//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: Caligula's Legacy // by CCC //------------------------------// By the time dawn arrived, Queen Selene must have known of the loss of her high-level pony warlord. She ordered half the Moon Twolls to attack anyway; half to lay siege to the city... and the other half to turn back to the ruins of Everfree City, taking on and croaking a mixed force or four casters and four warlords before going on to reinforce the first half. It was a massacre. Nightmare Moon (now styling herself "Princess Luna") tore through the oncoming ranks with ruthless efficiency. Not one Twoll was left standing; leadership was rapidly Turned with the Elements and turned against the troops they had been leading mere minutes before; not an instant was wasted on banter or grandstanding. The Lunar forces had their own foolamancer, a level three veteran of many wars; his illusions and veils were far in advance of anything Twilight could cast, but Luna was never fooled for more than an instant. The contrast in sheer competence could hardly be greater. Megan, stacked with and riding Princess Luna, had a perfect view; even as her bow sought out the enemy units and cut them down, she formulated questions for which she had no answers. It was clear, after the first few minutes of the battle, that Luna had not been bringing her best against the group who had faced her down... Megan did not get a chance to ask her questions until after the battle. As Predicted, Princess Luna had won a great victory; the ragged remnants of the attacking force had fled in the end, weakened far beyond the point where they could pose any significant threat to Ponyville. And even then, Luna had refused to answer, stating only that there was no time to wait, and hurrying towards Ponyville the instant their Turn started. Princess Celestia met them in Ponyville. The first thing she did was walk straight up to Luna, and wrap her foreleg around Luna's neck in a hug. "It has been far too long, sister," she said. "It has," agreed Luna. "I cannot tell you how glad I am to return to your side." "Wait," said Megan, "are you saying that you wanted to rejoin us? Is that why you let yourself get fooled so easily, so many times?" Luna nodded. "The Elements of Harmony did a terrible thing to me the first time they were used upon me; my dearest friend became my greatest enemy. My Duty became to the side of Moon, but my Loyalty remained always with Celestia - I had to do the minimum that my Duty required, yet my divided Loyalty ensured that I could do no more than that minimum against the side led by my oldest, and greatest friend." "That... explains a lot, actually," opined Twilight. She took off her tiara and looked at it. "So, these things alter duty, but not loyalty?" "Duty is to a side, so it's Turnamancy," said Rarity, "Loyalty is between two units, so that would make it Date-a-mancy." "Exactly," said Celestia, smiling. "Did you not wonder why I never sent anypony to collect the Turnamancy artifact from the Everfree ruins? It was because over-reliance on Turnamancy will tear a Side apart. The previous Ruler, the Emporer Caligula, made frequent use of the Elements to Turn opposing warlords, courtiers, and others. As high-value units, most of them ended up in his Court, as his advisors." She nodded at Megan, and laced her next words with the strength of an order. "Megan, would you please tell us what Caligula's court was like?" "Backstabbing," said Megan, "plots, deceit, corruption. Exceedingly unpleasant." Princess Celestia nodded. "That was the legacy of Caligula; the result of an overuse of Turnamancy without considering the underlying Date-a-mancy. Since we do not currently have a Date-a-mancer, I think that it would be best if we were to put the Elements away and never use them again. The short-term gains that they represent are not worth the long-term problems." "Princess?" asked Twilight. "Would it help if I studied Date-a-mancy?" Princess Celestia considered the matter. "It might," she conceded. "And might I stay with her?" asked Megan. "I really like being able to understand everyone, Your Highness." Princess Celestia stepped back in surprise. "You can understand me now?" "Yes, your Highness." "A simple practical application of Foolamancy!" said Twilight, happily. "She thinks she's hearing a voice that speaks Language!" "Well done, Twilight!" said Princess Celestia, happily. "Very well, then. I shall make a royal decree; Warlady Megan Faust, you shall remain here in Ponyville to protect and serve Foolamancer Twilight Sparkle, to the best of your ability. Foolamancer Twilight Sparkle, you are to remain here in Ponyville and study Date-a-mancy, the magic of Friendship, until such time as you feel you can resolve the long-term problem involved in overuse of the Elements of Harmony. Does this meet with the approval of all concerned? "Yeah!" "Yes!" "I like it!" "Sounds good!" Pinkie leapt into the air, spreading her forelegs wide. "I predict that it's time for a VICTORY PARTY!" she yelled, amidst widespread cheering.