The Seal for the Shadows
Celestia sat on her throne and waited for her Solar Court to end its operations for the day. Her throne reflected the waning light of the sun as her day drew to a, slow but welcome, close. The large golden doors slammed shut, their sound reverberating off the walls of the chamber signaling the end of another long day of running a country. She dismissed the guards and got up from her throne as Luna entered the room at the same time she always did for the past year since her return.
"Hello Tia!" she exclaimed, walking into the large throne room from the back door.
"Excited are we, Luna?" she asked, amused.
"Of course we are... I am excited," she corrected.
"Still working on getting rid of the Old Equestrian I see," she chuckled.
Luna groaned. "Yes."
"Don't worry Luna. You will get the hang of the language eventually.
"Yes, well, I hope that I can rule the night as always?" she asked, smiling.
"Of course my sister. You are the Matriarch of Night, after all. A title that I have gladly given back to you." She smiled.
"And one that I am happy to have back," she said, walking to the door of the throne room that Luna had just entered from.
The moon was raised and Celestia had retired to her quarters in the castle. She removed her regalia and placed them inside of her wardrobe and placed her head onto her feather pillow, taking in the sensations of softness and warmth of the large white pillow. She stared at the ceiling of her room, inlaid with precious stones and white marble stone. She sighed and rubbed her eyes with her hooves, before throwing them back down onto the bed.
"Matriarch of the Sun?" she asked herself. "Giver of the Day?" she questioned again, remembering the words spoken to her by the nobles of the Court who had spoken to her that day about a vast range of topics, from economics to road efficiency. "I may be those things but even I need my rest from time to time. She closed her eyes and slowed her breathing into a slow, soft repetition of inhales and exhales. "It's good that I can sleep again," she whispered, drifting into a deep slumber.
*__2__*
The darkness of the Everfree Forest dominated the landscape around the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. The wind howled and the trees bent and creaked under its tremendous force. The castle itself stood unwavering and unmovable, a sight that was admired by a lone individual.
He pushed open the doors of the ruined castle and walked inside, pulling out a small purple gem and a tattered piece of parchment that was tanned and disintegrated with age. Following the words on the parchment he levitated the small gem to the altar, where the Elements of Harmony used to reside, and placed it on the pillar that supported the stone branches. "Among the darkest reaches of space and time does It reside. Waiting for the Day of the Moon and the Lowering of the Sun," he recited. "Open this gateway and show me the prison of Nightmare Moon's creation! The Instrument of Fear! The Bane of the Sun!" The stone altar shook and cracked emitting a white light that was quickly replaced by black smoke. The altar creaked and slid along the ground revealing a staircase beneath. "Well it looks like Starswirl the Bearded did know what he was talking about," he chuckled as he descended into the darkness of the bowels of the castle.
The unicorn descended the winding staircase, using his magic as a light source. He descended until he reached the bottom of the staircase, where a single door of black iron awaited. He pushed open the door and lit the room with his magic. The light pushing away all darkness to his rear and leaving the room illuminated. He looked around and saw that the room was completely empty and devoid of anything other than its walls and ceiling of iron.
"What is this?" he said, disgruntled. "It was supposed to be here! Where is it?" He moved further into the room and continued his search in vain. "Where is the 'Bane of the Sun'?! It must be here!" he shouted, throwing his head in different directions, his eyes roaming quickly from right to left, looking for his quarry. The iron door behind him shut quickly and made the room shake from the force. The unicorn stopped and looked back at the, now closed, door. His light spell was snuffed out by an unknown force and left blackness in its wake. "What is this?"
"What is it you are searching for?" a small, child-like voice asked. The unicorn's ears perked up and his body tensed.
"Who is in here?" he asked anxiously.
"I have no name. My master did not see it fit to give me one," the small voice proclaimed.
"How old are you? Why does your voice sound like a small filly's?" he said, turning and blinking, hoping to gain some measure of sight in the dark room of iron.
"I have forgotten my age. And my voice is the voice I was born with, nothing more," the voice said, like wind on the branches of a tree. "Who are you and how did you find me?"
"My name is Bright Star, I am a Magister from Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns," he answered. "I found this place through one of Starswirl the Bearded's personal journal notes, one of the last remaining."
"That name is unfamiliar to me. Tell me of this Celestia though; is she the same as the one who sealed away Nightmare Moon?"
"Yes, that's correct. She is the one who brings us the sun every day." The voice was silent and the room was quiet for a time. "Are you still there?" No response. "I asked you a question, I demand that you answer me!" he shouted into the darkness.
A shrill scream filled the room, making the room shake and Bright Star fell to the ground clutching his ears. "Tell me why you came here Bright Star! Choose you words carefully unicorn or you will never see the light of your sun again!" it shouted in a shrill and high pitched voice.
"I came here to prove my theories about a weapon called ‘The Bane of the Sun,’ as were written in Starswirl's notes. A weapon that could block out the sun itself. If I brought it to Celestia and hoofed it over, she would promote me into her court as one of her advisers," he answered shakily. "A role that I have coveted for many years, and one that I would serve in well."
"A truly disgusting reason, pony. As you have proven in this moment, ponykind isarrogant and selfish. They care only for their own gain and do not see the bigger picture. You wished to find this weapon in order to convince your leader that you are worthy of her court as adviser and you have failed greatly," the voice said, back to its original tone. "This weapon does not exist; you have wasted your time."
"But how?" He pulled out the parchment from his cloak, after feeling for it. "This said that it was a weapon and that it could destroy the sun!" he shouted, throwing the parchment to the ground. "If I eliminated such a dire threat to our beloved princess, I would be famous throughout Equestria and all the other kingdoms of the world!"
Silence filled the room once again and Bright Star was left in silence once more. "Silly pony," the voice said at last. "This is incomplete. It says nothing of a weapon or that it could destroy the sun itself. Foolish pony," it cooed.
"What are you talking about?" he asked. "It mentioned a weapon that could blot out the sun, heralding in an eternal and everlasting night!"
"As I said, it says no such thing. This 'weapon' you seek is not a weapon, but a thing," it said.
Bright Star stood in stunned silence. "What are you talking about?"
*__3__*
Celestia awoke with a groan and opened the curtains of her chambers with her magic. The moon was still showing and she sighed. Celestia put on her regalia and walked to the throne room. When she entered Luna was sitting on the throne, wearing a strange look. Celestia approached and tapped Luna's shoulder with her hoof. Luna squeaked and jumped in surprise, igniting her horn in its dark blue glow.
"Calm down Luna. I'm sorry if I sneaked up on you," Celestia apologized.
Luna took a deep breath and calmed her beating heart. "Tis, fine Celestia. I did not expect to see thee at this hour of night."
"Really? Oh, and you reverted again," she mentioned, making Luna blush slightly. "It's near time for me to raise the sun Luna. You should know that by now."
"Hehe, right." She scratched the back of her head with her hoof.
"Off to bed with you. I will raise the sun any moment now," she urged.
Luna nodded and trotted away into the halls of the castle. Celestia got up onto the throne and ignited her horn with magic. She squeezed her eyes and concentrated hard. Sweat ran down her forehead and she groaned under the strain of her magic. The sun inched its way up into the sky, bringing the colors of early morning. Her horn dimmed and she let out a long, hard breath. "Strange," she panted. "It's never been that hard to raise the sun before."
Celestia regained her composure and calmed herself down, wiping some of the sweat off of her brow. She now sat like normal on her golden throne and waited for the doors to her court to open.
*__4__*
"That... That can't be true," Bright Star stuttered.
"Oh, but it is my misguided unicorn," the child-like voice said. "'Bane of the Sun,' I never heard that one before. I like it."
Bright Star turned and searched for the door, but the darkness within the room prevented him from doing so. "Let me out of this place! I was a fool to come here! Let me out!" he screamed.
"Nightmare Moon was a good mother to me. I had so much fun playing with our guests that I wanted to do it more often you see. And that's when it happened. For the first time I saw my own mother terrified beyond recognition. She feared me. She then tried to seal me away but I escaped my first prison and went out into the world, doing as I pleased and then Celestia and mother both confronted me. Mother held me down while Celestia used the Elements of Harmony to seal me here. What happened after that, I have no idea."
"What are you that Nightmare Moon herself, in all of her madness, would seal you away?" he asked, still looking to escape this room of horrors.
"I'm afraid that I cannot tell you. But do you understand what it is that you have done here tonight, Magister?"
Bright Star stopped and he could feel his body seize and become cold to the touch. He felt his fur stand on end and the air around him became like that of a winter night. He tried to move but his legs were covered in a small sheet of ice. "What are you doing?" he managed to say through his chattering teeth.
"Your folly has broken the seal that has kept me in here for one thousand years. I had one mission before I was sealed away. But in order for me to succeed in it, I need an ally."
"I... Will... Not... Work... For... You," Bright Star said, the chills becoming worse.
"You don't have a choice in this Bright Star. You are in a high place within the kingdom and, as convenient as that was and as much as I hate to admit it, I need you."
Bright Star could feel the ice creep along his body, inching its way up his body. "I... I lied. I'm not a Magister, just a professor. I do these things as a hobby. I found the note and thought it was a fake until I opened the alter upstairs."
"Then Bright Star you are of no use to me." The iron doors swung open and revealed the staircase leading back up to the surface. The ice around his body melted away rapidly and he had regained a full range of motion within his body.
"You're letting me leave?"
"Yes, I am. You are of no use to me after all. And it's been so long since I've had a visitor but I like to play with them before they go running off."
"What are you talking about?" Bright Star was beginning to get nervous. He could see the stairs before him and he took a step forward and then another until her had broken into a full gallop. He ran for the doors and was pulled off his hooves from behind, just before the he reached the stair way. He felt a sharp pain in his chest and could feel liquid that tasted like metal in his mouth. He looked down and saw a large spike sticking out of his chest. "Wha... Why?" he stammered.
"Despair. Making you see the way out and then taking it away from you at the last possible moment is how I like to play with my guests. Mother approved for a time but she eventually turned on me when I tried to do it to her as well."
Bright Star lit up his horn and cast his light spell. He heard a loud shriek and a wail of pain come from somewhere inside the dark room. Bright Star crawled on his hooves until he reached the stairs. He cast another spell and closed the door, trapping the demon within. "Now you cannot escape, monster." He smiled as he succumb to sleep, letting his eyes darken.
The prison doors had been shut and the darkness within stirred. "Foolish unicorn. The seal was broken when you entered this place, you have failed," the voice said, opening the doors without touching them. Its "eyes" fell upon the still form of Bright Star, lying against the stone steps. "His soul has departed, that is good."
Bright Star's body stirred and lifted itself upright and looked up the winding staircase. The body moved one leg uneasily, and repeated the process with the others until it could move properly. "Good, I can walk. Thank you Bright Star. I needed you for a reason and this was it." The body of the unicorn Bright Star began to ascend the staircase, returning to the world. "Now, that I have a body again I can complete my mission. It was a simple order indeed, a simple phrase. 'The Sun must darken.'"
The body of Bright Star began to climb the stairs to the surface above.