Cling On To The Night
To most of the ponies across Equestria, the chance to walk through the illustrious halls of the Canterlot Castle would be a once in a lifetime opportunity. The size of all the passages and halls could make even the stoutest Earth stallion feel dwarfed by the massive pillared supports and archways. Windows cast with the most beautiful stained glass twinkled with the distant light of the moon. Every inch of these hallowed grounds spoke a tale of architectural genius that was honed to the finest edge over countless years. History had played its role here.
Celestia found it all rather dull.
Each corridor was just as menial and dull as the last. Grey rock that had little care as to whose hooves trod on them. Once it would be that these halls carried the lifeblood of the royal scene; political dignitaries, ponies from noble lineages, wizards of immense power and many more. Now the only thing that filled these spaces was dust, silence and memories.
As drab and monotonous as the halls were, Celestia could dredge up memories long buried and reconstruct them in their exact spots. But many of the moments she could choose from only left her feeling emptier than before, like a jug of water that slowly seeped its contents out of growing cracks. Her memories could never recapture those moments in time, they could never give her the same feelings Celestia once felt long ago. They could only reconstruct a pale imitation of the past and leave faint traces of what once was and a bitter reminder of what could have been.
After what felt like hours of strolling through the empty halls, Celestia realized she had stopped in front of a grand mural that covered the wall in front of her. She wasn’t entirely sure why she decided to stop her - Nor was she even aware she had done so until she found herself staring at the artwork. In the painting, Celestia stood tall and proud against what appeared to be a tide of darkness that encroached from a distant corner, red leering eyes cutting through the murky blackness. A proud and determined expression was set into the painted features of Celestia, steadfast as she led a charge of stalwart royal guards against the shapeless enemy jaws snapping and hissing out at the aggressors.
The grandiose feel of the entire scene would have made Celestia chuckle, if she had any motivation to do so. But no such emotion was outwardly apparent on her divine face as she studied the details of the art before her.
The piece was most likely a gift generously donated to the court as a show of good faith. It was quite common for visiting royalty or officials to come bearing extravagant gifts to the royal court. Ranging from luxurious tapestries to exotic cuisine, all gestures of goodwill that were accepted with polite nods and practiced appreciation before being hauled away to some storeroom and forgotten. This artwork came from a very talented donor who Celestia could not bother to remember, from an age long past that she did not care to recall.
Time seemed to stretch as Celestia’s gaze remained fixed on her triumphant counterpart. The corner of her mouth twitched into a slight sneer, a movement that would have been imperceptible even to anypony that was standing next to her.
If Celestia had brought somepony here and asked what they saw in the artwork, she expected that they would shower it in praise.
‘A marvelous depiction of a truly magnificent ruler!’
‘Simply splendid!
‘Flawless!’
‘The artists magnum opus!'
The empty words bounced around in Celestia’s mind as she dully stared at the artwork before her. She couldn’t blame her subjects; from the day they’re born to the second they draw their last breath, each and every one of them was taught to see Celestia as a benevolent, wise, and powerful ruler.
All Celestia saw was arrogance.
A tyrant who saw herself as the very definition of perfection that every leader in the world should strive to be, and was so self absorbed in her own image and hubris to the point she cared about little else.
Even family.
Celestia's horn began to glow.
The air around the painting began to shimmer and tremble under a growing pressure and a dull yellow aura began to materialize. With a frustrated grunt, the frame splintered into tiny pieces, the aged canvas tearing apart with a sound much like rolling thunder before fluttering to the ground. The corridor echoed with the sound of stamping hooves and frenzied grunts as Celestia stamped the priceless piece further beyond recognition.
Celestia stared at the destroyed artwork with no more concern as she would a spilled cup of tea. It mattered little to her anyway, as there were probably dozens much like it tucked away in a dark corner deep under the castle. Some guard or cleaner would happen by the scene eventually, and everything would be promptly replaced with a couple hushed words. Just as they always do.
After a moment was taken to regain her composure and slow her breath, Celestia continued her march through the lonely corridors. She had no idea how long she'd been walking until she finally arrived at the main hallway connecting the throne room to the outer gardens. As she turned into the space, Celestia was greeted by the sight of two guards standing watch at the end of the hall. The gold trimmings of their armor shimmered in the flickering light of the nearby sconces. In between them sat a large wooden door that led into Celestia's personal chambers.
The two unicorns perked up at the sight of their grand ruler and snapped crisp salutes as she approached. The vigor and enthusiasm of their gesture hinted that the shift had recently rotated, an indication that Celestia was late for her duties - Again. All Celestia could offer in return was a forced smile and a small nod for their enthusiasm as she walked past and out into the night.
Celestia stepped out onto the parapet and looked out across the expansive valley before her. The night covered everything in its dark shroud, obscuring much of the lands in shadows. The only indication that villages dotted the landscape beneath the castle were the streetlights that hung over the roads, their lights like little pin pricks that poked through the endless night.
Far above, the moon sat quietly in the dark sky, surrounded by an infinite amount of stars that twinkled innocently in the black void. A centerpiece in a banquet of the night. Pale moonbeams shimmered and cast a faint glow in the surrounding night sky like a dark veil. And sitting on the moon's surface was Celestia's only company for this ritual - A presence that she both relished and reviled.
The Mare in the moon.
The shadowed form that was etched into the moon sat motionless; an ever present reminder to Celestia's sins that hung silently in the sky. A testament to failure that almost no living creature in Equestria understood except for her. Only Celestia ever felt the unbearable weight of its featureless eye bear down on her. A cold and callous gaze that she knew deep down always watched her every single night.
It judged her.
Celestia closed her eyes and her horn began to glow once more.
"I demand that you tell me what you have done with my sister, you foul abomination!"
The laughter that reverberated across the hall shook Celestia down to her very core.
The beast that stood before Celestia felt immensely powerful, rivaling even her own strength. Its hide was as black as the shadows. Its mane crackled and shimmered, casting violent arcs of magic all around it that snapped and scorched at anything within its immediate vicinity.
The Dawnguard did their best to valiantly defend Celestia from whatever this thing was; the second it violently breached the doors of the throne room a wall of resplendent iron and shimmering magic stood fast against the threat. But this creature had flicked their combined might away as if they were nothing more than flies that pestered a picnic. Brave ponies, reduced to shattered and broken heaps of flesh, fur and armor in a matter of seconds. The last of them was suspended in the air next to the demon, surrounded by a malicious purple aura. Despite the extensive injuries he'd suffered he still held a fierce glare at his captor. His freshly fractured horn sparked and sputtered a weak yellow energy in a desperate attempt to fight back. Another howling laugh from the beast was the only thing he earned for his efforts.
“TELL ME!” She shouted above the cackling, trying her best to hide the fear in her voice.
"Oh, Celestia." The creature cooed maliciously."Truly, your pride has blinded you to the truth!" It slowly marched forward, a cruel sneer spreading on its face. "So absorbed by the self appointed godhood that you forget your own kin!”
"Quit your wordplay, foul creature! Tell me what you are and prepare to face oblivion!"
"Dear sister." The demon shook it's head and set it's gaze on Celestia. "I am the oblivion."
Sister.
The word sent a cold chill through Celestia. It can't be. She thought to herself.
Celestia narrowed her eyes. "You are not Luna."
A sinister smirk crept onto the monster's face, yet its eyes still held the same hatred.
It was visible for only an instant. A fraction of a moment in time. To anypony else, they would have seen nothing change between the two beings as they stood off against each other.
But Celestia saw it. She saw her in the demon's face as the shadows twisted and warped around its face.
Celestia had to muster the strength not to collapse to the floor in shock. "N-no..." Celestia's voice came out as barely a whisper.
The demon smiled. "Now you see, don't you?"
Celestia shook her head in disbelief, her eyes glued on the thing her sister had become. "L-Luna? Wh-what happened to you..."
"You happened, dear sister." Luna replied as the malicious grin fell from her face."Don't act so surprised. With the long shadow you cast over everything, it was only a matter of time before your arrogance created something that even you could not hide away."
Celestia shook her head more vigorously - as if the foul creature before her was just a mirage."No! This is not possible! Luna I-"
Luna narrowed her eyes at Celestia. "Luna is gone.Luna is gone." She growled. "I am what remains."
"No, I won't believe it! You are my sister!" Celestia could feel the desperation constricting her throat as tears began to stain her cheeks. "Whatever has happened to you, we can make this right!"
"YOU DARE TELL ME WHAT IS RIGHT?!?" Luna roared with enough force to rock the very castle. "You? Who's turned these lands into the largest display of vanity in the world?!?"
She stamped a hoof onto the floor, sending a shockwave of darkness rippling throughout the remains of the throne room.
"Do you think that can be considered 'right'?!?"
Celestia furrowed her brow and tried to ignore the pain that was radiating in her."What I-what we've done has been for the good of all Equestria, Luna. We've built a kingdom of peace."
"Peace?" Luna hissed, almost too quietly for Celestia to have heard. "Peace? You've built a civilization of cowards. You've bent them down to the ground for so long they can no longer look up and see what you really are. And all in the name of your peace."
"What I really am?"
"Don't play the fool, Celestia!" Luna stamped her hoof and snorted. "The truth may have vanished from the mouths of those pathetic whelps, but I know what you are. You are a false god who relies on the blind worship of her slaves for her power. Without them you're weak, so you've tamed them like pets and use them to keep your facade."
Celestia opened her mouth for a rebuttal, but found the words stuck to her throat. It had been so long ago that she had even forgotten how this all began. Luna's accusing words acted as some sort of trigger that flooded Celestia's mind with memories that she had long buried away. From Discord's reign of tyranny, the creation and destruction of the Eclipse Cult, and their conquest to unite the realm. The memories washed over her like an unrelenting tide, and it brought with them the acrid stench of death.
Luna noted the horrified look on Celestia's face and smirked. "For so long, you and I have turned our backs on our origins. The very foundations of our reign are built on lies and the bones of those we've sacrificed in your quest for power. At least I have the humility to admit it."
The screaming began to fill Celestia's head. What was usually a faint buzzing in the back of Celestia’s mind had risen up to join together in a chorus of anger and horror. The voices shouted their curses and pleas until it reverberated down into her soul. Before Celestia collapsed from the weight of her sins, she stamped her hoof down and the clamor vanished in an instant, and the hall was left in a resounding silence.
”All that I've done..."Celestia said as she failed to control the tremble in her voice. "...has been for the good of all living things, Luna.””Regardless if they worship me or not. All the sacrifices we've made have been in the name of the greater good.“
Luna chuckled and rolled her eyes. ”How noble of you, sister. You stand on a mountain of corpses and call it your crowning achievement.”
Celestia bristled. ”You are no different than I, Luna. You and I both need their devotion to sustain what we've created.”
”No.” Luna said, and the wicked grin returned on her horrid face. ”I've grown past the need for them. Let me show you.”
Celestia felt a pulse of terrible energy and instinctively cast a barrier around herself, prepared for whatever dark magic that hurtled toward her. Instead, the aura surrounding the ensnared stallion grew darker and darker. He kicked and struggled at the aura, his horn still sputtered uselessly against the magic.
Now turned to face each other, Celestia watched as the defiant look on his face twisted into abject horror as the murky blackness encroached around his entire body. Before he could open his mouth to scream, the darkness quickly covered his face and smothered any sound he made.
The last thing Celestia saw of the stallion as he was swallowed was his eyes as they frantically darted around, desperate for some last minute salvation. Before they vanished completely in the darkness, his eyes locked onto Celestia.
A lifetime spent idolizing Celestia as the guardian of the innocent. A soul devoted to ensuring the peace and stability that his icon had spent so long building up for him and his people. Everything built in her vision of a perfect world. The last thing that valiant stallion saw before his vision was swallowed by an infinite void was his god not even lifting a hoof to save him. The black mass quickly shrunk down until nothing remained of the stallion except the armor that he once proudly wore. The metal pieces clattered loudly to the ground before being crushed underneath hooves of midnight black.
”Oh sister, that was truly a spectacle!”" The demon cackled viciously. ”I had anticipated you to do something for that pathetic worm, but you only stood there and watched!”
Rage began to build up in Celestia. Her entire body shivered and trembled.
”I had no idea you cared so little for them! They're nothing more to you but more fodder to suck dry. Face it, you're no better than me.”
With a mighty shout, a beam of brilliant light shot erupted from Celestia's horn and flew towards the demon. The energy that emitted from the blast was so intense that Celestia felt her hair wither and singe from the heat. The beam careened towards the demon before exploding into a ball of radiant energy, the brightness rivaling that of the sun itself. The hallway buckled and cracked from the immense pressure, showering the area in a hail of rock and stone. Smoke quickly plumed out and wrapped everything around it in a billowy shroud.
The silence that crept into the throne room was interrupted by the faint sizzling sounds of residual magic and the clattering of shattered stones. Celestia, now struck with a worry that she had destroyed what was left of her sister, frantically scanned the smoke for a sign of life.
"Is that truly all you can muster, Celestia?"
The eyes were the first thing that cut through the haze. Those blazing orbs of pure hatred that seared hotter than any fire Celestia could conjure. Thin slitted pupils that held nothing but rage. It felt as though she was staring into the abyss, and the abyss was staring right back at her, threatening to swallow her in a cold and unending void.
The demon emerged from the smoke and confidently strode closer to Celestia, showing no evidence that the blast even fazed it.
”Tell me, dear sister. How does it feel?” It opened its mouth in another wide smile, revealing rows of razor sharp teeth.”How does it feel to be confronted with your failures?”
A dark bolt snapped out of the demon's horn and screeched towards Celestia before it slammed into her chest. Celestia winced at the impact, but the laughter that echoed through the hall did far more to hurt her than any magic ever could. It shook her down to the very core of her being. Like the pillars of some ancient structure under the judgment of time, Celestia felt the very foundations of her ideals and principles buckle and collapse as she watched this...thing casually saunter closer and closer.
”The mighty Princess Celestia!” It pronounced sarcastically, clutching a hoof to its chest. ”The paragon of virtue! Reduced to nothing more than a cheap pretender desperate to cling on to a modicum of power that she holds.”
”Wh-why are you doing this…”
The demon stopped at the base of the throne and glared down at Celestia. Even though the two of them were similar in size, Celestia felt that its very presence towered over her.
”Why? Why?”
Another shot screeched at Celestia, and it slammed against the barrier with enough force that it staggered her.
”You kept me under your hoof so you could stroke your fragile pride. You fed your subjects lie after lie in the hopes that they wouldn't find out the truth. You've let it all stagnate because you fail to comprehend the true, limitless nature of the universe. You are afraid of it.”
"Because none of them could handle the realities that we face! We are all that stands from letting the chaos spread like wildfire!"
"Then let it all burn!" It roared with enough force that it rocked the castle. "Once the flames are extinguished, only my darkness will remain!"
Celestia's mind raced. It was obvious that in this form, Luna rivaled Celestia in terms of raw power. Perhaps even exceeded her. She couldn't risk a prolonged fight that she was doomed to lose. Celestia had to end this quickly with minimal fallout to the castle and everypony down below. With her options limited, only one solution presented itself.
The Elements.
The pit at the bottom of Celestia's stomach only grew larger. The weapon that Celestia and Luna used to defeat Discord. Their last line of defense against what they considered as ultimate threats to the innocent lives of the lands. Celestia was wrenched out of her thoughts as another black bolt collided into her, throwing her back before she could regain her balance.
”I will destroy you and everything you've built. You will be wiped from memories and I will remain to rebuild it all in my vision! I will show the weaklings what true power is!”
The demon's horn hissed and snapped, and another beam of dark energy shot out towards Celestia. She was barely able to bring her barrier back up in time before the vile energy slammed against it with tremendous power. The ground shook as Celestia focused every once of her energy into maintaining the shield against the tide of darkness. The sound of their powers colliding was deafening, but above it all, Celestia heard it again.
That laugh. That laugh that was cold and callous in its mockery. That laugh that harbored no love. That laugh that bore no memory of Luna.
The demon was right. This was no longer her sister.
Luna was gone. Only a nightmare remained.
As Celestia began to move the moon, the gentle and kind image of her sister faded away with that laugh that sent shivers down her body. The laughter grew louder and louder, until it felt as though it coursed through her every vein like a vile poison. The sinister visage of Nightmare Moon Celestia conjured in her mind was contorted into a vile sneer. Celestia tried to shut out the image by shutting her eyes as tightly as possible. But in the pitch black abyss, those eyes continued to stare back at her. They never moved or went away, no matter how hard Celestia tried.
Celestia opened her eyes again and watched as the only reminder of her sister's existence vanished over the horizon, and the brilliant shine of the sun began to cast the first warming glow across the lands. No matter how many times she’d done it, it felt as though her conflict with her sister still freshly stained the lands. Each time she sent the moon away, it was like she was banishing her sister once more. Sending Luna away to be forgotten like she’d done so long ago, replacing her with the brilliant luminescence of her so-called 'glory'.
After her banishment, Luna's name fell from what little mouths spoke it. Only Nightmare Moon remained. In a futile attempt to preserve the memory of her sister, Celestia banned the mere mention of the demon. What was a tragedy faded into stories, stories into myth, and finally into oblivion. As generations passed, less and less ponies knew the tale of the two sisters. It was assumed that Celestia had always been the sole divine entity born to the lands. As such, her subjects continued to laud her as a grand avatar of everything that was righteous in the world.
The warmth that Celestia felt from the rays did little to stave off the chill that ran through her. It was as though the sun cruelly mocked Celestia as sailed up to its position in the heavens. Brought forth in a menial ritual that required almost no effort on her part and yet left her feeling even more drained - An oddly fitting summary to the assumed godhood that the ponies below had cursed her with.
She didn't blame the kingdom for their worship. They were trained to believe, not to know. Their belief had been molded by their ancestors, like a treasured heirloom passed down through the years. It required very little effort to maintain the facade nowadays. Her kingdom had become a self enforcing cult that had willingly surrendered its freedom for the pretense of security that their god provided for them.
Celestia couldn't admit it even to herself that fateful night, but the years following Luna's banishment had soured her outlook on Equestria. Freedom and peace are complex concepts that, given enough time, would become incompatible with each other. The mystique of free will in all living creatures would slowly erode away, leaving only the inevitable truth that chaos was the true natural order. It was only by the implicit guidance of religious zeal that these ideals were restrained together in an uneasy truce.
Celestia had always known that it had become her moral imperative to fence them all in. To deny the entropic madness that deep down all living beings craved. But now she didn't feel the need to hide it under a gilded veneer of pride.
Without them you're weak, so you've tamed them like pets and use them to keep your facade.
A ghost of a smile crept onto Celestia's tired face. In a way, Celestia had also entrapped herself the night she had banished Luna. She had condemned herself to an endless cycle of raising Luna's prison high into the sky, only to send her away once more. Forced to confront the ultimate conclusion of her own vanity and hubris for centuries to come; she could not think of a more ironic punishment.
Celestia cast her gaze across the streets of Canterlot below her. The mottled gray of the cobblestone was quickly drowned out as the denizens of the city rushed towards wherever their day carried them. Celestia felt exhausted as she watched the frenetic pace of her little ponies, all oblivious to what would eventually come. In time, the tragic extent of her failings would come back, and Celestia wondered if she still had the courage to do what she had done so long ago.
Celestia shook the thoughts from her head before she turned and sauntered back into the castle, vanishing back into the comforting embrace of her own confinement.