//------------------------------//
// The Champion's Battle 
// Story: Luna's Story 2: Wrath of the Moon Champion 
// by Aegis Shield 
//------------------------------//

Luna’s Story 2: Wrath of the Moon Champion
Part 8: The Champion’s Battle

Princess Luna was very pleased with herself, walking quickly down the corridor to her sister’s rooms. It was the dead of night, but she knew Celestia sometimes stayed up to read or do something else relaxing. Cantering along with her nose up and her eyes closed, she came to a slow stop when she came to the right door. The guards looked wrong, it suddenly struck her. Frowning, she leaned to peer at the two stallions. They were supposed to be at attention, scowling, unmoving as solar guards were want to do while on duty. Instead, their knees were pressed together and they were shaking just a bit. Luna saw a bead of sweat go down on of their faces. She silently wondered what was wrong with them, when suddenly a great cry came from Celestia’s door. “AH-HUAAGH!---oooohhh…” Luna’s eyebrows vanished into her mane. “AHNNN!” she flicked her gaze back and forth between the two guards. Both of them were silently shaking, trying very hard not to… do… something. The looks of effort were astounding, and their faces were red. Another feminine cry belted out from behind the door. The princess of the night rubbed her chin a little. Her brow lowered until her eyebrows almost connected, and she frowned. “R-right there! Right there, my subject! Mrrrr----” The next vocals were low and throaty, and it hit Luna like a ton of bricks. 

Luna’s lips rose into a terrible grin. She suddenly got hit with a wave of mischievous intent. It was so strong, so irresistible she could think of nothing else, like a well-spring in her heart suddenly bade her to mess with her twin sister. Her eyes flickered gold for just a moment, before returning to their normal hue. This was her chance to get back at Celestia for her pregnancy comment. “SISTER! We’ve come to save you!” she put on a terrified expression and BURST into the room, horn lighting up just for show. The two ponies in the room jerked to a halt. Celestia was splayed out on her bed, wings (and back legs) wide. Upon her was a large, barrel-chested red stallion with a green apple on his flank. Luna stared at him, thinking him familiar, but couldn’t place it. His hooves were dug into the small of Celestia’s back, and when he applied pressure there was an impressive crackling of bones. A message? H’ohhhh no, it took more than a message to get her sister to sound like that. He was almost as big as she and Luna, what a large stallion! “Oh-hh?” Luna said innocently. “Are we interrupting something?”

“Eeyup.” Said the stallion, backing off quickly. His face, despite being red-furred, turned a slightly darker shade. He bowed to Luna, as was proper for a princess. Even from across the room she could scent straw and something sweet in his fur. He was a rural thing, to be sure. How had Celestia coaxed him into her bedchamber?

“Luna!” Celestia snapped up to sit on her haunches. “You should knock first!”

“You sounded like you were being attacked!” Luna was too busy grinning her face off to act anymore. “Was he hurting you, Celestia?” she said it with big soft eyes like an innocent filly might after walking in on her parents having sex.

For the first time in centuries, Luna was delighted to see her sister’s face turn scarlet. “N-no, Luna. He was helping me with an ache in my… back.” She cocked her head to one side, tilting her nose up and closing her eyes. It was far too late to look regal, in Luna’s book. The night time princess grinned wider and wider.

“I can only imagine what you’re paying your guards for their silence.” Luna teased. The stallion in the corner shuffled one of his hooves, staring miserably at the tile.

“Out!” Celestia suddenly decided, shuffling forth and herding her sister out of the room. Luna laughed like a teenage filly all the way out the door. “Out out out!” It was a rare and grand treat to have TRULY caught Celestia off guard, and Luna’s night felt like one of the best she’d ever had because of it. “W-what did you come to see me fore, Luna?” Celestia’s whispy voice was a little strained. Smiling silently, Luna reached up and corrected the tilt in her sister’s crown. The white alicorn swatted at her hoof, trying to ignore the great heat in her cheeks. The sisters glared at each other as only sisters could, alicorns or not. “Have you come closer to catching the Moon Champion?” Celestia shifted the subject as fast as she could.

“Actually yes. We’ve devised a trap to snare her in.” Luna nodded, looking over Celestia’s shoulder at the burly-looking stallion in her private chambers. Her sister opened her wings to block the view, clearing her throat a little to keep the topic on hoof. “Both of my captains and ten lunar stallions are going to capture her tonight.”

“That’s good to hear.” Celestia said. “She’s run free for far too long.”

“Wearing a weapon that I devised, yes.” Luna said with a frown of annoyance. There was a certain heady anger in her eyes, and the flecks of gold returned for a moment. “W-well, I just wanted you to know the plan.” Luna said, rubbing at her head like she had a migraine. Celestia leaned, tilting her head a little. Her horn glowed faintly, as though to relieve her sister’s aches. “No no, I’m fine.” Luna said a little tartly, cocking her head. “Go back to your stallion, I’ve got a murderous mare to capture.” She turned quickly away, her face in a grimace of slowly growing pain. It was happening right now. She could feel it in her gut. As soon as she rounded the corner she stepped into shadow and leaned heavily on the wall, panting. The Moon Champion was in pain.

Celestia stared after her sister, unsure of what to do with herself for a moment. She looked at the guards on either side of her bedchamber door. “…as you were.” She said with her usual bemused, feminine smile. Both of them snapped back to attention, scowling at nothing and remaining still as statues. Spreading her wings all the way up, Celestia returned to her bedroom. Big Macintosh chuckled good-naturedly when his princess locked the door behind her and fixed him with a predator’s smile. “I believe you were… here?” she poked herself in the base of her spine, crawling onto the bed so he could get back to work. The guards outside couldn’t hear the popping bones, but they could certainly hear the belting cries from their daytime leader. It colored their cheeks.

=-=-=-=

The Moon Champion grimaced, clutching her shoulder as it bled. Gritting her teeth, she bade the ancestors to heal her as quickly as possible while she drew one of her wing-swords with her good front leg. Raising the blade to reflect the starlight, she scowled at her opponent. The lucky bastard had managed to jab a broken bottle between the flaps of her silvery armor, getting her right in the shoulder. She’d caught him emptying a cash register in a toy store of all things, smelling of alcohol-induced bravery. More like stinking off it. Growling in savage anger, she rushed forward with her blade high. Her eyes gave off twin lines of yellow smoke as she moved. The ancestors raised their voices in song---! It was over. Frowning over the body, she leaned and peeked at the bits drawer. Half of it was in his saddlebags. Ah well, she could leave him there for the proper authorities to pick up. She whimpered a little, favoring her shoulder as old magicks worked to repair it. She sheathed her weapon, stopping to stare at a kiosk on the way out. There was a display of lunar stallion action figures there. She snorted with laughter, leaning down to look at the price. Rolling her eyes and unable to help herself, she tossed the bits in the open drawer and took one. It was only proper to arrive at a date with a gift for one’s partner. She found the little figure hilarious for some reason, and it helped take her mind off of her injury.

After an hour or so, her shoulder was as good as new. She marveled at it. That was far quicker than before. Usually injuries that pierced her skin took a day or so to heal entirely. Even then, it would be a few more days for the scar to disappear. But no, this was much faster. Counting her blessings from the princess of the night, she thanked her ancestors for their battle song with a toss of her mane. They nickered and smiled at her in the back of her head. Their beautiful foal was doing so very, very well. They loved how active and strong she had become. Bashfully quieting their neighs of encouragement, she walked between buildings and down dark alleys to avoid being spotted. 

The message supposedly for Stalwart Hide hadn’t given a date or time for the meeting, and it was long past twilight. But, if she knew the rather submissive stallion as well as she thought she did, he would probably still be waiting in the park. Smiling predatorily, she started to make for the greenest part of Canterlot. She arrived in shadow, peering around. This was going to be exciting, and she knew it. Such a blatant trap would be hiding who knew how many lunar stallions waiting to jump her. Perhaps even the princess herself, that would be an honor. But, before anything could happen, she had to find Stalwart Hide to spring it. Searching down a few paths, she checked a kissing bridge, a fountain, and several other good meeting spots. She couldn’t find him anywh—oh there he was. She spotted the black-maned stallion standing nervously under a streetlamp. The Moon Champion chuckled a little. Of course, pulling her into a place with lots of light, given that the moon was still in its darkest phase.

She approached him slowly, stopping on the edge of the lamp’s light. “Hi there.” She said with a smile, in a way only a mare could say. He swiveled around to look at her, and she chuckled. He had brushed himself and his mane, shaved his chin, and done a few other things to look nice for the evening. It was cute, even if it was a trap. “It’s me.” She said with a tinkling giggle.

“Is it?” he said softly, lifting a hoof to paw at the ground a few times.

“You wanted to see me?” she asked, sticking her face into the light. Her visor shone in the half-light, but she didn’t step into it. “You’ve got an interesting way of getting a mare’s attention.”

“You’ve got a unique skill set, it only seemed right.” Stalwart Hide smiled nervously, drawn in by her hypnotic beauty. Even with all the armor he could see the trace curve of her flank, then feminine roundness of her face. She was very attractive. 

Several hundred feet away from them, a set of lunar stallions watched the scene with interest. They were laid out on their bellies on a set of low-hanging clouds (all pegasi). The blessed lack of moonlight hid them. Their night vision eyes and telescopes showed them the scene up close and personal. Aegis Shield whispered to the others, “As soon as she steps all the way into the light, we strike. That’s when we can see her best and take her down.” He reminded them for the fiftieth time. The stallions shifted nervously, various sets of ancestors itching to get into the fray. They had but one opponent, but after Captain Stalwart Hide had gotten his flank bashed into the hospital, they were eager to carve the mare a new backside. But not until their Captain bade them to. “Hammershot, is the other group in place?” whispered Aegis Shield. Hammershot swerved his telescope, looking into the far distance. He spotted their back-up and nodded, giving a silent hoof-up gesture. “Good. Now we wait.” He sighed quietly. “Remember, Stalwart Hide is relying on all of us to protect him. He can’t take her on alone.” Setting his jaw, he squinted back into his telescope again. The assault group waited.

Back at the scene of the very-obvious-trap-date, The Moon Champion smiled when she led the stallion from the spotlight of the streetlamp. “So what made you call me, huhm?”

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you when I was in the hospital.” Stalwart Hide said truthfully, his cheeks staining a little red. His feathers ruffled a little, but she saw the truth in his eyes and giggled a little. “I wanted to see you again.”

“You’re not made that I broke some of you ribs, bashed you into a wall and blinded you?” She said playfully, shifting to walk side by side with him. He looked over at her with a hurt expression. The Moon Champion smiled apologetically. “You can’t stop me, hun. Nopony can.”

“I’m not here to fight you.” He whispered.

“Good. I’d put you in the hospital again.” She leaned and kissed his cheek with a playful giggle.

“I don’t want that.” He said with a nervous smile. Since they were so close together, he lifted a hoof to touch her. She almost stopped him, but didn’t. He lifted the visor to look into her face. He had no idea who she was, but her face was pleasant and soft. Very feminine. The smoking golden eyes didn’t help, but she certainly wasn’t ugly. “I just wanna know you. I… like strong mares.” He said quietly, looking into her eyes. There was a short silence between them.

The Moon Champion smiled a bit wider, her eyes lidding in adoration. The ancestors in the back of her head were smiling, nodding encouragingly. Finally, a stallion that knew his place and accepted that she was more powerful than he. Her strength greater than his strength. He liked it, even. “Good boy.” She said with a heady smirk, leaning and kissing his lips. He gave a quiet yip of surprise, but didn’t fight her. She stepped closer, her chest pressed up to his. She liked his taste. She nuzzled his cheek a couple of times. “Promise you won’t run away after I kick the flanks of all your friends watching us?” she whispered in his ear. He gave a startled gasp. “I wouldn’t want to ruin our little date. You’ve yet to feed me or give me wine or anything.” She giggled at the clichés, but he’d frozen in horror. She knew. She knew there was a trap.

Stalwart Hide nervously scratched his cutie mark. Hundreds of feet away, Aegis Shield flinched into action. That was the sign for panic. “Lunar stallions, GO!” he roared. Wings snapped open and they dove out of the sky like an apocalyptic plague of black shadows. Riding the momentum they swerved down to surrounded the armored mare while more lunar stallions emerged quickly from the other paths behind her. 

The Moon Champion eyed them all, smiling slowly. She lifted a hoof, turning in a slow circle to survey them all and count. “Oh my, let’s see…. One-two-three-four-five-size-seven…. Thirteen of you! That’s unlucky!” she flipped her visor down with a snort. “I’ll have to use actual effort this time!” she was either talking out her backside or was a brilliant tactician, Aegis Shield thought. There was no way she was powerful enough to take on over a dozen lunar stallions-- all armored up in regalia’s similar to hers, all at the same time. He knew she wanted to look eager to fight them, to unsettle them.

“Get her!” Aegis Shouted. They rushed, as one, and she vanished with a crack of parted air.

The Moon Champion popped up right next to one earth pony. He smiled down at her as she tilted her head back to look way up at him. The armor had made the already big stallion into a titanic pony with massive muscles and a giant set of shoulders on him. “G-head.” He said in a low, gravelly voice. “Just try an’ hit me.” Obliging, the Moon Champion leapt, turned, and bucked him right in the teeth! His head snapped back, and she was sure she’d broken his neck by accident. He slowly tilted his head back down at her, smirking. She turned and did it again, harder! Then again! As hard as she could! Not a scratch. “Huh-heh-heh.” He said slowly, lifting a massive hoof to crush her like an insect. Panzer Hoof was not known for being gentle, especially in his lunar armor. He reared up, and the Luna Champion saw her opening! Pushing him by his chest she SHOVED him onto his back then leapt forward onto his balls! He gave a shriek of agony and crumpled, holding himself.

The Moon Champion cried out as a pair of pegasi tackled her to the ground. Thrashing free she ignited her horn, launching one of them into the tree line and jabbing the other with her horn. The main group was upon her, and she drew both her swords to defend herself. Turning the blades backward, she danced wildly! Bruises appeared on faces, shoulders, and legs as she churned the battlefield like a tornado! Another earth pony appeared, walking through her strikes until he was upon her. He head-butted her to the ground and she spun about with the momentum, taking out his legs and sending him pin-wheeling through the air. Pegasi flung themselves through the air to be upon her and she cocked her head as a blast of magic shot over her shoulder. Wide-arcing her swords to keep them at a distance, she walked backwards to keep them from surrounding her. 

A unicorn among then tried his hardest to wrench the swords from her by magic, but she just never stood still long enough. Flailing wildly she slammed one of them into the ground, spider-webbing  cracks in the pavement before she received a buck to the face. Yelping, she careened backwards into a fountain, knocking the statue off and sending wild debris everywhere. The lunar stallions followed her, relentless. She coughed water for a moment, launching herself back onto her hooves. Igniting her long horn’s magic she grabbed one leaping pony and SLAMMED him onto one of his fellow stallions. Both saw white and collapsed into unconsciousness. One of the winged lunar stallions suddenly slammed into her from on high, a nasty angle to get at her ribs through the armor! She dug her hooves in, carving four paths in the pavement until she was crushed against a tree. Gagging and spit flying from her mouth, she focused everything she had to inflate her lungs. Using the butt of her swords she broke one of his cheekbones and sent him to the ground in pain. Whistling when she breathed, the Moon Champion staggered and held herself up with one of her swords. Heal me, she begged the ancestors. They were working furiously, but they had already healed a wound this night. HEAL ME, the Moon Champion demanded. They rushed to do as bidden. They could not lose this battle!

She turned to one side and crossed her swords like a shield as she was peppered with bolts of magic. Pen Maker rushed forward with a cry of battle, horn lowered. She fenced with him, back and forth, his horn against her swords. The lunar stallion pressed her back and back, the whirlwind of magic conjuring a pair of ghostly swords at his shoulders. “I can hit all twelve!” he roared, though it made no sense to her. The ghostly swords blasted apart into little missiles of magic, peppering the Moon Champion with pain. Reeling wildly she turned her front legs like a windmill and crushed his adam’s apple, sending him down hard.

Aegis Shield himself was suddenly upon the Moon Champion’s back and he locked his hooves around her neck. Holding on with all his might he weighed her down with his body and armor. His remaining soldiers rushed forth, kicking and punching and beating on her like beasts! She wailed out, bruises dotting her body like a young deer’s spots. Gritting her teeth in a moment of desperation, she reached deeper into her well of magics than she ever had before. Whinnying like a wild animal she formed a magical skin around herself and exploded it outward! All the stallions were flung away as a bubble of pure pain rushed away from her like a bomb had gone off. She shockwave shuddered the ground. At least two of the lunar stallions didn’t rise from the latest onslaught. The Captain saw his numbers dwindling, and roared out, “Regroup!” They lined up quickly, down to just four of them. The Moon Champion stood there, panting, bleeding, and very, very pissed off. She spat blood from where she’d received a few hoofs to the face. They’d hurt her. A lot. The ancestor’s were frothing at the mouth, battle song deafening on both sides. Such glorious, beautiful battle! They loved it! “Charrrrrge!” Aegis Shield reared like a war horse and together the quartet charged at her like the military unit they were. They crashed headlong into an invisible wall of magic, knocking themselves senseless.

Coughing heavily, the Moon Champion let the glow from her horn fade. Were they down? All of them? She saw Aegis Shield slowly rise, his wings wilted down and a great purple bruise over one of his muzzle. Hot, sticky blood was dripping from both of his nostrils. “I’m… gonna… stop you… the lunar stallions will stop you.” He said, saliva dribbling from his babbling mouth. He staggered, but shuddered and righted himself. She regarded him with a mix of annoyance and pity, like the insect on the bathroom floor that just refused to die after you’d smashed it six times. The Captain rose to his hooves at last, throwing his chest out and spreading his wings wide. “I am Aegis Shield, Captain of the new lunar stallion corps and YOU! Are! Going! Dow-!” she horn-blasted him right off his hooves and he fell in an unconscious heap.

“You. Are. Long. Winded.” She said groggily, spitting blood again. Staggering, she sheathed her wing swords. “One, two, three…” she counted them all. “Twelve. One is missing.” She mumbled in annoyance. Then she remembered that one of the thirteen stallions had never attacked her at all. He’d stood in place like she’d asked him to. “Stalwart Hide.” She said, limping over to him and grinning haughtily. “Do you understand now? A dozen of your fellows and I’m still standing.” She leaned and kissed his cheek roughly, leaving a speck of blood on his cheek.

Stalwart Hide leaned to support her, and she took his help gladly. She knew he would not harm her. “I do still owe you that wine and dine.” He said gently, easing her to a park bench. “Before we were interrupted, I was gonna…” he leaned under the bench, producing a little picnic basket. “Ge’ thi’sh.” He said, for the handle was in his teeth. She smiled in amusement, lifting her visor to see better. He set the basket down and opened it. It was a cute little dinner of daisy sandwhiches, cornbread, butter, corn on the cob, and even a little wine bottle with glasses.

“Well aren’t you cute.” She chuckled. The ancestors RUSHED forward, pushing her to eat as much food as she possibly could. She’d taken a lot of abuse, she would need the food and energy for her armor to repair her battered body. The gathering of mares in the back of her head encouraged, neigh, demanded that she stuff her face RIGHT NOW. She had no qualm with that at all. “Thank you.” She took a corn cob when he offered it to her.

“I didn’t think they would beat you.” He said gently. “When you struck me down, I got a little glimpse at what you were capable of.” The stallion looked out over the field of his fallen fellows. Thankfully none of them had been killed, but she hadn’t been trying to kill them. They weren’t evil. She’d just been defending herself. Sort of. More like avoiding capture. 

“You’ve seen me break walls, bend matter and conquer evil ponies without effort. Was there ever any doubt I would be the victor to this rather obvious trap?” the Moon Champion snickered a little, chewing the corn on the cob eagerly. “I ought to punish you for your lack of subtlety.” Stalwart Hide shook his head as juice dribbling down his chin. It was very hard to enjoy the meal with his fellow lunar stallions lying on the ground all around them, but there was nothing he could do. She wanted to look upon the battleground and gloat. She was simply too powerful, and to go to their aid might anger her. He didn’t want to go back to the hospital… The stallion and mare ate heartily, and soon the basket was empty. Stalwart Hide reached and uncorked the wine. It was a small bottle, meant for just such a picnic. He emptied the contents into to glasses, and passed one to her. 

“Vivas Noctus.” Stalwart Hide said in a strained tone. He knew that would please her.

“Vivas Noctus.” The Moon Champion agreed. Long live the night. She tink-ed her glass against his. Lifting it, she drained the contents without reserve and broke the glass jubilantly upon the sidewalk in front of them. Stalwart Hide smiled gently at her, his eyes betraying guilt. He’d not drunk his glass. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she rushed to her hooves, clutching at her neck. She’d tasted the powerful sedatives far too late. “You sneaky, c-c-crafty--!” she tried to make a swing at him, but her world had already started spinning. She moaned. “It was never about… about the fight at all…” Her eyes were rolling into her head. Her vision went muddy and she fell in a heap. Darkness melted over her, and even the screaming ancestors could not rouse her.

End of Part 8