//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 (rewritten) // Story: Cry for Eternity // by asylum1388 //------------------------------// Last rewritten chapter for the moment. Will be releasing brand new chapters soon. Pre-readers: PiquoPie, and f0xhole. The sky on the morning of the funeral was crystal clear; warm and pleasant, with a refreshing breeze blowing in from the north. It was the kind of day where every single pony in Equestria would normally be outside enjoying the sun. Instead, thousands of ponies had packed into the fields around Canterlot, for the city was just too small to fit all who wanted to attend. From her seat in the front row, Twilight glared up at the cloudless sea of azure. It seemed like an affront to all things holy to have such perfect weather on such a sad day, but it had been what Celestia had wanted according to her Last Will and Testament. Twilight knew that there probably wasn't a single pony in attendance who felt differently than she; in fact, the Weather Team had almost rioted when they were told that it wasn't going to be overcast and somber. However, Celestia’s sister, Princess Luna, was having none of it; she was seeing her sister's last wishes carried out to the letter, regardless of the consequences. She sat in a melancholy haze as pony after pony stood up on a massive stage in front of the crowd and spoke about Celestia. Diplomats, politicians, and scholars — many of whom Twilight knew by reputation, and by reputation alone — regaled the crowd with tales of how Celestia had affected their lives. They spoke about her fairness, her generosity, and her wisdom, but most of all, they spoke of the way she cared for every pony in Equestria. Twilight simply ignored them, lost in her thoughts. Ponies rose to speak and returned to their seats time and again until the shadow of the mountain began to encroach upon the altar. Finally, Luna herself stood up to speak. She moved with an air of serenity, but the unmistakable glimmer of tears showed in her eyes as she glanced over the crowd. “Greetings everypony. Under any other circumstances, I would be most pleased to speak before you; but alas, these are not happy times,” she proclaimed, her voice magically amplified. “We have listened as Equestria’s greatest minds spoke of my late sister, but there is one pony from whom we have yet to hear; one pony who I feel deserves to speak more than any other.” Slowly and deliberately, Luna gazed down at Twilight. “Twilight Sparkle, would you like to speak?” Twilight stood up and floated to the podium, as if in a trance. She looked out over the crowd, thousands of pairs of eyes locked firmly on her. “Hello, everypony. I-I... I can’t... I can’t!” Several pairs of hooves took hold of her and gently guided her back to her seat. Luna stood back up and called out, “I-I suppose that concludes the service... Please, everypony, make your way back to your homes in an orderly manner; those of you who came from afar are welcome to stay in Canterlot.” The crowd filed out, but Twilight stayed in her seat, sitting and staring out the ground until long after everypony else had gone. She stayed there for what seemed like hours, alone with her thoughts. She was alone. All of her life she had been under Celestia’s guidance, devoting her entire existence to whatever task her mentor set for her; and now the Princess was gone. Pondering what she was going to do with her life, she missed the soft sound of a pony’s steps. “Twilight?” a musical voice rang, breaking Twilight from her stupor. Wet-faced and puffy-eyed, the unicorn looked up to see Luna standing before her. “Twilight, I understand if you wish to be alone right now, but I must speak to you.” Twilight stared at her speechlessly, allowing her tears to continue to run. Luna frowned and continued, “If you would accompany me to the Castle, we have important business to discuss and I would prefer not to do so in public.” “Business?” Twilight croaked. “Y-you want to discuss business? Now?” Luna winced at Twilight’s tone, but refused to shy away. “I know that now may not be the optimal time, but I am afraid that this cannot wait. I must ask you to at least come with me and hear what I have to tell you. After that you may leave and continue mourning wherever and however long you like.” At that, Luna turned around and strode off. Twilight glared after her for a moment before sliding off her seat; while speaking to anypony at all was the last thing she wanted at the moment, there were just some ponies you didn't say no to. The Princess of the Night led Twilight wordlessly through the streets of Canterlot and just as silently through the castle's winding corridors, all the way to a secluded room with large crescent moons emblazoned on its massive oak double-doors. Twilight stood in the doorway, almost afraid to move, as her host trotted to one of the room's large plush chairs and plopped down in it behind an even larger mahogany desk. Everything about Luna, from her silence, to her expressions, to the very way she moved, screamed to Twilight that this wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. Still, when the Princess motioned for her to take a seat in one of the chairs on the nearer side of the desk, she obeyed. A tearful glimmer in her eyes, Luna stared intently at the unicorn; confused, Twilight sat uncomfortably in the silence and waited for the Princess to speak. "Twilight... you were the only pony to hear my sister's final words, correct?" Luna asked gravely. "...Yes." Luna leaned forward, looking almost... concerned? "Please, I need to know what she told you." The weight of everything that had happened came crashing down upon Twilight. "Oh no... Luna, I'm so sorry!" To say that Luna looked incredulous wouldn't have done her expression justice. "What?" "I was her student, but you were her sister!" After realizing what she had done,Twilight could barely think straight. "You should have been at her side, not me! I-" "Twilight..." "I- I can't believe I did that!" Twilight was crying again, afraid, heartbroken and most of all, angry with herself. "Twilight!" "I'm so selfish, what kind of-" "TWILIGHT, I BID THEE BE SILENT!" The unicorn stopped mid-sob as the full force of the Royal Canterlot Voice hit her. Luna took several deep, frustrated breaths before speaking again, once more in her soft musical tone. "She never told you, did she? What her original plan was? How finding you changed everything?" "Finding me? But she- but I..." "Oh, Tia... What have you done?" Luna whispered to her self with an audible sigh and massaged her temple with a hoof. She slid off of her current perch and moved around the desk. Sitting down on her haunches so that her eyes were level with Twilight's, she began her tale, "A thousand years ago, when Nig- when I lost control and gave in to the worst part of myself, my sister used the Elements of Harmony to trap me in the moon. This much you already know." Pausing for a second, she conjured a small cloth and offered it to Twilight, who took it gratefully and wiped away her tears. "However, what is never mentioned in the stories is that the Elements of Harmony were never meant to be used by a single pony, no matter how powerful. The raw, unbridled magic that even one of them is capable of releasing can overwhelm all but the most exceptional ponies. Using all six of them? It should have killed her. It nearly did kill her.” Luna hung her head, utterly ashamed. “Had she done such a thing again when I returned two years ago, it would have been the last thing she had ever done.." "But my friends and I-" Luna held up a hoof, cutting Twilight off and continued, "That was her original plan. She knew that should she engage me in personal combat, she would fall. Nightmare Moon would have emerged victorious and Equestria would have been shrouded in eternal darkness.” She paused, grinding her teeth for a moment before continuing, “She couldn’t allow that; plain and simple. For the better part of a millenium she spent her time training in secret; refining her skills so that when the time came, she would be able to break me free of my madness, rather than imprison me in the moon as she had done the first time around. Celestia had intended to give her life in order to save me from myself. Afterwards, I would have taken her place as sole Princess of Equestria." Tears forming in her own eyes, the Princess took the cloth back when Twilight offered. "The first time she met you, she immediately recognized what you were capable of. The power you possessed at such a young age dwarfed that of any unicorn in history. She knew that you were more than capable of wielding the Element of Magic, and that if you were worthy of such a thing, then there must also be ponies worthy of wielding the others.” Confused thoughts swarmed in Twilight's mind. “B-but she’s still gone... If I... If my friends and I saved her, then how did she die?” Luna grimaced, letting her eyes fall to the floor. "That too, is my fault." "YOU?!" Twilight screeched at the cowering princess. "You had something to do with this? Why? Celestia was your sister, I thought you loved each other!" Luna flinched, tearing up at the outburst, but didn't stop speaking, "I didn't have something to do with it, Twilight, I had everything to do with it. Like the Elements of Harmony, the Sun and Moon were never intended to be controlled by a single pony. Maintaining even one of them requires a tremendous amount of power. Maintaining them both, and for a thousand years, no less? It was a feat of unimaginable strength." Luna sniffed several times, attempting and failing to regain her composure. "Despite all the legends, all the rumors, Celestia and I are not immortal. Long lived, certainly, but never immortal. Celestia was supposed to live for another thousand years at least. But taking on both my task and her own? It just drained the life right out of her. And now she's gone... She’s gone and it’s entirely my fault." Twilight had just about lost track of her emotions. Anger, despair, sadness, nostalgia and confusion had all blended into one dizzying feeling, but Luna's display of self-loathing had brought one thing to the front of all of them: pity. "Luna... Luna I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that." Luna gave Twilight a sad smile and shook her head. “Do not apologize to me, Twilight. There is nothing you can say to me that I have not already said to myself.” “It was still wrong of me. No matter how angry I get, saying something like that is completely uncalled for,” Twilight mumbled sheepishly. She fell momentarily silent, trying to think o a way to casually change the subject. "I just don’t understand, she seemed fine just a week ago." "I know," Luna whined with a shudder, "she was always so strong. She put on a brave face, but she had been hurting for the past few decades. I can only imagine how much strength she really had." “So- so she knew?” Twilight asked, bewildered. “She knew all along that she was going to... that this was going to happen?” “She did,” Luna sighed. “She was doomed from the beginning. By confronting Nightmare Moon in her stead, you extended her life, but only by two years.” “I’m sorry, Luna. If I had known, I would have done something,” Twilight retorted defensively, “but she never told me! Neither of you did.” "You misunderstand me, Twilight; I am not condemning you for failing to save her, I am trying to thank you. You gave the two of us time! Instead of being separated by a cruel fate of my making, we had two whole years to be together. Two years to just be sisters again... Two years to tell her how sorry I was..." For the first time since the conversation started, Luna looked into Twilight's eyes with something resembling joy. "I owe you more than I can possibly express, so believe me when I say that there is no pony in history, myself included, that I would have rather been at her side in her final moments than you. Whatever she said to you during those few short minutes must've been what she considered to be the most important thing she's ever said." "She... she said she was proud of me..." Luna's face cracked into a smile. "I stand by my statement.” Nodding affirmatively, Luna stood up and moved intently back to the other side of the desk. "However, none of this is the reason I called you here." Surrounded in a midnight blue glow, a small envelope floated up from behind the desk as Luna sat down. "While Celestia was unable to change her own fate, she took steps to ensure that the same would not happen to me." The envelope opened and the stationary inside floated over to Twilight. She reached out with her own magic and took it gently. "Luna, what's this?" "Twilight, my sister wasn't training you just as her protégé, she was training you as her replacement." "WHAT?" Twilight screamed out, her head whipping up from the letter and locking eyes with Luna. She scanned the Princess' face, looking for the joke, but it never came. Instead, Luna just nodded toward the paper Twilight held before her. Shaking, Twilight turned her head down and began to read aloud. I, Celestia, co-Regent of Equestria and Princess of the Sun, do hereby bequeath my crown, my throne, and my titles to my apprentice, Miss Twilight Sparkle. Following my death, she is to be coronated as Princess of the Sun and granted all attached responsibilities and privileges. Whenceforth, she is to rule alongside my sister, Luna, Princess of the Moon and Stars, as the new co-Regent of Equestria. At the bottom of the letter were two signatures she recognized as Celestia's and her seneschal's. It was even notarized with a stamp of the Royal Crest. Twilight's blood ran cold, she felt as if she had forgotten how to breathe. "B-b-but... I... Who... How?" "There is a spell, Twilight," Luna said softly, little more than a whisper. "A spell that would transfer Celestia's essence to you. It can only be used upon the no-longer living body of a Princess and requires the other to be present. Tia and I created it long ago and memorized it for when the worst should happen. And now the worst has. The spell's target would receive the fallen Princess' abilities to control the Sun and Moon, her raw magical might-" Luna magically pulled Celestia's proclamation away so that Twilight was looking her directly in the eyes. "-and her longevity." "So I'd, I mean everypony I know would be..." Luna nodded gravely, "I'm glad you understand." She glanced around her office, trying to look anywhere but at the pony across from her. "Twilight, I know this is what my sister wanted, but when it comes down to it, it is my decision whether to proceed with the ritual and I cannot in good conscience force this upon you." She exhaled angrily and violently shook her regal head. "No, I won't force this upon you. It was my sins that caused me to lose my sister, I will gladly suffer the burden she bore." Twilight felt a chill run up her spine. "I'm grateful Luna, but if this is what Celestia wanted for me, then I want to go through with it." The tone of her voice betrayed her nervousness. "Are you trying to convince me, or yourself, Twilight?" "...Both, I guess," she mumbled. "...What's it like? Being Princess, I mean?" "It is no easy life. You will have to move back to Canterlot, of course, and attend virtually every formal gathering. Aside from that you'll be running an entire country, overseeing its finances, growth and prosperity, resolving countless disputes, and training generation after generation of Equestria's most gifted unicorns all while maintaining the movements of the cosmos. To say it is a tiresome and stressful job is a terrible understatement," the corners of Luna's mouth twitched upward slightly, "but Tia often said that she wouldn't trade it for anything." "I see..." Again, Luna stood up from behind her desk and walked over to Twilight. "Twilight, there are only three ponies alive who know of this missive and two of them are in this room. Give the word and I will ensure that it remains that way. By rights, my sister's crown is yours, but so is the choice as to whether you will wear it or not." Twilight didn’t respond; instead she stared silently at the floor as conflicting thoughts swarmed in her mind. Luna leaned closer. “Perhaps you would prefer to consult with your friends and family? A new perspective might help.” “Maybe...” Twilight sighed. “I think I’d like to take a week to think about it.” “We do not have a week, I am afraid. The necessary ritual is highly time-sensitive. If you choose to go through with it, the sooner, the better,” Luna stated apologetically. “Why’s that?” “As I said before, we will be transferring Celestia’s magic to you. Transferring that much magic to an individual is dangerous under the best of circumstances and our circumstances are dire indeed,” Luna explained softly. “You see, without Celestia’s spirit to focus the magic lingering in her body, it will begin to grow more chaotic and unwieldy as it attempts to dissipate. If we wait too long; if it is allowed to fester for a time before the spell is cast... it will kill you, Twilight,” she whispered with a grimace. Twilight snapped her head up, utterly terrified. “You- you’re not joking, are you?” She cringed and shook her head. “Oooh, this is awful... How-how long do we have?” she whined. “...Not long. I can already feel the magic unraveling,” Luna muttered sheepishly. “Even if we were to perform the ritual now, I could not guarantee your survival, and the odds will only get worse the longer we wait. By late tomorrow afternoon, any attempt will most certainly be fatal.” "I'll do it," Twilight said, voicing more courage than she felt. "You are sure?" "No, but I'm going to do it anyway." "But-" "Luna, I have to do this!" Twilight jumped out of her chair as she interrupted the Princess. "Listen, I know what it all means. I know that I'll have to leave my old life behind to enter a role that I really don't believe I'm ready for, but if I back down now I know I'll regret it for the rest of my life. Celestia did so much for me and if her last wish was for me to protect her little sister, then I'll gladly do it, even if it means changing everything." Defeated, Luna hung her head. "I... Thank you, Twilight." She glanced up and opened her mouth to say something, but only ended up squeaking back her words. She swallowed the lump in her throat and stood up. "Well, let us do this, before our doubts cloud our judgements." Without another word, she left, not even looking to see if Twilight was following. Twilight, for her part, immediately began to follow. While Princess Luna led her back through the way they came, she walked in a quiet introspection, trying to steel herself for what was to come. What was she doing? Was she just going to go through with this without asking her friends? What about her parents? What would they think of all this? A guilty lump had formed in her throat by the time Luna called out, "We're here," from somewhere up ahead. Twilight looked up from the ground for the first time since they started walking and gasped, "The Royal Gardens?" "This was Tia's favorite spot. She had always said that she wanted to be buried here and frankly, I would not have had it any other way," Luna said, a happy tear running down her cheek. Twilight approached the golden headstone, awestruck. "Its beautiful, Luna! Are those diamonds?" "Thank you, Twilight. I designed it myself after Tia told me how much time she had left. I figured that something simple, yet elegant would be the perfect way to remember her," Luna murmured through a sad smile. "I'm going to miss her, Twilight." "I will too, Luna. So, what do we have to do?" A painfully familiar set of jewelry floated in front of her face, held aloft in Luna's magic. "Put these on, calm your mind, and stand before her. Try to think of happier memories of the time you spent with her. I'll do the rest." Twilight obliged, finding that her mentor's regalia had somehow adjusted itself to fit her perfectly. She stepped gingerly toward the grave. “This is your last chance, Twilight,” Luna said pointedly. “If you wish to consider it further, there is still time, but once I start to cast the spell, there will be no going back.” “I can’t. I owe it to my family, owe it to my friends to not put myself in more danger than I have to,” Twilight snapped forcefully. “Very well,” Luna sighed. “If you wish to delay no longer, than I will abide by that.” A warm tingling feeling began to flow up Twilight’s legs, slowly at first, but picking up speed quickly. She resisted the urge to laugh as it began to tickle her chest and neck. She could almost feel Celestia's presence in her mind "I'm sorry, Twilight." Why was Luna apologizing? The sensation was actually rather pleasant. In fact, Twilight almost felt as if she was being embraced by Celestia one last time. Then, the pain started.