“I refuse.”

“You refuse my gift?”

“I refuse.”

“Why?”

“Nightmares are not just dreams gone wrong. They allow you to confront your deepest, darkest fears. They peel back something you might have hidden from others, and yourself. Ask yourself, do you remember all of your dreams? Of course not. But you remember the nightmares. The real ones. The ones that grab you and shake you from the sky. They remind you that no matter how bad things get or what awful fate befalls you, you are strong enough to survive long enough to make it to the morning.” ~ Commander Remex, Battalion Leader of the Bolts from the Blue, and daughter of the last Ephor at the Annexation of the Pegasai and their Protectorates, Her Majesty's Record ‘Official Proceedings and Court Records’, Bridlon Abby

“Ah!” Twilight shouted as Applejack’s leg twitched.

“Sorry,” Applejack replied as the orange tipped brushstroke slid across her flank. Laying on the living room floor of Twilight’s apartment, the two ponies were surrounded by several vials of flank paint and Twilight’s light spell above them.

“All right, done,” Twilight said as she pushed herself up. The planet on her flank was gone, and in its place was the original stars she earned. She levitated the brush to the jar of water, dabbing it in and squeezing it with her magic before setting it down.

Applejack turned to look at her rear. She groaned when she saw that instead of apples, she now had oranges. “You sure this is gonna last until I get home?”

“Yeah, as long as it doesn’t rain or you don’t fall into a river. It should last two weeks. But after a week, this paint flakes and you’re skipping baths at that point, so,” Twilight trailed off.

“Best I get home immediately, huh?” Applejack raised an eye.

“After what happened? We’re both just lucky the city is so big,” Twilight turned to Applejack. “That and the law is so tied up in preparing for the referendum, so its unsurprising campus security let us slip by without issue.”

“I don’t think we could have pulled that off in Ponyville,” Applejack muttered as she checked the other side. “Guess it’s an advantage when you’re just another face in the crowd, huh?”

Twilight let out an audible exhale and looked Applejack in the eye, “Did I lose him?”

“You found him once before in this big-city right?” Applejack turned to Twilight, “We might be able to slip into the crowd, but he won’t.”

“Yeah, but,” Twilight lifted her left hoof and pawed at the ground, emanating a soft knocking sound throughout the apartment. “I don’t think there’s going to be a third time, Applejack… I think I rutted up hard.” Instantly, Twilight’s rear legs gave out, her rump slamming against the floor.

“You couldn’t have known Twilight,” Applejack approached her friend, who was staring down at the carpet. “I mean, the oath says that you have to keep him protected, but if he’s just going to run…”

“He’s scared,” Twilight said, looking up at Applejack. “I saw how terrified he was when you had him. He was terrified of us…”

“Then there’s nothing you could do. Look, Twilight, I promise, I won’t tell anyone. And I’ll just try to explain to Gerald in a way he’ll understand it,” Applejack said, pulling alongside Twilight and tucking the unicorn’s head underneath her chin.

“You’re going to lie to him?”

“No, but I know for a fact he can keep a secret when it counts,” Applejack gently said. The two held like this as the sounds of other ponies in the apartments surrounding Twilight’s clopped and banged quietly. The audible hiss of the night enveloping the streets outside as Twilight closed her eyes for a second to take in her friend’s condolences.

“But I’ll know,” Twilight slid out from underneath Applejack and looked her in the eye.

“You’re right, but you’re not getting any flak from me about it, and who knows? Maybe somehow you’ll catch up to him,” Applejack gave a nod.

The two companions walked to the door of the apartment. Applejack turned to Twilight and asked, “Think I’ll have any issues with the law?”

Twilight shook her head, “As long as you leave your hat here, you should be fine.” Twilight rolled her head as she yawned, looking at the cowboy hat atop a pile of books. “The only police that saw us was the one that showed up 10 minutes after… whatever that human did to escape.”

“Twilight, have you ever heard of anyone, even a human, just summoning a dust storm like that from the blue?” Applejack asked.

Twilight shook her head, “Maybe Rainbow Dash, but that’s just her applying her natural advantages. And that was years ago. Now? She would need at least maybe 20 or 30 other Pegasai working in tandem with her to do what we experienced if she doesn’t use a sonic rainboom.” The mare looked down when her she suddenly snapped up, “Wait, Gerald-”

“Gerald knows where to meet me if he loses me, I might be coming back if he’s arrested or worse…” Applejack said.

“And I’ll help out however I can, but if you’re safe, just leave,” Twilight said as she walked back to the vials of paint and brush on the floor. “I might not be able to use a planet anymore, but I’m sure I’ll come up with something simple,” Twilight smiled to Applejack.

“Right, Twilight,” Applejack paused as she looked her friend in the eye. “If something should happen, don’t be afraid to send me a letter, even if I get in trouble too, I’m not gonna let you take the heat alone.” Applejack frowned and glanced down, “Not after how I did you dirty at the wedding.”

Twilight frowned, then shook her head and gave a hard smile as she looked up at Applejack, “It was good seeing you. Maybe next time, I can help you out with your woes.”

“It was good seeing you too, Twilight,” as Applejack walked through the door to the apartment and closed it behind her.

Twilight slid the chain lock across her apartment door and slowly approached her bedroom. The sound of hoof on carpet echoed throughout the tiny home as she passed by her spool coffee table and on through the kitchen. Pushing herself up, she collapsed onto her bed, her horn narrowly avoiding the mattress. She just kept staring into the dark corner of the room as not a thought bothered her. And as she kept staring, it kept expanding, larger and darker, until it finally consumed all things, and the night took her.

The Viridian Court

“Twilight, what’s going on!?”

Twilight turned behind her. Her room was a black and white regal with gold trimmings and pillars surrounding the apartment. The headboard was delicately carved out of white oak, and a closed window showed only the white fog that covered the castle. Smiling, Twilight’s eyes were wet as she looked at her visitor, “Spike, I’m so sorry.”

“Cinnamon says Celestia banished you! What happened?” Spike looked at her from across the room, what was once his small purple and green frame had grown over the years. His chin was stronger, and he was slightly more musclebound, however he was still lanky in arm and leg.

“Spike, if I could tell you, I would,” suddenly Twilight made a mad dash towards the Dragon and hugged him. “Oh! I’m so sorry Spike.”

“Look, there’s got to be some mistake. If you and I go to Celestia together, but I’m sure that we can get this, and if she doesn’t listen to reason, I’m going too.”

Twilight shook her head, “Spike, you need to stay with the Princess. She’ll need your help in the upcoming years.” Twilight turned back to her meager saddlebag, strolling to it, and then resumed packing it using her magic.

“Twilight, you’ve got to tell me what happened,” Spike was about to say before Twilight used her magic to lift a comb and put it against Spike’s lips.

“Spike, Spike listen,” Twilight turned away. “I had a choice. And this is how things ended up being. And if things go well, I might be able to return if I can acco-“ Suddenly, the window cracked. Twilight snapped her head and looked at the window as Spike wiped away his tears. Slowly Twilight approached to investigate the break, her head examining the fissure before her eyes caught something far off. A blue twinkle, not unlike the primary color of her mane, landed on one of the castle towers, along the roof’s edge. Blinking, Twilight turned behind her and pulled a letter knife from her desk.

“Twilight, what are you,” Spike gasped as Twilight sliced herself in the foreleg with it, the blade cutting through her like thin air. She didn’t flinch and pulled it out with no blood or flesh broken. Twilight dropped the knife and gave Spike a hug, “Oh Spike, it’s been too long. Even if this is just a dream, I really, really needed this.”

Spike reciprocated, “I don’t understand, what do you mean this is a dream?”

“Spike, right now Princess Luna is getting closer and I don’t know what she’s going to do. Any other day, any other dream, and I would spend the rest of my time with you. So please forgive me when in a few moments, I run out the door,” Twilight gave a smile.

“I don’t understand,” Spike said as Twilight kissed spike atop his head, and then used her magic to burst the door open and rush out the hall.

“Twilight!” Spike cried out as Twilight maneuvered down the long, narrow passageway. Window after window gleamed with the white fog that reflected Celestia’s glorious rays as the Saddle Arabian carpets muffled her hoof steps. Rotating, she could see the navy blue image of a pony distant down the hall. Taking a turn, she slid and scrambled against the slick marble floor. Finally, gaining traction, she ran, and she ran.

Going down the great staircase that ran center into the castle, she turned to the kitchen where the opulent white and gold gave way to dark brown wood works. Ponies of all kinds in the kitchen were working together to prepare a feast as Twilight slid past them, each of them uncaring of the mare behind them. Finally, slipping out the back, she turned once more only to hear ”Princess!" erupt in the kitchen. Looking outside, she saw in the fog a giant pile of snow. Taking a deep breath, she leapt forward and thrust herself into the pile of soft, white water crystals.

The entrance she made with her body collapsed behind her as the chill of winter overcame her and she felt dizzy. Up was down, down was up and left was right. She felt like she was tumbling before she shook her head and tried to figure out where up was. Pushing herself in any direction, she used her magic to pop the snow above her out and was greeted with a starry night sky, and a full moon glaring overhead.

Pushing with her rear legs, she jumped out and looked around. The castle was gone and there were only pine trees surrounding her. Letting out an exhale, Twilight quickly buried the hole she came out of and let her rump sag to the ground, her tail providing insulation between her and the snow.

“Where am I?” Twilight muttered before hearing the voice of two strangers talking behind her. Slowly turning, keeping herself close to the ground, she found covered bushes before she discovered where the sound was coming from: a large, long clearing. And in the center was an orange pegasus, and a tall figure covered in billowing black haze.

Twilight crumpled to the ground as she turned her head in order to avoid hitting both her snout and her horn in the foliage. Letting herself lay for a moment, she picked herself up and took stock of her surroundings. Behind her was a grove of trees, as was ahead of her if not for the giant snowy pathway that led between them. Soon the rustling of beings walking towards her forced her ears to point forward as she froze, looking at the two straight ahead.

“Okay, so why did you bring me here?” the almost guttural feminine sound coming from the smaller of the two erupted, a purple mane burst forth from her neck as her orange body seemed too massive for her tiny wings. Her cutie mark was a shield with a wing and a lightning symbol on top of it. Twilight blinked for a second when she realized who it was, an old acquaintance from Ponyville, now grown up.

“Scootaloo, I want you to tell me how exactly you can fly.” The tall figure cloaked in an ethereal blackness billowed as he moved, “At best with that wing to body ratio, you could glide, but that doesn’t explain how you can sustain flight for as long as you can.”

The Pegasus snorted as she raised an eye, stopping to look up at her companion, “You want the truth? Fine,” she looked away for a moment, only to once again snap the human’s gaze. “Potions. Both the permanent and temporary kind. Zecora did some ritual work as well. Made me lighter than I should be. Still not enough…”

“You single-handedly saved the Stannum expedition. That’s, of course, ignoring your feats and other battles. How long have you been fighting on the front lines without any kind of support?” the figure asked.

“Longer than you, that’s for sure,” Scootaloo spat out. “I couldn’t get into the Wonderbolts because of my…” Scootaloo merely turned towards her tiny wings before turning back. “I didn’t like the idea of sitting on the front lines while others did all the work, so I put myself to task. Eventually joined up with you lot when the offer was extended. And of course, I’ve saved more of your kind’s lives than I can really count.”

“And we deeply appreciate it. Canterlot may ignore you, but you’ve proven yourself to be valuable. But there’s still something missing, isn’t there? You’ve never been to Cloudsdale, have you?” the figure asked.

“And now I never will. None of us can stand on clouds anymore,” Scootaloo gave out a pained laugh. “But hey, at least I wasn’t there when it happened.”

The dark figure approached a large rock and sat himself down atop it, like how Gerald sat at the cafe, his hood still covering his head, “So all that work, all that sacrifice was just because you wanted to? Because you got salty at Cloudsdale and Canterlot telling you to go home?”

Scootaloo turned and spat at the figure, “My hero goes out there every day and fights the good fight, and I do nothing?” Scootaloo snorted as she slowly rotated her head to look at her wings. “Even with everything I’ve done, I’ll never, ever be able to approach what she does, I can’t even do what a normal Pegasus does on a bad day. The best I can do is a few meters off the ground and…”

“What if I told you that it was indeed possible for you to have what the others have: true flight.” The wind wisped around the humanlike figure, its cloak flapping about as Scootaloo narrowed her eyes.

“Please don’t tell me you brought me all the way out here just to mock me, I’ve got better things to do.”

“In three hours, we engage the enemy,” the cloaked figure said. “Sparking Candle has convinced Torch to assault the enemy’s main forces and keep them distracted as we attempt to take down Sombra.”

“In three hours? Why wasn’t I informed?” Scootaloo shouted.

“Because we’re doing this without the administration’s approval. Which means we’re tight on time. There are many phases to the assault, but the one you need to be concerned about is if our first seal fails. Likely it will, but if we’re lucky, Sombra will be stripped of his might.”

“All right, where do I fit in?” Scootaloo raised an eye.

“If our first attempt fails, we have to fall back on an induction seal,” the figure shifted on its rock. “It’s designed to keep pace with his level of power. However, the moment that we hit him hard enough that he weakens past the seal’s threshold, it will activate and contain him. However, in order to weaken him for the seal to go into effect, we must fight him in extended combat. Our neural networks anticipate that each of us can only hold out for fifteen minutes at most. At the fifteen minute mark, we have to rotate, but during this rotation phase,” the figure teetered off for a moment. “We will be deeply vulnerable to some kind of strike from him. This is where you come in,” the figure revealed a circular wooden disk with extensive markings on it, held aloft by fingers. Human fingers.

“What is that?”

“This is an entry contract. If you have it on hand, so to speak, you’ll have the capacity to enter the barrier that will contain him for the fight with impunity. But the reason you’ll be entering at the fifteen minute mark is that we need you to perform a sonic rainboom.”

Scootaloo burst out laughing as she turned to walk away, and bit back, “Funny prank, funny prank. I hope you had your fun.”

“I’m serious,” the figure on the rock said. “And we’ll need you to do it at least six times during the fight. Fifteen minutes apart.”

“Like I said, I hope you had your fun. I’ll let Solstice and Typhoon know you thought it would be funny,” Scootaloo grunted as she extended her relatively tiny wings and began flapping them in extended fury, like a hummingbird taking flight. "Fucking bronco."

“First, Solstice and Alexandra know I’m here. Second, I am serious. Without you, the plan will likely fall apart.” the figure said.

"Stopped being funny hours ago." Scootaloo kept moving away, "Eat shit. Jump off a cliff."

The figure extended a hand past the ethereal darkness that covered them, revealing its thin lines of scarring around its tiny limbs with large white scars at nearly every joint. “Each time you enter the barrier to perform it, it should stun him as each of us uses The Cudgel to escape and rotate out.”

“I know you’re smarter than this, but here’s the deal: Rainbow Dash is the only mare in the last few centuries to perform it, so if you need one, you’ve got to go talk to her,” Scootaloo chided as she continued forward.

“Even if we could get her, ignoring her blind loyalty, at best, she could only do two, maybe three in such a span,” the figure said. “You, on the other hand,” the figure suddenly looked up at the night sky, “Other hoof? Whatever. Look, you just might do it.”

Scootaloo turned around with narrowed eyes as she let her wings freeze to her side and fell to the ground, running at the figure in dark smoke, “I can barely get ten meters off the ground, maybe thirteen on a good day. And you’re asking for a sonic rainboom? What in Tartarus is your problem? Are you having fun? Enjoying laughing at my expense?”

“Of course, you would not be doing this without support,” the figure turned his hand over, revealing its palm, slowly waving them. “If you agree to do this, I can show you a way to sail the troposphere even with your present condition, however,” the figure paused as he stood up and towered over Scootaloo. “Once I show you, you can never go back to the way things were. What you once passively ignored with little issue you can never ignore again.”

Scootaloo tilted her head in curiosity as she said, “What do you mean?”

“What I mean is that revealing this, and your tacit acceptance will mean that every time a gentle breeze rolls by, it won’t just be a gentle breeze anymore. It could be something more,” the figure now revealed his second hand from his cloak and opened both palms towards Scootaloo. “Now, are you curious? Because this is one of those things where, if you accept, there is no going back.”

Scootaloo looked to her left, her eyes narrowing as she bit her lower lip, then suddenly looked to her right as she looked up and asked, “And if I accept, this could end the war?”

The figure nodded.

“All right, show me.”

The figure waved Scootaloo to follow him. There was no wind, only stilted air that watched the two as they walked down the trail towards an unknown destination, trees on either side bearing witness to the two as they finally gave way, revealing a cliff. Twilight picked herself up and moved along the pine trees, keeping the two in sight. Soon, they came to the cliff, jetting out near the ocean below with a single rock off center and away from the pair. However, where there should be the sound of crashing waves, there was only silence.

“Scootaloo, do you know why Zelhor absolutely loathes me?” the figure turned to Scootaloo and asked.

The orange pegasus shook no.

“A long, long time ago, long before the pegasi used to control the weather, and even longer than even Star Swirl and Celestia, many ponies possessed a symbiotic relationship with Equus. They would commune with the planet itself and come to know its many parts. Of these, four hold a special place in the hierarchy. On Terra we would simply call these the elements, but here they’re called the aspects,” the figure said as he approached the cliff side and looked overhead.

“Earth, fire, water, and wind. Ponies would commune with the elements to gauge their mood, if water seemed very reclusive, the ponies might stockpile in preparation for a drought. If fire was on edge and there was a volcano nearby, they would temporarily evacuate the village on the off chance that it erupted. But something happened a long time ago to cut ponies off from these aspects. The Zebras have been hard at work trying to reconnect with them. Near the beginning of the war, they were finally able to commune with Beheianir, and a year or two later, Ifritnir. Only recently have they finally been able to hear Levnir, but none of them have been able to hear the wind. They sit in their lodges and enter into deep trances trying to remain as still as possible in order to reach out and simply greet themselves, but Ziznir kept saying nothing. But one day, someone finally did it using an unconventional method. Scootaloo,” the figure looked at the pony. “Once I show you this, you can never go back to the world that you once came from. Do you understand?”

Scootaloo tilted her head in confusion and gave a nod.

“Right, let’s begin,” the figure said as he took a deep breath in. For a few moments, nothing happened as Twilight watched from the treeline. Then he whistled. At first, it was shrill and focused. The forest echoed back the same sound that the human emitted. Then he whistled again, this time almost like the sound was climbing up a spiral staircase, only to drop every few moments and start climbing again. The sound echoed through the trees and through the forest as Scootaloo’s ears swiveled and tried to focus on the source of the sound. Twilight’s ears also fluttered, and soon the figure let out another, lower whistle, and once again the echoes of cedar trees returned it back.

“Shit.” The figure cursed as he slumped over, “You’re really going to make me do this aren’t you?”

“Do what?” Scootaloo watched as the figure approached the edge of the cliff.

“To do this Scootaloo, an offering is required,” the figure approached the edge, and looked down, gulping. “If I die, head back and let Seamstress know to cancel. I don’t know how they’ll placate Lord Torch, but at that point, we’ll know that we can’t even stun him for-”

“Hang on, timeout, what are you –” Scootaloo stopped as the figure raised each of his hands, scarred with what seemed to be lines in between constellations, and tucked them into their opposite sleeve. The billowing darkness dissipated with a slight pop as the human that had answered Twilight’s heartsong stood there. He wore snow camo and both his hair and facial hair trimmed, with glasses perched atop his nose. On his top forelimbs were two long black braces covering his forearm in the shape of two Xs meeting, keeping the limb contained. On the outside of the back of his hands were four large black, thin nail-like strips that ran from his wrist to his knuckles.

“Whatever you do, do not attempt to save me. You’ll just piss it off,” the human stepped to the edge, his arms outstretched. “Let Dollhouse know that the thing from the place is under my mattress. She’ll know what you’re talking about,” and with that, the human let gravity take him. Twilight’s eyes widened as she took three steps beyond the treeline, only to find herself chin deep in snow.

“Oh fuck!” Scootaloo ran to the edge, her wings already extended, when a sudden torrent of air blew up and held Scootaloo at bay. Instinctually, she knelt her front legs down with her wings extended, angled with the airflow, and was well grounded when she looked up to see the figure of a human in snow camo being held aloft.

“How, how are you-“

“Me?” the figure screamed out, trying to be heard in the echoes of sound that blew past the two. “I’m doing nothing. This is merely the wind, surely you heard of it?” The orange pegasus watched as the human kept levitating, a grand torrent of wind blowing from the cliff side and off into the night. “It keeps aloft the Bugbears of the Jackalope Slopes. It keeps aloft the Breezies that ride the saddle of Equus during their great migration. And it keeps aloft... ME!” The human floated forward towards the edge of the cliff as suddenly, the wind stopped, tossing him from his spot as he fell face first into the snow and screamed.

“God damn it! There was a rock under there, fuck!” He turned and gazed at where the air currents had caught him and tossed him back onto land. He cupped his hand to his chin, groaned in pain. “That was the wind Scootaloo, fuck” The figure writhed in pain on the ground, rolling slightly as the pegasus watched.

“Wha-”

“I was doing a bit, fuck. It was supposed to be awesome,” Xavier said, as he roiled over in pain. Moments passed as his groaning quieted and he started, “I know what you’re thinking, and that’s not how it works between us Scootaloo. The only thing I can do is hear and ask of it things. Oh fuck this,” the figure dug into a pocket and pulled out an orange bottle. Quickly taking out a blue pill and swallowing, silence overtook them as the human’s labor breathing slowly relaxed over the course of a few minutes.

“Are you going to be okay?” Scootaloo asked, pawing at the prone human on the ground.

“Stop,” the human groaned as he waved the orange pegasus’ hoof away. “Stop! I’ll be fine,” he mumbled again. “Look, as you can tell, our relationship is rocky, to say the least. And it talks more often than you realize,” the figure sat on the snow, crossing his legs while rubbing his face, “And you ignore what it says at your own peril.”

Scootaloo approached the human who was obviously out of breath, as she reached out and touched his crossed legs, “But why did you jump?”

“That Scootaloo was the wind asking me to vet you. It acknowledges that it doesn’t understand corporeal beings too well and, incidentally, uses a corporeal being to find worthy candidates,” the human said as he waved at Scootaloo, “Stop that, I’m fine.”

Scootaloo retracted her leg and bluntly vomited, “Candidate?”

“A little over nine months ago, I was the one who made the accidental breakthrough. Turns out you don’t meditate with the wind, you don’t make offerings to it,” the figure looked over at Scootaloo and smiled, “You dance with it.”

“You dance with the wind?” Scootaloo asked, flummoxed.

“The wind has been lonely for such a long time since no one knew how to talk to it. I was the first to figure it out and my god it talks,” the human let out an exasperated sigh. “But no, I can’t normally fly unless the wind thinks it’s a good idea or it’s being cheeky. Also can’t use parachutes over on this side anymore because it gets pissed I have no faith in it. But you…” The figure stood up and started walking past Scootaloo, and away from the cliff. As the pegasus followed, she watched as there was a sudden eruption of snowflakes slowly circling each other, a tiny gentle whirlwind had manifested ahead of them.

“That is Xiphyr, Scootaloo. The wind current of the true Pegasus. With it, you can do what I cannot: command the wind. And it is yours Scootaloo, once I made the proper introduction of course,” the figure laid out a hand at Scootaloo to stop her walking as she continued to view the tiny tornado.

“This is Scootaloo!” cried the human, the woods around the two echoed the Pegasus’s name over and over again, then suddenly the trees shook, as if they themselves were whispering before the figure continued. “She comes the claim the title of Ephor! She–”

Suddenly, the rock at the edge of the cliff split open and what emerged at a jagged, unnatural speed was a changeling with blue, green mane, tied up in many ribbons as her hollow legs walked forward, looking at the pony and human. Twilight shuddered and took a step back, while monitoring the three.

Almost instinctively, the human slapped both the Xs on his forearms and the darkness spewed forth from them for only a second before the ethereal cloak glimmered like silver stardust on the wind, glinting and glittering as the air from the whirlwind pushed out past him.

“Queen Niab,” the cloaked human uttered. “You and your sisters still scavenging Chrysalis’ corpse?”

“Name Butcher,” she replied, her black snout lifted into the air, inhaling, then leveling her eyes at the tall figure. “Still verdant I see.”

The human grimaced, looked down and touched his left arm with his right hand. Scootaloo turned to him and uttered, “Name Butcher? What is she talking about Counter?”

“How’s the left eye, human?” the Changeling Queen hissed, walking past him.

The human broke his guard and lightly dabbed his left eye underneath the glimmering hood with his fingers, “How did you-”

“Word gets around on the fae side of things, human,” she turned and glared at the pair. “Going up against that thing? It should have been you who was butchered. Then again, I guess you were, but…” she turned and encircled the human, studying the stardust that billowed into the night. “How ever did you get Thorax to tell you the secrets of the Nomenclative arts?”

The human stayed silent as Queen Niab walked around the human one more time. The snow slowly danced around as the Changeling Queen pressed on, hissing in a gravelly voice, “It matters not. Thorax may be a fool to trust you, but he’s smart enough not to give away everything. At the end, when we arise victorious from crushing him and Queen Titama, the mares on the two Boysenberry Thrones will be next.”

“Big talk coming from you!” Scootaloo cried. “From a creature only fit to steal love and happiness from others who make it for themselves. From something that’s so broken and flawed that she has to steal stallions in the middle of the night just to have children, if you can even call those things children!”

The changeling laughed at the human, then slowly twisted her head towards Scootaloo. The changeling queen approached and walked around Scootaloo, examining the Pegasus from top to bottom.

“No, no no no. Giving Xiphyr? To this… thing?” she snorted at the orange pegasus. “Can you even call this thing a proper pegasus?” the Queen spat. “More like an ass with leather scraps stapled on her back.” The two came face to face, the Changeling’s awkward horn filled with holes only millimeters away from Scootaloo’s forehead, with Blue eyes staring at Purple eyes.

“I’ve already made the introductions and vetted her,” the human said, pulling his soft claws from under his hood and back into a ready position. “And it seems intrigued by the proposition.”

Queen Niab snorted and backed off, she looked away from the pair and out into the vast stretch of pine trees as she bit her lower lip and stayed silent. She glanced down for but a moment before she looked back up at the wavering trees and said, “Why give her Xiphyr? She will betray you. Just as her foremothers did!”

“I only know what I am, not what I’ll do, or what I’ll become,” Scootaloo answered back, standing tall. “And I know I’m not a traitor.”

“Well said Scootaloo,” the human gave her a curt nod. Scootaloo nodded, returning the recognition.

“You will hear me!” The changeling walked around the pair as she cried to the pine trees, “This is the Viridian Court, and I am Queen Niab, you will hear my objections to your Emissary’s selection!”

“For centuries upon centuries, the pegasai have turned a blind eye towards your gifts,” the changeling Queen began. “All of that for an unassailable home in the clouds. The story keepers of old sang songs of how your weakest currents lifted even the most infirmed of them aloft. But then they turned their backs on you and let you decay to your current state! You will be brought to heel like your-“ a sudden rush of wind blew from all directions, catching all three off guard. Scootaloo dug her hooves into the ground as her companion lifted his arms to shield his face from the sudden tempest.

THAT IS THEIR FEAR

NOT MINE

I AM

THE GALE OF AGES

I WILL DANCE FOREVER

ON THE EDGE OF DREAMS

All three parties froze and looked in the direction the tempest came from, the Human’s forelimb’s shaking and Scootaloo’s eyes were wide. Even the Changeling Queen’s mouth had dropped.

“It’s,” the human figure stuttered and took a step back. “Never done that before.”

The wind died down and Xiphyr remained, the snow in its interior gently dancing along the curved wind currents that betrayed its location.

“Take it now Scootaloo! Now!” the human turned to his Pegasus companion. Scootaloo lifted herself up and thrust herself towards the whirlwind when Queen Niab’s crooked, hollow horn glowed a perverse mix of blues and purples. Suddenly Xiphyr was surrounded by jagged floating rocks that encircled the vortex.

The human figure cloaked in celestial light lifted up his hands when Scootaloo turned and cried out, “No!” The orange Pegasus slowly walked towards Xiphyr, each step she took, she came closer to not only the gift of the wind, but of the dangling rocks that prevented passage. Entering the radius of danger, she deftly maneuvered around the rocks as they tried to slam into her. Keeping her wings closed, she caught eye of one headed straight towards her. Tucking in her legs and rolling, she then popped herself back up and continued forward. Another jagged stone approached her and she once again deftly maneuvered around, only to be surprised, taking a stone to the side of the face, yelping as she tumbled over.

Picking herself back up, blood trickled down her right eye as she persisted towards the center. Three more rocks approached her and this time she extended her wings and use them to make herself light enough to quickly evade the Fae curse. Suddenly, she had miscalculated and took another rock to the face. This time, Twilight could see that a cross shaped wound was pouring blood down Scootaloo’s right eye. The mare shook her head, trying to get the blood out as she growled and began evading with more confidence. Rock after rock tried to cease her advancement, only for her to either tuck, dodge, and even sometimes, she would repel the rocks with her wings or kick them with the back of her hooves. Finally, she stumbled into the center of the whirlwind and felt as the dancing snow gently caressed her. A soft smile took hold of the mare with a bloody right eye. She approached the center and a soft green light began emanating from her as once again a voice bellowed:

XIPHYR

IS YOURS

The snow died down and a quiet swept through the grove. Both the human and the changeling looked upon Scootaloo, her head still looking up towards the night sky, with blood trickling down her face. Then softly looking down, she looked at the changeling. A wall of air erupted and the remaining floating rocks rushed away from Scootaloo in all directions. Both the changeling and the human braced themselves as Queen Niab took the hit to her on the neck covered in blue mane, and the human right into its abdomen, knocking him over with a loud ‘Oof’. Then Scootaloo exhaled and her front knees buckled, forcing her to kneel to the ground.

“Look at her, human.” Queen Niab hissed as she picked herself up to the figure cloaked in stardust. “Her reign begins soaked in blood. How do you expect it to end?”

“If you’re trying to wax poetic, it would be more effective if you hadn’t deliberately tried to stop her from taking what’s rightfully hers,” the figure got up, wheezing. “Regardless, that choice is hers and hers alone now.”

“You’ve trespassed too much human. First magic, then the newly christened nameless one, and now the aspects. But soon you will discover something in which your reach exceeds your grasp. You’ve already tried to bargain with the Faceless Left Horn of Grogar and paid the price. And soon you and the others will discover the consequences of your hubris.”

“You’re just salty that others are reclaiming long lost power. That which is rightfully theirs to begin with,” the Human shot back with a wide smile on his face. “The old era is coming to a close.”

“Only to be replaced by what?” the changeling Queen slowly backed away as, with the same jitter she appeared in, she faded from view.

The human stopped and looked down, he stood motionless for a few moments before placing his right hand over his eyes, lifting his glasses and muttering to himself. Twilight saw his smile slowly morph into something dourer. He took his hands away and what had been excited, joyful eyes were replaced with two green rings that exuded gloom. After a few moments, the human shook his head and turned towards the orange Pegasus mere paces away from him, tucking his hands between his cloaked sleeves, the shimmering, glittering effect of the cloak that covered him slowly darkened into the abyssal black that it had been previously. Then with a tiny pop, the cloak once again dissipated, revealing the human with snow camo underneath, his hands digging around in folds around his pants, and pulling a piece of cloth.

“I think that’s going to scar,” the human approached Scootaloo and knelt, cupping his blunt claws beneath her cheeks and cleaning the blood from her eye. “Though if anything, it will at least give you the appearance of being totally badass.”

“Did you know I could do it?” Scootaloo asked as the human cleaned some of the matted blood on the bridge of her nose.

“No. Though truth be told, you probably set the wind’s mind or, whatever it was, at ease when you decided to jump headfirst into Queen Niab’s spell. Even I would hesitate to try something so bold,” the man said as he continued to clean the Pegasus’s right face.

“So I now command the wind,” Scootaloo asked as she turned to look at the stars. “Just as my foremothers could?”

“Not just that. This wasn’t any mere passing of the torch, you are now Ephor Scootaloo. Coronated by the wind itself, with me and Queen Niab as witnesses. Ancient Pegasus culture held that the upper echelons of their society not only have a Princess to rule, but an Ephor chosen by the wind itself to counterbalance. A rank that can only be earned and vetted, not inherited, or given,” the human had stopped clearing the blood off of Scootaloo’s face and pulled out a tiny toothpaste like container, squeezing the back of it on a claw tip, he gently rubbed the ointment over the bloody X that was above her right eye now. “Understand Scootaloo that with your rank, you must be very careful never to bow before any royalty, for you act as surrogate for the wind itself. To kneel before any royalty will earn everyone there the wind’s ire.”

Scootaloo closed her eyes as a gentle breeze rolled over the duo, the pine trees rocked back and forth as a cooling wind cradled everyone in its wisps, “I’m having trouble hearing it. I have a sense of where it wants me to go, but not a sense of why.”

“You can already hear it?” The human tilted his head, “It took me a good solid two weeks before I could figure out what it’s saying and how it wants things to go.”

“I can feel it in my mane, and the feathers of my wings. It wants to lift me up. It’s trying to take me Southwest…”

“That’s… Where the battle will be taking place.” The figure turned away from Scootaloo as he stood up, “We only have about an hour and a half to get you up to speed before the planets start to align.”

“Wait, are you serious?” Scootaloo took a step back, “I’m not sure if I can even do a sonic rainboom, even with this, and you expect me to do it in less than two hours?”

Twilight walked closer to the two dream phantoms, trying to get a better look, when she took a step forward and heard the snapping of a branch beneath her. She looked down and saw a twig the wind had kicked up, now nestled between her left hoof. The human looked up and scanned around for a moment, eventually his eyes slowly resting upon the mare that made that sound. He narrowed them at Twilight, as the mare’s mouth went slightly agape, looking back, her violet eyes meeting his viridian counterparts.

“Everything okay?” Scootaloo asked as she followed suit and scanned the area. The human stuck out his thumb, slowly lifting it to his mouth and bit down hard. His eyes closed, but slowly opened as he blinked a few times.

“Xavier?” Scootaloo tilted her head. The figure looked down on the mare that looked back, frightened, as if trying to parse out with the human had just done to his own hand.

“Scootaloo, or should I say Dream Scootaloo,” the figure slowly lowered his hands to the side of his persons as he slowly extracted a knife out of a scabbard that was attached to his belt. “I’m sorry for what I’m about to do, but unfortunately, we’re not where we think we are at.” Giving a hard look at Scootaloo, he looked over to Twilight who had taken a step back. He held the knife, looking at it for a moment, before he thrust it into his own neck and collapsed on the ground.

“What in Tartarus!” Scootaloo jumped over and bit down on the knife, pulling it out of the humans neck, “Oh Celestia, oh Celestia,” Scootaloo attempted to stop the bleeding with her hooves, only to realize that they were no good and instead, knelt down and craned her neck around the human that was gargling out blood and spit. Trees fell over, as chunks of earth gave way all around them. Soon a white void emerged, slowly consuming component of the dream after component of the dream. Turning to face the human again, Twilight noticed that Scootaloo was gone, leaving only the human convulsing on the ground. She ran towards the writhing human, as his green eyes looked back at her. He tensed up, and then fell limp as he looked past Twilight into nothing. The mare watched as suddenly, from his left eye, his body split in half, from the top of his head to the bottom of his left leg. Then he screamed. White light then consumed everything round them and Twilight jolted up from her slumber, catching herself about to scream.

Author's Note

Eiffel 65 - I Don't Wanna Lose