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// 95 
// Story: Yonder Wandered Fluttershy 
// by Darkonshadows 
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Stonehenge was the place where werewolves and ponies met in peace, while eating fish, fruits and vegetables. It was likely that they didn’t understand the connotations of power the place held.

“I’m am curious, what are the two objects around your neck?” A curious Cameron was told about the translation device made by space faring beings and learned that Fluttershy had two of them, one of which she was currently wearing. 

“The other is called the Lunar Locket; it gives the wearer the powers of and over the moon and I’m making sure it doesn’t fall into the wrong hooves… or hands if you prefer. Why do you ask?” What followed the question was Fluttershy learning the history of the immortal werewolf clan and how the moon was a symbol of the night that they worshiped with howls to the sky. They tended to do that on high mountainous areas despite not really needing to, by now it was a force of habit for the Dunneglen wolf clan to howl at the moon.

“We thank you for making sure that no one can do harm with the moon or those who would wish to abuse its powers to do so Fluttershy.” Even when he didn’t have to Cameron wanted to thank Fluttershy anyway and bowed to the pony with the respect she deserved.

Had the werewolves been on Equus a thousand years ago, Luna wouldn’t have had a problem with finding people who actually worshiped beautiful nights. Now that Fluttershy thought of it, the stars in the sky above Equus most likely weren’t stars, but were magical representations and illusions at best. Looking to the sky here, Fluttershy didn’t see the fake stars that Luna painted the sky with and they twinkled just as or if not more vibrantly than when Luna put the moon of Equus in the sky over their portion of the world. If there was one thing Fluttershy would never bring up with Luna, it was that her painting the night sky seemed to be an entirely frivolous activity after having seen so many alien skies personally. Dreamland’s sky was still causing Fluttershy’s headaches to even think about, especially the ocean where it was constantly evening no matter whether the sun or the moon were up in the sky at the time.

They spent a lot of time together in silence afterwards just eating until Fluttershy had to voice a concern.

“It was morning when I fell through the portal; did I end up on the other side of the planet?” Fluttershy had been thinking about this for quite a while. “I was close to the east coast of America if it helps any, is Stonehenge really far from that?”

“Not really lass, it is just across the ocean to the west.  It would be closer to noon or after lunch since the portals the cap opens up are usually instantaneous and where we are is approximately five hours ahead by time zone.” Cameron looked to the little filly that was nibbling tentatively at the fish and petting a wolf from his pack that actually accepted being treated like a dog; he thought it was cute that the little filly was so accepting of their presence. Usually beings of intelligence would freak out about meeting werewolves; this was a nice change of pace.

“Then why was it later in the evening when I arrived? If the cap causes instantaneous travel portals then shouldn’t I have arrived at some time around one to three in the afternoon?” Trying to wrap her head around the sudden problem, a new being voiced an answer as he stepped forward out of the shadows and his voice sounded rather wise if a bit dead inside.

“I believe I can answer that if you will, where exactly did you open a portal open?” The being was short and looked like a humanoid bird; he didn’t seem particularly worried about all the werewolves and approached without fear. He was wearing tattered red robes and small spectacles on his beak; he had large thick eyebrows and long whiskers hanging off the side of his face.

“At a place called Beach City, my daughter that took a liking to the hat that was found last night by a friend after it washed ashore on the beach.” Oh how Fluttershy sorely wanted to ask if this newcomer was a Chozo because of his appearance, she truly felt right in calling Soft Echo her daughter and said pony squeaked at her. “My friend also found a note in the cap that said not to go near cliffs with it, we fell in past the cliff after falling off the lighthouse in front of a large six armed statue and that’s when the portal opened.”

“The area where the gem temple is located I surmise, those magical aliens were a trifle problematic thousands of years ago until they started fighting among themselves. Could have destroyed the planet, but they didn’t.  Quite powerful those crystal gems are, also I’m afraid that your friend couldn’t have possibly found that cap last night.” The bird man saw the incredulous look on Fluttershy’s face, so he decided to continue while staring at Soft Echo who looked back at him curiously. “The truth of the matter is that she actually found it ‘this’ very night. You’ve gone back in time exactly twelve hours twenty two minutes and seven seconds where you found yourself falling into a river east of this location, the portal you went through most likely brought you back to several hours before your friend found the hat. You’re in a predicament where you can’t warn yourself or you’ll never end up here to have this conversation in the first place.”

“I’m Fluttershy and I’m a pegasus, who are you sir?” He sounded like the scholarly sort and Fluttershy knew what that sounded like from being around Twilight for more than a year. Also he sounded like he knew what he was talking, being sent back in time wasn’t impossible after the stable time loop Twilight caused after finding the spell from going through a horrible week. Twilight altered time minutely because of what happened the first time didn’t exactly happen the same way after her future self came back to warn her about something. The first time around Twilight didn’t get the warning and things must have been a slightly worse.

“I’m an old fool is what I am, but my name is Virgil and I’m a Lemurian. I don’t suppose you’re here to kill me are you?” Seeing the horrified look in the pony’s eyes Virgil sighed sadly and shook his head, his voice was rather despondent. “I didn’t think so; the werewolves are reluctant to perform the act of mercy killing as well. I’ve caused nothing but tragedy and when I’m fated to perish I continue on living with nothing but pain my heart. Never aging or dying of natural causes, I don’t even know why I continue to live.”

Fluttershy and Soft Echo had the same expressions on their faces as they looked towards Virgil; they were both pitying and sad expressions. The werewolves were a bit mystified at how similar Soft and Fluttershy looked when they were looking upon the immortal bird. Soft gave the remaining piece of fish in her hooves to a nearby werewolf and stood up and moved over to Virgil as did Fluttershy.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Asked Fluttershy and Soft echoed her sentiments in soft squeals that meant the exact same thing she just said. Soft Echo was truly echoing Fluttershy’s kind nature in being able to feel for the emotionally distraught being before them.

“I may as well tell you my tale of woe; campfires are usually good for things like this anyway.” As Virgil sat among the many Werewolves he noted that Fluttershy and Soft mirrored each others movements when they cuddled together and looked to him expectant. “It all started many years ago… I was young and rather foolish when I made one of the gravest mistakes that I will never be able take back. I’m well over ten thousand years in age; this was back when the world was still one and during an age of swords and sorcery that ran rampant upon this world. It was a time where the magical side of things wasn’t as separated from the mundane, long before the good dragons became the watchers that protect what became of the magical side of this planet. An inversely connected yet tragically separated world.”

The werewolves settled in and looked to be listening attentively, the old wise one told stories that had great morals and lessons as to not make history repeat itself. In fact the Lemurians were once known for mathematical prowess, especially when it came to predicting the future using said prowess since history tends to repeat itself so often unless something chaotic was thrown into things to keep life from going stale. They had easily predicted their downfall quite accurately, knowledge was truly powerful and they tried to preserve it the best they could.

“I mentored a person who would destroy my people in his lust for power, a warrior and sorcerer who would end up killing everyone who was ever close to me. His real name lost to his mad lust for power, he became simply called Skull Master. He was a vile, powerful and cunning monster in the end.” Taking a shuddering breath Virgil let his heart waver at the feeling of guilt that filled him, but he continued on. “With the power I helped him achieve he destroyed my race down to the last single remaining Lemurian.  I’m the last of my kind because of what I did. Not only did he destroy my kind, but also made those known as the Atlanteans go extinct. The people of Atlantis once fought alongside the aliens known as the Crystal Gems as their allies during the wars to preserve this world from destruction, the people of Atlantis were an advanced society until Skull Master destroyed everything before he was sealed away. I was there to see civilizations crumble before my very eyes, by my two wings I had brought down my home and that of our close allies. The crystal gems continued to fight their bitter civil war afterwards. I know who won that encounter, but victory was bittersweet as many of those gems became corrupted and scattered across the planet and I know not whether Rose Quartz still continues to live as it has been so long since that particular war quieted down.”

Virgil continued on through history and of the prophecy of ‘The Mighty One’ who would become the bearer of the Cosmic Crown and would be the ultimate end of the monster he had made. A boy named Max was earth’s only hope for a chance at having a future.  The humanoid bird got choked up as his weary heart filled with an even worse pain when he got to the time when said Mighty One received the powerful artifact that opened the portals to other places, it was this moment that Fluttershy interrupted for clarification.

“Is the hat magical in any way?” It was a little concerning to Fluttershy that Foxglove couldn’t get a read on the hat despite figuring out how to sense magic with her echolocation shrieks. In fact the Cosmic Crown sounded a bit like the elements of harmony. “I’m just asking since I was traveling with a magical being that recently figured out a method for detecting magic. She could detect the latent magic around her including me and my daughter, but she couldn’t detect anything coming from the Cosmic Crown.”

“Whoever that person was they naturally wouldn’t be able to; the Cosmic Crown is beyond magic in its power and it is truly an indestructible object. No power will be able to destroy it short of a gods and it will still be around even if the universe were to be destroyed. It is an object with an unknown maker and may possibly be even closely related to divinity or a higher power. Aside from the obvious power of opening a system of portals all around this world, it will grant some minor protections to the wearer or current wielder so long as no one else puts it on. To explain how I know this, it is time for me to go into the next part of my story. The sad tale of the mutual destruction of Skull Master and the Mighty One along with the sacrifice of a long time friend that made the victory possible.” Closing his eyes Virgil tried not to remember the face of a kid that seemed far more serious than Virgil thought he could be, he gathered allies at an incredible pace the second time around. Most of the people that were killed the first time survived the second round. “The tale I’m about to tell involves a time loop where everything went better the second time around, but it still ends in quite a tragic manner. I’m one of the many survivors of the second loop who died the first time before the Mighty One went back in time and set things right.”

Virgil told the tale of how Skull Master had rose to power sooner than he was expected to and the Mighty One hadn’t been ready the first time around, in fact the Skull Master had almost completely won by the end of it. When the Mighty One went back in time he was certainly ready for everything the second time around. A gathering of strong allies from around the world started up, including the very pack of rather benign werewolves they currently sat with who would never truly hurt an intelligent being. The final grand battle was fierce and in the end only a few deaths occurred the second time around, they were completely unavoidable losses.

The Mighty One had saved millions of lives and the planet itself, but in the end the man named Norman and the Mighty One known as Max both died ultimately defeating Skull Master and the being behind him. The Mighty One wielded the cosmic power of the hat and various magical items to end both his own life and that of what was once Virgil’s apprentice. It left behind a broken and woeful bird who was supposed to perish at Stonehenge, which is where they happened to be at the moment. Virgil even pointed out the discolored bit of Stonehenge where Max had bled to death after he had finished off Skull Master; his blood was still staining a large chunk of stone and it showed his last act of great courage. Virgil had taken the life of far more than just a young teenage kid who would have had many years ahead of him, Max’s mother grieved the loss of her son after Virgil told her what Max’s last words were and that they were meant for her to hear.  It was Virgil’s fault that so many had died, all because of the knowledge he held, he had to watch the life drain from the Mighty Ones eyes while holding his hand in his final hour.

“They met their destinies head on, but I’m still curious as to why my fated death never happened. It is the only thing I ponder nowadays, the question as to why I haven’t perished has been on my mind for these last few years.” The brown feathered humanoid with some of his feathers pulled back into a ponytail sat amongst the others and took a bite out of some fruit he suddenly found himself holding in his wing. Curious about who passed the fruit to him, Virgil looked at the little filly looking up at him sadly wearing the Cosmic Crown on her head. His grim countenance was upsetting her because it also upset Fluttershy, fruit is what made Soft happy and in a juvenile sense she thought it would make him happy to.

Of a more adult mindset, Fluttershy sat off to the side pondering all the lives that Celestia might have doomed in her existence and how she must be living with it if Virgil was like this after ten thousand years. It was quite obvious that this poor gentleman had seen many things in his long life and that he was a match for Celestia in the age department, she too took a position of staring into his eyes with Soft Echo. After the loss of so many friends and causing so much death by doing nothing more than giving knowledge to the wrong person, Virgil looked like he needed a big hug.

“You said you were fated to perish, I think that’s already happened. Judging by the wording Norman was meant to die at that moment by the eight arms. Max would have either survived or died, but he would succeed either way in the end.  As for you the word ‘perish’, it could mean you would be reduced to a state of poverty or ruin.” It was something that Fluttershy could clearly see already.  He was definitely in a state of poverty and he lived in ruins that he thought would be the death of him. Prophecy wasn’t always accurate, but she could see the light in the birds eyes grow slightly brighter before dimming again.

“Well it seems that the truth is laid bare before all, I have met my fate and I accept it for what it is. The person I was perished a long time ago in seeing someone so young snuffed out before his time. I’m no longer foolish, but I will never be able to forgive myself for the atrocities I let happen.” Virgil took another bite out of his fruit and felt something rubbing up against him; he looked down again at the cap wearing pony nuzzling and trying to be cuddly. Sighing he lifted his other wing had to rub her behind the ear affectionately.

“She wants you to get better, I know because that’s how I feel right now. I would now like to ask you for help and to tell you something else that you truly need to know.” After the statement Fluttershy walked up to Virgil and wrapped her wings and hooves around the poor ancient fowl scholar in a hug. Soon the werewolves and Soft Echo joined in as well.  Sure she was a little concerned that she was still in the past parallel to her other self meant that she or Soft wouldn’t be getting any sleep this night or day as it were. Virgil’s storytelling lasted until two in the morning, still a good seven or eight hours before Fluttershy and Soft fell into the portal in America. “You are no longer perishing, you are prosperous!”

“We shall see if this is true or not.” Virgil said a little uneasy about the affection directed at him, he wasn’t evil and he wasn’t a bad guy. He was just a broken soul that made some really big mistakes and needed some kindness after his special talent for knowledge caused so much heartbreak. “I will try providing my assistance as best I can once more, but I can’t promise you your safety as I have led too many to their deaths to believe that I will not do so again.”

“I’m okay with that.” Honestly Fluttershy was plenty okay with being led to her death as the scenario she went through with Bonnie showed, she was good at surviving ridiculous odds even if not without injuries both physical and psychological. Virgil seemed to need all the help he can get to be pulled out of his grief and little Soft agreed with that sentiment. “I’m going to need some help to get to back to my friends that I was traveling with and those portals sound really dangerous without a guide.”

Immortals that were friendly and humble like the werewolves and the Lemurian were a rare find indeed.

-

Fluttershy was still trying to wrap her head around the time travel involved not to mention how time zones factored into everything revolving around the portal she fell into hours ago. She looked over to Soft Echo to see her rolling around in the grass and saw that she was taking care of herself well enough under the watchful eye of a werewolf babysitter.  She arrived late in the evening exiting the portal at a time where she would be exactly twelve hours twenty two minutes and seven seconds in the past in a completely different location based on the time she entered the portal in a completely different time zone.

Time travel was both vexing and confusing to Fluttershy as it would have actually meant she traveled seventeen hours into the past, but twelve if she had been in the same location she left from. Virgil was quite insistent that it was twelve hours in rather a convoluted sense and that the portal was only capable of being opened on a Wednesday; she was currently in two places at once after all and had been in that area twelve hours prior. 

Fluttershy couldn’t go to sleep for a while without causing Luna a bit of confusion which meant she and Soft Echo had to wait for her other self to wake up. The rule of thumb or pony frog in this case was not to think about it too hard.

Sighing Fluttershy pulled out the memory stone, which was now in two places at… okay, now there were two memory stones in her hoof. This was going to get awkward really fast as she couldn’t tell which one was the past stone nor had she noticed it missing before she fell into the portal. Virgil just raised an eye in curiosity towards the two magical stones she now held in her hoof, she was going to call Katrina of Aldebaran so that she could vent her frustrations to the nice cat lady and now had a question to ask her first.

“Mmmyesssss… Katrina speaking, what is it this time and how may I help one of my sexy little minxes?” The purring Katrina sounded as humorously amorous as ever.

“Hello Katrina, does anything bad happen if you time travel into the past slightly and end up with two memory stones?” Fluttershy was going to completely ignore the come on from Katrina, even if she was elegant and beautiful like Celestia in an old lady manner. A blush dusted the pony’s cheeks after that thought, Aldebarans did look rather flexi… Fluttershy decided to immediately cease all thought at that moment.

“Fluttershy, what the… wait… did you just say time travel? You only had the one stone so when you went back in time… oh dear.” Katrina suddenly sounded horrified either because she had unintentionally made a pass at Fluttershy or because something was horribly wrong. Fluttershy figured it was the latter given the exceedingly long pause. “What planet are you on? You’re going to need an Aldebaran’s help really soon Fluttershy.”