Chapter 26
Alternia. She teleported in front of me to take the curse. She’s...
“No! NOOOOO!!!!!”
Chrysalis could hear a wail of despair, and feel her own voice cracking as she did so. She dove to the ground at such a breakneck speed, her wings hurt when she pulled up. Landing heavily, she limped to her fallen, burning sister. Even as she did so, water, cool and clear, doused Alternia, spraying from Twilight Sparkle’s horn. The flames subsided briefly, and were briefly surrounded by midnight blue magic, Princess Luna’s magic, before they were vanquished, dissipated in a flash. Belladonna and Simulacris joined the stage then, their horns glowing as they cast healing spells onto the form.
Yet, Chrysalis felt her heart fill with new horror as she saw, through blurred eyes, what was left of her sister. Alternia lay on her side, whimpering feebly, her eyes screwed shut. Her chest had a marred and blackened hole in place of the golden peytral she once wore. Her carapace was scorched, cracked by the intense heat of the cursed fires.
“What in Tartarus is going on?” asked Golden Star in a hoarse voice. Everybody, from the finally subdued Equestria First, the Royal and Lunar guards, to the changeling chevaliers, were staring at the platform, hypnotized by the sight before them.
“What happened to our Princess?” demanded the major, even as he struggled under the weight of the Royal Guards piled on top of him. Chrysalis snarled and started toward the pony, but Prince Blueblood, the corners of his eyes tearing up, stood in her way.
“Princess Celestia is and always was a changeling queen,” said Blueblood, his voice somehow carrying over the entire assembly.
Once again, Chrysalis tried to go around Blueblood, but he held up his hoof. “Not now. Not this way,” whispered Blueblood so only she could hear, his trembling voice filled with vehemence. Chrysalis swallowed, and opened her mouth to speak, but Cadance interrupted her.
“He’s telling the truth! Stop standing there and get the medics!” she yelled.
Despite his blackened horn and the soot on his face, Shining Armor half-charged, half-tottered back onto the podium to stand beside Cadance.
“You heard the princess! Attend to Her Highness immediately and evac to the castle now!” roared Shining Armor. It took a second, but the guard, conditioned to obey their superior officers, moved into action, quickly rushing to Alternia’s side, brandishing bandages and horns glowing.
Chrysalis tried to follow the ponies that lifted her sister into a stretcher, but Shining Armor quickly blocked her from doing so.
“We need to get you out of here and safe,” he said.
“Captain, will she be alright?” whispered Chrysalis.
Shining Armor shook his head. “I don’t know. I don’t know.”
Canterlot Castle…
They rushed Alternia via chariot into the Royal Infirmary. After managing to usher everypony out, Twilight, Chrysalis and Simulacris being the most difficult, Luna and Belladonna made the room ready with the help of the nurses, who asked no questions except with their glances.
Upon arrival, the doctors stood shocked at Alternia, who was still wearing her crown, until Luna snapped at them.
“I know you have a lot of questions. But right now, set them aside and remember your calling!”
The doctors, knocked out of their stupor by the dark-eyed princess, immediately began to operate, following Belladonna’s directions. But even as they gathered their equipment and readied their spells, they knew that their chances of saving the queen were slim.
“Twilight, stay here. She’ll be fine,” said Cadance. The smile she forced to her lips wasn’t going to fool anypony, but it managed to make the sobbing Twilight pause long enough for her friends to surround her in a group hug.
Sighing, Cadance glanced at the changelings. Chrysalis and Simulacris were hanging on to each other so tightly she had difficulty distinguishing the different carapaces, while Lamia and Cyndra stood as close as they could to their mother.
Swallowing hard, Cadance tore herself away from the sight and found Blueblood and Shining Armor.
“We need to stabilize the situation, now,” said Shining Armor.
“Agreed. Rumours are already spreading. If we don’t act now, there…” Blueblood choked on his own words, but managed to continue. “T-t-there may not be an Equestria that Aunt Alternia can come back to.”
Cadance wiped her moist eyes with her hoof, and somehow succeeded in a firm nod. “Blueblood and I will speak to the public now. Shining, can you…” Cadance looked at the blackened spot on her husband’s horn with some concern, but Shining only took her hoof in his, gently caressing it.
“I’ll brief the generals. If they all spring on me I won’t be able to fight back, but I’ll make sure they listen,” said Shining Armor a thin smile on his slightly pained features.
Managing to return that small smile, Cadance gently kissed her husband on the cheek. “I’ll see you soon.”
Shining initially had no idea where to find the other Equestrian commanders, but he needn't have worried. As soon as he had turned the corner, he was confronted by General Caesar Salad of Canterlot, Captain Vlad Pikehead of the Lunar Guard, Head Sorceress Meringue le Fay, and General Hanna Belle of the Equestrian Foreign Legion, formerly Alternia’s student before Twilight. All of them wore similar cold, composed masks, with questioning eyes.
“Hello, Generals, Captain, and Head Sorceress, what can I do for you?” asked Shining Armor, knowing full well what these military officials wanted from him.
“Armor, you…” Caesar frowned as his eyes shot to Shining’s horn. “Shouldn’t you be in an infirmary?”
“I’m fine. I only have a mild headache,” said Shining with a wince.
Vlad stepped past Caesar and patted Shining on the shoulder. “You did all you could.” Shining Armor sighed. He knew he had, but he wished that he could have done just a bit more.
“Enough chit chat, is it true my former mentor is a changeling queen?” demanded Hanna Belle.
Shining Armor nodded, taking note of the confused desperation in the mare’s eyes. “Yes. And before you ask, I’ve known for some time.”
The generals stared at him, and Caesar’s eyes narrowed. “Meringue, can you perform an anti-illusionment charm and check for signs of mind control?”
“I did that the moment he came in,” said Meringue in a cold voice. Shining hadn’t known the normally cheerful spellcaster was capable of producing such a tone.
“He also smells like Armor, Caesar. Well, a combination of his wife’s scent and his,” said Vlad stepping back. Shining Armor glared at the thestral, who smirked.
Hanna Belle pulled Shining Armor to face her, and looked him in the eye. “But before we let him speak, I need to ask. What is something you know about me that nobody else knows?”
Shining Armor blinked. “You had a crush on Caesar Salad when when we were in the officers academy.”
Hanna Belle lightly blushed and cursed inwardly, before nodding to her compatriots, and a wide-eyed Caesar Salad. “It’s him.”
Making a point not to look at Hanna Belle, Caesar coughed and faced Shining Armor. “Alright then, talk, now. We’re giving you the benefit of a doubt, but we want answers.”
His hoof tapping the ground, Shining Armor took a moment to think about how to explain it all.
“The full story is complicated, but basically, Nightmare Moon didn’t just injure the actual Celestia, but put her out of commission for about a thousand years. Alternia—that’s the changeling queen in the operating room—was chosen to be Celestia’s proxy, and she has been ruling Equestria for the last thousand years, using our love to raise the sun and moon.”
Vlad blanched. “That’s….”
“Crazy. I know, but we have to stand strong in spite of this.” The various commanders frowned at Shining, who swallowed. “There will be a time where all questions will be answered, but for now, the army needs to present a united front.”
Meringue raised an eyebrow. “You do realize that you just told us that Equestria has been under the rulership of a changeling queen for a thousand years, right?”
Shining Armor’s eyes narrowed at Meringue. “This changeling queen has always been our commander, and her record speaks for itself. You and I have fought beside her since the day we pledged our service to Equestria. She may be a changeling queen, but to me, she’s always been my commander-in-chief.”
Coughing into his hoof, Shining Armor turned to the other commanders. “I admit, it took a while for me to adjust to working under a species that I’ve had so much bad experience with. But I have seen her lead, I have seen her fight. I have seen her deal punishments. You’ve seen her do all of those things too. She has proven that she deserves our loyalty, and right now, she needs our loyalty more than ever.”
The generals were silent, their brows furrowed and lips pressed tightly together.
Hanna Belle bit her lip, and wiped at her moistening eyes. “Is she alright?”
Shining Armor sighed. “I don’t know. The doctors are doing their best, and Queen Belladonna is well-versed in Zebrican healing and changeling biology.”
“Good. We have a job to do.” To Shining’s amazement, Caesar had gripped his vine stick with both of his trembling hooves.
“I am really going to want to talk to that fool of a princess—well, changeling queen—later, but let’s do things one step at a time. Captain Armor, have you captured the perpetrators?”
Shining nodded. “Yes.”
“Good. I want to speak to that bastard Golden Star. Hanna Belle, brief your Legion and get them to stand ready at the main gate. The public is going to get angsty. Vlad, follow me. I’m going to pen a letter to the rest of the Army and I need your thestrals to be ready to deliver them. We need to brief the other generals of this revelation.”
“I’ll get my best spellcasters and head to the infirmary. There has to be something we can do,” said Meringue.
“Good. You’re all dismissed,” said Caesar. Hanna Belle and Meringue saluted and galloped away, leaving Shining facing Vlad and Caesar.
“Thank you sir,” said Shining.
Caesar rolled his eyes. “Don’t thank me, Captain Armor. You did a pretty good job convincing me. Besides, I knew that the princess was hiding something big.” The general snorted. “I’m just glad these old bones got to witness what it was.”
Blueblood’s eyes widened as he peeked out from his and Cadance’s hiding spot behind Canterlot Castle’s battlements. “There are more ponies out there than I expected.”
It had only been about an hour since Alternia had been injured, and already a massive crowd had gathered in the skies and on the approach to the gatehouse. Many were just ordinary ponies who had attended the signing, but there were also reporters with cameras and notepads. For now, the ponies in the courtyard were composed, and though the air was filled with nervous chatter, they weren’t making any sudden moves. All the same, Royal Guard fitted with riot gear had mounted the walls and stood in front of the closed gates.
“They all want answers, Blue. Still...” Cadance swallowed as she noted the steady stream of ponies joining the crowd. “I cannot believe how quickly the news travelled.”
“Well, the faster we get this over with the better.” Blueblood glanced at Cadance. “So what shall we say?”
Cadance bit her lip, and for a second, she studied the stone beneath her hooves. Then, she sighed and looked Blueblood in the eye.
“The truth, I suppose.”
Blueblood’s jaw dropped open. “The truth?”
“Most of it. We can’t hide it for any longer. I’ll make sure not to mention what Chrysalis did and her involvement in all of this, but apart from that, I’ll just tell the truth.”
The guard captain commanding those on the walls approached the pair then, crouching down beside them. “Um, your highnesses? Whatever you are going to say, can you say it quickly?” asked the gate captain, his quavering tone betraying his solemn mask.
Cadance nodded and placed one hoof on her chest. Closing her eyes, she forced herself to take deep, slow breaths for a minute.
When Cadance finally opened her eyes, her shoulders were relaxed and her jaw was set in a firm line.
“I’m ready.”
“Good, I’ll back you up if anything goes wrong,” said Blueblood. He gently patted Cadance’s shoulder, bringing a smile to her face.
Then before she could lose her nerve, Cadance stood up in full view of the waiting ponies.
“Hello everypony.”
The masses in front of Cadance started to chatter, their distinct voices coalescing into incoherent babble.
“I know you all have many questions about what happened today. I am here to try to answer some of them.”
Cadance inhaled slowly and exhaled before raising her eyes to meet those of the ponies in front of her. “Less than an hour ago, the changeling queens Chrysalis, Simulacris, and Belladonna of the Equestrian changeling hives signed the first Equestrian-Changeling Non-Aggression Pact. Immediately afterward, a group of what appear to be members of the Equestria First organization attacked the dignitaries. An evacuation took place, but one of the curses found its mark.”
The crowd waited, holding their breaths in anticipation.
“It hit the one who most of you have known as Princess Celestia, revealing her to be a changeling queen.”
Cadance braced herself for an outcry, but as she watched the jaws of so many ponies fall agape, she realized that they were too shocked to respond. So she continued.
“There is no need to be alarmed at this development, my little ponies. For I, Princess Luna, and a few others in the Equestrian government have known about this changeling queen since the invasion of the Royal Wedding. The changeling queen who wore the figure of Celestia is not a queen who was trying to exploit Equestria or destroy it. No, this queen is Celestia’s appointed substitute, her proxy.”
There were murmurs of confusion, but Cadance ignored them. “By now, you all know of the legend of Nightmare Moon, and how Princess Celestia banished her using the Elements of Harmony. What is not widely known is that Princess Celestia was gravely wounded by the battle that occurred. She had to go into a thousand year-long healing trance that would restore her, but she would also be leaving Equestria and be unable to tend to her ponies, or the raising of the sun and moon.”
Cadance could see the eyes of some ponies widening as they realized what had happened, while others continued to frown.
“That is when Celestia came across this queen, Alternia, the long-lost sister of Queen Chrysalis. She had just come out of a battle herself, and was also mortally wounded. Princess Celestia made a deal with Alternia. Alternia would take on the role of Princess, with all the world’s love that came with it, and in exchange, she would move the sun and moon and tend to Equestria.
“And for a thousand years, Alternia has served as our Princess, and though a changeling queen, she saw her position not as an opportunity to abuse her power, but as a great responsibility. In addition to raising the sun and moon, she has protected Equestria from all enemies, expanded our borders, and cared for us, her ponies. When the changelings invaded, she did not abandon us for her kind, but tried to protect us, and even found a way to avoid war between our species. The list of the deeds she has done for our benefit are innumerable, and her love for all of us, boundless.
“You may ask: How do I know this? And why does a changeling queen care for us? My answer is this: as Equestria’s Princess of Love, I have seen many of love’s forms. I can see her love for me in how she raised and guided me to become the mare I am today, and I saw it again on my wedding day, when she walked me down the aisle. And I see the love she has for all of you, from each old stallion to the youngest foal. As to why? Well, we are her hive.”
The incoherent murmurs and splutters rose in volume, but Cadance jumped into the air and yelled. Her impassioned voice ringing out to the crowd.
“Queen Alternia had no other hive or subjects other than us Equestrians, and when we ponies gave our love to her, she found herself loving us back. So you need not worry, ponies of Equestria, for you did not love a false mask! The truth is that you loved a changeling queen wearing the mask of Celestia, a changeling queen who sincerely cares for you and has made your lives better because of your love!”
Cadance set herself back down on the battlements, panting. To her inner glee, she noticed that many of the ponies were nodding in agreement with her. However, there were some that did not so easily accept her words, and it just took one of them to cry out louder than his compatriots.
“How do you know you’re not brainwashed?!” yelled someone from the masses.
“How do we know you’re not a changeling in league with her?!”
Cadance spluttered as words failed her. How could she prove it? What was she going to do? The crowd were beginning to get restless. Some ponies were pushing against the line of guards in front of the gate. Others were trying to just stand still. Quite a few were yelling in support of Cadance’s speech, but chaos was taking hold.
Then the castle gate swung open and Blueblood walked through. Cadance gawked, glancing to her side where her friend had been only a few moments ago.
What is he doing? thought Cadance, her eyes widening as the prince trotted up to the line of guards and waved them back. They reluctantly obeyed, letting the lone stallion stand in front of the crowd. Yet, despite being completely outnumbered, Blueblood didn’t even flinch.
“I am afraid we cannot offer you much in the way of proof of Alternia’s deeds or of her character,” said Blueblood. Cadance frowned as Blueblood sat himself comfortably down on the ground.
“What I can do is answer a few questions on her behalf. Ask me anything about the changeling queen who wears Princess Celestia’s form, and I will do my best to answer. So long as it is in good faith, I will do my best to answer.” Blueblood then pointed to the reporters on the ground and then to those in the air. “Reporters, please record these questions well, because if Queen Alternia recovers, I will have her confirm all that I will say today in person at a press conference.”
Suddenly, Blueblood’s breath caught in his throat and he was forced to swallow. “If she does not survive, I will ask Princess Luna and Queens Chrysalis, Simulacris and Belladonna to confirm the answers for you. So ask away, don’t be shy.”
As the crowd processed the prince’s offer, several ponies shouted at the same time, and the same question.
“Why didn’t she tell us?”
Blueblood managed to get the ponies to quiet down by raising his hoof. “Naturally, Queen Alternia did not tell us or the rest of Equestria at first because she was afraid. She did not want to draw more changeling attention to Equestria, and neither did she want to reveal the changelings to the world. She knew that should her identity be revealed, like it was today, that there was a chance that chaos would take root as ponies lost their trust in her, trust she had hard-earned. Next question.”
Another pony spoke up from the back of the crowd and Blueblood had to flick both his ears forward to hear it clearly.
“Exactly who knew about Queen Alternia?” repeated another pony nearer to the front.
“The ponies that knew about Queen Alternia were myself and Princess Cadance of course, but Princess Luna, Captain Shining Armor, the Elements of Harmony, and later, Queens Chrysalis, Simulacris, Belladonna, and Chrysalis’s daughters also found out.”
“How did you all find out about Queen Alternia?” said somepony nearer to the front.
Blueblood smiled somewhat whimsically. “Well, most of us found out through the Royal Wedding when the shield blew away Alternia’s disguise. However, I found out a long time ago when she saved my life.” Several ponies gasped as Blueblood continued. “I was a colt at the time, caught in a fire at a candy store. Queen Alternia charged in to save me, and the heat of the flames disrupted her disguise for a moment.” Blueblood shook his head. “I actually thought a monster had come to eat me, but then she hugged me and told me that she would save me…” Blueblood heaved in another breath and blinked furiously to clear the tears in his eyes. “And she did.”
“So you knew for a long time and she acted just like… well, Celestia?” asked the same pony.
Blueblood nodded. “Yes. I did some research, tried to figure out whether I was seeing things, but gradually after watching her closely, came to the conclusion that what I had seen was just another part of her.”
This time a pony in the middle of the crowd piped up. “Don’t changelings eat ponies? How do you know she doesn’t just love you because, well, you’re her food?”
Quite a few ponies burst out into laughter or rolled their eyes, but Blueblood kept a straight face. “I believe Twilight Sparkle is about to publish a book with some basic information about changelings, but I can tell you this. First off, changelings eat love, and some other dietary supplements like fruit and vegetables, but pony is not among them. In fact, one of Queen Alternia’s favorite foods is cake. Not pony cakes, but cake, actual cake, preferably old, heavy spice cakes, but she loved the Marzipan Meringue Madness that won the National Cake Competition about a month ago.”
A pony, near the front, pushed up his glasses as he gazed at Blueblood. “You said Queen Alternia was the long-lost sister of Queen Chrysalis. Exactly how did the two of them become separated?”
Blueblood paused, his brow furrowing in contemplation. The general public had no idea that Chrysalis had killed her own mother. Alternia had sworn the Royal Guard and the other ponies present at that gathering to secrecy, at least until long after the peace talks had been concluded, and when pony-changeling relations were better.
“They were both involved in a battle that ended up separating them. Queen Alternia fled and was immediately approached by Celestia afterwards, which meant she could never get the news to her sister that she was alive, for the reasons stated previously.”
The bespectacled pony didn’t appear satisfied, but he didn’t pursue the topic, much to Blueblood’s inner relief. Wiping his brow, the prince pointed to a distant pony waving her hoof frantically above the sea of heads.
“Are all the changelings mindless minions of the queen?” asked the mare.
“No. As demonstrated by Queen Chrysalis’s daughters Lamia and Cyndra, changelings are not mindless minions of the queen. Next question please,” said Blueblood.
“In regards to your earlier point about changelings eating love, many travellers’ tales, books by the Grimm Stallions, and folktales suggest that changelings do eat ponies, and particularly love to prey on them near water. How can you explain that?” asked a pony also wearing glasses. She however, looked as if she had been immersed in an archive for weeks.
Frowning, Blueblood resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. “Changelings eat love. They do not need to eat ponies and have no reason to.”
The mare looked crestfallen. “But…”
Blueblood sighed. “Perhaps you’re looking at a different species. Next question please!”
The pony who spoke up glared at Blueblood. “Princess Cadance said Alternia loves all the ponies of Equestria, but why then did she ambush Equestria First and kill a hundred and fifty of them?”
Many ponies in the crowd opened their mouths to retort. Several cried “are you crazy?” and “Oh come on!”
Blueblood’s roar though, struck cold unadulterated fear into their hearts.
“My aunt has been shot by a curse fired by ponies from that organization, and you ask why she showed them no mercy!” The prince snarled, and took a step forward, only for Princess Cadance to land beside him and pull him back. Her eyes were narrowed and glinting like dagger points.
Panting, Blueblood sat back down on his haunches and swallowed. “Admittedly, that is hindsight evidence, so I must apologize for bringing it up. I also admit that the Equestria First are not undeserving of mercy, or love, and Queen Alternia has ensured that those innocent in that unfortunate organization will be separated from the guilty. But consider this: the ponies killed on that day had embarked on a mission to raze a hive to the ground, a hive that had no involvement with the attack on Canterlot, and were condemned simply because they were changelings unfortunate enough to be discovered. Their intent and their refusal to turn back when Queen Alternia asked them to shows that they are speciesist murderers who would kill to further their beliefs. Perhaps more could have been done, but look at what they did today, on a day that was celebrating peace. Are these ponies whom we could safely accept with open hooves?” Blueblood sighed. “We may never truly know, but I think that Queen Alternia saw the risk those ponies posed to those loyal to the idea of peace, those that wanted her love, who did deserve her love. So she chose the best move to save them first. I don’t think we can fault her on that.”
A pony with a cutie mark of an telescope spoke up this time. “Exactly what are Princess Luna’s opinions on Queen Alternia’s existence?”
Blueblood wasn’t quite sure how to answer this question and he rubbed his chin for a good moment, until Cadance spoke up.
“I can answer this one for you. Aunt Luna, according to what she told me, was rather upset, though more at herself than Queen Alternia.” Cadance bit her lip, and sighed. “I cannot say much else for privacy’s sake, but I can say that Princess Luna thinks quite highly of Queen Alternia for what she’s done for Equestria, and for Alternia’s efforts in helping Luna to return and adjust to modern Equestrian society. They are quite close, like sisters, and hence, it has been a very trying day for Luna right as well.”
“I am afraid we must get back to our royal duties. This will be our final question,” said Blueblood, getting back onto his hooves. He scanned the crowd of ponies until he spotted a colt in the front row.
“How is Queen Alternia right now?” asked the young colt. He didn’t even had a cutie mark yet, but the simple question found Blueblood clenching his teeth and his body trembling slightly as he met the colt’s curious eyes. Cadance flinched and turned away, unable to even face the child.
“Last I heard, she’s… not doing well. She suffered terrible injuries,” said Blueblood, feeling his throat choke.
“Oh… tell her we hope she gets better!” squeaked the colt.
And to Blueblood and Cadance’s surprise, many of the ponies in the crowd yelled out the same.
“Tell her we’re waiting for her!”
“We’re rooting for her!”
Their cries rang out into the sky, and while it wasn’t the whole crowd, perhaps not even half of them, the fact that there were ponies who wanted Alternia to be safe…
Blueblood and Cadance suddenly found it incredibly difficult to speak.
“We will,” said Blueblood, wiping away his tears.
Canterlot Castle...
The doors to the Canterlot infirmary swung open after what seemed like an eternity. Twilight jumped to her hooves and ran to the leaving doctors, who were followed by Belladonna and Luna, stopping just in front of the changeling queen and alicorn. Both had dark circles indicating magical exertion underneath their eyes.
“Alternia?” asked Twilight. “How is she? Did you save her?” She watched Luna and Belladonna closely, praying for a smile, a nod, to confirm her wish.
It never came. At Twilight’s question, Belladonna eyelids closed, but they failed to block the tears that poured from under them. Luna, her shoulders slumped, and mane drooping to the ground, suddenly seemed to look her age.
“No,” croaked Chrysalis, her knees wobbling as her legs came close to giving away.
“She’s dying, and there’s no way we can save her,” said Belladonna, bowing her head.
Twilight shook her head. Her hooves pounding on the floor, she dashed around Luna and Belladonna into the infirmary and to the only occupied bed, only to find herself slowing to a stop.
The form in the bed was almost unrecognizable as Alternia. Almost every inch of her was covered in bandages, except for her face, where an oxygen mask had its place.
But what dropped Twilight’s heart into her stomach was Alternia’s chest, which Twilight had an all too-excellent view of as the queen lay on her side. Twilight could not see what was under the bandages, but the flat area of bandage over what should have been rounded carapace indicated that there was a massive gaping hole in Alternia’s front carapace that stretched across the width of her front and down over her lower chest.
Twilight charged toward the bed, only to be restrained by Luna’s hoof. Struggling even as she pushed back, Twilight’s wails shook the tall glass windows of the infirmary.
“Let me go! Alternia! Alternia! Wake up! WAKE UP PLEASE!”
Belladonna wrapped in Simulacris’s hooves, shook her head. “I’m sorry, Twilight, Chrysalis, Simulacris, everybody… she’s just too heavily wounded. I can’t save her, even when I compared notes with the Equestrian doctors and their mages. All I can do is put her into a trance, but she’ll die, eventually.”
Luna released Twilight, her eyes shut in a futile attempt to prevent her own tears from escaping. “I also placed a stasis spell over Alternia that will multiply the remaining time she has by a factor of about four.” Twilight blinked, and noticed then that the bed and the bandages around Alternia were tinged with a blue magic aura.
Wincing, Luna pointed her horn at the bed and sent an infusion of magic into the aura. “But it is not within my power to do anything to reverse her injuries, and already the stasis spell takes a lot of effort out of me. In fact, the longer it goes, the magical load increases exponentially. I probably can only hold this for an hour, at the most.”
Twilight shook her head, the gears in her mind going over every spell she knew, everything she had been taught, considering any options that they might have.
But she couldn’t think of anything. If Luna or Belladonna couldn’t save Alternia, who could possibly do so? Who could heal her?
A random thought popped from nowhere into Twilight’s mind, which blew into an idea, and expanded into a plan.
“Luna. You don’t have the magic power or the techniques to heal Alternia right?” asked Twilight.
At Luna’s nod, Twilight spun around. “Would your sister have them?”
Luna’s eyes widened as she processed Twilight’s statement. “Are you saying…”
Twilight nodded, her eyes blazing with newfound determination. “We need to find Celestia. The real one.”