Prince of Equestria - A Whole New Animal, Part 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ri9wf19761A
>You are Shining Armor.
>Words…man, they can’t explain what the heck it is you’re seeing.
>The shockwaves emanating from Anon, the slab and that thing he’s got in his hand feels like it’s going to tear your mind apart.
>Ok, recap.
>You’re just wandering along, minding your own business, when this weird ape-like thing ran into you.
>He called himself Anonymous, and man was he a jerk!
>That little self-centered…you were better than he was, and you were out to prove it!
>You thought you did, Anon wouldn’t be crazy enough to jump off the aqueduct.
>He wasn’t.
>SURPRISE, his cousin is an Alicorn, an annoying little filly named Cadence.
>SURPRISE AGAIN, that means he’s royalty.
>She kinda…gave him the push he needed.
>And you thought you could save them. Like you needed their deaths on your conscience.
>Well, you did…kinda.
>By teleporting all three of you into a massive underground ruin.
>SURPRISE ONCE AGAIN, not only is this monkey freak royalty, he’s the son of the Sun Princess herself.
>Turns out, he’s not such a bad little freak. He may talk a big game, but you have to respect a guy who cares for his cousin like that.
>And now, this guy’s holding the handle of a weird metal thing you’ve never seen before, emanating a magic aura that shakes you to your very core.
>You pull Cadence back behind the dais, keeping low to minimize the impact of the magical shockwaves emanating from the slab.
>You may be pretty new at this magic thing, but even an earth p0ny could tell that this was really bad.
>”Armor! Do something!”
>Cadence pounds her hooves on your arm, her worry obvious.
“Hold on kid…if we’re not careful, we can cause even more damage…”
>Not that you think you could do anything.
“Oh man…this is bad. Cadence, get out of here!”
>Cadence, for her part, just furrows her brow.
>”Nuh-uh! I’m not leaving Anon behind!”
>She puffs her cheeks out to drive her point home.
>It’s kind of cute. Reminds you of your little sister.
“I hear ya, kid, but…what can we do?”
>Indeed. Magic pours from Anon’s eyes and mouth, any screams of his drowned out by the arcane maelstrom.
>It even drowns out the sound of a white alicorn princess appearing next to you.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7te9iZcczc
>You are Anon.
>Man…where are you?
>Everything you see is like fleeting shadows in your mind.
>Colors…sounds…even your own perception of the air around you are greyed out.
>You are in a massive throne room, much different from the one back home where Mom holds court.
>However, that’s not Mom sitting in the throne.
>There is a big black alicorn, who looks to be made up of the night itself. He stares ahead with a stern look on his face.
>Next to him is a mare. Her fringes seem to be a sea of stars, but at her core glows a bright light, a thousand times brighter than the sun.
>You walk around the scene, waving your hands in front of the faces of the random guard p0nes.
>No reaction.
>Can they not see you?
>Suddenly, as if someone pushed play, one of the guards speaks.
>”King Galaxy! Queen Eternia! I present the representative of the Unified Kingdoms of Man, King Rindr of the Northern Kingdoms!”
>As if on command, doors at the opposite ends of the hallway burst open, and in strolls…
>…What is this?
>It’s a human! Just like you!
>He’s a big beast of a man, covered head to toe in gleaming steel armor, his shoulders adorned with some kind of fur, blurring the line between the armor and his great flowing cape. His great red hair looks like the flaming mane of a lion.
>Behind him strolls a kid, about as old as you are. The resemblance between him and you is striking.
>In both arms he carries a long bundle covered in cloth.
>”Your Majesties, I bid you greetings from your allies from the Unified Kingdoms of Man!”
>This…Rindr fellow, his voice is as big and booming as he is.
>The black alicorn speaks. His face is like stone, but he at least sounds pleased to see this guy.
>”Ah…King Rindr. What brings you to Equestria this day?”
>Rindr smiles as he beckons the young boy forward.
>”Your Majesty, today I bring a gift.”
>The boy unwraps the package he is holding as Rindr continues to speak.
>”This is my son, Anonym. In accordance with the treaty of protection, he has come to train with you so as to lead the forces of Humanity in defense of our Equestrian allies, should the need ever arise.”
>You notice two faces peeking out from behind Eternia’s throne.
>The first one looks like a miniature, filly version of Mom, right down to the pastel mane.
>The other one…who is that? You’ve never seen her before. An alicorn like mom, she has a dark blue coat and a light blue mane, with eyes that remind you of sapphires.
>The blue one seems to be staring at Anonym, a light blush evident even in the subdued colors.
>”And this…is the sword that will shield Equestria from evil!”
>Your attention snaps back to Anonym, who has finished unwrapping the package.
>It looks like the sword that was sticking out of the slab.
>Anonym speaks. His voice is small…but you can’t help but admire his confidence.
>”As long as Equestria has this blade, so shall you have the blades of Man at your service…”
>A new voice speaks as the scene fades to black.
>”Such a heartwarming tale…isn’t it?”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktBtwBj0xnU
>The feminine voice chills you to your core. You snap around, and against the darkness you can make out the faintest haze, darting around you as if inspecting a meal.
>You immediately take a defensive posture, though your little fists hardly look very threatning.
“Who are you?”
>”Oh, you think you’re brave? That’s good, but there is a line between courage and foolhardiness, boy.”
>The contempt the voice has for you is evident, but you relax yourself.
“What do you want from me?”
>The voice laughs, as you feel a mass move up inches from your face, feeling like the arctic soul of death itself.
>”From you? Nothing, right now. I have no use for a mere boy, unable to even protect himself.”
>You pout. This is really creeping you out.
“I-I can protect myself…”
>”Oh? If you could do that, you wouldn’t have needed Shining Armor to save you, now would you?”
>Man…creepy lady has you there.
>”You know, boy, you have a lot of potential in you. You have strength, to be sure…but do you have the heart and discipline to put it to use?”
“C-Come out! Show yourself!”
>This really makes the voice laugh, all of reality seems to shake with it,
>”Well well well, the cub thinks he can roar! Big words from a small child just sounds more like the mewling of a frightened mouse than a noble lion.”
>You shrink back, pulling your arms close to you.
>Mom…where are you…
>The voice just continues to laugh. “Your mother cannot help you here, boy.”
>It can read minds too…great.
“O-okay…then…w-why don’t you tell me something I don’t know then! What was that? What did I just see?”
>The voice chuckles as if bemused.
>”Very well, child. That was history. Twelve hundred years ago, your kind was numerous, and ruled the lands far to the north of what is now the Griffin Kingdoms.”
>You sit cross-legged on the ground…well, what you think is the ground.
>”That was the first time your mother, Celestia, ever met a human.”
>The voice’s words seem to drip venom at the mention of your mother.
>”But more importantly, it was the first time her sister met a human too…a very special human.”
>Wait, what?
“Sister…mom never told me about a sister…”
>The voice’s mock shock is palpable. “She never did? Oh tsk tsk Tia, what kind of mother keeps secrets from her own child? You should ask her about your Auntie Luna some day, boy.”
“Please…can I just go back now? I want to go home…”
>The voice sighs. “I suppose there’s nothing to gain from you now…I will allow you to go back…but remember this…”
>”On the eve of your eighteenth birthday, the stars will align, and you will return to this place…and then shall you embrace your destiny.”
>Your…eighteenth birthday? Destiny? What?
“But…who are you anyway?”
>You feel like a shadow caresses your cheek, and despite not seeing anything, you can feel a cold breath splash on your face.
>”I am the spirit of the night itself…gaze upon the moon, and you will know my greatness. However, you must decide if I am a dream…”
>You can feel the maliciousness, like a devious grin on the face of the devil itself.
>”…or a Nightmare! Now go! You shall return to your world with a gift from the Moon!”
>You blink as reality starts to fade to white.
“A..a gift?”
>”Even a goddess can be given reason to heed the final desires of a dying woman.”
>What does that even mean….

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>Back in the chamber, the maelstrom of magical energy suddenly explodes, causing Celestia to raise a mystic shield to protect the two foals down here with you.
>Runes adorning the walls and domed ceiling begin to grow bright blue as mystic forces splash across them, like water seeping into cracks.
>As the room itself begins to glow, the energy in the etchings of the runes begin to distort, flying into you.
>The ones that hit Celestia’s shield rolls around them like raindrops on a window.
>Cadence shudders, she’s never seen Aunt Celestia so scared.
>It’s Shining Armor who speaks first.
>”Your highness…what’s going on?”
>”I don’t know, little one…”
>There is one marking that Celestia recognizes that fills her with dread.
>The glowing blue sigil of the crescent moon, seeping into your forehead like water.
>With an explosion of blue light, the room goes dim again as you release your grip on the sword, falling to the ground, bordering on the edge of conciousness.
>Celestia is next to you like a ray of light, the only sound you hear is her screaming your name before the darkness claims you.