(6)
As the light faded, he found himself in the hallway outside of the chamber he was just in. The voices had clearly stopped and the vacant corridor he was in felt warm. The heat from the hall felt as if it was the morning. The early dawn’s light poured through the large, stain glass windows and covered the hall’s floor. Zack was at an utter loss as to what had just happened–he swore it was just night. He reentered the room he had left and saw that the morning rays were also seeping into the windows there as well. The fire in the fireplace was all but gone, only ash and cinders remained in its place.
"What in the world is going on," he questioned himself as he began to walk down the warm chamber halls. The sheer silence of the castle was all but comforting his presumptions. His mind raced with questions and concerns about his own well being that he couldn’t answer. Zack didn’t know what to focus on exactly; the fact that he was just hearing absurdly loud voices that he couldn’t tell were in his head or not, or the fact that it was now morning when only a mere moment ago he was in the late hours of the night. As he banked around the corner of a hallway, at the far end of the elongated chamber, Zack spotted Valiant Steed patrolling the halls. Before Zack could call out to him however, the pegasus noticed him first. His eyes widened and his mouth gaped open in astonishment. He quickly left his hooves and flew over to him as if Zack was in danger.
“Zack,” he exclaimed as he orbited around his friend, inspecting his presence, “where in Equestria have you been?”
“What are you talking about,” he asked in response. As Valiant landed in front of him, Zack had never seen such a scared and confused look that contorted on his friend’s face before in his life.
“You’ve been gone for a whole twenty-four hours. Neither me nor Celestia knew where you went. Even Pinkie Pie didn’t know! You completely missed the Summer Sun Celebration and Princess Luna’s welcome home ceremony... Where were you?”
Zack pointed back towards the chamber he was in and answered, “I was in that room over there, the Meeting Chamber I believe.” His persisting thoughts somehow eluded him when explaining to Valiant where he was.
“Zachary,” Valiant spoke with deep concern, “We checked the entire castle, I searched back in Ponyville and went through your house... This is no time to play games. Now tell me where you were.” He stood there with a churning, gut-wrenching feeling in the pit of his stomach.
He shook his finger and cracked a smile at his friend saying, “Good one, Valiant. You got me, bud!” The pegasus didn’t respond, but gave only a more somber look towards his friend. Zack stood still, speechless and in disbelief.
Valiant believed that Zack was hiding some truth from him and persisted, “Tell me the truth, Zack.” Zack knew he would sound like a lunatic if he told him the truth, but he sighed with defeat and did so anyways.
“I swear to you... I was in the castle the whole time...” Valiant took a step back and shook his head in denial.
“Why can’t you just tell me the truth?”
“I know I sound like some crazy fool, but please, please believe me when I say it again: I was in the castle the whole time.” Valiant just lowered his head and broke eye contact with Zachary. Zack begged him, “Please, V!”
The pegasus just walked away, down the hall and away from his friend. A growing pit tore in Zack’s chest and he felt the pains he so dreaded. He didn’t know how else to explain it to him, so he made his way to the Dining Hall where he presumed he would meet up with the Princess. Zack believed that if he didn’t want to lose anyone else’s trust, he would have to lie. He would have to hold back this curse that is killing him on the inside. No one could help or understand him, so he vowed to keep his pain to himself from now on.
Zack entered the Dining Chambers to find Celestia sitting at the far end of the long table. She was just about to finish her breakfast when she noticed Zack enter the room. She lowered the silverware with her magic and patted her table napkin against her mouth.
“Well,” she started, “where have you been?”
Zack shrugged his shoulders and replied, “Just... places...” He sat down at the other far end of the table and slumped in his seat.
“Places? Places that aren’t in Canterlot nor Ponyville... Care to tell me where you went during the celebration?”
“I could try, but it doesn’t matter anymore–I’m here now.” He quickly altered his mood to try and conceal his worry. He clapped his hands together and asked quickly, “So, what’s for breakfast?” Celestia didn’t feel like arguing this early in the morning, so she dropped the matter for now and began to conjure something with her magic. An orb of golden light grew in front of Zack and formed a meal before his eyes. A breakfast made for a pony’s consumption, as usually; though it never bothered him once. His days of eating meat had been tossed in the past and for the last six years, he has been on a vegetarian's diet.
Before Zack divulged into his meal, he looked back up at Celestia and asked, “Is... is Luna here?”
“Oh yes, she should be coming down in a bit. She had a pretty long day yesterday as you might imagine, so she may be sleeping in.” Zack looked over at the large, hanging clock on the center-right wall of the chamber and read the time.
He looked back and noted, “But it’s only seven?”
A clopping of hooves could be heard from the distant halls coming closer to the Dining Chambers. This wasn’t a very uncommon thing to hear and neither Celestia nor Zack cared for the sound until it stopped at the entrance of the Dining Room. Zack turned and noticed an unfamiliar face, but knew exactly who it was. He could have guessed it was Princess Luna just by her looks alone. She possessed a body much like Celestia's, not as tall, but a little more gangly. The Princess’ mane gleamed with the flowing night sky, twinkling with an aura of purple and dark blue hues. Her coat was a deep and dark shade of navy and her lush, cyan eyes seemed a little dazed with visible bags under them. She wasn’t as regal in appearance as her sister, instead she appeared more like a regular pony than an alicorn. With no crown or royal attire on at the time, she seemed quite average. She drug her hooves over towards the long table and sat herself down at a random seat between Zack and Celestia. She didn’t even acknowledge Zack’s presence, nor did it seem like she even saw him. Her horn glowed, emitting her magic and before her she conjured a bowl, spoon, a glass of milk and a box of cereal. She hovered the cup and cereal and added its contents lazily to the bowl. By what Zack could tell, Luna didn’t seem too well. Her mane was a bit nappy and her eyes seemed restless; Celestia was right, Luna did have a rough night.
Celestia cleared her throat with a graceful cough and greeted, “Good morning, sister. How did you sleep last night?” The Princess of the Night glared at her kin from afar.
She lowered the box of ‘Celesti-O’s' and blurted “Damn your sun! I hath not received no slumber! The days and nights of the moon are much different timings than of this planet, as you might not have the knowing of.” She then suddenly brought her attention over to Zachary. He didn’t expect what she did, but sat up properly in his seat and made eye contact with her. The vivid glower she gave him promoted his attempts to be at his utmost best behavior.
He stupidly welcomed her by saying, “Hello there, Princess Luna. It’s a pleasure to meet you finally!” She raised an eyebrow at the strange creature and redirected her attention back towards her sister.
“Who is this imbecile,” she questioned aloud. “Is this your new pet? For we thought the immortal phoenix was thy companion?”
Celestia responded, “No, my sister. This my faithful and loyal friend, Zachary. He’s been in Equestria for quite some time and has done many great things for the citizens of this land.”
“Ah," she rolled her eyes over back towards him, "so he is to be my replacer? Can this fraudulent prude being raise thy moon and lower thy moon? Can he do-eth anything worthy of thy presence?”
Zack spoke up, “No, I can’t raise the sun or moon. I’m not as powerful as either of you. I come from a far away land with no powers. But overtime, I have grown stronger with Celestia’s help and guidance.”
Luna leaned towards Zack with her eyes peering over him, “What sort of creature are thou? I hath seen no other like yourselves before. Speak, fingered-one!”
“I am a human.”
Luna burst, “Do ye lie to my face? I have besought your kind and naught know of it still?” She spoke to now both Celestia and Zachary, “Do you two treat-eth us like some fool? Cast down thy questioning eyes and deal with my like who I am to be. I have had fulsome debate with the fool of your court, sister. I shall take my leave to the Study!” She slammed her hoof down on the table and knocked the bowl of cereal off onto the ground. Luna sat up, raised her head high and with a royal gait, exited their presence.
As soon as she left, Zack stated, “Well, I wasn’t expecting that.”
Celestia conferred, “Don’t worry, it’ll take some time for her to get use to our world. She has been gone for quite some time, but in all honesty, she is a very kind and sweet mare. Just give her time to warm up to you.”
Zack had finished his meal and sat up from the dining table. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll try and see if I can’t ‘warm up’ to her.”
Celestia raised a hoof and emphasized, “I don’t think that is a very good idea at the moment.”
“I think I might know how to get on even ground with your sister... don’t worry. If I can handle a hydra, I can surely handle the Princess of the Night.”
As Zack did a short bit of searching around the castle for the right Study chamber out of the few that were built, it didn’t take long for him to find her. He found her reclined back and curled up in a lavish, brown chair. She appeared to be in some deep thought; with her eyes closed and her breathing slow, she was rather peaceful at the moment. Zack approached the Princess cautiously.
“Excuse me," Zack peeped, "Princess Luna?”
She opened her eyes and breathed, “Please... just call me Luna.” The tone of her voice convinced Zack that she was very tired. He made no change to his plan as he brought over another chair and then slide a small coffee table between the two. As Zack set a small box on the table, Luna’s expression turned to a more puzzled look.
“What art thou doing?”
Zack sat himself down in the chair across from her and explained, “I thought maybe you would like to play a game... Look, we seem to have started out on the wrong foot–err, I mean, hoof. I thought maybe a friendly board game would clear things up between us.”
“I refute thee,” she denied with forelegs crossed.
“Oh, come on. What have you got to lose? You’ll most likely win at this since I haven’t played this game in so long.”
She raised an eyebrow at Zack and stated, “I hath not played an amusement board in such a long while as well. Even now, the games of these days hath most likely changed than what they were a millennia ago.”
Zack removed the lid to the box and said with enthusiasm, “I doubt the rules of chess have changed.” He dumped the metal pieces of game onto the tabletop. The chess pieces were much different than he would have thought as he took a closer look at them. The kings and queens of both sides were in the silhouette shapes of the two regal Princesses. The other pieces, like the knights, were in the shape of royal guards; while the rooks were different colored Canterlot Castles and the bishops were robed unicorns. The pawns were simply ponies of both black and white, which was very odd, but nothing too strange for Zack. Luna looked in front of her to see what the game was and immediately recognized it.
“Ah,” she spoke with affirmation, “chess. Superb choice, furless one.”
“I guess I should take that as a compliment...” As Zack was setting each piece in their corresponding place, a magical aura engulfed the board and pieces. In the blink of an eye, the board was set properly with the help of Luna’s magic. When she realized Zack had the black side, she quickly rotated the board around so she would have her matching team.
“Yes," she voiced with enthusiasm. "Shall we commence the battle?”
“We may proceed.”
“Indeed! White moves first.”
He reached his hand to where one of his pawns were, but he stopped when Luna spoke out with ferocity, “Lies! I know the rules of this fair game. The eldest regal goes first, and since thou possess not royal blood, I must take first action.”
He slowly retracted his hand back and complied to her rules. He didn’t want to make her mad again, so he allowed her to go first. Luna moved her pawn two squares forward and the game began. With each player taking turns moving their pieces into place, Zack thought this would be a good time to start up a conversation.
“So,” he began lightly, “how’s it like being back here again? Do you have any plans on what you might do now that you are off of the moon?”
With her eyes focused on the board, she replied, “Not precisely... how hath you traveled here? I have seen no creature by the likes of you. Where doest thou hail from?”
“A place called Earth, and I’m not sure how I came here exactly. One minute I was in my home and in next thing you know I was sucked into a portal and spat back out here in Equestria.”
“Earth thou sayest? Would that be north of the Crystal Empire, or maybe far south where there be dragons and the fiery sort?”
“Nope, I come from no land here on your planet... I suppose.” Luna moved her knight into one of Zack’s pawn’s squares.
She spoke with victory, “Ah-HA! First blood be on my hoof! These are joyous times, oh-so joyous!”
Zack was glad he made her smile and congratulated her, “Good job, Luna; but you made one error.” Zack moved his bishop past Luna’s knight and took out one of her rooks. Her eyes widened as she looked up towards Zack. He only gave a sinister grin and leaned back in his chair.
She responded to his attack in a seething tone, “That be my rook! How canst my strategy be unsuccessful? My defenses were sure to be flawless, I had thought? Tis no matter, I shan't not let thee purge my line again!”
Zack snickered, “Oh, chill out, Luna. It’s just a game.”
“Chill-out? I am quite warm, ninety-eight degrees to be precise. The chilling of the out will have to wait when thy body is without life and thy breath ceased.”
“It looks like I’m going to have to teach you how to talk properly... I didn’t think about the time gap between when you were banished to present day.”
Luna gasped and replied, “I... I hath no speech disorders!”
Zack assured, “No, I didn’t mean it like that. I meant that your, well, vocabulary could use some refinement.” Luna understood and concentrated for a moment.
She choose her next words carefully and spoke slower, “How... is... this? Am I... do-ing bet-ter?”
Zack smiled, “Much better! Don’t worry, you’ll be articulating like a regular denizen of Equestria in no time!” Zack soon noticed that Luna was moving her pieces without the aid of magic at times, almost as if she had telekinetic abilities of some sort. He asked her, “How are you moving those pieces without the use of your magic?”
She smirked and replied, “I’d glad thou take note of my abilities. While thy sister hath tea parties and merriment for one thousand years, I have taken it upon myself to continue my lessons in unicorn magics. I perform some spells without the aid of visible magic and I do so believe I am much more powerful than my sibling.”
Luna moved her knight into Zack’s bishop square and blurted out. “Yes! Thou hath failed to–” She placed a hoof up to her mouth and restated quietly, “I mean... Yay, me!”
Zack gave a smirk and continued playing. He began to put his attack plan into motion, seeing if Luna would follow and not notice his coming assault. As the pieces moved into place, Zack’s plan commenced. Each of his moves were well placed and quick, whereas Luna’s were slowing down. She began to look more worried and frantic, carefully thinking of every move, where every one of her pieces were and how the future of each move will impact her in the long run. Her eyes darted across the board as sweat began to form on her brow. She finally moved her queen far across the board on Zack’s side and sat back further in her chair, feeling relief from her choice. Zack slyly and swiftly moved his bishop across the board and took out one of her knights.
He responded with a grin, “Check.”
Luna gasped and hastily took out the bishop with her king. Zack swiped his hand across the board, grabbed his queen and took out her bishop. Luna’s eyes widened as she quickly, without thinking, moved her knight in front of her king to protect him. Zack saw this and gracefully used his knight to attack one of her pawns, making a hole in her defenses. Her magic tactfully hovered her queen around to guard against another attack.
Zack then finally moved his rook over into one of the far corners and said again with pleasure, “Check...” Luna hovered her king in the air, looking around the board for a place to move out of harm’s way. She slowly looked up at him with the burgeoning fact of a loss.
Zack finished his delayed statement with, “...mate.” Luna lowered the piece back on the board top and with her hoof, toppled over the king gently. She lowered her head in defeat and fell silent. Zack reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.
“You did good,” he said with encouragement. His grin then turned into a wide smile and then stated, “But loser picks up!”
A magical veil enveloped the board and pieces as Luna quickly shot back up to look at him. Her eyes burned with the ferocity of an ancient warrior as Zack drew back his hand off of her shoulder. The board suddenly flew up into the air and the pieces scattered all about them onto the floor. She unfolded her wings, flapped out of the recliner and onto her hooves behind the chair. She turned away from Zack and began to make her way out of the chamber. Zack was still sitting down in the chair, holding back his rising laughter successfully. Luna then stopped at the exit and rested one of her hooves on the frame of the door to hold herself up. She took a heavy sigh as her horn glowed with magic. The board and pieces slowly rose up from the floor as she gently placed them back into the box and closed the lid. Zack became somber to her sudden saddened look she gave.
“I’m sorry,” Luna said as she finally made her way out of the chamber.
Zack showed up for lunch in the dining hall, but noticed that Luna wasn’t there. He asked Celestia to where she might have gone off to, but she too had no idea where she was. Celestia didn’t know where she would be, but perhaps not too far from the castle or maybe still in the castle. Zack didn’t do any immediate searching when she left the study chambers. He had decided on letting her sort out her problems alone; he thought that his presence might worsen issues. As he strolled through the castle, peeking in room after room, he came to a realization about Luna. She had been in (of what he knew of) solitude for one thousand years on the moon. To that extent, it would have most likely carried over some depressive side effects. Obviously she forgot how to interact with others, but perhaps maybe she had been alone for so long that she enjoyed being alone. She had become an introvert on the moon, and Zack thought that he would have been too if he was in such a place for that long of a time.
As he passed by an overarching window that peered into the Royal Garden, he spotted her. Luna perched herself atop a bent bridge over a small pond, looking downward into the dim water. Zack made his way out to the garden to join her. As he stepped outside, he had discovered that he had lost complete track of time when meandering through the corridors of the palace. It was in the late afternoon, according to the colors of the sky. High and thin clouds sailed above through the burnt orange heavens. Slender cirrus' tattered the warm atmosphere while gray blots and patches of thicker clouds hugged the horizon. The sun’s rays darted between the clouds, racing downward and skimming the edges of the ivory castle. It wasn’t suppose to be a noticeable view, but Zack took notice of the common beauty around him. The sight was almost magical in a sense—it even gave chills down his spine.
He finally walked over to the mare and rested next to her on the bridge. He leaned up against the railing and looked down into the pond’s reflection. The two looked at each other through the water’s mirror, Luna’s hair draped a bit over her face as it hung around her head. She looked away from Zack’s view and instead glanced at a drifting, bowl-shaded leaf floating on the calm water. Zack spoke up softly, breaking the silence of the serene garden.
“I know it must be difficult...” He stopped and continued again with a new thought, “I’m sorry, I don’t know. What you had to go through... no one on this planet or mine could have ever gone through. You’ve missed so much of life, those thousand years, I’m surprised you’re still on even ground with your sister and not angry with her; even if you were, you sure are hiding it well and you do have all the right in the world to be mad at her. You have strength I wish I had, Luna.” She looked over at him, the sun’s rays illuminating her shadowy, transparent mane of stars and wonderment. Her dark teal eyes pierced back into Zack’s brown ones. Hers, however, reminded him of the aftermath of a heavy winter’s snow storm—quite arresting and bewitching at the very sight of them.
She spoke slowly and clearly, “My sister had to send me to the moon. Discord had corrupted me, it was already too late for my recovery. She tried... she tried ever so hard to save me. Glimpses of the past events are obscured... but, I do remember them. After she sent me away, he immediately left me to live out those thousand years alone. He tormented me, but I knew I had to stay strong. He had gotten what he wanted, he wanted us apart, but things in the end backfired for him.”
“What do you mean,” Zack asked, “...backfired?” Luna only gave him a weary expression and looked back down into her reflection once more. Zack stopped his pursuit to know the history he asked for and joined her, looking down into his own reflection as well.
He spoke up without thinking, still staring into his own dismal appearance in the pond, “I know I’ll never know or feel what you must have gone through, but, I too have gone through some strife in my times. My parents, the ones who brought me into this world... I hardly knew them. My mother died when I was young, and my father... One day, when I was six I believe, I can’t recall exactly at the moment, it was like any other day. A bitter November night... a new moon in the sky... bits and pieces of useless information I can’t forget reminds me of the sad events that occurred. He told me... ‘son... I’m going to leave now... your brother will watch after you.’ I asked him where he might be going at such an hour, but he didn’t respond. That damn coward. He turned his back on us and walked out the door.” Zack leaned over the railing a bit more, affixed into his mirror image.
He continued in a manner in which he thought he was talking to himself, “I’ll never know what it would be like to have a father... to argue with one... to love one... And soon after he left, a few years later actually, my brother vanished with no signs of coming back. I had lost everything, I had nothing to lose except my life, which eventually I was going to take. Why I waited so long to try and do so I couldn’t tell you to this day. But somehow, everything wrong and broken in my life is fixed now through some means no one here has yet revealed to me. Yet still, with all the good that has happened here in Equestria... something still haunts me and is eating away at my very essence. Something I’m fighting even now. I wish to tell you, to tell anyone; but to be honest, I’m not even sure what it is.”
The two individuals remained still, the growing dark of the coming night drew nearer. Time once again eluded Zack. Flecks and beams of light shot through high clouds, the sun's rays breaking through and gracefully skimming across the garden. Light that touched the pond’s face shimmered upward for split seconds, creating gleaming lusters like stars in a clear night sky. Luna looked over at him, Zack didn’t acknowledge her gaze, but knew she was looking at him.
She then turned away and spoke in a level tone, “I never had a mother or father, only Celestia. She looked after me, she was my guardian... and the only thing I cared about in the world. But now, even though I’m here on this planet again, I never thought I could relate to anyone. You however... even though I’ve only known you for a day, and even though our experiences are different, we are so much alike.”
“Please, don’t say that.”
“It’s true.”
Zack looked at her and noted, “It’s not true. You’ve had to deal with so much more than I have... I pity you for what you must have gone through.” He stopped talking and ceased his thought process. He had forgotten why he even came out here to talk to her.
He then digressed, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. We are–” Luna gently placed her hoof onto Zack’s lips, this act of gentleness hushed him and surprised him. A genuine and small smile formed across her mouth.
“All is forgiven,” she said in a warm tone. “Let’s start over.” She placed her hoof back down on the ground and trotted off the garden bridge. “Come,” she called out, “follow me. I have something to show you.” Zack did so and the two entered the castle.
The pair climbed the stairs up to the top of the Western Tower, the same tower Zack’s bedroom was in. She entered it and to his surprise the room had completely changed. From furniture to wallpaper, the chamber was entirely renewed.
“What did you do to my room?”
Luna turned to him and denoted, “This was my room one millennia ago. I moved your belongings to the guest room below the Eastern Tower where Twilight Sparkle once lived. The only thing I couldn’t move was...” Her eyes turned to the corner of the room and Zack followed her gaze. His line of sight landed on his sword, the Prevailer.
Luna walked up to it and gave it a closer look while saying, “So, I have come to realize that you are the new master of the Prevailer. Oh, how times have changed. The only pony masters of the blade had to be unicorns, for they were the only ones that could use it. But you, you have hands, it makes sense that you could wield such a weapon.” Zack stepped forward and took hold of the blade. It still weighed like a feather in his grasp as he held it firmly. He placed it in his sheath and secured it around his waist.
He replied, “Thank you, but I don’t believe I have mastered this weapon yet like it was intended to be mastered. I need more practice with it.”
Luna smiled and turned away. With her horn, she magically opened the balcony doors wide. The two made their way out and Zack was met by a chilly high wind. He crossed his arms and continued onward next to Luna who showed no signs of being cold. She rose her head up and began to focus her magic. Her horn ebbed with magical energy as the light which was produced from it grew with gaining power. She blinked and in an instant her eyes radiated with raw power. Before Zack, the clouds in the distance parted and gave way to the dusk. The far mountains were clearly visible now and from what he could tell, an increasing light poured over the ranges beyond them. The horizon grew brighter with a white light that seeped over the Equestrian landscape. Luna rose into the air, keeping herself balanced with her large and powerful wings. She began to steadily raise her hooves up into the air, almost as if lifting something invisible. Then it became clear to Zack what she was doing when an incredible spectacle beheld his sight. A full, glorious moon rose over the eastern horizon, a moon so large and spectacular. He had never seen it this incredible before in his life. It radiated with celestial power as the light of it was almost too bright to look at directly. As it finally rose over the mountain peaks, it almost appeared to be cradled atop the far off ranges. Luna floated back down and the magic soon dissolved from her horn. Her eyes returned to normal as she folded her wings once again.
“I bet you’ve never seen Celestia make a moon like that before.”
“Luna, it’s beautiful,” he uttered in wonder and stepping backwards. “I’ve never seen the moon this close and this bright before in my life!” She grinned back at him and turned away from her creation.
She said aloud while trotting back into her chambers, “All for you, Zack. Thank you for listening.” Zack found himself alone on the balcony, staring up at the spectacle that was created because of his act of random kindness.
Zack eventually made his way down to his new room to prepare for the night. As he entered it, all of what Luna had said was true to his sight—all of his worldly goods were moved into this one chamber. They weren’t just thrown in her either, but neatly pushed against the walls and in place to look like an actually bedroom; even his clothes were nicely tucked away in their respected drawers in his cabinet. He undressed and put on his nightly attire. As he lay in bed, he thought to himself that he had a pretty nice day today. Even though he rekindled moments of his past he didn’t wish to remember, he still thought of it as a pretty swell day. His eyelids grew heavy and away his mind went into slumber.