"Uh Miss? Did you not have any baggage?" a voice called out.

"No, just wanted to get my coat." Sunset replied from above.

"Oh... Well, have a good night then!" the voice responded.

"You too!"

I sat in my gaseous form, in the dark barring only a few errant streaks of light, obstinately trying to ignore what I was pressed against.

Stop thinking about how pretty she is. Stop thinking about how pretty she is. Stop thinking about how pretty she is...

Sunset turned a corner, causing her weight to shift.

Something invitingly warm and soft pressed itself against what felt like my face, pushing me against the inner side of her jacket.

You don't even know if she's 18. You don't even know if she's 18. You don't even know if she's 18.

Sunset's weigh shifted back to normal as she resumed her gait.

But what if she is though?

STOP.

Sunset shifted her weight again, this time leaning over.

The ping of an elevator sounded outside.

Sunset started walking again but quickly stopped.

God damnit Lucas/Luna... Why'd you have to use this method? You could've just waited for Sunset to open the room's window and sneak in that way!

Sunset leaned over again, presumably to push the elevator button again.

Maybe it's because you're so touch starved you're looking for any excuse to cuddle against something not warmed by yourself!

The sensation of rising into the air.

Yeah and why would that be?! It's not even a twenty year old Lucas problem! When was the last time anyone hugged Luna?! One thousand years minimum.

That's no excuse! She's practically a child! Even if she was 18 she acts like she's 14! Warm or not, she could never fulfill your emotional needs!

Pffft... Ok, let's discuss our 'emotional' needs... You are a several millennia old alien horse demi god. Do you know who's the only one who's properly equipped to handle your issues? The other millennia old alien horse demi god. Y'know, the one that threw us out into space to get rid of us!

The sensation of rising stopped, and a stereotypical elevator 'bing' sounded, followed very soon after by the sliding of a door. Sunset swiftly began walking again.

Ok fine, I'll admit we have a metric ton of issues. But can we at least agree that Sunset would be an awful partner?

I'll agree to that. But could we not enjoy being pressed against her?

Just... Let me have this. Neither of us knows when the next person will willingly hold us close. If nothing else it'll serve as a reminder of what it feels like.

Sunset stopped walking, her arms moved as she started to fiddle with something.

I quietly sat, doing the gas cloud equivalent of hugging myself. Trying to soak up and commit the memory of the warmth that didn't come from myself.

Something clicked nearby and Sunset did a sort of turn.

A door closed nearby.

"Hmmhmhmhmmm..." Sunset hummed as she walked a bit more, turning and leaning occasionally. "Ok come out, it's clear.

I fell out of the bottom of Sunset's jacket, quickly pooling into a central form and solidifying.

The hotel room was plain, but clean. A black TV stood on a table across the room from two beds.

I had conflicting feelings about there being two beds.

Sunset ignored me and flopped onto the nearest bed, starting to take her shoes off.

"Hey Sunset..." I quietly started. How old are you? "Could you do something for me?"

"Oh? Um... Sure?"

"Could you go to Youtube and look up 'Death of Hope trailer 2'?" I asked, inwardly cringing.

Idiot.

"That's... An odd request." Sunset said, her eyebrow rising.

"Bear with me for a moment." I replied, gaining confidence as teacher mode reinstated itself.

Sunset looked confused for a moment, but pulled out her phone anyway. She poked at it for a moment, but finished with a tap that held an air of finality.

"You say you can picture it... I don't believe you." the speakers started as they spoke with a women's voice. Sunset's face suddenly paled.

"The heavens rained fire! And with it, delivered to us the thirteenth... Warrior Kings of Ultramar, slaughtering innocents... All that remains, is but ash... False angels."

"Oblivion!"

A dramatic musical number sounded. I knew what she was being shown, so I calmly walked towards the other bed as Sunset's attention was laser focused on her tiny screen.

"As the seas boiled and the earth burned;" the women continued. "My faith didn't die. It is the moment I began to believe. God was real." The knuckles on Sunset's hands were white she was gripping her phone so hard.

"And he hated us."

More dramatic music

"Amidst the system wide warp storms you've managed to reach us..." a slightly echoing man's voice sounded. "The status of your flotilla will be sent to our tech-priests. If I may ask... The damage done to your flotilla... What was it you fought?"

"They razed Monarchia to the ground..." another, more gruff man stated. "Humbled our legion... We are here to return the favor."

I sat down, letting the dramatic pause happen as things developed on the screen I couldn't see.

"Kinsmen... What have you done?"

Gunfire.

"Why?! Why do this?!"

"Calth's life flickers in the darkness! The realm of the 500 shall burn! Horus is rising!"

A horn sounded as the credits began to play.

Sunset was silent and still, her face glued to her screen. I got back up and swapped beds to be sitting next to her laying form, but didn't look directly at her.

"... I forgot that you could give Ponies dreams..." Sunset admitted.

"I can." I nodded.

"What was-" she interrupted herself, thinking her question over. "What was that light? Before those kneeling knights? You placed so much importance in it... But never explain what it was..."

I sat silently for a moment, considering how to tell her.

"... You could consider him to be that universe's Celestia. A being so magically powerful he could command a whole rebelling army to kneel. Which is what he did." I started. "To start at the very beginning, Humanity eventually left Earth for the stars, and colonized many worlds. But a great catastrophe befell the galaxy, cutting off all communication and travel between stars. It's then when he revealed himself to the fallen civilization on earth, not as a God, but as their Emperor. He preached that the old ways of faith and religion were dead, and that Humanity should uphold knowledge and understanding in their place." I took a breath. "He called it his 'Imperial Truth'. With this truth he conquered the solar system. It was from there he began to amass legions of genetically engineered super soldiers to launch his 'Great Crusade', in order to reunify all of Humanity's lost colonies. To lead those legions, he sired twenty sons using his own nigh immortal DNA, but pushed them past demi-godhood with Genetic enhancements." I paused to look at Sunset, to see if she was paying attention.

Her eyes bored into my face, focused raptly on my story, as butchered as it was.

"But magic in that universe played host to consciousness', so foul and wretched that the only word for them would be 'demons'. The four most powerful, the 'Ruinous Powers', stole the 20 sons from the Emperor's lab and scattered them across the galaxy, leaving them alone on hostile worlds. But the son named 'Lorgar', was placed on a planet that was devoted to faith and religion. Away from his father's eyes, he accepted it wholly and utterly."

I leaned back and lay on the bed with Sunset, getting comfortable so I could focus on the story.

"The Emperor was enraged when his sons were taken, and launched his Great Crusade, both for its original purpose and to find his lost children. And find them, he did. One by one, they all were discovered, and in turn, they were placed in command of their own legion of super soldiers. Lorgar was placed at the head of the 17th, which he renamed to the 'Word Bearers'. True to his upbringing, Lorgar spread his faith to his legion, against the will of the Emperor and his Imperial Truth. So Lorgar and the Word Bearers began to secretly spread their faith to every world they conquered, erecting whole cities and sectors devoted to the worship of their 'God-Emperor'. The crown jewel of these worlds, was the city of Monarchia, which Lorgar and the Word Bearers planned to present to the Emperor personally."

"Instead, the Emperor was furious." I pursed my lips.

"He ordered the whole city to be burned, forcing the Word Bearers to kneel with his power as he put it to the torch. The Ultramarines, another of the Emperor's super soldier legions, were the ones who carried out the deed. Understandably, the Word Bearers were furious. But the burning of Monarchia was only the latest item in a long list of why the Emperor was a terrible father. Several of his sons were already planning a rebellion, and the act of burning Monarchia was the straw that broke the camel's back for Lorgar and the Word Bearers; They very soon after attacked Ultramarine worlds and fleets, which were the opening shots of a civil war that would see the Emperor mortally wounded, but put on life support, and would ultimately last for over ten thousand years."

I fell silent as I finished the tale, letting the story soak into Sunset's mind.

"Wow..." Sunset breathed. She picked up her hands and looked at her palms. "I could... Feel, the emotions behind it... In the dream that is. All of that betrayal, and rage..." she closed her fingers. I saw her head turn towards me out of the corner of my eye. "Why did you show me that?"

"Lesson number three. There is always a bigger fish, someone who is larger, more powerful than you. Know the boundaries of your pride and never reach too far over that boundary. Because you're bound to piss off one of the bigger fish when you reach too far."

"... What happened to the Word Bearers?" Sunset asked after a moment.

"The same thing that happened to me... They fell to darkness." I muttered.

...

"Pfffft... Ok edgelord." Sunset snarked.

I jumped a little in surprise at her sudden mood shift. Where had that come from?!

"What?" I asked, sitting up to glare at Sunset. "Where did that come from?!" I felt the tinges of anger tainting my voice as the sound reached my ears.

"Come on, they 'fell to darkness'?" Sunset rolled her eyes. "I mean, the story was compelling I'll give you that, but that's such a cop out answer. And you giving your alcoholism an equal footing to being betrayed by their Emperor? Puh-lease."

"If you recall, I know I told you Celestia literally threw me off the planet..." I growled softly, now properly angry but still mindful enough to keep my voice down. Sunset sat up to meet me on an even level.

"Yeah, and here you are acting like it was a super big deal. So the Emperor got rid of the Word Bearers and you relate to them because of your relationship with Princess Celestia. But here you are pretending that being banished is the worst thing to happen to you!"

I felt a demonic growl rise in my throat.

And suddenly we weren't on an even level.

I was glaring down at the teen, whose eyes were suddenly wide and glassy.

A midnight black Alicorn, with a flowing mane that revealed the cosmic horror of just how endless a sea of stars really could be, reflected off her shiny eyes.

"N- Ni- Night- Nightmare-" she stammered, fear written across her features.

"Hear me and hear me well Sunset Sarah Shimmer." I growled. The girl started to slowly back away off the bed. "The Darkness is a very real thing. If you do not mind yourself, you are going to end up exactly like me. And let me be very clear; I would not wish this affliction on my very deepest and worst enemy. This power is not a 'gift'. It is not a thing to be waved about like a fancy toy for a party trick!" I advanced on the girl, who was still trying to back up, even though she had already had her back pressed against the wall. "I know exactly why you came to me Sunset Shimmer, you want power. And you think I have the ability to give it to you." I lifted a hoof up to her chin and lifted, so she was forced to look into my eyes. "In a sense, I do have the ability. The secret to getting power? The secret that you think Celestia kept from you? I'll tell you. I'll tell you the simple truth." I pushed my face to hers so I glared directly into her eyes. "Be worthy of it. Prove yourself to the one thing that can give you that power. Prove that you can be trusted with it. And from what I see Sunset Shimmer, unless you change, you will never be worthy."

I let go of the girl's chin and turned away, giving her some respite from my glare.

Hopefully that would be enough to scare the girl back onto the right track.

I took a deep breath, in order to calm myself. But my dander was still up and didn't feel like it was going to go down for a while.

"... I need fresh air." I spoke into the room, although if Sunset was listening or still comatose would be a question I left unanswered. "I'm going on a walk."

I cast Gaseous Form and whisked myself away into the nearby radiator, pushing myself through the air vents. If Sunset responded, I didn't hear it.

I soon found myself on the hotel's roof. The air was dark, chilly, and crisp. The Northern Hemisphere Winter was definitely on its way. I resolidified back into a Pony and sat down on the lip of the roof, letting the air fill my lungs.

It was dangerous to be sure, but the black appendages I occasionally saw out of the corner of my eye told me I was well camouflaged against the night sky. I kept my breath steady, trying to reign in my rampant emotions as I watched the night sky.

It was cloudy. No stars would be seen tonight... Not that they would've been anyway, the clouds were light up with the lights of a small city that surrounded the hotel.

I traced the patterns with my eyes, trying to determine if it would snow or not. The clouds weren't going to be thick enough for anything other than a dusting that would be gone when the Sun rose.

Sighing, I turned my gaze street-ward. The parking lot had a fair few vehicles, which included Sunset's boyfriend's car; It sat abandoned for the night.

Had I been too harsh on the girl? Her attitude was a problem to be sure, but had I gone too far? It wasn't like I had let her come to self realization by herself... Didn't that make me no better than the Emperor when he burned Monarchia?

Wasn't I, therefor, no better than Celestia?

But on the other appendage, Sunset was not the kind of person who learned from being coddled. Which was exactly how Celestia handled her Ponies... By coddling them.

I grit my teeth at the thought.

At the very least, maybe I should go back and check on Sunset. That was something that would've never occurred to Celestia.

After all, Celestia had never checked on me.

Gaseous Form.

I flowed down the side of the building, taking care to avoid the windows. This resulted in a sort of crisscross pattern as I looked briefly into each room. I didn't know which room I had left Sunset in, and I couldn't really tell where her room was judging by how I left through the vents. So that meant doing the tedious task of systematically looking into every window.

There was a family of three watching a movie.

Empty.

Empty.

There was a businessman looking at paperwork at a desk.

Empty.

Those two men were clearly fucking.

I felt a pang of remorse as I lingered by that window. Regardless of how I felt about Sunset, or how old she really was, I had closed that door forever.

I left the two lovers to their ministrations.

I found Sunset in about the middle of the building, still sitting where I had left her. But she had pulled the blanket off the nearby bed and wrapped it around herself; Enamored by something white on her phone, which cast white light on her face. Occasionally she shuddered.

I hadn't given her a heart attack then.

That was thankfully a weight off my chest. I don't know what I would've done if I had accidentally scared 'my student' to death.

But at the same time, I was undoubtedly the last thing she wanted to see right now.

I hoped my theatrics would pay off.

I pulled away from the window, and flew off into the night.

I hadn't been paying attention when I pulled into the city, so I didn't know its name. But much like 'Flagstaff', the highway cut through the city, providing its central artery. However it was about only half the size. Already I could tell that there was less of a nightlife here, or maybe I was out in public earlier than I had thought yesterday...

Actually, there was almost no one out and about.

Where was everybody?

I didn't resolidify, but I was tempted to. Instead I floated just above the short Southwestern buildings like an errant gust of cold breath that wouldn't dissipate.

Every street was empty.

There were hardly any cars even.

Surely it wasn't that late was it? Sundown was only about 5:30... I didn't wait that long after the Sun set to find a hotel had I?

Right?

Regardless of how my sense of time felt however, placing me sometime around seven in the evening, it looked like one in the morning. I searched several blocks worth of streets before I found my first person, who looked to be a homeless man if his grungy clothing and trashcan fire were anything to go by.

I left him be. I didn't want to add more stress to his life.

That's when I heard what sounded like a rock concert. A chorus of people trying to yell over someone speaking into a microphone but unable to do so. But I couldn't tell what the person with the microphone was saying, the noise was too far away and too garbled.

Curious, I abandoned the homeless man to his devices and went searching for the noise.

I followed the sound towards what I assumed was downtown. Still the city was seemingly deserted, that was until I flew over a street that had an older, official looking building at the end of the street. A few police cars and officers stood in front of the building, facing against a crowd that looked closer to a riot.

I couldn't see who made up the crowd, but I could see the backs of tons of signs. Most disturbing however, were all the lit tiki torches. There had to be hundreds, one for maybe every three people.

The crowd was roaring.

"Go back to your homes!" shouted the megaphone. "There is no need for violence!"

The crowd roared in response.

Well this was odd... What could've made so many people so angry?

My curiosity soared higher, and I skirted around the crowd, still in the sky.

What could've-

If my blood had been solid, it would've froze and blazed in fury at the same time.

The first thing I noticed, and it was the vast majority of the signs, was a printed screen shot of Celestia's face from the press conference, with a giant red circle with a line through it overlaid the picture.

Send the aliens home!

ET go home!

Send them to the ranch they came from!

Nuke them all!

Now I was close enough to hear what they were saying.

"Send the bitch back where she came from!"

"God made Man in his own image!"

"We can use my truck to draw and quarter her!"

"No god damn illegals on my planet!"

This wasn't just a riot... This was millennia of being told 'you're God's special little boy' crashing down around the ears of idiots who didn't know better! And if this was happening here in the middle of nowhere... Then could it be that it was happening all over the country? The world?

All because Celestia announced her presence on national television...

And yet...

Cold fury roiled through my soul.

I hated Celestia very deeply, but still something about what they said touched a nerve.

These backward skinheads thought they could do as they will with Tia's life!

Was I angry because they were threatening the life of my sister, or was it because they wanted to take what was, by all rights, mine and mine alone to destroy?

I didn't know.

But what I did know... Was that I could not let this stand.

I wasted no time in positioning myself high over the steps of what I now assumed was the town hall.

They thought they could demand the execution of an Alicorn? Then the obvious answer was to show them the error of their ways; Through shock and awe.

I mentally prepared the list of spells I'd need, and resolidified... Instantly falling to the street below.

Before anyone makes a fuss about the start of this chapter:

If anything were to happen between Luna and Sunset in this story, everything would be kosher and above board. Sunset is (at least) 18 years of age.

Yes, there was a slight hint for the sharp eyed and clever to catch before this chapter regarding her age.

I wrote it this way because of a few reasons. Number one being this is a limited first person perspective, and our protagonist didn't really have a reason to wonder what Sunset's precise age was before this chapter. So she never really asked or bothered to find out.

Number two, I'm putting Luna's loneliness on display. I've alluded to it before at least once, but here I'm bringing it front and center. Being alone wears at a person, be it for a millennia, a decade, a year, or even only a week. Being alone sucks. We all know that. But what isn't so well known is the long term effects of that loneliness, in this case, the need to be close to someone. Even if being close to that someone isn't necessarily morally kosher. But yet, Luna's subconscious is urging her to get close to Sunset because it recognizes that it needs to be close to someone, for its own sake. But its like eating lead contaminated food while starving to death. Luna herself recognizes that, and does her best to fight against "eating the potentially poisoned food" because she knows she'll never forgive herself if she fully indulges and Sunset was underage. But at the same time, she can't resist "smelling the food", if I were to keep with the metaphor, to tide herself over until she can get to something healthy and fulfilling.

No, it's not healthy or ok, but it's hope for a mare who has forgotten what a hug feels like.

Oh and have the featured video https://youtu.be/7jcuYA714Jw?si=UykNYmMMTBOB9NDV