Awaking from a dreamless void, Aphelion's eyes slowly opened. His mind was in a haze, unable to focus on anything other than the here and now. Aphelion looked around and slowly processed the environment around him. He was in a large bed, covered by blue bed sheets. His room was large and ostentatious, filled with fancy dressers and ornate furniture. Curtains were slowly floating in a breeze, revealing a large, opened window letting through the afternoon sun, warming up the entire room. To his bedside, an empty glass of water along with medicine laid atop a small table. Aphelion tried to reach for a pill bottle to read its label, but his body didn't move. It felt as if Aphelion weighed three times his usual weight causing any movement to require that much more energy.
Aphelion then noticed how exhausted he felt. There was no pain in his body, but rather a complete and utter lack of energy. His body felt as hazy as his mind, groggy and unmoving. Aphelion could also barely feel the magic in his body, barely a few drops of mana spread across his being, not even enough to spark his horn even if he tried. Turning his head toward the window, Aphelion sighed and lazily watched the clouds slowly move across the otherwise blue sky. He felt the need to go back to sleep, to let his body rest some more, but Aphelion desired to at least remember what had happened to him. Besides, watching the sky in silence and feeling the fresh breeze on his coat was, for him, a strangely soothing feeling. He had been taught to fear the sun and what it represented and as such never allowed himself to bask in these simple pleasures.
Slowly, bits of his memories came back. Aphelion vaguely remembered coming back to his father's mansion with Glaze, his desire to confront Apogée, finding Misty and Sandstorm there, sneaking in, then... Chaos. His last memory was him trying to bring the ponies underground to safety, though he had no idea if he succeeded or not. At the very least, however, Aphelion could be sure of one thing only: he had survived this whole ordeal. Hopefully, so had the other ponies inside.
Hearing hoofsteps behind the door, Aphelion slowly turned his head toward the sound. He saw a brown earth pony open the door, just about to walk inside his room with a bored expression when both stallions locked eyes. The earth pony's eyes went wide, then stammered.
"Uh... I... You're... I'll get the doctor, don't move!"
Aphelion wanted to answer but couldn't find the strength to speak. He shrugged, or at least imagined that he did so, then closed his eyes for a moment. Soon enough, Aphelion fell right back asleep at the sounds of more ponies approaching his bedside. Whatever they wanted from him, it would have to wait until later.
The next time Aphelion opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Steady sitting on a chair, smoking near an opened window. The sky outside was still dark, but the sun was slowly rising from the horizon. Aphelion knew he had slept for an entire day, at the very least. The scent of cigarette smoke assaulted Aphelion's nostrils, causing him to involuntarily cough as he woke from his deep slumber. Steady turned his head toward Aphelion before flicking the cigarette butt outside with his wing.
"Sunrise, parabellum," Steady said. His voice was tired, sounding as if he hadn't slept at all that night.
"Ugh... Not what I want to smell when waking up. Also, what did you say?" Aphelion groggily replied, causing Steady to chuckle.
"Sorry, kid. And that's an old saying. Don't remember which language, though. It basically means 'prepare for war'."
"Well, if that's the case... Wake me when the war's over," Aphelion looked at the ceiling, feeling exhausted. His body was in a somewhat better state than previously, now being able to barely move, but the strange drowsiness had been lifted like a veil, pain and soreness replacing the feeling of nothing.
"If it was that easy... Unfortunately, we still have a lot of work to do. We'll need you back up on your hooves soon enough, soldier."
"Right. No rest for the wicked, I suppose," Aphelion sighed. "...Is everypony safe?"
"... Yeah, I probably should brief you on what happened after you went out."
"That would be appreciated. How long was I asleep for?"
"A month. And not asleep, but in a coma. You really did a number on yourself, back there. Celestia's personal doctor didn't think you'd pull through. Glad to see you proved him wrong."
"A month?!"
"Yeah. Scared the hell out of everypony, too."
"Sorry for that. Did the others make it out in one piece from the mansion?"
Steady sighed. "Mostly. Misty, Sandstorm and Glaze got out with varying injuries. Nothing life-threatening, so the mares are fine. Same for me, as you can see," Steady raised one of his hind legs, revealing multiple clean bandages. The feathers from his wings were ruffled, and his movements were slower than usual, as if some residual pain limited his range of movement.
Aphelion felt a pit form in his stomach. "... And the other ponies inside the mansion?"
"They... Not all of them made it out, I'm afraid. You saved a large amount of those underground and Misty took care of roughly half of those upstairs, but some were left behind. After you went out, Misty wanted to do another trip inside to get the rest, but..."
"... But we ran out of time."
"Yeah. Then, the Catalyst exploded."
"How many...?"
"24 dead, 48 injured, 12 missing."
"So, a complete disaster, then."
Both stallions remained silent for a while, as Aphelion processed the information. A heaviness loomed over the two of them, each regretting not being able to do more. Eventually, Aphelion spoke up.
"We never should've gone there. Those ponies died because of our meddling..." Aphelion's voice was void of any emotion. He knew he should feel anger, regret, sadness and guilt, but he was simply too exhausted.
"Maybe. But it wasn't all for nothing. We stopped the Pact from harvesting Luna's powers."
"Luna?"
"Ah, right. Another topic for later... Nightmare Moon, I meant. If the Catalyst was allowed to fill up with Alicorn magic, the Pact would surely have attempted to overthrow Celestia right here and then. Many more ponies would've died. We stopped an absolute disaster and replaced it with a complete one instead."
"It... Still doesn't feel right."
"Yeah. Sadly, that's what we have to live with... But let's change subjects, for now."
"Right. Where are Glaze, Misty and Sandstorm?"
"Glaze is somewhere in Canterlot, I think. After coming back from this little adventure of ours, her superior fired her on the spot for running from her duties to face dangerous cultists. Celestia managed to reduce her punishment from being laid off to a month of unpaid leave. I'm guessing she'll be back here in a few days."
"That... Could've been worse for her. And the other two?"
"Awaiting trial. Despite everything, they were still wanted for a bunch of crimes. Getting mixed up with the Pact made their whole ordeal that much more complex, but rumor's that Celestia and Luna themselves would judge them once all the legal crap's dealt with."
"I really need to know about that Luna pony."
"You do, but it'll be easier if she introduces herself."
Aphelion opened his mouth to speak but yawned instead. With a nod, Steady placed a hoof on Aphelion's shoulder.
"That's enough questions for now. Get some rest, kid. I'll arrange a meeting for you and Luna sometime this week... And an appointment with a therapist," Steady said as Aphelion raised an eyebrow. "Trust me, kid. You don't want to try and deal with the guilt on your own."
Too tired to protest, Aphelion grumbled. All of a sudden, what little energy he had disappeared as he felt the soft embrace of his pillow, sending him to the realm of dreams once more.
Blurred visions overtook Aphelion's sight. A mixture of colors swirled in front of him, taking vague shapes before quickly dismissing into nothing, only leaving colorful filaments behind before the process repeated anew. It was a strange sight to behold, but Aphelion understood this to be a dream, the first one he had in the past month. His mind was clearly still reeling from the incredulous magical exhaustion he suffered through and was now only beginning to heal, trying to create new dreams to replace the void from his month-long coma.
Letting himself be carried by the oniric waves of his subconscious, Aphelion watched in soothing silence as the nothingness around him attempted to become something, even if nonsensical in nature. He could try to control his dream, to force visions and memories upon his surroundings, but there was something therapeutic in seeing the constant cycle of creation and destruction around him. In that moment, seeing things beyond his control reassured him. However, his dream-induced meditations were cut short by a sudden voice, booming from behind. The voice was a mare's, though it sounded strangely regal.
"'Tis be a most interesting dream," said the voice. Looking behind him, Aphelion saw a mare step through a rift in the weave of the world, revealing a starry night behind her. The mare herself was lanky and taller than him. Her coat was black as night and her mane flowed in the air, the strands of hair replaced by a piece of the night itself: stars dancing and twinkling in a celestial play field, a perfect snapshot of the stars themselves. On her flanks, large crescent moons adorned a darker spot.
What was most surprising about the mare, however, was her other physical attributes. Her horn was long and thin, much longer than Aphelion's. The mare's wings were spread wide, revealing a complex plumage of woven feathers akin to Celestia's own wings. There was no doubt in Aphelion's mind that the mare in front of him was an alicorn, just like Celestia herself.
"Luna, I presume?" Aphelion asked, though he could already guess the answer.
"Indeed. We have much to discuss, Aphelion."
"May I ask if you're really there, or just another part of my dream?"
"A wise question. I can assure you that I am quite real. My abilities allow me to directly appear in my subjects' dreams. I believed it would be best for us to meet... Away from prying eyes."
"I suppose so. I must admit, though... I have a lot of questions."
"Then I shall have a lot of answers, though you need not ask everything right now. Let us begin with the basics."
"Alright. First off... Who are you, exactly? I have a very basic idea, but I'd like to hear it from you directly."
"Of course. My name is Princess Luna, though you may know me under my... Previous alias, Nightmare Moon. I am Celestia's sister and, as such, Equestria's second ruler."
"So, you are Nightmare Moon..." Aphelion's body tensed up, unsure how to proceed. Luna slowly shook her head.
"I was Nightmare Moon. I am no longer the monster I became a millennia ago," her voice cracked near the end. Luna spoke with clear regret and guilt, still struggling with what she had been and what she now was.
"I assume, then, that Princess Celestia gave you a second chance?"
"More or less. While she had an elaborate plan ready for my return, it was through the assistance of another group of ponies that I truly managed to trot back to the path of reason."
Aphelion chuckled. "Then, I guess, we've both been given a shot at redemption by Princess Celestia."
"Indeed. And we both have much to atone for, too. I have heard of your ties with the foul Crescent Pact... A name I did not expect to hear after my millennia away."
"They've been around for that long?"
"I am unsure. I knew of a small group of ponies back then that swore their loyalty to me. However, back then, they called themselves 'The Crescent Followers'. We must investigate the roots of this Pact, as I am afraid they are a threat to Equestria — nay, to the world at large."
The dream world around Aphelion and Luna stirred, the colors suddenly becoming blurry. Aphelion looked around, about to answer Luna, but she shushed him. "Something in the waking world is bringing you back. We shall continue this conversation at a later date, Aphelion. For now, rest. The road ahead will be long and arduous for the both of us."
And with a quick spark of her horn, Luna disappeared from Aphelion's sight as he slowly woke up from his dream. When he opened his eyes, he saw the slumped form of Glaze holding him tightly in a hug, softly crying in his coat.
"Uh... Good morning to you too, Glaze," he said weakly, his voice still tired. The mare hugged him tighter, making it harder for him to breathe.
"You... You're back!" Glaze whispered. "I was... I was so afraid you were gone..."
Aphelion looked around, feeling slightly awkward. Still, he patted Glaze's back in an attempt to comfort the sobbing mare. "Well, I'm fine now. I'm not going anywhere."
Tightening her hug even further, Glaze nuzzled Aphelion's torso, who was now almost suffocating. "It's my fault!" She cried. "I never... I never should've let you go back there! If I forced you to stay in the castle, you wouldn't have gotten hurt... Nor Misty, or Sandstorm, or anypony else!"
"Glaze... Please... Need to... Breathe," Aphelion struggled to speak. Thankfully, Glaze's embrace loosened a little, though still not letting go of him. "Listen, Glaze... It's not your fault. I would've gone back even if you tried to keep me behind. I should be the one apologizing for getting you involved in this mess."
"But..."
"There's no 'but'. We're safe now. Let's just..." His sentence hung in the air, without an end in sight. Aphelion truly had no idea what he was supposed to do beside rest at this point. Glaze lifted her head from his chest and looked at him, teary eyed. The bags underneath her eyes indicated to Aphelion that Glaze had spent many sleepless nights in the past few weeks. He couldn't help but blush a little, still not used to being so close to a mare — or anypony else, for that matter. Taking a deep breath, he decided to change conversation topics.
"So, I heard you had a vacation, recently?"
She scoffed, then smirked weakly. "Yeah, if you can call it that. I almost lost my job here. Even Princess Celestia herself couldn't exactly calm down my boss after he learned what I did and stole..."
Aphelion raised an eyebrow. "You stole things from the castle?"
"Yeah, some supplies. I, uh, pulled some strings to get inside the royal alchemist's stockpiles. He wasn't exactly happy to find out that I stole some black powder," Glaze chuckled, her mood already improving.
"Not surprising, that stuff's extremely dangerous in the wrong hooves."
"Good things I got the best hooves. You should see what I can do with them..." She winked, watching in amusement as Aphelion's face turned beet red almost instantly though she couldn't hide her own blush at her less-than-subtle flirting attempt.
"R... Right... Uh... S-so you said even Celestia couldn't keep your boss calm? I thought she was your superior, with you being one of her personal maids and all."
"Not quite. She's my boss' boss, basically, but she made sure to give him almost total control on how the maids and butlers are handled, since she's often too busy actually ruling Equestria. Besides, my boss, Steel Hoof, doesn't take shit from anypony... Not even the princesses. Oh! That reminds me! We've got a new princess!"
"Y... Yeah, Luna, right? We've already met. I have a ton of questions, though."
"Dude, you missed so much. Did you know that all the stuff we did was completely eclipsed by Luna's comeback and the return of the Elements of Harmony?"
"The what now?"
"Some mares from a town in the middle of nowhere managed to turn friendship into actual magic, and blasted Nightmare Moon with it. It turned her into Princess Luna! And so, basically, these mares are seen as heroes and got all the praise while our little buck up at the manor got swept under the rug, basically."
"They turned... Friendship into magic?! What the hay does that even mean?" Aphelion asked, an incredulous look on his face as he processed the information.
"You got a lot to catch up with, dude!" Glaze laughed, before going on a detailed description of the last month's events. Aphelion listened carefully, already feeling like he should go back to bed as he attempted to process the tsunami of information...
The next few days were certainly going to be interesting.