Posting moondancer yan https://ponepaste.org/10019

>>20517 Nice stuff

>>20346 Yeah it’s kinda crazy but it was fun while it lasted.

>>9483 Where do I find the start of this story.

>>25834 I think it started in the same thread as the story in >>17479

Ch. 8 >Dawn. >The Sun rises over Canterlot. >The white walls and intricate stained glass of the Princesses’ Castle practically shine in the early light. >A warm breeze blows softly, parting the red curtains of Celestia’s balcony. >The Princess stares blankly at the letter before her. >She’s read it a dozen times this morning. >She must have read it a hundred times since she received it a few days ago. >At first she didn’t believe it. >She still can’t really bring herself to accept it. >How could she? >Something like this… >What could have caused this? >What brought upon this madness? PL: “We must do something about the Human, before it’s too late.” >As if in answer to her wandering thoughts, Princess Luna enters her sister’s chambers. >Princess Celestia sighs. >With a poof the letter folds and disappears. PC: “And what would you suggest? Locking him away? Banishing him? We don’t even know where he is.” >Celestia waves a hoof dismissively. PC: “We should focus on finding a cure for Twilight.” >Luna’s gaze is cold. PL: “There is no cure. You know that better than I do.” >Tears well up in Celestia’s eyes. PC: “I… But we still-” PL: “We don’t have time to sit around hoping for a miracle. The Heartfallen must be dealt with before he grows too strong.” >Celestia looks up at her sister, the distress on the white Alicorn’s face replaced with worry. PC: “Then… Your efforts failed?” >Luna looks downward, anger and disappointment written across her face. PL: “He’s too far gone. I tried. If it were only Twilight then we might have…” >She stops herself, seeing the pain in Celestia’s eyes. PL: “The Changeling Queen’s presence is accelerating the curse’s growth. It’s already too late.” >She looks back up at her sister, with a determined glare. PL: “We have to stop him. Now.” >Celestia’s eyes widen in sorrow and despair, and she looks down at the ground. PC: “We can’t just-” >Luna stomps a hoof. PL: “You know what will happen if we don’t act with haste! You’ve seen it yourself! The Human is gone, all that’s left is a monster. Remember King S-” >Celestia’s eyes light up in anger. PC: “Don’t you dare speak his name!” >The sisters stare at one another with dire expressions for several excruciatingly silent seconds. >Then Celestia begins to cry. >She lowers her head and turns away from her sister. >But Luna moves closer, to comfort her. PL: “I’m sorry, sister… I shouldn’t have-” PC: “No. It’s fine.” >Celestia wipes away the tears and looks out from her balcony. >Ponies in the city below go about their morning business. >The birds sing happily. >The breeze kisses her cheek. >The world is blissfully unaware of the unbridled evil coming for the Crystal Empire. >Celestia sighs. PC: “You’re right, sister.” >She turns to face Luna again. PC: We’ll go see Cadance immediately. With her power, and our own, we’ll end this before anyone else has to suffer.” >Luna nods, and the two prepare to leave the castle. >”My poor Twilight…” Celestia thinks to herself. “We’ll stop him. I promise. And then I’ll find a way to save you. No matter what. I won’t let you suffer the same fate as...” ~~~

>>29981 >Anon stands on a hill, overlooking the capital of the Crystal Empire. >Behind him a veritable legion of chitinous black shapes, writhing with anticipation, await his orders. C: “They know we’re here.” >The throng of changelings parts, and their Queen steps forward to stand beside Anon. C: “And Shining Armor’s barrier protects the city. There’s no way to sneak in as things are.” >Anon remains silent, staring at the crystal spire at the center of the city. >Chrysalis moves closer to him, trying to figure out what he’s thinking. She tilts her head slightly. C: “What’s our next move?” >Anon stares out for a moment longer, then closes his eyes and sighs. >He looks down at his Queen, and places his hand on her head. A: “My next move.” >His stern gaze sends a shudder through her body. A: “You will remain here with the army until I give the signal.” >She wants to protest, but she cannot. >This isn’t how she wanted to do this. >Direct conflict, all-out war, isn’t what changelings are good at. >No, they excel in subterfuge. Infiltration. Espionage. Intrigue. >Chrysalis wanted to find a way to sneak a few spies through the barrier, first. >Gain intel, slowly work their way into the castle’s staff, find some way to distract Shining Armor and Cadance long enough to weaken the barrier. >But Anon stubbornly refused. A: “His love is strong.” >Anon speaks, but Chrysalis can’t tell if he’s talking to her, or to himself. A: “But I am stronger.” >With that, Anon strides down the hill, messy hair and tattered cloak billowing in the wind. >Chrysalis watches his back for several minutes as he shrinks into the distance, until eventually he appears as little more than a speck against the backdrop of the city. >The wind blows, then stops. >The shimmering pink barrier protecting the Crystal capital glows brightly. >A flare of green shines brightly at its base, and a terrible sound like the cry of metal echoes across the land. >A massive gust of wind rushes past Chrysalis. The changelings behind her are forced to brace themselves lest they be blown away, but she stands defiant. >She watches as the barrier glows brighter, pulses, and then grows brighter still. >Silence. >And then it shatters. Like glass struck by a hammer, shards of the barrier fly and glitter briefly in the light of the setting sun before fading into nothing. >A streak of green flame erupts from the edge of the city towards the tower, Anon’s steps setting the city ablaze in his wake. C: “CHARGE!” >At their Queen’s command the changeling horde descends upon the city. ~~~ Ca: “She’s doing much better.” >Princess Cadance bows her head slightly after seeing Celestia’s somber expression. Ca: “I’m sorry I couldn’t do more...” >Celestia gives a half-hearted smile, feeling guilty for making Cadance feel responsible. >She knows it’s a miracle that Cadance was able to do this much. PC: “Thank you, Cadance. And I apologize for asking this of you. I know how difficult it is to..” >The two princesses look up at Twilight Sparkle, encased in crystal, glowing with white magical energy. >Celestia shakes her head. PC: “We’ll find a way to save her. With the three of us together, I’m certain we can.” >Cadance brightens a bit at this. Ca: “Of course.” PC: “But first…” PL: “Sister!” >Luna flies into the room from the tower above. PL: “He has arrived.” >The three share a moment of knowing quiet before the each take flight, reconvening atop the crystal spire. >Waiting for them is Shining Armor, his horn glowing. PL: “It is as we feared.” >Luna motions towards the hills west of the city. PL: “He brings an army of changelings. There’s no telling how powerful he is now.” PC: “Then we must work together to-” >A sudden shockwave rocks through the city, followed by an ominous metallic groan. >A green spark burns at the base of the barrier. S: “This is..!” >Shining’s horn blazes with magic as he attempts to hold the barrier strong. >The Princesses of the Sun and Moon prepare themselves for battle as Cadance attempts to aid her husb

>>29982 and. S: “I can’t hold it… He’s..!” >With a burst of energy the barrier breaks, and Shining Armor collapses to the floor. Ca: “Shining!” >Cadance immediately leans down to help him, but he holds up a hoof as if to say he’s alright. S: “You were right, Luna.” >He stands, then wobbles, but Cadance catches him and keeps him upright. S: “It felt almost the same as Sombra. That darkness is unmistakable.” >Luna’s already serious face darkens as she looks from Shining towards her sister. >Celestia’s eyes are shut tight, and her countenance is one of regret. Ca: “He’s coming.” >In response to Cadance, Celestia opens her eyes and gazes down upon the rapidly approaching comet of green flame. >Her face shows no signs of the doubt or pain that plagued her only a moment ago. >She stares now only with contempt. PL: “Are you ready?” >Luna takes a step closer to the edge of the tower, looking down beside Celestia. PC: “Yes. Let’s put an end to this.” ~ >Anon’s footsteps thunder with terrible force, and the city burns behind him as he runs full speed towards the spire. >He knows he doesn’t have much time to pull this off. >He isn’t powerful enough to fight all three of them at once. >At least not yet. >But there’s something he must do. >It’s the only thing he must do. >Conquering this place can wait. Taking down the princesses can wait. >But there’s something here that belongs to him. >Something he must take back. >Or rather, someone. >A brilliant light shines forth from atop the tower, forcing him to look up at its radiance. A: “Tch!” >Anon barely has time to defend himself, raising his arms in front of his face as a massive beam of white and blue energy slams down upon him with the weight of heaven’s wrath. >His cloak disintegrates, and his flesh burns with searing pain. >He smirks. A: “Haaah!” >With a burst of dark power the beam of light is split and dispelled. >Anon stands, panting, in the crater left behind. >He looks up at the silhouetted figures looking down at him, then spits out a bit of blood onto the charred dirt beneath his feet. >“Damn. Not fast enough.” He thinks to himself. “Then we’ll have to do this the hard way.” >The Princesses of the Sun and Moon slowly fly down closer, each readying a different spell. A: “You can’t stop me.” >Anon stands tall, smoke trailing from his naked arms and back as his burns quickly heal. >The princesses don’t respond, and instead Celestia fires a ray of golden fire from her horn. >Anon dodges the night-instantaneous attack, but just as suddenly a blue circle opens into a chasm of blackness beneath his feet. >He nearly falls into Luna’s spell, but manages to propel his body forward with the last bit of his momentum, jumping over the portal and then launching himself upward towards his foes. >With a maniacal grin Anon attempts to grab Luna, but his hand meets only a wide blue shield of magic. >The shield cracks from the force of his blow, but it gives Luna enough time to ascend higher, out of his reach. >As anon begins to drop, out of the corner of his eye he notices Celestia attempting to hit him with another golden ray. >With a swipe of his hand the attack is smacked away, redirected to hit a random building. >Anon winces slightly as he feels the aftereffects of the attack on his hand, but he quickly recomposes himself as he lands on the ground once more. >For a second or so he and Celestia simply glare at one another, and Luna takes the opportunity to charge a more powerful Spell. >But the battle is interrupted.

>>29983 >A cacophony of changelings swarm around from the rubble behind Anon, and from the right and left flanks of the spire an even larger number of them attempt to surround the princesses. >Anon smirks. >Luna angrily replies but launching her spells, forming a sphere of dark blue energy that pulses and then shines, before rapidly pulling everything around it towards itself. >Rocks and rubble are crushed and apparently reduced to nothing as they touch the sphere, and several changelings are pulled in as well, but Anon manages to brace himself and resist its gravity. >Unfortunately for the princesses, there are simply too many of the changelings for that single Spell to deal with them all. >As they turn their attention towards defending against the several dozen changeling soldiers attempting to attack each of them, Anon slips around in the confusion and dashes for the spire. PC: “No! We can’t let him get away!” PL: “I know, but..! There’s too many!” >More changelings arrive to the battle, as Chrysalis silently observes from a safe distance. ~ >Inside the spire, Anon runs as fast as he can. >He can feel her presence. >It’s faint. Very faint. But he knows she’s here. >He approaches a large set of doors, emblazoned with a design of a heart within a shield. >In a single motion he smashes through the doors and readies himself for a fight. >But the pink pony standing alone before him doesn’t appear as though she wants one. Ca: “Anon. You know this isn’t right.” >Cadance speaks with a motherly tone, gentle, but full of disappointment. >Anon’s eyes alight with green and black as begins to form an angry response, but then he cuts the thought short once he notices what’s behind her. >Twilight Sparkle. A: “You think you can keep her from me?” >Cadance scowls. Ca: “I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her.” A: “Protect her?” >Anon laughs. A joyless laugh, full of malice. A: “She’s mine! Mine to protect. Mine to keep. She loves me!” >Anon waves his hand, fury in his voice, and the room’s stained glass windows shatter into pieces. A: “Aren’t you the ‘princess of love’? Why are you trying to stop true love!?” >Cadance simply glares, unfazed by Anon’s outburst. Ca: “I am the Princess of Love. And that’s why I can tell there’s no love inside you, Anon.” >Anon’s mind races, and he struggles to think of a proper response to her assertion, stepping forward while preparing to attack. A: “I do love her! I’ve loved her ever since…” >Memories assault him like a torrent of stone, and the weight of sudden introspection stops him in his tracks. >He looks up at Twilight, suspended peacefully in a crystal prism at the far side of the room. Ca: “You never loved her, Anon. Not in the same way she loved you.” >Anon snaps his attention back to Cadance, the fire of his anger burning brighter. A: “What are you-” Ca: “Or do you think the ‘love’ you gave to Chrysalis is true love, as well? >Confusion bleeds into Anon’s rage, and he lowers his fist slightly. Ca: “You’re killing her, Anon.” >Cadance’s deadpan tone and uncharacteristically serious expression catch him off guard. A: “What?” Ca: “What you call ‘love’- >She raises her voice a bit. Ca: “-is nothing more than lustful obsession. It’s toxic.” >She shakes her head, and her expression becomes mixed with sadness and frustration. Ca: “Changelings need love, and you’ve been feeding her poison. Just like you poisoned Twilight.” A: “What are you talking about? I do love her. I love her and Twilight, I just-” >Anon is cut short when a bubble of magic suddenly appears around him, shimmering pink, followed by several duplicate layers. >Shining Armor walks in from behind, through the broken door. >“Bastard!” Anon curses in his head. Ca: “It’s over, Anon.” >Cadance takes a step closer. Ca: “We won’t let you hurt anyone else. I’m sorry it has to end this way.” A: “You think you can stop me!?” >The barrier begins to shake as green lightning crackles around Anon’s feet.

>>29984 >A golden light surrounds the pink of the barrier, and Anon is forced to kneel by the immense pressure suddenly bearing down on him. >With a glare that could pierce iron he stares up at Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, who had just entered through one of the broken windows. >“No no no no!” PL: “Your army has been defeated. Stand down.” >Luna lands next to Cadance, followed shortly by Celestia. PC: “Stop this, Anon. It’s over.” >Anon musters all of his desire, all of his hatred, all of his spite, and rises again, standing defiant of the princesses. A: “No.” Ca: “If you really love them, you need to let them go.” >Anon simply looks down his nose at her. PC: “Look at what you’ve done to Twilight already!” >The grief in Celestia’s voice is palpable. PC: “Why do you want to make her suffer!?” A: “You’re the ones making her suffer!” >Anon snaps back. A: “You’re the ones keeping us from being together! You know it’s what she wants!” PL: “You disgraceful- It’s what you made her want! It isn’t natural!” A: “I didn’t ask for this! I just wanted… I just…” Ca: “It’s not your fault, Anon. But you still have to take responsibility.” >Anon looks back to Cadance with an almost pleading look in his eye, but she returns only a look of pity. Ca: “The love you think you feel is a lie. It’s just a product of the curse.” A: “You’re wrong. It’s more than that.” Ca: “Even if it is, what do you plan to accomplish? You can’t possibly love both Twilight and Chrysalis like this.” A: “But I-” Ca: “You don’t care about their feelings at all, do you? Did you never stop to think how you were hurting them? If you won, did you just think they would accept being strung along while you give your love to somepony else?” >Anon starts to protest, but drops it, and instead hangs his head in apparent defeat. PL: “If you want to atone for your actions, give up. Allow your cursed self to be sealed. It’s the only way to free Twilight and the changeling Queen from the venom you have injected into them.” >Princess Celestia steps forward, and Luna and Cadance summarily follow her lead, their horns shining with prismatic magic. PC: “I wish it didn’t have to come to this. Goodbye, Anon.” ~~~~~~~~~~