Princess Luna returned to the castle just as her sister began lifting the sun into the sky. Between the protecting of Equestrian ponies from nightmares to holding back demons of the shadow, Luna barely managed to catch a break. Her body ached from fatigue. Her wings quivered with each flap. She felt far more drained than usual from her nightly duties. The culprit wasn’t the workload, but was the violet jewel which hung around her neck.
Ever since donning Nightmare Moon’s newest prison, Luna had felt a drain in her energy. The jewel, though innocent looking enough, bore such a weight that it pulled down on Luna’s neck. She landed on the hard floor of the castle tower. Letting out a long, dreary yawn, Luna watched the sun rise high into the sky. As always, her big sister started the day with beautiful golden rays that climbed into the heavens.
Heading down the stairs and to her sleeping quarters, she met two of her guards, Nocturn and Echo. They stared at her worriedly, their eyes gazing upon the amulet. Echo asked, “How is it princess?”
“It’s heavy.” Luna responded. Her words slowly sank into the silence that grew between them. There was nothing they could do to alleviate her, and they knew it. “But don’t worry, I’ll be fine. Guarding Nightmare Moon is my responsibility.” She reassured. “Now please, go about your duties. I need rest.” Echo nodded his head to Nocturn who turned and followed him down the hall. Luna breathed a sigh of relief as she swung open the door to her sleeping chambers, and closed it swiftly behind her.
Trotting over to her mirror, she sat down in front of it, watching the amulet glow against her chest. She could feel the heat radiating off the crystal, almost burning her fur. Placing a hoof against it, Princess Luna glanced over to her dresser where a special silver case rested. She considered containing the amulet inside the case while she slept, but the risk was too great. The jewel pulsated against her touch, Nightmare Moon screaming to be released. That case would be much too easy to be lost or stolen.
Sighing, the princess climbed into her bed. This would be her life now, guarding the jewel, and ensuring every-pony’s safety from Nightmare Moon.
Luna entered her dream just where she’d always dropped in. The bustling shops of Canterlot, waking up for another day of market. How the princess enjoyed stepping through the crowds, admiring all the little shops! She took such great joy in exploring through sales, greeting the different customers, and slipping out some bits here and there for different knick-knacks that she’d find.
With the night being so lonely, Luna rarely had a chance to explore the various shops and dineries. On this particular day, Luna found herself window shopping through a lovely little boutique, much like the ones described to her by her sister. Dresses of silk and satin with long flowing gowns hung from the walls and shimmered brightly in the display windows. The latest spring fashion this year apparently involved Maya Blue, Candlelight Orange, and lots of sunflowers. While Luna didn’t consider herself one for fashion, or much of a seamstress for that matter, she did enjoy watching other patrons to the store try on the different dresses, smiling at how each dress brought out something unique in the various ponies.
As Luna wandered through the store, sneaking glances at some of the other ponies, Luna’s eyes fell upon a curious dress. It was black, with red and orange roses. The dress had caught her attention as the petals on the roses somehow bloomed off the dress and onto the floor. The petals began spreading across the aisle, branching off to different parts of the store. Some of the other guests took notice as the petals rapidly grew and in the blink of an eye, the rose petals melted into fire, engulfing the entire boutique. Luna quickly flew out of the burning building and into the street. She stopped dead in her tracks as screams surrounded her.
In a matter of seconds, Luna stared in horror as all of Canterlot burned. Thick black smoke seeped into the air, blotting out the sun as embers blew in the wind. Luna could hear the screams, hearing the cries of her subjects from all corners of Canterlot. But what should she do? She couldn’t possibly help them all at once.
Taking to the sky, the princess of night flew against the choking puffs of charcoal smoke. She searched the city, desperate to find any-pony that could explain this to her. Her wings flailed through the smoke, the heat burning into her chest as she was eventually forced to land on the rooftop of one of the burning buildings. Luna stayed for only a moment, as she spotted a mother and her filly down below.
Dropping down upon them, Luna used her magic to clear their path, and provide them some safety from the fire. The mother quivered in fear as she looked up to Luna, pressing her daughter tightly against her. Luna, about to speak, abruptly stopped as she gazed into the eyes of the mare who cowered before her. In the pony’s eyes, Luna saw not her own face, but the reflection of Nightmare Moon.
“No. This cannot be.” Luna whispered, and from behind her, she heard a familiar cackle.
“NO!” Luna cried, as she bolted herself up from bed. Her sheets soaked in sweat, her heart pounding in her chest, Luna looked around the room. It was a dream. No, it was more than that. It was a vision.
Suddenly, her door burst open, letting in the afternoon sunlight. Celestia, her face drained of all color, and with several guards accompanying her, “Luna?” She asked, staring into her sister’s eyes. “Sister, tell me it is you.”
Nodding, Luna responded, “it is.”
Celestia rushed to her sister, and enveloped the princess in a tight embrace. “Thank the heavens.” Celestia nodded to the guards and they retreated from the room. “I suddenly heard it. After returning from a town hall meeting, I could hear . . . you.”
“What did you hear?” Luna asked, pulling away.
“I could hear laughing, screaming. It was her voice, Luna. It was Nightmare Moon.” Taking a deep sigh of relief, Celestia said, “I thought for a moment, I had lost you again.”
“Then I am even more worried sister. For I have not had such a strong vision in a long time, I fear Nightmare Moon may be planning to return.”
Watching her sister cup that horrid amulet around her neck, Celestia looked Luna in the eye and said, “Please, I need to know what you saw.”
Nodding her head, Luna answered, “Very well.” And proceeded to explain her dream.
Twilight Sparkle galloped hard into Canterlot. She’d left her castle the moment after reading Celestia’s urgent letter. The letter had been short and sweet, yet terrifying. The whole trip to Canterlot, Twilight had replayed the message in her head, as if there were something more to it.
“My ever-faithful friend, Twilight Sparkle,
My sister and I require your immediate presence in Canterlot. We fear the capture of Nightmare Moon may have only been the beginning. Princess Luna had a vision of her horrifying return, and the disaster that would inevitably ensue. Please hurry.
Sincerely yours,
Princess Celestia”
Was it already too late for Luna? Had Nightmare Moon already escaped her prison? If so, then why weren’t the others summoned? They’d be needed, along with the Elements of Harmony if they were to defeat the monster. Twilight’s heart raced as she entered the castle grounds, glancing to the guards, all of which appeared confused at her sense of urgency.
Bursting through the doors, Twilight rushed to the throne room, finding a despairing Luna, and Celestia, who just watched over her sister. “Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!” Twilight exclaimed, running over to them, her hooves screeching to a stop. “I came as soon as I could. What’s going on?”
Luna looked up at Twilight, but said nothing. Instead, Celestia sighed and answered calmly, “I am sorry to disturb your busy schedule Twilight, but my sister has had a vision of Nightmare Moon’s return. It was one of such strength, that I could hear it from outside her bedroom walls. I’m afraid Nightmare Moon may already be planning her escape.”
“H-How can that be?”
Celestia fumbled with her words as she asked, “Do you remember the night you and Luna captured Nightmare Moon?”
Shuddering, Twilight easily recalled the night she and Luna had pulled the evil nightmarish energy from Moon Dancer. The twisting and crackling of her friend’s voice, it still sent chills through her body. “Remember? How could I forget?” Twilight whispered, lowering her head, “The things she said to me that night . . . It’s made it hard to go visit her. All I can think of when I see her, is when Nightmare Moon possessed her.”
“It was difficult on all of us.” Celestia replied softly. “What you saw, and what you heard, was one of Nightmare Moon’s darkest tricks, and one of her most effective. You mustn’t let what happened that night change your perception of Moon Dancer. It would be falling into the hooves of Nightmare Moon. It would spell doom for us all, if we let her play with us so easily.”
Twilight’s eyes fell to the marble floor, thinking of her friend and everything she must have gone through. “I understand.”
“That is why Twilight Sparkle,” Princess Celestia finished, “We must stop Nightmare Moon from rising to power once more.”
“But how?”
“It may be best . . .” Luna began, with somewhat of a broken heart, “to lock me up for the time being; just to be cautious.”
Both princesses stared at Luna. Celestia’s heart ached for her sister, knowing exactly what she was feeling. Her vision had scared her senseless. “The last thing I want, is for you to be locked up. We need to fight this together. All of us.” Celestia explained, resting a hoof on her sister. Then turning back to Twilight, she said, “In Luna’s vision, she once again became Nightmare Moon.”
“No, that can’t be true!” Twilight exclaimed, “We trapped her. She can’t possibly get out of that amulet. Luna, you said so yourself that that amulet would be powerful enough to hold her.”
As all eyes fell on the midnight blue mare, her older sister softly spoke to her, “Luna, how did you manage to capture Nightmare Moon in that fashion? You never did explain it to me.”
Luna gulped, knowing this question was to come. She had anticipated it. “Nightmare Moon.” She said simply. “When she returned and took hold of Twilight’s friend, she spoke of a book with spells so powerful, she could use them to conquer Equestria. I know not of its origins, but only that it may have once belonged to King Sombra.” Luna felt the shocked gazes from her sister and Twilight boring down upon her. Even then, when chasing after Moon Dancer, she had questioned this method. “I was fortunate enough to locate the book before Moon Dancer, but after reading the spell, the book disappeared from my hooves. I know not what has become of the book.”
Raising an eyebrow, Celestia questioned, “Why would you trust the magic from a book Nightmare Moon sought after? She could have known of the spell’s existence, along with a counter.”
Luna nodded her head, understanding the criticism. “I was desperate, and I was scared. After I read the spell, I could feel the powerful magic binding to the amulet. It was all I had to fight her with.”
“When did you find this? I don’t remember a book.” Twilight asked.
“It was shortly before I’d met up with you. Moon Dancer had summoned the book, and went to retrieve it. I found the book first, but it vanished shortly after I enchanted the amulet with its spells.” Luna turned away from Twilight, “She’d been fighting with that demon for hours. I should have called you sooner. I am very sorry for my foolishness.”
“It’s alright. What’s done is done.” Celestia said, stroking a wing over her sister. “But it does complicate matters. We don’t know what was in that book, and Nightmare Moon may go after it again should she break free. We should all be prepared for that.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” Twilight spoke up, “I practically lived in a library.” She said, trying to bring a touch of light-heartedness into the discussion. “And besides,” Twilight said as her voice hollowed out, “I could use something to talk about with Moon Dancer.”
“I think that is best.” Celestia finished, then changing the subject, she announced to the two, “I’ve taken the liberty of summoning Shining Armor from the Crystal Empire to come and assist us with security. If anything does happen, perhaps he can help contain it.”
“My brother? But what about Cadence . . . and their child?”
“Do not worry Twilight. We won’t keep him for long.” Celestia said, chuckling. “And the Crystal Empire won’t be left unguarded. Cadence is a very capable princess, and they have their own armed force should anything happen.”
Then turning to her sister, Celestia said, “Luna, as we agreed, I shall take the amulet from you.”
Hesitantly, Luna eventually nodded and bowed her head, letting Celestia lift the amulet from her chest. With the amulet gone, Luna felt a surge of energy, as if the plague had lifted itself from her body. Taking in a deep breath, she said, “I never realized just how draining that thing was. Please, be careful with it sister.”
Nodding Celestia placed it around her neck where the amulet glowed angrily at the removal. It heated up against her chest and sparked with a fiery flare before it finally settled down. Twilight watched this take place and looked up to Celestia, who’d grown a touch groggy from the cursed item’s weight.
“What about me?” Twilight asked anxiously, “I’m a princess of Equestria too. I should be responsible for that as well.”
Celestia took a double take as she had never considered the possibility. Glancing over to her sister, she found Luna to be in an equal state of shock. Quickly shaking it off, Celestia walked over to Twilight and gave the young princess a hug. “Twilight. I admire your courage, but this is something you cannot bear. Luna and I will share the burden of guarding Nightmare Moon. But you, you and your friends represent the Elements of Harmony, and are the only ones who can wield them. If something does happen to us, we’ll be counting on you; all of you.”
“Yes, Princess Celestia.”
Smiling, Celestia finished, “Good. Now, I think we’ve talked long enough on this matter. Why don’t you go see Moon Dancer? I’m sure she misses you.”
Nodding, Twilight bowed to the two princesses and made her exit.
Princess Celestia had left to lower the sun by the time Twilight finally arrived at the hospital in Canterlot. The sky melted into a vibrant combination of red and orange, the sun exploded with color as it seeped into Moon Dancer’s room between the blinds. Her friend hadn’t quite noticed her yet as Moon Dancer had her nose buried in a book. Mythological Creatures and Their Equestrian Ancestry, by Arctic Gold, it was a fine expedition of a book that dug into ancient species of Equestrian lore. Twilight had remembered using that book as a reference for more than a few research papers over the years.
Twilight chose not to disturb her friend, but took a seat on a nearby chair, casually glancing around the room. An assortment of medical equipment had accumulated around Moon Dancer’s bed. Some devices flickered with lights, or beeped at regular intervals. Others monitored blood pressure, or heart rate. It was then that Twilight noticed a couple of connections that travelled up under Moon Dancer’s bedsheets. With bandages wrapped firmly around her head and around her chest, the impact against the tree must had really damaged her.
Twilight leaned her head down and sighed. She’d really failed her friend back then.
“Twilight?” Moon Dancer said in surprise, her friend’s sigh had surprised her, having failed to realize she was no longer alone.
Hopping off her chair, Twilight stepped over to her friend’s bed. “Hey Moon Dancer, how’s it going?”
“It’s going alright. It’s a hospital, so it’s quiet and dull. Perfect atmosphere for catching up on some good reading.” Moon Dancer said happily.
Twilight smiled and nodded. “And how are you doing?”
“I’m doing okay.” Moon Dancer answered slowly, understanding her friend’s meaning. Setting a bookmark to mark her place, Moon Dancer set aside her book and taking a deep breath, she said “I . . . I don’t remember much. I remember . . . you started chasing me through the Everfree Forest. After that, things got kind of hazy.” Moon Dancer scratched her head, squinting as if trying to remember more, “Before that even, everything is kind of sketchy. What did I do?”
“Nothing. You did nothing. We were lucky. Princess Luna and I managed to stop you before you did any damage. I’m just glad you’re alright.” Leaning in, Twilight gave her friend a soft hug, taking a deep breath as she fought to drive out the memories of that night from her head. “And believe me . . . nothing about that night is worth remembering.” Under her breath, Twilight whispered, “Just some things to forget.”
“What was that?” Moon Dancer asked.
“Nothing.” Twilight said, shaking her head, “I was just so worried about you. I’m glad to see you’re alright.”
“Thanks Twilight. I was so worried I’d done something awful to you.”
Remembering her discussion with Celestia and Luna, Twilight said, “Well, nothing bad has happened yet. I met with Celestia and Luna earlier. There may be a chance that Nightmare Moon could return.”
Moon Dancer’s eyes widened as fear spread across her face. She leaned back in her bed, resting her head on her pillow. “Oh. So, it’s not over then?”
“I don’t mean that she’d come back inside of you. Princess Luna and I pulled her out of you.” Twilight’s words offered instant relief to Moon Dancer, who calmed down considerably at those words. “She could return through Luna again.” Twilight finished.
“H-How? I thought Luna had . . .”
“Luna had a vision, and a powerful one at that. She spoke of a book filled with powerful magic. It was a spell in that book that allowed us to get the nightmarish energy out of you. But we think Nightmare Moon may be aware of the book as well. Do remember anything at all about a book? It may have even been used by King Sombra at one point.”
Moon Dancer shook her head, “Sorry Twilight. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“That’s okay.” Twilight said, “you should focus on getting better anyways.”
“If it’s that important though, I’d be more than happy to do some research for you.” Moon Dancer offered.
“No, it’s alright. You need to focus on rest . . .”
“Twilight.” Moon Dancer interrupted, her narrowed eyes and curled lips a clear give-away that she wasn’t buying it. “I’ll be stuck here for Celestia knows how long. I’ll have nothing to do. I’ll be bored. Let me help you.”
Shrugging, Twilight nodded. “Alright.”
“Good.” Moon Dancer said satisfied, “Now, what do you know about this mysterious book?”
Giving in, Twilight explained what she had discussed with Luna and Celestia before coming to visit.
The day’s end came fast for Princess Celestia as she led the sun down beneath the horizon for some well-deserved rest. Another day was in the books, and right on schedule, Luna’s moon lifted high into the sky, waking the shimmering stars from their slumber. The sky darkened to a midnight blue color, much like that of Luna’s shimmering coat of fur.
When Celestia returned to the castle for bed, she heard her name from behind. Turning, she watched her younger sister land onto the balcony. Luna’s ever-graceful figure stepped towards her, “Sister, how was your day? Did it bring you much trouble?”
“No. For the most part, I hardly noticed it.” Celestia answered, choosing not to mention the late afternoon when the jewel had flared up on her, causing a moderate amount of burning against her chest. Yes, she felt the evil that dwelled within this capsule. She could feel it swirling around, even now, rumbling in anguish from its captivity.
“Good. I’m glad to hear that.” Luna said, relieved her sister had been spared from harm. “If I may Celestia, I shall resume my duties with caring for it. The less time we spend with it the better.”
Smiling lovingly at her sister, Celestia noticed how the bags in Luna’s eyes had vanished. “You slept well?” She asked, to which Luna nodded her head in confusion. “Good,” Celestia said, having already decided, “Allow me to watch over it tonight, and then you may resume your duties tomorrow.”
“Celestia, I couldn’t allow you to be in danger . . .”
“I’ll be fine Luna.” Celestia insisted, “I’ll take good care of it. You deserve a bit longer of a break from bearing it. You’ve had it for so long already.”
“Alright,” Luna conceded, “Then I shall pick up the amulet from you in the morning.” Turning away from her sister to resume her nightly duties, Luna said, “Good night sister.”
“Good night Luna.”
“Celestia.” Luna’s voice stopped Celestia as she had started down the spiral staircase to her room. She turned and found Luna’s soft, relaxed eyes, “Thank you.” She said.
Celestia smiled, “you’re welcome,” and she turned back down the stairs. She was more than happy to help her sister. Luna meant so much to her, and if keeping Nightmare Moon from her sister a bit longer meant ease of mind for Luna, then Celestia was more than willing to oblige.
With the amulet around her neck, Celestia entered her room. Before heading to bed, she sat down in front of her mirror and using her magic, Celestia grabbed a brush and began brushing her mane. She relaxed herself, removing all the knots from the day from her mane, smoothing herself out and preparing for a night’s rest.
Humming an old tune her mother once sung, Celestia closed her eyes and let the brush glide down her mane and over her back. The cool night breeze tickled over her body as she stroked down through her hair once more. Celestia felt a warmth rising against her chest as she stroked the brush down her mane again. The brush however, got caught on a rather gnarly knot in her hair. Applying more pressure, she forced the brush through her hair, breaking the knot, and smoothing it out.
As the knot broke apart, so too did the clasp of her necklace. The amulet fell from Celestia’s chest, scraping up against the side of her mirror as it fell to the floor. Celestia wasted no time in re-attaching the amulet around her neck. It fizzed and sparked, hotter this time as it flashed and thundered.
“This magic . . . is not something to be trifled with.” Celestia said to herself. Using magic of her own, Celestia locked the chain tightly around her neck. “I only hope we can learn more of the book from whence you came.”
Setting her brush down, Celestia stepped over to her bed and laid down, covering herself up and closing her eyes. Celestia slowly drifted off to sleep, as a small hairline crack in the amulet started to leak.