Two Moons

by TheGreatEater

Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

Luna sat next to her sister planning out the spell that they would need to accomplish. The hard part was the spell that used the extended Royalty for their true purpose. Which was in cases of dire urgency act as an imprinted link to the sisters for them to channel any number of massive spells through them in through them all of Equestria. Of course not since Sombra’s reign was a memory wipe spell of this magnitude needed. Nor was the power nodes needed to do a spell that would erase all modern technology and knowledge, move all taken wealth to the Princesses [the reason behind the Royal Mint created at the dawn of their reign was to take back all the wealth they made so that no warlord or invader could profit from their wealth. By imbuing all the wealth in Equestria. Gem or otherwise, with a small imprint of their essence. Thus allowing it to be summoned to them post haste if the need occurred.], nor send ponies to an era before the dark ages. It’s a spell that they had to do only once before, and it was not going to be any easier this time. Erasing the history and culture of a pony was never an easy task. But between that, and a corrupt populace that was eaten away by madness and hate. It was only inviting in another Wendigo attack, or another true warlord like Tirek to rip through their lands.

All they needed was one more vote. From Princess Cadance and then everything would be complete. Of course they needed to reach the Crystal Empire first. And with their luck they were bound to run into something sooner or later. All the while looking at Twilight running between a small army of two way communication mirrors that were the first thing she worked on making her first months as a Princess to save some time for Spike in case of emergencies. Or when a Pony just wanted to talk. As it stood the Element Bearers were on the train other than Fluttershy who had help getting to the Crystal Empire in a more expedient fashion. Although Luna was slightly irked that he was now treating his time there as a Vacation, but as long as he stayed out of trouble she didn’t care to much.

After she was done talking to Celestia, and ensuring that everything was ready for when they went to the Crystal Empire But to ensure that Cadance knew something was wrong, Luna and Celestia worked together to do the sign that trouble was brewing. A Solar Eclipse. With the Moon and sun both up the land was basked in darkness but would be getting just enough light to prevent the world from dying. but would act as a signal to all those who knew what it meant. That the sisters were over thrown, and had gone into hiding. Everything from the loss of knowledge, to the memory wipe, to even the removal of wealth was something that Luna and Celestia had done two time previously in the secret history of Equestria. Each time was due to one wanna-be ruler or another having successfully taken over a major part of Equestria. Once with the Crystal Empire, and the other, albeit less successful was the one with Atlantis. And although she almost regretted thinking about it. But part of her thought it would be worth seeing that place come back and release Letum the Annihilator.

Shaking the memories of that place from her mind she walked over to Trixie, “Hark thee fair Maiden!” Luna said boisterously trying to lighten the mood, “How art thou holding holding up?”

“Honestly I don’t know. Hopeful, scared, happy, sad, I honestly feel like a mess. But I’m feeling like things might finally be looking up.” Trixie shrugged before giving Luna a quick nuzzle.

“I know. We have just finally got together, yet this had to happen. But I do not regret it, and things will be better soon, and trust me you don’t look like a mess. You look stunning, and the training you’ve gone through has made you even more so. If you got any more sexy I’d have to beat off the competition with a stick.” Luna said giving Trixie an affectionate flick of her tail.

“How is it that even when I feeling at my worst you can still make me blush?” Trixie said trying to hide her face from Luna from a mixture of embarrassment and attraction.

“It’s because I’m that good, and what I say is the truth.” Luna said with a grin.

It was two days later when their luck fell out the wayside. The sun and moon for two days had stayed above the sky and while plants with the aid of Celestia were getting their nourishment the eerie darkness had started to gnaw on the psyche of those on the planet. But none more so than the most of the ponies of Equestria who saw it as another point of corruption between “Nightmare Moon”, and Trixie on the “True Princesses of Equestria”.

Twenty Day Guards, a mob of ponies who were searching for them, and a battalion of the REAF soldiers. Forming a Blockade on Unicorn Junction and an anti-teleportation ward that was triggered as they came into sight of them. Luna looked at Celestia with the most bemused expression she could muster, “I don’t know weather this fanaticism towards you and Twilight is endearing or utterly insane. But at least I can say that their misguided attempt at ‘rescuing you from me’ shows that they care. So what’s the game plan sister?”

Celestia sighed, and with an apologetic look at both her and Trixie replied, “Well it will take to much time to release Black Marble and the others from where their at, at the moment so that’s out of the question. We can’t kill them. So I don’t know subdue them?”

“Subdue what equates to a miliary force? Without killing them? You know that was never my strong suit, but we might as well show them what for. You still practice your Yuanshi Shen Qigong?”

“Yes. Although I’m a little bit rusty.” Celestia replied, then seeing the look that Twilight gave her, “It’s the exercises I taught you that allowed you to transform into enter a Unicorn’s Transcendent Form, the same one according to my chats with Pinkie Pie you improperly entered when confronting her about her Pinkie Sense.”

A look of understanding clicked in Twilight, “Wait! You mean those techniques were combative in nature? And you taught me without telling me? What if I hurt somepony? Or accidentally used it in a fight without knowing what it could do? I could have really hurt somepony! W-”

“Twilight! Breathe!” Celestia said as they got within two hundred spear throws of the opposing group, “ I taught you the non-combative versions of it. And I trusted you to use even that to not harm another unless necessary. After all you were my Protege’ and you needed to protect yourself. Although REAF know how to do some of the techniques as well so we are going to have a hooful coming up.”

“Why?” Trixie asked the group as she ran the spells that would slow them down.

“It’s because REAF is taught some of the basics of 3 Pillar, to ensure they are able to protect themselves and our nation. Although most aren’t that good against S Rank or higher threats since most of them aren’t full practitioners.” Celestia replied, “But even so most special divisions of REAF that see actual combat are taught how Golden Saddle to guard their meridians and boost their physical abilities. It’s how they all look so ripped when most of the ponies in Equestria look weaker by comparison. Especially with the monsters that use magical attacks out tips the non-magical ones.”

“I’ve been teaching you 3 Pillars for over the last two and a half months since you became my Protege’. So I think you’ll be able to appreciate what you’re about to see.” Luna whispered to Trixie.

When the carriage stopped Celestia and Luna stepped out of the carriage. Taking a deep breath they closed their eyes and Trixie could feel the ambient magic in the air twitch and flow into them. The flowing increased into a physical breeze the played along all the ponies present. Then almost as fast as it started it stopped. When the Princesses, save Twilight opened their eyes bright rays of light shown from them and their bodies erupted into bright yellow physically, visible aura. Then light erupted from their coats shining them in a majestic white light sending a sphere of energy that formed a bubble miles out. Twilight gasped as these beings of pure magic reminded her similarly of when Cadence and Shining Armor defeated Queen Chrysalis.

The REAF Unicorns met it with the primary aura that the Princeses had, but without the final transformation. From the Princesses flew a fog from their horns that passed through the crowd and incapacitated all but the Soldiers, as it’s electrical charge temporarily shorted out their own signals and caused their bodies to enter a biological hard reset.

Twilight running commentary to Pinkie Pie and Trixie told them what was happening on a move by move level. She told them that the second form the Princesses were in, from what Shining and Cadance told her was physically tiring from the strain it put on the body. But the form the REAF were using was something Twilight thought was a simple spell. To know that it was a combative internal martial art was astounding. Although it explained how Pegasi guards could solid marble with their wings alone.

The Earth Ponies were trying to grab them by forming the earth to restrain them, but it slipped through them like a stone through water. While the Pegasi channeled their power to form bolts of lighting to rain from their hooves. All the while the Unicors through spell bolt after spell bolt at them. But each time they simply seemed to be there one second then not there the next. That’s when it entered hoof the hoof combat.

Luna went to the Pegasi first who descended upon her with a rain of beams of raw plasma, an attack called Rikusakeha [Land Ripping Wave] from two of them and blades of air from the rest. As she whipped them with black waves of the darkest night upon them. Being a Lunarmancer, Trixie explained that she was drawing from ambient shadows to dampen their blows while sapping them of their magic. Although the martial majesty and grace of the waves were awe inspiring as the Pegasi dropped like flies only to be caught in a white magical aura that setted them down gently.

Celestia went after the earth ponies being the stronger of the races. What most ponies don’t realize is just how intuned to the earth, Earth Ponies are, nor just how powerful their magic can be. Not even Earth Ponies know how they can’t just connect to the earth, but how they can shape to their will until they are shown just how far that can go. And Celestia having only been around Unicorns, and a lesser degree Pegasi magic workers for the last half a millenia had forgotten just how terrifying that magic can be. Even if used to non-lethally subdue an opponent.

Forming a circle a round her and joining hooves. Celestia saw the ground under her break and the air itself start to harden. As the formed a barrier of earth that would petrify anything in the circle. And even with the defensive strength of Yuanshi Shen she could feel the magic being ripped out of her and her body slowly solidify. It was when a Pegasus’s stray Rikusakeha hit her that her defenses already strained from the Earth Pony’s barrier spell fell. And her body returned to normal the Petrification took her. It was also at this time that Twilight who was attempting to use logic to keep cool snapped.

Luna looked for more challengers when she saw Twilight turn white, her eyes glow red, and her mane and tail burst into a towering inferno of flames. She went to Trixie and Pinkie Pie and wrapped all of them and the carriage in a protective bubble as Twilight went on a Rampage. Just as the bubble set the flames licked around it greedily, igniting the magic around the sphere before flowing like a tidalwave engulfing all before her. There was a blinding light and in a matter of seconds Twilight was unconscious with multiple burn marks, singed bald, and smoke rising from her body.

Off in the distance the tell tale signs of a mass teleportation could be seen, and the very magic in the air smelt burnt. But her sister was still in her stony holding cell. It was at that moment the strain of the form became to much and it shut down leaving an unconscious Luna in its wake.

Trixie had her work cut out for her. She had only just got the hang of healing, and now she was fixing two Deity class ponies. And making sure the other didn’t break on accident. Taking the ambient life energy from the earth, and her own magic she slowly reknitted what she could for Twilight, but the burns she received while healed, she could do nothing for her coat. Which left her a pink fleshy mold. With tattered wings. Those had taken her hours to get even the tiniest nubs of growth to form. But better an actual healer would have to help her. As for the fatigue. She remembered Luna’s special coffee.

With a summoning spell she brought it too her and saw that it was an already brewed black tar like substance. Getting a few table spoons out she put the gunk in a heap of water and set it to boil. She looked over to Twilight dragon that was holding her hoof with a worried expression written clear across his face, “Hello I never caught your name.”

“Whuh? Oh, I’m Spike. Do you think Twilight’s going to be ok? Please tell me she’s going to be ok.” He said tiny tears trickling down his scales.

“Of course Spike. Although I’m not the greatest healer, I did enough to keep her stable. But this brew is a special one from Luna and it has regenerative properties so it might heal her abit more than I was able to.” Trixie replied placing a comforting hoof on his shoulder.

“You know. I like you a lot more better know that you’re nicer, and thanks for helping Twilight it really means a lot.”

“Spike I want to ask you some things.” Trixie said sitting in front of him giving him her most serious look she could muster.

“Sure! What would you like to know?”

“What’s more fun, Pretend or Reality?”

“Pretend, why?”

Waving a dismissive hoof she replied, “I’m getting to that part. But I need to set it up. So What kind of story is more enjoyable. One where you get to make-believe, or one where you don’t?”

“Well that depends. But I guess make-believing can be fun more than having to always read serious stuff.”

“Well that’s what I was doing the first time I came to Ponyville. I was putting on a show, it was all make-believe until Rainbow Dash started insulting me, and taking away from the enjoyment of the crowds. And up until then I had always come to realize that there are alot of cruel ponies out there who want to tear you down, and ruin the enjoyment of others to make themselves look bigger. So I learned to integrate it into my show. To show them up while still giving the audience something that they could enjoy. With those cruel ponies.

But in the end. That’s all it was supposed to be. Me pretending and giving others a memory that they could hold onto that would make them happy. Don’t tell anypony this but I had a heart attack when those two foals brought in that Ursa Minor. Not just because it could kill me, but they could have gotten themselves and everypony killed. I came this close,” she brought her hoove together till they were almost touching, “To dying myself. If it wasn’t for Twilight I probably would have. But what they, both the Element Bearers, and even the citizens of Ponyville did to me was so much worse. But I forgave most of them. And I’m trying to move forward, but I was never truly mean. Can you understand that?”

“Yeah. I guess I can. I mean I would be angry too if I was being bullied like that. Well I’m sorry for thinking you were mean back then, and I am serious about liking you more than when you were pretending. And Thanks for healing Twilight, she’s the best big sis I could ever have.” Spike said looking at Twilight sadly.

“You’re welcome Spike, and for what it’s worth. I like me better when I’m not pretending.” Well let’s see how that coffee is coming along. She turned around and saw Pinkie Pie with the conversation mirrors, all of them full of familiar faces but three. Shining Armor, Princess Cadence, and the missing face of Rainbow Dash.

Bowing to the mirrors she addressed the Crystal Royal Family, “Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, Shining Armor! I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to make it to your wedding. And I kind of lost the gift a few years back when Discord was first released.”

“Rise, and please call me Cadance.” Princess Cadance said in a warm voice, “And that’s quite alright, but if you don’t mind me asking why didn’t you make it to our wedding? It was open to the public and anyone could enter.”

Trixie glared at the ground remembering that part of her life, “Not when your me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well I was personally tossed out for being a threat to the peace, and because they didn’t want me brining an Ursa Minor into the wedding. Was the exact phrase used. The wedding of a life time and the things that transpired in my first time in Ponyville, and from what Rainbow Dash said the further rumors she spread about me caused me to miss out on it.”

“What do ya mean further rumors?” Apple Jack asked, leaning in close to her mirror.

“Me and her talked and she told me that she spread some rumors to me to the higher ups in Cloudsdale Weather Corporation, and her co-workers. And they added a little bit of their own spin on things, but the end result is that it spread like wildfire.”

“Ah! That’d explain a lot. She’s been mighty depressed lately, and after Spike saying that he’d be angry if he was bullied too. Well she just flew off. Well Ah’m gonna head out and see if Ah can’t find her before y’all get here.”

“You know that Twilight told me that you were a good pony at heart. Even after the Alicorn Amulet incident, and me and my wife have been arguing over weather it was a good idea to let you into our borders. But ... after seeing you with my own eyes, and hearing you talk. Well I’m usually a good judge of character and I’ll be happy to see you get here. Although when things have cooled down I want to talk to you face to face to get to know my sisters friend a little bit better. And someday I’d like to see one of your shows. We over here in the Crystal Empire are separate from Equestria legally and will grant you amnesty. Although I wanted to warn Twilight that the REAF is mounting a large military force across the boarders.

“So you’re going to have to teleport when you all are ready. As for Princess Celestia, we can fix her when you get here. Just make sure that nothing happens to her in the mean time. We’ll see you when you get here.” With that Shining Armor and Cadance left. As they did, the kettle whistled, and Trixie got two cups ready for her sleeping guests.

Luna was the first to get her drink carefully poured down her throat. Her body rippled with lust shudders as her favorite brew of coffee coated her tongue. She shot up and looked around before the battle replayed itself in her head. She looked over as Trixie was just finishing giving Twilight Sparkle a cup and Twilight’s reaction to the brew. If it wasn’t for the fact that Twilight’s furless form was down right sad she would have laughed at her jolting awake and twitching with the shivers of raw caffeine coursing through her veins.

“What the frak is this stuff!” Twilight shouted, “And why am I cold?”

“Well you got a dose of Luna’s special coffee. I used it to try to heal you more since I’m out of juice, and you were unconscious so I thought it could help you out. As for why your cold. Well you bursting into fire wasn’t the best idea for your hair. You are hairless.” Trixie stated handing Twilight a Blanket.

“Sorry about that. I just lost it when Celestia went down. Luna!,” she said looking at the Mare she was addressing, “How in the hay did come there were that many Pegasi who could use Rikusakeha? That move is rare, not to mention crazy using it with civilians around. Were lucky that the stray bolt didn’t reshape the landscape. Where they crazy!”

“Yes they are crazy. In their eyes you two are being kidnaped and subverted if not worse. You forget that ponies can become quite insane over imaginary problems when they have a fear they want to hold onto.” Luna replied. Not quite getting the backhooved meaning of the statement.

“Yes. I know quite well ... but still we need to get to the Crystal Empire soon. I don’t know how much of this insanity I can handle.” Twilight said with a huff before cocooning herself with her blanket.

Trixie walked over to Luna and gave her a quick nuzzle, “I’ll talk to her. Save up your power for the teleport we’re going to need to do.”

Trixie trotted over to Twilight and lay next to her, “Princess Celestia is going to be alright. Between you, Luna and Princess Cadance I know you’ll be able to fix her up.”

Twilight wiggled herself closer to Trixie who wrapped her in a hug to warm her up more. Twilight was silent for awhile before she spoke in a muffled voice, “You know I had always loved Celestia, and I was always protective of her when I heard nobles say snooty things about her. But when we started going out after my Ascension that was the best day ever. She’s always been so strong, so powerful, but to see her taken down like that. It just makes me so angry. At least I sent them to the Canterlot Dungeons rather than the sun.”

Trixie chuckled softly onto Twilights bald head, “I bet I’d react the same way if someone hurt Luna. So I understand completely. You know Spike was really broken up about you?” Trixie murmured as she watched Twilight’s wings start to grow back at a snails pace.

“I bet I’ve been with that little guy since I hatched him from an egg. While Celestia did most of the raising. I helped, and I think I’ve done a good job in help raising him up. You know, I really wish we could have been friends sooner. You really are a sweet mare at heart.” Twilight said while wiggling closer into Trixie.

Trixie coughed and was flustered for a second before blurting out, “I spoken for!”

Twilight and Luna laughed at the outburst and Luna flapped over to face Twilight front wrapping both her and her marefriend in wing hug. Allowing their combined body heat to warm up Twilight, “That she is. Don’t worry Trixie if you ever wanted to add a lover or two I’d be happy to oblige,” She said with a wink. Then looking at Twilight she said, “Don’t worry I’ll have my sister brought back to us in no time, just let me know when you are ready and we can get it underway. Then it’s to the Crystal Empire than to show those upstarts on the throne what it means to deal with an enraged Alicorn Princess.