Comet The Colt of Steel

by Stallion of Steel

...Just Before...(Updated) (Retconned)

(Comet's POV)

When I was younger, whenever I would have bad dreams, Granny would tell me the things I saw were like pictures in an old book. They might look real and scary, but they couldn't so much as touch you. But with Nightmare Moon it felt different. It was like she could take what was in your dreams and somehow make them real.

Darkness surrounded me from all sides. Endless waves of the beasts came from every direction at once, snarling and growling with a hunger that could not be sated. What had started as just one Timberwolf had multiplied to become thousands. An unstoppable horde that multiplied every time I destroyed one.

At first, they didn't seem like much of a threat. I had destroyed the first...two hundred, give or take a few, without breaking a metaphorical sweat. But as their numbers grew, so did their aggression. I quickly found myself bucking, kicking, and throwing around what felt to me like a pile of falling lumber that was determined to bury me alive. Eventually, their numbers grew so great that I was forced to use my heat vision and super breath just to get some breathing room.

The entire thing happened so fast that a normal pony watching wouldn't be able to process what was happening in front of them. The sonic booms generated by my speed alone were enough to shatter them to pieces. For me, it was like everything around me was moving in slow motion.

By the time I destroyed my thousandth Timberwolf, I realized this was a fight even I could not win. And so I did the only thing that seemed logical, I took to the skies. In the blink of an eye, my leg muscles propelled me high into the air. The wind rushed through my mane as I ascended higher and higher. From up here the Timberwolves I'd been fighting looked like a swarm of ants.

I landed in a thicket of trees about three miles from where I'd jumped. The boughs and branches of the tree line did little to slow my landing.

"Crash!"

"Snap!"

"Crack!"

"Thud!"

"Oof!"

Picking myself up, I shook the cobwebs from my head, dusted myself off, and took a moment to catch my breath. Had I lost them? A quick sweep of the forest with my x-ray and telescopic vision revealed no hide nor bark of any Timberwolves. For a moment it looked like I was in the clear. Then suddenly I saw a cloud of smoke billow up from the ground, followed by another, then another and another, and then about several thousand more.

"Of course, they can teleport." I should've known it wouldn't be that easy to get away from them. No, they were here to make sure I stayed out of their mistress's way. Well, I wasn't about to make it easy for them.

"Think you can keep up with me huh? Alright then...."

WHOOSH!

"DON'T FALL BEHIND!"

In an instant I was off again, leaping and bounding my way across the sky with the pack in hot pursuit. As I expected they weren't fast enough to catch me, but they weren't about to let that stop them. I just had to stay in the air as much as possible, and hope they didn't spontaneously grow wings. The forest stretched out far into the infinite, repeating itself in every direction. Every landing spot was a potential ambush point. I wasn't sure how long I could keep this up. My mind was racing at a thousand thoughts a second trying desperately to find a way out of this place. Then suddenly in the middle of a jump, a fiery red comet emerged from behind the moon and I heard a familiar voice in my head.

"If you can read mah mind....A'h just wanted to say...where ever you came from.... you will always be my brother."

That voice...it almost sounded like..."Apple Bloom!"

"Wha? Who said that?"

"I did."

"Apple Comet? How are Y'all talking inside my head?"

"I could ask you the same question."

"Sweet Celestia Y'all can read minds!" She exclaimed.

"Where are you?"

"In yer bedroom, I brought you the crystal that was in yer rocket ship." Well, that explained a lot.

"That's it!"

"What's it?"

"Apple Bloom, listen to me, I need you to keep your hoof on the crystal, can you do that?"

"A'h guess so. "

"Good, now I want you to close your eyes and clear your mind."

"How am I supposed to do that?"

I facehoofed, of course, teaching my sister how to use an alien artifact wouldn't be that simple. Looking down at the forest below, I could see I had reached the apex of my leap and was starting to descend. I had to think fast.

"First close your eyes," I said closing my mine own.

"Okay, they're closed." She replied. "Now what?"

"Alright good, I can sense you, now hold onto the crystal, and don't let go."

In the next fraction of a second, our consciousnesses raced toward each other from opposite ends before merging in a brilliant flash of light.

---

"Wha in tarnation just happened!" Apple Bloom cried as she struggled to catch her breath.

"I guess that when our hooves both touched the crystal, it created some kind of telepathic tether between our minds." It was then that we both noticed we standing beside each other.

"Apple Comet!" Apple Bloom's eyes twinkled with joy as she promptly tackled me to the floor.

"A'h was afraid Y'all were never gonna wake up!" She exclaimed wrapping her forelegs around my neck. At that moment I swear it felt like my heart was going to burst. Her tears of joy ran down the side of my neck, I gently wrapped my forearms around her barrel and held her close.

"I was afraid I would never see you, Applejack, Granny, Mac, or Sweet Apple Acres again."

For a moment the two of us laughed and hugged each other, happy just to be together again. Finally, we both stood up and looked out into the distance, at the towering skyline of an ancient city, resting on the shores of a vast lake. In the distance jeweled mountains shimmered under the light of a giant red sun, creating a dazzling span of rainbows that spanned from peak to peak.

"Wow."

"Sis," I said placing my hoof on her shoulder. "Welcome to Kolton." To say she was awestruck would be a massive understatement.

"It's incredible." She whispered turning to me. "but didn't Y'all say it was destroyed?"

"That is correct." A bold voice behind us said. We turned around to see two figures materializing out of thin air. "Kolton is no more, only dust in the cosmos, along with all of its inhabitants."

Jav-El and Loran stood in front of us, Their posture was as poised and stoic as the night I first saw them.

"Hello, again Kom-El." Loran smiled warmly upon seeing me. "You've grown so much since I last saw you. And greetings to you as well Apple Bloom."

"Well, this explains the other conscience we sensed with yours," Jav-El said looking at Apple Bloom who by this point was hiding behind me the way Winona did when she knew she'd done something bad.

"W- Who are you? H-How do Y'all know mah name?" She asked nervously as she peeked out from behind me.

"Do not be afraid, we mean you no harm, I am Loran."

"And I am Jav-El. We are Kom-El's parents, or at least a copy of them, Their conscience, their memories..."

Loran knelt and kissed me on the cheek. "...And their love." She said finishing Jav-El's sentence. "Oh, my little shooting star, how I've missed you."

I felt a tear fall from her cheek onto my back as she embraced me. It was strange, here I was hugging a mare who I'd only met once before and both times it wasn't really her. But I didn't feel like I was embracing a shadow. I could feel her love for me flowing from her body to mine.

"I missed you too...Mom." Also, it felt weird calling that, As long as I could remember I'd never really had a mother figure in my life. That's not to say Granny didn't do a good job raising me, it's just, that I always saw her as my Grandmother. And I never really got a chance to know Pear Butter. As I said, it felt weird, but it felt weird in a good way.

"You don't know how happy I am to hear you call me that." She said wiping a tear from her eye.

"Group hug!" I heard Apple Bloom cry out. Before I could get a word in edgewise I was sandwiched between two walls of fur.

"Oof."

"Oh, goodness!" Loran chuckled as she wrapped her leg around Apple Bloom. " Well, you certainly got over your shyness quickly."

"What's there to be shy about?" Apple Bloom said excitedly. "It's not every day A'h get to meet ponies from outer space."

Jav-El let out a hearty laugh. "High praise indeed." He said.

"Hey!" I protested. "What am I, a bag of oats?"

"No yer mah brother silly billy." She replied with a cheeky grin on her face that said 'gotcha'. And as much as I hated to admit it, she had. Plus it was kind of sweet to hear her say she saw me as one of the family, instead of just an alien. Not that I ever doubted she did. Loran chuckled as she pulled both of us in for one more hug, before finally releasing us.

"So what brings you two here?" Jav-El asked. Apple Bloom and I looked at each other. I could tell she felt the same as I did.

"It's kind of a long story," I answered. "Can we come inside and sit down?"

"Certainly," Jav-El replied. "This is as much your home as it is ours." He closed his eyes and stood perfectly still. As if by mental command, the door behind him silently slid open by itself. As he opened his eyes once more, Apple Bloom asked.

"How'd Y'all do that?"

He smiled at her, pointed at his head, and winked.

---

I'll say one thing about Koltonian architecture, It's certainly different. The first floor of my parent's house was set in a circle, around a large cylinder with a spiral staircase. All of the rooms seemed to revolve around the cylinder, like the numbers on the face of a clock. As we stepped into the living room, I felt a familiar sense of remorse come over me. This was where I met my parents the night I'd...no I couldn't think about that right now. Nightmare Moon was out there somewhere, and I was the only pony who stood a chance of stopping her.

"Sweet Celestia!" Apple Bloom could hardly contain her excitement. "This room is bigger than our farmhouse!" Her voice echoed against the high domed ceiling.

"I take it that means you're impressed." Jav-El smiled. "Being one of Kolton's foremost scientists has its benefits, although I always thought it was a bit excessive."

"Welcome back young master Kom-El, It's so good to see you." a familiar electronic voice chimed from the ceiling. From the staircase, a legless golden shell silently descended.

"EEEEEEEKKKK!!!!" Apple Bloom predictably shrieked in terror, ducking back behind me as the robot approached. To be honest I couldn't blame her. I imagine the sight of a metal ponnequin front half with a screen for a face moving by itself would scare anypony stiff.

"Do not be afraid youngling," Loran said. Kerax means no harm."

"I most certainly do not," The robot replied."Why the very idea goes against the first law of my programming." He moved in closer towards us.

"Why he's practically family," Jav-El stated.

"Most kind of you to say, sir." Kerax turned his mechanical head and nodded briefly. "I was not aware the young master would be bringing a guest." He turned over to Apple Bloom. "May I ask what your name is youngling?"

"A-Apple...Bloom M-Mr Alien...Robot...Sir." My sister stuttered nervously as she gazed into the wavy line on his face screen.

"She's my adoptive sister," I explained hesitantly, "From Equus."

"Ah, I see, Well if there's anything I can do please don't hesitate to call." With that, he turned and floated off presumably to do whatever alien robots do all day. For a moment the room was quiet. My parents looked at us and we them.

Finally, I said, "We don't have robots on Equus."

"Oh." Jav-El acknowledged.

---

We sat down on a long couch in the middle of the room. My parents sat down opposite us.

"So," Loran started. "What do you wish to speak to us about?" I slowly took in a deep breath and exhaled.

"Tonight I was visited in my dreams by Nightmare Moon. She's a wicked mare who wants to take over Equus so that the night will last forever. When I tried to stop her, She put a curse on me that trapped me in a deep sleep. Then she cast into an endless looping nightmare."

Loran gasped in horror and thrust herself from the couch, her body phasing through the table in front of us as she wrapped her forelegs around my neck. Jav-El stood up, doing his best to maintain his composure. Still, I could sense he was concerned for my wellbeing.

"Oh thank Rao you're safe." She said wrapping her legs around me tightly.

"Thank who now?" I asked confusedly.

"Rao is the creator of all light and life," Jav-El explained. "He who ignited the sun with his essence, so that our people might bathe in his power. He who raises it every morning to signal the coming dawn, and lowers it every evening to herald Luda's night."

"So he's like Princess Celestia, except he's a stallion?" Apple Bloom asked having been listening in on our conversation with what I could imagine was piqued interest. It was a question none of us had an answer for.

"Honestly if you should be thanking anypony it should be Apple Bloom," I said pointing in her direction. "If she hadn't brought the memory crystal to me, I might never have escaped. That's how we ended up here." Loran released me from her hold and trotted over to Apple Bloom who sat blushing bashfully against the arm of the couch.

"Well shucks, A-A'h couldn't just leave Y'all like that." She said. Before she could say more Loran pulled into a tight hug.

"Apple Bloom of Equus, No words can express my gratitude to you." She held my sister in front of her. "You have saved my only son from a fate worse than death. For this, I would like to make you an honorary member of the Stable of El." Apple Bloom's eyes lit up like Hearths Warming lights.

"Wow, what does that mean?" She asked. Loran smiled at her and said.

"It means you can call us Mother and Father if you like." Apple Bloom's face sank as she turned her head away from them. "What's wrong?"

"A'h appreciate what Y'all are trying to do but..." She said gloomily as she clambered down from the couch. Loran turned to Jav-El.

"Did we offend her in some way?" She whispered to him. I felt that familiar sense of guilt rising in my heart.

"It's nothing you two did," I told them solemnly. "It was me." Both of them looked at me with bewilderment.

"What do you mean?" Loran asked, the concern evident in her voice. The familiar sense of guilt began to rise in my stomach. Even thou the Apple family held no ill will for what happened to Bright Mac, the memories of that night cast long shadows deep in the back of my mind. A penance I could never atone for. I glanced across the room at the form of Apple Bloom dejectedly walking away. She didn't acknowledge our conversation, but the way she walked like she was carrying a heavy load on her shoulders said it all.

"I'd rather not talk about it in front of her. " I replied grimly.

Loran started to raise her hoof to protest but stopped when Jav-El placed his on her shoulder

"Loran, he doesn't want to talk about it right now." She sighed and looked over at the yellow filly slowly climbing the stairs, then turned back to me as if to say "What did you do to her?"

Author's Note:

Sorry about the long wait, my seasonal job kept me busy. Made me realize how much I was taking my sleep time for granted. But now I'm off the leash until next year and I'm ready get back into it. Next chapter is the long awaited finale to Comet's Nightmare Moon story arc. What will happen next? To be honest I don't really know. I've been off the ball so long, I didn't have time to think it up. Should it be action-packed, or perhaps something deeper, more insightful? Maybe I'll find a way to do both? Anyway thank you for your patience and I'll see you all soon.

( Important Update. So last week I introduced Kerax as an Equestrian version of Jor-El's robot servant Kelex. If there are any Arrowverse watchers on this site then you know who I'm talking about. He'll be appearing in a few new scenes in order to tie the continuity together. Hopefully, you won't all go Star Wars fans v George Lucas on me for this. but if you do I will naturally ignore you.)

Comments

[badninja]

So how will Apple Comet “help” with Nightmare Moon and her defeat?

[Comickook]

Hey there. Very little I can say except, this chapter may have taken a while, but it was quite well worth the wait. The action, exchanges, characterizations and future chapter set-up are all well done in all the right places.

I particularly liked Apple Bloom finding the memory stone and helping Comet. Apple Bloom's meeting the images of Comet's birth parents and comparing notes with them was also beautiful.

As for what could happen in the next chapter, well, Comet could return to Luna's side after a tough battle with Nightmare Moon's dream warriors and find a way to give Luna enough hope to try to help fight her alter-ego long enough for the Mane Six to get off a clear shot at Nightmare Moon in the waking world with the Elements of Harmony. Comet then returns to the waking world JUST as Nightmare Moon gets purged from Luna.

Then there could be a brief epilogue scene with Luna thanking Comet in the dream world after the adventure is over, with Comet giving Luna a sympathetic shoulder and ear concerning her issues so that she doesn't take any extreme measures to punish herself). Back in the waking world, Luna could get the idea to create a sky blue suit for Comet made out of the strongest metal in Equestria to allow him to operate publicly as a hero (with an outfit durable enough to handle most Everfree animals and natural disasters] while still maintaining some semblance of a normal life.

Of course, if the ideas don't work, I'll understand. And I'll still be looking forward to more of this.

[Luckyfanisaac]

she pulled both of us in for one more hug, before finally releasing us.

"Do not be afraid youngling," Loran said. ——)”Kerax means no harm."

I'm ready to get back into it.