//------------------------------//
// Chapter 26 
// Story: The Eyes Are Blind 
// by Fe94Knight 
//------------------------------//

Chapter twenty six
“Are you sure this is the place?” Luna looks up at the homey cottage just a few dozen yards up the path way to its front door. The nearly impeccable establishment looks like that it should be getting fixed up for a new family to come in, and make it a full house. Though the address marker right next to her, and Midnight answers her question as he reads the address slip again.

“Last I checked I could read…” He snickers back at her. Only to receive the glare that he has become more than accustom to by now, “…if this Spector really was a unicorn guard, perhaps there is a preservation spell on the property?”

The question is only pondered by the mare in a simple ‘uh huh’ while she stands in awe of the home. Other than a few broken windows, and what looks like some overgrowth on the outside, it is perfect. Though their concentration is broken up by a single flash of light that sparks up a scroll, likely Tia’s response to her. Luna coughs for a second to read out loud the letter as they both walk towards the front door.

'Dear Lulu,

Although I am generally concerned with your safety while not there to keep an eye on you, as the big sister of course. I will remind you that, I in fact am all too curious about how you two are coming with your search. I am sure I will find out when you get here, and don’t worry… if you ever got kidnapped, one things for sure. 

Whoever it is, they would bring you back.

Let me know when you can about what you have found, and give my regards to your-'

With a painful cough to try, and muffle out the last bit of the letter without so much a glance from Midnight, Luna expertly skips over the part where her sister says ‘your coltfriend’. As she flips it over to see if there is anything on the back at all before brushing it off. 

“Well Celestia is ever attentive on your whereabouts…” Midnight mocks under hushed tones as they reach the door. Though the mare with him has far too much on her mind to even give it a second thought as she pushes the letter under her wing for later.

“I can write her back in a bit, for now… let’s see what we have here,” A few sharp knocks on the door gives the princess no answer on the other side. Several more from a heavier hoof of Midnight only brings about the same result, as they look about though the ground floor windows. Each one taking either side of the house before meeting right back at the front door. 

“Seems like no pony is home,” Midnight answers before rearing up a hind leg, and nearly kicking the door off the hinges with one mighty buck.

“A little much don’t you think?” She ask rhetorically. Taking the rule of ladies first, and leading herself in doors not soon followed by him. Though if they thought the appearance from the outside was stellar for the age, the inside is a marvel of enchantments. With only a thin layer of dust built up on the various furniture pieces, shelves, and even the window sill. Not a thing looks like it has been moved. Not a thing looks like it has even been taken, as the two walk in further, and take in some of the surroundings. “It’s wonder honestly…” Luna marvels at the sight still with her jaw only slightly hinged to her skull, “If in fact that you did come from here, than your father was one heck of a guard with his magic.”

“That much is apparent,” Midnight lifts up a single book with a hoof, and watches the pages flip over as centuries of dust falls at the same time on to the floor, and fills his lungs. Causing the poor colt to sneeze with a mighty blast, kicking up even more dust, and leading to a seemingly never ending cycle on his end of the room for a bit as it all starts to settle on the ground. The only sound at the moment being a rather pleased mare trying her best to not lose it here in the house from dying of laughter as she covers her muzzle a bit with a hoof, before reaching to open a closet with the other.

“Eh, bless you Midnight,” The slight slip of a grin tells the colt all he needs to hear as he playfully contorts back to her.

“Oh your just hilarious aren’t you?” 

“Oh come now don’t be such a sour-” That is as far as she herself gets, while a single suit of armor comes crashing out of the closet, and lands atop Luna’s chest. 

Knocking the lunar princess down towards the ground, and leaving her there unhurt, but never the less a little startled as she tries to control the rising and falling of her chest. The only thing to fill her eye sight now, being a colt who himself has a face of pure delight at the mare’s own fumble as he seems all too eager to help her up.

“Do you need a helping hoof?”

“Oh…” Her muzzle falls down to her chest before she can get her comeback out, leaving her high and dry at the moment, “…shut it,” With only a chuckle from her colt, he lends down a hoof, and pulls her back up. Pushing off the armor to the side with a clack as it hits the ground. After getting to her hooves, Luna and Midnight both look over the suit. Noting the appearance of the golden plating, and the sword in the sheath beside it, “It’s diffidently a Celestial guard set…” Luna comments, “We’ve been using the same pattern for the armor and swords for centuries. Although both are quite worn.”

A heavy hoof runs itself across the edging of the plates. All the bumps, and scratches done to them over years of use. Though one thing makes him stop, a name, etched in on the inside of the head cover. “Sky Streak…” Midnight mumbles under his breath. Luna makes an attempt to say something, but that is lost as a few sharp pains come flying back at him. Stabbing at the back of his head the name resonates in, and out like an echo in a cave running its course. Though thankfully a quick shaking from Luna brings him swiftly out of the daze as he comes too. 

“Midnight? Did you find something?” Words aren’t required as she has a helmet turned towards her. Reading over the same etch as he just did, and coming to the same conclusion, “So… they were fake names.”

“And if this is the colt… my father?” he gulps, “Then where is mom?”

“That we’ll find soon enough Midnight,” A reassuring hoof rests gently on his shoulder while they start to look around even more on the ground level. Not even touching the hallway that leads further back in to the house, and aiming to cover as much as they can here with what is at hoof. Though a single book that Luna picks up will bring about more answers than could have ever been hoped. 

“Midnight take a look at this…” She calls him over to present her findings. The title across it simply reading Memories as she unravels the hemp cord tying it shut. The pages that follow are just as preserved as the house. Though the few words that are scribbled along the side don’t speak nearly the volumes that the pictures it contains do. Dozens of them in front of their eyes, as the couple end up leaning back in to the old couch so they can take in the photos and memories along with them. 

The earlier photos bringing light to his savior in an instant, “That’s Fall…” Midnight’s eye lock on to the fall weather Pegasus there before him, leaning propped up against a tree with a grey unicorn drinking a glass of something or other. 

“Fall Cloud and Sky, boys will be boys,” Luna reads the caption next to the photo. Midnight now left to see both of his father’s there in one go. The one that raised him after his rescue, and the one he never knew he had. 

Luna flips over to the next page, and only finds a single full photo taking up the whole page. Two ponies at the alter with one another. Sky standing there in his guard uniform, while the mare before him stands there in a simplistic wedding dress. She reminds Luna of a lot of her guards, though this one adorned with a pair of golden eyes barely hidden underneath the vale while the ears, and bat wings contained at her side shows just where one particular colt got his appearance. His own golden pair of orbs shutter for a moment, as Midnight reads over the caption on his own. 

“Sky Streak and Golden Shadows… tying the knot forever and always…” Midnight is left to clench his own tongue as the pages slips slowly from his grasp, “Mom? Dad?” he whispers, while Luna presses on where he cannot. Turning now even further, after noting one particular feature of Golden in the wedding photo.

‘If that wasn’t a baby bump on her, than I will eat my tiara,’ The princess mutters to herself.

Flipping back to the next few pages, and watching the transition of a simple bump, to full stomach… ending in only a tight frame once more, though in this first picture. Golden is blessed with a foal in her lap while lying in a bed. Both of the new parents are looking down at the young colt, red coat, jet black main, and tail. Golden eyes with sharp little fangs sticking out of the widest, sweetest grin that a foal could possibly have at his age while being next to his mother, and father. 

Neither of them read aloud, only in the back of their minds separately do they take in the words jotted down next to the photo. ‘Midnight … welcome to the world, love your mom and dad.’ The emotional toll of having just gone from not knowing ones origins a few weeks prior while getting help, to literally in the space of a day or so now seeing pictures of your folks long sense dead, can wreak havoc on any pony. And one that has been dealing with it for almost five hundred years, is no exception. 

Instantly Midnight can feel a pinch at the back of his head, the nerve has been struck, and seeing these memories once again only bring back so many more to the colt’s mind. Though they all remain a blur to him. Many questions still are to be answered, though for now only shouting and yelling fills his head while images run past his eyes in a haze, completely oblivious to the alicorn next to him trying to get his attention. While Midnight remains in a trance like watching a home movie in his mind.

“Midnight?! Wake up!” Luna shakes his shoulders back, and forth to try, and pull him out of his daze like she did back in the forest. To no avail though, “Sorry about this…” Luna cocks back a hoof, and plows it in to his jaw line. Even with the solid hit, the shutter in his eyes of it bouncing back and forth between light and dark remains still present. Though even through this mist, Luna can see that something is tearing him apart moment by moment. 

The realization of his lost years of life, from what his mind was trying to protect him from, come back. Leaving the only think Midnight can hear being the sinister sound of the egotistical laughter filling his mind that he has put up with, ‘You’re putting it together I see… let’s see if you go all the way,’ Shard taunts as the last nerve gives in.

And with that the final piece of the puzzle falls in to place, as Midnights eyes snap open. Centuries of living in the dark, washed away nearly in an instant. With a shuttered breath taking its time to reach his lungs, once it does he mouths only one word, “…No.” With that the colt ignores the mare that sat there with him, and leaps up off the ground in to the air. Peeling around the corner while Luna calls after him.

“Midnight what is it!” She shouts only watching as a black, and green tail disappears down the corner.

Taking off at break neck speed, Midnight smashes in to the wall with his mass after slipping a bit. As he runs around another corner, and continues his storm down the hall. Though with a slight trip up in his footing he hits the dirt, and topples overtop something in the hallway, giving time for him to catch his breath and Luna to catch up. 

“Midnight, is everything-?” Luna gets out before she sees the quivering colt before her, sitting there with a skull in his lap, a single horn atop its head, and a ring on its base. 

Words fail the princess once again in her time of knowing the strange colt. Though from the other occasions caused by the colt’s allure, this one is caused by a heavy weight of pain and sorrow on her heart. As Midnight pulls himself up and casts an eye towards the rest of the bones on the ground now at the princess’s feet that she didn’t even notice at first. Luna herself even jumps upon seeing the remains while her colt turns towards what his original intentions were. 

“No…” He panics once again, and Midnight’s eyes rest on the closed door in front of him, “That can’t be what happened.”

Rearing back his head, Midnight slams his forehead in to the wooden door. Knocking the latch out of place and sending the door swinging open in to the wall behind it. Though as the colt steps in, it isn’t soon after that, that his pupils stretch to nearly the size of his eyes, and the strong stallion is brought down to his knees. The sight to behold him opening a window to his past, strikes him down as Midnight falls back in to the open hooves of his companion. All the while in a shade of darkness, the golden orbs of his glass over and he replays the single memory of a night that was kept away from him for nearly five hundred years.