A Castle Held by Thread
Shattered glass and priceless ancient chandeliers lay broken on scorched marble, shredded Saddle Arabian carpet and thousand year old wooden tables left in splinters. That is what met Luna when she entered the castle’s western wing. Encompassed by her palaces destruction, Luna stood tired.
She had just convinced the last of the ponies that bore witness to Twilight’s and the other elements return that nothing was amiss. She had weaved and twisted an unending stream of words to explain the strange hulking mass of very obviously hurriedly put together cloth that had slipped past the suspicious nobles.
Just a diplomat wearing his nation’s traditional clothes, and nothing more. A simple distraction held with the right amount of confidence, and soon her ponies had lost interest in the strange creature. Why would they be interested in such a creature? It wasn’t a human. A human would have attacked them. A human would blatantly cross through walls instead of hiding away. A human would have tried to eat them. The silent diplomat was not a human, as such they had bigger things to worry about.
Issues such as their infamously jealous moon princess and her missing sister.
Luna braved their quite suspicions, and outright shouted lies that have became a normalcy within the day court. She calmed her night guards when the nobles disrespect angered them, and soothed the disputes of the ponies who were scared of the growing tension, yet tried to carry bravely on with life.
Disembodied, but regulated, the frustration of her endless court carried on.
Then Twilight crashed into the throne room screaming her name, and she realised with horror that the runes on her room, Celestia’s prison, were much too quiet. The runes had deactivated and whether due to the stress of court or something much more sinister she had felt nothing.
Luna was so, so tired.
She was tired of the lies. She was tired of thinly veiled affronts directed toward her.
“Luna.” Her sister’s voice called out to her gently.
Above all, she was tired of fighting the monster within her sister.
“Oh sweet Luna, I was just looking for you.” The creature said behind her sister’s matted face, “Please sister, I need your help.”
Luna pointed her horn at the Beast, and was morbidly thankful that she finally had a tangible enemy to release her despair on, “Spirit, let my sister go.”
False innocence crossed the creature’s face, “Luna, I am your sister.” The creature said calmly, as if correcting a foal with an overactive imagination.
Rage flashed white behind her eyes and Luna snarled, “Beast, I do not have time for your games!”
A pitying look settled on the Beast’s face, and concern echoed in its voice, “Oh Luna. What lies has that human told you?” The Beast sighed and shook her sister’s head, “To think it has the power to warp your mind. Have you learned nothing?”
“Our mind is not warped.” Luna seethed affronted at the beast’s attempted manipulations. How dare it try to make her doubt herself, “Beast, you will do as I say and leave my sister at once!” She shouted, and her horn flashed. Dark clouds materialized in the air and gathered around her, spreading to the ceiling and darkening the hallway. The hazy darkness was periodically broken by flashes of light that pulsed like veins on the underbelly of the cloud.
The creature eyed the thunderhead above it. A frown that was so familiar yet so alien on her muzzle, “Luna you are unwell. Do you not see what you are doing? You are threatening me, your sister.”
Ignoring the Beast’s lies she spoke, “How did you escape my room?”
Surprize flashed in her sister’s empty eyes. “Escape your room? Luna what are you talking about? I was never trapped in your room.”
Thunder rolled in time with her dangerously peaking anger. “I will not tolerate your lies.” Luna hissed out.
Her hissed words pushed the frown on Celestia’s face into a darker snarl, “You dare tune your voice in such a way? Do you forget what you are?”
“We will not be lectured by the likes of you!” Luna snapped, “Twister of minds, and bringer of suffering! Beast. I know not your motives or your origins, but your terror will end here!” Luna glared down the creature that dared to use that face, that sad, pitying face Celestia used to reprimand her when they were foals. A face which the manipulator had no right to use.
She roared out her resentment for the Beast and the thunderhead above roared with her, “Leave my sister at once!”
The creature swayed with the rolls of thunder, not flinching at the deafening sound. The pity had vanished from its face and left only a twisted form of disapproval. The beast scoffed, “Is this anyway for a princess to act?”
Gleaming with the barely controlled power inside, her eyes searched the creature in front of her. Her anger clouding her mind. The desire to grab her sister by the withers and rip the blight out by hoof was so strong. It would be so easy.
The thunderhead above her head dissipated and the white glow left her eyes, “No,” Luna said fighting down the urge to start attacking and not stop, “I suppose not. Fighting you will do nothing but further destroy our and our sister’s castle.”
The creature sighed shaking it’s head, “Luna, how long will you delude yourself? I am your sister, no matter what my student and her slave will have you believe.”
Luna’s expression tightened, “Zachery is not owned by Twilight. We have never or will ever own another creature. It is barbaric.”
“Oh, Luna. If only you knew what these monsters are capable of.” The beast within her sister said its voice dripping softness, “Only with their subjugation will our ponies be safe. With their servitude we can prosper in ways that you could never dream of. If you will just listen and allow me to show you how much better Equestria could be I promise you nothing but satisfaction.”
Luna looked into her sister’s eyes and found nothing of that promise they made thousands of years ago. She pushed away the emotion, she pushed away the despair to ensure that old promise would not be broken. Luna stood tall and recounted the very first rule that her and her sister had put onto themselves, “We would rather for our ponies to stagnate than for them to progress over the graves of the innocent.”
The air stilled and the puppet looked at her with a face so terribly blank, “Luna, you could not possibly wish for such a thing.”
“I do.” Luna answered head lowering toward her sister’s body aiming for her barrel, the greatest damage she could inflict without outright killing her, and blast the weakness in her own heart. Luna knew that lethal force would be the absolute last thing she would try. She could only hope it would not cost her, “We do not have the right to bring suffering on others to further our goals. To see my ponies use and see others as nothing more than a means to an end would bring me nothing but shame.”
Ugly, Celestia’s face twisted her declaration seeming to settle so wrong with the beast that it lost the patience that its act depended on and spat, “Luna, princess of the night and all that profit from it. From your ascent I should have known that you would have never seen reason. Creatures of the dark have always stayed together.” Celestia’s injured horn painfully sparked to life.
Her own horn lit up in preparation of the beast’s attack, “I will not allow you to hurt any of my ponies or the creatures in our lands.” Luna stated her voice hard with conviction.
The beast smiled, “Then it is well that I wish not to hurt anycreature.” The Beast turned spun on its hooves, and Luna watched in horror as what was a very tired, very weaken human froze at the Beast’s charge.
She did not see Zachery enter the hall.
Her magic flared and she shot a volley of pure condensed magic at Beast’s unguarded back. The sound of the violence, and the resulting scream of rage that left the Beast was enough to urge Zachery into moving. Zachery jumped out of reach just fast enough to avoid the brunt of the beast’s attack. Luna’s gaze flicked to Zachery to see his momentum launch him into a roll which took him across the floor and ended in a sliding crouch far away from the Beast.
Luna shifted her eyes back to the Beast as it correct its stance and faced her. A deep frown marred her sister’s face, beads of running bright red stained her sister’s horn, and she will not take her eyes off the Beast to look at Zachery. Zachery was able to move and that wasn't nearly enough blood to be of danger to him. She would not take her eyes off the Beast.
The Beast lurched into a taller stance anger flashing behind the storm of dull eyes, “You would scorn the lives of my ponies by saving that thing, wouldn’t you? It is as well is it not? A creature of darkness holding companionship with leftovers that should never have been given life.”
Luna tempered down the snarl that demanded to be released. The Beast’s petty words will not confuse her thoughts, “Beast I order you one last time, leave my sister or I will remove you by force.”
Fire sparked and Luna got her answer. She dropped low avoiding the arch of flame, and shot a beam of energy from within the blind spot of the Beast’s attack. The Beast screamed, it’s pitch both high and deep as it sprayed fire toward her in blind retaliation.
Luna clung to the ceiling, flying above the relentless unfocused attack under her. Her eyes glowed white and a shield of magic spread beneath her as she waited for the Beast to tire. Such an attack could only last so long, and the Beast was being so reckless. Its inexperience with her sister’s power was painfully embarrassing and its execution was something of a spectacle. She could count the seconds to the death of the spell, and, as expected, the fire died and Luna dropped from the ceiling, shield protecting her as she landed hard on her sister’s back.
The Beast screamed in anger and pointed her sister’s horn to attack. Luna, seeing through the jerky movements ducked under the sway of her sister’s neck. Luna gritted her teeth as she fell forward on her forehooves and kicked out her with her back. The Beast sputtered as her sister’s jaw slammed up, and it quickly drew away from her.
Shock played clear on Celestia’s stolen face and the Beast coughed as it gingerly touched the darkening bruise under its neck. “How?” The Beast wheezed through its abused throat, “How could you injure me like this. I am the stronger one. Celestia is the stronger one!”
“Yes, Celestia is stronger.” Luna echoed, feeling nothing but contempt for the creature that toyed with her sister’s body, “Celestia is older, Celestia has spent many more years than me studying magic, Celestia has the power to leave much of the world in ashes if she so wished.” A dry smile crossed her face, “You however, are not my sister. You are nothing but a blight holding power that you could never hope to understand. You embarrass yourself for allowing Celestia to be injured by attacks that haven’t touched her since she was a foal.” Luna snorted, “You're pathetic flailing around mock’s Celestia’s true strength.”
Fire blazed around the Beast and it spoke so softly, “You dare imply that I am inferior?”
“Beast, I speak only the truth.” Luna said, sweat curling down her face as flames rose higher.
Celestia’s magenta eyes disappeared behind a veil of gold. Her wings puffed up grimy and clumped as the energy in the sun itself weave around an unfitting ruler. Luna balked at the dangerous amount of power the Beast was channeling. Such levels were beyond dangerous not only for her, but whatever was left of her sister.
She held her ground, and gathered her own power around her. Pale ribbons of energy twisted tightly around her body as the Beast regarded her with pure contempt. Flames blazed wildly, sweat prickled against Luna’s coat around the threat of blisters, and the Beast silently watched.
Eyes never closing even as heat dried them, Luna aimed and casted her spell. Through the fire, through the hate, and right into Celestia’s chest.
The Beast wheezed and the bonds of its stolen power shattered, leaving heated marble as the fire extinguished. The Beast stumbled on its feet barely holding itself up as it violently coughed out, “How?”
Luna stood tall, confident in the weakness of the blight, “I told you Beast. You are not my sister. Her power will never be yours to control.” She replied, her face devoid of emotion. “No being could hope to harness my sister’s power with her ease.” Luna’s horn brightened, “You will never defeat me by using her stolen power.”
Luna held the Beast’s hateful glare. The Beast slammed her sister’s hoof repeatedly against the marble floor, and Luna knew that it was losing its composure. With each stomp steam flared from the creature's nostrils, with each stomp the mask of princess hood cracked a little more.
The Beast’s unfocused eyes bore into hers and it spat, “You traitor. You waste of thousands of years. You absolute failure!” The Beast’s tone reached a feverish pitch, and for the briefest of moments Luna heard something... familiar, woven in-between her sister’s strain voice, “I should have-” A curious expression crossed the Beast’s face and it chuckled.
Her hooves scratched the marble floor as the Beast’s laugh continued. So calm, so wrong, “Why do you laugh? You have lost.”
The Beast smiled at her and unknown familiarity alarmed in her head as it spoke, “Luna, you are many things, but foolish is not one of them. You are right I cannot win by using Celestia’s power.” The blight within her sister pulled her sister’s lips back in an unnatural smile.
Unfamiliar magic twisted around Celestia’s horn.
Luna’s eyes widened as the spell careened towards her faster and cooler than anything that the Beast had used before. She threw up a shield around herself and braced for the impact of the attack. Horrified, her eyes widen as the spelled ran across her shield and yanked away her control. Quickly she cut herself from the spell, and could only gape when the shield did not collapse. The rust red magic left her sister’s horn and her own reflection stared back at her from the now shiny curve of what was her shield.
She spun and bucked the reflective surface and snarled as it did not crack. Her eyes narrowed at the still smiling thing that had dared to trap her. “What have you done!?”
“It is a spell of my own making.” The Beast said simply and sickly, all traces of its previous anger erased from its face. “It was foolish of me to limit myself to what little spells I could take from Celestia’s subconsciousness. More than foolish due to the nature of this threat. As much as I want to end this mistake I have something I must accomplish.” The Beast turned away from her and shouted in anger, “Slave!”
Luna slammed her fore hooves against the barrier just as the Beast’s head pitched violently to the side. She watched as Zachery flipped over the Beast’s head and landed between her and the Beast. She could just make out the Beast rubbing its cheek, and the blood that dripped from its face.
New blood re-stained her sister’s hooves. The Beast looked at the mess on its hooves as if not quite understanding that Zachery managed to bloody it. Realisation grew in time with its anger and it glared hatefully at Zachery. Terrifying, its face twisted, sickening it spat out-
What in the deepest pits of Tartarus were those words!?
Luna, in all her thousands of years, and with all her knowledge of language could not begin to understand the words that oozed from the Beast’s mouth. The words inched disgustingly from within the Beast, its voice gurgled along the ridges of its throat and burrowed into her ears. Such a vile tongue should have never existed. Nothing so vile should have been birthed on this mortal coil.
Shock paralyzed her when Zachery answered back in his own tongue. All her knowledge told her that the conversation between Zachery and the Beast should be impossible. Yet there he stood back bent forward in his low stance claws (claws!) held and clutching violently at air as he spat hate back.
Brave, and yet so stupid. She could see his feet shift constantly trying to taper off the shaking in his body. He was terrified, yet he stood to fight even as bright blood stood out starkly on his arm, and she was stuck behind a barrier; powerless.
Snarling she slammed magic wrapped hooves against the glass-like prison, her anger deepening as the glass barely moved. The barrier must break! Zachery was weakened and he was not positioned to dodge the attack rising from the ground-
Luna blinked. Zachery wasn’t looking at the rust coloured magic crawling along the ground his eyes were focused on Celestia’s horn, her sister’s dormant horn.
Realisation splashed cold against her face and she screamed, “Move!”
Zachery jumped at her voice’s command distancing himself from the Beast. His black wings pushed him higher as sharp angler branches of magic leapt from the ground and followed him in the air. The human landed only to quickly jump again as the branches reached for him. The branches moved faster and faster feeding off the thickening lines connected to the Beast’s hooves, and Zachery was slowing.
Luna forced more magic into her hooves and pounded against her prison, her teeth gritting hard at every foot that the branches gained. Zachery would not last much longer, and the barrier was just showing signs of cracking-
A thin branch wrapped around one of Zachery’s feet and rapidly climbed up his leg. It plucked him from the air and dragged him back to earth as he yelped.
She screamed obscenities at the Beast, redoubling her efforts as it dragged Zachery closer towards it. She switched between blasting her damnable confines and just trying to forcefully punch her way through. All the while Zachery’s futilely clawed at the marble as the Beast’s magic griped his legs tighter. She screamed death and revenge and anger at her own weakened state and over the fact that she knew that she would not break through the spell in time.
Lazily the Beast flipped Zachery onto his back, slowly dragging him that last few feet until Zachery was between its legs, its fore-hooves at either side of the human's head. A massive flurry of sparks escaped Zachery’s mouth, and the Beast’s horn lit up. Zachery coughed harshly, branches wrapped tightly holding him down while he was too distracted by the spell being casted on him.
After what was somehow both lifetime and a handful of seconds the spell ended. With his control once again returned to him Zachery opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
The Beast looked blankly down at Zachery’s frozen body, its eyes tracking the sporadic rise and fall of the human's chest as he hyperventilated. It sighed, “I should have done this hours ago, how was I to know that Celestia’s magic interfered with my mind so much?”
Luna screamed curses as the Beast painstakingly raised a cracked hoof over Zachery’s head. She slammed her shoulder against the blasted shield that would not break, and Zachery turned away arms over his head in a last ditch attempt to save himself.
Disgusting rust red magic wrapped around the Beast’s hoof, and Zachery tensed.
A flash of light blinded her, and Luna bit back a horrible sob as the Beast’s hoof stomped hard shattering everything under it. One last anguished punch and the shield broke just when it was much too late. Her vision blanked out to white and frost froze her heart.
She will kill the Beast. Never again will she fail a creature. Even if she had to rip every last sinful monster from their damnable institutions no creature shall ever again suffer such a fate as long as she drew breath!
She snarled. There will be no more mistakes! Her horn lit with the cold pressure of the moon, her hooves slide across marble, and roughly poked something soft. She glared down at what had dared to impede her movement and pulled her hoof away as if she had touched a corrosive poison.
Zachery laid before her, arms and legs tight against his body and wings folded stiffly on his back.
The glow faded from her eyes as his tense, alive, form registered in her head. Weakly she gasped, “Zachery?”
He didn’t move and she lightly touched him, and he still didn’t move. Roughly, she poked him in the side shaking his arms away from his face. Wide, panicked, bright blue eyes stared up her. She shook him again harder, “Zachery!” She knew her voice was much too rough.
He blinked and rolled beside her. Quickly he was up in a crouch wide eyes now taking in everything around him. Shakily he rested one hand against his head, shocked at the blood not there. His eyes found hers and thickly he asked, “Dead?”
Luna decided that It would be wise not to question the disbelief he had when looking at her. Mentally she shook herself and answered him, “No dead, alive.”
Speechless Zachery’s mouth moved, his mind finally caught up with the world around him, and the defenseless position he was in. His shoulders rising sharply, feathers puffed out in a clear display of aggression he released a terrible hiss from deep within him. The hiss tapered off, and his jaw hung loose, barely getting out the word, “Twilight?”
Disbelieving she followed his gaze only to see her sister’s protégé standing brave before the Beast that wore her sister’s body.
Her response was many times louder than Zachery’s initial question, “Twilight, get away from it!”
Twilight ignored her in favor of lowering her horn at the Beast, “I will not let you hurt him!”
So that is how Zachery escaped. For all her flaws Twilight was an undisputed genius when it came to spell casting. She would praise Twilight for her quick action but instead of retreating, Twilight was holding her ground against the Beast.
Stubbornness and bravery was never a good combination. Luna gritted her teeth as she watched the horribly one sided standoff. This was not good. Twilight was not ready to fight a Beast like this, and she was less ready to attack Celestia even if her sister was possessed.
“Twilight, you cannot fight her!” Luna snapped in agitation, her wings lifting high as she prepared to barrel towards them.
The Beast’s lazy gaze towards Zachery was enough to stop her. A snarl crossed Luna’s face as the Beast’s smile dared her to attack it. According to Twilight, Zachery had been exerting himself from the moment they encountered the Beast. How he managed to escape the Beast and serious injury for so long was beyond her. It was impressive to say the least, but right now she knew he was barely holding himself up. No matter how much his threatening display said otherwise.
If she left Zachery’s side the Beast would finish the job that Twilight interrupted.
Her voice grew loud, “Twilight, I order you to take Zachery and leave this place!”
Twilight did not turn to face her, “No.”
“Twilight!” Luna snarled, Of all the time for sister’s student to choose to ignore orders she had to choose now?! “Twilight, you are not capable enough to fight this battle!”
“I can’t run away anymore!” Twilight snapped back refusing to take her eyes off of Celestia, “This is the second time that Zachery almost died because of my inaction. I will not allow this, this monster to hurt him!”
The Beast’s eyes flicked down at Twilight, and Luna charged her horn to protect her even if she knew she couldn't watch both Twilight and Zachery while also protecting herself.
“You call me a monster? After all that I have done for my ponies?” The Beast said stiffly, it’s words being drawn back by a continuous inhale. Harshly it breathed out, “You would fight me for this, this abomination?! After what it’s kind has done?”
Twilight’s wings puffed out in agitation, “He is not an abomination or an it!”
“You are so adamant about what I call him.” Distastefully the Beast looked at her, “Do you think of it as a friend?”
Twilight’s horn lit up and she dug her hooves into the ground, “To tell you the truth we’re more acquaintances than friends.”
Luna’s eyes widened at the stillness that overcame the Beast, “Twilight, get back now!”
“You would fight me to save a human you are only acquainted with?” The Beast said low and scatheing like a pot of water just about to boil over.
“I would defeat you to save him.” Twilight replied harshly, her eyes looking through Celestia, “Our first encounter ended in a horrible way, our second ended worse so. I almost killed him, and I know he has entertained the idea of killing me more times than I would be comfortable knowing. And honestly, I regret the first micro-movement I made that resulted in me finding him.”
“Yet,” Twilight said stubborn her horn glowing purple, “I would rather lock Celestia away then allow you to hurt him again.”
The Beast fell silent, and it’s borrowed eyes regarded Twilight with a cold finalization, “It seems my guidings did not resonate with Celestia. She continues to surround herself with fools.”
Rust-like magic screamed around Celestia’s horn and Twilight staggered back at the revolting miasma that leak into the air.
Luna’s eyes snapped open, white and endless. Power coursing through her body, she dragged Twilight away from the beast and towards herself. Once Twilight was safe Luna jerked her head up violently constructing a shield that blocked the hallway, sectioning them away from the Beast.
Branches of glassy magic shuddered and cracked into endless fractals at Celestia’s hooves spreading aggressively with each of the Beast’s exhales. They swarmed and crawled across the ground like an infection pulsing in time with the simmering glass like covers encrusting on Celestia’s unblinking eyes. The branches heaved and bunched against the barrier rolling enmass at the base before lurching up and spreading across the shield.
Luna’s teeth gritted hard at the drain. The Beast’s attack siphoned her magic as quickly as she casted it. With each portion the attack covered she felt the drain increase. Morosely, she realised that she was pumping her magic into a void.
“Twilight!” Luna snapped, and forget the desperation in her own voice there will be time for embarrassment later. She didn’t see Twilight aid her spell, but by peace did she feel it. The drain immediately went from an endless suffering to merely a great discomfort. It did little to comfort her because she knew that Twilight’s involvement would only gain them minutes until her barrier fell.
“Luna.” The Beast called behind the slowly obscuring barrier.
Luna focused more power into her spell.
“Luna, I will get through.”
She snarled curses under her breath as the barrier began to buckle from the mass pushing against it.
“Luna.”
Silently, Luna beckoned Twilight closer. She couldn’t save them and herself. Once the barrier broke, she would teleport Twilight and Zachery away. She resented leaving the safety of Equestria to a wholly unprepared princess and the fractured mess that was the elements, but Cadance will need the help. Hopefully, Cadance wouldn’t be too mad when she found out what she had been hiding.
“Luna!”
She braced for the Beast’s attack. From the edge of her eye she saw Zachery stand up. Briefly, she wondered where the human was getting all this strength to fight. She had seen guards give up for a thousand times less than what they faced now. Yet, he stood up, a snarl on his face, and determined black sparks exiting his mouth. She briefly noticed though he was releasing much less and much more feebly than the blinding swarm that he released when the Beast had caught him.
The barrier buckled further and she decided that such observations should be left for less pressing times. Violent cracks twisted on the barrier’s surface, spiraling out of control, and Luna tried not to scream out at the vileness of the magic tainting her spell. The mass heaved against her shield, a heavy dulled sound gaining strength with each thud, and Luna cut the spell quickly turning on Zachery and Twilight.
The sound of the spreading magic stopping entirely. Luna paused, her horn glowed brightly as Zachery and Twilight floated in her magic grasp. Bewildered she watched as the stilled wall of rusted branches shuddered and peeled apart. Limbs fell away from the frozen mass, disappearing in a rust coloured smoke as they lost power. Tediously, the wall shrank away leaving them in full view of the Beast and the dying pulses of its magic.
Ragged it gasped, stomping forceful as it pushed forward weakening magic from emptying reserves. It glared, more of its hate being revealed as the glassy film over its host's eyes evaporated in a similar rust like smoke. The Beast’s expression contorted darkly it raised it’s hoof, and slowly it breathed.
“It seems that my time here has run its course.” The Beast said training brightening magenta eyes on them. Its eyes flickered on Zachery and a spark of anger flashed, “You taunt me with your life and used my own hate to so completely interfere with my goals.” The Beast’s voice changed and a woefully familiar vileness voided its mouth.
Words that Luna did not understand but could estimate the meaning of. Small shivers ran through Zachery even as he snarled back what had to be a most profane response in his own tongue. Twilight fared no better, shaking at the sight of such immortal words existing in Celestia’s mouth.
The Beast narrowed its eyes and stepped powerfully forward before convulsions racked its host’s body. It’s eyes rolled back and its head followed lurching up and back before Celestia’s legs gave out and they fell to the floor. Celestia’s body twitched, her wings flapping uselessly and with a sharp choked out exhale she laid still.
Luna kept her hold on her temporary charges, not once taking her eyes off her sister’s fallen form.
Celestia gasped. Her legs kicked at the air in shock and she flipped over onto her stomach. Celestia shook her head and matted tangles of mane parted to reveal bright, confused magenta eyes. Her gaze fell down to her hooves and a panicked exclamation escaped her at the sight of their severely cracked appearance. Horrified, Celestia’s gaze followed a path up her foreleg and to the rest of her body taking in each sight from her matted coat to her frayed wings. She gaped and with her ears splayed back against her head she face forward to Luna.
The horror on her sister’s face grew and Luna suspected that her own cold suspect had much to do with it. Her sister’s expression begged for solace, and Luna trained her horn on her.
“Luna, what happened to me?” Celestia, her sister asked.
Her horn flashed brighter, “Beast, we will not fall for thine tricks.”
Celestia shrank back, “Luna-”
“Have we not made ourselves clear?” And she will not let Celestia’s tears distract her.
So softly her sister whispered, “Berceuse, please.”
The old, foalish name brought Luna to hesitation, and she lifted her head. “Celestia.” Luna stated, confirming to herself that her sister had been freed of the Beast’s control. At least for the time being. Calmly she released her hold on Twilight, letting the struggling mare out, the struggling mare who did not run towards her mentor.
Celestia caught on quickly and gently she reached out to her, “Twi-”.
“We need to bring you to a more secure area.” Twilight said quickly, her eyes focused on the floor between her hooves. “It’s not safe to have you out like this.”
“Twilight-”.
“I have to create sigils, and wards.” Twilight pressed on her voice hollow, empty, “I’m not familiar with shaman magic but I know,” Twilight cut herself off shaking as she bit her lip in a grimace, not wanting to doom somecreature else, “It’ll take time. Luna, you’ll have to cancel court to watch over your seal.”
“Twilight! Please. What happened to me?” Her sister pleaded, “I-I don’t remember. I went to Luna for help and everything after that is this, this horrible blur, and-” Recognition flashed behind her eyes, “Twilight, when did you get back? Your mission I-”
Celestia’s eyes widened as she finally saw Zachery floating in Luna’s telekinetic grasp. “I-is that a human?” Celestia’s jaw hung in amazement and she reached towards him.
Zachery’s resulting growl caused Celestia to flinch back. She pulled her foreleg towards her body, as his wings extended and puffed out. Colour drained from her face at the wrathful display. Luna knew it has been many years since another creature bared its fangs so hatefully at her. It has been many more since Luna had peacefully allowed a creature to do so.
“Why?” Celestia asked her question not direct at any one creature.
“Such a response is reasonable for anycreature confronted with the being that tried to kill it regardless of the attackers state at that time.” Luna said cooly. “More so when there was no proper reason for the aggression turned on said attacked creature.”
Celestia’s ears flipped back, her eyes widening at the drying blood on Zachery’s arm, “I would never harm any creature.” She said her gaze locked on Zachery’s haggard appearance, “I would never act in aggression without a proper reason.”
“You sprained Twilight’s wing and threatened to break her horn.” Blunt. Cold. Nothing but the facts. That is what Luna knew her sister needed to hear. “You did this because she disagreed with you.”
“I, I-” Celestia shook her head. Tangles of coarse mane pulling roughly and Luna stood strong against her sister’s haunted eyes, “Luna, I would never hurt Twilight.”
Luna gestured to Twilight, who was standing in a very peculiar and frustrating way, “Look at that. Twilight is trying to hide from you. Celestia, alicorns do not bruise easily.”
Twilight stiffened at her words, but did not immediately make to move. Luna gestured again directing a tight frown at the young alicorn. Hesitantly, Twilight turned her head towards Celestia and pushed her mane back.
The bruise, Luna knew, was nasty. It heavily discoloured Twilight’s skin leaving a dark reddish purple mark on her brow. It was painful just to look at and Luna forced down a pang of sympathy at the sight of her sister’s horror. Her sister had to know how volatile a situation they were in if she had to force her face into the pain she caused so be it.
“Celestia.” Twilight said, pausing to bite her lip clearly working over what to say, “Celestia, I know that if you were in your right mind you would have never attacked me. You wouldn’t have demanded the right to do those, things to Zachery, and you would have never put so many lives in danger.” Twilight breathed in deeply and her exhale was so weary, “But you weren’t in your right mind, and we don’t know what took you over or why. All we knew as of right now is that it could. And that’s-”
Twilight’s hoof tremoured and dropped, her mane fell back into place yet the edges of her bruise still could be seen, “You’re too dangerous, we can't let you walk around freely.”
Luna watched her sister's eyes go blank. Not the terrible muddy darkness of a creature possessed, but the professional blankness that she adopted when everything hurt and she still had a job to do.
“I see.” Celestia replied cooly. She looked to Twilight and Luna saw her sisters mask break just a little, “Twilight, from the deepest place in my heart know that I am so sorry.”
Twilight refused to look at Celestia, and Luna could not find the fight to force Twilight to acknowledge her sister’s apology.
Sighing, Luna gently placed Zachery down and spoke, “We are unaware of how much the Beast can see. I took the liberty of having a place made for you after one of your more destructive episodes.” Luna said her voice tightening traitorously at Celestia’s flinch, “I am sorry that things came to be like this.” Luna’s horn lit up and she covered Celestia and herself in her magic. Eyes glowing white, Luna turned to Twilight and Zachery. “You both need to rest and be looked at. I shall send a message to you both on the morrow.”
With that, Luna disappeared with Celestia leaving Zachery and Twilight in the hall.
Twilight stumbled into the room that had been set aside for them. Inside her friends waited. Rainbow Dash looked exhausted but not devastated so that meant that no creature got hurt in the crossfire, or at least none that Rainbow Dash saw. Rarity looked at her, a worried question budding at her lips. Twilight didn’t want to do anything right now other then crawl into one of the beds Zachery hadn't commandeered for himself.
Thankfully said human had stumbled in right behind her and Rarity’s attention was drawn elsewhere. Twilight didn’t know what type of magic he had used and quite frankly didn’t care. Of course she had asked if he was okay and he said,
“Like wings. I good. Want rest.”
She didn’t protest. It wasn’t like she could help him if there was something wrong with his magic. He was alive, could walk (although he did limp), he didn’t have any broken bones, and was currently not bleeding out. That was good enough for her. She walked pass them, ignoring as Rarity fussed and aimed herself for a very inviting bed.
A wall of yellow and pink blocked her path.
Twilight blinked at Fluttershy, not quite registering her.
Fluttershy stood defiantly in front of the bed, a small frown on her face as she studied Twilight’s behaviour. Fluttershy’s frown deepened and she asked, “Where do you think you’re going?”
“To sleep?” Twilight answered, standing tall through the low pulsing in her head.
Fluttershy’s frown lessened as concern spread over her face, “Rainbow Dash told me that you suffered a head injury. You should be in the infirmary.”
There was a pause as Twilight carefully chose her next words. It would be a bad idea to tell Fluttershy that both she and Zachery decided to ignore Luna’s strikingly similar advice. “Fluttershy, it’s not that bad I can sleep it off.”
Fluttershy stepped closer to her and Twilight found herself fighting the urge to just leave. “Twilight. You need to be looked after. In more ways than just your head injury” A breath. “It’s true that Celestia tried to kill you?”
Twilight stiffened, “She wasn’t in control.”
“But she, or at least her body, did.” Fluttershy said plainly, “That must have been horrible for you.”
“Zachery is the one that had to fight her. Shouldn’t you be worried about him?” Twilight said a little too roughly.
“If Zachery needed help he would tell me. You wouldn’t. You would wait until something becomes too terrible to hide before telling me or any of the girls anything.” Fluttershy gently placed a hoof on her shoulder, “Twilight, please don’t bottle your emotions up.”
A sharp inhale. A gasping exhale. She looked away and felt the silence in the room. And of course stubborn tears would not stay put. She turned back to Fluttershy and hated how blurred she was.
“Celestia, tried to kill me.” Saying it out loud just hurt so much.
Two forelegs wrapped around her and she sniffled into a soft yellow coat.
It wasn’t fair.
Everything she had done, every last terrible thing had been futile and utterly pointless. She failed at staying true in her original mission. She failed to realize the implications of her plans. She failed at first contact. She failed at diplomatic relations between both humans and griffins. She failed at keeping one human from harm in her own country.
Then, were she should have been able to fix things. She couldn’t do anything when, Celestia, her mentor, her second mother, was possessed. She didn’t even have the self control to look at her without crying when she had asked for forgiveness.
It all fell apart, nothing she did stopped the horror spiraling out of control around her, and she had nocreature to blame but herself for this mess.
She was just so tired.
“Howdy y’all!”
Twilight pulled out of Fluttershy’s embrace enough to see Applejack smiling widely at the door.
“Ya wouldn’t believe it but I did it! I fixed all our problems.” Applejack’s bright smile somehow got larger. “It was tough I admit talking all those ponies down. Y’all wouldn’t believe how challenging and nerve wracking it was to tell them the truth, but I am so glad I stayed true to my element. I feel so gosh darn better. And I went one step further you are going to love this!”
Applejack sauntered into the room to high on her own success and pleasure to feel the waves of anxiety coming at her from all the rooms inhabitants. She stood in the centre of the room and with head held high she said, “I got my brother you know ‘Ponyville knight Sir Macintosh’, I can’t believe he allowed them to call him that, to agree to a meeting with us and the princess. I’m thinking that with his help we can dismantle this whole militia.
“Oh he was suspicious all right, but I promised to let him see Celestia. If he see’s that she’s just sick and there is no conspiracy at hoof it will greatly help our chances don’t you think? Best of all, you’ll like this Twi, Cadance is coming over as well. There was nopony else to agree to her request so I did it for you. With four princesses agreeing that there is nothing iffy going on my brother and his cohorts will have to believe us!”
Applejack stood proudly pleased with the steps she took to fix everything.
There was no words of congratulations of offerings of praise.
Applejack looked, actually looked at the ponies and human around. Not understanding her friends shocked faces or the annoyed confusion of the human’s face.
“Is there something wrong?”
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Oh, AppleJack, what have you done?!
Edit: The gesture of trying to de-fuse the situation is an honorable one, but the timing is horrible.
That was an excellent installment, you had me on my toes the entire time.
Oh Jack...
On the bright side if they do meet her provided she isn't possessed anymore then things will go well.
Oh boy... these are the days that I wish that I could travel dimensions... They may be strong but nothing is stronger then darkness....
I think Discord, Chrysalis, and Sombra would beg to differ.
You done goofed.
Applejack can not be THAT oblivious to the mood of the room as well as the state the castle must be in, she can't be that dense. I mean does she not see Twilight CRYING for pete's sake?!
6767462
I can't describe what Applejack did in a better way.
6767206 Just to be fair, this is because Celestia doesn't like to use lethal force. The afore mentioned villas have no problem with it.
6768472
I still think Chrysalis would beg to differ. Seeing how she wiped the floor with the so called "Goddess of the Sun".
Also if she could do all of that, then why not take care of those problems herself?
6768528
You speak of this as if it were a linear thing. If she wants to leave the world in flames, all she needs to do is move the sun closer.
I can beat x is not a linear thing. Hell, if I control a bunch of nukes, it won't let me win a knife fight, but I sure can blow up some countries.
6768800 Actually a whole lot of Unicorns could do the exact same thing.
6768803
Yes, enough to qualify as a country, and effort enough that they thought it was enough to justify doing nothing else. You picked a minor object and completely missed the point.
6768812 Moving the sun is only Celestia's special talent. The show clearly makes the distinction that a special talent does not automatically equal raw power seeing as how even Twilight has trouble with a few spells due to them being associated with certain special talents.
6768837
Once again, you completely miss the point. Raw power is useless, it is an arbitrary number that applies to so little it can be discarded for theorizing. It is how you can use it, and how efficiently. So, its her special talent and no other ponies presumably. Does that mean she can override others. Does the sun on her even directly refer to that, because most marks are at least a little metaphorical. For instance, Luna is directly referred to as Princess of the night, not only the moon. Her opposite is therefore day and all other things one might associate with it.
6768935 Let's just agree to disagree
Eagerly await the next chapter.
Being honest here, the spelling and grammar mistakes in this chapter occurred very often and were very noticeable. It made reading this chapter extremely annoying. I mean, I never really liked fight scenes in any fiction novel so I could be bias, but the noticeable lack of commas and repetition of the sentence structure really made me dislike this chapter. The story up until now was great, though. So don't be disheartened by the inexperienced oppinion of some random person online.
Applejack is batting a thousand for stupid and useless. And Dash still does nothing while watching from the sidelines. Somebody SERIOUSLY needs to beat the ever-living shit out of A.J. I'm talking to within an inch of her life for this kind of rampant, total, incomprehensible, stupidity.
6768935
Personally I hate the princesses anyways you don't get to say you're peaceful and loving when you've shackled and chained the sun and moon to your wills.
i feel so sorry for them all it like fate conspiring against them this is why some humans hate fate or destiny cause serious bull there it almost like harry dresden to me.
i bet it was really hard for apple jack but she should of kept to what she was told to do and not make surprises in these fragile times.
Wow just wow.................................................................
.................no words
6793869
As far as we know, the sun and moon are not alive