//------------------------------// // Chapter Thirteen: To The Victor... // Story: Light's Rising, Shadow's Fall // by jwizard //------------------------------// Equestria, Trottingham Outskirts, 03-18-05, 9:27 A.M. A.N.M. (After Nightmare Moon) It was a party of reasonably well-rested mares that made their way up a winding trail on one of the smaller mountains to the northwest of Trottingham. This mountain- part of the Foal Mountain Range -didn’t have an official name. However, the local buffalo that roamed the plains to the south called it ‘Little Beaver’. Though unremarkable to most, there were a couple of things that had brought this mountain to the attention of ponies. Around two centuries before, there had been a discovery of high quality mithril veins all through the nearby mountains. Various claims were made on the caves that housed the valuable metal, since it handled enchantments quite well. It had been years since the caves the three mares were travelling to had shown any kind of mineral profit, though recent discoveries concerning love-reactive compounds showed that there were likely some of that type of crystal nearby. More recently, the area had played host to several disreputable gangs; one of said gangs was involved in espionage and sabotage. This particular gang had used the cave system to the north as a place to ‘go to ground’ and to sometimes meet prospective clients. This gang was one that Clever Marigold had been part of for several years, much to her displeasure. It didn’t start out bad; at least at first. By the time she and the rest of said gang had been contracted to sabotage and mine the crystal veins under Ponyville, said gang had become one of the most disreputable. They had even gone so far as to stoop to burglary and robbery of nearby villages; though those few that were directly under Marigold swiftly found out that she wouldn’t tolerate such debased activities. After the last three of her underlings spent three weeks with four broken legs, the whole gang stopped such activities, though they still sabotaged trains from time to time. Of course, all but Marigold and a few others were now serving sentences for past offenses; not a single one of them had been willing to make any kind of deal with the authorities. A few of those that had been under demonic influence were serving their sentences by service to various Temples of Harmony around Equestria. All of this passed through Marigold’s mind as she led Twilight and Rainbow Dash up the slope. No matter how much forgiveness she’d already received, Marigold knew that she would be paying karmic dividends for some time to come. Further musing was cut short by Rainbow Dash. Though she would usually be flying at this point, various aches and pains in both her wings and her head had grounded her for much of the trip up the mountainside. The pegasus abruptly stumbled, grabbing her head in pain. Twilight rushed to her side as she saw a thin trickle of blood running down Rainbow’s face. Marigold quickly followed, grabbing a first-aid kit from inside her saddlebags. Twilight used some of the gauze from inside the kit to wipe Rainbow’s snout. “Rainbow Dash, I know it hurts, but I need you to remove your hooves,” Twilight said gently. Her head still throbbing, Rainbow nonetheless complied. What was revealed confirmed what Twilight had already suspected-- the tip of a spiraled horn was pushing its way forward. Twilight looked at Marigold with a worried expression. “I know you don’t want to stop here on account of this being a washout zone, but I don’t think we can move her until the horn comes  through completely. That’s going to take a few hours at least.” Marigold sighed heavily, nodding her compliance. She trotted several feet down the path that they had recently travelled. Leveraging her skill with earth runes, she created a water break, then trotted several feet up the trail to do the same. both water breaks were at the edge of the washout zone. “This should hold for the next few rains; I used to do this as often as needed, as one of the caves we passed on the way up here was the terminus for one of my hearth charms,” the unicorn said when she was finished. She then dug a pit and lined it with deadfall. Pointing her horn at the pile, she set it on fire. She then set a small cooking pot over it, and set a packet of herbs to boil. “I think a spot of tea is in order,” Marigold said, a smile on her muzzle. Twilight sniffed appreciatively at the aroma coming from the pot. So did Rainbow Dash, though the smell had a different affect on her. Within moments, she settled down on her belly, falling asleep. Twilight sniffed more carefully, recognizing the subtle hint of kingsfoil and moonflower present in the tea blend. “That’s one of Luna’s blends,” the purple alicorn said in a happy tone. “She said that it was something that an old friend had taught her a long time ago.” She accepted the cup that Marigold handed her. She sighed at the first sip; the tea seemed to cause all of the stress she had been dealing with lately to ooze out of her. In fact, she had to fight very hard to keep from falling asleep herself. Marigold chuckled at the blissful expressions that both Twilight and Rainbow Dash were wearing. Levitating her own cup, she made he way to a spot next to Twilight. “I’m glad this blend doesn’t have the same effect on unicorns. My Sovereign did say that the effect was stronger on both pegacorns and alicorns.” She sighed gustily. “I would have made a packet up earlier, but I only have a few; only enough for six more pots.” Twilight nodded. “Yes, it’s not a blend she gives out very often. Luna told me that it’s because of the relative rarity of the moonflower she uses; in fact, that particular variety is all but extinct except in her private gardens. She did try with the more common varieties that still grow in the Everfree, but they’ve mutated into a poisoned form.” Marigold frowned. “Poisoned? I wasn’t aware that they survived outside of her gardens,” she said in confusion. Twilight chuckled ruefully. “Oh yes, though not as any pony would normally notice. Somehow they cross-bred with Poison Joak trees to become a blue flower that has since gained a rather nasty reputation.” Marigold face-hooved as she realized that the more common variety of moonflower and Poison Joke were one and the same. Twilight chuckled at Marigold’s expression. “Yes, it’s not something that many ponies know.” She smile brightly as she remembered something. “Actually, Zecora told me that Poison Joke isn’t always bad. When exposed to the light of a full moon, it reverts to its natural form of a moonflower.” Marigold frowned pensively. “How do two incompatible plants cross-breed like that?” she asked. Twilight sighed. “Likely as a result of chaotic alicorn magic. Poison Joak has existed for years, but Poison Joke only appeared after Nightmare Moon.” She sighed rather heavily. “Runaway alicorn magic can often be as chaotic as Chaos magic, though it’s not fully understood why.” Marigold nodded. “Well, at least Princess Luna was able to provide some for us. I think she was more concerned about you though; she seemed to think that you were under far too much stress. Something about being groomed for the wrong kind of job.” Twilight frowned. “Yes, she would say that. She’s never came right out and said it, but I don’t think she fully agreed with Celestia in making me a princess.” Seeing the shocked look on Marigold’s muzzle, Twilight hastily clarified. “Oh, she knew I was likely going to turn into a pegacorn. That happened when she herself first made her own connection with the Element of Magic. No, her problem was in making me a princess. Luna knows that I never asked for the job, and had initially felt that I wasn’t cut out for it.” Marigold shook her head at that statement. “I can say with all honesty that she was wrong, because you are a bangin’ princess.” She chuckled at the blush her comment made rise from Twilight’s cheeks. Twilight- still blushing slightly -did her best to clarify her earlier statement. “Oh, Luna felt that I could do the job. No, her concern was that I was never asked whether or not I wanted the job. And she was right; being a princess wasn’t an objective I ever had. I nearly refused, and I would have been in my right to do so.” Marigold nodded at that. She sighed gustily. “How long is this going to take?” Twilight looked at the horn protruding from the crown of Rainbow’s forehead. “At least several hours. It’ll start slow; it’s going to take time for her body to process more alicorn without further damaging her hooves or her wings. I’m going to read while we wait; I need to come up with a lesson plan to help Rainbow once her horn fully comes in.” The other pony nodded. The two mares turned to other things to pass the time, knowing that there was a wait. Equestria, Trottingham Outskirts, 03-18-05, 3:27 P.M. A.N.M. (After Nightmare Moon A wave of heat finally roused Rainbow Dash from the most restorative nap she had had in a long time. The pegasus stretched like a cat, working out the kinks she had received from sleeping on the hard ground. Rainbow started to rub a hoof at the base of a heavy weight on her forehead, only to come in contact with a hard object. Opening her eyes, she stared cross-eyed at the cyan horn that was now parting her rainbow-hued bangs. She slumped, tears standing in her eyes. Abruptly, a pair of purple hooves wrapped her in a hug. “Let it out Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said softly. “It does you no good keeping the pain and worry in. With that, Rainbow started to cry. Her body quaked with heavy sobs. Another pony joined in the hug as Rainbow Dash let out all of her fears over the changes. After a few minutes, her tears turned into sniffles. Tenderly, Twilight used a hoofkerchief to wipe Rainbow’s eyes. “Here Rainbow, have a cup of tea; we saved you a couple,” Marigold said, levitating a camping mug over to the cyan pegacorn. Rainbow took it into her own levitation field, not fully aware that she was now using her new horn instead of her wings. She took a sip, cooing at the flavor. “Wow, this is really good! I mean, it smelled good, but it tastes even better. Light and fruity, and as sweet as a moonbeam.” “I’m glad you like it. Don’t get to used to drinking it all of the time though; we only have a few packets,” Twilight said, giggling at the blissful expression on Rainbow’s muzzle. Once she was finished, Twilight handed a granola bar to Rainbow. The pegacorn took it and ate it hungrily. Something inside the bar seemed to help, as the lingering throbbing aches in her wings, hooves, and at the base of her new horn faded. Twilight looked at her friend as she sighed sadly. “I know this may seem stupid, but are you alright now Rainbow?” she asked. Rainbow shook her head. “I wanna say yes, but I’m scared to.” She pointed at the horn that now graced her crown. “I knew this was going to happen, but I thought I had at least another week. Why now all of a sudden?” “Likely because there wasn’t anypony else around, and because the level of danger we’ve been dealing with had lowered,” Marigold said. She flushed at the gaze of the other two mares. “I know something of metaphysical shifts; I have a cousin that was born a unicorn, but changed into a pegacorn later in life.” “Marigold is right Rainbow. Up until now, you’ve been subconsciously blocking the last of the changes. Now that we’re alone, something inside of you decided that now was the time to finish what it had started.” Twilight frowned in concentration. “Based on the mana flares you’ve been having, I was expecting this to happen soon. Actually, it should have happened two days after your first major flare.” Rainbow whined. “This just makes things harder. The wings I can hide; how am I supposed to hide a giant spike stuck on top of my head?” The mare’s wings flared out in agitation. “These I could hide with that clever spell you taught me Twi, but can I use that to do the same with a horn?” Rainbow blinked a few times as something occurred to her, before screwing her eyes up in concentration. A bright flash of cyan light briefly blinded the other mares present. Blinking clear her eyes, Twilight looked to see Rainbow as she had looked a little over a week ago. Marigold shook her head in disbelief. “I’ve never seen anything like it! She just finished turning today, and she’s already casting full-on illusion charms?!” Twilight nodded, almost as surprised as the unicorn. “Rainbow has always had something of an instinctive control over her mana, though an illusion like this is a bit more complex for instinctive use.” Rainbow blushed a bit. “Actually guys, something my sensei once told me about how our bodies use mana helped me to fully understand the disguise spell you taught me Twi. Hay, I can even do this with it.” Another flash- not as intense -flared from her now-exposed horn. Twilight noticed that there was a faint cyan glow around it. “Now I look the same as I always did except to anypony that already knows,” Rainbow said smugly. She started to giggle at the look of stunned amazement that Marigold was wearing. Twilight chuckled. After a bit, Marigold shook her head. “A virtual newbie to magic modifies a spell that takes trained unicorn mages years to master, and she acts as if it’s no big deal,” the unicorn grumbled as she began to clean up their impromptu camp. Twilight grinned slyly as she packed the books she’d been reading into her saddlebags. “Oh Rainbow Dash, could you perhaps explain just how you affected the change? I’d like to see if my notes on third-stage illusion spells are at all accurate.” Rainbow was about to open her mouth to explain just how she did it when she stopped. She abruptly facehooved. “You did it again, didn’t you? Yes, you did.” The pegacorn continued to shake her head in mock aggravation as she waited for camp to be broke. “Am I missing something?” Marigold asked. Twilight smiled. “Basically, Rainbow Dash is a kinesthetic learner; she learns best by doing. More specifically, she learns things by her depth perception.” Twilight looked thoughtful. “Most pegasus do actually, though Rainbow’s is severe. So much so that she gets little from a classroom environment.” “Yeah, Twilight figured it out when she was trying to help me study for the Wonderbolt’s Reserve test several months ago,” Rainbow said, going into her customary hover as they all began walking up the trail. “When Twilight asked me to explain how I modified the illusion spell, I caught myself just before I said what was written on the last set of clouds we passed by yesterday.” “I was using a neat projection spell on the clouds to give her a few pointers,” Twilight said, blushing a bit. She then frowned. “That only worked because I had already given her the basics, and because disguise illusion spells are far simpler than what many ponies think. Most mages are simply trying to hard; they think every spell that changes how others see you has to be as hard as transfiguration or transformation magic.” “‘Magic is powered by Will, Thought, and Focus; theory only helps us to truly understand what we need to Focus on’,” Marigold quoted. Twilight smiled brightly at hearing one of Clover the Clever’s less well-known quotes. “Yes, exactly! Most unicorns simply don’t get that our magic is as many ways as instinctive as an earth pony or pegasi. They only think that applies to levitation; it’s actually true for just about anything except runic magic.” Twilight scowled. “But those tight-plots in the Equestrian Education Board are too hidebound to be willing to make any kind of changes, especially when anypony suggests that something taught to young earth pony foals has any bearing on a unicorn’s upbringing.” Rainbow frowned at that. “That’s nothing new. We’ve already seen just how much tribalism still exists in Equestria. I don’t get it; we’re all the same on the inside. If we were so different, you wouldn’t have earth pony colts and fillies being born in pegasi families with cloud-walking abilities.” Marigold sighed heavily. “Yes, things aren’t as rosy as the romantic types think. We’ve had peace for so long that it’s caused many to ignore many of the issues that are still left over from the Unification.” Both Twilight and Rainbow Dash frowned as they looked at each other. “I’m not sure how many are aware of this, but we’ve been real close to war several times,” the purple alicorn said after a few moments.” Not from Nightmare Moon or Sombra, but from the other nations that surround Equestria. In fact, most ponies aren’t even aware that the Centaur Confederacy nearly declared war against us five years ago.” Marigold stopped walking in shock. “You mean that they were willing to break the treaty that was signed fifty years after Luna’s Fall?” she asked in shock. Twilight nodded. “Luna’s Fall didn’t happen overnight. I mean, she only took upon the mantle of Nightmare Moon in the span of one night, but she had been descending down that path for several years beforehand. Muttering against her handling of the campaign against the Centaurian Empire- which became the Confederacy after Celestia and the PPP destroyed the remainder of the Imperial Guard and petrified the last surviving member of the Royal Family -was one of the last things that drove her to the point of no return.” “What few ponies realized is the wholesale slaughter of noncombatants and POW’s wasn’t on the order of Luna at all, but at the command of military commanders ordered by several key nobles. Six months after Luna’s Fall, the full evidence came out.” Rainbow swallowed briefly before continuing, having done so when Twilight paused with a stricken look on her muzzle. “Five of Equestria’s top commanders were petrified; three of the oldest Lords died from beheading, as their actions were construed as treason.” Twilight picked up the thread of conversation once Rainbow Dash had finished speaking. “The Equestrian High Council was so angry at the loss of their own that they passed numerous sanctions on Celestia and those that were sitting on the seats of the original Six. It took her five more years of political maneuvering before she was able to change all of that. In the end, it took the unpopular move of reinstating the meritocracy system for all of that to change.” After a short time, the three continued in a more subdued fashion. “I don’t remember any of this being in the history I was taught in school. Hay, I wasn’t even aware that there even was another princess besides Mi Amore Cadenza. I bet the Council had a field day when she showed back up five years ago; they weren’t likely to expect a Diarchy.” At that, Twilight started laughing. “Oh, if ponies only knew,” she said through her giggles. Rainbow Dash was giggling as well. “Marigold, Equestria never stopped being a Diarchy. Outside of the raising and lowering of Lune, all of Luna’s Princess duties were held in perpetuity by The Council of Eight until her return. The tradition of connecting Nightmare Moon to Nightmare Night- which has always existed since it originally started as an earth pony tradition -was part of a smear campaign against Luna. The exile of several of the nobles that protested Celestia’s ‘new’ laws ended further efforts, and within a hundred years, only historical scholars knew that Luna and Nightmare Moon were one and the same.” “Yeah, and the Princess encouraged that, as she knew that her sister was going to have enough problems on her return,” Rainbow said, having gotten her own giggles under control. “I was told a lot of this by Papa Prism growing up, but I thought most of it was just stories. I didn’t realize that it was actually history until Luna came back.” She scratched the back of her head sheepishly. “I kinda wish I’d paid better attention though; some of what he told me would have made our first adventure easier.” The other mares nodded at that; Twilight had an enigmatic smile on her muzzle, as she knew precisely what Rainbow Dash was referring to. Further conversation was halted as they finally reached the crest that they’d been aiming for. When Rainbow Dash made for the entrance, Marigold held her back with an upraised hoof. The unicorn crept to the side of the opening of the cliff face, and placed her left forehoof on an outcrop nearby. The other two mares felt a vibration pass around them. While Twilight felt little else than that, the quality of light that Rainbow Dash was able to see intensified. She was suddenly able to see shadowed ponies along the upper ridge, though she couldn’t make out any details. She also knew somehow that a trap had been laid for them. Her ire rose, allowing her to pull more deeply on her pegacorn mana. Marigold nodded to herself. She stamped her left hind hoof on the ground three times. A rumbling went through the mountain as dead falls were triggered in the connecting caverns. She then motioned for Twilight and Rainbow Dash to follow her into the cave. Once inside, the three ponies walked in tense silence. Twilight was running an anti-spell field cantrip in her mind to ensure that her magic would be free in case of a dampening field. She was also running counters to the same trap the unfortunate former D.A. had tried to use on them. Rainbow Dash, however, was doing something completely different. The newly emerged pegacorn wasn’t bothering with any kind of spell preparation. For one thing, she only knew a bare handful of unicorn spells; as for pegacorn-based magic, she knew all that she needed to know. No, she was using this new sense to explore the shadowed ponies that she sensed on the ridge. She had known that they had made their way down the sides of the mountain, likely to contact further reinforcements. And extra sense connected to the earth allowed her to sense that they were accosted by pegasus Guards-ponies that Marigold had requested as a precaution. The mares halted as they entered the main cavern. An off-white unicorn with a two-toned green mane coloring was waiting inside. A flare of mana heralded the sealing of the chamber; both Twilight and Marigold hissed in pain as the aura sealed their ability to cast spells. “Suave Polomare,” Marigold said in disgusted tone. “I should have known you were more involved than you said.”