Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Luna Lovegood were gathered around a low table in a seldom-used sunroom of Canterlot’s West Wing. The room was constructed in a pleasing Baroque style, its tall, ornate windows designed for a bygone era. The sun still hung high in the sky, having just begun its downward course. Despite the pleasant surroundings, this was not a casual soirée. This was a war council. Around the table, there were looks of fear, looks of disappointment, looks of confusion. Finally, Twilight broke the heavy silence.
“So… why didn’t it work?”
Princess Celestia sighed. “It is as Discord said. The portal can only be opened by the two most powerful sorcerers in a universe, and he is not one of them”.
“So we just have to find the second, right? I mean, you’re obviously first, Celestia” Pinkie Pie said in an oddly upbeat tone.
Twilight glared at her friend for not displaying proper respect for royalty, but the princess merely smiled.
“It would seem so, Pinkie” she said jovially, and then suddenly resumed her grim tone. “However, we have absolutely no information on this mysterious enchanter. Who knows how long it would take to find him or her? It could be months, it could be years, we may never find this sorcerer. And what will happen to Luna then?” she said, referring to both her sister and the young Ravenclaw seated to her right.
“So… what do we do?” Rainbow Dash inquired.
Celestia sighed again. “There is no other choice. We must search”.
Luna looked down. The interesting novelty of this fantasy had worn away, revealing only a strange and unfamiliar land. She hadn’t seen her friends, teachers, her father… anyone in what, Weeks? Months? She had lost track. She hated being alone, she hated being a stranger, she hated being a liability. Suddenly, studying her wand in her lap, a wild idea came to her, one that she couldn’t contain.
“What if… what if it’s me?” she said suddenly, catching the attention of the others.
“No offense, Luna, but you are only a student. There are many, many powerful magic users in this universe, many that are more skilled than you. I appreciate your willingness, though.”
Luna looked down again, disheartened. She felt useless, just stranded in this world, with no way out. She still had her wand in her hand. She began to wonder. She hadn’t done any magic since she’d freed Discord. Could she even do it anymore? She searched her mind for a spell, but nothing showed up. As the ponies continued their dialogue, tears slowly began to run down her face. One by one, her tablemates noticed her distress, and tried to comfort her. Applejack abruptly glared at Celestia, as if it was somehow her fault. Not wanting to damage the fragile girl any more, she sighed.
“It is worth a shot”.
Minutes later, Luna and Celestia stood side-by-side in the sunroom, facing the north wall from a distance. The sky had begun to paint itself pink with the coming twilight. Turning to each other, they nodded, faces showing resolute determination. Luna lifted her wand, and Celestia aimed her long, pearl-coloured horn. With lyrical precision, they recited in unison the mystic quatrain that provided an incantation, in High Old Equestrian. The archaic language resonated with fricatives, sharp and rough like oxidized iron. Celestia’s tone was clear and practiced, while Luna’s accent stuttered and hesitated, like any beginner to a foreign language. The instant the verse concluded, a brilliant beam of golden energy shone from both wand and horn, met in midair, spun about itself, and concluded in a point high in the air. As light and energy rapidly shone into this point, it expanded, eventually creating a large oval in the air. Pure, white light shone through the dimensional egress.
The clockwork mechanism of existence groaned as two gears clashed, two parallel existences coming together for a mere moment, pushed into each other by the sheer might of four powerful beings. The gears came together and flew apart just as quickly, propelled by entropy, until they once again came to rest in their usual position.
As the sun was setting over Canterlot, Celestia and Luna Lovegood were struggling to maintain their spell, both quivering under the force of the energy flowing through them, jamming the infallible workings of the space-time continuum. And then, it happened.
Instantaneously, something emerged from the portal. Barely visible, a flash of blue shot from the portal, directly striking Celestia in the face, breaking her concentration, and thus the spell.
As Princess Celestia opened her eyes, a set of cobalt blue ones looked back at her.
“Hey” Princess Luna said.