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// That Fateful Night 
// Story: Worlds Apart 
// by Incandesca 
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It was morning that day, yet it was also night. My sun hung high above as it always did, but its life-giving warmth did not shine down upon the world as it should have. Instead, the  Moon had usurped its rightful place in the sky, blotting out its rays in exchange for a cruel shadow.

I wondered what my ponies thought in that moment — when they looked to the horizon and saw the celestial bodies converge, casting them into darkness. Could they grasp the significance? Did they hold their loved ones tight and whisper reassurances into their ears that they themselves did not believe?

I could only begin to imagine the answers to these questions as a blue streak of light shot past me. It narrowly missed my head but singed the white fur of my cheek black. The burn was not hot like fire, but cold like ice, and any thoughts of vanity over my coat was stripped bare by searing pain. 

I reeled, pausing only momentarily to wince and readjust my stance in the sky. My attacker saw the window she'd been looking for and took it, sending out a second round of rapid fire bursts denser than the previous. I dodged and weaved deftly between each missile, but I was on the backhoof every step of the way. For all the combat experience I'd gathered in years past, she had just as much.

Just when I thought to be in the clear, a crackling bolt aimed straight for my heart, forcing me leftwards. Heartbeats away from oblivion, the shock of being attacked by my own sister — or whatever had assumed her place — was beginning to lessen, and it finally dawned on me that I was in a fight for my life.

I felt the horror of betrayal over the peril of mortality. There is something chilling which cannot be truly described when you look into the eyes of someone you've loved and trusted only to see an alien thing which wishes you ill. It curdles the blood, and leaves your chest a gaping hole into which your worst doubts may manifest. You wonder if you ever knew them at all, then, you are expected to fight for your very existence.

Surely though, this creature before me could not be my Luna. She did not look like her nor sound like her. We may have had our tiffs in the past and more frequent and serious as of late, but we'd never traded anything beyond remarks soon regretted. Even the ugliness of our last argument failed to explain a reaction like this.

Desperately — perhaps naively — I made a last effort to reach her. I called out, but she did not respond just as with my previous attempts. Her face didn't twitch in the slightest to show she'd registered any of it. Her will was like a fortress, and my words were nothing but bricks thrown at its base.

I saw her charging up another assault and inhaled deeply, knowing what I must do. The time for pacifism was over. Sister or not she had proven herself a danger to the order of things, and that I could not abide. If she would not surrender willingly, the choice would be made for her.

Mirroring her actions, sunlight yellow gathered at my horn's tip as glacial blue swelled at hers. In that brief second I steadied myself, grappling with the fact I was about to harm my own sister.

The breath I'd unconsciously held went, and my attack did with it. A great stream of energy shot to her side, causing the air around it to thrum with power and her to sweep sideways. Where my lance ended hers began, and we found our positions suddenly reversed. The battle was even now, but it was far from over. It went on like that for the next few minutes, our bodies rolling and wings flaring against the wind as we brought an opposing dance of lights into the starlit sky. I remained collected where she was relentless, I in control but her free of inhibition. The whole twisted tango of Sun and Moon reminded me in some perverted way of how we'd dance with one another at balls in our kinder years.

The memory was enough to throw me off balance at just the right time for her to seize advantage. She charged in close, I using flight to propel myself backwards. Our magics clashed like blades again and again, and a second of hesitation from me gave her the opportunity to kick against my chest.

In an instant, I was falling with the breath knocked from my lungs. My eyes flicked to the ground below, mind panicking as it rushed up to meet me. Seconds from collision, my wings spread out wide and carried me swiftly upwards. Following right after was the sound of an explosion's impact, showering earth down over me in clumps and blinding dust. Through it, I turned my head and peered, just barely determining the form of my attacker — now pursuer — trailing close behind.

I flew without a second thought, heedless to where I was headed. The mistake made itself evident when I opened my eyes fully and found myself nearing the city gates, but it was too late to turn back. I was going too fast, and the pressure of unrelenting shots forced me onwards. 

My questions from earlier were solved as I gazed out upon the streets. Lights had turned on in the impromptu evening, exposing the uneasy expressions of those both inside and outdoors. They seemed relieved when their attentions turned to me, and then they saw what chased me.

They called after me as I streaked overhead, terrified and seeking comforts I could not give. For as much as I wanted to, I could not spare the time to stop and explain what was happening. How could I? I myself could scarcely comprehend it when not an hour ago all was well. All I could do was press on and pray for the nightmare to end with my life intact.

Reluctantly pulling my focus away from the frightened streets below, I saw the dark outline of an arch fast approaching. Hooves before me, I dipped, swerving to the right as a blast of magic burst against the left support. Fragments of pulverized stone shattered outwards, crumbling in dust and debris to the cobble pavement. Speeding past, I dared not to look back and merely hoped none were caught in the rubble.

The next arch I went over instead thinking I might better avoid danger, but that theory was quickly disproven by a sudden volley of fire. I dove. Yet again my sister proved unrelenting in her prsuit, aiming her attack at the last arch's bridge in what I presumed was an attempt to crush me. Although I pushed ahead of the collapse, I was slowing down enough for a rogue chunk of stone to fall and clip my wing, sending me veering towards an upcoming statue.

Hot tendrils of pain spiked through the injury, distracting me from the flight and throwing off my balance. My strained flaps grew more frantic the closer I came to the statue, its details becoming apparent as impact seemed increasingly imminent. It was of a mare I recognized from decades ago, the chief architect who'd planned the city's initial layout.

I felt my stomach drop when a lance of light came into view, aiming not for me but the monument. It cleaved through its neck, slicing through the marble as easily as a knife through butter, leaving the cut a mirror-like polish. Head bearing down upon me, it became clear how hellbent on my destruction she was, casually disregarding the city and those within if it meant getting to me.

Fine then. If she wanted a fight so badly, I'd take her far above the city where she could cause no further destruction. In one swift motion I weaved around the toppling head, looked to the sky, and shot towards the heavens.

Wind howled past me as I rose, deafening my ears and pushing my body to its limits. For a moment I sensed my sister giving chase, but not long into my ascent the feeling was gone. I stopped and turned, looking down to the city miles below and saw the reason why.

I only had a second to prepare before she lashed out with her strongest attack yet. My jaw clenched as our beams struck, then exploded outwards in a blinding flash. The shockwave left me temporarily stunned, and it took every ounce of my strength to hold firm. It would have been easy to let go, but the thoughts of what was at stake kept me steadfast. Defeat wasn't an option.

I still couldn't believe the course that had taken me here, scraping by the skin of my teeth for survival against my own sister. She was the only pony in my life who made me feel whole, the one who'd been with me since the beginning. The memories we'd shared and trials we'd endured had softened us in ways and hardened us in others. It was to that extent I understood her jealousy, even her anger over the denial of recognition she deserved, but I couldn't understand this.

Wetness beaded at the edge of my vision as I struggled to keep my magic from wavering. I knew that if my concentration broke my willpower would follow. Worse was my energy, sapped from battle and too many close calls. Too soon, I realized I wouldn't hold her back for much longer.

I took in a final breath as she pushed closer, my eyes closed and expression solemn. i accepted my demise. If nothing else, I prayed to the Stars Luna would return to herself when I was gone.

As her magic edged nearer, memories of our childhood came to my mind's eye — the sound of her laughter as we chased one another in the garden, the smile of pride on her face when we'd ascended and been crowned the rulers of Equestria, the smell of her freshly washed hair in the mornings and the way she'd take the time out of her day to craft a beautiful night sky for those who would appreciate its majesty.

A smile touched my cheeks, and I let the light overtake me.





I awoke to agony blooming across my body, from the back of my aching skull to the joints in my legs. My ribcage felt smashed in, and a succession of hacking coughs brought up red. Despite a terrible soreness the likes of which I had never experienced before, I was still — to my utter shock — alive.

Turning my gaze north, I saw what had happened. Through the dome ceiling was a fresh opening from which the dim magenta of the eclipse could pour through. For a moment I wasn't sure where I was until I noticed the stained glass windows. With how far up and away I'd been thrown, it was a miracle I'd survived even as an alicorn.

My attention turned as a fuschia jewel clattered to the tile floor. I recognized it immediately. There was something about the idea of using it against my own sister that repulsed me. It felt wrong, but nothing about this day had gone right. What was one more grievous deed? With the state I was in, did I even have a choice?

I was never given the chance to consider otherwise. The window shattered and in charged the warped visage of my sister. Fate had made its decision for me, and I could do nothing but comply. Time seemed to stretch on forever then, although I knew it to be no more than a breath. My horn lit, and I activated the very things we'd used to banish evil from this world twice over, now turned against her.

The power of the Elements flared bright, then spilled forth in a wave of brilliant spectra. Its shimmering beauty turned my gut, and I felt sick as immediate regret came crashing down over me.

It was too late now. The act was committed, and I could do nothing more but watch on, a horrified captive, as the only true companion I had disappeared before my eyes. Her form quavered as the Elements' barrier pushed her back, as if distorted by water, until she had gone fading into the night's tapestry like she'd never been there at all.

In the wake there was silence, a haunting stillness which threatened to suffocate me from the inside. So many emotions filled my head that they blurred together until I felt none distinctly, only their collective. I reached out to where she had been not but moments ago as if I might still feel her there.

When my hoof met air, I broke. My chest hitched and my vision welled with tears that stung my eyes. No amount of pain I'd endured that day nor any prior could compare to this kind of anguish. It was cruel and merciless, unforgiving as it wrapped tight around me like a vice and squeezed so hard I thought my heart might collapse.

Each time it came, it pried a strangled sob from my throat, and reminded me what I had done and that there was no taking it back. My sister was gone, and it was by my doing. I never told her how much she meant to me, and in our last moments together she hated me.

Finally, past the point I could take it all back, I understood why this had happened. She had put just as much if not more love and effort than I into her celestial rule and received nothing for it. The nights she so painstakingly crafted went mostly unseen, those who recognized it for its worth few and far between.

But me? I was adored and praised. I was the mare who controlled that which gave life. I was warm, kind, and gentle like the rays of the very Sun I guided. Ponies would bask in my presence, not shy away from it. It was I who received all the admiration she wished to have a fraction of.

And it was I who had failed to recognize that. It was I who hadn't made the effort to understand her and what she was going through. I was her sister, and I hadn't given her the support she had needed most. The blame was my own, yet it was upon her shoulders which the punishment fell.

I had taken her for granted, just as everyone else. To them she was a pillar of their world, unmoving and unchanging, and to me she was my little sister, forever and always by my side. The thought I might lose her had never even once crossed my mind, and it was that thinking that had led me here.

From deep within, something bubbled to the surface. Everything around me went black as a fresh cascade of tears sprang forth until eventually the world was reduced to just me and the weight of my sins. My eyes remained fixed on where Luna had come, though I could no longer see it, and my throat clenched.

I screamed, and I screamed until there was nothing left I could give. An eternity passed before I could stop, and when I did I felt empty, lying on the floor in a crumpled heap. All the emotions which had built inside had fled, and in the void they left behind nothing rose to fill it.

Feebly, I stood on shaky legs. With the Sun and Moon as they were earlier, I could not know how long I'd been crying, but I could guess by the dryness of my cheeks. The Princess in me told me I should return to the castle and address my no doubt terrified subjects, but I remained still for a while longer.

When I made to leave, it was with a hollow heart and labored movements, urged onwards solely by the obligation I had to my ponies. I flew up through the hole in the ceiling and took off in the direction of the palace, making my way in silence. With the battle over, the evening had grown calm, a small comfort which did little to ease my loss.

Even taking my time, it was far too short before I arrived at the castle gates. Unsurprisingly, the courtyard teemed with cityfolk, all agitated and mumbling to one another. Their din quieted on my approach, succeeded by gasps at what I could only presume was my disheveled appearance, then rose into a tide of questions before my hooves had touched ground. I hadn't the willpower to answer any of them.

My address was simple and brief — I assuaged their fears and assured them I was alright, and that I would properly explain everything on the 'morrow. This, thankfully, appeared to satisfy most, and the ones who asked after Luna I ignored.

From there the crowds slowly dispersed, adn I teleported directly to the castle halls. Mercifully, they were empty; the last thing I needed was aides inquiring about where my sister had gone.

The walk to my chambers was far from soothing however, each turn or passage another shackle around my heart. I knew these halls, I recognized its sights, but they all felt vacant and cold. Gone was the warmth and welcoming of familiar dwellings, in its place a reminder of what I had lost that fateful night. With the absence of Luna by my side or the knowledge she waited somewhere within, my echoing hoofsteps rang only with a profound emptiness.

When I came to the last stretch of my journey, any vigor I'd maintained had dissipated. The chains on my soul weighed heavy, and I found myself struggling more to reach my destination than I had fighting Luna.

I rounded the corner to my room and froze. There, opposite my chamber doors, were those of my sister's, still narrowly open as if expecting her return. I turned my gaze away a moment after. I could not bare to see them now, and it took an inner strength I hadn't known I possessed to reach my room.

Door shut and consciousness fading, I made for the balcony to lower the Sun, regardless of the actual time. As it sank into the landscape below, unveiled was the Moon, its pale shine freed. There, on its shining surface, was something new. I looked into the pattern now adorning, and I instantly understood its meaning. My sister was there now, trapped and banished by the will of her own flesh and blood. For a while I stared back at her, and I felt her judgement given back. I wondered then if I could ever look upon the dusk horizon and see anything but my folly, rather than the transcendental majesty it once held.

I slid into the sheets without further distraction and closed my eyes, wanting nothing more than to be rid of the waking world, however fleeting that solace. I dared not think of the day before me, let alone the many to come after.

Sleep found me quickly, and I graciously let it pull me under.