//------------------------------// // Chapter 28: The Elements of Sorrow // Story: Eternal Night // by Lucaro //------------------------------// Candle tugged at his wet mane, dragging the brush through his tangled hair. Cepheus grunted, trying to be patient while she groomed him. After all, this was just a form of foreplay. They were both sitting in their secluded pool of water, enjoying each other’s presence. She embraced him from behind, burying her muzzle in the back of his head. Cepheus held her hooves as she wrapped them around him, and looked over his shoulder at her. His wife was blushing. “You’re so pretty when you do that,” he whispered. Candle giggled, dropping the brush. Cepheus turned and kissed her, long and drawn out, tasting her tongue once again. “I love you,” he whispered, lowering her down into the water as he hung over her. She giggled again, wiping away a soaked forelock from her face. “Oh, Cepheus…” He was considering taking her right here and now, but Dusty would come bounding in here at any moment. It still would have been alright, but he would probably be followed by a dozen other foals. Dusty hadn’t been alone ever since they had arrived here. Cepheus kissed her passionately, and began to nibble her ear. He felt her hooves gently pushing against his barrel, and she held him at a distance. He was confused, but quickly became concerned when he saw the serious look in her eyes. “Cepheus,” she said bashfully. “I know you’ve been busy with Starlight, and I haven’t had a chance to get you alone like this.” Cepheus wanted nothing more than to make her worried expression disappear. He moved to kiss her again, but she stopped him again. “What’s wrong?” he asked. She had never turned down any of his advances unless something very serious was on her mind. “I…I…” she stammered. “I don’t want you spending too much time with Starlight.” “Why not?” Cepheus asked. “I know he’s the personification of a mirror, but…” “It’s not that,” she said. She rubbed her hooved together, trying to articulate her thoughts. “Have you seen the way he looks at Dusty?” Cepheus was puzzled. “What?” “It’s just not Dusty,” she said. “He looks at all the other foals the same way. Do you remember that day where Starlight told you about his Mirror Syndrome? He approached us while we were watching the foals play, and he had this weird look on his face.” Cepheus nodded, remembering. “I didn’t tell you this, but Starlight is having difficulty letting go of his past.” Cepheus sighed, not wanting his wife to think any less of his friend. “When he used to work for Nightmare Moon, he said that he had liked killing foals.” Candle was aghast, but she quickly became calm again. “That’s pretty bad, but that’s not the worst thing I have heard since I came here.” Candle shrugged. “I don’t know, but the thing is, he looks at you the same way.” “I've kind of noticed,” Cepheus said. “It’s as if he feels a compulsion to prove his goodness to me. I think he believes that if a noble pony like me is convinced that he isn’t bad, he’ll start believing it too.” Candle shook her head. “No, it’s more than that. You’ve been spending a lot of time with him, and then all of a sudden, his demeanor changed. He had that wistful look a few times, but now it’s something akin to dread that fills his features every time he sees you.” “Perhaps he fears my judgment….”Cepheus wondered out loud. “Weee!” Dusty shouted, galloping into the chamber. “Cannonball!” he shouted, leaping into water with a tremendous splash. He broke the surface of the water, squirting water at them. Cepheus laughed and began to splash around with Dusty. Candle had climbed out of the pool and was drying herself off with a towel. But Cepheus eventually had to leave his wife alone to clean up Dusty, and his stomach growled as he went in search of food for his family. As he trotted into the main common room, he saw Starlight and Andre talking to each other in a dark corner. They seemed to be having a very serious discussion. Cepheus ignored them and approached the counter where they kept the food. The mare overseeing the stock piled some hay on a tray. She pushed it at him, but Cepheus was distracted. Starlight and Andre were moving towards him. Cepheus looked back at the mare. “Can you have someone bring this to my room?” She nodded. “Cepheus,” Starlight whispered. “We need to talk.” He consented, and Andre led them to a private anteroom. Stepping in to the dim chamber, he spotted a large stone table with many chairs. In the small room, that’s all there was. Cepheus sat down and he noticed the 3-D map resting on the face of the table. The Worldspine, Canterlot, and it even included the floating city of Cloudsdale. Starlight sighed, folding his hooves. “The Scions of Celestion are mobilizing,” he said. “They’ve launched a propaganda campaign on a level I have never seen before.” Andre nodded. “Something big is going down. We need to be ready for it.” Starlight held his head. “We are hopelessly outnumbered. We can’t face the Night Guard or the Scions in a direct confrontation. But what we do have, is ponies on the inside. We know and have things the Scions don’t.” Starlight put his hoof on the table, looking at Cepheus. “I would also like to report that we have adjusted our plans,” he said, looking at Andre. “We will restore Nightmare Moon into Lunara rather than killing her.” Andre nodded, and grinned slyly. “I think that’s what we all want, but…” he scratched his head, frowning. “We have gone with the latter because Nightmare Moon’s mental illness is on a different level from what we have dealt with. Her disease has festered for over a thousand years. She’s been through more than we can ever imagine. How are we supposed to heal her and bring the benign Lunara back?” Starlight nodded, grinning. “I have been looking into it, and I may have a solution.” He pulled out an ancient book from underneath the table. He flipped it open, and showed a page to them. “Here,” he said, pointing at what appeared to be some kind of intricate piece of jewelry with six gems. “This is an artifact called the Elements of Harmony.” Andre gasped. “Is that an original copy of the Apocrypha of Celestion? Andre gestured, grasping for the right words. “They were the religious texts of the Scions before they altered it to fit their radical agenda, right?” Starlight nodded. “Yes, it is. All mention of the Elements of Harmony have been ripped out of their books, and soon they stopped printing it all together.” He waved his hoof. “Anyway, according to this book, Celestion and Lunara were sisters. Celestion loved her sister, but Lunara went insane with jealousy for some reason, slayed her sister, and became the Nightmare Moon we know today.” Starlight raised his hoof. “Before Celestion died, she was grasping for this weapon to use against her deranged sister.” Cepheus’ eyes went wide. “That trinket is supposed to be a weapon?” Starlight nodded. “It is believed, that the magic imbued within the Elements of Harmony, can return Nightmare Moon into Lunara.” He pointed at the six gems embedded in the golden framework of the piece. “These six gems contain the prime virtues of the world, and when used on a wicked pony, those virtues will be instilled in them. I believe it is our best bet of getting Lunara back.” Andre was amazed, shaking his head. “A thousand years of therapy, packed into one device.” “Precisely,” Starlight said. “The Elements of Harmony will work wonders for us. It is the most powerful magical artifact remnant from Celestion’s time.” Cepheus was impressed, but took a healthy dose of skepticism. “So, where are these Elements of Harmony?” Starlight put the book down. “Actually, one of our agents pilfered it from Nightmare Moon’s repository in Canterlot. Nopony has even noticed that the vault it was in has been vacated.” Andre and Starlight exchanged a pleased grin, but he quickly became serious again. “We have it with us…But we have a problem. The primary gem is missing.” Cepheus had been so optimistic, but his hopes were now shattered. “Where is the last gem?” Starlight scratched his head with the tip of his wing. “The purple gem in the center is the Element of Magic that binds all the rest together. We know of its location.” Starlight looked down at his hooves. “The Scions have it.” Andre sighed. “So how do we acquire this last piece from the Scions?” “Maybe we can talk to their leader,” Cepheus offered. “Maybe if I talk to them, they might give it to us.” Starlight shook his head. “Talking won’t work. We have to steal it.” “Why?” Cepheus asked. “I’m sure their leadership will understand, especially if a Dayborn is talking to them.” Andre put a hoof on Cepheus’ shoulder. “I don’t know how much you know about these ponies, but obviously not much. These ponies are religious radicals. Not the happy-dappy love and peace type, but the ones that’ll cut your throat if you don’t believe what they believe.” “But the worst of them is their leader…” Starlight said, looking at Cepheus. “She is a mare named Ultra Violet.” He put his hooves together in an explanatory gesture. “You see, the Scions of Celestion weren’t bad before. They offered refuge for anypony who was being persecuted by Nightmare Moon, regardless of whether they were Dayborn or Nightborn, because they knew that Celestion was tolerant of both races. Although there was a lot of bitterness and resentment between the two groups initially, they managed to coexist without too much strife.” Andre nodded, adding onto Starlight’s story. “They actually wanted to start their own separate country where everypony was considered equal, but then their leader suddenly died. It was believed that he was poisoned by his second in command, Ultra Violet.” Starlight sighed, continuing. “She was an ambitious mare, a master manipulator, and perhaps even a sociopath, and as a result they were never able to pin the murder on her. The Scions started to fall apart as was her plan, and in their desperation, they placed her as their leader. She united them, and imposed a radical religious doctrine upon them, eventually making them all crazy like her. She ordered all the Nightborns in their camps to be killed and their bodies purged with flame." Andre alternated with Starlight once again. “Now, she’s even more of a radical, and makes everypony surrounding her the same way. She’s too consumed with hate to want to bring Lunara back, even if it is in the better interests of her own ponies and all of Equestria.” Starlight agreed. “They probably don’t even know that they have one of the Elements of Harmony in their possession. As I said, all mention of it was removed from their sacred texts.” Cepheus shuddered. This mare sounded terrible. It reminded him of a viper. There was no hope of getting the element of magic by just asking. What other tactics could they use? The Knights of Lunara probably only had about a hundred ponies capable of fighting, so they couldn’t intimidate her into surrendering it. These ponies were all Nightborn, so they couldn’t sneak in and steal it. I wonder if I can gather some Dayborn volunteers from the villagers and…. Starlight pounded his hoof on the table, an idea having struck him. “With the Scions mobilizing, they’re probably going to use the element as a magic amplifier! They’ll bring it out into the open, and when they do, we grab it!” Andre grinned. “Sounds like a plan.” The door flew open, and a messenger rushed in. “Nightmare Moon’s secret weapon is being prepared for deployment!” “What?” Starlight said, staring incredulously at the Nightborn earth pony. “We just received word from one of our agents: With Necron helping the Empress, the weapon has been developed ahead of schedule and is ready to be used. They've wasted no time and are preparing to use it.” Andre stamped his hoof in frustration. “And we still have no idea what it is!” The messenger shook his head. “We do have one parcel of information from an intercepted message. Whatever it is, Necron has stored it in aerosol containers for transport and is now distributing it to all major population centers.” “So there are many of them?” Cepheus asked. “And they are kept inside aerosol containers?” The messenger nodded, and having told his message, backed out of the room to let his leaders think. They all sat silently, thinking. An aerosol container? It’s probably in liquid form. Is it magical in nature? Will its effect be systemic? How can we protect ourselves? Cepheus suddenly felt like he was being watched, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Starlight glancing at him every now and then. It made him feel nervous. Eventually, Cepheus couldn’t stand the silence anymore. “So, Starlight…” the stallion looked up at him with wide eyes, almost as if he were scared. Cepheus was dazed by his reaction. “Um, would you like to have dinner with Candle and I?” “Andre, with me.” Starlight commanded, scrambling to get up. The secondary commander was startled by the sudden flurry of movement and rushed to follow Starlight out of the door. Cepheus sat there, unsure of what had just happened. “I guess that’s a no,” he said to himself as he rose from his chair. Candle was right. Starlight was hiding a secret involving him somehow, something that had come to light very recently. Cepheus sighed, tired and hungry. He began to trot back to his room, thinking of sharing a meal with his family. And about his strange mirror friend, he decided that whenever Starlight was ready, he would tell Cepheus what was upsetting him. Hopefully, it’s not as bad as Starlight thinks it is. Starlight and Andre sat inside the chamber of mirrors, all silent save for the ever constant trickling of water. “Sir,” he said. “Did you want to talk to me in private about Nightmare Moon’s secret weapon?” Starlight shook his head, lifting his head up to look at the mirrors on the roof of his chambers. Andre felt nervous, having been dragged away from Cepheus like this. Something was bothering his leader. “Starlight,” he whispered. “You’ve been acting so strange around Cepheus lately.” Starlight remained silent, staring up at the domed mirror roof. “Did you two have a fight?” Andre persisted, trying to get him to open up. “I thought you had become fast friends with Cepheus.” Andre glanced up to where Starlight was looking. “Hmm…I always did find it very strange how quickly you warmed up to him. You’ve known me for years and never told me the things you told him.” Starlight sighed. “We’ve met before…” Andre stared at him, his jaw agape. Starlight closed his eyes, wincing in pain. “I knew he looked familiar, but now….” He looked at Andre questioningly. “Have you seen the latest propaganda leaflet issued by the Scions?” “No,” Andre said, confused by the sudden turn in the conversation. “You have the only copy in the camp.” Starlight sighed, and trotted over to a small chest where he kept all his valuables. “It’s about Celestion’s return, and I don’t know whether it’s true or not, but…” He pulled out the propaganda leaflet and opened it up to one of the pages that had a portrait of Celestion herself on it. “Does this mare resemble somepony else you know?” Andre looked at her. She was wearing golden armor, had white fur, a dark mane, and was for the most part very beautiful. She did seem vaguely familiar. “Wait a moment… check out her cutie mark. It looks very similar to Cepheus’….” It all clicked then for him. “That’s Cepheus sister, isn’t it?!” “Her name is Persei,” Starlight said. “It mentions that on the next page, along with the names of the rest of her family. It even has a portrait of their mother, the infamous mare that escaped the hospital massacre with her two foals….” “Is that why you’ve been avoiding him?” Andre asked. “Because you’re afraid that if he finds out that his sister is now his archenemy, he’ll want to leave the Knights?” Starlight shook his head. “No,” he said. “As I said before, Cepheus and I have a history.” Andre was confused. “How could you possibly have known him from before?” He paused, looking into his cold blue eyes. “Unless it was before you came here… when you were still bad.” There were tears in Starlight’s eyes. “I thought he looked vaguely familiar, and I can tell that he is familiar with me as well. He has all the information he needs, but can’t make the connections necessary to figuring out who I really am.” Starlight put the leaflet back in the chest, and pulled out a dagger before locking it again. “Cepheus must never get that leaflet, or find out that his sister is the Scions’ champion. Or else he might notice something and begin to investigate….” Starlight shuddered. Starlight stood in front of his favorite mirror, and began looking at himself. He played with the dagger, feeling the sharp point pricking his hoof. He turned around, not being able to look at himself anymore. Starlight drew close to Andre, his ears dropped and his head bowed. “Andre, you are my most loyal servant. Will you do me the ultimate favor?” Andre was startled, seeing a few tear drops wetting the stone floor. “Of course, Starlight. You’re my friend and I’d do anything for you.” Starlight pressed the dagger into his hoof, and looked him in the eye. “When all this is over, when Lunara has been restored…. I want you to kill me.” Andre was shocked, but when he beheld the pain in Starlight’s eyes, he was silenced. The dagger felt like it was burning a hole in his hoof, but he continued holding it. Starlight nuzzled him softly. “If you don’t do it, Cepheus will. He’s bound to find out eventually….” Starlight was trembling, sobs racking him. “Oh, I am such a coward! I can’t bear to lose him as my friend…. If it weren’t for that, I would tell him myself and face his wrath. But instead, I’m relying on you to do the deed before he realizes who I am.” Starlight collapsed in Andre’s hooves. “I pray that he continues to grace me with his presence until the final moment. I hope I die with Cepheus still thinking I am a good pony.”