The darkness around me was endless. There was no moon, nor stars, nor even a horizon. All that was in my vision was the gore stained-mud and the dead trees that dotted the landscape. It was a place I’d grown familiar with in my sleeping hours.
Each trip here brought me lower. Physically and mentally. I was buried to my knees in a sucking muck that I just couldn’t pull free from no matter how hard I struggled. That was not my only adversary, though.
The burning was a reminder that I was never alone here. The two Night Mares had me trapped. A flaming lash was attached to each of their twisted horns with the other ends secured tightly around my neck. Usually they’d whip me with them, but as of late they’d been used as restraints.
Whether I struggled or not, they burned… but by now I was growing numb to the pain. What else could I do? There was no way out of the muck or lashes.
“He grows weaker. Soon he’ll comply,” the dark unicorn in front of me called to the one behind.
“Yes, Sister. Soon he will be ready for Her. I hope, once he submits, She’ll let me keep him; he is a fine stallion.”
The mare in front cackled. “Your appetite knows no end!” She tugged on the lash, jerking my head a bit and causing me greater pain. “Do you hear that, stallion? You have a suiter if you’d just submit.”
I didn’t respond. Fighting didn’t work here. Perhaps not fighting might. I looked beyond the flaming mare to one of the nearby dead trees. A bit of white had caught my eye. It hadn’t been there before, but through the haze coming off of the flaming leads, I could see what looked to be like an owl.
At least, I could until the mare behind me tugged her lash and snapped my head back. “Do you not like me? Am I not comely enough for you?”
The mare to my front tugged again, pulling my head forwards. She snickered. “No, sister. He only has eyes for his little mare. His precious Crystal. If we could just separate him from her, he’d lose all hope and fall into Her service completely. Perhaps she is the one we should be after.”
My blood ran cold. How did they know about Crystal? My eyes narrowed as I looked up at the mare.
“Oh, that got your attention? Come now, you know you’ll ruin your little marriage. Why don’t you let us take care of it for you? Then you won’t be at fault. We could just handle her for you!” The teasing tone in her voice as she casually threated my beloved wife filled me with fire.
It wasn’t the fire of rage, but resolve. I struggled against the muck and the lashes to no avail. Struggling never worked.
From behind me, the other mare snickered. “Yes! That is the last of him. Let’s end his little mate and then he’ll submit.”
In the distance, the owl screeched, perhaps frightened by the roar that tore from my mouth. Somehow, I found the strength to pull free of the gore and muck. With a mighty flap of my wings, I leapt to the mare in front and smashed my hoof against her cheek.
A cry of pain and surprise shattered the darkness. It was not me this time. It was her. My hoof had connected and actually done damage. That had never happened!
The flames of her eyes and mane disappeared as she fell to the ground, and the obsidian mare looked up at me with shock and surprise through a pair of normal emerald eyes.
“Sister!” the other shouted before tugging at me with her lash.
I hunched my shoulders and yanked forwards while putting all of my weight on my forelegs. The mare was drawn to me, caught completely off balance, and when she was close, I bucked with all of my might.
Both hindhooves found her face and shattered it. The lash immediately disappeared as the unicorn’s limp form sailed back and landed heavily in the muck.
The downed mare in front of me was whimpering. “Mistress… Mistress, help us! Please!”
I advanced on her and shoved a hoof against her shoulder, pushing her onto her back. When she looked up at me, I saw it: genuine fear.
“Nopony threatens my wife,” I growled before I crushed her throat.
Things went fuzzy after that. Warm, soft, and fuzzy. The sun was on my face. Where were the dead trees? Why would there be trees in my bedroom? Wasn’t I in the mud? No, this was my bed.
This was a pretty good bed, too. Much better than a military cot. This bed also came equipped with a Crystal Wishes, so that was a really nice feature. At some point in the night, she’d snuggled close.
I nuzzled her neck and her eyes slowly opened. She blinked. “Hi.”
“Hi.”
“Did you sleep through the night?”
“I guess so.”
“No nightmares?” she asked.
“Not that I can recall. I had some dream about an owl or something. I don’t know, I vaguely remember you being a part of it, so it couldn’t have been a nightmare.”
She smiled. “That is wonderful! I wonder what changed?” She rolled over and looped her hooves around me.
When I went to return the favor, she winced, but slowly calmed as the hooves proved themselves to be loving and loyal. I shrugged. “I guess leaving the military behind meant leaving the nightmares?”
Crystal’s head tilted. “Maybe? I don’t know, Silent. It’s only been a couple of days. You really need to think this over. We haven’t even discussed it.”
I kissed the bridge of her muzzle. “There is nothing to discuss. They weren’t necessarily wrong, but the way they presented it and their plan for handling it was foolish, shortsighted, and harmful. I don’t want to be in the Army, anyway.”
She sighed and nuzzled me. “You’re not known for impulsive decisions and this was as impulsive as it gets. Your whole career just tossed casually aside. That isn’t normal behavior for my husband.”
“No? How about this, is this normal behavior?” I dropped my muzzle down and started kissing on her neck.
The mare softly huffed and stroked her hooves through my mane. “Yes, but you’re deflecting.”
“Am I? Is this normal?” My hooves slowly rubbed along her spine as I pulled her closer.
“I’m trying to have a serious conversation here,” Crystal murmured.
“And I’m trying to have time as a husband and wife. I think my idea is better.”
Crystal set her hoof between my ears and rubbed. “Okay, but we are going to need to discuss this later.”
“Later,” I agreed before ending all argumentative words with additional kisses.
☾
Dr. Kitty—which was not her real name—did not have plush ponies to hold in her office. Her office, however, was much nicer than Mindful Soul’s. It was on the third story of the Flower Foundation building and had a great view into the Memorial Garden.
The office, which was actually a multi-use meeting room, was also a lot brighter. The walls were a pastel pink and seemed to suit the pastel orange-and-cream-colored pony.
“Are you all right, Silent Knight? You look a bit pensive.”
“Oh… well this may sound silly, but in previous therapy, I was given a… well, a doll to hold.”
Her ears wiggled and she asked in her sweet little voice, “You’d like to hold a doll?”
“I wouldn’t not like to.”
“I’ll remember that! I bet other patients would, too. We don’t get a lot of veterans yet since the military has its own plan, but I hope we can learn to serve better by serving you. For today, how about a ball? I have a ball.” She rummaged around in her satchel and pulled out a shiny red ball.
She rolled it to me and I gratefully accepted. A ball would work fine. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome!” she said cheerfully.
“So… now what?”
“Anything! You talk, I talk, we talk, or we don’t talk. We could paint. We could color. Everypony recovers differently from traumatic experiences.”
“I’m not sure we should color. I used to color with Dot and she’d get onto me for using the wrong type of pencil or shade of green.”
Dr. Kitty softly laughed and smiled. “So who’s Dot?”
“She’s my sister’s wife’s little sister.”
“So she’s your sister-in-law.”
I bounced the ball in front of me and waggled my off hoof. “Kind of. She’s more like my niece. I mean she was. She grew up when I was away. She doesn’t even color anymore. She gardens and chases colts.”
Immediate recognition dawned on the mare’s face. “Oooh! You mean Dot, Dot. Yes, she very much does those things. Does it make you sad that she grew up while you were gone?”
She knew Dot? “A little… yeah. I was there when she got her cutie mark. I think she just represents life passing me by. Before we go on, though, how do you know Dot?”
“We work together on the Memorial Garden team. You know what, I probably need to disclose that I know your mom, your wife, your sister, and your sister-in-law, Iridescence. I don’t treat any of them, though, so there is no conflict.
“I also won’t share anything you say with them. If you’re not comfortable with me, though, that is super okay! I’ll find you another Care Counselor.”
I tossed the ball to her lightly. “I don’t think that is necessary. You seem perfectly fine. Maybe a bit too perky.”
Dr. Kitty grinned and tossed the ball back. “I can’t help that. You’ve seen my cutie mark, right? That smiley face on the rainbow isn’t just for show.”
“That’s fine, then. I wouldn’t want you to put on a different face for me.” The ball went back to her.
“Good! And you don’t have to put on a different one for me, either.” Her next toss went a little higher and I had to reach to catch it.
“So, why did you have a ball with you?” I asked before pitching it back in a similarly, slightly harder way.
Dr. Kitty sat back and caught it with both hooves. “I like to play with it when I’m stressed. I bounce it against the wall or the floor or any surface and then chase after it. It is kind of a focus exercise and a metaphor.”
She tossed the ball back to me but quite a bit off to the left. I reached for it and came up short. It went by my hoof and bounced off the wall.
“See, metaphor! Sometimes the ball is easy to catch and handle. Sometimes it is harder to get to, but, no matter what, the more you practice, the better you’ll get. That is how our therapy will be! You’ll have days where you miss and that is super okay. You’ll have a lot of days where you don’t miss though and that is awesome! How does that sound?”
After retrieving the ball, I tossed it back to her nice and easy. “That sounds super okay,” I teased.
Dr. Kitty wagged the ball at me. “Oh, I knew I’d like you. Also, we don’t have to have our sessions here. We can go outside, too. In case you want to really start throwing the ball. Then we can get a two for one!”
My head tilted. “How so?”
“Oh, well, I’m also doing your physical therapy. I’m your one-stop shop for wellness while you’re with the Foundation. As long as that is super okay.”
“That is super okay. One more question, if it is appropriate. Why Dr. Kitty?”
She grinned and tossed the ball at me. “I like kitties and we’re encouraged to take on easy to remember and happy monikers. What fun is Dr. Dream Pop?”
My head tilted. “I can’t tell if you’re serious.”
She clapped her hooves. “Yay! All right, toss me the ball. It’s my turn!”
I did so and chuckled. This was certainly different therapy from what I was used to. I’m not certain if it would be useful, but it certainly was more entertaining.
“All right! Let’s see. Tell me about the nightmares, how is that going?” she asked before tossing the ball to me.
“They are pretty bad, but I can never remember them. Other than that one that was captured. It makes it hard to sleep. I slept all night last night, though. I haven’t felt this good in a while. Say, don’t you need a notebook to take all of this down?” The ball went back to her.
The mare ducked her head, let the ball land on top, and bounced it up and down while staring at it. “Nope, I have flawless recall. I mean, I’ll write it all down later, but if I do it now, it puts a barrier between us and takes up time. Plus, most patients sit there and ask themselves ‘what is she writing,’ so I write nothing!
“Besides, I’m not a unicorn so writing would take way too much effort. Nope! I’m just lucky that I can remember anything and everything I hear and see that I focus on. Do you really want me to take a ton of notes while we work? If you do, I can! That would be super okay… or we could just play ball.” She bounced the ball on her head one more time before batting it to me.
Her claim was extremely impressive. Almost impossibly so. Of course, ponies had all kinds of talents. I caught it with both hooves and stared at her for a minute. “So… are you like a super genius?”
“Maybe? I just have a super good memory so that is often confused for intelligence. I’m pretty sharp though. In fact, I’ve been told I’m the sharpest spoon in the drawer.”
That made me chuckle. I shook my head. “All right. Well… can I talk to you about serious things, too?”
“You can talk about anything you want, Silent Knight. Just because I’m fun and happy doesn’t mean we can’t discuss the hard stuff. The killing, surviving, seeing your ponies die. It is all on the table when you’re ready.”
I quietly nodded. “Good. I think for right now, I’d rather just play with the ball and talk about everything that has changed.”
Dr. Kitty bobbed her head. “That is super okay. We can do ju—“ Bells started ringing out in the city.
“Is… that some kind of alarm for our time being up?”
“No, but that would be super cool if it was! Those are the palace bells. Since the war started, they installed a lot more. Whenever the princesses wish to speak, they ring them and that lets us know we have an hour to get there.”
“Oh… so we should go?”
“I’d like to go, but it is up to you! You’ve got a lot of appointment left for today.”
Up to me? Well, I was a free pony. “I think I’d want to hear what they have to say.”
“Me, too! So let’s go!”
We left the Foundation’s building and walked the short distance to the palace. Ponies were streaming in from everywhere and taking up positions in the courtyard. When was the last time I’d done this? The declaration of war? Maybe not that long. I’d forgotten.
Dr. Kitty and I found a pretty good place to stand near the main palace doors. At that point, it was just a matter of time before the princesses arrived.
“I wonder if Crystal is here,” I said.
“She probably is. Almost everypony comes to a royal summons.”
That was a valid point. Given the press of the crowd, it was unlikely I’d find my wife. It would be better to just wait it out. So we did.
The doors to the balcony above eventually opened and Princess Celestia strode out. Princess Luna was absent which wasn’t really a surprise, as it was highly unlikely she’d be back from Haven already.
“Greetings, my little ponies. Thank you all for coming on such short notice. It is my pleasure to announce to you that our war with King Kronson and the Sudramoar gryphons is about to end. The bloodshed will be over.”
The assembled crowd of ponies roared in approval. Hooves were stomped, hugs were given, and the somber attitude they’d arrived with melted away into joy. I simply stood there, unmoving. This was not unexpected and was greatly appreciated… but I just didn’t really feel anything but mild relief.
Princess Celestia gave everypony a few moments to celebrate before clearing her throat, a gesture that should have been inaudible from where she was but somehow reached all our ears. She just looked about the crowd as we started to settle. For a moment our eyes met, and I was sure she’d paused. Eventually, she pushed on.
“Minister Sombra and my protégée, Twilight Sparkle, have been able to reach a suitable agreement with our enemy. The document is drafted and will soon be signed by King Kronson. It will then return to our shores where Princess Luna and I will sign and seal it. In the meantime, a full cessation of all hostility has been agreed to.
“Your loved ones will soon be home. We will not linger in Nordanver. We will not remain to watch walls or towns. Our ponies will come home.”
The crowd cheered once again. Ponies held onto each other and tears were openly shed. This was it. It was over. It was finally over.
“The road before us is still hard. We must now take under our care thousands of ponies who have seen what should not be seen. They will need our love and friendship more than ever. They have done their part for us. It is now we who must do ours for them and their loved ones.
“I ask you all today to be prepared with kindness and understanding. Open your hooves, my little ponies, for our army shall be marching home. May they find one as welcoming now as when they left. Good day.”
As the princess retired, ponies stomped their hooves, cheered, cried, and celebrated in every way they knew how. The whole courtyard was a sea of happiness. Other than me, of course.
Dr. Kitty set her hoof on my shoulder. “You don’t seem excited.”
I shrugged. “I know what they’re coming back to. I have to be honest, I feel sorry for them.”
The earth pony softly looped her hooves around me and hugged me tight. “It will all work out in the end. For them and for you. I’ll help you and then you and I can help one pony each. Then all four of us will help a pony. Eventually, we’ll have more helpers than helpees.”
That made me smile slightly. “Yeah… maybe so. I can help them not go through what I did.”
“Yeah! That would be super okay. Come on, let’s see if we can get you out of here.”
“Don’t you want to celebrate?”
“Sure do! We’ll go celebrate by playing ball in the park, okay?”
I nodded.
We started to make our way through the crowd, but somepony reached out and lightly tapped my back. “Excuse me! Major Knight! Hi, pardon!”
Dr. Kitty and I stopped. I turned to find one of Princess Celestia’s House Guards fluttering above us. The pegasus mare was pretty small in general. One of the svelte types that was typically a weather pony.
“I’m not a major,” I replied.
“Oh, sorry. I thought you were. You are Silent Knight, though, right? I was told to… to… uh… Princess Celestia would like to see you. She saw you and now she wants to see you. Please?”
What kind of house guards was Sunny training these days? This one seemed like the nervous type. I looked over at Dr. Kitty.
“If you want to go, that is super okay! If you don’t, that is also super okay! Although, honestly, if a princess wanted to see me, I’d go. I’m not you, though, and that is super okay!”
I chuckled at that and offered a hoof to the doctor. “See you tomorrow?”
She bumped it. “You know it! Have fun storming the castle!”
“No! No, we’re not storming the castle, that is not allowed,” the house guard squeaked.
“It is just an expression. Lead on.” This should be interesting. I wonder what the princess wanted with me.
A potentially hyperactive therapist that almost talks a mile a minute (at least that was the vibe I got) and has the patient's thoughts and feelings first and foremost?
Are they related to the Pie family in any way, shape or form? ;)
And PC wants to talk to him too... Guess it didn't take long for word to spread through the ranks.
i like Dr. Kitty, but i'm in a great struggle... azuplush of a ball
Okay, only Silent Knight would think something like this. It's almost like not-cuddling.
7558200
Dr Pie Chart?
or Dr Pie-ce of Mind
Thank goodness that the war's finally over. I am also hopeful that Silent's talk with Princess Celestia will go well too.
7558202 how about an Azuplush ball?
We'll, this should prove interesting. Wondering what the princesses have to say.
O boy. After that last chapter, and Silent's outburst, I'm really curious what Celly has to say on all this.
Well...next chapter should be interesting. Wonder what Celestia wants...
Ah, such a source of power for him! For both of him.
This is a whole new level of random.
Case in point.
A very refreshing chapter. Merry. Light. Optimistic.
:chuckles: Nah, it will not be that easy.
Go Dr. Kitty!
I'm eager to find out what Celestia has to say, most likely something about his resignation from the Army. She is probably not happy, since I guess his resignation could be seen as a sign of defiance from her army and that he is undermining her authority and others might do the same and then they lose control of the whole thing, like Silent said last chapter. Then again, the rehabilitation plan to get back into the swing of things were seriously bad and Silent did the right thing to go his own path, but I think Celestia will try to get him back one way or another.
I was worried Silent would wake up after having struck Crystal from his nightmare. Then when he klled the nightmare I was almost sure of it. I was surprised he actually slept well. I've heard of soldiers that had to sleep separately or under their beds to feel safe.
Dr Kitty maybe secretly Dream Pop is Super Okay!
Someone should keep count of all the times she says "Super okay!"
7558267 i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/357/026/2ff.gif
is dr. kitty in any way related to pinkie?
This chapter was super!
Reverse order response is so random!
I get the feeling that Dr. Kitty's intentions are spot on, but her methods are probably a little on the lax side. But we can work with that, since we've just gotten away from the opposite.
getmeoutofhere's "Exchange" taught me that cute, ex-princess horses are essential wilderness survival equipment, and now, Anzel's taught me that cute, snuggly wife horses are essential domestic survival equipment. I feel so prepared. Now I just need some cartoon horses.
You know, i never really thought of the doc being related to Pinkie, but this made me wonder if she was related to Miracle Max in some fashion? Because everyone knows that you only really need about three people to properly storm a castle. Well two and one only mostly dead.
7558247
Crystal's companion story is chronically about two years behind here, so putting notes about where they are in relation to each other wouldn't really work. I'm sure once/if they start covering the same periods again that they'll put those notes back.
Is this a reference from what I think its from?
"No more rhymes now i mean it!"
"Anybody want a peanut?"
"Have fun storming the castle!!!"
"Think it'll work?"
"It'll take a miracle"
Every single Chapter I curse FIMfiction for letting me like a story only once :P
NOT THE CLIFFANGERS AGIAIN
OH COME ON, YOU JUST HAD CLIFF HANGER US ANZEL! I could of had less of kitty and and actually get to the princesses reaction to what happened to SK.
7558123 "Ya know it, Baby." ;)
Dr. Kitty has all of the approves. :3
I guess I'll jump on the bandwagon too s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/d5/4a/30/d54a302152ba1bfe60f2fa79c7c3d2a2.jpg
Also, are the chapters 1 to 1? (I.E. chapter 1 here mirrors events in chapter 1 of Crystal's Hopes)
Heh, this particular dream invasion sure didn't go as the two Night Mares were expecting. Though with that said, I wouldn't rule out that it might have gone exactly as their Mistress wanted. If the overall plan is waking up Dread Knight, a little murder dream might be a step on that path.
If this new therapist is really a kitty, she would have long since lost that ball under the couch.
Hmn. Let me know when it actually is signed, not just "will be signed soon". I'm still waiting for something to go wrong.
Speaking of? Though given recent events, I imagine this is more likely to be fallout from the review board than something going wrong with the peace agreement.
7558399 that's the first thing I did when I finish the chapter, I counted it at 11 times by the way
Haha that cliffhanger is horrible, good job!
7558590 what!?! But she's the new Azu/pinkie character! Silent needs disgusting amount of positivity right now
Alright, so who do we know with owl imagery? The obvious answer is that Luna finally found a way into his dreams, but that seems perhaps too obvious.
7558747 could have wait till we know the fallout of the review.
This character seems super okay.
7558123 yes, in many ways it is. After 21 years of being a "civilian" again, I still find myself scanning everything, always watching, and so very quick to confront ANYTHING my mind tells me is a threat. And after all this time, I feel the need to serve still.
I'm curious... Where will Silent's actions within his nightmare lead? I pray that this is a good sign.
Dr. Kitty was awesome.
This whole chapter was super okay!
It seems like Silent is making progress with his dreams and i Dr Kitty!
D'awwwwww.
I feel bad for Silent. It is bad enough to wake up constantly from nightmares/Nightmares but not being able to remember them seems worse in ways. But it was nice to see him take charge in this chapter. It wouldn't be for himself but for others.
I see what you did there.
This was already said but, this chapter was super ok
Damn I hate it when the chapter ends I was getting in to the story. It like a tv show it ends when it is getting good.
I saw this:
And immediately thought of this:
Aside from that, all I can say about this chapter is that it was HORRIBLE..................................ly short! I want more!
And the ability to give this more than one thumbs up.
I figured it would be obvious silent
I guess this is a chapter late but I just re-read some of the earlier chapters and I'm suddenly noticing all the hints you were dropping about Dread Knight not just being a mere title for Silent. Example: when Tumble mentioned he tried talking to Silent in his sleep, shuddered, then made the off-handed comment that at least Silent was back to his normal self. I didn't pay much mind to that detail then, but now I'm really curious. Just exactly what things did Silent (or Dread I should say) say in his sleep to disturb Tumble so?
Anyway, back to the present. Nice Princess Bride reference!
Okay. New favourite character. Other than Runic.
Dr Kitty for the win.
Silent Knight, why are you out of uniform?
7558705 In the words of BigMac; Enope.
7558750 the only ponies I can think of is the Temple Unicorns. I don't know why, but that is what I think.
7558857 I believe this is only the beginning of his troubles. The Night Mares may have awoken a part of Silent he has been trying to suppress. His subconscious may be suppressing the dreams so Silent can lead a normal life.
Interesting... Is this the end of the Night mares? Or will they be back in force? the call for their Mistress is what concerns me. Who is she? why hasnt she shown before? Hmm. But yes, the war is over everyone can come home woooo! sounds so good doesn't it? -sips some tea- Though I do belive that the the battles are not over from this war. atleast official ones.. ones that can be seen. And Im sure Celestia has captured word of Silents actions... Im curious to see how Luna handles it when she comes back.
7559609 That is perfect!
7558303 My thoughts exactly o.o
Aaand celestia jumps the gun with a mighty leap, announcing the war ending before it actually does with all the aplomb of someone who does not have a political script writer and does not think like a pragmatic politician. Just like in cannon, good show
7558399 It shall be a drinking game!