adventure The Needs Of The Many

[FlutterGuy999 2,228]

https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many

(C) 2014

I've always wanted to visit Equestria (what Brony hasn't), but I soon discover that things very rarely happen the way you intend for them to when I suddenly wind up there myself.  The ponies all live in a constant state of fear as a dark gloom lingers over the land, many of them suffering from life-threatening afflictions.  Not only that, but I find myself with strange new abilities.

What has happened here?  What's happening to me?  I will soon discover that I play a major part in the survival of the pony race, but am I up for the challenge that faces me?

Part I in the "Guardian Of Equestria" saga.

Cover Art by ThePleonasticPotato http://thepleonasticpotato.deviantart.com/art/Ponyville-at-Night-360066446

 

Chapter I:  The Adventure Begins

 

My life has not been an easy one by any means. I’ve had to overcome many challenges that most people normally face and even a few that’re unique only to me.

My Little Pony has served as an escape from life’s demands while at the same time bringing hope to me, giving me the means to face the uncertain future with a positive outlook.

I’m relatively new to this whole fandom of Bronies and Pegasisters, but I’ve found much to enjoy within the show itself. The art style, the cheery songs, the well-developed characters, the clever and often funny writing, the engaging, relatable stories and the positive morals they teach. All of these and more have captured my attention ever since I first saw the 2-Part pilot back in February of 2014 on Netflix.

It is during these viewings that I have often longed to be part of that world: The world of Equestria with its beautiful scenery, mythical creatures, and welcoming inhabitants. What I never realized is that this dream would become a reality, only nothing at all like I originally imagined.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

My average day typically follows the same routine. I work at a local amusement park during the summer anywhere from 5-6 days out of the week. On my days off, I’ll either lounge around at home, call up distant relatives for a chat, or even hang out with the few friends that have time to hang out with me.

This includes my girlfriend of two years, who was actually the one to get me into My Little Pony. We discuss the show a lot in our free time, check out fan videos, listen to Brony artists, the whole nine yards.

While I do like all of the Mane Six characters, mostly because I see different parts of me in each one of them, my personal favorite of them has to be Fluttershy. I’ve just always loved her soft-spoken caring nature that people are quick to point out that I share with her.

Personality-wise though, my girlfriend says that I take more after Rainbow Dash; the whole Element of Loyalty thing playing very strongly into that. And she’s not the only one to say this. My mom has mentioned on numerous occasions how I have a very extreme sense of loyalty in regards to who and even what I associate myself with. Along with the Loyalty aspect, there are the occasions where I share the often brash nature Rainbow has.

Me and my girlfriend had planned to take the weekend off from work and go up to Old Orchard Beach in Maine: our favorite vacation spot. We’ve been to plenty of other beaches before, but there’s something about Old Orchard Beach that always has us coming back again and again.

I had just finished a long day at work and was making the final preparations before our trip tomorrow. Everything was packed up, my phone was charging overnight, and I had just gotten off a Skype call with my girl to make sure she was all set for us to leave tomorrow morning.

With everything all set, I went to bed, looking forward to the coming trip the next day. What I would not expect is that I would be taking an entirely different trip that very night.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

Now before I had gone to bed, I knew that there was supposed to be a lightning storm that night, but this didn’t typically bother me as I’ve slept through many storms before. However, this storm was nothing like I had experienced at any time in my life. The loud booms of thunder were enough to make me toss and turn in my sleep, all the while just wanting them to stop. Suddenly, the loudest thunderclap I had ever heard startled me awake in a cold sweat.

Nervously looking around, I discovered that something was wrong. My room was much too dark, as if there were no windows to let in light. Fumbling around in the dark, I reached for my clothes, my glasses, and my cell phone. After putting on my glasses and clothes, I used the flashlight on my phone to find my way to the door.

Opening my bedroom door, I expected to step out into the upstairs hallway of my house. What I saw before me was something entirely different. Before me lay a small town with colorful buildings, cobblestone roads, and, off in the distance outside of town, a shining, crystalline castle, unique and impressive in design.

As I was beholding this sight, something about it seemed strangely familiar to me, but what? After looking around I noticed a few places automatically.

Town Hall. Sugarcube Corner. It all suddenly hit me: I was now in Ponyville and the castle I saw before me was the Friendship Castle from the Season 4 finale I just saw back in May.

Looking around, though, something wasn’t right. The whole place was shrouded in a greyish-blue gloom, almost like something you’d see out of a Tim Burton movie like Sleepy Hollow or Sweeney Todd. It was also far too quiet. Where was everypony?

Taking a few steps forward, I heard a creaking noise behind me. Turning, I saw the now camouflaged door I came through closing. Running towards it, I reached out my hand to catch it, but it closed before I could reach it, disappearing from my sight.

It was at that moment when I made another discovery. Looking at my hand, I discovered that it wasn’t my normal hand. It was still a human hand, but the color of it was more pastel and the appearance of it was more like a drawing.

I held both hands out in front of me and wiggled my fingers. Looking down at the rest of me, I discovered that everything about me was pastel and had the appearance of being drawn in the ever familiar flash animation style used in My Little Pony.

“I’m a cartoon,” I thought out loud.

Several other thoughts ran through my head in that moment. What is going on here? What the hell am I even doing here?

I decided to head straight for the castle in the hopes of finding some answers. Maybe Princess Twilight would know what had happened. All I could do was go there and hope for the best.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

On my way to the castle, I discovered upon further inspection that some of the surrounding buildings had taken damage. Windows were shattered, doors were left hanging from hinges, and even some buildings had a charred smell from where a fire had been.

What had happened here?

I also heard the sounds of ponies closing their shutters as I walked through the empty streets; the only sign of life in this desolate location.

The castle was a good walk away, but I finally reached it after a few minutes. Entering through the gleaming golden doors, I walked down a rather lengthy hallway. The interior was as quiet and ominous as a mausoleum. You could literally hear a pin drop.

Suddenly, I heard a noise off to my right. Startled, I looked towards a nearby crystal pillar where I saw a small flash of light rose colored hair. I immediately relaxed when I realized who it was.

“Wait,” I finally spoke. “I’m a friend.”

There was a brief moment of silence and stillness before a face nervously poked out from behind the pillar. Sure enough, I found myself looking into the soft blue eyes of Fluttershy.

In the yellow Pegasus’ eyes, I saw fear and uncertainty. This made sense to me; she hardly had any idea who I was. For all she knew, I was probably just some hairless ape with weird clothes. In order to try to gain her trust, I crouched down to her level to show her that I wasn’t a threat.

“It’s O.K.,” I whispered, softly. “You can come on out. I’m not gonna hurt you.”

After a few seconds of standing there, Fluttershy slowly but surely came out from behind the pillar towards me.

“That’s it, Fluttershy. Nice and easy.”

At the mention of her name, she froze in her tracks. Finally she spoke.

“Wait. How do you know my name?” she asked, unsurely.

“Uh… lucky guess? My name is David. Are you here alone?”

“Oh no”-Fluttershy shook her head, softly-“Some of my pony friends are here also.”

“Is Princess Twilight here? It’s really important that I-”

My sentence died right there for at the mention of the princess, tears formed in Fluttershy’s eyes.

“What is it?” I asked, concerned. “Was it somethin’ I said?”

“Something… terrible… happened to her,” Fluttershy managed to utter through sobs.

As of the past few months, I had learned one very important truth about life from the show: Few things are more heartbreaking than Fluttershy tears.

It was in that moment that I leaned in to hug her, offering what little comfort I could. She accepted the hug willingly.

As we were embracing, something strange happened. A bright colorful aura emanated from the two of us like the Aurora Borealis before vanishing.

What was that? I thought to myself pulling away from Fluttershy.

Aaaah!!!!-Fluttershy’s pupils dilated and she jumped backwards nervously-How did you talk just now?

At that time, I was really startled to hear Fluttershy’s voice in my head especially seeing as she didn’t even open her mouth when she spoke.

Wait a minute, I thought. Can you honestly hear my thoughts?

Y-Yes, I heard her answer back mentally as she cautiously approached me again.

Unbelievable. It’s almost like we’re linked together psychically.

Um… I guess so.

You said that something terrible had happened to Princess Twilight. She’s not dead is she? I thought, nervously.

No. She’s just…

The tears came to her eyes again. I reached out both hands to dry them for her.

It’s O.K. You don’t have to tell me what happened to her, but do you think you could show me to her?

Fluttershy nodded silently and led me towards a flight of stairs. As we climbed each step, I started to feel uneasy. What terrible fate had befallen Princess Twilight that it brought Fluttershy to tears like this? I would find out soon enough.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

Reaching the top of the stairs, we walked down a shorter hallway before coming to one of the doors. Entering, I saw Rainbow Dash and Spike over by a bed near the balcony windows. Upon our entrance, the two of them looked up in mine and Fluttershy’s direction.

“Hey, Fluttershy,” Spike finally spoke before noticing me. “Who’s this with you?”

“Um… this is David,” she answered back. “David, these are Spike and Rainbow Dash. Has her condition changed?”

Rainbow Dash shook her head sadly.

“I haven’t left her side since we first found her here like this in case she came to,” Rainbow Dash stated, “but as of this point she hasn’t even flinched.”

Listening to this conversation, I could only assume that they were talking about Princess Twilight. I approached the bed and, sure enough, the Alicorn princess was lying there with her eyes closed and an unhappy look on her face. Seeing her like this was heartbreaking. I reached out to touch her.

“What’re you doing?” Rainbow Dash snapped at me.

“I’m sorry.”-I recoiled at the outburst- “I was… just checkin’ ta see if I could find a pulse or a heartbeat.”

“Oh. O.K.,” Rainbow Dash answered a bit gentler.

I pressed two fingers against the side of Princess Twilight’s neck just below the head and felt a slight pulse. I also heard a faint heartbeat when I placed my ear against her chest.

“Was this where you originally found her? In bed I mean.”

“No,” Spike answered. “We found her collapsed on the floor next to her mirror. After finding her there, we moved her to the bed.”

“And she didn’t even stir as you were moving her?”

“Not once.”

What do you think is wrong with her? I heard Fluttershy ask in my mind.

“I think she’s in some kind of a coma,” I replied.

“What’s a coma?” Rainbow Dash asked, confused.

I’ve never had to explain what a coma is to someone so I tried to think of the right words to say, but also make sure that they understood.

“Well… a coma is… like sleep… but different.” I struggled to find the right words. “With sleep… the body rests for a brief period… and then wakes up either by itself or by someone waking it up. But a coma… lasts a much longer period of time and… isn’t the sort of thing that one can be woken up from. Only the body itself can decide when someone wakes up from a coma.”

“So we have no idea when she’ll wake up or even if she’ll wake up?” Spike questioned, putting emphasis on if.

I never meant for it to be taken that way, but since Spike had already brought it up, I found no need to sugarcoat it.

“Sadly yes,” my expression dropped.

Rainbow Dash stared at the comatose princess with a look of worry on her face.

“She was the one who first brought the rest of us together as friends,” she stated, sadly. “To think that she might not…”

As Rainbow’s voice slowly trailed off, I walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder as a way of reassuring her.

“I understand how hard this must be for you… for all of you, but Princess Twilight needs y’all ta stay strong for her.”

Rainbow Dash nodded as, just like with Fluttershy, the Aurora Borealis aura glowed from the two of us for a few seconds.

Whoa. Déjà vu, I thought to myself as I removed my hand from Rainbow Dash’s shoulder.

Sweet mother of Celestia! Rainbow Dash’s voice echoed in my head as she jumped back. How are you talking without moving your lips?

Wait. You can read my thoughts now too?

Umm... I guess so, Rainbow replied, a bit unsure of herself. Why are you asking?

Because the same thing happened to me and Fluttershy just a few minutes ago.

Who are you talking to? I heard Fluttershy think.

Rainbow Dash, I answered back.

What? Rainbow Dash asked.

No I was talking to Fluttershy.

She can talk to you this way too?

Yes she can.

I can what? Fluttershy thought.

At that point, I’d had enough of these two’s voices inside my head.

“O.K. just stop!” I finally shouted. “Enough with this… psychic talkin’ you guys.”

“What psychic talking?” Spike asked, totally confused.

“The psychic talkin’ that happens whenever I touch somebo- uh… some… pony. Like this.” I reached over and touched Spike.

However, when I touched Spike, nothing happened. I tried touching him again and again, but still nothing, aside from him laughing.

“Ha ha ha ha ha ha. Please stop,” he begged through a fit of cackling. “I’m very ticklish.”

“That’s weird,” I remarked, looking down at my hand. “Why wouldn’t it work?”

“I don’t know,” Fluttershy answered back. “Maybe it only works on ponies.”

“Maybe. Is there another pony here that we can test it on?”

“Well our friend Pinkie Pie is out on the balcony,” Rainbow Dash commented.

“That could work.”

“Fluttershy, you and Spike go with him while I stay with Twilight.”

“If you don’t mind, I think I’ll stay here with Twilight also,” Spike replied.

“K.”

Me and Fluttershy then headed out onto the balcony where we saw Pinkie Pie sitting there all alone. Her mane and tail didn’t have their usual bouncy appearance, but instead were flat and straight. Whatever was going on, she was clearly feeling depressed.

“Pinkie Pie?” I spoke.

Whether she was suddenly startled by my mentioning her name or if she was just naturally high strung, Pinkie let out a “Yipe”, jumped several feet into the air, did a 180, then landed facing us. Once she saw Fluttershy, she relaxed a little more, but was still slightly tense at the sight of me.

“Fluttershy, who is this and how does he know my name?” she asked, slightly suspiciously.

“Um… this is David and he knows your name because Rainbow Dash told him,” she answered back.

“Oh. O.K. then. Nice to meet you, Davey.”

No one has called me “Davey” since about 15 years ago when I was just a kid. Strangely enough though, hearing Pinkie call me by that name was soothingly pleasant, even bringing a smile to my face.

“Likewise,” I replied. “So whatcha doin’ out here?”

“Keeping lookout for whenever our friends Applejack and Rarity return.”

“Where are they now?”

“They went into the Everfree Forest looking for their sisters, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, as well as their sisters’ friend, Scootaloo,” Fluttershy explained.

“How long ago did they leave?”

“It’s been almost four hours now,” Pinkie stated, nervously. “I’m really starting to worry about them. What if something terrible happened to them?”

“Don’t worry. I’m sure they’re fine.”

“But what if-”

Pinkie’s sentence was cut off by her making a gagging noise as if choking. She collapsed to the floor as Fluttershy panicked.

“Fluttershy, go get Rainbow Dash and Spike,” I told her, all the while trying to remain calm. “Tell ‘em it’s a matter of life 'n death.”

Fluttershy nodded swiftly and headed back inside while I ran over to Pinkie. I panicked as she lost consciousness.

Without thinking, I reached my hand out to touch her. Upon touching her, the Aurora Borealis aura appeared and then vanished. Pinkie then regained consciousness, gasping for breath.

That was super scary, I heard her think, terrified.

Are you O.K.? I asked mentally.

I think so. Wait a minute. What’re you doing in my head?

I don’t know. This has been happening with every pony I’ve come in contact with so far. First Fluttershy, then Rainbow Dash, and now you.

That’s kinda freaky, but also kinda cool.

Do you know what had happened to you?

No. I was just talking and then I suddenly found it hard to breathe. Almost like when you laugh soo hard you stop breathing except this wasn’t funny at all.

At that moment, Fluttershy, Spike, and Rainbow Dash came rushing out.

“What happened?” Rainbow Dash questioned, nervously. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing now,” Pinkie answered.

“Wait. Weren’t you choking when I went to get them?” Fluttershy asked, slightly confused.

“I was, but then Davey here saved me.”

“How?”

“I’m not sure,” I spoke. “I was panickin’ and I reached out ta touch her when that strange aura appeared. When it vanished, not only could we hear each other’s thoughts, but she was also fully healed.”

“Weird,” Spike commented.

“Tell me about it,” I stated, frustratedly. “What’s goin’ on? Why is this happenin’ to me?”

“I have no idea,” Rainbow Dash answered.

“Maybe Princess Celestia will know. Spike, have you been able ta contact her at all since all this has happened?”

“I sent her an urgent letter, but she hasn’t responded,” Spike replied. “It’s been almost a day now.”

“Something’s happenin’.”

“What do you think it is?” Pinkie asked.

"I don’t know, but I don’t like it. Rainbow Dash, I need you ta fly ta Canterlot as fast as your wings can carry you. Find out why there hasn’t been any answer from her.”

“You got it.” Rainbow Dash offered a salute before taking to the sky.

“The three of you, stay here and keep an eye on Princess Twilight ‘til my return.”

“Why?” Fluttershy questioned, nervously. “Where are you going?”

“Ta the Everfree Forest. Someone needs ta make sure that the others are O.K. Besides, I think I know a pony who just might be able ta explain what’s goin’ on.”

---

Author's Note:  Chapter originally published September 24th, 2014 on fimfiction.net.  If you enjoy this story and have a FIMFiction account, please consider supporting the original release on https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many.  "Thumbs up" would help out a lot and, if you're without a FIMFiction account, don't worry.  You can still look forward to chapters being released here every Friday.  Same Pony Time.  Same Pony Channel.  Any support at all would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

[FlutterGuy999 2,228]

Chapter II:  Into Everfree

 

After a decent walk, I found myself at the edge of the Everfree Forest. With the gloom that shrouded Ponyville, the forest was looking even darker than usual. As I turned on my flashlight on my phone and stepped into Everfree, the thoughts of Pinkie and Fluttershy rang in my mind.

Please bring our friends back safely, their thoughts echoed in my mind when I was leaving the castle, and, by the Princesses rule, please be careful.

As I slowly ventured through the forest, I didn’t hear much noise from any of the wildlife. In fact, I hardly saw any signs of wildlife at all. In most situations like this when I’m nervous, I’ll sing to myself whatever song happens to be running through my head at the moment; in this case, it was Michael Jackson’s Smooth Criminal. Don't ask me why; maybe it was that whole "heading into the Danger Zone" mentality that brought it up. As I sang quietly, I wandered through the darkness and silence for several minutes before coming to a river.

Suddenly, I saw movement off to my left. Looking over, I spotted something that I couldn’t believe: a manticore drinking from the stream. I was filled both with a sense of Awe at the sight of this magnificent creature but also a sense of fear in that I hoped it didn’t come after me. I just stood there frozen for a few minutes as I took in the sight of it. Its giant bat wings were blacker than night, its mane glowed like the final sunset, and its long scorpion tail was raised at the ready for any unsuspecting foe.

I decided to turn off my flashlight, back away slowly, and wait until he’d left before continuing on. Unfortunately, as I stepped backwards, I snapped a twig. Quickly, I dove behind a nearby boulder just as he started to look in my direction.

I stayed there completely petrified as I hoped he didn’t come my way. I held my breath as I heard his footsteps, soft, but still noticeable, coming closer towards me. Soon the footsteps stopped, but I could hear his heavy breathing and feel his hot breath like a raging furnace coming from the other side.

I desperately looked around for something to defend myself with, but all I saw were some small stones. This gave me an idea. I picked up one of them and threw it towards a tree, praying that it would hit it.

Sure enough, it made a loud “clack” sound against the tree that caught the manticore’s attention, causing it to run off into the forest away from me. I let out a sigh of relief at this narrow escape and quickly crossed the river before it came back.

After I was a safe distance away, I stopped to catch my breath. No sooner had I paused then I heard heavy footsteps coming my way and rustling in the nearby bushes. Picking up a rather large tree branch to defend myself, I slowly inched my way towards the underbrush. Raising it above my head, I prepared for whatever came through. Suddenly, I heard voices from the brush.

“Ugh. This overgrown shrubbery is certainly not doing my mane any favors. This’ll be just a nightmare trying to groom.”

“Where tha hay could they be? Ah feel like we’ve searched ev’ry last inch of this dang forest ’n still nothin’. Ah’m soo tired ma dogs are barkin’.”

I lowered my branch. Those voices. Those accents. Could it really be them?

“Personally, I think we should take a brief rest once we get out of this thicket.”

“Ah agree jus’ so long as it’s brief. They still need us. We’re prob’ly tha only ponies out here lookin’ fer ‘em.”

Finally the bushes parted as an orange Earth Pony with a cowgirl hat and a white Unicorn with twigs and leaves tangled in her violet mane and tail stepped out into the open. Spotting me, they froze in their tracks while I just stood there staring at them.

“Applejack?” I spoke. “Rarity?”

“Who are ya and how tha jumpin' Junebug do ya know our names?” Applejack asked, slightly confused.

“Oh, Ah’m sorry. Ah’m Dayvid and Ah came from tha castle where yer friends had mentioned that you two were out here by yerselves lookin’ fer 3 young fillies.”

I hadn’t realized that I had slipped into a Southern accent til after the words had already escaped my lips. Even though I was born in New England, my mom’s side of the family came from down south and often spoke with a strong thick accent. Having grown up around them, I’d often slip into the accent unknowingly during basic conversations with anyone. My guess is that being around Applejack served as somewhat of a mental trigger for that.

“Wait. Ya speak jus’ like me?”

“Sometimes. It kinda pops up ev’ry now ’n then. Ah get it from ma mom’s side of tha family.”

“Well you are quite right about one thing,” Rarity remarked as she tried to shake the debris off her coat. “We came here looking for our sisters and their friend, who you could almost say is like a younger sister to our Rainbow Dash.”

“Yes Ah’m quite familiar with Rainbow,” I answered with a smile, gently untangling the twigs and leaves from Rarity’s mane and tail. “When Ah left, Ah had sent her off ta Canterlot ta find out why they hadn’t heard from Princess Celestia.”

“Oh my. You don’t mean to say that Celestia still hasn’t replied to Spike’s letter that he sent almost a day ago, do you?”

“Sadly, yes.”

“Ah got a bad feelin’ ‘bout this,” Applejack mentioned. “It’s already been hours ’n we still haven’t found ‘em.”

“Well Ah could help out with that. Hell it’s tha main reason Ah came here: ta find you guys ’n Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, ’n Scootaloo.”

“Thank you, darling,” Rarity replied with a warm smile. “It’s certainly much appreciated.”

I smiled back at her, but my smile soon disappeared when the three of us heard screams in the distance.

“Help! Somepony! Anypony! Help us!” a small voice with an ever familiar accent rang out.

“That’s Apple Bloom. They mus’ be close by,” Applejack stated. “Don’t worry, Apple Bloom. We’re comin’ fer ya.”

The three of us ran towards the sounds of the screams with me and Applejack, quite possibly the fastest Earth pony in Equestria, running neck and neck. I’m not quite as well built as most, but if there’s one thing that my friends in high school would always compliment me on, it was my speed.

Finally reaching a clearing, the three of us saw the Cutie Mark Crusaders surrounded by Timber Wolves. The wolves’ eyes were glowing bright yellow as they crept closer to the terrified young fillies.

“HEY!” Applejack shouted. “Leave ma sister ’n her friends alone!”

The wolves then turned their attention to us as Applejack charged one head on. As it charged towards her, she stopped, swung her flank around, and bucked it in the jaw, shattering its face. Rarity joined in with this also. While they were fighting off the wolves, I snuck around to make sure that the CMC were O.K. They were still trembling as I approached them.

“It’s O.K.,” I reassured them. “Ah’m a friend. Yer safe now. Ah’m gonna get ya outta here.”

Picking them up, I turned around only to find that the Timber Wolves were no longer interested in Applejack or Rarity and had turned their attention towards me. They started to come around the sides, cutting off my retreats as I was backed up against a boulder. In that moment, the sense of fear was palpable amongst me and the CMC. As I held them close, the Aurora Borealis aura sprang from the four of us briefly.

What the flying feather was that? I heard Apple Bloom ask.

Was that the Aurora Borealis? Sweetie Belle questioned.

Wow. That was Awesome, Scootaloo remarked.

Oh great, I groaned, inwardly. More pony voices in my head.

Suddenly, the lead Timber Wolf pounced at us. The four of us screamed as I held out my right hand in front of it, as if I thought it would stop it in midair. Instead, I discovered that a ball of fire shot out from my hand, causing the attacking wolf to explode into burning kindling. Seeing this, the other Timber Wolves ran off in fear as I just stared at the hand that had shot the scorching blast, confused as to what had just happened. Applejack and Rarity stared at me with shocked expressions.

“What… tha hay… was that?” Applejack finally spoke.

“Ah… Ah don’t know,” I answered back. “Fer some reason, all this crazy shit has been happenin’ ta me ever since Ah first got here.”

“It certainly is rather unusual,” Rarity remarked.

“When Ah entered Everfree, Ah was also lookin’ fer Zecora. Ah was hopin’ that she’d be able ta-”

“Sis, you’re bleeding!” Sweetie Belle cut in, shocked.

“She’s not the only one!” Apple Bloom panicked. “Applejack’s bleedin’ too!”

As I looked at the two of them, I realized that this was true. Rarity and Applejack both had deep gashes in their hind legs that were bleeding profusely. In a matter of seconds, about a pint of blood had pooled out from each of their lesions. I watched in horror as they both collapsed from blood loss.

“No no no!” I screamed out, nervously, as I put the CMC down on the forest floor.

Running over to the two ponies, I looked at their wounds. Thinking fast, I applied pressure on them with both hands to stop the bleeding. So, naturally, it shouldn’t have surprised me when the Aurora Borealis aura magically emerged from the three of us in that moment. Within a few seconds after it vanished, Applejack and Rarity were healed and they came to, coughing as they tried to catch their breath.

“Sis!” Apple Bloom exclaimed, running over to Applejack. “Yer alright.”

“Rarity!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed, hugging her sister.

My heart was touched by this sweet moment as the two pairs of sisters were reunited. It made me think of my own younger siblings back home. As I thought of them, a twinge of sadness came over me. Would I ever get to see any of them again? These thoughts quickly vanished when Applejack looked at me with a smile.

“Thank ya,” she stated, gratefully, “fer savin’ us.”

“Anytime,” I replied.

“Now what was it you were saying again?” Rarity asked.

“Oh right,” I remembered. “Ah was sayin’ that Ah had also come here lookin’ fer Zecora in tha hopes that she’d be able ta explain what tha hell’s happenin’ to me.”

Almost as if on cue, I heard a rustling from a nearby bush and out stepped Zecora. She had a grave look on her face as she approached us.

“Zecora,” I finally spoke. “Just tha pony Ah was lookin’ fer.”

“Yes, I’m quite aware that you were seeking me out,” she replied, “for these strange occurrences have filled you with much confusion and doubt.”

“Ah have soo many questions fer ya, but Ah don’t even know where ta begin.”

Zecora replied almost instantly, as if knowing what was on my mind

“Among humans to travel here, you are not the first. There was one who arrived before you and cast this curse. It was many years in the past when she first came; a beautiful girl slightly younger than you, Crystal by name. The land was in ruin from Discord’s chaotic reign and the princesses worked hard to heal it again.

“When it was revealed that in magic Crystal was quite skilled, Celestia took her under her wing teaching her by her own freewill. She hoped she would help out with repairing the land. Unfortunately, things fell out of hoof or, in this case, hand.

“For, you see, she was tempted by witchcraft and dark arts. This deadly seduction of power soon blackened her heart. She sacrificed beauty and youth for immortality and power, taking on a hideous form that made many ponies cower.

“Celestia and Luna would have none of her dark magic here, so, using the Elements, they banished her, freeing the ponies from fear. This hag spent the next 1,000 years all alone, in a barren wasteland, practicing witchcraft on her own. She plotted revenge against every princess and pony that lives, for her deep-rooted hatred won’t let her forget or forgive.

“Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Twilight too have been placed under a cursed sleep that can only be broken by you. The ponies here have been cursed as well. Living in fear, there life has become hell. They only have a short period of time to live, unless you intervene with the human touch you give. Only by forming a bond with a human host can they hope to survive and not become ghosts.”

All of this was a lot for me to take in at once. I sat down for a little while as I started to feel light-headed.

“But how do Ah have these powers?” I asked. “Ah mean… Ah jus’ blasted a wolf ta hell with fire. That ain’t natural.”

Zecora opened her mouth to answer, but her body started to break out in tumors right in front of me. Panicking, I reached out to touch her, knowing full well that she would revert back to her healthy self and that I’d hear her thoughts. Sure enough, I heard her voice echo in my head.

Because you work hard to save the weak, I will help you out with the answers you seek. At the old princesses’ castle ruins is where you must look. Inside the library, you will find a few useful books.

Thanks, Zecora, I replied, mentally.

And with that, Zecora retreated back into the forest.

What’d she say? Apple Bloom asked.

“We have ta go ta tha ruins of Celestia 'n Luna’s old castle. She said that Ah’d find tha answers in some books from tha library.”

“Well what’re we waiting for?” Scootaloo replied, enthusiastically. “Let’s go.”

And so, with Applejack and Rarity leading the way, we headed off to the castle ruins, but nothing could prepare me for what I would find there.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

After several minutes of walking, we finally arrived at the ruins. Even for a castle that was in serious disrepair, I still felt a sense of wonder and amazement at the sight of it. It made me speculate how much grander it must’ve looked a millennium ago.

“Whoa!” I remarked in Awe.

“Ah know right?” Applejack replied.

“Well we best be heading inside to find those books,” Rarity stated.

And so, crossing the rickety bridge, we made our way inside, walking down many empty hallways towards the library. As we neared the library, I noticed something hanging from the ceiling: Bats. Ever since I was really little, bats have always been one of my favorite creatures. I always thought they were both cute and mysterious at the same time. Also the fact that they are often associated with the night, my favorite time of the day, made them all the more fascinating to me. Not wanting to wake my furry, winged friends, I looked back at the others, putting my finger to my lips in a hush before directing their attention to the sleeping night-flyers above and sneaking along quietly.

Finally, we reached the library. Looking at the many books that were covered in centuries of dust and cobwebs, I realized we were going to be here for a while.

Everypony, take a stack of books and skim through them, I thought. Look for anything relating to what Zecora mentioned. We’ll be able to get more done that way.

Rarity, Applejack, and the CMC nodded understandably as we all split up to our own separate corners. Taking a stackful of books in my arms, I settled down in a corner and got to work, skimming through pages.

Nearly a half hour had passed by and none of us seemed to have found anything. My vision started to blur from boredom as all the words and sentences I was reading bled together.

“Uh Dayvid? Ya might wanna come over here,” Applejack stated, nervously.

Snapped out of my half drowsy state, I made my way over to her along with the others.

“What is it?” I asked. “Did ya find somethin’?”

Applejack didn’t look at me but instead pointed her fore hoof at a page in the book she was reading. Looking at the page, I read the passage aloud.

“‘In centuries yet to come, a great tragedy will fall upon Equestria, casting it into a darkness nopony has ever known. When that dark hour of fear comes, a Messiah will rise up; a firstborn descendant of horn and wing, to defeat a yet unknown evil and restore Harmony to our great and beautiful land. Signed, SS.’ Who’s SS? ’N who’s this ‘descendant of horn ’n wing’, whatever tha hell that means?”

Applejack removed her hoof from the page to reveal a picture that shocked me upon viewing.

It was me. Right where Applejack’s hoof had been was a sketch of my face. There was no logical explanation for how that could be there; how I could be there. I stumbled backwards as the room began to spin.

“Ah’m… tha ‘descendant of horn ’n wing’? Ah’m supposed to be this… ‘Messiah’ for tha inhabitants of Equestria? What does ‘descendant of horn ’n wing’ even mean anyway?”

“Maybe it means descendant of a Unicorn and a Pegasus,” Sweetie Belle explained, “maybe even an Alicorn. Either way, Unicorns and Alicorns can use magic.”

“But that don’t make any sense. Sure Ah’m a firstborn, but Ah’m also jus’ a nobody from Massachusetts. Ah don’t have powers, Ah’m not a Messiah, Ah’m not a pony descendant, even ma ancestors were average Joes ’n Janes. Besides, Celestia 'n Luna were tha only Alicorns around when this prophecy was made 'n they've never even had any descendants so there’s no way that Ah could be this… this savior that tha book says Ah am.”

“This is true, but, at tha same time, if ya don’t have powers, then how’d ya explain that fireball ya shot at that Timber Wolf back there?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Ah don’t know. It was jus’ some freak accident; a mistake.”

“Well whatever it was, it seems that, until it’s proven otherwise, you’re Equestria’s only hope,” Rarity stated.

“And speaking of powers,” Scootaloo brought a large book over, “I found this ancient spellbook that you might want to use. Maybe you could learn some more magic to battle this hag if she ever shows up.”

Reluctantly, I accepted the book from her as well as picking up the book Applejack had. Looking out the window, I soon noticed how late it was getting.

“We should prob’ly start headin’ back ta Ponyville now,” I stated.

As we started heading out of the castle, we heard a fluttering noise above. Looking up, we spotted the bats flying down and out of the castle. The CMC started to scream in panic at the multitude of bats that descended on us while Applejack and Rarity tried to calm them down. I, on the other hand, stood there welcoming the oncoming barrage. It was an Awesome moment as I felt every one of these bats whirling about me in a mad frenzy. Before long, the swarm was gone as I stood there with a smile on my face.

“Aren’t bats truly Awesome creatures?” I remarked.

---

Author's Note:  Chapter originally published September 30th, 2014 on fimfiction.net.  If you enjoy this story and have a FIMFiction account, please consider supporting the original release on https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many.  "Thumbs up" would help out a lot and, if you're without a FIMFiction account, don't worry.  You can still look forward to chapters being released here every Friday.  Same Pony Time.  Same Pony Channel.  Any support at all would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

[FlutterGuy999 2,228]

Chapter III:  Becoming The Messiah

 

About an hour later, the six of us arrived back in Ponyville. All the while I had been reading through the spells listed in the book. Everything from simple telekinetic/levitation spells to elemental attack spells to repair spells to healing spells to teleportation spells.

Something I was quick to realize with nighttime around there was that it was bitterly cold. I had noticed that it was somewhat cold when I first arrived in Ponyville, but the cold never bothered me that much. Back home, I’ve even gone out into the snow at nighttime barefoot in shorts and a thin grey T-shirt with cutoff sleeves, the same shirt I was wearing at that very moment. But even I have my limits when it comes to the cold and this was the type of cold that bites your skin; I knew I should've brought my leather jacket with me and I could not stay out there any longer.

But then, in that instant, I thought about the other ponies with their damaged homes. How would they survive the cold night with broken doors and windows? How would the young colts and fillies be able to find warmth? It was then that I realized what needed to be done: I needed to embrace this new responsibility as the savior of these ponies. Stopping, I turned to Rarity and Applejack.

Get your sisters and Scootaloo home, I thought. I’ll meet up with you two at the castle later, but first there’s something I need to do.

They both nodded at me understandably as we went our separate ways. Pulling out the spellbook, I referred to the page with the repair spell, carefully memorizing every detail of it. Once I was sure I had it down, I raised both hands towards a house and focused really hard.

It took a good while of concentrating and I was almost afraid it wouldn’t work, but, sure enough, the holes in the windows slowly filled in, the door returned to its proper place, and any damage to the sides and roof were fixed. Proud of my accomplishment, I went on to other buildings, repairing them as need came. With each house I repaired with my magic, I became more exhausted and worn out, yet, at the same time, there was also a strong sense of fulfillment I felt that helped me continue past my weariness, all the while knowing that I was helping the helpless. Finally, after about a half hour, every structure in Ponyville was in perfect condition.

With my work done and my body cold and exhausted from the job, I headed back to the castle. What I didn’t notice at the time were all the other ponies, young and old, who were watching me from their windows, happy and grateful for the work that I had done.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

I returned to the castle to find that Applejack and Rarity had arrived just a few minutes before me. I also discovered that-thank Celestia-Applejack had brought over some apples for us from Sweet Apple Acres. I had almost forgotten how hungry I was until that moment.

“Thanks fer bringin’ over these apples, AJ,” I stated gratefully before taking a bite out of my favorite, Golden Delicious.

The other ponies were quick to voice their thanks also.

“Happy ta help,” Applejack replied. “Those golems may’ve taken out a large chunk o' ma orchard, but that don’t mean there aren’t still plenty o’ apples left.”

“Golems?” I asked, confused.

Fluttershy appeared to shudder at the mention of the word.

“Just some big jerks made of stone and fire,” Rainbow Dash mentioned. “It was really strange. They came in here destroying whatever they could and then just... ran off for some reason. It was almost as if they didn't have any other purpose.”

“Ah have a weird feelin’ that tha hag that Zecora mentioned earlier has somethin’ to do with 'em.”

“Ah wouldn’t put it past her,” Applejack stated.

“What hag?” Pinkie asked, puzzled.

I was reminded then, as I’m sure Applejack and Rarity were, that we were the only three (aside from the CMC) who had heard about this hag. I then started trying to explain it to Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow.

“While we were in tha Everfree Forest, we came across Zecora,” I started. “She told us that about 1,000 years ago, a girl about tha same age as me by tha name of Crystal arrived here in Equestria while tha land was still in ruin from Discord’s reign of chaos. The two sisters worked hard ta heal tha land ’n, when Princess Celestia discovered that this girl showed promise in tha realm of magic, she took her under her wing, so ta speak, teachin’ her magic in the hopes that she would help repair Equestria.

“But durin’ this time, Crystal came across witchcraft 'n tha Dark Arts. She was soo seduced by this forbidden power that she sacrificed her beauty ’n youth fer immortality ’n tha ‘bility ta practice witchcraft, takin’ on tha hideous form of a hag in tha process. The two sisters saw how she had been corrupted ’n used tha Elements of Harmony ta banish her to a barren wasteland where she practiced her dark magic ’n plotted her revenge.

“All of tha four princesses have fallen under a dark sleep cast upon them by this hag ’n tha ponies of Equestria have been cursed by her, havin’ their lifespans cut down significantly. They only have a short time ta live before they succumb to a terrible demise. The only way fer them ta survive is by developin’ a bond with a human, a psychic connection between tha two brought on through physical contact. On account of what’s happened recently, Ah have reason ta believe that tha connection is made through tha human’s empathy towards or concern fer tha safety of tha pony they make the connection with.”

“Ya should prob’ly show ‘em that book we found at tha ole palace ruins,” Applejack stated.

Pulling out the book, I opened it to the page that Applejack had showed me before as Fluttershy, Rainbow, and Pinkie came around and started reading. Once the three of them saw the sketch of me, they all gasped.

“Oh my!” Fluttershy uttered, nervously.

“Is that…?” Pinkie started.

“It couldn’t be,” Rainbow Dash stated, unbelieving, “could it?”

“There’s no doubt that it’s him,” Applejack replied.

“But how?”

“Ah have no idea,” I answered back. “Ah’m honestly jus’ as confused ‘bout this as y’all are. What Ah do know is that it’s been a really long day ’n Ah jus’ wanna get some rest.”

“That’s quite alright, dear,” Rarity chimed in, understandably, “I’m sure all of us wouldn’t mind getting some shuteye right about now. If you’d like, I can show you to one of the guest rooms.”

“Ah’d like that a lot. Thanks, Rare.”

And so Rarity led me up the stairs and down the hall to a fully furnished bedroom complete with a queen size bed large enough for at least two full grown stallions, a nightstand, a fireplace, a few chairs, and a chaise lounge. Lying down on the bed, I discovered that it was extremely soft. I don’t remember a bed feeling that soft since I stayed at a Marriott hotel in Detroit for my first convention.

“I’ll just let you get all settled in for the night. Pleasant dreams,” Rarity stated sweetly as she left me alone in the room, closing the door behind her.

Taking my clothes off, I put them on the nightstand while getting comfortable under the blankets. Looking out the balcony window at the full moon in a night sky free of clouds, I slowly drifted off to sleep, all the while wondering what tomorrow would bring.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

I found myself in a cold, dark place. It was out in the open and the frigid air was unbearable. I struggled to walk through this vast landscape as a snowstorm came in. All the while, I was shivering violently.

“He looks soo cold,” I heard a voice speak. “How about we warm him up?”

“H-hello? Who-who’s th-th-there?” I called out, nervously trembling from the frost.

Suddenly, a red and orange glow came from below my feet. Looking down, I saw glowing cracks starting to form in the ground. Before I could even move, the ground opened up and I started plummeting, but I grabbed on to the newly formed cliff that I had once been standing on. Looking down, I could see dancing fingers of hellfire below and could feel the intense heat that radiated from them. Panicking, I reached my other hand up to grasp the edge and pull myself up; my ice-cold fingers dug into the hard, frozen earth as I struggled to rise out of this abyss. Suddenly, the ledge I was gripping onto crumbled beneath my hands as I started tumbling head over heels further towards the flames of damnation. I let out a scream of both fear and pain as the heat intensified, shutting my eyes.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

When I opened them, I was back at the castle in bed. Sitting up immediately, gasping for breath, I noticed that there was a fire in the fireplace with two figures near it. Putting on my glasses, I realized that they were Fluttershy and Spike. They immediately looked over at me.

“Oh my Celestia!” Fluttershy exclaimed startled and slightly embarrassed. “I’m soo sorry. Did we wake you up?”

“Yeah, but it’s a’ight,” I replied, a little more at ease.

“We came in here to check on you and saw that you were trembling from the cold so I had Spike get a fire started for you.”

I then thought back to the voice that I had heard speaking in my nightmare. He looks soo cold. How about we warm him up? I realized in that moment that it was Fluttershy’s voice I had heard all along.

“Well Ah definitely 'preciate that you two.”

“Oh. You’re welcome.”

“Happy to help,” Spike answered back.

“Um… Spike, is it O.K. if I have some time alone to talk with David?”

“Sure thing.”

Spike then left the room and Fluttershy went over to close the door while I put on my shorts. She then came over and sat on the bed next to me.

So what did ya wanna talk about? I asked, mentally.

Um… I just wanted to thank you for how supportive you’ve been to all of us, Fluttershy answered back. We’ve all been really nervous ever since Twilight… you know…

Yeah I understand. You’re welcome by the way. It’s not a real problem for me, but it’s still got me wondering how I’m supposed to fit into this new role of savior for all these ponies. I’ve never really been in a position where everypony is relying solely on me for their needs and survival. It’s a lot of pressure for one human.

Fluttershy then moved closer to me and nuzzled her head against my chest.

I’m confident that you can do it. You’ve got all of us beside you every step of the way.

I smiled as I reached a hand out to stroke her wings. Her feathers were soo soft and smooth, like velvet. She seemed to enjoy me doing this.

Thanks, Flutters. You know? You actually remind me a lot of my girlfriend back home.

Fluttershy lifted her head up to look at me.

Oh. You have a special somepony where you’re from?

Well… more of a special some… body, but yes. She has a very gentle and caring personality, like you, but she also has fears just like anyone else would. You see, she’s a very talented singer, but her parents viewed her singing as shallow and pointless. They threatened to kick her out of the house, telling her to get a real job. All throughout this period, she was scared, feeling like, this whole time, she’d been nothing but a disappointment to both of them.

Oh my!

It was at about that time a couple years ago when I first came across her work and it really inspired me. Back home, I do a lot of writing myself whether it be stories or songs. It’s one of my passions along with singing and acting, but I digress. Anyways, she was the one who inspired me to get back to writing songs. I actually wrote a song about her and, when she told me about her dilemma, I helped her out in any way that I could. Now, she’s signed to a record label and has a successful debut album with another one currently in the works.

That’s great. I’d really like to meet her sometime.

My smile quickly disappeared from my face as I turned away. Fluttershy noticed my sudden change in mood.

What's wrong? she asked, putting her hoof on my hand out of concern. What is it?

I was silent for a few seconds.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to do that, Fluttershy, I finally replied. The truth is I was never even expecting to come here and, now that I am here, I'm not even sure if there's a way back home. My family, my friends,... her, I might never... never get to see them again. I didn't even get to say goodbye to most of them. The last thing I said to my girlfriend was that I'd see her tomorrow over a phone call. What if she shows up and I'm not there? She'll be heartbroken, thinking that I've abandoned her.

In that moment, I felt a comforting wing on my shoulder and a hoof against my chin, slowly turning my head to face a serious looking Fluttershy.

You will see her again. I just know it. You've gotta stay positive.

Fluttershy's encouraging words slowly brought a smile to my face.

I guess you're right. I will see her again and I'll bring her back here to meet you guys... somehow. Hey. Maybe the two of you could sing together. I’ve heard that you sing pretty beautifully yourself.

Fluttershy blushed beet red with the compliment.

I sing… pretty O.K., she thought, modestly. What’s your girlfriend’s name?

Savannah Grace or just Savannah.

That’s a really pretty name.

Thanks. She’d probably appreciate you saying that.

It was at that moment when I looked out the window at the full moon in the sky. A thought soon popped into my mind.

Fluttershy, what’re your thoughts about nighttime?

Well I mostly love how calm and peaceful it is. Everything is just soo quiet and relaxing, but the darkness can be scary at times. I prefer nights when the full moon is out.

Same here. Me and Savannah would spend many nights looking at the full moon in a cloudless sky. What we really enjoy, though, is when it’s winter. At that time, we would look out my bedroom window as the full moon would shine down on the freshly fallen snow. It would cast an almost bluish-silver light on it that we found beautiful. Combine that with the lights of a nearby city and it’s just breathtaking.

Fluttershy smiled at the mention of this.

It does sound beautiful.

It is, but if you really want beauty, walk along a beach at nighttime under a full moon. The moon shining on the ocean and wet sand like a gentle spotlight… it… it just can’t be put into words.

I’d like to do that sometime.

I think you’d really enjoy it. I’ve loved the night since I was young. Well… younger. I even wrote a poem about it in college. It's called The Night. Would you like to hear it?

Fluttershy appeared to be hesitant at first, but then, after a few seconds, she slowly nodded. I still got the feeling that she wasn't entirely comfortable with this.

You know you don't have to if you don't want to, I replied. I don't wanna force you into something you're not comfortable with.

Nonono. It's O.K., she answered quickly. I'm fine with it. Honestly.

K. I have my poem all memorized. Here it is:

The night,

Why do people fear it?

Such a haunting entity,

Full of darkness and mystery.

Is it the fear of the unknown,

That which can’t be seen,

That fear that pulls us down,

Crippling our very being.

Or even worse still,

Is it what we do know:

The demons that threaten our very will,

That haunt our past through and through.

Whatever it may be,

Whether seen or unseen,

There are also those who are,

Attracted strongly to the dark.

Oh night, what could it be,

That attracts so many souls to ye?

Is it the sheer feeling of mystery,

From you, the most unknown entity?

Maybe it’s the full moon at the midnight hour,

Shining its silver light full of eldritch power.

For this is when the children of the night,

Spread their leathery wings and take flight.

Living on in our fear and fascination,

These mystical creatures, born from imagination.

Personally, I am one with it, a son of the night,

Its seductive beauty, is my single true delight.

Fluttershy had an uneasy, nervous look on her face by the time I was finished with the poem.

What's the matter, Flutters? I asked with concern. Is everything O.K.?

Oh yeah. I was just having a flashback.

To what? I questioned, now curious.

To... an unpleasant memory... involving vampire bats.

At first I was confused by what she was talking about, but then it suddenly hit me. My mind was flooded with memories of that episode I had watched only a few short months ago where Fluttershy had become Flutterbat. A wave of guilt rushed over me. How could I have been soo stupid? My reference to bats in the poem had torn open old wounds, forcing her to relive a dark moment from her past. I had just caused the kindest mare in Equestria unnecessary pain, albeit unintentional, but still callous.

Oh my god, I quickly thought. I'm extremely sorry, Fluttershy. I wasn't thinking.

Oh no it's fine, she replied plainly. I wanted to hear your poem and I did enjoy parts of it like the rhyming style and the use of descriptive words to create visual imagery.

Thanks. I’ll bet Princess Luna would probably really like to hear it sometime.

I’m sure she would too.

I really love how her mane is a beautiful shade of blue much like the night sky around here. I noticed that your eyes are blue also, just a shade or two softer with a little touch of green.

Fluttershy smiled as I continued

Blue is actually one of my favorite colors along with green and red. There’s just something about the combination of the three that I’ve always found cool. What’s your favorite color, Fluttershy?

Oh I just love the color of a baby chick in spring.

Ahh. So a nice sunshiny yellow color like your coat.

Yes.

Well it’s getting kinda late. Should you be heading home soon?

Oh goodness no,-Fluttershy shook her head rapidly-All of us are staying here in case Twilight wakes up. We’re not leaving her side.

I smiled and stroked her mane.

Princess Twilight is very lucky to have such loyal friends like you guys.

Thanks. Um… is it O.K. if I stay with you tonight? I just feel more safe and comfortable around you. I could sleep on the chaise.

I thought about how I had accidentally brought up the unpleasant memories of Flutterbat, which resulted in her nervous state and there was no way that I could say no. The two of us had developed a close bond over my short time here and it occurred to me that somepony as timid as she was possibly looked up to me as a protector. One night with me wouldn't hurt anything and it wasn't like we'd be sleeping together; she already knew I had a girlfriend, even reflecting that knowledge by choosing to sleep on the chaise. Nothing wrong with that.

Sure, Fluttershy, I replied with a smile.

She smiled back softly in response before getting up, heading over to the chaise, lying down on it, and getting all settled in. Looking at her, I grabbed one of my pillows and blankets and brought them over to her, placing the pillow under her head and the blanket over her.

Thanks, David, she thought, with a smile.

You’re welcome. I headed back to my bed. Sleep well, Fluttershy.

You too, she softly answered back, closing her eyes peacefully.

I smiled back at her as I coasted off into more calm and restful sleep.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

The next day, I awoke to a still cold but slightly more bearable morning than last night was. The fire had long since died down and Fluttershy was still asleep on the chaise so I put my clothes on, got up, and walked over to where she lay. I gently brushed her mane away from her closed eyes, smiling at her all the while.

“Flutters,” I whispered softly. “It’s mornin’. Time ta get up.”

Her eyes gently fluttered open as she looked up at me with a smile before yawning and stretching.

Good morning, David, she thought. Did you sleep well last night?

I slept great. How ‘bout you?

Oh I slept beautifully. Thanks.

You’re welcome. Whataya say we go check on the others?

Sure. That sounds great.

And so, the two of us left my room to find the others. No sooner had we stepped out of my bedroom than we ran into Applejack.

“Whoops. Sorry A.J.,” I apologized, immediately.

“It’s alright,” she replied, before realizing that me and Fluttershy had just come from the same room. “Wait a minute. What was Fluttershy doin’ in yer room?”

“She spent tha night.”

“You two didn’t…” she started.

“Oh god, no!” I answered automatically, knowing what she was implying. “She was unsettled last night so Ah let her sleep on tha chaise. Go in ma room 'n see fer yerself if ya don’t believe me.”

I opened the bedroom door for Applejack as she walked in. Sure enough, the extra blanket and pillow were still lying there on the chaise.

“Nothin’ happened between us last night aside from talkin’. Ah already have a girlfriend back home anyways. Fluttershy 'n Ah are jus’ friends.”

Fluttershy nodded in agreement. Applejack’s expression then softened into a trusting smile.

“Alright. Ah believe ya. Anyways, Ah was comin’ ta look fer ya ‘cause we got a whole bunch o’ ponies waitin’ outside tha castle.”

“Oh my,” Fluttershy stated. “Do you know what they’re here for?”

“Ah think they’re here fer you.” Applejack pointed her hoof at me.

“Me?” I questioned.

“Apparently, word has spread fast ‘bout you bein’ this ‘Messiah’ ta tha ponies 'n now ev’rypony wants ta see ya.”

I soon realized something.

“They only have a short lifespan ‘cause of tha curse,” I stated. “Many of ‘em are prob’ly sufferin’ from one affliction or another. I hafta help ‘em out.”

I then made my way to the castle doors, opening them up and stepping outside. At the sight of me, the multitude of ponies gathered there started speaking to each other in hushed tones of Awe and reverence.

As I looked at the ponies in front of me, both young and old, the sight of them was heartbreaking. All of them had some form of infirmity caused by the curse from broken limbs (and wings in the case of the Pegasi) with protruding bones to open sores to blindness to cracked hooves to burns to severely malnourished bodies to almost anything else you could think of. Many ponies appeared to be on Death's doorstep.

But the one thing that was even worse than their afflictions was the looks on their faces. Their expressions were ones of sadness and fear; they had the countenance of ponies who had just about given up all faith entirely. Yet, looking up at me, I saw a glimmer in their eyes; a glimmer of hope and pleading that I would be the one to help them get through this tragedy.

With empathy in my heart, I stepped out amongst them with hands outstretched to lay on each pony I came across. With every pony I touched, the Aurora Borealis aura shone brightly, healing their illnesses. They were quick to voice their thanks mentally to which I would warmly reply, You’re welcome.

This went on for quite a while as I healed many ponies. Some of them I instantly recognized like the Cakes, Mayor Mare, Granny Smith, Big Macintosh, Lyra Heartstrings, Bon Bon, Octavia, Vinyl Scratch, Trixie, Snips and Snails, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, Carrot Top, Minuette, A.K. Yearling, the Wonderbolts, and even the grey walleyed Pegasus that many back home call “Derpy”. The majority of the ponies, though, I had no idea what their names were. I had only ever seen them on the show occasionally, but never actually heard their names mentioned before.

As I healed the ponies, I heard their thoughts which were mostly them expressing their needs. Some needed me to make sure their families and friends were safe, many were hungry and needed food, but most of all, they just wanted to feel secure from this state of fear that they were living in. I told all of them telepathically that I would do my best to help out with meeting whatever needs they had. Thinking, I knew that I could probably fix the food problem relatively easily. First I had to check with Applejack to make sure that my plan would work.

"AJ, you mentioned that tha golems had destroyed a large chunk of yer orchard. How much of it is still left?" I asked.

"Ah’m not entirely sure," she replied, "but Ah reckon there’s prob’ly about 2/3 of it left."

"'N tha trees all still have apples on ‘em?"

"Sure do."

"Good. A large number of these ponies are hungry so Ah’m thinkin’ we should store up as many apples as we can ’n ration ‘em out as need arises. Hopefully, it’ll last for a good couple of weeks. Ah’d even be willin’ ta help out with tha harvestin’."

"Alrighty then. Let’s get on it ’n help tha ponies."

And so, with newfound purpose, me and Applejack started making our way to Sweet Apple Acres, ready to help out the ponies however we could.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

Before long, we arrived at the farm. Upon arriving, I noted the sheer vastness of the orchard with apple trees as far as the eye could see. The TV Show just didn’t do justice to its immensity. Aside from the many areas where trees had been uprooted -some of them even burned- there were still an enormous number of trees.

"Ya got any buckets fer us ta put tha apples in?" I asked Applejack.

"Sure do," she replied, "in tha barn."

And so, she led me to the barn where we brought out many buckets for holding apples. Carrying several over to one tree, I reached up and started picking the apples off the tree one at a time. After picking every apple off the tree, I thought of all the trees we had yet to pick apples from and I groaned inwardly.

"This is gonna take ferever fer us ta get all these apples picked," I stated.

Says who? I heard Applejack ask.

Looking over at her, I saw her buck one of the trees, clearing every apple off of it with one kick. Of course, I remembered. In Ponyville it’s Applebucking, not picking.

Why don’t cha try doin’ it like me? she questioned.

After thinking it over, I figured that I could at least try. I do have pretty strong legs and it would certainly be faster than picking one apple at a time. Remembering the two years I spent taking Tae Kwon Do classes, I took up a fighting stance with my left foot planted firmly in front. Once I was ready, I swung my right foot around and landed a powerful kick on the tree. With the impact of my foot, I knocked 3/4 of the apples off of one tree. Applejack watched in amazement.

"Woo-wee!" she exclaimed. "Now that’s what Ah’m talkin’ about. Ya jus’ knocked all those apples off with a single kick from yer… uh whataya call it?"

"Um… foot?"

"Yeah. Foot. Ah mus’ say that Ah’m impressed, Sugarcube. You got legs like a stallion."

"Thanks," I replied with a smile.

Joining Applejack in Applebucking, I decided to strike up conversation with her.

"So, AJ, you've got pretty strong legs. You been buckin' your whole life?"

"Well fer as long as Ah can remember, sure," she stated with a powerful buck against the tree "What about you, Sugarcube? Ah reckon you didn't grow up buckin' trees like Ah did."

"Nope, but Ah did spend a lot o' time runnin' around when Ah was little. Ya could say that all those years o' runnin' gave me stronger leg muscles."

"Ah guess so. Ya sure did a darn good job keepin' up with me when we were runnin' through Everfree yesterday."

"Thanks, AJ," I smiled delivering another strike to the trunk. "Ya know back home, when Ah was in high school, ma friends thought Ah was soo fast that they nicknamed me 'Kenya'."

"Can Ah what?" Applejack asked confused.

"Oh no"-I laughed-"not can ya do somethin'. In ma world, Kenya is a country far from where Ah live. Some of tha people there are warriors known fer their great speed. That's how ma friends gave me ma nickname."

"Ahh. Ah get it now."

"At one point they even lengthened it to 'Kenya Legs Johnny' after Johnny Depp."

Applejack paused from bucking and looked at me like I had spoken some alien language.

"Who in tha Sam heck is Johnny Depp?"

"Oh umm... no one you'd know, but he's a pretty big deal back where Ah'm from. He's one of tha most powerful actors in tha movie industry and a personal favorite o' mine; he's starred in hundreds of big budget blockbuster movies."

After that clarification, we continued on for about an hour before every single apple had been bucked. With the apples all stored away in the barn, I looked back at all of the dead trees that had been uprooted by the golems. Suddenly, I got an idea.

"Hey, AJ."

"Yeah, Dayvid?"

"Do ya think we could use these dead trees fer firewood? It would certainly help keep tha ponies warm durin’ tha bitterly frigid nights ahead."

"Great idea, Sugarcube. That’s usin’ yer noggin."

"Perfect. Now Ah need ya ta get tha other ponies 'n have ‘em come here. Ah’ll get several fires started fer when they arrive."

Applejack nodded and galloped off. Pulling out the spellbook, I looked up a couple of spells that I thought would be useful for this situation: a telekinetic spell and a pyrokinetic spell. Reading the spells over carefully, I then focused my attention on a rather large uprooted tree.

With full concentration and mental sharpness, I slowly managed to levitate the tree over to a clear area free from other plant life that could cause the fire to spread. I then “moved” several other trees to this area til I was satisfied with the number. With all the trees arranged perfectly, and in spite of my exhaustion, I concentrated on trying to ignite them. I focused hard til I felt balls of fire form in both hands which I then discharged as two steady streams of scorching heat at the trees. Before long, the bonfires were all ready. Tired from the brain power that went into achieving this, I sat back and admired my work, feeling like, finally, something was going right.

---

Author's Note:  Chapter originally published October 6th, 2014 on fimfiction.net.  If you enjoy this story and have a FIMFiction account, please consider supporting the original release on https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many.  "Thumbs up" would help out a lot and, if you're without a FIMFiction account, don't worry.  You can still look forward to chapters being released here every Friday.  Same Pony Time.  Same Pony Channel.  Any support at all would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

[FlutterGuy999 2,228]

Chapter IV:  In The Dark Of The Night

 

Before long, the entire populace of Ponyville had arrived at Sweet Apple Acres seeking food and warmth. Me, AJ, Flutters, Pinkie, Rare, and Rainbow passed out apples to all the ponies, who thanked us before heading over to warm themselves by the bonfires.

“Thanks fer helpin’ me out with this you guys,” I stated, gratefully.

“Oh it’s really no problem at all, dearie,” Rarity replied. “Doing all this on your own would’ve been just a nightmare to handle.”

“We’re more than happy to help you out,” Fluttershy answered with a smile.

“Of course," Rainbow Dash agreed, passing out another apple to a grateful pony. "No pony should ever have to go it alone on anything.”

“Ain’t that tha truth,” Applejack remarked. “Ah had ta learn that lesson tha hard way when Ah wouldn’t let Twilight or anypony else help me out with Applebuckin’ season when Ah was tryin’ ta do that 'n help out ev’rypony else at tha same time. Tha only thing goin’ it alone led ta was exhaustion, injuries, 'n cupcakes with worms in ‘em.”

“Ugh,” Rainbow protested with a look of disgust on her face, “don’t remind me about those cupcakes. I’ll never get that taste out of my mouth.”

I couldn’t help but smile as I remembered that episode.

“One thing we could always count on was that Twi would always be there fer us when we really needed her,” Applejack commented.

A look of sadness then came across the faces of all five of them.

“Hey,” I started, “ev’rythin’s gonna be fine. Princess Twilight 'n tha others will wake up soon 'n, ‘til then, Ah’ll do ev’rythin’ in ma power ta make sure no harm comes ta any pony.”

This appeared to lift their spirits ever soo slightly as they slowly smiled and came over to hug me. After the group hug and with all the ponies served, we grabbed our own apples and headed over to a bonfire. Pinkie soon got an idea.

“Hey I’ve got an idea,” she announced, “why don’t we tell each other stories to pass the time.”

“Great idea, Pinkie,” I replied.

“Thanks, Davey.”

I smiled at this newly reborn nickname that she had christened me with as we all settled in around the fire to tell our stories.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

“…and so, soon afterwards, I found Fluttershy living in Ponyville and, since I was the only real pony friend that she had at the time, I decided to move from Cloudsdale to Ponyville with her. It just so happened that the day I moved to Ponyville was also my birthday,” Rainbow Dash finished up her story.

“Wow that was a really cool 'n interestin’ story, Rainbow,” I commented before taking a bite out of a Golden Delicious.

“Thanks.”

Many hours had passed by with many ponies telling stories of their own personal adventures or life experiences. From Octavia’s first symphony to Derpy’s latest escapade with Doctor Whooves, there was no shortage of interesting stories to go around.

“What about you, David?” Fluttershy asked. “What kind of story do you have?”

“Yeah,” Rainbow remarked, “I think we’d all like to know what it’s like in your world where you come from.”

“Ah know Ah certainly would.” AJ stated.

“Me too,” Rarity replied.

“Me four!” Pinkie beamed.

I smiled at Pinkie’s response as many other ponies expressed their interest in knowing about this world that I came from. What story would I tell them, though? Numerous stories flashed through my mind, some more personal than others. Should I tell them about how I got my love for singing from Backstreet Boys concerts? Ha, they wouldn’t even know who the hell they were. I sure as fuck wasn’t gonna tell them about when I wound up in a psychiatric ward. They’d probably be terrified shitless. Finally I came up with a story that I figured was safe enough. The only question was how I would tell it to them.

“O.K.,” I started. “So where Ah come from, we have these things called ‘conventions’. They’re basically these huge gatherin's where people from all over come ta celebrate tha arts. Everythin' from music ta movies ta TV shows ta even literature, includin’ comic books.”

“Wow,” Spike commented, “comic books are considered art where you’re from?”

“Oh yeah. Definitely. Tha comic book industry has been hugely successful ever since nearly a century ago when it first started in America. Uh… where Ah’m from.”

“That’s amazing.”

“So anyways, Ah was at ma first convention ever called Tha Midwest Media Expo. Ah had specifically come there ta see this one specific group who Ah had won a free weekend pass for tha Expo from, but there was one girl in particular from that group who Ah was a huge fan of both her voice actin’ work 'n her singin'. Her name was Meredith.

“So on ma first day of tha Expo, Ah was buyin’ some items from a vendor table 'n who else should walk up ta me but Meredith. Ah tell ya, Ah was, as we like ta say, fangirlin’ out soo hardcore, Ah was soo excited ta finally be meetin’ her. We got ta talk several more times over tha course of that weekend. Ah told my girlfriend about how Ah met her 'n she was super jealous of me.”

“Savannah Grace wasn’t it?” Fluttershy questioned.

“Yeah or jus' Savannah; she's such a huge fan of Meredith's, like me. But anyways, ta this day, that memory is still a personal favorite of mine.”

“I’ll bet it was,” Rainbow Dash remarked excitedly. “I mean, getting to meet someone like this Meredith who you've been a fan of that much must've been huge for you. It reminds me of when I first got to meet the Wonderbolts.”

“Ah’m sure it would.” I stated with a smile before taking another bite out of my apple and looking at my watch. “Whoa 9:30. Ya guys should get some sleep. Ah’ll stay up 'n keep tha fires burnin’.”

“I should probably be heading back to the castle in case Twilight wakes up,” Rainbow stated.

“You do that Dashie.”

With a smile on her face towards me, she swiftly flew off towards the castle. Many of the ponies then started to get settled in for the night. Fluttershy walked over to me and I let her lay her head down on my lap, for which she was grateful. I stroked her mane delicately until I heard her soft, gentle snoring and smiled. It wasn't long after she fell asleep that Applejack walked up and sat down next to me.

"Ah'm not sure if Ah ever asked ya, but do ya have any family back home?" Applejack asked.

"Ya didn't, but Ah do," I replied. "It's me, ma mom, ma dad, ma sister, 'n ma four brothers 'n that's only countin' immediate family."

Applejack let out an impressed whistle.

"Ya sure do come from quite tha large family, much like me. 'N you said that yer tha oldest of yer siblings?"

"Sure did."

It was then that Applejack looked at Fluttershy resting her head on my lap and smiled.

"She sure seems ta like ya."

"It appears so."

"It's just kinda funny seein her like this with you. Fluttershy don't typically warm up ta strangers this fast."

"She was pretty timid when Ah first met her, but, back home, Ah have no real problem makin new friends. People, 'n Ah guess even ponies, find me very approachable 'n amiable."

"Seems that way. When ev'rypony learned ya weren't here ta cause harm, they all seemed drawn to ya."

"When Ah was little, ma sister, Rebekah, would often lay her head on ma lap 'n fall asleep as Ah stroked her hair, much like with Fluttershy now. Me 'n ma sister are about 2 years apart in age so we were close growin up..."

Applejack sensed my trailing off.

"But?" she asked.

"But then work happened. She'd be workin' six days a week, sleepin in on her one day off, 'n it became harder fer us ta spend time together. After a while, we jus... drifted apart. Now she's gonna be movin away in a few months. Possibly ferever."

"Maybe ya should tell her how ya feel when ya get back ta where yer from. Let her know how important she is ta ya as a sister. Ah know Ah'd do tha same if Ah was in yer situation with Apple Bloom. Ya don't wanna wait til it's already too late or you'll jus find yerself full of regret."

I slowly smiled at Applejack.

"Ah guess yer right."

"Well Ah guess Ah'd better hit tha hay."

"Ha," I laughed. "Ah get it. Cuz yer a pony 'n ponies like hay."

"Yup," Applejack chuckled. "That's what Ah meant."

"Nice pun."

"Thanks."

"G'night AJ."

"Night Dayvid. See ya tomorrow."

And with that, Applejack headed over to join her family, leaving me by myself. As I was obviously going to be up for a while keeping the fires burning, I pulled out the spellbook and began looking over the many different spells inside, memorizing as much as I could and even practicing a few that I knew wouldn’t disturb the other ponies. A couple hours passed as I read the book while occasionally refreshing the fires every half hour. Suddenly, I saw movement off to my right. Looking over, it was Spike coming towards me.

“I can take over as fire keeper while you get some sleep,” Spike told me.

“Oh no Spike.”-I shook my head-“Ya need yer rest.”

“I’ve already gotten plenty of rest and you need it too. You’re the savior. There’s no point in you saving us if you’re too tired.”

I realized there was no point in arguing with him and reluctantly agreed. As I shifted to lie down on my back, Fluttershy stirred briefly and wrapped her forelegs around my torso.

“No David…,” she murmured in her sleep with a twinge of fear and panic, “please… don’t go.”

Realizing that she was still feeling nervous even in her sleep, I reached out to touch her mane and wings, stroking them tenderly to offer comfort and calm her down. It worked as a smile slowly crept across her face and she let out a contented sigh.

“Don’t cha worry, Flutters,” I whispered softly with a smile. “Ah ain’t leavin’ nopony.”

And with those final words, I slowly drifted off to sleep, not knowing what would happen later that very night.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

I was only asleep for 2-3 hours before I started to hear screams of panic and Spike calling out my name.

“David!” he shouted. “David you need to get up! The golems are coming!”

At the mention of the golems, I sprung up immediately, looking around for wherever they were coming from. In the distance, I saw fire glowing, but this wasn’t from the bonfires. It was the golems.

Getting my first look at them, they were terrifying to behold. Large hulking beings with stony skins, long, razor-sharp fangs and claws that glistened in the firelight, twisted horns on top of their heads, flames glowing from their open mouths, and, even more terrifying, no eyes; just open holes from which hellfire burned reminding me of the nightmare I had just the other night.

I knew that the first thing I needed to do was get the ponies to safety. Looking at the barn, I knew that it could hold a large amount of ponies without a problem.

“O.K.,” I shouted, “everypony head for the barn. Mares and foals first.”

Everypony ran for the barn without hesitation. With the ponies out of harm’s way, I could focus on the immediate threat of the golems. Realizing that they were made of stone and fire, I knew that I could use water against them as it both extinguishes fire and erodes rock. Remembering a hydrokinetic spell I had read earlier, I concentrated hard, trying to extract water from the air. I was able to produce several liquid tendrils which I then directed at the golems.

“Here. Have a drink,” I laughed with a wicked smile on my face.

The tendrils entered the flaming eyes and mouths of several golems, putting them out of commission. I then directed the tendrils towards more golems before freezing them, impaling the golems on icy spikes. As I was focusing on those golems, I noticed that several got past me and started heading for the barn.

“Oh no you don’t, bitches!”

Punching the earth, I caused a chasm to open up, swallowing them whole before closing. I then realized that I needed to erect a protection spell on the barn to prevent them from harming the ponies. Once that was established, I turned my attention back to the approaching golems.

I began throwing everything I could at them from impaling them on ice or rock spikes to bashing them with giant rock fists that I summoned from the ground, but no matter how many I defeated, their number was seemingly infinite. I could quickly feel my energy draining from me as I struggled to stand my ground against the onslaught. The golems seemed to notice my frail state as they charged me with full force.

The one leading the charge swung his fist at me, sending me flying headfirst into a nearby tree. My head erupted with explosions ringing in my ears. The last thing I remembered was the golems charging the barn as the protection spell wore off and then darkness.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

I came to countless hours later with a pounding in my head. Placing my right hand on my forehead, I felt something warm, wet, and sticky. Sure enough, when I pulled my hand back, it was caked in fresh blood. I then remembered the other ponies and how the golems had gone towards the barn when the protection spell went down, but I couldn’t go and tend to them since I was in no position to be up and about. This I planned to rectify swiftly. Thinking hard about the healing spell that I had read about the night before (and worsening my headache in the process), I healed my head injury, mostly; there was still a slight throbbing numbness that I felt as I struggled to get to my feet. Looking around, I was shocked by the horror I saw before me.

The Apple family’s barn had been completely demolished, ponies were lying around all over with various injuries, and all the apples that me and AJ had worked soo hard to harvest and store up just the other day were now either trampled or burnt. Judging by the sky, it must’ve been about late afternoon by this point. I then made my way over to the other ponies, healing them as I went. All the while I was completely shaken and horrified by the wanton destruction surrounding me. How could someone be soo cold, unfeeling, and heartless as to inflict this sort of trauma upon countless innocents? The longer I thought about it, the harder it was for me to come up with an answer to my own question.

Suddenly, I heard a cry of pain and fear come from the collapsed barn.

“Somepony! Anypony! Please… don’t just leave me here!” a familiar voice panicked.

Fluttershy.

I then ran as fast as I could to the wreckage without overexerting myself and clawed my way through the planks, ignoring the fact that I was getting splinters under my nails as I dug. Finally, I cleared a plank away to reveal a trembling Fluttershy underneath. The first thing that I noticed was that one of her wings had been impaled by a wooden beam, pinning her in place and staining her cream feathers red. Her face was marked with dirt from where tears must’ve been and she was also hyperventilating from the trauma.

“David! Please! It! Really! Hurts!” she uttered between breaths and tears.

The pain in her voice broke my heart inside, but I knew I needed to be strong for her. First thing I had to do was calm her down.

“O.K. I’m gonna get you out of here and fix you up. What I need ya ta do is ta keep your eyes on me and stay calm. Ya think you can do that, Fluttershy?”

She nodded nervously, trying to get her breathing more under control. I then gripped the beam with a firm hand, placing my other hand gently on Fluttershy’s impaled wing to hold it in place.

“O.K., Fluttershy. I’m gonna do this as gently as possible. Just keep your eyes on my face, a’ight?”

“O.K.,” she replied, trying to be brave.

I then, with a firm grip on the beam, began to slowly pull it out of her wing. Fluttershy let out a scream of pain as the beam came out little by little. It hurt me to hear her like this, but I knew it had to be done. After about 5 seconds, the beam was out. I then used my healing spell on her wing, which healed up nicely. After she was healed, she hugged me for comfort and I did the best I could to soothe her after this traumatic experience.

“Shh. It’s O.K. It’s O.K.,” I whispered to her as she wept, “It’s over now. What’s past is past. You’re gonna be fine.”

She didn’t see this while we were embracing but, in that moment, tears ran down my face also. Not just for her, but for all the ponies who had suffered through this tragedy.

“The others,” Fluttershy gasped. “They were in the opposite corner when the barn collapsed.”

Stopping the embrace, the two of us ran over to what used to be the far corner of the barn. The debris there was even worse than the corner I found Fluttershy in. I quickly dug through the splintered wood to reveal Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie lying underneath with eyes closed. Looking at them, I relaxed when I could make out steady breathing from all three of them.

“They’re just unconscious,” I told Fluttershy. “They’ll come to eventually.”

“Oh thank Celestia,” she replied with a sigh of relief.

I then pulled all three of them out of the rubble to a clear area where they could stay til they came to. After moving them, I saw the other ponies heading towards me with unhappy looks on their faces.

“So ‘savior’ what’s your plan now?” Snips mocked.

“Oh please,” Diamond Tiara laughed, “as if any plan he has would be a good idea.”

“Can’t you guys see he’s trying his best?” Fluttershy defended. “He just found out he was the savior two days ago.”

“And he’s been doing such a bang up job since then,” Snails scoffed.

“Where will our food come from now?” Trixie questioned sadly.

“What if the golems come back?” Mrs. Cake asked, nervously. “How will we keep our children safe?”

“How do we even know that you’re the real savior?” Silver Spoon shouted.

The entire crowd then erupted simultaneously in even more questions that I had no answer for. All of their voices combined reflected the same emotions as their faces. Anger, sadness, fear, doubt, some voices were even full of venom, hatred, and spite. With all these voices overwhelming me and not a clue as to how I would help them, I turned and ran away. I had no idea where I would go, what I would do, I just ran, wishing that I could just wake up from this nightmare that I was trapped inside.

"David, wait," Fluttershy called out to me.

I heard her, but I just blocked it out. I already had numerous other thoughts going through my head at the time. When would this end? How much longer would these ponies rely on me? Would I ever get back home? These questions and more plagued me as I just kept running, wishing more than anything for answers in this time of uncertainty.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

I ran for several minutes until I came to a hilltop. Feeling like I couldn’t run anymore, I collapsed at its peak and remained there for several hours in silence as the sun set in the distance. With night upon me, the wintery chill swept in as it started to snow. I didn’t care about the bitter cold. I didn’t care if I froze to death out here. Death would be better and more welcome than living in this nightmare.

“I can’t be their savior,” I finally spoke to myself, sadly. “I just… can't. Who am I, an insignificant speck in the universe, that I was chosen to be their savior, their Messiah,… their Jesus? I never asked for any of this. This is too large of a burden for just one person to handle.”

I then looked up at the full moon as the snowflakes fell softly around me. With a heavy heart full of insecurity and humility, I did something that I hadn’t done in a long while: I prayed.

“God? Princesses? Someone? I’m not sure if you can hear me all the way out here… but if you can, I come to you with one request. Please… I… I just want this all to end.”

Tears slowly began to stream down my face as my voice cracked.

“I care too much for these ponies to see them suffer like this. My heart breaks for them and the suffering they have to go through… and I feel soo worthlessly inadequate… to be this savior that they looked up to me as. Please, I beg of you… take this burden away from me.”

Suddenly, I heard a faint noise in the distance. I couldn’t quite make out what it was until I listened closer to hear that it was screams of horror. At that moment, I heard the voices of everypony ringing in my head. Jumping up, I ran like the wind in the direction of their screams. Their voices all said the same three words that struck fear and worry into my heart for every last one of them. It’s the hag.

---

Author's Note:  Chapter originally published October 14th, 2014 on fimfiction.net.  If you enjoy this story and have a FIMFiction account, please consider supporting the original release on https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many.  "Thumbs up" would help out a lot and, if you're without a FIMFiction account, don't worry.  You can still look forward to chapters being released here every Friday.  Same Pony Time.  Same Pony Channel.  (Hopefully granted my computer cooperates with me)  Any support at all would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

[FlutterGuy999 2,228]

Chapter V:  Greater Love Hath No Man

 

As I ran back towards Ponyville, my heart and mind were racing furiously with my legs; all three competitors neck and neck with each other. I knew not what I would do when I got there. What I did know was that I couldn’t sit by idly on the sidelines while innocents got harmed.

Reaching the center of town and pausing to brush my wild windblown ebony hair from my eyes, I saw the terrified ponies, the legion of golems, and, for the first time, the hag. Cloaked in a tattered black robe, her appearance was striking in a terrifying manner.

Her naked, bulbous head was like that of a vulture complete with hooked beak and bulging, jet-black eyes, spikes protruded from her head in an intimidating crest, her hands had an almost scaly, reptilian appearance with sinister, curved talons at the ends, six spidery legs were visible where the cloak ended, and, perhaps even more disturbing, she had a magical shaman-esque staff that was topped off with the skull of a pony.

I stepped forward as she noticed me, my eyes locked on her in a defiant stare. The two of us stood there in silence for almost a full minute as the snow continued to fall. Finally, she burst out laughing in a raspy manner.

“Really?” she mocked. “This pathetic waste is supposed to be the ‘Messiah to the ponies’? Please. This has got to be the biggest joke I’ve heard in over a millennium.”

“You’re one to talk,” I spat back. “You who cowered away while letting your golems do your dirty work. Not to mention the fact that you didn’t come after these ponies until after my absence. What’s the matter? You chicken?”

This clearly struck a nerve with her as she stopped laughing and stared angrily at me. Maybe it was the fact that she had a birdlike face that my taunt had hit her personally.

“No one calls me chicken and lives to tell about it,” she sneered.

“I think I just might be the first,” I replied snarkily, turning to the other ponies. “Hey Everypony. I just called this baldy here a chicken.”

At this, every single pony gathered there burst out laughing at her.

“See?” I smiled back wickedly.

She was clearly getting upset by the laughing directed at her. Finally, she slammed the bottom of her staff against the ground in a thunderous boom that silenced every pony there. After this, she smiled back at me just as wickedly which made me feel uneasy.

“We’ll see who has the last laugh,” she remarked, “for I challenge you to a magic duel. Winner take all.”

This caused me to pause for a moment. She had been practicing magic for over 1,000 years while I had only been practicing magic for a few days. Still, at the same time, I was a fast learner and had mastered a decent number of spells fairly quickly. What it came down to in the end was that chances were I wouldn’t win, but I didn’t have any other choice and I had to at least try for the good of Equestria. Looking at the hag, my smile slowly crept back to my face.

“I accept the challenge,” I stated, my voice full of confidence and authority.

At that moment, time itself seemed to have been frozen as I felt the eyes of every pony focused on me and the hag, anxiously waiting for who would make the first move. I prepared myself for battle by taking up a fighting stance as the hag did likewise. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the duel began.

The hag made the first move by sending a wave of rock spikes in my direction, which I quickly dodged with a cartwheel. Next, I shot electricity at her from my fingers, which she stopped with her free hand before directing it upwards, creating a stunning lightning flash in the sky against the snowfall. She then froze the falling snow into ice spikes that she directed towards me, only for me to erect a wall of fire in front of me that melted all of them. With a karate kick, I sent a rather large fireball towards her from the wall, which she deflected into the air before it came down towards me. Without a second to waste before impact, I teleported out of the way just in time as the scorching sphere singed where I had just been standing.

Turning towards the hag to fire another attack, I froze when I realized that she had used her return attack to distract me while she grabbed Fluttershy and used her as a human... well… pony shield. Fluttershy was trembling as the hag held her staff in front of her captive’s face, the eyes and mouth of the pony skull now glowing blood red.

“Let her go, Crystal,” I demanded, angrily. “This is between you and me.”

“Sorry, but I don’t answer to my slave name anymore,” she remarked sinisterly. “Make one wrong move and she dies.”

“You wouldn’t,” I venomously spat.

“YOU DON’T THINK I WILL?” she shouted, causing Fluttershy to tremble even more. “Would you be willing to bet her life on that?”

I stared at the hag with defiant fire in my eyes. But then I looked at the terrified expression on Fluttershy’s face and I thought of Savannah. What if it was her that the hag was threatening to kill? I could never live with myself if I knew that I had caused the death of an innocent by gambling their life away. My fury then softened into concern as I finally spoke.

“O.K. fine,” I spoke defeated. “You win. Just please… don’t hurt her.”

The hag chuckled wickedly as she let Fluttershy go.

“I knew you didn’t have the balls to do it,” she mocked. “You care too much for her because she reminds you of your little girlfriend, what’s her name again? Oh right. Savannah Grace.”

I was visibly shocked by how she knew her name.

“Yes. I know her name,” she continued. “There are many things I know about you, but the biggest thing I know is that you care too much for others. One thing that I’ve learned over all these years is that sympathy and compassion are just synonymous for weakness.”

“You dare speak of weakness when you hide like a wuss behind your powers? That’s your weakness.”

“Powers? A weakness?” she chuckled. “My powers have gotten me to where I am today and now I will use them to drain the souls of every pony here, increasing my power so I can rebuild this pathetic world in my own image.”

“Why?” I demanded. “Why would you destroy countless lives like this?”

“These ponies are an inferior race that is beneath me. They’re a waste of life whose only purpose is to be subjugated by more evolved and exceptional life forms. You and I, we’re both more evolved and exceptional than these lowlifes. We’re humans that can do things they never could.”

“I’ve never believed in evolution. You and I are nothin’ alike and what you are is no longer human. You are nothing but a cold, heartless bitch and I’ll never have any part in this.”

“Fine, but there’s nothing you can do to stop me from sapping the life from every last miserable pony here.”

She was wrong. There was something I could do. It wouldn’t be easy, but I’d learned long ago that heroes have to make the tough choices sometimes.

“Take mine instead.”

Every pony there let out a gasp.

“What?” the hag asked dumbfounded.

“My soul in place of the souls of all the other ponies. They get to go free and you have to promise to never lay a hand on any of them again.”

“And why the hell would I agree to that?”

“Because I’m the savior. Imagine what it would be like to say that you defeated Equestria’s last hope. The soul of the Messiah would be the ultimate trophy for you,” I stated, trying to appeal to her inflated sense of ego. “And conclusively I can’t allow you to harm any more innocents. I’ve seen their suffering and I can’t tolerate it any longer.”

“David, no. You can’t do this,” Fluttershy pleaded.

“I’m sorry, Fluttershy, but I know what has to be done.”

“How do you know I won’t just kill them all off after you’re dead?” the hag stated.

“I don’t,” I admitted, “but if there’s a chance that my sacrifice can prevent the harm and death of others, then it’s a chance I’m willin to take. So do we have ourselves a deal?”

The hag hesitated for a few seconds before speaking.

“Fine, whatever,” she agreed, seemingly uninterested.

As she raised her staff towards me, I stopped her.

“Wait.”

“What?” she asked impatiently.

“Just… let me have one more minute with them,” I begged. “Please. I… I need to get my affairs in order. That’s all I ask.”

I hoped that this request would appeal to what little humanity this hag might have left. I looked at her eyes, hoping to see some glimmer of goodness in them.

“One minute and that’s it.”

I then went over to Flutters, Rainbow, Pinkie, AJ, and Rare. They all had solemn looks on their faces.

“Ya don’t hafta do this ya know,” AJ finally spoke. “There’s always another way.”

“Ah’ve thought it over ‘n there’s no other way,” I replied. “Too many innocents have suffered ‘n Ah can’t permit it ta go on.”

“But what about Savannah?” Fluttershy asked on the point of tears.

“Indeed,” Rarity began. “The poor darling will be heartbroken.”

“That’s why Ah need you five ta do somethin’ fer me.”

“Anything. Name it,” Rainbow replied.

“If y’all ever find a way ta my world, tell… tell Savannah that Ah died a hero.”

“But how will we do that,” Pinkie asked, her mane and tail deflated, her pony ears folded back sadly, and her eyes watering up, “and how will we know what she looks like?”

“Ah have a picture of her in ma wallet,” I explained, opening my wallet to pull out a picture of a blonde with eyes just as blue as Fluttershy’s and holding it in front of them, “ya can use it as a reference. As fer how y’all’ll get there, Ah don’t know, but if it’s possible fer a human like me ta travel ta Equestria then it should be possible fer a pony ta travel ta Earth. Ah jus need y’all ta promise me that you’ll do this as ma last request.”

“We promise,” Fluttershy spoke before bursting into tears and hugging me.

"Hey," I whispered, "it's gonna be alright."

The other four came and joined the hug as tears ran down our faces. This moment pained me to no end.

“I really hate to break up this ‘soo heartwarming I could puke’ moment, but time’s up,” the hag spat, annoyed.

I then pulled out of the hug and looked at the five of them one last time.

“Be strong fer me,” I told them. “Don’t mourn me when Ah’m gone.”

As they all nodded sadly, I stepped out in front of the hag, ready to accept my fate. She held up her staff as the eyes and mouth of the pony skull glowed crimson. The last thing I remembered was a bright blood red flash, searing pain as if I was being ripped apart, and the sound of my soul screaming out along with the shrieking of hundreds of terrified and shocked ponies then silence.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

After I don’t even know how long, my eyes fluttered open as I looked around me. What I saw was surprising. Taking in my surroundings, I saw nothing but millions of stars in what could’ve only been space except painted in a mixture of vibrant reds, blues, violets, and pinks. Standing up was a weird experience because not only was my ethereal backdrop everywhere I turned but it was also up above and down beneath me. It felt like I was standing on nothingness. There was also a strong feeling of loneliness.

"Hello?" I called out nervously. "Is anypony here?"

As if answering my question, a mysterious figure came towards me. I couldn’t make out who it was at first, but, when it came close enough, I could make out that it was a bearded unicorn wearing a cloak and dunce cap. After a few seconds I realized who it was. Princess Twilight had dressed up as him on Nightmare Night in a past episode.

“Yer… yer Star Swirl tha Bearded,” I finally spoke.

“Indeed I am,” he replied rather simply.

“Wh-what’re you doin here?”

“It’s a long story. One which you are connected to.”

As I wondered what he meant, I thought back to the prophecy that I had read and the two letters that it was signed with. S.S.

“You were S.S. Tha one who predicted that Ah’d be tha savior of Equestria.”

“Correct again.”

“But why was Ah chosen? Ah’m jus yer average everyday... nobody. Ah’m honestly no one special.”

“Oh you’re far from a nobody and you are undeniably special. Why do you think you were able to develop that special connection, that special bond with all those ponies?”

“Ah dunno. Jus some… freak accident Ah assumed.”

Star Swirl smiled at me before replying.

“There are no accidents. Everything has a purpose and reason for being and happening just as an Equestrian descendant would eventually find his way back home.”

At first, I was under the impression that that blast the hag fired at me must’ve hit me harder than I thought because there was no way that he had just said what I thought he said. I just stood there with a shocked and incredulous expression on my face. Finally, after about half a minute, I spoke.

“Come again?” was all I could utter.

“You might want to sit down while I tell you that story.”

Taking his advice, I seated myself Indian style in front of him.

“Now during the earliest days of Equestria, there were three princesses-”

“No there weren’t,” I cut in. “There were only two: Celestia ‘n Luna.”

“Celestia and Luna are the only two still around today after a millennium,” he continued as if I had never spoken “but there was a third Alicorn princess named Destiny, the youngest of the three. She was my one true love. I had feelings for her like I had never had for any mare before and she reciprocated those affections. We swore to each other that we’d be together one day.”

“So what happened?”

“One day, I was working on creating a particularly difficult spell, one that would make trans-dimensional travel possible. Destiny was by my side for support as I struggled to perfect it in the middle of an open field. I almost had it completed when a severe storm rolled in. Destiny said that we should head back, but I insisted on giving it one more try, positive that I would get it right that time around. So I recited the spell that I had so far as the magic began to glow from my horn.

“Suddenly, a streak of lightning struck my horn, causing the already unstable magic to branch out and strike whatever was nearby. In this case, it struck Destiny. One thing I know I’ll never forget, no matter how much time passes, is her scream of pain and horror as she was swallowed up by a glowing vortex.”

“Ya mean… she… died?”

“No. She was transported to your world. Of course, back then she wound up in the very early years of the time period humans call ‘A.D.’ as a human herself.”

“How do ya know this?”

“I used an enchanted mirror to show her to me. I looked into it and saw that she had moved on without me. Found a husband, got married, had kids, probably because she never thought she’d see me again."

As he spoke those words, Savannah came to mind. I just couldn't help but think of how she would suffer the same fate that this Princess Destiny had. Star Swirl's voice snapped me back to reality.

"Despite this, I was still determined to get to her as I had important news to tell her. I labored on that trans-dimensional travel spell for many sleepless nights until I believed it was finally ready. When I used the spell though, I wound up here. My magic is ineffective in this realm, therefore I’m unable to escape. Years turned into decades, decades turned into centuries, and centuries turned into millennia. I eventually grew to accept my fate that I would never see her again, never tell her I loved her again, never tell her the news I meant to.”

“’N… what news was that?” I asked, curiously, stretching out the ‘n.

“The prophecy that one day, a couple millennia into the future in this case, one of her descendants would become the savior of Equestria.”

At this point, I was really glad that I was sitting because, had I been standing, I have the feeling my legs would’ve gave out from under me. Still, the shock of this revelation was no less diminished by the fact that I was in a seated position.

“Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa! Wait a fuck!” I blurted out. “So… yer sayin’ that… not only am Ah a descendant of a pony, but also… that Ah’m a descendant… of royalty?”

“Precisely. You are an Alicorn prince by blood.”

All of this news was a lot for me to swallow at once, leaving me speechless. Thankfully, I didn’t need to say anything as Star Swirl continued on.

“That is the reason why you had such a powerful link to the ponies you encountered. Yes, you may be human, but deep down inside, you’ve always been one of us. Your caring human nature combined with your pony ancestry made this special bond with your kind possible, a magic that has never existed in Equestrian history. I may not have been able to see my love, Destiny, again, but I still consider it a great honor to be able to meet one of her descendants all these years later: the savior of Equestria no less.”

A disappointed look crossed my face.

“Well Ah didn’t really save Equestria,” I stated sadly. “All Ah did was give up ma soul so that they could keep theirs ’n, even then, Ah have no idea if that hag will even keep her end of tha deal.”

“So why did you sacrifice your soul?”

“Because… Ah couldn’t jus’ let her continue ta make them suffer. Ah looked at them 'n Ah saw pained lost souls with no guidance. Enough was enough. Ah decided that it had ta end ’n Ah thought ta maself… if there’s a chance, no matter how small, fer me ta save all these innocents, make their sufferin stop,… Ah had ta take it.”

“Because you care for them.”

“Well… yeah.”

Star Swirl looked off into the distance as if lost in thought before speaking.

“I learned many forms of magic during my time in Equestria, but you contain a magic that I’ve never seen before: the magic that only comes through self-sacrifice. Anyone who would sacrifice their soul out of love for others has the power to make an impact in the world. Besides, your journey might not be over yet.”

Before I could ask him what he meant, I heard a terrified scream off in the distance. I couldn’t be sure in what direction it was coming from as it seemed to emanate from all around me, above and beneath, but what I could tell was who it came from: Fluttershy. As I listened closely, I could hear her panicked voice speaking desperately and fearfully, almost to the point of tears.

“No,” her voice trembled, “please… don’t do this. You promised you wouldn’t.”

"I promised?" a voice that could only be the hag scoffed. "Promises mean nothing to me."

At those words, my heart was filled, not only with concern for Flutters, but also anger towards the hag. Not only had she not kept her promise, but now she was about to condemn the most kind-hearted pony in all of Equestria to the same fate as me. I’m not going to say that some ponies deserve this fate less than other ponies, but knowing that this was about to happen to Fluttershy made me livid. Overflowing with righteous fury, nothing else mattered as my surroundings, and Star Swirl along with them, began to fade away into blinding blue light. One way or another, that hag was gonna pay.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

The ponies watched in horror as the dark, crimson energy of the hag’s staff shot out, latching itself onto my eyes and mouth. They shrieked as my entire body broke out in convulsions and my cries of pain rang loudly in their ears. After several seconds of this, the scarlet beams returned from whence they came as my corpse dropped to the ground, smoke pouring out of my gaping mouth. The many colts and fillies that were gathered there sought comfort from their parents at this traumatizing sight.

However, no pony was more traumatized than Fluttershy. She approached where I lay, tears streaming down her face. Holding my lifeless body in her fore hooves, she wept bitterly. In her mind, the savior was dead, the first one to give her hope through tragedy. She had even come to secretly love me during my first night in Ponyville, but when she found out that my heart belonged to another back home, she was willing to let go of her feelings for me and view me only as a close friend and protector, one who would always be there for them no matter how dark things got.

But, now, I was gone. What would happen to all of them now that there was no savior to stand up for them? Would this hag even keep her promise to leave them alone? And, perhaps even more importantly, what about Savannah? How would Fluttershy and the others be able to face her and tell her that she was never going to see me again? I had never even gotten the chance to say goodbye to her before I died. All these thoughts filled her with even greater sorrow.

And yet, at the same time, an even stronger emotion was welling up in her core: anger. No, not anger. Hatred. Scorching, focused hatred. Hatred towards this hag who clearly had no heart, no emotion, no compassion towards others. Hatred towards the evil that had corrupted her. Hatred towards her cruelty that would lead her to murder innocents without a second thought. Looking towards the hag with eyes of flame, she strode in her direction with vehemence.

“How dare you,” Fluttershy spat out venomously. “Who do you think you are? You think that just because you’re really powerful that makes you better than everypony else? Who gave you the right to decide who lives and who dies? None of us have done a single thing to wrong you; he”-pointing at my corpse-“didn’t do anything to wrong you. All he did was protect us and yes he was also powerful, but he never viewed himself as being above any of us. He cared for every last one of us, something you could never understand; you who care only for yourself. Do you even feel any remorse for murdering him? I never thought I would say this, but he was right when he said you’re nothing but a cold, heartless BITCH!”

Everypony gasped. They had seen Fluttershy lose it before, but this was on a completely different level. This was beyond fury. However, despite her profane outburst, they all knew in their hearts, equally filled with fury towards the hag, that Fluttershy spoke nothing but truth and that this monster deserved every last word.

“SILENCE!” the hag screamed as she swung the pony skull of her staff at Fluttershy, hitting her in the head with such force that she let out a cry of pain and crumpled at the hag’s feet.

A wave of horror fell over all gathered there. If this hag was resorting to violence even after promising not to harm any of them, they knew that what happened next wouldn’t bode well for anypony. The murderous look in the hag’s eyes only confirmed their fears.

“You dare speak to me with such disrespect?” the hag continued furiously as she strode among the terrified ponies. “You have no place or right to speak with such venom towards me; you are beneath me, EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU! Because this one dares to defy me, she will be made an example of, a reminder of the penalty for insolence.”

As she spoke, a few golems walked over to Fluttershy and grabbed her, securing her limbs in their grip while the hag pointed the pony skull towards her. As the eyes and mouth of the skull began to glow their familiar bloody hue, Fluttershy let out a terrified scream and started struggling against her captors with a look of terror on her face.

“No,” Fluttershy’s voice trembled as tears began to stream down, “please… don’t do this. You promised you wouldn’t.”

“I promised?” the hag scoffed. “Promises mean nothing to me.”

As she raised her staff towards Fluttershy with a frightening gaze of cold murder in her eyes, Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo bolted over, standing between Fluttershy and the hag with stern, defiant looks on their faces.

“What is the meaning of this?" the hag lashed out. "Stand aside you impudent little shits.”

“No,” Scootaloo answered flatly.

“What did you say?”

“Are you deaf?” Rainbow Dash replied, annoyed and angry. “She said, ‘No.’ We refuse to let you prey on the innocent like this. David may be dead, but what he stood for still remains: The will to stand up for the helpless and defend the weak from monsters like you. This is what he believed in and so do the two of us.”

Pinkie then walked up next to them, mane straight and the same cold look on her face.

“Me too,” she stated.

She was followed by Applejack and Apple Bloom. Double the ponies, double the glares.

“Us too,” they replied in unison.

Rounding them off were Rarity, Sweetie Belle, and Spike, taking their place between Fluttershy and the hag with their friends.

“So do we,” Spike affirmed.

In that moment, the eight of them stood there in rebellion against the hag, hoof in hoof (or claw in the case of Spike), united in their mutual stand for the ideal that I had represented.

“Fine,” the hag stated with a nefarious grin on her face. “All of you will share in his fate.”

The eyes and mouth of the hag’s staff began to glow crimson as they all accepted their fate. But, suddenly, the skull itself glowed. First red, then white hot before it exploded, startling everypony and the hag. From where the skull had been, a glowing sapphire orb rose and floated over to my lifeless corpse before it shot its light up into the sky and down into my chest. This column of cerulean radiance expanded in diameter until my body was completely enveloped in its luminosity.

Everypony watched in Awe and confusion as my form began to levitate two stories into the air, straightening itself upright. Then, a transformation occurred that left all of them and the hag shocked upon witnessing. From atop my head, two blue pony ears sprouted, replacing my human ones, and two majestic blue wings emerged from my back, much like those of an eagle… or even an Alicorn. After this, my long closed eyes shot open, glowing as pale white as two full moons. My mouth opened as I spoke in a loud, thundering voice to the hag.

“You think that your power makes you better than everypony? You promised that you would leave them alone if you took my soul in their stead. Now you will pay for your arrogance.”

“Stay back,” the hag shouted fearfully as she fired a blast at me which I deflected effortlessly with a swipe of my hand.

I then dove at the hag and plunged my hand into her chest as if it weren’t even there, much to her pain as she cried out in agony. A glowing rainbow consumed me as I drained the hag’s dark magic from her soul, stripping her of her hideous appearance and leaving her powerless. I looked down on her with fury in my eyes.

“You were soo proud of your power, using it to trample down whoever was in your way, so now you’ll learn what it’s like to live without your precious magic you clung to for soo long. There’s a special place in Tartarus for scum like you who prey on the weak and that is where you will spend an eternity for your cruelty,” I stated with authority as a sinister smile crept across my face. "Say hello to Cerberus and Tirek for me."

No sooner had I spoke the words then a portal opened up beneath the former hag’s feet and spectral claws reached up to drag her down to the depths of Tartarus, screaming fearfully as she went. Soon, the portal closed and a ray of bright light shot out from my chest, consuming the legion of golems that remained before they all shattered into millions of pebbles. With the evil gone from Equestria, the gloom vanished also as the sun slowly rose bright in the sky. As it shone its bright rays down on the land, the snow quickly melted from all around us, almost as if the gloom that had shrouded Ponyville had some kind of effect on the temperature.

Weak and shaken from what had just happened and with my eyes no longer glowing, I collapsed to the ground, putting a hand to my forehead as all the other ponies gathered around me in concern.

“Move back guys. Give him some air,” Rainbow Dash stated.

Every pony backed away aside from Rainbow, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie. I opened my eyes and looked up at them with a dazed look on my face.

“Wha… what happened?” I asked, groggily. “Ah just had tha strangest dream.”

The five mares just stared at me with looks of shock on their faces.

“What? What is it?”

“You… you have… wings.” Fluttershy stammered.

“What?!”

“And pony ears.” Rarity uttered.

Still in shock, I put my hands to the sides of my head where my human ears should be, but felt nothing. I then moved them slowly up my head until I felt my new pony ears on top. After that, I looked behind me to see my wings sticking out of my back. The look on my face was one of equal parts confusion and shock.

“What happened to you?” Rainbow Dash questioned. “I mean, it definitely makes you look 20% cooler, but still I’m just as curious about this as any other pony.”

Before I could answer, I saw three shapes flying towards where we were. As they got closer, I realized that it was Princesses Celestia, Luna, and Twilight Sparkle. The three of them landed in front of me as I just stood there in Awe. Even though Princess Celestia was exactly the same height as me, I still felt dwarfed in comparison to her.

“Princesses!” I finally spoke, quickly kneeling before them in respect.

When I looked up, the three of them were simply smiling at me.

“Rise,” Princess Celestia finally spoke.

When Princess Celestia tells you to do something, you don’t question it so I naturally returned to my feet.

“If anypony should be kneeling, it should be us before you,” Princess Twilight Sparkle stated.

“Me?” I questioned, pointing to myself.

“Indeed, Prince David,” Princess Luna replied as she and the other two princesses kneeled before me.

The moment that Princess Luna called me “Prince”, there were murmurings among the ponies as to what this meant. Nonetheless, they all followed the princesses’ example and knelt in my presence. I just stood there, hardly believing what was happening in that very moment. After nearly a half a minute, they rose back to their hooves.

“Um… ‘scuse me Princess Luna, but what exactly did ya mean when ya called Dayvid here… ‘Prince’?” Applejack asked, confused.

“Exactly that,” Princess Luna replied. “He is a prince of Equestria.”

“But… how?” Fluttershy questioned.

“Well, it is quite simple,” Princess Celestia started. “You see-”

“There was another Alicorn Princess from a really long time ago who was accidentally transported to another world where she had many descendants over another really long time up until the present day when Davey who was a descendant of hers came here to Equestria to fulfill the prophecy made by the Alicorn Princess’ special somepony Star Swirl The Bearded all those years ago.” Pinkie stated all in one breath before delivering the biggest cartoony grin.

I just stared at her with a gaping mouth as did every other pony, save Princesses Celestia and Luna. I wasn’t soo much shocked at how Pinkie knew that (few things really surprise me with her anymore) as I was shocked that she had just cut off Princess Celestia midsentence like that.

“Um… is she allowed ta do that?” I asked the princess of the Sun.

She simply smiled back at me before replying.

“I’ve gotten used to it,” she answered.

“Hold on a sec,” Applejack started. “Ya mean ta tell us that yer a descendant of pony royalty?”

I was silent for a few seconds before answering.

“Mmhmm,” I replied meekly while nodding.

“That… is… AWESOME!!!!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

“I told you you were a descendant of an Alicorn,” Sweetie Belle stated as she approached me.

“Yes ya certainly did,” I admitted with a smile as I patted her on the head.

“All of us are just soo happy that you’re O.K.,” Rarity chimed in.

“Definitely,” Fluttershy agreed.

“Ah appreciate that you guys,” I replied before turning to Princess Celestia. “Umm… Princess?”

“You don’t have to call me ‘Princess’ anymore,” she answered with a smile.

“Oops. Sorry.”

“No need to apologize.”

“Sorry,” I stated with a nervous smile. “Anyways… there’s somethin Ah need ta ask ya.”

“You want to know if there’s a way for you to return to your world,” she stated as if she had read my mind.

I nodded to her before speaking.

“Ah’ve thoroughly enjoyed gettin’ ta meet all of ya, but Ah’ve got a life ‘n a girl waitin fer me back home. Ah can’t jus abandon them.”

“Nor would we expect you to,” Celestia replied. “As for you getting back home, there is a way. The door that you first came through can be opened one final time, but once you pass back through it, it will close forever.”

“Ya mean… Ah’ll never be able ta come back here… ever?” I asked as my pony ears folded back sadly.

“I’m sorry. I honestly wish there was another way.”

I turned to look at the friends that I had made over those past few days. All of them would be gone forever the second I crossed that threshold back to my world. Equestria had become like a second home to me as it was the land of my ancestry. I was just as much a part of this world as I was a part of Earth. It pained me knowing that I was now being forced to choose between two halves of myself. Another truth that I had learned was that, oftentimes, the hard thing to do and the right thing to do are exactly the same. Leaving Equestria forever would be far from easy, but it was the way things had to be. After what seemed like an eternity of silence, I turned back to Celestia.

“Can… can Ah at least stay one more night before Ah go back?” I finally spoke.

Celestia nodded.

“You can stay at the castle for the night until you’re ready to go back tomorrow,” Twilight strode over to my side, reaching a hoof up to my hand. “It’s the least I could do to show gratitude for all you’ve done.”

“Thanks,” I replied, forcing a smile and taking her hoof.

Rainbow was quick to notice my smile was fake.

"Hey c'mon buddy," she started. "I know what'll make you feel better. How about a little flight over Ponyville on those new wings of yours?"

"Umm... Dash? Ah don't really know how ta fly."

"Who cares if you don't know how to? I can teach you. You've got the greatest flier in all of Equestria to guide you. Besides this is a once in a lifetime opportunity that might never happen again. Once you head back, that moment will be gone. So whataya say? You gonna take a leap of faith and fly or are you just gonna let this chance slip past you?"

She was right. I'd never be able to come back to Equestria again nor would I ever get the chance to fly like this in my world. So it was in that moment when I planned to take advantage of what little time I had there to enjoy life. Live without regrets.

"Alright then," I answered. "Start yer teachin."

---

Author's Note:  Chapter originally published October 20th, 2014 on fimfiction.net.  If you enjoy this story and have a FIMFiction account, please consider supporting the original release on https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many.  "Thumbs up" would help out a lot and, if you're without a FIMFiction account, don't worry.  You can still look forward to chapters being released here every Friday.  Same Pony Time.  Same Pony Channel.  Any support at all would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

[FlutterGuy999 2,228]

Chapter VI:  The Wings Of A Rainbow

 

Something that I was a bit hesitant to tell Rainbow about before she started teaching me how to fly was my fear of heights. O.K. O.K. it’s not really a fear of heights. I can be on a plane a few thousand feet above ground or climb a stepladder and have no problem with it at all. I guess my real problem is that I have a fear of falling from heights. I’m perfectly calm standing on a mountain top, but the second I look over the edge, my heart rate increases rapidly as nerves take over.

Still, even with my fear of falling from heights, I genuinely did want to learn to fly and my desire well outweighed the nervous energy that typically accompanied me. So, out in the middle of an open field with Rainbow as my guide, I was bound and determined to fly before day’s end. After all, I had managed to defeat a hag just a short while ago so how hard could flying be?

Much, MUCH harder than I thought. This I discovered as I landed flat on my face once again after some desperate wing flapping.

“No no no,” Rainbow stated, slightly frustrated. “You’re still trying too hard.”

“Ah’m sorry, Rainbow,” I replied, picking myself back up and shaking off my wings. “It’s jus that Ah’ve never had wings before today ‘n Ah’m still tryin ta adjust ta them.”

“Just relax. Don’t try to force it. Flying is something that should be effortless,”-she flexed her wings-“You’ve gotta feel each individual feather in your wings and get them to work together as a whole unit.”

“How am Ah supposed ta make it effortless?”

“Try this. Think of one of the most pleasant memories that you’ve experienced in your life. Once you’ve got that, focus on it, letting it flow through you and then channel it into flying.”

I looked at Rainbow for a second with a confused expression. She didn’t really seem like the kind who would typically give that sort of flying advice. She noticed my puzzlement and quickly answered.

“I dunno. Twilight said it worked for her when she was first learning to fly.”

“Ahh,” I replied upon realization. “Did Twilight ever say if it had ta be jus one memory?”

“Well she only focused on one, but I don’t really see the harm in focusing on multiple memories at once. Just try to focus on which ones are most important and meaningful to you.”

“K,” I answered, closing my eyes as hundreds of memories flooded my brain at once.

After a short while, I had chosen a select few memories that held great personal significance to me.

“You got the memories in your mind?” Rainbow asked.

I nodded, eyes still shut.

“I can tell.”

“How?” I questioned, opening my eyes.

Upon opening them, I made an amazing discovery: I was flying. Looking down, I realized that I was about eight feet up in the air with Rainbow Dash hovering next to me, beaming with pride.

“Ah’m… Ah’m doin it! Ah’m flyin!” I pronounced, excitedly.

“Of course you are. You’re Awesome!” Rainbow remarked. “Not everypony gets to be royalty.”

“Thanks, Dashie, but Ah’d ‘preciate it if we didn’t make such a big deal bout me bein a prince,” I stated uneasily. “Ah jus don’t want any o’ ma friends ta think any differently of me, includin you.”

“Sure thing. So whataya say we take that flight over Ponyville now?”

“Sure. Ah wonder if Fluttershy would like ta join us.”

“You can ask her if you want, but I think she’d be more comfortable on the ground. She doesn’t handle heights that well.”

“Ah know what that’s like.”

“You do?” Rainbow asked, confused.

“Oh yeah. One o’ tha biggest fears Ah still struggle with today is tha fear o’ fallin from heights. Had it ever since Ah was a kid ‘n it never went away.”

“You could fool me. The fact that you’re up in the air like this, cool as a cucumber, I’d never guess that about you.”

“Thanks,” I smiled. “Anyways, Ah’m gonna check in with Fluttershy ta see if she wants ta join us, jus in case.”

“K. I’ll be waiting here for you.”

Turning around, I flew off to Fluttershy’s cottage at the edge of Everfree. Arriving at the cottage, I saw her on top of a grizzly bear, running her hooves along his back vigorously.

“Hey, Flutters,” I greeted. “Whachu up to?”

“Oh… hi David,” she replied, still focused on her work. “I’m just giving Harry here a massage. You’d be surprised how much tension can build up in a bear’s back muscles… or anypony’s back muscles for that matter.”

She then looked up and noticed that I was hovering in front of her.

“Oh my! You’re actually flying!”

“Yes. Shockin Ah know. That’s actually tha reason Ah came here. Me ‘n Rainbow Dash were bout ta take a flight over Ponyville. Wanna come?”

“Umm… I don’t think so.”

“Aww c’mon. It’ll be fun.”

“I just… feel safer on the ground. Besides, I’m really busy with Harry here. A simple massage for him can take up to an hour just for me to loosen up all his kinks. You and Rainbow have fun without me. I’ll be fine.”

“O.K. See ya later, Flutters,” I waved as I turned to fly back to Rainbow Dash.

I had known it was a longshot trying to convince Fluttershy to come with us, but I figured it was worth a try anyways. Still, part of me secretly wished she would’ve said “Yes.” Out of the Mane Six, she and I were the closest friends, although, to be fair, I hadn’t had the chance to develop much of a friendship with Twilight on account of, oh yeah, her being in a coma for the majority of my stay. Before long, I was back at the field where Rainbow was.

“Hey, Rainbow.”

“She said ‘No’?”

“Yup.”

“Figures.”

“Ah know but it was still worth a shot.”

“Yeah. I guess so. You about ready for our flight?”

“Sure.”

“Then let’s fly. I’ll go easy on you since you’re just starting out.”

“K.”

And so, the two of us took to the sky, the cool breeze blowing through my hair and her mane. As we flew above Ponyville, I saw the CMC leaving their clubhouse (probably off to try and earn their Cutie Marks in one way or another), Pinkie trotting along on her merry way, and Big Mac pulling a large cart full of lumber and tools, no doubt to start fixing up the family barn that the golems had destroyed. I was thoroughly enjoying the view from 40 feet up in the sky to the point where I almost didn’t notice Rainbow asking me a question.

“Hey, David. You ever wonder what it’s like to sit on a cloud?”

“All tha time.”

“Well you won’t have to wonder anymore. C’mon,” she replied, flying over to a low floating cloud, landing on it, and pointing to a spot next to her with her fore hoof.

“Umm… Rainbow? Are ya sure that that’ll hold me up?”

“Of course I’m sure. You’re part Alicorn after all so sitting on clouds shouldn’t be too much of a problem.”

I paused for a second as I thought this over. My being part Alicorn was going to take some time to get used to even after I had returned home and returned to a normal human again.

“This is true,” I finally replied. “Alright then. Ah’ll sit with you.”

Hovering above the cloud, I gently lowered myself onto it next to Rainbow; it was an entirely new experience to me. The cloud itself was naturally soft, light, and fluffy to a degree that I had never before understood, but that wasn’t all; the cloud was also cool to the touch, almost adding a refreshing atmosphere to where the two of us sat. The coolness of the cloud was a pleasant contrast to the heat of the sun’s rays above us. As I relaxed a little more, I reclined on the cloud, letting its soothing properties flow throughout me.

“Nice view isn’t it?” Rainbow asked, snapping me out of my stupor.

“Oh… uh yeah. Definitely,” I swiftly sat back up.

“Something on your mind?”

“It’s jus… this is all happenin soo fast. Ah mean… first Ah mysteriously wind up here then Ah find out Ah’m some sort o’ Messiah ta Equestria followed by tha revelation that Ah’m a descendant of an Alicorn Princess makin me a prince by blood plus ma victory over the hag ‘n, on top o’ that, Ah find out that once Ah head back home… Ah… Ah can never return here again. Even though Ah’ve only been here a short while… Ah jus feel like… Ah’m home. Ah hate havin to choose between two halves… of me, but Ah can’t jus abandon everyone Ah know back on Earth. Ma family, ma friends,… ma girl, they’re all part o’ who Ah am… ‘n yet… so are all of you. God, why does this hafta be soo hard?” I stated, placing my head in my hands with a visible mix of frustration and depression.

I then felt something soft on my shoulder. Looking over, I saw that Rainbow had placed her wing on it, reminding me of when I had placed my hand on her shoulder to comfort her when I had first arrived in Equestria.

“I’m not gonna try to say that I know what you’re feeling or even going through right now because I don’t,” Rainbow started. “What I will say is that you’ve made a positive impact on the lives of a ton of ponies here, defending the innocent and standing up against a deadly evil. We’ll never be able to thank you enough or even come close to being able to repay you for what you’ve done and what you’ve done will never be forgotten. Years from now, ponies will be passing down legends about you to future generations. You’ll be in our memories for a really long time. What’s important for you is that you don’t forget about us, no matter how much time passes. As long as both of us remember the other, you’ll forever be a part of us just like we’ll forever be a part of you. Plus you’re already all kinds of Awesome here. Imagine how many other kinds of Awesome you’ll be when you get back home.”

These words brought comfort to me and greatly lessened the sadness and agitation that I had been feeling.

“Thanks, Rainbow. You truly are a loyal friend.”

“Hey. You’re pretty loyal yourself. I’ve got a feeling that if your home world had the Elements Of Harmony, you’d be the human embodiment of the Element Of Loyalty. It’s almost like we’re twins or something.”

“Ma mom was always quick ta point out ma extreme level of loyalty ta others ever since Ah was a little boy… or colt,” I stated with a smile. “Whichever you prefer.”

Rainbow chuckled slightly as we watched the sun set below the horizon.

“It was nice bein able ta talk a bit more personally with ya like this Rainbow.”

“Same here,” she agreed, “but if you ever tell anypony we had this conversation, I’ll deny it.”

“What conversation?” I asked with a mischievous grin on my face which caused her to smile back.

“That’s my twin,” she replied, hugging me with both hooves and wings.

“Of course,” I stated, returning the hug with my own hands and wings. “Twins gotta look out fer each other ‘n you’ve still got a reputation ta keep.”

I then pulled out of the hug before continuing.

“Well, Ah should prob’ly be headin back ta tha castle. Ah’ve got a big day tomorrow. Thanks again, Rainbow… fer ev’rythin.”

“Anytime, bud. See ya tomorrow.”

And with that, the two of us went our separate ways. Although talking with Rainbow had helped a little, the pain of having to leave Equestria permanently was still lingering in the back of my mind, albeit not as painful as it was before. The moon had just risen in the sky by the time I arrived back at the castle. I slowly climbed the stairs to the guest room where I had spent my first night and would also spend my last night in Equestria, all the while knowing that sleep would not come easily.

Entering my room, it was just as I had left it my first night there; the extra blanket and pillow were still lying on the chaise from when Fluttershy had slept there. I smiled as I remembered this before lying down on my bed and staring up at the ceiling. At that moment, the Maroon 5 song Daylight ran through my mind. I could really relate to the lyrics as I was in a situation of not wanting to fall asleep because, the sooner I did that, the sooner it would be morning when I would have to leave. The only real difference was that, instead of leaving a girl, I’d be leaving my newly acquired friends and an entire world behind… forever.

This is going to be a long night.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

Several hours later, I was still lying awake in bed, lost in thought. I don’t believe there has ever been a time that I’ve felt this anxious as my mind was furiously racing. I was soo focused on my thoughts that I almost didn’t notice the door magically open as Twilight entered my room. She probably would’ve thought that I was asleep had I not spoken up.

“Twilight?” I asked.

This seemed to startle her slightly.

“Oh, David, hey,” she replied nervously. “What’re you still doing awake?”

“Couldn’t sleep. What about you? Why’re you in ma room?”

“I was doing some reading and decided to take a break and check on you.”

“Oh? What kinda readin?”

“Oh nothing much. Just that spellbook you found at the Castle Of The Two Sisters. It was really strange though.”

“What was?” I asked, sitting up to allow her to sit next to me on the bed.

She took a seat on the bed next to me while she spoke.

“Well, I was looking through the many different spells in the book, but there was one page about ¾ of the way through the book that was completely blank.”

“Yeah. Ah had noticed that too. Whataya think it means?”

“I don’t know. Maybe some spell that was never meant to be found. I’m still trying to figure it out, but I got bored so I took a break to check up on you.”

“Well thanks fer that,” I replied with a smile.

“You’re welcome,”-she smiled back-“and thank you.”

“Fer what?” I asked, out of curiosity.

“For taking care of everypony else while me and the other princesses were… incapacitated. I knew that you’d do the right thing.”

“How’d ya know that?”

“When I was in that… ‘coma’, as you called it, I could still hear the voices of everypony in my room. I heard Fluttershy introduce you to Rainbow Dash and Spike, I heard the genuine concern in your voice, I even felt it when you checked my pulse and heartbeat to make sure I was still alive. I could tell just from the tone of your voice and the kindness you showed me while I was unconscious that your heart and intentions were pure and noble.”

“Thanks.”

“So why couldn’t you sleep? Scared about tomorrow?”

I paused for a second.

“Ah’m terrified.”

Twilight looked at me with genuine concern on her face before placing her wing on my shoulder.

“I’m sure that it can’t be easy having to leave friends behind forever like this.”

“It’s not jus that. Ah mean, when Ah first arrived here, Ah was afraid of never bein able ta leave this place, but, now that Ah find out that Ah’m a descendant of Equestria,… Ah’m afraid of never bein able ta come back. There’s almost a tragic irony ta it all. Ah’m from two worlds ‘n sayin ‘Yes’ ta one means sayin ‘No’ ta tha other permanently.”

She continued to look at me with concern for several seconds before she slowly started to smile.

“But hey, at least you have some great memories from your time here,” she stated, clearly trying to cheer me up. “The friendships you made, the truth about your ancestry, and how about getting to fly with Rainbow?”

I smiled as I thought about all of these moments.

“Rainbow gave me yer advice fer flyin.”

“Oh? What memory did you focus on?”

“Ah focused on several actually. There was tha memory of when Ah first went ta Old Orchard Beach back home with ma family, extended family from out west ‘n down south, ma sister’s boyfriend, ‘n ma girlfriend, Savannah. It was such an Awesome week with all of ‘em there ‘n it’s still ma favorite vacation spot. Another memory Ah focused on was when Ah was in a Halloween musical at ma local theater ‘n Ah got ta break out in Michael Jackson’s Thriller at tha end.”

I paused for a second as she stared at me with confusion written all over her face. I soon realized her bewilderment and knew how to explain it to her.

“Oh. Halloween is pretty much ma home world’s version of Nightmare Night ‘n Michael Jackson was tha greatest entertainer of all time, known as tha ‘King Of Pop’. He had numerous hits over tha course of his career includin Thriller, one of his most famous songs, ‘n even had five #1 singles off one album, somethin that was unheard of at tha time. He’s been dead fer ‘bout five years now, but, with someone as influential as he was, you can bet that ev’ryone mourned his passing.”

“Wow. He sounds like he must’ve been extremely popular.”

“He was. Ya’d hafta live under a rock back home ta not know about him. Tha musical Ah was in happened two years after his death, tha same year Ah first met Savannah ‘n we first went ta Old Orchard Beach. After one o’ the shows, an elderly man from tha audience came up ta me ‘n said, ‘Michael Jackson still lives in you’. Ah was absolutely speechless. Never before had Ah received a compliment like that. Ah mean, ma performances had been praised before, but this was on a whole nother level. Bein compared ta someone like tha late great Michael Jackson… it was soo surreal ta me.”

“I’ll bet.”

“Ya must’ve felt somethin similar when ya successfully completed Star Swirl’s unfinished spell, right?”

“Well… I guess so. I mean, I don’t typically take too much personal pride in stuff like that, but I was naturally excited that Celestia had chosen me to finish it. Looking back on it… yeah; it was a pretty happy moment for me, being able to complete something that somepony as great as Star Swirl was stumped on. Not to mention seeing how proud my family was at my coronation as princess. Even my big brother, Shining Armor, cried.”

“Hey. As a big brother with a younger sister maself, Ah can certainly relate. Ah’d definitely be proud o’ ma own sister jus like he was proud of you. Ya kinda remind me of her actually.”

“What’s her name?”

“Rebekah.”

“Interesting name.”

“Finally, the last memory Ah focused on was of all tha friends Ah made durin my short time here.”

“Well that’s something nice to hold on to and at least you have Savannah to look forward to when you get back.”

“That’s not all though.”

“What do you mean?” she asked confused.

“Well… the two of us are comin up on our three year anniversary this week ‘n so… Ah was gonna…”

“Yes?”

I then leaned over and whispered in Twilight’s ear. She then gasped as her eyes lit up and a smile shot across her face.

“Really!?!” she exclaimed. “That’s Awesome! Oh I soo wish I could be there when it happens. I’m sure Rarity would want to see it also, being the hopeless romantic she is. That’s definitely something huge to look forward to when you get back home. Good luck with that.”

“Thanks.”

“Well, I’m gonna get back to trying to figure out that blank page,” she stated, getting up. “You just try to get some sleep O.K.?” she spoke the last sentence in an almost motherly tone.

“K.” I smiled. “It was nice talkin with ya, Twi.”

“You too David,” she smiled back. “See you in the morning.”

And with that, she turned and left my room, closing the door behind her. Lying back down in bed, I turned to face the balcony window, staring at the billions of stars twinkling in the night sky like diamonds on a velvet, sapphire tapestry. As I stared, I suddenly saw a shooting star streak across the sky, leaving its blazing trail behind.

Make a wish, I thought to myself.

What would I wish for anyways? I don’t see many shooting stars back home so I would really have to make this wish count; I might not get the chance to do this again. After thinking to myself for a good long while, I finally decided what my wish would be. Closing my eyes, I thought hard about my wish.

Please… if there’s a way for me to return here after I’ve gone back home… help me to find it before it’s too late.

Feeling a bit more at ease, I slipped off into calm and restful sleep, prepared for whatever I would face the next morning.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

Several hours later, I was woken up by blinding sunlight pouring through the balcony onto my face.

Dammit, Celestia, I thought to myself. Are you trying to give me glaucoma?

I then realized the absurdity of that thought as I knew glaucoma wasn’t caused by blinding light. Groggily, I turned my face away from the sun’s glare to put on my glasses and clothes. No sooner had I put them on when I heard a knock at the door. Getting up, I walked over to the door and opened it. Standing before me was the last pony I expected to see: an orange Pegasus stallion with a bright blue mane. Judging by the armor he was wearing, he was part of the royal guard, but clearly not from Canterlot.

“Hello, Prince David,” he finally spoke. “I’m Lieutenant Flash Sentry of the northern Crystal Empire. Princess Cadence sent me here to serve as your personal escort.”

“Wait,” I started, “Princess Cadence is here?”

“Yes. She’s waiting with Princesses Celestia and Luna in the Town Square and sent me here to escort you there.”

“Thanks, but Ah really don’t need an escort.”

“She knows, but she still insists upon it as a way of showing gratitude towards you for saving us and I personally consider it a great honor to see you on your way.”

I smiled at his noble attitude; there was no way that I could refuse.

“Alright then. Let’s get goin.”

And so we headed downstairs and out of the castle. Not much was spoken between us on the way to the Town Square. I wasn’t even sure what I would talk with him about; the two of us hardly even knew each other. I had only seen little bits of both him and his human alternate universe counterpart in the Equestria Girls movie and maybe one or two cameo appearances in Season 4, but not enough for me to really feel any sort of connection with him. All I did know was that he just seemed like a generally nice guy and that was it. As for him knowing about me… pfft, fuck, he doesn’t know anything about me. I had only been here for a few days and in those few days, he had been up north in the Crystal Empire, probably stressing out over the fact that the princess he’d sworn to protect was in a coma. So we continued on in silence for the next several minutes.

Finally, we arrived at the Town Square and it was packed with ponies from all over Ponyville.

“Make way for his highness, Prince David!” Flash called out.

The massive crowd then parted, clearing a path for me and Flash to walk through, and knelt in reverence as I passed by. Although I’m quite used to getting a lot of attention from my past theater experience, something about all of this focus on me made me feel both unsettled and uncomfortable as I slowly made my way to where Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and a white unicorn with a tri-colored navy mane that could’ve only been Prince Shining Armor stood.

“Princess Cadence,” I greeted with a kneel before rising back to my feet. “What’re you doin here?”

“Celestia sent word to me yesterday about you so I got on the first train to Ponyville to see you on your way,” Cadence spoke. “I just arrived late last night.”

“Well Ah’m glad that ya could be here,” I replied with a smile, “’n Ah ‘preciated tha escort.”

“You’re welcome,” she answered back warmly.

“We all owe you a great debt of gratitude,” Shining Armor spoke up. “Personally, I’m grateful that you were able to break the curse that my wife and the others were under. Not to mention all you did for Twily while she was under the curse by taking action and looking after everypony here. As one prince to another, thank you.”

I slowly smiled back at him.

“Yer welcome,” I replied, my smile slowly disappearing as a thought crossed my mind. “Speaking o’ which, where is Twilight?”

“I’m not sure.” Celestia admitted. “She said last night that she would be here, but I’ve not heard word from her since.”

“Can we at least wait fer her?”

“Unfortunately, we cannot,” she replied, turning to Luna. “Are you ready, sister?”

Luna nodded as the two of them focused hard on their magic, charging it up and letting its energy flow through their horns before the golden and cerulean beams shot up into the sky. As they connected, a powerful lightning bolt snaked down and struck the ground in a blinding flash. Everypony covered their eyes until the brightness had subsided and, where the light had once been, there stood my bedroom door, looking exactly the same as it always had except animated.

For several seconds, I just stood there as I started to grasp the gravity of the situation. I was really about to do this; this was the point of no return. In that moment, I thought about the few friends that I had back home. In the past, I had grown up with lots of friends from many different places: churches, a public speaking club, theater, college just to name a few. But over the years, as we got older, we also became more distant from each other until I had only a few friends remaining. Being in Equestria had given me more friends in the past few days than I had in the past few months back home. Now, these friends would be gone permanently, separated by two entirely different dimensions forever. I turned around to see AJ, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow, and Spike standing there with solemn looks on their faces. Finally, Rarity approached me, using her magic to pull something out of her bag.

“I made you this… just as a little something to remember us by once you get back home,” she stated, using her magic to give me a necklace and pendant.

Taking the necklace in my hand and admiring it, it was quite beautiful. At the end of a gold chain, there was a pendant consisting of three ovals, all of them joined in the center by one point each. Inside each oval was a sizable gemstone carved to fit the oval it rested in. One oval contained an Emerald, another held a Sapphire, and the last one housed a Ruby. Green, Blue, and Red; my three favorite colors.

“Spike gave me the gemstones to use in the pendant,” Rarity explained.

“This is beautiful, Rare,” I stated, hugging her before turning to hug Spike, “’n thanks Spike fer contributin yer own gems ta make this. That was very generous of both o’ ya. But how’d y’all know that green, blue, ‘n red were ma favorite colors?”

“Eheheh. Let’s just say a little birdy told us,” Spike chuckled.

As soon as he said that, I knew who it was. There was only one mare that I had told about that. Turning past them, I looked directly at Fluttershy, who was trying, but failing, to avoid eye contact.

“You told them?”

She stood there silently for a few seconds before she meekly smiled and nodded. A smile crept across my face as I made my way over to her.

“That was really sweet n thoughtful of ya, Flutters,” I replied, hugging her tightly. “That’s one o’ tha kindest things anypony has ever done fer me. Thank ya for that.”

“You’re welcome,” she answered back softly before pulling out of the hug.

I then placed the necklace around my neck as I looked at all of them.

“This is one o’ tha greatest gifts anyone could ever ask for,” I stated, starting to get choked up. “Ah’ll… Ah’ll never forget y’all. Jus don’t forget about me, O.K.?”

They all nodded as they came forward to give me one final hug. We hugged each other in silence until Pinkie spoke up.

“I never got to throw you a ‘You saved Equestria from an evil hag and found out you were a pony prince’ party,” she spoke sorrowfully.

I smiled a bit as I heard this. Pinkie really did do parties for just about anything.

“You can still throw it, Pinkie,” I replied. “Don’t let tha fact that Ah’m not here anymore keep any of ya guys from living ‘n enjoyin yerselves. This is not meant ta be a time of sadness but of rejoicing. Can ya do that for me?”

Pinkie then offered a sad smile as she nodded. With that, I pulled out of the hug and faced everypony gathered there. With a firm look on my face, I offered a salute to all of them which they returned. Turning around, I bowed before Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Shining Armor and they bowed back.

“Give my regards to Twilight,” I told them.

“You have our word,” Luna replied.

This was it: The moment that I had both anticipated and dreaded in equal measure as I slowly approached the door that would lead me home. Seconds seemed to stretch into an eternity. Tears streamed down my face as I finally reached the door. Holding out my right hand slowly, I went to grasp the doorknob as my hand trembled uncontrollably.

“WAIT!!!!” a voice cried out from a distance. “STOP!!!!”

I knew whose voice that was.

Twilight?

---

Author's Note:  Chapter originally published November 10th, 2014 on fimfiction.net.  If you enjoy this story and have a FIMFiction account, please consider supporting the original release on https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many.  "Thumbs up" would help out a lot and, if you're without a FIMFiction account, don't worry.  You can still look forward to chapters being released here every Friday.  Same Pony Time.  Same Pony Channel.  Any support at all would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks and I'll see you guys next week at this story's conclusion.  Happy Hearth's Warming.

[FlutterGuy999 2,228]

Chapter VII:  The Return And A (Pinkie) Promise

 

Upon hearing Twilight’s voice ringing out, everypony looked behind with gaping mouths, save the princesses Celestia and Luna, as her dark shape came flying towards us at full speed. I quickly realized she was coming in too hot as all the others did. Twilight tried to slow down, but nothing could stop her from colliding with Flash. The two of them tumbled over each other until they finally stopped with Flash on top of her. He chuckled awkwardly at their current position.

“You know, we’ve really gotta stop bumping into each other like this, Princess,” he stated, getting off of Twilight and helping her to her hooves.

"Oh. It's just Twilight thanks," Twilight blushed as she accepted his help.

I smiled myself at the sight of this, but I noticed that Shining Armor had a different look on his face; one that I was all too familiar with. It wasn’t an outright angry face, but was more of the stern, overprotective big brother look that seemed to say, “I’m her older brother so don’t try any funny business with her.” No pony else seemed to notice this so I just let it go. Twilight then shook herself off and approached me.

“Twi,” I greeted, “Ah was almost afraid ya wouldn’t make it.”

“Well it’s a good thing I did,” she replied. “I’ve found something very important.”

“What is it?”

“Remember that blank page in the spellbook?” Twilight asked, using her magic to pull the book from her travel bag.

“Yeah. What about it?”

“Well I was finally able to reveal what was on it. It’s a trans-dimensional travel spell; one that, if my calculations are correct, dates back to well before Star Swirl the Bearded first attempted such a spell.”

Celestia and Luna were visibly curious by this point.

“Twilight,” Celestia started, “did the page say who created this spell?”

“Yes. The name listed was somepony by the name of Laurel.”

At that moment, I saw something I would never forget: Celestia and Luna had looks of visible shock written all over their faces. I was nervous to speak up at first, but finally got up the courage to open my mouth.

“Umm… Princesses? Is… everythin O.K.?” I asked. “Who’s this Laurel? Did… did you two know her?”

There was almost a full minute of total silence. Finally, Luna spoke up.

“Empress Laurel… was our mother,” the night princess uttered, “and Star Swirl's teacher. She must’ve hidden this spell away thinking it too powerful for anypony to use.”

“But now it’s been found,” Twilight spoke up, “and, with it, a way for David to return to our world, should he so choose.”

“Indeed,” Celestia began. “Of course, I would need the book returned to me for the safety of others who might try to follow.”

“Ah understand,” I bowed to her before turning to Twilight. “So, Twi, how does this work?”

“Well I would need a personal item of yours to place the spell on,” she answered.

“How bout this?” I replied, showing her my new necklace.

“Perfect,” she stated, planting her hooves and lowering her horn.

I just stood there perfectly still as Twi’s magic charged up, snaking up the spiral of her horn before finally bursting forward and striking the necklace, enveloping it in a bright rainbow of colors. As the magic came over my necklace, I could feel a tingling numb sensation running through me. After a minute of the rainbow miasma covering my necklace, the aura vanished.

“What now?” I asked.

“Flip the pendant over.”

I took the pendant in my hand and flipped it over. On all three ovals, a single line was engraved into each of them. I quietly read all three of the lines to myself.

Equestrian Son/The victory won/Return to thy home.

“Once you get back to where you’re from, you can return to Equestria at any time just by reciting that incantation,” Twilight explained.

My heart was overjoyed at the fact that this wasn’t a permanent “goodbye”, but instead, simply “goodbye til next time”. I then ran up to Twilight and hugged her with both hands and wings.

“Ya have no idea what this means ta me,” I stated, gratefully. “Thanks, Twi.”

“No problem,” she smiled back.

“You know what this means?” Pinkie asked.

“What Pinkie?” I replied.

“I’ll be able to throw you your ‘You saved Equestria from an evil hag and found out you were a pony prince’ party the next time you come back.”

“Ah look forward to it,” I smiled at her.

“Pinkie Promise you’ll come back soon.”

“Cross ma heart, hope ta fly, stick a cupcake in ma eye,” I recited while going through the motions, including flapping my wings for the “hope ta fly” part.

“Okey Dokey Lokey. Now come here, Davey,” Pinkie stated with open hooves.

I smiled as I went up to hug her, before motioning for the rest of the Mane Six to join in for one final group hug before I would return home. This group hug, however, was much happier as we now knew that I would return in the near future. Still, there was no shortage of parting words from any of them.

"Ya remember that advice Ah gave ya bout yer sister, K?" Applejack reminded me.

"Sure thing, AJ," I answered.

"Equestria won't be the same without you," Rainbow Dash stated.

"Looks like yer gonna hafta work hard ta keep things Awesome round here, huh, twin?"

"Haha. No problem with that," she laughed.

I smiled back before Fluttershy spoke up.

"You take care of Savannah," she started, "and don't forget to bring her back so we can meet her."

"No need ta worry bout that."

"Your eventual return here will be very highly anticipated," Rarity chimed in, "not to mention you introducing Savannah to all of us."

I pulled out of the hug as I looked at them with a smile.

"Ah'm sure that y'all'll like her. 'N who knows. Maybe there'll be somethin' special that'll happen by tha time she comes back with me," I told her as I turned to wink at Twilight.

Twilight winked back at me with a smile before I faced Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Shining Armor to bow a final time. After bowing, I remembered the shooting star from the previous night as I turned to Luna.

"Thanks, Luna," I started, "fer last night."

Luna nodded and smiled understandably.

“Take care of yourself, man,” Shining Armor stated.

“Ah will,” I replied.

“When you do return to Equestria, if there’s ever a favor you need, do not hesitate to ask,” Celestia spoke.

“Thanks. Ah’ll remember that.”

Looking around, someone was missing.

"Hey. Has anypony seen Spike?"

"Right here," a boyish voice spoke up as I felt something tug the bottom of my short pant leg.

Looking down, Spike was tugging the leg of my shorts with his right claw.

"There ya are, lil bro," I stated, reaching down to pick him up. "Ya didn't think Ah'd leave you without a goodbye, did ya?"

"Nah. I was sure you'd remember me," Spike replied.

"Thanks again fer contributin tha gems fer tha necklace. It really does look beautiful."

"No problem. It's the least I could do."

"Whenever Ah see ma lil brothers, Ah''ll always remember you," I spoke up as I set him back down on the ground.

"And I won't forget about you either," the baby dragon answered.

With my last goodbyes made, I turned to face the door, walking towards it with a relieved feeling, as if a Herculean weight had just been taken off of me. Grabbing the doorknob, I turned back to the others, a smile upon my face and theirs. I turned the doorknob and opened it to reveal blackness. No sooner had I opened it then I felt like I was being sucked into a vortex as I was pulled towards the infinite blackness and the door closed behind me. Upon closing, the door vanished in a blinding flash of lightning. After this, Twilight approached Celestia with the spellbook.

“Here you go,” Twilight stated as she handed the book off to her former teacher.

“Thank you, Twilight,” Celestia replied, gratefully accepting the book.

“Now I had been meaning to ask you about those other books you were going to send me.”

Celestia simply smiled back before answering.

“They’ll be delivered to your castle within the month.”

"Pardon me, Twilight," Rarity started as she approached her royal friend, "but what did Prince David mean when he mentioned 'something special' happening?"

"I'm sure that whatever it is, it'll be beautiful," Twilight answered back, smiling as she looked back at where the door once stood.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

After being sucked through the portal, I began falling head over heels through blackness. Soon, I remembered my wings and tried to use them to slow my descent. This proved to be useless as my wings were ripped painfully from my back. I fell for what seemed like an eternity until I started to hear music playing. I couldn’t make out what it was, but it kept getting louder and louder the farther I fell. After a few seconds, I saw something fast approaching me. As I got closer, I saw that it was me, lying in bed asleep. Before I could react, I landed on myself.

 

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

 

I snapped wide awake, gasping for breath. The music that I had heard as I was falling I could now make out as the song As Long As You Love Me by The Backstreet Boys playing on my alarm clock/radio/CD player. I let the song play all the way through to the end like I always do before turning it off and putting my clothes and glasses on.

“What a weird dream Ah had,” I stated rubbing my forehead.

Suddenly, I realized something.

Oh pony feathers. It was just a dream. None of it was real, I thought, frustrated and disappointed. I guess I won't be able to return to Equestria after all.

I then grabbed my phone off of the charger, not bothering to check if it was fully charged, before exiting my room. On the way downstairs, I ran into my sister.

“Good mornin’, Rebekah,” I greeted.

“Oh. Good morning,” she replied.

“Ya gettin ready fer work?”

“Yeah. Imma stop off at Dunkin’ Donuts to get some coffee on the way.”

“K.”

As she turned to walk away, something rang in my head.

…tell her how ya feel when ya get back ta where yer from. Let her know how important she is ta ya as a sister.

Those words from Applejack came back to me clear as day. Even if it had just been a dream, I still owed my sister that. I had to tell her how I felt about her before it was too late.

“Rebekah, wait,” I stated.

“Yes, David?” she asked, pausing to turn around. “What is it?”

I stopped for a second as I tried to put the right words I wanted to say together.

“Ah know… that yer gonna be movin in a few short months… ‘n that it’ll be a while before Ah ever see ya again… but… Ah couldn’t let ya go without tellin ya what ya mean ta me. You were one o’ tha closest friends Ah had growin up… ‘n Ah miss how close we used to be… before we grew up... before we got jobs... before our lives got all hectic. Ah… Ah jus hope that we can spend some time together before ya leave… because Ah love ya sis.”

After several seconds of just standing there, Rebekah finally walked up to me, hugging me as I returned the hug.

“I love you too, bro,” she replied, “even if you can be a pain in the ass sometimes.”

“Well ya have yer moments too,” I answered with a chuckle.

She laughed a little too before continuing.

“Anyways, I gotta get ready for work and your girlfriend is gonna be here any minute,” she stated pulling out of the hug.

“See ya when Ah get back, sis,” I replied as I went to get some breakfast.

After downing a blueberry muffin and a mug of black coffee, I went to grab my bags. After I had gathered them at the front door, the doorbell rang. Answering the door, there stood a familiar, 18 year-old blonde with soft blue eyes.

“Savannah,” I greeted, with relief evident in my voice as I ran to embrace her.

"Hey Da-" she was interrupted as I hugged her tightly. "-Oh. O.K. then. It's nice to see you too."

I hugged her for almost ten seconds before pulling away.

“Oh, Savannah, aren’t you a sight fer sore eyes. Let me jus get a good look at ya.”

“Is everything O.K. David? I mean you’re acting like you haven’t seen me in days.”

“Yeah. Ah’m fine. It's jus... ya wouldn’t believe tha dream Ah had last night. It all felt soo real. Almost as if Ah was away from ya fer days.”

“Well maybe you can tell me all about it when we get to Old Orchard Beach."

"Alright then."

"By the way, loving the Southern accent.”

“Thanks,” I blushed.

“You should talk that way more often. I don’t get to hear it much from you.”

She then looked down at my neck area.

“What’s that?” she asked, reaching for my neck.

She then pulled on a chain around my neck until a familiar looking pendant with an Emerald, Sapphire, and Ruby emerged from under my shirt.

“This is beautiful. Where did you get it?”

I was still in shock that I hadn’t noticed the necklace. Finally, I replied with a smile.

“Ah got it as a souvenir from a distant place.”

“Well it looks nice on you,” she smiled back. “C’mon. Let’s get going.”

“K.,” I answered, putting my right hand down where my pants pocket was only to feel it was empty. “Wait one sec. Ah jus need ta grab one thing quickly.”

“Alright.”

On my way up to my room, I ran into one of my brothers.

"Hey, bro," he greeted.

"Hey, Spi- uh... Stephen," I replied, somewhat awkwardly.

"So whachu up to?"

"Jus grabbin somethin quick before me 'n Savannah head out. Are ya all set ta care fer ma gerbil over tha weekend?"

"Sure thing, brosephasaurus."

I laughed at this.

"Wow bro. You are soo white."

"Well guess what? So are you," he replied, snarkily.

"Hey," I laughed. "Ah was never sayin Ah wasn't."

"Anyways, you have fun with Savannah."

"Ah will."

At that moment, Stephen noticed my necklace.

"BTDubs, nice necklace bro."

"Thanks," I smiled back.

Passing him to enter my room, I looked around frantically on my nightstand until I found what I was looking for: a small, velvet box that fit perfectly in my palm. Pocketing the box, I paused for a minute to look at my pendant. Flipping it over, there was an engraving on the back.

Equestrian Son/The victory won/Return to thy home

I then checked my phone only to discover that the battery was close to dead. After reading the engraving and seeing the status of my phone, I was completely floored as one thought dawned on me.

All this was real. It wasn’t just a dream.

Once the shock had worn off, I returned downstairs with an enormous smile on my face. Savannah was quick to notice this.

“Is everything alright?”

“Everythin’s perfect,” I replied, beaming.

“O.K. Let’s go then.”

I picked up my bags and followed Savannah out to her car where I loaded them into the backseat. Once everything was in place, we got in, set the GPS coordinates, and pulled out of the driveway. Turning to look in my passenger side mirror, I saw the four princesses, Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Twilight, smiling back at me. They nodded to me with approval and I nodded back before they vanished from the glass. As me and Savannah smiled at each other, heading off into the unknown future together, one thing was certain: I would return to my homeland eventually. Equestria was destined to face many more dangers in the near future and I would be ready for them. Not only was I now a prince of the land, but I was also a defender of the helpless, a crutch for the weak, a Guardian of Equestria.

The End... or is it?

---

Author's Note:  Chapter originally published December 24th, 2014 on fimfiction.net.  If you enjoyed reading this story at least half as much as I enjoyed writing it and you have a FIMFiction account, please consider supporting the original release on https://www.fimfiction.net/story/218728/the-needs-of-the-many.  "Thumbs up" would help out a lot, but any support at all would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks for taking the time to read this story and I'll see you guys in the near future with the next entry in the "Guardian Of Equestria" saga, Host Of Souls.