Light and Darkness

by MidnightConcerto

Dive To The Heart

Chapter 2: Dive To The Heart

From the Journal of Starswirl the Bearded

It has been nearly a month now since my brother and I began to study the elusive creatures we discovered, these… Heartless, as we’ve come to call them. We have talked at length about catching one and holding it in containment, as attempting to learn more about them from a distance has proven quite challenging. Even so, at his insistance, I begrudgingly agreed that until we were sure it could be done without risk to ourselves, distance should be maintained.

Finding them was our first hurdle to overcome. Most animals follow rather rigid structures to their daily cycles, common paths they tread, and once one understands those habits and cycles they can easily track and predict movement. These Heartless don’t seem to follow such patterns, thus complicating our search. All attempts to track them back to a central location, whether on hoof or by magic, have all failed in the past weeks. While they do travel for some distance, it appears as if they simply vanish into the air! There are times we go for several days without being able to find any of them, which is frustrating. Despite the limitations of our studies, we continue to learn more about them every day.

We have never observed them to eat or drink, sleep, hunt, procreate, or anything one would expect of a living being. The connotations of this could be groundbreaking research, but without finding their abode it’s impossible to be certain they never engage in any of those activities. My brother, ever the clever spellsmith, has been concocting a spell to track them even once they vanish. While he is busy, the observations and study have fallen to me alone for the time being.

There is much we still don’t know, but I am certain procuring a living specimen would advance our studies by leaps and bounds. We did agree to hold off capture until we could be certain of our safety, but surely just a single creature would not pose a danger to accomplished magicians like ourselves. He’ll be quite distracted for a while, and I do believe I have the perfect container already on hoof…

---

The trip aboard the vessel lasted for several minutes, all of which were spent in silence. With the adrenaline of their escape from Canterlot slowly ebbing away, the exhaustion of the day and her injuries came crashing back into Octavia, causing her to weakly lean into the chair behind her. Clutching the weapon to her body tightly, she fought to keep her eyes open; she had too many questions, too many worries, to let something like sleep take her just yet. She thought it better to wait until they had arrived at their destination, since she had no idea if distracting their pilot would cause a problem. Left alone with her thoughts, she simply curled deeper into the seat and waited. She glanced over at Lyra a few times, but the mare seemed to be lost in her own mind, and so Octavia chose not to bother her.

A soft whoosh passed over the craft, and Octavia noted that the tunnel of light they had been flying through was now gone. She raised her head slightly to peer out the front of the dome.

“Is… that a tree made out of crystal?” She inquired.

“Technically it’s a castle that looks like a tree and is made outta crystal, but you’re basically right.” Vinyl answered, maneuvering the vehicle around the large structure.

“Kind of reminds me of the pictures of Celestia’s Castle from the old archives in Canterlot.” Lyra joined in.

“Y’ aren’t too far off” Vinyl responded, aiming them upward. “Alicorn castles all tend to have the same sorta feel to ‘em, even if th' specifics are different. At least, that’s what I hear, I haven’t been to any others yet.” They circled the castle one more time before one of the walls of the upper structure slid downward, revealing a large empty room. Vinyl piloted them carefully inside, the ship slowly lowering to the ground and touching down with a shudder along its frame. The sound of the engines began to fade, slowly replacing the constant hum with a discomforting silence. Standing up and stretching briefly, the unicorn turned around, pausing and raising an eyebrow at the cellist. “You uh, gonna put that thing away?”

Octavia looked down, gesturing to the weapon. “This? You, uhm… would you be so kind as to explain how? It just appeared earlier today, so I don’t actually know anything about it.”

Vinyl stared for a moment, head tilted slightly, before she nodded. “M’kay, pretty simple actually, though it’s hard to put into words. You just gotta sorta… will it away.”

Silence. “Perhaps you could explain further? What do you mean by ‘will’”?

“Well, me I sorta focus and mentally whisper ‘go to sleep, I’ll wake ya when I need ya.’, and it just poofs away. But I know other wielders have their own personal thing they do, so that might not be it exactly.” Vinyl rubbed the back of her neck. “Sorry, never was really much of a teacher.”

Staring down at the thing, Octavia mulled over the explanation. Something personal, to let it rest. Her gaze tracing the design once more gave her an idea, and she closed her eyes. Taking a slow, deep breath, she imagined herself placing the weapon into her cello case as if it were the bow its appearance mimicked. A soft shnnn reached her ears, and her hoof was suddenly lighter. Opening her eyes, she saw the weapon was now gone.

“There ya go.” Vinyl said approvingly. “Getting it back out ‘s pretty simple too, but ya won’t need it in here; the Castle of Friendship is completely safe.”

Octavia stood on all fours carefully, still slightly woozy from her earlier injuries. “I assume there’s a way to learn these sorts of things? It didn’t exactly come with a manual.”

“There’s a couple other wielders around, we can find someone t’ train ya.” Vinyl’s magic pulsed, releasing the ramp down to the ground. “Shouldn’t be a big deal for someone t’ get a plus-one.”

“And you can’t do that because you’re…” The cellist’s voice trailed off, clearly wanting an answer.

“Busy.” Came the flat reply before she headed down the ramp. “C’mon, let’s get you two inside.”

Lyra slid next to her friend, nudging her gently. “Winning personality on that one, huh?” She quipped.

The earth pony gave a small shrug. “It has been a long day, perhaps she lightens up after some rest.” The pair followed down the ramp after the other unicorn and into the docking area, stopping abruptly when they saw her talking to another pony. “Well, that’s… unexpected.”

The pony in question was a small white unicorn, a filly young enough to not even have a cutiemark yet by the look of it. She had pale green eyes, a very curly purple and pink mane, and seemed to bounce every time she opened her muzzle to talk. The pair simply stared on, watching the conversation between the two unfold. The filly looked over and gave an enthusiastic wave, before saying something else to Vinyl. The older unicorn nodded, and the shorter one scampered off to parts unknown. As Vinyl approached them, Lyra spoke up.

“Is that your sister?” She asked. “Sure looks like a bundle of energy.”

“Nah, she’s the sister of one of the Element Bearers.” Vinyl explained. “She and a few of her friends work on the gummiships here at the castle. Bit ‘f a hoofull, but they’re nice to have around. Friendly too!”

“She and… her friends… you mean you allow a bunch of young fillies to work on these, these gummiships!?” Octavia asked incredulously. “It is a giant, flying, fiery contraption, and they’re just children!”

“Yeah I was skeptical at first, but they really have a knack for it!” Vinyl replied enthusiastically, seeming to completely miss the incredulous stare aimed at her. “Actually kinda surprised they haven’t gotten their cutiemarks yet in gummi design, cuz they are fire.” Nodding her head towards a staircase, she began to lead them towards a door at the end of the hangar. “Also keeps ‘em safe inside the castle, and relatively out of trouble too, so it’s a win for everypony.”

Passing through a set of large, opaque crystal doors, Octavia realized that they were now in the castle proper. The entire place appeared to be made out of various shades and hues of crystal, the quartz-colored floor seeming to almost shine beneath the magical torches that lined the hallway. Splashes of purple and pink along the walls flowed into shapes and murals, always drawing her gaze a little further along. Down the center of the floor ran a rather plush light maroon carpet, graceful swirls and arches of peach giving it a life all its own.

“This is really pretty.” Lyra commented, turning slowly as she took everything in. “I didn’t realize everything in the castles would be made of crystal like this! How was it built?”

“Apparently it’s just the Castle of Friendship that’s made outta crystal. The two castles for the Sun and Moon are supposedly made with regular brick and stone, though they have a ton of stained glass and sculptures. At least that’s what Princess Twilight says, no one has been able to access those places in ages.” Turning right, she continued leading them further in. “Alicorns make 'em with their magic as a sort of 'pocket space' away from th' real world, where they can study and live in peace away from most of the immediate dangers of Darkness. I can get Spike t’ show you around the place tomorrow if y' like, but I think a long night’s rest is probably what you’re looking for right now.”

Letting out a long yawn, Lyra nodded. “Yeah, shower too. I’m covered in dirt, mud, and I’m pretty sure those things left a trail of dark all over me and it feels gross.”

“Oh yeah, ‘s not like… a literal trail, but if those things clamber on ya, you can absolutely feel the gross dark energy they leak off. That’ll wear off after a few hours, so y’ should be fine once you sleep it off.” She stopped in front of a door, motioning to Octavia. “This one can be yours, the one next door can go to your friend.”

“We have names you know.” The mint unicorn replied dryly.

Even through the shades, it was clear Vinyl gave a very slow blink as it dawned on her. “Oh, yeah I uh… guess I never asked your names.” She rubbed the back of her neck with a forehoof in embarrassment. “My bad, it was a little hectic back there in Canterlot. I’m Vinyl Scratch, but I just go by Vi.” She offered out her hoof.

Lyra took the hoof and shook it. “Lyra Heartstrings, just call me Lyra.”

The earth pony took her turn to shake hooves as well. “Octavia, Octavia Melody.”

A grin tugged at the corner of Vinyl’s muzzle. “Octavia Octavia Melody huh? So nice they named y’ twice.”

A brief laugh escaped her as she shook her head. “No, just once.”

With a yawn of her own, she brushed a few strands of blue mane behind her ear. “We can talk about it all tomorrow. Each room has a shower, and the beds are already set up; Princess Twilight likes t’ be prepared for sudden visitors. If ya need it, kitchen is straight that way” she points a hoof down back the way they walked “and it’ll be on the right, says ‘kitchen’ on it.” As she turned and began trotting away, she waved a hoof over her shoulder. “I’ll catch y’all in the mornin’, sleep well.”

And with that, they were alone again.

Octavia let out a heavy sigh, leaning against the cool wall beside her. “Well, I must admit I was hoping for a bit more of an explanation than this.”

Her friend put a hoof on her shoulder gently. “Tavi, no offense, you look like crap, and I’m sure I do too. We’re covered in dirt and mud, we are both beyond exhausted, and you’ve still got dried blood on your forehead.” She looked around, taking in their surroundings again. “This is a safe place, I can feel it. I think we can wait one night before we start interrogating her. Agreed?”

With a weary smile, she nodded and the two embraced. “Agreed. Have a good night, dear.” Slipping into the room, she shut the door behind her before letting out a long, heavy sigh and slowly sliding down onto the soft floor. Lyra was right of course, the mare felt more exhausted now than after any marathon practice session she had committed. And with the distractions gone, the dull throb of her head was returning in force causing her to grimace through the pain. Heaving herself up, she carefully stumbled her way across the room to another door, assuming it would lead to the shower.

Sure enough, stepping through led her into the bathroom, the crystal tiles of the floor somehow much warmer than the air around her. Like the hallway, this room was a splash of various purples and pinks across the walls, though these didn’t seem to make or follow any sort of pattern. Stepping across the floor and into the shower itself, she grasped the water knob and twisted, allowing the water to came gushing out of the showerhead above. She fiddled for a moment to find her perfect temperature, before stepping beneath its steamy heat.

Normally she was a mare that preferred cold showers, they just felt more rejuvenating and awakening to her no matter the time of day. But after everything that had happened, and with every inch of her body aching painfully, she had opted instead to make the water much hotter. A groan of delight escaped her as the water cascaded down, warming her and promising to wash away the grime and pain of her ordeal. For several long minutes she merely basked under the pouring water, in the moment caring more for the heat and tension-release than for actual cleaning. She idly wondered if it would be rude to simply sleep in the shower itself instead of troubling herself with going over to the bed, before grinning weakly and shaking the thought from her mind. Grabbing a bar of soap she began to thoroughly scrub all over, watching as more dirt and mud came rolling off her form, particularly her legs. Honestly, she was surprised she hadn’t left a trail of hoofprints with how covered she had been. She took the time to make sure every inch of her body was scrubbed clean, before moving on and doing the same to her mane and tail.

Even as she continued, she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was still something stuck to her coat, a feeling somewhere between gross and unease; and no matter how hard she scrubbed, the feeling would not go away. Her mind clicked back to what Vinyl had mentioned earlier, and she slowly let her hooves fall to the ground. Turning her muzzle, she let her gaze wander critically along her form, almost expecting to see wispy tendrils of darkness and shadow seeping off of her. Staring for a good long minute, she finally shook her head and shut off the running water, stepping out and grabbing a towel. If their new friend was right, the feeling would pass by morning, and she could not wait for this sensation to be gone. As she continued to dry her mane off with a towel, she stepped back into the bedroom itself.

The room felt surprisingly spacious despite its size, probably with how little furniture there was inside it: a wardrobe, a small vanity, and a large plush-looking bed. With a frown and a twinge of pain in her heart, she realized she didn’t actually have anything to set in the room anyway. The thought turning her mood sour, she tossed the towel against the wall, weakly trotting to the bed and collapsing on top of it. She squirmed against the surface, thrilled it was even softer than it had looked, hoping that maybe if she could sink deep enough it would steal her away from all her thoughts. All she had now of her old life was a solitary pink bow-tie, and her friend Lyra in the next room over.

Wiggling to get underneath the covers, she curled up tightly hoping to escape the feelings of hopelessness and loneliness, tears gently trailing down her muzzle. With a shaky breath and what little focus she could muster, she managed to make her weapon appear in her hoof once more, clinging it to her body as if it were her only anchor in a raging sea. Even as it gently warmed her heart, her eyes closed and she allowed sleep to steal her from the pain of consciousness.

---

Opening her eyes, Octavia found herself surrounded by nothing but darkness. Her hooves stood on solid ground, but no matter where she turned, where she looked, the only thing visible was her own body.

“Hello?” She called out into the pitch black surroundings. The hairs of her coat stood on end, flashes of the attack crashing and roiling against her train of thought. What if the escape had been a dream? What if those creatures had taken her like they had taken Canterlot? What if she hadn’t managed to protect her friend? As her thoughts continued to simultaneously race and stutter, another voice echoed out across the darkness.

“Do not fear, my little pony.” The voice was gentle, soothing, like a gentle ray of sunlight as it washed over her. “There is much to do, and little time. But like all journeys, it only takes putting one hoof in front of the other. Even just a single step can shed light on your path.”

Looking down at her forelegs, Octavia whispered “A single step…”. Taking a deep breath she lifted her hoof off the ground, and took a shaky step forward. As her hoof touched the invisible floor again, she was strangely met with what felt like the surface of glass. A flash of light caused the mare to shield her eyes, trying to glimpse what was going on.

From around her hoof the darkness was chased away by a bright rainbow-colored light, spreading outward like a ripple on the surface of a pond. Where the darkness was pushed back, the light revealed that she was standing on a platform made entirely of stained glass, shapes and patterns slowly coming into her view. The background of the platform was divided in two distinct semi-translucent shades: one white along the lower-left, the other black along the upper-right, the two appearing to almost swirl around in a circle. As the platform continued to be revealed, other shapes came into view on the swirling masses of black and white. Along the lighter side was a pink butterfly, a blue balloon, and a purple diamond. The other side had a red lightning bolt, an orange apple, and a pink star. Each one had a curved line that led to a circle that sat in the middle of both sides, a golden crown adorning the center.

“It’s beautiful.” She whispered, allowing her eyes to trace along the intricate shapes and multi-colored designs that surrounded the platform. While she didn’t recognize them, something about their designs echoed across her heart, a feeling of familiarity that she couldn’t place with a memory.

“There is a power that sleeps within you, little one. A power that you’ve already begun to explore when you saved your friend, when you refused to let fear claim your heart.”

Without any hesitation, Octavia held out her hoof and closed her eyes in concentration. A moment later, and with a soft shnnn, she felt the familiar weight of the weapon in her hoof. As she opened her eyes, a singular word echoed throughout her mind:

Keyblade.

“Keyblade.” She murmured, rotating the object in her hoof, eyes tracing along the sleek bow-like form. Her ears perked up as a bubbling sound reached her, and as she raised her gaze she saw a singular black creature standing in the center of the platform, slowly waving from side to side. Those yellow eyes pierced her heart, a chilling reminder of what had befallen her home.

“These creatures, the Heartless, are drawn to the Light in the Hearts of ponies across the Equestrian worlds. Keep your Light burning strong, and you will have the power to protect those ponies.” Other than the gentle sway in its stance, the creature made no move towards the mare. Giving the Keyblade a few practice swings in the air in front of her, Octavia advanced on the creature. Once she was only a few steps away, the Heartless crouched and pounced toward her. Reflex kicked in before thought and she swung the weapon, landing a powerful blow that sent the thing flying across the platform. As it landed heavily, tendrils of black wafted off the figure as it dissolved before her eyes, leaving no trace of behind.

“The Heartless will be drawn to you, as long as you wield the Keyblade. They have a great fear of the weapon, as it is the one thing that can destroy them and set the Hearts they’ve captured free.” Several more bubbling sounds echoed out from around from where she stood. Turning her head, she realized she was now surrounded by nearly a dozen of the Heartless creatures. Her heart began to beat faster, her breath turning shallow as fear began to creep along the edges of her mind. How was she supposed to take on this many!?

A memory played across her mind, images of the mare who had rescued her and Lyra. Flashes of Vinyl leaping about, the way she and her Keyblade flowed like water in their movements, as the unicorn struck down one creature after another with ease. She had made it all look so simple, and the creatures had moved so slowly it was like they were weighed down. Speed, not brute strength, had been that unicorn’s way of fighting, perhaps it could be hers too. Even without experience, she would be able to out-maneuver these monsters, and that would be both her advantage and safety net. Narrowing her eyes, Octavia spread her stance slightly, taking a slow breath as she focused on the weight of the Keyblade in her hoof, feeling as connected to it as she did the bow of her old cello.

“All right,” she said, a vindictive smile growing on her muzzle as she stared down those wavering forms. “My turn.”

Ten.

Her hindlegs pivoted slightly, hocks bending, letting her energy coil up inside her. With a loud roar of fury she sprang forward, crossing the gap between her and the first Heartless in the blink of an eye. A downward swing smashed the monster into the ground, its body vaporizing into the air. Pushing off to the right she stumbled slightly, but her weapon still managed to find its next target and annihilate it just as quickly. Now with some safe space available, she spun around to face the rest of her foes.

The ones furthest away seemed to have melted into the ground itself, now nothing more than black puddles that appeared to sit under the glass and raced toward her. Those nearer had simply stepped forward to close the gap, cutting off much of the open space that had surrounded her. As the one to her right jumped towards her, she backpedaled to avoid the hoof that swiped at her muzzle. Once it landed back on the ground in front of her, she destroyed it with two quick slashes. To her left another pounced forward, and Octavia realized her legs weren’t in a position to move out of the way. Remembering Vinyl, she rotated her torso and held the Keyblade sideways against the oncoming attack. The Heartless slammed against it and fell backwards, the amount of force from the impact surprising the mare and nearly causing her to stumble.

Wanting a moment to regain her balance and bearings, she shuffled a few steps closer to the edge of the platform, taking care to still leave a short distance so she wouldn’t accidentally be knocked off. The ones that had sunk into the floor emerged a mere pony’s length away, and Octavia knew she had to act quickly or get overwhelmed. Deciding to use her height advantage, she took a quick gallop and attempted to dive over a pair of them that now stood to her left. One swung a hoof at her, catching her foreleg and sending her tumbling and rolling on the other side.

She jumped back up, panting as she did a quick head count of the remaining monsters: seven left. Her breath was only slightly hampered, and she quietly thanked all the years of rehearsals and cello playing that had built up her endurance. Admittedly, using it in this way had never crossed her mind, but it benefited her all the same. Scanning over the Heartless, she noted their positions and the gaps between them, looking for a best course of action. She idly mused how much easier this would be if she had magic, remembering the spectacle of spells from Vinyl. Seeing one wander just a hair too close on her right, she pivoted and with a backswing obliterated it.

Six.

A heavy blow landed against her flank and she stumbled forward with a yelp of surprise and pain, trying to stay on her hooves. Somehow her floundering gait managed to carry her right under one of the other leaping monsters, avoiding them just by a hair. But now, as she regained her composure, Octavia realized she was surrounded on all sides. She knew she had to act.

Catching one in the edge of her vision winding up to swipe at her, she shoved towards it and drove her shoulder into its face, causing it to stumble and collapse onto the ground. Glancing behind her at one of the others, she shifted slightly to her left and gave a powerful kick with her hindlegs to send it hurtling across the platform, disappearing over the edge and out of view. As they touched back on the ground, she reared up onto them and slammed her forelegs down onto the fallen Heartless beneath her.

Four.

Chest beginning to heave with exertion, the mare’s grin grew as she looked at how few opponents were now left. “You stole everything from me, and I won’t let that happen again so easily.” No longer afraid of being surrounded or outnumbered, she decided to give a quick twirl and flourish of her Keyblade out of confidence. Her heart stopped for an instant as it nearly flew from her grip, and she fumbled to get it back under control. “Okay, too much, good to know.” Deciding not to push her luck any further, she opted to charge forward at the pair standing beside each other. Even as one crouched to leap, her Keyblade found purchase against the side of its muzzle, slamming it into the Heartless beside it. The one that had taken the blow dissipated, while the one that was sent stumbling was now wide open as she gave a powerful upper slash into the chin.

Two.

There was only one creature on either side of her now, and she was ready to finish the fight. She pushed off to her right, and in a series of wild slashes destroyed the Heartless that stood there. Spinning around, and with a loud cry, she charged the final monster.

“THIS IS FOR CANTERLOT!” She roared, spinning around with the Keyblade and slamming it into her final opponent, turning it to dust.

Zero.

She stood still for several moments, her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath, eyes tracing along the stained glass platform to make sure she was in the clear. Slowly circling in place, prowling around, Octavia kept a wary eye out for any other Heartless that she might have missed, or shown up during her fight. As she turned, a small ray of light shone down on the center of the platform, and even from where she stood the radiating warmth reached her fur. The feeling in her heart told her to step forward, so step forward she did, all the way until her hooves reached the light.

As she did, another sheen of rainbow-colored light surrounded her, spreading out from her hooves and changing the stained glass below her. A figure slowly came into view upon the surface, and she gasped.

“I-it’s me.”

The stained glass of the platform transformed into various shades of purple, some of them practically translucent while others were quite opaque. It was formed of several concentric circles near the edges, one of them covered in the outline of the body of her cello. Her figure sat against one side, as if leaning up against the outer edge, Keyblade in hoof and eyes closed in apparent concentration. In front of the muzzle on her design sat several circles arranged like numbers on a clock, each one with a picture of a pony inside. Surprisingly the one at the ‘twelve’ position and sitting directly in front of her held the image of Vinyl, those signature shades still adorning her. Interestingly, despite the mare’s rather dour attitude in the real world, the glass form held a large, goofy grin. The one past Vinyl was clearly her friend Lyra, sparks flaring around her horn, a look of determination on her muzzle. Octavia smiled gently at the image of her friend, a warmth in her heart, before her eyes continued to trace along the arc of the circles. Looking further along the artwork platform to the other two figures occupying circles, she realized she didn’t actually recognize either of them.

The mare furthest away looked incredibly regal, a horn on her head and what looked like wings flaring open behind her. Despite the look of power that she seemed to emanate, her smile was incredibly gentle and welcoming. While she had never seen an alicorn physically, all the descriptions and images lent to the aura of magic the figure seemed to have. On the bottom, sitting opposite of Vinyl’s circle, appeared to be a pegasus mare, her long mane hanging down around one of her shoulders and across her torso. Unlike the other etched figures this mare faced away from the group, a look of dejection on her face. Whoever she was, that mare gave Octavia a very uneasy feeling.

The voice returned, echoing softly.“Always be vigilant, for the closer you get to the Light, the larger your shadow becomes.”

“Well that’s not bloody ominous at all.” Octavia groused, slowly turning around. Standing in the center, her shadow now ran the entire radius of the platform, all the way to the very edge. Ever so slowly her shadow began to pull itself off of the floor, growing larger with each moment. Backing up, Octavia found she couldn’t look away as the black mass grew larger, changed shape. As it continued to expand, she realized it was taking the form of the giant minotaur-shaped Heartless that had beaten her and Lyra. A Darkside, she thought Vinyl had called it? Her hoof felt the edge of the platform, and she realized she was now out of space to move back.

“But don't be afraid…”

The creature stared down at her as it reached its full height, the eyes boring directly into her soul. The memory of the powerful blast of magic shook her to the core, but with nowhere to run and still riding the adrenaline of defeating the smaller Heartless, she stared back with fire in her eyes. She didn’t have magic, but she did have endurance and speed, maybe now that she knew what to expect that would be enough. Vinyl had beaten it back with ease, surly with a bit of determination and stubbornness she could do the same.

Sure, she was probably lying to herself, but she wasn’t about to cave as easily as in Canterlot.

The Darkside drew one of its arms back, a motion Octavia had witnessed earlier when it had battled Vinyl. She wasn’t confident in her ability to block a creature so many times larger than her, but she figured she at least had the speed to dodge away once the thing had committed to the swing. She crouched slightly, tension in every inch of her form, as she waited for the moment. As the Darkside’s torso began to rotate, the arm swinging down towards where she stood, Octavia released the tension and shoved forward as hard as she could. The fist was so close that she felt it brush along the end of her tail, before slamming against the ground where she had stood.

Skidding slightly to a stop between its legs, she spun around to see the creature had been forced to hunch over to reach where she had been standing. Realizing the head was now within reach, she let out a cry of anger and launched several quick slashes against it. The Darkside rumbled as it weathered the blows, dragging its arm along the ground to slam into the mare’s torso.

Knocked back along the platform and with the breath driven from her, Octavia knelt over trying to get the air back into her lungs. The creature was slow to turn around to face her, and she forced herself back onto her hooves. A black ball of magic began to spark and coalesce between its horns, something the earth pony was already quite painfully familiar with. Using the charge up time to close the distance, she stood directly between the legs, hoping that it wouldn’t be able to find an angle the magic could strike her at. With no other option presenting itself, she began to swing her Keyblade as fast as she could against one of the legs, hoping to garner some sort of reaction that might give her an opening.

After a dozen strikes, the Darkside let out a loud rumble, the leg giving way and dropping to a knee with a shuddering thud, its torso leaning over the appendage. Taking several steps backward, Octavia found herself now behind the creature, and without a thought leapt up powerfully to land on the back. Sprinting forward she began to give several vicious strikes to the back of its head, using every bit of might she could. As the head raised back up, she saw the ball of dark energy still between its horns.

“Crap.” She turned to jump.

But wasn’t fast enough to escape the shockwave of dark energy slamming into her side, sending her flying and crashing along the platform roughly. The cellist let out a pained “oomf” as she skidded along ground, her Keyblade bouncing alongside her. She slammed a hoof down to slow herself just before careening off the edge, her hindlegs actually hanging off over the empty space. With a grunt of effort she pulled herself forward and back onto the ledge, chest heaving from the near-miss. With a seethe of pain she reached out and grasped her Keyblade, shakily pulling herself standing up. Cracking her neck to the side, she grinned as she looked up at the creature.

“I could do this all day.” She quipped.

A large, dark pool appeared beneath her hooves, slowly starting to pull her down. She struggled against it, trying to free her legs and force her way forward, but she couldn’t move an inch. The pool continued to pull her down, engulfing her body bit by bit. Staring up at the Darkside, it merely looked back into her eyes, and she felt a chill course into her soul.

“But don’t be afraid…” The voice whispered to her, gently calming her against the dark energy. “The power to help everypony is already within you, and your friends will help guide you.”

The magic finally covered her entire form, and Octavia felt her mind beginning to drift. As she lost track of the world around her, the voice whispered one final time.

“May your heart be your guiding key.”

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Waking with a loud gasp, Octavia’s chest heaved as the haze of sleep slowly drifted away. Her weapon, her Keyblade, was still held tightly in her hoof. With a brief thought it disappeared in a blink of light, and she held both of her forehooves against her face.

“A dream.” She mumbled, slowly getting her breathing under control. “I… I think it was just a dream.” She sat in bed, curling up and hugging herself, rocking gently for quite some time. Eventually, her heart slowed and she felt her breathing return to her control, allowing her to go limp against the mattress. Her eyes wandered across the wall until they fell on a hanging clock, the time reading nearly five in the morning. Knowing she wasn’t going to get anymore sleep after her experience, the cellist rolled out of bed and set her hooves on the floor. Despite being her first time waking up in another world, she didn’t feel as disoriented or confused as she imagined she might have. Was it the exhaustion? Perhaps she was simply overwhelmed by the events of the previous day. Slipping out of her room, she shut the door behind her and set off down the hall.

Hungry, and in need of a very strong cup of tea, Octavia began to wander the hallway down where Vinyl had pointed out the night before, eager to find the kitchen. Still a bit groggy, she kept her pace quite leisurely as she strode down, deciding to take in the decor as she traveled. While there were a small number of tapestries and paintings around, the majority of the walls were actually barren, which surprised the mare. In her storybooks, castles like this were always described as having decorations on practically every wall, and statues lining the length of the hallways. Perhaps such things were further inside the castle? Or perhaps the Princess just didn't see the need for them?

After a few minutes of walking, she saw the door labeled ‘kitchen’ on her right side, and gently pushed it open. The room was a bit smaller than she had imagined it being for a castle this size, but it was still larger than any she had ever been in. Several ovens were set up against one wall, a veritable baker’s dream, with a stovetop sitting on the center one. Near the ovens sat a long table likely used for prep work, pots and pans neatly stacked and stored underneath it for easy access. A pair of large ice chests finished off the equipment in the room, and were set on the far side of the room from the ovens. Practically the rest of the floor and reachable wall space were covered in storage cabinets, though it didn’t seem like any were labeled. Luckily her eyes had caught sight of a kettle sitting on the stove, and so she went and retrieved it. Carrying it over to the sink she began to fill it up with water, her thoughts still turning over what she had just dreamt the night before. If only…

“Oh hey, up early huh?” She jumped slightly at the sudden voice, turning to see Vinyl behind in the doorway. Even with those shades on, she could tell the unicorn was equally as sleep-deprived as herself. “I’ll use th’ sink when you’re done, more of a coffee mare myself so th’ tea…”

“Why the sunglasses?”

Vinyl stared for a moment, mouth frozen mid-syllable. “Uh, sorry?”

Mentally kicking herself for the blunt comment, Octavia shook her head. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be so forward about it.. I was just curious why you were wearing those so early in the morning, and indoors?” The kettle feeling full enough, she took it away and set it up on the stovetop. Vinyl stepped up and, with a quick flare of her horn, started the magic flame beneath to bring it to boil.

“Keyblade wielders are always super bright,” she explained, stepping away to one of the cupboards around the room, “and it really hurts my eyes t’ look at ‘em for too long.” As the unicorn opened it up, Octavia saw it was full of various cups, mugs, glassware, and other assorted drinking vessels. Levitating one out, Vinyl took it over to the sink. “No offense of course.”

The cellist frowned, leaning against the counter as she watched Vinyl fill up the cup multiple times, dumping them into a nearby coffee pot and lighting the magic in it. “I’m sorry, what do you mean by ‘bright’?” A mug was suddenly hanging in front of her muzzle, surrounded in that now-familiar magenta glow, and she took it with a “Thanks”.

“I have this weird thing where I, like, can see the Light ‘n Dark of people and their Hearts.” Vinyl answered, another mug from the cabinet floating to sit waiting for her own caffeinated brew. “Been able t’ do it for as long ‘s I can remember, really. It can be pretty useful, but like I said Keyblade wielders Hearts are so full of Light that it’s too bright and hurts my eyes. Hence, my shades.” She gave them a gentle tap with her hoof.

“I see, I suppose that makes sense.” She wasn’t actually sure it did make sense, but at this point she supposed just about anything was possible. Ears raising as the kettle began to whistle, she turned and pulled it off the magic heat, extinguishing the flame with a tap of her hoof on the front of the stand. “Where might I find the tea in here?”

“Two cabinets over, lower shelf. Princess Twilight keeps a bunch of types, so feel free to take whatever y’ want.” Following the directions, Octavia opened the cabinet door and revealed a shelf completely filled with a near-endless variety of flavors. Tempted as she was to try something new and unheard of to her, she opted to fall back on her regular: a bag of Canterlot Gold. Dropping the tea bag into the mug, she tilted the kettle and filled it with the boiled water, the aroma already starting to show.

“Soon as Princess Twilight wakes up, we’ll answer whatever questions you have.” She winched, rubbing the side of her head. “I’m not normally up this early, but this migraine is just rude.”

“Might I ask, was it from your fight yesterday? I don’t recall you taking any blows to the head…” Her voice trailed off, as she took a tentative sip of her cup. Deciding it needed a few more minutes, she pushed it slightly to the side.

Vinyl placed her own mug under the machine, as coffee began to drip down into it. The earth pony idly wondered if there wasn’t a pot, or if the mare simply couldn’t be bothered. “Eh, technically I guess? It was from the ‘Cure’ I gave ya when you were bleedin’ on the ground. Normally I don’t like casting healing magic, but I needed t’ make sure you could run since time was short.”

Frowning, Octaiva turned to face her fully. “You mean the spell you cast was a healing spell of some sort? Why would that affect you?”

Pulling her cup from the drip of coffee and replacing it with another, Vinyl took a deep drink of her hot caffeine before speaking again. “Sorry, I uhm… sometimes forget not everyone learned at th’ school. Basically, ‘Cure’ is the lowest level of healing magic that you can cast. Like th’ name says, it’s magic that ‘cures’ your injuries… to a point. You probably noticed your head stopped bleeding, but you got a pretty intense headache yeah?” The other mare nodded. “Well yeah, so that’s one side effect, the pain increases a bit on the recipient. It’s better than bleeding, but still pretty rough t’ go through. Also, the caster gets some of the pain returned back to them, so ya gotta be careful not t’ overdo it.”

Furrowing her brow, Octavia stood in silence. “So, your migraine is my fault?” Another test of her tea, and it was ready. Taking the cup with her, she went and sat at the nearby table.

Vinyl shook her head. “Nah, I chose to do that spell, it’s all on me. Like I said, I needed to make sure we could get out in time, so it was worth the headache afterward to escape.” She took another deep drink from the mug before switching it with the nearly-full one under the dripping liquid. “What about you, what’s got you up so early?”

Tapping the side of her mug, the cellist paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. “I had a very peculiar dream, though I can’t say for sure it was wholly a dream? It’s difficult to describe even though I can recall it so vividly.”

“Big empty-ish void, weird stained glass floors, Heartless, mysterious voice?” The unicorn listed off, sitting at the table opposite of her.

“Well, yes that’s exactly what it was like, but how…”

She shrugged, drinking her coffee. “Happens to everyone after they first get their Keyblade, though I hear the specifics are a bit different for each pony.” They sat in silence for a moment, before Vinyl looked up in her direction. “Do ya wanna talk about it?”

Taking another sip from her tea, she gave a small nod. “I suppose many of my questions go beyond the dream itself, and into where all of this started: Keyblades, Heartless, Darkness, all of it.”

The other mare rubbed the back of her neck. “Well, a full history lesson ‘s a bit much to push you into, and Princess Twilight can probably give ya a better version. Maybe something a little smaller? I haven’t been around long, but I know a lot.”

Octavia mulled over her thoughts, before grasping on one. “What did you mean earlier, when you said you forget not everyone learned at ‘the school’?”

“Oh, that?” Vinyl shifted in her seat slightly. “There’s a, uh, school that I studied at. I guess it’s an ‘academy’ technically, though I don’t really think there’s a difference between the two terms. They gather up ponies they deem ‘special’ from other worlds, and bring them over there to train in combat, magic, all sorts of stuff. The hope is that, over their time at the academy, a few of the ponies will turn out to be Keyblade wielders; I was one of ‘em. I think most of the ponies that run around under Princess Twilight came from there, actually.”

“How many ponies is that? Are they all Keyblade wielders like you?”

Vinyl tilted her head, taking a moment to think. “Not all of ‘em, excluding us there’s about six other wielders out ‘n about. We got the Cutie Mark Crusaders who work on the Gummiships, ya met one of ‘em last night. The Elements of Harmony is another five, they’re a whole other thing on their own. That’s most of who ya might see runnin’ around the Castle here, but we’ve got some allies in other places as well.”

A yawn from the doorway caused the pair to turn, spotting a very disheveled Lyra in the doorway. “Tell me… for the love of everything music, tell me this place has coffee. I swear if there isn’t any, I will lay down and let those shadow monsters put me out of my misery.”

Vinyl raised an eyebrow, but Octavia merely chuckled. “She’s always a bit dramatic before her cup in the morning. You get used to her antics.” She gestured at the coffee machine with her free hoof, the other still gripping her tea. “I do believe the machine is open for use, if Vinyl is done with it.”

“Oh yeah I’m done, there’s still one mug left under there, but I can get ya more if you want it.” Vinyl offered.

Lyra shook her head. “Nah, one and done is my coffee regiment, thanks though.” Trotting over to the machine, she took the mug in her hoof and took a long, slow sip. Letting out a relieved sigh, she smiled down at the steaming liquid. “Oh coffee, you’re the only one who truly gets me.” She grabbed another empty chair at the table with the other mares, taking another satisfying sip. The three ponies sat around the table, each enjoying their beverage of choice, the silence lingering over them for several minutes. “You uhm… you mentioned an academy earlier, I heard you from the hall.” Lyra said quietly, fiddling with the mug in front of her. “Did it happen to be called something like ‘Starswirl Academy’?”

With a tilt of her head, Vinyl gave a slow nod. “Yeah, actually it was. But, how do you…”

“Was there a unicorn there? Probably about our age?” Lyra cut in, an excited energy creeping into her voice. “He would’ve gone by the name ‘Midnight Dusk’, he was studying there for a long time.”

Vinyl set down her mug, her face now completely serious as she stared at the mint mare. “You need to tell me how you know that name, Lyra.”

Her face lit up as she put her forehooves on the table. “So you do know him! Is he okay? Did he end up traveling to another world like he said? Was he taller than me? I love how it feels when they have to tilt their face down to look at me.”

With a soft sigh, Vinyl broke her gaze away from the excited mare in front of her. “He…” A heavy sigh her voice somehow growing quieter. “Look, you have to understand, that Academy was strict as hell on rules, especially about studying and protecting the Hearts of th’ other students. According to them, anypony they thought might even think about the Darkness too much had to be removed for the safety of everyone else, cuz the temptation could destroy the Academy.”

Octavia leaned in slightly, heart sinking. “Vinyl, are you saying that…” she left the sentence hanging.

“... Eleven months ago, the school quietly declared him ‘exiled’, and unleashed an Archon on him. Th’ poor guy never stood a chance.”

Lyra’s face fell, her body slowly slumping back into the chair as a tear dripped down her cheek. “Damn.” She pawed a hoof at the table. “Were you a friend of his?”

“Not really, he was a friend of another friend I had, I never got really close to him. His incident actually caused her t’ abandon the school, which became a whole mess on its own. I got my ticket out a few days later, and I‘ve never gone back to that place.” She looked toward the wall. “I am never going back there.”

Before the conversation could continue, there was a soft knock on the door of the kitchen. Octavia turned and saw a very small, purple dragon standing in the doorway. His spikes and eyes were both emerald green, clutching a clipboard and pencil in his claws. “Morning everypony! I’m Spike, and I’m the personal assistant to Twilight Sparkle!”

“Huh, a real dragon.” Lyra mused, tilting her head. “Funny, the story books always made them look ferocious and scary even when they were little.”

“Yeah well they also like to destroy towns and capture innocent mares, so I’m glad to not be like that!” Spike protested. “But Twilight didn’t put a lot of time in her schedule for me to chat with you girls, she says things are moving too quickly now after Canterlot.”

Finishing her mug, Vinyl shook her head slightly. “Does that mean she’s awake?”

“Yup! And she sent me to grab you three! She knows you’ll have a lot of questions to answer, so she wanted to get started as early as possible.” He took a step from the door, and waited. Vinyl trotted out first, rolling the stiffness out of her neck.

Downing the last bit of her life-giving coffee, Lyra hopped up and followed. “Finally, I am so ready to meet a Princess.”

Gently standing from the table, Octavia adjusted her bow-tie slightly in apprehension. “Yes, I have plenty of questions that I am ready to have answers for.”