looking around with confusion. Luna and Lyra walked over to where Twilight was laying on the ground, both of them letting out sighs of relief when they saw she was safe.

'We need to move,' the silver mare said as she and Zecora walked over with Ryan's body dropping over her back. 'Discord will have felt that and if I know him he will hunt us down immediately, not stopping until he has destroyed us.'

"Then you must not know Discord as well as we do," Luna said as she looked around at the still confused citizens, wishing she could stay to protect them but Discord had already corrupted her sister, so Luna was certain he could do the same to her if he chose so. She needed to focus on getting the other Elements back. "We need to move though," Luna agreed as she lifted up Twilight and placed her on her back. She then picked up the Element off of the ground before she turned and headed toward the edge of town. "There is a secret place that we can get something that will be of use to us. But we must move."

'Lead the way.' The group followed after Luna as she walked them out of the town, the silver energy that surrounded her told Luna that the mare was masking their presences. While they walked she looked down at the sack of human Zecora was carrying, unable to figure him out at all. He avoided the ponies for pretty much half a year and when they did come into contact he constantly said how much he despised them and wanted nothing to do with them. Yet here he was, risking everything to help them despite having no reason to.

'You are a strange on human,' she thought to herself. 'But I am glad you are on my side.'

The Mare Under The Cloak

The first thing Twilight saw when she awakened from what she hoped was a bad dream was a starry sky, but the stars were dancing around in very odd ways that told her that had been no dream. She groaned and sat up as she rubbed her head, opening her bleary eyes to see the princess of the night, Lyra and Zecora all sitting on what looked like a deck while looking at her.

"Princess Luna?" Twilight asked in confusion as she looked around at where she was, gasping as she saw three massive balloons keeping a very advanced piece of technology afloat. Two of the balloons rested under the ship while the third was tethered to the ship above her head. A quick look around at the white metal and oak wood that formed the deck she now rested upon told her that she was on a very advanced sky ship. "W-where am I? Where's Discord? The last thing in remember was-"

"Do not worry Twilight, you are safe now," Luna said in a comforting tone as she outstretched a hoof for the shaken unicorn to grab hold of, helping her to her hooves while Twilight looked around the deck with some confusion in her face. "This is a secret skyship that was only known to my sister and myself, as it was only to be used in case of emergency. It is completely undetectable by magic, making it very useful against one like Discord. Here," Luna said as she offered Twilight her Element, Twilight taking it with growing confusion.

"How did you get it back?" Twilight asked Luna once she had looked it over carefully to make sure that all of the chaotic magic had been expelled from it. "Discord took control of me and the other Element's with our own power. How did you manage to get rid of the chaotic energy and free me from his control? Did you and Celestia do it?"

"You might think us full of baloney, but your savior wasn't a pony," Zecora said with her crypticness, giving Twilight a moment's pause as she tried to unravel who could have aided her. Her was light up with shock when she figured it out and Zecora confirmed her thoughts when she nodded as Twilight looked over at her.

"The human?" Twilight asked with sheer disbelief in her voice, unable to process what Zecora had told her. "The same human that beat up Rainbow Dash, used a number of odd items to escape us from both Ponyville and Canterlot and set fire to my library?! That same human?!"

"Wow, didn't expect you to remember anything about being under Discord's spell, but she remembers the library alright," Lyra said with a whistle.

"I doubt that even a mind wipe could get rid of that image from her mind," Luna said as she looked down at Twilight, who was still not sure she believed what Luna was telling her. "Twilight, I know that this must be hard to process right now, but if had not been for the human, who I promised not to name, I would be under Discord's spell as well and so would you. I do not know for certain why he has chosen to help us, but he says that he wants our world to be safe."

"But how can we trust him?! We know practically know nothing about him!" Twilight exclaimed as she paced back and forth fast enough to burn a hole in the deck. "I need to talk to him. Where is he?"

"He is below deck," Lyra said. "But he's asked none of us to see him. I think that he's getting his bones reset again or something along those lines. You kinda broke him with a pair of dictionaries." Twilight looked horrified at those words and she promised them to wait until the human came back up before she interrogated him.

"You suck at this!" Ryan roared with a growl as pain coursed through his body, a couple of broken ribs that had been set wrong being the perpetrators. The silver mare zapped him a bit but only got more of his complaining from him. "Seriously, can't you just use the same spell that you've used the past ten times to fix me up?!"

'Maybe if you would stop your bitching for five seconds I could heal you without getting satisfaction from breaking your bones to fix them,' the silver mare replied with heat as she tentatively used her magic to repair his bones, though she had to break a number of ones that had set wrong, which resulted in the hate she was getting now. 'And that magic was a quick heal, which resulted in a number of your bones setting the wrong way. This way might be more painful but it will help you in the long run.'

"Do you think if I whacked you with one of these batons it would expel the stupid from that statement?" The silver mare did her best not to chuckle as she broke another one of his ribs. After another ten minutes of pain and complaining, Ryan sat up and slid his dragon scale vest back on, grumbling to himself about shitty service while he slipped back on his coat. He did his best to make no sound as the silver mare healed up the incision she had made to get to his ribs, not wanting to give her the satisfaction of knowing how much pain he was in. "Where the hell did you learn to be a doctor anyway? I thought that you weren't an all-powerful being?"

'You'd be surprised how little you know about me,' the silver mare replied with a hint of venom as she sat down with a sigh, breathing heavily as her form flickered slightly. 'I may be young, but I have spent most of my time in this form learning all sorts of skill that would be useful to me. From Tenebaum teaching me how to get a handle on my powers to Yoda showing me how to be at peace with what happened to me I have learned a lot. I believe the only thing you have on me is how to get your ass kicked.'

"Everyone always brings that up," Ryan growled bitterly before looking at the mare with a raised eyebrow. "You just said Yoda right, as in the little green guy with the kickass light saber skills?" He frowned a bit when she nodded before lowering his chin to his chest, thinking to himself what that meant. "And you also said something about the Hulk earlier, didn't you? Have you actually met these characters?"

'Just because they are characters in your world does not mean that they are any less real,' the silver mare said as she glided over to him in a stream of silver, getting an eye role from him at her showing off. 'One of my greatest abilities is my power to cross from reality to reality, though I will admit that this takes a great deal of power to do so.' She then gave off a glow that forced Ryan to shield his eyes, but when he could see again he realized that he was looking into a number of portals, each one having a different version of Equestria.

"So just how did you manage to do this?" Ryan asked her as he looked in amazement through the silver portals, seeing humans in some of them while strange beings that he had never seen before resided in others.

'Ironically, I had help from the same beings that gave you those batons,' the mare said as she closed the portals, Ryan looking into one of them for as long as he could, certain that the shadowy creature he had been observing had been looking at him. 'Apparently from what they have told me they are similar to me as they go from reality to reality aiding those who fight for the ponies. Though I never did figure out who they are.' Ryan had lowered his head again as he was lost in thought, before he looked at the mare with a serious expression.

"Just what are you anyway? You said yourself that you're not a god, yet your powers are far beyond anything that I have seen these ponies or even humans achieve," he pointed out, taking note that she hid her head a bit behind her hood as he said this. "Are you some kind of mutant? A force of nature in pony form? I can't figure you out."

'...I am the dead brought back to life,' she said in a near whisper, walking across the metal floor to the windows, which allowed her to gaze out at the dancing stars as memories began to flow through her. 'I died at a young age yet somepony brought me back by infusing my spirit with that of a sacred artifact from my world,' the mare said as she moved her cloak to the side, revealing a silver sphere that glowed with an ethereal power. 'This is the sphere of creation, sister to the sphere of destruction. With this powering me I have the power to create, to aid, at the tips of my hooves. This is what brought me back from the dead.'

"And now it's damaged," Ryan said, the mare nodding in response. 'And now I get what you were saying by your magic couldn't really hurt Twilight. That's the other sphere's job, isn't it?" Once again he got a nod from the mare. "So that sphere alone brought you back from the dead? The sphere of creation has the power to do that?"

'Yes, but the person or being that returns must have the resolve to do so. If not, then even it cannot do anything,' the mare said before lowering her hood, motioning for Ryan to get closer. When he had done so, she moved her mane to the side and allowed Ryan to see the back of her neck, where a single, tiny lightning bolt rested. 'But you are wrong in saying it was the sphere alone. Teth also used a small portion of his magic to bring me back from the dead, though I do not know if that was his intentions.'

"Teth? Don't know who that is," Ryan muttered as he sat down on the cold floor. The mare raised her hood again before looking to Ryan and creating an image out of silver that caused Ryan to back away. It was a man in a full black suit with a golden lightning bolt in the center of his chest, with golden gauntlets and grieves. "Wait...Black Adam?"

'Yes, but to me he will always be Teth,' the mare replied as she dispelled the image. 'He has hunted me ever since he had the same vision I had, the vision that my world will fall to darkness if six champions are not gathered to fight it. He believes me to be that darkness and will not stop till he has killed me. But despite my best efforts to keep him away, he inadvertently killed one of my champions. Now I fear for my home.'

"Wow, seems like an asshole," Ryan said with a smirk, but to his surprise the mare turned towards him with a fury in her normally empty eyes.

'He is a savior who has sacrificed everything to protect my home and a good man, despite what he thinks about me,' she said with a fire in her voice that only faded once Ryan had put up his hands. 'I am sorry about that,' she apologized, Ryan shrugging it off as he looked at her in a whole new light, not sure if he liked what he had learned about her. Having learned about her plight and her desperate gamble to save her world, he now felt guilty for being a dick to her.

"It's weird, I never thought that somepony like you would have so much depth to them," Ryan said with a shrug as he stood up again, looking out the window at the dancing stars. "I thought you were just a cryptic pain that enjoyed messing with me."

'And I must admit that I never thought of you as anything more than an ass,' she replied before turning towards him with what he believed was a smile under her hood. 'But despite you still being that, I see that you have a noble heart that beats within you. If only your mouth was as noble.'

"But then I wouldn't be perfect," Ryan said with a smirk as he headed towards the stairs that lead to the deck.

'Thank you.' Ryan turned back to look at the mare and for a brief moment he thought he could see a radiant smile on her face. 'With all of this mysterious being business it is nice to just...talk to someone again without having to worry about the mysterious mare image. Thank you for being...a friend, I guess.'

"You're welcome," Ryan said before he turned and headed up the stairs, coming out onto the deck to see Twilight waiting for him with a look that said he was in for a world of pain. "Oh do we have to do this now, I just got my bones set back into place," Ryan grumbled as he drew his batons, but Twilight held out a hoof to stop him before he could attack.

"Look, Luna gave me the run down on what happened earlier and...I wanted to thank you," Twilight said begrudgingly. Ryan looked at her with a hint of confusion before he slowly put his batons away. "But now that I've thanked you it's time to talk!" Twilight said with childlike glee as she pulled out a quill and parchment "Hold still!"

"No!" Ryan yelled as he ran for his life, Twilight chasing after him until the two of them were stopped by Luna, who was sitting with Zecora and Lyra at the front of the ship.

"Twilight, please stop with this foolishness," Luna said with a regal tone that caused Twilight to lower her items with a sad sigh while Ryan debated whether he should knock Twilight out now before she had the chance to interrogate him again. "We will need the humans help if we are to defeat the other Elements of Chaos and free my sister. Now look here," Luna said as she created a map with her magic that had six marked areas. "These are where the other Elements of Chaos have taken up refuge. The closest one is Fluttershy, who is now residing in the Forever Forest."

"So the kind, compassionate one is the one we have to go beat up next?" Ryan asked, Luna shaking her head with a bit of sadness.

"I know that it might be hard to fight somepony who is normally so caring, but with the power of chaos-"

"Are you kidding me? I'm an asshole, I have no problem with fighting her," Ryan said with a chuckle that got him looks of rage. "Besides, if the fight with Twilight taught me anything it's that she'll be anything but helpless. If anything, she'll be the most dangerous under the power of chaos. Now if you all excuse me I've had a long day and if I'm going to get beaten up by a peace activist tomorrow, I'm going to need rest." Ryan turned and left all the ponies as he headed below deck, Twilight spitting off the side of the deck once he was out of sight.

"What an egotistical asshole. He really doesn't care what others think." The other ponies were prone to agree but a chuckle from Zecora turned their attention towards her.

"Forgive me for my laugh, but he is nothing but chaff," Zecora said as she looked off towards where Ryan had gone with a more compassionate look than Twilight believe he deserved. "That human has lost so much in his life yet he still chooses to help us with our strife. It is not his battle to fight, but he does so due to him having experienced our blight."

"What do you mean by that Zecora?" Lyra asked. "What do mean experience our blight?"

"That is something he must tell you in his own time, but it is a mountain he has fought hard to climb," Zecora said in her usual cryptic way. "But this is what I will tell you since you have asked. That arrogant, smart ass way of his is nothing more than a mask. Behind that jerkish personality lies a man who is afraid, yet due to his empathy us will he aid. Let me ask you this Twilight. If you were far from home in a land filled with weird creatures that attack with all their might, if they asked you to aid them would you fight?" Twilight opened her mouth to answer before she closed it again slowly. She understood what Zecora was telling her, that the ponies had been less than receptive to him and yet Ryan still chose to fight for them. Yes he was a jerk...but Zecora was indicating that it was only an act.

"There is more to our human friend than meets the eye, huh Zecora?" Luna asked the zebra who was looking out over the land as the forest they were heading to became closer on the horizon.

"There is more to all of us than meets the eye," Zecora said with a wink. "But now we must turn our attentions to our friend who is no longer shy."

"Princess?" Twilight said to Luna softly, waving the princess over to another side of the airship as she rubbed on of her legs while looking at the ground. "What...was I like under Discords power? I want to know so I can get a better gauge of what Fluttershy will be like when we...face her." Luna closed her eyes and sighed softly.

"You were a control freak, forcing everypony in town to bend to your will as you made everything to be in order," Luna said bluntly, pursing her lip when she saw Twilight's horrified expression at her own actions. "But the town is now safe and thanks to...the human you are no longer under Discord's control. Everything will be fine Twilight; you just have to stay strong."

"I guess that we owe the human a lot, don't we?" Twilight bitterly said with a chuckle, not like being in his debt.

"Yes and if we get through this we will have to thank him," Luna said as she looked to the stairs that lead below deck where a solitary figure was adding a new page in his book while updating others, trying his best not to think about what was to come.

Somebody Call PETA

"Jeez, is she always like this or did we catch her on one of her bad days?" Ryan asked with a whistle once he had vaulted himself over the side of the now parked ship, looking around at all of the animals that were doing tasks that humans should be doing with surprise. Some of the smaller ones were working in a group to lift logs and the larger ones were pulling boulders around, but no matter the size or the species Ryan saw one common factor among the animals. They were all terrified.

"This...must be what she has done with her power of chaos," Luna shakily said as the animals continued to work around her, none of them paying any mind to the six strange visitors nor the giant airship that had just landed in the middle of the forest. "It seems that they are so afraid that they dare not deviate from their task, even for a moment."

"Then that can work in our favor. We can move on since from their task they will not waver," Zecora said as she waved a hoof in front of one of the rabbit’s eyes, the creature letting out a squeal before it ran ahead and bumped into another rabbit. The two started bickering, but it was silenced as a horrifying roar rang out over the forest. If someone had told Ryan at that moment the animals were made of stone he would have believed them since he couldn't see one of them breathing, letting alone moving.

"Come on, we need to find Fluttershy," Twilight muttered with some hesitation as she pressed on, the other five silently following her into the forest as some looked back at the stone animals, afraid of what was to come. The forest was nothing like the forest Ryan had spent most of his days in as this one was filled with color and life, with rays of the sun breaking through the branches to make the ground beneath them almost as bright as the sky.

"You know, this would be a really pretty sight if I didn't know that the only thing that awaits me at the end of this is another fight," Ryan said in his joking tone, but most of the group remained silent as the quietly moved on. Ryan kept a close eye on the trees in case Fluttershy had any surprised for them stowed within them, but then he slowly came to the realization that even the trees seemed to bend to her will. 'This one is going to be a lot harder than Twilight was,' he silently thought. 'I know it.'

Ryan watched the branches as he walked by them, each of them reaching out as if they were trying to grab them. A faint breeze whistled through the trees, but it caused a moaning sound to emerge from the trees as if they were warning the group away. Ryan hoped that all of those thoughts were just in his head, because he really didn't want to fight with a tree. The closer they got to the end of the forest Ryan could see that there were less and less animals, telling him that they were going the right way.

"Is she building a statue to herself?" Lyra asked as she spied a wooden structure that looked to be the beginning of a statue of a pony. Ryan and the others looked over at where she was pointing and Zecora let out a dry laugh that was more out of worry than it was amusement.

"She is building more than a statue of herself." Zecora pulled away some of the brush to reveal a whole village that seemed to be devoted to the normally kind pony, where thousands of animals seemed to be working nonstop like slaves under her iron stare. "Come, we need to help her return to her normal self."

"So Twilight was a control freak and Flutters seems to be pure evil," Ryan muttered to himself as he slipped off his backpack and pulled out his guide, gaining Twilight's attention as he cracked it open and added the new information to the tome. "Wonder what the other four will be like?"

"What's that?" Twilight asked him as she tried to angle her neck to gain a glimpse of the pages, but Ryan shielded the pages with his body and pushed her away with his foot.

"Nothing that you need to see," he said as he finished writing quickly and slamming the pages shut, where he looked at Twilight with a smug smile as he put it back in his bag.

"That book contains what he has written about us in the time he has been here," Zecora explained to Twilight while Ryan growled in frustration. "Including who we are and sometimes what we fear. There is even a map of the Everfree, though it's not perfect if he would let you see."

"No, I don't like anyone besides me looking at it, despite all of the times you've stolen it," Ryan growled at her, but another roar put their argument on hold as they each turned towards where the roar had come from.

"We should be getting close to her know," Luna said as they reached a break in the trees. "I can feel Discord's magic from here." Stealth became the groups plan and they silently moved through the thick foliage as they approached the source of the chaotic magic, a magic that sent shivers down Ryan's spine as a clearing began to appear through the brush.

'Let's see what we're up against,' Ryan thought the moment before Luna moved the foliage to the side, revealing a massive area of land that looked to have been excavated by the animals that feared the yellow pony that sat upon an ivory throne. Around her rested a number of chained animals that looked starved, but Ryan's attention was seized by the bear made of stars that guarded her. 'Just what did I miss in a week of being dead?' Twilight narrowed her eyes as she and Luna began to whisper a course of action, but Ryan saw that stealth was going to go out the window when one of the small animals from earlier slowly approached Fluttershy and pointed to their position before scurrying off as fast as it could.

"Welp, time to go with plan A," Ryan muttered to the others as he walked by them into the clearing, doing his best to look strong as he walked into the center of what was certainly a death trap. The animals all around at the edges of the quarry looked down at him as they continued to work, but his eyes only cast themselves upon a single pony even as he heard the others join him.

"Fluttershy, what has happened to you?" Twilight whispered with mortification in her voice as her eyes rested upon the garb that her friend was now wearing. It looked to be made of twigs and leaves of the forest, crafted by the enslaved animals so that she would have a more regal appearance. But Ryan's eyes were immediately drawn to the item on her head, where the corrupted Element rested. Fluttershy let out a mirth filled cackle as she fluttered off her throne, her eyes filled with such cruelty and evil that all except for Ryan and Zecora backed away from her.

"Hello Sparkle," she said with such wicked cruelty and venom dripping from every word, venom that she seemed to savor. "It has been a week since I have seen you last. Not to say that you look any less weak then you did then, you always were a pathetic excuse of a pony. Have to come here to grovel at my hooves or am I finally going to get the chance to put you in your place?"

"Fluttershy...this isn't you," Twilight said with pleading eyes as she looked at her friend for some sort of sign that the kind, caring pony she knew was still in there. "You wouldn't do this to others, let alone small animals. In your right state of mind you wouldn't even be able to conceive such an idea. Please, fight the hold that Discord has on you and be the kind pony I know!"

"Oh Twilight you are such a pathetic, weak pony that I'm amazed that somepony like Discord decided to use you," Fluttershy taunted as she threw her head back and let a laugh loose, slowly lowering her head to look at her friend with a wicked grin. "Chaos has not corrupted me, it has opened my eyes. I now see that I was nothing more than a weakling that relied far too much on others, helpless when I needed to stand up for myself." Fluttershy then looked down at her hoof with a grin that made Twilight shiver to her core. "But now with my power I have tamed this forest. I have-"

"Shut the hell up!" Ryan yelled as he sent a roundhouse straight into the side of the pegases's head the moment she took her focus off the others, knocking both her and her crown to the ground. Ryan leapt into the air as he drew both of his batons and prepared to strike down on the Element, but before the impact a mole burst out of the ground and snatched away the Element, tunneling through the dirt until it had returned the Element to Fluttershy, who was slowly getting to her hooves with malice flashing in her eyes.

"You shouldn't have done that," she said in a quiet tone. A resounding shriek came from all of the animals that had been watching the fight and they all sprinted away from the fight as fast as their wings, legs or others could carry them. She took the Element off of the ground and placed it back on her head as she slowly, deliberately turned to face them. "You will pay for doing that."

"Why? It's your own damn fault," Ryan said with a mischievous smile as he drew both batons and prepared himself to fight. "You're the one who took her eyes off an opponent during a battle. Actually, I think I'm going to do it again just to piss you off."

"Do you think that your petty little insults scare me?" Fluttershy hissed as even the wild cats and the giant bear began to move away from her. "I have the most powerful ability out of all of the Elements. I have...the stare!" As she said this she unleashed her full stare upon the ponies, save for Zecora who looked away at the last second. Twilight, Luna and Lyra were completely engulfed by Fluttershy's eyes and found that they no longer had the will to oppose her. The silver mare was able to resist somewhat due to her magical nature, but she had to force herself to look away as well. That left Ryan, who looked full on into both of Fluttershy's eyes without so much as blinking.

"Is that it?" he asked her after a moment with a scoff, which turned into a smirk when he saw the confusion written on the pegases's face. "Do you think that your...petty, little stare is enough to scare me? I watched my best friend burn to death as my entire world went to hell, which forced me to live on with the guilt of knowing that I was the only survivor and I'm supposed to be scared of a pretty, yellow PEGASUS?! FUCK YOU!" he roared as he turned his baton on and drove it right into the bottom of Fluttershy's jaw, sending electricity coursing through her as she screamed. She would have been defeated on the spot had not one of her battle cats interfered and slashed at Ryan, forcing him to evade it as the others joined the battle. "Fine, I'll take you ALL on!"

"GET HIM! ALL OF YOU!" Fluttershy yelled as one of the cats took her back to her throne. The animals that hadn't ran when she unleashed the stare now entered the battle, outnumbering the group completely. Their fangs glistened with saliva as the cats eyed their prey with hungry eyes, slowly moving forward one powerful leg at a time. The first of the wild beasts sprung forward with a powerful roar only to be swatted away with a precision staff strike. Seeing that the battle had been started, the rest of the large predators entered the battle with glistening fangs and razor sharp claws.

"Never was much of a cat person!" Ryan snarled as he allowed one of the cats to take him down, giving him the chance to place a foot in its gut and sending it sailing past him as he rolled. A roll brought the cat back to its feet and it let a shriek fly as it hurled itself towards the human. A baton between the eyes put an end to the attack and the cat soon found itself writhing in pain as the human drove both batons into its side, waiting until the shrieking stopped before he decided to remove them.

Lyra was fairing far worse than he was. "There are just too many of them! I can't hold them-" Blood sprayed the ground as Lyra turned with a shriek, stunned by the image of Ryan standing over her with blood trickling down his side from where a sneak attack from one of the felines. A sneak attack that was meant for her. "You saved me..."

"No, I just enjoy getting my guts ripped out by giant cats." The remark told Luna that Ryan still had enough will in him to fight as she blasted a number of the hunters off of Twilight. Yet she could see no positive outcome in this battle, as the animals just kept coming and she was afraid that she might have to resort to a more permanent way of keeping them down. That was her plan until a chilling howl echoed throughout the forest; both combatants ceased fighting as they turned to the source of the noise.

"Ah shit," was all Ryan said when he saw what was emerging from the forest. He didn't need to see the wood where fur should have been or crackling sound they made as they prowled forward, like the sounds of twigs snapping underfoot. No the looks they gave him told him that these were wolves he knew all too well. "Come on then, I'll fight all of you!"

'Must you antagonize everything that you come across?'

"It's one of my more charming traits." Going back to back was the only plan the group could think up quickly as the cats backed away at the wolves approaching, both sides hissing and barking at each other. Ryan looked from the wolves to the cats and realized that they just might not be outnumbered anymore. Then he saw the wolf with the pup, the pup he had rescued a while ago. "Well, it's seems that at least one of my good deeds didn't bite me in the ass. Attack my wolf minions!"

With a howl that terrified all animals within hearing distance the Timberwolves lunged for the throats of the cats, who shrieked in rage and anger as they rushed towards their foes. A flash of silver got the group out of the path of the colliding armies, which quickly turned the battlefield bloody as wolf and cat tried to tear each other apart.

"Man, I would watch more nature documentaries if they looked like this. Now then, I believe that we still have to beat you senseless." Fluttershy gave them a glare that would have cowed any animal as she floated down from her throne, looking from the stun batons to Zecora's staff with cautious eyes. "Come on little pony, let's have some fun."

"Deal with him," Fluttershy said to the Ursa behind her, watching Ryan and the others faces with a smirk when she saw all of the confidence drain out of them as the beast rose to its full height. "Still so certain you will win human?"

"So Winnie the Pooh put on a few more pounds. I'm still going smack you upside the head."

"I applaud your confidence, but I am fairly certain that we're in trouble," Luna said as she threw herself into the air while firing barrages of magic into the bears face. The creature roared with rage as it prepared to strike until support from the ground forces distracted it from the flying pony. With narrowed eyes the Ursa looked from Twilight to Luna, letting out a roar before it charged towards the purple unicorn.

Fluttershy laughed with cruel mirth as Twilight let out a shriek and sprinted away as fast as her hooves could carry her, Flutters throwing her head back and cackling as the creature almost caught the unicorn in a few steps. "Yes my pet, rip her apart! All of you shall ob-" Her words along with anything else in her mouth were knocked out of her head as another kick to the side of her skull sent her sprawling to the dirt. With a rage that nopony had seen in Fluttershy she picked her leave filled mane off of the ground and slowly turned her head so her wrath filled eyes could focus on the human, who pointed and laughed at the pony.

"Oh I did it again!" he laughed as Fluttershy picked herself off the ground. "Two times! Man, I really overestimated you when I said that you would be a harder fight than Twilight. You make this easy. Then again, you've always been a weakling who can't do anything by herself. You can't even beat a single human" With a scream that could have stopped the Ursa in its tracks Fluttershy threw herself at Ryan with murder in her eyes. All that was on Ryan's face as he saw the bloodthirsty Pegasus attack him was s smirk.

"Fool." The charge of the enraged pony was stopped by a boot to the chest that knocked her flat. Fluttershy shook her head before she tried to get up with another shriek, which was immediately shut down by a knee to the face that drew blood. Before the stunned Pegasus could have the chance to recover, Ryan knocked the crown off her head and drove both batons down onto it. Just as it had with Twilight, an explosion of chaotic energy threw the human across the ground though this time he remembered to roll.

"And I made it look easy!" he laughed out loud as he watched the chaotic energy disperse into the air. "If the other four are going to be like this then I’ll have saved the world by the end of the day. You chaotic ponies are-" A barrier of power flashed around him before his bragging, along with anything else he had to say, was immediately silenced by an Ursa The Ursa had seen Fluttershy in trouble and crushed Ryan with its foot. All of the fighting stopped as the fighters all looked over at where the human had vanished.

'I didn't get a shield up in time! Do you think he survived?' the silver mare asked Zecora as all the ponies rushed to the hole that had been made by the impact, who shook her head with a smirk.

"Don't worry, I think I can hear him swearing from here."

%*%^&

"So, that is where the mysterious human is?" a chaotic voice cackled as he saw one of the Chaos Elements vanish on his map of the world, smiling to himself as he slipped through a wall and began trying on a number of different dresses and outfits. "And me without anything to wear to greet him. I mean, a human is such a rare sight in Equestria that I would be such a terrible person if I didn't greet him." Discord smiled to himself as he tried on a suit, but his reflection shook his head and ripped the clothing off. "Perfect! Why bother to change when I look perfect?"

Discord's smile faltered a bit when he felt the air chilled around him, causing him to nod a bit as he took on a more somber expression. "You are quiet right, he is a problem that must be dealt with. But not right now. There is no fun in crushing him so early on in the game. Only at the end, when they are at their best is the perfect time to crush them." The room grew even colder but Discord shook it off as he vanished with a snap of his fingers. "Time to go introduce myself."

Diamonds Are Forever

'Out of all the strange beings that I have met and all of the characters that I have encountered, I must say that you are, if you pardon my language, the luckiest son of a bitch that I have ever encountered,' the silver mare said with respect in her voice to the broken form of the human that rested in the bed in front of her, bandages covering the majority of his body. 'Getting stepped on by an Ursa is horrible, but for the ground to give way beneath you as it stepped on you and sent you crashing into the chasms below...are you certain that you have no special power?' A few muffled grunts was all the silver mare got as a response, giving her a reason to chuckle.

'I must admit, I do like you a bit more like this. Are you certain we cannot keep him like this?' she asked as she turned her head to Fluttershy, who had just entered the room with Twilight to check up on the patient.

"You shouldn't be so cruel to him, especially since it was my fault that he ended up like this," Fluttershy said with guilt crushing her soul as she looked over the bandaged human with tear stained eyes, while the silver mare heard Ryan mutter something that sounded along the lines of “damn right." "I'm so sorry Mr. Human, I truly am."

"Mck 'ff," Ryan replied.

"What did he say?"

'He said you're forgiven.' Ryan snarled at her but anything he tried to say was drowned out by the pain that flooded through him again. While the silver mare tried to calm the pain, Fluttershy and Twilight looked at the mare with interest and in Twilight's case, a bit of distrust.

"So, just who are?" Twilight asked the mare with slightly narrowed eyes, the silver mare sighing slightly as her response. "Alright then, how about a name if you don't feel like answering the other question."

"Y' cn cll hr ashol r btc" Ryan grunted through his bandaged face but he growled in pain again as the silver mare smacked his leg with a surgical tool.

'Who I am is of no importance, but if you wish for a name to call me, then the silver mare will suffice,' she replied. 'As for what I am, I am a desperate pony in dire need of help in order to prevent her world from falling into the forces of darkness and evil. And Faust help me I do not know if I can save it or not.' Twilight wasn't sure if she believed the answer or not but her attention was drawn back to Ryan when he tried to move.

"How soon do you think you can heal him?"

'A few more days. Why, missing his sparkling personality?' the mare asked with a chuckle as Ryan growled again.

"No, it's just that he's really the only chance we have to free my friends and save Equestria. The batons only work for him and they seem to hurt anypony that tries to grab them." Twilight shook her head after she said this and brought up the map that Luna had shown them earlier. "Rarity has taken the Crystal Empire, naturally, and without the human we cannot free her."

'Well I suppose I could speed up the healing process but it would cause considerable pain and I'm certain that he would hate me for it,' the mare muttered to herself as Ryan began to struggle to escape the psychotic ponies, but both the mare and Twilight were stop in their tracks by an angry Fluttershy.

"Considering what he has already done for us, I would have imagined that you would treat him better," she said in a quiet but forceful voice that turned Twilight and the mare's eyes to the floor. "We should be thanking him for what he has done instead of trying to get him into battle before he might be ready. He needs to rest." Ryan grunted in agreement, but he also felt for Twilight as through the bandages he could see the worry on her face. He knew he had to get back in the game as quickly as possible.

"Well, I guess if there's nothing left to do but wait for him to heal then I should catch up on some reading," Twilight wickedly said as she levitated a certain guide over to her before she had to stifle a laugh with her hoof at how the injured human began to rock back and forth while yelling at her a muffled string of insults. "Let's see...hey, here's the page about me. Hmm, I do like books and I am skilled at magic, so you got that much right. Hey, why I am lower on your threat level than Applejack? I could totally take her in a fight."

"He has taken a few blows to the head in his defense, so little he does now makes any sense." Zecora walked over to Twilight and peeked over her shoulder at the guide, smiling when she saw that Ryan still considered her the most dangerous creature in the land. She then swiped the book from Twilight and placed it on the bed besides Ryan, who looked at her from under the bandages while Twilight began to pout. "I believe you wanted this back? Then allow me to put it back in your pack."

"Aw, why'd you have to go and do that? I was curious to see what he thought of us," Twilight whined.

"Trust me, there is nothing for you to see. If anything it's only a light read."

'The sweet embrace of death is really starting to look good right about now,' Ryan thought to himself as the others continued to joke at his expense, but then Zecora tensed up and yanked a pipe off of the ship. She spun it around like her staff before her eyes narrowed while she looked around the room.

"Each of you needs to be at your best. We are about to have a guest." The moment those words left her mouth an explosion of confetti went off inside of the room, causing Twilight and the other ponies to scream in confusion while Zecora narrowed her eyes at the draconis that now rested on the ceiling. "Hello, Discord."

"Wait a minute, we're you expecting me?" he asked the zebra as he looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Well, I suppose I should feel flattered then, nopony seems to expect me anymore. Not with the whole world having fallen to delicious chaos and all of your precious Elements being unable to stop me...wait a minute," he growled as he shot over to Fluttershy and Twilight. "Why are you two here? I made extra sure that I turned the two of you! Oh wait a moment, I already knew that you two had been broken free by that sack of broken bones over there."

"Hold on, you knew where we were all this time and you knew that we'd been freed, yet you're not doing anything about it?" Twilight asked chaos incarnate with hesitation, not sure if he would continue doing nothing or he would change on a whim. Much to the ponies surprise all Discord did was chuckle before pinching Twilight's cheeks.

"No silly. I will admit that it was fun at first ruling all of Equestria with their defenders as my personal guards," Discord said with a heavy sigh as he sat down in his throne and looked down at them. "But now it's just simply boring without you and your little friends trying to stop me. That's why I was so excited when I found out about this human, who is causing chaos amongst the ranks of chaos. Oh, it is so much fun saying that!"

"Wait, you want the human to free the other Elements? Why?" Fluttershy asked.

"Because I'm bored and I must admit, I'm curious to see if he can," Discord said with a smirk as he tapped the tips of his fingers together. "Because he's only gone after the easy ones with you two and that's just no fun to watch. I want to see a battle...no, I want a show! I want to see how he'll adapt to not being able to walk on clouds when battling Dashie or when he has to go head to hoof with the raw power of Applejack. Or how can he retain his sanity when Pinkie truly lets loose against him. This will be a spectacle. But it can't be a show with him like this. So..." Discord snapped his fingers as he said this and the bandages fell off of Ryan, who sprung to his feet the moment he could move and threw himself at Discord.

"Hoo hoo, you have some fight!" Discord said as he vanished, causing Ryan to introduce his face to the wall of the room. "But you'll have to save that ferocity for another time. But if you do manage to free the Element's and their foolish princess of the sun, then I promise you can fight me mano a dracono. I'm looking forward to it." His laugh was all that was left of him as Discord vanished completely, leaving a room full of confused ponies and one angry human.

"We are almost at the...what happened in here?" Luna asked as she entered the room, looking around at all the confetti with confusion.

/\
\/

'Things could definitely be going better right about now,' the mare thought to herself as she deflected gemstones with a barrier of magic while also having to contemplate how to save the other members of the group. Luna, Twilight and Fluttershy were trapped with giant gemstones while Lyra and Zecora had been turned into felt versions of themselves that looked adorable. And the poor human was strung up from the ceiling by a thin strand of thread that was wrapped around his neck and was barely managing to keep himself from dying. Chaotic Rarity wasn't giving her a chance to think as her stylish magic constantly distracted the silver mare as the rolls of fabric and sewing machines tried to give her the fanciest death possible.

"What's the matter darling? Afraid to accessorize a little?" Rarity screeched as she allowed the silver mare to see her newest accessories, all of which tried to either crush or impale the mare stylishly. "I have a never ending supply of crystal here and with my ideas I'm sure I'll think of a glorious way to entomb you!"

The silver mare, however, was not impressed with the assault. 'It is unfortunate for you that you are more concerned with trying to kill me in style than you are actually figuring out how to fight me. Your abominations against fashion won't even be able to scratch my form, let alone finish me off.' The mare's words had the desired effect on Rarity and the silver mare smiled as she saw the unicorn prepare more of her ideas given form, relying on them rather than her magical attacks which could actually affect the mare.

Trying her best to keep her foe off balance, the silver mare continued the insults while flinging whatever she could wrap her magic around at the pre-Madonna gone crazy. 'The throne room has taken more damage than I have. All I've seen from your "inspiration" so far can be compared to a foal throwing a temper tantrum.'

"Oh it is on," seethed Rarity as she let the chaotic magic glow from her horn, the silver mare cursing under her breath as all of the items that would be flying at her were imbued with magic. Cursing her own stupidity the silver mare threw herself out of the way of the magic imbued attacks while Rarity chuckled to herself at the mare. "I'm sorry my dear, what happened to all that sass and bravado you were giving me just a moment ago?"

'Me and my big mouth,' the mare thought to herself as she dove and weaved as best she could. While Rarity did have the power edge over her thanks to the chaos magic that flowed through her, the silver mare had fought and trained with some of the strangest beings in the multiverse. Not to mention she had the magic of one of the strongest beings running through her. It was time she put that power to use.

With a yell she aimed her arms at the sewing machine that Rarity had thrown at her, sending twin bolts of lightning flying from her hooves. The bolts of lightning decimated the machine and caused an electrical surge that knocked the pompous pony on her ass. The electricity also had the added bonus of shattering the gemstone that trapped Luna and the other two Elements, giving them the chance to re-enter the battle.

'Get to the human and help him down,' the silver mare ordered as she looked up at Ryan, who was starting to turn a purple shade. 'I will hold off "princess" over there.' She wished that she had the same confidence in herself as the other ponies had in her, since the nodded and went to assist Ryan without questioning her. She knew that with this electric magic she could overpower Rarity, but this magic was more dangerous than a double edged sword to her. But it was her only offense and she would make it last.

"You really have been having the worst kind of luck, haven't you?" Luna asked Ryan as Twilight cut the thread that was stringing him up and allowed Ryan to fall onto Luna's back, where he promptly began to gasp for air. "Come now, let us free Zecora and Lyra while the mare deals with Rarity." Ryan gurgled in agreement, but as he looked down at the battle between the silver mare and Rarity it seemed that the silver mare's spells were doing more harm to her than they were her opponent.

"Go get Zecora, I'm gonna do something stupid." He rolled off the side of Luna before she could ask what he was going to do and dive bombed Rarity, fairly certain that he had injured himself more than he had Rarity. Rarity got to her hooves to take a knee that knocked her back, where she turned towards the human with an inpony snarl.

"You dare to touch me you filthy pig?!" Rarity said with venom as she ripped the crystal throne out of the floor and threw it at Ryan, who barely rolled out of the way.

'Thank you for interfering,' the silver mare said as Ryan came out of his roll and drew both of his batons. He looked back at her to see that her form was flickering violently and there seemed to be exhaustion in her voice. 'I was not certain how much longer I could keep that magic up.'

"So why bother using a magic that would kill you?" Ryan asked as he threw himself out of the way of the crystal empire's floor. "Come on Rarity, this kingdom has been here for...what, over a thousand years? Why do you have to ruin everything you touch with your "vision"?" He laughed to himself as Rarity shrieked and began to throw everything her magic could touch at him, cutting off his laughter as he was buried under a sea of very heavy and sharp crystal shards.

'You complain about my strategy when all you do is let your opponents beat on you until they get bored,' she replied as she lifted Ryan out of the sea of shards, wincing as she saw the bits embedded in his face. 'Seems to me you have the more destructive fighting style, if you can call it that, of the two of us.'

"I only let them hit me so the fight isn't over in an instant," he shot back with a laugh as he threw one of the batons at Rarity, who dodged it easily but didn't see the silver mare catch it with her magic. The mare swung it back around to strike Rarity in the back of the head, sending the pompous pony face first into the ground. "And I can take anything they send at me."

'So it would seem.' The silver mare had to admit that he had a point. Even though she had been the one to keep him from dying from his injuries often, he had survived far more than any other human should have been able to. 'He really is the most stubborn human that I've met. Not that that's a bad thing.' Rarity had recovered from the blow to her head, though she was still working on recovering from the blow to her pride. Vengeance flashed in her eyes as she glared at the two that had insulted her great art and she would never forgive those who made fun of her.

"I will destroy the both of you!" she shrieked as she prepared to attack, until a flash of black and white swept her off of her hooves and drove her into the ground. Rarity coughed hard as she struggled to look up at the zebra that held her down. "Zecora. Why bother to side with an abomination such as the human. There is nothing gorgeous about him."

"In beauty or tact he does have none," Zecora said with one of her eerie laughs. "But that's what makes being around him so much fun. Put an end to her at once and make it quick you dunce!"

"I swear Zecora when I'm done saving this world the first thing I'm going to do afterwards is make you eat every single thing you've said to me!" Ryan roared as the mare tossed him his second baton as he threw himself into the air, snarling at Rarity who struggled to escape Zecora grasp.

"Oh no my friend of chaotic might, this will be your final fight," Zecora said in a scary tone before she rolled to the side and allowed Ryan to bring both batons down upon the Element wrapped around Rarity's neck. She screamed as the chaotic magic was destroyed and once again Ryan was thrown across the room from the blast, though this time Luna caught him on her back before he could hit the ground.

"So, who are we going after next?" Ryan asked the princess of the night as Twilight and Fluttershy ran over to their friend, helping her back up before pulling her into a massive hug.

"Rainbow Dash," Luna said as she bit her lip a bit. "But this is a battle that I am afraid of. Not for my sake but for yours. You cannot fly and my magic tells me that Rainbow Dash has made Cloudsdale hers now. Your life will be in terrible peril if you fight her above the clouds."

"I've been set on fire, stepped on by a creature that shouldn't be able to exist and curb stomped by a zebra in what she calls training," Ryan said with one of his cocky smiles as he looked down at the princess of the night. "Why should I be afraid of something like skydiving without a parachute?"

Mistakes Were Made

Luna barely managed to move to the side to dodge the rainbow streak that rocketed past them, watching through terrified eyes as the explosion of the pony's speed blew away some of the thundering clouds that flashed all around them. The tightening on her neck told her that Ryan was holding onto her for dear life as the force of Dash's speed nearly knocked the both of them out of the air.

"Holy shit she's fast!" Ryan yelled over the sounds of both the sonic boom and the thundering of the black clouds that flashed all around them. He looked around to see where the rainbow pony, but aside from the thunderclouds that used to be Cloudsdale he couldn't find Rainbow anywhere.

"Understatement of the century!" Luna called back as she took careful note of where her allies were in case Dash went after one of them. The silver mare as the only other pony fighting in the air alongside Ryan and Luna while the others had to stay on the airship to be even remotely close to this battle. Though Luna wasn't sure for how much longer the airship would be safe considering that Dash had already punched a good number of holes in it. "She's the fastest Flier in Equestria, even more so than me or my sister! And with the chaotic energy flowing through her..."

"I get it, we're screwed. Par for the course," Ryan said in reply as he looked around at all of the dark clouds, looking for any sign of color to let him know where the pony was coming from. "Dammit it all, where is she!?"

"Right here, slowpoke!" A burst of speed blew Ryan right off Luna's back as a rainbow bolt struck the princess in the gut, nearly knocking her out as her and Ryan began to fall to the earth below. AS they fell Rainbow came to a stop in the air and laughed at the pair as they fell. "Creatures without wings have no right to be in MY sky. Go back to the dirt where you belong!"

"Luna, wake the hell up!" Ryan yelled as he leaned towards her and moved closer, eventually able to grab her mane to pull himself back onto her back. He shook her and yelled at her a few times, but the princess barely muttered a groan in response. Ryan looked up to see the earth below them getting friendlier and friendlier, telling him it was time to stop being nice. He pulled out one of his batons and drove it into Luna's side, shocking the both of them when he turned it on. They both cried out in pain, but Ryan smiled through the agony when he saw Luna's eyes open.

"Merciful Faust!" Luna yelled as she spread her wings while using both them and her magic to slow herself, barely stopping the pair from hitting the ground. She floated to a stop about ten feet from the ground, where she looked at the earth with fear in her eyes. "We...we were almost dead."

"Fortunately for you I managed to aim your fat ass at a flat piece of ground instead of a hill or cliff," Ryan snarked before turning his gaze skyward to see the streaks of Rainbow attacking the airship, which was struggling to even keep up with her speed. "We can think about how close we got to kissing terra firma later, right now the ponies up there need our assistance and I don't want to have to be the one to scrap them off the sidewalk." Luna nodded before rocketing herself into the sky with a burst of magic, Ryan gripping onto her neck to hold on.

"Forgive me Dash, but I must stop you!" Luna yelled before firing spells darker than the clouds around them towards the rainbow pegasi, but Dash smirked before shooting out of the way of the spells as she circled back around to hit them again. Ryan leapt off Luna's back and slammed the twin batons together, sending lightning cascading in every direction around him and Luna, growling as Dash managed to get out of the way of the bolts.

"Hey Luna, you know what I like to do when I'm sneaking up on a pony? Yell at them that I'm coming to hit them!" Ryan yelled at her as he caught onto one of her legs and flipped himself onto her back, both of them watching as Dash came back around for another pass.

"I am sorry, it is just hard for me to fight against some of my closest friends," Luna muttered.

"Well your friends are trying to kill us, so I would say that they deserve to get their heads kicked in a bit," Ryan said with a roll of his eyes before he turned to see the silver mare floating beside them. "Either tell me something that I would want to hear or F off, because right now is not a good time for bad news."

'You're a pain in my flank,' the silver mare growled, Ryan shrugging his shoulders in response. 'But also we have bad news. My magic is not fast enough to keep up with Dash and the ship cannot take many more hits. Dash wrecks whatever magic Twilight and I put up to stop her and the others are barely holding on for their lives. We need a plan and we need it now.' Ryan looked up at Rainbow Dash as she came streaking towards them and then the dumbest, craziest idea he had came to him. It was perfect.

"It's not a plan, but's it's an idea. Actually, it's more suicide than anything else that will probably get me and her killed," Ryan said with a smile as he looked up at Dash. "Hey Dash! Remember me?! I'm the human that kicked your ass when we fought back in Ponyville!!" From the primal scream of rage followed by the burst of speed she put off to get to him Ryan figured that she remembered. "And now for the next stage of my cunning plan!" he yelled before throwing himself off of Luna's back in a dive bomb straight for the ground, Dash gaining on him quickly.

"I'm going to enjoy hurting you human!" Dash shrieked as she got closer and closer to him with speeds he wasn't sure were real. "I'm going to use you as my new punching bag once I've dragged your body across the world to show everypony that you beating me was a fluke!"

"Was it now?!" Ryan yelled back as he allowed her to collide with him, feeling a number of things break before he put his plan into motion. He reached into his backpack and pulled out the very same rope that he had used to choke out Dash before and wrapped it around her, the pony roaring in rage when she figured out what he was doing. A baton to the face shut her up momentarily and gave Ryan a chance to slip around onto her back, where he wrapped the rope even tighter and locked up her wings with his legs.

"I will kill you!" Dash roared with venom in her eyes, but then the twin batons began to crackle and Ryan spun them around once in his hands with a smile of sheer insanity.

"No Dashie, I'm fairly certain that the ground is going to do that to the both of us!" Ryan yelled before driving both batons into the Element on her neck, holding onto Dash as hard as he could as the explosion of chaotic energy emitted from Dash. The two began to go into a death spiral as the ground got closer to them, Ryan using all of his strength to hold onto Dash as the chaotic effects washed off of her.

'Ryan! Let go of her and let me use my magic to catch you!' the silver mare yelled at the human, but all she got in response was another one of his psychotic laughs that chilled her spin.

"No thanks mare! I'm going to ride this pony all the way into the-!" The silver mare winced as she heard and saw the two of them hit the ground, creating a giant crater as well as a shockwave that even she felt.

'This human is crazy. Completely and utterly crazy.'

\\ //
//; ;\\

"I still can't believe that the human defeated me again!" Dash pouted as Fluttershy bandaged her wings, which had taken considerable damage when both she and Ryan crashed into the ground at super speed. "Oh, and that Discord took control of me. That sucked too. I mean, we're supposed to be the Elements of Harmony, the greatest protectors of Equestria, and we're relying on a human to save us. Once this is over Equestria will never let us live this down."

"You're looking at this the wrong way," Fluttershy said gently as she placed some antibiotics on Dash's wings, she and the other Elements having brought Dash up to speed on what happened. "Instead of thinking about how we had to be saved by the human, think instead how lucky we are that he was here."

"Indeed darling, without him I would still be ruling the Crystal Empire with an iron, but very well-manicured, fist," Rarity said, trying to improve Dash's spirits but it didn't help. Dash grumbled to herself as she looked around the airship that they were on, feeling a hint guilty when she saw that holes that had been punched in the side of it. Zecora and Lyra were talking to Luna and none of them seemed to be in a good mood.

"What bugs me the most is that he beat me...again," Dash grumbled. "A regular human with no special powers besides those batons and he managed to beat me. I should go prove that I'm still the better fighter."

"OR we can go thank him for helping us," Twilight suggested, Dash grumbling once before she agreed and the group headed for the stairs to the lower part of the ship.

"...and apparently Dash is just as stubborn as me considering that she never once tried to pull up," Ryan muttered to himself as he finished writing in his guide before slamming it shut and placing it in his backpack. "And to think, this time I managed to fight an element of Chaos without losing more blood than should be humanly possible."

'I still don't know if you are the luckiest or unluckiest human I have ever met,' the silver mare muttered as she finished repairing the surprisingly small amount damage that he had suffered.

"I'm just lucky. Depending on how the gods are feeling depends if it's good or bad luck," Ryan replied with a smirk. "So...who's Hyperion?" The silver mare took in a regretful breath before walking away from Ryan.

'You must know that I knew little about him when I brought him to a world,' she said sadly as the memories began to come back. 'I had been fighting a losing battle against the evil force that threatened that version of Equestria and I needed somepony who was stronger than me to prevail. Then Hyperion contacted me and said that he would save the ponies from themselves, making sure that there would be peace. In my desperation I thought it was for the best and brought him to the planet.'

"But let me guess, he was an asshole," Ryan said.

'It was barely three days before he had killed the princesses and declared that Equestria would be peaceful under his rule...or else,' she said with regret and pain in her voice. 'When I found out what had happened, I went to try to talk to him and went that didn't work we fought.'

"And he kicked your ass?"

'Actually, neither of us could hurt the other,' the silver mare bitterly chuckled. 'My magic was nothing to his power but without magic of his own he could not even touch me. We were at a stalemate for a few days before I practically killed myself to tear open a hole in reality and send him spiraling into the unknown. I do not know what has become of him, but I do know that he hasn't bothered any other ponyverse since.'

"So we've got essentially an evil god wandering the unknown who has a vendetta against you," Ryan groaned, figuring that Hyperion would come back to bite them eventually. "Why do I have a feeling that I'm the one who's going to have to fight him?" Before the silver mare could answer him, Dash and the other Element of Harmony walked down the stairs and into the room. Dash walked right up to Ryan while ignoring the mare and looked him right in the eyes with dislike.

"Come here for round three or to be insulted verbally, because I can do either," Ryan said, to which Dash narrowed her eyes at him before slightly lowering her head.

"Twilight and the others told me what happened and what you've done to help us despite what we've done to you in the past months, so..." Dash began, looking like she would rather do anything else than what she was about to say. "I...wanted to say...thank you. For saving me" The silver mare smiled at Rainbow Dash, glad to see that this one could swallow her pride and thank Ryan. The one she had known would have never done that. But then the silver mare looked at Ryan and knew that he wouldn't let it be that easy.

"I'm sorry, I've still got some dirt in my ears from when you drove me into the ground," he said wickedly with a smile that matched his tone as he placed a hand to his ear to hear better. "Can you please repeat what you just said a little louder?" Dash looked like she wanted to murder him, but she took in a deep breath before saying,

"I wanted...to thank you." It sounded like it hurt Dash for her to say that, but she managed to get it out with a grunt. Twilight and Fluttershy had started to congratulate Rainbow for her words but all of them stopped when Ryan began to laugh.

"I'm sorry, but I still can't hear you over my massive ego," he wickedly said again, watching as Dash's face turned crimson red with rage. "Can you please say, one more time, not only how I saved your life but that I've kicked your ass TWICE now? Come on Dashie, one more time!"

"How about I break your jaw so that you can't say anything!?" Dash yelled as she got into a fighting stance, rage and vengeance flashing in her eyes. "And you didn't beat me the first time, you cheated by throwing dirt into my eyes! I was beating you fine up until then! Cheater!"

"Aw, I'm sorry baby, but I did what I needed to do to win!" Ryan cackled as he jumped to his feet and drew both of his batons, letting the lightning crackle to give his crazy smile an even more insane look. "And last time I checked there were no rules in a street fight!"

"Actually, I have three books on rules for street fights," Twilight interjected. Both Dash and Ryan both turned to look at her, the two of them giving her a "really" look before they turned back to each other, rage flashing in their eyes.

"You might have saved me, but that doesn't mean I'm going to hold back," Dash growled.

"So, you want to go zero and three against me?" Ryan laughed as the two began to circle each other. "Or are you going to blame this loss on getting some dirt in your eye as well?" Dash snapped and tackled Ryan to the ground with such speed that it knocked both his batons out of his hands. She landed on his chest and began to throw punches at his face, while Ryan held his arms over his head to block the blows. Twilight and Fluttershy were about to interfere when a blast of lunar magic blew the two apart.

"That is enough you two!" Luna yelled as she stalked between them, the looks she gave the two of them enough to stop the battle for the moment. "Dash, this human has saved four of your friends and is the only key to stopping Discord from taking over Equestria. If you want to beat him up, wait until all of this is over. And you human, I would ask you to stop being such an asshole, but since I know that is impossible I would ask you to try to be kinder to your allies and only be yourself in front of your opponents. And speaking of opponents..."

"We're going after Applejack, aren't we?" Ryan asked her before she brought up the map, getting a confused look from Luna. "Yeah, I figured that we'd be going after her. Because you don't want to fight the pink one without as many allies as you can get, don't you?"

"Despite your attitude, you are not a complete idiot," Luna muttered as she brought up the map, showing a town named Applepaloosa where Applejack's cutie mark rested. "I do want all of the other Elements on our side before we have to face Pinkie, but I am hesitant to send you into battle against Applejack human. It is not because you are weak, but because of what the chaotic magic will have done to her."

"I'm sensing more bad news in my future," Ryan muttered as all of the ponies gathered around to hear Luna's explanation.

"When Twilight was under the chaotic power, her magic was greater than before. However, you had that armband that protected you from her spells so you could fight her. Same goes for Fluttershy and Rarity, you were able to deal with them because they could not overpower you and your allies could help make up for the areas they did beat you in. You defeated Dash with your brain and by using her own arrogance to your advantage...but if I am right, then the chaotic power will have made Applejack already many times stronger than she was."

"Don't worry about AJ, she can't fly or use magic," Dash said with a shrug. "We can take her fine."

"I have to agree. Why would this matter? My magic power made me stronger than AJ," Twilight said, but Luna shook her head.

"Yes, but again he was protected against your power," Luna reminded her. "But Ry-the human's greatest skill is his fighting ability, but to use that against AJ means that he will have to get within her striking range. And even if it wasn't his greatest skill he would still have to get close to her to free her from chaos's control. What I'm afraid of is if he does take a direct shot from Applejack," she whispered as she looked at the human. "Because I do not know if you can survive a single hit. I would not blame you if you would like to stay back until we have weakened her."

"What do you think Luna? Should I go with apple ass or should I say that oranges taste better than apples to her face?" Luna shook her head with a thin smile at his response.

"You truly do not know when to give up. But maybe that is why we have been as fortunate as we have been."

"Fortunate? I'm the only one here ending up with broken bones."

"Like I said, fortunate," Luna playfully said. "Now then, let us go get our Element of Honesty back."

Done Bucked Up

"So this is Applepalosia huh?" Ryan muttered as he hung from the side of the sky ship as it sailed over the dusty land, a small smile on his face as he realized how much the dirty town below him looked like towns from the old west in his world. But that wasn't the most surprising thing to him. What surprised him was that this town didn't look like the chaos controlled land that he had seen with Twilight and Shy. Instead, this pretty much looked normal. That didn't sit well with him.

"Yes, but I'm surprised to see it like this," Luna answered as she walked up to the edge of the ship, confusing the human. "Normally there are buffalo stampeding across the land and the ponies that settled here are always out in the streets. The quiet is...unnerving. Almost as if this is a trap."

"I highly doubt that it's a trap. If it was, there'd be hostages or something like that," Ryan suggested, though he was beginning to wonder just where the heck Applejack was. The other Chaos Elements had been easy to locate because they had created a giant landmark in their image or taken a palace to call their own. But nothing looked out of the ordinary here. "Let's just get down there and find Applejack. Dash will complain about getting dirt in her eyes if we're here for too long." The ship touched down a few moments later and the entire group got off, save for Lyra who looked at the others with hesitation in her eyes.

"Maybe I should just stay here," she said softly. "I mean, somepony has to look after the ship incase somepony or Discord tries to do something to it while you're away."

"If Discord wants to do something the ship I highly doubt that your presence will dissuade him from doing so," Ryan said with a shake of his head, turning away before he could see Lyra hang her head sadly. "Come on, let's go find the pony that will probably kill me."

"You are a real piece of work, you know that?" Twilight fumed at Ryan as the group walked away. "Poor Lyra has been feeling like she's useless and you aren't doing anything to help. Why do you have to be such a jerk all the time?!" Ryan chuckled at her statement that infuriated Twilight even more before he looked down at her with bitter humor in his eyes.

"Twilight, if it wasn't for the batons and the armband I would probably be the most useless being on the team. I'm the one who has had to been saved the most and I'm the one who comes the closest to death whenever we do this," Ryan said to her with a smirk. "But despite her having magic, Lyra is the most useless right now because she believes herself to be. As long as she has that handicap, we're best off with her hanging back."

Twilight had to think about his words for a moment before she shook her head and stared up at him. "Still that doesn't mean that you have to be such a jerk to her."

"I tell it like it is. If Discord attacked she could do nothing to stop him, just like I probably couldn't," Ryan said before looking down at Twilight. "So back to what we're supposed to be doing, do you have any idea where your apple friend might be? We've been walking for a while and I haven't seen anything that would lead us to her." When Twilight didn't answer Ryan rolled his eyes and walked over to the silver mare, who was in a conversation with Luna.

'Yes, I can sense her chaotic energy. But what is strange is that I don't sense any ponies nor buffalo around her,' the mare said as a wave of silver shot off from her. 'She's just over that hill, by herself. I do not like this.'

"Why? Means that I don't have to worry about fighting some minions or you guys getting hung up on "not attacking the poor, mind controlled ponies." Let's go." The group headed up the hill that presented itself in front of them, all of them shocked to see that just like the mare had said, Applejack was sitting by herself in the middle of a grassy field. Ryan looked at the others and shrugged before he slid down the hill, drawing both batons as he got close to the pony.

"What's up AJ? I'm here to kick your ass," Ryan said with a smirk as the batons crackled, but AJ said nothing as the others ran up besides Ryan.

"Applejack...what happened to the town? What did you do to them?" Twilight asked.

"Ah ran them off. They were all a bunch of liars, every one of them," she said with such hatred and scorn in her voice that all except Zecora and Ryan backed away from her. "Not that any of ya are much better. You all lie to yer friends and family, then expect us to all be friends the next day. All of ya have something that yer hiding, something that ya won't even tell yer closest friends. Get out of here before ah get rid of yah myself."

"Sorry, but the gods of dumb said that I had to defeat all of the Elements of chaos if I want them to get off my back and you're one of them," Ryan said as he took a step forward to face her, but then AJ slammed one hoof into the ground with such force that the shockwave generated by the impact sent Ryan sailing behind the other ponies.

"Leave," Applejack said once again. "Or truth be told ah will end all of ya. And ah never lie."

"Applejack, what have we lied to you about?" Fluttershy asked kindly as she tried to walk towards her friend, but she was stopped as if shot when AJ turned around to face her...and the ponies could see that her eyes were black. "W-what happened to you? Don't tell me that Discord-"

"That lying fool? No, ah'm the one who did this to mahself. Ah'm tired of seeing all yer lies," AJ spit with venom as she stood up and walked right up to Shy, the ground splintering beneath her every step as she did so. "Ah don't need mah eyes to see how ya'll have lied to me. Like how ya say that ah'm a valued member of the Elements when ya really think that ah'm weak because I have no special powers."

"That's a lie in and of itself AJ, we would never-" Dash began but was silenced by the words that came out of Applejacks mouth.

"Don't worry about AJ, she can't fly or use magic," AJ said in Dash's voice perfectly. "We can take her fine." Dash's eyes shrunk as AJ turned her black eyes to her "friend", no emotion on her face. "All of ya are liars. Twilight lies about how she loves her friends, yet her chaotic mode shows that she's truly a tyrant. Fluttershy says she loves her animals, yet with power she would enslave them all. Rarity has no generosity within her and Dash is nothing more than a traitor who would stab her friends in the back. Yer all liars."

"Applejack, that is the chaos talking," Luna said as she walked up to her friend. "You know better than anyone how much these ponies care for each other. You-"

"Yer not excused either Luna. Neither are you Zecora or whatever you are," AJ growled as she looked at the silver mare. "Luna doesn't truly believe that the human can save you. She never has. The mare in silver hasn't told anypony that she was the cause of her sister's death and what caused almost all of her world's events to be set in motion." The silver mare was dumbstruck by this and had no retort as the mare looked to Zecora. "And you? You are something beyond this world."

"Like I said, we all have something to hide," Zecora smiled. "There is more to all of us than meets the eye."

"I still don't know why you guys are talking to her, we know that's not going to work," Ryan reminded them as he walked back up. "The simple truth is we have to beat her to free her. Although now that I see that she's blind, I realize that I might just make it out of this in one piece after all."

"Yer not any better than them," AJ spit. "Yer-"

"Ugh, do I really have to reveal all of my secrets to get you to fight? Fine," Ryan said with an exasperated groan. "I'm terrified that everyday I might die but I hide behind a face of arrogance to make it seem like I'm in control. I hate myself for failing my home and not being able to save my best friend, so that guilt is the reason that I decided to help these ponies despite them being assholes. Sometimes I wish that I would die so that I wouldn't be the only human that survived, causing me to be a survivalist and suicidal at the same time. That's some of the reason I'm so ready to face you ungodly things." All of the ponies looked at Ryan with horror and disbelief as a smile crossed his face. "I'm also mortified of zebras now. There, happy?" AJ looked at the human for a moment before a chuckle escaped her lips.

"Yer a strange one. Alright human, ah'll play yer game. One on one." She slammed her fore hooves together as she said this and sent all of the other ponies, including the silver mare, flying away from the two. A barrier of chaotic magic sprung up around the two combatants, sealing out the only chance Ryan had of surviving this fight. "So human, are ya scared?"

"You have no idea," Ryan growled with as much courage as he could muster as he drew both batons. 'This will be the hardest fight that I've ever had and I'm going to have to remember everything that zebra taught me to survive. Because I'm fairly certain that if AJ lands so much as a hoof on me...' Applejack lunged and him and spun around to kick him with both of her back hooves. Ryan jumped back in time to avoid the physical blow, but the winds from the speed of her kick caught him and flung him back, where he rolled up to his feet. 'I'm dead.'

"Come on then human. Let's see why Discord thinks so highly of ya." She lunged at Ryan after saying this with both front hooves outstretched. Ryan rolled to the side to avoid her grip, trying also to ignore the fact that the ground shook when she hit the ground. AJ spun on her front hooves and threw a fast punch at Ryan's head, which he barely managed to dodge. Ignoring the gale that her punch created, he delivered three powerful blows to her exposed gut, following up with a knee to the doubled over pony.

"I don't know why Luna was so afraid of you, I've fought better in the forest." If the ponies could hear him they probably would have thought that he was being cocky. 'But keeping her angry will keep her from being at her best and cause her to make mistakes. If I've learned anything from the zebra it's that angry opponents go down easily.' Two hooves whizzed by his head as he rolled to avoid them before bringing a baton into AJ's leg. AJ growled in pain before slamming her back hooves into the ground, blowing Ryan back.

"Ugh, not good," Ryan grumbled as he pushed himself back to his feet, feeling the pain in his side as he did so. 'Great, just her slamming her hooves into her ground can almost break me. If she gets in a-' A left hook out of nowhere caught Ryan off guard and on instinct he threw his right arm up to defend himself. The sounds of his bones shattering told him that he had made a terrible mistake. "DAMMIT ALL!" Ryan roared in pain as he was sent skidding across the ground from the blow, breathing in pain as he avoided looking as his arm.

"Do all humans break as easy as ya or are ya a special one?" AJ taunted as she slowly walked over to Ryan, having all the time in the world as Ryan struggled back up. AJ jumped him before he could run and pinned him to the ground with one hoof, holding him there despite him striking her hooves with his baton. "Honestly, yer weak. Ah don't see what's so special about ya."

"And yet you just can't keep your hooves off me, can you?" Ryan weakly taunted before AJ hurled him into the side of a rock, where he slid down it with the sound of more bones breaking in his ears. He could taste the blood in his mouth as he got back up and ventured a look down at his arm, where he did his best not to lose his lunch at the gross protrusion that was his bone. "I...only let you break my arm...to make the fight more fair."

"That's the worst lie ah've heard yet," AJ snarled as she crouched down low, letting Ryan know that she was going to leap at him. He figured that despite being insanely strong she was also insanely arrogant after seeing how easy he was to break. That was his one advantage over her. Well, one of his.

"Then you have yet to hear me brag about myself," Ryan retorted as the orange pony left the earth and sailed through the air towards him, bringing back both of her hooves with a look of victory in her eyes when she saw that Ryan wasn't trying to move. 'Time to use my advantage!' he thought as he leapt in the air when she got close enough and drove both of his legs into her chest, his legs being longer than hers allowing him to strike first. He swore in pain as he landed on his bad arm, but he fought through the pain as he forced himself back up while attacking AJ with the baton in his good arm.

Despite AJ being stronger and faster, Ryan was able to keep her back with the range that his natural size and his weapon gave him. Whenever AJ tried to block, he would switch the batons grip and strike at a different area. If she tried to take up a stance he would back away and force her to come to him. But despite having a plan of attack, he knew that he would go down first in a contest of endurance. He had to get the crown.

'And I think that's there's only one way that I can do that,' he bitterly thought as he inhaled to calm himself before lowering his good arm to his side, looking at AJ as if he was going to surrender. 'I have to let her get in close. I might not be able to block her attack, but I can sure exchange a hit for a hit,' he thought as he looked at her Element on her neck. AJ narrowed her eyes, smelling the trap, but she knew that this was the human’s last play and if she got past this she'd win. So with a loud whinny to the sky she charged at him at full speed.

"Ah guess ya weren't so special after all!" she yelled with a laugh as she dashed at him, bringing her hoof back to strike. "Just another liar."

"You're one to talk, allowing yourself to fall for the lie that Discord fed you through that chaotic Element!" Ryan roared as he leapt into the air, baton brought back as he aimed at the Element on her neck. "You're no better than the others!" He then drove the baton down with all of his might while he closed his eyes, bracing himself for the blow that AJ would deliver to his chest. But to his surprise the pain didn't come and when he dared to open his eyes to see what had happened he found that his baton had knocked off the Element, Yet AJ still had the black eyes that were now filled with realization.

"Yer right," she whispered before the chaotic energy began to slowly dissipate from her Element. "Ah have been living a lie, ever since the attack by Discord." Ryan blinked as her eyes slowly began to turn back to normal, watching the chaotic energy vanish into the air with both a look of confusion and relief.

"And that's it?" he asked himself as the chaotic barrier fell and the others could rush in to see their friend. "All I got out of it was a broken arm? I thought I was going to die! HA! I'm getting better at this all the time! Soon I'll be able to-" Just before he could finish that sentence a massive flash of chaotic energy went off, tossing the human's body into a rock.

'There it is,' he thought to himself before passing out on the nice, cool ground.

Coping

"Still can't believe that I made it out of all of that with only a broken arm this time," Ryan muttered as the silver mare repaired his arm. "I thought from the way Luna was talking about her and the amount of power Applejack had that I was going to be a blood stain on the wall by the end of the fight. Thanks for not kicking my head off by the way. You're now my favorite pony."

"No problem," AJ replied with slight hesitation as she saw the bone get reset. Ryan masked the pain as best he could even though it hurt like crazy. "Ah'm so sorry that ah did this to ya. Ah...ah can't believe what that chaotic Element made me do. Ah've run buffalo off their lands and driven ponies from their homes. How can ah expect them to forgive me after this?"

"You were all under the effect of Discord and forced against your wills to fight for him. Considering the rest of Equestria was as well, I am certain that nopony will blame you for the way you have acted," Luna comforted. "To be fair, the other Elements had done far worse than you, so don't be too hard on yourself."

"I think what we did under Discord's magic is something that we'd all want to forget," Dash growled as she and the others entered the medical bay. "Sorry to walk into your home like this human, but we have issues to discuss. Twilight and the rest of us had a talk and we want to go after Discord while the human...are we ever going to get your name?" she asked Ryan, getting a middle finger as response "Whatever, we want to go after Discord while the human, Zecora and the silver thing go after Pinkie."

"I agree with Rainbow, Discord is far too dangerous to remain at large for any longer," Rarity agreed. "The only reason he has not tried to place us back under his command is because of a whim. If he were to change his mind who knows when or where he would attack." Twilight and Fluttershy agreed with their friends, but Luna shook her head at their plan.

"I could understand why you want to defeat Discord as soon as possible, but we cannot risk splitting up," Luna said. "The only way we can defeat him is with the Elements and without Pinkie we will not stand a chance. Despite how strong each of you are, you are at your strongest when you are together."

"Plus I don't want to have to bail you out if you go get yourselves turned again," Ryan chimed in as he flexed the muscles in his arm, hoping that the magic healing would hold up. "And after how much pain I had to go through the first time, next time I might just destroy the Elements altogether so it can't happen again."

"Yeah, well this time we'd be ready for Discord," Dash growled at the human. "There'd be no need for you to save us like last time."

"Please, without my help you would still be in the sky creating statues to yourself out of clouds while the land below was in the hands of chaos," Ryan smugly said as he smirked at Dash's anger. "Not to mention all of the ponies that had been placed under your chaos that you used as your personal playthings. But please, tell me how you were going to free yourself and defeat the guy that beat all six of you and Celestia by yourself?"

"You're a real pain in the ass, you know that?" Dash snarled as she took up a fighting stance, the others groaning at the idea of the two having another pointless battle. "I've had it with your attitude. Time somepony knocked you down a peg."

"Please Dash, we've done this song and dance before," Ryan cackled as he drew his batons and let the lightning crackle down the sides of them.

"Yeah, but last time I was going easy on you," Dash growled. "This time I feel like beating ya half to death." Dash thought she was going to intimidate him with those words, but instead Ryan let out a chilling laugh that caused shivers to run down their spines.

"Come on Dash, only half to death? Let's go all the way Dash, I'm ready to die." All of the ponies looked at Ryan with uncertainty in their eyes, none of them knowing whether or not he would fight them to the death. The look in his eyes told them that he would. Zecora smacked him in the back of the head and he seemed to snap out of his trance, but the ponies till looked at him with a bit of fear.

"Human...you really can't mean that," Fluttershy softly said, distracting Ryan and Zecora from their argument.

"Of course I mean it, I've been ready to die since the moment I got here," Ryan said, getting more concerned looks from the ponies. "In fact, I'm amazed I managed to survive this long with all the shit I've gone through."

"Do not forget your oath to your friend that kept you alive in the end," Zecora added.

"Right, that was the reason. Man, I really am losing it," Ryan said with a shrug and a dry chuckle.

"You're crazy," AJ whispered.

"And you're all just now figuring this out?" Ryan chuckled, looking into their confused eyes with disbelief. "Ponies, I survived the death of my home and found my way to a land that wanted to kick the shit out of me every five minutes. I've fought hydras, wolves and things that I didn't know existed the entire time I've been here. And now, I'm fighting six of the most powerful ponies and their even more powerful leader in a desperate attempt to overthrow the go, yes let me repeat, the god of chaos. Cleary I am not all there."

"The death of your home?" Luna asked with confusion. "I saw the human world burning and I heard what Celestia told me, but I thought that you-"

"That I was what, joking?" Ryan said in a very dark tone that scared the princess of the night. "No Luna, my race is gone. Dead. Burning like a fire. I'm, as far as I know, the last human alive. You didn't tell them any of this?" he asked the silver mare.

'It was not my place to talk about such things,' the silver mare replied, gaining her a grateful look from the human before he looked back to the princess who looked like she was trying to figure something out.

"So...you were telling the truth?" she asked in a whisper. "Humanity really did kill each other to the point of extinction?"

"Well, it's not extinction until I bite the bullet, but oh yeah, we killed each other good," Ryan said with a smirk as he leaned back against the wall and looked up at the ceiling. "Although I can't give us too much credit, I was told that all of those bombs were supposed to blow the planet into little pieces, but since you showed me that it's still out there tells me that we greatly overestimated our tech."

"You created weapons that could completely destroy your world?" Lyra asked, trying to wrap her head around that thought.

"Multiple times over as a matter of fact. We humans may not have magic or wings, but there is no other race with a desire to destroy more than us. We're amazing at it," Ryan laughed. "With a simple turn of a key, we wiped billions of ourselves off the planet in a matter of minutes, turning what used to be the green and blue planet into one giant fireball." The ponies looked too horrified for words and Ryan noticed that even Zecora seemed shocked by his words, though the silver mare nodded her head sadly.

"And you're just...okay with this?" Luna asked, shocked at the flippancy of his tone. "Okay that your world is gone?"

"Okay? Hell no, I was a complete wreck when I found out and considered ending himself a few times," Ryan darkly said. "You know what survivor’s guilt is right? Well multiply that by your entire race and you'll be at what I feel. But through the brilliant idea of burying those emotions deep and changing myself into an asshole that deserves every beating he gets, I allowed myself to...cope."

"How did you manage this?" Luna asked weakly, the only pony in the room that could speak at this point.

"You can thank the zebra over there for lighting a fire under my ass and reminding me why I have to survive, at least until Discord is defeated," Ryan said as he jerked his thumb at Zecora. "She reminded me that while I may not have been able to prevent what happened to my home, I can help stop it the same thing from happening to yours. That's why I'm always so ready to throw myself at a god or the occasional giant monster."

"Yet you haven't killed any of us...or hurt us too bad for that matter," Fluttershy pointed out after processing what she had just learned.

"Yeah, well, just because you're insane doesn't mean that you lose all of your values that you had when you weren't crazy," Ryan said with a shrug. "I'm just sick and tired of death and killing. Although I considered it with you once or twice Dash." The ponies were still trying to process the new information about Ryan before he smiled and clapped his hands together. "But enough about the sad, woe is me backstory, let's talk about the next pony I get to beat up."

"Yes...Pinkie," Luna said hesitantly, not certain of what to make of the human anymore. "She has taken up residence...in the middle of the desert for some reason. While not as strong as Applejack or as magical as Twilight, she is...who I consider to be the most dangerous of the group under the influence of chaos."

"And that's why we saved her for last," Ryan said, remembering what Luna had told him a while back. "But aside from the little I've been told about her and her abilities I still don't understand why she would be the most dangerous." A chill ran through the room as all of the ponies and even Zecora shared a look with each other that spelled trouble.

"Pinkie has another side to her generally cheerful disposition," Twilight explained when none of the other ponies answered Ryan's question. "A darker, much more violent side. While it never surfaces when we're around her, we're all aware of it and how easy it might be to set her off. But if she's under Discords influence, then it is entirely possible that this other side will be the dominant one and the kind Pinkie we know will be gone."

"Not to mention there's that weird ability of hers," Lyra chimed in. "You know, like the times she vanishes and reappears someplace else or whenever she pulls her party canon out of thin air? Or how about the time when she had an entire discussion with somepony that wasn't there? Or her ability to do essentially anything she wants?"

"And the Pinkie sense," Twilight added, noting that the human was writing all of this new information down in his guide. "Which warns her of whenever something bad or crazy is going to happen around her. The more that I think about it now, the more I realize that princess Luna might be right in saying that this is our greatest challenge yet." To her surprise, Ryan let out a small chuckle as he closed his guide and put it back inside of his backpack.

"I don't know why any of you expected this to be easy, considering all the shit we've gone through just to get to this point," Ryan reminded them. "But this is how the fight's going to go down. We'll show up, throw insults at each other and then start fighting. She'll dominate for a while, I'll probably break everything again and then through some miracle we'll defeat her and save the day. Any questions?" he asked with a smile, getting a dumbfounded look from the ponies.

"Were you not paying attention to what we just told you about her?" Luna asked in disbelief. "With the power of chaos running through her she is probably now a crazed psychopath!" Ryan gave her another bone chilling laugh before he looked at her with his crazy eyes again.

"That's the beauty of it Luna. So am I."

====M=A=Z=A=H=S====

The silver mare took in a breath as she steeled herself for her next task, knowing that it had been a long time coming yet she had put it off. As the stars above looked down on her and illuminated her already silverish form, she walked across the front of the sip to where Ryan rested against the railing, looking up at the moon.

"For the last time, nothing else hurts. Stop looking for reason to try and use that vomit inducing magic on me," Ryan teased with a smirk as he saw the glow of the mare next to him. "So why are you here to bother me now? Hyperion show up and you need to throw my body at him repeatedly until he gets tired?" His words were said in a joking tone, but he saw the mare hang her head a bit at his words and his smile turned quickly. "Did I say something that offended you? Look, I didn't mean to this time."

'No Ryan, you have no need to apologize,' the mare said with pain in her voice. 'I am the one who should be apologizing. For how I've treated you, for not helping you to find out what happened to your home again. I am just so sorry.' Ryan raised an eyebrow at her before slowly reaching back for one of his batons, her sudden change in attitude putting him on guard.

"Why would you apologize now? Last time I checked you said you enjoyed bringing guys like me down a level," Ryan muttered as he felt his hand grasp around the weapons base.

'Because despite going through your mind and seeing your past, I have been...cruel to you,' the mare bitterly said. 'It is my own fault. I have been at this for nearly ten years now and I have become bitter, with my words becoming harsh. You did not deserve the grief I have given you, yet I continue to be cruel. I am so sorry.'

Ryan let go of the weapon, though he did move away from her a bit before answering. "Like I said earlier, I deserve most of the crap I get for what I say. And if there's one thing you should have learned about me by now is that I can take pain. In fact, I relish it...ah crap, I'm turning into a masochist."

'Yet after all you've been through...all the pain you've buried just to function each day,' the mare began, but Ryan let out an exasperated groan before looking down at her with annoyance written all over his face.

"Look, I understand that you feel bad for the way you treated me and on any other day I would guilt trip you for fun, but you have no need to apologize. Despite being stuck with my charming personality, you have saved my life, healed my wounds and helped me out of a number of bad spots," Ryan said to her with a snarl. "And I still owe you my life, so until we're on even footing again, how about you save the I'm sorry?"

The silver mare looked at him for a moment before a dry chuckle escaped her lips. 'Very well, once you have repaid your debt to me I will apologize. All that you have to do now is try to stay alive until we reach that point.'

"That I can do easily." Ryan then narrowed his eyes as he saw spotlights off in the distance and what sounded like music playing, along with a whole lot of fireworks. With a smirk he grabbed his batons and started smacking them together, sending loud clangs across the ship. "Alright everyone we're here! Time to wake up!" He let out a laugh as he said this as he turned to face the giant tent that now shown over the horizon. "Because it's party time!"

Insane Asylum

Bright colorful lights, music that caused Ryan to gag at the sound of it: it was official for him. This was a party from hell. The bright pink lights bothered him as he and the other members of the group walked down a massive red carpet that was decorated with petals towards the giant party tent, where cheering and laughter could be heard coming from. He kept is eyes forward, despite the spotlights constantly shining in his eyes.

"And once we're done with her, all we have to do is go to Canterlot and free your sister, and then we'll be ready to fight Discord?" AJ asked Princess Luna, who nodded as she too was on guard against all of the noise.

'Are you certain that you wish to fight Pinkie by yourself?' the silver mare asked from beside Ryan. 'My magic might be able to help you survive the encounter. If the others are telling the truth, and I have no reason to believe that they're not, then Pinkie is the most dangerous out of the group.'

"Mare, I got that talk before each of the Elements I fought," Ryan said with a smirk. "I got it when I went to fight Twilight and I got it before Dash. At this point telling me that it's dangerous is like telling a guy with no parachute that he's in trouble after he's jumped out of the plan. Can't turn back, so might as well enjoy the ride until you hit cement." While the silver mare tried to figure out his metaphor, Ryan walked right up to the party tent and tore back the tarp covering the entryway. What he saw was not what he expected.

"There are rocks dancing. And potted plants laughing. Yep, I'm fucking nuts." The others ran up beside him to see that he was telling the truth, though none of them were certain of what that meant. Rocks were indeed dancing with one another to the odd music that was playing and plants were talking around a number of tables, occasionally laughing at a joke told.

"This land is weird. You're all weird," Ryan grumbled as he walked into the tent, pushing past the gator at the door that was dressed as a bellhop. Some of the rocks and plants turned to look at him and the others as they entered (he tried not to think about how weird that sounded) but none of them did anything to stop him from walking towards the center of the room, where a pink pony hung from a rocking chandelier while humming to herself. "Yo! You're Pinkie Pie, right!?" She yelled something down to him, but the racket that these rocks called music prevented him from hearing her answer.

"Turn off that goddamn music, I can't hear the pony talk!" One of the plants gave him a look before walking over to the record player and removing the needle, causing the awful racket to stop. "As I asked before, you are Pinkie Pie, right? I honestly don't know because you don't look as crazy as the others said you would be." The pink pony flung herself off of the chandelier and landed in front of Ryan, slowly lifting her head so that she could look him in the eyes. Ryan narrowed his eyes when he looked into hers, eyes that mirrored his own.

"Hiya!" Pinkie said with a smile before a blade flashed as she tried to gut Ryan, Ryan catching the knife between his hands on instinct. He kicked her in the gut to push her away before he backed up to draw his batons, the lightning cackling as the others joined his side. "Oh look at all the new friends. I just want to cut you up and put you in a cake to eat," she whispered with a giggle as she licked her knife. "Who wants to go in first?"

"That would be me!" Ryan snarled, tossing a flash egg right into her eyes. The flash of light had barely gone off before Ryan had thrown himself at the pink pony and tackled her back into the middle of the room, where he began to throw lefts and rights to her face. "What's the matter? Don't like the taste of my fists? Maybe you'd like five thousand volts to the face!" He twirled the batons in his hands before striking down, but he blinked and she was gone. He looked around in confusion before the ground beneath him shot up and circled around him, trapping him in what looked like a giant cake bowl.

"Fun fun fun!" Pinkie yelled with glee as she popped back into existence, looking out from behind her flat mane at the human who snarled at her. "You're really fun! I know that we'll be the best of friends once I get to know you inside and out...emphasis on insides," she wickedly said with glee as she flashed her knife. The others tried to run to Ryan's aid, only to be stopped by the bellhop, who had gone from harmless alligator to a twenty foot monstrosity that spit blue fire in an instant. "Oh no you don't, this room is for friends only!"

"Yeah, all of you go deal with that," Ryan dryly said as he narrowed his eyes at the pink pony, figuring that it would come down to a one v one against her. "I can handle coo-coo for coco puffs over here just fine. Now let me ask you a question Pinkie. If I beat you to the point where you break in half, does candy come out or do your parents suck and it's all healthy food?"

"Fun for all!" Pinkie yelled as she appeared right in front of Ryan's face and plowed into him, knocking the human to the ground as his batons rolled away from him. He kicked Pinkie off of him and dove for the batons, but they vanished the moment they were within a fingertip's reach. "Owiee, those things hurt!" Pinkie yelled as she dropped the batons to the ground, holding her hoof in pain while Ryan tried to figure out what had happened.

"The hell?" he muttered as the batons rolled back over to him and he bent down to pick them up without ever taking his eyes off of Pinkie. 'Can she teleport or something? It's like she's there one moment and-' Instinct kicked in the moment he saw her flicker and he threw himself to the side, rolling to his feet in time to see the knife that had barely missed his stomach.

"Ooh, you are a fun one," Pinkie creepily said as she twirled the knife. "How'd you know that I'd be there?"

"I've been getting my ass kicked since the moment I got here," Ryan replied with a wicked smile of his own. "I know when something is trying to kill me. Come on." Pinkie appeared behind Ryan again, but by the time she was there he had already thrown a kick back to catch her right under the jaw. Her head went sailing backwards as her neck stretched like rubber. 'The hell am I fighting?' he thought before the head came snapping back and struck him in the back.

"You'll have to do better than that!" Pinkie sang. Ryan turned around to come face to barrel with a massive cannon, one that he didn't remember being there a moment ago. "But I like you, so I'm sending you out with a BANG!" Cake, ice cream and what he was certain were razor blades exploded out of the end pointed at him, tearing into his skin as he rolled across the concrete. The armor protected anything vital, though Ryan could feel fiery agony racing up his arms and legs.

"You want better?" Ryan asked as he charged at her, grabbing the top of the cannon barrel and vaulting himself over it as it fired again. The adrenaline pumping through him numbed the pain and gave the kick he delivered to Pinkie's face an extra punch. He rolled off the top of the cannon as the pink pony crashed to the ground and placed himself under the cannon barely, straining against the metal with his might to aim the party right at Pinkie. "Hey Pinkie, now it's my turn to throw you a party!"

"I love par-" Ryan felt the vibrations of the cannon firing reverberate through him, but there was a smile on his face as he heard the pink one's voice get cut off by a massive explosion. When he rolled out from under the barrel and looked up, he found to his delight that she too was buried in calories and pain.

"And I love crashing parties." Ryan reached into the ice cream tomb to pull Pinkie out before she suffocated, but when his hand grabbed nothing he knew that this fight wasn't over. He found Pinkie when he looked over his shoulder, though she seemed far different from the one he had just been fighting. Her mane was now completely straight and darker. Her face still had the insane smile, but neither of her eyes face the right way now, which was the second scariest thing about her. The first was the buzz saw that she now held in place of a knife.

"Fun times, fun times," Pinkie whispered as she let the saw rev while slowly beginning to march towards Ryan. His response was to draw his batons as his focus was completely on Pinkie, waiting for her to make the first move. But the first move came in a way that he never expected.

"FUN!" Pain lanced through his back as he barely through himself out of the way of the blade, luck to catch only a glancing blow from the Pinkie that had appeared behind him. As he rolled to his feet, he realized that he was now standing on top of a giant cake, with cotton candy clouds in the sky above him. Then there was the army of Pinkie's, the ones that all had the same lunatic expression on their faces and all with buzz saws in their hooves.

"Hiya Mr. Human. Welcome to my mind," the real Pinkie said to him with a giggle as she motioned to all around her. "Here's it's always sunshine and gumdrops, even when I'm not quite feeling like...myself. Heehee."

"It's a lot roomier in here than I thought, even for you," Ryan taunted, though he knew he was in no position to do so.

"All of us have wanted to play for so long," one of the Pinkie's said as she attacked him, Ryan dodging the blade and kicking her in the face for her efforts. "We all have been locked in here for so long with only ourselves to talk to. But no we have a friend and we all want a piece of you to play with!"

"So please hold still or else this might hurt!" another Pinkie yelled as she jumped Ryan from behind. Ryan elbowed her get and threw her off, but three more Pinkie's party bombed him into the frosting and dog piled him. He struggled to push them off of his back, but more and more of them began to jump onto him until he could barely breath, let alone move. The only Pinkie that wasn't crushing the life out of him sauntered up to him, looking at him with a huge smile as she lifted an ax over her head.

"Don't worry, we'll make sure everypony gets a piece of you," she assured the human, swinging the axe down. Ryan cracked his shoulder and moved his head out of the way with a half second to spare, gritting his teeth in pain as frosting splashed onto his face. "Oh, that sounded like it hurt. Please don't move or this won't be quick."

"I hope you realize that once the others are done turning your guard into shoes that they'll be here to kick your head in ass well," Ryan growled as Pinkie smiled down at him.

"Silly human, you're in my mind now. Noponies here but you, me and all of my other personalities," Pinkie said as all of the other hers began to say hi to Ryan. "You can't fight me in my own mind." She brought her ax back again with another wicked smile, a smile that was blasted to ash as she and all of her copies were thrown across her mind by an explosion that dwarfed any that she had seen before. She groaned and sat up with a gasp to see the human getting to his feet, with a cloud in the shape of a mushroom behind him.

"You're right you silly pony. There's only you, me and all of the emotional baggage that I brought with me," Ryan cackled while rubbing his hands together with psychotic mirth in his eyes. The Pinkie's had gathered together and prepared to rush the human again, but then a boney human hand shot its way out of the frosting. The Pinkie's looked down at it with shock as the charred remains of a human pulled itself to the surface. Then another hand shot out of the ground, followed by another. This continued until all the Pinkie's could see around them were charred or burning corpses, with the remains of giant buildings surrounding them.

"W-what is this?" Pinkie asked Ryan, who drew both of his batons again and let the electricity light up his eyes, eyes that held no resemblance to the human named Ryan.

"You told me that all of your personalities were in here, right pony?" Ryan snickered as the Pinkie's realized just how outnumbered they were by the undead. "That's about what, ten of you tops? Around me is my emotional baggage, all seven billion peoples worth of it. All those I believed that I failed and all those who I feel should be alive in my place. They're MY insanity. You wanna try to out crazy me pony? I've already lost my damned mind! Oh boys," Ryan sang as he lifted a hand over his head, before pointing it at the Pinkie's. "Get them." The Pinkie's barely had time to scream before they were buried under the wave of the dead, which proceeded to rip the pink ponies apart. The real Pinkie, the only one that hadn't been attacked by the dead, slowly turned to face Ryan with a look of absolute horror on her face.

"What are you?" she asked Ryan as he began to march towards her, his smile being the only part of his face visible under the hood that covered his face.

"I'm a survivor Pinkie. There is nothing you can throw at me that can kill me, no amount of pain you can afflict that I have no already felt a thousand fold," Ryan whispered to her as he looked down at her, Pinkie getting smaller and smaller under his gaze "A piece of me died the day my world did, the piece of me that was just a regular guy trying to make a living. The piece that survived though?" he began as he brought both batons back. "That's what made me!" He drove both batons into Pinkie's Element as he said this, Pinkie screaming as the chaos was blasted from her while Ryan cackled to the sky.

The ponies shrieked as the chaos dispersed around them, causing all of Pinkie's crazy party ideas to vanish back into her head. Gummy returned to his normal state while the party tent turned out to be nothing more than a small tent in the middle of a field. And in the center of that field the ponies saw two figures: Pinkie, laying in a fetal position, and Ryan, standing over her with a look that would haunt their nightmares. Ryan raised one of his batons to strike Pinkie down, but his hand was caught by a claw of silver.

'What are you doing human?' the silver mare asked as she and the others ran over to him. 'The battle is over, there is no need for you to finish her.' Ryan slowly turned his head to look at her and the mare gasped when she saw his eyes. Eyes that did not belong to the human she thought she knew.

"Oh look, more to the slaughter," he chuckled as he turned towards them, his smile getting larger. "I think I'll paint a rainbow with you when I'm finished killing you." The ponies each prepared to defends themselves as Ryan let his batons crackle, advancing towards them slowly.

WHACK!

"OW! Goddammit zebra!" Ryan yelled as he grabbed the back of his head and looked towards Zecora with angry, but much more familiar eyes. "Why did you do that?!"

'You're back,' the silver mare said with uncertainty.

"Of course I'm back, I didn't go any-" Another blow to the gut knocked him out and Zecora caught the human before he hit the ground. She then looked over to the ponies, none of whom had any idea what to think.

"Don't worry about the insanity of his that you dread. The cure for it is as simple as a blow to his head," Zecora said to them as she placed Ryan on his back and motioned for the mare to pick up the still terrified Pinkie. "I figured this out not too far in the past, during one of my training sessions with this ass. He keeps the pain at bay as best he can, but when he loses it is a terrifying human."

"What did he do to Pinkie in there?" Fluttershy asked as she looked at her friend, who had a thousand yard stare in her eyes.

"Probably something none of us want to know. Now that we have her, I think it's time that we go."

Chaos Party

"Now all that's left is to defeat your crazy sister who can move the sun and a god of chaos that trumps even the two of you in power," Ryan recapped to Luna as Zecora popped his shoulder back into place. "Well, that doesn't sound too difficult. You have a plan of attack or are we going in blind like all the other times?"

"We will need my sister’s help if we are to defeat Discord," Luna replied as she winced at the loud pop his arm made, Ryan making a small whining sound as Zecora dusted her hooves off. "The last two times we used the Elements on him we caught him off guard or when he was far too arrogant to stop us. He will not make the same mistakes twice."

"Yet he let all of us roam free. If you ask me that's strike three," Zecora chimed in. "His arrogance will always be his downfall. Even if he prepares he'll still drop the ball."

"I don't want to take chances with this one though," Luna said as she gazed out the window at the sun rising over the horizon, wondering if Celestia still knew her duty or if Discord was now in control of the star. Ryan turned his head as the silver mare entered the room, able to tell that something was up despite her face being hidden under the hood.

'You are in for a rough time in a few moments,' she explained once Ryan had asked her what was wrong. 'I have been helping Pinkie with the...images you showed her when you fought inside her mind, but it is safe to say she is still shaken up.'

"Can't blame her, I still remember my first zombie movie," Ryan chuckled.

"Do you think that she'll be able to help us in the upcoming battle or should we postpone another day?" Luna asked.

"I'll be fine princess." Everypony turned to see Pinkie walking down the stairs to the medical room, with all of the other Elements and Lyra following behind her. "I just need to stop blinking, because every time I do I see...them." The other Elements gave Ryan a dirty look as Pinkie stared off into nothingness until the mare snapped her out of her trance.

"Hey, she got inside my head. It's not a friendly place in there," Ryan said with a smirk before he groaned a bit and fell to his knees. The mare and Lyra rushed over to him, both of them stunned to see that blood was seeping through his coat. "Oh yeah, I got caught in a storm of Pinkie's cake and razor blades. One hell of a party Pinkie, would go again."

'Human, you have lost a good deal of blood. Please, allow me to help you.' Ryan growled before slipping off his jacket and rolled up his pant legs, allowing Pinkie to see the full extent of the damage her crazy half had done to the human. His arms and legs were both shredded and bits of metal could still be seen sticking out from both.

"What did I do?" she whispered to herself with horror as Ryan reached up and took off his armband.

"You tried to stab me. Multiple times as a matter of fact," Ryan smirked before he placed the hilt of his baton between his teeth as the mare started to pull out the shards. Pinkie's mane deflated as she looked at the ground, guilt hitting her hard as she heard the human's grunts of pain.

"Don't feel too bad, he has been through far worse," Zecora comforted as she walked over to Pinkie's side. "In fact, he should probably be in a hearse. Stabbed, crushed and set ablaze should have been enough to make it the end of his days, yet somehow alive he continues to stay. I have never seen one with such a stubborn streak. But I suppose that's what makes him unique. So you gave him a fairly close shave. It will take more than that to put this one in his grave."

'Alright, I have cleaned up your wounds as best I could,' the mare said, Ryan nodding as he slipped back on his coat. He picked up his backpack and slipped it on as well, about to grab his armband before he realized that the ponies were giving him looks again.

"What is it this time?" he growled at them.

"You know, none of us know your name," Twilight said. "You've been keeping that a secret the entire time you've been with us. I've asked Zecora, Lyra, Luna and event he silver mare, but none of them tell us anything. So who are you really? What's your name?"

"My name is of no importance," Ryan said, smirking at the frustration on the ponies faces. "And you already know who I am. I'm the asshole that's taken everything this world has thrown at me and spit in its face." The ponies didn't look satisfied with his answer, but they stopped bothering him for a moment as he reached for his armband again. "Now if you excuse me, I need to put this on before-"

"I show up?" Ryan spun around as he grabbed one of his batons, turning to see the draconis snap his fingers with a smile on his face. A massive flash of light went off, engulfing all in the room.

\\ //
//; ;\\

Twilight groaned weakly as she opened her eyes, struggling to see through her blurry eyes as she got to her hooves. The other Elements were resting on the ground besides her and she could also see Lyra and Zecora, yet the silver mare, Luna and the human were nowhere to be seen. She helped the others up before they heard laughing and all of them looked up to see Discord floating on a throne overlooking them all.

"Well hello my friends, it has certainly been too long since I've seen you," he laughed at them as they all snarled in return.

"Discord, why have you brought us here?" Twilight asked as she looked around realizing that they were in a chaotic version of Canterlot, with mind controlled ponies and all the other oddities that came with Discord. "We have the six Elements now and you know that you are no match for them!"

"You're right my dear Twilight, but I couldn't resist," he said as he pinched her cheeks, snickering to himself as she swatted his claw away. "I thought that defeating all of you and turning you into my own personal minions of chaos would be entertaining, but I realized within days just how boring it was without having you and your little friends trying to stop me. But then the human came around and started to free you, causing chaos once again."

"So wait, you're actually letting us fight you? With the Elements?" Dash asked in disbelief, to which Discord chuckled in return.

"Allow you to fight me with the Elements? Dash, I'm crazy, not stupid. I brought all eight of you an opponent that I'm sure you all know well. Oh Tia?" Twilight and the others gasped as a streak of fire crashed to the street in front of them, eyes widening as the pony within the fire rose to her full height and walked out of the smoke. She had golden armor with crimson red trimming in it, but with her flowing, celestial mane and eyes that pierced them, there was no questioning who this was.

"Princess Celestia," Twilight whispered in horror as her former mentor stalked towards them. Twilight looked into her eyes to see if her teacher was still in there, but all she saw was cold cruelty and emptiness. A blast of magic erupted from her horn that streaked towards Twilight, but a flash of black of white knocked the spell out of the air.

"It is time to fight Twilight," Zecora said to her with a snarl, taking up a fighting stance as she looked up at the alicorn.

"Yes, my zebra friend, it is time to fight," Discord smirked as he snapped his fingers, creating a bunch of creatures out of stone that joined by Celestial’s side. "Now then, let's see how the Elements of Harmony (and extras) can do against the power of the Solar Empress and my army of whatever I want them to be!"

"Girls! Elements!" Twilight yelled as she rushed over to her friends, who began to glow with power as the six Elements around their necks began to resonate with each other's powers. However, they had hardly floated a few feet off the ground before Celestia flung herself into the center of them and tackled Twilight out of the group, negating the power of the Elements.

"Hang on Twilight!" Applejack yelled before she was swarmed by a number of the rock creatures. The other Elements began to fight as best they could as well, but without their ability to work together they were quickly overwhelmed.

"And now I just have to wait for those two to go down," Discord muttered as he looked at his watch while Lyra ran for her life. "At least the zebra seems to be able to give me a bit of a show...okay, mental note, rock creatures do not do well against a zebra with mad kung-fu skills. But now I'm bored. Time to check up on my other guests." He snapped his fingers with a chuckle, leaving the ponies to fend for themselves against the corrupted queen and the army of stone.

\\ //
//; ;\\

"Human! Wake up!" With a groggy groan Ryan opened his eyes, blinking twice before he could see clearly. Although when he could see he wished that he had kept his eyes closed. He was trapped in a room that wasn't that big, but it was not the kind of place he wanted to be. Luna was across the room from him in a cell with a weird multicolored band on her horn and since she hadn't already magiked her way out, he figured it was blocking her magic. He went to free her but he found that his left hand was chained to the wall.

"Now now, I can't just have you up and leave," an annoying voice said from besides him. Ryan snarled as he turned to see Discord, who looked at him with interest, as well as being a parrot. "After all-squawk-I spent all this time setting up this nice little place for you to rest."

"Thanks. Now give me my batons and I'll show you my gratitude," Ryan snarled in response. To both his and Luna's surprise, Discord popped back to his regular self before reaching into a portal and pulling out Ryan's backpack, which he then tossed at Ryan. "And you did that because?" Ryan asked as he caught it with his free hand, quickly opening it to see that everything was inside, even the batons.

"Because, I want you to feel what it's like to be helpless even with all of your little toys right there," Discord chuckled as Ryan reached for the golden baton, turning it on with a smile as he pointed it at the draconis, who backed away a little at it. The smile turned into a frown as Ryan narrowed his eyes.

"This is too easy, you wouldn't just give me the two things that could hurt you without good reason," Ryan muttered, snarling when Discord began to laugh aloud.

"Oh you are so clever. Yes, I have given you your batons that can cancel out mine or any other evil magic," Discord said with a smirk as Ryan looked up at the chain holding him, striking it a few times before realizing it wouldn't break. "But that's the beauty of it. That is simply a very strong metal, not something that those batons of yours can break. Nothing in there can. The only thing in this room is Luna's magic, but as you can see she's trapped in a cell with her magic sealed off."

"You may have trapped us Discord, but there are still the others!" Luna yelled angrily as she threw herself against the metal, bouncing off with a grunt. "Twilight and the others have and will stop you! And if they do not, we still have the silver mare, whose power-!"

"Means little to me!" Discord said with a laugh as he pulled out a silver sphere that had a long crack in the side of it. Luna gasped while Ryan cursed under his breath, knowing that their predicament had just gotten a whole lot worse. "Who knew that chaos was such a good counter to creation? I didn't. Now then I could just leave the two of you like this, but I like to give my foes a chance." As he said this, he took out a key and placed it on the table at the very end of the room.

"If you can somehow find your way out of those chains and make it to the key before Celestia has defeated your Elements, you can use it to free Luna and unlock the band on her horn," Discord said with a wicked smile as he put the tips of his fingers together. "But when you fail, I will enjoy turning all of you into my servants of chaos...Ryan, Luna. I'll see you soon." And with one last laugh he vanished, leaving the two prisoners to look at each other, wondering what to do.

\\ //
//; ;\\

Luna looked sadly at the human as he pounded away on the chains with both of his batons at full power, shocking himself slightly each time he hit the metal. She had no idea how much time had passed, but by the sun location she figured that he had been at it for about an hour.

"Ryan...I commend your bravery and your ability to fight through hopeless situations, but it is over," she said with a sad shake of her head. "Discord has my sister, he defeated the silver mare and now the Elements have to battle him and his forces without me or my sister’s aid." Ryan ignored her and continued to pound away, leaving the pony to sigh. "How do you even know that it isn't already over and Discord isn't just watching you struggle for entertainment?"

"Two reasons. A. Discord isn't back yet, which means that the ponies are still fighting him." Luna rolled her eyes at this argument since she had just stated that he might just not be showing himself. "Second reason. He's fighting Zecora. She won't be beaten by someone as weak as him." Luna snickered bitterly at those words, wondering why the human spoke so highly of the zebra as he pounded away with no success. "Besides, I still owe Zecora my life. I need to get out of here."

"We've lost human. There is no way out," Luna said bitterly. Ryan narrowed his eyes at Luna before he put the baton down and looked at her with a stern glare.

"If anyone should be giving up here, it's me," Ryan said to her with rage in his voice that got her attention." I mean, why should I be fighting this battle? I don't know or give a damn about any of you ponies. Hell, the only one I owe is Zecora and I know I don't need to protect her from Discord. But you Luna, you have your sister at stake, her apprentice and all of the ponies of this land."

"You do not need to tell me about this...but I have already failed them before. I guess I’ll just do it again." Luna let out a scream as the baton slammed into the bars of her cell, causing her to look at Ryan with some confusion as he glared at her.

"This isn't about failing. Your world is about to go to hell, but that's the key word there. About. You can still save it," Ryan said with pain in his voice, but underneath the pain she heard a determination that he had never spoken with. "My world was destroyed in a flash, before anyone, including me, could do anything about it. But you Luna, you still have the chance I never had, my people never had. You can still save them all. So stop your whining and get ready to fight, because we're getting out of here."

"Alright human," Luna said with a small smile as she stood up, walking to her bars. "I promise you that if you get us out of here, I will fight to the bitter end alongside of you. Now how are you going to do it?"

"Because," Ryan growled at her. "Fortunately for you and all of the other ponies, you didn't get a human that was only concerned with himself, you got a crazy one that got involved in a war that didn't concern him and is willing to do anything to help you win. No matter the cost." Luna wondered what he meant as he reached in his bag, but she did raise an eyebrow when he pulled out a large knife.

"What do you think that is going to do?" she asked him with a laugh. "Those chains withstood the weapon that was given to you by the gods, so I doubt that a kitchen knife will..." Her words died in her throat as she realized, to her absolute horror that he wasn't aiming at the chains. He was aiming at his wrist. "No, you can't-"

"Luna, if you have any better ideas then I would be happy to hear them, but if not then kindly shut the hell up," Ryan snarled at her before he reached into the bag and pulled out something that he placed in his mouth so he wouldn't bite off his tongue. Luna closed her eyes as he brought the knife back. 'The things I do for these damn ponies.' And then he struck.

The Sun Shall Fall

Twilight cried out in agony as the solar magic burned into her side, sending her crashing across the rooftop of the castle. She fought to see through the tears in her eyes as she looked up to see Celestia standing over her, the cold eyes piercing through her with ease.

"Please princess, don't do this. This is Discord's will, not yours," Twilight said weakly. Celestia said nothing in response, but instead pointed her horn at the defeated pony. A flash of magic went off, but the corrupted Celestia raised an eyebrow when she saw that Twilight was gone.

"Whew, that was too close for comfort," Dash panted as she and Twilight skidded to a stop fifty feet away, Rainbow brushing her bloodied mane out of her eyes. "I came up here with hope that you were doing at least somewhat better than us, but now I see that Discord gave you the hardest fight."

"Are the others alright?" Twilight weakly asked as she staggered up to her hooves. Celestia unleashed more solar magic towards the pair, but using the combined power of their Elements they created a barrier that deflected the strike. The princess’s eyes narrowed before she spread her majestic wings, taking to the sky with one powerful wing beat.

"I saw Applejack and Pinkie still fighting alongside Zecora when I took off after you, but I don't know about-MOVE!" Dash yelled as she tackled Twilight to the side, just in time to see an eruption of fire annihilate the area where they had just been standing. "This is bad, really, really bad. How are we supposed to beat her without working together?"

"That's the beauty of it Dash, you’re not," Discord chuckled from besides them as he sat in a lawn chair to watch the battle. "You can't do anything to beat me. I have you all figured out and without that human, you don't even stand a chance. Oh, you might want to turn around." The ponies did so to see a blast of white magic strike the ground in front of them, hurling the both of them off the castle roof and into the streets below where the others struggled to fight.

"Twilight! Dash!" AJ called out as she bucked off one of the stone creatures and rushed to their sides. As Twilight was helped back up again she sadly realized that Applejack was in worse shape than either her or Dash. Dash took to the skies and drove her shoulder into a stone creature, knocking it over long enough for her to build up enough speed to blast it apart with a single strike. "Ah'm glad to see that the both of ya are alright."

"Yeah, lucky us," Twilight said bitterly as she surveyed the battlefield. Lyra was being attended to by Fluttershy for a gash in her right leg while Pinkie and Rarity held off one of the creatures as best they could. Zecora was holding her own just fine, but it was clear from her expression that the battle was not going too well. "We need to get everypony together...to us the Storm of-" Celestia tackled Twilight from behind and bucked her across the ground, where she skidded to a stop at the feet of one energetic Discord.

"This is just too much fun," Discord squealed as he clapped his hands together as Celestia lifted Twilight with her magic, choking the purple unicorn with her magic. "Remember Celestia, don't finish her. I still need her and the others for my personal army. But don't feel too bad about losing Twilight; maybe I’ll let you and the others out in a thousand years so you can try again to stop me."

"Then maybe we should even the odds!" Lunar magic blasted Twilight out of Celestia's grasp and knocked Discord onto his ass, leaving Twilight to be caught by a pony the color of the night. Luna landed next to the others who had regrouped and placed Twilight onto her hooves, who looked up at Luna and the human with awe as he hopped off her back.

"Luna! Human! But Discord said that he had disposed of you," she asked in disbelief as the others ran to their sides, looking up at Luna and the human, who looked extremely pale.

"Yeah, well that's where Discord made the number one greatest villain mistake," Ryan wheezed with a weak smile as he turned to look at the stunned draconis. "He left the hero alive. For shame Discord, I thought that you of all creatures would understand the unpredictability of humans."

"As happy as I am to see you, I must enquire at how you escaped," Discord cackled as he floated above them, holding out an arm to stop Celestia when she tried to attack. "I know for certain that you couldn't break those chains and I know that Luna couldn't escape her cell. And with your silver friend trapped in my pocket, you had not allies to help. So how did you get out?"

"By doing the same thing to my hand that I'll do to any part of me that holds me back," Ryan cackled as he held out his left arm, allowing the now horrified ponies to see the bloody stump in red bandages where his left hand used to be. "I'll cut. It. Off." Discord blinked once as he looked at the stump before he threw his head back and began to laugh, smiling at the human with glee in his eyes.

"You truly do not disappoint. Very well then! Defeat the princess of the sun and I will give you the chance to stop me and save this world!" Discord yelled to the sky before clapping his hands together and creating a cage that surrounded the group and the solar princess, while creating stands so the stone creatures could watch. "Let the rumble begin!"

"Why did you do this to yourself?" Fluttershy asked with horror as she looked at the bloody bandages.

"Figured Discord needed the handicap to beat me," Ryan snarked. "Besides, I've lost way more blood fighting you guys."

"Why'd he do this? How the hell are you still standing?!" Dash asked in disbelief.

"Chi, grit and a whole lotta duct tape."

"Ryan..." Lyra whispered weakly as she looked at the wound. "Your hand..."

"Will you guys stop whining about my hand? I can still flip you off with the other one," he growled as he placed his backpack on the ground, allowing him to rummage through it. "Besides, now we need to worry about the god and his little pet that can control the sun. Forget about me."

"But-"

"Look, if you like my hand so much if you find it you can have it," Ryan snarled before he grabbed a baton with his only hand as he kicked the bag to the side. "Now is the time to fight." Celestia cemented her agreement by blasting him with a beam of pure solar magic, which pushed him back despite his armband.

"Ryan is right, now it is time to fight!" Zecora yelled as she grabbed the other baton and charged at the princess, dodging the magical blast while getting close enough to deliver a hard strike to the side of her head. Celestia roared with pain as the chaotic magic was disrupted, but she still managed to blow Zecora back with a flap of her great wings.

"Come on you ponies; I'm not going to do all the work for you!" Ryan roared as he rushed past them, rolling to the side as Celestia ordered the stones beneath him to rise. The sharp stones splintered and the shards tried to drive themselves into his flesh, but a barrier of magic placed itself between him and the stones.

"Alright Ryan, we've got your back!" Twilight said as she ran alongside of him, using her magic to deflect most of the attacks that Celestia fired. Ryan looked behind him to see that the others were running along besides him as well and with a crazed smile he let out a battle cry. Celestia retaliated with a roar as she ascended into the sky, where she began to rain magic down upon them all.

"Twilight! Luna! Keep those spells off of us! Dash, give me a lift!" The ponies did as he commanded, with Luna and Twilight combining their magic to keep the princess at bay while Dash streaked by the human and scooped him up. "Think you can dodge all of those spells without being hit?"

Dash laughed at how easy that question was to answer. "It will be easy." Ryan gritted his teeth as she shot up into the sky, weaving in between spells and fire while keeping Ryan from being hit at the same time. A stray bolt managed to clip her wing and she growled with pain as she struggled to remain air born.

"Dammit! Dash, throw me and get out!" Ryan yelled, giving her a glare that told her not to argue.

"Hope you know what you're doing!" she said as she spun him around.

"Never have!" She released him when she had built up enough speed and flung the human towards the princess. Ryan slammed into Celestia's chest and wrapped his left arm around her neck to keep himself from falling. Celestia screamed with fury as she glared down at the human, a spell building on her horn as she prepared to dispose of him. "Hi princess. Miss me?"

"HUMAN!" she shrieked as she started to unleash magic hell upon him, causing Ryan to laugh as her spells bounced off him.

"I see you remember me! But do you remember this?" He drove the baton into the side of her head, causing the both of them to feel the electricity course through their bodies. In her pained state Celestia could not see where she was flying, so the two of them collided with the side of the cage and fell to the ground.

"Are you alright Ryan?" Twilight asked as the group ran to his side.

"And none of you bothered to catch me. I hate you all," Ryan growled as he was helped to his feet by Luna, who looked at her sister as she too dragged herself to a vertical position. Her eyes narrowed as she saw that both her crown and her necklace were giving off the chaotic magic. "So, that's where I need to strike huh?" Ryan asked when Luna informed him of her findings. "Guess I’ll have to do it one at a time, unless I hold the other baton in my teeth."

"Actually I can aid you against the sun, because I have the other one," Zecora said as she flipped the other baton and caught it, smirking at the human. At another time Ryan would have asked how she could hold it when none of the other could, but at the moment he found he didn't care.

'Hey, it's Zecora. At this point she could tell me she's a god and I would believe her.' With a shriek that cowed the ponies Celestia charged at the group, fire blazing off of her sides while she lowered her horn, creating a golden blade with magic. "Keep that away from my hand, I can't afford to lose this one," Ryan snarked at the ponies as he and Zecora attacked in return.

"And I thought I had the temper," Luna muttered as she summoned a storm of chocolate milk clouds to douse her sister, who steamed as her flames were extinguished. The golden blade cut through the clouds, but not before Zecora had managed to get close enough to strike her crown. Celestia screamed as the chaotic magic was expelled from the crown, though the zebra was blasted away from her and crashed somewhere where Ryan couldn't see.

"Now that's just not fair to the princess," Discord smirked as he snapped his fingers, trapping the others in magical spheres and leaving Ryan alone to face the princess’s wrath. "Sorry about this Ryan, but I don't feel like giving you a hand."

"Ha-ha, I'm going to shove this baton up your-" Fire erupted next to his feet before he could finish and the solar princess slammed into Ryan, taking the both of them skyward.

"You truly believe yourself able to defeat me?! The being that can move the sun at will?!" Celestia roared at the human, setting her own coat ablaze to try and burn the human to a crisp.

"Please Celestia, I've fought hydras, bears that size of skyscrapers and everything else in-between," Ryan snarled as he wrapped his burning legs around her neck and began to bludgeon her with his baton. "So what is a self-entitled princess who thinks herself a god to me?" She opened her mouth to retort, but Ryan took that moment to drive the baton into her gapping maw. Lightning flashed from her eyes at the baton did its job and after a few seconds of tasting electricity, the princess blacked out.

"And now for the second part of my cunning plan," Ryan said with a smirk before looking down to realize how fast he was falling. "Praying that one of those horses actually bothers to catch me this time." The ground raced towards him at uncomfortable speeds and for a moment he truly believed that he was going to die, but then there was a streak of moonlight and he felt himself hit the back of a certain princess. Hard.

"Do not worry friend, I am here," Luna said as she trapped Celestia in a sphere of magic, stopping her descent as well. Ryan tried to see through the tears in his eyes, but he squeaked out his gratitude as best he could. Luna smiled in response before flying the both of them to the ground; where to his surprise Ryan found all of the ponies free.

"Didn't Discord trap you all?" Ryan asked as he lowered himself off of Luna's back, watching the princess lower her sister to the ground.

"Oh I did, but then when I saw you falling I thought I can't let it end like this," Discord butted in as he pushed Luna to the side so he could talk to Ryan. "Because I haven't gotten the chance to fight you yet and I realized that I really wanted too. You've come all this way and overcome so many hurdles, so I can't wait to see the look of disappointment on your face when you realize that you can't beat me. Now go on, free Celestia. I'll have her back soon enough."

"Don't worry, I'll deal with you soon enough," Ryan snarled as the creature vanished in a flash of pink smoke, leaving Ryan to walk over to Celestia, who still hadn't fully recovered from the shock. Ryan kicked her back to the ground before driving the baton into the necklace that held the rest of the chaotic energy. The ponies shielded their eyes as the chaotic magic was destroyed yet again, leaving Celestia to return to her normal state. Luna helped her sister recover as best she could as Dash looked over at Discord.

"Alright, all that's left is Discord!" Dash yelled as all present turned to face the draconis, who looked down at them from his throne of games with a smile on his face.

"The time has come for you to pay for what you have done," Twilight said in a strong voice as she and her allies stood side by side, all glaring at Discord with rage. "We have the princesses, the human and the Elements. You've lost Discord and if you were smart, you'd give up now."

To her surprise Discord began to laugh in response. "Oh you're right Twilight; I can't defeat all of you, especially with that human's cursed weapons that could probably destroy me if I allowed them to hit me. But you see, I prepared in case this happened and I know that I won't have to fight all of you at the same time. Because Ryan will fight me one on one if he hopes to get back something."

"And why would he do that?" Luna asked, but Ryan passed by her and glared up at the god. His eyes told Discord that he knew and with a chuckle Discord reached into nothingness and retrieved a silver sphere with a crack in the side of it.

"That's right human, if you don't fight me one on one I'll toss this pretty gem into wherever I want and you'll never see her again," Discord taunted with a smirk as he began to throw the sphere back in forth. "But, by a miracle of miracles, if you manage to beat me all by yourself, with no help, I'll return the sphere to you and you can finally be out of your debt to her. Are we agreed?"

"Of course I agree," Ryan muttered.

"Excellent. Then I'll be waiting for you in here," Discord laughed as he vanished into thin air, leaving a tear in reality that had a sign saying "humans only".

"You know this is a trap right?" Lyra asked Ryan as he looked around for his backpack. "He knows that he can't beat all of us together, but he can take you alone. You don't have to do this." Fluttershy brought it over to him and with a bit of help he slipped it over his shoulders before looking back at the unicorn with a smirk.

"Sorry Lyra, but I always repay a debt," Ryan said as the smirk turned into a genuine smile, the first one that any of those ponies had seen from him. "Besides, Discord's already lost this fight. He just doesn't know it yet."

"What do you mean?" Luna asked as Ryan began to walk forward towards the rift.

"Because I'm a survivor Luna," Ryan said as he stopped in front of the tear, turning so he could give them a thumbs up. "And just like everything else this damned world has thrown at me, I'll survive this too. Probably. And if not, see you all in hell." And with those words he threw himself into the unknown, not knowing if he would live or die. But one thing he did know was that, one way or another, his journey ended here. For good.

The Unstoppable Force Meets the Intolerable Object

"Thank you for coming on such a quick notice, taking over the world is such a hassle," Discord said as Ryan walked up to him. Looking around, Ryan saw that he was standing on stain glass with floating, crystals all around him. There was a ceiling that seemed to be made out of whatever Discord felt like and it seemed he was in the mood for chandeliers. "And after I'm done with you, I'm going to have to go and re-chaos...fy the princesses and the Elements again."

"Well if it was going to be so much trouble getting them back, then why let them out in the first place?" Ryan asked him while he began to assess what he was up against. Frontal assault was suicide and he highly doubted that Discord would let him get close enough to use his baton. 'Ah shit, now that I think about it I never got the other baton back from Zecora,' Ryan thought to himself.

"Actually, taking over the world wasn't my idea in the first place," Discord said as he floated around Ryan, who never took his eyes off the god. "A very odd creature that appeared out of nowhere mentioned it to me. Now I generally don't care about ruling, since all I prefer to do is have fun, but he put up such a convincing argument that I just couldn't resist playing king for a while."

'He's arrogant, but not stupid. He's waiting for me to make a move,' Ryan silently thought as he watched Discord's eyes, which were just like his. Wary, on alert and not all there. "Care to introduce me to this...friend of yours? I'd like to know whether or not I’ll have to deal with him once I'm done with you."

'He has no special abilities like me or any of the ponies, but that's what makes him so dangerous,' Discord thought as he too scouted his opponent. 'The ponies rely too much on their wings or magic to defeat their foes, but this one...he has beaten all in his path on sheer tenacity alone. This will be fun.' "Sorry, but he doesn't like to reveal himself too often and never around strangers. Heck, I barely know anything about him, only that he wanted this silver sphere here when I'm done with you."

"So he wants the silver mare," Ryan snarled as he reached into his bag and grabbed the baton, figuring that he had put off the inevitable fight long enough. "I'll admit Discord, I never believed in gods or magic back in my world, even though we humans were fascinated with them. I just thought they were tales to comfort the weak."

"And now you admit that you're wrong?" Discord asked with a smirk, only to receive a smirk in response as Ryan pointed his baton at him.

"No. Now I see that these "gods" are just arrogant assholes with more power than they should have. But despite that power, even gods fall."

Discord let out a small laugh at that remark before answering. "We shall see." Snapping his fingers created a maw under where Ryan had been standing, but the human had thrown himself forward a moment before Discord had attacked and was already closing the gap between the two. With a leap Ryan flung himself at the god, swinging right for between the eyes. A swarm of Discord-flies fluttered away as he hit nothing, leaving the human to snarl as the mocking laughter surrounded him as the butterflies flew away.

"Come now Ryan, surely you didn't beat the Elements of Harmony and the princess of the sun by simply swinging at them," Discord taunted as he reformed himself in the center of the stain glass, snapping his fingers so that a swarm of thunderclouds rumbled above them.

"Would you be surprised if I said that's exactly how I beat them?" Ryan retorted, preparing for the next attack before feeling all the hairs on his back stand up on end. His avoid death sense kicked in and he threw himself to the side just as a massive surge of lightning hit the area where he had just been standing. "Come on Discord, I'm the guy with the electric weapons. Stop taking my ideas."

"Oh, I’ll have taken more than ideas by the time we're done here," Discord said with an evil smirk as he snapped his fingers again, creating a ring of fire around the outskirts of the glass circle. "A little birdy told me that you don't like fire human. Mind if I put that theory to the test?" Ryan felt his heart leap into his chest at the sight of the flames, the screams screeching across his mind as the sight of his burning world surfaced.

'No. I have conquered you.' He closed his eyes and forced himself to be calm, shutting away the screaming and the burning back into his mind where it belonged. 'You might scare me, but I will not succumb to you again.' "You'll have to do better than that Discord, all fire does now is keep me warm at night."

"Oh very well human, we'll fight your way!" Discord yelled with a cackle as he snapped both his hands, sending lightning bolts flashing all across the stain glass. Ryan couldn't stop for even a second as the bolts struck all around him, feeling the power of the electricity tingle through him. "And I know about that armband on you, but while my magic may not work I know that actually lightning will make you a stain!"

'Or if my idea works I can paten a new defibrillator.' Ryan stopped in the center of the arena and held his right arm in the air, turning on the baton and waiting for the bolt that would inevitably come. 'Hope this baton can absorb lightning as well as use it, because if not I'm going to be the laughing stock of the afterlife.'

"Giving up? Oh come on, we've barely...ah hell." The bolt landed dead center and Ryan felt himself being shocked to his very core, but the baton kept him from dying. With all the force he could muster he aimed his arm right at the draconis, a smirk crossing his electrified face.

"Shazam." The lightning streaked from the baton and drilled Discord in his smug face, sending him howling backwards as the baton enhanced the power of the thunderbolt tenfold. The god crashed into one of the floating crystals and slumped to the floor. The thunderclouds began to vanish, but Ryan couldn't focus on that as he was trying to get his nerves back under control. 'Get...to Discord...put...stop to this.'

'Damn human...filled...with more tricks than I thought.' Discord shakily pushed himself to a kneeling position, allowing him to see the human staggering towards him while spinning the weapon in his hands. 'Get...the baton...away from him.' "Hey human, I've got another deal to make you."

"No deal," Ryan snarled as he lifted the baton, but with a snap Discord appeared at the edge of the circle, dangling the silver sphere over the edge. Ryan stopped in his tracks with a snarl, but Discord was all smiles as he saw the human trying to think of a way around this. "Fine, whaddya want?"

"Thrown that baton over the edge and I'll give you the mare right here, right now," Discord threatened. Ryan only thought about it for a moment before he turned and chucked the baton with all his might, watching as it sailed over the edge into nothingness. Discord said nothing, but tossed the sphere to Ryan with a smile on his face. A smile of victory.

"Yo mare, you still in there?" Ryan whispered to the sphere once he had caught her. The sphere blinked lightly and he felt it trying to scan him, but the armband prevented it from doing so.

'Ryan?' the mare's voice said very weakly, the sphere barely flashing at all. 'How did...did you defeat Discord?'

"Working on it, but he made me an offer I couldn't refuse," Ryan snarled before slipping the sphere into his pocket and looking back over to the god, who was snickering at him while cracking his knuckles.

"Well now human, you lost one of those batons to the zebra and you just chucked the other right off into nothingness," Discord cackled as he stalked forward as menacingly as possible. "You really ought to take better care of your things, especially the ones that are given to you by higher powers. So now I have to ask, just for the laughs, what are you going to do?" Ryan said nothing in reply, but he reached into his bag and pulled out the knife with his blood on it, getting a chuckle out of the god.

"Please, you think that can hurt me?" Discord smirked before snapping his fingers and creating a massive blade out of ice. "You have nothing on me anymore. All of your friends are gone, you’ve lost a hand and you're out of ancient, godly weapons that can even put a scratch on me. You should just give up now and save yourself the trouble."

"Hey Discord, you know what I can do with one hand?" Ryan asked before sticking his middle finger up. "Fuck you."

"Heh, defiant to the end. Good." Discord swung the massive blade that grew longer as he sliced through the air to cleave the human, who barely rolled under the blade. Ryan could feel the blade slice the very air around him as it screeched above him.

'Plan. I need a plan,' Ryan thought as he desperately avoided the blade as best he could, but he could feel his very life being cleaved away each and every time it got closer to him. He rolled once again to avoid a strike but as he recovered Discord shot magic at his knife, shattering it with ease.

"And now you're down another weapon," Discord smirked as Ryan threw the hilt aside. "So do you have anything else in that little bag of tricks or are you finally done?"

'Ryan...run...' the silver mare weakly said as she tried to take on her form again, causing a tiny mare to flicker besides Ryan. 'I can...at the very least...distract him long enough for you to escape.'

"Sorry, but I'm going to have to pass that offer up. I still owe you," Ryan snarled as he looked back up to Discord. "Hey Discord, you said that you wanted this between us but the mare is still here. Open up that rift back to Equestria so I can get rid of her and we'll finish this."

"You make a good point. Alright."

'Ryan no!' the mare cried as Discord snapped his fingers, creating the rift again. 'Without me here you will die!'

"So will you and trust me, your life is worth a lot more than mine," Ryan said to her before taking the sphere out of his pocket and chucking her through the tear, which closed up the moment she was gone. Ryan looked up at the god, who had a smile of victory once again and Ryan found it hard to find the energy to make a snarky remark. He had no weapon, no allies and now even his wit was failing him. 'I really am on my own. Alright magic bag of tricks, is there anything that will give me a chance?' he asked as he reached into the bag.

"Come on human, I've been having so much fun with this," Discord laughed at him as he rummaged around. "Pull out one last surprise, one last trick that you believe will give you a chance against me!" Ryan had no idea if he had anything left when his hand struck metal and to his shock he pulled out the one item he hadn't used yet.

'The pistol,' Ryan thought as he looked up at the draconis, who had yet to make a move. His brain began firing on all cylinders as he racked his brain for any way to hit Discord with any of the five bullets. And then it came to him. He, very deliberately, pulled the gun out of the bag with a flourish, gaining the attention of the god.

"Oh? And what do you have there?" Discord asked with a playful smirk as he looked at the tiny metal item. "Please tell me that's your last resort." So he didn't know what Ryan held. Good.

"This? This is something that my people made," Ryan bragged as he flipped the safety off before waving it around in Discord's face. "This is a human weapon, one that when it hits you, and trust me it will, it will tear you apart, completely destroying you. Not even your pathetic magic will save you from this." Ryan watched as Discord smirked again, but he could also see the anger in his eyes. Ryan had offended him and that's exactly what he had hoped for. 'Now either he'll kill me here or...'

"You're really putting all of your faith in something that your backwards race of people made?" Discord laughed as he pulled out a magnifying glass and looked at the gun. "That thing is tiny! It's not even magic! How is that supposed to hurt me?" He laughed again before looking at Ryan with eyes overflowing with confidence, but more importantly...arrogance. "Alright, I’ll give it to you. A free shot, right here," Discord smirked as he pointed to his cheek. "Go ahead, hit me."

"With pleasure," Ryan muttered with a smile as Discord closed his eyes, giving Ryan to perfect opportunity to take aim right at the god's eyes.

BANG!

Ryan wasn't sure what was louder, the firing of the gun or the roar of pain that Discord gave off as the bullet tore through his eye and burying itself in is skull. He howled with agony as he held both of his hands to his face, letting Ryan smirk as he saw that the hands were stained with blood.

BANG!

The gun roared again and Discord screamed as the bullet tore into the other side of his face, though Ryan snarled when he realized that he had missed the eye. Discord scrambled away from the human, tears welling up in his good eye as he blinked through the pain at Ryan. Ryan looked into Discord's eye and for the first time he saw something more than arrogance and chaos. He saw fear, fear of the human.

"W-what the hell is that?!" Discord roared as he pointed his hand at Ryan, but Ryan was quicker on the draw and he shot through said hand. Discord rolled around in pain as he held his hand with his other hand, slowly turning to the human as Ryan advanced towards him, the evilest smile on his face.

"What is this Discord? This is a gun, a weapon that has killed more than any other handheld device I know of," Ryan laughed as he threw his head back, letting his cackle chill the draconis. "We humans may not have magic, we may not have wings or ungodly strength that allows us to overcome our foes, but we're clever. Oh how we were clever at thinking up ways to kill."

"B-but I'm a god of chaos! How can you-" Ryan kicked him across the face and pointed the gun at his forehead, chuckling as he looked into Discord's fear filled eyes with his own crazy ones.

"You might be a god of chaos, you might have powers beyond anything that I have ever seen, you might be smarter, more powerful and even far stronger," Ryan said to him in a near whisper. "But I'm a human. And if there's anything we're good at, it's figuring out ways to kill. Now I say that, because," Ryan began as he pointed the gun right between Discord's eyes. "You're about to lose your life."

"P-please don't kill me!" Discord begged as he tried to summon his magic, but through the pain he could barely concentrate enough to muster his words. "I promise that I'll leave the ponies alone and that I won't cause them any more pain! I always keep my word! Please!"

"What's the matter "god", afraid of a little death?" Ryan taunted with a smirk.

"Please. I'm begging you." Ryan thought about it hard, his expression never changing as he glared into the "god's" fear filled eyes. On one hand, he knew that he couldn't trust Discord and that he probably would come back .But on the other...Ryan did not want to kill him. Despite how much pain Discord had caused and how fucked up Ryan was...

'We've caused enough death,' he thought, knowing that humanity already had enough blood on their souls. 'He lives.' Ryan lowered the gun, watching as Discord's eyes filled up with gratitude. Ryan then flashed him an evil smile before he pulled off his armband and slid it into place around Discord's neck, where the power of the band immediately cancelled out Discords magic.

"W-what did you do to me?" Discord asked as he felt his power drain.

"Guarantee that you'll never use your magic again," Ryan replied. 'This is the best option I guess. He lives and he's no longer a threat. I gu-' His thoughts were interrupted as the ceiling above them shattered and chandeliers began to rain down just as the glass beneath began to crack.

"Care to tell me what's happening?" Ryan asked as Discord looked around in fear.

"You've cut off my magic! Now I can't keep this realm stable!" Discord screamed as he snapped his fingers to no avail. When that didn't work he clawed at the band around his neck, but it refused to budge. "You have to take this off of me! If you don't this realm will bury the both of us!"

"Hey, you’re a god right? Meaning you won't starve or anything right?" Ryan asked him with a smirk, which grew wider when Discord nodded. "Then why are you upset? You'll live!" Ryan then kicked Discord right between the teeth and sent him skidding over the side of the cracking glass, where he screamed as he fell into nothingness. "Keep trying at that armband! Sure you'll get it off eventually!" He let out one last laugh that used up his remaining strength and then he fell onto his back, letting the gun fall to his side. He stared up blankly at the collapsing ceiling.

'Still a few shots left,' he thought to himself as he looked over at the gun before shrugging and turning his gaze back to the ceiling. 'Nah, it's about time I got crushed to death. At least I can tell the guys in the afterlife I died defeating a god and saving a race of talking, rainbow ponies. Pretty good way to die actually.' He closed his eyes as he thought this, hearing all of the debris crash around him as he wondered what he would say to his race once he saw them again.

'I think I'll start with a fuck you all. They deserve it.' Then he realized that he had to add the new information about Discord to the guide. He didn't know why he chosen then to think about it, but his brain obviously wanted him to finish it. So with a groan he opened his eyes and pulled his bag over to him, barely missing a chandelier that almost crushed his good hand. 'Can't believe I'm still writing this thing. Now where was Discord's page. Ah, here it...' Ryan pulled out his quill and began to write away, waiting for the splat that he would become.

Of Course He Survived

Luna looked out the window at the setting sun on the horizon, confliction in her heart as she tried to think of something to write on her report on the human...on Ryan and about how he had saved them all. Yet he never made it back from that world where Discord had taken him and since no other pony (except the silver mare and Zecora) knew him as well as she had, Luna was the one who had to think up a report.

She sighed as she looked down at what she had written so far, smirking at her own writing. She had claimed him to be an insufferable asshole who would sooner make fun of you then he would make friends with you. But beneath all of her jokes about him she had written the more heroic side of Ryan, how no matter what he was thrown up against he would face it head on, with no quit or worries about himself.

"Having trouble sister?" Luna stretched her wings as she turned to look at Celestia, who walked up to her little sister and wrapped her in a wing hug.

"Well, I have done as you asked and written my report about what little I knew about the human, but it is sadly lacking," Luna muttered with frustration as she hoofed her sister the barely half a pages worth of writing. Celestia skimmed over it quickly with a frown before offering it back to Luna.

"You said that Zecora will not tell you what else she knows about the human?" Celestia asked, Luna shaking her head in response.

"She says that it is not her place and that he asked her not to reveal anything about him to us," Luna answered. "I cannot understand that zebra sometimes. How are the repairs for the areas affected by Discord going?"

"Progress is going well, but sadly none of the ponies remember anything that happened," Celestia said with a bit of regret in her voice. "All of the ponies just assume that we and the Elements of Harmony saved them. They have no recollection of what the human...Ryan did for them or what he sacrificed."

"And that's where we meet our dilemma," Luna muttered as she rose from her chair, turning towards the window and focusing her magic so that she could raise the moon for the night. "Do we tell the ponies of the land the truth about the human and that there have been others before him? Or do we let them believe their own words and that we saved them all?"

"We've hushed the truth before," Celestia reminded her sister. Luna frowned at those words as she placed the moon into place before turning to her sister.

"Yes, but at those times we were not lying sister. With the knight we did aid him against the dragon and we did save the ponies. That was a fact," Luna reminded her sister, memories of that ordeal flashing through their minds as if it had happened the other day. "But this time we were helpless to stop Discord and without that human we would all be under his power. I say we tell them what really happened, tell them about the hero that that asshole was deep down."

"Very well sister, I suppose that we will have to tell them," Celestia mumbled with a yawn as she headed to her room. "Tomorrow though. I'm far too tired after what we've been through." Luna nodded as she went back to her report, but she felt something in the back of her skull and she turned around.

"You can come out. I can vaguely sense you," Luna said to the moonlight room, smiling a moment later when the mare of silver emerged from nothingness. "I am glad to see that you are alright. We had no idea whether or not you would recover from the damage Discord had done to you."

'Yes, I must thank you for helping to restore me slightly,' the mare gratefully said before looking at the crack in her sphere, which had grown slightly larger. 'But I did not come here to talk. I came to say farewell. It is time...that I return to my home and put my plan into action. Please do not ask me what it is, all you need to know is that...I am grateful to you and I hope one day to repay my debt. If the human taught me anything, it's that debts need to be repaid.'

"Yes. I am just sad that we will never be able to repay him for what he did," Luna said with a sad sigh. "Farewell, whoever you are." The silver mare nodded and vanished into nothingness once again, leaving the princess to sigh and turn back to her report.

\\ //
//; ;\\

The brew in her hut had just began to boil when Zecora heard a knocking at the door and she grumbled to herself as she walked over to and opened the door, blinking in surprise when she found Twilight and Lyra standing on her porch. "Twilight and Lyra, this is a surprise. So rarely do you come through this forest of lies."

"Sorry to intrude on you like this Zecora, but we bring news that we figure that you'd want to hear," Twilight said as she and Lyra entered the room, sitting down when Zecora offered them seats. "I thought that you'd like to know that we're going to tell the public about Ryan and what he did for us in the fight against Discord." Zecora raised an eyebrow at this, but she motioned for her to continue.

"We figure that they deserve to know who truly saved them," Lyra added before Twilight could speak. "Plus...Ryan was the only member of his race left and with him gone...if we don't remember the humans then who will? They might have wiped each other out, but I'm going to try to help the ponies remember them in the best light I can, using Ryan as an example."

"So an egotistical jerk with more baggage than a pony on the move?" Zecora teased with a chuckle. "But I agree that showing the good he caused is something that you must prove. I did care for him even if I did not show it, but with him I couldn't resist matching wits."

"I just wish that I could have learned more about him like you had," Twilight said with a sad shake of her head. "The last human is now gone and with him died all knowledge of the human race. All of their books, all of the inventions that they created. (Sigh)...I guess they're just another race to be added to the Book of Mythical Creatures now."

"At least we got to kinda know one before he died," Lyra said, trying to look at it with a positive spin. "And from all the horror stories that he told us, I'm glad we got one of the good ones."

"Maybe you're right there," Twilight said with anther sad shake as she stood up. "The announcement with take place at six tonight. I would recommend coming Zecora, we'd like somepony there who knew at least something about Ryan to make a speech about him."

"I will try, but for now I must say goodbye." Twilight nodded before looking at Lyra, wondering if she was going to come with. She shook her head and Twilight left the room with a shrug, leaving the unicorn and the zebra to look at each other before huge smiles broke out on their faces and they began to laugh.

"If you assholes are laughing at me then we're going to have a problem," Ryan snarled as he walked out of the closet, smiling at the two who stifled their laughter as best they could. "It's amazing how little these ponies think of me. I survive everything else that happens to me and they believe that something as pathetic as an inter-dimensional barrier crushing me would kill me."

"It may not be my place, but please tell me how you managed to escape?" Zecora asked with a smile as Ryan sat down in the chair that Twilight had just vacated.

"You can thank little miss "useless" over there," Ryan said as he jerked his thumb to Lyra, who blushed slightly under the praise. "She apparently spent most of her life practicing a spell that would allow her to teleport any human to her no matter where they were and just when death was finally about to claim my ass did it finally work, teleporting me out of that place and to her. Never told me about it. I'm surprised that you didn't tell any of the others that you got my ass out of that fire."

"I did try to tell you, but you blew me off. And I figured that was your call," Lyra bashfully said. "But I'm more surprised that you didn't want the ponies to now that you survived! Knowing you I thought that you would lord it over their heads for years after this and since you saved them all they'd have to put up with it."

"That's actually a pretty good idea, but sadly I do not believe that I'm going to be around much longer," Ryan muttered before turning in his chair to see the silver mare behind him. "I still owe you my life at least three times over. And I have a feeling that you still have need of me." The silver mare walked over and sat beside them, looking up at Ryan with a smile that was hidden beneath her hood.

'I am glad that you are alive,' she said softly, Zecora smiling slightly as Ryan looked at her with confusion. 'But you are right. I need your help one last time.'

"Well tell me what we need to do already, we're burning daylight."

'Captain Marvel. The Incredible Hulk and Bruce Banner. Batmare. Trixie the Misfit. Mr. Bubbles. And the now fallen Mr. Freeze,' the silver mare began as she brought up images of each of the six champions. 'These are the six who were supposed to help me defeat a darkness that would claim my home and then from there all of the multiverse. Yet as I said, Freeze fell defending his land and I was not able to save him.'

"So you want me to replace him?" Ryan asked. "Sure, sounds easy enough. I just have to fight alongside five other creatures that could kill me by blinking."

'He was chosen by the power, something that you have not been,' the silver mare said. 'At first I truly believed that I would have to find another champion in the short amount of time that I had, but after meeting you...after getting to know you, I believe that if anypony can take his place it would be you.'

"So I'm going to be the only one on this team that wasn't chosen? Ugh, it's like high school all over again," Ryan joked.

'You may not have been chosen by the power, but you were chosen by me,' the silver mare said with another hidden soft smile.

"And that's supposed to make me feel better?" The group laughed at that before Ryan stood up and slung his backpack onto his back, heading for the exit. "I'll come with you soon, but there a few things that I need to get done before we go. I have a few goodbyes to say and also something I need to...finish. Catch you later."

"I should probably be getting back to," Lyra said as she got up and walked out of the room as well. "Thanks for everything silver and Zecora. Never thought I'd see the day when I got to be a hero, even if it was only for a moment."

'Through my travels I have found that almost all ponies have the potential to be heroes, whether or not they know it.' Lyra smiled at the kind words before she turned to leave, leaving the silver mare alone with Zecora. 'I truly do not know if this plan is going to work. I was specifically told that I needed the six champions, but with Freeze dead...'

"Did you not say that you believed Ryan was a suitable replacement? So I wonder where all that confidence went?" Zecora asked.

'That's not a rhyme. And yes, I said that he would be a suitable replacement, but that was more of a...selfish reason,' the silver mare admitted while looking at the floor, getting a chuckle out of Zecora. 'But I still don't know if this will work! What if it doesn't? The original Elements have abandoned me and said that they cannot help me! I-'

"Did you not say yourself that all have the potential to be heroes, it's that they only think of themselves as zeroes?" Zecora asked her with a raised eyebrow. "Another might be able to take up the power, but only if you are there to help them in that hour." The silver mare sighed softly before looking up at Zecora, removing her hood and moving her silver mane to the side so that the zebra could see the lightning bolt mark on her neck.

'Thank you for never giving up on me,' the silver mare said as she rubbed the mark. 'But why help out Ryan? Why did you choose to watch over him all this time?'

"Because he needed my help if he was to survive, but I am glad I managed to free him from his own lie. Normally I prefer to remain mysterious and withdrawn, but this was easier as I could be one who was gone, " Zecora said with a sad sigh as she stood up, smiling at the silver mare. “Because all deserve to have a chance at happiness, especially those filled with emptiness. But now I must say farewell, for I am needed in another hell. Oh and give this to Ryan. Without it he'd lose to an ant lion. Now I must go say farewell to my friends...then my time here is at its end." The silver mare nodded as she backed up, covering her eyes a light flashed from Zecora's eyes. When she could see again, both Zecora and the hut were gone, as if they had never been there at all. Ryan approached from as the silver mare looked down at the ground, smiling at what Zecora had left.

"The hell did the zebra go?" Ryan asked as he walked up besides the silver mare, who smirked as she walked by him.

'She is gone to help others who need her, but I have the feeling we'll see her again. Speaking of which, she gave me this,' the mare said as she tossed Ryan his other baton, the human looking down at it before he looked back to where the hut had been with a smirk.

"I freaking knew it," he said with a laugh as he placed the baton in his bag, looking at where the hut used to be.

'Are you certain that you don't want to stick around here? The ponies would see you as a hero.'

"Just because they see me as one doesn't make me one," Ryan shrugged. "I'm just an ass who stumbled into things that he should have stayed far away from. Now come on, we have to go save your world, right?"

'Indeed. Let us go.'

====---====

'My future looks as bleak as ever, as I no longer am certain if I will be able to save my home,' the mare said to herself as she looked around at all six of the Elements, her eyes resting on the one that no longer had an owner. 'Now I have five champions and one who might as well be a champion, but I do not know if this will be enough. There is just such an uphill climb that we must face. The warring sister, the power of Teth and the eventual being of darkness and destruction that will descend. I just pray that they can-'

"Are you monologing to yourself in there? Hurry the hell up; we need to get me that replacement hand!" The silver mare smirked at the voice before looking one last time at the six items in front of her, suppressing her fears as best she could. She then turned and headed towards Ryan, preparing her magic to summon the five champions and the plaything of the gods.

'They are not perfect, but if my adventures have shown me anything it's that they shouldn't be,' she silently thought to herself. 'Their flaws make them strong and their courage will win them the day. Sister...Freeze...watch over me. For it is time for the Elements to be re-forged.'

Author's Notes:

Thanks to all who read this really old story of mine and I hope you enjoyed it despite it being older. This was actually a story I considered putting out before the Batman one but...come on, it's Batman. But I know why all of you really read this (because you love me) and that's for the next hero. The next hero is a champion of justice, a defender of truth. But is that his will...or his programming? After all he's suffered through and what has been done can he even be called human anymore? Yet despite the pain and having his life torn apart, he still stays true to his three directives.

Serve the public trust.
Uphold the law.
Protect the innocent.