Static World

by Kendandra


22: Inevitability: Awakening

A slender figure was heaving and shivering. Its legs were weak with an indiscernible feeling. Terror, perhaps. Guilt, certainly possible. Strength? Most definitely. Things were different now. She could see that, but she could not explain why. Things had been changing so much over the last few centuries. Yes, centuries, that was the word that best described how much time had passed, but it still felt weird on the tongue. Others would say the word and have no concept of its meaning. Yet... she did. Things had been changing at every turn during that time, but she had managed to remain static. Then when everything had stopped, she was forced to change. Now it caused a question to plague her thoughts. The question was an obvious one and it had been on her mind even before this point. What would she become? What had she become? A gentle, yet commanding voice pulled her from her thoughts, spouting the answer she sought. “Arise! Nightmare Moon!”

“I have risen.” Even now, despite what she had become, she responded without thought. This voice was not one she could ever refuse. Its smoldering will had been her one constant in this miserable world and she would stand by it no matter what. To assume that the voice’s owner could ever be wrong was something that would break her entire worldview. Even so, lately, she had questions she would not voice.

“How do you feel, sister?” Celestia approached the side of the other creature.

“I feel… Strong. Strong enough to accomplish anything.” Nightmare Moon glanced to the sky and laughed. “I feel as though the laws of the world are mine to command!”

“It is good that you feel that way, for it is true.” Celestia nodded thoughtfully.

“But also… I feel… guilt. Our hooves are stained with blood. Perhaps we were wrong?” Nightmare Moon looked up at the sky, staring at the pale surface of the moon.

“This blood was necessary for the survival of the world. This world is our burden now, and we will bear it, no matter the cost. We are the only ones strong enough. The only ones with enough will.”

Nightmare Moon spit on the ground. “This feeling of guilt it eats at my mind. We have killed that which should never die. Our actions forced, but still the result of your selfishness and sorrow. I desire retribution. I desire to wash my hooves of these deeds, to cleanse the blood from my coat. Can you not see this blood spot on my hooves?” Nightmare Moon laughed uneasily. “This nightmarish form I take now, this mind that whispers such sweet promises of desires fulfilled, these are monstrous. I desire no part in it any longer!”

Celestia shook her head. “Sister! You are not yet adjusted; your Affixed… it corrupts your thoughts but you must resist! You must…!”

“No! We must do nothing! You are the reason we are such creatures of disgust! This damned spot! I wish it gone! Who would have thought they would have had so much blood in them? Perhaps it is time you and I joined mother….” Nightmare Moon charged. The sisters locked horns in a flash of light and an explosion of shadow. Celestia’s eyes narrowed. Nightmare Moon was powerful, but she was not powerful enough to best the pony that had claimed the raw power of the sun. In a burst of golden magic, the newly born Nightmare Moon fell to the ground and dissolved into something smaller. She was still the form of a mighty Alicorn, but she was something less. “Sister… I am sorry. I do not know what came over me….”

Celestia frowned. “I see now. The desires of Nótt are too great for you to control. Perhaps it would be best if for now you remained in that form.”

“Then Nightmare Moon shall slumber, and Selena shall still walk.”

“No! Just as Helia is, Selena is now dead. From now on… you shall be… Luna.”

The Alicorn stood up from the ground. “Luna…. The sound is pleasing to the ear. I will be… I am… Luna! Essence of the night!”

“We shall rule together, my sister. A new dawn breaks on this world, a glorious dawn. Our mistakes of the past shall fade and we shall lead.”

“Our transgressions will never truly fade. What right do we have to lead?”

Celestia looked up at the moon. “Perhaps you are right. We hold a power too great for mortals and perhaps even ourselves to comprehend.”

Luna was silent for a long time. When she spoke again, it was with a determined tone. “We shall make a code. By that we shall live eternal. And if one should falter from it….”

“The other shall punish.” Celestia nodded.


The train jolted to a stop. Princess Luna was pulled from her thoughts in a much more abrupt manner than she had hoped would be the case. Her eyes refused to focus for a moment. Twilight Sparkle was still nuzzled against her neck, half asleep. The train ride had been long, but it seemed as though they had finally reached their destination, perhaps in more ways than one. Luna gave Twilight a gentle nudge. The Unicorn looked upwards at her fillyfriend’s upside-down face. The lavender pony gave Luna a soft smile. A voice bellowed over the announcement system. “Attention all passengers, we have arrived in Canterlot. Please watch your hooves as you disembark the cars. All passengers must disembark here as Canterlot is the end of the line, folks. So, get off my train.”

Twilight hopped out of her seat and glanced down the passageway of the train car. “Well, here we are…”

“You know, it’s not too late to fly to Quagga.”

“Luna!”

“I was joking. Mostly.” Luna sighed as she stepped out of the train and onto the platform. She craned her neck upwards to gaze upon the towering structure of Canterlot Castle. She never had really felt at home in those halls. They were too big and spacious and made lonely echoes when her hooves impacted the marble. In many ways they reminded her of the moon. She shivered slightly, the thought of facing her sister scared her more than she would care to admit and she had admitted to quite a bit already. Still if she was ever going to have to face her sister under these circumstances, this was the best way to do so; surrounded by her friends and the pony she loved. Shining Armor and Princess Cadence approached the couple.

“I have to go to the barracks and take care of a few things. Princess, Twily… I know I haven’t been very supportive of your relationship in the past but I want you to know that you have my full support now. If things with Princess Celestia go sour, I will use my good name to vouch for the strength of your love.” Shining Armor wrapped his hooves around Twilight and gave her a small peck on the cheek. “Best of luck to you, but honestly, I don’t think there will be a problem.” Shining Armor gave Luna a salute. “Princess, best of luck to you as well.”

Luna smiled. “Thank you, Captain.”

Princess Cadence sighed and glanced up to one of the towers. “I have a few duties to catch up on as well from when I left early yesterday. If you two need somepony to talk to after you have your meeting with Aunt Celestia, you can find me in my quarters.”

“Any last minute advice, oh wise and beautiful Cadence?” Luna said with just a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

Cadence pressed her hoof against her chin for a moment. “In all things, follow your heart. For only in your heart can the path to happiness and tranquility be found.”

Luna wrinkled her brow. It was a lovely sentiment, but one she had heard before. “Do you have any advice that didn’t come directly from my sister’s mouth?”

Cadence chuckled, “Oh right.” She inhaled deeply. “I guess I would advise you to stand up for yourself. Don’t let your sister push you around when you are just as entitled to happiness as she is.” Cadence gave a nod and turned off down the pathway to a distant tower.

Twilight leaned against the side of her fillyfriend. “Alright, we’ve put this off long enough. Let’s go inside.”

Luna glanced back at the central entrance to the castle, a pair of enormous gilded doors. She sighed and then gave a small nod. No matter what, I won’t let her separate us. Luna donned a determined look. “Let us stay true and enterest into mine sister’s presence!” Luna coughed, “Sorry, I do that when I'm nervous. Let’s just go.”

A pair of Earth pony guards pushed the colossal doors open. “This way, Princess, element bearers… Princess Celestia has been expecting you in the grand throne room.” One of the guards glanced at the ground for a moment, as if he was deciding something. “Uh… in case you forgot, the throne is located up the atrium staircase then down the central hallway. At the end of the hallway is the great ballroom and from there it’s just up the staircase. If you need a guide, I would be honored to offer my…”

Luna stomped her hoof on the ground. “I know where the throne room is!”

Twilight glanced up at Luna. Twilight thought back to the time they had gotten lost in the castle during the Celebration of Harmony. “Don’t worry; I know where it is, Luna. You just have to follow the red carpet.” Twilight nodded to the guard and trotted up the staircase. Luna held her breath and refused to move. After a rude shove from Rainbow Dash and Applejack, Luna climbed the staircase after Twilight. The hallway that connected the atrium to the grand ballroom was, like many other rooms in the castle, lined with stained glass. Each one depicted various times in Equestrian history or different models of the solar system. They passed a series of doors that lead off to other areas of the castle, a few Luna had yet to figure out where exactly in the castle they lead to when opened. Finally at the end of the hallway was the grand ballroom. It was perhaps the largest room in the castle and where many events were often held.

The ballroom was currently empty. In fact they really had not seen any ponies in the castle at all except for the two guards that had let them through the entrance. As they walked to the opposite side of the room Pinkie Pie whistled. “This place is huge!”

Rarity shook her head. “Pinkie, you’ve been in here before.”

“Yeah, but I think it is bigger now! I bet you could fit a fully grown dragon in here!”

Luna glanced around as they neared the carpet lined steps. “Yes. Yes, I suppose you could.”

“And there’d be so much room left over! You could have like a whole dragon puppet show!” Pinkie Pie lifted her forehooves up and pantomimed the operation of a marionette.

Twilight placed her hoof on her face. “Pinkie, that’s ridiculous.” They climbed the staircase at the end of the ballroom, stopping at the small circular room that connected the stairwell to the throne room.

A dark pink Pegaus stallion held up a hoof. “Halt!”

Luna gave a brief smile. “Ah, Commander Wind Strider, Tia has you on door duty?”

“Actually it’s Acting Captain, your highness. I do hear Shining Armor is back in Canterlot, but he has yet to relive me of my post.”

“Very well, we’ll be going in now.”

“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that, Princess. Princess Celestia’s orders, only the princess of the night and the element of magic may pass. Your friends will have to wait out here.”

“That is all fine and good, but now I order you to let them pass.” Luna said with a slight scowl. She was not looking forward to facing her sister, and even less so alone. Wind Strider glanced at the floor and winced.

Twilight pursed her lips. “Are you alright? You look unwell.”

“I don’t want to go against Celestia’s orders. Please don’t make me. She… I saw her banish a pony yesterday. I’m still a bit shook up from it….”

Twilight gasped. “Banish…?”

Luna bit her lip and for just a brief moment, her eyes flashed green. “You poor thing. Come, Twilight, we can face my sister together.” Luna focused magic in her horn and opened the doors to the throne room.

“Good luck!” Rainbow Dash called out. Luna inhaled deeply and stepped into the room alongside Twilight. A golden glow engulfed the doors to the throne room and they slammed shut with a loud crash. Luna could not help but reflexively glance back at the closed doors. At the end of the room, slouched against the throne, Princess Celestia scowled. Her attention was focused on a small metal object that was lazily floating near her lap. The object appeared to be a gyroscope, one that Twilight had recognized. Long ago, Celestia had used it to help Twilight master more advanced levitation techniques. Luna hesitantly approached the throne with Twilight following in tow.

“Well… well…” Celestia spoke in a dark tone, and other than the brief statement she had not moved or even glanced up from the gyroscope to acknowledge her guest’s presence. Celestia adjusted her position slightly as she watched the spinning gyroscope float higher and higher into the air. “How was Griffica, my dear sister?”

Even though Celestia’s gaze was focused on the gyroscope and not on Luna, the younger sister still could not manage a glance at the elder. “Griffica was…”

“I know you went to Ponyville.” Celestia chuckled as the gyroscope began to wobble.

Twilight cleared her throat. “Princess… judging by your letters you already know but... Luna and I are…”

“Three rules, Lulu....” Celestia let the gyroscope destabilize and it flung off to the side, bouncing with a metal clink several times across the marble floor. Twilight and Luna followed the path of the object as the bounced and it eventually came to rest at dark corner of the room. “Upon your return I gave you three… simple… rules….”

“Sister!”

Celestia adjusted her sitting position so that she was no longer slouching. “The first of which, was for Nightmare Moon to remain in hiding. Storm Dancer made it clear that you failed to follow that.”

Twilight gasped, “Storm Dance?! Princess, that monster…”

“Second! You were to say away from the Elements of Harmony… and their bearers.” Celestia glanced at Twilight for a moment. “I see you could have not possibly done anything more to disobey that further.”

Twilight dragged her hoof on the floor slightly. “But, Princess I was the one who…”

“Finally! You were to follow the Code of the Alicorns, our scared oath, and you violated that without a second thought.”

“Princess Celestia, please… Luna just…”

Celestia frowned. “Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student, I am sorry. I am truly very sorry you were dragged into this.” She brought her attention back to Luna and spoke in a barely audible voice, “Sister of mine, bid Twilight goodbye.”

Luna narrowed her eyes. “And by goodbye you don’t mean, ‘goodbye I’ll see you tomorrow’?”

Celestia shook her head. “No.”

Twilight stamped her hoof. “Princess, that’s not fair! We…”

“Your concept of fair is far too shortsighted, Twilight.”

Luna’s eyes lit up green. “No!

“Excuse me?” Celestia’s eyes widened.

Luna gritted her teeth. “Twilight said she loves me… and I love her too. You will not separate us.”

Celestia stood up from her throne. She took a few steps down the ramp that lead to the elevated platform where the throne rested. Each hoofstep thundered against the marble floor. Twilight attempted to read the emotion on Celestia’s face, but it was not one she recognized. It could have been anger, but she was uncertain. Celestia stopped a few feet from Luna and they locked stares. After a few minutes of silence Celestia raised an eyebrow. “You are serious about this?”

Luna narrowed her eyes. Cadence’s advice echoing in her mind, she answered her sister in a way she had never before. “I am.”

Celestia paused for a moment, then without breaking her stare with her sister she spoke, “Twilight Sparkle, please leave us for a moment.”

“What? No, I’m staying by….”

Luna tapped her hoof impatiently. “Twilight, leave the room.”

“But…!”

“My sister and I have things to discuss….”

Twilight’s eyes widened at her fillyfriend’s demand. She hung her head and turned to the doors. Using her magic she opened it slightly and walked outside of the room. Luna turned her neck slightly to glance at the door as she closed it with her magic. She sighed heavily and then returned her gaze to Celestia. Celestia began to circle around Luna, her gaze harshly fixed on her sister. “Why, Luna? Why must you be so difficult?”

“I could ask you the same thing. All I want is something so simple, to be allowed to spend time with a pony I care deeply for and yet you won’t allow it.”

“You know exactly why it is forbidden! As I recall the rule on relationships was penned by you.” Celestia spoke a series of syllabus that Luna had long forgotten the meaning to, however she recognized the sound of the eighth law. “It is true that the path we walk is a lonely one, but we have no choice. I will give you one last chance. Drop this silly schoolfilly crush and we can put this whole incident behind us.”

“Perhaps….” Luna was shaking under Celestia’s gaze. She looked at the ground and clenched her eyes tightly shut. When they opened again her pupils had turned to slits and her irises were green. A hissing sound beat against her mind. “No.”

Celestia’s eyes widened. “What did you say?

“I said 'no'. I don’t see why I have to follow a rule that you do not.”

Celestia completed another circle around Luna. “I have never broken our code. I have followed its letter whilst you have strayed!”

Luna thrust a hoof out. “Surely you jest!”

Celestia circled around again. “Excuse me?”

“You cheat, you with your collection of favorite ponies from each generation! You think that just because there was never a physical element to those that they don’t count? I saw how you reacted when Slipstream passed on. You wept for years. And it was even longer after him when Sandcastle died so suddenly.”

“It is not the same.”

Luna gritted her teeth. “How do you think you’ll react when Twilight reaches the end of her lifespan?”

Celestia’s face flattened from anger to sorrow for a brief moment. The elder sister shook her head. “You think you would act any different?”

“No. I will weep. I will sulk. I will sob. I will thrash. I might even level a mountain and I will never be the same, but I have seen you do worse and I think it only fair I be allowed my turn at happiness.”

Celestia scoffed. “You expect me to believe that you will behave if I allow this?” Luna nodded. Celestia laughed. “You have barely begun to be involved with her and already Nightmare Moon is out and about causing havoc.”

Luna bit her lip. “You don’t understand! That was…. You weren’t there! That monster, Storm Dancer, he was… carving her!” Luna shuddered. The image of her poor Twilight limp on the courtyard floor had haunted her dreams since it occurred. Luna’s only solace was that Twilight had been asleep for most of it. “I swear I have her under control.”

“Do you? The Dome of Vision says otherwise….”

“The Dome of Vision?! How could you use that infernal artifact after what it did to Starswirl?”

Celestia shouted, “The dome foretells of a second coming of Eternal Night! I can see the signs in the stars already, I know you have genuine feelings for my student, but I cannot allow such a union to occur.” Luna clenched her jaw tightly. “I will give you an hour. Go outside and please let her down gently.”

Luna’s mane flared to the ceiling and her coat blackened. Nightmare Moon hissed, “We will not!” Celestia gasped. Nightmare Moon’s mane snaked forward and collided with Celestia. With a thunderous crash, Celestia was slammed into a wall, shattering the bricks and stone that separated the throne room from the adjoining conservatory. “Tia!” A single pony who was reading in the conservatory galloped out of the room. Bits of rubble fell on top of Celestia as Nightmare Moon approached the newly created fissure in the wall. “Sister? Are… are you alright?”


Twilight jumped back from the throne room door, startled by a loud sound. “Did you hear that?” “It sounded like somepony took a wrecking ball to the side of the castle.” She pressed her ear up against the throne room door and attempted to listen in on the conversation that was occurring on the other side. However, whatever was being discussed was now silent. “Oh, maybe Luna was right. Perhaps I don’t know anything about Princess Celestia when it comes to her sister….” A deafening explosion of golden light flung Twilight away from the door. The castle and perhaps all of Canterlot rumbled with the force. Applejack caught Twilight as she was forced away. Smoke seeped out from behind the door. Twilight stood back up and hesitantly approached the doors. One of the doors fell off its hinges and crashed to the floor. The ponies looked in fear at the image of the throne room they saw before them. The carpet was on fire and the walls looked as though dragon had rampaged. Celestia was flying in the center of the room, gazing out a large hole in the wall that provided a view of the city. With a scornful look in her eye, the Alicorn dashed out of the opening and towards the city streets. Twilight raced to the opening and watched as Celestia chased after Nightmare Moon while flinging bolts of magic at the Alicorn. A stray bolt impacted a house and reduced it to rubble.

Wind Strider gasped in horror. “What madness has befallen our great kingdom? Could it be that the monstrous Storm Dancer was right? Has Nightmare Moon truly returned?” Wind Strider watched as Nightmare Moon’s mane slammed Celestia against the base of one of the towers of the castle. “I must fetch the Captain! He will know what to do!”

Twilight shook her head to clear her thoughts. “We need to try to see if we can figure out what’s going on down there.”

Wind Strider nodded. “Good luck, fair Twilight Sparkle.” He stretched his wings and took off through the opening towards the barracks. He soared through the city skyline. The sun was in the process of setting over the city, which would have been a beautiful sight if he had not just witnessed such a display of destruction. He glided down to the base of the castle and landed in the gardens, which were adjacent to the barracks. Overhead he watched a flash of white tangled up in a mess of shadowy mist speed by and slam into the side of a castle tower. A large section of stone from the tower crashed to the ground. Wind Strider’s mouth went agape. The tower appeared to sway slightly. A few ponies ran past him screaming. “Citizens, remain calm!”

“Commander!” Wind Strider spun around.

“Captain, you’re a sight for sore eyes!” Wind Strider saluted hastily.

Shining Armor glanced up to the sky where a battle raged above his head. “Are my eyes playing tricks on me, Commander, or are our fair rulers waging a war?”

“I wish your eyes were, Captain. It seems Nightmare Moon has returned! Oh, poor Princess Luna, her fair heart has fallen to darkness again.”

Shining Armor glanced around for a moment a pillar of smoke was rising in the distance. There must have been a fire somewhere in the city. “Commander, rally the rest of the guard. We’re evacuating the city. Get every pony out of here and to Sunset Cliff outside the main gate.” Shining Armor gazed at the damaged tower before him. The royal guards were already flying into the windows to rescue ponies as the tower leaned closer and closer to the ground. “Send platoons one and three to the market district, have Silver Tongue go with them. He’ll need to convince the merchants to leave their wares behind. Send platoons two and five to the upper levels to get the nobles out and get platoons four, six, and seven to the residential area. Platoon nine is on castle duty, have Falconheart lead them. You and I will take platoon eight to Masonhoof Promenade and evacuate the ponies there.”

“Yes, Captain! I’ll dispatch them at once sir!” Wind Strider saluted and turned around to take off. He extended his wings and froze in a chambered position. “Uh, sir, just had a bit of a brainwave, won’t the city wide shield make it hard to get ponies out?”

“Good call. Hang on a moment; I’ve sort of got a specialty with shields.” Shining Armor focused his attention to the shimmering yellow dome of energy that engulfed the city. He focused magic in his horn. A sputtering flash of static exploded around him. “Ah! Bucking Storm Dancer and his potion!”

“Are you alright, Captain?”

Shining Armor gritted his teeth and stamped his hooves. “Nothing a little willpower won’t fix!” The Unicorn growled fiercely. His head was swimming with pain as he shot a pink flare of light into the sky. The bolt of energy impacted the shield sending cracks of violet light throughout the skyline. With the sound of shattering glass the shield broke into fragments and fell from the sky.

“Amazing, Captain!” Shining Armor fell to the ground. “Captain!”

“I’m fine… just a bit… low on… magic… today….” Shining Armor exhaled slowly. “Look at that sky…. Do you see the sun setting, Commander? It’s the hour of twilight… what a fitting time for the sun and the moon to do battle.”


“No!” Above her head, Celestia watched fragments of her shield crash down to the city below. Her mouth fell agape slightly as she suddenly became aware of the pillar of smoke that was burning around her. The Alicorn let out an angry snort. “See what you have wrought upon us, sister?” Celestia flicked her head and let lose a blast of energy that collided with Nightmare Moon. “You have placed my city in danger!” Nightmare Moon fell from the sky and crashed into the street below. Celestia glided down to the ground and landed gracefully next to the crumpled form of her sister. Nightmare Moon groaned from inside the small crater that had formed upon her impact. Nightmare Moon rolled to an upright position. Her legs refused to stand despite how much willpower she attempted to muster. Celestia stepped forward closing the distance between the two Alicorns. She looked down at Nightmare Moon with a confident smirk. “Give up Nightmare Moon; you cannot win against my power. I have put you in your place before and I shall do so again.”

Nightmare Moon inhaled deeply. “WE SHALL NOT YIELD!” Celestia was hit with a forceful gale that swept her hooves out from underneath her. She twisted and tumbled as she crashed into a nearby building. Nightmare Moon laughed and struggled to rise to a standing position.

Celestia climbed out of the rubble. “If that is the way you wish to fight, then so be it. But if we are to fight with the power of the word, then I shall use the strength of the Ancients!” Celestia drew in a large breath of air. “Vos… appellamus… SELENAM!

A booming echo thundered throughout Equestria. Nightmare Moon tore in a burst of starry mist revealing a small blue Alicorn filly. Luna found herself flying through the air against her will colliding with one of the towers of the castle. The tiny filly crashed through a series of walls before finally coming to rest at what appeared to be one of the smaller libraries. Celestia’s wings eclipsed the light coming from the missing wall as she entered the room. Luna felt blood trickle down her side from underneath her wing. Torn pages of books swirled around the room as Celestia walked over to Luna. “I was always the better speaker, little sister.”

Luna coughed violently as she spit blood out of her mouth. “You use such old magic, Tia…” Celesita smirked. Behind her she was oblivious to the shadow of the moon rising. Luna’s coat blackened as she let out a chuckled. “But perhaps you forget that the power of the true name can easily work both ways….” Engulfed by the moonlight, Nightmare Moon suddenly found the strength to rise to her hooves, drawing in breath as she did.

Celestia gasped. “You wouldn’t!” The elder Alicorn took a few steps backwards.

Nightmare Moon laughed. “Oh I would, my dear… HELIA!” The word resonated through the fabric of the land. Celestia’s mane flared to a pink hue as the Alicorn’s expression turned to pure terror. Tears streamed down her face and her wings drooped to the ground.

The elder sister’s lip quivered. “No…! How dare you speak that name?” She took a few staggering steps backwards until her rear hoof slipped off the edge of the tower. The Alicorn plummeted to the ground, a stream of tears lagging behind in the air. Nightmare Moon leapt out of the tower, following her sister’s descent. The elder sister crashed into the ground and was motionless as Nightmare Moon slammed her hooves into the Alicorn’s side. “I told you… never to speak that name again… she’s dead…. SHE DIED WITH MOTHER!

Nightmare Moon laughed. “You are beaten, Celestia. Admit defeat and we shall write a new code.”

Celestia groaned. “You have grown strong, sister….” She struggled to open her eyes. “I see how much desire burns in your form. I am beaten and my city lies in ruins. Perhaps…” Her eyes refused to focus even once they were open. “The code is flawed, I see that now… Perhaps you are right… We shall…” Then the image was clear. “Wait…”

It was nighttime, but there were no stars. A pillar smoke billowed in the sky like a storm cloud, and a thundering noise erupted as one of the castle towers fell to the ground. It was a storm, but no rain fell. Canterlot was in ruins and the protective shield was missing. Ponies fled in every direction leaving the city empty. The sun hung on the edge of the sky as a young foal ran from falling rubble. The imposing figure of Nightmare Moon stood at the forefront and laughed. Suddenly thoughts aligned and the world became crystal clear.

“I have seen this before….” Voices whispered in the back of her skull. “I have seen all of this before!” It started as a tickle in her head. “Yes… this is the moment.” She tasted something familiar in her mouth but could not quite remember where she had heard it before. “This is when Eternal Night is brought upon our world once more!” The stench of static electricity burned in her eyes. “I won’t let you! I will not let you destroy my kingdom!” The Alicorn’s horn ignited with a golden light and her mane flowed with color once more.

Nightmare Moon gasped, “You rise! What causes such determination in you, Celestia? Have you gone mad?”

“Yes, I rise. I rise to protect my subjects from the selfish evils that you wish to bring upon us all.” Brilliant rays of light flowed into Celestia’s horn.

Nightmare Moon took a few trembling steps backwards; her wings flapping anxiously. “You would never!”

“If Canterlot must fall to save the rest of the kingdom, then it shall fall.” Celestia rose to the sky and her horn glowed with a blinding radiance. Nightmare Moon took flight through the streets as fast as her wings would carry her. With a horrifying rumbling thunderclap, a beam of golden light trailed after Nightmare Moon; leaving a course of fire and devastation. The beam lasted only a few seconds, carving a smoldering path the ground, having reduced the streets and houses to ash. “Stop with all this running, sister! Embrace your destiny as I have done mine!” Celestia gathered more magic from the air into her horn and prepared to unleash another blast. “You cannot defeat me for I was always the better Unicorn!”

Nightmare Moon charged the elder sister and tackled her before she finished casting her spell. They fell to the ground, Celestia kicking against Nightmare Moon’s shadowy mane. They landed through the roof of a house or at least what was left of the building as it had only two walls remaining from the previous use of Celestia’s spell. In an explosion of light, Nightmare Moon’s mane released its hold on the elder sister. Celestia rose to her hooves and began to focus magic in her horn. “Princesses! Stop!” Twilight Sparkle’s voice echoed through the otherwise silent battlefield. The purple Unicorn galloped towards the two Alicorns.

Celestia glanced over her shoulder. “Do not interfere.” A golden wall of energy cut Twilight off from reaching Celestia and Nightmare Moon. Undeterred, Twilight attempted to cancel the spell with one of her spells. The bolt of magic fizzled upon contact with the barrier. Rainbow Dash slammed her head into the shield only to fall to the ground. “Now then… where were we, sister of mine?”


A rumbling thunderclap shook the stone bridge Shining Armor was standing on. A ray of light from the sky traced around the city, chasing something he could not see from this distance. The beam sliced through one of the tall spires of the upper levels, where the nobles lived. He watched the spire crumble in a pile of dust. “Captain!” A voice was calling out his title but he ignored it. As the last of the spire fell, he could not help but remember that he had eaten lunch with Cadence there only two weeks ago. The earth shook as the roof of the spire impacted the ground. “Captain Shining!” He hesitantly tore his gaze from the destruction to face the pony.

“Commander, report.”

“Platoons one and three have guided all the ponies out of the market district. We are more than certain that we found every pony. The ponies in the residential area are exiting through the main gate as we speak. Thankfully the battle has only been on the outskirts of that district, platoon six reported that there were no incidents. Unfortunately, this was not so with the upper levels.”

Shining Armor nervously glanced back to the castle towers. “We were too late?”

“Regretfully so, the upper levels are nothing but a pile of rocks now. The bridges that made up the streets have all crumbled onto the crossway. However, apparently the nobles were evacuated on their own. They were lead by somepony named Fancy Pants and they are currently taking shelter by the storm sewer. I’ve sent platoon seven to dig them out. The castle was cleared out… platoon nine didn’t report any sign of the princess.”

“Well done, Wind Strider. You make me proud.” Shining Armor shifted his jaw as he tried to rip his gaze from the castle. “All that should be left is to get the last ponies that are trapped on the promenade. We should be able to…”

“Captain... go and make sure she’s safe.”

Shining Armor blinked a few times. “Commander?”

“I’ll handle the rest here. You go make sure she’s alright.” Wind Strider gave a quick smile.
Shining Armor started to give a salute, but instead turned the motion into a quick hug around the Pegasus. “Thank you, Strider. You are a true friend.” Shining Armor tossed his helmet on the ground and turned to face the castle.

Wind Strider placed a hoof near his mouth and yelled, “Oh! Captain, about that promotion?”

Shining Armor skidded to a stop and turned his head around. “Yes?”

“I changed my mind. I think after all this is done, I’m retiring. I’m sorry, you’ll have to find somepony else to replace you.”

Shining Armor laughed as he galloped away. “You just don’t make things easy on my do you, Strider?”

As the Commander and the platoon faded out of view, Shining Armor jumped over a pile of rubble and slid down what had probably been a fragment of a roof at one point. He deftly turned his momentum from the slid into a leap as he reached the bottom of the pile. Landing in what appeared to be soft ash, Shining Armor raced down the road. He passed the rubble of the a few shops he used to frequent. The destruction of such familiar things earned a brief shake of the head, but he was far to determined to reach the castle to spend any more time on it. “Cadence?!” He called out with as much volume he could muster. The main entrance had been forced open when the building was evacuated. His hoofsteps echoed on the marble floor. The empty inside of the castle held a weird serenity compared to the smoke and fire of the outside. A low rumbling and a slight tremor reminded him that two impossibly powerful beings were still fighting outside. He raced up a flight of stairs and to the rear veranda. “Cadence?! Horseapples! You should be here! Where are you?” He shook his head and stopped to catch his breath. “Think, you foal! Where could she be?” His hooves not wanting to sit still that long, he raced back down the steps and through the kitchen. Without stopping, he turned his momentum into a kick and broke down the door to the armory. “Cadenza!”

That was when he heard her voice above the rumbling of the battle. She was singing. That crazy pony of his was singing in the middle of a warzone! “Cadence! I hear you, hold on, I’m coming!” He raced to the back of the armory. The door to the dungeon was ajar and swinging from its hinges with each tremor. Shining Armor raced down the long flight of stone steps into the darkness, a faint glow from his horn the only thing lighting his path. “Cadence?” He reached the bottom of the staircase and raced down the hallway lined with empty prison cells. He soon reached the source of the signing. His wife stood leaned up against a cell door, humming a melody. “Cadence?”

The pony batted her eyelashes. “Oh, sweetie cakes!”

“Oh… it’s just you.” Shining Armor shook his head. How could I be so stupid? Cadence was engulfed in green flames as the Changeling Queen yawned. Shining Armor turned back in the direction of the staircase.

“Wait! You can’t just leave me here!” The dungeon shook violently and bits of the ceiling crashed to the ground. “What is going on up there? Come on, don’t leave me here! I don’t want to be crushed when the ceiling comes crashing down.”

Shining Armor shook his head. He actually did feel a bit bad leaving the Changeling locked in a cell while Canterlot was falling apart. Nevertheless, if there was ever going to be one part of the city that survived, the dungeon would certainly stand. “There’s enough destruction going on without you being free. I have to go. I have to find Cadence.”

“I’m begging you! Don’t leave me here! Look, please just listen to me! I know we’ve had a lot of fun seducing and antagonizing each other in the past, and yes it probably got out of hoof at one point, but I’m serious if I don’t get out of here, I’ll probably die. It’s chaos up there!”

“I don’t have time for…. What did you say?” Shining Armor’s eyes widened.

“I said it’s chaos up there, you dull witted foal.”

Shining Armor’s jaw dropped. “Oh… no….”

“No! Wait! Where are you going? The exit isn’t even that way you moron!” Queen Chrysalis continued shouting as Shining Armor raced off into the darkness.

He skidded to a stop at the edge of the pit at the end of the hallway. Shining Armor leaned over and gazed into the abyss. He lifted his hooves up and down frantically, practically dancing in place. “Oh, horseapples!” He glanced back down the hallway towards the staircase. The ground trembled again from what he could only guess was another building crumbling outside. “Buck it, no time for fear!” He kicked the lever on the wall and lift began its slow descent. It rattled against the side of the pit as it moved and occasionally a tremor would cause the pulley to slip and it would fall a few feet faster than it normally did. The lift stopped abruptly a few feet from the ground, apparently stuck on something. Shining Armor jumped down and squinted his eyes in the darkness. Seeming to sense his presence, the large floor light came to life and illuminated the room. “Oh thank Celestia! You’re still here.” Though a wave of relief swept though him, he suddenly noticed that Discord even in his statue state still held a certain air about him that made Shining Armor’s hair stand on end. As he stared into the eyes of the statue he felt a compulsive and spontaneous need to join in the destruction that was taking place above. He was thankfully jolted out of his thoughts when another tremor rocked the area. “Right!” He turned back to face the lift with a heavy sigh of relief. “I better find Cadence now.”

Fizz-crack!

Shining Armor felt his spine tense. He reluctantly turned around to see a set of golden glowing runes lining the wall of the pit. “Celestia’s wards….” Fizz-crack! One of the runes glowed brilliantly and then exploded with a tangled mess of lightning. “Oh no….” The room rumbled again. Fizz-crack! “Oh no, no, no!” He raced to one of the runic shapes and focused magic in his horn. The glowing of the rune subsided. Fizz-crack! Another rune to his left exploded. “I’ve still got this one! Wards are just protection spells; this is what I was born for! I can stop it!” Fizz-crack! “It only takes one! I’m still good!” His voice reeked with worry. The rune glowed despite the magic he was pouring into it. Another tremor nearly made him lose his balance and he could feel the ward caving through his magic. It was suddenly a very tiring process and the magic fizzled out from his horn. Shining Armor glanced upwards and shouted. “Bucking Storm Dancer!”

Fizz-crack!

The room rumbled again. Shining Armor felt a feeling of dread the depth of which he had never experienced before. “It’s fine…. Those were just auxiliary seals placed by a very paranoid princess. Twily’s seal will hold. It has to hold.” Ca-crack. “Please hold….” Crack. Shining Armor whispered, “No….” A low toned laugh echoed throughout the pit. Fracture lines trailed around the statue’s arm until a small fragment of stone, perhaps no larger than a grape, fell to the ground. “No… why now?” The claw on the statue slowly rotated and its digits curled. The claw snapped its fingers and the lights in the pit went out. Shining Armor, stranded in the darkness with a feeling of dread gnawing at his hooves, could feel his heart racing.

“Oh. It’s the brother.” The room flooded with light. Discord was hanging from the ceiling, his face mere inches from Shining Armor’s own. “So how was the wedding? You know I was just dying to come but you know how it is. I was just so terribly busy being encased in STONE!” The lights flickered and Discord vanished. Shining Armor felt a heavy weight on his back. The draconequus was leaning against him. “You know I know just the way to make it up to me. I’ve got a great wedding gift that I think at least one of us will find very entertaining.” Discord snapped his fingers. A colorful explosion of smoke burst out of the hallway at the top of the pit. A scream echoed around the pit as the Chrysalis slammed against the floor.

“What in the hay was all of…?” The Changeling looked up at the form before her. “You’re that guy… the one they keep talking about. The grotesque psychopath.”

Discord laughed. “Now that’s just not true. I am not grotesque.” The draconequus snapped his fingers. Chrysalis erupted in a green flame. Shining Armor winced. In the spot where the Changeling used to be, now only a small Earth pony filly sat. The filly glanced down at her body and gasped. She stood back up and opened her mouth to yell. Instead of words only a rasping cough came out. “That’s right. I morphed you and took away your powers so you can’t change back. Wait what’s that?” The filly let out another fit of coughs. “I’m sorry I’d a tad deaf in one ear; try once more but with volume.” Discord laughed. “Actually so we’re not here all day I’ll just cut to the chase. I also took away your voice. Why, you ask? Because I can’t stand all that blasted signing you do day in and day out. For the past four months you have made my life as a statue even more unbearable than even I thought possible.”

Discord snaked around to Shining Armor. “Oh my dear Shining Armor, I present to you your wedding present. Look I even wrapped it for you.”

“My sister will stop you!”

“Yes, yes, but first… your gift. You see that little filly over there? That’s the being that caused so much pain and suffering to you and your family.” Discord chuckled as he stroked Shining Armor’s chin. “She kidnapped your bride-to-be, threw your sister in a cave and left her for dead. She then attempted to destroy the city you live in and tried to turn you into her personal snack.” Shining Armor’s eyes lost their focus. “Now I’m not one for revenge but if I were you, I would seriously consider taking a look at the opportunity you have here.” Shining Armor’s color drained from his coat. “After all, it’s not often you have your mortal enemy sitting powerless in front of you. Trapped.... Vulnerable….” Shining Armor chuckled. Discord clapped his hands together. “Well then, I’d love to stay and watch, but there is some delicious chaos going on up there and it has my name on it. Arrivederci!” Discord snapped his fingers.