Luna trotted around the room, anxious. She was not normally awake during this hour, but this was important to her. There was a package she couldn't miss and she figured that she may as well get used to being up at odd hours. She started to pace until a sharp knock came at the door. She galloped over excitedly and opened the door. The mail mare bowed deeply. "Your royal highness, I have a delivery for you."
"Thank you, my subject. I appreciate your hard work." She bowed her head at him and took the package, closing the door. She galloped away to her quarters in a rush, nearly dropping the small, rectangular box. She closed the door to her room and locked it. She then excitedly tore the box open.
"At last!" She exclaimed in excitement. Inside was an advance beta copy of a new game. Not many people had yet invested in the technology. After all, real life was plenty full of excitement with hydras, manticores, gryphons, and other fantastic beings running around. Chaos itself paid a visit to varying parts of Equestria. Life was plenty exciting, but something about the feel of a controller in her hoofs and watching a character on screen react to her will brought joy to her.
"Folklore Online, a game that allows you to carry out your greatest dreams all while joining forces with your best friends. Dozens of classes and character creation aspects allow you to truly make this adventure your own," she read the back. Pictures of unicorns, pegasi, earth ponies, and even alicorns were shown fighting fantastical creatures and adventuring through a vast fantasy realm, enticing everypony to give the game a shot.
Luna pulled out her gaming system and started loading up the game. The technology was still fairly new and graphics weren't yet what they could be, but the opening cinematic alone had her raring to play. This was supposed to be the one game that would finally bring gaming to the forefront of ponies minds and place the console as a staple in all homes in Equestria. Luna had, of course, signed up for the beta as soon as it opened. She had noticed a fair few gamers enjoyed playing long into her beautiful night, appreciating the calm and atmosphere it brought to intense online battles. She wished there had been more ponies such as these during her darker times.
At the character creation screen, she paused, unsure of how to proceed. If she made the character look like her, everyone would immediately know she was the ruling princess that brought forth the moon. She could not remember a time when she didn't possess flight, magic, and the strength of an Earth pony. so she had to be an alicorn. There were other creatures she could choose from as well; gryphons, dragons, sea ponies, breezies, and so forth. Out of all of them, pony was the best fit.
After agonizing over the details, she was finally satisfied with her creation; a white alicorn with a dark red mane and a cherry cutiemark. She named her CherryTop. Her special ability was finishing spells. In the character flavor text, she described her as always being able to finish things off just as a cherry was the perfect finish to every dessert. She selected create and waited for her character to be generated in the world.
Night was quickly approaching and Luna had not slept at all since the previous one. She glanced at the loading bar, which was moving at a snail's pace. She yawned and decided to catch a few winks while her character loaded. The game could wait. Her duties could not.
Despite her tiredness, she had once again kept the nightmares at bay and brought forth a beautiful night. Once her sister took over and brought forth the day with a glorious sunrise, she galloped as fast as she could to her quarters. "Just a few hours, Luna, then you must sleep," she promised herself. She turned the game on and loaded her character.
ooo