//------------------------------//
// From a Golden Moon 
// Story: Shatterpoint: Equestria 
// by Commando-Scarecrow 
//------------------------------//

Up in the sky, there was a blue flash, and then everything went black.

That was all that the Defender of the Night, Princess Luna, saw before she awoke in a forest. There were tree's all around her, but that was a given, and apparently she had been out cold for hours, for it was sunset. She hadn't the slightest idea of what brought her here, either. Indeed, all she could recollect was soaring through the night sky past an almost golden full moon as she always had at that hour. "Where in Equestria am I?" That seemed like an excellent place to start.
As the indigo alicorn picked herself off the dirt, her mind continued to ponder what brought her here. Regardless of what caused it, she thought. I must make it back home. But as soon as she tried to take flight, she felt a sharp pain shoot through her right wing. "Gaah!" From the feel of it, it must have been broken in several places. "Splendid," she uttered sarcastically. She sighed. "I suppose now would be as a time as any to find out what riding a train is like." And so the deep blue mare made her way through the forest, still not totally sure where she was.

"Fillies and colts!" A boastful voice called out to a half full audience. It was their first show in the beleaguered town of Ponyville. Right on the frontlines, too. But that's why they were there. The best magical duo in all of Equestia. "Prepare yourselves..." This colt was enjoying his job way more than he should have. "For the amazing, the stupendous, the out of this world show stopping skills of the Miraculous Trixie and Twilight!" Two clouds of smoke appeared on stage, one an off shade of blue and the other a dull purple. "From the humblest of origins, they came here to entertain you! The exhausted citizens of Ponyville!" Amazing  fireworks, guided by  purple aura, ebbed and flowed like water. "Why don't you give them a round of applause?!" The viewing audience obliged him, seeing the incredible show-mare ship of the two unicorns.
"We've got 'em in the palm of our hooves, Partner!" Trixie whispered to her friend as they manipulated the pyro techniques like they were nothing more than a foal’s play-thing. "This might be our best show yet!"
"Easy, Trixie..." Twilight had found Trixie about a year and a half ago, maybe eight months before the war started. Twilight never really was any good at general magic. Her failure to get enrolled in the Canterlot Academy for Gifted Unicorns proved that. But one thing she did have a knack for was research and showing off, so when she left home four years ago, at the age of 15, it was only natural that she become a traveling magician. And teaming up with Trixie? That was maybe the best career choice she ever made. "We're not done yet."
Finally, they ended that portion of the show with a fantastic dragon made purely of purple and blue flames that nearly engulfed the audience. They were met with a resounding cheer from everypony there. In fact, the dynamic duo didn't know any better, they'd say that most of the seats were filled now.
"See, Twi?" Trixie said with pride as their adoring public threw flowers at them. "In the palm of our hooves. Just like the Flim-Flam brothers."
"You and I remember that night with the Flim-Flam brothers VERY differently, Trixie." That night was not fun, by any means, for Twilight Sparkle. "But you are right. We did great." She continued to wave at all the ponies cheering them on. Over the course of the show, they did some classic tricks, like pulling an evil rabbit from a hat. Trixie decided to name it 'Angel', but Twilight was NOT amused. After that, they did some escape artist tricks until; finally, they ended the show with something classy: A box of swords.
"Keep your eyes on me, My Faithful ponies!" Trixie shouted with an excited grin. Joining up with Twilight was the best career choice she'd ever made. "For this next trick is not for the faint of heart!" Four swords surrounded by a blue aura appeared on stage. "What I intend to do is should NEVER be tried at home! And you should all leave these kind of daring theatrics to the Great and Powerful Trixie!" She moved the sabers above the heads of the audience, watching them stare at them in awe. "For you see... these aren't your average everyday swords you see the brave colts in the guard use, oh no... Because these swords... ARE ON FIRE!" They suddenly burst in a magnificent rainbow flame. Twilight Sparkle was rapidly reconsidering what she said about teaming up with Trixie being a good career choice.
Twilight's eyes nearly bugged out of her head. "When did I agree to this?!" She whispered it, but it sounded loud enough to get the point across.
"You didn't." Trixie whispered back to her friend with the smirk of a smug snake on her face. "Now watch, my friends! As I skewer my best friend and patner with a fiery blades... OF DOOM!" Twilight sighed, relaxing her racing heart. Trixie enjoyed this job way too much. As each blade slowly entered the box that Twilight Sparkle lay in, she could feel the heat of the magical fires.
"If this goes south", Twilight Sparkle mumbled as her partner kept at her tricks. "I swear to Celestia I am haunting her flank."
"All the blades are in place, my beloved public!" Trixie shouted with much hubris. They were all on the edge of their seats. "Now watch, as my dear friend is... OH MY CELESTIA!" The box burst into a rainbow flame, causing the viewers to cover their eyes. There were several gasps and even a faint coming from within the audience. "She's fine!" Twilight moved all the rainbow flaming swords out of the chest and was let out. "And that is our show, Mares and Gentle-colts!" They both bowed to their beloved fans, basking in the sunshine of their glorious performance.
"Come again when we're in town next!" Then she etched closer to whisper something to Trixie. "Don't ever do that again."
"Sure..." she said with an ear to ear Cheshire smile. Twilight had known her long enough to know that hat meant she fully intended to try that again. She only sighed. Well, she thought. That's the hand you're given when you become one half of a traveling magician duo.

Luna walked briskly through what she now realized was Ever-free forest. She hated that place even before she was banished a thousand years ago, and a few centuries only made it worse. Even still, she had an idea of where she was, which meant she was close to the home of Twilight Sparkle, meaning she could get a letter out to her sister, Princess Celestia. That's when something rather odd struck her. She looked up to see that, for thirty minutes, the sunset hadn't ended. Strange. But that would only serve as a reminder of why she was needed back home in Canterlot.
"Hmm. Perhaps since I'll be in town," she began to muse. "I should go and visit Pipsqueak." Even in a town full of her closest friends, Pipsqueak was always the highlight of her visits to Ponyville. He always made Princess Luna feel every bit as important as her sister. That's when she saw something stranger still.
A mysterious hooded figure in the twilight of the day, lurking about. Perhaps she could shed some light on the situation. It wasn't until later when the indigo princess found out that the figure would leave her with more questions than answers.
The night princess slowly stalked her target, being sure not to alert the mysterious figure to her presence. It seemed as though she was gathering herbs for something. Perhaps a medicine-mare? Regardless, she might be able to help her out.
Finally, after stalking her prey for what seemed like an hour, she found her entering her home. It was a small wooden hut. It was perfect for a pony that preferred to keep to themselves. “If you intend to give me a scare, I’ll tell you right now, I see you there and you have the stealth of a cow!”
Princess Luna, guardian of the night, was stunned. She was one of the most adept masters of stealth in all of Equestria. For this mare to be able to detect her… she must truly be more than what Luna had thought initially. She moved from behind the tree she was taking refuge behind. “I am sorry, I was merely trying too-“
She removed her hood as she cut off the alicorn. Did she not now whom she addressed? “Do not fret child, but be careful, for the world has gone wild.” She opened the door to her hut; releasing some warmth from what Princess Luna could only assume was a warm fire. “Well? Are you coming in or not?”
Perplexed by this zebra’s attitude towards a princess of equestrian, Luna humbly accepted the old mares offer. As she walked through the old wooden door, she couldn’t help but admire the old-fashioned style of decor that the zebra surrounded herself with. “Might I ask why you live in the Ever-free?”
That drew some quiet response from the blue mare’s gracious host. “Ponies stay away from what they fear, which is why I am here.” Luna couldn’t help but wonder, was the rhyming really necessary. “But I should ask you the same thing. What were you doing, hiding among trees?”
It was a fair question, Luna thought, so she gave her an honest answer. “I am Princess Luna of Canterlot, and I believe I crashed into this forest sometime last night.”
“That is where you must be wrong, child. For the night has not come in so long.” What did she mean by that? “What’s more is that your guise is poor. It is said Princess Luna returned and fell trying to defend Equestria from a dire hell!”
Luna’s mind raced in circles, confused at what the black and white striped mare meant by that. “I’m sorry? You must be mistaken, for ‘I’ am the only Princess Luna.”
The zebra walked over to the alicorn, choosing to take a good long look at her eyes, no doubt wanting to know the truth. “You have wings and a horn, but even so… where you came from, you must go.”
This was getting stranger and stranger by the minute. First she crashes to the earth to find a sunset that was particularly long, then she finds out there hasn’t been night in a long time, and now she finds out that she was dead. “What is your name?”
As the striped mare tended to a pot that was either medicine or food, she answered. “I am called Zecura.”
“Why does the moon not rise?” It seemed like an excellent question to start with.
Zecura only tended to her cauldron as a vaporous illusion appeared from the steaming hot liquid. “A year and a half ago, trouble began to brew. For Night Mare Moon came, and placed all to shame,” a vision of Luna’s former evil alter ego showed from the steam. “She came and destroyed like we were nothing but toys. It is said that Princess Luna arrived and saved Celestia, who would have died.” This was confusing. Luna and Night Mare Night was the same princess, despite the corruption the latter was formed from. To kill Luna would be to kill Night Mare Night. “Ever since, the sun and moon had rested in the same sky, in eternal twilight, while war wages and many die.” She sounded very remorseful as she said that.
"What of Twilight Sparkle and the others?"
"Ha! You must be a fool! Twilight and Trixie are the only ones who..." Luna took some small satisfaction in knowing that Zecura couldn't think of something to rhyme that with. Still, the news about Twilight was unsettling. "Trixie and Twilight only perform. They could do no one any harm."
"Then I must find my sister," Luna trusted her sister, Celestia, with her life. If anypony could make true sense of this, it was her. "Farwell, Zecura!" She spread her wings, but to her surprise, a familiar pain shot through her right wing. "Gah!"
"Not with that broken wing you, won't!" She was being stopped by a medicine mare who spoke in rhymes. Perfect. "You have to many broken bones."
"Well what would you suggest I do? Sit here and wait for someponies help?" The heat of the moment had gotten to the usually poised and calm princess, but she could hardly help it.
"If your word is true, then you are right in what you seek," the medicine mare said as she reached for some salve and bandages. "Perhaps it is best if to princess you speak." She began rubbing the mix onto the princess’s wing, and soon the pain began to subside, leaving only a dull ache. The bandages came next, but instead of just covering one wing, she covered up both, hiding them completely. "But be forewarned, your majesty. For you to be caught would end in travesty."
Luna considered what she said. It was an excellent point and, if she really was supposed to be dead then a disguise would help immensely. "Might this help?" She reverted back to a smaller form, roughly the size of the average blue-violet unicorn. Her voice changed as well, becoming younger and more youthful. Zecura was shocked to say the least.
"That'll do." She gave the bluish mare a smile of satisfaction. She gathered some dried breads and fruits for the princess and handed her the bag. "Head north by a lot, my dear, and you will find Canterlot."
"I understand, and thank you," she didn't have to help her, especially after being stalked by the princess. But she was selfless in her aid. She'll have to remember that.
"Do not ruffle your mane," she won't miss the rhyming, though. "For destiny swirls about you like a hurricane."
She only nodded and left. She knew how to get from Canterlot from here, but she needed to make a side trip first. There was only one pony in any world or any timeline she trusted more than her sister, and that was Twilight Sparkle. If she needed help, then Twilight Sparkle would be the best one to give it.