Table of contents:

Season 1: Rise and Fall

Part 1 (Chapter 1 - Welcome to Ponyville): Of Heroes and Demons

Part 2 (Chapter 11 - Faliure): Broken

Part 3 (Chapter 24 - Revival): A Game of Chess

Part 4 (Chapter 46 - This is Goodbye): Invasion on a Larger Scale

Part 5 (Chapter 68 - A New Uprising): Deaths Untold

Season 2: Hearts of Darkness

Part 6 (Chapter 96 - A New Day): Inquisition

Part 7 (Chapter 136 - Impending Dark): Ultimate Sacrifice

Season 1: Rise and Fall

Part 1: Of Heroes and Demons

Dimension: My Little Pony

Planet: Equestria Earth

Specific Location: Canterlot

Time: 1002 years after the defeat of Nightmare Moon

Princess Celestia was agitated. Quite so in fact. For the past few weeks, she had been having the same dream over and over and over again: she would wake up in a brightly-light, whitewashed room. After a pause, the room would slowly begin to degenerate and crumble into dust. As the walls would collapse, she saw the outside world. The world she saw would be Equestria… burning. Canterlot, Ponyville, Manehattan, everywhere… burning. As this transpired, a voice would echo out from every corner of the planet.

"One heart will be mended,

One demon will rise;

If there is hope in his friendship,

Dark will demise;

But if the good cannot win,

A victory in turn;

Then Canterlot, Ponyville…

Equestria will burn."

Celestia had consulted with Luna, Cadence, and even Twilight Sparkle for the answer of the riddle, but their answers had all been the same: "Wait; only time will tell."

"But what is the evil that is coming? What can we do to stop them?" Wondered Celestia out loud as she looked sadly over the land of Equestria on her perch on the top tower in Canterlot.

Dimension: Earth Prime

Planet: Earth

Specific Location: Stanford Hospital, California, United States of America

Time: 2013 Anno Domini

Beep… beep… beeeeeeeeeee…

The sound of the electrocardiogram hitting the stop… the sound of death… One of the worst sounds one could possibly imagine after an apprehensive wait.

Mellissa, the best of best friends anyone could have, had died, and Joseph Torrus had caused it.

Joseph screamed. He could have saved her, he could have prevented it all, but he hadn't. His wrath, foolishness, and pride had gotten in the way.

It hadn't started this way though.

Ten years ago, a nine year old boy was approached by a mysterious entity called the Paradox. This entity bestowed upon the boy the ability to traverse the fabric of time and space, matter and dimensions. The boy had understood his task from the start: bring light and justice to the dimensions and cosmos where there was none. And so, at age nine, a small boy, Joseph Torrus, set out with hope, justice, determination, and joy in his hear. He would travel the dimensions, he would use his powers for good, and he would bring hope to everyone. At age nineteen, the boy had returned to Earth. However, his return heralded chaos; for he returned with hate, treachery, tyranny, pride, and malice. The ten years of travelling had changed him… and not for the better. He had initially made friends and allies, and even managed to defeat the demon-god of hate: Abbadon. But over time his friends had been assassinated, turned against each other, or betrayed him. "It is all in the line of our nature," one had said before he was beheaded by Joseph when he had tried to backstab him. These betrayals dug deep into the heart of Joseph, and had torn it out, replacing it with cold, black, stone. And thus Joseph too became a traitor to his cause. He had killed hundreds innocents, vaporized entire solar systems, and brought down peaceful empires; all in the name of himself… justice was no longer a factor.

Why was he returning? Love, of course. When he had left as a boy, he had promised his sweetheart, Mellissa, that he would return to ask for her hand in marriage, and that is exactly what he had intended when he returned to Earth Prime in a flaming chariot, with the skulls of innocents and kings strewn across the outside. When he proposed, she said no. She would not, could not, marry a man who had been so corrupted by evil. She loved him dearly, but he had to uncover the hope he still had deep in his heart. And thus Joseph slapped her across the face, the force of which shattered and cracked half her skull. She was quickly borne to the hospital by her family, but they couldn't do anything. Joseph could though; with his great powers, he could mend her skull in time with love and care. But that is not what he did. She had denied him the last hope he had ever had: love, and he was going to make her pay. But as he roved the dimension in a rage, he realized something… she still loved him, and she had said so… and he had still struck with a killing blow. In a flash he had teleported back to hospital room to save her. He was still good, he had to be! But as the room phased into view, he hear a quiet…

"I forgive you Joseph… Wherever you are…"

Beep… beep… beeeeeeeeeee…

And then… Joseph screamed.

The scream shattered all the windows in a mile radius, and a few walls began to crumble. A doctor quietly walked up to Joseph and placed a hand on his shoulder, "It is over," he said.

Joseph whirled and punched the man in the chest; the man flew backwards and exploded through a wall causing that half of the hospital wing to collapse. Joseph turned around and buried his face in his hands and began to sob. He had to get away, he had to get far… far… far away.

As police sirens begin to sound in the distance, Joseph opened a dimensional portal, he knew not where, and stumbled through.

He had murdered, lied, cheated, and manipulated… and he was paying the ultimate price.

Stumbling blindly, Joseph staggered across what felt like a lush and crisp field of grass and collapsed against a tree.

And there the great Joseph, the dimensional traveler, the tyrant of the multiverse, slept a trouble sleep. Plagued by the ultimate felony he had caused because of his black heart.

Dimension: The Inferno

Planet: The Inferno

Specific Location: The Inferno

Time: Eternity

Far into the deepest ring of the infernal dimension, the malignant destroyer, Abbadon, sat… biding his time. Every few minutes, he would tug at the glowing chains of energy that bound him to the ground to see if they were weakening… nothing. Abbadon sighed, his adversary had been very unusual, it had been a dimensional traveler, but this traveler had been different. Abbadon had been defeated and bound before, but no dimensional chains had ever held him for long… but these… these chains were absolute.

Suddenly, the second Abbadon had finished the though, the chains flickered, and a hairline crack began to form on the left chain link closest to the base. Abbadon began to smile… the chains were weakening, the soul of the traveler who had bound him had been compromised.

Dimension: My Little Pony

Planet: Equestria Earth

Specific Location: Everfree Forest

Time: 1002 years after the defeat of Nightmare Moon

Joseph slowly opened his eyes and looked around. Lush trees and crisp grasp. Birds twittered back and forth in the sky, and a gentle breeze flowed through the meadow… but something was different. Joseph looked around, no, it wasn't the landscape. Then Joseph's eyes looked down at himself, he had hooves.

At first Joseph was only little surprised, after all, Dimensional Travelers' bodies inherently shape shifted to match the current dimension's laws of physics and chemistry, but the second Joseph tried to phase out of the body, he realized he was stuck in that specific shape. Then panic set in.

"What… the… hell?"

Immediately Joseph began to shift through his powers… Yes, he still had control over the basic and periodic elements, but he could no longer shape shift, and he could no longer open a portal to another universe. He was stuck.

"Goddamn… shootshootshootshootshoot…"

Frantically Joseph shook a hoof and then tried to stand up. He was unsuccessful, and was forced to reside on four legs. Immediately Joseph began to run in circles as he attempted over and over again to open a portal.

"I am the lord of all! I control all elements of time and space! How can I be stuck?!" He shouted.

After a bit of running, he sat down, panting… His diagnosis was complete: he was stuck in the universe, for good.

"I swear, if the Paradox has taken my traveling powers, I will rip his kidneys out, mush them with his gall bladder, and force feed the mix down his throat." Grumbled Joseph.

After a full thirty minutes, Joseph walked over to a nearby stream and looked at his reflection.

"What the hell am I?" He wondered aloud at his rippling reflection.

A weird creature, resembling something rather like a pony in features was looking back at him. Joseph had been tall, fair skinned, and black haired. The creature that he now saw was a dark blue, with some sort of unicorn horn, a dark purple mane, and large wings.

Granted, Joseph had traveled through many dimensions in many years, but never had he ever encountered a universe where he had morphed into such an unusual creature… let alone be stuck in that form.

After a second or two of looking at his reflection, Joseph backed off, and he then began to look around, his sharp eyes picking up every little detail. Then he noticed a house off in the distance, in a thicker part of the forest bordering the meadow and a path intersecting the field beyond, his eyes immediately identified it as a ruin, something had been abandoned for at least a decade.

Joseph quickly strolled up to the house and looked it up and down. Then, sitting down on his haunches, Joseph raised his two front, brightly colored, hooves and began to move them as if conducting a band. Immediately raw stone began to rise from the ground and melt into the shape of a house seamlessly. In less than an hour, the house was complete… furniture and all, though no electricity.

Joseph then remembered what had happened not yet a day ago, and despair began to set in. His love, his life, had died at his hand.

Tears slowly began to well in his eyes, and he slowly sank to the ground. How had he become like this? He flicked his tail slowly back and forth as his memories wandered back to the first betrayal.

It had been at least four years into his adventures... Joseph and his buddy Robert had been preparing to breach a Nazi fortress in the north of Switzerland in a universe where World War II had never ended. If this fortress went down, the Nazi would no longer be able to produce nuclear bombs, and the Allies would be able to regain Russia and France, and begin constricting the Axis out of Africa. But as the approached the fortress, Tiger II and E-100 tanks rolled up from all sides. Joseph had but up his hands to fight, but felt a cold blade pressed against his neck.

"Sorry buddy," whispered Robert, "but their offers were too good. The allies are finished, and they offered me a whole continent… a WHOLE continent if I helped kill you."

Joseph simply sighed, "Is even that much land worth the life of a good friend. I saved your life in the Delta-7 galaxy!"

Robert shrugged, "Hell yes. It is all about money and survival, and I damn well say your screwed… buddy."

Joseph twisted to strike Robert down, but Robert's stab was even quicker, catching him in the stomach.

"Oh Joseph, a gutshot. Your last moments of resistance will now make you suffer."

As Joseph slowly collapsed to the floor, Robert walked away, laughing. The sound of the laugh introduced something Joseph had never quite felt… hate.

Joseph didn't die, he nearly bled and froze to death, but he didn't die. In less than a month he was up, and he proceeded to kill Robert, the Nazis, the Italians, and then the parliament of France when they attempted to stop him from nuking a French town that was said to have Nazi spies. The American's then threatened to attack him if he didn't cease, so Joseph left, shaking uncontrollably with grief and rage…

Joseph snapped out of the memory as if he had been slapped. Looking around, he then gave a sigh, half sob, half gasp. How many of those terrible betrayals and subsequent rampages had he gone through? Seven? Eight? And each time a betrayal occurred; a new ideal had come to light: hate, treachery, malice, pride… Grief.

Joseph looked down and slowly closed his eyes, as if willing to relinquish his soul. There was nothing left for him to live for. He was wanted in hundreds of dimensions, and hated and feared in hundreds more. His best friend, the only one willing to forgive him, had died by his hand, and he was trapped in who-knows-where. Joseph slowly got up, walked into his new little cottage, got into the bed, and closed his eyes. It was over, he was going to die… right… now…

Then a knock resounded at the door. Joseph's eyes shot open. A knock? Impossible. Joseph began to close his eyes when another knock rang out. Joseph slowly rolled out of bed a slowly dragged himself to the door.

"Helllloooo?" A high-pitched voice called out.

"Quiet Scootaloo! We don't know who lives there," another voice rang out.

"Yeah… nobody, Sweetie Bell. Zecora said this place had been abandoned for… like… foreeevverr, this is the perfect place see if out special talents involve building!"

"But it sure looks like somepony lives there," another voice sounded off.

"No, it doesn't Apple Bloom." Scootaloo said.

"Yes it does."

"No it doesn't."

"Yes it does!"

"No it doesn't!"

Joseph sighed slowly and said, "Who is there? Leave me alone."

Immediately the arguing ceased.

"Sorry sir!" said Apple Bloom, "we didn't know you lived here!"

"Apparently," replied Joseph slowly, "now get out of here and leave me here to die."

"Huh? Die? Are you okay?" chirped Sweetie Bell.

"No! Screw you kids! Go away," snapped Joseph. He was going to hurl off one of his routine threats when Scootaloo interrupted

"Are you new here?" she interjected, "Where did you come from?"

"What does it matter where I came from? I obviously came here to be alone!" With that Joseph pointedly turned around and began to walk away. Then the door opened. Joseph whirled and prepared to immediately vaporize the trio when he stopped. They were looking at him in awe, something he rarely got. Immediately, Scootaloo began to rail off questions like a hail storm.

"Wow! You're an alicorn! Wow! Are you a prince? Or a king? Are you related to princess Celestia? Are you?!"

Joseph, caught up in the moment, began to reply at the same pace, "Huh? Alicorn? What? No! No! No! What?"

Joseph then took a deep breath and shouted with such force that the trio in front of him stumbled backwards, "NO GOD NO! I have no idea what you are saying! I just came here to get the hell away from everyone! Including you! Leave me alone before I kill you all! And believe me; I have done more than my share of killing! Just leave me here, I no longer wish to be a part of anything."

Apple Bloom quickly covered her friend's mouth, "sorry sir! Scootaloo here doesn't know when to shut her mouth."

Joseph snorted with a quick chuckle, "that's an understatement."

He then began to raise a hoof to vaporize the trio when he realized something unique: they had made him chuckle.

Over the past six years Joseph had done a fair share of screaming, and crying, and yelling; but no laughing or even chuckling. Joseph then looked at the three oddly. There was a long an uncomfortable pause, finally broken by Sweetie Bell.

"If you like, we could show you around Ponyville. It's our home, and it is right nearby."

Still a little speechless, Joseph slowly said, "Okay…"

"Great!" exclaimed Scootaloo, her tiny wings buzzing loudly with excitement, "let's go! Everyone will want to meet our new friend."

Joseph felt a lump in his throat… friend. No one had called him friend in a long, long, long time. The three trotted promptly out, trailed slowly by Joseph, onto a beaten path shrouded by thorny bushes, not far from the cottage. Noticing the hazardous environ, Joseph slowly commented, "Why were you three here? Aren't you all a little young to be wandering in such a dangerous place?"

Apple Bloom looked a little cowed, but replied, "Yes, we ain't really supposed to be here, but we're the Cutie Mark Crusaders!"

Joseph considered killing the three again and going back, but the thought perished faster than the last idea involving violence and he said, with a tad of interest, "Cutie Mark Crusaders?"

Scootaloo, who was whizzing along on her little scooter stopped long enough to say, "Yeah! That's us! We don't have cutie marks yet, so we have been trying to find them!"

Joseph shook his head and said, "What's a cutie mark?"

Sweetie Bell chuckled and gave Joseph a little shove, "why, silly, it's on your flank! It shows everyone what your special talent is!"

Joseph had almost responded with an attack when Sweetie Bell touched him, but the feeling of some form of companionship stayed his hand from spreading their innards across a ten mile radius. After a short breath of barely managing to force his twisted and hostile urges down, he looked at his own flank. A picture was there no doubt. It was a purple and black infinity sign. Though it may have seemed wondrous and mysterious to any pony in Equestria, the sight of the diseased infinity sign sickened Joseph. Had he really become something of the infernal realm? Had he really become a monster?

"Um? Are you okay sir?" Apple Bloom's voice broke through Joseph's thoughts.

"Oh… I am okay. Well, I am sure you three will find your own, er, cutie marks in no time the way you are working towards it." Joseph replied.

Sweetie Bell gave him a huge smile, so huge, in fact, that Joseph almost fell over. No one had ever smiled at him before, well, after the betrayals, that is.

"Thank you sir!" She said, "by the way, what's your name?"

Joseph halted as his brain ran a quick diagnostic of the upcoming issue. From what he had gathered, Joseph was in no way a usual name, and he did not intend to use it if he was stuck here for the rest of his miserable life. Additionally, by the virtue of the fact that there were two ponies here that were named Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom, the general gist for naming seemed to be two generic objects, generally attached to nature, strung together into a name. Then Joseph decided on the perfect name, a combination of who he was, and what he looked like.

"Sunset Shadow. My name is Sunset Shadow. But you may call me Sunset," said Joseph with purpose.

Sweetie Bell gave him another stunning, almost epileptic-inducing, smile, "well Mr. Sunset, we are happy to have you with us."

Scootaloo suddenly skidded ahead of the others and turned around, proclaiming dramatically, "And here we are. The greatest place in the world… Ponyville!"

Note: In this story, there is one massive multiverse surrounded by smaller separate dimensions. There is an elite group of superheroes called the Dimensional Travelers who travel through the many dimensions attempting to spread justice and peace. These Dimensional Travelers have abilities such as control of the periodic elements, fire, water, earth, air, lightning, light and shadow energy, etc. As well as super strength. However, they are still mortal, and can be killed like any other being.