The Prophecy

Waking up was quite painful. Pain. A lot of pain. I have experienced it all my adult life and got used to it. This pain was felt more strongly than it had been before, but it was still bearable, although extremely unpleasant. After an indefinite time, which seemed like an eternity to me, I was able to open my eyes, but even this did not help much, because my vision did not draw anything except the approximate contours of objects in the field of vision. I quickly started blinking to clear my eyes of possible dirt and regain the ability to see, and gradually my vision began to return, revealing to my gaze the night forest in which I was. I tried to remember how I got here, but only got another twinge of pain. However, despite this, I was aware of exactly who I had been all my adult life. But I couldn't remember how I got here. Deciding not to lie still, I tried to get up, but again I received a response in the form of pain all over my body. While I was trying to get up, I managed to notice that the trees and bushes around seemed to emit some kind of aura. «Maybe it's just my imagination, but there's definitely something wrong here,» — I thought, — «It's not very similar to my usual earthly life.» My back ached, my paws ached, and all four of them, my head seemed to become heavier, but when I finally got up on all four paws and suddenly something caught on the bushes behind me. Still in great pain, he looked back and saw his own tail, at the tip of which there was a membrane resembling a tree leaf. It was with this part of my body that I got caught in a thorn bush. I sat down and lowered my head, lifting my front paws to examine them, and suddenly saw five-toed, scaly paws with sharp, but not too long (as it seemed to me) claws. Looking closer, I noticed that the scales, although they seem small, are not really so. I squeezed my fingers on my right paw out of interest, but I didn't hear any rustling from the friction of the scales against each other. «It looks like the scales are quite flexible,» — I still calmly noted the obvious thing, since it was difficult to surprise me with something. I sat there for a while longer, until my body stopped aching. Then I looked at myself better, but I didn't find anything except the fact of having large webbed wings. «Maybe it's really not that bad? It will hurt and stop, but I can try to fly someday,» — I looked down at my paws and sighed, — «But what if someone decides to attack now? It would be unpleasant» It was enough for me to think about it, as I felt a certain anxiety inside me, which disappeared after a couple of moments, and then I turned back to the reality around me. Everything looked to me like it was something natural. I wasn't even surprised by the fact that I had regained my own body. Even as a human, I often thought that the dragon's body suited me better than a human's, and now it seems that my dream has been fulfilled. This is commendable, but what I was most concerned about was not this, but the place where I ended up. «Well, I'm a dragon now. Fine», — unexpectedly for myself, I noted dryly to myself, — «I'll be happy about it later. I need to figure out where I am» I closed my eyes and listened to the surrounding forest. I was pleased to note that I can hear much better now: every rustle, every drop of moisture that falls from the leaves, as well as a quiet growl. «Wait a minute! Growling?» — I thought, opening my eyes and looking in the direction from which the noise was coming. A pair of glowing eyes appeared in the darkness, approaching me. However, despite the twilight (thanks to the dragon's vision), I can clearly see the beast that wants to attack me. Some kind of wolf-like creature, which is most likely much larger than ordinary Terrestrial wolves, judging by the size of the bushes around. I also noticed faint cracks on his body and a faint aura, as if he were not a living being, but something artificial. «It's not a living thing», — A realization flashed through my head. Meanwhile, the «beast» was getting closer and closer, baring its «teeth», so to speak. «It's strange that I look down at him even sitting down. And the bushes seem a little... small. Am I really that big? It makes sense to attack me if I... ah, I still have pain», — I summed up, noting an unpleasant fact. Coming to a distance of one and a half of my body, the creature rushed towards me with the intention of biting, baring its «teeth». I didn't have time to dodge the lunge, but I was able to put my left front paw under the mouth, on which, in fact, the beast hung, trying to bite through the scales. I was able to look closely at this creature, trying to shake it off or at least hit it. It was almost an exact copy of fantasy wargs like those found in the same «Lord of the Rings», but ... this creature consists entirely of wood. Simply put, it is an elemental animated by a force that is not yet fully understood. I deftly grabbed the tree wolf by the head, or rather by the mouth, and tried to break its grip by pressing on its upper jaw. Enduring the pain in my muscles and applying strong-willed efforts, I managed to do this, and I threw the wolf away. But he did not hesitate, quickly got up and ran towards me again, attacking. This time I stood on all fours and at the very last moment, when the opponent was in the jump, I pressed his wooden head to the ground, pressing on it with all the force I was capable of now. The beast tried to escape, backed away, growled, but nothing came out, and at one point he began to whine like a yard mutt. I didn't pay attention to it and continued to press it to the ground with my paw and heard the crunch of breaking branches. A little more and the crunch became stronger, and then Varg's head fell apart into splinters. The elemental was finished. Sitting down again, I began to rub my right paw, which was very sore from such loads, simultaneously trying to assess the damage from the predator's teeth. «The scales are only slightly scratched, but not bitten, which is good. The Tree Wolf… I have a hunch about where I might be, but I wish it hadn't come true. And yes, if this creature does not recover again, then with the first murder of me... although what kind of murder is this? These are not living creatures, the corpses of which I have already seen enough during my work», — catching my breath and analyzing this situation, trying to calm myself down at the same time, I remember the time when I worked as a medical laboratory technician next door to the morgue. For the sake of scientific interest, I looked again at the body of the deceased elemental, and then at the right paw. «Either he's rotten, or I'm so strong», — I chuckled, appreciating my muscles on my new body. Suddenly I heard another stirring in the bushes, and then another and another. I quickly turned in that direction and saw three pairs of predatory eyes and the outlines of the bodies of tree wolves. «Where there is a leader, there is the rest of the pack», — he took a deep breath, trying to get into a fighting stance. Although the wolves were not quite alive, they had pack instincts. Out of old habit, I tried to stand on my hind legs to look around more closely, but the pain in my back did not allow me to do it completely. There were three wolves, just as I thought. The moment I got down on all fours again, they went on the attack and began to surround me, attacking from three sides. I started backing away, glancing at the wolves, wondering who to neutralize first. That very first one turned out to be the wolf on my left, which I dodged, causing it to hit a tree behind me. The second wolf, who was running on my right, jumped on my back, and I tried to knock him off me by hitting his side against a tree behind me. A few such blows, and the predator is dropped. The third opponent ran up and jumped at me, aiming at my neck. At the last moment, my sweeping paw hit him and threw him in the same direction where the second wolf had flown earlier. However, the very first opponent did not hesitate, and while I was distracted by the third, he abruptly swooped down and knocked me on my back, which I did not expect, given the difference in size is not in his favor. The wolf was about to grab my neck, but I managed to punch him in the face, causing him to fall sideways and whimper, but it was too early to relax. At the same moment, one of the wolves grabbed my right hind leg with his teeth and tried to drag me away, but it had no effect, and I was able to fight back by kicking him in the face with my free limb. However, I suddenly felt pain in the tail area, realizing that my scales had been unexpectedly bitten through. I turned my head and saw another of these wolves clinging to my tail, revealing a vulnerable spot. I growled menacingly and swung my tail, sending the enemy flying in the direction of a nearby tree, and then I was back on all fours. «If this continues, then I will not fight them off — it will be an eternal battle. It is necessary to tear off their heads,» — I thought, looking for surrounding objects with my eyes, which could facilitate this process, — «With bare paws, although with claws, it was difficult to do, but with some weighty heavy object it was much easier.» My gaze caught on a rock slightly larger than the head of the treewolf itself, but it was about two body sizes away from me. Meanwhile, the enemies recovered and began to approach again, surrounding. I rushed to run to the stone faster than these animals reacted, and when I turned around, I hit one of them with my tail out of inertia, throwing it back. The other wolves came at me from two different directions at the same time. I was able to dodge the first one, and grabbed the second one by the stump of the wooden tail with my right paw and started hitting my head against a stone. I struck in such a way that he had already died completely, but I was not allowed to finish the job by the wolf who returned to the fight, jumped on me from the side, which clung to my left paw. Shaking it off after a little effort, I noticed that the cracks in the bark began to tighten in the wolf I was hitting against the stone — it regenerated. «Can't afford any delay, otherwise nothing will work!», — I thought, and continued to beat the wolf's head against a stone in a frenzy until it cracked, which took almost a dozen blows, and the enemy himself finally calmed down. The two remaining opponents backed away, seeing such a sight, but still growled viciously. The fight continued and at one point I was knocked to the ground again. But it didn't take long, and during a short fight I managed to grab the opponent by the head, starting to hit the ground. It didn't do much good, though. In order to free my paws, I threw the wolf into the nearest tree, then abruptly rushed towards it. While the predator was recovering, I split his head like a nut on a tree trunk. From such a strong blow, the right paw, which was hit, hurt even more. And my whole body was already starting to ache from fatigue. «Well, why do I use my right paw for most of my actions all the time, and not both, although I can use both almost well?!», — I expressed indignation in my thoughts, — «Apparently I act on instincts, no other way.» The last wolf, clearly stunned by the massacre of his comrades, was in no hurry to approach me, but it seemed he couldn't leave either. We stared into each other's eyes for a while, like two predators, each stalking its prey. And so the tree wolf rushed at me, aiming right at my face. I instinctively shielded myself with my left paw and felt sharp, contrary to appearance, wooden claws pass over my palm, almost cutting through the scales, and then my paw was once again gripped by teeth. I tried to pull her out of his grip. But this wolf's was denser than the others. I grabbed his upper jaw with my right paw and jerked it up sharply. There was a soft crack, the wolf let go of my paw, after which he was kicked back by my hind paw. Without letting him come to his senses, I jumped on him, and, pressing him tightly to the ground, tried to tear off his head with my sore right paw. Stepping over a bout of lingering pain, I made a sharp jerk and tore out the head of this half-naked by the roots, and then threw it on the ground next to it and with the last blow smashed the head of the tree elemental to smithereens. Finally, the fight was over. I sat down wearily, trying to catch my breath and come to my senses. «I didn't know that I could stand up for myself like that, much less kill four predators at once, even if they weren't alive in the full sense of the word», — I shook my head, sighed, and continued the thought, — «Is it possible that the instincts of the body and "memory" are making themselves felt? Or maybe the adrenaline is so encouraging? Certainly». My heart was pounding like crazy, and my breathing was getting short every now and then. I looked around the «battlefield» and began to examine myself for wounds and bites, eventually noticing only a trace of several teeth right at the tip of the tail near the leaf-shaped «tip», on the left front and right back. «They've been beaten up after all», — I thought, but suddenly the pain intensified and it was difficult to tolerate it, which made me growl again, — «It seems that the adrenaline is slowly subsiding, and the unpleasant sensations are returning. I need a rest». But after one problem came another. Suddenly, I heard someone talking and immediately became worried - someone was approaching. I tried to retreat to the nearest bushes to hide there, but I tripped over a root and unpleasantly hit my muzzle on the ground. «As in battle, he is so cool, but as in a normal situation, his body is like cotton wool», — I groaned in my thoughts, climbing awkwardly again. The voices were getting closer, and as far as I could hear, both voices were male. After a couple of moments, I was able to make out the language they were speaking — english. But the most interesting thing here was that I understood it as if I had been speaking it all my life, although I didn't actually know english. I listened, trying to make out the words, hiding in the nearby bushes along the way. — I'm telling you, King, I definitely heard a noise in that direction — I heard the voice of the first intelligent male. — Of course, I heard it too, but don't you think we've gone too far from the patrol site?ᵉ — The second one, whose voice turned out to be more hoarse, was indignant. — Still, we have to check what happened there. Suddenly someone is in trouble! It's our duty to save him, isn't itᵉ? — the owner of the first voice answered, who seemed younger and more sonorous. As they approached, I had already reached the highest and thickest bushes where I could hide, but behind me I heard surprised gasps and the subsequent clang of weapons. — In the name of the Great Goddess Celestia! It's a dragon! — the owner of the young voice gave himself away for some reason in russian. «Celestia? A goddess? What a...» — Before I could think of a thought, the second guard interrupted her. — Stay where you are, dragon! This is a forbidden land for you! — said the owner of the hoarse voice, also in russian. I turned around, finally saw the guards firsthand. And what I saw, to put it mildly, puzzled me. «A pony? Intelligent ponies? Did I get into the setting of the animated series My Little Pony?!» — I was really surprised, but I rejected such thoughts for now and decided to answer the interlocutor in the same english language. — Why is it forbidden? Are dragons forbidden to be in this forestᵉ? — I said it with almost no accent, except for some growling, and then blinked in surprise, amazed at my speech. «Wow! I didn't expect that I growl when I speak! Whoa!». — Uh... Sergeant... look at the clearing! — said the young black stallion, meanwhile continuing in russian. The pony's mane and cutie mark were covered with armor, so I couldn't pinpoint who he was. While I was looking at him for these few moments, he was looking at me with fear. The young pony, on the other hand, was addressing a gray stallion with gray hairs in its coat. He looked around the clearing, stopping his attention on the bodies of the wolves, and then significantly grunted. — You're right, private. This is a really dangerous opponent, — he said calmly. — But he killed four wolves and... — the young stallion persisted, trying to say something, but the sergeant immediately interrupted him. — We will escort him to the palace, — he continued the phrase in his own way, too suspiciously and imperturbably. — Are you sure this is a good idea? — The soldier asked his senior comrade timidly. — The two of us can't handle him, — he stated the fact, — But I am sure that he will voluntarily come with us. — And he'll be in jail, — the young man grinned, glancing at me. — The princess will decide, not us, — the older stallion shook his head, — The case is too unusual, so we will take him directly to the princess while she is still in place. «They talk as if I'm not here!» — I snorted irritably, looking at the surrounding forest. — But... what if something happens to Princess Celestia? And if it's with someone else? — the black stallion began to ask. Apparently, the young stallion was a pegasus, judging by the way something moved on both sides of his body, under the armor. He pointed his spear at me when I snorted, which he held quite unnaturally, as if it were glued to the hooves. However, for some reason, the sergeant continued to behave very naively and carelessly compared to his subordinate: — Nothing will happen, — the aged stallion looked at his young colleague, — Celestia is the most powerful magician of all who live in Equestria! Both stallions looked at me again, and the stallion with the hoarse voice chuckled softly, looked at his friend and continued: — She is able to neutralize him with a single movement of her hoof! The stallion proudly tapped his hoof on his breastplate, — You're worrying for nothing, fighter! — So we have nothing to be afraid of? — the young guardsman still asked his colleague fearfully, but seeing his gaze, he stood at attention, lowering his spear at the same time, — Sergeant understood you! I just watched their conversation with some surprise, because it is not possible to see talking horses, even if they are small, every day, especially under such circumstances. «Either I'm so tall, or they're so short,» — I noted to myself, scratching the back of my head with my claws, — «They both, except that they reach my chest. This is despite the fact that I'm standing on all fours.» While they were talking and deciding what to do with me next, I decided to explore the forest around me again. After lingering my gaze on the trees, I noticed that they were not as tall in the Evergreen Forest as I initially thought. Well, then it remains to remember the canon of My Little Pony and think how many differences I will find here from the animated series. «I'm not sure, but if I lean against these trees and stand on my hind legs, they will be several heads taller than me. Although this is not accurate. So it's me who's so big, not them who's so small. If I get the chance, I'll figure out my size». I looked at him sternly, which made him shiver and back away, then looked at his unflappable partner and calmed down, still holding the spear in front of him. — So be it, I'll go with you, — I sighed, pronouncing with a slight growling accent, — But if you decide to attack me, then I won't stand on ceremony, — I shook my index finger at them, grinning. They didn't answer anything and led me through the forest, and I followed them. As I progressed, I moved more confidently and the pain faded away, which should have raised questions for me, but I did not give it any importance, because I wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. We walked in silence until we came out of the forest and set off down the road. At one point, we turned off it to the side and walked around Ponyville without being seen by anyone. All this time I was immersed in my thoughts with my head, but at the same time I tried to sort out the road in front of me. «I am only now realizing, when there is no immediate danger to my life, that I am alone here. There are no beings close and dear to me in the world», — I took a deep and bitter breath, — «I will not be able to talk to them anymore. I don't know anyone here.… No one needs me here.… And it makes me sad. Nevertheless, popadanstvo has a very unpleasant disadvantage, which lies precisely in this». I looked around at my companions, and then a deep sadness began to weigh on me. «Even if I find someone here with whom I can have a relationship, it won't be the same... although maybe it's not that bad? If this is really not a hallucination or a dream, then I have to live here. The only question is — for how long?» We came out on a large hillock, and I saw in the distance a mountain on which a large luxurious palace was located, proudly towering in the fog. «This is Canterlot... the pearl of this country», — I determined, but the poke of a spear on my paw brought me out of my thoughts. — Do you like the view, dragon? — with a malicious grin on his face, the young stallion said, looking at the palace and inhaling the fresh night air. I didn't say anything, but it was impossible not to stare at such a sight. The palace was beautiful in every sense: the lights from its windows burned brightly, its domes reflected the silvery light of the moon, which made it look like iridescent in various colors. And it was executed neatly and beautifully. Soon we continued our way again in the direction of one of the slopes of the mountains, which made me a little surprised. «Why go to the foot of the mountain if it would be easier to walk straight through the capital city to the palace?», — I thought about it and then it dawned on me, — «Oh, yes! There must be a secret passage in the mountain! Wow, the prudent Celestia turned out to be, I must pay tribute. Medieval-type castles were always built with the possibility of exit from the other side if the castle was besieged. And soon I will see her, and then I will be able to judge for myself how good or bad a ruler she is». While we were walking, I looked at the local moon for the sake of interest and saw the face of an alicorn on it, which occupied almost the entire surface. «Has Nightmare escaped from captivity yet? Wait a minute! What year is it now?» — I was seriously worried, remembering the canonical events of the TV series, which I did not know very well, however. However, it could not be forgotten — after all, the first episode. Meanwhile, the stallions began a dialogue among themselves, and I decided to listen to them for nothing to do. — Tell me, Star White, have you seen many dragons? — The young man asked. — First of all, just a few, besides that nerdy Twilight Sparkle's personal servant, and secondly — address me by my rank while we're on duty, do you understand? — The stallion said angrily in his hoarse voice. — Sorry, sergeant! — the younger stallion quickly apologized, standing at attention. — At ease, private! — the sergeant raised his already iron tone again. — We have to deliver this dragon to Celestia so that she decides his fate, and the rest is not our business. The royal guards will most likely take care of this. — I understand, I understand — having answered in the affirmative, the black stallion relaxed his posture and went on after his senior comrade. — And what do you think, today is the Day of the summer solstice, and according to legend, a monster named Nightmare Moon should be freed ... — the private did not have time to finish his thought, but he was interrupted. — This is bullshit! Better think about the service, soldier. — I'm sorry! — the young stallion stood straight in place again. — That's enough already! Let's go! — Sighing heavily and shaking his head, the sergeant walked on. «They can still speak russian... then why did they speak english in the forest then? Probably, this is due to the traditions or habits of the local nobility, among whom is also Celestia. Yes, it probably is». — Excuse me, dear ones, — I turned to the guards, — but why did you speak another language recently? They both looked at me like I was an idiot, but then the older one answered anyway: — Force of habit. — Then why have you decided to switch to another one now? — I continued to ask questions. The stallions exchanged glances, and then the elder nodded to the younger and continued: — You shouldn't care about that, dragon. However, I can only say that our immediate superiors are involved in this. Not quite satisfied with the answer, I sighed heavily and wandered on with the guards. After a while, we came to the very base of the mountain, where, at first glance, there was nothing but bushes slightly larger than a standard pony. The two guards talked about something, and then performed simple manipulations with their hooves on the surface of the rock, and finally a piece of rock moved aside, revealing a view of an extremely wide dark passage. I tilted my head towards the aisle and looked inside. My eyes actually got used to the darkness immediately, and I began to see as well as I had seen before. Inside there was a huge room, even by my standards, where in the corner there were parts of iron rails and wooden bars, and in the next corner there was a railway cart without wheels. This room could have accommodated a train of three cars, but there was not even a rail, which contrasted with the intended purpose. I entered first, after which my escorts followed me. — They haven't started building a secret railroad yet? — the young stallion turned to the old one. — Apparently not, — he replied sullenly, — It's bad. When I see Gray again, I'll shove his papers between his ... — the elderly stallion did not have time to express his indignation to the full when he met my gaze, and then switched to «english». — It doesn't matter! — he shook his head, — Let's move on, Celestia won't be able to wait long. We walked on in silence, passing through a dimly lit tunnel, occasionally stopping at intersections to go in the right direction, after which we rode freight elevators several times. Finally, we reached the premises under the palace itself, as my fellow travelers themselves said that we had arrived at the place. The rooms became somewhat smaller, but I could still move around them on all fours, pressing my wings tightly to my back. Several times my tail did catch something, reminding me that I was bitten, giving myself a dull pain when colliding with objects. This clearly infuriated my companions. «It seems to me, but according to their emotional background, they definitely don't like what they got involved in, and it's worth keeping silent about my clumsiness. No, of course, I have always been distinguished by increased empathy and developed intuition. However, it seems to me that they have escalated», — I replayed in my head. And not to say that I was wrong, because everything pointed to exactly that. We entered the premises of the palace, opening the painted and gilded doors. The first thing I noticed was the stained glass windows. They, as in the canon, showed scenes from the history of this country: the reunification of tribes, the transformation of Discord into stone, the fight with Nightmare Moon… — Your Highnessᵉ! — a young stallion stood at attention, and, having given a military salute, strangely twisted his leg towards his head, addressing someone in front of him, — We have discovered a dragon in our landsᵉ! — Very interesting, — a familiar female voice sounded from my side, while I was looking at the stallion, — Where is the nameᵉ? — In the Eternal Wild, Your Highness! — the guardsman sounded like a textbook. I turned my head in the direction of the female voice and met the gaze of the pink eyes of the white horned horse, which was directed at me slightly from top to bottom. «Is this Celestia? Is she taller than ME by half a head?!», — a thought stuck in my head. The very sight of her was awe-inspiring: he was so epic compared to the rest of the ponies. It was even impossible to describe it in words: she looked much more beautiful than in the animated series, if compared with horses, of course. Snow-white fur, a fluttering ephemeral rainbow mane, large feathery wings, and eyes seemed to radiate light. At the same time, while I was contemplating the princess, Celestia turned to me personally: — What are you doing in these lands, dragonᵉ? — she narrowed her eyes, — Do you know that dragons are not welcome in Equestriaᵉ? She snorted contemptuously, as if exuding an aura of quiet anger. It surprised me a little, considering how she was in the canon. «Do I really see the dark side of Princess Celestia now? As they say: reality often turns out to be completely different from fairy tales» — I'm just a simple traveler, — I was genuinely surprised, forgetting what language I was speaking, — I didn't know that dragons weren't allowed here. — Do the dragons speak New Equestrian yet? — The sunny-faced mare tilted her head to one side, slightly surprised and switching to Russian, — You're not from the Dragon Islands, are you? I just nodded, trying to put my thoughts together to come up with an option to concoct a plausible backstory of where I came from here, but nothing came to mind. Celestia wanted to continue, but the guard who came up distracted her by saying something. I didn't listen to the dialogue, but after the report, the princess looked at me again and took a deep breath. — Today is the Day of the summer solstice and I must definitely be at this celebration, — pausing for a moment, as if enjoying her majestic voice, she continued, — That's why I won't be able to decide your fate now, dragon, — she looked at the guards who stood in the hall and gave a sign with her hoof, — Take away put him in jail and do everything so that he does not escape. The guards all moved towards me in unison and stood around, preparing their weapons in the form of spears and long swords that hung on their side on their armor, pointing at me. «Well, I got into trouble... I got to the very beginning and already into the thick of it,» — I summed up with irony, looking at the guards around me. Looking at the guards and Celestia herself, I noticed that the surrounding "ponies" are completely different from their prototypes in the cartoon series, rather they look like very real horses that exist on Earth, except that the colors of the mane and wool seem strange. However, what hooked me the most was the location of the eyes. They were positioned not like those of terrestrial horses, but also not like those of humans: rather like something in between, allowing them to look almost strictly straight. Also, the eyes themselves were not huge, like saucers, which pleasantly calmed me down. It was like a stone had been lifted from my shoulders. Previously, I couldn't really assess the size of the pony's eyes and anatomy due to the fact that the first ones I saw were in armor, but now looking at Celestia, I was able to assess it properly. Meanwhile, the white mare adjusted the tiara with magic and, after checking the hoof on her leg, headed for the exit. Suddenly I heard a soft pop, and looked in the direction from which the noise was coming. Judging by the reaction of the guards themselves, they did not hear anything. The next moment, I heard the sound of glass falling and drew attention to the stained glass window with the battle of Celestia with Nightmare Moon, noticing that there was not one piece in it, although before that, when I looked at it for the first time a couple of minutes ago, it was there. The full moon shone through the hole, clear and white. «Wait a minute! There is no alicorn face, which means…» — Oh no... — I could only squeeze out of myself, as the next moment the glass cracked, and something black flew into the room, knocking the white alicorn off his feet and throwing Celestia a couple of meters away. The guards had no time to react in any way, as they were stunned by such wild, insane laughter that even it made my head ring. I put my paws over my ears and closed my eyes, trying to fight the pain, which I managed to do with a sin in half. When I opened my eyes, I found myself surrounded by unconscious guards, and in the center of the hall was still unconscious Celestia. I looked through the ripples in my eyes, trying to make out something black that was standing right next to her. After a few seconds of time, according to my inner feelings, I was able to make out this black person — it was Nightmare Moon in all her black splendor, dressed in her light armor made of metal unknown to me, shining in the moonlight. — You're pathetic! You're weak! You cowardly mare, — Nightmare Moon's voice echoed, — Get up, fight and defend your honor or die with dignityºᵉ! Nightmare Moon, although she looked somewhat emaciated, was graceful and strong. She reeked of malice, revenge, and the pleasure of her opponent's pain. She seemed physically several heads bigger than Celestia, which was only confirmed by the fact that I looked up at her from my position. «First the wolves, and now Nightmare herself? Are you kidding me? I was able to fight off the first ones with difficulty on instincts, the desire to survive on adrenaline, and here is one of the most powerful creatures in this country, if not in the whole local world… Fucked up!», — I thought quickly to myself, thinking what to do in order to distract Nightmare from the white alicorn mare. The only thought that hastily came to my mind was related to the helmet of the guardsman closest to me, which fell off his head. Namely, to throw armor at the ink mare, which I tried to do. Alas, the result was natural: I missed. — Ha! — Nightmare burst into loud laughter, — Did the white ass have a dragon-shaped animalºᵉ? Only to call it a disgrace and you can do itºᵉ! — She said with a crazy smile, baring her teeth as sharp as teeth. I would not like to check how dangerous they were to me. — Shut the fuck up, you horny motherfucker, before I bite you in halfᵉ! — I shouted back at her with an angry growl. The only response to my harsh remark about her was the astonished face of Nightmare Moon. I did not wait for her further actions, and, jumping up abruptly, rushed forward, rapidly overcoming the distance. I had already knocked the mare down, but at the last moment I tripped over something myself, which caused me to fall to the ground with a loud crash, having driven forward several meters by inertia. — ARE YOU HURTING USºᵉ?! — yelled the royal Canterlot Nightmare, getting up from the floor. — You didn't know the pain yet... — I got up from the floor, looking straight into her eyes, growling angrily. — WHAT KIND OF STRANGE LANGUAGE DOES THIS LITTLE ANIMAL USEºᵉ? — Unknown to you... — I growled, getting angrier and slowly bypassing my opponent from the side, watching her movements. — Where did you come from, little beast? — Suddenly, the black parody of Princess Luna asked with sincere curiosity and, lowering her scream. — Do you really want to know thisᵉ? — I asked, narrowing my eyes. — Noºᵉ, — she replied, completely emotionless. — That's what I thought.… At this time, I heard the clank of armor on the right, and I was distracted for a moment, making an unforgivable mistake in combat and tearing my eyes away from the enemy. When I looked back at the black mare, she had already covered half the distance to me and was rapidly approaching. But when there was a distance between us that was several times my size, time seemed to stop. And I began to think feverishly, faced with this. «Has time stopped? Or did I speed up so much? There she is, frozen in the air, an inky bitch flashing her fangs, glaring at me with a furious stare. It's even fun to watch… Wait a minute! While I'm in this state, I'll be able to think through tactics and calculate her movements in advance. This is amazing! So, do not lose concentration, because I am not sure that I can repeat this effect, and even more so I do not know how long it will last. The only thing that really bothers me is the fact that I can't move anything except my eyes and I can't breathe. If the first is tolerable, then the second begins to bother me more every moment, although now I don't even feel my heartbeat.… But I feel like I'm going to suffocate soon. How can I get out of this state, Erase the emptiness?! Stop! I think I know!» I began to exert my will, slowly, as if through thick jelly, moving my paws and fingers and trying to take a breath, simultaneously watching Nightmare Moon, gradually deviating to the left from the trajectory of her movement. When she ran up almost to me, I decided to grab her by the base of her neck with my left paw and knock her down, still being in a state of "slow time". My idea was successful, and I was able to grab her by the base of her neck, then pulled her towards me and up, intending to hit her on the floor. At that moment, the "slowing down" effect ended, and I abruptly felt the full weight of this mare when I finally brought her down to the floor. Such a heavy blow echoed loudly throughout the hall. I released the distraught mare from the grip of my paw and felt a sharp, intense pain in my wrist. «Holy shit! I didn't think it was that heavy!». Distracted by my thoughts, I missed a kick with my hind legs right in the face, and, flying back a little, fell on my back. The pain in my paw and muzzle was accompanied by pain in my spine and wings, which I tried to press tightly against my back all this time so as not to inadvertently damage. But I recovered from the blow almost immediately, because they were already preparing to knock me out with hooves, and in order to avoid such an unenviable fate, I had to roll aside several times, after which I was able to stand up. The front left paw ached even more in response. I even had to stand on my hind legs to avoid damaging it even more, but the anatomy of my body, which, apparently, resembled something between anthropomorphic and animal forms, did not allow me to straighten my back completely. «Damn back. Damn paw… Everything is against me — I can't even straighten my back completely. But at least I'm in my real body, and that's good», — I said ironically in my thoughts. I had always imagined myself in the form of a dragon before and again caught myself thinking that I was glad to be myself again. However, at this time it was not up to such thoughts, because the enemy was obviously stronger than me, although he was somewhat insane, apparently. Now that I was looking at Nightmare Moon, I was able to evaluate her properly, and at the same time I noticed that the mark of my claws on her neck remained very impressive. But despite the damage she received, it did not cause her any inconvenience, moreover, from her expression on her muzzle, it did not look like she noticed the pain. Instead, she said with a malicious smile: — We see that you are a good warrior... BUT IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DEFEAT USºᵉ! — She yelled the last words in Royal Canterlot, so that my ears rang again. She charged again, but this time not forward, but zigzagging to confuse me. She almost succeeded, but at the last moment I was able to put my right front paw under her blow, and immediately regretted it, because the pain from the blow swept through the entire limb and even hit the base of the neck. All I could do was turn the pain into anger and exert the will to endure it, defending myself and waiting for the moment to counterattack. I missed several more of her attacks on my paw, trying to block, getting new attacks of severe pain. After the next blow, I focused on my inner feelings, as it happens to me when I experience severe physical pain, starting to reduce its significance, transferring it from the category of «hindrances» to «useful». Thus, I tried to translate the pain into the force with which I wanted to hit my opponent, noting along the way that the pain began to bring some kind of perverse pleasure. A few more punches and here it is — the moment for a counterattack, which I took advantage of, hitting the mare with my left paw, spreading my fingers to the sides, and exposing razor-sharp claws. The blow turns out to be strong enough to force Nightmare to retreat a few meters back and give me the opportunity to recover. Breathing heavily and savoring the pain, I watched her while she staggered on her feet and tried to come to her senses. She looked up at me with a look full of hatred and on her right side of the muzzle I saw an impressive wound from my claws. Such wounds would have scarred anyone for the rest of their lives, if they hadn't killed them at all, however, after a few moments the marks disappeared, as if I hadn't struck the ink mare. «Are alicorns able to regenerate that fast?.. I'm fucked». — YOU MADE US ANGRY! WE WILL DESTROY YOU AND EAT YOUR SOUL! — shouted Nightmare, beside herself with rage. She once again rushed at me, this time using magic and teleported closer so that I did not have time to react and, as expected, I did not have time to block another blow. Knocking me to the ground, she gave me another hoof kick in the face. While I was lying on my back, the lady of nightmares forcefully put her foot on my throat, pressing harder and harder. I tried to throw her off, but instead I heard only a strangled wheeze. I hit her sides with my paws, scratched, whipped with my tail, but the wounds on them immediately healed, and her pressure did not get any less. It began to get dark in my eyes, and with the last of my strength, I tried to pull her head to me and bite something off. However, when our eyes met, the space around me darkened, and I seemed to lose consciousness, falling into a black void.

***

For a moment I thought it was the magic of the night pony. However, it seems that she helped me, because I woke up lying on the floor of the palace, where my fight with Nightmare Moon was. She was standing on top of me, still looking into my eyes, but with a conscious look in which there was interest mixed with fear, and on an empathic level it was felt. I took advantage of this moment to throw her off with my left hind paw. Coughing from being without air for a long time, because she was standing on top of me and choking me all the time. Fortunately, I was a dragon again, so I came to my senses pretty quickly. A few deep breaths and I turned on my side, noticing out of the corner of my eye how a black shadow jumped through the broken window and disappeared into the night. The pain in my whole body returned abruptly, which made me growl loudly, breathing raggedly. Trying to regain my breath, I tried to relax, and then I began to examine myself, finding that on the right side of my body, near my shoulder, a trickle of blood was flowing from me, and the scales on it were dented, as if it had been hit many times with something blunt and heavy. I also noticed that my right paw hand and fingers were turned at an unnatural angle. I grimaced, but decided to carefully examine this injury, eventually coming to the conclusion that it was not a fracture, but an ordinary dislocation that could be repaired. Fortunately, I had previously studied medicine and did not disdain to watch videos on this topic, so it was not difficult for me to fix dislocated body parts. A couple of disgusting crunches, and everything is in place, and the pain goes away. I also stretched my sore shoulder on my right paw, checked my neck, turning my head to the sides. During one of the turns, I noticed that something was wrong with my lower jaw: I couldn't move it or close it. I touched it with my paws, and, alas: it was also dislocated to the left side. Fortunately, I also knew how to set a dislocation in my jaw, but I had to do it carefully. Another crunch, and this time a sharp pain begins to haunt me, which makes me close my eyes. Apparently, I did something wrong, so — one more careful move, and finally everything is fine. Further examination at first glance revealed no damage and I began to think about the situation. «Fuck… How it hurt, bitch... oh! And the scales are sensitive, wow,» — I thought, jumping from one topic to another as I ran my paws over the scales. Unfortunately, it was my habit — to jump from one thought to another without completing it. But I couldn't help myself, so I had to live with it. After making sure that everything else was in order, I stood up on my hind legs and stretched my paws. «That's what a real fight means, not a brawl with bullies.» I felt someone's eyes on me and turned my head sideways, noticing the same black stallion that I met on patrol. He looked at me with fear and horror in his eyes, literally standing on shaky legs. I also heard a lot of moaning around me — as the stunned guards of Celestia awoke. — Princess Celestia! — the voice of one of the guards was heard, who ran up to the motionless body of his ruler and bent over her, trying to bring her to her senses. When all the guards woke up, the princess also gave her voice, who got to her feet with loud groans and shook her head. She was immediately surrounded by guards, as if children were their mother — she was so big compared to ordinary ponies. Celestia assured them that she was fine. Then she looked at me appraisingly, as if she wanted to say something. But suddenly she was interrupted by the delighted cry of the black stallion, who had been standing and staring at me with fear all this time. — It was incredible! — he shouted with delight, looking at me with deep respect and admiration, — This fight is even better than described by the veteran border guards who participated in the conflict on the border with the changelings! — What kind of battle are we talking about, Guardsman? — Celestia asked, frowning slightly. — Like what? He set such a heat on Nightmare Moon herself that she retreated in fear! — He didn't let up on his enthusiasm, — She ran at him, and he grabbed her and fucked her on the floor, then he cracked his paw and sooooo scarred half a face, uuuh… — He continued gesticulating actively, but his speech was interrupted before he could finish. — That's enough! One more word and you will be expelled from the guard in disgrace! — Celestia spoke sternly, like an angry mother, without raising the tone of her voice much at the same time. «At least someone appreciated how I almost died,» — I thought sarcastically, chuckling. I felt a stern look on me and looked towards Celestia myself, noticing how she was studying me closely. — So be it, dragon, — she said sternly, but a little more gently, — stay here and don't go anywhere until the guards and I return. — Does he need to go to the dungeon, mistress? — One of the guards asked. — Leave him alone, because we have something more important to do! — The princess of the day answered him, — Don't go anywhere from here, dragon! I'll thank you later for saving me. Celestia and the guards left, closing the massive doors behind them and remained alone in the room. «I wonder why she just left me here, unguarded?» — I thought, — «This must be some form of gratitude. Oh well» Suddenly I wanted to help in return, but that's how to do it — that's what was interesting. «What was it anyway? It was clearly not a Void. The mind of a Nightmare? If that's the case, then it's understandable why she ran away — the Moon took control of her somehow... hmm... what if we try again? I think I know how to repeat this consciously! Although where did I get all these abilities from? Too many questions and no answers» After stretching my back and limbs again, I realized that there was no pain again, which again led me to think, but I decided to think about it later. I decided that my main task was — to save the moon and I intended to complete the task. On impulse, I jumped onto the broken window, grabbing the wall with my right paw. The surroundings of Canterlot stretched out in front of me, drowned in impenetrable darkness. But the setting itself was quite romantic, and somewhere in the distance, Ponyville was already visible. The city where the six elements of harmony lived. «I wonder if I intervene, — do ponies recognize themselves as elements of harmony? Or will everything change? After all, it was Twilight Sparkle and her friends who saved Celestia and the others from Nightmare Moon. I don't even know how I can get there before Celestia, but I'd better do it.» — I continued, frowning at the surroundings, — «What if I fly there?» I looked at my wings. I had never flown in this body before, but instinctively I knew how to swing them. Most likely, dragons have it on a subconscious level — it's about the same as crawling and walking in humans. I assumed that the first flight would be smooth and without difficulties, or I wanted to think so. I spread my wings, but I felt a twinge of pulling pain in my right wing, which quickly passed. Looking back towards Ponyville, I felt a little uneasy, because the distance was huge, and I remembered the flight only from old "memory", but my body probably did not know it at all. Anyway, I had a plan to get to the Everglades before Celestia, and for that I had to take off or at least plan straight there. Sighing and deciding that come what may, I jumped off the window and went to the other end of the hall to take off and take off. There was a clatter of my claws on the floor of the hall, and then I pushed off and flew straight towards the night sky. Unaccustomed, when I stopped feeling a solid surface under me, I felt scared for a second, but I overcame the horror that had already begun to infect me and spread my wings, unfolding them horizontally. The wind immediately filled them with air, and I felt something pushing me up by the wings, while the rest of my body was momentarily pulled down by inertia. But soon my flight leveled off, the earth stopped approaching, which means — everything was successful, and it was possible to exhale with relief. I smoothly began to plan in the direction of Ponyville, sometimes lazily flapping my wings and carefully turning my body, as airplane pilots did, trying to adjust to the tailwind. The night was quiet and calm, and only the hum of the air in the ear plates and the rare singing of nocturnal insects and birds broke the deep silence. At first glance, nothing foreshadowed trouble, but I couldn't afford to stop and enjoy my favorite time of day. So I flew for a while, until Ponyville appeared right below me. Unaccustomed, I began to descend sharply to the ground, and then suddenly I was stunned by the thought: I don't remember how to land! Probably… It was necessary to descend in a spiral, and not "brick", as I foolishly did. The ground was approaching sharply, and I no longer had time to slow down, so all I had to do was put my paws forward and sharply flap my wings, hoping for a miracle. I slammed into the ground, rolled over and fell on my stomach. I lay there for a while and couldn't get up, coming to my senses, but in the end I was back on all fours. After checking myself for injuries again, I heard the hum of young female voices from the direction of the forest. I carefully got up on my hind legs and finally noticed six ponies entering the forest. «Wow. Yes, these are the elements of harmony!» — I recognized them immediately. Of course, it was them: here is Twilight Sparkle, and next to her are Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Fluttershy. The latter tried to hide behind the rest of the ponies, fully justifying her name. It seems that they also had the same characters here as in the original cartoon. I crouched down and waited for them to pass by and disappear into the woods that adjoined Ponyville, and then, without thinking twice, followed them. I still had some problems with the disguise — I didn't know how to sneak properly, and even go hide such a carcass, so the ponies turned around from time to time at the noise of branches and foliage. But I managed to hide in time, and they thought it was another beast from the Evergreen Forest. The six of them were climbing the mountain, not even suspecting that not only Nightmare Moon was watching them, but also me personally. I knew what was going to happen, and I waited for something unusual to happen. Soon, indeed, what I had been waiting for happened. The ground collapsed under the ponies, and they rushed down the slope. Those who were pegasus were lucky — they immediately used their wings and picked up those who could not fly. Only Twilight and Applejack continued to rush down. I took it calmly, because I knew that they would survive, even if I did not interfere. And how will I help them — rather, my appearance alone will scare them and, more likely, change the time line for the worse. As expected, Applejack tried to save the lilac unicorn by grabbing it with her hooves at the very edge of the cliff, holding it over the abyss. But in the end, an argument ensued between them, which I knew about from the animated series. — Let me go, — the earth pony said quite calmly. «Amazing! Everything matches. Interestingly, everything here corresponds to the animated series — to be honest, I don't really believe that all the events will coincide one-on-one, but so far all the signs point to this». While I was thinking, Twilight Sparkle had already been rescued by Fluttershy and Rainbow, and they moved on. «And now there's going to be a manticore, right?» — I thought, immediately hearing a desperate cry in the distance. A beast consisting of different parts of different animals came out to the six ponies. The Manticore looked like it was in the canon: a lion's head, webbed wings that somewhat resembled my own, and a tail that looked like it had been taken from a scorpion. And she blocked the way to the gorge for the heroes further. I did not interfere here either, continuing only to observe them. And as I expected — at first the future elements of harmony tried to get through the terrible angry beast by engaging in battle with it, and after an obvious failure, the most shy yellow pony came forward, and it was she who was able to calm the beast, ridding it of the splinter. I just made sure that the ponies had exactly the same abilities as in the original, and continued to watch them from a distance, trying not to attract too much attention to myself. Next, they had to face a test with trees in the dark, and the ponies began to enter the dark thicket of the forest. I stood for a while and thought about whether it was worth following the heroes further, but still decided to turn sideways and try to shorten the road to the ruins of the castle, where Nightmoon should be. A minute later, out of the corner of my ear, I first heard the cry of a pony, but then someone's loud and cheerful laughter came from the forest. Obviously, this was the moment with the song from Pinkie Pie, who was having fun, despite the scary environment, cheering on her friends. Well, they can handle it on their own, and I had my own way. I crept into the clearing next to the forest where the ponies were and noticed a black shadow on it. My muscles immediately tensed: after all, I saw in front of me again Nightmare Moon, who was watching the guests of the forest and laughing softly, but she didn't seem to notice me. At first, I silently crouched on my hind legs, and then slowly began to get closer to her. When I got almost close, the moment of attack came and I made a sharp dash forward until the black mare did not notice me. Being caught off guard, she did not react to my appearance properly, so I managed to pin her against a tree, lifting her off the ground. She kicked and tried to reflexively hit me with her hooves, but despite the weight of this mare, I looked her straight in the eyes again, remembering the sensations during our battle in the palace. I concentrated and slowed my breathing, piercing the opponent with my gaze, and soon the space began to blur again, and as a result, I found myself back in the halls of the mind of Nightmare Moon.

***

This time I was not lying down, but standing, and this time next to the magic dome, which was still translucent, and through it you could see Princess Luna in the shape of a foal. I didn't waste any time and came closer, touching the barrier, but I didn't have time to say anything, because I heard the clatter of Nightmare Moon's hooves from behing. She was already standing behing me, and her muzzle expressed hatred and disgust for me. But now, in addition, a scythe levitated a couple of meters away from her, very similar to the one I saw a long time ago in a fan animation about the battle with Sombra. It looked more like a black battle axe than a scythe, but I recognized it immediately — it was a shadow pony weapon... or a very similar copy of it. «It's even more serious now, isn't it? Well... I need to figure out what to do quickly, or she's definitely not going to let me leave here in one piece. I'm a fool not to have thought this through!» — I made a mental muzzle-paw — «And if you give her a fight. Damn, I don't know how the damage "here" will affect the real world — what if I die too? The prospect is bad» This time there wwere no threatening speeches. Without saying a word, she shot the scythe in my direction, continuously spinning it with telekinesis, intending to behead me. I managed to duck, because I couldn't slow down time, as it was in the form of a dragon, and i had to use only my reflexes and instincts. The scythe whistled over my head and then returned to its place place near its owner, who was furiously exhaling steam from her nostrils, making a loud snort. — The bipod of a white-haired mare, dare you still bother USºᵉ?! My answer was quite simple and obvious. — Shut the fuck up! She let out a war cry again, which actually made me deaf and made me notice too late how a scythe was descending on my head, which suddenly appeared right above me. I didn't have time to jump back to the end, and I managed to be hooked by her aura... of cold? I fell back in surprise, hitting the back of my head on the «floor» and was confused for a couple of moments. However, I did not lie in one piece and i successfully dodged several times with the help of rolls. At some point, I managed to get back on my feet, but the tip of the scythe cut through the road in my direction like a saw and abruptly emerged from the ground, flying right in front of my nose, almost sticking into my chin. I clearly felt an aura of terrible cold envelop me, which made me shudder all over. Leaning back, I almost fell again, but fortunately I resisted. «That's your fucking mother! I won't last another minute unless I come up with something!» — I was thinking, when suddenly out of the corner of my eye I noticed that the scythe had managed to hit the magic shield, cutting a small hole in it. Seeing this, I suddenly thought of a crazy, but perhaps the only reasonable thought that could come to mind during the fight. «And let this horse meat run into its own weapon!» Once again, I dodged the scythe and abruptly rushed straight to Nightmare Moon. I abruptly tried to push Nightmare, which, of course, failed, but it was not necessary — after all, the point was to push myself aside. — What a Tartarus you are — the mare did not have time to finish. Before I realized that my plan had worked, I suddenly felt a sharp pain on my left arm. It was so strong that, having flown by inertia for some distance, I fell and, clutching at a sore spot, burst into a loud scream. My eyes went dark with pain, and I couldn't even stand up, just screaming. A few long moments, which seemed more like an eternity than fleeting moments, and I was able to open my eyes closed from pain and tears, assessing the damage to my arm. Along the entire length from the shoulder to the hand itself there was a huge laceration, from the bottom of which bones protrude in some places, and the edges of the wound and snd soft tissues were covered with a thin layer of ice. And the scarlet liquid trickled down onto the dark floor, flooding it with a pool of blood. While I was sobbing and trying to keep from expressing a new attack of unbearable pain in a good language, I heard something very heavy fall on the water. «Fucking fucked up! I've got a fucking messed up paw!» — I was just thinking, breathing heavily and trying to more away from the pain attack, but then I remembered about Nightmare Moon. Raising my head, I began to look for her, and soon noticed that my opponent was already lying in a puddle of water, and she herself was struck down with a scythe stuck in here side. Getting up and still groaning in pain, I slowly walked in the direction of the shield, holding on to my sore paw. As I approached, I felt cold not only in the wound, but throughout my body, as if it spread from the wound to my heart, as if I had not been wounded in my body, but something more valuable and abstract — my soul. But I hoped it was just a wound, even if it was inflicted by a magical weapon. The numbness in my limb made me afraid, but now I was not thinking about that at all, but about how to free Princess Luna, because I felt that I was doing everything right. When I reached the goal, I feel to my knees and looked through the magic barrier, meeting the gaze of the Luna. The moment I touched it, the barrier disappeared, flashing brightly and falling apart into fragments, and the Luna was free. She was trying to tell me something, but I couldn't understand her, I just moaned and shuddered. «Were those words of gratitude, perhaps? Or maybe... Any questions?» — I thought with the last of my strength. After a couple of moments, the world began to blur again, bringing me back.

***

After a few long moments, I find myself back in the Everwild forest, still holding Nightmare im my strong dragon paws, resting her body against a tree. I was just thinking about how the damage in that fight would affect me here, when suddenly a burning pain piecrced my left foreleg. I let go of the Nightmare and began to growl loudly and swear at the whole neighborhood. «Fuck! How is hurts, bitch! And it's cold inside!» Tears flowed from my eyes, I pressed the paw itself to my body and rubbed it, as if trying to relieve the pain and warm it up. However, outwardly my paw was intact and I understood this, but instinctively I tried to do something with it. While I was recovering, I noticed out of the corner of my eye how Nightmare Moon looked around in confusion, retreating from me, and then abruptly disappeared in a flash of teleportation, leaving me alone to suffer from an attack of rolling pain. However, before she dissapeared, I managed to notice a sharp change in the expression of her face. «Did she seem to have changed and was grateful to me, or was it no longer her?» — I thought, tryight to calm down. — What happened to her now? And what should I do now? — I asked myself, still growling in pain. Now I wasn't sure if there was any point in fighting her, but i still thought I was doing the right thing. It just seemed to me that I had to do it, and my intuition never actually deceived me. Fortunately, the pain began to slowly pass a I was able to at least get up on my hind legs, deciding to move on after a short break. I got to up slowly and slowly hobbled on my hind legs, out of habit, holding my right front paw to my left, trying to determine the way to the ruins of the of the Palace of the two Sisters: all paths should have crossed there. As I moved through the forest, I once again noticed how the pain was gradually fading away, and after a while, I was already moving forward confidently. Along the way, I met a manticore I had already seen earlier, which I successfully bypassed. There was also a pack of familiar tree wolves that did not dare to attack me, after which I saw a cliff and a destroyed bridge. Apparently, Twilight and her company should go through it, or have already passed. Unfortunately, I didn't want to check it, so I decided to act covertly. After moving away from the bridge for some distance and hiding in the dark, I took acceleration and, using my wings to increase the jump range, jumped over the cliff. Having landed on the other side, I immediately tried to hide so as not to attract too much attention, crouching down to the ground. And as it turned out — caution was not in vain: I heard female voices ahead and immediately recognized them as the main characters of the animated series. Means — they are already close to the goal. «I wonder if they've already passed other tests while I was fighting with Nightmare Moon, or not?» — out of pure scientific interest, I thought, but deciding that this question would remain unanswered, I threw it aside. I began to sneak up on the ruins so as not to cross paths with the future owners of the elements of Harmony. Finally, the silhouettes of the ruined palace appeared ahead, and I ducked inside it, using an empty window opening. Without much difficulty, I found the hall where the heroes were now, and, climbing the hill behind him, I began to observe. A scene from the original animated series was unfolding in front of me, where Twilight and her friends were trying to activate the elements. It was a bit surreal: almost an exact repetition of the footage from the animated series, but with real horses in the title role, and not with huge and hypertrophied heads. At first, everything went as it should: the elements of harmony were laid out in front of the lavender unicorn, and she lay down in front of them, trying to activate them with magic. The other ponies left her alone, deciding to wait out this ritual outside for now. Fortunately, they hadn't noticed me yet, which was good. However, at one point, sudden discrepancies with the canon began, which already surprised me: Nightmoon materialized from a cloud of stardust right in front of the main character, however, she did not receive the elements, causing a hurricane, but jumped in front of a purple pony and knocked them out from under Twilight's hooves, literally. — You foals are weakºᵉ! — with a wild laugh, Nightmare spoke, pausing, looking at the six ponies with a frightened, then crazy look, — The old mare couldn't teach you anythingºᵉ! This is a jokeºᵉ? Even we are disgusted by the fact of such a thingºᵉ? The rest of the ponies darted past me to rescue their friend, and a struggle for possession of the elements began in the main hall. However, something was already wrong with Nightmare Moon: she waddled and wriggled — it was more from pain than emotion, and her movements were slowed down and seemed to be difficult for her. «So my fight with her had an effect after all and thus changed the canon? Amazing! Although it sounded scary» But even with the weakened Nightmare, the ponies couldn't do anything. She was already preparing to apply the elements of harmony to them, and I frantically began to think of something to distract her. «Since I willy-nilly changed the canon, that means — it is not a fact that they will win now. What should we do?» Unfortunately, nothing reasonable came to my mind, and I couldn't even help the heroes, because I didn't want to fight again. That's why I took a healthy, weighty stone, about the size of the head of the Nightmare herself, and threw it at her, exerting maximum strength and precision. The stone bounced off her helmet on her head with a crack, and she staggered, and Twilight was able to take over the elements of harmony for a couple of seconds. The Six took advantage of this, and, uniting, they gathered the elements of Harmony and activated all the crystals, sending a dazzling ray of energy directly into the black mare. Time slowed down for me again, as it happened in the palace earlier, and I managed to see that the beam was not iridescent. Unlike what was shown in the animated series, but it was as if it was woven from pure light and ether, if you can call it that. I didn't have time to hide back, just as I squeezed my eyes shut. A ray of light pierced through Nightmare's body, producing such a stunning explosion that it knocked me back like a piece of fluff. During the flight, I felt a strong heat. It was so strong that I was willing to bet that the surface of the sun for me then was like the harshest winter from the Frostpunk game. Having flown somewhere, hitting my back, I fell on my side. I wanted to scream in pain, over and over, but all I could hear from my throat was a strangled wheeze, and my lungs burned as if I were breathing napalm. Of course, I no longer thought about the fact that I had revealed myself to the Six, but wanted only one thing: for this pain to end. And my mind, as if it had heard me, gave me some time to forget, and my body went limp and rolled down the hill. When I came to, I could barely move. My scales, my body… It was all smoking and covered in soot, as if I had been dropped into a hot oven and kept there for several hours. I exhaled air from my mouth and felt smoke coming out of it, and I coughed hoarsely. When I was more or less able to breathe again, I heard a strange sound. Turning my head, I noticed that Celestia's carriage and several of her guards, along with the brightest princess, were landing on the ruins of the Sisters Castle. «It seems that I still managed to get the canon back on track, although my influence was probably insignificant», — I thought, trying not to pass out again However, that wasn't what was on my mind right now. I would like to get away from here, so as not to be seen by others. «I have to go back to the palace!» — one thought was spinning in my head as I got back on my paws. — What... is this… Was it a bitch?! — I cursed the question out loud, trying to move away from the ruins. It was not particularly possible to go yet, and therefore the process was delayed, but it was impossible to stop. «Elements… Their magic shouldn't work that way, much less on me! I wasn't right there. These mares didn't even get hurt, I guess, but it almost killed me. What the hell is this? That's an interesting fucking question. Why did the artifact of the elements of harmony affect me so much, as if I were one of the villains of the animated series? What's wrong with me? Does this have something to do with my nature, which is alien to this world? If so, what should we do? Do I have to shun every Equestria artifact now? It will be fun, nothing to say» I reached the cliff again, but now I decided to follow the bridge, because I had no strength left to jump over the cliff. I tried to leave this forest as quickly as possible so as not to get caught by the Six and Celestia, because who knows what will happen if they notice me. «Why am I doing all this at all?» — I asked myself a question, — «I just feel like I have to do this, but I still don't understand why... it's... strange, very strange». Thoughts about why I was acting this way and not otherwise were spinning in my head, replacing one another, much crazier than the previous one. «What am I even doing here? Why do artifacts react to me like that? What happens if I am greeted by canonical characters, and not just random guards from the ninth row, the fourth from the right?» While I was thinking, I decided to lie down in the bushes for a while and come to my senses, and when the pain began to recede little by little, I fully rose on my hind legs and moved through the Evergreen Forest, making my way through dense thickets and dense rows of trees to hide myself. Being in the circle of my own thoughts, I did not even notice how I left the forest and began to walk along the road to Ponyville. It was only when I saw the first houses in the distance, and the sun began to rise in the east, that I stopped and mentally slapped myself on the forehead — I don't need to go there! I quickly looked around and, making sure that no one had seen me yet, changed direction, hiding behind natural obstacles - like the hills on the very edge of the town - from prying eyes. I got down on all fours so that my untrained back, aching from the load, could rest, and trotted. My paws still hurt, but relatively weakly, and I stopped from time to time just to lie down and endure bouts of pain, so that I could continue walking again. I was heading towards Canterlot, replaying in my head the path that the guards had led me along earlier in the night. At one point, when I felt my body feel better, I even ran fully. As I ran, I noted to myself that galloping on all fours was no more comfortable and familiar than walking on two legs, but it was much faster. «Somehow I quickly adapted to the new body», — I noted to myself, — «This is even for the best, especially considering the current realities» Along the way, I almost tripped over my own paws several times out of habit, because I still did not fully remember how to own such a body, but it was quite an interesting and unusual feeling. «Looks like I jumped to conclusions.», — I thought to myself, shaking myself off after another «near fall». However, despite this, my body pleased me not only with its amazing vitality, but also with its ability to repair damage and fight pain. Finally, I was able to let in a sense of joy for finding my native body. I wanted to scream out loud, but I still restrained myself so as not to give myself away. It was already getting light and Equestria was beginning to flood with the first rays of the sun when I was able to get to the place where there was a secret passage at the base of the mountain. Pretty quickly I found the stone itself, or, more precisely, the sliding wall that covered the passage itself, but I couldn't open it. I tried many options: to dig in, just open, say a code word, even force action — it's banal to tear off the door, which almost broke several claws. But she stood there as if nothing had happened. Sighing, I looked up… And then I came up with only one option in which I could return to the palace without attracting too much attention to myself — to climb the mountain. «I didn't think I'd have to try myself as a rock climber without insurance, but I don't have much time... unless, of course, the guards who arrived at the palace with Celestia and Luna are already looking for me» — I thought gloomily and shook my wings, — «I can't use my wings, because I'm still too weak, and I haven't really learned how to fly yet. I only managed to glide down, and I almost crashed on landing. So the only option left is to climb up». I stood up on my hind legs, and then drove my claws into the gap between the stones and abruptly pushed up, flapping my wings. This allowed me to jump higher and then catch on a higher rock. «And the claws hold no worse than climbing hole punches or whatever they are», — I noted to myself and took this method of climbing surfaces into service if I had to do it again, — «That's another advantage of the dragon body. A man would have slipped down a long time ago». Then I climbed the mountain in a similar way, alternating paws and helping myself with wings, resting my claws on the rock and trying to cling even with the tips of my wings, or rather, with rudimentary wing fingers with claws for small protrusions. It was a long climb, and I constantly had to take breaks — my body and paws got tired very quickly, and it seemed to me that I was climbing Mount Everest itself from scratch, no less. However, when the sun had already appeared more than half over the horizon, starting its movement across the sky, out of breath, I was able to make my way into the courtyard of the palace. I was very lucky that I didn't see any of the ponies in the garden, but it was too early to relax: there were flaps of wings in the sky. I looked towards the noise and saw a flying chariot and pegasus flying around it. «Is Celestia already returning with Princess Luna? Definitely time to tear your claws out!» I immediately found the broken window from which I had flown out at night and jumped in, grabbing the ledge with my claws, but when I stood on the ledge, it broke off and I fell, bruising my nose. Once again, hissing in pain and pinching my nose, I felt blood flowing from it. And so, a few moments later, three guards, Celestia and Luna, entered the throne room, who, seeing me on the spot, froze in disbelief. We stared at each other for a while, but Luna was the first to come out of her stupor and then spoke. — Sister, lookºᵉ! The dragon is here, but where did it come fromºᵉ? — She asked Celestia, looking at me with suspicion and surprise: she seemed to recognize me. Celestia also looked at me for a while, as if assessing me, and then frowned and snorted in displeasure. — This dragon came here from far away, but I don't know whereºᵉ, — The white mare replied, looking at her little sister with a smile. The guards just stood there and blinked, waiting for their mistress's orders. All this time, I was standing on my hind legs and breathing heavily, waiting for a further verdict. — Dragon, did you go somewhere from hereᵉ? — Sunny asked me in a serious tone, for some reason in Equestrian. And then it hit me like cold water. «So she already knows the truth? How would she feel about that? And what will happen to me now?» I was just about to open my mouth to say something, but I was interrupted by Princess Luna: — He saved our lives, our dear sisterºᵉ! — Whatᵉ?! — At the same time, the guards and Celestia herself asked the dark filly. — We were captured by Nightmare Moon, and he got us out of there by fighting her in her mindºᵉ, — Luna explained in a calm tone. Celestia looked at me in surprise, then at her sister, and then back at me. For a few seconds there was incomprehension in her eyes, and then she seemed to come to some conclusion, and the pupils of her eyes widened. She turned to the Moon, studied it carefully, and then ordered the guards to leave the room and not let anyone in. When the guards left, both mares turned their attention to me. — What do you mean by that? — Celestia demanded, clicking her hoof. — What is it exactly? — I asked dutifully, already guessing what she was asking. For a second, it seemed to me that she was going to burn me right on the spot, so much so that there was no way out. — Dark magic. Where did you learn it dragon? — she asked with increasing anger, — Dragons can't do magic! What is it? Did you invade my sister's mind? I stared at the mare uncomprehendingly, trying frantically to come up with something, but I couldn't. — ANSWER ME! — moving to the Royal Canterlot, Celestia was advancing, towering over me in a menacing shining silhouette. I was taken aback by such an appeal to myself that I took my paw away from my nose, but several drops of blood flowed out of it. After a few moments, the realization came to my brain that she was right in some way, and I put my left paw over my nose again. «Now everything is becoming more logical. Entering someone else's mind… The way the elements affected me… Do they take me for a villain or something?», — I thought pessimistically, but before I could come to conclusions, the dark blue mare intervened in the conversation. — Our sister, we don't know what language you speak, but we don't like your toneºᵉ, — Luna spoke in an accusing tone, looking at both of us, shifting her gaze, — Considering that he is our savior, we demand respect for himºᵉ! — The moon princess stamped her hoof. Celestia didn't seem satisfied with this, but she took a deep breath, obeying her sister's will. — Okay, my ray, I'll be polite to himºᵉ, — she slowly moved away from me and stopped a couple of meters from my tail, — And yet, the dragon… How and where did you learn dark magic? — Nowhere, — I drawled, wondering what to say. I spread my paws to the sides and shook my head, immediately pinching my nose back. — It happened by itself. I hadn't noticed this before. — That's how ... — the white mare thought, but then added in a serious monotone tone, — It still does not negate the fact that you used magic forbidden in Equestria. I do not know why you can use it directly at all, even if unconsciously, but you still cannot ignore this. — And what do you suggest? — I asked, turning my head slightly to the side. Celestia thought about it, and thought for a while. Only her ephemeral mane fluttered slightly in the wind, which now blew through the empty hall and whistled through the broken window. — In any case, I can't let you go anymore, I'm sorry. Therefore, I will have to leave you under my wing, dragon, — She took a deep breath, breaking the long silence, — But our relationship with the dragons is extremely strained, and we will walk around Equestria, even with my agreement there will be several… Unwise. — I understand, — I agreed, and looked down. My eyes immediately caught on the traces of our battle with Nightmare, where the claw marks on the floor were especially clearly visible, — But if everything is so bad with you, then I will not be able to walk around like… — We didn't really understand you, but it seems that dragons are being grated on at the momentºᵉ? — The night princess interrupted me with a question, trying to imitate the «modern» manner of speech. — Yes, little sister. We have problems with dragons right nowºᵉ, — Celestia told her, softening her tone a little. — What's the matter? Did something happenºᵉ? — Luna didn't seem to understand the whole situation or pretended not to. — It's connected with politics, it's not worth taking it into your head, ray of sunshineºᵉ. However, the further conversation between the sisters went in a completely different direction, which already confused me. — Sister, do you remember the transformation spellºᵉ? — Scratching her chin, the night princess suddenly asked. Celestia, like me, looked perplexed. — Why are you doing thisºᵉ? — There is an ideaºᵉ, — the Moon replied with a smile, winking at me, — If this dragon cannot walk around our country, then why not become a ponyºᵉ? Celestia and I opened our mouths in surprise at the same time, unable to say anything. «No, of course I understand everything, but why would I?.. Wouldn't it be easier to prepare ponies for my society with the help of propaganda and explanatory work with the population ... A spell, as far as I remember, from the canon it is much more difficult to change the appearance of a living being, and even more so… Emptiness tear you apart! You can't do without rebuilding the body!..». I was rather skeptical about this idea, and I wanted to object, but I was interrupted again, just like last time. — Sister, but this is the most difficult magicºᵉ, — Celestia objected to her sister in perplexity, — It has not been used since antiquityºᵉ. Are you sure you canºᵉ? Even meºᵉ… — Sister, we are not a foal, despite the fact that we have only recently arrived here, we will have enough strengthºᵉ! There was an awkward silence in the hall, broken only by the occasional clop of hooves and gasps. Finally, Celestia sighed and took a step forward towards me, saying: — Okay, but if something happens, then immediately let me knowºᵉ, — Burst out of her mouth, after which the horn of the white alicorn lit up in gold, clearly preparing a spell. — To be honest, my sister, we do not perceive your speech well, but we understand the general meaningºᵉ, — The horn of Princess Luna also flashed at the same time, but already dark blue, — But I hope we will be able to adapt to this worldºᵉ. — Believe me, Lulu, you can do itºᵉ, — The white alicorn smiled at her and took another step closer to me. Then I felt really awkward. Was they going to just take me and turn me into a pony without asking about it? Unacceptable! — Did you forget to ask meᵉ? — swallowing and taking a couple of steps back, I asked them, puffing up a little with indignation. The horn on Celestia's head went out immediately, and she was taken aback. — Oh, yes, I'm sorryᵉ, — The white mare apologized and then came closer to me, slightly lowering the intensity of the horn color, leaning towards me: — I also noticed that you were injured. Let me heal youºᵉ. I briefly examined myself. The scales were still charred, the nose was bleeding slightly, and the rest of the wounds had not healed completely, but they were still the same as they were when I left the forest. Shoulder, jaw, left paw, which was already very badly hurt today — the pain was still felt, although I was already used to it by that time. But even after my brief nod in response to Celestia's remark, I did not feel that this pain was going away, and the nosebleed did not stop. It just itched a little in the places where the wounds were, and that's it. — The healing spell doesn't help, — Celestia finally pulled away from me. There was surprise mixed with anger in her gaze, — If you weren't my sister's savior, I would have imprisoned you for using dark magic, which permeates you to the very core of your soul, for the rest of your life. It doesn't matter how long you manage to live. «Apparently, she really hates dark magic and everything related to it. But what's that got to do with me? Permeated to the core of the soul? No, of course, when I was on Earth, I was interested in researching not quite «traditional» methods of influencing others, developing psionics and intuition, as well as the already high intuition possessed by all those with the beginnings of a «gift», but THIS ... is clearly something wrong here. I have to find out!». When I finally came out of my thoughts, for some reason I noticed the fact that Celestia didn't have any clothes on… Except for the hoarders, a tiara, and a gold amethyst-encrusted bracelet around her neck. «Damn, why didn't I pay attention to this?» — I shook my head, — «I'm not thinking about that!» I didn't know why I often looked at such places, specifically between the hind legs, but I only had to hold my gaze for a split second to determine that even Celestia herself had exactly the same anatomy as real Earth horses. Still, she looks as mortal as everyone else. After that, I turned my attention to the Moon and noticed alarm in her eyes, as if she understood what her sister had said, although she herself claimed otherwise. When Celestia took her place near the Moon again, she lit her horn again, and I realized that it was too late to run and justify myself, and I remained standing in place. A second later, a crossed bright blue ray flew at me, which forced me to involuntarily shield myself with my paws. Fortunately, the loss of consciousness did not last long, and it did not cause any visions or new battles in the halls of the mind. When consciousness returned, I had a firm feeling that I had been exposed to the elements of Harmony again, although now I was lying on my side. My eyes were clouded, and my breath caught in my throat. The sensations were unpleasant. When the veil fell off and my breathing returned to normal, I noticed that there were twelve pairs of hooves standing next to me, two of which were white and one was dark blue. I couldn't hear anything because of the ringing in my ears, which I tried unsuccessfully to overcome, and I moaned again. «How long can you torture me, huh?!» Closing my eyes again and concentrating on the area inside my ears — this usually helped me to endure a headache, I was still able to endure this effect, and regained the ability to hear. — I told you nothing would come of itºᵉ! — Celestia shouted. — But sister, he looks like a pony quite well, even with...ºᵉ — Said a voice belonging to the second princess. I coughed and opened my eyes, which made everyone jump up and move away from me. I tried to stand on all fours, but I couldn't feel my fingers and I couldn't feel my wings. And then it hit me right away… «Stop! Did they turn me into a pony? Then why is Celestia so unhappy? Have I become that scary? Or what?». I tried to get up again, and this time successfully, but it turned out to be extremely clumsy, and not on all paws. Rather, I just lay down on my stomach, tucking my hooves under me. «It was even more unusual than getting used to the dragon's body!» — I thought, overcoming the discomfort and dizziness, — «Oh darkness! When will it all end?» I took a deep breath and exhaled, after which I made several more ridiculous attempts to get to my ... feet, but even that: it came out about the sixth time, and then uncertainly. Standing there, I turned my head in the direction of Celestia, then Luna, and another guard in gilded armor, who was now present in the hall. The first one looked at me with a clearly displeased look, the second expressed more curiosity, and the guard looked very scared at all. I tried to turn my whole body towards them, doing it very slowly, taking careful steps so as not to fall. This seemingly elementary action took me maybe a minute or a little more, but my legs suddenly gave way, and I only miraculously held on to my new limbs. — Am I that scaryᵉ? — I said slowly, barely moving my new tongue, which seemed to make the restrained giggling Moon laugh. — What's funny about thatᵉ? — I asked, puzzled. — You're talking funny, dragonºᵉ, — she said with a smile, which clearly didn't give me any enthusiasm. Just in case, I quickly moved my tongue in my mouth to stretch it, and then I was puzzled by an obvious question: — Now whatᵉ? — Go dragon, get some sleep, and I'll need to take care of my little sisterᵉ, — Celestia gave instructions. «Yeah. Go... the only question — is where?» — Where are you goingᵉ? — I asked more clearly. — My personal guard will show you where to go, — The white mare looked at the guardsman in gilded armor next to her, — So a witchᵉ? — That's right, Your Highnessᵉ! — He saluted, emphasizing the last word, and nodded towards me. — Maybe you can let me know what I look likeᵉ? — Before Celestia and Luna left, I asked them, trying to look at myself along the way. It probably looked very funny from the outside, but I couldn't see anything except my hooves. — You can, — Saying in Russian, the sunny mare shone her horn on her head and at the same moment a mirror moved towards me out of nowhere. I looked into it and carefully examined my new appearance. I really looked like a very tall unicorn pony that reaches the height of no less than an alicorn. Dark purple fur grew on my new body, a shade closer to dark blue, just matching the color of the scales that I had. A dark purple horn grew on my forehead, matching my fur. However, at the same time, the gaze caught on something else, namely: bright eyes with orange whites and vertical pupils. None of the ponies had them, which meant that this was already one of the differences from a real Equestrian. But that wasn't all: instead of a normal ponytail, I had a dragon's tail in the back, with the same webbed tip like a leaf, but the tail itself was also covered with fur instead of scales. The mane on his head was jet black except for the tips, which either shone silver, or were gray and had lost their color. Otherwise — I was no different from other ponies, especially unicorns, because I had a horn on my head, but this is only at first glance. I bared my teeth out of interest and found that they had retained their fangs, which should be in omnivorous creatures and predators, which surprised me a little. It was weird. I also slowly turned to the side to check something else, and saw my cutie mark on the cereal, which looked like a laboratory flask with a green liquid, and a green leaf was visible above it. The only thing that confused me about her was — it's some kind of shadow around the bulb. «Was that what bothered Celestia?» I guessed, although I couldn't quite figure it out yet. It was hoped that at least now things would go up the hill. At that moment, the Moon suddenly called out to me, who was still looking at me curiously: — What should we call our savior? — Stevrian, — I said, — Stevrian Anlas.