To Find a Past

Chapters

Prologue
The First Memory
Beginnings
Another Night

Prologue

A white layer of snow lays in wait as two travelers walked through. A pony with indescribable features and a stallion of a shade of red remained silent as the covered path beckoned them to continue. There was no shrubby nor building with the exception of a large decaying tree in the distance. The pony in front took notice as the stallion ignored it. It did not surprise him nor peak his interest, but rather prove his point nothing could survive out in the flat lands of Equestia. The stallion took a moment to close his eyes, reminding himself of the treasures he was leaving behind him. The fond memories of ponies and adventures flooded his mind as a smile formed on his lips. He open his eyes as a searing pain erupted from his right side. They meet a long blade piecing his body originating from his pony companion.

As the red droplets fell to the ground, the violent red stallion stumbled back against a hard dying tree. His head's collision with tree erupted a loud bump enhanced by the hollowness of the tree. The droplets turned into a rain which created a small stream on his right hind leg. The metal blade left only it's name as it retreated to the pony's holster. The sound of gasping gradually slowed to a long exhale as the snow took on its new guest's color. Finally, the pony of the blade spoke.

"There is no difference between you and I. We both are..."

The pony stopped to correct their self. To use the right words would be the only last kind act the pony could gift to the stallion.

"We both were unmovable rocks. But I had to ask, what happens when one of the rocks collides with the other rock?"

The dying stallion clenched his teeth as his senses began to succumb to the pain. A strong gush of air planted the words in the stallions ears. The freezing wind only caused greater pain to him. The pony continued with the one sided conversation.

"The first rock demolishes the second rock to tinier fragments until either the first rock stops or the second rock turns to dust. If it was not for the possible redemption, I would allow the tide swallow us before my betrayal."

With the last truth told, the stallions head lowered. The wind which had relayed the message had developed and began to bombard the stallion. The eyes which had been filled with fire finally burned out and were extinguished. The blood from the wound had slowed down to a sprinkle of frozen tiny emeralds as the world darkened around him. Slumping down besides the dead tree, the snow started to obey the current if the wind and surround its victim. There were no voiced objections as the stallion's story faded with the soul.

The pony let the scene transpire in front of him before noticing the nip of frost at his ear. As if knowing their relationship, the weather took a turn for the worse. As its power began to show, a surge of emotions appeared in the pony's heart. Thoughts of anger, sorrow, and relief flooded the mind. A tear leaked from the faucet of the pony's eyes and travelled down the face. It land with a splat onto the wet white flooring.

"Sadly though, each fragment you break into, leaves a crack on myself."

The pony decided it was best not to use up any more time respecting the memory of the stallion. Raising the right hoof to turn, the pony heard a shout from the distance. The voice itself was rasp and hinted with a country accent.

"Are you fellas alright?"

The pony could not believe that somepony had made it all the way out here. A lantern light could be seen through the developing storm. It flickered right and left as the pony assumed its owner trotted towards the scene. The figure appeared as a small figurine and began to grow larger and larger as the pony assumed it approached. It was the size of any other adult pony, with its own source of illumination shining from its chest. If it were to discover the pony and the sword at the pony's side, there would be a panic most likely. The only action the pony could take was go use the thickness of the storm as a shroud. In a short moment, the pony had fled.

"Hold on fella, I was only trying to..."

The master of the light had arrived to the dead tree to find the body of the stallion. Although the light's master couldn't tell if the stallion was dead, he could clearly see the pool of thick red blood around the stallion. The imagination to create a scenario where a pony would kill another pony sicken him.

"In Celestia's name..."

The lantern had seen its fair amount of crime out in the flatland for almost four centuries. There were plenty of criminals which had escaped to the area to seek a new life or redemption from a feared higher fate, but that was not always the case. The lantern had found an Earth pony couple with the husband beat up at the bottom of hills with only a cart and a devastated wife left, a pegasus with multiple feathers plucked rendering her unable to fly ever again, and even a unicorn crying holding what remained of her horn after having snapped into two. But the lantern had never seen anypony killed.

The master of light set his lantern in the snow as the storm howled at the new pony. It was not willing to give up its newest member. The master of the light struggled to drag the stallion with his teeth and hooves onto his back. The lantern's light fought with the forceful winds, until eventual it's master was able to pull the stallion onto his back.

"I'm gonna need nothing less than a miracle to patch you up."

Placing his lantern back into his mouth, he pushed himself back to his home nearby.

The First Memory

Pitch blackness covered the new scene. The empty void was desolate of any existence of anypony or anything until a loud pop emitted from the center. Starting with a small point of white, the void was overcome with a blinding light. From the flash, a red stallion appeared laying down. His deep slumber had not been interrupted by the noise or bright light. Slowly the new world took shape and the horizon turned into a light sky blue with the white surface refusing to follow in turn. Slowly, the environment became detailed with lines and textures as a golden fence phased in across of the stallion.

Awaking on top of a layer of clouds, the stallion froze with disbelieve. He had arrived in what he thought was to be paradise. Rising from his cozy patch, he stated at the gleaming gold archway. He stepped forward to the luminescence gate in front of him, meeting a white alicorn at a wooden podium.

"Welcome, do you wish to enter?"

The stallion stumbled back in disbelief. He had never seen a real living alicorn in person. But as he thought of it, he had never seen anypony before. Throwing out the bizzare though, the stallion stepped towards the podium until he arrived directly in front of the young mare. Her whole body was a pure white with no flaw in her build. Her wings extended up to the size of two strong rock farmers back to front. She had no cutie mark nor any clothing to define her. Her voice was sweet and sincere with no possibility of deception.

"Let us check for your name and we shall determine your right of passage."

She flipped through the leather book in front of her with no sign of stopping. As her eyes darted from page to page. Reaching the end I the book, her smile disappeared and a look of disbelieve took the place of what was once a compassionate face. She reversed direction and worked her way back to the front of the book, reading each and every name looking for an identifying feature. After reaching the cover of the book, she looked up confused.

"This is troubling, I have searched from start to end and cannot find your name. This book has the name of all the good and bad ponies of the world; but you do not seem to exist. Can you tell me your name?"

The stallion confidently nodded his head and opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Instead he shut it and brought his hoof up to his chin. Why couldn't remember his name? He stumbled in his mind fighting the possibility, but eventual came to one conclusion. Puzzled, the stallion shook his head. He had forgotten his own name. Not only that, but he had lost his whole identity including information like when he was born or where he was from.

"Oh dear, you do not know?"

With a defeated frown, he nodded.

"Well, I am sorry. I would like to help you, but we wouldn't know what to do with you. I guess you would have to stay out here for the rest of time."

The stallion tried to raise an objection but before he could the mare vanished. Not just her, but the entire podium and gate. He was alone, stuck in the clouds. Slumping to the ground due to his lost chance at paradise, the stallion heard a little voice behind him. Without bothering to get up, he turned his head to see a midnight blue pony who looked fairly young. She looked oddly familiar and could place his hoof onto it until he saw the cutie mark. A white moon engulfed by a black cloud. He stumbled up to his feet, bowing to her majesty of the moon. She spoke softly, but her words echoed in his ears.

"There is no need to bow."

The stallion stood up straight to give his full respect to the new alicorn present in front of him. She chuckled at his over- exaggerated actions.

"No need for formalities. I assume you know that I am Luna, controller of the moon. I came because I felt an odd disturbance with your mental state. Did you suffer a head injury before you fell asleep?"

The stallion stopped to think, but knew it was to no use. He raised his shoulders in answer. Luna continued her questions.

"Can you talk?"

The stallion's lips pursed as he attempted to whistle, but no sound followed. He then tried his luck at saying the word yes, but continued to fail. Eventually his jaw dropped as far it could before the stallion yelled at the top of his lungs; however, it resulted in the same conclusion as the before. He finally shook his head. Luna began to become worried.

"Do you remember anything before falling asleep?"

Knowing the answer and most likely the outcome of his answer, the stallion shook his head and prepared for the worst. Luna turned her back on him, thinking of the possible outcomes.

"It's either that you may have come in contact with a moon worm which slowly turn the mind into dust and host into mush..."

Luna turn around, slapping the stallion with an extended wing. The power of it sent him flying five feet backwards. The majority of the force hit him in the forehead and the pain was unbearable, but quickly left him. He looked back up to see Luna giving a helping hoof. He took it and with her help lifted himself up onto his hooves.

"Sadly, it's not the worm. At least that one is curable. I'm afraid you have gone through a life threatening event, where somehow your head was damage. Although I'm sure your alive no thanks to a brilliant doctor and you'll get your vocal cords back, you have experience a serious case of amnesia. I cannot tell you if you'll ever recover."

The stallion could only imagine the possible life he had before hand. He didn't even know he had taken a hit to the head. Luna began to lift up into the air as the sun began to push its way through the clouds.

"I must leave you for now, but I will return with help from my sister. Please, stay safe and I will help you the next time you sleep."

The stallion watched as the alicorn floated away into the sky above her. As she left his sight, the stallion changed his view to the sun rising. It greeted him with a blinding orange flame as it feasted on the blue horizon.

Author's Note

I know this and the last part was short, but I think of them as a small explanation of how the story will work. (PS- it's not heaven, but rather a dream for anyone who tries to say I tried to create pony heaven.

Beginnings

The stallion woke up in a sweat. Although he didn't open his eyes to see where he was, the stallion could tell this world was the physical one. Unlike his dream, he could feel the uncomfortable rock-hard floor below him, even being wrapped in what seemed to be a wool blanket. It definitely was not as perfect as the clouds in his dream. He attempted to open his eyes to see the setting around him, but his eyes refused to obey. He took in the sounds of the hollowing winds, the feeling of an awful bed below him, the smell of a cooking pot of warm potato soup, and even the taste of the wool blanket; but for some reason couldn’t gain any in-sight of his surroundings.

He lifted his head upwards in an attempt to get his body moving again. He was answered with a small bang and a short spike of pain in his head. Finally, as if his eyes had decided it was in their best interest to work with him, his eyes opened to see what was above him. His eyes revealed a wooden beam resting only a couple feet above him. As the stallion inspected the beam stretching over him, he found that it was holding up a dirt ceiling with the support of wooden columns on both ends of the beam. Looking to his right, he found an inclined, curved wooden wall with dirt stains. The wall was mixed with old dark logs and new planks of oak. He turned his head to the other side, this time finding the inside layout of a small home. The structure of the house consisted of four wooden pillars which stood evenly spaced around the middle of the room. Its walls circled around the pillars and grew into the cone-shaped roof. The place seemed to be as if the designer had simply hallowed out the inside of a hill. Behind him a wooden door stood bracing the heavy winds outside. The door's window only showed the winter storm brewing outside the home. The deadly storm had probably would have taken his own life if he wasn't in this humble abode. Although the place wasn’t exactly luxurious, it could stand the harsh weather outside.

With the weather outside beating at the door, the stallion could tell he wasn't leaving any time soon. It was obvious that the occupants had stored everything that they owned in this one room. Using every space they could fill, the room was cluttered with furniture, supplies, and candles. With a closer look however, the stallion could tell that everything had its place within the house. Directly in front and behind him stood multiple barrels labeled with names of vegetables and fruits such as potato, lettuce, carrot, tomato, and even celery. From what he could remember, there was no fertile soil in this valley let alone one that could survive this winter. He also noticed that there were buckets, mops, rags, and many more miscellaneous items which haven’t seen any activity in at least a few months. Cobwebs and dust had ironically claimed the cleaning supplies. Then he realized, the cot and him had been placed next to the main storage area of the home. Letting his eyes drift to the middle of the room, he found a hoof-crafted table with four sturdy wooden chairs placed on all sides. Each chair displayed a unique symbol carved into their back. The pony also spotted a white tarp folded on the corner of the table with a dark red stain which slowly dripped onto the floor. The tarp itself looked old with an assortment of tools scattered on top of it. Beyond the scene, the stallion could see the far side of the house with another small window showing nothing but a white blanket of snow from the heavy storm outside. His eyes fell reaching the short curved countertop which contained a water pump, a row of dishes on a rack, and lots of cabinets underneath. On the right of the counter top stood a stove with a metal steaming pot boiling on top of it. He then remembered the smell of the soup and realized this must be making the source of the smell.

His eyes continued to search for a second room which would be indicated by an obvious straight wall or door way, but found that this room was the only one in the house. He didn’t see any beds with the exception of his cot, nor did he see any toilet for private affairs, nor did he see any signs of life. It was as if the room and its furniture had never been used with the exception of the counter tops and table in the kitchen area.

The stallion decided it was best to get up and take a closer look at his surroundings. He pushed the blanket off him and began to lift himself up, stopping at the sound of an opening door. He turned, expecting to find the home owner in the door way behind him, but the door remained sealed shut. Then he realized that the sound came near the kitchen area behind the pillar. He turned his head once more, hoping this time to find some pony, but was greeted by a spear floating in the air pointed at his head. A voice spoke up, but the stallion couldn’t locate where the voice was coming from. Its low and uneasy tone echoed in the dome room.

“I want you to slowly sit back down in your bed.”

The stallion decided it was best not to argue with the spear. He slowly lifted his body back onto the bed with rear hoofs dropping to floor.

“Not many ponies sit like that.”

Still not being able to tell where the voice is coming from, the stallion looked towards the area where the sound of a door opening. Next to the countertop, a wooden trap door laid wide open with nopony nearby. As if the trap door had realized some pony was watching, the door was covered with a dark blue magic and slammed shut. The stallion's eyes returned to the floating spear. The spear remained motionless in the air with a dark blue glow surrounding the handle. The wood itself was decayed, but the sharpen metal head, which worried the stallion more, was in fine condition.

“Do you know where you are?”

The stallion shook his head.

“Do you know what happen to you?”

The stallion shook his head again.

“Do you even know who you are?”

The stallion paused this time, thinking about the last question. Nothing came to mind, not even a nickname. He opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out. As hard as he tried, not a sound would come out of his mouth. Giving up, the stallion shook his head for a third time.

A sigh came from behind the pillar which stood next to the trap door. This sigh didn't have a low tone, but rather a higher tone similar to a younger pony's. There was a pause as the voice remained quite. Finally, a pony stepped forth and into the opening. To the stallion’s surprise, it was a mare with a light gray coat. Her mane and tail were dark gray, but her face still had a young look to it. Her horn, surrounded by the same color as the dark blue magic around the spear’s handle, made her seem even younger. Her flank showed a mark of a cloak surrounded by mist. A good cutie mark to represent her and the trick she just pulled off. She rested the spear against the door and extended a hoof.

“My name is Nikki Pennyworth, but you will call me Ms. Pennyworth.”

The voice changed from a deep low voice to that of a female, young, urban pony. The accent was that of a middle classed pony living in Fillydelphia. It wouldn’t have been a surprise if the mare had used some form of spell to change her voice.

The stallion lifted his hoof to meet hers, but was surprised when he his leg felt a large pinch. Instead of simple shaking hoofs, Ms. Pennyworth grabbed his leg and tightening her grip around it. A soft crack echoed through the room. The stallion let out a shout as he felt what he could only imagine as his leg bone being broke into two. With his leg held by her hoof, Ms. Pennyworth began to twist slowly. She watched as the tears began to build up in the stallion’s eyes. After letting the first tear hit the floor, Ms. Pennyworth opened her mouth.

“Cross me in this house or try anything stupid and I will make sure that you will be kicked out into the snow. Do you understand?”

Quickly nodding, the stallion yelped as she let go, leaving a bruised red mark on his lower leg. The stallion anger boiled, almost to the point of releasing it onto her, but paused. A dark blue aura quickly surrounded the bruise and began to wash away the pain. Small crackles could be heard from her horn and his leg as the stallion watched the pink and purple blotch disappear. After the last patch of discoloration disappeared, the stallion tapped his hoof onto the ground testing its state. With the pain gone, he eyed the unicorn.

“You can never be too safe. Besides, you’re a special condition.”

Before he could argue, the stallion could hear hoof steps. Before another comment could be made, a new pony popped out of the trapdoor. This time it was an orange earth pony with a brown mane and tail. Not exactly appealing colors in the stallion’s mind, but he knew that it wasn’t as if the pony could choose them. The new orange pony lifted himself up from the ladder, and made his way to the table.

The new intruder had an older look to him with slight wrinkles around his eyes and rougher skin. He didn't have much to define him, with the exception of a large straw hat cover his ears and forehead. From his mouth hung an old wooden and metal lantern. Time had taken its toll on both of them. After placing the lantern onto the table, he turned to the trapdoor and made his way back. The stallion eyes fell to his behind and saw a cutie mark of flames as the orange pony closed the trapdoor. The stallion was quick to raise his eyes again as the orange pony came back. As the pony did, he pointed a hoof at Nikki Pennyworth.

“Now Nikki, you know that isn’t any way to treat a guest.”

His tone was easy and it felt more sincere than that of Ms. Pennyworth; however, it was a heavy rural accent compared to hers. His voice hinted to a more simple origin such as a farm or even the new settlerments down in the South of Equestria.

Ms. Pennyworth quickly tried to hide her blame.

“But Light Master! His wound…”

“That’s enough; you know you wouldn’t like it if someone was investigating you about something you didn’t know. I told you this fella wouldn't know much, and I know that’s the truth. There's more than wrinkles that comes with old age!”

The mare turned to the stallion and then back to the Light Master. It could clearly be seen that she wanted to hear the words of praise come from his lips. With one last attempt, she opened her mouth.

“But…”

The Light Master turned his head, shooting a cold state at her. She stopped as she became paralyzed by the Light Master’s stare. It was if she was under some spell.

“A flame can only become a fire when given the right tinder and right conditions. He doesn’t have the tools nor the desire to harm us. Now I would like to try to avoid making a scene in front of our guest."

The mare dropped her hoof and sat down. Annoyed, she nodded her head and pouted. The Light Master's stare quickly turned into a smile. He turned and laid a hoof on the red stallion's shoulder.

"Now could you please grab us two drinks of lemonade from down stairs?”

Ms. Pennyworth raised a hoof in objection, but the Light Master shot her another stare. Finally, Ms. Pennyworth gave in and sighed.

“Yes master.”

Defeated, Ms. Pennyworth passed by the Light Master and threw the trapdoor open. As she stepped down into the hole, the stallion caught a look of disgust pointed at his direction. What did he do to deserve this, but he let the thought pass. After she closed the trapdoor behind her, the Light Master took a seat on a chair with a book on top of it. Instead of moving it, the Light Master simply sat on top of it. He beaconed for the stallion to join him in which the stallion pulled the chair across of him and took a seat. The Light Master pushed the white cloth stained with red splotches off the table, letting it unravel all over the floor. For having such a tidy house, the owner didn't seem to mind making a mess. Then he threw a few miscellaneous objects from a bag on to the table. First came a star shape rock, then a black box, and finally a couple of pencils accompanied by some pictures. He then pushed a pencil with slips of paper in front of him.

“Now don’t try to talk, your body is still healing including your voice. Just have a look at these pictures and write down what you see.”

The orange pony lifted the first picture with his mouth.

The first picture were rows of black streaks; however, looking closer the stallion could see rows of black trees. There were almost no buildings with the exception of one tall rounded rectangle. The stallion quickly scribbled down the place he saw. His hand writing was light and neat, but somewhat plain. He placed the last dot over the i and pushed the paper foward.

‘Ponyville.’

The Light Master picked up his response and smiled.

“So you’re somewhat of a local. That’s a relatively new town too. I’m surprised how you got out here though, the road to anywhere else is in the opposite direction."

He picked up another picture. This time it was the outline of a black circle. On the outline, there were small gaps.

Shadows began to take shape and one turned into a pair of alicorns with their wings extended. The positioning of the two with one in front and the other following reminded him of the sisters Luna and Celestia. The other shadow made a strange looking creature which the stallion couldn’t put a hoof on until he noticed how the body parts were not of one creature but rather many creatures. He began to write down on the piece of paper in front of him.

‘Luna and Luna defeating Discord.’

The Light Master picked up the paper. He nodded and shuffled the picture back into the group. He set the pile back on top of the table.

"I'm surprised you know about that. It's only been about a week since that happened. Some are calling our time the age of ponies and such. They're even saying that the two alicorns have power over all of Equestria. Word has it that they turned Discord into stone."

He whinnied at his own comment.

"That'll be the day. Okay, one more picture and then we'll do some other tests.”

Flipping through the stack, he raised one last picture with one small black spot. It's small size made the stallion squint, but he couldn't make anything out if it. All he could see was a small insignificant dot on the page. The lack of features didn't help either. He almost gave up, when he realized a light curve near the edge of the ball. Then an object popped into his head. Without a thought, he wrote down an object he had only remembered reading about.

'A Black Pearl.'

The sense of cheeriness and jot which was in the room had evaporated. The Light Master sat quiet. A minute passed until his face changed. The smile left and his ears drooped. There was no shock or confusion, but rather sorrow in his eyes.

After a few long seconds the Light Master picked up his response and placed it at the bottom of the stack. His hoof pushed the pictures aside and replaced the stack with a light purple stone. A new blank face over took him and he stared to the stack of pictures.

“Here, take this.”

Without moving his eyes to the pony, he pulled back the stack of pictures and prepared them in some unknown order.

The red stallion looked down to the dark gray rock. Confused he returned his attention to the Light Mater, but the Light Master didn’t give the stallion any signs of help. Finally, after a small pause, the stallion decided to pick up the stone. It grew hot quickly and the stallion tried to drop it; however, it was if the stone was glued to his hooves. The heat grew and grew until the stallion felt it burn into his skin. At that moment, it dropped and stood still for a second. Frustrated, the stallion began to lift himself up and at the Light Master until he noticed a spark. He looked down to see the rock letting of flashes of small blue light around its edges until it turned dark again. The Light Master finally turned to look and frowned.

“Well that’s not what I was…”

BANG

With a deafening noise, the room light up in a white blinding. The stallion felt blind until a blue light began to emit at the source of the flash. Eventually the room was shrouded by the light. The Light Master’s eyes opened wide. His gaping mouthed filled with the blue light.

“I haven’t seen it do something like that since…”

He looked up at the stallion. All the stallion could do was shrug and question what happened in return. Did he break the stone, or did he just magically turn everything blue. The color began to return to the far sides of the room and eventually back to the origin of the light. As the last of the blue streaks retreated into the stone, it returned into its original color. It seemed the rock hadn’t even been touched.

“Well, I haven’t seen that happen in a long time.”

Before the stallion could ask, the trapdoor swung open. A soaked mane popped up first as a gray head followed. A soaked pony pulled herself up from the trap door below. Looking at her flank, the red stallion realized it was Ms. Pennyworth. By the expression on her face, she didn't seem very pleased. As she pulled herself from the hole, small clear objects followed surround by a dark blue aura.

The mare hovered the shards of broken glass out of the hole and around the stallion's head. As she levitated the sharp shards of glass closer to the stallion, the remains of what seemed to be lemonade slowly dripped off the glass onto the stallion's forehead. It stuck to the red skin before it could move anywhere else. The Light Master quickly got up and gave her prod. With a giggle and a new smile, he spoke.

“Now Nikki, put that glass down. It isn't his fault that you broke the glasses."

Without dropping the shards of glass, Nikki turned he head to the Light Master. By the glare in her eye, the stallion could tell she didn't find it funny.

"You carry a tray above your head next time and have it fall on yourself!"

The gray mare dropped the glass where they floated and turned herself around.

"You and your new friend can clean up this mess. I'm going downstairs to take a rest."

With the last glass piece hitting the floor, the mare climbed down the ladder. The room fell silent once again and the Light Master held a smile. After a few moments, he broke the silence.

"As you can guess, she gets angry easily."

He walked back to the table avoiding the glass. As the Light Master sat, a thought popped into the red stallion's head. It was almost as if he was home some how...

"Okay, we have a few more small tests. However, before we continue, I would like you to look through this book."

He pulled out the book from under himself, revealing an old brown book. The title of the book read "Names: Ponies, Griffins, Zebras, and All".

"I worried that you wouldn't remember your name along with some other things, but I'm sure this will help temporarily. I doubt you want me to call you something like 'The Red Stallion'."

The Light Master opened up the book and passed it over.

"Take your time, there's over 20,000 names in that thing."

Flipping through the first 200 pages of the book, the red stallion didn't see any names that he recognized. Not a single one caught his eye. Each page became harder and harder to turn.

"You know, a name doesn't make or break a pony..."

The red stallion looked up. A snoring orange pony sat in front of him, hunched over the table. The Light Master fell asleep about 65 pages ago, and had seemed to far deep to wake up now. The stallion turned his head to find Mrs. Pennyworth climbing out of the hole. Dried and relaxed, her eyes shinned from the dim candle light. It was almost as if her soul shined in the darkness. One could argue that she was cuter this way.

"That's what my father always told me."

Shaking his head, the stallion attempted to refocus on her face. As if she read the stallions mind, she shot him a deadly look. The stallion's thoughts of her beauty quickly disappeared.

"Hey, don't think I don't know that look."

The stallion blushed and looked downward, the feeling of embarrassment washing over him. Slowly pain began to seep in and the stallion didn't understand why. It was as if there was a hidden memory resurfacing and he couldn't remember it. A tear dropped onto the wooden floor. Noticing, the gray mare walked over and placed a hoof on his shoulder.

"I didn't mean to... We got off on the wrong hoof. My name is Nicole Pennyworth, and you can call me Nicole for now. Well, when you get your voice back you can call me Nicole."

The stallion lifted his head, holding back the unexplained tears. He smiled and nodded.

"Better now? Now let's have a look through this book for a name."

Using her magic, she picked up the book and began going through pages. After reading a few names, she slammed the book shut.

"That's not going to help... Let's try a new method."

She placed the book closed in front of the stallion.

"Open it and whatever page you get, you have to pick a name from that page."

The stallion thought about the choice. Doing so will limit him from choosing his actual name, but would end this long process of searching. The stallion nodded in agreement. Placing one hoof on the hundreds of pages, the stallion swung the book open. The pages flew until it hit page 345.

"Okay, let's have a look... There's Omaha, O'mage, Omead... These are some real strange names even for Zebras...O'mecka, Omeeg, Omega..."

The stallion pulled the book forward at the sound of the name. It was as if an alarm bell had gone off. The stallion read the description of the name.

'The last of a series; the final child of a family.'

The mare stared at the same name, reading the description.

"Are you sure that's the name you want?"

I nod my head. There is something that clicks about my new name

Another Night

The candle light flickered. It was the middle of night and I nodded at my name.

"Okay, Omega. It may not be your real name, but it'll have to do for now."

Nicole closed the book and lifted it to the counter top with her magic. Opening one of the cabinets, she placed it among a pile of books and notepads. With a blue aura surrounding the handle, the cabinet closed.

"Now you've had a somewhat long day, I recommend that you should get some rest."

I nodded and pushed myself out of the chair. Walking over to the cot, I heard one last line.

"It's going to be a big day tomorrow."

I turned my head to her. There was a big grin on her face, but it seemed more playful than menacing.

"It'll be fun!"

A shiver ran down my spine; but rather than asking, I decided it would be best just to go to bed.

This time, I helped myself into the cot. The winter weather was still strong outside and the wind constantly pounded at the wall. The old door held against the wind; but through the cracks in the sill, the breeze oozed in and filled the home. Adjusting my body to lay on my side facing away from the wall, I pulled the blanket around me as the cold air filled the house. All I could do was relax my eyes as I watched my surroundings. Before they fell shut, I caught the glimpse of gray moving by the table.

Nicole folded the blood stained sheet at the foot of the table and floated it away into the sink. Then she lifted each picture into a bag and sealed it up. Slowly, she put away the rest of the items into the bag leaving only the rock out on the table. There was a long pause and, as if the weather was watching too, the room became silent. She turned to look at the sleeping orange pony and then to my cot. I wasn't sure if she noticed me watching, but she turned back to the rock and picked it up with her hooves. Immediately, a spark of green dust flew from the rock. As if not satisfied with the result, she began to shake it up and down. When there was no further response she threw it across the room. The rock collided with the door and landed on the ground with a load thud. Without making any movement, I turned my eyes to the rock which just sat there.

I wasn't sure if she was upset or angry, but I could tell she was some what irritated. Did my test at the rock mean something more than just the light show? I watched as Nicole lifted her left hoof to her head. Blocking her own face, the sound of a faint muffled cry reached my ears. Tears began to run down her hoof and fall onto the floor. I couldn't help but to feel awkward as the moment lasted a few minutes. Finally, she shook her head and the sound stop. The last tear dropped followed by any thoughts about the stone. She recovered a calm relaxed stance and floated the rock from the other side of the room into the bag.

After packing away the items from the table, Nicole slowly prod the Light Master. Eventually she gave him a hard poke into the side of his stomach. He lifted his head up from the table and groaned.

"Five more minutes. Just five more..."

"Time to move. You know you should be sleeping in your bed down stairs rather than in this chair. Remember your back problems?"

Grumbling, the Light Master raised his head off the table and turn to Nicole. With one eye open, he mumbled something incomprehensible. It seemed Nicole couldn't hear him either and asked him to repeat himself.

"What did you say?"

There was a short pause as the wind howled.

"Doesn't matter... I'll go to bed. Will you keep an eye on the storm up here?"

"Yes, now go on. Besides, you'll want to be fully rested when you test Omega tomorrow."

She threw a gesture towards me in the cot. I quickly closed my eyes completely shut before one of them noticed I was still awake.

"So that's what he'll be calling himself. Not a bad name, but it doesn't seem right."

"Well it's not like either you or him knew the real one, right?"

I heard a creak as what must have been his hooves touched the floor. The hoof steps slowly moved from the table to the what I believed to be the kitchen ladder.

"I'm off to sleep. Keep an eye on the weather. Knowing this place, I bet the weather will only get worse before it clears up."

"You didn't answer my question."

"Good night Nikki, make sure you're comfortable."

I heard the wooden trap door open and close as I guessed the Light Master left the room, leaving me and Nicole alone in the room. I peaked a look out of my eyelids to see the new scene. Nicole had taken the same chair the Light Master was sitting in and was now looking up at the skylight above. I would guess she was staring at the stars if I hadn't known there was only a blanket of snow above her. As I stared at her, I felt my eyes getting heavier until they couldn't hold their own weight. They closed, leaving the real world behind.

I opened my eyes to a familiar dream I had just the night before. I found myself on warm clouds with a bright night sky above me. Each white puff ball squished together to form a long narrow platform. I poked my head over the side to see an endless sea below.

It looked to be a long way down before I would hit the water, not something I would like to jump into any time soon.

Turning my head back to the cloud path, I noticed a golden gate shimmering in the moonlight. At the entrance stood a pure white alicorn in front of a wooden podium. Her white tail waved left to right as if to beckon me closer. Suddenly, the cloud I was standing on began to rise at an incline and the path in front of me began to do the same. Before I could grab onto something, I found myself sliding down and towards the entrance.

I hit the podium head first causing my hind legs to lift up. The feeling of pain swept through my body as my back collided with the podium as well.

"Whoops, I didn't mean to have you slide that fast."

The mare giggled.

"Well at least you made it in one piece."

If she allowed me to simply walk over, I wouldn't be in great pain in the first place. I flipped my self over and got up on my hooves. The pain of standing was minor compared to the ordeal I just went through, but it was still agonizing pain.

"Ah, you're the pony from last night. The no name..."

I shook my head.

"Well I'm sorry, but if you don't have a name..."

I raised a right hoof to stop her. Although I wouldn't be able to tell her with my voice, I could write my name for her. Using the raised hoof, I began to write in the clouds my new name. As my hoof passed through the cloud, a trail of empty space followed.

"Omega."

The word sounded to have new meaning coming from her mouth.

"Omega.."

Yes, that's my name.

"Omega..."

It didn't make much sense for her to repeat the name over and over. I decided to reach out and shake a hoof in front of her, but before I could she had opened her book and began dragging her hoof down the page. She began muttering under her breath.

"I've never met a pony named Omega... It has to be somewhere... Uhhh..."

She turned back to me.

"I can't seem to see the name. Are you sure you have the right name?"

I paused before answering. Yes my name was Omega, but has it always been? I couldn't be sure.

I shook my head no.

"Well then, I need your real name. Can't get in pretending to be someone else now."

Her smile turned into a frown.

"Unless you don't know your name still."

I frowned now. I didn't know where I was or what was on the other side of the gate, but I wanted to know.

"I'm sorry."

Without warning, the cloud began to rise with the exception of the spot I was in.

"We just can't let you in."

Her podium and head began to disappear as all I could see was the bottom of her cloud. Eventually I lost sight as all I could see above me was the color white. Again, I failed to get past the gates of my dream. It was as if it was never meant to be.

I sat on that cloud for hours, stuck thinking what was the point of the dream. It was if I was a nobody stuck on the outside, doomed to never get inside. I may as well as just be a drop in the ocean.

As the thought popped into my head, the cloud began to evaporate from the edges. As I lost the ground beneath my hooves, I felt the cloud hold me from my belly. Even then, the cloud continued to shrink smaller and smaller until I slip and caught it at the edge of my hoof.

I didn't literally want to be a drop in the ocean, it was just an expression.

As the my hoof held on to the last few moments of existence of the cloud, I thought to myself. It's just a dream. I focused all my effort into my brainpower and though of the cloud staying the same size. As I did, the cloud stopped shrinking.

Finally, something positive in this dream.

I imagined the cloud growing bigger and bigger. Instead, the cloud popped out of existence and I found myself falling into the ocean below.

Shit.

As I zoomed past the cloud layer, I collected my thoughts. I would wake up when I collided with the water or I would soon fin myself needing to hold my breath. Either way, belly first would probably be an unwise thing to do. I angled myself so my hind hooves would connect with the water first as the ocean quickly approached. Just before I hit the ground, I grabbed a breath of fresh air. Closing my eyes, I hoped for the best.

Three... Two... One...

Nothing

No splash, no painful leg ache, nothing. I should have hit the water by now, but instead I felt still as if I was floating.

I opened my eyes to the ocean's horizon and found myself floating about a foot away from the water. My body turned around and I found myself facing Princess Luna. The princess's body sparkled to the water dropping off her body. It was if she had rose from the water like a seductive water nymph.

"Hello again Omega."

I shook my head in disbelief. Princess Luba was here again, just in time to save me?

"Well to be honest, I was just watching your dream."

Wait, did she just...

"Well yes and no, I didn't read your mind, but your face tells it all."

Oh good, so she didn't know what I said about her.

"Well I do take it as a complement when you make googly eyes eyes at me."

Although I doubt it was noticeable, I could feel my cheeks blushing.

"I'm kidding, though you don't hide your feelings well."

I smiled, she was a kind and funny person for a princess. She waved her hoof and a bench made of a cloud appeared. I felt the magic let go of me as I fell onto the bench.

"So there's some good and bad news. The good news is that the amnesia is only temporary and can even be cured!"

The big smile disappeared and a more serious expression took its place.

"The bad news is that without a cure, it could take years. Even with the cure, there's no guarantee that it'll work let alone that you will gain all your memories."

With that, her serious expression faded away and returned to a smile.

"However, if you make your way to Canterlot, I would be willing to assist you in any way possible. As your new princess, it is my duty to make sure all my subjects are taken care of, no matter the problem!"

As she ended, the sun began to rise behind her. She turned her head and sighed. As if she was trying to ignore someone, she turned back to me.

"I would come to you, but there are matters keeping me at Canterlot. Sadly, being a princess is not an easy job."

The sun began coming closer and closer until it seemed only a hundred feet away. Princess Luna turned her head once more, this time nodding to the sun. She looked back to me.

"I'm sorry, it would seem my sister needs me now. Remember, come to Canterlot. I would like to meet you face to face rather than these... Nightmares."

She cringed at the word and shuddered.

"Until next time."

Turning her whole body around this time, she began to flap her wings and fly towards the sun. Eventually, all I could make out was a small blue dot against a yellow sun and then the two disappeared. I found myself stuck on a bench watching the moon set against the cloudy sky and then darkness.

Author's Note

I know I have few readers and that I haven't posted in a long time, but I'm hoping to work on this more often.