Three Wishes

Everything is pitch black, but a ray of light shines upon me. I feel too afraid to leave this little area of light, as it gives me a sense of warmth and protection. I look up, and am blinded by the intense light. “. . . You don’t understand. . .”

“Hello?” I ask. “Who’s there?”

“You’ve been lied to. . .”

“Where am I?”

“You’ve been lied to. . .”

“Where are you? What’s going on?” Suddenly, long, black bars shoot out from the ground. They surround me, encaging me in a tiny space. With my heart racing I grab hold of the bars, desperately searching for the source of the mysterious voice that echoes throughout this place.

“This is my home.”

“W-Where are you?!” I shout.

“I’m here, with you.”

“What do you want from me?!”

“I want to help you. . . You must heed my warning.”

“What do you mean?!” My head is now sweating, and my throat is thrashing from my screaming. “Who are you?!” The voice goes silent, and I can feel something dripping down my hands. Trembling, I raise my hands into the light, and find them coated in streams of red, glistening fluid. My breathing becomes uncontrollable as I attempt to wipe my hands clean, but no matter what I do, I cannot rid my skin of the red fluid. The bars surrounding me quickly sink back down into the ground, and I walk backwards out from the light with my eyes still glued to my hands. I lose my footing, and plummet downward even further into the darkness. It feels like an intense weight is pushing down on my chest, and I feel completely hopeless as I watch the only source of light shrink the further down I go. I am stunned as my back slams against the bottom of this pit, and my eyes fly open.

I lean up from my bed, and throw the blanket off of me to help relieve the heat. I wipe my forehead with the palm of my hand, and find it coated in sweat. After wiping the sweat onto my nightshirt, I press my hands onto my face as I catch my breath. With it being so hot in my bedroom, I get out from bed and stumble over to the window. The glass is so cool to the touch, and upon opening it, I am hit with a refreshing blast of wind. I breathe in the fresh air, and gaze up at the sky. Princess Luna’s moon shines brilliantly up above, and the stars twinkle with delight. I can already feel myself calming down as the sight takes me over. I don’t know what it is, but the night sky always fills me with this rather magical feeling. Something the morning sun really can’t replicate. Maybe that’s what makes the night special. I never get to speak with Princess Luna as much as I would like. It almost feels like she tends to avoid me on a consistent basis. No, that can’t be the case. She has no reason to, so there’s no reason for her to avoid me.

I hate this. This is the part where I just can’t stop asking myself questions, and I won’t be able to get back to sleep no matter how hard I try. There’s really only one thing that helps my mind focus and steer away from all these questions. I open my armoire, and retrieve my boots and armor. After dressing myself, I grab my crossbow from under my bed, and hang it over my shoulder with the sling. Also, I grab a case filled with plenty of bolts, and head out into the hall as I quietly close the door behind me.

I traverse the dark hallways, trying to keep the noise from my armor to a minimum as to not wake any of my fellow knights. I enter a new room, and inside are large, tall windows that allows much of the moon’s radiant glow inside, illuminating most of it. I set down my case of bolts, and load one into my crossbow. I plant my feet firmly on the tiled floor, and aim down the sights towards a target several yards ahead. I take a deep breath to help keep my arms steady, and with my sights locked onto the circular, red area in the center of the wooden target, I pull the trigger. The bolt flies through the air, and nails the red area of the target. Wanting to continue to test my accuracy, I load another bolt into my crossbow, and aim down the sights. I take in another deep breath, and with my finger on the trigger— “I thought I might find you here!” Somepony suddenly bursts in, and I jolt in the process. Upon recognizing the voice, I roll my eyes and lower my crossbow. “Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt . . . for the twentieth night in a row,” says Heinrick as he approaches me. “Let me guess: same nightmare as before?”

“I just don’t understand,” I say. “It never changes. . . Are your dreams always the same?”

“Nope.”

“Well, that’s good to hear.” I lift up my crossbow, and aim the sights down towards the target.

“Come on, Two-Legs, what’s going on?”

“What do you mean?” I fire the loaded bolt into the target, feeling achievement as it’s not too far off from the first bolt.

“You’ve been acting different ever since the party down at Ponyville. Did something go wrong when you were with Twilight Sparkle?”

“Nothing went wrong.” I load another bolt into my crossbow. “What makes you think something went wrong?”

“Well, when we all got back to the carriage, you were already there with your head low. Not only that, but you said absolutely nothing on the way back. You just kept staring at the floor.”

“Look, it’s nothing to worry about.”

“Oh, I beg to differ.” As he continues, I aim my crossbow at the target. “We’ve been friends since the start; I know how you are, and never have I seen you so down. So, of course it worries me.” I fire the bolt into the target and sigh.

“It just . . . wasn’t what I was expecting, alright? I got uncomfortable—so I left.”

“Oh . . . well, you could’ve come back to the table with me and the girls, you know? We all could’ve had a good time with you there instead of waiting by the carriage. You didn’t have to waste your time out just sitting there.”

“Thanks, but . . . I think I just needed to be alone.”

“. . . Have you talked to Princess Luna? See if she can do anything about your nightmares?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“Why not? I keep telling you that she can help—”

“She never has time!” My voice echoes throughout the training room. Realizing how loud I’ve gotten, I lower the tone of my voice. “I always look for her, but she’s never around. I always ask permission to meet her, but Her Majesty always says she’s too occupied with other things.”

“I’m sure that she’ll be able to help you in no time.”

“It’s not like it matters now. I’ve been able to cope with it all on my own; I don’t need her.”

“. . . Must be getting boring shooting that same target over and over again, huh?” I sit in silence, too heated to even look his way. “How’s about a little sword training since we’re here?”

“No, thanks. We need to make sure we’re up in time for the funeral tomorrow.”

“Well, it’s already the middle of the night, and both of us are clearly wide awake. So, why not pass the time with a little practice?” I sigh with impatience, hoping he would’ve returned to his room by now. “There’s a rack of blades right behind you. Go ahead and grab one, I’ll be right here.” I glance over to the wooden rack lined with longswords, then to Heinrick who is casually leaning against a pillar as he waits.

“Shouldn’t we be using the wooden swords for this?”

“I think it’s about time you get some practice with the real thing. You’re not afraid, are you?” Giving in, I let out another irritated sigh as I walk over to the rack and grab hold of one of the swords by the handle. Swords have always been strange for me to hold. The handles are fitted for a stallion to grip by their teeth, and it feels awkward in the hand. I work around it to find a comfortable way to grip the handle, and remove the blade from the sheath. The one immediate difference I notice between this and the wooden swords, is that this is much heavier. The belt attached to it is too big for my waist, so I leave the sheath behind and return to Heinrick. “Alright, now take your stance.”

“Heinrick, this really—”

“Take your stance!” Realizing there’s no avoiding it, I plant my feet firmly on the floor with my right foot forward. I grip the handle with both hands, and point the tip of the blade outward towards him. Heinrick draws his sword with the handle gripped in his mouth. I’ve always admired the design of his sword from the tip all the way down to the pommel. The double-edged blade is made of a sleek and slim silver, and the handle is gold with many intricate designs carved into it. His scabbard also is golden and ornate. The top of it is decorated with the emblem of the sun similar to the one on the chest of my armor, and diamond-shaped jewels extend all the way to the bottom in a single file line. “Ready to lose?”

“I suppose.” Heinrick lunges towards me, and the training room instantly fills with the sounds of our blades clashing and armor clanking. The heft of the sword is quickly wearing out my arms, and Heinrick doesn’t seem to be breaking a sweat. “I hope you’ve got more than that. This is just me going easy on you!” Eventually, he has me completely on the defensive as he chases me around the room with the only viable option for me being to block. “Well, at least you’ve learned how to defend! But you can only defend for so long before you give out!” He’s right; I can’t keep relying on evading his attacks. If I don’t try at all to be offensive, then this fight isn’t going to end well on my end. After a successful block on another one of his relentless attacks, I whirl around and swing the blade towards him. Somehow, with his keen reflexes, he blocks my blow and our swords lock. He and I put all our might behind our swords, trying to break the other’s guard. “You know, you should be careful when you think you can outdo your opponent’s strength.” My arms are growing numb, and Heinrick pushes my sword away. Without any energy left to recover, he whips around and bucks me straight in the stomach. I fall flat on my back, and lay my head back as I allow my arms to rest. "Especially when you know you can’t win.”

After a few seconds of resting, Heinrick walks over and holds out his hoof to me. He lifts me back up to my feet as I use the sword to keep me standing while I catch my breath. “Hey,” says Heinrick. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Yes, you did,” I say whilst still breathing heavily.

“Sorry, I might’ve gotten a little carried away.”

“Forget about it.” I lift up the sword, and look Heinrick straight in the eyes. “Let’s go, round two.”

“Alright! That’s what I’m talking about! Hey, before we do anything else, you might want to splash your face with cold water to cool off.”

“You’re always looking out for me, when you’re not kicking me in the stomach. I’ll be back in a second.” Heinrick laughs as I walk passed him, making my way to the restroom. I leave the restroom door open just a crack to allow some of the moonlight in. My weary, sweaty palms grasp the cold, metal faucet handle. The metal squeaks as I turn it, and water spews out from the faucet spout into the sink. I cup my hands under the running water, and splash my face a couple of times feeling the refreshing chills of the cold water. I gaze into my reflection with the mirror above the sink, allowing the coolness to sink in as the water drips down from my chin and into the sink. I splash myself a few more times, and even run my wet hands through my hair to bring relief to my entire head. Wiping the water from my eyes, I find that even though my hands are up to my cheeks, my reflection shows my hands are down to my sides. I look on confusedly as I also notice my hair in the reflection isn’t even wet. I move about and tilt my head, but my reflection doesn’t move. I lean closer, and reach my hand out to touch the mirror.

My reflection’s pupils lock onto mine. “Hey,” it says. I reel back in terror with my back to the door, unsure of what to do. “Please, don’t be afraid,” my reflection holds his hands up with an apologetic look on his face.

“H- . . . H-How. . ?” I struggle to utter the word.

“Please, you need to listen.”

"Is . . . is this real?"

“Yes, this is very real.”

“Heinrick . . . I-I need to get Heinrick.” I grab the door handle, ready to rush out of the restroom.

“You can’t!” I freeze, and let go of the handle. “Please, allow me to explain.” I turn back to my reflection as it looks to me with concern. “You and I are the same. All this time I’ve been trying to contact you, and now I finally have.”

“I-I don’t understand. . . If you’re real, then what’s the point of all this?”

“You’ve been thinking an awful lot about what happened earlier today.”

“Yeah, what of it?”

“Aren’t you the least bit concerned?

“I have no reason to be concerned.”

“Is that so? Then why did Twilight Sparkle attack you? The Element of Magic, a loyal subject to the Princesses, and she tries to subdue a member of the Royal Guard? Not only that, but ‘you’ in particular.”

“She was testing me.”

“Testing you? Or were her intentions darker than you think?”

“What are you suggesting?”

“Couldn’t you see it in her eyes? Hear it in her voice?”

“No . . . I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Immediately memories of the fight flood my mind. Twilight’s voice rings in my ears, and as I shut my eyes to try and block out my reflection, the voice grows even louder: ‘A disappointment indeed. . . A true coward.'

“Were those words from somepony trying to have a friendly spar to test your skill?”

“Stop. . .” I can almost smell the smoke from the burning books, and even with my eyes shut tight, I can almost see the reddish light of Twilight’s beams of magic. The room feels as if the temperature is rising rapidly, and I’m becoming more tense with each passing second. ‘One of us is going to get seriously injured! Or worse!’ My voice rings in my head. ‘That’s what I’m counting on,’ Twilight’s voice then answers.

“Or, the words of somepony that truly wanted to harm you?” I press my hands against my ears to hopefully deafen my ears to the onslaught of voices.

“Please, just stop. . .”

“Maybe not even just harm you. Perhaps . . . she wanted you dead.”

“I said stop!” I yell at the top of my lungs to the mirror. The sounds and voices in my head thankfully end, instantly granting me a sense of relief. However, my sudden anger has only begun to boil over. My reflection looks to me with his arms crossed, and a sincere look on his face.

“You need to hear the truth.”

“No! Nothing you say is true!”

“Now, it’s only a matter of time before the Princess learns of what happened. After that, who knows what she might have in store for us?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you honestly think she’ll react well to ‘one of her most trusted knights’ attacking one of the Elements of Harmony?”

“No . . . No, this isn’t happening.”

"Let's consider the possibilities: imprisonment, for one; perhaps even banishment. . ." My anger is fading to a woeful misery as I attempt to call my reflections words nothing more than a fabrication. However, in the back of my head I know they do in fact hold truth; and it’s that same undeniable truth that sends me to my knees.

“I-I was only defending myself.” My voice now reduced to a pitiful whimper.

“That may be true, but whose word do you think the Princess will take? Yours? Or her precious, loyal student?” I can feel my eyes starting to water as my mind runs rampant with thoughts of what sort of punishment might lie in wait for me in the future. At this point, there’s no denying it. He’s right, and it’s only a matter of time before she finds out. “There, now you’re starting to realize the truth.” I open my watery eyes in shock, as if my reflection had just read my thoughts.

“B-But. . .” I look up to the mirror. “What am I supposed to do?”

“Well, the way I see it, there’s two options.”

“A-And what are those?”

“Either we stay here, you go about your life as normal, and hope for the best.”

I wipe the tears from my eyes. “What’s the second choice?”

“You leave.”

“Leave?” My reflection then nods his head. “I-I can’t leave. This-This is my home. Her Majesty cared for me—taught me everything I know. She, this place and everypony within it . . . they mean so much to me.”

“Do you think ‘you’ mean the same to them?”

“I . . . of course. Of course I do. Th-They care about me; I know they do.”

“That’s what they want you to believe. Trust me when I say that neither the Princess nor your fellow knights feel the same way as you do. That includes your friend, Heinrick.”

“You’re wrong.” I hang my head in denial, staring down at the sleek tiled floor. “Heinrick and I are much closer friends than you think. He’d never betray our friendship, that’s what this kingdom is built upon.”

“. . . Soon you’ll understand.” Suddenly, there’s a knock at the door.

“Hey, Two-Legs? You doin’ alright in there?” Heinrick asks from behind the door. I find myself curled up and lying on the cold restroom floor as if I had just woken up from another nightmare. I quickly get to my feet, wiping my face clean of any tears that may have ran down my cheeks, but my face is oddly dry. I turn and look into the mirror, and am thankful to find my reflection follow my every move as it should. Although, I wonder if what I had just experienced was in fact a dream or not. “Two-Legs? You alive?”

“Yeah . . . yeah, I’m fine.”

“Alright, good. Had me worried there for a second.”

“Hey Heinrick?”

“Yes?”

“Did you . . . hear me saying anything earlier?”

“Nope, not at all. Why?”

“No reason. Don’t worry about it, it was a stupid question.”

“Alright then. Well, are you gonna be any longer?”

“What are you talking about? I was only in here for maybe . . . ten minutes.”

Heinrick laughs. “Yeah, sure you have. You’ve been in there way longer than that. Maybe twenty, thirty minutes tops.”

“Th-There’s no way. . . How. . ?”

“I don’t know if you’re too busy crying because I won the first round or whatever, but you should probably hurry up before I start falling asleep.”

“Alright, I-I’ll be right out.” I gaze into the mirror once again, waving my hands around to see if maybe something will happen. I then notice something peculiar: my hair. I run my fingers through it, and find it to be nearly dry. I did wet my hair, but I’ve been in here long enough for it to almost get completely dry. None of this is making any sense, and I try to keep it out of my mind as I quickly turn away from the mirror. I leave the restroom, and meet up with Heinrick who’s pacing the floor as he waits for me.

“Finally. You ready for round two?”

“Sure, let’s do this.”

“Hey, are you feeling okay? You seem a bit . . . shaken up. Like you’ve just seen a ghost or something.”

“No, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, it’s just been a long day.” I glance back to the restroom. The door has been left slightly ajar, and I can almost feel a presence staring back at me from the darkness inside. Heinrick and I continue to spar with our blades, but I still can’t seem to land a winning strike on him. I suppose I shouldn’t expect anything less. He’s been trained since the beginning with that weapon, whereas I’m only a beginner. After a few sparring sessions, I can tell he’s beginning to suffer from fatigue, so I suggest that he should go back to his room to rest. He disagrees, but after a bit of convincing, he finally gives in. As he and I leave the training room and part ways, I instantly regret my decision. I know he would’ve done his best to stay awake with me throughout the night, but he needs his rest. I lay in my bed, tossing and turning with thoughts constantly running through my head. I feel too afraid to even attempt to fall asleep, as I fear what I might see in my dreams. All those things my reflection told me are almost embedded in my head. Thoughts of imprisonment and banishment keep me wide awake, as I wonder if any of that could actually happen to me. Perhaps it was a warning, or maybe I'm just overreacting. I ask myself over and over if what I had experienced in the restroom was even real, or just some kind of vivid hallucination. One thing’s for sure: I’m going to try to avoid mirrors for a while.