Chapter 1 – From Across Dreams, She Arrived
Everyone dreams, even if those dreams can barely be recalled after the fact. Formed from the waking mind of a sleeping individual, dreams usually called upon the wants and desires of the one sleeping. It could be as simple as desiring a video game that formed the base of a dream, or something as huge as the love of one's life. Sometimes even the dreamer itself was affected by the dreams they had, given forms they desired in their soul whether it be human or otherwise. Of course, it would all lead to disappointment upon waking up, the dreamer cursing its mind for making it feel like its dreams had come true.
For Yolina Yvanova, however, dreams were far more than that. Sleeping was just another form of being awake to her, which made her exceedingly confused at why her form was currently rather inhuman. Even back when her dreams were like that of the average human she never desired to be an animal. Nothing could change that, and she knew that she didn’t have the power to will herself into the body of anything else. That meant what she was viewing was herself, and she looked as incorrect as could be.
When she raised or lowered her arm, a badly beaten and cut white hoof responded. It was clearly her, but it definitely shouldn’t have been her. Same could be said of the mane and tail that she had, or the three other hooves and legs that took the place of her limbs. Add on leathery wings like that of a bat and a muzzle protruding out in front of her, and Yolina could tell she currently wasn’t human. Her reward for journeying out into the expanse of the realm of dreams, past the dreams and nightmares of mankind and into someplace else.
She remembered that she hadn’t been happily welcomed, a nightmare getting the drop on her the moment she reached wherever she was. A lot of the beating she suffered was gone from her memory, but the fact she had plummeted out of the dream realm was clear. There she had been saved by something with a heavy American accent, but she was certain it wasn’t actually an American. That left her with questions of how she had ended up like this, what had saved her, and why her head hurt horribly.
Actually, she knew the answer to the last one was a concussion. It wasn’t her first, wouldn’t be the last, and was just happy to still be a functioning being still. Granted she wasn’t sure if being a winged horse made that description right or wrong at that specific moment.
“Okay. I am actually dreaming, meaning my real body is asleep,” She muttered to herself. The words felt strange, like she both was and wasn’t speaking Ukrainian at the same time. “So I can’t possibly harm my brain anymore by figuring out how to walk… I think.” She looked up, scowling. “Wait, shouldn’t I be awake right now, given the concussion?”
She considered forcibly waking herself up, but stopped in favor of first seeing how well she could control her current body. Getting onto her hooves was easy, and picking up a hoof and wiggling it showed she seemed to have basic control down. She took a couple steps, which she found the most nerve wracking of the tasks, but found it as simple as breathing. She sighed, sat back down, and looked at the empty expanse around her.
“Certainly not as overcrowded as Earth’s area of the realm of dreams,” She said. “This blank space must mean the population numbers are rather low. Either that or I just so happen to be in an area of the realm of dreams surprisingly vacant.” She tapped the underside of her jaw with a hoof. “Maybe I should be freaking out about everything more? I mean, I’m kind of stranded far from home now.”
“We are also surprised you are doing as well as you are, given the circumstances.”
Yolina looked behind her, muzzle opening to speak and immediately shutting at what she saw. Before her was a horse far larger than herself, mixing the elements of both a unicorn and a pegasus together. A dark blue coat, a flowing mane that seemed to hold the cosmos inside it, and a stance that screamed regality made up the creature. The eyes showed human levels of intelligence or higher, but they were also gentle. A compassion that felt like a mother looking at a newborn child could be seen in their eyes, calming any nerves Yolina had.
“If thou would permit us to give a theory, I believe it has to do with your nature,” Princess Luna stated, making her way to the former-human’s side. “You are also a protector of the realm of dream and reality, are you not? You deal with the odd and nonsensical just as often as I. I imagine this is nothing you haven’t witnessed before.”
Yolina blinked, and then nodded at the princess. She turned her attention back to the great expanse before her, still empty. A friend of hers came to mind, who had the same job as herself. They had grown a draconic tail, wings, and horns when they had become a Magral Knight, humanity’s unknown defenders from the darker sides of the realm of dreams. She was more than familiar with how the appearance of some altered under the effects of dream energy.
No wonder being a pony felt so natural.
“So you're responsible for the realm of dreams here?” Yolina asked. Luna nodded stiffly. “Might I ask where I have ended up?”
“Equestria, on the planet of Equus,” Luna explained, joining the former-human in staring at the empty beyond. “You are currently in a hospital being cared for. Considering how bad you look right now, I can take a guess as to why.”
“I put everything on red, and got black,” Yolina said, looking down at herself. The sight of blood was so normal that it didn’t affect her anymore, but it still stained her white coat horribly. “I sought to see if there was more beyond my world, so I journeyed where none had gone before. It seems the universe did not take kindly to my success.”
“No, it certainly did not,” Luna said, snorting in amusement. Yolina did the same moments later, able to find the humor in her suffering. “At least you are alive. That counts for a lot. I take it you come from Earth?”
Yolina’s brow raised as she turned back to Luna. “Wait, you know of my home?”
“Yes, though it has been many years since someone has attempted what you have, Magral Knight,” Luna said, her words causing the Ukrainian’s brow to rise even higher. “That was over a thousand years ago for us in Equestria, before it had been called that. They were a kind young lad from a place called… Portugal, I think? They sadly weren’t as fortunate as you.” Luna placed a hoof where her heart was, a sad smile on her face. “My sister and I found him dying, and in his last moments he gave me the power you see now. As far as you are concerned, I might as well be a Magral Knight.”
“I see,” Yolina said. She glanced to her left, and then focused on Luna once again. “I’m Yolina Yvanova. I’m from a place on Earth called Ukraine.”
“Princess Luna, younger sister of Princess Celestia and diarch of the Kingdom of Equestria,” Luna said, holding a hoof out to the Ukrainian. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Yvanova.”
“A princess?” Yolina asked. Her answer was a nod. “Well, we knights do come from all walks of life. This is the first I’ve ever heard of royalty being one, but it isn’t impossible.” She smiled. “If they do exist on Earth, they do a damn good job hiding themselves.”
Luna closed her eyes. “I see, your kind still works in the shadows. That much, our world differs on.”
Yolina looked at Luna with horror, mouth attempting to work but utterly failing. Since the medieval days, the Magral Knights had worked out of the eyes of society due to being continuously referred to as witches, warlocks, and the like. Even in current day, the fear of governments or corporations forcing them into line had led them to stay in the shadows. For the mare next to her to be working in the public eye…
“I hope you know what you are doing, Princess.”
“I can assure, Lady Yvanova, that I’m more than capable. It's just that my sister and I were never ones for secrets.” Luna contemplated her choice of words, and then shook her head. “Actually, I'll take that back. Sometimes it feels like Celestia sees the world as a chessboard.”
Yolina shifted through various different expressions before looking back over the nothingness of the dream realms. “She’s more of a politician compared to yourself?”
“Aye. I love her, but watching her interact with nobles and foreign dignitaries can be… exhausting.” The princess sighed, leaning her head backwards. “Apologies, I got sidetracked, and the sun is about to rise. We have some things to discuss when next we meet, but perhaps letting the doctors know you are alive is more important at this given moment.”
Yolina returned to her bandages form, and gave a nod. She had some people – or ponies, most likely – to thank for saving her. Not to mention she had to make sure everything was still on her person in the real world; the existence of a ruling monarchy led her to believe the world’s technology might not be as sophisticated as her own. If they found her phone, there would be questions and perhaps uncomfortable complications to returning home.
Could she contact her friends from another dimension? It was time to find out.
“Yes, it is time to wake up,” she replied, stretching her wings. “Thanks for keeping me company for a time, Princess Luna. See you later.”
Luna watched as Yolina’s form vanished into dust, which then flung itself high into the sky. Luna wasn’t sure whether to be happy or concerned about seeing one of her own again. Turning around, she decided it was time for her to awaken as well. The consequences of Yolina’s arrival could be left till later…
… as long as nothing dangerous descended from the hole the thestral had left in the sky.
The first thing to greet Yolina upon waking up was quiet. Nice, peaceful silence brought by a decently well soundproofed hospital room. For a time, the newly-made thestral enjoyed that quiet for all it was worth. She knew that when the doctor or nurse arrived, that quiet would be sadly – if understandably – interrupted.
Opening her eyes led her to wonder if she would be greeted by something otherworldly or more like Earth. It was the latter, making her frown. She had not crossed between worlds to be greeted by more of the same, damn it! She wanted to see things only possible in fantasy novels! She wanted magic, mythical creatures, and the ability to look her American friends in the eye with the smuggest expression and announce that Gandalf was real!
Instead she was a tiny white horse in a hospital bed straight out of Gray’s Anatomy. She was certain there was some form of irony in her situation, but had no idea what kind it was. At the very least she had confirmed she was indeed a tiny white horse now.
A tiny white horse with bat wings who would likely be cared for by a tiny horse nurse. The strangeness of her situation was finally starting to set in. She brought one hoof out from the blanket covering her form, staring at it as if it could give her some answer. The only thing it did was reaffirm her being a tiny horse.
She didn’t need to be reminded of that anymore, so she instead focused on what she had on her. No doubt most of her belongings had been left at where she had landed and would need to ask them to be brought to her. What she mainly wanted to know was if it was still in her hair. Wincing as she raised both hooves up, feeling every little ache and pain her battle had left her in, she searched her pale white mane.
Then she felt something metallic hit her hoof, and let out a relieved sigh.
“They didn’t remove it, thank goodness,” she said as she carefully removed it, placing it in what she assumed was the “palm” of her hoof. “One less thing I have to find later.”
The object in question was a small pin Yolina had fashioned into a hairpin. It resembled a blue and black kite shield, a single dot of white in its center. A small but noticeable amount of magical energy could be felt exuding from it that no normal human would feel. She doubted things would be different for ponies.
Her eyes flicked between her mess of a mane, and then the pin. Her expression turned goofy as she realized that there was absolutely no way for her to put the knights pin back in her mane. Then, with a shrug, she looked at the end table next to her bed and placed it there.
“Shouldn’t be going after nightmares and dreams anyways while in this shape,” She whispered to herself before sinking a bit further into the hospital bed. “Besides, I think I deserve a bit of rest and relaxation.”
It was at that moment the door decided to open. Yolina looked at the pony who entered, a middle aged mare with a white coat and pink mane, as they smiled at her. There was a clear release of tension the moment the nurse saw she was awake.
“I’m glad to see you’re awake,” they said in a motherly manner. Unlike Luna, however, this mare’s voice was not only higher but more gentle. “When Miss Applejack brought you in yesterday we weren’t sure if you would wake up.”
Yolina laughed nervously, looking at the bed sheet covering her and then back to the mare. “I’m… not that surprised. Last thing I remembered was getting thrown from extremely high up.”
“Well I think we can both say it isn’t a good idea to end up in that situation again,” the mare replied, trotting up to her. “I’m Nurse Redheart.”
“Yolina Yvanova,” the thestral greeted, raising a bandaged hoof to the nurse.
Redheart shook it lightly, and then eased it back down onto the bed. “Yolina, that is such a wonderful and exotic name.”
“Thanks. If you don’t mind, can I ask what the damage is?”
“Only if you feel comfortable enough to hear it.” Yolina gave Redheart a nod. After a steadying breath, the nurse started her explanation. “I’m sure the bandages were indication enough, but you were hurt very badly. Several large cuts along the legs, stomach, and chest, with bruising in very similar places. You also got a cracked rib, and your left hind leg has a broken tibia. It’s… actually remarkably more wasn’t broken.”
“Some I’m lucky?”
“I feel lucky might not be the best description. You were still out for three whole days, after all.”
“Three whole… my friends they- argh!”
Yolina tried to sit back up in fear, but the speed caused her to wince in pain. Redheart slowly lowered her back down. The thestral’s wings shifted under the sheets, causing them to lift up a little in nervousness and discomfort.
“You are not ready to be moving around, Miss Yvanova,” Redheart explained calmly, her outer expression contrasting against the worry she held deep down for the mare before her. “Just lay down and let your body recover.”
“Right, right… fuck,” Yolina replied, mumbling the last word in Ukrainian in hopes the pony before her wouldn’t understand it. The fact she had to force her muzzle to speak in her native tongue was odd. “I… I have friends I need to get in contact with. If I’ve been out for three days they might try and find me.”
“You want me to write a letter for you?” Redheart asked.
Yolina shook her head. “That won’t work. When I was brought here, was there a little rectangle of plastic and metal? That’s a communication device we use where I’m from. Could get a hold of them instantly.”
“No. You had nothing on you when Miss Applejack brought you here,” the nurse replied. “Though, considering it was her house you crash landed in, perhaps she would know. Poor mare has been waiting for word that you’re awake since she brought you here. I could send her a letter telling her you’re awake and ready to receive guests. That way you could ask her yourself.”
Yolina gave a nod. What proceeded was a change of bandages, some questions, and otherwise before Nurse Redheart temporarily bade her farewell and left. The thestral let out a groan as soon as they were gone, not at anything the nurse had done but because of what she knew would happen if she didn’t get her phone soon.
She loved her friends like anyone else did, but knowing them as well as she did, on day two without any contact they had headed into the realm of dreams in pursuit of her. That meant they would either follow her here, get beat up by whatever attacked her, and end up in the same exact position she was in, or somehow find themselves in someplace far more dangerous. Given the leader of their little group of knights, it was entirely possible for it to be both.
“I swear to god Melli, you do something beyond dumb and I’ll find a way to kick your ass from another star system. Even if I break my other tibia, it’ll be worth it.”
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Well this looks to be a very good AU story just after reading the summary for it, I'm looking forward to getting started on it.
Pretty interesting
Love this story so far
Always excited when people announce published stories so hit me up when its out and ill get a copy.
Also yeah fimfiction is the best since its such a magical world with such diversity really theres so many masterpieces on this website that fit in with my love of more magical planes.