Dreams of the Damned

Chapter 9

“Luna!”

“Urk! ...Sister… too tight…” Luna had just stepped off the chariot and already she was again under attack, this time by her bigger sister.

“Sorry, I’m just… happy to see you returned safely, and unharmed.” Celestia sniffled, backing off. Was she crying?

“Well, not unharmed…” Luna said softly, gesturing to her bandaged leg.

“Oh…” Celestia gasped, just know noticing it. She turned back to the castle. “Come, lets us move to a more proper location.”

She followed her into the palace, passing servants and guards rushing to and fro, trying to quickly accomplish whatever task set for them by their supervisors. A few bowed as they passed, but most ignored they, just the way they liked it. No need to stop doing their job to give unneeded respect. Respect us by doing your job well, that was what her sister always said, a lesson she had learned from their mother. She felt her eyes well up with tears again but tried her best to conceal it.

“Luna?” Crap, her sister had noticed. “Is something wrong?”

“There are… many things wrong, sister. Some more so than others.” She made to try and pass her, but felt herself getting pulled into a side room.

“Look, Luna…” Celestia began, blocking her way out. “I know that... things have been hard for you, ever since you returned, but…” She put a hoof on her shoulder. “I know that it was partly me making myself inaccessible that pushed you over the edge, in a time when you badly needed support from someone after going through a troubling experience…”

Luna just stared at her sister, the tears returning. The two of them stood there for a time, enjoying the rare moment they got to themselves. Then Luna recalled the last thing her sister had said. “Wait… a troubling experience?” Did she know?

“Yes, I knew about you and Sombra, and, it saddens me to say…” She fidgeted. “I was a little… jealous of you.”

“Jealous? Of me? Why?” Luna asked, surprised. “You had it all, an entire nation that adored and praised you. As for me, the only thing I got was that people knew I existed.”

“Yes, and I guess that was mostly my fault. I should have gotten you out into the public more, but you were kinda… intimidating. Still kinda are, although your history doesn't help your image…” She chuckled. “Although, to be fair, I was little better back than.”

“What was it you said once; “I’m a fucking Sun God, I can do what I want, and anyone who tries to stop me will be charged with treason?” Luna teased, now smiling.

Celestia chuckled and blushed. “Yes, I did have quite a god complex back then. I wonder what Twilight would have thought of past me…”

The two of them stood there for a few seconds before Celestia remembered what she actually dragged Luna aside for in the first place.

“Sister, I just want you to know that you can talk to me, whatever happens between us in the future.” Luna nodded, listening. “Now, I shouldn’t be keeping you, as I'm sure you are tired after all you have been through, but I must ask you one thing. It seemed like something was weighing on you, and I want to know if there is anything I can do to help you.”

Luna paused. Should she tell her the whole truth?

“It’s just… during our escape, a… friend, who had helped us escape, was killed, as well as a few of my guards.”

“Oh, Luna…” Celestia wrapped her in another hug, much to her embarrassment. “Don’t worry about that too much, there is nothing you can do now. Best get some sleep and we will sort this all out tomorrow.”

Luna nodded, and began to make towards her room, but stopped, and glanced back at her sister. “...Thank you, sister. For everything.”

Her sister smiled. “I try my best.”

Leaning on the railing, he looked out over the ocean and the multitude of ships making up the convoy stretching to the horizon. The transport slowly rocked back and forth in the waves, the light of the setting sun reflecting off the water and tinting everything orange. The only sounds were the cries of the seagulls, the waves against the side of the ship, and the distant voices of sailors talking. One might have said it was peaceful, were it not for the nature of the convoy they were sailing with.

For they were sailing straight into war.

21 Destroyers, 18 Cruisers, 15 support vessels, including hospital ships and troop transports like the one he was currently stationed on, 5 Battleships, and 3 Aircraft Carriers, all steaming toward a distant shore, where a resilient and determined enemy stood to repel them. Many would die on those beaches, and even those who made it off the beaches would be killed in the coming days of the invasion.

Unless, of course, his team completed their mission.

“Mondlicht!” He looked up to see a burnt orange pegasus descend onto the deck next to him. “There you are!”

“Phoenix, what’s up?”

“I need a reason to hang out with my Commanding Officer and best friend?” He asked, tucking his wings into the side of his body.

“Hmmm.” He turned his attention back to the task force, a flight of naval aircraft roaring overhead in a V formation, off to strike targets before the invasion began. “What do you know about our mission?”

“Hey, chill out man, the missions not for another few hours.” He said, also leaning against the railing.

“I know, it's just I don’t want to-” He paused and turned, glaring at a group of horses who had assembled on a deck above, and who were whispering among themselves. “You know, it's rude to talk about people when they can hear you right? If you’re going to gossip like Mares, you could at least come talk to us.”

The group seemed startled that they had been found out, and quickly dispersed without even looking back at them.

“What’s with them?” Phoenix asked, turning back to the water.

“Well, how would you react after living your whole life among normal-looking horses, and one day you saw one with wings, something that defies all logic as well as nature itself? You would react the same.”

“And a horn?”

“...Wings and Horn, yes.” He sighed, bringing a hoof up to tap against his aforementioned body part.

He was silent for a moment. “Do you know how hard it is to be the only one of your kind? There are other pegasuses and unicorns somewhere, otherwise, Horizon wouldn’t keep showing up with new ones, so you and Typhoon don’t know how it is. Heck, Typhoon says he has family out there somewhere, although whether or not it's a delusion caused by isolation from the outside world remains to be seen.”

“So everyone has at least a few people like them. Except me. I’m just a genetic freak.”

“Have you been having those dreams again?”

He glared at him. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“Because you’ve acted like this before, and after much hassling on my part, you finally opened up and said what was bothering you.”

Mondlicht was silent, his mouth open as if to protest, but in the end, he just sighed. “It’s the dreams again.”

Phoenix nodded, watching him.

“...But, I don’t want to talk about it. It’s… personal. The dreams have been… different, and I want to make certain before I tell you anything.”

He gave him a strange look, and sighed, but didn’t press it. “Kinda ironic for someone who can control the dreamscape to be suffering from bad dreams huh?”

“That's what I’m worried about…” Mondlicht sighed, before checking his watch. “Hmm. You should probably go find Quake and Typhoon, who knows what those two are doing. We need to get to briefing in an hour.”

“Yea, you're right.” He said, also checking his watch. “Smell you later then!”

Mondlicht rolled his eyes as Phoenix took to the skies, drawing a few more glances at him.

Sighing, he stepped back from the railing, looking once again out over the sea. A Battleship had moved in front of the sun, leaving him in shadow. He stood there for a few more moments, silently thinking, before speaking softly to himself.

“When will this all end? I’ve lost enough friends as it is…”

And with that, he turned and walked away. If one listened closely, the distant sound of explosions could be heard, echoing across the water.

War was coming.

TO

BE

CONTINUED..?