The witching hour had struck all over the peaceful lands of Equestria.
Luna, the Princess of the Night, flew under her beautiful night sky that reigned all over, her night sky was filled with beautiful astrological objects. Such as: bright stars; that threatened to blind those who looked at them, and the moon; a celestial object that brought peace and tranquility to her little ponies, for as long as it was raised.
Luna; the ever insightful Princess of the Night, patrolled her night, watching over the streets from the unrivaled city of Manehattan to the minuscule, insignificant villages of Sire’s Hollow.
Alone, she patrolled the night, and alone she watched over her subjects as they slumbered into a deep well deserved sleep.
As she flew over the village of Ponyville, something caught her attention. The sounds of crying echoed throughout the night, compelling the princess to seek out the source of the crying. Fortunately it didn’t take her long to pinpoint the source of the crying, for on the ground she saw a small pony figure, sobbing under a lone tree that sat upon a hill on the edges of the small town.
Luna gracefully glided down and landed two metres away from the sitting child. It didn’t take her long to identify the child’s race for her small protruding horn said it all. Around her form, the child had a midnight blue hooded cloak that concealed her body, leaving only her face and the end of her tail exposed to the cold.
The young child was crying at the base of the tree, the child’s back facing Luna and head lowered to the ground. The lone pony shed tears that glimmered in the moonlight, dropping from the cheeks before crashing onto the exposed roots of the tree.
A frown grew on Luna as the child took quick breaths in between cries. She carefully approached the weeping child, speaking with a soft voice as to avoid startling her “Child,” She said gently, making the child gasp, “Why do you shed your tears here? Alone, in the middle of the night?”
The child slowly turned to look at Luna, revealing a filly with a dark blue coat, a light azure mane and a pair of cyan eyes. Her cutie mark was obscured under her cloak, but as all children of her age, she most likely did not possess a cutie mark.
“I-I'm… n-not alone, Princess,” The filly stammered, her voice just audible for the princess to hear.
Luna smiled gently and laid down before the filly, “Are your parents with you?” Luna asked, to which the filly slowly shook her head. “Where are they?”
The little filly threatened to cry again as her breathing picked up, wiping the tears from her eyes and soaked cheeks.
“Shhhhhh,” Luna soothed, rubbing a silver plated hoof on the little filly’s back slowly and methodically, “Take a deep breath little one, take as much time as you need.”
The filly took in Luna’s words, taking several deep breaths before pushing on, “I don’t know… I never met my mum, and my dad never talks about her.”
Luna felt something odd tug at her heartstrings, “Where is your father then? Is he around?”
The filly nodded.
“Do you know where he is?” The filly nodded again and pointed her hoof towards something.
Luna traced her hoof and saw that she was pointing at the Everfree forest, “Why is your father in the Everfree forest child?”
“H-he said he needed to wait for someone. Someone close to him, someone very important.”
“Someone?” Luna questioned, turning her head towards the filly, “Not sompo-” she held her tongue, silencing herself as soon as she realised that the little filly was gone.
Luna looked around frantically, wondering where the filly disappeared too. And once her eyes turned towards the Everfree, she jumped up and sprung into action when she saw the little filly galloping as fast as possible towards the treacherous forest.
“Nay! Child wait!” Luna shouted, taking flight and rushing towards the filly, “Do not enter the Everfree forest child!” Her warning to the filly went in vain, for the child ignored her, or perhaps did not hear her.
The filly soon entered the forest, disappearing in the shrubbery with Luna not far behind.
Fortunately, it did not take long for Luna to catch up to the child, just managing to cast a cobalt blue coloured magical aura around the small filly, lifting her up into the air before having them meet face to face.
“Child! What were you thinking? Do you know the kind of danger you could’ve put yourself in?” Luna questioned harshly, her eyebrows narrowed as she stared into the filly’s shaking eyes, “Why would you ever endanger yourself like that?”
The child threatened to cry again, her little mouth trembling and tears on the verge of breaking out, “B-because… h-he would do the same for m-me…”
Luna opened her mouth to scold her further but hesitated, choosing to take a different approach instead. Taking a deep breath, she once again began to soothe the little filly with her ever gentle voice, “Child, I’m sure your father would do the same for you, as would any father, but you shouldn’t put yourself in such dangerous situations like this,” Luna paused, hoping her words would sink into the filly, “What would happen if you got hurt? What would he do?”
“He might get… angry?”
“Yes. And?”
“He might… ground and scold me?”
“No doubt. But do you know what would happen to him if you got hurt?”
“Um… he might get angry at himself?” Luna nodded. “And he might blame himself and get sad that I got hurt?”
“Do you see now child? Do you understand the consequences that could’ve happened if I was not here to stop you?”
“...Yes,” The filly muttered.
Luna stared at her for a few moments before letting out a sigh, “Come with me, I will take you home and you wait there until I find your father.” Luna received a nod from the filly, prompting her to lift the filly above her head and onto her back.
Luna turned and started to trot out of the forest, the sounds of her hooves clip-clopping onto the grass filled her ears as the light breeze blew through her mane.
“Do you love your father, child?” Luna asked, most likely already knowing the answer.
“Yes…” She answered, prompting Luna to smile but forcing her ears to perk up when she continued, “Princess Luna… Do you love my father?”
Surprised at such a question, the Lunar Princess' eyes widened for a brief moment before returning to their default size, “Child… I love all my little ponies.” Luna replied, giggling softly as he continued to trot towards the edge of the Everfree.
“Not as a Monarch Luna, but as a daughter?”
Confused by the question, she craned her neck to look at the filly, only to find that she was no longer bearing the weight of the filly on her back. Muscles tensing up, her gaze turned back towards the edge of the forest, only to find that the road to freedom was no longer in sight.
Luna jumped to the side, alert and ready for conflict, “What sorcery is this?!” She shouted, raising her guard up, flaring out her wings, and a pair of vigilant eyes scanning for anypony nearby who might attempt to force harm upon her.
While her attention focused on her surroundings, she heard a voice echo within the midst of her mind. A voice so familiar yet not at the same time.
“Luna…”
“Show yourself at once! As Princess of the Night, I demand that you show yourself!” Luna demanded, taking a few steps backwards until her rear made contact with a tree.
Suddenly, darkness started to surround the lone Princess, consuming the bushes and trees alike.
“Oh dearest child of the moon…”
“I won’t ask you again, show yourself, you coward!” She demanded, beginning to charge up a bolt of magical energy in her horn.
Soon her vision was becoming blurry as the darkness quickly enveloped all life around her.
“Awaken…”
Luna woke up gasping for air. Her vision blurred, she couldn’t see much but the rough shapes of the objects that surrounded her.
There existed a lot of white coloured objects around her.
There was an odd motion of something slowly spinning above her, hanging from the ceiling.
Uttering a pain filled groan, her impaired sight slowly shifted to the right, catching an undefined sight of a large white object that emitted a constant beeping sound.
Slowly turning to the left, there simply stood a slim silver pole, holding up something on one of its protruding arms.
Thankfully her vision slowly became more bearable, starting to clear and make out the objects around her. To her left was an IV holder and to her right was a vital signs monitor.
Shifting around and feeling something soft under her. She looked down and noticed that she was lying down on a soft hospital bed.
W-what happened? Where am I? The Royal Infirmary?
Luna’s thoughts were only confirmed when she finally took notice of a sigil combining her both her sister’s and her own cutie mark on the wall.
The sounds of hooves walking on tiles quickly made itself known in the room. A Unicorn mare with light pink eyes, a grey coat and a green mane and tail walked into Luna’s sight. Her white uniform and her white cap marked with a red cross meant that she was one of the many royal nurses of the infirmary.
In the confines of her magical grip, the nurse carried a vase filled with Ornithogalum flowers - or ‘White Princess’ flowers to the common folk - and placed it on a nearby table, perhaps to ‘improve’ the look of the room.
Luna attempted to speak, barely being able to project her voice to the mare “N-nurse,” she called out with a strained voice.
It wasn’t until the nurse turned around, picking up a nearby clipboard along with an inked quill with her magic, that she finally set her sights on Luna, gasping and eyes widening as soon as she realised she was conscious.
The nurse dropped the clipboard and quill, rushing over to Luna’s side with urgency.
“Princess Luna! Are you alright? How do you feel?” Nurse worriedly asked.
“W-what happened?” Luna questioned softly.
“I-I’m not sure, you collapsed in the middle of the Everfree forest.”
“W-what? I don’t remember-”
“Hang on,” the nurse said, cutting Luna off, “I’ll get the doctor and inform Princess Celestia!”
The nurse ran out of the room, leaving a dusty outline of herself behind. “Doctor! Doctor!” Luna heard from a distance.
What happened? Was it all a dream? It must be…
Listening to nothing but the fan overhead and the beeping of the monitor beside her, Luna’s eyes started to become heavy; exhaustion soon claiming her after she shut her eyes from the world.
So… tired… just a… little… nap…
Luna once again woke up gasping for air, her vision was blurry but it quickly adjusted itself, becoming as clear as day. Getting a look at her surroundings, she realised that she was in Canterlot’s throne room, and she was sitting upon her Lunar throne, next to Celestia’s Solar throne.
Mosaic stained glass of the Day and Night and of Luna’s reformation filled the room’s windows, with several banners of the Equestria’s flag hanging high from the walls in between the stained glass windows. A wide blood red carpet led from the dais to the entrance with a pair of Mare Thestral Guards flanking the pair of large arched doors, with another pair flanking the dais.
The throne room? D-did I fall asleep during night court?
Luna looked at the Lunar Guards at the entrance to those at the base of the dais.
At least I have a pair of guards to keep me company.
Luna’s attention was pulled towards the doors as a series of regal knocks announced themselves out. And after a second or two of silence, the doors opened, revealing a Thestral Mare with a white shirt collar around her neck and a black tie along with it.
“Uh, Princess Luna?” She called out, just loud enough for Luna to hear her words, “Are you ready for the next petitioner?”
“I, uh,” Luna brought a hoof to her mouth, clearing her throat, “Yes, I am. Bring in the next petitioner if you will.”
The secretary nodded before disappearing behind the slightly opened door.
A moment later, the doors opened a bit more, letting in a small pony whose hoofsteps were muffled with the help of the carpet. This small pony wore a hooded cloak that shielded the majority of the pony’s appearance, but with the expectation of a dark blue horn sticking out of the pony’s hood, identifying the pony as a unicorn.
Luna raised an eyebrow, questioning the choice of attire to visit a monarch.
Once the pony reached the base of dais, Luna’s guards used their leathery wings to block the pony’s path, prompting the small pony to perform the next set of actions; stopping and bowing in the midst of royalty, but interestingly enough, the pony chose to keep the hood on.
“It is rude to wear a hood in the presence of royalty, I’m quite sure the same applies to all those who wish to converse with you.” Luna said, arching a brow at the unicorn’s choice to remain still, refusing to even move a single centimetre.
Luna continued, requesting something of the unicorn, “Would you please remove your hood so that I may be able to see your face.”
“Forgive me, Princess Luna,” the unicorn said, carrying the voice of a young filly.
That voice… it sounds familiar…
Luna adjusted her seating, the pace of her heartbeat increased subtly as the filly continued, “But I wish not to remove my hood, for what’s underneath is nothing but an horrid monster.”
Luna recoiled back slightly at such words coming out of a filly’s mouth, “Nonsense, all my little ponies are beautiful, inside and out.”
“Not this one, this one is a monster that the Nightmare could only create.”
Luna squinted her cyan eyes at the child, “Pray tell, why do you believe such a claim, little one?”
“Because it’s true, I… I hurt someone, someone very close to me… I… brought my father harm… at my own hoof, it was out of spite.” The filly just managed to finish her sentence, despite the breaking of her voice.
Luna’s attention was drawn to the drops of glimmering tears that were falling to the ground, seeping into the carpet she stood upon.
The Princess sighed heavily, stepping down from her throne, her plated hooves echoing with each step as they fell upon the marble dais. The guards retracted their wings, let Luna to pass, allowing their monarch to stop in front of the filly before kneeling down close to her.
Luna lowered herself to the filly’s level and spoke in a soothing motherly voice that would rival her sister’s own, “Child… Why would you ever hurt your father?”
“Because… because… he spent more time with my older sister,” the filly said in between breaths.
Luna said nothing, allowing a frown to simply take shape on her face and letting the filly continue, “She was always better at everything than me… She was better at magic, she was better at speaking and understanding my father’s native language, everybody claimed she was the better sister.”
Luna closed her eyes and nodded slowly, taking in everything the filly had to say to her, “I was tired of living under her shadow… so I challenged her to a duel and when she won, my father…” She sniffled, “I got so angry that I… I hurt my father with my magic. I didn’t know what to do so I… ran away.”
Once the filly stopped, Luna took her silence as her queue to advise her, “Envy is a dangerous emotion, little one. It clouds one's mind to think rationally and causes them to make improper judgement. I…I… know this… from personal experience.”
The little filly sighed, sniffling once more, “W-would you ever hurt my father?”
“I could never cause any sort of intentional harm to my little ponies,” Luna plied with a warm smile.
“But… you did hurt him,” the filly said, rather accusingly in fact.
The instant shift in the filly’s voice compelled Luna to stand up, blood pumping and her emotions uneasy.
“W-what? No… no, you must be mistaken,” Luna stammered, taking a few steps back.
“But I know you did Luna, I was there, I saw what you did to him,” The little filly gaze looked up to face the monarch for the first time, using a foreleg to remove her hood, revealing a familiar face to Luna.
Those cyan eyes locked onto her own pair of identically coloured eyes, also bearing the same coloured mane and coat.
“You! I remember you! You were the same filly under the tree!” Luna shouted.
“Why would you bring harm to our father?” The child questioned, head tilted to the side.
“Guards!” Luna called out, looking to the sides only to find nopony there. It was the same for the pair of guards at the entrance.
Luna faced the filly, raising her foreleg high before stomping on the tiles, smashing the tile with ease and sending cracks towards the filly, “What sorcery is this?! Who are you?!” She shouted, utilising her ‘Royal Canterlot Voice.
The little filly chuckled darkly, “Your past come back to haunt you,” She smiled.
Darkness soon surrounded both parties. As it enclosed Luna, she made a desperate attempt to use her magic to light up the area and burn away the darkness but to no avail, for her light was instantly consumed by it, remaining unaffected.
The darkness creeped ever closer to Luna, but in a flash of light, the colours of the room were replaced with dull grey and the darkness soon slowed to a halt.
Luna’s eyes wandered the place as a familiar disembodied voice echoed throughout Luna’s mind once more.
“Luna… my precious child…”
The Princess gasped and looked around frantically, “Who are you?! Answer me!”
“This reality is false my child… it is merely a dream…”
“How? No, it feels too real,” Luna responded, staring at the filly.
“It feels real because she is manipulating your mind to claim otherwise. The great Domain of the Dream is yours and yours alone. So take control, my daughter.”
“Why should I trust you? I don’t know you!”
There was a moment of silence between the two. Luna looked at the filly and could only watch as a blanket of darkness washed over her, consuming her form whole with mercy.
“Answer me!” She demanded, slowly beginning to charge up her horn again only to have it short circuit, sending a feedback to Luna’s mind. She recoiled and screamed in pain as she brought a hoof to her temple.
“Why would I ever lie to my daughter… no matter the pain she had inflicted upon me… I will always love and protect her… as a father should.”
“A bold claim for a pony who is too cowardly to reveal himself,” Luna taunted with a stern face, ”Unfortunately for you, I do not believe you. I hold no memories of a loving father nor a devoted mother, what you claim to say is nothing but a lie!”
“Those damned Elements… What have they done to you?” The voice questioned, pausing for a moment before uttering a sigh, “Very well oh beloved daughter of mine, perhaps my actions will speak louder than my words. But before I use what little I have to pull you out of that state you’re in… tell my eldest daughter - you’re dear sister - Celestia this…”
An image of a text that was written in a language and style that Luna didn’t recognise was imprinted in her mind. She screamed in pain-filled agony as the text was burned deep within her mind. She collapsed on the floor, lying on her side while her silver plated hooves planted themselves on the sides of her head. Her ears flattened against her head as a series of voices rang out throughout her mind.
These voices ranged from masculine to feminine, from child-like to old and mature.
Victorias, Bellum
Vitari, Amator
Desperatio, Intus
Spiritus, Sopitam
“RRRRRRRGGGGGGAHHHHHH!!! GET. OUT. OF. MY. HEAD!!!” Luna bellowed from the bottom of her lungs. Her pupils constricted to the size of a pinball, before she thrashed about like a child with an letting out an obnoxious tantrum, with wings flapping all over the place threatening to violently smack whoever were to come near.
Civis, Bellator
Adesse, Vulnera
Salutis, Caelo
Libertatem, Furto
“Oh forgive me, my dear sweet child, but know that I will numb the pain as best I can. I promise, the pain will be over soon, as will this nightmare of yours. Then you will awaken in the waking world.”
The voice soon faded away, all that was left in the throne room was Luna’s screams of sheer agony and pain, resonating throughout far beyond the mountains and more.
In the royal infirmary that housed Luna, a Lunar medical team scrambled inside, rushing to the ill Princess. The orders given by the doctor were drowned out by the screams of pain and agony Luna gave whilst she thrashed about, smacking personnel of the medical team in the face with either her wings or her legs. Her abnormal Alicorn strength sent nurses flying across the room if they were struck by Luna’s legs, or made them stumble back if they were struck by her wings.
Luna’s heart rate was spiking, the rapid beeping from the vital signs monitor struck a sense of urgency in the medical team as they tried to restrain the Alicorn to the messy bed.
The nurses did their absolute best to hold her down, struggling to even pin a single limb down. But once the chance to reveal itself, the doctor of the team utilised his magic to wrap her limbs in one of the many leather cuffs that he had just attached to the bed.
The doctor barked order after order, placing an unthinkable amount of stress on the nurses. Though as soon as he just barely managed to restrain the wild Alicorn, the doors to the infirmary slid open with such force, it nearly ripped off the frame.
Sweat poured from the forehead of the med-team and they whilst heaved heavily, an Alicorn with a heavenly white coat, a flowing, bright multi-coloured mane and with a pair of magenta coloured eyes passed through the doors.
“Doctor Cross! I came as soon as I could!” The Alicorn announced, rushing to the side of the side of her fallen sister.
“Princess Celestia!” The doctor smiled relieved at her appearance, hastily bowing in her presence before standing back up to attend to much more pressing matters, “Thank you for coming. Princess Luna was reportedly recovering well after her sudden collapse in the Everfree. Now the details are a bit sketchy and we do not know much of what exactly happened to her, so I was hoping to await her awakening so we could subject her to testing, or at least that was the plan until this happened.”
“What will be done?” Celestia questioned, looking at the state her dear sister was in. Leather cuffs were strangling her limbs as they held her down, but Luna’s sheer abnormal Alicorn strength was enough to threaten the durability of the enchanted leather cuffs.
“We know that there’s no sort of toxin in her system so if the Princess doesn’t rip through her straps and with your permission I’ll have Princess Luna subjected to a magical scan to see if whatever is causing this is not magical in nature before subjecting her to neuroimaging - an EEG to be specific to attempt to observe the signal her brain is producing.”
“Do it. I want a full report immediately after the processes are completed.”
Doctor Cross looked to one of the several nurses who seemed to have suffered an injury from Her Highness, “Hard Life! Get more body straps, the heavy duty ones and grab some spare leather cuffs for the legs as well!”
Hard Life reluctantly nodded before proceeding to head out of the room with a slight limp about her, but upon hearing the screams of agony Luna slowly die down, she stopped at the doorway looking back to the younger sister as she started to relax and calm down.
Celestia and the Doctor watched the scene before them. Luna’s thrashing became less erratic, same with her wings, although she still attempted to break free from her cuffs, it didn’t take long for her struggling to ease up and cease entirely.
As the nurses backed away one at a time, their bodies ready to pounce on the princess if it was demanded of them. The only thing that remained was her irregular breathing, chest rising and falling rapidly, and the constant beeping of the vital signs monitor that began regulating and returning to a steady, easy pace.
“Is it over?” One of the nurses asked from the sidelines, the emotion of the fear still lingering around her.
“I, I think so,” Doctor Cross guessed, unsure if the Princess’ calm state was permanent or merely temporary. Looking at his clipboard, he proceeded to head out of the room, gesturing for the medical team to follow, “I think now is the best time for the scans, if any. I’ll arrange it at once Princess.”
“Of course doctor,” Celestia nodded, watching each member bow before exiting the room, leaving herself alone with her dear sister. Pulling up a chair with a magical grip and placing it beside Luna’s bed before taking a seat on it, the Princess of the Sun summoned several scrolls and documents with a golden flash of her horn, taking an opportunity to do some paperwork while she waited.
Although what she had planned would not come to fruition, for Celestia kept glancing at Luna while she read, usually after she read a single paragraph, before it got worse and it soon became every mid-paragraph, making her forget what sentence she was up too and forcing her to start again.
Seeing that it was of no use, Celestia decided to deal with it later, choosing to watch over Luna instead, making the documents disappear in another flash of light.
A number of worried thoughts passed through Celestia’s mind as she looked over her beloved sister, lowering her head and uttering a dispirited sigh.
Oh Lulu… what happened? What did you see?
Was the Nightmare? Or was it the Parasite? Or was it something else entirely?
However, Celestia would be pulled out from her thoughts, for Luna gasped awake, springing up from her sleeping state or at least she would’ve if it were not for the restraints on her legs.
Celestia immediately shot a worried look towards the Night Princess, closing in on her and placing a hoof on her chest and getting in the centre of her vision, “Lulu, you must calm down” Celestia said gently in her motherly tone.
“W-what happened?” Luna questioned, looking around and getting a bearing of her surroundings, her ears perking up at the increased beeping.
“You’re in the Royal Infirmary dear sister. You collapsed in the Everfree Forest”
“N-no… that has to be impossible,” Luna claimed, “That was a dream. I know it Tia, it had to have been!”
“Believe me Lulu, it was no dream, you suddenly collapsed after Nightmare Night.”
Luna’s gaze turned towards Celestia, clearly perplexed, “N-nightmare Night?” She with disbelief, to which Celestia nodded. “B-but… I do not remember…”
“I assume you do not remember what happened then?”
Luna shook her head, though only doing so after a moment or two, receiving a worried sigh from Celestia.
“W-what happened? Do you know, Tia?”
“Yes, I do,” Celestia nodded, “Or more accurately, I only know what I have been told.“
“What h-happened?”
Relaxing a bit, Celestia slowly shook her head, “It all started when you were with my protégé, Twilight Sparkle…”
In a clearing of the Everfree Forest, there existed a rectangular pedestal that was supposed to be bearing the weight of Luna’s past form, but ever since the stone figure was replaced by Luna in an attempt to scare children for Nightmare Night under the guidance of Twilight Sparkle, now there stood nothing.
All that was left in the clearing was Twilight, Luna and the candy the children ‘taxed’ from the other ponies of the town, only to give them as tribute to Nightmare Moon lest they be eaten by her.
“It was great having you at our festival Princess Luna,” Twilight Sparkle smiled, wearing a costume of her idol Star Swirl the Bearded.
Luna smiled and looked in the direction of where the children ran off, celebrating the swift return of Nightmare Night after its cancellation, “It was nothing Twilight Sparkle, but truly it was you who opened my eyes and gave me a different perspective of this… celebration.”
Twilight shamefully lowered her head, “Princess… I know that Nightmare Night was initially insulting towards you but Nightmare Moon is your past self,” She looked up at Luna, “But now you are you, the Princess of the Night, the Princess who has a night that the children will forever consider their favourite.”
“Perhaps,” Luna smiled, letting it fade away when she glanced towards the empty pedestal, “Although I will still retain my doubts about this celebration.”
“You just need some more time to adjust to it. How about we go play some more games?”
“Yes, we shall young Twilight. I will participate in all the activities this town has to offer.”
After passing each other a welcomed smile, they both started to follow the trail that led back to the town, walking beside each other each step of the way.
Though it seemed something caught Luna’s eyes, for she only managed to get so far until she stopped mid-step, gaze looking deep into the parts of the dark forest.
Twilight noticed this quickly, stopping in her place and tracing Luna’s gaze to whatever she was staring at.
In the far distance, there was a floating ball of what looked to be of purple fire, emanating an ominous purple glow that sparked with electricity around its form. But that’s not all, for after catching sight of it, the… ball began to… sing?
It’s tunes mimicked that of whale songs, saying sentences in the shape of songs that were most likely never meant to be understood by those not of their kind.
Luna lowered themselves to the ground and raised her guard up with Twilight following suit.
“What is that Princess?” The Unicorn whispered, a mixed sense of curiosity and fear filling her.
“That, young Twilight, I believe is a Wisp.” She whispered back.
“A Wisp?” She questioned, a hint of disbelief in her voice, but her doubts were only disproven once she got another look at the little light in the distance, “Wow… I’ve only heard of such beings in myths and legends… It looks more amazing than I thought it would…”
Luna faced Twilight, eyebrows narrowing, “Do not be fooled, young Twilight. From what I can remember; wisps may appear harmless and sing you songs that make you dance in my moonlight, but they are - without a doubt - very dangerous.”
“So what should we do?” Twilight asked, seeking guidance whilst glancing back to the trail, “Should we head back or-”
“No,” Came the swift interruption of Luna, “Wisps are dangerous, but they don’t merely show themselves to anypony. Perhaps one of us has a higher calling.”
“Like what?”
Luna merely shrugged at her question, “Faust only knows, young Twilight. It may be to fate, destiny itself, the meaning of life, the possibilities are endless.”
“So… should we follow it?”
“Yes, but with the purpose of merely observing it - at a distance no less - They are not hostile, but I do not wish to test my luck, especially with such mysterious beings such as they.”
The Unicorn nodded obediently, following the Princess once she started to make her way towards the wisp. The ladies took absolute care when following the wisp, maintaining a balance of keeping at a safe distance and remaining close enough that they did not risk losing it.
Twilight - being the egghead that she is - could not resist to record such an event. After summoning her private journal and a number of books that held what little information they had about wisps; Twilight began to note things down in her private journal and compare them to the books themselves.
She noted everything about the wisp down, ranging from its form to the songs it hummed. Even managing to fill a few pages from just a short time as well.
Though unfortunately for Twilight, she was removed from her writing as she felt a hoof come across her chest, forcing her to stop.
She looked up and around and saw that the wisp was gone.
“Where did it go?” Twilight questioned, looking around the area an uncounted amount of times that she was on the verge of getting dizzy.
“I do not know… it just floated behind this tree and just… disappeared,” Luna claimed, pointing to a tree that neared another clearing.
Making their approach, and arriving at the borders of the clearing, their eyes soon registered a lone statute in the middle of a sea of red flowers - poppies to be exact.
The gentle wind blew through the field of red, combined with the night sky gave this place a sense of peace and… tranquillity…
“Do your best not to disturb this place Twilight Sparkle,” Luna warned, making full eye contact with the Unicorn, “From the looks alone; I believe that this is a monument of some sort.”
“A monument in the middle of the Everfree Forest? Why would somepony want a monument built out here?”
“I do not know, but… I believe we are on sacred ground… Tread carefully,” Luna finished, making Twilight nod solemnly and somewhat nervously.
Thus, they made their careful approach. Step by step, taking immense care of where and what they step on.
Eventually however, they closed in on the monument, allowing them to fully witness it in all its glory.
Upon the pedestal, stood a bipedal figure that towered above reality itself. Bearing masculine features, the figure was dressed in formal clothing underneath his breastplate and a thick coat over it.
There existed several odd symbols and accessories on this figure’s body; two of which was the spiked circle around the figure’s head and some sort of three pronged fork engraved into his forehead. A symbol of power and authority perhaps?
Then came the breastplate itself, proudly displaying some sort of tall winged figure dressed in a set of hooded robes whilst holding a sword by its hilt.
Another was the chained necklaces; two of which were hanging from his belt while another was hanging from around his neck.
The one around his neck consisted of an almost identical design to that of the figure etched into his breastplate while the ones hanging from his belt bore different designs but intriguingly similar at the same time. On Luna’s left side, there hung a necklace bearing the weight of a pair of crossed wings while the other necklace to the right bore the weight of Celestia’s and Luna’s cutie mark, combining them into one.
In his five digit hands that look remarkably similar to a Minotaur's hand was a staff - that he held near the head - and some sort of large mace to his side.
The staff held strange symbols, one they recognised being a phoenix - pumping its chest out and flaring its wings - while the other they remained ignorant of; taking the form of some sort of two-headed eagle. Though strangely enough, the eagle seemed to be chained from the front of the book, making the reading of the book practically impossible if that was its purpose.
Looking towards the mace he held in his other hand, it was then they noticed a pattern; the head of the mace was of similar design to the necklace around the neck and the etching on the breastplate. A fascination with symbols? Serving a religious or identifying purpose perhaps?
The mace contained in the statue’s other hand looked deadly enough on its own, being able to cause such trauma with its broad shaped wings and sturdy form that would maybe be enough to crush armour or threaten the scales of a lesser dragon.
Finally came the inscriptions in front of the pedestal; Plastered with unrecognisable words upon rectangular shape.
Twilight sparked with awe and her jaw was at risk of hitting the floor the way she left it open, only managing to shake her thoughts away when Luna began to study the stone figure.
Luna lit up her horn, casting light and burning away the darkness that surrounded the area, granting the ladies an easier time to investigate their findings.
The slate stone itself seems to have been preserved immensely, though whether there was some unforeseen enchantment or the work of a third party was left to be figured out.
Next, Luna tore her eyes from the figure to the inscription itself.
Victorias, Bellum
Vitari, Amator
Desperatio, Intus
Spiritus, Sopitam
Civis, Bellator
Adesse, Vulnera
Salutis, Caelo
Libertatem, Furto…
Luna traced the words with her plated hoof as she read the unknown tongue, most likely butchering their pronunciation.
What… language is this?
“It’s one of the languages I taught you,” A masculine voice answered from behind.
Shocked and surprised, Luna jumped and turned to confront the individual, but as soon as she did, she was struck by a purple flash, blinding her from reality, making Luna stumble back into the stand that held the inscription.
Twilight gasped as she had realised what had just occurred, rushing to the Princess’ side, “Princess Luna? Are you alright?” Twilight asked, concerned for the Alicorn.
Unfortunately Luna was unable to return an answer, her rear making contact with the statue and hit with a splitting headache, all while a series of deafening voices shouted in her mind.
Luna screamed in agony, standing up on her hind legs and flaring out her wings without realising it. Her ears flattened against her head as her hooves planted themselves atop of her flattened ears, in an attempt to block out the voices.
“Princess Luna! What’s wrong?!” Twilight exclaimed, unsure of what to do as she helplessly watched the Princess screamed in pain.
After bellowing her reserves from her lungs, the Princess of the Night fell silent, collapsing flat on the ground without another sound.
Twilight rushed to her side, Princess Luna! Princess Luna!” She shouted, shaking Luna’s body with her hooves, desperation filling her to the core.
Being powerless to help the fallen Princess, a magical aura enveloped her horn as she began charging it, filling it with a large amount of magic before launching a ball of magic into the sky.
Reaching a high enough altitude, the ball detonated, sending a magical wave in all directions.
In the nearby village of Ponyville, three of the mane six observed the magical explosion that occurred in the Everfree forest. A wave of purple magic washed through the sky, blowing away any clouds that were caught in its path.
Applejack and Pinkie Pie raced to the source of the blast while Rainbow Dash simply blitzed across the sky, cutting through clouds and almost breaking the sound barrier.
While Twilight could do nothing but simply watch over the fallen princess, Rainbow Dash came to a full stop above them, blowing away some of the red poppies that surrounded the two.
“Rainbow Dash, go and get her guards! They have to bring Princess Luna back to Canterlot NOW!”
The rainbow coloured mane pony, quickly saluted, giving Twilight a determined look through her goggles before dashing away.
“And then you were brought here… ” Celestia said, “It has only been fourteen hours or so since your arrival.”
Luna looked straight ahead, “F-fourteen…” she whispered, a thought entering her mind, making her look back at her sister, “No wait Tia, in my dreams, there was a voice… and something else“
“A voice... and something else?” Celestia skeptically.
“Yes. The voice claimed to be our father.”
Apparently Celestia took those words in terribly, her beautiful flowing mane coming to a halt midair before succumbing to the effects of gravity itself.
Seeing such a reaction from her beloved older sister, Luna continued, “Do… you know our father? My memories are still fragmented.”
“Did the voice tell you anything else?” Celestia frowned, ignoring the question.
“He said… this phrase… he burned it into my mind Tia…”
“Lulu. What did he say?”
“I don’t know how to pronounce any of it… I-I’ll just write it down.”
Luna started to charge up her horn, only for it to send feedback to her mind. Temporarily subjecting her to deafened ears and blurred vision, and forcing bringing a hoof to her head.
“Avoid using magic,” Celestia advised, charging her own horn and teleporting a quill, a ink holder and a clipboard with a sheet of paper in front of her, “I don’t know what he has done to you.”
Luna shot Celestia with a suspicious look, “Do you know what I am speaking of sister?” Luna interrogated.
Celestia refrained from answering, instead just silently holding up the objects in front of Luna’s face, doing her the courtesy of dipping the quill into the ink and placing it in Luna’s mouth.
Luna took it with care and started to write on the floating clipboard. Leaning back onto her bed once she was complete, letting her sister take the objects back, teleporting everything but the clipboard away.
The ill princess watched as her sister read the phrases. Noticing how the clipboard slowly ever got closer to Celestia’s face, just shy of a few centimetres from touching her muzzle.
Soon, the clipboard disappeared in a flash of golden light and Celestia let out a heavy sigh, looking down, staring at the floor for what seemed like an eternity until she finally found the strength to raise her head and look her sister in the eyes, "Come with me." Celestia ordered.
"W-wait, but-"
And as Luna protested, she was enveloped in a golden light and before she realised it, she was standing back in that same red field where she collapsed.
Although there seemed to be a spectacle or certain event happening in the area, for there were several other wisps floating idly by that certainly weren’t there before.
Were they waiting for them?
Then came the statute itself. A purple aura travelled around the stone figure’s body and a pair of translucent purple wings attached to his back.
Celestia and Luna both stood in front of the statue, Luna stared at each new added feature about the place while Celestia looked like she had seen the show before. Rather disinterested in her lively surroundings.
Celestia simply sat down in front of the statue, her head lowered, mane refusing to blow in its non-existent breeze and a few tears threatening to break from her eyes.
Where to begin...
She uttered a depressed sigh, looking at Luna with pain filled eyes, “The phrase you wrote was the inscription dedicated to this monument Lulu.”
“Are the voice’s claims true Tia? Is he really our father?”
“...Yes,” She answered, eyeing her suddenly clenched jaw, “But Lulu you must listen…”
“NO!” Luna shouted, backing away, lowering herself close to the ground and flaring out her wings, “THIS SO CALLED FATHER HAS NEARLY BROKEN MY MIND AND YOU WANT ME TO LISTEN?!”
Celestia took a deep breath, drops of tears rolled down her cheeks and fell onto the red poppies, “Lulu… I will explain everything, but you must calm down and listen to me”
“YOU WISH TO EXPLAIN EVERYTHING?! EXPLAIN THAT CREATURE THAT STANDS TALL IN THE EVERFREE! EXPLAIN THE WISP THAT LED ME HERE AND EXPLAIN ALL THOSE SURROUNDING THIS PLACE! EXPLAIN WHAT HE HAS DONE TO ME!”
"Luna... please... I'll explain everything... but you have to calm down first... please, dear sister… please…” Celestia begged, shedding an ungodly amount of tears that managed to gain Luna's undivided attention.
Luna collected herself from her outburst, starting to ease herself once she saw the emotions she had inflicted upon her dear sister, only seeing such begging once in their entire life together.
And that was a long time ago…
Thus after taking several deep and methodical breaths, her form began to relax and she began to listen, “V-very well then. I shall listen” She said, moving next to sit beside Celestia.
“Thank you, dear sister” Celestia smiled, turning her head to the statue of their father.
“Our father is no Equine, that much you already know.”
“What was he Tia?”
“To us he was merely a father trying to raise his children in a lawless world. To our- no… his subjects… he was a chance.”
A chance?
“A chance to learn, to find love, to live. He was everything to them, their future, their father, their guardian.” Celestia paused for a moment, probably pondering what to say next, ”See everything modern ponies have taken for granted Lulu? He had delivered it to their long lost ancestors. He was the foundation of our thriving kingdom and a happy populace who have lived peacefully without war and bloodshed.”
Luna’s eyes widened to the size of saucers, she looked up to the statue, realising what she had taken away, “What have I done Tia?” Luna questioned softly, eyes glued to the ground.
“Do not blame your actions on yourself, for it was the actions of Nightmare Moon.”
Luna grit her teeth before looking straight at Celestia, “But it was I who let that parasite take control of me! It was I who waged a civil war between the day and the night,” Luna’s voice began to break, “I-it… was I… who forced you to send me away…” An excessive amount of tears began to exit from Luna’s eyes.
Celestia saw the state that her little sister was in, she knew the heavy guilt that has plagued Luna for so long.
“...Was he in pain?” Luna asked, her mascara ruined as tears broke from her eyes.
"Lulu-"
"Tia... please, I must know... please..." She requested, facing away from her sister.
Celestia did what she could to help her recover, to make her believe that it was not her fault, but the fault of Nightmare Moon.
"By the time I banished Nightmare Moon, she had already mortally wounded him."
Luna gasped, the only thing she could do was look away, hoping to spare her sister of the monster that took away their father, "D-did you grant him mercy?"
Celestia hesitated to speak, she wanted to grant the wish of her sister but at the same time, she did not want her to go through anymore pain than she had already endured.
Celestia started off slowly, "Yes…” But that's all she could get out before taking a deep breath and looking at the statue, "I held him dearly as I watched the life fade from his eyes as he slowly drifted towards the afterlife."
"What were his last words?" Luna asked softly.
Celestia wondered what was going through Luna's mind. What wanted her to endure more suffering than before, but she made a promise...
Celestia looked at her sister back and said, "His last words were: 'I love you. Both of you, forever and always."
After that, both Alicorns said nothing for what felt like an eternity. The field that they were in was now filled with sorrow, tears watered the flowers and the sounds of sobbing filled the air. But eventually, Luna’s eyes turned to the statue, looking up at the bipedal figure.
“His species Tia?” Luna asked, a couple of tears rolling down her cheeks.
Celestia smiled and followed Luna’s gaze, “He was nothing… but a man. A species with the strongest of wills. A species that is everything creation has to offer; Ambition, curiosity, destroyer and creator, graceful mercy and cooperation, undying fury and pure hatred for those standing in its way. A species that is immensely flawed, but driven towards divine perfection. A species whose destiny lies to walk amongst the very stars themselves. To rule them all.”
“Are you sure he was nothing more than that Tia? Because the voice I’ve heard-”
“I will tell you everything Lulu, even now if you so desire.”
Silently, Luna’s gaze fell upon her sister, she tried to put on such a strong face for her, “P-please…” She said, her voice breaking, just managing to get the word out.
Smiling at the bravery in front of her, Celestia took a deep breath, preparing to tell quite the tale, “Once upon a time… there existed two Alicorn fillies… called Celestia Sol and Luna Selene…”