“Today, in celebration of the end of your eighth year in Castle Blackrock, I decided we should do something fun.”

We all groaned and prepared for the worst. Astral Victory’s idea of fun was very different from a sane pony’s. Or at least a pony that didn’t actually do the exercises, and instead just watched from the sidelines and hollered at anypony that fell. Some of the nightkin could be rather harsh with that too. You don’t usually see nightkin awake during the day, and the ones that you did were probably mentors with foals in training. It was like a competition for them, seeing who chose the best foal or something.

Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Chase among them. She was chatting with Starlit Path, but she kept an eye on me. Did she ever sleep? I knew she was one of Luna’s favourites and was usually busy with a lot of her own work, but she always made time for me during the day, even when there were bags the size of small fruits under her eyes. It was worrying how concerned she was for me. It’s not that I didn’t appreciate her, I just wished she would sometimes give me a bit more room.

The thirteen of us, the same thirteen that had fought for bread in this courtyard just eight years ago, were standing in line, ‘enjoying’ our last day as foals. After today, we would all be in our ninth year here, and no longer need our mentors.

Astral Victory frowned at us. “No, really. I mean it will actually be a fun experience for you all today. No drills, no exercise, no team building and crawling in the mud, just normal fun.”

Next to me, Strong Faith shifted his wings and looked like he was trying to figure out what the word ‘fun’ actually meant. Further down the line, Stern Conviction was looking nervous as he grit his jaw and swallowed. Me, I didn’t believe in ‘fun’ either. Astral Victory had something cruel planned, of that I was sure. I watched him closely, keeping an eye on his hooves and body language in case he suddenly jumped from ‘fun’ Astral, to ‘I don’t care if you can’t breathe, just keep running or I’ll make sure you’ll never breathe again’ Astral.

He rolled his eyes at us, and turned towards what he had set up in the courtyard today. Sometimes it was a field of mud and fishing wire, other times it was wooden platforms and ropes. When we were really unlucky, it was just posts in the ground that he expected us to run around until he was satisfied.

He never was.

Today it was nothing new, some wooden dummies, armoured wooden dummies, chickens in cages, and... a ghost blade? I wasn’t the only one that noticed as murmurs broke out among the other twelve year old. We watched as he strapped the hilt to his hoof’s right side, and turned around to face us again.

“You all know what ghost blades are, but I doubt any of you have seen what they do.” He held his hoof out from his body and a crimson red blade emerged, black smoke wafting off of it. “I thought today I’d give you the chance to see one in action, and try it out for yourselves while I power it for you.”

We stopped murmuring, waiting for him to continue. He just watched us for a moment, and we stared back, expecting him to demand we practice swinging the sword for the rest of the day or something. Or at least that’s what I was expecting. Stern Conviction just looked eager. No, this couldn’t be for real. He had something much crueler planned, right?

Astral Victory positioned himself in front of the wooden dummy and turned to face us. “I’m sure you’ve heard how easily a ghost blade cuts through any living or once living material?” Pivoting on his hind legs, he slashed out before returning to all fours, facing us again all in one smooth motion. “Watch.”

We stared at him for a second before we all heard the sound of splintering wood behind him. The wooden dummy split apart, its head dropping to the ground.

“A ghost blade will cut through any living thing that easily. Even dragonscale offers no resistance.” He moved across to stand next to an armoured dummy. “But, rock, iron, steel, anything like that...”

He twisted and slashed at the dummy, but his blade dinged right off with a sound like glass on steel.

“Almost useless. Really, a normal sword would be more dangerous.” He held the red blade up for us all to see again. “Still, it’ll cut through any magical protection, like a unicorn barrier or enchanted leather, the same way it cuts through ponies. A very useful and very dangerous weapon in the right hooves.”

Grunting with effort, he turned around and shoved his blade through the armoured dummy’s helmet and pulled it back out. We were all shocked to see a hole in the metal, but not the wood. A second later, the wood cracked and sawdust fell from its head, leaving behind a perfectly shaped wooden hole.

“Of course, like any half-decent sword, if you put enough effort in you can break through most armour. If you aim for the weak spots and land a clean hit, only the heaviest and thickest full body plate will save them.”

I imagined what that wooden pony would look like if he was flesh and blood. I’d never killed, and I was curious what it would be like. How would a pony react? I guess it must be different from pony to pony. A stoic earth pony would collapse as they keep trying to stand, a unicorn high-born might beg for his life even after he was bleeding. I glanced across at Strong Faith, who was staring at Astral Victory. How would Faith feel about having a foot of steel or... ghost? Magic? Whatever, how would he feel about having a foot of that shoved inside him?

A chicken clucking brought my attention back to Astral Victory, and the white chicken he had pinned under his hoof. The bird twisted, pecking, clawing, and trying to escape, but Astral was wearing a heavy leather glove and barely seemed to notice.

“This chicken, generously provided by the castle kitchen, will demonstrate what cutting into flesh with a ghost blade is like.”

The red ignited from his other hoof, and with careful precision, he dragged it across the chicken’s wing. The bird screeched and let out a pained cluck as its limb went oddly limp. Then, with a sudden burst of blood, the wing detached and fell to the ground.

“Ever wondered about the saying, ‘running around like a headless chicken’?” Astral asked us. A moment later he dragged the blade across the screeching bird’s neck and lifted his hoof from its back.

The chicken stood up and ran, making it a few paces before its head slid to the ground with a spray of blood. The bird’s body kept running after that, spasmodically throwing itself into the ground and jumping into the air for nearly a minute after its death. Eventually it stopped, and we all stood silent.

“And that’s where the saying comes from. You cut off a chicken’s head with any weapon, be it axe, sword, or ghost, and it’ll do that for a while.” Astral smiled at us, and the red on his wrist disappeared. “So, who would like to have a try?”

The mess hall was buzzing with chatter. My year in particular were all excited about this morning, having spent it toying around with the deadly arcane. Most of them were bragging about what shapes they’d managed to carve into their dummies, or teasing each other about who hesitated at killing a chicken.

The tray in my mouth tasted just a little sickly sweet, like somepony forgot to clean it, but I didn’t really mind. The food smelled bad, but complaining about things was never a good idea, plus Chase had told me not eat anything today anyway.

“Hey Pong!” Strong Faith called out.

I rolled my eyes and ignored him as I walked past him and his friends.

“Pong! Come back!”

I sat down at my table, and dropped the plate in front of me. I was about to take a sip of water when I heard hoofsteps behind me.

“Hey Pong,” Strong Faith said as he sat across from me. “I wanted to-”

“That’s not my name.” I glared at him.

He blinked, and smiled. “Oh, sorry. That’s just what everypony calls you now.”

“I know,” I muttered with a pointed glare.

He coughed into his hoof. “Well, we all have given names.”

“Like ‘Pong of Shite’?”

He shifted in his seat awkwardly. “Uh... sorry about that.”

I didn’t answer and went to eat again.

“Anyway, Song, that was not what I wanted to talk about,” he continued. “I wanted to ask you about... today.”

Sighing, I dropped my fork, leaned forward, put my elbows on the table, and glared at him.

“What? I’ve asked everypony I can, I’m just trying to figure out what’s happening this afternoon is all. Your mentor is Chased Redemption, right? Has she told you anything?”

“If she has, why should I share with you?”

He seemed a little put off by that. “Well, we all need friends.”

“Are we friends?” I leaned in closer to him, glaring as hard as I could.

“Uh... well, there’s no reason we couldn’t be.”

I didn’t answer him, just took a sip of water and kept glaring.

“Well, other than the ‘Pong of Shite’ thing, but I swear that we’re not trying to be mean with that anymore. It was a stupid name I gave you when I was a foal, and I’m sorry about that.”

“Are you?” I asked pointedly.

He hesitated, before he sighed. “You don’t need to be like that, Po-Song. I’m honestly just trying to be friendly, and maybe find out if you know anything.”

I didn’t answer, I just took another drink.

“Look, I’m probably going to be the First in four years, and you or Stern Conviction are likely to be Second. The Second is the First’s right hoof, and if we’re probably going to work together a lot, there’s no reason for us to be enemies. Especially if you’re taking orders from me.”

“What makes you so certain you’ll be the First?”

“Because I’m the smartest, even if I’m probably the worst fighter here.”

I snorted at that.

“I am, and you know it,” he said, pointing a hoof at me. “And even if I wasn’t, there’s no reason for us not to be friends.”

Finishing my glass of water, I stood up from the table, leaving my food there untouched.

“Come on, Song. If you know something, tell me.”

After a moment, I sighed. “Don’t eat anything.”

He blinked at me. “What?”

“That’s what Chase told me. Don’t eat.”

His brow furrowed in confusion, but I didn’t wait for him to respond. I just trotted away, after a moment he called out to me, “Thank you!”

The servant gave me an odd look when I hoofed a full bowl of gruel back to him, but didn’t ask any questions. I was the first to leave the mess hall, though a few ponies gave me funny looks. I ignored them. If Chase told me not to eat, I wouldn’t. She’d never lied to me before.

I knocked on the door, and waited.

“Yeah, Song, come in!” Chase sounded strained.

I pushed it open and found her hanging upside down, sweating and grunting as she did sit ups. Her rear legs were over a rafter, braced against the roof so she didn’t fall.

“Chase?”

“Sorry, give me a moment.” Chase flapped her wings, and pulled her hind legs out before she spun around and landed in front of me, grinning. “Nervous?”

Yes. “No.”

Chase laughed and put a hoof around my shoulder. “Of course not. Listen, this is... Alright, yeah it’s a big deal, but... trust me, this is a test you can’t fail. I’ve never even heard of a pony failing it.”

“I know.” I sat down on the bottom edge of Chase’s bed, and she sat next to me. I glanced to where my bed used to be, all those years ago. It was eight years ago, but I still missed sleeping in the same room as her.

Chase rolled her eyes and poked me with her hoof. “Come on, tell me what you’re thinking.”

I glanced over at her, thinking of what to say before I shrugged.

“Come on, there’s nothing to be worried about.” She ruffled my mane. “I went through the same thing and... Trust me, you’ll do fine. This is a test you can’t fail.”

I nodded. “Alright.”

She sighed in frustration. “Song, you know I’m always happy to talk with you, but you actually have to, you know, talk.”

“Sorry... It’s just...” I trailed off.

Chase watched me expectantly, before sighing.

“I didn’t eat anything,” I said after a moment, “Like you told me.”

Chase nodded. “Good. You could have eaten something if you wanted, it’s just... Uh, you’ll understand why I said don’t when you... Trust me, I wish I hadn’t eaten when I did the test.”

“Alright.”

We sat there in silence, before she put a hoof around my shoulder. “Don’t worry about it, you’ll be fine.”

I leaned into her, my stomach churning. “Chase... what was your name?”

“My name?” She frowned.

“Before it was Chased Redemption.”

“Oh...” She shifted awkwardly. “Why?”

“Because... I’m not sure I remember mine...”

Chase frowned. “Wasn’t it Goldie?”

“I... don’t think so. I mean, that was what I remember being called, but I don’t think that was my real name. I think it was a nickname my parents called me.” I frowned as I tried to remember their faces. They were earth ponies, like me, and my father was a stallion and my mother was a mare, and... my father was... handsome? Ugly? Scarred? Boyish?

Urgh. Why was it so hard to remember anything that happened before I came to Castle Blackrock? I remember my first day here perfectly, and meeting Luna’s gaze in the Ascension Day celebrations, and before that... My father, my blurry, indistinct father shouted... something, at me... Was it because he was angry?

Chase sat silently for a moment. “I don’t remember my name at all. When I was your age, the nightkin were... different. We were still new, there were only a few any older than us, Astral Victory, Stygus, and a few others that died later.

“Stygus just chose names for us off the top of his head. He stood there, pointed at each of us and said ‘this is your name now’. They were all things he could relate to Luna, like the night, hymns, faith, Redemption...” She frowned. “And that’s how it still is, more or less. Stygus just picks a name for you.” For a moment, she looked angry. “He’s not Luna. Whatever he might tell you, Stygus isn’t the gate between Our Goddess and us. If it was Luna who gave me my name, I’d be angry at any who called me Chase rather than Chased Redemption. But that name wasn’t from My Goddess, it was from Stygus.

“When it was my sixteenth, and I was taken to be with Her for the first time. Stygus ‘escorted’ me to her, but really, I think he’s jealous of all who share Her blessings. When Her Grace asked me my name, I stuttered. I told her ‘Ch-chase’ without thinking about the informality of using my short name. I realised my mistake and was about to correct myself when Stygus snapped at me. He said, ‘Not your pet name, your real name’, and in the sight of My Goddess I shouted back at him, ‘You mean the one you chose? I am my own mare, and I have as much right to name myself as you do.’ He was stunned, and I turned to face Luna, ‘Chase, Your Majesty. My name is Chase.’ Two years later when she selected me for the Green, Chase was the name on the blade.”

Huh. So that explains why ‘Chase’ was on her blade, and not her actual name. Why hadn’t I thought about that before? I should probably have noticed that and asked about it before now.

“A lot of nightkin choose a different name from the one Stygus gives. The point is that names are just words. The name your parents gave you is no more important than the name Stygus chose, or the one that pegasus in your year gave you. It’s not important if you can’t remember what your parents called you. Heck, even unblessed ponies usually change their names a few times.”

I nodded after a moment of silence. “Thanks, Chase.” It didn’t really make me feel better, but I was just glad she was there trying to help.

“Don’t worry about it.” She gave me a squeeze. “I always have time for you. What kind of mentor would I be if I didn’t?”

I shrugged.

“So...” Chase shifted and smiled at me. “Are you happy with Song as your name?”

“...I guess so,” I mumbled.

“Hmm... It doesn’t really fit you, you know. You can keep it if you want, but maybe you should think of another. Song of Night’s a bit of a mouthful anyway.” She grinned at me, her fangs gleaming. “Just don’t pick anything stupid like ‘Blood Letter’ or ‘Deadly Blade’. It might sound like a good idea at the time, but after the hundredth time somepony snickers when you get introduced, you’ll hate it.”

“Alright.”

She rolled her eyes. “Come on, Song. Talk to me here, you’re being so quiet.”

I swallowed, still thinking about my family. Or trying to. Whenever I tried to picture my parents’ faces, I found myself thinking of Chase instead. I never wanted to forget them, but I think I already had.

“Hey, it’s alright.” Chase brushed a tear out from under my eye. When had I started crying? “I know you’re nervous about the test, but trust me, you’ll do fine.”

Oh, I’d forgotten about that. Chase mentioning it just made my empty stomach churn.

She pulled me into a tight hug. “It’ll all be fine, Song. Just get it done as quickly as you can and... try not to think about it.”

“Think about what?” I asked her. “What is the test?”

“You know I’m not allowed to tell you.”

“Why not?”
She shifted in her seat. “I’m not allowed to, and I’m not going to, alright?”

I found myself staring at her floor, frowning in thought.

“You really can’t fail this one, Song, they don’t let you. I’m not saying it’s easy, just... Cross bridges as they come, alright? There’s no point worrying about it right now.”

“But you always told me that hope wasn’t a plan, that I should always try to think ahead.”

She snorted. “Yeah, well, no one piece of wisdom like that can really work in every situation. It’s up to you to decide what applies when.”

We sat in silence for another moment or two.

“Song is a bad name, isn’t it?” I said after I thought about it. “I can’t even sing.”

Chase laughed. “Well, if you think of a better one, let me know and I’ll only call you that. Got any ideas for-”

Just then there was a knock at the door. A moment later it opened, and a servant walked in.

“Second Lieutenant,” he bowed as he spoke. “I’m sorry to disturb you, but Song of Night’s time has come.”

I gulped.

Chase stood up, and tilted her head towards the door. “Come on, S-” She paused. “Come on, I’ll walk you there.”

After a second, I stood up and followed Chase out. We passed through the halls of the Castle in silence, broken up only by the clop of our hooves. The servant followed behind us at a distance, not saying a word.

We came down onto the Castle’s ground level, and we walked past the mess hall towards the dungeons and cellars. As we passed the mess, I saw other ponies in my year chatting with their mentors, all of them looking nervous in some way. We took a right and headed down another flight of stairs, stopping long enough for the servant to cast a light spell with his horn. Chase shielded her eyes from it, and stepped out of the circle of the light. She could see more clearly in the dark without magic than me and the servant could with it.

After a while of trotting through the dark with Chase leading the way, we came to a stop in front of another set of stairs heading down. At the bottom I could see torchlight, flickering ever so slightly.

“This is as far as I’m allowed to walk with you,” Chase said after a second. “After this... I won’t be your mentor any longer, but I’ll always be there for you.” Before I could answer her, she hugged me, and I saw tears glistening on her face. Then she released me and trotted away into the dark.

Pausing to brace myself, I turned and trotted down the stairs. When I came to the bottom I found a nightkin sitting on a bench, a book in hoof. How could he read in this dark with just a little torchlight? Was nightkin eyesight really that good? Opposite from him were several doors. Heavy iron doors with small covered windows.

The nightkin glanced up at me. “Song of Night?”

I nodded.

He stood up, leading me to a door before pulling it open. “In here.”

Swallowing nervously, I stepped past him into the room. What I saw wasn’t what I was expecting. It was a rectangular room with only one entrance, and lit surprisingly well with torches clustered tightly along the wall. To my left was a table with several waterskins, and in front of me was another table. Resting on it was a simple, unadorned, black steel dagger, glittering in the firelight.

That wasn’t what surprised me though. What surprised me was the earth pony chained to the furthest wall from me. A gag was tied over his mouth, and his hooves were pinned above his head. His eyes were wide with fear as he watched me, and he shouted something muffled. He tried to kick and escape, but no matter how much he rattled the chains around his hind hooves, he wouldn’t be able to free himself.

“This pony joined Celestia’s army, and bore arms against Luna’s soldiers. Her pronouncement for this crime is death.”

The pony screamed and twisted in his chains all the more.

“You can only leave once he’s dead.”

After a moment, I frowned and turned around. “I don’t understand-”

The door slammed in my face, and the window was slid shut.

After a moment I turned around and faced the pony again, terror and disbelief in his eyes. I looked at the knife on the table, then back up at him, then at the knife again. I fell to my haunches as realisation started to dawn on me.

I was supposed to kill him. They wanted me to kill this stallion.

My stare must have scared him, because he started squirming. “Hmmmmmf!” The pony on the wall screamed, making me flinch. “Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurghm!” Tears were in his eyes, and he was writhing, straining against the chains as hard as he could. “Ehm ee oh! Et me eeeeeeeeeee! Hehhhhhhhhlm! Hehhhhhhlm!”

I flattened my ears, and tried to cover them, but it didn’t help. He just kept screaming and screaming, staring at me like I was some kind of demon.

“Stop screaming!”

“Mmmmmmmmmmmmurgh!”

I grit my jaw. “Stop!”

He just hollered louder, the sound echoing through the room.

“I said, quiet!” I shouted at him, my voice cracking.

He stopped writhing, and stared at me, his chest heaving.

After meeting his gaze for a moment, I stood up. “I need to think,” I muttered as I paced back and forth in front of him.

Was this really the test? Just kill a pony? No, not a pony, a Celestian. Kill a Celestian? That seemed easy. They’d already tied him down, so what was the point of this?

If it was a puzzle it wasn’t a very clever one. I wasn’t the smartest in my year but even I could figure it out. The door was closed, the Celestian was the lock, the knife was the key. Key goes in lock, and the door opens. Simple, right?

I glanced at him.

Yeah, simple. Just kill the Celestian.

His coat was distorted in the firelight, but he was a pale colour, almost white. He had an orange and yellow striped mane, and glistening eyes surrounded by heavy bags. Ribs were showing underneath his skin, and he hadn’t been bathed in a while.

This wasn’t what I’d imagined a Celestian would look like. He just looked too normal. But I suppose he was what he was, even if he didn’t have froth on his lips and dumb, rabid eyes.

No, he definitely didn’t have lifeless eyes. He was begging me, tears rolling down his cheeks pathetically as he tried to get into my head with just his gaze.

I snorted and shook my head. Nope. It wasn’t going to work. Did he honestly think I’d forget what he was? A Celestian. Just a selfish heathen blasphemer that stood against Luna’s will. A soldier, that was what the nightkin had said. He took up arms against Lady Luna, so he had to die. Killing him was the right thing to do. It was Her will.

Nodding to myself in determination, I took the knife from the table and approached him. He started screaming again, louder this time. I came closer, and adjusted the leather grip in my teeth.

“-ol’ s’ill’,” I muttered around the knife.

He didn’t hold still, he just shook and writhed and shrieked, trying to escape. Squeezing my eyes and shut, I took a stab. His shrieking stopped, and there was a wet pop as the blade went through his skin.

I smelled something awful. Something like vomit. I opened my eyes, and looked up to see him staring down at me, still alive, his eyes wide in horror. Then I tasted something in my mouth. Something coppery and warm.

My gag reflex took over and I jerked away, spitting out the taste of blood. He started screaming again, louder than before, and I tried to ignore him as I got that awful, unnatural flavour off my tongue.

I shuddered and walked to the table with the water skins. I washed my mouth out and spat the water onto the floor, while the stallion’s painful sobbing and shrieking filled my ears. Then I started drinking as much water as I could, trying to get rid of the aftertaste. He was still screaming and crying. And the smell of vomit was filling the room.

I wiped water and blood from my chin as I turned around to look at him. The knife was dripping and buried in his gut. I must have stabbed into his stomach or something, because I could smell acid from here. And he was still screaming.

Oh, Luna. Drinking was a bad idea. The sight of that knife poking out of him made me turn around and throw up every drop of water that I just drank. Now I know why Chase told me not to eat anything. Dry heaving was better than tasting your last meal again.

And he never stopped screaming.

“Stop!” I yelled at him, getting frustrated. “Just shut it! Be quiet!”

He didn’t listen to me.

“Just die quietly!”

The Celestian was still screaming and I grit my jaw at just how loud it was. He was just one pony, how much noise could he possibly make?! Apparently it was a lot.

“Shut up!” I stomped my hoof. “You’re not allowed to scream!”

He didn’t listen. Maybe it was because he couldn’t hear me, or because he was too stupid to understand it wouldn’t save him, but he kept bellowing into his gag.

“Just be quiet!” I yelled. “Oh, Luna, why won’t you shut up?!”

His screams transformed into sobs, and that noise was even worse because it made me feel guilt for some reason. No, that wasn’t guilt. It couldn’t be. Killing a Celestian was the right thing to do. The smell was overpowering. I don’t know how long it’d take him to die, but he was still alive, and the smell of him was getting worse. Yeah, that had to be why my stomach was churning. It was just that horrible smell, wasn’t it? It couldn’t be guilt.

He was crying and staring at me with a look that mixed misery, resentment, and still begging for mercy. And he still wasn’t dead. The stallion was still staring at me, and sobbing and... Why wouldn’t he just die? I shuddered as I realised it could take all night if I didn’t step in and stab him again.

How long could he last? How long does it take for a wound to the stomach to kill a pony? I didn’t want to find out. I just needed to get away from this horrible smell and take a long bath.

I approached him, and he watched me warily with glistening eyes. He didn’t look very old. This soldier didn’t look any older than fifteen. Maybe he just looked really young for his age? Somehow I didn’t believe that.

“Look, I’ll make it quick.” Why was I bargaining with him? I didn’t need to bargain with him, I was the one with the power. He was the one that should be begging me to make it quick. “It’s better than you deserve anyway.”

His eyes bugged and he tried to pull away from me again. My teeth closed around the knife jutting out of his stomach, and the smell and feel of dried blood nearly made me throw up again. I yanked it out, he grunted in pain, and I had to hold back my gag reflex at the smell of bile this close to him. I tried to keep my tongue from touching the bloody handle, but I still got that awful coppery taste all through my mouth again.

Standing up on my hind hooves, and reaching up with my neck, I was about level with his throat.

He whimpered and tried to jerk away from me, but it didn’t help him.

The light’s faded from his eyes as the black voids of his pupils grew. He wheezed and gargled his last painful breath and died. The eyes are supposed to be the window to the soul, and I stared right into them as his soul left his body.

Oh sweet Luna, he had a soul. And a cutie mark, and a name and parents and things he liked doing and he really was a pony. Even if he was a Celestian, he was a living pony and I just killed him. I fell backwards onto my back, scrambling to my hooves away from him.

I trembled as I stared at the unmoving body with those dim, lifeless eyes that just moments before had been glistening with tears and focussed on me as I put a knife in his throat. I couldn’t get those last few seconds out of my head. The gurgling, the taste of blood in my mouth, the pressure of the knife between my teeth, his breath in my mane, and the lights fading. Oh, Luna, the lights fading.

I dry heaved again, and this time it wasn’t the smell that made me do it. Shuddering, I fell to the floor and realised what I’d done.

“I killed a pony.”

Shivering, I hugged myself and snatched up the water skin. I didn’t drink it, I just splashed it over my face and neck, trying to wash off some of the blood.

“It was Luna’s will. It was Luna’s will. It was Luna’s will,” I repeated to myself, pacing back and forth for a bit. That’s right, it was Luna’s order. It was the right thing to do, it had to be. Why would Luna have ordered it if it was the wrong thing?

She wouldn’t have. Luna was my Goddess, divinity in flesh, and the rightful ruler of this world. It wasn’t my place to question her.

That was it, that was the answer. She was right, and I was wrong. That had to be it. It didn’t matter if he had a soul or not, we all belonged to Luna, and she did with us as she saw fit. If she wanted him to be dead, and me to be the one that killed him, then that was right because she said it was right.

It was that simple. It was that simple.

“It’s Luna’s will.” I steeled myself, trotted over to the door and knocked. “The Celestian is dead!” I called out.

A moment later, the lock clicked and the door swung open. The nightkin stood there, staring down at my wet mane and the water dripping down my face. He glanced between me and the stallion chained to the wall, before, without a word, stepping aside and letting me past.

“Congratulations, little one. You’re no longer a foal, but an adult. A slight difference at times, but an important one.”

I didn’t answer him as I walked away from the dungeon, shutting the smell, and those eyes that just wouldn’t stop staring lifelessly, out of my mind. It was Luna’s will. I headed up the stairs and almost tripped over Chase in the dark.

“Hey, Song.” She tried to smile, but it disappeared off her face as soon as it appeared. “How did it go?”

I didn’t answer.

“Song?”

“I’m not Song,” I whispered. “Song’s a foal, I’m not a foal.” Not anymore.

“Uh... of course you’re not,” Chase answered, sounding slightly confused and a little worried. “So, who are you then?”

“I...” I didn’t know. I just didn’t want to be Song anymore.

A slight difference at times, but an important one.

Slight. It had ‘S’ like Song, ‘ight’ like Night, and ‘L’ for Luna. It was like Chase’s name, made short and from the sounds of her old one.

I didn’t really care, but it would do.

“Slight,” I mumbled. “I’ll be Slight.”

“Alright...” Chase sounded a little confused. “If it’s what you want...?”

I nodded.

“Do you even know what it means?”

I shook my head. “I don’t care. It’s not Song.”

“Alright then... Slight?” She tested its sound out. “Slight?” She shrugged. “If it’s what you want... Are you sure you’re okay?”

I looked into her eyes. “It was Luna’s will.”

She blinked, then smiled gently and nuzzled me. “I’m proud of you. You’ve come so far, and I know you’ll serve Her Grace with conviction. Alright then, Song-Slight, let’s go get you cleaned up.” She stepped away from me and trotted towards the stairs up out of the cellar.

I followed after her, staying close.