//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: The Pale Land // by OrphiusOlyandra //------------------------------// “-ister!” Stinging pain laced through Celestia’s head. “Wake up!” “L-Luna? Wha-” A hacking cough racked her body, the taste and scent of blood flooding her senses. Her head throbbed, her body was numb, and though she tried to open her eyes, all she could see was murky half shapes. “What happened?” she finally croaked out. “We… We won, somehow. Cadence went down, one wing sliced off and then you were struck from behind when you tried to catch her.” Luna closed her eyes and sighed. “I thought you had died.” “You defeated them?” “No, not I, no matter how much I wish to claim that title. There was an explosion from the cave the ponies vanished into and a couple further a field, tall pillars of flame that even you would struggle to produce. It burnt holes in the clouds, clearing them away in a matter of seconds. The Windegoes, they went to investigate, but all I heard were their screams.” Luna slipped under Celestia’s foreleg. “Come sister, it is time to raise the sun.” Celestia blinked her eyes, trying to get them to focus on Luna, but no matter how hard she tried, all she could see was a blur. Closing her eyes, she turned to where Luna’s voice came from. “They got my eyes, didn’t they?” “...Yes. I am sorry, sister.” “No, we all came into this knowing there was no way we’d be able to get out in one piece. This was to be expected, if unwanted.” Slowly, Celestia unfurled her wings, biting back the hiss of pain as she draped it over Luna’s back. “Come, I think it was time we raised the sun.” “Are… are you certain?” “Of course.” Celestia took a shaky step forward, almost collapsing under her own weight before Luna caught her. “Do I look like I can do it by myself? I need your help, just like how I’ve always needed you.” “What do you need me to do?” “Be my eyes, guide my magic with yours. We must do this slowly, gently warm the world so we do not turn the ground to mud and flood the plains.” Celestia reached out with her magic, feeling the familiar warmth of the sun and coaxing it to life. A second later, she felt the hesitant touch of Luna, cooler than the evening breeze and far more gentle. “Come now, a firm grip. This is the sun, a fickle and disobedient thing, unlike your moon.” “The moon is no less fickle, it mere requires guile instead of brute strength.” Nonetheless, Luna’s grip tightened and together they slowly raised the sun. It felt lethargic, as though it was sunk in quicksand and they were dragging it back out. Even with her natural affinity towards it, Celestia found herself gritting her teeth and dimly she was aware of Luna’s panting. “Nor is the moon so heavy.” “Merely a matter of magical affinity, nothing more,” said Celestia as she gathered all her magic into a single ball, sending it into the sun as a single burst. “Did that restart the sun?” “Afraid not.” Swearing under her breath, Celestia pulled her magic once more. “I’m going to give it the initial shock, as soon as I do that, I want you to slowly fuel it until it becomes self sustaining.” “Understood.” With Luna’s magic so tightly intermingled with hers, Celestia could feel the crackling raw power that Luna held at her disposal and how focused it was. A single point like a rapier just waiting to thrust in, unlike her crude blunt force method. “I am ready when you are.” There was no need for words. With how long they had fought together and how fast magic travelled, sound would have been meaningless. It was all action and reaction, one second the sun was dull and near death, the next it burst back to life as it reignited. Taking a couple seconds to catch her breath, Celestia slowly took the reins from Luna, easing the magic into it while Luna stepped back, offering a nudge here or there to keep the sun on course. “About half the usual intensity, I think. We can increase it slowly over the coming weeks,” said Celestia. “Too much energy wasted as light currently, dim it a bit and bump up the heat,” said Luna. “Not yet, I’ll do it over the day. The sun is burning now and I’d rather keep some magical reserves in case I need it.” “For what? We have won, we should be celebrating!” “And yet I do not hear the voices of the three ponies who vanished into the cave.” When Luna did not comment, Celestia smiled sadly. “I may be near blind, but I am not deaf. They are dead, aren’t they?” Only the whistling wind answered her. “We gave them our marks, we gave them a mission and like all those before them, they died for our sins. If only we had defied mother earlier then-” “There is no point in thinking in terms of what could have been. We need to focus on what is, and what will be. Learn from your past, sister, but do not be consumed by them for we cannot change them.” Celestia sighed and her wings slumped. “You are correct, as usual. At least we can give them a pro-” “I would not enter if I were you. I know not how, but the bodies of the Windegoes have vanished and all that remains is a single crystal heart.” Celestia felt a hoof being placed on her shoulder. “It radiates magic like I’ve never felt before, and it is an exact replicate of Cadence’s cutie mark. I believe it is for her, and her alone to unlock its secrets.” “Then we shall help her, guide her, as we have always done and shall continue to do. Also, where is she now?” “Headed out to those pillars of light we saw. She wishes to bring them together, to build a nation of harmony here in the mountains and I agree with her. Strong leadership is needed, a firm guiding hoof to make ensure something like this never happens again. Som-” Celestia didn’t even bother to wait for Luna to finish her sentence before cutting in with a simple, “No.” “And yet you must.” Celestia turned away, limping towards the edge of the cliff. Even with her ruined eyes, she could make out the glowing blur of her sun, feel the warmth on her face and chest as she forced her wings open despite the pain. It helped clear her mind, focus her, remind her of everything she had done to get this far to begin with, and how much more pain lay on the road before her. “I can’t do it alone,” whispered Celestia. “Who said you would be alone? You have Cadence, and you have me. We have come this far, we cannot give up now, not when we are so close to creating a land of harmony. This is the moment we have dreamt of for so long, so come! Together we can build it, the three of us.” “I…” Celestia licked her lips. “Do you really think we can do it? Lead them? Do you think they’ll follow?” “We were created t-” “We can make our own destinies, our own path in this new world! If we followed the will of Mother, the Windegos would have gone opposed, another death and rebirth in pursuit of the perfect, orderly world.” “They need us though, they need something, a symbol, anything to keep them unified, to remind them that they are on the same side.” “They have come this far without us and if they can do that, they can do anything.” Celestia sighed and shook her head. “They do not need us to survive, it would just make things easier on them.” “Is that not worth it then?” “Is freedom not worth it?” She didn’t even need her eyes to know Luna was making a puzzled expression, no doubt with her head tilted slightly to one side. “When you rule, you are at the behest of the citizens. You are chained to a place, to a nation, everything you do is to better that nation and you, yourself, are lost. Of course, he went on to say that in that losing, you find yourself anew, but he was a mere philosopher, not a king. Leadership is not nearly so idealistic or easy.” “And yet you know it, you understand it, you have lead in the past and you can lead now. Why do you hesitate? We won, we achieved our goal, and now, we are on the cusp of a new dawn, one we just heralded together. You talk about creating a new path? How about creating a path together, for them.” Luna pressed a hoof to Celestia’s lips, silencing any complaints she could have had. “And, we only have to do it until they are back on their hooves and can take care of themselves.” A sigh escaped. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?” “What do you think?” “I’ll think about it.” “Sis-” “I said, I’ll think about it. For now, can we just mourn those who died and celebrate the future?” “Very well,” said Luna. Celestia ignored the guarded tone and sighed. Leadership. She had thought she had left that particular role behind all those centuries ago after it came crashing down around her, but apparently not. Such a simple word it was too, nothing too complex about it, even a foal knew what it was and what it meant to have it. She could still remember the way- No, now was not the time. Now it was time to relax and to celebrate and to mourn and to forget. To remember those who had heeded her call, who had willingly come to their deaths in the slightest chance of ending the eternal winter. For just one night she’d allow herself to cry and then? Maybe a kingdom. Maybe nothing more than the endless sea and the cloak on her back. Maybe… well…anything was possible.