The Dusk of the Dawn

by Dusk775

Chapter 2

I packed all the necessary things we might need on the trip. I then covered myself with a cloak to protect my identity, just in case we needed to make a break for it. Dusk didn't need one, seeing that she could blend into the shadows, no matter the size or location.

"So, let's go over the plan again. You will go up into Celestia's room, since you're stealthier than me." I said.

"Ok. Meanwhile, you will go down into the room and search for any evidence down there." Dusk responded.

"Exactly. If either of us get's caught, we will send an amber flair into the air, and make a run for it. I don't want any unnecessary actions, got it?"

"Awww, you're no fun." Dusk playfully teased.

"Focus, sister. If either of us get's caught, bad things will happen. We will never see each other again. Do you understand the importance of this?!" I lost it for a second, but seeing Dusk so upset from me yelling at her, I calmed down.

"Listen, I just don't want to lose you, okay?" I said, being as soft as possible.

"O-okay!" Dusk's mood swung, and she became her stronger and more determined self I knew well.

"What are we waiting for then? Let's go!" I mirrored her personality. But still, down inside me, I still felt something. Something that said that something would happen tonight. Something really bad.

---

We arrived in an alleyway just outside the city walls. We would make our incision here.

"If anything happens, we meet back here." I whispered.

Dusk nodded in agreement.

We climbed a nearby vine to get to the rooftop of a nearby house. We then began negotiating the rooftops, Getting nearer and nearer to the castle. After a few thousand years, I still had it.

This was the point where Dusk and I separated. We both had to enter at two different parts of the wall. The north one for Dusk, the south one for me. She nodded to me, and vanished before my eyes. Now I had to focus on getting to the south wall. I had to stay unnoticed, or one guard seeing me would tip off the rest of the guards and spoil our whole plan.

I did a dive from one of the nearby rooftops into a bush within the walls. I made sure not to make too much noise, as it would attract unneeded attention. I wonder if Dusk got in fine, I wondered to myself.

---

Dusk, being the night herself, made it easily to the front wall. She pondered on how exactly to get within the wall, as the front entrance was one of few entry points within the castle. She then noticed something under one of the lamps that a guard was using: a shadow.

Perfect, she thought to herself. She hid within the shadow as the guard walked by. He then walked inside the wall to do his interior surveillance. Dusk shadow-jumped from the guard's to a lamp's by the door. She used this method to get all the way up to Celestia's room, where she stopped to rest.

I hope my brother got in safely, she wondered.

---

I successfully made my way into the hall that lead to the room, although something caught my eye. The hallway down to the room had been decorated with stained glass windows. As I studied the windows, something struck me: these windows depicted events that happened in Equestria's history!

In one window, a story of Discord's reign and fall were depicted, his fall being thanks to two ponies. Wait, two ponies? I had helped them during the time as well, why wasn't I there?

The omissions kept appearing. I was always with Celestia whenever she rose the sun, and even helped her once. I also was there when Luna brought the moon up. I was even missing from a stained-glass portrait of Celestia and Luna. I was in the original portrait, how could they miss that?

My looking, however, came to a stop as my attention focused on one painting. This one depicted Luna's betrayal of her sister, and in result, her sister banishing her to the moon. A plaque sat below the picture, and I read it.

Thus was the night of Luna's betrayal. However, before she was banished, she said something that brought Celestia to tears. She then rued that she would be back on the thousand-year anniversary of the night.

I couldn't think of what would bring Celestia to tears, but I did begin to think. The thousandth-year anniversary of her banishment, huh? Wait! My mind froze on the thoughts that followed. If my memory serves me correctly, this is the nine-hundred-ninety-ninth year since her betrayal. That makes her thousandth-year anniversary within a matter of-

I couldn't think of anymore. My mind had made like my body, and frozen up. That means she will awaken, and what after that? Track us down and kill us? She's the one who cursed us, and she would know how.

No, I thought, I will not let her do anymore to me or my sister. Celestia help me, unless Celestia herself gets to her first, I will confront her, and knock her down to size!

I then noticed how long I was standing there. I can't just stand here, I need to find information! If I come back empty handed, Dusk will never forgive me! I must trot on!

With satisfaction in my mind, I went down the rest of the hall, and into the room.

"Why hello sir. The royal library's about to close, but if there's anything I can help you with, I would be happy to!"

I froze in my tracks. There was another pony here.

Surely enough, a purple-coated mare came out from behind a stack of books. Somepony had spotted me. Looks like I had to talk my way out of this one.