Janon - The Resident "Wise" Guy

Cadence Perspective

Luna teleports the four of us into Janon’s dream. It’s a surprisingly pleasant atmosphere. We stand in a meadow filled with flowers and small trees. In the distance, there is a large, rustic house. The house looks to be two stories tall with an attic.

“I think they’re in there,” I say, pointing toward the house. Its lights are on, so it’s a fair bet.

“Are his dreams always this serene?” Asks Celestia, turning to Luna

“I can’t say, but this is certainly different from the dream I met him in,” Luna says, looking around as we approach the house.

“What was the dream you first met him in like?” Twilight curiously asks, looking up at the moon princess.

“His dream was of a warzone, unlike anything I had ever seen. It had dug-out trenches and large vehicles. That even with their size, they couldn’t survive getting hit by the opposing side's weapons. It was brutal.” Luna recounts the memory. Even having led armies into battle herself, that level of violence was something she had never seen before.

“I wonder why he’d dream of anything like that,” Twilight asks, shaking her head.

“He said it was for practice.”

“Pardon me, sister, practice? Practice for what?” Celestia says it with a concerned look.

“I haven’t the slightest idea. Perhaps we should ask him.” Luna says this as we reach the front door of the house.

I take the knob in my magic and turn it, opening the door. As the four of us enter the house, we notice it’s extremely calming inside. Fire fills the room with a peaceful ambiance, occasionally flickering in the fireplace. My ears perk up as I hear a sound from the second floor. “I hear something. It’s coming from the second floor. Perhaps it’s Janon.” I begin quietly up the stairs, the others following behind me. Following the sounds, I reach a door.

“Should we knock?” Twilight asks, her voice barely above a whisper, “This looks like a bedroom.”

“What tells you that?” I ask, glancing at Twilight.

“It’s on the second floor. Typically, public places are on the first floor, with private areas on the second.”

“That’s a good point.” I reach out a hoof and softly tap the door, a door that slowly swings open. "Well, that was not what I was trying to do.” I giggle at what I see. Luna’s little spy is currently lying in her target's arms with a very comfortable smile, her eyes closed, and a quiet purr emanating from her.

{hr}

Janon’s Perspective

I am currently staring down at all four alicorns of Equestria. You know, I should have expected this, but they could have knocked. I figured royalty would know some common decency. Sable turns in my arms, the comforting caress of my hand having stopped.

“Why’d you stop?” She asks, turning to face me, unaware of our guests.

I don’t respond because I'm too busy staring at Luna and the princesses. Her gaze follows mine, and her eyes shrink to pinpricks once she sees the princesses. She quickly jumps out of bed, a bright blush on her face, and stands at the side. "Greetings, your majesties.”

"Well, this certainly wasn’t what I was expecting, but it’s not like Sable’s a changeling feeding off his love,” Twilight says, trying to cut through the silence.

Me and Sable exchange a glance. “About that. Luna, it turns out you were right.” Sable says she dropped her disguise.

Luna chuckles, and Celestia summons twenty bits from her vault and splits them between Luna and Cadence. “Told you.”

“Yeah, no need to rub it in,” Celestia says with a groan, leaving me and Sable beyond confused.

“Pardon me? Sable told me you had suspensions; she was a changeling, but y'all were making bets.” I say it with a baffled expression.

“No, we were making bets that she was a changeling and we’d find out due to her sleeping with somepony,” Cadence says with a smirk.

“So why are you all here? In my dream? Which I typically spend either doing stuff or planning.”

“I’m stuff.” Sable mumbles.

“No, you are not!” I say it with a groan, burying my forehead in my hand. “We just cuddle. Nothing more.”

“Okay, we came here to have a pre-meeting meeting. I haven’t heard from Sable since I assigned her to you, so I wanted to check up on her. I figured I could just ask you. I also wanted to get introductions out of the way.” Luna says it’d just be best to carry on with the original plan.

“Sounds fine also; could you have knocked?”

“I did; the door just opened,” Cadence answers, feeling slightly bad about it.

I slowly turn to Sable and ask, “You didn’t close the door?”

“I could have sworn I did.” She says it with a nervous chuckle.

“Ugh, what’s next? I’m going to find out if you have a crush on me or something.” I said, throwing up my arms in exasperation before looking back at the princesses.

“Maybe.”

“The fuck, Cadence,” I say, glancing at the mare with a perplexed expression.

“I’m the princess of love.”

“Yeah, I know that. You’d be surprised at how much I know.”

“And with that, I can see love similar to a changeling can.”

“Okay, I see where this is going.”

“Yes, I can tell you with partial certainty.” Cadence is cut off by Sable, who now stands in front of me.

“Okay, okay, I like you. You make me feel like, I don’t know, like a normal pony.” Sable declares her face a deep crimson. “You make me feel like Chrysalis didn’t send me away when I was 15. You make me feel like the other changelings didn’t do things to me when I was growing up. You make me feel special and loved.”

I pause for a moment not answering her, instead stepping out of bed and crouching down to her level, wrapping my arms around her neck in a hug. “I need time to process this, but I’ll always be your friend. Maybe one day I can say I feel the same way, but not now. It’s only been a week too soon for me.

“Thank you, Janon. That sounds perfect. Just don’t leave me; I don’t want to be alone.” Sable says, nuzzling my head, tears filling her eyes.

“I won’t. I promise I won’t leave you.” I answer, pulling the mare into my arms and sitting down, placing her in my lap. “Now to answer your questions. I assume you have many.” I say, turning to the princesses.

Celestia speaks up: “You’ve shown yourself to not be unfeeling, so I can safely say you’re not a threat. What are your plans? Also, how much do you know about this world?”

“My plans originally were to just start up a human settlement on Equus. After that, I wanted to let them leave the confines of the Ark. Once Sable entered the question, it changed. I still want to achieve my original goals, but I also want to just spend my days embracing her. It makes me feel.” I pause for a moment, thinking of what to say, “happy.” I say, stroking Sable’s back with my hand, causing soft purrs to leave her lips. “As for my knowledge of this world, I know a lot. I know that in about two months' time, Lord Tirek will attack, having built up power after he escaped from Tartarus when Cerberus left. He will expect an easy fight, but he will not get one. Me and my people will unleash hell’s fury upon him. He will lose; that is a fact.”

“How are you so certain?” Celestia asks with an uncertain expression.

I stop my caress and give Sable a gentle nudge. She leaves my lap, and I stand up. “I know this for reasons I cannot tell you.” I reach out an open hand to the ceiling before closing it. The dreamscape before us shifts, replaced by an image of Ponyville, us floating in the sky above the town. “I was given a watch with Discord’s power when I arrived. It gave me the ability to make rules that alter reality itself. One of the rules I made was that I’d slowly absorb the power of the watch. It has been over two months since I arrived, and I’ve absorbed over seventy-five percent of the watch’s power. By the end of the month, I’d have absorbed the rest of it. As for my knowledge of this world, I know the entire history of this planet and this universe. I know a thousand years ago you banished Luna to the moon.” I swing my hand, changing the scene to the moon. “You did this because she was taken over by Nightmare Moon. Something you also can do." I point a finger at Celestia, temporarily transforming her into Daybreaker for an instant. “I know you’ve been teaching and training Twilight to replace both you and Luna. I know almost everything that is going to happen.”

Celestia and the other stand there quietly, asking, “What were you before you arrived here?” Celestia asks with a hesitant expression.

“A normal dude.”

“What is it you want to achieve?”

“I see a future I don’t want to happen, and I will do everything in my power to avoid that future from happening.”

“What do you see in this future?”

“I see a world where I do nothing, a dead world, a once paradise torn apart by pettiness, xenophobia, and distrust. I see the sacrifice of man, pony, griffon, and races you don’t even know exist. I see your palace covered in red, the faces of creatures you’d long believed dead tearing your beloved ponies limb by limb. I see death.”

“Who!?” Celestia says in nearly a shout.

“Foes from your past, like Lord Tirek, Sombra, and Chrysalis, As well as foes you’ve never seen before like Cozy Glow, Starlight Glimmer, and the Storm King. Not only that but also old friends, like Sunset Shimmer and Discord. But the biggest killer is your own ponies.”

“How do you plan on stopping all of them?”

“Lord Tirek, you already know how,” I answer, having already detailed my plan to defeat Lord Tirek. “King Sombra is already destined to perish; he shall find his defeat in Harmony’s hands.” I pause momentarily, remembering what Sable said about her origin. “Queen Chrysalis, I had plans to reform, but after learning about what happened to Sable under her care,” I pondered my words for a moment, letting my emotions speak for once. “I can only say one thing: she better pray the Ancient One shows her mercy because I won’t. Cozy Glow is a mixed bag; if I can find her early enough, I can possibly reform her; after all, she is just a filly when she tries to seal away all magic.” Once again, I pause, thinking what if I fail it’s a non-favorable outcome but it’s possible. “If she chooses violence, then she shall also perish.” Starlight Glimmer is such an interesting mare. I truly hope her fate stays the same.“ Starlight Glimmer is destined to be reformed by Twilight. I do not worry about her; she is a broken mare. Extend her friendship, and she will accept it. Not only that, but she will bring great change.” The Storm King—my hatred for him could level mountains, but the Commonwealth is watching him closely, and I trust their judgment. “The Storm King's flame will be extinguished by Equestria’s secret protector.” Ah, Sunset Shimmer, I doubt she’ll make an appearance, but if she does, “Sunset Shimmer like Starlight will be reformed by Twilight. A wise man once said, Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet. I’ve taken that to heart. That’s why if Discord does anything to betray Equestria or Equus as a whole, then let the seas burn, as I will strike him down myself.”

“You seem confident in your abilities,” Luna responds.

“I am not; that’s why the gene people exist. Inside each of them is a sense of justice just as strong as mine. I know if I am to meet my end at the hands of a villain, they will continue my legacy.”

Celestia looks to me with her eyes filled with the wisdom of a thousand years: “Do not die; life is for those who care about you, those like Sable. Dying is easy; living is harder.”

“I have no plans of dying.”

Celestia turns to Sable, who has been silent this entire time, and asks, “What are your goals, Sable?”

“My goals? I simply want to live out my days with Janon; maybe start my own hive.”

“You know once Chrysalis is dealt with, you could lead her hive,” I say, knowing there will be consequences to her death.

“I don’t know, Janon. I mean, I can see some of the hive is open to the deal, but not all of it.”

“Her hive is only loyal to her because they think feeding off love is their only way to survive. If you came and told them they could simply love instead, you’d have most of the hive by your side. I know this because I’ve seen another do it in an alternate timeline.” I crouch down and give the mare a supportive hug. “Do you have any other questions?”

“Not any that can’t be asked at our actual meeting,” Celestia says with a shake of her head.

“Does that conclude this little meeting?”

“I think it does,” Celestia says, looking around at the others, who also nod.

“Good, it was nice meeting you four despite the embarrassing introduction.”

"Don’t worry you two are adorable together,” Cadence giggles.

“Noted,” I respond with a nod and chuckle.

“Well, let’s get everyone back to their dreams,” Luna says, her horn glowing and teleporting our guests away, leaving just me and Sable. I snap my fingers, returning my dream to its previous state. My eyes meet Sable's, and I pick her up, carrying her to the bed. As I lay down, she nuzzles my chest.

“I love you; you know that.” She says it with a happy smile.

“I know.”

{hr}

I wake up from the dream with a lack of a Sable beside me. Strangely, I always wake up before her. I looked at the wall and got my answer. Secured to the wall is a Hemlock cocoon. "Well, I’ll be damned, she’s metamorphosizing.” I reach down to my hip and grab a device; it was a gift from Cosmos. Pressing the center button, I’m transported to his office. It’s a cozy room that looks like your standard 1950s office. Sitting at his desk is Cosmos.

Cosmos turns to face me, his gaze curious. “What brings you here, Janon?” he asks in a low, grumbling voice.

I look around the room before answering, “Can you send me to your pocket dimension? I need some time to think.”

"You are aware of the time dilation in Cosron.”

“Yes, I am aware that a single minute here is a day there. I think I’m in love. I just don’t know.”

Cosmos’s mouth shapes into an o. “Oh, I see. Sable is ongoing a metamorphosis after you found out she loves you.”

“How’d you know?”

“Father told me. I figured you’d come to me.”

“It doesn’t surprise me. So what do you say?”

“Changelings typically undergo metamorphosis for two weeks. That’s nearly six decades in my realm. Are you sure?”

“Stop my aging after five years.”

“Why five years?” Cosmos is not against the idea, just curious as to why.

“So I’ll still be taller than her.”

Cosmos chuckles at this: “Okay, I’ll send you to Cosron; it’d be like your dreams, where you can shape it to your desire. The main difference is that you maintain any physical growth. So if you exercise, you’ll keep the gains.”

“Does that include magic? If I practice and improve my powers, will that stay once I return?”

“Yes, it will stay. You can ponder your feelings for this mare, who will train for your upcoming battles.”

“Just check up on me sometimes, okay?”

“I will”

“Thank you, Cosmos; let’s do it,” and with that, Cosmos lit his horn.

It takes a moment for my vision to recover. I stand in a void filled with stars and galaxies, a void I can shape at will. A void that shall be my home until Sable returns. I extend my arm and hand open before closing my palm, and the void collapses into my hand. The realm is now a truly empty void, with no light, no stars, and nothing. I swipe my closed arm, changing the empty void to Ponyville, or how Ponyville should look on the day Tirek attacks.