“You are awake. How do you feel?”
The drugged pegasus struggled to reply. He was in some pain, but it was faint and his body felt warm. He groggily opened his eyes and saw Princess Luna, several of her, standing by his bedside.
“You very nearly died, even though I stopped you from hitting the ground. We cannot have that. I have plans for you my beloved little pony,” Princess Luna said. She reached out and gave Noctilucent’s face a gentle stroke with her wing.
The room slowly came into focus and finally there was only one Princess Luna, and she stood gazing upon Noctilucent with a concerned and motherly stare. She was smiling, and her posture radiated kindness.
“Thank you,” Noctilucent groaned, his throat dry.
Princess Luna carefully placed a cup with a straw to his lips, and Noctilucent took a few sips of the water.
“Want some ice chips?” Princess Luna asked.
“Please,” Noctilucent answered, his voice raspy and full of sand.
Princess Luna carefully used a small plastic spoon to feed the prone pegasus some ice chips and then wiped away a dribble of water with a napkin. The pegasus lay silent, crunching ice chips, studying his benefactor.
“I have plans for you, once you are better. There are ponies who need you. At least, I believe they need you. They need help. And you, you are going to help them,” Princess Luna said while spooning in more ice chips.
The Princess moved around the bed, her hooves making no sound on the tile floor, her ethereal mane and tail billowing in an unseen breeze. She examined the pegasus as she circled.
“You have an interesting cutie mark,” she commented. “A candle in a candlestick. How archaic and quaint.” Princess Luna drew close to Noctilucent’s backside, examining his cutie mark. He squirmed and moved his head, trying to get a look at her and what she was doing.
Much to his surprise, Princess Luna pursed her lips and blew, extinguishing the flame on his candle. He didn’t have to look to know that the candle on the other side had been extinguished as well.
“You will get your light back when you’ve earned it. Somepony else is going to have to light those for you. I will not be the one to do it,” Princess Luna said, now looking Noctilucent in the eye.
Princess Luna returned to her study of the pegasus. He was an odd dappled colouration, night blue very much like her own pelt, with white patches all over his pelt and one white patch over his left eye that stretched upwards to one single white ear.
“You are far too handsome to throw away. What a rare prize you are, your colouration is so similar to my own,” Princess Luna said with a teasing smile.
“What are you going to do with me?” Noctilucent inquired in a low whisper.
“There is a settlement that is not too far from Las Pegasus. A town called Mustang Springs. it is a nice place. A quiet place. A place of reflection and calm. A lot of ponies go there to retire because of the climate and the medicated waters of the natural hot springs that are found there. Many ponies travel through there on the way to Las Pegasus,” Princess Luna said, not actually answering Noctilucent’s question, now looking at him directly in the eye.
“And what am I to do there?” Noctilucent asked, his voice wavering from the pain killers and the other drugs he was on.
“I plan to leave you to the tender mercies of an earth pony named Cactus Blossom. There are others, but I believe that Cactus Blossom will do you some good,” Princess Luna said, explaining nothing.
“Cactus Blossom?” the puzzled pegasus asked.
“Yes, Cactus Blossom. You catch on quickly. Earth pony. Sweet. Good. You are going to fall in love with her and she is going to rule your world. Well, in a very general sense. Technically, I rule your world for now and the immediate future. There are others of course, but Cactus Blossom really does need the help that I think that you can offer,” Princess Luna said, now smiling.
It was not a pleasant smile at all. It was a wicked smile full of mischief.
Noctilucent sighed and closed his eyes. The pain in his side was throbbing now, real pain was slowly beginning to set in now that he was awake. He took one deep shuddering breath, trying to gather his thoughts.
“A long time ago,” Princess Luna said in a soft velvety whisper, “I threw my life away. I thought that nopony loved me or my night. I became harsh and callous. I forgot about all those I serve, and all those who serve me. I forgot that I loved my sister. I reached a point where I wished that it would end, and something answered. It would have been easier to have died. Instead, I had to face up to the punishment due for what I had done, and now, I must make amends and hold myself accountable. You should be thankful that it was I who came to claim you. There are other things just waiting for the right soul, terrible things hoping to find a foothold in to this world, and there is no greater foothold than somepony’s or someone’s desperation,” Princess Luna explained. “I love you, and wish to keep you from harm. A ruler is only as good as the least of their subjects.”
Upon hearing Princess Luna’s words, Noctilucent began to sniffle. It started off with just a few sniffles, then a few cries, a few shuddering sobs, and then the stallion collapsed into weeping as he could no longer hold back.
Standing at his bedside, Princess Luna kept to her vigil and waited for the worst to pass, sharing his pain, understanding exactly what had driven him to this point.
Almost a week had passed. A wire frame held Noctilucent’s wing in place. He had spent his time in quiet reflection, thinking about everything that had happened. Princess Luna stopped in regularly to check on him, his only visitor.
Noctilucent had pushed every other pony out of his life.
Already, Noctilucent regretted what he had done. Pangs of guilt stabbed through his mind. Even though he was in no position to admit it, he was grateful for the second chance, even though he had no idea what was happening.
The second chance came at such a cost though. Princess Luna never failed to remind him of his new status as a non entity at least once a day. Just like the flames on his candle cutie marks that she had extinguished, it was something he was going to have to earn back somehow.
With no knock, Princess Luna burst into his room unannounced, followed by Gate Crasher, the big shaggy guard that Noctilucent was beginning to know. He wasn’t allowed to talk to Gate Crasher. Gate Crasher didn’t talk to non entities.
Princess Luna studied him and his room, noticing his plate sitting on a bedside stand. “You did not finish your strained carrots,” she mused, looking somewhat annoyed. “Finish them.”
Very much against his will, Noctilucent felt himself taking a spoon in hoof and carefully picking up his plate with his other hoof. He hated strained carrots. He began to eat them, slowly, spooning in a bite at a time. This part never got any easier. Princess Luna’s control was absolute.
“As soon as you finish your carrots, we are leaving. The doctors say you are well enough to travel and to begin your task. Cactus Blossom knows you are coming, and she is quite anxious to meet you. I feel bad for you. Your own death would have been far more merciful in light of Cactus Blossom’s interest in you,” Princess Luna said with no trace of a smile.
Noctilucent stepped out into the bright sunlight, blinking, dizzy, and disoriented. There was a chariot. It was a small light simple affair, not at all what he expected, but they did have a long way to go and there was only Gate Crasher, who was wearing thick black goggles to protect his eyes and scowling at other ponies who drew close.
With a gentle nudge, Princess Luna herded Noctilucent towards the chariot, clucking her tongue as she walked, briefly scolding Gate Crasher for being so grumpy.
There was a thick cushion in the bottom of the chariot, and Noctilucent sat down, Princess Luna settling in beside him, not sure what to expect, not sure what was in his future, and the first real feelings of fear began to settle within Noctilucent’s mind.
“Do not be afraid,” Princess Luna said in a soothing whisper, driving away the perturbed pegasus’ fear.
They took off with a lurch, Gate Crasher pulling the chariot with alarming acceleration. Gate Crasher’s cutie mark was a chariot, much to Noctilucent’s surprise. The lunar pegasus hauled the chariot effortlessly, getting them higher and higher into the sky, leaving the hospital and Canterlot behind them, shrinking below them, and they began to fly off to the southwest, leaving Noctilucent’s old life behind him.
Noctilucent was glad to see it go.
They landed a few hours later, much to Noctilucent’s relief, in Mustang Springs, a small dusty looking town that was major stopping point on the long road to Las Pegasus. In the distance, there was a building made out of adobe, much of the town seemed to be made out of adobe, and there were very few windows. The air was hot and dry, and sand swirled around.
A group of figures emerged from the building to greet them, moving slowly in the heat. Noctilucent was having trouble seeing them from all of the shimmering heat waves radiating from the hard packed sand.
Noctilucent froze when he heard shrill laughter.
As they moved closer, he finally saw them a little clearer, one large form with several smaller forms all around it.
“Brace yourself,” Princess Luna warned.
Noctilucent noticed that Gate Crasher seemed to have vanished. He looked around, worried, feeling alarmed, and noticed the big shaggy brute sitting on a the roof of a building nearby, sitting under an awning.
“The mare is named Holly Heartwood. You will obey her every reasonable request,” Princess Luna said, causing Noctilucent to flinch as magic spiked through his body.
He could see the group clearly now. One middle aged unicorn mare stood in the middle of a group of foals. Six foals to be exact.
“Luna?” one of the foals asked, pushing forward through the crowd. She was pale green with a light pink and dark pink mane and tail. One of her fellow foals gently nosed her, pushing her towards Princess Luna.
Princess Luna carefully took the foal in her magic and lifted her, pulling her close, and touching noses briefly. She set the foal down carefully before her.
“I have brought somepony to help you, Cactus Blossom,” Princess Luna said, her voice an almost musical laugh. “This is Noctilucent. I’ve told all of you about him. Do be careful with his wing. Respect his authority as one of your caretakers. Please, do be careful with him, he hasn’t been well lately.”
“Where is he?” Cactus Blossom asked, looking around.
Noctilucent felt a terrible pain in his barrel when he realised that Cactus Blossom was blind. She was moving her head, seemingly looking here and there, but not actually focusing on anything. Princess Luna gently prodded the foal in his direction, and Noctilucent felt his mouth go dry when the small pale green foal touched him for the first time. She clung to his leg, squeezing him, not at all gentle, making little happy grunts.
“I’m Cactus Blossom,” she said, introducing herself, “wanna hear me burp the alphabet?”
“No… no sweetie, that won’t be necessary,” Holly Heartwood said in worried tones, moving forward. “I am Holly Heartwood, matron of this small orphanage. These are my charges.”
Noctilucent nodded, not sure what to say. Princess Luna was now laying in the sand, being mobbed by foals, all decorum completely abandoned. Cactus Blossom followed the sound and had joined the pony pile, thankfully not having burped the alphabet.
“You’ve met Cactus Blossom,” Holly said, smiling. “This one,” she said, pointing to a another earth pony filly who was white with a yellow and orange mane, “is Candy Corn. Always keep an eye on Cactus Blossom and Candy Corn when they are together. Cactus likes to get Candy into trouble.”
“This one,” Holly mentioned, pointing to a small donkey that did not mob Princess Luna like the others, “is named Graves. He’s reserved.”
“Over here,” Holly said, pointing at a small griffon cub, “is Sassafrass. Oh, you are going to like her.” Holly stared at the griffon for moment, shaking her head.
“And this one, this little funny little pink unicorn over here, he is named Arroyo. He can summon dust devils. Watch out, he is… adventurous.” Holly warned.
Holly gently pulled a pale grey colt up from the pile and held him aloft in her magic. “This is Biscuit. He was just, uh, dropped off recently. He’s quiet. We think he might be mute,” she said, sounding a little sad. “We called him Biscuit because that is the only word he seems to know how to spell. He kept writing it on paper when we tried to communicate with him.”
Noctilucent gave a weak smile, feeling rather overwhelmed and almost overheated.
“It is so nice of you to volunteer to help us,” Holly said, looking grateful.
Princess Luna rose suddenly, sending a few foals tumbling into the sand. “Yes, Noctilucent was most noble to offer his services. He couldn’t wait to be released from the hospital so he could come and help,” Princess Luna said. “The hospital where he volunteered provided excellent references I hope?” the Night Princess asked.
“Their only complaint was that he moved on to to other things,” Holly replied, her eyes going from Princess Luna to Noctilucent.
Noctilucent took a deep breath, taking relief in knowing that his secret was safe. All of this was overwhelming.
“He looks unwell,” Princess Luna said, sounding concerned. “Perhaps we should move him indoors where it is cooler,” she suggested.
“Come on foals, let us all go inside. We’ll have a cold drink and some frozen fruit from the freezer,” Holly said, the foals falling into place behind her, Cactus Blossom being nosed along by her fellow orphans.
When they had walked a short distance away, Princess Luna leaned in close to Noctilucent and fanned him with her wing. “I command you to look after each one of these foals as though they were your own. They are now your keepers. You are their dedicated and loyal servant. I am their mother, and I am trusting you with the sacred charge of looking after my foals. I will visit you regularly and see how you are doing. Do not look so glum. This is not such an arduous task. I cannot stay, there are others who need my assistance. Please, Noctilucent, be well, and know that at least one pony loves you and wants very badly for you to live,” Princess Luna said, kissing him gently on the cheek after she spoke her last word.
Ahead of him, the adobe building loomed, and Noctilucent felt a very brief flicker of hope. He turned to Princess Luna and gave her a faint nod.