The Timepony's Journal

Chapter 19 - Seclusion and Self Inclusion

Radiance looked up at the sunny blue sky, watching the clouds pass. She felt more at ease with herself and yet no more of her memories had returned. Only the memories of her first incarnation were with her and that wasn't boding as well as it used to a few days prior. She needed another form of relaxation, a place where she could dive into herself. Sure what she'd been doing in Castrovalva with the library was building her confidence in how much she knew about her current self, but yet it still wasn't enough. There were hundreds of blank pages in her mind, chapters to unlock, and she'd been biding her time with the busy work of exploring the vast library that the small brick town had to offer. It was time to leave the pearlie white gates once again and walk outside.

Walking up to the pink painted gazebo in the town garden Radiance put her head against the warm wooden surface that vibrated with life. Her TARDIS, her space and time craft that she'd made her own over the centuries, was now more alien to her than ever. Upon opening the doors and entering she came to the same old hexagonal console room full of marble roundels, warm candlelight, and a woodgrain console covered in various controls welcoming her in. She wasn't leaving, not just yet. There was still more inside for her to rediscover. Her hooves clopped on the sleek granite floor that had a slight coating of dust. The TARDIS knew her more than anyone else, she rescued her from that old workshop. Or at least that's what her older self thought of that moment.

"Well my friend, I'm back again. TARDISes don't speak but I know that you have, or had, a deep connecting bond with me. You know who I was, you can help me get back to where I was and need to be. I can only remember our first journey together, so I need you to show me more."

Radiance wasn't so sure about what to think when it came to talking to what was practically an inanimate object to many, but she knew that the ship had heard her. With a vibrating buzz, the side door opened up to a new corridor. She thanked her TARDIS for the guidance and went in blind once again. The halls were similar to the console room, soft pink roundels set into smooth slanted marble walls that were accented with deep mahogany. Approaching a nearby door she tried the handle and it opened. This room wasn't exactly where it should be, she somehow knew instinctually, but the TARDIS could reshape its architecture however it pleased. This was likely to make sure that she wouldn't come across anything that she wasn't ready for yet.

The Cloister Room. The room was full of stone pillars, walkways, and vegetation. If her TARDIS had a heart then this room was the veins closest to it. Taking a deep breath she felt her nerves destress and her mind becomes at ease. A small hammock hung between two trees, inviting her for a rest. Looking around she could almost hear the hoof steps of the friends she'd made and ponies she'd met. This was her stable home in a vastly changing universe. It wasn't a Zero Room, but this place felt more open. Radiance didn't feel alone here, the ghosts of days past keeping her company. Radiance now needed more than just a calm and relaxing environment to remember, she needed familiarity. She needed something to remind her of what was once lost. This is what was missing and what she would have to look for. As time ticked by she climbed into the small hammock and let her mind wander, loosening the boundary on which her mind had set upon itself.

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Hedliaellfrolithene, or Hedley for short, grumbled as she observed her tools. She was holding a chronic regulator as well as the Helmic Drive of another type 59 time capsule. She desperately wanted to go back into the time ship she'd gone to Provia with, an older model that was a pet project for her, her pride and joy. Though she didn't interact with any locals on the planet she still committed the act of interaction, breaking the Time Pony law of non-interference. She got off with a light sentence and a scolding from her superior. For now, she was on watch by her supervisor, probation for lightly breaking a high Gallopfreyan law. No TARDIS interior repair without direct supervision. Though she didn't care about the other TARDISes that were kept in the lot, ranging from minor repairs needed to highly unserviceable and decommissioned. She only wanted the one that she worked on, her TARDIS. She nearly broke one of her tools when she heard that it was permanently decommissioned. That part of the punishment stung the most.