Elemental Chaos
Dark blue velvet curtains swished against dark stone walls, carefully painted with stars arranged neatly in constellations. At the foot of a king sized bed, a lone figure sat and started meaningfully out of its window. Underneath the clear night sky in a tower of Canterlot castle, sat Princess Luna, set comfortably on her haunches and eagerly studying the blanket of stars laid out in front of her. She had raised the moon just a few hours ago, and was perfecting her stars that hung gracefully in the sky. She was just finishing the last one when a heavy door behind her clicked open. She already knew who her company was, and she didn't turn around until a soft voice addressed her.
"Is your night sky done Luna?" A tall white figure with a colourful flowing mane and tail stood elegantly in the doorway. A gold collar hung around her neck, accompanied by a shining crown. Princess Celestia smiled at her younger sister. Luna got up and wandered over to her.
"The night is risen sister."
Celestia smiled. "Good. I'm off to bed now. Don't spend all night rearranging the stars."
Luna giggled as her sister nuzzled her affectionately. "Good night Tia."
The elder sister walked back out the door, closing it quietly and leaving the dark blue alicorn by herself.
Luna looked around her bed chambers. Along several walls laid shelves lined with books, disorganised by her searching rapidly through books on several occasions. Her wardrobe was in the corner, along with a tall sparkling mirror. However where she spent a lot of her time was at her desk. She glanced over to it. Scrolls and books where stacked high, threatening to topple over. Broken quills and empty ink pots where scattered over the floor around it. A gust of wind fluttered through the window, blowing a few pieces of parchment about.
'Perhaps I should tidy it up a bit' she thought to herself. Her horn glowed a brilliant blue, and items began levitating back to their proper places. She stacked the books on their shelves, and threw the broken quills and empty ink pots in the bin. She walked over to the desk and started sorting out various pieces of parchment.
"Royal Guard timetable…need that…last week's court schedule…don't need that…" Talking quietly, she sorted through them, crumpling up and tossing aside anything she no longer needed. As she was getting to the last few pieces of parchment, something caught her eye. It was stained a lot darker than any other parchment she had. Brushing a few things aside, she levitated it up to her. She quickly let out a small gasp, and the scroll dropped from her grasp. She instantly recognised the seal as one of Nightmare Moon. Memories flooded back to her and she shivered.
"No…I was so sure I got rid of all of those scrolls…" She shook her head. She picked up the scroll and held it firmly with her teeth. She walked up to the window and glanced around, before spreading her majestic wings and soaring into the sky. She flew around the castle before the royal gardens came into view. She landed quietly down there, and sat down on a patch of grass. The general buzz of Canterlot was dying down, the birds were singing their last song before they settled down to sleep, and the area gradually became quieter. She dropped the scroll onto the grass in front of her, contemplating whether she should open it or not. Eventually she gave in. Breaking the seal with her magic, she unrolled the parchment and read what was inside.
"Dear Nightmare Moon,
The elements are indeed very much alive. Although the location of a sixth is unknown, its presence is definitely there. Deep in the Everfree Forest, ruins lie that contain the five elemental stones. At your command, I can protect these, and ensure they remain hidden.
Dark Starshine"
She gulped. Although the letter was from many years ago, its memories still seemed fresh. After the elements turned her back to her righteous form, Luna had forgotten about her followers, and assumed that like Nightmare Moon, they had been destroyed. But she knew that Dark Starshine was no ordinary follower. Up until this moment, she had been erased from Luna's mind. Luna hadn't seen or heard of her since her defeat anyway. She got up and paced back and forth. 'What should I do? Should I just ignore it? It's true that I'd forgotten all about her up until now…should I tell my sister?' She glanced around nervously. Then she remembered. As Nightmare Moon, she had formed a telepathic bond with Dark Starshine, allowing them to communicate by mind. This power had been taken from her when she got trapped in the moon, but since coming back she had no idea as to whether it still worked or not. She thought it was worth giving it a try. She closed her eyes and focused, her horn started glowing slightly.
'Starshine…if you can hear this…please report to Canterlot…tell them that Luna summoned you…if you get this…I need to talk to you…'
She flashed her eyes open. She was sure the message had been sent…but whether it would ever be heard or not was another matter. Her head spinning a little, she flew back up to the castle and in through her open window. She was still thinking of whether she should tell Celestia or not. What if she was mad at her? What if there wasn't actually a threat at all and Dark Starshine had been destroyed. A slight pulsing in her head bothered her, reminding her that she hadn't performed a mind transfer spell in a while. She felt too worried to do anything else tonight, so tucking the scroll under her pillow; she rested her head down, and lifted the pale blue blankets over herself. She twisted and turned, the scroll, Dark Starshine, burning worries into her head. Eventually she fell into a troubled sleep.
Luna woke, the brightness of the moon pouring through her window. A quick glance at her clock told her that it was five in the morning, the moon would need lowering soon. Shaking her head to clear her mind, she slipped out of bed, rubbing her eyes. In the silent castle, she heard footsteps echoing, getting gradually louder. Her door creaked open to reveal Celestia. She stepped inside, leaving the door slightly ajar.
"Hello sister, did you sleep well?"
"I certainly did Luna. Are you ready to lower the moon?"
Luna smiled. "I am." She walked over to the window and lowered her head, steadying her horn. With a bright blue glow of magic, the moon began its descent, making way for Celestia's sun that had begun to rise over the hills. Luna let the morning rays of the sun wash over her.
"I assume you'll be off to bed now Lulu?"
"Actually I slept a little last night."
"Oh, I see." Celestia had gotten used to Luna's irregular sleeping pattern. As the Princess of the night, it was normal for her to sleep during the day and stay awake during the night. However she'd often find herself falling asleep some nights if she had nothing else to do. "Well I have to go to the Canterlot gardens; they're setting up some things for the next Grand Galloping Gala and wish for my attendance." Celestia nodded to Luna before flying from the open window. Luna watched her descent all the way down to the Canterlot gardens. Once she was sure she was alone, she trotted back over to her bed and pulled the scroll out. She had not long begun reading it over again when a voice startled her.
"Princess Luna?"
She jumped, dropping the scroll on the floor. She spun round quickly to find one of Celestia's royal guards stood in the doorway.
"I beg your pardon Princess; I didn't mean to startle you. We have a pony who wishes to see you."
Luna's heart stopped. Could it really be Dark Starshine? Or was it just some random Canterlot pony?
"Send them up." Luna said, quicker than she had meant to. The guard bowed and walked back down the corridor. Luna quickly stuffed the scroll back under her pillow and waited anxiously. The clopping of hooves on the stone floor told her someone was coming back up. The guard arrived and stepped aside to let her visitor in. The figure stepped inside, shutting the door behind them. They stood a little shorter than Luna herself. They were completely covered in a cloak, the only things to distinguish them as a pony was four black hooves protruding from the bottom.
"Starshine…you heard my message. I am glad." Luna approached the figure cautiously.
"Is Celestia here?" She spoke lowly, as though she had a fear of being seen by others.
"No, my sister is away."
"Good." With a swift movement, the pony threw back its head, the cloak falling from their head. Scarlet eyes stared at Luna. The pony then removed the cloak from her body, allowing her dark wings to stretch from her body. This pony was almost as Luna remembered her. She had a dark coat, with a black and red mane and tail. Her eyes were a piercing Scarlet, and her cutie mark was a blanket of stars. But the thing that stood out most about this pony was that she, like Luna, was an alicorn. Upon seeing Luna, she turned her head up in disgust. "You're not Nightmare Moon."
"Nightmare Moon is gone Starshine and you know it."
"That's Dark Starshine to you."
Luna let out a breath. "Why are you still like this…you should have been destroyed just like I was…"
"Oh but Princess…I was destroyed…all the power Nightmare Moon gave me was destroyed. This forced me into hiding. But I kept one thing…" She walked around Luna, never taking her eyes off of the blue mare. "My love, my passion for the night, and all the skills I learnt in your time."
Luna frowned. "No…I turned you into this, I can turn you back."
Dark Starshine laughed. "Ah but you see Luna, now, you cannot. My connection remains to Nightmare Moon, even if she is gone, her presence still lies within me." Her voice softened as she wandered closer to Luna. "Just think…the elements trust you…Celestia trusts you…now would be the perfect time to manipulate them and render their powers useless…don't you agree," Starshine brought her lips to Luna's ear. "Nightmare Moon?"
Luna shook the pony away from her and stomped her hoof down hard on the stone floor. She towered over Starshine. "My name is Princess Luna and you shall address me as so!" Her voice was raised into the Royal Canterlot Voice at the end. Starshine's expression was unchanged.
"Fine, Princess Luna," she sneered, "But this isn't the end of things. I have ways to restore my powers to what they once were. If you won't help me then…" she cast an evil glance back at Luna. "I guess you and your little element friends should watch out."
Before Luna could act, Starshine levitated her cloak back over her, spread her wings and shot out of the open window. Luna looked after her flying form that soon vanished from sight. She bit her bottom lip. "Now would be a good time to panic."
Luna cantered down the corridors of Canterlot castle, looking drastically for her sister. Several guards jumped out the way as they saw the Princess hurtling towards them. She flew outside to find Celestia still in the Canterlot gardens, talking to some high society Canterlot ponies. Slowing down to avoid raising suspicion, she trotted up to her sister and nudged her.
"Oh Luna! Do excuse me for a moment Fancypants."
"Not a problem your highness." A mare and a colt walked away to join some other ponies.
"What it is Luna?"
Luna leaned in close. "We might have a small problem…well a threat really…over Equestria…" Luna's voice droned off.
Celestia stared at her. "Luna what do you mean?"
"I need to talk to you in private Tia."
Celestia cleared her voice. "Citizens of Canterlot! I have been called on Royal duty and must leave. If you have any more issues with the Gala planning, please send a message to one of my royal guards, thank you."
The Canterlot ponies murmured amongst themselves as Celestia and Luna flew off, but didn't think anything else of it. They quickly got back to various plans for the upcoming Gala.
Luna and Celestia landed on Luna's balcony.
"Now what is it sister?"
Unfurling her wing, Luna allowed the scroll to drop to the floor. She watched as Celestia levitated it up and read it.
"Dark Starshine?"
"Yes Tia. She was a pony that helped me as Nightmare Moon…she came to the castle earlier…she still plans on bringing the darkness that Nightmare Moon brought…she isn't at full power yet but…" Luna looked up, meeting Celestia's concerned gaze.
"Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?"
"Well at first I forgot…I thought she had perhaps been destroyed…but then when I found out, I was just scared that you might be mad at me." Luna's voice trailed off and she looked at the floor, shuffling her hooves. She felt a hoof lift her head up.
"I'm not mad at you Lulu, I know you didn't mean for this to happen."
Luna smiled.
"However, we do need to do something about this pony."
"Well…where do we start?"
"Well-"
"Wait! She's after the elements!" Luna blurted out. She remembered her last words clearly; 'I guess you and your little element friends should watch out.'
"The Elements of Harmony? Fear not Luna, the elements are securely in the castle with a spell that only I can break.
"I don't think she meant the actual elements themselves…she said that me and my little element friends should watch out…"
Celestia looked thoughtful. "You mean she may be after Twilight and her friends? Hmm. Well that would make sense."
"How so sis?"
"It was Twilight and her friends who succeeded in bringing down Nightmare Moon herself. It seems only natural that in this pony's eyes, they are the ones who destroyed her power."
"Then the element holders are in danger!" Luna sprang up, panic written across her face.
"Calm down Luna. If what you say about her being not at full power, there is not much she can do to them at the moment. However we will take precautions." Celestia tucked the scroll under her wing. "I am going to write to Twilight, telling her about things. If you are still concerned, then we can see about bringing the element holders to stay in Canterlot castle until we find this Dark Starshine."
Luna sighed. "I don't know why I didn't just come to you in the first place."
Celestia wrapped a hoof around Luna and pulled her close. "Don't worry about it little sis, none of this is your fault."
Luna felt better but she still believed that it mostly was her fault. She was in the castle earlier, Luna could have stopped Starshine then, but she got away.
"Are you coming Luna?"
Luna shook out of her trance and followed Celestia into the castle. They walked down the corridors lined with stain glass windows, the sunlight flickering through. They came to Celestia's bed chambers and stepped inside. The walls were a pale yellow and the rays of the sun poured in through the large open windows. Celestia levitated over a quill, scroll and ink and began writing, reading aloud as she did so.
"Dear Twilight,
We have received some information that there may be a threat over the element holders. I ask you not to worry yourself, however I do want you to be on the look out for any suspicious characters. I also ask that you prepare to come to Canterlot if asked, all six of you. If we receive any more information soon, we will inform you.
Princess Celestia"
Celestia looked at Luna, seeking her approval of the letter. Luna simply nodded and watched as in a burst of magic, the scroll disappeared.
"Now what Tia?"
"Now we must just simply get back to our daily duties."
Luna stuttered, looking for something to say that could put her mind back on Starshine.
"Luna, I know you are worried, but I sense no real threat yet. Like you said, she isn't at full power yet."
Luna's expression didn't falter.
"I see this is bothering you. I can only assume that you know more about her then me, so if it's troubles you that much, I will send some of the Royal Guards out to look for her. Do you have any idea where she could be hiding?"
"Not really…my only guess is the Everfree Forest, since it's the place where hardly anyone goes."
"Ok, that is a good starting point." Celestia nuzzled Luna. "Please try not to get yourself too worked up."
"Ok, I'll try. But please tell the guards to be careful. She is an alicorn after all."
Celestia stopped dead in her tracks. "An A…Alicorn?"
Luna cowered down. "Yes…but not a pure born…I turned her into one as Nightmare Moon…"
Celestia turned around, a hint of worry on her face which she soon managed to hide. "I will….warn them." Celestia wandered out and down the corridor without another word. Luna returned to her bed chambers and tried to distract herself with some reading, but she just couldn't stop worrying. Even she picked up the hint of worry in Celestia's voice. She slammed a book shut in frustration and gazed out the window at the busy streets of Canterlot below.
"Why Starshine?" she muttered. "Why?"