> Fire vs. Love: A Battle for Supremacy
>  by UnweptSchlipps
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> A Challenge
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Princess Cadence wandered through the halls of Canterlot Castle, giving a kind smile to every guard she passed. Although a few months had passed since the wedding incident, a few guards couldn’t help but watch her suspiciously. But nonetheless, she just greeted them with a quirky smile, which immediately proceeded to melt their hearts.

She had been called up by Auntie Tia herself, something that had rarely happened ever since she was a filly. Frankly, she was in the middle of decorating her and Shining’s new home when the guards came with the message. But the loving niece held no animosity for her beloved aunt, although she couldn’t help but ponder why Celestia had called her in. “No matter,” the pink alicorn said to herself. “If Auntie Tia needs me, it must be important.”

She made her way to Celestia’s private chamber. The stallions leading her parted out of the way, ushering the newly-wed into the room. Cadence saw her aunt sitting by the hearth, sipping her tea. Usually, Auntie Tia would greet her niece with a joyous smile, but to Cadence’s surprise, the regal ruler just stared into the fire with indifference.

The pink pony asked quietly, “You called for me, Auntie Tia?”

“Yes Mi Amore Cadenza,” Celestia answered, still looking into the fire. The ruler’s voice was harsh and sour, as though her niece was but an intruder. “I know you must be busy with married life-.”

“Um, you can just call me Cadence, auntie,” the younger princess replied happily.  “And actually, it hasn’t been all that busy-.”

“Don’t interrupt!” The stern command caused Cadence to immediately sit down, her eyebrows raised in surprise.

Celestia began to stir something into her tea, while continuing, “I suppose you’re wondering why I called you in. You see, it’s about Chrysalis-.”

“Is that hag of a queen back in Canterlot?” Cadence interrupted, quickly standing back up, her face locked with a vicious snarl. “Because I will gladly blast her out again-.”

With this, the ruler turned towards her niece, annoyed. Cadence saw her glare burn with intensity of the fire behind her, so she sat back down, not sure what to expect. Seeing that the younger alicorn was silenced, Celestia said, “Actually, Cadenza, that’s the thing. You somehow managed to defeat her.”

“Yes I did!” Cadence exclaimed, beaming with pride.

“You defeated her. And I didn’t.”

“That is the truth, yes. I freed you from that cocoon as well,” Cadence replied, giving a nod.

“The Changeling that you defeated, managed to defeat me.”

“Yes…why are you repeating the same thing over and over?” the oblivious alicorn asked.

Princess Celestia let out a sigh, rubbing her temple in frustration. She looked back to see her niece smiling back, almost glowing with unconditional love. It almost made her want to retch.

But the divine ruler, as though she was talking to a young filly, began to explain, “Because, my dearest niece, I am trying to get my point across. You see, Chrysalis somehow managed to defeat me, which makes her stronger than me. And then you, with your little love magic-whatever thing, defeated her. That makes you more powerful than her. Which, by the transitive property…” Celetia raised an accusing hoof and finished, “makes you stronger than me.”

The other princess couldn’t help but chuckle at this notion, and pointed out, “But that’s just silly Auntie. Technically it was Shining Armor and my abilities that defeated her, you know.”

But to Celestia, this was no laughing matter. Placing her tea on the side table, she stood up to address her little niece face-to-face. She replied, “Yes, yes, and I understand that. But in the eyes of my subjects, that’s not what they saw. They saw the power of love, which is you, defeat a villain so strong not even Princess Celestia could defeat her. My subjects actually doubt my power. And frankly, I cannot let that happen.” She left those last words to hang sinisterly in the air, letting them sink in.

Cadence, who now feeling a bit uncomfortable from her aunt’s smothering gaze, said quietly, “Umm…I don’t like where this is going Auntie Tia.”

But the ruler continued, “And so, I have arranged a little…public show. A…competition you could say. A Magical Duel, to see who the best is.”

“You’re joking,” Princess Cadence said in disbelief.

“No Cadenza, I am absolutely serious,” Celestia answering, an evil smile beginning to form on her face. “The only way for us to settle this dispute is to…show the public who really is more powerful.”

“But Celestia-.”

“Princess Celestia,” the sun goddess corrected.

“Princess Celestia,” the pink alicorn uttered. She began to move towards the exit, uncertainty clearly printed across her face. She began to explain worriedly, “You do realize all that power came from my love for Shining Armor, right? By myself…I mean…you’ve so much more power and experience…you’re obviously going to destroy me!”

Then, almost slipping out the door, she said, “I’m sorry Auntie, but I think I’ll have to pass.”

The pink alicorn slipped away, trying to make some distance from her aunt. But as the door began to shut, Celestia called out, “Oh, so you’re…a coward then?”

The ruler then turned away, counting down in her head. And sure enough, the sound of an opening door creaked once again, and Cadence’s head popping into view. “Excuse me?” the royal asked, her eyes squinted accusingly.

“Oh nothing…scared little filly…”

“Hmph. So you’re resorting to name calling now? I would’ve expected more from you Auntie Tia.”

“Oh well, I suppose you don’t believe the power of love cannot vanquish all. I guess your love for Shining Armor, and that marriage…isn’t real after all.” This final statement had the desired effect, and the niece came rushing into the room, her face now red.

With her marriage slandered, the pink alicorn got into her aunt’s face and said, “I will let you make fun of me and call me names Celestia. But when you dare question my love…IT. IS. ON!”

“So it’s settled then. Tomorrow, bright and early in the morning. Good luck…Cadenza,” Princess Celestia uttered evilly.

“I will bury you Auntie. I guarantee it.” And with that, the newly-wed princess stormed out of the room, her mind spinning with all the things she would do to her aunt.

Celestia gave an evil laugh and returned to her seat by the hearth, sipping her tea gently. She said sinisterly, “That poor young mare. This will be all too easy.”

xxx

Meanwhile, just outside the hall, a starry-maned ruler happened to be strolling through when a certain pink alicorn barged out of a door looking mightily peeved. “Art thou okay, dearest niece?” Luna said concernedly. 

Without looking back, Cadence answered, “Celestia thinks she can just make fun of my marriage like that huh? She thinks she can best me? Well she’s got another thing coming…”

Luna watched her niece gallop down the hall before disappearing past a corner and out of sight. Her curiosity piqued, the night princess made her way to Celestia’s room, placing her ear up next to the door. She could hear Celestia’s muffled voice utter, “That poor young mare. This will be all too easy.”

Hearing this, a sinister smile began to spread on Luna’s lips, unknowingly matching that of her sister inside. All those years on the moon came to mind, and she whispered wickedly, “Oh really, sister? We shalt see about that…”

> Pre-Game Jitters
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Elements of Harmony meandered through the crowded streets of Canterlot, trying to get to the castle courtyard. The place was practically swarming with ponies who had arrived to watch the spectacle that was about to take place. Rainbow Dash was certainly excited, trying to get a view from up above.

A rather confused Rarity said over the loud crowd, “Remind me again, why are we here?”

“Didn’t you hear the news?” Dash cried. “There’s gonna be a Magical Duel! It’s gonna be epic!”

“An’…what exactly is a Magical Duel?” Applejack inquired, a little frustrated from the shoving crowd.

Twilight Sparkle emerged from the horde, barely escaping being crushed by two huge stallions; flanks. “I can answer that one,” she said, regaining her breath. “We actually used to play this when we were little foals…well okay, everyone else played while I watched…but umm…

“Anyway, a Magical Duel, or Divina Duellum as it was called back then, is a competition played by two unicorns. See those targets up in the sky?” The unicorn pointed up at ten tiny dots, five red and five blue, each on opposite sides of the courtyard.

“The rules are fairly simple. The goal is to break your opponent’s targets with whatever spell you can conjure. Fire, ice, teleportation, even your own bare hooves if you can. The only other rules are that you can’t physically hurt the other opponent and no…well…killing spells. Other than that, you can use any form of magic on both the targets and the opponent themselves. And the game ends when one player forfeits or when all the targets are destroyed.” Twilight grinned, glad to be of service. But then she realized her friends paid absolutely no attention, instead arguing with some ponies that had shoved them out of the way. 

Sighing, the unicorn glanced back up at the floating targets when she realized something was amiss. “Rainbow Dash?” she called, getting the pegasus’ attention. “When we played, the targets were usually attached to the ground. How can anypony reach those targets when they’re so high up? Who exactly is playing?”

The rainbow flier gave a all-knowing scoff and replied, “That’s the reason why there’s so many ponies here Twi’, duh! It’s Princess Celestia versus Princess Cadence!”

Rainbow Dash had barely finished her sentence when a sudden flash blinded her. When she opened her eyes again, her lavender friend was gone. Twilight Sparkle had teleported quickly, her rainbow friend unable to see her eyes widened from fear.

Xxxx

“Oh…I don’t know about this Shining. I’m starting to get the pre-game jitters,” the pink alicorn said nervously. She paced the throne room with her husband by her side, much like their wedding day. Only this time, her veil was replaced with a blue headband; her gown exchanged for a black leather vest.

“It’s been quite some time since I’ve done a Duel. In fact, the last time I fought anypony was back in Magic High School,” she told him, feeling her heart race right out of her chest.

The blue-maned stallion gave a chuckle and replied, “I remember that fight all too well. I’ve got the scars to prove it.” The joke had little effect however, and Cadence continued to paw at the ground worriedly.

Shining Armor smoothed his wife’s mane lovingly, and said, “Listen, I’m just surprised Celestia had the gall to talk about our marriage like that. If the rules allowed it, I’d go in there myself and give her a piece of my mind.”

“I’m just not sure I can even take her. I mean…she does have the whole ‘goddess of the sun’ thing, after all.”

“Don’t you worry about a thing, love. She may be an almighty deity, but you’ve got enough fight in you for one hundred ponies!” Shining remarked, nuzzling his love with his snout. This brought a small smile to the princess’s face, a sight Shining Armor was glad to see.

“You’ll do just fine, Cadence. I know you will,” he comforted. “And remember, if you ever start to doubt yourself, look for me. I'll always be there, cheering you on."

The stallion looked at the large golden clock hanging overhead. With time running short, planted a small kiss on her forehead and whispered, “Good luck dear. I love you.” And with the duel drawing near, the stallion exited the room, leaving his wife to wait alone. Despite her husband’s compassionate words, Cadence couldn’t help but feel just a tad bit anxious.

xxx

Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the castle, Celestia sat idly in her room, sipping a cup of tea. Contrary to her niece, she was not worried at all about the upcoming duel. In anything, she was quite joyous just thinking about the whupping she’d give Cadence. It will all be good fun…she thought.

Suddenly, a bright flash appeared behind her, followed by somepony calling, “Princess Celestia!”

The ruler turned to see her faithful student standing in the middle of a scorched piece of carpet. Choosing to ignore the burnt furnishing, Celestia said calmly, “Oh hello Twilight Sparkle.  I’m surprised you could make it.”

“Princess…with all due respect of course…ARE YOU CRAZY?” Twilight said, frantically waving her hooves about. Celestia watched calmly as her student began to pace about the room muttering to herself (because, frankly, it’s not the first time it’s happened).

Finally, the unicorn addressed her mentor. “You’re challenging Cadence to a Divina Duellum? First of all, she’s your niece, so that in itself is just plain wrong. Second, you do realize that Duels are one of the most dangerous, grueling sports in Equestian history? Even little foals that play it blow up half the neighborhood. Imagine what would happen if two alicorns battled! It would be a catastrophe!” 

Twilight ended her flailing about, and stood there, hyperventilating. “Are you done?” Celestia asked quietly.

Clearing her throat, Twilight answered, “Yes, I believe so.”

“Oh come now, Twilight Sparkle. You know I understand all that,” Celestia assured. “But I’m afraid a duel is the only way to solve the problem at hoof.”

Then, putting on as compassionate a face as she could muster, the ruler said, “But, that being said, I don’t want Cadence to get hurt just as much as you do. But you see, I’m afraid that this battle will go on for so long that somepony is bound to get hurt. The only way to end this before anypony gets badly hurt is to beat Cadence quickly.” Then, trying to pull off a needy tone, she added, “And the only way I can do that…is with a little help.”

Upon hearing this, the studious mare covered her ears and replied, “No, absolutely not. I will not get caught up in your schemes. Nope, nope, I am not listening, I am not listening!” She began to back out of the room while chanting lalalalala.

“But Twilight Sparkle, I thought you were my most faithful student,” Celestia muttered, hiding a smirk.

Twilight wheeled around and said, “I am your most faithful student!”

“Well my most faithful student wouldn’t refuse to help me in my time of need, would she?”

The two locked eyes for a moment, Celestia’s seeming to bore into Twilight’s skull and into her brain. Finally, unable to take the deity’s manipulative glare, the unicorn said defeated, “Y-yes Princess.”

“Good. Now run along, my most faithful student. Give me a minute to suit up.” With that, the unicorn skulked out of the room, completely and utterly depressed.

But back inside, Celestia only gave her insidious smile once more. “Once again, this shall be too easy,” she whispered sinisterly. “Oh, I just realized I hate tea.” Digusted, she threw the cup into the fire, and watched the shattered remains crack, blacken, and burn.
Xxx

Cadence stood at the foot of her starting tower, ready to get the show started. She stared up helplessly at the dark abyss above, taking a deep breath. Somehow she had managed to scrounge up whatever courage she had left, and was ready to begin the treacherous climb up. But before she could, she was stopped by a voice behind her.

“Cadence. Art thou here?”

“Auntie Luna! What are you doing here? I mean, it’s not that I don’t want you here. I just thought you’d… go support your sister,” the newlywed said, rather awkwardly.

“Oh nonsense Cadence. You are my niece too after all. I just wanted to come by and wish thee good luck,” Luna assured. “Oh, and give you this.” The moon princess magically opened a satchel at her side, levitating a small bobble out of the pack. It was a jewel, dark as night and so smooth and round it was almost flawless. A small silver chain looped through a tiny hole carved into the top of the bauble, which Luna held in her hoof.

“Wow, it’s beautiful Luna,” Cadence complemented. “But…err…what is it?”

“Ohhh, it’s just an…old lucky charm I used to wear,” Princess Luna answered innocently. “Now I wish to give it to you. It is called The Moon’s Eye. It’s said to bring the wearer amazing fortune and power.” She levitated the trinket over her niece’s head, making sure it was tucked into her vest and out of sight.

The younger mare gave a loving, gracious smile and said, “Thank you Auntie, it means a lot. Besides…I probably need all the luck I can get.”

“Don’t worry, Cadence. I know you’ll do your best.” The co-ruler took her niece in a warm embrace. What Cadence didn’t see was a small dark stream of magic flowing from Luna’s horn and into the jewel inside her vest. 

For some reason, the hug seemed to make her feel…warmer. Actually, it made her feel absolutely great. All the anxiety just flooded out of her system, leaving a warm confidence in its wake.

“Thanks for that Auntie. I suppose I should get up there now,” the newlywed said, feeling rejuvenated. Then she began her procession up the stairs, towards impending danger.

“I know you'll give Celestia her comeuppance!” Luna called. Then, with a voice so quiet only she could hear, the moon princess whispered evilly, “I’ll make sure of it…”

> Malice at the Palace
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rainbow Dash hovered over the crowd getting the best vantage point she could, not even caring that she was obscuring other ponies’ vision. “Hey, down in front!” a donut vendor yelled angrily.

“Hey buddy! Shut up or I’ll stick one of those éclairs right up your ass!” the pegasus replied with such force that it shut the stallion up. Satisfied, she returned her gaze to the towers.

But before doing so, she noticed a certain purple unicorn making her way through the crowd. “Hey Twilight!” the pegasus called. But the unicorn kept moving through, despite giving a quick worried glance. 

But Dash was not to be ignored. She flapped her way towards her friend until she was hovering right above Twilight’s head. “Yo Twilight! I wondered where you went!”

“Oh…hey Rainbow Dash. How-how are you doing?” Twilight stuttered.

“Hey egghead, you don’t look too good.”

“What? No, no, I feel absolutely great. What would possibly…make you say that?” the unicorn said with an unusually huge grin. Rainbow remained silent however, mostly because she couldn’t stop watching Twilight eye twitch.

“Weeellll, I think I should get going,” Twilight finished with a nervous laugh.

“Where are you going? Aren’t you gonna watch with us?”

“Oh I’m just…going to watch with my-my parents! I’m not going to do anything shady or anything…heh…heh.” Immediately after a bout of nervous laughter, Twilight immediately disappeared in another flash of light, leaving Rainbow hovering over nothing.

“Whatever, her loss,” she uttered as royal fanfare blared overhead. The pegasus looked to see an official-looking pegasus flying high above the courtyard, a microphone attached to his black and white cap.

“Welcome everypony to the duel of the decade, the fight of the century, the battle of the millennium!” the stallion announced over the raucous crowd. “This. Is. The Divina Duellum, MALICE AT THE PALACE!” 

Just the mere mention of this sent the crowd into a frenzied uproar. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie screamed and whooped along with crowd, while Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy continued to watch in hushed suspense.

The pegasus motioned toward the western tower, and began, “For the challenger, we have fleet-winged flier whose magic burns with the intensity of a thousand suns…the Divine Destructor, the Regal Retaliator, our very own, PRINCESS CELESTIA!”

On cue, the princess slowly but confidently made her way out into the open. Despite the rather strenuous conditions before her, Celestia still kept a proper air about her, giving a curt wave or two for the crowd. A sure smile graced her face, showing that she was not at all afraid of anything or anypony.

Then the pegasus pointed towards the eastern tower, everypony’s eyes following his hooves. “And for the defender, we have the graceful alicorn whose powers were able to defeat an entire hive of evil doppelgangers…the Changeling Killer, the Pink Punisher, the Queen of Tough Love…PRINCESS CADENCE!

xxx

She heard her name being called, and Princess Cadence stepped out onto the windy tower in full view of the massive crowd below. She was caught quite off guard from the sheer mass of ponies watching her, and she found it quite hard not be a bit nervous. And normally she was good with heights, but standing up on an unprotected precipice with gusts of wind trying to knock her down can make anypony unnerved.

The referee pegasus motioned the two competitors to come forward, and they obliged. Cadence flapped her way over, battling the harsh wind, while Celestia levitated calmly to meet her. Cadence locked eyes with her aunt, and all the defiance started to rush back. For a few moments, the two stared at each other so intensely, a mental duel already taking place.

“So here are the rules,” the pegasus finally said. “No punching, kicking, bucking, biting, scratching, or gouging. And absolutely no murder or forbidden spells. Other than that, it’s no holds barred. Any other questions?

“Yes,” Cadence uttered. “When do I get to smack her senseless?”

“How cute,” Celestia replied with a smirk. “Well Cadence, I’ll give you one last chance to give up. Surrender now and I won’t have to humiliate you in front of the entire populace.”

But the niece replied, “I’d rather eat my own horn. Then vomit it up so I could eat it again.”

“That’s…disgusting,” the ruler answered, raising her eyebrow. “Unfortunately, you’ll just have to settle with being embarrassed for the rest of your long, LONG life.”

“On the contrary, it will be you who will be embarrassed for your long, long life,” Princess Cadence returned defiantly, flames burning in her eyes.

“Look at you, trying to be brave for your hubby. Almost makes me feel sorry for having to beat you. Well, almost.” The ethereal-maned alicorn began to slowly levitate back toward her targets, saying, “Surely, you don’t think you can actually defeat me.”

“Oh, I know I’ll defeat you,” Cadence replied as she returned to her place. With a final glance, she said, “And DON’T call me Shirley.”

The two alicorns perched on their corresponding towers, waiting for the referee’s signals.

“Ready…”

The pink alicorn set her sights on the red targets spread out behind her enemy, while taking note of the five blue ones behind her own.

“Set…”

The eyes narrowed. The muscles tensed. The heart pounded on. The brain began to calculate the first move…

“DUEL!”

Princess Cadence shot into the air and released a flurry of quick, magical spurts toward the targets. But Celestia proceeded to easily brush them off with a few bursts of her own, leaving her targets completely unscathed. “I hope that you aren’t planning on doing that the whole time,” Celestia said. “Otherwise, this could get boring.”

The ruler’s horn began to glow as magic began to surge through her veins. Bright rays of light began to merge together, as though she was drawing power from the sun’s rays themselves. The light swirled into a large shining ball at tip of the alicorn’s horn. With an evil laugh, Celestia sent the shimmering orb straight towards her niece.

Cadence attempted to dodge out of the way, but unfortunately for her, she came to realize that a thing moving at the speed of light was…well…impossible to dodge. The orb struck her in the chest, sending her spinning out of control. The smell of charred mane filled her nose, and her vision became blurred as the sky and the earth melted together.

By the time the princess regained her balance in the air, it was too late. She watched as her aunt sent a red beam straight through one her targets, causing the floating piece of clay to shatter. 

Celestia readied another red beam for launch when suddenly, a violent gust of wind knocked her off-kilter, sending the magical projectile off into the distance. The ruler looked over to where the gust had originated to see Cadence grinning happily.

“What are you going to do now?” Celestia spat. “Make me fall in love with that tree?”

“Why does everypony think all I do is make ponies fall in love?” Cadence questioned, annoyed. She then sent out another gust of wind, which sent Celestia aback once again. “See? Told ya!” the pink alicorn said with a smirk.

“Oh, don’t get too cocky dear. I make tornados when I sneeze!”

“More like when she farts,” a voice muttered from the crowd below. Applejack whirled around to see none other than Princess Luna standing there, watching the spectacle above.

“Princess! Ah-Ah didn’t know you were gon’ be here!” the cowpony said, attempting to make a quick bow.

“There’s no need for formalities, Applemac, I’m just a spectator like you,” Luna replied, keeping her eyes trained on the sky. 

After mumbling, “Mah name’s…err…nevermind,” Applejack, too, returned to the duel. For now, the two Princesses were going back and forth, trying to hit the other with a magical burst. Celestia was easily slithering around her niece’s shots, not even looking the least bit tired. Cadence, on the other hand, struggled to dodge the rapid flurry of Celestia’s beams. One actually grazed her hindleg, causing it to sting. But the newlywed found the strength to ignore the minor injury, and continued to weave around the divine projectiles.

“Well Mi Amore, I’m surprised. Are you getting tired?” Princess Celestia shouted as she released another rapid-fire beam.

After proceeding to (rather sloppily) dodge them, Cadence answered defiantly, “Are you getting tired…of spewing things out of your butt?”

“Oh, I’m so insulted. I should just go in the corner and cry.”

Cadence gave a small happy giggle, feeling quite successful with her insult. Celestia rolled her eyes at her niece’s nonexistent grasp on sarcasm, and while Cadence was distracted, let off another of her light orbs. The orb hit its mark once again, spinning the pink alicorn out of the way. She collided into one of the towers, her head knocking against the cobblestone. When the dizziness finally left her vision, Cadence looked up at Auntie Tia. And her horror, she saw the sun goddess smiling sinisterly, and only three blue targets floating behind her.

“Oh no, Celestia’s already gotten two targets! Looks like she’s got the upper-hoof!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

But Princess Luna was not at all worried. She calmly whispered, “Not for long,” as her horn began to glow so faintly it was almost invisible. But it was there, and the same invisible force began to surround the jewel tucked safely into Cadence’s vest. Luna could only smile slyly, her newest plan for vengeance about to take place.

And so it has begun! What will happen next? I have absolutely no idea! But remember to click that there thumbs-up button up above and/or leave a comment down below! You will have my undying gratitude, and we all know how valuable that is! Right?

> It's Not Cheating! Really!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“We’re barely ten minutes into the fight, and I‘ve already broken two of your targets. I thought you’d be more of a challenge, Cadenza!” Celestia shouted confidently. She glared over to a far off tower and thought, Perhaps I won’t even need to—wait a second.

The ruler’s eyes lighted on her niece, who now levitating in the air motionless. So still, in fact, that it was almost suspicious. “Cadenza, are you alright?” Celestia said, keeping her horn trained on the floating figure.

Cadence’s head began to slowly rise, revealing a set of eyes renewed with vigor and a mouth smirking in delight. “Actually Auntie,” the alicorn began. “I’m feeling absolutely amazing.” Then she closed her eyes and began to let the magic flow through her body, letting warmth encase her like a blanket. Dark blue and pink tendrils of magic began to swirl around her horn, building up power. Celestia saw this and began to ready a beam of her own. But before she could even react, Cadence let off the blue-pink blast, its course set straight on the divine ruler.

The magic struck with a force Celestia had not experienced since…well…Queen Chrysalis had defeated her. It barreled straight through the ruler, sending her far off course. But the beam kept flying onward, completely obliterating a red target that had obstructed its path.

Cadence watched the target shatter into millions of pieces, then switched over to the winded alicorn whose usually spotless fur had a burn mark where she was stuck. And frankly, the newlywed couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows in surprise. “I don’t know where that came from,” Cadence said, confused. But then with a defiant grin, she shouted, “But there’s plenty more…where that came from!”

She felt the newfound power surge once again, letting off another set of tendrils. And once again, they hit their mark, this time sending Celestia flying upwards. Seeing her aunt fly up so helplessly, it was nothing like Cadence had ever felt before. Perhaps it was the adrenaline or something, but for some reason, she just felt so alive and brimming with energy.

Sensing this as well, Celestia decided now would be a better time than ever to put her plan into action. She gave a quick glance over at the same far-off tower, and inhaled.

Xxx

Pinkie Pie watched as Cadence released her first ethereal blast, the beam shimmering as it flew through the air. “Wow! That’s so pretty!” she exclaimed. Then, as the beam contacted with Princess Celestia, she screaming, “Yeah, now kick her flank!”

Rarity recoiled as some spit from Pinkie’s mouth spattered onto the back of her head. In doing so, she bumped into Princess Luna, whose eyes were still trained intently on the dueling ponies above. At first, the unicorn was utterly terrified that Luna was going to disintegrate her with some alicorn-y magic. But then she noticed the princess's breathing was somewhat strained, more so than it had been a moment ago. Concerned, the fashionista asked, “Are you okay princess? You seem a tad bit tired.”

“Oh, thou shouldn’t worry about me. I am fine,” Luna assured, smiling when she saw another beam hit her sister into the sky. Cadence was absolutely teeming with confidence, and Luna was quite enthralled to see that the jewel was doing its magic.

But then Celestia yelled something; something which the younger sister was unable to catch. Princess Luna scanned the crowd to see their faces befuddled from whatever it was Celestia had shouted. Ponies began to mumble with each other, trying to make sure they weren’t going insane.

The night princess turned to Fluttershy and asked, “What did Celestia shout?”

“I think she said,” the pegasus began. She paused, not exactly sure if what she had heard was correct. But her ears did not lie, so she answered reluctantly, “Lollipop Chainsaw?”

xxx

As the spectators continued to watch below, a certain lavender unicorn stood atop a far tower, away from the suspicious eyes of the guards. Which was good, since she didn’t want anypony to see the absolute guilt slathered all over her face.

She clacked on the cobblestone nervously, watching the battle and hoping that she wouldn’t have to follow through with Celestia’s plan. For the first few minutes, it seemed her prayers would be answered. But then to her dismay, she heard her mentor scream the…admittedly idiotic signal.

“Oh, this is sooo bad,” Twilight uttered. She wasn’t all that sure what she was about to do was…well...legal. But since Celestia was her mentor (and she didn’t want to be banished to the Everfree, or worse, MAGIC KINDERGARTEN), the unicorn had no choice but to start the incantation. She began to whisper the ancient words Celestia had told her, and soon her horn began to glow with dark magic.

Every fiber of her logical being wanted to stop the sinister spell she was about to do. But, somehow, she kept going, even as power began to flow from her horn to Celestia’s. The power siphon spell was doing its job.

Xxx

Meanwhile, with the two duelers, Cadence was ready to let loose another blast that would really get her aunt spinning. “What’s wrong, Auntie?” Cadence taunted. “Didn’t think I’d give you this much trouble, huh?” 

But this time, Cadence was the one who eyed her enemy suspiciously, making her moves with caution. Princess Celestia felt Twilight’s power mingle into hers, and she felt the effects immediately. The spell had done its work better than was expected, and the ruler felt as though her power had been practically doubled.

Now with her body surrounded with red energy, Celestia replied, “Oh, it’s no trouble at all, my dear.” Then, before the pink alicorn knew what hit her, a red beam blasted straight into her face, sending her flying a few meters. Cadence was winded, yes, but there was something else about the attack that made her feel…anxious. The power that Celestia had used…it felt much more sinister than the orbs of light she had conjured before. Whatever it was, Cadence realized, it wasn’t going to be good.

But Cadence wasn’t about to let this deter her from the battle, and the newlywed went up to face her aunt. The two floated in the air; Cadence glowing dark blue, and Celestia glowing bright red. Newfound power surged through both ponies, readying for an all-out attack.

Below, the crowd was completely quiet as they watched the duelers lock eyes. They could just smell the intensity in the air, mingled in with the scent of cotton candy and body odor. Princess Luna, who was secretly working hard to keep her ally energized, was ready to see her sister get incinerated. And Twilight Sparkle, who was not-so-secretly doing the same thing, watched her mentor with exhausted anticipation.

Celestia uttered, “Now, I am going to MAKE you eat your own horn.”

“It will mighty hard to do that when I shove YOUR horn up that fat flank of yours,” Cadence replied.

The deity scowled and answered angrily, “I eat pieces of shit like you for breakfast.”

But her niece was unfazed, and replied with a cynical chuckle, “You eat shit for breakfast?”

The two lowered their horns, focusing their magic. There was no referee this time to start it, only the two alicorns mentally counting down.

Then, with an explosion as bright as the burning sun, the real duel began.

Oh snap, that's a cuss word! Hope you guys don't mind that. This story has Mild Profanity in case you didn't read that disclaimer. So yeah, stay tuned for more exciting magic battles, and don't forget to leave your thumbs and/or comments!

> Cruel
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was just past noon, and the two alicorns were still going at it with full force. And by the looks of it, it didn’t seem like they were going to go down anytime soon. The three targets on each side were still intact, most of which hadn’t even been scratched. Only one on Cadence’s side was slightly cracked where an ice shard had grazed past.

Below, the crowd was divided. Some were still absorbed in the fight above; others began to get restless. Rarity belonged to the latter group, and she said while stifling a yawn, “As much I as enjoy watching two ponies blast each other senseless, this is getting very boring.”

“Oh calm down, Rarity. You’re just mad ‘cause your team’s losing,” Rainbow Dash replied, taking a bite of some cotton candy she had picked up from nowhere in particular. “Besides, Fluttershy’s enjoying it. Right Flutters?”

“Um, well actually I-.”

“See? She’s enjoying it. You should too.” The blue pegasus swallowed her piece of cotton candy and turned to grab another. But instead of the pink, fluffy deliciousness she was expected, she found Pinkie Pie grinning happily.

“Hey…I’m not eating your mane am I?”

“Oh of course not Dashie! Not this time!”

“Good…wait, what?”

Before they could say anything else, something that sounded like a firecracker went off high above the air. They turned to see a multicolored projectile hit Celestia, exploding into a magnificent explosion of light akin to a firework show. Celestia spun wildly in the air before colliding into a stone spire. The sheer force of the impact made the thin tower crack, crumble, and finally collapse into a pile of rubble, far below in the square. And in all this time, Cadence only managed to destroy one of Celestia’s targets with a quick burst of fire. The pink alicorn was stopped when the sun goddess created a dangerous burst of wind, allowing her to get back on defense. Then the two went at it, just as they were before.

“Oooh, that’s Cadence’s first lead of the fight!” Pinkie Pie commented excitedly.

“And how ‘bout that whole firework thing, huh? So cool!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “Looks like somepony’s getting a hundred bits!” she finished, nudging a pouting Rarity.

“Ah sure wish Twilight coulda seen that one!” Applejack added. “Ah bet she’d definitely enjoy that!”

Xxx

I am definitely NOT enjoying this!, Twilight Sparkle thought frantically. She lay up on her perch curled up in fetal position, moaning like a banshee. She began to roll around in pain, whining. Frankly, the sheer exhaustion was beginning to drive her insane.

From her position she could see Cadence’s firework-like barrage, and the striking colors made her get up in intrigue. Part of her hoped it was Cadence being exploded, not because she didn’t like her, but because she wanted the battle to be over as quick as possible. Unfortunately, the unicorn watched as her mentor was sent barreling into a stone spire, sending it crumbling to the ground.

Dismayed, Twilight Sparkle fell back down and began to moan again. Her first thought was, Canterlot’s going to look like an atomic wasteland when this is done. Her second thought was, Dear Celestia, I just want to go home!

But she could hear Princess Celestia’s voice in her mind taunting, MAGIC KINDERGARTEN, and just like that, urgency poured in once again. Twilight dragged her exhausted body up to the ledge and began yet another siphoning spell. Because, after all, draining her already tired body of even more power was exactly what she needed.

Meanwhile, Princess Luna happened to be in a very similar predicament. Although she was not as strained as Twilight, the moon princess could still feel the pangs of exhaustion seeping in. After Rainbow Dash’s “sweating incident”, Luna decided it would be best to get away from the crowd, where it would be easier to concentrate on her plan. As it would happen, mentally infusing powerful spells into the jewel around Cadence’s neck was extremely hard work.

Luna sat in the shade of a tower, far from the distracting horde. She had a good view of Cadence’s firework show, a little trick Luna had helped conjure up. Although, seeing her sister recover from this made her a little suspicious. “Usually when I’d do this to her, she would be unconscious by now. Celestia hath lasted much longer than I had expected,” the princess muttered to herself.

“Pardon me, Your Highness?”

Luna looked over to see one of her Dusk Guards, forgetting that he had accompanied her for “security reasons”. “I said…this match hath lasted much longer than I had expected,” the lunar goddess lied. Satisfied, the guard went back to his duty, letting Luna mull over her suspicions silently.

Xxx

Princess Cadence reeled back to admire her masterpiece. Celestia was struggling, another target was shattered, and she felt as confident as ever. And the sparkly, colorful, dazzling light show was the cherry on top.  

Then the gust of wind came out of nowhere, causing the pink alicorn to get off-kilter. Seeing as though Celestia had regained her defensive position, Cadence figured it was time for another volley of magic.

The two powerful entities conjured up two blade-like beams protruding from their horns. The magic made a low humming noise as the two faced off in their battle positions. Celestia began to wave hers menacingly, the saber making a loud whirr as it sliced through the air.

“Feeling the pressure now, Auntie?” Cadence uttered.

Celestia just chuckled, responding, “Now who’s the one getting cocky?”

The two enemies charged at each other, their horns locked in combat. The competitors matched each other blow for blow, neither managing to land a clean hit. It was a deadly dance of glowing sabers as the two twirled their way across the sky.
The divine ruler remained deep in thought as she swiftly dodged Cadence’s attacks, thinking, Twilight’s magic isn’t enough to sustain me. Looks like I have no choice. When they locked horns once again and sparks began to spray, Celestia uttered, “While it may be true you are ahead. You mustn’t forget one important detail.”

“And what is that, my dearest aunt?” Cadence replied sarcastically.

Then Celestia pushed the younger alicorn away with a point-blank gust of wind. The ruler shouted maniacally, “I AM THE GODDESS OF THE SUN!”

All of a sudden, rays of light bursted from the deity, blinding the crowd and Cadence. Bright red tendrils seemed to extend from the sun itself, seeping into the glowing orb that was Princess Celestia. It continued to whirl around her for another minute, and the temporarily blinded ponies could only hear the whishing of magic. Then the energy culminated into a huge explosion of light, sending Cadence hurtling to the ground. She hit the dirt hard, carving through the earth for a few yards before coming to a halt.

The pink alicorn lay on her back, groaning from pain and spitting out some dirt. But the worst was yet to come. Cadence looked back at her aunt to see her completely surrounded by a cloak of fire and magic, her eyes glowing red. Random thunderclouds began spewing lightning behind her, almost entirely obscuring the blue sky.

And with a voice that made the Royal Canterlot Voice sound like a whimper, Celestia shouted, “I HAVE YOU NOW!”

xxx

“What in the hay jus’ happened?” Applejack cried as she watched the scene unfold.

Also in disbelief, Rainbow Dash replied, “I think she just got 20% crueler.”

> Questo Capitolo, Quando Merda Succede
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The pink alicorn lay in her make-shift dirt bed, cowering at the truly awesome sight of her aunt.  Pointing an accusing hoof, Cadence shouted, “Oh come on! You’re being so unfair!”

The flaming deity gave a sly grin and replied, “Don’t be such a princess, Princess.” Then her horn began to glow, and bright tendrils of fire began to form. Soon, she had a huge flaming ball of evil at her disposal, aimed straight at the alicorn still lying on the ground. The attack was sure to knock her out, if it didn’t disintegrate her first.

Not wanting to be disintegrated (and rightfully so) Cadence quickly cried, “Aspetti! Time-out!”

In the audience, Applejack whispered, “Y’all didn’t tell me Cadence could speak fancy talk.”

“It’s Italian Applejack,” Rarity answered matter-of-factly. “I thought you could recognize a Roma mare. Her name is Mi Amore Cadenza.”

“Whatever. It’s still fancy talk…”

Meanwhile, the shout made Princess Celestia disperse the fireball, yelling, “Oh what now?”

Cadence motioned for the pegasus referee to come over. She complained, “Hey ref! There has to be some rule against this!”

“Ummm…” the stallion began. But he caught a glimpse of the terrifying Princess Celestia, who appeared to be glaring straight into his soul. He gulped and replied quickly, “Nope. Not at all. Play shall resume.” Then he flew back to his post…far, far, far, FAR away from there.

The little interruption wasn’t totally a waste, for it allowed Cadence to get herself back into the air. She still complained, “Questo è così ingiusto! How am I supposed to compete? L'ingiustizia!”

“Ready to admit defeat?” Celestia asked.

The pink alicorn scoffed and shouted angrily, “Never!” 

Celestia had a smile playing on her lips, and she responded by launching a powerful bolt of electricity straight from the sky. Cadence tried to block it with a force field, but alas, her already powerful magic was no match for the sun goddess’s unstoppable power. She fell to the ground, right in the same place she had fallen last time.

“How about now?” Celestia taunted as her niece slowly flew back up.

“Not a chance.” Another zap, another fall, another slow recovery.

“Still no.” Zap!

“Nope.” Zap! 

“….Aspetta un a-.” Zap!

“…Hgucd…lbsingd…ptugd.” Zap!

Upon watching Cadence fall to the ground once again, Celestia giggled with glee. “This is too funny! Get up again, I’m having too much fun!”

“This is getting hard to watch,” Fluttershy mumbled, unable to watch poor Cadence’s hurting.

Rarity, however, had a coy smile on her face directed towards a certain cyan pegasus. “Not so sure of that hundred bits now, are you Rainbow Dash?”

Rainbow Dash shoved her hoof in the unicorn’s mouth while hissing, “Shut up!”

xxx

Meanwhile, in the shade of the watchtower, Luna was doing her best to help Cadence stay alive. But despite the amount of magic she was giving, Celestia was drawing a ridiculous amount of power from the sun. Much more power than Luna and Cadence could draw on their own.

So the moon princess could only watch painfully as her niece was once again zapped by her…rather uncharacteristically cruel sister. “C’mon love, you gotta keep fighting,” a worried voice said behind her.

Luna turned around to see Shining Armor replacing the Dusk Guard she had thought was standing behind her. “Shining Armor, what art thou doing here?”

“I told you I was here to relieve your other guard of duty, Your Majesty. That was about…an hour ago. I’ve been talking to you ever since,” the stallion answered respectfully.

“Yes…of course. I knew that.” Then the princess turned back around so she could watch Cadence get pummeled…again.

“Gosh, the Princess is being so harsh on her,” Shining Armor said, wincing every time Celestia landed a hit on his very special somepony. “This…it’s just not like Celestia to be like this!”

“You’d be surprised,” Luna said bitterly.

“She’s gotta be an imposter or something! A-a Changeling!” the stallion stammered.

But the moon goddess just shook her head and told him, “Tis good to see your loyalty still holds true, Shining Armor. But no other pony is able to harness the sun’s energy like my sister.” She glanced back up at Celestia, seeing the rage burning in her eyes. “I am afraid she’s being controlled by something much more powerful than mere Changelings.”

“And what’s that?” Shining Armor cried, ready to spring into action.

“Jealousy.” She turned back around and added quietly, “And believe me, I know how destructive it can be.”

Then, unable to take it, the loving husband pled, “Please Luna, there must be something you can do to help Cadence! I promise I won’t tell anypony about it.”

The night princess thought, Been there, done that. On the outside, she could only shake her head woefully and answer, “I am afraid there is nothing I can do. When Celestia gets power from the sun, she is almost unbeatable.”

“Then…then…take away the sun!” Shining Armor replied quickly.

“Pardon my manners Shining Armor, but that is a stupid—.” Luna paused, actually stopping to ponder the notion. Her gears in her mind began turning, a plan beginning to formulate. Sure, it was a pretty stupid idea, but it was the only chance they had.

“Canst thou obscure the sky with clouds? Or at least, make it appear to be cloudy?” the princess asked.

The stallion replied, “I-I think if I modify my cloak spell I can.”

“Than do it! Quickly! I’m afraid Princess Cadence won’t last much longer!” Luna said urgently. “And be careful, we cannot let Celestia see what we are doing!”

Without a moment’s hesitation, the Royal Guard Captain began to cast his spell, almost like the one he had used to protect Canterlot. Except this time, instead of a force field surrounding the city, it was the illusion of storm clouds. And due to Celestia’s use of lightning storms on Cadence, the ruse aroused no suspicion. For now at least.

At the same time, Luna began her own magic. Just hold on Cadence. Just a little while longer…

Behind the veil, the sun began to set.

Xxx

“Ah don’t understand!” Applejack cried, disturbed by the beating Cadence was enduring. “Princess Cadence only has one target left to Celestia’s two! Why doesn’t she just end this?”

Rainbow Dash, who by now was also concerned, uttered, “I don’t think Princess Celestia wants this to end. I think…she’s not going to stop until Cadence forfeits.”

The pink alicorn fluttered in the air, futilely launching magical beams, only to be dispersed by her opponent. “Per favore ...” Cadence muttered before she was struck by Celestia’s lightning once again.

“Please, niece, just give up. I don’t see why you should embarrass yourself even further!” Celestia suggested. But just as before, Cadence refused to stay down. The newlywed forced her wings to carry her back into the sky. Her face was bruised, her protective vest was ripped to shreds, and her body was littered all over with burn marks. But for some reason, Cadence still chose to face her enemy/beloved family member, no matter how bad the pain was. The vision of her beloved husband enveloped her soul, and his words of encouragement rang in her ears.

“I still don’t understand why you’re doing this to me,” the pink alicorn mumbled meekly, her tired wings trying hard to keep her steady. But, despite her battered body, her eyes still flickered with fierce defiance, stronger than any of the spells Celestia could conjure. With the tiniest hint of a smile hiding in her lips, Cadence uttered, “But if you want to win, you’re going to have to kill me. Because I will NEVER give up.”

Celestia answered, “In any other circumstance, I would commend you for your perseverance Cadenza. But I…I just can’t let you win this.” She reeled herself back, readying another shot of lightning.

“One last thing Auntie…” Cadence said quickly. The pink alicorn’s horn was glowing dimly, and a faint pink heart began to materialize in the air. Celestia paused, feeling this…tingly sensation in her chest. For some reason, she couldn’t bear to hurt the poor, cute, adorable, cuddly little figure hovering before her. If anything…she wanted to hug her. 

Then, in a mesmerizing voice barely above a whisper, Princess Cadence said, “I love you.”

It took only a second for Celestia to process what her niece had just said, another to realize the love spell Cadence had just casted on her, and one more to disperse it. But those three seconds were just enough to catch her off guard. Enough for Cadence to send one last-ditch burst of magic to push the goddess away. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to get her away. And perfect timing too, for unbeknownst to everypony in Canterlot save two, the moon had risen.

First of all, all the Italian was translated using Google, so I apologize to my Italian readers (if I have any) for any grammar mistakes. I just figured it was a good excuse to use Italian. I mean, it just sounds so cool, y'know? And don't try to translate that title...it makes no sense. 
Posting a bit earlier than I usually would because I'll be out of town for the next few days. This chapter took a turn towards the serious side, huh? If there was a Drama tag, I'd probably use it. But anyway, as always, grazie for reading, and don't forget to click that there green thumb up in the corner! Per favore?
> Lunacy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight’s head rested on the cobblestone, watching as the Princess wailed on her former foalsitter. Part of her wanted to feel sorry for Cadence, but the exhaustion had pushed her over the brink and into the mystical land of “I Don’t Give a Buck”. Ever since Celestia had begun absorbing the sun’s energy, the unicorn had slowly been recuperating, and she was glad that she didn’t have to use that blasted siphoning spell. Frankly, she was a bit peeved that Celestia didn’t just use the sun’s energy from the beginning without the whole “Making Twilight Feel Terrible” side effects. But the same principle applied anyway, “I Don’t Give a Buck”.

As minutes passed and Celestia continued to lay a heaping pile of smackdown, Twilight became mildly concerned. Not so much for Cadence’s well-being, but for Celestia’s…different approach to the situation.  The pony had never seen Celestia try to intentionally hurt somepony (although rumors said otherwise). Neither had she really witnessed her mentor harvest so much power from the sun. Those two combined left Twilight feeling very awkward, to say the least.

But Cadence kept coming on back to fight; a trait Twilight had always admired. She couldn’t help but smile every time the pink alicorn tried to retaliate, even though every attempt lasted for about a second. Part of her knew she had to stay loyal to her mentor, but was it so bad to cheer for the underdog? And after what Celestia had put her through, Twilight found it hard not to cheer for her super favorite foalsitter.

This is why when Cadence casted that love spell, Twilight chuckled quietly. That’s my foalsitter for you, the unicorn thought. Even in a fight, she spreads love.

But then she moved her eyes to the horizon, and found something odd. There was something wrong with the clouds. First of all, they weren’t moving, which was curious considering the giant gusts of wind the two princesses had been spewing all day. But second, far off in the distance, something caught her eye. It was almost like a…a rip. A tear in the clouds like one in Rarity’s dresses. Twilight shook her head, not believing what she had seen. 

For a moment, she could have sworn she saw a star.

Xxx

How could I have fallen for such a...a cheap parlor trick?, Celestia thought, her ethereal mane singeing for the first time in a while. She was quite angry at herself, if not a teeny bit embarrassed. After all, she had almost given into the urge to cuddle her niece and slobber her with kisses in front of all her subjects. And that would be…well…yeah.

The embarrassment was soon replaced by pure awe as the goddess turned her gaze back to her niece. “What is this?” the princess gasped, for something extraordinary was taking place before her eyes. Cadence was glowing blue, her eyes were shining white, and her beautiful mane flowed in all directions. That in itself was odd. But what’s more, Celestia noticed something hanging out of her niece’s vest. A small, familiar little bauble with a hole cut out of the middle. It was a dazzling jewel, and it made the princess gasp.

“Luna?...” was all she could get out before a magical beam hit her hard in the chest. It sent her flying at high speed, knocking her straight through one of her clay targets. Now there was only one target left floating, but that wasn’t the celestial ruler’s biggest concern. Her niece was slowly levitating towards her, every cut on her body beginning to magically heal itself one at a time. The look printed on her face showed complete and utter wrath.

“Cavallo male. Sei una…una cagna,” Cadence spat, the curse making most of the spectators cringe despite not knowing a single word of what she said.

But for some reason, Cadence’s frightful stare began to soften, and anger quickly subsided, leaving room for a sad frown. With a remorseful look, the glowing princess cleared her throat and said quietly, “Mi dispiace, I’m sorry. This isn’t what I wanted to happen, you know. I never wanted to battle you, Tia. I never imagined we would be up here, trying to hurt each other. I…looked up to you, Auntie. I still do. And when you said you wanted to battle me, it broke my heart.”

“Now, after seeing what jealousy has made you…now I see what I have to do. And although it pains me to do this…I need to knock some sense back into that stubborn head of yours.” 

Her entire body began to swirl with the blue magic, eventually culminating into a ball of light at the tip of her horn. Then, in an almost apologetic voice, Cadence said, “Arrivederci principessa. Well, at least until you get your memory back. Hopefully.” Then she released her attack, a rapid fire Gatling gun of pure night magic. Every single blast hit its mark, sending the regal ruler twirling and spinning through the air. This time the tables were turned, and it was Celestia who impacted against the ground. 

There was the sound of something shattering as the sun goddess landed. When she opened her eyes, she scanned the floor around her. And there, broken in two, was her beautiful jeweled crown. Oddly enough, the memory of Chrysalis sending her sprawling sprang to mind. Seeing her glimmering symbol of power scattered across the ground made Celestia’s blood boil. And now, she didn’t care if anypony tried to stop her; not Cadence, not Luna, not anypony.

“ENOUGH!” she shouted in a rare bout of Royal Canterlot Voice. The princess flapped her swan-like wings, and came face to face with the glowing pink alicorn.

“I don’t care if it’s forbidden or not, I absolutely refuse to be beaten by YOU!” Princess Celestia knew the energy she had taken from the sun was waning, so she only had one shot at this. This was her trump card, her ace up her sleeve, her coup de grâce. And it happened to be forbidden. By her, no less.

Without hesitation, Celestia launched an orange beam up into space, its destination known only by her.

“Wait…what are you doing? What’s happening?” Princess Cadence inquired, anxious for what Celestia was doing. Unfortunately for her, the best/worst was yet to come.

xxx

For the past few minutes, Luna looked upon the duelers with a smirk on her face. She was in her element now, with her trusted stars and moon filling the skies. The princess relished in the beauty of the glimmering tapestry hiding behind the cloudy veil, cherishing the darkness in a way only she could. She had drawn power from the night just as Celestia had done with the day. Only this time, she was giving to somepony who needed it more.

She had thought everything was going according to plan. Cadence’s powers combined with hers should have been nearly unstoppable. Both felt rejuvenated and full of energy. It should have been a piece of cake.

Everything change when Celestia shot that orange beam.

“Oh no. She wouldn’t,” Luna uttered, fear laced in her voice. She glanced up at the atmosphere, knowing all too well about what was going to happen. “She promised she’d never...”

Sensing Her Majesty’s urgency, Shining Armor asked, “Why? What’s she doing?

“She’s-she’s…opening a portal to space…”

“Wait, you don’t mean-.” At that moment, a neon blue portal materialized in the middle of the courtyard, and all things went to hell.

Her eyes wide with shock, Princess Luna shouted, “She’s sending Cadence to the moon!”

Daymn straight! What...is...up bronies? Just wanted to thank everyone for being awesome readers and for all the comments and favorites and whatnot. I absolutely appreciate it. And of course, don't forget to clickity-clack that green thumbs-up button up there! Tune in next time for the epic climax of Celestia vs. Cadence. Who will win? How will they get back to earth? Will they ever get back to earth? Find out next time in this...BATTLE FOR SUPREMACY!

> A Meteoric Rise...and Fall
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Celestia launched a blue beam into the middle of the courtyard, expanding into a portal. It was like a tiny little window to the stars, leading out into the bleakness of space.

The suction of space began to take hold, pulling everything in Canterlot, from loose rubble to the spectators in the courtyard. Rainbow Dash struggled hard against the pull of nothingness, her wings flapping like they had never flapped before. Holding onto the pegasus’s hind leg was Applejack, who was shouting, “Don’t stop flying!”

“Wasn’t planning on it!” the cyan flier replied, dodging a flying gold bar.

Rarity and Pinkie Pie were simultaneously screaming, “Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh,” the former in terror, the latter in oblivious glee. And surprisingly enough, Fluttershy was the one keeping them from flying away.

Twilight Sparkle was having a hard time staying upright. The entire tower was leaning towards the tiny portal, and she was hanging off the edge. Her teeth gritted as she tightened her grip on the stone, spewing curses to the name of her beloved mentor.

Meanwhile, Shining Armor held onto Princess Luna, both making sure the other didn’t get flung into the void. Surprisingly enough, the two ponies still kept up their magic spells adamantly, the stallion keeping his cloaking up while Luna siphoned her powers to Cadence. Of course, the night princess wasn’t so sure how well that would fare against space.

And lastly, there was the princess of love herself, relentlessly flapping her wings while screaming, “Merde!” The moon energy had given her an unlimited amount of stamina; it was just too bad the suction of space was just too great. Cadence tried to teleport out of there, but she wasn’t able to concentrate long enough with pieces of rubble flying dangerously close to her head. Suddenly, a random pony with orange pupils came rocketing by screaming gleefully, “I’M IN SPAAAAAAAACE!”

The princess could feel the biting cold of space tickling her hind legs as she slowly but surely got pulled in. It seemed as though she was doomed to be sucked into empty nothingness, stranded for who knows how long. The thought of Luna stuck on the moon for a thousand years came to mind, and Cadence prayed she would not suffer the same fate.

Then she noticed Princess Celestia, who was facing the other direction and flying away. Cadence knew she herself wasn’t going to escape the evil grasp of the moon. But she also knew she wasn’t going alone.

In a quick moment of thought, the pink alicorn shouted, “Oh no you don’t…you’re coming with me!” Then she unleashed a blue, whip-like tendril of magic towards her aunt. The magical lasso wrapped itself around Celestia’s torso, much to the divine ruler’s dismay.

“NO! Let go of me you fool!” Celestia screamed. But her plea fell on deaf ears, and when the tendril latched on, Cadence stopped flapping her wings and let herself get sucked through. Celestia tried her best to escape, but her wings were bound by her niece’s magic. In one last ditch attempt, she tried to close the portal and sever the binding. But it was too late, for the screaming sun goddess slipped through the blue portal just as it began to wane.

The portal closed with such a force, it sent all the spectators flying back. Pegasi like Rainbow Dash were flung far into the streets, hitting the ground hard.

Most of the spires in Canterlot weren’t able to handle the atomic force, and they tumbled to the ground. At a far off tower, Twilight Sparkle struggled to maintain her grip on the smooth cobblestone. Finally, her hooves gave way, and the unicorn was sent right over the edge. She tried to teleport out of there, but the siphon spell had sucked out every last bit of energy she had. All she could to was scream as the ground came closer and closer.

xxx

The explosion sent Shining Armor flying into the tower wall, hitting his head hard and leaving him dazed. The magical field around Canterlot immediately dispersed, revealing the night sky. Luna fared better, managing to dig her hooves into the dirt and keep from flinging away. 

Finally, the shock wave ceased, and the shock of what she had witnessed kept Luna stock still. She glanced up at the moon, hoping for some kind of glimpse to see if her loved ones were alright. Then she turned her gaze to the crowd, her poor subjects, where everypony was lying flat on the ground moaning. And for some reason, the princess could still hear somepony yelling. The shrill voice was familiar…and kept coming closer and closer…

THUD!

The sight of Luna getting hit brought Shining Armor back to his senses. He swiftly leapt into action, as it was his duty to protect the princesses from harm. And seeing as though he had already failed that, he figured he might as well help her up. “Princess Luna! Your Majesty, are you alri-.” 

The stallion stopped, not taking his eyes off the lavender figure groaning on top of the crippled princess.

“Twily?!?”

Cadence was sucked into the portal and was thrust high above the moon’s surface. The first thing she did was immediately flail her legs as she slowly descended from the moon’s low gravity. Frankly, she figured she ought to be dead from the lack of air, cold, lack of pressure and all that scientific nonsense. But it wasn’t like she was complaining. For if there ever was a time to break the laws of physics, Cadence figured now was as good a time as any.

She gently touched down on the moon’s surface, kicking up some dust. In front of her, taking up most of the dark sky was earth; a sight that truly took her breath away. Perhaps she would have enjoyed the view, until she remembered Celestia was right there with her.

The sun goddess was floating aimlessly above her, the shock of being in space evident on her face. Cadence called out, “Not exactly what you had in mind, no?” The pink alicorn was a little taken back that she could still talk, but by now the surprise of being on a hunk of rock in the endless ocean of space died down.

Celestia, who was still floating around, answered, “You miserable fool! Now we’re both stuck here!”

“It’s your fault!” Cadence cried indignantly. “You-you tried to banish me to the moon! I thought you made that spell forbidden! This isn't some...some summer camp for alicorns, Auntie!"

"Oh pffft. I don't need my niece to lecture me on how to use my powers," Celestia answered matter-of-factly while upside-down.

The love princess launched a short beam at her aunt, narrowly missing her mark. Unfortunately, for some reason, the power she had felt back in Canterlot was somewhat diminished, and the aches slowly began creeping in again. Perhaps that portal did something, she thought, watching as Celestia touched down.

The two entities faced off in that barren wasteland, and both were clearly exhausted. Both ponies’ vests were ripped to shreds, the tattered fabric hanging off their bodies. Their fur was caked with dirt, ash, and a bit of blood. They had gone from looking like pristine princesses to looking like battle-hardened warriors. And the battle was far from over.

“You-you just don’t know when to quit Cadenza,” Celestia uttered.

Pawing at the ground with her head lowered, Cadence was ready for a charge. “I take after you,” she said, breathing hard.

Celestia noticed this, and braced herself for an attack. But then she noticed something hanging out of her niece’s tattered clothing. It was that small amulet she had glimpsed back on earth, now floating in plain sight. Her suspicion was raised once again, and the sun goddess asked, “That jewel around your neck! Where did you get that?”

“Oh this?” Cadence replied, holding the beautiful jewel in her hooves. “Auntie Luna gave it to me for good luck! I always liked her better than you!”

The realization of this statement hit the sun goddess. And to Cadence’s surprise, Celestia did something completely out of character. She laughed. 

The sun princess wore a smile as she said, “Of course. I should have known Luna would try to muck this up!”

Cadence straightened up, her eyebrows cocked. “What do you mean?” she asked, confused.

“Don’t you see, you ignorant child? Luna’s been aiding you all this time!” She pointed an all knowing hoof at the trinket and explained, “That is The Moon’s Eye. It has the power to absorb Luna’s power, or in this case, contain it. All that power…it wasn’t you making it. It was my sister!”

“What? N-no…I was…”

“I’m sorry to burst your bubble niece, but I’m afraid it’s true,” Princess Celestia said, half-sarcastic, half-apologetic. “But I do commend you for your perseverance, although I suppose it wasn’t technically all you. Believe me, you have no idea how surprised I was to see those spells coming from an…an incessant love cherub.”

She began to playfully kick around a random moon rock, her mind feeling at ease. Frankly, Cadence felt a bit insulted, but the sun goddess was oblivious. “But no, it was Luna doing the work. Why, without her, I bet you wouldn’t have lasted a minute.”

Indignant, Princess Cadence did a rather unprincess-like thing. She pouted, crossed her hooves, and scoffed, “That’s not true! Luna may have been powering me but…quelle magie…those spells were my doing!”

“Whatever makes you feel better,” Celestia replied dismissively. 

The pink alicorn sprang to her hooves, crouching low in her battle pose. She was quite put off by her aunt’s cynical remarks, whether they we intentional or not. “I don’t need her help. I can defeat you on my own. Andiamo zia!” she cried, beckoning her aunt.

“Really? You still want to fight? Even though we’re in the middle of space?” Celestia said with a snicker. Cadence answered by launching an ice shard, which grazed her aunt’s head.

Celestia’s eyes narrowed, and an evil smirk spread across her face once again. “Okay then, Cadenza. But now that we’re in space, Auntie Lulu’s not here to help you!”

The alicorns began to fire magical beam after beam at each other. Although the two were still very much tired, Celestia had the advantage. Her confidence had been restored after the revelation of Luna’s charade, and this gave her the edge of Cadence’s embarrassed disposition. But nonetheless, the two gave everything they had. Fire, ice, and electricity shot around the barren desert, sending moon rocks flying every which way. Both ponies were gracefully leaping and twirling through space, smoothly dodging the attacks that headed their way. Back and forth it went, the two fighters practically making a miniature light show in space. It certainly was a battle for the ages. And nopony was there to see it.

Cadence flipped backwards, her head narrowly missing an incoming bolt of lightning. In one fluid motion, she whipped herself around and shot off a bolt of her own. But Celestia deflected the bolt with a force field, and the sun goddess said, “I’m still angry that you broke my crown, you know.”

As she slowly began to descend, Cadence replied, “That’s not the only thing I’ll be breaking.”

But all this time, Celestia had been pushing the newlywed back. In the flurry of magic, Cadence had failed to see the crater coming up behind her. Before she knew it, she stumbled in, rolling down the side before coming to a stop at the bottom of the crater. Cadence tried to get up, but her strength had been sapped from the barrage the two had put up. Now, she was lying inside of a crater, staring up at the triumphant smile of her auntie.

“I told you it was futile,” the regal ruler said. “You poor thing. Honestly, I feel a little bad about using Twilight to help me-.”

“Wait,” Cadence interrupted, processing what Celestia had just unknowingly confessed. “You were using Twilight Sparkle to beat me?”

“Yes, what of it?”

Managing to sit back up and brush the moon dust off her body, the newlywed uttered, “You used your magically inferior student to try and defeat me? No offense to Twilight, of course.”

“Well, I-.”

“And what’s more…you resorted to cheating to win this match. That was your plan all the time, wasn’t it? To cheat!” The pink pony wore a huge grin on her face now, on the verge of giggling in disbelief. “And that means...you really thought you were going to lose if you didn’t!” she delivered confidently, watching Celestia stagger as though she had just been shot.

“No…I mean…it was just a-.”

“A what, Auntie? Admit it. You really thought I was more powerful. Deep down, you thought that there was a chance that I would best you, even without Luna’s help! Despite what you said, deep inside, you thought there was a shred of truth in what everypony was saying. And that’s why you resorted to your moon trick! Because you saw that the tide was turning, and didn’t want everypony to see me defeat you!”

She chuckled, almost bouncing from the verbal trouncing she was delivering. She looked up at her aunt coyly, and accused, “You’ve let your pride take hold of you, Auntie. You simply couldn’t let your subjects see you get bested by…what did you call me? A love cherub? Until now, you thought it was just little old me doing all the work. Doing all the winning. Hey, at least I didn’t know I was cheating. You, on the other hand, knew all along.”

“Admit it, Celestia! You counted yourself out before it even began!”

Cadence barely had time to roll out of the way before the fireball exploded at her hooves. Pieces of the moon were sent flying, leaving a scorch mark in the place of impact.

At the brim of the crater, Celestia shouted angrily, “You watch your mouth, young lady! I do NOT count myself out.”

She launched another fireball, once again missing her mark, this time by a huge margin. Cadence easily hopped out of the way, still smiling her quirky, rage-inducing smile. The ruler gritted her teeth and continued, “I never lose! I am the supreme ruler of Equestria, goddess of the sun, controller of day and night! I will not lose to a measly love-conjurer!”

“Don’t you get it Auntie? Hai finito. You’ve already lost!”

At this, Celestia finally could bear no more. She shot off the edge of the crater, launching herself towards her niece. By now, she had given up on using magic, and was trying to land a punch on the pink alicorn. However, the sun goddess wasn’t much of a hoof-to-hoof fighter, and the low gravity certainly wasn’t helping her cause. Cadence sidestepped everything while observing, “You’d think that one who has lived forever would have control over her emotions, no?”

“Well, what can I say? Nopony get under your skin like family,” the ruler replied bitterly.

Celestia decided to combine her punches with magic, but to no avail. For some reason, the angry ruler couldn’t land a single hit, despite her furious attacks. Cadence wasn’t even trying to hit back now, she was just bounding out of the way, giggling as she watched her aunt flail around. Pretty soon, Celestia began to slow down, her incessant flailing tiring her out.

She paused, trying to suck in a breath, not realizing it was an airless world. The goddess took this moment to sputter, “Gah. I must be getting a bit old for this.”

Cadence bounced gingerly and she said, “What, are you done already auntie? But I was having so much fun!”

With exhaustion and anger clouding her mind, Princess Celestia suddenly blurted, “You’ve surprised me. Certainly that JOKE of a husband couldn’t defend you this well.”

Cadence’s eyes widened. Her heart stopped beating. She uttered, “What. Did. You. Say?”

“Oh you heard me.” The ruler stomped the ground and shouted, “Your husband…is a JOKE! JOKE, JOKE, JOKE, JOKE!”

At that moment, something inside Cadence just…snapped. She could take the name-calling, the insults, even the physical bashing. But bringing in her new hubby…that was a huge no-no. With fire literally burning in her eyes, Cadence yelled, “Don’t you ever…talk bad…ABOUT MY SHINING!”

As swift and as sudden as a lightning bolt, Cadence shot a huge pink beam of energy at her aunt. Already exhausted, there was absolutely no time for Celestia to react, and she was sent spinning up into space. Then, with pure wrath taking over her body, Cadence shot off like a rocket, zooming towards Celestia at break-neck speed. She tackled the goddess right in the torso, knocking the wind right out of her. And with no gravity to stop them, the two hurtled far off the surface of the moon. And in their path; the earth.

They flew through space with nothing to impede their journey. Cadence’s tackle had dazed Celestia, so the sun goddess was limp in her niece’s grasp. Soon the two entered the earth’s atmosphere, and they began to pick up speed. They were hurtling towards the ground at two hundred miles per hour, and directly underneath them was the already smoldering city of Canterlot.

From down below, the falling alicorns looked like nothing but a comet zooming across the night sky. The two had become a huge flaming meteor, flying towards the ground as friction began to build up around them. Cadence was in full control, holding her aunt towards the earth, ignoring the fact that they were literally burning through the atmosphere. 

For the spectators, it soon became apparent that the bright streak of light was coming closer and closer. They watched in awe as they speculated on what it was. A meteor? A spacecraft?

But as the projectile got nearer, its shape became clear. It was two powerful alicorns. And they were headed straight for a collision course with Canterlot.

Needless to say, the crowd began to panic. 
Xxx

Feeling the wind rush through her mane, Cadence spotted the broken spires of Canterlot below. Their altitude began to drop, moving through the mesosphere, shooting through the stratosphere, and finally entering the troposphere. With the ground extremely close, Cadence carried out her final blow. With a final battle cry, she released her grip, kicking her aunt down with her hind legs. Turning herself upright, she spread her majestic wings, trying to slow her descent. The newlywed was able to come to a stop, managing a steady hover.

Celestia, however, wasn’t so lucky. Already half-unconsious, the sun goddess couldn’t open her wings in time. The last thing she saw was her final clay target smashing across her face.

Then with the force of nuclear explosion, Celestia hit the courtyard.

xxx

If the crowd thought the portal closing was terrible, then this explosion was…well…absolutely horrific. The impact sent dust high up into the air, forming a devastating mini mushroom cloud over Canterlot. The night sky lit up as though it was day, with fireballs spewing into the atmosphere. Just when ponies began to get back up, they fell back once again, this time being scattered all over Canterlot and the surrounding area. A loud boom echoed across the land, stretching from Appleloosa all the way to Manehattan. The explosion demolished the castle courtyard, as well as the surrounding spires and towers. Basically, all of the closest buildings were reduced to piles of rubble.

And when the screaming and the thundering stopped, there, lying in a crater in the middle of the courtyard, was the groaning figure of Princess Celestia. 

From somewhere in the mass of groaning equines, a certain rainbow-maned pony told a certain white unicorn, “HAHA! YES! You owe me a hundred bits!”

Princess Cadence fluttered over the explosion, breathing heavily. She began to breathe slower as the anger subsided, and all the aches and pains raced in to fill the void. Unable to fly any longer, the princess closed her eyes and folded her wings.

Xxx
When the explosion happened, Shining Armor put up a barrier to keep him and his two injured mares from flying away. When the place began to darken once again, the stallion dispersed the shield, and took a deep, relieved breath. Finally, it’s finished, he thought, training his keen eye on the scene before him. Unbeknownst to him, the tower he and Luna had stood underneath was almost completely gone. But he hadn’t bothered to look behind. Instead, he glanced at the pink figure high in the air, struggling to stay up.

“Cadence!” Shining Armor cried, seeing his wife’s wings fold up. He sprinted down the hillside, galloping over countless hordes of moaning ponies. He made his way to the remnants of the courtyard, watching as Cadence quickly descended. Ready for the catch, Shining Armor stretched out his hooves. With just a few yards to spare, the stallion swept the princess up into his grasp. Cadence opened her eyes, saw her husband’s loving smile, and gave a warm smile of her own.

“D-did I win?” she whispered.

“Yes Cadence. You did it. I knew you could,” Shining Armor replied, kissing on her forehead.

“Oh, awesome. Yaaaay…” Cadence muttered. Then she leaned her head against her loved one’s strong shoulder, closed her eyes, and took a very well deserved nap.

And the winner is...the love cherub, Principessa Mi Amore Cadenza! So...what...is...up guys? There you have it, the climax of our little story. But stay tuned, there's still one more chapter to come! And also, don't forget to favorite, comment, and/or leave your green thumb. Yep...that is all.

> Epilogue: One-Sided Conversation With a Cherub
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Princess Cadence wandered through the halls of Canterlot Castle, giving a kind smile to every guard she passed. Although three days had gone by since the dueling incident, a few guards couldn’t help but eye her suspiciously. But nonetheless, she just greeted them with a quirky smile, immediately melting their hearts.

She found herself walking through a corridor complete with a brand new sky roof made from the destruction she had caused. On the bright side, it’s much lighter than before, Cadence thought dismissively. She was humming a peppy tune, her head bobbing along to the beat. Her colorful mane covered the bandages wrapped around her head, and burns still lingered in the alicorn's fur. But despite her injuries, the princess trotted gleefully down the hallway, her steps having just a bit more spring and pep than usual. After all, today was a brand new day. A new day, a new start.

Cadence was levitating a bright pink basket, being careful not to exert herself too much. She soon found herself standing in front of a door with a giant red cross printed on. Taking in a deep breath, she crept into the infirmary, trying to stay as quiet as possible.

The princess was immediately greeted by the sight of her favorite lavender unicorn, who lay in a bed with her hindlegs in a cast and her head propped up.

“Buongiorno…Oops. I mean, good morning Twilight!” the princess said cheerily. “How are you feeling?”

“Oh, I’ve certainly felt better,” the unicorn replied, trying to hide her discomfort. Although she had to admit, having Cadence drop in made her feel a whole lot better.

The pink pony rubbed Twilight’s mane lovingly just like how she did when she was a foalsitter. Cadence said sadly, “It was really unfortunate about what happened. I didn’t even know ponies were even allowed up on the towers!”

“Uhh, yeah…” Twilight Sparkle mumbled, turning her gaze down.

The unicorn glanced up to see her foalsitter give an all-knowing wink, and Twilight couldn't help but give a small, embarrassed smile.

Then Cadence turned to the blue figure lying in the next bed. The pony was lying rigid, with blankets covering up her bandaged torso. “Oh, and how are you doing Auntie Luna? I guess having a fully grown mare fall on you isn’t exactly good for your back, huh?” the newlywed asked.

“Well, the doctor said I shall have to wear a brace for a few weeks, but it was all worth it to see the look on Celestia’s face when you beat her! You gave her one heck of a fight!” Princess Luna answered with a small giggle.

Cadence levitated The Moon’s Eyes out of the pink basket and said sheepishly, “I thought you might like this back.”

But Luna just shook her head and told her niece happily, “Oh no, Cadence. You may keep it. Think of it as a gift…for winning.” 

“Thank you Auntie Luna.” Cadence slipped the small jewel around her neck, fawning over the beautiful bauble. Then she asked, “Do you know where Zia Tia is? Oh that rhymed! Zia Tia, Zia Tia, Zia Ti-.”

“She is in the other room,” Luna interrupted, trying to sound as…un-annoyed as possible. She pointed to a closed door and warned, “But do be careful. I don’t know the state she’s in.”

The pink pony bowed her head respectfully and made her to the doorway. Cadence placed her hoof on the doorknob, trying to compose herself. Yes, she was bit nervous. What would Auntie say? Would she be mean? Would she try to hurt her? What would she say?

Finally, the princess quickly swung the door open before she could talk herself out of it. And what she saw…wasn’t exactly what she had expected. Actually, it was quite better.

Princess Celestia lay in her hospital bed surrounded in a full body cast, covering her from head to hoof. Only her eyes, nose, and ears remained exposed. Everything else (including her mouth) was covered in a thick cast and heavy bandages. Her only movement was when she pressed the bed remote at her side to adjust herself, and even that caused pain. When she saw her niece enter, Celestia made a small grunting sound and narrowed her eyes. 

“Ohhh, ummm…” Cadence began awkwardly. Then she put on a gleeful smile and greeted, “Hi Auntie Tia! I brought you a get-well basket!”

She levitated something out of the colorful basket, revealing a golden circlet embedded with shining rubies. “Look! It’s a crown. I got it to replace the other one I…well, you know.”

The love conjurer gingerly placed the crown on Celestia’s head. Straightening it out, Cadence squealed in delight and continued, “Ohhhh, look at it! It’s so pretty! You’ll be looking like your old dazzling self in no time!” Celestia didn’t look very excited however; her eyes were still drilling into Cadence’s head.

Paying no heed, Cadence positioned herself at the side of her bed, trying to maintain a friendly disposition. “I gotta move slow, y’know. Doctor said I still a have minor concussion. Although, I suppose it’s not as bad as what you got. Heh-heh.” Another grunt.

“Sorry about the whole…embarassing you in front of all of your subjects thing. And for...driving you into the earth with the force of an atomic explosion. I guess I just don’t know my own strength!” 

When her aunt simply averted her gaze, Cadence sighed. Taking some time to ponder over her next words, the pink alicorn said gently, “Listen…I just came here to apologize. To…to make amends. I really am sorry about everything that’s happened the past few hours. I think we let the duel get into our heads and make us lose sight of what we really are.”

Even though Celestia still looked away, Cadence continued, “I mean…we’re family after all. There’s this saying: Famiglia sarà sempre la famiglia. Although we may have our differences, in the end, we will still be family. And we’re supposed to love each other, no matter what happens.”

“So what do you say, Auntie. Let’s just…put our differences aside, and go back to the way things were, hmm?”

Celestia tried to stay mad, she really did. But she knew it was futile to stay angry at Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, master of looking cute and innocent. She rolled her eyes, sighed, and mumbled, “Okay.”

Although it was muffled, Cadence caught the message loud and clear. Her eyes immediately lit up, and a loving grin took up most of her face. “Oh grazie! Thank you, thank you, thank you!,” she said, embracing her aunt tightly, not realizing that Celestia was squealing out of pain and not happiness.

Then she whispered, “I love you Auntie Tia.” Although she had uttered those same words out of spite three days ago, this time was different. This time, what she said was absolutely, 100% true. 

Celestia could sense the utmost sincerity in her niece’s voice, and the sun goddess mumbled, “I love you too.” And although Cadence couldn’t see it, Celestia was actually smiling for the first time in three days.

The embrace went on for…a bit longer than Celestia had thought it would. But she figured it was her niece being sweet, and let her continue. Still holding her aunt close, Princess Cadence uttered, “And I think we BOTH learned a valuable lesson here.

She brought her face close to Celestia’s ear, and in a voice that almost made her aunt shiver, Cadence whispered, “NEVER…make fun of my husband.”

Then she quickly leapt up and quickly said, “Ta-ta!” Without so much as a wave, the pink princess briskly trotted out the door, leaving Celestia just a tad bit confused. But the ruler just decided to let it go, and sit back and relax. After all, three week of doing nothing wasn’t going to pass by itself.

But something odd began to happen. The bed was beginning to fold inward, folding her fragile body along with it.

The sun goddess began to look around fearfully, unable to shout for help. Her broken bones began to hurt once more as they began to bend in places they weren’t supposed to. In a panic, she reached out her hoof, trying to press the bed remote.

She could have sworn she had left it right at her side. She distinctly remembered putting it by her side. But when she looked down, for some reason, the remote was missing.

Thus ends the final chapter of this short little story. To tell you the truth, I came up with this story after seeing a comment on a random piece of artwork and I thought, 'I have got to write that down!' The concept was put up on a whim, and I didn't expect it to become what it is now. And although the amount of thumbs and favorites may not be all that much, it truly means a lot to an up-and-coming writer like me. And of course...being midway up the Popular Stories List ain't too shabby either.

So anyway, thanks for following me along on this random idea I had. Who knows? Maybe I should write more stories like these. Thanks for the comments, the favs, the thumbs-up. And um...you know...if you ever feel like it...maybe check out my other stories...I mean, I'm not forcing you or anything...just...yeah. I'm so ashamed. One last thing, perhaps I shall do an alternate ending when Celestia wins. What do you think? Feel free to leave a comment down below!

Peace out bronies! Until my next story, which is already in the works! 
Keep on flying! Keep spreading the love!
~UnweptPegasus

> Meanwhile, In An Alternate Universe...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two magical beings fell through the air, reentering the atmosphere in a free-fall of meteoric proportions. Cadance had the upper-hoof, pointing her aunt towards the ground like a missile. The heat of reentry began to overtake the two alicorns, their speed far exceeding that of the speed of sound. However, if it was bothering the love princess, she certainly didn’t show it. For the burning sensation was but a tiny ember compared to the heat of Cadance’s rage from having her hubby insulted.

It was this rage that would be her downfall. She was so blinded by her anger that she hadn’t noticed the sly smirk spreading across her aunt’s face. Unbeknownst to the relatively young princess, Celestia had planned this out perfectly. And unfortunately for Cadance, she was simply no match for thousands of years of knowledge.

Just when the duo entered the stratosphere, with only about twenty seconds left before they hit the ground, Princess Celestia made her move. She quickly wrapped her hooves around her niece’s petite body, and with a flap of her wings and the pull of her magic, the goddess pulled her through the air. They tumbled around and around for few seconds until, finally, it was Princess Celestia pointing her enemy towards the Earth.

“Auntie! What are you-,” was all the surprised love princess could say before Celestia pushed her off with a final burst of magic. The ruler watched stolidly from high above as her niece throttled toward the ground, unable to stop her rapid descent.

“And that would be…game over, Cadenza,” the regal ruler uttered triumphantly.

Then…the impact. And just like that, Canterlot would never be the same again.

xxx

It was bad enough that Shining Armor had to watch helplessly while his sister and his boss lay on the ground unconscious. How could he have known that, in a matter of a second, his home would be destroyed too? He was the first to notice the mystical comet streaking across the sky, and at first, that was exactly what he thought it was. But then he saw the comet split into two, one piece strangely hovering in the same place. He saw the other piece fall, and as it got closer, he began to make out the pink figure encased in fire.

“C-Cadance?” the captain stuttered, realizing that he was seeing his own wife falling towards the ground at breakneck speed. “No!” he cried, leaping up, trying to gallop down the hill. 

That was when she impacted the ground, sending a force as strong as an atomic explosion throughout Canterlot. Shining Armor took the brunt of the force, and he was thrown up into the air, flying back a few feet. He landed awkwardly on one leg, and he fell face-first into the ground. All he could hear was the cacophonous sound of multiple buildings collapsing at once. And although he would never admit it to his troops, the fearless Captain of the Royal Guard was too scared to even look up.

The catastrophic force ended just as suddenly as it began. The gusts of wind were replaced by a gentle breeze, and warmth overtook the city once again. In fact, one could say it was almost peaceful. If you just drown out the worried screams of the populace, of course.

Shining Armor found the courage and strength to raise his head and survey the destruction. And unfortunately for him, it was just as bad as he thought it would be. Most of the buildings located within ten blocks of the epicenter were practically reduced to rubble. In the very center, a plume of smoke rose up into the air where Princess Celestia was slowly descending.

“Oh nonononono,” the stallion muttered. He screamed, “Cadance!” before limping his way down towards the site of impact. Many eyes followed him questioningly, thinking he had probably gone mad. After all, anypony with common sense would run away from a catastrophe, not towards it. But Shining Armor wouldn’t let a bum leg and skeptical watchers slow him down.

Eventually he came upon a giant crater in the middle of the courtyard, where Cadance lay down at the very bottom. Almost losing his footing, the captain slid down the edge until he was kneeling next to his sweetheart. “Cadance,” he whispered, cradling her head in his hooves. Wiping her mangled mane out of her face, Shining Armor planted a tender kiss on her forehead. Needless to say, there was no response from the love princess. All Shining could do was hold her petite body close to his, listening to her soft but steady breaths as Canterlot smoldered around them.

A shadow began to loom over the duo. Shining Armor gazed up to see a tall figure standing before him stolidly, looking more like she had just negotiated peace rather than beating down her own niece. There were many things Shining Armor could have called her, most of which were much too vulgar to say in public. But certainly, none of those things was the word “Princess”.

“You…you…how could you?” the stallion said, pointing an accusing hoof at the goddesses. His voice teeming with frustration, he barked, “She’s your niece, for crying out loud!”

“I don’t expect you to understand, Shining Armor,” Celestia said, maintaining her calm façade. “I had to do this so nopony can dispute the fact that I am the most powerful ruler…in all the land!”

The stallion glared at the deity with such intensity that he could have ended her immortal life right then and there. “You…what?” he uttered. “You did this all…just to prove a point?”

Furrowing her brow, Celestia began, “Well, no…I…”

“You exploded my sister off a roof, you broke your sister’s back, you wrecked half of Canterlot, and you threw my wife at the ground at the speed of sound…just to prove a point?”

“Don’t you patronize me, Shining Armor.”

But the stallion was in no mood to listen. He extended his hoof towards the destruction behind them, saying, “Look around you! Do you not see what you’ve done?” 

Princess Celestia followed Shining Armor’s trembling hoof, which led her to the pillars of smoke, the imploded buildings, the remains of a once-glimmering castle. Her castle. And for the first time, she was able to just stand there and take in the sheer catastrophe by this “measly” Magical Duel. Frankly, she felt a bit guilty, despite being too proud to say so. “Well…now that you point it out…” she began.

But by now, the captain was through dealing with the sun princess. He figured if he stayed any longer, either he or Celestia would do something they’d both regret. “Twily was right!” Shining Armor shouted, his voice cracking. Placing his wife in his back, the stallion galloped over piles of rubble while screaming at the top of his lungs, “In-laws SUCK!”

Two days later…


Princess Celestia? Or Princess Sucky McStupidpant-estia?

In a shocking revelation regarding the catastrophic Divina Duellum that left Canterlot in ruins, it turns out this publicity stunt was really a botched attempt by Princess Celestia to prove just how powerful she is. Two days ago, in a fit of rage caused by the Magical Duel, Princess Celestia sent her own niece hurling towards Canterlot at a force estimated at 10 megatons, as much force as a sonic rainnuke. This explosion ended up demolishing half of the Canterlot Castle (due to magical protection) as well as the complete destruction of surrounding buildings. Surprisingly enough, aside from the many broken bones and boo-boos, there are no known deaths.

However, the most glaring issue was not only the fact that our “beloved” ruler destroyed half her own city but that she resorted to cheating in order annihilate her niece, Princess Cadance. When told about the latest revelation, one rainbow-maned spectator said, “Yeah, yeah, that’s great…wait…she cheated? So…that means I get my money back! Hey Rares, where the hay is my money! Don’t you run away from me, you weaseling little bit-.”

Amongst the piles of rubble and smoke, one thing still remains true. The fact that Princess Celestia did this all to prove a point. The only thing she’s proven, however, is the fact that she’s got a major inferiority complex. And that’s on top of her multiple family issues and questionable sanity. All I know is, Princess Cadance had better be getting a very good apology for all that she’s been through. But then again, after the glimpse of anarchy we witnessed, there’s just no telling how unhinged Celestia truly is. 

*The info published above comes from a reliable and completely UNBIASED source within the Royal Guard known only as “Gleaming Set of Attire Used for Protection”


Flames began to tickle around the floating newsprint, slowly engulfing it until it was a black speck levitating in midair. Princess Celestia sat on her throne looking extremely angry at the pile of ash, seemingly oblivious to the fact that the entire roof of the room had been sheared off. Frankly, she didn’t know what pissed her off the most; seeing her throne room wrecked or the utter liesspewing from that measly piece of newsprint. Or maybe it was all that, plus the hastily duct-taped crown sitting crookedly on her head.

“This horrid excuse for an editorial isn’t even fit to wipe the royal…nevermind,” Celestia uttered to nopony in particular. She tossed the ashes up into the air, scattering them into the breeze. With nothing else to occupy herself, Princess Celestia decided journey through the halls and examine what was left of her castle.

From some strange reason, the goddess met no other ponies on her short walk through the palace. In fact, if she didn’t know any better, Celestia would have guessed that everypony was actually avoiding her. But she was the ruler of Equestria of course, so that simply couldn’t be true.

After aimlessly wandering past huge cracks and missing passageways, Princess Celestia found herself moving into a random room. There, she finally found somepony to talk to. Unfortunately for her, it just so happened to be the absolutely last pony she wanted see.

“Well, well. Look who it is!” Princess Luna snidely commented upon seeing her elder sister saunter into the infirmary. The Goddess of the Night was tucked into her hospital bed, a blanket covering the cast around her chest and back. Despite the less-than-optimal condition she was in, Luna wore a wide smile on her face, one that just reeked with all-knowing joy. “If it isn’t our benevolent ruler…my beloved sister. How hast thou been Celestia?”

“I don’t like your tone, Luna,” Celestia replied, trying to keep a calm face. “Need I remind you that I was the one who won this battle?”

“Oh congratulations, sister! And what hath you won exactly? The chance to deal with all your scared subjects and their loss of trust for the next century or so? My my, I’m sure t’was all worth it!” The younger princess was quite obviously enjoying this, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Huffing angrily, the Goddess of the Sun lowered her voice and accused, “Be quiet Luna. I know how you helped Cadance.”

“Oh, well I suppose thou hast caught me then,” Luna replied, putting on a bored expression. “But it doesn’t matter, Tia. The damage hath already been done.” 

She weakly levitated something from underneath her pillow, a certain newspaper with Celestia’s name plastered all over the front page. The moon deity began, “I read the paper too, Tia. Need I remind you that the portal you made destroyed half of Canterlot, injured hundreds of ponies including your own sister, and created an earthquake felt all the way to the Fillipines? Oh, and you also callously broke an Equestrian law which you just so happened to create. Not sure how that’s going to look on next year’s approval ratings…”

Celestia, who was finding it extremely hard to keep her cool now, uttered, “Luna, I am definitely not in the mood right now…

“Well at least that shows you possess some kind of conscience. Now perhaps we can work on that abusive nature of yours.” 

Celestia slowly walked towards a hole in the wall, staring dejectedly out at the ruins before her. The joy of victory had long since passed, leaving her with the stark realization of the consequences that would follow. Not since the defeat of Nightmare Moon all those years ago had winning tasted so bitter.

Luna saw her sister’s saddened state, and so she stated quietly, “Believe me, sister. Trust is something not taken lightly. It takes a second to destroy…and an eternity to rebuild it. Lucky for you, you’ve got the time. Eventually, they will move on and forget about it.” 

Princess Celestia turned to face her injured sister, the corners of her lips turning into a small smile. And at first, Luna returned the sentiment. But the Moon Princess’s mischievous grin soon returned, and she added callously, “But unlucky for you…I shall always be there to make sure you never do.

Celestia’s momentary happiness deflated and she began to walk towards the closest doorway she could find, saying, “This is why I never ask you for advice.”

“Have fun having to deal with everything while I’m recovering!” Luna cried.

“I will!” Celestia spat as she marched out the door.

She stumbled into the next room grumbling obscene words about her sister. She was so caught up in her thoughts, in fact, that she hadn’t realized she had wandering into an extension of the infirmary. And of course, who else could be lying there besides the princess’s most faithful student?

The Sun Goddess stopped in her tracks upon seeing the broken-legged unicorn before her. “H-hello Twilight Sparkle,” she managed to get out. “How are you…erm…feeling?”

After Luna’s hurtful words, Celestia expected Twilight to react just the same, perhaps even to the point of hysteria. But, to her surprise, the lavender mare replied in a subdued voice, “I suppose I’m doing fine Princess Celestia. Umm, thank you for visiting me.” The injured pony then gave the kindest smile she could without making herself wince. 

The all-powerful was in awe of what she was seeing. Taking from her many little…episodes she had been through in a thousand years, she knew that breaking a pony’s leg tended to make them a bit…jumpy. So when Twilight whispered her reply, Celestia whispered back, “You’re...not mad?”

“No, I guess not. I am your faithful student, after all,” Twilight replied matter-of-factly. “Besides, it was just an accident after all. Granted, it was accident that destroyed half of Canterlot, but it was an accident nonetheless.”

“Oh…” Celestia trailed off, letting silence overtake the room. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she said, “Well, I suppose I must be going, Twilight Sparkle.”

“No, wait!” the unicorn squealed, stopped her mentor in her tracks. “I’ve been meaning to tell you something, Princess. There’s something that I’ve learned.”

“Really? Even after all this...you still have a friendship report?” the princess replied.

“Not a friendship report, per se. More like a…a life report. It’s pretty short too,” Twilight replied, slanting her bed so that her head was at the same level of her mentor’s.

With a smile usually reserved for somepony with decades of knowledge under their belt, the unicorn recited, “I’ve learned that we all make mistakes. Even immortal goddesses. And healing can take a pretty long time, Princess. Sometimes, it could take centuries. But most of the time, the healing starts…with a simple apology.”

As soon as those words were uttered, Princess Celestia knew what she had meant. She glanced at her student with anxious eyes, as though the roles had been reversed. And as if on cue, the always-wise Twilight Sparkle pointed towards a door and whispered, “She’s in there, Princess Celestia. I think she’d be happy to see you.”

Celestia was hesitant to follow the unicorn’s hoof. But after a kind nod from Twilight Sparkle, the princess slowly walked through the door. 

It was just another room, much like Twilight’s and Luna’s. Frankly, Celestia didn’t what else she was expecting. A side table held a vase of roses and a pink balloon that read “Get Well Soon”. A small stack of letters was piled on the floor, the top of which read, “Thanks Cadance. Best one hundred bits I ever spent! –Rainbow Dash.” And lying in the cot with a book levitated up to her face was none other than Princess Cadance.

The pink blanket concealed the fact that she wore a body cast, leaving her limbs immobile. Her face and neck were the only areas not covered by bandages or a cast. Despite the shattered skeleton, Cadance’s eyes still had some young sprightliness as they followed along the page. Finally, she heard the door creak open, revealing her divine visitor.

Cadance made no attempt to hide her astonishment, saying, “Tia? I’m…I’m surprised to see you. Not that I’m not happy, or anything…”

After an extended moment of silence, Celestia cleared her throat and whispered, “How…how are you feeling, Cadance?”

“Well, I guess I’m feeling better than I should be considering the circumstances. Buuuut I’m definitely not going anywhere for a few weeks.” Celestia nodded sympathetically, and the room descended into silence once again. The princess’s face began to scrunch up, and Cadance did her best to keep from commenting on the weird faces Celestia was making. 

Finally, wanting the break the veil of awkwardness over the two, Cadance asked, “Sooo...what are you doing here? I’m sure you have other more important things to attend to.”

“Well, I’ve been thinking about what happened,” Celestia replied, her voice low, just like her head. “About what I did. Perhaps I may have gone over line back then. And after realizing what I had just done, I felt…I felt…”

“Felt what?”

“N-nevermind, Cadance. Maybe I should come back later.”

Sitting up in her bed, Cadance shot out her hooves, beckoning, “No, no, you can do it Auntie. You can tell me anything!”

“Well I…you see, I…what I want to say is…” Celestia bit her lip, rubbing her temple with her hoof furiously.

After expelling a really, really long and raspy breath, she finally admitted, “I’m sorry Cadance. It was very inappropriate for me to take out my frustrations on you. I suppose…I just had to vent on somepony. It was…it was wrong. Especially since it was to my only beloved niece. But now, after seeing what I had done just to prove a point, I realize I was the monster. And for that…I am truly, deeply sorry. Can you forgive me?”

The two alicorns stared at each other for a few seconds, sweat beginning to form around Celestia’s brow. She had a reason to be anxious, for her niece’s face was black, showing no emotion at all. In fact, it soon got to the point when Celestia was about to sulk out of the room, her smile slowly deflating. 

But then suddenly, Cadance’s mouth bursted into a huge smile, and she cried, “Oh give me a hug, Auntie!” And frankly, Celestia wasn’t about to disappoint.

The aunt and niece found themselves in a loving embrace, huge smiles plastered on both of their faces. Light began to stream into the room, casting the two in a warm glow. For that moment, the fight, the injury, the insults, all of it was forgotten. In that moment, the two friends knew everything was forgiven. “Oh Auntie, you know I can’t stay mad at anypony. Especially when it’s family. After all…Famiglia è sempre famiglia! Family will be family, even when we fight.”

“Thank you Cadance,” Princess Celestia replied, releasing her niece. “I truly hope you get well soon. You know, you really did give me a good fight.”

“Aww, thanks Auntie. You’re not so bad yourself. Besides, I think I should be apologizing to you.”

“What do you mean?”

She pointed to a newspaper on the side table, saying, “Well, the nurse told me about how everypony’s scared of you now and how you have to help rebuild all of Canterlot and travel to every town of Equestria to apologize for your actions. Plus there was that whole gambling scandal on the news, and I heard everypony’s been attacking each other for their money back. And I also heard Shiny ordered his guards to head home ‘until further notice’. I don’t know what that means, but he sounded really really angry. Not to mention the fact that everyone thinks you’re a cheating, arrogant, selfish, power-abusing dictator! But you know; who am I to judge?”

The smile on Celestia’s face deflated, and she slowly began to back out of the room. “Yes…err…I suppose I should be going now,” she uttered. The princess quickly slid out of the door, mumbling something about punishment for somepony…

And so, Cadance was left alone in her room, her eyebrows raised in honest confusion.

“Wha-? Was it something I said?”