Mirror: Book I - Mind

A mirror.

An image stretching further than that which the waking eye could ever hope to comprehend, a sound far more vast than any barrier could hold, and the touch of a cold, long, dark and relentless nothing. The nothing became something, and the something was the boy.

David floated aimlessly upon a vantablack canvas well before he was even to the point of assessing his current placing, touching nothing and seeing nothing, only he could be seen and touched, for only he existed. It was within the very void of his deep mind that his subconscious figure came into fruition, a chest of secrets as vast as one’s imagination, in particular the boy’s, awaiting the awakening. He opened his eyes, and the endlessness greeted him with a long, dark stare. Everything was tasteless, sightless, soundless, not even an echo called back to him. Upon the very moment that which he opened his eyes and began at his form, one thought in particular fell upon him, an almost innate sense as if he had known it even before it had occurred. Somehow David knew that he was dreaming, and yet he did not awake.

A great, bright beam hailed from above him, his only sense of direction projecting from himself, and he stared longingly into the light as though wondering upon a bedazzled, speckled star. The star was alone, and yet it shone the brightest, brighter than any light he had ever witnessed in the night sky. It’s blue-white beams stretched endlessly upon a dome of tiny little white dots slowly coming into view and surrounding him from all directions. The stars began to spin, speeding up until they spiraled all around the boy, close enough for him to reach out and touch them. The sight was that of ethereal liquid ghosting through his digits, like grains of sand slipping off one’s palm and around their fingers. Galaxies and cosmic swirls soon came into view, quasars, blazars and all manner of universal phenomenon filling his eyes all at once. Above it all, the lone star focused its light upon the boy, analyzing his figure and rendering a glowing, light-blue circle beneath his feet. The images below him spun about the surface of the stars, outlining a much bigger circle the same color as that around his feet. Twelve distinct symbols were housed within their own separate circles accompanied by rune like writings and scribbles. The human stared down at the glowing letters in wonder, watching as the bigger circle began to spin and suddenly stop, pointing to a certain symbol at the circle around his feet. The sign presented before him was that of what appeared to be two horns curling downwards.

Zodiac signs. He recalled. But, this one is-

“Aries.”

A voice whispered from the stars, seemingly coming in all directions. The boy spun and looked around in a desperate attempt to locate the source, only to find the answer he was looking for as he slowly resumed his face forward, a powerful yet terrifying presence reigning down before him. His mind raced and his eyes danced upon the figure before him, breath quickening and body tingling all over. He wanted to scream, to shout, to run, very well tripping over his own feet in the process. Yet, he stood still, whether it be out of complete and utter fear or a sign of obedience as to what the voice uttered next.

“Be not afraid.”

To the naked eye, to comprehension alone the number of circles were impossible to count in the way that they spun and vortexed about the nucleus of their making, and yet the boy somehow knew that there were twelve circles in total. The circles were dotted with gleaming, blue eyes, blinking and staring in every impossible direction, and all at the same time they were fixated upon the boy. In the center of it all was the shadow of a fetal-posed fetus, burning brilliantly within the core of a bright blue flame. The mass of wheels and eyes left the fetus behind and came to the center of David’s circle, surrounding him and looking at him from all directions.

“Be not afraid.” It repeated, again and again. “Be not afraid. Be not afraid.”

Frightened more than he could come to comprehend, he began to crumple and found himself curling inwards, soon to be much like the figure of the fetus that was at the center of it all. He looked up one last time at the silhouette from afar, and noticed one distinct feature from the rest. It had a horn.

This is a dream. The boy reminded himself, and the eyes began to dissipate. That voice…I recognize it! The wheels began to separate.

David stood, faced the fetus from afar, and watched as it expanded in size and grew into the form of a full grown unicorn. The unicorn raised its head, sprouted wings stretching from one galaxy to the next, and the brilliant blue embers that had encased it from before were swallowed inwards, exploding into dozens of white twinkling sparkles as they faded into the background of the stars.

David watched as the winged unicorn flared her wings, sweeping the stars across the midnight black canvas. Her mane and tail swirled about as though drifting in a frail breeze, the mirage supplemented by the immense amount of magical energy pulsing through her being. It was as though the midnight sky were captured within a transparent blanket, billions of stars twinkling within. Her coat was a lush, watery blue and her eyes were like that of diamonds. The nightly Alicorn led a calm, awaiting gaze upon the boy, her eyes looking upon him tenderly as they instilled a strange yet alluring sense of warmth.

“What…?” David found himself to be the first to speak. “What was that?”

“A product of the mind.” She answered.

Her voice was like a smooth stream of water running off the tip of a finely honed cutting knife. There was a factor of intimidation, but beneath lied solace and content. A strange sense of inner-peace that the boy couldn’t quite understand just yet. Regardless, he beheld her all the more from her appearance, to her voice, and back to her focused gaze.

“I don’t understand, I was just in the castle.” He spoke beneath his breath. “What’s going on?”

“Surely you have found yourself asking such a question more times than one can count.” The Alicorn responded. She squinted harshly, albeit momentarily as though taking in some sort of confirmation, and gave a subtle nod. “I have obtained an explanation to the disturbance.”

“What disturbance?” He chuckled nervously. “I’m disturbed enough as it is, thank you very much.”

“And perhaps you should be. The mind is no laughing matter, young oneiro.”

“I don’t even know what that is.” He laughed again, sandwiching his face between his palms. “This is another drug trip thing, isn’t it? Another…another coma?” He began to kneel, scratching at his ears and hair. “No no no. I’m going deeper now, aren’t I? At this rate I’ll never wake up.”

The stars surrounding them appeared disturbed, twinkling rigidly upon the scratchy black canvas. Images swirled and sights warped, causing him to clench his eyes shut and wish again and again for this unending dream to propel him back into reality. It had been fun while it lasted, but at this point he had enough of this trip. Seconds later, he sensed a presence washing over him, the same feeling of the warm, inviting light from before.

He let go of his head, opened his eyes and looked up. The Alicorn stooped to his crouching level, smiled into his complexion and lifted a tender wing beneath his chin. Her look said it all.

There is nothing to fear, little one.

She opened her wings again, this time in an inviting embrace. It was only in that moment David realized how small he appeared, how small he felt, and simply found the rhythm of his breath as he stretched his legs out and straightened his spine. He sat upon the starry, blue surface that which he and the Alicorn resided on, and together they humbled themselves in silence as the sparkles of the night sky found their proper state of being once more.

“Do you sense them just as I do?” She asked him.

He blinked and looked over, her eyes were fixated upon the stars, twinkling brilliantly and with unending enthusiasm. The boy returned his gaze just as hers was, and she resumed her speech.

“Every dot you see, every speckle and every star, is a dream.” She breathed. “The realm that which dreams reside is vast and endless, for not even I have seen the end of its trail. My little ponies slumber through each and every night, and illuminate these skies with astounding, breathtaking endeavors. I often wonder if some stare upon the same sky that which I do each and every night.”

David looked to her. “What was that name you called me?” He asked.

She looked upon him, the boy needing to take a second breath from her striking gaze. “You and I are not so different.” She explained. “Oneiromancy is an art forgotten to time and distraction, an endeavor that which only the most focused of ponies may take upon themselves, and even so they may never unlock its full capabilities.”

“So, this is a dream?” He began to realize more. The boy looked around, staring upon the many stars once more. Each and every single star was another person’s dream, or rather another pony’s. Some were brilliant and bright while others were fading and far away. “Lucid dreaming…” He concluded. “I’m in a lucid dream.”

“That is the very foundation of oneiromancy.” She told him. “Just like I, you too are an Oneironaut. How you have come to achieve such a feat in so little time is beyond me, but I surmise that some are simply born with the gift.”

The night-blue winged unicorn regarded him dearly and returned a small tender smile, to which he took a more humbled and serious attitude towards. He felt as though he already knew her name, but the urge within to ask was rising evermore.

“Who are you?”

“I am Princess Luna, Guardian of Dreams and Bringer of the Night.” She smiled dearly, giving a short bow. “Albeit we do not tread the waking world, our meeting was destined as such, and so I give thee a humble welcome to our kingdom. Welcome to Equestria, David.”

Blue, translucent, cobble-plated pathing was laid out before the two like stepping stones with clear rushing waters roaming by mere inches below their hooves and feet. The Princess of the night and the boy walked side by side gazing over the stars and the cosmos in their midst, both close and far. He once again took a moment to regard his new metal gauntlet enveloped around his arm, and stared back at Luna with a curious squint. The Alicorn purposely showed that she noticed him looking, and with that the boy allowed his speculations to leave his lips.

“How did you know my name?” He wondered. “I hardly knew my own when I got here.”

“It is one of many burdens to know the name of each and every being far before I am to meet them, especially those who dream consistently through the nights.”

“But I don’t usually have dreams, at least not every night.” He shrugged.

“That is because you do not remember them.” She explained. “There may be many that you know of, but recall nothing. However, that number could never compare to the amount of dreams we never even knew we had, or will have.”

Silence reigned about them as they continued their stroll through the starry stair case as it began to swirl downwards. The boy could see another light, similar to the blue, glowing circles with the strange symbols from before. He momentarily recalled the sign that had befallen him, the two horns and that word Luna had uttered.

Aries.

The question laid upon the tip of his tongue, but many more were yet to come, and he assumed he would find many more answers as soon as they had reached the next blue circle below.

“So you say all of these stars, these lights in the sky.” He stretched out his arms over the expanse. “Those are all different dreams from different ponies?”

“My kind are not the only species included, as you might suspect.” She calmly gestured to him. “I visit many dreams during my travels through the dream realm, and I have met a fair deal of species from across the galaxies far and wide. You, I might say are a peculiar little dot, as I have always put you as such. I’ve told my sister, Celestia, about that peculiar star in the sky many times before. She is one of very few ponies that I trust.”

“It sounds like you and your sister are very close.” David noted.

“You speak as though you are exempt of familial bonds.” Luna looked to him. “Young boy, this is why I have ventured to your bubble when I had the chance.”

“What do you mean?”

“When I sense a star is in pain, it is like that of a musician faltering in their song. Scratching at their strings and tearing their chords.” Luna winced visibly. “Your star was in pain because your mind falters, and your mind falters because it strives to complete itself in the midst of so many missing parts and pieces. I could not bear to see you go on like this.”

The boy came to a halt as he began to realize what she had meant. The missing pieces, the faltering state of his mind could very well be connected to the head trauma he had supposedly been experiencing early on in this strange, mind trip of his. If he was in fact in some sort of coma, in another state of mind perhaps…

“So you say my mind is attempting to rebuild itself?” He wondered.

Luna nodded. “Naturally.”

“This world that I’m stuck in, Equestria, the ponies, everything.” His speech hastened. “These are all of the building blocks my mind has been using to try and rebuild my senses, hasn’t it? To recreate that empty void inside my head…but how did it get there?”

“The building blocks of your dreams are your memories.” Luna explained. “But I tell you..."

She took a pause, and began again.

"Neigh, I warn thee. The mind is an incredible tool, it is both resourceful and dangerous. Do not confuse the waking world and the dream realm, as distinguishing between the two can become near impossible at times, so much so that certain oneiros have never found their way out of this realm.”

“Are you trying to tell me that I’m going to be stuck here for God knows how long?” His tone faltered. “It wasn’t even my fault, I wasn’t trying to dream of anything.”

“As I stated, the mind is a powerful tool. One must learn to hone its abilities, to master it.” Luna propered herself, focusing her gaze upon the boy as her starry blue eyes glowed brightly. “That is part of the reason as to why I believe you were sent here, young oneiro. Destiny has drawn us close, and fate has it that one dream, you and I shall meet to unlock the abilities of the mind.”

The stairs below spiraled on and on, and as David continued to stare downwards into its seemingly endless entrancement, he soon realized that the stairs seemed to be getting deeper and his vision getting taller. He attempted to look over back at the Princess, but the images were spiraling and his balance began to writhe and swirl uncontrollably. The stars and galaxies all around began to spin around him as though he were housed in the center of an enormous globe. Only Luna’s voice could be heard, it was the only comprehensible measure as his eyes could barely follow a thing before him. He listened, for it was the only thing he could do now.

“When the night follows over, so shall you, to a den of rest and warmth. Look north, and you shall see my moon.” She followed, whispering strictly yet soothingly. “To embrace the mind is to accept your reality. Know your destiny, but always know that destinies can be chosen. When the stars align…”

Her words were left as that, leaving the boy wondering and spiraling down into the black, endless, nothingness below as it sucked his entire dream whole like a drain swallowing the last of its water.

When the stars align… He repeated in his mind, again and again. When the stars align, when the stars align…