A Shimmering Moon with a princess on High
Author's Note
I tried to fix what I could see, please if anything is super wrong give me a shout I will work on it.
A Shimmering Moon with a princess on High
A Shimmering Moon with a princess on High
The very air around Luna shook. It shook with the force of an uncountable number of missiles that were slamming into the force field she and Celestia had only just managed to raise. It seemed as if the very wrath of Tartarus raged against the barrier as they poured more magic to compensate, her horn aching as they did so. The force of the attack putting more stress on the young Alicorns magic then she thought it would, but that didn't matter, She could deal with a little magical burn out if it meant that she would save the very subjects she ruled, even if it was this one city, she would save them.
The secondary explosion deafened her, it had almost sounded like it had come from inside the shield, but that should not be possible, yet it was only a moment that the Lunar princess' fears were proven true as a pink pony eating cloud rushed over her and Celestia. To say it hurt, to say that it burned, could not describe the pain that followed. The pink cloud latched onto her like a parasite eating at her very flesh, it seared away the magical enchantment on the regalia that she wore, the very thing that showed her the as the pony leader becoming grafted to her boiling flesh.
She breathed in and wished that she had not, the pink cloud rolled into her lungs like a starving animal, eating away at them as if it was the last meal of the damned. She was instantly racked with a coughing fit, bloody pink gunk, and pieces of her ravaged lungs flying out of her mouth coating her once beautiful fur in its vile color, and leaking from his still open mouth. She looked to Celestia who was having much of the same troubles, just not as bad, her older more powerful body fighting off this cloud with more efficiency, but that only meant a more painful, and slow death. She turned to look out at the guards and servants that had been in the ballroom with them. She fought back a gag.
Her little ponies were lucky in a sense, their more frail bodies couldn't stand the cloud as easily as her and Celestia, and had died quick enough as to not suffer for long, yet it didn't make it any better to look at. Her guards were nothing but balls of metal slag, as there armor melted and flowed over their dead and dying bodies, some choking as it made it way down their throats, but most died quickly sinking into the floor of the pink covered ballroom, their minds shutting down as they died from the shock of such a thing, never knowing what killed them.
This wasn't supposed to happen, she never wanted this to happen. She and Celestia only wanted what was best for their subjects, she never wanted this war, she never wanted this death.
Luna’s magic started to fail, she couldn't continue, as she sank down laying on the floor in defeat, what was their left to do, she had failed her sister, her friend, her subjects, she FAILED everypony, so she asked herself again what was left to do. Die with them was the only answer.
Her magic stopped completely now, she could hear Celestia shout out her name, but couldn't hear the next words, she was to busy wondering what it was like to die, would it hurt. Celestia favored her mothers thoughts on such a thing, that only green fields awaited them in the afterlife.
Luna saw more of her fathers point of view, that not matter what death was going to be, it would be wildly unfair in its descension of when her time came, it would not listen to pleads, it would not take gift or brides or deals, death would come and with him the only inevitable truth of the world. That everypony has their time to pass on, no matter how unfair it may seem, and to what laid beyond such a heavy vail was only to be known by those who walk its one way path.
Luna could hear Celestia screaming for her now, she had closed her eyes, her breathing faded as she thought of her friends.
Twilight Sparkle, the student of her sister, was one of the strongest ponies she had ever met, and gave herself to helping the war, not only with her own hooves but her mind. She and the ministry put out so many things that saved so many lives, she had done so much, both good and bad, but in the end, Luna truly saw her as the very savoir that she was, it was a shame that Luna could never return such an act to twilight. Her last hope for such a pony was that if Twilight was to die, that her death was a swift one.
Applejack, that honest mare, gave so much to the war, to Celestia, to Equestria. Her brother died for her sister, and that wonderful mare gave all she could to make sure that no pony had to make such a sacrifice again. She gave so much that even on her near death bed she fought for Equestria ponies safety, Luna can only hope that she made to that vault at her home, she could only hope that the poor mare's sister made it there as well, so that she didn't lose anymore of herself in this damned war.
Rarity, what couldn't she say about Rarity, for such a lady of high class, she was a pony that really did the most dirty work, and not in a bad way. Luna knew that her other friend gave parts of themselves for the war, so that Equestia could see peace like it once had, but Rarity that mare gave her very soul to keep the glue that held Equestria together from breaking apart. Luna was no fool; she could sense it in those figures. She gave herself so that others could be more than just the parts that they were. She could only hope that the fashionista would forgive her for never wearing that dress to the gala.
Rainbow Dash, that loyal, strong, dumb mare, headstrong on the best of days, a mule on the worst. A worrier born in times of peace, sharpened on the grindstone of war, reforged and honed on the battlefield, and for all her strength and boasting she was a true friend. She never abandons those in need even in times of anger and stress, one moment screaming at somepony, the next saving their life as if it was another day on the job, even if it almost killed her. Luna prayed to whatever gods may have been still around that if the mare did die it would be with honor and strength, so that in the afterlife they could talk of past battles with a merry tune.
Next, was that crazy mare Pinkamena Diane Pie, or Pinkie Pie. If Rarity kept the glue together, then Pinkie was that glue, covered in glitter and getting on in years, but still glue. Pinkie was one of the six that Luna feared for the most, age was not as kind, yet pinkie never showed it, Luna knew of the drugs, hoping that pinkie could fix it herself, or that the others would help show her the errors of her ways, yet, now that mattered not. Pinkie was in Manehattan, she had Business there and had told Luna before leaving, apologizing that she couldn't stay longer to plan the gala. The poor Pink mare was most likely dead now. Dancing circles around the grim reaper pony as he probably did his best not to kill her a second time.
Luna's mind wilted at the last pony, Fluttershy. If this world had any innocents left in it, any kindness left in the black heart that now scorched the land, then the mare had died before she came to see what became of her home. Luna with what strength she had left, gave a smile at thought of the timid mare, No matter what happened, no matter how bad it seemed, no matter the mistakes, that mare loved and cared for everything. She showed nothing but kindness to the world, she held nothing back, took nothing in return. It didn't matter if it was a pony or zebra, that wonderful mare saw only a life worth saving. Luna hoped that after this day, more ponies like her would come to walk the world, to fix what she had broken.
Luna’s thoughts became muddled as the feeling in her mind and body slipped away, the sound of her sisters pleading fading like a fog in the morning sun, she knew it was time, she could feel it. It was time for her to die, she found herself wondering one thing, would it hurt?
The first thing Luna heard was music, was she not dead, why was she hearing such beautiful music. She opened her eyes and gaped, she was in the castle ballroom, the pink cloud gone, the dead and dying ponies that once littered the floor were nowhere to be seen. Instead the room was filled to the brim with celebrating ponies, drinking to music that played from the stage that her friends stood upon waving to the ponies of the grand galloping gala. The cruel age that racked them in the closing of the war is gone, replaced with the innocent youth they once held. Luna felt tears falling from her eyes as she looked around taking in all the ponies she failed to save, happy and safe, and celebrating.
“Would you care to dance princess” a smooth voice called out from behind her, making Luna jump, she turned to see the speaker and her throat caught. It was a skeleton of a pony in a dark cloak, yet instead of a blade that he was so know for, he held a cane, a top hat in place of the hood of his cloak, that laid bare on his back.
She looked to him, then to room of celebrating ponies, finding her voice was hard, keeping it steady with the flooding of emotions was even harder, she fell to her haunches as she spoke "why, why would you show this to me" her voice cracked with new tears flowing "why show me only the shadows of the dead"
With a long sigh death sat beside her resting his thin legs on the top of his cane “that is because these are not shadows Luna” He looked about the rom as he spoke “this is a world where the war never happened”
Luna eyes went wide as he looked about once more taking in all she could, tear still flowing “so then why gloat of my failures, Why show me this”
Death shook his head his eyes staring off into nothing “to show you that even with what happened it is not the end, they are still alive out here” death turned putting a hoof against Luna chest “ and here” his hoof fell as a light shined between them “It was not just your fault for what happened, thier deaths are not only on your hooves, the failures of everypony are not to be carried by one, no matter her rank or strength”
Luna looked at death and asked the question “Will it hurt to die”
“Only if you aren't ready” death replied, and with that the world went white.
