Luna had awoken to see the weakened Nightmare Moon lying on the border of death with only enough magic to sustain her life. Luna knew Nightmare Moon would not pose a threat ever again. She had lost her power and she could not regenerate it. Luna said to the now weak Nightmare Moon, “You are too weak to fight. Surrender, and Twilight might show mercy to you. Although I would not.” Nightmare Moon weakly replied through gritted teeth, still exhausted from her power being stripped from her body, “I will yield to Twilight.” As Nightmare Moon said this, Luna banished her sword and picked up Nightmare Moon with her telekinesis, before gently placing her on her back, then teleporting to where Twilight was.
Luna dropped Nightmare Moon off of her back and nuzzled Twilight gingerly, before speaking. “Nightmare Moon has surrendered, and she will submit to your rule.” Twilight replied, shocked. “My rule, what… why, I’m no ruler.” Luna replied gingerly, “You are, do you remember what Celestia said?” Twilight replied understandingly, “Yeah, she said to look after her ponies. But that can't mean I’m the new ruler.” Luna continued with her reply. “Yes Twilight, my late sister and I had talked about it before your ascension. She wanted you to take over the rule, if she would perish. You are her protégé; you are the new princess of Equestria. My only job in the event this might happen is to teach you how to rule justly and kindly. I know you can do it, I have watched you grow for longer then you know.”
Twilight was shocked, she did not know what to think, she was first the princess of friendship then she was a bridge between dimensions, and now she was the new Princess of Equestria. Twilight felt like her world had been turned upside down, but her train of thought was disturbed when Luna embraced her once again; before she spoke “Don’t worry Twilight you will learn, and you will prosper. I know you will.” Luna said before breaking into song.
“You have achieved so much in your life time,
You have fought through battles and trials,
And you have already learnt the lessons,
The same lessons my sister and I learnt from our ma and pa,
This is where you play your part,
This is where your destiny has led you,
You are the ruler that has been decided by fate,
And now it’s time to play your part but do not fret,
Because you have your friends and family by your side
You have fought the demons inside of you,
The same as I and my sister have,
And we believe in you we know you will do well,
You will do well in your part
As Celestia did and you shall follow
The day we said that would turn around has come
And that day is nigh.”
As Luna finished her song, she spoke in her regular tone. “Twilight, trust me, I know you can do this.” Twilight replied still shocked but filled with understanding, “Ok, I’ll try to do my best, and I will take the lead.”
Twilight turned to Nightmare Moon and remembered what she had done to Equestria and Ponyville, and as she did, she started to see the guards of Canterlot shake off the evil influence. Twilight then ordered the guards to bind Nightmare Moon and take her to the dungeon, well what was left of the dungeon anyway. The guards were all too happy to oblige.
Twilight then added as they were carry Nightmare Moon away, to meet her at the town centre of Canterlot. “Yes Ma'am.” The guards replied, well trained, and disciplined.
After the guards took Nightmare Moon away, she told Rainbow Dash to tell all of the ponies in Ponyville to meet her at the Canterlot town centre. Rainbow Dash flew as quickly as her terminally damaged wings would carry her. She heralded Twilight's request to all of the ponies of Ponyville, and as she did the ponies started to filter towards Canterlot, a lot of them were curious to what exactly happened. They noticed smoke filtering out of Canterlot, and there was a giant crater cutting through Ponyville. As the last of the ponies filtered into Canterlot, Twilight had set up a podium.
Twilight hushed the murmurs of the crowd by raising a hoof, before announcing with a voice amplified by power, “Ponies of Equestria, I have some bad news to deliver to you all;we have lost a beloved and cherished figure in Equestria. Celestia has been murdered in the heat of battle with Nightmare Moon… she died protecting us all, she loved us all dearly, and she gladly sacrificed her life for us; it is a hard truth to swallow. I tried to save her but I failed; I only wished that I could rewind time and prevent this disastrous tragedy from unfolding. I feel like I have failed you all. But Equestria will rebuild, and it will have another ruler. In Celestia’s final request, she asked me to take her place; I do not want this responsibility, and I know that I can never replace our dear mother. As my mentor and friend's final request, I begrudgingly accept this responsibility. There will a funeral for her and my dear friend, Spike, tomorrow at dawn.” As Twilight said this, she fully realised the true pain she felt towards the loss, they all shared.
As the dawn sun rose, there was a morbid scene. It was raining and everypony who heard Twilight's announcement, met Twilight at the remains of Canterlot Castle. The ponies who saw this sight began to gasp at the carnage the battle had reaped. The ponies of Equestria wore black on this grim day, Octavia had brought her cello, and the guards lined the funeral walkway.
Twilight walked with a golden coffin, with a diamond lid, that was created from Rarity’s rarest collection of diamonds. Twilight had enchanted the coffin so that it would withstand the harsh elements. The coffin contained Celestia in her glory; her mane had been cleaned and brushed, and her wounds were healed. She looked like she had died peacefully; Luna wanted her sister to look this way when she went under the ground, in front of the statue of Celestia. The statue was crafted showing Celestia at her happiest; it was crafted with a kind smile and compassionate eyes.
Twilight walked in between the line of respected guards, which wore golden armour with Celestia’s cutie mark on it. They had just polished their armour before arriving. The guards raised their swords in an arch, showing respect for their late ruler. The florist ponies dropped rose petals as Twilight walked, and as she walked, Octavia played her cello; as she passed the lines of ponies, they bowed formally before Twilight and Celestia. It was a bow of respect for the new Princess of Equestria, and one of a somber nature as they paid homage to the late Princess of Equestria.
After Celestia was lowered into her grave, Twilight amplified her voice, reciting a poem she wrote.
“As the sun sets and the moon rises bringing forth the new night and the new day,
A fallen queen surrounded by roses falls to the clutches of death,
Peacefully sleeping for her to never wake,
Fallen to an enemy of unnatural birth,
Murdered by her cold touch as vengeance is carried out,
She sleeps eternally waiting for a moment to awake,
Which she will never see as moons pass and suns set,
A mother of her children lost to the abyss.”
As Twilight recited her poem, she struggled to hold her tears at bay. She wanted to go and hide in her room and mourn, but the weight of a crown began to weigh on her. Twilight knew she had to do this, she knew she had to be the brave one, so that others may mourn before she could mourn.
When the next day arrived, it was time to rebuild the fallen empire, and to clean up the aftermath of an epic battle won, and for a new Queen to take her place upon her throne, and to begin to learn the lessons she needed to learn to rule like her mentor once did.
Epilogue
Twilight Shroud had her sights set over Equestria, using a scrying orb. She watched Twilight undergo her lessons taught by Luna, as she thought to herself aloud, “Yes Twilight Sparkle; enjoy your peace while you can, but it will not last.” As she said this, a mysterious deep and dark voice came from the shadows behind her. The silhouette resembled a unicorn stallion with a wild mane. “She will learn that not all of her demons are truly gone. Ha, ha, ha,” As the mysterious voice heartedly laughed, a pair of evil red and green eyes began to glow for only a second. “Indeed my love.” Twilight Shroud purred evilly in agreement.
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