A World Rent Asunder

by NeverEatTheLemonsAlone

Act II, scene x - Puppetmaster

She smiles.

"Though I cannot see the same way in the Dominion, I can still feel your magical signature. You've figure it out, I'd imagine. I can't imagine why you wouldn't have. You've not shown yourself to be an idiot, so it's safe to assume that you're acting congruent with time." She bows mockingly. "Luna Selenia Invicta, Time Unbroken, at your service."

In between the retches, I manage to choke out, "Time Unbroken? You—urp—think off that all by yourself?" [1]

She laughs, but it's cold. If a laugh can be brittle, then Luna's is. "Adorable. Really, Twilight, I don't dislike you. There are no hard feelings between us. You're simply a convenient way to strike at my sister, and too dangerous to be allowed to wander free." She spits the word 'sister' as though it's a swear. It actually might be to her, given her...rocky relationship with Celestia. I try to rise, but I'm quickly enrobed in blue magic, forced back down to the floor. "Ah ah ah. I didn't say you could move. Quite rude of you. Stay there a bit while we talk."

My teeth screech against each other as I fight her telekinetic grip, but to no avail. She's so much stronger than I am that there's not even a competition here.

As I cast my eyes around desperately for something, anything, to break me past the lunar regent's unshakable grasp, my eyes meet another pair, blue and shimmering with tears, that lies behind her throne. Far from the brown frock that I knew her from, Marks—yeah, no, I can't call her that anymore. She's Rarity through and through, wearing that suit of shining moonstone-and-silver armor. A massive spellcasting conduit spirals gracefully around her horn. She is the very picture of a Lunar marksmage. I release a spurt of hollow laughter and her eyes widen just a bit.

"What's wrong, Marks? I figured you'd be enjoying the fruits of your hypocrisy and betrayal." [2]

Flit and Rainbow aren't faring much better. Rainbow is struggling desperately, roaring at Luna as her muscles quake and strain against the implacable magic. Flit is huddled on the floor sobbing, very clearly in no state to even begin to escape. I begin to see, despite how strangely intact she was upon leaving the Citadel, just how fragile that pegasus is.

"I...Sparkle..." starts Rarity, the lump in her throat evident in her voice before I cut her off,

"No. Whatever you're about to say, I don't care. You broke my trust. Then you broke it again through Luna, even after leaving me all alone in hostile territory after that thrice-damned Effigy destroyed the town. We are DONE."

Luna laughs again, jolting Marks. Rarity. Damnit!

She laughs a lot.

At length, she wipes away a tear. "Oh, you poor thing. I thought you'd figured it out."

My eyes narrow. "Figured...what out?"

She smiles again. I'm getting really sick of her smiles. "This."

Her horn glows with a sudden nova of brilliant blue energy and five flashes of orange flame dart into the room. It's so unexpected, among the blue and silver, to see something like that. But that isn't important. What is important is something I said when I was first sneaking back into the Dominion. You remember what I said about the queen of subterfuge? Well. If you thought you knew, you hadn't seen anything yet. The whirling flames spin around Luna's horn for a few moments, then resolve themselves into their final shapes. And no points for guessing.

The array of Solar Effigies before me is blisteringly hot. If there was any doubt whether or not they were real, the smell of scorched fur quickly puts it to rest.

Despite all that, I still try to keep a conversation going, get out whatever I can from Luna. Knowledge is power. "So. Why do all of this? If you can mimic Celestia's power that easily, why go to all this rigmarole?"

She shakes her head, chiding me like I'm some sort of child. "Oh, Twilight. All these years, and you still don't know how powerful you are. With the right teachings, you could level mountains. You could kill gods. You could even become a goddess yourself. We should be grateful that Celestia still hasn't tapped into any of your power, or perhaps she doesn't know it. You're in my throne room now, which means you know my Oculi can see through time. Then know this: I've seen your future, Twilight. The future where you live on after the war is over. And it doesn't matter who wins, because in the end, you do. You slaughter thousands in a misguided search for power that does not belong to you, and in the end, you obtain it. At great cost to everypony—everything—else." A soft half-smile comes to her face. "So why go to all this rigmarole, as you so eloquently put it? Simple. I'm saving the world. From you."

Huh.

---

[1]: One day I'll stop mocking ponies who can kill me with ease when I'm helpless, I promise.
[2]: I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I have a way of not keeping promises.

---

Yeah, to be honest, I don't even know how to respond to that.

And yes, I know, I'm the one with all the answers. I'm the one that always has a snark-remark ready to go in case something like this happens. But come on. What would you do if someone told you they had to kill you to save the world?

Yeah. I thought so.

So my mouth just kinda...hangs agape for a while. 'Cause I have no idea what to do. As Luna walks up to me, she stops for a moment, face flashing to confusion, then her smile widens. "Ah, I've been looking for this."

Then I'm treated to the unholy pain of having my leylines torn as something embedded deep within them comes to the surface. You remember all that time ago, when I told you that warscythe getting enveloped within my leylines was important? Well, here you go. She rips it straight from the space in front of me, mercilessly shredding anything in the way of possessing it, and I think I can feel my horn beginning to smoke. Then, in a barrage of pain and a single scream so loud and long it ends in a hoarse croak, Luna is holding her ancient weapon directly above me, preparing to bring it down. Her eyes gleam unpleasantly, and for some reason, I'm so detached that the strange gleam in her eyes is the only thing I notice.

Then a bellowing roar of raw anger reverberates around the throne room and I'm treated to a rather...peculiar sight. Rainbow blasts out of Luna's telekinesis, shredding it as though it isn't even there. Her cutie mark is ablaze, an intense ruby light bright enough to blind suffusing the lightning bolt. Luna barely has time for a shocked "What?!" before Rainbow is on top of her, tackling her to the ground with immense force.

"If you lay a single hoof on Twilight," she rages, "I will end you!" [1]

I'm immensely pleased by the utter surprise on Luna's face, and even more so by the fact that her intense magical lightning storm reflects harmlessly off of the coruscating rictus of crimson light surrounding Rainbow. "No," gasps the Princess, "Impossible! They were shattered!"

I don't know what she's talking about, but what I do know is that she's distracted and that I can feel her telekinesis weakening. I throw it off with little effort and immediately teleport directly behind Rarity, bucking her in the spine. She falls over with a cry, and before she can move to a counterspell, I put her into a deep sleep, leaving only Luna, me, and the two pegasi. [2]

It hurts a lot, and immediately afterwards, I can feel my horn smoking again, and my magic feels distant, retreating back into me. Right severed leylines. Whoops, and ow.

Luna looks absolutely stricken. I don't really know why, other than the obvious. "What have you done?" she grinds out at Rainbow, "how did you do this?"

"Do what?" replies Rainbow. And I slap my face with my hoof, because for once, she isn't being cocky. She seriously hasn't noticed the fact that she's GLOWING.

"You," gasped Luna, "unlocked one of the Six." [3]

And with that, she's gone. Poof. [4]

---

[1]: I can't say I know exactly how, but Rainbow and I have definitely become friends. And no. I do not appreciate the irony.
[2]: Or, well, the one. Flit is still kinda maybe sorta curled up in a sobbing ball on the floor.

What has my life become.
[3]: Before anypony asks, no, I don't know either.
[4]: Luna's teleportation doesn't actually make a poof sound. Seriously. That would be silly.

Comments

[Lost_Marbles]

You know what? I don't think we've seen Applejack yet. Hmm.... (It's been a while since I continued this story)

Now, this is just a wild guess, but if my earlier statement was true, what if Rarity was doing that because... or maybe... Hmmm...

Anyway, good stuff. I look forward to the next chapter to see what the girls shall do with this new development.

[NeverEatTheLemonsAlone]

8120972 Yeah, the general idea of this fic to begin with was that nobody is a through-and-through 'good guy,' with the possible exception of Flit.