Night Reigns

by tursi

Chapter 39 - Sunrise

Sunset stowed the Crystal Heart in her saddlebag and frowned as she scanned the crystal cage that she was trapped in. She had left Stratosphere sleeping in the center while she investigated the edges. It was tight, but there was just enough room to avoid stepping on him.

She didn't have a great deal of magic left available to her, but any spell she had tried was simply absorbed. Now she was moving more slowly, physically pressing on the crystal spikes and testing any weakness she thought that she noticed. So far, nothing had so much as wiggled.

"I can't give up," she thought to herself. "There's no such thing as a perfect trap."

She paused for a third time in front of a particularly thin-looking spike of crystal, and tapped it thoughtfully. It ran from the base of the cell almost to the ceiling, but it didn't connect at the top. It looked as though it should snap right off, but tapping it and pushing on it hadn't yielded any results.

She pondered as she scanned the length of the spike right to its tip. "What if I used a gravity spell to stand on the ceiling, and just give it a really good kick? I'd only need to hold myself for a few seconds… I think I can do that."

Decision made, she lit her horn and jumped into the air. At the peak of her jump she rolled over in mid-air and resumed falling – upwards. With a light thump, she landed on the ceiling of the pen. She glanced back at Stratosphere.

"Okay, I just have a few seconds… I sure hope I don't fall on him. He's bound to take that the wrong way… Anyway..."

She turned around and faced away from the spike in question, and lined up her hooves. She crouched slightly and then took a deep breath, shooting her hind legs out with all her might.

CRACK!

With an incredible noise the crystal snapped, falling out into space. Sunset gave a little cheer and jumped back into the air, reversing her gravity spell and landing safely on the cage's floor. The spike had snapped off right at the base, leaving an opening just wide enough for a pony to squeeze through, if she held her breath.

Sunset grinned and turned back to Stratosphere, lighting her horn one more time and touching it to his forehead. "Wake up," she whispered.

Stratosphere groaned and blinked his eyes a couple of times. "What… huh?" he asked. "What's going on?"

"We're getting out of here," replied Sunset, pointing back to the opening she had created.

Stratosphere pushed himself to a sitting position, wincing as he did. "Oh dude… I don't know if it's ‘cause you knocked me out, but I've got this wicked rumbling sound in my ears."

"Rumbling sound…?" asked Sunset. "There shouldn't be any..."

She stopped and listened. There was a rumbling sound. She also noticed that the base of the cage was vibrating slightly under her hooves.

"I didn't kick it that hard…?"

She stuck her head through the empty space between the spikes and looked down, and then gasped. All the dark crystals in the kingdom were crumbling into the ground, collapsing into small piles of dust. At the base of the massive tower the two of them were trapped in, the crystals were just beginning to vibrate and shatter.

"This tower's coming down!" she shouted back to Stratosphere. "We have to get down NOW. Come on!"

Stratosphere's eyes widened. "I… I don't know how to climb! Dude, I always fly!"

Sunset growled in frustration. "We don't have time! Follow me and do your best. We'll make it!"

Sunset scanned beneath herself rapidly and spotted a somewhat level piece of crystal about four feet down. She took a deep breath and jumped towards it. She landed squarely, skidding just a little, but she was able to catch herself. She moved a bit to the side.

"Come on!" she shouted. She thought that the vibrations were more pronounced now. "Just jump."

Stratosphere's head poked through the spikes of the cage, looking very nervous. After a moment, he nodded and jumped from the cage. Instinctively he tried to spread his wings. His good wing spread wide but his injured wing flapped, causing him to cry out in pain. He banked abruptly as his good wing caught the wind, and Sunset reached out her magic to grab him and pull him back to the ledge.

"Don't use your wings!" she shouted.

"Ow, I'm right here, dude," whimpered Stratosphere. "I couldn't help it, but trust me. That hurt so much I'm not going to do it again."

Sunset looked downwards. They still had a long way to go. She chose the next landing spot and pointed. "We're going to move faster from here on," she explained. "I might not be able to catch you again, so just keep moving and don't think about it."

Stratosphere nodded. "Yes, Ma'am," he replied, smiling. "I'm ready."

Sunset nodded in response, and the tower swayed gently. "We're really out of time," she gasped, and then leapt. As she landed she immediately scanned down for another suitable platform, and then leapt again. She glanced back quickly and breathed a sigh of relief to see Stratosphere landing safely on the previous platform, this time keeping his wings in check.

"Okay," she thought to herself. "Just focus on the next jump. Keep moving. We can do this."

She continued her pattern of jumping, scanning, and then jumping again, making rapid progress. After just ten jumps she took a moment to check her progress.

"Good progress! This might work after all!"

Right then the tower gave a mighty groan, tilting to the side and not swaying back this time. It hesitated a moment, and then there was the sound of thousands of shattering crystals beneath them. The tower resumed its motion, slowly accelerating its sideways motion as it began to fall.

"Sunny!" shouted Stratosphere.

Sunset scrambled as she tried to hold her grip on the tilting crystal. "It's okay," she tried to reassure herself. "Just look for the crystals that are going to be level when you land..."

She jumped again, managing her landing as planned, but the fall of the tower was rapidly overtaking her ability to hold on. She had no solid purchase as the entire tower broke off at the base and began to freefall, leaving her in midair. She closed her eyes and screamed, having nothing left to try.

For the second time that day she felt her fall aborted by a warm body, and opened her eyes to see Celestia's smiling face.

"Nice of you to drop in," Celestia teased.

Sunset panted with the rush of adrenaline in her body. "Is that the only pun available for this situation?"

Celestia looped around, dodging a large piece of falling crystal, and then hooked underneath Stratosphere, letting him land squarely on her back. To Sunset's surprise, he gave a little cheer and held on loosely as Celestia banked away from the falling tower, and then began to circle downwards.

Stratosphere hopped off as Celestia alighted gently next to the castle, and he gave her a somewhat sloppy salute with his good wing. "Thanks for the ride, dude!"

Sunset climbed down somewhat more gingerly and spent a moment just enjoying the touch of earth underneath her hooves – even if it was crystalline. But at Stratosphere's words her ears perked. "Dude?" she questioned. "This is Princess Celestia and you should know that! You tried to arrest her, after all!"

"Wait… what?" asked Stratosphere. He seemed genuinely confused, but he looked back to Celestia. "Princess…?"

Celestia nodded once, and Stratosphere dropped into a bow. "Sorry, Your Highness Ma'am. Thank you for catching me."

Sunset's eyebrows raised and she smiled. "So, you can show respect after all."

Celestia patted Sunset's back with her wing and smiled gently. "Enough teasing, Sunset Shimmer. All is well and this is hardly a time for being formal." She looked back to Stratosphere. "Please rise, we still have a lot of work to do."

Stratosphere rose slowly and then looked somewhat hesitant. "Um… not to be rude, Ma'am dude… but where's the Queen?"

Celestia looked at Stratosphere's wing and frowned. "You are injured." She lit her horn, examining it.

"Yes, Ma'am," replied Stratosphere. "It's my wing. It… it kind of hurts a lot."

Celestia frowned as she nodded. "I cannot repair it… but I can bind it. Hold still." Her horn lit as she cast a spell to lock his wing against his body. As she worked, she continued speaking. "Princess Luna is taking care of another matter here in the Empire. She will join us when she's done."

"Join us…?" asked Stratosphere. "So… Nightmare Moon and you made up?"

Celestia nodded. "I'd like to believe so." Her spell ended and she took a step back.

Stratosphere's expression grew into a wide smile. "For real?"

Celestia chuckled softly. "Yes, for real," she replied.

"Really?" asked Stratosphere again, bouncing a little in place.

Sunset frowned. "Knock it off, Stratosphere." She looked around herself. Most of the dark crystals around the castle had fallen already, and the dust was beginning to settle. "Princess," she asked. "What's going on with the crystals?"

Celestia grinned and winked at Stratosphere. "Really," she whispered in reply. She then turned back to Sunset and frowned a little, shaking her head. "I'm not sure," she offered slowly. "If I had to guess… I'd think that whoever is behind them needs his power elsewhere… but I'd rather not go into detail."

Sunset frowned. "Is… that what Princess Luna is doing?"

Celestia hesitated, and then shook her head. "Right now, our job is to retrieve the Crystal Heart. Were you able to locate it? Is it in a place where we can reach it?"

Sunset smiled. "Closer than you think, Princess." She opened her saddlebag and levitated the Heart out, bringing it out around in front of her.

Celestia's eyes widened. "Excellent work, Sunset Shimmer." She paused for a moment and then tilted her head. "What of the Captain of the Guard? He did travel with you, did he not?"

Sunset blinked and then gasped. "Yes! He was stuck up in the tower. Princess, we need to fly up there and get him down."

Celestia looked back up to the tower. "Is he injured?"

Sunset shook her head. "I don't think so, but he was trapped by the crystals. They just sprang up from the floor when he passed the Heart to me."

"More traps," mused Celestia. "If we are fortunate, we should be clear of traps for a little while. Longer, if Luna is successful." She paused for a moment, and then looked back to Sunset. "Do you know where the Crystal Heart is to be set?"

Sunset nodded, pointing towards the square. "There's a set of mounts for it in the center of the square."

"Very well," replied Celestia. "You install the Heart, I will fetch the Captain of the Guard." She smiled. "It's really very nice to have my wings back."

Celestia launched herself into the air and Sunset turned to Stratosphere. "Come on, then, let's get this done before something else happens."

Stratosphere watched Celestia climb into the air with a wistful look. "I'm going to miss that," he said quietly.

Sunset paused. "Oh, come on now, you're going to be fine."

Stratosphere shook his head and looked over at his shattered wing. "Do you think I don't know how bad it is, dude? Like, I've been flying my whole life, and I've been flying dangerously. I've seen dudes get their wings messed up before. It's never going to be the same."

Sunset frowned for a moment. She agreed with him, but she still wanted to sound positive. "Well… maybe. But you're tough. You'll figure it out!"

Stratosphere sighed softly, but he allowed a smile to cross his muzzle. "Well, I figured one thing out. You and me… we're never going to be something, are we?"

Sunset froze and blinked a couple of times. It sounded so cruel and yet it was completely true in her own mind. Slowly she nodded. "That's… true. I'm sorry."

Stratosphere grinned crookedly. "Don't even worry about it, man. I mean, you gave me plenty of hints, right? Gave me a fake name, kept running away, and knocked me out twice now." He chuckled. "I don't want there to be a third time. But dude…" He raised his hoof, indicating that he was waiting for a ‘brohoof'. "Friends?"

Sunset paused. She thought about pointing out that most of those events were because she was on the run from the law and he was the law. But in the end, she decided against it and broke into a smile of her own. She slapped her hoof against Stratosphere's and nodded. "Friends," she confirmed. "Now we had better get this Heart installed."

-----

Celestia reached up into the air and pulled it back across her body with her wings, relishing the sensation of being able to fully stretch them out. It was over all too quickly as she reached the top of the crystal tower in just a few moments and began to circle around it. It did not take long to spot Sterling Honor standing near one of the openings, looking downwards. As she flew near he noticed her and stepped back, dropping quickly into a bow.

Celestia banked and flew towards him, pulling back at the last moment so that she could land lightly through the opening. She smiled gently as she folded her wings and approached Sterling.

"Captain Sterling Honor," she opened. "Are you injured?"

Sterling replied without raising his head. "No, Your Majesty."

Celestia nodded once. "Stand up now, Sterling Honor. Climb onto my back, and I will take you down to join the others."

Sterling raised his head, and then reacted with surprise. "On your back? Highness, I could not possibly!"

"Of course you can," responded Celestia. "You will not impose any burden."

"It's not proper!" protested Sterling.

Celestia refrained from rolling her eyes. "We have a window of quiet, Captain, but we do not know how long it will last. This is not a good time to debate what is or is not proper."

Sterling hesitated. "Your Highness, may I ask a question?"

Celestia nodded with a smile. "Certainly, Sterling Honor."

"Who waits for us below?"

"Oh," replied Celestia. "Sunset Shimmer and a Pegasus guard named Stratosphere. If you have not changed the rank insignia, I do believe he is a corporal."

"But… not the Queen?"

"Queen? That still…" Celestia caught herself and started over. "No… Luna is otherwise engaged. We should see her soon."

Sterling still held his place. After a moment Celestia spoke again. "You are still worried about where your loyalties lie?"

"There will be consequences for all that I have been a part of," replied Sterling. He turned his head to the side to avoid looking at Celestia.

Celestia paused. "Possibly," she replied at last. "I do not know the whole story… I imagine that between Luna and yourself, I will have to make some decisions. But my heart does not want to punish Luna. I did that once already and I regretted it for a thousand years."

Sterling looked back to Celestia as she continued.

"But this is not the time to decide these things. We need to help the others to install the Crystal Heart while we still have a window of opportunity. So, if you would, Captain, remember your loyalty to Equestria for now and all will sort itself out afterwards."

Sterling raised his head again and stood at attention. "Yes Ma'am," he responded. His voice had regained its professional tone and he nodded.

"Good," replied Celestia with a smile. She opened her wings and knelt down a little. "Now, climb onto my back."

Sterling frowned again. "This is still not proper. I should walk down."

"We don't know if the entry to the shadow realm is still in effect and this is much faster than trying to find your way through that. And if you still aren't certain, then let me remind you: that was an order."

Sterling grimaced and moved at once, approaching Celestia from just behind her wings and awkwardly climbing up, balancing himself across her back and between her wings.

"Hold on," advised Celestia as she stood. She took a couple of running steps towards the opening and leapt out into the air. Her wings exploded outwards as soon as she had cleared the structure and caught the wind effortlessly. She caught her drop and angled into a large upward curve before levelling off and starting to circle.

Sterling's jaw hung open again as he felt the muscles under Celestia's coat and her command of the motion. "So much power…" he whispered. He immediately blushed deeply as Celestia turned her head back to look at him. "I… my apologies, your Majesty."

To his surprise Celestia simply threw her head back and laughed, tilting her body to climb steeply. Sterling held tight as Celestia more than doubled the height of the tower in just a few seconds. She kept going, her wings pumping until they were nearly a thousand feet above the Crystal Empire. Celestia levelled off, and then turned her head back once more to give Sterling a quick wink.

"Hang on," she repeated.

Sterling's eyes widened as Celestia tilted her body and then dove into a steep dive. She angled her wings back and let the wind rush past them until it was a loud roar in their ears. Sterling held his breath tightly, although he wasn't sure that the wind would permit him to breathe even if he tried.

After a few moments of acceleration Celestia spread her wings out a little, smoothly catching the dive and turning the motion into a wide, fast spiral. As they drew closer to the ground she tightened the spiral, at first keeping the rapid speed for a dizzying spin, but gradually spreading her wings wider to slow. When they were about ten feet from the ground she straightened out, heading back to the Crystal Castle.

Finally, they approached the castle and Celestia angled her body with a couple of final flaps, lowering herself to the ground and gently settling first her hind legs, and then her fore legs. She fell into an easy walking gait as she folded her wings, stopping once they had entered the square underneath the castle. There she turned her head back and grinned at a stunned Sterling.

"Had to break in my new wings," she teased. "Now down you go."

Sterling slipped off Celestia's back and found that he needed to lie down for a moment, at least until the planet stopped spinning. Celestia leaned over and whispered to him teasingly. "That's not even my full power."

"Princess!" Sunset called from the center of the square, where she and Stratosphere were looking at the heart. It was balancing neatly between the two spires of crystal, hovering between them on some invisible force. But that's all that it was doing. Celestia turned to approach it.

"Captain!" called Stratosphere, and he ran over to Sterling. Stratosphere stopped before him and gave a quick salute with his good wing. "Du.. sir! Corporal Stratosphere reporting!" He paused, then tilted his head. "Dude, what happened to you?"

Sterling sighed and pushed himself back to a standing position and then dusted his armor off deftly. He shook his head a couple of times to clear the motion sickness, but as he did the memory of feeling Celestia catch the wind came back to his mind and he smiled.

He coughed to clear his throat and shook his head. "Never mind, Corporal. We will attend to the Princess until we are no longer required."

Stratosphere nodded and saluted a second time, and Sterling Honor returned the salute before the two of them trotted back to the Heart. Sunset was explaining to Celestia.

"When I put it near, it just sort of snapped itself into place. But that's it, nothing else happened. If I give it a little push, it spins a bit…" She reached up to demonstrate. "But that's all that happens. How do we turn it on?"

"Perhaps it just needs to be charged up?" offered Sterling as he trotted near. "I realize we're all a bit low on power, but if we worked together perhaps?"

Celestia smiled, but she shook her head. "It's a good idea," she replied. "But this is one of the ancient artifacts. It will have very specific rules for activation. We would only be wasting power, I fear."

"What about power?" called Luna as she alighted just inside the square. She started walking forward, but stopped abruptly as Celestia turned to face her.

Nopony spoke as the two alicorns looked at each other.

Celestia felt her heart flutter. Seeing Luna in the dream realm had been wonderful, but now that she was awake it did feel like that had just been a dream. Now, Luna was standing before her for real. Younger than she remembered and without Nightmare Moon's dark coat, but still wearing the same armored crest across her breast. Luna's mane hung free of any helmet but without the flowing magic that she once carried. Celestia tried to search Luna's eyes from across the square, but she couldn't make sense of what she saw. They were Luna's eyes and not the terrifying eyes of a dragon, but they still seemed confused.

Luna was confused. Seeing Celestia terrified in the dream realm had been funny enough, at least at first, that Luna was able to approach her with confidence. But now, in reality, it was different. Celestia towered above her. Her mane was flat and pink instead of flowing with the advanced magic that Luna remembered, but Celestia stood tall and confident. Just like she always did. Her eyes… Luna couldn't tell.

"I can't read her," thought Luna. "Is she anxious? Is she angry?"

Luna frowned and stomped a hoof in frustration. "This was supposed to be the easy part! I saved her! Why does she always make that same all-knowing face?!" Luna's horn lit and she tilted her head towards Celestia.

Celestia barely heard the others gasp as her own eyes widened. "Luna…?" she asked.

Luna raised her head again, but her horn was still glowing with charged power. Tears began to ease down over her cheeks as she just stared at Celestia, her jaw tensing more and more.

Celestia's eyes widened further and she raised a hoof, pausing. She placed that hoof back down ahead of herself, and then took another step, and then a third. By the fourth step she was galloping and before Luna had time to do more than gasp in surprise, Celestia's body slammed into hers. Celestia wrapped her wings around Luna's body and squeezed her tightly against herself.

"No more," whispered Celestia as she kissed Luna's forehead. "I'm so sorry, Luna. No more."

Comments

[Snow]

D'awww

[HoneyBadgerr]