//------------------------------// // Darkness of the Mind // Story: Celestial Gift // by Wolfsalvo //------------------------------// Chapter 8: Darkness of the Mind (Steel's P.O.V.) Walking into Twilight's humble adobe, I had been expecting a home suitable for living in, even if it was inside a tree. What I really saw was a library, and while I had seen bigger collections of books, I was still surprised that this was where Celestia had said I would be spending most of my time. While I looked around, I heard Twilight call out, "Spike, can you come here?" "Sure thing Twilight! What do you ne-" Looking towards the stairs as a small lizard like creature came down the stairs; it froze when its eyes shifted from Twilight, and was staring towards me. His mouth was open as he continued to stare at me, and the look in his eyes was unreadable as far as I could tell. Taking a few steps towards the stairs, I stopped beside Twilight as I said, "Hello there, my name is Steel." The little purple lizards' eyes seemed to widen a bit, before he said in a slightly shaky voice, "My n-name is Spike…" Feeling that was going to be able to get out of the little guy, I looked towards Twilight, who was looking up at me with a curious expression. She raised a hoof and lightly tapped my leg armor, causing it to create a resonating metallic sound. Raising my eyebrow as she levitated over a piece of parchment, quill, and what I was able to surmise as ink, she began to jot down notes. Just as I was about to voice a question, she said, "The princess said you wore armor, but she didn't mention it would cover your entire body." When she walked around me, she spoke while I watched her write down notes the entire time, "She also said that your armor makes you appear larger than you really are. What are the functions of making it bigger than yourself? Doesn't that make it cumbersome?" Chuckling a bit, I walked over and sat on the stairs, before I said, "First of all, did the princess tell you how I even arrived in Equestria?" The shake of her head confirmed it, and I began a short version explaining how I had gotten here, "Alright, well, I heard how there was a meteor shower not that long ago, but that wasn't made of rocks. Humanity, that's the race I'm part of, make's these things called Drop Pods for ODST's, which is a special branch of our military. Well, I crashed into the castle in Canterlot with one of those drop pods, and… oh, what's your question?" "Did you say you crashed into the castle?" Twilight asked, and I saw her wide eyes filled with worry. Nodding my head, I nodded my head before I cleared any worry she might have acquired, "Nobody... nopony was harmed during the crash, only property damage." Twilight let out a sigh of relief, so I continued, "So, after I crashed, I passed out. The next day, that was when I met Princess Luna… heh… I unknowingly snuck into her room. That was also when I met Celestia. If it wasn't for her, I would've jumped out of the window to escape." The bewildered expression that Twilight wore seemed to point out how everything I went through wasn't exactly what she had heard, or expected. She shook her head a bit, and as her mane swayed to the side, she said, "You still haven't told me the reason why your armor is so big..." "It keeps me safe, warm when it is cold, cold when it is hot, and if I should be in a dangerous environment, it can be sealed so that I can breathe for fifteen minutes without a clean source of external oxygen. But... that isn't the case anymore, as my helmet has been compromised." I said as I lifted my helmet up, and she once more got to see the crack in it the visor. She nodded as she wrote down some more notes, before she asked, "You said you were part of the meteor shower... how is that possible?" Smiling, I leaned forward as I paced my helmet down on the stairs higher up, and when I saw the lizard thing looking towards it, I smiled a little wider as I said, "If you want to look at it, go ahead; just don't lose it..." Chuckling a bit, I turned my attention back towards Twilight, who had by now taken a seat in front of me, I thought of the best way to answer her question. When it dawned on just dumbing it down a bit would be simplest, I said, "The human race is advanced when it comes to technology, so much so, that we can travel the stars, and live on planets otherwise uninhabitable too dangerous to normally live on." Looking to the side as my eyes lost focus, I recalled something I had heard earlier, and asked, "That pink pony said something along the lines that Luna had been on the moon. I didn't get a good enough look, but I didn't see any settlements on the moon..." When I refocused my eyes, I saw Twilight giving a nervous look towards the floor, before she said, "It would probably be best in your interest to not know the full story behind that part of her history." "Twilight..." Moving a bit so that I could easily look directly into her eyes at a level equal to her own, I said, "I want to know, whether it is good or not. I'm giving you information about humanity... I'm only asking for a bare minimum myself." Twilight let out a sigh, before she looked up at me, and she let the quill and parchment lower to the floor, and began a tale of her own... (Fluttershy's P.O.V.) "Oh dear..." Locking the door as the sound of Timberwolves howling just inside the forest reached my ears, I felt worry clouding my mind for any of the poor animals that hadn't made it back. Those poor animals... I hope they are alright... Walking over and quickly closing the shutters, I knew it was going to be another long night. The Timberwolves had been staying inside the forest, but for the past few nights, I had seen there glares staring towards my home from the shadows of the dark Everfree forest. I hadn't been able to leave my home, for fear of my animal friends being harmed in my absence, but that wouldn't be the case for much longer. Moving into the kitchen, I saw that no matter what happened, I would need to go into town and pick up more animal food if I wanted to continue to make my little friends as happy as I could. Sighing as I made my way towards the living room of my home, I saw that each and every one of the critters were no longer running around, but were most likely inside their individual nooks and crannies that they resided in. looking around, I couldn't help but mumble to myself, "Oh dear... it really is going to be a long night again..." (Steel's P.O.V.) Looking back up and at Twilights waiting face, I had just received a massive dosage of what I had only hoped would be a total pile of bullshit, but with the way Twilight had explained everything to me with clarity and facts that had fit into each other's diagram for explaining something, I knew it was entirely true. Letting out another sigh, I turned my head towards the darkness outside, and that darkness actually reminded me of the Princess of the night, as she was apparently known as from most of the Equestrain population. Lifting my eyes and looking towards the ceiling as a way to hopefully distract myself with the visual of something, anything to change my current train of thought. "Well?" Turning my attention back towards the purple mare in front of me, I shook my head once again, before I said, "Well what? That wasn't anything like I had been expecting..." "What were you expecting?" Twilight asked. Shaking my head, I looked towards the window once again, before I said with a light scoff beforehand, "I don't know... but it definitely wasn't that... so the Princess, she really, was...?" I looked towards Twilight, and while I hoped that she was still holding onto some kind of elaborate prank, I grimaced after she nodded. "That would explain why she was so... different, when I was around her. Don't get me wrong, she is a great person at heart, but she was still a little different." When Twilight stood up, she nodded, before she said, "I would enjoy spending more time discussing both of our histories, but we really should be going to sleep now. Even Spike thinks so, hehe..." Looking up the stairs a bit, I felt a chuckle rumble from my throat, as the poor little dragon, as I had learned was his species, had truly fallen asleep; but not before leaving my helmet covering his entire head and a small part of his shoulders. Through the depolarized visor, I saw he was snoring contentedly, but it wasn't until a purple aura covered said helmet did it rise from his head, before it was placed on a lower part of the staircase. Standing up as I grabbed my helmet, I suddenly looked towards Twilight, who had placed the young dragon onto her back, before I said, "Princess Celestia didn't tell me where I was supposed to be staying during my stay in Ponyville, did she by chance happen to tell you in a letter or anything?" Twilight had stopped moving up the stairs when I had started to talk, but it was only when I finished did I seem realization dawned on her as well. She looked towards the grumbling dragon on her back briefly while he mumbled a bit under his breath and in his sleep, but she was soon looking back towards me with a slightly worried expression. "Let me just put him in his bed and I will be right back down." Nodding my head as she started moving up the stairs, I saw a brief amount of movement outside. Making my way towards the front of the library and towards the window, I looked outside, and saw nothing except Ponyville at night. The wind appeared to be blowing lightly, and as I watched the oddly calming sight before me, I felt more than at ease. It was a nice night out, and I was reminded of Luna's past deeds and hardships as I saw the large and pure white moon rising into the sky. Turning around once I heard the sound of someone, or rather somepony approaching, I saw Twilight looking towards me with a nervous expression. I felt my eyebrow rise slightly, but once she spoke, I knew why her apprehension, "Steel, the princess didn't make any mentions as to where you would be staying at for the night, but I don't have an extra bed here..." Bringing my hand to my chin, I knew the predicament I was in, but I was just going to need to do what I had done before while in the field. "Do you mind if I sleep down here? I don't need a bed to sleep." Twilight seemed a bit unsure, and it was even more noticeable in her voice, "I suppose so, but won't you be uncomfortable?" Shrugging my shoulders, my reply was as simple as it could be, "It isn't like there is somewhere else for me to sleep." When Twilight nodded, she remained standing there for a few moments, and I stood there too, not sure what to do or say now; as there wasn't really much else to say now that we were ready to go to sleep. I looked to the side as I didn't feel right just looking back into her just as equally nervous, but curious eyes. Looking over the books, I didn't plan on reading through any of them, even though I had the helmet mounted flashlights. "So... I guess, uh... sleep well Twilight..." She seemed to be snapped out of a slight daze, before she suddenly nodded, before she asked, "It can get quite loud in the morning, would you mind if I cast a sleep spell over you so that we don't potentially wake you up?" I tried to remain as neutral as I could, but I felt slightly put off by the suggestion, and I felt a small amount of surprise spreading throughout my mind. While a small part of me wanted to agree, I knew that I probably should refuse, but that didn't mean I didn't have to make a compromise. Then again, it would be better not to even do that... "I wouldn't mind being woken up from some noise Twilight... just try not to let it sound anything loud or explosive-like, alright?" The small smile that spread across her muzzle was brief, and it was then that she turned around and finally started to walk away. As she began to climb the stairs, she said, "Sleep well Steel..." Nodding my head towards her, I watched as she disappeared, and even then, I waited until I heard what sounded like a door click closed. When I did, I let my head fall a bit, before I moved over towards a corner of the room, and took a seat. I would normally sleep with my helmet on, but even the more experienced hell jumpers slept without their helmets if they weren't under threat of combat; so why couldn't I? Smiling a bit as I began to let my mind wander, I looked towards the window again for one last look at the night sky... only to stiffen when I saw the long, spindly arms. Reaching a hand down and grabbing my pistol, I saw the limb drawing back to lash at the window, but as it swooped into the moonlight, I felt my heart start to beat just a little slower. Instead of what I had mistaken it for, I saw the dark, but green bark of a tree branch... The similarity between a flood form was uncanny... but luckily it wasn't as similar as it could've been. The impact it still had on me was still tremendous though... … (Twilight's P.O.V.) Making my way down the stairs, I knew what I was going to do wouldn't look good to anypony else, especially the princess. While the princess and I had both accumulated a massive wealth of information on Steel, I wanted to see who he truly was; I wanted to see what he dreamed about. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, I turned and used the light from my horn to find him, and when I saw his sleeping form near a corner, I felt a pang of sympathy. While I did have a spare bed, I tended not to have it out, and it was buried somewhere in the basement; and I didn't have enough energy to use magic. The spell I was about to attempt was much more complex, but it didn't require as much energy. Stopping in front of the sleeping human, I moved closer, before I whispered quietly, "Steel... Steel?" When no reply came, I knew he was in his dreams by now... but just in case. Letting my sleep spell take hold of my concentration, I let the tendrils of magic stretch between Steel and I, before I felt myself becoming slightly woozy. Closing my eyes to stave off the sudden dizziness and continue to keep my focus on the task at hoof, I waited until I was nearly entirely exhausted. I cut off the magic once I was sure it was in place, but when I opened my eyes, I saw I had tipped forward and was now partially leaning on Steel. Getting back to my hooves as I felt a wave of heat spreading through me, I looked the other way, but I began to focus on the next spell. Sitting down, so that this time I wouldn't end up in a similar predicament as I had found myself in recently, I let my mind and magic drift towards his... -:Third Perspective:- Twilight Sparkle and Steel were two souls, two minds, and most importantly, two individuals from separate worlds that had different ideologies. While peace was a common enjoyment for both worlds, the touching of minds that Twilight was about to commence with Steel not only would shatter her blissful ignorance of war, but would link her Steel in a way she would never have during her lifetime. The intimacy of two minds even brushing past each other, let alone purely letting the dreams of one be viewed by another, was a close connection only shared by those capable of performing such a task. This instance however, wasn't a connection of love or what was usually a romantic notion, but rather; a sense of understanding. Twilight's magic had been connected with Steel's mind for ten minutes, and the small amount of dreamscape she had been captured in had been confusing to the poor mare. It was with a jerk of shock and a small yelp did she start to understand why the connection of minds was only permitted between those with a close relationship and those with a deep understanding of the dangers of such magic. Fear and pain were the first things Twilight felt coming from Steel's mind, and such was the dream that it was safe to classify as the nightmares born from the devils themselves. Steel, while under the effects of sleep, still grimaced and shook from the fear that was inspired from his dreams. The nightmare he had was one he had endured before, multiple times before, but it was a nightmare he had endured not only in his dreams; but also in his waking life... . . . (Steel's Dream) Raising my assault rifle in my hands, I didn't bother aiming as I simply shouted in fear, while spraying the rounds at the small infection forms all around me. It was a situation that I had feared during the crash landing of the flood in New Mombasa, and it was even a reality I had once fought to survive. The dream began to morph, but while it morphed, I also knew it was my doing, and I felt and heard my voice echoing through the dream. Enough! When the vibrating of my dreams vision stopped, I saw that I was surrounded by two fellow ODST's, and half a squad of Marines. In my hands was a shotgun, and on my hip was a small plasma pistol I had managed to acquire as well. Turning my attention towards the sound of a small screeching sound, I watched in absolute horror as a massive infection form erupted from the ground, and I knew what it was almost immediately. It was what many referred to as a walking tank, or properly known as a Hunter. A rocket whooshed past my head, dangerously close, and I already knew that wasn't going to be enough. Raising my shotgun towards the mighty beast, I pumped and fired round after round. It wasn't enough. It never was enough. "Grenades!" Grabbing the pins from the grenades at my hip, I looked over my shoulders, and seeing the surprised expressions of those around me, I shouted, "DO IT!" The only good things about dreams, was the soldiers always listened to you. Throwing the grenades towards the hunter, which had shrugged off the rockets explosion, I saw a dozen grenades explode around it, creating a black cloud as the creature screamed loudly. Once again, I felt and heard my voice echo throughout the darkness in the sky. Is that it? Is my nightmare... over? "AGHHH!" Three marines were massacred almost immediately after my thought came out, and the blood splattered through their armor as the force of the impact shattered their bones, and severed the armor they wore. Even though they had been discarded, there was a new development, but even if they were just a dream of the real person, if frightened Steel to his very core. "Steel, how nice to see you again..." The image of Celestia, which was sitting on her bed near a table full of parchment, I recognized it as being the same pile that she used to write down notes from when we talked. Outside of that warmth and comfort however, the hunter form turned towards her, and let out a mighty bellow of rage. I felt my eyes widen, and time seemed to slow down as the oblivious Celestia continued to smile warmly towards me. No... no no no... Just as the flood form turned towards Celestia, I felt like something snapped inside of me, and it was like a switch was turned off. Charging towards the flood as it took a lumbering step towards the still form of Celestia, I knew what it was doing, and I knew that I needed to get to it first... … -:Third Perspective:- Jerking back and out of the mind of the creature called a human, or known as Steel, she had delved deeper than she had intended. Instead of just dreams, Princess Celestia's student had gleamed memories as well… memories of pain, sorrow, fear, and anger. There was only a small glimmer of hope, and that revolved around a blue and green sphere, which was the home of the humans ever since the first great cleansing of the Forerunner rings. This small unique orb that supplied life and a last front for humanity during the time Steel fought under its banner, was Earth. Aside from the glimmer of hope, there was a brighter ball known as happiness, and this sphere of golden light; was centered around Celestia herself. It was the most curious thing Twilight had gleamed from his dizzying and complex mind, but when the threat of being dragged back into his nightmare began to happen, she decided it was time to leave, lest she get stuck this time... even though she doubted there would be much sleep for her in the future...