• Published 14th Apr 2015
  • 5,250 Views, 331 Comments

Night Reigns - tursi



Ten years after Nightmare Moon returns from her exile and plunges Equestria into Eternal Night, Celestia escapes from her solar prison. Weakened and alone, she needs to rebuild her strength. But how can she put things right?

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Chapter 18 - Rising Flames

Sunset woke slowly from a deep, dreamless sleep, her eyes opening to the steady darkness of the cavern. Slowly, she took in the tiny points of twinkling light echoing off the crystal walls from the small sparks of magic that she and Celestia had set up for light. Her sleeping bag was warm and comfortable despite the new fabric smell, and she considered rolling over and sleeping further.

Finally, responsibility won over and slowly, she sat up. She looked over at Celestia, who was still resting peacefully. Sunset's face crinkled into a look of concern.

"Her wing is really hurt... but it will heal," she thought. "The real concern is her magic. I doubt she has even as much reserve as a filly right now, certainly less than I have. It will take longer for her magic to recover than her body. How long can we hide out while she recovers? Without her magic, I don't know what we can do."

She slipped out of the sleeping bag and quietly walked across to a wall, where she stared into her dark reflection on the crystal wall. As she stared, she lifted a hoof to touch her reflection gently.

"And they know we are here... or at least Nightmare Moon's assistant does. How can we trust him? I trust Celestia but, I'm not sure about that. If only there was a way to know. Maybe I should go check out the city... see if there is anything I can learn."

She looked back at Celestia again, hesitating. Then she lit her horn and levitated her cape to herself, settling it over her body. "Just a quick look... it won't take long."

She turned and trotted deeper into the cave, in the direction she had seen Ulfrid come from. She didn't notice Celestia lifting her head behind her to watch her go.

"Don't be long," whispered Celestia to the fading light of Sunset's horn. "I can't do this alone."

-----

The brightly reflective walls of the cavern meant that Sunset needed only a little light to see her way ahead, and she found as the tunnel passed further into the mountain that it occasionally branched off. She chose the most upward path as often as possible, casting a small marker spell at each junction to help find her way back.

Her instincts played true. After about ten minutes she noticed a darker area ahead that did not reflect the light from her horn. As she drew closer and the dark area grew wider, she could see the stars of the night sky beyond an opening of the cave. She chuckled to herself.

"Maybe not as mysterious as Celestia suggested," she mused. "That Ulfrid clearly came in here."

The crystal faded rapidly to rock as she drew closer to the opening and she released her light spell to draw nearer the exit. She crept quietly up to the opening and peered outside. At first she saw nothing, but as her eyes adjusted to the dark she made out a narrow stone ledge.

She frowned as she stepped outside. The ledge was somewhat sheltered from the night breeze, but otherwise inaccessible from below. She looked down and watched the faint candlelight of a few Canterlot homes below. She shook her head, frustrated.

"Well, we won't be getting into the city this way... I wonder if Celestia knows another way."

She looked into the sky and then gasped as she saw a streaking pegasus racing down from overhead. She quickly turned to run back into the cave.

"Wait!" shouted the Pegasus. Before she had gotten much farther a sky-blue blur had raced around her and planted itself in her path. "I can't believe you're okay!"

Sunset lit her horn and teleported past the pegasus without losing a step, only to skid to a stop when she realized what he had said. "Wait... what?"

Stratosphere blinked in surprise at the teleport flash, but turned around with a big smile when he heard Sunset's voice. "Wow, you're fast!" he chuckled. But his voice went a little softer. "Your mane is even more beautiful than I imagined."

Sunset blinked again, and reached a hoof up to her mane, grimacing as she realized that her hood wasn't up. Her head tilted and she looked at the pegasus. "That's the night guard again... what did he..." She found her voice again, only to repeat her confusion. "Um, what?"

Stratosphere chuckled and snapped his fore hooves to attention, then offered her a salute. "Corporal Racing Wind, ma'am. But you can just call me 'Stratosphere'. I saw you back at the Everfree Forest, and... well..." He lost some of his professionalism. "Man... I owe you my life. I just wanted to thank you! Maybe over dinner?"

Sunset's mind ran in tight circles trying to process what he was talking about. "Wasn't this the guard I froze...? What is he talking about?" After a moment she repeated her thoughts vocally. "What are you talking about?"

"Dude, the cockatrice in the Everfree Forest the other night! You cast a recovery spell for me and left a note, remember?"

"Oh... I, um... yes..."

"But man, when I got further in, I found signs of a struggle... I thought you got taken by something. I was seriously bummed... it's so cool to see you're okay!"

"Was he pursuing me even after he recovered? Why is he acting like some kind of idiot?" Sunset frowned. "Why did you go further into the Everfree Forest even after... um... after the cockatrice?"

"Oh, I was searching for..." Stratosphere stopped abruptly. "I can't tell you that," he stated flatly. "Sorry," he added more softly.

"All right," replied Sunset slowly. "Well, I guess I better be going, then. It was nice to meet you, Mr. Stratosphere."

Stratosphere laughed. "Oh dude, nopony calls me 'mister'. You should just call me Stratosphere." He grinned and leaned in closer. "I mean, seriously, call me. You won't regret it!"

Sunset took a step back, and smiled nervously, "Oh, right... well, I'll certainly do that..."

"Wait!" commanded Stratosphere, his voice suddenly surprisingly powerful. Sunset froze on the spot, but Stratosphere's face melted into a goofy little smile. "You can't go until you at least tell me your name!"

Sunset frowned again, but after a moment she smiled warmly. "Sunny," she replied. "Sunny Sweetheart." She hated the name the moment she said it.

"I bet you are," smirked Stratosphere, then he returned to a more professional stance. "You may go about your business Ms. Sunny Sweetheart. Keep out of trouble now!"

"Oh, I... I will," assured Sunset.

Stratosphere saluted her again, then took wing and darted out of the cave entrance, blasting straight up into the sky the moment he was clear. Sunset immediately let out a huge breath of relief.

"That was too dangerous... that was too close." She turned back into the cave, looking back to ensure she wasn't being followed. After a couple of turns, just before the walls went to full crystal, she turned around and lit her horn.

"It's not trivial to find your way in, but two ponies already know about this cave entrance. I'm just going to make sure that pegasus doesn't decide to bring me flowers..."

Her horn brightened as her magic reached out, and a thin film of glowing plasma stretched out, filling the cave opening from floor to ceiling. As she continued to add energy to it, the glow darkened and solidified, taking on the appearance of ancient, crumbling rock. Finally satisfied, she let her horn fade.

"That should work... it'll even feel solid to any non-magical creature, as long as they believe it's there. A pretty good job if I do say so myself!"

She looked back down into the cave. "I hope Princess Celestia knows another way into town, because I was never going to be able to gather supplies this way. If there are pegasi watching from the skies this intently, we need much more subtle paths."

She made her way back down, carefully removing each magical marker as she passed it. When she reached the larger cavern, Celestia raised her head to greet her.

"Did you have a nice walk?" asked Celestia.

Although there was no hint of accusation in Celestia's voice, Sunset felt a stab in her heart at the question. She shook her head and folded her ears in shame. "I... I was seen," she said softly. "I'm sorry Princess."

Celestia's eyes widened, but her voice remained level. "Yet you return," she observed. "It must not have been so bad... may I ask who saw you?"

Sunset nodded slowly, "The same guard from the Everfree Forest... the one I froze, and the one who we saw talking to Nightmare Moon. But... he didn't seem to recognize me or know who I was. He... he just wanted to have dinner with me."

Celestia paused a moment, and then chuckled. "Perhaps we are just very lucky."

"I... I hope so, Princess. I cast a barrier spell just inside the cave mouth that looks like the rock wall; I think it will be enough to keep him from coming down here. There's no easy way for a non-pegasus to get to that opening, and I'm not sure that it's very visible even from the air."

Celestia nodded slowly, "I trust your work, dear Sunset." She looked up the tunnel that Sunset had come from for a moment, and then looked back towards her student. Her horn lit and she levitated a book towards Sunset. "While you were gone, I retrieved this from the supplies that we brought from the library. I'd like you to take a look at it."

Sunset tilted her head and captured the floating book in her own levitation field, bringing it closer to herself. She rotated the book in front of herself, noting the clasp and crescent moon on the cover. "It's a... diary?"

Celestia nodded, "Go ahead and open it... to the FIRST page," she warned.

Sunset undid the clasp and carefully opened the book. Her eyes scanned the first page, reading the text therein.

This book is the Property of LUNA and that means NO CELESTIA ALLOWED! I have put a spell on the book so YOU CAN'T READ IT! HAHA!

She gasped. "Is this Princess Luna's diary?!"

Celestia chuckled softly and nodded. "It is." Her voice went more serious. "I was hoping it might cast some light on what went wrong so long ago. But," she smirks, "her warning is valid, I actually cannot read it. When I try, the words swim and I get dizzy. That prevents me from even analyzing the spell... I was hoping that you might be able to make some sense of the spell she used."

Sunset looked concerned for a moment, and then turned the page. She stared at the page for a few minutes. "I... hmm. I'm not sure. It looks like a simple spell, but... it's a little hard to track it."

Celestia leaned forwards a bit. "But you can study it without ill effect?"

Sunset flipped the page and studied the next page for a few moments, then nodded slowly. "I think so," she mused. "But it is really tangled... it will take me a while to figure it out."

Celestia smiled. "I suspected that if anypony could, it would be you."

Sunset flipped to the next page. "You can't see it, Princess?"

Celestia walked over to Sunset and peered between the covers of the book, only to wince and draw back. She shook her head, "No, dear, it is still difficult to look at."

Sunset chuckled softly. "No wonder," she offered. "The pattern changed a lot when you drew near... I think it's enchanted to react specifically to you."

Celestia chuckled herself. "That makes sense... we were both still very young. I suppose Luna did not expect any other ponies to be a threat to her journal." She smiled wryly. "I hate to intrude upon her privacy like this, but I will take any clues I can find. Do you think you can unwind the spell?"

Sunset nodded. "Yes, I think so. It will take me a little time, though."

Celestia nodded. "Wonderful, thank you. For now, however, you may put it aside. I will show you a better way into the city, and perhaps you can acquire some provisions for us?" She smiled. "Not that your dried rations don't look delicious, but I thought maybe some fresh fruit would be nice?"

"Of course, Princess." She set the book down next to her sleeping bag and collected her saddlebags. "Should I look for anything else?" she asked.

Celestia waited for Sunset to get ready, and then started along the tunnel. "Perhaps a map if you can acquire one discreetly. We can use it to plan the search for the Elements."

Sunset nodded and trotted after Celestia. They made their way along the tunnel and Celestia made each turn without hesitation, selecting several downward paths before starting upwards again. After a short time they were walking alongside a deep pit into which a set of rails formed a spiraling, descending track.

"Is this part of the mine, Princess?" Sunset wondered aloud. "It's so deep!"

Celestia barely looked as she continued along. "Yes... a very large number of gems were excavated from here. As you see, it's much more rock than crystal in this area which made for much easier digging." She was silent for a moment and then added, "I may have been too permissive in how much I allowed them to take."

"What do you mean?"

Celestia turned her head and looked down into the pit while she continued walking ahead. From here the bottom was not even visible, vanishing into the dark. "There was no need to remove so much," she replied. "I was young and desperate for approval, so I didn't want to say no. Once, these were lovely little tunnels, studded with sparkling gemstones. Now it's just a big hole in the ground."

Sunset was silent, thinking quietly, but soon Celestia stopped and pointed upwards. "There. It's a lot harder to see in the dark, but can you see the exit up there?"

Sunset squinted up into the dark, following the direction Celestia pointed, but seeing a dark hole in a dark cave was difficult for her. "Can I use some light, Princess?"

Celestia nodded, "Yes, just a little. You should see a ledge and an opening up there."

Sunset lit her horn, and a small sphere of light floated up in the direction Celestia was pointing. It drifted up over the pit, and when it drew near the far wall she started to see the detail in the rock. As it floated upwards, she finally saw the exit, alongside a narrow ledge over the pit.

"That is one of the old mine entrances," said Celestia. "As you can see, it just looks over the pit now. We used to have it blocked off for safety reasons, but younger ponies usually had some way to get in and out. If you wink over there, you should be able to slip out without attracting too much attention. I'll mark the return path for you."

Sunset nodded, and looked up at the ledge across the pit. "All right. I'll be back in an hour." Her horn lit as she concentrated for a moment, and then she winked out and re-appeared on the far ledge. She peeked outside, and then waved at Celestia before pulling up her hood and stepping out of sight.

Celestia waited for a moment, listening and reaching out her senses. When she was satisfied that Sunset was doing all right, she let down her guard. Her body sagged with exhaustion as she turned and plodded slowly back down into the caves.

-----

Sunset returned as promised an hour later, carefully slipping into the cavern. "Princess?" she whispered.

She listened intently, only to hear the rhythmic breathing of deep sleep. She lit her horn faintly and stepped closer, looking over her mentor. Celestia was curled up atop her sleeping bag, her head resting on her forelegs, her eyes closed and her muzzle parted gently as she rested.

"You look like you need this," she whispered softly. "Have you not slept at all since we left?"

She smiled in a motherly fashion and levitated her own sleeping bag overtop of Celestia. She then removed her saddlebags and cloak, spreading out the cloak on the floor so that she could sit on it. Finally, she captured Luna's diary and levitated it over to herself.

She opened the book and read the warning page again, spending some time considering the words that Luna had written. She finally decided that there were no secrets buried in the text there and so moved to the first page.

"It's definitely got the feel of a younger unicorn," she mused, studying the spell carefully. "But I think it's been overlaid or enhanced by a more advanced spell. Actually, it looks like that has happened a number of times. Maybe when Princess Luna got older she decided to get more serious about protecting what she wrote...?"

She flipped ahead through the book, taking note of how many pages appeared to at least have something on them. Her mind wandered as she flipped backwards again, leisurely turning the pages back towards the start of the book.

"What must it have been like?" she mused, her eyes scanning distractedly. "Does this book really describe WHY Nightmare Moon did what she did? What a historical find if so!"

Suddenly something caught her attention and she focused on the pages again. She couldn't quite decide what had brought her back into focus; it was something in the turn of the pages. She began to flip the pages back and forth more rapidly, watching the spell fold around the paper.

"No, there's definitely something... Oh!"

She stared at the page, and flipped back and forth again, slowly shaking her head. "No, a Princess couldn't possibly make that mistake..."

The longer she studied the arcane spell lines, the more convinced she became. Princess Luna had left the key to the spell right in the middle of the book with improperly sealed magical strands. If Sunset was right, she needed only to casually untangle a few of them, and the entire enchantment would fall away.

She lit her horn to try it and then looked over at Princess Celestia. "I should wake her," she thought. "Make sure I'm doing the right thing here."

She hesitated, watching her sleeping mentor. "But what if I'm wrong? I don't want to let her down again." She sighed softly and then looked back at the book. "I'll just try it first. If I'm wrong, I can keep working. If I'm right, then I can wake her up and show her. She trusts me and I can do this."

Her horn brightened and she reached out for the loose strands of magic that she had detected. Like undoing stitches in fabric, she carefully pulled the strands through and around the other lines of the spell. All at once, there was a flash and a puff of smoke from the book and the spell fell away, disappearing into the air.

"Yes!" cheered Sunset, then she covered her mouth, checking whether she had awakened Celestia. Celestia continued to sleep peacefully, so Sunset brought the diary closer to herself. "Ten minutes," she thought. "Yeah, I've still got it."

She rotated the book through the air, carefully studying it from every angle. When she was convinced there was nothing left of the spell, she opened the pages again. The book was completely readable, written in a neat, tight script in a deep blue ink. Sunset became very excited and set the book down in front of herself. All thoughts of waking Celestia were forgotten with the thrill of discovery.

"All right, Princess Luna. Let's see what you have to say."

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