//------------------------------// // 23 - The Story of Thestrals // Story: New Moon // by AzuraKeres //------------------------------// The story that I will tell you took place far within the past. Around nearly decades after Equestria was founded by the three tribes of ponies. The event began one night when I had risen the moon amongst a night of quiet and anxieties. It was a common foreboding that every pony shared. After the cerulean sky of the day had long left the ponies in place of a black void, they would become alerted of the safety of their wellbeing. Ponies would shun themselves into their shelter, fearful of what may lurk within the massive shadows. My castle at the time would serve as a comforting beacon to the frightened ponies, for I had installed glow stones to its exterior that would beam light to the surrounding homes. The castle I am referring to is not this one at Canterlot. No, it is the long-forgotten one that sadly lies in ruin within the Everfree forest. You see, before I reigned ruler of Equestria, the lands were managed by grandmothers: Princess Platinum, Commander Hurricane, and Chancellor Puddinghead. By genetics, Platinum’s daughter and Hurricane’s son had birthed me; however, the nature of my relationship with Puddinghead bore similarities with the others. Regardless, Princess Platinum had tasked me to begin my training as a Princess after my radical ascent to alicornhood. She desired for me to find an area within Equestria where I can establish a settlement that I would run as my own. Before the arrival of timber wolves and cockatrices, the trees were more dispersed and resembled more of a meadow that stretched far into the horizon. The homes of ponies that were built with stones and thatch roofs encircled my castle, providing the necessary light to reach them. I was honestly anxious that I would not be able to earn the confidence of ponies since I was not my grandmas. For decades, they had led ponies; I was concerned that their trust would be a struggle to achieve. However, the ponies found comfort in my presence. Through the guidance and protection of harmful foes, I was able to attract a throng of ponies to welcome in my settlement. What was the name of the settlement? It was called the Everfree. The town bore boundless levels of expansion because of the place I chose for it to be built. If not for some daunting occurrences, Canterlot may never have existed. The florals that grew at Everfree were a sight to behold. The wild colors of dandies and shrubs spurred across the seasons. I particularly favored the ones that shimmered within the darkness. Imagine the sight of a garden of fluorescent flowers. How could I not settle for that place? I hoped that such a virtuous land would ease the mind of ponies, however, there was a plight that roused their anxieties. Ponies from Everfree came to my throne room with countless pleas and I would send my guards to investigate the issue. To my dismay, there was a troubling trend brewing under my watch. My ponies described to me a mysterious presence lurking within the crevices of their home. They were unable to tell if it was because of the darkness or the paranoia they were becoming ill with, but they could feel something observing them. They discovered their belongings were missing after a moment of negligence. During their professions, their leisure, their sleep they could feel something following every moment of their consciousness. During that one night, I remembered gazing through the tall windows within my throne room, where the moon had risen its reflective light upon my growing town. In a few more years, all of Equestria will be bound to my responsibility after my grandmother has finally stepped down from their long years of leadership. Resolving this issue would serve as another assurance to my elders that I was indeed prepared for the task and they can finally enjoy their long-overdue rest. The only issue was that I did not know where to start. I had instructed my small platoon of guards to patrol across town to find any signs of this mysterious presence, but none had anything substantial to report. All they could tell me were similar things that my citizens had informed me: that something was following them. How was I to learn more of this figure if it left nothing as clues and conceal even hints of its presence? At the moment of my apprehension, the door to the throne room opened as a dark blue mare emerged and confronted me. Her presence erected a smile from me as I called to her, “Luna, thou hath awakened.” “Greetings teacher,” Luna responded. “I am prepared for thine lessons.” Luna was the first pony I had taken under my tutelage. I never envisioned myself to be a capable mentor, but her unique talents compelled me to provide her guidance. If not for the mysterious disappearance of my trusted mentor, Starswirl the Bearded, I would have referred this mare to him. “I apologize, Luna,” I responded to her. “But I am afraid thy lessons must be put on hold. The ponies art shooketh with anxieties of the mysterious presence that follows them." "Ponies still speak of the anonymous presence?" Luna wondered. "I believed it to be resolved at this point in time." "Hast thou still not spoken with the ponies?" I raised from my throne chair and descended before my first student. "I instructed thou to network with the ponies of Everfree." "Thy request proved challenging given no pony likes to venture the night." "Of course," I sighed. My student is what you would call a night pony. She was always more active in the presence of night ever since I first discovered her. I had previously tried to shift her daily habits during the day, but those efforts always proved fruitless. “Dost thou truly believe my presence would matter?” Luna continued. “Moments when I attain the chance, ponies are frightened of my abilities. Despite my service in their dreams, thy ponies can only recall me as a phantom lurking within their sleep.” “And their opinion will not change as long as thou choose to conceal thyself within these walls.” “But...I’m not like thou,” Luna spoke in a lower voice. “My presence brings gloom. My abilities, as rare as it is, is ghastly to thy ponies. No, I must achieve a feat of my own to prove thy ponies can trust me.” “Luna,” I sighed and rubbed my head upon her cheeks. I had to agree that Luna was unique like myself. As I am able to command the movement of the sun and moon without the aid of a throng of unicorns, my first student, Luna, was capable of entering the dreams of all creatures. Her ability was a groundbreaking discovery that no pony could believe a unicorn was capable of. And indeed no other unicorn was. Not even my renown mentor, Starswirl the Bearded. However, as grand as I viewed Luna’s talent, other ponies saw it as a way to trespass into their minds. The thought that a pony could easily enter their consciousness and unravel all of their secrets was horrifying to them. But Luna was a pony with the most innocent of intentions. She was naive, but I believed she was authentic in her desire to belong with me and the ponies. I truly wished that she understood that she already did. At least with me. Her talent eased the minds of their inner turmoils within the nights. Her talent served a great purpose for all of Equestria. If only she could face the ponies with me and help them see that. “I know teacher,” Luna frowned. “Thou only wish for my happiness. But I just need to prove my worth to them. An achievement of my own that will earn me the respect of ponies.” “If thou truly feels that way,” I pulled my head back and gazed upon my student. “Then perhaps our current issue is the achievement thou may desire.” “The ghostly presence,” she asked me. “It is not a ghost Luna,” I eyed at her. “Please do not feed into their paranoia further.” “I do not see how I could possibly do that,” Luna said. “But yes, I shall hold my tongue in front of other ponies on the matter. So then, what do we know of this presence?” “Nothing,” I answered. “And that is the biggest concern. Whoever is stalking my ponies is an expert in concealing even a fragment of its existence. None of my guards or even I could ascertain a single clue as to what this creature may be.” “Creature…” Luna paused on that word. Her reaction sparked curiosity in me. “Dost thou have something on thy mind. Please speak to me.” “There is a dream I hath been revisiting quite often. Though, it has often left me confused.” “Why so?” “I do not know how I enter this dream? It usually occurs when I myself am asleep. What’s more, the owner of that dreamscape was a young colt. Though he is nothing of the sort thou would ever find in Equestria. And I felt bound to that creature as if he himself called me to him.” “Who is this creature Luna,” my curiosity invoked urgency in my voice. If that colt was the mysterious presence, that I desired to meet that creature as soon as possible. “He referred to himself as a thestral,” Luna answered. “He bore resemblances of a pony, though there were also features that appeared predatory. He seemed quick to take a fascination with me. Befriending was a fruitless effort.” “Hath thou ever attempt to meet this colt?” “He would not tell me of his location. The colt explained to me that his species were supposed to elude from other creatures because of a particular value in their body; along with how badly other creatures react to their presence.” “Is that so? Perhaps thestrals are not a threat to us then but are anxious about how we ponies may behave towards them. Why hast thou not told me about this?” “Teacher, I hath no permission to disclose the privacy of other’s dreams without their consent. I believe doing so would earn me more hatred from ponies than what already exists.” “That is a fair point and thou have my complete respect for holding thyself to principles. But this matter can not go any further. Please, Luna, tell me what thou hath discovered.” “...Okay,” Luna relented. “The colt I met within the dreamscape called himself Remus. He boasted that he is the younger brother of the current tribe leader of the thestrals. Also, there was concern that he would share with me. That I was often met with whenever I entered his dreams.” “Thou was met with his concerns?” “Yes, for his concern bore sentience in front of me. When I lurk in his dreams for too long, there is a fog that would envelop his dreamscape. Remus would be inserted in fear and hide beneath me, for I would provide him protection. Something lurked within the fogs. What it was, I could never ascertain. Confronting the figure proved far too difficult with the colt under my watch.” “So it was a nightmare?” “No, it was more than that. As I said, it was sentient. As if it did not belong inside his mind as I did. I think...that it’s just like me.” “We need to meet this colt. Can thou find a way to retrieve a hint of his hideout?” “I already have, I think.” “But thou told me that this Remus refused to tell.” “He did not tell me. Instead, he showed me through his eyes.” “You possessed him?” Another unique ability of Luna was her capability to possess the body of a dreamer. However, that feat bears a limit that makes it an impossible task. For you see, Luna could simply possess somepony’s body. Not without their consent. Forcing control would risk damaging the mind of the dreamer as Luna had sadly done to a criminal that she and I were working to apprehend. That event left a scar upon Luna and earned nervous eyes from ponies for many moons. “I don’t think he truly understood my intentions at the time, but for a minute I was able to walk in his body. It was during a night like this where I looked through a clearing and saw your castle from afar and below.” “His home is within a higher elevation. But to attain such a view would mean he would be at Equadi Mountain.” The very mountain that would become the capital of Equestria, Canterlot. I wasted no time collecting a small calvary of pegasus guards to escort Luna and me to Equaid Mt. I saw an opportunity to resolve two issues at once and I grew impatient to have them done. However, my eagerness failed to account for Luna’s feelings. Luna had mentioned to me that she received brief glances from my guards. Their eyes garnered discretion and ire. Back then, I assumed that she was filled with her own fairs of paranoia. Besides myself, there weren’t any pony that could solace in her presence. Her quiet demeanor around others had always sparked an aura of discomfort in others. Looking back, however, it’s likely they believed that Luna setting us up in a trap. It took me a long time to truly grasp how cautious they were of Luna. Her abilities frightened them and my involvement with her made ponies concerned if she was somehow manipulating me. Perhaps it was the demise of that criminal that validated their fear. The criminal was a conniving and dastard that relished in my humiliation. I never discovered why he detested so much. Perhaps he didn’t. Perhaps he did it simply out of the thrill of opposing my goals. Luna was sympathetic to the irritation I held towards that stallion. She was determined to exact justice against that stallion, but events do not go the way that any of us would have liked. That event happened years ago, but that moment remained fresh in ponies' minds for all of those years. They never forgot what she did to that stallion. Luna kept her sights down to her hooves within the carriage we were pulled in. I assumed that she was growing nervous. So, as her teacher and companion, I wrapped a wing around her to provide her comfort. I failed to realize how much she needed a hug. On one of many edges of the Equadi Mt. that night, we discovered a small clearing surrounded by a small throng of trees. The lake that stretched across the middle reflected upon the moon, glistening before us within the distance. Luna found this spot to be familiar, and so I decided that we would make camp here. My guards concealed themselves within the bushes as Luna and I sat together before the lake. The waterfall that streamed into the lake came after bumps of others that cascaded straight from the top. Luna mentioned that the thestral colt played with the waters alongside his friends during the nights. I found it to be quite a dangerous activity for a foal to take sport in. I would inevitably have to report this to their parents to discipline, but that would have to come later. “Teacher,” Luna whispered to me. “The foals hath arrived.” “Where are they,” I asked while keeping my gaze upon the lake. I don’t want them to feel discovered just yet. “The loom within the trees from the other side. Next to the waterfall. Let me speak with them.” “Of course,” I agreed. “I imagine my attempt would be slightly more difficult.” “Only a slight,” Luna grumbled at my remark. I took solace in my student’s annoyance as she proceeded slowly around the lake. On the other side, Luna revealed her voice to the hidden foals, “It is I, Remus. Thou dost not need to hide from me.” A short amount of seconds passed before my eyes perked at the falling of leaves. I saw my student’s mouth move, by the weak roar of the small waterfall was able to muffle out her words. I could only watch as I assume my student was attempting to console the trust of the thestrals. I felt an urge to rise from the ground when one of the thestral foals descended from the trees. Their appearance was a shock of how similar they were to my ponies. Its small fangs made me anxious about what to expect from the adults. I was nearly certain that we had come across the fabled vamponies that were told from stories. The thestral foal I assumed to be Remus turned from Luna and called to the trees, revealing three more thestrals that encircled around Luna. I heard movement from the bushes near and I held I hoof up to stop it. I didn’t want them to ruin that moment. It’s not often I see such genuine joy aroused from my student’s face. Mostly ambition and pride, but never happiness to this degree. If only she could feel the same way with ponies. I waited for Luna to round the sprightly foals as they followed her back to me. They hid behind my student’s hind leg, making small careful glances at me. I decided to stay on the ground to prevent inserting unnecessary fear into them. “They seem to take a liking to you,” I commented. “Quite quickly I might add.” “Oh teacher, I am certain I would accomplish the same a slight later.” I smiled at my student’s remark and glanced at the foals. “So then, won’t you introduce me to your friends?” “Right,” Luna turned her head to the anxious thestrals. “There is none to fear. My teacher is kind. She wants to speak with you four.” I paused at my student’s oddly short sentences as one of the thestrals braved to step before me. It was the colt I believed to be Remus. His legs shook only a slight, but his eyes remained fixed and resolute upon my own. “I am Remus,” the small colt spoke. “Luna says you are kind. Is that true?” “Yes child,” I confirmed to the colt. “You will find that I seek no harm to you.” The colt looked back at my student that gave him a nod. He took a deep breath and then stepped closer to me. “M-may I have your hoof?” “Excuse me?” I was confused by his question. “Remus must lay an imprint upon the two if we wish to converse with his species.” “Perhaps thou should begin with that, dost thou agree?” “It will only be a slight pain teacher,” Luna said. “Thou can endure it.” “Luna,” I sighed. “I believe thou art taking my words too personally.” Regardless, I held my hoof before the colt and his fang anxiously sunk upon it. I held my eyes to bushes to warn my guards not to approach. Remus pulled his fangs back as I witnessed my blood drip from his mouth. I would be lying if I said I did not feel any disgust upon the sight. However, for the purpose of meeting with his leaders, I repressed any signs of my true feelings. Though, I was openly bothered by my redden-soaked coat. “My brother will know my scent,” Remus spoke after licking my blood off of his mouth. “Is that so?” I responded. “Then Luna will need the same treatment as well.” “Thou took that rather nicely,” Luna mumbled. “Were thou hoping that dear Remus would be rougher with a fair mare?” I asked my student. “N-no,” Luna widened. “Of course not.” “Do not worry Luna, the pain is only a slight. Though I fear your lack of tolerance for sharp objects will make this slightly more difficult.” “It is not that bad,” Luna took offense to my remark. However, my words inevitably held true when I had to hold her down as Remus punctured a mark upon her. The four young thestrals guided us through the mountains of Equadi as the small number of my guards lagged behind. The foals had long discovered them given their way with echolocation; however, they were tolerant to let them follow until we reached an entrance to a cave that lay within a narrow crevice. The path lied elevated within a wall. No pony would ever consider exploring such a small detail without the most acute curiosity. From here on, only thestrals and those imprinted by one could be welcome there. My caravan did not appear too trusting of the foals and neither were the young ones themselves. I decided to resign to the foals’ decision to come along with only Luna by my side. My guards voiced their disagreement, but I gave them no choice but to place faith that I knew what I was doing. I ordered them to stay behind where they couldn’t see us enter the entrance and Luna and I shuffled our way into the cavern. I was welcomed by utter darkness when Luna and I fell into the cavern. It was a shortfall, but still ungraceful all the same. Luckily I was able to cushion my student’s fall. The young thestrals flocked above us and chuckled at our embarrassing act. I’m not usually one to be the butt of a creature’s joke, but there are rewards in humility in some regards. Minutes had passed before the young thestrals led us to a burrow within a small chamber of the cavern. The illumination spell Luna and I cast on our horn weakly pierced through the darkness, but the narrow hole was visible enough to us. I will admit that I did enjoy these narrow feats I had to endure through. This one particularly made me consider taking a diet in the future. Though, I...um...find the commitment to be devilishly difficult. But that is beside the point. The burrow led into a deep fall that the young thestrals had failed to mention. Luna should count herself lucky that I went first, else her descent would have been unpleasant. Kind of wished it did happen after the laugh she had from my struggle inside. It was merely a thought. I would never actually cause harm to her. Moving on, our descent led us to another black void with nothing but the darkness welcome. However, the quiet was immediately halted by bountiful flutters of wings that surrounded us. Luna and I stood close to each other, covering each other’s blind spot of the anonymous creatures that moved hastily around us. The four young thestrals finally caught up to us as Remus voiced to his flock, “Do not be afraid. The ponies are with me.” “Remus,” I heard a voice from the darkness. All of the flutterings stopped, but I could still feel that there were a hundred pairs of eyes upon me. You might think it reckless of me to go at this alone with only a unicorn, but the two of us knew how to intense our illumination spell to the point it would be blinding. However, we would only resolve that course if diplomacy had failed. “Brother,” Remus responded to the voice. I heard a thud before me as a male thestral stepped into the light. “Why dost thou bring ponies here,” his brother asked. “And why the Princess of all ponies?” “Thou know who I am,” I asked the thestral. He faltered back at my voice but came back when he took another glance at his brother. “We only wish to speak with thou. We seek only peace.” “Thou must excuse me for my disbelief,” the thestral said. “We hath met creatures that hath rejected us and welcomed us under false pretenses for a collection of meat.” “We ponies are herbivores,” Luna voiced. “I doubt thou will meet a single pony that bears such an appetite.” “We are aware,” the thestral said. “We hath witnessed the activities of Equestrians. From the shadows, we have learned your language, your culture, and your taste.” “I must say,” Luna said. “your reconnaissance is most impressive if thou can achieve that much of a feat.” “Remus,” the thestral spoke to his brother. “Why bring them here?” “The dark pony is Luna,” Remus answered. “The pony from my dream.” “The one that enters dreams,” the thestral widened. “That cannot be. No creature is able to attain such power.” “But it is true,” Remus said. “Luna hath seen the monster. Luna hath driven it away. Why dost thou believe I am still here?” “Still,” Luna voiced her confusion. “What dost thou mean by that?” “If what thou say is true,” the thestral spoke. “Then perhaps we hath something to speak of after all. Please, follow me.” “Patience Luna,” I whispered to my impatient student. “The thestrals will tell us at their own pace.” “My name is Romulus,” the male thestral introduced himself. He led us into a chamber within the darkness where my illumination spell revealed the presence of apathetic thestrals. A flock of their race respectively cared for them, but they appeared indifferent to their caress. “I lead the thestrals here in hopes of survival of the plague that ails us.” “Are they sick,” Luna asked. “We would be joyous if that were our plight. But our crisis is tied to the creature thou hath met in my brother’s dream. I must thank you for protecting my brother. He is the only one left I have from my blood.” “I am afraid that we do not understand,” I voiced. “Perhaps if thou could explain from the beginning.” “Long ago, we thestrals came from a lush forest and an underground cave that connected to every crevice of that forest. We lived in harmony for centuries until one of us was afflicted by a terrible dream. The monster is malevolent and hungers for the will of the living. It would haunt its hosts, gradually sapping their determination until they become of a husk of themselves. Soon after, the host would lose purpose to live and resign themself to the afterlife. And once done with its prey, it would move to another and continue to feast upon others’ will. We call this nightmarish parasite, the Tantabus. To stop the creature’s spreading to the other thestrals, the leaders of the forest commanded for the families of the afflicted to be rounded and exiled from the forest. We, the exiled thestrals, hath traveled the lands in hopes of finding a cure for the infection. To finally be rid of this monster so that we can return back to the forest.” “And thou is the leader of this group,” Luna voiced. “I do not mean to sound rude, but thou appear younger than I.” “Yes,” Romulus confirmed. “I hath not lived long enough to bear enough wisdom to lead a throng of creatures. However, I am all that we have. The Tantabus hath claimed the lives of our elders and hath left me as the oldest to lead the young.” “That is terrible,” Luna commented. “To bear such a responsibility at such a young age.” “Perhaps I will not have to endure it much longer,” Romulus looked at my student. “Thou hath driven the Tantabus away from my brother, but it will continue its claim for my brother as long as it kind hide in the mind of another. If thou is able to corner the monster and smite it, we can finally be free.” “Thou wants my student to face the creature,” I voiced at Romulus’s suggestion. “Alone?” “How dost thou propose I corner this creature,” Luna asked. “Luna,” I confronted my student. “Restrain yourself. You cannot confront this creature alone. Not without some pony to aid you.” “Then how can I call this accomplishment my own?” Luna argued. “No pony will acknowledge my achievement if some other pony is there to share the credit. Especially if that pony is their Princess.” “Thou is being rash,” I retorted. “There is little we know of this creature. Dost thou even know it can be smitten within the dreamscape?” “I will not know unless I hath cornered it.” “Do not be in a rush to end yourself, Luna.” “We cannot wait, Celestia,” she retorted. “The longer we idle by to concoct a way to resolve this, the Tantabus will claim more lives. It has already claimed a generation. We cannot let it claim another.” “...” I wanted to find a reason, some word that could have stopped her from going through with this. But the determination in her eyes showed that no creature, not even I, would avert her from this course. I sighed at my student’s stubborn generosity. That was supposed to be one of my elements. “If the event appears to look bad, I shall intervene.” “I promise that it won’t.” Romulus had his thestrals gather the afflicted thestrals around Luna. Remus appeared anxious to fall asleep, but my student soothed him with kind words and affection. It’s not often that I get to see this side of Luna. And neither was it often that I would stand on the sideline and act as an observer to a crisis. Before the afflicted thestrals fell to slumber, Luna spoke to them for their consent of control. My student’s abilities can only go so far in the dreamscape with the dreamer unconscious resisting her inserted changes. Whatever battle Luna had the dreamscape must have been grand and arduous as she desired; however, only she and the afflicted would be the only witness. I on the other hoof stood by with Romulus and the other thestrals, anxiously hoping for the success for my sis… my student. “...” “...” “...” “...” “Princess Celestia,” Romulus ended the unnerving silence. “We are not within the eyes of my ponies,” I responded. “Thou may call me Celestia.” “Oh...if thou wish. Celestia, what were thine intentions for coming here? I cannot think it was to aid us.” “Then thou hast yet to comprehend my generosity. However, my true intentions were to banish the anxieties of my ponies. They hath told me in many of a creature that lurks in near most of their consciousness. I presume that it was the thestrals, given your adept skills in stealth.” “Are thou upset with us?” “I wish to know why thou stalk my ponies. Thou must understand how uncomfortable it is to be watched.” “I am sorry. We were afraid to be rejected by ponies. I decided that we keep ourselves hidden.” “And so you stalked us?” “We thestrals are exceptionals within the night. In one moon, we can collect a bountiful of meat and greens to sustain ourselves. However, since the affliction of the Tantabus, our hunt has been sloppy and left us empty of catch. We thestrals fear sleep, for it welcomes the Tantabus to steal our desire to live on. As the leader of thestrals, I must sleep. I need the energy to lead them. But other thestrals do not share in my bravery.” “And so you stole from my ponies?” “Ponies are not as aware of their surroundings as prey. They held enough greens to sustain my flock. We thestrals hold pride in our hunting skills, but within a crisis like this, we hath no choice but to delve into shameful acts. I am sorry to harass your ponies, but we do not wish to die of hunger, Celestia.” “Romulus,” I sighed. “I understand thou are under stressful times. But--” My words halted at the sudden movement of my student. Her eyes were still shut, but her body flailed about as if she was under intense pain. I immediately went to my student and held her shifting body. “Luna,” I called her, but she wouldn’t respond. My eyes then laid horrified upon her as I witnessed cuts forming from her pectoral. Her blood dispensed and soaked her and my coat. My patience was now empty as I readied a shock spell to force her out from her slumber. However, before I could finish casting her spell, her eyes suddenly opened. Luna’s eyes widened and swallowed a deep breath as she gazed at her surroundings. Her eyes met mine and then she briefly spoke, “Teacher.” Her body flinched when she finally registered the pain from her pectoral. She touched it with a hoof and then marveled at the blood-soaked on her hoof. “To think dreams can pass on to reality to such a degree.” “We need to tend to your wound Luna,” I voiced. “Can thou stand?” “I will live teacher,” Luna assured me as she stood on her hooves. “I am only upset that there is not a lake to wash the blood off from me.” “And of the Tantabus,” Romulus approached us along with the other young thestrals that circled us. “It...The Tantabus shall never harm the thestrals again.” “Thou hath rid of the Tantabus,” Romulus widened at us. “It is gone?” “What happened in the dreamscape Luna?” I asked her. “It is as I said,” Luna responded. “The creature proved a formidable opponent, but I was able to vanquish it from the realm. The thestrals are free.” A brief joy washed over Romulus and the thestrals within the darkness, but no uproar as Luna had hope followed. While befuddled by their reaction, the no longer afflicted thestrals awakened. “Is something the matter,” Luna asked. “I hath slain the monster. Thou are free.” “Yes,” Romulus mumbled. “We are free. We and our elders had hoped for this to come true.” “Then dost thou appear apprehensive?” “I was born long after my flock began our journey to get rid of the Tantabus. Decades of travel hath steered us far from our home forest. And I do not know where to begin to find it. I do not know what it would look like if I did. We do not know where our home lies?” “Then why not live with us?” Luna suddenly asked as I gaped at her. “Thou can find a home at Everfree."