//------------------------------// // Prologue: A Deal with the Devil // Story: What Might Have Been // by GreenFrogRibbit //------------------------------// Disclaimer: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and all associated characters, settings and stories do not belong to me. They are the rightful subjects of Hasbro, the HUB, and the almighty alicorn empress, Lauren Faust. What Might Have Been Prologue: A Deal with the Devil With steely eyes, Twilight Sparkle searched the bookshelf before her. If she put enough power into her stare she was sure she would be able to make the desired tome leap out at her. But the count of seconds rose steadily and with it, the purple unicorn's frustration. “Ugh! Spike! Have you seen my copy of Max Trotmark's The Hierarchy of the Hypothetical Multiverse?” From down in the library's main room the voice of one overworked dragon called back. “You got it down last night after that letter from Princess Celestia arrived. It's down here on your desk where you left it.” “Oh, well why didn't you tell me that before I went looking for it?” Twilight responded, irritation creeping into her voice. As she came down the stairs she saw that Spike had set up everything at her desk; he really was her number one assistant. “I'm not psychic you know. You actually have to tell me that you're looking for something before I can find it for you.” “I'm sorry, Spike; I guess I'm just a little nervous about this new assignment. Even I haven't heard of algebraic topology and metrization of locally infinite dimensional manifolds.” The librarian paused at that, never having said the whole thing out loud before. “Blug, what a mouth-full!” “You could say that again,” Spike grumbled “Not if I can help it, Spike. Now, would you please start some water for tea? I have a feeling I'm going to be here awhile.” “Sure thing, Twilight, just promise me that you won't go overboard with this.” “I promise, Spike,” the unicorn chuckled. Turning to her book she lit her horn, and began to read: “The idea of universes other than our own is both a fascinating fantasy and a deep and mysterious philosophy, but at root it can be broken down into four levels. The first is the simple idea that our universe is spatially infinite in all directions and has no edge. The second, allows the universe to have boundaries and exist as a single bubble in an infinite bathtub of other universes. The third admits that each and every possibility that ever could have come to pass exists as its own separate continuity of reality, and the fourth states that any mathematical construct possible describes not just an idea, but a reality in and of itself. The consequences of all this will be discussed in-depth later in this book but for now, dear reader, it is important that you understand two things: first, that the probability that none of the above theories reflect reality is exceedingly low; a multiverse almost certainly exists in one form or another. And second, that in any such multiverse there could be ponies very much like you and me. They could be living lives almost identical to our own, different in only the most subtle detail, or strange beyond imagining, resembling nothing we would count as familiar.” Twilight looked up from her reading. “I thought this was supposed to be a science book! Ponies in other universes, living lives almost identical to our own? What nonsense!” Little did she know that across a gulf of unimaginable space and time, that is exactly what was happening. ✶✶✶ ☽☀☾ ✶✶✶ With tear-filled eyes, an alicorn princess gazed in horror at the sky over what she had just done. The Elements of Harmony lay scattered around her, slowly petrifying as they lost their power. They were not meant to be used to harm friends, or sisters. The princess however, took no notice of this as she wept, the last few terrible moments replaying endlessly in her mind. I didn’t have a choice, she told herself, it was the only way to make her stop. I have a duty to my subjects; to protect them from danger, no matter what. But these excuses did worse than comfort her. They only served to deepen the growing well of self loathing. I should have found another way! I should have done something, anything, to quell my sisters hate! That's what good sisters do for one another: they work it out, make peace, and forgive each other before they do something so stupid. Something... “Unforgivable,” she whispered through her tears. “That's not how sisterhood is supposed to work.” But that's what it had come to. And because of it, the princess had been forced to witness a sight that she knew would haunt her darkest nightmares for the rest of her eternal life. As the magic of harmony enveloped the other alicorn, the dark magic of possession was briefly pushed back, and from the eye of that storm of power her sister and reached out to her. "SISTER, PLEASE!" she had screamed. Not in hate, but in sorrow, fear, and remorse. But the spell had already been cast, and once unleashed, it rushed to carry out its purpose. The energy surged and shackled its victim bodily to its own intention then rocketed her away, far from the ponies that she had sought to enslave, far from the co-ruler she had sought to throw down, and far from the sister who loved her still and now wept for her loss. Luna looked to the ground and saw the powers of friendship turned to lifeless stone because she had lost her dearest friend. Celestia was gone. Exiled to the sun with that monster Solar Flare and forevermore out of reach. Only once before had the moon princess known pain so deep. Long ago when she was much younger, she and Celestia had fought side by side against Discord. In what would be their final confrontation, both pony sisters had fought desperately to bring to bear the newly acquired Powers of Harmony. But their nascent connection to the mysterious Elements was so very tenuous, and the struggle wore on and on and the Sky Sisters had grown weary. How it happened Luna could not say, but in the heat of battle she had slipped. Capitalizing on her moment of weakness, the Lord of Chaos had aimed all his terrible power at the younger alicorn, intending to strike for the kill. In the moment when Luna looked death in the face Celestia intervened, shielding her younger sister from harm with her own body. For a brief, horrible moment Luna thought Discord had murdered her sister. But while the Moon wept, and Chaos laughed, the Sun had miraculously risen. In that single, shining moment the love between the two sisters was so great it ignited the Elements, and Discord was at last defeated. This time though, Luna knew that there was no chance that her sister would rise from the final blow like she had done then. This time it was Luna herself who had dealt the end-all stroke, and she knew there was no coming back from it. Though her sister was technicality still alive, Celestia would never be seen or heard from again by another living pony for the rest of eternity. So Luna wept. She wept for all the times they had shared playing and laughing on their fledgling world. She wept for all the times they had fought and made up, feeling as if, come flame or high water, they would always be there for one another. She wept for the guilt that ate at her insides like a ravenous ape. Mostly though, she wept because her big sister, her protector, her anchor in any storm, was gone. For a long time Luna stood with tears running down her cheeks, and watched the sun, now free of Solar Flare's hold, slide lazily toward the western horizon. "I'll have to make it set." she said to herself. "I'm not just the Princess of the Night anymore. I have to be strong for my little ponies. It's what 'Tia would want." This brought a new wave of grief to the moon goddess, but for the moment she pushed it aside. She had a job to do first. Setting her hooves and lowering her head, Luna stretched out with her ailcorn magic and reached for the sun. The moment her will touched it though, her eyes shot open and she recoiled instinctively. The sun is absolutely nothing like the moon! she thought. Luna paused for a moment, realizing the utter obviousness of the idea. Rolling her eyes at herself she tried again. The first thing Luna noticed was the the size. The sun was massive beyond anything she had ever imagined, thousands upon thousands of times larger than her moon, and it was heavy. Luna could, if the desire took her, have the moon dance across the night sky almost at whim, but the sun would tolerate no such frivolity. It was a behemoth, a titan that had to stay its narrow course or risk crushing all in its path. Strangely, it was also fluffy, or at least that's the best word that Luna could use to describe it. Unlike the moon, the sun had no solid surface, no boundary that clearly marked where it ended and where the empty sky began. Whereas the moon could be pictured as a great stone in the sky, the sun was more like a pool of water in the dimple of an oilcloth, yielding yet enormous. Luna pushed with all her might, but the sun refused to quit the sky. She ground her teeth. "If Celestia could do it, so can I!" she exclaimed, and threw herself into the task before her. She pushed, pulled, shoved, heaved, threatened, begged, and demanded that the sun make way for the night, and slowly, agonizingly, it inched lower and lower into the west. Luna then turned her attention to the east and reached for her moon. Though she was exhausted from the previous ordeal, the moon took pity on its princess and cooperated in its ascent. Luna gazed at the night she loved so dearly for a moment before taking wing and flying back to Canterlot. She was a solitary ruler now. A princess alone who had a duty to her little ponies, and she would not fail them again. The days and weeks that followed Celestia's banishment were oppressively hard on Luna, and it started with the lack of sleep. The princess of the night was accustomed to sleeping through her sisters day and attending to her royal duties under her star-filled sky. Unfortunately the majority of her little ponies needed the services of their princess during the day, and the shift left Luna bone weary and frazzled. Adjustments to her sleep schedule aside, Luna was also expected to do the work of two princesses. She had to be sharp and attentive for both her Night Court, where she dealt out justice in the criminal cases brought before her, and in her sisters Day Court where she was expected to rule on myriad civil matters. In addition, all the meetings and committees she had to oversee, and the added strain of shepherding both the sun and the moon across the sky, left Luna feeling as though she was beginning to fall apart. Worst of all were the simple things that were gone. The voice that woke her to set the moon was no longer Celestia's, just her hoofmaiden's. Her meals in the private dining room were silent and lonely. Sometimes Luna thought she overheard her sister's voice in a crowd, but would turn and see no one there. Sometimes she felt a flutter of excitement as she rounded a corner in the palace, expecting to find Celestia, to be greeted with an empty hall. Mostly, she just felt a dull ache that crushed her heart. Luna knew that eventually she would get used to the changes. She knew that she could adjust to the heavier workload and sporadic sleep schedule, and in the most cerebral part of her mind, Luna knew that she would also get past the loss of her sister. But she didn't want to get past it. She didn't want to wait for time to heal the wounds of her heart. She didn't want to admit to herself that her sister was as good as dead. If she did, all Luna had to look forward to was an eternity alone. She had to know if there was any hope for Celestia to return free of her hatred, or if the endless expanse of the future really was hopeless. Whatever the answer, Luna told her self, knowing the truth might just ease the pain. The sun neared the western horizon as the Princess of the Night stepped out onto her private balcony of Caterlot Castle. In the few weeks since Celestia's exile, Luna had greatly improved at managing the sun, and sunset was only a few minutes late. After raising her moon and setting her all stars alight, Luna took a moment to appreciate her magnum opus. A few thin wisps of cirrus clouds gave the moonlight a pale and ethereal canvas to paint, and the stars were so many and so luminous that they almost ran together like milk spilled across the sky. A masterpiece. Not at all a compliment to the dark deed that the moon goddess was about to perform. If Luna wanted an answer to her burning question, she knew there was only one place she could go to get it. Though Celestia could use her divine light to reveal hints and whispers of what was to come, Luna's power was much more precise. Given to her and her alone was the ability to peer past the veil of chance and uncertainty and see clearly a tiny piece of what would one day be; she could ask the future a clear and simple question and receive a clear and simple answer. Celestia could feel the subtle pull of destiny, but her prophecies were little more than hunches and generalities of a vast and sweeping scope. Luna, by contrast, was given only the narrowest of foresight, but what she saw could be stunning in its clarity. Of course, partial knowledge of the future can often be more misleading and harmful that none at all, a fact Luna was well aware of. And then there was always the issue of price. The princess of the night shook her head to clear it and tore her attention away from the star-filled sky. She turned her focus inward, and from the outside it seemed as though Luna's form reached up and melded with the night. From deep within herself, Luna could feel the tapestry of the night as though it were an extension of her own body. The waxing and waning cycles of her moon sang in harmony with her own heartbeat, and the path of the stars and constellations guided the blood through her veins. Luna took a deep breath and felt her lungs fill with midnight sky, and let all earthly thoughts slip from her mind. Here was her sanctuary. Deep in the magic of the night, Luna was utterly and completely at peace. The moon goddess savored the tranquility for a moment before moving on, she had come here for a reason after all. Soft as a shadow, Luna slipped past her moon, venturing deep into the darkened sky. Carefully she maneuvered her consciousness around her stars, and finally past the sweeping starlight expanse that her little ponies affectionately called the Milky River. Beyond all heavenly light, Luna came at last to the endless dark that was her canvas. Here, in the deepest dark, lurked her goal. "Nightmare!" Luna called into the void. "I wish to speak with you." Form out of the abyss, the silky smooth voice of Nightmare Moon replied. "Be careful what you wish for my little Luna, for you just might get it" Where before there was only emptiness, a shadow of terror bled into being. Her inky black coat melded perfectly with the dark beyond the stars and her dragon-like eyes sent a shiver down Luna's spine. "I thought you said that you were done with me,” the black goddess began, “after you realized that our dear sister was being overcome with jealousy for our beautiful night. The irony that you were almost as jealous of her is not wasted on me, you know. To think that Celestia herself would be the one to deliver to us the things we wanted most from her; respect for our glorious night, the adoration of our subjects..." Nightmare Moon gave Luna a knowing look and guilt blossomed in the princess’s stomach. "...And the uncontested rule of Equestria." Luna didn't want to admit it even to herself, but there was a small, selfish, horrible part of her that wanted to throw Celestia down and ascend to a singular throne. The princess fought those hurtful thoughts back with her love for her sister and memories of all the kind things Celestia had done for her. Like when Luna's first mortal lover had fallen to sickness, and the gravity of Luna's immortality was crushing her, Celestia was there for her. Her older sister had said that though uncountable generations of ponies would grow and die before their eyes, the sky sisters would always have each other. Luna had felt so close to her sister then. Now they couldn't be farther apart, much to Nightmare's pleasure. "Though not exactly how I would have gone about it," she went on, "I have to admit that your results are impressive Luna. You managed to get rid of Celestia all on your own. I must say I'm very proud." "Stop it!" Luna gasped "She's still my sister and I love her!" she snapped back. Tears she didn't even know she was shedding streamed down the princess's face. "If there had been any other way to stop her rage, any way to save her, I would have done it in a heartbeat! Don't you dare suggest otherwise! You're a monster! You are nothing to me!" "Such cruel words Luna!" Nightmare said, her voice thick with mock indignation "If I truly mean so little to you then tell me, why have you come here seeking me out? Is there some new immortal who isn't treating you fairly? Or perhaps you have realized that with Celestia out of the picture, I will be your only eternal companionship amongst a sea of ponies doomed to die? I can't say we're off to a good start if that's the case." "I came here for an answer!" Luna demanded as she fought to regain her composure despite her raging emotions. "I want to know if I will ever see Celestia again. I want to know if she will ever be my sister again, and not just a monster." The devilish grin slid from Nightmare's face to be replaced by a scowl. "Always so sentimental. It's what makes you weak, Luna. I'm disappointed in you, the moment you finally have everything your true heart desires you want to know when it will end." "You are the one who wants those things Nightmare. You want to be rid of my sister. You want the singular rule of Equestria. Not. Me. I was a fool to listen to your selfish ambition. I only wish I had realized that before it was too late to help Celestia through her own dark feelings. Now I want to know if I will ever have the chance to correct that error!" “I am just as much a part of you as you are a part of me." Nightmare retorted. Her voice was cold and flat and her smirk was razor sharp as she admonished Luna. "You ignore that fact at your own peril. Let us not forget that it was by ignoring another part of your self, namely your undying love for Celestia," Nightmare spat those words, "that led to this whole situation in the first place. And now you've come seeking a vision of what will be, filled with grief and regret, hoping to do what, exactly? Atone for your past mistakes? I suggest that you learn from them first!" “Yes, I have come to make amends for what I have done, something you would never even consider! Now I came here with a purpose and I WILL see that purpose fulfilled! Will Celestia ever be returned to Equestria and free of Solar Flare's influence?" Nightmare Moon's dragon eyes bore into Luna with a withering glare. The two silently held each others gaze for a moment before Nightmare let out a huff and looked away in defeat. "As you wish." Her obsidian horn shone faintly with the glow of moonlight for a moment before she asked "Are you willing to accept the price?" "And what price is that?" A wispy ball of violet light coalesced between the two ponies and pulsed faintly with what could have been a heartbeat. "A destiny." Nightmare Moon responded "The fate of a single pony will be lost." "What do you want with the fate of this single pony?" Luna hesitantly asked. She had long since learned that giving her alter ego what she wanted was a bad idea. "Ha! I thought I made it clear that I want nothing to do with this fool's errand. If you wish to observe the future then you must necessarily change it. That's what this price is, Luna. It is the hoofprint you leave in the sands of time." Luna though about the gravity of the choice before her. The lives and destinies of her little ponies were all valuable and unique, changing even one could have disastrous consequences down the line, and meddling with the stuff of fate was not a right of her divinity. But she already missed Celestia so much, and Luna was determined to see this through. Cautiously. "What will become of this soul if I do this? Will they suffer?" She asked Nightmare Moon glared at her other half. "Just asking that much has the power to change what might be, though you scarcely need my help to divine such trivialities. You're a big filly, why don't you look and see for yourself?" It was Luna's turn to glare now, though she knew Nightmare was right. On her own, Luna could easily discern bits of the future that were of so little consequence. It was trying to see events that would shape the course of history, like the return of her sister, that required the Moon Princess to be joined with her darker half. "Very well" she said, and closed her eyes. Then Luna reached deep inside herself to the place where her godhood dwelled, and with magic unique to her, turned her divine sight on the violet wisp between Nightmare Moon and herself. Her eyes opened, glowing from within with the pale light of the full moon. Looking deep into the purple haze she saw a colt. The sourceless knowledge of dreams told her that this young stallion did not suffer, or fear, or want. He was content, if rather lonely. Luna released her hold on the magic and let the spell fade. Her eyes returned to their usual turquoise and her posture became more confident. "I take it you've decided to go through with this then?" Nightmare Moon asked, already knowing the answer. "I have." The obsidian alicorn sighed and closed her eyes. As she called magic into her horn, the purple wisp between Luna and herself slowly froze into impossibly delicate crystal, then shattered and fell away. The night princess saw her darker half step forward and Luna lowered her head in response. Calling on her own magic, Luna closed her eyes as well, waiting. Nightmare Moon lowered her head, and for an instant, touched the tip of her horn to the tip of Luna's. Their eyes shot open, brilliant with divine power, and as one their voices rang out through the void. On the longest night in one thousand years, the planets shall align, Their baleful might will aid release of the Tyrant Sun Divine. Her hate unquenched, her rage renewed for the starry firmament, Her sister she will then throw down to lunar banishment. A single soul, to heal her heart, will bare The Magic key, But he who holds this broken fate must find lost destiny. The magic spent, Luna and Nightmare Moon slowly came back to themselves from their trance-like state. The implications of their prophecy began to register and Nightmare was first to react. "You fool ..." She whispered "... you IGNORANT, STUPID, SENTIMENTAL FOOL! We had Equestria at our hooftips and you didn't even care! All you could do was mope for dear lost Celestia and now we will spend an eternity in exile for it! YOU SELF-CENTERED CHILD! Now, because of you, Solar Flare will return and Equestria will be reduced to ASHES! Who will there be to rule then, who will appreciate our night? NOPONY! And all because you wouldn't accept the best thing fate ever dropped in your lap! You disgust me, Luna! I can't even stand the sight of you anymore! Leave me in peace for these thousand years that I will have to savor your absence, before Celestia casts us together forever. Go back to Equestria and pretend to be exactly what you're not! A perfect little princess! With that, Nightmare Moon dissolved back into the darkness leaving nothing but her final words to echo through the abyss. "Pretend to be exactly what you're not" Luna felt the sting of those words more sharply than any Nightmare Moon had ever spoken. She had ensured a future of pain and tyranny for her little ponies. She didn't have the will to be a lone ruler. She couldn't be "A perfect little princess". Neither could she escape the haunting echoes of her vision, or the justified rebuke in Nightmare's words. She had doomed herself and her subjects because she was weak. She had failed to make amends with her sister because she was foolish. She had done all of it because she was selfish. She didn't deserve to be "princess". princess... "Princess!" Luna started, Coming back from her introspection. She was no longer in the starless black of her canvas, but back on the palace balcony beneath her starry sky and brilliant moon. Looking around, the goddess of the night noticed one of her royal guards standing by the door. "I apologize for the interruption your Highness, but the Night Court is scheduled to begin in five minutes." The guard said Luna knew she was in no fit state to deal out fair justice right now, or oversee the Equestrian Tax Reform committee meeting after that, or any of her royal duties. Her voice shook and her eyes glistened as she spoke "See to it that all my engagements tonight are postponed until tomorrow." "but your Highness..." "Lieutenant, please," the alicorn interrupted, her composure rapidly eroding "I need this night to..." her voice caught in her throat as the first of many sobs wracked her body "...to be alone." "As you wish Princess." The guard left Luna's chambers just as the goddess of the moon collapsed, crying like she was a little filly again. But this time, there was no big sister to chase the monsters away, and because of her actions this night, there never would be again.