7: Reflections Of The Past
Apple Bloom was sitting on the floor of a brand new tree house that her two friends had made a year ago while the three of them played Go Fetch, one of their favorite card games. She was super excited to have a proper sleepover with her two friends. Writing letters to them was nice and all, but she was super happy that the three of them would be together again. Not only that, but now they could play at the beach whenever they wanted!
“Scootaloo, do you have any princesses?” Sweetie Belle asked, holding her cards in her magical aura.
“Mmm…nope. Go Fetch.” As Sweetie Belle picked up another card and scowled at the results, Scootaloo turned to Apple Bloom. “So, when’s that farm gonna be finished?”
Apple Bloom shrugged. “Dunno. Granny didn’t say much about it when I asked. We got a few ponies who are gonna help us build, though.”
“I wonder if my aunts will let me help,” Scootaloo wondered, her wings buzzing behind her as she hovered off the ground. “I can kinda fly a bit, now, so I can be the awesomest scout ever!”
“I’ve been getting better with my magic, so I could help too,” Sweetie Belle said. “School’s out for the summer anyway, so I can come help.”
Apple Bloom looked at the two. Even after two years apart, it seemed as if nothing had changed between the three teenage fillies. “I can ask Granny tomorrow,” she said.
“Cool!” Scootaloo’s wings didn’t so much buzz anymore as they did a sort of half buzz/flapping thing, at least that’s how Apple Bloom could best describe it. She’d been surprised at how much her friends had grown in their two years apart.
Apple Bloom looked up at the newly built tree house. “I still can’t believe ya replicated the old clubhouse,” she said.
“It took the two of us a long time,” Scootaloo said, “but I never imagined we’d be back together, so it was well worth the extra effort!”
“How’s things going with you?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Neither of us heard anything.”
Apple Bloom’s ear dropped a bit. “Haah…well, remember I told ya that we lost our farm back in Ponyville, right?”
“That seriously sucks,” Scootaloo said. “Sweetie Belle, got any fours?”
“Why didn’t your family leave when things got bad?” Sweetie asked as she levitated a card to Scootaloo, who took it and placed a pair of fours on the ground in front of her.
“Granny thought we could fix things,” Apple Bloom said as she shuffled the cards in her hooves. “She can be as stubborn as a mule-ah, I mean, she can be pretty damn stubborn.”
Scootaloo’s eyes widened. “‘Damn’? Wow, Bloom, two years away and you turn into a potty mouth.” She grinned at her friend.
Apple Bloom looked a bit sheepish. “Sorry ‘bout that,” she said.
“Hey, we’re all teenagers here,” Sweetie Belle said. “We can all swear if we fucking want.”
The other Crusaders looked at their unicorn friend in more shock than before. “Sweet Celestia, Sweetie Belle,” Scootaloo said.
“I’ve heard Rarity say worse,” Sweetie Belle said, “believe me.”
The three looked at each other, then they all burst out laughing. It felt good to be together and laughing again. It may have been only two years, but to the three of them it felt like a lifetime and like no time had passed at the same time. Apple Bloom had missed so much. Scootaloo’s late blooming but first flight, a small concert in Maretime Bay where Sweetie Belle had sung a sad ballad, the tragedy of Winona’s passing, and so much more.
As their game of Go Fetch continued, Apple Bloom smiled sadly. She’d done a lot of growing up in the past couple of years. Her relationship with her sister had soured, but they were beginning to make amends. They weren’t as close as they had been, but things were starting to heal. As she’d matured, she also went through the rigors of puberty, something that she had her family’s support through.
After the game ended, the three had turned the lantern off and had gotten into their cots. As they lay there in the darkness, Scootaloo spoke up. “Apple Bloom, you never told us who those three were who came with you and your family. I saw a unicorn, but who were the other two?”
“Oh…well, Applejack hired them to help us git from Ponyville to here,” Apple Bloom explained. “I can’t really remember their names right now, though. I think the unicorn was, um…Sunset something or other?”
“That masked creature was scary looking,” Sweetie Belle said.
“They saved us when we were attacked,” Apple Bloom said.
“Oh,” Scootaloo said. “Well, that’s good.”
Apple Bloom nodded as she yawned. “Big Mac got his leg broken, but he’ll be right as rain soon,” she said.
“I still can’t picture Big Mac being hurt like that,” Sweetie Belle said. “I used to have a small crush on him, and he always looked invincible to me.”
THAT was a major surprise to Apple Bloom. She sat up and looked at her friend. “You have a crush on my brother??”
“Had, Apple Bloom. Had. I don’t anymore.”
Apple Bloom slowly lay back down. “I never knew…”
“Me neither,” Scootaloo said. “Got any crushes now?”
Sweetie paused a bit, and in the dark, Apple Bloom though she saw a hint of darkness coming onto Sweetie’s cheeks. She grinned. “Sweetie has a crush on someponyyyyy~!” she giggled.
“Yeah, yeah, I’ve got a crush,” she said.
“Who is it??” Scootaloo asked. Apple Bloom could practically hear the grin on the young pegasus’ face.
“Yeah…I'm not telling you,” Sweetie said before yawning.
“Aww, come on!” Scootaloo begged.
“Not a chance.”
“Why don’t we git some sleep?” Apple Bloom suggested. While she too wanted to know which colt had caught Sweetie’s eye, she was exhausted from the long day of walking and just wanted to pass out.
“Good idea,” Sweetie said as she covered herself with the covers.
“I won’t forget about this,” Scootaloo said with what sounded like a pout as she pulled the blanket over her body.
Apple Bloom giggled a bit as she closed her eyes. It felt nice to be back with her friends. She’d had her family back on the farm, but for the past two years she’d never been with anypony her own age. No cousins dropped by anymore, the other foals in Ponyville were gone, and she felt alone. She’d sent letters to her old friends, and that helped, but she always felt tired at the end of the day back on her old farm, so she hardly had the strength to write more regularly. At the very least, now she could talk to them much more often. She could go back to school now, something she never thought she’d miss.
As she fell asleep with her friends, she failed to hear a rustling noise just outside their window.
“Get out of here, monster!”
“We won’t let you hurt our foals!”
Gregory looked at the gathered crowd of ponies in front of him, looking surprised at the unusual hostility and fear coming from them. He stood next to his car which he’d driven to the edge of the town. His hands were raised in confusion as he said, “Please listen, I’m not here to cause any trouble,” he said, “I just want-”
A rotten apple struck the side of his head as he stumbled back and fell onto his butt. He brought his hand up, holding the place where the apple had exploded more in surprise than pain. He looked around and saw a larger stallion giving him a wicked glare. “We said git, now!” the stallion shouted.
“I just want directions to get to-” Gregory began, but he was interrupted by a blast of magic to the face, sending him sprawling. Fortunately, his hand was on his car, which seemed to absorb most of the magic somehow, but it didn’t stop the pain. There were rocks thrown next, which pelted his face. He could hear the shouts of the ponies as well as feel the rocks opening up some deep cuts on his face.
Left with no other choice, and his eyes brimming with tears of confusion, he managed to get into his car, start it up, and drive away. Fortunately, he had packed enough liquids to last a while, although that wasn’t why he’d packed his sodas and sports drinks. He drove into the desert to the west, and when he was far enough away from the ponies of whatever town that was, he stopped and tended his wounds.
“Why? Why did they do that?” he asked as he used his first aid kit to bandage himself up. He knew the cuts from those rocks would leave scars, but he was more concerned with them getting infected in this desert. Once he had cleaned and disinfected said injuries, he continued driving. He was still a bit in shock.
There was a noise on top of his car and he looked up to see the roof being torn off with ease. He looked at the horrifying eyes of Daybreaker. Terror coursed through his body as he heard her say, “You are not welcome in the land of harmony. You will not taint the land of my little ponies or any land in this world!” She raised her horn. Gregory screamed-
-and shot up out of bed, a scream about to erupt from his mouth. He was panting heavily as he put his hand on his chest, trying to calm down from the nightmare he’d had regularly for the past two years. The thirty two year old human man named Gregory Eugene Graystone grabbed a glass of water that was by the side of his bed and downed it before he got up and went to a basin of water in his room. He splashed his face with some of said water and looked at his reflection in the mirror. There were several scars that lined his face and exposed chest. Some were from his initial introduction to ponykind while others came from later wounds he received from various jobs he and Tobias had taken.
He sighed and went back to bed, lying down and looking up at the ceiling. His thoughts wandered back to the dream and the events of the past. Aside from the attack from Daybreaker, it had been completely accurate. He had fled Dodge Junction in shock after his first couple of times trying to get into town to ask for help.
Shock which had turned to anger. Anger not just at the ponies who’d assaulted him without a reason but mostly anger at himself. He’d realized that he’d been a complete fool to believe that he could just waltz into a town of ponies and be instantly accepted. He’d been so naïve. As he’d driven through the sands of whatever desert this was, he’d thought back to the circumstances that brought him to Equestria.
Back on Earth, his life had been shit. He had been mistreated by his work, had a cheating girlfriend who gaslit him until she finally dumped him, and was chronically depressed. It had been his discovery of My Little Pony that had pushed him to find a new job elsewhere and seek a counselor.
Still, depression doesn’t just go away, and one night he was curiously browsing the Dark Web when he found something interesting. He wasn’t looking for anything illegal, but he was there because he wanted to see what they had there. When he discovered a place called EnterYourFantasies.onion, he was intrigued by what it could be, so he read the contents. To his surprise, it was an instruction manual on how to reach the worlds of fiction.
Normally, he would have dismissed it as something a crackpot would write, but for some reason he couldn’t stop reading it. There were even video testimonials showing people putting cameras through the portals they’d made. This included glimpses of Coruscant, the bridge of a famous Federation starship, Middle Earth, Dune, Wonderland, Hogwarts, Zion from The Matrix, and even places like Skyrim and Baldur’s Gate.
He printed out everything he could right then, reading it over and over. He even downloaded the videos as well. He just couldn’t tell if what he saw was incredible CGI or real, but he loved seeing them. The instructions on how to do it seemed absurdly simple. When he went back to the page the next day, however, it was gone.
Still, with the printouts, he decided it might be a good excuse to go out for a weekend and get some exercise. He brought along a bike camera, a fishing rod, all the necessary items needed to perform the ritual or spell or whatever it was, and a laptop that could connect via Bluetooth to the camera. If something did happen, he wanted proof.
As a test, he’d tried creating a connection to Ponyville, following the absurdly simple instructions to the letter. To his surprise, when he’d put his camera through the air, he saw the camera vanish. And through view he saw on his screen, he’d seen that it had actually worked. The town on the other side looked much more realistic than he’d anticipated, since he’d been expecting it to look like a cartoon, but the town hall in the distance was unmistakable, as was the Castle of Friendship in the distance.
Having confirmed that things would work, he began fantasizing about leaving this world. It wasn’t like he had anything keeping him on Earth. His parents were dead to him and he hadn’t spoken to them since he was kicked out at eighteen after graduating high school. He’d been forced to couch surf and get odd jobs until he saved enough for an apartment. He had no real friends, mostly because he’d been awkward all his life. His girlfriend, or his ex, had been a backstabbing cheating bitch.
As Gregory lay in the bed in the Maretime Bay’s lighthouse, he remembered back to when he’d dreamed and fantasized about going to other worlds for weeks after his discovery until he decided to plan for it. Even during the planning and organizing of supplies, there was a big part of him that wasn’t sure if he wanted to do this or not. He kept telling himself that it was just something to do to keep his mind occupied.
That didn’t mean he was stupid. He knew Equestria was a dangerous place and with his lack of magic he had to defend himself. So, he’d utilized this newfound obsession to take some basic self-defense courses while legally purchasing a few firearms and plentiful ammo to replace as well as long blades for if and when his bullets inevitably ran out. He’d purchased some MRE’s as well as some of his favorite snacks that he could share with the ponies.
When the time came, and after all his insane preparations were complete, he’d opened a portal to Equestria and drove his car, packed full of supplies, through the portal. Instead of ending up in Ponyville, he’d ended up in front of a town with a sign indicating that it was Dodge City. That was when he’d encountered the ponies who’d chased him out of town.
Thinking back on it, he realized he was not a well man during those times despite his regular counseling sessions. He didn’t tell his counselor everything which he knew he should have. He had all of these delusions that he berated himself for in this moment. Delusions of instantly being accepted by ponies. Sure, he knew about their treatment of Zecora, and that should have been a strong clue. Not only that, but the way they described dragons should have been another strong indicator. He was an utter fool for coming here, and he needed to come to grips with his negative tendencies, alter them, rechannel them into something else.
For a few days, Gregory had driven around the desert, looking for any sign of civilization that might just take him in, but as his gasoline supply depleted and his MREs and supply of water and other liquids began to be depleted, he began to lose hope. Finally, he was unable to start his car again, so he dug in, making a base camp around his car as he tried to go searching on foot. Weeks passed by, and soon he was rationing his remaining liquids. Nothing he did seemed to work. He tried burning his garbage to make some smoke that might signal anyone. Hell, he would have welcomed being found by Chrysalis at that point.
However, it wasn’t Chrysalis that found him. Instead, it was a black furred abyssinian male who helped him come back to life, as Gregory had been steadily losing strength out in the hot desert. Tobias had been a Godsend to him, and had even single handedly pulled his car towards the only city in the Badlands: Thornfall.
As Tobias helped bring Gregory back to full strength, the abyssinian explained that he was a part of a guild of mercenaries who took jobs in this lawless country and abroad in other nations aside from Equestria, as mercenary work was frowned upon by the ponies. They accepted anyone into their ranks, but in this place, strength ruled. If you weren’t strong, you died.
Gregory, with a newfound sense of purpose, decided that when he was better, that he would become a mercenary. He had some training, but he was no fool. He knew that he wouldn’t be much of a match for others around him thanks to his complete lack of magic. Tobias had informed him about that a few days after he’d arrived in the abyssinian’s small home.
A soft knock at the door caught his attention. He shot up and almost spoke up when he remembered that he wasn’t in their home base. He waited to hear who it was, and when said individual spoke, he relaxed. “G, you awake?”
Gregory breathed out softly before he stood and unlocked the door before stepping aside and snapping his fingers twice, a signal they’d made to indicate that Tobias could enter. The abyssinian came in quickly, shutting and locking the door before he turned back to the human. The abyssinian looked him in the eyes, then sighed and shook his head. “Another Daybreaker nightmare?” he asked. Gregory nodded silently. Tobias sighed and reached out, putting a paw on his shoulder. “You realize that you could stop these nightmares if you took some of that potion from Zirco.”
Gregory shook his head. “I’ve seen how it affects others, and I’d rather not become an addict,” he said silently as he walked over and sat on the edge of his bed.
Tobias came over and sat next to him, putting an arm around him. Unlike human male relationships, abyssinians were more like cats in how they showed that they cared for those close to them. Gregory felt the paw on his arm begin kneeding him. He’d long gotten used to the ways that Tobias had to cheer someone up, and in a sense, he liked it. It helped him relax, especially when his friend purred. Looking over at the black furred catlike being, Gregory gave him a grateful nod. “I’ll be alright.”
Tobias shook his head. “No, you won’t be. G, I’ve been thinking long and hard about this for a few months now, and I’ve been saving up my share of our loot, at least all I can spare, and I think it’s high time that we get out of the mercenary game. You and me. We can go to Panthera and start a new life. I might not have any family anymore, but I think you’d enjoy the country. It’s beautiful. Wide grasslands, old growth forests, snowcapped mountains, beautiful rivers, clean towns and cities and the best catnip around.”
Gregory snorted. “Catnip doesn’t affect me like it does you, you know,” he reminded his only close companion in the world.
“The food, then,” Tobias said. “It’s a meat lovers paradise! And you could introduce some human meal ideas there, like pizza and burgers! Believe me, abyssinians would welcome you there, even more if I’m there to vouch for you?”
Gregory frowned at that. “Are you saying that abyssinians are as wary as ponies are?”
“G, come on, not everyone is as bad as the ponies you met,” Tobias said. “Remember when you told me about your world’s cats? Well, we can be like that. A lot of us can be somewhat standoffish until we get to know you. I’m an exception, and I know other abyssinians are like me too.”
“What’s stopped you from going back to Panthera?” Gregory asked.
“Money, mostly,” Tobias admitted, “but with the money we got from the Bad Squad, we could get out of Thornfall much sooner. Maybe in another month or two. We could even take that derelict vehicle of yours with us!”
Gregory looked at how excited his companion was. Tobias’ eyes seemed to light up whenever he talked about his home continent, and the tales Gregory had heard about it always intrigued him. It sounded like one of those medieval isekai worlds, especially when Tobias told him about the Adventurer Guild organization there. A nerdy part of him loved the idea of becoming an adventurer like in anime and manga, but since they spent a lot of their money solely on surviving in Thornfall, he’d put those thoughts in the back of his head. Reality was a harsh mistress. There was no time to dream. Still, part of him wanted to dream. “You’d willingly pull that car again? The tires are pretty flat now, the battery’s long dead, and it’s just a lump of junk.”
“A lump of junk from Earth,” Tobias corrected. “I’d hate to see something from your world just be abandoned.” He gave Gregory a warm understanding smile. “Don’t think I don’t know about the times you’ve just sat in there for hours on end.”
Gregory had no idea that Tobias knew about those times. During some times when he was feeling especially homesick, he would sit inside the car that was parked on the side of their building. He ignored the heat and was grateful that he had handcranked windows. He would sit and listen to his music or audiobooks or read from his ebook readers just to make the pain of homesickness lessen a bit. He’d even fallen asleep inside a number of times. Even if none of the items he brought from Earth would be able to be used for their intended purposes, he was glad he had them.
“You sure?” Gregory asked. “That hunk of metal weighs a ton.”
“I managed it just fine last time, thank you very much,” Tobias replied while flipping Gregory off, something hard to do since he had only four talons as opposed to Gregory’s five fingers. His face then relaxed and he continued. “So, what do you say, G? After we save up enough, why don’t we go back to Panthera? You wouldn’t need to wear all of that depressing black or that mask, either. Fuck it, we could even go register at the Adventurer’s Guild just like in those animes you showed me.” Tobias looked at Gregory expectantly, his tail swishing slightly in anticipation.
Gregory sighed and flipped him off as well, a very small smile forming on his face. Embracing thirty years of urges, Gregory reached up and began scratching behind Tobias’ left ear. The abyssinian closed his eyes and seemed to relax, purring ever so slightly. Gregory smirked a bit at this. Tobias was the only one he knew who would allow this, but only in private. The nightmare from before faded away and he slowly nodded. “I gotta admit, that sounds nice,” he said, “but I’ll need some time to think about it.”
“Mmm…yeah, that sounds-right there, G, please-sounds good to me.” Tobias stretched and then played his head on Gregory’s lap, purring a bit.
Gregory shook his head in disbelief, continuing to stroke the bipedal cat’s head. He remembered back to when Tobias had first shown this kind of affection to him. It had freaked and weirded him out at first, but when Tobias and a couple other abyssinian mercenaries from Thornfall explained that it was a way that they showed friendship to those they held close, he’d slowly begun accepting the display. He even welcomed it, especially in times like this. “Thanks, Toby,” he said gratefully.
Tobias’ tail curled up slightly and he nodded. “You’re my friend, G. I hate seeing you like this.”
Gregory felt himself relaxing thanks to his companion’s efforts. Even if he was worried about opening himself up too much to Tobias, just the fact that the abyssinian hadn’t pushed him too much meant the world to him. He yawned and looked at the wall clock. It was just past two in the morning. “Jesus, it’s still super early,” he muttered. “We should try and get back to sleep. We’ll need our strength for when we head back tomorrow.”
Tobias nodded and he slowly sat up, stretching and making a “MRRP” sound. “Part of me wishes we could at least explore this place,” Tobias said with a hint of disappointment. “After all, we’re in Sunny Starscout’s future house, for crying out loud!”
Gregory smirked again. “No shit,” he said. “Still, you know that time is money. Come on, let’s get some sleep.”
Tobias smiled and patted Gregory on the back. “Sure thing, bud. See ya in the morning, okay?” With that, he gave the human a reassuring smile, then watched as his companion left the room, closing the door firmly behind him. When Gregory had locked it, he crawled back into the admittedly most comfortable bed he’d ever slept in since his arrival in this world. He closed his eyes, trying to imagine a future as not some hated mercenary, but as an adventurer. He felt something then that he hadn’t felt in a long time.
Hope.
Twilight woke earlier than normal thanks in part to her alarm clock going off. Groaning, she almost turned it off before her sleep addled brain began to clear and the events of the previous day resurfaced. Quickly, she sat up and went to her mirror, brushing her mane to look at least somewhat presentable for her guests. She rushed downstairs and began making breakfast. She knew she didn’t have any meat products for her abyssinian guest, but she did have eggs, a plentiful source of protein that hopefully would suffice. She also prepared some toast and waffles with butter and syrup. She knew she wasn’t the best cook, but she had learned how to at least make these easily enough, Modern appliances were convenient.
Tobias was the first to come down, humming something to himself as he walked into the kitchen. When he saw the food on the table, his eyes widened. “Whoa, that looks incredible,” he said.
“I-I hope you like it,” Twilight said nervously. I didn’t have any meat and I didn’t know what your friend eats, so I made something that everycreature could eat.”
“No no, this is more than alright,” Tobias said reassuringly. “Although, I have to apologize, but Revan won’t be joining us. He doesn’t eat with anyone but me. Do you mind if I fix him a plate before coming back down?”
Twilight was a bit concerned by this, but nodded. “Of course,” she said.
Tobias thanked her, then put a moderate amount of each piece of food on a plate before heading back upstairs. When he came back down, he sat at the table and plated up some breakfast for himself. Twilight noticed that he’d taken a smaller portion, so she said, “You don’t have to hold back. I just went shopping, so I’m alright.”
“Are you sure?” Tobias asked. When Twilight confirmed it, he smiled and took a healthy helping.
As the abyssinian ate, Twilight felt her curiosity rising. Over the course of the past year, she had been reading more about foreign lands after realizing that was part of what had fueled her actions against Jason: her own ignorance. She’d used any spare money she could set aside to order books that detailed other nations. She wanted to ask about Panthera, but she felt her nervousness rising. She was so lost in thought that she didn’t notice that Sunset Shimmer had entered and plated herself up some breakfast. When she finally mustered the courage to talk, she noticed Sunset. “Ah, Sunset Shimmer. Good morning.”
The unicorn, who had a messy mane, gave Twilight a glare before going back to eating her meal. “Got any coffee?” she asked.
Twilight immediately stood. “I’ll brew a pot right away,” she said, heading to the kitchen cabinet where she found her supply of coffee. While she didn’t drink it often, sometimes she had to stomach the bitter liquid to help wake up.
As she was preparing a pot, Maple Leaf came in, all bright and cheery. “Good morning, everypony-I mean everycreature,” she said, looking apologetically at Tobias.
Tobias smiled and waved a dismissive paw. “Honest mistake,” he said. “I normally just say everyone or everybody. A little trick I learned from Revan.”
“Was he the creature that you were treating yesterday?” Maple asked with a concerned look. “How’s he doing?”
“It is, and he’s doing better thanks to Twilight and Sunset casting a healing spell on him,” Tobias said.
“I’m glad to hear,” the nurse said, “but where is he?”
“He’s a private person,” Tobias said, “and prefers to eat in solitude.”
“So he doesn’t have to wear that mask of his?” Sunset asked.
“Heh, you’re right about that,” Tobias said before taking a bite of egg and swallowing it down with some orange juice.
“Well, on another topic, please forgive me for not introducing myself yesterday,” the nurse said. “I’m Maple Leaf. I live in a smaller house on the property.”
Tobias nodded and said, “My name’s Tobias. This is Sunset Shimmer, a recent companion we brought on board, and the one I was treating yesterday is named Revan.”
“So, you’ve got medical knowledge, huh?” Sunset asked Maple.
“That’s right,” Maple replied.
“Let me guess: Sunbutt sent you here to make sure that failed princess didn’t go over the deep end and take a nosedive into the ocean-”
“SUNSET!” Tobias swiped his paw at the back of the unicorn’s head, smacking it hard with an angry expression on his face. “We’re guests in this house! We may be mercenaries, but show some damned manners!”
There was silence for a bit as the coffee maker was the only noise heard. Nobody spoke, the tension in the air rising with each passing minute. Finally, the sound was broken by the sound of heavy footsteps coming down the stairs. Revan, now back in his full black outfit, stepped into the room. Looking around, he finally focused on Tobias. “What happened?”
“I’ll tell you later,” Tobias said, shooting a glance towards Sunset.
Revan nodded, then looked at Twilight, although it was hard to tell with the eyes being part of the mask. “Where should I put these?”
“T-The sink,” she stammered. He nodded and did so before sitting down at the table next to Sunset, his hands folded patiently in front of him. The silence returned until the coffee maker was finished brewing and the others ate silently. One could cut the tension in the room with a knife as Twilight got up, poured coffee for Sunset and placed it on the table. As the unicorn took the coffee without a word, Twilight decided to break the unbearable silence and change the subject. “Um, Tobias? This might sound like a random and strange question, but what’s your homeland like?”
Tobias paused briefly, then swallowed what was in his mouth before facing her. He wiped his mouth clean before speaking. “Panthera is a remarkable place, from what I remember of it and from what little news we receive in Thornfall. It’s pretty prosperous, and while it’s not as technologically advanced as Equestria might be, it’s still a peaceful place.”
She’d heard similar stories before, but was curious to know more. “I wish I could visit sometime, but I doubt I could afford it,” she said.
Tobias gave a wistful smile as he looked up at the ceiling. “Well, it’s pretty different from Equestria as far as I’ve seen, but in other ways it’s similar. It’s a kingdom like Equestria. The Highclaw family has ruled over the kingdom for about…three hundred years or so. They took the throne away in a revolution against the Nighthunter Dynasty.”
“They don’t sound pleasant,” Maple said. “The Nighthunter ones, I mean.”
“They really weren’t,” Tobias explained. “They were cruel to the common folk and charged an absurd amount in taxes to them. The Highclaws were a minor noble family who rose up and took the throne, executing all of the guilty Nighthunter family members while sparing those too young to know better.”
Twilight shuddered. She knew that executions had been done away with in Equestria about a hundred years after Nightmare Moon, but the fact that another nation had done it only six hundred years later was disconcerting. She frowned and pushed through her own prejudices once more. “That sounds like it was a dark time,” she said.
“It was,” Tobias said, “but it was bound to happen. Those who are in power are always afraid to lose it. Thankfully, the Highclaw Dynasty is much better.”
Twilight thought back to the one time she’d seen two visiting abyssinian dignitaries from Panthera. She was only twelve at that point and had been carrying Spike to lunch when she’d spotted the large cats walking on two legs instead of four like normal cats. They were flanking the Princess, who had a warm smile on her face while speaking to the dignitaries. She later learned that one was the Crown Prince of Panther while the other was the Prince’s younger sister. Both had been in their teens when they visited, so they were already full grown adults now. “I’ve heard that,” Twilight said.
There was a knock at the door just then, a rather heavy one at that. Twilight looked at the door with confusion, as nopony visited her at all save for Maple, but the nurse was comfortable enough to just walk in, not that Twilight minded. “Wonder who’s at the door this early?” Maple asked.
“I’ll go see,” Twilight said as she got up and walked over to the door.
When she opened it, her eyes widened as she saw one of the town guards, a unicorn stallion, standing at the door with a serious look in his eyes. Without preamble or greeting, the guard spoke up. “Miss Sparkle, there’s been a foalnapping. Have you seen or heard anything about three foals named Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, or Scootaloo?”
Discord sat in his house, a floating screen in front of him. He watched from the perspective of one of the current creatures in Shadow Dawn as they ate breakfast in Twilight’s new lighthouse home. He sighed, reaching his claw up to the eyepatch he now wore, touching it gently and wincing a bit as he lowered his claw. He felt something that he hadn’t felt before: helplessness. Thanks to being kept out of current Equestria affairs, all he was able to do was watch. It pained him, but after the one who kept him away explained their reasoning, he had to reluctantly agree with it.
As he continued watching, he felt a presence entering the room, despite there being nobody actually there. Discord waved his paw, dismissing the screen. “What do you want, now?” he asked.
Androgynous but sweet giggling filled the room, echoing as if the voice came from a deep cavern. “It would seem as if you found a way around my rules,” a voice said in that same androgynous voice.
Discord tensed. He knew the owner of the voice would have figured him out eventually, but not this quickly. Knowing he was caught, he said, “You didn’t think I’d just sit back and do nothing, did you?”
“Be at ease, my dear Discord,” the voice said, “I will allow this to continue. After all, it was foreseen. But be forewarned, the actions you took will have personal consequences for you.”
Discord waved his paw dismissively. “It’s not like you did anything when he showed up.”
“You know I do not work in such a manner.”
“Bull. Shit,” Discord snapped back, standing and looking up at the ceiling. “You know I could fix this issue with a snap of my fingers, so why not let me?!”
“I have already informed you of my reasons,” the voice said in a stern, matter-of-fact tone. “Your devotion to changing yourself for the better as of late is most reassuring, and I do welcome it, but they are not as devoted as you.”
“I know some are!” Discord snapped. “I’ve seen it!”
“I am aware, but they changed far too late,” the voice said in a disappointed tone. “And yet, others have not changed despite everything.” There was silence for a few seconds before the voice began again. “You know why I have asked you to stay away. However, I will allow you this concession of looking in on them until I deem otherwise.”
Discord gritted his teeth, but knew he could do nothing in this situation. The owner of the voice was powerful, more so than he ever could be. “Haven’t they suffered enough?” he asked, a hint of worry in his voice now.
“The time will soon come when their greatest trial will commence,” the voice said, “and neither one of us must interfere. It must be their choice and theirs alone without outside interference.” There was a pause, then the voice’s tone softened. “I know your fondness for them, but you cannot interfere in this. It is a critical step in their growth. Either they will succeed or they will fail.”
Discord did something he never thought he’d ever do again. He snapped and a cigarette appeared in his paw, already lit. He took a big drag of it and let the nicotine soothe him. As he exhaled, he said, “I hate you.”
“I am fond of you too, my old friend. For what it may be worth, I am sorry that this must happen.”
Discord’s anger disappeared. He couldn’t be angry at the owner of the voice. Deep down, he knew they were right. He couldn’t baby them in this instance. They fucked around and found out, as the human saying went. He stroked his goatee. “No, don’t be sorry. I know why you’re doing it.” Discord took another drag and let it out a little while later. “I’m just glad I was able to do something for…” he drifted off.
“Yes,” the voice said with a warmth to it now, “that was quite a clever ploy to save him, and you did well on that front. Now then, I must bid you farewell.”
As the voice vanished, Discord felt a slight breeze through his goatee, which then straightened out to become a bit more well-kept. He sighed. “I hate when you do that…” he said as he grabbed at the goatee, fixing it to his liking once again. Once more, he reached up to the patch on his eye, touching it before standing, walking over to a mirror, and removing it. The eye was gone, replaced by a swirling black void with a bit of white mixed in. He put the eyepatch back on. “Worth it,” he said as he went back to his lounge chair, sitting down and looking back at the screen. He took another drag and watched the scene before him unfold. Things were about to take a turn for Maretime Bay and all of Equestria, and all he could do was watch.
Far away, in another part of the world magic mirror activated once more, and the alicorn stood alone, watching the same scene that Discord was watching unfold before her. The alicorn could sense that someone else was watching with her, but even with her increased magical power, she couldn’t locate the source. However, the once great ruler of ponykind and the once most magical of all ponies wasn’t focused on that. Instead, she was focused on three foals sleeping on cots in a treehouse. She knew of these three from her contacts in the city, but what looked to be about to happen was not something that was part of her plans.
She watched the solitary mare approaching them, a wild look in said mare’s eyes. Shaking her head, the queen looked into the darkness behind her throne, a place forbidden to the ponies under her protection and command. “Equestria has fallen so far,” she said sadly. “What say you, my old companion?”
There was silence for a bit, then there was the sound of massive rustling from beyond. A pair of glowing green reptilian eyes appeared and a green flame emerged from the shadows, illuminating an ancient but still quite powerful dragon for a brief moment. A deep, rumbling voice spoke. “Yes, your majesty.”
The alicorn smiled warmly. “Now now, there’s no need for such formalities. We’re friends, you and I.”
“As you say,” the dragon replied before retreating further back into the shadows.
She turned back as the crazed looking mare approached the treehouse. “Yes…friends…”
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Is that dragon at the end there with the queen is who I think it is?
Please take all the time you need. This story is rather interesting and worth waiting for. Also Sunset might need a little sense knocked into her. Just because someone did something awful is not an excuse to be just as bad. I can hardly wait for G to call her out on it.
Also seems like someone is truly trying to bring back the past.
Would that, 'someone else', happen to be us?
11882501
Figured it was Discord, given the scene immediately prior.
"Sunset Shimmer. I understand this broken pedestal trope you're going through, but you are taking it too far on Twilight.
"So what if she made those mistakes? That doesn't mean she revealed herself to be evil all along. Only true monsters don't regret their actions, you of all people should know that.
"The point is, who exactly are you disappointed with? Those ponies for not being who they're supposed to be? Or yourself for thinking those prior thoughts in the first place?"
I have a strong feeling that things are going to get a lot worse before they get better. If that's even possible. Only time will tell.
11885275
Quoting Augustus eh? I see you’re a man of culture.
O shit, the implications~
11885609
I try my best. Roma Et Imperator.
first time there hasn't been a chapter in 7 days, the grind is over...
11888510
Nah, there’ll be one on Saturday. I just wanted to post them on Saturdays instead of Thursdays.