Aecorum sighed as he brought in the tide and sat on the cold stone. Usually he was able to put his dreams behind him but…There was something about last night’s dream that didn’t make sense. No dream had ever been that insistent, or that…Happy to see him. Usually the Luna of his dreams turned into the Nightmare before he woke up. He shook his head and reminded himself that Luna was lost forever and the dream was nothing more than his own mind playing tricks on him.
---
Luna landed hard on the hill, next to the long dead cherry tree from Aecorum’s dream and started looking around for any trace of him. She ran across the hill and screamed “Aecorum!”
She called him over and over and ran down the hill to the seashore. She looked around frantically as the ocean crashed around her and she thought. How could I not realize? He loved this place more than anywhere else in the world. She ran up and down the beach yelling his name for what seemed like hours even though it was only twenty minutes.
Finally, something in the corner of her eye caught her attention and she walked over to the cliff where vines had grown over a patch of darker stone. Luna used her magic to push the vines aside and she smiled when she saw the faintest impression of a cresting wave in the rock. She recognized Aecorum’s cutie mark instantly and started to knock on the stone with more and more force.
“Aecorum!” She cried into the stone “AECORUM!” She took a step back and saw that the cliff face had been fused with magic and the faintest outline of the opening was still visible. Luna charged her horn and forced her aura into the cracks of the rock, finally ripping the stone from the cliff and revealing an old cave. The cave was very deep; the light from the lowering moon barely illuminated the inside at all.
---
Aecorum cocked his head at the echoing sound of rock cracking but shrugged and passed it off as a stalactite breaking. He stood and began walking to the Sky Cavern, the noise of his own hooves drowning out the sound of something else from farther away. He sighed and thought about Luna, and with every step found himself comparing the Luna of his memories to the Luna that came to him in his dream. She was so…Real. Maybe…Maybe it was a sign; maybe I should go back to Canterlot. It has been so long, maybe…No, I cannot.
---
Luna grinned and ran into the cave, shouting Aecorum’s name as the cave split into different passages and tunnels. She stood at a fork for a moment before galloping into the passage on her left that twisted and turned until it came to a small cavern. Luna gasped in relief when she saw a large stone bed and an ancient chest in the wall. With a single look she knew that the chest belonged to Aecorum and laughed. She splashed through some standing water as she ran on, too excited to speak.
---
Aecorum turned his head to a cave tunnel when he thought he heard a sound, almost as if someone was calling him, but shook his head and looked up at the Mare in the Moon with a sigh and a furrowed brow. He kept trying not to think about the dream, but he couldn’t. Something about the way last night’s Luna had spoken was…Strange to him. It felt like some secret part of him had been reawakened, but he didn’t know what it was or why he actually wanted to go back to Celestia. Why am I still thinking about this? It was just a dream…Right? Of course it was. Luna is gone. Believing anything else is just false hope.
---
Luna slowed her pace as she tried to figure out whether or not to go through the many tunnels and paths that lined the passage she was in. Finally she heard something ahead of her, something that sounded like…A sigh. She laughed and ran forward to a huge cavern where she saw Aecorum standing by the water, staring up at the ceiling. Luna slowed to almost a complete stop and whispered “Aecorum…”
Aecorum snapped his head towards Luna and gasped. His mouth opened and shut a few times before he shook his head and spoke incredulously “Has...Has my madness caught up with the waking world?”
Luna laughed and shook her head “No, Aecorum. I’m really here.” Tears of joy started to blur her vision and Aecorum took a step forward, looking intently into Luna’s eyes.
“L-Luna? Is…Is it really you?” His eyes almost shined with hope and disbelief.
Luna shut her eyes and nodded “I am free.”
Aecorum hesitantly touched Luna’s cheek with his hoof. Luna put her hoof on his and he gasped. “Luna…Oh, Luna.” At that he wrapped his hoof around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug that she eagerly returned. Aecorum’s grip grew tighter as he buried his head in her mane and started to cry.
Luna laughed and wiped a tear from her face “I told you the Nightmare was gone.”
Aecorum shook his head and spoke softly “Luna, I am so sorry. I should have been a better stallion, I should have protected you. Forgive me, Luna. Oh, please, please forgive me.”
Luna pulled back and wiped the tears off Aecorum’s face, smiling warmly “There’s nothing to forgive, my friend. Everything is just like it used to be, I promise.” Luna took a step back and looked up at the ceiling. She gasped at the detail and turned to Aecorum “Did you do this?”
Aecorum laughed, except this time there was actual happiness in it “Who else is here, Luna?”
Luna laughed and stroked Aecorum’s ragged mane “Aecorum…You did all of this because of me?” Her eyes were sad but happy at the same time.
Aecorum bowed his head in shame “Yes…I was so ashamed, so angry with myself, I did not know what else to do.”
Luna sighed sadly “Aecorum…I am so sorry, for everything. But it’s alright now, you can come home.” She smiled but her face fell when Aecorum shook his head.
“No, Luna, I cannot.”
Luna furrowed her brow “But…Why? I have been restored; you don’t have to punish yourself anymore.”
Aecorum turned away and took a few steps “I have lived in this cave for a thousand years, Luna. I have not seen daylight or moonlight, I have not felt the wind on my face, and I have not even been able to fly in all those years.”
Luna followed him as he walked “But that doesn’t mean you have to stay here forever.”
“How can I possibly return when I have missed over a thousand years of history?” Aecorum walked through the passageways with Luna until they reached his bedchamber. He walked over to the wall and looked at his chest “Even if I wanted to, I could not return.” He sighed softly “The past is in the past, and even I cannot change it.”
Luna walked around to face him “Don’t you think I felt the same way?” She pointed to herself “When the Elements of Harmony released me, I was so overwhelmed by what I missed I thought I would never catch up. But I did, and I know that you could too!” Aecorum raised an eyebrow and Luna nodded “Aecorum, you are the most intelligent pony I know, you could catch up on what you missed in half the time it took me, and I could help you! I know you are afraid that too much has changed, but it really hasn’t.”
“In a thousand years, nothing has changed?” Aecorum spoke incredulously.
Luna smiled “Things have changed, but they have changed for the better.”
“What do you mean?”
Luna took a step forward and grinned “We rule the way you always wanted to.” Aecorum cocked his head “It’s true. The Royal Canterlot Voice isn’t used anymore, we can make friends again.” Aecorum’s brow furrowed “I played games with village ponies during a celebration. If you wanted to you could spend entire days doing nothing but talk to anypony you met. Celestia has had her own private students!” She laughed and put a hoof on Aecorum’s cheek “Everything is just how you wanted it to be all those years ago.”
Aecorum cocked his head “Has it really…Changed? The Royal Canterlot Voice is not used?”
Luna nodded “I actually had some trouble getting adjusted to it, but I know you will love it.”
Aecorum took a few steps away “Could I…Have friends? I could come back, and get to know them like I wanted to before…” Luna smiled and nodded enthusiastically. Aecorum shook his head “No, no, I cannot.” Luna sighed and he turned back with a guilt-ridden expression “What about Celestia?” Luna furrowed her brow “I betrayed her, Luna. I said I would not do anything drastic after you…After Nightmare Moon was banished, and then I changed all of her memories. How can I go back to her now?”
Luna saw the pain and regret in his eyes and smiled warmly “You should know Tia better than that. Aecorum, she bore the Element of Kindness, do you think a thousand years has changed that?” Aecorum looked away “She forgave me; I know she will gladly forgive you.”
Aecorum swallowed a lump in his throat “But what if she does not? What if she…Hates me for what I did to her? I abandoned her.”
Luna sighed and took a few steps towards the entrance. “Aecorum, I destroyed our home and tried to bring eternal night to the world.” She turned to Aecorum with a firm face “If she forgave me and allowed me to return to my throne, I guarantee she will greet you with all the kindness in the world.”
“Luna, I…”
Luna stomped towards him and glared harshly “Aecorum, I have spent weeks searching for you. I have gone without sleep, Celestia thinks I’ve lost my mind, and until I found your dream, I did too.” Aecorum backed his head away from Luna as she narrowed her eyes at him “I am not leaving this barren hole without. You.” Her eyes softened “Aecorum…I have missed you so much these last few years, it tore me apart. You’re my best friend and I lo-!” Aecorum missed the tiniest flash of fear in her eyes as she cleared her throat “You will always be my friend, no matter what idiotic things you do. Let me help you, Aecorum.” Her eyes started to get misty “Let me help the High Prince of the Sea take back his throne.”
Aecorum stood in thought for a moment before he looked around at the cave, then to Luna, then to the ocean water. He walked over to the water and let it lap against his hooves. He closed his eyes and bowed his head. Luna recognized his “Thinking Pose” and silently smiled at him. I have been here for so long, it has become my home. Luna is right…Luna is here! I cannot believe she is free! But…Can I go back? She said she would help me, but… Aecorum’s eyes snapped open and he glared at the cave wall. No…Luna is free, and I am not going to let her slip away again! I have been in this cave for a thousand years; the time has come for me to fly free!
“Luna!” He turned around to face her with a defiant smirk “I think I need to stretch my wings.” Luna laughed and grinned when she saw the light in his eyes, the passion and spirit was there again. Aecorum was back.
She nodded “What are we waiting for?” Luna started walking to the entrance but turned back when she didn’t hear Aecorum coming. She turned back and saw him walking in the opposite direction, back towards the Sky Cavern. She ran after him and was about to grab him by his tail but stopped when she saw him glaring at the stone Mare in the Moon.
“This needs to be updated.” Aecorum’s horn lit up and the stones in the ceiling fell into the water, leaving a perfect replica of the night sky and a completely clear full moon. Aecorum turned to Luna and smiled with tears in his eyes. “It is finally over.”
Luna smiled and offered one of her hooves to him. He gently took it in his own, although Luna’s face fell when she saw how cracked and dirty his hooves were. As he walked for the last time through his cave he levitated his chest to his back and smiled sadly at the memories of his prison. They came nearer to the entrance and Aecorum hesitated, backing away from the cave’s mouth.
Luna turned to him “What is it?”
Aecorum swallowed the lump in his throat “It…It has been so long…I do not know if I can…”
Luna smiled warmly “The Ocean still smells like salt.” She walked out onto the sand and Aecorum nodded.
He took a few steps forward before he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and walked onto the beach. The soft breeze caressed his face and he gasped as he smelled the ocean spray and felt the power behind the crashing waves. Aecorum slowly opened his eyes and he laughed softly as tears ran down his face. He looked at the setting moon and bit his lip when he saw its perfectly white face. He opened his wings to their full extent and stiffly flapped them a few times before he laughed.
“It feels like they are made of stone. Although I suppose that is what I get for living in a cave for a thousand years.”
Luna laughed and nodded “But now you are free, and that’s what matters.”
Aecorum looked up at the top of the hill and awkwardly flew up to it, nearly falling but managing to get his wings to cooperate. Luna raised an eyebrow and flew up after him to find Aecorum softly putting his hoof on the dead tree’s trunk and talking. “The last time I saw you, you were just a sapling. Now look at you. You grew, you lived, and you died when it was your time.” He laughed “But you picked a strange spot to do it on.”
Luna smiled at Aecorum but furrowed her brow when a thought occurred to her. “Aecorum…” He turned towards her “You can reverse the spell…Right?”
Aecorum thought for a moment “I am not sure. I did not think about that when I first figured it out, but I could try. It would be easier, now that most of the ponies who remembered me are…” His face fell just slightly “Dead. I would have to change books, tapestries, carvings, and Celestia’s memories of course.”
Luna smiled “But you can bring her memories back?”
Aecorum took a deep breath and nodded “I can try. When I first cast the spell it nearly killed me, so who knows what may happen when I reverse it.” Aecorum closed his eyes and focused.
“Can I help?” Aecorum looked at Luna with a surprised expression.
“What?”
Luna smiled and took a step towards him “Can I help you cast the spell? If I support your magic with my own, it may be easier for you.”
“No, Luna, I cannot ask you to do that…” Luna raised her eyebrow and Aecorum reluctantly nodded “Just not too much, alright?” Luna nodded with a smile and they both charged up their horns.
Aecorum’s horn gained more and more energy as he strained, this time pulling his strength from his joy rather than his pain, and Luna calmly focused energy into her midnight aura. After a moment Aecorum’s horn exploded in a familiar grey pillar of light that covered the world, only this time there was a trace of blue light as well. Aecorum’s and Luna’s eyes opened with the glowing white light as they floated into the air and Aecorum felt the books change and Celestia’s memories return. He felt himself draining but it wasn’t nearly as severe, in fact he actually felt himself growing slightly stronger, and after a few moments, the light faded from both their horns and they panted for air. Luna staggered slightly but straightened herself and looked at Aecorum with both admiration and confusion.
“How…How could you have done that to millions of creatures…By yourself?”
Aecorum panted and smiled “I told you in my dream: My emotions were strong that night.” He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths before he spoke again “It has been so long since I have used that much magic, I am afraid I have to rest. You should too, Luna.”
Luna nodded before she lay down in the grass and almost immediately fell asleep. Aecorum stood for a moment and looked at the rising sun on the eastern horizon. He sighed and shook his head. It is too late to go back now. Celestia remembers me, and I am certain she is never going to let me out of her sight again. Aecorum was about to lie down next to Luna but shook his head and lay down on the opposite side of the tree. I cannot. Not yet.
---
Celestia sipped her morning tea and tried to remain calm. Luna had disappeared from the castle mere hours after they had spoken and Celestia had no idea where she would go. Celestia closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths as the morning sun fell across her desk. Suddenly she froze as she, along with the rest of the castle, was surrounded by a grey aura with a hint of blue. She was about to block the strange spell when suddenly her mind was flooded with…Memories. Celestia lost her grip on the teacup and it fell, shattering on the floor while she remained frozen.
Her eyes widened as her past was unwound and put back together in her mind and she barely whispered “Aecorum…”
---
Discord smiled warmly at Fluttershy as he took a bite of the sandwich she had made for their picnic. Suddenly, and without warning, Discord felt a strange spell take over his mind and instead of stopping it, he simply raised his eyebrow. Fluttershy noticed and spoke in a very concerned voice.
“Discord? Are you okay?”
Discord furrowed his brow as his memories changed to fit Luna’s story exactly and he let out a quiet “Huh. I guess he is that powerful.” He looked at Fluttershy’s worried face and laughed, stroking her mane “I’m perfectly alright, dear Fluttershy.” He glanced towards Canterlot “I just remembered something, that’s all…”
His tail feathers snapped and a notepad and pencil appeared next to them as he jotted down a quick note.
1. Find Aecorum
2. Unleash two years of Chaos on him
3. Avoid Tia and Luna
4. Laugh
---
All six of Cerberus’ ears perked up as enraged shouting and feeble beating on rock sounded from Tirek’s prison just after a strange blue and grey light had come from nowhere and surrounded the centaur demon. He took a massive step closer and listened to Tirek scream.
“HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN?! I COULD HAVE DESTROYED THAT PETTY PRINCESS AND HER FRIENDS IF I HAD HIS MAGIC!!” He pounded on the stone and almost broke his wrists as he yelled “Why?!” over and over. Cerberus simply shrugged and went back to his patrols around Tartarus.