Princess Celestia has spent an entire millenium as Equestria's sole monarch. When her sister returns, she's going to have to rediscover the Magic of Friendship with the help of her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.
Princess Celestia has spent an entire millenium as Equestria's sole monarch. When her sister returns, she's going to have to rediscover the Magic of Friendship with the help of her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.
My dearest teacher, my continuing studies of pony magic have led me to discover that we are on the presi something bad is about to happen. For you see, the mythical Mare in the Moon is in fact Nightmare Moon, and she's about to return to Equestria, and bring with her eternal night! Something must be done to make sure this terrible prophecy does not come true. I await your quick response.
“Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.”
Celestia lowered the note with her magic, and brought a blank sheet of parchment before her. I had been almost one thousand years since she had banished her sister. One thousand years alone.
“That’s not true. I have Cadance; I have Twilight; and most of all, I have many caring, loyal subjects.”
“They aren’t the same,” Said a soft, imaginary voice. “Luna understood you, and you understood Luna.”
“Those who are close to me understand me very well.”
“Who is there that has been as close to your heart as Luna?” Said the voice, a bit louder now.
“None are closer to my heart than her; but they are all close to my heart.”
“Which is why you spend so much time talking to yourself?”
Celestia sighed. It felt like a part of her had been missing for a thousand years. Yet, her fond memories of her sister had not faded. Her alicorn magic had prevented that for the past millennium, and would continue to for several more millennia. It was both happy and tragic that she could not forget her sister, yet she wondered whether that’s what she really wanted, having removed nearly all trace of her from historical texts, until she was confined to the roles of “the younger of the legendary Alicorn Sisters” in one story, and “the Mare in the Moon” in another. But even if she wanted to forget, she couldn’t. It was her duty to protect the ponies of Equestria, and she would have to be prepared for when the seal of the Elements broke on the coming Summer Solstice. It was all up to her to rediscover the Elements of Harmony; and one of them, so she believed, was vested in her young pupil, Twilight Sparkle. She had confidence in Twilight’s magical ability and good nature. Yet as her thousandth Summer Solstice approached, she was at her wit’s end trying to find the rest of them.
She lifted Twilight’s note and read it again. “Leave it to Twilight to solve a thousand-year-old mystery,” she mused. “Wait…”
A thought struck her. She quickly began writing.
My dearest, most faithful student Twilight. You know that I value your diligence and that I trust you completely, but you simply must stop reading those dusty old books! My dear Twilight, there is more to a young pony's life than studying, so I'm sending you to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year's location: Ponyville. And, I have an even more essential task for you to complete: make some friends!
Mere minutes after she had sent the reply, Twilight barged into her quarters. “Princess, did you read my note?”
“Of course I did, my faithful student, otherwise I could not have replied.”
“And I presume from that you know the books that I drew my conclusions from?”
“Of course, Twilight, but you shouldn’t worry yourself. The Mare in the Moon is an old pony’s tale.”
“But the story of the Alicorn Sisters is based on historical fact! It’s in a HISTORY book for crying out loud! It can’t just be a coincidence that Nightmare Moon and the Mare in the Moon were both banished to the Moon!”
“Twilight, the Mare in the Moon could very well be based off of Nightmare Moon’s tragedy, but it’s still an old pony’s tale. You shouldn’t rely on fairy tales and prophecies for facts.”
“But what if it IS true?! If Nightmare Moon returns, we need to figure out how to stop her from bringing about an eternal night, because without the Sun, plants won’t grow, the land will grow cold, and we’ll starve and freeze and...”
Celestia raised a hoof, silencing Twilight, though she continued breathing at a rate at least four times too fast.
“I will never let that happen to Equestria. You have more important things to worry about. I’ve seen you grow from a filly into a young mare, but you still prefer remaining cooped up in the library reading books to having any friends.”
“I have friends! Shining Armor’s my friend.”
“He’s your brother.”
“He’s my BBBFF!”
Celestia raised an eyebrow in puzzlement.
“Big brother, best friend forever?”
“Family is some of the most important friends you’ll ever have,” said Celestia in agreement, “but Shining Armor is my Captain of the Royal Guard. He has responsibilities to fulfill, and can’t spend as much time with you as he did when you were a filly.”
“Spike is my friend, and he spends all of the time with me. We even sleep together! In separate beds, though,” she added.
“Which makes Spike practically family as well. He might as well be your little brother for how close you two are.”
“And you…”
“Am more than happy to be your mentor, and yes, your friend. But you need to get out and meet mares your own age. Meet new ponies so you can learn more about the world, and about the most powerful magic known to ponykind.”
“What’s that?”
“The Magic of Friendship.”
Twilight gave her an odd look, as sort of mish-mash of disbelief, surprise, and curiosity.
“Yes, I know it sounds strange, but it’s more powerful than you can imagine. I even suspect it to be more powerful than I can imagine.”
Twilight’s eyes widened at the prospect of a magic that even Celestia could barely fathom. She shook herself out of it. “But if Nightmare Moon is coming in two days, we have more important things to do than making friends!”
“If Nightmare Moon is coming in two days, I will be the one to worry about it. You, on the other hoof, need not worry. Go to Ponyville, and ensure that the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration are coming along well. While you’re there, make it your duty to socialize with the ponies around town. Just relax and don’t bother yourself with things that may or may not come to pass. I promise you that it is more important than any other task you’ve undertaken as my protégé.”
Twilight sighed. “Okay.”
“Thank you, Twilight. Tomorrow morning you’ll take a chariot to Ponyville, faster than the train or your balloon. I trust that you’ll remember both of your tasks well, especially the latter one.”
“I’ll remember, you have my word. I better go pack my things.”
“That I think you should. Also, I think you’ll be pleased to know that I’ve arranged for you to stay overnight at the town’s library.”
“Thank you, Princess.”
“Have a wonderful trip, Twilight. I’ll see you at the celebration.”
Twilight left to pack. Celestia yawned. It was time to rest her sleepy head. She concentrated her magic, lowering her Sun and raising her sister’s moon. She walked over to her bed, and slipped under the covers. She stared at the moon, marked with her sister’s face to constantly remind her. Sadness washed over her, as she longed for the escape of her dreams. That Summer Solstice, she would have to repeat the thing in her life she most regretted. She would have to re-seal her sister in the moon for the next millennium.
Heat beat down mercilessly on the land of Equestria. The water had dried up, and the clouds had dissipated, leaving the Sun to hang alone over the parched and dying land. The heat caused Celestia discomfort, but she couldn’t lower the Sun; she couldn’t face her…
“Please, Princess! Lower the sun!”
A scream of a thousand voices came from a single pony cowering at her hooves. But she couldn’t, she wouldn’t, not even for…
Twilight Sparkle shriveled before Celestia’s eyes, then without warning, she burst into flames, and before she knew what was happening, all of Equestria was burning.
She cried out as she sunk into the earth, the roaring blaze licking at her body.
Then it all stopped. Celestia found herself laying on cool earth. She got up, and found herself standing on a moonlit path in a dark forest. The Everfree Forest. A flicker of light caught her eye. She turned around in fright, but instead of a great red blaze, there was only a small blue flame, no bigger than the light of a candle. As she continued to gaze at it, she was entranced by its serene glow. Involuntarily, she felt herself drawing closer to its warmth. Suddenly, the flame erupted into a dark inferno, and a monstrous shadow leapt out, biting her in the neck…
The Princess jerked awake in a cold sweat. Despite her release from the nightmare, she was terrified. No longer asleep, she now realized what the shadow was. It was none other than Nightmare Moon. She got up and trotted to a window. She gazed up at the moon. Her sister’s face still stared back at her. For centuries she had wondered what it was like being trapped within the celestial body of the night. What had her sister been doing for all of these years? Was she trapped in time as well as space? Would she return from her banishment not knowing than a minute had passed when several generations had risen and fallen before she could blink an eye? She didn’t think so. She had nothing to back this gut feeling, except that whenever she looked at the Moon, she thought that she could feel Luna watching her. It was a feeling that was deeply unsettling, but that she almost couldn’t live without after many years.
And so other possibilities grappled for dominance in her reasoning. Had her bondage given her time to think and see the error of her ways? Would she be repentant when she returned?
“…and forgiving?” said an unheard voice in the back of her mind.
Was she just patiently waiting for the day when she’d be free, like a Hydra in a swamp for its prey? Had her imprisonment stoked the fires of hatred and given her a thirst for vengeance? These things she could not know, and perhaps she did not wish to know.
As she pondered the Moon and the visage that shaded its surface, a familiar warmth welled up within her. It told her that the moment of daybreak had arrived. Her horn, pointing skyward, glowed with blue light. Slowly, the moon fell from the sky and faded away, as the sun peeked out from the opposite horizon. The day had begun.
Celestia didn’t have the time to see Twilight off. She needed the better half of the day to prepare for Nightmare Moon’s arrival. To grace herself with the most powerful enhancing spells and protective enchantments know to ponykind required hours of concentration and repetition. The plan was fairly simple. The Princess knew that Nightmare Moon would return to the castle looking for her. The Elements were hidden away in the Castle, and under no circumstances could she find them before Twilight. Celestia would direct Twilight to the Castle and order her to take five other volunteers. Braving the Everfree would not be easy, but if they worked together, they could make it, and the bonds they formed would reawaken the Elements of Harmony. In the meantime, Celestia would call the evil Alicorn of the Night to herself, and then quickly draw her away from the town and the forest. Celestia didn’t know how long she could last without the Elements of Harmony, and if Nightmare Moon overcame her, what would the pitch-black princess do next? Terrorize ponies? Hopefully she would have no reason to. Attack Canterlot? She probably didn’t even know of the new castle’s existence. There would be little point if she had defeated Celestia. Return to the abandoned castle? Now that seemed like a likely move she’d make: to restore her rule as she envisioned it since the day of her turning. But what if she returned to look for the Elements? Upon realizing that Celestia no longer possessed the instruments of her demise, would she not seek them out to ensure, one way or another, that they could never again be used against her? Twilight wouldn’t reach the Castle first without a considerable head start. Nightmare Moon’s powers would aid her considerably in a race through the dark forest. Everything depended on Celestia keeping her away from the forest. If she was lucky, Nightmare Moon might never return to the Castle. As she made her way to her chariot, she gave the Captain of the Royal Guard some last minute instructions.
“Keep everyone calm, but stay alert.”
“If I may ask a question, your Highness…”
“You may, Captain Shining Armor.”
“You’ve been away from Canterlot many times before…”
“Twenty-two times since I appointed you, I believe,” she said, smiling.
“I… think so… but you’ve never asked for precautions like these before. A curfew…?”
Her smile slackened. “Nopony is to be outside their homes at nightfall,” she said, in a more serious tone. “Nopony but your guards.”
“…and all guards are to report for duty?”
“…which is why I ordered them all to take naps before sunset. Besides, it is the Summer Sun tomorrow. I’m sure most of Canterlot, curfew or not, will want to stay awake for the night. You will, won’t you?” She smiled knowingly at him.
“Er, uh, yeah.” He mumbled awkwardly. “However, as your highest-ranking security official, I think it would be expedient if you told me the reason for these precautions. Is it just because of the holiday?”
“You could say that…”
Shining Armor was starting to get a little frustrated at the lack of clarity.
“As my Captain of the Royal Guard, I do have one very important order for you to follow above all others.”
“Anything, your Highness.”
“Keep watching the moon.”
Shining Armour looked at her. If she had been smiling, he would have thought it some sort of joke. This was no joke.
“Every minute of the night, Princess.”
“Good.”
She stepped into the Chariot, where she was accompanied by two unicorn guards, while two pegasi guards were harnessed to the front of the chariot.
“Expect me after the Sun comes up.”
The pegasi guards started off at a gallop, then let their wings take over as they got to the end of the runway, as they soared away towards Ponyville. Shining Armor was left dumbstruck. He was taken aback by another statement that should have been a joke (When else would she come back? Before the sun came up?) said in complete sincerity and solemnity. His mind reeled as he headed back to his office for a powernap, first making sure to write down the mysterious instruction to remember when he woke up.
Keep watching the moon.
Celestia went over the plan in her head over and over during the journey. The two unicorn guards were chatting excitedly about the celebration. Apparently, one of them had never watched a Summer Sunrise before. She didn’t mind. She preferred the levity to her overthinking, self-doubting mind.
Time seemed to fly by as they got closer, as the Sun dipped in the sky. Was the day already over? The Sun kept dipping… no, moving…
“I didn’t push it that hard…”
She set her horn aglow to stop the Sun’s arc, but there was no reaction. She could not feel it with her magic, which could only mean it was outside of her control.
“…and then this mare literally exploded…”
“STOP!”
No sooner had the plea finished than the Sun disappeared over the horizon. The sky darkened from a burnt red to the all-familiar nighttime navy. Time was running out faster than she had planned for. She had to get to Twilight!
“Guards! Return to Canterlot at once, and inform Captain Shining Armor of this new development! I will proceed to Ponyville on the wind! Understood?”
The Pegasi did not acknowledge or act on the order. Instead, their wings began slowing down, and their heads began to droop, like unwatered flowers.
“GUARDS!”
The Pegasi stopped flapping altogether, and fell down. They hung limp from the chariot by their harnesses.
“Geez, I’m so tired,” said one of the Unicorn guards.
The other one yawned.
Within seconds, they were unconscious. Slowly, the chariot began to fall, despite Celestia’s best efforts to keep it afloat.
“My magic… can’t be this weak…”
They hit the ground with a hard THUD.
They had landed in a thickly wooded area. Though not as thick as the Everfree, the darkness of the night did nothing but enhance the dark, lonely aura of the place. Celestia checked the four guards. Apart from being unconscious, they seemed to be unharmed. With a single beat of her wings, she was airborne. It tore her to leave loyal subjects in direct service to her behind, but there was no time. She had to get to Ponyville! She had to tell Twilight…
“Going somewhere?”
Celestia froze. Then she sharply turned around, and blasted the thing behind her with her magic. When she stopped using her magic, she found a burnt stump of what used to a tree.
Then she heard laughter. Not joyful crowing, or amused chortling, but sinister cackling that was dripping with malice. Celestia had only heard that laughter once before in her life. But that voice…
“Show yourself!”
The laughing stopped as soon as Celestia had finished her demand, but nopony revealed themselves. She looked through the trees as she hovered above them, searching in vain for the source of the voice. All of a sudden, the trees burst forth from the Earth, shooting out of the ground like geysers. They climbed past the Princess into the night sky, overshadowing her. Their growth continued until the tops were out of sight. It was now too dark to see, but what felt like an endless number of branches seemed to reach out and grab her. She struggled, but they continued to wrap around her ever more tightly. Out of the darkness, loomed a pair of eyes, with enormous whites, blue irises…
…and slit-like pupils.
Celestia set her horn aglow. The light revealed the body attached to those terrible eyes. A pitch-black alicorn with an ethereal blue mane. As soon as the darkness had been vanquished, the light had revealed nothing suspending her in the air. Celestia began to fall. She hit the ground with another THUD. Looking around, the chariot and guards were nowhere to be seen. The black mare fluttered to the ground, a wicked grin on her face.
“I’m home, sister,” said Nightmare Moon. Her eyes narrowed. “It’s been far too long.”
The two circled each other, unable to avert their eyes from one another.
“A new moon has risen,” said Nightmare Moon in her cold, cruel voice. “Stronger for her hardships, wiser to her subjects, and ready to assume the throne her decadent sister has kept in neglect.”
“You can’t have it, Luna,” said Celestia. “I will fight you and win again if need be, but if you subdued the dark powers that tempt you, I would gladly restore your old throne.”
“How kind of you to offer me something you have no intention of giving me.” Celestia stopped firmly in her tracks. Nightmare Moon mirrored the movement. “You haven’t even realized the tables have turned, and you still condescend me. I’ve dealt you a crippling blow and you still deny your weakness!”
“I doubt your exile has granted you any significant amount of power, and this time I am not defenseless.”
“Ah yes. I must admit the enchantments you’ve endowed yourself with command a strong aura. But while you’ve been flitting between your books and your parchment for these mere garments, my isolation has granted me an unanticipated blessing. When I left you I was merely a herald of my element. Just the bringer of darkness. Now I AM the night. I AM the darkness! My incalculable patience has given me new sight with which to view this world, and with which I shall embrace divinity!”
“A madpony once proclaimed himself king of an ocean,” said Celestia cooly. “He drowned.”
“I must sound a fool to you, oh humble PRINCESS.”
“You once understood, as I do, that royalty is not a right to be protected, but a privilege to be exercised. Now your philosophy stinks of self-righteous tyranny. I will do what I must.”
Celestia set her horn aglow as she prepared to execute the necessary spell. As she was about to let go of the energies she withheld, she began to feel a draining sensation.
“Will you though?” asked Nightmare Moon, her smile widened.
“I shall!” proclaimed Celestia loudly, as she attempted to prepare another spell. The second attempt made her feel even feebler.
“You must understand how darkness operates. It is not banished by light, only postponed; and when the light ceases, everything it vainly protected is consumed once more. It, and therefore I, will always have the upper hand. For you every darkened corner and shadowed path must be lit. I need it not, and shall have it not.”
“I won’t let you subjugate…”
“You make it sound like such an ordeal,” the dark one said irritably. “I only wish to reclaim what is mine. If you can rule my part of our realm with impunity, then it is only fitting that I be given the same opportunity. I shall rule Equestria with darkness forevermore.”
“You’re insane…”
“Such dramatics! Then I shall make it even. A thousand years, and then I shall recall you personally, as a show of good faith. Then we’ll see who’s fit to rule Equestria, and whoever that is shall finally have no more need for the pretense of an empty throne.”
Celestia searched desperately for a reasoned retort as Luna continued on.
“After a thousand years they may have forgotten me, I do not know, but I shall ensure no one shall remember…”
“Why should you? They chose me last time, and won’t need living memory to choose me again.”
This shut Luna up.
“They embraced the sun and shall miss it dearly if you hide it from then. Even if my image is wiped from every window, torn from every book, and burned from every painting, they will herd beneath my wings. Even in my absence, others will resist you. I have made sure of it. There is another Princess of Equestria, and a Unicorn cleverer than Clover herself. Even with this victory, you have initiated a war you can’t win.”
Nightmare Moon glared Celestia down. Celestia observed the work of her boasting. She was surprised that it was this easy to get to an enemy who was one move away from winning. Still she continued her attempts to launch the spell that was becoming more and more difficult to initiate.
“I am sure there will be resistance, as there is to most change,” said Nightmare Moon quietly. “I welcome it. As a being of purity, I shall demonstrate to them the eternal mercy.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I have not yet taken a life, nor do I plan to during my upcoming reign. That magic which you denied me for so many years will aid me.”
“What magic, Luna?!” demanded Celestia.
She answered in an inordinately soft voice. “The never-wake spell, Celly. The Forever Sleep.”
“No. You wouldn’t.”
“THOUGH I MUST!” screamed Nightmare Moon madly. “Whoever breaks the laws established to maintain order and welfare shall be subject to an endless fantasy that shall deliver them from want and sense of self! Whoever dissents in favor of the return of sunlight shall enter a dreamless sleep to remind all of the emptiness of your rule!”
“You can’t!”
“…and for those who threaten me, defy my rule, or invoke your name… they shall forever live in a nightmare, as a lesson to those who would help you now or in a thousand years!”
“STOP IT, LUNA! STOP IT! STOP IT!!!”
Celestia’s spirit gave out. The last attempt to harness magical power made her fall to the ground as tears for the fate of her subjects welled in her eyes.
“I had only one wish every night of the past thousand years,” said Celestia evenly, in spite of her tears, “It was for you to return and for things to be the way they once were. No matter what curses you spew at me or threats you make against my ponies my wish won’t change! Let go of your hatred, and return to your throne! It’s so easy… why won’t you…”
Celestia’s plea dried up with the last of her energy. She looked into Nightmare Moon’s eyes, which looked… shocked? Was is working?
“Lu… na…”
“If you had never become arrogant, you would not have killed your sister all those ages ago. Farewell…”
Celestia’s eyes closed just as the darkness enveloped the pony she had addressed as her sister.
