Left Behind: Sunny Disposition

by The Psychopath

Alliance of Convenience

A battalion of armored ponies rushed out of the chariots the moment they landed and surrounded the two ponies standing in the charred landscape. King Gallant and Queen Majesty followed closely behind, escorted by guards garbed in golden armor. Moon rolled her eyes at the display. Golden armor? Easy to spot the royal family this way. That worked in cities, not the field of battle.

"You! Nightmare Moon!" Gallant called out. "Cease stealing my citizens and land from me!"

"I have stolen nothing," Moon stated matter-of-factly. "I am reclaiming what is rightfully mine. My sister and I founded the Equestria you fools have torn apart."

"That was millennia ago! This is no longer your Equestria!"

Moon's body glowed an ominous white, and her magic pushed the soldiers around away by the sheer pressure. "It is always going to be my Equestria!"

"Now now, everypony. Let's calm down," a voice calmly suggested. The automaton stepped forward, a grimace distorting the metal comprising the facial plate. "Petty squabbles won't stop that fragment of Solar Flare from destroying the world."

Moon narrowed her gaze and peered at the magical essence surrounding the artificial construct, then her temper flared with her magic. The sky became pockmarked with holes showing the dark space and stars behind it.

"You! I killed you!"

"Indeed you did!" the automaton mused. "But you didn't kill the actual me." It stepped forward and gazed up at the furious alicorn that made many of the guards tremble in fear. "I've been alive all this time not because of the alicorn power that was forced onto me. You saw what that can do, but this is for another time." It turned around and caught a glimpse of Sunny. Moon noticed its body twitch and its face shift ever so slightly before continuing. "Right now we have to find where your sister went and stop her."

Majesty made movements with her wings which the doll smiled at.

"What are you mumbling at?" Gallant asked. "We came here to stop her and instead come upon this one?" He looked at his wife making movements again. "She's right. Why not stop this one right now and move on to the fragment?"

"Because my sister wants to destroy the whole world," Moon explained.

The automaton cackled. "What else is new? That's all you alico--"

"She wants to awaken a gigantis vesuvius vulcan."

The automaton froze in place and immediately spun to look at Nightmare Moon. Even Sunny could see the absolute terror despite the lack of a face. "What?!"

The guards around mumbled in confusion while Gallant stepped forward. "What? What's wrong with that? What's a gig--"

"The vesuvius vulcans live in volcanoes," the automaton explained.

Gallant and Majesty exchanged looks and shrugged. "So?" the king said.

"They cause them to erupt when they find a dormant or active volcano." The automaton started pacing around nervously and speaking faster and faster. "You can deal with a vesuvius easily. They aren't that tough. They go in whatever direction they feel has an active vein beneath it, but they fill it out, and the volcano erupts."

"Then we need to prepare for a volcanic eruption?" It turned to his wife. "My wife, take a contingent of guards with you. You'll need to go back to the capital and p--"

"There's no point in that!" the automaton interjected. It tapped its head several times with a hoof. "If a vesuvius lives in average-sized volcanoes, what do you think the prefix of gigantis means?"

The king remained silent for a moment, taken aback by the serious behavior of the formerly aloof spirit. "Big?"

"They're impossibly big!" The entity cursed loudly to itself as it paced about. "Long ago there were monsters born from who knows what, but most of them were hunted by groups and organizations, but the gigantis? They couldn't touch them. The gigantis live in super volcanoes! They fill them out! When they enter a volcano they cause it to erupt! Most of Equestria is sitting on one that expands into the ocean and past the mountains of the west."

Almost all of the guards dropped their weapons and onto the floor when they heard the words.

"You can't fight something that enormous! Even the mighty alicorns couldn't!" it stated derisively. "They're passive not because they aren't aggressive, but because nothing is a threat to them!"

Sunny felt his blood run cold and his heart catch in his throat. He understood from Moon what it meant, but to have all those additional details added and the reactions of those around him were too much to bear. He almost fainted when Moon caught him in her magic.

"What's wrong with you? I thought you got over your fear," she asked him.

"Th-there's a difference between fear and knowing that you're completely doomed."

"Then we find a solution," Moon stated. "You. False alicorn," she called out to the entity.

"What?!"

"We join forces. Just this once. Find my sister. Stop her before she awakens it, then I deal with the fragment once she's been put down."

"Why should I work with an alicorn?"

Moon grinned. "Would you rather the whole world die? I would survive." She pointed to the entity and the royal family. "None of you would, however."

It took several minutes and pacing and growling in frustration for the automaton to yell in response. "Fine! An alliance of convenience then!" The automaton shouted while throwing their forelegs into the air.

"I take it you watching Equestria this whole time means you know where the super volcanoes are," Moon said.

She was met with a shrug. "What am I, a geologist? My job was to prevent anything about alicorns from leaking into the world and preventing more from being born." The automaton tapped its wrist. "Don't think volcanologist is in my résumé either!"

"Instead of employing your graduate in sarcasm, help me find a way to locate her!" Moon snapped back.

"I-I know a bit about geology," a pegasus meekly proclaimed.

"I do too."

Four of the guards dabbled in geology, and one in volcanology as a pastime. The king sighed in relief and patted himself on the back for overturning his predecessor's law that only nobles and university members could study in libraries, and only in their specific fields. He cast a glance at the automaton arguing with the alicorn and the four guards. Was that another effect of its interference? He saw the alicorn, the so-called goddess-taken-shape, and started to harbor doubts if she ever did intend to destroy everything like the automaton claimed. Gallant pursed his lips and looked to his wife who mimed 'are you okay?'.

"What is the closest supervolcano?" Gallant asked the guards.

"Well, we pooled our curiosity together and realized the closest is in the griffonlands to the east," a guard answered.

"Up north or across the ocean?" the king pressed. "Come on, hurry up!"

"Yes! It's underneath one of their mountain ranges."

Gallant started pacing about and cursing fervently. "The mountains are the most densely populated locations. If that thing wakes up--"

"Yes yes. Many will die. New world. Big war. So on and so forth," Moon groaned while rolling a wing. "The question then is not where to find Solar Flare, but specifically where." She cast a sideglance to the automaton.

"True. With a body that immense, the fragment could go anywhere it wanted and disturb the beast in its slumber."

Moon stretched her wings. "Then we need to assemble an army."

The automaton scoffed. "Take your personal guard up north then."

The alicorn grinned mischievously. "They aren't numerous nor well-trained enough to deal with something like this." She smiled and tilted her head to the side, wide-eyed. "Or would you rather the one land bridge linking us to Griffonia be left unprotected?" She watched Queen Majesty leave hurried in a carriage with a large contingent of troops to disappear on the horizon. Nightmare looked at the king. "Sunny and I will follow the path your guards will have set and await your soldiers to fight off the monsters my sister has created. I imagine you might need to deal with some necromantic abomination as well. It was a brief encounter, but I can tell it was strong, and whatever is binding them together can't be easily dispelled. Even I have no clue what the magic is."

The automaton cursed to itself. "She finished it?!" it whispered to itself.

"What monsters?" King Gallant asked. "I thought the burning and warping of the landscape was her doing."

"She apparently has creatures now that she created using a new brand of magic only she was privy to understand," the automaton explained.

Moon nodded. "I took my time studying the language she used, but I was unable to decipher their purpose. I just know it does something to some form of essence in living creatures."

"Wait wait wait," Sunny interjected. "What do you mean 'Sunny and I'? I'm not going to a super volcano!" he exclaimed while shaking his head and backing away.

"I'm aware of the dangers," Moon said. "But...your mere presence destabilizes my sister. That is needed to minimize exertion against her." The alicorn could feel the hatred of her last successor gnawing at her soul.

"But...But what about the griffins? We've always been enemies!" He turned to King Gallant. "Maybe you need somepony to go and send a message to them? She's a literal goddess!" he said while pointing at moon. "She doesn't need me! You could send some kind of super elite guard instead, can't you?"

Gallant slowly pushed Sunny away in disgust. "Firstly, there's no such thing as 'super elite guards'. Secondly, I have no reason to bow to the needs of a traitor. Thirdly, we need a fast flyer to reach the emperor of Griffonia as quickly as possible. No doubt they noticed the other alicorn burning their mountains and have sent their army there." His somber face deepened. "He'll think ponies are attacking again and might send forces up north to cross the land bridge and attack us."

Moon leaned in slowly, her eyes glowing. "And that's why my troops will be staying up there and the twins will be able to handle any 'preemptive strike' against my territory through diplomacy."

"Got a map of Griffonia!" a guard shouted. She brought it out and let her unicorn comrade unfurl and flatten it in the air. "It's outdated by a few decades, but I don't think that will matter for the location of a volcano."

The amateur geologists stepped in and looked at the patterns on said map. Its age was apparent by the yellowing of the parchment and the frailty the fabric was displaying to the touch. It also didn't help that even Moon knew that the shape of each landmass was off. She could at least guess an approximation of the volcano's emplacement.

"Any specific landmarks I should look out for?" Moon asked.

"Oh no. You're not leaving on your own," the automaton said. "I'm not letting an alicorn go gallivanting on its own. Who knows what you'll do to the griffins!"

Nightmare Moon rolled her eyes. "I don't have time for this." She looked to Sunny and rubbed her tired eyes. "Leave as quickly as possible. This isn't time for bickering. When you find them, just defend. The terrain is unknown to your soldiers, and those beasts seem to just throw themselves at whatever obstacle is in their way."

"Then it's settled?" Gallant asked. "We deal with the greater threat," He looked to the alicorn and his face grew somber. "then we deal with you," he growled.

"Fine by me," Moon stated half-heartedly.

The ground shook violently, interrupting their negotiations and planning. Looking up, everypony could see the sun had returned to its former state, but it had become actively aggressive. Beams of light would come from its focal point as thin strands before suddenly expanding and pounding the planet with a fiery explosion.

"She is using the sun to stop the largest groupings of ponies and prevent us from reaching her," the automaton said.

Sunny paced about nervously while staring at the sun. "But how does she know we know where she is?" he blurted out.

"She doesn't," Moon interjected. She pointed at the sun. "She's just making sure everypony is too occupied here to deal with her." The alicorn felt the anger of her last successor boil over and engulf her. "But I have a potential solution," she said. "A temporary one."

"And what is your solution?" the king asked. "Turn off the sun?"

Ignoring his sarcasm, Moon let the fury out. Her body became enveloped in a curtain of night sky. Of nebulas and stars. Of comets and planetary giants. The sky broke apart in several places and an immense moon emerged from one of them, positioning itself in front of the ball of nuclear fire.

Everypony watched silently as Moon worked her literal magic. Only Sunny had the wherewithal to be able to speak.

"Is it...is it in the sky or in front of the sun? I'm confused?" he muttered.

"It's time to get going," King Gallant said hurriedly. "My wife has gone back to the capital to send messages to those still loyal to me and the rest of my soldiers." He took a deep breath and shivered. "And, with some luck, the message will reach the griffin emperor in time before an international incident occurs."

With a nod, the automaton followed after the king, keeping an eye on Moon. She grinned at it as it disappeared into the gaudy carriage along with the map of Griffonia. As they left for the easy, Sunny Tapped his lips nervously.

Moon slumped and groaned. "What's bothering you now?" she asked in exasperation.

"Is...is there a way to stop your sister without killing her?" Sunny asked.

He looked up to see Nightmare Moon staring at him, flabbergasted. "You're developing a consciousness now?! With what she's doing and what she's done?"

Sunny crossed his forelegs. "And you're any better?" he asked. "You threatened to destroy everything when you got out of the moon!" He paused. "Or was it untethered...? Still! You even wanted to make the night eternal and kill us all through that!"

Moon chuckled. "Oh, you're exaggerating now." She loomed over the young unicorn. "If you managed to find a solution, I'm willing to hear it." She leaned in next to his face, displaying her sharp fangs. "But there are no Elements of Harmony this time around."

"What are those?"

Moon chuckled. "Don't worry about it. They've long since dissolved."

Comments

[Thranx]

Moon chuckled. "Don't worry about it. They've long since dissolved."

Huh, that hasn't crossed my mind at all. What actually happened to them?

[The Psychopath]

11793490
All Nightmare Moon knows is that she can't sense them.

[Jmunoz13]

Moon chuckled. "Don't worry about it. They've long since dissolved."

Or have they?

[SlyBesker]

Looking forward to next chapters!
I noticed there's 202 likes and only 1 dislike, good job!

[Crescent_Luna01]

I have not read this story. I don't have plans to read this story. I don't know if it's good or bad, but basing my opinion off of only:

"What are those?"

I can say this story is 10/10, looking forward to more

[ObsPerson]

11793490
Sombra shenanigans most likely. I mean, he did destroy the tree of harmony in Season 9.

[tsaukpaetra]

Sunny is the key...