//------------------------------// // Cold Night. // Story: Those who see a different kind of Light // by Lazydrill //------------------------------// Cold Night Monstrous lightning flashed over the cold, and in the night shrouded city of Canterlot. Raindrops pouring out of the sky with no chance of stopping soon. The streets, that were always filled with ponies of all three kinds, were now found abandoned. Except for one worn out pegasus colt. His two blue shaded mane slumping over his eyes. His grey coat soaking wet by the heavy rainfall. The small saddlebag on his back, although it was almost empty, it felt like all the worries he carried were hanging onto it. Even so, he carried on, slowly making his way through the empty streets, the streets that used to give him feelings of joy, of happiness. But those feelings seemed so far away now, so far, it felt almost like he never had felt them to begin with. "Why am I still here? Why can't I finish this?" The grey pegasus colt's hooves tapped the wet cobblestones of the street with an air of depression, slowly, with his head hanging down and his eyes closed, he passed by small shops and cafés. There was a time that he would feel happy to be around these kinds of places where everypony could have a good time together. There was. Those feelings are a thing of the past for him, seeing these buildings now only makes him feel more regretful. Regretful for what he had lost, for what he never would be able to witness and feel again. Regretful... for he now carried these old feelings ones more, the feelings he tried so hard to lose and forget, in the hopes that he could move on, or so he hoped he could. "Why am I still here? Why can't I move on from this?" Thoughts were always lingering in the back of his mind, always there, not able to vanquish them or lose them. Being stuck in this circle wasn't new for him, he has been through these thoughts for the past four years. Thoughts and questions that lingered on without a clear answer to them. For there were no answers to these questions for him. The pegasus colt stopped walking and sighed in slight acceptance. He turned left, making his way off of the main street and into a small dark alleyway, in the hopes to get out of this storm before he would get sick from the cold. Entering the seemingly empty alley, the colt slowly raised his head and looked about where he stood. "Its good to be home... For now..." The young pegasus made his way to a small flattened carton that was splayed out over the ground against a green, old and rusty dumpster that stood against the brick wall of the home of somepony. Everypony would normally stay away by only the pure smell that came off of the big trashcan, but not him. Why would he? There was nothing for him besides this filth, and even then, how long could he stay here before he would be chased off again by the ponies who lived here? He didn't know himself, but he knew this home wouldn't last for long. He reached the flat carton with a sigh and fell with his side onto it. The rain stopped dropping on him by the out sticking rooftops of the buildings he resided in the alley of, giving him only the tiniest amount of relief. His stomach began to growl loudly at the lack of food he has had today, and any day before that. He clutched his left hoof around his stomach and gritted his teeth in slight pain. "...It hurts... but I cannot eat right now... I mustn't eat... " His stomach began to hurt more the longer he didn't eat, after a while of trying to resist it and hoping that it would go away... he gave in to his needs. Sighing, he rolled onto his belly and brought his muzzle to his right saddlebag. Opening its flap with a nudge of his muzzle, he looked in it to see what he had left. His ears drooped down at the sight that greeted him. He closed in to one of the two fruits that he had left and grabbed the small stick that was attached to the fruit with his teeth. Pulling the fruit out of his saddlebag, he brought it in front of him and putted it down in onto the old carton. He turned his muzzle back to his bag to inspect his last reserve of food, only to look at dismay as the fruit looked rotten and unfit to be eaten. Picking up the last apple, he swung it towards the dumpster where it fell into. "It is not like I needed the food anyway..." Glancing back to his last bit of food with dismay, he hesitantly took a bite out of it. Chewing on the small bites of the apple made his stomach feel at ease, but not his mind. His mind went on with repeating questions; How would he go on now? Would he survive tomorrow? Will he still be in the streets next week, or in the dungeons of the castle? He didn't know the answers, and he would probably never know them, not as long he would stay where he was now. But he couldn't leave for the same reason as why he was still there; he didn't know anything else. His life for the passed four years has been nothing but the same routine; Wake up among nopony, try to find food, try to keep the food, flee with the food, stay hidden, survive and repeat. He never wanted this to happen, he just rolled into it. The rest of the pieces that would fix his life into this routine fell into place quickly after. He only wanted to help. "Now I'll need to look for food again... I'm so sorry..." Tired out by the daily events and the heavy storm that hit Canterlot this evening, he slowly closed his eyes with an apple core standing at the edge of his carton bed. His breathing came in slower and more steady, his body relaxing, his muscles unwinding. Leaving Equestria for the time being, his mind brought him to a place of tranquility and silence. We all have dreams. Dreams that helps us escape reality, brining us to a world where everything can be good and will be good. While most see dreaming as a good thing, some among us see it very differently. They fear it, don't want it, don't need it. Or so they say. Nothing is more true than the other, since they all come down to the same thing; Escaping reality. Opening his eyes, he found himself in the all too familiar location. Looking up, he found the dark, night sky. Stars were accompanying the crescent moon as it lit the sky with its comforting light. The light touched down onto the coat of the pegasus, as if trying to tell him something. The colt just sighed and casted his eyes down from the moon and its light. Why would he look at it? He had seen it almost every time he went to sleep. His dreams were as much routine as his life is on Equestria. Instead of looking at the moon, he found himself looking once more at the soundless twinkling stream of water that was passing him by. He was laying on his belly with his legs tucked underneath him, his ears halfway to the side. Again he was here, unable to get out of it, unable to avoid what was coming. "I know what... or rather... who is awaiting me... I'll not let them get to me, I've not shed a tear for them for a while now, tonight will not be different." "Tonight will be different for thou, mine child." The colt's ears perked up to the strange, but soothing voice. Breaking his gaze away from the stream, he hesitantly raised his head to look where the voice came from. Across the small river stream, stood a big darkened shadow. Even while the moonlight was lighting everything around, the mysterious figure was overshadowed, making the colt unable to see any color that the shadow would have otherwise. Our pegasus didn't say anything in return, his eyes looked the figure up and down repeatedly, trying to find anything that might tell him who this shadow could possibly be. After glancing the mysterious pony over, he could only make out that it was a pony, a quite big pony if he estimated correctly, and possibly female, if her voice was any indication of that. "Who... who are you? Why and how are you here? What do you want?" "Mine child, my identity is no concern for thee. Rest assured, we art here to help thou." Her voice was more soothing than the sweetest lullaby, making him feel... different, different from other times. He felt an air of comfort wash over him as she said those simple words. His mind went silent, for the first time in years, his mind had no thought, only rest, something he longed for for so long. His banished thoughts made way for questions, no questions about the next day, but about the pony figure in front of him. His eyes were fixated on the form of the pony, while his head calmly set questions out for him, questions that he didn't need answers to, but questions he wanted to know for the sake of just knowing them. He had never thought that his mind would be at peace again. There was something about this pony that melted all of his worries and thoughts away, something he never thought that would be able to happen. "We feel that thine mind is at ease, and even so, thou still hast questions for us, questions we will answer to our wishing." "I...I... I do have questions... How do you know? Can you read my mind?" "To answer thine first question, nay. We cannot read thy mind, but we can feel thine tension and curiosity towards us, which made us guess that thou weres't afraid of us, but curious as well, aren't thee?" "I... I am..." "Good, thou shalt be a fool not to fear the unknown. And yet, thou hasdn't run away, nor hasdn't thy made any stance of aggressiveness towards us. Tell me, mine child, why hasdn't thou?" The pegasus colt sat in silence as he weighed her question. Why hadn't he run? Why didn't he prepare to fight her? This was a dream, so why wouldn't he flee or fight? He got two questioned answered, only to be greeted by more questions than he got answered. What was it with this mare that didn't let him do all of these things; not fighting, not fleeing? He was simply frozen on his spot, gazing at a shadow like pony with a soothing, motherly voice. Was it the dream that made him stay like this, unable to move or respond accordingly to this sudden turn of event? But it was his dream... so why couldn't he? He controlled the dream, right? Or did he...? "D-Do... do you control this dream?" "Thou art quite intelligent. We dost control this dream, but at the same time, we don't. We can travel in its boundaries, change small things, but total control is beyond us." This pony, or, being that looked like a pony could shape dreams. So she could've done this to him, how he reacted, how he felt, everything. Maybe even the questions he asked were this creature's doing. The answer that this 'pony' gave him, it made him distrust 'her' to the point where he became very hesitant to let his mind even think. She could be controlling his thoughts right now, making him think this, so 'she' could manipulate his mind, but how would he think about this then? Wouldn't that mean that he was thinking now what 'she' wanted him to think? His brain went into overdrive with conspiracy and doubt now that 'she' had answered him, which he regretted to some point. "Thou dost no need to fear us, mine child. Thine thoughts art thy own, so thou can rest thy mind. We art not here to torment thee, we art here to help thou." "Help me? How? And why?" "We have seen thine dreams, more than once, mine child. We art concerned for thy well being. We know of thine past, and what hast happened in the recent years with thee. We art now here, to offer thou a chance, a chance to redeem thine honor and fight for the good." "You've seen my dreams? And you know about my past as well? How? And why?" "Mine child, it ist our duty to look out for our little ones and takest care of them. As we said, we have seen thine past, know of thy dreams, we know what thou hast lost and how. We... we remember a time wherest things were better, a time wherest our children didst have to live thine life's like this. We wish to bringest these times back, but for that to happen, we need thy help as well." "My help? Aren't there more suitable ponies to help your cause? I'm nothing but a pest that lives on the street of a city that lost to care for each other long ago." "Fog, mine child, thou art more suited for this than thy would believe. Thou hast seen the wrong in thy fellow ponies, thou hast felt the pain wrong ponies can do to thee and thine loved ones. Thou hast felt and seen what the night brings out onto the streets of our nation. Tell me, mine child, wouldst thou want this to stay like it is? Or help us to change this?" Her question took the pegasus by storm. She wasn't wrong about him... he had seen things that ponies did, which he never thought could happen in Equestria, and yet, it happened to him and those he cared about. Now he had to answer 'her' question; would he let Equestria be like it was? Or help her make it better? For most the answer was obvious, but not for him. Why would he help? Why would Equestria, the land that he ones loved and now had turned its back to him, deserve his help? What has Equestria done for him but take his loved ones away and leave him shivering in the gutters of the once so proud capital? Why would he help? If he was left to rot, why wouldn't the same fate fit to the rest of Equestria? "Fog, thou needs to think carefully before giving me thine answer. For when thou hast chosen, it cannot be undone. Think about thy choice, what would thine parents and sister wants thou to do?" She was right... He needed to think again about this. He needed to think without his negative thoughts cluttering his mind. He knew what his parents and sister would want him to do, one of those things, was not staying in the same routine as he had done in the passed few years. They would want him to fight for the good in ponies, to change Equestria for the better. They wanted to be proud of him about what he would have accomplished if not for their early demise. Now he had a chance to make them all proud of him, and more. He would change Equestria in the name of them, and fight for the good. The same good they showed him since he was born, where he grew up with before this all happened. "I... I accept your offer." "We never doubted thine answer. Please, step closer, mine child, and we will give thee thine needs to find us." The pegasus stood up, his muzzle now looking determent and strong. He took steps with a sense of purpose, an air of responsibility swirling around him as he closed in on the shadow covered mare. As he walked closer, he could almost feel the mares' eyes staring at him, a feeling of expectance washed over him as he felt her stare. He reached the small water stream. He needed to cross it, normally he would fly, but something told him that that was not what she wanted to see him do, something told him to keep staring back at her, and simply walk to her without any doubt over what she said. So he did what his mind felt was best, and kept walking without hesitation. He reached the stream and set his first hoof on it, and nothing happened. He did step for step without stopping or thinking about what was happening. He could feel her gazing at him with a sense of approval. He reached the other side of the stream without any droplets of water on his hooves or his coat. He continued to go towards her, but as he did, her form did not change, and her body remained hidden in the shadows. The closer he got to the mysterious mare, the bigger she seemed to get. From where he was now, she was at least one head higher than him. "Mine child, halt in thine steps." Her voice was commanding, firm, strong and unforgiving. But at the same time, her voice was concerned, soothing, gentle and comforting. The pegasus stopped as she told him to do, standing not far away from the mare. There was a pony length distance between them, and yet, he still couldn't see any colors except for the shadows that covered her form. Right now, the colt had accepted whatever she had planned for him. No matter what would await him, he would see it through till the end, he owed his loved ones that much, and more, much more. He owed much for what he had done in the years since their demise, going through with this till the end, was the least he could do. It is the least he could try for spending his life like he had done until this point. "Prepare thy self, mine child. What we art about to do to thee wilt require thine full determination, once done, thy will be bound by thine oath." "I'm ready. I will succeed." "Very well. Be strong, mine child." The colt began to notice a faint blue aura surrounding the shadow. The aura could be felt from where he stood, while he was no unicorn, and had no big understanding of magic, there was no doubt in his mind that the mare was gathering very strong magic, so strong, that his feathers from his wings were tingling slightly by the energy that pulsed off of the aura. The mare stepped closer to the pegasus, he didn't change stance or hesitated as she got closer, he knew that this needed to be done if he wanted to make Equestria better and his loved ones proud of him. The shadow was now only a hoofstep away from the colt, he could feel the aura slightly touching him, but unlike before, the aura felt comforting and welcoming, it was greeting him. The mare stepped back slowly, but the aura remained floating where her form stood not long ago. "Step into the aura, mine child. Then, thine trial shalt commence." The pegasus gave a firm nod. He focused his gaze onto the aura hanging in front of him, and stepped towards it. His hoof fazed through it like he was stepping into water. The aura didn't hurt him in any way, it was comforting. It wanted him to enter. The pegasus colt's head went through the outer layer and entered the magical shroud, he was instantly greeted with a calming sensation that passed through his mind; all worries faded away like snow in front of the sun. Although it felt soothing, he didn't let his guard down so easily, seeming that this was the trial that would determine the outcome for the rest of his life. His tail ventured after his body into the magical aura, the shroud of energy now surrounding him completely. He felt warm and comfortable, but there was no doubt that it was part of his trial. Steeling his mind, and trying to ignore the comforting calls the magical energy was whispering into his ears, he focused on one thing, the very reason he did this; to make Equestria a better place and to make his loved ones proud of him. "Thou art holding up quite well, mine child. But thine trial is far from over. This ist just the beginning of thine new life, thou shalt be faced by more along this path." The aura started to fade into thin air, releasing its soothing grip on the young colt and leaving him with small questions which he ignored, for there was no reason to truly answer those. While this stage of his trial seemed passed, he didn't feel different in any way, not that he could notice. His eyes fixated once more onto the shadow form that stood in front of him. Her form and stance didn't change, nor did the feel her gaze gave the young colt as he felt her looking at him. An air of silence surrounded them both, nothing was being said, yet, there was a small kind of understanding between them where words were not needed to be said. That was, until a small tingling feeling graced the base of his left wing. Turning his muzzle to the sensation and spreading out his wing to see what the tingling was, he noticed a small silver bracelet had formed around his wing base. "Mine child, now thou hast the means to find us. We shalt be waiting for thee, together with thine brothers and sisters." "How do I know if I'm going the right way?" "Thou art going the right way, thy only need to stay on this path." Her voice was almost like a lullaby being gently whispered into his ear. The world around him began to slowly fade out of existence, the grass he stood on turned into blackness. The stars and moon that were lighting the dream with their comforting rays began to extinguish like candles. One by one the stars died until the moon remained. The moon slowly darkened as if it was being covered by a veil, gently fading into black with the rest of the world. Normally our pegasus would fear this sudden change of his dream, but now, with what he just had witnessed, what he pledged to himself and to others, he faced this change with open hooves. Welcoming the change and accepting that it would happen. The shadow form of the mare that was in front of him, was still there, unseeable by the eye, but he could feel her presence still in this dream. He felt himself becoming weightless, his eyes growing heavy, his hooves on the verge of collapsing. It felt like he hadn't slept in days. He crouched down, not able to resist the calling of sleep. A soft flute began to play in harmonic tones, sounding like a lullaby into his ears, pulling him over the edge, and making him closing his eyes. "Sleep now, my child. Mine Soldier of the Night."