Dark Horse (AKA: Saffron Shadow)

June 16, 2016

Dark sports a naturally colored brown-gray coat with an averagely styled black mane. He has saffron colored eyes, alluding to his stage name, though which can sometimes appear a darker red under low-light conditions. Dark is known for often donning a gray stage cloak when working, and despite rarely wearing it outside of his performances, has become a kind of signature outfit in his public image.

As an entertainer who has performed a variety of roles in venues all across the world, Dark often adopts an exaggerated personality based upon different aspects of the characters he has portrayed in the past. As such, he often comes across as a confident and suave stereotypical actor when interacting with others.

This is, however, merely a façade. In truth; Dark has struggled with emotional insecurity and a lack of self-confidence since being a young colt. His inability to come to terms with and even accept all that he is has left him with a deep underlying fear of being judged or dismissed by his peers should, as he feels, they ever get to know the real him. The only time he truly feels comfortable interacting with others is when he is on stage, hidden behind the mask of a character. As such, Dark Horse rarely shows his true face to the public, instead preferring to be somepony he is not. This pretense often allows him to act with great confidence and knowledge in an area he truthfully knows little about or has no real interest in, but he feels that this is the only way he can portray himself to others without ridicule. Ultimately, Dark's greatest flaw is that he simply lacks faith in himself, for whom he really is, and is overly worried about what others may think about him.

Ironically, to those who are able to break down his barriers and earn his trust, one discovers a stallion who is both extremely loyal to his friends and confidently able to interact with them, revealing a number of interests and hobbies one would never learn from his 'pseudo' personalities. Dark is a well read, well cultured Pony who enjoys deep thought and study. He often delves into the deeper meanings behind things many would find mundane, and studies with great enthusiasm over topics of life and the supernatural. Dark is also keen on Equestrian history, and frequently visits ancient historical sights all across Equestria to gain inspiration for his performances.

While he cannot stand snobbish elitism such as that displayed by many in Canterlot, he appreciates higher class culture and mannerisms, but believes that respect should be unanimous between all ponies regardless of their background or social standing. Dark has true fondness for Ponyville, believing it to be the perfect retreat from the bustling noise of Manehattan, and vacations there regularly.

Above all, Dark deeply cherishes those he calls his friends, the only individuals he feels he can truly be himself around, and would go to great lengths to ensure their well being and happiness, displaying great selflessness and loyalty. While he chooses his friends very carefully, those who earn his trust and friendship will attest to having a Pony who is kind, reassuring and always there for them when needed.

Born in the bustling streets of Manehattan, Dark's father was a renowned unicorn magician who first introduced him to the magic of the stage. Dark idolized him and regularly went to see him perform with his earth pony Mother, who took care of Dark in place of his frequently absent father.

During one performance, He asked for Dark to volunteer as his assistant, giving him his first real taste of the stage. The audience adored the young colt and he quickly became the star of the moment, gaining his cutie mark in the process.

Following this, Dark was propelled into Manehattan's celebrity circle, and quickly became known as the young co-star of his father, traveling with him all over Equestria to accompany his magician acts. It was during this time that Dark began to discover and delve into the history of Equestria, as well as the different cultures of its various inhabitants and lands.

As Dark grew, he eventually began taking his own career to the stage, and soon expanded out to become known as one of Manehattan's foremost performers. Dark deeply loved researching and studying his various roles and characters, building their personalities and creating histories for them, utilizing his experiences and knowledge gained from the various cultures he had encountered as a Colt to apply to his characters. As a result, his performances were often praised as being highly convincing and appealing.

However, as time went on Dark began finding it difficult to separate his professional life from his personal. Anytime Dark attempted to be himself around others, he was continually pressured to change the subject back towards his acting. All most ponies ever wanted to hear about were his characters, and how they believed the real Dark Horse was just like them. It was because of these experiences that Dark slowly but surely became extremely self-conscious of himself around others. Before long, he would not speak to anypony else in public, and started to shut himself away in his Manehattan home, ever fearful of being judged for who he really was.

However, he soon discovered a solution for his conundrum: If his fans wanted to know only his characters, he would simply have to BECOME his characters! As such, Dark began utilizing an exaggerated personality in public built upon and based around the numerous roles he had portrayed in the past. Recalling a character he had once portrayed, he adopted the stage name "Saffron Shadow" and soon had created a completely new public image for himself. Dark now truly plays the part both on stage and in his everyday life. The real Dark Horse only showing his face when he is alone or in the company of those he calls his friends.

Secretly however, Dark knows the facade cannot last forever, and is beginning to tire of living out the life a fictional character. Only time will tell if he will ever build up the courage to shed his false personality and truly learn to be himself around others.

Dark Horse almost never uses his true name in public, instead going by his adopted stage name "Saffron Shadow", with only his closest friends and associates knowing and calling him by his real name.

His "persona" is not foolproof, and he will sometimes slip up or even drop the charade entirely on circumstance.