[Story/Chapter Tester]

Daylight Saving Time

By: The Grey Pegasus

Celestia's sun shone brightly near the top of the blue sky.

There was the murmur of a large crowd of ponies, all in their own conversations.

"Hello, Luna. Are you ready?"

Luna looked up at the daytime sky. It was about to get dark.

For a few minutes only, though.

"I suppose so," Luna answered. "But... we have only done this once before. And it was a long time ago; we were very young."

Celestia stood by her sister. "It will be alright. You looked over the instructions for the ceremony, correct?"

"I did. It is just nerves, I suppose."

Today was a special day. It was an event that was to happen very rarely, three hundred thirty-four years, to be exact. It was by instruction of some periodical rituals they were told to adhere to when they were very young, just growing into their roles as the keepers of the heavenly bodies.

They had only performed it together once. However, although Luna had not even directly participated in most of the past proceedings due to her banishment, she was always a part of it.

Even if she hadn't been the one moving the moon, Luna was still part of the process because of the fact that she was trapped in the moon. And in that strange, confusing millennium of her banishment, despite being constantly at odds with herself or her Nightmare self or Nightmare, however such thing worked, she would always recognize when the warmth of her sister embraced her. It was comforting; her sister was powerful like that, and Luna was grateful.

Solar eclipses were an incredibly special thing. And to the two alicorns, it was a great display of the siblings being in true harmony together.

"Well, the majority of the ceremony is performed by you," Celestia noted. "I understand your apprehension. I myself never quite became comfortable with performing it."

"Experience is on your side, however," Luna said.

"Three times. That’s not exactly ‘experience’, Luna. And it was never intended that I perform it."

"I suppose that is true, Celestia." Luna gave a short sigh. "Will you be alright during the eclipse? We do not know how our matured powers will react to it."

"Of course I will be fine," Celestia replied. "We know what will happen. Nothing severe. You'll just feel a slight surge in your magic, briefly, and then it will be over."

Luna scoffed. "Slight surge. Are you sure about that?”

“It’ll be fine, Luna,” Celestia assured her. “You won’t hurt me.”

Luna sighed. With that statement, Celestia directly addressed her worry. It was one of her greatest fears, especially looking at the circumstances of the incident. The two sisters, keepers of the Sun and Moon, at odds with each other, and now in the eclipse ceremony, the two celestial bodies were to interact with each other.

“Shall we proceed?” Celestia asked.

Luna released her worries and smiled in return. “Let us.”

Brass horns announced their entrance as they walked onto the stage.

Luna looked over to her sister, who simply nodded. She took it as the approval to proceed with leading the ceremony.

“Citizens of Equestria, today we celebrate a rare event- the Solar Eclipse Ceremony!” Luna began. “This Ceremony is performed only every three hundred thirty-four years, and has been performed only three times in my absence. It is with great joy and your honor, that I may lead this rare occasion today!”

Hooves thundered in applause.

“And now, witness the Sun and Moon take the sky together, and the Sun give way to the Moon, to symbolize a balance of power. A harmony.”

Luna looked aside at Celestia, who again smiled and nodded to urge her to continue forward.

The lunar princess looked back at the crowd, then upwards at the sky. She flapped her wings to begin her rise into the air. Celestia would stay down below, emphasizing her role of conceding to her sister during the ceremony.

Luna felt the Moon in her magical grasp. She nudged it along its path, which in a few moments would take it in front of Celestia’s Sun.

Those few moments passed, and the world began dimming. Celestia closed her eyes, sensing the sunlight fade.

Everyone watched in awe as the Moon’s black silhouette began crossing over the Sun. It was a slow process, the lunar rock crawling through the sky.

And soon enough, totality.

The world was as dark as night.

Luna remained in the air through the process. She felt the ponies watch her as she guided the Moon during the ceremony.

Celestia below stood silently, admiring the serenity of the event. Three times before, it was left to her to perform the ritual. In fact, it was usually one with a pretense (?) of fear- of the threat of Nightmare Moon looming over them, seemingly a hint that the evil alicorn was not truly gone.

But no more. Luna had returned, and the Solar Eclipse Ceremony was finally what it was intended to be- a display of harmony.

She searched the front of the crowd and found her former student, Twilight Sparkle, standing amidst her group of friends. The expression of awe planted on the young alicorn’s face was admirable, but Celestia could sense that underneath that face, Twilight was enjoying the occasion not only for its significance and rarity, but also the notes she could take and increase her knowledge.

Celestia felt like chuckling. Twilight was quirky to an amusing extent.

Celestia looked up at the sky to finally share in the sensation of awe. The Sun’s corona formed a slim halo around the Moon’s edge. The actual luminance was faint, but it was nonetheless the most visible sign of the Sun’s presence.

Hushed voices came from the crowd as they admired the sight for the duration of the total eclipse. It was to last mere minutes, and soon enough, Luna’s guiding of the Moon would lead it past the Sun.

Sunlight began returning to the world, slowly, as the Moon left its position from in front of the Sun.

While the Moon continued to leave its position from the top of the sky, Luna looked down at her sister, feeling proud of herself.

Celestia returned the gaze. She smiled back.

Then her head drooped. And her legs buckled. And she fell onto the floor of the stage.

"Celestia!"

The crowd murmured in response. Luna saw it, and did her best to appear calm. Inciting fear in the crowd, despite it filling herself up, was not ideal. By the time, Luna had landed on the stage, the Sun was fully revealed in the sky.

Luna formally addressed the crowd. "Thank you all! That concludes the Solar Eclipse Ceremony. And do not be alarmed, we will attend to my sister, who seems to have fainted."

With that statement made, she approached her unconscious sister swiftly.

And to be expected, not more than a few seconds later, Twilight Sparkle and her friends were beside them.

"Luna, what happened?!" Twilight asked, concerned as much as Luna was. It was evident she wasn't exactly buying the 'fainted' bit.

"I... I cannot be sure yet," Luna answered. Again, she looked at the crowd. "First, let us take her inside the Palace, out of sight."

Luna took Celestia's limp form into her magical grasp and moved to carry her older sister away. They began to make their way around and away from the crowd.

"I... I loved it, Princess!"

"It truly was a magnificent sight!"

"Yes, yes, thank you very much," Luna replied to the crowd, still walking away. Walking, that is, at a slightly hurried pace. But she was doing all she could to maintain an image of composure.

Around her, Twilight Sparkle and her Council of Friendship conversed in hushed tones.

Fluttershy was one to bring up something of possible note. "Um, Twilight? Is it just me, or does the sun... feel a little bit... weaker?"

"I... I'm not sure," Twilight replied. She looked at the Sun. Certainly, she would not be able to easily tell if it was dimmer in any way. "What makes you say that?"

"It feels... maybe a bit brisker than before?"

"I don't think we can really say if that's because of the Sun. After all, we just had about fifteen minutes of the Sun not fully shining down on us. Maybe it needs some time to warm up the air again."

"Perhaps it is linked with Celestia having fainted?" Rarity suggested.

Fluttershy look at the Sun again, then replied to both. "Maybe."

All the while, Luna listened to their conversation and took notes.

<<+>>

Celestia groaned as she woke up, laid down on a couch.

“Tia, what happened?” Luna was quick to ask.

Celestia’s head was spinning. She wasn’t feeling great in the rest of her body. Her joints hurt. Her head felt light. Her magic felt somewhat strained. She gasped as she focused on the pain in her chest.

Luna reacted quickly at her sister’s sign of pain. “Tia, are you alright?” she exclaimed softly.

Celestia took a breath. “I don’t feel so good,” she breathed.

"What ails you, Tia?"

Celestia's eyes rolled around, dizzy, and in doing so, found that Twilight and her friends were also present. She tried to assess what she was feeling. Again, when she focused on the pain in her chest, she winced. "I... I am not sure."

"Is it physical or magical?" Twilight asked.

"That... that is an excellent question, Twilight," Celestia said. "I... don't know. There is pain... in my chest... but where exactly or why... I don't know."

Luna and Twilight stepped back.

"Do you think you can identify her sickness yourself?" Twilight asked.

Luna nodded. "That might be a good start, yes."

The two alicorns approached Celestia once more. "Tia, I am just going to see if I can find what is wrong with you."

Celestia nodded.

Luna began searching Celestia's body. She thought that maybe there was something wrong with Celestia's magical essence, but she couldn't be sure why, or if it was just a side effect. Magic and the body were connected.

Luna could only make a note of it, but otherwise, it was inconclusive. She looked at Twilight and shook her head. "I'm not sure if I found anything of note. I will call for some doctors."

"What about us, Luna?" Twilight asked. "What should the rest of us do?"

"Any way we can help?" Applejack asked.

"For now, I believe you should stay with Celestia to comfort her," Luna answered. "Ease her mind."

The Element bearers looked amongst themselves and nodded in agreement.

"We can take Celestia to her room," Twilight offered.

"Yes, that would be helpful. Thank you."

Twilight nodded and beckoned Rarity to help lift Celestia up and carry her.

Luna parted from the group and made her way to find some doctors. At the least, she could start with the palace's own doctor. However, there was a foreboding feeling that she would need more.

<<+>>

"He says it is magical in nature." Luna sighed as she told the others of the diagnosis. "But otherwise, he cannot identify what exactly."

"Well, I suppose the next logical course of action is to call for other professionals of magic," Twilight suggested. "I'm sure if a proper team is assembled, they can find out what it is exactly. You should start with my friend Moondancer- she's as much of a scholar as I am."

"And what about you, Twilight?" Rainbow said, half in jest, half serious. "I mean, I don't think you're just going to sit there while Princess Celestia needs help."

"But of course," Twilight said. "I've been considering it over the past hour and a half. After all, one of the greatest libraries in existence is just a short flight away. The Star- "

"- Swirl the Bearded Library," Spike said in unison. "Well, if anything could help, it's probably Twilight looking through a bunch of books."

Twilight smiled. "And you know it, Spike."

"Oh boy, do I know it."

"We can hold the fort down here, sugarcube," Applejack said. The other four nodded in agreement.

"I know you might think it might be better for you to be here for Celestia," Fluttershy said. "But Spike made a good point. If anyone could find something that can help, it's you."

"Yeah!" Pinkie exclaimed. "I mean, you have a super motivational factor to do it."

It may have seemed a bit grim, but Pinkie did have a point.

"I will accompany you," Luna said. "I too, believe it would be useful if I helped you search for information. It may also provide Celestia with some comfort knowing that I am not simply sitting around." She looked back at her sister, resting in bed. "After, of course, assembling a team that will assess her state of health while we are gone."

"Then it's settled," Twilight said. "Luna and I will go out and try and do some work on our end. Everypony else, stay put and give Celestia some support."

Everyone nodded in agreement, with Rainbow and Pinkie adding in a salute. Twilight moved to leave through the window, Spike perched upon her back.

Luna stopped her, placing a hoof on her shoulder. “Twilight, I know you are very dedicated to tasks such as these. However, we may need to stay with her through the night. She may need the most help as the night grows deeper.”

“Why is that?”

“Our powers have some link with our respective astral bodies," Luna explained. "They grow slightly the closer our respective astral body is to us; conversely, our magic slightly weakens the farther it is. She will be weakest during that time. It would be good if she had ponies present to comfort her. Give her strength from elsewhere, as it were.”

Twilight nodded, keeping it in mind, although Luna was likely to remind them of it later. "I understand."

The purple alicorn flared her wings, then made an exit.

<<+>>

"Ugh, I'm not even sure where to start," Twilight remarked as she walked along the rows of bookshelves. "And not for the abundance of material to look through."

"You gotta admit it's a pretty big part of it though," Spike noted. "Still, you always seem to have a way of finding the right books."

"I know, Spike, but I have to narrow down the topic further. Well, I guess I'll just start somewhere."

Spike put a claw to his chin. "Do you think finding some stuff about the Solar Eclipse Ceremony might help?"

Twilight paused. "That's not a bad idea, Spike. I was considering starting with magical afflictions, but... maybe you're on to something here."

Spike silently pumped his claw in victory. "You might also want to ask Luna about it later."

"Oh, definitely. I hope she gets here soon."

In the meantime, the two occupied themselves by searching for information on the ceremony that took place earlier. In about twenty minutes, Twilight found something of note.

"Hey, listen to this, Spike."

Spike walked over to her. "What is it?"

"This book is a very, very old collection of instructions for Celestia and Luna, going into the intricacies of every ritual they could perform. It says here that it was entirely possible for the eclipse ritual to serve as a 'transfer of power'- a way to show balance."

"Which means..."

"It's actually possible for their connections to the astral bodies to switch," Twilight said. "The Moon would gain enough energy to be as bright as the Sun, while the Sun would fade to essentially become the Moon. Of course, this isn't an essential part of the ritual, but I don't know. Maybe it could mean something, since Celestia said she felt weak."

"Definitely something you should ask Luna."

As if on cue, the lunar princess joined them. "Twilight Sparkle. Spike. Have you found anything of use? I know it has not been very long, but..."

Twilight held up the book she was reading. "Actually, we have some questions for you."

"For me?" Luna was curious, and it spread to her facial expression as she recognized the book. "Of course."

"This book says that the Solar Eclipse Ceremony can serve as a 'transfer of power' between the two of you," Twilight said. "Did you know this?"

"But of course," Luna answered. "The implications... are not the best, but there are numerous reasons for a transfer of power. Regardless, we brought it up with each other briefly prior to today's events. In fact, even without a purposeful transfer, the Moon passing over the Sun causes a brief increase in the Moon's energy." Luna sighed. "In fact, I was worried for her that it might be dangerous."

"So both of you knew that the Sun and Moon's magic interact like that during the ritual?"

"Yes, but Celestia assured me that everything would be fine. However, we only did this once before, and we were not yet fully matured. I told Celestia this, but she still believed it would be fine. It's what we were told, after all- that nothing wrong should happen if we went about the ritual without doing anything further than performing the display."

"Is it possible that they were wrong, though?" Twilight suggested. "Your mentors were unicorns. I respect their intelligence, but it's possible they couldn't predict what would happen once it was performed by two matured alicorns."

"That is what I would believe," Luna answered, "if this is indeed the cause of Celestia's suffering."

A thoughtful look found its way to her face. Luna walked over to the window and closed her eyes, sensing out her Moon. "I will see if the Moon had stolen any power from the Sun. If it did, perhaps there is some sort of... effects of an... 'incomplete' ritual."

Twilight and Spike looked between themselves, then observed Luna quietly.

After perhaps five minutes of waiting, Luna stepped away from the window.

"So?" Twilight asked.

Luna turned to the two and shrugged, disappointed. "I found nothing. Although perhaps that is a good thing."

"Maybe." Twilight levitated over a pencil and notepad she was using to take notes. "I'll just keep it as a note, and maybe keep the book out just in case I think of something."

"Of course," Luna said. "But now the question is, where should we begin again?"

Twilight sighed. "Well, I was considering starting with magical ailments. Maybe the doctor missed something."

Luna began walking to the section that held those books. "It is possible. And, after all, it is why we are here."

<<+>>

Hours had passed. Luna and Twilight and Spike took turns returning to Celestia to check up on her while the other continued their research.

But every time they visited Celestia, they were told by the experts- they had not figured out what was affecting Celestia. All they knew was that it was not a physical ailment. However, being one of a magical nature just made it harder.

Twilight had even gone down to the Everfree to ask for Zecora's help. The zebra agreed, but even after hours of her own work, even she couldn't determine the cause.

So Luna and Twilight were still stuck where they started. Or close to.

"It's something new," Twilight said. "It has to be."

Luna sighed as she flipped a page in the book in front of her. "It may be. If it is, then we will have to examine Celestia deeper, unless the other ponies have made progress on her in the past hour." She looked up. "I hope doing so would not further worsen her condition. She already seems to be getting slightly weaker as the day went on."

"Why don't you two just allow the Sun to remain up until we find out what is wrong with Celestia?" Spike asked.

Luna tightened her mouth grimly. "We do not wish to interfere with the day-night cycle if it is possible. And if we did so, it may cause panic amongst the Equestrian populace. As it is, we've been trying to keep Celestia's sickness low-key, and we've succeeded thus far. Celestia herself told me to carry on the day-night cycle as normal, when I went back the last time. She does not wish to scare our ponies, and she sees no reason to do so now."

Twilight looked out of the window. "It's almost sunset."

"I suppose I must go about setting the Sun and raising the Moon, then," Luna said. As she stood, she stumbled slightly. She took a deep breath.

"Luna, are you alright?"

Luna took another breath. "Yes, yes. I am fine. Maybe I am just a bit... tired." She paused. "Although, strangely, I think I feel quite the opposite. Unexpected."

Twilight and Spike shared a quick glance. Spike shrugged.

"Okay then," Twilight said.

Luna walked over to the window. Her head moved in the motions that would bring the Sun down below the horizon, then the Moon up. In minutes, the orange sky became a soft blue.

Luna took another deep breath. "Well, it is done." She turned back to Twilight. "The Sun has now set. I believe I mentioned earlier that we should stop our work for the day and return to Celestia."

Twilight nodded. "Right. Spike, let's clean up a bit."

As the two went about their work tidying up where they worked, mainly consisting of piles of books, Luna paused in her stance. She walked to a bookshelf to lean on it, then sat down on her haunches. She felt... strange.

Twilight noticed. "Luna, are you sure you're alright?"

"I feel... strange," Luna remarked to herself. "I feel... empowered?" She looked outside. The sky was illuminated by light from her Moon, still low in the sky, just barely above the horizon.

"Didn't you say that your powers increase as your respective bodies draw closer to you?" Twilight said. "Which means you're slightly stronger during the night?"

"Yes, yes," Luna said. "But... this is different. It is... more intense."

Luna's head jolted up, looking at Twilight. She froze. Then she stood, her breaths heaving.

In fact, it started looking like she was losing control over herself.

"Twilight! Assemble your friends," Luna said, her head knocking against a bookcase. "And we need to imprison me! Lock me away!” Luna cried, tears breaking in desperation.

“What- what are you talking about, Luna?!”

“I am dangerous!"

With that, magic began bursting from the lunar alicorn. First it was some sparks. Then some streams; wisps of... black. Her ethereal mane began flaring wildly, as if a fight was taking place inside of Luna.

Twilight was frozen in place as she watched the agonizing process of her friend become her enemy. Then that pony looked at her and Spike. The windows could be heard shutting.

For a moment, she recalled Luna's last words.

“Oh.”

She grabbed Spike with her magic and bolted, her wings launching them towards the exit from a standstill.

"Come back, Twilight Sparkle! Do not make this difficult! I am only here for your Princesses!"

"Oh, this is bad," Twilight said, stating the obvious as she sped past the bookshelves.

"Twilight, what the heck?!" Spike exclaimed, clutching her back as they made their escape. "What is she doing here?!"

"I don't know, I don't know, I don't know! But I guess it really did have something to with the Solar Eclipse Ceremony!"

"But how?!"

"Um... I'm guessing that maybe Nightmare Moon left a part of herself in the moon in case things went wrong during the Summer Sun Celebration," Twilight said. "And now, during the Solar Eclipse Ceremony, she absorbed power from the Sun."

"She hid from Celestia and Luna for this long?! Especially Luna?!" Spike exclaimed, unwilling to accept what they just saw.

"I told you, Spike, I'm guessing!"

Twilight flew past the doors to the entrance of the Star Swirl the Bearded Wing, slamming the doors shut behind her.

She heard hoofsteps down the hallway. It was one of the guards. Twilight ran up to him. "Excuse me, we need your help!"

The guard looked at her and immediately, Twilight and Spike realized that it was... not what they expected. The guard flared his wings in a threatening display, showing the two his bat-like wings. The look in his eyes was... evil.

Twilight pumped her wings, sending them away from the guard and down the hallway. "Note to self- Luna's thestral guards are under Nightmare's control. Makes sense."

"Twilight, he's chasing us!"

Without hesitation, Twilight flipped over and shot a beam of magic back at the pursuing pony. It hit, knocking him out of flight and into the floor unconscious. "We need to warn Celestia! And the others!"

Twilight found another window to escape through and flew out, immediately teleporting outside of Celestia's room once she was clear of the library. She barged through the door, the guards outside not stopping her, not even having the opportunity to.

"Twilight!" her friends exclaimed upon her sudden entrance.

"Princess Celestia is resting," Fluttershy said as the alicorn approached. "You should be quiet."

"Where's Luna?" Rarity asked.

Twilight reached the side of Celestia's bed. She urgently put her hooves on the sun princess and began shaking Celestia's body. "Celestia! Celestia, wake up!"

Her friends weren't sure what she was doing, but if Twilight was trying to wake Celestia up over letting her rest, it had to have been important.

Celestia's eyes cracked open. "What is it, Twilight?" she breathed.

"Luna- she- "

There was a slight commotion by the door. "Princess Luna!" Rarity said.

Everyone turned to the figure at the door. It was... Luna.

"No," Twilight whispered. "No!" she exclaimed loudly as the lunar alicorn approached. "That isn't Luna! That's- "

She was interrupted by suddenly being thrown out of the window, along with the rest of her friends.

<<+>>

Celestia became alert at the sudden commotion. However, she was weary, and didn't fully process what had just happened.

At that moment, Luna was walking towards her. But Twilight... "Luna?"

"Hello, Celestia," the other alicorn replied. She made it to the side of Celestia's bed. "It's your time."

Nightmare Moon revealed herself, brandishing an onyx blade. It came down swiftly.

And met metal.

Celestia gasped at what just occurred. She reacted, that's what happened, and now her mind was catching up. In that moment, she had conjured up her own magic sword to defend herself. Her sword, forged with part of the energy of the sun, glowed softly- just enough to properly light up the face of the alicorn standing over her. "Nightmare!"

Nightmare's eyes were wide as her mind, too, caught up with what just happened. However, hers was slightly slower, partially because Luna was causing her to trip up. "Where do you even keep that sword."

Celestia's eyes narrowed. "It has a connection with any of my ceremonial dress- as long as I wear a single piece, I can call Hyperion."

Nightmare's expression became flat for a moment. "Well that explains your strange habit of wearing your crown to bed. Luna is feeling quite satisfied about that fact, now that she knows."

As Nightmare prepared for another attack, she was thrown aside by a burst of magic.

In less than a second, Celestia was out of the door. She felt absolutely drained, but escaping death was cause enough for her to find new resolve. She could not teleport out- no, she felt too weak. In fact, conjuring and brandishing her sword had cost her energy already. Fortunately, she was a fast flier- the fastest there was, but in her weakened state, she remained vigilant about the very definite possibility of her attacker catching up to her.

She slammed into a wall hard while trying to make a turn. However, she quickly got back up, and the air where she just stood was forcefully shoved back as the alicorn launched off again.

Celestia slowed for the next turn. And then, she halted herself immediately, bringing up her sword to parry another attack by the dark alicorn.

"You're fast, Celestia," Nightmare noted, pushing her blade down against Celestia's. "The fastest flier there is, Luna says. It's fortunate for me that you've been weakened greatly- I'm not sure if I would have been able to catch up."

Celestia tried to hold back against another forceful shove. "A shame, I suppose. Fighting me at my weakest? You must doubt your abilities, Nightmare."

Nightmare Moon lifted her sword in rage.

Then she was kicked away from Celestia.

Celestia was practically dragged up off of the ground by a purple hoof. "Come on, Celestia, time to leave!"

"She is... strong, Twilight," Celestia said as they roared through the halls. Her wavering voice continued. "We need... help. We also need... somewhere safe to plan- get us... to the throne room."

Twilight reacted quickly to an assailant that attempted to attack them from an intersecting hallway. She could hear the armor clang against the shield she quickly put up. "Luna's guards are possessed or something. We'll need a lot of help."

Twilight made another turn onto a different hallway. At the end, a set of large doors.

As soon as Twilight passed the doors, they shut behind the two alicorns. Celestia cast a lock that would keep Nightmare out, if only momentarily.

Twilight laid her mentor on the throne. "We need a plan."

"The doors will not keep out Nightmare Moon for long." Celestia's horn lit, as she used her magic for something. "I can call the guards from this room. They will be able to aid us against Nightmare's other forces."

"But that only buys us some time, Celestia," Twilight said. "And only if we're running- not while we're sitting, locked up in a room."

Twilight noted the sword Celestia was carrying, which was at that moment, resting against Celestia's throne. She picked it up with her telekinesis and felt the magic imbued in the sword. She could see small wisps of flame appear from the surface. "Celestia, what is this sword?"

Celestia took a deep breath. "This sword... is Hyperion. It was forged... not long after Nightmare Moon's original defeat... It is imbued with essence of the Sun. It has the ability to pierce skin or sword... whichever the user wishes to. I created it... with the ability... to banish darkness."

Twilight processed what she was just told. "So this sword... can defeat Nightmare Moon?"

"One of the prime intentions behind its creation... I vowed to have many plans to defeat her upon her return."

The door thundered as Nightmare attempted to open it. "You may as well open this door now, Celestia! You are only delaying the inevitable!"

Twilight brandished the sword, moving to the center of the throne room. "Then I'll use it."

Nightmare broke through the magical locks of the door. Immediately, she saw the obstacle between her and Celestia. "Twilight Sparkle. I could spare you if I wished to exert myself."

"You're not touching her, Nightmare," Twilight countered.

"... But it seems as if you'd rather die along with your beloved teacher." Nightmare brought out her own sword, and what little light there was reflected off of its smooth, black surface. "I suspect this will be easier anyways. Perhaps the suffering of watching will even kill off Celestia for me."

Nightmare became a cloud of smoke as she rushed into Twilight. The clang of metal filled the room as Twilight parried. They began swinging at each other, and parrying, and in between, attacking with magic.

Twilight shoved Nightmare off of her hooves with a burst of magic, then lunged forward after her. The dark alicorn, however, simply turned into smoke, reappearing behind Twilight.

Twilight spun and met the sword thrust. She fell to the ground, rolling onto her hooves.

"You were taught by your brother Shining Armor, I hear," Nightmare said. "Respectable. But not enough."

The attacks came faster, and in a moment, Twilight was thrown against a pillar. She heaved as she caught her breath. Then she rolled away as Nightmare charged at her. Twilight lifted the sword to defend against another downward slash, once Nightmare had quickly reoriented herself.

The purple alicorn got back up in a fighting stance, positioning herself between Nightmare Moon and Celestia. Hyperion was still held at the ready. "I won't let you win, Nightmare."

"I begin to tire of your antics," Nightmare said. Again, she charged forward.

The black sword hit the golden one forcefully, causing Twilight to stumble. Given that slight opening in Twilight's defenses, Nightmare shoved her aside with an intense burst of magic, sending the alicorn to the side.

Twilight was thrown with so much force that she broke through the window, and as such, was thrown out of the fight.

<<+>>

Celestia released a small gasp as she saw Twilight be thrown out of the throne room.

"Still alive after watching that?" Nightmare said. "Very well then. Perhaps you will be easier to defeat than her."

Nightmare Moon's horn lit as she covered the throne room in a spell that would lock Celestia in. And Celestia knew it.

Celestia steeled herself, pushing herself off of her throne and walking down onto the main floor. Her magic felt strained as she used it, yet she was able to firmly grab Hyperion and hold it by her. "You underestimate me, Nightmare. It will be your undoing."

Nightmare calmly walked over, then forcefully swung her sword at Celestia. The defense held, but it was not firm. "Is that so, Celestia?"

Nightmare looked at the clock in the room. "That clock says you have a little over three hours at most to live."

"I'd wager it's longer than that," Celestia growled. She lifted her sword again. Its blade released a pulse of fire.

"We'll see about that."

The two swords met.

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