Chapter 108: Happy
Ranger
Chapter 108: Happy
By Wanderer D
She could still feel the sense of skin and muscle parting upon meeting the sword. The splash of blood that, to her magical eye, twirled and whisked around to envelop Sunset's hand.
She could feel the warm, almost burning feel of it. The blood. And then just as it had began to cool down, she was back in Luna's room.
The girls gasped and collapsed around Luna, while her sister slowly raised her head. "I wish you hadn't seen all of that, sister."
Fluttershy started sniffling, along with Pinkie. Applejack and Rainbow Dash would not look up, their faces hidden by their manes, or turned away from them.
Rarity dashed to Luna's restroom, and they could hear her retching.
"What were you doing, Luna?" Celestia's voice was low. She didn't want to sound as threatening as she had, but… Luna had crossed so many lines. "How long has this been going on?"
Luna looked away.
"Luna!"
Taking a sharp, deep breath, Luna seemed to brace herself, before looking up straight at Celestia, unflinching. "Ever since Sunset returned to her world."
"It's been months!"
Luna's face softened. "I know."
"But… why? How?" Celestia asked. She felt… betrayed. Hurt that Luna had been doing this… knew so much and had kept it from her. Didn't Luna trust her?
"I… initially I wanted to see what type of mare your daughter was…"
Somepony—Applejack maybe—echoed the word 'daughter' in confusion, but Celestia ignored her past that. Her focus was Luna, not what the others found out.
"The way through the mirror was closed, but… I could still grasp a bit of the trails of her consciousness through the dimensional barrier," Luna said, shoulders slumping. "I-I didn't believe she was… I thought her a monster in the making. Somepony who had given herself to blood magic, despite the apparent… coherency of her actions, and the apparent worry for others.
"I didn't want to believe that somepony could use Blood Magic for years, regardless of the magical field's strength or willpower of the user. We've seen how it ends countless times, Celestia… somepony will always think they have a tight leash on it. We… we might even believe them. And then…" she trailed off.
Celestia knew of what she spoke, of course. How many ancient cities had they lost to forbidden magic? The Crystal Empire. Thrift Kingdom… so many… and that didn't account for the small towns destroyed by originally well-meaning mages, who thought magic was just magic, regardless of the source.
"So you used your dream magic to parallel yourself there," Celestia said. "Your contact would have been… minuscule at best."
"It was…" Luna acknowledged.
Around them, the Elements had helped each other up and sat around the room, listening, but not engaging in the conversation, no doubt still reliving what they had just experienced. 'I'm sorry, Fluttershy,' Celestia thought, 'I should have refrained those feelings… ordered you to stay…'
She shook her head, forcing her attention back to Luna. Saving her regret for later.
"But I was able to stick to Sunset while she rested on the flight to the Avenger. Once there, I thought my link would expire but… she went to visit Laetitia."
Celestia looked up. "Who?"
Luna gulped, licking her dry lips. "The Templar. The woman I was inside of during the battle. She was… she's dying."
*** Four Months Ago ***
'She truly seems remorseful,' Luna thought, looking down at the transformed Sunset Shimmer.
They were in the hospital area of the spaceship the humans called, "The Avenger." Truly a marvel of technology, beyond anything ponykind had imagined... so far. She hovered, ephemeral and disjoined from Sunset's current reality, watching as her unaware ward consulted the nurse in charge about the status of her friend.
Luna sighed. Perhaps… Sunset was not as far as she had feared. She watched in silence as Celestia's former student took the unconscious woman's hand, squeezing it remorsefully. She had seen that look many times in the past. She still saw that look sometimes, in the mirror.
It was the look of despondent guilt. The knowledge that whoever was hurt, they were hurt because of them.
Luna could see the magical damage that had occurred. Psionic energy, so explosive with magic, crackled and burned against the aftereffects of the mirror's own magic. It seemed Laetitia had been right next to the mirror when it had been activated.
"I'm sorry, human. It's a miracle that you were not killed instantly… how you survived, when our domains are so different… I can barely understand."
"Luck? Willpower, maybe?" a voice with a slight Prench accent said from next to her, and Luna drifted to the side, looking sadly at the soul that floated next to her. "I did not want to die, kind spirit," the woman said, looking down at the body below. Tears slid down her dark skin, dissipating into flickering light once they fell free. "I thought… mon Dieu… I thought I could reach Sunset's heart. But not—not like this."
The pair watched in silence as below them, Sunset teared up and spoke, "I… I don't know if you can hear me... I'm not sure what happened… I was… out of action while everything went down. I can feel you in there, Laetitia you Celestia-damned tease. I want you back, okay? What will I tell Geist if you don't wake up?"
A beep from her wrist made Sunset look away, and sigh. "You're the only one of my team that knows about me." She took a deep breath. "And I have so much more to tell you… come back to us soon, okay?"
They watched Sunset go, but Luna didn't have the magical energy to follow… not that she would have left this poor creature alone in her last moments.
"You greatly admire her," Luna said to the spirit, who nodded. "Why?"
"Comment compter?" she murmured. "She is kind. Rough… but, kind under that. She fights so much against all attachments and yet—she longs for them with a passion. She'd take a bullet for any of us."
She smiled a little. "I tease her. I like her. I whisper promises that… ne sera." She chuckled, wiping her tears. "Not now, at least. She's scared and homesick. She's strong and brave." The woman looked up at Luna.
"Isn't it wonderful, kind spirit? The will, the kaleidoscope that is a soul? The shards of light and dark that makes us unique? I was a healer. Of the body and of the mind. A few years back, she taught Geist how to… concede… space for her magic and our psionics to not destroy each other… so when she was returned to us, he taught me and I helped her.
"I thought… besides being a healer… I could be a warrior for her too."
Luna watched silently as the woman bit her lip, gulping and looking away from her body in frustration. "And now, what am I, but a source of regret? Not a warrior… inutile… just grief and another loss."
"I will never touch her again. I will never watch her back. I will never protect her. C'est—" She cut herself off. "I can't even stick to English. A failure. I should have stayed behind." She snorted, shaking her head as she tried to brush away the stray hairs on her body's face. "And yet, I was happy for how long it lasted. Laetitia indeed."
Luna descended down to study the body. The damage was extensive. Magic was slowly unraveling the psionic bindings. Unfortunately, as much as Sunset's idea had been brilliant in how to train a mind so different to not react negatively to a magical invasion such as this, it wasn't nearly enough.
She suspected the only real reason the woman… Laetitia.... had survived, was that at the time of the magical feedback, both her psionic reserves and her body were exhausted. Had she been at full capacity, she would have been reduced to little more than scraps.
She felt her magic wavering. It had been a long conversation, and a long distance to cover. She would fade soon as well, and Sunset would inadvertently lose two guardian spirits. And it truly seemed like Celestia's apprentice needed as much help as she could get.
"I'm sorry for your loss, Laetitia," she said, trying to be encouraging, "But know at least that those that care for Sunset will remain by her side, and that you will not only be remembered by your friends here, but by me as well. May the night take you into her embrace."
Luna bowed and stepped away, ready to let her ethereal body dissipate.
"I wish," she heard Laetitia say, "I wish I were not psychic. I wish I were magical, like Sunset… I wish my mental energy wasn't the same filth the Elders use to poison our race and kill it."
Luna looked back at the spirit of the woman, who had knelt down next to her body. "I wish I could stay. Just a little."
Luna shook her head. Psionic energy would not survive long with magic. If any remained… even if her own magic was somewhat similar…
Luna's eyes widened slowly, and she halted her dissipation. She raised her head, and glanced back. Could she? Surely not. Magic such as this… but… if the spirit requested it?
"I…" she spoke up, drawing the attention of the grieving spirit, "I may have a way. I too hail from the same world as Sunset. It is normally forbidden to possess a body, regardless of intention. However… if we linked our souls… I could help you live for a bit longer."
The woman's spirit stared at her. "But how…"
"I shall draw the magic into my soul, when I am inhabiting your body… you will be with me, at all times… until… until you fade away. The damage cannot be repaired, and you will have precious little time on your own, human… but perhaps we can both help Sunset. I too wish to save her now… from a terrible mistake she's made… it has never been done before, but…"
Luna licked her lips, looking straight at Laetitia's spirit. "Never has a Princess of Equestria attempted to save a Blood Witch's soul… with the assistance of those who love her."
Laetitia looked from her to her body and back. "H-how long?"
"I do not know, fair Laetitia, for the damage is extensive and your soul yearns for the next world."
Laetitia stood up. "Please… spirit… no, Princess. Let me stay. Let me help for as long as my soul will hold."
Luna nodded, walking up to her body and, drawing the magic out as she reinforced her ethereal body and then slowly cast a spell. It kept at bay the psionic energy, still existing, but not destroying. She then turned, her horn shining brightly as soft tendrils of silvery light emerged from Laetitia's body and entwined around her spirit.
"I will see you soon, Laetitia," Luna said. "I have made you my anchor. I will find myself back here, with the right spell. Our memories will be shared… our hopes. Our fears and experiences. Our failures and dreams. This, you accept?"
"Oui," Laetitia said with a smile. "Thank you."
"You will fade," Luna said, lowering her head a little, ears flat and looking up at the kind, smiling woman. "I cannot do anything about that... it will hurt... though I shall try to ease the pain. I am sorry I cannot do more."
"I will live in you," Laetitia said, kneeling across from Luna, and drawing her into a hug. "You are as beautiful as you are kind, my princess. A greater gift, from a greater being, I could not have wished for. Thank you."
Luna returned the embrace. "Rest well."
One of the elements sniffled. Celestia could have sworn it was Rainbow Dash.
She stared at Luna, sweet, young Luna, who had gone above and beyond… who had reached out, saved and found hope and kindness and understanding. Who had decided to stay and save her daughter. Who had decided to give a lonely human her last wish.
She should be upset. But she felt so proud. She closed her eyes, tears tickling down as a small smile played on her lips.
She knew she had nothing to say to that. Luna would probably tell her all about it soon enough, but for now, there was only one thing she could do.
She drew her sister into a hug.
"I'm proud of you Luna," she whispered… and was surprised when another set of forelegs, and another, and another, and wings, and another set of wings and forelegs wrapped around them both.
"I'm proud of all of you."
o.0.o End Chapter 108 o.0.o
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So Laetitia is essentially running on borrowed time then.
8961596
was, more like
The way through the mirror was close, but… I could still grasp a bit of the trails of her consciousness
somepony will always think they have a tight lease on it
"I tease her. I like her. I whisper promises that… ne sera." She chuckled, wiping her tears. Not now, at least. She's scared and homesick. She's strong and brave."
"I'm sorry for your loss, Laetitia," she said, trying to be encouraging, But know at least that those that care for Sunset will remain by her side, and that you will not only be remembered by your friends here, but by me as well. May the night take you into her embrace.
1. Hmm... Wouldn't Closed be better?
2. Umm... Leash?
3. Forgot your opening quotation mark.
4. Not sure if you wanted to put quotation mark on this.
When Sunset finds out that her action of returning to Equestria actually DID end up killing Laetitia she will be devastated. We can only hope Twilight will have made up with her by then, shell need the support.
God, fucking....
Argh! Damn it all to Tartarus!
Laetitia... You stubborn templar... You are one tough lady, but even the Night Mother is hard pressed to heal a broken soul.... I hope you have enough time to tell Sunset before you move on to the Fields of Elysium and beyond
I got to admit, I didn’t see this one coming.
A benevolent use for necromancy, who'dve thought it?
8961628 Fixed!
I hate you all
..... BAKA
....god dam it man. If you keep making me tear up every chapter my necrodermis is going to rust! Lay off the feels man. We need a break!
8959930
Smart man! :D
Thos this mean that Laetitia is a warlock?
I came for the action, instead i get bludgeoned with feels.
nooo, my precious liquid pride has sprung a leak again.
Yes, you can be proud. Now, i have to Think of the song with the same title.
Damn. We won't have Sunny and Laetia bring a pair after this. Snek pone foals will be the only result, unfortunately. It hurts to read that, good job on being heartless
Oh Laetitia, you endured the brink of death for so long just so to make Sunset happy.
Massive respect girl, you will be miss when your time comes.
8961737
Even the darkest of magics can be wielded for good with the right way of thinking. Use instant kill spells to ease ones passing. Use necromancy to mend a broken bone. Blood magic to heal and keep a friend alive when by all accounts she should be dead from bloodloss. I love when the evil powers are used for good.
Ah dammit, she meat puppetted herself, she's been dead this whole time...
8962059
But of course, evil rests in the intent and use. Power is just that, power. It has no innate light or dark side. Except for blood magic, no good comes from that.
8962068
well fuck, that's kind of depressing...
wait...
rereads the comment being responded to
uhh... holy shit... sooo, since the statue has it been Laetitia or Luna?
Luna being a stand-in? Interesting...
I didn't sign up for these feels.
Luna and Celly finally get a full-on pony pile.
Oh, the feels!
Dang. Well, RIP Laetitia, you and you/Luna were fun.
8962140
It's both, Luna's been providing support so the magic/psychic mix in Laetitia didn't kill her outright, while binding Laetitia's spirit to her dying body through spirit fusion.
She was on borrowed time.
It seemed like Celestia got caught up in Luna's spell and bonded to Sunset. So, the question now is what happened to the rest of them and does this spell have negative affects? Luna thought it might be okay for her and Laetitia, but everyone else?
I wonder what would have happened if she went through the portal... or would the portal reject a psionic?
8961613 8962068 8962140 8962299 8962377 8961629
Well, I mean, she's not 100% dead yet. Just like... 95% and growing.
Well that’s sad I really liked laetitia damit xcom why do you take so many we grow to like.
You could say that Luna is really embracing this new role she choose to follow. Heh.
Shut up that not a tear.
8962140
Yes.
Both from what it sounds like
8962624
So, she's only mostly dead? That is still slightly alive.
8964870 well, to clarify what Luna told her, she's basically slowly dying, and the only thing keeping her going for an extended period of time is Luna's link/merge, but one day, she's just going to stop. No warning-just gone and that will be all for her. Oh, and it's going to hurt the whole time. There's more character development there, of course, but saying it now would be spoilers.
8964927
I just thought you were going for the Princess Bride reference.
Hmmm... that doesn’t sound at all like a ‘Templar’ ideology. Quite the opposite in fact, that is opposed to what Geist tells us of his followers beliefs. Some hidden self loathing Laetitia?
8962059
8962090
yall seem to be missing the explicit statements being made that, while magic is untainted in the human world, magic IS tainted in the equestrian world.
There are a lot of ways it could happen, but all methods boil down to an event geared towards a specific leaving a psychic imprint of such strength that it becomes a self propagating engram.
A living meme within Equestria's magical field, if you will think of it as such.
And that answers my question about how Leatitia is familiar with Luna.
Hm, and the Commander's actions in the chapter where I voiced that question suggests she is aware of this spiritual symbiosis.
Luna is best Princess
It was Luna all along, playing guardian angel ♡
♡
Magnificent