The Gift
Chapter 3: Visions
By The Accursed One
"Sleep, young one. Sleep, and you will learn..." Those were the last words I heard before my vision went black and I felt myself collapse onto the ground.
Everything was dark, though not so dark that I was entirely blind. A table stood in front of me with a very large book on it. I walked to the book, which was opened to a page with my name at the top. "Tempo Kairos," it read. "Gift: Time. Born: 985. Died: N/A. Kairos was born in the year 985 to parents Ornate Jade and Obsidian Bastion. The elder gods Gifted him with Time, for he is destined to—" The book slammed itself shut before I was able to read my future.
A strange, omnipresent voice tisked at me then said, "Silly mortals, always sticking their muzzles where they don't belong. They try to learn their futures early, and it always brings them suffering. Never before has a Gifted one not looked at the book; even the siblings Dawning Aurora and Midnight Stone, both of whom you know well, looked for their destinies. Anyway, as to why you're here: I will teach you how to master your Gift in your mind. Time is a fickle mistress, and controlling it to travel throughout time is complicated."
"I... I guess... Who in Tartarus are you, though?"
"I am Nako, giver of your Gift and master of the sands of time. Through this training, this... unlocking of your Gift, you will become able to freely timewalk without ill effects. Allow me into your mind as I show you, guide you, how to easily timewalk."
I nodded and stepped away from the book. My brain started physically hurting from the invader worming his way into my head. It felt like my head was going to explode! A sudden silence then rang in my ears. I couldn't even hear myself think.
“Young one, listen well. I am unlocking the power of your Gift, but it will be painful. The worst pain you will ever have faced, or ever will face in your mortal life. Being Gifted with Time makes your life burn brighter, but your mental capacities will falter as you realise your power. Are you willing to take this risk, this plunge into your new life?” the voice stated, seeming as if it were a thought of mine.
“Listen, Xeysus, this whole thing still really sounds like a load of bull. I mean, seriously: Time travel? I know, it exists, I’ve done it. But this all seems like it’s a dream, you know? I’m literally talking to a god about time travel. There’s no way any of this shit can be real,” I responded.
“Let me assure you, this is all one hundred percent real. You can either accept or deny your Gift, and it will end the same for you. If you accept, you will become truly Gifted, but you will lose amounts of your intelligence. If you deny, I will remove all traces of the Gift from you, and you will be sent back to your own time with no memory of what transpired here. Another Gifted pony will be born in your place, and you will be stricken from my records. Just know, all those that reject their Gift seem to meet with terrible fates upon return. Are you willing to take the odds of denial right now, young one?” Xeysus explained, seriousness in his voice as he told me of my options.
‘So, I can either reject everything I’ve done here and forget everything, living a normal yet boring life if I survive the return; or I could accept my Gift and by extension my fate, but I’d lose my already slightly below average intelligence…’
“I’m waiting…”
“Okay, fine. I accept my Gift. Are you happy now?!”
“Yes.”
Remember when I said before about my head feeling like it was going to explode? Yeah, that was a walk in the park compared to this. It seemed like my whole being was replaced with fire, it burned so much. I could swear steam was pouring out of my ears as the god messed around with the wiring in my brain to unlock my true potential. Oh, how much I regretted my decision at that moment which felt like it lasted an eternity…
Finally, it stopped. Relief washed over my body as if I jumped into a nice, cold pool on a warm summer’s day as I felt the presence in my head leave and the seemingly endless pain end. A strange feeling replaced the pain and relief, one of raw power. And an odd tugging sensation too, like I was being pulled somewhere.
My vision darkened again as the book and lectern it rested upon faded away, only for my sight to return short moments later in the real world. I stood up, rubbing my still aching head. “Okay, so what just happened?” I asked my teacher.
“Young one, you spoke with a god. He unlocked your Gift, which you accepted. Not everypony that goes through this ritual speaks with that one, though. Those Gifted with Wisdom speak to Viska, and those with Life to Amidral. Good news, you can return home whenever you like. Bad news, your mental faculties have been reduced. More bad news, you cannot return just yet. You may be mentally able to timewalk freely, but you are not yet physically able. It still takes a lot out of you; I can sense this. Take a night of rest, for we will begin the last part of your training upon the first rays of dawn’s light.”
‘It’s night already?! Damn, how long was I out?’ I thought while turning back to exit the cave. A quick glance upward to the sky was enough to confirm that it was indeed night. As I walked to my hut, I bumped into a pony about my age. She had a deep blue coat and was oddly a blank flank. Maybe cutie marks didn’t exist in this time in pony history?
“Hello, stranger. Sorry for running into you, I was just taking a walk and was not looking where I was going,” she told me.
“It’s okay, I wasn’t really minding my path either. I’m Tempo Kairos, of the land that will become Equestria to the northeast. And you are?”
“Midnight Stone, of… here. We have no name for this place, it is just our land. My sister Dawning Aurora and I have heard of another Gifted one in the village, so it must be you. You have been Gifted with Time, correct? Aurora and I have Life.”
“Oh, cool! Anyway, I’ve gotta be going. Think we can talk again some time?”
“That would be nice, yeah. Well, I bid you a good night, Tempo Kairos!”
“Same to you, Midnight.” I continued the walk to my hut in complete silence, ready for a good night’s sleep before continuing—hopefully finishing—my training. Maybe I can finally return home!