//------------------------------//
// Luna's Tale 
// Story: Flight 
// by The Wandering Bard 
//------------------------------//

Lyric skimmed through the rest of the journal, barely able to keep her eyes open now. There was no more mention of the bat ponies or the Crystal Empire, and so she closed the ancient tome. Although she did not know the exact time, she could see that the moon was high in the sky. She picked up her lute and the journal, slung her instrument over her shoulders, then trotted towards the hallway where she had met the princesses earlier. She saw one of Luna’s bat ponies on guard, and she smiled at him. “Is Princess Luna in?” she asked.

“She is. Hold on just a moment, and I’ll announce you.” He stood and entered the hall. Lyric caught a glimpse of his cutie mark as he did, a key crossed with a sword.

Interesting, she thought to herself. I wonder how he earned such a mark. The guard reappeared shortly after to wave Lyric in, cutting her musings short. As she stepped inside, he resumed his post once more.

“Greetings, Lyric,” Princess Luna called as the bard entered. “I did not expect thee to be awake so late. Is there something with which I may help thee?”

“Yes, Princess,” Lyric replied. Holding the journal out, she said, “Could you please see that this is returned to Princess Twilight? I very much enjoyed reading it, but I am sure that it would be better off in her hooves.”

Princess Luna nodded, and used her magic to lift the tome out of Lyric’s hooves. “It shall be done.”

“Thank you,” Lyric told her.

It was then that Princess Luna gave Lyric a conspiratorial grin. “Now then, didst thou find any interesting stories in there?”

Despite her fatigue, Lyric’s eyes brightened. “Yes, it was all so fascinating! Especially the story about the bat ponies! I mean, the way they were treated was sad and horrible, but it’s wonderful that they were given a home here in Equestria and were able to help free the Crystal Empire. I’m sure they really appreciated the opportunity.”

“Indeed…” Princess Luna’s face fell, and the glow in her eyes began to fade.

“Is… something wrong, Princess?”

Luna hesitated, and the silence between them drew on. Lyric shuffled her hooves. She was about to beg Luna’s pardon and retreat for the night when the princess spoke. “’Tis true that they were able to help us free the Empire. In fact, they helped us many times over.” She set the journal aside. “They knew the Empire and the surrounding area. They knew how to make their way through the bitter cold, they knew the swiftest routes into and through the Empire, and they knew the ponies who had been left behind. They helped us strategize and to formulate our plan of attack.”

A sad smile crossed Luna’s features. Her eyes seemed not to see the bard in front of her, but a scene from a millennium ago. “My dear sister and I gathered our troops once we felt ready to do so. ’Twas hard on us, for we knew that not everypony who marched with us would return. Here we were, taking them away from their friends, families, loved ones. But they all believed in our cause.”

“Especially the bat ponies, I bet,” Lyric interjected.

“Thestrals, dear Lyric. They prefer to be called thestrals now.”

“Oh, my apologies. I didn’t know.”

“Thou dost now,” Luna told her with that same smile, the one that didn’t quite meet her eyes.

Lyric nodded. “That I do.”

“But thou art right when thou sayest that they believed in our cause. They fought the hardest of us all.” Lyric leaned in, not wanting to miss a word even as her heart ached for the ones who went to battle so long ago. “When we entered the Empire, the Shadow Elite set upon us right away. I suspect that Sombra had sensed us with his magic, and sent them to harass us from the start. There were fewer than we expected, and we defeated them with ease. After this, Celestia and I parted ways, her taking half of our troops to spread out through the city. I stayed with Obsidian’s and Onyx’s companies as they led the charge through the streets, choosing the broadest, most direct route to Sombra’s tower.”

“But wouldn’t that have left you the most exposed?” Lyric asked, her head tilted to the side.

“Unfortunately so,” Luna told her, “but ’twas also to our advantage, for Sombra’s guard could not ambush us from some dark, narrowed alleyway. But of course, there were Elite waiting for us, blockading the path. They charged us as soon as we were in their sights. Our forces engaged, and we clashed… ’Twas terrible.” The princess’s eyes watered. Lyric hesitated, then put a hoof on her shoulder. Luna seemed to take some comfort from it, for she continued, “Some ponies fell to the ruthless tactics of the Elite, though we soon realized that our numbers far surpassed theirs. ’Twas not long before we had broken through their blockade and continued our march. As we went, the thestrals gathered their imprisoned comrades, crystal pony and thestral slave alike, and brought them unto our cause. Before long, through capture, desertion of the Elite, or defeat, we made our way to the tower.”

Lyric was enthralled, even as her chest pained. She could see it all so clearly in her mind’s eye, both a gift and the curse of having the imagination that she did. She could see the skirmishes between the ponies, hear their cries. “What happened next, Princess?” she gently queried.

Luna seemed to regain some vitality as she reached the climax of her tale. “My dear sister soon joined me at the base of the tower. Her troops had also claimed victory, though their losses were great. We had a brief moment of silence in memory of those who had fallen, vowing to ourselves to have a proper ceremony once we were home again. Our loyal comrades took up positions around the tower, ensuring that Sombra could not escape without somepony noticing, then we began the long climb, searching for the one who called himself King.

“We found him at the top of the tower, waiting for us. He was so confident that, even with his soldiers gone, he could defeat us. ’Twas there in his gaze.” The Princess of the Night shuddered. “He said nothing, instead summoning a dark spell. We dodged and summoned our own magic. He only needed that moment, for I was then hit.” Lyric gasped. “It did nothing but knock me off my hooves and addle my mind for a moment… or so I thought at the time. I regained my hoofing, and, hurriedly, Celestia and I summoned our magic once more. He hurled more spells our way, we flew into the air to evade, and, when ready, fired our magic at him, turning him into nothing more than the shadow for which he was named, and imprisoned him within the ice.”

Lyric’s jaw hung open. Hearing this account from Princess Luna brought it to life in a whole new way. It was a moment before she said, “And then… and then the Empire disappeared along with him, thanks to his curse.”

“Yes,” Luna told the bard, sorrow in her voice. “It began to disappear around us, and we called for as many ponies as possible to escape.” Her voice dropped. “But it vanished so quickly… Only those of us who were originally from Equestria were spared. Even the small band of thestrals who had first come seeking our aid, for they had spent long enough in our lands that I believe the innate magic protected them. To say that they were devastated would be an understatement. They wept for their lost comrades, for all of their efforts had been in vain. Lacking any other course of action, we all began the long march home.

“After my beloved sister and I returned to Equestria, we opened our borders to any and all who may have escaped from the Empire before it vanished. We had hoped that somepony may have made it out, but after a time it seemed as if our hopes were in vain. Then a small number of crystal ponies appeared and took up residence, as did some thestrals.” Luna held up a hoof to defer protestations. “These ponies told us that they had escaped months before and were deep in hiding outside of the Empire, so we assumed that they, too, were able to escape the curse. We also assumed that once they heard of us here in Equestria, they made their ways into our country to seek our aid. They were all welcomed.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“Well, yes, mostly.” It did not seem as if Luna would continue, though, after a time, she did. “The spell that I was hit with, ’twas not meant to simply cause a stumble. ’Twas meant to place a piece of his corrupted soul inside myself. It… changed me, Lyric, corrupted me as well, made me see the world through his twisted view, though I struggled to resist.

“’Twas gradual, but more and more, I saw how the ponies would play in Celestia’s sun, and how they slept through my beautiful night. Then the dark whispers began, slowly at first, softly, then building and building until they became an everlasting roar… Over time, I became convinced that mine own sister hated me, that she was doing this just to spite me. It did not help that some of the thestrals who came to us were still loyal to Sombra and sought only revenge. They pretended to be scared refugees and feigned loyalty to us. When they came to seek my counsel, I gave them my wisdom and they fed me their lies.” She scoffed. “’Tis likely that ’twas all a plan concocted by Sombra and his guard in case of his defeat, and that they had been protected from his curse.”

“You mean—”

“I do. ’Twas they, and the dark presence in my mind, who helped to convince me that my beloved sister felt she was better than I. ’Twas they who built upon my delusions of our subjects purposefully shunning the night, when I now know that they simply needed to sleep. And so, ’twas thanks in part to them, and to Sombra’s spell, that I became jealous and turned into Nightmare Moon. Of course, most of the fault is mine own.”

Lyric was silent as Luna hung her head. “I should have seen what was happening. I should have known. I should have talked to Celestia or sought help. But I was too young, too stubborn, too foolish. But Onyx and Obsidian… they saw, and they tried to turn my thoughts against these dark notions. Unfortunately, ’twas too late. My madness had already begun. Even so, they were loyal to the end. They stayed by my side even as I became more and more unstable. They never stopped trying to save me, nor did they ever lose their hope that, one day, I would become their beloved Princess once more.”

All was silent for a time as Lyric thought of all she had learned and Luna reflected on all that had been. It was Luna who broke the silence once more. “I miss them. Dashing, too. They were true friends to me, not because I was a princess, but because they knew and loved the real me.”

“I can see why they did.” Luna started as she gazed upon the bard. Lyric stepped forward and bowed. “You are an inspiration to us all, Princess. Though you may have fallen from grace, you have returned to us from the darkness once more, and you are willing to learn from it. If you can overcome such a hardship, then so can we.”

Luna bowed her head in return. “I thank thee, Lyric. That means so much to me.”

Lyric blushed and beamed as she lifted herself once more. “Well, it’s true. Believe me. After all, you know my past.”

The princess nodded, her gaze softening. “That I do.”

“Though, funny enough, it was Dashing Hoof who inspired me, who set me upon this path that I have taken in my life. His tales were what first gave me a thirst for adventure... I wish I could have known him myself,” she admitted. “And it sounds like you thought highly of him. Obsidian and Onyx, too.”

“I did. I still do.”

Now it was Lyric’s turn to hesitate before speaking again. “Princess, if I may ask, why are you telling me all this? It’s not as if I am anypony important.” She chuckled to herself, taking her lute off of her back and strumming a chord. “I’m just a simple, wandering bard.”

At this, Luna shook her head. “I must disagree, Lyric. Thou art a wandering bard, true, but ’tis ponies like thyself who will keep these ponies alive. They may have passed on, but their spirits will always remain so long as there are those such as we to remember them. Their loyalty, their kindness, their bravery—’twill never be lost.” The princess put a hoof on Lyric’s shoulder and met her gaze. “What thou dost is important, and ’tis a great service to our country and to our kind. Never forget that.”

Lyric was at a loss for words as she looked upon Princess Luna, one of her idols, resplendent in the moonlight that splashed upon her flank and lit up her starry mane. A warmth spread across her breast. However, it was also funny to her how Luna’s words reflected ones she had heard from another alicorn not so long ago. “I won’t, Princess,” Lyric whispered, clutching her lute. “I will always remember.”

Luna nodded. “Good. Now, go. Sleep. ’Tis well into the night, and I am sure thou art ready to rest.”

“Truthfully, I am,” Lyric told her as a hoof stifled another yawn, “though I don’t know if I will be able to now with all that I have learned. It’s all so interesting to me, and it’ll be circling around in my mind for quite some time.”

“I could help with that,” Luna offered.

Lyric pondered for a moment, then shook her head. “Actually, I feel like it’s a good thing. It shows that what I’ve learned means something, and that it will stay with me.” She grinned. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Lyric dipped her head in respect, slung her lute onto her back, and turned for the door. “Good night, Princess.”

“Good night, and sleep well,” she replied just as the earth pony put her hoof to the door. “And, Lyric?”

Lyric turned to face Princess Luna once more. “Yes?”

“I thank thee.”

Lyric smiled. “You’re welcome, Princess, and thank you, too.” She pushed the door open. “Have a good night.” And with that, she left the hall, her cloak swishing after her.


THE END