In Your Dreams: Luna's Farewell
Sunlight glistened through the stained-glass window, streaking the floor in shades of pink. Luna stared up at the image stretched across the glass, a familiar memory of a time long ago, 1,000 years to be exact. It showed an Empire made of crystals, standing proudly in Equestria, but darkness lurked behind it. Shadowed eyes watched, and in the next pane, the Empire began to vanish while two alicorns stared hopelessly and helplessly upon an icy land.
Luna placed a hoof gently against the glass, remembering all too well that horrible day. It was when hundreds of lives had ceased to exist, including one that she had held so dear to her heart. It was the day that she’d first allowed the Nightmist to creep into her soul and begin to taint it with hate and power lust. She’d thought those days were gone, and that nothing could restore the Empire, but news that morning had proven her wrong.
She glanced sideways to a beautiful gem nestled beside Celestia’s throne. It bore glorious glimmers of pink and shades of purple. Any pony would look upon it with awe, but Luna just stared at it sadly, recalling how its creation had come about. There was no longer any life left within the crystal, but she knew memories still remained within; memories of those long dead, as well as those that belonged to her and her sister.
Clop, clop, clop.
Luna looked over her shoulder and watched as Celestia approached, her green, blue, pink, and purple mane swaying magically around her face. A golden crown gleamed upon her lovely brow, her head held high as always. Still, there was sadness in her eyes as she too looked at the crystal and then upon the stained-glass window.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to go as well?” Luna asked quietly in the hush that followed her sister’s entrance.
“Yes, Princess Cadence and Shining Armor are already there,” Celestia replied and glanced at the glass. “The others will be joining them soon.”
Luna swallowed hard and closed her eyes. She knew why Celestia was sending the younger ponies, but she ached to join them. They couldn’t possibly know the evil that awaited them, or the lost soul that still lingered somewhere out in the arctic, trapped in shadow. “The Empire’s magic is powerful. It cannot fall again, my sister.”
“She will succeed at her task,” Celestia said firmly and brushed a wing along Luna’s back affectionately. “And when she does, we’ll know that she is that much closer to being ready.”
I’m so sure, Luna thought with a bitter sigh. Twilight Sparkle always seemed to be able to solve the problems that Luna and Celestia could not. Did she resent the purple alicorn? No, but she was a little jealous that she couldn’t be as useful to Tia. Even worse, she mourned that she could not go on this mission, for if Twilight and her friends succeeded, then that meant Luna might never be able to say goodbye to—
“Ah hem!”
Luna and Celestia turned as one as Twilight appeared at the doorway, looking meek but hopeful as always. She bore two large saddle bags, spilling with quills, parchment, and books, which did not come as a surprise to Luna. The unicorn was rather studious and always so eager to impress Celestia.
I remember a day when I was not so different, Luna mused.
Tia tried to reassure her again, but Luna couldn’t help but send her sister a disconcerted look. Celestia might have faith in Twilight, but two alicorns had failed in their mission to protect the Empire. Could a filly hope to succeed where they had not?
Luna sighed to herself and walked past Twilight who seemed to shrink away from her look. On another day, Luna might have apologized and assured Twilight that her misgivings were not with the unicorn, but where Twilight was going…she’d have to learn to face more than a little bitter look.
Luna left the room and stood outside while her sister revealed to Twilight the importance of her mission.
How can she possibly know just how important it is? Luna wondered as she began to pace. Her hoof shoes clanked against the floor, echoing the tempo of her nervous heart. Tia and I did everything to help save them from King Sombra, and still we lost. Their lives were forfeit, and we send her to do what we should have done years ago? We could have saved them. We should have saved them, and Sombra…
Luna’s throat tightened. She paused in her pacing and bowed her head, willing her heart to stop aching.
A thousand years have passed, and still the pain has not lessened. Even on the moon I remembered and mourned for you. The existence of the Nightmist made you seem still so alive to me, and if an evil haunts the Empire now, then it must be you, or what you became.
Luna swallowed a lump and reached up to touch her crown. She could almost feel the weak, green magic that had surrounded her tiara and placed it on her head for her. The hallway of the castle vanished for a moment, and Luna imagined herself sitting in a grassy field with a black unicorn standing proudly in front of her. His horn glowed with green magic, his eyes bright in the moonlight that shimmered above them
“Princess Luna?”
Luna jumped as a guard broke her concentration. She looked at the golden-clad stallion and blinked several times. “Yes?”
“Oh, nothing, my lady. I was concerned. You were standing there for some time and—”
“Never mind,” Luna said quietly, kindly. “I was just lost in thought. On your way, soldier.”
The stallion bowed and wandered away.
Luna looked longingly back to the floor and sighed.
Why? Why do I still miss you? Could it be that I still hope that you might come back to me? I fought the Nightmist and won, so why can’t you?
The difference was, Luna had had Tia, Twilight, and the Elements of Harmony to bring her back. What did Sombra have?
There was a noise, and Luna watched Twilight step from the throne room, Celestia at her side. Luna turned to face her, but her stomach twisted with nerves as well as anger. Twilight would leave with her friends to defend the Empire, but what would that mean? Would she destroy Sombra with the Elements? Would the Empire actually survive, or would she fail as well?
Twilight bowed her head meekly, and Luna stepped past her to join Tia.
I should go. I want to go. I want to help them and to help Sombra. Perhaps I can pull him back.
But it was not to be.
In those few moments of pondering, Celestia gave her final orders, and Twilight was left to begin her journey. The doors slammed loudly before Luna’s face. She stared at the golden door handles, her stomach twisting more and more until she thought she might throw up.
“Luna?” Celestia asked quietly.
“Why?” Luna murmured and turned to face Celestia. “Why will you not let me go?”
“Oh, Luna.” Tia sighed and leaned down to nuzzle her cheek. “It is Twilight’s turn to show her merit. You know why she has to go.”
“Don’t treat me like a child,” Luna said, jerking her face away from her sister’s. “I should go with her. Maybe there’s something I can do to free Sombra and restore peace to the Empire.”
The tenderness left Celestia’s face. She stood proudly before her, her pink eyes glinting with warning. “That’s precisely why I cannot allow you to go, Luna. We can’t put the Empire’s safety at risk again, especially not because of our feelings.”
“Oh,” Luna scoffed bitterly. “But you can tell a filly that she alone must be the one to help Princess Cadence free the Empire? You realize she will take that to heart and not allow anyone to help her for fear that she might fail your test, yes?”
Celestia sighed. “She is wiser than that. She won’t put the Empire at risk.”
“Like I did?” Luna asked angrily. She couldn’t help it. Even after 1,000 years she felt like Celestia still blamed her for the Empire’s collapse.
Celestia sighed. “I didn’t mean it like that, Luna, and you know it. Twilight will be able to do what neither of us could. We both were corrupted. We were both lost, and we nearly killed one another. I know you attempted to destroy Sombra, but I don’t…I don’t want you to suffer like that again, little sister.”
Luna could hear the passion in her sister’s voice, and for a moment, Luna’s anger fled. No, Celestia wouldn’t want her to mourn. Still, there was something else that bothered her. She considered her wording and approached her sister on quiet steps. “Do you fear that the Nightmist still exists in Sombra, and that it may try to choose me as a host again?”
Celestia’s silence was answer enough.
Luna didn’t know whether to be angry or understanding of her sister’s lack of faith. She’d fought off Nightmare Moon once before. Luna now recognized the warning signs of the darkness that had swept through her, so why could Tia not trust her to keep herself safe? Then again, she’d succumbed to it once, and Luna never wanted to be trapped like that ever again.
Reluctantly, she turned away and stared upon the pink gem again. “I miss him…all of them, Tia. I don’t want to fail them again.”
Celestia came up quietly to her side and draped a wing over her back. “Stay with me, and we won’t.”
~*~
The aura that shone outside of the castle window, splashing the sky with rainbow colors, was beautiful. Luna stopped to admire it as the light of peace from the Crystal Empire, specifically the heart, stretched across all of Equestria. Celestia paused at her side, and for a brief moment, Luna smiled and reached over to brush her horn against her sister’s. They both knew what that light meant.
The Empire was free.
Somehow, Twilight and her friends had succeeded, and that meant that the Empire was free of its spell. The inhabitants could go about their days, remembering the past and carrying on their lives as if they hadn’t been locked away for 1,000 years. Equestria had not failed them this time, and for this, Luna was very glad.
“I wonder if Ambersong will remember us,” Celestia said with a gentle smile upon her face.
Luna recalled the bard that had been one of Sombra’s closest friends. He’d stood up to Sombra in the end, and had helped Luna and Celestia rescue the Empire…before the curse had been ignited. He’d been one of the unfortunate ponies that had found himself trapped inside the Empire. She had no doubt that he would remember if time had passed so slowly. “I imagine he would, and it would be very good to see him.” Her face fell. “But…we will have to explain to him that Blue Belle did not share that same fate.”
Like Ambersong, Blue Belle, a lovely little pegasus, had been Sombra’s friend. Unlike the other Crystal ponies, she had not been trapped inside the Empire upon its disappearance. Instead, she had fled to Cloudsdale and lived out her life, raising a family she could be proud to call her own. Ambersong would be aggrieved to know she’d passed, but at least she’d had a happy life.
Or so Celestia had told Luna.
Luna closed her eyes and swallowed deeply as she realized the implication of the aura. The Empire was safe, which meant that Sombra had been defeated.
Luna had felt nothing, not even an inkling of his death. She’d expected to feel at least some pain, but either Twilight hadn’t destroyed him (which was doubtful what with the nature of the curse), or he’d been too far gone that he’d no longer held her heart.
In the end, he was still dead.
The renewed pain of his loss cut her to the quick, and she staggered a step to the left.
Tia turned sharply. “Luna?”
“I…need some time to be alone,” Luna said quietly and offered a small smile. “It will take some time for Twilight and her friends to return. We…we must make preparations…to celebrate.”
“Luna—”
“I’m fine,” Luna said, but she knew she wasn’t. How could she be when the one unicorn she had loved was no longer alive? Somehow, she’d held hope for his survival, but no, it was not to be, and she would have to live with that for the rest of her life.
Luna walked silently up to her tower and shut the bedroom door quietly behind her. She sought her bed, thinking to shed her tears within her pillows, but something told her that it was the worst thing she could do. Instead, she went to the balcony and sat down to watch the colorful light dance merrily across Equestria.
It was beautiful…simple breathtaking. Sombra would have loved to have seen it. He would have wanted to try to use his magic to play with it, or draw it into him so he could do something sweet like make crystals glow for her.
“What could have been…” Luna murmured to herself and placed a hoof along her belly.
The hours passed as she basked in the aura. The sun faded into the west, and Luna brought the glorious moon into the night sky. With each nod of her head, she sent a burst of stars flying into the sky. More lights dotted her navy canvas than usual, some even taking on the form of a unicorn in full run. Another new constellation showed an image of an alicorn flying across the night sky.
Luna smiled, remembering fondly how she’d walked in Sombra’s dreams one night and urged him to grow wings.
“Will you fly with me?” she’d asked pleadingly.
He’d stared at her in confusion. “Fly?” he’d asked incredulously. “Luna, how am I to do that if I have no wings?”
“This is your dream, Sombra. You can make your dream what you wish it to be. Come, catch me!”
She’d flown from his side, and he’d transformed himself in an alicorn and danced with her in the night sky. Luna remembered diving together, twisting and turning as they neared the grassy ground. The feel of the wind…the kiss they had shared.
A sob welled up in her throat and she pressed her hooves to her blue face.
Stop it. STOP IT! She pleaded with her memories. Taunt me no more!
But she could still hear their laughter and feel his touch.
Luna scrubbed furious tears from her eyes and blinked through her blurry vision. Somehow she had to free herself from the memories. Dream walk…yes, she could dream walk and rid others of their nightmares. Maybe then her heart would settle.
Luna sucked in a breath and closed her eyes, allowing her ethereal form to float from her body. It detached itself from her flesh like a veil and fluttered into the sky. Luna twisted and turned and looked across Equestria, searching for those with the worst nightmares. It was this job that allowed her to feel wanted and loved by all of Equestria. While the ponies might still not respect her night, at least they welcomed her into their minds and souls.
She flew to the dreams of fillies and colts, chasing away monsters and demons that plagued their minds. Mothers and fathers were greeted with the assurance that their babes were safe in their beds. One little filly with an orange pelt and purple mane kept dreaming of the rainbow-maned Rainbow Dash. Luna had soothed her dreams more than once, but she felt that she might soon have to make a true appearance.
The night went on as Luna soothed her children, but as she reached out for another filly, she felt a strange call in the distance. It wasn’t a nightmare, exactly…it was just a feeling that someone still very much needed her help. It came from the Crystal Empire, which should not have surprised Luna in the slightest.
After being locked away for a 1,000 years, of course they would have nightmares.
Luna flew the distance, crossing through the stars and into the Empire in moments rather than hours. But the dreams did not come from within the Empire itself but rather towards the caves behind it.
Luna paused in the sky and eyed the cave warily, wondering who could be lurking out in the once frozen plane. Still, it was her duty to protect the ponies of Equestria, and so she would. With a breath, she flew towards the caves and landed just outside.
Even before she stepped within the cave, she recognized it. This was where Sombra had taken her, to show her the Crystal cave where she had seen so much beauty. Her heart feared going inside, but what could haunt her now? Sombra was gone, as were the rest of the demons that had tried to claim her so long ago.
Luna stepped cautiously within and looked around.
The presence was still there but…different. It felt both alive and not.
For the first time, Luna felt fear while in her ethereal form. “Hello?” she called softly.
Something rustled near her, and Luna spun swiftly. Her horn ignited with blue light and danced across the crystals lining the walls. An azure glow filled the room and rested upon a shadowy figure nestled in a corner, far away from the crystals.
Luna frowned and took a step forward. “Come into the light,” she ordered.
The figure froze in shock. “L-Luna?” a timid voice asked.
Luna gaped, one hoof in the air.
From the shadows stepped forth a dark stallion with a black mane, a deformed horn, and a cutie mark in the shape of a horn with stars dancing around it. He blinked green eyes at her and stared blankly at her. “Luna…”
“Sombra…” Luna shook her head in denial and staggered back. “No…no it’s not possible. How are you…you were destroyed!”
But there he stood before her, as alive as she had ever seen him!
Sombra stared down at himself and shook his head. Tears welled up in his eyes and he laughed, a deep, hearty laugh that Luna remembered too well. “I…I don’t know, but I’m alive. Luna…Luna, I’m alive!”
Luna wept and laughed at the same time. She dashed towards him and reached out to take him into his arms. Sombra reached for her…and Luna fell right through him. She staggered and rolled, bumping into one of the crystals behind him. Sombra likewise stumbled and turned in alarm.
“What happened?” he asked, his voice laced with fear.
“I…I don’t know,” Luna replied and slowly rolled back to her hooves. She stared at them briefly then frowned. “I’m in my ethereal form…sometimes I can’t touch other ponies, but I…” her voice fell away as she stared at him.
No…not at him.
Through him.
“S-Sombra,” she whimpered.
In the light of her horn, she realized he was as incorporeal as she was. There were hundreds of crystals behind him, and several shown through his dark pelt, which she had not noticed before. Sombra couldn’t dream walk as she could, and she could tell that she was not within his mind. In fact, she could scarcely feel his mind at all. What she could feel was like an echo of something that had once been but no longer existed.
A ghost.
Sombra stared down at himself and danced back a few steps. “What…what’s wrong with me?” he asked and nearly bumped into a crystal, except his flank passed right through it instead.
Luna’s heart plummeted. “No…,” she whispered. “This can’t be. You’re here. You’re alive!”
“Am I?” Sombra whimpered. He stared at his shadowy body and hung his head. “Luna…I don’t think—”
“Don’t say it.”
“I…don’t think I survived.”
Luna clenched her teeth painfully and stared at his mournful face. She knew he spoke the truth, but oh how she didn’t want to believe it. What cruel fate had put them together again only to take him away from her once more? It wasn’t fair…It wasn’t fair! “How are you here, then?” she wept as the grief consumed her. “Why? Why are you here? Why do you taunt me?”
“Luna…” Sombra licked his muzzle and took a little step forward. “I think…I think I’m being given a chance to say goodbye. I didn’t get that before. The Nightmist…Oh Luna, I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t…” Luna shook her head and started to pace the room. When she came too close to a crystal, she felt its weight on her flank, reminding her she was both very much awake and alive. This was no dream. “No, no, I just got you back. You can’t say goodbye to me. We had so much time stolen from us. It’s not fair!”
She expected Sombra to share in her rage but he didn’t. No, instead, all she heard was a gentle laugh.
“Luna, what I did was not fair,” Sombra replied in a soothing voice. “What I became, and what I did to those ponies, I don’t think even if I had survived, I could ever forgive myself for that. You know that was not me. Better that I pass on and not be a constant memory of the nightmare that I created.”
“How can you say that?” Luna asked with a sob. “You weren’t a nightmare. You were a good unicorn, and I loved you.”
“I loved you too, and I still do.”
This couldn’t be happening again. Luna had mourned and tried to let him go, and yet here he was before her, telling her he wished to be dead. It wasn’t fair, and she hated it, but what was the point of denying it and wasting their last moments together mourning the past?
He can be taken from me at any moment. I have to make this worth …something.
Luna brushed the tears from her eyes and walked towards him slowly. “I missed you so much. Even when I was Nightmare Moon and trapped high above the earth, I thought of you.”
Sombra went to her side and swallowed hard. “And for the many years I was trapped as a shadow within that dark hole, you were my light. I couldn’t see your moon in my prison, but imagined it, and I always thought it was you smiling down upon me, helping me endure my torment.”
More tears stung her eyes. How she wished she could reach out and touch him, if only for one last moment. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you.”
“And I’m sorry that I hurt you and your sister so dearly. If I could go back and change the past…”
“I know,” Luna replied and pressed her head to where she imagined his neck would be. “I would too. I would have asked you to be mine, to rule at my side had the Nightmist never come.” They could have been a family, maybe even had a filly together.
Sombra chuckled quietly and pressed his hoof to the ground near hers. “And I would have been proud to be yours. I carry you in my heart, always, Luna. But…” he sniffed and lifted his head until their eyes met, his green and her blue. “You have to learn to let me go. You can’t go on like this.”
Luna jerked back as if stricken. “No…Sombra, you were my first love.”
“But I shouldn’t be your last.” Sombra reached out and touched her cheek, though she could not feel it. Tears trickled down his face. “The Nightmist stole much from us, and we can’t get that time back. My time on this earth is ending, but Luna, you still shine so brightly. Your moon, and your soul still grace the night. It’s time for you to move on and to find happiness. Too long you have lingered in the dark, blaming yourself for what the Nightmist did to us both. Live, my Luna. Live and be happy, because then I can die happily, knowing I’ve left you in a better place.”
“Sombra,” Luna choked back a sob and tucked her head beneath his chin. Was it her imagination or did she feel a trickle of water strike her mane? “I don’t want to let you go. I wish I could have saved you so that we could both be happy together.” She sniffled.
“I wish the same,” Sombra replied.
They stood together for a time, imagining that they held each other within that beautiful crystal cave. Luna opened her blurry eyes and stared at their reflection in the mirrored surface. They looked so different now. They were not nearly as innocent as they had once been, and that made her heart hurt even worse. Time had been stolen, and they would never get it back. All they had was this final moment.
“Luna,” Sombra murmured to her.
“Yes?”
He pulled his head back and smiled. “Will you fly with me?”
The simple question brought both joy and sorrow, but Luna did not waste time on either. She nodded and waved her horn. Magic wrapped around both of their spirits and brought them out into the night sky where they could dance in the stars. Sombra shut his eyes, and two ebony wings sprouted from his back.
Apparently even in spirit form, he could call forth the wings. It seemed fitting since he was to be an angel of the night and of Equestria.
Sombra flapped his wings and reached out a hoof to her. “Catch me,” he teased and flew away.
Luna laughed and joined him, her azure wings pumping and carrying her across the land. They flew together, twisting and turning around one another, diving towards the ground or lakes. The moon provided a perfect spotlight, illuminating their graceful dance and providing a beautiful backdrop for this, their last moment together.
Luna fell backwards and descended towards the earth, a smile lighting on her muzzle. Sombra dove after her instantly and they fell parallel to the ground, twirling. Moments before they could hit, Sombra reached out and pulled her into a warm, loving kiss.
This time, Luna felt his lips graze hers and his hooves pull her close. Euphoria exploded within her, and she clung to him, not caring how it was possible that she could kiss a ghost. What did it matter? They were together once more, and nothing could steal this moment from them.
The world fell away, and Luna allowed all of the wonderful memories she shared with Sombra flow through her mind. She saw his smile, heard his laugh, and felt his touch. She saw him defend her and love her. Every memory that the Nightmist had corrupted was wiped clean from her mind, giving her and Sombra blissful peace.
“Sombra…”
“My Luna…”
The ground rose up to greet them, but instead of crashing into them, a bed of flowers and grass reached up to embrace them. They fell into it and rolled into one another, Sombra’s wings embracing her. Luna snuggled up against him and tucked her head beneath his chin once more, careful not to poke him with her horn. She touched her hoof to his heart, but of course, there was no beat, so she imagined it instead.
“I wish we could stay like this forever,” Luna murmured and buried her face into his chest.
“Me too,” Sombra told her.
They let the silence settle over them and Luna wondered, what would have happened if Sombra had lived. Would they have fillies and colts? Would he live with her in the castle, and would Celestia have allowed him to become an alicorn? So many possibilities had awaited them, and yet none would come to fruition.
The sorrow came again, but Luna did her best to brush it aside and focus on Sombra as he was now. She tucked herself against him even more. “What will I ever do without you?” she asked.
“Live,” Sombra said simply, his hoof grazing her cheek. “Live and be happy, because you deserve it, Princess of the Night.”
“And you don’t?”
“Hm…” Sombra sighed. “Perhaps in another life and another time, but now…no, Luna. It’s my time to sleep.”
Luna sucked in a breath and clutched him tightly. She hated how he said the words, as if he was so ready to just give up life, as well as their life together. Why couldn’t he fight? But then she realized how she had felt after she’d returned as Nightmare Moon. She’d caused much damage, but Sombra had destroyed so many lives compared to her. Sleep…death would be a sweeter friend to him than life, no matter how painful it was to her.
Luna reached out and stroked his chest again, only to have her hoof slip through. She jerked up in surprise, and Sombra stared down at her hoof then up to her face. His own had started to fade more, and Luna panicked. “No…Not yet! Not yet!” she screamed and reached for him, but there was no way that she could keep him on this earthly plane if it was his time.
Sombra reached up as if to push her hooves gently back. “Luna,” he said, his voice echoing in the night. “Live,” he repeated. “And always remember that I love you.” He leaned forward and whispered into her ear, “and that I will always be in your dreams.”
“Sombra!” Luna wept, wishing for just one final kiss, but when she opened her tear-filled eyes, Sombra was gone.
The emptiness was like a bolt of lightning to her stomach. Luna fell back with a sob and curled up on the grass, weeping out every emotion she held for Sombra. In a way, it had been cruel to give him back to her so briefly, and yet, she’d needed that. She’d needed to be able to say goodbye to him otherwise she never would have had closure.
Closure…that was what she had needed from him, and somepony had allowed it to happen. Sombra had asked her to live, and while her heart was heavy, she knew that she would do just that. Equestria needed her, as did Tia. She could not let her regret, or her grief, steal her away, even though it would have been so much easier to let herself join Sombra in sleep. Life…life would help her heal. Tia and her new friends would help as well.
And so would the memories of the stallion she’d once loved.
Hours passed as Luna let her tears flow away and the peace return inside of her. The moon passed across the sky and settled its silvery sheen across her wings. She lifted her eyes and stared at the lightening sky, knowing Tia would want to make the sun rise soon. Reluctantly, and with a heavy heart, Luna returned to her corporal body and staggered.
For the briefest moment, she still felt Sombra’s lingering kiss upon her muzzle.
Luna lowered the moon slowly and let it sleep. Before Tia could greet her warmly, Luna fled to her room and settled in her bed. At least in her dreams, she could escape and be at peace. She curled up beneath the blankets to rest and closed her eyes.
As the real world slipped away and her dreams entered, she saw a familiar stallion and heard his gentle voice.
“I said you would see me in your dreams.”