https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do44ZJvpiYk

Princess Luna, Acute Sway, Amelioreit Reverie, and Nyxaura Ripple (although barely anyone knew his full name) stood in a four-point star surrounding Fear. The small stallion stood in the middle, gradually lowering onto his haunches as his heart hammered in his chest. His family was proud of him for what he'd accomplished. Luna wished she'd had someone like him in her service long ago. Fear just brushed it off. Saying Shaybna and his other family members were the real winners in that fight.

Saway slapped him upside the head and told him to just take the compliment. Nyx was impressed, Amelio haughty and satisfied.

But now they had an entirely different goal in mind, as they sat on the moon cultivating the power at their hooftips, their hooves touching together, with Fear as the cornerstone of the spell. There was a sensation of static charge in the air, the scent of ozone, and the pressure of willpower and focus being exerted, all of it concentrated on the center.

Luna called on the liminal space, summoning hypnagogic powers that whirled around her.

Amelio narrowed her peace on their focal point.

Nyx borrowed the power of those he'd known from his past, aiding the princess in her summoning.

Saway cried out for the nightmares in her heart, those attached to her soul and those on the moon.

Fear just tried to look inside himself but... didn't have any inspiration. He didn't know what to seize in his own mind. The Fearshatter spell seemed so far away from him, so beyond him.

As the others channeled their power, creating a stable current, it felt as though their psyches were going to tear apart and disperse into motes of thought. Eventually small orbs of light looking like multi-pointed pinpricks rose from Luna's mind, surrounding the group and shimmering, sparkling, and twisting about.

Amelio was familiar with the motion, it reminded her of the chains of destiny, but shaped as stars rather than four dimensional polyhedrons made of crimson chains.

Fear merely tried to suss the dormiens out from their little corners of the place beyond consciousness. He knew their signatures well enough by now, that common ingredient that made up their souls.

They all kept their eyes shut softly as Luna finally spoke, her voice bellowing on the moon. “As we discussed, Fear, we will harness the power of your namesake and infuse these viral vectors, scatter them across the Liminal Space, and inject it with this programmed power.” She paused.

“Let us begin.”

Saway was the first to poke Fear's mind, her raspy voice sounding out. “Colt. Think back on Linebreiker, the time when you defeated her.”

The currents worbled as a sensitive, tender issue was brought up in Fear's mind.

“Yes?” Fear tentatively asked. “What about her?” It was only Fear's ability to meditate that resisted the current’s instability.

The world hummed with various asynchronous chiming notes like one would imagine a crystal to generate.

Saway spoke again. “Think back to it, what spurred you to fight her? We told you to, but what was your reason? What did you see in the future back then?”

Fear was hesitant at first. “I saw the potential in others, I saw that others could do miraculous things with a little bit of prodding. After going through it myself, I wanted to make sure everyone had an opportunity to do that. I...” He opened one eye briefly. Amelio was staring at him.

“Go on, Fearei,” Amelio nodded once to encourage him. “Let it flow.”

Eye falling shut again, he continued. “Hmm... I guess I forgot about a lot of it? Of what it meant to me back then.” The stable current vibrated again, nearly losing control as sensitive issues arose. “As Faith shot me. I lost control. I lost my past and future not because she killed me, but because I gave up on that fact for the briefest of moments, and Breiker used that to steal it from me.” Fear cringed forward, then rocked back. “But when I reattained it... as Amelio's presence warped inside of my mind, I remembered what I had forgotten. That the potential is not lost.”

Nyx pushed Fear forward. “Yet you've had a hard time trusting your family. You felt reluctant to trust them with the Overvalkying, as you told us.”

Fear nodded, pushing out his lower lip, jaw tensing. “Like the hero in my new novel, I'd seen them falter. I'd seen them at their worst. I'd seen them fail. And I suppose I just wasn't over that yet. I'd seen my mother fail when I was so sure she could take on the world and get anything done.”

“And yet you are now more powerful than her,” Luna finished for him.

“Yeah. The novel's hero reconciled with it all, but I never did.” Fear bowed his head, starting to have second thoughts.

“It is okay, Fearei, keep going.” Amelio's voice was soft, gentle, at peace. “You can do this. We will walk you through a new epiphany. I feel we are close.”

Fear mumbled something under his breath and breathed in deep through his snout. “All of those things traumatized me. Gave me trust issues. Not only that but I haven't forgiven myself. There are a lot of things I technically haven't forgiven myself for, even if I'm slowly moving forward despite. I couldn't be there for me, no one could be there for me when I killed that colt and father. I couldn't be there with my family for Breiker, and I couldn't be there for my mother.” He squeezed his eyes shut. The frequencies of the magical spell were fluctuating, becoming unstable.

“Calm, Fear,” Luna whispered. “We are here for you.”

Fear's eyes popped open. “Yeah. You are. Discord's also been there for me, just differently.”

The others froze up, stiffening.

“He's been trying to get me to rely on myself. But he didn't want me to rely on myself. He wanted me to rely on my ability to bring others to my cause.” Fear's voice gathered confidence. “He wanted me to tear the world a new one with my power and the power of others. Just like you're there for me. I was lucky to meet you all, but in the end I earned this. I need to learn to trust you all and myself more. You're all doing this because... because we are in it together. We all have our own specialties. Our own importance. Anyone could be where I am.” The emotions were beginning to flood like tears out the eyes, but without the crying. “I've been focusing on all the negatives, all the things I couldn't do, because the negatives are what made my world what it is. And I thought that...”

Amelio smirked slightly.

“I thought that if I kept focusing on the negatives, I'd be able to avoid the mistakes of the past. But... but... I need to accept it, discard it. Be careful, but move on. That was how I healed every time. I didn't heal because I beat myself up over shit, I healed because I moved past it, and made myself better.“ Fear's eyes gained a bit of luster. “I need to accept, be content with the negative. It's resulted in me constantly seeking what isn't, to the point I couldn't see what is. I couldn't see what Gentler was capable of, how he was able to get us free all on his own.” Fear grit his teeth, seething heatedly. “I need to... need to do both.” It seemed so obvious in hindsight! How could he be so dumb? Fear's breath came out in hissing pants. His body flexed. Magic pulsed around his horn. The hum turned to a vibrant thrum.

Fear continued. “Back then, back with Breiker, I was beginning to see the beauty in my flaws. The beauty in the flaws of others. The beauty in my inability. How everything had its place. And I was pushed away from that revelation just as I was getting close. I can see the passion in anger, the strength when it's controlled. I've utilized it multiple times. I see the hard work and endeavors in struggle, I see how meaningful it is.” His voice was rising in volume, slowly but surely. “I see the passion in it! I see the sickness in sadness, and how it contrasts with the times you're well! I see the difference between when I've been damaged, with the times I've been at my healthiest. And I've experienced its fluctuation like all of life.”

The others lifted their heads, feeling the magical output increase. Letting Fear get it all out, come to his finale.

There was a mild pause. Fear's face was scrunched up, the emotions overwhelming him.

Amelio's voice rang out. “Keep going, Fearei, we are almost there.”

Saway next. “We can't stop now, colt.”

Nyx merely nodded. “You're doing fantastic, Fear. As always.”

Luna smiled serenely. “Your efforts have always amazed me.”

Fear pulled from his deepest trenches, pulling on his strength, his voice cracking with raw emotion. “I saw, and I see, that it's an experience to be had, and to be revered. The grace in failure, and the determination to keep going anyway. The heftiness of the fall, the profoundness of a downward spiral. These things, these coping mechanisms.” His voice came with a powerful resonance, amplifying his magic. “Avoiding putting my family in danger isn't helping me. Being scarred by my mother's death wasn't aiding me. It was holding me back! I gotta trust all of you, trust myself, and I gotta stop letting my doubts control me! I had it all well in hoof, my plan to defeat Seele and Zetta was nearly perfect.” There was a pause.

“And our plan to defeat the dormien is perfect too!”

Spectral electricity crackled and leaped off of Fear's body, zapping along the ground and bouncing in the air, eddying and twisting, jagged wires throwing about from Fear's form and stinging the stars filling the air around them.

Everyone felt the new presence, but they kept their eyes shut. It was Discord. His paws were on Fear's shoulders. “And it will be perfect enough, Fear.” Discord's voice enunciated from the void. “You've been here for everyone, even if 'they' haven't always seen it. You've done your fair share. Let us move toward the future with you.” Fear had a lot to explain. Just like the draconequus to sow chaos at such a pivotal moment. Fear's brow creased as a strange celestial symbol permeated in his mind's eye, looking flawless until you admired the keen details.

Chaos magic shunted into the beaming stars surrounding the group, giving it a dose of change so that it would inevitably evolve as a spell alongside the Dormien's attempts to get free.

Fear's voice was enraged, his face squeezed up, an outpouring of emotion funneling from his body. Teeth grit, sound coming out in a hiss. “It's time I let go! It's time I learned to rely on others and myself! On friendship! Harmony! Discord! And everything else in the world to get shit done! I realize I'm not just connected to magic!!” Fear's voice echoed on the moon, invigorating his on-edge allies. It felt like they were being charged with lightning, their fur standing on end. “I'm connected to my family! Zetta was wrong, I was wrong!” That's why Discord didn't help me, because he was trying to teach me to rely on others and what I've already done, not a demigod with near unlimited power. Even if he could do anything he wasn't supposed to! It's why he's been hiding his intent! “It's okay to be bailed out! Dayvie and Eden were right, I should try to find a way to be happy and at peace with my circumstances all the time, not just when it suits me. I shouldn't be afraid to lose others, we'll always have enough, we'll always be enough!” Fear's eyes popped open, white washed. Jaw hanging open.

The thrum built up into a steady, coursing electrical whine.

“I'm discarding this, finally! I gotta... gotta break through to the other side!”

With that, an inordinate, terrifying amount of emotion funneled into his thaumic gland, being converted into an incredible volume of magic, the Fearshatter spell fully unleashed. It engulfed them all in polychromatic hues, zapping between each and every one of them like they were Tesla coils.

Luna finished with a calm, solid incantation. “We must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration.” Power rose, power screamed from them. Everything tremored around them. “We will face our fears, permit them to pass over us and through us.” As Luna spoke, her voice took on the old Royal Canterlot edge and volume. “And when it has gone past, we will turn our inner eyes to see its path! Where the fear has gone, there is only emptiness! Only we will remain!”

The shuddering stars evaporated, being teleported into the liminal space to be dispersed to every single edge, in specific points where they would be most useful, bridging between each other and creating a protective cage, a firewall around the expanse. They hung in the air, thrumming, humming, pumping and whining as power convulsed in their cores, before the Fearshatter spell, and everything else the quintet had gathered between themselves, was injected into the void. There was no 'surface' to prick. As the stars imploded.

Multi chromatic spiderweb cracks exploded, spiraling outward, then connecting each thread like a snowflake, expanding and pulsating outward, taking on the whole of Liminal space, going to the edges and beyond. Taking Kioku's field of consciousness and cleansing it of impurities. Of those who wished to siphon despair.

It went so far beyond, that every living creature that was awake looked to the sky in a mass movement. Feeling a sense of purification that sent the hackles rising on end. A trail of goosebumps spinning through the mind's eye, along the neural matter. One that was quickly dismissed as an electromagnetic phenomenon or something similar.

Those who were asleep felt a sense of peace and power that had no explanation. No nightmares would come this morning, nor likely ever again as long as Luna had something to say about it.

Fear's, Nyx's, Amelio's, Luna's, and Saway's voice rang out on the moon, the nightmares joining in the symphony and screeching as power was released from them into hypnagogic space. Before they stiffened and slumped slightly, Fear actually falling over onto his stomach, his head throbbing, awareness bouncing in and out.

And as they quieted down, a dying roar escaped the liminal space, causing reality to shake. A whole species murdered in one fell swoop. Finally considered toxic to the liminal space. Their goals, their being, their information gathering, obliterated. As if there had been a snap and then... nothing. The spell had removed them in totality.

The others looked up, around at each other, then laughed. They could feel the difference. A difference in tension, a difference in atmosphere. Fear and Amelio confirmed it. They felt no dormien anymore.

They were dead.

Luna spoke up. “You have a lot to tell us, Fear. You've been hiding a lot, it seems. But I shouldn't complain, I asked you to hide my presence from the world and let me deal with it as it comes, after all.”

Fear just sighed, twisting his head to the side. “In time...” he whispered. “I gotta recharge my batteries first, then go check on everyone.” He smiled. “But first... let's go back to your dream-bubble, Princess.” There was a playful tone to his voice at the utterance of her title.

The others just glanced between each other again, feeling accomplished, proud, satisfied, and relieved.

They had done it.

They could return.

The nightmares receded from Luna's moon, revealing it to the world once more. Lunar eclipse... gone.

While Nyx prepared to send the lot of them back, everypony except himself at least, Amelio approached Fear from ahead. “Fearei. I have something to show you.” Her tone was a little conspiratorial, a bit awkward, as if she wasn't entirely up to what she had to do. A foreleg was held against her chest.

Fear cocked his head slightly. “What is it Meels?”

“Voila,” she declared while holding a hoof out and tearing a hole in spacetime. On the other side was a lounge filled with various shades of orange and purples, as if the entire place had been painted with a sunset in mind, with no single other color anywhere. With a smile on Amelio's face, Fear balked.

“Show me what??” He sounded confused, a little taken aback. Fear poked his head through and looked around. It was definitely a lounge! Like a rich person's living room, but rather quaint. One would expect there to be a pleasant vinyl record playing in the background. Victorian in appearance.

Amelio merely stepped behind Fear and shoved him in while giggling, sending him tumbling through to the other side. “Have fun with Kioku, Fear,” she quipped, waved, and then sealed the rip shut as if zipping up a hole before it poofed away. Luna approached Amelio trying to figure out what she'd done, and she explained. Not that Fear was there to hear.

The space beyond had an altogether much different atmosphere to it. Kind of melty, sort of stagnant. It was like being trapped inside a humid room while sleeping, as though you were going to become a puddle and explore every nook and cranny. That was how Fear felt at least.

“Please,” a sultry, masculine voice came from behind a door. “Make yourself comfortable, Fear.” A gentle, singsong caw tittered in the background.

Fear was hesitant, his ears flicking as he looked around. The setting was a little atrocious, but it was certainly cozy in an odd way. It just felt like he was... stuck, if such a thing made sense. Stuck between a rock and a hard place. Yet it was far from uncomfortable. It felt like he'd been caught within a room of lukewarm pillows. Fear casually approached the sofa near a writing desk and jumped onto it, before flopping his rear down on its side and holding himself up with weak forelegs. With a little bit of telekinesis he pulled a lavender pillow toward himself and let his body flop onto the fancy cushion. The place had an aesthetic he'd never seen before, but it was far from unpleasant.

Just a bit stuffy, if anything. Rather sophisticated rather than homely, though it was that too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxyrNfjUFdY

When Fear was finally finished looking around, as if on cue, the door to Fear's side opened up and an avian stepped out. It was a bipedal crow, much like what Eden had been like – clearly the same species, or at least portraying himself as something similar. He wore fancy Victorian clothing made up of greens and purples, with a tuft of a tail behind him that resembled charcoal coat tails but made of plumage. His chest was thick, ample, somewhat protruding albeit without cleavage - a sort of proud, hawk-ish quality. His beak craned at the tip in a fanciful manner. The eyes though... they were a pool of glossy gold with piercing honey-colored rods spilling in the center, almost overtaking the pupils. Kioku, as he was named, had a pair of purple pince-nez glasses on his beak, and was carrying a tray with two mugs of coffee.

Kioku set the tray down on the table in front of Fear, and sat in the luxurious chair across from him. He sat back, adjusted his shoulders, and slowly sank into the cushion. He leaned forward merely to pull the mug off the tray and raise it to his lips.

“Your glasses are pretty cool, kind of fancy.” Fear stated simply, trying to make conversation, immediately falling into the flow of social requirements. It was only one other person after all! “My mother wore glasses.”

“I'm aware, Fear.” There was an amused grin in his voice as he took a sip and sighed, leaning back again and relaxing. “It has been a long time since I've had company.”

“Where'd you get your glasses from?”

“More of a construct, than an actual pair.” Kioku twisted a feathered wrist a few times, rolling his eyes to the side. “Please, have a sip. I want you to feel at home.”

Straight to the point, “Why'd you want me to come here? You clearly asked Meels to bring me but... why?”

Kioku lifted, then rolled his shoulders. “Mmh. Just want to thank you for taking care of the dormien and offer a proposition.”

A frustrated purr escaped Fear's lips, eyes lidding. “Why aren't the others here? They did a lot too, you know.”

“I know,” Kioku stated simply. “I'll be thanking them in due time. Granting them something they desire, provided it is within my power.”

Fear finally acquiesced and rolled a hoof, his horn lighting up as he picked up the mug and brought it to his lips, draining it down his throat. It was warm coffee. He only knew because of its texture and the hints of cream mixed in, due to having had the stuff from an MRE once. Only it was a much different taste than the bitterness he was used to. It had a light, sweet and fruity flavor with a hint of spice or nuts. “What exactly is this?” He cocked his head, looking down into the dark broth.

“A roast made from coffee beans sourced from a tropical resort. Do you like it?” Kioku's grin had returned, looking down his small pince-nez glasses at Fear, then taking another sip of his own beverage.

“I do. It's right up my alley.” Fear's eyes darted from side to side. “You've been watching me haven't you?”

“Yes, you and the others. What can I say? The lot of us gods like to get around.”

“This isn't just about the dormien is it?”

“A little...” Kioku cooed.

Silence filled the air as the two drank their coffee.

Fear deadpanned. “You guys have it all wrong. I'm not all that great.”

“What makes you say that, Fear?” A curious, needling tone to Kioku's voice.

Fear sighed, lowering his shoulders, having adjusted himself to be sitting up, on the cushion he'd pulled to him. “All of this.” He whipped his head from side to side, then gestured with a hoof. “This bullshit. This welcoming committee. All of you. Just... need to leave me alone. There are so many others that deserve this kind of treatment. I'm not the only one doing important things.” His voice was a little forceful, a kind of rough grunt.

“Don't worry too much about that, Fear. The others will get their just desserts in time, especially as you continue to work hard and put in the effort. If you suddenly were to stop then... things might not go as they should. But it is like that for everyone and their efforts, as I'm sure you understand.”

Fear was shaking, then sighed, setting his mug down. He lifted a hoof and pressed it against his forehead. He was trembling. “I don't... understand. What are you? What do you want with me? Why can't you approach the others first? What is so special about me?” There was a knowing hint in the last question, as though Fear had already ascertained why but didn't want to believe it.

“I am a harbinger of balance. I exist on the cusp of everything. Twilight is my domain. Everything that switches sides passes through me. I am the icon of defection, the deity of what can be. Lingering potential, the moment before an explosion as the chemicals mix together. The seesaw between remembering and forgetting, containing that which is on the fringes of oblivion and creation. That which repairs.” Kioku poetically phrased, rolling a feathered hand and setting his mug down. “As for what I want with you, it is as I said, to give you a gift.”

Fear had finally had enough, he hopped up onto his legs suddenly and with a powerful show of telekinesis upended the table in front of him, sending everything crashing to the ground. He was breathing heavily, quaking in place. His expression wasn't one of fury, but fright. A strange juxtaposition.

The two remained silent for a time. Kioku just analyzed Fear.

Fear finally sat back down and held his face in his hooves. “I'm sorry.”

Kioku merely snapped his fingers, and everything was back to the way it was before. “Don't be. You're under a lot of pressure right now. You're treading a very fine ledge at the moment, and I don't blame you. Just make sure you don't let yourself tip over the edge in reality and you'll be fine.” The crow picked up his mug again and sat back. “You have a lot of explosive energy in you right now.”

“I don't understand why I'm here.”

“I can't answer all of your questions, Fear,” Kioku stated simply. “They are answers you must come to for yourself. Come to accept for yourself. You're close to grasping it.” He sipped his drink. “Just try to relax a little for now and drink some coffee. It'll help sooth you.”

Fear was silently crying, his chest feeling heavy. After the epiphany from earlier his mind was exhausted and he was teeming with unresolved, undigested emotions. He wiped his eyes and took his coffee, carefully drinking it. He swallowed hard. Eventually he spoke once more. “You already said you wanted to give me a gift. I assume you can't tell me your full reasons for it, and I assume it's not just because I helped you with the dormien.” He looked around. “I also get the feeling, the fact that we're not rushing things, this is a place of halted time.”

“All valid observations,” Kioku stated simply. “You are correct on all counts.” He simpered slightly, tilting his head smugly. “You are a clever stallion, picking up on small details and extrapolating. Of course you are not perfect. Your fight with Seele proved that.”

Fear looked up, huffing. “Yeah? What do you know about it?” He sounded combative.

“Well, for one, you could've transformed yourself to soften the blow upon landing on the train. Maybe you wouldn't have been forced to take a nap then.”

The fury seeped out of Fear like steam, his body turning into jelly and nearly collapsing. “You're right...” he muttered. “I hadn't fully planned out how to land. In hindsight it was obvious. But I'm still growing.”

“You are still growing. Mistakes usually turn out for the best but still your potential is great, and the way you live your life...” Kioku sipped his drink and took a moment to swallow. “You just keep gathering more. The way you rush... you might be pushing yourself a little too hard. You need to take a step back. Otherwise you're going to tire yourself out or explode.”

“I don't have time,” Fear abruptly stated. “There'll be time for that once this is all over.”

Kioku tsked. “It is never truly over, Fear. As Acrid stated, you can afford to take a break, and as you said in your little epiphany, you must learn to be happy despite your circumstances. And part of that...?” He was needling Fear to finish the sentence.

“Part of that,” Fear continued for him, annoyed, “is learning how to detach myself temporarily.” He sighed. “Digest the emotions on the fly.” He shook his head and groaned.

“You'll get there, Fear. Just keep trying, keep working at it.”

Fear mumbled something under his breath. “I'd say we're wasting time but... do you mind if I stay here for a bit?”

“We're going to be here for awhile, Fear, only until you finish.” Kioku answered, as he finished his drink and set it down. “While what I have to teach you isn't... intense by any means. It will still require a little bit of time. You will be out of commission likely for a few hours healing your mind.”

“Uuuuuuugh.” Fear nearly wept. “Putting effort in all day and pulling all nighters. I should be used to it by now.”

Kioku merely grinned.

“What did you want to teach me?” Fear was a little frustrated that he couldn't get a straight answer. While Discord's avoidance was cute, Kioku's was infuriating and he wasn't sure what the difference was. Maybe it was that Discord was coy and playful, but Kioku was serious and analytical. The mood was entirely different between the two of them.

“I wished to teach you how to utilize your inner light, so that you could become a shadow within the shadows and your inner shade so you can hide yourself even in bright light. A light within the light, and resourcing yourself so that you may be your own darkness.”

“Sounds almost philosophical.” Fear joked sarcastically. “Like you're trying to tell me how to be my own self, an individual.”

Kioku nodded. “It is in part that. Elaborating on your own inner potential and identity in order to exist within that which subsumes all. Being between while also within. It is in large part a philosophical exercise. Thought intensive, I guess you could say.”

Fear breathed in deep, filling his lungs to bursting and holding it in, bulging his cheeks out. Then gradually let it out. “Alright. Let's get to it.”

“Remember Fear, take life a little more slowly.” Kioku admonished.

“No time.” Fear stated simply.

Kioku smirked slyly. “Make some.”

==========================================================================================

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTb4TnSJEH0

Flitter... had gotten himself into a bit of trouble! Hanging out behind a slab of fallen concrete in a residential area, some rather tall apartments. His chest was heaving, death-gripping the silenced pistol in his telekinetic aura like Fear had taught him to the point his hold was trembling, throwing off his aim. His eyes were wide and dilated and he realized... he'd probably pissed off the wrong ponies as shots pinged and rang out over the din, stabbing into the concrete behind him and threatening to shoot through if they'd been made of a higher caliber.

Pip pip pap the shots hammered into his hiding place.

The Maneami Manifestos were not the kind of group you wanted to piss off and scavenge in their territory.

As Flitter said his prayers, doing the Celestial equivalent of crossing yourself by tapping himself on chest and both eyebrows, something he'd learned from a traveling preacher, Fear alighted down next to him.

“Huh? What's going on here?” The stallion looked down at Flit and then around the corner curiously.

“You! What are you doing here!?” Flitter demanded with a hoarse, scared voice. Broken but tougher than he was capable of.

Fear glanced to the colt, smirking to one ear. “You been getting yourself into a little trouble in waking, Flit?”

A vehement blush spread across Flitter's cheeks as a whole host of different emotions crossed his face from fury, to shame, to offense, to relief. “Waking!? What's going on!? No! The Maneami Manifestos are really after me! I've done it this time! I scavenged where I shouldn't have!”

Fear pat the colt on the head. “Alright, hang out here for a bit, I'll be right back.” Fear summoned a sword from his horn, and twisted the light around himself and the sword so he'd be invisible, fading from view, before darting around the concrete piece.

Eventually there were screams, the gunfire stopping, and guttural noises echoing in the air as throats were cut. Within only a minute Fear had returned to an awkwardly baffled Flitter.

“What... what'd you do!?”

“Killed them,” Fear replied with a shrug. “You're safe now Flit. I'm here for ya.” He pulled the colt into a hug.

Only for Flit to shove him away, blushing even more furiously. “I didn't need your help! I had it all well in hoof!”

“Hahaha! Starting to get addicted to the sensation of doing everything yourself, huh Flitter?”

“What's going on, why are you here?” Flit deflected.

“I wanted to check on you. See how you were doing.” Fear twisted a hoof around. He felt exhausted. Strained. Tired. But he could at least do this much.

Fear was probably pushing himself too hard.

“Well! As you can see I've clearly made enemies of some big name folks around here! And not only that but... but... I've only made them angrier because you killed Relish's minions!” Flit declared, falling to the ground and holding his hooves over his head.

Fear knelt down next to Flit, reaching out with his consciousness and hanging onto him so he wouldn't... flit away. “Don't worry. You're just dreaming. Don't let the shock wake you up though.”

Flit felt surprise, disbelief. Then twisted his head around as the environment melted into sludge, becoming incorporeal and vague. “I'm... dreaming?”

“You are.” Fear stated succinctly. “But that doesn't mean you're not in danger in waking. So what's going on?”

Flit was tentative, biting his lower lip as he sat up. “I...” He looked up at Fear with watery eyes. “I might've gotten a little in over my head. I scavenged in the Maneami Manifesto's territory because I was looking to make the big caps. You know how it is, right?”

“I do,” Fear grinned. “And now you're worried they're going to come for you. That someone saw you. Knows who you are and is going to hunt you down, yeah?”

“Yeah...” Flitter admitted with a lifted shoulder. Adjusting himself. Staring at the ground.

“Try not to worry too much. What happens will happen. What matters is you pushed your limits. Try not to focus too much on the fright, otherwise you won't be able to think of solutions. You're a smart, capable colt. You just need to apply yourself to the situation.”

“And how am I supposed to do that!?” Flit demanded.

“Well I don't think you have the time to be learning shadow walking, so that's a no-go.” Fear hummed, grinning from ear to ear. “But you still have your mouth, your legs, your horn, your gun, and your crowbar. All you have to do is figure out how to use them.”

“And how am I supposed to use them?” Flit was angry, not getting answers just riddles!

“Apologize, run, maybe go to another city. Or, who knows? Maybe learn to talk your way out of situations. Hype yourself up. Tell them they'd be lucky to have you on their side. Try to make yourself out to be a big tough stallion on commission. More experienced than you are. Anyone can be charismatic if they just take a role and adhere to it with all their heart. It's all about acting.”

“Acting...?” Flit questioned, his eyes glazing.

“Yeah. Nothing more to it than just exuding presence, exuding atmosphere. And you do that by acting a certain way. It takes practice, but anyone can do it once they figure out how. It's different for most creatures.” Fear sat on his haunches, throwing his forelegs out wide, gesturing magnificence.

Flitter looked down, deep in thought. “I guess... I guess I could try that?”

“Try not to get yourself killed, Flit. I'm sure you can do it. Just remember to not let power go to your head...” a light flicked on in Fear's eyes as he realized he was saying the same things others had said to him. “And you can let yourself get as incredible as you want to be.” He gently ruffled Flitter's mane. “But right now I gotta get going. There're a few other things I have to do before the night is over. I'm sure you'll remember the important parts of this dream when you wake up.”

Flitter was disappointed, showing genuine vulnerability for the first time since Fear had met him. “You're going?” He cocked his head to the side, pouting slightly.

“Yeah, Flit,” Fear confirmed. “It's up to you to do whatever comes next. I believe in ya. Just keep practicing in front of a mirror or something. You'll get it soon enough! And who knows? Maybe no one saw you in their territory if you were sneaky enough. You'll get there.” Before he left... “Oh and one more thing!” He lifted a hoof. “Something my mother once taught me. If all is lost, take stock of all you have and do a brainstorming session. You'll figure something out.”

And with that Fear vanished from Flitter's sight, leaving him to either craft a new dream all his own or wake up. Leaving him with words to think on.

“Creepy ass stallion,” Flitter spat. After a moment, “at least he came to check on me. However it is he did that.”

==========================================================================================

As Fear went about checking on Eden and a bunch of others (all who turned out to not currently be sleeping), he thought long and hard about the lives of the ponies he'd encountered and dealt with over the past some odd years, comparing it to his own. I wasn't far off the mark in just how lucky I've been despite what everyone says. I've been so lucky. In essence I did grow up very privileged. Fear hummed, narrowing his eyes and squinting as he flew through the liminal space's flow, honing in on particular wavelengths. I had a brilliant, albeit imperfect mother to teach and guide me for however long, but I also had a lot of other things like my father's sacrifice. I am, at heart, an heir. Fear gave some further consideration. No, that didn't sound entirely right. What would his sister tell him? What would she reveal to heal him?

Fear let his eyes fall shut. No. It's not just that. I am an heir, and I've inherited the faith, fortune, and skills of others. But I did put in the work. I put in the effort. Mom was only able to teach me because I was willing to learn. The others were only able to give me their skills because I wanted to grow stronger and I put in the effort. And I am actively working to take their skills to the next level, to my level. I am making them my own. Like others have been telling me, I need to appreciate that. He let his eyes fly open, a sort of snarling look laced behind those pupils. That impostor concept slowly cracking, little seams appearing in the surface. I'm lucky and privileged, but I worked my ass off to get here nonetheless, and...

After a moment of realizing where this thought train was going, Fear's eyes softened, a frown forming.

I'm going to give others, everyone, the same privilege I had one day. And I can't die until I've done everything I can.

With that, a smile graced his lips, tips twisting upward as he ultimately returned to Luna's dream-bubble to talk with her. The others were likely fully settled in by this point. A raucous boom of muted lights and sounds exploded from him as he rocketed off back toward his destination, having finished with Flitter and found no others currently asleep.

Alighting down in the courtyard, Fear flicked his head to the side, a bit of discomfort trailing behind him due to the previous burrow of thought. His eyes remained lidded, kind of tired, a lot of energy spent on that previous epiphany and the ever growing one, the one he could feel hiding under the surface like he was going to vomit. Sleep was supposed to be relaxing, but learning and remembering aspects of yourself always took an integral toll on you. A little huff and Fear pushed his way past the melting threshold between visions.

Fear gave Saway a little hug, once she was open to it, telling her he was proud of her for slowly opening up a little more.

“It’s about time I did, yes,” Saway drawled out. “I’ll never stop… being uncomfortable with touch. But you’ve earned it colt.”

That was enough to bring another smile to Fear's face as he recommended Saway try exploring some dream bubbles sometime, just as a sort of ninja. Exploring and hiding. Watching.

“I’ll… consider it Fear. But I’m not too keen on invading others’ privacy,” Saway rasped out.

Fear insisted she at least talk to Luna about livening up the dreambubble. It looked exactly the same as last time. They needed to put some spicy new experiences on top of all of it! Not just live in samey comfort all the time.

As Fear left Saway to think on that ideal, Fear headed to the chamber of moonlight, where Luna normally resided, to talk to her. Everything blurring together.

“Little Fear!” Luna shouted gaily, quickly trotting over to him, body looking as though it'd fall apart with a single step. Despite that, there were no shakes or tremors. As weak as it looked, it showed no vulnerability. An odd juxtaposition that was not lost on the young stallion.

Rolling a hoof, Fear grinned wryly, tilting his head. “You look like it's been an eternity since you've seen me Luna.” In all honesty, that was almost how it felt! It had certainly been a long time in a timeless space.

“Hah, I'm just glad you're okay, especially since...” Luna glanced off and to the side, biting her lower lip.

Fear perked up, eyes and ears lifting. “What? What happened?” He took a step forward in alarm, but Luna just seemed tentative and bashful.

“I should have expected... uh. Well.” Luna stood up a little straighter, fixing her face into a frown. “When you killed Zetta, a type of... mh, kill switch was set off among the Dormien.”

“Wait, what!?” Fear squeaked, hopping up and stomping down, eyes wide. “Were... was anyone hurt!?”

Luna shrugged. “Not... explicitly.” She rolled her eyes, and a hoof. “We took care of the problem soon enough to prevent it. And you're lucky, and I mean incredibly blessed Fear, that you did it so close to the morning when ponies you know tend to wake.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYJzAK5Cm90

“I sense a 'but' coming, Luna. What's going on?” He twisted his head to the side, gazing at her suspiciously. She clearly didn't want to worry him about something but what? “Was someone I care about in the line of fire?” Then it popped in his head. “Wait, you mean they...” Fear paled, his voice trailing off. He shuffled backwards and shook his head. “They... they... no! They wouldn't... wouldn't go that far!?”

Luna nodded serenely, sadly. “Yes. I don't know the sheer extent of it, but based on a conversation I had with Freiya who was being attacked at the time we set off the spell, and who also checked alternate timelines, I suspect the Dormien read your mind to some degree the moment you were killed that time, and knew those who had deep connections to you elsewhere in the wasteland, and they'd attempted to murder them in their dreams.” She paused.

“You dodged a metaphorical bullet, Fear. If you hadn't gone to sleep when you did things could've been much, much worse than they turned out to be.” A tense silence spilled forth from the void, encompassing them both. “When you killed Zetta...” a shaky, weary sigh. “An alarm rippled throughout the liminal space and crossed to the umbrans. They know you are close. They know you are making your way to them. There is not much time left, we must try to strike a vital, deathly blow before it is too late.”

A bout of uncertainty washed over Fear in the form of chilly tremors at the thought of his entire battle being for naught in one single moment. Having stood on the brink of the precipice of oblivion without even knowing it, was enough to choke someone. He thought about that umbran's, that murderer's final words. Thought about Acrid, thought about his feelings, contemplated life and everything that'd happened to him up to this point in life. The feeling of being railroaded into a single destination with no way out. Constantly. Inevitably. Charging forth on undeviable rails screeching under a life that was out of control. A broken, damaged train covered in patchwork fixes and good-enough repairs, most of which didn't hold up under the hurricane whirling about it, trying to tear it from its grip and send it careening into the abyss of nothingness. Fear's life had been incredible, unbelievable, and difficult. Every day had felt like an eternity, and given being young made days seem like weeks, and weeks seem like decades, every single minute that passed was one in which hopes and drives were tested.

In the end, what am I? What do I believe in? And what do I strive for? What can I even do? I could not fix the status quo. Trying probably ended in the deaths of more than he saved. One single element in a grander life could not hope to make such a huge change, and even if Acrid succeeded, would he not inevitably need to do it again? Would he be alive? Would he be around to do it again? With a world filled with creatures who scavenged, a demigod who could only give basic necessities and old tools, rampant with racism, hatred, fear, and loneliness, what could Fear possibly do in the long run toward such an insurmountable mountain? Heavy, unfocused exhaustion was all Fear felt in that moment. It was the sole deciding factor rocking through his entire being, surreal and real alike. There was no solution, and there likely never would be a solution. There would likely never be true hope, never be true peace. More than likely he'd have to sacrifice purity for prosperity, and prosperity for good enough. That, or perhaps he would be no more than a comfort horse in his reality's final moments until the point Discord ran out of magic and there was no longer anything to salvage.

The end of equinity, the end of draconity, the end of life in Equestria ultimately, as others beyond failed to learn from mistakes and let their night terrors, insecurities, and weaknesses get the better of them. Leading to mutual destruction all over again.

In the end, it's not the future that matters but what I do right here and now, what feels right to me. I've been through so much, I can't give up now just because of how overwhelming everything is.

Fear's bones creaked under the weight of himself, the world that he could never carry even in his dreams, and his muscles twisted and bruised from the weight of his own desires, hopes, and dreams. No matter how much magic could change, it could never, ever change something as impure as all of this.

But it didn't matter.

“It's fine Luna.” Fear's confident, beaming smile was back. While his eyes had taken a heft, and his legs were bent, he was still the happy go lucky colt he desired to be. “We're gonna be fine. I'm gonna make sure of it, one way or another.”

The confidence to move mountains, began with a single step.

It was all he could do. Focus on a brighter future, and focus on the what ifs even when all his focus was lost. Befriend all he could, until the end. Leave no stone unturned, leave no one in the dark.

Fear began the long road in explaining Discord and his involvement with the draconequus, but asked Luna to please let him have his time isolated until he was ready to reconvene. In the grand scheme of things, a petty thing such as chaos versus order seemed trivial against what they now faced. While Luna hesitated, she acquiesced.

Biting his tongue, Fear thought on his next thoughts carefully, a sense of palpable, carnivorous guilt, a feeling of anchor-like responsibility, gnawing at his mind and leaving him with questions. But eventually the question slipped out, nervously. “Luna...?

“Yes, little Fear?”

“I feel weird asking this, because for a lot of reasons it still feels like... it makes me stronger dealing with it, and it makes me feel as though it'll keep me in line. It also feels appropriate for my life, and to remind me that-”

“Little Fear, please, what is it?” Luna's tone was calm, patient. But pressing. Trying to cut through to the issue at hoof.

Fear looked up at her with sorrowful, pained eyes. Slightly dull, a pitiable sight. “Saway recommended I ask you if you could teach me how to use nightmares to soften the pain of my leg, when it occurs.”

Luna straightened herself out a bit, cricking her neck, and smiled warmly, reaching down and nuzzling the young stallion. “Is that so? I appreciate you asking me, I can only imagine what was going through your head to make something like that difficult to request.” Luna stood up tall and stomped a hoof. “Yes I can teach you. It is very akin to the Nightmare Pressure my protege has taught you, but far more... mh. Intricate.” Pulling the hoof away from her chin, Luna's eyes sharpened. “It involves suppression. It is a dark, toxic manifestation of the shadow. While you should never suppress your feelings, your pain, sometimes it must be done to function in the heat of the moment, am I not right Fear?”

A sway of the head, a rolling of the shoulders, and Fear finally eh'ed. “Yeah I guess so. It sounds like you're warning me though.” Fear paused. “Why?”

Luna's vision narrowed, chuckling. “Ever so astute, my skilled learner.” Closing her eyes, Luna coughed behind a hoof. “Indeed you are correct. Toxicity has a manner of... corrupting that which lies around it. By utilizing toxicity to your advantage, you risk becoming addicted, or worse, unawaredly drowning in it until it consumes you. Causing you to rely on it, or become it. As they say, one bad apple spoils the bunch.”

“Wise words.” Fear uttered. “But honestly? I think I'm ready for that kind of thing now. I'll only use it if it's entirely necessary.”

“Exactly as I wished to hear, Fear. Now, you must start with...”

==========================================================================================

Fear was laggard at this point, having been through a lot in what felt like a... well. A long time honestly. His mind was half asleep even inside his own mind, even inside the liminal space he felt like he was drifting between awareness and non-existence. A delirious feeling he'd only experienced a couple times in his life. A few times during his initial training to go up against Solanum, and again when he'd been envenomed by that faux Breiker. But he still had a little bit more to do before he could fully, entirely sleep. He had to plan the next abilities he'd learn in case he had to take on more umbrans (he was barely keeping up as it was, in his opinion), and also speak with Shaybna.

Which is why, in the Canterlot Castle Gardens, he'd summoned his familiar. His sword. His friend.

Friend, huh? I certainly have made a wide variety of friends. Ex-raiders, weapons, different species, royalty, prisoners... hm.

“When you are finished in your reverie, Fear we will discuss business.” An amused glint laid in Shaybna's tone as the humorous slitted eyes in her mirror mask gazed toward her wielder.

Fear shook his head free, though it was more of a symbolic gesture than a physical one. Clearing his mind he spoke loud and clear. Then his voice died on his lips with gaping open mouth. There was a moment of silence as he peered at Shaybna.

“Yes yes, Fear. I do know. But even then the formality of inquiring is just as important as the answer itself. Just like when incanting, just thinking it is not enough, you must birth it into the world. Take initiative, not just wait for others to give it to you.” An implied smile. “You are no fae.”

Fear rolled his shoulders and threw a smile to the side. “Yeeeeeah, the basis of unicorn magic. Right right.” Fear sighed deeply, and bowed his head for a moment. “I wish to know what the next rune does. What it is.”

Shaybna straightened up, and tilted her head. Amusement spreading through her mirrored features aside from Fear's reflected face. “It is a Tiwaz. And its power is amplification. I am sure you are already churning with thoughts of how to use it.”

Fear blushed slightly, gritting his teeth in a grin and sitting back on his haunches, tapping his chin. “I... I mean yeah I am. The question is, can I mix sword spells?”

“Perhaps. With more training under your belt. But then you are no stranger to practicing your crafts day and night in succession, nay?”

“You could say that.” Fear's lips flicked up on the side. “But personally I have some other things I wanna push it toward. I'm guessing, just extrapolating based on the word. That it can be used to power up low level spells into something that can actually be functional, without as much effort as it'd take to do it normally?”

“Quick witted as always. I am sure your “audience” is getting tired of it.”

Flabbergasted, Fear's face looked like he'd been slapped across the face. Dumbstruck. Then it occurred to him. “Ah, right, my mind. Right right. Connections, all that good stuff. Almost like Omega Storm.”

“Indeed.” Mirth flowed from Shaybna at Fear's reaction. “You had another question, yes?”

Sighing, Fear nodded. “Ye'h. I wanted to ask what was the next rune. Is there a final one? Is there one you can get only from having enough power? Can I choose which ones I get? Have I been subconsciously choosing them?”

Shaybna merely bobbed her head once, having let him finish so that it would fill the air. “In order, I will get to that, yes, yes, and somewhat. For the last – I have been picking the ones you need to fill out your repertoire.”

A risen brow. “As in?”

“As in with the light spell, you needed a way to pierce through armor with your sword, did you not? You do not have armor piercing rounds. I picked up on your desire for that.”

Fear rubbed his chin with a hoof. “Hmm, yeah you're right. I don't talk about it much, but it has been beneficial. Getting through concrete has been easier.” Not that it'd ever been shown explicitly, it wasn't important! Fear had a life outside of the audience's insight. “And?”

“You have been desiring elemental capabilities for a long time, ever since you first learned how to use lunar and shadow magic. I fed off your excitement at the prospect, and after you'd seen your aunt use fire and cold magic to amplify her massages, I knew it was something you desperately desired. And that having it in your sword would eventually make you prone to using it in your everyday magic.”

“Okay so did you get my cleverness or were you always this intelligent and crafty?” A sly look flowed across Fear's face.

“Always this intelligent, as far as you know. Besides? Who knows? It could have come from your older sister.” Shaybna hid her mirror behind a hoof, looking askance with an air of amusement.

“Yeah it's likely from my sister. Without a doubt.” The easy admission threw Shaybna off. “So knowing this, if I had to guess the reason for you choosing the scouting spell was because of my insecurity and worries of not having enough information to take on my enemies?”

Shaybna murmured behind her mask. “Precisely. Having not known the capabilities of the zebras, and wanting to understand what the umbrans were capable of before going against them. Having wanted to investigate areas to keep your friends safe. All of your past experiences compiled into that... choice. But it was not my choice, it was your choice, through me. As it has always been.”

“Alright then.” Fear gave a nod. “So what about this amplify spell?”

Shaybna's tone became sultry. “You have to even ask?”

“No, you're right, I don't. I've been wanting this ever since dealing with Seele. You're right.” Fear pulled in a large breath of air, so to speak. “Okay, so what's the next rune you expect me to unlock?”

The two stood staring at each other for a long moment.

“That's a dumb question you're right.” Fear bowed his head and rubbed at his mane with a hoof. “I already get it. Uncertainty has been eating at me, and having been exposed to my late ancestor's talent of precognition, or rather varicognition, I've been wanting it too. And you can already tell I've come up with a method to mimic my mother's old talent.”

“Mhm. You are correct, Fear.” Shaybna's voice became low. “You are a fast learner, which belies your appearance.” It sounded like an insult, but Fear knew what she meant. “Though perhaps that is inherently the benefit of your recklessness. Your sister may have been talented, but your mind never, ever stops finding solutions, does it?”

Fear swept his head and a hoof through the air. “Well I mean! When you grow up in the wasteland with death around every corner, with the same constant twenty four seven anxiety your mother apparently had, all you can do is constantly look for solutions!”

“Tsk.” Shaybna clucked her tongue. “You need to take a rest Fear.”

“No rest for the wicked.”

“You are not wicked, Fear, as much as you may occasionally think yourself to be.”

“I can rest when I'm dead.”

“If you do not rest, you will die sooner.”

Fear looked down at the ground, caught in a rock. “I mean. Okay you're right.” A long, drawn out sigh escaped Fear's lips. “I need to at least get this last thing done, then I can rest as long as I wish up until it's time to go on a new journey because opportunities have been presented.”

“That will have to suffice,” Shaybna purred.

==========================================================================================

Tick, tick, tack. A white plastic ball pitter-pattered across a green wooden slab. Bouncing once before being struck back to the other, bouncing again, only to be countered by another paddle. As it popped over net time after time, lazy swings punctuating chill times, one in lion paw one in warm vanilla chroma, two figures danced in place with smiles on their face.

“Why do y'all keep comparing me to Twilight anyway?” Fear's voice more of a murmur.

Discord grinned and swung, smacking the ball to the other side in an arc. “I'm sure you can figure that one out on your own, Fear. Hmhm.”

Sighing deeply, Fear managed a wry smile and flicked the paddle, sending the ball careening back where it came, nearly teetering off the edge of the table. “Yeah, it's been tickling my mind for awhile. Thoughts, theories. Feels like you're pushing me to a conclusion I don't want to accept, nor can I ever accept.”

“Clever stroke,” Discord purred at both his words and the move. “It's reasons like this, that I trust you, you eggscellent little creature.” A pause as Discord took the next counter and swatted it toward Fear with a wrist snap. “A very well meaning colt, strange, unassuming.” Hah. “Untalented, but clever and determined, unlike...”

“My sister who was naturally skilled.” Fear's eyes shone as he spiked the ping pong ball into Discord's field, nearly slapping him in the face with it. “Going somewhere with this?”

Discord chose his words carefully. Prying at Fear's psyche a little bit at a time. Fear was aware, Discord was aware he was aware. “Lulu was similar in a lot of ways, to you. More prone to the dark, to the glimmering light. Sloughing through the darkness and guiding others to the right path. ...Inadequate.” A slight sneer crept across his face.

Fear rolled his eyes. “And Amelio was like Princess Celestia, correct?” The original bearers of the Elements of Harmony, albeit incomplete once they'd been separated due to their tethers being strained. “Fortunately I never turned into Nocturne Fracture.” A guffaw.

It was Discord's turn to roll his eyes. “Come up with that off the top of your head mmh?” Discord gave the ping pong ball a tiny baby tap to send it arching back to Fear's field, before, with a slight spin, twisting to the side at the last second. Even if Fear saw it coming, it kept the game interesting. “But... yes. There are many parallels, many ties.”

“But they're not concrete, correct? Anyone could have them. We just happen to be on this particular train.” Fear curved the ball back in Discord's court.

Smack. Right back at him. “Indeed. But I'm sure you're aware how no matter how railroaded we are, there's always the opportunity to jump to another one. Ergo...”

Fear traced the paddle through the air, tapping it in return. “Ergo... reality can shift with imagination, wisdom, and energy. As you've mentioned before.”

Discord's eyes dulled, a far away look coming to him. “Yes. Every egg must bide its time, keep itself safe, until the day of its hatching arrives.”

Fear continued, as their ball pattered back and forth. “Yeah, but how do you know when the time to hatch has come? Every young child will likely die if they arrive too early, or miss their chance if they go too late.”

“Sometimes...”

“Sometimes,” Fear continued with him. “We must act despite our current state, and not let the past tie us down.”

“I knew you were going there,” Discord hummed. “A wild storm, you are. Shackles couldn't hope to pin you to the wall.”

“I learned something from my sister Breiker. There is happiness, and prosperity in freedom. She just went about it to a desperate extreme.” Fear paused, and swallowed, slamming the white orb back to Discord's side as he watched the moonlight above gloss over it. “She wanted freedom, but she was the most trapped of any of us. She needed healing, truth, laughter, and compassion.”

“Wise words,” Discord purred in response. “So where do you intend to go from here, after all this is over, Fear?”

“Well,” Fear began with a shaky voice. “We seem to be on the cusp of victory. I don't think there's much of anything, if anything, that can get in our way now except for some dumb death throes from a species that wants to continue existing. I wish there was a better, kinder way to resolve it, but I don't think there is. Trying to talk sense into the umbrans seems difficult when they literally feed on despair and are ready to kill you, and anyone you're familiar with if you become a threat to them. It's disconcerting. Stands against everything I believe in. And reminds me...” Fear dragged off.

Discord's eyes narrowed. “Reminds you of how terrible the wasteland is, and has become, yes?”

“...Yes. I don't think there's any hope for the wasteland, beyond just trying to rebuild. The only hope I have in my heart is the hope to go day to day, and the hope that I can make a difference in others' lives, that I can continue making friends until something in this world finally gives way and leads to prosperity again. Yet I'm so sheltered. And I haven't done as much as I'd like to do. It's not like I'm actively seeking out steel rangers and trying to commune with them. Even if I did, I wouldn't know where to... to start.” Fear's voice was awkward and shy.

“Sometimes there's not a lot you can do until the appropriate spark comes along, Fear. Sometimes you just need to accept your conditions until the moment reveals itself, like we talked about.”

“Y-yeah, but... it just sucks. Not knowing what today's going to hold except probably more of the same. More of the same torture, more of the same ponies hurting other ponies, instead of embracing friendship and commonalities. Looking at our differences, and our own selves as though we as individuals are more important than the whole. It's... a damn shame. Even if nature heals by tomorrow, there will always be those who resist change. But I comfort myself in the fact that every day, what I do makes a difference, however subtle. And the more ponies I inspire to do the same, eventually one day the whole world must turn.”

“A noble goal.” Discord responded with a nod, smacking the ping pong back to his friend.

“What are your goals for after all this is over? You must have some plans once you have more power back right?”

Discord shrugged a shoulder, cocked his head. “I'll be back to my old antics within due time. Just not as... inconveniencing.”

“Is that so?” A royal voice elicited from the darkness. Luna's voice.

The ping pong ball went flying off Fear's end of the table as he turned to look at the entrance to the garden, Discord perking up too.

“Luna? What are you doing here?” Fear sounded bombshelled.

“So this is what you are always up to when I feel my dream bubble alter. I always figured you were merely entertaining yourself, would not have considered that you were conspiring with an old enemy?” Luna approached the two, a smirk on her face.

“Conspiring, she says!” Discord scoffed, throwing his arms in the air and rolling his eyes. “Says the nightmare.” His head turned to look Luna in the eyes, slumping over slightly and crossing his mismatched arms. “It is... good to see you Lulu.”

“And I you, Discord. You may have been an enemy in the long distant past, but I think we have both learned a few things, yes?”

Discord pushed his palms up, shrugging again. “I have no idea what you could possibly mean Lulu, I am merely myself now and always.”

“Stubborn draconequus,” Fear quipped. “I think we've all had to do a little self reflection and realize how to love ourselves again, based on what we've been through, had to endure, and been forced to examine. It's traumatic for all of us.”

The other two looked toward Fear solemnly. Before both nodding their heads.

“Suffice to say,” Discord finally spoke up, rolling a wrist. “I won't be making others have to deal with me. I'll be finding more like Fear here.” Discord popped out of existence, reappearing by Fear, and noogying him causing the young stallion to cry out and squirm.

Luna looked on in amusement. “It is interesting how you manage to worm into hearts, little Fear.”

“It'll never be enough though.” Fear complained.

Discord bapped Fear on the noggin. “Someday. Just keep pushing you little twerp.”

A small smile crossed Fear's face. “Can't promise anything, but I'll try.”

“We may have our past transgressions, Discord, both you and I.” Luna began. “But I believe we have equaled out in the grand scheme of things. We both caused problems, we have both tried to atone. All three of us honestly, pushing toward the future. A future we can never see, nor may we ever hold. It is time for there to be peace between both of us, even if Fear is the tie that connects us.”

Fear looked to Discord, sitting on his haunches with a plop. “We'll both visit you Discord. We'll both be your friend, I think she's trying to say. So don't run off anymore, okay?”

“I wish to be in your life, and you in mine,” Luna confirmed.

Discord's heart palpitated, head tilting. A look of surprise crossing wide eyes, as something deep was moved within.

A piece of advice from Nyx floated to Fear's mind. “You can't adapt others to others, but you can adapt yourself, and hope that one day others are inspired by your message.”

==========================================================================================

“” Fear was beaming. Glad he'd been able to catch her in the realm of sleep before she woke up.

“”