//------------------------------// // Rehabilitation // Story: Imperial Revision // by The Sound of Loneliness //------------------------------// The glow of the lightbulb, although being rather dim, still hurt her eyes after so much time spent in darkness. Holding back a hiss of pain and deciding not to alert her possible captors by movements, Shadow waited for her eyes to get accustomed to the light. What was this place? The scent of ethanol betrayed a medical facility. A warm, although a bit rough, bed, reinforced the impression. Was she saved from her captivity? Shadow could not remember. The last thing she remembered was cutting herself on her chains and then she woke up here. Shadow waited the next dozen minutes without movement, listening to her surroundings to identify if anyone else was in the room. Upon hearing no one, Shadow quickly lifted her head and examined her surroundings. Her bed was not the only one, but the rest were empty. No personnel were present either. Shadow herself had a dripper attached to her with an almost empty changeling blood bag hanging. Her minute wound could not cause her to lose so much blood; something dire must have happened. A quick look in a window revealed that it was night. Annoyingly enough, the room had no clock. Shadow took the needle, pushed in between plates of her shell, and pushed her teeth hard together so not to make a sound. Shadow waited a few more seconds, keeping her breath steady, and in one quick motion dislodged the needle from between her plates, only drawing out a tiny hiss of pain. Shadow quickly examined her joint and upon making sure she was not bleeding, lifted herself off her bed. Her hooves, however, failed to support her and the changeling had to sit down in place relying on the bed for support. Evidently, she had been here long enough for her muscle to forget how to support her body. What a disgrace! How could she bear the look of her Mistress now? Oh no! Mistress! Shadow clenched her teeth and started to stand back up again with all the haste she could muster. Perhaps it was not too late yet to warn the Mistress. Overcoming her weakened state, Shadow got up on her shaky hooves, still holding onto the bed. Refreshing an image of a doctor in her mind, Shadow began weaving the illusion… but she could not. Shadow blinked out of surprise and mechanically reached out to check if her horn had some magic dampening ring. There was none, her horn simply wasn’t there. Suppressing a surge of panic, Shadow tried to formulate another plan. She slowly made her way to the door and put her ear to the keyhole, having to resolve to more conventional stealth. There was a guard outside, Shadow heard him yawning. Of course it would not be so easy. “Ma’am,” the guard suddenly spoke up, startling Shadow. How… “I can’t let you in, you know why.” “Shush, insect,” a painfully familiar hissing voice rolled down the corridor behind the door. “I will get inside regardless of whether you will it or not.” Shadow tore her ear off the door and stumbled back to her bed, lying down and closing her eyes again. The door was opened, followed by the slow, deliberate hoofsteps, Shadow noticed the absence of the familiar clinks, produced by the shoes. A long sigh could be heard. Next Shadow felt herself being lifted off the bed, gently. “You...” the guarded started to protest, but quickly changed his mind. Shadow was instinctively compelled to resist, the possibility of returning to the cave was terrifying. Thankfully, the millennia-old being did not even notice her attempts to move against her spell. Shadow felt her stomach getting stretched, a sign of the teleportation spell warping space. A sharp change of atmosphere indicated the travel as complete. The air was not the moist air of a cave, but the familiarly cool one of the palace. Shadow had to resist the urge to take a peek. Instead of the cold floor of the cave, Shadow felt the cloth of the sheets and soft pillow. “There,” the mare sighed. “She is supposed to come to her senses during the next few hours, as Sinew predicted.” Shadow felt joy mixed with relief. Doctor Sinew, Chrysalis’ own physician, was called on to treat her. Her Mistress saved her! Shadow felt someone’s hoof gently touching her forehead and briefly lingering there for a few moments. The gesture confused her. “Oh, dear Shadow...” the changeling heard a barely audible, mournful whisper. A drop had landed on her cheek. “I… I’ll call Nightmare,” the white mare said and quickly walked away, before delicately closing the door behind her. Shadow carefully opened one of her eyes to examine who else was in the room, she clearly was a friend. Shadow immediately opened the second eye, completely forgetting about her stealth. “Princess Luna?” Shadow asked in sheer confusion. Shadow could barely see the silhouette in the dim light of the room. The Lunar Princess was sitting on a small chair, just like those in the staff rooms, and covering her eyes in grief. “Oh! You are awake!” Princess rang with excitement. “Shadow, forgive me!” she quickly fell to desperation, confusing Shadow further, “I couldn’t resist! I was so… thirsty! I didn’t want to… I should have listened to Sombra! Shadow, forgive me!” Shadow blinked in confusion, “Princess, what are speaking of?” Now it was Luna’s turn to look confused, “I can’t seem to remember.” “You do not remember? Oh, oh, thank the stars! Oh, Shadow, it is so much better this way!” Luna sounded relieved, “Oh, Shadow, Nightmare will be overjoyed to see you alive and well!” Luna did little to clarify Shadow’s confusion, but the Princess obviously had her reasons. Yet there was no time for reunions. “Princess, our Empress is in danger!” Shadow exclaimed. “Miss Rarity is plotting assassination, Princess! You must warn the Empress!” Luna momentarily looked confused, “Yes, I remember you saying so before, Shadow.” “Princess, I saw her making arrangements myself! She has contacted a hippogriff reconnaissance group, and gave them her key to the palace armory! Princess, we must warn the Empress!” Luna seemed lost in thought for a long moment, “Shadow, when did you see this happening?” “It feels like a few nights ago, Princess. I am sorry, I cannot say more accurately.” “Shadow… I fear you are too late,” Luna answered after a moment of consideration. “Nightmare did not tell me what happened yet, but Rarity was all but expelled from the palace. The rumors from amongst the staff suggest that she was punished for a crime in this way. No one saw or heard anything definite and Nightmare is unharmed, but she is much colder towards Rarity. I feel Nightmare is hurt… I wish I could sense her thoughts again, Shadow.” Luna bowed her head sadly. The confession left Shadow without a word to say. Thankfully, she needed not to answer. The door was flung open, as Nightmare Moon rushed in as an unstoppable tidal wave pushed with the gravity of her moon. “My Shadow!” she called out, racing to the bed. “Oh, my Shadow, it is so joyous to see you again! I was such a fool to send you away!” Nightmare Moon for a moment looked like she was about to swoop Shadow right out of the snug embrace of her blanket, but stopped herself just short of it. Shadow curiously tilted her head to the side. “Sister, I swear, your staff now think you are batty!” the white mare, now featuring a fiery plume, appeared in the doorway and slammed the door closed again. “Why did you have to sprint so disgracefully? What would your subjects think?” The high mare finally noticed Shadow peering at her. She immediately ceased her lamentations and instead horrendously winced, no doubt regretting drawing the attention to herself. “Leave us!” Nightmare Moon sharply gnashed. “Mistress, no,” Shadow firmly intervened, earning herself a stunned look from Nightmare Moon. Luna only widened her eyes, still saying nothing. Shadow, unswayed, slowly climbed off the bed and equally slowly started to make her way to her former captor. “My Shadow, you aren’t strong enough yet,” Nightmare Moon voiced her concern, but Shadow merely nodded. The changeling stopped a few steps before the fiery mare and peered upwards at her face. The mare endured the changeling’s gaze, although she visibly recoiled ever so slightly. “Speak up, sister. My Shadow wishes to hear what you have to say in your defense for mistreating her,” Nightmare Moon’s half-order, half-threat arrived. “What?!” the white mare widened her eyes. “Do I have to justify myself now in front of...” A low growl escaping Nightmare Moon’s snout indicated to her the futility of the argument. The mare shifted her gaze back to Shadow, frowning deeply. “My Princess,” Shadow suddenly bowed. “I wish to express my gratitude to you,” she proclaimed. She had no love for the mare that held her captive, but she was Mistress' only family. “Your Highness, I disobeyed my orders and continued to conduct unsanctioned operations. My irresponsibility caused the death of Queen Chrysalis and my own injury, as well as numerous other subjects of our Empress coming under danger. I disgraced myself and I thank you for stopping me, Princess.” Having finished her monologue, the changeling looked upwards at the mare in question, finding her too ripe with confusion to speak. Shadow turned to Nightmare Moon, bowing even lower, “Your Majesty, I see now how I am unworthy of calling you my Mistress. I understand why you elected to retire me. I failed you again and I await your judgement.” Shadow waited for a response, at her gesture, for she had no doubt that not a single mare could doubt her purpose, but no one in the room made a sound. Instead, Shadow felt herself being touched and gently pulled towards the midnight black fur. “Sister...” the white mare gave out a pleading call for her sister to not embarrass herself, but it was totally ignored. “I do not understand, Your Majesty,” Shadow admitted, although not trying to pull away from the embrace. “You will, my Shadow. I promise you, one night you will. Be quiet now, my Shadow, let this moment last.” “I... suppose it is not surprising if you have grown somewhat sentimental after this many years, sister,” the fiery alicorn made a valiant attempt to sound sympathetic, although her inexperience in the matter did not allow her to enhance her initial success. "Luna..." she spoke again, after a long moment of silence. She said nothing more, but Shadow soon felt another pony joining them. "Good... I think I'll leave you three to yourselves now, you must have a lot to discuss..." The silence did not last long after Her Highness left, as Her Majesty suddenly laughed aloud, “I am so glad to have you two back!” she rapturously cried. “Oh, Twilight would be so glad to see you alive and well again!” But Shadow was not destined to see her Mistress happy for long. First, Luna sobbed and only a moment later the Lunar Princess break into tears. Nightmare Moon let go of Shadow, allowing her to step back to her more usual, observer position. Nightmare Moon looked at Luna's tears and her weariness, and rue returned, what Shadow was sadly so used to seeing. "Luna, please, try to understand," Nightmare Moon whispered, knowing well what caused Luna's sorrow without words. "I cannot help your sister, without harming mine." "Nightmare, please! Do not leave her suffering like that!" Luna sobbed. "She can share, Daybreaker needs not to surrender." "Do you believe the words you say, Luna?" Nightmare Moon steadily questioned. "Do you believe Celestia would share with someone she loathes enough to kill?" Luna shook her head, "She tried, Luna. She tried over and over again, almost every day for a thousand years. My sister remembers Celestia vividly, Luna. She is horrified of the very possibility of her returning. She will see as much as a request as a betrayal. Now she is willing to do all I command, as to prove that I need not banish her, but this can change. "Luna, please, understand. This path leads to ruin for our people. They need not suffer because of us again. Luna, please, I do not wish to harm my own sister." Luna did not respond, but finally took the offered cloth and wiped her eyes. There was not much of the city visible outside, rooftops at most, yet the Princess kept staring in the window. She stared for a long time, without moving or blinking, only her tail and mane kept moving in the ethereal wind. “Never again,” Luna determinedly uttered. “Nightmare, my weakness was the cause for all of this to happen, my weakness caused ponies to die. My weakness was the root of our sorrows. I was like a filly, meddling with things I could not understand!" Luna bitterly dropped. "Nightmare, you and Celestia always were so much wiser than me and I never listened closely enough to either of you." Luna made a small pause to stomp her hoof determinedly, "I vow to be better. I will tear weakness out of myself like a weed! Both you and Celestia had to sacrifice a lot to bring me back from where I foolishly stranded myself. I will never be a liability again. And I will make both of you proud to have me as your sister." Shadow, unexpectedly, discovered herself staring at Luna in admiration, if not awe. At this singular moment, Shadow felt herself reliving her first time seeing her Mistress, the moment that completely convinced her to abandon her ruthless cause. How could anyone harm such a creature? Luna stood there like a statue of the greatest Queen that ever lived, carved by the finest artist, awe-inspiring and eternal, radiating power and authority. Shadow marvelled at the metamorphosis, the coy and almost shy pony Her Mistress sometimes let her converse with was almost entirely gone. “Oh, Luna, you don't need to," Shadow's Mistress evidently did not share the sentiment. "I'll take care of everything. I only want you and all of our ponies to be happier, you don't need to stretch yourself to be something you are not. Stay with me, Luna. This is the only thing I wish for.” Luna finally smiled, her long fangs on display. “If this is what you wish for, sister, then I shall stay with you. I'll be everywhere you need me,” Luna made a few steps backwards until the moonlight no longer could reach her. “And nopony else will even know I was near,” having said that, the Lunar Princess simply vanished in the surrounding shadows leaving Shadow to wonder if she was still in the room or already departed.