Royal Rewrite - The winner wrote the history

Luna observed the sun slowly rising in the horizon. She could help gain access to the sky by lowering the moon, but figured the slow ascension was Celestia’s attempt to buy time. Perhaps Celestia didn’t want it to rise at all but if so, she could have pushed it back. It looked to Luna that it was only yesterday’s speed that gave it momentum. In that case it would be a long day. A little bit longer than yesterday. Then Luna would grab the moon, push it hard, and restore speed to the celestial bodies.

Luna flew up in the air and set course for the Royal Castle. She was wondering if Celestia was stupid enough to assemble some troops to meet her. Perhaps thinking they would distract her enough for some assassination attempt by Celestia herself.

No, Celestia would never be that stupid Luna concluded. As a queen she was thickheaded, belligerent and refused to reason, but it wasn’t because she was stupid; it was because she was consistent and presuming she stayed consistent until the bitter end her sister would never put regular ponies in danger; which is odd. Celestia would punish them left and right for ‘educational’ value but never purposely put any pony in serious danger.

Luna approached the castle in full regalia, which besides her royal shape also included a helmet and some other apparel. She decided that this was a good time to follow protocol. She would land outside the castle walls and walk through the gate. If Celestia conceded peacefully, Luna following the royal code of conduct would help ordinary ponies to come to terms with the transition.

There were no guards guarding the gate. Well, so much for protocol. As Luna walked up to the castle she couldn’t spot a single pony. Maybe she could close her eyes and search among dreams, or if she was lucky some nearby pony with a really strong daydream could pinpoint its location.

Then again, the important thing right now was Celestia, so Luna kept her focus on the one target that really mattered. She couldn’t travel among dreams while locked in a high-level barrier, and deep in foreign dreams without such protection she was nothing but a flipped turtle. Hard on the outside, but vulnerable to anyone knowing their weakness.

Luna entered the throne-room, prepared for anything and everything. It was close to empty.

In the middle of the throne-room, sitting on her haunches on the floor, was Celestia. Her mane was energized and her eyes ablaze but it wasn’t battle-levels. Just focused.

Celestia wasn’t wearing armor but that was to be expected. Armor was nice when swarmed by javelins, beaks and claws. Preventing scratches and annoying attrition, but it was no protection for the levels of energy that Luna or an ancient dragon commanded. Celestia stared aimlessly at the wall as Luna let the doors slide fully open.

Luna looked around, scanning the area. The big gaping hole in the wall behind the throne was still there. Some other crushed sections were left untouched, as was all the rubble and detritus. The broken stairs surrounding the throne on its dais had the same debris as when she had flown out. Only the floor in between the throne and the main entrance had been fixed and swept.

"Greetings sister," Celestia called out from her sitting position.

Luna looked around, trying to figure out an endgame to this setting. Leaving the throne empty indicated Celestia would agree to the demands, but why was everypony gone? That was an indication she was up to something.

Celestia said while making a small show of standing up on three legs, before she spoke.

"What is my sister waiting for? Do you need ponies to announce your presence? Do you want them to blow trumpets and sing your glory?"

"We have come to take charge of the Kingdom," Luna declared. She still wondered what she was missing. For good measure she had her discreet shield going. Black streaks of energy moving zigzag across her fur, darting around like black lightning. It wasn’t as blatantly obvious as a big globe or a field in the front.

Luna wondered why Celestia had sent the guards away and how far away? Was the settlement empty too or were they hiding but she had failed to sense them. Why hadn’t they cleaned up the mess and left the throne room so dirty. Or perhaps they’ve started to clean the floor before Celestia interrupted them. Perhaps it was a message. But if it was, did Celestia or the ponies in court send it.

"And the little sister wanted this to be done in a celebratory manner? Wanted everyone to witness your glorious ascension? To praise your valor and wisdom?" Celestia said in a mocking tone.

Luna moved further inside the throne room and came closer to where Celestia was standing. She noted that Celestia had barely begun to regenerate her leg and it still had multiple fractures. If she had spent the entire night healing it, she should have healed the bones by now, even if the leg was weak and next to useless compared to the others it would look mostly fine to the average pony. Was the lack of healing because Celestia wasn’t as powerful as she used to be or was she too distraught to do it. Maybe she tried to make Luna feel bad for the damage she caused.

There were so many questions Luna wanted to ponder in this very moment. So many question marks in the current situation that would be perfect to think about in the stillness of the night, but she couldn’t wait, she had to act.

Celestia tensed up as Luna slowly approached her. She formed some kind of shield. A new one Luna didn’t recognize. It looked like a drooping tent with a peak above Celestia’s head and sloppy canvas stretching out to a couple of imaginary pins in the marble floor.

Luna’s expertise in shield-magic could easily reveal it wouldn’t provide any real protection, but considering how yesterday turned out, Celestia in her magical ignorance probably figured this new experiment would surprise Luna and therefore work better.

"Celestia!" Luna called out while slowly moving closer. "Have you decided on the fate of Equestria and its future?"

"We’ve been giving it a lot of thought," Celestia replied before falling silent.

Luna kept walking closer to Celestia. As she was close enough to step on her shield, Celestia recoiled, taking a step backwards. Luna stopped in her track over the odd sight of Celestia looking afraid.

When Luna stopped moving a flicker of anger flashed across Celestia’s eyes. Then she looked afraid again. It was odd. After all this time Luna had come to know her sister very well. The quick show of irritation and anger was something that Celestia tried to hide. The fear she didn’t mind displaying. She even exaggerated it. Celestia looked afraid on purpose while concealing her anger.

"Celestia, where are the guards?"

"We couldn’t guarantee their safety. So we saw fit they would keep away from here."

Luna looked at Celestia. As usual, her sister spoke the truth. She wouldn’t be able to lie to her anyway. Neither of them could lie to the other without the other one knowing. That didn’t mean Luna would know the full truth if Celestia decided to leave something out.

Did Celestia really think that Luna would continue yesterday’s battle without discussion. Or did Celestia have plans to destroy the entire castle and Luna with a nova. That would be stupid. Celestia had seen Luna’s skill in teleportation and considering the time it would take for current Celestia to build a nova, Luna didn’t need to teleport. She could trot leisurely away from here and be in safe distance before Celestia was done. Or judging from yesterday’s display of power she could stand in the middle of it protected by an appropriate sphere. But what if Celestia awakened her old powers during the night and if so, did she believe that her ancient power was enough to match the current Luna?

"Have you changed your mind?" Celestia called out, "Come to the realization that you were stupid and now seek to undo the damage you’ve done?"

Luna stood still. Wondering about that, before she answered, "No, we have not changed our mind. Queen Luna is to be announced, either with or without your help."

"As you are my sister, we will show you leniency. You may step up and kneel for forgiveness, and we will grant it."

Luna instantly recognized the lie and her face revealed that she didn’t buy it. Celestia realized the old-fashioned Luna was still there, reading her like a book and for a brief moment Celestia let her mask slip, revealing a flicker of rage she was working so hard to conceal.

"At least, I wish I could..." Celestia added carefully. "But the ponies in the Kingdom must know we can’t tolerate such behavior. We need to lead by example. Subordinate behavior can’t be tolerated amongst the masses between commander and second in command, and therefore it can’t be tolerated between queen and princess."

Luna looked carefully at Celestia. Her sister’s words didn’t reveal what she was thinking. That was unusual. Luna had predicted a lot of ‘education’ from her sister. So far Celestia hadn’t said a single word about what ponies expected from a queen and why Luna couldn’t fill that role.

An argument like that is what Luna had spent the night anticipating and preparing for. Luna had also spent a lot of time preparing for arguments from regular ponies, which would be fiercely loyal to Queen Celestia and demand that Luna stopped her transgressions. Even if Celestia wouldn’t actively set them up to do it, Luna had suspected it would happen unless Celestia actively prevented it. So again she wondered why Celestia had sent everyone away.

"Luna, Luna, Luna... We can sense the hesitation within you. Your failure to understand the situation is why you can never be queen. A queen needs to be strong and act. A queen can’t force her subjects to waste time in endless deliberations. Constant arguing and disagreement erodes the mental health of everypony and in the end they will react violently at first sign of an incoming conflict-filled discussion."

Luna looked at Celestia. She told the truth. Well, it was the truth according to Celestia anyway, but she was hiding something. Luna knew that Celestia was hiding something because in her last exclamation she had dropped her fear. Then as if she had realized she forgot about it, she put some of it back on, before she figured it was useless and dropped it again.

Now Luna faced a Celestia who wasn’t filled with fear. Perhaps it was because Luna wasn’t as violent as she was yesterday, but didn’t Celestia fear losing her position as a Queen, or had the loss of leadership become secondary after she had the night to think about it. Luna wished she had time to mull it over in the stillness of the night.

"Luna?" Celestia said in a somewhat quieter voice.

Luna looked at Celestia, waiting for her to continue.

"If you were just half the mare Captain Quicksmite is, we would be so proud of you. Now you are but a quarter, and Quicksmite is three quarters," Celestia taunted her.

The haughty manner she suddenly displayed shocked Luna. The memory of poor Quicksmite crippled by an axe with the entire settlement to stare at her caused Luna to lose her mind.

"YOU FOUL CREATURE!" Luna yelled, while gathering a black ball above her head.

Celestia immediately hunkered down.

Luna leaped forth and raised her front hooves high in the air. Preparing her dark globe to crash down on the former Queen in front of her.

But that was not to be.

As she had stepped further into Celestia’s shield it roared awake. Not the shield, but the corners.

Luna brought her ball down on Celestia who screamed out but kept pressing herself to the ground, weaving her shield frantically.

Now the massive energy of Celestia’s shield couldn’t be ignored and Luna decided to deal with it. As she did, she noticed it wasn’t a shield at all. It was a trap.

Luna quickly brought up an external barrier in addition to the one over her skin, but the trap’s energy was already all over the place and ignored most of her protection.

She decided to teleport out, but the interference from the trap disrupted her magic. She tried to move, but her muscles felt like glue. The disruptive parts of the trap prevented her from moving. Locking her in place.

Celestia’s rage was clearly visible on her face. She focused entirely on her manifestation and ignored the pain from the severe lacerations one her back.

"Don’t!" Luna shouted. "Think" she added. "You can" she pushed out. "ESCAPE!"

Luna’s outer barrier was useless, and she shifted focus to her innermost barrier. Again she tried to mount an attack against her sister. Sending something her way to harm her. Once again she was bombarded by both pain and interference from all sides. Making it impossible to strike down Celestia.

"So you’re fighting? We should have known," Luna called out. Working her barrier magic while trying to dodge, duck, sidestep and pull through to escape the trap.

Celestia’s had a grave expression on her face. She totally ignored Luna and was entirely focused on her trap.

"Celestia! Is this the Queen you aim to be? The Queen of traps and deceit?" Luna mocked her.

Celestia ignored it and was now staring right up in the peak of her imaginary tent. The peak started to move closer to Luna. Increasing the power that bombarded Luna as the energy engulfed her.

Luna realized she needed to figure out this power. It wasn’t the regular magic she and her sister wielded. It was something else.

The peak was now directly above Luna and she was bathed inside what looked like a five-sided pyramid. A pentagon pyramid trapping her in place.

Luna struggled for all that she was worth but for naught. The attack was unlike anything she’d ever experienced, with one exception, some of the magic wielded by the God of Chaos could sneak through shields in the same manner.

Luna saw her skin crack and blister. It was just flesh she told herself. She felt the pain and it made her scream. It was just pain she told herself. She kept getting her magic disrupted, no matter what she tried. Now that was a problem.

Luna had lots of power. She could go on for a long time. But she would eventually run out. She must get out of this before that happened or she would be terminated. It took time to kill a goddess so at first she believed she had time. But then she realized it was running out fast. This energy was unlike anything she had ever seen.

Then it struck her. She had seen something similar to this energy. She knew what it was. She had been part in wielding it a long time ago. It was the elements of Harmony, the source of magic in this world had been forced against its very nature to unite against her. To accomplish that, one of the elements had been destroyed; the emotional bond of unconditional love tying the elements together had been annihilated, so that Celestia could dominate the remaining ones.

"CELESTIA! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?!" Luna screamed. Her voice shrill from the massive pain.

Celestia focused so hard she was biting her lip, and it trickled with blood in return. Celestia ignored Luna’s words. She either couldn’t or wouldn’t answer.

"YOU BROKE THEIR BOND AND CORRUPTED THE ELEMENTS!" Luna added.

Her accusation was ignored. Celestia kept working to keep the bombardment of her sister going. Luna was much too dangerous for her to drop the attack for even a fraction of a second. The different flows of power focused through the stones of Harmony caused them to burst with power.

The five elements had been hidden under the repaired marble floor but the power flowing had caused them to break out and rise up. The stones were now hovering above the floor, combining their energy in a massive attack.

Luna desperately looked around; hoping for something she could use to her advantage. Maybe some loyal guard of the night court that could be persuaded to help her by ripping away one of the elements.

She tried again to focus her magic and to shift it outside the trap. She wouldn’t be able to get enough out to harm Celestia, so she had to think about something else. Luna aimed for the roof.

A trickle of energy hit the roof, causing some fresco to fall down but nothing else. Luna was hoping for the roof to fall in. Interfering with the connections between the elements. But that was not to be.

She kept fighting. She wasn’t Luna of The Moon for no reason. Her barriers were the best and she just needed to focus.

Her body had started bleeding all over. She was wracked in huge amounts of pain. Her sister kept chanting her corruption over the essence of Harmony. Didn’t Celestia understand what she was doing to the elements. Was her sister really that ignorant?

Luna felt a bone inside her snap. The pain all over the body was so extreme it didn’t really make a difference. It did however alert her that her concentration was lacking. She had failed to shield herself for a tiny bit and it had cost her.

Then again, as she looked at herself, she didn’t successfully protect herself. Her body was being eaten alive. The corrupted elements didn’t follow regular rules and reason. The elements or harmony was all about balance. They had to be invoked with a compromise. They had preserved that balance long ago when they’ve had enough of the God of Chaos.

She and her sister had been on each side of the scale, and oddly enough, the God of Chaos with the power of Discord was an opposite twin to Harmony and acted like a third lever on the scale, no matter if he wanted it or not.

Now Celestia somehow had bent and forced Harmony to be ruled by a single mind and go against its very core existence of balance between many. How she accomplished that, Luna wasn’t sure, but she could sense that Harmony was being forever destroyed, or at least dying. Just as she was.

Luna felt desperate. This world’s fundamental power was channeled against her and it was impossible to resist. She could do nothing. And she didn’t have long to live. She would die. Her sister would rule on. And there would be nopony to stop her reign of terror. Nopony to preach leniency to the fanatic Goddess of order.

And worst of all, the entire world would be dying as the corrupted Harmony would fail to infuse this world’s beings with the foundation needed for survival, and it would slowly wither and fade. Similar to how a forest is created by water and the lack of water will turn it into a desert.

Celestia looked at her sister. Forcing the magical elements to do her bidding hurt her more than anypony could imagine. A part of the energy she channeled against her sister also hit her and it felt like her blood clogged to icicles as it was rushing back and forth in her body, slicing her from the inside.

A sudden cough had her spit out large chunks of blood. Perhaps the damage it did to her body wasn’t restricted to pain? Celestia felt more and more damage inside her body accumulate while her sister was trashing inside the trap she had built. Her sister, bathing in the full brunt of the onslaught, still had her shields up, and they still prevented the attack from destroying her.

Frustration gripped Celestia in her agony, as she yelled out, "WHY... WON’T... YOU... DIE?!?"

Luna only vaguely heard Celestia’s speak. She had tried everything but couldn’t get away. She knew she would soon run out. All her energy was going for full, and when it finally went extinct, she would crash down instantly. There would be no graceful end. The onslaught was too massive. She wouldn’t fade away. She would disintegrate.

As she felt death get closer, she realized she hadn’t really tried everything. She tried everything in this world. But there are more things to this world, than what’s in it.

She wasn’t the pony who relied on praying, pleading, or worshipping, but it was the kind of thoughts she needed to invoke the next step. To die, wasn’t for an immortal to do. But she had seen enough of death to know about transitions.

She decided to let the hooves go first, and they did. The corrupted Harmony ate them like a tasty biscuit. It hurt a lot. It kept eating itself up her body. She tried to look at her sister. She looked grave, even pained, as she fought vigorously keeping her trap working.

After Luna sacrificed her legs, she decided to make the leap, hoping it would work.

Celestia noticed an implosion inside her trap. A split second later massive amounts of energy fled the trap with a speed that would make a sonic boom look like frozen in time.

The trap collapsed upon itself as there was no longer anything in it.

Celestia felt the backlash of the energy hit her like a sledgehammer. It smashed her to the floor and she passed out.

* * * Some time goes by * * *

The Aftermath

When Celestia woke up the sun had already set. During the morning she had been busy with the elements of Harmony so she hadn’t pushed it to give it some speed. She also wanted to conserve all her strength for the encounter with Luna. So it was going to be a long night. Slightly longer than usual.

She had a gruesome headache. An odd thing for an immortal to have. Her back brought her agony. Not that strange considering the flesh was torn asunder and her spine was visible. Yet that pain wasn’t as intense as her head.

She noticed she had been coughing up blood while unconscious but the dull ache inside of her didn’t feel too bad. Just like her leg it may look bad but her divine power had no problem keeping her body together. As long as she lay still it was tolerable. Only if she moved, it really hurt.

She looked around and saw the elements of Harmony, or rather the stones serving as a gateway to that power. They had lost most their color and looked like common rocks with an uncommon shape, spread out in a wide circle.

She was going to pick them up but as her telekinesis grabbed the first one a static jolt spread through her horn and surged throughout her body, disrupting the very core of her magic that was keeping her wounded body together.

Celestia suppressed a scream and grimaced in pain as she instantly let go of the stone. She spent some time to catch her breath. After a while her crippled body crawled closer to study the scattered elements. She could barely nudge one of them with her hoof but she couldn’t touch them with magic. Even touching them with the hoof seemed to alienate them as would poking a hornet’s nest. Trying to pick them up with her mouth would be devastating. At least with her current migraine.

She decided to sit back and focus on healing while she waited for dawn. She needed to make sure the sun got back to speed or ponies all over the world would start to worry. She could raise the signal at the shack that it was safe to return. A scout should eventually see it and notify the rest. Then again, she really needed to heal her body in order to be presentable so she decided it could wait for a day or two.

~*~*~*~*~