Princess Luna smiled, slowly sipping her warm cup of chamomile tea and letting it work its magic. It was an astonishing beverage, always relieving the Princess of stress when she so desired. Ever since she was purged of the treacherous Nightmare, most of her time was spent on her attempting to catch up with the modern age, especially on the Equus language. Although the daily repetitions were bothersome and breached her already lessened patience from being cooped up on the moon for so long, amidst all of the chaos she realized that she'd learned a remarkably true life lesson.
A great deal can change as time flies by, she thought to herself as she drained all her tea with one final gulp. Her mouth taking in only air and nothing else, she glanced down at the empty tea cup with a half-hearted sigh.
"Perhaps I should stop," she murmured softly, "this has already been my third cup, and the day has not even ended yet." She knew that she yearned for more deep down inside, but there was a limit to everything. Even an immortal Princess couldn't down an infinite amount of tea without falling ill in a way. Now deeply in thought, Luna didn't notice as the door to her private chambers opened and a familiar figure stepped inside, the sunlight pouring from her windows coating the visitor with a brilliant yellow sheen.
"Luna? Hello?" An ivory hoof waved in front of said mare's face, finally snapping her out of her thoughts.
Luna blinked rapidly, the figure standing in front of her slowly coming into focus. "Tia?"
Her elder sister chuckled. "Oh, Luna. Habits never seem to die, in your case. Do you happen to recall that this is the tenth time I've come in here, only to see you deep in thought again?"
Luna blushed in embarrassment, her face growing redder by the second. "I apologize for that, dear sister. I've had quite the thoughts these days."
Celestia smiled. "I can see that. Nonetheless," she cleared her throat before continuing, her smile fading, "I came here to tell you about something of the utmost urgency."
The younger Princess pursed her lips, examining Celestia's now solemn expression. "What is it?" she finally said. "If it's Discord causing trouble again like last time, allow me to teach him a proper lesson."
The corners of Celestia's mouth turned up slightly in a faint smile as she relieved her memories of that unforgettable day, only to fall down again as soon as her trip down Memory Lane ended. "I fear it is not that simple, Luna. Honestly, I have no idea how to break the news to you, but the truth is the truth."
Luna's ears flattened against her head, her patience declining by the second. "What is it, Tia? Tell me! Just because I am your younger sister does not mean that you must still look out for me like when we were younger. We are Princesses with responsibilities now; I can handle some bad news."
"In this case, it's even worse than bad news, but... they have escaped their prisons."
Luna's eyes immediately widened to the size of pools. "But... how? How did they manage to break the most powerful confining enchantments in the entire history of magic? We risked our lives to cast them, Tia! How can you just tell me that all of that was in vain?"
Celestia closed her eyes and sighed heavily. "You forgot who they truly are, Luna."
"Well, even if you put it that way, the only way they could have broke the enchantments was if they combined their power! That's impossible, because they were each sealed away in individual pits!" Luna paused for a brief second, an urgent thought suddenly filling her mind. "Wait... Tia, tell me; have they broke out of Tartarus already?"
The other Princess shook her head, her eyes now open. "Thankfully, not yet. They are, however, roaming around free in Tartarus, so it's crucial that we get there immediately to seal the Gate."
"What about him?" Luna said softly, glancing up at her sister.
Celestia's lips pressed into a thin line, clearly indicating that the topic was one that she didn't wish to discuss. "We'll see when we get there."
Luna slowly nodded. "I suppose we'd best be getting on our way then."
The two sisters intertwined their horns, focusing their immense energy on a teleportation spell that would take them right to the Gate of Tartarus. A bright glow enveloped them before they both faded from view, now on their way to their desired destination.
A glowing orb of light materialized in front of the Gate of Tartarus, its brilliance slowly dying away until it revealed the two alicorns, each with a dazed look on their faces as they stumbled backward. Despite them being alicorns and possessing powerful arcane magic, teleporting straight to Tartarus took much more effort than a normal teleportation, mainly due to the amount of ancient magic present in the Underworld.
Princess Luna was the first to recover from their trip, vigorously shaking her head in order to clear her blurry vision. Having made weekly visits to Tartarus whilst her sister, burdened with her responsbilities as a Princess, only accomplished monthly ones, she had developed a slight immunity to the disorienting effects after each teleportation.
Celestia followed suit, blinking in quick succession before her vision returned to normal. "It's quite reassuring to see that they haven't yet breached the Gate," she said slowly. She glanced sideways at Luna, who merely shrugged in response. "Well then, I suppose we should get going now. Stay on your guard, Luna; you may never know where they're hiding."
The only word that properly described Tartarus was "wasteland". It was a desolate place, with darkness seeming to creep up on the Royal Sisters from every side. The sound of their hoofsteps were the only noises that could be heard for miles and miles, echoing back at them. Anypony who wasn't familiar with Tartarus was bound to walk astray, thus ending up trapped in the accursed abyss for all eternity.
The two Princesses trotted on for what seemed to be hours, Luna in the lead. Having still not encountered any of their nemeses, Luna scanned her surroundings uneasily, her ears flicking as she attempted to detect any other sounds. This doesn't feel right, she thought to herself. It's quiet. *Too** quiet, as a matter of fact.*
Suddenly, terror struck her heart as she realized that she could no longer detect the sound of Celestia's hoofsteps from behind her. She immediately whirled around only to be greeted with the sight of the one pony that she loathed with her very soul, his curved horn glowing as he disabled Celestia's magic and prevented her from defending herself.
Luna's eyes narrowed to slits and her mouth twisted into a ferocious snarl as rage overtook her. "Hades," she growled, all her fury projected into that one word, "I demand that you release my sister this instant, lest you regret ever existing on this world."
The Lord of the Underworld threw his head back and laughed, the very sight of that furthering Luna's rage. "Always the short-tempered one, my dear Luna," he rumbled in an ancient voice that echoed with raw power. "Perhaps you should just surrender your throne. After all, who would desire an impatient Princess when a god can do better?"
"Rot in Tartarus, Hades!" Luna spat. "Equestria does not need you so-called gods!"
Hades's expression hardened, his mane of blue fire crackling dangerously. "Ah, but you have forgotten, Princess. Eras ago, I was subjected to imprisonment by you two in my own domain. My authority includes Tartarus, yet you disgraced me by throwing me, and all the others as well, to rot in the pits. You call that justice, Luna? Do you not acknowledge that I am the Lord of the Underworld, and not a plaything for you to toy with as you please? I am a god, Luna, but you? You are merely a weakling that dares to defy the gods themselves!"
So frenzied was Hades that his magic wavered, thus restoring Celestia's magic. Tapping into the newfound strength, a beam of pure sunlight sent Hades stumbling as the elder Princess seized the opportunity to teleport next to her sister, eyes narrowed.
"Mount Olympus is nothing now, Hades. The gods have already been defeated."
