• Published 29th Sep 2017
  • 4,202 Views, 55 Comments

Redeeming Darkness - 'Displaced' - KukriRyuTsukino



What happens when you go to a convention as one of the most infamous Rangers who actively chose to go dark? How would you redeem his actions... through your own?

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Explorations and Fun

Canterlot Gardens, Equestria #12571325
Thomas’ eyes were on the rising moon as he stared off into space, getting a very strong sense of dejä vü. 'I get the feeling that there's something right under my nose that I'm missing,’ he thought.

He let his eyes glaze over as he felt himself falling into his mindscape, finding a tall, broad mountain that reminded him of the Animarium. “Heh, that would be funny if Princess Shayla were in my head,” he muttered, noticing narrow streams coming down the slopes before converging into a small waterfall in shades of pale golden amber, deep red, warm copper, and warm emerald all melding into a prismatic foam as he walked through the trees before coming to the clearing with a broad pond of lavender-blue water.

He crouched on the balls of his feet, his fingertips brushing the surface of the water, feeling an almost immediate rush of energy, unaware that the birthmark that was almost invisible on his skin rather than a deep garnet shade flared for a moment with moderate indigo light as his body was outlined by the same bluish lavender aura for the same two or three second period his fingers touched the surface of the water. “So… whatever energy I’ve been employing…. “ he muttered.

“Comes from that pool, yeah, dumbass,” he heard a feminine voice growl in a dry tone. He looked up, startled, to see Shun Kasai.

“Kasai-chan,” he said with a slight smirk. He noticed, for just an instant, the startled look on the large Kitsune’s face, though he did notice that her fur was a rich, if a bit dark, Persian red, with some tribal markings in Tyrian purple and warm Carmine red that seemed to trickle through her fur as she shifted. He tilted his head, staring into the Kitsune’s rich, warm Venetian red irises that faded to a deep, moderate Coquelicot around slitted pupils. He tilted his head, staring at the Kitsune, not noticing how she shifted before he winced, feeling a sudden shove just above his eyes as he staggered back.

“Quit staring, you little shit,” Kasai snapped with a growl. He smirked in response, seeing her tail retreating.

“What, nobody has admired how you look? Because I have to admit that you’re quite beautiful. Admittedly, I’ve never seen a Kitsune before, much less expected one to be in my head,” he said dryly, shrugging as he took his gaze from the Kitsune, not noticing that the vixen was blushing somewhat.

He exhaled softly as he glanced at the mountain that was, he guessed, around a half mile away and perhaps around twelve hundred feet tall, though he couldn’t be sure. He cocked his head, unsure if his wings were still there, though he felt a tingling rush between his shoulders before he heard a rustling, glancing over his shoulders to see his wings flaring out. “Huh… for some reason, I’m reminded of Max Marshall,” he muttered.

“Who?” Kasai growled.

“Book character, specifically from one of James Patterson’s books… 'When The Wind Blows' and its sequel, 'The Lake House', though I’m pretty sure if she were around, she’d have preferred a different name.. namely `O'Neill`,” he sighed, shrugging his shoulders before he took two fluid, long strides before he shoved off, taking to the air as his wings shoved down hard, launching him at high speed into the air. Instinctively, he concentrated as goggles with amethyst lenses and mother-of-pearl frames and an onyx gemstone just above his eyebrows formed, though he instinctively knew that the goggles wouldn’t fall off despite not having a strap.

His crystalline dark aquamarine irises flickered around as he felt himself shift into what some would think of as a ‘standing position’ in the air as he felt his wings beating the air in a steady hover. “Hmmm, maybe if I get experience here… I can figure out how the muscles feel and react and probably freak out… what’s-her-name… Spitfire. I know there was a old World War I plane named that… a British one, I think… and I do know there were spark plugs named Spitfires,” he mumbled to himself.

He tilted his head, looking up to spot four totems on large onyx bases with streams of ‘water’ surging from beneath them, standing out quite noticeably amongst the jungle green and forest green as well as the dark brown earth in this mindscape. One was a large Imperial red lion with a deep coppery gold mane and deep emerald eyes. “GaoLion,” he muttered. To his surprise, the eyes flared brightly as its head turned to meet his gaze before it nodded slowly, though its gaze remained on him, he noted, as his gaze slid to the next totem, which was a large pthalo green gorilla with rosso corsa colored eyes and a cadet gray jawline. “GaoGorilla,” he muttered. He was less surprised as the large gorilla reacted the same as the red lion. Next was the ruby feathers of the GaoFalcon along with its deep hunter green eyes. He smirked slightly, tilting his head slightly at the pale silvery eggshell tone of its chest feathers. He didn’t miss that the GaoBeasts looked far more organic here than mechanical. He inhaled slowly as he whispered “GaoFalcon," startled as the falcon let out a predatory shriek before staring at him as he noticed the golden copper shimmer of the ‘eyes’ on its wings. His gaze slid to the last of the four, though his eyes widened in shock as he stared at a slightly larger form of the Red Lion… though this particular one had dark ruby eyes, a darker golden mane, and ebony fur. He shivered as he remembered that particular Lion. 'Part of Animus…. within me,’ he thought. “Fuck me sideways,” he muttered.

He exhaled, focusing as he felt his mind drifting back into awareness, his subconscious form dissolving into shimmering feathers and mist before fading completely.

------☴☱☳-☳☱☴------

Thomas blinked a few times, wincing as his muscles protested. He glanced up at the moon, where the odd equine craters resided before he paused, noticing they seemed to flicker slightly as if light shifted, or more precisely, the ‘head’ shifted, almost as if noticing him. He glanced down, then back at the moon, guessing around twenty to thirty minutes had passed. “Luna… if you can hear me, I will see you… again,” he whispered. He thought he heard a soft inhalation as if someone were surprised. He thought about his words. ‘Why say “I will see you again? Have I seen her before and simply… forgot?’ he thought before he blinked, seeing for just an instant, a dark blue furred anthropomorphic winged woman almost identical to Celestia with moderate cyan eyes and a swirling mane of moderate sapphire blue and a grayish persian blue outline. Strangely, he had, at the same moment, a sense of frustrated anger and hunger that didn’t feel natural. He had the sense that this flash of memory was related to whatever he’d forgotten.

He sighed softly as he pulled out his electric guitar and let his fingers drift over the strings, not even really considering what came out.

He exhaled softly as he let the strings cease vibrating their notes, not noticing the luminous rainbow aura flickering over the strings. Had he looked out to his left, out of the arching window, he'd have noticed a prismatic aura pulsing through the very distant large Everfree Forest at a particular point, though he himself wouldn't have recognized that particular area, though Celestia would have.

His muscles tightened as he felt his wings flare out before settling against his shoulders. A faint smirk crossed his face as he sighed softly as he walked quietly, simply wandering around.

The Next Morning
Twilight Sparkle yawned as she stretched, pushing the door to the Grand Library open before she blinked as she noticed Thomas slumped in one of the chairs, making her smirk with a small blush as she noticed the small stack of books, as well as the one lying open beneath his fingers, the tips lightly pressed against the page. She cocked her head, thinking. 'Why do I get the sense that he feels… lonely?’ she thought.

She jumped slightly in surprise as he stretched, the book closing on his fingers, making him yelp rather amusingly before he yanked them free as she giggled, trying hard not to laugh.

“I’ve done that so many times, I’m surprised I don’t have book text permanently tattooed on my fingers,” she quipped, smirking as he set aside the book.

“Ugh… my muscles are stiffer than the Hoover Dam. I doubt anyone would get the joke about ‘asking all the dam questions’, though,” he groaned.

Twilight’s ears twitched in curiosity. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“There was a movie where a family took a tour of Hoover Dam, which is a concrete hydroelectric plant that was started September 1930, and was formally finished May 29, 1935. In the present day, which for me, anyway, was March 2002, it isn’t uncommon for Hoover Dam to hold guided tours. In the movie, the tour leader said and I quote You can ask all the dam questions you want,” he said quietly. He sighed softly. “I wish I knew what year it was now,” he muttered.

Twilight cocked her head. “It’s around the year 6403,” she said softly, shrugging slightly as she blushed slightly. “It is claimed that humans here died out around… 3500 years ago, though nobody can really confirm it for certainty,” she said softly.

“What do you mean?” Thomas said suspiciously.

“Evidence has been found that, in the mountains to the north of here, in Canterlot, that there were gathering places, almost like towns, but for creatures that looked like you. We found some skeletons in some places, and odd… crystalline rings... in others. Nobody has touched the rings for a very long time, so nobody is sure what they do,” Twilight said softly.

Thomas cocked his head, thinking. So humans, at some point, existed in this world. “Crystalline rings? Any particular colors to them?” he said quietly, a bit amused.

“I don’t know. Maybe Princess Celestia would know,” Twilight admitted sheepishly, bowing her head shyly.

“There is a comic book series that I know of that has rings, though I’d have to see the rings to make sure… if they’re the ones I suspect,” he said wryly, thinking aloud before he pushed himself to his feet.

He wondered if they were the Lantern Rings he knew of, though, admittedly, he had no idea if the Elemental Embodiments existed here or ever had, which implied that if they didn’t, then there was a good chance that once you ran out of ring energy, they would have to find ways to recharge them somehow. ‘I wonder how you’d recharge them without a Lantern Battery? Perhaps siphon the emotions directly?’ he thought. Even if they were those rings, he had no desire nor a need to use them.

“There’s supposed to be a festival in the city for the Summer Sun festival. You want to go? Just to explore it?” Twilight said shyly.

“Why not? Could be fun. Do you know if there are contests, like talents?” he said thoughtfully. Thomas had quite a few talents that made him unique.

“I’m sure they have those,” Twilight amended thoughtfully.

“I have a few that would surprise you,” Thomas said with a small smirk, though he heard the door creak open before he noticed Princess Celestia.

“A few what that would surprise us?” she said, sounding a bit amused.

“Different talents. Martial arts for one, though my personal preference is something a lot trickier to master, since no matter what, you’re always learning new ones,” he said wryly, shrugging slightly.

He noticed the glance Twilight shot the taller Princess as he took stepped a few yards away before twisting, his hand drawing free the acoustic guitar from behind him, apparently from thin air, as he faced the pair. He inhaled slowly and softly, his eyes drifting closed as his fingers drifted over the strings before moving rapidly, a complex rhythm flowing into the air. He found Twilight’s startled look amusing as she jumped in surprise.

“Would you go with me if we rolled down streets of fire?
Would you hold on to me tighter as the summer sun got higher?
If we roll from town to town and never shut it down?

Would you go with me if we were lost in fields of clover?
Would we walk even closer until the trip was over,
And would it be okay if I didn't know the way?

If I gave you my hand would you take it,
And make me the happiest man in the world?
If I told you my heart couldn't beat one more minute without you, girl,
Would you accompany me to the edge of the sea,
Let me know if you're really a dream...
I love you so, so would you go with me?

[Instrumental]

Would you go with me if we rode the clouds together?
Could you not look down forever,
If you were lighter than a feather?
Oh, and if I set you free, would you go with me?

If I gave you my hand would you take it,
And make me the happiest man in the world?
If I told you my heart couldn't beat one more minute without you, girl,
Would you accompany me to the edge of the sea,
Help me tie up the ends of a dream...
I gotta know, would you go with me?
I love you so, so would you go with me?”

Celestia blushed slightly, amused. Twilight shivered as she blushed deeply. Admittedly, she didn’t see Thomas as more than an acquaintance at the moment, though who could tell what the future held?

“There’s one other that really stuck for me… because I’ve come close to that very situation. One of my friends stupidly got drunk, despite being underage at the time; the drinking age was 21, while he was just under 17. Unfortunately for him, along with his girlfriend… they will never get any older,” Thomas said quietly, sighing softly.

His eyes drifted closed as his fingers strummed slowly, the tone of the music more… controlled and somber. “A farmer and a teacher, a hooker and a preacher,
Ridin' on a midnight bus bound for Mexico.
One's headed for vacation, one for higher education,
An' two of them were searchin' for lost souls.
That driver never ever saw the stop sign.
An' eighteen wheelers can't stop on a dime.

There are three wooden crosses on the right side of the highway,
Why there's not four of them, Heaven only knows.
I guess it's not what you take when you leave this world behind you,
It's what you leave behind you when you go.

That farmer left a harvest, a home and eighty acres,
The faith an' love for growin' things in his young son's heart.
An' that teacher left her wisdom in the minds of lots of children:
Did her best to give 'em all a better start.
An' that preacher whispered: "Can't you see the Promised Land?"
As he laid his blood-stained bible in that hooker's hand.

There are three wooden crosses on the right side of the highway,
Why there's not four of them, Heaven only knows.
I guess it's not what you take when you leave this world behind you,
It's what you leave behind you when you go.

That's the story that our preacher told last Sunday.
As he held that blood-stained bible up,
For all of us to see.
He said: "Bless the farmer, and the teacher, an' the preacher;
"Who gave this Bible to my mamma,
"Who read it to me."

There are three wooden crosses on the right side of the highway,
Why there's not four of them, now I guess we know.
It's not what you take when you leave this world behind you,
It's what you leave behind you when you go.

There are three wooden crosses on the right side of the highway....” his voice was low and soft, yet carried strongly.

“I must say, your musical talent is quite impressive. Telling stories through music is not as simple as some would imagine,” Princess Celestia commented.

“In my world, none of the music I know is, in fact, mine. But here? Nobody knows the music. I suspect somepony,” Thomas replied, glancing at Twilight, who gave an approving nod, “may know similar music, or even music I would recognize, but in a different form,” he said wryly, shrugging.

“It's possible. I do not know, though it is quite early. Perhaps we could share some tea and coffee cake?” Princess Celestia said warmly.

Thomas’ eyebrow twitched upward as Twilight seemed, to him, both excited and happy. “I don't mind,” he said thoughtfully.

“Can we get some..."Twilight Sparkle said excitedly.

“Cinnamon buns?” Thomas said, amused by her gaze flicking to him as she blushed deeply.

“Am I that obvious?” she said with embarrassment.

“Not really. I've had a craving for them for the last couple of days. I just have no idea where to find them,” he replied with a chuckle as he messed up Twilight's mane just for the amusement.

He wasn’t surprised when Twilight swiped a hand to push his hand away as he smirked before he shrugged, surprised as Princess Celestia’s hand gently touched both his and Twilight’s shoulder.

“You are fond of my student, are you not?” she remarked.

“Probably as a little sister, if anything,” Thomas replied wryly, smirking.

Twilight pouted before swatting Thomas’ arm before he snickered, rolling his shoulders as he saw a golden glow flare up in the corner of his eye before he blinked away the glare, grimacing slightly before he blinked, realizing they were in a broad hallway with a couple of guards nearby, unaware of Princess Celestia’s teleportation spell.

He allowed the Princess to guide himself and Twilight out into the Canterlot streets as he exhaled softly, rolling his shoulders as he felt his wings flaring out before settling against his shoulders naturally, the breeze sending tingles of awareness up his spine. He hummed softly, thinking. “I do have an idea for an extended riff… or more precisely, a series of riffs, though I suspect some might see it more as showing off,” he said wryly. “You see, where I came from… music could be surprisingly complex and startling in how different it could sound, though the kind of music I’m mainly familiar with has only been around between twenty and thirty five years. I do know some older music, but it’s mainly country music that is older,” he commented.

“How long would that riff series be?” Twilight said curiously.

“Twelve to twelve and a half minutes, give or take,” he said wryly, shrugging nonchalantly.

“I must admit I am curious,” Princess Celestia commented as they continued walking before Thomas blinked, noticing a simple doughnut shop. He blinked a few times, then shook his head slightly.

“Somehow, I get the feeling that this is a place that is famous for a certain someone’s presence,” he remarked dryly. Celestia simply smirked as she opened the door.

“I have no idea what you mean,” she commented with a small smirk.

--------⚍䷀䷁--------

InDeepSpace

A ship was approaching what appeared to be a larger vessel made of gears that rotated slowly and steadily, though a distant city was visible. Who had made said city, however, was unknown. Within this ship, several heavier Bārohei drones had the large, almost seven and a half foot tall draconian creature, formerly an experienced Equestrian scientist, currently an instinct driven creature of rage and anger, chained to heavy durasteel pylons. Also within was a pair of more cunning androids, one with semi-folded plates of armor overlapping down its arms ending in rather human looking hands while his legs were similar in appearance, though its head was far from human, being merely a sphere of dull gray and red metal with faintly glowing red eyes.

A smaller robot clung to his left shoulder, a small round android who hummed softly every few seconds in a somewhat off feminine tone. The larger male robot glanced over his shoulder, smirking slightly as he could sense what was clinging to the monster. It was a power signature the android was very familiar with. As his gaze flicked back to the front, his eye sockets flared with dark green energy, for something, had anyone been near this particular android, was quite odd and off about its nature.

---- ᮹ↂ᮹ ----

Lyra sighed softly as she left the train station from Canterlot. She giggled as she remembered the odd pony that had spontaneously joined her and Octavia. She hadn't been able to see his hooves because of his footwear, which was still uncommon but was often more noticeable with the 'noble' ponies.

Reina trudged along as she made her way south into quaint little village. She wasn’t impressed with the village but it was less tacky than Canterlot in her opinion. She wasn’t exactly paying attention though. One of the psychotic voices in her head, the one that made her think of pink flowers, was strangely absent since the battle, not that she was complaining to be rid of it.

“Too calm for my liking,” she mumbled.

“Hi!! Who are you? Do you like cakes? What kind of icing do you prefer? Do you have any friends? I’ve never seen you around here, so you must be new!!” an excited mare’s voice said, distracting her as a light raspberry mare with a puffy deep raspberry-pink mane and warm, cheerful sapphire eyes hopped next to her, speaking rapidly, almost too rapidly to be understood.

Reina blinked and stared for a second as she processed the questions of the pink pony that had approached her out of nowhere, seeming to be genuinely excited to meet her. It was annoying how hyper giddy she seemed but she decided politeness might be better since she was a bit tired from traveling.

“Um, Reina?... Who doesn’t like any kind of cake?... Not many friends... Passing through?...” confused as the mare darted off, a trail of pale smoke surging after the mare before a softer voice cut in.

“You look exhausted. Want to go to the spa for a massage?” a curious mare’s voice said kindly. The brilliant gamboge eyed speaker had a soft, pale aquamarine coat with a light grayish cyan mane and white highlights. Lyra had just gotten back into Ponyville from Canterlot. Surprisingly, she had more than enough to splurge for a trip to the spa in addition to a good two, almost three months worth of rent for her and Bon Bon, though she had a sneaking suspicion that something was a tiny bit off with her close friend.

Reina was surprised by the sudden friendliness of ponies that this town seemed to provide. The unknown unicorn seemed to be friendly enough as well. “Um, I guess I should freshen up... I don’t exactly have any money though. Kinda was in a rush to leave the city...” she said blankly, unfamiliar with anyone being friendly without any desire to manipulate or abuse her.

Lyra shrugged. "I have more than enough bits to cover it. I'm Lyra Heartstrings," she said with a small, shy smile. Admittedly, she was seen as a rather odd pony, though she was mostly harmless.

Reina smiled. It was rare for her to see generosity shown toward her so she decided she liked this unicorn. “Reina Frost, nice to meet you!”

Lyra sighed softly, glancing at the other ponies milling around, a few glancing their way, but none bothering them as they made their way towards the spa. It wasn't that she'd dropped out of the School for Gifted Unicorns... it was more that she got bored with the stuffy, slow lessons.

"Most ponies think I'm strange, mainly because I don't really try to... what's the expression... go with the flow?" Lyra sighed as she shrugged.

Reina giggled. “Learning everything you can is an important part of life... But going against the grain and experiencing life for what it really is, also is important.”

Lyra smirked slowly as she giggled. "Buck the flow. I'd rather be a rock than the water. It's no fun being boring," she giggled.

“What’s worth the prize, is always worth the fight.” Reina quoted mysteriously.

“It's fairly peaceful here, though... I secretly made my specialty in binding and attack spells," Lyra said with a conspiratorial smirk as they reached the spa.

Contrary to popular belief, she was almost as intelligent as Twilight Sparkle was. The biggest difference, however, was where Twilight learned best through theory and study, she learned best through application and action.

Reina eyed the building with a look of apprehension. It looked to her like some pony had built it while overly fixated on the circus in her opinion. “Everyone learns differently I suppose.”

"I've always found this place just a little over the top. But Rarity lives in a boutique that genuinely looks like a circus carousel," Lyra remarked with a giggle as she pushed the door open and held it open.

Reina giggled as she walked in “Trust me, that sounds perfectly tame compared to the tacky buildings back home...”

Lyra snickered as she shrugged. "I wouldn't know. Sometimes I think that we could have some.... bigger places," she said before she yelped as the curtain opened with a flourish.

Author's Note:

The Psychos will likely show up again at some point. When? I'm not sure, but they're around and building their strength to create destruction and fear, I'm certain of that. There seems to be a connection to Thomas and Luna, though he seems to have forgotten it, at least consciously. Subconsciously, he feels... a deep bond to her.

------- 𝌜𝌐𝌚𝌲𝌡-------

Here's the vocal colors in question so far.

  • Princess Celestia – goldenrod Speech
  • Rose Quartz Pie— #F64A8A Speech
  • Thomas Oliver — #3f00ff Speech, Thoughts #325775
  • Shuléi Kasai — Speech #71041A
  • Byakōshinken - #EFDFBB Speech
  • Lyra Heartstrings - #98FB98 Speech
  • Moon Dancer - #ED2939 Speech
  • Twilight Sparkle - #a66ebe Speech, 'Thoughts #FDC7F9
  • Princess Luna - #220E9A Speech

-----------------Psycho Pink - 3a082d Speech

Comments ( 9 )

Heh, you know what I find amusing? Despite a certain 'someone's' comments back when this story was new, your story has gotten a good ratio of likes compared to dislikes.

8798257
Constructive criticism is far more effective in getting a writer to improve than being a pathetic flamer nobody will even bother to take seriously...

8798257
True and quite a few have added it to various Favorite lists, so :rainbowwild:
8803104
Though the next chapter is unfortunately going rather slowly (never was good at slice-of-life POVs...) though for a while, Thomas will be going his own way from the ponies.

Neat but I wonder when will drakkon arrive en force also psycho pink excellent choice

8916555
How do you know he hasn't already appeared? He may be in disguise... *hint hint*

8917989
Well aware of that little image and that flash but I'm talking actual apperance

Comment posted by GeizMidorigawa deleted Dec 28th, 2018
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