The air seemed to grow cold in Ponyville; the noonday sun overhead seemed to fall behind a huge, dark cloud, even though the day was perfectly clear. Everypony noticed it, even if they weren’t aware of why; but for the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, the reason became abruptly and horrifyingly clear.
Next to Falling Star, a dark shadow gathered, sucking in all light and warmth, all happiness and joy as it formed into a pony-shape; the dark blue Pegasus took a step to the side as darkness burst out from it, sending everything into blackness for a split second before revealing a tall black unicorn clad in black armor and wearing a sword at his hip.
Twilight felt her mouth go completely dry, and in spite of her best efforts, she could not keep her own knees from shaking as the black stallion opened his golden eyes and turned them directly on her. The power she felt from him… the absolute power washing off of his amulet was enough to drive a stake of fear into her heart.
“Wh-who in the hay is that…?” She heard Applejack mutter from behind her.
The black unicorn laughed, a deep, evil sound that permeated the very air about them until it felt like it was coming from everywhere. “Oh, how quaint… you really don’t know?” He jerked his head towards the other generals. “Well, do you know who they are, little pony?”
Applejack took a step up towards him, her eyes full of challenge. “Yeah, I do. Those’re Wild Star, Fallin’ Star an’ Mornin’star, all generals fer Nightmare Moon.”
The black unicorn smiled dangerously. “And you were missing one…” He sighed in mock vexation. “And who does that make me..?”
Applejack’s face drained of color, and Twilight felt her stomach twist in pure, abject horror as her friend delivered the answer. “Yer… yer Dark Star…”
“I am indeed,” he answered, mocking a bow. Twilight found her eyes drawn to the amulet around his neck; it was a small, smooth, round black stone, nothing that would stand out in the natural world… but the feelings washing off of it, the power, the rage, the fear and sorrow… it was almost too much for her to bear.
Dark Star turned to Falling Star. “Report.”
Falling Star straightened and held himself rigidly, as a soldier at attention. “Sir, Wild Star has been severely injured, and cannot be moved until Morningstar is finished healing him.”
The black stallion cast a glance towards the two other generals. “And how long with that take?” he asked, irritation clearly written on his face.
“Morningstar seems to think twenty minutes will suffice for his healing and recovery,” Falling Star said, although Twilight could hear the doubt in his voice, a doubt that she shared. Injuries like that can’t be healed that quickly, she thought.
“Hmm,” Dark Star responded. With one last glance at Wild Star, still lying prone on the ground, he turned his attention back to Twilight and her friends, his small, confident smile returning. “And so it seems we have finally come to the conclusion, ponies,” he said, stepping away from the other generals towards Twilight. The purple unicorn felt her ears lay back in fear and anger. “Today will mark a new chapter in the history of Equestria,” he continued. “A day when Harmony fell, and Destruction rose.”
Without a second thought, Twilight used her magic to lift the ornate crown out of her right saddlebag and settle it gently atop her head; it nestled perfectly down into her hair, and she felt a surge of power and confidence race through her. A wave of pure magical power filled Twilight to the brim, and when she turned her eyes back to Dark Star her fear was replaced by fearlessness, a certainty that burned deep in her heart and chanted a single, defiant note through her soul.
With my friends here, I can’t lose.
“You can’t destroy Harmony,” Twilight said, her confidence ringing in her voice. She could hear her friends behind her, all moving closer to her as she spoke; just their closeness was enough to make her smile defiantly at Dark Star. “Just like we could never truly destroy Discord; Chaos and Harmony will always exist in this world, and neither you nor anypony else can destroy them.” Behind her, her friends all nodded and voiced their agreement, but they were cut off as Dark Star laughed.
“Oh really? Are you willing to bet your lives on that?” He waved a hoof dismissively. “It’s true; I know that I cannot destroy the Elements of Harmony…that’s what my comrades were for.”
Twilight nodded. “They were sent here to sow dissent in our friendship; make sure we hated each other enough that we couldn’t work together.” She puffed out her chest. “Well, it didn’t work! None of us hate each other, isn’t that right, girls?”
“That’s right!” Rainbow Dash said. “Hate is for losers.”
“Surely not,” Rarity said, brushing her mane with a hoof.
“PFFFFFFFFFFFT,” Pinkie Pie said.
“Um… I-I don’t hate anypony…” Fluttershy muttered.
“Y’all can take yer hatred an’ get outta town!” Applejack said, pawing the dirt with a hoof.
Twilight arched an eyebrow at Dark Star. “Like I said, it looks like your plan failed, and failed miserably, Dark Star.” She set her hooves slightly apart. “Now… are you going to surrender? Or are we going to have to use the Elements of Harmony to end this?”
Dark Star looked behind him, where Morningstar was still working on Wild Star. “Oh dear me… it looks like my comrades aren’t ready to combat such a threat…” He turned back to Twilight, his face a mask of mock terror. “Oh no, Twilight Sparkle! Please, please spare us!!” he pleaded. He held the look for a few seconds, but that seemed to be his limit; the mask melted and Dark Star laughed- actually laughed!!- at her. “Oh Twilight..! Please, it’s too much.” He waved a hoof. “By all means, use the Elements of Harmony. Please. End this now, if you can.”
Twilight glared at him. “All right… if you insist.” She turned to her friends. “Girls? Let’s do this.” As one, her friends nodded and closed their eyes; Twilight closed hers as well, and gave herself up to the Element of Magic.
She felt pure magical energy blaze into her body, filling it with power; and she felt the crown itself reach out to the necklaces that her friends wore, the reservoirs of their own powers. She felt a huge surge of magic every time the crown found one of the necklaces- first it was Pinkie Pie, accompanied by a flow of magic both warm and cold, like warm cake and fresh ice cream. Second was Fluttershy and a power that was soft and gentle but also impenetrable. Twilight felt her power increasing, and she could feel the pure magic in the air around them begin to crackle like tiny bolts of lightning… but when the crown reached out for Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Applejack… there was no huge, grand flow of magic that greeted her. From Applejack and Rarity, no magic came at ALL, and from Rainbow Dash only the barest trickle. Twilight gritted her teeth and reached harder; but try as she might, the Elements of Generosity, Honesty and Loyalty were almost completely closed to her.
Suddenly, it was all gone; the Element of Magic released her, and she slumped almost to the ground as the intense magical energies left her body, and to her absolute horror, Dark Star stood exactly where he had been before: unmoved, and unafraid.
She stared at him blankly for a few moments before she could find her voice. “What… what did you DO to us?!” Twilight yelled at him, anger flaring to life.
Dark Star laughed again, but this time it held no mirth at all. “Twilight Sparkle… you know that I sent my generals in to subvert you. Why do you think that I was going to do that with hate? Hate is not their specialty; it’s mine. They used their own, unique talents to attack your friends, just as I instructed… and it worked perfectly.” His smile was as cold as the dead of winter. “And now, on to business.” He took a step towards Twilight, and the unicorn stubbornly held her ground as he spoke. “It’s clear that you cannot use the Elements of Harmony to stop us… so I offer you a choice, Twilight Sparkle.” His golden eyes glowed in the sunlight. “Surrender the Elements of Harmony to me, or be destroyed.”
“What?” Twilight asked, frowning in confusion. “You want… the Elements? Why? You agreed that they couldn’t be destroyed, and there’s no way that YOU could use them.”
“Aah, very true. But if they were in my keeping, then nopony could use them against me, don’t you agree?” Dark Star chuckled then focused on Twilight so intently that she felt as though his golden eyes were staring through her soul. “Just give them to me, Twilight Sparkle, and walk away with your friends. You’ll never be bothered by me again. But refuse…” His voice dropped to barely a whisper. “…and I will kill you.”
Applejack, Rarity and the rest all gasped in horror, but to her surprise, Twilight didn’t feel scared; in fact, with the Element of Magic coursing through her, it seemed almost like a joke. She just smirked at him. “It won’t matter, you know; if you kill me, the Element of Magic will just find somepony else to defeat you.”
“Also true…” Dark Star snorted. “But it won’t find somepony else to stop me from completing my plans today. And that’s enough for me.” He lowered his head slightly, brandishing his horn threateningly. “So what’s your decision, Twilight Sparkle? Do you surrender the Elements, or forfeit your life?”
Twilight lifted her chin high and answered without hesitation. “You’re welcome to kill me… if you can.” She smiled at him, and again she felt the power of Magic surge through her. “I’m not the Element of Magic for nothing,” she said, her horn beginning to glow with a bright white light. “I think you might find me a much more difficult target than you think.”
Dark Star’s smile became predatory as his own horn began to glow with a dark blue light. “Well by all means, Twilight Sparkle… let’s find out.”
“Get behind me, girls!” Twilight shouted, and despite her quick warning she was almost too late; a fireball the size of a pony formed and launched itself from Dark Star’s horn with tremendous speed, rocketing towards Twilight almost faster than she could react. With lightning speed a crystal clear cerulean shield burst into being before Twilight, large enough to cover herself and her friends easily as the fireball smashed into it and exploded with such force that Twilight felt her hooves slide back half a pony-length. She looked up through the shield at Dark Star, her smile still in place.
The black unicorn returned her smile, and fire once again spouted from his horn, a wave of it this time, washing over the grass like a tidal wave of flame. Twilight tweaked the magic holding her shield in place just slightly and the cerulean object expanded, morphing and wrapping around the six ponies until it formed a perfect sphere all around them. The fires collided with the sphere, hissing against the sides and torching the grass around them but inside the sphere Twilight and her friends were safe; it was even nice and cool inside.
“Tarnation, Twilight…” Applejack said, gazing up at the fire.
But if any compliments were forthcoming, they were quelled by a shift in Dark Star’s tactics; suddenly the fire withdrew slightly and formed into a huge snake made entirely of fire. Some of her friends screamed, but Twilight kept her eyes on the huge magi-formed creature. The snake lashed out at the sphere, biting at it with its enormous flaming fangs, but it was no use; Twilight’s spell was too strong for that. The snake stared at her for a moment before swiftly curling its long, sinewy body around the sphere. Slowly its coils began to tighten on it, and Twilight suddenly felt the spell weakening. Intense pressure on a few small spots won’t destroy the sphere, but intense pressure along a specific axis… She winced as a crack formed overhead, and behind her she heard Rarity whimper. No… there’s no way I’m letting him beat me! Her horn blazed with light, and suddenly the top of the sphere changed, expanding upwards before it inverted and began wrapping around the flame-serpent. The snake hissed violently and tried to escape, but Twilight’s spell reacted too quickly; soon the snake was covered from tip to tongue in the blue light. With a wave of her horn the light became clear water, and the hissing of the snake became the hiss of steam as the entire magical construct disintegrated, splashing a huge amount of very hot water onto the ground all around Twilight and the others.
Dark Star glared at Twilight, and as she watched electricity crackled across his horn. She had barely a moment to react before the first bolt of lightning lanced out at her, sizzling through the air with speed that made the fireball look like a sick duck. Twilight did the only thing she could think of; she materialized a round copper shield and deflected the bolt off to her right, sending it stabbing into the ground a dozen feet away. The black unicorn growled and sent bolt after bolt streaking towards her, but somehow Twilight always knew where they would be; the Element of Magic was sensing the bolts, feeling where the magic was the strongest before each strike, an easy feat because lightning magic required a lot of energy to perform.
Even so, Twilight could feel the intense heat of each bolt as it shot at her, and she could feel the incredible pressure of Dark Star’s magic, forcing her back centimeter by centimeter. His power was almost unbelievable; if Twilight hadn’t been feeling it, seeing it first hand, she’d have thought it was impossible for anypony but the Princesses to wield such power… and a niggling doubt appeared at the back of her mind as to her chances of victory.
Finally Dark Star snarled. “Enough of your tricks, filly!” His eyes flared with black-purple light, and his entire coat began to crackle with electricity; the very air around them began to charge, and Twilight felt the hair at the base of her mane stand up. With a feral shout he raised his horn into the air, lightning dancing along its length.
“Girls! Get over here NOW!” she barked; with a wave of her horn she drew a rune in the air; rune magic had never been her best subject, but it was something that she found to be immensely useful from time to time... and hopefully this was one of those times. This particular rune was a shielding rune, but it was specially drawn to diffuse energy, to absorb it and then expel it back into the environment. At least, Twilight hoped that’s what it would do. It expanded wide and formed a huge glowing hemisphere over them, the blazing white rune at the center. Her friends leaped under the rune-shield as lightning began to fall.
Huge bolts, bolts that made the previous ones look like no more than the static zaps a pony could get when taking a sweater off in the winter, began to rain down on them; the thunderous retorts drove all sound from their ears as Dark Star hammered them time and again, bolts streaking down from the clear blue sky to slam into Twilight’s shield. The shield sizzled and popped as electricity peppered the area; bolts hit the shield and the ground around them, blowing rabbit-sized holes into the ground and lighting small fires where dried grass had escaped the flames of the snake.
A particularly large bolt slammed into the tree behind Twilight and her friends, and the age-old plant simply could not take the sheer force of the magical lightning; it exploded into splinters, sending debris scattering around the clearing and onto the ponies, deafening them with the roar of its demise.
The buildings around them weren’t fairing much better. The initial fireball had scorched the nearby buildings and the consequent fire snake and lightning battle had ruined multiple homes and set numerous small fires; black smoke was beginning to blot out the sky as the battle continued to rage. Ponies were standing at what they hoped was a safe distance, watching in horror and awe at the spectacle taking place in their home.
Finally after what seemed like forever, Twilight felt more than heard the lightning stop; her ears were ringing so loudly that if it hadn’t been for the rune above her going dark as its energy ran dry, she wouldn’t have noticed the cessation of the bolts at all. With a wave of her horn the shield vanished, and without wasting a single movement she lowered her horn and sent a blast of magical energy at Dark Star as the smoke cleared around them; the bolt was invisible itself, its only give-away the tell-tale warp of the landscape around it as it sped towards its target.
The black unicorn hadn’t been prepared for a counterattack, and barely had time to block the massive blow; his horn flared, and there was a bright flash of light as he stopped Twilight’s attack dead, the sheer force of it causing him to slide back a few inches. The purple unicorn took several quick steps forward away from her friends as she attacked Dark Star again, lashing out with small magical projectiles similar to the first large one, flicking her horn this way and that so they spun in from all different angles; they streaked towards him, none deadly, but powerful enough that they would without a doubt knock him unconscious if he missed one.
But he did not; Dark Star moved with incredible alacrity, his horn flashing as he deflected every single one of Twilight’s projectiles, sending them whirling off in different directions. One glanced off his horn and into Rarity’s Boutique; battering its way through the wall and crashing around inside before it fell silent. Twilight winced, but didn’t have the time to ask for Rarity’s forgiveness.
Dark Star deflected the last projectile and reared up, bringing his front hooves down onto the ground with incredible force; a shockwave rippled out from them and sped towards Twilight. She gritted her teeth, and her horn sparked brightly; before her formed a huge sheet of white energy, easily three times as tall as she was and twenty feet wide. Twilight jerked her horn violently downwards and the entire energy wall stabbed itself into the ground deep enough that it almost disappeared. The ripples in the ground impacted the shining wall and seemed to stop, and Twilight couldn’t help but grin.
Suddenly the center of the shining wall turned a deep purple, and the wall flexed against Twilight’s will; with a crack that pierced her entire being the wall shattered into ten million shards of light, throwing the unicorn back into her friends. She smashed into Applejack first, and her force carried both of them into Rarity and Pinkie Pie, and then Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. Twilight’s vision went white for a moment, and it took her several seconds to regain her senses as she tried vainly to untangle her limbs from her friends’. Slowly her vision returned, and with it her hearing, as well; the blast had set her ears to ringing yet again. The first pony she saw was Rarity, her blue eyes filled with anxiety, her mouth forming soundless words for several seconds before Twilight’s ears caught up to her vision.
“….wilight? Twilight?!” Rarity’s voice was tight with worry. “Twilight, please get up!!”
“Uhhggh…” Twilight said, putting a hoof to her head. “Wow… that could have gone better…”
Dark Star’s laughter rose over her friend’s groaning and shuffling as they all rose to their hooves. Twilight heaved herself upright as quickly as she could and threw herself in front of her friends; but Dark Star simply laughed; a dark, evil sound that weighed on her heart like a black shroud as he took several steps towards them. “I’m very, very impressed, Twilight Sparkle… your mastery of magic is impressive, even if your attack spells lack… finesse. If only you had the time to learn about the finer points of combat magic, you would be a more than a match for me.” His smile twisted, and his eyes filled with blackness so deep that Twilight felt as though she would be sucked into them forever; as if his eyes had been replaced by the very blackness of the spaces between the stars. “But now,” he said, his voice suddenly taking on a strange dual-tonality, as if something deeper, more sinister were speaking through him. “It’s time for this to end.”
His horn began to glow again, this time with the same purple-black light that began to shine out of his amulet. The ground began to tremble, threatening to send Twilight back to it as her already weak knees struggled to keep her upright. After almost losing consciousness the effects of her prolonged use of such powerful magic was wreaking havoc on her body; she was weak, and it was all she could do to keep her hooves beneath her… but Dark Star seemed to be getting only stronger, gaining the strength of rage and hate as their battle had gone on.
With a horrifying, growling scream, Dark Star raised his horn high, and the ground began to shift unstably; from the area just in front of the black unicorn a huge chunk of the earth, easily the same mass as Rarity’s entire Boutique, ripped itself free with an incredible cacophony of tearing, rending, grinding and mashing. Twilight’s mouth dropped open as Dark Star brought the entire massive earthen body to float above his head as if it were nothing; stones and tree roots all dangled from it and fell as the unicorn stared at Twilight, his eyes nothing but twin voids of hate. “Girls?” Twilight shouted. “Run! Run away!” Her friends all nodded and bolted away, undoubtedly believing that she was right behind them… but as they made it a safe distance away, Twilight turned back to face Dark Star, her eyes full of tears. The black unicorn arched an eyebrow at her, and Twilight glared at him. “Why should I run?” she shouted. “It won’t save me from YOU, and other ponies will get hurt.” She lifted her chin high even as her knees shook. “I told you before that killing me won’t make a difference, and I stand by that. You’ll be defeated, Dark Star… even if it’s not by me.”
Dark Star arched an eyebrow and watched her for a moment, almost as if he were trying to decide if she were joking. After a moment, he sneered at her. “Very well. Goodbye, Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight’s throat closed up and she choked on a sob. This is it… this is really it… She was too tired to fight; she knew there was no way she could stop something that large, and at this point even if she teleported away… he would only unleash his anger on the others. A tear traced its way down her cheek as she stared up at the massive chunk of Ponyville. I guess I really never thought it would end like this…
Dark Star’s horn flared, and the titanic sphere of dirt hurtled towards the small purple unicorn, who lowered her head in defeat.
Goodbye girls…
Goodbye Princess.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Celestia?”
“What is it, Luna?”
The Moon Princess had been staring at the hilltop where Dark Star stood for several minutes, but Celestia had assumed that she was deep in thought and had left her be, busying herself with trying to mount the best possible defense of the Canterlot Gates from the seemingly tireless army of the Lunar Republic. Now, however, Luna’s eyes were full of confusion and worry.
“He hasn’t moved,” she said simply.
Celestia blinked at her, pausing mid turn to look at Luna squarely. “Hasn’t moved? In what way?”
“At ALL.” Luna lifted a hoof and pointed to Dark Star; he stood exactly where he had before, cloak still around his shoulders, sword still sheathed, amulet still glowing… but the urgency in Luna’s voice made Celestia look closer. “Please, sister, believe me,” she begged. “I’ve been watching; that’s not Dark Star up there.”
The white alicorn turned her eyes to the figure on the hilltop. As she watched, he shifted from hoof to hoof, his amulet glowing with a light that she could see even from here. He tossed his head and pointed his horn at the troops. Celestia turned back and shook her head. “Luna, I’m afraid that I’m not…”
Suddenly the younger alicorn snatched a spear away from one of the Pegasus Guards, who made a very indignant sound as Luna cocked the spear back with her magic and launched it with incredible speed… directly at Dark Star. Celestia felt her mouth drop open as the spear flew straight and true, arcing up into the air perfectly before descending directly at the controller of the attacking army.
She expected him to deflect it; she expected him to catch it, break it in half and toss it aside as though it were some foal’s toy… and when the spear lanced clean through him and landed on the ground on the other side, she felt her head swim for just a moment.
“Wha…what?!” she stammered, and Luna turned back to her, her teal eyes full of horror.
“He’s gone, Celestia. That’s an illusion!”
Celestia felt as though some pony had squeezed her around the middle; she couldn’t breathe, and her ears started to ring. He’s gone, she thought. How long has he been gone?! Her eyes met Luna’s, and as one they spoke.
“Ponyville.”
Celestia paused just long enough to turn to the nearest officer. “Captain!!” she shouted, drawing the attention of the white unicorn. “You have command! I shall return as promptly as I can!” She nodded to him and barely waited for his confused, “Y-yes, Your Highness!” before her horn ignited with magic and she vanished.
There are two ways to teleport: one, you think of a place you want to go- the more detailed the thought, the closer you get to where you want to be: and two, you think of a pony, and you get immediately teleported to wherever that pony is.
In Celestia’s mind she saw the petite purple unicorn with the straight, tri-colored mane who had been her student most of her life; and she silently prayed to everything holy that Twilight Sparkle was still alive.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Just as the shadow of the boulder began to drive out the sunlight from Twilight’s world for the very last time, a white light exploded into being; a light so bright that Twilight saw it even from behind her eyelids.
She opened her eyes and looked up to see a sight that made her sob with relief and joy; Princess Celestia, her wings flared wide and her horn blazing with power, hovered over her like a guardian, her eyes full of a determination that Twilight had rarely seen on her teacher’s face. Celestia raised her horn and brought it down forcefully, drawing a line vertically down the face of the approaching projectile.
With a sound like ten thousand shovels digging into the soil at once the enormous boulder split down the middle, exploding outwards with incredible force and falling to either side of Twilight with about ten feet to spare, just barely enough to accommodate Princess Celestia’s huge wings. A wave of dust and debris washed over Twilight and she began to cough harshly; she could feel the grit and grime of the dirt meteor settling into her coat, but to her it was the most wonderful feeling in the world. I’m not… I’m not dead! She thought; and as soon as she thought it, her knees gave out completely, sending her to the ground as she began to shiver uncontrollably. “I’m… I’m alive…” she whispered.
“You had best be, Twilight Sparkle,” a loving voice said above her, and with a hiccupped sob she turned her eyes up through the thinning dust to gaze into Princess Celestia’s face; it was full of such profound relief that Twilight thought that the Princess herself would start crying.
“P-princess… Princess..!!!” Twilight sobbed aloud; she struggled to her feet and threw herself at the white alicorn, landing hard against her golden armor and burying her face into her exposed neck before sobbing for all she was worth, wordless cries of relief and fear that she had forced down during her battle with Dark Star.
“Hush now, Twilight… peace, my darling…” Princess Celestia cooed; she lowered her head and nuzzled Twilight’s face gently with her nose. “I’m here now. Everything is going to be fine.” Twilight nodded, and as her tears subsided she realized that she truly believed it. Somehow, just the Princess being here made everything controllable, made everything possible. Slowly, Twilight pulled away from the Princess, her eyes red from tears, the colors of her coat and mane muted by the dust from the projectile.
“I… I know they will be now, Princess,” she said, trying her best to sound confident; but it was hard with her knees still shaking. Princess Celestia nodded, and together they walked towards Dark Star, out from between the two slabs of his earthen attack.
When they emerged, Dark Star’s face twisted again into a visage of distaste and hatred as he stared daggers at Celestia with his now-golden eyes; and when he spoke his voice was back to normal instead of the strange dual voice he had displayed earlier. “So… a timely arrival to save your precious student,” he sneered. “How typical of you, Celestia; always realizing things a beat too late to get into step with the music.”
Twilight watched as the Princess’s shoulders tensed, but she held her head high as she spoke. “You made a terrible mistake, attacking Ponyville as you have,” she said, her voice strained, as though she were fighting to keep her composure. “This could easily have been solved by negotiation, or, failing that, a duel between us.” The Princess’s eyes were ablaze with something that Twilight had never seen before, a lavender fire that she found hard to associate with her teacher’s calm, controlled nature.
Dark Star’s horn lit with his magic, and his sword drew from his hip in a flash of steel. “Then by all means,” he said, a smile twisting his lips. “Let us duel, Princess of the Sun, and settle this once and for all.”
Celestia took a step forward, but before she could go any further, Luna stepped in front of her, her silver armor chainmail clinking gently. “SISTER,” she said, her eyes firm. Celestia held Dark Star’s gaze a moment longer before turning her eyes to Luna, her face an angry mask.
“Luna… he attacked Ponyville… attacked-,”
“I know, sister. I know.” Luna’s voice was calm, but her eyes bespoke the same anger that Celestia’s face revealed. “But remember what you told me today. Remember what you said of war.” Her jaw clenched. “Remember what I said about the responsibility of this situation.”
Twilight stared at Princess Luna; she was so different now, even from five days ago when this had first started. She stood straight and tall, her sparkling mane floating out behind her as Celestia’s did; her armor shone in the sunlight, even through the clouds of smoke that had started to gather above them, and she wore a spear across her back, looking every inch a warrior Princess like the ones Twilight had read about in Ancient Equestrian Lore. But there was something about her eyes… they were resolute and yet… sad. As if she knew she had to do something, but feared it above anything.
Celestia stared at her sister for a long moment before nodding and taking a step back to stand next to Twilight. “You’re right, Luna,” she said quietly. “You’re right.” She met her sister’s gaze with a proud smile. “Do what you must, little sister. I trust you.”
Luna’s expression softened, and a single tear appeared at the corner of her eye; but she nodded firmly before turning to face the black unicorn.
“Dark Star,” she said, stepping towards him. To Twilight’s surprise, Dark Star’s face changed from the abject hatred it had worn before to the most profound relief Twilight had ever seen.
“Princess Luna,” he said, lowering his sword. “Thank the stars you’ve come to your senses…” He trailed off, as if he wanted to say more, but he covered it with a nod instead. “Have you come to lead us, finally? To take what I have started and with your incredible power bring the Lunar Republic to glory, at long last?” He took a step towards Luna… but that was as far as he got.
In a half a heartbeat Luna’s horn lit up with her midnight-blue magic; faster than Twilight’s eye could follow the spear she carried went from on her back to having its point dug uncomfortably into Dark Star’s neck. Twilight’s eyes widened almost as much as Dark Star’s did.
“L-Luna…?!” he managed. “W-why..?”
The Moon Princess’s voice was cold and firm. “Because YOU are not my Dark Star,” she said. “Because the Dark Star I love would never have done something like this.” She gestured to Ponyville with her hoof, her eyes never leaving his. “The Dark Star that I love would have listened to his Princess from the beginning, and we never would have had to deal with such unneeded tragedy and violence.”
Dark Star’s eyes changed again, and Twilight watched the light leave them entirely; then suddenly, they were the twin voids that had faced her in battle. His face twisted again, and with a blast of dark power he sent Luna back several steps before she could react; she stumbled, but her eyes never left Dark Star as his eyes returned to normal again. He watched her closely, his sword still held in his magic at his side, his emotions raging across his face; anger, despair, sadness… and a love that surprised Twilight more than anything had that day. He still loves her, and she loves him… she thought. But… if he does… then why is he still fighting?!
His amulet glowed gently, and he shook his head slightly. “So… that’s how it is…” he said softly. His sword flicked back up to hover before him, and his eyes became resolute. “If that is what you want… then I shall oblige you, Princess.”
Luna stared at him, her teal eyes firm, but she shook her head. “Not here, Dark Star. I will not put this town in any more danger.”
Dark Star squinted at her. “Then where would you like this to end?”
Princess Luna watched him closely, and when she spoke her voice was thick with memory. “Do you remember… the cliff by the sea?” she asked quietly. “Do you remember that night, Dark Star?”
The black unicorn’s eyes widened and his sword dropped a fraction of an inch; as Twilight watched, his expression softened until it appeared that his whole being was melting and changing, almost tangibly shifting shape as his eyes became distant and he nodded slowly. “Yes,” he said, and his voice was different, somehow; lighter, not quite so deep, and certainly not as full of hate. “Of course I remember.”
“Then… that will be where we shall meet for the last time,” Luna said, and Twilight saw a tear glisten in her eye. “Where it all began…”
“…Is where it must end,” he finished, his voice lost in a sea of memories that Twilight couldn’t begin to fathom. Then again, as before, his amulet glowed softly, and his eyes snapped back to the present; his posture became rigid, and he was again every inch Dark Star, scourge of Equestria. “Very well,” he said, sheathing his sword. “You are correct; we gain nothing from fighting here.”
Behind him, Wild Star rose to his hooves, shaking his head slightly as Morningstar assisted him. Twilight arched an eyebrow at him, but as he shook out his wings and stretched his legs, she saw that he appeared to be just fine; as if none of the injuries had ever happened in the first place. Morningstar looked tired as she examined him one last time, and despite her being an enemy, Twilight felt a surge of respect for the white unicorn. She healed him that well, that fast? Twilight shook her head slightly. That is… beyond impressive.
Falling Star made his way to the other two, speaking in low tones to both Wild Star and Morningstar before nodding and turning to his leader. “Sir, Wild Star is ready to travel whenever you are.”
“Good. We will leave momentarily.” He turned his eyes back to Luna, then to Celestia and finally to Twilight herself before he spoke again. “I will await you there. You have ten minutes to follow.” His eyes narrowed at Celestia, as if this whole situation was her fault, and Twilight realized that he really did think that it was her fault. “If you are so much as a moment late… I will return here and raze this town to the ground.” His eyes shone with a purple light for an instant, and then it was gone as he turned to his comrades. “Come, you three. We go to await our final glory.” The three generals walked to his side as his horn began to glow… but as the light grew brighter, Morningstar met Twilight’s gaze… and mouthed the words I’m sorry. And with a flash of light, the four generals were gone from Ponyville.
Without missing a beat Luna turned to Celestia, her eyes grim. “I must speak with you, alone,” she said brusquely. She nodded to Twilight. “I suggest you speak to your friends, Twilight Sparkle; they look to be in need of encouragement.”
Twilight blinked and turned to see her friends standing nearby, watching the whole scene with wide eyes. “Oh… yes, yes of course, Princess,” she said, and Luna’s expression softened.
“You are their leader, Twilight, and they need a leader more than ever before right now.”
Twilight sighed. “I… I don’t know if I can-,”
“Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said, and her voice was stern. “We have no time for uncertainty.” Twilight met her eyes, and they were firm. “You either will help us defeat him, or you will remain here.”
The very idea of being left behind while the Princesses went to fight Dark Star irked Twilight to her core, and she stood up straighter. “Of course I’m coming with you-,” she began, but Luna cut her off with a wave of her hoof.
“Then you must speak to your friends, and quickly.”
“-But… the Elements didn’t work last time we tried to use them,” Twilight said, dropping her eyes in shame. “I don’t know what’s wrong…”
This time, it was Celestia who spoke, and her tone was soft. “Twilight… we need the Elements of Harmony to defeat him. We cannot do this without you.” Twilight turned to her mentor, and Celestia’s eyes were full of confidence. “I have faith in you, Twilight,” she whispered. “I know that you and your friends can do this. I know you can.”
Twilight opened her mouth to speak… but at that moment the crown atop her head, the very Element of Magic itself, surged again, sending a jolt of fresh energy through her tired frame… and before she knew what she was doing, Twilight nodded. “Thank you, Princess. We’ll be ready momentarily.” She gave the white alicorn a brave smile. “We’ll finish this, once and for all.” Celestia gave her a broad smile and a nod, and Twilight galloped over to her friends.