The Tales Of The Lunar Consort, Volume II

Warning: All text beyond this line is only notes for this story I had written. This story, and every other I was writing, is now cancelled, and while not be produced any further. Feel free to take whatever you like.

Part I : The Rebirth of The Children Of The Night

Sub-Part III: The Prisoner (He Who Would Embrace The Dark...albeit not of his own choice)

Canterlot Castle dungeons, Death Row,

Solar Blaze sat in his cell, awaiting his final trial. The disgraced solar guard had, to his shame, committed a terrible act. He was certainly to be put to death, but, alas, the due process must be observed. To this end, he'd long since accepted his fate. He deserved it; no stallion who'd done those things to that mare deserved to keep his stallionhood, much less his life. Admittedly, he'd been drunk off his flank at the time, and he didn't even recall having done it, but the evidence was, although circumstantial, very much bulletproof: his seed had been found inside that poor young mare. He'd raped her in a drunken fit of pique. She'd put out, teased him... that wasn't right, trying to justify it; there was no such vindication for Solar Blaze.

His lawyer had been to visit him and, naturally, there was nothing to be done; execution. Open and shut. He was guillotine-fodder. Now there was naught to do... but wait. Waiting for the end... Knowing that one is going to die and knowing that there is nothing one can do to stop or delay it... It can do terrible things to the mind of the condemned. They might break down, overwhelmed by the fact that death is literally right around the corner and no lock can keep it out, or they might start confessing, desperately wishing for an absolution never to arrive, or they might simply pony up and stoicly accept their fate, rightfully earned or not. The last of these is what Solar Blaze had resigned himself to doing. And so, he was laying back on his cot. Staring sullenly at the ceiling. Waiting for the worms.

A loud-ish scuffle came from the end of the hallway, near where Solar Blaze knew the sole doorway to be, and he raised his head from the cot for just a moment,

wondering whether it would break the monotony of the long, dark corridor his life had become if he were to look. He decided against it, and lay his head back down, ignoring the sounds. He turned on his side and let out a snort. Perhaps five minutes passed, and, although there were no footsteps or breathing sounds or clearing of

throats, Solar Blaze suddenly became aware of a presence at the door to his cell. He turned his head and nearly fell off his cot: A massive, muscular, sky-blue Pegasus

stallion was basically staring daggers at him with red eyes that seemed to almost burn, eyes that seemed to look through him rather than at him, yet there was little doubt that Solar Blaze was the newcomer's target.

The stallion's strange eyes took away the biting words that formed in Solar Blaze's throat, leaving him feeling like a piece of meat being inspected. The blue stallion watched him intently, then he opened his mouth to speak:

"Solar Blaze," he said, in a deep, drawling baritone, heavily modulated by soft, rolling vowels, his burning eyes looking the condemned stallion up and down. "Condemned to death for the crime of rape and aggravated assault. A once-celebrated member of Celestia's Solar Guard. How appropriate..."He said, almost as though

he was musing to himself. Then, abruptly, he turned his head to his left. "What do you think?" he asked quietly. "Is he sufficient?"

"This is not forgiveness for your crime. This is a punishment of another sort, and if I ever know that you've committed another, I will throttle you myself on the spot. Am I understood? I re-created you for one reason, and one only, and that is I want the foals to have your gift."