Author's Note

I am very sorry for the delay, but I hope you all enjoy this chapter just as much as I enjoy writing this. Despite how long it sometimes takes, I do really enjoy writing this story, and this delay allowed me to think of more and better things to show you. Hope you have a good time reading this!

Chapter 32: Benedictio et Maledictio

After a day of rest, Andromalius was summoned to Nightmare Moon in the evening. As the sunlight faded above the Everfree, casting the ancient forest into darkness it is so used to, the hell stallion entered the repaired throne room of the Summer Palace, wondering what the dark alicorn had for him this night. However, something else was on his mind as well.

His exile from Equestrian civilization resulted in him feeling like he barely got enough sleep or food. Nightmare Moon and her guards provided, of course, but he still felt no hunger, no thirst, and no desire to sleep. Of course, he still required rest after strenuous exercises or, as he remembered, when he was healing from an infected timberwolf bite, but otherwise, he was perfectly able to stay awake and without tiredness. He had a feeling it wasn't just how he felt - it was something more than that. He had a suspicion before, and now it grew even stronger - it seemed a different kind of energy sustained him, the kind that required no usual sustenance like food, water, comfortable temperatures, and sleep. If he was right, he was supposed to eat at least twice if not thrice the amount of food he consumed daily, considering his muscle mass and overall size, which was at least four times as large as his human body. Despite not eating enough, he saw no deterioration in strength or endurance, which raised a troubling question - what exactly kept him alive? He suspected he was not invincible - after all, he could get hurt and wounded.

"I've no idea why," Inanna told him when he spoke to her about it during the day, "I mean, yeah, you should be eating a ton of food to keep that impressive body of yours, and you also need to spend, I dunno, at least a few hours working out. But you do neither, right?"

"Yeah..." he replied, "I never really exercised all that much in the first place."

"Man, you're the dream of almost any stallion," the succubus let out a short laugh, "You do nothing yet have one of the most impressive, no, the most impressive body I've ever seen."

"That is nice, yeah," he let out his own chuckle, "But... I just don't know why I'm like this," he furrowed his brows slightly, "It's not bad, you know, but... I just want to find out why."

"I'll try to help you," Inanna promised him, "I think I know where to start, actually... Can you tell me who your parents are?"

"Well, uh..." he furrowed his brows deeper as he remembered, "I... was not born like this, as far as I know. My parents were human, and they didn't look like that, I think," and, after a pause, he added carefully, "Definitely not my father."

"And what about your mother?" the succubus raised one of her brows slightly, catching on.

"I... never knew her," Andromalius replied, a deep, thoughtful expression on his face, "I think my father would've told me about who she was if she was, you know, like how I look like now. A-and I also didn't look like this until I appeared here. But anyway, my father told me my mother couldn't visit me, she was... in some other country doing important stuff."

"Have your mother ever written to you or anything?"

"My father always told me she was busy, but she cared about me," he replied slowly as he went through his memories trying to find anything about his mother. Yet, he didn't remember how she looked, how she sounded. There was nothing about her at all aside from what his father told him. Was he even being truthful? He didn't doubt it as a child but now, with Inanna nudging him to remember, he finally saw that something was not right about it. He feared what it would lead to, and so he simply said, maybe a bit too quickly, "I really don't know..."

"That's probably the link you need to investigate," Inanna replied with a nod, "I don't think it's just an accident that you're like this. Things can be... weirdly connected, you know? Magic stuff, destiny, fate, whatever," she waved her hoof but stopped, her eyes becoming more serious, "I... didn't take it seriously for the longest time myself, maybe not completely seriously even now, but... things are definitely happening, you know what I mean?"

He still had this conversation in mind as he approached Nightmare Moon. She was standing at a window, gazing into the night as she raised the moon, her horn aglow. One of the guards was next to her, whispering something to her. She listened with a neutral expression on her face for some time before a frown took its place. After the guard finished speaking, the alicorn nodded and sent him on his way.

"Good evening, Andromalius," she spoke, half-turning to the approaching hell stallion, "I believe thine assistance is required in this matter."

"What is it?" he asked warily.

"We now have some information about the conspirators that may prove useful, and I need of thee to take a look at it," Nightmare Moon said and started walking away from the window, the moon now high above and shining its pale light onto the land, "Come with me."

Andromalius nodded and followed her. The two went through a couple halls before descending a stairway, going deeper down into the palace. The alicorn was silent, deep in thought, and the hell stallion had no reason to disturb her. For a time, the two walked like this, and the only sound was their steps echoing through the abandoned halls. Soon, there were no windows to provide light, and the two went into the basement. The dark corridors were only lit by their respective horns. Nightmare Moon glanced back at him for a moment, an unreadable expression on her face. However, the hell stallion failed to notice, having been consumed by his own thoughts.

"Tell me, Andromalius," Nightmare Moon spoke up, her voice echoing eerily across the basement, "For the longest time, thou hast remained a follower, one that listenth yet doth not speak first."

"What do you mean, your majesty?" he asked carefully, trying to get what she was hinting at. The tone of her voice, however, made him stiffen somewhat.

"Ever since thou hast appeared, thou hast been... apprehensive," she continued, leading him on, "Thou hast an impressive frame, magical potential like few others, and strength not many can easily achieve. However, thou hast not pushed for recognition, thou hast not pushed for leadership," she looked him in the eyes, "Why is it that thou art so unsure of thyself?"

For a moment, there was silence. Nightmare Moon looked at the hell stallion expectantly, wondering what his answer would be. Was it all a deliberate ruse as not to make himself a target? Was he hiding what he was truly capable of? It was no accident he appeared in this world, and his great power had a purpose, undoubtedly. If she could catch him on a lie, perhaps it would give her more than if he simply told her the truth.

"I, well..." he inhaled deeply, "I wasn't always... like I'm now. I never expected any of what happened to, uh, happen. I'm just your average guy, I guess."

"Average?" the alicorn blinked in puzzlement, "Yet thou art not. Apologies, but is it some kind of a jest?"

"Uh, no?"

"Then I truly do not understand..." she said slowly, "How canst someone like thee be so powerful in all but spirit? Unless..." she peered deeper into his eyes. An old proverb was true here - eyes indeed allowed others to see inside a soul, if only for a brief moment and for vague information. Some could close this window, letting nothing be seen, but she quickly found out Andromalius possessed no such skill - instead, the knowledge about him was there for all to see if they were willing.

In his eyes, Nightmare Moon saw deeply-rooted hesitation, a desire to stay out of trouble. It was a simple thing present in plenty of ponies she gazed into during her lifetime, but this one was different. These roots grew ever-deeper, shifting and contorting into a certain, yet unknown, pattern. Behind them, perhaps at the very basis of his soul, there was desire - desire, although simple, contradictory to what was on the surface; he wanted, even if he couldn't accept or realize it just yet, to escape the pit of the average, the trap of the middle ground, and the grasp of mediocrity. Not just hidden, but put there, there was the desire to become the best he could be. Perhaps it would've been on the surface once, yet it was replaced by the fear and doubt.

"Thou art cursed..." Nightmare Moon finally said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Andromalius asked, afraid of what the answer would reveal to him. However, the more he thought of it, the more the pull of the unknown affected him, making him want to figure it out, to find the reason. He could feel there was something amiss, something misplaced or put in the wrong place on purpose.

"Thou art destined to lead, not to follow, I am sure of that now," the dark alicorn replied with great conviction, "Thy potential is to be realized, thou must grow strong, never to cower. Thou canst feel it, canst thou not? Thou wantest more, yet something is holding thee back from what must be rightfully thine. Chains are wrapped around thee, preventing thee from becoming who thou art meant to be!"

Andromalius almost recoiled at how sharp and bright her eyes became looking at him. There was a fire in them, flames of passion, flames of something he couldn't quite describe. Yet there was also disappointment in those eyes, aimed at something or someone either than him. He couldn't yet understand, but there were seeds of thought inside his head, and he begun to recognize.

"Now I truly understand," Nightmare Moon said in what was almost a whisper, "Thou art indeed cursed. 'Tis a subtle curse undoubtedly, yet one is present. Now that I know where to look, it is indeed there. It pullth on thee, drags thee back into the darkness of ignorance and weakness. Canst thou not feel it?"

"I... I don't know... maybe there is something..." he said hesitantly, but deep inside, he knew she was right about it at least partially. Where did that feeling come from? He wasn't sure, but it was certainly his.

"There is the doubt, it is certain now," the alicorn nodded, her eyes bright with understanding, "Thine potential is limited by this curse. It must be undone."

"A-alright, but what about the thing that you wanted me to help you with?"

"It can wait, but thou canst not," she said firmly in response, turning around, "Come with me now, I believe I know the solution."

With fear and hesitation, Andromalius followed Nightmare Moon back up and then outside the castle. All this way, he wondered if he could simply run away, go elsewhere. The possibility of him having a curse scared him - when was it cast? How? By whom? For what purpose? How long had it been influencing him? There was one more question to it - was Nightmare Moon being truthful about it or was it a part of her plan? The answer to it was simple, he realized - she was truthful. He didn't think she could make something like this up out of nowhere, and he felt she was right. Many times in his life, he was excited about something, yet quickly grew either lazy or disinterested in it. At that time, he thought that's just who he was - a person who easily loses interest in things. He still lived a decent life, had friends - or maybe just acquaintances, he thought fearfully - and did just like pretty much everyone else. Of course he was never as successful as some, but he was not a loser either. At that time, he was content with having that position, and perhaps he would still be if not for the sudden turn in his life.

Now... there was more to his life, and he knew he had to do something about it, and he was doing what he thought was his best. However, this 'best' was perhaps not enough, he felt he could do even better if he could just... do better. As simple and as obvious as it seemed, there was an obstacle in his way that he didn't know anything about aside from what Nightmare Moon suggested. If it was indeed a curse, he needed to lift it, no matter what the consequences to that will be.

He started to recognize where they were going - it was almost his precise path through the Everfree on his first appearance. In fact, he swore he could see the imprints of his steps in the dark soil, barely covered by some new vegetation.

"Where... are we going?" he asked warily, looking around just in case of danger.

"There is a certain place in this forest, I think it will be able to help thee," Nightmare Moon answered as she strolled through the forest as naturally as its predators did, "For a curse to be lifted, one must know which curse it is. I can sense what it is, yet I cannot act on this alone. Instead, I shall put my trust in one of the wonders of this place... a cleansing pond. Any negative magic will be gone from thee once you take a swim in it... or so I have heard."

"Should we really try it, then? What if it does something, I don't know, opposite?"

"Thy worries are sensible," the alicorn nodded, "Yet I believe this folks' tale will prove to be true indeed. Luna, from what I understand, hath been to that place once. However, she is unwilling to reveal its precise location for... reasons neither I nor she seem to know."

"Then how can we find it?"

"Her thoughts reveal the way," she replied, "Despite her unwillingness to tell me the location directly, I have a vague sense of familiarity with this way. This sense... doth not belong to me, and I hope thou understandst what it implieth."

Andromalius thought for a second and then nodded in understanding. He didn't speak up again, choosing to try to sort his own thoughts instead.

Meanwhile, Nightmare Moon wondered whether freeing him from the curse would be beneficial to her. Her initial impulse of freeing him was replaced by cold, calculated, thoughtful logic. If she was right, the curse made him somewhat obedient, and it was undoubtedly a good reason to keep him under the spell. Power such as his could not be unchecked and uncontrolled. However, perhaps he would be able to fulfill his potential completely if the curse was lifted, in which case he would be much more powerful and thus far more useful to her cause. With the ability to grow beyond his current imposed limitations, and if properly guided and taught, he could prove to be a very competent ally in her quest. Of course, it would also mean he would become more independent and have an entirely free will of its own. However, Nightmare Moon had no thoughts to offer about it - she was created for one purpose only, and she knew not what it means to have a different one. Neither did she think about it in a negative way - her purpose was her purpose, and it gave her meaning in life, allowed her to not dwell on things she considered useless. Eternal Night must come, she had to work towards it, and the rest didn't matter much if at all to her.

There was, of course, the matter of Luna - she was still there, nagging at her mind, and Nightmare Moon desired to get rid of her. Yet she couldn't kill her - such was the pact. Perhaps Andromalius' growing power, as well as the possibilities his very existence offered, Luna would be given a new body and thus leave Nightmare Moon's mind for good... provided she didn't become an obstruction.

Weighing both options about Andromalius, the dark alicorn was more inclined to free him of the curse than to leave things as they are. She understood her choice might become regrettable in the future, but one more thing was clear to her - those who take no risks are doomed to mediocrity. Her own failures can either be amended or bring her downfall, both of which were acceptable from her perspective. She could never be gone from this world, she would always return. Every failure is an experience, and one day, those experiences would outweigh the possibility of making another fatal mistake. And on that day, whenever it would be, there would be success.

And so Nightmare Moon led Andromalius deeper into the forest, closer and closer to the pond. She could feel it was nearby, waiting for the two to come forth and wash themselves in its clear water. She wondered why Luna went there, yet the fragments of her memories and feelings provided little information. In truth, it was largely irrelevant - what mattered was the pond and Andromalius' curse.

"Art thou worried about something?" she asked the hell stallion, noticing a thoughtful expression on his face.

"I really think this is where I first appeared in this world," he said slowly, "And that's... weird."

"Truly so?" the dark alicorn raised a brow, "I find this peculiar, now... I wonder if 'tis no coincidence. Perhaps thou wast meant to find the pond but, at a turn of fate, thou didst not until-" she parted a thick bush, allowing the two to enter into an enclosed space containing a clear pond "-this moment."

"Wow... I think I saw these bushes before..." Andromalius stopped, an expression of genuine confusion on his face, "So... this is the place?"

"I believe so," Nightmare Moon nodded and looked around. The pond was surrounded by tall green grass. It was that nice color of green, not a muddy or grayish tone one would expect to see in the Everfree. The space was softly lit by a few big glowing lily-like flowers on the water, wrapping the surroundings and the two within in a sense of warmth and comfort.

"I feel like it, too..." he slowly nodded, taking in what he was seeing, "So, I just... go in there?"

"I'm reasonably certain thou hast to take a dive," the dark alicorn said, "This is the place where one cannot drown, so thou shouldst have no worries. I shall stand back and keep watch in case the forests' creatures come lurking. Go on, now."

With a nervous nod, Andromalius took the first step. The waters of the pond seemed inviting, yet there was some hesitation in the deep of his mind. He didn't think Nightmare Moon would trick him this way - it was too much out of nowhere. Besides, he now knew she was right, so why was he doubting himself? Was it the effect of the curse?

Now that he was there, he had to take those steps, be what it be. He didn't think he would die, he didn't believe it would cause him harm. Nightmare Moon was not an open person, certainly not an entirely honest individual - or so he felt - but, for some reason, a part of him believed - and wanted to believe - her. He took another step, his front right hoof now touching the water. It felt comfortably warm and... soft. It was not a physical sense in any way but a magical one - he felt his inner magic pleasantly resonate with whatever was inside the pond, and it eased his mind. Another step made his other front hoof touch the water, and the pleasant feeling grew in intensity ever so slightly.

Slowly, he went further into the pond, and he couldn't deny he enjoyed every second of it. His worries and troubles were gently eased until they pulled on his mind no longer, restricted to residing at the back of his thoughts, allowing more courage to go even further. Soon, he was covered up to his chest, and he could describe the feeling in only one way - it was good. He continued on his way even deeper into the pond, and his features slowly disappeared below the crystal-clear water surface.

Nightmare Moon remained standing where she was, watching him as he went. She had a thought about getting into the pond as well, yet there was fear inside her - perhaps this magic would restore Luna and thus render all her efforts null. Even more, the pond might unmake Nightmare Moon in her entirety, and this was a fate she did not and could not seek.

All of sudden, Andromalius completely disappeared in the water and could no longer be seen despite the transparency. The dark alicorn frowned, yet something assured her he would reemerge soon.

In a soft blue void, Andromalius floated aimlessly, dream-like. He thought he was supposed to be worried, even panicked - yet he wasn't. A sense of calm and serenity washed over him, keeping him from drowning in his own negative thoughts.

"Hello, Andromalius," a voice called, genderless and ageless, yet soft in its tone.

"Hello... pond," he replied somewhat awkwardly, but a pleasant smile didn't leave his face.

"I know why you are here," the voice continued, "I know your doubts, your fears. I know who you are and who you were. There is indeed a spell on you, one that is supposed to keep you from achieving greatness."

"...Alright," he said, becoming silent for a few seconds, "As simple as this? You can lift this curse, right?"

"Indeed I can, but this is no curse," the voice told him, their emotions unreadable, "Do you still wish for it to be lifted?"

"Wait, it's not a curse?" the hell stallion blinked in confusion, "Then what is it?"

"From the perspective of the caster, it is a blessing," the reply was, "It was conceived of no ill will, and it was not made from indifference to you. Details... evade me-" the tone changed to a slightly surprised one "-but this spell was made to protect you."

"How?"

"I don't have an answer to that," the voice replied, "And I know not where or when to find it. However, there is one thing I am allowed to know - this protection is at your discretion. Do you believe you need it or do you believe it must be lifted?"

"I... I think it should be lifted," Andromalius replied nervously, "I do want to do more, to become more. All my life, I was... average. I didn't see a huge problem with it then, but now... I think I do. I'd rather achieve something, but not for the sake of glory or wealth, just... just because I want it. So yes, I think this curse or blessing or whatever it is has to be lifted."

"It is your choice and your choice only," the voice replied simply, "The consequences of the said choice are yours also."

"Ah, and... who are you?" the eyes of the hell stallion became clearer this moment as he focused his mind away from the softness and comfort he felt.

"I am this pond," the voice answered his question with as much emotion as before, "My nature is to lift spells, curses and blessings alike, at the request of those who find me."

"Are you... a pony?"

"No. I am this pond. How we communicate is the easiest way you would understand me," the voice replied, "Are you ready for the spell to be lifted? After this, you will emerge, and soon after, our encounter would be mostly forgotten like dreams are forgotten."

"Yeah, I am ready."

Without a pause, Andromalius was standing in the pond, his head above the water just enough to allow him to breathe. He blinked a few times, coming back to his senses - the water was still warm and comfortable, but his head was now clear. He felt... relieved. Something was no longer pressing on him, no longer taking space in his thoughts. The closest explanation he could think of would be like taking off the slightly too tight clothes at the end of the day. One wouldn't notice the tightness during the day, but the relief from getting rid of it was always apparent.

"Welcome back, Andromalius," Nightmare Moon said from the shore, breaking his line of thoughts.

"How long has, uh, have, I been... away?" he asked, finding it just a bit difficult to speak at first as his thoughts came back together.

"Perhaps a minute," the dark alicorn replied, "I can see thou feelst the release from the curse, dost thou not?"

"Y-yeah, I do," he nodded, deciding not to tell her what he heard from the pond about the supposed curse.

"Then let us come back to the palace, I have yet to show thee what I originally planned to have thee see," Nightmare Moon nodded and turned away, "Perhaps now, with thy mind clear, thou shalt notice what thou otherwise wouldst have not."

Andromalius followed the dark alicorn out of the area, and the bushes closed it off once they exited. He looked back, and now nothing looked out of the ordinary. He knew the pond was there, but he would have never found it without Nightmare Moon's help otherwise.

And now one question about it remained inside his head - how could this curse be a blessing?