Arch of Shadowsby StrythioChapters"Two Coups and a Princess""The Price of Harmony"" The End of an Era"" Of Train Rides and Schemes""It is Only a Tragedy if You Fail""Conspiracy Theories" (part I)"Conspiracy Theories" (part II)"The Crystal Heart" "Sleep Troubles""Two Coups and a Princess"Twilight awoke to find herself in the middle of a throne room, very much like the one she was in in the waking world. Screams of terror seemed to shake the very foundations of the room, the open air windows. Shaking off the sleepiness, she soon came to realize that she was not still in Celestia's throne room. Alarm bells immediately went off in her head as she tried to rationalize where she was. Ironically enough, those very same alarm bells began literally ringing as some distant bell tower rang with the force of a nation-sized choir. Perhaps to calm her, Luna's voice quickly rang out, “Remember Princess Sparkle, it is a dream!” Twilight seemed to calm down at this notion, though she had to look around to see if Luna were anywhere to be seen. Sure enough, when she spotted a nearby mirror, she saw Luna. Resembling her appearance when she was originally restored by the Elements of Harmony, this young Luna had bright blue hair and a somewhat stocky look to her. Her dressings were absent, even any regalia, as that symbol of monarchy would not come till much later. Piecing together at last that she must be playing the part of Luna in this dream, Twilight took another few looks around. The throne room was very similar in design to the current throne room in Canterlot; however, the regality of a red carpet was changed to a purple carpet, and instead of two thrones, there was a large assembly of cushioned seats, all arranged to face towards one of the double doors in the room. There were three sets of double doors in total, one at the far end of the room, and two right across from each other on either side of the seats. Twilight reasoned that this is probably where meetings took place with diplomats, judging by the dull, arched windows. They had no stained glass, but at least they let in ample amounts of daylight. The sounds of screeching brought Twilight's attention back to the matter at hand; the emotion Luna felt during the time, the confusion and uncertainty, seemed to be a result of the chaos outside. Twilight presumed that this was the rise of the Empire; though she recalled it being told as being a more orderly transition in the history books. Accordingly, the old system had been seen as inefficient, so two alicorns seized control and declared a new Empire, with the multi-species state now under their rule. Obviously there had been resistance to this sudden change in government, but it had been implied that this resistance was mass scale only on day one. This must have been day one. “Quickly, they cannot be allowed to threaten the Republic!” voices shouted, tearing Twilight from her thoughts again. This room was, on closer inspection, a mess, as if someone had ransacked it and left in a hurry. Chests of all sorts were open, the floor was worn and scratched, the ceiling looked as if it were going to cave at any minute. These details were only just now coming to the forefront, despite how important they would seem. “Get away from here you barbarians!” another voice bellowed, sounding much closer than before. Several bursts of magic and the sound of crunching later, and the room doors farthest from the seating area burst from their hinges. Startled, Luna instantly turned towards the doors. Rolling in a heap were two young dragons, coming to a stop just before her hooves, followed by the stomping of an angry alicorn. The signs of dark magic were evident, not just from the ominously glowing eyes, but the entire visage being completely cloaked in a misty black shroud before dissipating to reveal an, at first, familiar sight. If Twilight did not know any better, she would assume that this was Nightmare Moon, with some masculine features granted for creative effect. However, the cutie mark was not quite right; it bore a shield with a cross of short swords stamped onto a heart. Additionally, the mane had a more physical look to it, though it still bore the familiar, moonless, starry night look. The body was bulkier and covered from head to toe in metal armor. No, now that she got a better look at it, Twilight could tell that this could not possibly be Nightmare Moon. Luna asked in a soft and sweet tone, “What is happening?” The eyes of the mystery alicorn flashed to midnight blue softened, just enough to see that the pupils seemed rather normal, at least at this moment. The alicorn looked at Luna with some surprise, and then in anger. “Luna, I gave you a directive,” the alicorn growled, “I told you to stay with your sister and mother.” “But father!” Luna protested, apparently taking a good guess at what was going on, “I can help with whatever it is! I managed to nudge the moon yesterday...” “Nightshade's daughters can touch celestial bodies now?” one of the dragons growled, coughing up bits of red essence, “So they were the ones planning a coup, even then!” “No, that was not it at all!” Luna's father roared with volume rivaling the Canterlot voice, “I do not know who fed you this nonsense, but whoever it is, they are lying!” “Rubbish!” the dragons spat, “You ponies have been plotting this for a very long time. The republic will not topple like this!” The Ponīn republic, the predecessor to the Ponīn Empire, had been founded by alicorns, with the intention of stabilizing their world. It started in the north, not far from where the Crystal Empire stood in modern times, and rapidly expanded to include many of the lands that were now Equestrian territory. In order to make governing a diverse group of creatures easier, the representative body became consisting of more and more non-pony beings. By giving them a voice, the Republic was able to hold fast despite its diversity, though the obvious restraints of a group having to agree on things made expansion slower and slower as time went on. The Empire would eventually rule most of the known world, but first, the less efficient Republic had to be overturned. From that perspective, Twilight rationalized, alicorns taking back the government should not have been that much of a surprise, even for dragons. After the fall of Zebrage, not much was capable of stopping the Ponī Republic. Many species allied themselves with the fearsome armies, and many more fought against them. Some of the losers were punished with slavery (thankfully now outlawed) or being reduced to livestock. Obviously, the latter was only for the most heinous fighters, but it was still rather harsh by modern standards, as it stripped an entire species of their sapience and almost immediately domesticated them. The origin of some cattle were supposedly tied into this, but all of that didn't matter with what was going on here, not to mention that was speculation. The Republic died today; and the ones to be in charge were alicorns. But something still was not adding up, now that Twilight thought about it. If she was experiencing this through the perspective of Luna, then that would mean that Luna would have had to been old enough to remember this with some clarity. But Luna and Celestia traditionally do not appear in history until after ponies migrated south to escape the windigoes, right before the founding of modern Equestria. It really put into perspective just how old Celestia and Luna were. “General Nightshade!” sounded more voices, shaking Twilight from her contemplation yet again, as what looked to be guards quickly rushed to Luna's father. They wore rounded helmets with two triangles sticking out of the sides like dunce helmets, the triangles swiveling back and forth with their attentive ears. Most were clad in some ragtag bits of armor; hardly modern Royal Guard standards, with mostly thick layers of what appeared to be leather. Out of the five that arrived, only one of them, bearing a tuft of read feathers along the top of the helmet, bore any actual metal armor, still somewhat lacking by modern Canterlot standards. It seemed clunky, and if nothing else, inconvenient to run around in. However, most notably, were the shortswords that were present on each flank, sheathed and neatly shelved along with the armor. The fact that they were not drawn suggested that Nightshade was the one who attacked the dragons and sent them flying into the room. They fervently discussed the situation with their general, the red feather donned one doing much of the talking. “The entire city is in an uproar; they claim that Kaiser was slain!” frantically shouted the metally armored pony, “The entire Animate is armed to the teeth to defend against some sort of overthrow!” “I am clearly aware of that Sharp Blade,” Nightshade retorted, never taking his eyes off of the beaten dragons, “Did I not give orders to evacuate all non-combatants?” “Well yes, we managed to, but your wife and one of your daughters insisted on staying...” Sharp Blade bravely reported, chancing a glance towards Luna, “We of the guard are not alicorns sir, we were not going to get in their way if they insisted on staying.” “That's fine,” Nightshade assured the soldier, finally looking towards Sharp Blade, “Celestia is old enough to fight, and I am sure Solaria will keep an eye on her.” Young Luna seemed to be following the conversation just as much as Twilight was now, if not a little harder, in an attempt to fully understand what was going on. “Accept it already,” a voice echoed through the room, sending chills down everypony's spine save for Nightshade. It was a familiar one; one that Twilight knew with an unpleasant taste in her mouth to belong to only one draconequus. “Show yourself Discord!” Nightshade angrily shouted, in a manner not unlike Celestia when Discord was first freed from his stone prison. Discord immediately showed himself, appearing in a poof of smoke between Nightshade and Luna as if he had nothing to fear. Discord, as a draconequus, bore the head of a pony, and a mismatch of other body parts. His strange physical mystery seemed to add in to his chaotic magic and namesake pastime; even during this time, he apparently was a nuisance. Twilight felt somewhat bad for thinking of him, now reformed, in such a way, but it was not far from the truth. He did, after all, attempt to plunge the world into chaos shortly after gaining his freedom, and temporarily broke apart the Element Bearers in order to prevent from being resealed. Though he ultimately failed due to his own arrogance, and was eventually reformed thanks to the efforts of Fluttershy, that made him no less a danger as far as Twilight was concerned. There was never any telling what the creature was up to, and his bold arrival suggested that he was not here to play around. Despite Twilight's reservations, Luna of the time seemed much more eager to directly attack the draconequus physically, breaking into a run to close the already small distance between the two. However, her legs ceased to move correctly as the floor became ice; skidding, she literally slipped right into the open grasp of Discord, a lion paw covering her mouth and eyes in a single gesture. Despite this, Twilight could still see what was going on, presumably because Discord was mostly focused on keeping Luna's mouth shut rather than her eyes. “Tsk tsk tsk, surely you did not think that you could get away with assassinating Kaiser did you Shade?” Discord cackled, “Killing off your own Animate Council brethren, bad form really.” “Lies!” Nightshade howled, thunder sounding off in the background as he took a single step towards Discord, coming nose to nose with the spirit of disharmony with a charged horn, the aura a dark blue color. Unfazed and undeterred, Discord stood his ground with a wicked smile, threatening, “Now now, let's not do anything hasty. You wouldn't want to accidentally hurt little moon shaker here would you?” The guards, having recovered from their initial shock, unsheathed their shortswords in various manners; with four wielding theirs with magic, and the officer taking his between his teeth. Twilight did not envy the pre-Classical weapon users, though the fact that an Earth Pony was in charge of this small group did finally dawn on her as a bit unusual. Nightshade blinked, as if weighing quickly the options presented by the problem. The entire confrontation simmered as he took a step backwards and growled at Discord. “Put Luna down and we can negotiate like stallions. Harm a single hair on her body, and I promise that it shall be the last thing you do.” A jolt of fear seemed to go through Discord, only to vanish within the span of two seconds as his grin faded. Had the alicorn intimidated him into backing down? Twilight guessed that Discord had probably been weighing his options when suddenly a hole burst through the ceiling almost directly above them, apparently having been blasted out with magic. “Unhand my daughter, or my stallion's wrath will feel like moonlight upon your scorched hide by the time I get through with you!” a very stern voice threatened, a white alicorn descending from the large hole in the ceiling. This alicorn strongely resembled Celestia, but its mane was a double rainbow in colors, and her cutie mark was a blazing sun with two swords crossed over it. Its horn was almost as long as her mane, and it was glowing orange in a threatening manner. The white alicorn seemed to fit the description of someone who would be named Solaria, if Twilight had to guess. What rubble was left to fall as debris harmless speckled itself in the coats of those present on the ground, a confident smile now spreading among the guards. Discord must have realized that he was now very soon to be surrounded by the future rulers of the Ponī Empire, and his mind was hard at work trying to figure a way out of this. “The Empire will make you an example for all to see,” the voice sinisterly pointed, “Now unhand my daughter.” As Discord turned to see the speaker, Twilight could now see clearly what looked to be a young Celestia flying in behind her mother; a distinct shade of pink reigned supreme in her hair, though some blue streaks were beginning to show. Luna was thrilled at this latest development, and only more fervently attempted to escape Discord's grasp. Discord kept a tight magical and physical grip on her; after all, up to this point, she had been useful as a bargaining chip of sorts, and losing her now would be quite troublesome. “I will safely hand over your daughter, but, in exchange, I am to rule your non-native lands for as long as your daughters are not on the throne and you are dead,” Discord threatened, putting a claw particularly around Luna's neck, “And do not think that I would not stoop to desperate measures to get my wishes.” The dragons, by now having regained their wits, were wise enough to limp out of the way; one missed blast and they would not be seeing the rest of their lives. Despite some of their legs showing signs of breakage, they hastily shifted away from the epicenter of this standoff as Celestia and Solaria took a step forward. No one spoke for what seemed like a long while, Nigthshade and Solaria pointing their glowing horns towards Discord, just two pony lengths each from the draconequus, as if taunting him to try anything. The guards held their breath, and Celestia understandably seemed apprehensive. Finally, the silence was broken by Nightshade, a grim look on his face. “We do not negotiate with jesters and fools,” Nightshade coldly spoke, “There will only be two alicorns to rule the throne at any one point, and there will not be a successor bearing fangs and claws, if I have anything to say about it.” Solaria joined in, jeering, “You know that deep down, you are nothing more than a clown; a clown who enjoys nothing but a good time. Ruling doesn't suite you. Put her down and you can be a redeemable fool." Discord's face twisted into a very depressed frown; his grip slowly closing in around Luna's throat. He was cornered, and these alicorns knew that at least a part of him had been bluffing. They were betting that his bluff would be their ticket to disarming the draconequus. The situation looked grim for Discord, and Twilight couldn't help but wonder how Discord intended on getting out of it. With a wide smile, Discord suddenly narrowed his eyes at Shade, gently nicking at Luna's neck with a claw. “I have a better idea,” Discord snickered, “Let's play a game of hide-and-go-seek. And you are it.” In a flash, two blasts were loosed in unison, and a grand warping of reality occurred. Twilight recognized this as a teleportation spell, done with just the right kind of timing to make it more dazzling than it needed to be. However, she couldn't help but ponder if Luna's parents were in their right mind attempting to attack Discord while he held Luna. Then again, she didn't know what spell exactly they used, so it was fair to say they were probably not going for anything that would harm Luna. Needless to say, when the spell wore off, the shift was from a rather bright room to a dark one. Blinking, Luna attempted, vainly, to gather her senses when she was dropped atop of something soft. Searching for her captor, she only saw complete darkness, though she could hear the turning of a door handle. “Oh, almost forgot,” Discord joked through the darkness, snapping his fingers, “Wouldn't want you teleporting away now would we?” Luna suddenly felt a strange tug, and instinctively reached up to where her horn should be. Twilight did not need vision to guess what Discord had done. Without her horn, Luna would not be able to teleport; but she was still an alicorn, and as Discord seemingly departed from the room, Twilight contemplated the logic in leaving her alone; but then reminded herself that this was Discord that she was talking about. His idea of logic baffled even the greatest of tacticians, since Luna did still have wings to fly and hooves to run, if she could just get her bearings. Silence pervaded for a long time as Luna lay in her position, figuring this was probably a good time to think about her situation. Twilight couldn't help but agree. From what she had gathered, Luna had been kidnapped by Discord while she was kind of young; Celestia and Luna had parents, and apparently, wherever they were now was where Discord planned on keeping Luna. When the reality of the situation dawned on her, tears began welling to Luna's eyes. Dark, alone, and suddenly quite chilly, as if a cold breeze had entered the room. Luna snapped to attention as she realized that the sudden temperature change suggested an inconsistency in the room; there really did have to be a door or crack, or something nearby that she might could go through. Feeling around with touch and hearing alone, Luna maneuvered her way to the source of the chill; it was about where Discord's voice had vanished, and as Luna put a hoof out in front of her, she felt something oddly smooth. Rubbing it, Luna concluded that it must be some sort of gem; so was she in some sort of cave? “Honey, I'm hooome!” sang a deep voice, startling Luna and causing her to drop to the floor. Heart racing, the sound of hoofsteps echoed nearer and nearer, before stopping right before the other side of the surface. “Amore?” the voice called out again, a hint of concern now audible, “I apologize, but I am not in the mood for hide and go seek!” Suddenly, a bright light shone in at the spot where the smooth gems were at, and Luna was blind sided by it, her eyes having adjusted to the dark in her short time of being in the room. Covering her face, she waited for her eyes to re-adjust, slowly and somewhat painfully, to the change in lighting. A pony, tall in stature, stood at the entranceway; she could only see a silhouette, but very quickly the pony called out frantically, “Amore? Amore?!” The pony quickly ran off, leaving the doorway open. As Luna's eyes adjusted, she noticed that the gems were in fact crystals; in fact, the entire room was made of crystals, from top to bottom. As if trying to wrap her head around the concept, Luna touched the floor; the clop of her hoof supported her theory that even the floors were made of crystals. She stuck out her tongue, and just as she considered tasting the walls to make sure it was not some sort of sugar (she had just been kidnapped by Discord after all), a roar that shook the entire room brought her attention back to the matter at hand. Quickly scampering from the room into the hallway, the young alicorn frantically searched for any sort of familiar landmark. Crystals, large and small, in various colors and shapes, were everywhere. Not a rug, not a flag, not even a single map; the hallways seemed endless, and even the ceiling lights were made of crystals. Luna made a personal bet that she would go mad before finding her way around this place. Another shout, along with the sounds of a struggle, continued down one of the hallways. With it being the only defining trait of this hellish maze, Luna carefully trotted in that general direction, ears tuned in to the smallest sound. The endless hallway seemed to stretch on forever as she turned corners, only to find more hallway greeting her. It was as if the very structure were laughing at her so far futile efforts to gather her bearings. It took some time, but eventually, the noise was loud enough that Luna projected that she had to be right on top of the source by now. To her surprise, the floor beneath her suddenly gave way, and in a panic, she began flapping her wings frantically; she managed to get some lift and prevent herself from falling with the rubble. It was a short way down, merely one room level down, but the crash of the former floor overwhelmed the noise of conflict. Luna unsteadily hovered downwards, to find a large room filled with swords, shields, spears, and armor. There were also dummy targets, surprisingly made of wood, and even some metallic dumbbells of varying weights printed on them scattered about the room. The remains of that section of the floor were directly below her. “We must be in the Crystal Empire somewhere,” Twilight finally deduced, “That is the only logical explanation for all of these crystals.” No sooner had she figured that out did one of the walls open up, expulsing a calm looking Discord. “Hmph, note to self, do not pay the guards,” Discord muttered to himself. Luna quickly dove for some of the nearby rubble in an attempt to hide; the loud clop of her hooves and the wind from her closing wings were deafening to her. Using the reflective crystals as a sort of guide, Luna could see that Discord seemed quite surprised. “What happened here?” he inquired to himself, tapping his chin with his lion paw, “I could have sworn that the trapdoor was on the other side of the castle...” “King Umbra!” shouted a high pitched voice, causing Discord to go rigid, “Queen Amore, where are you?” Luna chanced a peek with her own eyes to see Discord's reaction; as quickly as he had lost his composure, he seemed to regain it, almost as if this were yet something else that he needed to bluff his way through. Guards rushed in; however, these ponies were unlike anything Luna (at the time) had ever seen. Their coats glittered and shone like gems, their very eyes sparkling like clear water from a spring catching sunlight. Despite this flashy appearance, many were garbed head to hoof in metallic armor; only one bore no armor. This unarmored one allowed Luna to guess that that is what the others looked like underneath their armor; she also presumed that it was a mare who would be out of uniform. Her stereotype got a reality check as she noticed that out of all of them, this was the one who looked most worried, and most panicked, and had both wings and a horn. The horn, however, resembled that of a rhinocerous' more than a pony's, with a wicked curve, no grooves, and an eerie ruby glow. Twilight had only encountered one unicorn who had possessed a horn like that, and could presume that this may have been one of his predecessors. If a mare looked anything like Sombra though, then they had definitely skipped over their reflection in the crystals a few too many times earlier in the day. “Where are the King and Queen, Discord?” this pony asked, fierce lime green eyes attempting to burn a hole through the draconequus. “How am I supposed to know Sombra?” Discord replied, “They are probably going to make you a brother or something.” Twilight's mind reeled at the implication of the pony's name, at first dismissing this as a mere coincidence. “I don't find that funny at all,” Sombra replied with a snarl, “With ice cold tea raining from the sky, and my armor turning to jello, I think there are greater concerns than that to worry about. I am supposed to be wed today!” “I take it you didn't take too kindly to it?” Discord suggested, looking genuinely disappointed, “I thought about changing it up to something a little less cliché, like cats and dogs into cows and bulls. I figured tea was a better way to go.” “We don't even like tea,” one of the guards behind Sombra pointed out, “That stuff is Tartarus on its way out.” “That's because you aren't used to it,” Discord pointed out, “Once you get used to it, your bowels tend to move much less.” “Enough of the games Discord!” Sombra demanded, his voice cracking almost comically, “Where are they?” “Why don't you ask the ceiling?” Discord said, gesturing towards the rubble. All eyes were now on the rubble; Luna realize that she had not chosen the best spot to hide, as now her hiding spot had become the center of attention. After all, the earlier conflict might have very well been the royals; and she may have inadvertently dropped the floor on top of them! Dismissing this shortly after it coming to mind, Luna figured that now was as good a time as any to make her appearance. Darting from the rubble, she spread her wings and pointed a hoof in the direction of Discord. “This is all his fault!” “What are you doing out here?” Discord inquired, seemingly quite shocked, “I could have sworn I locked the door when I left through it.” “You actually used the door?” Luna asked, to which both temporarily thought about it for a moment. Discord then shrugged, and then pointed a claw back at her, “Well, nevermind that now, I am King now, and anyone who says otherwise will face the wrath of my cotton candy maker!” Luna looked towards Sombra and the guards to gauge their reactions; the guards seemed startled, surprised even, but Sombra looked star struck and just a few moments away from passing out. His pupils had widened, his mouth hung open, and his wings twitched unpredictably. “Who is this?” Sombra inquired, taking a step forward. "Is this a real mare, or a fantasy of yours?" Discord seemed to rack his brain for a moment in pure thought, before a lightbulb appeared over his head as an inspirational cue to an idea. “Why, yes, yes she is real,” Discord said as he quickly slithered over to Sombra's side, “Sombra, meet the princess of the evening, Luna! Luna, meet Prince Sombra, the last ascended alicorn you will likely ever see.” Luna now felt a boiling anger at the notion that Discord was trying to draw attention away from the problem at hand by once again playing around. For Twilight, this at least explained why the Crystal Ponies had an alicorn among them, even if it was still unclear as to how and when it occurred. However, Sombra seemed entranced, almost hypnotized, as he broke into a wide grin, “Luna... It has a nice ring to it. Nice to meet you, princess.” “The honor is all hers!” Discord chanted, taking on the dress of a salesman, “For the price of your kingdom and forgiveness for the unfortunate accident of your parents, this princess can be all yours!” Sombra shook his head, as if trying to snap out of a dream. His eyes seemed to take on an innumerable set of circles extending out from his pupils, giving a hypnotic stare of sorts. “I don't know... I think I was already kind of royally promised to someone else...” Sombra hesitantly stated. The guards merely stood there with shocked expressions, each wanting to divulge their discomfort with Sombra considering this proposal. Luna beat them to the buck. "Wait, I am not some prize!” she spat, once again pointing an accusing hoof at Discord, “He is trying to trick you!” “If you accept, I will even give you back your horn!” Discord offered to Luna while stroking Sombra's mane, “It is a win-win situation for everyone!” “Not really,” Luna protested, “Not since you might take it away again!” “My parents are not okay are they,” Sombra said, seemingly breaking from his trance, “I need to... attend to them...” “They would have wanted you to live happily with your bride to be!” Discord argued, spreading his arms out wide over Sombra's head, “Marriage, children, successors after I undoubtedly get found out... err, pass the crown on! Plus, she is quite the catch isn't she?” “Sombra, you are stronger than this!” one of the guards finally spoke, the gruff voice attempting to snap sense back into Sombra. “Your parents already had you betroth. That is why you were ascended in the first place!” Another question answered, another one created. Who was the bride that required Sombra to be ascended to the most prestigious position of all pony kind? “They never told you to whom,” Discord grappled, quickly trying to get back on his track, “And besides, this one is right around your age group. Not to mention her stunning curves.” “That is sick and twisted,” one of the guards hollered, brandishing a sword with one of their hooves, “ She looks hardly old enough for that kind of thing!” The sword seemed out of place, as it possessed guard-like protrusions on both ends, the point right before the blade and the bottom of the hilt; they were overly large, just large enough to reduce sliding in the hooves. A design that wouldn't catch on elsewhere for centuries. This guard was on twos, getting ready to take a swing towards Discord. As he did so, Discord quickly flashed away; in a poof of sweet smelling smoke, he appeared on the other side of the room with Sombra in tow. He literally pushed the stallion on top of Luna, startling both as they tumbled to the floor in a heap. “This is a very limited time offer that is soon to expire,” Discord bargained very quickly, as the other guards readied their own swords and started to advance on him, “Just feel her soft mane, her firm body, and let's not forget her smell.” Although initially insulted at the notion that she smelled, Luna shoved the slightly larger stallion from her with what little dignity she had remaining. “When my parents find you Discord...” “I'll take it!” Sombra shouted in triumph, hazily, and in complete interruption of Luna's threat, “My Empire for a mare!” Discord smiled, and with a snap of his fingers, Luna was dressed in an overly poofy midnight blue gown and her horn restored to her head. Sombra was now dressed in a false tuxedo T-shirt, a wide grin on his swirling circle eyes. “Yes!” Discord shouted in triumphant, hardly paying attention as the guards descended on him. “Hail King Discord,” Sombra said as he rushed up to Luna, “As for you and I, I have the perfect place for us to get ice-cream.” Luna back-hooved Sombra in the face; while it did not send him sprawling to the ground, it did seem to snap him from his trance. Luna regretted not trying that earlier as Sombra's eyes returned to normal. “What the crystal...?” he asked as he rubbed his head, “What hit me?” The guards suddenly went flying through the air, an overly large party cannon being the apparent cause. Discord wielded a string tied to its back, jokingly pointing out, “You just traded your Empire for a pony I wasn't in the position to give.” Discord snickered, and then dressed himself in kingly regalia, a long and flowing purple toga accompanied by an over-sized crown on his head. A golden scepter with Solaria's head on it appeared in his lion paw, with a scroll gripped tightly in his eagle talon. “I hereby decree that the reign of Discord shall begin! Prince Sombra, you may kiss your bride to be,” Discord chortled in a mock regal voice, “Oh Luna, your timing could not have been any better had I done it myself!” Luna frowned, Sombra put on a scowl, and the guards lay scattered in the room with bits of chocolate fudge on them. Twilight could no longer keep herself from bursting with questions, as the dream came to an abrupt end at this part. Twilight sat up and looked around the throne room; it was still nighttime, the still shining moon granted that knowledge, and she felt oddly stiff. When she looked at where they all had went down for the night, the reason became somewhat obvious. Shaking her head groggily, Twilight asked, “What was that?” “History,” Luna plaintively stated with an arched brow, “Was any of that new to you?” “Other than you being kidnapped by Discord and what looked to be Sombra being an alicorn, only a little,” Twilight replied as she looked towards Luna, “What was that all about?” Luna shrugged. “Celestia knows more about how that happened than me, but long story short, the Ponī Republic allowed for Sombra's ascension upon birth as an agreement between the Crystal Empire and the Republic. And the only reason Discord got me was because I was much weaker and less experienced than I am now.” “I get that, but the Sombra being an alicorn?” Twilight reiterated, “There is literally nothing that even suggests that he could have been an alicorn. Why is this suddenly showing up?” Luna sighed, and then put the underside of her hoof out towards Twilight. “Well, the Crystal Empire and the Ponī Republic were strong enough to be rivals; it was simply easier to pacify the Crystal Empire and allow Ponī to conquer the rest. A lack of mention of male alicorns has surprisingly made many stallions think that stallions either cannot be alicorns, or that we do not have the power to ascend stallions to that status.” Twilight seemed to be only more confused now than she was before, and took to her hooves as she walked towards a circular groove in the floor. In an unlikely turn of events, she began pacing the very floor that Luna had previously been pacing prior to her arrival, in the same direction as well. “I just always figured that there were never any real male candidates for alicornship; I figured my brother might have had a shot since he is married to Cadence and all,” Twilight muttered to herself, “But did the experience with Sombra make them wary of it or something?” “Only relatively recently has Celestia even bothered to ascend any ponies to alicornship,” Luna explained, stepping away from the thrones to try to stop Twilight's pacing, “Descending alicorns is not a pleasant experience for anyone.” “Wait, what?” Twilight said, stopping in her tracks, “You can be stripped of alicorn status?” “If it was granted to you, then yes,” Luna answered, “That is a point for another time though. Anymore questions before we continue?” Twilight seemed to be thinking for a second, before asking, “Well, can you ascend stallions to alicornship?” “Ask Celestia,” Luna deterred with a wave of her hoof, “Now, I will fetch some cushions to make our slumber a little more restful.” As Luna strode off, Twilight couldn't help but think about the information she had just been presented with. It was rather unheard of for ponies to just become alicorns in any fashion other than ascension, not to mention that the origin of Luna and Celestia was almost mythical in nature as far as general knowledge went. Had they had regular parents who just happened to be alicorns, or indeed was this their way of explaining their own existence in a trumped up version of history? Either way, the idea that Sombra was an alicorn made a little more sense, if Twilight was willing to believe that male alicorns were scant because of Sombra's evil. But how could an alicorn be reasonably depicted as a unicorn? Sombra must have been descended to just a regular unicorn; maybe out of spite he took over the Crystal Empire and sought to regain his old power. Twilight was shaken from her thoughts by the sound of clopping, and Luna placing pillows beneath her sister and Cadence. As humorous as it was to try to see her move the alicorns without disturbing them, it seemed like an unnecessary gesture; they didn't even twitch in response. As Luna laid two cushions down at their former spots, she commanded, “Now then, let's get back to dreaming. I still have yet to piece together the solution to the dreaming mystery.” Twilight did not protest, and quickly joined Luna, eager to have some of her questions actually answered. Once the duo returned to the dream world, they soon found themselves at what looked to be a funeral, Discord style. A large precession of crystal ponies were lined up at the city's center, somberly paying their respects to the previous monarchs. The rain had been changed to chocolate milk instead of iced tea, the clouds were thread and stringy like bread dough, and the ground was mushy like soaked wheat bread.. None seemed more depressed about this than Sombra; the crystal ponies shot eye daggers whenever they passed by him, and some even snarled. He paid them no mind, but Luna did. It had only been a day since Discord's rise to the throne, and despite ample resistance, there was only so much one could do against slippery floors and sticky rain. Not to mention Discord made it very difficult for anyone to land a blow on him; one minute he was a draconequus, and the next, he would be a giant spinning star with sharp edges and a metallic feel. Luna felt some sympathy for their plight, but reasoned that if Discord kept up what he was doing, then he was going to attract the attention of merchants from home, who would undoubtedly report it to her parents. And they would come and set him straight; it was clear that Discord did not want a direct confrontation with them. As the last of the train of ponies, Luna stepped up the crystal caskets, closed and sealed in a symbolic gesture. They didn't have the bodies, or so she was told, so even if she did want to take a peek in, she would likely find an empty casket. Twilight could hardly believe this to be the truth. Here was Sombra, crying like a foal at the death of his parents instead of trying to find a way to avenge them. Even Luna seemed incredulous that this was happening. It was so obvious to her that Discord had done something to them, and merely bluffed that they were under the rubble; the guards had dug out the mess themselves, and found no corpses. She had been there helping, despite herself, as she was eager to know that she did not want to be the cause of all of this. Nevertheless, one of the guards had muttered something about a crystal heart, and how it was the monarch's way of defending the city during times of stress. Why hadn't they used it? These were many questions that Luna felt only Sombra could answer, though first she needed to get his attention. “Sombra,” Luna quietly stated, not wanting to startle the grieving stallion, “Sombra, are you there?” He sniffed, his downcast look making his curved horn reflect his sorrow in a darkened tint. Impatiently, Luna barked, “Sombra!” This snapped his attention, his eyes going from the ground to Luna, tears still streaming. However, they very soon turned from red to lime green, and then back to red again as he glared at her. “What do you want,” he spat, the malice in his voice quickly getting his anger across. “I want you to tell me more about the Crystal Heart,” Luna firmly stated, “I have heard that it had the power to repel enemies. Discord certainly counts.” “The heart was hidden away by my parents,” Sombra curtly replied, still trying to stare a hole through Luna's forehead, “Why do you care?” “Because I am stuck here,” Luna snapped, flaring her wings and lowering her posture agressively, “I already tried teleporting, but it will not work.” “That has nothing to do with Discord,” Sombra growled, turning away from Luna, “You are probably just incapable of doing anything but look pretty in your current state.” Luna's eyes twitched as she contemplated removing Sombra from her list of irritants. Her temper manifested itself as cyan magic around her horn; she had a serious consideration of doing it until her anger seemed to be snuffed from her like a suppressed flame, and her magic seemed to dissipate back to wherever it came from. Frustrated, Luna instead stomped her front hooves, demanding, “Something is purposely making it hard for me to do magic. If you know something about it...” “Tch, save your breath princess,” Sombra hissed as he started to walk away, “You just need some good food, water, and rest and you will be right as rain. Magic takes energy you know.” Luna's stomach rumbled, as if on cue, and she instantly cringed at the sensation. It was not a new sensation since being here, but she had thought that she had suppressed it. Considering recent events, she had taken only meager bites of any food offered to her; there was no telling if Discord had tainted them in some way, and sleep evaded her busy mind. Still, she had only been here a single day. Even regular ponies did not starve in a single day; then again, inexperienced magic users tended to be less efficient with their energy use. Or maybe temporarily losing her horn had something to do with it. Either way, there was no warping out of here. Seeing Sombra walk off, Luna sighed in concession. She was not going to make any progress by being abrasive; if anything, her sister should have proven that point. Even as a newborn foal, when Luna had cried for literally everything and her parents left Celestia in charge of her, Celestia refused to cater to her every foalish want under those circumstances. The only way she got what she wanted was through being adorable and amiable; a smile here, a giggle there, and even Celestia was enthusiastic to change her bedding and sort her growing mane, and take the blame for whatever mess Luna managed to create. As much as it pained her, she was going to have to try to appeal to Sombra's better nature. “Wait, Sombra,” Luna cried out as she trotted after him, “I'm sorry!” Sombra stopped and turned around, his ears swiveling towards her as he looked towards her. He sniffed, then asked, “What are you sorry for?” “Well, Discord took advantage of you in part because of me,” Luna sheepishly said, lowering her ears and frowning ever so slightly, “It is only fair that I apologize.” “It's... It's nothing,” Sombra replied as he wiped his face of his tear streaks, “You were just in the wrong place at the right time I guess.” An awkward silence followed, Luna still trying to look as remorseful as possible, even bringing a few tears to her eyes for good effect. Sombra ate it up like an apple pie, and eventually, though he looked away as if judging whether it was a good idea, suggested, “Let's grab some lunch. We can talk more then.” Bingo. Luna had to hide her excitement as she slowly raised her ears, as if the proposition were only slowly taking hold. “I'm half starved,” Luna joked, “I may eat you out of castle and home.” “I doubt that,” Sombra replied, his ears drooping yet again, “We do have two fewer royals to feast with.” Luna internally cringed at bringing that back up, but quickly brought on a small smile of her own in an attempt to cheer Sombra up. “Well, let's eat enough for them and us, hm?” She only hoped that the Queen had a large appetite, as she gingerly followed the still reluctant Sombra back to the castle entrance. The square where the funeral had been held had cleared out by this point, but Luna could still feel that many sets of eyes were watching her every move. "The Price of Harmony"Cadence was in the middle of a slight adjustment dilemma. It had seemed like just moments ago that she had been whisked from the conscious world. And now, here she was, in the dark, feeling rather warm and comforted. Which was odd, all things considered. Playing the role of Celestia very well, she had seen that the princess had been fighting off dragons, ponies, and all manners of creatures within the capital city of Ponī. It was a glistening city of sorts, with sparkling water and rainbows flowing from the lowest storm drain to the highest cloud tower. The individual buildings were a somewhat distasteful marble coloration, but their many shapes and sizes made up for their lack of different colors. Signs, instead of having words on them, largely consisted of pictures instead; griffins, dragons, ponies, cattle, and almost every beast that could come to mind seemed to be roaming the city in some capacity. But that was all on a regular day. On the day that Celestia had chosen to begin the flashback, blood flowed just as much as water did. Seeing this all from Celestia's viewpoint, it was mostly an aerial view of a city in turmoil. For some reason, many of the creatures wanted her dead; however, that was not exactly news, since Celestia's mother had warned her of that. There were even some other alicorns in the city, much to Cadence's surprise; even more startling was the fact that Celestia's mother was outright targeting them with her attacks. The panic only intensified as platoons instantly lost their commanding officer; those who had sided with her after betraying their alicorn officer were disposed of after their enemies dealt with. Any creature who begged for mercy had their wings (if they had any) stripped in front of their legions, their horns (if they possessed them) smashed to dust, and/or their bodies thrown to the ground to be trampled by a stampede of panicking civilians. Ruthless seemed to underline Solaria's current demeanor, though cunning seemed to fit well as well. For some reason, the other alicorns were having trouble even matching her power; the few who did match her had Celestia to contend with as well. Whatever Solaria had done, it meant that she was more effective than the others, with lethal consequences. And she seemed to be enjoying her work. Did Celestia really come out of that mare? The appearance and her reference to Celestia as her daughter seemed to make that answer, but did Luna as well? She figured the answer was yes to that too, but couldn't help but reason that, deep down, Nightmare Moon might have had a little influence from the top crazy in the family. “Do not think about my mother like that,” Celestia very gently warned Cadence via telepathy, her voice coming in as a sort of inner thought. “Are you sure it isn't you thinking about her like that?” Cadence cautiously challenged, “I mean, I am playing you right now, and I'm engaged in your emotions and thoughts.” “Maybe, but I'm just warning you not to get that thought into your head permanently,” Celestia stated with a subtle threat attached, “Privileges are not rights, if this goes to show you anything.” Needless to say, the battle was over once the last three alicorns in sight watched as their new subjects willingly kissed the floor their hooves hovered above. Cadence could tell that there was a level of guilt radiating from Celestia's parents; but it was soon replaced with a booming, energetic voice as Solaria announced, “Beginning, the new reign of the pony! Poni from here on out shall be an Empire! Long live the Emperor Nightshade and Empress Solaria!” “Long live the Imperials!” the residents below chanted afterwards, clearly fearful of refusing. Nightshade and Solaria, how uncreatively named, Cadence thought to herself. For some reason, this announcement was making Celestia recall the short tale of their family history. Apparently, Nightshade and Solaria had met in the middle of a sparring match back in their schooling days; they could best all of their classmates, but could never best each other. Racing in the clouds, digging through the mines, magical jousts, the two just could not overcome the other no matter the competition. They frequently wrestled, as usually there was a clear cut winner in at least that physical show of power and dominance. All the physical contact and equal footing eventually got them interested, and to the grimace of their shocked peers, they conceived Celestia at the end of one of their wrestling matches, right there in the ring. The gestation period seemed almost infinite, but then again, alicorns seemed to have longer spans of everything. The delivery itself had also been a chore; by the time Nightshade was satisfied with where Solaria would be giving birth, in the comforts of his old cottage, Solaria had nearly passed out from exhaustion just from all of the travelling. By the time Celestia was finally born, the alicorn was out cold; Discord once joked that the only reason Luna wasn't a repeat was because Solaria had been sternly adamant about Shade not taking her halfway across the country in an attempt to find 'the perfect spot'. The mare had learned her lesson the first time about letting Shade dictate anything when it came to matters of his daughters; Discord even pointed out that Shade was slightly disappointed that he did not get a son. He loved them all the same though, and probably intended on making a tomboy out of one of them. Speaking of Celestia's father, Cadence brought herself back to the current ordeal at hoof. Luna had been kidnapped by Discord, the new “Empire” had about as much legitimacy as a brand new country, and resistance groups were gearing up to restore the republic. To say the least, this was no time for one of the rulers to be distraught and emotionally broken over much of anything. Solaria grieved, but she mostly kept it from reaching the public eye; she confidently told Celestia that Discord had not fallen so low as to truly harm Luna, and that she was convinced that he was merely buying himself some time. Shade was much less convinced, and insisted that it was his fault that she had been captured. He should have kept a closer hoof to her at all times instead of pursuing their. Solaria tried to insist that there were more pertinent things to worry about at the time, but the stallion just would not let it go. Now with Celestia being held in the arms of Nightshade in this dark room and atop this soft cushion that served as a bed, Cadence had to admit that it was an oddly unfamiliar experience being in this position and not having the stallion erect on her backside. Shining just couldn't help himself, and she certainly did not mind most nights. Besides, this sleep together was for an entirely different reason; Celestia had been under Shade's watchful eye since the kidnapping, and had been a source of comfort for Shade. Not because she said much, but simply because her being safe meant that Shade had not entirely failed as a father to his two daughters. Shade was crying this particular night and he seemed quite tormented. He held Celestia closer in his arms as he constantly mumbled, “They will not take another from me... Never take another from me...” Luna being cord-napped had affected him in surprising ways, at least from Cadence's point of view. He was willing to strike down his own without a second thought alongside his crazed, errm, killer wife, take over a formerly functioning republic, turn it into a despot of sorts, and allow the slaughter of countless “monsters” in the name of Empire, but losing one of his two daughters brought him to tears? The more Cadence thought about it, however the more she at least understood this strange behavior, interpreting it the only reasonable way she could. Shade loved his daughters, his mate even, more than anything else; he wanted the best for them, even if it sometimes led to massacres and oppression. Many of his ambitions revolved around them; he wanted them to rule a world where they would not have to fear being eaten alive by an army. Of course, even in modern times where that ambition was a reality, there was always the danger of stepping into the wrong bog, but at least the creatures were relatively unorganized or sparse in number. The changelings were among the many exceptions; but you can't get them all can you? This love was spilling more blood than hatred; and Cadence couldn't help but feel that Celestia had purposely put her here in order to make a point. This was not the type of love that Cadence was familiar with. She was familiar with passion, family bonds, affection, even lust. But this, this was beyond her standard definition of love. She would call this madness with strong attachment, if this did not make any sense. “Sometimes love can be very troublesome,” Celesetia said in an ethereal sort of way, “It can bring together and unite harmoniously, but it can also lead to destruction and ruin.” “That is not the kind of love that we have in Equestria now though,” Cadence insisted, “Nothing that would cause anypony to do what your parents did.” “Are you so sure?” Celestia asked, Cadence just now imagining that the princess was raising a brow, “What do you think would happen if you truly lost Shining, or vice versa, to some tragic event?” “We would not go around massacring living things,” Cadence quickly asserted, “We love each other to death, but spilling blood unnecessarily is a little extreme for both of us.” “Yes well, you will not know until you have to go through that. Now, this next part is important for the next upcoming scene, so pay some attention.” “After that thirteenth night, Nightshade didn't repeat his actions, and pulled himself together enough to act ; he kept on conquering, replacing his sorrow for passion and vengeance,” the dream-like world seemed to fade to white. “He would get his little Luna back, no matter the cost. He would search every corner of the world, under every rock, tree, and gemstone until he found her, conquering nations as he did so. Solaria felt similarly, though while her mate laid waste to any opposition to his search, she instead tried to do damage control to his senseless violence, a bit of a reversal of roles from the coup day. Celestia laughed at that last comment, though Cadence did not find much funny about all of this. I learned almost everything I know about dealing with creatures from my mother at around this time, as I was obligated to stay by her side at nearly all times. "Not surprisingly, while Nightshade focused on retrieving the daughter after his own image, Solaria affectionately tended to my needs. But I had wanted my father's attention as well; I wanted him to teach how to single-hoovedly take down an Ursa Major, for example. He refused outright most of the time, and other times merely blew me off. This caused some resentment, as this great attention for Luna was nearly suffocating. Solaria tried her best, but ultimately, she eventually started blaming Shade for making things significantly worse, hunting for a ghost in a swampy bog instead of spending time with me. So, I had to learn things that I wanted to know from other sources. I was taught some basic pointers on how to fight conventionally from some members of the Guard, who began to wear armor very similar to that which we have today. It helped deal with the internal family issues, but even I reached my breaking point when Luna finally found her way home, and the reception that she got." At this, Celestia made a very audible sigh, akin to one preparing to make a confession of sorts. Her voice also shifted, as if disgruntled at having to recall the next section. "Shade, in tears, embraced her the best he could, donned her in some ceremonial armor, and immediately set out to teach her how to defend herself and her subjects. To say the least, it was a metaphorical slap to my face considering he did not give me the time of day before then." "One other thing that Luna had interfered with was, upon her return, any chance of me having an early marriage. I had just finished a rather boring day of class, since most of my classmates were either off to conquest or working on producing things for the conflicts abroad when in came Luna, showered with glory and cheers, trotting next to a beaming Father, him still wearing full battle armor, bits of gore still vaguely visible. An entourage of soldiers flanked them on all sides, many of them just as happy for everything to be over as the assembled crowd. Some of my marching classmates waved or winked in acknowledgment, but most of the gathering completely ignored me. That did not bother me much, as I was just as happy to see Luna and Shade as the next, and it would be later reflection that would ingrain this as a more negative memory than a positive one. After all, Luna's return meant that the long military campaigns were over, and that my family and many others could be re-united at long last. Best of all, that meant that I could finally go to the Crystal Empire and meet the pony who was supposed to be my significant other for the rest of his life." As Celestia concluded this long exposition, the scene began to shift towards later in the evening; the roar had died down by this point, it seemed, and while many reunions were taking place, few would be anything close to the royals'. All four alicorns gathered for a feast of epic proportions, though it was only to be the four of them, eating dinner once again after years of separation and strife. At dinner, in the large dining hall, a square table sat the four alicorn royals. The table was heavy-laden with food, piled high with the best that the chefs could scrounge up. Solaria and Nightshade sat at one end, Celestia and Luna the other. Fire torches lit the room, and there were no guards or slaves present, at Nightshade's request. Halfway through the meal, the question that would doom the night was asked by the only stallion in the chamber of mares. “So Luna, meet any interesting ponies while in the Empire?” Nigthshade inquired before finishing off his salad, “ By the sounds of it, you were not held prisoner very long after you arrived.” “Oh yes, I did,” Luna cheerfully stated, using her magic to mix her own hay-filled salad into a bowl of sausages, much to Celestia's disgust, “Prince Sombra was supposed to be wed the day I arrived, and although Discord took advantage of everything that went on, the two of us really enjoyed lunch.” Solaria suddenly convulsed, coughing and beating at her chest with her hooves in an attempt to dislodge some object. After a brief moment of worry, Celestia quickly ducked as a bone went flying haphazardly across the table, smashing a stone statue on the far wall with projectile-like precision. While Solaria gasped for air, Celestia inquired, “Oh, and what was so great about it?” She apparently had felt that it was a mere coincidence, since after all, there were plenty of stallions who were both princes and about to get married on that day right? This misconception Luna was more than happy to correct. “At first he was really depressed about the death of his parents, but then, he started going on about magic, games, and mother-forbid colt politics. Not only was he one of the only unicorns in the entire Crystal Empire, but he is also the only alicorn. Can you believe it?” “Errr, well, that is a little more common around here than it used to be,” Nightshade uneasily stated with a raised brow towards his wife, “Although if you made some friendly relations, then I guess he won't be much of a problem...” Celestia finally realized why Solaria reacted so adversely to the news, as her own eyes widened. Her mouth fell open as her apparent fiance had been dining with her sister, and the two apparently had talked like old friends. Her sister knew more about her fiance than she did, and was probably unaware that she had talking in who was going to be her brother-in-law. “Are you sure that was his name?” Solaria gasped, “Are you sure he was a real alicorn?” “Well, of course! He and father could have been related had it not been for the strange horn, color scheme, and taste in mares.” Oblivious to the body langauge of an incredulous Solaria, Nightshade pressed on with his questioning, “He sounds rather important if he made an impression on you dear, enough to think of me also. How old is he?” “No clue,” Luna admitted as she finally made her food concotion settle into the bowl, “But Discord claimed he was around my age, and while he is a dirty liar at times, I think his estimates could not have been too far off.” Solaria, having finally regained her composure, looked gravely towards Luna, only a single line of questioning on her tongue. “He did not take you to his chambers did he?” she asked, her voice dripping with concern, “Or look at you in strange ways?” Luna, clearly oblivious of her mother's anxiety, gleefully continued, “Well, he did show me the Crystal Heart, and even told me how it works. It is entirely fueled by certain emotions.” Solaria shot a glance at Celestia. Without a word, she expressed an entire dialogue that told her that they needed to have a talk after dinner. “Celestia dear, you have been rather quiet,” Nightshade stated, by now having picked up on some levels of unrest at the table, “And it is not because you are eating. That fly near your tongue could have bit you if you didn't have such a shocked expression.” Clamping her still open mouth shut for a moment, quickly in case the fly truly buzzed so near, Celestia replied, “I am just surprised that Luna is eating so much meat. I know it's a status thing, but I am not sure her stomach can handle it...” “Nonsense, she will be fine,” Nightshade assured her with a dissmissive wave of the hoof, “Now then, on to the real reason you seem so uninterested in your flower garden all of a sudden.” Indeed, Celestia had been dining on flowers of various colors and shapes until her mother nearly choked on a bone. Why was there even a bone in her mouth in the first place Celestia dared not ask, as she sensed that she might be the only one at the table without a single meat item. Up until that incident, she had been paying little attention to what everyone else was eating, and it was starting to show in her self-analysis of the dinner. Last time she had checked, ponies were not supposed to consume large quantities of meat; Nightshade merely had a few loaves of bread and a few whole chickens scattered in front of him. Solaria and Luna held more reasonable amounts of meat, but Celestia could only guess that it was a cultural thing that she would never fully understand. “I am surprised, but happy that Luna found herself a stallion friend,” Celestia said, “Maybe now he can keep an eye on her and the two of us can...” “The Crystal Empire is still under Discord's control,” Nightshade sternly pointed out, cutting Celestia off “Until I rectify that situation for good, Luna will not be seeing this Sombra fellow.” As Luna began to dig into her odd food mixture, Celestia gagged, and not just because Luna was eating sausage, hay, and lettuce in the same bite. Solaria blinked, her ears sharply turning towards Luna as she asked, “What more do you know about the Crystal Heart?” Luna, upon swallowing her bite, answered, “ Only that strong emotions have the power to make it act, either in defense of the state or in itself. In other words, polarized magic.” “And where did you learn about polarized magic?” Solaria pressed, leaning in ever so slightly, “ Did you happen to practice any while you were there?” “I learned that very negative emotions like hate and terror can fuel certain types of magic just like love and hope,” Luna explained, eyeing her food, “I didn't get to practice any.” As Luna dug into her food, Nightshade cast a glance over to Solaria, who seemed to be lost in thought. “Something wrong Sola?” he asked, lowering his earlier raised brow at last, giving him a more stern look, “You seem tense.” “We will talk about it later.” Solaria completely boarding up this issue seemed not to fly past Luna as strange. Then again, she was so busy trying to eat, they could have probably been plotting her unbirthing and she would not have paid them any mind. Celestia sighed, rising from her place. “May I be excused, I think I am done here." Her parents seemed somewhat surprised at this, and even Luna looked up from her meal as Celestia practically dismissed herself. "Is there something that we can talk about?" Shade inquired with a concerned look, "I know that we haven't really talked all that much lately..." "Go ahead Celestia," Solaria interrupted, "If you get hungry, what is left of your dinner will be in the storehouse." Shad seemed surprised, but did not challenge the permission. Celestia walked off, leaving the entire dinner behind. The scene rapidly changed yet again, presumably a time shift of sorts. Considering what Celestia had earlier told her, Cadence could reason that the next thing to be shown would be a climax of Celestia's conflict with her sister. When the scene came back into focus, Cadence immediately assumed that she had hit the nail on the head. It was a fine afternoon for a confrontation; sun was streaming through the West side, open air windows, casting an orange glow over everything in sight. Even the floors had a strong tint of orange to them. This used to be the meeting room for the Animate; now, however, It truly was a proper throne room, and two thrones sat next to each other, bearing the cutie marks of the currently reigning monarchs. Celestia had vacated the room, with only a single guard in attendance. Sinisterly, Celestia began walking to the other side of the room. One of the guards, now in shining metal and red armor that had become the standard, instantly saluted her. “Can you be a dear and tell my sister to meet me here in five minutes?” Celestia made sure to smile as she spoke, as to ward off any suspicion of future foul play. In her mind swirled thoughts that would have made the guard more than a little edgy; even Celestia seemed slightly uneasy about it. The unsuspecting guard nodded in ignorant compliance, and then strode off to do her bidding. Anger, fury, and pure ecstasy began to flow through her veins as Celestia hopped atop one of the thrones. She grinned, a strange, dark energy filling her being as she thought over what she was going to do to Luna when she arrived. Send her to the moon? She had never tried it before, but maybe if she threw her just hard enough she might at least make it to the troposphere. Better yet, bury her alive beneath the castle; no one would hear her screams, and she would suggest that Discord had returned and finally killed her. Or, best one yet, she would just outright destroy her right here and there, and show her father who the superior daughter was while dancing in the ashes. At worst Father would punish her with a severe scolding, but no doubt he would not have the heart to take things much further than that. On the other hoof, Mother would. Celestia shivered, reasoning that if her mother decided to avenge Luna and end the alicorn race, then she would go out fighting, if she went out at all. Celestia blinked as these strange thoughts filled her head. What was wrong with her? That was her little sister for goodness sake! Her own flesh and blood, who would never wish such harm on her, even for the most barbed of comments or borderline incestuous actions. All of that was incredibly harsh, since all Luna had done was come back from the dead and make it even harder for her to spend time with her father. Yeah, what was she, jealous or something? She had nothing to fear from Luna. She was just the foal of the family was all; Shade would get over her once she started losing her cuteness factor, and start growing more mature in form. Then he would put the hoof down to keep her from mucking up her integrity. But, then again, she had also made an impression on Sombra, who was now nothing short of unmarriable as far as Mother was concerned. Though she seemed determined to fix what Discord had messed up, she had pointed out that Celestia should not get her hopes up on a significant other. Trying to focus on other things, Celestia thought about some of the newly returned classmates. All of them inquired, in pure jest, as to what would happen if Celestia were to go missing, and whether Shade would go to war with the world just to find her. Just imagine, all that fuss being on her instead. Celestia looked towards the windows, smiling, finding a sort of peace in the thought, no matter how unsavory getting kidnapped by a draconequus had to be. That temporary peace was abruptly interrupted with the loud clopping of hooves. Turning her head, Celestia watched Luna regally enter the room, dismissing the guard who summoned her, as if that were her guard to dismiss! The earlier emotions bubbled back towards the surface as Celestia eyed the heavily armored princess. The metal guard armor nearly completely covered her; without a care in the world, she slowly shed the armor that was custom fitted for her. The only thing left on her was a small breastplate with her cutie mark on it. For some reason, the way she discarded the armor, like it was just regular armor and not a gift from the Emperor, garnered a low growl from Celestia. It reminded her of her grievances against Luna in a heartbeat. Luna unwittingly caused more agitation by sitting in the throne next to Celestia, the Emperor's, and reclined in the high back chair. "I am sure you heard about the Empire?" she said with a wide grin. "Which one?" Celestia replied, playing along while seething beneath the surface, "You will need to be more specific sister." "The Crystal Empire obviously. I hear that Discord was finally dethroned." "Is that so? Heading over to visit Sombra?" "Well, no..." Luna cast her eyes downward, her entire expression dropping, " The Empire is gone." Celestia whipped her head in shock. "This is the first time that I have heard of this." "Yeah well, I heard it straight from Father. It is on a need-to-know basis." Celestia took offense to this. Luna was among that category? "And you are among that select group of creatures?" "Well, Father brought it up during our training session," Luna rolled her eyes as her smile widened, "Mother did not bother telling me about it, I am surprised she did not tell you." Celestia relaxed in the throne, apparently taking some solace at Luna's revelation. No, Solaria would not have divulged that at all, that just was not her style. However, the silence that followed between the two seemed to thicken the very air, dropping the temperature by at least a few degrees. “Why did you call me here?” Luna asked icily, staring at Celestia with suspicion. Oh right, the whole reason she brought Luna here. Celestia made a mistake in retracing her thoughts. Sitting up from the throne, Celestia responded, "Oh, just to let out some frustration, is all." Jumping from the throne, Celestia flicked her ears backward as she whirled around, horn alight with yellow magic. Sensing danger, Luna instinctively hopped from the throne and started to back away towards the double doors. She brought the elephant in the room to the forefront very quickly. “This is about all of the time I spent with Father, is it not?" “No,” Celestia lied, inching ever closer to Luna,, “We have not seen much of each other since that first dinner when you came back, and I figured it would be a good idea to spend some quality time together...” “You have a lot of tension within you,” Luna stated matter of factly, tactically retreating towards the still open doors, “You have no intentions of talking anymore do you?” The gig was up. There was no point in trying to hide her intentions anymore, no, not that now all of her emotions were returning to the forefront.“Tch, leave it to Father's little filly to make this no fun at all,” Celestia spat, using her magic to shut the door It became bolted in the same manner it was closed, and immediately Cadence could feel that rush as Celestia geared up physically for a brief scuffle. Since both alicorns were alive in the present, Cadence allowed herself to get quite excited to see this. This was it. Celestia had Luna exactly where she wanted her. Now all she needed was that final drive, that one statement that would allow her to actually follow through with this dark wrong. “I think it would be best if we scheduled an intervention with Mother and Father,” Luna stated, sweat beginning to make itself apparent around her face, “They have not been treating us all that well at least in part...” Suddenly, Cadence realized that Luna was hardly trying to fight back, despite the obvious fact that she could ifs he really wanted to. However, Celestia had been blinded so much by her emotions that, in this moment of weakness, she failed to see the obvious secret weapon that Luna possessed. “Silence!” Celestia roared, the very thought of Luna trying to equate their suffering enraging her even more, “This is the day where the favoritism ends!” “I agree,” Luna said, her eyes glowing white in preparation for battle. This sudden shift in countenance seemed to be a jump for self-defense, as Luna realized that there was no other way. Cadence could tell that that was not the whole story. The two sisters fired bolts of magic at each other. Since they were not far apart from each other, it should be little surprise that their horns ended up striking against each other as the two attempted to force the other from their stance. Luna seemed more refined, with better technique, despite her younger age; but she was out-powered by Celestia, who had far greater reserves of magic within, coupled with raw emotion, allowing her to exert her force longer. Likely realizing that her advantage would not be for a long drawn out push of war, Luna instantly leapt from her place; one of her wings became encased in the resulting blast, the concussive waves sending both to either side of the throne room. Hitting her head on something hard, Celestia could not understand one thing; why was Luna so relatively prepared? Had she been waiting for this moment as well? She would not get her answer as a soft wail drifted to her ears. Once Celestia rose, she noted Luna with some tears in her eyes. Confused, as the mare was switching stances far too quickly, Celestia taunted, “What is the matter, did little Luna get her wings clipped by our rays? Don't worry, I'll put you out of your misery soon enough!” Really, Celestia even was acting quite out of character here, and Cadence now really wanted to know if she had been so easily stirred in the past. After all, as a ruler of the Crystal Empire, it would not hurt to know just how often Celestia's temper set things off, in case history bubbled up more tangibly in the future. Cadence was shaken from them by the sound of wingbeats and hooves, a sign that the commotion had been heard and was being responded to. Luna began softly crying, lifting one of her scorched wings pathetically, smoke still coming from it. Clearly she had been injured. Rather than striking again, fear suddenly gripped Celestia's heart, and Cadence could feel it very strongly. As Cadence had figured, Luna had not been trying to defeat Celestia in this brief duel. Celestia must have recognized the pattern as she froze in place. Within moments, Nightshade was over his injured daughter, attempting to soothe her while Solaria fluttered behind Celestia with a demanding look on her face. “What happened here?” “Celestia attacked me!” Luna wailed, more tears streaming down her face, burying her face into her father's coat, like any real foal would their parents. Celestia could not believe what she was seeing, and hearing. Was Luna seriously trying to make it look like she had started the fight? Well, she had by calling Luna in for the confrontation in the first place, but Luna had fought back. But here she was, acting like she was a complete victim. Cadence had figured that this would happen, but was surprised when Nightshade actually leered at Celestia with an angry look. For a moment, it seemed he had fallen for Luna's deception. Solaria quickly stepped between Celestia and Nightshade, perhaps intending on deterring any hasty actions. "Shade, we need to talk, our disagreements are clearly getting to Celestia and Luna." “A talk about why Celestia attacked her only sister with such force?” Nightshade responded, “Or how Luna decided to feign innocence in the matter?” Cadence would have cracked a smile at seeing Luna's rather simple plan backfired. She might would have gotten away with it if she did not spend so much time with Nightshade. Luna's sniffling brought attention back to her, though as she realized that the game was up, her tears magically began to dry and she removed herself from her father's body. Albeit, she did that slowly, and her ears were flattened against her head as she understood that the target of her deception had seen right through her. Celestia was taken aback at how cunning the plan was, and berated herself for allowing her emotions to get the better of her. She had nearly been played by a mare nearly half her age! Nightshade joked, “I suppose I taught her well. Remember the last time we fought each other for real?” Solaria smiled wide, apparently remembering it with picture clarity, “Yes actually. You faked knockout, and when I came over to gloat over you, you struck me with a hoof and proceeding to mount me. Very unchivalrious if you ask me.” “You do what you have to do,” he replied with false bravado, “Even if I had to trick you, I know the only turn on you ever had was brains over brawn.” And, as if their children were not even watching, the two nuzzled each other affectionately, and started a long, passionate kiss. Luna and Celestia looked towards each other indescribable expressions, getting across confusion and a level of disgust at seeing their parents kiss each other. "I am sorry, Luna," Celestia started sheepishly, "I should have tried to reason with you instead of trying to hurt you." "I am sorry too, 'Tia," Luna replied with a small smile, "It would have been much easier if we could have just switched roles for a few days. Instead, I almost tried to..." "It does not matter," Celestia rushes over to embrace her sister, "What matters is that we see the error in our ways." Yes, next time she sets out to destroy somepony, she would make sure to do it quicker, and with less dialogue. Wait, no, that was not the lesson at all here. The lesson, Celestia attempted to cement into her head, was that she shouldn't have allowed herself to be controlled by her emotions. As the two pairs made up, a very slow clap resounded through the throne room. Celestia and Luna tensed up, but Shade and Solaria seemed to be much calmer in response to the strange sound. “Now isn't that how family makes up? No death, no swords drawn, just a good ole' session of foreplay,” a familiar voice cackled, a mockingly slow clap becoming louder, “You have to admit, I was actually enjoying the distaste that Luna and Celestia were having for each other back there.” “You have grown some Discord,” Nightshade calmly stated, “Well, at least in body. Your mind seems as delusional as usual.” “Being the spirit of chaos and disharmony does not come without its set of cards,” Discord joked, as of yet still having not revealed his location, “By the way, did you know that this upcoming winter will literally freeze you lot to oblivion?” Immediately the two adult alicorns disengaged from each other, and turned to face the direction Discord's voice had been coming from. Luna genuinely retreated and whimpered behind Nightshade's left rear leg. It was not a pleasing sight, but even Celestia was slightly unnerved by the draconequus' bold declaration. “What do you mean by that?” Solaria inquired in a dull tone, “Riddles are more my thing.” “When the three races collide, the empire will divide,” Discord went on, now appearing before the group in the flesh, slowly descending from the ceiling like some sort of archangel, “Just listen outside to the howls!” Strangely enough, the four alicorns seriously took their eyes, and attention, away from Discord just long enough to hear the clop of hooves, the clashing of swords, and what sounded like howling wind. “Well that does not make any sense,” Nigthshade commented, “Things were just fine a few moments ago.” “Make sense, what fun is there in making sense?” Discord maliciously jeered, “Without disharmony, harmony cannot exist. A golden aged empire, in that same way, cannot exist without turmoil. But thanks to you two, the impossible happened, and you can only imagine the pains I had to go through after you sent the Crystal Empire off!” “That was for its safety and ours,” Solaria chimed, “And besides, we didn't want to risk you using the Crystal Heart...” “The power of that heart is a repellent to the most fearsome creatures of winter!” Discord chortled as he saw realization dawning on the Emperor and Empress, “And you fools just sent it through space and time to Solaria knows where!” The howling outside grew louder as the sounds of conflict grew louder, and Nightshade grit his teeth as he guessed, “I am guessing you whispered some inflammatory comments?” “Maaaaybe,” Discord playfully replied, as if the seriousness of the situation had just dissolved away, “I don't think earth ponies take too kindly to their race being considered a demotion by unicorn and pegasus standards. “Well it is the truth...” Luna piped, earning a reprimanding look from Nightshade. Seeing her cringe almost made the next bit worthwhile for Celestia. “I hope you enjoy your time in the soon-to-be frozen wonderland you currently call home. I know I did,” Discord sang, hardly hiding the malice that the words suggested. He vanished in a comical poof of smoke, leaving behind a few streamers and party favors. “How did Discord elicit enough hatred to send in an army of windigoes?” Nightshade inquired, turning towards Solaria, “I thought you were successful in the damage control department, not to mention I thought that they were still quite contained.” “Well excuse me, but you caused so much damage that controlling it sometimes caused an eradication of the problem,” Solaria shot back, “But I'm sure you didn't notice when the griffons left the land in droves? And how do you contain creatures that feed on emotions?” “Didn't care to be honest,” Nightshade admitted, “I had given them the option of assimilation or persecution. Most of them chose assimilation. Besides, the sea dragons were at it again at the time and their mass exodus didn't really spark much interest in contrast with the teeth of sea serpents. And the changelings can be restrained if you give them a large enough source of love, and then cage them up.” Cadence knew from history what happened next. The Ponī Empire would descend into chaos, and most of the ponies would be forced to go northwards, in the direction of the former Crystal Empire. Solaria and Nightshade stood alongside their guards to fight off the opportunistic creatures that would prey on the fleeing ponies. The windigoes, following the discontent of the ponies, followed them, and the premise for the Hearths Warming Eve tale was set. When the windigoes left, so did their harsh winter, and much of the land returned to a wild state that would have left it largely unrecognizable. But Discord controlled it nonetheless. As everything faded to black, Cadence contemplated on what she had seen. After all, she had seen a very different Celestia back there, several times in fact. “So how did you beome you?” she finally asked into blank space, “Becuase that back there was a different kind of you.” “Ponies change, Cadence. Even alicorns." Celestia could be heard sighing after this statement. At last she appeared in view before Cadence, the two back in the waking world for sure at this point. Celestia, without her regalia, almost seemed mortal, in a majestic and bare sort of way. The princess' throne room was almost like a clock or timetable of sorts, as bits of dawn-dusk lighting gave the glass windows an eerie sort of glow in the same colors as the many glass windows. Cadence's body hurt, as if she had smacked straight into some stone on her way down. Looking around, she saw the sun beginning to rise. Immediately, she looked towards Celestia, who was shaking off her own sleepiness. “Well, did you find anything strange?” Celestia groggily asked, slowly coming to her full sense. Celestia shook it off and went out of the room, presumably towards the balcony where she would raise the sun and lower the moon herself, leaving Cadence to herself for a few moments to watch the sleeping Luna and Twilight. If everyone was having dreams like this, living the lives of one of their long lost characters, maybe even completely unrelated, it was no wonder that it was a call for worry. This was ancient history being played out in dreams! But Luna had noted earlier that Discord had also been rather disturbed. Even if he was no longer an enemy, there was still a chance that Discord may be behind everything. The sunrise struck the East windows directly, sending the near blinding light throughout the room. This both dazzled and temporarily blinded Cadence, though within a few moments the bright light attained a more comfortable level of light. “We are going to need to talk to Discord,” Cadence stated, suddenly hearing a chuckle resound throughout the room. Celestia returned with a slight (very slight) smile on her face.“That doesn't make any sense, coming from you.” “Make sense, what fun is there in making sense?” Discord cackled, appearing from Celestia's mane like the wind that kept it in motion. The creature had bags over his eyes; apparently, sleep had not come easily for him either. “Have you been here all night?” Celestia inquired, though it was clear from her expression that she had already figured out the answer. “Of course!” Discord replied as he stretched comically, “ I just could not get past why there are no male alicorns in the newspaper. I figured, oh what the hay, I'll just come and pay you a visit. The guards wouldn't mind.” “Speaking of which,” Cadence chirped, “How did you get in here without us noticing?” “He stealth warped his head to the ceiling,” Celestia filled, “He then waited for us to drift off before revealing his entire self, likely catching snippets of our dreams from our murmurings.” “Perceptive as usual!” Discord chuckled, temporarily transforming the entire room into a game show room of sorts, a spotlight on Celestia, “You have won a newly informed in-law!” Cadence rolled her eyes at the display, but Celestia seemed oddly amused as the room returned to normal. “I am not going to miss serious Discord,” Celestia commented absent-mindedly, “Your pranks may get old, but it sure beats the alternative.” “Beats it with a stick!” Discord said, snapping into existence a Discord-looking pinata and a large wooden stick tied to Celestia's horn, “Just remember, candy is meant for consumption not for snorting.” Cadence could only watch in bemusement as Celestia played along, whacking the pinata in a semi-comical fashion. This was a bit much for her to take in, considering she had seen the enmity between the two in the past. Then again, she also caught onto something else that Celestia had said just as the pinata burst into various vegetables, such as broccoli and brussel sprouts. “You said that you would not miss serious Discord,” Cadence pressed as she dodged the piñata's inner goods, “What does that mean?” “The tree of harmony violated Discord's special places when he deicded to pay it a visit,” Celestia joked, dismounting the stick from her horn using magic, “I am sure he has nightmares of the tentacles.” “Dreadful those branches were,” Discord carried on, now shifting into the form of an interrogation victim in a classic wooden chair, “Drove me mad with all the tickling. There were places I did not even know could be tickled.” Cadence got an image in her head before vigorously shaking her head clear of it. Some things were better left to speculation than imagination. “So that changed him? How does that affect what we're doing now?” “Discord's change made him much easier to deal with him the second go round,” Celestia elaborated, “Almost reformable, really.” “Yes indeed,” Discord chimed, “I became a saint among all chaos, and the worst I had to endure was being turned to stone. Poor Sombra never got that chance.” Celestia and Discord shared a glance for a moment, then laughed. Cadence was unnerved, and she began to realize that they were doing this on purpose. She needed to see something in this interaction, something that was not right. Well, her list would be shorter if she could figure out what was actually right about this scene. “So what made the Crystal Empire return? I mean, was it coincidence? And how did Discord even end up among the Tree?" “No,” Discord answered as he snapped away a few party cannons, “It was not coincidence. Celestia's parents forced the Heart's defensive mechanism to end prematurely with their fierce love for their children.” “As strange as that sounds, that is the basic idea,” Celestia continued, “Discord getting his claws on the Heart caused it to begin a slow, but sure process of defending itself from corruption. When the threat of invasion came upon it and the city from my parent's forces, it immediately transported the empire between the fabric of time and space, sheltering it and the capital city from severe harm.” “But I thought it was conquered?” Discord showed some signs of irritation at Cadence's questioning, as if he expected her to know at least this answer. “Obviously the city was safe, but the rest of the empire fell by default,” Discord stated as if it were indeed quite obvious, even to someone who was not living during that time, “The empire as you know it today is more of a shingle of what it used to be.” “When we arrived there as refugees, we were desperate, and many of the crystal ponies feared that they were being taken over,” Celestia emphasized, “Had it not been for Sombra, we might would have had to fight our way within the safety of the walls. Father had been wise to sent Luna ahead of us.” “Okay, so you all decided to stay there for awhile. Discord is getting violated, four alicorns are resting in the Crystal city, while other ponies are starving and freezing. Sounds kind of harsh.” “We didn't exactly eat like royalty in the city,” Celestia pointed out, “Unless you ate gems or ponies, there was not an abundant amount of food to go around. Dissent began to grow. The only thing keeping it simmered was Mother and, later, Sombra." “Enough of all of this telling!” Discord shouted, “I want to know what Luna and Twilight are dreaming!” Curiously, the previously ignored alicorns had not awakened, and they even seemed to be completely undisturbed by the disturbance going on around them. Comically prodding them with the dislodged piñata stick, Discord jokes, "Sleeping with Luna is like sleeping with death; it is long, and very deep. Refreshing too if you keep from sleeping on the hard floor. " The End of an Era"In the howling wintry wonderland that was Northern Equestria, a large train of ponies, some royal guards and others mere civilians, marched behind a single mare, her darker coloration providing a sort of framework against the bright white backdrop. Visibility was narrowed to merely a few yards at best; while most of the ponies, even the guards, tended to have the pony in front of them as a guide, Luna, as the leader of the group, only had herself as a guide. “Move it, move it!” shouted some guards as the blistering cold struck out at them all. Twilight by now had accustomed herself to traveling around as Luna. Surprised that Celestia actually attack Luna in the past, Twilight was even further aghast that Nightmare Moon was not the first time that Luna had fought her sister. Luna had purposely jaded and goaded her sister, so that she could use the wrath of their parents at Celestia's aggression to her advantage. However she had underestimated the insight of her father into her trick, though in hindsight Luna should have known better than to try to deceive her father and mentor. No one was severely punished or harmed in the aftermath, but Luna seeing her father' glare, that killer, slitted gaze, was punishment enough. She had nearly wet herself, having seen it directed towards manticores enough to know that it was the last thing many had seen. He had not been pleased with her usage of his teachings, and even less pleased that she had not been bold enough to try to beat Celestia entirely with her own magical might. Twilight reasoned the lesson Luna learned here would backfire when she attempted to directly engage Celestia in the future as Nightmare Moon, and was still defeated partially because she had been bold enough to try to fight Celestia with her own power alone, while Celestia used the Elements of Harmony. Back to the "present", Discord had once again interrupted the peaceful flow of Luna' life, and she had been instructed by her parents to lead the ponies northward. Luna had gotten back only due to the courtesy of a merchant, who had gotten lost on her way to the Crystal Empire. That journey is likely what convinced Shade that it was a good idea to have her lead their civilization towards safety, farther north no less. Without landmarks, or the presence of the Crystal Empire for that matter, to say that it was hard to find one's way in the blizzard that doggedly pursued them was an understatement. Soldiers and civilians alike were following Luna quite loyally, though the alicorn had little idea as to where he was going. Unfortunately, Nightshade and Solaria were too busy to provide further direction, tirelessly attempting to help the stretched thin guards defend the citizens, not just from outside threats, but even from themselves. Despite their dire situation, the three races of pony still found time to blame each other for the crisis, and were bound to break out into fights if their disgruntlement were left unchecked. This only fueled the windigoes, and made their journey harder; thankfully for Luna, most of the ponies near her end of the train had the sense to realize that laying blame would only make things worse. Celestia was among the last to leave, for whatever reason, and would likely bring up the rear of the train. Either way, Luna was leading the way blindly, her teeth chattering and clattering and her wings held close to her sides to try to preserve body heat. She was practically freezing, the metal armor and cloth hardly helping in her efforts to stay unfrozen. The deep snow made it hard to move, but even still, she thought that it would be a little warmer, like it had been the last time she had come this far north. Luna sought out what she knew was not there; the Crystal Empire's capital. The remainder of the Empire had been annexed shortly after Discord was overthrown and the City vanished, the remaining inhabitants far too disoriented to mount any sort of counter-offensive to the Poni occupation. Not to mention many of them welcomed the change in leadership, though as the winter slammed their homes with the force of a dragon army, they were likely not as pleased about the turn of events. Hopefully, the city would return soon. After all, the crystal heart was allegedly a repellent to the windigoes, and it was probably the reason Shade and Solaria had ordered them northwards anyways. Twilight could feel that Luna was hoping, almost praying, that somepony would say something to ease her nerves. Careful what you wish for; you just might get it. A guard behind her, making no attempt at hiding the skepticism towards Luna's leadership, gruffly asked, “Are you sure we are headed the right way? All I can see is snow, and more snow, and I think this armor is about to join the frostbite in sticking to my body!” “I am quite sure of it!” Luna shouted, it being necessary to be heard in the howling winds, “You have your orders, and I have mine, so let us just worry about our duties!” Luna was less than pleased about questions to her directions at a time like this; no, she did not know where she was going, but if word got out of that, panic like that unseen since the upturning of the Ponī Republic would follow. The guard did not comment again, perhaps becuase a roar from the left sounded out. Turning quickly, the two spotted an Ursa Major charging towards them. It was far from complete random; something had purposely stirred it in this direction. It looked half starved and desperate; seeing some ponies, perfect targets, likely heightened its determination to snatch just one from the crowd and live another few hours. Luna had to make a call; let that happen so that the Ursa would just leave, or attempt to face down this beast with dwindling time before they all froze to death. Both options had an odd amount of appeal, as the guard that had previously questioned her leadership was a prime candidate to be thrown to the beast at this time. Twilight hoped that she would not have to witness a pony being thrown to the Ursa as a sacrifice. She did not have to, as Luna shouted, “Beast! You will have to go through me before you snack on any pony in this line!” “End to misery!” the Ursa shouted back, surprising Twilight with the vocalization of the Ursa's predicament. Nonetheless, Luna quickly fired her horn off into the snow, striking it with a beam of cyan. The snow immediately shifted into the form of arctic bears, growling and charging at the Ursa. The Usra easily knocked the fake beasts away as if they were mere nuisances, and continued its relentless charge. Unicorn guards fired off their own beams, but despite hitting the Ursa's body, it continued its charge. It seemed clear that it was going to tear right through the long trail of still walking ponies without a second thought. The ponies' confidence in their troops was almost terrifying, and though they seemed to at least pick up the pace, they hardly adjusted their travel path to move out of the way. Luna swiftly flew towards the Ursa as it reared up in preparation to take out a chunk of the column. Relying largely on momentum, she rammed her horn into the creature's chest, hoping to divert attention away from the pony train. Although she struck true as far as aim was concerned she found herself stuck in the creature's chest; the startled creature staggered a bit backwards, but had not lost its stance. If it came crashing down, it threatened to crush Luna, or at least bury her a few feet into the snow. “By the powers of the moon! Be still!” Luna fired a magical blast directly into the beast, pooling her strength into this single attack. It went right through the Ursa and began wrapping around the creature. Luna, with some help from pegasi guards, removed herself and her horn just as the creature toppled backwards. The finishing blow would come in the form of the new magical restraints clamping downwards, splitting the Ursa into several pieces. Its limbs separated from the main body, the head falling into the snow, the Ursa gurgled some unintelligible tongue before finally succumbing to its fate. Luna stood gasping as her magical restraints returned to her horn. At least not all of her strength had been drained, but that had taken far too much energy, considering she had no idea where they were. Some of the pony train had completely stopped, their leader having stopped leading in order to fight the Ursa. Luna came to a few tears upon seeing their pitiful expressions, quickly wiping them away should they help freeze her face. She saw the hopelessness written on their faces, and a wave of emotion gripping at their hearts. Despair was the dominant emotion, and it was contagious enough for Luna to begin to feel it as well. Suddenly, a bright light flashed in the sky, and the windstorm temporarily subsided. Shielding their eyes with their hooves, many a pony looked upwards at the majestic light that was bringing radiating heat. It appeared as if Solaria and Nightshade had arrived at last, though only their silhouettes could be seen due to the blinding display. Swirling around them were gem-shaped objects, though their coloration and composition were very hard to make out from the ground. In a flash, an earthquake shook the ground, and then another bright flash to Luna's right, and then the two figures disappeared as suddenly as they had appeared. When all of this flashing was done, the snow storm subtly returned, though not as fiercely as it had been before. Visibility improved dramatically to seeing nearly a mile out. Luna could spot in the distance what looked to be crystals. Large crystals, that stuck out from the horizon like a beacon of hope elated the alicorn's sunken spirits. Responding to this emotion seemed to be a beating heart at the top of the city. “The Crystal Heart,” Luna stated in awe, almost taken aback by the sudden change in their circumstance. Where to go became painfully clear now to everypony, and like a stampede, the ponies all began running, flying, mass teleporting, or whatever mode of transport they possessed, to get to the city. They expected a very warm reception. Expectations usually do not line up with the reality. Though the residents had been gone for what felt like to them a few minutes, it became clear very quickly that the world around them had changed. The Crystal Empire was back; or at least, this single sprawling metropolis, and its inhabitants, crystalline coated ponies of course, were only briefly oblivious to the stampede of ponies coming towards them. The glints of armor, swords, and horns quickly alerted the guards of trouble. Sombra, still an alicorn and likely the only one with any idea of what just happened to them, quickly organized a force to investigate the supposed invaders. When the two forces met at the border, not surprisingly, the sight of a black haired alicorn clad in steel armor quickly caused most Ponin ponies to back off; Luna, on the other hand, approached almost happily, having regained her lead. She had nearly been left behind, having to take a mere second to make sure she was not seeing things. “Sombra!” she shouted, overjoyed to see her old friend again, “You are alive, and still an alicorn!” If Sombra was temporarily in charge, then Luna reasoned it would be a snap convincing the crystal ponies to allow them entry into the city. After all, how could Sombra even think to leave her and her ponies to die out in the cold? All this was Luna's conjecture, which some part of her felt was asking for a bit much considering they had not seen each other in nearly two years. “What the hell is going on here?” Sombra demanded to know, “Why are you invading us?” Luna ceased dashing towards Sombra and his guards, realizing what her and her entourage must have looked like, stampeding towards the gates as they were, like a rabid horde of wild beasts. “It is a long story, but this storm is not going to hold off for much longer,” Luna briefly explained, merely assuming that the windigoes were going to make a prompt return, “The Ponī Empire is no more! We seek sanctuary in the Crystal City.” Some of the crystal guards, clad in the same type of armor as Sombra, quickly peeked at the gathering flood of ponies. It did not take long to confirm that Luna spoke the truth. “They will eat us out of house and home!” one of the soldiers cried out, “Hell, they might even try to take us over!” A chorus of agreement surmised the general feel for the new arrivals. Luna's ears suddenly drooped, as she saw Sombra nodding in agreement. All that work she had put into establishing a friendly relationship with Sombra and he was so easily going to just turn them away in a time of need? “We can't take all of you; shocking as it may be, we haven't had contact with any other part of the empire in what feels like days.” Sombra gave a sympathetic look, though he had his own interests in mind. “That in itself is a bad sign, but I can't shake the feeling that you all brought this on yourselves by disposing of Discord and practically banishing us in some pocket dimension." Luna's face dropped upon hearing this, her eyes downcast. Yes, maybe her parents had caused the crystal ponies some grief, but there would be far more grief if she had to lead her ponies in a fight against the Crystal Empire. At best, they would take the city and find enough food to last them a few months; at worse, the Heart would teleport them all to that strange dimension, and the rest of the pony train that had not caught up yet would be left to their doom. There was only one ambition that Sombra possessed that might override the logistical problem that they faced. Sombra wanted to become king, it was his rightful position as far as he was concerned. However, the crystal ponies were not going to just hand him the crown after Discord had so easily taken it away from him, especially not now that Luna was back in the picture. No, Sombra would have to take the city by a level of direct force if he wanted to be king; even if he did have sympathetic supporters, he would need more power in order to both prevent an armed occupation of the city and facilitate a smooth transition of power to his hooves. If Luna could present herself as a potential ally to that cause, willing to do anything to save her and her ponies, then Sombra would let them in without hesitation. It was ingenious, but Luna first needed to make sure she did not make it too obvious; one wrong move and the crystal ponies would send all of them to the unknown oblivion. "Our situation is very bleak; without refuge, all of us may perish, including my parents and sister. We are willing to take our place of refuge by force if we have to." She made sure to look as defiant and courageous as possible, ears perked, wings flared, lips curled in a bit of a snarl, without sacrificing a level of despair. Sparkling, watery eyes that seemed to betray a level of doubt would complete the picture of a bluffing mare. Sombra looked away from Luna mere moments after her announcement, his own guilty expression suggesting that she tugged at the right initial strings. Now all she needed was somepony to make Sombra to come to grips with how much she could offer as a friend instead of foe. “Oh yeah? You and what army?” commented one of the crystal troops in the back of their formation. Sombra shot a look of contempt in that pony's direction as Luna's royal guard, with perfect timing began gathering in formation behind her, apparently having caught onto her battle cry cue. Unicorn, Earth, Unicorn, Earth, Pegasi, with four rows of five all lined up in preparation for battle, their faces bleak, but their assembly conjoined and rather intimidating to the much smaller crystal forces that Sombra led. Even the civilians joined in. Many of these ponies had bee ready to fight each other a while ago, but if these crystal ponies stood in the way of their survival, unity once again would have to be the answer. Against a common, tangible threat that they could do something against, petty arguments could turn into jokes and patriotism. Sombra seemed to weigh his options, looking towards the increasing mass of ponies against him, and the trickling gathering of ponies behind him. They were outnumbered, even more so by the minute, and if the remainder of the alicorns joined the fight, the Crystal ponies would be utterly outmatched. Sombra smiled, the beating heart of the Crystal Heart seemed to radiate as he spoke, “You may come at us with unity and desperation, but we will fend you off with love and determination! Not even Discord could take away the love that we have for each other and our independence!” It was corny; the first sign to Luna that Sombra was making one last ditch effort of resisting the obvious answer to his problems. Some of the crystal ponies narrowed their eyes at Sombra for the reminder of Discord, no doubt recalling how the draconequus got into power in the first place. “If you want a bloodbath, you will be sorely disappointed; our unicorns can place a strong barrier over this entire city that will not just repel you, but also keep you out as the cold comes to finish you off." Sombra looked down on Luna, smile fading and horn aglow with a menacing red light. "Frankly, unless you bring your parents, Luna, you are not at the negotiation table with a hoof up.” He had to be bluffing, Twilight reasoned. There were already few unicorns in the Crystal Empire to begin with, much less the capital itself, and it was clear that the Emperor and Empress had the means to deal with whatever defenses the crystal ponies could come up with outside of the Crystal Heart. But, fighting the crystal ponies might cause them to resort to desperate measures; if they laid waste to their own city in a scorched earth style strategy, then they would all perish, or be sent to the pocket dimension. That detail seemed to shatter the morale of the civilians, though the guards remained tight in formation. Some of the gaps were quickly filled, but the previously intimidating army now looked like a few companies, at best, even as more ponies filed in to find out what was going on. The snow began to kick back up to a flurry that whipped at everypony's flanks, and made it clear that if they kept this up for much longer, the windigoes would get a second wind and come back at them within the hour. “What are your demands?” Luna dropped her fierce stance, her eyes and ears dropping as low as they could go. Her face dropped into a depressing frown, but she puffed out her chest just slightly as she sat on her haunches. This gesture caught her guard completely off guard, and even Sombra seemed surprised at this. With Sombra studying every inch of her for deception, Luna made sure to poke out her lips just a bit and flap her wings. From behind, it would seem that this gesture would seem from meaningless to a vain attempt at maintaining dignity. From the front, to the forces behind Sombra, it would appear the final gesture of surrender. But to Sombra, it would be a micro-expression that would put a nail in this issue's coffin. The wings were practically hands presenting to Sombra Luna as a sort of prize; she was presenting herself just right, she deemed, to likely quite appealing from Sombra's point of view. After all, Luna and her forces had practically surrendered; that meant that he could demand almost anything from them and in their desperate situation, they would be more than happy to surrender just about anything. Anything at all, for their survival. Luna was somewhat banking that the lack of mare alicorns in the Crystal Empire, and the circumstances in which they met, would play in her favor for proper interpretation of her gesture. Deception could start a battle; but it could also prevent one too if employed properly. One of her father's lessons he no doubt would have no intended for her to use in this manner. Sombra blushed deeply, his eyes quickly averting from Luna to a random patch of snow as his thoughts were likely clouded by mortal intentions. When he did brave another look, Luna had risen from her haunches and stood impatiently awaiting his answer, dusting some snow off of her backside with her wings. Finally giving in to the manipulation, Sombra straightened his stance and offered, "If you support my place as king of this empire, then you and whosoever has come with you may enter as my new subjects." Luna nodded sharply, and with a single raise of her hoof, called to attention her forces. "We accept your terms, King Sombra!" Perfect. Score one for Luna. None on Luna's side reacted negatively since, as far as they were concerned, Sombra had been either the new king or a regent, and that their rulers could, and would, easily displace him sometime in the future. However, there was stark resistance on the other side of the gate; the Crystal ponies were clearly not as accepting of this proposal. “What?” several Crystal ponies shouted in outrage, “You, King? After Discord so easily manipulated you into giving away the kingdom before? What makes you think that we will just allow you to once again jump in line for that position?" "I am not asking your permission to take my rightful place on my family throne." Sombra turned towards his forces, motioning with his left wing for Luna to join him, his horn glowing red with magic and his lips curled into a proper snarl. "You might disrespect me for being manipulated by one of the oldest, and possibly most cunning, creatures in all the land, but you will not deny me my birthright!" Sombra and Luna soon took to the air, and when it became clear what their target would be, the Crystal legions turned tail and dashed towards the square. Luna was mildly pleased that all of those crystal ponies were flightless, lest there would actually be a serious threat of them reaching the square before she and Sombra reached the Crystal Heart. "Quickly, there is no time to lose!" Sombra took off towards the Crystal Heart, with Luna quickly following behind. "Think love and harmony and all that! Grab the Heart; I will join you on the balcony!" Luna nodded in compliance as Sombra winged downwards, causing red, black, and clear crystals to appear from the ground, disrupting the general motion of the ponies below. Luna took note of how Sombra still had that crystalline crystal pony appearance; despite everything up to this point, he still was not resembling a regular alicorn, though considering his base was a crystal pony, Luna found it understandable that his coat had not lost its crystalline shine as of yet. Luna reached the heart in record time and, hovering just above the relic, Luna could feel the strong, rhythmic beat of the city's most powerful defense. Focusing her thoughts on harmonic things, such as Ponī during peacetime and food fights, Luna hovered ever closer to the Heart. She swallowed hard, and then reached her hooves out to grasp the Heart. The heat radiating from it was intense, but it did not burn her as she wrapped her hooves around it. Instantly her chest felt like it was on fire, and this overwhelming desire to share the Heart with somepony nearly caused her to hurl it to the streets in ecstasy. The touch reminded Luna of her parents and sister, of their warm embraces and occasionally sloppy kisses. Their laughs and smiles on her very first birthday when she ran head first into a giant cake, coming out on the other side one year older. Such silly traditions, as the cake got progressively larger each year she grew older, she had nearly forgotten admist all of the danger. It was as if the Heart were amplifying everything that she held dear, expressing it like a raging fire in her chest. Had it been a potion, Luna would have equated it to a broth of scorching qualities that burned on its way in, and likely on its way out too. With the retrieval of the Crystal Heart complete, any remaining resistance to Sombra being king was quickly quelled, as there was no way that the standard guard could take on the alicorns without the Crystal Heart. Luna, still entranced by the Heart, hardly noticed when Sombra flew up to her excitedly, a wide grin on his face. She hardly even registered that he was talking to her. When Sombra finally noticed this, he put an arm around Luna and guided her towards the palace balcony, the palace, of course, being made entirely of crystals. The balcony had a clear view of the square, even as it became flooded as more ponies rushed into the city. When Sombra and Luna descended onto the palace balcony together, the Crystal Heart seemed to physically bring them closer together, with Sombra placing his hooves around the Heart, inadvertently touching Luna's in the process. It was a subtle action were one to notice, but the effects immediately caused the two's erratic heartbeats to start beating in turn, Luna's beating ever faster to match Sombra's. Sombra's tension melted away as he chanced another look at Luna, Luna mirroring this reaction. As his mind reeled at what his body was doing, he likely came to the conclusion that the magic of the Heart was the cause. Rational thinking departed as Luna blinked, only now truly noticing Sombra's presence for the first time. "This relic really knows how to bring ponies together," Luna weakly joked, adding in a short laugh afterwards, "I don't see how Discord could have caused it to go all defensive." "Maybe he has never had a good friend before," Sombra replied, "Time kind of flies when you are with somepony special." Time indeed was flying, though Luna's perception of it was just as clouded as Sombra's. Sombra had hardly finished speaking when he leaned in towards Luna, hardly muzzle length separating the two. Staring into each others eyes, one cyan and the other a contrasting red. The two stayed like this, despite various shouts trying to snap them out of their trance. The shouts were like little whispers in the small fantasy world that the two had been lulled into. “Damn heart has a mind of its own,” Luna practically breathed right into Sombra's face, him being so close, though he did not seem to mind. Bringing their foreheads together, playfully flicking at each other with their ears, the two seemed lost in each other, until finally one of them slipped out of the trance. Quite literally slipping out of the trance, Sombra had been trying to lean into Luna's head some more, when lost his balance and somehow landed onto the ground. The Crystal Heart had been snatched from their grasp. Blinking as she returned to her senses, Luna asked absent-mindedly, “What... was that?” Solaria, with a concerned look on her face, stood with a single hoof on the Crystal Heart, as if letting it go would present a danger to all those present. “It has been a few hours since we were permitted refuge here more or less without a fight. I had some news for you upon my arrival, but I think the two of you got a little lost in each other with this gem as the cloud.” Solaria pushed the heart just a little farther away from the two as a precautionary measure as Sombra got back to his hooves. “Luna, I need to tell you these news in relative private. Prince Sombra, do you mind?” “Not at all,” Sombra said, blinking away sleepiness, apparently ignoring the improper title that he had been addressed by. He gave one last look to Luna, and then trotted away. “I'll have the servants start up a meal for the occasion.” Luna sighed as she watched him go, apparently confused as to what just happened. Twilight too was rather confused, and couldn't help but ask a question, interrupting the flow of the story just momentarily to ask, “What just happened there?” “The Crystal Heart amplifies and projects polarized emotions, such as love for example,” Luna explained, “I have no doubt lust had a little to do with what just happened there. I cannot fully explain it myself, even after all of this time.” “Could those emotions have been coming from Nightshade and Solaria? I mean, I am assuming that they had a part in the Empire returning.” “That is probably not the case. Anyways, try to hold onto your questions till we next awake, as these interruptions are rather jarring. I know that that will be very hard for you, but I need for you to try.” Twilight complied semi-willingly, and after a moment's silence, the dream played out once again, right where it left off. Luna smiled dreamily, the effects of the Heart still lingering, before Solaria cleared her throat. Coming back to reality, Luna looked towards her mother with a hint of annoyance. “What are the news Mother? Surely everypony is safe now?” “Father is dead,” another voice bluntly stated, wingbeats and grunts accompanying it, “Father died while you were here negotiating with my former...” “Celestia!” Solaria chided with a burning gaze, “Now is not the time for that.” When Luna turned to see her sister, she could see Celestia very downcast; her ears and wings were drooped, her eyes watery. Luna, even from this display, did not immediately believe what she had been told, since she would have expected a much greater reaction from Celestia regarding such terrible news. Luna was skeptical that this true. . “We should probably check, just to be sure...” The body of their father gracelessly dropped between Luna and Celestia, causing both to jump. The guards who had hoisted it up to the balcony apparently were exhausted from their load. Luna hadn't even noticed them before, save for their grunts, and even then, she had paid them no heed. Denial remained strong as Luna rushed to the stallion's lifeless form. “Father, General, Shade, anything, are you alright?!” she cried out, grasping at the unresponsive head with her hooves, “Tell it to me straight, are we in a code Black?” From an elated sense of joy and enchantment, to a hell-driven sense of despair and misery Luna's mind reeled, her head already confirming the truth. Yet, her heart continued to deny, as if that shred of belief alone would cause Shade to spring back to life, joking about how he once again tricked Luna by playing dead. But it did not. The closed eyes did not open, the chest did not rise, and Luna's tears did not bother the still pristine and snow ridden coat. The stallion did not lift a wing to wrap around a heartbroken daughter, no words of reassurance came from his mouth. Not even a empathetic look from the now lifeless eyes. A faint smell told Luna that Shade had been dead for at minimum a few hours now; the cold had likely prevented any serious degradation to him, and that kind of time might have been the reason Celestia seemed so well put together. “My Harmony, why? How?” Crying into the form of her fallen father, guilt, shame, and even anger were welling up inside of her. She should have been there, fighting alongside her family; instead she had been leading their stupid subjects and gazing into the eyes of some stallion she hadn't seen in years. The Crystal Heart, still underneath the hooves of Solaria, began radiating again in response to Luna's reactions, causing Solaria to eye the jewel with a small frown. Coming to terms with the danger of leaving the Heart so close to her grieving daughter, Solaria had the good sense to carry it off to where Sombra went, taking all but one of the guards with her, while Celestia put a wing around Luna. “He died fighting off a pack of Ursra Majors. It was a very large...” “Liar.” Luna did not bother looking up from the corpse before her. “There is not a fresh scratch on him other than some travel wear and tear. He did not die of any physical injuries.” Celestia seemed taken aback by this now obvious point, and seemed to scold herself for not thinking that explanation more thoroughly. “I think the truth is better at this point, your majesty,” the remaining guard suggested, “After all, I think he would have wanted her to know.” Watery eyes started to blur the vision, and despite this being almost third person, Twilight found it hard to read the watery expression on Celestia's face. Luna's tears hadn't blurred her sight before. It seemed strange that only now would sight be restricted, though Twilight dared not ask about it. “He died of a broken heart,” Celestia finally confessed, a few of her tears dropping onto Luna's right wing. “Seeing the Empire lost, seeing so many citizens spreading out from the group and trying and failing to make it on their own, still blaming each other for the crisis, and knowing that our perfect world came crashing down was too much for him." "He went to the Tree of Harmony with Mother; only she came back alive.” “Tree of Harmony?” Luna spoke, now quite confused, “I don't understand, what doe that have to do with...” “Mother and Father found Discord, entangled amongst the branches, apparently held at bay from running amuck. I don't know much about it either, but the way Mom described it, Discord was forcefully converted back to the jester he started out as. Dad's spirit was taken by the tree in his grief, to ease his suffering.” “A tree killed him?!” Luna looked towards Celestia with both shock and anger, likely at the notion of her great father being taken down by what she believed at the time to be a measly plant with a special name. “No, he died and the tree took his spirit. It is hard to explain.” That was an understatement. Even Twilight, who had actually seen the tree and knew of its significance to Equestria, had to admit that that fact was very hard to grasp. The tree took his very spirit, but did not directly kill him? As in, the tree was a sort of afterlife storage? Twilight found herself getting a headache trying to understand it. But that didn't matter, as the two sisters shared a moment to grieve for their Father, as the setting sun cast its final rays on the three alicorns. Later that night, four alicorns sat at a rectangular table, with Sombra and Solaria at the two ends, and Luna and Celestia in the middle. Very little food covered the table, in stark contrast to the banquet that had been prepared on Luna's first day here. Merely some apples, carrots, strips of grass, and even some hay on oddly shaped plates were placed on the table in a very scatterbrained nature. After their grieving, Celestia and Luna had taken the privilege of burying Nightshade; they, nor Solaria, desired an elaborate funeral. Sombra complied, but insisted that they needed to at least eat before setting off for the night, lest hunger and grief drive them to do something rash. He said it in a jesting fashion, but they knew that he had a grim point. A few guards stood at the entrances, but for the most part, the four alicorns were left to talk amongst themselves. Perhaps as a reflection of the previous significant meal that Luna and Celestia had shared, the lone stallion at the table would be the one to start the conversation; Celestia, Luna, and Solaria were all hardly eating and mostly in a state of silent mourning. It made plenty of sense that Sombra would be the one cheerful enough to try to break the silence, and brighten the mood. “Well Luna, look on the bright side, at least you have your sister and mother still.” Sombra bit into an apple, purposely making a loud shearing noise in his bite while he eyed the mares at the table. When he received no response, he chewed on his food rather downcast, before his ears perked up again with an idea. “Well, today is the anniversary of my parents' deaths, and the day Discord tricked me, and now, it shall also be the day that I became king as I righfully should, and...” “Let me stop you right there Sombra." Solaria looked up from the banquet table with a glare, staring straight across at Sombra. “I have only met you face to face this very day, and I can already tell we are going to have some problems with each other. You are not a king.” Despite her emphasis, Sombra did not seem even remotely phased. In fact, he chuckled, and then took a sip of water from a golden goblet. “This is my domain, I have proclaimed myself king, and I am supported by my subjects...” Solaria laughed, though it sounded more like a scornful snarl than anything else. “Tch, compliance and support are two different creatures, Sombra. How much would you be willing to wager that they would poison your drink in an instant if they thought it could kill you.” “Can't it?” Celestia inquired, now sniffing her own drink, “I had not even thought about that.” “Please, Tia, they would not have the nerve,” Luna pointed out before she bravely drank a goblet of water, “They surely know their place.” “Based off of Sombra here, I would disagree with that notion." Solaria pointed a hoof haphazardly at Sombra, knocking over her own goblet in the process. “I am an Empress, not some princess that is going to be courted into being subjected by a foal prancing around as a real male monarch.” Sombra clearly took offense to this, likely not catching the reason why her ire was so directed at him in particular. “Now hold on a minute, two empires are practically reduced to the capacity of a city and a few estranged villages. Both are very much your fault!" Sombra slammed a single hoof on the table, pointing his horn in Solaria's direction for a more effective leer. "I on the other wing have opened the way for pony kind to survive under my leadership, and you insult me in my own dining hall? What nerve.” “Sombra, you would not last a minute as king if I so willed differently,” Solaria threatened, her menacing demeanor beginning to reflect across the table. “You are not only weaker than me, but far less experienced in ruling. You do not deserve to be considered even close to my equal.” Since the only one that was her literal equal had been Nightshade, Luna figured that Sombra would chalk it up to grief and let it go. Sombra's ego had different ideas. “You mean driving the world into a miniature ice age?” Sombra shot back, exchanging barbs between bites, “I can do bad all by myself, thank you very much. I am sure your husband would have respected these boundaries, considering the circumstances.” Solaria's horn began to glow dangerously for a few seconds, even Celestia glaring angrily at Sombra. Solaria quickly calmed down, however, and instead tossed her mane around until it was entirely on her back. “Since you seem to think yourself an equal of mine rather than a subject, then it seems I need to correct your thinking.” Sombra lifted his head and huffed, returning all hooves to the floor. “The only one with incorrect thinking here is you. This is my domain, I will not be defeated on my own turf.” “A wager then?" Solaria leaned ever forward, narrowed her eyes, and showed a wicked smile. "Should I win, then you will recognize your status as a prince and mine as an empress, and get the notion that you are king out of your head." Sombra, intrigued, levelled his head, casting a sideways glance at the Empress. “And if you lose, if I win? What do I get?” “What do you want?” “Your blessing, were I to wed one of your daughters. And a public declaration of your subjectivity to me.” Celestia stopped glaring at Sombra by this point, but still showed a level of contempt in her face. She knew that this could only end badly, regardless of who won. “Sombra, perhaps you should reconsider challenging my mother...” “Why?” Luna countered, pointing a hoof towards Sombra, “He needs to show that he is not going to just roll over when an insurmountable task challenges him. I say he be given the chance to prove himself to Mother.” Celestia, with narrowed eyes, tried to plead with Luna to abstain from egging Sombra on. The damage was already done, however. “Insurmountable challenge?” Sombra growled, now turning his head towards Luna, “Are you implying that I stand no chance against your mother?” Luna pulled back her hoof and looked gravely towards Sombra. “She has you beat in experience, raw power, and position. While not impossible, your odds of beating her in a fair fight are minimal.” Sombra's eyes became filled with a green light, purple sparks emitting as he slammed a hoof onto the table. “I will not back down from any challenge to my right to rule! If it is a fight that she wants, then it is a fight that she will get!” Solaria's smile grew both more sinister and larger in size after this exchange. “Excellent. A public demonstration of who is the better of us, and more fit to rule; I like it. Just one stipulation that I must add.” Looking back to Solaria, Sombra raised his left eyebrow in curiosity. “And what is that?” Solaria lowered her own head, as if to bring the gravity of her next statement to the attention of all present. “When, not if, you lose, I get to personally re-arrange the nature of the union between the Ponī Empire and the Crystal Empire however I please, without any need for approval from you.” Sombra weighed his options, likely considering his options. He looked towards her again, knowing full well that he would be better off offering an added stipulation of his own. "Well, then my added stipulation, when I win, is that you leave the confines of the Empire, and take the daughter I choose not to wed with you when you leave." Celestia opened her mouth to speak, but a single look from Solaria caused her to shut it. Solaria's face showed no change in expression. "Very well then, I, and by default you, accept our respective terms." Luna smiled, as she really wanted to see Sombra do his best for personal reasons. Just the fact that he had the nerve to stand up to one of the most powerful fighters of the Empire elated a very sensual response from Luna. Celestia shot a glare at her that almost made Luna cringe. What was Celestia getting so worked up over? Sombra never specified which daughter he would take were he to win, not like it matter. Even Luna had high doubts that he would actually win, and besides, considering recent events, it would be better to send the water under the bridge sooner rather than later. Sombra and Solaria stood in the square, their respective subjects gathered around. Celestia and Luna were producing a barrier that should reduce the impact of the fight, and allow for safety to the spectators. Sombra was in full battle armor, while Solaria chose to merely go out with her regalia. Clearly Solaria had few concerns that Sombra would be able to seriously injure her. The barrier limited the total space that they had to fight, but Solaria insisted that her slight disadvantage, as she was at least twice his size in height and thus would be more hindered by the barrier restrictions, would further the point that she was not to be so recklessly challenged. Sombra widened his stance, his horn pointed towards Solaria in preparation for attack. “When you are ready.” “I am always ready,” Solaria responded, mimicking Sombra's pose, “Especially when it means taking shiny ponies down a notch.” Despite her response, Sombra did not immediately attack, as if he were studying her body. Indeed, her wings could function as extra limbs, meaning that an aerial attack would be pointless in such constrained space. If she managed to, at any point, corner him, he was done for. Luna even concluded that, overall, Sombra's only chance was to try to create an opening in her defenses, as he could not overpower her through any conventional means. Sombra, his strategy apparently set, winked towards Luna before channeling magic to his horn. The red glow caused crystals to sprout from the ground near Solaria, all of them aimed to try to impale her. Solaria reared backwards, her front hooves at the ready. When Solaria brought them back down again, they slammed and shook the ground with such great force that shattered the crystals as if they were naught but mirrors with rocks thrown at them. Caught off balance by the shaking, Sombra staggered backwards, his face showing some surprise at Solaria's physical strength. “Is that the best that you have got?” Solaria jeered, “You are joking, right?” Sombra crouched low, as if about to pounce, wings extended. However, Sombra folded his wings and returned to a standing position as he realized that charging would not work. With that display of strength, Luna knew that Sombra would avoid getting within hoof's reach if he could help it, with the consequence of failure being the sound of snapping bones, at best. Sombra smiled wide, and scrunched up his face, his horn alight. The crystalline ground beneath the two alicorns suddenly opened up; as the ground gave way. Solaria took to the air, not wishing to fall into the nearly created space. Within seconds, the arena was considerably deepened; at least thirty feet worth of sub-terrain was exposed, with Sombra flying near the base. Solaria charged magic to her horn, the orange glow giving off a sunset sort of ambience around her, and fired a single raw beam of magic towards Sombra. Sombra swiftly dodged, but even as he cleared the beam, it bounced off of the floor and back upwards. Sombra dodged this too, but with the next ricochet off of the barrier, Luna realized that the attack was not meant to strike Sombra at first; the blast would get faster and faster the more it bounced off of the surroundings, eventually making it impossible to dodge. With time against him, Sombra would eventually be forced to engage Solaria in at close range. Solaria dove downwards, ever watchful of her own attack, to try to meet Sombra in mid-air. Knowing full well that it would be suicide attempting to charge right into her, Sombra veered off to the left. Solaria pursued, spinning majestically as she fired yet another beam of magic at Sombra. Sombra less gracefully dodged this one, parts of the armor on his left side becoming seared in the process. A long burn streak on his left flank might would have bled had it not been for the intense heat of the attack. It was probably painful, but Sombra carried on with a grimace as he flew around the battlefield, constantly pursued by Solaria. The single bouncing shot continued to speed up its pace, though Solaria likely did not have to be concerned about getting hit by her own attack. Whatever Sombra's strategy was, it would certainly fail if he was hit by that blast of magic. Swiftly, Sombra charged magic to his horn, diving towards the ground as a coating of crystals began to cover the ground. Solaria, likely deciding not to continue playing around, gathered magic in her horn. Light from all around, from almost any source that could be gathered, suddenly began focusing in on the tip of her horn. Luna had never seen this attack before, but Celestia apparently had; her eyes were wide, and she seemed shocked to see it. Solaria, with a tip of her head forward, fired off this thick beam of light downwards towards Sombra and his gathering crystals. Sombra landed on the crystals, which suddenly turned red, just moments before the blast impacted the ground he stood on. There was no explosion, no shockwave, only a burst of light that completely and utterly blinded everyone in attendance. Luna howled, her eyes feeling as if they were on fire from the intense light, dropping her end of the barrier and covering her face with her body. Her wings came over her head, her head swimming from the intense visual sense overload. Luna swore that she would never see again. However, slowly, but surely, she could re-open her eyes and make out blurry shapes. The ground below her was shaking, or so she perceived it, and the dazzling lights still were present on the edges of his vision. Luna was staggering forward before a strong force tackled her to the ground behind her. Too disoriented to fight back effectively, Luna realized that a white coated mare had taken her down. A look at the flank revealed a yellow sun with blazing orange rays: it was Celestia. “Tia, what...” Luna started before Celestia hushed her. “You almost fell right into the active battle zone. Just don't move till you get your senses back.” Luna reluctantly obeyed, mostly because she had little choice. Celestia released the pressure as Luna rose, blinking slowly. The wailing of ponies could be heard as they lamented, many of them also afflicted by the attack. As her vision began to key back into place, Luna gasped at the sight she beheld. Many ponies were rolling around in agony, others were unconscious, and yet still others were curled up in the fetal position, as if it would do them any good. Considering that the ponies' coats reflected light, the massive flash probably was amplified, by design. That attack was designed to stun, not to kill it seemed. It had certainly done its job up top, but what of Sombra? Had he not been near the epicenter of the blast? Luna wandered over to the edge of the battle arena, Celestia standing close as she neared it. One question came to mind as she realized that Celestia did not seem at all affected by the attack. “Tia, how is it you don't seem to be affected?” Luna inquired, “I saw your eyes all wide right before the attack started.” “Luna, you are not the only one who was being mentored by our parents." Celetia definitely had to refrain from coming off as snide in her response. “Father tended to operate in the nighttime, where such things did not need to be as bright to work. In the daytime, competing with the sun requires a greater blast of light. I saw Mother use it many times during the coup. It was her secret weapon of sorts, and I will not divulge how I dealt with it." “Some secret weapon,” Luna replied in utter surprise, “I think Sombra is still up there!” Down below, at the base, the crystal floor had reflected much of the light rather spectacularly. Solaria, somewhat stunned from her own attack, seemed to be recovering just as an unconscious Sombra seemed to come to. “Give up yet?” Solaria inquired, shaking her head clear, “Clearly you are beaten.” “Not yet,” Sombra gurgled as he attempted to rise to his hooves, “Your fiery blast hurt, but I still have one trick up my sleeve.” “What, may I ask, makes you believe that?” Solaria seemed genuinely surprised that Sombra thought he still had a chance at victory. Sombra wobbly rose to his hooves, his eyes fluttering open. His armor was gone, and his lusterful coat was now charred and blackened, the crystal sheen completely gone. Yet, he did not seem injured beyond repair, which was more than what Luna had been expecting. “Had your blast hit me directly, that would have been nasty,” Sombra explained, his stance becoming steadier, “Dodging was out of the question, so I just had to use this giant mirror to reflect it.” “You started to form that prior to my attack. There is no way you could have foreseen it.” “No, but my trump relies on the qualities of these crystals, you see.” Sombra's eyes suddenly acquired purple trails of fire as he stared at Solaria, his horn aglow in a crimson magic. Solaria met his gaze as she stepped forward, cautiously, each step cracking the crystals below her. Once the two were a mere hoof distance from each other, Sombra took a single step back, a large crystal suddenly sprouting from the ground. The speed of it surprised Luna, but Solaria merely ducked and stepped backwards in the same motion. The earlier magical beam that Solaria had fired apparently was still in play, and despite the removal of the barrier that would seem to be the most logical point of ricochet, came flying in at blinding speeds, shattering the crystal and sending bits of it as high up as Luna and Celestia's vantage point. “Nice try Sombra,” Solaria cackled as she stood back to full height, “E for effort.” Without warning, Sombra fired a purple-green blast of magic towards the shattered crytsal formation. The crystal reformed, except this time, the shape was distinctly in the shape of a vanity mirror. Solaria's eyes suddenly took on a green tint, and she seemed taken aback for a moment. “I can't say I am familiar with that one,” Celestia commented as she lowered her head for a better look, “What is it?” “Nightmare Crystal,” Luna replied, “Sombra mentioned that he could cause victims to see their worst nightmares with this magic. I did not think it would work on Mother...” "What?" Celestia cried out in concern, leaping into the arena, "She could be in serious danger!" While she had some reservations about intervening in the fight, losing one parent was enough, and if Sombra really had turned the tables on her, now would be the best time for intervention. On the other hoof, if Celestia intervened, then it might would make Sombra look stronger than he really was. Luna leaped in after Celestia, intent on stopping her from intervening in the fight. Sombra sighed in relief, oblivious to the cavalry right above his head; as his eyes returning to normal, and he took a single step around the crystal mirror, stopping once at the side of Solaria's left flank. By now, many of the ponies above were beginning to recover, and some of them stared incredulous at the scene. It seemed as if Sombra had won. “See Luna? Nothing is insurmountable...” Whatever he intended on stating next was cut off as Solaria's eyes returned to normal; in a rapid and fluid motion, she backhooved Sombra and shattered the mirror in a single move. Sombra was caught completely off guard, and was sent sprawling to the other side of the arena, crashing into the opposing wall. With it being clear that her mother was in no immediate danger, Luna felt it necessary to check on Sombra first; Celestia would check on Mother in the meantime. Luna landed with a gentle clop just a few feet from the indention Sombra had created upon impact. Sombra, embedded a few feet into the wall, made a sickening peeling noise as he fell from the wall. Luna managed to catch him from falling to the ground with her magic, though it became clear that he was out cold. Bringing him closer, she inspected the stallion with scrutiny. His body had sustained quite the damage, with bruises and burn marks present all over. The internal damage was likely much greater than the outer, reinforced by Sombra's incredibly low hanging jaw. His face was contorted into a shocked and pained expression; he had apparently been caught between the transition before blacking out due to the sheer force of the blow. Bringing an ear to his mouth, Luna was reassured as she caught sign of weak and irregular breathing. Lowering her ear to his chest, she could hear a rapid heartbeat slow down. Sombra then coughed, a few spatters of blood landing on Luna's face. He was alive, but only just barely. “We need to get him some attention,” Luna concluded as she turned to face her approaching sister and mother. Solaria, her eyes wide, seemed very displeased by Luna's response. “Celestia, take care of Sombra,” Solaria ordered, “Make sure he gets better. Luna, stay away from him.” This confused Luna thoroughly, as it made little sense that Celestia, who knew nothing about Sombra, would be able to care for him better than she, who at least knew where his chambers were and his favorite place to be scratched. “Wouldn't it make sense for me to care for him instead?” “No!” Solaria shouted, just a hint of fear in her voice, “You are to stay as far away from that stallion as possible! His black heart is bound by the chains of his ambition; some time with Celestia might help.” “But...” “No buts sister.” Celestia already had immersed Sombra in her magic, and was levitating him away even as she spoke. “Sombra has lost this fight. It would be better if someone he did not know very well tended to his wounds, so his grief does not cause him to do anything rash.” That made no sense to Luna, but Celestia's agreement and the lack of a fourth voice meant that Luna was overridden on the matter. She could only watch as Celestia took Sombra away, while Solaria hissed in his direction. “How dare he show me such a vision... I will not let that happen, no matter the cost.” She then turned her gaze upwards towards the less than enthusiastic crystal ponies, their crystal coat sheen beginning to return. “You ponies now answer to me, and me only; you have the day off to get adjusted to this shift. Dismissed!” Luna had never seen ponies move so fast and in such an organized fashion. There was no argument, no protest. Looking towards her mother, Luna moved her mouth to make words, but a whip-like motion of Solaria's mane convinced her otherwise. “To the guest chambers,” Solaria concluded, flapping her wings angrily, “You are not to see Sombra until I so deem it. The consequences of either of you defying that order will be dire.” Luna slowly nodded, not entirely sure what the threat was. Sombra had just been stripped of his kingdom again, so soon after getting it back, and had been humiliated in front of all of his subjects, who so readily accepted new leadership. Frankly, Luna couldn't see what else Solaria would, or could for that matter, take from him other than his life. Believing that that was all that he had left to take, Luna complied, following behind her mother as the night breeze blew into the arena space. There was no need for Sombra to lose his life; while she could not admit to herself that she felt anything concrete about Sombra, she certainly did not want to see him die needlessly. She cast a single look at the shattered remains of the Nightmare Crystal; a large fragment remained, glowing near the bottom of the arena, its eerie red-purple-green color fluctuations giving no answer as to what Solaria had seen in her vision. Whatever it was, Luna deemed, she had to make a mission to find out what it was from Sombra. " Of Train Rides and Schemes"Back in the real world, for the most part, Equestria continued its daily activities. Despite Discord's desires, there was no seeing into Luna and Twilight's dream. Celestia, however, reasoned that by now they had to have progressed towards their time in the Crystal Empire, though she had no way to confirm it. Besides, there were other concerns that grabbed at Celestia's attention, now that it was morning. Chatter regarding the strange dreams had begun to reach conspiratorial heights within Canterlot, and Luna's affiliation with dreams in general convinced many that she may be behind them, either in an attempt to prank them or seriously ruin their beauty sleep. Outside the castle doors, even at this early hour, gathered an assembly (they could hardly be called a mob with how formally they were arranged) demanding an answer straight from the crowns, or at least one of them. Shining Amour, Captain of the Royal Guard and formerly a regular face around Canterlot, had also arrived on the scene from the Crystal Empire for reasons unknown to the general public. Shining Armour's previously unannounced return to the castle, after being in the Crystal Empire for so long, had stirred even the guards' curiosities, as their old Captain returning seemed very strange. A few days prior, Celestia had tasked Shining with investigating any potential remains of Sombra throughout the Crystal Empire, and had ordered him to report to her directly if he found anything of great interest. Since Shining Armour was walking through the doors to Celestia's throne room in his Guard armor, she could surmrise that Shining's report was not good news. He had in his magical grasp a brown sack, held from his person a few feet as if it were contaminated with some sort of disease. And for all Celestia knew, it could have been. Biological attacks, or pranks as some called it, were not entirely unheard of through history, and the dragons particularly liked to bring strange diseases to Equestria during their migrations, just to see how the Equestrians handle it. Then, once it's dealt with, they tended to “borrow” the solution for themselves and others, acquiring many gems in the process. However, if this was present in the Crystal Empire, where dragons habitual avoided traveling, then it was unlikely that dragons were behind it. Then again... “Princess?” Shining called out, his blue man oddly disheveled despite his appearance with royalty being an expected occasion for him, “Are you alright, you seem spaced out.” Celestia's attention was snapped back to the matter at hand. It seems she had missed Shining's greetings to Cadence and Discord. “Welcome Prince Shining Armour. I wish I could call you in under better circumstances.” Celestia stepped towards Shining, just a few inches from the sack that he held, a curious gaze accompanying her usual smile. “What have you got there?” “Sombra's horn." Shining reported this with a cringe of sorts, as if speaking the pony's name would awaken some previously asleeping evil. Discord could be heard gasping overdramatically, putting a hand to his forehead. "Oh cruel world, those monsters, they actually cut it off! The poor stallion's pride and joy, stripped from his helpless corpse and bagged like a common household food ingredient!" "There was no corpse," Cadence refuted, "I would have noticed a body dropping from such a height." "Discord is just being overdramatic." Celestia eyed Discord, wordlessly communicating that playtime for the two had ended. Discord folded his arms and feigned injury, though no doubt he was plotting up a storm of puns. The guards in the room tried their best not to look interested in the conversation, but their perked forward ears betrayed them terribly. Celestia reasoned that it would be better for further discussion to take place out of the earshot of the guards. “This room is to be empty within ten seconds except for Cadence, Shining Armour, Discord and me." With the resounding stomp of Celestia's hoof starting the count at three seconds, any guards and servants left the room in a mere five seconds, with the dust and after-images all gone by seven seconds. Only the sound of breathing remained, even the air seemingly being sucked out of the room at the mention of his horn and Celestia's order. Cadence reared back from the sack with a mortified look on her face.“What did you bring it here for? You do know that we came here for an investigation into the dreams, not the magical artifacts.” “Well that is the thing,” Shining pointed out, using his magic to remove the horn from the bag, “On my side of the dream realm, this horn is incredibly important. I believe it may be a source of trouble for not just the future Equestrian games, but the source of trouble for what we are now experiencing.” Cadence gasped in disbelief as Shining levitated the horn from the sack. Celestia seized the horn with her own magic, bringing it closer for inspection and scrutiny. Equestria was a strange place where strange things happened on a regular basis, but a pony acting through a mere horn? Despite her wishes, destroying the horn now might would only make things worse, if it really was the source of their trouble. One never knew when dealing with Sombrafacts what bringing destruction on it would do. Now liberated of the burden of carrying the Sombrafact, Shining quickly made his way up the steps to Cadence, Cadence coming down to meet him. As the two embraced each other, the horn glowed bright red, and Celestia hovered it away from the two as she rose from her throne. “Sombra never was one to go down for long,” Celestia mused, turning the horn around absentmindedly, “If this is seriously still left of him, then perhaps we jumped the gun when we assumed that he was gone for good. Since when did something go away for good of his magnitude?” “Well, Discord is reformed, and we haven't seen much of Chrysalis, thankfully,” Shining commented, “I don't think we have to worry about Redface the Doublecrosser unless we start believing in ghost stories.” Cadence broke away from the hug to look Shining in the eye critically. “Uh, Shining when Sombra was last here, he practically was a ghost.” “Right,” Shining said as he placed a hoof behind his head, rubbing at his oversight, “Well, there are always exceptions.” “It does not make any sense,” Celestia reminisced, “Sombra should not have the power to live on through a mere horn.” “What fun is there in making sense?” Discord commented as he appeared from Celestia's mane as an image in a thought bubble. Celestia popped the thought bubble with her horn, sending Discord floating gently to the ground. He seemed overly smug "The only answer to that is Sombra's side of the story. Which will not make sense to a mare.” Celestia put on a scowl, clearly not pleased by Discord's hypothesis. “I don't like what you are suggesting. Are you saying we cannot figure out this issue?” “I am just saying that there are two sides to the rainbow,” Discord said, drawing a rainbow above Celestia's head with his hands spreading, “Same spectrum of colors, different angles to view it with.” “If you were talking illusions, I might could follow,” Shining sheepishly admitted, “But you kind of lost me there.” “A rainbow does not always show its whole self,” Celestia explained, “You have to look at it just right to see both ends. The whole pot of gold and midgets in green was probably a horse joke about ponies in general, since ponies will do just about everything.” “I don't think I have ever seen a pony mount or be mounted by a griffon,” Discord mused, “But I can imagine some dragon pony matchups that might be clop worthy. Spike and Twilight maybe?” Celestia narrowed her eyes at Discord with a slight scowl. “Discord! You know that is not what I meant!” Discord winked, pointing out, “I know, if your dear student would have heard the suggestion she might would have fainted. I mean, since she's an alicorn now she would live to see him grow up big and strong...” Shining placed his hooves over his ears, shaking his head gently to get some nightmare from his head. “Just, stop. I would rather be painted with the mental picture of Sombra mounting Luna than my sister and her pet dragon.” “Oddly specific aren't we?” Discord pouted as he slithered over to Shining, putting an arm around the stallion's shoulders, “Come on, that little dressmaker isn't going to live long enough to see Spike's first mating, and the closest thing to him after all is Twilight.” Cadence cringed at the thought, and looked towards Discord with a critical look. “He sees Twilight as a more sisterly or motherly sort of way. Even if that were half true, I think he would take his chances with a random pony off the street before trying Twilight.” “Oh the shipping possibilites of that statement!” Discord shouted in apparent glee, spawning a piece of parchment and an ink letter. He then put on a Twilight impression and dictated to the magical pen. “Dear Princess Celestia. Today, I learned what happens when a dragon and a stallion half his size copulate. It does not end well for the stallion, and I think he is a little less interested in visiting the library, err, castle now. Did you also know that Discord can not just eat paper, but crap it back out too? Please do not ask how I know that.” Despite the oddity of the entire mock report, Celestia's attention seemed to be brought on at that last bit, her expression turning from scolding to curiosity. “Is that true Discord? Do you have that ability?” “Have you ever met a non-goat that can digest paper?” Discord retorted as he put on false reading glasses, “Then again, I am a mix of many things so I will put that as a maybe.” “Well, anything that can digest the material would work, so maybe termites?” Shining suggested. Cadence's face described a look of surprise and shame at the same time as she slowly brought a hoof to face. “We're getting off track, again. The horn and Sombra?” “Boned!” Discord and Shining shout in unison, hoof-claw clapping upon realizing that they were thinking the same exact thing at the same time. Cadence was neither amused or amazed; even Celestia seemed less than pleased, though she showed no signs of it. Cadence would not be so subtle with a face arched in bewilderment. “Come again?” “Quick! We must see if magical mayo emits when it is rubbed!” Discord carried on dispersing the fake report and bringing forth vaseline, “Hand it over Celestia dear!” Celestia almost handed over the horn when she realized what Discord was about to jokingly do with it. She quickly jerked it back, shaking her head at what she almost allowed herself to witness. “What we are getting at is that all of a unicorn's most intimate memories and emotions, if magic was associated, can be brought out from their horn,” Shining explained, laughing at his wife's frustration, “If Sombra could live through his horn, then there would have to be a strong enough emotion and a spell combined that allow this to occur.” “Finally, some progress!” Cadence wrapped her arms once again around Shining, abruptly forcing Discord to take a few steps away from the pair. “I am normally all up for playing around, but this is serious here. Who knows what horrors Twilight is being exposed to.” Twilight seemed to murmur in response, though it was unintelligible. The sounds of shouts were beginning to reach the throne room; Celestia perked her ears forward, for just a moment diverting her attention from the three creatures in front of her. It seemed as if a riot might be building outside; one that needed to be dealt with immediately. Celestia did not really have time for a long, drawn out speech on how everything was being solved as they spoke. Oddly, she was not really in the mood either. There was only one quick solution that she could think of at the time. “Discord, I need you go do some crowd control,” Celestia said with a straight face, “Disperse the group outside. We are taking a trip to the Crystal Empire.” Shining frowned, looking somewhat distraught, though he refrained from pointing out that he had literally just arrived in Canterlot from that very destination. Discord, on the other hand, seemed delighted at the news, and rubbed his hands with a devilish smile. “Are you sure that you want me to perform riot control duties?” Celestia nodded. “I know if there is anyone who can disperse a crowd of 'nobles', it is the spirit of Chaos. Now go forth, and wreck havoc on their orderly protesting." Cadence jumped when Discord shouted in triumph and glee. “It shall be done!” With a snap of his fingers, he was gone, a large poof of smoke temporarily covering the room. Celestia could no longer hold herself back as she smiled wide, almost mischievously. Once the smoke cleared, from the room, she addressed Shining and Cadence. “Now then, we should gather any materials that we will need. Shining, take the horn...” Celestia suddenly brandished a frown more dangerous than any sword at the realization that she no longer held the horn in her magical grasp. “Where is Sombra's horn?” “I thought you had it." Shining frantically turned towards Cadence, who merely shrugged in response. Shouts from outside suddenly rose to a fever pitch, and all three ponies perked their ears in the general direction to listen in. “What a most vile display of obscenity!” “I say, didn't anyone ever tell you not to clop in public?” “Is that... Ew ew ew ew ew!” Yes, they separated each word in that last bit. Similar outcries along with the general sound of flooding suggested to the trio just who had managed to get the horn. “I don't think I want to know what they are ewing about,” Cadence said with a cringe, “I would rather imagine Twilight and Spike.” Shining gave her a look of surprise, while Celestia looked towards the doors with an angry expression. “Discoooord! Give us back that horn!” After ordering the guards to not allow anyone into the throne room under any circumstances (other than at Luna's discretion), retrieving Sombra's horn and returned it to its sack, and leaving a note for Twilight and Luna, the trio hastily boarded the Canterlot train. Why they would choose the train rather than a chariot would be anyone's guess, unless they took into account the weather forecast getting out of Canterlot. Chocolate milk with a side of mayo and cotton candy rained or floated in the skies above Canterlot. Yes, a complete and utter mess that Celestia did not want to force any pegasi to fly through with two alicorns and a fully grown unicorn in tow. Celestia ordered an immediate departure from the scene, lest any of the nobles take note of their hasty get-away. The conductor did not bother asking why, as she was not too keen on sticking around for Discord's version of fireworks. After thanking her for understanding, Celestia returned to the first class train car, ducking as she narrowly avoided ramming her horn into the ceiling. “This, is why I don't normally ride trains." Celestia finally found a seat where her horn was not about to go through the roof, and upon seating, sighed lightly. “My horn's length can be quite the inconvience sometimes.” “You don't have specially made cars?” Cadence inquired, her and Shining sitting together across from Celestia, “Just in case?” “Well, no,” Celestia answered as if it were obvious why, “Why would I ride the train, even in dire circumstances when I can just fly, teleport, or get a chariot ride nigh everywhere?” “Well, you are riding it now,” Shining pointed out, “That has to say something.” “Call it a wild beverage in my mane.” Celestia, in disgust, touched at her ever flowing mane.“I really wish you two would not have made that strange connection back there, no matter how much closer it gets us to our goal.” Shining observed Celestia's mane with some scrutiny. “It is still flowing like there is a wind blowing.” “That doesn't make this milk and mayo any less gross,” Cadence points out, feeling her own mane with a hoof, “Why didn't we just get you to use your bubble shield?” “Because you two were too busy chasing Discord in the strange rain,” Shining answered with a pony shrug, “If it weren't for Celestia ordering him to hand over the horn while her own horn was a blazing yellow lamp, I don't think you two would have ever caught him.” “Those were not exactly optimal flight conditions,” Cadence shot with a glare to match, “And besides, he's a slick guy, he kept slipping through our hooves.” “Dear authors of that insanity,” Celestia murmured while attempting to smooth out some of the offending substance, “Whoever thought to give such powers to a male draconequis must have lost their mind.” “What is that supposed to mean?” Shining challenged, eyeing Cadence as if she had stated it, “You two don't think males are just as competent as females?” “No, it is not that at all,” Cadence replied, “It is just that a feminine touch makes most things go better.” Celestia eyed Cadence with knowing look. “Well, live longer and you will reconsider that statement. There is a reason you send an army of stallions and mares to war and not just an army of mares or just an army of stallions.” “Comic relief?” Cadence playfully hoof cuffed Shining on the shoulder at the suggestion. “No,” Celestia corrected, “Sanity. Being surrounded by mares all day every day is my vision of Tartarus. Every intake has to have some balance.” “The balance of a mounted mare and a teetering stallion,” Shining silently muttered, earning a much harder hoofcuff from his wife, who by now was blushing profusely. Cadence was giggling at Shining's dirty joke, blushing slightly even as she pecked him on the cheek while he rubbed the back of his head again. “Oh Shining, if I could figure out how that mind of yours worked, I would have been the alicorn of of the mind instead of the heart,” Cadence said with narrowed eyes, “Celestia, do you mind giving us some privacy?” This sudden shift in intentions would have caught Celestia off guard a few years ago, but by this point, she had gotten accustomed to Cadence and Shining randomly deciding the best time to get intimate. Considering how long it would take them to get to the Crystal Empire, there really was no reason why they couldn't have a little private time on the way there. They actually wanted some private time, alone, despite being covered in chocolate milk and mayo. Celestia would have pondered that detail, but dismissed asking simply because she had heard, and seen stranger things. Maybe it was a turn on of sorts for the two. “Have at it. Take all the time in the world. Just don't get too noisy. I think I will take this time to think.” Celestia rose from her seat and cautiously walked towards the next train in line, not too eager to delay their coming together. Shortly after leaving the train car, Celestia pondered the relationship seen before her. Was it working? It seemed so, though they both seemed slightly out of character. Maybe it was the environment; the two of them were not used to having to deal with Discord, and frankly, she didn't want them to have to get used to it. Nonetheless, Discord making a connection with Shining was disturbing if not somewhat alarming, as she knew as well as anyone that Discord was not entirely as reformed as he sometimes claimed to be. He could still be just as dangerous and lethal as he had been back in the day. And she just left him alone to keep Canterlot busy while she goes off to the Crystal Empire. In hindsight, maybe that was not such a good idea. Celestia bit her lip gently as she pondered flying out of the windows and returning immediately without delay. Then she considered one point; if Discord were up to no good, she alone would not be able to stop him anyways, and even bringing Twilight and Luna would do no good. They would need the Elements of Harmony; if Discord had gotten enough of that malice back to not remain daftly arrogant, then there would be no way that he would let them gather the Elements against him. No, she just needed to actually trust him for once. Celestia shivered at the thought. Trust Discord? With Canterlot, Luna, and Twilight? Nope, she was seriously losing it if she was even considering that. After memorizing the train car that she was in, Celestia teleported herself in a yellow flash, re-appearing promptly in her throne room. Luna and Twilight remained slumbering, clearly undisturbed. Celestia's curiosity nagged at her; just what kinds of things were Twilight being exposed to? There were many times when she and Luna had been apart from each other back in those days; even now, the two hardly just sat down and enjoyed each other's company. What kind of experiences did Luna have that she did not tell her? Celestia chuckled to herself, figuring that Luna would either open up about them sooner rather than later, or Twilight would tell her. Celestia then swiftly face hooved, though brought her hoof down after making contact, a thin red welp having formed on her face, “Ow.” The point of the gesture was not to do it fast and hard, and that was precisely what the alicorn did. She really was losing it, but what could be the cause? Sleep deprivation could not have been the cause; she had stayed up nearly 24/7 for a thousand years and hardly showed too many negative signs of it. But then again, she got pushed back by Chrysalis, entrusted Nightmare Moon's restoration to the new Elements without much of a backup plan, and, among other things, didn't keep Discord in the dark about returning the Elements to the Tree of Harmony. Maybe that sleep deprivation was affecting her in subtle ways that were only being intensified by stressful situations. “I hope they aren't too involved,” Celestia said with a yawn, all the thinking about sleeping making her drowsy, “I had best get Cadence if I am about to drift off again so soon...” With a swoon, the princess of the day nearly dropped to the floor before she once again thought up the area that she had left. With a single yellow flash, she once again returned to that train car. A distinct odor told her that her brief absence suggested to the duo that that particular car, that she had wandered into earlier, was a fine place for their activities, as if they had not watched her walk right into that train car.. Perhaps more to her relief than anything else's, the two were merely very close to each other, getting into position when the flash of light told them that Celestia had arrived. Obviously seeing Shining and Cadence like this was not what she had planned, but knowing somepony, they would swear that she had planned this. Conspiracy theorists were always trying to make her out as omnipresent. Such was the life of being in the right place at the right time, almost every time. “Princess Celestia!” Shining commented with a surprise, “That was quick.” “I was just getting ready to nod anyways,” Cadence joked as she gently tapped Shining with her wings as a signal for him to get off. Reluctantly, Shining began dismounting when Celestia ordered, “No, you are two are going to proceed. I have stayed awake for much longer than this before, not to mention I just slept a little while ago.” They needed hardly any second bidding, and as Celestia left them this time, she wondered when she should tell Cadence how physically futile it was to try to get comfortable for romping in a train car. It just was not going to happen, standing, laying down, there was just not a comfortable way to go about it. After all these years, she could safely say that none of her subjects had ever succeeded; but those two were resourceful, Celestia mused. Maybe they would find a way to make it a pleasant experience. A brief shake in the train brought a thump and an outburst from the other car. “Damn shaking!” Celestia giggled, guessing that Shining had lost his balance. The alicorn, despite having just gotten her rest, couldn't help but start to drift back to sleep again as she went back to her seat in the first car. She eyed the sack with Sombra's horn in it, wondering if there truly could have been any harm in leaving it alone for a small while. Another yawn, and the alicorn began drifting back to her memories, or to sleep. They were kind of meshing together, so she had a hard time telling which was which. Just before clocking out, she strode into a nearby seating booth, checked the surroundings for obscene amounts of filth, and once satisfied, rested her head on the large train car window. She did not plan on sleeping for long, but for the time she spent sleeping, she wanted to at least be easily awakened if trouble began rocking the train for whatever reason. Leaving the capital last had been quite the chore. Not only were their subjects constantly fighting the lingering windigoes, but they were also dealing with an unexpected, combined force assault from griffons, dragons, and various other creatures. Those still loyal to the Empire were vastly outnumbered, though Celestia had tried her best to even out the numbers. Even as she dressed Sombra's wounds, she could not help but wonder how things would have been different had the Republic still been in power. Interrupted from her thoughts was a raspy voice, an irritated one at that. "Can you please stop that knocking?" Sombra's crystal chamber was very plain, with his large, cushion bed being the most stand-out object in the entire living space. It bore a large, very rounded cushion stuffed in a rectangular crystal cabin bed; needless to say, when stretched out, the stallion took up every inch of the bed. A persistent knocking at the door once again disturbed the peace, and while Celestia had been tempted to bark at them to leave, she knew very well that that would be rude. Plus, Sombra might actually be getting a visitor today. "Three days and nopony has come to stop by and see me." Sombra rolled over to face the door with a slightly amused look on his face. "I wonder who has come to ask about the state of your sanity." Celestia ignored Sombra and used her magic to open the door. Standing at the doorway was none other than the current Captain of the Imperial Guard, Casaer Salad. In another world it would be a brilliant pun on the popular dish, but nopony made fun of Casaer to his face. He was a bulky stallion; even with his armor on it could be plain to see that there was incredible force behind any of the earth pony's blows. His bright red coat seemed to clash greatly with his dark blue mane and crimson armor. Though his cutie mark was hidden, Celestia recalled that it was a heart with an arrow through it. Nonetheless, azure eyes looked Celestia horn to hoof before Casaer cleared his throat. "Evening Princess Celestia, I trust you are doing well?" Celestia smiled. "No need for all the formality Salad, we were classmates after all. Please, come in." "Yeah, come on in," Sombra sarcastically greeted, "I could use a study buddy. A few stiches in my bed cushion have a really odd color." Casaer blushed slightly, before sheepishly stepping inside. "Well, you know what today is right?" Celestia tilted her head to the side in confusion. Sombra chuckled, and then rolled onto his back, hooves behind his head. "Today would be the start of the season here in the Crystal Empire, but my grandparent's on my mother's side decided that Hearts and Hooves day would be a better way to express it." Casaer looked towards Sombra incredulously, mouth open. "I was told a very different story outside." "Yeah well, we tell it differently everytime we tell it." Sombra rolled over with a grunt, his back now to the room's other two occupants. "Do what you have to. I won't tell." "Actually, I came here to give Celestia a much less invasive gift." Sombra chuckled at that, but made no move to turn back towards the pair. Celestia's smile fell as she figured that it was a gift exchange sort of celebration. "Oh but Salad, I did not get you anything..." Casaer looked up at Celestia, removing his helmet as he gestured towards the door. "Well, that is alright, we should be able to eat this together." Much to Celestia's surprise, a large cake entered the chamber, rolled in by some unseen force. While Casaer seemed perplexed by this, he nonetheless proceeded to stride over to it. The cake was incredibly simple; it was a large, circular yellow pound cake with some bits of frosting and sprinkles here and there for decoration. At the very top sat a large pink heart. "I know how much of a sweetooth you can sometimes have, so I had the Guards whip you up something special for the occasion." Casaer smiled, tossing his helmet to the side. "Do you like it?" While Celestia had to admit that she was less than overwhelmed by the design, the cake was nearly as large as she was, and considering the scarce resources that only got more scarce over the past few days since their arrival, this in itself was a tremendous effort. Besides, it was rather thoughtful. Just as Celestia took a step forward, some sixth sense told her to step back. She obeyed her sixth sense with an uncanny jerk backwards, just moments before the cake burst. Cake flew in every which direction, and every nerve in Celestia's body was on edge as she instinctively closed her eyes from the flying baked goods. When she opened them again, she was greeted by a strange sight. Appearing out the top of the cake was Luna, arms outstretched and wings flared, a silly grin on her face. "Surprise!" Sombra instantly shifted in bed to see what the commotion was all about. His face lit up, no doubt because of Casaer's surprised facial expression and the sight of Celestia covered in cake and frosting. Good thing they did not have cameras back then; those Cutie Mark Crusaders would have had a field day with a photo of that, not to mention the press in Canterlot. Luna happily hopped from the cake's remnants, leaving behind two stunned ponies as she walked straight up to Sombra. "Sorry it took me so long, it has been really hard sneaking out. Mother is about as vigilant as a griffon on patrol duty." Sombra's face returned to a more neutral expression in an attempt to hide his apparent joy at seeing Luna. "I can't believe you actually came to visit me." Celestia shook her mane clear of some of the cake, though bits of sprinkles had ingrained themselves quite well, flowing just as majestically as her hair. A stunned Casaer finally recovered, shaking his own head clear of his expression. "What were you doing in my cake?!" The Captain turned towards Luna with obvious signs of anger. Celestia guessed that Casaer had every intent on eating that cake, which of course was now all over the room. Luna paid him little mind, though Sombra's horn flared red in warning. While his body was not up for a fight, his magic was, and the deposed king still had some level of pride. Not wanting a fight to break out, Celestia immediately stood between the two groups. "Listen, I am sure Luna had a good reason to not just ruin your cake, but also deliberately disobey Mother." "She would have locked me in that chamber for the rest of my life!" Luna wailed dramatically, her top half falling across Sombra, "There was just no other way to sneak past the guards!" "How did you even get into my cake?" Casaer's anger seemed to subside ever so slightly as he relaxed his posture. He had resigned that he wouldn't have won that fight anyways, and now it boiled down to how Luna pulled it off. "It was easy once you started showing it off to the guards," Luna pointed out as she plopped her upper half onto Sombra, much to his dismay, "All I needed to do was shape-shift into something small, burrow my way to the core of the cake, and then return to normal when needed." "Mind getting off me?" Sombra cringed as Luna had unwittingly snapped a rib with a playful hoof stomp to his chest. Luna, realizing that Sombra was not yet fully recovered for any sort of horseplay, rose from her place and promptly began apologizing. Celestia tuned them out and instead focused on Casaer, who seemed less than happy with these turn of events. "Well, it is the thought that counts." Celestia gently nudged him with a hoof, but it only seemed to make his mood worse as he turned for his helmet. Feeling a level of sympathy for her old classmate, Celestia gave the stallion a quick peck on the cheek, just as the sound of stomping hooves emanated from the hallway. By the sounds of it, the owner had just stopped at the door of the chamber. In mere seconds the guard and Celestia both looked towards the door, only to see Solaria standing there, her burning gaze seeking out the first victim of her wrath. Celestia knew that her mother was angry not just from her tense body language and rigid stance, but the slight hoof imprints she left in the floor. "Captain, you are excused." Solaria eyed Casaer as he made a motion to peck Celestia on the cheek before heading off; Celestia allowed it, though couldn't help but cringe as her mother stared Casaer right out of the room. Her fiery gaze then turned towards Luna and Sombra, the latter of which actually returned her gaze. Celestia could tell from the twitch in her lip that that was probably the most irritating thing about Sombra that the Empress had to put up with. "Luna, did I not tell you to stay away from Sombra, and more recently, to stay in your chambers until further notice?" Solaria's seething rage seemed amplified once she stomped into the room, wings outstretched menacingly. Getting cake on her hooves apparently was not of concern by this point. Celestia sidestepped into the path of the angry alicorn, looking her mother in the eye as she pointed out, "Luna was just making sure Sombra was still kicking, since his own subjects don't seem all that concerned about his welfare. I see nothing wrong with it." Solaria, despite still being angry, took a deep breath, and visibly calmed down. Celestia sometimes had that kind of effect on ponies. "Of courses, just visiting. No harm can come from that, even if it is against both of my direct orders." "Something else is bothering you more than Luna paying me a visit," Sombra concluded, arching a brow, "And whatever it is, it must be serious." Luna looked from Sombra to Solaria, as if that would grant her an answer. Solaria gave Sombra a look before motioning with her hoof towards the open doorway. "Go Luna. Close it on the way out." Luna began to protest, but Sombra jokingly gave her a good whack on the backside. If Sombra had been aching before from a broken rib, Luna's reflexive stomp to the stomach would probably not improve his condition. As the stallion groaned, grimaced, and clutched his stomach in pain, Luna hastily left the room. "Oh, and try your hoof at some of the games around here," Solaria called out right before Luna left, "Make some friends. I'm sure it will take your mind off of what just happened." To this day Celestia cannot fathom how Sombra's actions there did not send Solaria over the edge again. As the door closed, Solaria produced in an orange flash a large scroll. Celestia had to take a few steps back just to keep from getting rolled over as it unfurled, revealing a lengthy exposition of sorts. The writing was cursive and elegant, though riddled with editing marks. The fact that the parchment was getting gently soaked in cake did not remove the apparent significance of the document. "What is this?" Celestia inquired, looking at the text wall before her, "It looks fairly recent." "It is." Solaria spat on an edge of the parchment, a gesture made even more disgusting by the fact that did not bother trying to look elegant while doing it. And by the fact that there was still mildly edible cake all over the place. "It is a declaration of independence. As of today, they consider themselves the Triarchy of Pony Tribes or something to that effect. Three separate tribes allied in a confederation about as loose as Sombra's morals." "To be fair, she sent me some very suggestive gestures before I went there," Sombra grunted in response, rolling over onto his stomach, hooves dangling over the side of the bed as he eyed the parchment, "And besides, I really do not think she minded very much." "She probably did not have the words to express how much she disliked the gesture." Solaria circled over to the left side of the parchment (from Celestia's view at the bottom) and pointed at a particular passage. "Can you believe that they are denouncing alicorns altogether? They have quite the nerve!" "Well, what are you going to do about it?" Sombra actually smiled, clearly enjoying this conversation, "I happen to own the largest collection of shackles in the entire Empire." Solaria laughed, actually laughed out loud, at the suggestion. Celestia did not get the joke, at the time, and could only stare quizzically at the inside joke between these two relative strangers, looking back and forth between the two with a confused expression. "Nah, I would kill them all before I outright enslave them." Solaria wiped a tear from her eye. Despite smiling all the while, one could tell that she was dead serious with her answer. "Besides, it is not like we can feed them all anyways if they continue to stay here in such numbers." "So what were you so mad about?" Sombra furrowed his brows and scrunched up his face, as if he were attempting to think through the reasoning behind this. "That they would have the nerve to send it to me through a crystal pony instead of one of our own representatives," Solaria answered as she rolled the large scroll back up, "Cowards, all of them." "Yeah well, seeing me get my flank kicked probably did not inspire them to pick a fight with you. Never know when you might fly off the balcony and start clubbing them with that monstrous strength of yours." "He makes a point," Celestia chimed, figuring this was a good place to butt in, "Speaking of which, I do not think he needs me to attend to him any longer." "Celestia dear, have you not enjoyed this time with Sombra?" Solaria's sarcasm was either very well hidden or absent, much to Celesita's chagrin. "No, I have not enjoyed dressing his wounds and listen to him do things at night to himself that would scar a filly for life." Celestia did not attempt to coat the contempt in her voice. Sombra was not a bad pony, but he was a stallion; had his bed not been creaking all night Celestia would not have minded as much. "Sombra, why exactly are you doing that when there is a perfectly viable mare in the room?" Solaria seemed genuinely concerned, and even Sombra seemed quite irritated with her approach to this delimma. "Listen, nothing personal, but I and Celestia are clearly not compatible, even if the pieces might would fit. Honestly, if you would just let me and Luna have a chance..." Solaria snapped her gaze onto Sombra, her eyes flaring up again and her wings extended as she stomped over to Sombra's bed. She lowered her head ever so slightly so that she could be eye level with Sombra. As usual, he met her steely gaze. "You lost your bet, so for all intensive purposes, I say who you mate with and when, especially when it comes to either of my daughters. You and Celestia would have probably given me grands by now had it not been for Discord's meddling." "Thank the stars for that." Sombra grinned wide, his face taking a more sinister sort of look. "If I didn't have any value to you, I would not still be around now would I?" Solaria raised her head and, with a surprising amount of glamour considering her slightly disheveled mane, turned towards the door, gaze fixed on her new destination. "I am going to help the new confederation get settled into their homeland for the next few weeks. If you two are still in stark resistance, then I will have to resort to drastic measures." And with that, she was off, opening and closing the door without missing a beat. Celestia sighed. She was beginning to regret her earlier enthusiasm for having a fiancé; it was turning into a headache. "Listen Celestia, she is going to get her way one way or the other." Celestia turned towards Sombra, who seemed to have a resigned look on his face now that Solaria was gone. "That is, until you stand up to her more often. Luna is not the only one suffering from this engagement." "Maybe..." Celestia admitted, just hardly at any rate. Sombra shot up, glaring at Celestia. "No maybe's Celestia. You can't explore what could be for yourself while you are still chained up to me." Celestia shook her head, looking away from Sombra, wings drooped as her mood seemed to take a turn for the worse. "What do you suggest? I have no intentions on fighting my own mother over something like this." Asking for Sombra's advice; a new low of sorts. "If Solaria sees that I am more of a danger than anything else, she might reconsider and just chop me off the block and ascend another stallion." Sombra shifted and tried to use his hooves to sit up; despite the strain, a determined look never wavered from his eyes. "Or better yet, just to get me out of her mane faster, she would just allow me to flesh out my relationship with Luna and ascend for you the stallion of your dreams. Win-win situation." "And if she instead decides to actually take your life?" "Well then, at least you can explore your options some more. Three possibilities, two of which where at least one of us benefits, while the third benefits both of us." Celestia seemed uneasy. This was a rather under-hooved thing to do, especially since her mother normally had a rather appealing vision in mind, even when the steps getting there were a bit rough. This would almost be like a betrayal of sorts. Then again, she did state that she and Sombra needed to get along better. Celestia finally turned towards Sombra, who's front limbs were shaking from the exertion of holding him up. "Very well then. What is the plan?" "It is Only a Tragedy if You Fail"Twilight jerked awake, as if something had struck her. Frantically searching the room, she spotted a lone piece of parchment, addressed, “Luna and Twilight”. As if that were not obvious enough that it were for them, no one else remained in the chamber, suggesting that it was a letter detailing where Celestia and Cadence had went. Shaking off sleepiness, the alicorn trotted over to the letter, and began reading its contents: Dear Luna and Twilight, A possible lead has directed my attentions towards the Crystal Empire. While I am gone, I am expecting you two to stay in Canterlot, going no further than Ponyville. Discord should be handling any sort of riots... Twilight gasped in alarm, perking her ears for signs of mayhem. The silence was less comforting than a battering ram to the front door. Riots, in Canterlot? In her panic, Twilight had not noticed Luna approaching the letter with a sleepy expression. “What does it say?” Luna slowly blinked, likely pondering over whether to bother reading the letter or not. “There is or was a riot in Canterlot!” Twilight spoke far more calmly than she felt, though she was shouting in exasperation. Luna raised a brow, perked her ears towards the door, and then shook her head. “If they are rioting, then they must be as quiet as your friend Fluttershy. I do not hear any rioting.” “Princess Celestia sent Discord to quell it.” At saying this aloud, Twilight's eyes suddenly widened as if she only just now realized the implications of a rampaging Discord. “We better check on the city!” Just before Twilight could dash off, Luna, now more awake from this second outburst, held out a hoof. “Do not be so hasty. I believe you failed to read the rest of the letter.” Luna assumed that Celestia would have more tact than to end on such a worrisome note, as under different circumstances even Luna might would have rushed out without a second thought. Realizing that she had stopped halfway through, Twilight returned to the letter, quickly scanning over the remaining contents. ...riots, but do not worry. Focus on dealing with the big problem at hand. Oh, and Shining Armor says hi.” “My brother was here?” Twilight's puzzled expression and incredulous tone spoke volumes about her reaction. “I have no doubt that my sister has decided to take action right here in the real world.” Luna furled up the letter. With a single hoof swipe, she sent it rolling towards the throne, apparently disinterested in putting it up somewhere. “Why didn't she wake us?” Twilight's ears and wings drooped, the thought of her brother visiting and not greeting her weighing her down. “I bet we all could have figured it out faster.” “As Discord would put it, when you sleep with me, you sleep with death.” Luna recounted Discord's joke vividly, as even while sleeping she hardly missed a beat of what was going on in the real world. “You do not wake until I say so, and I decided to keep us asleep for the sake of story flow. No need to interrupt in any awkward places.” “Well then, I guess we should go straight back to sleep then.” Twilight seemed to accept that answer, though it did not improve her outlook. Luna shook her head, taking to the air in flurry of feathers. “Not yet, there is something around here that I need to check on. Go grab lunch and return here.” Twilight opened her mouth to protest, but her rumbling stomach beat her to the punch. Relenting, Twilight walked off to the kitchens while Luna hovered in the throne room. When Twilight had left the room, Luna dived straight for the floor. Rather than crashing into the floor, she went straight through it. Within moments, she was in a different location of sorts, presumably beneath the castle. It was dark, pitch black really. The air chilled to the very bone, and the dead silence would have unnerved any other pony. Luna used her horn to light up this area, illuminating a large crystal cave of sorts. Canterlot being built originally to mine the valuable crystals was not a huge secret. What was a secret was that the mine was far older than most realized. For the longest time, this had been the source of the Ponī Republic's valuable gems, until they discovered the Crystal Empire to the north. The mine was not abandoned until the fall of the Empire, but it had been partially reused after Discord's defeat. Ironic how falling Empires both opened and closed the mine. Luna smiled at the thought, but did not relish in it long. There was no time to lose, especially since Twilight was soon to return to the throne room. No doubt she would take Luna's absence the wrong way, particularly if Discord still ran free around Canterlot. Searching the crystal caves, Luna walked into a tunnel, soon emerging into very large cavern. Most of the cavern led to a sheer drop down below, so far down that even with Luna's horn light, the bottom could not be seen; anyone without a light source, or without knowing such a trap existed, would drop to their doom down below. No doubt scavengers had learned that the hard way. Luna did not have time to check on the strange odor wafting from the place. The part of the floor that remained at standing level narrowly led towards a center platform, the crystalline structure dully reflecting Luna's horn glow. On this platform sat a large tome encased in magic. “Seems no intruders have yet to break that,” Luna mused as she glided over the large gap, having little need to try her luck with the bridge. Landing in front of the large tome, Luna dispelled the barrier spell, and looked at the cover. Laminated on the front was the head of a unicorn with a curved horn; Sombra's personal icon. Of course, next to it also was a crescent moon, Luna's own iconic image. The cover had been made by Luna herself in her spare time waiting for their departure from the Crystal Empire. “Let us see what kind of magic we are dealing with here,” Luna muttered to herself as she opened to the first page with her magic. The idea to check this tome had come to mind when Celetia had mentioned something about possible leads in the Crystal Empire. Right on the front cover was a disclaimer, or as Luna preferred to call it, a warning: This is the edited version of House of Umbra: Dark Magic, so certain things may have been omitted or lost in translation. Under penalty of despair, misery, and utter destruction, do not read or attempt any of these while charged with emotions. Luna doubled check her own self for a moment. Other than nostalgia, she really was not in a highly emotional state, unlike the last time she had come here. Yes, the last time she had come here she had been quite jealous of Celestia, and had been reading in frustration. Lesson learned; heed warnings that she had personally helped to craft. This edited version lacked many of the endless notes that Sombra's family had taken while composing the volumes, but was far easier to read, not to mention the footnotes contained some of the important bits. More importantly, Luna knew of this version's last resting place, though she suspected that the original had been stashed away in the Crystal Empire somewhere. Reading the table of contents, Luna found the particular chapter that she desired. Courtesy of Luna – The World of Dreams Flipping to it, the pages made a crispy, wind-blown noise that suggested that the book was far newer than it really was. Luna's ears perked as she heard what sounded like hoofsteps. Echoing through this very room? Highly unlikely. She listened again, but they instead sounded like they were coming from above. “Maybe they have done some digging in the thousand years I have been gone,” Luna mused as she gazed directly above her. The tall ceiling released bits of dust as whoever stood above rushed from one end of the room to the other. Deducing that it must be the kitchen above, and that Twilight's meal must be underway, Luna gazed back towards the tome. She would not have time to revisit the entire chapter in mind; she would need to cut to the chase if she wanted to be back in time. Scanning over a few passages, Luna paused at a particular turn of phrase, her face scrunching up as she read. Nightmares are largely illusions; however, just like fantasies, they can become quite real, and vice versa. The most powerful kind of dream magic has the power to turn illusions into reality, and vice versa. This would allow the user to, in theory, create anything that their mind can come up with, and for good reason, is a very difficult and restricted feat. Even Luna has trouble with it. The uses are endless, as one would imagine. One can turn the past into a recordable dream that can be set to play; this allows for the subconscious storage of information, only to be played when certain dreamers and dream walkers trigger it. The only danger to this is that the dreamscape may also house alternate realities, so what we think of as alter egos are very real in that world. Nightmare Moon came to mind when reading that. Ears still perked upwards, the continued sound of scurrying encouraged Luna to continue. If you put your own history into the dreamscape, someone would have the ability to play it out to an alternate universe, or even to those around you, with or without your consent. It is implied that control of dreams is required to do this, but it is not that straightforward. Luna stiffened, her eyes narrowing in on that last sentence. It seemed very straightforward; in order to alter dreams, then one would need to have the power to control dreams. One cannot just control something that they have no ability for. No, since we all have alter egos, formed by the different parallels alluded to in chapter two and the dreamscape's own design, then the danger of this technique is not in that others will abuse it, but we unwittingly allow ourselves to abuse it. Perhaps for political or military gain. I will have to seek Luna's council when she returns from Equestria in order to know for sure how that would work out. Luna chuckled bitterly, slamming the tome shut. After leaving the Crystal Empire, Celestia and she would not return as friends, but as banishers. Of course, if she had to guess, Sombra had written this shortly after they had left, and had probably not yet fully enslaved the populace of his own kingdom and instigated their intervention. Nonetheless, Luna felt that this was an important piece of the puzzle; it became clear to her that the answer, in reality, was probably not in the Crystal Empire, but right here inside her own mind. However, if she were to tell Twilight this right now, she would no doubt ask how she had figured this out. Telling her about this book was punishable by death. Luna laughed at this thought, likely looking hysterical were anyone to be watching her crack up next to this giant book. Who was going to punish her, herself? Not even Celestia knew about this version as of yet. Luna abruptly stopped laughing. No, Celestia did not know about this edition, but she did know about the original volume hidden away in the Crystal Empire. Even if Celestia had a remote clue as to what was going on by now, that tome would likely be the first place to look, and she would recognize Luna's hoofwork in the print. And start connecting imaginary dots together. The last thing Luna needed was for her sister to start suspecting her of causing trouble again. Celestia dealt with betrayal rather well, but she would no doubt preemptively strike to prevent a second double crossing, real or imagined. That meant that Luna needed to solve this mess before Celestia found that tome that held undeniable proof that her attempt at overthrowing her all those years ago had been very much premeditated. That put a time limit on things. It would take roughly two days for her to arrive at the Crystal Empire if she went by chariot using her standard pegasus flyers. It would take her a few more days just to find the tome, though if she employed the entire Empire she could probably find it in just one. Three days maximum time, as Celestia would definitely put the crystal ponies to work in solving this mystery. Without arousing Twilight's suspicions, she needed to send her off in order to personally deal with this without interruption; but how could she pull that off? She did not stop at a suitable point for this kind of transition. She needed to show Twilight something else that might put her mind into overdrive. She needed a distraction. Looking towards the book again, Luna made a half-grin as an idea came to mind. As she encased it in magic once more, she gently tapped it with her hoof. “I guess how I ended up helping in your creation will have to do. I will have to skip some things, but I am sure she will not proest.” The book just floated there, as if agreeing with the idea. Luna frowned, as she realized that she had just been talking to the book as if it would answer her. Shaking her head, Luna retreated from the cavern, making her return to the throne room in the opposite manner in which she left. Upon getting back, she dropped to the floor with a clop. Carefully she dusted herself off to pass the time, impatiently awaited Twilight's return. After what felt like hours (but was more like a few minutes) Twilight strode through the doors regally, the guards watching her go in with stern expressions right before closing the doors behind her. Luna had been hoping that Twilight had brought them both lunch, as privately she wouldn't have minded snacking while explaining to Twilight the next jump. Twilight, however, had apparently already eaten, a single crumb stubbornly hanging onto her right cheek as proof. “Toast?” Luna used magic to levitate the distracting piece of food from Twilight's face. Twilight had apparently paid the grooming little mind, and instead eyed Luna. “You did not go anywhere while I ate?” Seemed like an innocent enough question, but Luna knew that Twilight was just trying to get some answers. Typical student to interrogate in such a harmless manner. “I did, and I just figured out where our next visit is going to be.” Luna smiled, but Twilight seemed skeptical of the response. Perhaps in part because she had so obviously dodged the question posed. Celestia's prized student pressed no further into the matter, and instead propped herself up onto one of the cushions from earlier. “So where are we going next?” She laid down to get more comfortable, likely assuming that Luna would put her to sleep again with minimal warning. “Mother decided that it would be best if I made some friends while in the Crystal Empire, and that I should keep my distance from Sombra.” Luna mirrored Twilight's actions, wanting to get somewhat comfortable for this next bit. Twilight eyed Luna inquisitively, lost in the sudden time skip. “Wait, why would she want to keep you and Sombra apart? You two hit it off so well.” Sombra smacking her rear would have been a startling response to that question, but that was not the whole story anyways, so that answer would probably do more harm than good. Luna paused for a moment to try to figure out the best way to explain without having to describe that particular incident. “Mother had some other plan in motion, the likes of which I was oblivious to for a some time. I and Sombra really connecting would have interfered.” Twilight rested her head onto her front hooves, her face scrunching up in thought. “So, how did that friend search go?” “Much better than recently,” Luna joked, giggling at the comparison, “Not being the long-lost sister of the in charge ruler, and not being the one who tried to overthrow her so that you could shroud the world in eternal night out of jealously most likely improved the situation.” Twilight couldn't help but giggle, Luna's joke having a surprising amount of truth to it. Aside from those two things, there really had been no reason for any pony to fear her, much less be terrified of her very image. “Let us get started shall we?” Luna's horn glowed, and Twilight drifted off to sleep much more subtly than before. Once asleep, Luna forced herself to doze off, though made sure to direct her dreaming. Twilight would catch a glimpse of what brought her and Sombra together to pool their knowledge for the sake of that tome; and no doubt she would also paint her mother in a more, motherly, sort of way. The death of Nightshade, Emperor of the Ponī Empire, had shattered the faith of many of their subjects. Many of them had given up relying on the alicorns and struck out on their own. Their settlements would have varied degrees of success, but needless to say, Solaria still tried to keep an eye on them, and often oversaw their operations. This gave Luna and Celestia an almost unprecedented amount of autonomy over their own lives, though Solaria sternly warned Luna to stay away from Sombra once more before heading off. Wanting to distract herself from Sombra, Luna sought out a passtime. Finding friends among the remaining Ponīn ponies had not been greatly difficult once Luna began participating in sports. No longer confined to her room, Luna felt a sort of freedom in being able to fly, teleport, or run wherever she so chose, whenever she so chose. She thus fit in perfectly with some of the former Guard members, who, for the most part, had hardly anything else that could keep up their physique but play games. No creatures intruded on the city's grounds, and the windigoes kept their distance as well. With so little to defend against, the large Guard nearly disbanded, though some of them remained doing standard patrol duties and such. Most of the games that the off duty Guard members participated in were very physically taxing, in order to both keep them in shape and as an opportunity to show off. Luna strongely recalled that one of her favorite games from the old days was a sort of ultimate discbee of sorts, where a pony hurled a disc in a certain manner, and another pony had to catch it and move about to certain places. Increase the number of participants and things very quickly got heated. At the forefront of this was Luna herself, who, as the only alicorn playing, clearly had an advantage over any other individual participant. Despite being royalty, the stallions and mares, crystal and non-crystal alike, did not go easy on her, and made it a point to try to take her out early using almost every dirty trick in the book. This sort of violence, the tackling and even occasional punching, seemed to be right up the princess' alley. In one particular game, the score was tied, the participants were dirty, and for a rare opportunity in the empire, no one felt all that hungry. Not because food had suddenly started growing from crystals like rainbows, but because they were too focused on the game. Luna, despite taking a horn to the jaw and some hooves in places she would have rathered those now knocked out ponies not having touched, was clearly holding up better than many others. Her team was battered, many receiving the same treatment; they fared worse, for obvious reasons of alicorn vs regular pony resilience. Their opponents didn't look too much better, but it was all in good fun. The disc was their toss; in order to win with one minute left, they needed to very quickly, and decisively, get that disc from their opponents. Luna, knowing that the other side of the field was the goal, took the disc in a single hoof, and with a powerful toss, hurled the speeding projectile clear across the field. Their opponents had been expecting this, and a particularly fast pegasus intercepted it. “Don't let Hurricane make it past this line!” Luna shouted to her teammates as she drew a line in the dirt where she stood, whom roared in eager compliance. Luna and two flyers quickly took to the skies, bearing down on Hurricane and her two supports as if they were going to war. In response, the opposing formation tightened on Hurricane, their attention on Luna in particular. The unicorns below fired a few stun spells upward; unicorns on the other side blocked or intercepted them with their own spells, making this a mostly aerial duel. The earth ponies largely stationed themselves at the two ends of the field. Wings outstretched, Luna waited till the formations nearly collided for her to perform one of the oldest tricks in the book; the passing snatch. By barreling past her opponents, her formation literally letting the game of chicken take its course, their opponents though that they were home free as they swerved out of the way of the seemingly reckless alicorn. But Hurricane was not so easily tricked, and immediately flew around to chase Luna, whom had focused her magic for a levitation spell to retrieve the disc from Hurricane's very hooves during the pass. Why they didn't carry it in their mouths would be a mystery, unless one were to look at the dirty and even slightly bloody disc. Only desperate times would make a call for that. Much to her surprise, the rainbow maned flyer was gaining on her, and fast. Luna decided that diving was the best course of action, since she needed to be on the ground to score anyways. With twenty eight seconds left, she began her descent, hovering the disc directly in front of her as her own group flew back in an attempt to intercept Hurricane and her teammates. However, a sudden boom nearly knocked Luna's eardrums out, causing her to lose her grip on the disc. She clamped her hooves to her ears, cringing at the loud and seeming close noise. Suddenly, something rocketed past her, the lag behind it wrapping Luna in a doozy of vibrant colors. Before Luna knew it, the ground came up in view, and she abruptly landed on her front two hooves. Or, attempted to anyways. While that lessened the initial impact, Luna still found herself rolling, hitting the goalpost with an audible CLANG, her body vibrating from the collision. Falling back into the ground, consciousness flickering, Luna couldn't help but wonder what she had just been hit with. Already she could feel her body attempting to heal itself of its latest injury, numbness surging with feeling again. Then came the pain. Luna wailed, a pounding headache taking precedence over the rest of her aching body. Her ribs felt like they had given some ground at last, and her arms were ablaze with a stinging fire. She felt a few other things might have also been injured, though pride topped the remainder on her list. “What the hell was that?” Luna rolled over onto her stomach, her face contorted in pain as she looked towards her dazzled teammates. Many of them were also on the ground, and they all were staring towards the other side of the field. Shockingly enough, Hurricane had somehow made it clear across the field, discus in hoof, and was slamming it into the ground, while her own teammates hoisted her into the air, despite their injuries. Limping to the center of the field, the contestants said “Good game” and shook hooves. Some more pained than others, but all with a smile on their face. Luna and Hurricane were last up, for obvious reasons other than Luna having to practically be dragged to the center field. “I think I will name that a Sonic Rainboom,” Hurricane proudly stated, “I have never felt a rush like that! Like, a need for speed that just overwhelemed all other forms of utter sensibility! I cannot even describe with one word...” “Yes yes, it was awesome.” Luna cut her off abruptly, her own struck ego partially causing the interruption, “It surely did a number on me. Next time though...” Luna slowly, but painfully winked, “Next time, your rainbow will have the stars to compete with.” They all laughed, some holding their ribs, and then limped from the playing field. Luna tried to maintain her pride and limp from the field on her own power, despite her front hooves screaming just from holding her in one place. Thankfully, Luna could save some dignity by flying towards the castle, where she would get some sort of royal treatment. Her wings were in far better shape than the rest of her, and though landing would no doubt be a touchy issue, at least some weight would be lifted from her injuries. The discus had been granted to Hurricane, and now that Luna was in the infirmary, she realized just how light she felt without her usual trophy. The infirmary was quite plain; not a crystal in sight. White walls, white tile floors, Luna began to wonder if she was even in the Crystal Empire anymore. She lay in a bed of sorts, its size barely fitting her entire length. It didn't matter, Luna preferred dangling her hooves over the sides anyways. While the nurses proclaimed that she would be fine enough to be left alone, Luna knew better than to think that they would not report her injuries to Celestia. After all, with Solaria gone, there were few other ponies with any sort of power over her. A soft knock at the wooden door confirmed that the nurses had galloped to rat her out to her older sister. Celestia's entry was accommodated with a gasp. The white alicorn rushed to Luna's side, dripping with restrained concern. “Oh my goodness, are you alright?” Celestia worridedly inquired, checking the princess over, “Are you hurt?” Luna still reasoned that Celestia had been told about her injuries, so rather than elaborating, Luna merely looked her sister in the eye, sarcasm prepared specifically for this moment. “What do you think?” Luna jokingly jabbed, playfully clutching her left set of ribs. Desiring to change the subject, Luna decided to elaborate in a more excited manner the stunt that had sent her to the infirmary. “You should have been there! Hurricane did this really awesome stunt in the field...” “Luna, you need to be more careful,” Celestia chastised, as if she were talking to a foal, “You can't just be running around injuring yourself, not with food supplies so scarce.” “Would you rather I sit around all day and mope about the one meal a day situation that, in hindsight, is not that bad?” Luna continued to joke, failing to see the seriousness of the matter. “I am sure that will make things better.” “No, but perhaps you could pick up a good book,” Celestia suggested, “Try reading from the volumes in the library. Sombra in his spare time pours over the place like its his job, and even writes in some tome of his.” “It is his job,” Luna retorted, “He has to know as much as possible about ruling if he is to have any redemption with his subjects.” “And so do you have need for that knowledge." Celestia's stern expression, cast down upon Luna, almost made Luna feel like a mere foal again, being chewed out for not taking her lessons more seriously. “You are someday going to be ruling a vast empire alongside me. Now you may not busy yourself with political theory as I do, but starting tomorrow you and I are going to be going to the library, together!” Luna now had a serious face on, as she realized that Celestia was not joking at all on the matter. “What? And spend my valauble time and physique in a library?” Luna decried, “I would rather suck your horn than bore myself with political thought and philosophy!” Rather than lash out at the stubborn princes, Celestia merely closed her eyes. When she re-opened them, a mischevious smile grew on her face. “Well, you will not be playing that discus game for awhile, so, as an alternative, in your free time, I am going to be bringing some of Sombra's personal favorites,” Celestia cooed as she turned around to leave, “I will make sure to have him deliver the last one personally.” “I see what you did there, and I am not going to be convinced simply out of necessity!” Luna shot as Celestia walked out of the room, giggling to herself. Now that Celestia was gone, Luna really did buckle, and send curses through the nearby wall. Not for Celestia's actions, but much rather the pain all that talking and movement had induced. She lay back down with a gentle whimper, not looking forward to the next few days. The scene began to swirl and return back to the crystalline city, with a single room coming into view. The crystals all brilliantly shone, making the dark blue occupant stick out like Celestia's horn (seriously, it can be very hard to miss in most shots). She looked miserable, that mare really did, and the books surrounding her seemed to do little to ease her suffering. A large frown was on her face, as she playfully lifted her wings up and down, as if testing their dexterity. When no pain shot through, Luna leapt from her cushion laden resting place on the floor and practiced walking around. It had been some days, weeks maybe if Luna counted right, and while a small bit of pain could still be felt in her front hooves, for the most part, she could gloat to her sister that she was all better, and head out to injure herself yet again. Well, that was the plan anyways, till a dark stallion materialized from seeming nowhere. Sombra was in almost full armor, appearing much like he did on his day alive, minus the royal drape and an addition of wings and wing holes in the armor. The mere sight of Sombra, smiling wide with a large tome in his magical grasp, sent Luna's heart into a race against her mind. For some strange reason, she had the urge to start trading cuffs with Sombra; after all, it would be a fine test to see if she was truly fully healed. “Hello Luna,” he greeted as his form fully closed in, “You look back in your element.” He set the large book to the side, the worn cover practically begging to be burned and replaced with something that had probably not seen the creation of Discord. “As if.” Luna strutted back to her cushions, huffing with a rather melodramatic pout. “There are no doors, no windows, if I didn't know any better, I'd say Celestia did not want me leaving this room.” “How intuitive.” Sombra joked, tilting his head to the side. “You do realize that you can just teleport out right?” Luna had attempted that, but every time she tried, Celestia would somehow always end up where she teleported herself to. She would be ushered back to her room under threat of tattling to Mother about her injuries. Anything but that! Why not send Sombra, who she was forbidden to see anyways, to add icing to the cake while you're at it? Celestsia logic 2.0. She swears that her sister was out to get her and Sombra into trouble at this point. “Oh what's the fun in using magic for everything?” Luna attempted to mimick Discord's tone, though she lacked the condescending bite that made the statement so humorous. Sombra did not laugh, but he did outstretch his wings, motioning towards the large tome that he had placed on the other side of the room. Luna's eyes rolled; yet another bit of reading material. “Come now, you cannot be serious. Another book? What am I, a librarian?” “Celestia suggested that reading would do you good." Sombra walked over to the tome, tracing a hoof over the cover. He gazed at the book fort that seemed to be built around Luna's bed. “However, I can see you haven't touched the others except to move them out of your space.” “Damn straight,” Luna replied, surprising Sombra with her tone, “They are always getting under my flank, constantly forcing me to shift onto yet another book. I eventually decided they would be more useful as fortifications.” “Well,” Sombra challenged, giving Luna a look over as he brandished a quill pen, “How about you write one of your own, and see how easy it is.” Luna looked at Sombra as if he had just struck her with a hoof, the likes of which had emerged from his mouth. In many ways her eagerness to attack Sombra resurged with that suggestion. “Write one? Write a book?” “Just journal for Celestia's sake,” Sombra snarled, eyes flashing green, “Keep yourself occupied. You will be staying in here under Celestia and I's orders until further notice.” That tore it; Celestia ordering her around was one thing, but Sombra now doing it struck a raw nerve. Luna levitated and flared her wings in protest. “What! You have no more authority over me than Celestia!” Luna jeered, “Only Mother can order me around, and even then, it is still my choice as to obey or not.” “I like 'em feisty,” Sombra licked of his lips. To this day Luna is perplexed about why Sombra did that. Luna largely ignored the gesture at the time and started flying frantically around the room in some vain attempt to work out some of her pent up energy “Just teleport outside,” Sombra retorted, wisely backing away from the cushions, “It can't be that hard.” Luna finally began spinning around the room faster and faster until, at long last, she came to a plop on her cushions. Books and feathers flew everywhere as the mess temporarily covered the entire room. Sombra was dazed, though he had dodged the books and had cleared the landing zone, just long enough for Luna to land a hoof to his face. Caught off guard, Sombra staggered to his left, Luna's strike coming from the right, and braced himself for a potential fight. Of course, when Luna came around this time, he caught a glimpse of her entire form, just before she tackled him in the side. The tackle hardly hurt, but the landing did, and Sombra cried out as Luna pinned him to the ground. Smiling triumphantly, Luna suddenly found it odd that she had so easily overpowered Sombra; by the time she caught on to just how easy it was, now she was suddenly tackled from behind. A short wrestling match ensued as Luna attempted to turn the tables of gravity on her opponent. Sombra kept attempting the same, and as they rolled and rolled around in an attempt to achieve dominance, they were careful not to let their horns touch each other. Nopony wins a magical headbutt. Just as Sombra seemed to have the upper hoof, Luna managed to get her hind legs underneath her potential captor. She kicked at the plated stomach, launching Sombra from her much like a spring would launch a game character in a game. The armor was not dented even, a red glow from Sombra's oddly curved horn suggesting that he had enchanted it prior to this fight breaking out. He clearly had been anticipating this. “Illusions huh?” Luna jeered as she rose back to her hooves, “That doesn't quite seem your style.” “I am not crazy Luna." Sombra spread out his wings and smartly landed on all fours. “I am not going to take on a natural born alicorn who is too stubborn to use her own powers to leave this room. Come to think of it, I think the crazy one here may be you.” Luna charged up magic in her horn, before loosing it on Sombra, not taking well to the implication that she was crazy for her actions. Sombra shifted to have the blast deflect off of his armor and bounce onto the crystals. The constant ricochet of the blast dangerously came close to both combatants. Luna, however, used this to her advantage and began firing more blasts, realizing that Sombra's armor was the key to his sturdy defense, along with his horn. If she could barrage him with enough shots, then eventually he would have to resort to showing off his other defenses. Sombra realized that Luna was merely going to pepper the room with fire; there was enough of him unarmored for luck to strike one of those spots at some point. He didn't know what spell she cast, but Luna could tell that Sombra had caught on to her tactic at least. He put a bubble shield over himself, red in color, and stomped a hoof to the ground. With dazzling speed, the crystals in the surroundings began to shape and form to Sombra's bidding, moving rather fluidly at the beck and call of their master. Luna reasoned that this was Sombra's offense, a sign that she had forced him to become more serious. That was a good thing; for some odd reason, she did not want Sombra holding back in this fight. The crystals did not change color, but the geometric shapeshifting still bothered Luna, as they moved to entrap her into an even smaller space. Luna needed to take a gamble; time was her enemy as long as Sombra controlled the crystals around her. There was only one reasonable solution left, and that was to close the distance with Sombra. Absorbing one of her own blasts in the flank, Luna felt a numbness that could only be described as a stun spell's touch. Even still, there were far more blasts firing around, and she needed to dodge them and the crystals if she were to attack Sombra directly. An appropriate challenge, one which Luna accepted as she attempted to take flight. She barely dodged the spiral ones from the ceiling, and had to resort to hoof over hoof dashing and leaping just to keep from getting compressed into a bloody mess. Sombra's shield was no more, he likely having to give it up in order to focus on crystal manipulation. The space was getting tighter and tighter, and before long, Luna realized that Sombra was luring her towards him for some strange reason. Well, that worked just fine; dodging a sudden rising crystal in front of her, Luna narrowly leapt over it, her underside lightly skimmed by the tip prior to landing on the side of yet another crystal. An uncomfortable scratch was the only damage done, but Sombra once again sent four quick jabs of crystal towards her single position. In order to dodge a compass direction attack like this, Luna had to think back to her training. If magic would not do the trick, then sheer force was the only answer. With a powerful forward buck that rattled her teeth, Luna shattered two of the oncoming crystals; in that same, fluid motion, she also leapt from the other two as well, narrowly getting her sides nicked by their doing. That was a little close, and it seemed as if Sombra's aim was getting a little better. Always up to this sort of challenge, Luna shifted weight back to her front legs, using her back ones to balance as she flipped past the point of no return. As her eyes came forward again, she could see Sombra charging towards her, intent on ramming her in the side. With a flap of her wings, she swiftly righted her flip mid-air, and met Sombra's head directly. Horns clashed as she headbutted the careless stallion on his uncovered head. Luna saw stars, quite literally, and felt her entire body being enveloped in light before suddenly blacking out to the sound of a magical blast. “Why are the two of you fighting?” Twilight's question froze the scene in a black backdrop. “I thought you two were supposedly bonding.” "You know what they say about apples and trees," Luna answered before resuming the scene, not bothering to elaborate on her meaning. A faint voice seemed to call out to Luna, as if it desperately wanted her to wake up. Flutter vision activated, light seemed to come in movie frames as Luna started to come back to her sense. Standing over her was none other than Solaria, with a concerned look on her face, along with a hint of anger. Luna wanted to say something, but nothing in her body was responding. Damn magical headbutt must have surged their combined magics together and released it in a blast. Luna had not anticipated that the old unicorn joke would hold such a truth to it. “This is all your fault!” The accusing tone diverted Luna's eyes between her mother's legs, some distance from where she lay. On the other side, hardly in any better shape, was the shallowly breathing Sombra. His eyes were crossed, as if he had been struck dumb, and his armor was in complete tatters; bloodstained fur quickly made Luna realize that, despite her own beating, Sombra seemed much worse off. Then again, as she looked over as much of herself as her position allowed (as she could not move anything but her eyes at this point). She was covered in some scratches, nasty bruises, and second degree burns. Sombra got the raw end of the stick, and she got the burning end of the stick. Solaria nuzzled Luna's head gently, likely noticing her coherence to the situation, and then turned towards the angry Celestia. “Temper Celestia, temper. I will handle this." Celestia backed off from Sombra, herself covered in... Well wait a minute, she didn't have a scratch on her. What was she so worked up over then? Celestia still looked at him with scorn, but by now, Luna realized that she was no longer in a close spaced. She was in open air. Looking up, she saw the night sky, which seemed to be bathed in strange lights. It was mesmorizing, but not so captivating as the sound of her mother scowling. “As of today, Sombra, you are officially descended! Endangering your subjects and my daughters with your reckless act of self-indulgence! Return to the form as you were!” She then struck him with a beam of light from her horn. Sombra's color scheme dramatically changed, as his entire form became crystalline like the subjects around him. His wings detached from his body, smoke being left at the spot where they used to be attached to his body. Sombra did not even flinch, and not a drop of blood fell as Solaria warped the feathered appendages away. In hindsight, it was strange that she did not just turn them to ash right there and then. His horn then took on the color and sheen of a ruby, while his body was reminscenent of diamonds. Most importantly, as Luna caught the first fixed gaze of Sombra as he regained his senses, she could see his eyes sparkle like the night stars. It was strange, but Sombra faintly smiled at seeing Luna. "Didn't your mother ever teach you not to hornbutt unicorns?” His tone seemed almost joking, as if he had not realized yet what had happened to him. Celestia stomped her hooves to the ground, her bruises and cuts now beginning to come into vision as Luna noticed her minor injuries as well. Either she had just gotten them or Luna had been less focused in her vision than she had thought to catch sight of them before. “How can you possibly be happy with what you have done?” Celestia shouted, causing a ringing in Luna's ears, “You nearly killed us you demicorn!” This struck Sombra like a lightning bolt, or at least the pain of losing his wings finally catching up with him. The spots where his wings had been did not bleed, but Sombra howled out in pain nonetheless. “Daughter of a... Gah!” Sombra roared, his body weakly convolusing as all his strength was poured into his misery, “Did I get hit with a meteor before getting my wings stolen by a comet?” “Odd way to describe it, but yes,” Solaria calmly stated, as if this were nothing out of the ordinary, “I stripped you of your wings as a consequence for your actions.” In a poof the wings vanished, likely going to some unknown plot in the ground. Luna wanted to speak up, to explain that Sombra technically was only responding to her first strike, but her throat was far too dry, scorched even. Even worse, her jaws had such a heavy clamp on them that she could have sworn that magic was holding them shut. Sombra blinked, and attempted to rise; pitifully, he fell to the ground, eliciting a gasp from a growing crowd of ponies. Non-crystal and crystal pony alike had apparently gathered for the commotion, though guards were attempting to keep them back. Some of them were even shouting Sombra's name in worry, though Solaria ignored them as she stepped over the fallen alicorn and addressed the crowd. “As of now, the Crystal Empire is officially under Equestrian control. In a few months, Discord shall witness the return of the land's rightful rulers! Your prince (she enunciated the word with such emphasis as to make a point) shall be allowed to recover, but from here on out, you all answer to Equestria's rulers!” Luna began losing consciousness again, the last thing she saw being a shocked Celestia backing away, shaking her head towards her mother. Again the scene stopped as it faded to black, Twilight no doubt having yet another question regarding what just happened. “That really doesn't make any sense,” Twilight pointed out, “Why would Solaria need to remove Sombra from power? She was rightfully in charge anyways wasn't she?” “Well no." Luna tried to speak slowly, not out of mocking, but in an attempt to reiterate an earlier point. “We had come as refugees, immigrants, to the independent kingdom. Sombra, politically and socially, was in charge of everything.” “But militarily?” Twilight sounded as if she did not want to appear daft regarding the subject. “Was Solaria in charge of that?” “Solaria was very much in charge, much to Sombra's chargin. He couldn't do anything about it, though, without starting armed conflict, and that was the last thing he wanted with the Crystal Heart so connected to the citizens. It led to his downfall.” “But, didn't he retake it later? Did he not enslave the populace?” “Yes, but that was out of vengeance,” Luna concluded with a tired sigh accompanying her statement, "Sombra had lost face with his subjects before, but this was on a very different level." When Luna next awoke, the events prior to her blacking out came rushing back to her. She could see that she was in that closed off room again, but this time, on the other side, was a sleeping Sombra. He looked so peaceful; visually rather appealing, twinkling like a dozen stars under no moonlight, and Luna began to realize how many celestial adjectives were constantly being applied to anything near her. Coincidence or not, it was getting a little repetitive, so she decided to instead think of him as a diamond ring with a ruby on the side, err, top. Yeah, that's more down to earth. His peacful sleep was interrupted as she shifted positions to assess her own condition. Most of her injuries had been bandaged up; chances were, magic had been used to speed up the healing process, as nothing seemed to ache or strike a jolt of pain with movement. Her throat felt as dry as a savannah watering hole in the dry season; it needed a good glass of water at the least. As if on cue, a hoof clopped on the other side of the bed to get her attention. When Luna turned to face the owner, she saw the saddened face of Celestia, a glass of crystal clear water hovering in her yellow aura's grasp. “Hey sister,” Luna weakly rasped, clutching the water with her own magic. She slowly downed the drink, the refreshingly cool water wetting everything it touched, assauging her of thirst and permitting some minor talking yet again. Drops of water ran down her neck, wetting her bandages ever so slightly. It felt good, but not half as good as the chorus that her throat felt like singing for the relief. “Mother is upset with you." Celestia fiddled with her hooves, as if reciting lines from a script. “You could have done serious harm out there. Despite public appearances, this is as much your punishment as it is Sombra's.” Luna slowly looked towards her still attached wings, before turning back towards Sombra. Not even nubs remained, and the terrible stripping seemed masked by his very peaceful expression. Luna gave a small smile, but had to look again towards Celestia with a half-frown. “What is my punishment compared to his?” Celestia looked Luna dead in the eye. She had probably already considered that response, and stood up straight as if she were about to address the state of the kingdom. “Well, seeing as I am no longer going to be betroth to Sombra, once he recovers, Mother will make him a regenent here while we go and retake the old lands of Poni.” Wait, did Luna hear Celestia right? This was the first time that she had heard of this arrangement, and a pang of anger turned Luna's melancholy into vice. “Since when were you betrothed to Sombra?” Luna sat up, thrusting her head forward to speak straight into Celestia's face. "He seemed a little more interested in fighting me the last time we spoke.” “Royal marriage, it would have been more appropiate for the eldest to get married silly.” Celestia smiled and walked around to the other side of Luna's bed, defusing the tension by reducing the distance between the two. And of course teasing the clearly irate Luna. Luna did not bother with getting into her face again, but shifted so that she would be facing her sister still. “Neither of us were hyped about it, obviously. Sombra is just not my type.” At this Celestia laughed, bitterly, and gazed over towards the still sleeping Sombra. "A little head strong for my tastes." He wasn't Luna's type either, but this news only just now reaching her ears seemed to infuriate her, though her injuries made physical expression of it difficult. “How long do you think it will take for him to recover, and I hear this for myself from his lips?” Luna growled after saying this, resigning to working out her anger on the floor with a stare down. “I don't know." Celestia turned her head to look at Sombra, and then back towards Luna. “But by the looks of it, you two will have plenty of time to yourselves.” Celestia gave a weak smile at Sombra, as if she had a shred of respect for him left. And who knows; as far as Luna was concerned, maybe she did. However, there was no telling if Luna read too much into Celestia's gesture there. She then looked towards Luna sternly, once again returning to her actress tone. “This is a direct order from Mother; no horse playing! We don't want to have to rebuild this castle from the ground up again, among other worries.” And with that, Celestia teleported out of the room, vanishing in a flash of yellow light. Luna blinked, guessing that Celestia's shift was due to reflection. After all, it hadn't all been Sombra's fault... “Guh, I had a terrible nightmare." Sombra groaned and rolled over with his back to Luna, apparently having been disturbed by Celestia's departure. “I had a dream that Solaria took off my wings. Isn't that a hoot eh Rocky?” Stiffly and in a painfully slow fashion, Sombra, felt for his wings; Luna winced as she could only imagine Sombra's face at the realization that it had been no dream. Sombra rose ever so slightly, as if he might have been laying on them. His searching concluded with him howling in pain, his entire body locking up as he collapsed back into his bed, huffing and puffing. Apparently his feelings had returned as well. Soft sobbing could be heard, Luna wincing as she could sense the new low that had been brought to the prince. Sombra turned over, revealing tears streaming down his scrunched up face, pain and misery painting itself a definition with this expression. Now looking towards the startled mare that now shared his room, Sombra's tear streaked eyes blinked as he realized that Luna was watching him. Attempting to hide his apparent distress, he shuffled till some of the blankets were over his face. Seeing Sombra attempting to hide beneath his bed sheets almost elicited a laugh from Luna, though she held back out of fear of injuring his already fragile state of mind. Well, she reasoned he was in such a state, as waking up to find his wings gone would no doubt send any other pony spiraling down a dark road. “I saw that. And I think this will only get easier once we talk about it.” Sombra whimpered in response, apparently not agreeing with the statement. Luna jumped from her bed and began to walk towards Sombra; she moved shakily at first, but became more steady with each step, despite her body petitioning for more rest. In a surprising twist, Sombra heard her clopping hooves and came out to meet her halfway, bringing one of his pillows. He had wiped away much of his tears, and though his eyes were still watery, he seemed to halt any further sobbing. His horn fizzled when he attempted to use magic, so he just dragged the pillow (along with half of himself) along. He seemed to ignore the pain, determined not to allow Luna to come the whole way to him. It never ceased to amaze Luna how Sombra could even limp after what he just went through; but then again, many of his injuries seemed to have been patched up with magic as well, though it was evident that "patched" was the proper word for it. Once again mere muzzle distance from each other, the moment would have become awkward had Sombra not started to collapse. Luna swiftly moved to try to help him out, extending out her head, neck, and shoulders as a sort of support. Now just slightly underneath Sombra, Luna could feel his rapidly beating heart, and how it seemed to be near bursting out of his chest. It was probably due to all that effort into salvaging his own ego, coming to meet her a quarter of the twenty steps between their respective sides of the room. Luna began to doubt the wisdom in not returning Sombra to his bed immediately. After all, the poor stallion had nearly just collapsed to the hard floor for goodness sake. Luna nuzzled Sombra as he dropped the pillow, curious as to what his reaction would be. As if it were possible, his heart started to beat even faster, till it resembled something trying to pound from his chest and strike her lower neck with the force of a barrage of punches. “Do not worry Sombra.” Luna tried her best to sound as sweet and soothing as possible, as she feared anymore beating and his heart might give out from the exertion.“As long as I'm here, you will not have to go through this alone.” Luna's mane suddenly became saturated, a combination of sweat and tears flowing from Sombra. She had apparently failed in calming him down, but at least he was letting his emotion out. Luna was at a loss as to what to do now; Sombra did not sound comforted, though at least his heart rate returned to a more normal beating speed. He attempted to weakly nuzzle Luna back, but this increased weight made Luna's still weakened frame cry out in protest. “I think it would be a good idea to lie down now, before we both collapse.” Sombra laughed, actually laughed, and, as suggested, the two laid next to each other, their shared pillow the only inanimate comfort they had brought. "At least now we can be together." Sombra parted with Luna's mane to give her a wide smile. "Even if it is for just a little while longer. Marriage to your sister would have complicated things." Luna was dumbstruck by this information dump, as it implied that, to some extent, Sombra had purposely gotten himself stripped for the sake of getting out of his arrangement with Celestia. Of courses, Luna thought this to be a ludicrious notion, and that maybe Sombra was joking as a way of getting past his own misery. "Once an alicorn, always an alicorn, I think. There are not exactly many descended ponies to ask about that." Sombra laughed again, sniffing and wiping away almost any remaining facial fluids on the pillow. Not even mildly disgusted by this, Luna painted a silly grin, attempting to façade her discomfort at Sombra's way of dealing with the matter. "Oh well, that is just one of those things we will have to work on." Sombra's gaze wandered over to Luna's bed, his seeming cheeriness not diminishing for a moment. "My family has been keeping a Tome for a long time now regarding discovered knowledge, including that of dark magic; perhaps now you would like a peek?" Did Luna really have a choice in the matter? As much as she would have preferred something far less studious, she decided that her gutter would have to wait. "Sure," Luna replied, turning her head to view the faintly glowing Tome, "Perhaps I can even help you write some new entries, though I think it would be better to have a different book for the final version." "A second edition?" Sombra seemed intrigued by the idea, his ears shooting up like raised spears. "That actually sounds like a good idea..." "Conspiracy Theories" (part I)Celestia's mind wandered from her scheming with Sombra to the mission that had made the arrangement in the first place. She recalled it like it was just yesterday. It had been a clear summer's day; the republic was still intact, and a young Celestia was on a diplomatic mission with her mother, Solaria. Many believed, even then, that Solaria had nothing more than blood and death on the mind. Her mother was out to prove them wrong, partly to disarm rumors of a potential coup, and partly because she did have more than conquest in mind. Celestia had to appreciate the level of forward thinking that her mother had in her interests; after all, if her parents had to kill off almost all of the other alicorns, Celestia was going to need someone to pair up with, or at least in theory. Things obviously did not go as planned, but then again, when have marriages with alicorns involved ever go completely as planned? Celestia, nearly half the size of her mother at the time, landed in the grassy plain. “How do we know this is the place?” Celestia asked, her high voice contrasting sharply with her current, much more middle-pitched tone. “Trust me, if anyone can follow a map in broad daylight, it is I." Solaria hovered a map in front of her, confidence gushing like a burst water pipe. With her magic, she rolled the map up and concealed it, turning her head towards her daughter with a lecture-like air of authority. “Now then, we arrived early so that we may discuss etiquette.” “But I already know those!” Celestia could not suppress the whine in her voice, as she had had this drilled into her head for days on end in preparation for her first diplomacy mission. “Do not open your mouth unless prompted, listen more than talk, and always be mysterious.” “That is domestic policy, Celestia dear." Solaria shook her head, as if she were a teacher wondering where her students' minds had been during her previous lectures. “You have to be much more fluid when dealing with foreign powers. After all, the Crystal Empire is the only pony-only empire in the world right now, and convincing them of a union is vital.” “But are not unions only for monarchies?” Celestia tilted her head to the side, staring up at her mother with curious eyes. “What kind of union can you build between a monarchy and a republic?” Solaria smiled, the sun radiantly catching her ever-flowing, multicolor mane, scattering the light of day much like a prism would. It was a fond image of her mother that Celestia preferred to her post-empire appearances. “That is what you are here for." Solaria tossed her mane onto her back, though it did little good in shifting its position. It was mostly a gesture that held more meaning in its timing than what it actually moved. “You are going to be quite the catch when you mature, and I have a good feeling that Umbra will have at least one son amongst his lot.” If that answered Celestia's question, then her ears sprouted feet and walked off of her head. In case that was confusing, Celestia's question was not really answered at all, at least as far as she could tell back then. “But...” Solaria swept a wing above her daughter, silencing her in a single motion. Solaria's gaze then focused towards the horizon. Sparkling in the distance was a duo, shining as if they were gems themselves. They were still far off, so this was about as much as Celestia could tell of their features. “They look like gems!” Celestia began bouncing up and down in excitement at the thought of meeting real crystal ponies. “So cool!” Solaria giggled; in hindsight, she probably wanted to scold her, but just did not have the heart to go through with it. The pace of the two crystal ponies increased rapidly, even from here smiles apparent on their faces. Celestia stopped bouncing when she actually got a look at these ponies. They looked to be made out of gems indeed; one was incredibly tall, almost tall enough to lick Solaria's cheek without standing on two legs. The other was taller than Celestia, but definitely more average height as far as ponies went. Both sparkled with a radiance that could only be described as crystalline, the shine even present in their eyes as they approached. The taller one was a brownish mare sporting a plain crown (anymore gems would be overkill for the look Celestia theorized) and had a black, high sheen mane. The clothing lacked intricacy, with only a red and white cape draped over her back. Celestia noted that this is the same cape that Sombra would later don during their final battle; perhaps a memento or tribute of sorts. Next to her stood a stallion covered in shining plated armor. The eyes were focused, the mane was a deep purple, and a helmet covered much of the face. The coat had a granite color and texture to it, or at least what could be seen from the steel armor covering most of his body. A bright red horn, curved and colored like a ruby of sorts, stood out the most, a trademark of sorts that clashed with conventional unicorn horns. Together, the two looked like a couple out on a date, rather than here on official business. Just by appearances alone, Celestia could guess that the stallion held rank in the military while the mare attended to matters of the state. Either that, or the stallion guarded the mare as an escort of sorts. Upon the two stepped into hearing distance, Celestia could hear them chattering. Though she could not make out the details, he could tell that it was an amiable sort of conversation, perhaps even private to some extent. Solaria noted this as well with a smile. The two stopped just feet away, with the stallion directly across from Celestia and the mare directly across from Solaria. “Empress Amore and General Umbra, nice to see that you are both well.” Solaria smiled wide, no doubt eager to see the two figures in a good mood. Amore returned the smile before looking towards Celestia. “I suppose this is your daughter, Celestia? She is much older than I expected her to be.” “It has been many suns since her birth, but I still remember her first question." Solaria's tone turned teasing in line with the upcoming joke that so obviously would start the real dialogue between them. "Where do alicorns come from?” She said it with such a childish mimicry that for a moment, one would believe in ventriloquism. The adult ponies shared a laugh, and though Celestia maintained her composure, her blood boiled due the condescending manner in which they laughed. Up till that day, she still had yet to be taken seriously whenever she asked, and had it not been for Umbra, perhaps she would have made a big deal out of it. “Alicorns are either ascended or made in their mommy's womb after a good fucking." Umbra answered this rather abruptly, and the laughing ceased. "Umbra, Celestia is a bit young for that kind of talk, do you not think?" Amore seemed aghast that Umbra had not toned down the nature of his response, though in truth Celestia believed she was more disgruntled with the fact that he had kind of ruined the mood. Celestia almost broke out into a series of questions at this subtle prompt when Solaria gave her a quick glance. With her narrowed eyes, she made it clear that that would have to wait for another time. That was all Celestia needed to curb her excitement and return to her regal state of mind. Well, about as close to regal as a young mare could get anyways. “Trained like a puppy dog,” Umbra joked with a smile on his face, “I have to say, your reputation would suggest that a whipping is in order for even thinking of how you were conceived.” Solaria's gaze redirected towards Umbra, a sort of imaginary sword drawn between the two. The tension began layering as Umbra cockily awaited Solaria's response. “I can see it is straight to business with you then." Solaria did not need many words to get a point across. She had been intended on softening the upcoming discussion with some lighthearted jokes, but Umbra's blunt smashing of that plan had cut short the pleasantries. “Must we go straight to business?” Amore took a slight step forward, attempting to salvage the civility of the meeting. “Can we at least get to know each other first? Have a bite to eat? I'm sure we all have guards within a day's travel who can bring...” “No time.” Umbra narrowed his eyes at Solaria, “What is this I hear of a union between a republic and an imperial state? What are you all up to?” “Grappus suggested it a few weeks ago. The republic has a growing number of enemies, as we become more and more diverse, it becomes more and more difficult to maintain stable borders." Solaria blinked, returning Umbra's gaze with a less hostile look. "The griffin reasoned that it would be a good idea to join with independent kingdoms in marital unions in order to create a stronger status quo. I happen to have a single daughter, so I volunteered to negotiate such terms with the Crystal Empire.” Umbra took a threatening step forward, a low growl sounding from him. “Fearing more war are you all? Everyone knows that blood is literally staining the very claws and hooves that sign your treaties. I would not be shocked if your own code of laws stuck together.” Solaria took a step forward, her large stature casting a shadow over Umbra. Any closer and the two would likely come to blows. “Oh, and I am guessing the Crystal Empire expanded through peaceful negotiations and Trojan ponies? All we want is to prevent a clash between two very powerful and militarily ruthless states.” “We have no intentions of being lulled into a false sense of security by some union. We will always be ready for a duel." Up to this point, the Empress had been largely silent, despite her companion trading barbs with an alicorn. Solaria decided to force her input on the matter. “Amore? You seem awfully quiet on this matter. Surely you are not going to let your general do your job for you?” “Just taking this all in,” Amore replied with a sigh, “Can we at least sit? I feel that already the two of you are just short of coming to blows.” “Whatever gave you that impression?” Celestia felt the need to defend her mother in from this unjust accusation. “Umbra was the one making subtle threats.” “Subtle, me?” Umbra feigned insult with a dramatic hoof to his chest. “I take that as an insult.” Celestia did not want to draw on the ire of her mother, so she picked her next words carefully. “You can not invade us and we can't invade you for different reasons. Right now we are trading with swords and shields. All the Republic wants is to try to ease the tension between our nations." Celestia nodded towards Amore in acknowledgement to her earlier suggestion. "I think sitting would be a good idea.” Celestia withheld a sigh of relief when Amore nodded and sat on her haunches, soon followed by Celestia. Umbra and Solaria did so only after their respective companions had led the way. “There, now we can be more civil to each other." Amore seemed to take great pleasure in their new positions. “Now then, we have an offer, and undoubtedly, you have an offer as well. Let's go ahead and see what we are working with.” Umbra's horn glowed, as did Solaria's, and two previously unnoticed scrolls were exchanged between the two parties. The parchments opened by magic, Umbra and Solaria scanned the respective documents with scrutiny. Amore smiled, obviously already being filled in on what the Republic intended on offering in order to try to seal the deal. Umbra's face contorted into that of a displeased reader who had hit a section of passage that completely clashed with his/her view of the world. “A royal marriage?” He proceeded to spit into the soil next to him, narrowly dodging his own hooves. “Between Amore's child and Celestia? She or he has not even been conceived yet!” Amore very roughly punched Umbra in the side, causing him to wince. Despite wearing armor, a small dent remained after the blow, surprising Celestia that Amore had such physical strength. It was less likely out of pain than out of concession that he had stepped over some unseen line, as despite the force, it did not budge the unicorn an inch from his place. “Any marriage between an alicorn and a child of mine has obvious implications,” Amore commented, her eyes staring straight at the still reading, or the pretending to read, Solaria. “My child would die from old age before Celestia even grows to full height, if I have my studies on alicorns correct; presuming that they have children, that would practically allow the Republic to inherit the Crystal Empire within two generations max.” Solaria didn't seem surprised that Amore had figured all that out without reading the agreement's text. When she looked up, she seemed to have a slight frown. “By the sounds of it, you seem quite okay with that. I had expected more of a fuss.” Amore chuckled, and then pointed her left hoof towards the parchment in Solaria's magical grip. “You do realize that the only reason I am agreeing is because, if I agree, then you are bound to ascend my son to the position of alicorn prior to his sixteenth birthday.” Solaria hardly showed any emotion at this point, instead going back to reading the parchment before looking back up again. Ascending a pony to the position of alicorn, even in those days, was not a small matter, but one would not know that by gauging Solaria's reaction. Without a doubt, while Umbra had the Crystal Empire's interests at heart, he was still a military general; he was more concerned with fighting off the Republic than trying to merge with it. Solaria was more concerned with neutralizing the potential threat of the Empire by annexing it through marriage rather than war. By modern terms, the countries were not superpowers, but it was clear that they could not ignore each other for much longer. They had to either be allies, enemies, or continue along this path of uncertain passive aggression; which would probably lead to them being the latter. Celestia of the time could only read that the two had apparently reached a newfound realization of just how easy this “negotiation” could be. Agree to the betrothal and walk off, seemed simple enough. But if Umbra was to have his way, that could not be as simple as it was. Umbra rose to his hooves again, casting an accusing glare towards the alicorns. “We have no guarantee that they will carry out their word! Not to mention Solaria could be grooming her daughter to be an assassin!” Amore chuckled, waving off the suggestion. “Oh please, Solaria does not want her daughter to be a killer; that's why she wants to lock with Nightshade. Is that not right?” Solaria's face, if you could believe it, flushed to a pale white, and then to a burning red as she redirected her gaze towards the clouds. At the time, it seemed merely that Amore was implying that Nightshade and Solaria were not professional with each other, and intended on having another foal; In hindsight, it was a clear sign that suspicions about a takeover of the Republic had reached even the Crystal Empire. And Amore had correctly guessed who were the ones who had the best chance of success, with little to no guessing in her phrase. Amore had effectively turned a horn fight into a hoof fight; and was stomping the negotiations like an earth pony the ground beneath them. Still, Solaria did not have to reveal that Amore had found her out; she could have played it off rather smoothly had she so chosen to. Solaria recovered from apparent surprise and looked Amore in the eye, as if a personal communication were going on with just their eye contact. “Well, when you put things that way, I don't see any reason for your future son not to be an alicorn. That away, your ponies have assurance that they can be protected in case there is some upheaval that might sway public opinion on this agreement, and the two can produce some rather powerful offspring.” “Aye,” Amore confirmed, “Not to mention how much it will inspire your other species to make treaties, so that they are not ruled solely by ponies in their foreseeable futures.” With that, the two nodded in understanding, leaving a baffled Umbra and Celestia to ponder over what just happened. “But...” Umbra wavered until Amore silenced him with a gaze. The group rose to their hooves, bid each other farewell, and departed to their respective kingdoms, their departures lasting for much less time than their arrival. Once out of earshot, Celestia noticed a wide grin on Solaria's face, along with a familiar amount of fire in her eyes. At the time, she reasoned it burned in joy that things had went off without much of a hitch; in reality, something much more devious had just went off without a hitch. Celestia regrets that she did not bother asking about it, but chalks it up to her relative naivety at the time; after all, the incredible amount of unsaid dialogue had flown over her head back then, despite remembering the meeting so acutely. Another curse from the adjacent train car and Celestia was jolted from her dreams. A much louder thump sound also alerted her that Cadence and Shining had likely hit the floor of their train car rather hard. Celestia became concerned that Shining and Cadence might have injured one another trying to mate on the train. Their tenacity admirable, but their objective at having a good time seemed futile as far as Celestia was concerned. One would have better luck in one of the royal chariots. Celestia walked towards the door, and gently knocked on it with her right hoof, still wanting to respect their relative privacy. “Everything alright in there?” Celestia placing an ear to the door. Silence. While her head was turned in this fashion, she noticed the sack with Sombra's horn in it no longer rested in the middle of the train car she was in. A red flag waved, Celestia barged in front hooves first, only to find Shining and Cadence passed out on the floor. A black sphere of smoke assembled onto the other side of the car, an ominous red glow beating within the core. Recognizing this manifistation as Sombra's doing, Celestia readied magic in her horn, a scorch on touch spell coming to mind. “Sombra, if that is you, then for your sake, you better not try anything further.” Sure, the two had plotted to try to end their engagement, even mated, but in the present day, nothing could be left to chance if Sombra tried to strike out against them. The smoke formed into a familiar shape, a horn appearing atop of this crest as the form of Sombra was complete. Complete in armor, the ghostly image smiled darkly, though with an oddly inviting gaze. “If you are seeing this, then those alicorns finally did get me. Well, anyways, this is a message to all my subjects.” Celestia remained apprehensive, though it seemed like nothing more than a recording of sorts. “I want to apologize that my rule was so abruptly ended. I wish I could have made Luna your Queen, but alas, it was not to be." Celestia felt that, had Sombra not gone on a slave gathering spree, there might would have been a shot left to re-ascend him, and thus save that relationship. But, that of course did not happen. Sombra only got worse with time after they left the Crystal Empire, and might would have invaded Equestria with a slave army had Luna and Celestia not intervened. "And so, I have only a final wish that is not for the ears of that accursed mare, who's sun I would rather blind myself with than to live under another day.” Careful what you wish for; in some ways, Cadence had granted him that wish. However, Celestia had the empty feeling that Sombra was not referencing her here. She had figured that it would give some solace to realize that, but now it only seemed to increase her hostility towards this unfeeling recording. “My chords are broken, so I can only project my words forward; live, and dream, my subjects, so that the alicorn sisters will never forget their own history, though it has long been forgotten by the books.” Celestia's eyes widened in surprise at this last bit. His chords were broken? His vocal chords? Surely that was a lie; the report on Sombra's return explicitly included him moaning, growling, and calling out to the crystal ponies in a most menacing fashion. The projection then seemed to stare straight at her, killing intent clear. Celestia aimed her horn, just to be on the safe side. “Serve your new monarchs well, and be wiser than you were with me; if you must betray them, put them out of their misery, lest their hatred and vengeance make you slaves once more.” And with that, the image faded away like smoke in the wind. The horn stopped glowing and levitating at this stage, and when it thumped to the floor, Celestia cautiously approached it. The life from it seemed to be drained, and it turned to a red powder, looking almost like a crushed ruby. Celestia opened a window, much of the powder escaped with the wind. Some, however, she left behind; better safe than sorry when dealing with Sombra. “What good did that do him?” “Seems like a lot of wasted effort on his part.” Cadence and Shining Armour began to stir, mare beneath stallion. No doubt they got layed out by another tremor of the train, though the two did not seemed to be drenched in fluids from what Celestia could tell. Cadence wore a comical look of disappointment on her face. Well, context driven humor, that is, as someone just now entering the train would probably not realize what was so funny about Cadenece looking so dissatisfied while underneath her husband. “Auntie, that was probably the greatest climax I have ever not had! Just as I was there, suddenly darkness shrouded us and literally killed the mood.” “Among other things." Shining rolled off of Cadence once he realized he was still on top of her “I swear, where is Sombra's horn? I think that had something to do with it.” “Maybe.” Celestia gestured towards the powdery remains, highly skeptical that Sombra took the time out of his schedule to interrupt Cadence and Shining. “A recording seemed to be left behind. Though now that that is dust, I suppose we really have no reason to go to the Crystal Empire." “Uh, this is your conductor speaking,” the train overhead sounded, “We are encountering a strange disturbance. You might want to buckle up, like, now.” Before alicorns and Captain could inquire amongst themselves, the train suddenly lurched forward. Celestia remained rooted in place like a tree; Cadence and Shining were not so steady, and, despite already being on the floor, found themselves barreling through the train car door the door. Using her magic, Celestia quickly caught the two and pulled them in, seconds before the windows reflected a strange light and the train door slammed shut. The train then lurched in the opposite direction; Celestia comically was barreled over by the combined weight of the two she had previously held in her grasp, the two becoming a tangled mess of mane, limbs, and horns. As the three attempted to disentangle themselves, the light show ended. An irritated Celestia emerged first, a few scratches on her sides, quickly followed by Shining and Cadence. “Yet another reason I do not ride trains!” The anger in Celestia's voice seemed to make even the conductor hesitate for a few seconds before coming over the intercom again. “Welcome to the Crystal Empire. Watch your step as you disembark, as some shifting may have taken place during our abrupt travel through time and space.” Shining groggily shifted over to one of the nearby windows to take a look outside. Meanwhile, Celestia raised an eyebrow at the strange report. Maybe she underestimated how fast a train could take one nearly halfway across the country; either that or three days passed incredibly fast. The latter Celestia highly doubted, but turned towards an equally baffled Cadence. "She says that as if space-time transportation in Equestria is a typical occurrence." Cadence clearly worried about the state of the Empire, already aware of the powers of the Crystal Heart. “Uh, ladies...” Shining's eyes grew wide, and his mouth fell open as he glimpsed the area outside of the train. Ignoring him, Celestia and Cadence fixed their manes, briefly, and then continued talking. After all, Celestia wanted to press into the matter at hand prior to their interruption. “You were telling me about your climax? Normally you are not so upfront with such matters.” A hint of guilt found its way into Cadence's expression. "Well, we were kind of doing it in the train car behind you when we should have been working on the whole nigh vision thing." Cadence then laughed, likely processing what she had just said to her aunt. "I think any sort of sensibility left a few hours ago when we were chasing Discord around Canterlot airspace.” “Cadence, Princess Celestia! We have bigger issues to deal with!” Shining's shout caught the attention of the two alicorns, and together they joined Shining in looking out the window. The Crystal Empire, which they had arrived inexplicably early to, was in black flames; ponies everywhere were either panicking, cowering, or starting the fires. Although there seemed to be more going on, from the window, only a limited view of the mayhem could be seen. It was chaos personified, and the guards were doing a poor job of handling the situation. “We were not gone for that long,” Cadence lamented, fearing the worst “You don't think this is another dream do you?” “This is very much real.” Resolute, Celestia turned from the window and opened the train car doors. “Shining, ready your barrier spells. I have a feeling we are going to need them.” “Yes ma'am!” Shining's horn began to glow a rosy color as he readied his barrier spell. Cadence seemed mortified at the sight, only snapping back to reality when Celestia placed a wing on her shoulder with a small smile on her face. “It looks like nothing more than a riot.” Celestia attempting to sound both reassuring and confident at the same time, despite the fact that she was not entirely sure what had caused the chaos outside. “Rule long enough, and you will see at least a few dozen of these in your lifetime.” Cadence seemed close to tears, unable to comprehend the jest that could be found in Celestia's statement. "Why would there be a riot? It is not like we ruled harshly, only with tolerance and kindness.” Celestia nodded towards Shining to go on ahead, extending her right arm outwards towards Cadence. She used her hoof to gently smooth down Cadence's mane and hair, using the rest of her arm to bring the younger alicorn in close. “Listen, sometimes with tenderness and affection comes the impression of weakness. If that is what is going on, then as simple show of force will quell it.” “And it if it has something to do with Sombra? What do we do then?” Tears began to stream down Cadence's face at the thought. Celestia tried to maintain her soothing tone, but she added a touch of firmness, as it was of the utmost importance that if it was a riot, it be dealt with in the most efficient manner possible. “We will cross that bridge when we get there. And in that possibility, just watch me and learn.” Cadence wiped her eyes with a hoof, and then broke from the embrace. "Alright, I am ready." Shining Armor stepped off of the train first, bubble shield already up. Oddly enough, they seemed to arrive closer to the main city than usual, though Shining attested that impression from the mass of ponies that seemed prepared to board the train. That is, until Cadence and Celestia walked off the train. As if the apocalypse had suddenly come to an end, many of the ponies seemed to rejoice, and various guards rushed to the trio in haste. An orange pegasus guard member stepped up to give a breakdown of the situation. "Captain, Princesses, we have a situation! The city limits are infested with creatures that do not belong, ranging from dragons and griffins to Ursa Majors and manticores! Not to mention half the guard vanished in the blink of an eye. I think we are being invaded." Shining furrowed his brow. Indeed, things had gone from bad to worse just with a situation report. Celestia decided to take charge of the situation, quickly ascertaining that the lack of containment was a result of the guard rapidly losing its numbers. "Thank you Flash Sentry for that report, but we had best see this for ourselves." Celestia nodded, entered Shining's enlarged bubble barrier, and led the way back to the main city. As Flash had reported, dragons, griffons, Ursa minors and majors, you name it, at least two of each were somewhere in the city. Most of the panic was a direct result of a general misunderstanding. The guards remaining also believed that they had been invaded; the creatures thought that they had been forcibly brought from their homes by the Equestrians. This resulted in clashes that only made things worse. The entourage of guards, the two princesses, and Shining Armor, all under a pink and blue bubble shield boldly strode into the mayhem. “Wouldn't it be easier to just shout and calm everyone down?” Shining suggested, a few spears bouncing off of the shield while he spoke. “Yelling would have the opposite effect on non-ponies,” Celestia reminded Shining, “If their nightmares have had any merit to them, then a shouting alicorn will definitely not calm them down.” “Besides, we need to make sure the Crystal Heart is safe." Cadence considered for a moment just using her magic to ease the tension, but this level of disharmony would require a great amount of energy to dispel. Shining Armor wanted to go out and help his troops, but the Crystal Heart took priority; they could not afford for something to happen to it, or worse, for the Heart to start retaliating on its own. A duo of panicked griffins found themselves perching atop the shield for a few moments before leaping back into the air again, quickly gaining flight as pegasi guards chased them around the city. Flash noted this situation and looked towards his superiors curiously. “Sir, shouldn't you all be organizing a more organized response to this?” “Working on that Sentry." The group had reached the main courtyard by this point.. The Crystal Heart hovered above them, out in the open, and for nearly all to see as it emitted an aura of lights into the sky. On a regular occasion, it would be a magical moment; this was not a regular occasion, however, and Celestia and Cadence took flight towards the Crystal Heart. With hardly a beat missed on their way up there, the princesses reached the heart in mere seconds; from there, at probably the most visible portion of the entire city, Celestia cleared her throat in preparation for use of the Canterlot voice. "Every creature, stop this senseless violence at once!" Not surprisingly, while some ponies stopped to heed her command, the majority of animals paid her no heed. Cadence touched the heart with her horn; a wave of energy surged out all throughout the city, mellowing out those touched by the wave. Truly, those who had been fighting suddenly seemed to lose the will to fight; others just stopped fighting altogether and looked towards the Heart with glazed expressions. Now that the attention funneled to Cadence and Celestia, Celestia broke out into a large, amiable grin, though continued using the appropriate volume of the Canterlot voice. “Some magical mysteries have caused strange events throughout the land. Remain calm and we will get this sorted out as quickly and orderly as possible. Now, gather with your respective parties, as that will make it much easier to address you all as a group rather than on an individual basis.” Although hesitant at first, the many creatures ceased their scrambling and began dividing into nationalities, with ponies, griffins, and dragons making the largest of the three groups. Even the normally wild animals heeded Celestia's order. Celestia smiled, and couldn't help but be pleased at the orderly manner the creatures were quickly doing her bidding. It gave her a warm, fuzzy feeling that even non-ponies obeyed without question. The now setting sun needed to be put down for the day; as she was already in the air anyways, Celestia went ahead and slowly lowered the sun, likely prompting some uncomfortable stares from down below. The moon, however, took just a second longer than usual to rise into the sky; it was strange, but considering all that happened, it would not be too much to suggest that Luna had been disrupted also by the strange event. "Conspiracy Theories" (part II)Luna and Sombra spent the next month or so within the crystal palace, and had a tendency to avoid both Celestia and Solaria. The two together also had been working on composing on volume II, and much to Luna's delight, Sombra was eager to learn more about the Dreamscape. “The Dreamscape, as the name implies, the world where the dreams of every dreaming thing come together as one.” Luna paced around their personal chamber as she talked, unable to stand in one place and give a 'proper' lecture. “It is with great care that one explore it, for what creatures dream can range from simple everyday living, to horrendous nightmares capable of taking you with it.” Sombra sat on a pillow, and hung onto every word. He raised a hoof, and like a teacher would address the class, Luna stopped pacing and turned towards Sombra. “Questions?” Sombra lowered his hoof and smiled deviously. “Is it also possible to view fantasies?” Luna, for a brief moment, considered the implications of answering that question, but then reasoned she would get some of her own answered soon enough. “Yes, you can in fact, visit the fantasies of specific creatures.” Sombra raised his right hoof again, much to Luna's dismay. She had a feeling she knew what the next question would be. “Yes, Sombra?” “What is the strangest fantasy you have ever visited?” Sombra seemed genuinely curious concerning this. Luna thought about it for a moment, as the competition was stiff for that one. There was that one time she visisted a pony's dream and found them hopping around in frozen chocolate milk. They were enthralled, and when Luna ,disguised of course as a waffle, inquired as to the nature of the dream, the pony swore that they would create a frozen milk treat that would go great with toasted waffles. Needless to say, Luna hiked it before the pony got any strange ideas. No need for her avatar to have to resort to violence to keep from being eaten. Next was a dragon's dream, where she found herself in a room filled with gems, crystals, and stacks upon stacks of griffin and pony slaves. They were all stacked atop each other, in chains of course, and looked rather miserable. The dragon, however, beamed at the thought, and declared that each and every one of them pleasure her till the gem supply ran out. Luna did not even want to know more about that one, so she hastily fled to another dream. The next one, Celestia's... Luna cringed, her wings retracted to cover her face, and the princes felt a very deep blush come on. No, for Celestia's sake, she could not divulge that one to Sombra. Sombra did not miss this physical gesturing and leaned forward with wide eyes. Had it not been for the fact that Luna was trying to hide her face, she might would have commented on how adorable curious Sombra looked. “Err, the strangest one involves a dragon's horde.” She shook her head in an attempt to get Celestia out of her head, the images attempting to burn themselves back into her memory. “A dragon's horde, is that it?” Sombra leaned back in disappointment. “I thought it would be something more scandalous, like Celestia fantasizing about your father or something.” Luna opened her wings and stomped a hoof forward in a fit of anger. “Do not be ridiculous! Wherever did you get such a thing from?” Sombra burst out laughing, holding his sides the best he could while rolling back onto the floor, kicking his hind hooves in the air in a fit of hysteria. Luna would have went over and demanded to know what was so funny, but she caught herself before doing anything so rash. Sombra had healed considerably since his stripping, but there was no need to start breaking things again. There was no telling how fast they would heal this time. “Are you done?” Luna impatiently waited for Sombra to compose himself. When he finally caught himself, he wiped a tear from his eye and grinned wide. “Celestia had to sleep too when she took care of me shortly after my fight with your mother. And besides, your reaction suggested it had something to do with your family, and I doubt you have ever invaded your mother's dreams.” That last bit was not true, but Luna reasoned it would be better for Sombra to think that she had not paid her own mother a nightly visit. “Well, anyways, the dragon horde had sex slaves of griffin and pony origin, with a room filled with gems.” “Presumably payment?” Sombra snickered, but Luna was unamused by the joke. “As food.” Luna then tapped her hooves to express that it was time to switch topics. “Alright, now it is your turn, jestar king.” Luna sneered as she switched places with a grumbling Sombra, whom likely did not enjoy the label. Sombra, unlike Luna, stood in a single place while he began his lecture. He cleared his throat dramatically, as if about to begin some sort of speech. “As you aware of by now, my family has been researching dark magic for a considerable amount of time. With its power, crystal unicorns were able to stave off changeling hordes and barbarian Ursas for generations.” Luna chuckled, prompting a glare from Sombra. “What is so funny about that?” “Crystal unicorns, really?” Luna eyed Sombra with much scrutiny. “I will believe it when I see it.” Sombra gestured to his body with a wave of his hooves. Luna was not convinced. “Mother stripped you of your wings, not your horn.” Sombra rolled his eyes, and then carried on. Luna could tell that she would not be enjoying this as much as Sombra apparently had. “Anyways, dark magic cannot be absorbed by changelings, as it is fueled by fear, hatred, jealousy, and things of that sort. Regular magic can be charged with emotions too, but this sort of polar magic takes on the actual affinity of the emotions charged into it.” Luna raised a hoof, mimicking Sombra in more than just stance. Sombra tipped his ruby horn towards Luna for her to ask her question. “If there is dark magic, then there has to be light magic fueled by things like love and friendship, right?” Luna confidently felt that she had hit the nail on the head. Sombra refuted that notion almost as soon as she got the words out of her mouth. “No, friendship is not an emotion, it is a state of a relationship. But yes, love. The Crystal Heart is an example of a light magic relic.” “Do you have any samples of dark magic?” Luna eyed Sombra, expecting him to decline. Again, Sombra surprised her and, after a quick scan of the room, nodded. He dashed over to his bed, slightly renovated with two head pillows (yes, they make a distinction for a reason) instead of one. He pulled from underneath them a pendant of interesting design. Its top bore the image of a winged unicorn, wings outstretched, colored red and black, with fierce red eyes and a long horn. The grey head hardly stood out, with the red, rhombus shaped gem ominously glowing underneath. All of this decoration was attached by a metal triangle with two strings on either side, presumably to be used for wear by the user. “Nice jewelry, but what has that got to do with dark magic?” Luna titled her head as Sombra hovered it above his head, a smile evident on his face. “My dear Luna, this here is the Alicorn Amulet, a magical pendent created for the sole purpose of being a more portable enhancement than the Crystal Heart.” Sombra waved it around as if it were a sort of triumph, his smile growing wider. “On its own, it does not hold very much power, but when combined with the dark emotions of its wearer, it can grant incredible power, at the price of control.” “Control?” Luna stood up, eyeing the pendent with some levels of doubt. “What kind of control?” “The longer you use it, the more powerful your dark magic, and as a direct proportion, your darker ego, gets. There is a grim-dark story that explains why I have it, and why it is only now that you have come to see it, but I would rather not go into that.” Sombra hid the pendent in a flash of red light, the gleam in his eye fading. He seemed slightly more downcast now that his thoughts lingered on whatever that event was. Though very curious, Luna decided not to press. “Moving on, how about we do a game of truth or dare?” Sombra perked up all of a sudden and trotted off to drag anther seat pillow. Once retrieved, he placed it a few feet in front of Luna, sat down, and smiled. “I warn you, my dares can be very off-putting.” Luna giggled, no doubt assuming that Sombra meant something rather disgusting in nature by that. “I will have to keep that in mind. Alright, you first: truth or dare?” “Dare.” There was no hesitation, not even a moment of thought in Sombra's decision. Luna grinned, having the perfect dare in mind. “I dare you to beat me in a wrestling match.” Luna smiled wider, but Sombra frowned and groaned, putting a hoof to his horn. “Only if we both agree that no magic is to be involved.” Sombra narrowed his eyes, a thought coming to mind. “What made you choose that one?” Luna lightly blushed, though for reasons beyond her grasp the question seemed to reverberate in her own head. Why did she choose that? “The apple does not fall far from the tree?” It was more of a question than an answer, but Sombra seemed to accept it. “Right, though you do realize that your parents supposedly fell in love while trading blows at the school yard?” Sombra did not seem perturbed by this, but much rather, he seemed to be trying to confirm some suspicion. “You can learn a lot about a pony by fighting with them.” Luna used her forehooves to slide backwards ever so slightly, unsure of her own response to the question. “Besides, we are not going to be fighting like that again. Just a playful wrestling match.” “Are we not a little old for that?” Sombra took a step closer, almost threateningly. “But if you insist, I must warn you, I will not go easy on you just because you are a mare.” Luna grinned, and then shot to her hooves. She would have had it no other way. Before Sombra could get to his hooves, Luna tackled the stallion backwards. Rather than pinning him tot he ground, momentum sent them rolling until Sombra thrust his hind hooves into Luna's belly. The inevitable buck sent Luna flying through the air, though it was no trouble as she used her wings to catch herself before ramming into the ceiling. Dropping back down, Luna managed to land atop of Sombra once again, pinning his back to the floor and his rear hooves uselessly flailing in the air. Taking a seat, she snickered in victory. Sombra, intent on wiping that snicker from her face, took his left forehoof and smacked Luna straight in the jaw, sending her sprawling backwards. Startled, as she thought she had pinned him entirely, Luna did not get back to her hooves in time before Sombra was atop of her, pinning her wings down with his forehooves. He pressed himself forward, using his body weight to prevent Luna from using her upper body strength from hurling him off. Try as she may, she could not get any of her hooves underneath him, and attempting to bat him aside did little good either. After a few minutes of struggling, Luna finally surrendered, sighing at her lost victory. Sombra playfully flicked a serpentine tongue across Luna's muzzle with a wide grin. “Truth or dare?” Luna thought carefully about her position. Perhaps with a few more minutes she could find a way to throw Sombra off without magic, but then again, perhaps not. Considering Sombra's earlier warning and their rather awkward positioning, Luna decided it was better to be safe than sorry. “Truth.” Sombra frowned, though playfully nicked at her ear with one of his canines. “Good choice. Now then, if I were to ask you to be my queen right now, what would you answer?” Luna's breath got caught in her throat, and in seconds her heart rate increased. Her body tensed, her mind reeling with the likely reaction to either answer. Wanting to be sure what she was getting herself into, Luna made eye contact with the crystal pony. “Are you asking what I think you are asking?” Sombra bit his lip, and eased released Luna from his grip. Luna did not immediately flee to the comfort of her side of the room, as she did not want to give the wrong impression. “What do you think I am asking other than what I just asked?” Sombra took a few steps away from Luna, lowering the front of his body as if he were about to pounce again. “I think you are being rather serious...” Luna rose to her hooves and took a few steps towards Sombra, once again closing the distance between the two to a mere three feet. “If that is the case, then, my answer would be...” A bright light flooded Twilight's vision as the dream abruptly cut off, sending both her and Luna sitting upright in the real world. It was late in the afternoon, just short of dusk, and a brilliant light seemed to be receding from an unknown source. “I thought only you could wake us up?” Twilight groggily held her head, a pounding headache coming on from the sudden interruption. Luna rose, hardly fazed at all, and looked towards the stain glassed windows of the throne room. “I figured it important that we investigate whatever caused that light.” As if right on cue, the front door burst open, and a royal guard member dashed down the hallway towards Twilight and Luna. The earth pony stood stiffly at attention once he reached the princesses, only relaxing when Luna nodded in acknowledgment. “Princess Luna, there is trouble in the Equestria! Magical portals are opening all over the kingdom, and the citizens are becoming restless!” “Is that so?” Luna perked her ears forward and plastered a serious look on her face. “Perhaps the strange visions have something to do with this?” “Maybe, but it is almost like the entire northern portion of the country is getting out of hoof! As far south as Canterlot!” Although still eager to know Luna's answer to Sombra's question, Twilight concluded that this new issue took precedence. “We have to do something! Where is Princess Celestia at this moment?” “We were keeping an eye on the train, but it suddenly ran into one of those magical fields. Reports relay that it led directly to the Empire, though we have yet to ascertain what opened these portals in the first place.” The guard seemed flustered at this point, perhaps in part because of Luna's unnerving calm in the face of this issue. “I am guessing that the riot situation in Canterlot has only worsened as a result of this?” Luna revealed none of the concern that she deeply felt, at least in part because she did not want it to come off as panic. The nightmares she could fix, but this new space-time phenomenon flew with a different set of wings. The royal guard seemed to give a small smile at the mention of the riots. "Discord dealt with that hours ago, and has since been spotted lounging in the gardens. We have kept a very close eye on him" “Do you think he is behind this?” Twilight had her reasons for suspecting Discord, as no doubt the chaos caused by such an unnatural event would delight the spirit of disharmony. “The remaining Elements have already been called from their respective locations, just to be on the safe side,” the guard answered. “We presume that you all are prepared for a situation like this?” “Of course!” Luna broke her stoic demeanor for a more dramatic, meaningful one, gesturing towards the door with a hoof in the air. “Bring them in! In the meantime, declare a national emergency until we can get this all sorted out!” The guard saluted, bowed, and then dashed back the way he came. Twilight look at Luna inquisitively, recalling that the Elements themselves were back at the Tree of Harmony, all the way in Everfree forest. “Uh, Luna, you do realize...” “We are prepared to deal with Discord,” Luna pointed out, “If it is him, then his friendship with Fluttershy should reign him in. If not, then we will have to borrow the Elements from the Tree again.” “But...” Twilight started till Luna stamped a hoof to the floor. “Why wait? I shall call him at once!” Luna shouted, following up with a by now familiar chant, “Discord, show yourself!” Right on cue, as if listening in the entire time Discord replied from somewhere in the castle, “I am in the banquet room!” Luna and Twilight exchanged looks before trotting down the hall and through the throne room doors. The dining hall, sometimes referred to as the banquet room, was a very large eating area reserved for guests of the princesses. Additionally, it held a large rectangular table, though it only had corresponding seating arrangements for a few dozen occupants. Discord initially was nowhere to be seen, and Luna was tempted to call for him again when grey smoke burst from the center area of the table, with Discord standing dramatically in his first statue pose. Clearing his throat, it seemed as if he was about to sing, but using the Canterlot Voice Luna cut him off before he could get the first note out. “Are you behind all of this chaos, Discord? Answer me!” With her Canterlot voice in full effect, even Discord had to leave his dramatic pose and take her seriously. “I don't know what you are talking about." Hardly had the words left his mouth did the remainder of the Element Bearers arrive. First, a rainbow maned, blue toned pegasus, followed by an orange mare with a brown hat, flanked by a bouncing pink earth pony and a yellow pegasus with wide eyes. Bringing up the rear was a white unicorn with purple hair, who's entry brought the door to a close by the guards. “Discord!” Rainbow Dash zoomed towards Discord, intent on tackling the draconequus. “What are you up to?” Discord ducked, narrowly dodging the Element of Loyalty, causing her to zoom past his head and swerve in order to avoid smacking into Twilight. Discord's reply was simple and to the point. “I didn't do anything.” “Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie I am glad that you could join us.” Luna calmly greeted the ponies before turning back to Discord with a suspicious gaze. Discord shrugged as the newcomers joined Twilight on her side of the table. “Now now, what is all this nonsense about me doing something?” Discord hardly seemed uncomfortable, despite Dash hovering near his head, hooves at the read as if she were about to attack him again within a moment's notice. “Portals have opened up everywhere, wrecking havoc on the unsuspecting!” Luna pointed an accusing hoof at Discord for emphasis on her next statement. “Honestly, it sounds like something you would do for kicks.” “Sounds like the same spell used to make the Crystal Empire do a vanishing act,” Discord offered, surprising the assembly against him, “I am not behind it though.” “Oh yeah?” Dash challenged, clearly not convinced, “Prove it.” Discord dully looked towards Dash with some clear signs of contempt. “Frankly, you lot are not in the position to demand anything from me. If you do not believe me, then turn me back to stone, and see that all does not return to normal.” “Oh no, that's quite drastic,” Fluttershy piped up, her soft voice oddly enough cutting through the tension “I believe you.” “Even if he is telling the truth, we are kind of stuck up a creek here." Applejack removed her hat, placing it over her chest in thought. “We can't force him to do anything, and he might not have the power to stop the crazy.” "Crazy is right!” Rarity pitched in with a dramatic, ponified version of Discord's earlier table-top pose, “Where there is chaos and misunderstanding, the Spirit of Chaos is near!” Unamused, Discord decided it was time to more directly get the ponies off of his case. “I'll have to remember that one of these days. Instead of pestering me about whether I did this or not, why not just ask me to reverse it, if I could?” When no pony responded, Discord cracked a smile, and then snapped his fingers. “There, it should all be better, if it were my doing. One day, I shall have a party cannon to shoot the egg that will appear on your faces.” Twilight dared take a peek through one of the unstained glass windows; not shockingly, dragons, griffins, and all manner of creature till ran rampant throughout Canterlot. “Well, we can assume it was not Discord,” Fluttershy concluded once she saw Twilight's sunken face. Dash, on the other hand, folded her arms in denial of that conclusion. “Maybe he faked using his magic to try to fix it, or he might have made it worse.” In the middle of all of this, Luna was contemplating. If Discord indeed had not caused the disturbance, then what did? And more importantly, how could she send the group off to fix it so that she could deal with the dream visions? Luna desperately looked amongst the group for anything that might give her a cause and reason to send the group off. Her ears stood up on end as she noticed the absence of a certain faithful assistant. “Where is the baby dragon?” “What do you mean?” Twilight raised an eyebrow, having not considered his absence as an issue. “You mean Spike? He is back in Ponyville I bet. What does that have to do with anything?” Putting on a grave expression, Luna pressed further on the otherwise trivial issue. “It has to do with everything! You must go now to make sure he is fine.” Discord shook his head, suddenly slithering over to Twilight. He slunk just behind her wings, pointing out, “I believe it is a little late, as this light show is likely to end soon.” No sooner had they said that did the flashing outside stop; Luna gave a steely look to Discord. “Why didn't you just say that? That would have saved us a lot of time!” Now for sure she would need to find another excuse for sending them off. “What?” Twilight's annoyance at Discord's proximity caused her to flap her wings in an attempt to shoo him away. It was ineffective, and Discord merely transformed into an exaggerated detective's hat atop Twilight's head. “I had a little chat with the denizens of Canterlot, and it seems that they have noticed a great decrease in the number of dragon sightings throughout Equestria." “But most dragons live at least an ocean away anyways,” Fluttershy pointed out, “How could they be behind this?” “Simple,” Luna planted her hooves firmly on the wooden table, taking a seat at one of the head ends of the table. “Draconia, in light of these strange events, has likely called many dragons back to their homeland.” “But Spike was born here!” Twilight seemed to be catching on that this was more of a distraction than anything else. “Why would they take him too?” “Twilight, the only reason your defense would make sense is if Spike were related to me and Celestia,” A few bubbles emerged from the detective hat, Discord snickering all the while. “By investigation, Celestia would not give me the time of the night for such an endeavor, so obviously he had to be born to ordinary dragons, who migrate to and fro during their seasons.” Another set of bubbles from the talking hat. “Now, if dragons have always had some connection to Equestria, what do you think they are doing when they migrate?” Applejack was the first to guess. “Surveying the land?” Discord blew false confetti from his hat-like self. “Oh please, Equestria is not that hard to get a map to. Anyways, they are either, by tradition, mating over here or laying their eggs. If it is the former, then someone stuck around too long, and Celestia conveniently got her hooves on it. If it is the latter, then obviously she 'borrowed' some of the eggs for the applicants of her unicorn school to forcibly hatch.” “Sounds kind of strange when you put it that way,” Pinkie had been oddly quiet much of this time, but she nonetheless had to interject here. “Why would dragons fly all the way to another country just to lay their eggs? That's silly!” Luna decided to take the situation a little more seriously, for the sake of moving along the discussion. "A recall is a serious diplomatic issue that needs to be immediately assessed, and not just for Equestria either.” “Come to think of it, Gilda always did mention that dragons and griffons were on razor edges,” Dash added, still hovering in place long after Discord had left, “So many dragons being sent back to their homeland is bound to cause the griffons to suspect the worst.” “As they should,” Luna declared, “And as shall we! Issues with the nightmares will have to wait; I am going to call a summit between Draconia, Griffia, and Equestria to discuss the nature of what is going on. In the meantime, you six should continue to investigate. Discord, you are sticking with me.” Perfect, now she could send the Elements off to investigate the nightmares, she could solve the problem right here in the palace while waiting for the diplomats, and she can be the one to sort through all of this. Maybe this would not all be a bad thing. Luna felt that she could really use moments like these to put herself more on level with Celestia in the views of the world. Twilight's new hat promptly exploded in a purple poof upon Luna's declaration, leaving Discord sitting atop Twilight's head, leaving just enough space to keep Twilight's horn clear. “And what am I there for? Certainly they will blame me for the events!” Luna frowned, not in the mood for resistance from anyone to her hastily crafted method for dealing with the situation. “And so they might. However, at the same time, I would rather they suspect you than to bring any flak to Celestia and myself.” Discord did not care in the least for Luna's temperament, much less her preference. “Why would there be any flak to you two? After all, you are the rulers of the most powerful country in the world, why would they think you are trying to weaponize teleportation techniques?” Luna rolled her eyes, though scrutinized the inquisitive look that the Mane Six were giving her. “My point, Discord I would rather them suspect that it was a random event than that it was a purposed attempt to test something that could be a threat to them. No creature likes to think itself cornered, and I don't want them feeling that way.” “Yet, you bring me,” Discord continues, apparently trying to get a point across, “You do realize that Griffia and Draconia are not aware that I and Celestia are on speaking terms?” Luna did not have an immediate counter for that point, so she took a pause to assess her next answer. “Well, your presence might lighten the mood, at least. They might not be into chocolate rain, but maybe being able to talk to you directly might can ease their fears.” “Talking to Discord easing fears?” Dash skeptically repeated, “This is Discord we are talking about here.” “Oh come now, give him some credit,” Pinkie pointed out, “If he can't bring a smile when he wants to, then Luna might as well send Twilight to disarm them.” “Another alicorn will not be welcome news to them,” Rarity spoke up, “I mean, we are talking about other nations who might feel threatened the stronger that we get.” Having had enough of the conversation, Luna clopped her hooves onto the table, bringing all attention back to her. “It is decided then that, as I said earlier, I and Discord will go to the summit; you six focus on the nightmares.” Discord reluctantly agreed, and with that, discussion of the issue was over. However, before another move could be made, the guard from earlier rushed into the banquet hall ran directly up to Luna's back. He did not even wait to be acknowledged this time before delivering his report. “Princess Luna, we have a problem! Draconia and Griffia are demanding an immediate summit right here in Canterlot!” Luna turned around, slightly startled at the guard's lack of tact this go round. She decided to excuse it due to the nature of the report. Good, I was just about to call one. How long until they arrive?” "A few minutes maybe?" The guard stoically watched on as Luna's mouth became noodle-shaped, her left eye twitching and ears pointed outwards from her head. He took that as a sign of being dismissed, and hastily left the room. Luna, as angry as she was about yet another interruption, knew that she needed to contain herself, lest she draw unwelcome questions about her reaction. Canterlot was practically in the center of Equestria. If they actually got here so fast, then that meant the portals must have opened not just in Equestria, but in their kingdoms as well. This was not just a logistical nightmare for Equestria, it was a matter of global stability now. And she was the one who was going to have to convince Griffia and Draconia that this was not some attempt by Equestria at attacking them "Twilight, escort your friends out of the palace." Luna spoke slowly, her body language attempting to revert to a more neutral expression. "It seems that the meeting will take place here, much sooner than I expected. Not much time passed between the departure of the elements and the arrival of the two diplomats from Griffia and Draconia. Much to Luna's surprise, these were not just ordinary diplomats; these were the actual heads of the two states. How fortunate it had been that she and Twilight had not been sent halfway across the world. Once the two had seated themselves on opposite ends of the table from each other but equidistant from Luna, Luna noticed that Discord once again stood atop the table, though this time he was at the center of the triangle formed by the rulers' seating arrangement. Luna shifted uncomfortably in her seat at the head of the table. A serpentine dragon lay coiled on her left, and a scowling griffin was on her right. In front of them was Discord, who was trying his best to ease the tension. “The story of how I became obsessed with chocolate milk rain really is a pun." Here Discord gestured whimsically with his paw. "Back in the day, many a stallion would refer to their special excretions as rain. Needless to say, other creatures picked up the phrase for the white stuff. Well, I put a twist on it and instead had it rain chocolate rain; they all freaked out as they assumed it came from the other end. It was a good day to be Discord.” The dragon seemed taken with the story, amused even; the griffin maintained a scowl. Luna, in the meantime, could only thank Discord for stalling, as she had been trying, in vain, to come up with an explanation that did not involve Discord. When she came up with none, Luna tapped a hoof on the table as a sign that she was ready to begin. Discord took the hint and coiled himself to the other side of the short round table. The griffin spoke up first. He cleared his throat, and sent a rather angry expression in Luna's direction, though not directly at her. Luna reasoned that the griffin understood the hierarchy enough not to so boldly show his disdain for the situation in mere body language. “My wife is most displeased that her husband warped from our love nest. And I am most displeased at having been disturbed! I demand an explanation for all of this!” The dragon giggled, finding some humor in the statement. “Well then, at least you were not nearly crushed by one of your own subjects. I saw an orange mare warp on the top side; I nearly got crushed on the underside of one of my larger dragons.” “Amusing.” Discord positioned a monocle on his left eye. “And tell me Dratina, how did you slither your way out of that one?” “It was not easy,” she continued, “I had to shape-shift myself numerous times before I got the right one, a cheetah, to dash away.” “Well, I think we all are glad that you could make it in one piece." Discord nodded towards Luna. “I am sure you are impatient, Luna, so go ahead and tell these fine rulers what they came for.” Luna, now the center of attention, took a deep breath in an attempt to calm her on edge nerves. Once she felt more level, Luna began, not forgetting the pleasantries. “First off, I want to thank you for coming by on such short notice, and having the courtesy to make me aware of your arrival before bursting in. The issues on the table are the dreams and the random warping, both of which I want to assure you are not Equestria's doing.” “We assumed that at least the warping was your doing,” the griffin stated, “Especially since it seem you are allied with the likes of Dissscord.” The hiss drove the point that the griffin was not at all pleased to have to see Discord either; the draconequus seemed to take very little offense to the jagged gesture. With a regal tone, Discord intended on driving home is innocence. “Well, I will have you know that I am now reformed! Celestia herself has even approved a small space where I may wreck chaos to my heart's content, and permits occasional visit to Equestria proper as long as I check with her first.” “So it is more like an uneasy acceptance than an alliance,” Dratina mused, “That seems more understandable considering your history with Equestria.” “Yet, I find it hard to believe that he is not behind all of this!” the griffin howled, slamming his talons on the table, “He is the spirit of disharmony and chaos after all!” Luna desired to disarm the ticking time bomb, knowing that Discord only had so much tolerance for accusations against him. “While it has been hard to swallow, no pun intended due to Discord's earlier joke, there is a chance that this could entirely be a random event.” “Or the work of unicorns,” the griffin surmised. “Or griffins,” Dratina shot back, “ Grackus, has it ever occurred to you that you are just seeking a guilty party?” Grackus huffed, puffing out his chest and flapping his feathered wing in defiance. “First of all, griffins and magic of this sort do not mix well. Second of all, you are not seriously buying that this is all a coincidence that occurs in nature? If it were just Equestria, alright, maybe, but throughout our realms as well? It is a wonder that Saddle Arabia has not stampeded its diplomats this way!” “Well not everyone can get conveniently transported to Canterlot via magical channels,” Discord jested with a map in hand, “It is a big world out there.” Not to mention Saddle Arabia was south of Canterlot, Luna thought to herself. Then again, so were parts of Griffia and Draconia, so Luna decided not to bring that point up. Dratina did not react physically to Grackus' rebuttal, likely in the same mindset as Luna at this point. “I agree that we were fortunate to be able to discuss this matter quickly. Grackus does make at least one good point; whatever this is, we need to get to the bottom of it before it gets any worse.” Luna almost literally jumped on the opening presented by Dratina. “We are working on that even as we speak! That is at least part of the reason that Celestia could not join us on such short notice.” “So what now?” Dratina asked, “Do you have any leads? The best that I can gather is King Sombra, or one of his successors.” The room chilled as Luna shot a glare at Dratina at mention of the name. “Why would you assume that?” The sharpness in tone directed Dratina to explain herself. “Well, if you all are not behind this, then dark magic may be the answer. It is the only unaccounted for force in Equestria, neigh, the world. Luna noted the distinct focus on Equestrians in this explanation, and considered refuting the claim when Grackus ridiculed the hypothesis. “That is ludicrous! You know the saying; Discord was stoned and then reformed, the changeling queen was blasting off to Never Ending Maze land, Nightmare Moon was just a phase of our dear dream princess, and Sombra became a shadow of himself, Pronounced dead in recent times. You would think that they allow an actual pony the same chance at redemption as someone like Discord.” That last remark stirred up an unexpected amount of anger from Luna, though it was not directed at Grackus at all. A flashback to the Crystal Empire, on that fateful day that would change the course of their history. Solaria had long since passed, but for some strange reason, Sombra still retained a rather youthful appearance, despite everything. His coat had stopped shining, but his eyes gazed upon his subject with hatred and malice; the clanking of their chains resounding throughout the Empire. Needless to say, many Equestrians felt that they were becoming slaves to their new alicorn saviors (who really were not so new at all in the grand scheme of things). It had hardly been thirty years since the fall of Poni, one since the fall of Discord, and yet, everyone seemed to so easily forget the past. Perhaps they felt that it was better to forget it, so that the events leading up to the present would not have to happen again. To stave off possible revolution, the two sisters had to make a choice; become tyrants, form a republic, or free the crystal ponies and Equestria from the darkness that ensnared it. "Tis only banishment, Luna, not true death." Celestia and Luna flew towards the dark city with the sun at their backs. Luna grimaced upon seeing the deplorable state of the kingdom. The homes were now made of ordinary materials; wood, straw, the likes replaced what had previously been all crystal. The castle no longer shone with a brilliant, inviting sheen; it now cast a dark, ominous shadow over the world around it, defiantly casting away the rays of the sun from its surface. Standing atop the balcony, surveying his work, was Sombra. In full armor, with the red and white overcoat draped over to give a more regal than martial appearance. "But turning him into a shadow too, is that necessary?" Luna growled. "Wouldst not be easier to use the Elements...?" "No!" Celestia turned her head towards Luna, a trickle of the Canterlot voice present in her voice. "Sombra is acting out of vengeance and hurt; there is no other answer but to banish him, and grant him some time to think about what he hath done." "What goodeth will that do?" Now Luna was the one shouting, the two stopping to hover in mid-air. Celestia did not want a discussion about this, not here, but she was not going to deal with Sombra on her own. Luna persisted, tears welling in her eyes at the thought of how long Sombra may be locked up in the frozen north. "He will brood hatred in isolation! No heirs, no family, and mine visits serve to only torment him even more! There has to be another way!" Celestia gave it a moment of thought, then shook her head. "Sombra is too powerful to be left to chance, and your attachment to him only maketh this more necessary." Celestia then closed her eyes, perhaps thinking to re-open them to a compliant Luna. Luna growled in response, horn aglow with magic. "Thee do not understand! He may have been thine's first, but careth not I! I care for him, I dost not wish to see him suffer any longer!" Celestia's eyes shot open, her own horn now aglow. "Then do what must be done, for his sake." Princess? Luna snapped out of her flashback, hardly recalling that she had been in the middle of a meeting. Feeling a warm wetness streaming down her cheeks, Luna shifted to wipe them, sniffling as the present returned to prominence. To her surprise, all three of the other occupants gazed at Luna with worried expressions. She could only imagine the confusion that her reaction had brought about to the small gathering. With an angry tone, Luna switched approaches to more curtly end this. “How we treat threats to us is our business and our business alone. We make our decisions knowing full well the consequences." And she had just stood there, and allowed her sister to finish the job mere months ago. “Something bothering the princess of the dream world?” Grackus asked, breaking the self-loathing that threatened to engulf Luna's thoughts, “If so, I think we might have the answer to our dream problem.” Luna was not in the diplomatic mood, but kept her final statement relatively short and to the point. "No, I will be fine. Go rally and tell your subjects that nothing terrible is going to transpire; you may stay in any room in the palace that you desire, as long as it does not have a sun symbol on it.” “What she means, is that you may stay in any of the guest bedrooms,” Discord clarified, while 'escorting' the two to the door with a snap of his fingers, “She sometimes forgets just how often that symbol appears around these halls.” Dratina and Grackus strode out, giving a glance backwards before Discord ushered them on. Discord closed the doors behind them, and only when sure that they had departed did he turn towards Luna. "I think we have solved the dream problem." Discord placed himself back onto the table, making it a pedestal of sorts. "I think it is King Sombra." "But, Sombra is-" Luna was cut off by Discord putting an over-sized lion finger to her muzzle. For a few moments, the contact reminded Luna of her brief captivity, and she reflexively bit at the finger. Discord yelped and retracted his finger. "Sorry, I do not know what came over me." Luna did not entirely lie about that. Sucking the finger for a few seconds, Discord narrowed his eyes at Luna, as if trying to ascertain the sincerity in her statement. Once satisfied, he retracted the finger and continued. "Sombra and your alter ego go very well together. Neither of them are gone just because they can no longer manifest themselves in the land of the living." Despite disliking Discord for his part in the tumultuous past, Luna did have one thing to be grateful to the draconequus for. "Had it not been for you, I would have never met Sombra," Luna bitterly commented, unilaterally surrendering her inhibitions towards Discord, "He would have been miserably wed to my sister, and I would have been the distant cousin who inherits nothing." Discord smiled, perhaps pleased by the appreciation, or perhaps at the thought that Celestia would have been married to Sombra. Luna did not care as she carried on. "I and Sombra would have been so compatible, scandal and civil war likely would have ensured. I guess in her own way, Mother tried to prevent that by keeping Sombra and I distant." "Well she failed, apparently." Discord withheld no chuckles as he poked fun at the alicorn. "Sure, she may have forced Celestia and Sombra to mate, but she overlooked that all that would do was allow Sombra the chance at double tap." Luna swiped with a hoof the draconequus' legs, causing him to fall back head first onto the solid table. "Do not think that this changes a thing between us," Luna snidely smirked at Discord before turning to leave. "And since I am guessing you are aware of that, I will have to ask that the descendents remain none the wiser unless Celestia or I so tell them." "Of course, would not want a bloody struggle for power now would we?" Discord cackled, vanishing before Luna could get another shot in. Luna scowled, not sure whether that was Discord's way of complying or teasingly threatening with blackmail. Shaking her starry mane, Luna had no time to waste; she had to get to the Dreamscape, physically, and deal with one of her most persistent shadows: Nightmare Moon. Sombra would have no power, not to this effect, without that mare's influence. Whether Luna liked it or not, she had to stop denying the facts; Nightmare Moon and her were one in the same. And it was high time one was put back in her place. "The Crystal Heart"In a space very much like an empty plain, a grassy plain stretched far and wide. There were no trees, and even fewer landmarks; there was an ever present moon, and the stars illuminated the otherwise dimly lit plain. Luna stepped into this dreamscape, her mane blending in perfectly with the sky. Her eyes searched fervently, till she gazed up at the ever present moon. The dreamscape truly was a unique place; here, all the dreams of the world could converge, making it far easier to monitor the nighttime pleasures and frights of her subjects, and beyond. Getting here required the kind of sleep that Discord had truly meant with his joke; not even Luna could both monitor the real world and this at the same time. But she was not here to monitor the dreams of some other pony. She was here for her own nightmare. Looking intently at the moon, Luna noticed that the thousand year face did not reveal itself on the surface. In a whisp of smoke, a blowing of the wind really, the counterpart that, on its own, had been psychological warfare against her sister all those centuries ago. A taller, slender alicorn with Luna's color scheme, though with a mane like smog and the teeth of an omnivoric predator. Extended, pronounced canines sent fillies screaming to their parents, who could only comfort them in knowing that the terrible creature haunted only the enemies of Equestria. Too bad most of modern day Equestria used to be considered enemies. She bore the same crescent moon cutie mark, yet, her mane seemed more like a smog than hair, and her eyes were like that of a feline's. She bore no armor, and for all intensive purposes, looked less like the terror of the night that she had returned as. "I was wondering when you were going to give me some credit for all the work that I put into righting the wrong that was done by Celestia." Turning to face the mare, Luna confidently smiled, holding her head high as she approached. The two locked eyes, and for a few tense moments, it would seem as if a fight would breakout without any further warning. "Nightmare Moon," Luna stated matter of factly, her tone neutral and uninviting at the same time. "No helmet?" "Oh no, I lost that when you switched sides." Nightmare sneered, taking a few steps closer to her shorter counterpart. "Tell me, did you enjoy reliving your worst nightmare? Did you get a good look at Sombra's face when you, his dearly beloved, banished him? Hear his yowls of dismay when you allowed his untimely destruction?" Luna almost choked on her own words, finding a menacing presence creeping towards her heart. She had fought this battle before; she had no intentions of losing again. "Imagine all the pain it cause Celestia to have to send us to the moon; no family left to call her own except the bastards and their cousins." "She never really wanted Sombra; all she cared about what making it as 'Daddy's little filly'." Luna reared forward at that, barely restraining herself from assaulting the feminine likeness of her father. "Celestia has her issues, and I have mine. Let us not fire such cheap shots." "What happens in the bedroom stays there hm?" Nightmare drew her head back, leering at Luna with only a single, half lidded eye. "I guess Celestia complaining about how poor Sombra had been in bed the night after Discord was defeated goes to show how true that is." Before Luna could refute, Nightmare suddenly rushed forward, getting right into Luna's face, seething with a crazed passion of her own. "But he treated you so well; showed you his most prized possessions, even gifted you with the Crystal Heart, telling you that you could have it regardless of whether you ever married him or not! No stallion ever did that for Celestia; she has always been jealous of that one thing you have that she can have no part in. Sombra's love." Luna backed off a few feet, only for Nightmare to press ever onwards, her menacing gaze threatening to enshroud the alicorn in darkness. "Celestia truly felt hurt when, at the end of it all, when Mother died, and she realized just how alone she would be." Luna took a step forward, now pressing Nightmare back a few paces. "I was all that she had in the world, and as much as it pained her, she sometimes had to see my misery. We would have had no will to slaughter our subjects just to keep them enslaved to us." Nightmare stopped backing away, the two heads literally touching as the staredown took a silent moment. Nightmare contemplated her rebuttal, and grinned once she found it. "She still had her foals. And once you were banished, she could easily have set them up for the throne and never allowed you back in one piece." Luna's head began to hurt from the amount of force being pushed against it; she needed something fast, or else she might be forced to retreat again. "She would not have done that, they were not ready..." "Even now, Cadence and Shining Armor have all but replaced the role Sombra and I could have played; there is only room for two alicorns at the top, to rule the night and the day." Nightmare Moon ruthlessly continued her assault, battering Luna with everything she had left remaining. "Has it ever dawned on you that she never told you what happened to your colt when you left?" Luna took a moment too long to think about this one, and found herself being pushed back closer and closer to the edge of the plains, a dark abyss awaiting her. "I have a theory." Sinisterly, Nightmare Moon smiled in delight, unmovable and savoring this moment. She sang in as dark a tone as she could muster, "Somepony had an 'accident'." Much to Nightmare's dismay, however, the shadowy abyss changed back into mere plain, and Luna kept at it, her eyes alight in a sort of fire unseen in many years. "Do not try to paint my sister as a sick monster; she would have cared for him even as her own! Perhaps even raised the two as brother and sister before putting them to death!" Luna reared her head back a mere inch, then pushed forward, driving a now staggering Nightmare Moon backwards. "Through all of the pain and suffering, she pulled through. Maybe scarred, perhaps regretful, but never defeated! The likes of you have no place here!" Finally back to where they started, Nightmare managed to regain her grip on the ground, steadfastly maintaing her leverage. Sweat beads began to fall from the two mares, as this struggle of dominance, symbolic as it was physical, continued silently for the next few minutes. Only the sound of their grunting broke the silence, until at last Nightmare Moon roared in rage, digging her back hooves into the very dirt. "Enough of this!" Nightmare raised her head, sending Luna charging straight beneath her frame. Nightmare reared up, and prepared to stomp the staggering Luna into the ground. Luna, however, had seen this coming, and rather than drawing back, she kept going, tackling the hind legs of her alter ego, sending her toppling to the ground. Not so easily beaten, the mare got back to her feet while Luna prepared a blast of magic. Not wasting any time, Nightmare began charging one of her own, and as Luna cocked her head to fire, Nigthmare shot up into the air. Firing off, Luna missed the alicorn by mere inches, and leapt to the right in order to dodge the blast from her quarry. Leaping into the air, Luna prepared to give chase when Nightmare dove down towards her in a reckless charge of sorts. Luna barrel rolled, narrowly avoiding the long, sharp horn that managed to scrape at her side. However, she was far out of the clearing as the smoggy mane reached out to grab at one of her hind hooves. Her upward momentum shifting, Luna found herself thrown to the ground. A crater about twice her size formed where she dropped, and the slightly dazed alicorn had no time to react as Nightmare slammed her body atop of Luna's. The breath knocked from her, Luna cringed and brought herself into a fetal position, horn aglow. Thinking that she had her, Nightmare dove in for the kill, only to get a face full of magic. The beam of magic had been strong enough to send the other alicorn flying backwards, to skid along the ground on her side. When the two got back to their hooves, they eyed each other, charging magic into their horns once again. "We are evenly matched; you cannot defeat me!" Nigthmare Moon defiantly chanted, "Stop this senseless fight!" Luna had to admit, she was fighting herself in some ways; she did not have much greater strength than Nightmare, and though one could hardly tell by height, the two were evenly matched in physical strength. "But we're not matched in polar magic, now are we?" As if reading her mind, Nightmare switched to dark magic, her eyes glowing green and purple flames burning from her irises like a raging fire. The two fired off their beams, the two blasts meeting in the center. Though Luna exerted all of her strength into the attack, the beams were still evenly matched, with Nightmare's slowly creeping ever closer to Luna. They were only a few meters from each other; if Nightmare maintained the advantage for much longer, Luna would be finished. Luna strained against the effort to push her alter ego back; even Nightmare struggled to keep the blast going, though she still held the upper hoof in the matter. "Give it up! Against me, you can not win, and you know that!" Nightmare channeled more of her seething rage, quickly gaining more ground. With the two blasts meeting just two feet from her, Luna's heart sank. She could not afford to lose again, not like this. A warm body pressed itself against Luna's left side, causing her to flinch ever so slightly. She sneak a glance, six inches separating her from unconsciousnes. There stood Sombra, in all of his red and black glory. Fully decked in armor and regal robe, the curve horned unicorn smiled bitterly. "Sometimes, you have to let the things you love go." He turned towards the nearing doom, taking a fighting stance. "I guess I should go ahead and let you go." With no further words, mere centimeters left of space, Sombra shot a red beam of magic into the blast, mixing it with Luna's. The tide turned, and as Sombra and Luna gained more and more ground, Nightmare hissed in annoyance. "What are you doing here? If you destroy me, then there will be nothing left of you!" It was a threat, but not one that Nightmare relished in having to make. "If there is one thing that I learned these past few days," Sombra called out, together pressing with Luna towards Nightmare, "Is that love never dies. I may not have ever gotten the love that I so craved from Luna, but that does not matter. I do not need recognition, I do not even need my proper place in history." The stallion looked towards the panting Luna, who deep down begged Sombra to speed up his speech, no matter how touching it was to hear. Perhaps just to tease her, he paused for what perhaps counted as the longest minute of Luna's life. And she had had some long minutes on the moon. "I will forever love you, Luna, and no matter how many pieces I get blown to this time, that will never change." With those final words, Sombra pooled the remainder of his strength into the blast, sending it crashing into Nightmare Moon. Engulfed in both her own blast and the combined might of Sombra and Luna, Nigthmare howled out in frustration before flying backwards through the meadows. The instant she landed Sombra cringed, dropping to the grassy floor in pain. Luna stepped over to Sombra, a few tears welling in her eyes at seeing his crystalline self once again engulfed in a bright white light. "Why? She might could have brought you back had she won..." Sombra chuckled, then tenderly touched a hoof to Luna's face with a silly grin on his face. "If she would have brought me back, then you would have been stuck here for the rest of your existence. And that, for me, is a fate worse than damnation in the afterlife." Luna attempted to restrain her sobbing as she came nose to nose with Sombra, closing her eyes to try to keep the tears from rolling. She failed in that aspect, but found herself mouth to mouth with the fading king. Luna re-opened her eyes to see Sombra smiling, eyes expressing a sort of peace not seen in them for centuries. They broke from the kiss, Somba beginning to become translucent. "I love you, Luna." Sombra briefly gazed over to the other bright light on the other side of the dreamscape, and then snickered. "All of you." Luna's lips trembled, hardly able to form the last pair of words she knew that she could speak to Sombra. "I love you too, Sombra." A final moment passed before the encompassing light faded into sparkles, drifting in the night sky like dust in the wind; Sombra's warm body replaced with the cold grass of the plain and a few remaining specks of light, dying out or ascending towards the night sky. Luna's head caught itself from falling face first into the dirt, though the alicorn kept her eyes closed, as if to burn that final image of Sombra into her head. A few moments of silence, and Luna looked up towards the night sky. There, the shapes of Nightmare Moon and Sombra could be seen, a shooting star briefly passing between the two. Tears streaming, Luna chanted, "Let there be peace." All over the night sky, a bright flash illuminated the sky. Within the span of that flash of what most would accompany as lightning, many residents of Equestria and beyond blinked in confusion. As if by magic, the entire matter of strange dreams seemed to fade form their minds, as if it never occurred. Of course, everything HAD occurred, and for an unrelated reason, they also all returned to their homes, and to now unexplained writings about the Poni Empire and its legacy. Luna had nothing to do with that portion of things, but what she did accomplish was to relieve the world of visions of the past from every corner of the world. Well, almost, every corner of the world. In the Crystal Empire, a single alicorn immune to this widespread dream wipe suddenly perked from her position. By this point, order had been restored, and most ponies had went back to an unpleasant attempt at sleeping soundly. Celestia, Cadence and Shining Armor were all gathered in the duo's bedroom for discussion when a bright flash reflected off of every surface in the room. It nearly blinded Celetstia, but she once had a staring contest with the sun; she had lost after two whole seconds and never repeated the experience, so this was more like a gentle flash in her eyes by comparison. Shaking her head, the alicorn felt some of the dreams start to slip away; but they were personal memories, and she easily retrieved them before they got too far. Only one thought came to mind. "Luna." Celestia smiled wide, knowing that at least one problem had been solved tonight. Maybe she could ask Luna more specifically about what happened in the first place when she got back to Canterlot. “Auntie, what a pleasant surprise,” Cadence cheerfully stated, startling the sun alicorn from her contemplation, “I didn't know you were going to pay us a visit tonight.” Right, Celestia now needed to make a smooth transition out of the Empire, or else arouse suspicion that something had gone wrong. “I have to get back to Canterlot very soon, but I figured I should just check in to see how the herd is brooding."Celestia winked at Cadence at the end of this statement. Cadence laughed, but Shining seemed rather confused by the comment. Twilight and company were just as baffled, but they at least decided that their meeting in a coffee shop went well, until several flashes occurred and caused Canterlot's newest guests to vanish with their memories of the nightmares. Even Twilight lost her memories of the events, though she vowed to talk to the princesses later concerning the strange meeting with her friends as a way around the nightmare targeted mind wipe. Twilight bid her friends good night, herself tabbing out to pay for them to stay the remainder of the night in Canterlot. Entering the castle, Twilight carefully trotted through a long hallway adorned with the sun symbol. Finding the entrance to the throne room both unguarded and with a slight crack in it, Twilight dared to open the door. What she saw mildly surprised her. There, in the middle of the throne room sat Luna, covered in paint and hard at work painting a sheet on a sturdy stand. A brush in her mouth and tinsel in her hooves suggested that she had been hard at work for at least a good hour now. “Evening Princess Luna,” Twilight greeted, closing the door behind her, “Why not just hold it all with your magic?" Luna looked towards Twilight and smiled, spitting out the brush and levitating it with magic. With a sly smile, she commented, “What is the fun in using magic all the time?” Suddenly, a bright yellow flash appeared behind Luna, directly in front of the two thrones. Celestia, wings outstretched had arrived, having skipped the another train trip or chariot ride and just teleported straight to her castle. With a single look towards Twilight, she said, “See you in the morning Twilight.” Twilight did not protest, though she wanted to, and wished the princesses good night before trotting off. “I think we have much to discuss,” Celestia stated while looking at the painting, “Was it necessary...” “Yes,” Luna interjected as she finished the final touch on the painting, “And so was this. Glass would not do this justice.” The two sisters then walked to the side of the room to begin discussing the events of the past, particularly of the past two days. The painting shows a mural of Sombra and Luna, in their last moments together. A crystal heart lingered between the two, and a shooting star fired off as, in the sky, Nightmare Moon and another version of Sombra, a much darker one, faced each other as constellations. Some time later, in the Everfree Forest The ruins of the sister's old castle stubbornly clung on as Celetsia and Luna both walked up to the front of it. The Everfree was quiet this time of night, very surprising really, and few creatures stirred. That had been by design, of course. With a single hoof, Luna pressed down on one of the stones just outside the large castle. A single inscription appeared, and Luna departed with Celestia leading the way. The inscription says this: Here lies Sombra of the house of Umbra; Gone, but not Forgotten. Detested, but still forever loved. May his soul rest in peace. Author's Note What started out as an attempt to spew some headcanon so I would have other stories to make up and stuff turned out to be a fic that I am kind of proud of. Granted, it hasn't suddenly skyrocketed in views, but meh, that is besides the point. All I need to do now is get appropriate cover-art and it will be perfect! Well, no, not really. Reality check, and I am still going back and finding minor errors and blocks of text that could use some breaking up. I also went and deleted most of the author's notes, as many of them had been attachments from when I had been building up the story in the first place. I also removed the sad tag. There are sad bits, but really, Romance and Adventure (mostly romance) fit here. "Sleep Troubles""Sleep Troubles" In Celestia's throne room in Canterlot castle, a fierce discussion was ongoing. Celestia sat in her throne, trying to make sense of the situation, and Luna was pacing the red carpet portion of the floor in front of the throne, talking all the while. “Luna, dreams are your specialty,” Celestia reminds her sister, “If even you are having trouble with your dreams, then I think we have a serious problem on our hooves.” “Nevermind my dreams,” Luna dismissively states, as if to wave off the notion of an issue in her own dreaming patterns, “What about Equestria's, and beyond for that matter? Dreams of a republic long gone and visions of an empire's rise to power are unsettling to just about anyone who has not picked up a history book in a decade or so. This is our current problem.” “Well, the history books do fail to mention that there were many more alicorns until the fall of the Republic of Poni,” Celestia points out, “The question of where do alicorns come from would appear much more often in newspaper articles.” “It is a fair question though,” Luna muttered, her pacing actually creating a slight groove in the floor, “But every time I try to banish those dreams of conflict and horror, I keep getting confronted by Nightmare Moon.” “And you seem to be having trouble defeating her for some reason,” Celestia filled in with a concerned look, “Every time you try to banish or destroy her, she just keeps coming back.” “Worse!” Luna cried out in frustration, “Every time I try, I keep thinking of our refugee time in the Crystal Empire. It is near driving me mad!” Celestia blinked, as if a breakthrough had arrived. “Well now we're getting somewhere,” Celestia announced as she rose from her throne, “This is not about the Republic or the Empire at all, it's all about that time is it not?” “Maybe,” Luna confessed, stopping her pacing to face her sister, “Sombra's nightmare might be the problem.” “Well then, if that is what this is about, then I have a proposal,” Celestia offered with a friendly smile, “Twilight and Cadence will be here any minute to learn more about some of our history; since they are alicorns, it would make sense to catch them up on some of these things, especially Cadence.” “That would probably bore them,” Luna pointed out, “Twilight Sparkle especially has already read more history books in her lifetime than most ponies do in a generation, I doubt much of this will be new to her.” “Well, most of the modern history books are written from my perspective,” Celestia pointed out, “Not to mention the fact that many of them are censored." “But a lecture on our history is supposed to help?” Luna pressed, still skeptical of the effectiveness of this plan, “All they would have to do is go to sleep for that.” “Luna, we just need to explore this history in the dreamscape,” Celestia finally explained with a hint of impatience, “While you were gone I sometimes had some unsolved things to deal with in the past. The best way to get through them is to tread through it. Twilight, even with her knowledge of history, is still going to need a level of premise before jumping to the crux of the problem.” “And Cadence?” Luna asked, “What will she be doing during all of this?” “I and Cadence will explore some of my history,” Celestia continued, “I do not need to go as far though. Since the Crystal Empire seems to hold some part of the problem, then I will personally head over there and investigate the matter in the morning.” “But what if something happens while you are gone?” Luna asked with a worried expression, “Not to mention how much easier it would have been to keep Cadence in the Empire and have her investigate it with Shining Armor.” “Well, Cadence and Twilight, as I said are on their way here,” Celestia pointed out while looking towards the large double doors briefly, “I was going to lecture them, but then you came in and I realized that I would need to shift the schedule a little bit.” Stepping down the steps leading up to the throne room, Celestia stooped just slightly to nuzzle Luna as she made her way towards the door, “And do not worry about anything going wrong, I am sure you can handle it while I am gone. If not, then just call Discord.” Luna appeared aghast by the suggestion, and as she trotted behind her sister, she had intended on making it known when the door swung open. As if on cue, Twilight and Cadence walked through, the guards promptly closing the door shut behind them. “Hey Aunt Celestia!” Cadence greeted first, “If I didn't know any better, I would say you heard us coming.” “Good thing you don't know any better,” Celestia jested with a smile, “Now then, how was the train ride over here?” “I got sized up by some griffins, but other than that, it was fine,” Cadence answered. “Why did you two even go by train?” Luna inquired, deciding to let her Discord related question go to rest for now. “Old habits die hard Princess,” Twilight admitted sheepishly, “And besides, we had a lot of catching up to do. A chariot ride would have been too quick.” “Right,” Luna replied half-heartedly, perhaps as a self-acknowledgement that she had yet to be personally greeted by either of the two, “And I suppose asking the guards to slow down would have been too much?” “Luna, if they wanted to take the train, then it is fine with me,” Celestia cut in, not liking where the conversation was headed, “Sometimes it is good to travel among the patrons.” Luna suppressed sneering as she revealed, “Yes, but I hear you only rode the train once after its invention. I wonder why.” A brief glance at Celestia's horn seemed to answer the question, though Celestia waved it off with a few flaps of her wings. “Yes well, we all have our preferences. Come, we have much to discuss!” Celestia invited as she turned back towards the thrones on the far end, “After all, this is not much of a casual visit than a business trip.” “Of course!” Twilight happily complied while running through an imaginary checklist, “First we go over the mythical founding of the Republic, then its shift to an Empire, its fall and then the founding of Equestria, then Discord...” “Easy now, we are going to do some slight deviating from that,” Luna interrupted as she lead the other two alicorns down the impressive hallway, “I doubt that we will get to the time of Discord, much less the founding of Equestria.” “A focus on pre-classic history then?” Cadence filled, “It should be nice getting a fresh perspective.” The stain glass windows practically spoke for themselves as a historical record, as they depicted many of the achievements that Equestria had gone through since its founding; a plethora of recent ones balanced out the previously archaic depictions. The moon just hardly shone through them onto the group, casting an almost eerie light upon them as they walked. “We shall be taking a trip through the dreamscape,” Celestia announced, wings outstretched, “We will split off into pairs; I with Cadence, and Luna with Twilight.” “Seems like an odd way to divide us up, but I am sure you have your reasons,” Cadence voiced with just a hint of concern, “I thought the dreamscape was Luna's specialty though?” “It is,” Luna answered as she began flapping her wings to get airborne, “I will put us to all to sleep. Celestia and Cadence should wake up shortly before the time for sunrise.” As Luna flew above them, she seemed to sprinkle sparkling powder down upon the three below. Cadence sneezed, Twilight blinked rapidly, and Celestia stifled a laugh at her student's reaction to the sleeping powder. Twilight and Cadence hit the floor with a thud, which Celestia frowned at as she yawned. “I don't think they realized how potent this stuff is,” Celestia said with a long yawn, herself beginning to lay down, “In hindsight, I might should have brought some cushions for the occasion.” Soon her eyes fluttered before she too fell asleep, and Luna finally landed in an unclaimed spot, thinking for a moment. She would then shrug off the thought before herself heading off to sleep, ready to begin treading through history.
"Two Coups and a Princess"Twilight awoke to find herself in the middle of a throne room, very much like the one she was in in the waking world. Screams of terror seemed to shake the very foundations of the room, the open air windows. Shaking off the sleepiness, she soon came to realize that she was not still in Celestia's throne room. Alarm bells immediately went off in her head as she tried to rationalize where she was. Ironically enough, those very same alarm bells began literally ringing as some distant bell tower rang with the force of a nation-sized choir. Perhaps to calm her, Luna's voice quickly rang out, “Remember Princess Sparkle, it is a dream!” Twilight seemed to calm down at this notion, though she had to look around to see if Luna were anywhere to be seen. Sure enough, when she spotted a nearby mirror, she saw Luna. Resembling her appearance when she was originally restored by the Elements of Harmony, this young Luna had bright blue hair and a somewhat stocky look to her. Her dressings were absent, even any regalia, as that symbol of monarchy would not come till much later. Piecing together at last that she must be playing the part of Luna in this dream, Twilight took another few looks around. The throne room was very similar in design to the current throne room in Canterlot; however, the regality of a red carpet was changed to a purple carpet, and instead of two thrones, there was a large assembly of cushioned seats, all arranged to face towards one of the double doors in the room. There were three sets of double doors in total, one at the far end of the room, and two right across from each other on either side of the seats. Twilight reasoned that this is probably where meetings took place with diplomats, judging by the dull, arched windows. They had no stained glass, but at least they let in ample amounts of daylight. The sounds of screeching brought Twilight's attention back to the matter at hand; the emotion Luna felt during the time, the confusion and uncertainty, seemed to be a result of the chaos outside. Twilight presumed that this was the rise of the Empire; though she recalled it being told as being a more orderly transition in the history books. Accordingly, the old system had been seen as inefficient, so two alicorns seized control and declared a new Empire, with the multi-species state now under their rule. Obviously there had been resistance to this sudden change in government, but it had been implied that this resistance was mass scale only on day one. This must have been day one. “Quickly, they cannot be allowed to threaten the Republic!” voices shouted, tearing Twilight from her thoughts again. This room was, on closer inspection, a mess, as if someone had ransacked it and left in a hurry. Chests of all sorts were open, the floor was worn and scratched, the ceiling looked as if it were going to cave at any minute. These details were only just now coming to the forefront, despite how important they would seem. “Get away from here you barbarians!” another voice bellowed, sounding much closer than before. Several bursts of magic and the sound of crunching later, and the room doors farthest from the seating area burst from their hinges. Startled, Luna instantly turned towards the doors. Rolling in a heap were two young dragons, coming to a stop just before her hooves, followed by the stomping of an angry alicorn. The signs of dark magic were evident, not just from the ominously glowing eyes, but the entire visage being completely cloaked in a misty black shroud before dissipating to reveal an, at first, familiar sight. If Twilight did not know any better, she would assume that this was Nightmare Moon, with some masculine features granted for creative effect. However, the cutie mark was not quite right; it bore a shield with a cross of short swords stamped onto a heart. Additionally, the mane had a more physical look to it, though it still bore the familiar, moonless, starry night look. The body was bulkier and covered from head to toe in metal armor. No, now that she got a better look at it, Twilight could tell that this could not possibly be Nightmare Moon. Luna asked in a soft and sweet tone, “What is happening?” The eyes of the mystery alicorn flashed to midnight blue softened, just enough to see that the pupils seemed rather normal, at least at this moment. The alicorn looked at Luna with some surprise, and then in anger. “Luna, I gave you a directive,” the alicorn growled, “I told you to stay with your sister and mother.” “But father!” Luna protested, apparently taking a good guess at what was going on, “I can help with whatever it is! I managed to nudge the moon yesterday...” “Nightshade's daughters can touch celestial bodies now?” one of the dragons growled, coughing up bits of red essence, “So they were the ones planning a coup, even then!” “No, that was not it at all!” Luna's father roared with volume rivaling the Canterlot voice, “I do not know who fed you this nonsense, but whoever it is, they are lying!” “Rubbish!” the dragons spat, “You ponies have been plotting this for a very long time. The republic will not topple like this!” The Ponīn republic, the predecessor to the Ponīn Empire, had been founded by alicorns, with the intention of stabilizing their world. It started in the north, not far from where the Crystal Empire stood in modern times, and rapidly expanded to include many of the lands that were now Equestrian territory. In order to make governing a diverse group of creatures easier, the representative body became consisting of more and more non-pony beings. By giving them a voice, the Republic was able to hold fast despite its diversity, though the obvious restraints of a group having to agree on things made expansion slower and slower as time went on. The Empire would eventually rule most of the known world, but first, the less efficient Republic had to be overturned. From that perspective, Twilight rationalized, alicorns taking back the government should not have been that much of a surprise, even for dragons. After the fall of Zebrage, not much was capable of stopping the Ponī Republic. Many species allied themselves with the fearsome armies, and many more fought against them. Some of the losers were punished with slavery (thankfully now outlawed) or being reduced to livestock. Obviously, the latter was only for the most heinous fighters, but it was still rather harsh by modern standards, as it stripped an entire species of their sapience and almost immediately domesticated them. The origin of some cattle were supposedly tied into this, but all of that didn't matter with what was going on here, not to mention that was speculation. The Republic died today; and the ones to be in charge were alicorns. But something still was not adding up, now that Twilight thought about it. If she was experiencing this through the perspective of Luna, then that would mean that Luna would have had to been old enough to remember this with some clarity. But Luna and Celestia traditionally do not appear in history until after ponies migrated south to escape the windigoes, right before the founding of modern Equestria. It really put into perspective just how old Celestia and Luna were. “General Nightshade!” sounded more voices, shaking Twilight from her contemplation yet again, as what looked to be guards quickly rushed to Luna's father. They wore rounded helmets with two triangles sticking out of the sides like dunce helmets, the triangles swiveling back and forth with their attentive ears. Most were clad in some ragtag bits of armor; hardly modern Royal Guard standards, with mostly thick layers of what appeared to be leather. Out of the five that arrived, only one of them, bearing a tuft of read feathers along the top of the helmet, bore any actual metal armor, still somewhat lacking by modern Canterlot standards. It seemed clunky, and if nothing else, inconvenient to run around in. However, most notably, were the shortswords that were present on each flank, sheathed and neatly shelved along with the armor. The fact that they were not drawn suggested that Nightshade was the one who attacked the dragons and sent them flying into the room. They fervently discussed the situation with their general, the red feather donned one doing much of the talking. “The entire city is in an uproar; they claim that Kaiser was slain!” frantically shouted the metally armored pony, “The entire Animate is armed to the teeth to defend against some sort of overthrow!” “I am clearly aware of that Sharp Blade,” Nightshade retorted, never taking his eyes off of the beaten dragons, “Did I not give orders to evacuate all non-combatants?” “Well yes, we managed to, but your wife and one of your daughters insisted on staying...” Sharp Blade bravely reported, chancing a glance towards Luna, “We of the guard are not alicorns sir, we were not going to get in their way if they insisted on staying.” “That's fine,” Nightshade assured the soldier, finally looking towards Sharp Blade, “Celestia is old enough to fight, and I am sure Solaria will keep an eye on her.” Young Luna seemed to be following the conversation just as much as Twilight was now, if not a little harder, in an attempt to fully understand what was going on. “Accept it already,” a voice echoed through the room, sending chills down everypony's spine save for Nightshade. It was a familiar one; one that Twilight knew with an unpleasant taste in her mouth to belong to only one draconequus. “Show yourself Discord!” Nightshade angrily shouted, in a manner not unlike Celestia when Discord was first freed from his stone prison. Discord immediately showed himself, appearing in a poof of smoke between Nightshade and Luna as if he had nothing to fear. Discord, as a draconequus, bore the head of a pony, and a mismatch of other body parts. His strange physical mystery seemed to add in to his chaotic magic and namesake pastime; even during this time, he apparently was a nuisance. Twilight felt somewhat bad for thinking of him, now reformed, in such a way, but it was not far from the truth. He did, after all, attempt to plunge the world into chaos shortly after gaining his freedom, and temporarily broke apart the Element Bearers in order to prevent from being resealed. Though he ultimately failed due to his own arrogance, and was eventually reformed thanks to the efforts of Fluttershy, that made him no less a danger as far as Twilight was concerned. There was never any telling what the creature was up to, and his bold arrival suggested that he was not here to play around. Despite Twilight's reservations, Luna of the time seemed much more eager to directly attack the draconequus physically, breaking into a run to close the already small distance between the two. However, her legs ceased to move correctly as the floor became ice; skidding, she literally slipped right into the open grasp of Discord, a lion paw covering her mouth and eyes in a single gesture. Despite this, Twilight could still see what was going on, presumably because Discord was mostly focused on keeping Luna's mouth shut rather than her eyes. “Tsk tsk tsk, surely you did not think that you could get away with assassinating Kaiser did you Shade?” Discord cackled, “Killing off your own Animate Council brethren, bad form really.” “Lies!” Nightshade howled, thunder sounding off in the background as he took a single step towards Discord, coming nose to nose with the spirit of disharmony with a charged horn, the aura a dark blue color. Unfazed and undeterred, Discord stood his ground with a wicked smile, threatening, “Now now, let's not do anything hasty. You wouldn't want to accidentally hurt little moon shaker here would you?” The guards, having recovered from their initial shock, unsheathed their shortswords in various manners; with four wielding theirs with magic, and the officer taking his between his teeth. Twilight did not envy the pre-Classical weapon users, though the fact that an Earth Pony was in charge of this small group did finally dawn on her as a bit unusual. Nightshade blinked, as if weighing quickly the options presented by the problem. The entire confrontation simmered as he took a step backwards and growled at Discord. “Put Luna down and we can negotiate like stallions. Harm a single hair on her body, and I promise that it shall be the last thing you do.” A jolt of fear seemed to go through Discord, only to vanish within the span of two seconds as his grin faded. Had the alicorn intimidated him into backing down? Twilight guessed that Discord had probably been weighing his options when suddenly a hole burst through the ceiling almost directly above them, apparently having been blasted out with magic. “Unhand my daughter, or my stallion's wrath will feel like moonlight upon your scorched hide by the time I get through with you!” a very stern voice threatened, a white alicorn descending from the large hole in the ceiling. This alicorn strongely resembled Celestia, but its mane was a double rainbow in colors, and her cutie mark was a blazing sun with two swords crossed over it. Its horn was almost as long as her mane, and it was glowing orange in a threatening manner. The white alicorn seemed to fit the description of someone who would be named Solaria, if Twilight had to guess. What rubble was left to fall as debris harmless speckled itself in the coats of those present on the ground, a confident smile now spreading among the guards. Discord must have realized that he was now very soon to be surrounded by the future rulers of the Ponī Empire, and his mind was hard at work trying to figure a way out of this. “The Empire will make you an example for all to see,” the voice sinisterly pointed, “Now unhand my daughter.” As Discord turned to see the speaker, Twilight could now see clearly what looked to be a young Celestia flying in behind her mother; a distinct shade of pink reigned supreme in her hair, though some blue streaks were beginning to show. Luna was thrilled at this latest development, and only more fervently attempted to escape Discord's grasp. Discord kept a tight magical and physical grip on her; after all, up to this point, she had been useful as a bargaining chip of sorts, and losing her now would be quite troublesome. “I will safely hand over your daughter, but, in exchange, I am to rule your non-native lands for as long as your daughters are not on the throne and you are dead,” Discord threatened, putting a claw particularly around Luna's neck, “And do not think that I would not stoop to desperate measures to get my wishes.” The dragons, by now having regained their wits, were wise enough to limp out of the way; one missed blast and they would not be seeing the rest of their lives. Despite some of their legs showing signs of breakage, they hastily shifted away from the epicenter of this standoff as Celestia and Solaria took a step forward. No one spoke for what seemed like a long while, Nigthshade and Solaria pointing their glowing horns towards Discord, just two pony lengths each from the draconequus, as if taunting him to try anything. The guards held their breath, and Celestia understandably seemed apprehensive. Finally, the silence was broken by Nightshade, a grim look on his face. “We do not negotiate with jesters and fools,” Nightshade coldly spoke, “There will only be two alicorns to rule the throne at any one point, and there will not be a successor bearing fangs and claws, if I have anything to say about it.” Solaria joined in, jeering, “You know that deep down, you are nothing more than a clown; a clown who enjoys nothing but a good time. Ruling doesn't suite you. Put her down and you can be a redeemable fool." Discord's face twisted into a very depressed frown; his grip slowly closing in around Luna's throat. He was cornered, and these alicorns knew that at least a part of him had been bluffing. They were betting that his bluff would be their ticket to disarming the draconequus. The situation looked grim for Discord, and Twilight couldn't help but wonder how Discord intended on getting out of it. With a wide smile, Discord suddenly narrowed his eyes at Shade, gently nicking at Luna's neck with a claw. “I have a better idea,” Discord snickered, “Let's play a game of hide-and-go-seek. And you are it.” In a flash, two blasts were loosed in unison, and a grand warping of reality occurred. Twilight recognized this as a teleportation spell, done with just the right kind of timing to make it more dazzling than it needed to be. However, she couldn't help but ponder if Luna's parents were in their right mind attempting to attack Discord while he held Luna. Then again, she didn't know what spell exactly they used, so it was fair to say they were probably not going for anything that would harm Luna. Needless to say, when the spell wore off, the shift was from a rather bright room to a dark one. Blinking, Luna attempted, vainly, to gather her senses when she was dropped atop of something soft. Searching for her captor, she only saw complete darkness, though she could hear the turning of a door handle. “Oh, almost forgot,” Discord joked through the darkness, snapping his fingers, “Wouldn't want you teleporting away now would we?” Luna suddenly felt a strange tug, and instinctively reached up to where her horn should be. Twilight did not need vision to guess what Discord had done. Without her horn, Luna would not be able to teleport; but she was still an alicorn, and as Discord seemingly departed from the room, Twilight contemplated the logic in leaving her alone; but then reminded herself that this was Discord that she was talking about. His idea of logic baffled even the greatest of tacticians, since Luna did still have wings to fly and hooves to run, if she could just get her bearings. Silence pervaded for a long time as Luna lay in her position, figuring this was probably a good time to think about her situation. Twilight couldn't help but agree. From what she had gathered, Luna had been kidnapped by Discord while she was kind of young; Celestia and Luna had parents, and apparently, wherever they were now was where Discord planned on keeping Luna. When the reality of the situation dawned on her, tears began welling to Luna's eyes. Dark, alone, and suddenly quite chilly, as if a cold breeze had entered the room. Luna snapped to attention as she realized that the sudden temperature change suggested an inconsistency in the room; there really did have to be a door or crack, or something nearby that she might could go through. Feeling around with touch and hearing alone, Luna maneuvered her way to the source of the chill; it was about where Discord's voice had vanished, and as Luna put a hoof out in front of her, she felt something oddly smooth. Rubbing it, Luna concluded that it must be some sort of gem; so was she in some sort of cave? “Honey, I'm hooome!” sang a deep voice, startling Luna and causing her to drop to the floor. Heart racing, the sound of hoofsteps echoed nearer and nearer, before stopping right before the other side of the surface. “Amore?” the voice called out again, a hint of concern now audible, “I apologize, but I am not in the mood for hide and go seek!” Suddenly, a bright light shone in at the spot where the smooth gems were at, and Luna was blind sided by it, her eyes having adjusted to the dark in her short time of being in the room. Covering her face, she waited for her eyes to re-adjust, slowly and somewhat painfully, to the change in lighting. A pony, tall in stature, stood at the entranceway; she could only see a silhouette, but very quickly the pony called out frantically, “Amore? Amore?!” The pony quickly ran off, leaving the doorway open. As Luna's eyes adjusted, she noticed that the gems were in fact crystals; in fact, the entire room was made of crystals, from top to bottom. As if trying to wrap her head around the concept, Luna touched the floor; the clop of her hoof supported her theory that even the floors were made of crystals. She stuck out her tongue, and just as she considered tasting the walls to make sure it was not some sort of sugar (she had just been kidnapped by Discord after all), a roar that shook the entire room brought her attention back to the matter at hand. Quickly scampering from the room into the hallway, the young alicorn frantically searched for any sort of familiar landmark. Crystals, large and small, in various colors and shapes, were everywhere. Not a rug, not a flag, not even a single map; the hallways seemed endless, and even the ceiling lights were made of crystals. Luna made a personal bet that she would go mad before finding her way around this place. Another shout, along with the sounds of a struggle, continued down one of the hallways. With it being the only defining trait of this hellish maze, Luna carefully trotted in that general direction, ears tuned in to the smallest sound. The endless hallway seemed to stretch on forever as she turned corners, only to find more hallway greeting her. It was as if the very structure were laughing at her so far futile efforts to gather her bearings. It took some time, but eventually, the noise was loud enough that Luna projected that she had to be right on top of the source by now. To her surprise, the floor beneath her suddenly gave way, and in a panic, she began flapping her wings frantically; she managed to get some lift and prevent herself from falling with the rubble. It was a short way down, merely one room level down, but the crash of the former floor overwhelmed the noise of conflict. Luna unsteadily hovered downwards, to find a large room filled with swords, shields, spears, and armor. There were also dummy targets, surprisingly made of wood, and even some metallic dumbbells of varying weights printed on them scattered about the room. The remains of that section of the floor were directly below her. “We must be in the Crystal Empire somewhere,” Twilight finally deduced, “That is the only logical explanation for all of these crystals.” No sooner had she figured that out did one of the walls open up, expulsing a calm looking Discord. “Hmph, note to self, do not pay the guards,” Discord muttered to himself. Luna quickly dove for some of the nearby rubble in an attempt to hide; the loud clop of her hooves and the wind from her closing wings were deafening to her. Using the reflective crystals as a sort of guide, Luna could see that Discord seemed quite surprised. “What happened here?” he inquired to himself, tapping his chin with his lion paw, “I could have sworn that the trapdoor was on the other side of the castle...” “King Umbra!” shouted a high pitched voice, causing Discord to go rigid, “Queen Amore, where are you?” Luna chanced a peek with her own eyes to see Discord's reaction; as quickly as he had lost his composure, he seemed to regain it, almost as if this were yet something else that he needed to bluff his way through. Guards rushed in; however, these ponies were unlike anything Luna (at the time) had ever seen. Their coats glittered and shone like gems, their very eyes sparkling like clear water from a spring catching sunlight. Despite this flashy appearance, many were garbed head to hoof in metallic armor; only one bore no armor. This unarmored one allowed Luna to guess that that is what the others looked like underneath their armor; she also presumed that it was a mare who would be out of uniform. Her stereotype got a reality check as she noticed that out of all of them, this was the one who looked most worried, and most panicked, and had both wings and a horn. The horn, however, resembled that of a rhinocerous' more than a pony's, with a wicked curve, no grooves, and an eerie ruby glow. Twilight had only encountered one unicorn who had possessed a horn like that, and could presume that this may have been one of his predecessors. If a mare looked anything like Sombra though, then they had definitely skipped over their reflection in the crystals a few too many times earlier in the day. “Where are the King and Queen, Discord?” this pony asked, fierce lime green eyes attempting to burn a hole through the draconequus. “How am I supposed to know Sombra?” Discord replied, “They are probably going to make you a brother or something.” Twilight's mind reeled at the implication of the pony's name, at first dismissing this as a mere coincidence. “I don't find that funny at all,” Sombra replied with a snarl, “With ice cold tea raining from the sky, and my armor turning to jello, I think there are greater concerns than that to worry about. I am supposed to be wed today!” “I take it you didn't take too kindly to it?” Discord suggested, looking genuinely disappointed, “I thought about changing it up to something a little less cliché, like cats and dogs into cows and bulls. I figured tea was a better way to go.” “We don't even like tea,” one of the guards behind Sombra pointed out, “That stuff is Tartarus on its way out.” “That's because you aren't used to it,” Discord pointed out, “Once you get used to it, your bowels tend to move much less.” “Enough of the games Discord!” Sombra demanded, his voice cracking almost comically, “Where are they?” “Why don't you ask the ceiling?” Discord said, gesturing towards the rubble. All eyes were now on the rubble; Luna realize that she had not chosen the best spot to hide, as now her hiding spot had become the center of attention. After all, the earlier conflict might have very well been the royals; and she may have inadvertently dropped the floor on top of them! Dismissing this shortly after it coming to mind, Luna figured that now was as good a time as any to make her appearance. Darting from the rubble, she spread her wings and pointed a hoof in the direction of Discord. “This is all his fault!” “What are you doing out here?” Discord inquired, seemingly quite shocked, “I could have sworn I locked the door when I left through it.” “You actually used the door?” Luna asked, to which both temporarily thought about it for a moment. Discord then shrugged, and then pointed a claw back at her, “Well, nevermind that now, I am King now, and anyone who says otherwise will face the wrath of my cotton candy maker!” Luna looked towards Sombra and the guards to gauge their reactions; the guards seemed startled, surprised even, but Sombra looked star struck and just a few moments away from passing out. His pupils had widened, his mouth hung open, and his wings twitched unpredictably. “Who is this?” Sombra inquired, taking a step forward. "Is this a real mare, or a fantasy of yours?" Discord seemed to rack his brain for a moment in pure thought, before a lightbulb appeared over his head as an inspirational cue to an idea. “Why, yes, yes she is real,” Discord said as he quickly slithered over to Sombra's side, “Sombra, meet the princess of the evening, Luna! Luna, meet Prince Sombra, the last ascended alicorn you will likely ever see.” Luna now felt a boiling anger at the notion that Discord was trying to draw attention away from the problem at hand by once again playing around. For Twilight, this at least explained why the Crystal Ponies had an alicorn among them, even if it was still unclear as to how and when it occurred. However, Sombra seemed entranced, almost hypnotized, as he broke into a wide grin, “Luna... It has a nice ring to it. Nice to meet you, princess.” “The honor is all hers!” Discord chanted, taking on the dress of a salesman, “For the price of your kingdom and forgiveness for the unfortunate accident of your parents, this princess can be all yours!” Sombra shook his head, as if trying to snap out of a dream. His eyes seemed to take on an innumerable set of circles extending out from his pupils, giving a hypnotic stare of sorts. “I don't know... I think I was already kind of royally promised to someone else...” Sombra hesitantly stated. The guards merely stood there with shocked expressions, each wanting to divulge their discomfort with Sombra considering this proposal. Luna beat them to the buck. "Wait, I am not some prize!” she spat, once again pointing an accusing hoof at Discord, “He is trying to trick you!” “If you accept, I will even give you back your horn!” Discord offered to Luna while stroking Sombra's mane, “It is a win-win situation for everyone!” “Not really,” Luna protested, “Not since you might take it away again!” “My parents are not okay are they,” Sombra said, seemingly breaking from his trance, “I need to... attend to them...” “They would have wanted you to live happily with your bride to be!” Discord argued, spreading his arms out wide over Sombra's head, “Marriage, children, successors after I undoubtedly get found out... err, pass the crown on! Plus, she is quite the catch isn't she?” “Sombra, you are stronger than this!” one of the guards finally spoke, the gruff voice attempting to snap sense back into Sombra. “Your parents already had you betroth. That is why you were ascended in the first place!” Another question answered, another one created. Who was the bride that required Sombra to be ascended to the most prestigious position of all pony kind? “They never told you to whom,” Discord grappled, quickly trying to get back on his track, “And besides, this one is right around your age group. Not to mention her stunning curves.” “That is sick and twisted,” one of the guards hollered, brandishing a sword with one of their hooves, “ She looks hardly old enough for that kind of thing!” The sword seemed out of place, as it possessed guard-like protrusions on both ends, the point right before the blade and the bottom of the hilt; they were overly large, just large enough to reduce sliding in the hooves. A design that wouldn't catch on elsewhere for centuries. This guard was on twos, getting ready to take a swing towards Discord. As he did so, Discord quickly flashed away; in a poof of sweet smelling smoke, he appeared on the other side of the room with Sombra in tow. He literally pushed the stallion on top of Luna, startling both as they tumbled to the floor in a heap. “This is a very limited time offer that is soon to expire,” Discord bargained very quickly, as the other guards readied their own swords and started to advance on him, “Just feel her soft mane, her firm body, and let's not forget her smell.” Although initially insulted at the notion that she smelled, Luna shoved the slightly larger stallion from her with what little dignity she had remaining. “When my parents find you Discord...” “I'll take it!” Sombra shouted in triumph, hazily, and in complete interruption of Luna's threat, “My Empire for a mare!” Discord smiled, and with a snap of his fingers, Luna was dressed in an overly poofy midnight blue gown and her horn restored to her head. Sombra was now dressed in a false tuxedo T-shirt, a wide grin on his swirling circle eyes. “Yes!” Discord shouted in triumphant, hardly paying attention as the guards descended on him. “Hail King Discord,” Sombra said as he rushed up to Luna, “As for you and I, I have the perfect place for us to get ice-cream.” Luna back-hooved Sombra in the face; while it did not send him sprawling to the ground, it did seem to snap him from his trance. Luna regretted not trying that earlier as Sombra's eyes returned to normal. “What the crystal...?” he asked as he rubbed his head, “What hit me?” The guards suddenly went flying through the air, an overly large party cannon being the apparent cause. Discord wielded a string tied to its back, jokingly pointing out, “You just traded your Empire for a pony I wasn't in the position to give.” Discord snickered, and then dressed himself in kingly regalia, a long and flowing purple toga accompanied by an over-sized crown on his head. A golden scepter with Solaria's head on it appeared in his lion paw, with a scroll gripped tightly in his eagle talon. “I hereby decree that the reign of Discord shall begin! Prince Sombra, you may kiss your bride to be,” Discord chortled in a mock regal voice, “Oh Luna, your timing could not have been any better had I done it myself!” Luna frowned, Sombra put on a scowl, and the guards lay scattered in the room with bits of chocolate fudge on them. Twilight could no longer keep herself from bursting with questions, as the dream came to an abrupt end at this part. Twilight sat up and looked around the throne room; it was still nighttime, the still shining moon granted that knowledge, and she felt oddly stiff. When she looked at where they all had went down for the night, the reason became somewhat obvious. Shaking her head groggily, Twilight asked, “What was that?” “History,” Luna plaintively stated with an arched brow, “Was any of that new to you?” “Other than you being kidnapped by Discord and what looked to be Sombra being an alicorn, only a little,” Twilight replied as she looked towards Luna, “What was that all about?” Luna shrugged. “Celestia knows more about how that happened than me, but long story short, the Ponī Republic allowed for Sombra's ascension upon birth as an agreement between the Crystal Empire and the Republic. And the only reason Discord got me was because I was much weaker and less experienced than I am now.” “I get that, but the Sombra being an alicorn?” Twilight reiterated, “There is literally nothing that even suggests that he could have been an alicorn. Why is this suddenly showing up?” Luna sighed, and then put the underside of her hoof out towards Twilight. “Well, the Crystal Empire and the Ponī Republic were strong enough to be rivals; it was simply easier to pacify the Crystal Empire and allow Ponī to conquer the rest. A lack of mention of male alicorns has surprisingly made many stallions think that stallions either cannot be alicorns, or that we do not have the power to ascend stallions to that status.” Twilight seemed to be only more confused now than she was before, and took to her hooves as she walked towards a circular groove in the floor. In an unlikely turn of events, she began pacing the very floor that Luna had previously been pacing prior to her arrival, in the same direction as well. “I just always figured that there were never any real male candidates for alicornship; I figured my brother might have had a shot since he is married to Cadence and all,” Twilight muttered to herself, “But did the experience with Sombra make them wary of it or something?” “Only relatively recently has Celestia even bothered to ascend any ponies to alicornship,” Luna explained, stepping away from the thrones to try to stop Twilight's pacing, “Descending alicorns is not a pleasant experience for anyone.” “Wait, what?” Twilight said, stopping in her tracks, “You can be stripped of alicorn status?” “If it was granted to you, then yes,” Luna answered, “That is a point for another time though. Anymore questions before we continue?” Twilight seemed to be thinking for a second, before asking, “Well, can you ascend stallions to alicornship?” “Ask Celestia,” Luna deterred with a wave of her hoof, “Now, I will fetch some cushions to make our slumber a little more restful.” As Luna strode off, Twilight couldn't help but think about the information she had just been presented with. It was rather unheard of for ponies to just become alicorns in any fashion other than ascension, not to mention that the origin of Luna and Celestia was almost mythical in nature as far as general knowledge went. Had they had regular parents who just happened to be alicorns, or indeed was this their way of explaining their own existence in a trumped up version of history? Either way, the idea that Sombra was an alicorn made a little more sense, if Twilight was willing to believe that male alicorns were scant because of Sombra's evil. But how could an alicorn be reasonably depicted as a unicorn? Sombra must have been descended to just a regular unicorn; maybe out of spite he took over the Crystal Empire and sought to regain his old power. Twilight was shaken from her thoughts by the sound of clopping, and Luna placing pillows beneath her sister and Cadence. As humorous as it was to try to see her move the alicorns without disturbing them, it seemed like an unnecessary gesture; they didn't even twitch in response. As Luna laid two cushions down at their former spots, she commanded, “Now then, let's get back to dreaming. I still have yet to piece together the solution to the dreaming mystery.” Twilight did not protest, and quickly joined Luna, eager to have some of her questions actually answered. Once the duo returned to the dream world, they soon found themselves at what looked to be a funeral, Discord style. A large precession of crystal ponies were lined up at the city's center, somberly paying their respects to the previous monarchs. The rain had been changed to chocolate milk instead of iced tea, the clouds were thread and stringy like bread dough, and the ground was mushy like soaked wheat bread.. None seemed more depressed about this than Sombra; the crystal ponies shot eye daggers whenever they passed by him, and some even snarled. He paid them no mind, but Luna did. It had only been a day since Discord's rise to the throne, and despite ample resistance, there was only so much one could do against slippery floors and sticky rain. Not to mention Discord made it very difficult for anyone to land a blow on him; one minute he was a draconequus, and the next, he would be a giant spinning star with sharp edges and a metallic feel. Luna felt some sympathy for their plight, but reasoned that if Discord kept up what he was doing, then he was going to attract the attention of merchants from home, who would undoubtedly report it to her parents. And they would come and set him straight; it was clear that Discord did not want a direct confrontation with them. As the last of the train of ponies, Luna stepped up the crystal caskets, closed and sealed in a symbolic gesture. They didn't have the bodies, or so she was told, so even if she did want to take a peek in, she would likely find an empty casket. Twilight could hardly believe this to be the truth. Here was Sombra, crying like a foal at the death of his parents instead of trying to find a way to avenge them. Even Luna seemed incredulous that this was happening. It was so obvious to her that Discord had done something to them, and merely bluffed that they were under the rubble; the guards had dug out the mess themselves, and found no corpses. She had been there helping, despite herself, as she was eager to know that she did not want to be the cause of all of this. Nevertheless, one of the guards had muttered something about a crystal heart, and how it was the monarch's way of defending the city during times of stress. Why hadn't they used it? These were many questions that Luna felt only Sombra could answer, though first she needed to get his attention. “Sombra,” Luna quietly stated, not wanting to startle the grieving stallion, “Sombra, are you there?” He sniffed, his downcast look making his curved horn reflect his sorrow in a darkened tint. Impatiently, Luna barked, “Sombra!” This snapped his attention, his eyes going from the ground to Luna, tears still streaming. However, they very soon turned from red to lime green, and then back to red again as he glared at her. “What do you want,” he spat, the malice in his voice quickly getting his anger across. “I want you to tell me more about the Crystal Heart,” Luna firmly stated, “I have heard that it had the power to repel enemies. Discord certainly counts.” “The heart was hidden away by my parents,” Sombra curtly replied, still trying to stare a hole through Luna's forehead, “Why do you care?” “Because I am stuck here,” Luna snapped, flaring her wings and lowering her posture agressively, “I already tried teleporting, but it will not work.” “That has nothing to do with Discord,” Sombra growled, turning away from Luna, “You are probably just incapable of doing anything but look pretty in your current state.” Luna's eyes twitched as she contemplated removing Sombra from her list of irritants. Her temper manifested itself as cyan magic around her horn; she had a serious consideration of doing it until her anger seemed to be snuffed from her like a suppressed flame, and her magic seemed to dissipate back to wherever it came from. Frustrated, Luna instead stomped her front hooves, demanding, “Something is purposely making it hard for me to do magic. If you know something about it...” “Tch, save your breath princess,” Sombra hissed as he started to walk away, “You just need some good food, water, and rest and you will be right as rain. Magic takes energy you know.” Luna's stomach rumbled, as if on cue, and she instantly cringed at the sensation. It was not a new sensation since being here, but she had thought that she had suppressed it. Considering recent events, she had taken only meager bites of any food offered to her; there was no telling if Discord had tainted them in some way, and sleep evaded her busy mind. Still, she had only been here a single day. Even regular ponies did not starve in a single day; then again, inexperienced magic users tended to be less efficient with their energy use. Or maybe temporarily losing her horn had something to do with it. Either way, there was no warping out of here. Seeing Sombra walk off, Luna sighed in concession. She was not going to make any progress by being abrasive; if anything, her sister should have proven that point. Even as a newborn foal, when Luna had cried for literally everything and her parents left Celestia in charge of her, Celestia refused to cater to her every foalish want under those circumstances. The only way she got what she wanted was through being adorable and amiable; a smile here, a giggle there, and even Celestia was enthusiastic to change her bedding and sort her growing mane, and take the blame for whatever mess Luna managed to create. As much as it pained her, she was going to have to try to appeal to Sombra's better nature. “Wait, Sombra,” Luna cried out as she trotted after him, “I'm sorry!” Sombra stopped and turned around, his ears swiveling towards her as he looked towards her. He sniffed, then asked, “What are you sorry for?” “Well, Discord took advantage of you in part because of me,” Luna sheepishly said, lowering her ears and frowning ever so slightly, “It is only fair that I apologize.” “It's... It's nothing,” Sombra replied as he wiped his face of his tear streaks, “You were just in the wrong place at the right time I guess.” An awkward silence followed, Luna still trying to look as remorseful as possible, even bringing a few tears to her eyes for good effect. Sombra ate it up like an apple pie, and eventually, though he looked away as if judging whether it was a good idea, suggested, “Let's grab some lunch. We can talk more then.” Bingo. Luna had to hide her excitement as she slowly raised her ears, as if the proposition were only slowly taking hold. “I'm half starved,” Luna joked, “I may eat you out of castle and home.” “I doubt that,” Sombra replied, his ears drooping yet again, “We do have two fewer royals to feast with.” Luna internally cringed at bringing that back up, but quickly brought on a small smile of her own in an attempt to cheer Sombra up. “Well, let's eat enough for them and us, hm?” She only hoped that the Queen had a large appetite, as she gingerly followed the still reluctant Sombra back to the castle entrance. The square where the funeral had been held had cleared out by this point, but Luna could still feel that many sets of eyes were watching her every move.
"The Price of Harmony"Cadence was in the middle of a slight adjustment dilemma. It had seemed like just moments ago that she had been whisked from the conscious world. And now, here she was, in the dark, feeling rather warm and comforted. Which was odd, all things considered. Playing the role of Celestia very well, she had seen that the princess had been fighting off dragons, ponies, and all manners of creatures within the capital city of Ponī. It was a glistening city of sorts, with sparkling water and rainbows flowing from the lowest storm drain to the highest cloud tower. The individual buildings were a somewhat distasteful marble coloration, but their many shapes and sizes made up for their lack of different colors. Signs, instead of having words on them, largely consisted of pictures instead; griffins, dragons, ponies, cattle, and almost every beast that could come to mind seemed to be roaming the city in some capacity. But that was all on a regular day. On the day that Celestia had chosen to begin the flashback, blood flowed just as much as water did. Seeing this all from Celestia's viewpoint, it was mostly an aerial view of a city in turmoil. For some reason, many of the creatures wanted her dead; however, that was not exactly news, since Celestia's mother had warned her of that. There were even some other alicorns in the city, much to Cadence's surprise; even more startling was the fact that Celestia's mother was outright targeting them with her attacks. The panic only intensified as platoons instantly lost their commanding officer; those who had sided with her after betraying their alicorn officer were disposed of after their enemies dealt with. Any creature who begged for mercy had their wings (if they had any) stripped in front of their legions, their horns (if they possessed them) smashed to dust, and/or their bodies thrown to the ground to be trampled by a stampede of panicking civilians. Ruthless seemed to underline Solaria's current demeanor, though cunning seemed to fit well as well. For some reason, the other alicorns were having trouble even matching her power; the few who did match her had Celestia to contend with as well. Whatever Solaria had done, it meant that she was more effective than the others, with lethal consequences. And she seemed to be enjoying her work. Did Celestia really come out of that mare? The appearance and her reference to Celestia as her daughter seemed to make that answer, but did Luna as well? She figured the answer was yes to that too, but couldn't help but reason that, deep down, Nightmare Moon might have had a little influence from the top crazy in the family. “Do not think about my mother like that,” Celestia very gently warned Cadence via telepathy, her voice coming in as a sort of inner thought. “Are you sure it isn't you thinking about her like that?” Cadence cautiously challenged, “I mean, I am playing you right now, and I'm engaged in your emotions and thoughts.” “Maybe, but I'm just warning you not to get that thought into your head permanently,” Celestia stated with a subtle threat attached, “Privileges are not rights, if this goes to show you anything.” Needless to say, the battle was over once the last three alicorns in sight watched as their new subjects willingly kissed the floor their hooves hovered above. Cadence could tell that there was a level of guilt radiating from Celestia's parents; but it was soon replaced with a booming, energetic voice as Solaria announced, “Beginning, the new reign of the pony! Poni from here on out shall be an Empire! Long live the Emperor Nightshade and Empress Solaria!” “Long live the Imperials!” the residents below chanted afterwards, clearly fearful of refusing. Nightshade and Solaria, how uncreatively named, Cadence thought to herself. For some reason, this announcement was making Celestia recall the short tale of their family history. Apparently, Nightshade and Solaria had met in the middle of a sparring match back in their schooling days; they could best all of their classmates, but could never best each other. Racing in the clouds, digging through the mines, magical jousts, the two just could not overcome the other no matter the competition. They frequently wrestled, as usually there was a clear cut winner in at least that physical show of power and dominance. All the physical contact and equal footing eventually got them interested, and to the grimace of their shocked peers, they conceived Celestia at the end of one of their wrestling matches, right there in the ring. The gestation period seemed almost infinite, but then again, alicorns seemed to have longer spans of everything. The delivery itself had also been a chore; by the time Nightshade was satisfied with where Solaria would be giving birth, in the comforts of his old cottage, Solaria had nearly passed out from exhaustion just from all of the travelling. By the time Celestia was finally born, the alicorn was out cold; Discord once joked that the only reason Luna wasn't a repeat was because Solaria had been sternly adamant about Shade not taking her halfway across the country in an attempt to find 'the perfect spot'. The mare had learned her lesson the first time about letting Shade dictate anything when it came to matters of his daughters; Discord even pointed out that Shade was slightly disappointed that he did not get a son. He loved them all the same though, and probably intended on making a tomboy out of one of them. Speaking of Celestia's father, Cadence brought herself back to the current ordeal at hoof. Luna had been kidnapped by Discord, the new “Empire” had about as much legitimacy as a brand new country, and resistance groups were gearing up to restore the republic. To say the least, this was no time for one of the rulers to be distraught and emotionally broken over much of anything. Solaria grieved, but she mostly kept it from reaching the public eye; she confidently told Celestia that Discord had not fallen so low as to truly harm Luna, and that she was convinced that he was merely buying himself some time. Shade was much less convinced, and insisted that it was his fault that she had been captured. He should have kept a closer hoof to her at all times instead of pursuing their. Solaria tried to insist that there were more pertinent things to worry about at the time, but the stallion just would not let it go. Now with Celestia being held in the arms of Nightshade in this dark room and atop this soft cushion that served as a bed, Cadence had to admit that it was an oddly unfamiliar experience being in this position and not having the stallion erect on her backside. Shining just couldn't help himself, and she certainly did not mind most nights. Besides, this sleep together was for an entirely different reason; Celestia had been under Shade's watchful eye since the kidnapping, and had been a source of comfort for Shade. Not because she said much, but simply because her being safe meant that Shade had not entirely failed as a father to his two daughters. Shade was crying this particular night and he seemed quite tormented. He held Celestia closer in his arms as he constantly mumbled, “They will not take another from me... Never take another from me...” Luna being cord-napped had affected him in surprising ways, at least from Cadence's point of view. He was willing to strike down his own without a second thought alongside his crazed, errm, killer wife, take over a formerly functioning republic, turn it into a despot of sorts, and allow the slaughter of countless “monsters” in the name of Empire, but losing one of his two daughters brought him to tears? The more Cadence thought about it, however the more she at least understood this strange behavior, interpreting it the only reasonable way she could. Shade loved his daughters, his mate even, more than anything else; he wanted the best for them, even if it sometimes led to massacres and oppression. Many of his ambitions revolved around them; he wanted them to rule a world where they would not have to fear being eaten alive by an army. Of course, even in modern times where that ambition was a reality, there was always the danger of stepping into the wrong bog, but at least the creatures were relatively unorganized or sparse in number. The changelings were among the many exceptions; but you can't get them all can you? This love was spilling more blood than hatred; and Cadence couldn't help but feel that Celestia had purposely put her here in order to make a point. This was not the type of love that Cadence was familiar with. She was familiar with passion, family bonds, affection, even lust. But this, this was beyond her standard definition of love. She would call this madness with strong attachment, if this did not make any sense. “Sometimes love can be very troublesome,” Celesetia said in an ethereal sort of way, “It can bring together and unite harmoniously, but it can also lead to destruction and ruin.” “That is not the kind of love that we have in Equestria now though,” Cadence insisted, “Nothing that would cause anypony to do what your parents did.” “Are you so sure?” Celestia asked, Cadence just now imagining that the princess was raising a brow, “What do you think would happen if you truly lost Shining, or vice versa, to some tragic event?” “We would not go around massacring living things,” Cadence quickly asserted, “We love each other to death, but spilling blood unnecessarily is a little extreme for both of us.” “Yes well, you will not know until you have to go through that. Now, this next part is important for the next upcoming scene, so pay some attention.” “After that thirteenth night, Nightshade didn't repeat his actions, and pulled himself together enough to act ; he kept on conquering, replacing his sorrow for passion and vengeance,” the dream-like world seemed to fade to white. “He would get his little Luna back, no matter the cost. He would search every corner of the world, under every rock, tree, and gemstone until he found her, conquering nations as he did so. Solaria felt similarly, though while her mate laid waste to any opposition to his search, she instead tried to do damage control to his senseless violence, a bit of a reversal of roles from the coup day. Celestia laughed at that last comment, though Cadence did not find much funny about all of this. I learned almost everything I know about dealing with creatures from my mother at around this time, as I was obligated to stay by her side at nearly all times. "Not surprisingly, while Nightshade focused on retrieving the daughter after his own image, Solaria affectionately tended to my needs. But I had wanted my father's attention as well; I wanted him to teach how to single-hoovedly take down an Ursa Major, for example. He refused outright most of the time, and other times merely blew me off. This caused some resentment, as this great attention for Luna was nearly suffocating. Solaria tried her best, but ultimately, she eventually started blaming Shade for making things significantly worse, hunting for a ghost in a swampy bog instead of spending time with me. So, I had to learn things that I wanted to know from other sources. I was taught some basic pointers on how to fight conventionally from some members of the Guard, who began to wear armor very similar to that which we have today. It helped deal with the internal family issues, but even I reached my breaking point when Luna finally found her way home, and the reception that she got." At this, Celestia made a very audible sigh, akin to one preparing to make a confession of sorts. Her voice also shifted, as if disgruntled at having to recall the next section. "Shade, in tears, embraced her the best he could, donned her in some ceremonial armor, and immediately set out to teach her how to defend herself and her subjects. To say the least, it was a metaphorical slap to my face considering he did not give me the time of day before then." "One other thing that Luna had interfered with was, upon her return, any chance of me having an early marriage. I had just finished a rather boring day of class, since most of my classmates were either off to conquest or working on producing things for the conflicts abroad when in came Luna, showered with glory and cheers, trotting next to a beaming Father, him still wearing full battle armor, bits of gore still vaguely visible. An entourage of soldiers flanked them on all sides, many of them just as happy for everything to be over as the assembled crowd. Some of my marching classmates waved or winked in acknowledgment, but most of the gathering completely ignored me. That did not bother me much, as I was just as happy to see Luna and Shade as the next, and it would be later reflection that would ingrain this as a more negative memory than a positive one. After all, Luna's return meant that the long military campaigns were over, and that my family and many others could be re-united at long last. Best of all, that meant that I could finally go to the Crystal Empire and meet the pony who was supposed to be my significant other for the rest of his life." As Celestia concluded this long exposition, the scene began to shift towards later in the evening; the roar had died down by this point, it seemed, and while many reunions were taking place, few would be anything close to the royals'. All four alicorns gathered for a feast of epic proportions, though it was only to be the four of them, eating dinner once again after years of separation and strife. At dinner, in the large dining hall, a square table sat the four alicorn royals. The table was heavy-laden with food, piled high with the best that the chefs could scrounge up. Solaria and Nightshade sat at one end, Celestia and Luna the other. Fire torches lit the room, and there were no guards or slaves present, at Nightshade's request. Halfway through the meal, the question that would doom the night was asked by the only stallion in the chamber of mares. “So Luna, meet any interesting ponies while in the Empire?” Nigthshade inquired before finishing off his salad, “ By the sounds of it, you were not held prisoner very long after you arrived.” “Oh yes, I did,” Luna cheerfully stated, using her magic to mix her own hay-filled salad into a bowl of sausages, much to Celestia's disgust, “Prince Sombra was supposed to be wed the day I arrived, and although Discord took advantage of everything that went on, the two of us really enjoyed lunch.” Solaria suddenly convulsed, coughing and beating at her chest with her hooves in an attempt to dislodge some object. After a brief moment of worry, Celestia quickly ducked as a bone went flying haphazardly across the table, smashing a stone statue on the far wall with projectile-like precision. While Solaria gasped for air, Celestia inquired, “Oh, and what was so great about it?” She apparently had felt that it was a mere coincidence, since after all, there were plenty of stallions who were both princes and about to get married on that day right? This misconception Luna was more than happy to correct. “At first he was really depressed about the death of his parents, but then, he started going on about magic, games, and mother-forbid colt politics. Not only was he one of the only unicorns in the entire Crystal Empire, but he is also the only alicorn. Can you believe it?” “Errr, well, that is a little more common around here than it used to be,” Nightshade uneasily stated with a raised brow towards his wife, “Although if you made some friendly relations, then I guess he won't be much of a problem...” Celestia finally realized why Solaria reacted so adversely to the news, as her own eyes widened. Her mouth fell open as her apparent fiance had been dining with her sister, and the two apparently had talked like old friends. Her sister knew more about her fiance than she did, and was probably unaware that she had talking in who was going to be her brother-in-law. “Are you sure that was his name?” Solaria gasped, “Are you sure he was a real alicorn?” “Well, of course! He and father could have been related had it not been for the strange horn, color scheme, and taste in mares.” Oblivious to the body langauge of an incredulous Solaria, Nightshade pressed on with his questioning, “He sounds rather important if he made an impression on you dear, enough to think of me also. How old is he?” “No clue,” Luna admitted as she finally made her food concotion settle into the bowl, “But Discord claimed he was around my age, and while he is a dirty liar at times, I think his estimates could not have been too far off.” Solaria, having finally regained her composure, looked gravely towards Luna, only a single line of questioning on her tongue. “He did not take you to his chambers did he?” she asked, her voice dripping with concern, “Or look at you in strange ways?” Luna, clearly oblivious of her mother's anxiety, gleefully continued, “Well, he did show me the Crystal Heart, and even told me how it works. It is entirely fueled by certain emotions.” Solaria shot a glance at Celestia. Without a word, she expressed an entire dialogue that told her that they needed to have a talk after dinner. “Celestia dear, you have been rather quiet,” Nightshade stated, by now having picked up on some levels of unrest at the table, “And it is not because you are eating. That fly near your tongue could have bit you if you didn't have such a shocked expression.” Clamping her still open mouth shut for a moment, quickly in case the fly truly buzzed so near, Celestia replied, “I am just surprised that Luna is eating so much meat. I know it's a status thing, but I am not sure her stomach can handle it...” “Nonsense, she will be fine,” Nightshade assured her with a dissmissive wave of the hoof, “Now then, on to the real reason you seem so uninterested in your flower garden all of a sudden.” Indeed, Celestia had been dining on flowers of various colors and shapes until her mother nearly choked on a bone. Why was there even a bone in her mouth in the first place Celestia dared not ask, as she sensed that she might be the only one at the table without a single meat item. Up until that incident, she had been paying little attention to what everyone else was eating, and it was starting to show in her self-analysis of the dinner. Last time she had checked, ponies were not supposed to consume large quantities of meat; Nightshade merely had a few loaves of bread and a few whole chickens scattered in front of him. Solaria and Luna held more reasonable amounts of meat, but Celestia could only guess that it was a cultural thing that she would never fully understand. “I am surprised, but happy that Luna found herself a stallion friend,” Celestia said, “Maybe now he can keep an eye on her and the two of us can...” “The Crystal Empire is still under Discord's control,” Nightshade sternly pointed out, cutting Celestia off “Until I rectify that situation for good, Luna will not be seeing this Sombra fellow.” As Luna began to dig into her odd food mixture, Celestia gagged, and not just because Luna was eating sausage, hay, and lettuce in the same bite. Solaria blinked, her ears sharply turning towards Luna as she asked, “What more do you know about the Crystal Heart?” Luna, upon swallowing her bite, answered, “ Only that strong emotions have the power to make it act, either in defense of the state or in itself. In other words, polarized magic.” “And where did you learn about polarized magic?” Solaria pressed, leaning in ever so slightly, “ Did you happen to practice any while you were there?” “I learned that very negative emotions like hate and terror can fuel certain types of magic just like love and hope,” Luna explained, eyeing her food, “I didn't get to practice any.” As Luna dug into her food, Nightshade cast a glance over to Solaria, who seemed to be lost in thought. “Something wrong Sola?” he asked, lowering his earlier raised brow at last, giving him a more stern look, “You seem tense.” “We will talk about it later.” Solaria completely boarding up this issue seemed not to fly past Luna as strange. Then again, she was so busy trying to eat, they could have probably been plotting her unbirthing and she would not have paid them any mind. Celestia sighed, rising from her place. “May I be excused, I think I am done here." Her parents seemed somewhat surprised at this, and even Luna looked up from her meal as Celestia practically dismissed herself. "Is there something that we can talk about?" Shade inquired with a concerned look, "I know that we haven't really talked all that much lately..." "Go ahead Celestia," Solaria interrupted, "If you get hungry, what is left of your dinner will be in the storehouse." Shad seemed surprised, but did not challenge the permission. Celestia walked off, leaving the entire dinner behind. The scene rapidly changed yet again, presumably a time shift of sorts. Considering what Celestia had earlier told her, Cadence could reason that the next thing to be shown would be a climax of Celestia's conflict with her sister. When the scene came back into focus, Cadence immediately assumed that she had hit the nail on the head. It was a fine afternoon for a confrontation; sun was streaming through the West side, open air windows, casting an orange glow over everything in sight. Even the floors had a strong tint of orange to them. This used to be the meeting room for the Animate; now, however, It truly was a proper throne room, and two thrones sat next to each other, bearing the cutie marks of the currently reigning monarchs. Celestia had vacated the room, with only a single guard in attendance. Sinisterly, Celestia began walking to the other side of the room. One of the guards, now in shining metal and red armor that had become the standard, instantly saluted her. “Can you be a dear and tell my sister to meet me here in five minutes?” Celestia made sure to smile as she spoke, as to ward off any suspicion of future foul play. In her mind swirled thoughts that would have made the guard more than a little edgy; even Celestia seemed slightly uneasy about it. The unsuspecting guard nodded in ignorant compliance, and then strode off to do her bidding. Anger, fury, and pure ecstasy began to flow through her veins as Celestia hopped atop one of the thrones. She grinned, a strange, dark energy filling her being as she thought over what she was going to do to Luna when she arrived. Send her to the moon? She had never tried it before, but maybe if she threw her just hard enough she might at least make it to the troposphere. Better yet, bury her alive beneath the castle; no one would hear her screams, and she would suggest that Discord had returned and finally killed her. Or, best one yet, she would just outright destroy her right here and there, and show her father who the superior daughter was while dancing in the ashes. At worst Father would punish her with a severe scolding, but no doubt he would not have the heart to take things much further than that. On the other hoof, Mother would. Celestia shivered, reasoning that if her mother decided to avenge Luna and end the alicorn race, then she would go out fighting, if she went out at all. Celestia blinked as these strange thoughts filled her head. What was wrong with her? That was her little sister for goodness sake! Her own flesh and blood, who would never wish such harm on her, even for the most barbed of comments or borderline incestuous actions. All of that was incredibly harsh, since all Luna had done was come back from the dead and make it even harder for her to spend time with her father. Yeah, what was she, jealous or something? She had nothing to fear from Luna. She was just the foal of the family was all; Shade would get over her once she started losing her cuteness factor, and start growing more mature in form. Then he would put the hoof down to keep her from mucking up her integrity. But, then again, she had also made an impression on Sombra, who was now nothing short of unmarriable as far as Mother was concerned. Though she seemed determined to fix what Discord had messed up, she had pointed out that Celestia should not get her hopes up on a significant other. Trying to focus on other things, Celestia thought about some of the newly returned classmates. All of them inquired, in pure jest, as to what would happen if Celestia were to go missing, and whether Shade would go to war with the world just to find her. Just imagine, all that fuss being on her instead. Celestia looked towards the windows, smiling, finding a sort of peace in the thought, no matter how unsavory getting kidnapped by a draconequus had to be. That temporary peace was abruptly interrupted with the loud clopping of hooves. Turning her head, Celestia watched Luna regally enter the room, dismissing the guard who summoned her, as if that were her guard to dismiss! The earlier emotions bubbled back towards the surface as Celestia eyed the heavily armored princess. The metal guard armor nearly completely covered her; without a care in the world, she slowly shed the armor that was custom fitted for her. The only thing left on her was a small breastplate with her cutie mark on it. For some reason, the way she discarded the armor, like it was just regular armor and not a gift from the Emperor, garnered a low growl from Celestia. It reminded her of her grievances against Luna in a heartbeat. Luna unwittingly caused more agitation by sitting in the throne next to Celestia, the Emperor's, and reclined in the high back chair. "I am sure you heard about the Empire?" she said with a wide grin. "Which one?" Celestia replied, playing along while seething beneath the surface, "You will need to be more specific sister." "The Crystal Empire obviously. I hear that Discord was finally dethroned." "Is that so? Heading over to visit Sombra?" "Well, no..." Luna cast her eyes downward, her entire expression dropping, " The Empire is gone." Celestia whipped her head in shock. "This is the first time that I have heard of this." "Yeah well, I heard it straight from Father. It is on a need-to-know basis." Celestia took offense to this. Luna was among that category? "And you are among that select group of creatures?" "Well, Father brought it up during our training session," Luna rolled her eyes as her smile widened, "Mother did not bother telling me about it, I am surprised she did not tell you." Celestia relaxed in the throne, apparently taking some solace at Luna's revelation. No, Solaria would not have divulged that at all, that just was not her style. However, the silence that followed between the two seemed to thicken the very air, dropping the temperature by at least a few degrees. “Why did you call me here?” Luna asked icily, staring at Celestia with suspicion. Oh right, the whole reason she brought Luna here. Celestia made a mistake in retracing her thoughts. Sitting up from the throne, Celestia responded, "Oh, just to let out some frustration, is all." Jumping from the throne, Celestia flicked her ears backward as she whirled around, horn alight with yellow magic. Sensing danger, Luna instinctively hopped from the throne and started to back away towards the double doors. She brought the elephant in the room to the forefront very quickly. “This is about all of the time I spent with Father, is it not?" “No,” Celestia lied, inching ever closer to Luna,, “We have not seen much of each other since that first dinner when you came back, and I figured it would be a good idea to spend some quality time together...” “You have a lot of tension within you,” Luna stated matter of factly, tactically retreating towards the still open doors, “You have no intentions of talking anymore do you?” The gig was up. There was no point in trying to hide her intentions anymore, no, not that now all of her emotions were returning to the forefront.“Tch, leave it to Father's little filly to make this no fun at all,” Celestia spat, using her magic to shut the door It became bolted in the same manner it was closed, and immediately Cadence could feel that rush as Celestia geared up physically for a brief scuffle. Since both alicorns were alive in the present, Cadence allowed herself to get quite excited to see this. This was it. Celestia had Luna exactly where she wanted her. Now all she needed was that final drive, that one statement that would allow her to actually follow through with this dark wrong. “I think it would be best if we scheduled an intervention with Mother and Father,” Luna stated, sweat beginning to make itself apparent around her face, “They have not been treating us all that well at least in part...” Suddenly, Cadence realized that Luna was hardly trying to fight back, despite the obvious fact that she could ifs he really wanted to. However, Celestia had been blinded so much by her emotions that, in this moment of weakness, she failed to see the obvious secret weapon that Luna possessed. “Silence!” Celestia roared, the very thought of Luna trying to equate their suffering enraging her even more, “This is the day where the favoritism ends!” “I agree,” Luna said, her eyes glowing white in preparation for battle. This sudden shift in countenance seemed to be a jump for self-defense, as Luna realized that there was no other way. Cadence could tell that that was not the whole story. The two sisters fired bolts of magic at each other. Since they were not far apart from each other, it should be little surprise that their horns ended up striking against each other as the two attempted to force the other from their stance. Luna seemed more refined, with better technique, despite her younger age; but she was out-powered by Celestia, who had far greater reserves of magic within, coupled with raw emotion, allowing her to exert her force longer. Likely realizing that her advantage would not be for a long drawn out push of war, Luna instantly leapt from her place; one of her wings became encased in the resulting blast, the concussive waves sending both to either side of the throne room. Hitting her head on something hard, Celestia could not understand one thing; why was Luna so relatively prepared? Had she been waiting for this moment as well? She would not get her answer as a soft wail drifted to her ears. Once Celestia rose, she noted Luna with some tears in her eyes. Confused, as the mare was switching stances far too quickly, Celestia taunted, “What is the matter, did little Luna get her wings clipped by our rays? Don't worry, I'll put you out of your misery soon enough!” Really, Celestia even was acting quite out of character here, and Cadence now really wanted to know if she had been so easily stirred in the past. After all, as a ruler of the Crystal Empire, it would not hurt to know just how often Celestia's temper set things off, in case history bubbled up more tangibly in the future. Cadence was shaken from them by the sound of wingbeats and hooves, a sign that the commotion had been heard and was being responded to. Luna began softly crying, lifting one of her scorched wings pathetically, smoke still coming from it. Clearly she had been injured. Rather than striking again, fear suddenly gripped Celestia's heart, and Cadence could feel it very strongly. As Cadence had figured, Luna had not been trying to defeat Celestia in this brief duel. Celestia must have recognized the pattern as she froze in place. Within moments, Nightshade was over his injured daughter, attempting to soothe her while Solaria fluttered behind Celestia with a demanding look on her face. “What happened here?” “Celestia attacked me!” Luna wailed, more tears streaming down her face, burying her face into her father's coat, like any real foal would their parents. Celestia could not believe what she was seeing, and hearing. Was Luna seriously trying to make it look like she had started the fight? Well, she had by calling Luna in for the confrontation in the first place, but Luna had fought back. But here she was, acting like she was a complete victim. Cadence had figured that this would happen, but was surprised when Nightshade actually leered at Celestia with an angry look. For a moment, it seemed he had fallen for Luna's deception. Solaria quickly stepped between Celestia and Nightshade, perhaps intending on deterring any hasty actions. "Shade, we need to talk, our disagreements are clearly getting to Celestia and Luna." “A talk about why Celestia attacked her only sister with such force?” Nightshade responded, “Or how Luna decided to feign innocence in the matter?” Cadence would have cracked a smile at seeing Luna's rather simple plan backfired. She might would have gotten away with it if she did not spend so much time with Nightshade. Luna's sniffling brought attention back to her, though as she realized that the game was up, her tears magically began to dry and she removed herself from her father's body. Albeit, she did that slowly, and her ears were flattened against her head as she understood that the target of her deception had seen right through her. Celestia was taken aback at how cunning the plan was, and berated herself for allowing her emotions to get the better of her. She had nearly been played by a mare nearly half her age! Nightshade joked, “I suppose I taught her well. Remember the last time we fought each other for real?” Solaria smiled wide, apparently remembering it with picture clarity, “Yes actually. You faked knockout, and when I came over to gloat over you, you struck me with a hoof and proceeding to mount me. Very unchivalrious if you ask me.” “You do what you have to do,” he replied with false bravado, “Even if I had to trick you, I know the only turn on you ever had was brains over brawn.” And, as if their children were not even watching, the two nuzzled each other affectionately, and started a long, passionate kiss. Luna and Celestia looked towards each other indescribable expressions, getting across confusion and a level of disgust at seeing their parents kiss each other. "I am sorry, Luna," Celestia started sheepishly, "I should have tried to reason with you instead of trying to hurt you." "I am sorry too, 'Tia," Luna replied with a small smile, "It would have been much easier if we could have just switched roles for a few days. Instead, I almost tried to..." "It does not matter," Celestia rushes over to embrace her sister, "What matters is that we see the error in our ways." Yes, next time she sets out to destroy somepony, she would make sure to do it quicker, and with less dialogue. Wait, no, that was not the lesson at all here. The lesson, Celestia attempted to cement into her head, was that she shouldn't have allowed herself to be controlled by her emotions. As the two pairs made up, a very slow clap resounded through the throne room. Celestia and Luna tensed up, but Shade and Solaria seemed to be much calmer in response to the strange sound. “Now isn't that how family makes up? No death, no swords drawn, just a good ole' session of foreplay,” a familiar voice cackled, a mockingly slow clap becoming louder, “You have to admit, I was actually enjoying the distaste that Luna and Celestia were having for each other back there.” “You have grown some Discord,” Nightshade calmly stated, “Well, at least in body. Your mind seems as delusional as usual.” “Being the spirit of chaos and disharmony does not come without its set of cards,” Discord joked, as of yet still having not revealed his location, “By the way, did you know that this upcoming winter will literally freeze you lot to oblivion?” Immediately the two adult alicorns disengaged from each other, and turned to face the direction Discord's voice had been coming from. Luna genuinely retreated and whimpered behind Nightshade's left rear leg. It was not a pleasing sight, but even Celestia was slightly unnerved by the draconequus' bold declaration. “What do you mean by that?” Solaria inquired in a dull tone, “Riddles are more my thing.” “When the three races collide, the empire will divide,” Discord went on, now appearing before the group in the flesh, slowly descending from the ceiling like some sort of archangel, “Just listen outside to the howls!” Strangely enough, the four alicorns seriously took their eyes, and attention, away from Discord just long enough to hear the clop of hooves, the clashing of swords, and what sounded like howling wind. “Well that does not make any sense,” Nigthshade commented, “Things were just fine a few moments ago.” “Make sense, what fun is there in making sense?” Discord maliciously jeered, “Without disharmony, harmony cannot exist. A golden aged empire, in that same way, cannot exist without turmoil. But thanks to you two, the impossible happened, and you can only imagine the pains I had to go through after you sent the Crystal Empire off!” “That was for its safety and ours,” Solaria chimed, “And besides, we didn't want to risk you using the Crystal Heart...” “The power of that heart is a repellent to the most fearsome creatures of winter!” Discord chortled as he saw realization dawning on the Emperor and Empress, “And you fools just sent it through space and time to Solaria knows where!” The howling outside grew louder as the sounds of conflict grew louder, and Nightshade grit his teeth as he guessed, “I am guessing you whispered some inflammatory comments?” “Maaaaybe,” Discord playfully replied, as if the seriousness of the situation had just dissolved away, “I don't think earth ponies take too kindly to their race being considered a demotion by unicorn and pegasus standards. “Well it is the truth...” Luna piped, earning a reprimanding look from Nightshade. Seeing her cringe almost made the next bit worthwhile for Celestia. “I hope you enjoy your time in the soon-to-be frozen wonderland you currently call home. I know I did,” Discord sang, hardly hiding the malice that the words suggested. He vanished in a comical poof of smoke, leaving behind a few streamers and party favors. “How did Discord elicit enough hatred to send in an army of windigoes?” Nightshade inquired, turning towards Solaria, “I thought you were successful in the damage control department, not to mention I thought that they were still quite contained.” “Well excuse me, but you caused so much damage that controlling it sometimes caused an eradication of the problem,” Solaria shot back, “But I'm sure you didn't notice when the griffons left the land in droves? And how do you contain creatures that feed on emotions?” “Didn't care to be honest,” Nightshade admitted, “I had given them the option of assimilation or persecution. Most of them chose assimilation. Besides, the sea dragons were at it again at the time and their mass exodus didn't really spark much interest in contrast with the teeth of sea serpents. And the changelings can be restrained if you give them a large enough source of love, and then cage them up.” Cadence knew from history what happened next. The Ponī Empire would descend into chaos, and most of the ponies would be forced to go northwards, in the direction of the former Crystal Empire. Solaria and Nightshade stood alongside their guards to fight off the opportunistic creatures that would prey on the fleeing ponies. The windigoes, following the discontent of the ponies, followed them, and the premise for the Hearths Warming Eve tale was set. When the windigoes left, so did their harsh winter, and much of the land returned to a wild state that would have left it largely unrecognizable. But Discord controlled it nonetheless. As everything faded to black, Cadence contemplated on what she had seen. After all, she had seen a very different Celestia back there, several times in fact. “So how did you beome you?” she finally asked into blank space, “Becuase that back there was a different kind of you.” “Ponies change, Cadence. Even alicorns." Celestia could be heard sighing after this statement. At last she appeared in view before Cadence, the two back in the waking world for sure at this point. Celestia, without her regalia, almost seemed mortal, in a majestic and bare sort of way. The princess' throne room was almost like a clock or timetable of sorts, as bits of dawn-dusk lighting gave the glass windows an eerie sort of glow in the same colors as the many glass windows. Cadence's body hurt, as if she had smacked straight into some stone on her way down. Looking around, she saw the sun beginning to rise. Immediately, she looked towards Celestia, who was shaking off her own sleepiness. “Well, did you find anything strange?” Celestia groggily asked, slowly coming to her full sense. Celestia shook it off and went out of the room, presumably towards the balcony where she would raise the sun and lower the moon herself, leaving Cadence to herself for a few moments to watch the sleeping Luna and Twilight. If everyone was having dreams like this, living the lives of one of their long lost characters, maybe even completely unrelated, it was no wonder that it was a call for worry. This was ancient history being played out in dreams! But Luna had noted earlier that Discord had also been rather disturbed. Even if he was no longer an enemy, there was still a chance that Discord may be behind everything. The sunrise struck the East windows directly, sending the near blinding light throughout the room. This both dazzled and temporarily blinded Cadence, though within a few moments the bright light attained a more comfortable level of light. “We are going to need to talk to Discord,” Cadence stated, suddenly hearing a chuckle resound throughout the room. Celestia returned with a slight (very slight) smile on her face.“That doesn't make any sense, coming from you.” “Make sense, what fun is there in making sense?” Discord cackled, appearing from Celestia's mane like the wind that kept it in motion. The creature had bags over his eyes; apparently, sleep had not come easily for him either. “Have you been here all night?” Celestia inquired, though it was clear from her expression that she had already figured out the answer. “Of course!” Discord replied as he stretched comically, “ I just could not get past why there are no male alicorns in the newspaper. I figured, oh what the hay, I'll just come and pay you a visit. The guards wouldn't mind.” “Speaking of which,” Cadence chirped, “How did you get in here without us noticing?” “He stealth warped his head to the ceiling,” Celestia filled, “He then waited for us to drift off before revealing his entire self, likely catching snippets of our dreams from our murmurings.” “Perceptive as usual!” Discord chuckled, temporarily transforming the entire room into a game show room of sorts, a spotlight on Celestia, “You have won a newly informed in-law!” Cadence rolled her eyes at the display, but Celestia seemed oddly amused as the room returned to normal. “I am not going to miss serious Discord,” Celestia commented absent-mindedly, “Your pranks may get old, but it sure beats the alternative.” “Beats it with a stick!” Discord said, snapping into existence a Discord-looking pinata and a large wooden stick tied to Celestia's horn, “Just remember, candy is meant for consumption not for snorting.” Cadence could only watch in bemusement as Celestia played along, whacking the pinata in a semi-comical fashion. This was a bit much for her to take in, considering she had seen the enmity between the two in the past. Then again, she also caught onto something else that Celestia had said just as the pinata burst into various vegetables, such as broccoli and brussel sprouts. “You said that you would not miss serious Discord,” Cadence pressed as she dodged the piñata's inner goods, “What does that mean?” “The tree of harmony violated Discord's special places when he deicded to pay it a visit,” Celestia joked, dismounting the stick from her horn using magic, “I am sure he has nightmares of the tentacles.” “Dreadful those branches were,” Discord carried on, now shifting into the form of an interrogation victim in a classic wooden chair, “Drove me mad with all the tickling. There were places I did not even know could be tickled.” Cadence got an image in her head before vigorously shaking her head clear of it. Some things were better left to speculation than imagination. “So that changed him? How does that affect what we're doing now?” “Discord's change made him much easier to deal with him the second go round,” Celestia elaborated, “Almost reformable, really.” “Yes indeed,” Discord chimed, “I became a saint among all chaos, and the worst I had to endure was being turned to stone. Poor Sombra never got that chance.” Celestia and Discord shared a glance for a moment, then laughed. Cadence was unnerved, and she began to realize that they were doing this on purpose. She needed to see something in this interaction, something that was not right. Well, her list would be shorter if she could figure out what was actually right about this scene. “So what made the Crystal Empire return? I mean, was it coincidence? And how did Discord even end up among the Tree?" “No,” Discord answered as he snapped away a few party cannons, “It was not coincidence. Celestia's parents forced the Heart's defensive mechanism to end prematurely with their fierce love for their children.” “As strange as that sounds, that is the basic idea,” Celestia continued, “Discord getting his claws on the Heart caused it to begin a slow, but sure process of defending itself from corruption. When the threat of invasion came upon it and the city from my parent's forces, it immediately transported the empire between the fabric of time and space, sheltering it and the capital city from severe harm.” “But I thought it was conquered?” Discord showed some signs of irritation at Cadence's questioning, as if he expected her to know at least this answer. “Obviously the city was safe, but the rest of the empire fell by default,” Discord stated as if it were indeed quite obvious, even to someone who was not living during that time, “The empire as you know it today is more of a shingle of what it used to be.” “When we arrived there as refugees, we were desperate, and many of the crystal ponies feared that they were being taken over,” Celestia emphasized, “Had it not been for Sombra, we might would have had to fight our way within the safety of the walls. Father had been wise to sent Luna ahead of us.” “Okay, so you all decided to stay there for awhile. Discord is getting violated, four alicorns are resting in the Crystal city, while other ponies are starving and freezing. Sounds kind of harsh.” “We didn't exactly eat like royalty in the city,” Celestia pointed out, “Unless you ate gems or ponies, there was not an abundant amount of food to go around. Dissent began to grow. The only thing keeping it simmered was Mother and, later, Sombra." “Enough of all of this telling!” Discord shouted, “I want to know what Luna and Twilight are dreaming!” Curiously, the previously ignored alicorns had not awakened, and they even seemed to be completely undisturbed by the disturbance going on around them. Comically prodding them with the dislodged piñata stick, Discord jokes, "Sleeping with Luna is like sleeping with death; it is long, and very deep. Refreshing too if you keep from sleeping on the hard floor.
" The End of an Era"In the howling wintry wonderland that was Northern Equestria, a large train of ponies, some royal guards and others mere civilians, marched behind a single mare, her darker coloration providing a sort of framework against the bright white backdrop. Visibility was narrowed to merely a few yards at best; while most of the ponies, even the guards, tended to have the pony in front of them as a guide, Luna, as the leader of the group, only had herself as a guide. “Move it, move it!” shouted some guards as the blistering cold struck out at them all. Twilight by now had accustomed herself to traveling around as Luna. Surprised that Celestia actually attack Luna in the past, Twilight was even further aghast that Nightmare Moon was not the first time that Luna had fought her sister. Luna had purposely jaded and goaded her sister, so that she could use the wrath of their parents at Celestia's aggression to her advantage. However she had underestimated the insight of her father into her trick, though in hindsight Luna should have known better than to try to deceive her father and mentor. No one was severely punished or harmed in the aftermath, but Luna seeing her father' glare, that killer, slitted gaze, was punishment enough. She had nearly wet herself, having seen it directed towards manticores enough to know that it was the last thing many had seen. He had not been pleased with her usage of his teachings, and even less pleased that she had not been bold enough to try to beat Celestia entirely with her own magical might. Twilight reasoned the lesson Luna learned here would backfire when she attempted to directly engage Celestia in the future as Nightmare Moon, and was still defeated partially because she had been bold enough to try to fight Celestia with her own power alone, while Celestia used the Elements of Harmony. Back to the "present", Discord had once again interrupted the peaceful flow of Luna' life, and she had been instructed by her parents to lead the ponies northward. Luna had gotten back only due to the courtesy of a merchant, who had gotten lost on her way to the Crystal Empire. That journey is likely what convinced Shade that it was a good idea to have her lead their civilization towards safety, farther north no less. Without landmarks, or the presence of the Crystal Empire for that matter, to say that it was hard to find one's way in the blizzard that doggedly pursued them was an understatement. Soldiers and civilians alike were following Luna quite loyally, though the alicorn had little idea as to where he was going. Unfortunately, Nightshade and Solaria were too busy to provide further direction, tirelessly attempting to help the stretched thin guards defend the citizens, not just from outside threats, but even from themselves. Despite their dire situation, the three races of pony still found time to blame each other for the crisis, and were bound to break out into fights if their disgruntlement were left unchecked. This only fueled the windigoes, and made their journey harder; thankfully for Luna, most of the ponies near her end of the train had the sense to realize that laying blame would only make things worse. Celestia was among the last to leave, for whatever reason, and would likely bring up the rear of the train. Either way, Luna was leading the way blindly, her teeth chattering and clattering and her wings held close to her sides to try to preserve body heat. She was practically freezing, the metal armor and cloth hardly helping in her efforts to stay unfrozen. The deep snow made it hard to move, but even still, she thought that it would be a little warmer, like it had been the last time she had come this far north. Luna sought out what she knew was not there; the Crystal Empire's capital. The remainder of the Empire had been annexed shortly after Discord was overthrown and the City vanished, the remaining inhabitants far too disoriented to mount any sort of counter-offensive to the Poni occupation. Not to mention many of them welcomed the change in leadership, though as the winter slammed their homes with the force of a dragon army, they were likely not as pleased about the turn of events. Hopefully, the city would return soon. After all, the crystal heart was allegedly a repellent to the windigoes, and it was probably the reason Shade and Solaria had ordered them northwards anyways. Twilight could feel that Luna was hoping, almost praying, that somepony would say something to ease her nerves. Careful what you wish for; you just might get it. A guard behind her, making no attempt at hiding the skepticism towards Luna's leadership, gruffly asked, “Are you sure we are headed the right way? All I can see is snow, and more snow, and I think this armor is about to join the frostbite in sticking to my body!” “I am quite sure of it!” Luna shouted, it being necessary to be heard in the howling winds, “You have your orders, and I have mine, so let us just worry about our duties!” Luna was less than pleased about questions to her directions at a time like this; no, she did not know where she was going, but if word got out of that, panic like that unseen since the upturning of the Ponī Republic would follow. The guard did not comment again, perhaps becuase a roar from the left sounded out. Turning quickly, the two spotted an Ursa Major charging towards them. It was far from complete random; something had purposely stirred it in this direction. It looked half starved and desperate; seeing some ponies, perfect targets, likely heightened its determination to snatch just one from the crowd and live another few hours. Luna had to make a call; let that happen so that the Ursa would just leave, or attempt to face down this beast with dwindling time before they all froze to death. Both options had an odd amount of appeal, as the guard that had previously questioned her leadership was a prime candidate to be thrown to the beast at this time. Twilight hoped that she would not have to witness a pony being thrown to the Ursa as a sacrifice. She did not have to, as Luna shouted, “Beast! You will have to go through me before you snack on any pony in this line!” “End to misery!” the Ursa shouted back, surprising Twilight with the vocalization of the Ursa's predicament. Nonetheless, Luna quickly fired her horn off into the snow, striking it with a beam of cyan. The snow immediately shifted into the form of arctic bears, growling and charging at the Ursa. The Usra easily knocked the fake beasts away as if they were mere nuisances, and continued its relentless charge. Unicorn guards fired off their own beams, but despite hitting the Ursa's body, it continued its charge. It seemed clear that it was going to tear right through the long trail of still walking ponies without a second thought. The ponies' confidence in their troops was almost terrifying, and though they seemed to at least pick up the pace, they hardly adjusted their travel path to move out of the way. Luna swiftly flew towards the Ursa as it reared up in preparation to take out a chunk of the column. Relying largely on momentum, she rammed her horn into the creature's chest, hoping to divert attention away from the pony train. Although she struck true as far as aim was concerned she found herself stuck in the creature's chest; the startled creature staggered a bit backwards, but had not lost its stance. If it came crashing down, it threatened to crush Luna, or at least bury her a few feet into the snow. “By the powers of the moon! Be still!” Luna fired a magical blast directly into the beast, pooling her strength into this single attack. It went right through the Ursa and began wrapping around the creature. Luna, with some help from pegasi guards, removed herself and her horn just as the creature toppled backwards. The finishing blow would come in the form of the new magical restraints clamping downwards, splitting the Ursa into several pieces. Its limbs separated from the main body, the head falling into the snow, the Ursa gurgled some unintelligible tongue before finally succumbing to its fate. Luna stood gasping as her magical restraints returned to her horn. At least not all of her strength had been drained, but that had taken far too much energy, considering she had no idea where they were. Some of the pony train had completely stopped, their leader having stopped leading in order to fight the Ursa. Luna came to a few tears upon seeing their pitiful expressions, quickly wiping them away should they help freeze her face. She saw the hopelessness written on their faces, and a wave of emotion gripping at their hearts. Despair was the dominant emotion, and it was contagious enough for Luna to begin to feel it as well. Suddenly, a bright light flashed in the sky, and the windstorm temporarily subsided. Shielding their eyes with their hooves, many a pony looked upwards at the majestic light that was bringing radiating heat. It appeared as if Solaria and Nightshade had arrived at last, though only their silhouettes could be seen due to the blinding display. Swirling around them were gem-shaped objects, though their coloration and composition were very hard to make out from the ground. In a flash, an earthquake shook the ground, and then another bright flash to Luna's right, and then the two figures disappeared as suddenly as they had appeared. When all of this flashing was done, the snow storm subtly returned, though not as fiercely as it had been before. Visibility improved dramatically to seeing nearly a mile out. Luna could spot in the distance what looked to be crystals. Large crystals, that stuck out from the horizon like a beacon of hope elated the alicorn's sunken spirits. Responding to this emotion seemed to be a beating heart at the top of the city. “The Crystal Heart,” Luna stated in awe, almost taken aback by the sudden change in their circumstance. Where to go became painfully clear now to everypony, and like a stampede, the ponies all began running, flying, mass teleporting, or whatever mode of transport they possessed, to get to the city. They expected a very warm reception. Expectations usually do not line up with the reality. Though the residents had been gone for what felt like to them a few minutes, it became clear very quickly that the world around them had changed. The Crystal Empire was back; or at least, this single sprawling metropolis, and its inhabitants, crystalline coated ponies of course, were only briefly oblivious to the stampede of ponies coming towards them. The glints of armor, swords, and horns quickly alerted the guards of trouble. Sombra, still an alicorn and likely the only one with any idea of what just happened to them, quickly organized a force to investigate the supposed invaders. When the two forces met at the border, not surprisingly, the sight of a black haired alicorn clad in steel armor quickly caused most Ponin ponies to back off; Luna, on the other hand, approached almost happily, having regained her lead. She had nearly been left behind, having to take a mere second to make sure she was not seeing things. “Sombra!” she shouted, overjoyed to see her old friend again, “You are alive, and still an alicorn!” If Sombra was temporarily in charge, then Luna reasoned it would be a snap convincing the crystal ponies to allow them entry into the city. After all, how could Sombra even think to leave her and her ponies to die out in the cold? All this was Luna's conjecture, which some part of her felt was asking for a bit much considering they had not seen each other in nearly two years. “What the hell is going on here?” Sombra demanded to know, “Why are you invading us?” Luna ceased dashing towards Sombra and his guards, realizing what her and her entourage must have looked like, stampeding towards the gates as they were, like a rabid horde of wild beasts. “It is a long story, but this storm is not going to hold off for much longer,” Luna briefly explained, merely assuming that the windigoes were going to make a prompt return, “The Ponī Empire is no more! We seek sanctuary in the Crystal City.” Some of the crystal guards, clad in the same type of armor as Sombra, quickly peeked at the gathering flood of ponies. It did not take long to confirm that Luna spoke the truth. “They will eat us out of house and home!” one of the soldiers cried out, “Hell, they might even try to take us over!” A chorus of agreement surmised the general feel for the new arrivals. Luna's ears suddenly drooped, as she saw Sombra nodding in agreement. All that work she had put into establishing a friendly relationship with Sombra and he was so easily going to just turn them away in a time of need? “We can't take all of you; shocking as it may be, we haven't had contact with any other part of the empire in what feels like days.” Sombra gave a sympathetic look, though he had his own interests in mind. “That in itself is a bad sign, but I can't shake the feeling that you all brought this on yourselves by disposing of Discord and practically banishing us in some pocket dimension." Luna's face dropped upon hearing this, her eyes downcast. Yes, maybe her parents had caused the crystal ponies some grief, but there would be far more grief if she had to lead her ponies in a fight against the Crystal Empire. At best, they would take the city and find enough food to last them a few months; at worse, the Heart would teleport them all to that strange dimension, and the rest of the pony train that had not caught up yet would be left to their doom. There was only one ambition that Sombra possessed that might override the logistical problem that they faced. Sombra wanted to become king, it was his rightful position as far as he was concerned. However, the crystal ponies were not going to just hand him the crown after Discord had so easily taken it away from him, especially not now that Luna was back in the picture. No, Sombra would have to take the city by a level of direct force if he wanted to be king; even if he did have sympathetic supporters, he would need more power in order to both prevent an armed occupation of the city and facilitate a smooth transition of power to his hooves. If Luna could present herself as a potential ally to that cause, willing to do anything to save her and her ponies, then Sombra would let them in without hesitation. It was ingenious, but Luna first needed to make sure she did not make it too obvious; one wrong move and the crystal ponies would send all of them to the unknown oblivion. "Our situation is very bleak; without refuge, all of us may perish, including my parents and sister. We are willing to take our place of refuge by force if we have to." She made sure to look as defiant and courageous as possible, ears perked, wings flared, lips curled in a bit of a snarl, without sacrificing a level of despair. Sparkling, watery eyes that seemed to betray a level of doubt would complete the picture of a bluffing mare. Sombra looked away from Luna mere moments after her announcement, his own guilty expression suggesting that she tugged at the right initial strings. Now all she needed was somepony to make Sombra to come to grips with how much she could offer as a friend instead of foe. “Oh yeah? You and what army?” commented one of the crystal troops in the back of their formation. Sombra shot a look of contempt in that pony's direction as Luna's royal guard, with perfect timing began gathering in formation behind her, apparently having caught onto her battle cry cue. Unicorn, Earth, Unicorn, Earth, Pegasi, with four rows of five all lined up in preparation for battle, their faces bleak, but their assembly conjoined and rather intimidating to the much smaller crystal forces that Sombra led. Even the civilians joined in. Many of these ponies had bee ready to fight each other a while ago, but if these crystal ponies stood in the way of their survival, unity once again would have to be the answer. Against a common, tangible threat that they could do something against, petty arguments could turn into jokes and patriotism. Sombra seemed to weigh his options, looking towards the increasing mass of ponies against him, and the trickling gathering of ponies behind him. They were outnumbered, even more so by the minute, and if the remainder of the alicorns joined the fight, the Crystal ponies would be utterly outmatched. Sombra smiled, the beating heart of the Crystal Heart seemed to radiate as he spoke, “You may come at us with unity and desperation, but we will fend you off with love and determination! Not even Discord could take away the love that we have for each other and our independence!” It was corny; the first sign to Luna that Sombra was making one last ditch effort of resisting the obvious answer to his problems. Some of the crystal ponies narrowed their eyes at Sombra for the reminder of Discord, no doubt recalling how the draconequus got into power in the first place. “If you want a bloodbath, you will be sorely disappointed; our unicorns can place a strong barrier over this entire city that will not just repel you, but also keep you out as the cold comes to finish you off." Sombra looked down on Luna, smile fading and horn aglow with a menacing red light. "Frankly, unless you bring your parents, Luna, you are not at the negotiation table with a hoof up.” He had to be bluffing, Twilight reasoned. There were already few unicorns in the Crystal Empire to begin with, much less the capital itself, and it was clear that the Emperor and Empress had the means to deal with whatever defenses the crystal ponies could come up with outside of the Crystal Heart. But, fighting the crystal ponies might cause them to resort to desperate measures; if they laid waste to their own city in a scorched earth style strategy, then they would all perish, or be sent to the pocket dimension. That detail seemed to shatter the morale of the civilians, though the guards remained tight in formation. Some of the gaps were quickly filled, but the previously intimidating army now looked like a few companies, at best, even as more ponies filed in to find out what was going on. The snow began to kick back up to a flurry that whipped at everypony's flanks, and made it clear that if they kept this up for much longer, the windigoes would get a second wind and come back at them within the hour. “What are your demands?” Luna dropped her fierce stance, her eyes and ears dropping as low as they could go. Her face dropped into a depressing frown, but she puffed out her chest just slightly as she sat on her haunches. This gesture caught her guard completely off guard, and even Sombra seemed surprised at this. With Sombra studying every inch of her for deception, Luna made sure to poke out her lips just a bit and flap her wings. From behind, it would seem that this gesture would seem from meaningless to a vain attempt at maintaining dignity. From the front, to the forces behind Sombra, it would appear the final gesture of surrender. But to Sombra, it would be a micro-expression that would put a nail in this issue's coffin. The wings were practically hands presenting to Sombra Luna as a sort of prize; she was presenting herself just right, she deemed, to likely quite appealing from Sombra's point of view. After all, Luna and her forces had practically surrendered; that meant that he could demand almost anything from them and in their desperate situation, they would be more than happy to surrender just about anything. Anything at all, for their survival. Luna was somewhat banking that the lack of mare alicorns in the Crystal Empire, and the circumstances in which they met, would play in her favor for proper interpretation of her gesture. Deception could start a battle; but it could also prevent one too if employed properly. One of her father's lessons he no doubt would have no intended for her to use in this manner. Sombra blushed deeply, his eyes quickly averting from Luna to a random patch of snow as his thoughts were likely clouded by mortal intentions. When he did brave another look, Luna had risen from her haunches and stood impatiently awaiting his answer, dusting some snow off of her backside with her wings. Finally giving in to the manipulation, Sombra straightened his stance and offered, "If you support my place as king of this empire, then you and whosoever has come with you may enter as my new subjects." Luna nodded sharply, and with a single raise of her hoof, called to attention her forces. "We accept your terms, King Sombra!" Perfect. Score one for Luna. None on Luna's side reacted negatively since, as far as they were concerned, Sombra had been either the new king or a regent, and that their rulers could, and would, easily displace him sometime in the future. However, there was stark resistance on the other side of the gate; the Crystal ponies were clearly not as accepting of this proposal. “What?” several Crystal ponies shouted in outrage, “You, King? After Discord so easily manipulated you into giving away the kingdom before? What makes you think that we will just allow you to once again jump in line for that position?" "I am not asking your permission to take my rightful place on my family throne." Sombra turned towards his forces, motioning with his left wing for Luna to join him, his horn glowing red with magic and his lips curled into a proper snarl. "You might disrespect me for being manipulated by one of the oldest, and possibly most cunning, creatures in all the land, but you will not deny me my birthright!" Sombra and Luna soon took to the air, and when it became clear what their target would be, the Crystal legions turned tail and dashed towards the square. Luna was mildly pleased that all of those crystal ponies were flightless, lest there would actually be a serious threat of them reaching the square before she and Sombra reached the Crystal Heart. "Quickly, there is no time to lose!" Sombra took off towards the Crystal Heart, with Luna quickly following behind. "Think love and harmony and all that! Grab the Heart; I will join you on the balcony!" Luna nodded in compliance as Sombra winged downwards, causing red, black, and clear crystals to appear from the ground, disrupting the general motion of the ponies below. Luna took note of how Sombra still had that crystalline crystal pony appearance; despite everything up to this point, he still was not resembling a regular alicorn, though considering his base was a crystal pony, Luna found it understandable that his coat had not lost its crystalline shine as of yet. Luna reached the heart in record time and, hovering just above the relic, Luna could feel the strong, rhythmic beat of the city's most powerful defense. Focusing her thoughts on harmonic things, such as Ponī during peacetime and food fights, Luna hovered ever closer to the Heart. She swallowed hard, and then reached her hooves out to grasp the Heart. The heat radiating from it was intense, but it did not burn her as she wrapped her hooves around it. Instantly her chest felt like it was on fire, and this overwhelming desire to share the Heart with somepony nearly caused her to hurl it to the streets in ecstasy. The touch reminded Luna of her parents and sister, of their warm embraces and occasionally sloppy kisses. Their laughs and smiles on her very first birthday when she ran head first into a giant cake, coming out on the other side one year older. Such silly traditions, as the cake got progressively larger each year she grew older, she had nearly forgotten admist all of the danger. It was as if the Heart were amplifying everything that she held dear, expressing it like a raging fire in her chest. Had it been a potion, Luna would have equated it to a broth of scorching qualities that burned on its way in, and likely on its way out too. With the retrieval of the Crystal Heart complete, any remaining resistance to Sombra being king was quickly quelled, as there was no way that the standard guard could take on the alicorns without the Crystal Heart. Luna, still entranced by the Heart, hardly noticed when Sombra flew up to her excitedly, a wide grin on his face. She hardly even registered that he was talking to her. When Sombra finally noticed this, he put an arm around Luna and guided her towards the palace balcony, the palace, of course, being made entirely of crystals. The balcony had a clear view of the square, even as it became flooded as more ponies rushed into the city. When Sombra and Luna descended onto the palace balcony together, the Crystal Heart seemed to physically bring them closer together, with Sombra placing his hooves around the Heart, inadvertently touching Luna's in the process. It was a subtle action were one to notice, but the effects immediately caused the two's erratic heartbeats to start beating in turn, Luna's beating ever faster to match Sombra's. Sombra's tension melted away as he chanced another look at Luna, Luna mirroring this reaction. As his mind reeled at what his body was doing, he likely came to the conclusion that the magic of the Heart was the cause. Rational thinking departed as Luna blinked, only now truly noticing Sombra's presence for the first time. "This relic really knows how to bring ponies together," Luna weakly joked, adding in a short laugh afterwards, "I don't see how Discord could have caused it to go all defensive." "Maybe he has never had a good friend before," Sombra replied, "Time kind of flies when you are with somepony special." Time indeed was flying, though Luna's perception of it was just as clouded as Sombra's. Sombra had hardly finished speaking when he leaned in towards Luna, hardly muzzle length separating the two. Staring into each others eyes, one cyan and the other a contrasting red. The two stayed like this, despite various shouts trying to snap them out of their trance. The shouts were like little whispers in the small fantasy world that the two had been lulled into. “Damn heart has a mind of its own,” Luna practically breathed right into Sombra's face, him being so close, though he did not seem to mind. Bringing their foreheads together, playfully flicking at each other with their ears, the two seemed lost in each other, until finally one of them slipped out of the trance. Quite literally slipping out of the trance, Sombra had been trying to lean into Luna's head some more, when lost his balance and somehow landed onto the ground. The Crystal Heart had been snatched from their grasp. Blinking as she returned to her senses, Luna asked absent-mindedly, “What... was that?” Solaria, with a concerned look on her face, stood with a single hoof on the Crystal Heart, as if letting it go would present a danger to all those present. “It has been a few hours since we were permitted refuge here more or less without a fight. I had some news for you upon my arrival, but I think the two of you got a little lost in each other with this gem as the cloud.” Solaria pushed the heart just a little farther away from the two as a precautionary measure as Sombra got back to his hooves. “Luna, I need to tell you these news in relative private. Prince Sombra, do you mind?” “Not at all,” Sombra said, blinking away sleepiness, apparently ignoring the improper title that he had been addressed by. He gave one last look to Luna, and then trotted away. “I'll have the servants start up a meal for the occasion.” Luna sighed as she watched him go, apparently confused as to what just happened. Twilight too was rather confused, and couldn't help but ask a question, interrupting the flow of the story just momentarily to ask, “What just happened there?” “The Crystal Heart amplifies and projects polarized emotions, such as love for example,” Luna explained, “I have no doubt lust had a little to do with what just happened there. I cannot fully explain it myself, even after all of this time.” “Could those emotions have been coming from Nightshade and Solaria? I mean, I am assuming that they had a part in the Empire returning.” “That is probably not the case. Anyways, try to hold onto your questions till we next awake, as these interruptions are rather jarring. I know that that will be very hard for you, but I need for you to try.” Twilight complied semi-willingly, and after a moment's silence, the dream played out once again, right where it left off. Luna smiled dreamily, the effects of the Heart still lingering, before Solaria cleared her throat. Coming back to reality, Luna looked towards her mother with a hint of annoyance. “What are the news Mother? Surely everypony is safe now?” “Father is dead,” another voice bluntly stated, wingbeats and grunts accompanying it, “Father died while you were here negotiating with my former...” “Celestia!” Solaria chided with a burning gaze, “Now is not the time for that.” When Luna turned to see her sister, she could see Celestia very downcast; her ears and wings were drooped, her eyes watery. Luna, even from this display, did not immediately believe what she had been told, since she would have expected a much greater reaction from Celestia regarding such terrible news. Luna was skeptical that this true. . “We should probably check, just to be sure...” The body of their father gracelessly dropped between Luna and Celestia, causing both to jump. The guards who had hoisted it up to the balcony apparently were exhausted from their load. Luna hadn't even noticed them before, save for their grunts, and even then, she had paid them no heed. Denial remained strong as Luna rushed to the stallion's lifeless form. “Father, General, Shade, anything, are you alright?!” she cried out, grasping at the unresponsive head with her hooves, “Tell it to me straight, are we in a code Black?” From an elated sense of joy and enchantment, to a hell-driven sense of despair and misery Luna's mind reeled, her head already confirming the truth. Yet, her heart continued to deny, as if that shred of belief alone would cause Shade to spring back to life, joking about how he once again tricked Luna by playing dead. But it did not. The closed eyes did not open, the chest did not rise, and Luna's tears did not bother the still pristine and snow ridden coat. The stallion did not lift a wing to wrap around a heartbroken daughter, no words of reassurance came from his mouth. Not even a empathetic look from the now lifeless eyes. A faint smell told Luna that Shade had been dead for at minimum a few hours now; the cold had likely prevented any serious degradation to him, and that kind of time might have been the reason Celestia seemed so well put together. “My Harmony, why? How?” Crying into the form of her fallen father, guilt, shame, and even anger were welling up inside of her. She should have been there, fighting alongside her family; instead she had been leading their stupid subjects and gazing into the eyes of some stallion she hadn't seen in years. The Crystal Heart, still underneath the hooves of Solaria, began radiating again in response to Luna's reactions, causing Solaria to eye the jewel with a small frown. Coming to terms with the danger of leaving the Heart so close to her grieving daughter, Solaria had the good sense to carry it off to where Sombra went, taking all but one of the guards with her, while Celestia put a wing around Luna. “He died fighting off a pack of Ursra Majors. It was a very large...” “Liar.” Luna did not bother looking up from the corpse before her. “There is not a fresh scratch on him other than some travel wear and tear. He did not die of any physical injuries.” Celestia seemed taken aback by this now obvious point, and seemed to scold herself for not thinking that explanation more thoroughly. “I think the truth is better at this point, your majesty,” the remaining guard suggested, “After all, I think he would have wanted her to know.” Watery eyes started to blur the vision, and despite this being almost third person, Twilight found it hard to read the watery expression on Celestia's face. Luna's tears hadn't blurred her sight before. It seemed strange that only now would sight be restricted, though Twilight dared not ask about it. “He died of a broken heart,” Celestia finally confessed, a few of her tears dropping onto Luna's right wing. “Seeing the Empire lost, seeing so many citizens spreading out from the group and trying and failing to make it on their own, still blaming each other for the crisis, and knowing that our perfect world came crashing down was too much for him." "He went to the Tree of Harmony with Mother; only she came back alive.” “Tree of Harmony?” Luna spoke, now quite confused, “I don't understand, what doe that have to do with...” “Mother and Father found Discord, entangled amongst the branches, apparently held at bay from running amuck. I don't know much about it either, but the way Mom described it, Discord was forcefully converted back to the jester he started out as. Dad's spirit was taken by the tree in his grief, to ease his suffering.” “A tree killed him?!” Luna looked towards Celestia with both shock and anger, likely at the notion of her great father being taken down by what she believed at the time to be a measly plant with a special name. “No, he died and the tree took his spirit. It is hard to explain.” That was an understatement. Even Twilight, who had actually seen the tree and knew of its significance to Equestria, had to admit that that fact was very hard to grasp. The tree took his very spirit, but did not directly kill him? As in, the tree was a sort of afterlife storage? Twilight found herself getting a headache trying to understand it. But that didn't matter, as the two sisters shared a moment to grieve for their Father, as the setting sun cast its final rays on the three alicorns. Later that night, four alicorns sat at a rectangular table, with Sombra and Solaria at the two ends, and Luna and Celestia in the middle. Very little food covered the table, in stark contrast to the banquet that had been prepared on Luna's first day here. Merely some apples, carrots, strips of grass, and even some hay on oddly shaped plates were placed on the table in a very scatterbrained nature. After their grieving, Celestia and Luna had taken the privilege of burying Nightshade; they, nor Solaria, desired an elaborate funeral. Sombra complied, but insisted that they needed to at least eat before setting off for the night, lest hunger and grief drive them to do something rash. He said it in a jesting fashion, but they knew that he had a grim point. A few guards stood at the entrances, but for the most part, the four alicorns were left to talk amongst themselves. Perhaps as a reflection of the previous significant meal that Luna and Celestia had shared, the lone stallion at the table would be the one to start the conversation; Celestia, Luna, and Solaria were all hardly eating and mostly in a state of silent mourning. It made plenty of sense that Sombra would be the one cheerful enough to try to break the silence, and brighten the mood. “Well Luna, look on the bright side, at least you have your sister and mother still.” Sombra bit into an apple, purposely making a loud shearing noise in his bite while he eyed the mares at the table. When he received no response, he chewed on his food rather downcast, before his ears perked up again with an idea. “Well, today is the anniversary of my parents' deaths, and the day Discord tricked me, and now, it shall also be the day that I became king as I righfully should, and...” “Let me stop you right there Sombra." Solaria looked up from the banquet table with a glare, staring straight across at Sombra. “I have only met you face to face this very day, and I can already tell we are going to have some problems with each other. You are not a king.” Despite her emphasis, Sombra did not seem even remotely phased. In fact, he chuckled, and then took a sip of water from a golden goblet. “This is my domain, I have proclaimed myself king, and I am supported by my subjects...” Solaria laughed, though it sounded more like a scornful snarl than anything else. “Tch, compliance and support are two different creatures, Sombra. How much would you be willing to wager that they would poison your drink in an instant if they thought it could kill you.” “Can't it?” Celestia inquired, now sniffing her own drink, “I had not even thought about that.” “Please, Tia, they would not have the nerve,” Luna pointed out before she bravely drank a goblet of water, “They surely know their place.” “Based off of Sombra here, I would disagree with that notion." Solaria pointed a hoof haphazardly at Sombra, knocking over her own goblet in the process. “I am an Empress, not some princess that is going to be courted into being subjected by a foal prancing around as a real male monarch.” Sombra clearly took offense to this, likely not catching the reason why her ire was so directed at him in particular. “Now hold on a minute, two empires are practically reduced to the capacity of a city and a few estranged villages. Both are very much your fault!" Sombra slammed a single hoof on the table, pointing his horn in Solaria's direction for a more effective leer. "I on the other wing have opened the way for pony kind to survive under my leadership, and you insult me in my own dining hall? What nerve.” “Sombra, you would not last a minute as king if I so willed differently,” Solaria threatened, her menacing demeanor beginning to reflect across the table. “You are not only weaker than me, but far less experienced in ruling. You do not deserve to be considered even close to my equal.” Since the only one that was her literal equal had been Nightshade, Luna figured that Sombra would chalk it up to grief and let it go. Sombra's ego had different ideas. “You mean driving the world into a miniature ice age?” Sombra shot back, exchanging barbs between bites, “I can do bad all by myself, thank you very much. I am sure your husband would have respected these boundaries, considering the circumstances.” Solaria's horn began to glow dangerously for a few seconds, even Celestia glaring angrily at Sombra. Solaria quickly calmed down, however, and instead tossed her mane around until it was entirely on her back. “Since you seem to think yourself an equal of mine rather than a subject, then it seems I need to correct your thinking.” Sombra lifted his head and huffed, returning all hooves to the floor. “The only one with incorrect thinking here is you. This is my domain, I will not be defeated on my own turf.” “A wager then?" Solaria leaned ever forward, narrowed her eyes, and showed a wicked smile. "Should I win, then you will recognize your status as a prince and mine as an empress, and get the notion that you are king out of your head." Sombra, intrigued, levelled his head, casting a sideways glance at the Empress. “And if you lose, if I win? What do I get?” “What do you want?” “Your blessing, were I to wed one of your daughters. And a public declaration of your subjectivity to me.” Celestia stopped glaring at Sombra by this point, but still showed a level of contempt in her face. She knew that this could only end badly, regardless of who won. “Sombra, perhaps you should reconsider challenging my mother...” “Why?” Luna countered, pointing a hoof towards Sombra, “He needs to show that he is not going to just roll over when an insurmountable task challenges him. I say he be given the chance to prove himself to Mother.” Celestia, with narrowed eyes, tried to plead with Luna to abstain from egging Sombra on. The damage was already done, however. “Insurmountable challenge?” Sombra growled, now turning his head towards Luna, “Are you implying that I stand no chance against your mother?” Luna pulled back her hoof and looked gravely towards Sombra. “She has you beat in experience, raw power, and position. While not impossible, your odds of beating her in a fair fight are minimal.” Sombra's eyes became filled with a green light, purple sparks emitting as he slammed a hoof onto the table. “I will not back down from any challenge to my right to rule! If it is a fight that she wants, then it is a fight that she will get!” Solaria's smile grew both more sinister and larger in size after this exchange. “Excellent. A public demonstration of who is the better of us, and more fit to rule; I like it. Just one stipulation that I must add.” Looking back to Solaria, Sombra raised his left eyebrow in curiosity. “And what is that?” Solaria lowered her own head, as if to bring the gravity of her next statement to the attention of all present. “When, not if, you lose, I get to personally re-arrange the nature of the union between the Ponī Empire and the Crystal Empire however I please, without any need for approval from you.” Sombra weighed his options, likely considering his options. He looked towards her again, knowing full well that he would be better off offering an added stipulation of his own. "Well, then my added stipulation, when I win, is that you leave the confines of the Empire, and take the daughter I choose not to wed with you when you leave." Celestia opened her mouth to speak, but a single look from Solaria caused her to shut it. Solaria's face showed no change in expression. "Very well then, I, and by default you, accept our respective terms." Luna smiled, as she really wanted to see Sombra do his best for personal reasons. Just the fact that he had the nerve to stand up to one of the most powerful fighters of the Empire elated a very sensual response from Luna. Celestia shot a glare at her that almost made Luna cringe. What was Celestia getting so worked up over? Sombra never specified which daughter he would take were he to win, not like it matter. Even Luna had high doubts that he would actually win, and besides, considering recent events, it would be better to send the water under the bridge sooner rather than later. Sombra and Solaria stood in the square, their respective subjects gathered around. Celestia and Luna were producing a barrier that should reduce the impact of the fight, and allow for safety to the spectators. Sombra was in full battle armor, while Solaria chose to merely go out with her regalia. Clearly Solaria had few concerns that Sombra would be able to seriously injure her. The barrier limited the total space that they had to fight, but Solaria insisted that her slight disadvantage, as she was at least twice his size in height and thus would be more hindered by the barrier restrictions, would further the point that she was not to be so recklessly challenged. Sombra widened his stance, his horn pointed towards Solaria in preparation for attack. “When you are ready.” “I am always ready,” Solaria responded, mimicking Sombra's pose, “Especially when it means taking shiny ponies down a notch.” Despite her response, Sombra did not immediately attack, as if he were studying her body. Indeed, her wings could function as extra limbs, meaning that an aerial attack would be pointless in such constrained space. If she managed to, at any point, corner him, he was done for. Luna even concluded that, overall, Sombra's only chance was to try to create an opening in her defenses, as he could not overpower her through any conventional means. Sombra, his strategy apparently set, winked towards Luna before channeling magic to his horn. The red glow caused crystals to sprout from the ground near Solaria, all of them aimed to try to impale her. Solaria reared backwards, her front hooves at the ready. When Solaria brought them back down again, they slammed and shook the ground with such great force that shattered the crystals as if they were naught but mirrors with rocks thrown at them. Caught off balance by the shaking, Sombra staggered backwards, his face showing some surprise at Solaria's physical strength. “Is that the best that you have got?” Solaria jeered, “You are joking, right?” Sombra crouched low, as if about to pounce, wings extended. However, Sombra folded his wings and returned to a standing position as he realized that charging would not work. With that display of strength, Luna knew that Sombra would avoid getting within hoof's reach if he could help it, with the consequence of failure being the sound of snapping bones, at best. Sombra smiled wide, and scrunched up his face, his horn alight. The crystalline ground beneath the two alicorns suddenly opened up; as the ground gave way. Solaria took to the air, not wishing to fall into the nearly created space. Within seconds, the arena was considerably deepened; at least thirty feet worth of sub-terrain was exposed, with Sombra flying near the base. Solaria charged magic to her horn, the orange glow giving off a sunset sort of ambience around her, and fired a single raw beam of magic towards Sombra. Sombra swiftly dodged, but even as he cleared the beam, it bounced off of the floor and back upwards. Sombra dodged this too, but with the next ricochet off of the barrier, Luna realized that the attack was not meant to strike Sombra at first; the blast would get faster and faster the more it bounced off of the surroundings, eventually making it impossible to dodge. With time against him, Sombra would eventually be forced to engage Solaria in at close range. Solaria dove downwards, ever watchful of her own attack, to try to meet Sombra in mid-air. Knowing full well that it would be suicide attempting to charge right into her, Sombra veered off to the left. Solaria pursued, spinning majestically as she fired yet another beam of magic at Sombra. Sombra less gracefully dodged this one, parts of the armor on his left side becoming seared in the process. A long burn streak on his left flank might would have bled had it not been for the intense heat of the attack. It was probably painful, but Sombra carried on with a grimace as he flew around the battlefield, constantly pursued by Solaria. The single bouncing shot continued to speed up its pace, though Solaria likely did not have to be concerned about getting hit by her own attack. Whatever Sombra's strategy was, it would certainly fail if he was hit by that blast of magic. Swiftly, Sombra charged magic to his horn, diving towards the ground as a coating of crystals began to cover the ground. Solaria, likely deciding not to continue playing around, gathered magic in her horn. Light from all around, from almost any source that could be gathered, suddenly began focusing in on the tip of her horn. Luna had never seen this attack before, but Celestia apparently had; her eyes were wide, and she seemed shocked to see it. Solaria, with a tip of her head forward, fired off this thick beam of light downwards towards Sombra and his gathering crystals. Sombra landed on the crystals, which suddenly turned red, just moments before the blast impacted the ground he stood on. There was no explosion, no shockwave, only a burst of light that completely and utterly blinded everyone in attendance. Luna howled, her eyes feeling as if they were on fire from the intense light, dropping her end of the barrier and covering her face with her body. Her wings came over her head, her head swimming from the intense visual sense overload. Luna swore that she would never see again. However, slowly, but surely, she could re-open her eyes and make out blurry shapes. The ground below her was shaking, or so she perceived it, and the dazzling lights still were present on the edges of his vision. Luna was staggering forward before a strong force tackled her to the ground behind her. Too disoriented to fight back effectively, Luna realized that a white coated mare had taken her down. A look at the flank revealed a yellow sun with blazing orange rays: it was Celestia. “Tia, what...” Luna started before Celestia hushed her. “You almost fell right into the active battle zone. Just don't move till you get your senses back.” Luna reluctantly obeyed, mostly because she had little choice. Celestia released the pressure as Luna rose, blinking slowly. The wailing of ponies could be heard as they lamented, many of them also afflicted by the attack. As her vision began to key back into place, Luna gasped at the sight she beheld. Many ponies were rolling around in agony, others were unconscious, and yet still others were curled up in the fetal position, as if it would do them any good. Considering that the ponies' coats reflected light, the massive flash probably was amplified, by design. That attack was designed to stun, not to kill it seemed. It had certainly done its job up top, but what of Sombra? Had he not been near the epicenter of the blast? Luna wandered over to the edge of the battle arena, Celestia standing close as she neared it. One question came to mind as she realized that Celestia did not seem at all affected by the attack. “Tia, how is it you don't seem to be affected?” Luna inquired, “I saw your eyes all wide right before the attack started.” “Luna, you are not the only one who was being mentored by our parents." Celetia definitely had to refrain from coming off as snide in her response. “Father tended to operate in the nighttime, where such things did not need to be as bright to work. In the daytime, competing with the sun requires a greater blast of light. I saw Mother use it many times during the coup. It was her secret weapon of sorts, and I will not divulge how I dealt with it." “Some secret weapon,” Luna replied in utter surprise, “I think Sombra is still up there!” Down below, at the base, the crystal floor had reflected much of the light rather spectacularly. Solaria, somewhat stunned from her own attack, seemed to be recovering just as an unconscious Sombra seemed to come to. “Give up yet?” Solaria inquired, shaking her head clear, “Clearly you are beaten.” “Not yet,” Sombra gurgled as he attempted to rise to his hooves, “Your fiery blast hurt, but I still have one trick up my sleeve.” “What, may I ask, makes you believe that?” Solaria seemed genuinely surprised that Sombra thought he still had a chance at victory. Sombra wobbly rose to his hooves, his eyes fluttering open. His armor was gone, and his lusterful coat was now charred and blackened, the crystal sheen completely gone. Yet, he did not seem injured beyond repair, which was more than what Luna had been expecting. “Had your blast hit me directly, that would have been nasty,” Sombra explained, his stance becoming steadier, “Dodging was out of the question, so I just had to use this giant mirror to reflect it.” “You started to form that prior to my attack. There is no way you could have foreseen it.” “No, but my trump relies on the qualities of these crystals, you see.” Sombra's eyes suddenly acquired purple trails of fire as he stared at Solaria, his horn aglow in a crimson magic. Solaria met his gaze as she stepped forward, cautiously, each step cracking the crystals below her. Once the two were a mere hoof distance from each other, Sombra took a single step back, a large crystal suddenly sprouting from the ground. The speed of it surprised Luna, but Solaria merely ducked and stepped backwards in the same motion. The earlier magical beam that Solaria had fired apparently was still in play, and despite the removal of the barrier that would seem to be the most logical point of ricochet, came flying in at blinding speeds, shattering the crystal and sending bits of it as high up as Luna and Celestia's vantage point. “Nice try Sombra,” Solaria cackled as she stood back to full height, “E for effort.” Without warning, Sombra fired a purple-green blast of magic towards the shattered crytsal formation. The crystal reformed, except this time, the shape was distinctly in the shape of a vanity mirror. Solaria's eyes suddenly took on a green tint, and she seemed taken aback for a moment. “I can't say I am familiar with that one,” Celestia commented as she lowered her head for a better look, “What is it?” “Nightmare Crystal,” Luna replied, “Sombra mentioned that he could cause victims to see their worst nightmares with this magic. I did not think it would work on Mother...” "What?" Celestia cried out in concern, leaping into the arena, "She could be in serious danger!" While she had some reservations about intervening in the fight, losing one parent was enough, and if Sombra really had turned the tables on her, now would be the best time for intervention. On the other hoof, if Celestia intervened, then it might would make Sombra look stronger than he really was. Luna leaped in after Celestia, intent on stopping her from intervening in the fight. Sombra sighed in relief, oblivious to the cavalry right above his head; as his eyes returning to normal, and he took a single step around the crystal mirror, stopping once at the side of Solaria's left flank. By now, many of the ponies above were beginning to recover, and some of them stared incredulous at the scene. It seemed as if Sombra had won. “See Luna? Nothing is insurmountable...” Whatever he intended on stating next was cut off as Solaria's eyes returned to normal; in a rapid and fluid motion, she backhooved Sombra and shattered the mirror in a single move. Sombra was caught completely off guard, and was sent sprawling to the other side of the arena, crashing into the opposing wall. With it being clear that her mother was in no immediate danger, Luna felt it necessary to check on Sombra first; Celestia would check on Mother in the meantime. Luna landed with a gentle clop just a few feet from the indention Sombra had created upon impact. Sombra, embedded a few feet into the wall, made a sickening peeling noise as he fell from the wall. Luna managed to catch him from falling to the ground with her magic, though it became clear that he was out cold. Bringing him closer, she inspected the stallion with scrutiny. His body had sustained quite the damage, with bruises and burn marks present all over. The internal damage was likely much greater than the outer, reinforced by Sombra's incredibly low hanging jaw. His face was contorted into a shocked and pained expression; he had apparently been caught between the transition before blacking out due to the sheer force of the blow. Bringing an ear to his mouth, Luna was reassured as she caught sign of weak and irregular breathing. Lowering her ear to his chest, she could hear a rapid heartbeat slow down. Sombra then coughed, a few spatters of blood landing on Luna's face. He was alive, but only just barely. “We need to get him some attention,” Luna concluded as she turned to face her approaching sister and mother. Solaria, her eyes wide, seemed very displeased by Luna's response. “Celestia, take care of Sombra,” Solaria ordered, “Make sure he gets better. Luna, stay away from him.” This confused Luna thoroughly, as it made little sense that Celestia, who knew nothing about Sombra, would be able to care for him better than she, who at least knew where his chambers were and his favorite place to be scratched. “Wouldn't it make sense for me to care for him instead?” “No!” Solaria shouted, just a hint of fear in her voice, “You are to stay as far away from that stallion as possible! His black heart is bound by the chains of his ambition; some time with Celestia might help.” “But...” “No buts sister.” Celestia already had immersed Sombra in her magic, and was levitating him away even as she spoke. “Sombra has lost this fight. It would be better if someone he did not know very well tended to his wounds, so his grief does not cause him to do anything rash.” That made no sense to Luna, but Celestia's agreement and the lack of a fourth voice meant that Luna was overridden on the matter. She could only watch as Celestia took Sombra away, while Solaria hissed in his direction. “How dare he show me such a vision... I will not let that happen, no matter the cost.” She then turned her gaze upwards towards the less than enthusiastic crystal ponies, their crystal coat sheen beginning to return. “You ponies now answer to me, and me only; you have the day off to get adjusted to this shift. Dismissed!” Luna had never seen ponies move so fast and in such an organized fashion. There was no argument, no protest. Looking towards her mother, Luna moved her mouth to make words, but a whip-like motion of Solaria's mane convinced her otherwise. “To the guest chambers,” Solaria concluded, flapping her wings angrily, “You are not to see Sombra until I so deem it. The consequences of either of you defying that order will be dire.” Luna slowly nodded, not entirely sure what the threat was. Sombra had just been stripped of his kingdom again, so soon after getting it back, and had been humiliated in front of all of his subjects, who so readily accepted new leadership. Frankly, Luna couldn't see what else Solaria would, or could for that matter, take from him other than his life. Believing that that was all that he had left to take, Luna complied, following behind her mother as the night breeze blew into the arena space. There was no need for Sombra to lose his life; while she could not admit to herself that she felt anything concrete about Sombra, she certainly did not want to see him die needlessly. She cast a single look at the shattered remains of the Nightmare Crystal; a large fragment remained, glowing near the bottom of the arena, its eerie red-purple-green color fluctuations giving no answer as to what Solaria had seen in her vision. Whatever it was, Luna deemed, she had to make a mission to find out what it was from Sombra.
" Of Train Rides and Schemes"Back in the real world, for the most part, Equestria continued its daily activities. Despite Discord's desires, there was no seeing into Luna and Twilight's dream. Celestia, however, reasoned that by now they had to have progressed towards their time in the Crystal Empire, though she had no way to confirm it. Besides, there were other concerns that grabbed at Celestia's attention, now that it was morning. Chatter regarding the strange dreams had begun to reach conspiratorial heights within Canterlot, and Luna's affiliation with dreams in general convinced many that she may be behind them, either in an attempt to prank them or seriously ruin their beauty sleep. Outside the castle doors, even at this early hour, gathered an assembly (they could hardly be called a mob with how formally they were arranged) demanding an answer straight from the crowns, or at least one of them. Shining Amour, Captain of the Royal Guard and formerly a regular face around Canterlot, had also arrived on the scene from the Crystal Empire for reasons unknown to the general public. Shining Armour's previously unannounced return to the castle, after being in the Crystal Empire for so long, had stirred even the guards' curiosities, as their old Captain returning seemed very strange. A few days prior, Celestia had tasked Shining with investigating any potential remains of Sombra throughout the Crystal Empire, and had ordered him to report to her directly if he found anything of great interest. Since Shining Armour was walking through the doors to Celestia's throne room in his Guard armor, she could surmrise that Shining's report was not good news. He had in his magical grasp a brown sack, held from his person a few feet as if it were contaminated with some sort of disease. And for all Celestia knew, it could have been. Biological attacks, or pranks as some called it, were not entirely unheard of through history, and the dragons particularly liked to bring strange diseases to Equestria during their migrations, just to see how the Equestrians handle it. Then, once it's dealt with, they tended to “borrow” the solution for themselves and others, acquiring many gems in the process. However, if this was present in the Crystal Empire, where dragons habitual avoided traveling, then it was unlikely that dragons were behind it. Then again... “Princess?” Shining called out, his blue man oddly disheveled despite his appearance with royalty being an expected occasion for him, “Are you alright, you seem spaced out.” Celestia's attention was snapped back to the matter at hand. It seems she had missed Shining's greetings to Cadence and Discord. “Welcome Prince Shining Armour. I wish I could call you in under better circumstances.” Celestia stepped towards Shining, just a few inches from the sack that he held, a curious gaze accompanying her usual smile. “What have you got there?” “Sombra's horn." Shining reported this with a cringe of sorts, as if speaking the pony's name would awaken some previously asleeping evil. Discord could be heard gasping overdramatically, putting a hand to his forehead. "Oh cruel world, those monsters, they actually cut it off! The poor stallion's pride and joy, stripped from his helpless corpse and bagged like a common household food ingredient!" "There was no corpse," Cadence refuted, "I would have noticed a body dropping from such a height." "Discord is just being overdramatic." Celestia eyed Discord, wordlessly communicating that playtime for the two had ended. Discord folded his arms and feigned injury, though no doubt he was plotting up a storm of puns. The guards in the room tried their best not to look interested in the conversation, but their perked forward ears betrayed them terribly. Celestia reasoned that it would be better for further discussion to take place out of the earshot of the guards. “This room is to be empty within ten seconds except for Cadence, Shining Armour, Discord and me." With the resounding stomp of Celestia's hoof starting the count at three seconds, any guards and servants left the room in a mere five seconds, with the dust and after-images all gone by seven seconds. Only the sound of breathing remained, even the air seemingly being sucked out of the room at the mention of his horn and Celestia's order. Cadence reared back from the sack with a mortified look on her face.“What did you bring it here for? You do know that we came here for an investigation into the dreams, not the magical artifacts.” “Well that is the thing,” Shining pointed out, using his magic to remove the horn from the bag, “On my side of the dream realm, this horn is incredibly important. I believe it may be a source of trouble for not just the future Equestrian games, but the source of trouble for what we are now experiencing.” Cadence gasped in disbelief as Shining levitated the horn from the sack. Celestia seized the horn with her own magic, bringing it closer for inspection and scrutiny. Equestria was a strange place where strange things happened on a regular basis, but a pony acting through a mere horn? Despite her wishes, destroying the horn now might would only make things worse, if it really was the source of their trouble. One never knew when dealing with Sombrafacts what bringing destruction on it would do. Now liberated of the burden of carrying the Sombrafact, Shining quickly made his way up the steps to Cadence, Cadence coming down to meet him. As the two embraced each other, the horn glowed bright red, and Celestia hovered it away from the two as she rose from her throne. “Sombra never was one to go down for long,” Celestia mused, turning the horn around absentmindedly, “If this is seriously still left of him, then perhaps we jumped the gun when we assumed that he was gone for good. Since when did something go away for good of his magnitude?” “Well, Discord is reformed, and we haven't seen much of Chrysalis, thankfully,” Shining commented, “I don't think we have to worry about Redface the Doublecrosser unless we start believing in ghost stories.” Cadence broke away from the hug to look Shining in the eye critically. “Uh, Shining when Sombra was last here, he practically was a ghost.” “Right,” Shining said as he placed a hoof behind his head, rubbing at his oversight, “Well, there are always exceptions.” “It does not make any sense,” Celestia reminisced, “Sombra should not have the power to live on through a mere horn.” “What fun is there in making sense?” Discord commented as he appeared from Celestia's mane as an image in a thought bubble. Celestia popped the thought bubble with her horn, sending Discord floating gently to the ground. He seemed overly smug "The only answer to that is Sombra's side of the story. Which will not make sense to a mare.” Celestia put on a scowl, clearly not pleased by Discord's hypothesis. “I don't like what you are suggesting. Are you saying we cannot figure out this issue?” “I am just saying that there are two sides to the rainbow,” Discord said, drawing a rainbow above Celestia's head with his hands spreading, “Same spectrum of colors, different angles to view it with.” “If you were talking illusions, I might could follow,” Shining sheepishly admitted, “But you kind of lost me there.” “A rainbow does not always show its whole self,” Celestia explained, “You have to look at it just right to see both ends. The whole pot of gold and midgets in green was probably a horse joke about ponies in general, since ponies will do just about everything.” “I don't think I have ever seen a pony mount or be mounted by a griffon,” Discord mused, “But I can imagine some dragon pony matchups that might be clop worthy. Spike and Twilight maybe?” Celestia narrowed her eyes at Discord with a slight scowl. “Discord! You know that is not what I meant!” Discord winked, pointing out, “I know, if your dear student would have heard the suggestion she might would have fainted. I mean, since she's an alicorn now she would live to see him grow up big and strong...” Shining placed his hooves over his ears, shaking his head gently to get some nightmare from his head. “Just, stop. I would rather be painted with the mental picture of Sombra mounting Luna than my sister and her pet dragon.” “Oddly specific aren't we?” Discord pouted as he slithered over to Shining, putting an arm around the stallion's shoulders, “Come on, that little dressmaker isn't going to live long enough to see Spike's first mating, and the closest thing to him after all is Twilight.” Cadence cringed at the thought, and looked towards Discord with a critical look. “He sees Twilight as a more sisterly or motherly sort of way. Even if that were half true, I think he would take his chances with a random pony off the street before trying Twilight.” “Oh the shipping possibilites of that statement!” Discord shouted in apparent glee, spawning a piece of parchment and an ink letter. He then put on a Twilight impression and dictated to the magical pen. “Dear Princess Celestia. Today, I learned what happens when a dragon and a stallion half his size copulate. It does not end well for the stallion, and I think he is a little less interested in visiting the library, err, castle now. Did you also know that Discord can not just eat paper, but crap it back out too? Please do not ask how I know that.” Despite the oddity of the entire mock report, Celestia's attention seemed to be brought on at that last bit, her expression turning from scolding to curiosity. “Is that true Discord? Do you have that ability?” “Have you ever met a non-goat that can digest paper?” Discord retorted as he put on false reading glasses, “Then again, I am a mix of many things so I will put that as a maybe.” “Well, anything that can digest the material would work, so maybe termites?” Shining suggested. Cadence's face described a look of surprise and shame at the same time as she slowly brought a hoof to face. “We're getting off track, again. The horn and Sombra?” “Boned!” Discord and Shining shout in unison, hoof-claw clapping upon realizing that they were thinking the same exact thing at the same time. Cadence was neither amused or amazed; even Celestia seemed less than pleased, though she showed no signs of it. Cadence would not be so subtle with a face arched in bewilderment. “Come again?” “Quick! We must see if magical mayo emits when it is rubbed!” Discord carried on dispersing the fake report and bringing forth vaseline, “Hand it over Celestia dear!” Celestia almost handed over the horn when she realized what Discord was about to jokingly do with it. She quickly jerked it back, shaking her head at what she almost allowed herself to witness. “What we are getting at is that all of a unicorn's most intimate memories and emotions, if magic was associated, can be brought out from their horn,” Shining explained, laughing at his wife's frustration, “If Sombra could live through his horn, then there would have to be a strong enough emotion and a spell combined that allow this to occur.” “Finally, some progress!” Cadence wrapped her arms once again around Shining, abruptly forcing Discord to take a few steps away from the pair. “I am normally all up for playing around, but this is serious here. Who knows what horrors Twilight is being exposed to.” Twilight seemed to murmur in response, though it was unintelligible. The sounds of shouts were beginning to reach the throne room; Celestia perked her ears forward, for just a moment diverting her attention from the three creatures in front of her. It seemed as if a riot might be building outside; one that needed to be dealt with immediately. Celestia did not really have time for a long, drawn out speech on how everything was being solved as they spoke. Oddly, she was not really in the mood either. There was only one quick solution that she could think of at the time. “Discord, I need you go do some crowd control,” Celestia said with a straight face, “Disperse the group outside. We are taking a trip to the Crystal Empire.” Shining frowned, looking somewhat distraught, though he refrained from pointing out that he had literally just arrived in Canterlot from that very destination. Discord, on the other hand, seemed delighted at the news, and rubbed his hands with a devilish smile. “Are you sure that you want me to perform riot control duties?” Celestia nodded. “I know if there is anyone who can disperse a crowd of 'nobles', it is the spirit of Chaos. Now go forth, and wreck havoc on their orderly protesting." Cadence jumped when Discord shouted in triumph and glee. “It shall be done!” With a snap of his fingers, he was gone, a large poof of smoke temporarily covering the room. Celestia could no longer hold herself back as she smiled wide, almost mischievously. Once the smoke cleared, from the room, she addressed Shining and Cadence. “Now then, we should gather any materials that we will need. Shining, take the horn...” Celestia suddenly brandished a frown more dangerous than any sword at the realization that she no longer held the horn in her magical grasp. “Where is Sombra's horn?” “I thought you had it." Shining frantically turned towards Cadence, who merely shrugged in response. Shouts from outside suddenly rose to a fever pitch, and all three ponies perked their ears in the general direction to listen in. “What a most vile display of obscenity!” “I say, didn't anyone ever tell you not to clop in public?” “Is that... Ew ew ew ew ew!” Yes, they separated each word in that last bit. Similar outcries along with the general sound of flooding suggested to the trio just who had managed to get the horn. “I don't think I want to know what they are ewing about,” Cadence said with a cringe, “I would rather imagine Twilight and Spike.” Shining gave her a look of surprise, while Celestia looked towards the doors with an angry expression. “Discoooord! Give us back that horn!” After ordering the guards to not allow anyone into the throne room under any circumstances (other than at Luna's discretion), retrieving Sombra's horn and returned it to its sack, and leaving a note for Twilight and Luna, the trio hastily boarded the Canterlot train. Why they would choose the train rather than a chariot would be anyone's guess, unless they took into account the weather forecast getting out of Canterlot. Chocolate milk with a side of mayo and cotton candy rained or floated in the skies above Canterlot. Yes, a complete and utter mess that Celestia did not want to force any pegasi to fly through with two alicorns and a fully grown unicorn in tow. Celestia ordered an immediate departure from the scene, lest any of the nobles take note of their hasty get-away. The conductor did not bother asking why, as she was not too keen on sticking around for Discord's version of fireworks. After thanking her for understanding, Celestia returned to the first class train car, ducking as she narrowly avoided ramming her horn into the ceiling. “This, is why I don't normally ride trains." Celestia finally found a seat where her horn was not about to go through the roof, and upon seating, sighed lightly. “My horn's length can be quite the inconvience sometimes.” “You don't have specially made cars?” Cadence inquired, her and Shining sitting together across from Celestia, “Just in case?” “Well, no,” Celestia answered as if it were obvious why, “Why would I ride the train, even in dire circumstances when I can just fly, teleport, or get a chariot ride nigh everywhere?” “Well, you are riding it now,” Shining pointed out, “That has to say something.” “Call it a wild beverage in my mane.” Celestia, in disgust, touched at her ever flowing mane.“I really wish you two would not have made that strange connection back there, no matter how much closer it gets us to our goal.” Shining observed Celestia's mane with some scrutiny. “It is still flowing like there is a wind blowing.” “That doesn't make this milk and mayo any less gross,” Cadence points out, feeling her own mane with a hoof, “Why didn't we just get you to use your bubble shield?” “Because you two were too busy chasing Discord in the strange rain,” Shining answered with a pony shrug, “If it weren't for Celestia ordering him to hand over the horn while her own horn was a blazing yellow lamp, I don't think you two would have ever caught him.” “Those were not exactly optimal flight conditions,” Cadence shot with a glare to match, “And besides, he's a slick guy, he kept slipping through our hooves.” “Dear authors of that insanity,” Celestia murmured while attempting to smooth out some of the offending substance, “Whoever thought to give such powers to a male draconequis must have lost their mind.” “What is that supposed to mean?” Shining challenged, eyeing Cadence as if she had stated it, “You two don't think males are just as competent as females?” “No, it is not that at all,” Cadence replied, “It is just that a feminine touch makes most things go better.” Celestia eyed Cadence with knowing look. “Well, live longer and you will reconsider that statement. There is a reason you send an army of stallions and mares to war and not just an army of mares or just an army of stallions.” “Comic relief?” Cadence playfully hoof cuffed Shining on the shoulder at the suggestion. “No,” Celestia corrected, “Sanity. Being surrounded by mares all day every day is my vision of Tartarus. Every intake has to have some balance.” “The balance of a mounted mare and a teetering stallion,” Shining silently muttered, earning a much harder hoofcuff from his wife, who by now was blushing profusely. Cadence was giggling at Shining's dirty joke, blushing slightly even as she pecked him on the cheek while he rubbed the back of his head again. “Oh Shining, if I could figure out how that mind of yours worked, I would have been the alicorn of of the mind instead of the heart,” Cadence said with narrowed eyes, “Celestia, do you mind giving us some privacy?” This sudden shift in intentions would have caught Celestia off guard a few years ago, but by this point, she had gotten accustomed to Cadence and Shining randomly deciding the best time to get intimate. Considering how long it would take them to get to the Crystal Empire, there really was no reason why they couldn't have a little private time on the way there. They actually wanted some private time, alone, despite being covered in chocolate milk and mayo. Celestia would have pondered that detail, but dismissed asking simply because she had heard, and seen stranger things. Maybe it was a turn on of sorts for the two. “Have at it. Take all the time in the world. Just don't get too noisy. I think I will take this time to think.” Celestia rose from her seat and cautiously walked towards the next train in line, not too eager to delay their coming together. Shortly after leaving the train car, Celestia pondered the relationship seen before her. Was it working? It seemed so, though they both seemed slightly out of character. Maybe it was the environment; the two of them were not used to having to deal with Discord, and frankly, she didn't want them to have to get used to it. Nonetheless, Discord making a connection with Shining was disturbing if not somewhat alarming, as she knew as well as anyone that Discord was not entirely as reformed as he sometimes claimed to be. He could still be just as dangerous and lethal as he had been back in the day. And she just left him alone to keep Canterlot busy while she goes off to the Crystal Empire. In hindsight, maybe that was not such a good idea. Celestia bit her lip gently as she pondered flying out of the windows and returning immediately without delay. Then she considered one point; if Discord were up to no good, she alone would not be able to stop him anyways, and even bringing Twilight and Luna would do no good. They would need the Elements of Harmony; if Discord had gotten enough of that malice back to not remain daftly arrogant, then there would be no way that he would let them gather the Elements against him. No, she just needed to actually trust him for once. Celestia shivered at the thought. Trust Discord? With Canterlot, Luna, and Twilight? Nope, she was seriously losing it if she was even considering that. After memorizing the train car that she was in, Celestia teleported herself in a yellow flash, re-appearing promptly in her throne room. Luna and Twilight remained slumbering, clearly undisturbed. Celestia's curiosity nagged at her; just what kinds of things were Twilight being exposed to? There were many times when she and Luna had been apart from each other back in those days; even now, the two hardly just sat down and enjoyed each other's company. What kind of experiences did Luna have that she did not tell her? Celestia chuckled to herself, figuring that Luna would either open up about them sooner rather than later, or Twilight would tell her. Celestia then swiftly face hooved, though brought her hoof down after making contact, a thin red welp having formed on her face, “Ow.” The point of the gesture was not to do it fast and hard, and that was precisely what the alicorn did. She really was losing it, but what could be the cause? Sleep deprivation could not have been the cause; she had stayed up nearly 24/7 for a thousand years and hardly showed too many negative signs of it. But then again, she got pushed back by Chrysalis, entrusted Nightmare Moon's restoration to the new Elements without much of a backup plan, and, among other things, didn't keep Discord in the dark about returning the Elements to the Tree of Harmony. Maybe that sleep deprivation was affecting her in subtle ways that were only being intensified by stressful situations. “I hope they aren't too involved,” Celestia said with a yawn, all the thinking about sleeping making her drowsy, “I had best get Cadence if I am about to drift off again so soon...” With a swoon, the princess of the day nearly dropped to the floor before she once again thought up the area that she had left. With a single yellow flash, she once again returned to that train car. A distinct odor told her that her brief absence suggested to the duo that that particular car, that she had wandered into earlier, was a fine place for their activities, as if they had not watched her walk right into that train car.. Perhaps more to her relief than anything else's, the two were merely very close to each other, getting into position when the flash of light told them that Celestia had arrived. Obviously seeing Shining and Cadence like this was not what she had planned, but knowing somepony, they would swear that she had planned this. Conspiracy theorists were always trying to make her out as omnipresent. Such was the life of being in the right place at the right time, almost every time. “Princess Celestia!” Shining commented with a surprise, “That was quick.” “I was just getting ready to nod anyways,” Cadence joked as she gently tapped Shining with her wings as a signal for him to get off. Reluctantly, Shining began dismounting when Celestia ordered, “No, you are two are going to proceed. I have stayed awake for much longer than this before, not to mention I just slept a little while ago.” They needed hardly any second bidding, and as Celestia left them this time, she wondered when she should tell Cadence how physically futile it was to try to get comfortable for romping in a train car. It just was not going to happen, standing, laying down, there was just not a comfortable way to go about it. After all these years, she could safely say that none of her subjects had ever succeeded; but those two were resourceful, Celestia mused. Maybe they would find a way to make it a pleasant experience. A brief shake in the train brought a thump and an outburst from the other car. “Damn shaking!” Celestia giggled, guessing that Shining had lost his balance. The alicorn, despite having just gotten her rest, couldn't help but start to drift back to sleep again as she went back to her seat in the first car. She eyed the sack with Sombra's horn in it, wondering if there truly could have been any harm in leaving it alone for a small while. Another yawn, and the alicorn began drifting back to her memories, or to sleep. They were kind of meshing together, so she had a hard time telling which was which. Just before clocking out, she strode into a nearby seating booth, checked the surroundings for obscene amounts of filth, and once satisfied, rested her head on the large train car window. She did not plan on sleeping for long, but for the time she spent sleeping, she wanted to at least be easily awakened if trouble began rocking the train for whatever reason. Leaving the capital last had been quite the chore. Not only were their subjects constantly fighting the lingering windigoes, but they were also dealing with an unexpected, combined force assault from griffons, dragons, and various other creatures. Those still loyal to the Empire were vastly outnumbered, though Celestia had tried her best to even out the numbers. Even as she dressed Sombra's wounds, she could not help but wonder how things would have been different had the Republic still been in power. Interrupted from her thoughts was a raspy voice, an irritated one at that. "Can you please stop that knocking?" Sombra's crystal chamber was very plain, with his large, cushion bed being the most stand-out object in the entire living space. It bore a large, very rounded cushion stuffed in a rectangular crystal cabin bed; needless to say, when stretched out, the stallion took up every inch of the bed. A persistent knocking at the door once again disturbed the peace, and while Celestia had been tempted to bark at them to leave, she knew very well that that would be rude. Plus, Sombra might actually be getting a visitor today. "Three days and nopony has come to stop by and see me." Sombra rolled over to face the door with a slightly amused look on his face. "I wonder who has come to ask about the state of your sanity." Celestia ignored Sombra and used her magic to open the door. Standing at the doorway was none other than the current Captain of the Imperial Guard, Casaer Salad. In another world it would be a brilliant pun on the popular dish, but nopony made fun of Casaer to his face. He was a bulky stallion; even with his armor on it could be plain to see that there was incredible force behind any of the earth pony's blows. His bright red coat seemed to clash greatly with his dark blue mane and crimson armor. Though his cutie mark was hidden, Celestia recalled that it was a heart with an arrow through it. Nonetheless, azure eyes looked Celestia horn to hoof before Casaer cleared his throat. "Evening Princess Celestia, I trust you are doing well?" Celestia smiled. "No need for all the formality Salad, we were classmates after all. Please, come in." "Yeah, come on in," Sombra sarcastically greeted, "I could use a study buddy. A few stiches in my bed cushion have a really odd color." Casaer blushed slightly, before sheepishly stepping inside. "Well, you know what today is right?" Celestia tilted her head to the side in confusion. Sombra chuckled, and then rolled onto his back, hooves behind his head. "Today would be the start of the season here in the Crystal Empire, but my grandparent's on my mother's side decided that Hearts and Hooves day would be a better way to express it." Casaer looked towards Sombra incredulously, mouth open. "I was told a very different story outside." "Yeah well, we tell it differently everytime we tell it." Sombra rolled over with a grunt, his back now to the room's other two occupants. "Do what you have to. I won't tell." "Actually, I came here to give Celestia a much less invasive gift." Sombra chuckled at that, but made no move to turn back towards the pair. Celestia's smile fell as she figured that it was a gift exchange sort of celebration. "Oh but Salad, I did not get you anything..." Casaer looked up at Celestia, removing his helmet as he gestured towards the door. "Well, that is alright, we should be able to eat this together." Much to Celestia's surprise, a large cake entered the chamber, rolled in by some unseen force. While Casaer seemed perplexed by this, he nonetheless proceeded to stride over to it. The cake was incredibly simple; it was a large, circular yellow pound cake with some bits of frosting and sprinkles here and there for decoration. At the very top sat a large pink heart. "I know how much of a sweetooth you can sometimes have, so I had the Guards whip you up something special for the occasion." Casaer smiled, tossing his helmet to the side. "Do you like it?" While Celestia had to admit that she was less than overwhelmed by the design, the cake was nearly as large as she was, and considering the scarce resources that only got more scarce over the past few days since their arrival, this in itself was a tremendous effort. Besides, it was rather thoughtful. Just as Celestia took a step forward, some sixth sense told her to step back. She obeyed her sixth sense with an uncanny jerk backwards, just moments before the cake burst. Cake flew in every which direction, and every nerve in Celestia's body was on edge as she instinctively closed her eyes from the flying baked goods. When she opened them again, she was greeted by a strange sight. Appearing out the top of the cake was Luna, arms outstretched and wings flared, a silly grin on her face. "Surprise!" Sombra instantly shifted in bed to see what the commotion was all about. His face lit up, no doubt because of Casaer's surprised facial expression and the sight of Celestia covered in cake and frosting. Good thing they did not have cameras back then; those Cutie Mark Crusaders would have had a field day with a photo of that, not to mention the press in Canterlot. Luna happily hopped from the cake's remnants, leaving behind two stunned ponies as she walked straight up to Sombra. "Sorry it took me so long, it has been really hard sneaking out. Mother is about as vigilant as a griffon on patrol duty." Sombra's face returned to a more neutral expression in an attempt to hide his apparent joy at seeing Luna. "I can't believe you actually came to visit me." Celestia shook her mane clear of some of the cake, though bits of sprinkles had ingrained themselves quite well, flowing just as majestically as her hair. A stunned Casaer finally recovered, shaking his own head clear of his expression. "What were you doing in my cake?!" The Captain turned towards Luna with obvious signs of anger. Celestia guessed that Casaer had every intent on eating that cake, which of course was now all over the room. Luna paid him little mind, though Sombra's horn flared red in warning. While his body was not up for a fight, his magic was, and the deposed king still had some level of pride. Not wanting a fight to break out, Celestia immediately stood between the two groups. "Listen, I am sure Luna had a good reason to not just ruin your cake, but also deliberately disobey Mother." "She would have locked me in that chamber for the rest of my life!" Luna wailed dramatically, her top half falling across Sombra, "There was just no other way to sneak past the guards!" "How did you even get into my cake?" Casaer's anger seemed to subside ever so slightly as he relaxed his posture. He had resigned that he wouldn't have won that fight anyways, and now it boiled down to how Luna pulled it off. "It was easy once you started showing it off to the guards," Luna pointed out as she plopped her upper half onto Sombra, much to his dismay, "All I needed to do was shape-shift into something small, burrow my way to the core of the cake, and then return to normal when needed." "Mind getting off me?" Sombra cringed as Luna had unwittingly snapped a rib with a playful hoof stomp to his chest. Luna, realizing that Sombra was not yet fully recovered for any sort of horseplay, rose from her place and promptly began apologizing. Celestia tuned them out and instead focused on Casaer, who seemed less than happy with these turn of events. "Well, it is the thought that counts." Celestia gently nudged him with a hoof, but it only seemed to make his mood worse as he turned for his helmet. Feeling a level of sympathy for her old classmate, Celestia gave the stallion a quick peck on the cheek, just as the sound of stomping hooves emanated from the hallway. By the sounds of it, the owner had just stopped at the door of the chamber. In mere seconds the guard and Celestia both looked towards the door, only to see Solaria standing there, her burning gaze seeking out the first victim of her wrath. Celestia knew that her mother was angry not just from her tense body language and rigid stance, but the slight hoof imprints she left in the floor. "Captain, you are excused." Solaria eyed Casaer as he made a motion to peck Celestia on the cheek before heading off; Celestia allowed it, though couldn't help but cringe as her mother stared Casaer right out of the room. Her fiery gaze then turned towards Luna and Sombra, the latter of which actually returned her gaze. Celestia could tell from the twitch in her lip that that was probably the most irritating thing about Sombra that the Empress had to put up with. "Luna, did I not tell you to stay away from Sombra, and more recently, to stay in your chambers until further notice?" Solaria's seething rage seemed amplified once she stomped into the room, wings outstretched menacingly. Getting cake on her hooves apparently was not of concern by this point. Celestia sidestepped into the path of the angry alicorn, looking her mother in the eye as she pointed out, "Luna was just making sure Sombra was still kicking, since his own subjects don't seem all that concerned about his welfare. I see nothing wrong with it." Solaria, despite still being angry, took a deep breath, and visibly calmed down. Celestia sometimes had that kind of effect on ponies. "Of courses, just visiting. No harm can come from that, even if it is against both of my direct orders." "Something else is bothering you more than Luna paying me a visit," Sombra concluded, arching a brow, "And whatever it is, it must be serious." Luna looked from Sombra to Solaria, as if that would grant her an answer. Solaria gave Sombra a look before motioning with her hoof towards the open doorway. "Go Luna. Close it on the way out." Luna began to protest, but Sombra jokingly gave her a good whack on the backside. If Sombra had been aching before from a broken rib, Luna's reflexive stomp to the stomach would probably not improve his condition. As the stallion groaned, grimaced, and clutched his stomach in pain, Luna hastily left the room. "Oh, and try your hoof at some of the games around here," Solaria called out right before Luna left, "Make some friends. I'm sure it will take your mind off of what just happened." To this day Celestia cannot fathom how Sombra's actions there did not send Solaria over the edge again. As the door closed, Solaria produced in an orange flash a large scroll. Celestia had to take a few steps back just to keep from getting rolled over as it unfurled, revealing a lengthy exposition of sorts. The writing was cursive and elegant, though riddled with editing marks. The fact that the parchment was getting gently soaked in cake did not remove the apparent significance of the document. "What is this?" Celestia inquired, looking at the text wall before her, "It looks fairly recent." "It is." Solaria spat on an edge of the parchment, a gesture made even more disgusting by the fact that did not bother trying to look elegant while doing it. And by the fact that there was still mildly edible cake all over the place. "It is a declaration of independence. As of today, they consider themselves the Triarchy of Pony Tribes or something to that effect. Three separate tribes allied in a confederation about as loose as Sombra's morals." "To be fair, she sent me some very suggestive gestures before I went there," Sombra grunted in response, rolling over onto his stomach, hooves dangling over the side of the bed as he eyed the parchment, "And besides, I really do not think she minded very much." "She probably did not have the words to express how much she disliked the gesture." Solaria circled over to the left side of the parchment (from Celestia's view at the bottom) and pointed at a particular passage. "Can you believe that they are denouncing alicorns altogether? They have quite the nerve!" "Well, what are you going to do about it?" Sombra actually smiled, clearly enjoying this conversation, "I happen to own the largest collection of shackles in the entire Empire." Solaria laughed, actually laughed out loud, at the suggestion. Celestia did not get the joke, at the time, and could only stare quizzically at the inside joke between these two relative strangers, looking back and forth between the two with a confused expression. "Nah, I would kill them all before I outright enslave them." Solaria wiped a tear from her eye. Despite smiling all the while, one could tell that she was dead serious with her answer. "Besides, it is not like we can feed them all anyways if they continue to stay here in such numbers." "So what were you so mad about?" Sombra furrowed his brows and scrunched up his face, as if he were attempting to think through the reasoning behind this. "That they would have the nerve to send it to me through a crystal pony instead of one of our own representatives," Solaria answered as she rolled the large scroll back up, "Cowards, all of them." "Yeah well, seeing me get my flank kicked probably did not inspire them to pick a fight with you. Never know when you might fly off the balcony and start clubbing them with that monstrous strength of yours." "He makes a point," Celestia chimed, figuring this was a good place to butt in, "Speaking of which, I do not think he needs me to attend to him any longer." "Celestia dear, have you not enjoyed this time with Sombra?" Solaria's sarcasm was either very well hidden or absent, much to Celesita's chagrin. "No, I have not enjoyed dressing his wounds and listen to him do things at night to himself that would scar a filly for life." Celestia did not attempt to coat the contempt in her voice. Sombra was not a bad pony, but he was a stallion; had his bed not been creaking all night Celestia would not have minded as much. "Sombra, why exactly are you doing that when there is a perfectly viable mare in the room?" Solaria seemed genuinely concerned, and even Sombra seemed quite irritated with her approach to this delimma. "Listen, nothing personal, but I and Celestia are clearly not compatible, even if the pieces might would fit. Honestly, if you would just let me and Luna have a chance..." Solaria snapped her gaze onto Sombra, her eyes flaring up again and her wings extended as she stomped over to Sombra's bed. She lowered her head ever so slightly so that she could be eye level with Sombra. As usual, he met her steely gaze. "You lost your bet, so for all intensive purposes, I say who you mate with and when, especially when it comes to either of my daughters. You and Celestia would have probably given me grands by now had it not been for Discord's meddling." "Thank the stars for that." Sombra grinned wide, his face taking a more sinister sort of look. "If I didn't have any value to you, I would not still be around now would I?" Solaria raised her head and, with a surprising amount of glamour considering her slightly disheveled mane, turned towards the door, gaze fixed on her new destination. "I am going to help the new confederation get settled into their homeland for the next few weeks. If you two are still in stark resistance, then I will have to resort to drastic measures." And with that, she was off, opening and closing the door without missing a beat. Celestia sighed. She was beginning to regret her earlier enthusiasm for having a fiancé; it was turning into a headache. "Listen Celestia, she is going to get her way one way or the other." Celestia turned towards Sombra, who seemed to have a resigned look on his face now that Solaria was gone. "That is, until you stand up to her more often. Luna is not the only one suffering from this engagement." "Maybe..." Celestia admitted, just hardly at any rate. Sombra shot up, glaring at Celestia. "No maybe's Celestia. You can't explore what could be for yourself while you are still chained up to me." Celestia shook her head, looking away from Sombra, wings drooped as her mood seemed to take a turn for the worse. "What do you suggest? I have no intentions on fighting my own mother over something like this." Asking for Sombra's advice; a new low of sorts. "If Solaria sees that I am more of a danger than anything else, she might reconsider and just chop me off the block and ascend another stallion." Sombra shifted and tried to use his hooves to sit up; despite the strain, a determined look never wavered from his eyes. "Or better yet, just to get me out of her mane faster, she would just allow me to flesh out my relationship with Luna and ascend for you the stallion of your dreams. Win-win situation." "And if she instead decides to actually take your life?" "Well then, at least you can explore your options some more. Three possibilities, two of which where at least one of us benefits, while the third benefits both of us." Celestia seemed uneasy. This was a rather under-hooved thing to do, especially since her mother normally had a rather appealing vision in mind, even when the steps getting there were a bit rough. This would almost be like a betrayal of sorts. Then again, she did state that she and Sombra needed to get along better. Celestia finally turned towards Sombra, who's front limbs were shaking from the exertion of holding him up. "Very well then. What is the plan?"
"It is Only a Tragedy if You Fail"Twilight jerked awake, as if something had struck her. Frantically searching the room, she spotted a lone piece of parchment, addressed, “Luna and Twilight”. As if that were not obvious enough that it were for them, no one else remained in the chamber, suggesting that it was a letter detailing where Celestia and Cadence had went. Shaking off sleepiness, the alicorn trotted over to the letter, and began reading its contents: Dear Luna and Twilight, A possible lead has directed my attentions towards the Crystal Empire. While I am gone, I am expecting you two to stay in Canterlot, going no further than Ponyville. Discord should be handling any sort of riots... Twilight gasped in alarm, perking her ears for signs of mayhem. The silence was less comforting than a battering ram to the front door. Riots, in Canterlot? In her panic, Twilight had not noticed Luna approaching the letter with a sleepy expression. “What does it say?” Luna slowly blinked, likely pondering over whether to bother reading the letter or not. “There is or was a riot in Canterlot!” Twilight spoke far more calmly than she felt, though she was shouting in exasperation. Luna raised a brow, perked her ears towards the door, and then shook her head. “If they are rioting, then they must be as quiet as your friend Fluttershy. I do not hear any rioting.” “Princess Celestia sent Discord to quell it.” At saying this aloud, Twilight's eyes suddenly widened as if she only just now realized the implications of a rampaging Discord. “We better check on the city!” Just before Twilight could dash off, Luna, now more awake from this second outburst, held out a hoof. “Do not be so hasty. I believe you failed to read the rest of the letter.” Luna assumed that Celestia would have more tact than to end on such a worrisome note, as under different circumstances even Luna might would have rushed out without a second thought. Realizing that she had stopped halfway through, Twilight returned to the letter, quickly scanning over the remaining contents. ...riots, but do not worry. Focus on dealing with the big problem at hand. Oh, and Shining Armor says hi.” “My brother was here?” Twilight's puzzled expression and incredulous tone spoke volumes about her reaction. “I have no doubt that my sister has decided to take action right here in the real world.” Luna furled up the letter. With a single hoof swipe, she sent it rolling towards the throne, apparently disinterested in putting it up somewhere. “Why didn't she wake us?” Twilight's ears and wings drooped, the thought of her brother visiting and not greeting her weighing her down. “I bet we all could have figured it out faster.” “As Discord would put it, when you sleep with me, you sleep with death.” Luna recounted Discord's joke vividly, as even while sleeping she hardly missed a beat of what was going on in the real world. “You do not wake until I say so, and I decided to keep us asleep for the sake of story flow. No need to interrupt in any awkward places.” “Well then, I guess we should go straight back to sleep then.” Twilight seemed to accept that answer, though it did not improve her outlook. Luna shook her head, taking to the air in flurry of feathers. “Not yet, there is something around here that I need to check on. Go grab lunch and return here.” Twilight opened her mouth to protest, but her rumbling stomach beat her to the punch. Relenting, Twilight walked off to the kitchens while Luna hovered in the throne room. When Twilight had left the room, Luna dived straight for the floor. Rather than crashing into the floor, she went straight through it. Within moments, she was in a different location of sorts, presumably beneath the castle. It was dark, pitch black really. The air chilled to the very bone, and the dead silence would have unnerved any other pony. Luna used her horn to light up this area, illuminating a large crystal cave of sorts. Canterlot being built originally to mine the valuable crystals was not a huge secret. What was a secret was that the mine was far older than most realized. For the longest time, this had been the source of the Ponī Republic's valuable gems, until they discovered the Crystal Empire to the north. The mine was not abandoned until the fall of the Empire, but it had been partially reused after Discord's defeat. Ironic how falling Empires both opened and closed the mine. Luna smiled at the thought, but did not relish in it long. There was no time to lose, especially since Twilight was soon to return to the throne room. No doubt she would take Luna's absence the wrong way, particularly if Discord still ran free around Canterlot. Searching the crystal caves, Luna walked into a tunnel, soon emerging into very large cavern. Most of the cavern led to a sheer drop down below, so far down that even with Luna's horn light, the bottom could not be seen; anyone without a light source, or without knowing such a trap existed, would drop to their doom down below. No doubt scavengers had learned that the hard way. Luna did not have time to check on the strange odor wafting from the place. The part of the floor that remained at standing level narrowly led towards a center platform, the crystalline structure dully reflecting Luna's horn glow. On this platform sat a large tome encased in magic. “Seems no intruders have yet to break that,” Luna mused as she glided over the large gap, having little need to try her luck with the bridge. Landing in front of the large tome, Luna dispelled the barrier spell, and looked at the cover. Laminated on the front was the head of a unicorn with a curved horn; Sombra's personal icon. Of course, next to it also was a crescent moon, Luna's own iconic image. The cover had been made by Luna herself in her spare time waiting for their departure from the Crystal Empire. “Let us see what kind of magic we are dealing with here,” Luna muttered to herself as she opened to the first page with her magic. The idea to check this tome had come to mind when Celetia had mentioned something about possible leads in the Crystal Empire. Right on the front cover was a disclaimer, or as Luna preferred to call it, a warning: This is the edited version of House of Umbra: Dark Magic, so certain things may have been omitted or lost in translation. Under penalty of despair, misery, and utter destruction, do not read or attempt any of these while charged with emotions. Luna doubled check her own self for a moment. Other than nostalgia, she really was not in a highly emotional state, unlike the last time she had come here. Yes, the last time she had come here she had been quite jealous of Celestia, and had been reading in frustration. Lesson learned; heed warnings that she had personally helped to craft. This edited version lacked many of the endless notes that Sombra's family had taken while composing the volumes, but was far easier to read, not to mention the footnotes contained some of the important bits. More importantly, Luna knew of this version's last resting place, though she suspected that the original had been stashed away in the Crystal Empire somewhere. Reading the table of contents, Luna found the particular chapter that she desired. Courtesy of Luna – The World of Dreams Flipping to it, the pages made a crispy, wind-blown noise that suggested that the book was far newer than it really was. Luna's ears perked as she heard what sounded like hoofsteps. Echoing through this very room? Highly unlikely. She listened again, but they instead sounded like they were coming from above. “Maybe they have done some digging in the thousand years I have been gone,” Luna mused as she gazed directly above her. The tall ceiling released bits of dust as whoever stood above rushed from one end of the room to the other. Deducing that it must be the kitchen above, and that Twilight's meal must be underway, Luna gazed back towards the tome. She would not have time to revisit the entire chapter in mind; she would need to cut to the chase if she wanted to be back in time. Scanning over a few passages, Luna paused at a particular turn of phrase, her face scrunching up as she read. Nightmares are largely illusions; however, just like fantasies, they can become quite real, and vice versa. The most powerful kind of dream magic has the power to turn illusions into reality, and vice versa. This would allow the user to, in theory, create anything that their mind can come up with, and for good reason, is a very difficult and restricted feat. Even Luna has trouble with it. The uses are endless, as one would imagine. One can turn the past into a recordable dream that can be set to play; this allows for the subconscious storage of information, only to be played when certain dreamers and dream walkers trigger it. The only danger to this is that the dreamscape may also house alternate realities, so what we think of as alter egos are very real in that world. Nightmare Moon came to mind when reading that. Ears still perked upwards, the continued sound of scurrying encouraged Luna to continue. If you put your own history into the dreamscape, someone would have the ability to play it out to an alternate universe, or even to those around you, with or without your consent. It is implied that control of dreams is required to do this, but it is not that straightforward. Luna stiffened, her eyes narrowing in on that last sentence. It seemed very straightforward; in order to alter dreams, then one would need to have the power to control dreams. One cannot just control something that they have no ability for. No, since we all have alter egos, formed by the different parallels alluded to in chapter two and the dreamscape's own design, then the danger of this technique is not in that others will abuse it, but we unwittingly allow ourselves to abuse it. Perhaps for political or military gain. I will have to seek Luna's council when she returns from Equestria in order to know for sure how that would work out. Luna chuckled bitterly, slamming the tome shut. After leaving the Crystal Empire, Celestia and she would not return as friends, but as banishers. Of course, if she had to guess, Sombra had written this shortly after they had left, and had probably not yet fully enslaved the populace of his own kingdom and instigated their intervention. Nonetheless, Luna felt that this was an important piece of the puzzle; it became clear to her that the answer, in reality, was probably not in the Crystal Empire, but right here inside her own mind. However, if she were to tell Twilight this right now, she would no doubt ask how she had figured this out. Telling her about this book was punishable by death. Luna laughed at this thought, likely looking hysterical were anyone to be watching her crack up next to this giant book. Who was going to punish her, herself? Not even Celestia knew about this version as of yet. Luna abruptly stopped laughing. No, Celestia did not know about this edition, but she did know about the original volume hidden away in the Crystal Empire. Even if Celestia had a remote clue as to what was going on by now, that tome would likely be the first place to look, and she would recognize Luna's hoofwork in the print. And start connecting imaginary dots together. The last thing Luna needed was for her sister to start suspecting her of causing trouble again. Celestia dealt with betrayal rather well, but she would no doubt preemptively strike to prevent a second double crossing, real or imagined. That meant that Luna needed to solve this mess before Celestia found that tome that held undeniable proof that her attempt at overthrowing her all those years ago had been very much premeditated. That put a time limit on things. It would take roughly two days for her to arrive at the Crystal Empire if she went by chariot using her standard pegasus flyers. It would take her a few more days just to find the tome, though if she employed the entire Empire she could probably find it in just one. Three days maximum time, as Celestia would definitely put the crystal ponies to work in solving this mystery. Without arousing Twilight's suspicions, she needed to send her off in order to personally deal with this without interruption; but how could she pull that off? She did not stop at a suitable point for this kind of transition. She needed to show Twilight something else that might put her mind into overdrive. She needed a distraction. Looking towards the book again, Luna made a half-grin as an idea came to mind. As she encased it in magic once more, she gently tapped it with her hoof. “I guess how I ended up helping in your creation will have to do. I will have to skip some things, but I am sure she will not proest.” The book just floated there, as if agreeing with the idea. Luna frowned, as she realized that she had just been talking to the book as if it would answer her. Shaking her head, Luna retreated from the cavern, making her return to the throne room in the opposite manner in which she left. Upon getting back, she dropped to the floor with a clop. Carefully she dusted herself off to pass the time, impatiently awaited Twilight's return. After what felt like hours (but was more like a few minutes) Twilight strode through the doors regally, the guards watching her go in with stern expressions right before closing the doors behind her. Luna had been hoping that Twilight had brought them both lunch, as privately she wouldn't have minded snacking while explaining to Twilight the next jump. Twilight, however, had apparently already eaten, a single crumb stubbornly hanging onto her right cheek as proof. “Toast?” Luna used magic to levitate the distracting piece of food from Twilight's face. Twilight had apparently paid the grooming little mind, and instead eyed Luna. “You did not go anywhere while I ate?” Seemed like an innocent enough question, but Luna knew that Twilight was just trying to get some answers. Typical student to interrogate in such a harmless manner. “I did, and I just figured out where our next visit is going to be.” Luna smiled, but Twilight seemed skeptical of the response. Perhaps in part because she had so obviously dodged the question posed. Celestia's prized student pressed no further into the matter, and instead propped herself up onto one of the cushions from earlier. “So where are we going next?” She laid down to get more comfortable, likely assuming that Luna would put her to sleep again with minimal warning. “Mother decided that it would be best if I made some friends while in the Crystal Empire, and that I should keep my distance from Sombra.” Luna mirrored Twilight's actions, wanting to get somewhat comfortable for this next bit. Twilight eyed Luna inquisitively, lost in the sudden time skip. “Wait, why would she want to keep you and Sombra apart? You two hit it off so well.” Sombra smacking her rear would have been a startling response to that question, but that was not the whole story anyways, so that answer would probably do more harm than good. Luna paused for a moment to try to figure out the best way to explain without having to describe that particular incident. “Mother had some other plan in motion, the likes of which I was oblivious to for a some time. I and Sombra really connecting would have interfered.” Twilight rested her head onto her front hooves, her face scrunching up in thought. “So, how did that friend search go?” “Much better than recently,” Luna joked, giggling at the comparison, “Not being the long-lost sister of the in charge ruler, and not being the one who tried to overthrow her so that you could shroud the world in eternal night out of jealously most likely improved the situation.” Twilight couldn't help but giggle, Luna's joke having a surprising amount of truth to it. Aside from those two things, there really had been no reason for any pony to fear her, much less be terrified of her very image. “Let us get started shall we?” Luna's horn glowed, and Twilight drifted off to sleep much more subtly than before. Once asleep, Luna forced herself to doze off, though made sure to direct her dreaming. Twilight would catch a glimpse of what brought her and Sombra together to pool their knowledge for the sake of that tome; and no doubt she would also paint her mother in a more, motherly, sort of way. The death of Nightshade, Emperor of the Ponī Empire, had shattered the faith of many of their subjects. Many of them had given up relying on the alicorns and struck out on their own. Their settlements would have varied degrees of success, but needless to say, Solaria still tried to keep an eye on them, and often oversaw their operations. This gave Luna and Celestia an almost unprecedented amount of autonomy over their own lives, though Solaria sternly warned Luna to stay away from Sombra once more before heading off. Wanting to distract herself from Sombra, Luna sought out a passtime. Finding friends among the remaining Ponīn ponies had not been greatly difficult once Luna began participating in sports. No longer confined to her room, Luna felt a sort of freedom in being able to fly, teleport, or run wherever she so chose, whenever she so chose. She thus fit in perfectly with some of the former Guard members, who, for the most part, had hardly anything else that could keep up their physique but play games. No creatures intruded on the city's grounds, and the windigoes kept their distance as well. With so little to defend against, the large Guard nearly disbanded, though some of them remained doing standard patrol duties and such. Most of the games that the off duty Guard members participated in were very physically taxing, in order to both keep them in shape and as an opportunity to show off. Luna strongely recalled that one of her favorite games from the old days was a sort of ultimate discbee of sorts, where a pony hurled a disc in a certain manner, and another pony had to catch it and move about to certain places. Increase the number of participants and things very quickly got heated. At the forefront of this was Luna herself, who, as the only alicorn playing, clearly had an advantage over any other individual participant. Despite being royalty, the stallions and mares, crystal and non-crystal alike, did not go easy on her, and made it a point to try to take her out early using almost every dirty trick in the book. This sort of violence, the tackling and even occasional punching, seemed to be right up the princess' alley. In one particular game, the score was tied, the participants were dirty, and for a rare opportunity in the empire, no one felt all that hungry. Not because food had suddenly started growing from crystals like rainbows, but because they were too focused on the game. Luna, despite taking a horn to the jaw and some hooves in places she would have rathered those now knocked out ponies not having touched, was clearly holding up better than many others. Her team was battered, many receiving the same treatment; they fared worse, for obvious reasons of alicorn vs regular pony resilience. Their opponents didn't look too much better, but it was all in good fun. The disc was their toss; in order to win with one minute left, they needed to very quickly, and decisively, get that disc from their opponents. Luna, knowing that the other side of the field was the goal, took the disc in a single hoof, and with a powerful toss, hurled the speeding projectile clear across the field. Their opponents had been expecting this, and a particularly fast pegasus intercepted it. “Don't let Hurricane make it past this line!” Luna shouted to her teammates as she drew a line in the dirt where she stood, whom roared in eager compliance. Luna and two flyers quickly took to the skies, bearing down on Hurricane and her two supports as if they were going to war. In response, the opposing formation tightened on Hurricane, their attention on Luna in particular. The unicorns below fired a few stun spells upward; unicorns on the other side blocked or intercepted them with their own spells, making this a mostly aerial duel. The earth ponies largely stationed themselves at the two ends of the field. Wings outstretched, Luna waited till the formations nearly collided for her to perform one of the oldest tricks in the book; the passing snatch. By barreling past her opponents, her formation literally letting the game of chicken take its course, their opponents though that they were home free as they swerved out of the way of the seemingly reckless alicorn. But Hurricane was not so easily tricked, and immediately flew around to chase Luna, whom had focused her magic for a levitation spell to retrieve the disc from Hurricane's very hooves during the pass. Why they didn't carry it in their mouths would be a mystery, unless one were to look at the dirty and even slightly bloody disc. Only desperate times would make a call for that. Much to her surprise, the rainbow maned flyer was gaining on her, and fast. Luna decided that diving was the best course of action, since she needed to be on the ground to score anyways. With twenty eight seconds left, she began her descent, hovering the disc directly in front of her as her own group flew back in an attempt to intercept Hurricane and her teammates. However, a sudden boom nearly knocked Luna's eardrums out, causing her to lose her grip on the disc. She clamped her hooves to her ears, cringing at the loud and seeming close noise. Suddenly, something rocketed past her, the lag behind it wrapping Luna in a doozy of vibrant colors. Before Luna knew it, the ground came up in view, and she abruptly landed on her front two hooves. Or, attempted to anyways. While that lessened the initial impact, Luna still found herself rolling, hitting the goalpost with an audible CLANG, her body vibrating from the collision. Falling back into the ground, consciousness flickering, Luna couldn't help but wonder what she had just been hit with. Already she could feel her body attempting to heal itself of its latest injury, numbness surging with feeling again. Then came the pain. Luna wailed, a pounding headache taking precedence over the rest of her aching body. Her ribs felt like they had given some ground at last, and her arms were ablaze with a stinging fire. She felt a few other things might have also been injured, though pride topped the remainder on her list. “What the hell was that?” Luna rolled over onto her stomach, her face contorted in pain as she looked towards her dazzled teammates. Many of them were also on the ground, and they all were staring towards the other side of the field. Shockingly enough, Hurricane had somehow made it clear across the field, discus in hoof, and was slamming it into the ground, while her own teammates hoisted her into the air, despite their injuries. Limping to the center of the field, the contestants said “Good game” and shook hooves. Some more pained than others, but all with a smile on their face. Luna and Hurricane were last up, for obvious reasons other than Luna having to practically be dragged to the center field. “I think I will name that a Sonic Rainboom,” Hurricane proudly stated, “I have never felt a rush like that! Like, a need for speed that just overwhelemed all other forms of utter sensibility! I cannot even describe with one word...” “Yes yes, it was awesome.” Luna cut her off abruptly, her own struck ego partially causing the interruption, “It surely did a number on me. Next time though...” Luna slowly, but painfully winked, “Next time, your rainbow will have the stars to compete with.” They all laughed, some holding their ribs, and then limped from the playing field. Luna tried to maintain her pride and limp from the field on her own power, despite her front hooves screaming just from holding her in one place. Thankfully, Luna could save some dignity by flying towards the castle, where she would get some sort of royal treatment. Her wings were in far better shape than the rest of her, and though landing would no doubt be a touchy issue, at least some weight would be lifted from her injuries. The discus had been granted to Hurricane, and now that Luna was in the infirmary, she realized just how light she felt without her usual trophy. The infirmary was quite plain; not a crystal in sight. White walls, white tile floors, Luna began to wonder if she was even in the Crystal Empire anymore. She lay in a bed of sorts, its size barely fitting her entire length. It didn't matter, Luna preferred dangling her hooves over the sides anyways. While the nurses proclaimed that she would be fine enough to be left alone, Luna knew better than to think that they would not report her injuries to Celestia. After all, with Solaria gone, there were few other ponies with any sort of power over her. A soft knock at the wooden door confirmed that the nurses had galloped to rat her out to her older sister. Celestia's entry was accommodated with a gasp. The white alicorn rushed to Luna's side, dripping with restrained concern. “Oh my goodness, are you alright?” Celestia worridedly inquired, checking the princess over, “Are you hurt?” Luna still reasoned that Celestia had been told about her injuries, so rather than elaborating, Luna merely looked her sister in the eye, sarcasm prepared specifically for this moment. “What do you think?” Luna jokingly jabbed, playfully clutching her left set of ribs. Desiring to change the subject, Luna decided to elaborate in a more excited manner the stunt that had sent her to the infirmary. “You should have been there! Hurricane did this really awesome stunt in the field...” “Luna, you need to be more careful,” Celestia chastised, as if she were talking to a foal, “You can't just be running around injuring yourself, not with food supplies so scarce.” “Would you rather I sit around all day and mope about the one meal a day situation that, in hindsight, is not that bad?” Luna continued to joke, failing to see the seriousness of the matter. “I am sure that will make things better.” “No, but perhaps you could pick up a good book,” Celestia suggested, “Try reading from the volumes in the library. Sombra in his spare time pours over the place like its his job, and even writes in some tome of his.” “It is his job,” Luna retorted, “He has to know as much as possible about ruling if he is to have any redemption with his subjects.” “And so do you have need for that knowledge." Celestia's stern expression, cast down upon Luna, almost made Luna feel like a mere foal again, being chewed out for not taking her lessons more seriously. “You are someday going to be ruling a vast empire alongside me. Now you may not busy yourself with political theory as I do, but starting tomorrow you and I are going to be going to the library, together!” Luna now had a serious face on, as she realized that Celestia was not joking at all on the matter. “What? And spend my valauble time and physique in a library?” Luna decried, “I would rather suck your horn than bore myself with political thought and philosophy!” Rather than lash out at the stubborn princes, Celestia merely closed her eyes. When she re-opened them, a mischevious smile grew on her face. “Well, you will not be playing that discus game for awhile, so, as an alternative, in your free time, I am going to be bringing some of Sombra's personal favorites,” Celestia cooed as she turned around to leave, “I will make sure to have him deliver the last one personally.” “I see what you did there, and I am not going to be convinced simply out of necessity!” Luna shot as Celestia walked out of the room, giggling to herself. Now that Celestia was gone, Luna really did buckle, and send curses through the nearby wall. Not for Celestia's actions, but much rather the pain all that talking and movement had induced. She lay back down with a gentle whimper, not looking forward to the next few days. The scene began to swirl and return back to the crystalline city, with a single room coming into view. The crystals all brilliantly shone, making the dark blue occupant stick out like Celestia's horn (seriously, it can be very hard to miss in most shots). She looked miserable, that mare really did, and the books surrounding her seemed to do little to ease her suffering. A large frown was on her face, as she playfully lifted her wings up and down, as if testing their dexterity. When no pain shot through, Luna leapt from her cushion laden resting place on the floor and practiced walking around. It had been some days, weeks maybe if Luna counted right, and while a small bit of pain could still be felt in her front hooves, for the most part, she could gloat to her sister that she was all better, and head out to injure herself yet again. Well, that was the plan anyways, till a dark stallion materialized from seeming nowhere. Sombra was in almost full armor, appearing much like he did on his day alive, minus the royal drape and an addition of wings and wing holes in the armor. The mere sight of Sombra, smiling wide with a large tome in his magical grasp, sent Luna's heart into a race against her mind. For some strange reason, she had the urge to start trading cuffs with Sombra; after all, it would be a fine test to see if she was truly fully healed. “Hello Luna,” he greeted as his form fully closed in, “You look back in your element.” He set the large book to the side, the worn cover practically begging to be burned and replaced with something that had probably not seen the creation of Discord. “As if.” Luna strutted back to her cushions, huffing with a rather melodramatic pout. “There are no doors, no windows, if I didn't know any better, I'd say Celestia did not want me leaving this room.” “How intuitive.” Sombra joked, tilting his head to the side. “You do realize that you can just teleport out right?” Luna had attempted that, but every time she tried, Celestia would somehow always end up where she teleported herself to. She would be ushered back to her room under threat of tattling to Mother about her injuries. Anything but that! Why not send Sombra, who she was forbidden to see anyways, to add icing to the cake while you're at it? Celestsia logic 2.0. She swears that her sister was out to get her and Sombra into trouble at this point. “Oh what's the fun in using magic for everything?” Luna attempted to mimick Discord's tone, though she lacked the condescending bite that made the statement so humorous. Sombra did not laugh, but he did outstretch his wings, motioning towards the large tome that he had placed on the other side of the room. Luna's eyes rolled; yet another bit of reading material. “Come now, you cannot be serious. Another book? What am I, a librarian?” “Celestia suggested that reading would do you good." Sombra walked over to the tome, tracing a hoof over the cover. He gazed at the book fort that seemed to be built around Luna's bed. “However, I can see you haven't touched the others except to move them out of your space.” “Damn straight,” Luna replied, surprising Sombra with her tone, “They are always getting under my flank, constantly forcing me to shift onto yet another book. I eventually decided they would be more useful as fortifications.” “Well,” Sombra challenged, giving Luna a look over as he brandished a quill pen, “How about you write one of your own, and see how easy it is.” Luna looked at Sombra as if he had just struck her with a hoof, the likes of which had emerged from his mouth. In many ways her eagerness to attack Sombra resurged with that suggestion. “Write one? Write a book?” “Just journal for Celestia's sake,” Sombra snarled, eyes flashing green, “Keep yourself occupied. You will be staying in here under Celestia and I's orders until further notice.” That tore it; Celestia ordering her around was one thing, but Sombra now doing it struck a raw nerve. Luna levitated and flared her wings in protest. “What! You have no more authority over me than Celestia!” Luna jeered, “Only Mother can order me around, and even then, it is still my choice as to obey or not.” “I like 'em feisty,” Sombra licked of his lips. To this day Luna is perplexed about why Sombra did that. Luna largely ignored the gesture at the time and started flying frantically around the room in some vain attempt to work out some of her pent up energy “Just teleport outside,” Sombra retorted, wisely backing away from the cushions, “It can't be that hard.” Luna finally began spinning around the room faster and faster until, at long last, she came to a plop on her cushions. Books and feathers flew everywhere as the mess temporarily covered the entire room. Sombra was dazed, though he had dodged the books and had cleared the landing zone, just long enough for Luna to land a hoof to his face. Caught off guard, Sombra staggered to his left, Luna's strike coming from the right, and braced himself for a potential fight. Of course, when Luna came around this time, he caught a glimpse of her entire form, just before she tackled him in the side. The tackle hardly hurt, but the landing did, and Sombra cried out as Luna pinned him to the ground. Smiling triumphantly, Luna suddenly found it odd that she had so easily overpowered Sombra; by the time she caught on to just how easy it was, now she was suddenly tackled from behind. A short wrestling match ensued as Luna attempted to turn the tables of gravity on her opponent. Sombra kept attempting the same, and as they rolled and rolled around in an attempt to achieve dominance, they were careful not to let their horns touch each other. Nopony wins a magical headbutt. Just as Sombra seemed to have the upper hoof, Luna managed to get her hind legs underneath her potential captor. She kicked at the plated stomach, launching Sombra from her much like a spring would launch a game character in a game. The armor was not dented even, a red glow from Sombra's oddly curved horn suggesting that he had enchanted it prior to this fight breaking out. He clearly had been anticipating this. “Illusions huh?” Luna jeered as she rose back to her hooves, “That doesn't quite seem your style.” “I am not crazy Luna." Sombra spread out his wings and smartly landed on all fours. “I am not going to take on a natural born alicorn who is too stubborn to use her own powers to leave this room. Come to think of it, I think the crazy one here may be you.” Luna charged up magic in her horn, before loosing it on Sombra, not taking well to the implication that she was crazy for her actions. Sombra shifted to have the blast deflect off of his armor and bounce onto the crystals. The constant ricochet of the blast dangerously came close to both combatants. Luna, however, used this to her advantage and began firing more blasts, realizing that Sombra's armor was the key to his sturdy defense, along with his horn. If she could barrage him with enough shots, then eventually he would have to resort to showing off his other defenses. Sombra realized that Luna was merely going to pepper the room with fire; there was enough of him unarmored for luck to strike one of those spots at some point. He didn't know what spell she cast, but Luna could tell that Sombra had caught on to her tactic at least. He put a bubble shield over himself, red in color, and stomped a hoof to the ground. With dazzling speed, the crystals in the surroundings began to shape and form to Sombra's bidding, moving rather fluidly at the beck and call of their master. Luna reasoned that this was Sombra's offense, a sign that she had forced him to become more serious. That was a good thing; for some odd reason, she did not want Sombra holding back in this fight. The crystals did not change color, but the geometric shapeshifting still bothered Luna, as they moved to entrap her into an even smaller space. Luna needed to take a gamble; time was her enemy as long as Sombra controlled the crystals around her. There was only one reasonable solution left, and that was to close the distance with Sombra. Absorbing one of her own blasts in the flank, Luna felt a numbness that could only be described as a stun spell's touch. Even still, there were far more blasts firing around, and she needed to dodge them and the crystals if she were to attack Sombra directly. An appropriate challenge, one which Luna accepted as she attempted to take flight. She barely dodged the spiral ones from the ceiling, and had to resort to hoof over hoof dashing and leaping just to keep from getting compressed into a bloody mess. Sombra's shield was no more, he likely having to give it up in order to focus on crystal manipulation. The space was getting tighter and tighter, and before long, Luna realized that Sombra was luring her towards him for some strange reason. Well, that worked just fine; dodging a sudden rising crystal in front of her, Luna narrowly leapt over it, her underside lightly skimmed by the tip prior to landing on the side of yet another crystal. An uncomfortable scratch was the only damage done, but Sombra once again sent four quick jabs of crystal towards her single position. In order to dodge a compass direction attack like this, Luna had to think back to her training. If magic would not do the trick, then sheer force was the only answer. With a powerful forward buck that rattled her teeth, Luna shattered two of the oncoming crystals; in that same, fluid motion, she also leapt from the other two as well, narrowly getting her sides nicked by their doing. That was a little close, and it seemed as if Sombra's aim was getting a little better. Always up to this sort of challenge, Luna shifted weight back to her front legs, using her back ones to balance as she flipped past the point of no return. As her eyes came forward again, she could see Sombra charging towards her, intent on ramming her in the side. With a flap of her wings, she swiftly righted her flip mid-air, and met Sombra's head directly. Horns clashed as she headbutted the careless stallion on his uncovered head. Luna saw stars, quite literally, and felt her entire body being enveloped in light before suddenly blacking out to the sound of a magical blast. “Why are the two of you fighting?” Twilight's question froze the scene in a black backdrop. “I thought you two were supposedly bonding.” "You know what they say about apples and trees," Luna answered before resuming the scene, not bothering to elaborate on her meaning. A faint voice seemed to call out to Luna, as if it desperately wanted her to wake up. Flutter vision activated, light seemed to come in movie frames as Luna started to come back to her sense. Standing over her was none other than Solaria, with a concerned look on her face, along with a hint of anger. Luna wanted to say something, but nothing in her body was responding. Damn magical headbutt must have surged their combined magics together and released it in a blast. Luna had not anticipated that the old unicorn joke would hold such a truth to it. “This is all your fault!” The accusing tone diverted Luna's eyes between her mother's legs, some distance from where she lay. On the other side, hardly in any better shape, was the shallowly breathing Sombra. His eyes were crossed, as if he had been struck dumb, and his armor was in complete tatters; bloodstained fur quickly made Luna realize that, despite her own beating, Sombra seemed much worse off. Then again, as she looked over as much of herself as her position allowed (as she could not move anything but her eyes at this point). She was covered in some scratches, nasty bruises, and second degree burns. Sombra got the raw end of the stick, and she got the burning end of the stick. Solaria nuzzled Luna's head gently, likely noticing her coherence to the situation, and then turned towards the angry Celestia. “Temper Celestia, temper. I will handle this." Celestia backed off from Sombra, herself covered in... Well wait a minute, she didn't have a scratch on her. What was she so worked up over then? Celestia still looked at him with scorn, but by now, Luna realized that she was no longer in a close spaced. She was in open air. Looking up, she saw the night sky, which seemed to be bathed in strange lights. It was mesmorizing, but not so captivating as the sound of her mother scowling. “As of today, Sombra, you are officially descended! Endangering your subjects and my daughters with your reckless act of self-indulgence! Return to the form as you were!” She then struck him with a beam of light from her horn. Sombra's color scheme dramatically changed, as his entire form became crystalline like the subjects around him. His wings detached from his body, smoke being left at the spot where they used to be attached to his body. Sombra did not even flinch, and not a drop of blood fell as Solaria warped the feathered appendages away. In hindsight, it was strange that she did not just turn them to ash right there and then. His horn then took on the color and sheen of a ruby, while his body was reminscenent of diamonds. Most importantly, as Luna caught the first fixed gaze of Sombra as he regained his senses, she could see his eyes sparkle like the night stars. It was strange, but Sombra faintly smiled at seeing Luna. "Didn't your mother ever teach you not to hornbutt unicorns?” His tone seemed almost joking, as if he had not realized yet what had happened to him. Celestia stomped her hooves to the ground, her bruises and cuts now beginning to come into vision as Luna noticed her minor injuries as well. Either she had just gotten them or Luna had been less focused in her vision than she had thought to catch sight of them before. “How can you possibly be happy with what you have done?” Celestia shouted, causing a ringing in Luna's ears, “You nearly killed us you demicorn!” This struck Sombra like a lightning bolt, or at least the pain of losing his wings finally catching up with him. The spots where his wings had been did not bleed, but Sombra howled out in pain nonetheless. “Daughter of a... Gah!” Sombra roared, his body weakly convolusing as all his strength was poured into his misery, “Did I get hit with a meteor before getting my wings stolen by a comet?” “Odd way to describe it, but yes,” Solaria calmly stated, as if this were nothing out of the ordinary, “I stripped you of your wings as a consequence for your actions.” In a poof the wings vanished, likely going to some unknown plot in the ground. Luna wanted to speak up, to explain that Sombra technically was only responding to her first strike, but her throat was far too dry, scorched even. Even worse, her jaws had such a heavy clamp on them that she could have sworn that magic was holding them shut. Sombra blinked, and attempted to rise; pitifully, he fell to the ground, eliciting a gasp from a growing crowd of ponies. Non-crystal and crystal pony alike had apparently gathered for the commotion, though guards were attempting to keep them back. Some of them were even shouting Sombra's name in worry, though Solaria ignored them as she stepped over the fallen alicorn and addressed the crowd. “As of now, the Crystal Empire is officially under Equestrian control. In a few months, Discord shall witness the return of the land's rightful rulers! Your prince (she enunciated the word with such emphasis as to make a point) shall be allowed to recover, but from here on out, you all answer to Equestria's rulers!” Luna began losing consciousness again, the last thing she saw being a shocked Celestia backing away, shaking her head towards her mother. Again the scene stopped as it faded to black, Twilight no doubt having yet another question regarding what just happened. “That really doesn't make any sense,” Twilight pointed out, “Why would Solaria need to remove Sombra from power? She was rightfully in charge anyways wasn't she?” “Well no." Luna tried to speak slowly, not out of mocking, but in an attempt to reiterate an earlier point. “We had come as refugees, immigrants, to the independent kingdom. Sombra, politically and socially, was in charge of everything.” “But militarily?” Twilight sounded as if she did not want to appear daft regarding the subject. “Was Solaria in charge of that?” “Solaria was very much in charge, much to Sombra's chargin. He couldn't do anything about it, though, without starting armed conflict, and that was the last thing he wanted with the Crystal Heart so connected to the citizens. It led to his downfall.” “But, didn't he retake it later? Did he not enslave the populace?” “Yes, but that was out of vengeance,” Luna concluded with a tired sigh accompanying her statement, "Sombra had lost face with his subjects before, but this was on a very different level." When Luna next awoke, the events prior to her blacking out came rushing back to her. She could see that she was in that closed off room again, but this time, on the other side, was a sleeping Sombra. He looked so peaceful; visually rather appealing, twinkling like a dozen stars under no moonlight, and Luna began to realize how many celestial adjectives were constantly being applied to anything near her. Coincidence or not, it was getting a little repetitive, so she decided to instead think of him as a diamond ring with a ruby on the side, err, top. Yeah, that's more down to earth. His peacful sleep was interrupted as she shifted positions to assess her own condition. Most of her injuries had been bandaged up; chances were, magic had been used to speed up the healing process, as nothing seemed to ache or strike a jolt of pain with movement. Her throat felt as dry as a savannah watering hole in the dry season; it needed a good glass of water at the least. As if on cue, a hoof clopped on the other side of the bed to get her attention. When Luna turned to face the owner, she saw the saddened face of Celestia, a glass of crystal clear water hovering in her yellow aura's grasp. “Hey sister,” Luna weakly rasped, clutching the water with her own magic. She slowly downed the drink, the refreshingly cool water wetting everything it touched, assauging her of thirst and permitting some minor talking yet again. Drops of water ran down her neck, wetting her bandages ever so slightly. It felt good, but not half as good as the chorus that her throat felt like singing for the relief. “Mother is upset with you." Celestia fiddled with her hooves, as if reciting lines from a script. “You could have done serious harm out there. Despite public appearances, this is as much your punishment as it is Sombra's.” Luna slowly looked towards her still attached wings, before turning back towards Sombra. Not even nubs remained, and the terrible stripping seemed masked by his very peaceful expression. Luna gave a small smile, but had to look again towards Celestia with a half-frown. “What is my punishment compared to his?” Celestia looked Luna dead in the eye. She had probably already considered that response, and stood up straight as if she were about to address the state of the kingdom. “Well, seeing as I am no longer going to be betroth to Sombra, once he recovers, Mother will make him a regenent here while we go and retake the old lands of Poni.” Wait, did Luna hear Celestia right? This was the first time that she had heard of this arrangement, and a pang of anger turned Luna's melancholy into vice. “Since when were you betrothed to Sombra?” Luna sat up, thrusting her head forward to speak straight into Celestia's face. "He seemed a little more interested in fighting me the last time we spoke.” “Royal marriage, it would have been more appropiate for the eldest to get married silly.” Celestia smiled and walked around to the other side of Luna's bed, defusing the tension by reducing the distance between the two. And of course teasing the clearly irate Luna. Luna did not bother with getting into her face again, but shifted so that she would be facing her sister still. “Neither of us were hyped about it, obviously. Sombra is just not my type.” At this Celestia laughed, bitterly, and gazed over towards the still sleeping Sombra. "A little head strong for my tastes." He wasn't Luna's type either, but this news only just now reaching her ears seemed to infuriate her, though her injuries made physical expression of it difficult. “How long do you think it will take for him to recover, and I hear this for myself from his lips?” Luna growled after saying this, resigning to working out her anger on the floor with a stare down. “I don't know." Celestia turned her head to look at Sombra, and then back towards Luna. “But by the looks of it, you two will have plenty of time to yourselves.” Celestia gave a weak smile at Sombra, as if she had a shred of respect for him left. And who knows; as far as Luna was concerned, maybe she did. However, there was no telling if Luna read too much into Celestia's gesture there. She then looked towards Luna sternly, once again returning to her actress tone. “This is a direct order from Mother; no horse playing! We don't want to have to rebuild this castle from the ground up again, among other worries.” And with that, Celestia teleported out of the room, vanishing in a flash of yellow light. Luna blinked, guessing that Celestia's shift was due to reflection. After all, it hadn't all been Sombra's fault... “Guh, I had a terrible nightmare." Sombra groaned and rolled over with his back to Luna, apparently having been disturbed by Celestia's departure. “I had a dream that Solaria took off my wings. Isn't that a hoot eh Rocky?” Stiffly and in a painfully slow fashion, Sombra, felt for his wings; Luna winced as she could only imagine Sombra's face at the realization that it had been no dream. Sombra rose ever so slightly, as if he might have been laying on them. His searching concluded with him howling in pain, his entire body locking up as he collapsed back into his bed, huffing and puffing. Apparently his feelings had returned as well. Soft sobbing could be heard, Luna wincing as she could sense the new low that had been brought to the prince. Sombra turned over, revealing tears streaming down his scrunched up face, pain and misery painting itself a definition with this expression. Now looking towards the startled mare that now shared his room, Sombra's tear streaked eyes blinked as he realized that Luna was watching him. Attempting to hide his apparent distress, he shuffled till some of the blankets were over his face. Seeing Sombra attempting to hide beneath his bed sheets almost elicited a laugh from Luna, though she held back out of fear of injuring his already fragile state of mind. Well, she reasoned he was in such a state, as waking up to find his wings gone would no doubt send any other pony spiraling down a dark road. “I saw that. And I think this will only get easier once we talk about it.” Sombra whimpered in response, apparently not agreeing with the statement. Luna jumped from her bed and began to walk towards Sombra; she moved shakily at first, but became more steady with each step, despite her body petitioning for more rest. In a surprising twist, Sombra heard her clopping hooves and came out to meet her halfway, bringing one of his pillows. He had wiped away much of his tears, and though his eyes were still watery, he seemed to halt any further sobbing. His horn fizzled when he attempted to use magic, so he just dragged the pillow (along with half of himself) along. He seemed to ignore the pain, determined not to allow Luna to come the whole way to him. It never ceased to amaze Luna how Sombra could even limp after what he just went through; but then again, many of his injuries seemed to have been patched up with magic as well, though it was evident that "patched" was the proper word for it. Once again mere muzzle distance from each other, the moment would have become awkward had Sombra not started to collapse. Luna swiftly moved to try to help him out, extending out her head, neck, and shoulders as a sort of support. Now just slightly underneath Sombra, Luna could feel his rapidly beating heart, and how it seemed to be near bursting out of his chest. It was probably due to all that effort into salvaging his own ego, coming to meet her a quarter of the twenty steps between their respective sides of the room. Luna began to doubt the wisdom in not returning Sombra to his bed immediately. After all, the poor stallion had nearly just collapsed to the hard floor for goodness sake. Luna nuzzled Sombra as he dropped the pillow, curious as to what his reaction would be. As if it were possible, his heart started to beat even faster, till it resembled something trying to pound from his chest and strike her lower neck with the force of a barrage of punches. “Do not worry Sombra.” Luna tried her best to sound as sweet and soothing as possible, as she feared anymore beating and his heart might give out from the exertion.“As long as I'm here, you will not have to go through this alone.” Luna's mane suddenly became saturated, a combination of sweat and tears flowing from Sombra. She had apparently failed in calming him down, but at least he was letting his emotion out. Luna was at a loss as to what to do now; Sombra did not sound comforted, though at least his heart rate returned to a more normal beating speed. He attempted to weakly nuzzle Luna back, but this increased weight made Luna's still weakened frame cry out in protest. “I think it would be a good idea to lie down now, before we both collapse.” Sombra laughed, actually laughed, and, as suggested, the two laid next to each other, their shared pillow the only inanimate comfort they had brought. "At least now we can be together." Sombra parted with Luna's mane to give her a wide smile. "Even if it is for just a little while longer. Marriage to your sister would have complicated things." Luna was dumbstruck by this information dump, as it implied that, to some extent, Sombra had purposely gotten himself stripped for the sake of getting out of his arrangement with Celestia. Of courses, Luna thought this to be a ludicrious notion, and that maybe Sombra was joking as a way of getting past his own misery. "Once an alicorn, always an alicorn, I think. There are not exactly many descended ponies to ask about that." Sombra laughed again, sniffing and wiping away almost any remaining facial fluids on the pillow. Not even mildly disgusted by this, Luna painted a silly grin, attempting to façade her discomfort at Sombra's way of dealing with the matter. "Oh well, that is just one of those things we will have to work on." Sombra's gaze wandered over to Luna's bed, his seeming cheeriness not diminishing for a moment. "My family has been keeping a Tome for a long time now regarding discovered knowledge, including that of dark magic; perhaps now you would like a peek?" Did Luna really have a choice in the matter? As much as she would have preferred something far less studious, she decided that her gutter would have to wait. "Sure," Luna replied, turning her head to view the faintly glowing Tome, "Perhaps I can even help you write some new entries, though I think it would be better to have a different book for the final version." "A second edition?" Sombra seemed intrigued by the idea, his ears shooting up like raised spears. "That actually sounds like a good idea..."
"Conspiracy Theories" (part I)Celestia's mind wandered from her scheming with Sombra to the mission that had made the arrangement in the first place. She recalled it like it was just yesterday. It had been a clear summer's day; the republic was still intact, and a young Celestia was on a diplomatic mission with her mother, Solaria. Many believed, even then, that Solaria had nothing more than blood and death on the mind. Her mother was out to prove them wrong, partly to disarm rumors of a potential coup, and partly because she did have more than conquest in mind. Celestia had to appreciate the level of forward thinking that her mother had in her interests; after all, if her parents had to kill off almost all of the other alicorns, Celestia was going to need someone to pair up with, or at least in theory. Things obviously did not go as planned, but then again, when have marriages with alicorns involved ever go completely as planned? Celestia, nearly half the size of her mother at the time, landed in the grassy plain. “How do we know this is the place?” Celestia asked, her high voice contrasting sharply with her current, much more middle-pitched tone. “Trust me, if anyone can follow a map in broad daylight, it is I." Solaria hovered a map in front of her, confidence gushing like a burst water pipe. With her magic, she rolled the map up and concealed it, turning her head towards her daughter with a lecture-like air of authority. “Now then, we arrived early so that we may discuss etiquette.” “But I already know those!” Celestia could not suppress the whine in her voice, as she had had this drilled into her head for days on end in preparation for her first diplomacy mission. “Do not open your mouth unless prompted, listen more than talk, and always be mysterious.” “That is domestic policy, Celestia dear." Solaria shook her head, as if she were a teacher wondering where her students' minds had been during her previous lectures. “You have to be much more fluid when dealing with foreign powers. After all, the Crystal Empire is the only pony-only empire in the world right now, and convincing them of a union is vital.” “But are not unions only for monarchies?” Celestia tilted her head to the side, staring up at her mother with curious eyes. “What kind of union can you build between a monarchy and a republic?” Solaria smiled, the sun radiantly catching her ever-flowing, multicolor mane, scattering the light of day much like a prism would. It was a fond image of her mother that Celestia preferred to her post-empire appearances. “That is what you are here for." Solaria tossed her mane onto her back, though it did little good in shifting its position. It was mostly a gesture that held more meaning in its timing than what it actually moved. “You are going to be quite the catch when you mature, and I have a good feeling that Umbra will have at least one son amongst his lot.” If that answered Celestia's question, then her ears sprouted feet and walked off of her head. In case that was confusing, Celestia's question was not really answered at all, at least as far as she could tell back then. “But...” Solaria swept a wing above her daughter, silencing her in a single motion. Solaria's gaze then focused towards the horizon. Sparkling in the distance was a duo, shining as if they were gems themselves. They were still far off, so this was about as much as Celestia could tell of their features. “They look like gems!” Celestia began bouncing up and down in excitement at the thought of meeting real crystal ponies. “So cool!” Solaria giggled; in hindsight, she probably wanted to scold her, but just did not have the heart to go through with it. The pace of the two crystal ponies increased rapidly, even from here smiles apparent on their faces. Celestia stopped bouncing when she actually got a look at these ponies. They looked to be made out of gems indeed; one was incredibly tall, almost tall enough to lick Solaria's cheek without standing on two legs. The other was taller than Celestia, but definitely more average height as far as ponies went. Both sparkled with a radiance that could only be described as crystalline, the shine even present in their eyes as they approached. The taller one was a brownish mare sporting a plain crown (anymore gems would be overkill for the look Celestia theorized) and had a black, high sheen mane. The clothing lacked intricacy, with only a red and white cape draped over her back. Celestia noted that this is the same cape that Sombra would later don during their final battle; perhaps a memento or tribute of sorts. Next to her stood a stallion covered in shining plated armor. The eyes were focused, the mane was a deep purple, and a helmet covered much of the face. The coat had a granite color and texture to it, or at least what could be seen from the steel armor covering most of his body. A bright red horn, curved and colored like a ruby of sorts, stood out the most, a trademark of sorts that clashed with conventional unicorn horns. Together, the two looked like a couple out on a date, rather than here on official business. Just by appearances alone, Celestia could guess that the stallion held rank in the military while the mare attended to matters of the state. Either that, or the stallion guarded the mare as an escort of sorts. Upon the two stepped into hearing distance, Celestia could hear them chattering. Though she could not make out the details, he could tell that it was an amiable sort of conversation, perhaps even private to some extent. Solaria noted this as well with a smile. The two stopped just feet away, with the stallion directly across from Celestia and the mare directly across from Solaria. “Empress Amore and General Umbra, nice to see that you are both well.” Solaria smiled wide, no doubt eager to see the two figures in a good mood. Amore returned the smile before looking towards Celestia. “I suppose this is your daughter, Celestia? She is much older than I expected her to be.” “It has been many suns since her birth, but I still remember her first question." Solaria's tone turned teasing in line with the upcoming joke that so obviously would start the real dialogue between them. "Where do alicorns come from?” She said it with such a childish mimicry that for a moment, one would believe in ventriloquism. The adult ponies shared a laugh, and though Celestia maintained her composure, her blood boiled due the condescending manner in which they laughed. Up till that day, she still had yet to be taken seriously whenever she asked, and had it not been for Umbra, perhaps she would have made a big deal out of it. “Alicorns are either ascended or made in their mommy's womb after a good fucking." Umbra answered this rather abruptly, and the laughing ceased. "Umbra, Celestia is a bit young for that kind of talk, do you not think?" Amore seemed aghast that Umbra had not toned down the nature of his response, though in truth Celestia believed she was more disgruntled with the fact that he had kind of ruined the mood. Celestia almost broke out into a series of questions at this subtle prompt when Solaria gave her a quick glance. With her narrowed eyes, she made it clear that that would have to wait for another time. That was all Celestia needed to curb her excitement and return to her regal state of mind. Well, about as close to regal as a young mare could get anyways. “Trained like a puppy dog,” Umbra joked with a smile on his face, “I have to say, your reputation would suggest that a whipping is in order for even thinking of how you were conceived.” Solaria's gaze redirected towards Umbra, a sort of imaginary sword drawn between the two. The tension began layering as Umbra cockily awaited Solaria's response. “I can see it is straight to business with you then." Solaria did not need many words to get a point across. She had been intended on softening the upcoming discussion with some lighthearted jokes, but Umbra's blunt smashing of that plan had cut short the pleasantries. “Must we go straight to business?” Amore took a slight step forward, attempting to salvage the civility of the meeting. “Can we at least get to know each other first? Have a bite to eat? I'm sure we all have guards within a day's travel who can bring...” “No time.” Umbra narrowed his eyes at Solaria, “What is this I hear of a union between a republic and an imperial state? What are you all up to?” “Grappus suggested it a few weeks ago. The republic has a growing number of enemies, as we become more and more diverse, it becomes more and more difficult to maintain stable borders." Solaria blinked, returning Umbra's gaze with a less hostile look. "The griffin reasoned that it would be a good idea to join with independent kingdoms in marital unions in order to create a stronger status quo. I happen to have a single daughter, so I volunteered to negotiate such terms with the Crystal Empire.” Umbra took a threatening step forward, a low growl sounding from him. “Fearing more war are you all? Everyone knows that blood is literally staining the very claws and hooves that sign your treaties. I would not be shocked if your own code of laws stuck together.” Solaria took a step forward, her large stature casting a shadow over Umbra. Any closer and the two would likely come to blows. “Oh, and I am guessing the Crystal Empire expanded through peaceful negotiations and Trojan ponies? All we want is to prevent a clash between two very powerful and militarily ruthless states.” “We have no intentions of being lulled into a false sense of security by some union. We will always be ready for a duel." Up to this point, the Empress had been largely silent, despite her companion trading barbs with an alicorn. Solaria decided to force her input on the matter. “Amore? You seem awfully quiet on this matter. Surely you are not going to let your general do your job for you?” “Just taking this all in,” Amore replied with a sigh, “Can we at least sit? I feel that already the two of you are just short of coming to blows.” “Whatever gave you that impression?” Celestia felt the need to defend her mother in from this unjust accusation. “Umbra was the one making subtle threats.” “Subtle, me?” Umbra feigned insult with a dramatic hoof to his chest. “I take that as an insult.” Celestia did not want to draw on the ire of her mother, so she picked her next words carefully. “You can not invade us and we can't invade you for different reasons. Right now we are trading with swords and shields. All the Republic wants is to try to ease the tension between our nations." Celestia nodded towards Amore in acknowledgement to her earlier suggestion. "I think sitting would be a good idea.” Celestia withheld a sigh of relief when Amore nodded and sat on her haunches, soon followed by Celestia. Umbra and Solaria did so only after their respective companions had led the way. “There, now we can be more civil to each other." Amore seemed to take great pleasure in their new positions. “Now then, we have an offer, and undoubtedly, you have an offer as well. Let's go ahead and see what we are working with.” Umbra's horn glowed, as did Solaria's, and two previously unnoticed scrolls were exchanged between the two parties. The parchments opened by magic, Umbra and Solaria scanned the respective documents with scrutiny. Amore smiled, obviously already being filled in on what the Republic intended on offering in order to try to seal the deal. Umbra's face contorted into that of a displeased reader who had hit a section of passage that completely clashed with his/her view of the world. “A royal marriage?” He proceeded to spit into the soil next to him, narrowly dodging his own hooves. “Between Amore's child and Celestia? She or he has not even been conceived yet!” Amore very roughly punched Umbra in the side, causing him to wince. Despite wearing armor, a small dent remained after the blow, surprising Celestia that Amore had such physical strength. It was less likely out of pain than out of concession that he had stepped over some unseen line, as despite the force, it did not budge the unicorn an inch from his place. “Any marriage between an alicorn and a child of mine has obvious implications,” Amore commented, her eyes staring straight at the still reading, or the pretending to read, Solaria. “My child would die from old age before Celestia even grows to full height, if I have my studies on alicorns correct; presuming that they have children, that would practically allow the Republic to inherit the Crystal Empire within two generations max.” Solaria didn't seem surprised that Amore had figured all that out without reading the agreement's text. When she looked up, she seemed to have a slight frown. “By the sounds of it, you seem quite okay with that. I had expected more of a fuss.” Amore chuckled, and then pointed her left hoof towards the parchment in Solaria's magical grip. “You do realize that the only reason I am agreeing is because, if I agree, then you are bound to ascend my son to the position of alicorn prior to his sixteenth birthday.” Solaria hardly showed any emotion at this point, instead going back to reading the parchment before looking back up again. Ascending a pony to the position of alicorn, even in those days, was not a small matter, but one would not know that by gauging Solaria's reaction. Without a doubt, while Umbra had the Crystal Empire's interests at heart, he was still a military general; he was more concerned with fighting off the Republic than trying to merge with it. Solaria was more concerned with neutralizing the potential threat of the Empire by annexing it through marriage rather than war. By modern terms, the countries were not superpowers, but it was clear that they could not ignore each other for much longer. They had to either be allies, enemies, or continue along this path of uncertain passive aggression; which would probably lead to them being the latter. Celestia of the time could only read that the two had apparently reached a newfound realization of just how easy this “negotiation” could be. Agree to the betrothal and walk off, seemed simple enough. But if Umbra was to have his way, that could not be as simple as it was. Umbra rose to his hooves again, casting an accusing glare towards the alicorns. “We have no guarantee that they will carry out their word! Not to mention Solaria could be grooming her daughter to be an assassin!” Amore chuckled, waving off the suggestion. “Oh please, Solaria does not want her daughter to be a killer; that's why she wants to lock with Nightshade. Is that not right?” Solaria's face, if you could believe it, flushed to a pale white, and then to a burning red as she redirected her gaze towards the clouds. At the time, it seemed merely that Amore was implying that Nightshade and Solaria were not professional with each other, and intended on having another foal; In hindsight, it was a clear sign that suspicions about a takeover of the Republic had reached even the Crystal Empire. And Amore had correctly guessed who were the ones who had the best chance of success, with little to no guessing in her phrase. Amore had effectively turned a horn fight into a hoof fight; and was stomping the negotiations like an earth pony the ground beneath them. Still, Solaria did not have to reveal that Amore had found her out; she could have played it off rather smoothly had she so chosen to. Solaria recovered from apparent surprise and looked Amore in the eye, as if a personal communication were going on with just their eye contact. “Well, when you put things that way, I don't see any reason for your future son not to be an alicorn. That away, your ponies have assurance that they can be protected in case there is some upheaval that might sway public opinion on this agreement, and the two can produce some rather powerful offspring.” “Aye,” Amore confirmed, “Not to mention how much it will inspire your other species to make treaties, so that they are not ruled solely by ponies in their foreseeable futures.” With that, the two nodded in understanding, leaving a baffled Umbra and Celestia to ponder over what just happened. “But...” Umbra wavered until Amore silenced him with a gaze. The group rose to their hooves, bid each other farewell, and departed to their respective kingdoms, their departures lasting for much less time than their arrival. Once out of earshot, Celestia noticed a wide grin on Solaria's face, along with a familiar amount of fire in her eyes. At the time, she reasoned it burned in joy that things had went off without much of a hitch; in reality, something much more devious had just went off without a hitch. Celestia regrets that she did not bother asking about it, but chalks it up to her relative naivety at the time; after all, the incredible amount of unsaid dialogue had flown over her head back then, despite remembering the meeting so acutely. Another curse from the adjacent train car and Celestia was jolted from her dreams. A much louder thump sound also alerted her that Cadence and Shining had likely hit the floor of their train car rather hard. Celestia became concerned that Shining and Cadence might have injured one another trying to mate on the train. Their tenacity admirable, but their objective at having a good time seemed futile as far as Celestia was concerned. One would have better luck in one of the royal chariots. Celestia walked towards the door, and gently knocked on it with her right hoof, still wanting to respect their relative privacy. “Everything alright in there?” Celestia placing an ear to the door. Silence. While her head was turned in this fashion, she noticed the sack with Sombra's horn in it no longer rested in the middle of the train car she was in. A red flag waved, Celestia barged in front hooves first, only to find Shining and Cadence passed out on the floor. A black sphere of smoke assembled onto the other side of the car, an ominous red glow beating within the core. Recognizing this manifistation as Sombra's doing, Celestia readied magic in her horn, a scorch on touch spell coming to mind. “Sombra, if that is you, then for your sake, you better not try anything further.” Sure, the two had plotted to try to end their engagement, even mated, but in the present day, nothing could be left to chance if Sombra tried to strike out against them. The smoke formed into a familiar shape, a horn appearing atop of this crest as the form of Sombra was complete. Complete in armor, the ghostly image smiled darkly, though with an oddly inviting gaze. “If you are seeing this, then those alicorns finally did get me. Well, anyways, this is a message to all my subjects.” Celestia remained apprehensive, though it seemed like nothing more than a recording of sorts. “I want to apologize that my rule was so abruptly ended. I wish I could have made Luna your Queen, but alas, it was not to be." Celestia felt that, had Sombra not gone on a slave gathering spree, there might would have been a shot left to re-ascend him, and thus save that relationship. But, that of course did not happen. Sombra only got worse with time after they left the Crystal Empire, and might would have invaded Equestria with a slave army had Luna and Celestia not intervened. "And so, I have only a final wish that is not for the ears of that accursed mare, who's sun I would rather blind myself with than to live under another day.” Careful what you wish for; in some ways, Cadence had granted him that wish. However, Celestia had the empty feeling that Sombra was not referencing her here. She had figured that it would give some solace to realize that, but now it only seemed to increase her hostility towards this unfeeling recording. “My chords are broken, so I can only project my words forward; live, and dream, my subjects, so that the alicorn sisters will never forget their own history, though it has long been forgotten by the books.” Celestia's eyes widened in surprise at this last bit. His chords were broken? His vocal chords? Surely that was a lie; the report on Sombra's return explicitly included him moaning, growling, and calling out to the crystal ponies in a most menacing fashion. The projection then seemed to stare straight at her, killing intent clear. Celestia aimed her horn, just to be on the safe side. “Serve your new monarchs well, and be wiser than you were with me; if you must betray them, put them out of their misery, lest their hatred and vengeance make you slaves once more.” And with that, the image faded away like smoke in the wind. The horn stopped glowing and levitating at this stage, and when it thumped to the floor, Celestia cautiously approached it. The life from it seemed to be drained, and it turned to a red powder, looking almost like a crushed ruby. Celestia opened a window, much of the powder escaped with the wind. Some, however, she left behind; better safe than sorry when dealing with Sombra. “What good did that do him?” “Seems like a lot of wasted effort on his part.” Cadence and Shining Armour began to stir, mare beneath stallion. No doubt they got layed out by another tremor of the train, though the two did not seemed to be drenched in fluids from what Celestia could tell. Cadence wore a comical look of disappointment on her face. Well, context driven humor, that is, as someone just now entering the train would probably not realize what was so funny about Cadenece looking so dissatisfied while underneath her husband. “Auntie, that was probably the greatest climax I have ever not had! Just as I was there, suddenly darkness shrouded us and literally killed the mood.” “Among other things." Shining rolled off of Cadence once he realized he was still on top of her “I swear, where is Sombra's horn? I think that had something to do with it.” “Maybe.” Celestia gestured towards the powdery remains, highly skeptical that Sombra took the time out of his schedule to interrupt Cadence and Shining. “A recording seemed to be left behind. Though now that that is dust, I suppose we really have no reason to go to the Crystal Empire." “Uh, this is your conductor speaking,” the train overhead sounded, “We are encountering a strange disturbance. You might want to buckle up, like, now.” Before alicorns and Captain could inquire amongst themselves, the train suddenly lurched forward. Celestia remained rooted in place like a tree; Cadence and Shining were not so steady, and, despite already being on the floor, found themselves barreling through the train car door the door. Using her magic, Celestia quickly caught the two and pulled them in, seconds before the windows reflected a strange light and the train door slammed shut. The train then lurched in the opposite direction; Celestia comically was barreled over by the combined weight of the two she had previously held in her grasp, the two becoming a tangled mess of mane, limbs, and horns. As the three attempted to disentangle themselves, the light show ended. An irritated Celestia emerged first, a few scratches on her sides, quickly followed by Shining and Cadence. “Yet another reason I do not ride trains!” The anger in Celestia's voice seemed to make even the conductor hesitate for a few seconds before coming over the intercom again. “Welcome to the Crystal Empire. Watch your step as you disembark, as some shifting may have taken place during our abrupt travel through time and space.” Shining groggily shifted over to one of the nearby windows to take a look outside. Meanwhile, Celestia raised an eyebrow at the strange report. Maybe she underestimated how fast a train could take one nearly halfway across the country; either that or three days passed incredibly fast. The latter Celestia highly doubted, but turned towards an equally baffled Cadence. "She says that as if space-time transportation in Equestria is a typical occurrence." Cadence clearly worried about the state of the Empire, already aware of the powers of the Crystal Heart. “Uh, ladies...” Shining's eyes grew wide, and his mouth fell open as he glimpsed the area outside of the train. Ignoring him, Celestia and Cadence fixed their manes, briefly, and then continued talking. After all, Celestia wanted to press into the matter at hand prior to their interruption. “You were telling me about your climax? Normally you are not so upfront with such matters.” A hint of guilt found its way into Cadence's expression. "Well, we were kind of doing it in the train car behind you when we should have been working on the whole nigh vision thing." Cadence then laughed, likely processing what she had just said to her aunt. "I think any sort of sensibility left a few hours ago when we were chasing Discord around Canterlot airspace.” “Cadence, Princess Celestia! We have bigger issues to deal with!” Shining's shout caught the attention of the two alicorns, and together they joined Shining in looking out the window. The Crystal Empire, which they had arrived inexplicably early to, was in black flames; ponies everywhere were either panicking, cowering, or starting the fires. Although there seemed to be more going on, from the window, only a limited view of the mayhem could be seen. It was chaos personified, and the guards were doing a poor job of handling the situation. “We were not gone for that long,” Cadence lamented, fearing the worst “You don't think this is another dream do you?” “This is very much real.” Resolute, Celestia turned from the window and opened the train car doors. “Shining, ready your barrier spells. I have a feeling we are going to need them.” “Yes ma'am!” Shining's horn began to glow a rosy color as he readied his barrier spell. Cadence seemed mortified at the sight, only snapping back to reality when Celestia placed a wing on her shoulder with a small smile on her face. “It looks like nothing more than a riot.” Celestia attempting to sound both reassuring and confident at the same time, despite the fact that she was not entirely sure what had caused the chaos outside. “Rule long enough, and you will see at least a few dozen of these in your lifetime.” Cadence seemed close to tears, unable to comprehend the jest that could be found in Celestia's statement. "Why would there be a riot? It is not like we ruled harshly, only with tolerance and kindness.” Celestia nodded towards Shining to go on ahead, extending her right arm outwards towards Cadence. She used her hoof to gently smooth down Cadence's mane and hair, using the rest of her arm to bring the younger alicorn in close. “Listen, sometimes with tenderness and affection comes the impression of weakness. If that is what is going on, then as simple show of force will quell it.” “And it if it has something to do with Sombra? What do we do then?” Tears began to stream down Cadence's face at the thought. Celestia tried to maintain her soothing tone, but she added a touch of firmness, as it was of the utmost importance that if it was a riot, it be dealt with in the most efficient manner possible. “We will cross that bridge when we get there. And in that possibility, just watch me and learn.” Cadence wiped her eyes with a hoof, and then broke from the embrace. "Alright, I am ready." Shining Armor stepped off of the train first, bubble shield already up. Oddly enough, they seemed to arrive closer to the main city than usual, though Shining attested that impression from the mass of ponies that seemed prepared to board the train. That is, until Cadence and Celestia walked off the train. As if the apocalypse had suddenly come to an end, many of the ponies seemed to rejoice, and various guards rushed to the trio in haste. An orange pegasus guard member stepped up to give a breakdown of the situation. "Captain, Princesses, we have a situation! The city limits are infested with creatures that do not belong, ranging from dragons and griffins to Ursa Majors and manticores! Not to mention half the guard vanished in the blink of an eye. I think we are being invaded." Shining furrowed his brow. Indeed, things had gone from bad to worse just with a situation report. Celestia decided to take charge of the situation, quickly ascertaining that the lack of containment was a result of the guard rapidly losing its numbers. "Thank you Flash Sentry for that report, but we had best see this for ourselves." Celestia nodded, entered Shining's enlarged bubble barrier, and led the way back to the main city. As Flash had reported, dragons, griffons, Ursa minors and majors, you name it, at least two of each were somewhere in the city. Most of the panic was a direct result of a general misunderstanding. The guards remaining also believed that they had been invaded; the creatures thought that they had been forcibly brought from their homes by the Equestrians. This resulted in clashes that only made things worse. The entourage of guards, the two princesses, and Shining Armor, all under a pink and blue bubble shield boldly strode into the mayhem. “Wouldn't it be easier to just shout and calm everyone down?” Shining suggested, a few spears bouncing off of the shield while he spoke. “Yelling would have the opposite effect on non-ponies,” Celestia reminded Shining, “If their nightmares have had any merit to them, then a shouting alicorn will definitely not calm them down.” “Besides, we need to make sure the Crystal Heart is safe." Cadence considered for a moment just using her magic to ease the tension, but this level of disharmony would require a great amount of energy to dispel. Shining Armor wanted to go out and help his troops, but the Crystal Heart took priority; they could not afford for something to happen to it, or worse, for the Heart to start retaliating on its own. A duo of panicked griffins found themselves perching atop the shield for a few moments before leaping back into the air again, quickly gaining flight as pegasi guards chased them around the city. Flash noted this situation and looked towards his superiors curiously. “Sir, shouldn't you all be organizing a more organized response to this?” “Working on that Sentry." The group had reached the main courtyard by this point.. The Crystal Heart hovered above them, out in the open, and for nearly all to see as it emitted an aura of lights into the sky. On a regular occasion, it would be a magical moment; this was not a regular occasion, however, and Celestia and Cadence took flight towards the Crystal Heart. With hardly a beat missed on their way up there, the princesses reached the heart in mere seconds; from there, at probably the most visible portion of the entire city, Celestia cleared her throat in preparation for use of the Canterlot voice. "Every creature, stop this senseless violence at once!" Not surprisingly, while some ponies stopped to heed her command, the majority of animals paid her no heed. Cadence touched the heart with her horn; a wave of energy surged out all throughout the city, mellowing out those touched by the wave. Truly, those who had been fighting suddenly seemed to lose the will to fight; others just stopped fighting altogether and looked towards the Heart with glazed expressions. Now that the attention funneled to Cadence and Celestia, Celestia broke out into a large, amiable grin, though continued using the appropriate volume of the Canterlot voice. “Some magical mysteries have caused strange events throughout the land. Remain calm and we will get this sorted out as quickly and orderly as possible. Now, gather with your respective parties, as that will make it much easier to address you all as a group rather than on an individual basis.” Although hesitant at first, the many creatures ceased their scrambling and began dividing into nationalities, with ponies, griffins, and dragons making the largest of the three groups. Even the normally wild animals heeded Celestia's order. Celestia smiled, and couldn't help but be pleased at the orderly manner the creatures were quickly doing her bidding. It gave her a warm, fuzzy feeling that even non-ponies obeyed without question. The now setting sun needed to be put down for the day; as she was already in the air anyways, Celestia went ahead and slowly lowered the sun, likely prompting some uncomfortable stares from down below. The moon, however, took just a second longer than usual to rise into the sky; it was strange, but considering all that happened, it would not be too much to suggest that Luna had been disrupted also by the strange event.
"Conspiracy Theories" (part II)Luna and Sombra spent the next month or so within the crystal palace, and had a tendency to avoid both Celestia and Solaria. The two together also had been working on composing on volume II, and much to Luna's delight, Sombra was eager to learn more about the Dreamscape. “The Dreamscape, as the name implies, the world where the dreams of every dreaming thing come together as one.” Luna paced around their personal chamber as she talked, unable to stand in one place and give a 'proper' lecture. “It is with great care that one explore it, for what creatures dream can range from simple everyday living, to horrendous nightmares capable of taking you with it.” Sombra sat on a pillow, and hung onto every word. He raised a hoof, and like a teacher would address the class, Luna stopped pacing and turned towards Sombra. “Questions?” Sombra lowered his hoof and smiled deviously. “Is it also possible to view fantasies?” Luna, for a brief moment, considered the implications of answering that question, but then reasoned she would get some of her own answered soon enough. “Yes, you can in fact, visit the fantasies of specific creatures.” Sombra raised his right hoof again, much to Luna's dismay. She had a feeling she knew what the next question would be. “Yes, Sombra?” “What is the strangest fantasy you have ever visited?” Sombra seemed genuinely curious concerning this. Luna thought about it for a moment, as the competition was stiff for that one. There was that one time she visisted a pony's dream and found them hopping around in frozen chocolate milk. They were enthralled, and when Luna ,disguised of course as a waffle, inquired as to the nature of the dream, the pony swore that they would create a frozen milk treat that would go great with toasted waffles. Needless to say, Luna hiked it before the pony got any strange ideas. No need for her avatar to have to resort to violence to keep from being eaten. Next was a dragon's dream, where she found herself in a room filled with gems, crystals, and stacks upon stacks of griffin and pony slaves. They were all stacked atop each other, in chains of course, and looked rather miserable. The dragon, however, beamed at the thought, and declared that each and every one of them pleasure her till the gem supply ran out. Luna did not even want to know more about that one, so she hastily fled to another dream. The next one, Celestia's... Luna cringed, her wings retracted to cover her face, and the princes felt a very deep blush come on. No, for Celestia's sake, she could not divulge that one to Sombra. Sombra did not miss this physical gesturing and leaned forward with wide eyes. Had it not been for the fact that Luna was trying to hide her face, she might would have commented on how adorable curious Sombra looked. “Err, the strangest one involves a dragon's horde.” She shook her head in an attempt to get Celestia out of her head, the images attempting to burn themselves back into her memory. “A dragon's horde, is that it?” Sombra leaned back in disappointment. “I thought it would be something more scandalous, like Celestia fantasizing about your father or something.” Luna opened her wings and stomped a hoof forward in a fit of anger. “Do not be ridiculous! Wherever did you get such a thing from?” Sombra burst out laughing, holding his sides the best he could while rolling back onto the floor, kicking his hind hooves in the air in a fit of hysteria. Luna would have went over and demanded to know what was so funny, but she caught herself before doing anything so rash. Sombra had healed considerably since his stripping, but there was no need to start breaking things again. There was no telling how fast they would heal this time. “Are you done?” Luna impatiently waited for Sombra to compose himself. When he finally caught himself, he wiped a tear from his eye and grinned wide. “Celestia had to sleep too when she took care of me shortly after my fight with your mother. And besides, your reaction suggested it had something to do with your family, and I doubt you have ever invaded your mother's dreams.” That last bit was not true, but Luna reasoned it would be better for Sombra to think that she had not paid her own mother a nightly visit. “Well, anyways, the dragon horde had sex slaves of griffin and pony origin, with a room filled with gems.” “Presumably payment?” Sombra snickered, but Luna was unamused by the joke. “As food.” Luna then tapped her hooves to express that it was time to switch topics. “Alright, now it is your turn, jestar king.” Luna sneered as she switched places with a grumbling Sombra, whom likely did not enjoy the label. Sombra, unlike Luna, stood in a single place while he began his lecture. He cleared his throat dramatically, as if about to begin some sort of speech. “As you aware of by now, my family has been researching dark magic for a considerable amount of time. With its power, crystal unicorns were able to stave off changeling hordes and barbarian Ursas for generations.” Luna chuckled, prompting a glare from Sombra. “What is so funny about that?” “Crystal unicorns, really?” Luna eyed Sombra with much scrutiny. “I will believe it when I see it.” Sombra gestured to his body with a wave of his hooves. Luna was not convinced. “Mother stripped you of your wings, not your horn.” Sombra rolled his eyes, and then carried on. Luna could tell that she would not be enjoying this as much as Sombra apparently had. “Anyways, dark magic cannot be absorbed by changelings, as it is fueled by fear, hatred, jealousy, and things of that sort. Regular magic can be charged with emotions too, but this sort of polar magic takes on the actual affinity of the emotions charged into it.” Luna raised a hoof, mimicking Sombra in more than just stance. Sombra tipped his ruby horn towards Luna for her to ask her question. “If there is dark magic, then there has to be light magic fueled by things like love and friendship, right?” Luna confidently felt that she had hit the nail on the head. Sombra refuted that notion almost as soon as she got the words out of her mouth. “No, friendship is not an emotion, it is a state of a relationship. But yes, love. The Crystal Heart is an example of a light magic relic.” “Do you have any samples of dark magic?” Luna eyed Sombra, expecting him to decline. Again, Sombra surprised her and, after a quick scan of the room, nodded. He dashed over to his bed, slightly renovated with two head pillows (yes, they make a distinction for a reason) instead of one. He pulled from underneath them a pendant of interesting design. Its top bore the image of a winged unicorn, wings outstretched, colored red and black, with fierce red eyes and a long horn. The grey head hardly stood out, with the red, rhombus shaped gem ominously glowing underneath. All of this decoration was attached by a metal triangle with two strings on either side, presumably to be used for wear by the user. “Nice jewelry, but what has that got to do with dark magic?” Luna titled her head as Sombra hovered it above his head, a smile evident on his face. “My dear Luna, this here is the Alicorn Amulet, a magical pendent created for the sole purpose of being a more portable enhancement than the Crystal Heart.” Sombra waved it around as if it were a sort of triumph, his smile growing wider. “On its own, it does not hold very much power, but when combined with the dark emotions of its wearer, it can grant incredible power, at the price of control.” “Control?” Luna stood up, eyeing the pendent with some levels of doubt. “What kind of control?” “The longer you use it, the more powerful your dark magic, and as a direct proportion, your darker ego, gets. There is a grim-dark story that explains why I have it, and why it is only now that you have come to see it, but I would rather not go into that.” Sombra hid the pendent in a flash of red light, the gleam in his eye fading. He seemed slightly more downcast now that his thoughts lingered on whatever that event was. Though very curious, Luna decided not to press. “Moving on, how about we do a game of truth or dare?” Sombra perked up all of a sudden and trotted off to drag anther seat pillow. Once retrieved, he placed it a few feet in front of Luna, sat down, and smiled. “I warn you, my dares can be very off-putting.” Luna giggled, no doubt assuming that Sombra meant something rather disgusting in nature by that. “I will have to keep that in mind. Alright, you first: truth or dare?” “Dare.” There was no hesitation, not even a moment of thought in Sombra's decision. Luna grinned, having the perfect dare in mind. “I dare you to beat me in a wrestling match.” Luna smiled wider, but Sombra frowned and groaned, putting a hoof to his horn. “Only if we both agree that no magic is to be involved.” Sombra narrowed his eyes, a thought coming to mind. “What made you choose that one?” Luna lightly blushed, though for reasons beyond her grasp the question seemed to reverberate in her own head. Why did she choose that? “The apple does not fall far from the tree?” It was more of a question than an answer, but Sombra seemed to accept it. “Right, though you do realize that your parents supposedly fell in love while trading blows at the school yard?” Sombra did not seem perturbed by this, but much rather, he seemed to be trying to confirm some suspicion. “You can learn a lot about a pony by fighting with them.” Luna used her forehooves to slide backwards ever so slightly, unsure of her own response to the question. “Besides, we are not going to be fighting like that again. Just a playful wrestling match.” “Are we not a little old for that?” Sombra took a step closer, almost threateningly. “But if you insist, I must warn you, I will not go easy on you just because you are a mare.” Luna grinned, and then shot to her hooves. She would have had it no other way. Before Sombra could get to his hooves, Luna tackled the stallion backwards. Rather than pinning him tot he ground, momentum sent them rolling until Sombra thrust his hind hooves into Luna's belly. The inevitable buck sent Luna flying through the air, though it was no trouble as she used her wings to catch herself before ramming into the ceiling. Dropping back down, Luna managed to land atop of Sombra once again, pinning his back to the floor and his rear hooves uselessly flailing in the air. Taking a seat, she snickered in victory. Sombra, intent on wiping that snicker from her face, took his left forehoof and smacked Luna straight in the jaw, sending her sprawling backwards. Startled, as she thought she had pinned him entirely, Luna did not get back to her hooves in time before Sombra was atop of her, pinning her wings down with his forehooves. He pressed himself forward, using his body weight to prevent Luna from using her upper body strength from hurling him off. Try as she may, she could not get any of her hooves underneath him, and attempting to bat him aside did little good either. After a few minutes of struggling, Luna finally surrendered, sighing at her lost victory. Sombra playfully flicked a serpentine tongue across Luna's muzzle with a wide grin. “Truth or dare?” Luna thought carefully about her position. Perhaps with a few more minutes she could find a way to throw Sombra off without magic, but then again, perhaps not. Considering Sombra's earlier warning and their rather awkward positioning, Luna decided it was better to be safe than sorry. “Truth.” Sombra frowned, though playfully nicked at her ear with one of his canines. “Good choice. Now then, if I were to ask you to be my queen right now, what would you answer?” Luna's breath got caught in her throat, and in seconds her heart rate increased. Her body tensed, her mind reeling with the likely reaction to either answer. Wanting to be sure what she was getting herself into, Luna made eye contact with the crystal pony. “Are you asking what I think you are asking?” Sombra bit his lip, and eased released Luna from his grip. Luna did not immediately flee to the comfort of her side of the room, as she did not want to give the wrong impression. “What do you think I am asking other than what I just asked?” Sombra took a few steps away from Luna, lowering the front of his body as if he were about to pounce again. “I think you are being rather serious...” Luna rose to her hooves and took a few steps towards Sombra, once again closing the distance between the two to a mere three feet. “If that is the case, then, my answer would be...” A bright light flooded Twilight's vision as the dream abruptly cut off, sending both her and Luna sitting upright in the real world. It was late in the afternoon, just short of dusk, and a brilliant light seemed to be receding from an unknown source. “I thought only you could wake us up?” Twilight groggily held her head, a pounding headache coming on from the sudden interruption. Luna rose, hardly fazed at all, and looked towards the stain glassed windows of the throne room. “I figured it important that we investigate whatever caused that light.” As if right on cue, the front door burst open, and a royal guard member dashed down the hallway towards Twilight and Luna. The earth pony stood stiffly at attention once he reached the princesses, only relaxing when Luna nodded in acknowledgment. “Princess Luna, there is trouble in the Equestria! Magical portals are opening all over the kingdom, and the citizens are becoming restless!” “Is that so?” Luna perked her ears forward and plastered a serious look on her face. “Perhaps the strange visions have something to do with this?” “Maybe, but it is almost like the entire northern portion of the country is getting out of hoof! As far south as Canterlot!” Although still eager to know Luna's answer to Sombra's question, Twilight concluded that this new issue took precedence. “We have to do something! Where is Princess Celestia at this moment?” “We were keeping an eye on the train, but it suddenly ran into one of those magical fields. Reports relay that it led directly to the Empire, though we have yet to ascertain what opened these portals in the first place.” The guard seemed flustered at this point, perhaps in part because of Luna's unnerving calm in the face of this issue. “I am guessing that the riot situation in Canterlot has only worsened as a result of this?” Luna revealed none of the concern that she deeply felt, at least in part because she did not want it to come off as panic. The nightmares she could fix, but this new space-time phenomenon flew with a different set of wings. The royal guard seemed to give a small smile at the mention of the riots. "Discord dealt with that hours ago, and has since been spotted lounging in the gardens. We have kept a very close eye on him" “Do you think he is behind this?” Twilight had her reasons for suspecting Discord, as no doubt the chaos caused by such an unnatural event would delight the spirit of disharmony. “The remaining Elements have already been called from their respective locations, just to be on the safe side,” the guard answered. “We presume that you all are prepared for a situation like this?” “Of course!” Luna broke her stoic demeanor for a more dramatic, meaningful one, gesturing towards the door with a hoof in the air. “Bring them in! In the meantime, declare a national emergency until we can get this all sorted out!” The guard saluted, bowed, and then dashed back the way he came. Twilight look at Luna inquisitively, recalling that the Elements themselves were back at the Tree of Harmony, all the way in Everfree forest. “Uh, Luna, you do realize...” “We are prepared to deal with Discord,” Luna pointed out, “If it is him, then his friendship with Fluttershy should reign him in. If not, then we will have to borrow the Elements from the Tree again.” “But...” Twilight started till Luna stamped a hoof to the floor. “Why wait? I shall call him at once!” Luna shouted, following up with a by now familiar chant, “Discord, show yourself!” Right on cue, as if listening in the entire time Discord replied from somewhere in the castle, “I am in the banquet room!” Luna and Twilight exchanged looks before trotting down the hall and through the throne room doors. The dining hall, sometimes referred to as the banquet room, was a very large eating area reserved for guests of the princesses. Additionally, it held a large rectangular table, though it only had corresponding seating arrangements for a few dozen occupants. Discord initially was nowhere to be seen, and Luna was tempted to call for him again when grey smoke burst from the center area of the table, with Discord standing dramatically in his first statue pose. Clearing his throat, it seemed as if he was about to sing, but using the Canterlot Voice Luna cut him off before he could get the first note out. “Are you behind all of this chaos, Discord? Answer me!” With her Canterlot voice in full effect, even Discord had to leave his dramatic pose and take her seriously. “I don't know what you are talking about." Hardly had the words left his mouth did the remainder of the Element Bearers arrive. First, a rainbow maned, blue toned pegasus, followed by an orange mare with a brown hat, flanked by a bouncing pink earth pony and a yellow pegasus with wide eyes. Bringing up the rear was a white unicorn with purple hair, who's entry brought the door to a close by the guards. “Discord!” Rainbow Dash zoomed towards Discord, intent on tackling the draconequus. “What are you up to?” Discord ducked, narrowly dodging the Element of Loyalty, causing her to zoom past his head and swerve in order to avoid smacking into Twilight. Discord's reply was simple and to the point. “I didn't do anything.” “Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie I am glad that you could join us.” Luna calmly greeted the ponies before turning back to Discord with a suspicious gaze. Discord shrugged as the newcomers joined Twilight on her side of the table. “Now now, what is all this nonsense about me doing something?” Discord hardly seemed uncomfortable, despite Dash hovering near his head, hooves at the read as if she were about to attack him again within a moment's notice. “Portals have opened up everywhere, wrecking havoc on the unsuspecting!” Luna pointed an accusing hoof at Discord for emphasis on her next statement. “Honestly, it sounds like something you would do for kicks.” “Sounds like the same spell used to make the Crystal Empire do a vanishing act,” Discord offered, surprising the assembly against him, “I am not behind it though.” “Oh yeah?” Dash challenged, clearly not convinced, “Prove it.” Discord dully looked towards Dash with some clear signs of contempt. “Frankly, you lot are not in the position to demand anything from me. If you do not believe me, then turn me back to stone, and see that all does not return to normal.” “Oh no, that's quite drastic,” Fluttershy piped up, her soft voice oddly enough cutting through the tension “I believe you.” “Even if he is telling the truth, we are kind of stuck up a creek here." Applejack removed her hat, placing it over her chest in thought. “We can't force him to do anything, and he might not have the power to stop the crazy.” "Crazy is right!” Rarity pitched in with a dramatic, ponified version of Discord's earlier table-top pose, “Where there is chaos and misunderstanding, the Spirit of Chaos is near!” Unamused, Discord decided it was time to more directly get the ponies off of his case. “I'll have to remember that one of these days. Instead of pestering me about whether I did this or not, why not just ask me to reverse it, if I could?” When no pony responded, Discord cracked a smile, and then snapped his fingers. “There, it should all be better, if it were my doing. One day, I shall have a party cannon to shoot the egg that will appear on your faces.” Twilight dared take a peek through one of the unstained glass windows; not shockingly, dragons, griffins, and all manner of creature till ran rampant throughout Canterlot. “Well, we can assume it was not Discord,” Fluttershy concluded once she saw Twilight's sunken face. Dash, on the other hand, folded her arms in denial of that conclusion. “Maybe he faked using his magic to try to fix it, or he might have made it worse.” In the middle of all of this, Luna was contemplating. If Discord indeed had not caused the disturbance, then what did? And more importantly, how could she send the group off to fix it so that she could deal with the dream visions? Luna desperately looked amongst the group for anything that might give her a cause and reason to send the group off. Her ears stood up on end as she noticed the absence of a certain faithful assistant. “Where is the baby dragon?” “What do you mean?” Twilight raised an eyebrow, having not considered his absence as an issue. “You mean Spike? He is back in Ponyville I bet. What does that have to do with anything?” Putting on a grave expression, Luna pressed further on the otherwise trivial issue. “It has to do with everything! You must go now to make sure he is fine.” Discord shook his head, suddenly slithering over to Twilight. He slunk just behind her wings, pointing out, “I believe it is a little late, as this light show is likely to end soon.” No sooner had they said that did the flashing outside stop; Luna gave a steely look to Discord. “Why didn't you just say that? That would have saved us a lot of time!” Now for sure she would need to find another excuse for sending them off. “What?” Twilight's annoyance at Discord's proximity caused her to flap her wings in an attempt to shoo him away. It was ineffective, and Discord merely transformed into an exaggerated detective's hat atop Twilight's head. “I had a little chat with the denizens of Canterlot, and it seems that they have noticed a great decrease in the number of dragon sightings throughout Equestria." “But most dragons live at least an ocean away anyways,” Fluttershy pointed out, “How could they be behind this?” “Simple,” Luna planted her hooves firmly on the wooden table, taking a seat at one of the head ends of the table. “Draconia, in light of these strange events, has likely called many dragons back to their homeland.” “But Spike was born here!” Twilight seemed to be catching on that this was more of a distraction than anything else. “Why would they take him too?” “Twilight, the only reason your defense would make sense is if Spike were related to me and Celestia,” A few bubbles emerged from the detective hat, Discord snickering all the while. “By investigation, Celestia would not give me the time of the night for such an endeavor, so obviously he had to be born to ordinary dragons, who migrate to and fro during their seasons.” Another set of bubbles from the talking hat. “Now, if dragons have always had some connection to Equestria, what do you think they are doing when they migrate?” Applejack was the first to guess. “Surveying the land?” Discord blew false confetti from his hat-like self. “Oh please, Equestria is not that hard to get a map to. Anyways, they are either, by tradition, mating over here or laying their eggs. If it is the former, then someone stuck around too long, and Celestia conveniently got her hooves on it. If it is the latter, then obviously she 'borrowed' some of the eggs for the applicants of her unicorn school to forcibly hatch.” “Sounds kind of strange when you put it that way,” Pinkie had been oddly quiet much of this time, but she nonetheless had to interject here. “Why would dragons fly all the way to another country just to lay their eggs? That's silly!” Luna decided to take the situation a little more seriously, for the sake of moving along the discussion. "A recall is a serious diplomatic issue that needs to be immediately assessed, and not just for Equestria either.” “Come to think of it, Gilda always did mention that dragons and griffons were on razor edges,” Dash added, still hovering in place long after Discord had left, “So many dragons being sent back to their homeland is bound to cause the griffons to suspect the worst.” “As they should,” Luna declared, “And as shall we! Issues with the nightmares will have to wait; I am going to call a summit between Draconia, Griffia, and Equestria to discuss the nature of what is going on. In the meantime, you six should continue to investigate. Discord, you are sticking with me.” Perfect, now she could send the Elements off to investigate the nightmares, she could solve the problem right here in the palace while waiting for the diplomats, and she can be the one to sort through all of this. Maybe this would not all be a bad thing. Luna felt that she could really use moments like these to put herself more on level with Celestia in the views of the world. Twilight's new hat promptly exploded in a purple poof upon Luna's declaration, leaving Discord sitting atop Twilight's head, leaving just enough space to keep Twilight's horn clear. “And what am I there for? Certainly they will blame me for the events!” Luna frowned, not in the mood for resistance from anyone to her hastily crafted method for dealing with the situation. “And so they might. However, at the same time, I would rather they suspect you than to bring any flak to Celestia and myself.” Discord did not care in the least for Luna's temperament, much less her preference. “Why would there be any flak to you two? After all, you are the rulers of the most powerful country in the world, why would they think you are trying to weaponize teleportation techniques?” Luna rolled her eyes, though scrutinized the inquisitive look that the Mane Six were giving her. “My point, Discord I would rather them suspect that it was a random event than that it was a purposed attempt to test something that could be a threat to them. No creature likes to think itself cornered, and I don't want them feeling that way.” “Yet, you bring me,” Discord continues, apparently trying to get a point across, “You do realize that Griffia and Draconia are not aware that I and Celestia are on speaking terms?” Luna did not have an immediate counter for that point, so she took a pause to assess her next answer. “Well, your presence might lighten the mood, at least. They might not be into chocolate rain, but maybe being able to talk to you directly might can ease their fears.” “Talking to Discord easing fears?” Dash skeptically repeated, “This is Discord we are talking about here.” “Oh come now, give him some credit,” Pinkie pointed out, “If he can't bring a smile when he wants to, then Luna might as well send Twilight to disarm them.” “Another alicorn will not be welcome news to them,” Rarity spoke up, “I mean, we are talking about other nations who might feel threatened the stronger that we get.” Having had enough of the conversation, Luna clopped her hooves onto the table, bringing all attention back to her. “It is decided then that, as I said earlier, I and Discord will go to the summit; you six focus on the nightmares.” Discord reluctantly agreed, and with that, discussion of the issue was over. However, before another move could be made, the guard from earlier rushed into the banquet hall ran directly up to Luna's back. He did not even wait to be acknowledged this time before delivering his report. “Princess Luna, we have a problem! Draconia and Griffia are demanding an immediate summit right here in Canterlot!” Luna turned around, slightly startled at the guard's lack of tact this go round. She decided to excuse it due to the nature of the report. Good, I was just about to call one. How long until they arrive?” "A few minutes maybe?" The guard stoically watched on as Luna's mouth became noodle-shaped, her left eye twitching and ears pointed outwards from her head. He took that as a sign of being dismissed, and hastily left the room. Luna, as angry as she was about yet another interruption, knew that she needed to contain herself, lest she draw unwelcome questions about her reaction. Canterlot was practically in the center of Equestria. If they actually got here so fast, then that meant the portals must have opened not just in Equestria, but in their kingdoms as well. This was not just a logistical nightmare for Equestria, it was a matter of global stability now. And she was the one who was going to have to convince Griffia and Draconia that this was not some attempt by Equestria at attacking them "Twilight, escort your friends out of the palace." Luna spoke slowly, her body language attempting to revert to a more neutral expression. "It seems that the meeting will take place here, much sooner than I expected. Not much time passed between the departure of the elements and the arrival of the two diplomats from Griffia and Draconia. Much to Luna's surprise, these were not just ordinary diplomats; these were the actual heads of the two states. How fortunate it had been that she and Twilight had not been sent halfway across the world. Once the two had seated themselves on opposite ends of the table from each other but equidistant from Luna, Luna noticed that Discord once again stood atop the table, though this time he was at the center of the triangle formed by the rulers' seating arrangement. Luna shifted uncomfortably in her seat at the head of the table. A serpentine dragon lay coiled on her left, and a scowling griffin was on her right. In front of them was Discord, who was trying his best to ease the tension. “The story of how I became obsessed with chocolate milk rain really is a pun." Here Discord gestured whimsically with his paw. "Back in the day, many a stallion would refer to their special excretions as rain. Needless to say, other creatures picked up the phrase for the white stuff. Well, I put a twist on it and instead had it rain chocolate rain; they all freaked out as they assumed it came from the other end. It was a good day to be Discord.” The dragon seemed taken with the story, amused even; the griffin maintained a scowl. Luna, in the meantime, could only thank Discord for stalling, as she had been trying, in vain, to come up with an explanation that did not involve Discord. When she came up with none, Luna tapped a hoof on the table as a sign that she was ready to begin. Discord took the hint and coiled himself to the other side of the short round table. The griffin spoke up first. He cleared his throat, and sent a rather angry expression in Luna's direction, though not directly at her. Luna reasoned that the griffin understood the hierarchy enough not to so boldly show his disdain for the situation in mere body language. “My wife is most displeased that her husband warped from our love nest. And I am most displeased at having been disturbed! I demand an explanation for all of this!” The dragon giggled, finding some humor in the statement. “Well then, at least you were not nearly crushed by one of your own subjects. I saw an orange mare warp on the top side; I nearly got crushed on the underside of one of my larger dragons.” “Amusing.” Discord positioned a monocle on his left eye. “And tell me Dratina, how did you slither your way out of that one?” “It was not easy,” she continued, “I had to shape-shift myself numerous times before I got the right one, a cheetah, to dash away.” “Well, I think we all are glad that you could make it in one piece." Discord nodded towards Luna. “I am sure you are impatient, Luna, so go ahead and tell these fine rulers what they came for.” Luna, now the center of attention, took a deep breath in an attempt to calm her on edge nerves. Once she felt more level, Luna began, not forgetting the pleasantries. “First off, I want to thank you for coming by on such short notice, and having the courtesy to make me aware of your arrival before bursting in. The issues on the table are the dreams and the random warping, both of which I want to assure you are not Equestria's doing.” “We assumed that at least the warping was your doing,” the griffin stated, “Especially since it seem you are allied with the likes of Dissscord.” The hiss drove the point that the griffin was not at all pleased to have to see Discord either; the draconequus seemed to take very little offense to the jagged gesture. With a regal tone, Discord intended on driving home is innocence. “Well, I will have you know that I am now reformed! Celestia herself has even approved a small space where I may wreck chaos to my heart's content, and permits occasional visit to Equestria proper as long as I check with her first.” “So it is more like an uneasy acceptance than an alliance,” Dratina mused, “That seems more understandable considering your history with Equestria.” “Yet, I find it hard to believe that he is not behind all of this!” the griffin howled, slamming his talons on the table, “He is the spirit of disharmony and chaos after all!” Luna desired to disarm the ticking time bomb, knowing that Discord only had so much tolerance for accusations against him. “While it has been hard to swallow, no pun intended due to Discord's earlier joke, there is a chance that this could entirely be a random event.” “Or the work of unicorns,” the griffin surmised. “Or griffins,” Dratina shot back, “ Grackus, has it ever occurred to you that you are just seeking a guilty party?” Grackus huffed, puffing out his chest and flapping his feathered wing in defiance. “First of all, griffins and magic of this sort do not mix well. Second of all, you are not seriously buying that this is all a coincidence that occurs in nature? If it were just Equestria, alright, maybe, but throughout our realms as well? It is a wonder that Saddle Arabia has not stampeded its diplomats this way!” “Well not everyone can get conveniently transported to Canterlot via magical channels,” Discord jested with a map in hand, “It is a big world out there.” Not to mention Saddle Arabia was south of Canterlot, Luna thought to herself. Then again, so were parts of Griffia and Draconia, so Luna decided not to bring that point up. Dratina did not react physically to Grackus' rebuttal, likely in the same mindset as Luna at this point. “I agree that we were fortunate to be able to discuss this matter quickly. Grackus does make at least one good point; whatever this is, we need to get to the bottom of it before it gets any worse.” Luna almost literally jumped on the opening presented by Dratina. “We are working on that even as we speak! That is at least part of the reason that Celestia could not join us on such short notice.” “So what now?” Dratina asked, “Do you have any leads? The best that I can gather is King Sombra, or one of his successors.” The room chilled as Luna shot a glare at Dratina at mention of the name. “Why would you assume that?” The sharpness in tone directed Dratina to explain herself. “Well, if you all are not behind this, then dark magic may be the answer. It is the only unaccounted for force in Equestria, neigh, the world. Luna noted the distinct focus on Equestrians in this explanation, and considered refuting the claim when Grackus ridiculed the hypothesis. “That is ludicrous! You know the saying; Discord was stoned and then reformed, the changeling queen was blasting off to Never Ending Maze land, Nightmare Moon was just a phase of our dear dream princess, and Sombra became a shadow of himself, Pronounced dead in recent times. You would think that they allow an actual pony the same chance at redemption as someone like Discord.” That last remark stirred up an unexpected amount of anger from Luna, though it was not directed at Grackus at all. A flashback to the Crystal Empire, on that fateful day that would change the course of their history. Solaria had long since passed, but for some strange reason, Sombra still retained a rather youthful appearance, despite everything. His coat had stopped shining, but his eyes gazed upon his subject with hatred and malice; the clanking of their chains resounding throughout the Empire. Needless to say, many Equestrians felt that they were becoming slaves to their new alicorn saviors (who really were not so new at all in the grand scheme of things). It had hardly been thirty years since the fall of Poni, one since the fall of Discord, and yet, everyone seemed to so easily forget the past. Perhaps they felt that it was better to forget it, so that the events leading up to the present would not have to happen again. To stave off possible revolution, the two sisters had to make a choice; become tyrants, form a republic, or free the crystal ponies and Equestria from the darkness that ensnared it. "Tis only banishment, Luna, not true death." Celestia and Luna flew towards the dark city with the sun at their backs. Luna grimaced upon seeing the deplorable state of the kingdom. The homes were now made of ordinary materials; wood, straw, the likes replaced what had previously been all crystal. The castle no longer shone with a brilliant, inviting sheen; it now cast a dark, ominous shadow over the world around it, defiantly casting away the rays of the sun from its surface. Standing atop the balcony, surveying his work, was Sombra. In full armor, with the red and white overcoat draped over to give a more regal than martial appearance. "But turning him into a shadow too, is that necessary?" Luna growled. "Wouldst not be easier to use the Elements...?" "No!" Celestia turned her head towards Luna, a trickle of the Canterlot voice present in her voice. "Sombra is acting out of vengeance and hurt; there is no other answer but to banish him, and grant him some time to think about what he hath done." "What goodeth will that do?" Now Luna was the one shouting, the two stopping to hover in mid-air. Celestia did not want a discussion about this, not here, but she was not going to deal with Sombra on her own. Luna persisted, tears welling in her eyes at the thought of how long Sombra may be locked up in the frozen north. "He will brood hatred in isolation! No heirs, no family, and mine visits serve to only torment him even more! There has to be another way!" Celestia gave it a moment of thought, then shook her head. "Sombra is too powerful to be left to chance, and your attachment to him only maketh this more necessary." Celestia then closed her eyes, perhaps thinking to re-open them to a compliant Luna. Luna growled in response, horn aglow with magic. "Thee do not understand! He may have been thine's first, but careth not I! I care for him, I dost not wish to see him suffer any longer!" Celestia's eyes shot open, her own horn now aglow. "Then do what must be done, for his sake." Princess? Luna snapped out of her flashback, hardly recalling that she had been in the middle of a meeting. Feeling a warm wetness streaming down her cheeks, Luna shifted to wipe them, sniffling as the present returned to prominence. To her surprise, all three of the other occupants gazed at Luna with worried expressions. She could only imagine the confusion that her reaction had brought about to the small gathering. With an angry tone, Luna switched approaches to more curtly end this. “How we treat threats to us is our business and our business alone. We make our decisions knowing full well the consequences." And she had just stood there, and allowed her sister to finish the job mere months ago. “Something bothering the princess of the dream world?” Grackus asked, breaking the self-loathing that threatened to engulf Luna's thoughts, “If so, I think we might have the answer to our dream problem.” Luna was not in the diplomatic mood, but kept her final statement relatively short and to the point. "No, I will be fine. Go rally and tell your subjects that nothing terrible is going to transpire; you may stay in any room in the palace that you desire, as long as it does not have a sun symbol on it.” “What she means, is that you may stay in any of the guest bedrooms,” Discord clarified, while 'escorting' the two to the door with a snap of his fingers, “She sometimes forgets just how often that symbol appears around these halls.” Dratina and Grackus strode out, giving a glance backwards before Discord ushered them on. Discord closed the doors behind them, and only when sure that they had departed did he turn towards Luna. "I think we have solved the dream problem." Discord placed himself back onto the table, making it a pedestal of sorts. "I think it is King Sombra." "But, Sombra is-" Luna was cut off by Discord putting an over-sized lion finger to her muzzle. For a few moments, the contact reminded Luna of her brief captivity, and she reflexively bit at the finger. Discord yelped and retracted his finger. "Sorry, I do not know what came over me." Luna did not entirely lie about that. Sucking the finger for a few seconds, Discord narrowed his eyes at Luna, as if trying to ascertain the sincerity in her statement. Once satisfied, he retracted the finger and continued. "Sombra and your alter ego go very well together. Neither of them are gone just because they can no longer manifest themselves in the land of the living." Despite disliking Discord for his part in the tumultuous past, Luna did have one thing to be grateful to the draconequus for. "Had it not been for you, I would have never met Sombra," Luna bitterly commented, unilaterally surrendering her inhibitions towards Discord, "He would have been miserably wed to my sister, and I would have been the distant cousin who inherits nothing." Discord smiled, perhaps pleased by the appreciation, or perhaps at the thought that Celestia would have been married to Sombra. Luna did not care as she carried on. "I and Sombra would have been so compatible, scandal and civil war likely would have ensured. I guess in her own way, Mother tried to prevent that by keeping Sombra and I distant." "Well she failed, apparently." Discord withheld no chuckles as he poked fun at the alicorn. "Sure, she may have forced Celestia and Sombra to mate, but she overlooked that all that would do was allow Sombra the chance at double tap." Luna swiped with a hoof the draconequus' legs, causing him to fall back head first onto the solid table. "Do not think that this changes a thing between us," Luna snidely smirked at Discord before turning to leave. "And since I am guessing you are aware of that, I will have to ask that the descendents remain none the wiser unless Celestia or I so tell them." "Of course, would not want a bloody struggle for power now would we?" Discord cackled, vanishing before Luna could get another shot in. Luna scowled, not sure whether that was Discord's way of complying or teasingly threatening with blackmail. Shaking her starry mane, Luna had no time to waste; she had to get to the Dreamscape, physically, and deal with one of her most persistent shadows: Nightmare Moon. Sombra would have no power, not to this effect, without that mare's influence. Whether Luna liked it or not, she had to stop denying the facts; Nightmare Moon and her were one in the same. And it was high time one was put back in her place.
"The Crystal Heart"In a space very much like an empty plain, a grassy plain stretched far and wide. There were no trees, and even fewer landmarks; there was an ever present moon, and the stars illuminated the otherwise dimly lit plain. Luna stepped into this dreamscape, her mane blending in perfectly with the sky. Her eyes searched fervently, till she gazed up at the ever present moon. The dreamscape truly was a unique place; here, all the dreams of the world could converge, making it far easier to monitor the nighttime pleasures and frights of her subjects, and beyond. Getting here required the kind of sleep that Discord had truly meant with his joke; not even Luna could both monitor the real world and this at the same time. But she was not here to monitor the dreams of some other pony. She was here for her own nightmare. Looking intently at the moon, Luna noticed that the thousand year face did not reveal itself on the surface. In a whisp of smoke, a blowing of the wind really, the counterpart that, on its own, had been psychological warfare against her sister all those centuries ago. A taller, slender alicorn with Luna's color scheme, though with a mane like smog and the teeth of an omnivoric predator. Extended, pronounced canines sent fillies screaming to their parents, who could only comfort them in knowing that the terrible creature haunted only the enemies of Equestria. Too bad most of modern day Equestria used to be considered enemies. She bore the same crescent moon cutie mark, yet, her mane seemed more like a smog than hair, and her eyes were like that of a feline's. She bore no armor, and for all intensive purposes, looked less like the terror of the night that she had returned as. "I was wondering when you were going to give me some credit for all the work that I put into righting the wrong that was done by Celestia." Turning to face the mare, Luna confidently smiled, holding her head high as she approached. The two locked eyes, and for a few tense moments, it would seem as if a fight would breakout without any further warning. "Nightmare Moon," Luna stated matter of factly, her tone neutral and uninviting at the same time. "No helmet?" "Oh no, I lost that when you switched sides." Nightmare sneered, taking a few steps closer to her shorter counterpart. "Tell me, did you enjoy reliving your worst nightmare? Did you get a good look at Sombra's face when you, his dearly beloved, banished him? Hear his yowls of dismay when you allowed his untimely destruction?" Luna almost choked on her own words, finding a menacing presence creeping towards her heart. She had fought this battle before; she had no intentions of losing again. "Imagine all the pain it cause Celestia to have to send us to the moon; no family left to call her own except the bastards and their cousins." "She never really wanted Sombra; all she cared about what making it as 'Daddy's little filly'." Luna reared forward at that, barely restraining herself from assaulting the feminine likeness of her father. "Celestia has her issues, and I have mine. Let us not fire such cheap shots." "What happens in the bedroom stays there hm?" Nightmare drew her head back, leering at Luna with only a single, half lidded eye. "I guess Celestia complaining about how poor Sombra had been in bed the night after Discord was defeated goes to show how true that is." Before Luna could refute, Nightmare suddenly rushed forward, getting right into Luna's face, seething with a crazed passion of her own. "But he treated you so well; showed you his most prized possessions, even gifted you with the Crystal Heart, telling you that you could have it regardless of whether you ever married him or not! No stallion ever did that for Celestia; she has always been jealous of that one thing you have that she can have no part in. Sombra's love." Luna backed off a few feet, only for Nightmare to press ever onwards, her menacing gaze threatening to enshroud the alicorn in darkness. "Celestia truly felt hurt when, at the end of it all, when Mother died, and she realized just how alone she would be." Luna took a step forward, now pressing Nightmare back a few paces. "I was all that she had in the world, and as much as it pained her, she sometimes had to see my misery. We would have had no will to slaughter our subjects just to keep them enslaved to us." Nightmare stopped backing away, the two heads literally touching as the staredown took a silent moment. Nightmare contemplated her rebuttal, and grinned once she found it. "She still had her foals. And once you were banished, she could easily have set them up for the throne and never allowed you back in one piece." Luna's head began to hurt from the amount of force being pushed against it; she needed something fast, or else she might be forced to retreat again. "She would not have done that, they were not ready..." "Even now, Cadence and Shining Armor have all but replaced the role Sombra and I could have played; there is only room for two alicorns at the top, to rule the night and the day." Nightmare Moon ruthlessly continued her assault, battering Luna with everything she had left remaining. "Has it ever dawned on you that she never told you what happened to your colt when you left?" Luna took a moment too long to think about this one, and found herself being pushed back closer and closer to the edge of the plains, a dark abyss awaiting her. "I have a theory." Sinisterly, Nightmare Moon smiled in delight, unmovable and savoring this moment. She sang in as dark a tone as she could muster, "Somepony had an 'accident'." Much to Nightmare's dismay, however, the shadowy abyss changed back into mere plain, and Luna kept at it, her eyes alight in a sort of fire unseen in many years. "Do not try to paint my sister as a sick monster; she would have cared for him even as her own! Perhaps even raised the two as brother and sister before putting them to death!" Luna reared her head back a mere inch, then pushed forward, driving a now staggering Nightmare Moon backwards. "Through all of the pain and suffering, she pulled through. Maybe scarred, perhaps regretful, but never defeated! The likes of you have no place here!" Finally back to where they started, Nightmare managed to regain her grip on the ground, steadfastly maintaing her leverage. Sweat beads began to fall from the two mares, as this struggle of dominance, symbolic as it was physical, continued silently for the next few minutes. Only the sound of their grunting broke the silence, until at last Nightmare Moon roared in rage, digging her back hooves into the very dirt. "Enough of this!" Nightmare raised her head, sending Luna charging straight beneath her frame. Nightmare reared up, and prepared to stomp the staggering Luna into the ground. Luna, however, had seen this coming, and rather than drawing back, she kept going, tackling the hind legs of her alter ego, sending her toppling to the ground. Not so easily beaten, the mare got back to her feet while Luna prepared a blast of magic. Not wasting any time, Nightmare began charging one of her own, and as Luna cocked her head to fire, Nigthmare shot up into the air. Firing off, Luna missed the alicorn by mere inches, and leapt to the right in order to dodge the blast from her quarry. Leaping into the air, Luna prepared to give chase when Nightmare dove down towards her in a reckless charge of sorts. Luna barrel rolled, narrowly avoiding the long, sharp horn that managed to scrape at her side. However, she was far out of the clearing as the smoggy mane reached out to grab at one of her hind hooves. Her upward momentum shifting, Luna found herself thrown to the ground. A crater about twice her size formed where she dropped, and the slightly dazed alicorn had no time to react as Nightmare slammed her body atop of Luna's. The breath knocked from her, Luna cringed and brought herself into a fetal position, horn aglow. Thinking that she had her, Nightmare dove in for the kill, only to get a face full of magic. The beam of magic had been strong enough to send the other alicorn flying backwards, to skid along the ground on her side. When the two got back to their hooves, they eyed each other, charging magic into their horns once again. "We are evenly matched; you cannot defeat me!" Nigthmare Moon defiantly chanted, "Stop this senseless fight!" Luna had to admit, she was fighting herself in some ways; she did not have much greater strength than Nightmare, and though one could hardly tell by height, the two were evenly matched in physical strength. "But we're not matched in polar magic, now are we?" As if reading her mind, Nightmare switched to dark magic, her eyes glowing green and purple flames burning from her irises like a raging fire. The two fired off their beams, the two blasts meeting in the center. Though Luna exerted all of her strength into the attack, the beams were still evenly matched, with Nightmare's slowly creeping ever closer to Luna. They were only a few meters from each other; if Nightmare maintained the advantage for much longer, Luna would be finished. Luna strained against the effort to push her alter ego back; even Nightmare struggled to keep the blast going, though she still held the upper hoof in the matter. "Give it up! Against me, you can not win, and you know that!" Nightmare channeled more of her seething rage, quickly gaining more ground. With the two blasts meeting just two feet from her, Luna's heart sank. She could not afford to lose again, not like this. A warm body pressed itself against Luna's left side, causing her to flinch ever so slightly. She sneak a glance, six inches separating her from unconsciousnes. There stood Sombra, in all of his red and black glory. Fully decked in armor and regal robe, the curve horned unicorn smiled bitterly. "Sometimes, you have to let the things you love go." He turned towards the nearing doom, taking a fighting stance. "I guess I should go ahead and let you go." With no further words, mere centimeters left of space, Sombra shot a red beam of magic into the blast, mixing it with Luna's. The tide turned, and as Sombra and Luna gained more and more ground, Nightmare hissed in annoyance. "What are you doing here? If you destroy me, then there will be nothing left of you!" It was a threat, but not one that Nightmare relished in having to make. "If there is one thing that I learned these past few days," Sombra called out, together pressing with Luna towards Nightmare, "Is that love never dies. I may not have ever gotten the love that I so craved from Luna, but that does not matter. I do not need recognition, I do not even need my proper place in history." The stallion looked towards the panting Luna, who deep down begged Sombra to speed up his speech, no matter how touching it was to hear. Perhaps just to tease her, he paused for what perhaps counted as the longest minute of Luna's life. And she had had some long minutes on the moon. "I will forever love you, Luna, and no matter how many pieces I get blown to this time, that will never change." With those final words, Sombra pooled the remainder of his strength into the blast, sending it crashing into Nightmare Moon. Engulfed in both her own blast and the combined might of Sombra and Luna, Nigthmare howled out in frustration before flying backwards through the meadows. The instant she landed Sombra cringed, dropping to the grassy floor in pain. Luna stepped over to Sombra, a few tears welling in her eyes at seeing his crystalline self once again engulfed in a bright white light. "Why? She might could have brought you back had she won..." Sombra chuckled, then tenderly touched a hoof to Luna's face with a silly grin on his face. "If she would have brought me back, then you would have been stuck here for the rest of your existence. And that, for me, is a fate worse than damnation in the afterlife." Luna attempted to restrain her sobbing as she came nose to nose with Sombra, closing her eyes to try to keep the tears from rolling. She failed in that aspect, but found herself mouth to mouth with the fading king. Luna re-opened her eyes to see Sombra smiling, eyes expressing a sort of peace not seen in them for centuries. They broke from the kiss, Somba beginning to become translucent. "I love you, Luna." Sombra briefly gazed over to the other bright light on the other side of the dreamscape, and then snickered. "All of you." Luna's lips trembled, hardly able to form the last pair of words she knew that she could speak to Sombra. "I love you too, Sombra." A final moment passed before the encompassing light faded into sparkles, drifting in the night sky like dust in the wind; Sombra's warm body replaced with the cold grass of the plain and a few remaining specks of light, dying out or ascending towards the night sky. Luna's head caught itself from falling face first into the dirt, though the alicorn kept her eyes closed, as if to burn that final image of Sombra into her head. A few moments of silence, and Luna looked up towards the night sky. There, the shapes of Nightmare Moon and Sombra could be seen, a shooting star briefly passing between the two. Tears streaming, Luna chanted, "Let there be peace." All over the night sky, a bright flash illuminated the sky. Within the span of that flash of what most would accompany as lightning, many residents of Equestria and beyond blinked in confusion. As if by magic, the entire matter of strange dreams seemed to fade form their minds, as if it never occurred. Of course, everything HAD occurred, and for an unrelated reason, they also all returned to their homes, and to now unexplained writings about the Poni Empire and its legacy. Luna had nothing to do with that portion of things, but what she did accomplish was to relieve the world of visions of the past from every corner of the world. Well, almost, every corner of the world. In the Crystal Empire, a single alicorn immune to this widespread dream wipe suddenly perked from her position. By this point, order had been restored, and most ponies had went back to an unpleasant attempt at sleeping soundly. Celestia, Cadence and Shining Armor were all gathered in the duo's bedroom for discussion when a bright flash reflected off of every surface in the room. It nearly blinded Celetstia, but she once had a staring contest with the sun; she had lost after two whole seconds and never repeated the experience, so this was more like a gentle flash in her eyes by comparison. Shaking her head, the alicorn felt some of the dreams start to slip away; but they were personal memories, and she easily retrieved them before they got too far. Only one thought came to mind. "Luna." Celestia smiled wide, knowing that at least one problem had been solved tonight. Maybe she could ask Luna more specifically about what happened in the first place when she got back to Canterlot. “Auntie, what a pleasant surprise,” Cadence cheerfully stated, startling the sun alicorn from her contemplation, “I didn't know you were going to pay us a visit tonight.” Right, Celestia now needed to make a smooth transition out of the Empire, or else arouse suspicion that something had gone wrong. “I have to get back to Canterlot very soon, but I figured I should just check in to see how the herd is brooding."Celestia winked at Cadence at the end of this statement. Cadence laughed, but Shining seemed rather confused by the comment. Twilight and company were just as baffled, but they at least decided that their meeting in a coffee shop went well, until several flashes occurred and caused Canterlot's newest guests to vanish with their memories of the nightmares. Even Twilight lost her memories of the events, though she vowed to talk to the princesses later concerning the strange meeting with her friends as a way around the nightmare targeted mind wipe. Twilight bid her friends good night, herself tabbing out to pay for them to stay the remainder of the night in Canterlot. Entering the castle, Twilight carefully trotted through a long hallway adorned with the sun symbol. Finding the entrance to the throne room both unguarded and with a slight crack in it, Twilight dared to open the door. What she saw mildly surprised her. There, in the middle of the throne room sat Luna, covered in paint and hard at work painting a sheet on a sturdy stand. A brush in her mouth and tinsel in her hooves suggested that she had been hard at work for at least a good hour now. “Evening Princess Luna,” Twilight greeted, closing the door behind her, “Why not just hold it all with your magic?" Luna looked towards Twilight and smiled, spitting out the brush and levitating it with magic. With a sly smile, she commented, “What is the fun in using magic all the time?” Suddenly, a bright yellow flash appeared behind Luna, directly in front of the two thrones. Celestia, wings outstretched had arrived, having skipped the another train trip or chariot ride and just teleported straight to her castle. With a single look towards Twilight, she said, “See you in the morning Twilight.” Twilight did not protest, though she wanted to, and wished the princesses good night before trotting off. “I think we have much to discuss,” Celestia stated while looking at the painting, “Was it necessary...” “Yes,” Luna interjected as she finished the final touch on the painting, “And so was this. Glass would not do this justice.” The two sisters then walked to the side of the room to begin discussing the events of the past, particularly of the past two days. The painting shows a mural of Sombra and Luna, in their last moments together. A crystal heart lingered between the two, and a shooting star fired off as, in the sky, Nightmare Moon and another version of Sombra, a much darker one, faced each other as constellations. Some time later, in the Everfree Forest The ruins of the sister's old castle stubbornly clung on as Celetsia and Luna both walked up to the front of it. The Everfree was quiet this time of night, very surprising really, and few creatures stirred. That had been by design, of course. With a single hoof, Luna pressed down on one of the stones just outside the large castle. A single inscription appeared, and Luna departed with Celestia leading the way. The inscription says this: Here lies Sombra of the house of Umbra; Gone, but not Forgotten. Detested, but still forever loved. May his soul rest in peace. Author's Note What started out as an attempt to spew some headcanon so I would have other stories to make up and stuff turned out to be a fic that I am kind of proud of. Granted, it hasn't suddenly skyrocketed in views, but meh, that is besides the point. All I need to do now is get appropriate cover-art and it will be perfect! Well, no, not really. Reality check, and I am still going back and finding minor errors and blocks of text that could use some breaking up. I also went and deleted most of the author's notes, as many of them had been attachments from when I had been building up the story in the first place. I also removed the sad tag. There are sad bits, but really, Romance and Adventure (mostly romance) fit here.
"Sleep Troubles""Sleep Troubles" In Celestia's throne room in Canterlot castle, a fierce discussion was ongoing. Celestia sat in her throne, trying to make sense of the situation, and Luna was pacing the red carpet portion of the floor in front of the throne, talking all the while. “Luna, dreams are your specialty,” Celestia reminds her sister, “If even you are having trouble with your dreams, then I think we have a serious problem on our hooves.” “Nevermind my dreams,” Luna dismissively states, as if to wave off the notion of an issue in her own dreaming patterns, “What about Equestria's, and beyond for that matter? Dreams of a republic long gone and visions of an empire's rise to power are unsettling to just about anyone who has not picked up a history book in a decade or so. This is our current problem.” “Well, the history books do fail to mention that there were many more alicorns until the fall of the Republic of Poni,” Celestia points out, “The question of where do alicorns come from would appear much more often in newspaper articles.” “It is a fair question though,” Luna muttered, her pacing actually creating a slight groove in the floor, “But every time I try to banish those dreams of conflict and horror, I keep getting confronted by Nightmare Moon.” “And you seem to be having trouble defeating her for some reason,” Celestia filled in with a concerned look, “Every time you try to banish or destroy her, she just keeps coming back.” “Worse!” Luna cried out in frustration, “Every time I try, I keep thinking of our refugee time in the Crystal Empire. It is near driving me mad!” Celestia blinked, as if a breakthrough had arrived. “Well now we're getting somewhere,” Celestia announced as she rose from her throne, “This is not about the Republic or the Empire at all, it's all about that time is it not?” “Maybe,” Luna confessed, stopping her pacing to face her sister, “Sombra's nightmare might be the problem.” “Well then, if that is what this is about, then I have a proposal,” Celestia offered with a friendly smile, “Twilight and Cadence will be here any minute to learn more about some of our history; since they are alicorns, it would make sense to catch them up on some of these things, especially Cadence.” “That would probably bore them,” Luna pointed out, “Twilight Sparkle especially has already read more history books in her lifetime than most ponies do in a generation, I doubt much of this will be new to her.” “Well, most of the modern history books are written from my perspective,” Celestia pointed out, “Not to mention the fact that many of them are censored." “But a lecture on our history is supposed to help?” Luna pressed, still skeptical of the effectiveness of this plan, “All they would have to do is go to sleep for that.” “Luna, we just need to explore this history in the dreamscape,” Celestia finally explained with a hint of impatience, “While you were gone I sometimes had some unsolved things to deal with in the past. The best way to get through them is to tread through it. Twilight, even with her knowledge of history, is still going to need a level of premise before jumping to the crux of the problem.” “And Cadence?” Luna asked, “What will she be doing during all of this?” “I and Cadence will explore some of my history,” Celestia continued, “I do not need to go as far though. Since the Crystal Empire seems to hold some part of the problem, then I will personally head over there and investigate the matter in the morning.” “But what if something happens while you are gone?” Luna asked with a worried expression, “Not to mention how much easier it would have been to keep Cadence in the Empire and have her investigate it with Shining Armor.” “Well, Cadence and Twilight, as I said are on their way here,” Celestia pointed out while looking towards the large double doors briefly, “I was going to lecture them, but then you came in and I realized that I would need to shift the schedule a little bit.” Stepping down the steps leading up to the throne room, Celestia stooped just slightly to nuzzle Luna as she made her way towards the door, “And do not worry about anything going wrong, I am sure you can handle it while I am gone. If not, then just call Discord.” Luna appeared aghast by the suggestion, and as she trotted behind her sister, she had intended on making it known when the door swung open. As if on cue, Twilight and Cadence walked through, the guards promptly closing the door shut behind them. “Hey Aunt Celestia!” Cadence greeted first, “If I didn't know any better, I would say you heard us coming.” “Good thing you don't know any better,” Celestia jested with a smile, “Now then, how was the train ride over here?” “I got sized up by some griffins, but other than that, it was fine,” Cadence answered. “Why did you two even go by train?” Luna inquired, deciding to let her Discord related question go to rest for now. “Old habits die hard Princess,” Twilight admitted sheepishly, “And besides, we had a lot of catching up to do. A chariot ride would have been too quick.” “Right,” Luna replied half-heartedly, perhaps as a self-acknowledgement that she had yet to be personally greeted by either of the two, “And I suppose asking the guards to slow down would have been too much?” “Luna, if they wanted to take the train, then it is fine with me,” Celestia cut in, not liking where the conversation was headed, “Sometimes it is good to travel among the patrons.” Luna suppressed sneering as she revealed, “Yes, but I hear you only rode the train once after its invention. I wonder why.” A brief glance at Celestia's horn seemed to answer the question, though Celestia waved it off with a few flaps of her wings. “Yes well, we all have our preferences. Come, we have much to discuss!” Celestia invited as she turned back towards the thrones on the far end, “After all, this is not much of a casual visit than a business trip.” “Of course!” Twilight happily complied while running through an imaginary checklist, “First we go over the mythical founding of the Republic, then its shift to an Empire, its fall and then the founding of Equestria, then Discord...” “Easy now, we are going to do some slight deviating from that,” Luna interrupted as she lead the other two alicorns down the impressive hallway, “I doubt that we will get to the time of Discord, much less the founding of Equestria.” “A focus on pre-classic history then?” Cadence filled, “It should be nice getting a fresh perspective.” The stain glass windows practically spoke for themselves as a historical record, as they depicted many of the achievements that Equestria had gone through since its founding; a plethora of recent ones balanced out the previously archaic depictions. The moon just hardly shone through them onto the group, casting an almost eerie light upon them as they walked. “We shall be taking a trip through the dreamscape,” Celestia announced, wings outstretched, “We will split off into pairs; I with Cadence, and Luna with Twilight.” “Seems like an odd way to divide us up, but I am sure you have your reasons,” Cadence voiced with just a hint of concern, “I thought the dreamscape was Luna's specialty though?” “It is,” Luna answered as she began flapping her wings to get airborne, “I will put us to all to sleep. Celestia and Cadence should wake up shortly before the time for sunrise.” As Luna flew above them, she seemed to sprinkle sparkling powder down upon the three below. Cadence sneezed, Twilight blinked rapidly, and Celestia stifled a laugh at her student's reaction to the sleeping powder. Twilight and Cadence hit the floor with a thud, which Celestia frowned at as she yawned. “I don't think they realized how potent this stuff is,” Celestia said with a long yawn, herself beginning to lay down, “In hindsight, I might should have brought some cushions for the occasion.” Soon her eyes fluttered before she too fell asleep, and Luna finally landed in an unclaimed spot, thinking for a moment. She would then shrug off the thought before herself heading off to sleep, ready to begin treading through history.
