"Well, until then, we still have a feast to attend to," Sunny stated with a nervous grin.
Nightmare Moon grunted. She had just attended a feast yesterday, but, much to her surprise, she was still hungry. It was odd to feel hunger after she hadn't felt anything at all but a seething anger. An anger that had yet to dissipate, but with the new information on her sister, the alicorn didn't know what to feel anymore. She still hated Celestia for banishing her and stealing all the ponies' attention from her beautiful night and difficult craft, but what about these tales? Was she really responsible for destroying everything? Was it greed that engulfed her mind?
The mare sighed. "I suppose it is. It best be a good meal, as I'm starving for some reason."
The thestrals spared no time in making their feast tables. As per Nightmare Moon's request, they set up several tables on the ground so as to accommodate her servant. Much disappointment was had, as they suggested extending the usual banquet tables to allow him to attend, but she denied it. Even the alicorn was surprised at her thoughtfulness. A shiver ran through her body. Was it because Sunny Dimples looked a lot like her sister? Wouldn't that make her hate him even more?
Always the same questions over and over again! Always involving Celestia and not crushing her skull in!
"It's readyyyyy!" one of the thestrals sing-songed.
All over the village were deep colors: Streamers, banners, artificial leaves: A wide assortment of yellows, blacks, purples, oranges, and greens. There were at least a dozen tables strewn about the ground, each easily capable of housing around a hundred ponies. Nightmare Moon was starting to question what the young thestrals that came to her meant by 'small' as she could at least see far more of the bat ponies and even more tables being set up despite the announcement.
A grin covered her face when she saw the thestrals eagerly fly in a throne made from black marble. It was a little rough around the edges, showing some unevenness on the backrest, but it was still a start. The mare sat upon it, grinning wildly the whole time. This was quite a gift for somepony that the thestrals had only just recently met.
"It is time to celebrate the return of our beloved alicorn of dreams!" the elder from earlier cheered.
The thestrals all followed suit. Despite being visibly tired, they forced themselves through the day in honor of Nightmare Moon. This. This was exactly what the former mare-in-the-moon wanted. She was so excited but did her best to keep her composure. There was just too much to be excited for and it was very difficult for her to hold it all in after having been denied for so long. There were easily dozens of fruits that Nightmare Moon didn't recognize. There was one in particular that gave off a rich, sweet scent from its squishy, lumpy, purple flesh. They were set up in bowls wide enough to hold three foals in. In fact, the fruits seemed to be mostly left alone as other thestrals wearing giant, white-capped mushrooms on their heads grabbed everything to peel and slice them or throw them into pots. After several minutes of the ponies banging their hooves on the tables, chanting for food, small plates made from polished wood of the local trees were set in front of them. The wood took a very dark finish, and the meal before the alicorn was a sort of broth of fruit, salads, and something else she didn't recognize. A pinkish color of sorts that left little red trails oozing out of it and pushing into the creamy, brown sauce that everything had been mixed with.
"What is this?" she asked as she lifted the pinkish substance out with her magic.
"That's pork!" one of the cooks announced with a gigantic smile. "There's pig-like creatures that wander into the village from time to time and try to destroy everything, so we kill them then cook them!"
Moon was intrigued and leaned forward. "You eat meat?"
The cook laughed as he casually threw several bowls of salsa onto the table. "Of course!" He tapped is fangs. "These fangs aren't just for show or intimidation." He rubbed his chin, chasing away leftover leaves from a snack. "With your fangs, I'm certain you could digest this as well."
The alicorn looked to the side to see that Sunny Dimples had become paler than usual and pushed the bowl away, inciting the laughter of the few thestrals that saw him. Moon realized, now that he was in the light of his mobile cooking station, that the cook was quite fat, moreso than the other cooks. She had heard the saying that a fat cook is a trustworthy cook, and in this instance, he might have been the most trustworthy in the world. Perhaps she had found her own, personal cook. He switched Sunny's dish with one with no meat and gulped the whole broth in one go, licking his lips enthusiastically. The cook tossed the empty dish in the air where it was caught by one of the thestrals flying overhead and brought to a cleaning station. Every thestral began banging on the tables in unison, and Moon felt that she was going to suffer if this kept going.
As they sang, they would jump on the tables and fly through the air in fanciful patterns, splattering food and juice everywhere.
A meal a day, a meal day
No pony can sway a meal a day
Except for two and maybe three
And four-five-six if your time is free
Just try to avoid getting a gigantic bell-ay!
Stuff your face and stuff your maw
Grow bigger and get a huge jaw
Then you can eat more and aplenty
But you still have to avoid the gigantic belly!
Sugar in everything, coated with honey
Try not to eat that sweet little bunny!
It comes with treats and tarts and jelly
Now you've got a gigantic belly!
Moon had the impression that if these thestrals were given any alcohol, things might become worse than they already were. A strange, passing thought. Before she knew it, her bowl had been fully emptied and her wooden spoon scraping against the base of the bowl.
"I see you appreciated the meal! There's more where that came from!" the obese chef sang.
Moon adjusted herself and remained unamused, something that didn't seem to phase the thestrals. "Yes, it was...was..." She turned to Sunny who had been clapping his hooves in tandem with the song and hadn't eaten more than a few spoonfuls. "Spicy."
The chef seemed concerned. "But...it's not supposed to be spicy. This is a mild dish. The spicy ones were meant for the end of the festival to wake everypony u--Hey!"
Moon's vision started to blur and she collapsed off of her chair and onto the ground, startling the thestrals around. Several of them flew to their alicorn's side, unsure of what to do while her body seized. Then one thestral flew to her side, a massive smile distorting her face.
"Food a little too spicy?" they asked her. "Good! It's supposed to be!"
Upon those words, she was immediately accosted by the observer thestrals and tackled to the ground.
"Let go of me! It's for the good of the thestrals!"
"What did you do?" Mango screamed.
"I...I used the 'spice' they gave me. They told me that it would get rid of her." She struggled to move around as she tried to free herself from the weight of her fellows. "You don't understand what alicorns can do. The damages they can cause! She should've just stayed as a legend in books and stories!" the mare cried.
Another thestral landed next to everypony, its body covered in false scars of fire that faded based on the angle one was looking at.
"Seems that even the fabled 'alicorn of dreams' these idiots are so fond of can't handle a bit of 'spice'," they laughed.
The unicorn stared slackjawed at this thestral. "You can speak--"
"Of course I can, you annoying little thing!" the thestral cursed. "I wanted to see her life leave her eyes myself." He sighed and shook his head. "It has been far too long."
"Why?" Sunny asked. "And how? There must be a cure. Tell me! Please!" he pleaded.
The thestral stared at him, red mists flying around their eyes. The mist faded to green while the mare slowly smiled wider and wider. "There used to be an antidote, but it was forgotten with time. Not even an adult dragon could handle such effects." they chuckled. "You think that a pony can handle such a thing? Even an alicorn, as bloated with magic power as they are, can't handle...this..."
They pursed their lips. Nightmare Moon was standing, albeit with much difficulty. She was panting heavily, her eyes were half-lidded and fighting to keep open, her legs were weak and shaking tremendously, her wings drooped limply to her sides, and her coat was matted in sweat and whatever toxic substances had entered her bloodstream.
"This...won't...end me..." she wheezed. Her voice was almost inaudible.
"S-standing?!" the pinned thestral realized in horror. "B-but you assured me-"
The wispy thestral placed a hoof on their cheek and leaned against it while frowning. "I'm surprised by your tolerance, but this poison was capable of getting rid of the alicorn of forests." Their frown deepened. "She was particularly annoying and resistant to every poison I could think of, then I found this." The thestral scoffed. "You think that you can get rid of it? Don't make me laugh. Again: You should have stayed in the moon."
"What is happening?" Golden Honey asked.
"You know-gh." Moon almost fell down. "I've been try to...to figure out my powers since being free...Freed. Every time I used my magic...I...I felt myself getting pulled to the new bodies." The quivering started to lessen. "I realized...that my powers grew immensely, far more than I had." Her breathing calmed gradually, and the thestral's eyes started to widen. "I have become linked with the moons of sister worlds, and I don't know why. My theory is that...My link to the night sky means a link to all celestial bodies, and these satellites happened to be close enough that ten thousand years trapped in the moon allowed the links to deepen." She grinned at the thestrals. "You poisoned somepony linked only to a few trees. I'm linked to miniature planets."
The thestral bared their teeth at Moon. "Belief can do a lot, it seems. I will figure something out the next time I find you in a position of weakn--"
They flew a foot or two after something hit them hard in the head. Looking closer, it turned out to be a coconut. Everypony looked to the culprit.
"What?" Moon wheezed.
A young thestral was holding a giant, hollowed out log and a huge grin on his face. "It's a coconut gun." He said happily. "It can fire in bursts, but, I could only load a single coconut in it."
Moon fell down, grunting in pain while the obese cook rushed over with a steaming piece of purple ham. "Eat this. It helps to clean the blood faster and can act as a minor painkiller. It's a good, healthy, medicinal food that tastes fantastic, if I say so myself."
Moon acquiesced and rested her head on the ground after eating the surprisingly tasty meal. She felt like her veins were filled with molten lead and her muscles was melting off her bones.
"I'll make some better dishes for you to recover quickly," the cook said. "I'll have even better dishes and fruit juices to help you recover!"
Moon chuckled to herself. It looked like she had indeed found her own private cook. The best place and time were when she had almost died. She took a few deep, slow breaths, and felt the new moons flood her with their essence, reinforcing her magic and, in turn, her body. All that was left was interrogating the thestral, although the strange magic covering their body seemed to have vanished after getting knocked out.