The Moon, The Ocean, and a dog
Night time is engraved into every pony’s soul. Little smears of delicate night stuff circled and coated their souls in a wispy, intimate wrap. Luna understood this better than any, but it didn’t change her thoughts.
Long, lonely nights with nothing but her tantabus for company had proven to her that the little ponies had long forgotten their souls. Each and every day they woke with the sun, their secret essence boiled and burned, scarred into nothing from the power of the sun. Rarely did their souls get time to heal. She didn’t blame the little ponies. She didn’t even blame her sister.
Cleansing fire was the essence of Celestia’s nature, just as silent secrets belonged to Luna. To blame her for her very being was no different than blaming a snake for having no legs, a bird for having feathers, or a dog for being hungry. It simply was how you might define Celestia. Snakes slithered, birds flew, dogs ate, and Celestia burned.
Ponies once were able to exist, love and grow under both the moon and the sun. They slept during the hot afternoon and celebrated late into the dark and private nights. There had been a balance, and yet now there was not. No late revelry, and hardly any afternoon naps. Such things were now considered improper. Something had changed, and the ancient magics had faded. The world’s wild magic had waned with the taming of the modern pony.
Luna’s sigh echoed longingly through the infinite night as she flicked her paintbrush. Once, she’d been wild as well. Her tantabus shivered, admiring the painting. Another excellent night in the dreamscape was done, and her ponies were safe once more. Everything was in place, the nightmares were gone, and tomorrow the little ponies would wake to be tamed once more.
She squinted at the painting, her deep blue eyes glowing with magic as she noticed a mistake. She’d missed a spot. Just the smallest, tiniest little spot. Her tantabus rippled, warning her to stop. The spot wasn’t important. It wasn’t worth her attention.
Luna’s conscious mind disagreed, but she shrugged it off. One little spot could simply be one more of her little secrets, at least for tonight.
Solar Sail woke up with a start, rolling from his hammock and landing on his handsomely cream colored face. He groaned as he pushed the yellow mane out of his eyes, and rolled over.
Great. His nose was bleeding. Look at him! He was a sailor extraordinaire, a world class adventurer, a dashing monster hunter, and a pony lost hopelessly at sea in a dinghy with a bloody nose. That bloody nose certainly helped his chances of survival. The rocking waves soothed his anger, and he sat up in the lifeboat.
The L.B. S.O.S. was all that stood between him and the deep blue. His proper ship, the S.V. Aurora had sunk three days ago from a rampant sea monster in a particularly bad mood, and he was running out of time to make it back to civilized land. Even worse, the darned monster had made off with his saber! He was ship less, food less, and now saber less! What was an earth pony adrift at sea to do?
Groaning, he looked out over the water, grateful for the light of the full moon. At least he could still see. A night of pitch black solitude out at sea in waters with saber equipped sea monsters was not something he relished. Not that he could fight off another sea monster, all things considered.
He was sure his mother would find this hilarious. She was probably rolling in her grave right now, laughing at what he’d become. She had always found his plans of high adventure a little on the fanciful side.
He washed his face with sea water, careful not to let the bloodied water out of the boat. Sharks were the last things he needed tonight. Carefully, Solar climbed back into the hammock. At night the scrap of cloth kept him off the hard wood hull, and at day it kept the burning sun off his face. Three days of huddling in the shade and basking in the moon. If it wasn’t for his inevitable horrible death by starvation, a night basking in the pure moonlight over the peaceful ocean would almost feel cleansing.
Still, he wished for a breeze. The scrap of cloth would make for a much better sail than furniture.
As the blood trickled down his face, he wondered when he’d actually die. The part of the ocean he was originally sailing in was safe enough, but with no wind and the high currents, after three days adrift he’d be lost in what was known as Tirek's Toilet. It was known for sapping away the magic of sailing, and smelling foul. The natural currents swirled here in eddies, and the winds hardly ever blew.
It was a death sentence in a dinghy. His only hope would be a low flying pegasus, or perhaps some adventurous sea ponies. No sane pony would intentionally go sailing here. Perhaps pirates, but he hoped to not meet any while that sea monster was borrowing his saber.
Calmly, he watched the moon. It was beautiful up there, hanging in the sky. He certainly appreciated it more than the sun as of late. The sun made everything sweat and swell as the heat cooked wood, cloth, and pony skin. The moon cooled and soothed, it’s light was easy and clear. His name, Solar Sail, was growing into more of a cruel irony with each passing day. Surely it was another lingering curse from his dearly departed mother. She’s the one who named him, after all.
“You probably think this is hilarious, don’t you?” He whispered to the sea.
He could ask her in person soon. His water would run out tomorrow, and then it was only a matter of time before he met his mother again. Would she be wearing that gaudy burial shawl, or had she finally gotten some sense of style in the afterlife?
The moon seemed to glow, flickering in the night as something strange began to happen. Curious, Solar rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was dreaming. Was the moon dripping?
No, there seemed to be something just below the moon. A ghostly thing, wavering in the moonlight just out of his vision.
He squinted to get a better look.
It moved, swaying from side to side. Glowing orbs as eyes and large teeth made of stars came into view. The creature seemed like a dog. It was short and snarling, and its starlit teeth were latched onto the moon like a floating frisbee. It appeared to be dangling.
Had he fallen asleep? Solar gently poked his nose, feeling a rush of pain from where he’d slammed it into the wooden hull earlier. He was definitely awake, at least if the movies were anything to go by.
“What the heck?” He whispered to no one, for there was no one but himself to hear.
Luckily, no one answered. The sea was silent, quietly lapping at the side of his dinghy as the sky grew darker and more dangerous. The moon flickered, like a candle about to go out. The dog growled loudly as it bit down, then a loud crunch filled the sky.
Solar watched in amazement as a chunk of the moon came free, eaten like a bite out of a cookie. The inky blackness of space could be seen in the new hole. There weren’t even stars in that hole, the moon eating dog appeared to have swallowed them as well. The dog fell from the moon, and landed on the horizon, its eyes glowing brighter while it howled in victory.
Great waves filled the distance, and the ocean rumbled. Suddenly, the night was far from calm. Now fully awake, Solar gripped the side of the dinghy with his hooves as the boat violently rocked.
The dog slipped behind the horizon, falling beyond the ocean. He tried to watch, but in the violently rocking waters, there was nothing he could do but hold on for his life.
Solar awoke with a start. He had fallen asleep in the storm, wrapped under his hammock and covered in more of his own blood. Luckily, the last of his drinking water hadn’t fallen overboard. Aside from a bruised head, he was only barely worse off than he was the night before. It was a shame the strange storm hadn’t brought rain, but that was to be expected in Tirek’s Toilet.
He couldn’t get the dream of the moon eating dog out of his head. What had that meant? Was it some sort of sign? Perhaps he was simply hallucinating, and it hadn’t been a dream at all. He still thought he a had a few good days, but maybe he’d been wrong. How many days had it been now? Four? Or was it still three?
Hiding from the hot sun, he curled up in his makeshift shade, and tried to go back to sleep. There was no need to waste energy in the heat.
Luna stared at her painting. It was wrong. The white spot had grown larger. She’d left it alone at her tantabus’s request, but now it was too large. It wasn’t a mistake, or simple misplaced dream. Something horrible was happening in her dreamscape. Her tantabus stretched apologetically.
“You couldn’t have known… Worry not. But what, and where is it?”
The tantabus touched her painting, and wobbled. The white spot spread to it, clinging to the ethereal dreamstuff like a scab on a limb.
Luna watched curiously. “Hold that out.”
It’s limbs stretched far, keeping the spot as far away from its body as possible. The white seemed to slowly be growing.
Luna frowned in contemplation. “You’re ancient magic. Nothing should be able to affect you, and yet…”
Her tantabus twisted in discomfort as the spot grew.
Luna’s eyes went wide. “It’s eating you… What could possibly eat you?”
Solar watched the moon again. He couldn’t sleep. He’d slept all day, and his head hurt from too much sleep. Or perhaps it was lack of water. The wet, hot air was still and deathly.
“Just like mom liked, huh? Quiet , dark, and reeking of sulfur.” He whispered to the air.
The air didn’t respond, which was unfortunate. He could use a breeze right now. He eyed his water traps, hoping the night air might condense into something drinkable on the makeshift device. It was a thin hope, but it was all he had. Rain seemed a myth here.
He wondered about food, but if he couldn’t get water then it wouldn’t matter.
A movement on the horizon distracted him as something peeked above it. It was the dog, and now it was brighter and more clear. It looked larger as well.
The ghost dog climbed up off the edge of the world and stood over the ocean.
Solar watched in awe. Was this real? Or was he hallucinating? Maybe he’d fallen asleep?
The dog ran toward the moon, seemingly flying through the night sky. This time it paused next to the moon and snapped at it, taking a giant bite in one easy gulp. The moon flickered and grew dimmer as the moon eating dog grew brighter.
The dog fell again, landing violently on the horizon, causing the sea to shake. This time it rumbled, seemingly in agony. Solar hung on for dear life as his boat wasn’t just rocked, but thrown about by the sudden angry waves.
The dog howled, flashing with primal light while the crashing, rushing water threw the boat one last time, slamming Solar into the side of his wooden boat.
Luna was panicking. The white stuff had nearly eaten her tantabus.
“Fear not! I can make another you if it eats you.”
Her tantabus paled in fear, clearly displeased by her response.
“Well, we don’t know what’s happening! It’s not a spell, I can’t find any artifacts, and Twilight couldn’t find any cause either. Sister is dangerous here, though she may be able to save you if she doesn’t destroy you.”
Luna didn’t want to resort to it, but Celestia could easily cleanse her tantabus. Unfortunately, Celestia would probably cleanse all of the tantabus, and leave nothing but scorched dreamstuff behind. It really was the last option.
Luna stared at the growing white patch. Over three days it had become larger and larger on her canvas. That much was possible through any number of modern magics. She glanced at her tantabus, holding its white, flaky limb as far away from its body as possible. That was not something that could be done with modern magics.
Nor was it something that could be done with ancient magics.
Her tantabus was a mythic being, tied to the very essence of night and sleep. Only something from the age of myths could possibly harm it like this. But all of the ancient beasts of creation had been slain, hadn’t they?
She shivered. If one such primal beast existed, all of creation could be disrupted. Such a thing was not a thought to entreat lightly.
And yet…
Solar Sail woke up with a start. His boat was cracked, he had been slammed around, and he’d lost his water collectors. He had been injured enough that he’d slept most of the day, unable to do anything in the heat of the sun. He hadn’t planned on dying so soon, but with no supplies and a rapidly deteriorating life boat, things were not looking good.
Would he even survive the night? If that dog thing came again and caused another patch of rough seas, then his boat wouldn’t make it. Without his boat he was as good as dead. Just like his mum.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” He stood up and angrily looked over the horizon.
The moon was unnaturally dim tonight, a soft glow eerily filling the clear sky. It was a far cry from the bright cooling light it had provided three days ago.
With no fanfare, there it was again. The dog poked its head over the horizon like an animal climbing on a table, and Solar swallowed in fear.
Helplessly he watched as the now wolflike creature climbed up onto the horizon once more, checked from side to side, then looked hungrily at the nearly extinguished moon.
Luna was panicking. She watched as the white scar seemed to race across her tantabus, and also across her painting. Was there nothing that could be done? There was one thing. Her sister could cleanse it. No matter the cause, her sister could cleanse it. She looked intently at her tantabus and sighed. She’d just have to make another.
“Hold strong! I’ll… we’ll get my sister. Do not touch anything! I’ll return soon.”
Luna looked at her tantabus one last time before fading out of the dreamscape.
The tantabus rolled, smushed, and froze. Then it moved slowly, angrily, and with purpose. It touched things. It touched all of the things.
Solar watched the wolf run towards the moon, feeling powerless. Angrily, he slammed his hoof on the boat, creating a loud slapping sound.
The wolf paused, and looked down curiously at him.
Surprised, Solar did it again.
The wolf cocked it’s head.
It wasn’t possible that the wolf could see him. The creature was miles away. Then again, was it? Solar was a learned sailor, he knew the horizon wasn’t some table a dog could jump on. He knew the moon was a sphere millions of miles distant in the sky. Only Luna could touch it with her magic. And yet, this creature had bitten it like a flat wafer, now two times.
Did the concept of distance or shape even mean anything to this creature? Did it understand the difference between a sphere and a circle, or geometry at all? The thought rang through him in a strange way. If this creature payed no attention to such things, why wouldn’t it see him? Why wouldn’t it hear him?
“Hey, you! Don’t do that!”
The wolf growled at Solar, and began to walk towards him, effortlessly finding a path to lope through the waves.
Solar gulped, but had nowhere to run and no weapons to use. “You think you can just come over here? I’m a monster hunter you know! I fight sea monsters for fun!”
Sure, the sea monster had won, and Solar hadn’t exactly hunted it, but one fight should count for something, right?
The wolf’s ears perked up, and it kept walking closer. As it approached, it grew larger. At first, it was the size of a little tugboat on the horizon. Then, the size of a larger ferry. Then, it was as big as three cruise ships! By the time it towered over him, it was as large as seven cruise ships stacked end to end and turned on their sides!
Or, perhaps it would be easier to say it was as big as a mountain. It certainly towered over him like a mountain, glowing in the night like the moon once did.
Drool fell in a large drop, splashing in the water and causing his boat to spin wildly.
Solar was sick of this. He didn’t want any more strange hallucinations. He wanted to be back home, sitting at his table, eating his mother’s overcooked banana pudding. But he couldn’t have that, could he? No he had a monstrous moon eating dog that ignored euclidean geometry towering over him and drooling.
“Stop that! Can’t you see you’re making a horrible mess? Do you see what you’ve done to my boat? It’s all cracked now! This is not how we do things! We live in a society!”
The monstrous wolf lowered its head, and settled its giant, glowing eye in front of the boat.
Solar felt frustration wash over him as he realized the eye alone was larger, meaner, and more bright than an entire city of ponies. The light from the eye caused Solar’s shadow to stretch infinitely behind him, joining Solar, the dinghy, the ocean, and the black night sky in a singular streak of shadow.
As Solar’s shadow stretched across the ocean and into infinity, he angrily pointed a hoof at the impossibly large pupil before him. “You can’t just go around eating moons! Ponies need those! Not to mention the ocean! Have you seen the havoc you’ve wrecked every time you take a bite? The ocean needs the moon for tides, and sailors like me need it for guidance!”
The wolf sniffed, causing a small hurricane dozens of miles away. That was where its nose was.
Solar looked at the storm, suddenly angry. “That too! Look at that! Just your breathing is causing a ruckus! You’re far too big. You are irresponsibly big. If you’re going to be that big, you have to be careful! Think about what you’re doing! Have some decency!”
The wolf blinked.
Solar was growing even more angry the more he thought about it, “Why do you even need to be so big for? It’s all seems pointless to me. I am lost at sea, soon to die from the elements as I’m barely surviving and here comes the the worlds largest dog! At first I think, oh, maybe I’m saved. But no. All this dog wants to do is grow impossibly large, eat moons, and destroy the tides themselves. You know what?”
The wolf stared at him.
Solar stared at the wolf, his anger growing to a crescendo. He didn’t want to, but he had to say it.
“You are a bad dog!”
The wolf whimpered.
Celestia and Luna appeared in the dreamscape.
“Where is this emergency, Sister?” Celestia looked around curiously.
Luna frowned. “It’s gone…”
Celestia licked her lips in frustration. “Gone? Luna, how can it be gone? Where has it gone?”
Luna looked at her painting. The unsightly white blotch was gone. “I have no idea. It went as quickly as it came… Tantabus, where are you?”
A bluish pseudopod reached delicately from around the dreamscape. There was no white to be seen.
Celestia huffed. “Well, it looks fine to me, but I’m no expert. Look, I I’m terribly sorry but have a lot to take care of this evening, Luna. Please, call me if it comes back.”
Luna stared incredulously. “Okay…”
“And here I thought it might be related to all those earthquakes… ah well. When you are done here, we have to attend to Blueblood’s great nephew. I got a missive just before you arrived that he’s returned after being lost at sea for the last few years.”
Luna looked at Celestia suspiciously. “Blueblood’s never had a great nephew, Sister… We should certainly know.”
Celestia huffed. “Of course he has. Now, if there’s no emergency, please excuse me. I’d like to see what he found.”
Celestia faded out, and Luna turned to glare at her tantabus.
“WHAT EXACTLY DID YOU TOUCH?”
Her tantabus jiggled softly into the dreamscape.
