Voices of the Father (Rewritten)
Voices of the Father
The witching hour had struck all over the peaceful lands of Equestria.
Luna, the Princess of the Night, flew under her beautiful night sky that reigned all over, her night sky was filled with beautiful astrological objects. Such as: bright stars; that threatened to blind those who looked at them, and the moon; a celestial object that brought peace and tranquility to her little ponies, for as long as it was raised.
Luna; the ever insightful Princess of the Night, patrolled her night, watching over the streets from the unrivalled city of Manehattan to the minuscule, insignificant villages of Sire’s Hollow.
Alone, she patrolled the night, and alone she watched over her subjects as they slumbered into a deep well deserved sleep.
As she flew over the village of Ponyville, something caught her attention. The sounds of crying echoed throughout the night, Luna looked around on the ground, searching for the source of the crying. Fortunately it didn’t take her long to pinpoint the source of the crying, on the ground she saw a small pony figure, sobbing under a lone tree that sat upon a hill.
Luna gracefully glided down and landed two metres away from the sitting child. It was a young unicorn child, that was wearing a midnight blue hooded cloak that concealed the body. The horn was sticking out of the child’s hood.
The young child was crying at the base of the tree, the child’s back was facing Luna and the head was lowered. The child’s tears dropped from the cheeks onto the roots of the tree as the child took quick breaths in between cries.
A frown grew on Luna as she carefully approached the weeping child, “Child,” Luna said softly, making the child gasp, “Why do you shed your tears here? Alone, in the middle of the night?”
The child slowly turned to look at Luna, revealing a filly with a dark blue coat, a light azure mane and cyan eyes. Her cutie mark was hidden under her cloak, but as all children of her age, most likely did not possess a cutie mark.
“I-I'm… n-not alone, Princess” the filly said, wiping the tears from her eyes and soaked cheeks.
Luna smiled gently and laid down before the filly, “Are you parents with you?” Luna asked, to which the filly slowly shook her head. “Where are they?”
The little filly threatened to cry again as her breathing picked up, “Shhhhhh,” Luna soothed, rubbing a silver hoof on the little filly’s back as gently as possible, “Take a deep breath little one, take as much time as you need”
The filly took a couple of deep breaths before speaking, “I don’t know… I never met my mum, and my dad never talks about her.”
Luna felt something tug at her heartstrings, “Where is your father then? Is he around?”
The filly nodded.
“Do you know where he is?” The filly nodded again and pointed her hoof towards something.
Luna traced her hoof and saw that she was pointing at the Everfree forest, “Why is your father in the Everfree forest child?”
“H-he said he needed to wait for someone. Someone close to him, someone very important”
Someone?
“Someone?,” Luna questioned, turning her head towards the filly, “Not sompo-” she cut herself off as soon as she realised that the little filly was gone.
Luna looked around frantically, wondering where the filly disappeared too. She looked towards the Everfree forest and saw a little filly galloping with all her energy towards the dark forest.
“Nay! Child wait!” Luna shouted, taking flight and rushing towards the filly, “Do not enter the Everfree forest child!” Her warning was ignored as the child entered the forest, with Luna not far behind.
It didn’t take long for Luna to catch up to the child. A cobalt blue coloured magical aura manifested around the small filly, lifting her up into the air and in front of Luna’s face.
“Child! What were you thinking? Do you know the kind of danger you could’ve put yourself in?” Luna questioned harshly, her eyebrows narrowed as she stared into the filly’s eyes, “Why would you ever endanger yourself like that?”
The child threatened to cry again, her mouth trembled and tears were starting to break out, “B-because… h-he would do the s-same for m-me…”
Luna opened her mouth but ceased, she took a deep breath and started to soothe the filly, “Child, I’m sure your father would do the same for you, as would any father, but you shouldn’t put yourself in such dangerous situations like this.”
“What would happen if you got hurt? What would he do?” Luna questioned, hoping to see if the filly would understand.
“He might get… angry?”
“Yes?” Luna said, urging the filly to continue.
“He might… ground and scold me?”
“No doubt. But do you know what would happen to him if you got hurt?”
“Um… he might get angry at himself?” Luna nodded. “And he might blame himself and get sad that I got hurt?”
“Do you see now child? Do you understand the consequences that could’ve happened if I was not here to stop you?”
“...Yes” The filly muttered.
Luna stared at her for a few moments before letting out a sigh, “Come with me, I will take you home and you wait there until I find your father” She got a nod from the filly, prompting Luna to lift the filly above her head and onto her back.
Luna turned and started to trot out of the forest, the sounds of her hooves clip-clopping onto the grass filled her ears as the light breeze blew through her mane.
“Do you love your father, child?” Luna questioned.
“...Yes, Princess Luna… Do you love my father?”
Luna's eyes froze for a moment but soon giggled softly, “Child… I love all my little ponies.” Luna replied, before continuing to the edge of the forest.
“Not as a Monarch Luna, but as a daughter?”
Luna’s eyes widened, she craned her neck to look at the filly, only to find that she was no longer on her back. She looked towards the edge of the forest, only to find that it was no longer in sight.
Immediately, Luna jumped to the side, “What sorcery is this?!” She shouted. Her guard was up, wings flared out and she looked around for anypony who might cause her harm. She heard a voice echo throughout her mind.
“Luna…”
“Show yourself at once! As Princess of the Night, I demand that you show yourself!” Luna demanded, walking backwards until her rear made contact with a tree. Darkness started to surround the lone Princess.
“My ever precious Luna…”
“I won’t order you again, show yourself coward!” She shouted, lowering herself and charging up a bolt of magical energy in her horn. Soon, her vision was becoming blurry as the darkness quickly enveloped her.
“Awake…”
Luna woke up gasping for air. Her vision was blurry, she couldn’t see much but the rough shapes of the objects that surrounded her. There were a lot of white colours.
There was an odd motion of something slowly spinning on the ceiling.
Luna groaned, her impaired sight slowly shifted to the right, she saw a large white object and heard some beeping sounds coming from it. She slowly turned to the left, a slim silver pole was standing there.
Her vision slowly became more bearable, her vision started to clear and make out the objects. To her left was an IV holder and to her right was a vital signs monitor.
She shifted around, feeling something soft under her. She looked down and saw that she was lying down on a soft bed.
W-what happened? Where am I? The Royal Infirmary?
Luna’s thoughts were pulled away however as the sound of hooves walking on tiles made itself known in the room. Luna looked towards the source and saw a Unicorn mare with light pink eyes, a grey coat and a green mane and tail walk in. She had a white nurse cap marked with a red cross.
The nurse carried a vase of Ornithogalum flowers or ‘White Princess’ flowers in her magical grip, and placed it on a nearby table to ‘improve’ the look of the room.
Luna tried speaking, “N-nurse” she said softly, but despite her effort, barely any noise came out.
It wasn’t until the nurse used her magic to pick up a nearby clipboard, and look towards Luna that she finally noticed that she was conscious. The nurse dropped the clipboard and rushed over to Luna’s side.
“Princess Luna! Are you alright? How do you feel?” Nurse asked urgently.
“W-what happened?” Luna questioned softly.
“I-I’m not sure, you collapsed in the middle of the Everfree forest.”
“W-what? I don’t remember-”
“Hang on,” the nurse said, cutting Luna off, “I’ll get the doctor and inform Princess Celestia!”
The nurse ran out of the room, leaving a dusty outline of herself behind. “Doctor! Doctor!” Luna heard from a distance.
What happened? Was it all a dream? It must be…
Luna’s eyes started to become heavy.
So… tired… just a… little… nap…
Exhaustion soon claimed Luna as she shut her eyes from the world.
Luna once again woke up gasping for air, her vision was blurry but it quickly adjusted and her vision became as clear as day. She looked around and realised that she was in the Canterlot’s throne room. Sitting on her Lunar throne, next to Celestia’s Solar throne. A pair of Mare Thestral Guards flanked the dais the throne sat upon.
Mosaic stained glass of the Day and Night respectively and of Luna’s reformation, with several banners of the Equestria’s flag hanging from the walls, in between the stained glass windows. A wide red carpet led from the thrones to the entrance with a pair of Mare Thestral Guards flanking the pair of doors.
The throne room? D-did I fall asleep during night court?
Luna looked at the Lunar Guards at the entrance.
At least I have a pair of guards to keep me company.
Luna’s attention was pulled towards the doors as a series of knocks sounded out. After a second or two, the doors opened, revealing a Thestral Mare with a white shirt collar around her neck and a black tie along with it.
“Uh, Princess Luna?” She said, just loud enough for Luna to hear her, “Are you ready for the next petitioner?”
“I, uh,” Luna brought a hoof to her mouth and cleared her throat, “Yes, I am, bring in the next petitioner if you will”
The Thestral nodded and disappeared behind the slightly opened door. A moment later, the door opened a bit more, letting in a small pony with a hooded cloak shielding the majority of the pony’s appearance, but a dark blue horn was sticking out of the pony’s hood, making identifying the pony as a unicorn.
Luna raised an eyebrow, questioning the choice of attire to visit a monarch. Once the pony reached the base of dais, Luna’s guards used their leathery wings to block the pony’s path.
The small pony stopped and bowed, but the unicorn continued to keep the hood on.
“It is rude to wear a hood in the presence of royalty, I’m sure the same applies to all those who wish to converse with you.” The unicorn remained still, refusing to move a single centimetre and thus Luna continued, “Would you please remove your hood to that I may be able to see your face”
“Forgive me, Princess Luna,” the unicorn said, the voice was that of a young filly, but it sounded familiar… Luna adjusted her seating, the pace of her heartbeat increased slightly, “But I wish not to remove my hood, for what’s underneath is nothing but an horrid monster.”
Luna recoiled back slightly, “Nonsense, all my little ponies are beautiful, inside and out.”
“Not this one, this one is a monster that the Nightmare could only create”
Luna squinted her eyes at the young unicorn, “Pray tell, why do you believe such a claim, little one?”
“Because it’s true, I… I hurt someone, someone very close to me… I… brought my father harm… at my own hoof, it was out of spite”
The filly’s voice was starting to break and Luna’s attention was drawn to the drops of tears that were falling to the ground.
Luna sighed heavily and stepped down from her throne, walking softly to the filly, the guards retracted their wings and allowed Luna to pass, she then stopped in front of the filly.
Luna lowered herself to the filly’s level and spoke in a soothing voice, “Child… why would you ever hurt your father?”
“Because… because… he spent more time with my older sister,” the filly said in between breaths.
Luna said nothing, she just simply smiled while the filly kept talking, “She was always better at everything than me… She was better at magic, she was better at speaking and understanding my father’s native language, everypony loved her.”
Luna closed her eyes and nodded slowly, taking in everything the filly has to say, “I was tired of living under her shadow… so I challenged her to a duel and when she won, my father…”
She sniffed, “I got so angry that I… I hurt my father with my magic. I didn’t know what to do so I… ran away”
Luna’s smile was replaced with a disappointing frown, “Envy is a dangerous emotion, little one. It clouds one's mind to think rationally and causes them to make improper judgement. I…” Luna hesitated, but nevertheless, she pushed on, “I… know this… from personal experience”
The little filly sighed, “Would you ever hurt my father?”
Luna took a deep breath, “I could never cause any sort of intentional harm to my little ponies”
“But… you did hurt him,” the filly said accusingly. The instant shift in the filly’s voice caused Luna to stand up.
“W-what? No… no, you must be mistaken” Luna stammered, taking a few steps back.
“But I know you did Luna, I was there, I saw what you did to him” The little filly’s gaze looked up for the first time, the filly used her magic to remove her hood, revealing a familiar face to Luna.
Those cyan eyes locked onto her own pair of identically coloured eyes. She had the same coloured mane and coat. “You! I remember you! You were the same filly under the tree!” Luna stated.
“Why would you bring harm to our father?”
“Guards!” Luna called out, looking to the sides only to find nopony there, it was the same for the pair of guards at the entrance.
Luna faced the filly and stomped on the tiles, sending cracks towards the filly, “What sorcery is this?! Who are you?!” She shouted, utilising her ‘Royal Canterlot Voice’ to make the command known.
The little filly chuckled darkly, “Your past come back to haunt you” Darkness surrounded them, enclosing on Luna. She tried using her magic to light up the area but to no avail. Her light was instantly consumed by the approaching darkness.
They neared Luna, but in a flash of light, the colours of the room were replaced with dull grey and the darkness soon slowed to a halt. A disembodied voice then echoed throughout Luna’s mind.
“Luna…”
The Princess gasped and looked around frantically, “Who are you?! Answer me!”
“None of this is real my sweet Luna… it’s just a dream…”
“How? No, it feels too real,” Luna responded, staring at the filly.
“It only feels real because he’s manipulating your mind to make it seem real. The Domain of the Dream is yours and yours alone. Now take control.”
“Why should I trust you? I don’t know you!”
There was a moment of silence between the two. Luna looked at the filly and watched as a blanket of darkness consumed her.
“Answer me!” She demanded, she slowly began to charge up her horn again only to have it short circuit, sending a feedback to Luna’s mind. She recoiled and screamed in pain before bringing a hoof to her temple.
“…Why would I ever lie to my daughter… no matter what she has done to me… I will always love and protect her… as a father should.”
“A bold claim for a pony who is too cowardly to reveal himself,” Luna said with a stern face, ”Unfortunately for you, I do not believe you. I hold no memories of a loving father nor a devoted mother, what you claim to say is nothing but a sham!”
“What have the Elements done to you?”
The disembodied voice sighed, “Very well Luna, perhaps my actions will speak louder than my words. But before I pull you out of that state of panic you’re in… tell my daughter Celestia this…”
An image of a text that was written in a language Luna didn’t recognise was imprinted in her mind. Luna screamed in agony as the text was burned within her mind.
She collapsed on the floor, lying on her side while her silver plated hooves planted themselves on the sides of her head. Her ears flattened against her head as a series of voices rang out throughout her mind.
Amare Patrem
Reuerendum Dux
Venerabilis per Omnia
Timuit ab Omnibus
“RRRRRRRGGGGGGAHHHHHH!!! GET. OUT. OF. MY. HEAD!!!” Luna yelled from the bottom of her lungs. Her pupils constricted to the size of a pinball, she thrashed about like a child with an obnoxious tantrum, her wings flapped all over the place threatening to smack whoever were to come near.
Salvus Luna
Tantum esse tradidit per Eam
Tegebat Solis
Tantum mori sub Ea
Ut ipse in aeternum scire pacem in interitum.
“Forgive me Luna, but you would not listen, the pain will be over soon, as will this dream of yours. Then you will awaken in the waking world”
The voice soon faded away, all that was left was Luna’s screams of sheer agony and pain, resonating throughout the throne room.
In the infirmary room that housed Luna, a Lunar medical team scrambled inside and rushed to the ill Princess. The orders given by the doctor were drowned out by the screams of pain and agony Luna gave. The Princess was thrashing about, smacking personnel of the medical team in the face with either her wings or her legs.
Her abnormal Alicorn strength sent nurses flying across the room if they were struck by Luna’s legs, or made them stumble back if they were struck by her wings.
Luna’s heart rate was spiking, the rapid beeping placed a sense of urgency in the medical team as they tried to contain her on the bed. The nurses did their best to hold her down while the only doctor in the team used his magic to try and restrain Luna with one of the leather cuffs attached to the bed. The nurses used all their strength to hold one of Luna’s legs in place, while the doctor simply guided Luna’s hoof into the cuffs.
As soon as he barely managed to retrain the wild Alicorn, the doors to the infirmary slid open with such force, it nearly came off the frame. In came in an Alicorn with a heavenly white coat, a flowing, bright multi-coloured mane and a pair of magenta eyes.
“Doctor Cross! I came as soon as I could!” The Alicorn announced, rushing to the side of the side of her fallen sister.
“Princess Celestia!” The doctor said aloud, hastily bowing in her presence before standing back up to attend to much more pressing matters, “Thank you for coming, Princess Luna is going through some sort of panic - at least one that’s occurring in her dream state, I think she might’ve encountered something, most likely a threat”
“How is that possible?!” Celestia questioned, looking at the state her dear sister was in. Her cuffs were tightened to the core, but Luna’s sheer Alicorn strength was enough to threaten the durability of the enchanted leather cuffs, “Luna knows the dream state inside and out, she knows what is reality and what isn’t. It simply isn’t possible”
“I’m sorry Princess, it’s just a guess at this point. I’ll need to have Princess Luna subjected to neuroimaging - a EEG to be specific, but we’ll need more straps”
Doctor Cross looked at a nurse who seemed to have suffered an injury from Her Highness, “Hard Life! Get more body straps, the heavy duty ones and grab some spares for Princess Luna’s legs”
Hard Life nodded and proceeded to rush out of the room, but stopped at the doorway as soon as the screams of agony slowly died down.
Celestia and the Doctor watched the scene as the nurses backed away.
Luna’s thrashing became less erratic, same with her wings. She still attempted to break free from her cuffs but the effort simply died down before ending. The only thing that remained was her irregular breathing, her chest rising and falling rapidly. The beeps of the vital signs monitor also slowed down, regulating and returning to a steady pace.
“Is it over?” One of the nurses asked from the sidelines.
“I, I think so,” Doctor Cross said, unsure whether Princess Luna has actually calmed down. He looked at his clipboard and proceeded to head out of the room with the medical team, “I think it’s the best time for a scan of her mind, if any. I’ll arrange it at once”
Princess Celestia nodded, watching the medical staff exit the room, leaving herself and her sister alone, “Thank you doctor” she said before turning back to her sleeping sister.
Celestia pulled a chair with a magical grip towards her and sat on it. In a golden flash, several scrolls and documents appeared in front of her.
Celestia kept glancing at Luna while she read, usually after she read a single paragraph, before it got worse and she kept glancing every mid-paragraph, making her forget what sentence she was up too and forcing her to start again.
She soon quickly decided to deal with it later, making the documents disappear in another flash of light. Instead she decided to watch over Luna.
The Princess sighed, her head lowered, her flowing mane and tail slowing down.
Oh Lulu… what happened? What did you see?
Celestia thought about the possibilities.
Was it Nightmare Moon? Or was it the Tantabus? Or was it something else entirely?
Soon her questions would be answered as Luna gasped awake, springing up from her sleeping state or at least attempted to with the restraints on her legs.
Celestia looked up immediately and closed in on Luna, placing a hoof on her chest and getting in the centre of her vision, “Lulu, you must calm down” Celestia said in her motherly tone.
“W-what happened?” Luna demanded, looking around and getting a bearing of her surroundings.
“You’re in the Royal Infirmary dear sister. You collapsed in the Everfree Forest”
“N-no… that has to be impossible,” Luna stated, “That was a dream, I know it, it has to be!”
“Believe me Lulu, it was no dream, you suddenly collapsed after Nightmare Night”
Luna looked at Celestia, clearly perplexed, “N-nightmare Night?!” Celestia nodded. “B-but… I do not remember…”
Celestia frowned, “I assume you do not remember what happened then?” She questioned worriedly, and once she received a nod in confirmation, this only made Celestia sigh.
Silence filled the room for a moment or two, despite the many questions both sisters had for each other, none ever made an attempt to ask a question for while. That was until Luna spoke up.
“W-what happened? Do you know, Tia?”
Celestia nodded and proceeded to tell her the tale, “It all started when you were with my protege, Twilight Sparkle…”
In a clearing in the Everfree Forest, there was a statue of Luna’s past form, or at least there should've been, but it was replaced by Luna in an attempt to scare children under the guide of Twilight Sparkle. Now, nothing stood upon the rectangular pedestal.
All that was left in the clearing was Twilight, Luna and the candy the children ‘taxed’ from their neighbours, only to give them as tribute to Nightmare Moon.
“It was great having you at our festival Princess Luna,” Twilight Sparkle said, in her Star Swirl the Bearded costume.
Luna smiled and looked in the direction of where the children ran off, celebrating the swift return of Nightmare Night, “It was nothing Twilight Sparkle, but truly it was you who opened my eyes and gave me a different perspective of this… celebration”
Twilight lowered her head, as if she were ashamed, “Princess… I know that Nightmare Night was initially insulting towards you but Nightmare Moon is your past self,” She looked up at Luna, “But now you are Princess Luna, the Princess of the Night and the Princess who has a night that most children will forever consider their favourite”
The Princess looked at Twilight with surprise but recovered soon after, smiling and looking at the pedestal, “I feel like you’ll make a great leader someday, young Twilight Sparkle”
“A leader?!” Twilight exclaimed, clearly shocked, “But- no, I don’t think I’ll be a good leader Princess”
“They say that the first step to becoming a leader is not wanting to become one”
“But… I don’t think I’ll be a good leader, I tend to panic and overthink things and then I panic even more when things don’t go the way they’re supposed too”
Luna chuckled softly, “Perhaps I am getting ahead of myself. Shall we retu-” Luna stopped as she noticed something walking in the distance.
Twilight cocked her head and traced Luna’s gaze. In the distance walked a purple figure giving off an ominous purple glow that sent a shiver down their spines.
Twilight and Luna lowered themselves to the ground and remained on guard, “What is that Princess?” Twilight whispered.
“I do not know, but I better investigate to make sure it is not a threat to your village”
“Oh, c-can I come too? I haven’t seen anything like that before”
Luna faced Twilight, “I do not believe that is wise, we do not know what that thing is or what’s capable of”
“All the more reason to investigate,” Twilight said enthusiastically, “The creatures in the Everfree forest are rare and abnormal enough already and if you don’t know what it is, then it could be some kind of new discovery”
Luna grumbled softly, “Very well then, but tread lightly, we do not know anything about it” Luna advised, receiving a nod in return.
I hope her curiosity of knowledge does not place her in danger in the future…
Twilight and Luna followed the strange creature, but to say it was a native creature or a magical anomaly would be pushing things too far.
They observed and observed. Twilight noted things down in her journal that she conjured up from thin air.
Journal Entry: 1
Princess Luna and I seemed to have discovered a creature or a magical anomaly of some kind. It holds the form of a glowing bipedal figure like the Minotaurs but doesn’t have hooves, more like oddly shaped flat surface.
The body seems to be very broad and built, almost like a Minotaur but on a much smaller scale. It’s tall, and maintains perfect balance despite walking on two limbs… it’s fascinating… is it intelligent? Or does it hold some concept or level of awareness that only an a Pony with a true connection with nature can talk to?
The creature seems to be pulsating with some kind of energy. Purple bolts, in the form of static electricity seems to be resonating from the creature. It’s this barrier - that I assume is natural - that is hiding most of its features. But there’s something else… Every time Princess Luna and I get close, we get a shiver down our spine and the urge to stay away from the creature but regardless of the danger we feel, we push on.
It’s movement is interesting however, it’s either dragging its legs across the ground or taking clumsy steps forward… is it wandering aimlessly in the Everfree? Or is it searching for something. It doesn’t make any noise so I’m not sure if it can even communicate but-
Twilight was removed from her writing as she felt Luna’s hoof on her chest, forcing her to stop. She looked up and around and saw that the creature was gone.
“Where did it go?” Twilight questioned, looking around so fast that she was on the verge of getting dizzy.
“I do not know… it just walked behind this tree and disappeared” Luna said, pointing to a tree that neared another clearing. As they approached, they noticed a lone statue in the middle of a field of red flowers - poppies to be exact.
The gentle wind blew through the flowers, this, combined with the night sky gave this place… tranquility…
“Do your best not to disturb this place Twilight Sparkle, I believe this place is a monument of some sort”
“A monument in the middle of the Everfree Forest? Why would somepony want a monument built out here?”
“I do not know but I believe we are on sacred ground… tread lightly” Luna said, finishing with a harsh warning that made Twilight nod solemnly.
Step by step, they carefully approached, taking immense care of where and what they step on. Eventually they closed in on the statue.
The figure stood on a large pedestal with a long inscription carved into the stone. The figure stood tall in thick robes, it had a long cape that reached the floor, a patch of what seemed to be hair on top of its head, a pair of boots on the ends of it’s walking limbs and in one of it’s odd minotaur like hands - but with five digits instead of four - was a long staff with an figure of an eagle or phoenix at the top and book chained around the figure.
Twilight’s jaw was at risk of hitting the floor, she shook her thoughts away and kept on writing notes while Luna studied the statue.
She lit up her horn, casting light over the statue, burning away the darkness. The stone itself seems to have been preserved immensely, she could see a faint aura surrounding the statue itself.
Soon Luna read the first part of the inscription on the front.
O Rex
Vivat Rex
Ut ipse regnare in aeternum
Ut virtute sua numquam deficere eum
Primus in proelio, ultimum in receptum
Etiam in morte…
As she read, she traced the unknown tongue with her hoof. Her hoof just hovering mere centimetres from the words.
What… language is this?
“It’s one of the languages I taught you” A voice answered from behind.
Luna jumped and turned to confront the individual, but as soon as her sight shifted, a purple flash blinded her, making Luna stumble back into the statue.
Twilight noticed this and walked up to her, “Princess Luna? Are you alright?” Twilight asked, looking around the area.
Once Luna’s rear made contact with the statue, Luna was hit with a splitting headache while a series of deafening voices shouted in her mind.
Luna screamed in agony, she stood up on her hind legs and flared out her wings, her ears flattened against her head as her forelegs went to her ears, attempting to block out the voices.
“Princess Luna! What’s wrong?!” Twilight exclaimed, watching helplessly as the Princess screamed in pain.
Soon Luna went silent, collapsing on the poppies.
Twilight rushed to her side, Princess Luna! Princess Luna!” She shouted, shaking Luna’s body with her hooves.
Twilight looked around frantically before charging up her horn, filling it with a large amount of magic before launching a ball of magic into the sky.
Once it was high enough, the ball detonated, sending a magical wave in all directions.
In the nearby village of Ponyville, three of the mane six observed the magical explosion that occurred in the Everfree forest. A wave of purple magic washed through the sky, blowing away any clouds that were caught in its path.
Applejack and Pinkie Pie raced to the source of the blast while Rainbow Dash simply blitzed across the sky, cutting through clouds and almost breaking the sound barrier.
While Twilight was watching over the fallen princess, Rainbow Dash came to a full stop, blowing away some of the red poppies that surrounded them.
“Rainbow Dash, quickly go and get her guards. They have to bring Princess Luna back to Canterlot NOW!”
The Rainbow maned pony saluted and dashed away.
“And then you were brought here… ” Celestia said, “It has only been fourteen hours or so since your arrival.”
Luna looked straight ahead, “F-fourteen…” she whispered, but a thought entered her mind and she looked back at her sister, “No wait Tia, in my dreams, there was a voice… and something else“
“A voice... and something else?” Celestia skeptically.
“Yes, the voice claimed to be our father…” Luna noticed Celestia’s flowing mane come to a halt before succumbing to the effects of gravity, “Do… you know our father? My memories are still fragmented”
Celestia frowned slightly, “Did the voice tell you anything else?” She said, ignoring the question.
“He said… this phrase… he burned it into my mind Tia…”
“Lulu, what did he say?” Celestia said with more urgency, leaning in slightly.
“I don’t know how to pronounce any of it… I’ll just write it down” Luna said as she started to charge up her horn but only to send feedback to her mind. She groaned in pain, bringing a hoof to her head.
“Avoid using magic,” Celestia advised, charging her own horn and teleporting a quill, a ink holder and a clipboard with a sheet of paper in front of her, “I don’t know what he has done to you”
Luna gave Celestia a suspicious look, “Do you know what I am speaking of sister?” Luna questioned.
“That depends… on what he said”
Celestia then held up the objects in front of Luna’s face, doing her the courtesy of dipping the quill into the ink and placing it in Luna’s mouth. Luna took it with care and started to write on the floating clipboard. Once she was done, she leaned back and let her sister take the objects back, teleporting everything but the clipboard away.
Luna watched as her sister read the phrase. The clipboard slowly got closer to Celestia’s face, just shy of a few centimetres from touching her muzzle.
Soon, the clipboard disappeared in a flash of golden light. Celestia let out a heavy sigh, looking down, staring at the floor for what seemed like an eternity until she finally raised her head and looked back her sister, “What else did the voice say?"
"The voice... When the voice tried to convince us that the dream was not real, he said that 'it only seems real because he is manipulating your thoughts to make it seem real'" Luna paused, recalling the mental draining event, "Do you know what that means?"
Dread silence hit the room, Luna saw a single tear slowly come out of Celestia's eye and roll down her cheek. Celestia wiped away the tear with a hoof and looked straight into the eyes of Luna, "Come with me"
"W-wait, but"
Before Luna could protest, she was enveloped in a golden light and before she realised it, she was standing back in that same field where she collapsed.
Celestia and Luna both stood in front of the statue, Celestia’s mane refused to blow in it’s non-existent breeze while Luna’s mane kept flowing but slower than usual.
Celestia simply sat down in front of the statue, her head lowered and a few tears threatening to break from her eyes.
Where to begin...
She let out sigh and looked at Luna, “The phrase you wrote is the second part of the inscription on this statue Lulu”
“Are the voice’s claims true Tia? Is he really our father?”
“...Yes,” This answer made Luna clenched her jaw, “But Lulu you must listen…”
“NO!!!” Luna shouted, backing away, lowering herself close to the ground and flaring out her wings, “THIS SO CALLED FATHER HAS NEARLY BROKEN MY MIND AND YOU WANT ME TO LISTEN?!”
Celestia took a deep breath, drops of tears rolled down her cheeks and fell onto the red poppies, “Lulu… I will explain everything, but you must calm down and listen to me”
"AND WHO IS THE ENTITY THAT OUR FATHER CLAIMS TO HAVE MANIPULATED MY MIND AND DREAMS?! THE DREAM REALM IS MINE AND I ALONE CAN CONTROL IT!"
"Luna... please... I'll explain everything... but you have to calm down first... please, dear sister" Celestia said, her tears gaining Luna's undivided attention.
Luna squinted her eyes, pacing her breaths, “Very well then. I shall listen” She said, moving next to Celestia and sitting beside her.
“Thank you, dear sister” Celestia said with a smile before turning her head to the inscription. She placed a hoof on the first part and gasped slightly. She closed her tearing eyes and spoke in a tone that was so unlike Celestia in the eyes of her subjects… A tone that carried the heaviest of regret, pain and sorrow.
“The first part says:
O King
Long live the King
May he reign forever
May his strength never fail him
First in battle, last in retreat
Even in death…”
“And the second part?” Luna asked.
Celestia took a deep breath and placed her hoof over the second part of the inscription.
“It says:
Loving Father
Respected Leader
Revered by All
Feared by All”
But as soon as Celestia reached the next part, she froze. Luna looked at her with concern and watched as she started to sob. Luna reached out and placed a hoof on her back, gently rubbing her before wrapping a wing around her barrel.
Celestia looked at her sister.
Luna saw the look in her bloodshot eyes. It was one of the things she remembered as Nightmare Moon. The crying look on her sisters face before she banished her for a thousand years.
“Forgive me Lulu, it’s just that I haven’t visited him in so long…”
Luna opened her mouth to say something but hesitated and held back her voice. Instead she moved closer to Celestia and gave her a comforting hug.
They stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity. Luna kept her silence as she comforted her sister. But Celestia knew that she couldn’t stay in this state forever, so she mustered her strength and pulled away, returning to her previous task.
“The next part says:
Saved the Moon
Only to be betrayed by Her
Shielded the Sun
Only to die under It
May he forever know peace in the afterlife.”
Luna’s eyes widened to the size of saucers, she looked up to the statue and looked at his chiseled face. His eyes were closed and he was frowning slightly, but what caught her eyes was something she failed to notice before… an amulet that hung from his neck, it had the shape of Celestia’s Cutie Mark but in the centre was the unmistakable shape of Luna’s Cutie Mark; a shape of the crescent moon.
“What have I done Tia?” Luna said softly, her mane has now refused to flow.
“Do not blame your actions on yourself, for it was the actions of Nightmare Moon”
Luna grit her teeth and looked straight at Celestia, “But it was I who let that parasite take control of me! It was I who waged a civil war between the day and the night,” Luna’s voice began to break, “I-it… was I… who forced you to send me away…” An excessive amount of tears began to exit from Luna’s eyes.
Celestia saw the state that her little sister was in, she knew the heavy guilt that has plagued Luna for so long. Celestia did what she could to help her recover, to make her believe that it was not her fault, but Nightmare Moon.
"I banished Nightmare Moon," Celestia said with a heavy heart, getting a crying look from Luna, "But I was too late... by the time I banished her, she had mortally wounded him"
Luna gasped, the only thing she could do was look away, hoping to spare her sister of the monster that took away their father, "W-what else happened?"
"Lulu... please-"
"Tia... please, I must know... please..." She requested, still facing away from her sister.
Celestia hesitated to speak, she wanted to grant the wish of her sister but at the same time, she did not want her to go through anymore pain than she had already endured.
Celestia started off slowly, "He..." But that's all she could get out before taking a deep breathe and looking at the statue, "He died in my hooves... I watched the life fade from his eyes as he slowly drifted towards the afterlife."
Celestia heard some sniffling coming from her side.
"But... if he is gone... what were the voices that I heard?"
"I... do not know... Lulu, that I cannot explain"
Silence... nothing but silence.
"What were his last words?" Luna asked softly.
Celestia wondered what was going through Luna's mind. What wanted her to endure more suffering than before, but she made a promise...
Celestia looked at her sister back and said, "His last words were: 'Don't blame her for this... it wasn't her fault... I love you Celly, I love you and Lulu... forever and always... your mother... would've been so... proud..."
Both Alicorns said nothing for what felt like an eternity. The field that they were in was now filled with sorrow, tears watered the flowers and the sounds of sobbing filled the air, but eventually, Luna’s eyes turned to the statue, looking up at the bipedal figure.
“What… was he Tia?” Luna asked, a couple of tears rolling down her cheeks.
Celestia smiled and followed Luna’s gaze, “He was nothing… but a man. A species with the strongest of wills. A species that is everything creation has to offer; Ambition, curiosity, destroyer and creator, graceful mercy and cooperation, undying fury and pure hatred for those standing in its way. A species that is immensely flawed, but driven towards divine perfection. A species whose destiny lies to walk amongst the very stars. To rule them all.”
Luna looked at her sister, a spark of curiosity lighting up her bloodshot eyes, “What were they called Tia?”
Celestia smiled, “Humanity, my dear sister… Humanity”
“Will you tell us stories of our father? I would like to hear what I cannot remember”
Celestia looked at her sister, “I would love to Lulu… '' Celestia took a deep breath and spoke, “Once upon a time… there existed two Alicorn fillies… called Celestia Sol and Luna Selene…”
Author's Note
Simply a prologue for the main body of the next story
