Lunar Eclipse: The Rock Opera

by CrowMagnon

Part 11 - Luna's Return

"Nngh... my ears..."

Luna smiled nervously, her ears flattening as she lowered her head in contrition. "I apologize, sister, but you seemed in a dire state. I had to wake you somehow."

Celestia shook her head, the images of battles from the distant past fading from her mind like a bad dream. "No, no, I believe you Luna. I don't even know what came over me. One moment I was simply watching our little ponies' play, and the next it was as if I were..." Glancing down at the shredded scraps of rubber at her hooves, she elected to change topics. "Why did you even have a balloon in the first place?"

Luna smiled as she magically pulled several uninflated balloons from under her regalia. "A gift from Fluttershy 'pon our last meeting! If I ever have cause to think that I might be once more trapped in the realm of dreams, I only need to blow into one until it bursts. If I do not jolt awake from the noise, then it means that I am still in the waking world."

"Well, it certainly worked. That was good thinking," Shining Armor interjected, having largely recovered his sense of lucidity. He grinned warmly toward Luna, whose cheeks flushed a deep purple from the praise before hiding them behind one of her wings.

On the other side of the eldest alicorn, Princess Cadenza fretted, "I'm just concerned about you, auntie. I know you've seen plays about this story before, but this is the first time you've done so since the attack on Canterlot. Maybe that opened up old scars? We should probably leave."

Princess Celestia shook her head. "No... no, that wouldn't do. How would our dear Captain's sister react if she found out I left early?"

Somehow, Shining Armor's white coat somehow managed to turn a shade paler. "The words 'doom spiral' spring to mind," he replied, eliciting a sad little smile from Celestia.

"And we can't have that. Don't worry, Cadance. I'll be sure to get a check-up tomorrow, but for now we'll just enjoy the rest of the play. But, Shining Armor?"

"Yes, Princess?"

Celestia narrowed her eyes and ordered, "I just want to be sure about something. Send your fastest messengers to the Gates of Tartaros. There are creatures there who would fight in the battlefield of the mind, and I want to be absolutely certain that they are all right where they belong."

Shining Armor's eyes widened with startlement at the mention of Tartaros, where the most vicious fiends and criminals alive were imprisoned. When he realized that she was serious, he nodded and turned to one of the pegasi assigned to the small guard detail he had brought with him. "Sentry, you can get there and back faster than it would take to relay to a messenger in Canterlot. You know the route?"

Flash Sentry snapped a salute. "Yes, sir. Back in a 'flash', Captain!"

Once he was gone, Shining Armor brought a hoof to his forehead. "I still can't believe Twiley dated that guy," he muttered to the quiet amusement of the other ponies present. He then noticed Princess Celestia rising to her hooves. "Princess?"

"Come with me, Captain Armor. The rest of you can stay here. We just need a minute to take care of one little thing."

Meanwhile, Iron Will cradled Twilight Sparkle in his arms and carried her off the stage. Once the scene was over and the ranger no longer had anything to do, she had turned into a jelly-kneed pile of nerves. "I'm sorry... this is so embarassing," she muttered.

"Eh, don't worry about it. You aren't the first pony I've had to carry off the stage after a big show." The mintaur laughed and shifted his grip to ruffle Twilight's mane. "You saved your breakdown for after the curtains closed, so trust me, you did everything right."

Twilight laughed a little at that and lightly hoof-punched Iron Will in the shoulder. "Well... there is that, I suppose. I just..."

From not too far away, Twilight heard Princess Celestia say, "Rise, my little ponies." This elicited a startled squeak from the unicorn, who immediately teleported out of Iron Will's grip. She misjudged her distance from the floor, however, and didn't have time to right herself before landing on her back. She winced and looked up, finding herself staring straight into the violet eyes of the princess herself. "Hello, Lieutenant. Allow me to help you up," she said with an amused smile.

Twilight let out a small, nervous laugh as Celestia lifted her up in the golden aura of her magic, righting her and setting her back down near Dewdrop and Spot Light. "What... what brings you back here, Princess...?" She hung her head low and closed her eyes. "If... if my performance distressed you in any way..."

"No, Twilight, quite the opposite. I am here to thank you," Celestia assured her, reaching out with a hoof to raise the unicorn's head. Celestia looked at her whitened coat and shining blonde mane fondly. "You know, I have seen many Sungleams over the years, but so few truly bring her spirit to life as you did tonight."

Twilight looked upon Celestia's beaming, motherly face and felt her eyes watering as though she were looking into the sun itself. "I just... Waking Night... I never wanted to hurt you..." she whispered.

"I know, Twilight. But trust me when I say that the role you played was one of my favorite parts of the entire production." Bringing her hoof to her chest, Celestia looked down and smiled. "The scars I bear will always be a reminder of those times, but I have never once regretted them. Do you know why?"

When Twilight slowly shook her head, Celestia answered. "Because they always remind me of a pony who was the very embodiment of loyalty. A pony who loved Equestria... and its princess... to the very end, and beyond. It is because these scars exist that our realm was never ruled by Eclipse. My sister and dearest friends have returned to me. Equestria is already beginning to experience changes which could usher in a true golden age of harmony and prosperity. Because of these scars, I may yet live to see that come to pass. So thank you, Twilight. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you."

Celestia tilted her head downward in gratitude, causing Twilight's mouth to hang open. "I... no, but... I..."

Stepping out from behind the princess, Shining Armor teased, "A compliment received from a princess of Equestria is best returned with gratitude, remember? Or maybe it's the other way around in this case."

Startled out of her stammering, Twilight's face flushed as she gave Celestia a formal bow, as she had many times under her brother's command. "It was an honor, your highness. I-I'm happy you enjoyed it."

Celestia smiled warmly, then looked around. "Well then, I'm quite looking forward to seeing the finale. Take care, my little ponies." In a flash of magic, both she and Shining Armor vanished from sight.

Celestia re-materialized in her seat with Shining Armor at her side shortly after the curtains had already re-opened. Down below, a single spotlight shone directly down on 'Luna' as she lay in repose on a bed of silken sheets. Resting on her chest was a replica of her music box from before. Its tinkling melody slowly played while Celestia's on-stage counterpart, along with 'Nyx', sat at her bedside.

The stage Celestia trembled, clearly struggling to keep herself from sobbing.

"This was to be our happy ending," Celestia said, her voice pained and halting. "You... you were to open your eyes... and you would see me. And Captain Sungleam, and Nyx here, who fought so bravely in your name... You were to see us and smile. I was never supposed to lay another sister to rest. Especially not on the same day that we lost such a treasured friend as Sungleam was..."

Turning toward Nyx, Celestia snapped, "And thou! Thou strode up to me, speaking as though thou were meant to be some sort of chosen hero! Thou gave us hope, and Sungleam died for it! What doest thou have to say? What further venom doest coat thy poisonous tongue!"

Nyx didn't even look at Celestia. Instead, she stared at Luna's sleeping form while the music box's tune wound down, to be replaced by the strum of a guitar. It was a brief refrain of the song she had sung back in the earth pony village, but quieter. Sadder.

"I won't give up, princess," Nyx vowed. "Eclipse is gone, but things still aren't back to the way they should be. Without you, there are going to be things that think they can prey on ponies in the night. I won't let them. I won't give up on believing that you'll wake up and take the night back. Until that time comes, I'll keep it safe for your little ponies."

With that, Nyx slowly turned and walked away into the darkness while the guitar faded into a dark, heavy tone of Vinyl's synthesizers. Celestia let out a pained moan before shouting, "Aye, leave! LEAVE! Thou hast brought naught but misery upon us! If ever we lay eyes upon thee again..."

Rather than form the implied threat into words, Celestia slowly turned toward Luna and took a deep breath.

Sister dear... I would not bring you pain
But there is something I must say.
For your foregiveness, I... I cannot start to ask.
I do not even dare to pray.
Sungleam died, so sure she'd save us,
Gave her life so there would be another day,
But, foolish mare, that life was spent in vain...
Her life was spent in vain.

Celestia brought a hoof to her chest and winced in pain, the wounds still fresh.

Though my heart still beats, the spark is dim.
I can feel it fade in time.
I know one day that it will die,
And the light will die with me.
I feel as though our foe Eclipse still has a hold on me,
That even now it laughs at us,
And there is naught that I can do.

And while Celestia lamented her loss and failure, another shape once more stepped out of the darkness. Its tendrils writhing around it, Eclipse crept out of the shadows behind Celestia. A scream from the front row startled her, and it was soon echoed by other fretful voices from the audience as she turned around to see the monster returned.

Instead of cringing in fear or lashing out against Eclipse, however, Celestia started to step toward it.

And even now, the shadows fall upon my heart,
And all our victories mean nothing.
Eclipse had won right from the start.
Let us put an end to the fighting.
At least we won't be apart.

Take me...
Take me...
Just let it end.

There was very little distance between Celestia and Eclipse to begin with, but what little there was slowly diminished as Celestia took slow, resolute steps toward the shadow. Eclipse also reached out to her, its tendrils stretching toward the Princess of the Sun before a second, pale beam of light shot down from above to surround Eclipse, accompanied by the quiet, wistful intrusion of a piano.

Eclipse recoiled back, hissing as though it had been struck. It made feral, furtive motions toward Celestia, but was unable to move beyond the pillar of moonlight that now surrounded it. Soon, the piano was joined by another voice which caused Celestia to simply stop in her tracks and slowly turn her head toward the bed where her sister lay.

Though Luna continued to sleep, not moving even to breathe, it was her voice that pierced through the gloom.

Luna:
Sister, please, do not give in.
This is not all that you have left.
Remember our dear friends and the dreams we shared.
We are not dead and gone.
We shall return one day,
And when we wake up, you'll be there
To say, "Welcome home," I pray.
Eclipse has no claim on us that we do not allow.
My soul remains my own.
When Harmony returns, you'll see
The bright rainbow through the dark.
You can not give up hope.
You can not give up hope!

All around the stage, similar pillars of light began to appear, ever so slowly, revealing that Celestia was not alone. Dim as they were, it seemed as though the princess were surrounded on all sides by shadowy silhouettes. Instead of supporting Eclipse, however, they sang out with Luna.

(Chorus:) Luna:
(You can not)
You can not

As the lights brightened around each of the silhouettes, they could be more clearly seen. Instead of shadows, they were ponies. Nyx. The earth pony mayor. The trio of fillies that Nyx had saved, though thankfully few noticed the tail end of Scootaloo's cape sticking out from the back of her peasant clothes, or how hastily she had been put back into costume.

(You can not)
You can not

From out of the darkness, another light shone through the pitch black. This light was formed around the horn of a unicorn, however, as Celestia saw Sungleam illuminate herself and join her voice among those urging the princess on. Eclipse hissed again, slithering away to escape as Celestia began to walk toward her knight.

(You can not)
You can not

In an instant, the lights suddenly went black, once more plunging the set into darkness. It was only a second or two before they began to illuminate the stage once more, though, to reveal that all of the ponies were gone. The only one remaining lay in the bed, but instead of Luna, it was Celestia who was sleeping there. She began to rouse as the choir pleaded one last time.

(You can not)

As Celestia began to sit up, the echoes of Luna's voice called out "You can not" one last time, though it faded and distorted as she woke and sat up.

Celestia looked from side to side, finding herself alone before she looked straight ahead to the audience. Her voice simmering with purpose and intensity, she said:

No... to see my sister,
I can not give up hope.
I will not fail again.

With that, Celestia threw the sheets from her body, the music growing in intensity as she reared up defiantly on her hind legs, colorful lights flashing all around her while the curtains closed.

When the music faded, Pinkamena stepped up in front of the curtains once again.

"True to her word, Princess Celestia held on to hope. Though her sister's absence left a void that could not entirely be filled, she continued toward a brighter future for Equestria and its allies. A better world for her sister to awaken into.

"In making that brighter world, the shadow slowly faded from her heart. Even as the centuries following her desperate gambit took their toll, the hope that Luna would one day regain her freedom only grew.

"This spirit of hope was also carried on by Nyx, who devoted her life to guarding the ponies of Equestria against the dangers which lurked in the darkest corners of the night. In doing so, others gathered around her cause. Working together in the name of the Princess of the Night, Luna's Rangers have protected the innocent ponies of Equestria ever since.

"Today, we can say that the work and sacrifice of every pony that has held onto that hope has been rewarded. On Waking Night, on the thousandth year since its banishment, Eclipse returned, only to be defeated for good. On that night, for the first time in a millennium, Princess Luna opened her eyes.

"It is in honor of the royal sisters of Equestria that we dedicate this play. I would like to thank them for attending..." A wave of applause rippled through the theater as everypony turned to look up at the princesses in their balcony seat. "... I would also like to thank the Manehattan Playhouse for hosting this event, and of course my friends who joined me in making it a reality."

Ponies began stomping anew once the actors began to file out from behind the curtains. Whistles and cheers filled the theater for each of them, even when Scootaloo ripped off her costume in the middle of the big bow they gave the audience in order to let her little wings flap free.

They also applauded loudly when Vinyl, Octavia and Fiddlesticks were brought out and introduced as the musicians for the play. Octavia attempted to retain a dignified, graceful air, only to get yanked into a group hug with her near-identical cousin, courtesy of Vinyl Scratch, who was wearing a grin that could have lit up the Las Pegasus strip.

The biggest cheer of the night, however, came at the end. Few noticed the director/narrator once she shuffled off to the side to make way for the actors, as she did so very quietly, making no attempt to draw attention to herself. That changed when Fluttershy and Nocturne took her by surprise, flapping over to either side of her and lifting her up off the ground. Her typically stoic demeanour made her startled expression all the more priceless as they flew her over Iron Will, who pointed up at the pink poet and shouted, "Let's give it up for the mare who put this all together, PINKAMENA DIANE PIE!"

If Pinkamena was startled by her sudden airlift, then the sheer wave of stomping hooves and cheering whistles completely took her off guard.

At no point did a smile touch her lips, but her friends could see the twinkle in her big blue eyes, and the blush on her cheeks as she gratefully bowed her head to the audience.