A Vivid Dreamer – Ch13
Let sleeping dogs be
Luna chased after her sister through the hallway; she had long ago let her escort depart. She had let her disguise fall a while back. “Sister we need to talk.”
Celestia halted her progress and turned to face Luna as she trotted up, “yes Luna? What is it?”
Luna met the eyes of her older sister, as she returned a gentle smile. Luna only returned a frown, “we need to have a discussion,” she began to look around, spotting several guards and servants. “In private.”
The gentle smile faded from Celestia’s lips, “Very well.”
***
Luna found herself seated within Celestia’s private study, with the table between them holding a tea set from which they were both drinking from. Luna was about to have a serious discussion with her sister. As she set her cup down Luna drew in a breath and started, “Sister what you have done is wrong.”
To her sister’s credit, her face remained as stoic as it always had when she was diplomatic. Her eyes though told a different story; to Luna it looked as if she had been slapped. Luna took this as her queue to push the matter further. “You have imprisoned an innocent creature. Why would you do such a thing?”
Luna could see small flame flicker within the deeps of Celestia’s eyes, a sudden resolve. Luna listened to Celestia’s response, “To protect Our little ponies. You have said, and he has proven as well, that he is indeed alien to Equestria. That alone warrants an investigation.”
“But imprisonment Tia? Has he not proven that he means no harm? He has lived with ponies for over a week since his possible arrival.” Luna interjected.
“He may be biding his time till the most opportune moment, or he may not. But we have seen his dream, and if such monsters exist. If he is able to visit us, who is to say those monsters could not follow?” Luna had to admit that it was a frightening possibility, but her sister had overlooked an important fact.
“You have only seen one dream, a nightmare at that. Who is to say that those were nothing more than his headless horse?” Luna tried to remind her sister, maybe herself as well. Nightmares could recreate their own and worst monsters.
Celestia closed her eyes before giving a small nod, “true but you cannot deny the fact that the potential is still there.”
“Which is why we must learn from him and not cage him.”
Celestia opened her eyes to see Luna looking at her intently, “What do you mean Luna?”
As Luna’s brow furrowed she began, “why is it that our little ponies are far more accepting to change than you are?” Luna watched as her sister drew her head back at the accusation. “Why is it that it took Our return to convince you that griffon locomotives were a valuable asset to have. Being able to cross our nation in days instead of weeks was a massive boon to our economy. But it had then again taken Us another year to convince you on using them as intended, with fire and steam.”
Celestia furrowed her brow in confusion before relenting, “I must admit that my fear of the steam engine may have been unwarranted, but I do not see how this relates.”
Luna sighed as she rubbed a temple with her hoof, “our steam engines are almost two hundred years behind what the griffons are using. If Our reports are correct, they have the ability to construct cannons they can carry on their backs. What could we do if they decided to attack?”
Luna did not like to bring these images into her sister’s mind, they tended to lead to the almost irrational behaviors she had been witness to the past week. While it was true that diplomatic relations with the griffon kingdom was strong, there were still the odd pirates they had to deal with. “If we wish to defend ourselves from all threats we must learn to adapt Tia. Which is why if you wish to protect you ponies from these monsters that have frightened you so, you must learn of them first. We have that source of that information scared witless by your presence and actions. You first contact with him resulted in a shattered mind, do you remember? And then you had him torn from his friend and probable home.” Luna paused as she allowed her sister to recall the events, then continued, “Which is why, if we want such information we would need to earn his trust. He has already proven himself harmless; We see no objection to move him from the cells to one of the ambassadors quarters. While a gilded cage is still a cage he would far more approachable in comfortable lodgings.”
Luna saw her sister cringe, coming to terms with an inner conflict. She admired her sisters desire to protect their little ponies, but that far too often left her short sighted. Luna hated to do this, she was aware of the conflict she was fueling within her sister. But what she would say next would always drive the point home. “Celestia, if We told you that smiting down a single griffon hatchling or diamond dog pup would protect our ponies would you do it?”
Celestia sat there for a few moments, not daring to look Luna in the eyes before replying. “…yes”
“But that peace would only last a day.” With that Luna rose to leave her sisters study. She had hopes that moving him to more luxurious accommodations would garner some form of trust from the human turned fox. The idea of being able to tap such wealth of alien knowledge had her skipping with glee.
***
Luna made her way back to the dungeons, she would be telling him of his release. That he would no longer be jailed, but would have to remain on castle grounds while they determined his intents. While this was true, Luna was hoping to earn hiss trust and as such gain access to his knowledge. What she had seen within his dreams had captivated her, if she could learn of his technologies and magic; the advancements to Equestria own could be astounding. That is if Celestia did not try to hamper Luna’s attempts for progress.
As she approached the dungeons however, something felt wrong. Making her way to the guard house she noticed the extra guards posted outside. She questioned the first guard she approached, “Why are you posted in the hallway?”
“We are currently dealing with an emergency within the dungeons; the ponies guarding the prisoner fell unconscious. The medic has failed in every attempt to resuscitate them.” The guard reported, his expressions remained stoic but Luna could hear the concern.
“Do we know the cause?” Luna questioned, this could not have been a coincidence. Stone’s instability at the appearance of Celestia and the emergency she now faced were too closely related.
“I am sorry, we don’t know. We cannot get close enough to the cell to investigate,” The guard’s expression turned worried, “Whenever somepony got too close they would fall asleep. Lost another two guards in an attempt to recover the first two, we almost lost the medic before some levitated them back.”
“Allow Us passage, We believe to know the cause.” The guard hesitated, but allow the princess to pass. As she passed through the doorway into the guard’s room she was met with the sight of frantic ponies. There were two guards bracketing the doorway leading to the cells, over by the tables were the unconscious forms of four guards, there was a nurse and a medic walking between the tables checking their vitals. Luna turned to the medic, an orange coated unicorn mare wearing medical saddle bags.
“Quick Stitch, what are their conditions?”
The mare turned to face the direction she had heard the voice, “Oh, Princess Luna. I don’t really know, as far as I can tell they are asleep; they respond to outside stimuli. But for the life of me I cannot wake them.” Luna looked over the closest grey stallion guard, she could see his chest rising and falling. Using her magic she indeed confirmed that he was dreaming. “My first assumption is a sleep spell, but I cannot find any charms maintaining it; I’ve tried every means of dispelling and warding I know. Nothing has worked.” The mare was obviously frantic, not used to ailments she was not able to diagnose.
Just then one of the other guards started screaming, hooves flailing. Everypony in the room was stunned by the fear that the scream held. Once his actions settled to a quiet whinnying Luna stood over him and lit her horn. Running her magic over his prone form, from hoof to horn, Luna could not find anything out of place. He was a perfectly healthy stallion, the only magic she could find were the enchantments used on his armor. It wasn’t until she scanned his mind she noticed something odd, he was dreaming or more specifically having a nightmare, but there was an odd tugging; a tugging that lead down to the cells.
“The reason you cannot cure their bodies is because they are perfectly healthy, someone is channeling a very odd spell and has a hold of their dreams.” As Luna finished she looked up at the door leading to the cells.
“You mean the diamond dog?” Quick Stitch face was twisted in confusion, “But he should not be able to use magic.”
Turning back to the orange mare, Luna responded, “He is not of a common variety of dog Stitch, and as such we do not know what he is capable of. If he is indeed the cause of our current predicament, it would be interesting to measure his involvement as well as to put an end to it.”
When Luna heard the shuffling of armor and the snap of wings she looked up at the source. Standing in front of the door way to the cells were the two of the guards; wings crossed to bar her path. One of the guards spoke, “We are sorry your highness but we cannot allow you to enter with hazards present.”
Luna could only smile at their attempt to protect her, “Do you believe that We, Princess of the night, would be bested by simple sleep spell?” Quick Stitch’s brows raised in confusion as she began objecting.
“But you just said that there was no sleep spell.” Luna turned to face Stitch, smiling at her obliviousness.
“There was no spell cast upon them, but instead around them. They cannot be awakened because what has put them to sleep now has hold of their dreams.” Stitch’s face bore a look of extreme concern.
“But why?”
“That is what We wish to find out,” turning again to the guards Luna continued, “unless you believe Us be helpless?” The two guards looked at each other then back to Luna before returning to their stations, the look of dejection clear on their features. Luna walked through the doorway then turning to them again, “Thank you.”
The stone corridor looked the same as it had earlier that day, but she could feel it; something was off. Walking down the silent corridor, it didn’t take too long for Luna to pick it up; the quiet whimpering. It didn’t seem to get any louder as Luna proceeded to walk towards the cell it originated from, but when she a cell’s length away it hit her. It was like a wave crashing against her, forcing her mind into unconsciousness. As her eyes drooped Luna quickly stumbled back, and just as quickly as it arrived, it vanished. There was definitely a magic aura originating from the cell, Luna’s horn began to glow faintly as she warded her mind against its influence before working her way into the cell.
As Luna opened the bars to cell she found a lump lying on top of the cot, releasing the occasional whimper. Luna stood over the lump of bedding before she began to prod it with a hoof, “Lodestone wake up.” When she didn’t get a response she tried again with the flat of her hoof, “Ryan wake up!” this time she received a small yip. The tugging she had felt from the stallion definitely led to Lodestone. She decided to try again, placing a hoof on the lump she began to shake it, only to receive as small jolt running through her foreleg. As she drew her leg back in surprise she levitated the bedding off the cot.
There lying in the cot was Lodestone, curled up into a ball so tight, that with his fur now dried, he looked like a white pompom with ears. But his ears were not the only thing protruding from the ball of fur, along his back the crystal spines stood erect. Every few seconds a small arc of blue electricity would travel up in the space between spines. This was the source of the spell; Luna could feel it emanating magic. But then she felt something else, something underneath the radiating magic, a connection to something else, to the Dreamscape.
Luna was not entirely sure what was happening, Lodestone was the cause of what had befell the guards that were stationed at his cell, but he was exhibiting the same symptoms as well. He was asleep; held in that state by his nightmare. If she wanted to end this she would need to end the nightmares themselves. As she backpedaled to the center of the cell she sat down, and began to charge her horn; ready to cast the all too familiar spell.
When she opened her eyes she found herself on the Dreamscape, in front of a disturbing site. There floating in front of her was what could only be Ryan’s dream, but what disturbed Luna was that the wispy tendrils, that would flow in an unseen breeze were currently wrapped around four other dream motes. Ryan’s dream pulsed an angry dull red, but every time it pulsed the colour would travel down to a dream mote held within the tendrils grasp turning them a bright orange. Luna knew that the dream motes being grappled belonged to the guards currently unconscious and being tended to by Quick Stitch. It was then that Luna watched as one of the guard’s dream motes descended for the ocean’s surface, only to be yanked back up by the tendril that it was wrapped by.
It only came with slight relief that she theorised; if she could end Ryan’s nightmare it would release the dreams of the guards as well. And that perhaps at viewing his nightmare find out what had him so troubled. With this in mind Luna entered the second nightmare of something so alien to her, she did not know what to expect this time but if it was the same as last time she would be able to deal with it without Celestia’s interference.
Luna opened her eyes when she heard the creak of metal, and sounds of gears. What she saw, she could only think of as Canterlot Castle. Except with pillars replaced with iron girders, where there should be stonework was instead a patch work of metal plating, and the windows were replaced with iron bars. The lighting was extremely dark, there was the scent on blood and everything was covered in rust.