Chapter Twenty Two: Time's Relentless March
~BlackRoseRaven
Luna and Celestia strode calmly towards Ponyville, Celestia looking more composed now but deep in her own thoughts, and Luna breathing slowly, healed and feeling strong. She paused in the daylit fields to gaze over her shoulder at the edge of the forest... and she couldn't help but lick her lips slightly, her wings fluttering and raising up as Scrivener Blooms strode out of the forest, his eyes glowing sapphire beacons, his body splattered with mire and black blood, scales still cracked here and there and scars almost shimmering. He exuded strength and power and confidence now, his mind afloat with all kinds of dark pleasures, and it made Luna shiver in delight as her own body burned with desires she was barely keeping in check for now.
Then, out of nowhere, Discombobulation calmly strolled up beside her and leaned down, raising his arms to point at her wings as he stated: “If you get a double wing-boner over the sight of that, you have serious mental issues.”
“Creature!” Luna blurted, flapping her wings wildly a few times before she furled them back against her sides, and Celestia looked up from her reverie, startled but relieved at the sight of the Draconequus. “And there thou art! I thought thou had abandoned us!”
“No, I had to wash my mane.” Discombobulation reached up, preening for a moment as he rushed his hands through the stiff mohawk of hair. “In fact, I washed it so well that I ended up washing my brain, too. Therefore I have no memory of what we recently did and would direly prefer to keep it that way. Genocide is not in my job description.”
“'Twas not genocide, 'twas self-defense. Zecora wanted to either turn me into a slave or kill me.” Luna grumbled as Scrivener Blooms strode up behind them, then leaned down and nuzzled the winged unicorn's side soothingly, making her smile even as Discombobulation blew a raspberry at the two. “Shut up. Or is that jealousy? Scrivener Blooms, Bob is jealous. Thou had best remedy this.”
“I am not-” Discombobulation began, and then Scrivy leaned over and licked firmly up Discombobulation's front with his oversized tongue, slathering him in saliva before the Tyrant Wyrm placed a dainty kiss on the Draconequus's head, and Celestia could only stare as Luna threw her head back and laughed.
The chimerical creature, meanwhile, only stood there, stunned... and then he slowly toppled backwards into the grass, and Luna laughed louder at this, rolling onto her back as Scrivener smiled and leaned back, looking pleased with himself. Then the winged unicorn rolled over and bounded up to her hooves, grinning widely as she looked towards Celestia and called easily: “Oh, come, sister, join in!”
“I don't think that's the right attitude to have right now, Luna... we just... killed a lot of people. Zecora was a friend and you...” Celestia halted, and Luna's grin died slowly down to a faint smile as the sisters looked at one-another, before the ivory equine shook her head and added quietly: “Besides, Scrivener Blooms hasn't even sized down or cleaned off yet. We're going to scare people like this.”
Luna sighed a little bit, but didn't argue as she finally nodded and looked over her shoulder, saying gently: “Go ahead, Scrivy. Sister is right.”
The male grunted and nodded back, and then he leaned forwards and closed his eyes, beginning to slowly shrink down as his body glowed... and as he transformed, Luna turned her eyes back towards Celestia and stepped forwards, asking softly: “What bothers thee, sister, tell me true: I do not need to remind thee of what thou had ordered more than once in the past, now do I?”
“No, I... sister...” Celestia hesitated... and then she grimaced a bit as Discombobulation sat up and walked over to her, holding his hands out as a large box of detergent appeared between them. “Thank you, but no. Luna... you and Scrivener Blooms... you were vicious. And never had I imagined fighting beside a Tyrant Wyrm, or letting that Tyrant Wyrm... clean up the mess afterwards, so to speak. Never had I thought the Black Verses could be... guided... like you both did. And Zecora spoke of curing you, of fixing you, and you initiated the attack instead of waiting...”
“And thou planned the ambush thyself, Celestia! Scrivener Blooms, hiding with Discombobulation's powers... but... no, no, I shall listen.” Luna took a short breath despite the way her desires roiled inside her, tried to elevate her anger. She closed her eyes instead, then opened them and said in a quiet voice: “And sister... between imprisonment and death, what would any Valkyrie have chosen?”
“That....” Celestia halted, then sighed a little and looked down, shaking her head slowly as she murmured: “Alright. That is a fair point... but all the same, what if Zecora had a way to fix what was wrong with you?”
“I fear her method may have involved stabbing me with that needle-weapon she had acquired at some point and injecting me with as much poison as she could.” Luna said dryly, and Celestia grimaced a little before the dark-coated winged unicorn shook her head slowly. “Celestia, they were armed for battle, for war. 'Twas not peaceful solutions that Zecora had in mind, and they turned our strengths into weaknesses... trapping both of us by our magic horns, using Scrivener's great size to turn him into the perfect target for a coordinated attack, using poisoned weapons and projectiles that permitted them to keep distance. They were organized and efficient, and would have even turned our own servants against us had they the chance!”
The ivory equine nodded slowly at this, bowing her head slightly as a shiver passed through her before she looked slowly at Scrivener and asked quietly: “And how did you feel, Scrivener Blooms?”
“Furious. Vicious. Hungry.” Scrivener answered, and he hesitated for a moment before meeting Celestia's eyes, his own chestnut irises still backed by a faint sapphire glow. “And to be honest? I did feel good, and powerful. I did feel godlike... and even now, I don't... regret what I did. I'm not entirely without empathy for them... but I am without sympathy.”
Celestia nodded slowly, and Luna glanced towards her husband, then returned her eyes towards her older sister as she said softly: “I was the same, Celestia. But... I have always enjoyed the battle. I figure it is our primal emotions mixing together that makes us so... so vicious and cruel. But we are in control... we did not pursue the fleeing cowards, after all, and I will leave the zebra to their fates in the wilds as long as they do not bother us any longer. Thou art worrying thyself too much... making great monsters out of... well, we are monsters, but...”
“Mountains out of molehills. Or mass-murderers out of serial killers. Not to say they can't be the same, mind you... both of those things.” Discombobulation supplied, nodding seriously as he hugged the box of detergent against his chest. “To something small, I'm very sure that a molehill is a terribly tall place, which contains within an awful monster greater than any dragon. And a serial killer, of course, can become a mass murderer merely by killing enough people... although others just really want friends and hugs and go about it completely the wrong way. Scrivener Blooms and Luna are a very good example of the latter.”
“Thou hast our thanks, Bob.” Luna said dryly, glaring at the Draconequus, and he shrugged a bit before opening the box of detergent and reaching in to pull out a handful of jellybeans, stuffing this into his mouth as the dark-coated winged unicorn only looked at him for a moment before sighing and turning her eyes back towards Celestia. “All I desire to do is to announce to Ponyville that the killer of the Phooka was caught and... stopped... and to tell them not to fear what is to come in the future. To see if I can reason with them... aye, Celestia, I said reason, not merely scare them into listening to me.”
Luna paused, then looked down and smiled faintly as the four stood in the fields, a faint wind blowing by before she murmured as she gazed at the city walls in the distance: “'Twas so long ago... and 'twas not this same place at all, I realize... when I came to Ponyville with my Centurions. Nightmare Night... seeking to prove that I was changed, that I was not Nightmare Moon. And now look where we are...”
She sighed softly, shaking her head slowly before starting forwards, and Celestia fell into step beside her sister, Scrivener Blooms and Discombobulation following as Luna murmured: “Maybe I was wrong. Maybe I cannot change, sister, and cannot get them to change their view of me. For how many years did I protect Ponyville after all? And now, they have so quickly lost their faith in me...”
“Sister, it's not your fault. It's not even their fault... a new world, a new regime, and they have been manipulated by... by sights and memories and fears. Who knows how much Zecora moved behind the scenes, too? She was capable of controlling demons, making them hurt one-another, with her strange charms...” Celestia shook her head slowly, murmuring: “And I would like to one day journey back out to that ravine, and search it for any hidden stores. I would like to see these objects... study them and their potential. I cannot imagine they brought the charms with them, after all...”
“Aye, the Bifrost would have destroyed them. So they either got them from someone or are master crafters as well as master alchemists and apparently talented warriors.” Luna said ironically, shaking her head grimly, and Celestia gave the smallest of smiles. “What?”
“Nothing, Luna. Just... a flash of the old you.” Celestia replied gently, and Luna glanced up at her sister before giving a small smile of her own and nodding slowly, and the four continued in silence into Ponyville, a calm descending over the group.
They made their way to the library, first, where Celestia shook her head out and insisted on helping clean them up before they called a town meeting, apologizing awkwardly for having been so distant. Luna grumbled through the process of cleaning up, and Discombobulation simply sat back and watched, munching on handfuls of food he pulled out of the detergent box as Luna muttered about judgments while Scrivener and Celestia awkwardly tried to clean the blood and grime off the childish winged unicorn.
When that was done, they headed to City Hall to call a meeting in the town square, and although Mayor Mare was wary of Luna – a little more understandable than most of the town, since the two had never quite been on the best of terms – she was more than glad to send out the message for Celestia. But surprisingly, it was Luna who insisted on giving the speech, even Scrivener looking dubious as the dark-coated winged unicorn brushed back her starry locks, her mane and tail both twisted upwards and glowing with light as she said calmly: “They must know me. They must know who I am, they must know I wish them peace... that it is not Celestia they must always depend upon. That sometimes they must look to me instead.”
The ponies of Ponyville and the outskirts gathered quickly in the square, as Discombobulation stood on a high balcony of town hall to look moodily down over the crowd, a pair of sunglasses over his eyes and his detergent box abandoned in favor of a bag of pretzels he had stolen from the cafeteria. There was a sense of excitement in the air: the message that had gone out had mentioned both Luna and Celestia had requested their presence, and it was like the ponies expected everything to go back to normal, every problem to be solved.
Near the front of the crowd, seven ponies stood together, quarrels forgotten between them: Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Pinkamena, and Rarity. They tossed looks at each other that ranged from apprehensive to apologetic, smiles to embarrassed winces... and then they, like all other ponies, looked forwards as the double doors of city hall opened.
Scrivener Blooms and Celestia strode calmly out, side-by-side, before they both walked to one side of the steps... and then Luna walked slowly out and down the steps of city hall to stand at the bottom of the stairs, facing the crowd in front of her, head raised proudly and eyes confident and imperious as she said in a voice that echoed clearly through the square: “Citizens of Ponyville... do thee remember me? I am Luna, once Princess of the Night: I am Luna, the Champion of the Equestria that had been... I am Luna Brynhild... who failed each and every one of thee when I did not stop Ragnarok, and who could not save every soul of our former home.”
Her voice quieted, lost much of its edge as she closed her eyes and bowed her head forwards, and murmurs ran through the crowd before Luna looked up silently and continued in her softer, honest tones: “But I am trying to save the Ponyville we stand in now... and I am doing everything in my power to make the best of his new Equestria, this new world we have. Aye, the Nibelung are our allies here, not enemies, as all of thee well know and accept... but so are the creatures that few of thee have accepted. The creatures of the night... and they are my willing servants in this world, yes. Servants I have not dispatched to make thee suffer and miserable, but to watch out for and protect thee when I cannot be there myself. Servants I have brought into the fold because they are swift, and they are loyal, and they are strong
“And I shall make this clear: to me, they and pony are equal in my eyes. Any pony that hurts one of the citizens, the servants of the night, shall be judged as if he or she had done harm to a fellow pony... just as my servants of the night shall receive the same treatment, if not harsher.” Luna said clearly, looking slowly over the crowd. “Which brings me to another point, and an important one.
“All of thee have heard of the zebras, I am sure, and their plight... and Celestia and I have only just returned from that maddened camp.” Luna continued clearly, her voice unhesitating, her eyes cold. “Today we saw no injured, no wounded. Today, we saw soldiers... and instead of aid, we were tricked into a trap that could have resulted in the deaths of both myself and my sister. We were forced into battle against the zebras, and among them, a zebra I had thought friend... but Zecora had apparently long decided that I was a 'threat,' that I was a 'monster,' and proceeded to try and eradicate me as such. And it was Zecora who killed the Phooka... who I know has stirred up the minds of several ponies here, for she was a trusted friend and ally... but perhaps her time spent in the corrupted Equestria had harmed her worse than I had thought.”
There were whispers and murmurs at this, ponies looking back and forth fearfully, accusingly, angrily, and Applejack and Twilight both stared at Luna before trading shocked looks. Then the goldenrod earth pony flushed silently as Luna said clearly and her eyes locked with Applejack's: “I dare not guess at how she manipulated some of us. Especially because it was within her power to manipulate even my own servants of the darkness into trying to harm me.”
More rumbles and fear, before Luna leaned forwards and continued, the hum of voices dying down to listen intently: “I know that not all of thee trust me, and have no reason to, especially given my failures as well as my failure to explain to thee the new laws of this new world. But Celestia was there. Celestia fought beside me... as did my husband, as did Discombobulation. But I know her word carries the most weight to it, and I shall let her speak when I am finished, if she wishes to. I have little left to say.
“What I do wish to implore, my friends, is that we work together... that we strive to be the Ponyville that once was, that did not judge, that let the actions of other speak for the quality of their person instead of idle gossip and opinions formed from their appearance alone.” Luna gazed over the crowd, saying quietly: “When I was an exile, thou all accepted me, took me in, given time to see... please. I know all of thee have suffered. I know all of thee ache and long for what is gone, as do I, every day... but show the compassion that made Ponyville my utopia, my beloved kingdom in times' past. I implore thee.”
Luna bowed her head silently towards the gathered ponies, and there was a distinct shift through the crowd, murmurs as ponies looked apprehensively at one-another before Luna looked up with a faint smile, saying quietly: “But that is all I have to speak. I let my sister have her say now... if she wishes to add anything, that is.”
Luna glanced quietly up to where Celestia stood on the steps, and the ivory equine gazed silently down at her little sister for a moment, her mouth dry as she swallowed slowly before her eyes roved upwards and out over the gathered ponies, who all gazed towards her so expectantly... and then she lowered her head as she strode down the stairs, looking silently out over the crowd as she focused herself on the task at hand instead of the way Luna had so subtly skirted the truth, so neatly twisted the ponies to her cause before she said calmly: “I do not need to add anything further... only that my sister...” She halted, hesitated, looked towards Luna as the dark-coated winged unicorn gazed at her trustingly, lovingly, and pleadingly. “My sister has the best interests of Equestria at heart. She has been harshly, wrongly judged many times in the past... and her subjects are loyal.
“We... are on our way to restoring our nation.” Celestia hesitated for moment as she looked up over the ponies: ponies who gazed at her differently, her very presence changing the atmosphere, making hope fill their eyes... hope that she would guide them and lead them on, hope that she would solve all their problems for them, hope that she would move the very sun and moon for them so they never had to lift a hoof. It made a bitter knife twist in her heart, feeling a pulse pass through her chest that made her eyes darken slightly even as she remained composed, as if anything, her voice became stronger when she said: “My sister is strong and I have full faith in her, that has never wavered. She was right about Zecora. She has been right about many things. We need to trust in her, and her projects and designs, to ensure that Equestria will come together as strong as it can be.”
This made many ponies shift awkwardly, nodding and whispering amongst themselves as Luna looked with surprise at Celestia, who smiled softly and nodded slowly once to her younger sibling... and then Luna smiled widely, warmly back as ponies began to stomp their hooves, applauding the two, looking at the sisters with hope.
And yet even as Twilight applauded as well, she couldn't help but feel a tingle run down her spine, a moment of worry for what the future would hold even as Luna and Celestia embraced tightly, the happiness in the air feeling strangely like nothing more than a thin coat of paint over a bitter, harsher truth lurking below.
As time passed, it became clear how hard the ponies were trying to follow Celestia's advice, how much her words had affected things, as ponies treated Luna and Scrivener with far more respect. And at night, there were fewer lamps on the street, and ponies began to hesitantly greet Nightmares and other beings of the shadows as they walked by... and eventually, to even try and form hesitant friendships with those beings of the darkness.
There were still ponies who feared the servants of the night above all else... but they kept mostly to themselves, holding their secret meetings and muttering about preparing for the day when Ponyville finally was swarmed with evil, talking about how one day they'd be proven right and everyone else would have to beg them for help.
Even Applejack was trying to be understanding, apologizing to Luna and Scrivener, and to Twilight Sparkle as well, for everything that had happened. She was still wary, but she even allowed Fluttershy's Phooka friend Nirvana to come by the farm on occasion now, despite being uncomfortable around him.
Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, was relieved to see everyone back together, as were Rarity and Spike... and Apple Bloom was only glad to be able to start spending more time again with Scarlet Sage. The two fillies were almost inseparable, to the point that sometimes Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle would abandon them to their own devices in disgust... but the four friends were still as close as ever, able to depend on one-another, getting into trouble in and around Ponyville and the surrounding countryside.
Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena ran Sugar Cube Corners, a strange but effective team: many ponies noted there was something stranger about Pinkamena these days, though, the way her eyes glowed, the way she tended to appear and vanish when nopony was looking... but only Twilight Sparkle and Celestia knew that Pinkamena hadn't actually spent a few days out at Scrivener and Luna's cottage not long after the zebra incident... she had spent it in the mire that had spread through the bottom of the ravine where the zebra camp had once been, having her blood drained from her body and replaced with blood from a pair of enormous demons that Luna had lured in, negotiated with... and then captured. Both had died.
Pinkamena's changes had been slow and excruciating as she had lost what was left of her mortality, her physical body warping and transforming... but when the transformation was complete, she had found herself able to polymorph herself back to her mortal form, and as she'd examined this, Luna had explained gently: “Thou became a demon without dying. Thy body remembers what it's supposed to look like, and thy shape is malleable now. But do not become too excited... because much like Scrivener Blooms, changes will begin to make themselves apparent if thy emotions become... heightened.”
It hadn't taken her long to get used to being a demon: Pinkamena had admitted it felt like she had reached her destiny. And it also hadn't taken much urging to get her to recite the vow Luna had written for her, promising herself and her loyalty to them so she could always protect Pinkie Pie. And she had grinned afterwards, eyes glowing as she whispered: “Because now I know it's gonna get bad, you see. Oh, sure, I know. Everypony's happy right now. But this is the eye of the storm... and everypony knows that the second half of the storm makes the first look like kittens and candy in comparison.”
Luna had only scoffed at this, however... and for a while, it seemed as if the winged unicorn was right. Days turned to weeks turned to months of relative normalcy: Celestia began to leave Ponyville more and more often on business, and Scrivener, Scarlet Sage, Twilight Sparkle and Luna all attended her official crowning at the Temple of the Sun at the center of the nation, as she resumed her post as Queen... and announced calmly that until Canterlot was rebuilt, she would be staying first in Ponyville, and secondly in Castle Enstasis, between her royal duties. It was a surprise for the nobles who had hoped she would stay at the temple city, where the thirteen selected barons and baronesses would all regularly meet to discuss national policies and laws with the Queen... but Celestia had only smiled and replied gently: “My duty is to lead, and for now it is better that I lead from a town that represents the Equestria I know and love, than from inside the walls of a palace I do not know and that keeps me away from the ponies I care for.”
All the same, Celestia was now more and more often away at the Temple, working beside Nibelung assistants, and every now and then with Twilight Sparkle to accompany her on more important matters. Twilight found herself more busy as well, attending to researching laws, writing notes for Celestia, sorting letters and requests: the once mostly-empty shelves of the library were beginning to fill up with all the papers she had begun to accumulate. And yet still, Twilight found time for her friends, and time to spend with Luna and Scrivener, the ivy wrap now turned into a proper collar, the charm swaying around this and beautiful onyx stud in one ear in the shape of the crescent moon, and a black rose in the other.
Spike and Rarity were finally officially announced they were dating despite the weeks that had gone by where they had obviously been seeing each other, the dragon moved comfortably in to Rarity's boutique, although he still often did work for Twilight and Celestia at the library. Rainbow Dash and Big Mac worked Sweet Apple Acres, the Pegasus grouchy that most of the Nibelung laborers were now gone and always happy to take a break when a friend came by. And Fluttershy happily cared for her Phooka, a variety of other animals, and was seen more often than not with Nirvana at her side, both welcome in almost every part of Ponyville.
And outside of Ponyville, now visible on the horizon, Enstasis grew nearer and nearer to completion with each and every passing day, thanks to the hard work of countless hard workers... including now among those numbers Ross and Kilby Kwolek, who had both been pouring their efforts and expertise into the project for months now alongside Illyria and Greece. The four made an oddly-good team albeit a strange one: the earth pony mare better known as Cowlick was brash, butch, and bossy but incredibly-talented when it came to engineering and design, while Ross was gentle, a little addled, but a genius with mathematics.
Cowlick had been an engineer in Ponyville, coming to the town to get away from employers in Manehattan who had wanted to trade her out to another company. As much as she'd missed the high-class laboratories and facilities of the big city, she had liked the little town, and liked it even more when she had met Luna and eventually been recruited into the Starlit Knights. She had been all-too-happy to leave Manehattan again at the request of Luna to return to the village... especially with the promise of a project.
And Ross, meanwhile, had been a puppeted thrall of Blood Seers, his naivety making him an easy target for them: from what the ponies knew of him, he had lived much of his life in what they assumed was some sort of halfway house for the mentally-handicapped before he'd been kidnapped and tattooed with obedience runes. After these had faded, though, Ross had gone back to his old self, curious, kind, gentle, and panicking at the sight of blood or violence. But Cowlick had never been mean to him, however slow or confused Ross had gotten over things: and Ross, even though few ponies ever realized it, had been able to see that, how she treated him differently, normally... and had grown attached to it, and to her.
When they had first arrived, both ponies had been struck by the changes in Ponyville: not just the creatures of shadow that lurked around – which bothered Ross a lot less than it did Cowlick – or the changes to both Luna and Scrivener – which bothered Cowlick much less than it did Ross – but the way the atmosphere was simply... different. Once they had been shown Enstasis, however, Cowlick had started to get excited, and whatever worries she had were thrown to the wind when she was given the chance to start and add her own expertise and flair to such a monumental project, Ross settling in himself once the unicorn was allowed to resume his usual schedule and given calculations to keep him busy.
Luna and Scrivener did their best to supply them with everything they needed, and even Celestia authorized and asked for resources for them from other cities and parts of Equestria when necessary, out of both respect for Cowlick and perhaps her own half-hidden interest in the project. And with a pony like Cowlick working almost every waking hour of every day on the castle, other ponies were less hesitant to come forwards and offer their own services, and every laborer was needed.
Along with ponies, the former Velites were working on the castle: the Ivory Elite that Luna had envisioned, hulking and enormous undead of metal and bone, glinting with black and silver plating that, while scratched and dented here and there, repaired itself rapidly whenever damaged. Their limbs were thick and blocky and ended not in hooves but in powerful talons, with wide, v-shaped chests and skulls plated with titanium, sockets glowing with faint, intelligent light and every one of them engraved with the symbol of the moon over their chest and shoulders.
It had taken several weeks to build them, but the process of swapping the life force from the Velites that remained into the powerful constructs had been an easy one, with the skeletons all eager to cooperate: they were almost indestructible, but each Ivory Elite had a 'heart' of spherical crystal inside of it that powered it and kept the soul of the dead bound to the construct. As long as it existed, the Ivory Elite could literally piece themselves back together much as a Velite could from almost any amount of damage... but if that crystal was destroyed, then so was the construct.
Cowlick found the golems fascinating and a little terrifying, and she used them for the hardest, most dangerous work around Enstasis to keep the other laborers safe. Ross, meanwhile, tried to avoid the Ivory Elite, as well as many of the other servants of darkness... although he was at least okay with Fluttershy's confidante Nirvana, and one or two of the Nightmares. Perhaps it was due to the way Ross saw the world differently than most ponies, but the unicorn could actually tell the difference between many of the servants of shadow, while even Luna and Scrivener sometimes had problems telling one Nightmare from another.
It was eleven months into the project, when Enstasis was nearing completion, that tragedy struck. Ross had been running around the exterior of the massive castle, making measurements and estimates for Cowlick while she worked in the Nibelung camp, arguing with Greece over how to best polish off the inner workings of Enstasis, and Illyria was in one of the tents, catching a nap. The laborers knew their jobs and the officers around the Castle charged with keeping an eye on the work crews were doing their duties, but with the sheer magnitude of the black fortress meant it was hard to watch every little thing at once.
Someone had failed to anchor a pillar into place, leaving it held up by little more than a few weak safety tethers that gave out at the wrong moment. The moment when Ross had been hurrying by, mumbling to himself and not noticing even as workers yelled at him and others simply scattered before the twenty foot pillar of thick stone had fallen and struck the unicorn squarely in the middle of the back, snapping his spine and crushing his lower body.
They had heard the commotion from the camp, but Cowlick disregarded it until a pony came and told her what had happened. The moment she heard Ross's name, she rushed to Enstasis... only to find the unicorn wheezing slowly, whimpering weakly as tears rolled down his cheeks. His entire lower body had been crushed by the pillar... and the moment they tried to move it, he would die.
Luna, Twilight Sparkle, and Scrivener Blooms arrived not long after to find Cowlick crying quietly as she held Ross's hoof against her face, while the unicorn only looked blank and scared and kept whispering to her that she didn't have to cry. He didn't seem to realize the calamity he was in... only that he was in pain, and even that had grown faint, his concern for Cowlick much greater than his discomfort.
When the trio approached, Cowlick turned to them, begged and pleaded for them to save Ross with magic, with anything... and Twilight had only shaken her head and Luna had explained quietly, gently, that Ross's body would not heal from such damages. At most, he would literally be half a pony, and it was impossible to guess at what internal damages he had suffered on top of things... impossible to know what an agonizing, excruciating excuse for a life he'd live if they did try and save him.
Yet Luna's eyes had gone thoughtful as she looked at Ross, and Scrivener had strode over and leaned down, silently breathing blue mist over the male's face, and Ross had blinked a few times before lethargically laying down as the smog numbed him and soothed him. Cowlick had seen the look in Luna's eyes, whispered that she would do anything to see Ross safe... and Luna had glanced at Twilight, who had closed her own eyes... and finally nodded when Luna had told her gently to perform a stasis spell.
It was draining, but Twilight did it, freezing Ross completely like he was halted in time, and Luna moved the pillar with only a flick of her horn, revealing the crushed, broken lower half of Ross's form, half-buried in the dark but solid mire. With only another tilt of her horn and a silent order, two Nightmares had appeared, picked Ross's frozen-in-time body up, and vanished with him before Luna had looked at Cowlick and said gently: “We will save him, but in return he will become... special to us, and we shall be special to him. But do not fear, Cowlick, he will still love thee... as thou loves him. Only know that when he returns... 'twill not be entirely the same.”
Cowlick shivered, but knew it was too late, only whispered that all that mattered was Ross was alright, Ross lived... and Luna smiled gently and nodded. Then she had left Twilight to attend to Cowlick and to help get things back in order while she and Scrivener made their way to where Ross had been taken by the Nightmares that now eagerly awaited.
Five days later, as Cowlick sat on the musty couch in her small house with a bucket of ice cream, a box of tissues, and a heap of empty beer bottles, there had been a knock at the door. And when Cowlick had gotten up to answer it, bedraggled, exhausted, thinking that nothing could elicit any kind of emotion from her anymore... she had found herself face-to-face with a winged unicorn. He was a tall and lanky stallion, handsome and pure-white, with a golden mane and tail that almost glowed and amber eyes, and Cowlick's jaw had dropped before the male smiled and said gently: “It's good to see you again, Cowlick.”
“Ross...” Cowlick whispered, and then she hugged him fiercely... and he hugged her back, kissing her forehead and pulling her close. The mare was ecstatic... although as time wore on, her spirits dampened slightly as she realized that Ross had been given new life, new power, but some things had been lost in trade.
He spoke fluently, he was calm but his emotions seemed muted despite obvious affection for her, and while he retained his talents... he no longer had a cutie mark on his flank, which was as blank and white as the rest of his body. His magic was powerful, but parts of his personality had vanished, and Cowlick found herself missing the old, addled-up Ross... instead of this cultured, smart, handsome creature that, while it cared for her, was not as sweet... and bore a deep and unflinching loyalty to Luna and Scrivener, who referred to him calmly as 'Moon Blessed.'
Time moved on: Cowlick felt like Ross was becoming more distant as Enstasis neared completion, and three days from their estimated date of completion, the engineer – looking haunted, sleepless, and torn between fear and anger – finally couldn't stop herself from storming into Ponyville to find Scrivener and Luna. She demanded to know what was wrong with Ross, why he was acting so different, but to her surprise Luna had only gently sat her down in the library and then willingly, softly explained what had happened.
Ross's body had been broken and crushed, the damage too severe for most magic to fix... and even if Luna did pour all her strength into healing him, the chances were too great she would miss something, a rupture here or a vessel there, and Ross would die in a way even more painful than he had already experienced. Giving Ross a new shape, a new body, however, would circumvent that... and it also had allowed Luna and Scrivener to put forwards an idea they had long thought of between themselves.
Moon Blessed: beneath the stars and the moon, they infused magic and their own blood into Ross, keeping him unconscious as over several days they reshaped his body like clay. During the day they left him tended to by demons that continued the ritual and kept him safe... during the night, Luna and Scrivener worked themselves on him, the winged unicorn proud of how much effort she had put into the process, of how they had worked out every detail, how she had called on every bit of magical know-how she had to ensure the process would be a success... and how drained they had been, but also how delighted when it had been completed, and Ross had finally awoken.
Cowlick had been half-horrified, half-amazed, before she had trembled and shaken her head slowly. She had wanted Ross saved... but in saving him, they had changed him into something else. Something that sounded almost like a toy to her... and worse still, something that was loyal to them, not to her. They had taken her Ross away... and Cowlick had shoved herself away from the table with a curse and stormed out, managing to reach home before she had broken down and cried.
Ross came to her that night, stayed with her, and Cowlick couldn't turn him away. The sight of him hurt, but as she rested her head against him, the smells, the sensations, it all comforted her. And Ross spoke to her gently, reassuring her, telling her it was all alright... telling her how much he still loved her, how neither Scrivener nor Luna ever made him do anything that he didn't want to. His loyalties were to both sides, and Cowlick felt herself falling into the abyss at his gentle words and the confusing emotions he was sending through her heart.
Rainbow Dash was horrified by what had happened to Ross... in fact, for much of Ponyville, it was a turning point, a revelation that too many had started to fearfully suspect. In the first few months after the zebra incident, everyone had been happy: Celestia back in power and Ponyville proud to play host to the Queen, Luna and Scrivener protecting them from any threat and incursion – even celebrated once as great heroes when the two had driven off a dragon that attempted to attack the village – Enstasis providing jobs and the servants of the night proving much friendlier than so many had anticipated... but then, the rumors had started. At first, small things: how Twilight Sparkle had a new scar oddly shaped like a claw on one of her shoulderblades; how a pony saw a demon drag something into Sugar Cube Corners, but when she peered through the window she'd only seen Pinkamena calmly sitting at one of the tables, alone; how there had been whispers that Luna and Scrivener liked to 'experiment' on their own servants; how Celestia was turning a blind eye to everything her sister did, even protecting her perhaps too quickly, too righteously.
Gossip spread like wildfire... and when Ross had been transformed into a Moon Blessed, it seemed to confirm everything that had been said. Suddenly all the stories were true, from how ponies whispered that Luna would give power to ponies who pledged souls and servitude to her... to the story of how a mare had wandered into the Everfree Forest during the day, only to come across terrible, enormous Nightmares that weren't burned by the sun, grinning and toying with her until she had stumbled out of the forest, hours later, terrified out of her mind.
On the day of the completion of Enstasis, every pony was invited out of the village to witness the unveiling of the castle. Many ponies went out of sheer curiosity and because so many had put a hoof towards building it, and they joined an enormous crowd of Nibelung to stand in a dark mire, gazing silently up at the looming, towering structure. It was a dark monument, a colossal, terrible and beautiful structure with a dozen enormous towers that stood at varying heights around a massive central, octagonal spire that loomed higher into the sky than anypony had ever seen, secured in place by massive supports that ran back and forth like terrible metallic limbs from the other towers.
And even without the towers, the castle was enormous: the battlements more than a hundred and fifty feet high and the outer walls only slightly-sloped inwards, all resting on a foundation that went almost as many feet into the ground below as it did above. And inside its black-stone halls, demons, Nightmares, and other servants of shadow already roamed back and forth, Illyria and several Nibelung striding around and double-checking every inch of the building as the Architect made notes on a clipboard about what furniture would be going where, among other things.
Luna stood in front of the gates of Enstasis: a portcullis of blessed iron seventy feet high and almost as wide, the archway artfully rendered with etchings of dragons. Large enough for Scrivener Blooms to pass through even in full form into the wide courtyard beyond... and Luna licked her lips slowly as she glanced towards her husband. Their eyes met as he gazed back at her, smiling slightly and filled with as much joy as she was.
Greece, meanwhile, had his head bowed and seemed solemn, even though Twilight was smiling warmly beside him as she gazed happily out over the crowd, and Cowlick and Ross were on the other side, Ross smiling and confident, Cowlick frazzled and breathing hard, her eyes lost and confused. And as Luna gazed affectionately out over the ponies and Nibelung that had gathered, she saw Celestia standing in the crowd, looking up at her with both a small smile... and what seemed like soft concern.
Luna understood: Celestia disagreed privately with many of the things Luna and Scrivener had done over these long months, with the choices they had made. In public, she always stood up for her, defended her... but sometimes in private they would talk, debate, or argue: the topics ranged from how immoral it was that Luna was so willing to take advantage of other intelligent beings to see her own desires through, to how Scrivener needed to better control his feeding, to countless other things both large and small.
The ceremony was short and simple: Luna declared Enstasis complete, said that she would offer sanctuary and refuge to anyone who came to its doors, and invited the ponies and Nibelung to come inside and stride through its grand halls and see it for themselves. But to her surprise, many ponies and Nibelung turned away, forming a large parade that made their way back to Ponyville, and only a few came forwards... Celestia and Scarlet Sage, Fluttershy and her Phooka companion, Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena, Rarity and Spike, Big Mac and Apple Bloom, and precious few others.
Luna made the best of it, grumbling a little but instead taking the group on a guided tour through what had already become her favorite locations: the Garden, Luna's expansive private quarters, Celestia's own gold and white marble personal rooms, and several other places. She invited them to stay... but only Twilight and Celestia did, even Scarlet Sage asking if she could go into town with Apple Bloom for the night... and Luna simply didn't have the heart to say no to her cherished daughter.
The first night in Enstasis was strangely long, and too much of it spent in silence as Scrivy, Celestia, Luna, and Twilight sat together in a spacious, comfortable den. Nightmare servants came by on occasion, but they were usually sent away... and Luna felt bitterness welling up in her heart as she sat back in this fortress she had desired and realized it was only a castle of solitude, muttering bitterly: “The ponies turn on me yet again...”
For the ponies of Ponyville, the completion of Enstasis was not just a landmark, but a turning point. When they looked to the north, they saw mountains where Canterlot's ruins lay rotting... when they looked to the west, they saw a black castle that they felt was not there to protect them, but loomed and watched over them like a predator that at any moment could turn on them, like a living testament to the hungers of Luna and Scrivener, whom they had given a chance... and whom over the course of the year, had only plunged into deeper and darker depravity. Who they now feared had even somehow corrupted their beloved Queen as well as her apprentice.
When Luna and Scrivener went into town the next day, they were greeted with hostility and open coldness that surprised them, and that angered Luna. Few ponies treated them like they had even a day ago: at Sweet Apple Acres, they were outright turned away from the gates by Applejack, who said shortly she had no time today for any visitors and too much work at the farm to help Luna and Scrivy out with whatever project they had in mind for her.
Ponies ignored them and reviled them, and Scrivener could feel their anger, fear, and jealousy, and Luna's sharp ears more than once picked up mutters of 'they have their castle, what more do they want from us?' among other choice phrases. After a year of gossip, rumors, and Luna and Scrivener more and more seeming to take advantage of every situation that had arisen, the way ponies had changed around them... Ponyville itself had changed too.
They made only one more stop, at Cowlick's home, and Luna all-but-shoved her way inside, saying curtly that she had a design she wanted Cowlick to bring to life, working alongside Greece and another Nibelung Architect she would recruit. And even half-drunk, scared and angry, Cowlick couldn't help but listen and be fascinated with what Luna announced... and hated the way she almost looked forwards the challenge it would pose.
Over the next two weeks, Cowlick worked on this new project with Greece and an enchanter named Egypt in a safe room of Enstasis, often accompanied by Ross. Between them, it didn't take long for them to complete the designs and create a working prototype... a crystalline, prosthetic unicorn horn that could focus magic through it, tested by Ross first and then by Cowlick herself ,who held it in one hoof like a wand, listened to Ross's instructions as he gently guided her in how to use magic, and then stared as the crystal horn lit up before releasing a flash of light.
It was a success... and Luna immediately ordered the production of more of these horns. The Nibelung went to work, but Cowlick found herself once more without a project, lonely in Ponyville, thinking of how happy she had been beside Ross, thinking of the things he had whispered to her over the time they'd spent together... and finally, Cowlick knew she had to make a choice, and a sacrifice.
Cowlick was seen leaving Ponyville in the early morning, pale, haunted, and with a terrible determination in her eyes... and three days later, calmly walked back into Ponyville side-by-side with Ross, smiling, healthy... and difficult to recognize, because like the male, she too had become a pure-white Moon Blessed. It was her bandanna and her piercings that gave her away... after all, like Ross, her cutie mark had vanished.
It sent ripples throughout Ponyville: Rainbow Dash was horrified, almost attacking Cowlick when he saw her, yelling at her and grappling with her until he was finally pulled off by several other ponies as Cowlick reacted with self-control and only a few short, snapped remarks in return. But that only made Rainbow Dash's anger worse: Cowlick had been a close friend, Cowlick had been rude, sharp, and never hesitated to dive into a fight... not a cold, controlled pony like he saw across from him.
It was enough to make Applejack forbid Apple Bloom from seeing Scarlet Sage ever again, despite the growing-up filly's wails of protest and a sobbing proclamation that she loved her. It was enough that ponies who had been on the fence about Luna and Scrivener began to join the underground organizations preparing for the 'dark days ahead.' It was enough that Rarity and Spike turned off all their lights, sitting in the dark and scared of what was happening as ponies hammered on the door of the boutique, pleading with them to come out and help. It was enough that Fluttershy was forced to hide in her cottage, shivering and scared as Nirvana curled around her and other Phooka loomed through the house, ponies and Nibelung both yelling at her cottage from the road, terrified that she was in league with Luna. It was enough that even Celestia was forced to acknowledge in a whisper that what was going on was wrong, for all her loyalty and love for sister. It was enough that Twilight Sparkle became an outcast, unwanted, thought of as a spy for Luna's machinations, blamed for helping transform Cowlick into a 'monster,' forcing her to stay hiding in the library, terrified and shocked as rocks were thrown through her windows and ponies and Nibelung both shouted for her to go back to the dark prison where she belonged.
But the true breaking point didn't come until late that night, when Luna rode into town on Scrivener's back, smiling coldly despite the rage burning inside of her at what her friends and servants had told her was going on in Ponyville... and terrified ponies ran yelling in fear as the full-sized Tyrant Wyrm simply tore through the gates of Ponyville after the citizens refused to open them.
Ponies gathered in the square in front of the library, Twilight hesitantly emerging as the townspony's hatred and fear for those in their own ranks was forgotten by the sight of Scrivener Blooms striding towards them, Celestia walking quickly to the front of the crowd but only staring in equal shock as Luna grinned down at them, dark, vicious, her starry mane like blue fire that glinted with trapped spirits and Scrivener Blooms matching her grin on his own features, enormous and powerful, the collar of scar tissue around his neck seeming to glow as he halted in front of the crowd in the square.
Luna gazed down imperiously over the ponies of Ponyville... and then she leaned forwards, saying in the echoing tones of Nightmare Moon: “Beloved subjects... we are here to give you all one final chance to redeem yourselves after your callous behavior. To avoid our punishment, we ask a small price: one unicorn, willing to give up their life... and their horn.”