Ultimate Defence of the Realm - Part 1
by John Routledge

Based on Friendship is Magic, created by Lauren Faust
And My Little Pony, created by Bonnie Zacherle
Render Unto Hasbro That Which Is Hasbro’s...

“Why Twilight?”

“Why did I pick Twilight?”

Celestia smiled at her sister. They were having breakfast together, and were swapping stories and incidents as they often did about things Luna had missed, or things Celestia no longer remembered as clearly as she once did.

“Have I not told you what happened on the day of tryouts when she applied? It was a most impressive display of raw power. Easily the highest output of magic I had seen since...”

“No Tia, not that,” Luna interrupted. Celestia had told Luna that story before. Unfortunately Celestia was rightly proud of her favourite pupil and (in Luna’s opinion) liked to feign memory loss so she could tell it again. “Why did you pick Twilight Sparkle to be the barer of the Element of Magic?”

“Oh that.” Celestia hesitated. “Technically I didn’t. The Elements of Harmony themselves are always the final arbiters of who shall wear them.”

Luna waited.

“And yet the elements just happened to pick your prize pupil, and her friends, who only knew about the elements, and me, because she told them, and who only came to know of me due to her studies, under your tutelage.”

“You have a very suspicious mind,” Celestia observed as she took a sip of tea.

“So did you, a thousand years ago. Unless things have changed a lot more over that time than I imagine, you still do. You can’t rule over a principality the size of Equestria without being able to play the ‘she knows/he knows/she knows’ game very well.”

“I may have given her a nudge in the right direction,” Celestia admitted.

“And?”

“And possibly manipulated things a little behind the scenes.” Celestia took another sip of her tea. “And maybe laid a little ground work.”

“So why Twilight?”

“Several reasons. I trusted her. Though young and inexperienced she was and is one of the most powerful unicorns in Equestria. She almost certainly was the most experienced at learning new forms of magic. She also knew about the Elements, and Night Mare Moon, and more to the point she believed you were real.”

“Because you left the books in her library.”

“Because I left the books in her library,” the sun princess agreed. She smiled before asking, “Would you have chosen differently?”

“I have no idea,” Luna answered, “which is one of the reasons I’m asking. But choosing someone so young just seems ... risky.”

“My dear sister, what is the most important thing when choosing a Barer?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Luna answered somewhat testily. “I’ve never used them, remember? I was the decoy when we defeated Discord. I certainly didn’t use them when you banished me or when Twilight and her friends liberated me. And we were both too busy protecting Canterlot and Manehatten when they turned Discord back to stone.”

“Unity,” Celestia said. “Unity of purpose, irrespective of whether it’s one alicorn or six ponies.”

“Which is precisely my problem. I can respect Twilight for the level of knowledge and skill she has managed to achieve at her young age. With another ten years she will no doubt be able to accomplish some truly remarkable things. Why one day she may even be able to organise a unicorn chorus and move the sun and moon with their help instead of ours.” Luna looked her sister squarely in the eye. “Which is of course why she is your favourite pupil.”

“Naturally.”

“But on the other wing, she’s a book worm.” Luna insisted. “And I assure you I recognise a fellow bookworm when I see one! In that sense she and I are almost closer kin than the pair of us. That is who you chose to make five really good friends in less than twelve hours?!”

“Oh now Luna, be sensible. Where in equestria did you hear such a thing?”

“From Twilight.”

Celestia froze, and her mane wilted slightly.

“Ah. Yes. You did visit Ponyville for Nightmare Night, didn’t you?”

“At your own suggestion,” Luna added.

“Yes. I take it you spent quite a lot of time with Twilight?”

“Of course. I assumed she wrote to you about it like everything else.

Celestia recovered her composure.

“I think she may have missed out a few things that week.”

“So that was your plan? Vaguely hope that I somehow got better up there, and somehow banish me again if I hadn’t.” Luna snorted. “As if you could make that choice, and cast the spell, faster than I could send you to the sun. You knew you would get banished if you didn’t take immediate action, and you knew I had the Nightmare boosting my powers. So why did you pick Twilight?”

The Sun princess regarded the Moon princess for a moment, before draining her tea and placing the cup back in the table.

“This has nothing to do with Twilight does it Luna? Please ask me the question that’s really on your mind.”

Luna took a deep breath, put her cup down, and stood to assume a regal pose.

“You risked Equestria!” Luna said, slowly and carefully. “For me!” Why?”

“You are concerned I am no longer a fit ruler?”

“It was your job to defeat me if I came back! Not someone else! Your job! You threw away your one chance, got banished yourself, and used Twilight as your only backup. If what I’ve just said is true, then yes, I must. As is my Royal Duty.”

Celestia smiled and nodded.

“As I’ve been waiting for you to. I’m glad to see you’re taking those Duties seriously once again.”

Luna fumed.

“I swear sister, if you make me walk around this table...”

“Oh calm down Luna. To answer your real question, yes I did a lot more than simply offer myself up and poke Twilight in the general direction of your legend. I’ve known for a thousand years exactly when you’d return, and I had time to plan.

“I’ve been monitoring and guiding the development of Ponyville for the last two centuries. It is truly one of the friendliest places in Equestria. I have always had someone like Twilight as my star pupil, and a social recluse is exactly the kind of person the ponies of Ponyville most like helping.

“I knew one of the first things you’d do after banishing me was check on the elements. You’d go straight to the old castle, which is the last place you saw the elements. You’d want to know they were under your control, which is why I had them moved back there. And also why I focused so much attention on Ponyville. It’s as close to the old castle as we can get without encroaching on the Everfree Forest. I didn’t want the Nightmare flying over any other ponies on the way there.

“I also knew you’d try and fail to destroy the elements, since even Twilight knew more about them than you did at that point.

“And finally, I wanted you back.”

“What?”

“The Elements of Harmony are guided by the hopes and desires of the pony wielding them. When I did so the safety of the kingdom was my heart’s desire. When Twilight used them on Discord, she wanted things to go back the way they had a few days earlier. But when Twilight used them on you, she knew what you had done to me. She just wanted her teacher back.”

Luna’s eyes widened.

“That’s why I survived?”

“I believe so, yes. The Elements attacked the banishment spell the Nightmare had cast, and it spent all of its energies, and most of yours, trying to defend it.” Celestia laughed. “It’s somewhat ironic really. If you had ever wielded the Elements, the Nightmare might have been able to use your knowledge to survive.”

Luna frowned.

“How?”

“All it needed to do was let the banishment spell be broken, and the Lights of Harmony would have dispersed without harming the Nightmare. At that point, it would have be safe from the Elements for at least another day, and it would have had six helpless ponies before it; so kill at its leisure.” Celestia paused and thought. “Or maybe it would have acted the same anyway. The nightmare always was all tactics no strategy.”

Luna looked at her sister with awe.

“You planned that?”

“Not entirely. I hoped that you had gotten better, and that I would able to deal with you if you hadn’t. Twilight was my main backup plan.”

“You had others?”

Celestia hesitated, before standing.

“Yes. Yes I did. And I believe now might be a good time for you to learn about one of them.”

Luna stood and followed her sister over to a teleportation tile The special tiles allowed the two sisters to quickly and precisely jump to any other tile in the network, as long as you knew where it was.

“Where are we going? Stalliongrad? Horseguards?” When Celestia didn’t answer Luna sarcastically added, “The Wonderbolts?”

“I am taking you to see the Ultimate Defence of the Realm.”

“The what?”

“Oh it’s just a silly title she insisted upon. You’ll see.”

Celestia touched the tile and both sisters vanished.