The World of Nymoria - Time's Arrow

Zuriak looks down at his journal, rereading Idylya’s entry over and over again as he lays in the shade, stretched out across the entire porch of Scarlet Rain’s two-story farmhouse. His head rests on top of his arms as he claws back and forth between the two pages she wrote, disheartened. The morning sun shines out over the rows of strawberry bushes, growing across a massive field. The farmhouse itself is surrounded by several arrays of strawberry bushes with a single dirt road leading into the border town of Novawind about one kilometer out. Zuriak briefly turns his attention to Scarlet Rain frantically galloping through the fields, picking strawberries and placing them in her basket. As she rounds the middle section near the house, she drops the basket from her mouth and collapses in front of the porch near Zuriak, exhausted.

“You know…if you’re going to be here, you could at least help me out.”

Zuriak gives her an emotionless stare as he lifts his head up and slowly stands on all fours. He closes the journal and places it on the open windowsill before stepping off the porch and out into the burning sunlight. Scarlet gets up and looks at him in surprise, noticing his aging figure.

“Jeez, I think your scales have been getting paler since I brought you here weeks ago. Not to mention, they look more jagged and frail.”

Zuriak ignores her comment and walks towards the fields, breathing deeply. He then turns his head back at Scarlet and gives her a silent nod before walking down one of the rows of strawberry bushes. Scarlet hurries to his side and grabs the half-filled basket again with her mouth. Zuriak inspects each bush and picks the ripest strawberries as Scarlet holds up the basket with a look of concern. As the two reach the end of the row near the edge of the forest, Scarlet stops and sets the basket down.

“I’ve also been finding a lot of blue hair around the house! Aren’t you even a little worried?” Zuriak looks at her concerned face and eases.

“It’s all a part of aging. Nothing to be worried about.”

“But you skipped all those years.”

“Time may have been warped from my perspective, but the effects are all the same. My true age is catching up with me.”

“Oh…” Scarlet frowns and turns her head.

“If what you say is true and seventy-five years have passed, then I should be one-hundred and one.” Scarlet faces him once more, curiously.

“How long do lung dragons live until?”

“Most can live up to one-hundred sixty, but there are many factors that can affect that. Come on, let’s finish harvesting.” Without another word, Zuriak starts down another row of bushes and begins picking strawberries again. Scarlet looks down at the basket before picking it up and trailing him when something out of the corner of her eye catches her attention. Far down the dirt pathway leading into town, four figures are seen approaching them in the distance.

“Shit!” Scarlet drops the basket, grabs Zuriak with her hooves and pulls him around to the back of the house.

“What are you doing!?”

“We’ve got company.” She says as she swings the door open and drags him inside. She desperately looks around her kitchen and living room for a place where he can hide.

“Here!” Still holding his arm, she pulls him through the kitchen to the door leading down into the cellar and opens it hastily. She releases her grip and the two quickly run down the wooden stairs. As Zuriak’s lower half turns around the corner through the doorway, his tail accidentally swipes some cups and plates sitting on the counter. The resulting shatter causes Scarlet to freeze and look back up at him with a blank look.

“Sorry about that.” He apologizes as she facehoofs.

“Forget about it.” Scarlet continues through a maze of boxes towards the center of the cellar and scans the room, looking for a hiding spot.

“Go underneath the stairs and curl yourself up.”

“Uh, are you sure about this?”

“Yes, of course, now hurry!” Zuriak scampers across the cellar as his long body bumps into the many stacks of cardboard boxes littering the floor. Scarlet rushes to keep the stacks from toppling over.

“Can you be less clumsy?” She huffs.

“This house wasn’t built for dragons my size, I can’t help it!” Scarlet rolls her eyes, gallops across the cellar and grabs a large, thick blanket as Zuriak curls his long body under the stairs. Scarlet tosses the blanket over him and runs back up the stairs.

“Keep your head down.” She says through the cracks in the stairs. Zuriak lowers his head and closely listens in. The sounds of broken glass being swept up are shortly interrupted by a couple knocks on the front door. Scarlet’s hooves creak across the wood as she moves to open the door. Many more pairs of hooves shift across the floor and muffled voices can be heard along with Scarlet’s.

What could they possibly want? Am I going to have to do this every time she has guests?

The voices above him seem to raise in volume, but are still too muffled for him to discern anything. Zuriak’s eyes widen as realization suddenly hits him.

“Shit.” He quietly says over his cupped mouth. “I left my journal upstairs.” Zuriak subtly removes the blanket from his head and looks up through the gaps in the stairs near the closed door. The hooves make their way towards the cellar door and Zuriak hurriedly covers his head with the blanket again as the door opens.

“There’s nothing down here but old boxes and junk.” Scarlet says aloud as she and the others walk halfway down the stairs while Zuriak remains frozen still.

“I see.” A masculine voice says. One of them continues down the rest of the stairs and the sounds of cardboard being moved across the concrete floor are heard.

“Hey, there’s some precious family heirlooms in those boxes!” Scarlet exclaims. The other voice seems to ignore Scarlet as another box is shifted.

“He probably flew over the village and further into Equestria, Ember Shard.” A more feminine voice speaks down to the other. “He was massive too, I doubt he could fit down here without it being obvious.”

“We need to be sure.”

“Well, this is the fifth farm we checked near the border, and there’s still several others we have to cover today.”

“Fine, but we’ll have to inquire about any additional sightings from the locals. The further north he gets, the harder it will be to track him.” The same masculine voice asserts as all of them return upstairs and close the door behind them. Zuriak uncovers part of the blanket to try to listen in again, but the voices fade away as they all get further away from the cellar entrance. Shortly after, the front door squeaks open, and the multiple pairs of hooves exit. Minutes later, the cellar door opens up once more.

“Okay, it’s safe.”

Zuriak throws the blanket off and rushes up the stairs past Scarlet. In the kitchen, his body knocks into the furniture as he makes his way to the open windowsill where he left his journal, but notices it missing.

“Hey, chill!”

“Where is it!?”

“You mean your journal?” She picks it up off the counter near the sink and throws it aggressively at Zuriak’s head.

“Idiot! I almost got caught lying to them because they found that sitting on the windowsill!” Zuriak picks up the journal off the floor and looks at her apologetically.

“They saw the dragon language on the cover and thought I was conspiring with the dragon fugitive they’re looking for!”

“I’m…sorry…” Scarlet’s temper subsides upon seeing his dispirited expression.

“It’s not your fault…” Scarlet sighs. “I told them it was my grandfather’s. I don’t know how convincing that was, but it was enough to get them off our backs for a while.”

“Who were they?”

“Two of them were kirins who claimed that a lung dragon appeared out of nowhere at the Jade Palace, tore up parts of Kyrinia, endangered the lives of kirins and fled north. The other two were part of Novawind’s police force. I presume they were going to arrest me if they found you here.”

“I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”

“I know, and that’s why we need to be more careful.” Scarlet says anxiously.

Zuriak moves the kitchen table and chairs back where they were and he sets his journal down while Scarlet sits down next to him.

“What are you going to do now? I don’t mind having you here…the company has been nice, but I imagine they’ll be back at some point.”

“I’m not sure what to do anymore, to tell you the truth.” He opens up the journal to Idylya’s entry and shows Scarlet.

“But now, I think it’s time I find what she left behind for me.”

“Where is that? ‘The island we promised to return to if we ever got lost’.” Scarlet recites.

“It’s in Kyryo.”

“Are you serious? You can’t go back there, especially with them trying to find you.”

“I know the risk, but I can’t keep waiting until the right moment to go.”

“It’s a bad idea, and you’re going to get caught because you’re big and easy to spot.” Scarlet spreads her front hooves out, exaggerating his size.

“If I do, at least you won’t have to worry about me anymore.”

“What kind of response is that? Do you think you’re a burden to me?” Scarlet loudly berates, but Zuriak remains silent.

“Well, you’re not, but whatever, do what you want.” Scarlet loudly exhales, stands up, walks over to the kitchen window and looks out at the dark storm clouds approaching. She then looks back at Zuriak’s depressed face.

“For what it’s worth, you’re the only friend I have right now.” She adds before making her way to the door and stepping outside. Zuriak closes his journal and leaves through the same door, watching Scarlet pick up the strawberry basket she dropped earlier.

“I wish you could understand…”

~

Zuriak quietly sneaks out the back door of the farmhouse and out into the cool night air. Once fully outside he walks down the porch and onto the moist grass. The soft glow of the moon emanates through the layer of clouds above and the sounds of grasshoppers fill the ambience. He lightly floats above the grass and slowly ascends into the sky, flying south back into the kirins’ country.

If I’m fast enough, I should be back by tomorrow afternoon.

As he travels higher and higher away from Scarlet’s farm, his speed picks up drastically. Above the cloud layer, he gazes at the moon as it illuminates the bed of clouds, giving them a solid appearance. Zuriak lowers himself a bit and runs one of his claws through the cloud, watching it split as he drags it across his flight pattern. He lifts his claw back up, now drenched in water and shakes it off before increasing his speed again.

This will be the last thing I do.

After several hours of flying, the moon begins to set and the sun rises over the eastern horizon. As Zuriak descends through the cloud layer, the sunlight dissipates, leaving the mountainous land below him in overcast. In the valley, nestled within the Peaks of Peril, he starts looking around for the familiar island and waterfall.

It should be around here somewhere where the mountains and forest meet.

He lands on a rocky plateau situated deep within the mountain range next to a river bed. He looks up at the towering peaks, then back down at the river and follows it downstream. After a bit more walking, he comes to a drop off where the water spills into a large lake. In the center, a lonely island sits with trees as tall as those in the forest surrounding it. Zuriak dives into the lake from atop the waterfall and resurfaces, spitting out a mouthful of water. He then treads to the island and pulls himself up on the rocky shore before looking back at the waterfall and remembering.

“It was here, all those years ago. The place we were to go if we ever got lost.” Zuriak shakes himself off as the rest of his body surfaces. As he walks through the dense foliage, he looks around at the tall trees for any markings when a large boulder catches his attention. He doubles back and inspects the surface when he notices three distinct symbols roughly drawn into it.

“These are the same symbols from my journal.” He says with shock as his heart starts to race. He looks below him and sees an unusual dirt patch with very little weeds and grass compared to the rest of the island. He starts digging through the dirt, but stops after a few seconds.

“Hmmm, it can’t be this deep, can it?” He comments with skepticism as he looks at the rock again. “But those are definitely the same symbols from my journal.” Zuriak continues digging through loose dirt until he reaches solid stone.

“There’s nothing here.” He says uneasily as he starts frantically digging around the rock. “It’s around here, it’s got to be.” He says to himself with increasing desperation. He eventually pushes the boulder aside and lets it roll down the slope into the water so he could dig under it, but to no avail.

“This can’t be…” Zuriak collapses to the ground and stares out at the waterfall. “Someone or something must’ve dug it up before me. Somehow they knew…” Zuriak continues laying in the same position for several minutes until sounds from the forest alert him. Without getting up, his eyes dart in the general direction of the sound and through the dense bushes and trees on the island, he barely makes out two kirins near the shore. Sheltered by the foliage, the two do not notice him.

A qilin must’ve discovered this island and taken Idylya’s gift for themselves.

Zuriak’s depressed expression shifts to anger as he watches the two kirins refill their canteens in the lake.

One of them must have it.

Zuriak sluggishly rises, but his anger subsides as the two kirins rush off back into the forest, unaware of his presence.

But I don’t even know what she left me…

He scrapes the mud off his underbelly and floats above the island. Lazily, he passes over the lake and flies over the trees around where the two kirins arrived from. He keeps his speed low as he looks down at the waves of trees when the airy tones of a flute passes through his ears. He stops and floats above the forest, looking around for the source of the notes.

“That timbre…it sounds so familiar in a way.” Curiously, he flies south and carefully scans the forest below him for any movement. As he gets closer to the sounds, he notices the growing heights and sizes of the trees, large enough where one could live in them. He increases his altitude to distance himself from the treetop as the musical tones get louder. Eventually, he notices trails branching into the forest all leading further south into a vast settlement. Groups of kirins are seen carrying food and supplies on their backs as they lead into the settlement. It doesn’t take long for several of them to notice his presence as they all point up at him in shock. Zuriak doesn’t pay them any attention as his focus is still on the source of the music. As he reaches the apex of the tall trees, he freezes above a clearing in the center of the village and looks down at the kirins all staring up at him in shock. His eyes fall upon the lone blue kirin near the fountain who ceased playing their flute. Just barely, he makes out glowing green runes on the flute as the kirin sets it down, putting him in a trance.

It can’t be…could that be Idylya’s flute?

Some yelling below breaks him out of his stupor, and he rapidly flies away from the settlement. Once out of range, he haphazardly drops into the forest and slams into the ground, breaking numerous branches along the way. He gets up and clutches his chest, struggling to breathe.

“That qilin, how did they get her flute? What happened to Idylya? Was that her gift all along? How did they know where to find it?” Zuriak vigorously asks himself. His heavy breathing begins to abate, knowing none of his questions will get answered. He steps through the debris of his crash and out into a small grass clearing at the edge of the forest. There, he lays on his back in the tall grass and looks up at the gloomy sky.

“I have nothing left in this world, and somehow the divines find another way to take something from me.” Some rustling in the bushes at the other end of the clearing causes Zuriak to take his eyes off the sky as the same blue kirin emerges from the forest. Somewhat timid at first, the kirin sees him at the other end and slowly approaches him. Zuriak rolls over, gets back up and shakes the loose grass off his mane. As he does so, he stares at the kirin darkly, watching them carefully wade through the tall grass. The kirin stops several meters away from his towering figure.

“Who are you?” The kirin asks, confidently. He continues his blank stare, not wanting to indulge the kirin’s curiosity.

“Where did you come from?” The kirin takes a few more steps forward as Zuriak begins noticing peculiar designs on the kirin’s horn. His eyes widen upon recognizing the markings, reminding him of Terra Nova.

It can’t be. Could there really be another?

Without a word, he lunges forward and circles around the kirin in anger. Part of his long body overlaps hers as their luminescent green eyes meet.

“It’s been a while, matriarchal qilin.”

“W-what are you talking about?”

Zuriak delicately holds the kirin’s horn with one of his claws and rubs his thumb across the symbol while staring at it intently. The kirin sits frozen in shock.

“A new symbol, reincarnated.” He releases his grip and loosens his body around the kirin as he turns his attention back to the kirin with a forlorn look. “We have a lot of history, you and I.”

The kirin shakes her head and suddenly frees herself from his grasp. She jumps back a bit and stares at him angrily.

“I’ve never met you before in my life. Now, I’m going to ask again. Where did you come from?”

“Why, you sent me here. Or rather, your predecessor did.” Zuriak answers venomously.

“Predecessor?”

“Have you not heard of the great Terra Nova, the Time Qilin?” He questions condescendingly.

“Time Kirin…?” Her face shifts to concern as she looks away from him in deep thought. “…but she died decades ago.” She continues in a hushed tone.

“She was what instigated the near extinction of my country and the dragons living there.” Zuriak sternly lies. The kirin doesn’t respond. Zuriak walks closer to her, who is still distracted by their thoughts to not notice him advancing. “Mhm, well no matter. You have something that belongs to me.”

The kirin breaks their train of thought and glares at the dragon. As Zuriak stretches a claw out to her, her horn glows green and a wave of fire erupts from it as she uses her head to control the direction of fire. Zuriak instinctively dodges the onslaught from the kirin and progressively strafes back as the kirin quickly gains the upper hand. Zuriak, getting more annoyed, charges up one of his claws and pushes through the flames, grabbing the kirin’s horn and leaving his arm covered in burn marks. The kirin looks up at him, scared, as he encases her horn in ice. He releases his claw and looks down at her with a somber look.

“I don’t want to fight you.”

“That’s a lie! That’s all you dragons know how to do! All you do is kill and take what isn’t yours.”

“All I want is that flute you stole from the lake.”

“What lake? I received this flute as a gift many years ago back in Kyrinia. You’re the thief here!” The kirin charges up her horn, melting the ice.

“That’s impossible! I recognize the runes along the surface!” Zuriak steps back and shields his face as ice shards explode out in all directions. As she charges towards him, a group of kirins emerge from the forest behind her.

“Ivory Frost, what’s going on!?” One of them shouts from across the clearing. Ivory stops and turns back at them abruptly as two of the kirins start shooting fireballs from their horns at Zuriak.

“What are you guys doing here? I can handle this!” She answers boldly. Zuriak tries dodging most of the shots, but a few of them graze his scales and underbelly causing him to grunt in pain. He counters with a swipe of his tail, knocking all four of them down, and launches himself into the sky. As he gets higher, he looks back at the kirins struggling to get up.

“I will reclaim what is mine, no matter the cost.” He clasps his claws together and forms a sign. A blue aura envelopes them that progressively grows in vibrance. Once he reaches the clouds, he stretches out his arms and releases the energy while his claws cut through the clouds. The moisture in the clouds quickly freezes and turns to ice and further into snow as it starts falling down into the land below. The increasing pain in his burn wounds start taking their toll, and he ceases the spell to conserve energy.

“I can’t let the qilins take the last thing I have to remember her by.”

~

Zuriak gently hovers down near Scarlet’s farm, now in the late afternoon. Below, he sees her flying over the many rows of strawberry bushes and watering them with a large green pitcher. He drops to the ground and walks over to her, though she pays no mind to him.

“I need your help.” He asks, assertively. Scarlet ignores him and continues on to the next row of strawberries, further away from him. As he tries to bridge the gap, she progressively keeps her distance.

“Please, it’s important.” Scarlet rolls her eyes and descends down. Her wings close and she sets down the watering can before silently giving him a blank stare.

“I went to the lake.”

“I know you did.” She replies coldly. “Should I expect more kirins showing up at my doorstep, looking for you now?”

“I did what I had to do, but now I know what she left behind, it was a flute.”

“Wait, a flute?” Scarlet’s cold mood shifts to curiosity as she holds a hoof up to her chin.

“Look, I know you’re mad-” Scarlet brushes past him and makes her way back to the house. Zuriak scratches his head confusedly before following her into the house. Inside, Scarlet jumps up the stairs to the second floor while Zuriak carefully maneuvers around the living room furniture. As he makes his way upstairs, Scarlet emerges from her room and stands at the top of the stairs, looking down at him. She’s holding a piece of paper in her left wing.

“Remember back in Nymerion, you found that sheet of music in the library?”

Zuriak nods.

“Well, I tried restoring it this past week, and although it’s still hard to read, I’m pretty sure it was your friend, Idylya who wrote it. I could only make out the ‘I’ and ‘A’, along with a faint ‘Y’ in the middle, but I’m pretty sure we can fill the blanks in.” Scarlet hands him the sheet of music. Zuriak takes it and stares deeply into the musical notes. “It was written for flute, by the way, that’s what helped me connect the dots.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this before?”

“Well, I’m not finished with it, but when you brought up trying to find her gift yesterday, I wanted to show you the progress I’ve made. I figure if you saw this, then you wouldn’t feel the need to put yourself in danger going back there, but you were already gone by the time I woke up.”

“Thank you for doing this.” Zuriak’s brief smile turns into a frown after reflecting on his journey from today.

“Someone stole her flute. I don’t know who found it, but it’s in the hooves of a qilin right now that they claim they received it years ago.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Scarlet frowns.

“I’m going to get it back by any means.” Zuriak says with determination.

“By any means?” Scarlet emphasizes. “What are you planning on doing?”

“I’m working on it.”

“Do you plan on using violence?”

“Look, it’s not just about the flute!” Zuriak says, raising his voice. “They butchered and drove my kin out of our homeland, and it still wasn’t enough for them. Now, they’re trying to hunt me down and they’re not going to stop until I’m in their grasp.” Scarlet is taken aback by his outburst. Zuriak calms down after seeing her frightened demeanor.

“There was…a qilin living in a village near the lake, and I think she’s the next matriarchal qilin, the successor of Terra Nova.”

“Who cares if she is?” Scarlet says with a hint of jealousy.

“But-”

“You can’t keep doing this! You can’t keep picking fights with the kirins to uphold some personal vendetta! It’s literally tearing you apart!” Scarlet exclaims with more energy. Zuriak hangs his head in defeat, knowing she’s right. “I wish you could realize how lucky you are to still be alive after everything you told me about your past. You almost died during your hunt, you almost died from those assassins, you almost died trying to kill the time kirin, and you almost died trying to get out of Kyrinia.” Scarlet counts on one of her hooves. “You are gambling with the gods, here!”

“Maybe you're right…I’ve made so many mistakes.” Zuriak looks down at the sheet of music once more. Scarlet’s mood shifts to sadness as she walks down the stairs next to him. She also looks down at the piece of music and softly rubs his mane. “I’ve been through so much these past few months, relatively speaking. It’s easy for me to forget all the good. If it wasn’t for you, I’d be all alone in this dark future.”

“We all need to stop fighting with each other.” Scarlet comforts him as Zuriak turns towards her. “Violence is like a cycle that keeps repeating itself. Those who seek power fuel the cycle, and those who seek revenge just perpetuate it over and over again.”

“I just want something to remember her by.”

“Well, what about this sheet of music?” Scarlet brings up with a bit of optimism. Zuriak reads through the music, trying to discern the notes.

“Is there a way I could hear the melody on a musical instrument?”

“I wish, but I don’t have any in the house. At least not after my mom sold our piano over a decade ago.”

“I see.”

Scarlet takes a moment to ponder as Zuriak sulks again.

“But, there is a piano in the Church of the Royal Sisters in Novawind. I actually used to take piano lessons there when I was little, haha.” Scarlet says embarrassingly. “But, we can’t have you stroll through Novawind without being seen because you’re too freakin’ big and easy to spot.”

“Please, there’s got to be a way.” Zuriak pleads.

“Hmmm, let me think about it. We’ll need to wait until the heat dies down a bit before we can do anything though. I imagine those kirins who were here the other day will be sticking around for quite a while.”

~

Zuriak and Scarlet quietly exit Scarlet’s house through the back door and out into the cool night air. The full moon above lights up the ground below making it relatively easy for both of them to see their way. Scarlet uses one of her wings to take the lantern out of her mouth and holds it up to get a better view through the darkness.

“This way.” As both of them cross through the strawberry field and onto the dirt road leading into Novawind, Zuriak stops. Scarlet does the same and looks back at him.

“What’s wrong?” She asks.

“Are you sure we won’t be seen in town?”

“I’m very certain. Novawind becomes a ghost town after midnight, but the church stays open all throughout the night for those who wish to pray to the royal sisters.”

“What if someone shows up while we’re there?”

“Trust me, I’ve never seen anyone up late in this town for any reason.” Zuriak nods with hesitation, but continues on down the road. Scarlet picks up speed to get ahead of him.

“You know, I’ve never physically seen a pony before.”

“Seriously?”

“The relationship between Ithral and Equestria was tenuous at best in my time. Rarely would ponies ever travel into our country. They always viewed us as dangerous creatures.”

“I get what you mean. Even though I’m only half a dragon, some ponies in Novawind still view me as a danger to them.”

“That must be a tough burden to carry.”

“I mean I don’t care what they think anymore. I am who I am, and I don’t want to change that.” Scarlet gives him a weak smile. “If you want to know what an earth pony looks like, just imagine me without antlers, a dragontail, wings or a scaled underbelly.” Zuriak chuckles.

“Heh, I suppose that’s one way to put it.” Before long, the trees on both sides begin to give way and open up to a massive field with rolling hills and tall grass. The path slopes further down the hill and into a cozy, moderately sized town. Scarlet holds up the lantern against the moonlight.

“Not much further now.” The two descend down the hill and stand just outside the entrance to the town. The archway at the entrance reads ‘Novawind’ carved into treated wood. The dirt path within the town appears much more flat and compressed with plenty of hoof marks embedded in. Scarlet flies up a little over the dark houses and buildings, inspecting the streets. She then drops back down and stays close to Zuriak.

“I don’t see anypony. We should be good.” She whispers as she begins leading him through the desolate streets. Zuriak catches glimpses of the dark and quiet houses along the way while he carefully walks so as to not make any noise. Scarlet does the same, but doesn’t pay any mind to her surroundings outside of the road in front of her. At the far end of the street, a towering, white, ornate cathedral rests away from the other buildings. Beautiful stained glass depictions of Princess Celestia and Luna cover the top half of the cathedral separated by day and night. Zuriak looks up in awe at the beauty of the cathedral in comparison to the rest of the town. Scarlet walks up the marble stairs, opens the front door, and ushers him in. Zuriak takes one last look around the area and makes sure no pony sees them before swiftly passing by Scarlet. Inside, the sounds of his claws and Scarlet’s hooves against tile echoes throughout the main chamber. Rows of benches line up before the podium in the back with another stained glass mural of the princesses directly behind. Moonlight pours in through the tall windows along one side with freshly lit candles in each corner of the chamber. To the left of the podium, a large, black grand piano rests in the moonlight. Zuriak dashes over to the piano and lifts the cover. He stares down at the ivory and ebony keys before pressing one and letting the note reverberate throughout the cathedral.

“Hey, don’t get too excited.” Scarlet playfully comments as she sets the lantern down near the entrance and joins him. She takes a seat on the bench and removes the sheet of music from her saddlebag as Zuriak moves to the side. She then places it on the music rack and studies the score.

“It’s been so long since I last played haha.” She says with mild embarrassment. Zuriak gives her a warm and encouraging smile. “Let’s see, the first three measures are E, C sharp, D sharp, B then C sharp.” Scarlet taps one white key, two black keys, one white key, then another black key in succession. “The next four measures are D sharp, E, D sharp, C sharp, D sharp, E, E again, G sharp, D sharp, D sharp again, G sharp, and C sharp.” She continues, stroking each key as she reads it aloud, though her expression changes to a mild daze upon hearing this phrase. She then repeats the same four measures fluidly, appearing more bewildered this time. Zuriak looks at her with concern.

“Is something the matter?”

“I think I’ve heard this melody before.” She proceeds to slowly play the whole passage as written, no longer instructing Zuriak. “It’s so familiar.” Scarlet immediately puts a hoof to mouth and gasps. Zuriak looks at her confusedly.

“It’s the melody my mother used to play for me when I was little. I knew these notes looked familiar, but I had to hear them to confirm.”

“Are you saying your mother wrote this?”

“Not exactly. Years ago before I was born, my mother was traveling back home from Kyrinia, and it was getting dark, so she decided to camp for the night in the forests near the Peaks. Throughout that night, she frequently awoke due to nightmares of grotesque creatures and demons she couldn’t describe. On the third time she awoke, a beautiful melody was heard within the forest. It sounded like a duet between a violin and flute that soothed her soul. She tried to investigate where the melody was coming from, but the notes seemed to vanish as soon as she got too close. When she returned to the campsite, she no longer experienced these terrible dreams. She tried recreating the somber melody on the piano we used to have at home and wound up arranging it into something more. After I was born, she would play it for me every time I had nightmares as a foal.” Scarlet pauses for a moment. “Do you ever wonder if your friend is still out there after all these years? I mean if what you say is true and that dragons can live to one hundred sixty years old, could she still be alive?”

Zuriak closes his eyes and strokes his beard in deep thought.

“If she is still alive somewhere in this world, I’d never be able to find her. By now, she’s probably moved on anyway.”

“Oh…” Scarlet rests her hooves on the piano and stares at the keys. “There’s more to the song, if you want to listen.” Zuriak nods in approval and closes his eyes as Scarlet prepares to play once more. Using her right lower hoof, she presses the sustain pedal and begins the same somber melody as before. After the phrase ends, the same melody is performed with embellishments and changes along with a rapid, arpeggiated counter-melody in support. The notes ring out in a regal way and reverberate throughout the church. A silent tear rolls down Zuriak’s face as Scarlet concludes the short passage.

“Thank you. I’m glad you were able to preserve this one final memory of her.”

“Me too. Music has a special way of connecting you with your inner emotions. It taps into that part of your brain that you thought you lost.”

“What should we call it?” Zuriak asks. Scarlet closes her eyes briefly and rubs her chin.

“Hmmm, what about…” She opens her eyes, digs through her saddlebag and produces a stick of charcoal. She then carefully writes over the header of the sheet. “Dragon of Time.” Zuriak chuckles.

“What do you think?” Scarlet asks with a smile.

Before Zuriak could respond, his ears perk up at the sounds of hoofsteps near the church entrance. Scarlet takes notice too, but before she could react, Zuriak scoops her up and flies up to the tall ceiling near the entrance. Scarlet covers her mouth and starts sweating bullets as the front entrance opens. A dim glow of candlelight pours through the entrance as an earth pony wanders in. Both Zuriak and Scarlet look down at him from directly above as he stops and looks around.

“Hello, is anypony in here?” He looks down suspiciously at the lantern Scarlet brought, then begins walking around the rows of benches and shining candle light in the darkest areas. Zuriak and Scarlet both track his moments like a hawk, hoping he doesn’t look up at the ceiling. As he reaches the piano, Zuriak begins floating to the floor as quietly as possible.

“Damn foals have no respect for this delicate instrument.” He says irritatingly as he sets the candle on top of the piano and closes the cover over the keys. Zuriak looks at the open doors and floats towards them. “Hmmm, what’s this? Somepony left their music here.” Scarlet’s eyes widen and she holds her face in her hooves as Zuriak notices she forgot to pick up Idylya’s melody. As the earth pony picks up the sheet music and turns back towards the entrance, Zuriak bolts out through the doors like lightning. The resulting wind causes them to slam shut as he carries Scarlet through town and onto the roof of someone’s house. He sets her down and she shakes her head in disappointment.

“How could I be so stupid? Now we lost the sheet of music!” She continues cursing under her breath.

“Who was that?”

“That was the caretaker of the cemetery behind the church. I think his name is River Stone or River Pebble…River-something, I don’t know the ponies here that well.” Scarlet ruffles her mane in frustration. “He must’ve heard me playing since his house is right next to the church. I never thought the acoustics would be that loud.”

“Is there a way we can get the music back?”

“Oh, we’re definitely getting it back.” Suddenly the lights of the house they’re on top of switch on and movements below can be heard. Scarlet covers her mouth, sweating more bullets.

“We should get going for now.” Zuriak whispers as the two levitate up above the town. More lights from the adjacent houses come on just after they quickly bolt in the direction of Scarlet’s farmhouse.

Once in range, the duo descend back towards the farmhouse and onto the porch. Zuriak yawns loudly and slowly blinks as Scarlet opens the door and ushers him in. She takes one last look outside over the field of strawberries before closing and locking the door. Inside, Zuriak collapses on the rug in the living room and starts curling up.

“Something about that piece of music really made me sleepy all of the sudden.” Zuriak slurs in exhaustion. Scarlet chuckles a little.

“Yeah, there’s a reason my mom would play that for me all the time. Music sure does have strange properties, doesn’t it?” Zuriak murmurs a bit in response and closes his eyes. Scarlet smiles and takes the blanket off the couch before tossing it over his body. As she makes her way upstairs, Zuriak stirs.

“Thank you, Idylya.” He whispers. Scarlet pauses for a moment, perplexed as she stares down at him from the railing before heading off to her room.

“You’re welcome.”

~

Mornden, Eighteenth of Sarais, 3E454Y

It’s been difficult adjusting to the future since I arrived over two months ago, and I’ve been avoiding writing in here too much because this journal has become so frail. Not only am I in a different time, but a different culture too. I’ve been living with a dragon-pony hybrid in this quaint little village called Novawind at the southern tip of Equestria since I discovered the fate of Ithral. I remember reading about Novawind years ago and back then it was just a hamlet of pegasi with a couple farm families. Hard to believe it’s grown so much, but then again, seventy-five years is a long time.

After being here for so long, I’ve come to accept the fate of my kin, and now I wish to find peace with myself despite the divines seemingly punishing me in every way imaginable. I still yearn for a way to return to my own time, but to my knowledge, no mortal magic can perform such a thing. And yet, if the time qilin can send me forward in time, does that mean that same magic can send me back? It’s cosmic magic that no one can really comprehend, and I wouldn’t even know to acquire that. Divine instruments contain some cosmic magic, but finding one is like finding a needle in a haystack, I wouldn’t even know where to start. All I can do is make the best of things where I’m at now.

Recently, I discovered my true age finally caught up with me too. My scales are a little faded and my bones feel weaker, but despite all this, I look surprisingly young for 101-

“What are you writing?” Scarlet peeks over at Zuriak’s journal from the stove as she’s cooking eggs and toast in a pan. Zuriak gives her a nervous look from the kitchen table and hastily covers the pages with his claws.

“N-nothing.”

“Typical.” Scarlet rolls her eyes and scoops the eggs onto a clean plate along with two slices of toast. She then picks up a knife with her mouth and spreads some butter and strawberry jam on the toast before placing it in front of Zuriak.

“Thank you.” Scarlet smiles through the butter knife still in her mouth as she prepares her own plate, and sets it on the opposite side of the table. As she walks around to her chair, she trips over Zuriak’s tail wrapped around the floor of the table and faceplants.

“Could you at least coil when you’re at the table!?” She says as she gets back up and takes a seat.

“Sorry, it’s easy to forget.” Zuriak nervously laughs.

“Uh-huh, well anyway, hope you like breakfast today. I decided to splurge and bought fresh chicken eggs in town the other day instead of the same oats and grains we’ve been eating these past few weeks. Cooked them just like my mom used to make.” She says as she starts scarfing down her breakfast.

“She sounds like a caring pony.” He says before picking up a fork.

“Eh, sometimes. She had a good heart, but was always scatter-brained and forgetful. I didn’t tell you this, but it took her three years to decide on a name for me after I was born.” Zuriak lightly chuckles.

“What did she call you before that?”

“Who knows? By the time I asked her about it, she was already showing signs of dementia and couldn’t remember herself.” Scarlet takes another bite as she watches Zuriak stare down at his journal.

“What about you? Did your mom have trouble naming you as well?”

“It’s complicated. In dragon culture, proper families are uncommon. Most couples fulfill their duties during mating season in the spring, then leave their eggs with the House of Midwives who look after them until they hatch. After one is hatched, they are assigned a unique name by random, then sent off to a nursery. I never knew my mother.”

“Jeez, when you put it that way, that sounds depressing.” Zuriak shrugs and looks away.

“It’s a different way of life, I suppose.” He looks down at his journal again and picks up his quill.

Frequently, I’ve been having dreams about returning to that place Terra Nova sent me. Scarlet Rain tells me that the qilins firmly hold their beliefs in the Ethereal Matriarch, or ‘Laniakea’ as they so call her. Could that have been the qilin-like creature I saw in that otherworldly dimension? I can’t help but think I glimpsed into infinity during those moments, as convoluted as that sounds. Could this goddess be the reason I’m-

“So, I heard an odd piece of news the other day in town.”

Zuriak looks up from his writing with interest.

“Apparently, the southern region of Kyryo experienced unusually cold weather a month ago. Kirin Grove reported receiving snowfall for an entire month, and we’re still in the middle of summer!”

“O-oh, that is certainly very odd.” Zuriak responds nervously, remembering the spell he placed in the clouds during his visit. Scarlet squints her eyes at him suspiciously.

“That wasn’t you who did this, was it?” She says in a low tone, unamused.

“I may have overreacted…”

“Sweet Celestia, I didn’t even know dragons could alter weather patterns like that! I thought only pegasi were capable of such things!” Scarlet rubs her temples in frustration. “Well, that’s another thing we can add to the growing list of reasons the kirins want to capture you. How did you even do that?”

“I actually learned it from a fellow ice elemental in my guild. You’re supposed to ‘seed’ the atmosphere with frost magic in the cloud layer. Over time, the seed grows and spreads over a large radius, eventually cooling and freezing the moisture in the air. I didn’t know how long it would last because this was my first time doing it.” Scarlet shakes her head.

“Well, it lasted a few weeks from what I heard and apparently damaged much of the flora in that area. I fear that someday this will all catch up with us.” Scarlet comments, concerned. Zuriak scratches the back of his head and looks down, regretfully. Scarlet finishes the last couple bites of her breakfast and gets up. She turns her head to him with a forlorn look, wanting to change the subject while Zuriak returns to writing.

Over a month ago, I learned of the next matriarchal qilin while hunting for Idylya’s flute in Kyryo. This qilin looked much younger than Terra Nova and seemed very confused when I pointed out her horn symbols. I’m guessing she’s not aware of her lineage yet. The other qilins called her Ivory Frost, and she was in possession of the flute. I do not know how she acquired it, but I don’t think I’ll ever rest easy knowing the flute is in that qilin’s hooves. Scarlet pleads for me not to pursue this endeavor any longer, but she doesn’t understand. Maybe there’s still a way…

“Are you just going to write in that journal all morning?” Scarlet interrupts for a third time.

“It helps me stay sane.”

“If you say so.” Scarlet scoffs as she puts her dishes on the drying rack and returns to the table. She sits across from Zuriak and looks down at his journal with a brief contemplative look before flipping it closed.

“Hey!”

“You can finish that thought later. I think I might have a way on how we can get Idylya’s melody back.” Scarlet smiles deviously as Zuriak gives her a puzzled expression. “I learned that the caretaker, River Rock, and yes that’s his name, moved the piece of music into the archives in the basement of the church. All we have to do is snatch the keys, then go at night and look for it.”

“How did you get this information?”

“I spoke with him when I was in town, and it was not a pleasant experience. I asked him about the piano in the church and that my mother and I used to play on it when she was still around. I then explained that I’d like to play it again in her memory, but I had no sheet music to play. That really got things rolling because he brought up that he found a stray sheet of music a couple weeks ago that he didn’t recognize. He then went on to tell me he placed it in a book with all the other piano sheets in the archive room within the basement.” Scarlet’s bright mood then turns sour. “Then he had the gall to ask me what business I have in the Church of the Royal Sisters and that I should instead seek out the temple in Drogos and pray with my own kind. I was this close to leaving a hoofprint across his face.” She holds up one hoof to her face and squints her eye.

“Ouch, I always thought ponies were more welcoming than other species.”

“Ehhh, Equestria has its own share of problems. Tensions are high even between pegasi, unicorns, and earth ponies.” Scarlet shakes her head again, clearing her thoughts. “But anyway, I’ve seen where he puts the keys when I was spying on him. They’re on a little hook in the storage shed next to his house. Not exactly secure, so it should be a piece of cake.”

“When should we go?”

“In a few days. His night shift ends early on that day, so that should give us plenty of time to scour what’s down there.” Zuriak smiles optimistically and looks down at his journal again. Scarlet returns the smile briefly, but it softly turns into a frown.

“Could you help me with the fields today?” She asks quietly.

“Yes, it’s the least I can do after the trouble you went through.” They both get up and Zuriak places his clean plate in the sink before heading out the back door. Scarlet takes one look at his journal before tagging along. Outside, Zuriak takes a deep breath and looks up at the bright blue sky. Scarlet goes around to her storage shed and pulls out two iron hoes. She then stretches out her wings and balances the hoes across her back as she makes her way to Zuriak.

“We need to till the northern farmland today.” She notes before dropping the hoes on the ground. Zuriak nods and picks one up. Before he begins down the first row, Scarlet stops him with a mildly sad look on her face.

“Wait, there’s something I need to tell you.”

“About what?” Scarlet shifts uncomfortably.

“Since the fall of Nymerion and Ithral, you might be the last lung dragon on the continent.”

“It seems that way. You said it yourself that no one is quite sure where the survivors fled to. It’s been decades though.” Scarlet turns away.

“And how do you feel about that?”

“It doesn’t exactly feel good, but I’ve been slowly accepting my fate. It is quite lonely at times, but at least I have you around.” Scarlet turns back and faces him.

“What would you do if you knew where they were?” Zuriak scratches his beard in deep thought and looks up at the sky.

“I’m not quite sure. Most likely, I would like to reunite with them and be free again without worrying about being seen and captured, but I don’t want to leave you behind, especially all that you’ve done for me. It’s a tough scenario with no simple answer.” He takes his eyes off the sky and back on Scarlet. “Not like it matters anyway. We shouldn’t always dwell on the ‘what ifs’, rather we should focus on the ‘what is’. Does that make sense?”

“Y-yeah, I suppose so…” Scarlet responds softly. Zuriak smiles and hovers over the fields with his iron hoe. He then digs it into the ground and starts tilling the first row.

“Please don’t leave me.” Scarlet whispers.

~

Scarlet and Zuriak sneak through the quiet streets of Novawind once more. Like last time, not a single pony is out late and only the sounds of the wind brushing against the trees can be heard. Both of them land outside of the meager single-story wooden house River Rock calls home. Scarlet peeks into the dark window, making sure he is still fast asleep. She then turns to Zuriak and nods approvingly before they both go around the house to the small storage shed attached to his house. Scarlet opens the unlocked door and looks around at all the garden tools and appliances.

“Jeez, you’d think with this much stuff, he’d secure it a bit better.” Zuriak whispers.

“Theft is very uncommon in this town, but yeah, he is quite careless.” Scarlet looks up along the walls and sees a row of key hooks with three key rings hanging, each containing several distinct keys.

“Which one do you think it is?” Zuriak asks, scratching his chin.

“Uhhhhh, this one I think.” She slides the middle ring off the hook and holds it in her mouth. The two of them then dash across the street and up the stairs to the church once again. Scarlet carefully opens the squeaky door and the two walk down the center aisle of the main chamber. Scarlet turns left at the priest’s podium and proceeds past the piano and into a small room on the left side. As Zuriak passes the piano, he notices a padlock has been affixed to the cover to prevent anyone from playing.

“Oh…”

Scarlet peeks her head out of the room at Zuriak.

“What is it?”

“It’s not important.” Zuriak shakes his head and joins Scarlet as they descend down the stairs in the other room, eventually reaching an old wooden door. Scarlet fumbles around with the key ring, trying to find the right one.

“It’s one of these, I’m sure.” She then inserts one at random into the lock and attempts to turn it. “Okay, next one.” She does the same with the next key, but no luck. “Hmmm, this one?” She proceeds to the next key and attempts to unlock as Zuriak rests on the stairs, growing impatient. Scarlet combs through the remaining keys on the ring until she reaches the last one. “I’m definitely sure about this one.” She voices confidently as she performs the same routine. With the sound of the deadbolt unlocking, Scarlet pushes the door forward, letting out a musty and damp scent.

“Yeesh, I doubt anypony’s been down here in years, save for River Rock.” She coughs, covering her mouth. Zuriak gets up and walks past her into the dark cellar. Scarlet enters behind him and looks to the shelf near the door to find a candle. She picks it up, breathes a bit of fire on it to light it up and rests it on her outstretched wing. The two of them silently sort through the shelves of old books, antiques, and odd-looking statues. Scarlet passes a peculiar looking wood-carving of Princess Luna.

“Huh, this statue is quite weird.”

“What statue?” Zuriak stops scanning the shelves and looks back at the object Scarlet is holding.

“It looks like Princess Luna, but different. Almost like a thestral, or a ‘pony of the night’ as some call them.”

“A what?”

“You know…a ‘thestral’. Like me, but instead of a pony-dragon hybrid, a pony-bat hybrid.”

“Didn’t know those were real.”

“Dunno if they are, to tell you the truth. They’re mostly just creatures of myth.” Scarlet sets the statue down back where it was. “Some ponies believe Luna to be Celestia’s dark counterpart and that she is plotting to take control of Equestria.”

“Do you believe that?”

“Pffft, no! There are a lot of hackneyed rumors out here in the country, and they’re all started by the looniest ponies. The statue is pretty unsettling though.”

“Things surely are different up here. I’ve never really kept up-to-date on Equestrian politics.” Zuriak answers as he takes a book off a shelf and starts flipping through it. Images of a long, chimerical creature are printed across several pages with text written below each one, describing its features.

“What’s this creature? I’ve never seen one of these before.” He hands the open book over to Scarlet and she reads through the pages.

“Oh, that’s a draconequus. They’re a weird chimera of many different animals. I’ve only ever heard about one existing centuries ago.” Scarlet studies the pages a bit more. “Kind of reminds me of you.”

“Heh, well I’m definitely not one of those things, but there’s certainly a lot of weird stuff down here.” Zuriak comments as he continues fishing through piles of books. Scarlet sets the book down on a dusty, old desk and holds her wing out towards Zuriak to give him more light.

“Let’s see…” Zuriak begins picking through each book one at a time and tosses each one over his shoulder as he reads them. “...One-Hundred Mysterious Facts About Princess Celestia, Tartarus: Truth or Fiction?, Beware the Bugbear!, Lullaby for a Princess, Cupcakes!, A Brief History of Canterlot, The Lusty Equestrian Pegasus-”

“Oh! I’ve read that one before!” Zuriak looks at her with a raised eyebrow. “It was…okay haha.” She adds, blushing while Zuriak continues sorting through books.

“Background Pony, a recipe for white bundt cake, The Wrath of Grogar, Friendship is Optimal, The Mare Who Once Lived On The Moon, Ten Easy-To-Play Songs for Lyre, Past Sins, Infinite Eclipse: Origin, A Hearth’s Warming Curse…I feel like it’s not in here.” He turns to Scarlet who rubs her chin in thought as she walks over to the other side of the cellar. Zuriak follows her, trying to stay out of the darkness. She then holds the candle up to a bookshelf near a broken cello and begins reading the bindings from the middle shelf, left to right.

“The Enchanted Kingdom, University Days, Fallout: Equestria, The Royal Sheet Music Archive, ah that might be it!” She takes the book off the shelf and opens it up, letting a sheet of paper fall to the floor. She sets the book down, picks it up and reads through it. “Dragon of Time, awesome, this is it!” Zuriak breathes a sigh of relief.

“Let’s get out of here.” He says as he makes his way towards the exit. Scarlet stows the sheet away in her saddlebag and follows behind him.

“I’ll figure out a better way to preserve this once we get home. Definitely don’t want to lose it again.” She says before blowing out the candle and returning it to the shelf. As the two brush past the wooden door, Scarlet closes it and relocks it before sprinting up the stairs near Zuriak. Scarlet rushes around the corner and bumps into him near the piano in the main chamber.

“Something doesn’t feel right.” Zuriak notes while scanning the chamber.

“What do you mean? It’s dead quiet, that’s how Novawind usually is at night.” Scarlet moves past him and down the center aisle towards the front door.

“No, it’s something else, like a presence…” Scarlet doesn’t hear him and continues forth as Zuriak hesitantly joins her while continuing to look around. As the duo leave the church and back out into the pitch black night, Scarlet pulls out the keys she borrowed and holds it on her wing.

“Just one more thing to do, then we can head home.” Before Zuriak could respond, a dark figure rapidly descends down on him and plants itself on his upper back, causing him to slam to the ground.

“Agh!” Zuriak struggles against the dark pony-like figure and begins charging lightning in his claws, but before he could release it the figure affixes a familiar collar to his neck. The lightning quickly dissipates. “What the fuck!?” Zuriak shakes the figure off and swipes his tail at them, knocking them over. “Who are you!?” He lightly tugs at the collar, getting flashbacks from when he first met Terra Nova. Scarlet turns to the both of them in shock.

“This is bad.” Scarlet whispers to herself as she tosses the keys and her saddlebags aside and reacts by breathing a stream of fire at the pony, but they evade it before jumping off towards the street and galloping off. Without a word, Zuriak darts after them.

“Wait stop, it’s a trap!” Scarlet pursues him but progressively loses ground as they all run through the dark streets of Novawind. Lights begin coming on in the rows of houses as all of Novawind’s residents are awakened by the noises. As the pony nears the overarching ‘Novawind’ sign at the town’s entrance, they attempt to fly up. Zuriak launches himself at the pony, but before he could tackle them, a magic aura encases him and freezes him mid-air. The pegasus looks down on him as five unicorns and two kirins step out of the shadows, all using their magic to hold him. All seven of them and the pegasus close in on him and use their magic to force him to the ground. Zuriak tries writhing against the magic, but is met with even more resistance. Scarlet approaches the group and watches in horror as Zuriak is restrained.

“Stop! What are you doing!?” Scarlet shouts as she breathes fire at the cluster of unicorns. They all break their magical strain on Zuriak, setting him free momentarily and dodge the fire.

“Ember Shard, get the dragon-pony and restrain her!” One of the unicorns exclaims. A red kirin jumps out of the cluster and transforms into nirik form. He then charges at Scarlet, but she quickly flies up. In a panic, Scarlet breathes fire down on Ember Shard from the air for several seconds, however he emerges unscathed. He then fires several fireballs from his horn at Scarlet. She hastily flies away to avoid the barrage, but is hit by a couple, causing her to fall to the ground.

“Get away from her!” Zuriak gets up and attempts to breathe ice at Ember Shard, but only produces a puff of cold air. While vulnerable, the five unicorns throw heavy metal chains around his body. One of the unicorns then twists a chain around his neck, choking him. Zuriak desperately grasps for air, but eventually falls to the ground once more. In his last moments of consciousness, he sees the two kirins tie up Scarlet’s hooves in smaller metal chains and the other five unicorns approaching him cautiously.