Displaced: Crossing Roads
Chapter 7
Growing Tensions
"Are you sure you're ok?" I asked with a little-well, alot of concern as I watched Lumos limp into his room, as I kept a close eye on his injuries, he had bandages around his waist where the spectral blade struck, with my own enchantments made to heal him, and some wrapped all around his left hoof
He just gave me that usual smirk of his, I don't understand how someone like him can just shrug off almost being killed! He's so...AHH! This idiot might be the death of me!
"For the . . . forth time, yes, i'm as ok as a my internet connection!" He gleefully answered, but something in the back of my mind told me he was lying, that, and what is an 'Internet Connection'?
"Ok . . . but please don't just shrug this off . . . it worries me." Among other things about you. I then saw him clear his throat as I swore I could see his face with a tint of red, then he shut the door
"Night." I heard from behind the door, but I still couldn't help but worry
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"-Tria to Selene!" At that, I awoke from my daydream, as I quickly scanned my surroundings, then my gaze fell upon the small compartment that me, along with Twilight and her friends, had been sitting in for the last hour, as my gaze fell to Rainbow
"Sorry, what were you saying, kind-of tuned out..." I apologised, as Rainbow rolled her eyes, then picked up where she left off
"What I was trying to ask you, is if Nox-er-Lumos is . . . well dangerous?" That made me go slightly defensive, only because I didn't want to explain to Twilight how her friend 'fell down some stairs' as Lumos would usually put it
"Rainbow Dash, I sure he's proven to be loyal enough to be on our side, and besides, someone with his power can set off the wrong impression to some." Twilight answered for me, but Rainbow still waited for me to answer, so I complied
"Well . . . he is violent, but only when he speaks, other than that, he really only talks about funny things him and his old friends did," I won't lie, alot of them were rather funny, especially how they caused the biggest paper airplane war known to ponykind. "But usually he's rather calm..."
"Selene, don't take this as a pry at his business, but what other things does he talk about?" Rarity asked, as I put a hoof to my chin as I recalled some of his rants
"Oh-I know! He once told me about his old group of friends, but he tends not to bring them up if necessary." and look what you just did Selene! Gold. Bucking. Star!
"What do you mean? Didn't he love his friends?" Fluttershy asked me in a whisper, but all I could do was frown at the memory, then I sighed
"His group consisted of six, there was Lumos, who was sorta the leader, not that they ranked each other, he just seemed to be more outspoken, then there was Erebus, his best friend, who was . . . crazy," I decided to stop, as I knew about what he felt about the others, and what they did . . .
"Selene? What's wrong, sugarcube?" AJ asked, but I shook my head
"Sorry, but all I can say is that Erebus is his only 'True' friend, he never saw the others as anything more than associates-" but before I could continue, he all turned to the sound of the door opening, then he saw Pinkie walk in, with a concerned look on her face, but she still wore a smile
"Uhh, so it turns out that Lu isn't up for chatting, and I tried everything! Jokes, cupcakes, forth-wall breaking, jokes!" She practically yelled as I rubbed my sensitive ears, to which she smiled sheepishly, "Oops, sorry!"
But as she kept up her apologizing, and ranting. I saw the door shut behind Pinkie, who was completely oblivious, along with the rest, but I only caught a glimpse of a rainbow tail brushing past.
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*DING*
. . .
*DING*
. . .
*DING*
Lumos kept up his repetitive action of 'head meeting pole', as he finally stopped to stare at the horizon, his mask's eyes glowing at the sight of the lust, green valleys below, as he felt the combination of a cool breeze from the train's momentum, and the warmth of the sun, as he felt parts of his body heat up from the contact it had.
"Geez, Pinkie wasn't kidding about you being all doom and gloom." Dash spoke up from behind him, but he kept his gaze to the clear skies above
"I'm not in the mood for your questioning, Skittles." Lumos mocked, but even Dash could sense that his tone had wavered slightly, so she didn't say anything, and decided to just sit down next to him, obviously keeping her distance from the time-manipulator to avoid being punched
For the longest time, they sat and stared at the valley, peacefully listening to the sound of the winds blowing past them, as the tracks below clinked and clanged with the force from the carts, as they never said a word to each other. But that could only last so long, as Lumos decided to speak.
"You know i'm a coward, right?" He began, as Dash instantly looked at him with a puzzled expression, obviously not believing his statement, but he continued. "All my life ive let others do all the fighting, I only talk a big game, and then I test myself to see how I would get out of it."
"But . . . in this world, I have powers that in my own were seen as a joke, or a fairy tale, but now I can go beyond their stupid beliefs of ideals and gods, I can 'be' someone, instead of just waiting for my life to end, with nothing to leave my mark on the world I knew,"
"That's why I fought those 'things', I wanted to prove that I wasn't weak anymore, sure it hurt, alot mind you, but when I heard you all cheer, for the first time in my life, people cheered for me, not just to avoid being rude, but they really cheered for 'Me', and it felt so right . . . then I came back to reality..."
"That blade, it reminded me that i'm not strong, and that a simple mishap could end me, and I would fade away into memory again, just another shadow . . . I was scared." Lumos finally finished, and even with his mask, Dash could feel his fear, and it was surprising
Because she felt the same, she too thought of herself as a pony that could take on the world, and let nothing stand in her way, but many times was she proven wrong, as the world reminded her that she was still easy to kill, if given the chance. So for once, she understood Lumos, not as a enemy, but just like her.
"Hey, for what it's worth, you were pretty cool, even for a weird-time-guy." Dash hesitantly replied, as Lumos looked at her, but he could see her genuine smile, not just trying to cover up anything, and he nodded
"Thanks, Sk-Rainbow," Lumos thanked, then chuckled. "Crazy, hearing this from you of all ponies!"
"Well, i'm just as awesome at giving compliments as I am receiving them!" She smugly replied, then she saw Lumos holding a fist out to her
"We cool then?" Lumos asked, as he waited for her to respond, then she waved him off
"No," She replied, then her have him a 'bro-hoof'. "We're both awesome!" at that, Lumos smiled under his mask, then cleared his throat
"And for what its worth, Skittles, you're a good . . . companion to have, even if you toot your horn a little too much." Lumos complimented, but she could already see that he still didn't like the whole 'Friend' thing, but she decided to play it cool for now
"Thanks, and also-" She then pointed to the massive city ahead of them. "Welcome to Canternlot!"
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Later...
"Ugh, I felt like I was being judged just for walking!" I groaned in utter annoyance at the nobles of this fucked-up city, I mean, I was 'walking' and they gave me the most judgmental looks in the world!
"It wasn't that bad?" Twilight tried to defuse, but I wasn't having it, screw the locals
"Sure, and I'm the Queen of England!" I retorted, then I noticed the guards that looked at me and Selene. "Say, what's with all the guards?"
"Most likely doubled for protection, after all, every princess will be here, that, and the Elements of Harmony." Twilight answered, as I sheepishly smirked, noticing their eyes on me, seriously? Am I that fucking suspicious!?
"Remind me, why are we here again? We didn't do anything wrong, did we?" Selene asked, as Rarity spoke up for her
"Don't fret darling, I believe you two are only here as witnesses, nothing more." She reassured, just as we got the largest pair of doors ive ever seen, heck, I doubt SAO had boss doors this big, but I must say, the finely varnished oak, mixed with polished gold made for some fine doors
Then, they opened dramatically slowly, as we all entered the massive meeting room, which was circular in shape, with a simple large table and chairs in the center, although, there were a ton more guards, practically at every pillar along the walls. Then my eyes met the three other rulers (Not counting Shining, because fuck him).
But my focus was primarily on the Sun Butt herself, now call me judgmental like the nobles, but she rubbed me the wrong way, not that she looked different, but those eyes of her's, they just gave me a very bad case of 'Fight or Flight'. But as we took our seats, the meeting dedicated to me, aww thanks! Began.
Now, I would 'love' to give you the entire conversation, but I'll sum it up quickly, Catching up a little, explaining the situation, the 'mysterious creature', me and then it ended with some input from the others. Then it came to me and my Batty friend, pun intended.
"-And you two, what information do you have on this . . . creature?" Celestia asked us, as I decided to set the boundaries of how much I was going to spill
"Let's see...he's a bipedal being called a human, he wears armor on parts of his body, whist wrapping his entire body like a Christmas tree in bandages, he can summon a clock-hand as a long-sword, and finally, his name is Lumos Vitae," I concluded in a brief description, but I could already see all eyes on me, but I shrugged. "What?"
"How did you come across his name?" Cadence asked me, but Twilight interjected
"Even though he's only been in Ponyville for little over two weeks, he sometimes shares information about his home world to me, that, and he doesn't mind saying his name to anyone." Damn straight! Got to keep me manners up!
"And you decided to keep this information for us why, Twily?" Oh, forgot he was here, so I looked at the 'Prince', then I gave Twilight a look, and she continued
"He said he wanted to give it time before he made his presence known, but sadly the incident a few days ago changed that," Twilight explained, then she quickly continued. "He didn't want to give off the impression that he was evil."
"And why is that?" Celestia asked curiously, so Twilight gulped slightly, then hesitantly answered, oh this was going to end so well
"He can . . . manipulate time . . ." That did it, those 2 words sent Sun Butt over the edge of her flaming throne
"And you decided to keep this from me? I can understand keeping yourself from looking intimidating, but such magic is forbidden, you of all ponies know this, Twilight." Celestia answered, as Twilight sunk in her chair. Now hold on a moment, just because she screwed up once, doesn't mean everyone controlling time is bad
Ok . . . 'now' everyone was staring at me. Then I felt something leathery poke my side, and I turned to see Selene looking at me with a mix of fear and anger, but why would-Oh . . . OHHH shit! I said that out loud, didn't I?
"And you're defending this 'Lumos', why?" Luna asked me questioningly, so I quickly readjusted myself, then I clearly responded, and truthfully I might add
"Because, unlike Celestia, I don't judge ponies on 'what' they can do, but of 'who' they are, ideals in other words." I answered, but my ear flicked at the sound of metal behind me, so I sighed. "Oh for fuck sake..."
"You dare ad-AHH!" I didn't give the guard a chance to finish his poor attempt at a warning, as I jumped from my chair, and pinned the guy under by body, then I smirked
"You know, could have swore you guys were here to protect the Monarchs, but you're really pathetic at it!" I laughed, as I saw two more approach. "Oh come now guys, we can talk this out, can't we?"
"I suggest you stand down, before things get more interesting!" The voice of Shining called over, as I cockily smiled at him, as anyone could see the tension in the air
"Oh, shall I go grab some popcorn? Or maybe a drink too...?" I quipped, which nearly sent him like a wild animal at me, if not for the voice tearing my eardrums apart, like holy hell that was loud
"ENOUGH." Came the voice of Sun Butt, as I let the guard beneath me go, then I nodded to his leg
"You should probably get some ice on that." I suggested, as he nodded painfully, then I turned back to the table, only for my eyes to have a stare-down with Celestia, to which we both wouldn't back down. "So..."
"Please refrain from injuring my subjects, and for ignoring my title." Celestia asked me softly, but I could easily tell she was livid, so I sighed
"Look, a title means nothing to me, especially royalty, so if you want me to respect your title, earn my respect." That got dropped jaws, to which I just shrugged. "What? I doubt i'm the first to say that."
"Understandable." Wait what? "I can respect your motives, but please refrain from saying it in front of my guards next time."
"You have my word." As far as I could throw it, you toss pot
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"Are you crazy!? You could have gotten yourself banished, or worse!" Twilight yelled in my ear, to which I rubbed irritably
"You forget, I am insane, and I have my own morals too, I'm not just going to bend over backwards just because of a title." Which she never deserved
"Well, if your looking for a death wish, you found one!" Thank you for the offer Skittles, OH CELESTIA~
But my thoughts and those around me were halted, as I saw the rest stop, as Rarity, Skittles, and AJ glared in front of me. Then I grinned from ear to-ear, dressed like royalty, with navy and gold decorating the suit, which contrasted nicely with the white coat, and golden mane. Prince. Fucking. Blueballs. And that grin of his seemed to make the inside of my head 'tick'.
"It's a pleasure to meet you again, Princess Twilight." He greeted with a small bow, as Twilight responded in turn
"Hello, Prince Blueblood," she politely returned.
"Might I say that you look rather lovely today," he complimented before taking Twilight's hoof and kissing it, to which I narrowed my eyes, as a certain 'quirk' in my head snapped into place like a cog amongst a machine
"Princess Twilight, I'm having dinner tonight at my private suite and would love for you to join me."
"Thank you for the offer," Twilight thanked, starting to pull her hoof back, as she tried to move away. "But was only here for the meeting."
"Surely you can postpone your departure?" he suggested, tightening his grip, seriously, can't this dumbass take a hint?
Feeling the tug and tightened grip, Twilight began glaring at him, to which I advanced. "I'm sorry, but I already said 'no'."
Before the motor-mouth could try again, I shoved his hoof back, as I stood in front of Twilight, smirking at him with a glare. To which he scowled back at me.
"She already told you 'no', or is that your empty head cannot comprehend a simple order from a Princess?" I asked in a completely different voice, which would be difficult to describe, so lets call it my 'Phase 1' personality
"You dare interfere, just who do you think I am, peasant?" Well apparently, ive got the balls to keep mine away from the opposite sex
"Now that's a new one, gotta keep that logged, so cheers, high-five, slow clap!" I congratulated, as I could hear the subtle snickering behind me, to which I sadly decided to wrap it up. "Now, if you would be so kind, as to take your pride, and shove it up yourself, before I belt you with a belt-sander."
"You-How dare you speak to a Prince of Equestria tha-" Yeah, that will keep you shut, as I slapped him across the face, only to grab the shirt of his blazer in my hoof, to which I was mere inches from his face
"To me, a title means nothing, and as of late I will 'NEVER' respect a low-life like you, so go jack off in your hovel like the chicken shit you are." I warned, as he gulped, before I let him go, and he quickly retreated, leaving us to laugh our asses off, me mostly
"I must say, that was quite the show darling." Rarity giggled as I nodded nonchalantly
"No probs." I winked, then Skittles wrapped a hoof around me as she used me to balance herself out
"Now that's what i'm talking about! You better run you jerk!" Skittles yelled between laughter, then I turned to Twilight, to which I bowed respectfully
"You really didn't need to do that, Lumos." She sheepishly replied, but i'm not the type to dismiss this sort of situation
"I know, but no one messes . . ." I paused for a moment, as my mind thought about the words, but I know it would be the right thing to say, given my high moral and situation. "With my friends."
Yeah . . . that's sounds about right. I like it.
To Be Continued...