Celestia awoke, feeling infinitely more refreshed than just a few hours earlier… though such thoughts were quickly lost as she remembered the earlier events, worried anew for Maya. I still do not understand why she reacted so strongly to Twilight’s magic… she shook her head, suddenly wondering how she was going to explain all this to her student. Even with her natural affinity and suppressed feelings for Phoenix, the amount of magic that reached us shouldn’t have been enough to cause all this…
Realizing with some surprise it was already mid-afternoon, she pulled herself up from where she had been laying in the sun in front of her suite’s big bay window, using its rays to recharge—she could not control the sun of Earth, of course, but that did not mean she could not draw strength from it, just as she did back home. The sun, after all, was her element much as fire was Twilight’s; it was daylight that defined her and provided her power.
Feeling a bit more herself after the long night and casting the draining portal spell, she took a deep breath and walked gently over to the door, trying to quiet the clopping of her hooves, listening to make sure there were no housekeepers inside—she’d locked and magically sealed the doors, but a pony still couldn’t be too careful. The last thing she needed was a maid to see her as an alicorn; the last time it had happened had been in Monte Carlo a decade earlier when she had gone to bed exhausted and allowed her transformation to lapse. She had been forced to cast a sleeping spell on the shrieking woman and then—very carefully—excise her memory of the ordeal through arcane arts she neither taught nor let anypony else know existed. The closest modern spell known of was the scrying spell that Twilight had used on Trixie, and even that was heavily restricted.
Though it doesn’t always go so badly. That one may have screamed out that I was a demon, but the one before her asked if I was an angel… she remembered wanly, reflecting that in that instance, she had taken it so well she gained a new friend and confidant, someone to help her agents on Earth. And once or twice she might have indulged herself by deliberately taking her alicorn form in front of scientists, priests or other religious figures that alternately claimed magic didn’t exist, men were supreme or animals soulless, delighting in their reactions. Several had fainted outright and another had held up a crucifix as if to ward off a vampire; the only thing that had stopped her from taking a thestral form to tease him further was the fear he might have a heart attack if she did.
Still, though it could be a source of endless amusement to her, revealing herself was something to be avoided whenever possible. There had been at least one picture taken of her as an alicorn over the years, and the everpresence of cameras in the human world now meant she and her agents had to be much more circumspect than previously. If such a photograph—or worse, a video—‘went viral’, as humans now said, she might have a far more difficult time dealing with it.
Her sharp ears hearing no other presence in the other room, she took a deep breath and removed the privacy enchantment, immediately detecting the presence of Vinyl and Maya, the pair visible to her ethereal awareness by their respective auras, one magical and one mystical. Most of Twilight’s magic was now gone from the latter, she was relieved to sense, though at least small shimmer of it remained deep within Maya’s core. Well, hopefully that’s a good sign…
Concentrating, she called out with her thoughts to Vinyl Scratch, asking if she could enter. When the unicorn mare said yes, she opened the door… and started at the sight of an unclothed Maya Fey curled up with Vinyl Scratch on the bed, the pony DJ holding her.
“How is she?” Celestia asked, concern etched on her face even as she was trying to keep the blush off it—seeing Maya in such a state pushed many of her buttons, and she couldn’t help but feel a moment of envy towards Vinyl Scratch as she levitated a blanket up over them both, trying to give the young human girl a measure of modesty.
“Okay, I think. Got most of the magic out of her. She cried herself to sleep after, but at least now she is sleeping,” Vinyl stated quietly, sounding troubled. “Poor filly. For what it’s worth, princess, I ain’t gonna say it didn’t enjoy it, but this still sure as hay ain’t how I would’ve wanted this to be,” she shook her head as Maya stirred slightly. “Pretty sure she’s gonna need some space now. I’d really like to stay with her, but… might just be best for me to go back to Equestria and let her try to absorb all this.”
Before Celestia could reply, Maya stirred and clutched at Vinyl’s arm. “N-no…” she said in a weak voice. “Don’t go, V-Jay…”
“Maya?” Vinyl was surprised. “Easy filly, I’m here…”
“Are you okay, Miss Fey?” Celestia asked.
She sniffled again. “How can I be okay?” she asked in a broken voice. How can ANYTHING ever be okay after this…? With me or Nick? Or with me and Vinyl…?
Celestia went downcast, feeling at fault again, knowing she’d already done what she could to help the young girl… and it simply wasn’t enough. For all my magic and all my years, it would seem there are simply some things over which I have no power…
Abruptly, Maya gasped. “Huh…? Sis…?” She looked around, instinctively clutching the blanket to her.
“Your sister?” Celestia blinked.
Maya shivered. “I can feel her. Sh-she wants me to channel her…” she announced, and both Vinyl and Celestia stiffened as she pulled herself up into a sitting position. She gave Vinyl a worried glance, then steeled herself, sitting up and pulling her Magatama necklace back on. “Tell her I said not to be mad at you…” she begged, then her Magatama glowed and her body shifted.
Within seconds, Mia Fey stood where Maya did. She stood up and did not bother with the blanket, letting it fall to the floor, crossing her arms over her bare chest and looking down at Vinyl, pinning her with an icy stare.
Vinyl Scratch couldn’t remember the last time she felt so intimidated; even Octavia at her prosecutorial worst didn’t match the sheer withering power of the human woman’s gaze.
“Ms. Fey, please…” Celestia began to offer, but Mia simply held up a hand in a halting gesture towards her, causing her to fall silent.
Vinyl drew herself up straight and met the human woman’s eyes as well as she could, realizing even the Princess herself was cowed—but how could even she not be in the presence of an otherworldly spirit, one from which no secrets or actions could be hidden? By Celly’s sun, if Maya’s sister is like this in death, I’d hate to see what she was like in LIFE! “Look, lady… if you’re mad, I’m sorry, but… far as I’m concerned, I did what I had to help a friend in need. I don’t know if it’s what you wanted or the way you wanted it, but I helped her the best way I knew how, and it worked—the magic is gone now. I did what I was asked to do, and I don’t regret it.”
Mia’s facade cracked a bit at that as she closed her eyes and sighed. “Yes. I can tell it worked,” she acknowledged, if somewhat grudgingly. “And I saw you were genuinely trying to help her and did so as gently as you could. Nevertheless, understand this will be a very difficult time for her, and it will take some time for her to come to terms with her feelings for both you and ‘Nick’. You may not regret it, but she does right now. So my previous instructions hold—tread very carefully, Ms. Scratch,” she admonished. “Just because she was with you under some duress now does not mean she is ready for more, or that you can be with her anytime you want. Right now, she has a lot to work through and needs you as a friend, not a lover.”
Vinyl shook her head. “You don’t have to tell me that, sister. I may have a ‘reputation’, but that doesn’t mean I got no sense. I’ve been down this road before and I ain’t gonna push her on anything. Especially not after that,” she swore, rubbing a hoof behind her head. “Look, I ain’t gonna stand here and lie and tell you I don’t like Maya and don’t hope we can be lovers. But I didn’t want it like this any more than she did. We do anything again, it’ll be by her choice, and I’ll abide by her wishes either way.”
Mia studied her, and then nodded. “Well said, Ms. Scratch. And that is ultimately all I would ask. Be her friend, and be there for her. Because she needs you as a friend right now.” With that, she turned her attention to Celestia, who had been sitting by and listening quietly. “I will speak to my sister at the earliest opportunity through Pearl—but until then… I will take your earlier suggestion, Princess. I ask that you please record and then play back for Maya what I am about to say.”
“Of course,” Celestia immediately agreed, glad to feel useful again, briefly closing her eyes and igniting her horn. “Proceed,” she invited as her eyes opened again, her horn still aglow.
Mia crossed her arms and turned to face the sun princess. “Maya… I know what happened, and I know how you must feel—guilty, scared, perhaps even violated. I just want you to know there’s nothing to feel ashamed about. There’s nothing wrong with having feelings for others, even those you might not have looked upon this way before. I asked you before why Nick meant so much to you, and though this was not the way I would have wanted the answer to come, it was still the answer you would have eventually arrived at. As Vinyl noted, it is only natural we draw closer to those we know well, those we share so much with… and have done so much for. I know it seems impossible now, but you will come to terms with it in time. You have good friends,” she noted, making a sweeping motion towards Vinyl and Celestia. “Let them help you, and we will talk as soon as Pearl can reach you. Until then, remember that I am always with you in spirit… and in body, whenever you need.”
She nodded at Celestia, who ended her spell. “And what would you ask of me?” the sun princess asked earnestly, trying not to let her gaze linger too much on Mia’s gorgeous human body. This is REALLY not the time… she knew, but she couldn’t help it.
Mia stared at her like she could see right through her. “Train your student,” she said sternly, then her expression softened. “By which I mean Maya. You offered to teach her? Do so. The more control she has and less at magical mercy she feels, the better.”
“Of course,” Celestia bowed low before the channeled spirit, who departed for the human heaven and left the form of Maya behind.
Realizing she was unclothed, the girl instantly covered herself, Celestia wrapping her in a blanket and Vinyl passing her her robe. “Your sister left you a message, young Maya…” Celestia announced, then proceeded to play back her speech, projecting Mia’s image in front of the young mystic.
By the end of the speech, Maya was in tears. “Thanks, sis…” she clasped her Magatama in both hands and kissed it, and then began pulling her clothes back on. “You know, I could really go for a burger…”
Phoenix stumbled hard as they rematerialized in the living room of the villa, his insides churning. “Dammit, Twilight, warn me next time!” he snapped at her harder than he meant, causing Twilight to cringe again, only belatedly wondering how she’d just pulled off a multiple-mile teleport on Phoenix’s world when she couldn’t before.
“Sorry…” she all but squeaked, not wanting to explain she wanted to get as far away from the place of their act as soon as possible… grabbing her pendant and using its stored mana to transform back into a human in hopes that would mute her magic more around him. She immediately tried to go back to him, but he held up his hands in a halting motion, pulling on his pants. “Just… give me some distance right now, okay?” He rubbed his temples again, and not just from lingering dizziness from the teleportation spell. His senses felt… fuzzy… somehow, and he was having a hard time focusing, his thoughts being drawn towards not logic, but fear and anger once again.
“S-sure…” she promised, sitting down on the couch opposite again, wringing her hands in a very human gesture she’d already picked up, listening as Phoenix shared his conclusions as to what had happened back in the clearing, though she noted he seemed to be rubbing his forehead frequently, like he was having a headache. Did I do that to him too? Is he now in magical withdrawal…? she suddenly fretted, distrusting her magic even more.
Nevertheless, he laid out his deductions and their reasoning, and they rang true to Twilight. “So… do you agree with me that this transformation we saw has probably been happening all along? Happens when we have sex and then disappears afterwards?” he asked her, unconsciously tapping his fingers on the kitchen countertop. He’d been standing the whole time like he did in court, too nervous and restless to sit.
“Y-yes…” she agreed, going downcast. “And if it really is my mating magic that’s doing it… I d-don’t know if I can restrain it…”
That’s the problem right there… Phoenix’s lips tightened. If she couldn’t restrain her magic here… then where else? he wondered again. Even if I accept she didn’t MEAN to do any of this, could that also mean there are OTHER things she’s done unknowingly, and all to make me her mate? Could this mean I was right all along and what I feel for her… truly ISN’T real…?
“Phoenix…” she called to him in a nervous voice as she saw his jaw tighten and fists suddenly clench at his sides. “You’re scaring me…” Are you going to leave me over this? She didn’t dare ask.
I’m scaring YOU? He bit his lip to keep from saying. He didn’t believe it. He didn’t want to believe it, but the defense lawyer in him was pointing a finger at it as a very real possibility again, his distrust of her magic and their whole situation growing. “I’m sorry…” he answered automatically, even as his thoughts were going in decidedly dark directions. “It’s just…” All this time… have I just been freaking used!? AGAIN???? The spectre of Dahlia Hawthorne suddenly floated up in his thoughts, causing him to recoil. NO!!! This isn’t the same thing… he shook his head hard, trying to dispel her ghost.
“What… wh-what do we do now?” Twilight swallowed, her own fears growing. “M-Maybe the princess has some advice…”
“Maybe…” he admitted, wondering if it would help if he could talk to Mia again, but embarrassed at the thought of telling her what had happened. “But I think for now, it’d be best if we slept apart tonight.” He couldn’t meet her eyes.
Twilight slumped. She needed his reassurance badly, but also sensed at that moment he wasn’t able to give it. And maybe I don’t deserve it… “I… guess that might… be best.” Defeated, Twilight turned to walk away, rethinking everything as well, now worried that every intimate experience she’d had with Phoenix might not have been of their own free will. But even MY magic couldn’t alter his very heart… could it? “Phoenix… we will get through this,” she said as much for herself as for him.
“Yeah…” he agreed numbly.
Twilight’s shoulders slumped as well, recognizing his dull tone. Phoenix was hurt and scared, that much was clear, and no amount of apology or reassurance seemed to help. Maybe he’s right and it’s best to give him some distance for a bit… “I think… I’m going to take a walk,” she announced, trying to keep her voice from breaking.
“Okay...” Phoenix hung his head, having failed to either reason with himself or feel a way forward, finding no answers to the questions now haunting his thoughts. Is the trial really over, Mia? Is it safe for me to cry yet? “I think I’m going to bed. Enjoy your walk, Twilight.”
“I’ll be back later…” she promised, donning her clothes and walking out the back door, disappearing into the deepening dusk without another word.
Her lip trembled and a tear fell from her eye as she left.
* * * * *
An hour later found Twilight nearly two miles away from the Villa, having sought out the darkest corner of the beach she could. The seabreeze felt deliciously cool against her bare skin, but she barely noticed, lost in her own fears and brooding thoughts.
She transformed back into a pony as night fell fully, sitting at the edge of the water and staring out into the distance. She had never felt more alone than she had then, suddenly feeling how out of place she was in Phoenix’s world more than ever. I don’t belong here… she thought more than once, reflecting again on the myriad differences between her world and Earth, and how they once again conspired to come between her and her chosen stallion.
I chose him… but did he really choose ME? The question made her lip quiver and eyes water again. Did I somehow MAKE him my mate? Is he right and is my magic trying to make him a pony? Alter both his body and mind so he can be my dream stallion? The breeze picked up and she shivered again, less from the cool temperatures than the growing chill in her heart. But magic can’t do that… can’t alter someone’s heart… she recited one of Celestia’s long-ago lessons, trying to find comfort in it, only to realize… But I’m the Element of Magic. So if anypony’s magic COULD do it, it would be mine…
She found no answers, and was not willing to ask the princess for aid yet. I’ve leaned on her enough in all this; just stop bothering her and let her have her vacation, she told herself, wondering again what she and Maya were doing that they didn’t want to tell them about.
She stayed out for another hour, forming and discarding a dozen more theories as to what happened. The one she had come up with first still rang the truest; it must have been her mating magic acting on him that caused his physical transformation. And he’s right… I think it happened every time before when we rutted with me as a pony; we just never noticed it before this… she conceded the validity of his logic, cold comfort though it was. But I’ve still NEVER heard of this happening! Is my magic just that powerful? And do I dare trust it around him again…? For the first time the thought entered her mind that even if he forgave her, she might have to leave him to protect him. No… tears welled in her eyes again.
There were a few other people out walking as well as midnight approached, but she paid them no mind, knowing there was little light at the water’s edge and her dark coat made her nearly invisible… to most. At one point, a large dog broke away from its owners and ran up to her, barking loudly; she’d dealt with that by simply picking him up in her aura and dangling him in the air until he whimpered and whined, then lowered him back down gently and allowed him to run away with his tail between his legs, heading back to his owners, casting an invisibility spell before his owner’s flashlight could illuminate her. She’d felt guilty for it afterwards—he hadn’t deserved that; she certainly got along well enough with Applejack’s dog Winona—but she really didn’t want to be disturbed.
Some part of her noted again that her magic was coming much easier to her now than it had just a couple days earlier, but it brought her no comfort. Any other time, the fact that her full power was returning to her even in this magic-poor world would have been worthy of celebration and investigation, but now it only heightened her fears. For the more power she had, the more likely she was to accidentally affect Phoenix.
And haven’t I affected him enough already? The guilt came back full force. I mean, how much of ANY of this is real? Our love? Our lovemaking? She had a sudden, very strong memory of him taking her earlier that evening and found, to her horror, that she was responding to it, her aura glowing pink, attracting the attention of more passersby. She hid this time by teleporting fifty meters behind them, the sweep of their flashlight only catching her departing burst of light.
As if I don’t have ENOUGH to feel bad about! She took another ragged breath, trying to will her lingering excitement away, though the only thing her efforts accomplished was turning her attention back to Phoenix, worrying about him and what her magic had been doing to him.
In the end, her fears growing further and lacking all answers, she transformed into a human again and took the long walk back to the Villa. Arriving, she began to teleport inside, but stopped herself. No more magic… she told herself, taking out the house key and putting it in the lock. She entered to find Phoenix sleeping on the couch, still dressed, if somewhat fitfully judging by the tangled sheets around him.
He’d left some food out for her as well, but she wasn’t hungry, too upset to eat. The only thing she wanted was to cuddle with him, comfort both him and herself, but in the end she accepted his need for separation and went upstairs, climbing into the master suite bed they’d shared the night before, wishing forlornly that she could will the entire evening’s events away.
He’s going to leave me… the thought haunted her. And all because I couldn’t control myself or my magic…
“Court is now in session for the trial of Phoenix Wright!” boomed The Judge, who stood at least five stories tall. He looked otherwise normal except for the fact his robe was crimson and his gavel was adorned with several spikes, to say nothing of his eyes glowing red just as Twilight’s did when she was angry or tapping into her elemental fire. “Although this is probably the most open-and-shut case I have ever borne witness to!”
Phoenix blinked as he realized he was in court, albeit not the room he was used to. The walls were made of brimstone, and there was a pit of fire in the center of the room where the witness stand should be; the audience appeared to be made of cackling ponies and people, caricatures of and human and equine friends alike. “Trial? What trial?” he asked, realizing he was all alone on the defense bench, and his evidence bag was empty.
“Don’t be so naive, attorney,” sneered the prosecutor, who Phoenix realized with a start was actually Manfred von Karma, the corrupt prosecutor whom he’d proven had framed Miles Edgeworth for the murder of his father. “The charges against you are rape and treason to the Equestrian crown, for taking the innocence of the personal student of Princess Celestia!” He snapped his finger for emphasis.
“Rape? Treason?” He recoiled in horror, suddenly feeling a trickle of sweat down his back. “B-but I’m not a pony!” his voice bore an uncharacteristic tremor.
“She accused you herself, Wright-O!” Damon Gant clapped his gloved hands together in glee, where he stood to one side of the judge’s oversized bench as a bailiff. “For groping her without consent the first night she was here.”
“And let’s not forget taking her where the sun don’t shine!” a badly scarred Matt Engarde sneered from the other side of the bench, lounging against a rail while swirling his goblet of wine. “She didn’t give permission for that, did she? Gotta hand to you, Phoenix Wright… you took that tail like a champ!” he mocked.
“B-but that was an accident!” he protested.
“An accident? So you just fell into her, attorney?” Von Karma stated derisively.
“No! It was…” her magic… he bit his tongue to keep from saying.
“If you are not guilty of these heinous acts, then who is?” the demonic Judge demanded to know. “You always accuse another of the crime, and this court will hold someone to account for what happened! So who is responsible then, Phoenix Wright?” he brought his gavel down with enough force to shake the entire room, the flames leaping higher around him. “Tell this court immediately, or be found guilty of it yourself!”
“Indeed, attorney,” von Karma smirked. “So who will it be this time? You cannot accuse us of these crimes, so it must be the other party to these unnatural acts!” His smirk grew into a sneer.
“B-but…” Phoenix felt trapped. No… sh-she didn’t… she c-couldn’t… His mind groped desperately for a piece of evidence or testimony to counter his increasingly irrefutable arguments, but he found nothing. His evidence bag was empty along with his witness slate, nor was there any Mia or Maya at his side to aid him.
“If she is not guilty, then why is she not here?” Von Karma challenged. “If she truly cares about you, why is she not helping you now?”
“Because she’s just like me, Feenie,” a new and very unwelcome voice was heard, causing his guts to clench. “Because she used you. Just… like… me…” Dahlia Hawthorne said softly from the witness stand, smiling sweetly while idly twirling her parasol.
“N-no…” Phoenix looked down and realized his blue suit had been replaced by a pink shirt with a heart on the front; he was now wearing a surgical mask as well. “It’s not true… she’s my Twilie!” he protested through tears, suddenly feeling like the emotionally fragile college student he’d been then.
Von Karma was as merciless as ever. “Your honor! The prosecution submits the following evidence to this court!” he pulled out an old VHS tape and put it into an ancient player and tube TV wheeled forth by Officer Meekins. “Prepare to be as disgusted and appalled by this scene as I was…” he warned as the video began to play, clutching at his jacket sleeve with his free hand.
To Phoenix’s shock, it was a recording of his first night together with Twilight nearly three weeks earlier, sitting on his office balcony and chatting. But… there were no cameras there! He protested, but he’d barely formed the thought before he suddenly found himself inside the recording, again perceiving everything through his own senses.
He saw her aura go pink and felt himself falling into her eyes, felt his face begin to drift towards hers, tugged towards her like a magnet, causing his fears to rise as he felt himself losing control.
What… what’s happening…? he suddenly wondered as…
“Ţh͢e͞y͘ ̴kiss̷ęd҉ li̢g҉ht̴l͟y̧.”
͝
“Thȩ̴ń̶͏ a̕͞g̢͟a͘i̢n̸͜.̡̛”
The memories seemed very fuzzy to him, somehow unclear, corrupted, and covered up, like he was drugged or seeing everything through a thin layer of gauze; the only time he could remember feeling like that before was when he got put on laughing gas to have his wisdom teeth pulled as a teen.
Something wasn’t right at all. More memories kept surfacing…about how he felt so driven, felt so lustful, was getting more desperate to have her, more desiring of her no matter what her form…
Á̷͠n҉͠d̡̧ ̀͡҉i̵̡n̷̵̢c̵͢͝͞ŗ̶̷͞e͠҉̕͢a̢͞ś҉̷i̶͠n̡̢g҉̷̷̷l̵̢͠ý̸͟ ̸̛p̸̨̧͘̕ó͘͜͟w̷̶̧e̸͢͟҉r̶̡͞ļ͜e̡̢̨s͠͡͏̨s̷͠ ͏͢t̴̡̕͜͡ó̡͜҉ ̸̛̕͞ŕ̴́e̢҉͏s̶̡̢͢͏i̶̧̛͡͠s̵̸̛t̸̵̨͟͞ ̢̀͘͘͡ì̢͡͝t͜.̢́͟͜͞
Wait… what? The memory began to clear.
A͟͟ņ̛͠d̸̨ i̕҉̕n̶͜ḉr̡͞e̷aśi͜͜n̛͡͝g̷͜l͟y̨ ͘͘p͢o̢w̡͞e͟r̴̨le͞͏s̶̷s̸͘ ̡͞t҉͞ò ̴r̡͠e̵̕s̷͡i͡͏st͡ ̛͝í̢͜t͜.̀
It can’t be… Clearer still…
A͠n͏d i͞n̨çr͘e̢a͜s̸i̢ng̨ly̢ pow͟er̸le͝s͡s͡ ́t͢o̧ ͟res̷i̧s̸t͞ įt̀.
He could see what it was now; realized what was happening. And then the hammer fell on him as he finally pulled the memory from his subconscious…
And increasingly powerless to resist it…
He staggered back right out of the vision, finding himself in the courtroom again, leaning heavily against the back wall of his bench as the replay ended. All this time… she’s been affecting me…?
While Phoenix gaped, Von Karma closed his eyes and smiled. “Decisive evidence… a decisive witness… what more could possibly be required to condemn her?”
“No!” He collapsed to his defense bench and clutched his head. “She didn’t… she wasn’t…” he tried again.
“Wasn’t what?” the veteran prosecutor drove the knife in further. “Wasn’t tricking you? Wasn’t controlling you?”
Reeling and confused, Phoenix could not even muster an objection.
“Such a pathetic little man…” von Karma mocked him. “Allows others to manipulate him. To use him. So easy to trick and betray…” he roared in laughter, as did everyone else in the courtroom. Looking around, Phoenix recognized several faces more in the gallery, mostly criminals he’d proved had committed crimes in place of those close to him. Among them were Frank Sahwit, who was wringing his toupee in his hands while wearing an expression of undisguised glee, while beside him Morgan Fey sipped her tea with a measured but satisfied smile on her face. “You have once again allowed a mere female to use you! Her taint is all over you, attorney!”
Phoenix finally found his voice. “There is no proof such a thing happened!” He offered weakly, pointing a shaking finger across the burning pit at von Karma.
“Is there not?” Franziska’s father snapped his fingers again, the sharp sound ringing throughout the courtroom. As if on cue, the wind picked up and to his horror, he felt a sudden, uncontrollable swelling in his pants. “The prosecution submits as evidence… this!”
He banged his cane hard on the ground, and Phoenix’s clothes fell from him, revealing his new equine equipment, their size even more exaggerated than before. He tried futilely to cover himself, to hide it, but he could not as psyche-lock chains suddenly appeared and ensnared him, coiling around him and pulling him down to the ground, leaving him unable to break free.
The sounds in the courtroom were ones of revulsion and derision. “I have seen ENOUGH!” The Judge thundered as winds grew stronger and flames leapt higher around him. “The evidence of your crimes is incontrovertible, Phoenix Wright! You have broken the laws of pony and man, and sinned against nature itself! You are GUILTY! And for that, you must be PUNISHED!” With that, the demonic Judge raised his spiked gavel high to bring it right down on his head.
“NO!” Phoenix cried, unable to stop the blow to come.
But before the strike came, a beam of white light struck the apparition, which all but disintegrated under the blast. “BEGONE, vile creatures!” a powerful female voice thundered, the force behind it enough to leave his ears ringing even in the confines of his dream.
Opening his eyes again, he found the formerly hellish courtroom was suddenly bathed in a soft white light, the moon itself appearing through the back window, illuminating him. The light felt cool and comforting, as did the breeze that followed, extinguishing the flames and evaporating the chains around him; where it touched some of the other demonic figures, they sizzled and vaporized, disappearing into the air like smoke. The other courtroom figures suddenly fled the scene, morphing into winged creatures that looked like both human and pony versions of demons, exiting rapidly through doors and windows, all but leaving in a panic. And then in their wake, a new figure appeared, descending out of the moon itself.
She was a pony, and a very large one at that. Her fur was a dark blue and her mane seemed to share Celestia’s magically charged, majestic, and gracefully flowing locks, though replacing the solar radiance in favor of having the night itself flowing through her hair. She had a dark tiara, deep blue eyes and a crescent moon cutie mark adorning her hip with silver shoes covering her hooves, not at all unlike Celestia’s golden ones. She was nearly as large as the sun princess, if a bit more slender and about half a head shorter, and Phoenix could see the stars literally twinkling in her ethereal mane like it was made of the evening sky itself.
Still naked and reeling from the nightmare, Phoenix staggered back from her as she landed before him with flared wings, belatedly recognizing her as an alicorn. “Who… who are you…?” he asked her, though he had an uncomfortable feeling that he already knew, having seen pictures of her during his studies of pony society in Equestria. She can’t be…
To his surprise, she favored him with a smile. “Greetings, Phoenix Wright. We—” she bowed low “—are Luna. Sister of Celestia, keeper of the moon and Princess of the Night. We come to thee via the nightmares of our sister’s student, Twilight Sparkle. And ’twould seem we came when we were needed most.” She nodded at the ruined dreamscape around them.
Princess… LUNA…? Phoenix swallowed, his mind clearing as the nightmare’s spell over him was broken. He knew from his reading that this mare had once been the creature called Nightmare Moon, an evil alicorn apparently defeated by Twilight and his friends. Defeated… and purified… he gave a silent prayer, hoping she couldn’t hear his thoughts, uncertain of her intentions or purpose in being there. “Th-thank you…” he acknowledged, doubling over and taking some deep but ragged breaths, shaking badly. It was a variation of a recurring nightmare he’d had where he found himself unprepared for trial and unable to defend a client, but couldn’t ever remember having one that lucid or intense. “But wh-why are you here? How are you here?” He had to know.
The moon princess puffed her chest up in pride. “The night is our responsibility as much as the day is our sister’s. And with the power of the night, comes the power of dreams… though ’tis true that we once abused our ability to travel them, using them to manipulate and control others,” she went downcast for a moment. “But that version of us is gone. And now we seek once more to serve our subjects properly… though as thou art not one of our subjects, we shall spare thee the honor of our Royal Canterlot Voice.” Her smile deepened.
Phoenix wasn’t sure if she had just made a joke or not. “Thanks, I think…” he managed, still looking at her warily, not at all liking the idea that Equestrian magic could even invade his mind; that he wasn’t safe from it even on Earth or when he was sleeping. Is there NOWHERE I’m free from it now…?
She went a bit downcast at the look he was giving her. “Thou gazeth upon us in fear… as so many still do. We understand, but we did hope that a human who knew of us without having seen us as The Nightmare would receive us better,” she sighed. “Still, we believe we can, and must, help thee, Phoenix Wright. ’Tis our power and duty to guard the night and protect the dreams of our ponies, and we wouldst certainly extend this courtesy to the consort of our sister’s student… and favorite of our sister herself.”
“Well… th-thank you…” he shivered again at the still-potent memories of the dream. “Given how often my dreams turn into nightmares, sometimes I wish I wouldn’t have them.”
She arched an eyeridge as she helped him to his feet, her magic pulling him up, the mare of the moon not even blinking at the fact he was naked. “Thou shouldst not wish for such a thing, Phoenix Wright. For dreams are as necessary as sleep itself. They are a tool for memory and coping, and can reveal the fears and deepest truths that we ourselves keep hidden,” she told him, some part of him noting that she was echoing in far more archaic terms the lessons of a long-ago psychology class. “Though thou art correct in that they are not always benign and can be used by evil spirits for foul ends.”
“Evil spirits?” He felt a fresh trickle of fear down his back.
“Indeed,” she nodded, then changed the room around him with a flash of her horn, taking him to a far more peaceful place, an evening meadow with warm breezes and starry skies, lit by fireflies and will-o-wisps in the center of which sat a placid pond. “We guard the dreamscapes of our ponies from the fell demons that sometimes haunt them, seeking purchase in their very souls… as this group did with thee,” she nodded around them at the pile of ashes she’d reduced the judge and various other figures to, a gust of wind suddenly blowing them all away. “We hope thou findeth this place more to thy liking. ’Tis a recreation of one of our favorite places in Equestria. And one we oft retreat to when we need respite from this modern world.” She looked away, momentarily brooding again.
“It’s very nice, yes. But we’re not in Equestria…” he protested, the lawyer part of him kicking in automatically. “How were you able to find me here? And forgive me, but I really don’t like being in here naked… or having this…” he motioned down at his equine equipment, feeling very exposed and vulnerable in the alicorn’s presence.
In response, she arched an eyeridge, the barest hint of a grin breaking her lips. “Believe us when we say we have seen far worse, Phoenix Wright, in the nighttime fantasies of adolescent ponies… and even those of our own sister.” She rolled her eyes. “As to thy question… the realm of dreams hast no borders or physical boundaries except for those our own minds erect. All dreams are within our reach, whether from thy world or our own. So if thou wishes clothes or to alter thy form… ’tis thy dream. Simply will it,” she told him, and he did so, his body returning to normal and blue suit and red tie instantly materializing on his body.
“Cool…” he remarked, starting to feel a bit better for the simple fact he now felt back in control. Wonder what else could I do here…?
She gave him an odd look. “‘Cool’? Is the temperature here not to thy liking?” She tilted her head at him.
Phoenix blinked. “It’s a slang term for neat or impressive… wait. From what I’ve heard, and I don’t mean to bring up bad memories, you were locked up on Equestria’s moon for a thousand years.” Should I even be asking her about this?
“’Tis true…” she acknowledged, going downcast again. “And deservedly so.”
“I’m sorry…” he hastened to add, not wanting to lose her as an ally or be thrown back into the dream he’d just left. “Then is it possible that modern… speech isn’t really in your lexicon, or something?” He tried to make some small talk, mostly to calm his own still-frazzled nerves.
Luna smiled wanly. “We are aware… that manner of speech has changed over these long centuries. We now understand the new words well enough, but we find them… awkward and inelegant. We prefer to keep our current manner of speaking, at least for now. ’Tis a comforting echo of a time and world we once knew. A time… before the Nightmare we became,” she said wistfully and regretfully, staring up at a moon now devoid of her face. “But ’tis not time for such sentiments. We are here to help thee, Phoenix Wright. If thou wouldst allow it,” she quickly clarified.
“Help me? How?” he asked her, still wary.
“We can show thee the source of thy fears… and that of thy chosen mate,” she offered. “To know one’s fears is to be able to face them and overcome them. To move past the power they hold over thy heart.”
“And if my fear… is that what I feel in my heart… is a lie?” He finally voiced his deepest fear. “A magically-induced infatuation that I didn’t choose?” His lip quivered.
She stared at him for a moment before answering. “We could simply tell thee, but ’twould be far better to simply show thee in a manner thou cannot deny,” she answered evenly. “To face one’s fears is never easy, Phoenix Wright. But art thou not a seeker of truth?” she asked him with an arched eyeridge and the barest hint of a smile. “Thou art a barrister and defender of innocence, art thou not? Dost thou not follow the truth wherever it may lead?” she challenged him, causing Phoenix to blink again at the archaic term for lawyer.
He slumped at that, trapped by his own nature. I don’t know if we’ve met before, but she clearly knows me well… “Lead on, then,” he invited, steeling himself for whatever was to come.
With a flare of Luna’s horn, a pair of large doors appeared before them, ones he was certain he’d seen before, and frequently. They then swung open to reveal… a courtroom…? He recognized instantly. Not the demonic one his nightmare had taken place in, but a far more real one to his mind and memory; one he had visited many times… and not always as an attorney. Winston Payne was at the prosecutor’s bench, but looked different, slightly younger and wearing a full head of hair. And instead of himself at the defense bench, there was Mia, alive and well, Marvin Grossberg at her side. Startled, he nearly called to her, only to notice…
“That’s me!” he reeled, pointing at the defendant’s seat where he saw a younger version of himself, causing him to realize… “This is my trial!”
“’Tis true,” the moon princess confirmed. “’Tis within our power to bring memories to life by dream. And this is one of thine. One thou seemeth to hold great importance towards. And a source of thy woe that wounds thee even now,“ she told him as the memory to begin to play, the trial occurring exactly as he remembered it. He watched as Mia worked once again to save him in spite of himself, defending him from the depredations of a woman whose intentions were anything but innocent. Luna for the most part watched dispassionately, though once or twice she glanced at him. But it was only when she saw him attempt to protect ‘Dollie’ by swallowing the evidence of her guilt that she paused the dream and spoke.
“’Tis clear thou sought to protect her, however wrongly… as any good stallion that valued his mare would. Thou wert clearly smitten, so we would not question thy actions… though thou wouldst forgive us if we question thy choice of dress.” She arched an eyeridge at him again.
Phoenix grimaced at the pink shirt with heart on it he was wearing, far worse than the heart-shaped defense attorney badge he was forced to wear in Equestria. “I was… young and naive. Tolerance was a big thing at school then and in my mind I was just trying to show it. That I was for peace and love for all,” he rubbed the back of his head at his own naivety. “It’s rather embarrassing to see myself looking like that now.” He shook his head, imagining all the fun Maya would make of him over it. A power suit, it wasn’t…
As the trial ended with Dahlia’s deception revealed and the younger Phoenix crushed by the weight of her betrayal despite his not guilty verdict, Luna spoke again. “Base and vile this creature was. A mare with no conscience or remorse, who saw others only as means to her own evil ends, even willing to kill to reach them,” her lip tightened. “She is the key to thy puzzle, Phoenix Wright. And yet, ’tis not her that interests us so much as the mark she left on thy very soul.”
“She broke my heart,” he all but hissed out, his fists clenching at his sides as he saw that particular part of the trial play out again, his own emotions raw as he watched it all happen again. “I thought she loved me, and it was all a lie!” He felt the pain he did then.
“So ’twould seem,” the moon princess acknowledged, though Phoenix thought he caught a momentary hesitation in her voice. “She has left thy life now, and yet… she remains there in thy heart. Though now incarcerated and awaiting a richly-deserved death sentence as her reward, she is still all around thee, coloring thy actions. Tainting thy feelings. Skewing thy perceptions of others, particularly the mares of thy race.”
“The mares?” he echoed, surprised a pony princess could accept the idea of capital punishment so readily. “What do you mean…?”
“We mean that after one fair maiden betrayed thee… thou saw all others as her, Phoenix Wright,” she explained, slightly cryptically. “If thou dost not believe us, then simply look around thee.”
“Look around me…?” He did as he was asked, and then staggered back at what he saw.
Every woman in the audience now had Dahlia’s face.
Every. Single. One.
Phoenix was stunned at the implication, his mind putting together the pieces quickly. So that’s it? I saw all women as Dahlia afterwards and shut myself off from them out of fear of being hurt? Of being betrayed again? His thoughts came rapidly, hard on the previous one’s heels. Of being tricked again by a pretty face and once again having a love that isn’t real…? He reeled hard, realizing that the only woman in the courtroom that he didn’t see as Dahlia was Mia, a rock dressed in black against a backdrop of red hair and white skin.
Before Phoenix could think or say anything else, there was a crack of a fist meeting flesh. Both Luna and Phoenix spun to see that Mia had left the defense bench and punched Dahlia in the face as she stood on the witness stand. Her visage shattered like glass, revealing a decidedly ugly countenance underneath for a moment before she simply faded away, leaving Mia pouting slightly. “It’s just not as satisfying when I know she’s not real,” she complained, shaking out her fist, “but I’m not about to have Maya channel me just to visit the prison for that purpose.”
Phoenix started. That hadn’t happened in the actual trial, and the way she spoke… “Ch-chief?”
Luna bowed low like she recognized the newcomer for what she was. “Greetings and welcome to our realm, fair spirit. We are not oft graced with the presence of the departed.”
“Greetings to you, Princess Luna,” Mia bowed back, momentarily ignoring her gaping protege. “I am Mia Fey, Phoenix’s former lawyer and mentor. I see you have done well by Phoenix, for which I thank you.”
“’Tis our pleasure,” she bowed her head again. “Though there is more we wish to show thy former student.”
“And there is more he needs to see. But I thought he might appreciate the presence of a friend.” She turned to Phoenix, crossing her arms and smiling as she usually did.
“But… how…?” Phoenix didn’t understand why he was so continually surprised even after all he’d already been through.
“The boundaries between the worlds weaken during dreams, Phoenix… particularly, it seems, in the presence of a potent magic user who can travel freely between them,” she said with a nod at Luna, who smiled. “Enough for me to appear to you now. And given what you’re going through, I thought you might like my company.”
“I do, but…” he trailed off and shook his head, not knowing how to explain the evening’s events. “What happened with Twilight… it’s off the rails, Mia. Everything just feels so wrong now…” he sat down in the empty defendant’s chair and clutched his head. How am I supposed to tell her about… THAT?
In response, she knelt before him and clasped his hands in her own. “I know what happened, Phoenix,” she told him, making him cringe even though there was nothing but sympathy in her eyes. “And I can guess what you’re feeling even without this little dog-and-pony show… no offense, princess.”
“Though ’tis hard for us to take thy meaning… none taken,” the lunar regent replied easily. “As a friend of Phoenix Wright, thou art more than welcome to accompany us on this journey.”
“Thank you. I believe I shall,” she said, then turned her attention back to Phoenix. “You know, you and Maya have been keeping me quite busy today,” she smiled wanly.
He perked up at that. “Maya? What’s wrong with her?”
“Nothing you need to worry about right now,” she said shortly. “She’s in good hooves. And as endearing as it is that you always try to put the needs of others before you, this is one time you need to focus on yourself first,” she said, almost grimly. “So tell me, Phoenix... what was the first piece of legal advice I ever gave you? The morning before Larry’s trial?”
“Before Larry’s trial?” Still overwhelmed, it took Phoenix a moment to remember what she was talking about. “You told me to… trust in my client,” he finally recalled. “And I’ve always tried.”
She nodded. “Yes. And that remains valid advice both inside the courtroom and out. For in this trial, your client… is your very heart, Phoenix.” She placed a palm against his chest. “But right now you do not trust it. And unless you do, this is one case you cannot win.”
His hand involuntarily went to hers. “How am I supposed to trust it when I don’t know if what it’s telling me is true?” He asked her, sitting down heavily in the defendant’s chair of the now-empty courtroom. “I get how Dahlia hurt me now. Makes more sense from what you said before about how I never looked at any woman the same after. But Twilight…” he shook his head, not even knowing how to voice what he was thinking. “This has just gotten so… messy…”
“Phoenix… take it from someone who’s been there. Every relationship is messy in one sense or another,” Mia noted, making Luna nod in agreement. “Every relationship requires sacrifice and for both sides meet halfway. This one is no different, though it does require extra work for the distances and differences involved. Yet for all that, you two were doing quite well, from what I could see. Are you really going to let one little revelation ruin it?”
“A revelation that this may not be real? Just like before?” Phoenix answered bitterly.
“Not like before,” Mia stood and crossed her arms again, taking a pose that Phoenix had seen before when she was examining a recalcitrant witness in court. “Unless you’re seriously going to claim that Twilight doesn’t love you and was just manipulating you to unknown ends. I know you’re hurting, but you’re smarter than that, Phoenix.”
Phoenix grimaced, her rebuke carrying as much weight in the dream world as it had in the waking one. “I know she didn’t mean it, but still… it happened. And it scares me, Mia. I have no defense against magic. I can’t detect it, I can’t stop it, and I don’t know what it’s doing to me. What she’s doing to me. So how do I know this is real? How do I know… her magic hasn’t affected me, making me love her?” His fears spilled out uncontrollably.
“Thou giveth thy mate’s magic too much credit, Phoenix Wright,” Luna spoke up again. “Take it from one who learned the hard way—magic cannot make thee act against thy heart. Cannot make others love thee no matter how powerful the spells thou may cast.” She closed her eyes in bitter memory for a moment. “It can increase one’s desires or bring hidden ones to the forefront. It can heighten sensation and pleasure. It can even produce a false feeling of infatuation for another, but not one that would last outside their presence. For just as transformative magic is only temporary, the body returning to its natural state after a time, the mind, too, will resist intrusion and being influenced in unnatural ways. ’Twas it truly her influence on thee, ‘twould leave thee soon after she did.”
“And did it, Phoenix?” Maya immediately picked up the thread. “Did your feelings for her evaporate after you left Equestria? Or when she left here after her previous visits?”
“No…” he admitted. “But…”
“But what…?” Mia challenged again. “This isn’t like you, Phoenix. Instead of defending your client—which is your own feelings for Twilight—you’re acting like a prosecutor, looking for reasons to doubt and convict them. Why?” she said in a tone that suggested to Phoenix that she already knew the answer.
He knew it as well, but still had a hard time voicing it. “Because it wasn’t… by my choice… “ he grated out. “Because I didn’t ask for that! And she promised me she wouldn’t use magic on me without permission! Promised me!”
“A promise she did not willingly break, Phoenix Wright,” Luna spoke up again. “She was as surprised as thee… and feels very guilty for it, as thou shalt soon see.”
“Phoenix… that girl has gone to great lengths to accommodate you. Far more than most human women ever would,” Mia crossed her arms and shook her head reproachfully. “She has met you more than halfway, by coming here and taking human form, even willing to make love to you as one. She’s bent over backwards for you, all so she can be with you. She loves you and would never willingly hurt you. Are you seriously going to claim differently?”
Phoenix fumbled for his response for a moment, sensing the truth in her words. “I want this to be real, Mia,” he admitted. “I really and truly do. But I’m terrified now it isn’t, and what happened… is just a symptom of that,” he groped through his myriad fears and anxieties for the answer. “I’m afraid that if I commit to this and then it turns out later that it was all a lie… just like before…” he couldn’t quite keep the tears from his eyes. “I’m sorry. I know it’s not fair to her, I’m just so scared right now…” he shivered, pained at his own admission.
Mia’s expression softened. “And thus, we now reach the crux of the case, Phoenix,” she noted with a glance at Luna. “What are you scared of? Her magic? Or just the truth?” she suggested. “What have I always told you about the truth?”
“To seek it and everything would be fine,” he recited automatically. “But it’s not as easy when it’s for myself…”
“Seeking truth in matters of the heart is never easy, Phoenix Wright,” Luna agreed, “but ’tis no less necessary for it. And the truth thou seeketh… can be found in the dreams of Twilight Sparkle,” she promised. “Or rather, the nightmares she now suffers. We have not intervened there yet, because we feel ’tis important that thou beholdeth them and see her fears for thyself. Normally we would be less direct about such matters, but time is short and she needs our aid as well. So please, follow us,” she ignited her horn and produced a new doorway, this one in Twilight’s lavender coat color with her cutie mark emblazoned across the front.
As she moved to open the door, however, a midnight-blue shield appeared, causing her magic to backlash. With a yelp, Luna backed off, rubbing her slightly singed horn tenderly. Mia and Phoenix blinked. “Um, I take it that’s not a normal reaction?” he asked hesitantly.
“Nay, ’tis not,” Luna answered, frowning. “To be rejected from e’en entering a pony’s dream… it should not be possible for me… unless…” she focused her magic again, and the door transformed into a window. All three of them looked inside.
What they saw was another courtroom, although the style and coloring indicated it was an Equestrian court. Twilight sat in the defendant’s chair, her head hung low, looking completely beaten down. A demonic red-suited form of Phoenix himself stood at the prosecutor’s bench, hair afire, eyes enraged and pointing an accusing finger at her, before which she cowered and sobbed. But worse, there appeared to be no counterpart at the defense bench; no one to speak for or defend her. The gallery was filled with mostly indistinct shapes, although there were a few known faces among the crowd, Twilight’s friends among them, all wearing expressions of disgust and distrust.
But it was the pony sitting at the judge’s bench that caught the trio’s attention. She was no indistinct shadow. She was an alicorn, that much was evident to Phoenix by the way her wings were mantled slightly and her long horn held high. Her coat was obsidian in color, and she was clad in severe cyan armor that gleamed in the low light. Her mouth was twisted in a vicious grin, allowing the three to see the fangs that protruded from her gums. Her eyes were not those of a pony, but more like a cat, being a near-solid mass of turquoise with a slitted pupil.
Abruptly, she looked up. “Ah, welcome, my former host…” she grinned malevolently at Luna, showing two rows of sharp teeth. “I have been expecting you. By all means, enjoy the show, and know that once this trial is over… Twilight Sparkle’s soul will belong to me!”
Luna trembled with barely-suppressed rage as she beheld the dark alicorn in Twilight’s nightmare. “How dare thee…” she growled. “How dare thee invade the dreams of one of our saviors!”
“Who is that?” Mia asked, not having studied Equestrian history as Phoenix had.
Phoenix swallowed hard. “Nightmare Moon…” he recognized, both from Twilight’s stories and his own research. But she was Princess Luna! How can she be… HERE?
“’Tis the foul demon that once possessed us!” Luna answered their questions, her expression one of pure hate as she tried and failed again to break through. “We mentioned before that there were evil spirits in Equestria that sought to take advantage of souls in turmoil? ’Tis certain The Nightmare is amongst the worst!” she spat out. “She came to us one night long ago whilst we lamented the fact that nopony appreciated us or our night, whispering the seeds of madness to us. Offered us the chance to help make ponies love us and see us for what we were… if we would but join with it. And in our weakness and sorrow, we agreed… and lost ourselves in rage and hate, nearly destroying all Equestria in our efforts to supplant our sister.”
“But didn’t the Elements of Harmony get rid of her?” asked Phoenix, increasingly desperate to reach Twilight as Mia studied the apparition and frowned.
Again, Luna shook her head. “The Elements, whilst powerful, cannot actually end another being’s life… e’en that of a foul spirit like The Nightmare. She was removed from us, not erased, dispatched to wander the ether… but ’twould seem she hath returned and chosen her next host!” She looked at the apparition with an expression of pure hate.
“Indeed. And I have you to thank for it, Phoenix Wright,” Nightmare Moon turned her attention on the human lawyer. “Rage and hate are our favorite emotions, but fear and guilt will do as well… and afraid of losing her stallion, her soul is now filled with them, giving me purchase within her. She is now convinced that she has hurt her beloved Phoenix grievously, that she broke her promise and that she deserves to be abandoned by both him and her friends for it. And once her certainty in her own guilt is total, all I need do is promise her you, and her soul belongs to me!” she laughed gleefully again. “’Tis such wonderful irony that the one who defeated me will now become my next host, wouldn’t you agree my dear Lulu? And in controlling the Element of Magic, I not only gain her power but ensure that the Elements themselves can never be used against me again!”
“NO!” Phoenix called out, pounding on the magical barrier with both fists, his earlier doubts and fears forgotten in the face of Twilight’s danger.
“Can’t you break through it?” Mia asked, the only one keeping a clear head at that moment. “And how did she hide from you?”
“Having held us in thrall for so long, she knows our power and how to counter it, including how to conceal herself from it. She was but a creature of dreams to begin with, so ’tis within her power to dreamwalk as well,” Luna’s jaw set. “Using all our power, we could break through… but she already has her claws in Twilight’s mind and spirit. To remove her forcibly wouldst irreparably damage both,” the moon princess explained in frustration. “The only way to remove her without the Elements of Harmony… is for young Twilight Sparkle to expel her of her own volition. But we fear she now lacks the will and conviction to do so,” she shook her head. “Do not blame thyself, Phoenix Wright. ’Tis our fault for not intervening sooner; for trying to save her nightmares for thee to witness. We fear we can give her no aid at this juncture.”
“But there has to be something we can do!” Phoenix pleaded, suddenly deathly afraid of losing her, now cursing himself. Mia was right… NONE of this was worth worrying about… this IS my fault! “TWILIGHT!” he called to her, desperately pounding on the barrier, trying to break through.
“She cannot hear you, Phoenix Wright,” the creature that had taken the form of Nightmare Moon cackled anew. “All she hears is your earlier accusations, each a stab through her heart. As long as you remain the source of her anguish, you cannot enter! But fear not. I am a Nightmare of my word. I’ve promised her you, Phoenix Wright. Your forgiveness and love forever.”
“Thy promises are tainted!” Luna shouted, her horn aglow as she again tried and failed to break down the barrier without hurting Twilight. “They lead only to heartache and suffering for many!”
“And you would know, my former host. The war we started was so delicious and fun,” she mocked. “Perhaps I’ll use Twilight Sparkle to start a new one, as she will soon be mine! For there is nothing any of you can do to stop me!” she proclaimed in evil glee.
“I beg to differ. Perhaps they can’t…” Mia stepped right through the barrier, surprising Luna and Phoenix. “But I can.”
Nightmare Moon looked momentarily startled, then smiled. “So… the fact that you can pass through my magic with no ill effects can only mean that you are not among the living. That you are what humans call an ‘angel’; an ascended spirit able to travel freely and not beholden to the rules of this realm,” she gave Mia a mocking bow. “Be that as it may, you still have no power to stop this, spirit. You can only observe as I claim this creature, body and soul.”
Mia gave the larger alicorn her most steely glare. “You’re wrong,” she said, then suddenly sprouted a pair of large, white-feathered wings from her back, flaring them like a pegasus. She rose several feet off the virtual floor and then unleashed a wave of mystic energy, a product of her own Kurain training and angelic power enhanced by the sheer strength of her spirit. It drove back the demons around them, causing the evil Phoenix to shatter like glass and the Nightmare’s aura itself to recede from Twilight…
But only partially, narrow tendrils of dark magic still embedded within her. “Impressive,” the apparition disguised as Nightmare Moon granted. “We did not think that a mere human spirit could check us.”
“The human spirit is something you will never understand,” Mia planted herself between The Nightmare and Twilight, who stirred.
The Nightmare laughed out loud. “Spare me such ridiculous sentiment. Humans are so very easy to manipulate,” she proclaimed with a glance up at Phoenix, who shivered at her gaze. “I have done so for sheer amusement in the past. But there is little point in me possessing them when they have so little power.”
The hold over her weakened, Twilight opened her eyes and raised her head weakly, focusing on the tall human woman before her. “M-Mia Fey?” she recognized dimly, her voice dull.
“It’s all right, Twilight. I’m here,” she called back to her. “I will not let her harm you.”
“Harm me? Who…?” she acted drugged and unaware of her surroundings, unable to hear Phoenix calling frantically to her, focusing with difficulty on the apparition before her. “Nightmare… Moon?”
“Well, then. ’Twould seem we have a standoff, Mia Fey,” The Nightmare called her opponent by name for the first time after hearing it from Twilight. “I cannot claim my new host with you here, but nor can you protect her forever. And I can wait an eternity if needs be.”
“As can I,” Mia answered evenly, crossing her arms and not moving. “Heaven and Earth will get along just fine without me. It’s not like I have any other place to be.”
“Very well, then…” Nightmare stalked down from the Judge’s bench and went nose to nose with the human woman, flaring her own wings and showing her teeth, trying to intimidate her, though Phoenix knew from past experience how well that usually went. “And how do you suggest we resolve this impasse, spirit?”
Mia grinned, showing her own teeth. “By trial, of course,” she suggested evenly, and then went to the defense bench. “You were conducting one when we arrived, however unfairly. And if she is to be tried for her supposed crimes, she requires an attorney. For the soul of Twilight Sparkle… I will defend her!” she pointed a finger at Nightmare Moon. “I will convince her of her own innocence, and then she will expel you herself!”
Far from being cowed, Nightmare Moon’s grin got wider. “A trial for Twilight? A real one with her very soul at stake? How interesting!” Her slitted eyes glittered. “A battle of wits with a worthy foe is something I relish but so rarely receive, Mia Fey! But let us be clear on the stakes: Should she be found guilty, she will then belong to me. And since you have destroyed my prosecutor, it would seem I should step into the role myself,” she nodded, taking her place behind the prosecutor’s bench. “But a trial also requires a judge… and who best to sit in judgement of Twilight Sparkle?” the alicorn apparition wondered aloud, though Phoenix had the distinct impression she already knew, but was simply milking the moment for all it was worth.
“Ah! I know the perfect pony for the job!” she announced gleefully, and then her horn glowed. A portal opened up in the floor as a new, seemingly sleeping equine figure was pulled in. As the glow that surrounded her faded to reveal her unicorn horn, ice-blue coat and frosty mane with a moon-and-wand cutie mark, Phoenix’s guts clenched as she opened her violet eyes and looked around in some confusion.
“What is this place? And why is Trixie here…?”