//------------------------------//
// Tomorrow 
// Story: What Followed The Dawn 
// by Anemptyshell 
//------------------------------//

"Tis about time. Cadence has been nigh in arms over you two. That and has recently taken to betting on pairings and their feelings. As I've heard, she has made quite the mint from her dealings."

I groaned and leaned my back into the Incodescence's railing. Luna had been ranting nearly the whole time we were on the airship, lecturing Sabre and me. Blue, tipsy from his secret stash of booze, had become quite chatty. He'd taken his sweet time divulging all the gossip his rich, unicorn butt could think up. 

"Loose lips and sunken ships," I shouted into my mind palace. Stella had been laughing at my Luna conundrum and me since we boarded. Between her and Luna, I was almost convinced this was all some machination of Nightmare before her loss.

"Come now, Luna. I believe you've made your point quite clear," Celestia said, coaxing her grumbling sister into sitting down. The Night Mother may have ceased shouting, but her crossed legs and leer remained. 

"I'm not even sure why you're so mad," I said. 

Celestia rolled her eyes. Lluna is merely upset. Cadence has officially bested and bled my dear sister's coffers dry."

That bad?" Sabre asked. 

"I could have bought so much coffee with those bits," Luna snarled. 

"That bad," Celestia agreed. "On that note, I would like to congratulate you two and wish you the best."

"Thank you, princess," Sabre bowed his head. 

I rolled my eyes. "Thanks, Celestia. I appreciate your encouragement."

"The question remains, though, when will the announcement be made?" Sombra asked. The darker stallion had made his way onto the deck during Luna's rant and wisely kept his mouth shut for its duration.

"Announcement?" Sabre asked. 

"For the newest royal. Certainly, the noble houses will want to know, yes?" Sombra asked. 

"Newest royal—" I said before my mind came to a screeching halt. Stella's laughter had doubled, and all three royals were staring at me, a sparkle in their eyes. "Nope! Nonononono, Never."

"Come now, Star. The masses deserve to know," Luna said. Her frown had become a toothy grin, a fang glistening in the dawn's light. 

"How dare you," I countered, throwing up an accusatory hoof.

"What of Stella? Certainly, she deserves a say, yes?" Celestia asked. 

The two princesses may not trust Stella, but it was clear they had no issue using her as a weapon against me. Not that Stella would oppose such an opportunity. "No, no, we would not. Stella said between giggles. 

"All of you suck."

"And yet, the question of how we move forward with this twist remains."

Celestia tapped her chin. Luna bumped her flank into her sister's. The evil smile the princess of the night could conjure was not derived from Nightmare Moon; in fact, it was most likely the other way around. 

"Tis quite the predicament. Would they be Princess Stella or Prince Stargazer? Would we classify them both as royalty or only young Stargazer's alter ego? Perhaps we should census the populace and see what the common folk think."

I narrowed my eyes and pointed a hoof at Luna in the most menacing, slightly shaking way I could muster. "We can't be royalty; neither of our forms is Alicorn. We were also not born to the throne like Sombra or Chrysalis. You've got nothing, you evil old nag, nothing I say."

"Is that so?" Luna asked. The mare took a step closer and swatted my shaking hoof aside. "Would it not be wrong to claim that my inner turmoil birthed Nightmare Moon, that she and I are intrinsically linked?" 

"Luna, perhaps this joke has run its course."

Celestia stepped between Luna and me. The sisters shared a look before Luna stepped back and relented. 

"She isn't wrong, you know," Stella said, jabbing my metaphysical form in the ribs.

"Silence, you traitor. I am not touching a throne of any kind, so help me, Faust."

"Tis it that big a leap from hero to royalty? A knight of the land, one anointed by Luna not days after besting me, made royalty."

I let out a body-wracking groan. "Stella, please. I'm not a leader, not much of a fighter or hero for that part. I mean, yes, I was there when you were bested, but all I accomplished was dying."

"This is a feat that awakened the Elements of Harmony, a feat that would have failed without your thoughtless actions."

Why was I even arguing this? It was a cyclical argument at best. Stella wasn't vying for the throne. She was trying to hoist it on me. A feat Luna seemed interested in as well. Trees and apples and all the metaphorical crap. 

"So, um, is everyone done arguing?" Thorax asked. The crazy bug had talked with Chryssie and Shining for almost an hour. He only made brief checks of those in the walking world to ensure he hadn't fallen overboard. 

"It would seem so," Sabre said. He pulled me into a sidelong hug. I snorted but otherwise made no move to leave his side. 

"We shall redress this in the future. For now, our home awaits us. We take it, Chrysalis. Cadence and Shining Armor have kept the populace from rioting?" Luna asked. 

Thorax nodded, a wistful smile stretched across his face as he looked out to the horizon. "They've done their best, Princess."

"That is all that can be asked," Celestia said. She, too, looked out to sea, to the rising sun, the ebbing dark to the cerulean seas, and the gentle hues of the morning sun. I was the type of sight that left one humbled, the reminder that time marches on, the dusk awaits the dawn, and the dawn awaits the dusk. 

"You do realize the battle is not over, Stargazer."

I roll my eyes. "Oh, big time, those two are relentless," I say, looking at Stella. My other half, wrapped in her constellations, marveled, but not to the sun. She looked to the skies beyond, to the stars on high. They were still there; they left for none. When the sun's radiance dimmed, they would retake the world above. 

"What is your plan then?" She asked. 

I shrugged. "I have no idea. I have zero interest in ruling or having any title, whether honorary or not. But."

"But?" Stella asked. Her gaze met my own. I winked back. 

"I do know a certain mare who has some experience in such fields. In time, we could at least give the princesses a vacation here and there. Who knows."

Stella sank in her seat. Her eyes fell, and the ethereal waves of her mane seemed to fall with them. The drip of metaphysical tears echoed through eternity. I stood and, with naught, a sound, found a spot beside Stella and wrapped a wing over her shoulder. She sat and wept, and I waited. 

In the end, nothing could fix what had been done. Not long ago, Stella was the face of evil everyone on Equiss knew. She is still hated by most. If others, the everypony, the family who suffered under her reign, knew she was still out there, still free, anarchy was the only word that came to mind—total anarchy. 

"I stand by my words," I whispered. Stella's silent weeping stalled for just a moment. "You might not be forgiven for your past, but that doesn't mean we can't carve a future for both of us: no thrones, no crown, just a brighter night, a bit more twinkle in the stars. We don't need a fancy title to be something more. So, let's take it slow, and maybe one day, people will hate Nightmare Moon; let them. But maybe they'll learn to love Noctis Stella. Okay?"

Minutes passed, and there we stayed. A bat from another world and a spirit who once ruled through fear. A pair that made no sense, but that was fine. We didn't need to make sense. What fun was that anyway? Look to our friends, changelings, hippogriffs, ponies of every tribe, sitting on an airship, and happier to be there than anywhere else.

After a few more minutes, Stella righted herself. She was no worse for wear, considering technically, this wasn't real to begin with. I stepped aside and withdrew my wing. Stella took several deep breaths and looked back at me. The faintest trace of a smile was on her lip, and the spark of hope was glistening in her eye. 

"Perhaps one day," Stella said, looking back to the skies above. "We too can be a light others look to for comfort and guidance. No longer just the dark blanket the weak hide from. Someone like you, young Stargazer."

"Ha!" I bark a laugh. "Not a chance." Stella's face drooped. I gave the mare a light shove. "Last time I checked, it was you who taught me how to shine. So, get it together, lest the others think you weak."

Stella shook her head and shoved me back hard enough to have me tumble to the side. "Me, weak, never." I scoff, and Stella offers me a hoof. I make myself back to my legs and blow my companion a raspberry.

"Foal," She huffs. 

"Downer," I reply. 

Several seconds pass before we both laugh, an exhausted laugh that only those who've been worked to the ends of their sanity can laugh. It's the kind of mad cackle of those who have won against all odds—a laugh of relief. 

"Thank you, Stargazer."

The laughter faded. I fan a hoof in dismissal. "No, thank you, Stella."

So there we sat. The world of the conscious was at peace, and for the first time since this whole insane journey began, so too were the inner machinations of our shared mind—a peace all too brief. 

"Star, you've got to see this; I totally have a write-up for the climactic finale. Oh, this is going to be great." 

Bright Pitch flew over, put a hoof around my neck, and waved his notepad in front of me in a jubilant hysteria. I shoved Bright off me and held him at bay with one hoof. 

"Relax, I can't read anything if you're hopping around. Now, can I?"

Bright slowly settled and leaned on my shoulder, reading over my shoulder. Sabre stood against my other side, looking off to nowhere, in a deserved half-sleep. The princesses had wandered off, and Thorax had literally fallen asleep against the ship railing. He'd need to be moved before he ends up taking a swim. 

"Stargazer."

Both Bright and I looked up from his notes. Tempest stood resolute and tall. You could take the mare from the military, but not vice versa. I raised a brow. Grubber stood beside his boss, eyes flicking about in restless anticipation.

"Tempest?"

"We owe you a debt," Tempest said, tapping Grubber inclusively. The hedgehog looked ready to dive to the side. The poor guy's nerves were totally fried. 

"No, you don't," I countered. I smiled as the mare looked ready to throw a punch. I stuck my tongue out, beckoning her to do it. "You owe me nothing."

"That's not true," Grubber said. "The boss and I, we, you helped us, just because you could. You beat the Storm King's army and the witch, too."

I shook my head. "I did no such thing. Discord beat the army, and Stella beat Starlight. I was just along for the ride."

"Wrong," Tempest said. I cocked my head to the side but said nothing. "You were not along for the ride; you were the one who drove it forward. Discord healed my horn because you asked." Tempest jabbed my chest. "He then tossed the yetis away because he cared about you. Stella saved the day because you pushed her to be better. Time and time again, you led others to shine when no one else would have. A lord of chaos and the mad Nightmare. If in your shoes, no one would have given them a chance. No one would have even considered it."

I scoff. "That's a nihilistic point of view. There are others who care, who would do the right thing because it was the right thing to do. I'm nothing special, just a bat making his way in the world."

"Nihilistic, maybe, but not wrong."

Sabre wrapped me in another hug and nodded to Tempest, who returned the gesture. Traitors the lot of them. 

"Sabre, don't encourage her. I didn't do anything that special. Well, the whole Stella transformation, in a roundabout way. That was pretty awesome."

Bright nodded along. "I know. I have so many ideas for that part."

"You don't need to do anything special. In fact, it is often the mundane that brings out the best in those around you—the small things that show you care." Oh, great, another one seeking to displace my sense of normalcy.

Luna had returned. She stood side by side with Tempest, officially boxing me in. It was a trap, a mutiny. They'd all walk the plank, so help me.

"For the love of Faust, stop engineering my self-respect and look to one another. Even if what all of you insist is true. I didn't do a single thing alone. I am just another pony in the crowd. All I did was cast the first stone, as it were. It took all of us to do any of this, Nightmare Moon, Tirek, Starlight, all of it."

"That's fair, Bright agreed. 

"Tis the nature of equines, after all. Our strength only grows with those that fight for a better tomorrow together," Luna said. 

"Um, I'm not—" Grubber said. 

"You're part of the herd, whether you like it or not," Tempest said, bonking her sidekick on the head. Grubber's smile was enough to make me smile, too. 

"I just hope we aren't tossed into another storm too soon. Pun not intended," Sabre said as he threw a hoof toward the heavens. 

I bumped the big lug. "Yeah, next time, who knows what'll get us, maybe a—"

"NO!" The sum of everyone on deck yelled in combined denial. 

My ears flayed back in distress. "What all I was gonna say—"

Once again, I was cut off, this time by the voice in my head. Stella had wrestled away my voice and was not likely to return it anytime soon. 

"Cast not your gambit, Stargazer, for if you do, I will do nothing as Shining Armor rips you limb from limb."

"Phooey to all of you," I said in my mind, where not even Stella could steal my voice. "You're all just paranoid."

"Be that as it may, the masses have spoken. Now, sit still and enjoy the ride back home, or else." 

I rolled my eyes and turned away from my warden. "Yes, mom."

So, as the waves below rose and fell, as the sun shined down upon the Incandescence, and the crew sailed ever on toward the ports far ahead, the story of the crazy ape monsters and insane zealot unicorns came to a close. I sat smiling at my friends as we talked, joked, and made merry. I wouldn't give this up for all the power and wealth in creation. This was where I was meant to be. This was my home. 

"And to think, it all started with a spark."