//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: The Moon Kingdom Chronicles // by Rehlia //------------------------------// Luna had been exceptionally patient. It would have been very easy to become restless during her wait, but she had reminded herself that even for somepony as powerful as her sister, getting to the moon would be difficult. Still. It shouldn't have taken her over a year. This time around Luna had allowed herself to keep track of the passing time. She had counted the rotations of the planet and watched the stars meander across the sky ever so slowly. And by doing this she hadn't been able to help herself - she had compared them to how they had looked when she had first woken up on the moon. The movement of the stars was slow and tracing them by eye was difficult and inexact. Had she not been the ruler of the night, she might not have noticed the changes at all. But she was Luna, Princess of the Night and she did notice. And it made her skin crawl. By her estimates, she had already been on the moon for more than half a century. In all that time Celestia had ignored her. Had Luna been right about her sister after all? Did Celestia not care about her as long as she had the attention of her subjects? Or was this an act of revenge for her outburst as Nightmare Moon? Because after everything Luna had changed here, there was no way not to notice that it was her who was stuck here instead of the Nightmare, and that she was conscious and sound of mind - was there? Did Celestia think that Luna deserved this punishment? That would be cruel. Beyond cruel. Luna had been the Nightmare for only such a short time and she barely caused any damage. But she had wanted to, hadn't she? Her plan - or the Nightmares plan, it was difficult to determine in retrospect where her own feelings ended and that of the parasite began - had been to defeat her sister and bring forth eternal night. And while she had just proven that life was possible under only moon and stars, that was only with heavy modifications and a focus on nocturnal species. Would she have made the same effort for the creatures of the day, had she succeeded? For all of them, in all of Equestria? In all of the world? Luna honestly didn't know, even now, and what did that say about her? And yet, a thousand years on the moon, all alone - surely nopony deserved that? She suddenly couldn't help but remember the enemies she had helped defeat before. Was Sombra awake under the ice? Was Discord conscious in his prison of stone? Did they regret and question just like she did? Had they sent signs that she ignored? She shuddered. If that was indeed the case then she could no longer count on her sister to save her. So she needed an alternative, but what? Around her, the glade she had rested on was just as peaceful and beautiful as before. And even if there were hummingbirds and sugar gliders and all manner of animals thriving among the plants she had created, it was ultimately just as empty. It was terribly lonely to be the only pony around. Even before, when she had felt that the entire world had abandoned her to fawn over her sister, she hadn't felt this alone. She had still met her courtiers, the servants, a rare subject here and there, and of course her sister too. Right now, she would have given anything to have Celestia here no matter how jealous she had been before. Her sister had been her closest friend once, after all. Luna lowered her head. What she had done had not been the acts of a good friend. Never mind her jealousy or how much she thought she had been in the right, those had not been the actions of a true friend. It had not been loyal. It had not brought laughter. It had been honest, perhaps, but honesty untempered by kindness or compassion. She glanced up and saw Equestria half covered under a swirl of soft looking clouds. Bad weather. Maybe it was winter back home. “I'm sorry,” she said out loud. It did nothing of course, it didn't even help her feel better. She began walking again. It wasn't as if she had anything else to do. Flowers and trees passed her by without her paying them any attention. Meadows and forests crisscrossed by rivers and lakes. She stopped at one and watched her reflection in the water. Her face looked tired and defeated, and sad, but it was still nice to see the face of a pony, even if it was just her own. “I wish I could say I didn't mean it,” she told her reflection. “But I did. I really did.” There was, of course, no reply. It would have been worrying, had there been one. It was a sure sign that you were going mad if your reflection was answering you, as Luna unfortunately knew from firsthoof experience. Still, she wished there was somepony to reply. Anypony. Her hoof touched the surface of the water and her reflection blurred. This didn't help. She could wish for company as much as she wanted, it didn't change her situation. Nothing she could do was of any help. In the slowly stilling water, one of the hummingbirds she had created so long ago was reflected as it flew past, right above her face. Nothing..? No. Blasphemy. The very thought shouldn't have crossed her mind at all. It was wrong, she didn't even know if it was possible and it would be even more selfish than allowing herself to become the Nightmare. But she was so lonely… Luna glanced away from her reflection. Thus she did not see her face as it contorted, the wars she fought inside herself mirrored on the outside. The moment when she stilled felt breathless, lightheaded with the decision. Her horn ignited, the magical blue aura wavering with her insecurity. She extinguished her magic again. How should she even start? This wasn’t anything that had been taught or even discussed when she learnt magic. Creating flowers and non sapient animals from magic was already complex and took a lot of power. But a pony? Luna thought about ponies she had known before. Maybe it would be easier to start with a template. She had done that with the flowers and animals too, after all, before she had started inventing things. The problem was just that working from a template… well, that would result in a copy. In Luna's mind that would be even more problematic than the creation itself would already be. Forever feeling as if they were only a shadow of another person - no. Of course she couldn’t do that, not after her own experiences. So not a single template - but what if she combined them? Mixing looks and personalities into something new? It would still be troublesome, but better. This time when she ignited her horn, the blue aura did not jitter. The steady glow intensified as she concentrated on her task, recalled ponies she had known before her banishment. Luna did not pick and choose the traits of those ponies, instead allowing them to combine and merge by themselves. If she was going to create a pony, she could not make it a pony molded to her desires. They would have to be their own pony, free from her wishes. That's what she told herself. She also kept telling herself that this didn't make what she was doing any better. Allowing free will in her creation did not make her a better pony while doing this. What she was doing was completely selfish, motivated by loneliness and personal desires against all morals. She was a bad pony and she would not allow herself to forget it this time around. Her aura spiked. A bolt of energy shot from her horn and struck the water in front of her. Small jets of it rose into the air and split, and split, and split again, forming a complex, finely carved network. The water turned red. Luna watched in fascination as water transformed into blood, arteries and veins created from magic and normal liquid. She no longer controlled this process at all, merely kept the pathways of her magic open so the process could continue. Steam rose from the remaining water underneath and packed itself tighter into cloud matter. The white, fluffy material wound itself around the complicated network of a new bloodstream. Fuzzy cloud became hard bone and tightly packed muscle, fur and mane and tail and a spread of feathers. The pony in front of her was a soft, pale green with a teal mane and tail. It had the slender build of a mare and a pair of wings. Her eyes were closed and Luna marvelled at the fact that she had no idea what colour they would be, at having created something with so little conscious input. The magic holding the mare aloft slowly faded and the pony was lowered onto the ground. She lay there and breathed and Luna caught wisps of a dreamscape at the edge of her perception. She decided to let the pony rest. She was technically a newborn after all, even if Luna's magic had decided to give her the form of a grown mare. The pony began to stir after a couple of hours. Her hooves twitched and she blinked. Her eyes were a light brown, almost beige. Luna smiled at the pony and tried to make herself look as nonthreatening as possible. It was hard to say if she succeeded. The mare simply stared at her. Then she began to look around, still not saying a single word. Had Luna made a mistake? Guilt washed over her. If she had created this pony only for the mare to emerge unsound of mind… but then the mare spoke after all, and Luna's fears settled. “Hello. Where are we?” The mare asked. “We are on the moon,” Luna said. She had decided right away that she would not lie. “Oh. That is not what I remember the moon to look like.” “Remember...?” The astonishment was clear in Luna's voice. She had tried to avoid direct copying and so the mare should have no memories… shouldn't she? Luna felt out of her depth. “Yes? But ‘tis a bit strange. I am fairly sure the moon is supposed to be comprised of rocks and dust, from what I remember. I cannot seem to remember my name though. But I do know who you are.” Luna's stare became even more incredulous. What was happening? “Truly?” The mare nodded. “You are Princess Luna.” And she stood up and bowed. Luna fought within herself. Years of habit told her to rise, tower over the mare, extend her hoof out for a kiss and boom a Royal Greeting as was protocol. Her instincts, on the other hoof, told her to do none of these things and be gentle. Luna remembered the mad desire of Nightmare Moon for subjugation and decided to go with instinct. “Please, rise,” she managed to say with only a moderate amount of volume. It felt very strange to keep her voice down like this. The mare appeared to be just as surprised when her face returned to its normal position. “Princess Luna? May I ask you a question?” “Thou art free to ask Us any question thou desirest.” “Why are we on the moon?” Luna sighed. Straight to the point it was. But she had sworn not to lie, and she would keep her oath. She lowered her head. “We were… I was banished to the moon by the Elements of Harmony for my crimes. Out of jealousy, I allowed myself to become a monster and tried to plunge the world into eternal night. Now I must atone.” The mare began to look distinctly uncomfortable and Luna couldn't blame her. “Was I banished too?” “No,” Luna whispered. “I began to transform the moon in the hopes of sending a sign back home. When I noticed how long this took and that it did not work… I was very lonely. So I…” “You made me?” The mare really was very direct. Luna nodded. “I know it was selfish. I can only hope for thy forgiveness.” She lowered her head even further and waited. Any anger the mare would hold for her, any harsh words, she would take it all, had accepted their necessity the moment she had decided to go through with this. It was silent for a moment, then she heard hoofsteps. Pale green hooves appeared in her field of vision as the mare walked up to her. Luna braced herself for a strike. Instead, she felt the mare sit down next to her and touch one of her wings to Lunas. “I am not angry, my Princess. There is nothing to forgive.” Luna's head shot up in disbelief. “I- what?” “My Princess, if you created me, then without you, I would not be alive - and I rather enjoy being alive. How could I be angry about my own existence?” Luna opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Try as she might, she couldn’t find an answer to this. She closed it again, slightly mortified at her own lack of dignity. “Is it not the same as if a mare and a stallion decide to have a child? Nopony would call such a couple selfish, would they not?” “I suppose not… although there are situations where one might say… ” The mare shrugged. “We can sit here all night and you can insist you are a bad pony while I protest, but I would much rather do something fun, my Princess. Would you not agree?” It was said with a warm smile that Luna found utterly irresistible. She could feel her loneliness draining away at this smile. “I would,” she said and allowed herself a small smile of her own. This pony seemed to be quite dedicated to having fun. As the - former - Element of Laughter, Luna could appreciate that. “Then I would like to start with a name. I do not have one yet and I would like you to give me one, please.” “Wouldst thou not prefer to choose thy own name once thou receivest thy cutie mark?” The mare shook her head. “I do not yet know when that will be, it might mean that I have to wait a lifetime for one. I can still change my name once I receive my cutie mark, after all. Besides, if I am of your creation, I might just as well call you mother, and as such it would be your duty.” The mare winked at her while Luna's face contorted itself into a mixture of embarrassment, protest and a faint hint of pride. “Very well,” Luna finally managed to say, trying to regain her composure. “If thou truly wishest for my assistance…” The mare looked up to her with a look of pure joy and excitement, her pupils blown wide like that of a begging pet. Although upon further reflection, it might have been a side effect of the dim light conditions. Wresting her thoughts back to the topic at hand, Luna tried to find something matching for the mare in front of her. Foals were often named after their colours or for the wishes their parents had for them. Then once they found their cutie mark, custom dictated they could decide if they kept their birth name or if they wanted to change their name after their mark with the help of their family. A cutie mark was a first step towards adulthood and to achieve it meant being allowed to make some first decisions of adulthood as well - like the change of a name. Luna didn’t know what she should wish for her creation. She wanted the mare to be happy, but who wouldn’t want that? It was far from specific. She decided to go by the colour of her coat. This particular shade of green reminded her of sunlit grass - something she found she actually missed after so many years of only night. “Mignonette,” Luna said. “Mignonette,” the mare repeated thoughtfully. The smile Luna had found so irresistible reappeared on her face. “I like it!” Luna chuckled and Mignonette chimed in. Her laughter reminded Luna of her sister. What a sweet, sharp ache that was. She wanted to hear more of it. “So, Mignonette. Thou hast received a name as was thy wish. Wouldst thou like me to show thee the moon?” “Of course!” Mignonette laughed once more and spread her wings. “I have to earn my cutie mark somehow, after all!” To Luna’s astonishment, Mignonette remembered how to fly. Talking to her revealed that she remembered a lot of things apparently: she knew how to wield a lance and how to make bread, could speak in detail about the layout of Everfree castle and the surrounding gardens, could describe how to maintain these gardens and how to avoid all the prank traps installed there. She recalled the basics of weather management and the exact daily schedule of Princess Celestia. But she didn't know who her parents were or what her childhood had been like, couldn't name a favourite dish or favourite colour, couldn't tell if she'd had friends or who they might have been. It did not seem to bother her, as far as Luna could tell. She gave it a lot more thought than Mignonette seemed to while they flew and explored the moon together, time flying just as quickly with them. “I think I understand thy nature now, Mignonette. Or at least that of thy memories.” “You do?” “Indeed. I suspect that my working with different templates and their merging left some residual knowledge of these templates in thy mind. Though as thou art not a mere copy of a single pony, thou didst not receive any personal memories, and instead only the practical and impersonal took hold.” “That does sound logical, my Princess.” Luna gazed up at Mignonette where she was perched on a cloud. They had reached the edge of the ocean where Mignonette was trying her hoof at weather management, which she appeared to be quite good at. “Why dost thou call me thus?” “My Princess?” “Yes, that.” “Because I remember protocol enough to want to call you Princess. But you are also my creator and special to me. So you are my Princess.” She ignored Luna's thoughtful frown and hopped on the cloud, striking it repeatedly with her hooves. The cloud quivered and emptied the water contained in it in a relatively soft drizzle, soaking the grass growing at the edge of the cliff. “I approve of thy form of address,” Luna finally declared, which for some reason drew another laugh from Mignonette, as carefree as the first two. “I approve of how this cloud feels under my hooves! It feels nice to make it rain like that.” “Art thou discovering thy cutie mark?” “Maybe? It is unlikely I would know until it happens.” Luna nodded thoughtfully. She could have suggested different approaches, but it was generally believed that it was better, healthier, for foals to come into their cutie marks by themselves, a theory that Luna herself subscribed to. Besides, as much as she tried to ignore the fact, she couldn’t help but think of the fact that Mignonette was her creation, the first entirely magically created pony that Luna personally knew of. Something Luna hadn't even been sure would be possible at all. She had to know if Mignonette was… well. Normal. If her cutie mark manifested without outside help, Luna would take it as the final, ultimate proof that she had indeed created a normal pony. A cutie mark was, after all, the manifestation of a pony's destiny. One might as well call it an emblem of their soul. “Thou shalt surely find it in time,” Luna finally said. She might not help, but she could at least encourage the young pony. Young in more ways than just one. She couldn’t help the curiosity she felt bubbling within her mind. “Dost thou feel like a filly?” Mignonette shot her a stern glance, stopping her work with the cloud for a moment. “No. I would prefer for you not to think of me as such, my Princess.” Luna tried to say something, but Mignonette hurried along, as if she didn't want to interrupt and figured if she just continued fast enough, it wouldn’t count as an interruption. „For one, I do simply not feel like one, even if I lack memories of a childhood. I assume you must have thought only of adult ponies when you made me, and that mindset took hold.” Mignonette was correct. Foals were long asleep by the time Luna woke and she hadn't seen one, let alone met one, in a good long while before her banishment. “In addition to that, if you think of me as a foal… well, it serves as a reminder of my technically artificial nature, does it not? And I do not like that, my Princess, not because I mind how I came to be, but because of what that implies. I may have been created by magic and willpower, but that does not make me less of a pony. If you continue to remind us of my artificial nature, I feel that it diminishes me. It diminishes the fact that I am I pony, regardless of how I came to be.“ The two of them stared at each other in a moment of heavy silence. Luna finally gave her a single, serious nod. „Thou art correct. I apologise; the way I treated you was not… ‘twas not right.“ „I forgive you, my Princess.“ Just like that, the tense moment was over. Mignonette wrangled the cloud a few paces over so its rainfall would reach another patch of plants. They looked a bit droopy, and Mignonette stared at them looking all pleased, knowing she was helping them to survive. „Thou art quick to forgive,“ Luna said, taking great care to speak around the lump in her throat so it would not be audible. It had been a thought for her for so many of her lonely long years here on the moon: If only the Elements of Harmony had stopped to forgive her so quickly. If only her sister had forgiven her and come to fetch her. She didn’t feel she deserved such quick forgiveness, not anymore, and she had thought she should better accept that. And now, just like that, she had been granted some measure of forgiveness anyway and it was too much, she almost didn’t know what to do with it. „That is what friends do, or at least I think it is. Especially for you.“ „Because I am a Princess?“ „Because you look just as droopy as these flowers I am watering. You need a bit of kindness to water you and pick you up. Just like I can give these flowers water, I can give you my kindness. I love giving you that, to know that I can help. I will do it again and again, whenever you need it. If I spend my entire life doing just that, I do not feel it would be wasted.“ The lump in Luna’s throat grew conspicuously heavy, and surely that had nothing to do with how blurry her field of vision was becoming. Was it her impaired vision, or was there a flash of light? She tried to smile and it felt strangely difficult. „Now I am not sure whether I should thank or congratulate thee.“ Mignonette looked confused for a second, but then she turned to look at her flank with a gasp of joy. Her cutie mark was a white, curly looking cloud, with three pink, heart-shaped drops falling from it. „My cutie mark!“ „It suits thee well. We shall have to celebrate it.“ „I do not suppose there is cake on the moon yet?“ There was such a deep sense of longing behind those words, one that felt achingly familiar, that Luna couldn’t help but erupt in laughter. It felt good. „Nay, I am afraid there is no cake yet. But I could still try and conjure one if it would please thee.“ Mignonette’s eyes lit up at that and so Luna complied, still chuckling. It was a simple cake - she had never quite mastered this particular spell quite as well as her sister - but it still did the trick. Mignonette dove off her cloud and snatched the sweet treat out of the air, almost looked like she was about to gobble it all up in a single, enormous bite, only to restrain herself and nibble daintily at it. Her eyes closed in apparent pleasure. „Vanilla frosting! It tastes heavenly.“ „It used to be my sisters favourite,“ Luna said gently. „I learned this spell for her.“ Mignonette lowered herself with a few quick beats of her wings until she reached the ground. She held half of the cake out for Luna. „Let us share it, then. ’Tis not much of a celebration if only one participant eats cake in any case.“ They sat and ate in companionable silence. A couple of bioluminescent moths came fluttering by, lured in by the sweet scent of vanilla, and Mignonette shared some crumbs of her cake with them too, calling them her guests. She was not able to convince them to join in her in the games though. „Hast thou decided if thou wishest to change thy name yet?“ Luna asked after the moths had left. „Oh, you are right, I get to do that, do I not? I forgot about that for a moment there.“ „A change of name if she wishes for it, and a celebration for the occasion, such is custom,” Luna reminded her with a smile. “Although ours is a small celebration.” “What matters is who you spend it with,” Mignonette said with another easy smile. “Now, as for my name - I have decided I do want to change it.” She nervously fidgeted on her spot without ever quite standing up and cleared her throat. Luna waited patiently as the mare got ready. “Heart Drops,” she finally said. “Heart Drops,” Luna repeated thoughtfully. “ ‘Tis very fitting. Thou hast chosen well.” Heart Drops smiled and seemed to sag a little under the relieved breath that left her. It transformed into a giggle, and then into a loud burst of laughter as her smile grew ever wider. “I was really worried about whether or not you would like it, my Princess!” She confessed. “The one you gave me was so beautiful, I didn't want to disappoint!” “Truly, ‘twas that important to you?” Luna couldn’t help the indulgent tone that had crept into her voice. Heart Drops was - and as much as she might protest it, Luna would always remember it on some level - her creation. But even more importantly, she was her friend. To see this friendship returned and have somepony care so much was something Luna truly cherished in the deepest parts of herself. How could she not feel indulgent for this mare? “Well, yes, my Princess,” Heart Drops said, now insecure again. “I… I confess there is something I would like to ask of you, though I do not know how to start.” Luna perked up at this serious tone, eyes and ears alert on the mare in front of her. “Honesty is by far the best approach in most situations, Heart Drops. Speak thy mind freely, and know that I shall not hold thy words against thee, whatever they may be.” Heart Drops visibly gathered herself. When she spoke it sounded strained, as if she was speaking past the weight of the entire moon. “I would like to ask you to create another pony. Several even.” Luna almost sprung up, but once more Heart Drops rushed forwards to intercept her before it even officially became an interception. “My Princess, please! I know you are wary about this, but at least hear me out until the end.” Luna's muscles kept wanting to propel her upwards, her barrel and flanks twitched with the anger thrumming through her body. Heart Drops sat in front of her in silence, eyes blown wide from the lack of light and her worries, waiting. If Luna decided to dismiss her, Heart Drops would listen. The decision was Luna’s. She controlled herself, barely. “Speak.” Heart Drops gathered herself and her first words sounded breathy with the air she had held while she waited for Luna to make her decision. “My Princess, it is just… if I stay the only mare on the moon with you, then what will become of me? Will I live out my days with you as my company until I die, never to know the company of anypony else, and knowing that I will leave you alone again? Or would you have me become like you, to live the centuries of your banishment out with you?” The was a short moment where neither mare said a word. “My Princess, I confess… I do not wish for immortality.” She witnessed Luna's flinching. Carried on regardless. “I dream of a normal pony life… of a family to call my own. I dream of a community to grow in, of falling in love, to see my foals play in the grass and guide them as they grow up, teach them all they must know, pass on my knowledge to my children's children until I'm old and grey. And then when my time to go should come… I will go.” “Heart Drops, no!” The words were spoken in pain, the kind of razor sharp feeling that only love can lodge deeply into your very soul. “Thou art my friend. My first and only friend on the moon.” “Your first, my Princess, yes. But I don't have to be the last. The only. That is what I am trying to say.” There was another moment of silence, interrupted only by the smallest sound of sobs, barely perceptible over the rush of the sea, the cries of the seagulls and the sweet songs of nightingales and hummingbirds. “I'm sorry, my Princess. But you asked me to be honest.” Heart Drops lay down in the grass, right next to where Luna had sunken down. She draped her pale green wing over the dark blue one and held Luna carefully in a feathery embrace. “My Princess, you were so worried when you made me and I can see that you still are. But I still don't think you did anything wrong. I am sound of mind, I earned my cutie mark. Is that not proof that I am normal?” Luna tried to steady her breath. It was true, but there was still her guilt. She had wished for company and so she had created company, against all rules and warnings she had known. She had not wanted to suffer her banishment alone, and so she had inflicted it on another without care. She could not blame Heart Drops for having the same wish, but was it not her duty to stop this before it escalated further? Even if that meant Heart Drops bleak predictions for her own future became true? Luna shuddered. What had she done? She had not foreseen this when she had created the mare beside her. Now it was too late to change the outcome. All she could do was deal with the consequences of her own mistakes. She opened her mouth, but then closed it again before any sound came out. Luna had given much thought to how she felt about the matter - but what about Heart Drops? Her she had only considered as an extension of her own thoughts. It was still entirely selfish, just as selfish as when she had first created the mare. And what did that say about her? Those were not the actions of a true friend. She was not the Nightmare anymore. Luna knew this. But then the Nightmare had been a parasite and the base template of it's character - that had been Luna and nothing else. She could recognise it within herself now, the points of her character where the Nightmare had latched onto her and twisted until she became the monster. Inherently passionate, too passionate, quick to rise to anger, impulsive and unthinking of consequences, easily jealous and often caught up in her own problems to the point of utter selfishness. The Elements of Generosity, Kindness and Friendship had always been her sister's after all. Loyalty though - that had been all hers. It was time to act it. And maybe it was time to reach into herself and drag out Generosity and Kindness and Friendship too, Elements or no. Maybe she had began this out of selfishness, but she could change that. If she continued without any thought to her own worries and hesitance, doing it solely for the benefit of Heart Drops, would that not mean something? Overcoming her own worst qualities, perhaps? Luna didn't know. All she could do was hope that she was right. She wiped away the residue of tears on her face and rose, Heart Drops rising with her. They both turned until they faced each other. “I will do it, Heart Drops. For thee.”