On Light Hooves I Tread 2: Homeward Bound
A Fanfiction by Adam Nelon
Good End: Transition
Two months had passed since that day. The day in which Discord had made his presence known to Equestria, and in the process, took my best of friends. The same day in which, in one fell swoop, for one brief moment, I had become a living battery of arcane power, and weaponized my entire form to free my friend from the clutches of a mad god. In all this time, I had honed my body and my mind, and went through a number of trials to accomplish that task. And now that it was done, and those I cared about were now all in one general location, I was finally free to live my new life as I had wished.
But something was odd about these two months that had passed. You know that feeling you get when you have way too much caffeine in your system, and it makes you extremely hyper and jittery? I had something like that, only it was producing the exact opposite effect. All this excess arcane power I had loaded myself with was taking a massive toll upon my own health. I've begun to feel very lethargic, often collapsing at complete random during classes, much to the shock of the students and staff at Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns.
I couldn't find any way to ground the energy safely. Every method I had attempted resulted in something exploding, being broken, or launched about a thousand meters in some vague direction I had not even specified. There was too much in me, and not enough ways to discharge it properly. I'm afraid that if I tried any harder, I'd risk getting Horn Rot. Was this my fate? Magical Narcolepsy? If it was, I was going to live a decidedly terminal life.
That was, until today.
As I stumbled through the hallways of the school with about as much grace and drive as a drunkard after tanking about five kegs of zap-apple cider, I began to feel that familiar aura. That aura of immense power and authority that only a hoof-full of ponies possessed. One of Her Divine Majesties was following me, and I had a very clear idea whom it was.
"Adam, my student," hummed a lavender voice from behind me, "What seems to cause you ill? I cannot help but notice that you are feeling exceptionally unwell. Your proctors can most certainly attest to that matter."
"I've no idea, your highness. I've just been unusually sleepy lately. Normally, at most, I feel slightly tired, but these days, I just feel like keeling over and sleeping. Even when I'm awake, I just feel so strange and full of energy," I said, attempting to map my description to some body language.
"I see," Luna said, a hoof to her muzzle. "Perchance you could allow me to examine? I may not have a degree in medicinal magics, but I am certain that I might be able to help you resolve this problem."
Ah, that motherly demeanor of the Mare of the Moon. How I always grew fond of that demeanor. It reminded me of just how kind and noble Luna and Princess Celestia were. They were always watching me and everypony else with an eye of vigilance and benevolence, ready to lend a helping hoof for anypony in need, even if an entire nation were having troubles. This knowledge enabled me to smile as the Princess extended a wing around my form and guided me to the throne room, which was oddly vacant.
"Please. Lie down here," Luna said, poising me to lie down on the floor in front of her throne, to which I complied to naturally.
As she sat down, she scanned me with her eyes for some time before nodding.
"Close your eyes. I'm not sure if this will be painful or not."
I nodded in turn, bowing my head and shutting my eyes, leaving my horn exposed for Luna to scrutinize.
A moment later, a distinct, soothing magic washed over me, making my body feel particularly numb as Luna took a close examination of my person, eliciting inquisitive hums as she looked through. Several minutes passed as I began to feel the spells of lethargy upon me again, before being jolted by my lunar teacher's gasp. Suddenly, the spell was broken, and I looked to Luna with worry, seeing a face of dread.
"What did you find, Luna?" I asked, my voice shaking.
Luna's current expression was much like that of the afternoon of my get-well party. A face that one would make upon seeing a person unconscious and bleeding on a city street when you're walking home late at night. It was almost as if he had seen me with a knife in my back, or some other grievous wounds. She looked horrified, but I felt I wouldn't be able to mollify her at this moment.
"It is worse than I expected."
The way Luna quivered as she muttered that only made my heart sink more. Her dread flowed into me, and my eyes shot wide.
"...What..." I stammered, unable to find the words to speak to her coherently. "What is it?"
Luna sighed, trying to mollify her mortification before her face grew stern, looking down to me.
"It would seem that your metabolism is slowly being eaten away by magic," she began, a hoof extended for me to interrupt her exposition. "I believe that this may have something to do with the spell that you cast over a fortnight ago."
"How would that be? The spell worked flawlessly!" I interjected.
"Indeed, it did. But here is the disparity," she continued, her eyes flaring a moment. "The spell you cast was not, in fact, the Elements of Harmony."
I froze at that statement. I was sure I cast a pretty powerful spell that fateful evening. But if it wasn't the Elements of Harmony, then just what was it?
"I am sure you are aware of Star Swirl the Bearded, are you not?" Luna questioned.
"Yes...what about him?" I quipped back.
"Simply put, Star Swirl had created a spell not unlike the Elements of Harmony over a millennium ago, at the behest of my sister. She commissioned Star Swirl to cast this spell on the grounds that he was not only the eldest of her Magi, but also the most experienced and powerful of them. However, in spite his fame, nopony dared to assist him in this spell, fearing that they were neither worthy of the honor of working with him, nor the honor of possibly becoming the sworn protectors of Equestria.
"Thus, Star Swirl cast this spell alone, and much to his surprise, the spell worked impeccably. However, there were two errors he made. First, he cast the spell without companions to help ground the energy, and second, he did so without a trinket or fetish item to channel the spell through. In a way, history repeats with you."
"So what happened next?" queried I as my hair began to stand on end.
"Well, before I continue, allow me to regale you briefly on the origins of the Elements of Harmony. You see, the Elements were originally six ponies tied to one another by the bonds of fate. Before Discord, Celestia, and Myself, there were far worse forces that ruled our world. The army of darkness known simply as the Nightmares. Before they became wraiths bent on corrupting ponies into doing their will, they were exceedingly powerful mares of darkness whose very presence perverted the land around them. They had encroached upon one of the primordial kingdoms of this Earth, and in the darkest hour of our earliest years, these six stood, waging a campaign of epic scale to purify the once-sacred land, not relenting until every last one of them was eradicated. Following their victory, the Nightmares fled behind every single object and being they could, thus creating what we know as shadows. However, the victory of the original six bearers of the Elements was incredibly Pyrrhic, draining all but their will. In their final moments together, they joined in farewell and became spirits, their powers and ideals coalescing in the six trinkets which have been passed down for generations ever since."
"So what does this have to do with Star Swirl and I?"
"Simply put, the spirits of the Elements choose who is next to wield them, in the retirement of the previous owner. So, should a pony try to defy this mandate of the heavens, then they will be punished for the worst of heresies. Star Swirl was the first, and as punishment, he was struck with a grave curse upon his life, whereupon the remaining magic he possessed would destroy him from within, his metabolism slowly petering away. The only way to cancel the curse was to replace it with something that would forever alter his life. Thus, he cast an even more potent spell, a spell from the Stygian Stairs of Tartarus, which forever made him into a being of the night. In exchange for a continued mortality, Star Swirl pleaded to the moon to impart upon him its power, and the moon was more than pleased to oblige. Without delay, the moon filled the unicorn's blood with lunar energies, forever changing him into a Lycan."
My heart seemed to stop at that point. I was struck dumb by the words that had just been imparted upon me. Though I had saved the world, it would come at the cost of my own doom? Did these spirits, assuming they existed, decide that in spite my noble and just cause, I was committing a crime against them, and thus deserved to pay with my life? Even a good deed does not go unpunished, it seems.
"So, I must either resign to a fate as a monster, or die as a heretical hero?" I quivered, barely able to maintain my composure as I looked into Luna's azure irises.
What followed as another slap directed at my, as Luna's stern expression centered upon me.
"Do not look upon thyself in sorrow and doubt! Regardless of your choice, you remain a hero! You can choose to end your life on such a note, or continue it on a new path!"
"But that new path is that of-"
SMACK.
"You are not going to become a monster, Adam!" the princess spoke, her use of my first name being evident that she was adamant of her intentions. "A monster cannot choose his path. But, you can choose yours! But you must be sure of your choice!"
Following this outburst, the two of us stood in silence, our stares being the only thing to fill the room. It was a pregnant pause that both of us earnestly wished to resolve, but couldn't find the words to break the fog of silence. The sun was beginning to set, as were our hearts. The mood died as I deliberated in my mind and Luna awaited my final decision.
After a while, I asked, in a calm voice, "What will it cost me to go down this path?"
Luna walked over to me, her face remaining solemn.
"Well, before we go any further, I cannot guarantee that your fate will be perfectly alike that of Star Swirl. The curse which he placed upon himself affects each pony differently. Based on their personae, their traits, and their latent desires, then perverts them accordingly. You must leave your mind empty, for any stray thought could send the entire spell awry." She explained.
"And after that?"
That face again. She was going to hate what she was about to say.
"As much it pains me to tell you this, you may have to Leave Equestria."
As if she knew my reaction, she kept a hoof to my mouth.
"We have not forgotten that you have only recently bid farewell to your closest companion, nor have we failed to countenance your family. But at this juncture, we cannot divulge your fate. There is a masquerade in place for beings like Star Swirl. You will be sent to a place not unlike Equestria. It was created around the same time as Star Swirl's transformation, and exists to house all those of his ilk and your own. You will be safe there. When the time is right, we shall reveal the masquerade to your beloveds, after they shall be inducted within it."
My fears were assuaged for a moment as she offered her hoof for me to rise from my laying state as I pondered her proposition. I could either accept my eventual demise as ordained by the gods or mollify them by making an even more life-altering change to myself. There was little choice but to accept the better of two fates, looking deep into those sapphire orbs.
"Very well... If you will abide by your statements, I will accept whatever this curse makes of me."
Luna's stern face barely changed, but it seemed she was halfway between serenity for my acceptation, yet also lamentation for what she was about to do.
"So be it...but I must warn you. This curse may inflict grievous injury upon you. There is a chance that you may not survive this curse, but as the saying goes, 'Fortune favors the bold',"
I nodded, laying down, clearing my head, and gritting my teeth as tight as I could stand.
In an instant, my body was wracked with sharp pains. My bones felt as if they had caught aflame, crumbling to ash as they were slowly, unbearably rebuilt. My entire coat stood on end as if were being exposed by ungodly levels of electricity. The hide beneath my coat quivered and shriveled, itching as if billions of vermin were crawling upon it. My eyes and head couldn't suffer the fleeting light of the sun, sending me into a blinding headache. My teeth screamed out for release as I continued to gnash them together in the vain hope that my suffering would end soon.
It took all the will I could muster not to howl in sheer agony at the horrors I elected to have solicited upon me. To think that what should be an ephemeral moment of anguish could instead be lengthened to an unbearable torture as this.
And yet, in the wake of what felt like endless torment, I felt a strange sense of comfort. My blood felt cool again. My body felt truly tired. No longer did magic flow from my every pore. My weary eyes searched for something through which I could see what had become of me. But I could not find anything in the blackness that swam in my vision. All that I could sense was a tender melody being murmured by the mare of the moon as an ivory cloth was laid across my limp form, my conscience slowly subjugating to rest.
My body felt heavy as my eyelids peeled away to reveal a dark and jeweled sky, contrails of clouds flying past as I tried to heave myself to my hooves again. My head decided it was not so keen on moving, as noted by the waves of soreness ebbing through it. My hooves held fast to my face as a wing wrapped around me.
"Please, preserve thine strength," pleaded the rich lavender voice of Luna, as her azure eyes stared into my own weakened perception. "Thou hath endured a great deal of physical hardship. The fact that you have even achieved a conscious state as it is stands as testament to your tenacity."
I felt a tender hoof streak across my mane.
"We will arrive at Tartarus in an hour. Take rest until then, my student. Your trial is not yet complete."
Needing no further convincing, I allowed myself respite for the moment, taking in the cold evening air.
Due to how painfully short I had been allotted to sleep, I was not fortunate to enjoy a dream. Not that mattered, anyway. I was just as soon roused awake by the thump of the chariot touching down in the grass.
Like a deer's faun, I was assisted onto my hooves again by Luna as she helped me into the gates of Tartarus.
"So, why exactly is this gate in Tartarus, of all places?" I groaned, my throat feeling particularly ragged.
"Simply put, the threat of a Cerberus and the general seclusion of the tower itself make this place an ideal hiding place to such a gate. It is only fitting that the logical shadow of Equestria be placed here, lest those who would dare to slay the people who reside within come to find it. Consider thyself lucky that the Cerberus slumbers on this evening," Luna curtly chuckled as we kept on our way.
"How is it that that you're privy to the location of this world? For that matter, what is it called?" I queried, trying my hardest to remain standing again.
"Simple; It is a secret shared amongst those within the Royal Family, in case those close to us would befall the same fate as Star Swirl or his ilk. Though we are not omnipotent, we maintain a closely-wound network of ponies devoted to keeping a close eye for the poor unfortunates who may themselves need sanctuary. It is our duty to lead them here, and from here, they forge a new path..."
I nodded, staying close to Luna as my legs continued to wobble as we made our way to a strange-looking arch. It was an obsidian structure that seemed to emanate an aura of disquieting. I could feel something off about the way it gleamed in the moonlight. It had an uncanny queerness to it that greatly upset me. But, I had made this choice, and there was no return for me. This was the threshold I was to cross, and it was my time to do so.
Luna's horn lit like a torch as she cast a ball of flame into the ebony frame, a lavender light coming about as a gentle hum came about. The unease in my stomach persisted, but there was no recourse for me. I turned to my teacher, looking into her eyes.
"Luna," I began, a strange emulsification of melancholy and optimism brewing in my heart. "Thank you for being my teacher all this time. I am honored to have known such a being as you... Maybe we'll see each other again someday?"
Luna smiled, rubbing her hoof in my mane, being careful to evade my forehead, for whatever reason.
"It will be done, my Student. I assure you that you will not be alone in Penumbra. The resident regency is just as close, if not closer, to its subjects than we are. They share a closeness with their subjects because like them, they are equally blessed and cursed. It is not simply their talents which make them unique, but the specters they must face every day they live. There is just as much disparity as there is similarity to be found. I will leave the rest for you to find and enjoy of your own merit."
I smiled as I gave my mentor a final hug before facing the portal and entering it with trepidation.
What greeted me at first was not some grassy knoll or ruined castle, but a corridor of solid blackness, lit only by an aurora. As I cantered wearily down the hall, a strange being appeared before me.
It was a strange mare of a solid ivory color. More specifically, it was a centaur. While it possessed the legs of a horse and the body of a woman, the womanly half also bore as second pair of arms, one pair crossed over her navel while the other two held fast to her ample chest. As I tried to look into her eyes, I found that her eyes, and indeed, most of her face, was nonexistent, save for a mouth and nose. Her mane seemed to be constantly rising, and her tail was less like a horse and more akin to a peafowl. This sort of creature was both beautiful and terrifying in its own right. While I had little doubt in its benevolence, its very shape was greatly discomforting.
"Do not be alarmed, o weary traveler. I come bearing solicitations on this journey between realms. I am Sleipnir, a divine horse of the heavens. For eons, all my little ponies referred to me as "Moon". I am an emissary who guides those to become exalted beneath my grace."
Suddenly, the mare stepped down, her size diminishing as she took to the form of what appeared to be a heavily pregnant woman of silver mane and gentle face.
"I have watched your exploits from above. The hardships that you have faced are certainly deserving of commendation. You possess a desire for camaraderie that sees you to achieve in all your actions, and a guile that shines through the darkest of fogs. You thirst for knowledge, and will slake that thirst even in the thick of battle. Truly, you possess qualities that would fit any one of my warriors. Know that beneath the the shadow of the moon, you will be protected."
In an instant. I felt my body suddenly reinvigorate. A burst of energy that seemed to carry across my being as the woman smiled, taking my hand as she rose me to my feet again.
"Go now, my son. Penumbra awaits, and it waits for neither man nor beast."
My coat seemed darker as the hairs across it grew. my hoof seemed to splinter apart, claws growing as an old sensation filled them. My teeth began to grind and gnash as I felt a soothing warmth pool in my chest. Something inside me had awoken. A euphoric rush filled me as I broke into a mad dash across the vast expanse, my heart racing faster than my hooves.
A new adventure awaits me in Penumbra, and I will not let even a single moment pass me by!