Path
Starlight Glimmer could barely contain her smile, 'Who would have thought this old castle would have a library still intact! And with so many spells I've never even heard of!' Book after book, spell after spell, she increased her knowledge, and with it, her views and desires changed. She had so much power at her disposal, she could feel the magic coursing through her veins.
She smiled to herself, 'Why bother brainwashing ponies when there are spells which do that and so much more...' Several of the books discussed 'reform' spells in length. It would be easy with her skill to modify those spells into something more... Useful. Why make yourself leader of a single small village when one could just as easily use magic to 'reform' an entire city or nation into following you as their ruler...
And with the power of two alicorns, why stop there? She could take their magic and make it her own, and repeat the process until nopony, or any other creature for that matter, had any magic of their own... And what could stand against her then? And for that matter, what could stand against her now?
She narrowed her eyes as she thought about it. There were supposed to be only four alicorns, yet apparently Twilight had broken that somehow, having two more of herself wondering around. Although how much they were actually her was questionable, as both were different, and Nightfall certainly was less... Friendly... Than Twilight. Other than them, very few unicorns could have hoped to match her power before, let alone now...
It would be easy, so very, very easy to succeed. Twilight and her friends, even if Nightfall helped, wouldn't be able to stop her. Princess Celestia and Pricness Luna had already been brought to their knees, and Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor... They wouldn't be much of a threat after she had Twilight and Eclipse's magic. Then she could finish what she started with Nightfall.
And then why stop there? The fact that Eclipse and Nightfall were around proved something more existed. She didn't know how they did it, but knew somehow they had bent reality to their whims to be here... Once she had their magic, perhaps she would spare Twilight and her friends, and use them as leverage to make Eclipse tell her how to do what she and Nightfall had done...
She would need to plan her actions, and set things in motion first, however. It wouldn't do for Nightfall or Twilight and her friends to stop her before she could stop them, after all.
She closed the book she had been reading, lit her horn and teleported to the dungeon, just outside the cell housing Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Both alicorns glared at her upon her arrival, she smiled back. She levitated the book towards the bars, giving both princesses a good look at it. "A very interesting read. I have to admit, I didn't even know this was possible... Magic truly is fascinating, isn't it?" As usual, neither of them said a word.
She huffed and turned around, "I've barely scratched the surface of what this castle's library has to offer... I don't even know what to expect, anymore."
"Eclipse was unavailable to join you and sent me in her stay." Nightfall bitterly acknowledged her own presence to the group, drawing everypony and dragon's attention. Nightfall regarded each mare impassively, she completely ignored Spike, who wasn't sure whether to be irked of thankful.
"You know you could at least try to hide your dislike of us." Applejack stated flatly as Nightfall walked passed her, before stopping at a tree.
Nightfall placed a hoof on the trunk of the tree, "That would serve no purpose, Honesty." she retorted.
Twilight laughed loudly, "Ha. Ha. Ha!" her obviously fake, and clearly forced laugh drew everypony's attention, "It sure is a nice day, isn't it? A perfect day for a walk through the park!" she said more loud than was necessary, drawing the attention of a few ponies who were keeping their distance.
"Hmm, yes. A walk would do us good I think." Rarity chirped, and started off down the dirt path, doing her best to ignore how dusty it was and failing miserably. She looked more like the was dancing than walking to the rest of the group.
"I think it would be nice..." Fluttershy instinctually shrunk back when Nightfall looked to her. The memory of talking with Eclipse flashed through her mind, the desire to hide just... Vanished... She slowly lifted her head back out from behind her mane, and softly smiled at Nightfall.
Nightfall pursed her lips, "If that is your decision then I will oblige." she punctuated the statement by taking a step forwards, followed by another. As the group started walking, her mind wondered. Fluttershy smiled at her. Fluttershy smiled at her. She was taken aback by the action initially, but hid her shock. Instead, she now mulled it over. Eclipse had to be behind it, she was sure of it. That being said... Fluttershy had been the one to take the action, not Eclipse. That had to have taken courage on her part...
Fluttershy occasionally glanced back at Nightfall, and would catch sight of her frowning. The sight scared her, but she needed to be brave, for herself, for Nightfall, for Eclipse, and for Twilight. Eventually she realized Nightfall wasn't paying attention to her, and she slowed her pace, allowing Nightfall to catch up to her, and then she walked beside her. Nightfall seemed lost in thought, having not noticed Fluttershy's presence. "Um... Nightfall?"
Nightfall's eyes shot towards her, "What?"
Fluttershy had been prepared for Nightfall to glare at her. She had been prepared for Nightfall to mock her. She had been prepared for Nightfall's cold, scary voice to chill her to the bone. She was not prepared for Nightfall's voice to sound so much like Twilight's. For the first time since she had met Nightfall, she could hear Twilight's voice in her voice. She felt her heart flutter, and she smiled. "Are you um... Doing okay?"
Nightfall seemed to pause briefly, before continuing more slowly, an action mirrored by Fluttershy. She pursed her lips. She could lie, or she could tell the truth. It really didn't matter either way. She thought about her predicament, surprised she even thought of it as such. She knew she had just chastised Applejack about being truthful... And for some reason, she felt compelled to be honest. "No... I am not okay. I haven't been okay for centuries." Fluttershy shrunk back slightly, and Nightfall sighed.
"If um... You uh... Ever want to... Talk about it..." Fluttershy stammered, hiding behind her mane as she was unable to find her courage to offer to listen to Nightfall talk about what was bothering her. She knew she should, she wanted to also, but she knew it would be painful to hear...
Nightfall snorted, "You don't want to hear about what happened. It would only cause you pain and distress." she stated. As she spoke, her voice slowly became softer. "I don't want that." she admitted. It wasn't entirely true, but it was true enough. It surprised her how easily she was able to tell her that. And as much as she wanted them to pay... They weren't the ones who did it to her, rather they were imitations. At least that's what she told herself.
Fluttershy found her courage, and replied, weakly at first, but with growing strength, "Maybe so... But it would be good for you to talk about it. It would help you... I think." her courage faltered briefly at the end, but it got the message across. For a brief second, she thought she saw Nightfall smile, but the second was fleeting.
Nightfall picked up her pace, and walked passed Fluttershy. She ran her tongue across her sharp teeth, and found herself frowning.
Eclipse's eyes trailed over the Cutie Map, taking in each detail of the magic representation of the world. The map was currently centered on Ponyville, and the Castle of Friendship. The surrounding area was less detailed, and became more obscure as it grew farther away from the center. The map had been useful, and had served her well before, and she knew it would continue to serve them well, it was, after all, linked to the Elements of Harmony. That being said, she was aware that Nightfall had the Elements, thus there was a slight chance it might not work as it should have.
She shifted her gaze towards Rainbow Dash, who was sitting in her throne, laying back and relaxing. She had a pretty good idea why Rainbow was with her, rather than with Twilight. Which was fine, she enjoyed her company. And it made her feel a little better about herself too, knowing that despite what Rainbow knew of her, which, granted was rather... Limited... She would still choose to hang out with her rather than be around Nightfall. Despite her desire for her friends to all give Nightfall a chance, something she was betting could help, she didn't particularly like them being alone with her...
Which was to say without herself present, such as now. She looked back to the map, pushing the thought aside. Nightfall wouldn't hurt them... At least for now. After they dealt with Starlight... She wasn't sure. She needed to use her time wisely, but she couldn't push too much. A slight suggestions here, a subtle comment there... Nightfall might still see through her manipulations... But maybe she wouldn't be completely opposed to changing.
Nightfall was still her opposite... If the spell was to be believed... But maybe that didn't mean she couldn't be saved? Maybe if she shared her new plan regarding the others she would consider helping... She glanced back at Rainbow, the mare was now lying on her back looking up at the ceiling. Her plan for them was... Selfish. She grimaced, neither Celestia nor Luna told her their reasoning for denying her pleas... Maybe there was something she was missing, something she didn't know or realize... Or maybe they really did just make a mistake...
Regardless, she needed to figure out a way to ascend them, preferably before Starlight was dealt with. Starlight would have to be dealt with before she could bring her plan to completion, but if Nightfall could be convinced to help her with them... She grimaced, knowing that Nightfall would either have to choose to help her, or she would have to fight her for the Elements...
Rainbow rolled over onto her side to look at Eclipse, "So why exactly are we here?"
"I'm checking on the map and thinking." Eclipse replied, "I told you it'd be boring."
Rainbow groaned, "Ugh, can't you think while we're actually doing something? I don't like sitting around..."
Eclipse sighed internally, realizing that was the end of Rainbow's silence. She shook her head, the map seemed to be fine, so she really had no other reason to be here. "I-" Then again, she could use the magic map to show Rainbow one of her memories. The stray thought gave her pause, she was unsure where it came from. She pursed her lips as she thought about it. She could show Rainbow one of her memories... Should she though, and if so, which one? Then again... It wouldn't be fair to the others, and she had promised to tell them everything after fixing things. The thought of telling them everything... It wasn't as terrifying a it had been now, which surprised her.
Which, as she thought about it, was a good thing. They deserved to know. Maybe they didn't need to know, and she had no idea what effect on the timeline telling them what happened would have... But they deserved to know. At least as far as she was concerned. 'How were things supposed to turn out in the first place?' the thought struck her like a rock. When she looked back on how things had happened, she knew it was wrong, she could just feel that it wasn't supposed to happen that way... But that didn't tell her how things were meant to be, only that what had happened wasn't correct. And while she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that what had happened was wrong, she also knew she could be wrong, and that maybe things were meant to turn out that badly.
And that was a scary thought...
Rainbow sat up straighter, Eclipse had spaced out, and as time went on, her frown deepened. "Uh, Twilight?" Rainbow's voice broke Eclipse from her musings, "You alright? You uh... Kinda spaced out there for a minute."
Eclipse nodded her head, "Uh yeah sorry... Was distracted..." she trailed off, still occupied with the rogue thought.
Rainbow slid off her throne, "Thinking?" she asked, to which Eclipse nodded her head in confirmation, "Ugh... What... What is so distracting that we can't do something while you think?"
"The past... How things were... How things were meant to be..." Eclipse answered at length.
Rainbow's mood fell at that, Eclipse sounded distressed over being reminded about what happened by her. "Oh... Sorry..." she sheepishly apologized.
Eclipse looked to Rainbow and smiled lightly, "Don't be... It's... It's fine. It doesn't... Bother me as much as it used to."
Rainbow perked up, "Oh, that's good!"
Eclipse nodded. "It is... It will make telling you all everything easier... And I do owe it to tell you all about what happened..." She shook her head sadly, "I... I would not be able to do justice by what happened in all of your lives... But I will try. They were all wonderful... Even until the end..." Rainbow fidgeted on her hooves as Eclipse seemed to grow sad. Eclipse looked towards the ground sadly, and with guilt, "I suppose towards the end I squandered our time... And I will never get that time back with my best friends..." She looked towards Rainbow, "You... You are them, but at the same time, you're not... Nightfall is right about that... I... I will never get the time back I had with them... But I suppose I can make new time, can't I? I have a second chance after all, and not everypony gets one..."
"Uh, Twilight, not that I don't mind this but um... I'm not the best pony to talk to about that sort of thing." Rainbow ruffled her wings, punctuating her statement. "I'm a mare of action, not... Thinking..."
Eclipse smiled, "It just feels good to get that out..."
"Cadance!" Twilight exclaimed as both her sister-in-law and brother entered her vision. She immediately set off in a gallop to greet them, though her friends followed her at a more leisurely pace. Both Cadance and Shining Armor smiled brightly at Twilight, who didn't hesitate to return their smile.
"Twiley!" Shining greeted as he pulled his sister into a hug, one which Twilight eagerly returned.
Cadance smiled at the sight, "We missed you at the wedding... I hope that..." she frowned, thinking about what she was saying as she said it, "Bug... Bear..." the words sounded strange to her, "Didn't give you too many problems."
Twilight pulled away from her brother and went over to hug Cadance, "It wasn't that bad... I had help." She pulled back and waved a hoof around at her friends and Nightfall. "I didn't expect to see you until tonight?"
"You think I could pass up an opportunity to see my little sis sooner?" Shining answered with a smile. Twilight giggled lightly.
Cadance stepped over towards the others present, "It's good to see you all again... Hi Spike."
Spike smiled and waved, "Hey Cadance!"
Cadance looked to each mare present, ending with Nightfall. She eyed her wearily, "And you're..." She didn't want to say the name. She still didn't want to believe that it was possible for Twilight to turn into... Her... Being the Princess of Love was generally a fun thing, but it also meant she could more easily grasp emotions, whether they be friendly, or less than friendly. Nightfall... She was hard to read, so many conflicting emotions radiated off of her.
"I am Nightfall." she answered coldly. "Cadance." she nodded towards her, then looked to Shining Armor, "Shining Armor." she acknowledged with a nod of her head. Silence filled the air for several seconds after Nightfall spoke.
Everypony present shifted uncomfortably on their hooves, waiting for somepony to speak up and break the silence. "Eclipse and Rainbow are off checking something. Eclipse didn't say what, but they should meet back up with us shortly."
"I look forward to meeting her." Cadance smiled. "Though my correspondence with her has been limited..." She bobbled her head and grimaced, "Mostly to what has been going on..." she shook her head, "But I do look forwards to seeing her in person."
"And I'm sure she looks forwards to getting back to us and making sure I haven't done anything." Nightfall commented, drawing nervous glances from everypony present.
Shining Armor shook his head, "So how're you doing, Twiley? Staying out of trouble I hope?" he glanced to Nightfall as he finished. Nightfall rolled her eyes.
"I'm doing okay..." Twilight briefly frowned, then pushed it aside and continued, "But what about you two? I haven't heard from you in a while, how've you been?"
"We've been good..." Cadance answered with a chuckle, laying a wing around Shining as she did so. She frowned, "Although the letter from Eclipse about Celestia and Luna was... Something..."
Shining Armor took this time to glare at Nightfall, who stared back at him, unaffected by his condemning gaze. Cadance could feel her husband's dislike for Nightfall, and it hurt. She didn't exactly like or trust Nightfall, but... She could feel her pain, but she could also feel a spark of some kind, a flame of hope within the vast sea of darkness filling her heart. She leaned over to Shining's ear, and whispered, "That's enough... She's still your sister..." she pleaded.
Shining waited a few seconds before breaking off his glare, yet Nightfall's gaze remained on him. She continued to look at him dispassionately until he looked back at Twilight. "Are you sure you're safe around her?" he asked. Cadance winced, but had to admit she was worried about that too.
Twilight's expression fell, and her muzzle drew into a line. "I-"
Nightfall stepped forwards, "I am older than all of you combined. Even in my weakened state, I can still beat all of you..." she turned to Cadance, "If you were not in your current state... That might not be true..." she mused, then shook her head. "Regardless, Eclipse would stop me before I got that far."
Shining glared at her, "And what does that matter to you? I thought you were her opposite, that you wanted to hurt them all."
Nightfall snorted, "If I were to break my promise, Eclipse would stop me, even if it killed her. If I beat her I would be too weakened to fight Starlight Glimmer, and she would win. If she wins, then she will enslave the entire world. That is something I cannot, and will not abide."
"What about after Starlight is dealt with?" Shining asked in a low voice.
"I do believe Eclipse has been rather... Forthcoming... About my goals here." Nightfall answered.
Fluttershy looked between the two, seeing them fight was scary, and painful. Shining Armor was Twilight's brother, they shouldn't be fighting like that! "Please stop..." she quietly asked. Immediately Shining Armor turned to Fluttershy and his expression became regretful. Nightfall looked at Fluttershy indifferently, but took a step back. Applejack put a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder and smiled reassuringly, she smiled back lightly.
A few seconds later, there was a flash of light, and Eclipse and Rainbow appeared at the end of the path. Eclipse looked around briefly before catching the sight of the others. She smiled, then frowned when she realized Cadance and Shining Armor were there. A second later, both Eclipse and Rainbow disappeared, then appeared, this time much closer to the group.
"Eclipse." Nightfall acknowledged.
"Nightfall." Eclipse acknowledged.
Nightfall glanced around at everypony present, "As you can see... We are fine." As if making sure, Eclipse glanced around at everypony present, then nodded.
"Cadance... Shiney..." Eclipse greeted with a half smile. It had been even longer since she had seen either of them, and she had missed them too, but their memories were tainted by those last few years before everything went so... So painfully wrong. She sighed internally, remembering... "It's... It's good to see you again."
"It's the first time either of us have really seen you... You've really grown in... What was it again, a thousand years?"
"I think it was closer to one thousand four hundred years." Eclipse mused, then shook her head. "I have looked this way for... Since about... One hundred and fifty years after this, I think is what it was. I've not grown much-" 'At all.' she mentally corrected, "-in the past millennium."
Cadance frowned, something with that was wrong. Celestia and Luna had discussed at length Twilight's potential, even before she became an alicorn. She was capable of a lot now, and she would grow in time into more magic, and a more powerful body. Something must have stunted her growth along the way... 'Maybe Celestia and Luna have a better idea about what happened...' She shook her head a grimaced, 'Too bad they're not here...'
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7108571 What does APB stand for?
ICR where, but IIRC you said "Between Cadance & Luna"
7193543
From watching Cop Shows, it stands for All Points Bulletin. It means the police are looking for you.