Upheaval: Breaking Point

Chapter 7: Necessary Crimes

"Twilight, I think we should give up."

For his entire life, that was the first time Spike ever said those words to Twilight Sparkle. He had never asked her to give up on anything she wanted to learn about, not even back then when he felt that she could use a bit more socializing. Whenever Twilight studied, she was serious, focused, even relentless at times. Her dedication to magical knowledge was the best proof of why she received her cutie mark and why the ruler of all Equestria wanted to be her teacher.

But this was too much. They had been in the Great Library all afternoon and they had yet to get even a sliver of a lead. What bothered him was that she hadn't even taken the time to talk with their friends. All of them had been extremely worried when they heard that Twilight was missing. He was becoming more and more afraid that she was reverting to that time before she went to Ponyville, when all she could think about was magical study and she had to be ordered to go out there to make friends.

"Spike, I need to find out about this," Twilight answered. Minutes had actually passed between his remark and her answer. She was still going through books at a frenetic pace.

"We haven't found anything since we got here," Spike said. "Not even a clue. I really think that some pony just engraved a random picture on a coin, which randomly ended up inside your bag."

"You know I don't accept 'random' as a reason for anything," Twilight said.

"There's no other explanation for something that has absolutely no information about it anywhere! We've tried, Twilight. We've got nothing to go on after all this time."

Twilight put down the book she was holding and sighed. "You're right, Spike," she said. "Perhaps it's time to admit defeat on this."

Spike fought down a grin. He shouldn't look happy at the prospect of Twilight's researching ability "losing" to a mystery, but he was relieved that she was finally going to move on.

"Let's go home," Twilight said with a smile.

Spike had known Twilight long enough to recognize a forced smile when he saw one. "Sure," he said.

The two of them walked out of the Great Library to find that the sun was already starting to set. Despite the day almost coming to an end, there were still a lot of ponies out on the streets, including members of the Royal Guard. Twilight walked over to one of them. "What's going on now?" she asked.

"Haven't you heard?" the guard replied. "They've found Princess Luna! Good timing too, it's almost night. I heard that she just walked over to her panicking escorts like nothing was wrong."

"Well, that's good news," Spike said.

"Indeed," Twilight said. "But what's all the commotion out here for?"

"Princess Luna is coming back to the palace," the guard answered. "Everypony wants to see if she's alright."

True enough, a crowd began to gather around the street. The two joined them to get a closer look. They hadn't seen Princess Luna since Shining Armor's wedding and they were a little curious as to how the younger princess was doing. Spike climbed on Twilight's back while she slipped through the crowd to get a better view, making sure that she didn't push rudely against any pony. She managed to get to the front of the crowd in time to see the princess show up.

Princess Luna's appearance was strangely simple. She had walked up to the street quietly with a pair of royal guards at either side. The crowd murmured as she passed by. The atmosphere was a mixture of relief and curiosity, with traces of suspicion. Not every pony was willing to forget Nightmare Moon and the threat of eternal night. Luna bore it all with quiet dignity.

"That's weird," Spike whispered to Twilight. "I thought she'd be the sort to ride around in a carriage. Why is she even walking?"

"She's spent the last thousand years in isolation," Twilight replied. "She may prefer to take in as much of Equestria as possible. Maybe she's just taking her time."

Before Spike could say anything, a pony jostled against Twilight. He grabbed hold of her mane to keep from falling off. She recovered without falling down, but her bag had been knocked about by the bump. He heard the distinct sound of something metallic hitting the pavement and feared the worst. As he thought, the coin that had brought them all the way to Canterlot on a wild goose chase had fallen out of her bag and rolled its way to the princess.


Though she was already walking the streets of Canterlot, Luna's thoughts were still about the Barrier Lands. Her meeting with her brother had gone badly. Better than what she had expected, but still badly. Despite a thousand years of being confined outside the realm he was defending, Terrato was still fiercely dedicated to Celestia. 'Blindly so,' she thought. What he was doing only seemed loyal, but her recent travels across the Heartland had given her a different and unexpected view point. Terrato had to act or the damage would be too much.

Her visit to her brother's realm was the reason why Luna was taking the time to get to the Royal Palace. Just as Terrato had said, Celestia knew of her departure from the Heartland the moment she broke through the barrier. Though she wanted to resume her travels as if the Barrier Lands were just a quick, unscheduled detour, it wasn't long until she received a message that her sister wanted to see her. She had to admit that she was scared even though Terrato had provided an excuse for her to use.

Despite the constant murmurs of the watching crowd, a light metallic ping caught Luna's attention. A small object rolled across the pavement and bumped lightly against her silver shoe. She picked the thing up with her magic and examined it. It appeared to be a coin made of silver. When she brought one of its sides up to see what was there, her eyes widened.

The Equestrian Legion's emblem glinted slightly, catching the dimming rays of the setting sun.

"Who dropped this?" Luna asked the crowd. The sudden urgency in her voice set every pony nearby aback. Even her escorts looked shocked. Silence swept the crowd as everypony looked to see who had dropped the coin that was bothering their princess.

"I did, your highness."

Luna looked to see who it was and nearly gasped. She recognized the unicorn who was walking towards her slowly, eyes apologetic and movements hesitant. Her two escorts stepped forward to intercept the pony, but she motioned them back. "Twilight Sparkle," she said. Here was a connection she hadn't expected to happen. One of the ponies who had saved her from Nightmare Moon now possessed an object that all but represented another growing crisis in Equestria.

"I'm so sorry, your highness!" Twilight said. "I was jostled and it just fell and-!"

"Don't worry," Luna said. She smiled a little to put the unicorn at ease. "I'm not mad, just a little surprised. Where did you get this?"

Twilight looked at the coin and winced, something that Luna took note of. "I-I'm not sure, your highness. I've been trying to find out more about it but-!"

Luna gave the coin back. When Twilight reached out to take it, she leaned closer and whispered, "Meet me by the palace gardens after moonrise. Come alone and don't tell anypony. Whatever you do, don't show that coin to anypony else."

Twilight was about to ask what was going on, but a look from Luna stopped her short. She nodded quietly and backed into the crowd and Luna went on her way.


From the palace's gardens, Luna watched her hoof-work with a measure of both pride and gratitude. The moon's light filtered gently through the leaves of the garden's various trees, illuminating everything with faint silver. That she could cause something so beautiful lifted her spirits and that her elder sister had returned this duty to her filled her with a sense of gratitude. A lifetime ago, she had been bitter over the seeming lack of appreciation for her task. She was only beginning to discover now that the night was beautiful because of the peace that it covered Equestria with and the sight of ponies being able to rest at the end of the day was just as much tribute as the sight of them enjoying the sun.

While standing by herself in the garden, Luna felt some of her resolve falter. Earlier, her elder sister had spoken to her about what had happened during her tour. She followed her brother's story and was relieved when Celestia believed her. It wasn't a complete lie anyway. She did want to meet her brother to show him that she was free of Nightmare Moon's influence, an effort that ended in her being called an abomination-infested rebel who smelled of cheap soy sauce. Celestia had much kinder words to say about the situation. Just as Terrato had predicted, all Luna received was a very mild admonition about suddenly going off without a word. That she was going about in secret, trying to bring about something that would inevitably hurt her sister, weighed Luna down with guilt.

'I'm not doing this because I believe that she's a tyrant who needs to be deposed,' Luna reminded herself. 'I'm doing this because I love her. This needs to be done to help her.' Despite her choice of words, Luna wasn't sure about what exactly she was about to do. Twilight Sparkle might arrive any time soon.

All of a sudden, Luna wasn't sure about the entire meeting. She had thought about telling Twilight Sparkle what the emblem on the coin meant, which would reveal the truth about the Legion's existence, but there were a few things that made her hesitate.

Doing this would surely bring a lot of trouble to Twilight Sparkle. She was Celestia's favored student and one of the Elements of Harmony, but even all of that may not save her from being exiled or worse if Celestia believed it was necessary to keep the Heartland "safe". Why was it even necessary for her to know about the Legion? Part of Luna wanted to avoid bringing others into this and just confront her elder sister. That same part berated her for going through things in a roundabout manner. 'No,' she thought. 'If I speak out, it would just be seen as another rebellion from the envious little sister. If she hears from one of her subjects that this division is wrong, she may listen.'

"Your highness?"

The sound of Twilight Sparkle's tentative call silenced the inner argument. "I'm here," Luna replied. The guards had altered their patrols slightly to keep this part of the garden private as was her request. As she had also requested, Twilight Sparkle was alone. The dragon who had been accompanying her earlier was gone. Luna had wondered how her sister's protégé had acquired a legionnaire emblem, yet seemed to have no idea of what she had. She had detected a faint aura of magic around Twilight Sparkle's mind that she recognized as Terrato's. That confirmed what could have happened. Twilight Sparkle must have somehow come to the Barrier Lands and Terrato had cast a spell to cloud her memory. Luna wasn't sure how the legionnaire emblem fit in. Had Terrato planted it there to break his own spell? Was he moving before she even talked to him or was it somepony else from the Legion?

Twilight bowed as was only appropriate when faced with royalty. Luna could tell that there was a look of excitement and curiosity that lurked just beneath that respectful appearance. "Twilight Sparkle," she said. "I haven't thanked you properly for saving me from Nightmare Moon."

"I didn't do it by myself, your highness," Twilight replied. Despite her humble tone, her lips twitched slightly. Likely, to keep a flattered smile from coming out. "All of my friends helped in defeating Nightmare Moon."

"True," Luna said. The mention of Twilight's friends made the decision even harder for her. The truth will bring trouble, not just to Twilight Sparkle, but to all her friends: ponies who would quickly rush to her side without hesitation. She could be condemning six ponies, the same ponies who had done so much for her, to exile. "I should thank them all as well when we meet. Do you have that coin with you?"

"I do," Twilight said. She reached for her bag and pulled out the coin. The silver glinted in the moonlight. "If it pleases you, could you tell me more about it?" she asked. "I was going to ask Princess Celestia about it but-!"

"If you show this to my sister, you will never see or hear about it ever again." Seeing Twilight's surprised expression, Luna softened her tone. "I understand your curiosity, Twilight Sparkle, but let me warn you now that the knowledge behind this emblem will bring a lot of trouble to you. My sister has done much to keep the knowledge about this emblem hidden and learning about it goes against her wishes."

"G-goes against her wishes?" Twilight asked. She nearly dropped the coin and looked as if the thing had caught on fire. "I didn't know that this thing was evil! I should just get rid of it then!"

"I never said that," Luna said. Twilight Sparkle's reaction was more proof to her of how much of an influence her sister still had. 'And I'm dealing with her student too,' she thought. This entire thing might backfire or amount to nothing given Twilight Sparkle's loyalty. Even if she heard the truth, she could just ignore it or even agree with Celestia's decisions. "Please listen to me carefully, Twilight Sparkle. It's true that my sister does not want anypony to know about what this coin means, but that doesn't make it evil. Far from it, should the knowledge get out, it will be ultimately for her own good."

"How is that possible?" Twilight asked. Her eyes narrowed.

"I'll leave it for you to find out," Luna answered. "You can walk away now. You can get rid of that emblem and forget about everything about it. You can go back to Ponyville to enjoy the rest of your life. Or you can let me tell you the truth about it. Then, you'll be carrying a terrible burden. It won't be just you, either. Others will be dragged into the resulting mess. But, please, trust me when I say that it will be for my sister's sake in the end."

Twilight stared at Luna quietly, her face twisting in confusion and indecision. Luna looked right back at her with an intensity that defied any accusation of lying. Twilight nearly stepped back when she met the princess's gaze. She looked at the coin on her hoof and winced. This was the second time Luna noticed this. Despite the memory lock, it seemed that Twilight Sparkle's mind still desperately tried to remember. Her curious nature and thirst for knowledge naturally fought back against a spell designed to obscure memory. She had admire Twilight Sparkle further. Even without outside help, Twilight was actually struggling against her brother's magic. 'Just how much potential does your student have, big sister?' she thought.

"H-how do I know that what you're saying is true?" Twilight finally asked.

"I can't offer any proof," Luna said. "All I can promise is that you can hear what I have to say and walk away. Whatever you plan to do with what you've learned is up to you."

The reassurance did little to quell Twilight's uneasiness. Agonizing minutes trudged on with Luna simply staring intently at Twilight, while the unicorn struggled against wanting to know and fear of knowing. Finally, after what seemed like an hour, Twilight shook her head and looked at Luna directly. "Please, tell me," she said.

The response came as a surprise to Luna. For a moment, she had been so sure that Twilight was going to get a determined look and give the coin over to her. She had not expected that the faithful student would risk going against Celestia just to find out about something and for the possibility of ultimately helping. Still, here she was, about to go against Celestia again despite being forgiven after her last one. This time, it was going to be different. A thousand years ago, she rebelled out of petty jealousy and selfishness. This time, her rebellion will actually be forCelestia. "Thank you," she said. "This is an emblem of the Equestrian Legion. For you to have this-Twilight?" Luna stopped when she saw Twilight clutch her head with her front hooves. "Twilight, are you alright?"


The steady buzz inside her head exploded when Twilight heard the words "Equestrian Legion". A flood of images and words came at her.

"Captain Vanguard Clash of the Northern Equestrian Legion."

Twilight's mind focused on the image of a dark-barded pony standing on a vast plain, a plain that was both Equestria and not.

"The Legion…does things that would only cause disruptions if they became common knowledge."

The image shifted to an angry white unicorn whose fierce glare seemed to pin Twilight to the spot despite being only a memory.

"Your mighty and wonderful Princess Celestia likes to pretend that her realm of peace and rainbows doesn't need us!"

The image shifted again. Enormous, wolf-like monsters leapt from the darkness, red eyes glowing menacingly and fangs dripping saliva. Several ponies charged against these beasts, the dark-armored pony included. Blasts of fire erupted, and blood sprayed. She could hear somepony laughing in the distance. Finally, the battle faded. There stood a gray pony, an alicorn even bigger than Princess Celestia, with a fiery mane, and a broken horn.

"And here I am now, centuries later, and my duty continues."

Everything began to make sense. Something within her mind resisted as she desperately tried to piece together what the images meant. She recognized the presence of magic and fought back.

"I…I remember…" Twilight gasped. The block within her memories shattered and everything came flooding back: the Legion, Prince Terrato, the war at Equestria's borders…

Luna looked at Twilight with a mixture of shock and admiration. She couldn't match the princess's gaze just yet. She was exhausted from the great mental exertion she just went through. She tried to take a few steps forward and stumbled. Luna reached out with a hoof to steady her.

"And what you do with that knowledge is up to you, Twilight Sparkle," Luna said softly.