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// 6 Truth Revealed 
// Story: A Cuckoo in the Nest 
// by Bronyxy 
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As soon as she found out about the accident, Luna sought after her co-ruler, but found it difficult to track her down. Taking this as a sign of personal grief, she thought no more of it, but nevertheless continued until she could meet her in person to express her empathy and solidarity.

Luna also found herself dining alone in the morning and in the evening as the white alicorn nowadays always took her meals in her room. Further, although she gave thorough briefings on events arising during her nocturnal watch, she found that briefings from the daytime, upon which she relied to direct her dream walking activities had been all but reduced to ephemera and tittle-tattle.

In a few days, word filtered down to her from one of her most loyal Bat Pony supporters, General Cimmerian, that Royal ascent had been given to disband some of the more unpopular military outposts, especially across the Badlands. To his finely tuned military mind, this left Equestria, in his opinion at least, dangerously exposed.

Luna’s patience had reached the end of their tether and she stormed into Court whilst the business of the day was in full flow.
“Sister, I mean to discuss some issues with you” she demanded “Now.”
The Court Administrator and the ushers looked at each other and to both the Diarchs in turn, the current petitioner being rendered suddenly irrelevant.

The two alicorns stared at each other, neither saying a word, but behind their eyes, daggers had been unsheathed waiting for the call to arms.
The white alicorn laughed, a wicked cackle containing no love at all.
“Clear the Court” she commanded “Leave my Sister and me to have a little chat.”

Luna bristled, but her rage was tempered by her guilt and respect for her sister, even now.

The Court cleared quickly, everypony present sensing something unpleasant brewing between their two co-rulers. The last time this had happened, Luna had been sent to the moon for a thousand years, and nopony wanted to be caught in a rerun of that episode.

The echo of the heavy doors slamming reverberated around the tall vaulted room and as the last sound scurried for the corners, an eerie silence descended like a thick choking blanket. The two powerful ponies stared at each other, a firmness of purpose burning in their eyes.

The white alicorn rose slowly and deliberately off Celestia’s throne and slowly circled the Princess of the Night.

“What has happened to you, Celly?” she asked, her voice level and composed despite the strong mixed emotions she felt coursing through her.
“What indeed” came the enigmatic reply.

“You can still talk with me Sister” Luna persisted “We can talk this through. I don’t know what has happened to you, but you need to know I still love you and can forgive you …”
“Oh, do spare me!” mocked the white alicorn.

Luna felt hurt and perplexed, but was determined not to show any weakness.

“I can see into your soul” said the white alicorn “I can see your fears, your inadequacy, your pitiful self-doubt writ large!”
“Celestia, snap out of it!”
“And spoil my fun?” she taunted “Where would be the pleasure in that?”

“Tia …” pleaded Luna, desperate to reach her sister.
“A childhood nickname from a grown mare – how pathetic you are!” she ranted “When I was born I was a number in a hive, knowing that I had to strive and show myself better than the rest!”

“Who are you … ?” Luna gasped in horror.

“I can be Star Swirl the Bearded …” she said, suddenly changing her appearance.
“Or your mother …” again, another change.
“Or your imaginary friend …” she said turning into Snowdrop.
“No!” shouted Luna “These images are not real! Who are you?”

The image changed again in front of her to reveal a dark grey alicorn mare with blue wings, mane and tail and a shiny green and blue covering over her body. It wasn’t that which made her look scary, nor the fact that her entire being was shot through with holes making her look moth-eaten, but the worst thing was the malevolent stare from her piercing green eyes.

She laughed scornfully.

“My name is Chrysalis, Queen Chrysalis to you. I am the queen of my hive and it is my duty to ensure that my changelings are fed. In fact, they are coming across the Badlands as we speak, and would you believe it, that flank of your Empire is unguarded. What an oversight.”

“You will not succeed, Chrysalis!”
“Oh, but I already have. You see, I know you are too caught up in your own anxieties to attack me, and even if you did, you would lose. Do you want to be imprisoned in the moon for another thousand years? I have the power, you know.”

“Where is my Sister?” she asked, still sounding resolute.
“Oh, she’s gone to the sun. Poetic justice, wouldn’t you say?” crowed Chrysalis “But don’t worry about her, I sent her at night!”
“You monster!” shouted Luna, her anger starting to overflow.

Chrysalis sensed an attack coming and shapeshifted promptly back into a familiar blind light blue pegasus.
“Please don’t hurt me, Luna” she said in Snowdrop’s delicate voice.
“How dare you desecrate her memory you foul monster!”

Chrysalis just laughed again and turned back into her true form once more.
“Really Luna, can’t you think of a more inventive word? That’s twice you’ve called me a monster within the last ten seconds - you really are frightfully boring you know.”

Luna pointed her horn directly at Chrysalis.
“Uh uh” said the shapeshifter shaking her head “If you anger me, I won’t return your sister to you.”
“In case you failed to notice, I am an alicorn and have the power to bring her back myself” said Luna through pursed lips, her eyes narrowed in concentration as a blue aura began to form around her horn.

“Are you certain?” goaded Chrysalis “Because you’re going to look pretty silly if you despatch me and then find you haven’t actually got the power to bring her back yourself. Do you have such confidence in your ability that you know, really know that you don’t need me? I hope for your sake your confidence isn’t misplaced, because if you’re wrong you’ll never see your sister again, and it will all be your fault!”

Chrysalis waited for her words to sink in, then visibly relaxed, adding dismissively “I dare you.”

The anger in Luna’s furrowed brow gradually began to leech away as self-doubt grappled for the upper hoof. Chrysalis smirked, secure in the knowledge that the Princess she had come to know was saddled with a deep rooted insecurity born of having been away for a thousand years and wouldn’t be prepared to risk her only lifeline, her trusted sister.

A blinding flash of light shot from Luna’s horn, the last sight she had of Chrysalis being a startled expression of pure shock just before her mocking green eyes vanished from sight.

“Forgive me, Sister” she whispered as the first of many bitterly stinging tears ran down her dark blue muzzle. All the years she had yearned for fate to hand her such an opportunity it had never been delivered, but now it was the last thing she wanted, she had become the instrument of her final ascent to omnipotent power, and she hated it.

Still with fresh tears rolling down her fur, she ran to the doors of the throne room and banged on them demanding they be opened. The guards had not known what to expect given the tense state of affairs between the two when the Court had been cleared and seeing Princess Luna, readied themselves for further orders.

“Summon the Generals of the Night Guard and the Royal Guard immediately!” she commanded.
The Court Administrator stared at her with his mouth open and froze to the spot. The guards looked at each other fleetingly, standing in stunned stupefaction before one ran off toward the garrison leaving the other stood at attention, aching to peek inside and see what had happened to Princess Celestia, but maintaining his discipline.

“Summon the Royal Cartographer!” barked Luna staring deep into the eyes of the Court Administrator who could tell he wouldn’t be able to duck another command from the Princess “And order him to bring maps of the Badlands at the double!”
In the face of such intensity, he did not bother with the usual Court protocol but turned and ran, never having seen Luna look quite so authoritative before.

Luna turned and walked back into the deserted throne room trying to recall just exactly where she had teleported Chrysalis to, and whether it was even on this planet; her mind had been in such turmoil she had just cast the spell without working out such fine points of detail. At the time, all she knew was that if she caved in now, she would never have been able to stand up to Chrysalis at all, and with the threat of invasion on the borders, Equestria had to act or the ponies who looked to her for leadership would be lost. She knew Celestia would have done the same in her position, but it hadn’t made the decision any easier.

All the same, she prayed hard that she would have the skill to recover her sister at the first opportunity.