A loud clang rang out through the castle, and Celestia sighed. She turned to see the parallel seat, the ebony throne, lay empty, which drew a frown from the maternal mare. She stood, and began the search for her sister. Another crashing sound resounded, and gave the elder princess her direction. She walked off, towards the closed section of the castle.
This part had been closed ever since her mother left. Should she return, this place would once again be made public. Probably Luna playing with the silverware again, Celestia thought irritably. However, her sister was not in the kitchens. Nor was she in the bedroom, servants quarters, or wine cellar.
Celestia turned towards the last door, and sighed. The hall of relics, Mother's memories in physical form. Celestia pulled the ancient door open, and looked into the maze of boxes, things, and cobwebs. Celestia had began the tedious process of organizing this room, seeing as it defied the laws of physics, for some unknown reason. A spell only her mother could comprehend, the room's size was always enough. Thus, the opening few meters were a nice, clean hallway with artifacts on display in chronological order. But beyond that, it expanded into a cavern of crates, each labelled with a particular date.
And crates continued to appear, every so often. A flash of red indicated a new arrival, and Celestia whistled. "Three crates in as many months. Mother's been busy."
Celestia turned to the cavern, before spreading her wings and flying up above the labrynth before her. Another crash rang out, and it gave Celestia direction. Finally, Celestia located a clearing, and within it she saw her little sister, Luna. Celestia pulled in for a landing, and saw the decimated training dummy. "Lulu, what have I told you about coming in here?" She chided. "Mom's things aren't toys..." she began, before stopping abruptly.
Grasped within Luna's telekinetic aura was a long, unnaturally thin silver scythe. "But Tia..." she sighed, turning to face her sister with the widest eyes she could manage.
Celestia shook her head. "No. I've told you too many times: Don't go rummaging through Mom's things."
"Listen to me!" Luna cried, so her sister hung her head in defeat. There was no stopping her once she got like this. "I was sleeping in my wing when I heard this beautiful singing. I couldn't ignore it, so I followed it here. I did look everywhere else, though, just like you said to do." She said, the false tears gone. "Honestly , but I had to follow it here. And then I found this," she stated triumphantly, swinging the scythe above her head. "And, it was in a box with my name on it." She finished, a smug smile on her face.
"It was adressed to you?" Celestia asked, eyebrow raised. Luna nodded, and floated over an ancient wooden crate, with the name "Diana" written on the side. "Luna," Celestia sighed, "Why would mother adress a box to you by your middle name?" Luna shrugged, and Celestia took the box. She looked it over, then gasped at the date-mark inscribed on it. Y-343, Mother's three-hundredth and fourty third year in Equestria. Of course, equestria was only called that when it was founded, back in Y-2197. "Luna, this box was packaged centuries before you were born. Why would she package something, in her storage place, adressed to you, before you were born?"
Luna mulled it over for a moment, before she rolled her eyes. "Because mom knows everything. You yourself said she could see the future."
Celestia sighed, but thought about it for a moment. "Diana..." She whispered, before flying up to the organized area. She went to the bookcase and pulled the journal labelled 343, and began flipping pages. Sure enough, there was a single, simple referance.
"Day 216: Attended Diana's funeral tonight, under the light of a full moon. She left me her scythe in her will, and left everything else to her hometown."
Celestia smiled, and pulled an earlier journal, sure enough, another mention of Diana. Hundreds of the journals mentioned this Diana. By the time Celestia had gotten two hundred and fifty years back, she finally found the entry where Diana was introduced.
"Day 46: Met a new face today. Diana apparently is just now coming home for the first time in years, and the inhabitants of this town are apprehensive about this. I decided to openly approach her, and she told me one of the most fascinating stories I've ever heard. Apparently, the sun isn't the only locus of mana, as these people would have you believe. Diana had always been fascinated by the moon, yet she was shunned because she never let the warmth of the sun into her heart. Because of this, she could hear the soothing silence of the moon and stars, and they lend her their might after she travelled to their abandoned temple. She is now their herald, and wields the scythe of night, shaped like the crescent moon. She seems to be nice enough. Maybe I will pirsue a friendship with this strange, lonely star."
"Lulu, did I ever tell you about one of mom's oldest friends?" Celestia said with a smile, shutting the book.
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Celestia raised her golden sword, and pointed it at the horde of shadow creatures laying before her. "Attack!" She cried out, and from behind her, hundreds of gold-clad ponies charged into the fray.
On the other end of the plain, the leader of the shadow creatures smiled. "Go forth, my children. Go forth and destroy them." As she whispered her command, it echoed in the minds of each of her troops. A faint cry rose from the soldiers as they rushed forward.
But the two leaders only had eyes for each other. They strode calmly through the meele, and any over-zealous warriors who attacked them were quickly dispatched. At the crest of the hill, the two leaders met calmly. "Luna, stop this madness now." Celestia pleaded. "The world needs the sun. Without it, what will happen to the plants? The animals?" The sun peeked out from behind a cloud, which had been concealing it previously.
"We hath told thou: Don't call us that." Luna growled, then hissed as the sun hit her. "We are Nightmare Moon, the Lunar Mare of the Night." Luna's eyes flashed open in stern defiance of the sun. The pupils were thinned down into draconic slits, surrounded by a sea of angry teal. They glowed a soft purple, and Celestia watched in horror as her sister's coat changed from midnight blue to a pitch, terror black. "We are Nocturne Moon, and thou, Celestia Solaris, shall yeild to our might."
The moon pulled out into the sky, undaunted by the light of the sun. A blast of black emminated from the dark mare, and it rocketed up to the moon. When it impacted, the sky rippled, and a darkness emminated from the moon. Visible within the inky blackness were the stars, and the darkness spread back, so half the battlefield was shrouded in night.
The two celestial objects continued their climb into the sky as the sisters watched each other. "Now, Celestia Solaris, thy time has come." Nocturne moon stated, darkness rippling about her. A pulse of silver rocketed down from the moon, and adorned her two wings with large blades, each one moved with a dark grace, like a hidden, dark fantasy brought to life. The blades were a pure silver, yet the centers were pitted, and each stained blood red. Nocturne flared her wings, and the blades shrieked.
Celestia sighed, and looked up at the sun. "So be it." She whispered, before a blast of golden light shot down from the sky, slamming into Celestia. "Just as you now embody yours, so shall I mine." Celestia's eyes opened, a golden light streaming from them. "Let it be, that on this field, at this date, Celestiona rose from the ashes of her thousand tears." The light grew brighter, and Nocturne Moon had to shield her eyes from the pulse.
When her hoof lowered, she saw Celestia adorned in golden battlegear, with deep, regal purple cloth and trim. Her long, golden sword was held within her telekinetic grasp, and at the hilt rested a glowing sphere, a miniature incarnation of the sun. She also had a shield within her grasp, a golden behemoth of protection.
Nocturne Moon laughed, and Celestiona grimaced. "So begins our fatal dance." Celestiona whispered.
And then they threw themselves at each other.
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*Clang!*
*Tink!*
The two had been trading blows for hours now, most of the soldiers dead or dying at their hooves.
"Yeild!" Nocturne Moon shouted, aggrivated at the stalemate between the two.
"Never!" Celestiona replied, bringing her sword down to point at her foe. A lance of light shot from the sword, catching Nocturne by suprise and impacted her on the chest. The lancing, fiery pain paralyzed her muscles, and the beam retracted from the back, pulling Celestiona with it. Her armored form slammed into the younger sister, knocking her backwards slightly. During the few moments she was stunned, Celestiona's shield began glowing, and as Nocturne Moon regained her footing, she slammed the shield into her. The light passed from shield to her body, and a cage of heavenly light imprisoned Nocturne, temporarily.
"Sister," Celestiona pleaded. "I didn't want to have to do this." She sighed, a long, sad sound. "But you leave me no choice." Her golden aura moved behind her, and from her saddlebags, she produced six items. Five glinting necklaces and a single, proud tiara. Nocturne Moon looked up and grinned Wickedly.
"It's a nice sentiment, sister" Nocturne spat, sister coming out as acidicly as possible. "But it seems you shall lose this fight. Observe!" She shouted dramatically, throwing her head towards the sky. Sure enough, both objects were nearing their apex, and the moon began to block out the sun. "The Eclipse is at hand. And with it: My victory."
A single tear slid down Celestiona's face. "You believe that your moon shall be your salvation. I wish that were so." She stated, before the battlefield was shrouded in the darkness of the eclipse. The elements began to channel their might, and Celestia breathed in deeply. "Luna Diana Noctus, You are guilty of high treason, and attempted rebellion. For your crimes, your sentance is..." Celestia blinked, and another tear was shed. "Banishment to your celestial object: the moon" Celestiona opened her eyes, and beams of pure white came from them. "Goodbye, sister. I love you." She whispered, before unleashing the barely contained power upon the one thing she loved.
Nocturne Moon screamed, a horrid, talons-on-chalkboard sound, before letting out a soft whimper. Celestiona looked at the battered and beaten creature, as a dark, shadowy mist surrounded her sister. From the dark cloud, Celestia saw Luna's face emerge, crying. "We lovest thou too, sister." She said, before being pulled back into the cloud. A beam of silver light connected the cloud and the moon, and Celestiona closed her eyes, unable to bear seeing what would come next. A final pulse of light, and then all went silent.
It was a few minutes before Celestiona could open her eyes again. The elements lay inert upon the ground, as did her sword and shield. She watched as the two items cracked, sunlight spilling from the spiderwebs forming across the two, and then they vanished, rays of light beaming into the distance. She looked at herself, to see her armor follow suit. Finally, after observing everything and anything else, she looked at where her sister had last stood, vanished without a trace.
Yet there was one, a single object lay suspended in the air before Celestia (For that was what she was, No longer empowered by the sun). A long, silver sicle, peacefully floating where her sister once stood. "Luna..." she whispered, before bursting into tears.
A single soldier rose to comfort her. "Don't worry, your highness. The battle is over. Everypony is safe."
She looked up at the receeding moon. "Everypony save one." She whispered, before turning to this brave soul. Loyal without fault, honest, and kind to one who outranked him by numerous levels. Half the elements, wrapped up in a single body. A good leader. "Tell me, knight, what is your name?" She asked, a faint smile crossing her lips.
He stiffined up into a salute. "Jonny, your highness. Jonny Appleseed."
"Well, Jonny Appleseed," She stated. "I would like to build a town on this plain. And I would like your family at the forefront of the town."
"Mine?" He asked, startled back. "Wouldn't Captain of the Guard Dawn Sparkle, or aireal ace Messersmitt be better suited for such an honor?"
She smiled. "No. I want you, Jonny Appleseed."
He bowed. "I am honored, your highness." He stood, and put a hoof to his chin. "But this will be a town for all peoples, not another haven for the Apple family like Apploosa. Neigh," He said, a smile across his face. "But a town for all ponies. Ponyville."