//------------------------------// // 16 - Princess Luna: The Eye of the Storm // Story: Can You Find it in Your Heart? // by Ravenmane //------------------------------// Impending holiday or not, it remains my duty to protect those of Equestria within the realm of sleep. Tonight is no different. Sister intends to take me to Ponyville as a means to bring us together and rest before our duties of the holiday. I am well aware that my sister would rather sequester within a Canterlot spa, especially due to her secretive one. Just because I am the guardian of sleep, does not mean I avoid investigation when Celestia grows secretive. That was how this eve began, with my own curiosity. I sensed trouble within the realm upon this night, one that has eluded me for many days, but on this eve I found the way at last. Concealed behind a door like any other was one made of crystal, barred by darkened crystals. There are few minds that conceal themselves with such security. At first I suspected my sister, though I knew far better mere seconds later as her path made itself known. Much as Celestia’s path became present, so too had another familiar to me: that of Twilight Sparkle. “I see,” I muttered as I placed a hoof upon the barricaded door. “It has been a long time since you were last seen in this place prince of shadows. May I enter?” Writing appeared upon the door as the question resonated through the way. “Say my name,” was what became visible. “None shouldn’t forget their manners.” I removed my hoof and smiled. “May I please enter Lamentius?” The words swirled and became a new message. “I am still a prince you silly traveler. I know not who you are, but I asked for manners.” “I, Princess Luna, do hereby formally request entrance to thy dreams Prince Sombra Lamentius Amore.” As the words swirled into a new shape I grinned. “Permission granted Luna,” I read as the defenses lowered and door opened. “Trust none contained herein.” “Thank you for your kindness,” I said as I entered the blinding light behind the crystal arch. ***** As the light faded, I found myself in a very familiar place though different than how I last saw it. A large stone hall made ready for a great feast and just as grand would be those invited. Far from me was a large stone dais, one that once bore two thrones and grand flags of my sister and I behind them. Instead there was now no throne, only the flag of Equestria. “I see,” resonated a male voice from behind me, “the first to arrive is the guardian.” I spun to see Sombra himself waiting at the center of one of the many tables. He wore no finery befitting a noble, but looked far like he once did. From his emerald green eyes to the straightness of his horn, it was as though I stepped into the past. “I was expected,” I inquired. “I suspected that there was a guardian of dreams,” he replied calmly as he used magic to pour himself a glass of wine. “Still, I expect there will be more than just the two of us Luna. Please, join me and lower your defenses for a time. I am armed with nothing more than dream wine and… dream silverware I suppose.” “You have a penchant for twisting dreams to nightmares Sombra.” “Was it me who made a monster in this castle?” “The way here said–” “To trust nothing here correct? I already told you why: I suspected a guardian of dreams. I suspect you’ve noticed something outside this dream though.” I wearily made my way to the pony I once called a friend. “Had you obscured yourself intentionally?” He waited for me to sit before pouring a glass of wine for me. “For a guardian of dreams, you might need to further observe your surroundings. My ‘twisting’ has nothing to do with any personalized nightmare. I would have little control during those darker days were that the case. Such magic is beyond a unicorn’s talent, even amplification changes nothing in that fact. If you think nightmares are all I can do then you seem quite mistaken.” The sound of chairs moving and the rustling of silverware silenced him, just as it drew my attention. Across the entirety of the hall, ponies were seated and looking to us. Far from us I even saw Celestia, a dark look bore upon her face. “She’s staring at me isn’t she? My dreams reflect how I see ponies. The better I know them, the more real they seem.” I smiled as I turned back to Sombra. “So your subjects fell prey to your madness?” “Yes,” replied Sombra as he looked to his drink. “It fueled their hopelessness which fueled my madness and… well… it’s easy to see how it spiraled out of control so swiftly. Still, Celestia’s gaze is upon me correct?” “Indeed Lamentius. Why do you envision such ire from my sister?” “It was the last thing I saw for one thousand years. It is now my greatest fear.” “And your other fears?” “Rejection. Luna,” his eyes turned to face me as he spoke my name, “you know why I wish to call it that correct?” “Yes,” I replied with a frown. “Still I’m here because I want to,” commented the voice of a mare. As I looked for the source, I saw other ponies looking intently to the table Sombra and I shared. “It’s an honor to know you let me in Sombra.” My gaze returned to Sombra, seeing now that Twilight Sparkle had taken the seat beside him. “You let Twilight Sparkle inside?” Sombra smiled calmly. “In a sense. Look in her eyes, she is having a troubled dream but is hiding from her fears where she knows it could be safer. Now if you don’t mind Luna, I wish to address these ponies reflected in my mind.” As I nodded he cleared his throat and raised his glass. “My fellow dreamers, tomorrow I may go to meet my end. I hope this ending shall not come to pass, that we may have this grand meal together not as a farewell, but as a celebration of the good that shall come from more than the dawn. In my mind I call this a time of sorrow, a time where those who dream can see me at my best before my end. Still, I wish this not to be filled with sorrow, but with joy. “Knowingly or not, I have touched many lives, far more than those here to be sure. While most know only of my ill deeds I say that we feast as equals. Let us celebrate a new dawn, where I hope to exchange with one and all in kindness rather than fear.” His glass of wine levitated before him, having risen for all to see. “To a new dawn!” “To a new dawn,” resonated the voices of everypony present save for one, the very one I saw displeasure in when first I saw it. My sister’s glass had indeed risen like all others, but her voice did not ring out among the crowd. Instead, her eyes were closed and her head tilted downward. “Sister,” I said wearily as my eyes had grown transfixed upon her. “Would you hate him still?” Secretly I wondered if she was indeed aware of this dream. As my curiosity elevated, I too wondered about any other pony present. “They don’t know how much I care for each and every one of them,” commented Sombra, drawing my attention once more to him in addition to the plates before us which now bore food. “Lamentius, are any truly aware of this dream?” “Aside from you and Twilight, it would be hard for me to say how many others see this feast. It is merely the surface though. My true slumbering self is making peace with my short stay in Ponyville.” “A nested dream, Starswirl’s apprentice indeed. Any words of wisdom before I leave?” “You cannot tell Celestia about this dream. You must let our encounter play out as it is meant to be.” “But–” “I am at peace Luna and I wish to see her knowing that my peace remains unaltered. Should she show me mercy then she will do so of her own free will. Now, wake up Luna. You have a busy day before you.” It was with those words that I indeed awoke, the blinding sun reminding me of my hunger. Right then, I wished to have had something at his feast.