Fears of Bygone Eras

by Lusaminia

Chapter 4

In response to Sombra’s enslavement of the nomadic tribes and murder of the Crystal Empire’s rule, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna finally issued a declaration of war against the king. Not two days after this did the first of Equestria’s forces start their march to the frozen north, though they were ill prepared. Unfamiliar with the frigid climate of the Frozen North, many died before reaching the city from the frost. This culminated in an ambush were Sombra’s army surrounded the invading forces. No record of casualties survived, though judging from messages sent at the time between the princesses and her captains suggest none came back.

Unaware of Equestria’s declaration of war, the Griffon Empire was lead to believe that Sombra had killed an ambassador in the ordeal. With Equestria being the Griffon Empire’s main trade partner (crops has always been a hard commodity), they in turn declared war on the king’s empire. The war quickly turned on the king, with the griffon’s offering substantial intelligence and tactical support for their equestrian allies. While their armed forces were considerably less, the intel Equestria received allowed it to quickly turn the war in their favor. Sometime during the war, Princess Celestia met with Emperor Gilbert Vendel of the griffon’s. This historic meeting was long displayed in the castle’s throne room before the Griffon Empire collapsed.

Manehattan was unusually quiet that night, the star as skyless as it had been for some years now. It wasn’t just Manehattan, though, from the western frontier to the Griffon Empire, ponykind was greeted another starless night. Though Queen Twilight had long ago learned to raise the sun and moon, the stars had forever been one thing that Luna alone could do. The fact that the stars had disappeared, that only the moon shined in the night sky, to many spelled the princess’ fate. Many, however, remained vigilant that Luna and her sister yet lived. It did not seem right that she would disappear, but then again nothing seemed right now.

That night, a single pony walked the streets of Manehattan, the shadows fleeing with each step he took. His red eyes stood out from his black coat, mane, and tail, his horn’s glow a sickening green. He wasn’t happy, constantly mumbling under his breath about one thing or another, though the pony-less street made it sound like he was simply talking. He stopped, allowing the glow of his horn to fade away and with it the light it brought. In that moment, the shadows took it’s chance to close in.

The long silence was broken as whispers scratched at his ears, the shadows getting thicker and thicker as it did. Finally, the unicorn could feel something around his neck, and like a lightning bolt his hooves grabbed it and forced it to the ground in front of him. At the sight, most of the shadow’s seemed to recede, though some stayed in curiosity. The unicorn noticed that the shadow he caught was not only physical, but in a shape closely resembling a timberwolf.

“To think we made it here, only to be followed,” He whispered to himself. The unicorn then crushed the shadow under his hoof, watching it dissipate into nothing. “Last thing we need are anymore problems, considering the barrier is so weak.”

Luminous did not sleep well that night. Too many thoughts and questions had gone through her head as she left the cafe to allow her to rest easily. The way she felt unable to look away from the queen, the pony she swore she saw fall from the tower, it confused her. She had no idea why she could tell the falling pony was holding a filly. It was like she was right there, watching from inches away as it did. For the first time in years questions about that other Equestria she was able to see entered her mind.

She knew it wasn’t her Equestria, or at least how it was in the present, having seen too many odd things to know it was true. Part of her wondered if it was a dream but everything seemed too real for that to be the case. The fact she never saw the sun or moon, that the darkness was almost suffocating, the sounds she hears, it all seemed too real. That feeling only increased as something dawned on her. Another impossibility that seemed to be true, yet one that she knew was correct.

She had been to Canterlot before. Obviously that couldn’t be true, having never even ventured on a carriage until two days ago, but she knew that feeling wasn’t fake. Something about the streets seemed recognizable, finding that she could recall which ones lead were. It made no sense for that to be possible though, because she had never been to Canterlot in her entire life. As her mind went back and forth on that thought, her head starting to ache, and she found herself having to force those ideas out in order for the mental pain to subside.

“Why couldn’t my first trip to Canterlot feel normal?” She asked herself. The clip clop of hooves passed by her as she spoke. Looking up, she found Psyche making her way to the kitchen, remembering that she had to sleep on the couch due to her friend having only one room.

“You and normal never went together Luminous,” Psyche reminded her friend. “These visions of yours, those sudden outbursts you had when you were younger, the monsters that you would talk about in your sleep,” Psyche turned to the entrance, thinking that was where Luminous was currently located. “You called those things wendigos right? Not windigos like from the story of Equestria’s founding, but something different?”

“I… kinda remember that,” Luminous replied. She rarely remembered the dreams she had, though she remembered her mom constantly waking her up in the middle of the night due to screaming and yelling. “Mom would be the one to ask about that. Luna help me if my memory or brain can actually remember something from a week ago.”

“Memory, huh? Guess that’s another thing she’s missing,” Psyche whispered. She shook her head, filing that thought for later. “I believe there is stuff in the fridge in case you're hungry. Might be some old waffle mix but it’s probably expired, though you would still eat it knowing you.”

At the promise of breakfast, Luminous stretched and hopped off the coach. Her back ached a bit, the coach having been rather old and in fairly bad condition, another factor relating to her bad night's sleep. Psyche’s home really wasn’t much, being a living connected to a sole kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom. That was all her friend ever deemed as necessary to live, the house being small enough to easily navigate and large enough were she didn’t feel confined. None of her actual work was done at home, but Luminous could spot some of her friends work around the house.

Despite being blind, Psyche’s ability to mold stone into different shapes and forms was inspiring. She could make hundreds upon hundreds of different objects without sight as long as she had previously felt what she was making. Her hooves were what actually took in the details of the objects, being able to memorize every curve and edge, every bump and flat surface, and the length and width. All of that from texture, shape, and the occasional privacy invasion when somepony wanted her to make themselves.

Yet her profession and talent had, as Luminous had learned the other night, caused rumors and horror stories all related to one thing: her blindfold. Seeing as how she was already blind, the idea of Psyche needing the blindfold was deemed strange by many ponies. Luminous herself had never considered it weird, but ponies in Canterlot had come to the conclusion that her eyes were dangerous. In time, the mix of her sculpting talent and the fact she always wore a blindfold had led many to believe that she could turn ponies to stone, even gaining the nickname Medusa.

A name that Psyche had sadly come to believe was perfectly fine, do to a young Luminous having goofed up when they were young. What the pegasus meant to say was that the nicknames used by family and friends are a way of showing how special you are to them. What Psyche had sadly come to understand is, with the exception of the term “blank flank”, nicknames were always used in positive meanings. Thus, when Psyche decided to one day introduce herself as “the Medusa” to a client, she never realized she was insulting herself.

Walking into the kitchen, Luminous found herself met with what could only be described as the smallest room she had ever been in. On her left was a fridge and stove, the latter so spotless that it never seemed like it had been used. To her right was a small square table with two chairs, like the ones she saw young foals use when playing with blocks or drawing. Luminous quickly found herself feeling claustrophobic, quickly reaching towards the single cabinet in the room, grabbing cereal, and backing out.

“So, I’m assuming that you had something planned for today?” Psyche asked as Luminous sat back down on the coach, not only eating cereal straight from the box, but realizing that it was incredibly stale. “I usually sit around when I don’t have a client, but you always want to do something when you visit me.”

“Honestly, visiting was the thing I actually wanted to do this time around,” Luminous replied. “I didn’t think of anything else, and I’m assuming you don’t really have anything planned as well.”

At that moment, there was a knock on the door. Psyche and Luminous’ eyes fell upon the door, the former unsure of who it could be. She never invited anypony over, and none of her clients knew where she lived. Luminous, thinking that it must be Spike, got off the couch once again and trotted over to the door. The pony on the other side knocked once again, Luminous putting a smile on her face as she opened the door. What she was greeted with, was the last thing that she had expected.

The pony staring back at her, voice caught in his throat, was a pegasus stallion in royal guard armor. His yellow coat felt felt dull in front of his neon blue mane and tail, eyes a similar color to his mane. The two guards pony behind him looked at the stallion, standing in attention, unable to hear how fast there higher-ups' heart was beating. Luminous was not faring much better, recognizing the pony all too well from her youth. A stallion who had been a friend many years before he left for the great cities of Equestria, and her once upon a time crush.

“Luminous?” He said. “I-Is that you?”

It took Luminous a few more minutes to respond. “Thunder?”

“Look, Thunder, I know you think you’re right, but I assure you you’re not,” Luminous said, as she found herself being escorted to Canterlot Castle surrounded by three guards. “There is absolutely no reason why the Queen would be interested in me. I just got here.”

“Yeah, somehow I’m not believing all of that,” Thunder responded, his face twisted in a scowl. “Honestly Luminous you being here is going to make my job a lot harder than it really has to be.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Luminous asked. “Come on, don’t act like you’re all that mad about seeing me. I told Psyche that I would be coming and-” The gears in her head turned, realizing the mistake she had made. “You were never told, were you?”

“I would have given my ex-marefriend a gift if I she was going to be here but what do you know, she forgot you again,” Thunder said, half acting like he hadn’t heard a word Luminous just said. “Nothing unusual really. How many dates did you forget due to that horrible memory of yours?”

Luminous sighed, knowing that it was not worth apologizing for what she had done. “Still don’t see how this is making your job harder.”

“Let me put it this way, you have no self control or that strength of yours,” Thunder reminded her, booping Luminous’ nose. “That memory of yours is so specific about what it actually wants to keep, and if I heard correctly, you already assaulted the royal advisor,” Luminous winced as he mentioned her incident with Spike. “That, by the way, is not what the Queen wants to see you about. However, expect to be under surveillance for the rest of your stay to make sure other incidents don’t happen.”

“Wait, you can legally make that decision without Queen Twilight’s permission?” Thunder turned to Luminous, answering her question with an annoyed expression. “What? Basic law stuff. Don’t need to read a book to know what corruption is.”

Thunder sighed, knowing that trying to make the mare understand was hopeless. Luminous, for as kind and caring as she was, was by all means an exact opposite of her majesty. Her memory was so bad he sometimes thought she would forget her name. Her body tended to act before her brain did, and it almost always ended in somepony getting hurt. That, combined with being homeschooled by two ponies who were in no way teachers, led to Luminous becoming who she is. In all those years since he last saw her, she had not become any less trouble than she was all those years ago.

“Are your wings doing well?” Luminous asked, doing what she could to change the subject. “I know you said they were paralyzed but I was wondering if you’ve gotten that check out in-” Thunder sighed, doing his best to hold in the anger that was building up inside of him. “-oh, sorry. If you don’t want to talk about it-”

“Luminous, listen,” Thunder told her, stopping to look his ex-marefriend in the eyes. “I know you mean well but, I’ve told you so many times that it can’t be fixed,” Luminous looked away in shame, Thunder doing the same in order to not cry. “Luminous, I’m sorry to ask, but stay quiet till we reach the throne room. It will be easier… on me.”

Fifteen minutes later Luminous found herself being escorted through the castle halls. Just like the rest of the city it was prestene, but was far more spacious than she originally expected. Looking up to the ceiling, she felt like it only got farther away the more she looked at it. Guards, maids, cooks, and many other ponies of different professions wandered from room to room as Thunder personally guided his old friend to the queen. He didn’t mention why, but he had sent the guards previously with him back to guard duty.

Sadly, meeting the Queen was the last thing Luminous had on her mind right now. The stale cereal she had earlier barely qualified as a breakfast, and her stomach ached as she waited for this all to be over. The agonizing wait when she finally got to the throne room door, only to find that the Queen was busy with another pony did not make it any better. Her stomach hadn’t reached the state of growling in disatisfaction, but Thunder could tell from one look that she wasn’t in the best of moods right now.

“So… has Silvia converted you yet or-”

“Oh sweet moon no,” Luminous replied instantly. “The day that I try meat is the day that I die.”

“Oh come on Lumy,” Thunder replied, giving a slight smile as he saw his fellow pegasus pout. “You disappoint me. I figured that your mommy would have made you give it a try, what with her being a wolf and all.”

“She respects that Equestria’s view of meat-eating isn’t like home and knows better than to force such things upon me,” Luminous said, biting the inside of her lips as a form of self control. “Also, really Thunder? Lumy? I thought you said you would stop calling me that after we broke up.”

“Eh, quickly realized it would be a great way to tease you because, no matter your issues, you’re still adorable,” He replied, giving Luminous a kiss on the cheek.

Her eye twitched, teeth biting down even harder as she did all she could to not, as Arcane would put it, “yeet him to the moon and back”. She so wanted to do it right now, all so that she could take that smug look on his face and steal it for herself. Sadly, he was a royal guard, they were in Canterlot Castle, and she was pretty sure laws were more important out here than in the middle of the woods on the frontier. With that in mind, she made a mental note to find some alleyway in Canterlot, lure him there, and only then would she throw him to Griffonstone.

“Five years and absolutely nothing has changed,” She muttered. “Five years and he’s just as much of a jerk as he was back then,” Checking to make sure he was no longer looking at her, she continued. “What in Luna’s name did I ever fined in this sorry excuse for a pegasus?”

“Oh, that reminds me, I actually need to tell you something important,” Thunder said, turning back to face Luminous. “This kinda goes without saying, but since you’ve already technically attacked the royal advisor please do me a favor and keep your hooves off of her majesty.”

“Wow, we’ve really reach that level of distrust already, have we?” Luminous asked. Thunder wasn’t amused at her attempt at a joke. She sighed. “Don’t worry, these dragon chucking hooves will keep themselves firmly below me. I’m smart enough to know what would happen if I launched the princess out the window.”

The door to the throne room opened, a brown unicorn stepping through it as it closed. The look on his face was one that Luminous could only describe as snobbish, head held high in such a way that he breathed of arrogance. No doubt he was one of the Canterlot nobles that Luminous had heard so much about, ponies so self absorbed that they would do anything to get there way. Her attention was shifted as Thunder forced a cough, Luminous turning to see him motioning to the doorway.

“Better get in there,” He said. “Queen Twilight may not be a jerk but we both know there are more important things for her to be doing right now then this.”

With a nod, Luminous walked up to the door and pushed it up, letting out a deep breath as she did. As the doors opened, a sense of familiarity once again washed over her, like she had been in this room a thousand times before. She shook the thought away, walking in as if nothing was wrong. Her eyes landed on the windows lining the sides of the room, the only source of light in the room, but that was not what made them interesting to her. It was the pictures that had been formed out of them, of the deeds of ponies throughout history conquering evil. One in particular caught her interest: a group of six ponies with strange accessories around their necks, casting a rainbow down on an alicorn.

“Excuse me?” A voice called from the far end of the chamber. Looking to see who it was, Luminous found Queen Twilight watching her with a calm smile on her face, Spike right next to her. “Sorry, but I have a feeling you didn’t come here to observe the windows.”

“No, I did not,” Luminous responded, shaking her head. “Her majesty, I presume?”

“Yes, and from what I’ve heard you’ve already met my royal assistant,” Twilight replied, motioning to Spike. The dragon waved to Luminous, who in turn waved back. “Don’t worry, I did not call you here about the… incident you two had yesterday.”

“Yeah, I was already informed of that,” Luminous explained. “I guess, I should probably introduce myself,” Luminous bowed, closing her eyes as she took in the acoustics of the throne room. “Luminous Oracle, a pegasus from the western frontier.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Luminous, and please don’t feel the need to bow,” Twilight told the pegasus. Luminous rose from her bow, meeting the princess’ eyes. “What I called you here to talk about was not exactly something normal, as I’m sure you might have guessed.”

Luminous tilted her head in confusion. “Something not normal?”

Twilight nodded. “Luminous… was it you calling for help from the crowd last night?”