Dimension: My Little Pony

Planet: Equestria Earth

Specific Location: Canterlot Train Station

Time: Two days after the arrival of Flaming Star

Within several hours, the train arrived at Canterlot station, and Twilight, Spike, and Flaming Star got onto the platform.

"Let's go!" said Twilight, "Oh, and be ready to be swamped by pony reporters, Alicorn Stallions are really rare, and you will be something of a major attraction. Hopefully everything will go okay, though, Sunset nearly feinted when he first came here."

Flaming Star nodded his head slowly, "Thanks for the heads up."

Like when Sunset first arrived, ponies at first didn't really notice; but as Flaming Star continued on his way to the castle, more and more noticed the golden alicorn and began to follow him. Soon a procession was directly behind them as pony reporters began to move in to photograph him and ask him questions.

Flaming Star simply nodded his head towards the reporters, but didn't say anything. He simply walked on, ignoring everypony as he moved towards the castle. Soon they arrived at the gates, and the three strolled in with alacrity.

"Wow, you did really well!" said Twilight.

"Yeah, Sunset nearly blew a gasket during his time here," added Spike

Flaming Star grinned, "Thank you, you two." His grin vanished when he saw a bright, yet subtle, flash off down one of the hallways.

"Well, I suppose we should get settled in, see you soon!" called Twilight as she trotted down another hallway.

Eyes still glued to the spot where the flash had originated, Flaming Star called out, "Yeah! See you soon…"

He moved down the hallway to investigate… nothing. Suddenly, a voice called out, "Oh my, not ANOTHER alicorn!"

Flaming Star immediately looked up, a habit he had developed over the years. Above him was Discord. Flaming Star just grinned as his memories from long times passed were pulled up to identify the being before him.

"Well, if it isn't the chaotic traveler Discordius," said Flaming Star with a wink.

Discord was so surprised that he fell out of the air and landed on his back. He scrambled up and exclaimed, "My… my! The firstborn! What bring you here?"

Flaming Star eyed Discord up and down, "I had my suspicions that you were the Discord Twilight had told me about. How long have you been here now, two thousand years?"

Discord gave a deep, mock bow as he replied, "Yes, my dear Abimael. But I suppose you really already knew that. And that brings us back to my original question: what ARE you doing here, really?"

"I live here now," said Flaming Star simply.

Discord winced. "Ah…" he muttered, "I was afraid you were going to say that."

He then cleared his throat and said a little louder, "You are aware Joseph Torrus, or as we call him, Sunset Shadow, lives here as well, right?"

Flaming Star nodded, "Yes, in fact, I am now going by the name Flaming Star, though I still much prefer firstborn."

Discord rolled his eyes, "So many names. Well, why are you living here, exactly?"

Flaming Star's face filled with a depressed look for a moment as he replied, "Well… I lost a battle, and during the loss, the last good dimensional travelers were killed. It's all over, Sunset and I are it."

Discord looked somberly at Flaming Star as the realization of what was happening to precedence; however, after a pause, Discord tried to lighten the mood by saying, "I say, are you implying that I'm not a good traveler? I'll have you know that I saved Sunset when he was attacked by Abbadon!"

"Sunset told me about that a while ago," Flaming Star said, "But you said, when confronted by Abbadon, that you had given up the title of hero."

Discord pulled a face, "Oh yes, all these technicalities of titles and official monikers… Yuck. Perhaps that is true, perhaps it's not, but I understand your point, it seems the time of the travelers has rolled past its apex and tumbled down into a precipice of doom."

Flaming Star nodded glumly, "To put it eloquently, yes. I better get me room set up, but Discordious, keep your eyes open."

Discord gave a flourishing bow as he replied, "Of course, Flaming Star."

Flaming Star then left him to find his room. As soon as he found it and settled in, he went to find Twilight. She and Spike were in their room, finishing their checklist on her checklist.

"Oh! Hey Flaming Star!" exclaimed Twilight as he walked in, "You all settled in?"

Flaming Star nodded and said, "You know where this… er, princess Luna is? I could not find her anywhere."

Twilight shrugged, "She is the moon princess, so there is a chance that she is traveling the sky, waiting for her time to raise the moon. You will most probably run into her at night time. I still have a lot on my hoofs, but you're welcome to stay with me while you wait!"

Flaming Star smiled graciously and replied, "I appreciate the offer, but I think I will walk around for a bit first. When I'm done with that, I'll find you."

Flaming Star strolled the grand and well-lit halls of Canterlot castle, his head slowly oscillating from side-to-side as he took in every detail. Suddenly, something caught his eye: a large, stain glass window, with none other than Twilight's portrait imprinted forever on the glass. Flaming Star looked it up and down as he took it all in. Twilight had done much good in this dimension, and had saved it numerous times… a true hero. Flaming Star sighed… and who was he? Perhaps he had earned the right of being called a hero some time ago, but it was obvious he no longer deserved it; he had lost sight of what it all was about. The sound of casual trotting rang out behind him, and Flaming Star turned around. A regal looking unicorn was strolling behind him; however, he paused the moment he saw Flaming Star and stopped. Seeing this, Flaming Star nodded and said, "Greetings."

The unicorn sniffed and said, "Do I know you?"

Flaming Star raised an eyebrow and said, "I believe not. I am Flaming Star."

The unicorn nodded stiffly and replied, "I am Prince Blueblood. Are you of royalty?"

Flaming Star looked at the unicorn; there was something he didn't like about this pony. "I may be of royalty, and I may be not. What of it?"

Prince Blueblood looked Flaming Star over with a disinterested eye, "You are an alicorn. A relation of princess Celestia?"

Flaming Star shook his head slowly, "No, I hail from Ponyville."

Blueblood snorted, "YOU? Of Ponyville? Well then, I have nothing to say to such a commoner as yourself."

Flaming Star chuckled, "And what of the princess Twilight? She herself is of royalty, and yet spends her time as a citizen of Ponyville."

Blueblood rolled his eyes, as if he didn't expect Flaming Star to understand the complexities of heritage. "You see, my dear fellow," he chuckled, "the princess Twilight Sparkle may enjoy stooping herself low to spend time with her commoner friends, but she is born of Canterlot, her blood is pure. Her taste in friends is quite distasteful though, I might add."

Flaming Star mulled over the thought of grabbing Blueblood and knocking the tobacco juice out of him, but then thought better of it. "Well, I am born neither of Ponyville nor of Canterlot. And I am not of royal blood, but I suggest you treat others with respect."

Blueblood smirked, "Why ever should I do that?"

Flaming Star blinked, and then replied, "Because you someday find yourself all alone… without friends."

Blueblood laughed derisively, "Oh, my dear fellow. Why do you need friends? I have all I need right here." And the unicorn then proffered a hoof at himself.

Flaming Star was astonished as he suddenly realized the parallels between himself and this distasteful unicorn. Had he truly been like this? Had he really seen no need in friends? "I warn you," he said after a long pause, "you may think this now, but when something happens to you that causes you to lose what you hold the most dear, you will suddenly find yourself abandoned and forsaken. May God help you when that day comes, because you may never be as fortunate as I when I found myself in such a situation."

Blueblood just snorted and stuck his nose in the air and trotted off. Flaming Star's eyes followed him until the unicorn rounded the corner. That chance meeting had really struck a blow with him; the parallel had been too great. He had held only his victories and his perfection dear, and now that it had all gone down the drain, he was all alone… almost. "But… it is never too late for redemption," Flaming Star muttered as he turned around to continue to look through the panes. Slowly he went on strolling through the stain glass windows, observing all the ways friendship could help him overcome great trails.

"I missed all this?" breathed Flaming Star as he observed the different feats of the harmony bearers.

Suddenly, through a stain glass window, he saw Princess Luna flying to her sky-scraping tower in the distance. Nodding decisively, Flaming Star began to canter through the rooms and halls to approach the princess. Every once and a while, he would encounter guards, they would either challenge him momentarily, or simply bow in awe. Despite this, Flaming Star was making good time, and soon he had made it to the hall of thrones, here he encountered Luna, who was walking the other way.

Luna blinked as she saw Flaming Star cantering into the hall, "You there," she said, "Who are you?"

Flaming Star nodded his head, "I am a friend of Sunset Shadow, Flaming Star. I am here to discuss something with your highness."

Luna looked at Flaming Star and said slowly, "Very well, what is it that you want?"

Flaming Star shook his head, "I have nothing to ask for, but I do have some choice information that you might find useful."

Luna cocked her head to one side and said, "I see. Carry on."

Flaming Star nodded, "Do you remember a pony of the name Regal Crescent?"

Luna gasped, "I do. How come you by this name?"

"Regal Crescent was one of my, and Sunset's, types: a dimensional traveler. In fact, he was the one in charge of bringing the harmony tree here."

Luna looked excitedly, and a little unroyal-like, around, "Is he here?"

Flaming Star bowed his head, "He is not, and he turned his heart away from the light, and is traveling a path that is shrouded in nothing but darkness as of now."

Luna looked a little flustered, "But… but how is that possible? He was the most wonderful friend any princess could ask for!"

Flaming Star thought about what to say for a moment. Carefully picking his words, he replied, "It was, to some extent, my fault. Regal Crescent was my nephew, but he always envied me, believing that his father should have gained the powers that I possess. It started a rivalry that lasted many millennia, until finally he turned away to exact a proper revenge, without the restrictions of our code."

There was a deathly silence, broken only once by a lone tear falling from Luna's eye. After a deep sigh, she said, "I loved him."

Flaming Star nodded, "The princess Celestia told me of that. Perhaps… perhaps there is still hope for him."

Luna nodded, "I too turned away from the light once. Part due to what I believed was disrespect to the night I controlled, and perhaps partly due to my distress of the absolute disappearance of Regal Crescent. Anyway, I tried to take control of all of Equestria, but I was defeated and imprisoned on our moon for a thousand years. During that time, I realized there was nothing more dear to me than my sister, my friend. I remembered that feeling and, with the help of the harmony bearers, I turned my back on the darkness and came home."

Flaming Star moved slowly up to Luna and placed a hoof on her drooping shoulder and said, "You are right, there is always hope. Perhaps one day, I can seek Regal Crescent out, and tell him of your story, and make him see that it is possible to return from great darkness. You did it, Sunset did it, he can do it."

Luna took another shaking sigh and said, "Thank you, I appreciate the news, I will admit that his disappearance has always been a weight, no matter how small, in my mind. Now there is hope."

Flaming Star smiled and began to walk away, "There is always hope. I will go now, but I will be back. Princess Celestia is allowing me and Twilight Sparkle to reside here for a few days before returning to Ponyville."

Luna nodded, and Flaming Star left the hall. He slowly made his way back to the guest rooms, his thoughts pounding around in his head. All these new emotions… bouncing about, how could he understand what was happening to him? In all the years of his life, he had not once encountered what he was feeling now, and it unnerved him. As he walked, he passed by Twilight.

"Flaming Star!" she said excitedly, eyes wide and bright, "Do you want me to show you around the castle? There are some awesome hangout spots!"

Flaming Star gave her a small, but wavering, smile. "I am fine, maybe later. I- I suppose I need to think right now." He continued by her and went to his room and sat on his bed, his mind pulling up memories and discarding them, looking for some way to disprove Blueblood's statements, and to prove Luna's.

Then Twilight came in, she peeked around the door and said quietly, "Hey, what's the matter?"

Flaming Star immediately tried to hide his distress, "I'm fine. I'm just tired. You know."

Twilight blinked, and then said, "I know you better than that now. What's the matter? You can tell me."

Flaming Star sighed, "I met Prince Blueblood."

Twilight rolled her eyes, "I know of him, he's not a nice character."

Flaming Star nodded, "I understand that, but I have met unfriendly beings before, it was the parallel I saw of myself in him that really unnerved me."

Twilight cocked her head to one said and said, "What do you mean? You are nothing like him!"

Flaming Star looked at Twilight with pain in his eyes. "I wish that were true," he sighed, "But he is... or WAS like me. He thinks he needs no friends because it gets into the way of valuing the thing he prizes the most: himself. I thought I needed no friends because I too thought they would interfere with my prize: constant, continuous, immaculate, victories. As I talked to Blueblood, I truly understood why most being hated me: I was absolutely unbearable, and I understand that now."

Twilight, still in the doorway, nodded. "I can see how that would unnerve you. But come on! You're not like that anymore! You've changed, and I can see that. You have friends!"

Flaming Star sighed, "Do I? I... I suppose I must really ask myself that question. Twilight, I'm sorry, but I would like a little time alone."