Chapter 2:
Sister Dreams
Abscissor and Uman prepared overnight for the trip to Canterlot. They packed food into large pouches that could be slung over their backs. They decided that they would walk the whole way, for Abscissor would never let somepony climb on to his back. He was annoyed that he could not fly with Uman, but he did not want to leave him behind. He had a feeling he would need him again.
They discussed much the night before they left: where exactly they were going, how long it would take, and which path was best. However, they did not talk about what they would do when they got there. They both assumed that confronting Celestia was their main goal.
''I have never gone past these mountains, so I have no idea where we're going. I am relying on you to guide me.'' Uman stated.
''It has been about a thousand years since I went south of those mountains, so I wouldn't be surprised if a lot has changed. I'm hoping Canterlot will be in the same place it has always been, which is…” He consulted a roughly drawn map. “…almost directly south from here. It should take between five and seven days to get there,'' replied Abscissor.
''So we just head straight south?'' Uman questioned.
''No. It's much too easy to get lost. We can't see Canterlot from here because the Crystal Mountains are blocking the way. Cloudsdale is easier to see from here because of its height. If we head towards Cloudsdale while bearing east, Canterlot will come into view eventually. Luckily, it's mostly green plain between here and Canterlot, so hopefully we won't be confronted on the way.''
''And if we are confronted?''
''We kill the ones doing the confronting. Simple as that.'' Abscissor slipped the map and a compass in his bag with an air of finality.
*
Before the two partners in revenge left, Abscissor took a bath and brushed his emerald mane and tail one hundred times each, for the least one can do when exacting revenge is look good. Once he had sprinkled some stardust in his mane and tail, the human and the alicorn embarked on the most life changing journey both of them would take.
Once they exited the shack, they turned around and took one last look at it. Abscissor pointed his horn at the shack. The horn glowed momentarily, and the shack burst into flames. The windows shattered and were fired out from the house in an explosion of glass. The front door was ripped off its hinges. Immediately afterwards, the roof collapsed into the house. The snow around the house melted in the unbearable heat. The two friends watched this happen, and then turned around, never to return.
*
From where Abscissor was standing, the Crystal Mountains were just about in view through the foggy air. Those mountains were their first goal. There was a slightly smaller hill in the mountain range which they could climb easily, after which Cloudsdale will be right in front of them—according to the map. It would take a day to get to the mountains, and then another day to pass through the narrow gap, after which they would truly be in Equestria.
''Abscissor, I have a question. Why did you never try this before? Why are you going to get revenge now, when you could have gotten it hundreds of years ago?'' Uman asked.
Abscissor thought about this for a moment and then smiled at Uman.
''Because waiting a thousand years is poetic, don't you think?'' he answered.
Uman, satisfied with that answer, nodded. The truth was that the alicorn was frightened. Celestia had beaten him once before, but she had had the Elements of Harmony then. He was still frightened even now, but there was something different in him. There was a new power that excited him and gave him motivation. Having Uman by his side gave him the courage to go the whole way. He had a power that he knew, deep down, was at least as powerful as the Elements, if not greater. This power was inside him, not given to him by some external objects.
If he could find a way to separate the Elements from Celestia, he would have a tactical advantage. Celestia wouldn't stand a chance. He could almost see it now…
His sister would beg him for forgiveness. She would give him the sun, and he would be the prince, no, the king of Equestria. His sister Luna, now Nightmare Moon, would rule by his side. Uman would be given a prize: his heart’s desire. Yes, that was a classic gift from a mighty king.
As night began to fall, they approached the foot of the smallest mountain of the Crystal Mountains. They would need to climb the mountains during the daylight.
''We may as well sleep here tonight and climb the mountain in the morning,” Uman proposed. “It's getting a bit dark.''
''I agree,'' replied Abscissor.
They had no sleeping bags to give them comfort, but Abscissor would be able to keep them both warm. He gathered some snow from the area and began to create a small star. Once he had gathered enough materials and the star was about the size of a football, Abscissor used his magic to keep it afloat about three feet off of the ground. Such a roughly made and small star would only last a few hours, but it was enough to keep them warm for the night. The snow on the ground around Uman and Abscissor quickly began to melt, and soon they were able to sleep on warm ground.
Uman was surprised by what he saw. This was the first time he got to see Abscissor's magic firsthand. He thanked him for what he did and quickly went to sleep. Abscissor fell asleep soon after.
*
In the morning, when Abscissor had destroyed his home, the sound may as well have carried all the way to Canterlot. For, at that moment, the revered Princess Celestia awoke with a start. That night, her mind had been flooded with images of her twin brother. She had been very disturbed with her dream, for it had been as vivid as reality.
Celestia was standing in a white room. Her brother, the Prince of Stars, was in this room with her. She was looking at Accretion. Behind him was a black abyss. He was speaking, but Celestia could hear no words.
''I apologize, brother, for I cannot hear you,'' she said to him. He did not acknowledge her words, but his mouth kept opening and closing. He stopped after he mouthed 'goodbye', then he bowed his head and began to drift into the abyss.
''Wait stop, I need to talk to you!'' Celestia shouted. She galloped after him, but every step she took seemed to make him fall farther and farther away. Soon, he was nothing but a white speck, and then he was nothing.
She slowed to a trot, but kept going in the direction in which she had seen him disappear. She realized she was surrounded by darkness on almost all sides, but when she looked behind her, she saw that the white room was little more than a glowing dot in the darkness.
The very last part of her dream was what had scared her most of all. After walking for what seemed like forever, she saw a star. But this was no ordinary star. It had four points and was pitch black. It seemed to absorb the darkness and made the area look gray around it.
The princess’ fear was increased when the star spoke to her. It spoke eight words.
''Your brother is dead, he cannot come back.''
At that point she woke up.
Celestia got up and combed her hair. She couldn't understand why she was thinking about him so much now. He had always been in the back of her head since that night a thousand years ago, but was never as clear in her mind as that day. She had never dreamed of him so lucidly, either.
Now that she was awake, however, she could think about the dream with a clearer head. The star she saw looked identical to Accretion’s cutie mark. The only exception was that the color was all wrong, for his mark was white, not black. Also, the sentence it spoke to her was terrifying, and also very strange. The first part said he was dead. The other part indicated he was still alive, but lost somewhere. She would have to talk to Luna about this, which would not require much waiting, for she would soon raise the sun, and Luna would be back from her nighttime duties.
Celestia flew into the night to begin the day for the ponies of Equestria. Her white body stood out in the dark night, and her bright pastel colored mane shone in the starlight.
The fiery ball that ruled the day rose reluctantly up out of its comfortable valley bed, and the moon, seeing this, backed down into its own valley to rest. The sun coughed and blazed brighter, shining a brilliant yellow that spread over Equestria, peeking through curtains and laying on sleepy ponies’ faces. Equestria woke up to a sun that seemed brighter than ever.
After raising the sun, Celestia flew back to Canterlot. Princess Luna was already there. She looked just as troubled as Celestia felt.
''Sister!'' Luna boomed. Realizing her mistake, she covered her mouth sheepishly. ''Sorry, I have yet to master this 'speaking quietly' art.''
''It's quite alright, Luna,” Celestia amended. “Are you all right? It looks like something is bothering you.'' Somehow, she knew exactly what it was.
''It is unimportant. Don’t concern yourself with it.'' She began to trot away, but Celestia stopped her.
''It's about our brother, isn't it?'' she asked. Luna looked ashamed.
''Yes.''
''You can't keep blaming yourself about what he did. It was not your fault he manipulated you.''
Luna still looked sad.
''I know, but still…I should have seen that he was using me. At least you were always good to me, even if you were gone a lot.'' Luna sniffled. ''I had a dream about him before I left to raise the moon. It was…strange, to say the least.''
Celestia had been afraid of this. She told herself it was a coincidence, but still…something was troubling her about this.
''We were in a white room and he fell into a black space. I followed him, but I couldn't keep up. Eventually I saw a...'' Luna couldn’t finish.
''A black star that looked like his cutie mark?'' Celestia put forward.
''Yes,” Luna answered, surprised. “How did you know?
''Because I had the same dream last night. Tell me, Luna, did the star tell you he was dead and not coming back?''
Luna thought hard. ''No, it didn't. It said that…that I should follow it, and…join it.” Luna began to look scared. “Sister, this is so strange. How could we have the same dream? Why did the star ask me to join it?''
Celestia did her best to stay calm, but inside she was terrified. Nothing like this had ever happened before. Wait…that's not true. That did happen once before.
Just after her sister became Nightmare Moon, Celestia had had a similar dream. Luna had been in the same situation as Accretion. The black star had even said a similar thing: Your sister is gone. She will not come back.
Snapping out of her reverie, Celestia looked over at Luna and tried to piece together the facts. ''I think that our brother is connected to that star somehow, even though he has been exiled to the Frozen Nurth and showed no sign of leaving there. If he left there then Equestria could be in serious trouble. We should be careful.” Seeing Luna yawn, Celestia remembered that she had been up all night. “You should go to bed, Luna. You look tired. We will talk some more later.”
Luna nodded and yawned again as she headed towards her room. Celestia watched her go, then walked out onto the balcony and looked out at Canterlot. Her mind was not on the bustling city, however, as her mind worked to piece together what happened.
It wasn't long ago that Luna was Nightmare Moon, thought Celestia, and if she interacts with her brother again, the Nightmare could come back. I have to investigate this on my own. If my instincts are correct, and Accretion was coming back from the Nurth, I need to prepare. And that would mean… Here Celestia paused in her train of thought. …I need to warn the Elements of Harmony . But I can’t bring Twilight and her friends to Canterlot on a hunch. What I need is information. Luna and myself are the only ones to know about Accretion, and I can’t let anyone else learn about him. I would go to the Frozen Nurth, but it would take days, and I can’t just leave my subjects. My only choice is to wait and see what happens.
Perhaps letting Twilight and her friends know wasn't such a bad idea, whispered a part of her mind. At least there would be an extra layer of protection if I’m right. Maybe they don't even have to know. If they were just in the area for a few days, that would let me have peace of mind.
''Okay,” she said aloud, “It's decided. I'll invite Twilight and her friends to stay for a while. They could use a break anyway. I'll send Spike a letter today inviting them all.''
And so, she went to her room to write the letter.
*
By this time, Abscissor and Uman were on their way under the guiding light of Celestia’s sun. In his own head, Abscissor was preparing for his sisters…
He and Nightmare Moon were laughing over their sister’s broken body. The sun was above them, totally in King Abscissor's control. His subjects were giving him the respect he always deserved. The kind of respect he never got as the mere Prince of Stars.
Abscissor smiled to himself. That day was going to be perfect.