29 - Intermission: A Talk Over Wine
Princess Luna halted her nightly rounds, coming to a stop in the corridors that passed by the access route to the royal and guest bed chambers. Something had piqued the interest of her nose, a smell slowly but surely overpowering the soothing smell of her lavender plants.
Taking a quick look around to ensure there were no guards present to witness her next move, she took a huge unroyal sniff, loud enough that she herself recoiled slightly. But it had done the trick, and she knew what and where the smell was coming from.
Princess Celestia was sat at her desk, staring morosely into her wine glass, and a sigh escaped her lips. Lifting the glass for another sip, she was jolted by the sound of her door banging open, and only just avoided spilling the red liquid down her white coat.
“Out with it, Sister!” Luna half asked, half demanded.
“You know, Lulu, it never fails to impress how easy it is you can read me. How did you know this time?”
“Well, Tia, this time I could smell it. That particular bottle of pre-Discordian wine only comes out when you are in the mood for deep brooding. So, out with it.”
Celestia chuckled slightly. “Quite right. Well...” she paused, putting down her glass. “I think, nay I know... Luna, I’m rattled.”
Finally crossing the distance between them, Luna moved a chair to her and sat beside her sister, concern written on her features.
“It takes much to rattle you,” Luna pointed out, before stealing the wine glass and downing its contents. “Which, may I add, makes me immediately apprehensive. Care to share?”
Nodding softly, Celestia took a moment to organise her thoughts. “Luna, I know you’ve contemplated this before, but what are we?” She held up a hoof to stall her sister. “Let me elaborate. Are we Immortal, unkillable, or just ageless? Are we beyond death, or just beyond the effects of time, and still able to be killed?”
Luna nodded. “I see, this is about Discord, isn’t it?”
“Yes and no,” Celestia half confirmed. “It is his situation that has made me think about this again. Even in our worst battles with King Sombra, neither of us were wounded enough for us to tell, and until now I assumed the only way we would find out the truth would be to live long enough.” She uncorked the bottle on her desk and poured herself another glass, before Luna conjured an identical glass, and dutifully filled that too.
“And now,” Luna began. “You fear this war will be extreme enough to pull us into battle again and test those theories, with an enemy that has a weapon that can kill a Chaos Lord?”
“Exactly. And if it was used on us. I fear what should happen should I lose you. Could I lose myself, and become the wrath of the sun? I’ve heard our soldiers talk about my use of a solar lance after Twilight’s near death, and the names they have come up with circle around in my head.” Luna quirked an eyebrow, a question evident. Celestia rolled her eyes, though a slight smile crossed her lips. “Solar Flare, Nightmare Sun, The Hammer of Dawn – Inspired, but now I see our potential mortality, and I’m worried by the chance that we could fall; in battle or otherwise.”
Luna blinked a few times, before placing a foreleg around Celestia’s back and shaking her ruefully. “I need to have a word with the soldiers it seems; ‘Nightmare anything’ is my trademark, and I’ll make it a law if I have to.”
“Luna!” Celestia shouted, her face aghast
“What, Tia? I thought a joke might help lighten the mood. Come here.” She pulled her into a hug, using her wings to encompass her sister in a weird role reversal. “Discord is powerful but overconfident, and I will tell him as much when he wakes up. We have far more experience, and we are not going to rush in unprepared, and more importantly, not alone.”
Luna let go of the sidelong embrace, looking her elder sibling dead in the eyes.
“And as for falling – I do not believe you shall do so. Not again. Recall that I have seen the face of your darkness. Not a Solar Flare or any of the others, but a Breaker of the Day. And in those darkest of times when all seemed lost we yet prevailed, do not doubt we shall again.”
“Thank you, Lula. You have no idea how much your words mean to me.”
“I’d like to think I do. But thank you all the same. Besides, the weight of this war is mine to bear. It was my mistake, if anypony should be pondering such as this, it is I. And I alone.”
“There is plenty of blame. Do think me as innocent, if I had acted differently…”
“We’d have made other mistakes and be back where we began.”
“Perhaps. We are imperfect beings, despite any reputation.”
“…It is not my reputation that concerns me, but… Do you truly believe my transgression can ever be forgiven? Whether it be from the words of a traitor or my own confession, she will have every reason to despise me.”
“She will,” Celestia bluntly confirmed, Luna being unable to suppress a small flinch at her words. “Only time will tell us the answer, and only time can heal such wounds. But I have faith in her. Always. All we can do is let her mourn and be at her side as she does.”
“Well, time is one thing we do have…” Luna noted, refilling both their glasses as they clinked them together in a toast. “To the immortals.”
“And the answers we shall eventually find.”
They each drank from their glasses. Luna did so greedily, while Celestia’s emptied at a more leisurely pace, but before long both were sat empty before the pair.
“I do believe that is enough morose introspection for an evening. Now…” Luna corked the bottle, and with a flash sent it back down to the cellars. “It is late, and as the princess of the night I am ordering you to get some rest.”
“You have a point. Thank you again, Lulu, and I shall see you in the afternoon.”
Luna squeezed her in a hug. “Goodnight, Tia,” she spoke softly, before slipping from the embrace and leaving to resume her routine.
A few minutes later, a nearby pony of the Lunar Guard witnessed his princess half-whispering to herself as she passed his checkpoint. Despite any protocol that might ‘dissuade’ it, he couldn’t help but edge a little closer with his ear straining for her voice.
“Nightmare Sun? Really? I do need to check the copyright laws tomorrow. Stealing my thunder, the gall of them...” before she passed out of range.
He wasn’t sure what he was expecting.
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You know, Luna will be able to see them coming.
A fleet of sleeping ponies cant hide from her. She has to notice and as isolated as these separatists are, they wont even expect that the "Evil Outsiders" even have that ability.)
I want to see ships burn. I want to see them devastated before they are even half way there.
Monk
11314752
You're assuming the stasis allows for dreaming.
I have to agree. "Nightmare Sun" doesn’t roll off the tongue as well as "Nightmare Moon". Why not something like "Sinister Sun"?
11314809
Immortalis.
11314883
What about her?
11315119
Luna, ad Celestia were both able to enter the hive mind and free Twilight. And the hive mind is like the Dream Realm.
11315263
You're missing the point: Avia isn't connected to any hive mind right now, she's buried within a magic crystal that's keeping her unconscious in a dreamless sleep. There's nothing for Luna to find.
And last time it was Celestia who had a latent connection due to brute forcing it as Daybreaker, and Luna linked the Element Bearers' minds to her through a dream so they'd be dragged along for the ride. The whole situation is a bit different.
11315537
Just an idea.
Speaking as someone who has come to hate The Pony POV Series, I have to say I love this dig at that story.
11315772
And not a bad one, sadly Ignis is a step ahead of you on this occasion.
Guess we'll have to free Avia another way...
11316369 Indeed.
Wonder just how badly his little scheme is going to come back to bite him before this is all over?
Indeed.
Although that makes me wonder just what you're up to, and what you have in store for us, my dear friend.
11321686
imagine it's a literal bite
ahem dragons
I know it's not gonna happen but it'd be funny asf
11333570 I have, and one can hope.
Just have to wait and see what tom has up his sleeve for things going forward.
11346394
3 Act structure is indeed an unspoken rule of writing so that makes sense. How much longer do you think it will be till Act 2?
11394898 Umm... Immortalis' spirit was permanently destroyed by Twi and the girls in the last story, hun.
So as far as HER being in this mess, I don't think that this is a possibilty.
Nice theory, though.
All this foreshadowing about "when Twilight finds out". I am going to be laughing my head off when Twilight replies with a "Well duh! Who else had access to the royal treasury?"
11394907
Point 1: Please reply in the same chapter as the comment you are replying to. This website doesn't give notifications otherwise.
Point 2: Someone whispered "Kill him" to her. And "loud" enough for Discord to notice it. Go ahead and reread that section: Discord reacted, just not fast enough.
11395091 Okay, fine.
As to this:
I have, and I still hold to the conviction that Immortalis is stone dead.
But I guess we'll see, huh?
11395117
It doesn't have to be her specifically, just some outside entity whispering in her metaphorical ear. I just can't think of anyone else already established in the story with that particular ability.
...and before someone decides to be snarky, the Hive Mind is the mental equivalent of standing right in front of someone while talking. Completely different situation.
11395145 Hmm, true.
Wouldn't really surprise me if it's something in her own messed up psyche that's doing it, though.
I mean, if I read one of the earlier chapters right, her own hive thinks she's so obsessed with all the Changelings going back into their previous secrecy and isolationism that she's going crazy.
So who knows??
Other than Tom, that is.
I agree with you on that last thing.
No snark from me, promise.
11395154
I want to agree with you, but the *****'s regalia was brought up. Chekhov's Gun is in play. Add in Discord's reaction, and I just don't see any other options. Only time will tell which of us is right. Either she is just that crazy, or there is something else (who may or may not be Immortalus) "helping" her along.
11395189 Was in play, given that Discord permanently vaporized the thing.
This is true.
Well... time, and tom.
I'm opting for crazy. although I think she's just as xenophobic about ponies as Ignis is about ANY outsiders, and that may be driving her actions, too.
Again, just have to wait and see.
So.
Finished the second, third books this week & now caught up with this
all this talk of alicorn mortality makes me think that one of them is gonna,,,,,, i don’t like this