Valete
Luna took off her crown and cloak to rest on the scathed armoire. Tonight she raised the moon once more but her duties did not take importance in her mind. Now in the final hours before dawn she wandered around the room where Human had been. Her own bed was still upturned, the heavy frame twisted over to balance on top of the two posts still intact, acting as braces. The door remained torn and the broken furniture was yet to be removed. All effort was now set on finding Humans compatriot, for it was still loose. If it was anything like Human though, she would not want to face it alone.
With a long sigh of relief to be at a place of rest she sat down on her double seater thinking about what had happened, what had so unbelievably happened not a day ago.
Princess Luna was enjoying a wonderful dream in the late afternoon. She had many dreams indeed, numbering in the thousands, but this one had been particularly sensual and full of the love she so desired. As she was about to kiss the stallion she dreamt of for the first time, she was stirred from sleep with her doors being flung open and a bizarre animal lumbering in. Its obvious lack of finesse prominent as it resealed them and threw the nearest armoire to floor. Butting its heel and scraping it forwards to clumsily block the way.
The curtains in her room were drawn and the darkness of it, along with the covers she held high to obscure herself, did not cause the animal to look upon her. The thing was beyond disturbing to see. It had little hair on the body, the eyes faced forwards, no hooves, no tail, with a large hunch over its back.
Luna was angered by it but as those eyes darted about she could feel a fear rising, an instinct that told her to remain silent and not draw notice to her. This thing had never before been seen by her, its erratic breathing and grunts accompanied with the clumsy stride and laboured movements revealed a brutish disposition. The language was unlike anything she had heard in all her years, no small feat. To her relief it hadn’t noticed her, and it did not appear to be looking for her either. She could not understand it, but held still and watched straining to mask the sound of her breathing.
As it darted around the room searching it took great care around her possessions, far from interested in the enchanted runes and dangerous relics. The anger she felt at this invasion was eased when they both turned to the door as a loud thud sounded. Her guards were attempting entry. She would have to speak with them about how this beast got past initially.
It poked its head in her other closet and mumbled more of its strange words. When the door splintered it whirled around closing the cupboard and saw the bed where Luna was in. The odd hunch on its back now gone. Still it had not seen her, obviously not boasting great intellect, perhaps too panic stricken to notice the princess atop it.
It charged to her and rolled to the floor under the space, under her. The situation was odd enough for Luna to question if she was dreaming. The shuffling under her bed ceased, no more breathing sounded and the doors to her room fell apart.
Seeing the confusion of the guards faces she looked sternly at them even more angered by the second intrusion, at least that animal left her door intact. It was her favourite door.
“Explain yourselves!” she thundered. The larger stallion spoke to her with respect and a slight tremble as he peered over the fallen closet.
“Princess, a spell has failed. There is something dangerous loose in the castle” Luna turned to her closet now and shuddered, feeling the warmth rising up under the bed onto her flank.
“I require further...explanation.” she said nervously.
“They are akin to two hairless, hornless minotaurs, very strong. Strong enough that we failed to overpower the larger one. Your sister lies unconscious, her magic has been drained by it.”
“What?!”
“It is beyond words your highness. She used all her power but only burned one of them slightly. We saw it headed towards this wing and when the door failed to yield we feared the worst. Why was the door blocked Princess?”
“Ready yourselves!” she commanded leaping from her bed to land facing it and throwing open the curtains to let the dusks light wash in. The guards unquestioningly formed up behind her and followed her eyes to watch the dark space underneath. Even in the daylight the bed of the princess of the night was blackened. The world went numb as she lowered her sight to see into it. Sure enough it was no dream as two bright eyes settled on her. She froze as they did, unable to move or feel to the point where she forgot her own breath.
“Under there!” The guard shouted.
The eyes narrowed and the heavy bed was catapulted upwards and thrown to them. Luna gracefully let her power flow and tipped the weighted frame to fall harmlessly on its side. It was her favourite bed. The large beast charged out to send a swift strike to the guard next to Luna, he failed to rise. She was forced to sidestep the other arm as it came down on her narrowly missing her horn to knock her crown off. She seized the moment and fired upon it to throw the slow witted opponent to the wall with a sudden jerk as it impacted the surface with a yelp.
She was ready now. This animal would pay for invading her sanctum. It was more cautious, quickly returning to its feet to lock its eyes to hers. Again she froze under that piercing green gaze to be abruptly thrown to the side as the remaining two guards took what was meant for her, being quickly subdued as the arms met them with sharp precision.
Luna rolled to her hooves shaking off the shock as it circled her. She was now alone with this thing. Trying not to see the eyes she avoided its paralysing stare to focus more on the body. It was large, much larger than her. It stood a head and shoulder higher and from the way it carried itself it was clearly ready to fight on. The aforementioned burn could not be seen, the hands were strange, much like that of a minotaurs. She traced around the arm, it wore pure white clothing, probably because it had no hair. The arms themselves were narrow but widened as they went higher, a large chest resting on thick legs boasting the contours of its muscles as they flexed erratically and expectantly cracking the joints to make her cringe. She found the eyes again almost to immediately curse her lapse as the numbness fell on her. It was sickening how it could do this. How she was drawn to them and could not move.
It moved closer to her now seeing the mouth agape and her eyes wide, unblinking with its teeth bearing hungrily. It came close enough for her to smell it on the fresh heat rising from it, wrapping around her. She was free as its attention was drawn behind with the distant rumbling of hooves. Luna smiled at knowing the entire legion was drawing closer. A thought came, there was another that could face it, one who’s eyes were as paralysing as this ones. The thing showed its fear instantly as her form changed to that of Nightmare Moon, retreating some steps back to where her bed used to be. Luna was now one with Nightmare. She had become they, and they were most displeased.
It stepped back and they lunged at it snapping with their teeth and loving the shift of power. Projecting their spell over the beast it began to slow and freeze as an immobilisation spell was cast around it, its struggles slowing but not inhibiting its capture. Only two thoughts came to them now, firstly this was significantly straining on them. Secondly, they relished teasing their sister later on over how they were able to subdue it with such ease.
The first of the legion darted in as it sunk to one knee, now eye level with them. Its hatred was clear and raging with each grunt trying to pull free and shouting words they could not comprehend. That stare would not work now, still though its gaze made them uneasy and they refused to look in those eyes forcing the head to turn away.
Chains were quickly wrapped around it and bolted to the floor by the unicorn platoon. It writhed and struggled but their combined power only held tighter, forcing it to both knees before the night mare. It was an amazing feeling, they could let all the power flow. The body of the animal was strong, it did not break under their grip, it did not compact under that power. They could feel free to play without care to cause it harm.
Satisfied with the success at its final jerk their attentions turned to the closet. Looking at it there was nothing unremarkable. What it had been looking for was not obvious. They let the chains hold and released their grip on it to leave the platoon to its task of restraint and recovery. The animal was no longer able to to shift under the unicorns sheer force. Moving to the closet door she inspected the area where it had been, and what its target was.
Opening it she felt an instinct to turn sharply. All held still for a moment, then it began to rise. Pushing hard off the two legs to stretch and snap the bonds the animal tore at the chain wrapped around its neck. It whirled about erratically unable to get its footing from all the magic trying to weigh it down. Nightmare cast their spell again but felt the strain nearly at its breaking point as to their horror it did not buckle as was hoped. Their power was less now, weaker. Her sister undoubtably experienced this and they realised it would not work.
It seized a chance and pulled with all its force against the bonds. The ones anchored broke almost as soon as they were strained, shattering to send pieces of the former links flying. The animal glanced behind it abruptly, the legion now entering the room brought fear to it. As they saw the panic rise Nightmare was pleased. That pleasure quickly turned to irritation though as it darted sideways through a pegasus and out the window, the reinforced frame splintering under its weight to rain the coloured glass down. It was Lunas favourite window.
Nightmare Moon dove after it with two pegasus guards. As it fell it made no effort to slow the descent, avoiding the spire and hitting the roof below hard and cracking the tiles. Still it rolled out over onto the next. As they scrambled to reach it each attempt was thwarted by a fist striking clumsily out of the spin. On the final parapet it scrambled to halt itself but the momentum was too great. As it fell from the edge twisting in the air to land loudly on the ground in the gardens. The soft earth did not break under it but had sunken a significant distance. It pulled its legs free of the holes it made, glancing over its frame with a smile obviously delighted and surprised by the achievement. It had felt the impact though, trying to shake off the shock in the legs. To Nightmares surprise it seemed unharmed, continuing to run forwards and colliding with the platoon that flew down to meet it.
Guards were spilling out of the castle now. All scrambling with the intent to capture it. The attempts however ended in failure as it whirled around heaving them as projectiles into their comrades. Nightmare had never witnessed such raw power, no spells or tricks, only the body facing down their soldiers. It was elegant and graceful, controlling the frame it wore with such precision and ease. The calculating animal lifted its foot high to step on the tip of a lance headed for it. The lance buried in the ground and halted the soldier that held it with a sharp shock. Soon it was turned on them, the weighted weapon swinging wide to scatter the group.
The flyers had little luck to subdue it, only being flung to the side under its strength. Their lightweight bodies only made it easier. The unicorns were more successful in their advanced training though, warping the ground and changing its state to form around the feet. Still it struggled and broke free.
Nightmare shook off their amazement to throw a stunning spell, it impacted this time with enough force to throw it far back and kick up a cloud of dust. Not the desired effect however it was as effective as they had hoped. Parting the cloud aside with their wing they halted feeling satisfied and horrified as the area was engulfed in a black flame. The animal threw itself to the floor rolling to extinguish the fire. It quickly faded and it returned to its feet to expose the burned arm and scarred face with pride, laughing as its blood dripped from the peeled flesh and dropping the lance as though it was useless. As it did not show any outward pain, Nightmare suspected the burns ran deep enough to have removed its nerves. A third degree burn was life threatening, especially on the face. Still it remained defiant.
The eyes unwavering beckoned Nightmare closer and they approached slowly, smiling with anticipation to enjoy the dance with it. Such a fight came rarely for the princess and unbeknownst to almost every pony in the kingdom they relished an opponent worth having. This animal had already proven itself worthy to be their partner, earning the right to face the night mare through their army. They could feel the raw energy that emanated from it as it swung out to throw yet another guard to the floor. They held up their hoof with a thunder crack and the yard fell silent. All eyes moved to them as they approached it. The animal saw them, what they wanted and it glanced at the horn again, they suspected it was expecting another immobilisation. It was intoxicating to see it there, large and powerful. They never thought of power outside of politics and magic but this animal had such power. How they would enjoy this.
The animal took its cue and charged towards them. Nightmare tried to evade as before but it had learned from earlier, feeling the hands dig into their coat and throw them over its back a great distance. They spread their wings to recover and land lightly, the stinging feeling from the grip fantastic, making them feel alive. They still wore the smile, the ease visibly wiping the smirk from the animal. It held its ground now, standing straight up with both hands hovering in front of the large chest and palms spread wide with bended fingers. Nightmare took their cue now and leapt to it, diving between the legs and twisting to throw it over to land on the face. It spun around as their forelegs brought their hoof down on its head, failing to connect as they felt their stomach impacted by its legs to toss them a distance away. It could hit with such a force, such a strength as for them to feel real pain. It was delicious.
The animal swung its arm out and their eyes were forced shut by the light spray of its fluids, blinding them long enough for it to heave them up by the throat in the air and slam them to the ground knocking the wind clear as well as spraining a wing.
Those eyes were still full of rage as it glared down, trying to crush the windpipe. They could only laugh at it, the anger turning to fear as they rose up and laughed harder when it threw another shot to the head, missing narrowly to be swept to the floor as they came in close and pushed it back to trip over their extended tail.
They placed their hoof on the fallen giant as the guards that remained cheered their princess and their victory. The look of the animal was to their satisfaction; dumbfounded and confused by what had been done. The feel of the muscle under their hoof was pleasurable, the hard yet elastic surface pushing out against their weight trying to regain breath. The feel of the heat caressing their body and the smell of its sweat only adding to that satisfaction at how easily defeated it was.
Their pleasure changed abruptly though as the arms reached up and they felt themselves being pulled to the ground for a sharp pain to explode on the side of their head. The force with which it pinned them was unreal, their attempts to rise failing as it bore its weight on them. Nightmare could not understand why they enjoyed this. Still it had fight, still it dared to face the night mare. They felt themselves being picked up and suspended as its hand tightened the grip. With a sharp kick to the ribs it stumbled back and they slipped free. The crack they heard and the pain wrapped visage concluding the breakage they had caused. It struck out again but they stepped in close and took the force of the elbow sending their forehead into its own to stumble it back once more. Still it refused to go down.
Nightmare experienced a wonderful realisation. They did not need to hold back. No need to feel worried if it was fragile or frail. That powerful frame more than strong enough to hold what they could bear down on it. They made to strike again but this time the giant imitated, impacting its head to their own, not as pleasing to receive such a blow. They staggered back and it gave no time to recover as they felt the arm wrap around the lower neck, pulling with all its might. Their legs buckled as it let its weight fall and pull them to the ground, its attempt to crush the throat working as their breath struggled to return. They instinctively twisted their head in its grip and sunk their sharp teeth deep into the upper arm. The hard muscle twitched as it shouted out through gritted teeth, using the pain to drive it onwards. The taste of rust filled their mouth as their jaws closed harder to draw more of its essence.
The grip released, as did they and it rolled away to force itself to its feet. Such determination. They smiled and let the blood flow out of their mouth, clenching their teeth and using their tongue to force it to leak through them. The stark contrast of the red on white as they smiled at it, the animal returning to its stance ready for more. They commanded more fighting, more blood. Seeing the fear in its eyes, this once mighty brute now weakened by her own might. No magic spell would be enough now, only them battering against it would satisfy their thirst. To feel the body break under her and have its might bear against them again.
Such fear was in its eyes now. They realised it clearly did not thirst for them the way they did for it. They felt selfish for a moment, their partner was not enjoying them. It was fighting for its life yet they were merely amusing themselves. The animal looked around and they were disappointed as it spun to make for the open plain of the gardens. Now they felt a new joy, that of pursuit. With what was left of their army Nightmare gave chase, choosing not to fly. It was not because of the sharp pain in the wing, it was to savour the thrill of hunting it.
There was nowhere to run now, it had fallen into the rear gardens, only a plummet from Canterlot Mountain was awaiting the fool. It would be theirs now, they wanted to have it again and nothing would stop them.
They noticed their guards fall behind, the blistering speed of Nightmare Moon was unrivalled on the ground. The decades of physical prowess however struggled to keep up with the animal. Its sprint put the gallop to strain as the distance between them became slightly smaller with each stride.
To their delight it had found the cliff face and they revelled in seeing its panic stricken visage spin around to meet them. It was panting heavily and dripped beads of sweat from the nose. The once white garments it wore burnt from the impact. They did not need to recover their breath, the guard were less than useless now to them, only its surrender was in sight. To make it kneel before them now with only words would be most satisfying. They thought to play with it a little more, the deathly leap mere steps away even more enticing. However a thought crossed; it was extremely heavy. Their legs had buckled almost in an instant as its body bore down on them. They became nervous now, for if a fall from the parapets could strain it, a plummet a thousand fold greater would surely extinguish its fire. They did not understand why, but the nerves became fear for the animals life and they decided to try some diplomacy to better their chances of dancing again.
“We are Nightmare Moon! Princess of the night! Thou hast befouled the sanctity of Ponydom by thine presence. What dost thou seek brutish one?” The animal was less then receptive, holding its ground awaiting their attack. They thought carefully about the situation now and quickly realised how their diplomacy would be more effective. They did not relish the thought of having to change their form and leave them vulnerable to the beast, however one of them hoped this way would draw greater reaction and save them any unneeded strain.
Returning to her form of Princess Luna there was only silence and an eerie calm as the animal regarded her. It had an amusingly confused look as she approached once more, seeing it step back and the erratic breathing deepen. In those eyes she could see a bewildering emotion. Despite its strength and prowess, this animal was afraid of her. Afraid to the point where its grin had faded leaving only that confusion and anxiety on display. She felt slightly guilty at bringing Nightmare Moon down upon it, however it was most amusing to watch.
She tried again to speak to it, “What is it you desire warrior?” It responded with what she could only assume, from the aggressive tone, was profanity.
Now it became clear from the deep voice and brutish nature coupled with obvious aggression and musculature, from the way it held itself and the passion she felt in their bout, the thrill of its power and hers colliding, the way her coat and skin tingled at its touch, this was a male.
From the force if its landing it was obvious that he was incredibly heavy for such a size, the fact that he had no broken bones was enough to know the density was greater than an average pony. A fall such as that though, off the white castle cliff, could not be walked away from no matter how powerful he assumed himself. From the height they were at, it did not seem as though it was a far fall. Although there were clouds where she looked. So high it was that even the clouds could not climb higher.
For now his companion was not a concern, only what was before her. Waving off the apparent insults she raised her hoof to her chest, speaking slowly as if to one of an unsound mind. “Princess Luna.” The tense animal eased slightly “Princess Luna” she slowly and painfully repeated tapping her chest and gesturing to it.
“Human” he replied, although without the condescending tone. She did not understand the word but took it as the creatures name. Luna held out her hoof to the funny bald animal but it slowly retreated glancing back at the edge.
“It is alright, no further harm shall befall you should you yield peacefully.” She had to exert a great deal of effort to maintain a soothing tone. His breathing grew deeper as those eyes looked past the princess. The trembling ground brought attention to what was behind her. What remained of the entire army was lined up once more. All legions of flyers and magic ready. As their horns glowed at the bald animal Nightmare noticed the tightening of its fist, gritting the teeth as it felt the burns. It had clearly felt that impact from earlier.
“Lunas!” Princess Luna had to hold back her laugh, it had mistaken her name for the ponies around it. Such an error was an hilarious one, she could scarcely believe anything could make that ridiculous fault. It roared about barking out at all of them in that obscure profanity. Human was clearly worried and the many soldiers behind her did little to help ease him.
Luna could not understand it, or rather did not want to. Her eyes were drawn to the bald ones, she wanted to look away from his piercing gaze but was caught in them. She raised her hoof up and the army held its place at the ready to send it off the edge. Human’s fear was encouraging to them.
“Please Human,” she held out her hoof for him and did her best to smile and look gentle, although her brow remained furrowed at her concern as they were buffeted by the gusts. He spoke words she could not understand, almost whispering them. Her vision shook and she felt a numbness wash over as the glint in his eyes faded. It was as though he had died, something had changed and she had an unpleasant feeling as though he was ready to face them for the final time, to the end of his life.
Standing straight and proud before them, he folded his arms to place each hand on the adjacent shoulder. The sight of it was disturbing. The eyes began to shimmer, the erratic breathing growing deeper and more rapid. She took a step forward and it shut its eyes tight as though she would strike. She could not strike him now.
She was frozen watching what happened, he leaned back, stiff as can be and disappeared over the edge.
Luna leapt forward and took flight ignoring the sting as her feathers caught the breeze. She dived after it, faster than any of her guards and reached for it in the clouds but there was nothing to hold on to as they swallowed him whole to vanish. She could not find it, her vision battered by the freezing water burning her eyes by the winds that roughly knocked her about. She realised her mistake at diving into a cumulous coulomb but pushed on letting her weight point the way down. She tore through the icy gusts heaving her upwards, through it all to catch him. She could slow his descent, if she had to she would cushion the landing for him.
As she broke the clouds she was able to catch a glimpse of it falling, the distance between them remarkable. He had fallen straight through, still holding himself in the same manner as he accelerated to the ground head first. Cursing her wings she closed them to dive after it, pulling the gusts to fall faster. She drew closer but it seemed as though it was an eternity to get to him. She tried to alter the state of the ground with a spell but her magic was too drained. Her wings drew open and pushed her up instinctively as her eyes forcibly focused on Human when he impacted the ground with a violent jerk,throwing up clumps of dirt and rock.
Luna was frozen. She could no longer feel her wings, she wanted to sit down but there was no place to. All that could be done was to float to where Human lay. She approached slowly and watched the chest, no movement. It was as though she was watching herself, brushing her muzzle on the cheek, growing paler by the minute. It was still warm, hot from the heat of battle and covered in beads of sweat. Still there was no movement. She did not wipe the perspiration from her nose, the thought did not come to mind. She felt for his breath and listened for the wind to pass through, only silence.
The mare she was watching held her hoof to his head, tuning it but not reacting as he Lay with a dark red pooling around. She wanted to let go but was caught again. His eyes were staring up, unmoving. The glint was still gone. Luna tried to use her magic to return the fluids to his body, to seal restore the impacted bone and see the lungs fill with air once more. Only silence.
Human’s head had been crushed in the fall. She could not understand why her stomach felt torn, why her heart was hurting. It was gone now and nopony had to be afraid anymore, her sister and the kingdom was secure. She was shocked seeing her own tear fall. She did not feel sad, she thought she did not feel sad, she couldn’t be sad. The mare she was looking at was crying, pressing down on Human’s abdomen as if trying to shake him from sleep. The mare was being pulled away and taken up in the hooves of her sister, now by her side holding her tight and examining the injuries Human had inflicted. She had a swollen eye and her crown was dented. Princess Celestia was more famous for her temper and diplomacy, not for combat.
She looked to her sister, the face was without feeling as it stared through to the animal she had brought to Equestria. A simple recovery attempt gone awry. She had pulled a small, hairless animal through the void of her portal in the place of the historical text she sought. There was a new world she had found. The first other world full of amazing things. She had wanted the book to understand the beings that dwelled within it. She was surprised to say the least when she dragged a struggling and screaming being through. The little one had a scream that tore though her ears and forced her legs to buckle. She tried to let go so it could return but the next thing she felt was a great shock on the side of her face as she was thrown back by the shear force of a strike. The thing that had hit her was dressed in white clothing, it was considerably bigger than the little one, holding onto it. As it hit her though she lost her grip on the spell, the portal collapsing. She was relieved when she saw it had not closed on the two, causing unthinkable carnage.
Her relief quickly changed though as the larger animal shouted undecipherable words and bolted towards her and the guards. She could not remember what had happened after that, save for being woken with a ringing ache in her head and flying off to aid her sister. She had arrived with relief knowing Luna was safe from the thing. That relief came at a cost as she saw the gaze of her sister locked to the fallen frame, unblinking as the animal lay there unmoving. The little one was nowhere to be seen but the larger one had a red hue around its head. She flew in then to her sister, holding her tightly now and using her wings to block the scene. Luna’s head did not move from its position. She did not sob or scream but her tears flowed out freely although she could barely blink.
As the medical aid rifled about Human, now surrounded by the air born unit, he held the arm repeatedly shifting around for a pulse. Something in Luna sank into nothingness, into those haunting eyes that were staring blankly up in the sky.
The breaking of a pot returned Luna to the room where she was now. Her flowers were spilled on the floor and she complacently pushed herself up to recover them and fix the vase. As she stared at the moonflower, opening to her as always, her eyes were drawn to the side and the pair of eyes looking up at her from the corner.
Luna recoiled in shock at the sight to leap to the other side of the room, wings spread wide and horn aglow expecting to see Human rise up again as before. She was excited, as though she was soaring, knowing he was alright. As her focus returned it was sadly not Human. Instead she was looking at the missing smaller creature bundled in the dark hook. She was ready for its tricks now, Human had taught them much.
“Thou hast invaded the domain of Luna! Thy folly shall be known to thee!” A whimper sounded, admittedly not the reaction they were hoping for. When the tiny shadow began sobbing they approached cautiously with their light to illuminate the other hairless creature. Seeing it now, the threat did not seem to frighten them. It was less than half the size of Human, it lacked the muscles and hardened face. A tiny form that seemed frail and vulnerable. It was crouched and pressed up in the corner, turning to hide its face from them, trembling and evidently terrified. They saw their reflection in the window, and returned from the form of Nightmare Moon. Sometimes it slipped through. She lay down a short distance from the small animal. Its long hair from the top of the head obscuring the face now. It had a lighter, more full mane than Human. His was short and darkened. This ones was a light brown and flowed to the shoulders. It wore garments like Human, but with red sleeves.
Luna thought she should call her guards incase this one was as dangerous, but Human’s eyes came to her again. That stare silencing all thought, accusing her of such horror. That twisted face wanting to tear through her with that anger.
The little thing was still sobbing and Luna felt such a weight bear down, threatening to press her into the carpeting she lay on. Forcing herself up on heavy legs she brought her flower to the figure. It remained crouched with its head buried in the knees. She spread more light around and smiled as best she could. This one was clearly not interested in fighting, the sharp contrast with Human becoming clearer. The flower remained suspended and she slowly pressed her muzzle against the little one, very cautiously with great concern that it would throw her through the window. It did encourage the little animal to look to her. The eyes gazed up in bewilderment at the floating blossom. Such wonder and excitement caught in them, stemming the flow of the tears.
With a sniffle it took the glowing white flower to look at it closer, amazingly the flower did not close as it left Lunas magic. This wonder unfortunately did not stifle the sobbing for long. She could not bare seeing it in this way. The sobbing was high in tone, it sounded like a mere foal. From the long hair she assumed it was a girl, a faint whisper to her of that odd language confirmed it. The wide eyes on her trembled and she was unable to hold herself back anymore. She knew it could be a trick, it could be dangerous, but her heart could not close on something this seemingly in need. It was too high a price to pay should her fears be unfounded.
She moved forwards and slowly extended her hoof. As she did she glimpsed Human again on the edge. Unlike him though, to her surprise, the girl almost fell into her ignoring the hoof and holding onto the pelt, pulling but not strong enough to cause her to push the weeping thing away.
She kept repeating the same thing, the same bizarre language of Human. With each repetition the tone became clearer however the last two words sounded the strangest, as though they came from Luna’s language; ‘hand dew’. She looked down at the tear stained face and the tiny arms still clutching her, squeezing tighter. She realised her hoof, still extended and instinctively brought it around the little figure, pressing against the body. It was soft, nowhere near as hardened as Human’s was. She did feel better by this, closing her eyes and feeling the little face pressed against her coat. The girl asked the question again, Luna did not understand what she wanted.
A guard entered hearing the crying but Luna did not turn around. She was frozen, unsure what her next action should be.
“Please forgive me Highness, is all well?” His concern was touching.
“Your princess is alright soldier. Thank you.” The words were softly spoken, their soothing tone working on the girl, easing her breathing.
“We are still unable to locate the other one princess. All able bodies have scoured the castle. We fear it has escaped.”
“What..?” It became suddenly obvious to her what Human had done. He had the entire army after him, at least the entire guard of the castle. He led them away for this girl. The poor thing was too scared to find the strength to move. She had waited the whole time for Human to return. It was possible this was his mate. The guard was stumbling on his words, nervous at his failure.
“Please forgive us highness. After we defeated the larger one there were significant numbers of our own to tend to.” Her anger rose up hearing this. They had not defeated him, they were insects to him. He had taken his own life, never succumbed to the tide of the royal guard. Such an act of pride becoming more understandable with each moment. It was all to protect this girl.
Luna found she was stroking the soft hair of the little creature to keep it calm, her body hiding it from the sight of the guard. There was something in her telling her to stay there, to protect the little one. She stretched her wings out to obscure the guards view further, worried he would catch a glimpse of the small hands. She could not understand this but the desire to keep her safe was too strong.
“Search elsewhere. The gardens around the kingdom.”
“Highness!” The guard turned and left closing the remains of the door behind. As the hoofsteps grew more silent she let her power reassemble it, a complex spell to visualise each splinter returning but nothing she had difficulty with. Luna was still suspicious but the tiny figure nuzzled her and it felt as though she was soaring while her hooves remained on the ground. The same yet different feeling to that of the one she had with Human.
The girl looked up gratefully to her, she asked that question again. Lunas confusion was apparent and the little girl raised her hands high up and stuck them wide imitating a lumbering walk.
Luna knew now it was looking for Human, “Was he- Is he a friend of yours?” she trembled. The little face stared back bewildered. She did not know what else to do, what she could say to it. Human was gone, she could not believe he could leave them, Especially his own mate. The little creature took out a chain around the neck, a dainty trinket with a picture inside. It was pointing to the figures on the tiny picture crudely cut out and fit into it. It was a large group of these creatures, little ones and only a few large ones standing in front of a crude building. Together with what looked like Human on the side of the little one before her. She had to use all she had to hold back the tears. She could see it through the smiles, they knew each other intimately.
Luna projected a shadow of Human on the wall. The little one smiled and nodded while she pointed to it. Its finger passed quickly over her then to the shape. Luna did something she hated. The image moved and acted out a scene, running from the guards and diving into a river to swim away to safety. Seeing it now she could only hate herself for lying, but she had not the strength to reveal the truth. The still image of Human burned forever into her.
There was something nagging Luna, an odd feeling she saw looking at the way this little thing was so enthralled by the image, a familiar sensation she experienced only with...Celestia. She had seen it before and a word came to her. It hit hard enough to stagger her back and nearly force her to collapse. The tears in her eyes welled up once more.This girl was not its mate, the bond was far greater. The bond of a sister.
That night in distant memory seemed closer today. Luna stood with her daughter now on that eroded cliffs edge. She had grown too fast, only taking ten years to blossom into a fine young lady. She shared some features with her brother, her eyes and forehead. The height was slightly greater, still intimidating to the others around. She had a refined face, smooth and delicate. Proudly bearing a scar earned in battle. Despite having her brothers abrasive aggression she had gained the nickname Moonflower. Like her mother she loved the night, never being able to sleep in it properly due to her nightmares. Even Lunas power could not stifle the sorrow she experienced in those dreams, her existence long before her arrival was tortured where the only grace had been Andrew. Learning his name embarrassed she had scoffed at the mistake he made that day being no different from her own.
She only opened up when the moon shone at its brightest, throwing away her shyness as though in full bloom. Luna’s favourite reason though, was because she was insane over moonflowers. Her favourite memory being a few years ago when she had climbed alone to the peak where Luna grew her personal ones. How she was relieved when she found her little human grinning widely with a single flower offered to her. The filthy garments she wore were torn and improvised, yet she had felt such pride.
In a short period the girl had learned much about Equestria, mastering the language in months. It had taken considerable effort to convince the kingdom of her peaceful ways, the legend of her brothers brutality had spread far and wide. However upon explaining her relation to him, Celestia and her sister decided to look after this little girl in respect to the being they wronged. After that day Celestia never tried to go back into that world. Her daughter had no desire to either.
She was still proud to see her moonflower standing there now and talk out to the emptiness of the sky and face this turmoil. It had been a long time since Luna was last here, seeing those eyes fall back off the cliff again and again each time she thought about it. They haunted Luna constantly, to the point where some months ago she was driven to digging up the grave. All the guilt and horror only renewed itself as she lay by the bones and cried. It was the lowest she had ever felt in her long life.
They both had many nightmares about that day. It was years before her daughter first spoke of it to her. Before leaving her Andrew had said she would have to take flight when the enemy had followed and continue her journey without him, but he would never be gone as long as she remembered all he taught her. The mumbling into her closet then was clarified.
He had created such chaos that every guard in the palace still remembered his face and his mark. It was his actions they honoured however, for none had perished at his hands. When the truth of those actions became known, they had placed a tribute to remember him in the gardens. It was the lance he wielded now bearing a flag from his world, designed by his sister. On the lance were the words ‘Brother of Pony and Moonflower Forever.’
That single pole had done much to aid her daughter in the grief upon learning of the truth. A truth that was made known to her a few days ago. For Luna, the day itself they had to reveal his ultimate fate had been excruciatingly painful. Her daughter had resented him for leaving her alone. Then after the truth the resentment changed to hatred for Celestia, for bringing her here and forcing him to abandon her. Although as she thought over it, she took to his teachings from all those years ago. Not less than a day passed before she stormed to Celestia and held onto her, forgiving her for what had happened.
Luna asked what had changed, why she had turned so suddenly. ‘Andrew talked about a lot of things mother. One lesson though I will never forget. He always told me life will bring unexpected changes, bad and good. We must face them at our best because when we do so, those around us would see us at our best and know they can be like us too. At their best.’
The wisdom did little to console Luna. It only brought back the sting of his loss. And the guilt she felt savouring his final moments before that fall. After all these years Luna could finally understand why he left. When he leapt Luna told herself it was his intention to perish. To refuse capture and interrogation. He had robbed them of the chance to learn about him and find his sister. They never did anymore than bury the body where it lay, at the foot of the cliff. The grave was unmarked and no longer visible. An insult to the human he was.
“Are you alright Mother?”
“Are you dear?”
“I think so. You know it’s funny...”
“What?”
“You say it was unmarked but if you think about it he’s got the entire castle and mountain right above him. It”s like the kingdom became his marker.”
“That is a very sweet way to see it.”
“He was always overdramatic.” Luna sat by her, letting her girl lean into her. “I miss him. Why did he go?”
“It was to protect you my little human.”
“He didn’t have to.”
“Do not think that way. In his eyes it was the only way he could protect you. Never forget he did it for you. He gave his life so you could-”
“Escape. Thank you for everything. I wish he could be here but I know that can’t happen.”
Luna held her hoof to her daughters heart, “He is still here.”
“Always. I love you mother.”
“As I do you.”
“You know, its probably better this way. Can you imagine how he would react to Earthshaker?” Her humour masked the upset clumsily. However the image of the mighty stallion quaking under her brother was very humorous and they shared a giggle. Luna herself was less than receptive to the clumsy advances towards her moonflower but he turned out to be rather sweet in the end. Of course it was strange to her that the stallion took such an interest however it was safe to see his affections were genuine. Daring to prove himself against Nightmare Moon themselves.
He had fought well to earn the right to court her. His boldness unheard of in Equestria, to wish to be with the adopted daughter of Princess Luna. Although he did little against Nightmare, it was his determination that won their heart. As he staggered back to his hooves each time he was floored there was such inner strength in him. It was familiar to them, only having witnessed it once, eight years before. They had gracefully yielded and allowed him to claim the victory and were certain of only one thing; he would be there for their daughter until the end.
Luna smiled thinking about it now and the dull pain returned. She wished to herself that she could have met with her brother and talked to him as she did with her little girl. These humans were so insightful and observant. Very intelligent yet foolish and stubborn. Her moonflower managed to solve the great drainage crisis after all when she was only fourteen years.
By seventeen she was an accomplished duelist and embodied everything Luna had ever hoped in a daughter. It being difficult for her to conceive owing to the bloodline of immortals and her inherent shyness towards any colt bold enough to approach her, which happened once an era if luck was in the wind. She had grown to be as eloquent, refined and delicate as any lady should be. Yet like her mother the power with which she fought was without limits. She did not shy away from the mystic arts, combining them in creative ways to aid those who needed it. It was one day in aid of the fallen after a dragon attack that she first met Earthshaker. He had merely been scathed but was as complacent as the others, gaining the mystics attention and eventually her affection. Still Luna saw Andrew in her every time she did fight. That raw power carried through their bloodline now hers to command.
For Luna, no matter which stallion caught het attention or how many times she dreamt sweetly, it was always tainted by those eyes. She came to realise on that day what she had lost in him, although she could never admit it to herself in the most hidden depths of her sanctum.
Luna had taken his death harder than his own sister, who was now nowhere as upset as she had been. She believed to his sister, the truth of his fate as always suspect but never confirmed and by learning of his passing she was more relieved to know what had happened and to let her resentment go. He never abandoned her.
Her little girl was always there to comfort her mother when the periods of grief became too strong to bear alone. She could see her reading stories to her before bed. Taking her daughter out into Canterlot for the first time and meeting all the ponies who were welcoming to the shy creature, that nervous human pushing her to be more confident. That disastrous night with her friends in the castle where they turned Discord to stone accidentally. Celestias ceremony to make her an official Knight of Canterlot. Her first arena duel. The day she saved the kingdom from the great flood with Earthshaker using their combined power. Him terrified to ask Luna for the right to take moonflower away, and her saying yes. Now today it was their time to say goodbye to her brother, at long last valete.
Soon she would be wed to the Stallion, their love breaking boundaries all over the kingdom. As strange as it was she never felt more content knowing she had done it. Luna had raised the girl, that piece of Andrew, as her own and now she was going to have to let her go. To that Earthshaker of all ponies. How Andrew should be here to see that.
As they stared out into the day Luna saw him again barking out at the guards on the edge, full of such power. She knew what he said now, the language becoming clearer as her daughter taught it to her. ‘You think to take me! I shall never allow you to find her. Search all you want, she is gone! Take comfort knowing you shall never know, knowing you will never break me!’ That was when the glint in his eyes faded and he stepped to the edge.
Luna felt a tear fall, first on her chest then on her hoof. Her moonflower was also letting the grief heal. Luna whispered something quietly. The hand holding her hoof squeezed a little tighter as she said it. It was the same thing her brother spoke before he fell back to his rest. Those final words were what she whispered; “Safe journey little one. Valete.”
