I remember the day queen Nova found Luminous as it was probably one of the happiest days of my life. She was sitting in the garden with me, having a picnic with a still infant Neon Oracle and looking among the rows of flowers. That must have been when I was five, or at least Nova believed that was my age. The problem with paradoxes is that you can really never tell what our ages are, so most tend to believe it is around four to six. That said, at some point during that picnic Neon wondered off somewhere else, supposedly seeing a light as she told me later. It took a while for me and Nova to realize she was missing, and the queen when into a mad dash look for her.

It didn’t take us long to find Neon as she hadn’t gone that far, but we were surprised to see she wasn’t alone. Next to her was a small filly, maybe a year younger than me, staring off into the sky above us. Her coat was as black as the sky she stared at, and a mane so bright it almost shined. Me and Nova did all we could to try and ask her where she came from and how she got here, but we had no answer. She didn’t say a single word, not until a few days later when she finally started calling Nova ‘mother’. That’s how I learned she was a paradox, as supposedly the same happened to me. Your mind is so clear, so vacant of anything other thing breathing and moving, that you seem like an empty shell.

The day she called Nova mother was the day she was taken into the royal family, and I was told by her majesty to protect the filly at all cost. Mother was the only word she knew for days, but through me and various other tutors she started to become her own pony. I don’t know where she gained her stubbornness from, or lack of interest in anything that didn’t involve exploring, but that was the pony she became. However, no matter how many times I see her angry I have never seen her cry in front of anypony. Despite all the things she does wrong, and despite being put in a position that she wasn’t even ready for, she always smiled and tried to stay positive. Of course, when Nova died saving Luminous after she fell off one of the towers, I learned how much she could cry.

“Everything is my fault!” I remember hearing her say, weeping over her mother's body. “This was all my fault! I didn’t want this to happen. What am I going to tell Neon? How… why did this happen?!”

I don’t think Luminous ever told Neon, being too scared of what would happen if her sister found out. That was the first time I think I truly understood what my position as Luminous’ unknown protector meant. Yet, instead of turning away and being afraid of that duty I instead made a silent vow to the deceased queen. I promised to her that Luminous would not only live, but never have to see anypony close to her die again. That’s why, hearing she had left the castle grounds, I was sent into a frenzy. Neon was blinded by the fact her mother died, and believes that Luminous loved a paradox more than her. This nightmare Swift Spell spoke of was with us for years and haven’t noticed…

And in trying to keeping Luminous, had inadvertently put her in more danger than necessary.

As Silvia practically dragged a very scary Luminous with her back outside, the ex-captain was left with more than a few questions. As soon as she had made her way up the stairs with Rainbow Dash, her head started getting heavy. The voices she heard back at Rarity’s house had come back, though they were loud enough to be overwhelming for her. When she saw Silvia dim the light on the amulet that now hung around her neck, she only grew more uncomfortable. She had no idea what was wrong with herself, and the voices in her head would not leave. All she wanted to do was curl up on the floor, but Silvia forced her to keep moving even with how light her legs felt.

“Help us. Please help us,” The voices cried out, the words more than just unintelligible nonsense by this point. At this point, Luminous collapsed on the ground inches away from the house not able to feel her own body. “Wolf is good, but other ones will kill you. Innocent, young foals like us they kill, and mark us as monsters! Please, stop them. Help us. Restart everything!”

“Luminous, speak to me,” Upon seeing the pegasus collapse, face looking into the ground in complete horror, Silvia stopped herself and rushed back. She has never seen a paradox of such a mature age, and the reaction the amulet caused must have been worse because of that. “Luminous, is something wrong? Can you here? Get up!”

Luminous couldn’t hear anything else but the pleaded voices that rang through her mind. Everything felt numb, her mind so disconnected from the events happening around her that the only motion she made was shivering. No matter how much she wanted them to, the voices she heard wouldn’t leave. As she tried to suppress them, they only got louder and louder, deafening. She wanted to get up, move, or do anything, but they wouldn’t allow her any rest or peace.

“Help us! Answer us!” The voices only got angrier as time went on, but Luminous somehow knew it wasn’t directed at her. “They will kill you! They will rip you limb from limb because they see you as a monster! Avenge us! Help us! Restart everything! You are powerful! You did this before! Remember who you are, or die! Remember, and restart-”

“Silence!”

Silvia looked around, thankful to see that nopony was watching. She had to do something, but she wasn’t sure what to do. The only thing she could think of was getting close enough to wake up Luminous from whatever trance she had been put it. However, as soon as she took a step the Lunar String made a shield around the pegasus, an action that took the wolf by surprise. She had been told by Luminous how it responded to her command, but judging by her current state that wouldn’t have been very likely. After it had completely covered the pegasus, keeping Silvia from coming in direct contact, the Lunar String stretched one part of the itself into a long protrusion. With that it slowly made it way up to wolf’s face, placing itself on her forehead.

“Don’t worry, she’ll be fine,” The voice that spoke in Silvia’s mind wasn’t like the ones that spoke to Luminous, being both calmer and singular. “I’ve sent her to sleep, and will guard her until she is ready to wake back up. Just stay alive, okay?”

With that the protrusion retracted, molding back into the dark blue casing that covered Luminous. Silvia didn’t question what she had just heard, as thing like this have become par for the course during her travels. Instead, her attention drew to the sound of paws hitting the grass not far down the road. Not much longer after she heard it did two wolves, both looking at her with venom in their eyes, appear from the darkness. Having chosen her side since she first felt their presence, Silvia stepped in front of the Lunar String. The wolves in front of her stopped as she planted herself there, and the venom she felt from them only rose.

“Silvia, right?” One of them asked, his voice low and gravely. When she didn’t say anything, he seemed to get even more annoyed. “What are you looking all high and mighty for? The paradox is behind you and you haven’t killed it already?”

“A paradox hunter’s job is to not just hunt them down but evaluate if they are a threat,” Silvia reminded him, keeping a stoic expression on her face. “I can tell you one thing, and that is that her highness is no threat. I suggest that you leave her be, because any attempts on her life will end with the loss of yours.”

“Her highness?” The other wolf asked, before breaking into a high-pitched laugh. “Now I see why the elder and alpha decided to exile you. If you really are stupid enough to believe something like that you really don’t deserve a place in the pack,” As he saw the stone faced expression on Silvia’s face, he realized she wasn’t joking. “Heh, so that thing is royalty? Doesn’t matter, I’ll still kill it. I’ll kill it in the same way I have every other one of those horrible monsters.”

“Than I’ll deal with the other paradox,” His companion, getting ready to head off before another figure came out through the darkness. “Well, I guess that third paradox must have been closer than we originally thought.”

Silvia’s attention was changed from the wolf in front of her to the one that had been heading away. Hearing that made Silvia curious, knowing that almost every paradox she has met has run at the very sight of her. However, all three of them were proven wrong as a low, sinister, and strained laugh came from the figure. It was a voice that Silvia recognized from earlier that day, and as the black furred hooves was clear enough to make it she smiled. Silvia simply watched as Arcane, laughing hysterically at the wolf who had just talked, showed himself in front of them.

“If you really think I am a paradox, than you are as low as the mud you roll in,” The tyrant mocked, letting out another fit of laughter. “You think your so intimidating don’t you? You wolves think you own the world because you are predators, but what you haven’t realized is pitiful,” He dropped the mock, instead focusing on a soul piercing glare at the gravely sounding wolf in front of him. “Silvia may be an exile, but she will more than outlive both of you by the end of this.”

“Oh really, and how are you suppose to be? Some big-mouth noble?” The gravely wolf asked. The smirk that appeared on Arcane’s face as he said this cultivated in a low chuckle.

“It would be a waste of time telling you my real name, so I’ll leave you with what history books have referred to me as.”

Arcane’s eyes started to glow, the red in their irises becoming even more blood red. His fur was on end, but it was due to the dark magic which started to course through him instead of fear. His mane and tail seemed to become smoke, and a similar thing came from the green in his eyes. He took a single step forward, his voice started to sound even more strained as he laugh maniacally at the wolf in front of him. His body, while still pony shaped, looked less solid and more like smoke by this point, horn invisibly to the eye.

“I am Sombra,” Arcane said, his voice echoing throughout the town. “Long ago I ruled the crystal empire, only to have it taken away from me by an alicorn not once, but three times. I could care less about the filly you call a paradox, as she has already been escorted out of town. However,” His form now blurred to the point where it was near impossible to tell a pony had once stood there. “If you try and kill Luminous, ruining my chances at not only reclaiming my kingdom, but also the old world, I will make your life a living hell.”

Luminous’ eyes shot open, sitting forward as what felt like a nightmare ended. She no longer heard the voices, but she knew that she was no longer awake. Looking up, she saw the sun shining in the sky, which originally told her that she was in the Farplane. However, after taking a look around herself, she realized how wrong she was as the sight of building surrounded her on the left and right. It reminded her of Ponyville, only less broken down and more cheery. Ponies walked through the streets, and through her as she soon found out. It was definitely a dream, but different from the ones she usually had. On the one hand she was in completely control of herself like in the Farplane, but on the other she was reminded of the figures of the two alicorn sisters who she always use to see in her dreams.

“Where... am I?”

Her front hooves shot to her muzzle as she heard her voice, or rather the voice that had spoken for her. It took her a second to realize that she could actually feeling her hooves on her muzzle, but even that was overwhelmed by her voice. Though it had come out of her muzzle the voice was slightly higher pitched than her, and more cheery sounding as well. It was than that she suddenly felt something wrong about her hooves, and looked to them in fear. She barely managed to hold in a scream as she realized that her voice wasn’t the only thing wrong with her body.

Compared to the black hooves that she was so use to, these ones were a violet color. Looking over her body she realized that it wasn’t just her hooves, but her entire body that was different. Her once pitch black coat was now a vibrant purple, and she could swear that she was both taller and heavier than before. Her wing span was also longer than it was before, and she could feel something protruding from her head. Her mane and tail was completely different from what it was when she was awake, going from a golden yellow to an even darker shade of purple. It was also longer, straighter, and far more cared for than she had ever bothered to.

“Okay Luminous, calm down. This isn’t the time to panic,” She sat back down, putting her front hooves on her head. It was than she realized what the protrusion she felt on her was. “Do… do I have a horn? Wait, no no no, this is all just a dream. Of course whenever somepony says they are in a dream it is usually something more than that but how else could my entire body be different?”

Those weren’t the only reasons something about this dream felt off to Luminous. There was a wind that passed through her fur, and if that wasn’t enough she could feel her hooves when they had touched her muzzle. It was the same kinda realization she had when the butterfly had landed on her muzzle back in the Farplane. She wanted to think that this was in some way part of the Farplane, but why Luna wasn’t already with her by this point didn’t make her feel right. This feeling was like an inch that, no matter how much she scratched at it, wouldn’t go away.

“Excuse me,” She tried to call out to a pony as they walked by, but as she expected when an earlier one had walked through her, they couldn’t hear her either. “So this isn’t the Farplane then, because I know those butterflies could actually understand what I’m saying. However, I have too much control of myself for this to be a dream, and the feeling of the world is all too real. If that is the case… where am I?”

“So you don’t recognize this?” Turning around looking to see a pony staring at her. However, the pony wasn’t like any she had seen before, their body seeming to be formed from a dark blue energy. The pony-like being took a bow to Luminous. “Of course you wouldn’t see Luna here, because this dream isn’t from your imagination or her own. Think of this town like a memory long forget, or broken if you want to be exact.”

It didn’t take long for Luminous to recognize the dark blue energy that made up the pony in front of her. “Are you… the Tantabus?”

“Indeed I am,” The being answered, getting up from her bow. “I am a part of Luna’s aura, though different from that of a normal pony as you already know. I use to help Luna aid in keeping dreamers peaceful, though I fell dormant when she died. Whether or not the princess of the night knows I am with you is uncertain, but I would prefer if you didn’t mention what I am about to show you to her.”

“So you know what this is?” The Tantabus nodded in answer to Luminous’ question. “So is this your dream or mine? Why am I in a different body? Is this the Farplane or something else?”

“I have fully prepared myself for all those questions, and they can all be answered in a single sentence,” The Tantabus said, and her eyes started to glow a bright blue, or as Luminous observed merely opened. The being was keeping her eyes closed the entire time. “This is your dream, or memory, and the only thing I did was put you in control of your true self.”

Luminous wasn’t sure how to respond to that, not completely understanding what the Tantabus had meant. This was the second time the being had referred to this dream as a memory, but Luminous couldn’t recall at any point something like this happening. Yet, looking into those glowing eyes she could see the look of a creature who had seen more than anypony else. Luminous looked up to the sun, shielding it’s with her violet hoof. Even though she couldn’t recall a memory like this, she felt an overwhelming amount of dejá vu from both the town and this body.

“If this is a memory, and the only thing you did was put me in control of myself, than why don’t I have my normal body?” She expected the Tantabus to hesitate at this question, but the response that came immediately after worried her.

“It’s hard to explain, especially since you were never told, but both the body you have in reality and the one you currently have are the same body,” The Tantabus explained to the pony, knowing that she should have been a little more clear earlier. “Most ponies dreams are created from their mind, which is why they can’t fully make out things that they see. However, if the details in this town from the cracks in the road to the fact that the windows show dirt, scratches, and the fog left by a ponies breath, than you should know this isn’t normal,” The Tantabus drew Luminous attention to the window she was looking at, and indeed the pony could see just how absurdly detailed it is. “Normal ponies wouldn’t be able to create details like that, but you would be able to because this is not a figment of your imagination. You’ve seen this all before, and it’s all buried so deep into your brain that it’s impossible to recall it when awake. I have pulled strings in your mind allowing you to see this in a semi-conscious state, so you will remember once you wake up.”

“But what is so important about this that I have to remember?” Luminous asked.

The Tantabus seemed to halt any movement, looking into the window as if it was the most fascinating thing she had ever seen. Seconds passed, then minutes, and the sudden sigh that came from the beings mouth seemed to catch Luminous by surprise. She was sure the Tantabus had been prepared for that question, but it almost looked like she was stalling as she turned slowly to the confused pony. Luminous could tell that she didn’t want to say the truth, and it made the ex-captain worry. Whatever it was the Tantabus knew, it wasn’t something she should take lightly.

“Princess Luminous Oracle of Canterlot,” The Tantabus addressed. “The body you are currently in is from a present long ago destroyed. This body is yours from the true Equestria, and the same goes for your changed voice. The reason you don’t have it is because the conditions for you to exist was altered, though I don’t know how,” The being took another deep breath as she prepared to say what that all meant. “Luminous, you are a paradox. You are the figment of another pony whose birth was suppose to happen, but never did. You… were never meant to exist, as does the Equestria, family, and ponies that you’ve known forever.”

Silvia jumped to the side as the cackling wolf who had revealed his name as Athris swatted at her. He would snap his teeth in direction of her neck and she would do the same, the amulet glowing as a sudden force of wind pushed him away. He got back up, like he had done for more than half an hour, and the same dance would play. They wanted her dead, something she had prepared for as soon as she made the decision to save Luminous. She hadn’t thrown a single blow at Athris, as he was so intent on killing her that she knew he would tire himself out eventually. In fact, Silvia could already see the wolf before her getting tired, but it only seemed to make him angrier.

Arcane Glyph was focusing on the other wolf, who revealed himself as Griz, and was having a more thrilling time than Silvia was. Compared to the inexperience that both of them saw in Athris, he was smarter and more patient. Every time Arcane through a spell Griz found some way out of it, even using howls to break enchantments cast on him. On the other hand the paradox hunter had shown Arcane magic of his own. He was quick, and had come close to hitting the tyrant more than a few times. His claws had gained a reddish glow, not from blood but from an enchantment of his own. It didn’t take long for Arcane to learn that, though his body was like smoke, those red claws could still pierce him. Since they started the battle slowly became less of an all-out attack and more of a waiting game, but neither of them had any interest in killing the other anymore.

The shadowy form of Arcane and the predator stance of Griz continued to circle one another, both having long forgotten why each other was fighting. One had gained the respect for another, and the two were now simply trying to see how long it took till the other could land a scratch. For Griz, a hunter who had gained the respect of the alpha due to the unparalleled skill, this was the first time a battle had truly excited him. To Arcane, this was the first time he had ever felt truly challenged, his only defeat coming from the two alicorn sisters which he more than knew was cheap. Both were impressed, as their original thoughts of each other had changed significantly since things started.

“I wouldn’t have expected a mere lap dog such as yourself to be a worthy opponent, but you much more than some old mutt,” Arcane Glyph complemented, changing directions as the wolf in front of him did. “I was lead to believe that you wolves were just killing machine, but you're smarter than any machine I remember.”

“You ain’t to bad yourself, being a dethroned tyrant,” Griz replied, which got a good chuckle from Arcane. “I knew that ponies had some decent warriors, but I always saw your leaders as cowards and crybabies. I can now see why you managed to take over an entire empire by yourself, and it’s a shame to kill something that powerful.”

“Touché to the leader remark,” The smile that doned Arcane’s face as the two talked wasn’t one of sinister intent, but rather of relief that he had managed to find something other than an alicorn that was so powerful. “I’ll say that, with all the ponies I’ve killed and executed for trying to go against me, you might be the first creature I feel bad for trying to. In that case, mind if I offered an alternative to the slaughter we have both been attempting.”

This caught the paradox hunter’s attention, quickly reminding himself that they were still in battle as he almost lessened his hunting stance. Griz already knew what his opponent was getting at, and the smile on his muzzle only grew. Neither of them had a single hit on each other, and Griz wasn’t interested in killing somepony as skilled as himself. He didn’t find it fun being the best hunter in the entire pack, especially when it meant every target he killed ended up being more and more underwhelming. Having someone to actually match up to would be more than exciting, it would feel refreshing.

“Let me guess, first one to land a hit?” Griz asked Arcane, both of them having stopped circling.

“In my entire life I’ve never felt a challenge, and I hardly call going up against two alicorns a fair fight,” Arcane explained. “It would be a waste to put down the first true opponent I’ve ever seen, and since none of us has obtained a bruise let’s see who can land the first hit. No killing blows, both magic and otherwise, and nothing that can seriously injure. All either of us has to do is scratch or bruise the other, nothing worse.”

“Not the offer I expect from a tyrant,” The wolf joked, readying himself.

“That’s what they all say, but what do you expect when all anypony knows about you is that you enslaved an entire empire?” Arcane asked rhetorically, starting to channel magic through his horn. “On three, we start… one.”

Griz lowered his body to the ground, his stomach feeling the grass under him as he prepared. Arcane took a step back, getting in a ready position as his horn started to glow red.

“Two…”

Their eyes locked as he counted, Griz pulling his lips back in a snarl and his front claws once again growing red. His hindlegs skidding along the ground slightly as his he dropped lower to the ground. Arcane placed one of his front hooves in front of him, and the opposite hind leg a bit farther back than the other. He didn’t continue counting, the two staring into each other with intense focus. Both wanted to strike first, and Arcane hoped that by waiting he would be able to catch Griz off guard. Yet, even though he didn’t say anything, the two suddenly flung themselves at the other, paws and hooves leaving the ground.

The Tantabus was looking at a very different Luminous than the one she had seen up to this point. Her eyes had dilated, a look of absolute horror on the pony’s face as she continued to think over the words that had been spoken. Luminous wanted to believe that it was to farfetched to believe she was a paradox, that she was the result of a change in time, but she couldn’t. She collapsed onto the ground, no longer feeling the want to support her body, or rather the one she should have had. It had seemed so impossible for any of what the Tantabus had told her to be true, but it was.

She looked at her hoof, seeing the purple fur that belonged to the pony she was suppose to be. Her voice that she had known forever suddenly felt wrong as the new voice this ‘memory’ gave seemed to feel more correct. Luminous wanted to believe she was what she had always been, but her mind was torn in two different directions. One told her that she was Luminous, the sister of Neon Oracle and a member of the Canterlot royal family, but the other told her she was nothing. The other part of her mind believed that she was a mistake that shouldn’t have ever come to be, and that left her in a state of terror.

“Luminous, I know what you are thinking,” The Tantabus said, leaning down to look directly into the pony’s shaking eyes. “I’m sorry that you had to learn this, but it was either this or let those voices consume you. Besides, it’s important you learn all of this sooner rather than at a critical moment of time.”

“I’m… not suppose to exist?” Luminous asked, and though it was a question is felt like it just further cemented the fact it was true. “So you mean… everything I’ve done isn’t real? Everypony I became friends with was not suppose to meet me?” She looked to her body, feeling completely insecure about being in it. “So I’m nothing more an accident? Is any part of what I know even real.”

“Calm down if you can, I have yet to completely explain everything,” The Tantabus put her hooves on Luminous, starting to believe she was wrong to reveal this information to somepony already dealing with other issues. “While you aren’t suppose to exist in this form, that doesn’t mean you aren’t suppose to exist all together. Your soul is fractured, and what is left in that both in terms of personality and appearance created a new body to keep you from fading all together. That is the body you know; the one that you have worn for the entirety of your life. The body you are currently in is that of the full soul, before the change in timelines stopped your birth.”

“And who is that?” Luminous shot up, touching muzzles with the Tantabus as she question the being in desperation. She felt a hoof on top of her head, and it seemed to calm her down greatly. “I… I don’t know what to think. It just feels so wrong to think that what you're saying is the truth, but at the same time I know your correct.”

She looked to the ground, tears starting to fall from her face. Her thoughts went to Thunder Shield and Moondancer, Rarity and Sweetie Belle, and of course her own sister. Luminous suddenly felt like she had been lied to her entire life, but it was a lie she wish she could keep believing. It was impossible for her to imagine that the mother she knew, the one had saved her from death, would have saved her if she really was any normal paradox. That was why she need to know who she once was, even if it only made her feel worse.

“Please Tantabus,” She pleaded, shaking the being that had told her everything. “If you can dive into my memories from that other timeline than you must know who I was. You’ve already told me so much, and at this point I need to know,” She held her front hooves in front of herself. “Tantabus, tell me who this hoof belongs to, even if it’s going to kill me.”

The Tantabus wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to tell Luminous, even though it was what the ex-captain wanted. She knew the name of that pony, but the only reason was because of the amount of time she had spent in those memories. It was impossible for something like her to know how this would impact a paradox. It was clear that they weren’t suppose to have control of the events in their memory, and the impact it could have on the paradox to remember even something so simple as a name could damage them. However, she quickly realized that this was an issue she was going to have to deal with sooner or later. The princess had been given complete control due to her meddling, and the effects would have to wait.

“Alright, but I want you to remember that though she is you, that doesn’t make her all you are,” The Tantabus warned Luminous. The latter nodded as they had prepared mentally for whatever might happen. “Princess Luminous Oracle, you are the paradox of a special pony. Though you two are different, as your intellect is rather… standard compared to her, you had a special place in the world,” She let out a sigh, knowing that she was only stalling for time with those words. “That pony… is a unicorn, or as you can see now an alicorn by the name of Twilight Sparkle.”

The name struck Luminos like a dagger, and she lost all sense of sound as it went through her brain. Twilight Sparkle, just saying it in her head felt like she was seeing through entirely different eyes, which she kinda was. Everything seemed to make sense, and she reached up to touch the horn on the body she was in. That was the pony she was suppose to be, or perhaps the one she already was. She still felt uncomfortable about the entire situation, but it was reassuring to learn the truth.

“So… I guess that puts you in a difficult spot, and a question you need to answer now,” Luminous looked back to the Tantabus seeing that the being was rubbing her front left hoof. “You now know two entirely different ponies, one of which was once you and the other is the one you have know for your entire life. Before I wake you up, you must decide: Are you Luminous Oracle or Twilight Sparkle?”

Author's Note

To make up for a lack of uploads throughout October, here is a double chapter for November. Okay, so maybe not a double chapter as I don't remember and haven't checked when chapter 9 was uploaded but you know what I mean.

Anyways, please leave a like and comment if you like the story! I know it seems like something overly cliche to say but it really does help, trust me.