Epilogue: A New Generation
~BlackRoseRaven
Antares Mīrus was sitting quietly on the back deck of the cottage, gazing silently up at the moon high above. It was his sixteenth birthday, or rather, it had been... and it had been great. Lots of gifts, lots of laughter... and yet under it all... sadness. Pain. Thoughts of his Mom and Dad... wishing they were here. He was a tall, athletic, handsome young stallion now... his coat glossy black, his mane radiant white, and his horn was tall and sharp and leathery wings strong enough to let him fly fast and hard before they got too sore. He was an excellent fencer and graceful on his hooves... Aunt Tia said he would have made his mother proud, even if he found it difficult to use a lot of magic still.
He reached up, silently fiddling at the onyx star of his necklace before he heard hoof-steps... and he couldn't help but smile faintly as his cousin Aphrodisia strode out onto the balcony and sat down beside him with a soft look to him. Six years younger, and yet she was essentially a fully-grown mare already: her beautiful light pink coat all but shimmered, her sharp teeth glinted, and her straight, raven-black mane fell in a waterfall to one side of her face, through which gorgeous green eyes studied him curiously. “You wanna have a fling? Get your mind off things.”
Antares laughed and shook his head, pushing at her playfully, saying softly: “Thanks for trying to cheer me up, Apps, but... not right now.” He smiled a bit, and then the glanced up at the night sky as she nodded seriously before wrapping a foreleg around him, closing her eyes and dropping her head on his shoulder. She was his cousin, and probably his closest friend. It didn't matter that she was a demon and could be particularly creepy and had no sense of privacy: she was always there for him, and she pestered him but she was always good to him. And thankfully didn't get more weird than awkward questions and her audacious teasing.
They were joined a few moments later by Avalon, who sat down on his other side and grinned at him as she brought a hoof up to smooth her short, unkempt red and gold mane back, and he couldn't help but reach up and ruffle it, making her huff and glare: she was still only about half his size, if that. But she was tough as ever, too... and Antares smiled a bit as he glanced over his shoulder as Meadowlark and Rustproof both approached. One a slender, beautiful young Pegasus, the other a bulky, powerfully-built gentle giant of an earth pony who was almost as tall as Antares but easily twice as wide, even though he was technically the youngest of them physically with how Aphrodisia had aged twice as fast as the rest of them.
He could hear their family and friends inside: from his Mom and guardian, Twilight Sparkle, to Sleipnir and Celestia and so many others. All talking, and so much of it was code for Luna and Scrivener, and for him, he knew. He closed his eyes, reaching up to rub slowly at the gemstone hanging from his necklace again... and then he nodded slowly once before gazing up, eyes that were the same dark blue-green as his mother's locking on the moon high above, as he said quietly: “I believe my Mom and Dad are still alive.”
“You say that every year, Antares.” Aphrodisia said quietly, sitting up a bit and studying him curiously, and then she frowned and cocked her head curiously.
Avalon looked up attentively too, sensing it as well as the others leaned in... and then Antares shook his head and only gazed up at the moon again, saying quietly: “I know. But... now... I'm not going to just say it, and hope that everypony will believe me. Now... I think... I think I'm going to do what I've always talked about. No matter how long it takes or where it takes me or what I have to do... I'm gonna find them.”
“Then you can count me in.” Aphrodisia grinned at this, nodding firmly as she licked her teeth slowly with her forked tongue.
“Adventure, huh? I could do that. Besides, you and Apple Pie go anywhere without me and you end up getting messed up.” Avalon said easily, leaning in with a wink at him, and Antares laughed and shook his head. “Plus I'm way better in the air and faster than any pony you'll ever meet. Navigation and all those horseapples.”
“But more than adventure, you're looking for something... for your parents.” Meadowlark said softly, and she nodded slowly before reaching a hoof forwards and touching Antares' shoulder as he glanced back at her with surprise. “I'll come too, if you're serious about this. It would be an amazing story, anyway... reuniting with your parents across layers.”
“Just don't rush off now. Take it slow. Do it gentle-like, and we'll be there to help you ever step of the way.” Rustproof added softly, the enormous earth pony smiling quietly. “Momma always says I should be more like her. This kinda sounds like her.”
Antares laughed a little and nodded, and then he glanced up at the moon and shook his head, saying quietly: “I appreciate it guys... and... I don't mean tonight, or tomorrow. I don't know when I'll go, and I mean... Rusty, no offense, but you're still a kid, and Meadowlark, I don't know if-”
“Don't turn down your friends' help.” said a soft voice, and Antares turned around with surprise to see Scarlet Sage standing in the doorway, the mare smiling softly at him. She was beautiful, and tall, and strong... and she strode quickly over to the group to lean down and hug him tightly before nuzzling him firmly, and Antares blushed before his big sister sat back and looked into his eyes, adding quietly: “And tell Twilight Sparkle, and Celestia, and Sleipnir. Ask them for help, to train you, and don't go sneaking off. If you want to save Mom and Dad... you gotta do it right. And you gotta do what they didn't, and accept help, and trust in your friends to help you and protect you... as much as I know you have their same urge to do anything and everything to help and protect us all.”
Scarlet Sage reached up, stroking under his chin, and Antares blushed before the Pegasus smiled softly, gazing back and forth as she said quietly: “Now come on. We're cutting up the cake and Sleipnir's making a big mess of it.”
The others nodded, and Scarlet Sage turned, the ponies filtering one-by-one after her until only Antares Mīrus was left standing outside on the deck and gazing up at the moon... and he closed his eyes, thinking of his dreams, feeling the comfort of the night and hearing the whispers on the wind of his parents' voices coming down from the stars above, telling him it would be okay.
He smiled after a moment, then nodded firmly, looking up and saying quietly: “Yeah. I'm gonna find you, Mom and Dad.” He hesitated, gazing at the ivory sphere in the sky before whispering: “Wait for me, huh? I'm gonna save you both... I promise.”
And with that, Antares turned and headed back inside to the comfort of the family and friends, secure in the knowledge that one day he'd once more be able to share his joy and love with Luna Brynhild and Scrivener Blooms; that he would save his mother and father, just like they had always saved him.
Love, friendship, honor:
Three things better than a reason to die;
Three reasons to live.
May 2nd, 2012 – July 7th, 2012