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// 1 The Fault in her Stars 
// Story: Appointment with Evil 
// by Bronyxy 
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The single frail light source wavered occasionally, as if nudged by an ethereal breeze.

Shadows danced around the perimeter of the room; from bookcases lined with dusty tomes to the windows and back again, keeping perfect time with a rhythm that was neither heard nor seen in this dimension.

The room’s sole occupant sat before a wooden table at its centre, facing the candle that stood proudly atop a simple wooden candle holder, tarnished and stained by centuries of use.

Although her muzzle pointed directly at the candle, her light blue eyelids were closed and her mouth moved soundlessly, repeating magical incantations that owed their origins to times long before the unification of the three tribes.

Had anypony been in the room with her, they would have doubtless been awestruck by the way the flickering candlelight combined with the gently twinkling starfield in her mane, creating the most magnificent aura around her. However, the spectacle had not been created with visual effect in mind, and indeed if anypony had found their way uninvited into her private study at the top of the highest tower in Canterlot Castle to witness it, they would have felt the full wrath of the Princess of the Night for their impertinence.

Finally, her lips stopped moving and her eyelids fluttered open, casting her eyes down to the illuminated script in a long-forgotten language resting before her on the table.

Satisfied, she nodded her head contentedly and let out a happy “hmm”, rolling the ancient scroll up once more so it could be safely stowed away in its correct place, ready for when she needed it again.

She rose serenely, careful not to get up too fast in case one of her legs gave a twinge and caught her off balance. Experience had taught her that, having been in the same position for so long during her meditation that such incidents were not entirely unknown, and had no desire to conclude her magic working with a painful stumble or a fall. 

Grateful to stretch her legs, Luna pointed her horn towards the wall sconces, lighting each in their turn, and finally sending the troupe of dancing shadows, who had been her companions for the entirety of the working, to their well-earned rest. She then set about tidying up the magical artifacts that had helped her with the spell casting, and even cleaned up the neat piles of ash that had fallen from the incense sticks as they had burned down.

The night’s working had taken its toll on the Princess, and although hungry, she wanted more than anything to get some exercise, so opened the doors to the balcony and stepped out to feel the refreshing chill of the night air on her fur. She drank in the crisp air, instantly purging her lungs of the heady scent of incense that had pervaded her study during the working, and making her feel alive once more.

Luna turned to close the balcony doors, lest some mischievous breeze enter in her absence, seeking to rearrange her carefully ordered scrolls and other irreplaceable arcane works. Happy that all was secure, she then turned to face the landscape rolling away from Canterlot as it glowed invitingly under the comforting light of the moon. Hooked by the lure of the open skies calling to her, she unfurled her wings and after one final sniff of the air, began the loping wingbeat that would carry her effortlessly upwards, clearing the balcony railings with ease and drawing effortlessly up into the night beyond.

Beneath her, Canterlot slumbered. Largely unseen, guards remained alert on night watch; thestrals and bat ponies who had sworn allegiance to her personally, all of whom she trusted with her own, and her sister’s lives. For, despite Celestia having sent her to the moon, Luna had long since shed the jealous ambition that had created Nightmare Moon, and had now come to love her sister unquestionably more than any other pony.

Around the city, isolated braziers burned for the benefit of those seeking warmth, or those who lacked the benefit of night vision and needed light to find their way home. Whilst she recognised the need for such things, Luna became happier as she left the city behind and headed out over the countryside, where there was no light pollution, allowing her night sky to be appreciated in all of its subtle beauty, even if she was the only one to see it.

She was content, but not complacent; happy to treat herself to a little recreational time, but without ever losing sight of her responsibilities as protector of Equestria from the realms of darkness.

The stars were looking beautiful; not the best she had ever done, but certainly nothing to give her any displeasure.

At peace with the world, she increased her speed into a dive, then pulled up to execute the first half of a loop before experiencing the ecstasy of weightlessness at apogee, hanging inverted waiting for gravity to be switched back on again. She giggled in her exhilaration, looking backwards over her shoulder just for the joy of seeing her sky from a unique perspective.

Then she saw it.

Over at the southern horizon, something was amiss. The stars she had placed there at the beginning of the night in honour of a friend from long ago were not there.

Quickly, she sobered up and righted herself, aiming for a cloud upon which to land and take stock. She had to climb to find one, but did not object to the extra exertion as it presented her with a better view to the south.

Alighting with well-rehearsed grace, she was now free to focus on what she had seen; it looked like a really major storm was brewing and obscuring the stars, yet no such storm had been forecast. The location, she calculated, was somewhere near the Everfree Forest, and that meant her dear friend Rainbow Dash would be on the nearest weather team. Perhaps she was trying to wrangle an unscheduled storm with too few ponies and may need her help?

With the thought of brave weather ponies being pushed to cope with an unexpected storm, especially at night when they should have been in bed, Luna made up her mind and set course southwards to go and lend a hoof.

The nearer she got, the darker and more ominous it seemed; also, curiously it did not look like the kind of storm front that swept forward in a linear manner, moreover it seemed to be rotating.

Certainly, dust devils were relatively commonplace in Equestria, and there had been occasional isolated reports in the past of tornadoes, but this felt wrong.

Her sixth sense was firing ripples of warning prickles down her back, telling her to back up, so she began back winging, only to find that she was still being drawn in.

She tried harder, but again to no effect, then tried to turn around so she could accelerate away from the force drawing her in, but even with all her strength, the battle was over before it was barely begun.

With options running out, she aimed towards the ground where a gathering of sporadically spaced trees and buildings could provide her some sort of cover, pounding her wings furiously to make some headway.

This time she was at least partially successful, in that although still being pulled backwards toward the storm, she was able to lose height, but the closer she became drawn into the storm, the harder it was to pull away in any direction.

In desperation, she suddenly furled her wings and curled up tightly, creating a completely unaerodynamic dead weight that fell freely and began to pick up speed downwards. Keeping a watchful eye on both her rate of descent and the ground beneath her, Luna monitored the progress of her near suicidal dive, and within the last few seconds before impact, spread her wings, skidding perilously on her wingtip into the lee of a derelict stone-built cottage.

The sudden stillness came as a shock; an island of relative calm amid the dangerous winds that raged all around. She caught her breath in sudden gasps, grateful to have found respite, but equally aware her shelter could not be considered a permanent solution, and that she had no immediate plan other than not to get caught in the winds again.

As her breathing began to slow into a regular panting, Luna extended each of her wings in turn, checking for damage, and was relieved to find nothing seriously wrong, beyond some mild sprains. She had won the first battle, but the outcome of the war still remained to be decided.