The Sun, but Not

by PerpetualMotion

Eyes in the Dark

"Princess Celestia, you did it!" Willow exclaimed as she snapped back to reality with surprising ease, seemingly unaware that The Light had spoken at all. "I don't remember much of what happened after I passed out, but I remember you, and what you said." She paused, noticing something odd even before Celestia did. "You are Princess Celestia, right? That's the name I... "felt" from you? When we were connected, I mean. Tales of the Sun Princess of Equestria are extremely popular with the village's youth. To think that I managed to stumble into you of all ponies..."

"It's... just 'Celestia' now," the alicorn said with a sigh. Is the title really that ingrained into my identity?

"Oh, I'm sorry," Willow said. "Did... something happen?"

"Nothing that wasn't supposed to happen, it's fine. In any case, we don't have time to-" This time it was Celestia's turn to realize that something was wrong. "Your accent is... Are... you speaking Ponish?" Sure enough, taking stock of her active spells revealed that her translation spell had been interrupted by The Light's incursion as well.

"Oh?" Willow tilted her head quizzically, taking a moment to think about it. "...Oh. That's... not good, is it?"

"It's not healthy, that much is true," Celestia said. Magic of the mind was always dangerous. In fact, knowledge of such spells was forbidden, tucked away in restricted archives. The stronger presence in a connection ran the risk of overpowering a weaker or otherwise compromised one if the spellcaster wasn't careful, and the potential for abuse was much too high. The incursion to save Willow certainly hadn't had time for caution. "It would appear that some amount of my knowledge mixed with yours. You should still be... you, though." I hope.

Willow Wisp grimaced in thought for a moment before speaking again, but this time in her native tongue. "I still remember my Breezie just fine, thankfully," she said afterward, sounding relieved. "Sorry to worry you."

"None of this is your fault, my friend," Celestia said. "That said, the situation here is rather... dire, from the looks of things. What happened?"

"It was slow, at first," Willow began, becoming rather sullen. "A few months ago, some of us started having dreams. Simple, pleasant dreams of a warm Sun in a strange sky. No one thought much of it or even knew that the dream was common for a long time. But once some Breezies did start talking about it, something odd happened. They remembered each other, in the dream. As the dream spread, the more clear and memorable it became, until it became... a social event, of sorts. Breezies would dream together and eventually... they stopped caring about anything else."

"I see." Celestia didn't know what to make of this, but it was extremely worrying. From her small experience in the realm of dreams, she knew that they were sequestered worlds, and linking them required a great deal of power. Power that, to her previous knowledge, only her sister had possessed. "What happened to all the others, though? The village shouldn't be so empty, even if everyone is sick."

"There is one place they should be, but if everybreezie has ended up there..." Willow shuddered. "I was chosen to leave and seek help out of those of us who realized just how dangerous the dream was, and we used what little power we had left to open the portal out of season, but that was just a few days ago and at least some of us were fine then. Then again, considering how even I managed to fall prey to the sickness when I felt fine when I left..."

"Well, they can't have vanished altogether," Celestia said, placing a hoof on Willow's shoulder and meeting her gaze with reassuring warmth. "We'll find them and do what we can for them. In the meantime, do you have any parchment I can take a write a letter on? I know just who to call to help with the problem of the dream."

"O-oh, of course! Yeah, there should be plenty in my house. Follow me." The pair took to the air, and Willow led Celestia across the pond to one of the many mushroom buildings planted along the shore. The inside was rather spartan, with limited furnishings aside from a soft, cotton bed and a simple wooden desk, though with the Breezies' propensity to float without actually expending any effort it made sense that places to sit wouldn't exactly be necessary. The walls were far from undecorated, though, covered with pages upon pages of black ink sketches, unframed and slapped up rather haphazardly.

"Did you draw all of this?" Celestia asked, examining a particularly detailed drawing of an orchid.

"It's just how I pass the time," Willow said, moving to rummage through a desk drawer. "They're nothing special, really. My real job is tending to the flowers, like most of us here. Anything else I do is just superfluous."

"There's nothing superfluous about art, dear," Celestia said. "An active and creative mind is a healthy one, and I'm sure that your friends would love to see that creativity themselves." A lesson I never really learned, I suppose.

"T-thanks..." Willow said, blushing as she buried her her head even deeper in another drawer. "Ah, here we go!" With a familiar rustling sound, Willow emerged from the desk with a piece of parchment in her muzzle, which Celestia took with her magic and examined. At this size, the soft blue glow of the mushroom-house's natural lights shone through the stationary like it was barely even there. It would serve their purposes just fine, though. "Here's a pen you can use." Willow presented Celestia what appeared to be a small dried reed between her forelegs. "It should be filled with ink and ready to go."

"Thank you, this should only take a minute." Celestia began composing her letter, the reed-pen working surprisingly well. It was functionally similar to a modern fountain pen, hollowed out and filled with ink that flowed through the sharpened tip. Celestia herself had always preferred the classic quill and inkwell method, though not for any real practical reasons. Old habits died hard, especially when practiced for centuries ad nauseam. After a minute or two of writing, Celestia finished her letter to Luna detailing the situation. Even if it would take her half a day to get here herself, she could at least respond with some tips on what to do in the meantime. "Now all that's left is to send it." The messenger spell quickly took effect, and the parchment dissolved into mystical smoke, which would soon disappear into the aether. Only it didn't. The smoke hung in the air for an uncomfortably long time before poofing back into existence not having gone anywhere.

"Oh, that was quick!" Willow said, not noticing the shock on Celestia's face. "What did she say?"

"She didn't say anything," Celestia said, picking the letter back up off the floor. "My letter... never went anywhere." She tried to send the letter again, achieving the same results. "That's impossible, unless..."

"Unless what?" Willow asked.

"Willow, where is this village, exactly?"

"That's... a difficult question. We Breezies have been trapped here in this valley for all of our recorded history. It's physically impossible for us to climb the mountains, the wind up there can tear our wings off or dash us against the rocks before we even make it past the base. We created the portal out of desperation centuries ago, not knowing where it would go. We just needed some way to bring new pollen to our dying flowers. Why? Can't that spell send a message anywhere, no matter how far away?" Willow placed her front hooves on her forehead and groaned. "Ugh, I don't think that memory was mine. This is just weird..."

"The spell does have unlimited range, yes," Celestia explained. "But it can't send a message to somepony who doesn't even exist, at least not in this world."

"This world?" Willow tilted her head in confusion. "Do you mean..."

"It's the only explanation I can offer. The portal your people created appears to bridge not only space, but the barrier between worlds as well. It's not an impossible magic, my mentor Star Swirl the Bearded was quite adept at it, in fact. But I am not, unfortunately, and this... complicates things. I can't send this message to Luna unless the portal to the village is reopened. Do you know how?"

"Yes... and no," Willow said, staring at the floor. "I was part of the ritual to open the portal so I could find you, but it took five of us to accomplish, and I was only there to assist. I don't know how to actually cast the spell myself."

"Then it looks like we have but one course of action. We need to find the rest of the Breezies and get their help." Assuming there are any left to help... Celestia tried to dismiss the thought. This was no time for pessimism. At this point, The Sun had completely set on the village, draping it in shadows cast by mushroom light, but Willow knew her way around well enough to lead Celestia to where they needed to go regardless. There was no time to lose, before hope faded once and for all. Sleep would have to wait.

---

Seabreeze watched as the last light of day faded from a nearby window, knowing that he wasn't going to sleep that night. And probably not any night soon after, either. Even under the most generous of circumstances, the portal to the outside world would have shut sometime earlier that evening. If Willow Wisp wasn't back by now, then she wasn't coming back ever.

Maybe it's better that way, he thought. At least one of us made it out, then. Part of Seabreeze knew that it should have been him that left. He actually spoke Ponish, after all, and was far more familiar with Equestria at large, but the very idea of doing so had sparked a deep, paralyzing guilt within him that refused to let him act. They need me here. No, I need them... I couldn't just leave them, not when they're like this... A loud banging noise followed by some shuffling and scraping startled Seabreeze from his introspection, and he sighed. "Moving around now, are ya? Must be feeding time." He moved to gather a large tray overfilled with nectar cups from the makeshift kitchen before heading towards the building's basement door. As more and more Breezies had slipped into the dream, those remaining decided that a quarantine was in order, hoping that it would halt or at least slow the spread of the sickness. The old storehouse built half way up a cliff face, empty this time of year, was the ideal location, but ultimately proved to be better for protecting the victims than those outside. The infection was more than capable of hopping from mind to mind regardless of what physical barriers were in place, but at least if they were confined, they couldn't hurt themselves... or anybreezie else.

Seabreeze's antennae glowed softly as he unlocked the door, the internal plant-entwined mechanisms responding to his magic. After opening the door and and traversing a short ramp, he came to the main holding room. It was wide and dark, lit only by a few oil lamps lining the walls. Not that the inhabitants really needed the light, they tended to provide enough of it themselves. As soon as Seabreeze crossed the room's threshold, all activity stopped, and dozens of pairs of glowing orange eyes fixated upon him. It was more than enough to send chills down him spine a hundred times over, but he was getting used to it. Somewhat.

"Alright, sleepy heads, I brought ya some refreshments." Seabreeze placed the tray on a nearby cot, one of many lining the room, though nobreezie seemed to use them. In an eerily orderly fashion, the infected Breezies lined up to take their meals before returning to the back of the room. Seabreeze turned away as two particular Breezies, a woman and a child, passed by the tray, paying him no mind. They were the reason he couldn't leave. And they were the reason he couldn't stay. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you," he whispered as he floated back towards the door, only to bump into one last Breezie who hadn't gotten in line. Twirly.

"Sea...breeze," Twirly said, or rather, something said through Twirly. Seabreeze knew it wasn't really her.

"What do ya want? I already changed your bandage two hours ago!" Twirly had been one of the first to fully succumb, but she hadn't gone quietly, managing to injure herself in a rather disturbing fit of madness. She'd been patched up just fine afterwards, just needing the bandage on her leg tended to a few times a day as she was in no condition to do so herself. This, however, was what had alerted Seabreeze to an additional distressing effect of the infection. The wound was unnaturally slow to heal, and eventually started bleeding... orange. The sickness was changing her, changing all of them, in ways Seabreeze couldn't comprehend, and frankly didn't want to.

"You are... alone?"

"All thanks to you, dearie," Seabreeze said. Actually conversing with this... thing was disconcerting at best. He'd heard a few stray words spoken by the afflicted here and there, but they were in a language he didn't recognize, and certainly weren't directed at him. Every attempt to talk back had been met with silent stares. Still, he put on his bravest and calmest face. No point in showing fear if he didn't have to. "Now, if you'll excuse me..." He tried to move around Twirly, but she simply matched his movements, blocking the door.

"Being alone is... unnecessary," Twirly said. Her unblinking stare seemed primed to pierce Seabreeze's soul. "The Radiance welcomes all."

"Oh, so now you're asking nicely? What, don't want to steal my soul outright like all the others?"

"You reject her in your dreams."

"Well, perhaps there's a reason for that," Seabreeze said. He was never one to remember his dreams, or even if he had them at all. He supposed he'd have to take the thing's word for it.

"No child deserves to stay... lost... in the dark," it droned on, seemingly struggling to find the words at times.

"And what do you know of children!" Seabreeze snapped, all fear replaced by by a burning, righteous fury. "Because I know children. And I know one little boy trapped in your damned mind prison exceedingly well! You stole them all away from this world, away from me! What choice did you give them? Did they even understand that one was being made?" The "Radiance" had no answer, and simply puppeteered Twirly to drift aside, allowing Seabreeze to pass.

"Kin-light approaches," she said as Seabreeze was halfway up the ramp. "Assist her at your own... peril. Not even the Radiance has... mercy for children who would betray her. Not anymore." Seabreeze said nothing, slamming and locking the door behind him. Once out of sight, though, his rage faded into abject despair and he sunk to the floor, landing completely drained in a misty eyed heap. Not even the ominous warning the Radiance had given him really mattered at this point. At least, not until he heard a knock at the front door...

---

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Celestia asked as she and Willow Wisp hung in the air in front of the elevated door, her first knock having gone unanswered.

"Yeah. This is where we had started quarantining the sick before I left," Willow Wisp answered. "The idea was that there would always be Breezie on guard at all times, to care for the victims and keep them safe."

Celestia rattled the door a bit with her magic. "Well, it's certainly still locked up tight. Stand back, I may need to rip the door off of its hinges." Before she could concentrate the power to do so, though, the door's latch clicked and it creaked open, revealing a very haggard and bleary-eyed blue Breezie with a fluffy pink mane and tail.

"Seabreeze!" Willow shouted, lunging forward and embracing the startled Breezie before he could say anything. "You're okay!"

"W-Willow?" Seabreeze stammered, returning the embrace after the shock wore off. "You came back? But I thought..."

"It was tight, but I managed to find help! Look!" Willow gestured to Celestia, who smiled warmly.

"Who are..." Seabreeze began, trailing off into a wide-eyed, slack-jawed stare as he recognized exactly who he was looking at. "P-princess-"

"Former Princess Celestia, at your service." The alicorn bowed. "May we continue this inside? I'm afraid I'm not built for hovering like the two of you."

"Of course!" Seabreeze moved aside and waved them in, shutting the door behind them as they entered. Once they were inside, he pulled Willow aside. "Uh, Willow?"

"Yeah?"

"How are you speaking Ponish?" Seabreeze asked at a near whisper in their native tongue. "And so cleanly, too?"

"It's... a long story," Willow said, obviously embarrassed that she'd defaulted to Ponish without thinking. "I-"

"I'm sorry," Celestia interrupted, "I'm sure the two of you would like to catch up, but we don't exactly have time on our sides at the moment."

"Aye." Seabreeze nodded. "I'm afraid things have been falling apart here at a rather rapid rate."

"Seabreeze, we need to open the portal again," Willow said. "Celestia's sister is an expert on dream magic, but we can't get a message to her with it closed."

"I... have some bad news, then. I'm..." Seabreeze sighed, glancing at Willow, then over at the door at the far end of the room. "We're the last ones left."

"But Celestia-"

"Even if Celestia was able to make up for the missing three we'd need for the ritual, Elder Glitzy was the one who actually knew how to run the whole thing, and she's... long gone."

"Then... then..." Willow struggled to speak, what was left of her optimism straining under the weight of the situation. But even then, it wouldn't break. "Then we fight!" she shouted, turning to Celestia. "You saved me from the dream, so you can save the others!"

"I'm not sure I did," Celestia said solemnly. "And I'm not sure I can."

"What? But you-"

"It let us go, Willow. I'm sure it could have put up a fight in our encounter, but it didn't. It... respected me, and asked me to do the same."

"So you're just giving up?"

"Of course not! I just... need to think." Celestia was lost. She wouldn't give up when others were in need, that much was certain, but she had nothing of what had brought her to this point in her life. No family, no students, no friends of those students, and no plan. The plans were always her ace in the hole. Even when something unexpected surfaced, and it often did, those contingencies, those other ponies she had prepared and groomed and nurtured over the years were always able to come through, even when she inevitably fell. But none of them were here. "I'm sorry..." she whispered.

"Kin-light!" Seabreeze exclaimed, breaking the silence his face lighting up with realization.

"What?" Willow asked, confused by the seeming non-sequitur.

"It's something the Radiance said. 'Kin-light is approaching.' Along with a dumb warning not to help them that I wasn't going to listen to anyway." Seabreeze turned to look at Celestia. "I think she meant you!"

"Whoa, back up," Willow said. "Who's 'the Radiance?'"

"That's what she calls herself."

"That thing talks to you?"

"For a given definition of 'talking,' yeah. But that's beside the point!" Seabreeze shook his head and waved a hoof, trying to get back on track. "She means 'kin' as in family, right? And you're certainly both associated with 'light.' So are you two related?"

"I don't think so," Celestia said, pondering the question. "At least not in the conventional sense. She did call me a 'higher being,' though."

"Am I the only one here who doesn't get to talk to the dream monster?" Willow asked, getting rather exasperated.

"Shh!" Seabreeze raised a hoof to Willow's mouth, pointing back at Celestia with another.

"Whatever a higher being is to her, she apparently holds us in higher regard than than you and the other Breezies, but not... out of malice."

"We're not her 'children,' though!" Seabreeze shouted. Obviously the topic was a sore spot. "You don't get to just go around adopting entire peoples because you miss whatever you had before!"

"Before?" Willow asked. "What do you mean?"

"It's another thing she said offhoof. She implied that she'd been betrayed by her children in the past. Whoever they were. Not like it really matters."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Celestia said. "It means this Radiance is motivated by more than just power. She's been hurt, clearly."

"So we go for Pony Plan A, then," Willow said. "Just... talk it out?"

"No, I doubt it will be that simple. In my experience, the most powerful beings need a bit of... softening up before they can be reasoned with, and some never come around at all, no matter how real their pain is."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Seabreeze asked. "If Miss Radiance here regards you with that much respect and doesn't want me to help you, obviously you pose a threat that she doesn't want any direct conflict with. If our only options are sitting here and waiting for the end of the world or fighting back, then we we fight, right?" Both Seabreeze and Willow turned to look as Celestia, eager for her response.

Perhaps I'm not as alone here as I thought. Celestia smiled. Even cut off from the crutches of my past, hope still springs eternal. "Yes," she said, her confidence restored. "We fight."