ASMD

Chapters

Part 1 - Luna
Part 3 – December
Part 4 - The City
Part 5 - Family
Part 6 - The Past
Part 2 - Celestia

Part 1 - Luna

Equestria, the nation of ponies, is a land renowned across the world for its friendly, warm-hearted denizens, its material prosperity, its fabulous climate, and above all, its utterly safe and secure nature.

The Princess of the Night, Luna, Mistress of the Moon, Duchess of Yoke, Viscountess of Maremansk, Thane of Whiterun, and majority stockholder of Lunesco Studios of Neighpon, Ltd. (creators of the famous Mecha Battle Dragon Suit Celestia manga and anime), sighed as she read the beginning sentence in How To Survive in Equestria on Five Bits a Day (Without Eating Ponies); a travel guide for griffons, published by griffons. In other words, this place is boring, the dark alicorn thought as she used her telekinetic magic to rapidly flip through the book's pages. She didn't even take the time to read the rest of the guide, but had already figured the rest of it would be equally bland. Not that I am unhappy with the peace and prosperity of mine subjects, for I am. Deliriously so, the princess thought as she lifted the book up with her magic and then floated it through the rows of the Canterlot Royal Library and sent it back to its appropriate shelf without even looking. But as nice as everything is now, even 'Tia would admit that boredom was seldom a problem when hydra attacks and griffon raids occurred every week. Now the hydras slink only in the wilds, and even the griffons have calmed down and settled into a more civilized state.

Luna shook her head, and then stood up from the cushion she had been lying on. All there is to do in this age is to keep the bureaucracy from becoming overbearing. The alicorn grimaced slightly as she moved off to wander through the various rows of shelving. Not that it is an easy task. It seems that as time hath pressed on more and more ponies take for granted the presence of the government and its supposed ineffability. Luna sighed again as she cast her memories back over the past two years since her redemption, hardly paying attention to where she was going and certainly not looking at any books or scrolls. There hath been so many changes during my time away, yet most of them hath occurred slowly, and the rate of change decreases every year. Stagnation is the first step to death for a civilization, yet what is there to do? Luna frowned as she contemplated the question. Celestia, though I love her, takes things too slowly for mine tastes. The work here in Canterlot grows tedious, and it wears upon my soul.

The only bright spots, she remembered, had been the two Nightmare Nights that had occurred since her return; the first only barely so, but the second had been much more enjoyable since she had learned the true purpose of the holiday. Candy, treats, and harmless scares, Luna remembered, smiling a bit as she recalled the most recent one only just weeks past. 'Twas much more enjoyable when everypony and myself were “on the same page”, as Twilight Sparkle put it. I sneaked in, played some pranks before anypony knew I was there, and then boom! Luna stopped in her tracks then and reared back, mimicking her movements from the holiday only just past. I appeared in a cloud of smoke in the town square, looking like Nightmare Moon and demanding candy!

The princess chuckled merrily at this as she settled back to all fours, and then sheepishly looked around once she had remembered she was technically in public, still. Nopony around me, though, she saw. Good. Although... where hath I gone? Luna asked herself this as she glanced around and realized she had moved away from the more common areas of the library, and had instead wandered into the spell research archives. Here, she knew, the unicorns of Equestria had stored their unfinished works and notes, hoping that one day somepony would continue and maybe even solve the issues that had kept the spells from completion. Of course, the more dangerous topics were locked away in secure vaults, but the common and/or more unfounded works were left in the public access section, where Luna now found herself.

“Hmm,” the princess hummed to herself, as a new idea sprung into her mind. Perhaps this might be the answer to my problem? A bit of spell tinkering to exercise the mind perchance might arouse me from my malaise. Luna smiled at the idea, and her horn lit up as she randomly grabbed several scrolls from the nearby shelves and then levitated them in front of her so she could read the titles. My, such odd things our little ponies attempt. “Advanced Hair Removal Techniques,” why would anypony want to get rid of their hair? “Enchanting Tongue Depressors to Taste Like Candy,” well, maybe if you want foals chewing on them. “The Apocalypse and You: A How-To Guide for Ending the World”... Wait, what? Should not this be in the restricted section? Luna unrolled the scroll in question and skimmed its contents. Several moments passed before she chuckled, and then rolled the scroll back up. Oh Doctor Core, you always did have such a strange sense of humor, she thought, and then returned the scrolls she levitated back to their proper places. This seems like a false avenue, the alicorn sadly mused, though she decided to press on and reached out with her magic to snag another scroll. “The Unreal Engine: A Gateway to Other Realities.” Luna raised an eyebrow at this, and then proceeded to unroll and read the lengthy paper. A smile slowly spread along her muzzle as she did, and within a moment of finishing her skimming she knew she had a project.

* * * *

The next night found Luna unhappily scribbling doodles on her notepaper as she sat at her desk and contemplated the issues that taxed her. Boredom. Tedium. And now this bloody spell.

Luna turned to look at the scroll she had borrowed from the library, and then shook her head again. “Why won't you work?” She asked of it, not receiving nor expecting an answer. This is a perfectly straightforward, if complex differential engine spell tasked with running a teleportation spell tied into a seeking/tuning algorithm along the sixth, seventh, and eighth dimensional axes. Yet every time I run the math it breaks down and loses cohesion. The alicorn grunted as she shifted on her cushion seat, moving from her haunches to eventually lying on her back in front of the desk. Luna's horn lit up as she used her telekinesis magic to bring the scroll in question over and had it hover above her head, face down so she could keep reading it. This “Grand Amusement” fellow had a great idea, but it seems he was deficient in some areas. If only he had another pony helping him, to cover his weak points and anchor his ideas in-

She blinked as an idea entered her head, spurred by her mental musings. After some consideration of it, Luna abruptly shifted until she was again sitting on her haunches, looking over the notes on her desk and the scroll, which she now laid back in its usual place. A quick burst of magical manipulation sent papers and quills flying around until they were all rearranged so that Luna could look over all of her theoretical runs while she worked on a new, empty piece of notepaper. Furious scribbling noises followed, and continued for some time as the dark alicorn worked through yet another trial, this time with an addition.

This went on for several hours, until finally Luna sat back and stared at her notes. “It works,” she said, and then grinned. “And I am going to test it.”

* * * *

The Princess of the Day, Celestia, Mistress of the Sun, Grand Duchess of Canterlot, Countess of Trottingham, Shogun in Absentina of Neighpon, and silent partner of the Equestria Daily newspaper, walked through the expansive halls of the Royal Palace in the waning hours of the day as she made her way towards her sister's apartments. It's not like Luna to be late, the solar princess mused to herself, as she made the last turn and spied the entrance to her sister's study ahead. Guards in the silver armor of Luna's personal guard stood on either side of the door, yet neither so much as moved a muscle as Celestia walked up to the double doors, and then raised a hoof and knocked. “Luna? Are you in there?”

A soft glow of magic enveloped the doors at that, and they swung open rapidly. “'Tia, come in! I wish to show you something!” Came the excited voice of the younger royal sister.

Celestia raised an eyebrow, and then glanced to the guards. Both of them broke their traditional stoic impassiveness to give her a shrug when she looked at each one, and then resumed their usual stance. The elder alicorn graced them with an indulgent smile for that, and then turned and walked into the study.

It was, predictably, loaded with books and scrolls. Three of the walls had shelving that reached to the ceiling to support the large collection, and the fourth only lacked such due to the fact that it played host to large bay windows that faced north. Already the first stars were starting to show in the dimming twilight, and these reminded Celestia of the purpose she had in seeking her sister. Fortunately, Luna was easily found sitting at her desk, which was located in front of the windows. Unlike her sister, though, the younger alicorn ignored the view and only concentrated on the papers sitting on the desk. The sound of golden hoof overshoes clacking on the floor, though, brought her head around, and Luna smiled at her sister. “Come hither, I wish thee to look at this,” she said, and then waved a wing to gesture Celestia closer.

The elder alicorn raised her eyebrow again, but obeyed the well-meaning summons and approached. “And what has you so excited, dear sister?” She asked as she reached the desk, and then looked over the various notes.

“This,” Luna said, as she used her magic to levitate an old-looking scroll from the corner of the desk and then brought it to hover in front of her sister's face. “It's an uncompleted spell I located in the Royal Library. Or at least, it was uncompleted,” she added, a big grin on her face. “I figured it out, though!”

“Really?” Celestia asked, a smile on her muzzle as she turned her attention to the scroll and took control of it from Luna's magic with her own. As she read it, though, her expression changed to one of surprise. “Luna, this is... brilliant,” she said, pride seeping into her tone.

Luna blushed at that, and then shook her head. “Most of the work was done by the original author, Grand Amusement,” she explained. “I just figured out what was missing to have the interlocking components function correctly.”

“An enchanted physical anchor to keep the spell from losing its originating coordinates,” Celestia said, with a nod as she glanced over Luna's additions to the scroll again. “It's still quite impressive. I think this may be the first fully-functional reality-hopping spell ever created.”

“I know, isn't it exciting?” Luna asked, her face lit up with joy. “I cannot wait to test it!”

Celestia lowered the scroll and gave her sister a concerned look. “Luna, surely you don't mean to try this yourself?” She asked, in a worried tone. “Even as well made as it looks to be, testing new spells is a dangerous prospect. They must undergo peer review just to make sure that the author hasn't missed anything.”

Luna frowned at that. “'Tia, thou art mine only true peer,” she said, with a huff. “And I hath spent hours checking and rechecking both the spell components and the math of simulation. I assure thee that this spell is as perfected as it will ever be, short of a genuine magic savant coming along.”

Celestia grinned at that. “And if one so happens to be my student?” She asked.

The younger alicorn momentarily froze, and then blushed. “Oh, yes, of course,” she said, sounding sheepish. Her countenance hardened soon enough, however. “But my work is still solid, dear sister.”

“I'm sure it is, Luna,” Celestia replied, as she rolled up the scroll and then floated it back to set it on her sister's desk. “It's just that I would appreciate it if you had somepony else double check it before you test it out,” she added. When Luna looked ready to protest, Celestia lowered her head and proceeded to widen her eyes. “Please?”

“Gah!” Luna exclaimed as she snapped her head to the side. “Cease that at once, mine sister! Thy “cute face” was not meant for mortals nor gods alike!”

The elder alicorn chuckled at this, and resumed her usual stance and appearance. “So you will hold off and let another pony double-check your work?” She asked, playfully.

Luna sighed as she returned her gaze back to her sister. “Very well. I shall see to it and ensure it is safe before I try it out,” she said, reluctantly.

“Good,” Celestia replied, a warm smile on her muzzle. “And now that is settled, I can get to the original reason I came to see you. Chiefly, you are late for our evening ritual.”

The younger sister rolled her eyes at this. “Must we continue the charade?” She skeptically asked, though she did rise from her seat and moved to join Celestia. “Surely our ponies do not need to be coddled with such fictions in this day and age?”

“Perhaps, or perhaps not,” the princess of the sun allowed, as she turned to lead her sister out into the halls. “But they still take comfort from it, and it reinforces our rule so we can continue to keep Equestria safe and prosperous.”

And boring and stifling of ingenuity and creativity, Luna thought. She refrained from voicing such ideas, though, as she had had such conversations with her elder sister over the past two years since her redemption. I love thee, 'Tia, but thou hast become overprotective in my absence. Luna felt a slight blush erupt on her cheeks at that, as she followed Celestia through the palace corridors. I know I am to blame for that, but hath not the time come for a little growth? And how can growth occur without an impetus?

This started the wheels moving in her mind once again, and Luna nodded to herself as they approached the throne room. So... What can provide that impetus? Challenges and crises work, but I am as loathe to inflict suffering on our subjects as mine sister. The only other source of such change is usually new ideas from an outside source, but Equestria has become the world leader in everything from food production to magic manipulation to industrialized cities, and new ideas are stifled here, as I hath observed.

Then what is needed... are ideas from beyond this world. At this, Luna smiled. Well 'Tia, I did say I wouldst not use that spell unless I was sure it was safe... But I hath checked it myself, and I am very sure.

* * * *

“And now this mark here...” Luna softy spoke. She was, of course, talking to herself, as nopony else was in the room. She always found her concentration oddly enhanced when she would let her mouth wander, though, so the alicorn simply repeated things to herself as she worked.

At this particular moment, Luna was making some final runes and spell marks around the anchor she had chosen for the “Unreal Engine” spell. Each one of the designs was made with spellcaster's chalk, which was a special mix of regular chalk and a plethora of ground crystals of various minerals that would, when exposed to magical energy, create a series of miniature ley lines to focus said energy into the drawn patterns. “And in this case,” Luna mumbled to herself as she continued to work. “There will be energy focused into the matrix right about... here,” she paused at that, and then made another symbol on the floor of her bedroom.

Several moments later, she stepped back from her work and then cast a hard eye over every single marking and line. Spellcasting is hard enough without misaligned thaumaturgical vortices stressing the delicate webwork required for this spell to function, the dark alicorn mused, as she confirmed that her preparations were complete and accurate. Much as the land shapes the flow of a river, so to do the marks direct the magical energy. Yet as a river may overflow its bank and take a new course, so too can magic overwhelm an ill-prepared runic circle. I must be careful. Luna nodded to herself at that, and then proceeded to double-check every notation, before then triple-checking it against the spell scroll, which she levitated in the air next to her as she worked.

Finally, she nodded and then sent the scroll to sit on her bedroom desk in the corner, along with the chalk stick she had been using. “Very well then, all is ready,” Luna said, and then fell silent as she contemplated what she was about to do. Even ones so mighty as Celestia and I hath never broken the bonds of this reality, she thought, as she sat down on her haunches to ponder. Even Discord, for all his vaunted power, could not do as I am about to attempt. 'Tis a heady feeling, to know that with this work completed, we might know the strange and unusual wonders that the Creator of infinity hath fashioned.

At that, Luna took a moment to look around her room; she knew nopony would be in there with her, but a bout of paranoia made her check all the same. Once she confirmed that she was indeed alone, the alicorn grinned. “Yay!” She said, and then brought both of her forelegs up to rapidly clap their hooves together in a gleeful outburst of joy. Said outburst only lasted a moment, however, and Luna cleared her throat as she regained her composure. Alright, now let us begin.

With that thought, the princess of the night stood up on all fours and then closed her eyes. The glow of magical energy appeared along her horn as she concentrated, pulling from from the moon itself stores of magical energy. Such use was not strictly necessary, but Luna was unsure of what would lie before her, and so she wanted to conserve her own, internal stores as much as possible. I must be careful, however, the alicorn thought, as she recalled her musings on magic flow just a few moments prior. Such ideas took a backseat, however, as she focused on crafting the spell and setting the thaumaturgical engine moving.

Time seemed to slow as the spell grew in power, and soon became self-directing. Luna continued to power it, however, and made sure to monitor its functioning as the variable-crunching algorithms drove the virtual machine. The teleportation spell, too, was charged, but it was held on standby as the seeker/tuner algorithm began to track. Luna almost lost concentration as it began to move along the unseen dimensional axes, the sensation unlike any she had felt before, save two particular instances. I felt this way both times the Elements of Harmony were used against me, Luna thought, as she recalled her banishment to the moon and the subsequent redeeming a thousand years later. The spells, however, needed tending, and so she filed away the nascent ideas already forming in her head, and instead returned to taking in the results of the seeker/tuner algorithm.

The engine spell churned rapidly now, as the seeker looked for a world with compatible environmental variables. Luna felt her mind boggle as image after image swept by, showing her strange places and stranger creatures. As time went on, however, she noticed a pattern that seemed to repeat itself over and over, at least in the beings of these other worlds. Why do so many of them look so alike? The alicorn asked herself as she took note of the similar, bipedal body structure that, despite its many variations, remained relatively unchanged from reality to reality. It was not the only one she saw, not by a long shot, and many times she caught images of quadrupeds, sextupeds, and other, more alien forms. Several times she saw ponies like the ones she ruled, and even alicorns similar to herself, but they were by far in the minority.

So, how do I choose? Luna asked herself as she tuned the thaumaturgical engine to slow its search. Which world, which reality? Do I speak with others like myself, or seek out the strangest things? And what of the oddly common bipeds?

So deep she was in thought, that she didn't notice when the seeker algorithm suddenly halted, seemingly on its own. Luna did notice, however, when she felt a tug on the spell, and a sharp tinge of fear ran up her spine as something seemed to latch onto the information stream of the seeker. Its presence was utterly strange, cold, and lifeless, yet Luna could feel a form of intelligence as it systematically probed and interacted with the seeker algorithm in a manner that was so fast even an alicorn like her could not keep up. “What is this? Who are thee?” She thought, using some of her magic to try and communicate with the other force.

“Error Code 1024: Unknown User”, a toneless, emotionless reply came. “Unauthorized interaction with the Liandri Tournament Teleportation Network is punishable by sanctions, up to and including death and/or forced competition in the Grand Tournament. Please enter your access code.”

Luna frowned at this, even as she focused some of her energy towards the differential engine in preparation to shut it down, if necessary. “I am sorry, but I know not thy words nor their meaning. I mean no harm. If I am trespassing, then I apologize.”

“Unauthorized User detected,” came the same, emotionless response. “Under New Earth Government Edict 20753: Corporate Rights and Responsibilities, the Liandri Corporation and its subsidiaries are allowed to enact proactive defense of all intellectual and physical property on offworld colonies not directly administered by the N.E.G. You are in violation of Liandri corporate policy, disengage now or face sanctions.”

She recognized none of the words and precious little of the concepts, yet Luna well understood that she had somehow butted heads with a bureaucracy. Right, there's no way I'm going to get anything useful out of this, she thought, and then used her mind to trigger the thaumaturgical engine's equivalent of an “off” switch.

It was to her credit that Luna did not immediately panic when the engine continued to run. Rather, it took a complete thought cycle of several long, agonizing seconds before the princess of the night felt her kidneys ache with the release of adrenalin. Oh no, no no no, what tomfoolery is this? She thought, and then threw her mind wholly into looking at the engine spell. It was then she realized that there was a flaw in her spellwork after all. The teleportation spell was still charged, and the processing matrix in the primary spell would not disengage without the secondary spell being properly deactivated. 'Twas only supposed to be a safety feature, to keep the teleport spell aimed and guided until it was completed! Luna mentally raged at the circumstances, but also at herself for not listening to her sister. 'Tia, you were right, I should have-

“Unauthorized User,” the cold entity interrupted her thoughts. “Under Liandri corporate policy paragraph 26 subsection 7 clause J, your violation of company property is considered a breech of the company's rights. Per Edict 20753 your rights as a free citizen are suspended pending any appeal to the N.E.G. Consulate. Teleportation hardware has been detected at your location, initializing transfer to holding area 17.”

Luna panicked. Again. She snapped open her eyes as she felt the entity reach through her spellwork faster than she could counter it, whereupon it seized control of the differential engine and set the teleportation spell into operation. As the energy started to coalesce around her, the alicorn alighted her eyes on the physical anchor she had chosen to tie into the spell; her bed. Maybe if I destroy it? She thought, and then gathered up energy to hurl a fireball towards her treasured, but still expendable furnishing.

She began to release the magic for the destructive spell just as the teleport kicked in.

* * * *

ERROR: Power Surge in Translocator Matrix 54-2z1.
ERROR: Targeting information corrupted. Parse failure: ***d*** ****-17.
INTERRUPT: New Competitor Deck-17.
ERROR: Empty Queue.
Code 11235: Queue refresh: one competitor found.
ERROR: Unknown condition. Requesting Cybernetic Input.
ID 407 “Gryph”: Just put the new meat into the game, you overheated spawn of a kludge lover. I'm not getting paid enough for this trivial crap.
NOTATION: User “Gryph” is irrationally hostile. Also is fat and smells bad.
ID 407 “Gryph”: That's it, I'm going to reformat you the hard way!
-Connection Reset by Peer-
Code 242: Notifying Liandri Authorities. “Gryph” recapture team is moving.
PROCESS: Initiating Deathmatch Protocol for Deck-17.

* * * *

Luna blinked her eyes clear as the teleport spell released her. At least, I thought it was a spell, she thought as she quickly looked around the tiny, gray room she found herself in. It almost felt as if something else took over halfway through. She soon pushed these thoughts aside, as her senses reported a bit more about her new location. To her eyes, it remained a small room, barely large enough to accommodate her, though now she noticed that there was a door of some kind set into the wall behind her. But no latch to open it from this side? She wondered, as she turned around to cast her eyes over every surface, though she saw nothing more interesting than the fact that the walls, ceiling and floor all blended together at the edges. It was her nose that told her the most of the room's purpose, as she could detect the wrenching scents of sweat, fear, and rage that filled the small compartment.

A musical tone sounded from behind her, and Luna turned to face the wall opposite of the door. A section of the wall had seemingly changed, and now the alicorn watched as images of some strange, large room began to show. “Welcome, competitor, to the Liandri Grand Tournament,” a female voice, pleasant and melodic, yet utterly devoid of emotion, seemed to come from the screen. “You have been assigned to an exhibition match on the famous Deck Seventeen. However, there are some issues: we have no records of your species or any training you may have. Do you wish a brief recap before the match begins?”

“What is this? I don't even-” Luna said, though she quickly halted and then took in a deep breath to calm herself as she closed her eyes. 'Tis time to assert myself, the alicorn thought, as she shifted her posture to look more regal. “I am princess Luna of Equestria,” she began, her voice loud and commanding as she opened her eyes and stared at the strange panel. “I demand I be released at once!”

“Subject name: Luna,” the strange voice said, with no change in tone. “The title of “princess” indicates a form of feudalism. What is the basis for your peerage?”

Luna frowned as the screen continued to only show the same, strange pictures, and the voice proved to be completely unmoved. “Now see here,” the alicorn said, resorting to using her booming voice. “We are Princess Luna, the ruler of the night, destroyer of the Shoggoths, Scourge of the Kobolds, the one whom even dragons fear to cross. Thou wilt release us from they grip or face the consequences!”

“Detecting increased levels of hyperspatial activity,” the voice replied. “Indication is that peerage is based upon personal prowess. This program has determined that you are capable for competition. Brief recap is as follows: You are only allowed to use ranged weapons or the shield gun for combat. Frags achieved using any physical advantage, such as with your horn, will not count towards your total. Your wings indicate a possibility of flight; true flight is not allowed in the tournament, though use of wings to assist in jumps and maneuvering is acceptable. Any extra-physical abilities can and will be dampened by a blanket quantum stabilization field. Your lack of manipulating limbs suggests an inability to use tools without assistance. Would you like a frame to operate your weaponry?”

The alicorn simply stared at the odd screen, unable to understand how her protests and words were so completely ignored, and yet fully understood at the same time. “Art thou even listening to me?” She demanded, lowering her voice down to a mere shout. “I am a princess! I am an alicorn! And I will not participate in any competition!”

A moment passed in silence, before a new voice, masculine and arrogant, spoke from the screen. “Listen up, meat, I don't have all day. The computer says you're being obstinate, so how about you answer me: are you able to hold a weapon and use one, or are you some kind of cripple?”

Luna felt her anger rise another notch at the impertinent tone and harsh words. “Wretched beast!” She snapped. “Give me a weapon and I shall show thee new shadings of that slur first-hoof!”

“I'll take that as a “yes”,” the voice replied. “Enjoy getting your ass handed to you, noob.”

“Match starting in five,” the female voice from earlier came on, speaking in its automatic fashion. “Four, three, two, one.”

* * * *

“Welcome back, viewers, to today's deathmatch exhibition special!” The familiar, exuberant voice of the anchorman rang in Malcolm's ears, as it usually did. The anchor sat only a few feet away, and spoke directly into the microphone sewn into his suit jacket, yet still added volume to his voice to keep the faceless crowd primed. The things I put up with for pay, the tournament veteran thought.

“Last for today is everyone's favorite, Deck Seventeen!” The anchorman continued, and then looked over to where Malcolm sat to his right. “Malcolm, you've competed hundreds of times in the old Deck Sixteen, and of course participated in the commissioning match for the current arena. What do you expect to see from today's fight?”

Malcolm smiled automatically at that, and gave thanks to whatever might be out there that the trademark sunglasses he wore kept the holocameras from picking up the annoyance his eyes would show. “Well Jim, I think today's match will be a solid show,” he said, sounding more friendly and engaging than he felt. “Now these are all low level competitors, so I don't expect anything spectacular, but anyone tuning in will certainly enjoy some quality, Liandri-brand tournament entertainment.”

“Speaking of which, the match is about to begin,” the anchor, Jim, added, and then turned back to face the main camera. Just as he did, though, the translucent eyepiece that extended from the headset he wore flashed and updated. “Well, I'm getting new information on a last minute entry. It appears to be a punishment assignment, so it will be interesting to see how this “Luna” character plays out, eh Malcolm?” He shot the question to his side with a glance.

The reigning champion shrugged at that. “Time will tell, Jim.”

“It certainly will,” Jim replied, and then nodded to the camera. “Alright, let's get to the feed and watch some carnage!”

The red light on the side of the holocamera winked out at that, though the green light remained on to let the two men at the reporting desk know that it was still primed for the director to switch back to at any time. Malcolm turned with Jim to look at one of the monitors set up for their benefit, and they watched the life feed switch to a split-screen image showing seven different views, each one focused on one of the combatants as they were teleported into the arena.

Malcolm let his eyes drift over the competitors almost automatically, already feeling bored. Robot, Cyborg, Nakhti, Hellion, Juggernaut, Mercenary, and- He blinked behind his sunglasses as his mental rundown ground to a halt when he looked at the last combatant. “What the Hell?” He asked, unconsciously.

“Seems there's a surprise in today's match after all, eh Malcolm?” Jim the anchor asked, a bit of smugness in his voice.

Snark all you want, little man, Malcolm thought, in a flash of irritation. If I weren't under contract I'd break your scrawny neck. “Seems that way, Jim,” the grand champion said, keeping his voice even, as the two were still providing commentary for the viewing public. He fell silent then as six of the combatants raced out into the arena, already seeking blood. The strange, seventh one, however, just seemed to stand there and blink in surprise as she – It looks like a she, anyways, Malcolm considered – seemed to work on regaining her bearings.

If he had to describe her, the dark skinned human would have called her a horse, or a pony of some type, albeit one with wings and a horn. Her dark blue coat nicely contrasted with her few articles of adornment and the markings on her backside, and the strange, flowing nature of her hair would be almost hypnotic in person, or so Malcolm reckoned. That and the strange, star-like winking lights in her hair indicated a being of considerable power, either through advanced technology or via simple genetic access to energy fields. It's a big galaxy, Malcolm mused. And stranger things have happened.

The feed changed now, and showed a simpler three-way split screen, with two views of the arena – both covering well traveled sections that were even now filling with players and weapons fire – dominating the available space, though the third, smallest one continued to focus on the strange quadruped. I guess the director knows when to milk the unusual, Malcolm thought, as he watched the pony – I don't think any other word really describes that thing – look around, and then notice the standard-issue tournament equipment belt around its midsection and the headset that fit snugly over both ears, despite her unusual form. Damn thing looks as clueless as it does adorable. This match is going to get real ugly if it doesn't get its head out of its ass.

* * * *

Luna glanced around nervously as she heard terrible sounds coming from down the two halls that led from the area she had appeared in. The entire room was built out of metal, which only helped echo the noise of explosions, screams, taunts, and other less identifiable noises, and it made Luna just what sort of beings had such wealth to construct such large environs out of such an expensive material.

The area she had appeared in matched one of the strange images that the panel in the last room had shown her. It was regularly shaped, with straight-edged sides and ceiling, though the floor was split, with the section she stood on the left being normal, while the other side was open to some sort of molten material, though a small ramp and platform went down almost to the surface of the red-hot fluid in the pit. On that platform some sort of odd device rotated, suspended in mid-air. Off to her left were what looked like old crates, as well as several, smaller items that looked to have been of recent manufacture.

What is going on here? What are those noises? Luna asked of herself, still unsure of what, exactly, was going on. Part of her wanted to call out, even to bellow in her royal voice, yet the sounds of suffering and war bade her to remain silent. I hath no idea what is transpiring, she reminded herself, even as her pride started to burn in her throat. I must be careful, and determine what, exactly, I hath gotten into.

A light tone sounded in her ears, then, which caused Luna to flinch in surprise. “Please note,” the emotionless female voice from earlier spoke. “That while camping during a deathmatch is technically within the rules, it is generally considered the tactic of a worthless, inbred, brain-dead, cowardly douche bag. Are you a dirty, rotten coward?”

Luna felt her temper flare at that, and she nearly growled as she spoke in reply. “Now see here you... whatever you are! I hath faced the worst demonic creatures that Discord himself spawned upon the land! If you dare-” She cut herself off then, as a bipedal creature ran into the area she was in, and then paused briefly.

It was taller than her, though not by much, and its general outline suggested some sort of femininity. Yet there was nothing feminine about its clothing, which was rough and mismatched, nor did the strange, tiny tufts of hair on her head suggest anything but clannish barbarism. Luna found this an appropriate observation, as she watched the creature's face split in a maddened grin. “Ooh, you're going to die good, fresh meat,” she said, and then brought up a large device she held in her hands.

Luna didn't know quite what to make of this development, but she did understand that the creature was wielding some form of weapon, against which the alicorn was unsure what would work as a defense. Thus, she quickly hopped to the side just before a beam of light lanced through the air from the end of the biped's weapon, and then impacted on the wall behind where Luna had been standing. Sparks flew from the impact site, and shards of metal pinged off of the wall under the weapon's furious discharge.

The alicorn, however, was not observing that too clearly, as she was more concerned that her nearly-instinctual leap had propelled her towards the pit to her right. She recognized instantly that if she continued on the arc she would end up in the fiery material, and so spread her wings and flapped once to extend her jump so she could land on the tiny platform that stood barely an inch above the molten material.

“Get back here and die!” The strange creature screamed from above, which only made Luna tense in a fear she hadn't known in ages. That voice spoke of weapons, where are they? She asked of herself, and then looked around to consider her options. The ramp back up was long and had nothing to shield it, and already she saw the head of the creature bob above the lip of the upper floor as it ran to cut off her escape. Luna considered flying out, but she knew that she would be a sitting duck until she gained enough speed, and the area she was in looked too small for flying, anyway. As she looked around, though, the alicorn spotted the odd device she had noted earlier, and the similarity of the general shape to the weapon the biped used helped her realize that it might also be a weapon of a sort. A large opening and several control-like buttons and even a curved lever of a sort indicated that it was supposed to be manipulated by a being with hands, rather than hooves.

A searing pain erupted in Luna's side just then, and she was shoved forward, over the rotating device on the floor and into the wall just beyond it. She yelped in pain and crumpled to the hot metal flooring, though she managed to quickly roll over to face towards her attacker.

The biped's grin was as maniacal as ever, as it halted on the ramp and seemed to take time to carefully aim its next attack. Luna felt a wave of panic wash over her, as she realized that only a truly powerful weapon could hurt a being such as her, and in that panic she reached out with her telekinesis for the spinning device between her and the biped. Her mental grip tugged the weapon up and out of some sort of energy field that felt similar to magic, but Luna gave it no thought as she snapped the open end of the weapon towards her attacker and then used her telekinesis to press down on every surface of the weapon that might be a control.

Fortune favored her, as one of the first things she pressed was the curved lever. The device savagely bucked in her grip as a cloud of searing hot metal fragments were blasted out of its opening and flew straight for the biped. Time seemed to slow down for Luna just then, as her mind kicked into an adrenalin-fueled overdrive that only heightened her already considerable mental prowess, and so the alicorn watched as an expression of fear washed over the other female's face in the split second between the time the metal fragments were launched and their impact into her soft flesh.

Luna watched in morbid fascination as the biped's body started to tear apart. Yet as she watched, her connection with the ether and her own light-fast mind showed some sort of brief ripple that raced over the biped. The alicorn had no time to process it, and only noted that after the ripple, the other female's face was now blandly neutral, and indeed all of its muscles seemed to begin relaxing.

They of course didn't have a chance, as the metal fragments finished their job and blasted through the being's torso, burning and ripping apart everything they touched, until nothing but an expanding cloud of red mist was left.

Time seemed to speed back up to normal as the threat passed, and Luna frowned as she saw the pile of gore and severed limbs that was once a living being. “What in the name of the heavens hath I done?” She asked, while she slowly stood up.

“You just scored your first frag,” a male voice, different from the one she had heard in the last room, spoke up. “You seem to be rather new at this, so let me give you some pointers,” he continued. “You're in a match where everyone is trying to kill you, and you are trying to kill them. Now-”

“That is barbaric!” Luna snapped, interrupting the voice.

“Of course,” the male voice snapped. “But it is what it is. Now, you can either participate, or you can sit in that corner and wait for Greith to come back and make you pay for killing her and interrupting her fun.”

Luna blinked at that. “Come back? As what, a spirit?” She asked, in a skeptical tone.

“She wasn't completely dead before the respawners replaced her body with a double and then fixed her up,” the voice replied. “She's already heading for your location right now. So unless you want to feel what it's like to be shot over and over and over again, I'd suggest you get off that ass of yours and go out and take the fight to the other competitors.”

The alicorn frowned at that, suspicious as she was becoming of everything in this strange and hostile world. Yet the throbbing pain in her side where the biped's beam weapon had hit her told Luna that it was a dangerous world even for one such as her, and her instinct told her that she should take help wherever she could find it. “Any suggestions, then?” She asked of the voice as she started to trot up the ramp.

“Keep moving, don't slow down, and shoot everything that moves,” the male voice replied. “The belt you're wearing has a matter formatting device that can store more weapons so you won't become overburdened, and the headset you're wearing has a brainwave scanner tied into it, so all you have to do is think of a number associated with a certain weapon to call it out and replace the one you currently have.”

“How would something like that work?” Luna asked, as she gingerly hoofed her way around the body on the ramp. She paused, though, as the weapon the creature had been using disappeared in a brief flash of light, and a slight “click” sounded in her ears.

“Just like that,” the male voice said. “Everything is made to be as automatic as possible, so that you can concentrate on fighting. Weapons and ammunition are picked up just by passing over them, and all of the weapons auto-load so long as you have ammo for 'em.”

An explosion sounded very close as Luna reached the top of the ramp, and she started and spun around in time to see burning fragments of flesh bounce from behind the crates in the middle of the left passage that led out from the area she was in. Before she could recoil in horror, a large bipedal creature – neigh, that is a machine, she realized – ran forward and into her sight. It seemed to spot her, and it turned and aimed a large weapon that had three openings towards her. “Flesh is a design flaw,” it said, its voice harsh and grating, just before a projectile erupted from the topmost opening of the weapon and streaked forward ahead a gout of flame.

Luna was prepared for this, though, and she dodged again, though this time she jumped high and to the left, using her wings to boost her height so she could land on one of the short crates sitting against the wall of the room. The projectile aimed at her slammed into the wall with and exploded, but she ignored it and instead aimed her large weapon and then fired. Once again, a cloud of metal fragments raced outwards, reaching for her opponent and ripping into its metal carapace.

“Flak cannons aren't so good at that range,” the male voice said over her headset. “Use the shock rifle you just picked up. Think of the number “four”.”

The princess of the night did as instructed, even as she dodged back off the crates to avoid another flame-riding projectile. The weapon in her telekinetic grip disappeared in what she would later describe as “ a slip perpendicular to reality”, and another one appeared in its place; the same weapon the first biped has used against her. It too had a curved lever, and Luna wasted no time in aiming its opening at the attacking machine and then firing.

A beam of cerulean light lanced out, which made the weapon buck in her grip. However, the effect it had on the machine creature was more profound, as it was shoved backwards and tripped onto its back over a set of stairs leading into the right side corridor. Luna didn't even think as she aimed the weapon and then fired again, and then again, skewering the machine until on the third beam it exploded in a shower of metal fragments and sparks.

“Well, looks like you have a killer instinct after all,” the helpful male voice spoke over the headset, sounding smug.

“'Twas only adrenalin,” Luna countered, as she breathed heavily. Yet, even as she spoke, a part of her felt a twinge of satisfaction at having bested a being that had attempted to destroy her.

“Oh, there's that too,” the voice added. “But we can talk about that and other things after the match. Right now, you've still got a battle on your hands, so you should really concentrate on trying to fight it.”

Luna frowned at that, and then opened her mouth to argue. However, the sound of footfalls from nearby reminded her of just the sort of situation she was in, and the alicorn decided that at the very least, she could remain on the move. I can analyze the situation later, she thought. At the moment, survival is paramount.

* * * *

“Hyena delivers another humiliating headshot to Rylisa!” The anchor, Jim, was saying as Malcolm walked back into the studio booth. The well dressed man at the desk shot the grand champion a dirty look, but otherwise showed no response to Malcolm's sudden departure or return.

Even that look was pushing it, Malcolm thought as he regained his seat behind the desk. I'm going to have a talk with the Liandri rep about the punks they stick me with.

“And Corrosion gets taken down again by the mysterious Luna,” the anchorman added. Malcolm looked to the match display at that, and he suppressed a smile as he saw the four-legged creature give an angry kick to one of the pieces of the destroyed robot's frame. Getting angry, good, he thought, as he watched the dark blue creature turn and abruptly switch weapons from the shock rifle to the rocket launcher. She still was only moving from cover to cover, though, not really searching for targets, but Malcolm knew that would come in time. This one is going to be interesting, he thought, wheels already spinning in his head as he watched Greith chase the quadruped down the upper corridor.

* * * *

“Die, bitch!” The biped from earlier was back, and the weapon it had this time spat out small bursts of deadly green flame. She seemed intent on filling the air with them, and Luna felt her flank burn as several of the bolts slammed into her upper leg. Fortunately, cover was close at hoof, and she dove behind a solid-looking crate to avoid being roasted.

I know that feeling, Luna thought, as she took a moment to catch her breath. 'Tis plasma, like the sun, or a lightning bolt. The alicorn grimaced at that, and wondered again just what sort of world she had come into that had such destructive weapons at hoof. Worry later, she thought, as she switched weapons to the “flak cannon”, as she remembered the device being called. “Have at thee!” She said, and then jumped back into the open side of the corridor.

She saw only open space, however, and then blinked in surprise. Understanding was only a moment away, however, as Luna heard a snicker behind her, and then spared a glance back to see the ugly biped aiming its weapon at her at a distance of mere inches. “Dodge this,” she said, and then fired a searing beam of concentrated plasma.

Luna screamed as the fiercely energetic matter tore at her, but being of alicorn constitution, she bore under it and survived, albeit singed. “My turn!” She yelled, and then bucked hard with her rear legs. Both hooves connected, and the biped went flying backwards and into the air, before her arc carried her to the the steps that Luna had climbed up not seconds ago. The hostile female bounced several times as she rolled down the stairs, and then groaned when she came to a stop at the bottom.

Luna snorted at that, and then turned to stand at the top of the stairs as she switched weapons again, this time pulling out a weapon she had only seen used by others so far, but that was enough for her to understand its purpose clearly. “And stay down!” She yelled, and then hit the trigger on the large weapon. A whine was heard as the several long tubes that constituted the majority of its mass started to spin, and a split-second later the weapon started to shake in Luna's telekinetic grip as it spat out hundreds of thousands of lead projectiles in a near-constant stream. All of which were aimed with careful, deadly precision towards the biped as she struggled to regain her footing.

The being didn't, of course, and Luna sneered as the body below was ripped apart by her weapon. It didn't last long, though, as the weapon clicked and ground to a halt within a second, and Luna spared a quick glance to the little, glowing red numbers on the side of the device. “000”, I suppose that is an ammunition counter, the alicorn thought, even as she switched back to the flak cannon. Part of her gave voice to the concern it had over the carnage she had so callously inflicted, and Luna sensed that a line had been crossed when she had finished the biped off instead of simply running away while she had an opening. Yet even as this crossed her mind, another voice reminded her that no matter what magic was in effect that brought these beings back to life, it was still a very deadly and painful game being played, and whether she liked it or not, she needed to play along. For now, Luna thought, and then turned to race up the corridor.

She had only gone a few paces when another being, this one dressed in some sort of stylized armor, backpedaled into the middle of the corridor from an exit set into the side wall. Its attention was focused back the way it came, and it was firing the same kind of weapon that had been carried by the biped Luna had just dispatched.

Briefly, she considered holding fire, but this thought was drowned by something Luna hadn't felt since being cleansed by the Elements of Harmony; bloodlust. Her eyes narrowed as she aimed the flak cannon, and then fired, and when the metal shards ripped apart her enemy, she grinned.

“Killing Spree!” A voice announced in her ears, which made Luna start a bit and scrabble her hoofs to a halt so she could look around her. Then she remembered the strange device on her head, and realized that this voice, while male, had sounded different from the earlier voices. Odd, why would it tell me-

Her train of thought derailed as the singed bulk of an armored, immense biped stormed into the T-junction, and then rounded on her with a snarl while her weapon rotated oddly. “You stole my kill!” The female bellowed – dear heavens how is that thing female? Luna briefly wondered – and then fired. Three rockets reached out for the alicorn, corkscrewing around themselves as they raced forward.

* * * *

“Ouch! Luna ends Hyena's killing spree just in time for Rylisa to end hers,” Jim said, his voice oozing excitement.

“It was a good play by Rylisa, charging her rockets up like that,” Malcolm chimed in, even as he kept an eye on Luna whenever she was shown on screen. “Seems she got a bit mad Luna took her kill.”

“You can say that again,” Jim added. “Speaking of which, Luna seems to be suffering from first-death shock. Let's see how she recovers.”

* * * *

Luna blinked as the odd feeling of the almost-but-not-quite teleportation spell released her. She looked around and wondered what had happened, and soon enough realized she was at the far end of the corridor she had just been in, facing the opposite direction she had only moments ago. Further down, she saw the immense bipedal female doing a series of curious hip-thrusts, and further yet she saw something that made her stomach churn. Heavens above, is that... me? She asked of herself, as various chunks of blue-coated flesh lay on the metal decking.

Something the male voice had said earlier came to mind just then. He called them “respawners,” said they took that Greith person and snatched her from certain death to replace her with a false body. Luna took in a deep breath to calm herself as she contemplated this. I am not dead. Not yet, anyway, she thought, and then looked around for a new weapon. She saw one sitting next to her, and she quickly picked it up with her telekinesis. And not a moment too soon, the alicorn thought as she saw the immense biped turn and spot her.

Luna brought the new weapon up and aimed it, but then blinked as she realized it had some sort of optical telescope on top. Some sort of very long range weapon? She asked herself. Such thoughts, though, disappeared when one of the rockets from the huge female raced in and then blasted a chunk out of the floor just in front of the alicorn. Right, fight now, think later, Luna mused, and then brought the weapon up further so she could peer through the telescope.

The figure bounding towards her, firing rockets, loomed large in the apparatus, but Luna held onto her nerves. Armor everywhere... but the head, the princess of the night realized. It seemed an odd oversight, but she did not pause to consider it before she moved the marked point in the middle of the telescope's vision over the charging female's head, and then used her telekinesis to pull the curved lever that triggered the weapon's discharge.

Once again, the alien weapon bucked in her magical grip, though this time Luna paid it no heed as a streak moved out faster than thought to slam into the huge female's head, which exploded in a shower of gore. “Headshot!” The third male voice spoke into her ears, as if to affirm the skill of the attack.

Another lead-thrower, Luna realized as she lowered the weapon after making sure her most recent opponent was indeed down. The accuracy of this weapon is most pleasing, the dark alicorn mused, and then nursed the thrill that raced down her back at the odd confirmation of her kill.

Before she could muse on it further, or even remind herself to keep moving, a loud horn sounded throughout the massive arena. It blared for a good five seconds, and then was replaced by an energetic female's voice. “Match over,” the woman said. “Hyena wins, first to reach twenty-five frags. All players are to lower weapons and observe post-game protocols.”

Luna once again found herself frozen in surprise and confusion, unsure of what to do. As she was looking around, though, a series of small lights buried into the floor and walls came on, and started flashing in a pattern that made them appear to move in a certain direction. The alicorn princess took only a moment to realize that the lights were meant to guide anyone inside the arena towards what she presumed would be the exit. Well, what else do I have to do? She asked herself, and then started to walk carefully down the long corridor, still levitating her weapon and holding it in front of her, ready to use at a moment's notice.

The winking lights led her to take a left into the opening where the two bipeds she'd last encountered has come through, and Luna paused as she emerged into a wide, cavernous central area that stretched several stories high. Multiple ramps, levels, and platform were spread out all over, creating a visually interesting and, Luna realized, tactically diverse setting. They called this a game, she thought as she followed the light trails down the middle ramp she walked on. Despite the terrible nature of it, I am beginning to see why they consider it so.

She tensed as she saw several bipeds pass through one of the lower corridors the lights were guiding her towards, but her worry was brief, as she saw that they were relaxed themselves. None of them had their weapons raised for use, and all of them walked almost casually, though the alicorn saw several shoot hateful glances at one another. Not a friendly competition, Luna realized, and then snorted while she resumed walking. We use weapons to kill each other, of course it's not-

Yet again, Luna had to pause, this time as her mind finally had a moment to catch up on all that had happened to her in what had only been the last hour or so. Oh... my heavens... She thought, eyes going wide as the memory of the battle just past played through her mind's eye. I fought, I killed, and towards the end... I enjoyed it.

Luna shuddered at that, and then turned her head to look back over her body. Aside from some superficial singe marks, she looked none the worse for wear, though it was not damage she was checking on, but whether or not the fearsome, black body of her past alter-ego had returned. The alicorn sighed in relief as she saw that she remained herself, though the relief quickly changed into fear. But if I am not turning back into Nightmare Moon, Luna worried, then how do I explain my bloodlust? My anger and desire for not just survival, but victory in a bloodsport I had not even conceived of barely an hour ago?

“Player Luna,” the emotionless female voice sounded in her ears via the strange device. “You are waylaying the cleanup crew. Please head for the exit.”

“Oh, now thou art polite,” Luna grumbled. She nevertheless started moving again, and then started to ponder on her situation, and specifically, how to return home. The Engine is supposed to have a recall function, else it would be a one-way trip, the dark alicorn thought as she automatically followed the lights, the weapon in her telekinetic grip merely hovering at her side, now. Hay, 'tis half the reason for the physical anchor in the first place. I do not think I managed to destroy it, but the spell was not completed properly, of that I am sure. A disturbing thought crossed Luna's mind at that, and she bit her lower lip as she reached out with her magic in an attempt to find the thread of thaumaturgic energy that the spell should have left connected to her.

Two things immediately became apparent from this attempt: firstly, the thread was nowhere to be seen, even to an alicorn's advanced magical senses, and secondly, there was a blanket of some sort of counter-potential field that was dampening anything magical that required more energy than simple telekinesis. I dost not think that I could even teleport out of here, Luna thought, and then paused in her movement yet again, this time to slap a forehoof across her face. Why did I not try that earlier? Why did I not leave this place, wherever it is, instead of playing into these demented beings' sick desires?

“Out of my way, meatbag,” a harsh, mechanical voice said from behind her. Luna broke out of her reverie at that, and then glanced behind her to see another machine entity, though this one looked more rounded and almost lifelike compared to the vaguely insectoid one she had faced during the fight. Luna then realized she had stopped in the middle of a doorway set into one of the outer walls of the combat arena, having unconsciously followed the guiding lights towards it. A glance to either side showed the alicorn that the door had been a hidden one, carefully disguised to appear like another part of the wall. It was narrow enough that only one being at a time could pass through it, though the corridor it gave access to was easily twice as wide.

“I said move, fleshling,” the machine biped said, its voice rising in pitch to show anger, even as it abruptly snapped a foot out and kicked Luna's rump. The alicorn was sent flying a few feet through the air and into the access corridor, and then landed belly first on the hard metal grating that formed the walkway.

Luna groaned in pain, and she heard the sounds of laughter from somewhere up ahead. Right, that's it, the princess thought, as she stood up on all fours again. A quick mental probe showed her that the strange magic-dampening field seemed to have trailed off with the distance from the arena, and she smirked as she turned and saw the machine biped advancing on her again. “Thou should learn some manners, wretch,” she said, her voice dripping with anger.

“You are inferior,” the machine calmly replied, even as it turned to walk around her. “I do not respect inferior beings.”

“Then respect this,” Luna said, as the aura of magic around her horn flared. A matching aura enveloped the machine biped, which was then lifted and had its limbs spread outwards until it was floating in the middle of the corridor, unable to move. It tried, of course, and its body made tiny whines as the strange devices that gave it motion struggled with Luna's telekinetic grip, but the dark alicorn was not so easily overwhelmed. Not now that I have time to assess and understand my foe, Luna thought, even as the anger from earlier rose in her mind again.

Mother always did say I had a bad temper, the night princess thought, even as a grin spread on her muzzle. “What is the matter, tool?” Luna asked, her voice now dripping with satisfaction at finally having gotten the upper hoof in the insanity that had overtaken her life. “No statements of superiority now?” She asked, as she levitated her weapon from where she had dropped it after being kicked, and then brought it up to point the business end at the metal monstrosity from a mere inch away. “No more derisive mockery of mine body from whatever thou uses as a speech orifice?”

“That's enough,” a voice said from behind her. Luna froze for a moment, as she recognized it despite having only heard it briefly before. She turned her head around to look behind her, and saw several bipeds further down the corridor. Most wore some sort of gray overall that covered their bodies, but one was dressed in green armor of a sort, and wore upon his head a beret and covered his eyes with sunglasses. “I'm sure Axon deserves whatever you want to do to him,” the latter figure spoke. “But I'm also sure that Liandri doesn't take kindly to off-screen fighting. They like to keep it in the arenas; cheaper to clean up that way, and easier to record for broadcast.”

Luna narrowed her eyes at the dark-skinned biped and considered his words for a moment. Then, without moving her gaze away from the new figure, she lowered the offending machine warrior to the deck and then released it, even as she brought her weapon back to hover at her side. “This Liandri,” she began, her voice low and coy. “I take it he runs things around here?”

“It's more of an it,” the biped replied, as he brought up his arms and crossed them over his chest. “But yeah, it runs things around here.”

“I see,” Luna said, and then turned to face the machine being she had so recently released. It had remained still and watched the exchange with the impassive detachment only a machine could maintain, and thus was an easy target when Luna shoved her weapon at it so fast that a crack was heard as it broke the sound barrier. The long weapon slammed into the mechanical being so fast that it cracked the outer carapace and sent it flying backwards, back into the combat arena. A loud thud announced the rude machine's landing on the decking, and Luna turned around completely to face the other bipeds head-on. “Then you can tell it that princess Luna of Equestria wishes a word with it.”

The dark-skinned biped smiled at that, and then reached up with a hand to remove his shades. “Tell you what,” he said, with a nod towards the princess. “It's obvious you're not from around here. How about I explain how things work here, and why going on a rampage won't get you what you want? And then after that, we can talk about what you can do to get what you want.” He replaced his shades back upon his head at that, and then crossed his arms again. “Sound good to you?”

Luna frowned as she considered the being's words. Should I trust this creature, despite the fact that this whole reality has done nothing but kidnap and try to kill me? She wondered. But on the other hoof, he did give me good advice in the arena, which undoubtedly helped me stay away from the worst ravages of the fight.

Yes, and encouraged you to fight back, as well, a voice argued inside her head. Wouldst thou hath felt bloodlust again, had thou simply hid and waited the battle out?

Yet at the same time, I need information about where I am. If I cannot find the spell thread leading me back... At the very least, I will need resources to try and find or create another spell to take me home.

After a few moments of thinking, Luna sighed, and then nodded to the creature. “Very well,” she said, and then took a few cautious steps forward to close the gap between them. “Let us speak of such things, mister...?”

“You can call me Malcolm,” the being replied. “Just Malcolm. Now, let's get out of here.”

* * * *

Luna took in a deep breath, and then let it out slowly, despite the tickle in her throat that urged her to cough. Such a dirty place, this is, she thought, as she gazed out over the sunset-lit cityscape below her.

True to his word, Malcolm had led the alicorn out from the massive complex of various enclosed arena stages, and then to one of the many observation decks that dotted the side of the so-called “arcology” that housed the Tournament's smaller venues. The view was less than inspiring to the princess of the night, as the city the arcology sat in stretched from horizon to horizon, with only occasional spots of green parkland to interrupt the carpet of concrete, metal, glass, and pavement. Much of the area that they could see from this platform was industrial, with large apartment buildings built in occasional clusters, though off to her right Luna saw the buildings grow taller and taller yet, as if to mimic a mountain range and its foothills. Even countless stories up, the noise of the streets reached their ears, and Luna had to fold hers back at times as a particularly offensive sound caressed them. Most such noise, however, came from the occasional flying machine as they raced through the air, flittering back and forth across the massive urban area.

“So, magic, huh?” Malcolm asked from Luna's left, where he stood leaning against the railing at the edge of the platform. “We tend to call it hyperspace warping or quantum probability fields, here,” he went on. “And we use machines to do it. But yeah, it's not hard to wrap my head around it.”

Luna sighed at that, grateful that the “human”, as she learned his race was called, seemed to believe her story. “Thou seems rather open to the idea,” she said, still suspicious of any ready acceptance. “Yet thee laughed when I first mentioned it.”

Malcolm shrugged at that. “Well, humans have stories of “magic” from in our ancient past. But that sort of magic was nothing more than superstition, slight-of-hand, and lies. When we developed science as a methodology, we tossed the idea of magic into the “kids-only” bin.

“But even so, we've developed a lot of stuff that people of the past would call “magic”,” Malcolm continued. “And in the last two centuries of interstellar flight, we've come across a lot of strange doings in the galaxy. Hell, you're not even the weirdest thing I've had a conversation with.”

“Thank ye, I think?” Luna asked, unsure of what to make of the comment.

“Take it as a compliment,” Malcolm added. “Though being different doesn't hurt, so long as you're not too different. A sapient like you can go far in the tournament just from novelty appeal alone, especially with a good team like ThunderCrash at your back.”

Luna huffed at that, and then turned to walk several paces away. “I believe we hath gone over this,” she said, speaking patiently. “I do not wish to partake in thy species' cruel games.”

“Then what do you plan on doing?” Malcolm asked, his tone slightly taunting. “You already told me you don't know how to get back home yet, you don't have any money here, and you're still so naïve when it comes to the technology and culture we got here.” He paused at that, and then waited for Luna to turn and face him before he went on. “If you play the game, and do it just as flashy as you were today, then you'll make a name for yourself. That will bring you money, which you can use to buy stuff that can help you find your way back home.” Malcolm paused again, this time as a growl emanated from Luna's stomach, and he smiled. “Plus, there's the whole feeding yourself thing, too.”

“Indeed,” Luna muttered, and then turned to look out over the city again. I detest this idea so much, the alicorn thought, as she mulled over the human's offer and suggestions. And not merely from the fact that it is barbaric. What I felt today was frightening, disturbing even. Luna suppressed a shudder as the memories of a few hours past rolled through her head. And yet... I do not quite feel the same as the time before I changed into Nightmare Moon. I did not, in fact, first taste bloodlust until well after my dark transformation all those years ago. Yet now I hath felt it coursing through me, narrowing my vision and coursing up my spine in the midst of battle.

She could not suppress the shudder this time, and Luna felt a frustrated confusion at the vague hints of mental pleasure that matched the sensation. Is this an effect of this world? Some sort of side effect of the strange events that brought me here? Or is it... something more primal? Something from deep within my own mind, from the subconscious? Again her memories cast back, and the alicorn thought of the way she had dispatched the biped called Greith. I did not merely want her to stop hurting me just then, I wanted to make sure she would never hurt me ever again. 'Tis the survival instinct, yet something about the situation, about the fight twisted it, perverted it, and turned it into a mental tool that let me do what was necessary.

Luna blinked as that thought ran across her mind. Wait, “necessary”? 'Twas not necessary to kill, and to do so in such a terribly vindictive fashion!

And yet... that little voice inside her chimed in again. Wasn't it, in a way? Whether or not death in the arena is real, it still hurts, a lot. And Malcolm did explain that the “respawners” aren't perfect; real death still occurs with regularity. Perhaps the survival instinct was twisted, but only because this is a twisted place, with twisted ideas. But if they are the rules of this reality, one must play by them, lest one become an outcast like Discord.

Some time passed as Luna further pondered her situation and feelings. Eventually, though, she blinked herself out of her trance-like rumination, and then cast a glance towards Malcolm. The human had seemed to understand her need to process the information, and had turned to look out over the cityscape as the daylight slowly faded into a purple twilight. Now that the alicorn pony had glanced at him, though, he turned back to her and gave a wan smile. “Thought it over?” He asked.

“Mostly,” Luna allowed. “There is but one thing I do not quite understand just yet. Rather, one immediately important thing.”

“Oh?” Malcolm asked, as he pushed off from the railing to stand fully erect. “And what might that be?”

Luna tilted her head and regarded the human with a look for a brief moment before she answered. “What do you get out of helping somepo- someone like me?”

Malcolm smiled again at this. Good to see the girl ain't stupid, he thought. “Simple enough,” he began. “You're new, you're interesting, and you're good at the game. If you join the tournament and improve, any team that has you will get all sorts of offers and challenges for games. And the more we play, the more we get paid for appearing, which only gets multiplied when we win. And ThunderCrash wins a lot. We've got some of the best talent around, but it never hurts to have more.

“So to succinctly answer your question, princess,” the human continued. “You're a novelty, but you also look like you have raw talent for the games as well. Combine those two and you'll be quite popular, and make a lot of money for yourself and whichever team you join.” Malcolm paused then to nod at the alicorn. “So we can help each other for our goals pretty well, I'd say.”

“I see,” Luna said, and then considered this for a moment longer. At the end of that moment, she sighed, and then proffered a hoof. “Then let the deal be done.”

Malcolm grinned again, and then took the pony's limb in his hand and shook it. “It's a deal, alright,” he said. “Welcome to the Tournament.”

Part 3 – December

The first sensation she had was of the rough surface she lied upon, as it dug through her regal coat to irritate the skin along her back. This bed is substandard, was the first cognizant thought she had, though it was quickly joined by: Oh dear heavens why does my face hurt so much? Wait, is somepony talking to me?

Her mind stirred more as her brain finally started to process sound impulses relayed from her ears. The noises were muffled, to be sure, though Celestia—right, that's my name, part of her remembered—could recognize the distinctive tones of someone shouting or yelling over some sort of noise that remained unidentified even with her memory returning.

“'Tia! Oh for heavens' sake, wake up!” Celestia recognized the words now, though the voice was still a bit muffled. Strange, nopony calls me that, the white alicorn thought as she started to stir. Only Luna does. Wait, that does sound like her. That thought set loose her memory, and Celestia snapped her eyes wide open as the last image she saw rolled through her mind. Luna?

Standing above her was indeed Luna, though it took the white alicorn a moment to recognize her strange appearance. Her mane did not flow with the ethereal currents as it had done since she regained her power, but instead consisted of the light blue strands that the dark alicorn had been born with. The ornate yet functional green armor Luna wore also served to interfere with Celestia's recognition, but a look into the younger mare's eyes convinced the white alicorn that this was indeed her sister.

Yet even as she realized this, Celestia saw a disturbing nervous tic twitch the corner of Luna's eye, which itself was rather wide open with the pupil narrower than it should have been. “Heavens, 'Tia, you scared the living wits out of me,” the younger alicorn said, as she saw her sister awake. “I'm so sorry, so so very sorry I shot you,” she continued, speaking fast and with a strong undercurrent of urgency. “I thought you were a Juggernaut trying to be clever for once with a translocator.”

“What?” Celestia asked, befuddled as she was in the presence of her sister's odd language and the headache that still hadn't left her. “Luna, what is going on? What are you talking about?”

“I can't talk now, I'm in the middle of a flag run,” Luna replied, and then glanced behind her. “Can you walk? Better yet, can you run?” She asked, while turning her head back to face her sister.

“I—” Celestia began, but the look in Luna's eyes and the memory of the weapon strike to her face told the elder sister that some sort of battle must be in progress. “Yes, I believe I can,” Celestia said, and then slowly got to her hooves. She almost lost her balance, though, when the sounds of explosions startled her. “What was that?”

“Aryss just got fragged,” Luna replied, her tone darkening even as she turned around and leveled the strange object—no, not just any object, a weapon, Celestia realized—and faced back the way she had come only a short time before. “Which means I should fire... now,” the younger alicorn said to herself. Her telekinetic aura over the weapon brightened a bit as the weapon launched a glowing, semi-transparent blue-white orb to sail down the corridor.

Even as she watched this in confusion, Celestia found her attention drawn further down by the arrival of three large bipeds, who all seemed to have jumped down the same way Luna had taken, albeit in a much less graceful manner. Each of them carried some strange weapon in their hands, though their leader was already raising his hand to point down the corridor. “There sheee-IT!” He said, changing his alert to a curse as he saw Luna's blue-white orb sailing towards them, just over their heads.

It was at this moment that Luna fired her weapon again, this time sending out a brilliant lance of purple-tinged energy that raised Celestia's hackles as she recognized it from firsthoof experience. She had no time to mull on this, however, as the beam reached out at the speed of light itself and, with Luna's true aim, lanced into the orb just as the latter was right over the trio of bipeds. In a time too short to measure but too long to be ignored, the orb detonated in a furious explosion that quite literally ripped the bipeds apart in a manner that bespoke of an impersonal, almost eldritch fury, and Celestia winced as the thunderclap of the eruption pounded her ears.

“My house!” Luna boomed, her infamous Royal Canterlot Voice echoing off of the various walls. She turned back around then, and Celestia felt another wave of shock as she saw an eminent look of satisfaction, and even enjoyment upon her sister's face. “Come now,” the dark alicorn said, as she trotted past her elder sibling. “We must get you to safety, and finish my run, of course.”

“Luna!” Celestia said, and then gaped at the armored alicorn as she turned her head back at the exclamation. “You just killed sapient beings!”

“I assure you, 'Tia, that Juggernauts barely qualify as such,” Luna replied with a roll of her eyes as she turned back to face her sister. “Now let us move before they respawn and I have to do it again. As enjoyable as it is, fragging doesn't win CTF matches.”

“How can you say that?” Celestia asked, incredulous at Luna's insensitive dismissal. “How can you be so callous?”

“You get fragged by them a few dozen times and then we'll see how you feel,” Luna retorted, and then turned around again, before she shot a backwards glance at the white alicorn. “Now are you coming, or will I have to drag you with my TK? This is not a safe place to talk.”

Celestia couldn't help but stare at her sister for a long moment in shock and confusion. “Luna, what—”

“LUNA!” A shout came from deeper in the building, and both alicorns turned to see another biped, this one armored like the princess of the night, rushing out from behind a corner. “What the Hell are you doing? Run the flag in, now!”

Luna sighed at that, and as she did so the weapon she carried disappeared in a flash and was replaced by another, similarly-shaped, yet different weapon. “I assure you, Riker,” she said, and then turned the weapon in her telekinetic grip to point to her left, back towards the open air. Celestia followed the movement and looked out just in time to see another immense biped land where its mates had died. Then it, too, was slain, as Luna's weapon bucked and spat out a lead slug that immediately flew out and exploded the incoming enemy's head. “That I have everything under control,” Luna added, once the report of her weapon died away.

“Showoff,” Riker grumbled, and then looked over to Celestia. He stared for a moment, and then reached up with a hand to pull down the mirrored sunglasses he habitually wore. “What the Hell? You bringing your friends along now?”

“'Tis my sister,” Luna replied, and then looked back to Celestia. “Who is asking to get her head shot off by the red team because she refuses to move.”

Celestia opened her mouth to respond to the vaguely patronizing tone of Luna's voice, but Riker spoke first. “She ain't as swift as you then, is she?” He asked, and then looked over at Celestia again. “She's got a nicer ass, though.”

“What!” Celestia exclaimed, taken aback by such comments.

“I'm not surprised,” Luna replied. “She does love her cake. But we can talk about your perversions later, Riker; for now, cover the entrance,” the dark alicorn added, and then used her magic to nudge Celestia forward. “Come on, 'Tia,” she said, and then started to canter off.

Confused and flabbergasted as she was, Celestia hesitated for a moment. The sounds of more explosions in the distance, however, made her realize that stubbornness was not appropriate at the moment, and she cantered off after her sister. “Luna, what in heavens is going on?” The white alicorn asked as the two ran through the somewhat large antechamber, and then ducked into a narrow corridor.

“We're in the middle of a capture the flag match,” Luna replied without looking back, as she led her sister around a narrow bend in the corridor. “Why else do you think I have this banner affixed to my back?”

Celestia glanced at the indicated object just before Luna ducked to the right and through a door that opened by itself. Although distracted by the strange door, Celestia did see that there was indeed a symbol-bearing cloth banner hanging from a pole that somehow stayed attached to Luna's armored back through means the elder princess could not fathom at the moment. She put such musings out of her head, however, as she followed Luna through the door and promptly into a small outdoor courtyard.

The sky above was bleak and gray, but Celestia paid it little attention as she followed her sister up a grated ramp that led up, and then bent around one of two massive concrete anchors for buttresses that supported the building they had just left. Scarcely had Celestia followed her sister around the bend when she had to skitter to a halt as Luna abruptly slowed down, and then stopped next to another banner, this one blue and adorned with a different symbol. As soon as the dark alicorn stopped next to it, the flag on her back disappeared in a brief flash, and Celestia startled when a brief fanfare erupted seemingly from thin air around her, and an excited voice shouted forth: “Blue team increases their lead!”

“There,” Luna said, an air of smug satisfaction falling about her as she turned to fully face her sister. “Now we may have a moment to speak,” the dark alicorn said, even as she glanced about, the weapon she continually levitated sweeping around with her gaze.

Celestia just stared in mute shock for several moments as her mind desperately tried to process all that had occurred since she had arrived in this reality. She found, much to her surprise, that it wasn't the senselessly over the top violence that most confounded her, but rather Luna's calm acceptance of it. Or even, dare I think it? Eagerness, the elder mare thought, and then blinked her eyes to help clear her mind. “Luna...” she began, and then shook her head as her thoughts once again tripped over themselves. “I don't understand what's happening. I came looking for you because you went missing and there were signs of a struggle and I find you here running around shooting bipeds like they don't deserve to live and your compatriot hit on me and why are you grinning?”

Indeed, Luna's face had split in amusement, and the smile on her muzzle was soon joined by a soft, friendly shake of the midnight blue head. “'Tia, I'm just happy to see you again,” she warmly said. “It's been over ten years and I was beginning to think you had abandoned me,” she added. The warm smile died then, and Celestia felt a chill run down her spine as Luna's eyes narrowed so slightly. “But that begs the question of why did it take you so long?”

Celestia bristled at that, and she let her wings ruffle to show her emotion. “It was only a week from my perspective,” she curtly replied. “The runes in your spell for linking the temporal frames were damaged when you came here.”

Luna blinked at that, and a chagrined look came over her features. “I... I did not think of that,” she said, meekly. “'Tia, I—”

The sound of a nearby explosion broke into their conversation then, and Luna spun about and ran for the opposite ramp of the raised walkway they stood upon. “Perhaps we should finish this conversation after the match,” the dark alicorn said, all traces of her recalcitrance gone as she turned to look down the ramp, her weapon pointing to wherever her eyes moved. “It won't be long, we only need one more flag capture to win the game.”

“Game?” Celestia asked, utterly flabbergasted. “Luna, you've been killing sapients! How could you possibly call it a game?”

“They're not really dead,” Luna said, as she turned her head to look to her sister. “The respawners—”

She did not get to finish that sentence, unfortunately, as a whooshing sound was heard. Celestia watched her sister snap her head back around, and then start to move backwards, but seldom had this even registered in the alicorn's mind when a trio of twisting projectiles raced through the air and up the ramp to impact upon Luna's chest, and then explode in a blinding display of pyrotechnics. Celestia could only watch in horror as the blasts ripped into and through Luna's body, tearing it apart in a riot of raw, elemental carnage.

“LUNA!” Celestia screamed, as her eyes widened, her pupils shrank, and her mind blanked at witnessing the unthinkable. So shocked was the princess that she hadn't even noticed the faint shimmer around Luna a fraction of a second before her apparent dissolution, nor did she notice the brief glow that appeared below the catwalk she stood upon. What she did notice, however, was the heavy pounding of feet, and the sudden appearance of a massive, armored figure around the far corner. As it turned to face her, Celestia could only feel her horror start to transmute into rage. “You...” she quietly said, menace lacing her voice.

“What the Hell?” The female biped—sweet heavens, how is that thing female—said, and then paused in surprise. “They got another talking horse?”

If the murder of her sister hadn't already put Celestia over the edge, the insult would have been a good start. Already the alicorn was gathering her energy, despite the intense resistance she was encountering from the firmament, and the sun princess fully intended to incinerate the ugly creature where it stood.

She never got the chance, though, as a voice rang out from below. “Rocket whore!” Luna's voice boomed, as she raced out from underneath the catwalk, towards one of the courtyard's inner walls.

The strange biped spun around upon hearing the voice, and then fired another one of the airborne projectiles down towards the moon princess. Luna, however, jumped up at the last second, which let her avoid the blast that cratered the pavement. Her momentum carried her forward, and the dark alicorn used her wings to change her body's orientation in mid-air so that she could simultaneously set all four of her hooves against the wall she had jumped towards, and then bent her legs as the motion from her jump bled away. The alicorn jumped off a microsecond later, and again used her wings to reorient her body, this time to face along her flight path, which happened to intersect with the large biped that had apparently slain her.

Merely crashing into the beast was not Luna's intention, Celestia noted, as a large, lumpy object she held in her telekinetic grip bucked and spat out a glowing mass that sailed straight into the surprised face of the biped. Once there, it promptly exploded and ripped the top half of the being apart in a shower of blood and burning hot metal fragments.

Luna landed a half second later amidst the carnage. Her hooves shook the catwalk, and the moon princess sneered down at the remains of the biped. “And stay down, you befouled issue of a griffin's loin!” she bellowed out in rage.

Celestia felt her jaw drop open as she watched the scene unfold, her gathered power slipping away like embers in a wind. “L—Luna?” The white alicorn asked, dumbfounded and stuttering for the first time in centuries. “Wha—I...”

The dark alicorn sighed briefly, and then walked over to tap her sister on the shoulder with a booted hoof. “Are you alright, 'Tia?” She asked. “Did that gene-boosted monstrosity hurt you?”

Celestia felt something in her mind snap, and she gave a brief laugh. “Luna, that thing looked like it killed you, and you ask me if I'm alright?” She laughed again, and then shook her head. “I've gone mad, haven't I? The strain of losing you again drove me into catatonia, didn't it? I'm just imagining this utter insanity.”

Pain shot through Luna's eyes at that, and the brief flash brought the elder princess' thoughts to a stop. “Luna...” Celestia began, in a sad tone.

“It can wait,” the younger alicorn replied, her voice even but laced with iron that would brook no argument. “Here,” she said, and then turned and looked to a cloth pouch attached to a pauldron of her armor. The aura around her horn brightened a bit as her magic reached out and pulled open the flap, and then levitated out a strange device. “Take this, it's an emergency beacon used for competitors who wish to forfeit the match; I shan't be needing it.” Luna added this last bit with a confident smirk, and then nodded to her sister, who took the strange device up in her golden aura. “You have to input a code of three short presses, three long presses, and then three short ones again on the red button while holding down the yellow one. This is so it won't accidentally trigger if someone falls on it.”

“I... see,” Celestia replied, as she brought the small piece of plastic up so she could study it. It was barely the size of a pony's hoof, or rather, the size of a normal pony's hoof; it barely covered half of her own as she set it down and then released her magical grip. Then she looked back up at her sister. “Luna, please tell me what's going on?”

“Later,” Luna responded, an intent look upon her face. “I promise. Just please, 'Tia, use the beacon and get to safety.” She smiled at that. “Trust me, I'll be fine.”

Celestia gave her younger sister a long, hard look, but finally sighed. I do trust her, the elder pony thought, and then nodded to her sibling. “Alright, but I expect all of this to be explained to me soon,” she said, and then used her magic to press the indicated buttons as Luna had explained.

“I'm sure you won't even have to wait for me,” Luna replied, just before the elder princess disappeared in a flash.

* * * *

Celestia blinked as the strange effect washed over her. It felt like a teleport spell, yet not, the alicorn silently reflected as she blinked her eyes clear and looked around the room she had appeared in. Unlike the strange dockyard, it was clean and well-maintained, and was decorated in a sparse yet tasteful manner with several potted plants and comfortable-looking, upholstered seats.

Sitting on one of these was another biped, dark of skin and wearing sunglasses. “Well, this is interesting,” he said, and then stood up to regard the alicorn. “Celestia, I presume?”

The princess blinked at that, and then tentatively raised her right forehoof and brought it close to her body. “I am,” she replied, slowly. “I... seem to be at a rather immense disadvantage here, mister...?”

“Just call me Malcolm,” the biped said, and then waved Celestia over to a seat near him. “C'mon and sit down, and I'll try to explain a bit while we watch the rest of the match.”

“Watch?” Celestia asked, confused.

Malcolm only gestured with a hand towards something behind her, and Celestia turned her head around to see moving images produced by a large panel on the wall. The images clearly revealed the dockyard she had just left, and the alicorn blinked in surprise as she saw multiple creatures and her sister, all bipedal save for Luna, running through the various corridors and shooting each other with weapons of unimaginable destructive power. “This is madness,” Celestia muttered.

“That's about the size of it,” Malcolm casually agreed, and his surprisingly ready acceptance brought Celestia's head back around to face him. “Luna's been pretty talkative about where she's from, so I can see how you'd be a bit overwhelmed,” the strange biped added, as he took his seat again. He repeated his wave towards a long couch to the side, and then resumed speaking once Celestia started to slowly walk to the indicated seat. “And I'm guessing you weren't exactly ready to see the business end of the Tournament first-hand.”

“Tournament?” Celestia bemusedly asked, as she reached the backless couch and then carefully laid down upon it in the usual pony manner. The seat was arranged perpendicular to an imaginary line between the image panel and the biped's position, and Celestia had a sudden, small realization that she was sitting upon something made for a being like herself.

The biped either did not seem to notice, or perhaps didn't care about the princess' sudden insight, and so he continued to speak. “Yeah, the Liandri Grand Tournament, to be specific,” he said. “It's the most popular spectator sport in the known galaxy.”

“Spectator sport?” The alicorn blurted in surprise. “This is entertainment?”

“More or less,” Malcolm replied, with a shrug. Something on the wall panel seemed to catch his eye, and he gestured towards it as his hand reached for a small device sitting on the arm of his chair. “Here, why don't you watch the coverage of the rest of the match?” He asked, and then smirked a bit. “You might learn a thing or two,” the biped added, and then pressed a button of the device.

Instantly, sound came from the wall panel, and Celestia turned her head to watch as the main image switched to a view of two beings sitting behind a desk. “And Aryss takes another blast of plasma to the face,” a biped of Malcolm's species was saying. His visage seemed to be pleasant at first glance, but as she watched Celestia could tell that he seemed to be straining to hold his emotions in check. “It certainly seems that red team has their base bottled up and continues to stymie the blues.”

“Yes,” a large, mechanical-appearing biped sitting next to the first creature spoke up. Its face the bland, featureless mask of a machine, save for the flickering of odd lights that looked to Celestia like they should be eyes. “The Juggernauts' resistance will only make ThunderCrash push harder, and the inevitable penetration of the base and climax to the match will be that much more enjoyable.”

The first biped grimaced, and then shot the mechanical being a look of pained astonishment. “Gryph!” he half-shouted.

“What?” the machine creature innocently asked. A moment of silence passed, and then it spoke again. “Oh, did I reference one of those fluid-exchanging rituals you meatbags are so fond of?” it asked.

The first being covered his face with a hand, and then waved the other towards the viewers. “Just cut to the match,” he muttered.

Someone seemed to be listening, as the main image immediately switched back to a view of the dockyard from above an entrance that looked identical to the one Celestia had appeared in just in front of Luna. This one, however, had red replace blue in painted colors and lighting accents, and a series of beings were maneuvering about, exchanging weapons fire and dodging in and out of cover. Several on either side were slain, and others were tossed about by the fierce, vindictive force of their armament.

“What kind of being thinks this entertaining?” Celestia asked, horrified.

“Humans, mainly,” Malcolm replied. When the alicorn turned her head to look at him in confusion, he shrugged again. “My species, I mean. Others like it too, though; Gen'Mokai find it an acceptable learning aid for their children.”

“Madness,” Celestia muttered, and then turned her head back to watch it. And yet, I find myself unable to look away from it, she shamefully admitted to herself. Indeed, her eyes were riveted to the images playing out on the wall, hear ears perked to catch the various sounds of battle, of carnage, and of the oddly excited announcer belting out names for various methods of slaughter. Celestia could only stare in morbid curiosity as she watched the two teams blast into each other with strange, alien weaponry the likes of which defied her imagination, and she shivered.

Then one of the smaller images along the bottom of the screen showed a flash of blue, and Celestia's eyes quickly snapped down to see another view of the arena, this one a dark, cramped service tunnel. Rushing down this tunnel was Luna, and the white alicorn felt her breath catch as the image panned to follow her sister as she ran forward with a look of determination on her face.

“The lower approach,” Malcolm muttered, which caused Celestia to flick an ear towards the biped. “A bit risky.”

“Why is that?” the alicorn pony asked, with a glance back to the human.

“Because she isn't built like a human,” he replied, and then pointed to the screen. “The only way up into red base from that tunnel are a pair of elevators barely large enough for a man to stand on. She's a quadruped, so she should be too laterally large to use them.

“Of course, Luna's run this arena before,” Malcolm continued, and Celestia returned her vision to the wall panel to watch as her younger sister reached the end of the tunnel and approach a small, square platform sitting in a recess in the wall. “She knows to stand on her back legs so she can fit. And before you ask,” the human added in anticipation of the next question. “It's risky because if she doesn't position herself just right her horn or wings will catch on the shaft as it goes up and it'll result in a long, painful death; it's happened before.”

Celestia glanced back again to make sure the biped wasn't lying to her, but Malcolm's sunglasses kept her from fully reading his expression. What she did see, however, showed no hint of falsehood, and the alicorn shuddered as she turned her head back around to watch as Luna reared up on her hind legs, and then stepped forward. Fortunately, her balance and kinesthetic sense proved true, and a bare second after she had stepped onto the recessed panel it rose at a high rate of speed, carrying the dark alicorn with it.

“Nice,” Malcolm interjected. “If she had died there, she'd have to respawn back at the blue base, and that would take time.”

“That is your only concern?” Celestia couldn't help but ask in a scornful tone as she glanced back to the human. “That it would cost time?”

Malcolm shrugged. “This is the Tournament,” he replied. “Life was cheap even before they invented respawners, and the meek don't win matches.” His tone dropped a bit, and Celestia noted a tightening of the parts of his face she could make out. “And in the old days, you didn't survive period unless you took risks and had a thirst for blood. That whole attitude still carries over today, and as Luna is about to show, it's the only way to win.”

The sun princess turned back at the screen at that, and then watched as Luna's elevator brought her to a small space under a set of stairs. Barely had the lift stopped moving when the dark alicorn dropped back to all fours and then ran out from under the stairwell, one of the alien weapons levitating at her side. The device spoke a moment later when Luna ran into one of the opposing team's members, and the armored pony fired in a split second, spitting the biped on a shaft of purplish light that made Celestia wince as she remembered it rather personally.

Luna's target flew backwards from the blast and then fell to the floor, a smoking gap blasted in his armor. The moon princess didn't even wait for him to stand before she shot him again, and then again, and then a fourth time, each blast tearing away more of the creature's armor and flesh. The final shot seemed enough to finally slay the poor being, and his vain attempts to stand ceased.

Scarcely had the biped stopped twitching before Luna ran forward again, seemingly heedless of the actions she took. “How can she do such things?” Celestia asked, half to herself, half towards the strange “human” sitting in the room with her. “How can she kill so readily? So terribly?”

“Because it's the only way to win,” Malcolm replied, and then waved his hand in a dismissive gesture when the princess glanced back at him. “And like I said, we have machines called 'respawners' that detect an incoming lethal attack, and then withdraw the being and repair the damage while replacing them with a simplistic organic recreation to preserve the illusion. So while they feel the pain of being killed, they're not actually killed... often.”

The last addition again made Celestia shoot the human a glance, and as such she was mildly startled when the announcer spoke from the wall screen. “And Luna has taken the red flag!” the voice spoke, and brought the pony's head around to watch as her sister, now with another banner affixed to her back, ran out of a small courtyard that seemed an identical twin to the one Celestia had been in earlier.

The announcement seemed to have been made across the entire arena, as various sub-screens showed both sides of the fight at the main entrance turn and rush into the red base. The combat didn't stop, of course, but instead the fight became a running battle where both sides attempted to maneuver and engage each other whilst they ran into and through the corridors of the facility. The motive for this became clear to Celestia as whenever the large, bulky-looking bipeds encountered Luna, they would exchange attacks, the former seeming to be in a berserker rage, while the latter simply dispatched her opponents with skilled haste. The dark alicorn, however, seemed less interested in fighting and more interested in maneuvering and running, and soon enough met up with some of her teammates. They quickly and almost automatically cooperated to fight their way back out, across the dockyard, and then into their own base, while Luna's bipedal allies constantly interposed themselves between the pony and her pursuers.

Finally, the screen showed Luna enter into the blood-stained courtyard she and Celestia had spoken in, and the moon princess reached the blue team's flag in but a moment. The red banner on her back disappeared with a flash, and a long horn blared out. “Blue team wins the match!” the excited voice of the bodiless announcer sounded. “And that concludes the Capture the Flag ladder of the Grand Tournament! Ladies and gentlemen, we have witnessed here a spectacular—”

The wall panel abruptly went blank and silenced, and Celestia looked back to Malcolm to see the human holding the control device in his hand. “I'm sure we don't need to hear the color commentary from mister excitement in the studio,” the dark-skinned man wryly said, and then stood. Celestia did likewise as the biped continued. “Now that the match is over we can go meet with the team. Or with your sister, in your case,” he added.

“Indeed,” Celestia replied in a subdued tone. “We have much to discuss, it seems.”

“Yeah,” Malcolm said, warily. “I'm not touching that with a three-meter pole. C'mon,” he added, with a wave, and then led Celestia off down a hall. “We'll take the elevator down to the transit floor and wait for the team to teleport in.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow at that, but the expression was lost as the human hadn't even looked back when he spoke. Will the strangeness ever stop? the alicorn asked herself, as she fought to reel in the many questions and thoughts that wandered through her head. I have been here less than an hour, and already I have been attacked, teleported, and had to deal with flippant irreverence about the morbid matters of mortality. If there are any more shocks I just might scream.

Fortunately for Celestia, no more grand surprises were waiting just then, and she continued to follow the odd biped—human, he called himself, she remembered—through sparse but softly decorated corridors that bespoke of the power and wealth of whomever owned the building. Not too dissimilar to the Royal Palace, Celestia mused. Entirely different styles, of course, but similar goals. A place of power? “Where are we, if I may ask?”

Malcolm glanced back at her, and then smirked slightly. “We're in the headquarters building for Liandri's Grand Tournament, in the city of New Santiago on the planet Talos. Also, from what Luna's told me, we're also in another reality from what you're used to.”

Celestia felt herself bristle a bit at the smugness in the human's voice. “Of course this is another reality; one does not just hop between them by accident,” she replied, letting only a trace of haughtiness inflect her tone.

The human chuckled at that as he led her into a new room: a widening of the corridor where several sets of double-doors were set into the walls. Curiously, they had no handles, though a set of buttons were placed on either side of the hall. “You two are sisters, alright,” Malcolm said, as he reached out to press one of the odd controls on the wall. “Anyway, point is that here we've developed interstellar travel. We're actually about three-hundred light-years away from the planet my people originally come from.”

The pony princess pondered this for a moment as she sought to understand what she had just been told. Soon enough she realized that “light-year” was a measure of distance, and her eyes widened a bit upon comprehending Malcolm's words. “That is... astounding,” Celestia said, in quiet awe. “How do your people do it?”

“Beats me,” Malcolm replied with a shrug, as a set of doors on the wall slid open on their own accord. He continued to speak as he walked over to the tiny room revealed within. “I'm a soldier, I shoot things. You want to know how a hyperdrive works, you're gonna have to talk to an egghead.”

Celestia frowned at the human, even as she followed him into what she recognized was an elevator. “Funny, we have that term in our world, as well,” she said, as the doors shut and the sealed room began to descend.

“Luna mentioned there's a lot of similarities,” Malcolm agreed. “I don't really know more than that, but she's been kind of obsessed over it at times. Does a lot of historical research in her off time.”

At that, he fell silent, and Celestia likewise held her tongue as she finally cast a scrutinizing eye over the biped. As an alicorn, Celestia was tall for a pony, though this human easily was as tall as she was, albeit much shorter in length. All in all, he would be imposing to most of her subjects, and even Luna would be on the short side when compared to the biped. “Are all your people so tall?” The white alicorn found herself asking.

“I'm a bit taller than normal,” Malcolm replied, and then gave Celestia a brief smirk and a sideways glance. “Luna asked about that, too. To answer the rest of your questions, yes we eat meat. No, we don't eat sapient beings, we find that repugnant. We do have ponies and horses here, but they're not intelligent. No, we don't eat them, we value them too much as companions. Yes, we are very warlike, often to a fault. No, we don't all look the same.” He paused after finishing his litany, and then glanced over at Celestia again. “Anything I missed?”

The sun princess gave Malcolm a petulant look. “How often have you done this?” she asked.

“Only about every other day for a month with Luna,” the dark-skinned human replied, with a shake of his head. “I think it was her way of dealing with everything, to keep hearing the same answers over and over. Ah well, we're here.”

Celestia shifted on her legs as the elevator drew to a full stop, and she turned her head back forward as the doors slid open to reveal a simple lobby, done in earth tones rather than the simple grays of the higher floor the two beings had departed. The floor was some kind of pale granite, polished to a shine, and warm red carpets led from the various elevator doors and off to the right.

Malcolm moved off without a word, and Celestia followed after a moment's hesitation. He hasn't been aggressive, and I don't believe he is duplicitous, the mare pondered, as she trailed the human through unmarked corridors. And he seems to know Luna, or at least knows her well enough to be familiar with her quirks. She stifled a sigh as she made to follow Malcolm around a corner. And Luna did ask for me to trust her. I suppose following this strange biped must be part of—

“'Tia!” The familiar voice of Luna interrupted Celestia's train of thought, and she halted briefly as she saw her sister—still armored—walking down the wide corridor Malcolm and herself had just entered via a T-junction. Behind the dark mare were several other beings, all armored like the moon princess, and all moved with the arrogant airs of a hard-won victory.

Luna, though, simply dashed ahead of them all and ran towards Celestia. The elder alicorn stopped again and then blinked as she realized that her sister was moving a bit too fast, though that thought was all she had time for as Luna slammed into her and sent the two sprawling on the floor.

“Oh 'Tia!” Luna exclaimed in her characteristically loud voice as she wrapped her forelegs around her sister's midsection and pulled the elder pony into a tight hug. “I'm so sorry I shot you and was so short with you but I didn't want you killed and I hate getting fragged and please don't be mad!”

“Luna,” Celestia choked out. “Can't. Breathe.”

The moon princess blinked, and then looked up to see that her sister's face had taken on a bluish tinge. Blushing, the dark alicorn snapped her forelegs back and then stood. “Oh, I'm so sorry!” Luna said, as her sister regained her breath and then began to stand herself. “I'm just—I mean—”

“It's okay,” Celestia said, somewhat hoarsely, as she regained her hoofing. “I'm alright, nothing a little rest and some warm tea can't help.” She added a smile at the last, hoping to show Luna that there was no ill will.

A cleared throat brought the attentions of both ponies back towards Malcolm and the other humans, and the princesses blushed slightly when they saw the group of hominids giving them a variety of looks ranging from annoyance, to indifference, and one or two smiles. Malcolm, though, simply looked on impassively, and lowered his hand from where he'd covered his mouth. “Ladies, I appreciate that the moment is a strong one for you two, but we still have the media to deal with before we can get out of here.”

“Of course,” Luna quickly said, and then looked back to her sister. “Don't worry 'Tia, this won't be any worse than the press back home, albeit a bit more crude of tone.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow at that. “Press?” she asked, unsure.

“They like to get post-game interviews,” Luna explained, as she and the humans began to walk forward, which prompted Celestia to match pace with her sister. “Sort of how our press back home loves to talk to the winner of a derby.”

“I see,” said Celestia, as the group turned another corner and entered another, larger lobby. This one was bedecked in a variety of furnishings made for bipedal forms, and several panels on the walls showed moving images that seemed to be on some kind of a loop; they would show a scene of battle, similar to what Celestia had just witnessed, but in brief, before starting the show over again in silence.

“Yes, you will,” Luna replied, as the group reached the front of the lobby. The whole wall seemed to have been made of glass windows, yet they were all grayed out as if by some magic privacy spell. “And I'm sorry for that, my sister.”

“Why do you—” Celestia began to ask, but was cut off as one of Luna's teammates reached the doors set along the windowed wall and pushed them open. A wave of light and sound assaulted the sun princess' senses, and she felt her ears fold back automatically to try and blot out the noise even as she squinted her eyes at the glare. Soon enough they adjusted, and Celestia could only stare at the scene before her.

Stretching from the building's entrance was a large plaza, and it was filled to the brim with cheering bipeds, mainly humans. A small space in front of the actual entrance had been cleared by several large machines like the one Celestia had seen on the broadcast, but these were larger and had an imposing air around them. They and a series of human guards kept back the raucous throngs, though a number of beings were behind them, waiting patiently. The sun princess recognized them instantly as belonging to the press, as she had her fair share of dealing with them. Even across dimensions, their eager, ravenous eyes twinkle with the dark light of a predator searching for prey, Celestia darkly mused, as she followed Luna and her teammates out towards the waiting humans. The only things she didn't recognize about them were the strange devices that hovered near the bipeds, all seeming to follow one person or another while still pointing a dark circle towards the approaching party.

“Malcolm!” One of the press members yelled as the group drew close. “James McCraggie, Talos Hum! Who is the new addition to your team?”

“I'm afraid you're a bit mistaken, Jim,” Malcolm called back, raising his voice to be heard over the background cacophony. “ThunderCrash isn't adding any new team members right now.”

“Then who's that?” McCraggie asked, while pointing towards Celestia.

“She is my sister,” Luna spoke up, instantly garnering the attention of the media pool. “She was worried about my safety and came here the same way I did. She simply had a rather poor sense of timing,” the younger alicorn added, with a smile.

The joke seemed to work, and the various media members chuckled before they threw out more questions. Most were for Malcolm, though Celestia was surprised to see a large number directed at her sister, and even herself. She answered what she could without saying anything at all; a talent she hated using but was utterly necessary in politics. Fortunately, Luna quickly jumped in whenever someone asked the elder alicorn a difficult question, and soon enough the press seemed satisfied.

Barely ten minutes had passed, yet Celestia felt more tired than ever before as the media members started to move on. A glance behind her showed the alicorn why; the team Luna and her allies had been fighting were now emerging from the building, and Celestia's hackles rose as she saw a solid wave of hate directed towards her sister.

“You!” the bulky biped in the lead shouted, while raising a hand to point a meaty finger towards Malcolm. He then stomped ahead of his peers, and ignored the questions the press shouted at him as he stomped right up to ThunderCrash's leader. “You cheated!” The immense man shouted, straight into Malcolm's face, and much to Celestia's surprise, the square full of aliens went quiet.

“Bullshit,” Malcolm spat back. “You were always a sore loser, Gorge. Why don't you go home with your tail between your legs like a good little bitch?”

Such language! Celestia thought in shock.

Meanwhile, the large human's face contorted in pure rage and hatred, and Celestia could only look on in surprise as the dense armor he wore shifted audibly as his muscles tensed all over. “Your little horse's friend disrupted the match,” Gorge ground out. “It should have been called for a do-over!”

“The refs found that she actually hindered ThunderCrash,” Malcolm calmly retorted. “If anything, we're the ones who should be demanding a rematch.” He then smiled at that, and even with the sunglasses on his face, Celestia could see he was taking great pleasure in twisting Gorge's demands back. “Although I think we'll pass. Wouldn't want you to embarrass yourselves again, as fun as it is to watch.”

Gorge fairly trembled in anger, and for a moment it seemed as if he would physically lash out. Yet he drew upon some hidden reserve of control, and then snarled at the smaller human. “One day, Malcolm,” he darkly spoke in an eerily quiet voice. “You're going to get yours.”

“We'll see,” Malcolm calmly replied, and then turned and started to walk away.

“Don't you turn your back on me!” Gorge shouted at the dark-skinned human.

It was then a new voice spoke up. “Hey, Gorge!” Luna shouted, and then pulled something small and plastic from a pocket on her armor with her magic. She flicked it in mid-air as everyone turned their eyes to her, and two prongs snapped out. “Deal with it,” Luna added, in a smarmy tone, as she placed the sunglasses over her eyes and muzzle, and then turned to follow Malcolm.

The quiet square erupted in a massive cheer then, one that shook the ground for a moment. Celestia could barely keep her wits in just enough order to follow her sister as she and her teammates moved to join Malcolm near a large, bulky device that the sun princess—again—did not recognize. Soon enough, however, the machine's purpose became clear, as Malcolm opened a door on the side of the machine, and Celestia could make out plush seating just inside.

Chants broke out as the team began to pile into the vehicle, and Celestia had to pause. Amongst several groups chanting “ThunderCrash” and “Malcolm” was a very large number of people chanting “Luna.”

“'Tia!” Her sister's voice broke into Celestia's brief rumination, and Celestia looked around to see that only she and Luna were left outside the vehicle. “I assure you, it's safe,” the younger alicorn added, and then gestured towards the door with a wing.

Celestia could only nod, and then walk forward to board the odd craft. She paused next to her sister, however, and then gave Luna a look. “We need to talk,” she said.

“I know,” Luna replied, with a wry smirk on her muzzle. The sunglasses she wore gave the dark mare an odd quality, and for a moment Celestia felt as if she was looking at a stranger. Soon enough the smirk disappeared, and was replaced by a genuine smile. “But first, dinner!”

Part 4 - The City

“...And that's why if anyone tells you a robot can't feel and scream in abject terror, they're wrong.”

Celestia just smiled politely at the rough human known as “Riker”, even as she silently prayed the food would arrive soon. “I had no idea my sister had such... colorful friends,” she offered.

A round of laughter from most persons in the luxurious booth met her remark. “Colorful doesn't describe it,” a woman previously identified as “Aryss” replied. “Especially Riker there; the man's known for 'conquests', if you catch my meaning.”

I'm afraid I do, Celestia thought, as she noted Riker cast lingering glances over most every female in the restaurant. Including Luna and myself, the alicorn added, with a suppressed shudder. A glance to her sister showed Celestia that the younger pony was either completely oblivious of the attention, or was studiously ignoring it as she spoke with a human named “Jakob” about their tactics during the earlier battle.

“...So if you aim up and left as I come in from their flank, we could catch them in a crossfire,” the navy-blue alicorn said, using her front hooves to represent the positions she was speaking of.

Jakob nodded. “I can see that,” he said, but then held up one of his hands. “The problem is that it's hard enough timing a two-pronged assault, let alone one that relies on those temperamental lifts.”

“They said that would be fixed in the next iteration,” Luna said, with a frown.

“That's because they're shifting back to the old 'November' format,” Jakob replied. Then he blinked for a moment as something entered his mind. “Oh, right, you never played on that; there's no lifts to use there,” he explained. “But the lower course is all submerged in water and you gotta swim.”

Luna shuddered at that. “Bah, one thing you hairless apes do better than ponies,” she said, with a sniff.

“'Hairless apes'?” Celestia pointedly asked, hoping to avoid being dragged into another discussion with Riker.

“Our ancestors were simian in origin,” Malcolm explained, from the head of the table. He paused briefly to sip on his beer, and then continued. “Though most modern biologists agree we had a detour through a semi-aquatic period, which is how we're so good at swimming when most apes can't stand water.”

“And the whole smooth body thing,” Luna added. “It's really fascinating, 'Tia, the way their species evolved. Prey one moment, predators the next, scavengers and foragers always; they are a prime example of adaptability over specialization being a superior evolutionary path in the long run.”

“I see,” Celestia replied, as she looked over the differing reactions around the table. Most of the rugged, coarse beings looked rather bored, and Malcolm was plain inscrutable. One or two humans, though, seemed almost proud of the praise Luna laid upon them. She pondered on that for a moment, but soon the long prayed-for food arrived, beared upon covered platters by several well-dressed waiters and waitresses who wound their way through the many occupied, mahogany tables of the richly decorated dining room.

I wonder how such coarse beings chose such a nice, upscale place like this for their celebratory meal? Celestia mused as the wait staff politely handed out the orders, pausing only long enough to remove the covers from the various meals. Though I wish they hadn't, the sun princess thought, as her stomach twisted a bit at seeing the predominance of meat in the humans' meals. At least Luna warned me of it and helped pick out something more appealing. Celestia looked down at this and managed a faint smile of satisfaction to see that her salad had been prepared appropriately, with seven kinds of lettuce, spinach, carrots, tomatoes, and a dressing described as “Italian”. The addition of stale bread crumbs and shredded cheese were odd touches she was unfamiliar with, but Luna had insisted that they added a wonderful taste, and so the alicorn was willing to give it a try as she levitated a fork from her setting and dug into her meal.

The others around the table had similar ideas, and all conversation ceased for a few minutes as the unlikely group of diners worked to sate their appetites. Celestia was immediately delighted to discover the new and unique flavors were indeed to her liking. I wonder if we can bring back more than just ourselves from this reality? she mused as she worked through the salad with the quiet dignity of her station. I would love to bring back recipe cards with some of the more palatable dishes if this is the taste I can expect.

“So, Luna,” Jakob said, in between bites of his steak. “What's the deal with your sister, anyway?”

Celestia brought her head up and gave the human a wry look as she finished a mouthful. “I beg your pardon,” she said, evenly, but with a hint of irritation. “But I'm right here.”

“Yeah, that's kind of my point,” Jakob replied, seemingly oblivious. A faint smirk tugging at the corner of his flat mouth, however, told everyone at the table that he was deliberately being obnoxious. “I mean, Luna has this sob story of being a castaway in the multiverse or whatever you wanna call it, then you show up a decade later in the middle of a match?” He shook his head a bit at that. “Just seems really strange, that's all.”

Celestia blushed at that, and then shifted on her bench seat. “There were complications,” she explained, calmly. “The method of Luna's departure left our frames out of synch; only a week passed for us back home, while ten years passed here.”

The diners at the table all stopped their meals at that, and then silently looked to the two alicorns. Celestia maintained a regal bearing, while Luna simply looked down and used her telekinesis to push around portions of her meal. “It was a bit longer than that, actually,” the night princess said, quietly.

Every head snapped to her at that to stare at the younger pony at her odd declaration. Celestia noted the blush growing on her sister's cheeks, though, and decided to avert her eyes for a moment to let Luna recover. Instead, she glanced down to her sister's meal, and then froze in shock. “Luna, what are you eating?” she asked, her voice quiet.

“Uhm,” Luna replied, blushing even more furiously now as she tried to tuck her muzzle as far down as it would go. “It's called 'Chernobyl Chicken'.”

“Chicken?” Celestia asked, incredulous. “As in, the small, flightless bird?”

“Yes,” Luna softly replied. A change seemed to come over her just then, and she straightened herself up and then brought her gaze to meet her sister's eyes in a silent, polite, but firmly defiant expression. “It is the blackened breast of the animal with a thick coating of strong spices served on a bed of spinach and romaine lettuce and a lovely sauce,” she politely explained, as if discussing the weather. She paused for a moment, and then raised an eyebrow. “I believe the sauce is a vinaigrette.”

A moment of silence met her, and Luna frowned as Celestia continued to just stare at her in shock. An idea sparked in the younger mare's head, and without breaking her gaze, she used her telekinesis to spear a piece of chicken, and then slowly brought it up to her mouth. The widening of Celestia's eyes made the night princess want to burst out laughing, but she kept herself stoney as she opened her mouth and then popped the morsel in and began to chew.

“Right, that does it,” Celestia said, as she placed her fork down and then stood up from her haunches. The automated bench seat sensed this and lowered her section into the floor so that she could leave without disturbing the other diners, and for a moment the white pony was grateful for the unfathomable, yet useful device. “I need some air,” she added, with an imperious look. “I shall be out on the balcony.” With that, she slowly backed up into the space between the booth seating left for such exits. Unfortunately, the space was set up for humans and other bipeds, and so Celestia had to take an embarrassing amount of time to slowly back up and twist her lengthy pony body before she could turn and head out across the dining room.

No one at the table said a thing as the elder pony left; even the hardened, borderline sociopaths of the Tournament knew when to back off. Everyone watched her go, though most returned their attentions back to their meals quickly enough. Jakob, however, looked to Luna again, and then raised an eyebrow. “If she reacts that strongly now, I can't wait to see how she handles Artemis.”

Luna's eyes flashed at that, and she gave the human a death stare. “I shall deal with that soon enough,” she darkly said. “Until then I don't want anyone here to so much as breathe a word about her to my sister,” the alicorn added, in a tone that threatened pain for disobedience as she glanced around the table.

“Fair enough,” Malcolm interjected, as he calmly sipped his beer again. “Doesn't pay to get involved in family affairs, anyway.”

* * * *

Celestia ignored the wide-eyed looks she received from the various patrons and staff of the restaurant as she carefully picked her way to the balcony. Although the alicorn hadn't been there before that evening, Celestia could easily see the surprisingly large, wide outdoor area through the glass walls of the main dining room, and the doors leading out to it were easy enough to identify, even for an extra-reality traveller. A quick use of her magic pulled them open and gained the princess access to the outdoor dining area, and she quickly made her way to an unpopulated corner of the rectangular structure so she could look out and over the safety barriers upon the city.

Here Celestia had to pause, as her brain finally started to register the sheer scale of the architecture around her. Things have been insanely hectic from the very moment I arrived here, the mare thought, as she looked up at the immense towers that reached into the air on all sides. Yet I cannot help but feel mortified that I haven't really taken the time yet to truly look at this strange place.

Something stirred in Celestia's heart at that, as she looked down into the growing gloom of twilight to the city streets thirty stories below. Electric lamps, signs, and signals already filled the arriving night with a constant glow, and throngs of beings—humans mostly, but Celestia could make out a few other species in the mix—moved through the streets on foot or in numerous mechanical conveyances. The strong flow of traffic gave off a strong impression of life and vitality, even amidst the stark desolation (by pony standards) of the city's utilitarian décor. Storefronts made entirely of glass radiated brilliant light onto the sidewalks and streets, and small glowing lights dotted the crowd, denoting the use of some personal device or another.

All in all, it was an alien sight. And yet it is so utterly familiar, Celestia mused, as she thought back to the various cities of Equestria. She felt the stirring in her chest again, and the alicorn blinked as she recognized the old, nearly-forgotten feeling; wanderlust. How long has it been since I really felt like just trotting away from it all and simply travel? she asked herself. She thought for a moment, and then shook her head. Far too long. Yet, how could I ever entertain such thoughts, when so much rests upon my back?

A sigh escaped her muzzle at that, and Celestia found herself suddenly grateful that none of her subjects could see her at the moment. What good is a melancholy leader who mourns for her lost freedom?

“Celestia?” The single-word question sounded behind her, gently breaking the alicorn out of her reverie. She turned her head back and saw Luna slowly walking over, a conciliatory expression upon her face. “Are you alright?”

Celestia looked at her sister for a moment, and then offered a faint smile. “I'm fine,” she said, and then turned her head back around to look out over the city once more.

To some this would be a dismissal, but Luna knew well her sister's quirks, and so she continued to walk forward until she was able to sidle in next the the larger pony and join her in looking over the edge of the balcony. A moment of silence passed between the two, though it was brief as Luna spoke up. “I forget how difficult this place can be, when you're not used to it,” the younger princess said. “And you haven't even had a quiet moment to think about it until now, have you?” Luna asked, as she looked over and up at her sister.

Celestia returned the look, and then made a brief, wry chuckle. “No, I suppose I haven't,” she replied, and then looked out once more.

“Just like myself,” Luna said, and then echoed her sister's chuckle as Celestia once again swung her head around. “I'll tell you the story soon enough,” the younger pony explained. “But believe me when I say I understand perfectly what you're going through.”

“Do you?” Celestia asked, with a raised eyebrow. “Then why that bit at the table?”

Luna rolled her eyes. “Because you were getting high and mighty on me,” she replied. “That approach may be effective on our subjects, 'Tia, but I still remember when you were afraid of alfalfa.”

“I was not afraid of alfalfa,” Celestia retorted, as she turned her head up in a mild pout. “I simply did not like it. Still don't.”

“You were afraid of it,” Luna repeated, with a grin on her muzzle. “Or shall I prove it by getting a dish of it from the kitchen here and see you scream like a little filly at the 'alfalfa monster'?”

Ccelestia snapped her head down at that and gave her little sister a harsh glare. “You wouldn't,” she said, in a low voice.

Luna's grin widened into a full smile. “I would,” she teased. Then the smiled faded, and she sighed. “But I think my consumption of meat is enough of a shock to you now,” she added.

“Indeed,” Celestia dryly stated, and then looked out over the city again. “How can you even do that?” she asked, as her eyes idly traced over the moving lights below.

“Things are different here in ways that aren't immediately obvious,” Luna replied, as she leaned her body against her sister's side. The armor she still wore kept them from feeling each other's heat, but the touch was comforting nonetheless. “There is a definitive barrier between sapient and non-sapient beings, with the latter more often than not merely being controlled by base instincts; no emotions or thought,” the younger alicorn explained. “The few that have even rudiments of intelligence are often brutal and borderline psychotic by sapient standards, save those that have been fully domesticated.”

“Domesticated?” Celestia asked, with a glance down to her sister.

“Aye,” Luna replied, and then sighed. “'Tis a word referring to the process by which wild animals are selectively bred and controlled over multiple generations until they are under the control of a sapient species,” she explained, and then frowned. “And you've been here for only a few hours and already I'm slipping into old speech habits.”

Despite the mild discomfort she felt over the concept of domestication, Celestia couldn't help but chuckle a bit at her sister's last sentence. “I don't think you'd be yourself if you didn't throw in a few archaic terms now and then,” she teased.

Luna razzed her sister for that, which elicited another chuckle. “Oh come now, Luna, it's cute the way you use antiquated language,” Celestia teased.

Again, Luna rolled her eyes. “You and the humans both think I'm cute,” she muttered, good-naturedly. “You know they generally behave towards me as if I were a living doll?”

“Oh?” Celestia asked, with another quirk of her eyebrow.

Luna closed her eyes and nodded. “Yes. They think I am adorable,” she said, and then lifted her muzzle up to display her smug smile.

“That's because they haven't shared a bedroom with you,” Celestia countered, and then smiled as Luna deflated a bit and then shot the elder pony with a glare. “I'm pretty sure it was your snoring that inspired father to create the 'royal voice'.”

“Humph,” Luna lightly grunted, with a pout. She opened her mouth to reply, but a flicker of light from below caught both ponies' attention, and they glanced down to see a small cluster of humans aiming cameras up at them. “Ah, seems we are drawing attention,” Luna said, and then gave her sister a look. “Probably your mane and tail; you stand out like a Skaarj, but in a nice way.”

Celestia gave her sister a tired look. “No more references I won't get, please,” she said.

“Fair enough,” Luna replied, with a faint smile. “But seriously, you should consider cutting your magic back. The flow to our respective astral reservoirs is lower here and it pays to conserve energy. Also, sometimes it's good not to stand out too much.”

A frown crossed Celestia's muzzle at that. “Why would that be a concern?” she asked.

“You know how back home, the paparazzi would follow fashion models around?” Luna sked back, and then waited for the confirming nod. “Now imagine that they have cameras that can pick up the broccoli stuck in your teeth from the horizon.” She paused at this, and then grinned evilly. “Or in your case, the cake you're stuffing yourself with from orbit.”

“You're never going to let me live that down, are you?” Celestia groaned. “That one little foal gets lucky when I'm on a break and suddenly all of Equestria thinks I'm some sort of cake devouring fiend.”

“But, you are a cake devouring fiend,” Luna snarked.

Now it was Celestia who razzed her sister. “At least I don't have a holiday where little ponies bribe me with candy,” she countered.

Luna laughed at that. “Ah, Nightmare Night, I had almost forgotten about that,” she said, and then sighed wistfully. “The humans have a holiday called 'Halloween' that matches it almost perfectly, only without the giving me candy part.” She said the last sentence with a smirk. “Still, it's quite fun, especially...” her voice caught at this for a moment, though Celestia barely had time to glance over before Luna continued. “Especially for the little ones,” she added, her expression now troubled.

“Luna?” Celestia asked, concern creasing her features. “Are you alright?”

“Yes,” Luna replied, and then offered a wan, but sincere smile. “I was just reminded of something, that's all,” she explained. Her earlier cheerfulness returned soon enough, however, and Luna backed away from the balcony's edge. “But we can talk about that soon enough. For now, do you want to go back and finish your meal?”

Celestia watched her sister for a moment to make sure Luna wasn't trying too hard to avoid whatever had her concerned, but realized that whatever it was, Luna wasn't desperate about it. “To be frank, Luna, your friends scare me,” Celestia flat out admitted, and then sighed. “I'd much rather get some rest before we attempt to return back to Equestria.”

A sudden wash of emotion ran over the night princess' face, and Celestia blinked in surprise at the panic that had briefly been revealed. Alright, that has her concerned, the elder pony thought.

“Rest... aye, that sounds good,” Luna said, after an awkward silence. “Methinks that Malcolm and the team can certainly keep until the morrow, at the least.”

The second backslide of of her sister's language made Celestia's ear twitch, and she turned to fully face the younger alicorn. “There's something bothering you,” she stated. “What is it?”

Luna hesitated for a moment, but then soon nodded. “Aye, there is,” she admitted. “But I don't want to talk about it here. Let's fly to my suite and I'll explain everything after we arrive.”

A silence hung between the two sisters as Celestia considered the strange behavior of her sister. It was mercifully brief, however, as she could see the worry in Luna's eyes, and Celestia felt her heart ache that she might cause such discomfort in her sibling. “Alright then,” she said, and then suppressed a sigh of relief as Luna brightened up. “But is it even safe to fly through here?” the elder pony asked, as she turned to eye one of the flying conveyances as it flittered through the artificial canyons formed by the city's towers.

“Safe enough,” Luna replied, a she stretched out her wings. This seemed to catch the attention of the many diners on the balcony, and they turned to look at the two ponies with curious expressions. “Most of the helicopters and antigrav vehicles have anti-collision devices to keep them from slamming into each other, and so long as we keep our eyes open and try not to fly right in front of any of them, they should avoid us as well.”

Celestia listened patiently to her sister's words, and then nodded. “I suppose so, if you've been here as long as you say you have,” she said, as she started to stretch her own, significant wings. She froze in mid-stretch, however, as something Luna said percolated into her mind. “Which makes me wonder what you meant, back at the table,” Celestia added, as she turned to give Luna a hard look. “What was that about it being longer than ten years?”

Luna brought up a foreleg and coughed into her hoof. “Again, I'll explain when we get to my home,” she replied. “I promise you, 'Tia, everything will be clear there.”

The sun princess could only frown at that, but she nodded her head in assent. “Very well, then. Let us be off.”

“Indeed,” Luna said, and then grinned as she kicked off of the balcony and snapped her wings down, launching herself into the air. “Come on then, 'Tia,” the dark alicorn jeered, as she hovered several meters into the air. “Unless those cakes have made you too heavy to fly?”

Celestia smirked at that, and her reply was to kick herself into the air as well, her larger wings propelling her easily up to her sister's altitude. “Lead on, then,” she said, with a smile, as Luna's enthusiasm started to infect her.

Luna smiled back, and then shifted from hovering to fly forward. “Try to keep up then!” she hollered over her shoulder, before she dove for the ground.

Not to be outdone, Celestia turned and dove without any further encouragement and raced after her sister. Luna flew a daring course, taking her down almost to the level of the streetlights lining the motorways, but for the first time in a long time, Celestia threw her sense of caution to the wind and dropped to the same height, gaining speed as she fell, her legs stretched out in typical pegasus fashion to reduce her forward profile.

She slowly started to catch up to her sister, but Luna abruptly snapped her wings straight out and then cut a hard left turn to follow one of the cross-streets. Celestia felt adrenalin kick in as she saw how buildings and intersections narrowed the angle of approach with their ruler-straight geometry, and briefly she wondered if she was going to end up splattering herself along a building whose sign proclaimed it as a bank.

Fortune favors the bold, a voice whispered in her brain, and the alicorn could only grin as she felt her youthful recklessness return. Now confident, Celestia flapped her wings harder to build up speed, faster than even her sister had taken the same turn. Unlike Luna, however, Celestia not only threw her wings straight out for the maneuver, but also trimmed her feathers just a bit to roll along her long axis so that she ended up with her wings perpendicular to the ground. She rode the centrifugal force through the turn, her momentum fighting against the large span of her wings and balancing out just enough so that gravity looked the other way for a moment.

Celestia straightened out and rolled back upright as her turn completed, and she couldn't help but let out a whoop of excitement. I haven't been able to do something like that in centuries! she thought, as she spied Luna glancing back at her from only a few dozen ponylengths away. There are always so many fussy guards and prissy nobles to keep placated so they don't have an aneurysm, but for once I don't have to worry about them. A weight seemed to lift off of her back with that quiet revelation, and Celestia could only grin as she poured on the speed.

Luna glanced back a second time, and a look of surprise washed over her face. It was soon replaced by a sly grin, however, as the younger alicorn returned her attention forward and then turned to the left just a bit before corkscrewing up and to the right in a half barrel roll to take another street. Celestia followed with another one of her high-G turns, and soon she was only a short distance behind Luna.

“You're certainly doing better than I'd expect from someone who rides a chariot!” the younger alicorn shouted over her shoulder.

“I don't let them drag my flank everywhere,” Celestia countered. “Now, are we getting close to your place, or shall we fly above these buildings and tear a hole in the sky?”

Luna laughed at that, even as she slowed her pace a bit; a move Celestia matched. “I would dearly love to, 'Tia,” the younger pony said. “But we're almost there,” Luna added, and then gestured forward with a hoof.

Celestia returned her attention forward at that, and she blinked as she made out a massive, circular tower standing in the middle distance, and growing closer with every passing second. The roads, normally a razor-straight grid pattern, swung wide around the tower, though Celestia noted a few actually entered the apron-like base. The building's edifice was a mix of wide glass panels, gray-painted concrete walls, and several large, open areas that looked as if someone had scooped out part of the tower's exterior and replaced it with public gardens. A few rolling doors were sited at various points as well, and Celestia received a clue to their purpose when one opened up to release one of the flying machines that the humans loved to use.

“Pay attention, now,” Luna teased, as she angled herself upward. “Don't want you to run into the wall.”

“Oh, really?” Celestia asked, as she quickly moved to regain her position at Luna's side. “Who was it who carved half of Ghastly Gorge after trying a sonic rainboom?”

Luna blushed at the reference, and she shot her sister a glare. “That was ages ago.”

“Only two,” Celestia countered. “I believe the buffalo tribes still call it 'Coyote's Blunder',” she added with a grin.

“I hate that name,” Luna replied, and then started to accelerate. “Fine then, miss smarty pants, let's see how you handle my usual route,” she added, and then aimed for one of the large greenery-speckled openings.

Celestia followed of course, and as they drew close she could see more details emerge. The gap they flew towards had a smaller opening in the back, through which water flowed along an artificial riverbed, supporting various landscaped plants along its sides before pouring over a small lip to create a pool in the middle of the park area. The interior walls facing the parkland and the false creek had windows placed here and there, and Celestia was ready to swear that she saw various small animals skittering about at several points.

Scarcely had she finished this assessment when the elder princess realized her sister wasn't slowing down. “Luna?” Celestia asked. “What are you doing? Where are we going?”

Luna shot a grin at the other alicorn before she once again returned her head to the forward and upright position. “Just follow me, and try not to hit a window,” she said, and then dove for the opening at the back of the park alcove.

She's mad, Celestia thought, as she noted that the space seemed far too small to safely fly through. The voice from before whispered into her ear, however, and soon her apprehension was partially replaced by eagerness.

The younger pony reached the tunnel first, of course, and deftly raced down its length. Celestia was only a half-second behind and fit into the tunnel as well, though she felt the tips of her wings brush the dwarf trees along the side of the artificial creek from time to time. It did not dissuade her, however, but instead gave her another burst of giddiness at doing something that her little ponies would all faint dead at if they could see her. I think Twilight Sparkle would literally combust, Celestia mused. I really should talk to her about that sometime; smoking is bad for your health.

She giggled a bit at the joke, but soon pushed it out of her mind as the walls and floor of the tunnel shifted, becoming sterile and metallic as the creek bed straightened into a simple trough. Up ahead she could see the exit, with water spurting up in a fountain that blocked the view out before it dropped to feed the creek. Celestia didn't have any time to think on it, however, as Luna continued to move forward, flapping her wings eagerly. I hope this isn't one of her pranks, the elder pony thought, just as Luna burst through the spray. I suppose I'll find out in a second.

Celestia gritted her teeth as she reached the fountain, and then passed through it. The spray was too weak and the passage through it too quick to really soak her feathers, and so her flight wasn't impeded in the least, which was fortunate as Celestia needed a moment to take in what she was seeing.

The whole thing is hollow, the sun princess thought, as she looked up at the interior. Like the outside, the inner walls of the tower was speckled by various windows, many of which were glowing with light as the twilight continued its fade into night. Celestia then had to blink as she realized that the light was the same as outside, and she glanced up to gaze upon a huge, transparent dome covering the tower's interior space.

“You like?” Luna asked, as she slowed down to match pace with her flabbergasted sister. “The humans love their climate control as much as we do, though I rather think the plastisteel dome is a bit over the top, myself.”

The sheer, unmitigated atrocity of a pun impaled itself upon Celestia's mind, and she snapped out of her awe to give her sister a glare that would have stopped a dragon in mid-air. “Don't make me banish you to the moon again,” she threatened.

“For a pun?” Luna merrily asked, with a sly grin. “Shall I call you Tyrantlestia then?”

Despite herself, Celestia had to smirk at the old nickname the nobles had laid on her fifteen centuries prior. “Perhaps, dear sister, perhaps,” she teased. “Now, as impressive as this is, where are we heading?”

“Up,” Luna said, and then turned to the side. “Follow me, there's always a thermal from the beach we can ride to the top,” she added, as she pulled ahead.

“Beach?” Celestia asked, and then glanced down. Below, at the bottom of the cylinder was more parkland, with a small but respectable lake taking up a good portion of the surface. A wide beach of sand lined one side of the lake, and it was the space above this to which Luna led her. A glance forward allowed Celestia to catch the moment Luna entered the thermal, and was shoved upwards. Thus prepared, Celestia steadied her wings and was properly braced when the strong updraft launched her higher.

The two sisters flew like this for a period of time in the darkening gloom, silent as they concentrated on catching the thermal over and over again. Finally they were near the top, and Luna turned to lead her sister towards a balcony that seemed to run the entire circumference of the inner wall. Both princesses deftly landed upon it, and then spent several moments to catch their breath.

It was Celestia who broke the silence. “I must admit, this is an amazing place,” she observed, as she turned to walk back to the safety railing and look down upon the parkland a hundred stories below. “It reminds me of Canterlot, in a way.”

“Aye, 'tis why I moved here,” Luna agreed, as she walked over to join her sister. “The parks, the rivers and waterfalls, the grand architecture, it's all so reminiscent of home. Though the humans do favor their geometry to be a bit more precise and less whimsical,” she added, with a grin. “Comes from lacking magic.”

Celestia started at this, and she turned her head to give Luna another incredulous look. “Are you pulling my tail?” she asked. “I know I was teleported earlier today, and those vehicles that fly! You cannot tell me that's not magic.”

Luna chuckled at that. “Perhaps I should explain,” she said, and then turned to walk along the balcony, though not without first motioning with a wing for Celestia to follow. “As you know, what we call 'magic' is actually a method for manipulating the physical laws of the universe,” Luna explained, as her sister fell in place beside her. “For us it occurred naturally, but for humans and most other sapient species in this reality, they had to uncover the secret with advanced science and research that took centuries. As such, their science, their cities, their very culture and society is built around more easily accessed methods of environmental manipulation.

“Now, they have some advanced science that lets them recreate what magic can do, in some cases,” Luna explained, as she moved towards a pair of glass doors set into the wall, closing off a well-lit, clean, carpeted corridor beyond. The two doors slid apart by themselves as the alicorns approached. “Take those doors, for example,” Luna continued, as the two sisters emerged into the hallway. “They use nothing more than a motion sensor to trigger an electric motor via circuitry.”

“I see,” Celestia found herself saying, once again, though this time she did have a genuine interest. Perhaps more than recipe cards should be brought back with us, she mused.

Luna's chuckle broke the elder pony from her thoughts. “I know, I prattle on, but my point is that humans have only recently been able to utilize the same kind of forces that ponykind has been using since time immemorial,” she said, as she increased the pace to a trot. “But what humans have done since time immemorial is to be clever at manipulating their environment, to the point where they tamed their homeworld. A world, mind you, that makes the Everfree Forest look tame in comparison.”

“Now you must be joking, my sister,” Celestia observed, as they passed by various, richly-decorated doors set into the sides of the corridor. “An entire world that is worse than the Everfree?”

“Believe it, 'Tia,” Luna replied. “I've read the histories. Brutal predators, unfathomably virulent diseases, scarce resources, hardly any naturally arable land, and weather that would make a pegasus faint upon seeing it.” She paused to shake her head at that, though the two alicorns remained at a trot. “Their most successful religions have painted themselves as offending the Creator to warrant such a world, and sometimes I wonder if that is not true; it would certainly explain a few things.”

Celestia had nothing to say to that, and so she remained silent and pondered on what her sister had said. Thus, the two ponies remained in quiet thought as they came to a set of double doors set near the tower's outer walls and stopped before them. “And here we are,” Luna said, with a sheepish grin.

“Your home?” Celestia asked, and then waited as she received a nod. A glance to the end of the corridor showed that it terminated a short distance away, capped off by a large pane of glass that gave an excellent view of the city beyond. “Why did we fly into the middle of this tower if you live near the outer wall?”

The sheepish grin turned smarmy. “Because this way I could show off how well I've done for myself,” she smugly replied. “And come on, wasn't that a fun flight?”

Celestia huffed in exasperation at her sister, though soon enough she had to smile. “Yes, I suppose it was... somewhat enjoyable,” she allowed, as she imperiously raised her muzzle and closed her eyes. “If you like that sort of thing.”

She anticipated a chuckle, and instead got a rather hearty laugh out of Luna. Confused, Celestia looked back down to her sister and found the smaller alicorn warmly smiling up at her. “Is something the matter?” the elder pony asked.

Luna shook her head. “No, 'Tia,” she said, and then quickly moved forward to wrap her forelegs around Celestia's neck in a hug. “I've just missed you, that's all,” she added, her voice cracking slightly.

Celestia felt hot tears soaking into her coat, and she suddenly found herself hard-pressed to contain her own emotions. “I've missed you, as well,” she said, as she settled on her haunches so she could return the hug. “I know it hasn't been as long for me, but every day without you was a day without the sun.”

“I'm so sorry,” Luna said, as sobs started to emanate from her muzzle. “I should have listened to you, I should have waited for the review, I shouldn't have made you come here to save my sorry flank.”

“You didn't make me do anything,” Celestia replied, as she patted her sister's back. “I wanted to do this, Luna, I wanted to find you and bring you home. I waited a thousand years to get my sister back, and I wasn't going to let some pony-snatching reality take you away from me again.”

Luna didn't reply to that, at least not verbally. Instead she cried and sobbed into her sister's neck and mane, releasing a decade's worth of pent-up emotions. Celestia recognized it for what it was, and she wisely remained silent as Luna cried herself out.

They remained like this for a time that neither would fully remember the duration of. It seemed like hours, and when Celestia finally looked out the corridor's window on the city again, she saw that night had fallen completely, broken only by the artificial glow coming from humanity's gleaming towers and the streets below.

Soon enough, however, Luna's sobs died down, and the younger alicorn gently pulled herself away from her sister and stood to take a step back. “Th–thank you, 'Tia,” she said, quietly, as she looked up with bloodshot eyes.

“What else is an older sister for?” Celestia asked, with a smile, as she stood up herself.

“Besides eating cake?” Luna replied, and then shared a chuckle with her sibling. Her expression once again turned dour, however, as she glanced over to the doors set into the wall. “But I'm glad this happened out here, before we got inside.”

“Oh? Celestia asked, confused. “Why is that?”

Luna bit her lip, and then looked back up at her sister. “Because there's someone you need to meet,” she said, and then turned to face the door as she lit up her horn. Her magic worked a panel set into the side of the entrance and pressed several buttons in a rapid-fire sequence, upon the completion of which a tone sounded. “And I can't have her see me crying like that just yet.”

Celestia frowned, and then opened her muzzle to ask the obvious questions. Before she could, however, Luna opened the doors with her telekinesis, revealing a luxurious set of rooms beyond. And just as this occurred, a small shape rocketed out of said rooms and tackled Luna hard, sending them both to land in the middle of the corridor. Shocked at this, Celestia could only watch as the new shape uttered a singular cry:

“Mommy!”

Part 5 - Family

Dumbstruck.

Celestia felt a bit of pride as her mind worked through the shock, the gears of thought relentlessly working to bring order to chaos and sense to nonsense. Just now she had nailed down the word that most accurately described her reaction to the scene in front of her. It was, however, the only thing her mind could do at the moment, aside from studying the tiny figure clutching Luna's neck.

It was a filly, that much even Celestia's addled mind could register. Her coat was a pale shade of sky blue, her mane and tail a darker shade of that color and grown out to give substantial length. A pair of wings adorned her back, and the nub of a young horn barely made its way past her mane, marking her as an alicorn; all in all, she looked like a miniature version of Luna upon her cleansing by the Elements of Harmony, only with reversed colors. And right now, she had her forelegs wrapped around Luna's neck in a deathgrip of a hug. “You're home! You're home!” she happily squealed, as she nuzzled Luna's neck.

“Yes I am,” Luna replied, having already recovered from the adorable ambush. She wrapped both of her forelegs around the filly and hugged her back. “I'm guessing you missed me?”

“Yes!” the filly replied, as she leaned her head back to look into Luna's eyes and smile the sort of smile that only the innocent can have. “Missus McCall said you'd be back late but it was getting really really late and I was worried you forgot about coming home because you were celebrating or something but now you're here and...” Something seemed to register in the filly's mind just then, and she slowly turned her head to look over at Celestia. An expression of shock and awe overtook the little one's features, and her mouth opened and closed several times as her tiny brain attempted to understand the sight before her.

“Artemis,” Luna began, with a smile on her muzzle as she watched the filly and her sister exchange flabbergasted looks. “Remember those stories I told you about my sister?” she asked, and then stifled a chuckle as her filly nodded her head without even looking back. “Well, this is her, this is your aunt Celestia.”

“Really?” Artemis asked, as she finally swiveled her head back to face the dark alicorn.

Luna only nodded, and then gently nudged the filly to move off of her barrel. “Really,” she said, with a broad smile, as the filly climbed off. Luna quickly shifted around on the floor until she had her hooves beneath her, and then stood and faced the still silent sun princess. “Celestia, please say hello to my daughter, Artemis.”

This finally jolted Celestia's mind out of its inaction, and she blinked several times before her manners reasserted themselves. She smiled warmly, and lowered her head a bit to look less imposing to the filly. “Hello, Artemis. It's so good to meet you,” she said, her voice revealing none of the questions or stresses of the moment that rebounded in her head.

“H–hello,” the filly nervously replied, her head downcast so that Celestia could only see a hint of her eyes.

“Artemis, that's not polite,” Luna said, in a tone that was even yet held a tiny note of admonishment. “You know that when you meet new people you need to look them in the eyes and introduce yourself.”

“Yes, momma,” Artemis replied, and then took in a deep breath. She held it for a moment, and then looked up and straight at Celestia, who blinked as she looked into the filly's startlingly violet eyes. “Hello, aunt Celestia, my name is Artemis Revenio, I'm happy to meet you.”

Celestia couldn't help but smile, despite the awkward nature of the filly's words. “Well, that makes two of us,” she said, and then gave a look to her sister. “Or perhaps three?”

“Indeed,” Luna replied, with a brief smirk. “But let us not dally out here when there is a fine home yonder,” she added, with a wave of her foreleg towards the open door.

Artemis giggled at that. “You're talking funny again, momma,” she said, and then promptly started trotting back through the entrance she had launched herself from only a few minutes prior.

“Yes, being around Celestia does that to me,” Luna replied, as she waved her sister to move in ahead of her. Celestia decided that it would be better to follow along with the flow, and she moved into the suite's foyer. Here she paused and gave a long, hard examination of her sister's apartments.

The first thing that struck her was just how soft and muted the colors were. Most ponies in Equestria preferred bright, saturated colors in just about every decorative work they made, yet here the walls were done in a series of warm, dark earth tones, the furniture a mixture of soft browns and greens, and the ceiling an off-white that neither punished the eyes nor looked filthy, as some shades of that color tended to appear. Even the decorative objects and paintings sitting on tables or hanging on the walls were, for the most part, understated, though surprisingly bright and vivid flowers were placed in several vases around the various rooms she could see from the foyer.

An interesting layout, Celestia mused, as Luna walked in and shut the door behind her. The foyer was little more than a semi-closed off area that opened into a small sitting room with several chairs of obviously human design, and one backless couch that was the right size for a pony. Instead of a hallway leading to the other rooms, the whole suite seemed open to the foyer and receiving area, with only partial walls between the living room, the dining room, and the kitchen to provide some sense of separation between the various spaces. Celestia found she rather liked the effect, as it made the suite feel more like an large room in a mansion than a series of claustrophobic spaces wedged into a one-hundred-story tower. A small hallway did lead off from the far end of the joint living/dining room, and several doors could be seen down it; bedrooms and the water closet, no doubt, Celestia concluded.

So intense her scrutiny of the rooms had been that she had almost missed the smallish human working on something in the kitchen. “Good evening, miss Revenio,” the woman said, with a warm smile, though it was soon gone as she laid eyes on Celestia. “Oh, my Lord,” she muttered.

Luna smiled as she walked to interpose herself between the human and her sister, just off to the side of their line-of-sight. “Heather, this is Celestia, my sister from back home,” she said, as she pointed a foreleg to the elder alicorn. “Celestia, this is missus Heather McCall, my house servant.”

“Oh dear, why didn't you tell me you were bringing a guest?” McCall said, her voice chiding as she set down the cookware she was washing and walked out of the kitchen. “And your sister, too! Why that's a special occasion,” she added, as walked over to stand in front of the two alicorns and wiped her hands on the apron she wore. “I beg your pardon, miss Celestia, but your sister can be quite forgetful at times,” the human finished, with a warm smile as she offered a hand.

“That is quite alright,” Celestia said, somewhat haltingly as she was taken aback by the motherly ambiance McCall exuded. Even as unfamiliar as she was with the bipeds, Celestia could easily tell this human was at the least middle-aged, somewhat plump, and had the sense to both chastise Luna for her lapse and yet still sound as if she were affectionate towards the dark alicorn. “I didn't exactly announce my arrival before I, uh, dropped in,” Celestia added, as he brought up a foreleg and shared a hoof/handshake.

“Still, a call on the comm would have been nice,” McCall replied as she released Celestia' hoof. “Ah well, no sense going on about it, the deed's done and all,” she added, and then glanced over to Luna. “Have you two eaten yet?”

“We ate some at Bruno's,” Luna replied. “But we kind of left early, so we could use a bit of food. Dessert, preferably,” she added, and then winked towards the human. “'Tia loves her cake, and she's had a rough day.”

“Now Luna,” Celestia interjected, as her wits finally started to operate again. “There's no need for any extra work, I'm sure I can last until the morning.”

“Oh nonsense, dearie,” McCall replied to the elder pony, and then turned to head back into the kitchen. “I don't mind a bit. Just give me a couple of hours and I'll whip up a nice chocolate double-layer cake.”

“Actually,” Luna interrupted, with a slightly raised voice, which prompted McCall to stop walking and talking, and then turn to face her employer. “I was feeling more in the mood for something special to mark the occasion,” Luna explained, with a gentle smile. “Could you take some petty cash and run to the bakery on C-level 5, section 12?”

McCall's face lit up at that, and her warm smile returned. “Oh yes, Franz's Bakery,” she said, as she started to untie her apron. “I think I know what you're wanting, dearie. Shouldn't take me more than a half-hour to run there and back, plus a few minutes for the staff to get the order ready.”

“Thank you, Heather,” Luna said, as her smile widened. “And don't be afraid to get something for yourself.”

“Oh don't offer me that, you know I'll take you up on it,” McCall replied, with a chuckle, as she went to a counter and collected a few items. Soon enough she stepped out and walked past the two alicorns and headed for the door. “I'll be sure to ring when I get back.”

Luna and Celesta offered their goodbyes, and then waited patiently for McCall to leave. Once she had, Celestia immediately turned to regard her sister with a questioning look. “I don't know whether to chastise you for sending an old lady out to run an errand, or to thank you for finding a way for us to talk in private,” she said, evenly.

Her sister chuckled. “Don't worry about Heather, she's only in her mid-50s and still going strong,” Luna said, and then turned to lead her sister deeper into the suite. “Human medicine is far more advanced than Equestrian in some respects, although deficient in others. Provided nothing truly serious happens, Heather can expect to live for another century in good comfort.”

“Fascinating,” Celestia murmured, as she took in the figure. “Where are they deficient, then?”

“Large scale repair, mostly,” Luna replied, as she led her sister into the living room, and then paused to look over to a corner that had been hidden by one of the partial walls. Artemis sat pony-style on a pillow on the floor in front of a piece of furniture upon which sat one of the strange screens that had moving pictures. A strange object was held in front of her in a magic field, and her attention was intently focused on manipulating it and watching the screen. “Artemis!”

“Huh?” the filly uttered in reply, without looking back from whatever it was she was doing.

Luna frowned at that, and then lit up her horn. The blue glow of her magic overlaid the dark blue, almost purplish aura of the younger alicorn, and the odd device was removed from her magical grasp. “Awww!” Artemis whined, as she stood to face her mother with a pout. “I was playing Cogs of Carnage!”

“Later,” Luna stated, her voice brooking no argument. “We have a guest, and it's not polite to ignore a guest,” she said, as she pressed a button on the device, and the screen faded to a soft-white menu. “Besides, I need to take off my armor and wash up a bit, so I'll need you to keep my sister from jumping into the pantry and making off with all of our snacks when I'm not looking.” Her voice took on a jovial quality at the last.

Celestia harrumphed at that, as she lifted her muzzle in mock disdain. “Please, as if I would stoop to stealing your snacks,” she said, and then lowered her head to grin at Luna. “It would be more satisfying to just gobble them up right in the pantry.”

Artemis giggled at that, despite the hackneyed nature of the banter. “Okay, momma,” she said, her voice back to normal. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude.”

“That's quite alright,” Luna replied, as she set the device down next to the screen, and then turned said screen off with a remote push of the power button. “Now, I'm going to wash up. Be good for your aunt.”

“I will,” Artemis promised, and then sat on her haunches and looked up at Celestia as her mother trotted down the short hall to the bedrooms. “Momma says you're a princess,” Artemis said, once she heard Luna close a door behind her.

“Indeed I am,” Celestia replied, as she looked around the living area for a seat. She found a nice backless couch to lay upon, and quickly did so while Artemis nudged her sitting pillow around so she could lie on it and face her aunt. “In fact, your mother is a princess, too.”

The filly nodded at that. “That's what she said,” Artemis replied. “Do you really live in a castle?” Her tone picked up at this, and her eyes grew a bit wider.

Celestia had to pause at that, and she took a moment to wonder why a filly would find that surprising. Then again, I'm sitting in some strange mega-building in an alternate reality filled with technologically-advanced water-apes and having a talk with my sister's daughter, the mare reminded herself. Everything is already upside-down and backwards, need I question every tiny thing until I've driven myself mad? “Yes, little one,” she said, after a moment. “I live in a castle in the royal city of Canterlot.”

Artemis frowned at that, and then tilted her head. “Don't you mean Camelot?” she asked.

Celestia found herself frowning back for a half-second. “What do camels have to do with it?” she asked back, neutrally.

The filly giggled at that. “Not camels, silly,” she admonished her aunt. “Camelot. The place with King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and stuff like that!”

Again, Celestia found herself frowning ever so slightly. “I'm afraid I haven't heard of that before,” she admitted, slowly. Then she smiled as an idea entered her head. “Why don't you tell me about them?”

* * * *

Luna sighed in relief as she clambered out of the shower and onto the tile floor of her bathroom. Nothing like hot water to wash away the terror, she wryly thought, as she used her magic to levitate several towels from a nearby rack and brought them over to rub her coat, mane, and tail dry. Or at least mildly damp, the alicorn mused as she finished her task, and then hung the towels back up to dry. I can let the last bit air dry; I had best get back to 'Tia and have our little talk.

A tug of her telekinesis pulled the door to the bathroom open, and Luna walked down the carpeted hallway at an easy pace. When she heard Artemis talking, though, she stopped just around the corner and listened.

“...And then a soldier saw a snake, and it was gonna bite someone so he pulled out his sword,” the little filly said.

“Oh my,” Celestia said, her tone having a tinge of sadness. “But didn't both leaders tell their armies to attack if anyone drew a weapon?”

“Yeah,” Artemis replied, gloomily. “They had everything set up an' stuff for peace, and then something dumb like that happens, so they all fought. Arthur and most of the knights die, but Mordred dies too, so that kinda balances out a bit.”

“I see,” Celestia said, and Luna had to stifle a chuckle as she heard the wry tone in her sister's voice. She's been wearing out those words today, the dark alicorn thought as the conversation started up again. “But Arthur had no heirs, right? Who ruled Camelot after that?”

A brief pause and the sound of shifting material told Luna that her daughter had shrugged a reply. “No one knows, really, except Camelot wasn't strong anymore and couldn't protect Britain like it did before, so the whole island gets invaded over and over again.”

“That is a very sad story,” Celestia replied, after a moment.

“Yeah,” Artemis agreed. “But I still kinda like it.”

Luna decided she had eavesdropped enough, and she casually walked out from behind the corner, though with a slight bit of extra energy in her step to make sure her hooves made a noise on the carpet. Once around, she saw both Celestia and Artemis looking up at her, and she smiled. “So, how are you two getting along?” Luna asked, as she walked over to stand by the other ponies.

Celestia smiled up at her sister. “Splendidly,” she replied, and then turned the smile to Artemis. “Your daughter has quite the penchant for storytelling,” she complimented, which made the filly blush a bit.

“She has been rather interested in mythology since I told her the origin of her name,” Luna explained, with her own indulgent smile towards the filly. “It doesn't hurt that my own name has a parallel in human myth.”

“Oh?” Celestia asked, as she turned to give Luna a raise eyebrow expression.

Luna chuckled at the surprised tone. “Yes. They call their homeworld's moon 'Luna', after a pagan goddess that represented it.”

“Sounds like somepony I know,” Celestia said, and raised a foreleg to tap the hoof against her chin.

A giggle from Artemis garnered the adult ponies' attention. “Somepony?” she asked, with a grin. “That's silly, aunt Celestia.”

“How is that silly?” the elder alicorn asked, a bit of genuine confusion mixing with her good-natured tone.

“Humans prefer a more general term like 'someone' or 'somebody',” Luna interjected. “Given there are no other sapient ponies in this reality, I've dropped using our native term, so Artemis has only heard the human version.”

Celestia blinked at that, and she turned her head so that she could fully regard Luna with a steady, quizzical gaze. Luna felt the unspoken questions piercing her soul, and so she smiled wanly and then turned to look at her daughter. “Artemis, your aunt and I have to talk a bit about some things, so you can go back to your game now.”

“Really?” Artemis asked, and then flapped her wings in excitement when Luna nodded. “Yay! Grub swarm, here I come!” she exclaimed, as she quickly turned to the odd devices she had been playing with before. Her horn lit up and soon the screen was back on and the strange controller was hovering before her again.

“Just keep the volume down,” Luna admonished, and then turned to Celestia and gestured with a wing towards the sitting area. Her sister nodded in understanding and stood up to walk with Luna towards the indicated seats, of which Luna quickly claimed one of the human-shaped chairs. “You may have the divan,” she stately declared, with a look of mock imperiousness on her face.

Despite the tension that had been building since she entered Luna's home, Celestia chuckled. “My, how gracious of you, princess,” she replied, with equally sardonic gratitude.

Luna smiled at the other pony as she sat down, but soon let her face drop into a mask of neutrality. “So...” she said, but then found she had no idea how to begin. “Uhm, how's Equestria?” she asked, with a forced smile.

Celestia raised an eyebrow again, and then sighed. “How bad is the news I'm about to receive?” she asked, tiredly.

“What makes you think it's bad news?” Luna asked, feigning nonchalance.

“Because you always get nervous and talk about picayune things when you have bad news to bear,” the elder alicorn said, some amusement now tinging her tired voice as she offered a small smile.

A nervous chuckle escaped Luna's lips, and she had to shake her head a bit. “Well, I suppose I should start at the beginning?” she asked.

“That would be a good idea.”

“Alright, then. Just let me cast a muffle spell to make sure Artemis cannot overhear us,” Luna replied, and then lit up her horn for a moment. “There, all set. Now, it all started in my bedroom...”

* * * *

“...So after that, I joined Malcolm's team. I've been working with them ever since.”

Celestia nodded as she digested Luna's retelling of the events that brought her to this world. And I thought I had it bad, she mused. Although at least Luna had a bit of time to assimilate a few ideas before she was shot in the head. She absentmindedly brought up a foreleg and rubbed a hoof against her face at that thought. “Well, it seems this reality has a nasty welcome for new arrivals,” she observed, with a smirk.

Luna chuckled. “Verily,” she replied, and then took in a breath and sighed again. “Of course, that doesn't describe everything.”

“Indeed,” Celestia agreed. “For instance, did you start research on finding a way back?” she asked, patiently.

“Of course,” Luna replied, bristling slightly under her sister's gaze. “I had most of the Unreal Engine spell memorized, and what little I couldn't recall would be easily deduced. The materials were expensive at first, as gemstones appear to be rather uncommon on most worlds in this reality. But the Tournament pays well, if you can put on a good show,” she said, and then smiled, though it had a hard edge to it. “And if there's one thing I learned from the Nightmare Night fiasco in Ponyville all those years ago, it's that I can put on quite the show.”

“Mmm,” Celestia hummed, and then took a sip of the tea Luna had made partway through her story. “You have always been the more hooves-on mare out of us,” she added, with a faint, but genuine smile of encouragement. “Which is why I'm asking about your research.”

“Ah, yes,” Luna said, and then blushed slightly as she realized she had become sidetracked. “Well, I had to first figure out a way to manufacture spellcaster's chalk, which took about a month, and then my attempts to recreate the Unreal Engine spell took an additional six months,” the dark alicorn explained, and then paused to sip her tea. “After that, I started trying to track down the recall function of the original spell... it didn't work as I'd hoped it would, of course, else you would not have been forced to look for me.”

Celestia merely nodded to that, and then waited patiently as Luna gathered her thoughts. “I tried my best,” the latter said, as she resumed her story. “But I found not a single trace of any spellwork, my own or another being's. I spent six weeks before I finally decided that I was not going to find my way back from the original spell.

“So instead I redesigned the engine, added in some safety features so I wouldn't be drawn in against my will again, and had a nice, long 'talk' with the central computer here in New Santiago about not meddling with the affairs of wizards.” Luna paused at this to smirk, and for once Celestia found herself mirroring the expression as the two shared a memory. Soon enough, however, the moment passed and Luna continued on. “I started looking for Equestria the hard way.”

“The hard way?” Celestia asked, though her confusion was brief as a thought entered her mind. “You mean you tried to look through the various realities one by one?”

Luna nodded, a forlorn look on her face. “Ridiculous, I know, but what else was I supposed to do?” she asked, and then shook her head. “I figured I was immortal, I had time to look.” She paused again, and then shook her head. “What I didn't figure on was how... trying this reality can be if one isn't fully acclimated.”

Celestia frowned. “What do you mean by that?” she asked, with a raised eyebrow.

Her sister dismissively waved a foreleg. “I'm sure you are not oblivious to how abrasive it can be here?” she asked back, and then waited for Celestia to nod. “Well, let me just say that attempting to split my time between work and study ended up poorly,” Luna explained, and then briefly bit her lip. “My performance was waning, to the point that Malcolm said that, novelty or no, I would have to be dropped from the team. Ultimately I needed to devote more time to work, or to my trip home. Sadly, I chose the former.”

“I see,” Celestia murmured, and then sipped her tea again. “So you gave up until today?”

“Hardly,” Luna replied, and then sighed. “I spent months telling myself that it would only be a little while, all I had to do was last until the end of the season,” she explained, and then hung her head. “And then at the end of the season, it completely slipped my mind to restart my project.

“It wasn't until a particularly nasty post-season fight sidelined me with a serious injury that I managed to get time to think,” Luna continued. “That was four months later, and when I realized I had abandoned my work since then, well... I might have lost it a bit,” she concluded, with a blush.

“You were hurt?” was Celestia's first response. “I thought those human machines prevented permanent injury and death?”

“Mostly, yes,” Luna replied. “But they are not perfect; sometimes a mistake is made,” she added, and then shifted on the oversized recliner she was perched upon. “I was left with a nasty hole in my side that the machines did not recognize as a wound, for some reason, and I was immediately taken out of the game and sent to a hospital. Fortunately they managed to staunch the blood flow and sew me up, but I still had a good month of recovery before I would be able to work again. It left me with a scar, as well.” At this, the younger alicorn got down from the seat, turned to her right, and then lifted her left wing to expose her side. A light break in her oat stretched from just under where the wing joined the rest of her body, ran down and across her ribs, and then finally ended just past the end of the bone cage.

Celestia grimaced as her sister lowered her wing and then returned to her seat. “That must have been a terrible wound,” she observed, as a fresh pain ran through her heart at the idea of her sister being injured so. “But we both know scar-healing spells; why keep it?”

Luna opened her mouth as if to explain, but something made her freeze, and then blush. “Er, well, that's the next part of my story,” she said, quietly, as she folded her wing to its normal resting position. “As I took time to heal, I realized I had abandoned my research into getting home. That recognition hit me rather hard.”

“Why?” Celestia asked, quizzically. “It seems you had a good excuse.”

“That's just it,” Luna replied, with a shake of her head. “It was an excuse. I told myself it was fine to wait on it, that I had time. All the time in the world, in fact,” she added, and then laughed ruefully. “You get it, right 'Tia?” Luna asked, as she fretfully looked into her sister's eyes. “You get it, right? All... the time...”

“...In the world,” Celestia finished, and then nodded her head sadly. “Yes, my sister. If there's anypony else in the world who understands that, it's me.”

The worried look on Luna's face ebbed, and she nodded. “I knew you would,” she said, quietly; so quiet that Celestia had to strain over the unrecognizable, muted sounds coming from the living room. “I sort of lost some of my perspective,” Luna continued, as she glanced down to the floor. “A month off, nothing to do but sit around, and I hadn't yet embraced much of what this world had to offer, save the Tournament and books. But even reading can only take you so far, despite what your protégé would insist, and realizing I had been neglecting my efforts to get home and thus leaving me stuck here longer all moved me to resume and redouble my efforts in looking through the engine for home.

“I must have spent fourteen hours a day just running the spellwork,” Luna somberly said, as she looked up to stare at a wall while her mind traced over her memories. “I did that for two weeks straight, and I never found anything even remotely close to our home... until, at last, I did.”

Celestia blinked at the last, and then leaned her head forward to garner Luna's attention. “What do you mean?”

“I found a world that, for all intents and purposes, looked like Equestria,” Luna explained, as she turned her head to match her sister's gaze. “I took some time to scry around a bit, and it looked like home. So much so that after gathering a few things I initiated the teleport spell and jumped there as soon as I could.” She paused at that, and then offered another rueful smile. “There was, however, one significant difference that I did not realize until after I arrived.”

* * * *

The air crackled with energy as the teleport spell released, and Luna clenched her eyes shut and breathed deep as the effects of inter-dimensional travel made her head swim a bit. By the Creator, that stings, she thought, as she shook her head to try and get a hold of herself.

Soft gasps met her ears just then, and the night princess opened her eyes to see that she had arrived in the city square just outside of the royal palace in Canterlot, as she had intended. All around her were the various denizens of Equestria's capitol city, and everypony within eyesight had stopped to gawk at the sudden and unexpected light show of Luna's arrival, including the pair of guards standing watch at the palace's gate.

For her part, though, Luna could only smile broadly and expand her chest in pride. “I did it!” she shouted, and then laughed. “Mine exile is over! Huzzah!” With that, she turned and trotted over towards the gate, fully intending to see her sister at once.

She made it across the drawbridge before the two earth pony guards interposed themselves between her and the open gate, their hoof-carried spears leveled at her chest. “Halt, and identify yourself!” one of the armored mares demanded.

Luna stopped and stared, dumbfounded at the brazen display. Soon enough she regained her wits, and her face twisted in anger. “What manner of foalishness is this?” she demanded, her voice revealing the rise of her sudden temper. “Who art thou, who dares to threaten your princess with a brazen display of treachery?”

“We don't have any princesses that look like you,” the mare who'd spoken replied, sharply. “Now, identify yourself, or be arrested.”

Another moment of silent shock washed over Luna, and was only broken by the sound of many hooves coming from beyond the palace gate. Confused, she looked up to see two full squads, once each of uniccorns and pegasi, rushing to the gate, lead by one rather large mare in purple armor. “What's going on here?” she demanded, as she reached the earth pony guards.

“This strange mare is attempting to gain entrance to the palace, captain,” the leader of the two gate guards replied, without taking her eyes off of Luna. “She appeared out of nowhere only moments ago in some sort of spell.”

“Of course I did,” Luna said, garnering their full attention, as she assumed an imperious stance. “I hath been gone for a year, surely mine sister hath been worried of my disappearance?” she asked, and then frowned as something niggled in the back of her mind. Something is wrong here, she thought, but then put the idea aside; insurrection was afoot and she was not going to allow it.

“Your sister?” the large unicorn asked, as she stepped forward to stand even with the two earth ponies. Behind them the two squads of guards dispersed and assumed defensive positions, which irritated Luna with their intransigence. “And who might that be?”

Luna snapped her head back as if slapped. “Am I so easily forgotten?” she demanded, her tone a mixture of hurt and anger at the apparent betrayal. “Even sealed away in the moon for a thousand years, ponies at least remembered me from Nightmare Night. Yet I am gone for merely a year and some days and thou cannot remember mine sister is Celestia, princess of the sun?”

Her words finally seemed to have an equally confusing effect on ponies who accosted her. “What are you talking about?” the leader asked, confused. “Prince Arcturus was sealed in the moon for a millennium, and his brother, prince Solaris, moves the sun across the sky,” she explained, and then gave a hard look over Luna. “Granted, you sorta look like prince Arcturus, but he isn't a mare.”

Again, Luna was dumbfounded, and she took a solid minute to process what had been said before she uttered a reply. “What,” she stated, flatly.

“I said—” the leader began to reply, but was cut off as Luna snapped.

“I heard what thou said, wretch,” Luna shouted, in full Canterlot Royal Voice. The ponies in front of her all slid back half a body-length from the sheer force of her angry outburst. “What thou says is impossible, lest there hath been an uprising in mine absence,” she added, as she lowered her head and sent her horn aglow. “Prithee that the Creator grant you forgiveness if this is so, for if one hair on mine sister's head hath been damaged then I shall burn this palace to ash in order to wreak my vengeance!”

The unicorn mare lit up her horn in response, and within seconds a large, purple dome shield sprang into existence around the palace, its edge interposing itself between Luna and the guards. Once satisfied that the shield was in place, the mare turned her head to look back at one of the pegasus guardsponies. “Alert the barracks and the prince!” she ordered, and then turned her head back around to face the aggressor, just in time to see Luna disappear in a flash.

...And then reappear, inside the shield, just in front of the guards. The ponies all gasped in shock and started to react, but were too slow as Luna's magic reached out for every pony at the gate, and then hurled them to the ground. “Thou seeks to oppose me?” the dark alicorn asked, as her eyes held the hint of a glow behind her blue irises. “I hath destroyed shoggoths, scourged dragons, and fought in the Grand Tournament against beings the likes of which would make thee wet thyself in terror. Your shield is but a trifle to the regent of the moon!”

The guardsponies all writhed on the ground, as they attempted to free themselves from Luna's telekinetic grasp. “Let us go!” their leader demanded.

“Not until thou surrenders and takes me to mine sister!” Luna countered.

“Release them,” a new voice sounded from the direction of the gate. It was deep, commanding, and masculine, and Luna couldn't help but look up at its owner, and then gape in complete shock.

An alicorn stood before her, with a pristine white coat, flowing, regal mane and tail, and broadly spread wings. Immediately Luna's mind tried to peg this being as Celestia, yet her sibling was certainly not a stallion, as this being was. “Wh–who art thou?” she asked.

“I am prince Solaris,” the stallion replied, as he slowly advanced, his wings still spread and horn aglow. “And you are threatening my subjects; an act I will not tolerate. Now, release them.”

Luna blinked at this, and her mind started to make connections. Predominantly mares in the guards, masculine names... She almost absentmindedly released her hold on the guardsponies, and then slowly sat down on her rump. I have to test this idea, her mind demanded, and she looked up to spit the stallion alicorn with a hard look. “How do you like your alfalfa?” she asked, with a raised eyebrow.

There wasn't much to see on “Solaris'” face, but Luna had spent centuries observing her sister enough to see the nervous tics she still revealed when surprised or disgusted. A mirror of both played themselves out on the prince's face, and he frowned. “I... beg your pardon?”

Luna didn't reply, but instead turned her gaze to the side a bit, and then took in a deep breath. Slowly, she let it out, and then uttered a single word: “Fuck.”

* * * *

“Luna!”

“What?” Luna asked, as she gave her sister an innocent look. “How else was I supposed to react when I found out I was in a parallel reality where everypony had their sexes reversed? Including ourselves, mind you.”

“Still,” Celestia countered, her tone chastising. “Such language is unbecoming of a princess, and especially of a representative to another reality.”

Luna raised an eyebrow at that. “Somehow I missed that particular bit of protocol,” she said, with a smile.

Celestia sniffed and jerked her muzzle up. “Well, consider it minted as soon as we return home,” she replied.

Another look of concern moved over Luna's face, though it was quickly replaced with a more pensive expression. “Yes, well... in any case, Solaris and I had a bit of a long talk. One that eventually included my counterpart, Arcturus, and prince Tempo,” she said, and then winked. “I'll let you guess who the last one was.”

“Cadence's alternate?” Celestia asked, and then waited for Luna to nod. An idea entered her head then, and she frowned. “Wait, does that mean you accosted Shining Armor at the gate?”

“Glimmering Shield, actually,” Luna replied, with a smirk. “Almost everypony there had their names changed to something more befitting their gender.”

“I see,” Celestia said, and then took a moment to sip at her tea. She made a face, as it had cooled by now, but soon put the taste out of her mind. “So, what happened then?”

Luna collected her thoughts for a moment, and then replied. “Well, it took me bringing up a few events in the past that only your or I—or, apparently, our alternates—would remember, but they eventually believed my story about who I was and where I was from,” she explained, and then climbed out of her chair. Her horn lit up a moment later, and soon the tea service was all being carried away by her magic. “I asked to stay there a while, as I was tired of this reality,” Luna continued, as she turned and walked into the kitchen. “They agreed, after a few simple ground rules were established.”

“Really?” Celestia asked, as she climbed off her couch and then followed her sister into the other room. There she watched in mild fascination as the night princess, who had a small army of servants back home, washed her own tea service in the kitchen sink. “What sort of rules?”

“Reasonable ones,” Luna replied, as her magic lifted up some towels from a drawer so she could dry the ceramic dishes. “Obviously not to interfere in their government, or with their 'raising' the celestial bodies,” she added, and then snorted. “As if I could.”

“Indeed,” Celestia murmured, as her face flushed a bit in memory of her last conversation with Twilight Sparkle. Was that only this morning? She asked herself. It feels like ages ago.

“They also didn't want me to stay in Canterlot,” Luna went on, somewhat absentmindedly as she split her attention between the story and her work. “They had some official reasons, but I rather suspect that prince Tempo was still upset with my rough handling of his wife. So after some consideration, I decided to stay in Ponyville, since it has been so momentous to our nation these past few years.”

“Oh? And how was that?” Celestia asked, genuinely curious.

Luna was silent for a moment, and just wiped the tea kettle out with a towel as she thought. “Interesting,” she said at last. “As soon as I arrived, a rather energetic and party-obsessed stallion ambushed me with a pneumatic cannon loaded with confetti.”

Celestia couldn't help but laugh. “Pinkie Pie?” she asked, with a grin.

“Aye,” Luna replied, with a brief glance back to share in the smile. “Or I should say 'Bubble Berry',” she added, as she returned to her dish work. “Typical element of laughter, you know, so energetic, so friendly, overbearing to a fault.” She glanced back a second time and shot Celestia a knowing expression.

“Don't give me that look,” Celestia protested, with a sniff. “It's not my fault you got the boring elements.”

“Honesty, Loyalty, and Magic are not the 'boring' elements,” Luna retorted. “In any case, I endured the inevitable 'welcome-to-Ponyville-princess-Luna-from-another-reality' party, and subsequently met the other bearers of that world.” She paused, and then chuckled. “You should have seen the looks on their faces, 'Tia. I think most of them were torn somewhere between awkward aversion of the eyes to downright ogling my flank.”

That statement caught Celestia off guard, and she gave a silent prayer of thanks that she hadn't been drinking tea at the time. “What?” she asked, in surprise.

Luna chuckled. “Stallions, 'Tia, remember?” she asked. “All except Dusk Shine. I think he was mad at me for my encounter with Glimmering Shield, as well, though it was leavened with his innate curiosity and forgiving nature.”

Celestia blinked at the name, and she gaped slightly at her sister. “You mean Twilight Sparkle's alternate?”

“Of course,” Luna replied, with a shaky smile. “Whom else would I refer to?”

Something in her answer niggled at Celestia's mind, and she frowned a bit as she took in the mare before her. “Luna, what's wrong?” she asked.

“What makes you think something is wrong?” Luna asked back, her smile still crooked.

“Because, 'Honesty', you can't lie worth a spit,” Celestia countered, and then nodded towards the sink. “And because you've been drying that teapot for the last five minutes.”

Luna balked, and then glanced over to the teapot hovering over the sink. She sighed, and then set the pot to the side and then placed down the drying towel, as she had finished every other piece already. “My time in that version of Equestria is... somewhat of a mixed bag for me,” she said, as she turned to walk out of the kitchen and back towards the sitting area.

“How so?” Celestia asked, as Luna passed her. “It sounded rather nice to me; a lot better than here, anyway,” she added, as she turned to follow her sister. “Why didn't you stay there? Why come back here, of all places?”

Luna sat down on her earlier seat, and then waited patiently for Celestia to regain hers before she replied. “While I was welcomed at first, as time wore on there was a tension that started,” the younger alicorn explained. “At first I thought it was merely the oddity of dealing with a gender-reversed version of someone they know. Creator knows I had a hard enough time dealing with it myself.

“Eventually, however, I realized that my rough handling of the guardsponies was only the beginning,” Luna continued, and her voice dropped a bit. “I... I wasn't proud of it, but I didn't see what was wrong with it. At least, not until the other incidents.”

Celestia frowned at the odd turn of the conversation. “Other incidents?” she asked.

“Aye,” Luna replied, and then took in a deep breath. “Ponyville, as you know, has had more than its fair share of issues, recently, including an increase in monster attacks from the Everfree Forest.” She paused then, and waited for Celestia to nod her understanding. “Two of those incidents occurred while I was staying in Ponyville. The first was a pack of timberwolves that attacked three young colts near the Apples' farm. It was fortunate that I was close by looking for spell reagents to resume my research, and I rushed in and dispatched the creatures.”

“And that was a problem?” Celestia asked, confused.

Luna bit her lower lip. “Not the result, but rather, the method I used,” she said, slowly. “Instead of frightening them off, or merely flinging them away, I used lethal force on the timberwolves. I even hunted down the few that tried to run and destroyed them, so they could not attack again later on.”

Celestia leaned back at that, as surprise washed over her face. “That... was a bit extreme, wasn't it?”

“It depends on whom you ask,” Luna replied, evenly. “Applejack—yes, that name finds use with the male gender as well—was frankly nonchalant about the experience, and dare I say happy that the wolves were gone for good. Most other ponies, however, thought I had gone too far,” she explained, and then glanced to the side. “I argued against them, said it was only logical to destroy a threat before it could come back to bite you in the flank, but most didn't see it that way.

“Then the second incident came along,” Luna continued, as she continued to look away from her sister. “Three adolescent dragons attacked Ponyville, in an attempt to garner revenge against Spina—the alternate of your student's dragon assistant—for something she did. They hurt several ponies and nearly killed Dusk Shine, and for that I...” Her breath caught in her throat, and she glanced to the side again as tears formed in her eyes.

An understanding came together in Celestia's head, and she gasped lightly. “You killed them?”

“Two,” Luna replied, sadly. “But not in cold blood; they attacked me when I intervened, and even after I gave them several chances to retire, they continued to press their attack. One even grabbed Dusk to use as a pony shield,” she added, and then her voice took on a hard tone. “I ripped her damn neck apart, then fell upon the other one in a blind rage. The third wisely chose to run at that point, and I managed to keep myself from following.” Luna paused, and then looked to her sister with tearful eyes. “But it was close, 'Tia. If she hadn't run when she did... I don't know what I would have done.”

Emotion moved through Celestia as she contemplated her sister's confession. Disgust, shock, and fear all mingled together, yet the sad, pathetic look Luna gave her gave rise to far more powerful ones; sympathy, and love. “Luna,” she said, as she climbed off the divan and moved over to stand in front of the younger mare. “I won't pretend that what you did was something I would do myself,” she began, carefully, as she placed a hoof on Luna's shoulder. “But from what you describe, it was not disproportionate to the threat they represented.”

“It doesn't matter,” Luna replied, as she brought up a foreleg to wipe away some of her tears. “Whether I was justified or not, the fact I resorted to such actions showed something that I had worried about since the end of that first, terrible game in this reality,” she added, and then sniffed. “I felt satisfaction, even pleasure at killing my foes. I used more violence than was necessary, and I never once thought to try another method that might not require it.”

“Luna—” Celestia began, but was cut off as her sister snapped at her.

“I'm tainted, 'Tia,” she said, mournfully. “I want to blame this reality, blame its bloodthirsty crowds and easy acceptance of death and carnage... but the fact is I've always been this way,” Luna added, and then cast her gaze down.

“That's untrue and you know it,” Celestia replied, forcefully, as she gave a shake to her sister's shoulder. “You have never—”

“Rose up against you in an attempt to usurp your power?” Luna interrupted, as she looked up at Celestia with an expression consisting of equal parts of melancholy and recalcitrance. “Attempted to kill innocent ponies who only wanted their sun back? Made a foal of myself time and time again because I refused to learn how much Equestria had changed while I was locked in the moon for my hubris?”

“Stop that,” Celestia ordered, her tone hard as steel, and then waited to make sure Luna wouldn't interrupt her again. “You are a kind, compassionate pony who cares about her subjects,” the sun princess began, her voice low. “Your passion is legendary, and your zeal commendable, if sometimes misplaced. But know this: you are my sister, and so long as you have love in your heart and friends to guide you, then whatever you do, even if it is a mistake, cannot be unforgivable.” Celestia lowered her hoof and then leaned forward to give Luna a soft nuzzle. “You are not tainted, my wonderful sister. You cannot be, not with the way you've acted since we arrived here, at your home. I have seen and heard nothing more than the actions of somepony who cares so much for others that she is willing to do whatever she needs to do to protect them.

“Perhaps what you did was unnecessary,” Celestia allowed, as she pulled back. “But perhaps it wasn't; nopony can tell the future, after all, and your reaction to those attacks was well within your rights, both as an individual and as a ruling princess.”

Silence met her remarks, broken only by the muted sounds of Artemis' game from the other room. Luna stared at the floor for several long moments, with only an occasional sniffle to show she was still aware. Finally, she sighed, and then looked up towards Celestia. “You'll see,” she said, softly.

“See what?” Celestia asked, confused.

“What I am, what I've become,” Luna said, and then took in a deep breath. “And why I cannot return home.”

Celestia backpedaled at that, shock written on her face. “Luna... No, don't even speak of that,” she forcefully said. “I came here to retrieve you, to save you if you needed it. I'm not going to let you stay here when I return home.”

“Wait until you see the records of my matches before you make such a decision,” Luna advised, slowly. “I have some of my most... flashy performances stored in the media center in the living room. Tonight, after Artemis goes to sleep, we'll watch some, and then you can decide whether you really want me back.”

“I've decided now,” Celestia insisted, with a stomp of a foreleg. “I am not going to leave you here to suffer alone.”

“I'm not entirely alone,” Luna replied, evenly. “I do have Artemis.”

“An even better reason to come home,” Celestia stated. “Your daughter deserves to be raised amongst her own kind, don't you agree?”

A moment of silence met that question, before Luna sighed again. “What is her kind, 'Tia?” she asked, softly. “She was born here, has grown here, has absorbed this culture and its ways. I may have acclimated to this place, but Artemis has known nothing else. She may be a pony in shape, but her heart and personality are human, and all that implies.” Luna paused, and then looked up at Celestia. “Would you bring an eight-year-old child from the only culture, the only home she's ever known, just to give her what you think is a better life?”

“Yes,” Celestia replied instantly. She then took a moment to think, and then shook her head. “But... she is your foal, Luna. I won't tell you how to raise her, but I insist that you at least give me a chance to convince you.”

Luna nodded at that. “Fair enough,” she said, sadly. “So long as you give me a chance to try and convince you.”

Celestia frowned, but soon nodded in agreement. “Very well,” she said, and then glanced to a clock on the wall. “Your house servant should be back soon,” she observed.

Luna took the non sequitur in the spirit it was offered, and nodded an affirmation. “Verily. She will most likely take a bit longer than she said, as she understood my desire to speak with you in private.”

“I noticed,” Celestia replied, and then smiled at her sister. “You picked a good one, Luna; another reason you can't be so vile as you claim.”

The dark alicorn winced a bit at the jab at her position, but decided to let it pass. “Heather is a godsend,” she agreed, and then managed a small smile of her own as her tears started to dry. “She's so wonderful with Artemis, almost like a grandparent.”

Celestia nodded absentmindedly at that, as Luna's words brought up a question that had yet to be answered. “Speaking of which,” she began, slowly, and then paused to pick her words. “Luna... just who—or what—is Artemis' father?”

Luna blanched at that, and then glanced to the side and bit her lip. A moment of thought seemed to inspire her, and she turned her head back to face Celestia. “There's a second reason why I was uncomfortable in staying in the gender-bent Equestria,” she said, slowly. “After a time, I became close with a pony there, and he and I were... intimate.”

“I gathered that,” Celestia replied, dryly. “But why would that be a discomfort? Did you just sleep with him to use him?”

“Never!” Luna snapped, as anger flashed through her eyes. She paused at that, breathed deeply, and then continued in a softer tone. “Nay, it was a mutual and deep respect for one another, 'Tia, of that you can be sure. However, the dragon incident occurred not long after, and the stallion of which I speak had rather mixed feelings on the issue.” Luna bent her head down at that, and then wiped her eyes with a foreleg as she started to cry again. “On top of that, he was mortal, and we both know how such relationships are so short and bittersweet, even if it lasts the rest of their life. When added all together, I felt it would be best if I simply left.”

Silence fell over the sisters again, as Celestia contemplated Luna's explanation. “Did he know?” she finally asked. “Did you know?”

Luna shook her head. “Nay,” she replied, softly. “I did not find out until I arrived back here and had a physical for the next season of the Grand Tournament. It was a season I obviously sat out, until I could deliver my foal. If I had known before... well, I'm not sure if I would have made the same decision. Nor am I sure I wouldn't have done the exact same thing.”

“I see,” Celestia murmured. She thought for a moment, and then began to pace to work off some of her emotional energy. Almost as soon as she did, however, she stopped as a new idea entered her head. “Wait a moment... Luna?” she asked, and then waited for the other mare to look up at her. “Artemis is an alicorn, yet you said you laid with a mortal?”

“Aye,” Luna replied, and then offered a wan smile. “She has his eyes, you know.”

It took only a moment for Celestia's brain to bring back the color of the filly's eyes, and then several tidbits from her conversation with Luna. Her mind pieced these items together, and the realization they spawned slammed into her like a freight train. “You... slept... with my student? With Twilight Sparkle?”

“Dusk Shine, actually,” Luna replied, and then managed a sad smirk. “And technically, he's not your student, Celestia.”

“Same difference!” Celestia nearly shouted, as she gazed wide-eyed at Luna. “And how could she—he spark an alicorn foal?”

“Methinks you should already know that answer, if the tale of how she became your personal student is true,” Luna wryly observed. “Male or female, the current bearer of magic is possibly one of the strongest unicorns in Equestria. She might even ascend one day.”

“Indeed,” Celestia muttered, and then sighed. “Well... what's done is done. Though I do have a question,” she added, and then waited until she had her sister's full attention. “If—and I'm only saying 'if' right now so don't discount this out of hoof—you and Artemis come back with me, how would you handle your relationship with Twilight Sparkle? How would you handle your filly's relationship with her?”

“Well, I don't intend to tell them, if that's what you mean,” Luna replied, evenly. “And I would not pursue a relationship with Twilight beyond that of a friend. That ship has sailed, or so the humans say; I have had eight years to get over it, and while there are regrets, there is no desire for more than that.

“As for Artemis, I would very much love it if she and Twilight got to know each other well,” Luna continued, and then smiled. “Whether or not she's the actual father, it just seems appropriate.”

“Perhaps,” Celestia allowed. The two fell into silence again, as they both worked to process the long conversation. Eventually, the sounds coming from the living room impugned upon the sun princess' consciousness, and she frowned as some of the noises seemed disturbingly familiar to some bad memories in her past. “Luna, just what sort of game is Artemis playing?”

Something seemed to change in Luna at that, as her deflated body seemed to revitalize as she stepped off of her seat. “Let's go see, shall we?” she asked, with a smirk, as she cancelled her sound-muffling spell. She walked past her confused sister and led Celestia into the living room, where once again Artemis was settled in front of the multimedia center and levitating a controller.

Celestia frowned a bit as she finally paid more than a cursory glance to the screen. What she saw shocked her a bit, as a figure, seemingly guided by movements of a stick on the odd device Artemis levitated, moved around a grim, blasted landscape, shooting larger, uglier bipeds with fantastic weaponry. Celestia was about to question whether such a game would be appropriate for a filly—or anypony to play—when her train of thought was stopped old as Artemis guided her avatar up behind one of the enemy bipeds, and then revved up some sort of device on the weapon. A split second later, the enemy was bisected in a shower of blood and gore, even as it screamed in pain.

Far more disturbing to Celestia, however, was the childish giggle that left Artemis' muzzle. “Die, grub!” the filly jeered.

“Artemis,” Luna said, her voice now very much in control as if her repeated breakdowns in the other room hadn't happened.

The little filly startled at the mention of her name, and she quickly paused the game and then stood and turned around to face her mother and aunt. “Yes, momma?”

“I thought I turned the mature filter on for that game?” the dark alicorn asked, her voice dropping a bit in parental disappointment.

Artemis smiled sheepishly, and unconsciously rubbed one foreleg against the other. “Uhm... yeah...?” she said, unsure of what specifically would get her out of the situation.

Luna sighed. “Did Hazel come over and bypass it? Again?”

“Uh... maybe?” Artemis offered, with an unsure smile.

“I'm going to have a talk with that girl's parents soon,” Luna muttered, even as she lit up her horn and turned the game off again. “I told you, no blood and gore until you're twelve.”

“But mooooomm!” Artemis whined. “That's four yeeaaarrrs from now!”

“I know, but you can wait,” Luna replied, evenly. “Now, be honest with me: did Hazel bypass any other mature locks while she was here?”

The filly blinked, and then looked down and shuffled her hooves. “Just the gamestation,” she said, and then looked back up into her mother's eyes. “I swear.”

Luna gave Artemis a long look, but then nodded. “Alright. I won't punish you this time, but if I catch you playing an unlocked game again I'll chuck the bloody thing in the garbage.”

Artemis' eyes widened at that, and she quickly prostrated herself before her mother. “No, please! Please don't do that momma!” she begged, as she held up both forelegs in a pleading position.

“Just be good and it won't happen,” Luna replied evenly, and then smiled. “Now get up. Your aunt Celestia and I are done talking, and I think she would like to get to know you better.”

Celestia shook herself out of her shock-induced stupor at that, and then smiled down at the filly as the latter regained her hooves. “Indeed. That story you told me was great, but now I want to hear about you,” Celestia said.

“Really?” Artemis asked, her tone revealing her befuddlement. “Why?”

“Because you're a wonderful little filly,” Luna said, as she learned her head down to nuzzle her daughter. “And because Celestia has 'empty-nest syndrome'.”

“I do not!” Celestia rejoined, with a sniff. “How do you even begin to accuse me of that?”

Luna smiled as she brought her head back up and gave her sister a wink. “Come on, 'Tia, even though I was only back for two years, the palace servants couldn't help but talk about how empty the place seemed without a certain purple filly running around.”

Celestia blushed at that, and she gave Luna the hardest, most mean-spirited glare she could muster. “You fight dirty.”

“It's the human way!” Luna replied, with a chuckle. “Anyway, let's sit down and talk,” she added, and then led the other ponies towards the couches. “Artemis, how would you like to tell your aunt about our trip to Terra?”

“Ooh!” Artemis uttered, her face lighting up as she hopped onto the couch Luna picked and then quickly moved to nestle next to her mother. She did, however, position herself so she could face Celestia, and the filly looked up at the elder pony as the latter finished settling in on a divan. “You wanna hear about it, aunt Celestia?” Artemis asked. “It's really neat 'cuz we saw all sorts of cool stuff like the Everglades and the Grand Canyon and the Great Wall and—”

“Why don't you start at the beginning of our trip?” Luna gently interrupted, and then smiled as Artemis nodded and began again.

Part 6 - The Past

“...And momma got special permission and she took my flying over it on her back,” Artemis recounted, practically beaming with energy. “It's so big, aunt Celestia! You could fit half of our city in it!”

“'Tis true,” Luna added, with a smile. “It makes Ghastly Gorge look tiny in comparison. And the walls of the Grand Canyon are much prettier to look at than that old, gray ditch.”

“Well, it certainly sounds wonderful,” Celestia warmly said. “And you say it was carved naturally?”

“Uh-huh,” Artemis replied, with a cheerful nod. “It was carved out over millions and millions of years and— ooh! Do you wanna see?” she suddenly asked. “Momma got me a book about it at the gift shop!”

“That would be delightful,” Celestia replied, a pleasant smile on her muzzle.

“Eee!” Artemis squealed, and then hopped off the couch she shared with her mother. The alicorn filly's wings buzzed with excitement as she ran out of the living room and headed down the hall for her bedroom.

Both of the elder ponies watched her go, and then turned to each other. “She's a very bright filly,” Celestia observed. “I don't think I've seen such an eagerness to learn about the natural world, not even from Twilight; she was always more interested in magic itself than the reality outside of the palace walls.”

Luna chuckled briefly. “I think it's a result of living here,” she offered. “Humans have devoted a considerable amount of effort in researching their surroundings. It's really one of their greatest strengths, the ability to analyze and understand the world around them. And, of course, bend it to their will.”

“Hmm,” Celestia hummed. “Well, nothing different from most sapient life, then,” she offered.

“Except in degree,” Luna replied. “And skill.”

Celestia blinked a bit in puzzlement, but had no chance to ask about her sister's comment before Artemis came running back from her room with a book levitating beside her. “Here it is!” she happily proclaimed, as she stopped in front of Celestia's divan and raised the book towards her aunt.

“A Student's Guide to the Grand Canyon,” Celestia read aloud, and then took up the book in her magic aura and flipped it open.

“Yeah!” Artemis happily chirped. “It's got maps and some historical stuff like how they built the dams at either end.”

Just as the filly finished talking, Celestia's eyes did indeed fall upon the chapter discussing the construction of something called “Boulder/Hoover Dam”. (Why something needed two names, she couldn't guess.) She skimmed the remarkably readable text as she flipped through and looked at every picture, and soon felt a growing admiration. “Why, they built this with technology less advanced than we have in Equestria,” Celestia noted, as she looked over a picture of humans pouring one of the immense concrete blocks that made up the dam's structure.

“And they did in a big ol' canyon in a desert!” Artemis beamed. “An' they cut holes in the rock to div—uh, make the river go to the side.”

“'Divert', Artemis,” Luna corrected, with a warm tone.

“Yeah, that one,” the filly replied. Then she looked up at Celestia. “It's really neat, huh?”

“It's quite fascinating,” Celestia honestly answered. She flipped through a few more pages, and then stopped when she came to a two-page spread of one, large photograph. 'View from the South Rim', it says, the mare noted the caption, though it only held her attention for a moment as her eyes traced over the profoundly deep and wide canyon. “It's beautiful,” she found herself saying.

“I told you,” Luna smugly interjected, a smirk upon her muzzle as Celestia looked up. “And that photo doesn't even do it justice; none of them can, really. Only when you're there, looking out over this profound and amazing gash in the world do you really understand it fully.” She paused to reminisce, and then sighed. “It gives one perspective, to see something so old that it was already ancient when the first civilizations on the planet were building hovels out of mud bricks. Standing there, I think I understood what some of our—” Luna hesitated, and then lightly coughed. “I mean, what regular ponies feel when they look at us back home.”

Celestia suppressed a wince at Luna's distancing, and instead focused on the rest of her words. “I believe I understand what you mean,” she said, evenly. “It was a humbling experience, to see something so much greater than yourself, correct?”

“Indeed,” Luna replied, with a nod. “And it isn't even the only place to feel that on the humans' homeworld.”

“Oh?”

“Yes,” Luna said with a nod, and then glanced down at Artemis. For her part the filly was giving both of the elder ponies curious looks as she detected some sort of undercurrent, but lacked the knowledge to decipher it. “Artemis, do you remember visiting the Everglades?”

Artemis' eyes lit up at the question. “Oh, do I!” she exclaimed, as her wings fluttered. “It was only one of the best places ever! Everything was just so cool with all the animals and the airboats and it was so hot I could feel the sun right through my coat and then it rained on time and then stopped just like the guide said and it was like magic!”

Celestia smiled at the filly's enthusiasm. “So what are these 'Everglades'?” she asked.

“An ecosystem unique on Terra, and indeed amongst most of the worlds in the known galaxy,” Luna replied.

“It's a big, big, big river that flows reeallllly slow,” Artemis added, slowing her voice down towards the end to emphasize her point. “And it's really flat and pretty and quiet 'cept when it rains there's lots of lightning and sheets of rain. But it's just so neat 'cuz there's nothing else like it and it's so different.”

“It sounds impressive,” Celestia observed. “Do you have any books about this place as well?”

“Yeah!” Artemis replied, and then quickly raced back for her room.

Celestia and Luna shared a mutual look of amusement. “She loves books, doesn't she?” the former asked.

“She is her father's daughter,” Luna replied, with a slight blush.

This time Celestia did wince. “I'm still having some trouble wrapping my head around that,” she admitted. “And it makes me wonder, if reality is reflected upon itself into infinity, then wouldn't there be another pair of universes out there where a male counterpart of you impregnates Twilight Sparkle?”

Luna sighed good-naturedly and rolled her eyes. “Trust me, I've had a lot of time to think about it,” she said, tiredly. “Too much, really. Then I start to get ideas of other 'what-ifs' and eventually I have to have a substantial nightcap. My suggestion, 'Tia?” she added, with a rise to her voice in order to assure her sister's attention. “Try not to think about it; only headaches will come from such musings.”

Celestia only had a moment to ponder her sister's words before Artemis came running back in with another book held in her magic grasp. Or is it? The elder alacorn thought, as she observed how thin the item her niece carried actually was. She held any further thought on the issue as Artemis jumped up on the couch next to her and smiled widely. “Here, read this!” the young filly said, as she presented the device to her aunt.

The elder alacorn gently plucked the object from her niece's magic field with her own telekinesis and then brought it up to her face. To her mild surprise—she was starting to expect unusual things at this point—the flat panel held a screen on one side that showed what looked to be a book page, filled with text and pictures. “What is this?” Celestia asked.

“An e-reader!” Artemis eagerly replied, with a grin on her muzzle. “It can store hundreds a books so you can read 'em later!”

“'Of', Artemis,” Luna gently corrected her daughter. “Hundreds of books.”

“Right, of,” Artemis replied to her mother, almost absentmindedly. Luna rolled her eyes and smirked a little at her daughter's distracted enthusiasm even as the filly turned her attention right back to her aunt. “And the one I pulled up is the one we bought from the gift shop and downloaded and it's got all sorts of stuff about the Everglades!”

“Ah,” Celestia said, as realization dawned on her. She then turned her head to look to the text on the screen and skimmed it to gain a general idea of the material. “So, it's a swamp?”

“It is a swamp the same way that the Grand Canyon is a hole in the ground,” Luna answered, irritatedly.

Celestia glanced up and gave her sister a smirk. “Oh?” she asked, teasingly. “And what has you so taken with this place that you are defensive?”

Luna ruffled her feathers a bit as she sat more upright on the couch. “I am not defensive,” she stated. “It's just that many people are dismissive of the place without even knowing it”, she added, and then sighed. “I admit my ire is a bit irrational, but I think you can see why.”

Celestia's smirk died at that, and she could only nod sagely as her sister spoke. Artemis, meanwhile, had stared up at the two adults in confusion as they spoke, her head swinging back and forth to each on their turn. “What're you two talking about?” she asked, curious.

“Nothing important, Artemis,” Luna replied, as she graced her daughter with a smile. “Just some old history between us.”

“Oh,” Artemis said, drawing out the word. “So it's like, adult things?”

Celestia coughed at that, as the question caught her by surprise. Luna, though, simply smiled a bit wider. “Something like that,” she answered. “Now, weren't you telling Celestia about our trip?”

“Oh!” the filly repeated, this time in excitement. She then turned back to her aunt and smiled up at her. “Yeah, we went on an airboat ride and everything! It's so cool it's like flying but not but you're over the water and skimming along and—”

She was interrupted as the door chimed, and then opened. All three ponies looked over and saw McCall walk into the suite carrying a large, white box in her arms. “I'm back, dears,” the human called out as she paused at the door just long enough for it to close and lock itself.

“Heather!” Artemis shouted, and then dashed across the apartments to run circles around McCall's legs as she carefully walked to the kitchen. “What'd you get us what'd you get us?” the filly squeed, even as the elder female set the box on the freestanding counter that delineated the border between kitchen and living room.

“Artemis!” Luna raised her voice, even as she and Celestia stood up and walked over to join the others in the kitchen. “What have I told you about running around missus McCall while she's carrying things?”

Artemis halted her prancing, and then slowly turned to give her mother a sheepish look. “Not to do it because I might get underfoot and trip her,” she replied, slowly, in the drone of a child who is reciting something they memorized under duress. “And then we both might get hurt.”

“Exactly,” Luna said, as her tone lightened. “Now apologize to Heather.”

The filly turned and tilted her head back to look up at the human. “I'm sorry, missus McCall,” Artemis said, mournfully.

McCall simply smiled down at the young pony. “That's alright Artemis, I forgive you,” she said, warmly. “Just remember better next time; your mother's right in that you could get hurt running around people's legs.”

“Yes ma'am,” Artemis said, respectfully. Then her expression flipped like a switch and she beamed up at McCall. “So what'd you get us?”

“Such a one track mind!” McCall mock-chided, with a chuckle, and then looked over to Luna and Celestia as they stopped on the other side of the counter. “I figured it's a special occasion and all, so I went ahead and got Franz's special.”

A wide grin spread along Luna's muzzle, while Artemis squeed in delight. Celestia, though, felt a bit in the dark, and so spoke up. “Just how special is this?” she asked, good-nauredly and with a smile.

“Very,” Luna replied, with a glance at Celestia. She then looked to McCall. “Would you mind if I do the honors?” she asked, still wearing her smile. “I dearly want to see the look on my sister's face.”

McCall chuckled again. “Of course, dear, of course!” she said, and then turned to walk over to one of the cupboards. “Just let me get the plates and flatware out.”

“The look on my face?” Celestia asked, as she turned her head to give Luna a probing glance. “Should I be worried?”

Luna only grinned a bit wider as she walked around the counter and then lit up her horn. “Not at all, dear sister,” she replied, as she used her telekinesis to open the tabs on the side of the box, and then lift off the top half from the bottom to reveal a large cake with a brilliant white frosting coating. “In fact, given your predilection towards cake,” she continued, as McCall brought over the aforementioned dinnerware, “I daresay you might experience an existential epiphany.”

Celestia rolled hey eyes as Luna took up a cake serving tool in her magical grip. “Oh please,” the elder alacorn grumbled, while her sister cut a healthy-sized corner slice and placed it on a plate. “I may like my cake, but an epiphany? Really?” she asked, even as Luna levitated the plate and a fork over.

Luna, for her part, merely kept grinning at her sister. “Well then, why don't you try some and prove me wrong?” she asked.

“Very well, then,” Celestia replied, with an air of faux-haughtiness, as she took the proffered plate and flatware in her magic grip. She then levitated the plate up to her face, and then inspected the food. To her surprise she could feel a distinct chill coming off the piece, and inside the brown, possibly chocolate cake were strands of white that didn't look like the normal marble cake she loved. Well, it's not like Luna would poison me, Celestia mused, as she used the fork to pry off a bit of the cake, and then popped it into her mouth and began to chew.

A second later, she stopped and her eyes widened as the flavors washed over her senses. Celestia whimpered a bit, and then resumed chewing at a slower pace, until finally, she mournfully swallowed the bite. She then looked over to her sister, who was grinning even wider than ever. “What... what is this heavenly creation?” Celestia breathlessly asked.

“Ice Cream Cake,” Luna replied, still wearing her Cheshire grin. “A human confection, made even more effective with Franz's twist of using carbon nanotubes conduits to embed the ice cream in the cake after it's been cooked without disturbing its fluffy structure,” she explained. “He doesn't leave the nanotubes in, of course, as they're incredibly inedible.” Celestia only half listened to the younger pony as she quickly took another bite, but Luna didn't let her sister's preoccupation bother her. “It creates a perfect mix of cake and ice cream in one bite, don't you think?”

The only reply Celestia made was a satisfied moan that, in other circumstances, could have been scandalous. As it was both Luna and McCall had heard worse, and Artemis was too young to notice the difference, and so the three other beings in the apartment simply chuckled at Celestia as she indulged in yet another bite. “Seems she does rather like it,” McCall noted, as she took a plate Luna proffered to her with magic.

“As I knew she would,” Luna said, as she cut out another piece of cake and then telekinetically placed it on a plate which she then presented to Artemis. The filly uttered a quick but sincere 'thanks' before he took a fork in her own magic and quickly began to work at the morsel. “Now, let's all sit down in the living room and enjoy some coffee, cake, and company.”

* * * *

“...And there he was,” McCall said, through the chuckles that occasionally erupted from her throat to join those of her audience. “On one knee, covered in megarhino spit, half his shirt torn off and bite marks from skiren all over his chest, and he says 'please say you'll marry me. But do make up your mind quickly: I think the venom is spreading.” The middle-aged human finally broke down at that and laughed raucously at her own story, even as the alacorns joined in.

McCall reached up to wipe the tears of joy from her eyes as the group's amusement wound down. “Of course I said 'yes,'” she continued, after a moment to catch her breath. “And then got him straight to the hospital. Poor Peter was in there for a week while they flushed the skiren venom from his body, but at the end of it we set a date and got married three months later.” She paused at that, and then smiled warmly as she looked off into space. “It was one of the happiest days of my life.”

Celestia smiled warmly at the human as she reminisced. “I certainly hope it was less eventful than his proposal?” she asked, gently, as she levitated her plate—recently bereft of the last piece of cake—to the coffee table to join the collection already there.

“Mostly,” McCall replied, and then winked at Celestia, and then took a moment to sip from the coffee cup she held. “Nothing worse than the usual wedding hitches, but we got through them alright. Had a lovely honeymoon in NeoTokyo, seeing all the sights, the Old Town ruins that were blasted back in the Seven Day Siege and the museums and theaters and all that.” She sighed as she paused to gather her thoughts. “Peter, bless his heart, just adored it.”

“He sounds like a good, er, man,” Celestia observed, only slightly tripping over her own words as she fought to remember the proper pronoun.

The smile on McCall's face faded at that and took on a wistful tone. “He was,” she said, quietly, and then swirled her cup around a bit.

Celestia felt her heart implode, and her face fell. “Oh, Heather,” she said, as McCall had insisted she use her given name. “I'm so sorry, I didn't mean—”

McCall politely wave the mare's words away. “It's alright, Cel,” she said, using the nickname she had coined for Celestia, having decided that Luna's nickname was too personal for her. She then smiled at the alacorn, although it was a bit strained. “It was... some time ago when Peter passed on,” she added, and then sighed again. “Killed by those damn Necris.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Necris?” she echoed.

“Abominations,” Luna chimed in, and then paused to look down at her side. The four beings had retired to the living room, with Celestia and Luna having taken divans and McCall sitting in a recliner. Artemis, meanwhile, had nestled up to her mother, and over the hour since cake had been served had slowly drifted off to sleep while the adults spoke. Satisfied her daughter wouldn't wake soon, Luna looked back up and at her sister. “They are a group of... things, bodies of sapient creatures brought back to a facsimile of life by an infusion of a mysterious liquid known only as 'nanoblack',” Luna explained, and then involuntarily shuddered in disgust. “They have no souls; I know, I've checked,” she added, and then frowned. “They're just machines wearing the bodies and memories of the dead. Very clever and intelligent machines that think they're the original being, but still just machines.”

“They usually keep to themselves,” McCall added in, quietly, as she also noted Artemis' condition and did not want the filly to overhear. “Have their own planets and such. But every now and again a group of them get it in their heads to expand or invade or raid for resources, and, well...” The human bit her lip at that, and then glanced to the side for a moment. “Peter was a militiaman, he went out to fight an incursion and died doing so. Fortunately,” she added, as she turned to regard Celestia with a sad gaze. “We got to his body first and gave him a proper burial.”

Celestia felt a shiver run down her back at the unspoken implications. “And if you hadn't?” she asked, her morbid curiosity piqued.

“He would have been one of them,” McCall replied, raw emotion leaking into her voice. She took a moment to compose herself, and then resumed. “I mourned him for years, but that silver lining gave me some small comfort in that time, so I am thankful for that, at least.”

“I see,” Celestia offered, quietly. She called upon her many years of experience and maintained her outward emotional control, even as inwardly she cringed. To use the bodies of your own enemies like that is nothing more or less than utter barbarism, she thought.

A silence fell over the group, though it was soon broken as Artemis murmured in her sleep. McCall's face brightened at this, and she gave Luna a knowing look. “Seems it's time to put the little one to bed,” she half-whispered.

Luna smiled back at the human. “Indeed,” she replied, sotto voce. “Would you please take care of the dishes whilst I put her to bed?”

“Oh you don't even need to ask, dear,” McCall replied. She then stood and slowly began to collect the various used dishes and cups, doing so far more silently than most anyone could expect.

Meanwhile, Luna gently applied her magic to pick up Artemis in its blue aura, and then stood even as she carefully levitated the filly into the air. She then looked over at Celestia and gave her a small smile. “Care to help me tuck her in?” Luna softly asked.

Celestia felt a warmth in her heart, and she smiled back as she stood. “I'd like that, thank you,” she replied, equally quiet.

Luna nodded to her sister, and then turned and started walking down the short hall leading away from the living room. Celestia followed right after, and only a moment later the trio of ponies came to the first door on their right. Luna moved into the room easily, but Celestia stopped at the threshold and took a look inside first.

It was a modest bedroom, nothing spectacular in size but neither especially cramped. A full-sized bed was pressed against the left wall, while a dresser and a desk occupied the right. Atop the desk were various papers and electronic reading devices, while the top of the dresser was covered in old-fashioned bound-paper books. But what really drew Celestia's attention were the multiple posters adorning the walls, all of various beings the alacorn could vaguely recognize as Tournament players, if only due to the distinctive weapons they held in almost every picture. Especially surprising, though, was the fact that the majority of these posters were of Luna, adorned in full kit and in various poses, typically with one weapon in particular, which Celestia recognized as the one Luna had used to shoot her in the face.

The elder alacorn grimaced a bit at the memory, but soon enough focused her attention back to the present, where she saw Luna using her magic to lift the covers from the bed, and then slipped Artemis into their embrace on her back. The shifting finally seemed to wake the filly, and she stirred a bit and opened her eyes halfway to look at the mare above her. “Momma?” she quietly spoke.

“Shh,” Luna hushed, as she sat down next to the bed and brought a hoof up and laid it against Artemis' shoulder. “It's late, Artemis, so go to sleep,” she whispered to her daughter, with a motherly smile on her muzzle.

“But I gotta,” Artemis began, but then had to pause as a yawn briefly overtook her. “Gotta brush my teeth,” she weakly protested, even as her eyes drooped towards closing again.

Luna just shook her head and kept her warm smile on, even as she used her magic to start bringing up the covers. “It's a special occasion, so I think we can skip it this once,” she said, while she shifted to set her weight entirely on her haunches and used both forelegs to finish tucking Artemis in, instead of her telekinesis. “Besides, you need your rest so you can grow up big and strong and smart.”

“Like you?” Artemis whispered the question, even as her eyes slipped shut.

Luna's smile grew wider, and Celestia saw her eyes water a bit. Like mine are, the elder pony thought, as she fought to hold her tears back. “Like me,” Luna replied, so softly that Celestia's ears strained to hear it. Then the dark alacorn bent over to lightly kiss the filly's forehead, just beneath her horn. “Goodnight dear one. Dream of warm meadows and cool streams.”

Artemis murmured a meaningless noise at that, and then slowly stopped fidgeting on the sheets. Within moments her breathing became steady and it was clear to both of the mares in the room that she had fallen fully asleep. Luna stood back up and then turned her head to her sister and smiled. Celestia smiled back, and then backed out of the room so Luna could walk out after her. Once in the hall, Luna used her magic to softly close the door to Artemis' room, and then sighed quietly. “It's always nice when she goes to sleep so readily,” she quietly observed. “She has trouble falling asleep sometimes.”

Celestia couldn't help but chuckle softly as Luna and herself began to walk back into the living room. “Just like... Twilight,” she said, as her expression fell into a frown. “I'm sorry, Luna, I know you said to set it aside but...”

“'Tis alright,” Luna said, with a wan smile, while the two alacorns walked back to the divans they had been using most of the night. “I believe I was the one who first mentioned the similarities, was I not?” she asked, as she lied down pony-style on the backless couch.

“True,” Celestia allowed, as she matched her sister and lied down on her own divan. “I just don't wish to bring up painful memories,” she said, and then grimaced. “Not that I have been entirely successful in that regard, bringing up the difficult past of not only you, but Heather as well.”

“Oh don't worry, dear,” McCall interjected, as she came back and picked up the now empty coffee cups from the various tables in the living room. “You're just catching up, so it's natural.”

Celestia recovered from her mild surprise at McCall's sudden reappearance, and then smiled. “Thank you for your understanding, Heather,” she said, warmly.

“Not a problem, Cel,” McCall replied with a chuckle, and then turned to head back to the kitchen.

Behind her the two sisters remained in an awkward silence for several moments, until Luna cleared her throat. “So, 'Tia,” she began, nervously. “I believe... that is, now that Artemis is asleep, well...” she spoke, haltingly.

Celestia suppressed a grimace as she listened to the false starts. “Yes, I believe you promised a... display of your reason for not wanting to return home,” she cautiously ventured.

This seemed to break Luna's unease, and the younger alacorn nodded with a sigh. “Indeed I did,” she replied, and then turned her head to look towards the kitchen. “Heather,” she called out, her voice raised a bit to carry. “It's late and my sister and I would like to have a bit of a private discussion; go ahead and go home for the night.”

“Are you sure, Luna?” McCall asked back. She brought her head up from where she had been focusing on her work and gave the pony a questioning look. “The dishes still need to be done and the garbage emptied.”

“Both of which I am more than capable of doing,” Luna politely replied, and then smiled at the human. “Besides, you've already done more than your usual amount of work by running out to Franz's. Please, go home and get some rest.”

McCall hesitated for a moment, but soon enough wore a smile of her own. “Well, if you really insist,” she merrily said, even as she stepped away from the dishes and began to wash her hands in the sink.

“I do,” Luna added, her smile shifting to a smirk. “I'll see you tomorrow afternoon.”

“Of course, dear, of course,” McCall replied, as she walked over to the one messy counter corner in the kitchen. There she picked up her handbag and then headed for the front door. “You both have a lovely night!” she called back.

“You as well,” Luna replied, and Celestia echoed her. Both sisters waited for the human to depart the suite before they turned to each other. “Well,” Luna said, sociably. “Shall I put on the video?”

“I would hope so, since you're the one who knows what she's doing with these machines,” Celestia replied, with a smirk.

Luna rolled her eyes, but a tug at the corner of her mouth showed that she appreciated the friendly jab. The hint of a smirk faded quickly, however, as she stood and then walked over to the entertainment center nestled into the corner of the living room. Celestia had given it a few curious glances throughout the night, but hadn't given it much attention due to more pressing matters. Now, though, the elder mare took the time to study the strange adornment.

It was more than one object, of course, that much Celestia had noted earlier. The heart of the setup was a low-slung cabinet, upon the top of which rested a very large flat panel screen upon which Artemis had been playing her game. Below this and set into the various portions of the cabinet were several small boxes and other odds and ends, all with various kinds of controls and displays on them. The sheer amount of detail and options on the whole array bewildered Celestia a bit, and she could only watch in rapt fascination as Luna concentrated her magic and deftly manipulated several controls, before she finally grasped a modestly-sized rectangular box covered with numerous buttons and then turned and walked back to her divan. “There, just had to make sure everything was on and updated,” she said, as she pointed the odd box in her magic over her shoulder and back towards the large screen. Luna's aura briefly flared a bit, and then the screen suddenly flared to life.

Celestia frowned very slightly as she took in the slowly spinning logo on the screen. “Why does that look familiar?”

Luna didn't reply right away, as she was settling on her seat. Soon enough, though, she looked up and then chuckled lightly. “Because that's the Liandri logo,” she explained, and then sighed. “You must have seen it when we were leaving the tournament arcology. Corporations here love to put their names and logos on everything they can, just to remind everyone who's in power,” she added, with a roll of her eyes. “Anyway, we should probably start with the recording of the first match I was dumped into. I already told you most of it, but I think it would help for you to see exactly what I was talking about.”

“Alright then,” Celestia replied, and then shifted on her seat a bit to get more comfortable as Luna used her remote control to change the images on the screen. The elder mare could only watch in rapt fascination at the ease with which her sister manipulated the controls and menus, which Celestia could only get the barest gist of. Twilight would love to see this, she mused, as the screen finally blacked out. A moment later, the replay of the match began.

* * * *

Twilight would not want to see this, Celestia thought, as she watched the fourth replay Luna had set up. In this the dark alacorn was participating in something called “Onslaught”, and the involvement of strange, large, heavily-armed vehicles made the stunning carnage of the first three almost pale in comparison.

Almost, the elder mare mused, as she watched a close-up of Luna as she ran over a group of three bipeds in some sort of hovering vehicle the announcer called a 'Manta'. The moment she saw it, Celestia found herself of two minds; one was in mute shock at the casual ease with which her sister had literally bisected the trio of hapless warriors with the leading edge of the hovercraft's side-mounted, ducted fans, while the other part of her wondered how they called it a 'Manta' when the resemblance was superficial, at best?

I think my mind is growing numb, Celestia thought, as she suspected the last hour of violence affected her in ways she was not immediately conscious of. I have watched my sister use fantastic weaponry to murder beings individually and wholesale, something that I have not seen since before our rule began so long ago. I am sickened, disgusted, and... frightened. The longer she watched, the more she understood Luna's position about never returning home. Ponies were fearful enough of her when they thought she was going to bring night eternal. If they could see this they'd panic in the streets!

...Which is kind of what they did anyway. Celestia suppressed a wince as she remembered Luna's story about her first Nightmare Night. Our ponies have always been a bit quick on the panic trigger and—

Her train of thought stopped abruptly as something especially astounding occurred on the replay. “Did you just blow up that giant, armored box vehicle with the giant weapon?” Celestia asked, without even a glance away from the screen.

Luna herself did glance to her sister, and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow as Celestia continued to just stare. “It's called a 'Goliath', a kind of armored vehicle called a 'tank'. And yes, they are remarkably similar role to the heavily armored soldiers back home who also have that slang moniker,” Luna explained, as she preempted her sister's sudden shift of focus from the screen at the familiar term. “It's an amazing historical coincidence that leads me to believe that there may be an underlying—“

“You blew it up!” Celestia interrupted, her face a study in shock. “With that, what did you call it again?”

“'Rocket launcher'”, Luna replied, with a sigh. “It was attacking the node just outside the base.”

Celestia did not have anything to say to that, as she barely understood the odd rules behind this version of the 'game'. She did know that it was a stylized recreation of combat as the humans—and other races in this reality, though Celestia suspected humans were the main driving force here—practiced it, and half-remembered campaigns from a millennium ago helped the alacorn understand the general gist of what was going on. Although I think old general Stone Heart would have torn his mane out than deal with a force like this, she darkly mused, as she returned her attention back to the display screen in time to see one of Luna's teammates blast apart an enemy aircraft with a guided weapon of some kind, while Luna herself lead the charge towards the enemy's base. Her hovercraft—how does she even control that without the bipeds' hands? I must ask her later—dodged and weaved and hopped into the air, dodging fire even as the weapons on its front spat out what Celestia recognized as a kind of energetic plasma. The dark alacorn's evasive movements were for naught, however, as several beams of light impacted the hovercraft and caused it to explode.

A grunt and a sound of shifting came from the side, and Celesita managed to pry her eyes from the screen a second time as she glanced to her right. Luna moved a bit on the freestanding divan she lied upon, and a thought entered Celestia's head. “That hurt, didn't it?” she asked, and then waited for her sister to turn her head towards her. “Even though those machines save you, they don't stop the pain?”

“Aye,” Luna replied, and then turned her attention back to the screen, which prompted Celestia to do likewise. “I am not exactly sure of the reason, something about the temporal mechanics of it all, but the pain is very much real and felt,” she explained, even as her recorded image respawned at an outlying 'node' and rushed forward to rejoin the fight.

Celestia shuddered as she considered the implications of that statement. “But then, you... you feel it all?” she asked, with a glance to Luna. “Every mortal injury? Every painful attack?”

The narrowing of her sister's eyes as she stared at the screen was far more telling of the experience than anything the dark alacorn could have said. Luna almost seemed to read her sister's mind, and simply replied: “Yes.”

Stunned by the idea, Celestia returned her attention to the screen in time to see her sister 'die' again as one of the enemy Goliaths blasted her with its main weapon as she tried to approach their base. Oh, Luna, she mournfully thought. “How can you stand it?” she quietly asked, as the question came unbidden from her lips.

“There is a funny thing about pain,” Luna replied, just as quietly, as the two mares continued to watch the screen. “In time, even it can become addictive.”

“Is that why you still do this?” Celestia pressed, as she and Luna locked gazes at the sudden shift in the conversation. “Because you're addicted to the pain?”

Luna snorted. “The pain is a trifle compared to the real addiction,” she retorted, moodily. “Nor is it the wealth, as substantial as it is. No, 'Tia, the pull of the Tournament is far greater than that.”

Celestia paused as she felt as if a light clicked on in her head, and she couldn't help but let her expression fall a bit. “It's the admiration, isn't it?” she queried, while the replay reached a crescendo of noise as Luna and her allies besieged the enemy base. “Earlier today, in the square, they were cheering your name in a way that our ponies haven't done in ages.”

Luna winced, and then glanced off to the side. In moving her head, her eyes caught view of the screen, and she turned her gaze upon it to watch as her doppelganger ran forward towards the enemy power core.

Celestia saw the sudden attention shift, and she cast her own gaze to the display in time to see the dark mare leading a group of her allies towards a glowing, cylindrical construct of some kind. 'Cylindrical' would be oversimplifying it, though, as it was very clearly some kind of complicated machine, made to operate in a precise fashion.

And Luna was using a weapon to launch flying, explosive projectiles at it.

“I won't deny that the admiration is a great part of the reason I remain in this reality,” Luna said, quietly, as her past self and allies ripped the strange machine apart with their weaponry. “It is a salve that makes my rare defeats pale into insignificance. And it is... satisfying in ways I have never quite known back home in our Equestria.

“But admiration and adoration, as much as I crave them, are not the reason I continue to fight in the Tournament,” Luna continued, and then sighed. “After Artemis came along, I discovered something amazing; that the love of the faceless masses pales in comparison to the love of a single filly.” She paused at this, and then smiled as her eyes drifted off of the display screen, where the power core finally exploded in a shower of metal fragments and burning plasma. “The crowds can cheer all they want, but coming home to Artemis is more than I could ever need.”

Celestia couldn't help but smile a bit at that. “Spoken like a true parent,” she warmly observed.

“You would know,” Luna friendlily replied back, as she cast a knowing gaze at her sister. “How long has it been since your last one, anyway?”

The smile faded a bit from Celestia's muzzle. “Too long,” she said, and then sighed. “And to think that my eternal spinster of a sister just back from the moon would actually foal before me,” she teased, with a smirk. Luna shared in the moment and chuckled, but soon both sisters quieted as the elephant in the room reared its ugly head. “So why, Luna?” Celestia asked. “Why keep doing these things that you have shown me?”

All mirth faded from Luna's face, and she looked back to the screen, which had transitioned to the media device's menu screen after the end of the Onslaught replay. “Have you not been watching, dear sister?” Luna asked, quietly.

“More than I would have liked,” Celestia replied, cautiously. Something about Luna's tone confused her, and she frowned. “I know you want to prove your point, that you think yourself corrupted. While all the things you've shown have indeed been quite terrible by Equestrian standards, they are not in and of themselves any sort of evidence that you are somehow unfit to return home.”

Luna groaned and rolled her eyes. “You,” she said, and lazily waved a hoof in her sister's direction. “You are the reason Twilight is so anal.”

Celestia sputtered a bit. “I– wha– Luna! What on Equis does that have to do with anything?” she demanded, and then blushed. “Not that it's true!”

“Please,” Luna added, with another roll of her eyes. “You two are so mutually analytical and logical that I half expected you to introduce her to me as your latest when I returned from my exile.”

The blush on Celestia's face deepened to the point where it started to take on a purplish hue. “Don't even joke about that!” she admonished. “I had a hard enough time squashing those rumors when I took her in as my student, the last thing I need is you raising them up from the grave when we go home.”

Luna frowned at that. “You really haven't been watching me, have you?” she asked.

“If I haven't, then what have we been doing the last hour?” Celestia countered.

“No,” Luna replied, with a slap of a hoof on her couch. “You have been watching what I was doing, but you have not been watching me.”

Celestia furrowed her brows at that, and a brief moment of silence passed betwixt the two sisters. “Luna, what do you mean?”

The dark alacorn sighed again, and then turned her attention back to the screen and lifted the remote in her magic again. “There is one more replay you should see,” she began, sotto voce, as she use the control to maneuver through the saved media. “And please, this time, watch me.”

Celestia pursed her lips a bit, but nodded as she turned her attention to the screen.

* * * *

“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, assorted aliens and A.I.s!” the energetic host spoke, from where he sat behind his desk, smiling. “I'm Freddy Vorhees, and welcome to tonight's grudge match! We've got a real treat for you today, as Greith from team Hellion faces off against Luna from team Thundercrash!”

“It's certainly going to be an intense match,” a voice come from off-screen, and the picture widened ten to reveal a second man sitting at the desk. Unlike the host, who was dressed smartly in a sport coat, the new figure was wearing ornate armor of a strange aesthetic. His face and tone bespoke of great discipline, and where Vorhees was energetic this new man was nearly stoic. “The two combatants have a profound dislike of one another stemming from Luna's first appearance in the Grand Tournament.”

“That's right, Roc!” Vorhees replied to the man, and then looked back at the active camera. “For those who might have been stuck on Na Pali the last few years, with me is Roc of team Sun Blade, come to help comment on this brutal competition. And as he's noted, the two participants here have a fair amount of bad blood between them. So hopefully that means an exciting, violence-filled match for you all to enjoy!”

“Speaking of which,” Roc interjected. “I believe it's about to begin.”

“Thanks, Roc!” Vorhees replied, evenly, if excitedly. “Now let's go to the action!” he added, and the screen shifted to show the interior of some kind of small, cramped building. Or so it seemed, until the camera panned and revealed a window that displayed a moving starfield.

“Long-time views might recognize the original 'Oblivion' arena ship from a few years ago! Well, the old girl's been brought out of retirement for this up close, in-your-face grudge match, so enjoy this blast from the past!”

Even as Vorhees spoke, the screen shifted and split to show two figures suddenly appear in a flash of swirling light, each on opposite ends of the tiny ship. They immediately moved out and began to run through the ship, and encountered each other within seconds. Bullets flew from the lead-spewing assault rifles that were their starting weapons, and both mare and woman let out shouts and grunts of pain as the hot lead tore into their bodies. Luna's constitution won out, though, and Greith collapsed to the deck in pain, even as the dark alacorn dashed forward to empty her magazine into the biped's head.

“Oooh, a brutal takedown right off the bat!” Vorhees exclaimed, as Greith's 'body' was disintegrated by the respawner systems.

“The nostalgia flows like spice,” Roc added in, with a hint of wistfulness. “Ah, but Luna is going to be hard pressed to keep Greith from balancing the score, as wounded as she is.”

“Indeed,” Vorhees agreed. “So let's cut in to the audio feed and see how the fan favorite is faring!”

* * * *

Luna grunted as she ran into the floating green holograms that denoted a healing station. The cross-shaped devices pumped a measure of energy into the alacorn, spurring her body to heal itself. Technology, magic, machines, spells, it all works the same in the end, Luna briefly mused, as she moved across a second station and felt her wounds close up and her muscles and bones mend themselves.

Just as soon as they did, however, Greith ran into the room at the rear of the vessel and spotted the mare. “Time for you to die!” the human screamed, as she let loose with her shock rifle.

The shot went wide, and Luna took the opportunity to dodge behind one of the crates in the area for cover. “Thou should get some new material, savage!” Luna taunted back, as she dodged from cover to cover, angling for her target. “I know I've heard that insult before!”

“Fuck you!” Greith shouted back, as she sent a shock ball soaring over the crates. Luna spotted it a fraction too late, and the combo that Greith set off a moment later blasted into the alacorn and sent her flying into one of the crates.

Luna yelped as she felt her wings take the brunt of the impact, their delicate bones snapping like twigs. Couldn't use them in here anyway, she thought, as she rolled to her hooves and ran for the one crate she had sought. In it was a weapons station, and she grinned as she pushed her assault rifle into its holding space and picked up the flak cannon affectionately named the “Negotiator”.

Scarcely had she done so when she heard footsteps running up behind her, and Luna spun around in time to fire a pattern of ionized metal flechettes straight into Grieth's chest when she rounded a crate. The human body went flying in several different directions simultaneously, and Luna could only smirk. “Just like old times, eh Greith?” the alacorn shouted, using her Royal Canterlot Voice to project throughout the ship.

An inarticulate scream of rage echoed back, and Luna's smirk grew wider as she set off, heading for the newly recharged healing stations.

* * * *

Celestia watched with a growing sense of unease as the match went on. This time she did as her sister had bade her, and paid more attention to the Luna of the past as she played a game of high-adrenalin cat-and-mouse with the angry biped. Every hit, every wounding, and every apparent death made the elder mare cringe, but what truly scared her was the look in past-Luna's eyes as she hunted and was hunted by the human, Greith. Those are not the eyes of a pony, she thought, as the light glinted just right off of the dark mare's ocular orbs. Light cast by a massive shock combo as it ripped her prey apart.

Her mind seized on the word that had passed through without preamble. Prey, Celestia thought, as she watched the recording intently, and saw how Luna moved with a catlike grace, pursuing Greith when necessary, but using the shadows and her natural affinity for them—both in magic and color scheme—to ambush and assault the human when it suited her. Greith was no pushover, and Luna was 'slain' several times, but each time she respawned the dark alacorn's expression never wavered, never changed from anything but eager anticipation, save for the brief moments of pain.

She has become like them; a predator, Celestia realized. A cold chill ran down her spine, and she could only watch in morbid fascination as past-Luna laughed as she gunned down her foe once again, while the two human commentators praised her skill at killing sapient beings.

A noise came from Luna's direction then—the real one—and Celestia slowly turned her head to regard the younger mare. What she saw only made the pit in her stomach grow, as she saw her sister's muscles tense and relax in a way that showed she was reliving the match playing on the screen. The same movements, the same twitches, the way her eyes are narrowed... and the grin. The last especially frightened her, as that more than anything else spoke of how much Luna enjoyed the twisted bloodsport.

That thought made her pause, and Celestia felt her ears droop as she finally understood what Luna had been trying to explain to her with these replays. She enjoys it, revels in it. She isn't a predator, for predators only hunt when they need food. She hunts for sport, for the sheer thrill of chasing down an opponent who fights back, who thinks and feels and fears, just so she can savor the feeling of utterly crushing them. This is not my sister, she is—

* * * *

—Not my sister!

The thought pained her far worse than the aches that wracked her body. Celestia struggled to stand as she heard the mocking laughter of Luna—no, not Luna; Nightmare Moon—fade as the madmare flew away, having believed the stewardess of the sun defeated. She looked up and through the hole blasted into the ceiling of the throne room, and then glanced back down and closed her eyes. “Oh dear sister, I am sorry,” she began, as tears began to leak from her eyes. She then turned her head and lit her horn up to activate a hidden mechanism in the floor. “But you have given me no choice but to use these!”

Once triggered, the hidden doors split apart, and the pillar holding the Elements of Harmony rose from its secret vault. Scarcely had it finished when Celestia cast her magic over them, levitating the five structural Elements to float beside her before she coaxed the keystone Element from its hiding space. I should not even be able to do this, Celestia mournfully thought, as she poured her magic into the Elements and sent them spinning around her. Luna was the one bonded with Magic, Honesty, and Loyalty, yet they respond to me; even they can see she is gone. The thought stabbed deep into her heart, but she nevertheless spread her wings and took to the air again. The Elements almost seemed to understand her plight and they poured restorative magics into her body, revitalizing her and giving her the strength and speed necessary to catch up with the madmare who was even now cackling as she flew over the panicked denizens of the capitol city, taunting them with the lack of sunlight.

Her heart ached yet again, as she saw the heinous, black form terrorize the populace that Luna herself had cherished so deeply, putting into their hearts a fear of the night that the younger princess had spent years to erase. She would never be so gleeful over such a mockery of her night, Celestia reasoned, as she flew towards the madmare. Nightmare Moon seemed to sense the approaching mass of magical energy, and she turned to fly up and meet Celestia after she took a moment to spot the regent of the sun.

Celestia's heartstrings were nearly sprained as she saw familiar actions in the way Nightmare maneuvered. The twist of her wings, the way she turns through the air—No! That is not Luna, that is not my sister!

Her thoughts were broken up as the twisted pony hovered nearby and began to channel magic. She is not my sister, Celestia told herself, as she channeled not only her own magic, but the remarkable power of the Elements themselves. True to their harmonious nature, the Elements formed up by their own accord and did not disrupt Celestia's innate magic, but instead complimented it, amplified it, and channeled it in a way that no corporeal being could ever hope to do unaided.

Then the two alacorns unleashed their magics, the beams of raw energy colliding and tearing the very fabric of reality apart at the seams. Celestia briefly felt a moment of pity for her sister as the power of the Elements made itself known, but as soon as she did it distracted her with a pain in her heart, and the point of conflict was pushed back towards her. She is not my sister! the white mare fairly screamed in her head, and then focused her entire being, her entire will into her casting. It was enough, and the combined might of her magic and that of the Elements pushed Nightmare Moon's magic back, and then engulfed the demented pony in a field of pure energy.

The scream of 'no!' that followed ripped Celestia's heart out, and she fell from the sky as despair washed over her. Even as the beam of magic carried her transfigured sister to the moon and buried her essence within, Celestia plummeted down until she crashed into the floor of the throne room. The earth pony portion of her alacorn magic reinforced her body and kept her from gaining anything more than severe bruising and contusions, but Celestia cared not for such physical worries as she felt sadness and sorrow overtake her. The connection to the Elements was even then fading, but it lasted long enough to let her know the results of the contest with such clarity that she would remember it for centuries.

A thousand years, Celestia thought, as the tears poured down her face. She sobbed, even as she saw the Elements drift to the ground, the five structural ones transforming into stone, while Magic evaporated into the draft that now filtered through the ruined hall. Why a thousand? Why? Why did it have to be this way? She was my sister! She... was...

All thought left Celestia then, and the sobbing gave way to unrelenting wails.

* * * *

“'Tia! 'Tia, please speak to me!”

Luna's voice broke the memory, and Celestia blinked hard as she looked around and tried to figure out what had just happened and where she was. I... I'm here with Luna, in her suite, on top of an alien super-tower in an alternate reality, she remembered, and a brief twinge of pride came over her as she didn't feel any sense of rejection over the geographical situation. That twinge died immediately, however, as Celestia realized what had happened: I triggered a total recall, she thought. My emotions and thoughts were so strong, and so much like what happened in the past that my memory played back as if I were experiencing it again...

“'Tia?” Luna's voice again intruded on her, and Celestia blinked again as she finally registered her sister. The younger mare was standing in front of her, a fearful look of near panic on her face as she gazed into Celestia's. “What happened? Why are you crying?”

“Crying?” Celestia asked, and then immediately regretted it, as she heard and felt her voice croak. Idly, she raised a hoof up and touched it to her face and felt tears under her eyes. Then she remembered the reason why, and she felt the water build in her eyes once again as she looked to her sister. My sister.

Luna yelped as Celestia launched from the divan to glomp her, and the two fell to the floor, with Celestia on top, her eyes tightly closed as she held Luna in a death's grip version of a hug. “Celestia?” Luna asked, concerned and frightened for her sister, as well as slightly uncomfortable with both of her forelegs held tight against her barrel by the larger mare.

“You're my sister,” Celestia fiercely whispered, and then squeezed Luna a bit tighter for a moment before she nuzzled Luna's chest. “I don't care what this world has done to you. I don't care how much you've changed,” she said, and then opened her eyes and tilted her head up to look at Luna. “I don't care that you've done shocking and terrible things. You are my sister, my family, and I am not going to forsake you again!” At this, she again closed her eyes and nuzzled into Luna's chest fur. “Never again,” she added, and then sobbed.

Luna felt her sister break down, and she felt her own eyes tear up. Even after everything, after my betrayal, after showing her what I've become, she still accepts me; she still wants me back. The water began to flow, even as Luna wiggled her forelegs free and then promptly wrapped them around Celestia's sides. “Thank you,” she haltingly whispered, as her throat tightened up. A dam that she hadn't even realized was there broke in her heart, and Luna began to echo her sister's sobs. “Thank you.”

Author's Note

Some notes for you:
1. I wanted to get this out. It's not perfect, it's probably crap, but it's updated. I haven't pre-read it much so I'll expect it to suck at least a little.
2. Yes, I use the spelling "alacorn". Yes, I know it's not 'canon' or 'official', I'm using it anyway.
3. I'm thinking of rewriting earlier chapters. When I began this story canon wasn't so fleshed out, and I had to make some things up. Now I'm starting to think I need to completely rewrite the excuse for how Celestia and Luna can both leave and it won't screw over Equestria. Still, that'll be some time in the future, so please don't whine at me about it until I have a chance to work at it.
4. Not sure when this will update again, but I will NOT let it die.

Part 2 - Celestia

“Luna?” Celestia asked, as she opened the doors to her sister's study. The sun princess doubted she'd find her sister inside as no guards were in attendance by the doors, but after two days of absence the white alicorn was starting to become worried and was willing to check just about everywhere. And unfortunately, that worry is not assuaged, Celestia thought, as she looked around the orderly room and found it untouched since she had last been inside. Not a single moved scroll, nor quill nor book out of place, she mused, as she slowly walked towards her sister's desk. Even her work area is clean...

Something about this triggered an idea in the elder sister's mind, and she soon remembered that while Luna was organized, she didn't keep her workspace quite this pristine. There are always scrolls and papers and notes lying about, and quills, pencils, even charcoal at times for sketching. The only time Luna cleans up her desk is when she's hiding something.

Another memory popped up, recalling one of the last conversations the two sisters had before Luna disappeared. Celestia felt her chest tighten in fear as a new idea entered her mind, and she turned to trot out of the study and head for her sister's bedroom. Heavens above, please don't let my worry be true, the alicorn thought, as she quickly reached Luna's bedchamber only a short distance down the corridor from her study. Here were two of Luna's personal guards, though Celestia did not automatically take it as a good sign as this was a post that was always ponied whether the alicorn was in her room or not. “Starchaser, Kurokaze,” the elder princess spoke to the guards, as she approached and then halted before the doors. “Is my sister in?”

The two guards blinked in surprise at this – unlike with outsiders, they felt no need to maintain absolute composure with the palace occupants – and then briefly glanced to one another. “I'm sorry, your highness,” the first pony said, before turning back to address the princess. “But we're not quite sure. The guards from two nights ago reported that she went into her bedchambers, but never came back out. Since then there has been no sign, at least not at our post.”

“I see,” Celestia said, and then thought for a moment. “Kurokaze,” she began, as she turned her head to address the pegasus on her right. “I need you to run an errand for me. Go to the guards barracks and find a messenger pegasus, and then bring him or her back here.”

“Yes, highness,” the black-coated pony said, as he saluted with one of his wings. He clearly disliked the idea of leaving his post, but an order from the sun princess carried weight, even with her sister's guards. Thus he quickly snapped open his wings and then launched himself into the air before zipping down the corridors, his flight eerily silent.

With that taken care of, Celestia turned to the unicorn on her left. “Starchaser, attend me,” she said, even as her horn glowed with the golden aura of her power. The doors to Luna's bedroom parted at the magical command, and Celestia marched in as soon as they were open, leaving the brown and white speckled unicorn to belatedly follow.

Celestia spied the runes and markings on the floor almost immediately, and the white alicorn barely stifled a frown as she stopped by the complicated layout and inspected it. “What do you make of this, Starchaser?” She asked, as the guard came up beside her.

A brief look of worry crossed the young mare's face, but she soon suppressed it as her training took over. “Your majesty, I may be a unicorn,” she began. “But I am nowhere near proficient enough with magic to even begin to make heads or tails out of something this complex.”

“I understand,” Celestia replied, and then graced the smaller pony with a brief, wan smile. “You have my apologies, for I misspoke; I am not looking for an analysis from you, I just wish for you to look it over and see if any runes have been disturbed or damaged. My eyes may tend to miss small imperfections.”

“Yes, highness,” Starchaser said, after managing to swallow briefly in mild panic. Oh dear heavens, she apologized to me? That doesn't make sense! Nevertheless, she did as ordered and spent the next several minutes tracing her eyes over every rune she could see.

Celestia did likewise, and soon enough the layout centered around Luna's bed had been inspected twice. “It seems like everything is in place, highness,” the guard offered.

“Indeed,” Celestia replied, sotto voce. Further comment was preempted, however, by the sound of wings and eight hooves touching down on the granite floor of the palace corridor. The white alicorn and the guard both turned and faced the door as a crimson pegasus with a white mane trotted into the bedroom.

The badge-wearing pony stopped before the princess, and then bowed. “You called for a messenger, your majesty?” He asked, respectfully.

“I did, Crimson Streak,” Celestia replied, her tone even. “You are to fly to alert Grand Vizier Golden Nebula at the Royal Mages College and Professor Möbius Strip at Canterlot University that I require their presence immediately.”

“As you wish, highness,” Crimson Streak replied, and then turned and without further ado bounded into the air and then raced off through the palace on his wings.

“Starchaser,” the princess said next, and then turned her head to regard the unicorn. “Resume your post, and let nopony in here without my consent.” She paused at this, and then lowered her head just a tiny bit to give a more direct look to the guard. “No, pony.”

“Yes, highness,” Starchaser barely managed to speak, as fear at Celestia's sudden intensity tried to choke her windpipe from the inside out. “By your command,” the unicorn added, and then saluted with a foreleg before she turned and trotted back to her post.

Celestia watched the young mare leave, and then turned to carefully pick her way to Luna's bedroom desk. As I thought, the alicorn mused, as she glanced over the various notes on the desk and the scroll that she knew to be at the center of her sister's disappearance. Well, I have the two most studied mages in casting and theory coming here to assist. Celestia nodded to herself, and then lit up her horn with magic again as she opened one of the desk's drawers and looked for a fresh scroll. And it will not hurt to have a young savant's eye to check over everything, she mentally added as she pulled out a blank scroll and a quill. I hope it will be enough. For Luna's sake, it must be.

* * * *

“Well, there is good news and bad news, highness,” Golden Nebula, a – predictably – gold-colored unicorn with royal blue mane and tail, said in a nervous tone, and then glanced around the alicorn's study.

Thousands of years of experience allowed Celestia the self-control to completely and utterly stifle the sigh that wanted to escape her body. Several days of studying and analysis by the three most learned and/or talented mages in Equestria had produced little results, and even the sun princess was finding her vast well of patience starting to run low. “Please, Vizier, what have you learned?” Celestia asked, revealing none of the emotions that roiled beneath her warm exterior.

Golden Nebula glanced to his left and right, where Möbius Strip and Twilight Sparkle stood, respectively, and then cleared his throat. “The good news is that, after careful analysis, we have determined that the spell princess Luna utilized in fact worked as designed.” He hesitated at that, and then grimaced slightly. “At least, at first.”

Celestia leaned back slightly, and then shifted on the cushion she lied upon. Heavens, give me strength, she thought, and then nodded. “Please, go on,” she invited, in an even tone.

It was Möbius Strip who spoke next, however. “From vat ve haff determined, a strange energy signature was overlaid upon ze main spellverk,” the native of West Griffony began. “It has a very curious tinge, almost as if it ver not organic in nature.”

The white alicorn raised an eyebrow a fraction of a millimeter at this, though even that slight change was enough to make the three unicorns in front of her cringe slightly. “I am not sure I follow, professor,” Celestia evenly said. “There are three classes of non-organic magic: solar, lunar, and terran. Am I to take it from your hesitation that you have found something that does not fit into those categories?”

“Indeed, your highness,” Golden Nebula replied, for his colleague. “The magic trace we've detected is unlike any school or discipline I've come across. Nor has professor Strip been able to identify it.”

Celestia considered this for a moment, and then turned to look at the young mare on her left when she noticed the purple unicorn's “tell” that told the alicorn that Twilight had something on her mind. “And you, my faithful student?” Celestia asked, her tone a curious mix of lightness and deadpan. “You seem to have something you wish to say.”

Twilight Sparkle blinked in surprise, as she was not expecting to be directly questioned so soon. She glanced to her left, and was relieved when she saw the two elder unicorns give her nods to proceed. “Princess, there is a form of magic that I've felt before, that is... similar to what we found, but it is by no means the same.”

An idea crossed Celestia's mind at that, and she found her self-control taxed severely. “The Elements of Harmony?” She asked, secretly hoping for a negative answer.

The purple unicorn's head nod dispelled that hope, however. “The magic trace felt similar, but different. It was like...” Twilight frowned in frustration as she searched for the words she desired. “It was like something was missing.”

“I see,” Celestia replied, and then fell silent for several moments in thought. The three unicorns in the room shared looks of concern, and they were about to start fidgeting when the alicorn cleared her throat. “Was that the good news, or the bad news?” She asked, carefully.

The gathered mages seemed to relax a bit at that, and Möbius Strip answered for the group. “Zat vas ze bad news, majesty. Ze good news is zat ze trace haff made it easy for us to track ze origin. Ve believe zat vith a few days of study, ve can not only detect ze proper reality princess Luna is in, but also tie ze teleport spell to home in on her unique magical signature.”

A weight seemed to lift from Celestia's back at that, and this time she did not stifle the reserved, relieved sigh. “I am glad to hear that,” she said, though worry continued to nibble at her thoughts. “I know I've pulled all three of you away from your normal lives long enough already, but I would ask you to conduct this study and create the spell to find my sister.”

“But of course, your majesty,” Golden Nebula replied, with similar simultaneous statements from both Möbius Strip and Twilight Sparkle. “We live to serve, and no pony should be left to the mercies of some strange alternate reality.”

“Indeed,” Celestia said, and then graced the little ponies with a wide smile. “Then I shan't waylay you any longer. Please, see to the work immediately. I'll make sure that the palace staff will set up quarters for all of you.”

“By your leave, then,” Golden Nebula said, and then led the three unicorns in a brief, shallow bow. Then to Celestia's surprise, the two stallions looked over to Twilight, and then turned and trotted out.

I know that look, Celestia thought, as she saw the purple unicorn fidget a bit. “I take it there is something else?” Celestia asked, patiently.

“Er, yes princess,” Twilight said, her gaze dropping to look at the floor in front of her. “When we were looking over the runes in princess Luna's bedroom, we found signs that there may have been some kind of thaumaturgical distress or contest.”

“A magic struggle?” The alicorn asked, unable to keep the surprised tone from her voice.

Twilight gulped at that, and then brought her head back up to meet Celestia's gaze. “Maybe. I- I'm not too sure, and the professor says it's not really the same thing and the vizier-”

Celestia raised a foreleg at that, which cut off Twilight's increasingly nervous rant. “My dear student, I asked you to help because I value your input as much as I do that of the grand vizier and the professor,” she said, and then graced the unicorn with a small, yet all too brief smile. “Please, go on.”

Twilight bit her lip for a moment as she considered her words. “Although the lines and runes were undisturbed,” she began, speaking carefully. “I let my own magic track along them, and I found places where the crystals were ruptured. I mean, I'm sure you know that spellcaster's chalk already uses ground up crystals, but even those retain their molecular structure. The pieces I traced over felt... Well, like they had exploded apart at a basic level.” The purple unicorn nervously paused at this to look over her mentor's face, worried that she might have made some sort of mistake. The alicorn showed no signs of reproach, though, so the purple unicorn took in a deep breath to calm her nerves and then continued. “Since crystals tend to shatter when exposed to magical power beyond their capacitance, I theorize that a large amount of thaumaturgical energy was released during the spell, far more than the engine itself required. Though, I am not sure whether it was Luna or whatever she interacted with that caused it.”

Celestia remained silent as she pondered over her student's words for several moments. “Thank you, Twilight, for bringing this to my attention,” she said, and then slowly stood. “I think you may be right, for it would explain why Luna hasn't yet returned. She did this in secret, after all, so I would assume she planned on keeping it such until her return.” The white alicorn paused to again ponder, and then nodded her head. “Yes, it starts to make a bit more sense now,” she said, and then turned her head to focus the full effects of her steady, even gaze upon the young unicorn. “However, this means that an additional precaution should be taken when we initiate the spell to find my sister.”

“Additional precaution?” Twilight asked, as she automatically took a step back.

“Quite so,” Celestia replied, nodding again as she spoke. “To that end, I must ask you to write your friends in Ponyville and have them come here to Canterlot. The Elements of Harmony may yet be needed.”

“I see,” the purple unicorn said, and then gave a brief bow. “I'll get on it right away, princess,” she added, and then waited for the alicorn to dismiss her.

Twilight was surprised, though, when Celestia seemed to ignore her for the moment, and instead turned her head and levitated a scroll off of her desk and floated it over to hover between the two ponies. “Just one more question,” Celestia said, and then turned the scroll around, showing it to be Luna's personally drawn diagram of the spell runes. “Where were the disturbances you detected most prominent?”

The young mare blinked as she thought, but then lit up her horn and magically set several of the markings on the scroll glowing. “Those runes, your majesty,” Twilight said, as Celestia rotated the scroll back around. “Specifically – that is, if I am reading princess Luna's notes correctly – the ones that support the recall function, and also...” Her voice trailed off at this, as Twilight feared to give voice to what she dreaded.

Celestia, too, felt fear tighten her chest, but centuries of experience gave her the control to press on. “And also the runes that tie together the temporal frames of reference,” she softy spoke, finishing the purple mare's sentence for her. The white alicorn looked up from the scroll at that, and her eyes unfocused as she seemed to stare at nothing at all. “When we find her, any amount of time could have passed in that frame.”

“Yes,” Twilight said, unable to add anything more.

Another moment of silence passed before Celestia blinked, and then brought herself back under control. She looked down at the purple unicorn and gave her another wan smile. “I thank you for your diligence, Twilight,” she said. “Now, please go see to the preparations we spoke of. We shall speak later tonight.”

“Yes, your majesty,” Twilight replied, and then gave another little bow before she turned and walked out of the study.

Celestia watched her go, and closed the doors to gain some privacy once the little pony was well away. Heavens, no, the alicorn thought, as her visage finally cracked and tears started to form in her eyes. Please, not again, not another lengthy abandonment. Memories of banishing her sister to the moon rolled through Celestia's mind, and she turned away from the door so she could lie down on her seat cushion again. I swore to thee, to myself, that I wouldn't let it happen again. Luna is so strong when she has a foundation of family and friends beneath her. But without that... She shuddered at the thought, and silently wept. Not again, please, not again.

* * * *

Celestia watched with a practiced eye as four unicorns methodically created the runes for the altered engine spell. Any race of pony could have done it, of course, but the designs had to be exact, and so only the three most power mages in Equestria – and a certain white unicorn with exceptionally fine-tuned telekinetic control – worked on laying out the lines of chalk to form the proper energy-focusing symbols.

Almost time, the princess of the sun thought, as she observed the network nearing completion. She then raised her eyes a bit and slowly swept her gaze around the throne room and the ponies within its confines. Guards stood at every doorway, both to keep the room secure to prevent interruptions of delicate spellcasting, and also as a second layer of defense should whatever had happened to Luna – or whatever had taken her – tried to do something even worse this time.

Of course, the third set of ponies in the room were part of the first layer of defense: those who, with the two unicorns assisting Golden Nebula and Möbius Strip, were the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. The four ponies, two earth and two pegasuses, waited nervously with their elements already adorned. Only Rarity's necklace and Twilight's tiara lay in the elements' special case that sat on the stone floor near the idle bearers, a dozen feet beyond the perimeter of the rune circle, the two unicorns preferring to keep the heavy objects from interfering with their concentration.

Despite the tense situation, Celestia had to stifle a smile as she watched Pinkie Pie bounce in place, chatting randomly about various subjects with the three ponies waiting with her, though they all looked to be several degrees of bored and/or nervous and so did not speak back much. Always so optimistic, that one, the alicorn thought, as she found some strength in the pink pony's persistently pervasive perkiness. The eternal optimist, always looking to the bright side, she is such a perfect balance to the more... serious members of the bearers. Celestia cast her gaze back to the purple unicorn in the room just then, and her thoughts soon turned to more important things. I shall wait until we are ready.

Unfortunately for the princess only a few more minutes passed before the last of the marks had been placed, and the four unicorns carefully picked their way out of the runic array. “The layout is complete, your highness,” Golden Nebula said, though his face showed some embarrassment at stating the obvious.

But for an important spell like this, one must adhere to protocol, Celestia thought, and then bit back a kneejerk condemnation of her sister that sprung from the dark place of her mind. No, none of that now. I cannot blame Luna for this, not when the spell worked and she was only taken after some sort of struggle.

Celestia blinked suddenly as she realized that while in the midst of her thoughts she had failed to reply to the grand vizier. “Thank you, Aurum,” she said, with a smile as she used the nickname the pony mage preferred over the first half of his name. “All you require is a physical anchor at the center, then?”

“Yes, majesty,” Golden Nebula replied, with a nod. “Anything will do, though the more mass the better the spell will focus on it.”

Celestia thought about this for a moment, and then nodded. “Very well,” she said, and then lit up her horn. Before anypony could guess as to the reason, a flash lit up the room and temporarily blinded all who stood within.

The effect faded quickly, though, and soon all eyes turned to the center of the runic circle, where a life-sized, yet stylized statue of a pony stood. A few gasps were let out once they realized that instead of being carved from stone, the statue appeared to be something more precious. “Is that gold?” The white unicorn, Rarity, asked from where she stood near her friends.

“Seventy percent pure,” Celestia replied, which startled the various ponies in the room as she had already risen from the throne and was descending it when she spoke. “It was commissioned by the Royal Alchemical Society after they found the key to turning lead into gold,” the white alicorn continued, as she reached the bottom of the throne stairs. An amused smile crossed her muzzle then as she recalled the past. “It was a pity they did not realize that the transformation only lasted three days until after their brief spending spree. The whole organization went bankrupt and had to be folded into the Royal Academy after that.”

The smaller ponies in the room looked somewhat shocked at the revelation, and Twilight Sparkle cleared her throat. “If that's so, princess, then why are alchemists still looking for the so-called Philosopher's Stone?”

Celestia chuckled briefly. “The Philosopher's Stone is merely a poetic name for a mineral or chemical that the alchemists hope will stabilize the transformation and make it permanent,” she explained, and then shook her head. “Ah, but we digress from what is important. Golden Nebula, Möbius Strip,” she added, as she turned her neck to look at the two elder unicorns. “Please begin charging the circle.”

The two mages shot confused glances between them, before Möbius spoke. “But princess,” he began in his accented voice. “Ve haff not decided who vill reside in ze circle and control ze spell.”

“You have not, but I have,” Celestia stated, and then lit up her horn again. This time, the golden aura enveloped her royal regalia, and to the other ponies' shock, began to remove the various jeweled pieces.

“Your majesty, you cannot mean you wish to do this?” Golden Nebula protested, even as Celestia sent her crown to go and rest upon the seat of the throne. “You are needed here, in Equestria!”

“I am needed by my sister,” Celestia rebuked, without so much as a glance at the unicorn as she stepped out of her gold-alloy overshoes, and then levitated them to join her crown and gorget. “And I have made provisions for my departure,” she said, and then glanced over to the element bearers, who to a pony gulped nervously. “Twilight Sparkle,” Celestia said, her voice firm. “Attend me,” she added, and then turned and walked a short distance away.

Twilight gulped a second time in fear, and then glanced over her friends. Their supportive, concerned looks all worked to steady her, and the unicorn took heart from her connection with them. She gave them a wan smile, and then turned and trotted off to join the sun princess a few dozen feet away. As she drew up beside the white alicorn, though, a sudden spell swept over them, and Twilight yelped in shock as a dome of white light covered the area in which the two ponies stood.

“I am sorry for surprising you,” Celestia said, and then turned to regard her student. “But what I have to say to you now is not for anypony else to hear, and this spell shall keep our conversation private,” she explained, even as Twilight glanced up to see the alicorn's horn glowing.

“Oh-okay,” Twilight managed to stutter out, the confusion over her mentor's actions working with the purple pony's usual fear of making a mistake to drive her discomfort to stratospheric levels. Her ears folded back and she shuffled her hooves a bit as she waited for the other horseshoe to drop.

Celestia stifled a grimace as she watched her student's physical response, and the alicorn sighed. “Please, calm yourself, Twilight,” she said, and then graced the unicorn with a warm smile. “I am not upset with you. I simply wish to give you a new, important mission to carry out for me.”

Twilight perked up a bit at this, her ears turning up again as her interest was piqued. “A new mission, Celestia?” She asked, her tone shifting from concern to curiosity.

Thank heavens she remembers to use just my name when we're alone, Celestia thought, as she briefly remembered having to be firm to get the purple pony to use even that level of familiarity in the past. Best ponder that later; time is running thin. “Indeed. It concerns you and your friends,” Celestia said, as she pushed her memories aside. “I admit I have a secondary motive for having you all here. While I do wish the Elements to be nearby just in case they are needed to defend our world, there is another purpose, almost as important, that I need you six to be ready to do if needed.”

“O-of course, Celestia,” Twilight said, as she stood up straight, and then puffed her chest out a bit. “Whatever you ask of us, we're ready to do it.”

“Good,” Celestia said, with a nod. Her smile disappeared then, and she sighed. “Before I get to that purpose, I must tell you a secret that only myself, Luna, and perhaps three other ponies in the realm know.” The alicorn paused at that and gave her student a hard look that sent chills along the unicorn's back. “I must ask for you to swear yourself into secrecy regarding it, though, before I divulge.”

Twilight Sparkle blinked hard at this, and her eyes shifted side to side as she contemplated what was being asked of her. “I have to keep it secret, even from my friends?” She asked, as she gave her teacher a pleading look.

“Even them,” Celestia replied, her tone firm. “Do I have your promise, Twilight?”

The purple mare gulped yet again, and then took in a deep breath as she rapidly thought. Finally, though, she let out the breath, and then nodded. “You do, princess,” she replied.

Celestia nodded to her student, and then took a moment to compose her thoughts. “As you may remember from the Hearthswarming Eve play you took part in, the old stories tell of how the unicorns worked in concert to raise the sun and moon,” she began, carefully picking her words. “I'm sure you've already read how Luna and I came along after that, and then took those duties from them?”

Twilight nodded at that. “Yes, I remember that from my studies,” she answered.

“Then I regret to inform you, my student, that you have been lied to,” Celestia said, and then paused as Twilight gave her a stunned look. “The unicorns never rose the sun; they would have been hard-pressed to even nudge the moon, let alone move it across the sky. No pony can affect such objects, not even myself or my sister.”

“B-b-but,” Twilight stuttered. “The histories! The magical theories! Your own Summer Sun and Winter Moon celebrations!”

“All part of the Big Lie,” Celestia said, as she shook her head. “You see, Twilight, the world was a much different place before our kind founded Equestria. The Hearthswarming story tells this, but it understates just how ruthless the different tribes were at the time. The unicorns and the pegasi were constantly at each other's throats, warring left and right for control of territory. Most of the earth ponies were either serfs to the unicorn nobility or pegasi warlords, or outright slaves in some cases. The sole exception was the United Republics, which consisted mostly of earth ponies with some disaffected unicorns and pegasi.

“The fiction of the Big Lie was started even before the last round of warfare that, when combined with the shift in climate, forced ponies to abandon our ancestral homes to the north. The unicorns were powerful, but were much hated by both the pegasi and the Republics. They knew that if their foes were to unite against them, then even the entirety of their feudal kingdom would be crushed,” Celestia paused at this, and regained her breath before she continued. “So they worked together. Even though the worst internecine civil wars, even through the Great Migration, they worked together to create and support the Lie, by using illusion spells and careful orchestrations of their superior astronomical knowledge to inculcate their populace, and eventually all ponies, into believing that the sun and moon would only rise and set according to the will of their greatest mage circles. The truth is, in fact, that this world simply spins on a rotational axis, creating night and day as any given spot faces or turns away from the sun.”

Twilight Sparkle sat in stunned silence as her teacher ended her narrative. This... this cannot be! Her formal education railed against this new information, yet her heart and respect for Celestia made her mind process and accept it. She could not, however, let it go without at least some questions. “But, if that's so, then why is your cutie mark that of the sun? Why is Luna's the moon?” Twilight asked, her voice strained. “Why keep up the lie? And how did Nightmare Moon create eternal night when she returned from exile?”

Celestia sighed, as her hopes that the mere story would be enough were dashed. But of course, I knew better, she told herself. I do not pick fools to be my students, after all. “To answer those in order, Luna and I have our respective cutie marks because the sun and the moon are the sources of our power. We may not be able to raise or lower the celestial bodies, but we are still immensely powerful because we are attuned, more than any other pony, to the magic the sun and moon generate and focus. It was with that power that we were able to finally bring about the final uniting of Equestria under our rule and end the last wars between ponies.

“That, of course, brings me to why we kept up the lie,” Celestia added, and then briefly shook her head again. “It was so entrenched into the populace that to undo it would take generations of education, and we did not have generations. We had to consolidate our power base rapidly, and ironically it was the Big Lie that helped us and led to the nobility's undermining. Our cutie marks, combined with our considerable magic, was able to sway the populace to our side and force the signing of the Magna Canter, which made all nobles subservient to the Canterlot throne.” Again the alicorn paused, and then sighed as memories long suppressed resurfaced in her mind's eye. “We had no choice but to continue the Lie. If we recanted it, then ponydom would have splintered: the nobility would have attempted to regain power, the push by some for a return to republic would have turned into open rebellion, and many would have been disenchanted with Luna and I, personally. It would have resulted in the worst civil war in pony history, and it could have forever ended all hope of ever uniting our people under one government.”

A moment of silence fell over the two ponies as Twilight Sparkle once again struggled to absorb the shift in her paradigm. “And?” she finally asked, her voice almost a whisper. “Nightmare's return? How did she create eternal night if she couldn't control the sun or moon or even the earth below?”

Celestia gave her student a tired look that held the weight of her thousands of years of life behind it. “Answer me this, my student,” she began. “What specifically do illusion class spells do?”

Twilight frowned at that, as her mind struggled to shift gears. “They manipulate light to create false...” Her voice trailed off as she hit upon what her mentor had suggested, and the unicorn's eyes went wide. “She cast a spell on us to make us think it was night?” Twilight asked, shocked in tone.

“Not on you specifically,” Celestia clarified. “She cast one to simply redirect the sun's light away from our world; a much easier task than trying to move a celestial body weighing hundreds of thousands of times than the very globe we walk upon, or even halt the world's rotation.”

Twilight blinked at this and lowered her gaze to stare into the distance while her mind traced over what she knew about such spells and matched it with what her teacher had just explained. It is possible, she told herself. It would require a lot of power, but you've seen Luna animate spider toys and call storms to her just by being in a bad mood. Surely, if she really tried and focused, she would have such power. Twilight's mind ground to a halt at this, and before she knew it her knees had buckled and she fell to the floor.

Celestia flinched a bit in surprise as she saw her student collapse, and the white alicorn quickly moved to kneel next to the smaller pony. “Twilight, are you alright?” She asked, concerned.

The purple unicorn opened and closed her mouth silently for a few seconds, seemingly unable to vocalize. After a moment, she shut her muzzle, swallowed, and then nodded to her mentor. “I... I'm fine, Celestia,” she said, her tone quiet and contemplative. Another silent moment passed before Twilight Sparkle finally seemed to regain her self-control, and then turned to look up into Celestia's face again. “Why... why are you telling me this?” She asked, quietly.

The alicorn shook her head in reply as she stood back up, and then turned to walk to the opposite side of the magic dome the two were under. “You know I am leaving to find my sister,” she stated. “I will not foist her salvation upon other ponies again, not when I am actually capable of accomplishing it myself.

“I am concerned, however,” Celestia continued, and for the first time Twilight could ever remember, she saw a trace of fear upon the alicorn's face. “Luna is almost my equal in power, yet she has not returned on her own, and your investigation showed that she may have been taken against her will. I cannot discount the possibility that there is something more powerful than myself in that other reality, and that I may be only following my sister into an untimely death.

“If that were to happen, then obviously neither one of us would return,” the white alicorn explained, and then paused to sigh. “And I will not risk that without providing for some form of continuity for our ponies. Of course, the parliament and bureaucracy can run the government, but the Big Lie of the day and night cycle is still ingrained into the populace. If both Luna and I disappear, then panic could erupt in the streets from ponies fearing the end of the world. And afterward, they would realize that it was a lie, and then that civil war I feared so long ago would rear its head, and pony kind would once again battle one another for control.

“I will not risk that. Which is why I called your friends here,” Celestia added, and then turned to face her student again. “It is well known by now that the Elements of Harmony are a magic more powerful than any single being, even an alicorn like myself,” she said, and then nodded to the unicorn as the latter stood up. “It will not be a stretch of the imagination for the common pony to believe that the Elements, in order to maintain harmony in the world, could and would be used to move the sun and moon across the sky.”

Twilight's face turned ashen at this. “You... want us to continue the lie?” She asked, her tone once again shocked. “To violate the tenant of honesty?”

“Yes,” Celestia replied, and then sighed again before she walked back to stand just in front of the purple mare. “Twilight, you must understand that I only want to prevent the suffering and pain that would come from the infighting that would arise should the truth come out. I have ruled, both with and without my sister, on the basis that we control the skies themselves. Because of this, our word is law, and we have done our best, I have done my best to ensure that everypony, commoner or noble, rich or poor, wise or foolish, strong or weak, can live a life free of the worst that this world has to offer, free of the fear of war, of famine, of plague and death. I do not want to see that undone, no matter what the reason.

“So please,” Celestia added, as she brought up a hoof and placed it on Twilight's shoulder. “I ask you, nay, I beg of you to keep ponies safe from those things by keeping them safe from themselves.”

Twilight bit her lower lip as the princess finished her plea. Several moments passed in tense silence before she finally sighed, and then nodded. “I will, princess,” she said, somewhat reluctantly.

Celestia felt relieved at that, and she allowed a smile to cross her muzzle. “Thank you, my wonderful student,” she said, as she brought the hoof on Twilight's shoulder back to the floor. “I know you must have your reservations and fears about this task, but I applaud your ability to rise above them. Know, however, that your friends will be with you, and if it does look like Luna or myself won't return then I give you permission to tell them the truth so that you all may continue to do your duty to the realm.”

“Of course, princess,” Twilight said, somewhat automatically as she placed a fake smile on her face. Celestia was not fooled, of course, but she declined to comment on it, and instead closed her eyes and then dispelled the privacy dome. The throne room came back into their vision, and both ponies turned to see the others in the room looking towards them with concern and worry etched on their faces.

“Your majesty!” Golden Nebula called out from where he and Möbius Strip were focusing power into the spell ring. “Is everything alright?”

“Quite alright, vizier,” Celestia said, as she led Twilight Sparkle in a walk back to rejoin the others. She noticed the hesitant nature of her student's movements, however, and inwardly sighed. I know this will be hard on you for a time, dear Twilight, but you are a smart pony and will figure it out yourself, the alicorn thought. As they reached the spell circle, though, she shifted mental gears and then nodded towards the two elder unicorns in the room. “Is the spell engine ready?” She asked.

“Almost,” Nebula replied. “The seeker algorithm has been tuned to track along princess Luna's connection to the moon, and the modified engine will provide the rapid calculations necessary to sift through the various realities she could be in.”

“Ze teleportation spell is ready,” Möbius added. “It vill tie into ze seeker algorithm and bring you directly to your sister vonce she has been found.”

“Excellent,” Celestia stated. “Where shall I stand to utilize the spell?”

Golden, Möbius, and Twilight all shared a series of looks at that, clearly still uneasy that their princess was about to leave. “Your majesty,” the professor of the group began. “I must ask, vat vill happen if- if you take longer zan a few hours?”

“That is why I spoke with Twilight Sparkle,” Celestia replied, which only made the purple unicorn cringe as everypony's attention fell to her. The alicorn continued, however, as if it were nothing of consequence. “If necessary, the Elements of Harmony shall maintain the balance and ensure that the sun and moon will continue their procession across the sky.”

Everypony in the room – save Twilight Sparkle, of course – looked surprised at this, though soon enough the Canterlot ponies took it in stride. Twilight's friends, however, retained various expression of shock on their faces even after the purple unicorn gave them an uncomfortable, sheepish smile.

Again Celestia forced herself to ignore the emotional situation, lest she become distracted. I will make it up to you all when I return, she silently promised. ...If I return. She pushed those thoughts aside, and then turned to face Golden Nebula again. “Now, vizier, where do I stand?”

The gold-colored pony opened his mouth to say something, but then apparently thought better of it and bit it back. “Over here, your highness,” he said, using a minor spell to create a glowing light over a blank part of the runic circle.

Celestia nodded to him, and then carefully picked her way over the markings on the floor with a grace that belied her superior size. Once in position she turned and faced the element bearers, who all now wore their respective artifacts. “Remember, I am charging you all with keeping Equestria safe while I'm gone,” she said, her voice even but firm. “Keep true to each other, and you will prevail,” she added, and then cast her gaze specifically to Twilight Sparkle. “Equestria will prevail.”

The six seemed to take heart at her words, and at the last Twilight stood up straight and then gave a serious nod to her mentor. Celestia nodded back, and then looked over to Golden Nebula and Möbius Strip. “Gentlecolts, please begin.”

The two replied with nods of their own, and then started to push the charged spell into motion. It was a change from the original spell, Celestia knew, but they had all agreed that whomever would go through to the other side would need to conserve his or her energy as much as possible for whatever awaited there, hence the modification to accept outside power and guidance. I still need to contribute, however, Celestia reminded herself, and then started to channel power from the sun itself, using her special connection with it to bring down a steady supply of magical energy, though she was careful to moderate the flow lest it overwhelm the spell or the casters adding their own touch.

Only a moment passed before the white alicorn felt the spell coming to life around her, and Celestia quickly but gently reached out with her mind to take control of the thaumaturgical engine. There was little for her to do at the moment, though, as the engine spun up, but she wanted to be ready for anything at a moment's notice. For now, she simply waited as the spell engine finished powering up and then started to run the search algorithm.

Images flashed by in her mind's eye, fed to her by the engine as it swept along the dimensional axes, though most of them went by too quick to comprehend as the engine screamed along faster than thought. Celestia did get a few ideas of strange creatures and unusual landscapes, but these were fleeting impressions that did little but be a mild distraction.

Suddenly, though, the engine lurched as the search algorithm detected its target. The mental images spun like a kaleidoscope for a brief second before finally settling on a location that at first made no sense to Celestia. As she took in the scene, however, she realized that she was looking down on some kind of oceangoing vessel in the middle of a large drydock, similar to the ones in Manehattan or Seaddle, albeit one of unfamiliar design.

A bit of movement caught her eye, and Celestia almost yelped in joy as she saw Luna running across the deck of the strange ship. She may be wearing clothes, but I would recognize her anywhere! The white alicorn thought, as she quickly ramped up the teleport spell. “I see her!” She said, speaking aloud for the benefit of the ponies in the throne room with her, excitement leaking into her tone. “I'm going!”

“Wait,” Golden Nebula said, as he brought up a hoof. “Your majesty, we must check to make sure the area is safe first!”

“If it is not safe, then she needs my help even more!” Celestia replied, and then without further argument, engaged the teleport spell. Another brilliant flash lit up the throne room, and when it cleared the ponies within all felt a sense of worry and dread when they saw that for the first time in two thousand years they were bereft the guidance of the sun princess.

* * * *

A wave of nausea washed over Celestia as she steadied herself following the teleport. That should not be, she thought, as the ill feeling rapidly ebbed. It almost felt as if something was fighting the teleport spell.

The sound of wings flapping in the air drew her attention, and Celestia looked up to find herself at the bend of a large corridor that led between the outside drydock she had seen and the blue-lit interior of a building. Scarcely had she time to consider this when she saw Luna glide down in a graceful arc to land just beyond the wall that marked the corridor. The moon princess rapidly tucked in her wings and then turned to run towards where Celestia stood, though her attention was almost entirely focused behind her, with her head and neck canted back to look over her shoulder.

Celestia felt the happiness swell in her heart, so much so that she did not even notice that Luna was levitating a strange object beside her, and had a banner affixed to her back. “Luna!” The white alicorn called, as she strode forward to meet her sister.

The sound of her name apparently startled the other alicorn from the way her head whipped around. “Gah!” She yelped in fear, as the object at her side flipped end over end and pointed towards the source of her surprise.

A searing flash and a jolt of intense pain in her face were all that Celestia felt then, just before the world went black.