//------------------------------// // Part I- A // Story: Go // by Church //------------------------------// “Guard! My sister, where is she!?” The Princess of the Night frantically scurried down the corridor, rushing toward the Guard she had addressed only moments before. Her nostrils flared, she was panting, and her eyes were daggers being hurled from across the room. She tore across the royal corridor with exquisite pace, her hooves clacking against the floor loudly and incessantly. In other words, she was pissed off. Luna was unhappy. Why she was displeased anymore, no one ever knew. At times, the most frivolous of matters had the tendency to upset her. Only Luna could be bitter over the misplacement of a potted plant. Palace Guards and close friends normally stepped aside and let Celestia deal with her sister. They didn’t know and didn’t care why the midnight blue alicorn was ever disturbed nowadays, mainly recalling all of their futile attempts to calm her over unimportant matters. But they did know one thing- Her tirades were occurring at all too common a rate now, and if a Princess was unhappy, the entire palace was unhappy. “Have we not made our request clear!?” Luna snarled at the soft-spoken Royal Guard, who was moments before merely idling close to Celestia’s Bedroom, fiddling with his hooves. “Well!?” The Guard stumbled backward. He cleared his throat. “Y-yes, your highness,” the Guard sputtered, “r-right away, she’s in here.” He pointed to the doors of the bedroom. Luna eyed the doorframe suspiciously for a short while before she ultimately set a hoof on the panel and began to enter. “Thank-you,” the Princess of the Night praised, “you may continue on with... whatever it is exactly that you were doing, dear Guard.” “Guarding the Princess’ royal quarters, your majesty,” the Guard replied to the carpeting. “Hmph, as if that’s necessary,” Luna muttered. “My sister gets more and more paranoid as time goes on.” As a fuming Luna entered her sister’s quarters, knowing full well that the entire altercation that just took place was utterly pointless, the Guard outside now stood more alert and more attentive than ever before. o----o “Tia!” The distressing call reverberated off the walls, out the window, funneled directly into a dear old mare’s ear drums full blast, essentially sending her reeling into the nearest shrubbery. Luna payed little attention to the unbearable volume of her voice and called for her sister again. “Tia!” Celestia sighed. Her bed was quite literally the first thing to notice upon entering the room, what with its grandeur. Your eye could not help but spy it. Celestia hoped that Luna would see her resting in it so that she wouldn’t need to resort to any physical exertion. Not surprisingly, this was not the case. “Tia!” Another sigh. Noticing that her sister had failed to find her... on purpose, Celestia begrudgingly propped herself up for Luna to see. The Princess of the Sun arched an eyebrow. Luna was in a mood again. When Luna was in a mood, she fancied acting like a four year old filly who had recently had her cookie stolen by the class bully. Like a mother would a tender young child, Celestia beckoned for Luna to come to her. “Tia, what are you doing?” Luna whinnied as she skidded to a stop at the foot of the bed. She gestured at Celestia with a hoof. “Sleep comes after you lower the Sun. We do not believe we have performed it any other way, nor does it seem logical to perform it any other way. Why are you disregarding your royal duties?” Luna cocked her head to the side. For the first time in a long time, the Night Princess wasn’t complaining about how the noodles in her soup were too deformed to properly replicate the shape of a fish, or about some other ridiculous dilemma. This took Celestia by surprise. She shifted about awkwardly in her bed and hesitated for a moment. She appeared distant to Luna, vague and indeterminate. “Sister?” Luna asked, lessening her overbearing tone. The Princess of the Sun tossed the covers aside and rolled out of bed painstakingly slowly. She righted herself facing the far wall, away from her sister. “I was merely lost in thought, dear sister,” she said, her voice as bland as the wall that stood before her. “I have not forgotten my royal duties. Apologies that it has come to appear that way.” Luna’s imaginary rage was quelled as she stood and admired her sister. “Tia... is something the matter?” The words came trembling from Luna’s lips. She knew to immediately cut the bullshit if it came to irking her sister in some way. Perhaps she had gone a step too far this time. Celestia turned her head so as to face Luna halfway, a halfway satisfactory gesture. “I am fine, Luna. I will perform my royal duties at once. I will not tarry. You will have your night. There is no need to worry about me. Be well, sister.” Luna’s look of concern grew serious. Her sister’s emotion was as blank and mysterious as the bowl of off-brand cereal she had ranted and raved about at breakfast this morning. Luna shuffled about uncomfortably on the bedroom floor. She took a single step forward and opened her mouth to further address her sister and the situation. “Luna,” Celestia stated sternly. “I told you that I am perfectly all right. I cannot perform my duties until you have left. Is that clear?” Luna took this as a rather rude way to bid her farewell. Her brow furrowed. “Sister, something is eating you, and we would truly like to know-” “I am well, Luna!” Celestia interrupted with menacing vigor. “Now, please, leave me be. Now is not the time to discuss things. I must lower the sun for your night.” Luna took a defensive step back. Her eyes fell to the floor. Spots of colored light bespeckled the carpet, emanating from the fading sunlight flowing through Celestia’s radiant mane. They danced about in a merry fashion, a major deviation from Celestia’s current disposition as far as Luna could tell. Luna began to slowly back her way out of the room. “There will be a time to talk though, sister, know this,” Luna advised. Celestia feigned to give a response. Luna exited the room and closed the door, the hinges appropriately groaning in disgust. The Guard standing by the doorway was still there, exhaustively trying his darndest to appear as stoic as the superimposed ponies on the Royal Guard recruitment posters. Luna only sighed deeply. She lifted her head and started away. As she left the doorway, however, she could have sworn she heard her sister say- Yes, Luna, there will be... o----o Luna never told anypony this, but she actually quite enjoyed watching the sun rise. Something about the mixing of colors- the blues and deep purples, the oranges and reds- it gave off an everlasting impression that truly moved her. She could see why so many artists strived to get out in the wee hours to paint such a spectacle. But even a master of their trade, Luna thought, could not compare to the beauty of her sister’s Sun. The Sun’s radiance bathed the land in a warming glow, dispersing the shadows like a lantern would a dark alley. On this particular morning, she enjoyed watching the Sun rise simply because her sister was the one raising it. Luna sat on the balcony of the Astronomy Room, a hoof hanging limply over the railing, her eyes beaming as the rays flooded through them. As her night dissipated, she ended her nightly routine of counting the many stars in the sky. She never catches all of them, but her numbers seem to continue to grow as time passes. “Good morning, Equestria,” Luna whispered to herself. She turned her gaze skyward. “We pray your slumber was peaceful.” The stars were emitting a faded twinkle. As the night ended, they gave their last hurrah to the waking world, sparkling brightly in the deepest reaches of space. Luna heaved a sigh of contentment as the sunlight fully reached the confines of her tower and filled the room behind her with intense sunshine. She looked over her shoulder to the various instruments and trinkets in the Astronomy Room, a vast array of complicated technology that Luna never felt obligated to fully learn what did what. Realizing that she had no need for them, especially as the day started, Luna turned and trotted off toward the stairway. Luna descended the stairwell quickly. She smashed through the exit at the bottom in her haste, nearly sending a shocked individual sprawling to the pavement. She curtly apologized to the gentlepony and sped off again, across the courtyard. Several of the residents turned their heads away as she passed them, already assuming that the Princess was in a crazed fit. Luna brushed off the cold shoulder and continued on. She had to see her sister. It was early. The usual hustle and bustle of the Royal Grounds had not yet begun. Sometimes it bothered Luna that the inhabitants were so prude that they could not wake to enjoy the awe-inspiring sight of the stars, or the majestic view of the sunrise or set. It was truly a sight to see, and for it to go to waste seemed disrespectful. But the Summer Sun Celebration was coming following this day, and it always made Luna happy to see her sister raise the Sun to the amazement of so many spectators. Luna was in no way eager to be cross with anyone today, she needed to assist in preparations for the occasion. Luna bounced jubilantly up the steps to the Royal Palace. Celestia was never angry or bitter after the raising of the Sun, so chances were she would catch the Princess of the Sun in a pleasant mood this morning. Luna opened the palace doors as a billowing banner that read “Summer Fun, Summer Sun!” on it was being unfurled and set in place above them. The workers putting the banner in place gave the Princess sideways glances as she entered. “Keep your head, Luna,” the alicorn muttered to herself. Luna trotted through the winding corridors, the way to the Royal Quarters an unnecessarily complicated labyrinth of massive halls. Anypony who didn’t know the way would grow extremely frustrated and ultimately give up before they ever found the place. There were rooms in the Palace that didn’t serve a single purpose other than to be an extra room. Luna passed them with a grimace displayed on her face and a muffled huff of a breath. Luna turned the final corner to the familiar sight of a single Royal Guard placed at attention at the end of the hall. She rolled her eyes. “Guard!” Luna called. It was not the same one as the past encounter, to Luna’s relief. The Guard stood at attention spoke as Luna approached. “Your Majesty,” he stated in acknowledgement. “Yes, yes,” Luna said, “we could do without formalities. Where is my sister? Is she here?” The Guard continued to stare off into the distance, his gaze cold and his eyelids held open. The sight made Luna’s eyes water. “She has not yet come back from the raising of the Sun, Princess. Shall I send for you when she returns?” Luna found this odd. Her sister normally came back to freshen up before a day began. She was most in tune with Celestia’s routine. If not here, then Celestia could be anywhere. Their minds were interconnected, so searching for and locating each other wasn’t at all a burden. It just hadn’t been used in so long, for their communication through speech had been all they required. “No... no, that is unnecessary. Thank-you.” Luna turned to search for her sister, but stopped herself mid-spin. “By the way, what is it exactly that you are doing here, dear Guard?” The Guard looked puzzled. He hesitated once before he said, “These are my orders, your Majesty, to guard the Royal Quarters.” “Hm,” Luna muttered. “Well, We order you to go fetch yourself some breakfast.” Now the Guard was completely lost. His jaw locked and he blinked once. “I... I’m afraid I don’t understand, your Majesty...” he uttered. “my orders are to-” Luna smiled. “I understand what your orders are. But your new orders are to fetch yourself some breakfast.” The Guard stood deathly still. “Is this new order made clear?” Luna queried. The Guard blinked several times now, mystified by Luna’s command. “Y-yes, your Majesty...” he said unsurely. “Good. Off with you then!” Luna said in the sweetest tone she could have managed in the past few days. “Uh... T-thank-you, your Majesty.” The Guard took a few tentative steps forward, as if he had lost the ability to walk and was re-learning through trial and error. Luna noted it was appropriate that his helmet was entirely too big for his head. It was very easy to tell he was a recruit. Eventually, he seemed to grasp hold of what was occurring, and he trotted off, feeling entirely befuddled. Luna was left in silence. She smirked and spun to face the doors to the Royal Quarters, gently pressing a hoof to the paneling and opening them with a curiously loud creaking noise. Solitude. Luna took notice of her sister’s room. It was tidy, organized, immaculate, even smelling of a fresh bouquet of petunias. The grandiose space was enough for a rather large family to comfortably inhabit. Though the Princess’ never thought themselves as higher than anypony else nor belittled anypony for any status they may have possessed, it now struck Luna as odd to have lived in such luxury for all of her years. She had never once known poverty. Now, Luna was not in her sister’s bedroom to snoop. She had learned her lesson beforehoof, when she had searched in vain for her sister’s diary, turning the place upside down in the process. The diary was kept in the archives, because fitting an infinite number of pages under the bed was an absurd notion. Luna was almost banished to the moon once more. In any sense, Celestia never kept anything incriminating in her room. It was all hidden away, if that even. No, Luna was in here to gain a connection to her sister. The Princess of the Night seated herself on the sensationally comfy bed and, paying no attention to how contented she was, she began to think. o----o Luna ascended a grassy knoll a considerable distance away from the confines of the Palace. The Sun was burning hotly, murdering the grasses and the small trees that dotted the plains in the distance, Luna supposed. There was little cloud cover, for as the Sun passed over them, they appeared to evaporate almost instantaneously. An overwhelmingly hot day just before the Summer Sun Celebration. Celestia must have lost her marbles. Luna halted herself halfway up the slope of the small hill. There was a figure that sat alone at the very top, her beautiful mane gleaming in the harsh sunshine. Refracted light joyously skipped behind the figure, lighting the hill in a playful spectacle. The hillsides in the distance appeared devoid of any life, bare and worn away. This one had certainly seen better days, but as of right now, it was picturesque. Luna continued her climb. The figure at the top sat still, seemingly oblivious to everything that presented itself to her. Luna’s steps were soft and produced minimal noise. But there was no call for her sneaking up on her sister, mostly because it was impossible to do so. “Luna. I know you’re there,” Celestia said with little enthusiasm, her eyes transfixed upon the valley before her. “When you read me, we read each other. You know that, sister. Why are you here?” Luna shifted her gaze to the greenery before her hooves. Her look of solemnity expressed it all. “We are worried about you, sister,” she stated demurely. “You did not seem... well... the day before.” Celestia kept her back turned. “I told you I was fine, Luna. I was just a little tired is all,” she said wistfully. She paused awkwardly before adding, “Shouldn’t we be getting ready for the Summer Sun Celebration anyway?” Luna scraped her hoof at the dirt. “Sister, it is hard for us to prepare without the Princess of the Sun.” Celestia gave no immediate response. Luna took the time in the momentary lapse to further climb the side of the knoll. Her sister was breathing heavily. Her aura was off, Luna could sense a disturbance in her connection with her earlier. But Celestia appeared to be healthy. Her coat was prim and proper, shining in the morning sun. Her mane was ever glorious, twirling around smoothly in the slight breeze. She seemed to be the same, sapient Celestia that everypony would instantly recognize. Then again, Luna knew better. “Tia,” Luna’s voice took a brash tone, “We demand to know what it is that is troubling you. We know you. This is not you.” Luna saw Celestia shiver. It was dangerously hot outside, so this struck Luna as odd behavior. The fine white alicorn ruffled her wings and held them snug to her sides. “Luna. I just need some time to myself. I will be back shortly for the final preparations. As with every year, this Summer Sun Celebration will be successful. I give you my word,” Celestia promised. Luna thought this over for a spell. “No... no. We demand to know what is wrong. Why are you not telling Us?” “Luna, I told you I am fine, and that-” “No!” Luna interjected. “No, you are not! Something is on your mind and We wish to know what it is!” There was a tense, drawn out pause. Luna watched her sister sit alone at the top of the knoll, an almost melancholic picture of her. For the first time since Luna arrived, Celestia moved voluntarily, hanging her head in dejection. “I think you should leave, Luna.” “Not until We have found out what is eating you, sister,” Luna responded matter of factly. Celestia turned her head, revealing the right side of her face to her sister. Her horn began to glow a flashy white. “You leave me with no choice, sister.” “Tia, what is going-” Suddenly, there was an incredible white flash of energy. The Sun’s brightness paled in comparison. Luna grew dazed. She closed her eyes with her mouth still wide open in mid-sentence, praying that Celestia wasn’t doing what she thought she was doing. There was a peculiar popping sound. When Luna realized that the dust had settled, for it only took the spanse of the bat of an eyelash, Luna pried her eyes open. It took her a few seconds to adjust, but when her eyes could cope to the changes, she found she was standing on the cold tiles of the Astronomy Room. “-on...” Luna blinked. She had been transported to her favorite room, the Astronomy Room. But if Celestia thought this had been a kind gesture, she was sadly mistaken. Luna twirled round and, frustrated, kicked the nearest instrument she saw that she knew very little about. She was furious. Her sister was not well at all. She could sense that from miles away now, and she didn’t even need to set up a connection with her. Luna sped off for the exit, done with her sister, done with her sister’s conspicuous nature. She needed a nap, Summer Sun preparations could do without her for one day. o----o A stargazing Luna listened as the residents of Canterlot happily awoke to ready themselves for the raising of the Sun. They had been celebrating and waiting all week for the occasion, and they knew the earlier risers always got the best seats in the house. Luna turned and saw several lights flicker on, several faces press up against the windows, and several eyes peep out through the cracks in their doors. It wasn’t long before a conglomeration of ponies came together en masse to see her sister’s Sun rise. Luna watched disinterestedly from her lonely perch on the balcony of the Astronomy Room. She murmured absent-mindedly about nothing in particular, and for whatever reason, she deduced that she felt tired. She had counted ten less stars than on previous nights. She had failed to find any new galaxies or sentient races. She had completely lost focus through the entirety of her night. The many hours spent pacing was a time she would soon like to forget. It was nearing time now. Luna saw several ponies come streaming from their houses. Relatives of the family, young mares, colts, foals; every color imaginable came filing out of their doorways. Not a single one ever spied the Princess of the Night sitting alone on her balcony. It was easy to see Celestia’s stage from where Luna was watching. It was located in one of the Grand Gardens, one of the wide open spaces which could hold an abundance of ponies. Luna could already see that quite a few of them had flocked to the spot, and noticed that the smart ones (and most avid ones) had pitched tents to reserve their location on the grass. An hour, Luna guessed, and it would begin. Luna passed the time by scraping meaningless marks into the balcony floor. She realized it was somepony’s duty to erase these marks, for they would always magically disappear after she did this, and that pony would once again have to clean up after her mess. Luna didn’t care. Her anger hadn’t subsided, and why she was going to stay up to watch the Sun rise was beyond her. She played tic-tac-toe with herself. She counted the minutes as they passed. She scrawled her name in chicken scratch. It wasn’t a mystery who kept putting marks in the floor anyway. It was nearing time. Luna righted herself and looked out over the balcony railing, out at the growing crowd of ponies in the Grand Gardens. Boisterous chatter was culminating from the center, and it rose up over the rooftops, springing the Palace Grounds to life. Everypony who had never developed the festive spirit for the Celebration had learned to don ear plugs the night before, so that come morning, they would not be bothered by the noise. Luna set her head down on her hooves. She could tell the crowd across the way was growing antsy; there was light coming from over the hillside, a faint glow radiating from the other side of the world. Luna’s Moon was low opposite it, readied to drop and wait for night to come again. Out of boredom, she snatched a simple telescope from a shelf just inside the door, then turned back around to take a look through it, down to the Grand Gardens. She spied several young mares and colts sitting on their parent’s shoulders when she looked through it. She smiled when she saw the peeved looks on the faces of the ponies behind these duos. Elsewhere, Luna saw a few hooligans pulling various shenanigans and pranks on helpless victims in the crowd. Firecrackers would go off at random sections of the audience. Luna laughed as the ponies reacted to the harmless explosions by frantically hopping up and down. Otherwise, there was not much to report other than there were a bunch of ponies standing around waiting. Suddenly, there was a unanimous hurrah emitted from the center of town. Luna whirled her telescope round to study the cause of the commotion, but then immediately recognized it as her sister’s elegant entrance. Luna sighed. She set the telescope aside and watched as Celestia’s flamboyance delighted the members of the audience. Her presence alone was enough to send everypony into hysterics. Luna only frowned. The Night Princess turned her gaze to the horizon, where the Sun was still only peeping it’s little head out over the hillsides. She ruefully bid her night a bitter good day. It was easy to deduce that Celestia had reached the center of the stage from the raucous screams of affection. The day would rise in vivid colors in but a few moments. She turned her back to the soon to be display. Then, light. Rays of warm light streamed past Luna, straight into the Astronomy Room, gleaming off of the various instruments in ways they never had before. Luna realized that she had forgotten her sunglasses. She raised a hoof to seal her eyes away from the harsh light. Was her sister trying to burn the resident’s eyes right out of their sockets? Only on rare occasions did Celestia ever use such intensity. Luna’s mood soured. Screams of admiration and fascination were heard. Dejected, Luna kicked another one of the many instruments she had no idea what purpose it served. She preferred banishment to the moon. Solitude equated to sanctity. And as far as night was concerned, it seemed nearly perpetual, even when the Sun hit the moon’s face. The more she thought about it, the more she liked it. If Celestia didn’t want her here, then what’s another few thousand years? What’s it to her sister? Luna’s thoughts were then interrupted by a sick, unbelievable scream. Almost simultaneously, Luna was shrouded in darkness. Luna spun with the shock and curiously came face to face with her night. Her eyes grew monumentally wide. The stars were out in a sparkling splendor. The Sun had vanished. Shouts of fascination were now replaced with horror, all stemming from the confines of the Grand Garden. There were several ponies huddled around in a circle on Celestia’s stage. Luna flapped her wings ferociously and made way for the Summer Sun Celebration at breakneck speed.