Chronicles of The Edge: Equestria on Edge by DW Bloodfin

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Edge

Chapter 2: Impact

Chapter 3: Dead on Arrival?

Chapter 4: A Drake's Honor

Chapter 5: A Midnight Revelation

Chapter 1: The Edge

It was a nice day in Equestria, it usually was this late in the spring. A gentle, unusually chilly, breeze blew in from somewhere near Canterlot, everypony could feel it from Manehatten to Ponyville. It had been like that for a few weeks now but nopony seemed to mind, especially not in Ponyville, the cold wasn't bothering the Apple's trees and the Cake's always had their oven running. Sure everypony felt it, but they were all just too busy to stop and think about it. However one day they will, some in anger, and some in joy.

Meanwhile Princess Celestia was also busy, but she had a very different agenda. While everypony else was going about their normal schedule the princess was preparing. Nopony but her knew what was about to happen, not even Princess Luna, yet she didn't tell a soul. Celestia still vividly remembered the last time all of this happened, and although nopony knew, she even carried a scar from it under her dress. But no matter how much she remembered, she still didn't know why it happened, or where it came from. That's why she was preparing, so she could find out why it happened and maybe, just maybe, find a way stop it from happening ever again.

Time was running out, even in the middle of the day all the light began to fade, soon it was pitch black and Celestia knew it was time, she looked around quickly, taking in everything that stood out in the darkness. she was about to give up when she saw it in the distance, a white light high above the arctic region. It almost looked like the black film over everything was being torn apart by it. Then some thing fell through, and as quickly as everything happened the hole closed, and the light returned. Celestia knew where it was, but the arctic was too far from Canterlot to go herself, she'd have to send somepony else, and who better than her favorite student Twilight Sparkle, joined by her Ponyville friends of course.

She immediately grabbed her quill and parchment and began to write. This was important, and she couldn't waste any valuable time.

Chapter 2: Impact

It happened so fast that Bo didn't really notice anything, just a blinding white light, to be honest it felt kind of warm and comforting. Then he felt like he was falling, fast. A gust of cold air hit him in the face disorienting him further, he struggled to recover, to learn which way was up and which way was down. His mind was racing, he had to speak his thoughts or they'd get lost in the mayhem. He focused, finally one came to him.

"Wings," the words sounded so foreign at first. "Wings! I have wings!" They came out clearly now, but Bo was still gaining speed as his still limp body plummeted to the ground.

The realization that he could use his wings to survive came as he realized the cold wind was rushing up against his back. He knew it was as simple as just using his Lohikäärme Siivet, his wing rune, but his mind was still racing making it hard to focus, even Lohikäärme Siivet was too difficult of a rune to cast. He knew exactly what was about to happen, and he didn't like it one bit. He focused one last time and tried to summon his only hope for survival. It was no use, even if he could cast the rune he was too close to the ground to slow down enough. Bo relaxed, he tryed to take in as much as he could, just in case he didn't die. He could see a couple of clouds in the sky, off to the side he saw a range of mountains, he strained to look over his shoulder at the ground where he saw an expanse of nothing but white. He told himself it was just his vision still missing but deep down he knew what it actually was, he knew it was nothing but snow and ice. While snow was the second best place to crash-land, Bo was still a Drake, the human half would have survived the cold, but his dragon half would quickly freeze to death, and unfortunately that was the half that mattered. He stopped thinking about it, he looked straight up at the sky, closed his eyes, and waited. The ground became closer every secon, and he knew it, the suspense grew creating an entirely new sensation. Then the impact happened.

In Ponyville everypony was shocked, most had never seen everything black out like that. Rainbow Dash flew a little higher to look for whatever dropped through the hole, Fluttershy stopped feeding her animals to stare at the sky, even Rarity put down her needle and thread to lean out the window, that's what everypony did, stop and stare. a few words spread through the crowd breaking the silence, mostly just "what just happened," or "did you see that thing?" Nopony was certain what happened, even Twilight had no idea what was going on, she just stared out the library window while Spike cleaned up the pile of books he had stacked in his arms just moments before. Twilight was completely occupied trying to figure out what occurred, it wasn't until Spike belched revealing a letter from Celestia that anypony tried to distract her from her thinking.

"Twilight, hey Twilight look! Princess Celestia sent you a letter."

"What, really?! What's it say?"

"I'm not sure, it's not written as neatly as usual, it almost looks like she was in a rush."

"A rush?" Twilight was shocked, she knew the princess would be busy after what had happened, but why would she write a letter that couldn't be read? "Give it here, I'll try."

- Dear Twilight Sparkle -

An urgent emergency has fallen into our land. As you know I would investigate this myself but the situation is simply too far from Canterlot for me do so. I cannot disclose all the information at this time, I will need you and your friends to visit me in Canterlot immediately, before our situation gets worse.

Hurry, we may be running out of time.

-Princess Celestia-

"Well that doesn't answer anything, I wonder why Princess Celestia was so cryptic in her letter, I suppose she'll tell us everything when we get to Canterlot. Spike I need you to get some supplies together while I go get everypony else."

"Sure, I guess I can do that, but where are we going?" The young dragon was curious, he couldn't read the letter himself so he had truly no clue.

"Princess Celestia wants to see us, I don't know why but it sounds important."

"Well why didn't you say something sooner," Spike was really hurrying now, it had been a long time since he had been to Canterlot, "well don't wait for me hurry up, we need to get there quick."

Twilight had never seen Spike in such a rush, she wondered if maybe he knew something she didn't, one thing she did get from the letter is that they were in the middle of a race against time, but how would they know who was winning?

Dark.

Cold.

Abandoned.

"If...if I...could just...move my...dammit! I can't even move my damn arm. If don't start to heal soon, I just might freeze to death.

Chapter 3: Dead on Arrival?

It didn't take long to get to Canterlot, everypony was curious and wanted answers. There wasn't any time wasted horsing around, everypony got off the train and went straight to the castle, Rainbow Dash even tried to make a race out of it. When they arrived everypony was shocked to see the number of guards, it was only then that they realized the kind of situation it really was. After a little chat with Shining Armor and an escort they found themselves in the presence of Princess Celestia.

"Twilight, it is good to see you, especially under these dire circumstances."

"What's going on, what is so serious that you need all of these guards?" this was from Twilight, but it spoke the words on everypony's mind.

"I suppose you do deserve an explanation about what's going on and why I need your help. Surely all of you noticed the blackout earlier today."

Everypony just nodded, there was no denying it, they knew it was related to the reason they were in Canterlot right now.

"What happened today was an event known as 'The Edge,' what happened is something from another world forced it's way into our world. What happens is when a being tries to force themselves through it causes small ripples in the world they're trying to get into, that's the reason for the winds the last few weeks, that is The Edge, when the being is successful the receiving world is pushed over The Edge causing a blackout until they arrive safely.

"How is that possible," Twilight just couldn't stay quiet any longer, "I thought The Edge was just a myth."

"But did you not think the same about the Sonic Rainboom? I assure you The Edge is very real, and this isn't the first time we've been pushed over it."

Everypony was stunned, they had never even heard of The Edge, and now some strange creature was loose in Equestria because of it. The day was getting stranger and stranger. Then Fluttershy spoke up.

"So, um, what happened the last time? If you can tell us." Her voice was demanding, yet soft and kind, all at the same time, but still her question hung in the air, almost as if Celestia didn't want to answer it.

"Last time," the princess began her story, she sighed, even after all these years it was still hard for her to think back to that day, "last time, nopony knew about The Edge. I was still very young, not even as old as you were when we met Twilight." Tears began to form in her eyes, it was very depressing to think about. "He called himself Drake Lord David, and by the time he reached Canterlot everypony was just realizing what was happening. Everywhere he went he slaughtered the stallions and foals, then he raped the mares before burning them alive." Celestia couldn't hold back the tears anymore, she was at the one part of the story she hated the most, and the tears just poured down her face, making it harder for her to finish the story. "My father tried to save me and my mother, he told us to hide, that he would stop him. I had to watch as that monster shoved it's blood soaked claws into my father's throat, as it reached farther in to rip out his heart for some kind of sick and twisted meal. I remember everything, his razor sharp teeth, that horrible grin he wore on his face, even now I still have night terrors about that moment. Then he walked closer, and my mother knew what she had to do to protect me, she...she..." Celestia couldn't handle it anymore, the memories were too painful for her to finish the story, but she took some time to focus and then she tried to finish, "she jumped out trying to look menacing, but just like everypony else all he did was rape her, right in front of me. It's like he was toying with me, and it worked, I was horrified by seeing my mother raped and burned right in front of me."

Everypony just stood there, horrified, they had never seen Celestia crying tears of joy, and here she was breaking down in front of them. Twilight couldn't stand to see her like this, she had to think of something to take her mind off of it.

"So how did they stop him?" It was perfect, not bringing up Celestia's traumatizing experience but rather asking to skip to the end where they stopped the Drake Lord.

"Yeah, what happened next?" Pinkie Pie's question was a little more insensitive but it got Celestia to finish the story.

"I decided I couldn't hide anymore, after seeing both of my parents abused and slaughtered like that I was angry, I had to stop him. I jumped out and spread my wings to make myself look bigger, then I focused all the magic I could, I tried to concentrate it into a weapon, something I could kill him with, but it was no good, my magic wasn't strong enough. I'll never forget what happened next, he walked up to me and lifted me off the ground by my horn, he punched me several times before he said anything. Then when he finally spoke it was so harsh the words still ring in my ears. He said 'you've got guts kid, and I'm half tempted to show you what they look like. To think worthless little foal like you could beat me was just stupid. Lucky for you it's not worth my time to kill you." Then he took one of his claws and ran it deep into my side." She used her magic to pull back her dress showing them all the scar it left. "Then he slammed me into the ground and said one last thing, 'find me when you can prove me wrong.' Then he vanished in blinding white light. Nopony ever stopped him, and nopony has seen him since." The tears were gone now, replaced by a look of hate, and vengeance.

"Do you think it's him that fell through?" Twilight wanted to know, she knew what she was going to have to do and she wanted to know how hard it was going to be.

"No, I know it isn't, this one might not even be dangerous, but I still need to know what it is and where it came from."

Twilight tried to make herself understand and focus, it was hard, Celestia had just told them about the most traumatic thing any pony could experience. "So where are we going."

"This one dropped over the arctic, I can transport you close to where it landed, but you'll have to find it on your own. When you do I need you to bring it back here, and I know this might be dangerous so if there is no other option, kill it.

Kill it, the words sounded so strange coming from the princess.

"If it isn't dangerous dangerous why do you want it so badly?" This time Rainbow Dash was asking the question.

"Because if it isn't here to kill us then why is it here?"

"Oh, I guess I hadn't thought of that."

"Well now isn't the time for thinking anyway. Get in a circle and everypony touch hooves in the middle, it's the only way to make sure you all drop at the same place."

The six ponies did as she said, then she closed her eyes and focused. She imagined in her mind the place where it had dropped, the power of her magic surged up her horn, the ponies began to glow brightly, then they vanished.

It was cold, and Bo was weak from lying in the snow and ice for so long. He knew Death was just around the corner and even urged him to hurry up and end his suffering. Then he felt a sensation, a familiar feeling he loved so much, he could feel magic. He focused, he knew if his mind was clear he could tell how close someone was before calling for help. He waited and listened, he heard steps in the snow, twelve pairs, but he could only distinguish six voices, it didn't matter, help was here. It took all of his strength to call out to whoever it was, but eventually he managed, it was a weak pathetic attempt, but he managed to moan out a sentence, "help, someone please help."

Twilight heard him, but she couldn't figure out where he was. "Where are you?" She had a feeling that whatever pony needed help must know where the creature went.

I'm...in the...crater." The effort of trying to speak was all he had left, he passed out, he would freeze now for sure.

"Okay hold on, we're coming to help!"

Everypony raced to help, Rainbow Dash was the first one there, and she just stared.

"It's...it's a human." She was astonished, never before had she seen a human, even if his body was lying limply in the crater she still felt something deep in her stomach when she saw him. She focused, knowing he was about to freeze to death, so she rushed in to help before the others even arrived.

By the time she pulled Bo from the crater everypony else was gathering around. They knew he was freezing, Rarity wrapped her scarf around his neck as Twilight cast a warmth spell to warm him up. It wasn't long at all before they saw an improvement in Bo's condition, after a few minutes his eyes fluttered open as if was just taking a quick nap.

"Are you okay?" Fluttershy asked timidly, she felt the same way Rainbow Dash did when she saw him.

"Uhn, Light." A single word served as his response, even if it didn't make sense.

"Is it too dark? Ah can start ya a fire." This one was Applejack, trying to help with warming the man up.

"No! A light to fix and heal my wounds, I cast this now from sacred runes. Paranemista Valo!"

At the sound of these words Bo was bathed in a soft healing yellow light. When the light faded he stood up, he was short for a Drake, but for a human he pretty tall standing at seven-foot-three, he had shoulder length brown hair and beautiful eyes which seemed to change color based on what he was doing. He leaned forward and began to speak.

"Thank you for saving me, I am Beauregard, but you may call me Bo, unless you desire to be dismembered." He tried to sound tough but he honestly could care less about fighting, he prefered to talk through his problems.

"It's nice to meet you Bo, I'm Twilight Sparkle, that's Rainbow Dash, she pulled you from the crater, it's Rarity's scarf you're wearing, Fluttershy was the first one to talk to you, Applejack over there offered to build you a fire, and that's Pinkie Pie jumping and dancing because you're okay." She made sure to point at everypony as she said their name.

"A pleasure to meet all of you, but is there perhaps someplace warmer we could go? This cold doesn't exactly agree with my dragon blood."

"Of course, just follow us."

Bo did as she said and the seven of them walked to the spot where they had left Spike guarding the magic gateway to the castle. This appeared to have been strange and random to everypony involve, but time unravels even the hardest of knots.

Chapter 4: A Drake's Honor

Celestia's castle truly impressed Bo, the elegant arched hallways and attention to detail forced him to stare in awe and wonder how something so impressive could be built by anyone that didn't have hands. The walk towards the throne room was silent, there wasn't anyone there with even the slightest clue about what to expect. The silence actually began to bother Bo, it felt like everyone was afraid of him, he knew he didn't belong but he just wanted someone to say it and show they weren't afraid. The walk continued, the hallway seemed more and more endless with each second until Bo couldn't take it any more, he wanted to know what everyone was thinking. Bo cleared his mind with the exception of one thought to himself, 'focus, focus and their thoughts will be yours. Ajatustenlukija.' He remained silent the whole time, the effects of the Psyykkinen Maaginen type rune caused his eyes to become jet black. Soon every thought in the long hallway flooded into his mind, a little more focus and he'd be able to read individual minds.

They passed a guard in shining steel armor, 'that's him? I could take him on, probably.' Another walks by, this one in the most immaculate and elegantly designed gold armor, 'hmph, a lot of big talk for it to just be a human. Sure you don't see one, well ever, but it's nothing my boys can't handle.' Bo continued his walk, reading a few thoughts along the way, most of them were similar to the first, some were more fearful, and some more hateful.

Finally the end was in sight, Princess Luna was by the door and Bo decided to give it a shot. She was a little harder to read but even her magic couldn't keep Bo out of her thoughts, no that wasn't right, perhaps she let him in. Luna saw something special in Bo, something nopony else had seen yet, she saw valor, love, even a desire to protect someone he loved from the humans. Luna couldn't tell who but she knew she could trust Bo, she controlled her thoughts and let Bo hear what she wanted him to hear. 'So this is what has Celestia pacing back and forth. I guess he looks dangerous, like a kitten. He does look strong though, and kind of good looking if I do say so. He can't be as bad as Celestia thinks, not with a heart like that. Wait, is he staring...AT ME!?' Bo killed his connection, he hadn't realized how long he was reading Luna's mind. He looked around, trying to hide his obvious reaction to her thought. Yet somehow his eyes fell on her again, her azure eyes glistening in the afternoon light, it was such a captivating sight Bo couldn't help but just stare. He simply nodded as he walked by her, just to let her know he acknowledged her presence. Out of the corner of his eye he notice she lowered her head a bit, allowing her flowing navy blue mane cover her face as she suppressed a giggle. It was weird, but Bo couldn't help thinking she might like him, Applejack saw this too, and to be honest it made her a little jealous that he gave her so much attention, she just met him but Applejack knew she was falling in love.

Luna stayed outside with everypony else, the only person needed inside was Bo. He kept walking until he felt the door slam into it's frame with a crashing sound, nearly making Bo deaf. Celestia stood there, glaring at Bo, finally she spoke.

"Why are you here" A simple question, one Bo had expected.

"Well, you see, it's...uhmm..." the words just couldn't come out, Bo was nervous, Celestia was on top of everything and he knew it, what if he said the wrong thing.

"Well, I don't have all day." The frustration was slipping into her voice, she didn't want to deal with Bo, now or ever.

"Look, this all just a misunderstanding, and believe me, if I could be here under any other circumstance I would be but..."

"But what?!" Celestia's anger got the best of her, and she cut him off, the tension was emanating from her so strongly it was making Bo more nervous. "What are you doing in Equestria?"

"Okay, just let me explain. My name is Bo, I'm a Drake from Earth, and as it appears you want me to be here as much as I want to be here. I know exactly what happened here, and I never wanted to see it."

Celestia knew what he was refering to, but she had to keep pressing, she needed to know if Bo could be broken. "What is it you didn't want to see?"

Bo was surprised by this question, he expected Celestia to know at least this much. "I didn't want to see the land that my brother ravaged. Every night before I went to bed he look at me and say the exact same thing, 'Bo, one day you're going to be a warrior one day, and look at me, it isn't that bad.' Then he would tell me that story about how he came here and destroyed everything, leaving only one survivor. How did he put it 'a young, stupid alicorn bitch.' I hated hearing it everytime."

"It was your brother that did that!" Celestia was outraged by this, she had somewhere to direct all of the built up rage and fear from so many years ago. "Your brother did that to us, then told you like it was some children's story."

"Yeah," a bit of shame creeped into his voice, "and although I hated that story, it still made me proud to be his little brother. He raised me, and he was literally all I had when it came to family. Once I got a little older I realized what it was he had actually done, he said he killed everything to avenge the deaths of our parents, then I realized that all he did was destroy families here. That's when I started to distance myself from him."

Celestia heard what she wanted to hear, it was time to finish the ordeal. "So then, you're a killer."

The accusation rung out loud in the room, Bo had heard that before, and it stung his pride to hear it again. "No, I'm not a killer," a sigh of regret, as he started, it even continued into the rest of his sentence, "at least, not anymore. It was a dark time in my past and I regret every moment of it. I don't like to talk about it, I will tell you that I killed soldiers until that day. That's it, just soldiers who were getting paid to kill me. I'm not like my brother, I'm not a blood thirsty asshole.

Celestia thought for a moment, as far as she could tell Bo had been sincere, she believed his story, but perhaps one day he would tell her about that dark time he didn't speak of. "I'm going to be honest with you Bo, I don't like you because of what your brother did. But I can't have you arrested for doing nothing. I'm assigning Twilight as your personal guide, you have a question you ask her. You will stay out of trouble and out of my hair or relations between us will just get worse. Now get out."

Celestia, made it clear that she wanted nothing to do with Bo. Her tone was extremely authoritive, and he no intent to defy her, but he was curious, and had to ask, "Why is it you hate me, what my brother did was unacceptable but I'm not him."

Celestia stopped, she looked over her shoulder and glared at Bo, he still didn't get it, time to really crush his spirit. "Because I'm the alicorn bitch."

Bo cringed at hearing this, he couldn't believe what he had just heard, he lowered his head and stepped out into the long corridor and stood silently, not even looking up when Luna walked close by and dropped a scroll close by his feet. She made it obvious it was for him. When she was gone he leaned down to pick it up. He turned to ask about it but the door closed before he could say anything.

"I think she dropped in on purpose, she didn't even write it until you went in. "Twilight stepped closer as she said this. "So what did the princess say?"

"She told me to stay out of trouble and see you if I had any questions." He kept quiet, he met the survivor his brother always joked about. It looked like he had something in common with Celestia, they both decidedly hated his brother. But he still felt like shit, and he told himself he deserved it for being so proud of his brother when he was younger.

"Are you sure that's it? We heard a lot of yelling coming from in there." Fluttershy kept her voice down, she was starting to realize that she too was falling in love with Bo, but she was far too shy to tell him that, seeing in the helpless state he had been in was somehow what did it for her, she wanted to be there to help him if he ever ended up there again.

"Well, she decidedly hates me, all because of what my brother did to her all those years ago." Bo dropped his head in shame. "And to think I was so proud of him when I was young."

Everypony's jaw dropped, except for Rainbow Dash, "well, you don't have to tell us everything, I'm sure you'll have plenty of time." Dash felt the need to chime in after seeing how Fluttershy looked at Bo, the cyan pegasus had perfect view of Applejack's lustful gaze earlier as well, she was even able to sneak a glance at Luna's letter before she rolled it up, concealing it's message until Bo decided to read them. She didn't want to miss her chance to win him over.

"Oh will all of you step back a little bit, you're going to smother him if you get any closer." Even Rarity felt a need to get her case in, but she really did feel like Bo needed his space, it had been a little stressful for everyone. "I think we should just all go home and get some sleep, I'm tired I know that."

Home, what a nice thought, what Bo wouldn't give to be at home right now, but going home meant facing all of the humans just hoping he had died. He winced almost as if the thought had put him in physical pain, he reached towards his neck where his Triskelion and Mjölner pendants hung freely, it was the only comfort he had. He encountered something while reaching, something warm and soft, it was Rarity's scarf, he hadn't realized he was still wearing it. He took it off and returned it at that point, thanking Rarity for her kindness. "So, are there many trees there, it's no ski resort but I've slept in worse."

"A tree?" Applejack saw her chance, she was the only pony with any room for Bo to sleep in for the night. "Tha's unacceptable, Ah got some extra room in the barn ya can sleep in."

It comforted Bo to hear Applejack speak, it somehow reminded him of home. "I appreciate it, really I do but no. I've nothing I can offer in return." Bo's honor got the best of him, a warm barn with a roof sounded much better than a tree limb, but it was someone else's space and he couldn't take it up with out some form of compensation.

"Ah think we can work something out, Ah could always use some help on the farm, Ah guess if you help me with the work Ah would consider us even for giving ya a place to stay and meals." Applejack gave a sincere look towards Bo, she wanted to know what he thought.

"Well, I don't know anything about working on a farm, but if you need the sheer strength it'll be right up my alley." Bo reached up and ran his fingers fingers through his hair, making an effort to show off his upper arm strength. He still didn't understand why Applejack was being so kind, he was a stranger yet she was still willing to give him a place to sleep at night. It wasn't something that happened very often on Earth.

"Then it's settled, you'll stay with me over at Sweet Apple Acres 'til we can find ya a place o' yer own.

Her voice was kind and sweet, he still couldn't place a finger on why her voice made him feel so good. "Thank you, I hope I can be more than enough help."

Everything fell silent, Twilight began to walk out of the castle and towards the train station, everypony followed without saying a word. Bo silently removed the string holding Luna's note neatly rolled up and began to read it.

My sister does not trust your intentions, but I see a side of you that she cannot. I don't think

you're as bad as she want's everypony to believe. Someday we will speak in alone to each

other, but for now we should keep this a secret.

The Princess of the Night,

~Luna~

Luna, Bo said the name in his mind over and over, he could smell something since opening the scroll, he thought it might be useful to cast another rune to increase his sense of smell and find out what is was. He concentrated again, then said the word in his mind, 'Verikoira'. Instantly smells burst up around him of all things, the bathroom just down the hall, the guards sweating in their armor, but most of all, the sweet smell of Luna's perfume still clinging and emanating from the letter he held in his hands. Bo knew what it was he felt around all of these ponies, but he couldn't believe it, it was love, and that wasn't something to feel as long as Serena was alive.

"He what?!" The words came out angry, why shouldn't they, Bo was banished as another way to kill him, but he survived. "You said the cold would freeze him solid if he landed right."

"And it would have sir, except for the fact that he was rescued before he could die. I merely came to ask what to do next." The man stood there waiting, licking the front of his blood stained teeth.

"Send her in, if she can bring him back willing to fight we'll forget about all the other possible repurcussions and give him back his title as commander. If he refuses, well, we can always make another." An evil laugh bellowed from the mans lungs, shaking some of the equipment in the room.

"Yes sir!" As he walked away a cruel smile formed on his face, visible under his dark hood just like his blood red eyes which looked to be as big as the moon itself. "I hope you heard that, we're coming for you brother." The man laughed as he walked into the shadows to prepare the scout, it was time to see who was really stronger.

Chapter 5: A Midnight Revelation

It was late when the group returned to Ponyville, nopony was in a hurry to leave this time, they just stayed around Canterlot, enjoying the company of one another. Even Bo had a good time despite the large number of local ponies staring at him. When Applejack returned home with Bo the Apple family was fast asleep, she was a little upset, she wanted everyone to meet him.

"Oh well," a sigh slipped out as an expression of her dissapointment, "Ah guess ya can always meet 'em after we're done workin' tomorrow. Let me show ya the barn." Bo followed her like a lost puppy until they reached the barn, Bo looked around and could see why Applejack was so persistent to have him stay there, there really wasn't much in the barn, not like you would expect. "Ya can sleep up in the loft, there are a couple of sleeping bags ya can roll out to get off the floor."

Bo stepped forward, observing the high ceiling, it was warm and Bo felt comfortable. "Thank you," he turned towards the orange pony and stood straight, "You've shown me more kindness than the humans ever did." He formed a fist with his right hand and threw it across his body slamming the opposite shoulder with all of his strength, it hurt but it was the only way he knew to show the respect he held for Applejack.

"Well, Ah'm gonna hit the straw, Ah'll come and get ya in the morning fer breakfast." She started to walk out and had made it to the door before Bo could think of a response.

"Good night, and thank you again." I wasn't much, but Applejack nodded as she closed the door.

Bo climbed up to the loft and unrolled one of the sleeping bags Applejack told him about. It was soft and warm, despite the fact that he was lying on the floor, it even reminded Bo of the bed the humans gave him on Earth, a futon with a blanket, it wasn't much but it was all he needed. It didn't take long for Bo to fall asleep, he was tired after what felt like a long day and after a few minutes he was still, his body rising and falling slowly to the rhythm of his breath. That's when it happened.

"What the hell, where am I?" Bo sat up, looking around for a sense of something he recognized, the sleeping bag, that barn, he wouldn't even mind seeing Celestia, just something to tell him where he was. It almost looked like a forest, he was in a small clearing, just big enough for a campsite. A few streams of moonlight filtered in between the tree branches. "Where am I?"

A voice came from the shadows, "you are in a dream of course." Bo was about to speak again until Luna stepped out of the shadows. "I have brought you here, so that we may speak and not be interrupted. I chose this place from your memory, it's just so full of magic that I couldn't help myself. Is it familiar?"

Bo took another quick look around the clearing, realizing finally where he was. He kept his voice low, "I can't be here, we can't be here." He took a few steps and was up close to Luna, "these are the Proving Grounds, royal Drakes come here to complete a set of challenges and earn the title of Drake Lord, or even Overlord if they do well enough. These forests are full of demons that attack everything on sight." Bo's voice developed a tone of severity he hadn't used since he was banished, and the words hung in the space between the two, not wanting to settle anywhere.

"Then I will be brief, all I wanted to tell you is that my sister is wrong about you, you're not evil. I do however think that you will be called back to the fields of war you tried to leave behind, I only hope that the side you choose will be the one that deserves your help." Luna smiled as she turned towards the shadows she had walked from, "I guess we'll speak again soon." With her final comment she stepped back into the shadows to return to Canterlot.

"What does any of that mean!?" Bo forgot his own warning for a moment, his voice echoed off the nearby trees.

A roar from beyond the trees served as his only answer, a plethora of vicious yellow and green eyes illuminated the space beyond the clearing, bloodstained teeth waithing to eviscerate and devour the Drake. Then a set of eyes red as blood opened and let out an ear piercing shriek, announcing the demons attack. Bo held them off to the best of his ability, shouting out the runes as they lit his body summoning a multitude of weapons and spells against the assailants.

"Lohikäärme Kynnet! Kivi Vasara! Tulipallo!"

Demons fell as they were hit with a barrage of attacks, yet their numbers never seemed to decrease. Then another figure appeared in the clearing, Bo struggled trying to see what it was without giving up his defense. It wasn't a demon, it was an Alicorn!

It stood there for a moment, observing, planning it's attack as demons of all sizes rushed by it's solid black body, completely ignoring it and attacking Bo. Finally its head rose, a white aura of magic cloaking it's horn, then it's body, it glowed in the dimly lit forest clearing, its eyes changed from a deep blue to and endless white. Then it cast its glyph, a glyph, something Bo rarely heard as they were almost as hard to cast as runes.

"Eieci eosdem daemones, in oblivionem! Divinum Lucem!" A bright light illuminated the edge of his horn which soon grew to fill the entire clearing, demons disintegrating as the Divine Light glyph banished them to hell, but something wasn't right, everything was fading from Bo as well. It didn't hurt, and at the end he could see nothing, not the Alicorn, not the clearing, not the demons. He could still hear the screams of dying demons, yet there was another voice, a distinct voice ringing in the emptyness. "Remember me and death shall not be your fate." It was the only thing he could hear, he knew where it came from, he knew who it was, maybe it was time everyone else did.

Bo thought about that for a moment, then he became aware that there was another voice, a softer voice. Then he felt a hoof on his shoulder pushing gently, he looked but could never find its owner. The voice started to clear up, almost to the point where Bo could understand.

".ake..., wake..., wake up Bo! Yer startin' to worry me, wake up." Applejack tried and tried to pull him from his deep sleep, eventually his eyes fluttered open.

"What's...going on?" He was trying to shake the sleep off but it just wasn't working.

"Ya were havin' a nightmare sugarcube, Ah heard ya screamin' from inside and came to check on ya. When Ah got here ya were thrashin' around and shoutin' some nonsense like 'divide em lose em'." Applejack leaned in close and sat down beside Bo, she wanted Bo to know she cared about him, maybe even loved him. "Do ya want to talk about it?"

"It was...there were..." Bo didn't know where, he wanted to tell her everything but he knew he couldn't mention his talk with Luna. He took a deep breath and started over. "I was in a dark forest, I thought that I saw someone else so I yelled out to get their attention. Then there were the eyes, all over the place these yellow and green eyes, slitted like a dragons, and they were just staring at me. Then another set appeared, red as blood accompanied by horrible blood stained teeth, it made this horrible screaming noise and all the others attacked me. I didn't want to fight them, but I didn't want to die either, I was killing them, demons were dropping like flies but they just kept coming from all sides and I was getting tired. There was no way I could hold them all off, there were just too many." A look of despair spread over his face as he remembered the sight and feeling of being overrun by the demons.

Applejack saw the look on Bo's face and threw her forelegs over his shoulders, bringing him in close and pressing her head against his cheek, speaking soft, kind words to calm him. "It's okay, yer safe now, it's all over."

It was almost as if she was trying to calm a child, and it worked, Bo was calming down, the heat coming from Applejack's body from being pressed so close to him felt so comforting. They stayed like that for a moment before Bo finally stopped resisting and wrapped Applejack in his arms, holding tightly as she let her head rest on his shoulder. They sat there for several minutes, enjoying the embrace before they seperated. Applejack started to lean back when her eyes met Bo's, they stared at each other lovingly, not wanting the moment to end. Then they leaned in and locked themselves into a long, passionate kiss. Once they had seperated again Applejack settled back onto all four hooves and took a step backwards, turning a deep shade of red that mimicked brick.

"Well, umm, Ah guess Ah'm gonna head back inside and git some sleep. Ah'll see ya in the mornin'." With that she turned around and headed back down to the ground floor.

"Yeah, goodnight." He settled back down into the sleeping bag, ready to try sleeping once more. He was feeling good, Bo didn't know why but the kiss he had just shared with Applejack had felt so good, so right. He was still for a few minutes, staring at the ceiling, there was a gentle, chilly breeze coming in the window giving him a nostalgic feeling. It reminded him of how it felt to have Drake Spec Ops dropped behind the enemy to help in a battle, carrying a smell of home along the breeze before they came, but this was different, bundled with that same familiar scent was the smell of hate and war. Bo sat up quickley, a grim thought running through his mind.

"I will return to the fields of battle, but this time the squads are going to drop behind me, this time the Drakes I've known for so long will be my enemy." He settled back into the bag one last time, finally ready to sleep. One final thought ran through his mind, 'I have not forgotten you, and perhaps it's time everyone else learns the truth. It just might give me the edge I need.'