— Chapter IV - A New Moon —
Princess Luna felt as though she had been stood alone in her high tower for years and years, being paid no mind whatsoever atop Canterlot Castle the same as she had on the moon for so long. Only this time she was wait for the sun to set. The waiting. The insufferable waiting was what she missed the least of this world, as though some great otherworldly being held her like a toy in its hoof, stony and looming with inaction. But nevertheless, it was necessary inaction for what she intended to do in just a few moments.
Out on the balcony branching off from her new bedroom, the Princess of the Night watched the few ant sized citizens move between alleyways and cobbled streets as the day was nearing its end. Some were business ponies heading home from work, some were ponies working night jobs, and some were petty crooks already reported to the guard by Luna herself. The benefits of alicorn eyesight were that with enough focus one would be able to see a spec of sand on the head of a pin, never mind a stallion with his hoof in a mare's purse.
The world had changed so much since Luna's banishment, and she didn’t just mean the moonlit street lamps running on this strange 'electricity' substance that had replaced torch poles beaming with raw fire. There were so many discoveries, so many peace loving ponies, so few villains if any at all beyond herself and the odd petty thief, and a land completely at peace with itself. Peace that she violently threatened in her state of corrupted hubris.
Regardless of Celestia's insistence that Nightmare Moon and Princess Luna were two separate entities, Luna still couldn’t get the faces of those she had killed out of her head. The two guards at the Summer Sun Celebration being, a farm of innocent peasant ponies a millennia ago, her own Lunar captain when he had dared question her senses upon being ordered to attack the largest settlement in all of Equestria without any clear reason. So much needless death and pain she had reaped over something as small as a crown of silver, bejewelled with the hideousness of pride and a quartet of gems bitter with the envy of a younger sister.
Luna had sought to indirectly harm the very subjects that she and Celestia had sworn to protect. Now that her mind was clear, she realised the foolishness of an eternal night. A ponies diet mostly consisted of flora, a vast majority of which needed sunlight to grow. A nation of starving ponies was not one to last a thousand years, or even a single generation, and the madness that believed otherwise deserved to be left on the moon and forgotten for all time. She deserved that fate too some may argue.
Even a week after the return of her senses, Luna still felt great blows of guilt strike her like a spiked cudgel to her stomach with ruthless persistence. Her head dropped momentarily in shame at the thoughts of isolation and brooding that befell her for so long. Jealousy became hatred, hatred turned to madness, and madness… well, madness was all consuming. Her damaged memories could be a testament to that. A hungry beast terrified of being starved for even an hour. But had the beast been inside her, or was the beast simply her?
Was she a risk? Luna lowered her gaze for a moment as the blank patch in her mind plagued her attempts at finding some sort of clarity. Whether it was her lunar madness causing her blotches of memory, or the entity Nightmare Moon ceasing to exist and taking the memories with her out of spite, she could not say for certain.
She had tried to remember herself before finding purity, but nothing complete and clean would reveal itself to her. She had managed to make out mere glimpses since the foul darkness had been purged from her body, specs of dust in the cosmic wind of her mind. The harder she tried to remember the day of the Summer Sun Celebration and before it, the more her mind refused to comply. In fact she couldn’t even remember what she had done during the Celebration.
When she had learned about her little display in the town hall, what she had done to those guards who were only serving their country, a small part of her had died inside. Later on when she personally saw the shades of liquid crimson that stained the floor being cleaned away, and the scarred looks in the eyes of both young and old alike, the families who would be burying them very soon, only one thought came to mind: Luna had been the one to cause that. She murdered them without thinking and with no memory of it. To Luna, that spelt more than mere risk. Those were the actions of a monster, a devil! A devil who had escaped punishment, and had no choice but to try and make things right.
Even though she could not undo what had happened, more out of fear that she may cause more harm than good rather than an unwillingness to search for the means to do so, what she could do was whatever she could to insure that it never happened again under any circumstances. Even if her methods were more than a little questionable to most, she wouldn’t let that stop her. Nightmare Moon had been silenced for now, but others like her may rise again.
As her horn ignited with its silvery blue glow, Luna knew that her sister would not approve of this one bit. Celestia had voiced her disliking of this particular spell that Luna was about to cast long ago, about how it was a violation of the rights of their citizens and so on. But it was better to receive some complaints than to be sorry for doing nothing and paying the price with innocent lives.
Luna had been the first one to discover it, to cast it, and to use it to uncover many threats across Equestria following their defeat of Lord Discord the Mad. Changelings scouts harnessing villages on the farthest point of the southern boarder, the arrival of a pair of brothers hailing from the centaur kingdom, highborn ponies of the nobility conspiring to overthrow the two sisters, a bloody war with the ancient Dragon Lord who sought to conquer the eastern shoreline due to its rich gem deposits, and a King of Crystal concocting his wicked plots to conquer all of the known world with a slave army, to name but a few. That last one was partly why she was doing this.
Sombra. Princess Luna would be lying if she said that he hadn't been on her mind ever since her return to sanity. Why would he, of all beings, have been referenced to by name, during the confrontation with the unicorn Twilight Sparkle and the entity Nightmare Moon when neither of them had ever encountered the dead Shadow King? Of all the foes Luna and Celestia had faced over their century spent purging the land of evil, why would that particular stallion be the one that was mentioned in passing before a battle between harmony and tyranny came to its conclusion?
Ever since her sister had revealed this fact to her, Luna found her old self taking over. Not Nightmare Moon, no, but the curious mare with an endless hunger for knowledge and for ways to use that knowledge to her advantage. She didn’t just want to know why, she needed to know why. There are no accidents. Everything happened for a reason, and the reason was usually bad where these matters were concerned. She needed to find the reason, in order to be ready for anything that may or may not occur.
Instead of a flare of energy bursting from her horn, the entire world bent to Luna's will without anyone being any the wiser about what was happening. All around Luna became overrun with an auburn glow and a scene of glittery orbs, tens if not hundreds of thousands of them each with their own pony inside. The citizens of Canterlot, all of them, as well as any pony that may have simply been visiting the city.
From the richest noble to the poorest beggar, Luna could see them all as though she were within an endless room of one sided mirrors. She could see everything they did, everyone they spoke to, everything they’d rather keep hidden about themselves. Everything. A waking version of the dream world one might say.
At least that’s how it would have been a thousand years ago, when she was at her full strength. She would’ve stared right into the heart and soul of anyone she suspected of treasonous behaviour and read then like a novel. But now… now it was like she was squinting at ink blots on a page of rotted paper. Bright colours with barely a outlined shape to them. It seemed that the closer they were to her physical body, the clearer they became. But it was still a great strain on her part to make out even a single pony.
It seemed that her powers had drained immeasurably more so that she had thought during her lengthy imprisonment on the moon, or perhaps that damned bite had something to do with it. Regardless, even the simplest of spells was a struggle for her right now. She was just lucky that this spell did not require much of her alicorn magic to perform. Only her focus, something she was rich in.
Regardless, she pushed onward in her endeavour. Luna would never improve herself again if she did not push and test herself time and time again. A pair of glistening spectral wings left Luna's physical body, and Luna painless shed her corporeal flesh and ascended to the heavens as a spirit of the night.
The ivory and gold of Canterlot left Luna's line of sight as she moved like a sliver of midnight. The weightlessness of having no body to haul around was comforting, especially given the injuries she’d received during the Summer Sun Celebration, and allowed Luna to find a sense of peace she hadn’t known since she was but a pegasus filly so very, very long ago, playing in the back of her mother’s home. That was long before she ascended from mortality, before she had even learned she had a sister. Oh how she longed for a chance of experiencing those day of ignorant bliss once again, playing in mother's garden and hiding from the town guards after pelting them with snowballs. Sneaking away with friends while carrying a cup of spiced wine in her teenage years, and getting caught tipsy an hour later.
The innocence of youth she'd never experience again, replaced with a duty most cold and a fear of losing what little she had left.
But the past was exactly that. History, nothing more. The future was all that mattered now, and preventing the past from repeating itself. She shook her head lightly and ascended like a phoenix.
Once she was higher than even the clouds, higher than the pegasus city itself, Luna stopped her ascent and looked straight down. She could see Canterlot and the miles of green and grey that surrounded the mountain it was built upon. She could see distant skyscrapers in the corner of one eye and the multitude of other pony cities in the other. The world was a map in three dimensions, and Luna would normally be observing every crumple in the page. Right now she was quickly scanning out of a worry that her energy would dwindle too fast for her to finish.
This world was like a child's toy city rather than a real place full of real ponies. The orbs that were so large and in Luna's face before were now no larger than the head on a pin. When she focused on one that peaked her interest, it would enlarge itself on command so that the scene occurring within could be viewed without a thousand others getting in the way.
She then carefully began sifting through various lives as the amber skies diluted the colours of their homes and places of work while their coats and manes were clear to see. She moved on immediately from the harmless ones, children mostly, and lingered on others for a few moments before her suspicions of them were disproved one way or another.
Her eyes flashed over thousands of ponies over the span of several minutes, time being nothing more than a hindrance of how long she’d be able to do this for before she had to withdraw back into her physical form. She saw muggers being thwarted in the act, she saw con ponies making off with bags of gold bits, she saw a stallion beating up another stallion after finding him in bed with his wife, she saw all kinds of petty encounters and squabbles that the local law enforcements could easily deal with soon enough. But she did not see what she was looking for.
Evil. Evil that only the cleansing light of the Elements of Harmony could obliterate in its entirety. Evils that dwelled in places that even Luna felt uneasy about. Places that… were better left undisturbed in the depths they’d been banished to so very long ago. Places ruled by beings that made the likes of Nightmare Moon and Sombra seem like children in a world of cruel twisted depravities. Beings that deserved no redemption, only a cell in the deepest depths of Tartarus. That, or death.
Have drawn her gaze away from Canterlot City and it’s closest territories, Luna slowly turned on the spot as she planned to move from city to city, mountain to mountain, and pony to pony if she could. But it was mostly a blur, she couldn’t see anything, and her head was beginning to pound like a yak war drum. The corners of her vision were flashing, and Luna knew she couldn’t hold it much longer before she began to do harm to herself. Then again, a small bit of mental trauma was nothing compared to what Luna had done. A plague of the mind seemed like a fitting enough sentence.
As a migraine threatened to kick in, and Luna pondered on the mare that Celestia had taken on as a pupil. Twilight Sparkle, and her little familiar. Perhaps Nightmare Moon was referring to someone who Twilight had spoken to on that day? Or maybe someone who had been with her on the night in question? As this thought entered her already tiring mind, Luna slowly moved her eyes over towards Ponyville. In an instant everything began to go wrong. Flashes of unnatural light risked blinding Luna as a whirlwind of emerald and amethyst swirled at the centre of the princess's ring of focus.
That’s it! That is exactly the kind of thing Luna was searching for! She knew this peaceful world was too good to be true! There was something hiding in Ponyville, or under it maybe, and it was something that she would confront. She attempted to move in closer, but the more she did that the more unstable her vision became in this plane. Orbs were shattering, Luna's strength waning, but she pushed on toward the source of the disturbance. She needed to know, she needed to see, just as she had a thousand years ago in order to protect the land.
By the time she was able to find an image, it was distorted beyond all recognition. She couldn’t see a face, only the vague grey outline of a unicorn. Colour was bleeding into nothingness, and not even a mane style was visible to her. She wasn’t even able to tell the unicorn's gender as androgynous blobs shapes replaced anything that looked even remotely alive.
A scene was attempting to unfold for Luna to see, but irregular shapes replaced equine shapes and a growing buzz in Luna's ears thwarted her attempts:
There was shock…
…a book of some kind…
…fresh blood dripping…
…lies leaving lips…
…and crystals!
The sound of crystal piercing flesh was the straw that broke the camels back. The astral plane fled back into the realm of imagination and Luna was forcibly dragged back to Canterlot like an overstretched spring. She crossed miles of land in seconds, and crashed into her physical body were a struggling gasp seeking the sweet taste of air in her throat. Her injured leg gave in under the weight of her body and Luna tumbled to the ground.
In between pants, Luna wiped the sticky sweat from her forehead before looking to the skies of Equestria, gritting her teeth knowingly. "Accursed heretic! Traitorous worm! We will have thy horn ripped away for this!" She hissed with an ancient ire in her voice.
A knock on the door grabbed Luna's attention, and with the mood she was currently in she felt ready to fire a warning shot of magical energy straight through the hallway outside her door. She restrained herself however, or rather her exhaustion beat her to it, and she was brought back to her senses as a mare's voice called.
"Your majesty!" Said the mare, before a pause came followed by a more muffled voice. "Wait, do we call her 'your majesty'?"
"I think so?" Whispered another pony, who Luna assumed to be a stallion.
"Your majesty, are you okay?" The mare beckoned with a more appropriate sense of urgency.
Luna did not answer. She rose to her hooves as gracefully as she could. She stared down at her bandaged leg and showed a sense of weakness she hadn’t allowed anyone of this or any other age to witness. It had been years since she had felt a pain as strong as that bite, and even a week after the injury was suffered the bandages were stained an unpleasant shade of yellowish brown. It was an improvement from the black blood she was letting from the wound days earlier, and for that she had modern medicine to thank. Her alicorn rate of regeneration would have likely saved her from a small yet potent wound such as this, but to have almost been brought down by it to begin with was… concerning.
But that was for another time, for she had a task to deal with here and now. Inquiries into that topic were for another time. For now, she limped toward the door to her bedroom right as the ponies on the other side sounded as though they were about to try and force entry. She grabbed the handle with her magic and opened it before they had a chance, and the pair of golden clad guards stared wide eyed and cautiously at Luna as though she were a half starved ursa major that had been let loose in the castle.
"We are well, and thou shall return to thine posts." Luna told them.
"Y-Yes, your majesty." The mare nodded, while her partner merely nodded his head silently.
They both saluted more out of fear than respect, and Luna walked passed the pair of them before using her magic to close the door she’d exited through. Luna would have normally reprimanded them for daring to question if her authority was genuine, even if they had thought their comments had gone unheard, but right now she needed to find Celestia. Luna paused at the top of the stairs leading down through her tower, turning back to the guards. They tensed up at her gaze and even more so when she spoke.
"Our sister, where may we find her?" Luna said.
The two guards looked to one another, and this time the stallion took his turn to speak. "Princess Celestia may still be in the Starswirl Wing with Captain Shining Armour, your majesty." He said.
Luna nodded with a half hearted hum of acknowledgment before continuing on her way. She descended the steps with a rhythmic clicking of her silver shoes as her mind conjured up more thoughts.
She had noticed that the Equestrian Crown did not have the impressive military might that it had under its command a thousand years ago. In fact upon looking into the matter she found out that the only places left that had Royal Guards patrolling were Canterlot and the city of Trottingham, that had apparently served as a temporary capital for twelve years while Celestia mourned the banishment of Luna. There had once been a time when every city and town had a barracks, and every village had at least twenty guards stationed there. Now, she questioned whether the number of soldiers under her sister's command spanned into the low thousands or not. An era of peace had dealt a heavy blow to their country's strength.
At the bottom of the stairs, a maid carrying a feather duster froze in her tracks and fearfully stepped aside to keep out of the lunar princess's path. She heard a cautious whimper barely leave the mare's closed mouth as Luna glided by like a phantom through the halls despite her limp. Servants and guards alike watched Luna as she moved by, some of the braver ones mumbling to one another when they thought she wasn’t listening to them.
She was listening, and she heard every word.
"So that’s Nightmare Moon?"
"The princess said she’s good now, but how can even she be sure about that?"
"She’s even scarier than the stories from Ponyville say she is."
"She murdered how many ponies, and the princess let her walk free?"
"Prince Blueblood has the right idea about her. Banish her to Tartarus and leave her to rot."
"I thought she’d be taller."
Her face hardened like steel, resisting the growing urge to punish the blatant disrespect that these lowly servants and soldiers were showing her by gossiping about her practically to her face. But then she remembered the fact that barely a week ago she was the bloodthirsty tyrant that sought to plunge the land into a state of perpetual life threatening darkness, and to slay anyone who stood in her way. It would be quite a journey to prove she truly wished to change from that monster and back into someone who only wanted to protect them.
After several long minutes of walking and multiple hallways later, Luna approached the building she recalled as being the Starswirl Wing within the Canterlot Archives. The guards on either side of the double doors watched Luna cautiously, and one of them looked as though he may be brave enough to prevent her from gaining entry.
"Our sister is expecting us." Luna lied, her cold glare daring them to question her word.
"Understood, your majesty." One of them said, saluting toward Luna before pushing one of the doors open.
His comrade followed suit, holding the other door open and allowing Luna to enter the most respected part of the royal archives. The doors closed once she was inside and she immediately heard the sound of hushed voices over the clank of the doors behind her. Her sister's graceful tone was recognisable even at such a low volume. She stalked the lanes of books as she listened out for speech, honing in on it like a predator in the wild.
Fortunately no other ponies seemed to be in here at the moment, so she could find her sister and the captain she was conversing with rather easily.
"…I respect you, Shining Armour, I really do. Not just as my student's brother, but as both a sworn bodyguard and hopefully a dear friend." Celestia's voice came from one of the library stalls, the door ajar as the sound of pouring liquid could be heard. "And if you are both serious about this relationship, then you have my blessing wherever it may take you."
"Thank you, Princess." Said the stallion known as Shining Armour. "That means more than words can say."
A small polite chuckle came from Celestia. "We’ve been over this, Shining, you can just call me Celestia when we’re alone." The solar princess corrected politely.
"Of course, Celestia." Shining said after a moment, the smile on his face apparent even before Luna pushed the door open a crack.
"That’s better, although there is one more thing I’d like to make clear. I am aware that you’ve been seeing each other for quite some time now, and there is no doubt that the love between you blooms true. However..." Celestia said with her trademark motherly tone, conveying natural understanding with every syllable, before her tone began more neutral. "…my niece means more to me then words can describe, and I know how she feels about you. If this is what you intend to do, you need to be certain about it. I do not wish to intimidate you, but I also hope that you will not hurt her in any way. Intentionally, or otherwise."
"Gah!" A sound Luna couldn’t quite name left the stallion's throat, like a bag of cats and frogs all trapped inside of an oil drum that had been set on fire. "Celestia, I-I would never dream of doing anything like that! I respect Cadence far too much and—!"
At that point Luna decided she had heard enough, having grown tired of waiting. When Luna entered completely unannounced, she observed the surroundings before her with a well hidden sense of bewilderment. The sense of familiarity between them had already come across to Luna as inappropriate, but now that she saw that the pair had been making themselves truly comfortable in this chamber of learning. A small tidy platter of delicious and delicate pastries and cakes sat in the middle of the table, flanked by various other items. A pair of teacups and matching saucers, a teapot that had been placed upon a doily as not to mark the wood, a small cup of sugar and another filled with milk.
She then noticed that Shining Armour's helmet was rested up against the seat he was sat in, rather than on his head where it should be when addressing royalty, and it glimmered with the surrounding candle light along its cold face.
Celestia and Shining Armour both turned their heads to face her, and Shining Armour's look of relief at the distraction faded as quickly as it had come when he saw who had interrupted them. Celestia on the other hand had a look more resembling concern than anything else.
"Luna, is something the matter?" Celestia asked.
Luna was about to speak, but eyed Shining Armour momentarily. Was he not the brother of Twilight Sparkle? Yes, if she recalled correctly then that was exactly who this stallion was. Luna hoped that wasn’t the sole reason he became captain of the guard, but more so at the forefront of her mind was the familiar protectiveness of close siblings.
If there was dark sorcery in the village where Twilight Sparkle was now making her home, then this Shining Armour would likely wish to head down there personally and investigate. Or worse he may panic for his sister’s safety, and then the element of surprise would be lost as soldiers and servants alike would piece together what had happened. There was already those 'news reporter' ponies lurking outside the palace gates wanting an audience from the two sisters, they didn’t need anyone else poking their nose where it didn’t belong.
There was a big enough problem already, she didn’t need anymore of them.
"Leave us." Luna commanded bluntly.
Shining Armour hesitated, turning to Celestia for guidance as he subtly reached down for his helmet. Celestia looked to her sister momentarily before facing Shining Armour once again and nodding.
"We can continue our chat another time, we’ve discussed the most important aspect already." Celestia assured Shining Armour. "Besides, I think I’ve kept you from your patrol for long enough."
"Yes, Princess." Shining Armour saluted awkwardly, fixing his helmet upon his head and then trotting towards the door. Luna stepped aside so he could leave, and Shining Armour slid by her effortlessly.
Once he was gone Luna closed the door fully and allowed the two alicorns some privacy. The double door loud echoing clank as they shut let Luna know he was gone, and she wasted no more time in revealing her findings.
"We believe we may have uncovered something sinister in the farming village of Ponyville." Luna immediately stated before Celestia had a chance to speak.
Celestia frowned in response, not liking the clear implication in Luna's tone. There was no anger, merely a sour and all too familiar cocktail of disappointment, disagreement, and concern. That damned concern of hers. "You’ve been casting that astral projection spell again." She said calmly.
"Indeed." Luna saw no point in lying. "But you can criticise our methods later, right now we request to lead a detachment of soldiers to Ponyville in order to commence with a search for practitioners of dark magic."
Celestia was silent. The words that had been prepared to leave her mouth dried up as it dawned on her that Luna was not jesting even remotely. Dark magic? In Ponyville of all places? Whatever disappointment was in her eyes before was replaced with serious concern.
"Dark magic? Are you certain sister? You actually witnessed a spell being cast?" Celestia asked for clarification. "Because these days there are all manner of fashion movements that could be mistaken for it. I remember the shock I felt from the first time I encountered a goth, I thought the poor mare was a member of the living dead."
Luna did not humour Celestia's anecdote with a response, even if she wondered know on earth a what a 'goth' was, but acknowledged the logic that lay within her prior statement regarding easy mistakes. Mistakes. She hated them, or even the suggestion that she could make one. With a deep breath taken in and then released, Luna continued on.
"It is true, our vision did turn up shrouded by the weakened state of our body, and that a thousand winters have passed since we were able to view the world." Luna nodded curtly.
Why do I feel a 'but' coming? Celestia thought to herself.
"But this is more than misunderstanding. For we belief that this was a spell straight from the ancient texts of Tambelon itself, or at least a paraphrasing of such a spell from a more modern author." Luna stated firmly. "We saw a figure, in the act of practicing the summoning techniques surrounding crystalline matter."
That wiped the unsure expression from Celestia's face for but a moment. She did not speak for what seemed an eternity, pondering her words carefully. She knew what her sister was implying, from their previous conversation following Luna's return, and she’d be lying if she said it didn’t come to mind herself when she’d heard it just then. It had probably already crossed Luna's mind, she had no doubt.
Sombra. The Crystal King. The dead king now, surely that was the case. No pony could survive what the two sisters did to him, the sheer raw power of the Elements of Harmony combined with their own alicorn magic. Not even the twisted ram himself would be able to survive such a blast at near point blank range without a shield spell cast. Besides, Sombra was many many things, but a fool he was not. If he did somehow survive, as unlikely as that that may be, then he wouldn’t be casting magic in someplace so close to the capital of Equestria in plain view of the sisters. He would choose someplace far far away from here, outside of Equestria even, or at the very least somewhere with a natural cloak for magic to hide him from prying eyes. The Everfree was such a place, was it not? If so, then maybe…
As concerning as it may have been to Celestia, she did not have enough proof to begin foolishly declaring an old enemy as having been resurrected. No, of course not! The dead don’t rise again, at least not as Sombra would have liked to. More likely it was just a clueless child using an old book to try and find their special talent, without knowing the truth behind the spell they were casting.
Finally, as what felt like a lifetime of consideration, Celestia spoke. "While I do believe that this matter must be looked into, I do not believe that this has anything to do with what occurred the other night—"
"Thou cannot be serious!" Luna snapped. Celestia remained calm, having grown used to butting heads with members of the nobility. "Crystals, sister! Crystals! Mere days after Nightmare Moon spoke of Sombra by name! Surely that cannot be dismissed as a mere coincidence, Celestia?"
"And what would you have me do?" Celestia retorted, rising from her seat. "Sent a fully armed battalion to a countryside village, almost certainly terrifying the inhabitants, and hold them all against their will. All in order to search for a spell caster who we don’t know actually exists and, if they do exist, may of may not even be there by the time our soldiers arrive?"
"You had no qualms with such matters in the past." Luna said. "You used to say a healthy dose of paranoia kept a nation alive."
"Yes, but those were different times. Times when war was not a maybe, but a certainty." Celestia explained. "But now the land is at peace and has been for almost a thousand years, and the common ponies have far more freedom now than they did a thousand years ago. One such freedom is no unnecessary military occupations of their homes."
"'At peace'? We are sure that is what many ponies did believe before we returned from the moon? Peace can be broken before you even know it is at risk." Luna scoffed indignantly at her sister's words. "So do you suggest that we do nothing in regards to this matter?"
"I didn’t say that." Celestia clarified, as calmly as ever, for her sister. "I’m merely saying that a more… restrained and mindful response should be put into action in response to your suspicions. I will speak with some of my court wizards in the morning, and have them leave for Ponyville with a disguised escort as soon as possible."
Just as Luna was about to voice her desire to accompany them, Celestia spoke first in order to address the topic. "And I need you to remain here, Luna. We must prepare for your reinstatement as a Princess of Equestria, and for our arguments against the leaders of Equestria who would seek to prevent that. The hearing is only days away and we’ve wasted enough time already."
"Reinstatement." Luna spat the word out in disgust. Now at her sister, but those who would question the legitimacy of both sisters. "Am I not already the ruling body of the moon?"
"Yes, but it’s the ponies down here that we need to persuade. They know about you being the one who controls the moon once more, but they are still afraid that one day you won’t lower it again." Celestia said as she trotted toward her sister, sympathy etched on her face. "A moot has been called, with many planning to attend. I’ve even found out that all three pony tribe leaders all plan to oppose your reinstatement, as well as the Duke of Trottingham. We need to be ready for anything they’ll throw at you."
Luna was about to object, but even in her irritated state she knew Celestia was right. As important as this was, she would not be able to do anything without a throne to command from. With none of the resources a royal had at her disposal, she wouldn’t stand a chance out in the modern world. All these ponies and their differing opinions, it was all far too complicated sounding to Luna. Everyone had a say, but only certain ponies could say what their slice of the majority were saying? Just thinking about it made the usually in control princess feel so naive and confused.
"We thought the days of the tribe leaders were long gone? Even before our rule had began." Luna said.
"They are, for the most part, but their legacies carry on. While their roles are mostly for traditions sake these days, there are still some who look to the three tribe leaders for guidance. Like wise elders, in a way. Even if there is little wisdom to be found in their words." Celestia explained, a small part of her wishing that these tribal remnants were left in the past. "But unfortunately for us, the Chancellor of the earth ponies, the Commander of the pegasi, and the Prince of the unicorns have all united in their displeasure at your lack of a punishment. As though what I did to you was not enough torture for anypony."
"Thou had… you had no choice, sister, we were beyond saving at that point in time. The Nightmare had taken ahold of us, and refused to let go. There was no other way of protecting Equestria from the madness." Luna placed a hoof on her sister's shoulder, the fire within her cooling into mere kindling when she had seen that look of guilt on Celestia's face. "Rest assured, dear sister, we shall remain here. We will sway all those who would still view us as Nightmare Moon to our side. Including our own nephew, if needs must."
"Ah, so you found out about that?" Celestia said, smiling a small smile. "Blueblood is… well… he’s quite shortsighted. His opinions typically stay with what he believes is right for the immediate future rather than the long term."
"Shortsighted? Is that the word used these days to describe a traitorous sewer rats these days?" Luna asked. "Blood relation or not, his sort would have surely faced the headsmare's axe over a thousand years ago."
"Oh trust me, there are a rare few times he pushes me to feel the same way about him…" Celestia muttered, shaking her head and chuckling softly. "But, even if we do not agree as often as I would like, he is family. I will let him have his say no matter what, as I would with any pony, it is simply a question of whether he will repay that respect in kind. His upbringing has left some sizeable cracks in his integrity."
"Indeed. His immaturity may prove valuable to us." Luna agreed. "But regarding the Ponyville matter, there is one more thing that we wish to recommend."
"Yes?" Celestia said, prompting for Luna to continue.
"If your desire is truly for a more scholarly approach, then might we suggest your personal protégé be informed of the arrival of your wizards." Luna put her thoughts forth. "She may be able to aid them in their affairs where needs be."
"Twilight?" Celestia said curiously. "I know you warmed up to her rather quickly upon your return, but I don’t think I recall you ever suggesting someone's aid by name. Is there something you aren’t telling me?"
"If there is, we do not know what it is yet. There is simply something about her… something that reminds her of ourselves at her age." Luna said. "We believe she may be quite reliable."
A half truth at best. While what she said was how she felt, there was more to it than she cared to reveal right now. She also wished to see if Twilight Sparkle could land on her hooves when thrown into uncertainty. To see if she could live up to her role as student to the Solar Princess, without having to rely solely on the Elements of Harmony or advise from her mentor to get things done as the two sisters had during the dawn of their reign. This was a test that couldn’t be affected by her sister's softened approach to matters.
"Very well, I was already planning on writing to her about her invitation to the Grand Galloping Gala in a few weeks from now. I will put that on hold for now, and send a letter to Twilight requesting her to help with the investigation." Celestia agreed. "But, I do hope you are not raising your expectations too highly, sister. On your lead or on Twilight."
"We rarely do. We are not expecting another Tirek or Sombra to suddenly arise from this matter. Not yet at least." Luna told her, shaking her head. "We merely wish to punish those that would selfishly threaten the stability of the peace that you have managed to bring about."
"That we managed to bring about." Celestia corrected. "There may have been a small dragon invasion some decades after, but we defeated the last of the great evils together."
"Truly?" Luna asked, to which Celestia nodded. "Then we shall work together once again, in order to keep this peace. Like the old days?"
"Like the old days." Celestia agreed.
While Luna hadn’t gotten exactly what she had been hoping for when she had first approached her sister, she was mostly satisfied that her word seemed to be more valued than it had been before. Back when Luna felt like a child caught in her older sister's mighty all encompassing shadow, but those days were hopefully behind them. It would take time before the citizens of Equestria saw her as their ancestors had once viewed her, a flawed protector and far from a monster. But she would do everything she could for them regardless. Even if she stumbled a few times along the way.
As for this Twilight Sparkle, her courage and intelligence would hopefully prove itself if her sister's judgement was as true as it had been in the past. Twilight and her familiar may have both been shrouded in too many uncertainties for Luna's liking at first, but she had a feeling in her gut about them.
Luna hoped that feeling was a good one. They may just end up turning out to be more than they appear in the near future.
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HOLY CRAP ... NEW CHAPTER YAY!!!!
Eeeyyyyyyy!!!! Wow! It’s awesome to see this updated. Glad to hear/read that you got over some (if not all) of that writer’s block! I can’t wait to see how the next chapter goes!
Have a great day!!!!!
CHAPTER!!!
Sweet! Keep em coming! I like stories where Twilight goes dark.
Yo just found this story and i find it FANTABULOUS!
Hey! This story actually really good! Surprise to see this a recent 'Twilight Sparkle Betrayal' recommendation. Already, this line of work is living it up. Though as much as I want to say looking forward to the next chapter, that'll be put to back burner til you come out of writer block. Aside from that, great story! Do take care of yourself, That_Brony_Guy.
Are you going to continue this?
11853251
I am, I’m just working on several chapters at once while I’m on a roll. I won’t name a date or anything, but I should hopefully have another chapter out soon.
11871143
Not overly so. Just a quick prick and then nothing.
Oh how little you know....
I'll be waiting for the next chapter, this story is really good and I'm excited to read more.
11871178
Good, didn't want that on my mind.
Love this fic so far, cant wait to read more