//------------------------------//
// Luna Rising 
// Story: Luna Rising 
// by AstonMartinLover 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 11: Luna Rising

The royal guard was down to their last leg. Nine soldiers remained, of the twenty five that had been sent out. Shining Armor led the small band as they continued to fight off the vicious horde of skeletal demons.

Nightmare Moon cared little for the battle going on. With a wave of her hoof, another hundred soldiers had risen from the snowy ground. More soldiers to support her new regime.

But she only cared for the moon. Her eyes were closed as she channeled the energy in her horn, raising it higher and higher in the sky.

Meanwhile, Princess Celestia was dragging her mortally wounded sister toward the frozen fountain as quickly, and as gently as she could.

"What...what's going on Tia?"

Celestia looked into her eyes with that stern, big sister look. "You're not dying today Luna. Not like this."

She arrived at the fountain. Demons began charging at her. She powered up her horn and fired a force field a couple feet in front of her. The demon creatures were halted.

She looked down at the frozen water. Her horn was already occupied maintaining the force field. She'd have to break the ice the old fashioned way.

She raised her hoof, and stomped it down on the ice. She grunted as she did.

"Celestia, what are you doing?" Luna asked, the level of fear in her voice unnerving the white coated ruler.

She looked down at the purple alicorn, just hanging on to life. "It'll be okay, just give me a little more time."

Luna wasn't convinced. Her eyes darted from Celestia to the demons trying to claw their way through her force field.

"Please. Just...enlighten me, what are you doing?" Her voice was not but a raspy whisper at this point.

Celestia held Luna's face. "Look at me. Look into my eyes. If there was ever a time to trust me, trust me now, okay? Just hang in there for a little longer."

Luna shook her head. "Tia, I can't. I can...feel the gods beckoning me forth..."

"Well tell the gods to screw off!" Celestia shouted, immediately jamming her hoof in her mouth, her royal lips unaccustomed to saying such vulgar things.

She lifted her hoof, then smashed it down on the ice again. There was a cracking sound. She smiled. "Good. A little more."

She smashed her hoof down on it again. A small fragment broke away, and sunk below the surface, revealing some of the powerful water.

Luna's eyes rolled back. She was fading. Celestia looked to her.

"No. No! Hang on Luna!"

The urgency of her stomps increased. More cracks in the ice. Finally it exploded. Shards of ice went flying all around, and water splashed up in the princess's face.

She turned to the barely conscious Luna.

"Tia." Luna said, in a volume the complete opposite of the royal canterlot voice. "I'm scared."

Celestia nodded. "I know sweetheart. I'm going to place you in the fountain okay? It'll be fine."

She lifted Luna up. Oh my was she heavier now. The last time Celestia had picked her up, she had been a weeping filly. Now she was a dying mare.

"I won't let go of your hoof okay?" Celestia said. She lay the alicorn in the fountain. The water washed over her.

Celestia kept a firm grip on her hoof as she sank into the fountain.

She realized she had no idea what she was doing. She had read about this fountain in old textbooks, but they had said little in the way of how it worked. All that she knew, was that this fountain had been created by mother and father, long before her time. And that it bore a special gift to alicorns, above all other pony species.

So she kept a firm grip on her sister's hoof and waited, wary that she would have to pull Luna up for air at some point.

Suddenly, an unknown force began pulling on her sister. She could feel something trying to drag her deeper.

"No. NO!" Celestia shouted. She felt her grip on her sister slipping. Whatever this force was, it was strong. Then she lost it altogether.

"NO! Buck! BUCK!" Celestia shouted, slamming her hoof on the snow in frustration. She splashed her head into the water. She could see Luna sinking rapidly to the bottom of the rather deep fountain. She pulled herself back out.

"LUNA!!!" She shouted at the water. "I'M SORRY!!"

She buried her head in her hooves. Her horn powered down. The demons resumed hacking at the weakening force field.

She paid the demons no mind. Luna was gone. There wasn't even a body to bury. This cruel fountain had claimed her, in the same sick way it had given her alter ego life.

"Oh Mother. Father. Forgive me." Celestia said, laying defeated in the snow. She looked at the vicious creatures, moments from breaking through the force field. Celestia readied her horn, to fight them off. She couldn't afford to fall apart now. Her sister was gone. But her subjects still needed a ruler. For the good of Equestria, she had to finish off Nightmare Moon.

The force field collapsed. The demons rushed forth. Celestia reared back to fire. But the demons were faster than she expected. They jumped on her, and tackled her to the ground, gnawing viciously at her.


Luna was surrounded by darkness. She felt like she was floating. The pain in her chest was gone. That was the good news. The bad news was she had no idea where she was.

A thought crossed her mind. Was she dead? Was this the afterlife? Pretty boring. The moon would be a preferable alternative.

She considered crying out. But she decided against it. Her body began to rise steadily.

Before she knew it, she was standing, on solid ground. She could feel the water completely surrounding her. Yet she could breathe clearly, as though it were air. All around, the air seemed to glow a heavenly shade of white.

"W-Where am I?" She asked, unnerved by her surroundings.

Suddenly, the sky became colorful. The aurora borealis. It covered everything now. Luna shielded her eyes from the bright colors that overwhelmed her vision.

"Hello, my child." Queen Ariadne boomed. "You don't appear well."

Luna frowned, confused. "What...where am I?" She repeated.

The queen touched down before her, in all her brilliance. Her shimmering white coat, her massive, majestic wings, and her celestia like, sun cutie mark.

"We built this place. A place of harmony. A place of resurrection." Her expression became stern. "A perfect place for somepony in dire need of a second chance."

Luna looked down at her chest. Underneath her lunar necklace, the wound was still there. But it no longer bled. And it elicited no pain.

"Am...Am I dead?"

Ariadne seemed to ignore the question. "Do you not require a second chance?"

"Well..." Luna trailed off, as she thought it over.

Ariadne arched an eyebrow. "This is the part where you say yes."

Instead, to her mother's surprise, the moon princess hung her head in shame.

"No. Tis unfair to the soldiers I have slain. I deserve no second chance. This is the fate I deserved the moment I betrayed my sister. I will face my judgement in the afterlife."

Ariadne shook her head sadly. "So selfish."

Luna looked up at her, eyes wide. "Selfish? Because I am willing to accept the fate I deserve?"

Ariadne sighed. "Your sister fights a losing battle above. Your return would be invaluable. You could provide powerful aid. Yet you would rather wallow in thine own guilt."

Luna opened her mouth to speak, but found nothing to say.

Ariadne turned and began to walk away. Luna trotted towards her. "Wait mother!"

"What?"

"You...you said I was no different than any evil that's ever plagued this land. You said..."

"I said what needed to be said. To drive you forth. To motivate you. I apologize if it only succeeded in breaking you down further."

Luna sat back now, absorbing what her mother had said. It was as though a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Still, she was hesitant.

"But mother...my aid would mean nothing. Nightmare Moon is so much more powerful than I..."

"That can be adjusted." Ariadne said, turning to face her daughter once again.

Luna looked back up towards the surface of the fountain in worry. "What if I fail..."

"You won't. For you have an impossible rage within you Luna. A rage that, teamed with the proper strength, can be truly unstoppable."

Ariadne spread her arms. "Now...come here my child."

Luna hesitantly trotted forth. To her surprise, she was met with a warm embrace. It brought her memory back to over a thousand years earlier. They had not embraced in such a way since Luna's foalhood.

Luna closed her eyes and let a few tears fall down her muzzle. "T-Thank you mother."

"Tis not the time for tears sweetheart." Ariadne said warmly. "Tis time to rise."

With that, she disappeared. Luna looked around, still awkwardly in the posture of a hug, and unsure of what was going on.

Then came the pain. A jolt in her bones. 

The bones began shaking. Then an agonizing pain. She gritted her teeth.

Her whole body felt like it was expanding. Her bones were growing, extremely painfully. A powerful roar erupted from her lips.

She felt her entire body growing rapidly. What kind of sick torture was this?

Her mane was growing along with it. As was her tail, the strands of hair lengthening, blending together, into some kind of wavy, cascading blob. Her eyes widened with wonder as tiny little stars popped to life within the flowing mane. Her wonder was interrupted by the continuous throbbing from her bones.

She looked down and noticed as her coat began to darken. For a moment, she suspected the worst. 

Thankfully, instead of flat black, her coat became a dark shade of blue. The pain began to subside now.

And everything felt stronger.

Her body had grown to almost twice it's previous size. She moved her new legs. Each one felt so much stronger, quicker, more agile than before. More than that, her fear seemed to be melting away.

"My little Luna. All grown up." Ariadne's voice called out. "Farewell daughter."

Luna suddenly felt the ground beneath her disappear. She was being propelled upward. Towards the surface. Towards the battle.


Nightmare Moon looked up into the sky. As she did, it seemed to darken. The moon was about to eclipse the sun.

Celestia looked up into the eyes of her attackers. They looked prepared to consume the sun goddess. She felt their claws dig into her coat, drawing blood. She fired her horn, but they had her head held firmly in place. It fired up into the sky, striking nothing.

She closed her eyes, ready for the end. The creatures reared back and prepared to strike.

There was a blast. Then four more in quick succession. 

Celestia looked around, grateful but confused. The creatures lay in a heap all around her.

A dark blue hoof planted itself next to her head.

She looked up at a familiarly unfamiliar face.

"Do you wish for my assistance dear sister?"

The hoof reached out. Celestia grabbed it. The dark alicorn lifted her to her hooves.

Celestia's eyes widened. The alicorn's new look truly was something to behold. There were many words to describe her new look. Dark. Beautiful. Stunning. And another thing. Scary. Dangerous.

And she seemed quite annoyed at her new cascading mane, which continued to billow into her face.

This elicited a giggle from Celestia. "Do not worry, it straightens out after a day or two."

Luna giggled nervously. Her expression hardened as she caught a glance of something over her sister's shoulder.

"Duck."

Celestia ducked down. Luna fired a shot.

Nightmare Moon was in the process of finalizing the position of the moon, when she got the wind knocked out of her. She was blasted off her hooves, destroying her link with the rising moon.

She groaned, unhappy at getting a face full of snow. Celestia she figured. Desperately trying to distract her from her grand mission. 

"Always so protective of your precious sun." She muttered.

But as she got up, she got a facefull of Luna 2.0 instead. A hoof to the chin knocked her back again. She looked up at the dark royal sister.

"Tis impossible." She stammered.

Luna shook her head. "My dear Nightmare. Nothing is impossible."

Nightmare got to her hooves and prepared to re-engage.

Luna could feel her evolved body working. Everything felt faster, more agile. And most importantly, any filly like fear was long gone now.

Nightmare stomped her hoof on the ground. The bloody blade that had felled Porthos extended again.

Luna dodged her swipe, then forced her hoof to the ground. She stomped down, snapping the small blade off. Nightmare shoved her back.

"What? You think evolution makes you stronger than me? You are still the same coward as before!"

But this Luna was done taking verbal abuse. Nightmare Moon no longer towered over her. And most importantly, her words no longer pierced through Luna's defenses. The momentum of the battle had quite rapidly swung around.

Luna grabbed the night demon, and hurled her against a snow bank. Nightmare grunted as she hit it, her metal armor buckling from the force of the impact. As she got up, a hoof bucked her hard in the ribs. She powered up her horn and fired a killing blast.

Luna deflected it. Nightmare looked up at her in shock.

Luna's face was stern. "Now tis your turn, Nightmare Moon."

Nightmare stood up. "What?"

"Why am I not hearing you beg Nightmare? Why do I not hear you pleading?" She gritted her teeth. "Why art thou not on thine knees, begging ME for forgiveness?!"

Nightmare's horn began to glow. She prepared to fire. "You dare speakst to me in this way?!"

Luna grabbed her horn and angled it at the sky. Nightmare fired a blast into the stratosphere.

Luna's rage was strong, just as Ariadne had claimed. This spirit would suffer for the chaos she had brought to Luna's life.

Nightmare fired another blast. Luna had vanished. She watched a dark blue cloud dance about in front of her. She took a couple mad swipes at it, before it disappeared completely. 

She looked around, somewhat frightened by the night princess's disappearing act.

Luna re-formed behind her. She turned to receive a hoof in the face. She was knocked back, tasting blood.

Nightmare Moon could see now that she was outmatched. There was only one option remaining.

As Luna charged, Nightmare reached out and jammed her hoof against the side of Luna's head.

Luna immediately felt a sharp pain reverberating through her skull. She grimaced. Visions began flooding her mind.

There lay Celestia, blood pouring from fresh wounds on her head and chest.

Luna smirked as she looked down at her. "Will you not even fight back?"

The voice that spoke was not hers. It was Nightmare.

"You are so weak Tia! All these foals bow to you, and tremble before you, if they had even a glimpse of how weak you truly are, you would be cast off into the badlands!"

Luna shook her head. "Stop."

Nightmare smirked. She pressed her hoof harder against the side of Luna's head, increasing the intensity of the memory.

Celestia looked up at her, coughing up blood. "Luna. I know you're in there somewhere. I shall not fight back. This can end now. Please..."

Nightmare cackled. She slowly trotted towards her sister. "Goodbye Tia."

"Stop it!" Luna shouted, the memory violently shaking her new found confidence.

She lifted Celestia up. "All these years Tia. All these years you held me back. Soon the world will mourn their precious Celestia. And bow before I, Nightmare Moon!"

She prepared to hurl Celestia head first, against the hard palace wall.

"ENOUGH!" 

The memory dissolved as Nightmare Moon was blown back by the force of Luna's volume. It had been thousands of years since Luna had last used the Royal Canterlot voice.

Nightmare got up. "Did you like that recollection Luna? It is one of my fondest..."

A hoof came down on Nightmare's back. She felt pain shoot up her spine.

She reached out to grab at Luna's throat. Luna grabbed her hoof, then used her other hoof to grab Nightmare's head.

There was a horrible tearing sound as Luna violently stripped the dark creature of her blue helmet. She looked down at it in disgust, then tossed it aside. She shoved Nightmare on the ground next to it.

Nightmare's bare black face stared back at Luna now. There was only the slightest hint of fear. But it was enough for Luna to feed on.

Nightmare put her horn down and charged. They locked horns, staring intensely into each other's eyes.

"You made me betray everything! Everything I ever stood for, everything I ever swore to protect!" Luna shouted.

"No. I made you what you are! You were nothing before me! Just that insignificant wretch that sat quietly and watched her sister run a nation into the ground!"

Luna's monstrous rage burned inside. She let out a roar.

"I will not fall for thine tricks again!"

Her eyes became clear, and glowing. The sky became dark. Nightmare looked up to see storm clouds forming.

Celestia saw them too. The soldiers did not, as they continued fighting the lopsided battle against the numerous demon soldiers.

Nightmare Moon looked at Luna in disbelief. Luna was using a power that was hers. She had evolved more than Nightmare initially thought. Luna began to levitate in the air.

Rain began falling on the mountaintop. The soldiers stopped to watch the radical weather conditions. Then came the lightning. Bolts of it shooting down from the sky.

The royal guards watched in shock as their opposing demon soldiers were struck down, one by one, by the lightning bolts. Hundreds of them raining down on the mountaintop, destroying the skeletal demons.

Celestia smiled. "Luna. You've done it."

One final lightning bolt struck down from the heavens. It hit Nightmare right in her chest armor, and slammed her into a rock.

She winced as she got up. The storm clouds began to clear away.

"Give in Nightmare. Tis over."

Nightmare shook her head, managing laughter. "No Luna. Tis never over. Equestria will be plunged into darkness again. By my hoof or yours!"

Her horn began to glow. "And I solemnly swear, this shot will kill you."

Luna's horn began glowing as well. The two forces activated their magic.

Beams of raw energy erupted from each horn. They met in a brilliant explosion of color. Luna concentrated all of her energy on her horn. She knew she had Nightmare on the ropes. The creature was already very weak.

Nightmare Moon forced every last bit of energy trying to overpower her rival self.

But in mere moments, she could feel Luna's power burning the end of her horn. She grimaced at the pain. Then a cracking sound. Deep cracks formed. She looked at it and let out an angry roar.

Luna pushed a little harder now. And with a great boom, Nightmare Moon's horn exploded.

She was blasted back into the snow. Luna herself was knocked back a few feet.

Then there was silence. Nopony made a sound, as the calm after the storm set in. The soldiers were busy dressing their wounds.

Celestia was watching for signs of life where Luna and Nightmare had stood.

The sun was high in the sky. The moon was half raised, floating next to it. Anypony who looked out their window at the sky, would be rightfully pissing themselves right now.

Nightmare Moon coughed up some dark blood as she lay, nearly immobile, on the now melted ground. Her head had a tiny little jagged stump upon it, where her horn had once been. Her armor was charred and worn. She was defeated.

Luna looked down at her sternly as she trotted up. There was no sympathy in this face. Only hatred. Pure, unbridled hatred.

Nightmare saw the look and began sniggering, her laugh sounding horrid and unhealthy thanks to her many injuries.

"You...you thought you would be redeemed didn't you? You thought stopping me would buy you back some of that soul that you sold all those years ago?"

Luna was silent. Nightmare continued laughing.

"They'll never love you. Not one of them. They'll hate you like the monster you are. And Celestia...she's just waiting for an excuse to send you back into exile. Mark my words."

Luna slowly trotted closer. "I deserve no less than exile. And as for my subjects, they have the right to hate me. I must earn back their love and admiration. Maybe some day, long after I'm dead and gone, they'll come to appreciate what I've done."

Nightmare shook her head. "Don't count on it dear Luna. These ponies...they forget the angels. But they always remember the sinners. One day, maybe thousands of years from now, you'll turn to me again. You'll have no choice. And I'll be there. Waiting to fight the war which you are too cowardly to fight."

Luna put her head down, silently contemplating the dark spirit's words. After a quite brief internal debate, she powered up her horn. "This is goodbye Nightmare Moon. Any final words?"

Luna smiled that big, horrible, toothy grin. "Just know that...when your puny subjects look up at you..." She continued laughing. "They shall see MY face."

Luna gritted her teeth and fired her horn. Blue flames shot from it, consuming the creature. She continued laughing as her body began to turn to dust. Then she was gone. Leaving nothing behind but some battle scarred armor, with a Luna crest upon it.

Luna closed her eyes. It was over. Nightmare Moon was gone for good. She hoped.

She stared at the ground for a moment. Then she turned to the sky. There was the sun, the moon floating next to it. She powered up her horn and returned the moon to it's proper hiding place. It was still several hours until nightfall.

Then she began trotting back towards the others, her new mane flowing out in front to hide her face. Celestia looked worriedly at her as she approached.

"What happened to her?" She asked.

Luna stopped. She turned to Celestia and brushed the mane out of her face, revealing tears of rage.

"I put her out of her misery."

She trotted onward. Celestia looked to the other soldiers. "Stay here. Collect your dead. They will receive a proper burial once we return to Canterlot."

Celestia turned to run after her distressed sister.

"Luna!"

Luna did not respond. She trotted to the very edge of the mountainside. The storm had settled now. Visibility was clear. And Luna could see all of Equestria from here. Celestia trotted up next to her. They stood together silently for a moment, absorbing the gravity of what had happened over the last couple hours. Luna finally broke the silence. 

"I suppose you wish for an explanation as to my abandoning you in our former home."

Celestia nodded. "It would be appreciated."

Luna took a deep breath. She didn't seem to want to give such an explanation. "She conned me. Deceived me. Told me that if I brought her here, she would leave me alone forever. I was a fool. I fell for thine own lie."

Celestia closed her eyes. "I understand. Sometimes the wish for freedom can be too great of a temptation."

Luna sniffled. "If I ever wish to be a princess again, I cannot afford to give in to temptation."

Celestia gave her a comforting smile. "You are still young. And you have been gone a thousand years. You must allow yourself time to learn."

Luna looked off towards the sleepy town of Ponyville. Even from a distance, it was a beauty on the landscape.

"Celestia, ever since I was freed from Nightmare Moon, I had been repressing memories. Memories that returned, thanks to her...possession of me."

Celestia looked at her, puzzled. "What kind of memories?"

Luna took a deep breath. "I remember our battle. Do you recall it sister?"

Celestia shrugged. "We have fought together in many battles..."

"Please. You know which battle I speak of. The day you discovered my plan."

Celestia exhaled loudly. "Yes. I remember it."

"I just continued hitting you sister. And you never fought back. Why?"

Celestia paused, thinking over her words. "I suppose I should have. The fate of my nation relied on my continued existence. And my subjects always must come first. So I suppose I made a mistake not fighting back. I just couldn't bear to hurt my baby sister, no matter how evil she had become."

Luna nodded. "And then I remembered slaughtering my own guards. Mercilessly. Those ponies had families..." Her voice cracked, and she trailed off.

Celestia nuzzled her sister gently. "That wasn't you Luna. It was her."

Luna turned to her. "That's just it sister. I've gone about this for the past two months, feeling as though I was victimized by some kind of foul spirit, that invaded my body. But that isn't true. That thing was me Celestia. Those were my thoughts, my commands, and that was my heartlessness that killed those eighteen brave soldiers."

Celestia tried to say something encouraging, but she found nothing.

Luna looked down at the snowy ground. "If it helps, even after I abandoned you, I missed you dearly. I never wanted to leave you that night."

Celestia nodded, smiling.

"And...I do trust you. I swear I do."

Celestia felt a tear roll down her cheek. "Well...then I suppose I can trust you too."

"And I am willing to return to Equestria and face any punishment thou has in store for me."

Celestia shook her head. "That won't be necessary. I'll find some way to call off the Equestrian Justice Department."

Luna shook her head. "No Celestia. It would be unfair of you to show me any mercy from the law. I am not royalty anymore."

"Look at me Luna." Celestia commanded. Luna turned to face her.

"I am your princess. It is I who determines punishment for crimes of your gravity. And I can see now that you have already been punished far beyond what you deserve. If a thousand years exile wasn't enough, all you've done since returning is punish yourself. I want you to stop punishing yourself from now on. Your subjects need a leader that isn't tripping over her own guilt."

Luna sighed. "Okay." It was nearly a whisper.

There was another silence. Then Luna spoke up again.

"She was right. Especially now, that I am more powerful, my subjects will continue to fear me."

"Then we can show them that your power is nothing to fear. I can counsel you on how to control it, to harness it, to use it only on the enemies that threaten this nation." She paused to take a breath. "If...you wish for me to that is."

Luna nodded. "I do."

Celestia smirked. She pulled the alicorn in and hugged her tightly. "I'm so proud of you Luna. You did it. You defeated that army. You struck down Nightmare Moon. You are a hero."

Luna shook her head sadly. "No. Nopony can ever find out about this. If they knew that Nightmare Moon had returned, it would bring about more good than bad. They must never find out about my acts on this day."

Celestia sighed. Luna was right. This would cause panic in Equestria, if anypony even suspected Nightmare Moon had resurfaced. It would confirm everypony's fears regarding Luna.

"Very well. But what of the guards..."

They turned towards the battlefield. Celestia gasped as she recognized a body.

"Porthos!"

She ran forward. She cradled the lifeless body of her captain of the guard in her hooves. Luna watched silently from a distance. She closed her eyes, silently adding another casualty to her overloaded conscience.

"He gave his life for me." She said. "I recommend he receive full honors. And a burial for all of these slain ponies. They deserved better than this."

Celestia nodded. She turned to Luna.

"Let us go home."