//------------------------------//
// Defiance Of Fate 
// Story: Decretum 
// by BlackRoseRaven 
//------------------------------//

Chapter Sixty Five: Defiance Of Fate
~BlackRoseRaven

“Now, Skuld, patience.” Urd said softly, and Skuld snorted but lowered her head moodily, nodding shortly once even as she stayed at the ready. Urd seemed to only smile at this, however, as the Norn sat back and continued calmly: “I'm sure they're curious, after all... and at the very least, we should confirm their suspicions, should we not?”
Skuld only grunted, and Verdandi snorted in disgust, leaning back in her own seat as she said contemptibly: “I'm surprised they figured it out at all. But I'm far from surprised that these mortals have both failed to bow to our laws... and moreover, that they think they're special enough to challenge us. None are outside our rule and our control, no matter how 'unique' they've convinced themselves they are.”
“But that is not the reason we tried to destroy Antares Mīrus in altered reality... that is not the reason we tried to get foolish, lowly Thor to correct his mistake with the Devourer demon. We have always ensured that those who can stray outside the bounds of Fate meet a quick and entertaining end, after all... but you and Scrivener Blooms, and Odin's tampering have come to damage so many stories, have interfered across entire worlds... you have altered stories all across the countless layers, layers that should not exist to begin with...” Skuld spat to the side with a snarl of contempt. “Odin was not satisfied with creating one worthless race. He had to create entire worthless worlds, that should be purged and destroyed... that mock us with their ideas of 'free will.'”
“You needed to be punished, and we needed to cut off the growth of this... ridiculous notion that the universe can exist without us.” Urd picked up in an almost-kind voice, smiling beneath her veil. “Can't you simply be content with the story we've written? We choose the deaths of all living things. We illustrate their lives. We weave grand tapestries, and carve their stories into staves... and without us, there would be only chaos. Mortals and Gods cannot be trusted to make their own decisions... these things have led to... Thor, pairing himself with a vicious demon, and demons are nothing but instinct-driven animals that do not feel emotion... only imitate and feed off them. Have led to you, Brynhild, pairing yourself off with a... a flaw in our system. A pony that should not exist.”
Verdandi nodded quickly, crossing her arms as she said darkly: “And let us not forget even worse atrocities. The 'free will' of one living being can interfere with countless stories, like a ripple: one drop, that's all it takes, to create an effect that surges like a tidal wave. So we saw no choice but to destroy you all. But to cleanse these layers... and you idiots couldn't even do that properly, could you?”
Luna snarled as Scrivener frowned, before Skuld said softly: “When we understood how things were going... when we saw the state the worlds were moving towards, layers where our powers would become... diminished, because so many stories were being changed, because we were beginning to lose track of mortals living and mortals dying... we knew we only had one choice. A choice we thought was very fitting, was deliciously ironic...”
Urd smiled, saying softly: “We altered your stories, Brynhild and Scrivener, playing off your emotions, and Valthrudnir's already-present poisons. We thought it was genius: the corruption was already in your system, after all, and Skuld clearly saw a future where your passions would destroy everything you cared for, because you, like all beings of such... low order... are so selfish, so... based in flesh and pleasure...”
“And I saw, with disgust, how even in the present... you smeared yourselves with your own corruption and blood and juices, you... bathed in your sins. Sickening.” Verdandi added, snorting behind her mask, eyes aglow with fury and contempt and loathing. “And Urd knew, that in the past you were both creatures of... failure, and weakness. So-called 'Nightmare Moon,' an excuse to let your passion run wild and give in to your bloodlust and flesh-lust, Brynhild... and you, Scrivener, even worse, hiding in despair and drinking and filth and laziness...”
Skuld flicked her sword to the side, but she stayed tense and ready even as she lowered her weapon slightly, smiling coldly again beneath her hood. “And we knew that Odin would not give you any quarter, either. All we had to do was trust that Valthrudnir's machinations would bring you to the right place at the right time, and from there, we wrote the course of the future. That you would descend into passion and darkness. That you would eventually destroy yourselves, and everyone else around you. That in your disease, you would not settle for tying your souls together, but you would forge yourselves into one sick and twisted entity who would be so corrupt, so hungry, so lustful, he would spread himself to each and every world, simply looking for adventure and mayhem... and he would do exactly what we wanted him to do. He would infect every layer with darkness... until he destroyed everything around him. Cleansed the worlds...”
Scrivener's eyes widened in horror as Luna's breath caught in her throat, and then she whispered: “Gymbr... thou... thou art saying...”
“And yet somehow... you did not become Gymbr. No matter how much we manipulated your story on your warped staff... you always overwrote our wishes, our will, with your... paltry... 'love.'” Urd said softly, shaking her head slowly and sounding disappointed. “You did not turn on Odin...”
“But those gathered-up energies, that story still insisted on taking on a life of its own... we poured too much effort, too much energy into trying to force you to become Gymbr, to give in to yourselves at every turn. A Tulpa was born from it and we could not destroy it because you had already overwritten the stories that had created him in the first place, and we could not carve new pages in the past.” Verdandi added with disgust and a snort of contempt. “And then you added insult to injury. Freya, another free-will monstrosity made of those broken pieces of Valkyrie goddess, found the Tulpa, then nothing but a weak toy, a thought-form cloaking its true nature. It became... real, when she made it part of her story.”
Skuld shook her head slowly. “And then the power you gave it... but more, you changed the Tulpa. You poured emotion and thought into it, turned it from a destroyer into a tragic, ill-fated protagonist in your own sick ego and twisted minds because you both refuse to accept the fact you are monsters, and villains, and scum. You can't accept that the layers must be cleansed and destroyed so we can regain ultimate control... so that we can keep order.”
“Thou art mad...” Luna whispered, and then she snarled and stepped forwards, eyes blazing as she roared furiously: “Thou would have made us kill all our friends and family? Thou would have... have used us as... a weapon, turned us to a pet on a secret, invisible leash, and made us slaughter innocents, just... just to be 'in control,' as thou mocks?”
“Yes.” Urd replied with a calm smile, and then she added gently: “Because you want to anyway, don't you? Don't lie to me; I see your past. I see your past dreams, your past fantasies. You're both nothing more than perverted animals, driven by lust and hunger for power. You have no honor, no nobility, and no reason to exist any longer, especially as you continue to deny that we are the ultimate rule... that nothing can go against Fate. As you continue to try and force us out of existence... well, Brynhild, we will not go quietly. We will see that the worlds are cleansed... no matter what we have to do to achieve our ends.”
“And at the very worst, we'll make sure that if we can't be in control, then there can be no universe.” Verdandi added ruthlessly, raising her head, and her eyes glowed with her cruel smile behind her mask. “If you wouldn't allow yourselves to become a destroyer, to erase existence for us... we'll simply employ another. The one being who is guaranteed to defeat you both, to destroy you both. The one being who for all his faults and selfishness, at least understands the necessity of order...”
“Valthrudnir...” Luna whispered, and then something clicked in her mind before she shook her head disbelievingly. “Clockwork World...”
“It is not ideal, perhaps... but it was very easy to wake up the sleeping, dormant machinery. To gently guide the broken essence of the Jötnar back to the project he was once so proud of... and then to slip carefully, quietly away.” Skuld smiled coldly, flicking her sword to the side. “It's only too bad that I'm going to take the pleasure of slaughtering you away from Valthrudnir, but... we know how to control him. We woke Clockwork World up... we can lull it back to sleep if we desire. But only after they do what you failed to.”
“If you would not become Gymbr... if the Tulpa will not obey us, has instead been taken in by your mockeries and your stories... we will simply use a different resource. That is all. Yes, they may attempt to destroy us as well... but our Destiny lays elsewhere.” Urd said kindly, and then she laced her hands together and bowed her head almost politely, saying gently: “Good luck, Brynhild. May your death be swift and gentle.”
And with that, even as Luna was staring in disbelief and trying to process the madness, the arrogance, the self-assured stupidity of the Norns, Skuld suddenly rushed forwards and swept her sword savagely outwards, and Luna barely managed to thrust her spear out in time, forcing the Norn to parry the attack and leap swiftly backwards, her eyes glowing beneath her cowl as she said coldly: “Please draw this out as long as possible, because I'm going to savor every second of this battle.”
Luna snarled in fury, flicking her head as her mane sparked and she forced the thoughts away in a rush, before charging forwards, but Skuld only grinned before she laughed mockingly as Luna's spear thrust towards her, swinging her sword out and catching the neck of the weapon to knock it backwards.
Sword and spear met again and again, sending up sparks with the force of every blow and parry as Luna cursed in frustration, before she suddenly slipped backwards as she yanked the spear away before it spun violently in the air and the butt of the weapon lashed towards Skuld's face. The Norn easily blocked the pole of the weapon with her forearm, however, then she lashed her sword outwards as she leaned forwards, ripping a slash across Luna's face and knocking the winged unicorn staggering backwards with a cry of pain as Skuld mocked: “What's wrong, pathetic little pony?”
Skuld's hand seized the spear, not letting Luna pull the weapon away as she began to advance, lashing her sword back and forth as Luna snarled, trying desperately to pull the polearm free with telekinesis as her horn glowed and she lashed it against each and every slash of the Norn's sword, slowly stepping backwards under the assault and hissing as the blade managed to dig thin slashes and cuts against her features every so often despite her fiercely working to parry the cruel hail of blows. Then Skuld suddenly thrusted forwards, even as Luna leapt back, and the winged unicorn snarled in pain as the tip of the sword tore through her armor and dug into her breast, the Norn saying callously: “It's all pointless, little girl. I can see into the future... into your future. I can see every attack you're about to make.”
“Did thou see this?” Luna shouted, and then she snapped her horn forwards, releasing a sapphire bolt of fire as she yanked backwards on her spear at the same time, but Skuld hurriedly released the polearm as she leapt backwards and flicked her sword up in front of her, blocking the fireball with the flat of her blade. The explosion rattled her all the same, knocking her stumbling backwards as she was blinded by the flash, and Luna charged forwards, dropping low to duck under the half-raised short sword before leaping up and tackling Skuld backwards.
Skuld released a curse, then howled in pain as Luna began to smash her hooves viciously down against her in a furious flurry before the Norn tried to hack at Luna's head with her sword. Instead of hitting the skull of the winged unicorn, however, it collided with her starry mane as Luna flicked her head to the side, her locks tangling and muffling the blow as electricity sparked through the ephemeral substance and tangled around the Norn's arm.
She smashed a hoof straight down into Skuld's eye, and the Norn screamed beneath her cloak before she tore her arm free and stabbed awkwardly upwards, managing to gouge into Luna's shoulder and make her curse before the winged unicorn was blasted backwards and off her hooves by a shockwave of force. She hit the ground and skidded backwards, and Skuld was on her feet in moments, charging forwards with her sword raised before she spun it around in her grip, leaping forwards as she stabbed it downwards like an oversized dagger.
Luna hurriedly shoved herself backwards, scrambling against the ground as the blade hit the concrete and sent up a splatter of stone before Skuld continued to stab downwards in a vicious staccato. It forced Luna further backwards until she managed her hooves, trying to leap forwards and over the last stab... but Skuld was fast, swinging her double-edged sword hard upwards and ripping the blade across Luna's breast to knock her backwards before another volley of force slammed into the winged unicorn, and her eyes widened in shock as she realized it wasn't coming from Skuld.
She landed and skidded backwards, then rolled hurriedly to her hooves as Skuld aggressively charged after her, and Scrivener snarled across at the sight of Verdandi now on her feet, hands glowing as Urd continued to calmly watch. As Skuld began to lash out with a wild flurry of backhand slashes and rapid blade revolutions, Verdandi began to raise her hands, and Scrivener shouted: “Luna, watch out!”
Luna immediately leapt sideways as Skuld sliced in at her, and the blade missed completely as the Norn stumbled between Verdandi and the winged unicorn. The Norn of the Present snarled at this, and instead shoved a hand towards Scrivener Blooms, a telekinetic blast smashing into him and making him flinch: enough to distract Luna from completing her evasion, and she stumbled a little too close to Skuld's side before the Norn reached out and seized Luna's horn, holding her in place as she grinned viciously and rose her sword quickly to deal a lethal thrust...
Luna snarled, her horn glowing violently before Skuld's hand exploded into blue flames, and the Norn staggered backwards with a shriek of shock and pain, violently shaking her hand to try and extinguish the blue fire rapidly charring it away. Then Luna snapped her horn forwards, a blast of lightning shooting from her horn and slamming into the Norn's claw, and Skuld screamed in pain as the lightning twined around her limb like a rope, her sword forgotten in the grip of her other limb before Luna snapped her head back, yanking the Norn's hand towards her, and then the equine stabbed her horn viciously forwards, ripping through Skuld's palm as she unleashed all the magic she could in a blast of raw, violent passion.
Skuld's arm exploded in a blast of lightning and blue flame, the magical recoil enough to knock Luna backwards but Skuld staggering as her golden sword flew from her grip, howling in agony as arcs of lightning shot around her and her cape burst into flames. She clutched wildly at the stump of arm that remained, shrieking again as Urd leapt to her feet and Verdandi froze with her hands half-raised, and Luna grinned viciously even through the wounds on her face and the blood leaking from one ear, her mane sparking as she snarled: “This game is over, Skuld!”
Skuld staggered to a halt... and then she slowly looked up before grinning ruthlessly, and Luna frowned before staring in horror as blue lightning and fire filled the space beside her arm before blood and flesh and armor rapidly began to piece themselves back together, her cape rebuilding itself, the scars of battle damage vanishing from her completely as she slowly rose her restored limb and Urd said calmly: “Let what once was, be again.”
Luna stared over her shoulder in horror at Urd, who was standing with one hand raised, and a cold smile in her eyes before she said softly: “You're no match for us, Valkyrie bitch.”
“We won't permit you to win... we are the Norns, we are Fate, and it is our word that is law!” Verdandi shouted, raising her hands, and Luna's eyes widened before she leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding a blast of white lightning that shot from the sky and hammered a crater into the rock where she had been standing a moment before.
“Honorless wretches!” Luna snarled, and then she charged towards Skuld... but the Norn grinned as she flicked her wrist, her sword spinning up from the ground to return to her grip before she stepped into a vicious slash. Immediately, Luna flicked her own horn as it glowed, and her spear flew from where it had fallen, blocking the slash before her eyes widened in horror as she felt psychic bands wrapping tightly around her, beginning to choke her as Urd and Verdandi both held their hands out towards her, wheezing and gagging as Skuld ground mercilessly forwards...
Scrivener snarled, feeling rage and fury filling him up, feeling Luna's pain before he reacted on instinct as the corruption in his mind boiled violently upwards: “Shallock!”
Urd looked sharply upwards as Skuld flinched, her glowing eyes widening beneath her hood... and then Scrivener leaned forwards, roaring in a voice that echoed through the battlefield as reality vibrated and corruption burst from his jaws with the utterance of the horrible, unnatural language that ripped through the minds of all present: “Oh miserable souls, blighted and bound by the laws of flesh and the physical, with your soft bodies so easy to wound, cut, and kill, feel the decay, the rot in your veins, and tremble as your mind lives in agony, but your body dies!”
Skuld flinched as Verdandi rose her hands, but nothing happened as electricity shocked over her form, staring in horror as Urd grabbed at her stomach, focus interrupted... and as madness filled Scrivener's eyes and a vicious grin spread over his features, as the mire spilled down his cheeks from glowing, sunken sockets and dripped out of his jaws, Luna could feel a wild mix of fury, despair, and ecstasy rising through her spirit. Her blood felt like fire in her veins, her muscles bulged and filled with pain and power, her own eyes took on a wild glow as Nightmare Moon snarled in her mind, then roared in primal delight and fury... but all through it, she was aware that Scrivener wasn't drawing on her magic to power the Black Verses. He was drawing on his own spirit, he was using the corruption that flowed in his veins to power them... he was killing himself to try and save her.
And it filled Luna with a thousand emotions she didn't have time to examine: she only had time to do one thing, and that was thankfully one of the things she did best, as she snarled and lunged forwards as Scrivener continued to shout and sing the Black Verses to keep Verdandi and Urd at bay. The dark magic in the air wasn't hurting them as it would mortal opponents, but it was poisoning their minds and blocking their powers, and it distracted Skuld... enough for Luna to swing her spear forwards and knock the Norn's sword away.
Skuld cursed, staggering before the butt of Luna's spear smashed into her face, knocking her head back and then sending her stumbling as the butt of the pole smashed in a vicious series of thrusts into her body, denting and cracking her armor, keeping her off balance as Luna drew on Scrivener's pain and pleasure and her own strength, letting the darkness fill her up, letting Nightmare Moon come forwards her eyes began to glow and her mane sparked with electricity. Then she slapped the bottom of the pole up under Skuld's chin, knocking her gaze skywards again as she flipped the spear into the air at the same moment before flicking her horn down, ripping the polearm through Skuld's broken armor and tearing completely through her to slam into the ground behind the Norn, leaving her pinned like a bug.
Skuld shrieked in agony, and Urd and Verdandi both shouted and snarled, raising their hands, and Luna growled as the spear was ripped back out of Skuld and the wound healed. All the same, the Norn was stunned as she dropped forwards on her knees, clutching at her chest, and the winged unicorn's horn glowed as she leapt forwards, smashing her hooves back and forth across Skuld's face before she headbutted her and knocked her crashing onto her back.
Verdandi thrusted her hands towards the sky with a yell, and lightning blasted down, slamming into Luna and knocking her skidding backwards as Urd visibly concentrated, raising her hands and trying to focus through the echoing Verses to summon up the power for some other spell. But Luna only gritted her teeth, her body aglow with power before she shot forwards and smashed into Skuld again, heedless of the pain or the fact her body was smoldering from the blast she had just taken as her mane and tail blew backwards, whipping back and forth as a cyclone of sapphire lightning and energy began to visibly spin into existence around the two.
Skuld cursed as she tried to force herself up, trying wildly to ward off the blows that Luna threw down towards her with her hooves and the slashes of her glowing horn, the Norn stunned and stupefied even as she clawed weakly back at Luna. She looked back and forth, but all around them was a curtain of crackling blue lightning that was spiraling wildly upwards... before Luna grinned and suddenly slammed her head forwards, knocking the Norn flat before she stabbed downwards, ripping her horn through Skuld's chest as the Norn screamed and grabbed uselessly at Luna's face, ripping bloody gashes that Luna didn't even feel as she snarled: “Thou desires to see a monster? I shall show thee a monster!”
She lashed her horn upwards, and Skuld shrieked as she was thrown backwards into the spinning wall of lightning, the Norn beginning to fall through it... and then Luna reared with a roar, drawing on every ounce of strength she had and pouring it into the spell, and Skuld was lifted into the air in a tornado of azure lightning and crackling navy flames, her body limp and helpless as she flailed and screamed. And still, it wasn't enough, as Luna grinned viciously, her eyes glowing even as blood leaked from them before she leapt backwards, tearing free of the storm's eye as the Norns stared and Scrivener laughed wildly, staring up with awe and glory at the magnificence of the magic as Luna shot upwards, then spun around and tore into the cyclone... crashing out the other side a moment later as the spinning storm of fire and lightning burst apart with a crackle, diving straight towards the ground with Skuld helplessly impaled on her horn.
Luna smashed down into the stone platform with a tremendous bang, sending cracks spiraling through the flat rock as magical recoil and pure force knocked her flying backwards, crashing and skidding on her back as she vomited blood and rolled almost to Scrivener's hooves. Scrivener howled in agony as well, the Verses finally coming to a halt as he dropped forwards, puking blood and bile as he rasped for breath, shivering violently but still filled with pleasure more than pain.
Skuld had been crushed down into the stone floor, the Norn gasping uselessly at the sky, burned beyond recognition as her body jittered from the lightning still ripping back and forth across her. She was warped and broken as Urd and Verdandi stared helplessly, and then they both hugged themselves around the stomach even as Skuld laughed weakly... and somehow slowly, slowly began to force herself to sit up.
Scrivener and Luna stared in horror as the Watcher of the Future sat... then painfully forced her feet under her, and pushed herself up to a standing position. Her cape fell away and her peeled armor revealed blood-stained and charred flesh, her features half-unveiled but so badly wounded they were unrecognizable. Yet she was clearly grinning, before she moaned as she shivered violently, and the ponies stared as, with a crackle, her legs slowly began to turn to stone, spreading slowly but surely upwards.
“Foolish... Brynhild... you can't defeat Fate...” Skuld rasped, even as her petrification spread to her waist... even as, behind her, Urd and Verdandi also began to turn slowly to stone.
Verdandi snarled, then hissed when cracks spread through her mask, reaching up and grasping it with a trembling hand as she leaned forwards and whispered: “It's too late. Our plans were long ago set in motion... you can take away our physical existence, but all you have proven is... is...”
“All things bow to Fate...” Urd murmured as she rose a hand, and a black, ancient staff appeared in it, carved with beautiful runes. She threw this forwards, and it clattered to the battlefield before slowly rolling towards Luna and Scrivener as they stared down at it with disbelief, watching as the last runes slowly carved themselves up along the very top of the staff... before the black wood cracked and the runes over its length released an eerie pulse of light. “This played out exactly as it was meant to.”
“And all you've done is secured your place in the complex story we have written... the fate you cannot change...” Skuld threw her head back and laughed, even as the petrification spread through her limbs and began to crawl up over her face. “Just like we always said, you'll die, Brynhild... you'll die, at Valthrudnir's claws!”
Luna snarled furiously as Skuld grinned and her eyes gave one last flash before turning to stone, as Urd bowed her head and Verdandi half-turned away... and moments later, Past and Present too became rock instead of flesh. For a moment, Luna trembled at the sight of the petrified Norns... and then she leaned forwards and snarled, snapping her horn down despite the pain it sent through her overcharged, over-strained system, and the statue of Skuld was blown into pieces by a raw lash of telekinetic force.
The stone remains of Urd and Verdandi exploded and crumbled away to nothing moments later, and Luna flopped forwards, breathing hard as she shivered once on the ground. Scrivener flinched, his sight going blurry before he trembled, then fell forwards into the sludge and blood and goo, but he didn't have the strength to pick himself up as Luna whispered weakly: “Scrivener... I... I do not know what to say. I do not know what to believe... we have killed Fate itself but... but look...”
Slowly, Scrivener opened his eyes, mind a blur of emotions and static and pain as Luna pointed at the broken staff... and Scrivener knew what it was. Knew what it said, even without being able to make out the cracked runes, much less read them. It was the staff that represented the life and story of the Norns themselves... a story that apparently ended with their death at the hooves of Luna. And it sent chills down Scrivener's spine to wonder if not even the Fates could escape their own destiny...
He couldn't finish the thought. He couldn't even think anymore, as he lay in the puddle of blood and mire... and slowly, his eyes slipped closed as Luna trembled and dropped herself flat, both ponies breathing hard as darkness and pain laid claim to them and dragged them both down into unconsciousness.

Luna opened her eyes slowly, blinking a bit before she simply stared in disbelief. The bed beneath her was comfortable and enormous, the room wide and spacious, everything looked... blurry, but also pretty, and she was fairly certain that the blurriness was due to blows to the head and possibly madness. Or maybe she was dreaming.
Slowly, she tried to sit up... and groaned in agony at the shocks of pain that tore through her system before flopping back down with a loud wheeze. The pain told her she likely wasn't dreaming, and when she carefully brushed some of her blankets back and looked down, the bandages confirmed it.
She poked moodily at these, then looked back and forth before closing her eyes... but her sense of Scrivener was... muffled. It wasn't entirely lost, but it wasn't entirely there, either, and she shivered a little. It meant he was unconscious, but not dreaming... or something was blocking their link.
Slowly, Luna wiggled herself carefully to the side, breathing hard and trembling a little. But finding out what the hell was going on was far more important than the pain: last she remembered, she and Scrivener...
A wild image ripped through her mind and made her flinch: them grinning, snarling like animals, blood everywhere in a barren world as they ripped through their enemies in a whirlwind, and she trembled for a moment before shoving the thoughts away. That wasn't what had happened at all... and she closed her eyes, making herself take a slow breath as she whispered: “I do not desire that. I... I desire... oh, I do not know...”
She shook her head, forcing the darkness away. Faint strings of dreams and nightmares she had experienced while unconscious were coming back to her now, but she tried not to think about them. Pushing herself out of bed and onto her hooves helped: the pain blocked out pretty much everything else and snapped her mind awake, brushing away the last bit of dazed tiredness that had been hovering over her.
She started carefully forwards, stumbling a little and shivering weakly as she made her way to the ajar door. She used her horn to push it the rest of the way open, then stumbled out into the hall behind, rasping quietly as she started down the corridor towards the spacious den.
Luna leaned carefully out into this, and frowned a bit as she saw the furnishings were all neat and tidy, everything was organized, a fire was quietly crackling away... and she mumbled a little to herself before closing her eyes. She couldn't sense Scrivener's thoughts... but she could still sense him, and she frowned as she realized he wasn't in the apartments. He was somewhere else across Canterlot, so Luna took a slow breath, straightened up... then groaned in pain and slumped down, going bowlegged and shivering, the sound of the bandages rubbing together sounding almost like laughter in her ears as she mumbled: “Oh, damn everything to Helheim.”
Luna slowly began to drag herself towards the door... and then she winced and looked up sharply at a yell of surprise before moaning and falling on her side, which made her all-but-howl in agony. And in the doorway leading into the kitchen, Twilight Sparkle winced and dropped her plate of crackers, hurrying over to Luna and leaning over her worriedly. “Luna! Oh no, you're not supposed to be out of bed!”
“So I have come to understand.” Luna mumbled weakly, and when Twilight leaned down to try and pull her to her hooves, she shoved weakly at her with another moan of pain. “No, no! For Mimir's sake, just let me lay here for a moment...”
“Luna...” Twilight trembled, looking down at her worriedly... then she closed her eyes tightly and reached down, half-dragging the sapphire mare up to her hooves even as Luna moaned and wheezed in agony, the violet mare whispering harshly: “C-Come on... you and Scrivener... you can have a little p-p-pain...”
Luna closed her eyes, swallowing thickly and breathing hard, a faint sheen of sweat rolling down her body as she finally managed to get her hooves under her, and she leaned heavily against Twilight as the violet mare half-carried her back to her room. The pain was awful... but worse than the physical pain were the tears rolling down Twilight's cheeks, as Luna whispered: “I... I am sorry...”
“You don't... I...” Twilight only shook her head and fell silent as they made their way back down the corridor, and Luna didn't fight or complain as the violet mare helped her into bed and tucked her in. Then she quickly turned and left, and Luna was left looking miserably at the open door, terrified of what Twilight's tears meant, knowing it was more than just because she and Scrivener had somehow gotten back here, so badly injured.
Twilight returned a few minutes later, and she pulled herself up into the large bed to silently curl up beside Luna and bury her face against her chest. It scared the sapphire mare, but she didn't say anything as she reached up and hugged the violet mare close. Twilight trembled a bit, then finally, she looked up and asked weakly: “How much do you remember?”
“Just... defeating the Norns, and then... fainting away. I know not how I came back to Canterlot... nor why we are here instead of in Ponyville. Nor do I know where Scrivy is... I sense he may not be far but... he is not... responsive.” Luna hesitated, then looked down and silently stroked through Twilight's mane, asking finally: “Is... is he alright?”
The violet mare swallowed and closed her eyes, then she shivered a bit before sitting up as she gathered her thoughts. “I... after a day had passed, and no one had sent word or anything from Asgard... Odin and Celestia both got really scared. Enough that Odin contacted some allies up in Valhalla... they sent out a team of warriors and... found you and Scrivener. All the magic had faded from the valley, so they were able to move in easily and get out quickly, but... you... you and Scrivener were both in bad shape. You've... you've been unconscious for a long time.
“Odin had you both transported down here as soon as possible. Scrivener is in the lower levels...” Twilight swallowed thickly, and Luna frowned worriedly at this before the violet mare whispered: “How could you both... what did you do? Celestia said you... you cut your life expectancy in half. You were both so badly injured...”
Luna laughed faintly at this, looking away before she whispered: “We... we simply did what had to be done...”
“No, no, no you didn't... you resorted to the Black Verses, didn't you?” Twilight shivered, looking into Luna's dark cyan eyes, and the sapphire mare sighed softly but nodded slowly, not breaking eye contact. Twilight trembled, and then she reached forwards, cupping her face silently in her hooves as she asked weakly: “Do you and Scrivener really want to die that badly? Are you going to... really... leave me... alone, leave Antares alone?”
Luna closed her eyes and flushed, looking away before she closed her eyes and murmured: “It was the only thing Scrivener could do to interrupt the Norns... they were too distant for him to close in on and... they... yes, yes, Twilight, yes, we were foolish. We... we gave in to the temptation to use them, and more, we both, and both of us, not simply Scrivener, were... consumed by their power. The... I cannot explain the strength I felt. The sick joy. The power...”
She shivered and tried to roll away, but Twilight held her down on her back, and Luna grimaced a bit before the violet mare asked quietly: “But was it worth it?”
“Twilight...” Luna sighed softly, looking silently up at her before she lowered her head and whispered: “Twilight, thou cannot understand. Thou art too pure to understand. 'Tis like... an addiction. 'Tis poison, both Scrivener and I know it is poison, and yet oh, how it fulfills us to delve into it... even though the moment it ends, all that pain slams into us, and Scrivener's corruption was only exacerbated by it... but the Norns would have killed us otherwise. Aye, we are responsible for what we have done to ourselves but... if the choice is between shortening of life and death, I... we...”
Twilight looked down at Luna silently, then she closed her eyes before reaching down and silently stroking under Luna's chin, reaching up to touch the collar around her own neck as she said quietly: “I'm not too pure or too naïve to understand these things Luna. Maybe I once was, but not anymore. But you can't... you can't give in. You can't die. Not even if it's what you and Scrivener want.”
Luna mumbled and lowered her gaze awkwardly, and Twilight Sparkle sighed softly, clenching her eyes shut for a moment before she finally leaned down and kissed Luna for a soft moment. It surprised the sapphire mare, her eyes fluttering open before Twilight quickly drew back, lowering her head as she whispered, even as a tear slowly slid down her cheek: “I won't let you kill yourselves. Not after everything we've been through together. Not when I deserve a say too.”
The sapphire mare closed her eyes, then she sighed softly and nodded finally, murmuring softly: “I am sorry, Twilight. Thou... thou art right. And thou does... thou art equal to myself and Scrivener and I have much respect and adoration for thee, as does Scrivy.”
Twilight nodded a few times, looking down before she sighed softly, and Luna hesitated before asking finally: “Scrivener...”
“Your wounds are... severe, but you started healing much better yesterday. Scrivener, though... corruption burned all his veins and... he was just... a mess.” Twilight shook her head slowly, shivering a bit. “They have him... hooked up to all these... medical things, and demons are helping look after him, keeping him sedated. He's being treated with Ambrosia extract and elixirs mixed up by Zecora and Celestia but... it's just... not helping much.”
Luna nodded slowly, and Twilight hesitated before continuing quietly: “Celestia... was very upset. Odin was stunned that the Norns were dead, but Celestia is... furious. Not just with you and Scrivener, though, with... I don't know. Odin? Herself? Maybe everyone... all I know for sure is that she's going to lecture you a lot when she and Odin get back from Ponyville.”
“What are Celestia and Odin doing in Ponyville?” Luna glanced up and gave a faint smile. “Am I not the center of their universe?”
“Luna...” Twilight sighed softly, but then she shook her head slowly and said in a quieter voice: “She just... I don't think she could stand playing politics right now. So she told the Royal Council she was taking a leave of absence for a little while. She only left yesterday, and she wants you both transferred to Ponyville as soon as possible, but right now the only place Scrivener can get proper treatment is here. Because of... Subterra.”
“Aye, I see now. The underground dwellers feast on Scrivener's emotions and pain... numbing some of the pains from the corruption, helping keep him in that... sedated state.” Luna said softly, looking up at the ceiling before she glanced down when Twilight quietly laid down beside her, and she wrapped a foreleg around the violet mare, closing her eyes and burying her face against her mane as Twilight curled herself closer. “But... how long has it been, Twilight? Thou said it was a long time...”
“A little over a week.” There was silence for a few moments as Luna processed this, and then the sapphire mare closed her eyes and bowed her head forwards before Twilight asked softly, glancing up at her: “Are you mad at Celestia?”
“Nay, just terrified that she is going to pummel me.” Luna mumbled, and then she shook her head quickly and said quietly, as Twilight smiled a little: “Not at all, with honesty... 'tis good that Celestia is... away. Able to think, able to regain her thoughts by herself, able to... relax some. This is not her fault: she should not suffer for what has happened to myself and Scrivener Blooms, any more than thou should. Thou should both be... be happy. And I appreciate thy concern but... thou should not... hurt so dearly for us, Twilight.”
“I care for you both. Very, very deeply... of course I'm going to hurt when you've both gone and... and been stupid.” Twilight replied quietly, shaking her head slowly and laughing faintly as she looked up at Luna with a faint smile. “Even Odin is worried and a little upset, but... I think he made the right decision in going with Celestia. They... they support each other really well.”
“'Tis gross, but they do, aye.” Luna agreed softly, glancing quietly over at Twilight. For a few moments there was silence again, and then the winged unicorn finally sighed and asked in a murmur: “And what of my children?”
“They're scared. Scarlet Sage came to visit once with Apple Bloom... and Antares is just... worried. Having Celestia around will help but... all the same. He loves his parents.” Twilight smiled faintly, nestling herself closer as Luna closed her eyes and felt a deep pang of self-loathing and shame. “So you and Scrivener need to get better... if only for his sake.”
“I... we shall then. We shall.” Luna murmured, and they descended into quiet again. Other questions rose in Luna's mind, but she all the same didn't have the strength to ask them as she laid quietly with Twilight curled silently up against her.
Twilight eventually fell asleep, and as Luna looked down at her, she wondered silently just how much the violet mare had gone through this last while, how much she had suffered... and felt so fortunate that she had Twilight Sparkle in her life. Twilight and Scrivener both; what greed, but what fortune, too, and she silently kissed the violet mare's forehead, just beneath her horn, before she whispered: “I shall always protect thee. Always, Twilight Sparkle, do not ever fear. Do not ever worry... thou shall always have a place with myself, and Scrivener Blooms...”
She closed her eyes as she pulled Twilight a little closer, her own breathing slowly evening out, sleep pulling her back down into darkness... and Luna sighed in relief as she found herself standing in a dark forest beneath the night sky, hopping a bit on the spot and smiling down at her body. No bandages, no pain, and even though she still couldn't sense Scrivener, the knowledge that he was safe and being taken care of was enough to help her relax.
She looked back and forth curiously, then glanced up as a shape strode slowly towards her... before her eyes widened and she stumbled backwards as Nightmare Moon stepped out of the shadows of the forest. But her wings had become leathery, her tail long, spiked, and whip-like, and her mane burned with blue flames instead of starry light as she grinned widely across at Luna.
The red-stained collar of roses around her neck dripped with fresh 'polish,' and spikes, knives, and other implements gleamed over her back as her demonic wings spread wide, then furled at her sides, small claws twitching with strange eagerness on the ends of these long appendages. Her cloven hooves strode calmly over the ground, which rotted beneath her with her passage as she leaned forwards, exhaling blue mist before whispering: “We are nearing perfection, Luna...”
“Nightmare Moon... there is no such thing as perfection.” Luna replied sharply, and she shivered after a moment before looking slowly over the monstrosity that Nightmare Moon had become, shivering as she realized the creature was even larger as well... that her eyes were glowing with ivory, unholy light out of features crisscrossed with scarring worn like honor, as she said weakly: “What... what hast happened to thou?”
“Necessary evolution.” Nightmare Moon replied with a soft smile, straightening and shaking her head briskly... and as her fiery sapphire mane swirled around her, Luna realized there were large, straight horns hidden amidst the flames along with a ridge of spikes that likely went all the way from forehead to spine. “Isn't it only proper that as the world worsens, as your nightmares worsen... I should grow stronger as well? Yes, the corruption... the corruption in Scrivener Blooms, I have been delving deep in it, experiencing it... and we shall grow powerful for him. I do not wish for either of you to think of me as the Nightmare Moon from that foolish story... weak, afraid, unable to pursue its course. A victim of cowardice.”
Luna swallowed thickly, staring disbelievingly over Nightmare Moon before the enormous monster leaned slowly down, locking gazes with Luna as she said softly: “But you must evolve too, little Luna... for do not fear, I have not forgotten that I am to bow to you, as well as Scrivener...” Nightmare Moon smiled slightly, accenting this with a slow drop of her head. “But what use are you to him if he must step in and save you every time something goes wrong? If he must sacrifice his life to protect yours...”
The sapphire mare snarled up at Nightmare Moon, but then the dark creature only laughed and stood back tall, smiling warmly through her scarred and marred features. “But does it really matter? You deny me, sweet little Luna, but I see the true you. And your pretty mask of false honor and nobility was torn back in our battle with the Norns... your true face was revealed, as was Scrivener's. Primal monsters... murderers. Killing Skuld was not enough... you desired her slaughter.”
“I desired to ensure she would not get up again, with or without the aid of her siblings.” Luna responded in a growl, gritting her teeth for a moment before she shook her head quickly and looked moodily up at the dark creature. “Thou art disturbing and difficult to look at, but I do not sense... hostility, precisely, from thee. What is it, Nightmare Moon? What does thou desire?”
“Love, power, freedom... many things.” Nightmare Moon replied courteously, and then she stepped forwards and smiled, reaching a hoof up to stroke slowly under Luna's chin and guide her into looking upwards. “Things that I can and will earn one day. Which I plan to begin earning right now, by teaching you the things you've always wanted to know, by sharing more of my strength with you... you have fed me for so long, with so much blood and passion and darkness... let me share with you in return. And not merely a short burst of power, to be used in battle... let me help you learn... that pain is pleasure.”
Luna shivered a bit, starting to pull away before Nightmare Moon let her eyes drift up towards the moon in the night sky, saying softly: “It's something you already know, Luna, but... not something you ever mastered, is it? But let me in. Let me in a little deeper, sweet Luna. Let me spread a little further through you... and I'll share what I have to teach, and help you reach your fullest potential. To let you... share a little more, with Scrivener Blooms...”
There was silence for a few long moments... and then Luna finally looked up at her and whispered: “I am not a monster.”
But Nightmare Moon only smiled gently in return, replying in a quiet, gentle voice: “And I have never said you are, little Luna. Tell me, am I?”
Luna laughed shortly as she looked over the creature of darkness in front of her... and then she shivered, half-yanking herself away before Nightmare Moon smiled knowingly when Luna halted, took a slow breath... and then finally looked over her shoulder, asking finally: “Will it... help Scrivener Blooms?”
“Yes. And as I teach you, so may you teach him. We share all things... and Scrivener already has an affinity for pain, does he not?” Nightmare Moon closed her eyes with a soft, tender smile... a smile so faithful, so loving, it sent chills down Luna's spine but also gave her a sense of strange and deep reassurance. “He will survive. The others may not have faith in him, but I do... and so should you. You shall see... yes, he will first weaken, he will suffer... but then there will be... a miracle.”
“A miracle...” Luna snorted after a moment, trying to deny the hope it gave her, the gladness she felt, as she asked sharply: “Art thou a fortune teller now, Nightmare Moon? A prophetess? Because as it is, we already have one problematic seer to deal with and do not require another.”
Nightmare Moon only laughed softly, however, smiling across at Luna before she said affectionately: “You are learning to trust me again, even though you hide it. You know I have never led you wrong... you know that even when I have overstepped my bounds, it has always been with purpose. It's always struck me as funny, though... I merely speak your deepest hopes and desires and beliefs, and yet you struggle to refute them, you become... terrified of them, what they are, what they mean. You shouldn't, sweet Luna... because I swear to you...”
Nightmare Moon slowly strode forwards, her eyes half-lidding as the glow increased, her fiery mane burning higher as her wings shuddered at her side. “Everything you desire... it will all be ours. Every dream we have shared together... shall all come true. Now come with me, little Luna. Let me make you strong.”
Luna hesitated for only a moment in this dark world inside her mind... and then, finally, she sighed quietly and turned to follow the enormous, black-coated creature, striding in the dark mire left in her wake and yet all the same finding herself eager to learn just what this devil might have to teach.