An Empire Lost in Time

It is better to be feared than loved if you cannot be both.

Niccolo Machiavelli

It was late. Luna was resting in her makeshift chambers of the war camp stationed in the Smokey Mountains. The sounds of battle echoed in the distance. Luna, however, did not care. Just a few minutes prior, a thestral guard from the empire had snuck in to deliver a message. She eagerly accepted the rolled parchment bearing the crown prince’s seal. She held the piece of parchment in her magic. Taking great care not to rip any part of the thin material, she opened it and found a dark blue scale. Holding both in her magic, she read,

My beloved Luna,

Time is short. Let us flee from all this carnage and hatred, for I can no longer wonder if this will be our last letter, or if we will face one another in battle. The thought of losing thee would be the death of my soul. So I ask thee to meet me in our secret place. I love thee, Luna, and pray thou wilst agree.

With all my love.

Luna closed the letter, holding it and the scale close to her heart. From a desk that was in the corner of the tent, she levitated a quill and some parchment. She wrote back,

My dearest love,

I accept. I would give up the world to be in your hooves, without worrying, again. I will pack my things tonight and wait for you there.

Forever yours,

Luna

Luna spread her wing and plucked a single feather. She placed it delicately in the parchment and rolled it up. She place a dab of wax on the edge of the roll and pressed it firmly with the butt end of her seal, ensuring the secrecy of the message was left to the imperial guards’ knowledge only.

“Ensure this goes straight to the prince as soon as possible.” she said, entrusting the scroll to the thestral.

“Aye, of course, my lady.” The thestral bowed in respect and flew off without a sound.

Luna gathered her things in her saddlebags and quietly snuck out ten minutes later. She headed to the west.

***

Once she arrived at the designated spot, Luna set her saddle bags to one side. She sat facing the way that her love always came, smiling the whole time. She started humming, imagining the life they would have, wondering how many foals they would have so far from here. Time seemed to move so slowly as the moon inched across the sky and the night grew late. Luna began to worry. Soon the sun was rising in the east, the pull of the moon waiting to be set behind her tugging on her magic. Her heart sank as he had not come; had he been delayed by somepony? Had one of her sister’s soldiers hurt him--or worse, captured him? Luna thought panicking.

Making it back to camp revealed the startling truth. The Equestrian war camp was packing up. When she asked a passing guard about it, he smiled and said, “Yes, Your Highness, the empire sank beneath the waves in a sheer stroke of luck.”

“What dost thou mean, sunk?” she asked tentatively.

“We won the war, Your Highness! The empire sunk underneath a huge wave last night. Nopony knows why,” he said, obvious cheer in his voice.

Luna stopped. Her world was falling to pieces in her mind. On the outside, the guard could see her staring blankly at him. “Th… that’s good news,” she replied, walking off. Pure shock had stopped her from crying inwardly, but when she made it to the forest, reality hit her like a knife in the gut. She fell to her haunches and began crying. She knew in her mind that she would never see him again. Her heart broke that day, and she was never the same again.