Chapter 1: Ancient Vow
Chapter One: Ancient Vow
The full moon was rising behind Canterlot castle, moon court was starting and Princess Luna sat on her throne. Moon court had finally gone back to normal after the whole wedding crisis. Luna had seen more ponies in the nights following the wedding then she had ever seen in her long history of ruling. Her ponies kept asking when the city was going to be fixed, along with so many other questions that hours before Princess Celestia had answered for them. Thankfully now Canterlot was back to normal and everypony back about their normal lives. Luna’s throne room was much darker compared to her sister’s throne room, instead of having her sister’s red carpet hers was dark purple. The room had a darker look to it do to the moonlight shining through the stingless windows. Luna was never happier not to have many ponies to see than at this moment. Putting that aside Luna sat on her throne now able to process all that had happen during the royal wedding. She couldn’t believe her kingdom had almost been taken over; or her older sisters being so easily defeated in a battle of magic, something that shouldn’t have even been impossible. Luna remembered herself fighting from within the shadows of the battle never giving up because if her kingdom would fall then so would she. There were many things Luna was thinking of all at once so many that it was starting to give her a bit of a headache, but what Luna didn’t know was that the biggest headache of all was still yet to come.
Outside the castle
Stargaze look back to make sure no pony had followed her up to the castle. She had that strange feeling like somepony was following her. Shaking the feeling she looked down into the water of the moat that surrounded the castle, making sure her blue coat and purple mane looked the way she had fixed it to look, her mane was going to stay in its curls no matter what. “This is it, there’s no turning back” she whispered to herself. Stargaze trotted across the bridge into the castle stopping outside the door to the throne room.
“Your Highness, a unicorn is here to see you.” One of the lunar guards announced before returning to his post.
“Send her in” Luna replied to the lunar guard at the door. Starlight walked into the throne room and bowed deeply. “Your Majesty, it’s an honor. I am Stargaze.” She said while using her magic to lift a book form her saddlebag. Stargaze remembering how long it took for her mother to explain all of this to her stop to ask. “I was wondering if it was ok if you close moon court for awhile, because this explanation may take a long time. I wouldn’t want to be rude by having somepony waiting for me to finish, and it’s probably best if it’s just your guards and you who hear this.”
Luna nodded to one of the lunar guard who disappeared behind the door.
“This book has been passed down from every firstborn filly in my family, and now I am here to keep an ancient vow.” Stargaze said hopping none of her fear was heard in her tone.
“What is this ancient vow?” Luna asked wondering what this was all about.
“Well, a thousand years ago you believed that all ponies shunned your night. The thing is you were wrong, my very great grandmother adored you night, but it was considered wrong for her to love your night more than your sister’s day. When you became nightmare moon she blamed herself saying that if you only could’ve only seen her enjoying your night maybe you wouldn’t have become nightmare moon.”
“Why would your great grandmother think that it was her fault? It was no ponies fault beside my own.” This is insane Luna thought, what was that mare thinking all those years ago. This is my fault and no pony else should have to feel my regret but me.
“All I know is the history she left behind, I think there might’ve been more of a reason but this is all I know.”
“Continue”
“This book is only the first part of the vow. Every firstborn filly in my family has had this book; each pony has added something into the book. Another part of the vow is the firstborn filly that possesses the book when Princess Luna returns; must give her the book and the rights to her life.”
“Wait did you say the right to your life?” I couldn’t have heard right, I must have heard that wrong Luna thought.
“Yes, I am bound to your will I am yours to command, my life is yours.”
“Then I simply free you, I don’t want a slave nor is it right to have that much power over somepony, there is a big different between ruling and owning. “Smiling to herself Luna thought that solves that.
“Thank you for your kindness, but you can’t free me from this bound, it’s an ancient spell it binds me and no one can break it. Just to let you know I am not your slave, I still have free will I can say no but it’s not very good if I do. There are also things you can’t ask me to do like, order me to tell you anything you want to know but when I do I can’t lie to you.” Stargaze floated the book up to Princess Luna who gladly took it with her own magic.
Luna skimmed through some of the first pages; it had language she had left back when she was banished to the moon. Closing the book she took a better look at it. The book looks old and yet very new, the cover was a light blue color with white pages bounded with gold binding. The book had no title that she could see but it had a magic glow around it, there was no mistaking that the book was enchanted.
Stargaze watch as Princess Luna looked though the book. Thinking she had only just started to add her part when Princess Luna had returned. Her part in the book was the smallest part in the book. Her part was only three pages long, she had the ending of the book so hopefully she had done her ancestors proud with it.
“Why did you wait so long after I have returned to fulfill this vow?” Luna asked after gathering her thoughts. Thinking she was more so trying to buy some time so she could think of what to do with this young unicorn? This night wasn’t going at all the way she had thought it would have, but then again who would have thought something like this would happen. What would Celly do if she was had to deal with this? She was sure her sister had never had to deal with something like this before.
Thinking of her next words carefully she responded to Princess Luna. “The big reason I waited was to let you try to adjust to the new time. I figure you would want to spend as much time with your sister as you could. I also need time to sort out what my mother and I were going to tell my father and my younger twin sister. It’s not like my father was going to let me leave the flower shop that easily, he thought my special talent was just reading the stars. In reality my cutiemark means so much more than reading the stars. My cutiemark has a hidden meaning behind it.” Realizing what she had just said she froze. Why had she just said that? Now she knew that princess Luna was going to ask what her cutiemark all meant. “What should I say” stargaze mumbled under her breath hoping knowpony had heard her.
Looking at stargaze’s cutiemark Luna saw it was a Crescent moon with a star underneath of it. What else could her special talent be if not reading the stars? It seemed this mare was a lot more than she appeared to be. Before she could ask stargaze about her cutiemark the door to the throne room flew open. A violet unicorn with a white mane entered the throne room. Luna had a bad feeling as this mare walked into the throne room.
“Sister” The violet mare said walking into the throne room.
“Iris what are you doing here?” Stargaze asked turning to face her sister.
Comply ignoring her sister’s question Iris continued. “I couldn’t let my sister die for some curse that she didn’t even cast” Iris smiled.
“How did you” Stargaze began to ask but was cut off by her sister.
“You really thought you could hide a book like that from me, my talent is magic and that book yells find me to anypony with a decent amount of magical talent.” Iris said with a quick smile that only Stargaze would catch.
Stargaze knew that smile it meant Iris had done something. The question was what had she done? “Iris what did you do?” she yelled at her sister.
“I am not here to speak with you sister. I am here to speak to nightmare moon.” Iris said shooting a glance at Luna.
“WE ARE NO LONGER NIGHTMARE MOON” Luna yelled in the royal Canterlot voice. The elements of harmony had sent her free form nightmare moon’s hold. What was this mare trying to do, make her mad?
“Well, you see I want you to free my sister from this curse that was cast so many years ago.” Iris said.
“Sister it’s not a curse and anyway it doesn’t work like that. It was created with a powerful spell. The vow is only broken when I die. I don’t think that’s what you mean when you say you want the spell broken.”
“I don’t care if I must lose my sister then so must she” Iris says with an evil grin looking up at Luna.
“What do you mean so must I?” Luna asks Iris.
As if on cue three solar guards burst through the door. The guards look like a tornado had though. “Princess Luna, your sister she’s gone someone or something took her. We tried to stop it but it was too powerful for us.” One of the three guards said before falling to the ground. The two other solar guards just stared at Iris with blood lust in their eyes. They had seen the mare that had taken their princess and she was standing right in front of them. “What have you done with the Princess” yelled the guard on the right of the one that had fallen.
Iris laughed still not taking her eyes off Princess Luna. Her plan was all going according to plan. Soon very soon the plan of her ancestors would be fulfilled. Now all that was left was to unleash the bounded beast.
Stargaze look over at her sister she had gone too far this time. “Iris, you didn’t you couldn’t have!” Stargaze asked sounding more like a plea than a question.
“You have until the new moon at that time if the cruse isn’t broken you will never see your sister again, so I suggest you get started your highness. Goodbye sister, and know this your true destiny lies not with mothers side but fathers.” Iris said with a smile, vanishing before the lunar and solar guards could capture her.
“Find her” Luna ordered the solar and lunar guards. Luna only thought was how had her sister been captured by a mere unicorn?
Stargaze just stood in shook turning her head to look through the window at her star. Thinking the star was the only explanation to how Iris had gotten that much power unless; no it can’t be, it was only a story. “What did she mean my true destiny lies with fathers side not mothers? What does father’s side of the family have to do with my destiny?” she whispered to herself.