//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Of Beginnings // Story: Evening Crown // by Onyourleft //------------------------------// “Will they be alright?” Whispered Crescent Shock, nodding towards the sleeping children. “They will pull through. Nopony is quite the same after an ordeal such as the one they have had to endure.” Luna glanced at the large princess-sized bed, a sad and motherly smile warming the room. The three orphans lay side by side, covered by thick blankets and surrounded in magical charms. They were safe. From a material point of view, they all appeared to be quite normal. Not a single cut nor bruise corrupting the perfect scene. But inside, the blade had struck deep. No magic could fix damage to the soul, it would simply take time and no little amount of care. Luna used her navy magic to adjust the blankets for the hundredth time, subconsciously stalling. Celestia had yet to be informed of the night's events… or really, the investigation at all. Luna visibly cringed as her mind wandered to that uncomfortable conversation. “You will have to face her sometime Lula, and you and I both know this explanation is far overdue.” Crescent Shock gave Princess Luna an expectant grin, amused at her seemingly childish fear. Luna closed the door gently with her hoof and turned around. “I suppose you’re right. I may have been a little secretive as of late.” The Princess sighed before trudging like a scolded puppy towards Celestia's private study. Servants rushed back and forth in the halls, silent and invisible, each carrying supplies towards the infirmary. Her guards had performed well, but no battle was left without its own cost. The casualties had been a lucky zero, but the injuries were severe. Dark magic was not a weapon to toy with. “You do realize that you had every right to execute this mission without her permission.” Crescent Shock, who had elected to follow Luna, was utterly befuddled by Luna’s transformation. One moment she was a holy goddess, capable of decimating mountains and slaying entire armies. The next, she was an apologetic puppy. Alas, Crescent loved her for it… though she would prefer Luna to have more dominance. “Yes, I am aware of this. But my sister and I have never kept secrets from one another… at least, nothing important. Yet I withheld this entire investigation.” Luna jabbed her hoof at the floor, avoiding her commander's analytical gaze. She sighed once more and resumed her downtrodden trudge. “Well, if you're going to go apologize, then I will go be more productive with my time.” Crescent abruptly turned and headed in the opposite direction. Luna turned and opened her mouth to retort, but nothing sharp came to mind. She snorted in mock frustration before rolling her eyes. That bat pony was something else. Luna continued forward, this would be a rough night indeed. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “After he was dealt with, I consoled the child and then promptly brought them here for medical treatment.” Luna gasped for air as she finished her epic tale. It had been under a half-hour, and her entire operation covering months’ worth of time had all been revealed. Celestia was not moving, which was never a good sign. “Y-you mean to tell me that,” Celestia raised her eyebrows and leaned forward, “a covert operation tracking a dark magic cult was undertaken beneath my nose, and kept from me, for absolutely no reason besides stealing a battle for yourself?” Her mouth remained open in a face of disbelief. Luna gave a guilty half-laugh before shrugging and squeaking out, “Yes?”  “Oh dear Sun, give me strength.” Celestia dragged her hoof down her face in utter exasperation. Luckily it wasn't anger. The plump cushions and bookshelves would have caught ablaze if that unfortunate emotion had taken precedence. “I almost forgot to mention it, but the child who fought the slavers was somehow able to conjure a Power Matrix… and infuse it with arcane and elemental magic at the same time.” Luna hid behind one of her hooves, expecting the worst. What she got was tragically more terrifying. Celestia was white as snow. “D-did you just...” Celestia’s voice trailed off as her mind spun in circles. Luna, who had never seen her sister so perplexed, searched her own mind, hoping to find what she was obviously missing.  “What was she like?!” Celestia spurted out, a tinge of hope sneaking into her erratic undertone. Luna leaned back as her sister's power began to overflow, heating the room to over a hundred degrees. “W-well, she had a magenta coat and a darker navy mane, with a pink stripe in it, and—” Luna was cut off by a steaming hoof in the mouth. She quickly reeled back and spat it out, a confused and indignant mask covering her face. “Not what she looked like! How she acted!” Celestia was like a school child’s first try on a rollercoaster; utterly terrified, yet unbelievably excited. Luna’s questions were piling up, but she had a sneaking suspicion that now would not be the best time. She adjusted her cushion and used her magic to dim the room's light and drop the temperature. “Sister, I cannot fathom why such a detail would entail such anticipation. I have not seen you so intrigued or worried, for that matter, in over two hundred years...” Luna paused and calmed Celestia with gentle waves of cool magic. “Nevertheless, I understand why you would feel this way. I am truly sorry for keeping this mission from you, and I swear never to do this again.” Luna finished with a gentle nod at her sister and placed her uncovered hoof on her’s. Celestia continued to stare forward, her mouth moving silently. “Yes. I forgive you, dear sister. I was simply caught up in the moment.” Celestia slowly rose from the ground, her ethereal mane rising like a wave. “But if dark magic has returned, we must move quickly, or face dire consequences.” She strutted over to the door and used her golden aura to push it open. Then, without another word, left the room. Luna remained seated, attempting as best she could to understand what had just happened. The past half-hour ran through her head like a blaring train, but luckily, Luna was a fine conductor of her own mind. She set aside the distractions and filed through their conversation, pinpointing the lines of interest. Celestia had shown an unnerving amount of curiosity towards the unicorn orphan. Yes, she was powerful, she had held the same shock over Luna. But there were plenty of mages who could conjure a power matrix. But why? Celestia's present apprentice was only a couple years older than the orphan and could do the same. Luna shook her head and gave a sigh. She loved her sister, but sometimes she could be so cryptic and confusing. “Harmony, I need you,” Luna whispered to the vacant room, her horn softly humming alongside the chirping birds of the fading night. “Your majesty, you called?” Crescent Shock materialized from the shadows and quickly trotted to Luna’s side. In turn, the Princess gave her top commander a loving smile. “Indeed I did.” Luna paused and took a split second to lose herself in her thoughts once again. “It did not unfold as I expected it to.” Luna rose from her position and stretched her wings, bending her back like a cat. Harmony tilted her head in a questioning manner. It was a rare occasion for the Princess of the Night to be at a loss. Her wisdom and cunning mind was always two steps ahead, to see her in such a state of befuddlement was unnerving. “How so?” Crescent questioned, stepping closer to her Princess. Luna finished her stretches with a ruffle of her wings, and then promptly turned towards the balcony. Luna, who had raised her hoof to exit, placed it softly on the carpeted ground. “Do you remember my first lesson on shadow walking?” She averted her eyes from the window and laid their piercing gaze upon Harmony. The bat pony tightened her leathery wings to her body and, in military-style, repeated her mentor’s wise words. “To walk in a shadow is not to become it, it is to alter the shadow so it becomes you.” Luna smiled as her eyes twinkled with the simple joys of the past. “Apply this lesson to today, young one, and you shall know what troubles me.” Luna threw open the glass doors and seemingly floated into the open air. She inhaled the fresh and crisp scent of the wind, pure bliss covering her worry. “I want you to meet with Crystal Fota, you both will look deeper into the resurgence of dark magic. In the meantime, check all battalions and designated fortresses, we must be prepared for the worst.” Luna's glorious wings shot open with a crack, and her knees tensed as power pooled underneath her. “Wait! What about the children?” Crescent glided over to Luna, a concerned frown pointed in her direction. “Leave them to me. The situation unfolding in Canterlot will require the utmost delicacy and tact.” Crescent Shock’s confusion doubled to an exponential amount. Princess Luna was talking as if an Equestria-wide war was about to break out.  “Do not worry, we shall speak again very soon…” Luna’s starry mane seemed to shimmer and glisten with emotion, “Harmony. Be careful who you trust. This all began with a noble. And I assure you, they are far too clever to work alone.” It seemed like an awful time to leave, but Luna knew that every second counted. With a powerful burst of wind, the Princess shot off into the night. “Faust help us.” Harmony whispered under her breath. Then she took her own leave. Meeting with her best friend wouldn’t be terrible, right? She sighed and disappeared into the shadows. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Athena awoke with a throbbing headache, the likes of which she had never experienced before. It felt like her horn was being ripped from her skull, and that her entire face was on fire; and just for good measure, her left eye would not stop twitching. For the second time that morning, Athena attempted to fix the eyelash that was rudely poking her eye, letting out an annoyed groan in the process. “Why are you so stuck?!” She growled. After another minute of struggling, she was victorious. Now that her eye was fixed, she decided that she better get to work. Athena sat up and— “Wah!” a pony-sized blur leapt from the bed, rolled onto the ground and placed her back against the corner of the room, scanning for possible enemies. How could she have been so oblivious? Athena examined the bed she had narrowly escaped, eyeing it suspiciously. It was definitely not her mat, that was for sure, so whose was it? And where was she? Waking up to a soft and squishy mattress and being covered by thick blankets that were warm to the touch was truly terrifying. To Athena, it was like suffocating and being trapped in a bag at the same time. After a few seconds to recover her breath, she was able to think, or at least, the best she could with a pounding headache. Like always, Athena constructed a mental list, hoping to determine her approximate area. First was sight, she was in a wealthy home. Decorated walls, enormous bed, luxurious furniture and numerous items of high value. The magenta unicorn paused on those in particular. On a normal day, she would have snatched any number of those in an instant, but her circumstances were not optimal for thievery.  Second was sound, of which there was none… definitely a spell or charm. Athena did appreciate the calm breeze of silence. But in this circumstance, it had the opposite effect of calming. Third was smell, and this gave a lot of information indeed. There was the obvious and overarching scent of ‘clean’, which was a new and powerful smell for her. Then there was the faded and wonderful nasal music of food. Her mouth unconsciously watered, but her discipline kicked in, and it was shut tight like a trap.  She attempted for step four, which was her own magical scan, but with her horn feeling more like an iron rod than a part of her head, she decided otherwise. The gears of her mind turned and began to click into place. She was indeed in a wealthy home, but it was almost too expensive to even belong to a noble. It was freshly cleaned, and for the first time, Athena realized that she was as well. Who owned this place? Why was she here? After another minute of hiding in the corner her curiosity got the better of her. Ever so carefully, Athena toured the room, tentatively examining the curious devices and objects. She was halfway around when she was stopped dead in her tracks. On top of an unusually tall table there lay a single oval mirror, next to it on the ground, a box mirror that towered over her head. Athena looked, and what she saw took her breath away. Her mane wasn’t a tangled mess of grease, it was brushed and clean, it even smelled nice! She tossed her mane back over her shoulder, slightly embarrassed at smelling it  in an open room. She moved on. Her coat was not a mix of dirty brown and faded purple, it was a vibrant magenta that glowed in the light of the sun. She initiated a short examination of her body before looking herself in the face… was that really her? Athena’s eyes were wide in surprise, showing off their purple tint. Her cheeks were rosy and pleasant, not drooping with insomnia, or marked with bruises. Even her horn looked better! There was no dirt in its spiraling grooves, and its end was no longer a deformed half circle, but scrubbed to a shiny point. And then the real shock came. She had a cutie mark. The previously defensive orphan was so lost in her own image that she didn’t hear the light rustle of the door handle. She stroked her mane with her hoof, in a sort of trance, feeling its silky flow run over her hoof. She kept glancing back at her cutie mark as well, a stunning six pointed star surrounded by smaller of its kind. Then, the fall of an iron hoof. Athena grabbed a pair of strange scissors off of the nearby dresser and leapt towards her corner. She landed in an awkward barrel roll before turning, thin scissors ready, towards her adversary. Her jaw dropped when she realized who it was.