Twilight Sparkle finally had a break. Ever since she became a princess she had many new responsibilities which took up almost all of her time.

"Twilight! Twilight I've been looking everywhere for you!" Spike yelled running in.

"What is it now Spike?"

"Princess Celestia sent you a letter like an hour ago!"

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?!"

"I couldn't find you!"

She used her magic to lift the letter in front of her face and began reading it, "Dear Twilight Sparkle... I have a new task for you. I hate to add on to your new duties yet this one is very urgent and risks the safety of Equestria. I am sending a pegasus to be your student. You might recognize his name and where he comes from from your history books. His name is Platinum Victory. I fear him becoming corrupted by the Great Horror and despite my best attempts to try to make him see differently I fear I only made it worse. You must succeed in this task. If he falls to corruption, I do not think I have the power in me to stop another Victory... His train should be arriving around 1:30. Sincerely, Princess Celestia."

"Platinum Victory? Isn't that some professional athlete in Canterlot? I think I remember seeing him in a race while we were there," Spike said.

"He isn't just some athlete, his family is legendary. They've protected Equestria from evils that Princess Celestia couldn't even stop. Yet if the Princesses fears become reality, and he becomes corrupted... I don't want to even think about what will happen..."

"It can't be that bad, I mean you stopped Discord, Nightmare Moon, and even that King Sombra guy. How will he be any different?"

"He would lead an army of shadow ponies into Equestria, expanding the Shadow Empire from beyond the north to the south... and the curse the original Victory put on the Great Horror over a thousand years ago can be broken if he destroyed the crystal that they found under the castle!"

"Whats the big deal about this "Great Horror"? He can't be that bad."

"He's the biggest threat to Equestria, no the whole world! If he was freed we would be forever in eternal darkness! Quick! Tell the others to meet me at the train station!"

She ran out to get to the station as fast as possible.


She sat on a bench waiting for her friends to arrive.

"What if he's already corrupted?" she asked herself. She thought about for a few seconds, then stopped as she realized that she didn't want to know.

"Twilight, what's this here all about?" Applejack said as she and the rest of Twilight's friends walked over.

"The Princess gave me a very important task."

"Then why don't you do it? I don't see why you need us," Rainbowdash said.

"Oh! Maybe she has to throw a party!" Pinkie shouted.

"No... I have a student..."

"I still don't see why you need us to be here when this pony is your student," Rarity said.

"Well thats the thing, I'm not sure if I can help this pony..."

"Well Twilight... who is it?" Fluttershy asked.

"He's Platinum Victory."

"What?!" They all said in unison.

"You mean that super dashing muscular hunk of a stallion?" Rarity said.

"The best athlete in Equestria! I mean... second. Cause thats me on top," Rainbowdash said.

"Yes. The Platinum Victory that we all know about."

"I'm sorry, but who is this Platinum Victory?"

"How do you not know Platinum Victory?!" Rainbowdash exclaimed.

"Well he sure can't be that important..."

"He's perhaps one of the most important ponies in Equestria..." Twilight said.

"And what makes him so big and fancy?"

"Well he's a member of a family who..."

"Yup, just another pony who inherited everything. While ponies like me have to work to get what we got."

"Actually... he's saved Equestria more than we have..."

"Then why haven't I heard of em?"

"Because it's expected, so when he does it isn't really news..."

"P...Pl..Platinum Victory... is coming here?" Fluttershy stuttered.

"I'm pretty sure we already had that established."

"Oh no, he can't come here..."

"Why not? He was ordered by the Princess to come here..."

"Because... he's a big ticket pony! He wouldn't come to a little pony town..."

"Actually he grew up in Vanhoover. That's a "little pony" town."

"But he... I... umm..."

"What seems to be the matter Fluttershy?" Rarity asked.

"Yeah, you normally don't get like this just because we mention someone. You only do it when you actually meet them..." Twilight added.

"Oh no reason..."

"Fluttershy... what aren't you telling us?"

Just before she could say anything the train carrying Platinum Victory rolled into the station.

"Alright everypony, take a car, if you see him bring him to the rest of us."

Fluttershy ran to the coach car, "Alright Fluttershy, there is no way he's in this car, he's probably in first class..."

She watched the door and when she saw a dark blue pony with a white mane and tail walk out, she nearly fainted.

He looked at a picture and looked around until he saw Fluttershy. He walked over, took a look at the picture again and said, "So you're umm... Fluttershy? The Princess said you would know where Twilight Sparkle is..."

She tried to say something yet kept stuttering.

"Umm... what?"

"I... I..." she gave a high pitched whine.

"Well... umm... I don't even know what to think about that..." he said walking off.

Her friends walked over and Twilight said, "None of us could find him, did you?"

"Yes..."

"Where is he then?"

"He left..."

"You couldn't speak to him could you?"

"I... I couldn't..."

"Great! Just great! Now we have to go searching all over Ponyville for him!" Rainbowdash said.

"Actually no..." he said walking over.

"You're Platinum Victory?" Twilight asked.

"Yes... I am."

Fluttershy hid behind Rarity and Platinum said, "What's her problem?"

"She is rather... shy... she is like this quite a lot," Rarity said.

"Well... I suppose you all know who I am... but I will introduce myself anyway... I am Platinum Victory. 31st member of the Victory family, and bearer of the Power of Will..."

"We don't need all the titles..." Twilight said.

"Of course you don't... anyway I need a place to stay, so if you don't mind I will go find somewhere..." he said walking off.

"So what did the Princess say he needed help with?"

"She fears he might become corrupted by the Great Horror..."

"No way! He couldn't be corrupted!" Rainbowdash said.

"If he were to become corrupted... who knows what would happen to Equestria!" Rarity exclaimed.

"Uhh. What does this corruption do? And what's this Great Horror thing y'all are talkin about," Applejack asked.

"You don't know what the Great Horror is? That's just... sad..." Rainbowdash said.

"A Great Horror! Where!" Pinkie exclaimed.

"Well, the Great Horror was, and currently still is the biggest threat to the whole world. Over a thousand years ago, the first Victory imprisoned him within his castle which is now in the lands beyond the arctic north."

"If this Great Horror is imprisoned, why is he such a darn threat?"

"Because the Great Horror is only his nickname. His title is the god of darkness..."

"So this Great Horror is a god? Doesn't that mean he can just destroy Equestria with a blink?"

"No. Unlike the gods religious ponies think about, this one isn't perfect. He's actually just an alicorn who is immortal and has nearly unstoppable magic..."

"So he's like Princess Celestia?"

"In a sense. Just more powerful."

"But he's still locked up, how can he do anything?"

"He has armies of shadow ponies."

" You mean, he makes the shadow ponies!?"

"Yes, he does."

"Darn... maybe this Victory fella isn't as bad as I thought..."


Platinum Victory searched around the outskirts of town. Although he could easily buy quite a nice house in the center of town he knew that it attracted too much attention, and he was tired of fans who chased him everywhere. The only place this hadn't happened was in Vanhoover. They respected him for who he was, yet didn't go insane for him.

He found and abandoned mine and said to himself, "This will be perfect..."

He tore the old boards that were covering the entrance off and walked in.

It was very dark, yet Platinum would solve that problem.

He went to an old candle store and bought dozens upon dozens of candles.

He brought in his building supplies and began to get to work.

He made carvings into the wall and put the candles into them. He began lighting the candles and made a mental map of the mine that wasn't caved in.

It was caved in a while in, yet he could make out about four areas that could count as rooms.

One was connected to another in the west wing, the third was in the east wing and the fourth was smaller than the rest and was near the center.

He decided to make the separate one the living room/kitchen and the one in the middle the bathroom. He made the outer room in the west wing his bedroom. He went to work on making a hidden wall to cover the fourth room deciding it would be his storage room for his money and other valuables.

After five hours he was done working and looked around.

"I could be a professional builder..." he had done good work so far, yet it was merely making a hidden door and carving out parts of the wall for candles. He would finish later as for now he had to go find those six ponies he had met earlier.


"Twilight, don't be so tense darling..." Rarity said.

"How can I not be? The fate of Equestria may lay in my hooves! If Platinum Victory is corrupted then Princess Celestia might not even be able to stop him!"

"Oh he couldn't be corrupted... He is a strong willed pony after all... If I am correct corruption is forced on someone until they eventually submit to it? He has the Power of Will after all... I doubt he would just give in to it that easily..."

"Rarity... when did you like acting wise?"

"Oh I've done my research on Platinum Victory of course... a stallion like that deserves only perfection! Like me for example... Wouldn't we be perfect together?"

Everyone else groaned except Fluttershy, who began looking nervous.

"You know the Victory family only marries pegasus..."

"His father married a unicorn! Platinum Victory could do the same!"

"Why would he want to marry you? You would probably bore him like all those other fancy Canterlot mares," Rainbowdash said.

"What? And you think he would like you?"

"I wouldn't care if he does or doesn't. Sure he's a good athlete but you know me, thats not what I do..."

"Well I wouldn't bore him!"

"Everypony knows that he gets bored easily with most mares that are almost exactly like you!"

"Well! If you think that I will have to prove you wrong then!"

"Go on, go get him and tell him how you feel and everything you know so he thinks you're a crazed stalker..."

"Oh you're going to make me mad so I mess up! I see how it is... Well I won't fall for that trick!"

"Why are you arguing about this? We have no need for this to be some huge confrontation!" Twilight yelled.

"You're right Twilight, I was being highly uncivilized," Rarity said.

A few moments later Platinum was seen running from a mob of "fans".

"Not again!" He yelled.

"He battles some of the most dangerous creatures on the planet, yet he can't stand up to ponies that are obsessed with him..." Twilight said.

"Shouldn't we help him?"

"Yes. We will, let's go everypony..."

He tried to fly away yet a pack of pegasi blocked the path. He landed again and kept running.

Twilight and the rest of the group ran next to him and he said, "Are you chasing me now?"

"No, we're trying to help you!"

"And how do you expect to do that?!"

Twilight's horn began glowing and the group was teleported into the library.

"Block the doors! Cover the windows! They can't get in!" Platinum yelled obviously nervous.

"Scared of a pack of mares?" Twilight said.

"Its the talking... they never shut up, they always want to talk about me and how perfect they would be with me... I'm tired of these "fancy" mares who think that it's their birthright to be with me!"

As he said that Rarity looked shocked and began slowly moving away.

"But I do thank you for saving me from that."

"It was nothing, but we should get to our lessons soon!"

"Of course we should... Let us get on with it..."