Unto Thy New World

(Note: besides names of games, italics are thoughts, shared thoughts or stressed points)

'Where am I? What happened?'

As I tried to force my eyes open, these two questions plagued my disorientated and confused mind. It felt like a hangover, but unbelievably, ten times worse. Taking a deep breath, all I could detect was the faint smell of roses. I forced my eyes open, blinking countless times in the first two seconds, due to the sudden change in light level. Poisoned. Drugged. Concussion. Accident. Dead?  The countless scenarios raced through my mind, but then I remembered. The letter, the crystal, everything. I sat up, realizing that I didn't have a shirt on. Looking around, I saw what looked to be a large bedroom, dark blue, black and purple paint scheme. This looked so royal.

Wait.

I looked back. 'An Xbox?' It immediately grabbed my attention, seeing how its white color scheme couldn't have possibly blended in. 'Hooked up to a 55" HD LCD TV. How wonderful.' I told myself, half sarcastically. Next to it was an impressive pile of video games. Halo, Call of Duty, Dead Space, Forza Motorsport, etc. The two items really stood out, polar opposite of the regal-looking room. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the small backpack and the cello case I chose to take along with me, sitting in the corner. I heard something in the background go "click-clack" on the apparently marble floor.

'Okay. Just to recap, I am apparently in a kingdom called Equestria. Deriving from 'Equine', meaning horse. So this 'Luna' is a horse? Sure seems like it. But then how does she play video games?' Time seemed to slow down as the sound of hooves impacting on marble drew closer. From the corner of my eye, a midnight blue horse stepped into view. "Horn? Wings? Whaaat."

"Ah! Finally you are awake!"

"How is this possible? How can you talk? Who are you?" I interrogated this dark, slender winged unicorn who stood before me at eye level as I sat there, motionless. Without speaking, it, or rather, she walked up towards me, climbed onto the bed on which I sat, and brought her horn, which now glows, to my forehead. I tried to back away, but considering how she could have easily killed me when I was out cold but didn't, chose not to resist and steadied myself. When the tip touched my forehead, it felt like someone had poured ice water over my head. The wave of cold enveloped me and dissipated. 'Greetings, I am Princess Luna.'

"Okay your'e in my head. How-" She put her hoof to my mouth before I could utter another word.

'Remain calm, human. I have observed you for the past year, and I will explain everything in due time. Seeing as how you are here, you chose to leave what once was your life behind, and to seek refuge from your cruel world in mine. What I have just done to you is a telepathy spell. We have to remain quiet, as my sister is asleep, and nopony else knows you are here.' I slowly nodded, pulling down her hoof with my right hand. Her coat felt soft, and only now did I realize the black crown she wore above her horn, and the slippers on each hoof, colored a pearlescent light purple that fit in just perfectly. Her ethereal blue mane, always in motion even during the absence of any wind whatsoever. The way she walked around made it seem like she felt a sense of awkwardness.

"Why did you 'invite' me here?" I questioned, moving over to the edge. "How do you even know who I am?"

"Pardon. I was in the Royal Canterlot Library slightly over a year ago, and chanced upon a book. A book that spoke of another world much like ours, a world where humans, thought by all to be only a myth, thrived. The book was always considered nothing more than an old mare's tale, but I put stock in it, using the old spell the book contained, and long story short, I acquired the crystal and now you are here." She rattled on, words firing from her mouth like bullets from a machine-gun. She was deliberately avoiding eye contact, looking down. She was… shy? I unknowingly chuckled, finding her insecurity cute. She tried to mask her shyness, and tried to retain her royal stature. "I beg your pardon?"

"Um, Princess Luna-"

"Please, there is no need for formality. Do address me as Luna." She cut in. Rudely, might I add, if not for her royal position.

"Luna, how long have I been here?" I asked rather timidly.

"Three days."

Three days, huh? I climbed off her bed, slipped on my dress shoes and put on my shirt without buttoning up. "So what now?" I asked cautiously. She closed her eyes for two seconds, and stated with a sigh, "My elder sister is on her way. She insists on seeing you."

The obsidian door slowly swung open, a figure, slightly taller than Luna stepped through. She was immaculately white. Her mane was an series of hues in pink, blue and green, and like Luna's, seemed to be constantly in motion even during the absence of any wind. A golden crown, as opposed to Luna's midnight blue, seemingly black under the rather poor lighting condition. On her flank was a sun, while Luna's was, predictably, a crescent moon. Conclusion: Luna is the princess of the Night, and this one is the princess of the Day. Considering the size difference, Luna is probably a few years younger than this other princess. The white mare trotted up, seemingly unfazed by the appearance of an unusual creature in her sister's bedroom. Unusual for them, anyway. Acting on instinct, I bowed, submitting to the entity larger than myself, taking note of the regality of her actions.

"State your name and intention," she commanded, "and rise." I did as instructed. As I told her the truth, introducing myself in the process, she cringed, slightly, quickly returning to her stoic expression. "Very well. Since she was the one who brought you here, she will be in charge of you. You will listen to her orders, and she will teach you Equestrian history, customs and in turn, you will obey every command to the letter. Have I made myself clear?" She stated matter-of-factly as I rose to my feet. No emotions detected. It's almost as if this is normal for her, or she had been rehearsing this. I nodded hesitantly, cautious of her actions. She turned and left, leaving me quite confused as to why she handled the whole situation as calmly and coldly as she did, seeing as how I apparently am the first human heard of and most likely seen, ever.

"Luna, why is she… larger than you?" I asked, brimming with curiosity. "Also, how did she know that I'm here?"

She turned, facing me with a puzzled expression. "It is because I was imprisoned on the moon for a millennia past, and did not age because I was not in this form. One thousand years ago, I grew jealous of our sister, bitter at how our subjects played during her day, but shunned and hid in my beautiful night. I made some mistakes, and our sister banished us to the moon. But not a year ago, I returned with the same intention, once again taking up the mantle of Nightmare Moon, but we were saved and redeemed by a young mare by the name of Twilight Sparkle, who lives in a small town, Ponyville. Since then, we have spent our days trying to adjust to modern life, and now, you have joined us in Equestria." Through her monologue, she showed little emotion, but I could see through her stoic facade, and see her regret, sadness, bitterness and loneliness. She was royalty, and possibly even the goddess of the Night, watching over the others as they sleep, but they showed no gratitude. Looking outside, I saw a sight that not many see. The absence of pollution here made the night sky extremely clear, and I realized how beautiful the night sky really is.

"How she knew of your presence is because she detected my elevated vital signs, namely pulse rate and breathing. Can't blame me for being excited to talk to someone from another world." She said with a half-joking tone.

"Luna, in my world, there are stargazers who look up to the heavens and admire its beauty, but pollution has made our sky mask the true beauty of the night, a beauty that I am fortunate enough to be able to witness as I look out now." I said, staring far into the sky, admiring it in all its celestial beauty.

"The stars burned brighter in centuries past. During our ironic thousand-year-long exile on the moon, we relied on the stars to keep us alive. The magic and energy I use is compatible with the stars. After all, they are, in a way, my children. Staying alive on a pressure-less, airless environment without food nor water required a lot of magic." She explained, much to my interest. After all, I did love the night sky.

We spent the night conversing on our own lives, and I realized how much hardship she has had to go through, being shunned by the people, being antagonized by legends, and still holding the same position she did before. She also explained the whole idea of Equestrian Magic. Apparently there are many kinds of magic in this land, ranging from elemental, life, and Pegasi Magic, Earthen Magic and Unicorn Magic. She said that Pegasi Magic is what allows the pegasi to walk on clouds, and fly at such high speeds with less of an impact on their bodily functions. Unicorn Magic is the easiest to harness and manipulate, which explains how unicorns can levitate objects, change their appearance and more, or so I've heard. Earthen Magic is apparently the least well-understood, and also the hardest to utilize. It supposedly gives Earth ponies, that is, ponies with neither horn nor wings, the ability to be undertaking tasks such as farming or mining so successfully with relatively little training. Additionally, Luna also mentioned the magic of friendship. It is what keeps the three factions from warring with each other, and apparently also makes their tasks easier.

Alicorns, which are what Luna and Celestia, her sister, are, are supposed to be a hybrid of all three races, and are supposed to be their rulers, or deities. They are nigh-immortal, but not invincible. Their magic outshines any other type, being far more potent and plentiful, due to the extremely small number of Alicorns.

"At the beginning of Time, there were two Alicorns, Tempus and Caelus. They were our parents. Tempus is time embodied, our father. His mane was pure white energy, and he could manipulate time at will. His coat was grey, like dust that would collect over time. Caelus, our mother, was the creator of space. Her mane was a dark blue, seeping out as though it were gaseous. Her coat was white, brighter than Celestia's. It represented purity, immaculate.

"She created the Universe with the help of our father, for Time means nothing without Space. Tempus and Caelus raised us in a world not unlike Equestria, though it took on a form of a large expanse of land with a large tree growing in the centre, towering over a crystal clear pond. They gave us the power to create, and told us to let our child-like imagination run wild. The pond under the tree was our Universe, our playground. We created Terra, the world, in this universe, and gave it a sun, bestowing all its powers upon the shoulders of our sister. As for myself, I spent years designing the night sky. Guided by our parents, I created every star, every constellation, named them and breathed life into them.I took on the responsibility of maintaining the night, ensuring it would help future travelers find their destination. Our parents gave their lives to populate Mundus with Pegasi, Unicorn and Terran alike, and our responsibility was to watch over them, to maintain peace." She narrated, telling the tale of Creation, as I sat there, awe-struct at how amazing their story of creation was.

"Unfortunately, when they were first created on Terra, they did not get along. They despised each other, and none would accept us, because each saw us as a traitor for possessing the traits of other races. Their disharmony manifested into a corporeal being, Discord. Their hatred of each other intensified, blaming each other for the creation of Discord. My sister and I spent years alone, discovering the magic of friendship with those who chose to be separate from the rest of their races, and the Elements of Harmony came into being. We utilized the Elements to defeat Discord, and brought harmony and peace to Equestria."