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~Author's Note~

This Story Series may eventually have just about anything and everything you can think of wrote into it. You have been warned...

On a side note, I decided to make a dated list of what I edit of my stories, as well as when I edit them. That way everyone will know if I edited the story itself, the title of it, or just the author's note thing I put either at the beginning, or end of the stories themselves. So, if this story shows up in your watchlist even if you have already removed it after reading it, then I may have edited it in some way. Directly below this paragraph is where the date list will be. I will have the dates starting with when I originally posted this story, along with each date where I edited something within the story. Beside the date will tell you what I did that particular day.

7/17/2013 - Uploaded the Story

8/3/2014 - Edited the Title from Prologue to Introduction, added to the Author's Note, and added this dated list

~

This story is my first pony story. It's the 4th story in a series I'm writing, & is an add-on to another story I'm writing called "The Hitchhikers." The two stories before that particular one haven't been started on yet, nor have they had much planning done towards them. As it is, this story still has a lot of planning needing done for it, so there's no telling as to how fast I can get the chapters done & posted. This story, is about a character's journey to find out what his purpose in life is, while trying to rediscover who he himself, really is. It should make more sense as you read the story. Although, the story itself will have much more depth within it. The character's name is Jonwolf, & he is my fursona. There's a very high chance that this story may end up with just about every tag you can think of by the time I'm done with it. (With a few exceptions that is) You'll know what I mean as the story goes on. The setting for the story is set sometime after Twilight became a Princess. You'll know the exact time era as soon as I figure-out which chapter to put the details for it in. Until then, it'll be a mystery....for now <(^_^)>

This story itself, along with the story before it, & the ones that haven't been wrote yet, are realistical stories that contain things from my RL, my fantasies, my fears, my thoughts, etc. I wanted to use as many realistical things as I could, so that the story would seem as real as possible; whether it be me who reads it, or the readers such as yourself. Of course, there will be a few things here & there that are just stuff that fit everything together. I hope you'll love it as much as I do.

For those of you that want to read the story before this one, (known as "The Hitchhikers") I'll do my best to make sure that the links to each chapter of it are posted below this AN. This story will have spoilers to all of the stories before it, even though only the one before this one is online, & isn't finished.

"The Hitchhikers"

Chapter 1 https://www.sofurry.com/view/157858

Chapter 2 https://www.sofurry.com/view/182060

Chapter 3 https://www.sofurry.com/view/255103

I want to put this on fimfiction, but it failed to pass moderation because of supposed "grammar & punctuation" issues that my proof-reader didn't show. It'd help if they told me what the mistakes were to begin with. Me, my sister, & the internet say my grammar is ok, & my proof-reader says the punctuation is ok, so I don't get why it was failed to submit. Many stories on fimfiction are hard to read because of grammar issues, & when compared to this....It just doesn't make any sense at all. If your wondering why the paragraphs in this story aren't indented at the beginning; It's because I copied & pasted it from a word program I used to type it. It wont let me fix it for some reason. I'll fix it when it lets me, & when I get to it, lol. Anyway, Unless I have more to say, or another chapter to post;

Enjoy!!! <(^_^)>

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The Guardians of Equestria - Introduction

I've been an interesting person for some time now. You know; the average kinda guy that got pushed aside at school. My species gave me the strength to do something about it, but I wasn't much of a fighter. I never wanted to fight anyone unless it was needed. That's if you can even call it a fight. For me, it was more of just a self-defense kind of thing that tended to backfire most of the time....Mostly because I held myself back the best I could...

My name is Jonwolf, & I am a bluish-tinted gray anthro-wolf, that seems to either find trouble without trying, or end up in trouble without attempting. I wasn't much of a smart student, but I sure was what most would call a math-wiz. Turns out that I also had a knack for art; That is, depending on what form was being used for class. I was actually kind of thrilled when I found out how well I could do certain things in art class. Of course, even I had my limits. Turns out that drawing things by memory, or things that were very detailed such as hair, fur, leafy trees, or waves; Lets' just say that it just never looked like it was supposed to.

As far as the bullying at school goes; Well, I can't say that the bullying didn't get to me, or that I didn't act out at times depending on how bad it was. But what I "can" say; is that I did my best to stay out of the line of fire when certain situations arose for me to deal with. I also had problems with certain subjects just like everyone else. The class that gave me the most havoc was "English & Grammar." I never could understand how I could speak English, & yet have problems with the class that taught it. Then again, American English isn't considered real English...

This only added to the issues that I had in school. Seems like just about anyone at school would gladly make fun of you as long as they either have, or think they have leverage over you. Even if nothing they used against you made any sense; the way they said it seemed to work just fine for 'm. I've endured bullying my entire life, but I did my best to not let it get to me. Of course, that was on a rare occasion. Most of the time I just did my best to have a comeback worth using so they'd leave me alone for a while, or I'd do my best to keep my mouth shut so they'd eventually get bored, & move on to someone else. Things eventually changed though. Turns out that weight-lifting & baseball were a good match for me. I could lift weights while getting a good workout in the fall & winter, & play baseball while trying to stay in shape in the spring. Most of my bullying problems had either slowed down, or stopped altogether sometime after that.

Things seemed to get better as my school days went on. My senior year was very difficult though. Turns out that when a teacher expects more of you, but switches things up so that you're wrong even though you're supposedly right, you eventually end up with a very chaotic year. If it weren't for the school being able to help me, I probably would've failed instead of graduating. It wasn't without hassle from a couple teachers though; One in particular. I was all set to graduate when things got close to our final testing week. The day before the testing week began was supposed to be an awesome day full of fun. Little did I know that my life would change on that particular day...

Besides school, there are many people that I care for. My family was the one thing I cared for the most. They're also the ones that I use to look up to the most. I always thought that if they didn't like something about me, then I probably shouldn't be that particular something. That was before my mom got the internet though. Turns out that I learned more on the internet than I ever did from the books in school. Of course, being on the internet most of the time did have its disadvantages. Not to mention that I actually did learn a lot from the school. Most of which aided me in just about everything I needed to understand more from the internet itself. On the bright side of things, I was able to keep track of family & friends easier than I ever could have on my own. This was a good thing since my family was a bit huge, & a bit spread out across the nation. One thing about family; is that no matter what they believe to be right or wrong, or believe in general; what counts the most is what you yourself believe. It's your life to live after all, & you have to deal with your own mistakes, not theirs. Although, there are some situations that can change things so that their mistakes actually do affect you in some way or another. (whether it be because of their beliefs, habits, or themselves entirely)....Hmm....I wonder why I keep saying "turns out" & "of course" so much, it's not like the words are forced or anything....Perhaps it's a habit?

Other than my family, I also had friends that I cared for. "Some" more than others; since they were closer to me than the others were. Some of my friends had done many things to help me. I always wished I could've returned the favor, but life sometimes doesn't make things easy to do. There were times that I didn't even get a chance to do things even if they were important. Life was supposed to be easy & simple for the most part, but certain aspects of things had degraded over time, turning it into a confusing mess we kept trying to make better from time to time. Seems like most people didn't want to make anything better for the world we called our' home. I guess some people would rather watch the world burn in its own embers instead of helping put out the flames so the world could thrive with talent; including if "they" were the ones causing the destruction just so they could watch things fall apart...

Things became more difficult & complex; & even the most basic conversations became arguments when the argument wasn't there to begin with; & encase you're wondering why I seem to be rambling. It's probably because I am definitely rambling from time to time within this slightly complex summary of my life; without giving away everything that is. Gotta have something for you to look forward to when asking me about my life, right? It tends to help me keep things going; although, I probably shouldn't do it too much....Especially since things need to move along in a somewhat swift, but descent sorta way....Umm...

Anyway, out of all of my friends, there was one that I seemed to cherish a bit more than the rest. Everyone has a friend like this at least once in their lives; if not several times. Of course, they probably didn't have things turn out quite the way things ended up for me. You see, her name is Esby, & she had been my first childhood girlfriend. I cared for her, adored her, helped her when I could, & loved her with my very heart & soul. Of course, that was before things had changed for the worst. I could say much more on that, but it's a bit painful to say right now....Anyway, there are some others that I cherished just as much; if not more. I could say more on that as well, but I'd need to be asked before I can say anything towards that kind of stuff....I still haven't figured out why I'd need to be asked though. I never understood why things had to be that way.... Then again, I don't seem to actually be talking to anyone. It's like I'm talking to myself within my own mind. Is that even possible to do? To talk to myself without words, or knowing I was doing it until after saying things I normally wouldn't talk about...

I guess if I'm talking to myself, I might as well talk about some things that never made sense to me. You see, I've had many dreams throughout my life, but my dreams are never truly mine. I normally don't have dreams when I sleep. It's hard to explain, but I can say that when I have a dream, it either means something that may be important, or actually comes true however it does. The longest I've ever went without a dream was around 4 months. Not having dreams of my own can be a bit of a curse at times; especially if it's something that shouldn't happen. It has its advantages though. I've been lucky enough to know how to guide certain aspects of my life in the right direction. It doesn't always end up that way though. Not being able to figure out the meaning of a dream that never came true is something that haunts me sometimes. I've even had nightmares because I couldn't figure them out. I hope to someday, but like I said before; it's a bit difficult to explain. "Especially" when I try to thoroughly dissect the dream itself...

Other than the dreams; I bet we all can agree that we all have at least one fear that haunts us. Mine just so happens to be the one that sucks the most, since it consists of all of the worst fears, & combines them together. My fear; is fear itself. It took me awhile to figure it out, but that's just something we have to learn & accept on our own. Others can help guide & advise us, but it all comes down to just ourselves making our decisions alongside the support our friends & families give us. Out of all the things I've feared in my life; other than the fear of me actually getting hurt; the one fear that shows its' fangs from time to time; is the fear of death itself. It's something that tends to haunt me for a while before disappearing until the next time it shows its presence. There have been times that I've welcomed it with open arms, but it never came. I could definitely go on for a while with just that alone, but it's another one of those things that can't be said easily; especially if I really am saying this to myself...

I've always wondered if we actually go to that supposed golden city in the sky when we leave the place we've called home our entire life, but then I wonder if it's more complex & diverse than just being small & simple. Now that I'm thinking about it, is there a chance that I may have left my home without knowing? I don't feel like I've left, nor do I remember leaving it. I remember a few things, but nothing more. I....I remember having a family, & that we cherished each other, but I c-can't remember who my family was. What's....What's wrong with me? It's like my memory is in pieces; like someone has stripped a few of the details from my mind...

Is this what happens when we die? Do we forget the things that may be important to us; if not everything we know about ourselves or the world we're from? Is this what it truly means to die? I don't even know where I am. Am I even safe in the nothingness I've become encased in? What should I do? What am I even capable of doing? What do I even call this place, & how did I even get here? Wait! ... I can see light... It's a gray light... It's dull, & dim.... & I can see it in sprinkles instead of being from a single source, but it's there.... Why? ... Why can't I see anything other than this light? Umm, what is on me? Why can't I move? ... Why are my arms stuck together? ... Am I bound to where I can't move? Am I blindfolded? Is that why I can't see anything other than this sprinkled light? Could that be why I can see sprinkles of light, instead of the light source itself? ... Why can't I speak? Is my muzzle bound as well? ... Are ... Are those birds that I here? Why do I hear birds if I'm supposedly dead? ... What are those sounds I hear? Where could I possibly be? Should I try to scream now? If I'm supposedly dead & alone, would anyone hear me? Is this somehow my punishment for doing something terribly wrong? What did I do that's supposedly wrong? What could I have done that was so terrible that this would be my torment? If there's anything I can think of doing right now; it would be to scream for someone to see if I really am alone; "HHEEEEELLP!" I screamed. It probably came out as a muffled "HHAAAILL!" seeing as my muzzle was muzzled. But ya gotta try before you can move forward, right? ...

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Meanwhile in the Canterlot Gardens

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"Is thou sure that thy report hath speaketh the truth?"

"Yes Princess, our records show that a statue, almost the size of a full grown earth-stallion, if not slightly bigger, stood upon this statue marker; along with eight names that were engraved on the title-plaque just below the marker," the guard told his superior; who could be none other, than Princess Luna herself. She was doing some of her nightly duties as "Princess of The Night"; when she got a message about a sudden disappearance of a statue. Things like this would normally be skipped until Luna's big sister, Celestia, was awake & ready to assist the subjects of Equestria. This was a different matter though, & needed her assistance as much as it required Celestia's. You see, this wasn't just any old normal statue. This was a statue that sat on a marker that was magically bound within the private section of the Canterlot Gardens. Of course, the gardens are welcome for students & tourists to visit; with permission from Princess Celestia that is...

The magical binding keeps anypony from getting close enough to do anything to the statue, as well as stop magical forces from outside the gardens (or the city for that matter) from the same possible fate. This keeps things in order for the princesses to protect their subjects against possible threats from the creatures that were turned to stone. This is classified as "Top Secret," so nopony outside the chain of command was to be told. The Princesses went to great links to keep this hidden from the public; even as far as to bring in extra markers & plant decorations to either make others think that more was to be added, or make it look more presentable to those that have high standards for such things. Seemed like everypony in Canterlot that had enough bits for whatever it was they thought they wanted; had such standards. The fact that a statue from this particular garden was missing was a very big deal no matter which statue it was. Even if it had been a decoration, stealing from the royalty wasn't something you'd want to do; especially since they ruled over all of Equestria. Being two of the most powerful rulers of Equestria was an added bonus to this fact.

"Which statue do thy records say it belonged to?" Luna asked out of confusion as she looked across the title of the statue marker. She had been banished for a thousand years; so she'd know about some of the statues, but not all of them. With her being a mare of darkness for such a long time; there's a chance that she might have forgotten about some of the statues, as well as their importances.

"It doesn't say Princess. According to the records, this was a statue whose title couldn't be read. It was in an ancient language that not even Celestia could read," the guard replied. Looks like this won't be a simple task. Without a name, how else would they even begin to start figuring out how to stop the one that was set free from the garden?

"The fact that thy records tell us this frightens us. We can't tell that thy statue was ever here. We can't even tell that thy title & names of ye statue was ever done either. Do thy records say who engraved thy statue's plaque?" Luna asked. It was the only thing left she could think of for a possible lead in a situation like this. Little did she know that a few things had changed in her absence...

"Uhh sorry princess, but it doesn't. Looks like Celestia may have forgotten to tell you a few things towards how the garden is done now.... Although, I'm not quite sure why she'd keep something like that from you....umm..." The look on Luna's face was one of a bit of annoyance with how the guard said things. The guard was a bit worried as well when he realized how his choice of words sounded. "Umm....sorry your highness, I meant no disrespect towards y-" "Just explain what thy knows about how things work in thy gardens now-a-days. We don't have time to think of what thou could have said when we have bigger things to think of. Like thy statue for instance?" Luna said as she cut off the guard in the middle of an apology. She was a bit annoyed, but there were things that needed to be done. Speaking beyond what was required wasn't one of them.

"Right, your highness, umm....The last statue to be personally engraved was Discord's. Since he isn't a statue anymore, & is free to help us if needed, his plaque; along with the plaques of the other statues, were recycled into new ones. They were recycled after a new spell for how they work was thought of, & created. The plaques are made & placed onto their statue markers. Afterwards, each plaque has the spell cast upon them by Princess Celestia herself. The spell binds the plaque to the marker so that it can't be taken off unless the spell is broken. The plaque magically engraves the statue's name & title once the statue is placed onto the marker. The spell also binds the plaque to the statue itself; that way the statue can't be removed from its' marker unless Celestia were to allow it. How this spell is done is a bit complex though, & only Celestia & the one that helped her create it actually know how the spell is performed," the guard explained to Luna. He wasn't sure why Celestia wouldn't tell her about this change to the garden; especially with it being of such importance. Luna wasn't sure why she'd be left out of it either, but she knew that her sister would have her reasons, & that she'd find out after a while.

"Oh....we didn't know such spells even existed. A spell that complex would be difficult to perform with just thy power, thought, & skill alone....Do thy records show who helped our sister create thy spell?" she asked out of curiosity. She wondered who could have ever thought of a spell that was so complex; that it'd do several things all at the same time without a catch.

"According to our records Princess, the pony that helped her with the spell, was Princess Sparkle," the guard replied with a grin. Luna had a grin as well after hearing that Twilight was the one that helped her sister create this spell.

"We knew that Twilight is an excellent student of our sister, & a perfect choice for a Princess....but it looks like we may have underestimated her, as to what extent thy power & knowledge has to offer Equestria," she said aloud as she wondered how much Twilight could truly offer Equestria if the situation called for it. "Well, we have done what thou can do for now. Our sister is the only one we can think of that may know how to go forward with thy issue. Since she is sleeping, there isn't much we can do until she wakes u....up. Umm....hello sis; is something wrong. Thou normally sleeps until thy day is set to begin?" Luna asked out of confusion. Celestia always slept until her daily duties began.

"Something woke me up. I couldn't get back to sleep, so I figured I'd go for a walk in the gardens. I didn't expect to wake up a full hour before sunrise was set for today....I didn't expect to find you in the gardens either; especially in the "Statue Garden". Did something happen while I was sleeping?" Celestia asked just as confused & curious as Luna was. Luna had her duties at night, but none of them dealt with the statue garden. The guard that was with Luna gave suspicion that something was amiss.

"Something has happened sis, but we don't know exactly how to proceed with thy issue" Luna replied. With Celestia being awake, they could hopefully get somewhere with this statue issue.

"I see you've been working on understanding the modern language of today sis; you've improved a bit quicker than I thought you would. Have your studies been going well?" Celestia mentioned to Luna. Turns out that Luna had improved some of her language with the now-a-day terms; even if it was only a little. It was also a bit of an awkward moment since the two sisters haven't spent enough time studying & discussing things together. It was a bit difficult to do since their duties were the opposite of each other; unless something of dire importance arose for them to discuss & confront together.

"We'll admit that things have been....a bit rough with our studies....We're not sure if we'll ever break free from all of thy terms from the ye-old days, but we'll do our best to speak better with them," Luna said with confidence. She had studied hard ever since she became herself again; in hopes of gaining at least "some" of what she had lost in the thousand years she was gone. Her conversations with Twilight & the rest of the "Mane 6," had opened her eyes to the things she could enjoy better if she could learn to tame herself. Luna's first "Nightmare Night" after being away for so long, was when she had her first personal discussion, & lesson, with the "Mane 6," or at least, part of the six that is. It also was the beginning of Luna's studies, as far as taming herself for social stuff goes. The first thing she had conquered; was her Royal Canterlot Voice. Twilight had taught her well with how to control her voice at certain tones, but everything else could only be advised. It was up to Luna herself to complete the rest of her studies towards social-ship. While she told Celestia about her studies & a goal she had set for herself, the guard that was with her was showing Celestia the record book for the statue marker they stood next to.

"Why are you so interested with statue marker 4?" Celestia asked out of curiosity while looking across the record book the guard had showed her. It wasn't like Luna to be interested in the statues themselves.

"It's not so much of an interest, as it is thy issue as to why we're in the statue garden to begin with," Luna replied as she pointed her hoof at the marker. The look on Celestia's face as she realized what was wrong; was one of shock, as well as fear...

"How long has it been missing?" Celestia quickly asked with seriousness in her voice.

"About an hour Princess; I wasn't sure that the report I received was right until I got the record book & ran over here. One of the night guards remembered seeing a statue here, & didn't see anypony go in or out of the statue garden with it. The records show that something with eight different names was definitely here, but it doesn't have anything more than that," the guard explained while looking back at the marker.

"Sis, dost thou remember anything outside thy records that may help in this matter?" Luna asked her sister in hopes that they may get further than they already had; which wasn't very far. The fear in Celestia's eyes showed that she definitely knew something; no matter how small that something may be. "We were also wondering why thy never told us about thy plaque spell change, or why ye didn't tell us that Twilight had already helped create a spell after finishing one of Star Swirl's final spells?" Luna asked in curiousness, & in hopes of getting an answer.

"I wanted you to get back into the habits of your nightly duties, & helping on occasion; before everything you've missed in your thousand year absence was tossed at you all at once. There is still much for you to be told, as well as understand, before you can fully adjust. Your' first Nightmare Night after all this time should be proof enough of that....as far as the statue goes....I never could read the names engraved on the plaque. This statue wasn't our' doing....it was our parent's doing....it was a foe they had fought & lost on many occasions....Mother once said, that if this foe had ever escaped, that Equestria would eventually fall back into dark times. She said that we wouldn't be able to track such a foe, nor would we be able to see the foe coming when it was strong enough to attack us....She even said that Equestria would be no more if this foe became strong enough....I tried to learn as much as I could about the statues, their strengths, & their weaknesses....But mom wouldn't tell me certain things about them..." she explained as she did her best to remember everything about this statue.

"Was thou able to learn anything about thy statue, beyond thy records, or our parents?" Luna asked with some fear in her voice. With her being the "Wicked Mare of Darkness," fear wasn't something she'd normally ever have. This definitely didn't sit well with the guard who was now a bit scared. Turns out that if something spooks your superiors; nine times out of ten it'd probably spook you too: especially if these superiors are also your protectors.

"T-the only thing I was able to learn about this p-particular statue....was that the creature looks like a pony, & yet isn't.... & that the eight names of it weren't just names, b-but titles of each part of this no-named creature, along with a saying made towards it back when it was free....the only thing that c-could stop this foe, was somepony that already knew how. Since the information was either hidden from everyone, or lost as times went on, I can't think of anyone that might know anything about it. The one that supposedly stopped it so our parents could t-turn it to stone, passed on to the next life shortly after the battle ended....Th-this all took place before we were born, s-so there are many things beyond o-our knowledge that was lost with him, including his name....The only thing our mother had told me about this particular time era, was that it was a "he" that helped us when we were in times of dire need... ... ... ...I h-hope we'll be able to find somepony; or at least, some creature; that knows how, before this f-foe makes itself known to Equestria, or worse....the world..." Celestia told them as she remembered what she could of the story behind this foe, & the things that happened during that era. The fear in her voice alone was enough to scare even the strongest guard.

"What was thy saying for thy creature's names?" Luna asked as a tear slowly made its way down her face, before becoming a drop as it dripped to the ground with a soundless splash. Celestia thought for a moment before remembering how the rhyme went. A slight chill shivered its way down her spine as she told them the rhyme.

"Eight parts to link them together,

Eight parts to scare them all,

Eight parts that make us fall,

Until only they, stand before us" Celestia said with a worried look on her face.

*thhssssCCCRASSSSSHCSHCSHHHHCSHHHH!!!!*

The Princesses quickly looked towards where the sound came from before looking at each-others' faces. They were a bit surprised as ta what made the sudden noise.

"Which guard is he exactly?" Celestia asked.

"He's thy head guard of thy record keepers for thy "Statue Garden" sis....didn't know that thy newest royal armor for thy guards would be so loud against thy brick-walk," Luna replied a bit shocked at how loud the armor was when it scratched the stone bricks that made up the walking trail in the garden. It sounded worse than thin metal scrapping across a chalkboard. It appeared that the guard had gotten so frightened from Luna & Celestia's fear & worry; that he could've fainted sooner. The saying that Celestia had said probably finished him off.

"Looks like we need to have a discussion with the guards over their fears sometime," Celestia said as both her, & Luna looked back at the statue marker, & began wondering what fate this could bring Equestria. What kind of creature was this? How powerful could it really be? Could it be converted just like Discord? The questions just kept piling up, as the Princesses desperately tried to think of a way to approach this situation. The sun suddenly began to show itself; allowing the Princesses to take over, & move their' respected forms of light into position for the day as the night ended its course, & became a new day...