>Blood.
>The smell of it had just permeated the air, but now it was gone.
>An acrid scent had replaced it, something like sulphur and burning vegetation.
>You weren't sure which way was up, but you knew one thing for sure.
>You were lying on your back, the shield of your namesake lying atop you.
>Taking a deep breath, you found that you were able to take air into your lungs without much pain.
>Blinking a few times, you attempted to move your arms.
>It took a few moments, but they responded. 
>Heaving the shield off of yourself, you attempted to roll onto your side.
>As soon as you'd gained traction though, you found yourself coughing and sputtering, propped up by only your elbows.
>Retching, you managed to pull your helmet off before vomiting on the dirt in front of you.
>A few heaves later though, you managed to sit up and take in your surroundings.
>Trees surrounded you, and a far off rumble made itself known.
>Taking up your helmet in your shaking hands, you placed it over your head again and sighed as the familiar weight returned.
"Karthus?" you croaked, standing up.
>No. He wasn't here. Why would your squire be here?
>Leaning forwards, you grasped your shield and did your beast to pull it back up.
>Your flail was on the ground nearby, but you'd have to take another moment to retrieve it.
>Once the shield was in your grasp again though, you took note of the ever growing sense of paranoia that was mounting.
>Taking in another deep breath, you stretched and continued to listen to the world around you.
>Were you dead?
>That might explain why you were in such an unfamiliar place.
>Sun shining through the forest canopy above, in such a lovely looking place.
>Yet, you felt very alive.
>Your friends weren't here.
>Nor were the rest of your war-band. 
>Grasping your flail, you hefted the great weapon and shifted around to face the direction of the ever growing racket.
>Now the question remained.
>Friend, or foe?
>Red flashed across your vision as you realized that your friends might be dead.
>Anger surged through you, before you noticed something else.
>A recognizable sound of hooves met your ears, as the ground was pounded into submission beneath them.
>Taking your enormous tower shield, you slammed it into the dirt and braced yourself for any potential charger.
>In an instant, your senses had gone from murky to sharp.
>Battle-lust filled your mind, but also attempted to cloud your true grasp of the world.
>That was, until a being came into focus no more than a stone's throw from you.
>Bracing behind your bulwark, you took it in for a moment.
>Taking in another deep breath, you let anger take hold.
>A monster.
>With the body of a bull, but in the shape of a man.
>Minotaur.
>You'd never seen one, nay, you'd only ever heard tales of such creatures.
>But this was a sight that drove the fear inside you to the surface.
>It was no larger than you were, but thickly muscled.
>Another joined it, and another as they seemed to slow down at the sight of you.
>They were armed with hefty axes, but wore no more than what appeared to be padded clothing.
>Grunting, you hooked your flail into your gauntlet, before pounding your fist against the shield itself as a challenge.
>Another half-score of the creatures had shown up, but they appeared to be more wary of you, than you of them.
>Gritting your teeth, you let the anger flow forth.
>You'd gone into combat for the last months for your own glory, and now you were in a stranger place.
>Maybe the Gods had placed you here to win another kind of glory.
"Face me, creatures!" you bellowed, pounding your shield and stomping your armored feet.
>They snorted while moving closer, but still seemed to keep their distance.
>Until they began to spread, the smaller of them moving to the edges of your vision.
>These didn't seem to be armed with anything more than daggers, but in their perverted grasps they seemed no more than overly large pig-stickers.
>With a great heave, you pulled your shield again from the dirt and a flash of light caught the enormous blade at the bottom of it. 
>At this distance, you could see fear flash in their eyes.
>With a cry, you abruptly surged forward and closed the distance between yourself and the lead monster in seconds.
>It had plenty of time to react at any rate, but found your ferocity to be its downfall.
>Plowing into the thing, the axe fell from its grip and the thing was pushed backwards into a tree with a meaty thud.
>Turning on your heel, you felt a blow glance off of your back as another of the creatures took a wild swing at you.
>Too bad for the monster, that your own wild swing slashed open its stomach.
>It fell with a howl, but you cared not for its cries.
>No, the smell of its foul blood was enough to enrage you further.
>Surging forward, you took to one side and did your best to cut through the split-group.
>"Stop!" one called, but you took no heed of its command as you caught the blow of another axe on your mighty bulwark.
>The swing was powerful and the feedback was immediate, but your momentum was too great to be turned away.
>The tree behind it splintered as you crashed into the beast.
>Blood sprayed up the front of your shield.
"DIE!" you howled, turning to face the next beast.
>Breathing heavily though, you saw the rest were cowering and that their weapons were thrown to the ground.
>Two were pulling at the beast with deep cut on its torso.
>The leader of the group was struggling to stand, but had an arm out in submission. 
>"Stop, please stop." one cried. "We didn't want a fight."
>The fact that they had given up was enough to stall you, if not the fact that they spoke your language, albeit in a more guttural tone. 
>Before you could react though, more thudding hooves from all around you drowned out the half-silence of the forest.
>Flashes of gold caught your eyes as at least two-score horses filled the small clearing.
>Many had bronze-tipped spears that were fastened to leather straps on their forelegs, as well as small bucklers on either side of them.
>Another set though, seemed to be their defenders, wielding great discs of polished metal that they used to form into a spiked wall as the group interlocked around you. 
>Seeing them though, you felt an impending sense of dread.
>They were small, not nearly the size of the great chargers you were used to.
>These beings were monsters too though, their intelligence obvious in their movements as the formed a circle around you.
>Driving you into the center, one began to bark orders to the others.
>Pushing your shield into the ground again, you drew the short-sword from its sheath on your side.
>You'd almost forgotten it in the wake of events, but this must be the will of the Gods.
>Hefting your great flail again, you whirled it in a circle of death before slamming it into the ground with a flourish.
"You may kill me today creatures, but know you will all die with me!" you yelled in challenge.
>You couldn't make out much behind their shield wall, but you knew they couldn't close in much further without shifting their ranks again.
>It was a simple porcupine formation, but it was flawless in its simplicity.
>Your disgust was almost lessened by the sight.
>If not your anger amplified.
>"Place your weapons down and surrender." a voice from behind you stated simply.
>Turning, you looked from opposite your shield.
>A horned beast, slightly larger than the rest ordered you from between the ranks.
>They'd shifted without you even noticing to allow him in a small gap. 
>Taking in his pure-white coat, you noted the purple crest on his breastplate, that led around to the back of his armour. 
"Come and retrieve them." you spat in response.
>The sound of them speaking your tongue made you uneasy, but that mattered not.
>They were the unknown, and were hostile.
>Slapping your shield again for emphasis, you made sure its attention was on you.
>It threw a disdainful look your way, before its horn began to glow.
>Lowering its head, light sparked from the end of the odd appendage, before it weaved around your shield and hit you with a light push in the blink of an eye.
>You snorted, before your eyes narrowed to slits.
"Is that a challenge, beast? You wish to fight The Guillotine Knight in single combat?" you questioned, contempt in your tone.
>Fear at the back of your mind let itself be known, as you considered what might have become of your allies.
>But here and now, your anger was becoming focused on this equine before you.
>Stomping your foot, you glared at him as his expression changed from one of confidence, to one of grim determination.
>"In the name of the Princesses, I demand you surrender! You will not harm innoce-"
"RAAAGHHHHHH!"
>Surging forwards, you charged around your shield and swung your flail in a heavy over-stroke.
>The unicorn stumbled backwards, and your weapon struck nothing but the ground as you brought it down.
>You'd anticipated this, but it didn't make it much easier to recover from the swing.
>Turning and pulling on the great flail, you brought it around in another great arc, shatter the spears of two creatures that rushed forward to defend their leader.
>The purple-clad one pulled back behind his lines, and the gap closed behind him.
>As quickly as it closed though, the circle around you grew tighter as the horses shifted and moved mechanically from one spot to the next.
>This didn't stop your assault though, as you brought your huge weapon down on the closest portion of the moving wall.
>A spear jabbed into your side, but skittered off of your armor as you rolled forward with the blow.
>The creature on the other side of your flail fared much worse than you did though.
>The polished shield dented and shattered under your blow, breaking the forelegs of the bearer and his comrade to his left.
>Four more spears closed on you in this time though, and glanced off of the curved iron that was your aegis.
>Swinging wildly, you pulled back to your shield after shattering more spears.
>The two you'd harmed were already being taken away by their comrades, but you were just getting started.
>They seemed to be using bronze or copper, and you saw the spears that had met your armor were damaged.
>Sheathing your sword, you grasped your namesake and charged into the wall before you.
>As you collided with them though, you bowled through them, knocking four or five aside.
>What you didn't account for though, was the minotaur that crashed into your side.
>Struggling, you did your best to fight against it before another came down upon you.
"Release me and die, filth!"
>A ringing sound filled your ears as you finished your taunt, a rock crashing against your helmet.
>Throwing your weight around, you heard bones break as the beast that took you to the ground had his arm crushed by your weight.
>As you attempted to regain your feet though, your helmet was knocked loose and a great fist met your face.
>Falling back to a tree, your eyes focused on what appeared to be a female minotaur, blood dripping from her hand.
>Her features were soft, hardly recognizable as bovine.
>You'd have mistaken her for a human at a distance, if not for the oddly shaped legs and tail.
>Blinking once more, you turned your head as a flash of feathers came into your vision.
>Some great winged beast was holding your helm in its claws.
>The thought was cut short though as a dozen spears were pointed at your nose.
>You didn't even see the haft of another as it smacked you in the temple, turning your world dark.


>"Rise Anonymous."
>A voice was calling to you, but you could barely make out your name.
>"Equestria has need of thee."
>What is this...Equestria?
>"Rise, Sir Anonymous."
>Your eyes snap open, and you instantly move to sit up.
>Something is holding you down, but as your blurry vision clears up you find a horse the size of a cavalry charger looking down at you.
>Its mane is flowing with magic, and it was adorned in jewelry befitting an empress.
>The eyes bore into you though, an aeons wisdom bearing down on you in the gaze that you beheld.
"What is this?" you questioned, your throat dry and your voice no more than a whisper.
>"I have brought you here, as we need you again Anonymous. It'll all come back to you soon." the voice of the great one tells you.
>She sounded so young and matronly, and yet ancient.
>"Rise." she stated once more.
>Attempting to sit up though, you found yourself bound by chains.
>Squinting, you felt your strength returning to you.
>Closing your eyes for a moment, you attempted to push upwards once more.
>In an instant, the iron links that held you in place were torn asunder as you moved.
>Rolling off of the slat of wood that held you up, you looked at yourself.
>You were still clad in your underclothes, but your armour was gone.
>Moving to your feet, a sudden surge of pain shot through your body and rooted you in place.
>"Come Anonymous, as I've said before. You will remember in time what you are."
"What..."
>You began to speak, but another jolt of pain moved through your body before ceasing instantly.
>Where were your friends?
>Your squire?
>You were surrounded by beasts of all sorts until...
>You were bested.
>Clenching your fists, you turned and took in more of your surroundings.
>You were in a dimly lit room, candles keeping it bathed in soft light.
>It was barren, save for the slab in which you had been lying, and the shattered links of chain upon the ground.
>That, and the enormous pegasus...unicorn...?
>"Come." she said once more, her voice grasping your heart.
>Your anger fell away, and you followed behind her.
>As you exited the room though, you found yourself in a long and much better lit hallway.
>Torch sconces were up on either side of you, and you found yourself able to comfortably walk alongside the great mare.
>"To jostle your memory...you are Anonymous. You've many mantles, but the one that never seems to leave you is the Guillotine Knight." she began. "Pray tell me, do you remember when and where you were awarded that title?"
>You began to think for a moment.
>That was easy! You remem...
>No. No you don't.
"I-I cannot say. What is this?" you managed to blurt out after a moment's pause.
>"I gave you that title when you saved my life, over a millenia ago my dearest protector. You took up the blade of a guillotine in your bare hands and jumped from a second story window onto my assailant. I would have been murdered if not for you." she said, flashes of ancient memories flowing in front of your eyes.
>You stopped your movement, placing a hand on the wall next to you.
>The world swam before your eyes for a moment more, until she came into your view again.
>"That's it. Come Anonymous, Luna wishes to greet you."
>Luna?
>Shaking your head, you continued to stumble forward even more unsure of yourself.
"My armour...where is it?" you inquired, attempting to keep the desperation from your voice.
>"Soon my knight. Soon. You've always had an affinity for it." she replied.
>Suddenly the hallway seemed much shorter, and you were at the end.
>A great oaken door flung itself open before you, and she nudged you forwards.
>You flinched at her touch, but stepped through the portal.
>An enormous chamber greeted you.
>"My dearest, I'm so sorry I made the mistake of not greeting you myself this time, but you're home now." the mare behind you spoke.
>Blinking a few times, you took in the details of your surroundings yet again.
>You were in an opulent throne room. Stained glass windows cast light upon the marble floor, and beautiful chandeliers were hung from the high vaulted ceiling.
>An enormous set of double-doors were at the far end of the room, and a great line of pious were on either side.
>It looked like a king's court-chamber.
>Your vision began to fade again, before a flash of blue crossed it and a loud voice spoke your name.
>"SIR ANONYMOUS!"
>You blink and another large horse appears before you.
>You aren't even able to react in time before it pull you into what you assume is an embrace.
>...were you dead?