//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Give and Take // by I Thought I Was Toast //------------------------------// Luna walked slowly into the room. Her gait was graceful, elegant, and, above all, somber. She was shrouded in a black robe, and the lights of the room literally dimmed as she entered. The sitting room was rather gaudy for Rarity’s tastes nowadays. Once she had adored all the pomp and gold and glitter of high society, but years of working the system had shown her that it was nothing more than a reflection of the greed and corruption that infested it. Decorative plates, frilly drapes, and crystal chandeliers, they were all needless commodities. They couldn’t further her goals any. A century of politics and intrigue had sucked any of the frivolous dreams she had entertained going into this. It was time for her end game. The final piece of the puzzle was here, and, after tonight, it would all finally fall into place. As always, Luna was in a perpetual gloom. One hundred years ago Celestia had been murdered. One hundred years ago it had all started. Distraught by grief, Luna had retreated into her sanctuaries. Ordering for no one to disturb her in her lamentations, she wasted away for one hundred years. She didn’t eat. She didn’t drink. She didn’t even raise the sun. She had locked herself away as the world morphed around her in the upheaval caused by her sister’s death. Rarity had stepped up in the chaos following the unfortunate incident in Ponyville. In memory of all the friends she lost, the last Element of Harmony became a champion of the common pony. Stepping into the realm of politics, she brought reform to a shattered land. She had lived through wars, famine, pestilence, and death. All to bring her plan to fruition. “What did you call us for?” asked the princess of the night. “Well, darling, it’s just been so long since we last met. I thought we could get together and have a lovely cup of tea. You know, one last hurrah before I die.” Rarity was as polite and poised as ever. She had to be to get things done. “What do you mean dying? We saw you just the other day. You were there when we first heard of our sister’s death.” “Darling, that was a century ago. You’ve been cooped up in that castle for a whole hundred years. You’d think some fresh air would be good, but you wouldn’t let anypony see you. However that’s beside the point. While you had locked yourself away, I spent the last hundred years holding things together. I’ve done a pretty good job, but, when I pass on, all my work will be for naught if somepony can’t do the last few things that I can’t. I want to tell you a story. A story about the power a single gift can have. Maybe after hearing it, you’ll find it in yourself to move on.” Rarity took a deep breath before beginning. Luna seemed impatient to be gone, but this was the final step. One last gift before years of planning ended. ….. A lot of ponies wondered how I ever came to be the Element of Generosity. I was the most selfish, self-absorbed pony you would ever meet sometimes. They didn’t understand that true generosity involves knowing where you’re needed. I could visualize it, you see. I could visualize how each and every gift I made would shape the world. The petty gifts they expected from me were nothing in the grand scheme of things. I watched, and I waited, and I planned for the gift that would change the world. It’s amazing what one gift can lead to. It’s amazing what that one gift did. It was a small box that I’d hand delivered in the quaint hours of the morning. Nopony saw me, and that was how I liked it. I always prefered to remain annonymous for my greatest gifts. It was a simple candy heart and a proclamation of love. It was the sort of thing anypony might get on any day from somepony special. The only thing that made this gift special was the pony I had claimed it was from. Normally, such a gift would do anything from creating a lasting relationship to destroying a long and happy friendship, but I had so much more planned for this gift. Anyways, after delivering the gift to Rainbow Dash’s house, I took up a spot at one of my favorite little cafes on the street below. I had promised myself I would watch the event that started it all. You see, this was the first step of my plan. This gift would begin a chain of events that would shatter the world. It would cause kingdom’s to fall in despair, and it would cause ponies to rise in glory. You see it was I who murdered Celestia. I gave that gift knowing the chaos that would follow. I knew each and every event that would follow, and I manipulated events so that it would end in the deaths of everypony I knew and loved. I planned every single detail of that horrid day, for that was to be my gift to the world. I was going to destroy the world as it was, so that I might create it anew. ….. Most ponies who knew Rarity would be surprised at an omission like that. It went against everything the public thought about her. She was the one who held charity after charity. She was the one who had given her estate away when the orphanage had burnt down. She was the one who had traded herself for the hostages when the diamond dogs had revolted. The common ponies could make such foals. Then again, that was the point of it all. “Surprised, darling?” It was surprising how calm a pony could be after a statement like that. She sat leisurely, and waited for the princess’ verdict. She had just confessed to the crime of the millenium. Surely the grief stricken princess would want to pass judgement. As for Luna, most ponies would be surprised she hadn’t flown into a rampage at that omission. Most ponies would be surprised she wasn’t burning the town down right now. Even Rarity was surprised. She had half expected the drugs to fail at debilitating a creature as divine as an alicorn. “I do hope you enjoyed your tea.” Rarity’s smile was coy and demure. “You see, I had to make sure you wouldn’t interrupt my story. A lady must always keep up her appearance, so there was no way I could finish if I was a bloody pulp on the floor.” Rarity took a sip of her own tea before continuing. “Don’t worry, you’ll get your chance eventually. You are the last piece of the puzzle after all. I relish what is to come after you hear my story” Luna appeared to struggle at the lethargy that had overcome her body. Such treason could only be met with death, but her wings couldn’t rise, and only the weakest sparks would sputter from her horn. Her legs were as heavy as lead. Only her mind was left untouched. She could see, hear, and even speak. It turned out she could also cry. “Please don’t cry darling. Would it make you feel any better if you knew that I had taken the drug too? I always find that makes my guests a bit more receptive. It puts us on even ground.” The first few minutes were always difficult for Rarity. She often found her guests were more responding to a caring and attentive captor. Luna, however, didn’t seem to want to buy it. “Here, have some more tea. It will relax you. You’ll find you have strength enough to at least levitate your cup.” She was always surprised when her guests refused more tea. It was perfectly fine except for the drug. They never seemed to understand that, after the first dose, they were too helpless to get away. She could easily force the drug down their throats after that. Wasn’t it better to just sit, and have a nice conversation over tea? “Luna, darling, you need to hear this. This is my gift to you. It is the final piece. Hear my story and suffer. Let it burn away your grief. Let the fires of rage consume you, so that you might rise from the ashes and reshape the world.” Luna struggled to get away from her captor, to escape the madness that was unfolding, but it was too late. The tale would be told, the plan would unfold, and the mistress of the night would rise. Author's Note: I always thought Rarity would make a good villain. Not one of those power-crazed brutes you normally find, but the classiest of villain's. The kind of villain who manipulates the world from the shadows. A queen commanding her pawns across the chess board, and the one who knows that a good game means taking measured losses. When you face a villain who will forever and always be ten steps ahead of you, the world takes on a remarkably different light. All the world's but a game, and we are it's humble pieces. That is my favorite type of villain, and that type is the one that will always send shivers up my spine.