Login

Dreamlocked Chronicles

by Prane

Chapter 1: Chapter 1 - Delusions

Load Full Story Next Chapter

“Ah, there’s nothing like a well-deserved rest after a day full of studying, don’t you think, Spike?”

No answer. I could have sworn that my Number One Assistant was around here somewhere just a minute ago, but he seems to have wandered off. Oh well, it’s his loss, and more of these delicious cream biscuits for me! Not that I was going to share, anyway, because I need exactly three and three quarters to satisfy my hunger, and there are only that many left on a porcelain plate in front of me.

Still, tasty treats aren’t the only reason why I like it here. Just take a look around — everything about this place is great! The decor is simple but elegant, the staff presents friendly and professional approach, and lazy atmosphere pouring smoothly from that antique gramophone is just what I need to relax. The manager knows that once in a while even quiet, book loving ponies like myself want to unwind in a more socialized environment. But not too socialized. I prefer secluded spots with corner walls to my back, providing a good view of the clientele.

And what a clientele they are! So distinguished, so fitting the place! Take that elegant couple chatting over there, for example. The stallion is wearing a bowtie in the color of the sapphire blue ceiling, and if his companion’s scarf was wider it could easily double for one of the equally lavender tablecloths. I can’t hear what they’re talking about, but I bet it’s something science or history related, since the ponies frequenting Les Doux Maregots are not only refined, but educated as well. Good for them! Now, what else… oh, their hairdos are rather simple, like my own: practical and definitely not extravagant.

In short, this café is a perfect place for Twilight Sparkle to spend a lovely—ouch!

I burned my tongue! How is that even possible? Everypony knows that beverages served in here have this peculiar quality of keeping the same temperature for hours. But now, out of the blue, my coffee is hot as the sun itself? Has something changed while I wasn’t paying attention?

Indeed it has. There’s a newcomer by the doors, and one glance is all it takes to tell that she doesn’t belong in here, since her wavy, crimson-yellow mane and amber coat brightening the otherwise calm interior simply aren’t fitting the general picture. Come to think of it, she looks like a random spark bursting out of the fireplace, one about which you can’t really tell if she’s going to die out in the air or set your favorite rug alight.

This one, to my surprise, has decided to come over.

“Hi.”

“Hello,” I reply. “I’d ask you to join me but I’m afraid there’s only one—”

She sits in a chair of her own. That’s odd, I’ve always thought this was a table for one. Somepony from the staff must’ve added an extra seat recently. I’m fine with that, but couldn’t they at least get one from a matching set instead of picking this oversized, golden throne with red pillows? It’s so unlike the chair I’m sitting in. Mine is a typical piece of furniture, made of dark wood, with perfectly aligned back rest and steady, four-legged support.

“Right.” I smile and push the plate towards her. Though I usually sit alone, common courtesy requires offering a sharable treat to anyone joining you during mealtime. “Would you care for a biscuit?”

“Why would I? To let my subconscious trick me into believing they taste delicious? To fool myself with something that’s not real at all?” She frowns and pushes the plate away. “Listen, we don’t have all day. Well, we have all night, in our case, but that’s not the point. I think I’ve left the window in your bedroom open, so unless you want to get us both cold I suggest you wake up already.”

What a weird mare. I avoid labeling others most of the time, but I think she may have some kind of a mental disorder. She certainly sounds slightly delusional with her ridiculous logic. How do I know she’s wrong? Well, all you have to do is go over the facts.

Fact number one: this isn’t my bedroom, this is clearly Les Doux Maregots, a café by the Promenade in Canterlot. Fact number two: it’s about three or four in the afternoon, so something you’d hardly call a night. Fact number three: there’s a certain distance between us and the windows, and it’s temperate outside. Therefore, there is no way either of us could get cold, which completes the proof.

I try to look at the mare with sympathy, but she just snorts.

“Still not getting it, huh? I honestly expected more than that.”

“Excuse me! It must be your first time in Canterlot, because otherwise you’d know we treat each other with respect around here!” I point my hoof away from the table. “Please, I don’t want to sound rude, but I think you’d better go.”

“Oh, I’ll leave, you can bet on that. Staying in this place for too long makes you lose yourself,” she replies. “But before I go, tell me one thing: what do you think about the decor?”

Sigh. I look around, willing to do anything to make this unpleasant mare go away. Let’s see, I like the vivid redness of the ceiling, I’ve always liked it. I like how tablecloths and carpets are in the color of honey, there’s also that—

Hold on a second! Something is definitely not right about this picture, something isn’t the way it’s supposed to be. I don’t recall the manager changing the design, yet there it is, different than before. I must be seeing things! Red ceiling and honey carpets, check. Scarlet bowties and amber scarves, check. Wavy, over the top hairdos, loud conversations, and lively music coming from the three-horned gramophone — triple check!

I look down at my half empty cup. I swear that porcelain used to have smooth, geometrical patterns in rose and violet, but now the markings are crimson and erratic, like thorns wrapping around the cup. And on the top of that, the coffee inside seems to be boiling!

“What is this? Who are you? What is going on!?”

The mare rolls her cyan eyes, and with this gesture the whole café turns to the side. The sudden shift in gravity pulls me out of my chair and sends into a corner, but neither the mare nor anything else in the room is affected, ponies, furniture, and porcelain plates included. My mind rebels against this nonsensical inconsistency, but gets flooded with waves of sudden dizziness in return. All I see are swirling shades of red and yellow, and the mare taking a peek from behind the table. She grins and helps herself to one of my three and three quarter cream biscuits.

“Name’s Sunset. Sunset Shimmer,” she says between the bites. “Wake up, Sparkle. We have a war to win.”

* * *

Surrounded by darkness, but awake.

Come to think of it, “awake” doesn’t quite describe my current state. “Awake” implies becoming alert, conscious to your surroundings, and ceasing to sleep, so I’m somberly half-awake at best. It will take a moment before my brain springs into action again, but scraps of data are already coming in. I can tell that it’s raining outside, loudly, that I’m wrapped in my quilt, and that I can’t see a thing. Not surprisingly, it’s the middle of the night, after all.

Unable to fight my eyelids, I nestle my head into the pillow. Its softness reminds me of a strange dream I had, though I barely remember it. There was some wicked mare who didn’t like biscuits, something about a war and, I don’t know, all sorts of crazy things. Like any dream, it was pretty confusing, and thinking too much into it will not help. Luckily, now that the rain has been muffled for some reason, I can shut down my thinking for the next couple of hours and go back to sleep. I turn to the side with a prolonged moan.

“You’re finally awake? Good.”

Unknown female voice instantly breaks me out of torpor, sending chills down my spine. I see a pony-shaped silhouette by the window, only barely illuminated by the lights of the city that never sleeps. Who is she, and why is she struggling with the handle like that? She must be a burglar! Oh, I’ll teach her to break into someone’s flat!

Channeling my magic at the tip of my horn, I shape an orchid missile of arcane energy and thrust it at the intruder with all my might. This should do nicely!

“Please don’t.”

A blinding opal bubble appears out of nowhere and surrounds the mare, lightening up the room and assaulting my eyes, still not accustomed to anything brighter than a candle. She must be a unicorn like me, but much more acquainted in the arcane arts, because what I considered “all my might” has withered before reaching the surface of the shield. I guess you could compare it to throwing a tiny, plush ball against a concrete wall.

“Wah!” I shout, both in surprise and due to the sudden glare. I cover my eyes to protect them from any further bedazzlement, though at the moment I’m pretty sure I’ve already gone blind. “Turn it off!”

With my eyes closed I have no idea if she did, so I’m relying on other senses for now. I reach to the side to draw a mental map of my bedroom, using the bed itself as a reference point. Shape after shape, I fill my vision with pieces of furniture and other objects I can remember, which is not too difficult for somepony who has never changed the layout of her room.

I pick up a splat somewhere in front, most likely originating from a drenched fabric being thrown to the floor. Something heavier joins it with a metallic jingle, likely a saddle or a bag. A moment later there’s a sound of mechanical adjustment and the rainy ambiance gets cut off.

“There you go!”

I hear satisfaction in the intruder’s voice. My sight is almost back to normal, but I’m playing helpless for now. Maybe I can’t compete against her in the field of spellcasting, but I’ll gladly introduce my hoof to her muzzle as soon as she gets closer.

Hoofsteps. Any second now. Wait, no, it turns out that she’s not coming my way. A globe creaks. She must be about six steps to the right, close to my desk.

“Aww, sorry about that,” she says with a genuine note of, what is it, care? Kindness? That’s not fair, I suddenly don’t feel like punching her into a coma. “I didn’t know what to expect from your magic so I poured quite a lot into my defenses, just in case.” She moves around, then drags something towards me across the wooden floor. She must be close now, I can smell the wetness of her coat. “You can open your eyes now.”

I take my hoof off my face. The first thing I see is a magical ball attached to the ceiling, illuminating the room and the mysterious mare with soft light. Despite numerous bruises and general rawness of her coiffure, tips of which are still watering the floor, she seems casual and relaxed as she dangles her rear legs from the chair. I have no idea who she might be, yet there’s something about her crimson and amber appearance that feels oddly familiar. Is she somepony I should remember from my time at Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns? Oh, I knew I should’ve been paying more attention to other students while I still could!

I get up. “Care to explain who you are to break into my bedroom in the middle of the night?” I ask, perhaps a bit bluntly, but that’s what you get for spending about seventy percent of your day with books and not even a tenth of that time with ponies your age.

The corners of her mouth twitch into a slightly asymmetric smirk. “I thought we were already past conventionalities. I’m Sunset Shimmer.”

That name! Ah! Of course!

“You! You’re the mare from my dream!” I shout, feeling the somnolence gone from my systems, and replaced with a huge dose of excitement. “But how did you get in there? Or in here, for that matter? This is the sixth floor!”

As I’m trotting around the room in disbelief, Sunset raises her hoof. “Listen, I’ll gladly answer all of your questions. Preferably with my stomach full. I haven’t eaten a thing since—” she punches her guts to silence the arising growl “—eh, far too long.”

I stop by the window to gather my thoughts. I can’t say I like strangers coming to my life uninvited, but honestly, who does? Especially these days, when there are no “days” in their common understanding, when you can hardly rely on your neighbors, and when your very own bed could lead to a world so dangerous that most ponies would rather not sleep at all. Canterlot back then or Manehattan now, this is the reality we have to face ever since the Night has come. This is what the Nocturnal Empress has brought upon Equestria, sowing the seeds of indifference and apathy amongst us. Nopony trusts anyone, nopony cares. So why would I care about this weird mare who has invaded my both mental and physical privacy? I should just kick her out, giving it not a moment’s thought.

But I won’t. Not because I care about this Sunset Shimmer, but because I hate. I hate the Nocturnal Empress, I hate what she’s done to me, and I hate the world I’m living in.

I’m pretty sure that after six months without the sun you would too.

I turn around. “Why would I allow you to stay? Convince me.”

“Have you ever heard about the Elements of Harmony?”

In a matter of seconds I’m recalling everything I know about this particular subject, searching through numerous books, essays and excerpts I’ve read. My mind works like a thoroughly organized library, which probably explains why I wanted to work in one when I was younger. I would spend entire days on trying out new classification methods, shelving and reshelving books without end, immersing myself in the collective knowledge of those who came before me…

A foalish dream.

“Of course,” I reply. “According to folklore, Princess Celestia would use the power of the Elements to defeat Nightmare Moon a thousand years ago. But, just like the legend foretold, Nightmare Moon has returned from her banishment, proclaimed herself the Nocturnal Empress of Equestria and forbid the sun from raising ever again, effectively bringing nighttime eternal.”

There’s that smirk again. “Let’s focus on the positive part, shall we? You do realize that there is a way to end the Night.”

My immediate reply is my eyes rolling. “Oh, certainly! First, you would need to find the Elements, this mysterious source of power, then figure out how to harness their magic, and then somehow stand against the Empress herself. It’s not like she has, I don’t know, the entire army at her disposal, right!?”

Deep breath. I’m getting emotional again, and I promised myself I won’t be getting emotional about the subject of the Imperial Guard. Whatever happened, happened. Exhale.

I trot towards this Shimmer pony. “I have read several books concerning the Elements of Harmony, but so far I have no idea what they actually are, or where to look for them. I don’t even know what they do! So unless you have something real to talk about—”

“They are real!” Sunset exclaims, standing up and knocking the chair over. “My mentor told me about them!”

Huh? Perhaps my initial diagnosis of Miss Shimmer’s delusions wasn’t that far from the truth. Over the last century there was no spellcaster who would know more about magical artifacts than Princess Celestia, and I have been her student for a long time. A protégée, even! If the Elements of Harmony weren’t just a legend, the Princess would have certainly taught me about them.

But, as you may imagine, Sunset Shimmer has sparkled up my curiosity nevertheless. There is only one more piece I need to solve this puzzle.

“Your mentor?”

“Why, the wisest and kindest of all teachers, of course,” Sunset looks straight at me. “Princess Celestia. Ring any bells?

A whole darn belfry.

Next Chapter: Chapter 2 - Rebel with a Cause Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour
Return to Story Description

Login

Facebook
Login with
Facebook:
FiMFetch