~Earlier that day~
Knock knock knock
“Oh!” rang out a youthful voice, hidden behind the great oak door. “Come in!”
Graciously accepting the invitation, Red Gala placed her hoof upon the portal and gently applied pressure. Soon she breached the entrance of The Golden Oaks Library…
… only to bare witness to the battlefield lurking within.
Books laid scattered along her path towards the inner lounge, as too did a horde of woodland creatures large and small. Fur and feathers adorned bookcases aplenty, and more then one scratch mark could be seen decorating the wooden walls. Rabbits, birds, squirrels, and even a cat blitzed by Red’s vision, surprising her greatly. Inside what normally would be a sanctum of peace and order, their appearance made little sense to the seasoned Ponyvillian.
And, shaking lightly in the center of the chaos, stood none other then...
“Red!” happily cheered Barbara The Dragoness, her relief palpable in her cry. “Thank goodness you came!”
“Eeyup?” replied the sole pony in the room, as she took in her shocking surroundings.
“Huh? Oh... Hehe... These are Butterscotch’s critter friends,” Barb explained for Red, having sensed the question on the farmgirl's mind. “I’m taking care of them while the boys are out of town.”
“Hm,” Red Gala commented dryly, keeping her opinions on the little filly's efforts to herself. “Dame,” the earth pony corrected her inner thoughts. “Filly dragons are called dames.” she again reminded herself. “Gotta get better at rememberin' stuff like that.”
“Did you get my message?” the dragon then asked the mare, knocking her out of her musings.
“Er… nnope.”
Barbara blinked.
“Nope?” she parroted the other's words, confusion clear. “You didn’t get it?”
Red shook her head, insinuating that the answer wasn’t simple enough for a ‘Eeyup’ or a ‘Nnope’ to properly convey. Fishing behind her yoke, she then used the tip of her hoof to drag out a slip of paper, grip it with her teeth, and present it to her scaly companion.
Said companion cringed at the scrap’s torn, and slightly smoking, appearance.
“Oh,” Barb spoke sheepishly. “Oops. Sorry about that," she then apologized, blush noticeable upon her face. "Sending stuff without a scroll seal is really tough to pull off... I'll be more careful next time, I promise."
“Eeyup,” Red acknowledged the vow with a light snicker, and a smile hidden behind the ruined scroll.
“Did it damage anything when it showed up?”
“... Nnope,” Red then blatantly lied, choosing not to divulge the whole truth.
Explaining how the accidental fireball had set Grandpa Smith’s beard ablaze, and hurtling down a flight of stairs, suddenly felt unnecessary in the grand scheme of things; especially now that the culprit’s disheveled appearance had been revealed.
To put it bluntly, Red Gala thought that Barbara looked like straight manure.
There was a haunted look in her eyes, hidden behind her casual mannerisms. Both her claws were gripped tightly around her purse’s strap, a habit Red had long since noted to be one of Barb’s many nervous ticks. The grin adorned below her tiny snout was quite strained as well, and it seemed personal hygiene had fallen by the wayside if the disorganized state of her scales were any indication.
Right away Red knew that something was wrong.
"Well I guess the letter didn’t matter all that much anyways,” Barb giggled, masking her stress. “All it needed to do was to bring you here, and it did! Yay! I didn’t even need to bribe Butter’s friends either! Double yay!" she went on, snorting. "Using woodland creatures to send messages only really works for Disney princesses anyways.”
Another forced chuckle then left Barbara’s lips, as she laughed at a joke that was only funny in her own head.
“... Eeyup,” Red nodded briefly, and cocked an eyebrow. She didn't really understand all of the dragon’s words, but she understood enough to know that she could now safely discard the burnt letter still clenched in her jaw.
Silence fell over the library shortly thereafter, as neither creature knew how to continue.
"..."
"..."
... Eventually, once she had drummed up her courage, Barbara decided to end the sudden calm.
“So I have a bit of a pest problem...” is how she began. “It’s a big one too, a-and one that I didn't want to leave, er, unattended...”
"..."
"..."
… When it became apparent that Barb’s next words weren’t coming out as smoothly as she’d like, Red Gala decided to help her along by addressing the elephant in the room. “Eeyup.”
“Huh? Oh… No. No, not them,” Barb shook her head, assuming her friend had been referring to the animal filled library. “I have this mostly under control…” She then shot one of the critters a dirty look. “Mostly…”
Glancing over, Red caught sight of a white bunny blowing Barb a raspberry from within a bowl of carrots.
“Anyways,” the dame continued, regaining the mare’s attention. “I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about… Something else…”
Red's eyebrow rose higher.
“It’s… It’s in the b-basement,” Barbara revealed in a hush, turning now to point towards the stairwell. “That’s where I’ve cornered... it.”
“Eeyup?” asked Red, still uncertain. “Is it some kind of spider, or a rat?” she thought to herself. “Pegged Barb being made of sterner stuff than that though,” she pondered further.
Deciding that it’d be in her best interest to see what the hubbub was for herself, the earth pony began to approach the stairs…
… but a dragon stood in her way.
“Before you go,” Barb again spoke softly, choosing not to look her friend in the eyes. “Please know that I, I-I won’t blame you at all if you want nothing to do with what you see down there.”
That gave Red pause.
“Just please don’t scream either.”
That gave Red a mini heart attack.
The pony whipped her head downwards towards the young assistant, attempting to read her expression, but the dame simply turned further away; still unwilling to meet her gaze.
“...”
“...”
… Clip clop clip clop
With curiosity peaked, and caution heightened, Red Gala entered the basement. Silence once again returned to the library, save for the pitter patter of small critters dashing every which way.
Barbara tuned them all out, and instead listened only to the stairwell.
Clip clop clip clop...
…
… Clipclopclipclopclipclop
When Red Gala at last emerged from the basement, she did so with eyes the size of saucers.
“B-barb,” the large mare stuttered, still trying to process what she had just witnessed. “Was that P-prince Artemis?”
“Yup,” Barbara answered bluntly.
“A-and was he unconscious?”
“Yup.”
“A-a-and was he tied up to a chair like a bundle of hay, with a-a-a…”
Red quickly trotted back down the steps, only to reappear moments later.
“A-a-a gosh darn bagel speared through his gosh darn horn?!”
“Actually it’s a donut, but... Eeyup, hehe,” Barbara giggled weakly, attempting to lighten the mood.
“...”
… Having clearly failed, the dragon’s ears wilted as her desire to shrink away into nothingness became overwhelming.
“Barb,” Red Gala mumbled, taken aback by, well, everything. “What… W-what in the great wide land of Equestria have ya don-”
“He jumped me when the boys left town!” Barbara abruptly shouted, halting the mare’s words. “H-he turned off the lights, a-a-and used his sleep spell on me again like he did at the Summer Solstice!”
…
…
“... He did what?” Red Gala spoke calmly, surprising her friend greatly.
“Y-yeah… he did,” Barb repeated slowly, trying to calm herself. “He sent me to the Dream Realm like before, but I think my mind sensed I was in danger this time and, like, made it difficult for him to move around or something.”
“Hm,” Red rumbled with eyes now hardened, and locked fully on the stairs leading downwards towards the basement.
“My brain was all like ‘Ah! Nightterror is here!’ And Artemis was all like ‘Don’t think about him, think about something else instead’.”
“Hm.”
“And then I was falling back in time, and remembering stuff from when I was really small.”
“Hm.”
“And then I did this… and then I did that… and then blah blah blah blah.”
“Hm.”
... Unbeknownst to Barbara, Red was no longer listening to her explanation for how she escaped, or how she incapacitated an alicorn...
“Blah blah blah blah!”
“Hm.
… In truth, Red didn’t particularly care about the details, or the impossibility of it all.
“B-blah, blah.”
“Hm.”
No... instead of paying attention, or thinking of running away; Red Gala’s mind had decided to preoccupy itself by doing something else entirely:
“Big sis… Ah can’t sleep.”
Replaying a memory.
“A-ah keep seein' that scary place when ah close mah eyes.”
The memory of Nightterror Nebula stealing her baby brother from her.
“Ah… sniff… A-ah don’t wanna disappear again, Red...”
And being powerless to stop it.
“...”
“... So I dragged him down to the basement, and sent you that letter,” Barbara finished her recap, unaware that she had mostly been ignored. “I want-, no… I need to know why he did what he did… B-but I don’t stand a chance against him on my own.”
“Eeyup,” Red agreed, her expression still hard and unyielding.
“Ouch,” Barb winced. “Brutal honesty runs in the family, huh?”
“Eeyup,” Red agreed again, only for her features to immediately soften. “How can ah help?”
“W-what, Red? You...Y-you’ll actually stay?!”
Whomp!
“Eeyup,” the farmer answered resolutely with a mighty stomp of her hoof. “Wasn’t just blowin’ smoke when ah said ah had yer back, sugarcube. Apple’s ain’t liars.”
The declaration, and the rare usage of her friend's words, at last turned the dragon’s smile genuine… though it wasn’t long before it again drooped, as the dark task before them resurfaced to the forefront of her mind.
“Are you really sure, Red?” Barbara asked meekly, uncertain how long the sincerity would last. “There’s no way to sugarcoat this, what we’re about to do is interrogate honest to goodness royalty! Royalty! We could both end up in big trouble if anything goes wrong!”
“Eeyup," Red Gala concurred, excepting the risks. "Wouldn’t be the first time we were willin’ to tussle with royalty though, Barb,'' she then reminded, continuing to speak; pushing herself out of her comfort zone for the sake of the scared child. “Remember when ya advertised yerself as a walkin’, talkin’ flamethrower?”
“Oh… right,” Barb blinked, surprised by the memory. “Guess I forgot about that day.”
“Hehe, eeyup.” Red laughed deeply, filling Barbara with renewed hope.
“... But,” Barb added, her doubts not yet fully banished. “I might have to twist the truth a little to get him to admit anything… Are you okay with me being a liar, Red?”
“Hmmm… Nnope,” the mare answered truthfully, only to curse herself as Barb's mood soured once again. “But there’s a big old difference between ‘lyin’ lyin’’ and ‘white lyin’,” she amended swiftly. “Sometimes we have to get a little muddy to get the job done. Reckon ah understand that better than most ponies out there…
“… Just don’t go tellin' mah brothers ah said that,” Red’s cheeks glowed an extra shade of crimson, as she realized what she had just admitted. “Ah’d never hear the end of it if ya did.”
“Don’t tell Dusk or anypony else about this and you have yourself a deal, Red,” Barbara chuckled back in better spirits, feeling a wonderful warmth growing in her chest.
Red, however, halted.
“... Eeyup?” she asked, concerned about the sudden ultimatum the dragon had imposed.
Able to effortlessly translate the question, Barbara steeled herself for her reply.
"W-well, we want to avoid leaking this to the authorities, right?" she pointed out, providing sound logic first. "Breaking and entering might be super illegal, but last I checked the Canterlot Court System is set up to favor royals in cases involving commoners and dragons.
"Eeyup," Red grunted, sharing her social political alignment in scathing detail.
"Besides that," Barb went on. "the reason I don't want anypony else to know about this, especially Dusk or Solaris, is because... because..."
... only for her words to abruptly cease. A new thought had entered her mind at that moment; something she had overlooked was coming back to her, and it was now giving her mixed feelings.
“Eeyup?” asked Red, confused by the sudden pause.
"..."
Barbara sighed.
“Red,” she spoke glacially, deciding her next words carefully. “I… I might have an idea why Artemis wanted to see my dreams, and what secrets he was looking for... And... a-and if I’m right…”
"..."
"..."
"..."
“... Red,” the child then turned to face the adult.
Her voice was quiet, borderline silent, as she asked a seemingly simple question:
“Do you trust me?”
“...”
… Red Gala contemplated those four little words for a good long while after they were uttered.
Just four little words, yet she knew they held deeper meaning to Barb then they ever did for her.
Four little words, ones that could make or break her friend right before her very eyes.
Four little words...
…
… that were ultimately answered with only one.
~Back to the Present~
“...”
“...”
“... I should just write to Solaris at this point.”
“Eeyup.”
“I really should.”
“Eeyup.”
“If Artemis is going to keep acting like a big foal I should just tattle on him and be done with it.”
“Eeyup.”
“He can’t be reasoned with.”
“Hmmm… Eeyup.”
“...”
“...”
“... Buuuut maybe I shouldn’t...?”
“Nnope?” Red Gala tilts her head to ask me, clearly concerned.
Gripping my purse strap harder, I try to justify myself.
“It’s just that I haven’t gotten my answer yet!” I argue, perhaps more for my sake than hers. “I still don’t know why he came after me like he did!” Pointing the tip of my tail towards the unconscious stallion, I push forward. “If we hoof him over to his brother now, I might never learn the truth!”
“Eeyup?”
“I know how Solaris thinks,” I begin to explain, only for the words to backfire and bring me back to Artemis’ earlier reveal; the one I was desperately trying to ignore. “I know how he thinks… He’ll say something like ‘Let me handle this affair’ and then sweep the whole thing under the rug! It’s what he did last time… a-and it’s something I’d probably do too if I was in his horseshoes…”
Fump
For the second time today, I find a great furry weight laying itself gently over my shoulder.
“Nnope,” Red Gala tells me plainly, not even humoring the thought. “That ain’t who ya are.”
“Bu-”
“Nnope,” she repeats, moving to ruffle my head fins. “Solaris is Solaris and you’re Barb; simple as that.”
“... Red,” I mutter lowly, appreciating the gesture but not embracing it. “I wish it was…”
“Eeyu-”
“Uhhhhh…”
Startled by the sound of groaning, Red and I separate just in time to see Artemis stirring from his forced slumber.
On one claw I’m glad he wasn’t out of it nearly as long as he was the first time but, on the other claw, I wasn't granted enough time to prep a Plan C! Plan A, Attack, and Plan B, Boot-to-the-head, will just have to do it for now... Hope they’ll wor- No... I’ll make them work; I have the skills to do so! They may not be the ones I wanted, or even asked to have, but at the end of the day I’m still Solaris’ Squire.
What that means is up to me to decide, and nopony else.
“Ready for round two?” I ask my partner calmly, trying to appear confident for both our sakes.
With a cocky whinny, one which essentially translates into a ‘You really have to ask?’, Red Gala grants me the stage as she stealthily returns to the shadows.
Well, here goes nothing… Again.
Doubt I’m going to get a round three, so let’s make this one count.
…
…
“… We really need to stop meeting like this, dude.”
“Bleh,” Artemis grumbles to himself, still a little groggy. Fluttering his eyelashes quickly, it takes a good few seconds for the alicorn’s brain to register that he had just taken another unintentional nap. “W-what happened?”
“You tried to use magic on an inhibitor ring,” I fib casually, wagging a talon at the naughty pony as I do. “It wasn’t there for show, Princy. Little thing zapped you something fierce before it kicked the bucket.”
“N… N-no,” the Prince visibly sags in his seat, only sparing a passing glance at the spare ‘inhibitor ring’ Red Gala had placed on his horn. “We were certain that was the correct harmonic matrix! Has modern day runecrafting advanced so far as to be beyond us now?!”
“No clue,” I reply honestly, not wanting him to wise up to my scheme.
If his reaction is anything to go by, bucking Artemis' head in like a ripe apple tree has seemingly erased my little distraction attempt, the one where I hinted at having a partner-in-crime, from his short-term memory banks... Either that or he’s holding that knowledge close to chest, and is just waiting for the right chance to use it against me...
Whomp!
“But that doesn’t matter,” I loudly stomp a foot on the ground, finishing both my inner thoughts and spoken words. “Feel free to melt that ring again all you want. I don’t really care if it works the second time, or if you knock yourself out again trying.”
“...Verily...?” is the stallion’s slow reply, as his mind races to comprehend what I’m suggesting.
“Oh yeah,” I confirm, nodding my head. “Go right ahead and waste as much time as you want…”
WHOMP!
“... Speaking of time,” I stomp again, resulting in the Prince jumping in his seat. “Do you know what time it is, Artemis?”
“Er… n-no,” he answers truthfully, wincing.
In response, I smile toothily.
“Well, neither do I!” I reveal with a boastful chortle. “There’s no clock down here, so I lost track a long time ago! It could be the afternoon... or the evening…
“... or night.”
With my last remark, Artemis’ moderate cyan irises transform fully into moderate cyan pinpricks.
Might be reaching in the dark a bit, but I think he just realized what I’m hinting at~
“No,” the Prince gasps, the weight of my words sinking in. “No no no. It… i-it surely can’t be that late in the day!”
“Oh, it just might be,” I cross my arms, glaring up at him from the floor. “It just might… And, saaaay,” I hiss, jabbing the chained stallion in the chest with the tip of my talon. “Aren’t you the pony that starts the night these days? Would be pretty strange if there wasn’t a moon rising all of a sudden... wouldn’t it?”
Artemis gulps.
“Solaris might have to do it for you instead.”
Artemis sweats.
“That would probably make him pretty curious as to what you’ve been up to today... right?”
Artemis hyperventilates.
“So, really… I don’t have to do anything else!” I again lie, knowing full well that I still need Artemis to spill his secrets. “I don’t have to wait for the boys, or write to Solaris… We can just sit here, relax... and watch the fireworks explod-”
“Haha!” Artemis fiercely laughs over me, panicking quite audiably. “H-hah!
“Hahah!
“Ha… h-h-haha...
“...
“... ArethoustillwillingtoparticipateinthoseofferedpeacetalksfairBarbara?!” he eventually sputters out, verbally tripping over himself. “Ahem… We mean... A-are thou still willing to participate in those offered peace talks, fair Barbara?”
With voice cracking, and looking to be on the verge of tears, Artemis grins crookedly as his tail literally tucks itself between his legs; completing the pathetic look.
...
… I…
… Wow.
Just… wow.
The pony who almost gave me a mental breakdown, fillies and gentlecolts.
God I'm happy nopony can see my embarrassed blushing through all this darkness.
“... After the stunt you just tried to pull on me, your highness?” my voice rises in anger. “I think that will all depend on how STUPID your reason for being here is going to turn out to be!”
“W-what if it turns out to be brilliant?” Artemis fumbles back, grasping at straws.
“I highly doubt it at this point,” I retort humorlessly.
“Ow," the guilty stallion winces. "Thy words wound us deeply, Barbara.”
“Good.”
“Thou truly art growing to become much like brothe-”
“Finish that sentence and you’re going to be leaving this basement extra crispy.”
“Ah… Duly noted… C-could we perhaps convince thee to-”
“QUIT STALLING OR I’LL GO GRAB SOLARIS MYSELF!!”
“Okay okay!” Artemis surrenders at long last, acknowledging the severity of the situation. “Okay… W-we will cooperate with thee-,er, you. Yes… You... You have our word that we will cooperate with you truly from this point forward, Barbara.”
Resisting the urge to say ‘your word is as good as mud’, I bite my tongue and accept the easing off of the Royal We as the small victory that it is. Less theatrics means less flowery bull to wade through on my way towards grasping the truth, as well as less of it to write in my diary. Yay. Between you and me, I’m dreading jotting all this nonsense down for my record keeping later. I can feel my claw aching already... Dragonshy is going to end up being my longest entry to date, mark my words... Bleh...
… Sigh…
… Speaking of dreading:
It’s time for answers.
“Why did you look at my dreams?” I finally ask, ready to get to the bottom of all this.
Artemis left plenty of hints for me, so I have a fairly good guess as to what he’s about to admit. As I stated earlier in the dream copy of The Poisoned Barb, there’s really only one thing of value I own to my name beyond my friends and my diary. I have multiple secrets, sure, but as far as I know only a small amount of them hold any significance to anyone other than myself and possibly Elusive. Hearing the reasoning directly from the horse’s mouth is really the only way I can shelf all of my paranoid guessing, and focus on a new battle plan for protecting myself! It’s the only option I have left...
… But having it spoken out loud will result in more than just my ears catching the truth, you see; hence my trepidation in-
“Oh you already know the answer to that question, Seer.”
Ah.
There it is.
We are now officially too far to turn back.
“I knew the risks,” I whisper, reminding myself of what I had gambled with, before raising my voice and taking my opponent head on. “Yeah, you’re right… I’m a Seer.”
Beyond the two of us, the room is deathly quiet.
Trying not to think about the implications of that statement, I push forward. “What of it? Prince Solaris is one too, so why don’t you go and pick around in his brain instead of mine?!”
“Brother has… forbid it,” Artemis gloomily reveals, looking away. “He does not wish for us-... sigh... me. He does not wish for me to be involved in Equestria’s future at this time…”
“How are my visions any different than?” I spit, crossing my arms in deep thought. “If Solaris told you not to bother me, I imagine that means my Future Sight is off limits too.”
“H-hey!” the alicorn barks indignantly. “We do not recall fully admitting that we weren't allowed here! That was just thy assumption!”
I shoot him a judging stink-eye for this.
“... O-okay, yeah… Sol did say to leave you alone,” he admits with drooping ears, and dwindling confidence. “He told me thusly right after my attempt at spying was foiled.”
“Figured as much,” I grunt, feeling a victory high energizing me again. “Solaris is more of the outsmart type of pony, not the smash-and-grab kind.”
“… What are you implying about me with that statement?”
“What do you think?”
“... Fair enough.”
“Darn tootin’,” I nod, glad that we’re finally on agreeable terms. “So despite being told not to mess with me, you still went ahead and messed with me…”
Drumroll for the million bit question:
“Why?”
The solution to this whole little conundrum lies in this next reply.
Either it’ll be something earth shattering that will call for extreme measures, or it’ll be so complicated that it’ll require surgical precision to disarm; there's no middle ground.
After all the trouble it took to get to this point, I doubt it’ll be anything less impactful than tha-
“I wished to see where your last vision deviated… That was all.”
…
…
… I stand corrected.
“You… just wanted to see my vision about Trixie?” I ask, taken aback by the absurdity. “That’s all?”
“If this ‘Trixie’ pony lies at the center of the vision, then yes.”
“...”
“...”
“... That’s really it?” I ask again, feeling like I’m missing something. “You just wanted to see that vision and only that vision?”
“Yes… Though I suppose any would have done the job, just not as well.”
“...”
“...”
“... Why?!” I yell, dragging my palms against my face. “Why did you freaking sneak into my brain to see something I was already going to tell Solaris about?!”
“Well I-”
“Ignoring the fact that you somehow read my private letter to your brother,” I cut him off harshly, fuming. “All you wanted to do was to get a sneak peek?! Really?!”
“Well... yes… But-”
Whoomp!
Foot meets ground as I stomp it harshly in growing frustration. “You waited until the boys were sent away to break into my house, put me to sleep, and torture me with past memories just to see Boast Busters of all episodes?!”
“... What the hay is a ‘Boast Buste-”
“QUIET TIME, MISTER,” I snap, reverting to mother-mode; not believing how monumentally stupid this actually turned out to be. “Sit there and think about what you’ve done!”
“But… I already am though...?” Artemis blinks, more confused than upset.
“Here I thought you wanted to know the future,” I huff loudly, fighting hard to keep my fire down. “Or maybe you wanted to, I don't know, inception an idea into my brain or something!”
“That’s not how Dream Walking works, you tiny philistine.”
“But no,” I start to wind down, as my righteous fury begins to leave me. “No… You just wanted to see one, stinking, vision.”
“... Yes,” Artemis confirms, once he felt it safe to speak up again. “Only one for now. I wished to see how it varied.”
“I was already going to tell Solaris all about it,” I groan, not really caring anymore about any of this. What a waste of time, stress, and brain cells. “Invading my mind was super unnecessary.”
“On the contrary,” the alicorn fires back, surprising me out of my funk. “It was super necessary! If I hadn’t, then how else would I've been able to point out the contradictions?”
“You wouldn’t need to,” I snort fumes, finding myself only getting frustrated again instead of enlightened. Really thought Artemis was going somewhere there for a second. “I just said that I was already going to tell Solaris everythin-”
“I’m not talking about the vision’s contradiction with reality, dear Barbara,” Artemis silences me, regaining my full attention.
Before I could ask what he meant, before I was even gifted the opportune; the Prince of the Night at last cuts to the chase.
“I was referring to the contradiction between the vision…
“... and your testimony.”
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If I learned anything from my encounter with Prince Artemis today it’s that those who possess knowledge of the future have vastly varying opinions on how that sort of information should be used.
Solaris practices, and has instilled within me, an understanding of the River and the Stone; the concept that time is both fixed and fluid. Our actions and inactions are what ultimately shape the future, and lead us to what we already know will come to pass. Such a reactionary mindset has served the elder Prince well throughout his rule, resulting in an Equestria that may see the occasional villain, but is still peaceful so long as you're a pony.
The River and the Stone Creed isn’t perfect though, as I’ve seen time and time again.
Accidentally killing Sunset Blaze’s destiny as the Element of Magic, neglectfully raising me to be Dusk’s maid, losing his eye to his scorned brother; Solaris’ visions tend to blind him to the reality around him. His unyielding pursuit to ensure that the River flows to its intended destination has resulted in him carelessly hurting others without really meaning to. Even when he makes the conscious effort to do better the next time, as he did when he first formed the creed, it seems his destiny is to repeat his mistakes until the end of days.
My take, meanwhile, has grown to become slightly different.
While I personally still incorporate a fair bit of that philosophy when it comes to using my future knowledge, as of late I've been attempting to craft a path all my own. Instead of as a plain old script, I’ve been seeking to use what I know as a sort of warning system for what to expect, and for what to prepare for. I convinced Prince Solaris to move Eris’ statue, for example, but I didn’t push Rainbow Dash away from wanting to become a lady. I’m also still set on reviewing the Stardust Glimmer incident with the Prince, but I’m likely not going to mention how Dusk’s “I learned how power influences the way others perceive you” lesson differed from Twilight’s “My friends helped me realize that it's okay to be proud of your talents” one.
In my mind, following Spike’s example just as closely as Solaris follows the River and the Stone would be, without question, suicidal.
Doing so as I had before would have forced me into a scenario where I indirectly smashed Trixster’s wagon, and later into one where I get jealous over an owl, and another where I turn into a rampaging birthday monster. Embracing the inherent change present in this gender-flipped world, however, grants me a small sense of freedom; freedom to use the lessons from the prime dimension to help this one through rough patches, and freedom to craft the overall story to be a lot less villain-y.
Prince Solaris’ method, in comparison, is to accept the good with the bad while only stepping in when the future is uncertain…
… a sentiment Prince Artemis doesn’t share.
His own philosophy, in fact, is something else entirely.
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“... My testimony?” I ask, still trying to digest the strange accusation. “Mine? What, do you think I lie about what I see or something?”
“Wouldn’t be the first Seer who did,” Artemis spits back, having apparently rediscovered his spine. “And faaaarrr from the last, I’m certain.”
“... That’s ridiculous,” I reply in turn, scratching my head. “What makes you think I’m a liar?”
“You’re Solaris’ Squire,” the Prince deadpans, and provides me with a flat looking ‘Really, girl?’ expression.
“... Okay, fair point,” I concede, realizing that I don’t really have a leg to stand on.
Element of Honesty I am not.
“But, come on!” I next argue, not allowing him to win so easily. “Solaris only figured out I was a Seer, like, a month ago! So far all I’ve told him about was your return from being Nightterror Nebula, which was true I might add, and about Eris’ upcoming one…”
Again the room is silent.
This reminds me briefly that, despite this conversation being mainly between Artemis and I, we’re not the only ones down here. I can’t see Red Gala in this darkness, but a part of my mind is screaming at me not to say anything more... If I don’t though, Artemis might get suspicious...
… I wonder what Red thinks of me now…
…
… Friendship... is Magic...
“...What have I done that makes you think I lie to your brother, Artemis?” I finish my sentence, choosing not to let my fear consume me. “I’ve given him as much as he needs to know.”
“But not everything,” Artemis accuses immediately, shooting me a glare. “You have certainly not told him everything, correct?”
“Yeah… So?” I fire right back, getting in his face; letting him smell the sulfur on my breath. “Pretty sure Solaris hasn’t told me everything either…"
A thought then crosses my mind.
“... and neither has he with you,” I tack on, taking a wild guess. “Bet he’s just as ‘mysterious’ and ‘unknowable’ as he is with everypony else, right?”
“Brother tells us everything, child!” the alicorn fumes in his seat, regressing back to his earlier speech pattern. “Brother… B-brother indeed tells us everyth-”
“And you called me the liar.”
Thanks to my jab, Artemis’ pupils turn to draconic slits as he shoots me the dirtiest snare he can muster.
I respond by not responding at all, instead only staring neutrally back with my own unique peepers and nothing more.
“...”
“...”
“...”
“... He… h-he used to tell me everything,” Artemis whispers quietly, not wanting to hear the words. His nebulous irises return to their pony appearance as his head tilts downwards, and as he echoes the sad truth. “He used to tell me everything…”
Drip
With a silent sniffle, the Prince uses his mane to try to hide his misting eyes.
Hair can’t erase teardrops though...
… Damn it… I made my opponent cry.
I really am turning into Solaris 2.0.
“The Elements of Harmony purified us,” Artemis speaks with himself, having forgotten me completely. “We are a new stallion, free of our evil thoughts… Why won’t he speak to me anymore…?”
"..."
... The spiteful side of myself wants to say something sinister.
It wants to say “Because you slashed his eye out.”
It wants to say the words covertly, under a veil of childlike innocence; as well as cruelly, under a flag of self righteousness.
To cement my victory, to completely destroy Artemis in both mind and soul... It’s what would easily put a cap on this whole case, and forever scar him from wanting to mess with me ever again...
...
“... Redemption isn't a rainbow laser blast applied directly to the forehead, Artemis.”
The stallion raises his head.
“Redemption is something you have to actually work towards," I finish, having chosen to take the highroad instead of the cruel one.
Even I’m surprised, honestly.
“... B-bah! What do you know, child?” Artemis spits in the face of my advice, upsetting me. Turning away, he continues to pout. “I have lived twice your lifetimes, and have thus experienced far more than you.”
“... Only twice?” I squint my eyes, confuzzled by that last addition. "Artemis, how old do you think I am?"
"You're ten years of age... correct?"
"..."
"... Or maybe... Nine?"
"..."
"... Eight... Eight is my final guess."
"... Oh dear lord he's not even an adult," I rasp under my breath, having done the math and realized that this alicorn is only four years older than Dusk. "He went from being Solaris’ equal to his super baby brother… My god that explains a lot... I know that growing up means accepting our mistakes, dude,” I raise my voice, dramatically changing my tactics. “It’s only when we stop ignoring our problems that the way forward becomes clear...” Looking beyond Artemis’ chair, I gift the shadows a warm smile. “... That’s what a good friend of mine has been trying to teach me, at least.”
Perhaps it’s just my imagination, but I think I just heard a tiny, appreciative “Eeyup” echo my sentiments.
“Plunging Equestria into an eternal night does not qualify as a simple 'mistake', Barbara,” Artemis retaliates fiercely, drawing my attention back. “Only through drastic measures will I regain my rightful place!”
“And that means looking at my vision?” I question, upset that we looped back around to this topic. “Sorry, but I’m not putting two and two together here.”
“It is not your place to understand, Seer,” Artemis roars angrily. “It is your place to give of yourself everything that you know for the good of Equestria! That is the way!”
“No,” I fight back, standing my ground. “Solaris said that it was my choice!”
“And I believe that to be foolish,” Artemis argues louder, as if that makes him more right. “Leaving you unattended does this kingdom a great injustice!”
“Says you!”
“Says history!”
“History?”
“Yes!!” the alicorn wails, pushing himself against his chains and ropes the furthest he can move. “Clover the Clever foresaw the end of the Crystal Empire but did nothing!
"General Lightning predicted Lady Tirek’s rise to power, but instead allowed Scorpina to deliver the news long after our neighbors’ magic was stolen!
"And Grogan, the mother of monsters… Well the less said about her and her legends the better.
“Seers are the most selfish, egotistically motivated horrors in all the land, Barbara! Do not think yourself better than your forbearers, less the curse rob you of your senses as it did for the countless others before you!!”
Panting from his blustering, having worn himself out, I back away from the stallion as he attempts to catch his breath.
This... is giving me some serious déjà vu.
Pretty sure we were just here not too long ago, except I was the speaker and Artemis was the unwilling audience...
… the end result isn’t the same though.
Instead of stunning me into losing my composure, Artemis' passionate shouting has only resulted in making everything click inside my head. From his words to his actions and even to his insistences; I can now see clearly that his declaration that all Seer’s are bad, and that I’m destined to use my knowledge selfishly, for what it is: A harmless smokescreen. Nothing more.
Maybe it’s partially true, and maybe there are a few bad apples in the bushel, but the reason I’m not standing in awe of this ‘massive’ discovery is quite simple:
“You don’t actually think I’m a liar,” I calmly share my thoughts, now certain of the reasoning behind all this. “This was never about protecting Equestria from what I might be hiding, or even about what my visions really show, was it?”
“...”
“...”
“... I… W-we do not know what thou art talking about,” Artemis lies with a scrunched face, wandering eyes, and restored Royal We. “Thou art as delusional in thy assumptions as ever, Barbara The Dragoness.”
“No, I totally know the truth now,” I state clearly, still undaunted. “That little rant, right there, was the final piece of the puzzle... You’ve now shown me your entire hand.”
“We are not playing some foalish game of cards, whelp-”
“Metaphorical hand, idiot,” I roll my eyes, and smirk over having nailed the pronunciation of that word on the first try. “You said a few things you probably shouldn’t have. That’s all I was saying.”
“Enticing thy mind with thoughts of visions was unavoidable, Seer!” the Prince barks back, thinking I’m referring to the dream stuff again. “Do not think thyself superior simply becaus-”
“We're not talking about the Dream Realm anymore,” I interrupt, regaining the spotlight. “Yeah it's true I once thought that what you had said in there might hold the key to figuring all this out... but your never ending attempts to dodge the question and escape scot-free did a much better job than words ever could!
"I know now with certainty that this was never about you thinking I’m a liar, Prince Artemis…
"... It was about you needing me to be a liar.”