>"Sing Anon!"
> His voice practically blew out your eardrums.
> As you struggled to push the wheelbarrow UPHILL for four miles you let out a pathetic gasp for air.
> "I said sing!"
"W-Would you do me.... Ah'd.."
> You were so winded...
> "SING!"
> "I'd do me so hard...."
> It came out more as a squeak than anything.
> Ontop of this the sixteen pushups hadn't sounded like much.
> But with your fatigue they had completely drained you.
> "Anon, I'm not hearing singing!"
"Bubheha."
> "What was that even? You know what!? Don't sing for me..."
> You would sigh in relief if you could.
> "Beatbox for me!"
> You would cry in despair if you could.
> Four miles, three hours, and twenty verses of 'dubstep mouth sessions' later you were at the camp.
> All that was there was a luxurious camping cabin and a shabby wooden shack.
> Some weights made of stone were placed about and a large pit dug out for campfires was in the middle of the whole camp.
> Goats milled about here and there, but what bothered you the most.
> It was only you, Iron Will, and the Goats.
> Not a single pony or even anything else was in sight.
> "Halt!" he barked.
> You immediately did as he commanded, happy to have a break at last.
> You just dropped to your knees as he stepped out of the wheel barrow.
> One of the goats handed him something out of the corner of your eye and he turned to you.
> "Eat this, it will fix you right up Flabby one."
> He actually sounded quite sincere there.
> You take the bowl from his hand and look down at it.
> A literal grey slop bubbled in the bowl, warm enough and cold enough to completely turn you away.
> The smell reminded you of road kill...
> Not even wanting to protest you down it anyway, chugging it as fast as you could.
> The taste was just as bad as the smell.
> You pulled the bowl away gagging and coughing.
> But your fatigue seemed to go away...
> I was still there in a sense but very much less so than before.
> Iron Will knowingly smiled.
"These aren't steroids are they!?"
> No matter how bad you wanted it, you didn't want a small dick.
>"No Flabby."
> You really wish he would stop calling you that.
> "This is a special protein supplement that I specifically made. Using plants that I harvested from the Everfree myself!"
> One of the goats shook his head at you.
> "This is what you will eat from now on. Don't worry it has all of your needed nutrients as well as a pack of a punch to help with your workouts!"
> Iron Will flexed and turned to you.
> "This is your life for the next three months flabby!"
> "You will eat, sleep, and exercise!"
> "The trinity of a real man! LIKE ME!"
> Your eyes widened as he was suddenly in your face.
> "Time to get rid of that flab, and get some ab!"
> "ONE HUNDRED CRUNCHES!"
> He pushed you down effortlessly, watching you fall on your back.
> He reached over and pulled out a stone slab that was roughly the size of your torso.
> He dropped it, watching as you scrambled to catch it before it crushed you.
> When you DID manage to catch it, you found yourself without any air in your lungs.
> Oh good lord this thing had to at least weigh 100 pounds.
> "Crunching time Flabby, and make sure to keep that slab close!"
> Your first crunch was painfully slow, as you flopped back down on the ground all the wind left your body again, leaving you gasping for air.
> "Don't fall back too fast Flabby. Otherwise it'll be ten times worse!"
> Maybe you could roll off of the mountain.
> So a brief second you could've swore you heard Rarity laughing...
> The second crunch came easier.
> You sat on a breezy hill overlooking Ponyville.
> The wind whispered softly as it brushed past you.
> A shifting next to you caught your attention.
> You calmly look over as a cyan blue pony touched down next to you.
> "Hey Anon!" she said excitedly.
> You smile at her.
"Sup dash, what you got today?"
> "Only the best for my best friend!" she exclaimed reaching into the satchel etched with her cutie mark.
> She pulled out an unlabled bottle and placed it in between you two.
> Plopping down next to you she popped the cork off.
> "Whatch'a got going on today bro?" she asked before taking a swig.
"Nothing much planned... isn't it a little early for drinking?"
> "Never too early for a drink."
> She shot you a warm smile and turned back to watch the scene with you.
> Nothing could ever ruin this moment.
> When you first came here you were afraid of not making any friends.
> Like some horror AIE story or something...
> But things ran out smoothly for you, like you had always wished for.
"....Dash..."
> She turned back to you with a cocked brow.
> "What's up?" she asked innocently.
> You sigh and bow your head.
"I'm happy to have you as a friend is all..."
>"ooookay.... Kind of weird."
> You look her dead in the eyes.
> She stares into yours.
"I've always wanted friends as awesome as you and the others..."
> Rainbow let out a hearty laugh.
> "Are you okay Anon? You're kind of off today."
> You smile and turn back to the town.
"I'm always fine."
>Never settle there.
> Your eyes shot open, being met with a shabby roof that was riddled with water rot and wood eating insects.
> You bought your hands up and rubbed the sleep out of your eyes, used to being awakened like this.
> Iron Will bursts through your shabby door, Flexing and striking poses repeatedly.
> That's why you were used to waking up early.
> "Wakey, wakey Anon!"
> It's been a little over a month now.
> A month of eating, sleeping, and working out.
> You could only use the restroom three times a day for a five minute period.
> Or latrines as he called them.
> Or lady room.
> Or Flabbys sanctuary.
> You sit up slowly, all of your muscles screaming out in pain.
> You groan as Iron Will let out a loud laugh.
> You were doing good.
> Despite him loading on even more training per your deal he said you lasted longer than most others who tried.
> The longest he had someone last was a week and a half...
> You loll out of bed.
> "You have three minutes to get ready!"
> With that he simply trotted out, pumping his fists and muttering to himself.
> Something had him hyped today...
> You wouldn't ask though, you learned your lesson about asking from the last time.
> You turn around and look over the cabin.
> All that was there were some stained beds, two cabinets, and a crooked door to the restroom.
> You sigh and trudge over to the bathroom, grabbing your shorts out of the cabinet on the way.
> You had a lot on your mind.
> The first thing was the fact that you had been gone a month and not, one pony had been looking for you.
> At least that's what you heard from Will.
> He would head into the town for a restock of supplies every three days.
> And every time he came back he would give you a solemn look.
> Apparently some of the ponies were glad to be rid of you.
> Whatever...
> You start the sink and pull your frayed toothbrush out of the holder.
> Then there was Will himself.
> He had grown softer on you each day that passed.
> Going from apprehensiveness to growing more and more proud each day you turned in for the night.
> He started looking at you like you were his own son.
> Didn't stop him from sticking you in the cabin though.
> Then there was the grey goop, you had no idea what was in it but Iron Will was going to teach you how to make it by the end of the camp session.
> Whatever it was , it was seemingly the only thing keeping you alive and physically going.
> And it somehow had all the nutrients you needed as it was the only thing you've been eating for the last month.
> That and drinking nothing but cold water.
> Soda was empty carbs and beer would get you nowhere.
> His words not yours.
> That doesn't go without saying, he was effective.
> Despite him always spewing ridiculous workouts he always motivated you when the taunts could not.
> After the first week or so he had begun to incorporate Military training and Martial arts training into his training.
> Since you had similar body types he seemed to know exactly what to target.
> Twenty pounds.
> You had shed twenty pounds in a month, courtesy of his training.
> That cannot be healthy...
> But something about that grey goop... it kept you going and just as strong as before.
> And he still had alot more in store for you.
> You leave the cabin getting ready to tackle the day.
> Like usual...
> You're not very excited about it.
> Iron Will stood in the middle of the camp with some sort of contraption set up.
"What the-"
> The 'thing' in the middle of the camp looked like some sort of death swing.
> A web of ropes held up a thick wooden plank over the unlit fire pit, which seemed to be dug deeper than before.
> Two stakes jutted from the ground holding the web in place.
> Two loose ropes hung limply at the outer edges of the web, swaying softly in the breeze.
> Iron Will turned to you, a crazed gleam in his eye.
> "Say hello to 'Judgement Day' Anon!"
> Were his eyes glowing?
> Why was it called Judgment day? That really sounded unpleasent.
> What was it even supposed to do!?
> Iron Will walked over and placed a hand on your shoulder.
> "This is the first true test of your WILL Anon!"
"My...will?"
> You raised an eyebrow.
> He smiled broadly, showing off his freakishly flat teeth.
> "Your will!"
"My will...."
> "Yes... your will..."
"My..."
> His smile was gone.
"Will?"
> "YES, WHAT DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND ABOUT A TEST OF YOUR WILL!?"
>....
"My will?"
> With next to no effort he shoved you forward, almost sending you head first into the pit.
> Oh god it was dug deeper than it looked from back there.
> It had to be a twenty foot drop now.
> It also seemed to be filled with water at the bottom, something splashing around at the bottom.
>He did that in a night?
>"Get on the board, but grab the ropes first!"
> You did what he said almost robotically.
> Stepping timidly on the board you grabbed hold of both ropes before putting your full weight on it.
> It swayed for a brief second before sitting still.
>...huh this wasn't so ba-
> "Flex!" Iron Will shouted bringing an axe down on a rope you hadn't even noticed before.
> When the rope was chopped in half it slithered out of view.
> Just as it did the world seemed to turn to a blur as you dropped into the hole.
> Doing just as Will had said earlier... you flexed.
> The tightened grip around the ropes gave you wicked rope burn but somehow kept you from falling.
> You looked up, already halfway submerged in the hole.
"W-Wha-"
> A horned head peeked over the top of the hole.
> "Good, at the bottom of that 'well' are a whole bunch of mean leeches Anon, and boy are they hungry!"
> He's fucking crazy!
> "They won't kill you but if you fall in there you're most likely going to lose a lot of blood and therefore... A lot of precious protein and vitamins you need."
> "If you fail to hold up the 'Judgement day' for three hours Anon, you're going to fail the Iron Camp, and let me tell ya'. I need someone to spot my squats.
> The thought of following him around and getting inches away from his sweaty body all day did not appeal to you.
> So you tightened your grip even more.
> How does this even work?
> "And don't ask how it works!"
> Great, so you would have to flex for the next three hours or fail this entire camp.
> Was that even physically possible.
> You peeked down at the water below, something massive briefly surfaced for a second.
> The hairs on the back of your neck could be comparable to a cactus.
> Where did he even get 'leechs' like that?
> You were sure that you were going to die before you even got to the triathlon.
> What did this even have to do with the triathlon?
> You looked back up to see Will discussing something with one of the goats.
"W-Will!"
> He apathetically looked at you before nodding his head at the goat.
> Turning his full attention back to you he gave you a confused look.
"What does this even have to do with my training!?"
> Iron Will seemed like he was pondering something for a bit, before looking back down at you.
> "Anon, what is my name?"
"Iron Will" you bluntly said, not wanting to play games.
> "Mhm, someone cannot improve themselves physically unless they do it mentally. If you have a weak will and you give up on everything, what is the point in even trying Anon?"
> He strangely had a point.
"But, I've BEEN putting a lot of hard-work into this! I haven't given up once."
> "Yes but that was the easy stuff."
> Easy stuff....
> Your eyes slowly widened as a smile stretched across his face.
> "No Anon, this isn't tartarus. By the way you're..."
> He bought up a watch and glanced at it.
> "Two minutes in, keep up the good work boy!'
> With that he disappeared around the corner, leaving you with your own thoughts.
>You peered back down, staring forward at nothing but the dirty wall in front of you.
> Three hours of this...
> If it wasn't for that stupid Rainbow horse you wouldn't even be here.
> You would be home, chilling out and reading a book.
> And being a general loser...
> Truth be told you have been feeling better in the last month than you have in years.
> Despite the only other being you can talk too being a three-hundred lifting machine.
> But it wasn't like you dealt with much interaction before.
> You let out a slow breath, the constant straining on your muscles already feeling like too much.
> There was no way you could do this for three hours...
> You wondered about how life was going for the ponies back in ponyville.
> Probably singing some songs about friendship, while actually knowing next to nothing about how it worked.
> Maybe Fluttershy was telling a dragon off and saving Equestria.
> Or maybe Twilight had stopped a riot from happening.
> the fact that they were the heroes made you blood boil, nearly causing you to lose focus.
> With a snarl you resolve and keep your muscles flexed, staring forward at the wall with a stoic determination.
> Rainbow was probably off on some adventure meeting her idol and making new friends.
> Applejack was probably helping her family out with some problem, being praised for it.
> Rarity was probably expanding her DAMN< STUPID ASS BOTIQUE!
> You could hear shuffling at the top of the hole.
> Craning your neck you see something being pushed over the side.
> Looked like a sack of...
> "Incoming!" Iron Will shouted pushing a large sack of flour over the side of the hole.
> You braced yourself, giving Will what could possibly be a final, angry stare.
>You're Twilight Sparkle.
> And you really don't know what is going on.
> Earlier this morning Derpy and a hoofful of other ponies started knocking at your door.
> They then went on to tell you that Anon the human was missing.
> You had already knew this, assuming that he had finally moved out of ponyville after all the ridicule.
> You had never joined in on the ridicule but something about Anon just rubbed you the wrong way, so you had stayed out of it...
> Something you found very hard to do despite the feeling.
> Flaring your wings out and holding your head high causes everypony to slam their muzzles shut.
"Everypony relax!"
> Like a true princess...
"Please, we've got it under control. I can guarantee that Anon is safe and sound, probably in philldelhpia or Manehatten!"
> "That's bull hockey!" A red and white colored pony piqued up.
> "Anon would never travel that far, we think it's because he was being bullied!"
> A rally of rabbles from the hoofful of ponies again.
> They were starting to give a royal headache...
> You rubbed your temples.
"QUIET!"
> The rabbles died down to murmurs.
"We'll start off with you Derpy.... when was the last time you saw Anonymous?"
> The wall-eyed pegasus slouched a bit.
> "I delivered a message to him a month ago, something about his competition."
> The triathlon..
> You remember Rainbow bragging about how flustered he was.
> Despite your standpoint on him you had thought it was kind of a mean joke.
> Aj and Rarity hadn't... Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie seemed kind of apathetic to the whole thing, opting to talk about other things instead.
> You smile widely.
"Iron Will isn't a bad bull, if anything they were probably coming up with some sort of agreement."
> You hope, that muscle stacked beat of hormones was probably anything BUT diplomatic.
> The ponies lingered on you for a bit before leaving the castle.
> You sighed heavily and trotted over to your bed.
> Time to look into this whole thing...
> You stared blanky up at the night sky.
> Once again, like the last month...
> Everything hurt.
> You just splayed out on the ground like a starfish.
> Iron Will had given you the rest of the day off after you finished the 'Judgement day' test.
> Some of the goats stared at you, shooting you smiles.
> They didn't talk much.
> Like at all.
> But for some reason them watching always made you want to work harder.
> You let out a long sigh, your body absolutely racked with pain.
> Then a loud slam echoed throughout the sky.
> You didn't even bother to jump, opting to just lie there silently.
> Something did smell good though...
> "Anonymous, come in here I have something to show ya'."
> Rolling onto your belly you stared across the camp and at the luxury cabin.
> Iron Will stood in the doorway, arms folded behind his back like usual.
> "Come..." he simply growled, turning around and heading into the cabin.
> You really didn't feel like moving.
> But the thought of more training held over your head.
> You slowly got up and trudged forward after him.
> Stepping into the doorway you were pleasantly surprised.
> A banquet of food lay before you.
> All kinds of veggies, fruits and sweets stretched down a table.
> Even amongst that there was....
> MEAT!
> You hadn't seen meat since being dropped off here.
> And it was pork, oh sweet heavens.
> But at the end of the table closest to you was a bowl of the grey goop, still bubbling and stinking as always.
> Will stepped into your sight, staring at you coldly.
> "Whatever you want is yours Anon, you deserve it."
>....
"Is this another test?"
> Will seemed genuinely surprised, quirking an eyebrow.
> He shook his head with a soft smile.
> "No, this is your reward for staying this long Anon."
> His smile dropped.
> "Truth be told, nobodies dealt with me this long. I was told I came on too strong."
> You have no idea what he is talking about.
> Sarcasm...
"Will..."
> He stared up at you for a brief second.
> Then he perked up, gaining back his manly, manic energy.
> "But don't feel bad Anon. Because tonight, don't think of me as a mentor, but as your friend."
> He gave a genuine warm smile.
> There was something he was hiding from you...
> Despite your brain screaming for you to stuff your face with all of the food there.
> Despite your belly aching to be filled with something other than that rotten goop.
> You grabbed the bowl of grey goop and downed it in an instant.
> You could see Wills jaw drop as he watched you go.
> Whipping both the bowl and your head forward you toss the bowl behind you.
"That food would get in my way." you simply state.
> Iron Will frowned, then smiled, broadly.
> "Anon, you're going to show the rest what it's like to be the best."
> You smile despite the rhyming.
"Now, got some time to talk?"
 
> You're Twilight again and...
> You have no idea where to start.
> Apparently after some investigation around town you figured out that Anon had tried to go to the local gym.
> But no pony would see him.
> When you went in to talk to somepony about it all that happened was a whole bunch of stallions trying to hit on you.
> One even asked for your 'number' whatever that was.
> You furrow your brow, heading down to sugar cube corner for further intel gathering.
>Despite it being night time it would still be well and open as it was early on.
> Plus you could go for a royal milkshake.
> It was a velvet colored shake made in honor of you becoming a princess.
> When you trotted into view Pinkie Pie seemed to be watching something in the night sky.
> "Wow look at you go Dashie!" she squealed.
> You trotted up and peered up, watching as Dash barreled and dove through some clouds throughout the night sky.
> "Hi Twilight!" Pinkie said happily, turning back to watch Rainbow.
> You stayed silent and sat next to her, watching as Dash rolled around.
> Anon can wait for a bit.
> You were starving.
> You sat in awe listening to Wills story.
> As it turned out, he was the fattest kid in his village at one point.
> He always found himself at the short-end of the stick, claiming he had next to no friends.
> At some points of his story he found it hard to continue, stating he hated living in the past.
> You could see why...
> His past was the same as yours.
> "Truth be told Anon. I thought you were gonna drop out like the rest when we first talked."
> "But then I saw the determination in your eyes and I couldn't help but see myself in you."
> He nodded at your phyisque.
> "In more ways than one..."
> You laughed softly, taking a swig of your water.
> This time with Will was honestly pretty fun.
> It was exactly like you thought it would be.
> Having a friend...
> It felt kind of fuzzy.
> Or that was still 'Judgement day' talking.
> Will stopped and leaned back in his chair.
> "Why did you decide to change it around Anon?" he asked quirking an eyebrow.
> Your smile wavered for a second.
> Then you sighed, dropping your shoulders a little.
> You went on to tell him the story of Dash and the Triathlon.
> Then you told him about how you felt that night and how you wanted to change it all.
> He paid attention to your story attentively, nodding and grunting at some things that bothered him.
"So basically, I was trying to get fit in time for the triathlon. After the only gym in ponyville turned me away I almost gave up."
> You smiled softly.
"Till' you showed up man."
> Will chuckled softly, reacting completely differently than you had expected.
> "I've had problems with the ponies once too. They seemed to find me just as annoying as you."
> You didn't flinch at the comment, knowing full-well how he meant it.
> You two chatted for the rest of the night, Will happy to have someone like you to talk to.
> And you happy to have a friend for the first time.