My father once told me that great heroes are born, not made. I see now that he was neither right nor wrong. You see, many call me a hero, although I never quite found myself to be anything special. I’m just a pony who followed his heart.
It’s been about three years since the end of that Luna-forsaken mission they sent me on… yet I still remember the entire journey. It is forever imprinted upon my mind, just like one of those old holovids they used to use. I suppose I reflect upon it because it made me stronger, although I’m not even sure that it’s because of that. It might be because I miss those who didn’t make it, or even plain remorse for the lives I had to take.
Whatever the case may be, I want everyone to know the truth. I want them to know the things that I saw, and I want them to understand why I made the decisions that I did. These simple things are the reason that I sit here tonight, staring out into the vast emptiness that we know as outer space.
I have a bottle of Fair Mare Cognac on my bedside table in preparation for the painful memories that I have tried to repress. My room is the standard captain’s quarters for all scout-class ships in the Orbital Fleet, although I have decorated it to my liking. I’ve put up some wallpaper that has a very tranquil scene of clouds. It reminds me what it’s like to be on the ground and looking up at the infinite sky. I have a photograph on my desk, although it is face down. I can’t even bear to look at it, anymore. As for my walls, I’ve mounted a few plaques and medals that I’ve obtained for my service. All in all, there’s really not much in here that’s special.
I suppose I should share a little about myself. My name is Stellar Flare, and I am the captain of the ES Star Skipper. I was given command of this ship only last year. I am a unicorn, although I’m not really great at magic. Of course, no one is, nowadays. All the technology we have may have advanced us into the stars, but we’ve really lost touch with our roots. In the past year, I’ve let my mane grow a little longer, but it was much shorter back when… well, back when it all happened.
I grew up on Earth, born to a fairly poor family. I was an only child, yet still my parents struggled to make ends meet. Mom… she worked two jobs, but she was never spiteful. At home, she was such a loving and caring mare. My father was a great stallion who once served in Luna’s royal guard. It’s a shame that he was discharged. Not for misconduct, of course. He was injured when changelings attacked the castle, and some of the damage was permanent. They gave him a permanent limp. When I was a little colt, he would tell me stories of how there used to be a princess who would raise the sun in the sky. In fact, he said that Princess Luna would raise the moon while the other one raised the sun. I don’t know if that’s fact or fiction, but I was told that she had lived for over three thousand years before she relinquished her crown and disappeared. It’s something that I still remember to this day.
I’m really nothing special, I assure you. I passed my military exams with average scores. In fact, I thought for sure that I’d end up getting rejected because I botched a couple of the physical exams, but I ended up getting assigned to the Orbital Fleet. That was ten years ago, when I was only sixteen. They were desperate, of course.
I’m sure you all know the history of space travel. The starships have been around for almost 125 years, now, yet the discovery of faster-than-light travel (abbreviated FTL) was only made a mere fifteen years ago. Naturally, the Orbital Fleet was hastily equipped with the new technology and sent to explore the galaxy. Of course, it wasn’t long before we learned that we aren’t the only intelligent life in the universe. The Ranar, as we call them, were the first species we discovered. For those of you who’ve never seen one, they look a lot like us, except that they’re covered with a thick hide.
Bah, I suppose I’m rambling on. I guess it’s just that I’m not sure I’m ready to re-live that journey just yet. To be honest, I’ll probably never be ready. But, with that being said, what better time is there to begin than now? So I guess it's time to stop stalling. This is the truth behind the legend, and it is my hope that I can educate all of you, my readers and "fans," about the true elements of a hero.
