Author's Note

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Chapter 6, No way to turn back, part 2

After my reconciliation with Celly, it seemed like a calm had settled in her mind. The discomfort I had been feeling faded, and life seemed lighter. The familiar atmosphere of home, one I had known since childhood, returned. Celly seemed to have found new strength after realizing that all our issues had been resolved. If before she appeared rather downcast — her wings folded, her face lowered, her gaze distant — now she was the complete opposite. She spread her wings as befitting a majestic alicorn, holding her head high, showing that every problem could be overcome.

“In moments like these, she’s just so adorable!”

Though I was still a little mad at her and all that, just look at how proudly she walked after making up with me. Like a ruler in her palace, a ruler in her palace, hee-hee-hee.

Meanwhile, Celly confidently exited her office. The castle of the two sisters was quite fascinating in itself. I remember back when it was being built, Celly and Luna argued a lot about the castle’s interior design. Luna wanted darker tones for the decor and furniture, while Celly favored everything light and grand. There were many discussions; once, they almost fought, but sisters are sisters, and they found a compromise that suited them both. They divided the castle into three sections. The first and most important was the throne room and banquet halls, situated in the middle, serving as a sort of neutral zone. This is where most events, meetings with the aristocracy, balls, and state celebrations took place.

The second and third areas were reserved for Celestia's and Luna’s quarters. These were located on either side of the throne room, which divided the castle into day and night. Luna's section was called the night part, while Selly’s was the day part.

After finishing all our business, Celly and I moved from her office to the throne room. The design was quite interesting: it began with a large hallway lined with numerous arches that led to banquet halls, ending with the grand hall of the two sisters. The walls were adorned with high-quality tapestries, and the floor was covered with a red carpet. The throne room itself was magnificent — a spacious and pompous room. It felt like the very embodiment of Equestria. The room was well lit, with stained glass windows in the walls, and above, instead of the typical concrete ceiling, there was a large skylight. On the floor was the symbol of Equestria — a crescent moon and the sun. The carpet led directly to the thrones of the two sisters, positioned on tall platforms with stairs leading up to them. One throne was for Celestia, the other for Luna. Although Celestia was the queen and Luna the princess, the thrones were on the same level, symbolizing their equality. On either side of the platforms were entrances to other parts of the castle.

We approached the entrance to the night section when suddenly a pair of thestrals blocked our way. These are a special kind of pony with vertical pupils, usually dark-furred, with bat-like wings instead of the feathered wings of pegasi. This is a unique army of ponies that Luna once saved from extinction. They call themselves thestrals and serve Luna exclusively. I don’t know all the details of the story — Luna didn’t share much about it — but just looking at them, you could see their unwavering loyalty to Luna, as if serving the princess of the night was their life's mission. Lost in thought, I hadn’t noticed that the thestrals were adamantly refusing to let us enter Luna’s territory. I wondered why.

“Celly, is something wrong with them?” I asked my friend.

“Daybie, it seems they don’t want to let us in,” Celly replied, sounding slightly frightened.

“Then show them your power,” I nudged her.

“We cannot allow you into the night castle,” said one of the thestrals, his voice slightly shaky, breaking the silence.

“What do you mean?” Celly asked authoritatively. Even without using the Canterlot Voice, she sounded intimidating.

The two thestrals flinched at her question. Their hooves trembled, betraying their anxiety. Like chicks before a griffon, they stood before the ruler of Equestria. After my little metaphor, Celly raised her head even higher, showing her clear superiority, exerting enormous pressure on the small thestrals.

“Princess Luna has ordered that Queen Celestia must not enter under any circumstances,” one of the thestrals said, as if struggling against the weight of her presence.

Though they were afraid and trembling, they stood their ground. I respected that.

“Celly, should I just knock them out?” I asked suggestively.

“No! What would Luna say about that? Did you think about that?”

Darn it, she’s right. If I cause a scene here, it’ll only lead to trouble. I needed to smooth things over before we made things worse. How hadn’t I thought of that?

“Sorry, I’ve been out of training for a while. My hooves are itching…” I confessed to Celly.

Her expression grew stern at my words.

“Better reign it in for now,” she said, sounding like a teacher.

“All right, all right, mom, I’ll behave,” I said, lowering my head like a child apologizing for a prank.

After my comment, Selly’s face turned an unfamiliar shade of blush. It was a soft red, revealing a bashfulness I hadn’t seen before. Gone was her teacher-like expression, replaced by genuine surprise at my teasing.

“Stop it, don’t call me mom!” she said, blushing even more.

“Okay, hee-hee! But what are we going to do about the thestrals?” I asked, changing the subject.

And with that, we both returned to reality and realized that we had been standing there the whole time with stoic expressions. Meanwhile, the two thestrals were trembling more than ever. Their teeth were chattering openly, showing just how afraid they were of us. It seemed like, with just a little more pressure, they would run off and leave the path open.

“For now, I think we should retreat,” I suggested to Celestia, who was assessing the situation.

“Yes, you’re right, Daybie. There’s no need for violence here. We’ll come back tomorrow,” Celly concluded.

I had no objections to visiting Luna tomorrow. But something was bothering me. Why had Luna forbidden her sister from entering her territory? That had never happened before. Sure, they’d argued and quarreled sometimes, but they always made up and continued living together as sisters should. What had changed? Could Selly’s words have hurt Luna that much? So many questions, and so few answers…

***

Several days passed, and we still couldn't reach Luna. During that time, Celestia became very nervous and on edge. She didn’t look good—her eyes were swollen, either from crying or lack of sleep; her head hung low, and she didn’t even spread her wings. Her work slowed down as she spent hours pondering over every decree. In meetings with the aristocracy, she stopped being polite, and at any criticism, she’d yell and storm out of the council chamber. The aristocrats started to fear her so much that they mostly stayed silent during meetings—only Celly spoke. I did my best to calm her down, but it wasn’t working. Celly started getting up in the middle of the night to try and reach the castle’s night wing again, but they kept turning her away. At first, she took the refusals in stride, but lately, she’d been openly begging them to let her see Luna. The thestrals just shrugged, saying they had no other orders. We figured Luna just needed some time, so we didn’t press the issue. But now, I have no idea what’s going on in the night wing of the castle.

***

Celly’s condition kept deteriorating. She became paranoid in the middle of the night, talking to herself and throwing out wild theories about why her sister wasn’t letting her visit. It was like she stopped noticing me altogether, as if I were just another voice in her head. Meanwhile, I was lost in my own thoughts. I started to believe that Luna wasn’t mad at all—she’d probably just come to her own conclusions and made a decision. I mean, there’s no way Luna could be so upset that she’d refuse to see her own sister in her part of the castle. I couldn’t sleep at night either—this whole situation gnawed at me. It felt like I was missing something important. I couldn’t stop thinking about Luna’s face during her last words—her gaze, full of pain, yet with a strange determination. It was like she had made up her mind, with no way back.

“She’s planning something!” The realization hit me.

But what? It couldn’t be anything good. Quite the opposite.

“Who put this idea in her head?” I kept asking myself, trying to piece it together logically.

She’s not the kind of pony who would hurt someone in return. She’s sensitive, shy, and forgiving—like Celly, but less decisive in some matters. She’d never come to such a decision on her own. That means she wouldn’t harm Celly, but what is she planning?

“If she’s decided to do something dangerous, then someone must be supporting her—supporting her so fervently that they’re offering ideas to resolve the conflict,” I theorized.

I needed to remember everything Luna had ever mentioned in our conversations. What had she said? What had she brought up casually? How did she react to certain words?

“Just casual chats, talks about nothing, about food, about the weather, about fashion, funny stories about Celly, talks about second personalities…”

The second personality… I had never met Luna’s other side, but I knew she existed.

“How did Luna describe her again?”

“A wonderful advisor and friend, always there to support her…” I recalled her words.

Always there to support her…

“That’s it!” The realization hit me like a puzzle finally coming together.

She’s sensitive like Luna, right?

So, if I’ve been studying combat skills, and Celie’s taken control of the state, does that mean Luna’s doing the same? Luna handles events and ceremonies, right? Then Luna’s second personality must be learning combat too, so if anything happens to Celly, she can step in to help. The thestrals also had a training ground, but it was located beyond the castle’s night wing.

“Nightmare Moon, what are you planning?” I asked myself, already knowing the answer.

“I need to keep an eye on her!” I shouted, my thoughts racing.

***

From that moment on, I decided to keep silent and gather all the information I could, watching through Celie’s eyes. I wanted to ask Celly to let me take control of the body for a few hours, but I doubted she’d agree. She was already too fragile to disturb. The flow of information was slow, but even that was enough to draw some conclusions. So, what do we know?

First: the number of thestrals had decreased drastically, weakening the castle’s security—meaning part of the guard had left.

“But where?”

Second: Luna hadn’t appeared in the throne room or anywhere else in neutral territory.

The second follows from the first. If the guard had decreased, then Luna was also gone. I doubt she had forgiven her sister.

“Where did Luna go?”

“How did she slip past our guards unnoticed, and why didn’t the thestrals mention Luna leaving?”

Eventually, the servants or chefs bringing her food would’ve noticed her absence. So, she must be leaving for a certain amount of time and then returning. Luna once said she only lets Nightmare Moon out at night. So, all of this is happening because of Luna’s second personality. As far as I know, Nightmare Moon wouldn’t just wander around the castle for no reason. That means she’s going out with a specific purpose, and it’s clearly not a casual stroll if the guards are leaving with her. There’s information that parts of the thestral army were stationed outside the castle. There are about one and a half thousand soldiers, if I’m not mistaken. In the castle, we have only a thousand of our own, not counting the forces stationed beyond its walls.

Piecing everything together, it seems that Nightmare Moon is leaving at night with her guards to go… somewhere, likely to those thestral forces.

“But why would she be visiting her army at night?” I asked myself.

What does an alicorn do at night with her personal army, without informing anyone? In ancient Equestrian history books, this is exactly how armed revolts began. Does this mean…

"SHE'S PLANNING AN UPRISING!" I shouted in Celly’s mind.

"Who's planning an uprising?" Celly asked wearily, looking up from state documents.

"Celly! If I’m not mistaken, Nightmare Moon is preparing an armed rebellion to overthrow both of us."

Celly's eyes widened at my words. It seemed the exhaustion vanished instantly, and she was fully awake in a heartbeat.

"What are you talking about, Daybie?" Celestia asked cautiously, slowly approaching me in our mind, as if not believing what she'd heard.

"The thestral guard has decreased, right? Luna hasn’t left her part of the castle, meaning she’s gone. But the servants report nothing! So, she leaves, but only at specific times, namely…"

"Wait, wait, what are you getting at?" Celly interrupted, clearly not understanding my point.

"Celly! What I’m about to say might shock you. Promise me you won’t snap at me," I said, sitting down in front of her in a comfortable position.

"Fine, I promise. Just get to the point, please," Celly said tiredly.

Celly sat down too, sensing the gravity of the conversation. Her whole posture showed that she was fully engaged.

"As I said, the guard has thinned out. So the thestrals are leaving, but no one notices, right?"

Celly nodded, clearly pondering this.

"It follows that they leave at night to remain unnoticed, just like Nightmare Moon," I speculated.

"Why do you think Nightmare Moon is behind all this?" Celly asked, quite reasonably.

"Luna herself would never do such a thing, which means someone is helping her. And that someone can only be Nightmare Moon!" I declared, crossing my hooves confidently.

Selly’s face darkened. She lowered her head, staring down at her hooves. I could almost feel the temperature in her mind drop twenty degrees.

"How can you accuse my sister of this based on mere guesses and assumptions?" Celly whispered so quietly that only I could hear.

"Well, I’ve thought a lot about it, gathering information, and based on that, I’ve made a reasonable hypothesis…"

"HOW COULD YOU EVEN THINK SUCH A THING?" Selly’s voice boomed across the space in her mind.

I shut my eyes and pressed my hooves to my ears to avoid going deaf from her scream. It felt like a ringing echoed in my head. When I opened my eyes, I saw a terrifying sight. Her eyes wide open, her mane rippling, her fur bristling, and a fierce snarl on her face. Celly jumped up beside me, staring at me so angrily that I thought I’d done something irreparable.

"Celly, listen! What I’m saying is crucial!" I also stood up, determined to prove my point.

I saw Celly regain control, the anger fading into disgust, but she remained tense, keeping her distance.

"Alright. Let’s say you’re right. What do you propose?" Celestia's tone shifted to one of disdain.

"I suggest we investigate. Take our guards and go to Luna’s chambers at night. If I’m wrong, you can talk to her calmly. I’ll even apologize if you want."

"Don’t even think about it!" Celly ordered.

"But why? What harm can come from a simple check?" I asked, bewildered.

"A SIMPLE CHECK?!" Celestia shouted. "To go to Luna’s chambers with armed guards—do you call that a simple check?!"

I paused, unable to grasp her meaning. Celly seemed to notice this and calmed down to explain.

"How can you speak of Luna like this? Planning a coup to overthrow me… She would never do that—I’m her sister!" Celly said to prove her point.

"Luna wouldn’t, but Nightmare Moon could," I suggested. "We don’t even know who she is! What if she’s been manipulating Luna, Luna agreed, and now Nightmare Moon is doing whatever she pleases?" I laid out my plausible theory.

Celly didn’t reply. She lowered her gaze, lost in deep thought. Time seemed to stop as I watched my friend. After a while, Celly looked up, speaking calmly.

"I understand, Daybie, there’s some truth to your theory. But I simply refuse to believe it. If Nightmare Moon is up to something, I need to talk to her. This issue can only be solved through conversation," my friend reasoned. "What you’re suggesting is unacceptable. How could I storm into my own sister’s chambers at night with armed guards? What would she think of me?"

"I get it, Celly. But I still think we need to investigate."

"Daybie…"

"I won’t insist. But from now on, stay alert. Be prepared for anything," I warned Celly.

"Alright, Daybie, I’ve heard you," Celly said, returning to her royal duties.

Oh, how wrong Celly was not to listen to me back then. So very wrong…