Daring Do and the Alicorn's Shadow

Daring Do and the Alicorn’s Shadow

Prologue

There had been two thrones in that chamber, once: one painted white and gilded with gold with a little sun carved on its head, the other painted black and gilded silver with a little crescent moon carved on its head. They had stood side by side on the dais, neither higher than the other, though they would have raised the occupants far above any of their supplicants. When the sun rose and shone through the western stained glass window, a supplicant would be standing in the light of its red and yellow artistic rendition. At sunset, the eastern stained glass panel would have painted the center of the room blue and violet.

There was nothing that proved that there had once been a sun throne on the dais, just as there was nothing that prevented the night breeze from flowing into the chamber.

When Celestia burst in through the doors, alone, her gaze had lingered on her former seat of power only briefly before settling on her true objective. “Nightmare Moon!” she bellowed.

The black alicorn shifted, though she remained seated on the remaining throne. “Oh, it’s you,” she said, as though addressing something that stubbornly stuck on her hooves. “Why won’t you just—die!” At her scream purple jets of magic streamed forth from her horn. Celestia didn’t even flinch as a yellow bubble enveloped her, and the purple bolts ran along it instead of her.

Celestia bowed her head, her mane obscuring her eyes. “I gave you a chance,” Celestia said, her voice low but firm. “And I shall give you your last one. Surrender. Let our little ponies—”

Nightmare Moon whinnied in anger. “Yourlittle ponies?” The green of her eyes glowed, though no spell came with it. “Your little ponies? They shall never see the sun nor you again! I am be the only queen they need!”

Celestia didn’t answer. She moved not a muscle even as several earth-shaking booms echoed from the outer hallways. Just as Nightmare Moon’s eyes narrowed and her mouth opened, Celestia lifted her head and glared at Nightmare Moon. In the instance when their eyes met, she saw a glimpse of something as old and vast as the stars; that searing anger stayed her tongue.

“Then I, Celestia, Steward of Equestria, judge you.” When Celestia spoke, it was with a voice that traveled beyond the material world. It reverberated in Nightmare Moon’s heart, and she wanted nothing more than to make it stop. Five very familiar orbs appeared out of nowhere, glowing and floating around Celestia’s neck. Nightmare Moon, undaunted, gathered all the magic that she held and unleashed it in a deluge of shadows. Her eyes widened with disbelief as the white alicorn was not only unharmed, but her attack vanished the instance it was close enough to do harm. As though it was merely a foal’s spell and not the pinnacle of unicorn magic.

Nightmare Moon coated herself with shadow and rocketed towards the other pony, heedless of the risks such a move held. All that she cared for was removing the last thing that could stand up to her. If she had to leave smears in her throne room then so be it, and an excellent reminder it would be for all who would dare to oppose her.

She flew through a bright flash, and only narrowly avoided hitting a yellow translucent wall. Celestia watched impassively as Nightmare Moon turned around within her magical cage. Their position was now reversed: Nightmare Moon the supplicant at the mercy of Celestia as the rightful ruler.

“You, who made an oath to serve and protect the little ponies,” said Celestia, as though she had never been interrupted. The orbs began orbiting faster and faster until the runes engraved on them were no longer visible.

“You, who made an oath to keep peace and harmony on this world that we serve.” Celestia’s eyes glowed white hot. They were painful to look at, yet Nightmare Moon couldn’t avert her eyes.

“I banish you, Nightmare Moon, oathbreaker, to the moon that you love more than our people. You will watch as they live and die and prosper, and you will not have any part in it.”

“How dare—”

“How dare I pronounce judgment on a traitor!” roared Celestia, making the whole palace shake at the sound. The earth shuddered with each step that she took until she could almost kiss the cage. The air wavered around her, and if it were not for the cage, even Nightmare Moon would have been singed by her incandescence.

“I banish you,” Celestia said in a voice a little above whisper.

Panicking, Nightmare Moon screamed, “Then I curse you! My shadow—”

The five orbs exploded in a brilliant rainbow as they meted out the wrath of the Princess of the Sun.