Knowledge and Power

Princess Celestia embodies her title as she approaches, her regal demeanor on full display. Gone is the person that consoled me when I broke down. She's all business now, magenta eyes unblinking and reading me.

She walks towards the bed and her horn glows, the door shutting closed behind her. An aura of gold envelopes the door, and suddenly, all of the sound from outside is washed away.

She doesn't sit, just towers over me. Luna's wings flutter. They exchange a look and Celestia waits.

"Where do you want me to start?" I ask nervously.

"Tell me what happened, in full detail. I will know if you are lying," she says coldly.

"Sister, we spoke about this-"

Luna rises somewhat from her seated position, but a glare from Celestia shoots her down. She sits once-more, an agitated look slowly bleeding over her features. Her wings twitch.

"I want to hear it from him."

I swallow, thinking about how to proceed. I look to the white ceiling. This isn't the castle. The infirmary there was different. Must be somewhere else in Canterlot, maybe. I look back down to see the magenta eyes boring into me. Just be honest.

Just be honest.

"Well, I... I was having a nightmare. I don't remember the details, but it felt like... it felt like Luna-"

"Princess Luna," Celestia interjects coldly.

I pause, then I nod and send a look over to Luna; she seems to share my apprehension. I can only imagine what the conversation between them looked like after everything was said and done. I look back to Celestia.

"It felt like Princess Luna was in trouble when I woke up. Something felt wrong. There were two guards, Steelheart and Sunny Skies. They were assigned to my room..."

Celestia reads me for a moment before bowing her head towards me, I'm guessing to urge me to continue. But I have a question first.

"Did... are they alive?" I ask weakly.

Celestia regards me silently for a moment.

"As far as I know, yes," Luna says. The corner of Celestia's muzzle twitches and her eyes dart over to Luna, but her head doesn't move from it's fixed position, centered on me.

"I wanted them to help me find Lu- Princess Luna," I say, her gaze returns to me.

"They wanted to regroup with everyone else. We were ambushed. There was no infection when Sunny sustained a wound. He was lucid, past the point of no return. I realized we were fighting illusions, specifically... my nightmares. I knew we had to find Princess Luna."

"And how did you know that?" Celestia queries, but the question sounds like a statement.

"It was... instinct, I guess. I wanted to make sure she was safe," I say.

"Why?"

I pause and look to Luna. Then I look back to Celestia. What do you mean 'why?' I evaluate the question in my head, pulling apart her reasoning. Does she suspect I wanted this to happen? To make sure it went on? I flick my tongue over my canines and look her in the eye.

"Because she's important to me," I say as evenly as possible.

I notice Luna move out of the corner of my eye, but I hold Celestia's gaze. Her expression does not change; the monarch's glare, stern and commanding.

"When the apparitions appeared, what happened then?"

I close my eyes to recollect. Visions of blood, combat. Fear. Sunny's wound. Steelheart's anger.

"We fought some more of these illusions on our way to the throne room when I was injured. A slash across the stomach. Something attacked me while Steelheart and Sunny were getting a medic. I was losing consciousness when I heard a woman's voice," I recall.

"Woman?" Celestia asks.

Oh, right.

"Uh, mare. She healed me," I say lamely, unable to get the words to sound any better than that.

"How? Who?"

"I don't how magic works," I shake my head slightly. "As for who, it was Nightmare Moon."

Luna tenses up beside me. Celestia keeps staring at me.

"I didn't know that at the time, I was just grateful I wasn't dead," I add.

Celestia looks to Luna and I see her shift about uncomfortably. Something definitely went down between them. Nightmare Moon seems a touchy subject. I hope...

I hope she made it.

"Okay. What happened next?" Celestia continues.

"Steelheart and Sunny came back with a medic, Peridot Beam. We sent Steelheart and Sunny back because I could tell Steelheart was... he wasn't cut out for it. He was shaken up pretty bad. Peridot was... she was blinded during a fight. Is she... did she make it out? I tried... I tried to..." I feel a knot building in my stomach, my throat tightening.

Celestia doesn't answer, and her eyes convey no more information on the subject. My heart drops. I bite my lip to stop it from trembling.

"What did you do?" Celestia presses.

I take a moment to collect myself and look at Luna. She averts her gaze, then looks to Celestia with a pleading expression. My eyes are watering again. God damn it. I got her killed. I killed her. I sent her out and she-

No. Calm down. There's time for that later. I clench my jaw and breathe. Luna puts a hoof back into the bed, and I don't hesitate to take it. I look back to the pair, their manes floating in invisible wind.

"I tried to get her out of there," I say glumly, "but I knew we weren't going to outrun the Dash Four. We were both wounded," I choke out.

Celestia doesn't say anything, but when I meet her gaze again, I can tell there's a question in her features. Maybe she's about to ask, maybe not. I decide to go ahead and elaborate.

"A Dash Four is... well, it's a naturally armored killing machine. The only purpose it has is the complete destruction of anything in the way," I say, my eyes closed and my right hand tightening into a fist. The nails dig into my palm. I grab the rail on the side of the cot and squeeze. I look up and find those magenta knives dissecting me again.

"We couldn't kill it, either. I figured... I figured better me than her."

Something changes in Celestia. It's small, but it's there. I let go of Luna's hoof and feel it retract slowly from the bed. They're both watching me, waiting.

"Better you than her?" Celestia echoes, emotionless.

I nod and chew on my lip for a moment. The dam is threatening to give way again. Gnawing... clawing...

"Better I die," I push the words out painfully, "I ran out there to distract the thing while she ran to safety."

Luna's head swivels towards me, her cyan eyes brimming with... something. There's anger in her face, but she employs her the even tone of her sister.

"You... you tried to fight it?" Luna inquires.

I chuckle mirthlessly.

"No, just piss it off. They don't die easy and I knew the AK wasn't going to cut it. The rifle, uh... weapon I came with."

Luna and Celestia appear to be talking to each other non-verbally. If it's an argument, discussion, I can't tell. All I know from these looks is that it's fairly involved. Celestia looks back to me slowly. Her expression seems to have softened some, but not by much.

"Why not?" she asks.

"Multiple reasons. I was out of ammunition, and because the thing shrugs off bullets like they're mosquitoes. If I had a tank, maybe. Doesn't matter," I murmur.

"You are still alive, though. How did you survive the encounter with the 'Dash Four?'" Celestia asks.

Does she think I planned this? That I could control them? I shake my head and give her a small, empty smile. A hollow shell of a smile.

"Sheer dumb luck. It was in the garden. It was charging towards me and I shut my eyes, waiting to get pulverized. It missed me, went over the edge of the railing, impaled itself on a statue that I don't think should have survived the impact. It did, though, speared it clean through. Killed the fuckin' thing," I finish, a satisfied tone working it's way in at the end.

They both pick up on it, Celestia's left ear twitches, and Luna looks... I can't figure it out.

"Sorry," I whisper. I close my eyes and let out an anxious sigh.

"It died on the statue of Discord," Celestia surmises, looking towards Luna.

"Uh... yeah," I say, unsure of whatever that means.

"Go on," Celestia pushes.

"I-..." my throat clenches shut and the sound cuts out. I wince.

I lay my head back and open my eyes, then look at the window. The curtains are drawn, white linens glowing with the light of the sun beyond. I look back to Celestia and I clear my throat.

"Can I have some water?" I ask weakly.

She doesn't remove her eyes from me, doesn't blink. Has she blinked at all since we've started? She levitates a pitcher of water from a nearby table, a glass following it. Ice clinks within the pitcher. I'm struck with a strange sense of déjà vu. I take the glass in my hands when it's filled, the glow dissipating and the weight sinking into my palms.

I have a sip, the cold water traveling down my throat. The sip turns to eager gulps and I shut my eyes. I didn't know how thirsty I was. I offer the glass back into the air and watch as it's taken away by that magical aura, stashed away somewhere.

I clear my throat again and start over.

"I went back the way we came, looking for Peridot. When I was passing the throne room doors, I noticed the steps reforming. I took it as a sign to continue with the mission."

Why'd I use that word?

"The mission?"

"To find Princess Luna, to end the nightmare," I say, furrowing my brow.

"You did not have a plan, did you?" Luna asks beside me. I shake my head.

"No. I was banking on Peridot to help me solve everything, but with her wounds, I knew she wouldn't make it. I didn't want to sacrifice anyone else," I say detachedly.

"But thou... you were injured yourself. Why did you continue?" Luna urges. Celestia shoots her a look.

Is she defending me? She sounds like a lawyer. I give her a defeated smile.

"Because it had to end. I couldn't let my past kill your present, kill your future. I had to try."

No one says anything for a few minutes. I look back to the window.

"You went ahead, with no plan, wounded and alone. You understand how easily you could have died, correct?" Celestia asks.

I shrug, as best I can when everything is sore as all Hell. I look back to her, frustration mounting.

"It either works or I die. I only had one option," I say defensively.

"Continue," Celestia says quickly after.

Luna stands on all four hooves beside me, looking at Celestia. They share glares.

"Sister."

"Let him speak," Celestia says. Luna doesn't sit back down.

"I thought I went into the throne room, but I'm guessing that's not what happened?"

They both look back to me. Luna's face softens. Celestia bows her head forward again.

"Tell me what you saw."

I take in a breath, thinking about how this will play out. How much do I share? Just be honest. But what if that honesty gets Luna into something? Given the way they've been acting, I can only guess there's something to unpack there, all the tension and anger hiding in the room.

"I saw Nightmare Moon. She wanted me to help her... reunite? Assimilate with Luna. Princess Luna," I say awkwardly.

Celestia nods. Luna's eyes are searching mine.

"Did you know about her past?"

"She told me, showed me," I answer.

"And you trusted her? Trusted what she showed you?"

"Sister," Luna abruptly cuts in.

Before they can go at it again, I answer, looking at Luna.

"I did. She reminded me of Princess Luna. She said they were once the same person. Or pony. She said the Elements of Harmony ripped her soul in two. And I trust her," I say, more to Luna than Celestia. Luna gives me a ghost of a smile.

Celestia, on the other-hand... well, it looks like someone shit in her cereal. That impassive, undeterred look is gone.

"I was not made aware of that," she says, pointedly and facing Luna. There's a defensive tone in there, almost accusatory.

I hop back in, trying to keep things civil.

"I don't know much about souls or anything like that, but I could see she was telling the truth. Luna... I had a feeling there was something eating her up," I say to Celestia.

"How did you know she was telling the truth?"

"I just knew. I could see it in her face, her eyes. There was pain there. She was in pain. A thousand years on the moon? Having to live as a ghost, a spectator to your own life... it must have been torture," I say to Luna. She looks at the bed and closes her eyes, that same pain in her face.

I guess they're one person now. For better or for worse.

"Something I'm familiar with," I add, looking at Celestia again.

"She said that Luna created a magical construct to punish herself for becoming Nightmare Moon, said that this Tantabus was feeding off of an intruder in my head. I was supposed to speak with Luna to wake her up, convince her to join with Nightmare Moon to fix things. I didn't know the intruder was waiting for me in her dreams," I explain.

"The thing... it was playing with me. It looked like me. It killed me, over and over, threw me into memories I don't recall, but it brought me back each time. Made me forget who I was. What I was doing. Everything was a blur. Next thing I know, I'm on top of it, killing it. Killing it..." I clench my teeth, remembering the white-hot rage I felt. The determination. The cold.

I feel saliva building in my mouth and sweat on my brow. I shut my eyes and remember the sting, my innards torn out. My blood seeping from my body. The infinite cosmos above, sitting there while I died. How alone I was. I bite my lip, hard. I pull in a broken breath and continue.

"Then I died. For real. I don't know if it's because I was in a dream, but it... it felt like forever. Like each second was an eternity. I could feel... everything, just slipping away."

"And I woke up here," I finish, opening my eyes to see Luna with tears in her eyes. Celestia has gone cold again.

"Is there anything else?"

"I saw one of Luna's distant memories, I think. When she was a child... or foal. But she wasn't an alicorn. She was a unicorn.

"That is not true. Luna has never been a unicorn."

"I must agree, I have no memory of that. Perhaps it was a dream?" Luna adds.

"No, it was too detailed. It felt real. I don't know how to explain it."

"Something to revisit later," Celestia says.

"That's it," I say. They remain silent.

Luna's hoof returns to the bed and I slowly meet it with my fingers. I keep my gaze down on it.

"Hmm. Your account is truthful. Peridot Beam is alive, permanently blinded, but alive. She is interred here at Canterlot General," Celestia declares. I look up and find that her mask has dropped, now replaced with a softer gaze.

My heart swells immediately. I grit my teeth as anger, confusion and relief descend over me. I open my mouth to say something, but my throat closes up again. She's alive? I blink and tears are in my eyes. I gasp as I try to get myself under control. When I clear the overwhelming sensations, she's looking at me apologetically.

"You..." I growl, my hand retreating from Luna, bed sheets scrunched up in my fingers.

"I had to be sure you were giving me honesty," she says slowly, "I did not want to reveal any more information than necessary."

I struggle to keep myself in check, fury building inside my heart.

"I hope you understand, and I am sorry for the deceit," she says genuinely, eyes locked on mine. The waves of anger crash and explode on rocks of hate, the EKG spiking as my heart rate climbs. I throw my right arm out at the machine and send it to the floor, the signal cutting out with a shriek. I shut my eyes tight.

You...

I swallow down the bubbling lava. I pound my fist on the railing of the cot and squeeze my forehead with my other hand. Tears fall from my face in relief and I start laughing. When the laughs are gone, it's just bitterness. But I understand. I do. Doesn't mean I have to like it.

"I understand," I say finally.

"You lied about was this plague, if it even is that. You did not give us the truth. What if you had brought it back with you? How would we have prepared for such a terrible possibility?" Celestia scolds.

Those words... they shift something in my brain. I look up to her. You want to play this game?

"You couldn't have, not even had I told you," I say defiantly.

Indignant anger settles on her features. Doesn't like back-talk does she? She opens her mouth, but the time for dialogue is over. It's my turn.

"Everything's too peaceful here. There's no struggle, there's no bloodshed," I advance, sitting up.

"The spears in your armory are blunted, your armies are untrained. You don't kill, don't understand it. You might have fought back the old humans, but you've forgotten the war. You're technologically stagnant, and the technology you do have hasn't progressed in any meaningful way towards the possibility of containment."

Luna shifts uncomfortably beside me, her eyes betraying her aversion to my outburst. But there's more coming. Remorse builds, but the anger wins over.

"You want me to tell you the truth? What we're really dealing with? You're not going to like the answer, because you're right, it's no plague. It's not a disease like the flu, or the cold. Medicine doesn't do shit against it, it's anomalous, it doesn't play by any rules," I sneer, then I scoff.

Celestia silently challenges me to continue. Her gaze hardens. I plan on it.

"And the worst part?" I laugh darkly. I lean forward.

"It's intelligent. It doesn't bargain, it doesn't reason. It plans and it infiltrates, waiting for opportune moments to strike. Bombs and guns and swords and fire don't root out the traitors hiding in your population, banking on the promise of an incomprehensible horror to give them power and reward them for dooming your race," I say bitterly.

"It consumes what it doesn't destroy, and it will never give up. The hunger doesn't end. It will feed until there's nothing left. You have magic, sure, but if one of you had been infected? Princess Luna wasn't even infected, and whatever parasite was riding along in my head nearly toppled the Equestrian government!" I bark.

Understanding seems to settle over the room. Luna, innately familiar in the way only someone in my head could be, has a somber look in her eyes. Celestia's resolve seems to be fleeting. I can tell the terrible truth of it all is settling in. Good. Time to hammer home my point.

"Imagine what your power means to something like that. It's not a threat, it's an asset."

Before I have time to bask in my victory, the crushing sensation of regret blankets my heat. My chest tightens when I look back to Luna, a strange mixture of emotions in her eyes, an expression I don't like on her features. Celestia fares worse. I swallow back the vitriol and lay back. I look into the ceiling.

No one speaks.

"I want you to tell me what we could be facing," Celestia says. I send my eyes her way, a grim resolve on her face. I sigh.

"You want me to tell you what we're dealing with?"

"Yes," she affirms resolutely. Good. We'll need that.

I look to Luna, and see that the same look is in her eyes. I shut mine.

"Then we need to start at the beginning, when the Earth was a battlefield... with the birth of mankind."

Author's Note

I have done no edits! Hope you all enjoy, let me know what you think and if there's any mistakes! Catch you all later!