The Church of the Half Moon

Crystal clear

The winds folded the land like origami. Time sang to the change of the trail, even a short moment would mold the ground into something different. The mountains that were blurry brush strokes that framed the surrounding area, became more refined as they towered over the group. Sometimes those giant sharp masses generously provide shade, breaking the sun's unyielding glare. There were many caves in that white rock, stars carved from that mighty mountain to lead to the ones above the floor. Checkpoint 16, the biggest checkpoint building Pixie has seen. The building has multiple floors, and a curvy roof. It was long, part of it built into the rocky cavern of the mountain, like it was carved from the very marble that made up the building. It has the number 16 in it, marking it as that check point. Pixie would never understand why the numbers were out of order, but it never seemed important enough to ask. The sand turned to grass, and soft dirt your hooves slightly melted in.

There, the trees were lush. Unlike the twigs and torn stumps back on the trail. They were a deep brown, the bark had Moss growing on one of its sides, it smelled fresh? Like cleaned clothes yet was never as other whelming as the incense they used to scent their garbs. Pixie walked on to the changed floor, feeling the blades of grass that tickled the frogs of his hooves. He stepped between the roots of the tree, climbing up one of the fat ones, and balancing on the oak. His weight was nothing but a mere annoyance at the tree, as he hopped from one to another, he came to the biggest tree there. Its trunk was large, and branches were as big as the tall trees around it. There were crystals in the wood, some as big as Pixie. Clearish pink, they reflected the inside of the wood and the roots that grew inside them. The foal reached up, placing a hoof on the closest charm near the floor. His small hoof felt the smooth surface of the rock.

A wave of energy ran up his arm, he saw images of the mines, a tall mare, Selene, here at this moment. Kindness? Warmth maybe? It made his head feel foggy as he quickly pulled back, the sensation ringing in his ears. His heart started fluttering, cheeks flushed, and he felt like he was going to hurl again. Bright pictures made pixie see them, even as his eyes were open, they played over the open blinding him. The bright image of Selene’s enchantment… on a seed? The way it shot into the dirt, beaming up like a spider web changing the mixed colors of the sand, repeatedly played in his memories, uninvited yet yelling as it cycled through each other. It was like another pony was feeling things there; demanding to scribble out his own thoughts, writing over them. Yet Pixie's fear remained, even as the sudden emotions and imagery faded away releasing back its control to the foal.

Pixie gasped. Trying to collect his own thoughts, what he hoped were his own thoughts, and memories that fogged the once vivid memory moments before.

“Ballast, granite and a bit of magic,” Picpuck spoke out, leaning down to speak by the foals head,

“AHHH!” Pixie hopped and he quickly turned around, eyes shot up as his sister who only laughed,

“Did you plan on being sneaky, Pixie Dust? You're bright white with a rainbow mane, you can't hide even if you tried,” Picpuck hummed, “I saw you touching the charm,”

“I- was curious… I was trying to play-”

“You didn't do anything wrong,” Picpuck interrupted, as she too, walked up to the charm.

Her hoof was firm, the black holes in her mask for her eyes glowed pink yet she seemed calm, even as she took away her hoof. She turned to the other, letting out another giggle, she snorted. The first time Pixie has heard her do that, it got Pixie himself to smile.

“Its jarring and first, especially without warning,” Picpuck sat on top of one of the big roots, patting the side of it for her brother to join, “I won't explain what charms are again, but these ones work a bit differently,”

Pixie joined her, “...oh?”

“Equestria used to be lush like this everywhere, but something happened that caused it to be what you saw out there, destroyed, dry, and dirty,”

“When the sun burned the land?”

“Well, that's what we are taught, so good on being studious, I guess.” She hit the tree with her hoof, “when Selene enchanted these big boys, the amount of magic she used was too much for the original crystal, but that was intended to purify this land, so it's like- a recording almost, the exact moment reflections in the crystals,”

“...huh?”

“Remember when I told you why the protection charms we use are that size? Any bigger the crystal would be impractical to carry around. If you still place that magic in there, it becomes unstable, breaking the crystal just like that,”

“Like a lot of water in a bucket?”

“Exactly! But we wanted it to break here, revive the lands with its destruction, it's why Selene left her cozy home to be here to do that in the first place,”

“...but why?”

“Lumber- '' Picpuck booped her brother's nose, “She's done this back at the farms as well, for crops, but it didn't grow with the tree simply forming a big crystal in the middle of the field. This was my personal favorite, always thought it looked cooler,”

Pixie's eyes looked back up at that mighty tree, “Makes… sense.”

Pic smirked, “of course it does, I was the one explaining it,”

The mare slipped off the root, moving away from the tree, “I suggest you get back to the old man, He seemed more tense than usual,”

Pixie stood, following her out of the false woods, back to checkpoint 16.

There were rooms here, instead of curtained off cubicles. Doors, with numbers ingraved into them. There were some adult ponies Pixie didn't recognize, yet they weren't outsiders, they too wore the face of moon. Inside the building, had noise, chattering, and laughter. Hundreds of conversations, and questions. He saw doctors; some by beds that rolled out, from room to room on the bottom floor. The ponies on top of those had a nasty cough. Ponies have been referring to this place as “Starfall,” instead of checkpoint 16. It makes sense, the lights were chained star shaped jewels on the ceiling. They weren't needed, the windows were large enough to give you vertigo if you stood too close. The halls were long, and stairs claustrophobic with foals chasing each other, up and down them. The bottom floor was mostly open. Tables that ponies had already started to rest at. Glass walls showing the natural geodes in the rich mountain, left untouched but uncovered, decorative as they too were charms, softly glowing. Yet, they weren't just pink, they were blues and greens, and purples. The only carved stone was a giant sphere of moon stone, slowly rotating.

“There you are,” Papa walked up to to his son,

Pixie didn't have a chance to answer as Picpuck swept in, “I was showing him the old oak. We were simply taking advantage of the down time to spend some quality time,”

Papa stared at Picpick. Silence, between them, thick enough you could cut through it.

“Oh, that's… fine, that's good! Even,” Papa said, focused on his daughter joy filled up his voice desperate to say more,

“Well I'll be off, take care Silver Dollar, and Pixie Dust,” Picpick stopped him before he could start,

“Oh, yes. Take care, love,” Papa's voice was quiet as his daughter went off to her duties.