The Final Battle for Equestria

by Songbrony

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Rainbow and Applejack walked to Luna's tent. Rook and Blaze were crowded over a pile of books. Linus was sitting by the edge of a table. He wasn't doing anything. He just sat there looking at nothing. "Have you three found anything yet?" Rainbow asked. Rook and Blaze looked at each other.

"We did. It turns out that I can't do the offering. Since Rainbow was the original challenger and Blaze took her spot as a substitute, I can't do it." Rook said wearily. Rainbow looked at Blaze. He drug his head down and returned to rummaging through the books. "And we can't just say we didn't know about the rule. There is a....dark magic, very dark magic. It prevents the two participants from forgetting the rules. And if they knowingly break them..." Rook stopped.

"We both die." Blaze finished for him.

Rainbow's mouth was agape. "But that can't be possible! There has to be something we can do?" She said shocked.

"I wish there was Rainbow. I really do. But we can't. Tomorrow is the fight. We need to participate in it or we both die." Blaze said.

"Blaze, go with Rainbow. You two should be able to spend tonight together. I know who will win and I have nopony. I don't want to spend my last night here with the pony who is going to kill me. Even if he is a long time friend." Linus said sorrowfully.

"Linus. I'm not killing you. I refuse to!" Blaze said, unconvincingly. He knew one of them would have to.

"Ok Blaze. I guess tomorrow we will see. I'm going to sit with Luna. I don't care what the healer says. I'm staying with her." Linus said. He reached into one of his pockets and pulled out an envelope. He handed it to Rook. "Tomorrow, after the fight, give this to her." Rook gingerly took the envelope.

Linus walked out of the tent without saying another word. "Blaze, there has to be another way. As much of a jerk he has been to me lately, I don't want to see him die." Rainbow said.

"Is there anyway Ah can help?" Applejack asked. "If you want Ah could corral the camp to a different location so there won't be a crowd tomorrow."

"Thanks Applejack. I would like that. I don't know what I'm going to do, but I don't want a gathering there." Blaze replied.

"I'm sorry about what's going to happen sugar cube." Applejack said. "Ah'll have Big Mac tell our ponies to stay out of camp tomorrow afternoon. He needs to something to do. He isn't used to relaxing." She said. She put a hoof on Rainbow's shoulder, gave a small smile of reassurance, and left.

Rainbow sat down where Linus had sat. "Blaze..." She said. Rook turned his head back to the books and Blaze walked over to her and knelt next to her. "You can't. You can't fight him Blaze. He may kill you." She said.

"He won't I'm not going to let him kill me. Rook and I will figure something out." Blaze said.

"I already have Blaze." Rook said as he turned back to them. "I choose to take Linus' place." He said as he stood tall.

"What?! I can't let-" Blaze was cut off.

"Blaze! The army needs you and Linus to win this war! It can't continue like this! I didn't tell Linus this because I knew he would knock me unconscious for it. He hates letting things happen to his friends. The rules don't say anything about two substitutes so it's legal. You won't die." Rook said trying to convince Blaze.

"You realize you are condemning yourself right? I can't-"

"Blaze! Accept me as your new challenger! If you don't one of you will die! The army needs you two!" Rook said yelling.

Blaze sighed. "I accept. Rook. You know I'm not happy about this." Blaze said angrily.

"I know. But it's the only way. You two are too important to lose. It's better that I die than one of you. I'll tell Linus tomorrow. That way he can't intervene as easily." Rook said. He handed Blaze Linus' letter. "You know what to do with that. When the time comes." Rook said. Blaze nodded his head. "I'd better go back to my tent. Need to fix the place up and get things organized. Maybe have some tea." He said and left the tent.

"I guess that settles it..." Blaze said sadly. "I really hoped that there was something we could've done so nopony dies. I don't want to kill anypony." He said.

"I know you don't. I don't want him to either. I don't want any of us to die. But....I don't want you to die more than anything." She said as she ran a hoof through his mane. "Rook is smart. He wouldn't have done this unless there was no other way. He knows the army needs you two." She said. "I'm always here for you Blazey boy." She said trying to cheer him up. "C'mon. Let's go for a fly. You need to clear your head and flying always seems to help." She took his hoof and they walked outside. They took off and flew towards the clouds.
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Linus walked into the healer's tent and took a seat next to Luna. The healer came in with a green liquid. "Linus. I thought I said that I wanted everypony out so I could concentrate?" She said with a frown.

"You did, but I want to see her. For my last night here." He said quietly.

"Ah I see." She said. She knew about the fight. Everypony did. "Well, while you're here, want to help me get her mouth open? I need to get this remedy down her throat and not her windpipe." They worked the fluid down her throat with little spillage.

"This will help her right?" He asked.

"Yes. It will work the gure out of her system. Once it is removed, we can use this to wake her up." She said, holding up a blue herb.

"What is it?" Linus asked as he observed the strange plant.

"It's a Junga plant. It wakes up anypony who takes it. It's very common, but most ponies don't know how to identify it since it looks so similar to Poison Joke. The only difference is that Junga doesn't have anything reaching out of the top of it like Poison Joke." She said as she pointed to the top of the herb. "She'll be up 5 minutes after taking this. But for now, we wait." She said. "I need to go check on supplies. Think you can stay here and watch?" Linus nodded his head. "Good. In about 10 minutes the gure will have worked itself out her body. Then, give her the Junga plant. She'll be very tired and clumsy when she wakes, so don't let her stand up right away." She said and left the tent.

Linus looked at Luna. She was beautiful. Her dark coat and flowing black mane. Why? Why now? Why must I die before I can tell you how I feel? "I don't know if you can hear me. Heh, you probably can't. Well, this is my last night here. And I figure this might as well be the time to get everything off of my chest." he started. "Well where should I start? You are the most beautiful mare I have ever met. You are cunning, smart, beautiful. Ah hay, I haven't had a real good chance to say this. I guess now is as good a time as any." Linus said as he took her hoof in his. "Luna, I love you. More than anything. Which is why I did what I did. Why I've done so much for you. You remember that day? The day you were hit by a freezing spell?" He asked.

"It was right after Las Pegasus. Chrysalis had come to destroy all of us. She saw you. How bravely you were fighting. How you gave morale to the troops. You had given them something she hadn't expected, something she didn't foresee in her plans. Hope. You had given them hope in the face of all danger. We had pushed her back, saved the town, but with heavy losses. She charged at you in anger. She shot bolt after bolt of magic at you, but you flung them to the side as if they were nothing. You made a fool of her, proving who was the stronger one. You embarrassed her.

And then, one of her soldiers tried to attack you. You stopped him, but Chrysalis was able to get one last spell off. A freeze spell. You saw it at the last second and didn't have enough time to stop it. Right when it was about to hit you, right before you would've been frozen in time, with no way out, I jumped in front of you. I took the bolt for you. As it struck me, I felt like I had fallen into a sleep. A painful, aching sleep. I could see you, I could hear you, but I couldn't speak. I couldn't say that it would be alright. That everything would be ok." He said with a tear running down his cheek.

"Chrysalis had retreated, abandoned the city. All the healers came to see if there was some spell they could do to awaken me. There was one, but none of them were able to do it. Not a single one. Then, you came. You tried it and failed. You kept trying though even after multiple failed attempts. You stayed in through the night trying to revive me. But you couldn't. Then, for the first time since you were released from the moon, the stars aligned. You gave me a kiss right on top of my head and tried the spell one more time. And it worked. It worked! I wasn't frozen anymore. I was free. But you however, had lost your memory. You gained most of it back as we explained what happened. But nothing of that night I was freed. You were the only pony there when you cast that spell. I've always wanted to tell you about it, but you haven't been alone to talk to about it. And the time was never appropriate."

"So yea. That's what happened that night. You can't hear me, or see me, but it was nice to tell you. Even if you won't remember it when you wake up. But, maybe it's for the best that you don't remember." He finished. It had been ten minutes. He gave her the herb and waited. After five minutes, nothing happened. He got up, rubbed his hoof through her flowing, dark mane, and kissed her forehead. He left the tent and went back to his own tent. When he arrived, he laid down on his bed, and cried softly to himself.
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GASP! Luna jolted upright. As she did a massive pain swept through her head and she fell back onto her back. Tired. Oh so very tired. She thought. She felt the spot where the dart had hit her. It stung, but it wasn't too bad. She slowly lifted her head again, but quickly decided against it. I can't even hold my head up She thought. What happened? How did I end up here? She looked around the tent and noticed all the medicines. "Wow, Derpy. You sure have a nice stash of herbs." She said to herself.

Most ponies though Derpy as a silly little filly who was very clumsy. But the truth was, she was just very easy going. Like Pinkie Pie, only less parties. She had an amazing knowledge in medicine, so she became the healer of the Aureolian Army. She was very into her work. She didn't mess around and was definitely not easy going when it came to medicine. She was very talented, even for her being a little clumsy pony. Luna smiled at herself. She had a wonderful dream. A dream with Linus. She couldn't remember what happened exactly, but she did remember one little action he did. She raised a hoof to her head, right where Linus kissed her, and smiled.