A small fire crackled and danced as the bright sun of the day slowly sank below the horizon, the skies above changing from a powder blue to a dark sapphire in mere moments. Above the heads of the ponies who began to congregate about the fire, wisps of iridescent power danced on the evening breeze above the obsidian temple behind them. A sure sign of the massive working of magic that had taken place mere hours ago. As Celestia released the power of the sun, the smell of toasted nuts and roasting vegetables filled the air, and for but a moment, Princess Celestia could forget the grim errand that had brought them here.

It was like stepping out of a seemingly endless dream into a world she’d thought long forgotten. A bearded and cloaked pony sat happily upon a cushion, his hat resting upon the ground beside him. His eyes sparkled with infinite intelligence and wisdom, and that same wry sense of humor that was always ready to crack an utterly inappropriate joke. Even in her wildest fantasies, Celestia had not once entertained the thought that she would ever again see the face of her mentor and tutor in the ways of magic. He had been lost to history - a distant, if beloved, figure that had walked into the mists of time and vanished without a trace.

However, what had happened had become clear. Starswirl had foreseen the return of the dark creature called Umbra and had set about laying his plans. He hadn’t told Celestia, of course. Or Luna. Or - as far as she could tell - anypony except for Clover. That hurt in a way that surprised Celestia, especially with the intensity that she felt the emotion. More than anything else, Celestia was worried that her nerves were beginning to fray. Twilight, more than ever, needed her at her absolute best.

So she shook off the petty emotions. Now was not the time to whine about the things she had not be told. Now was the time to focus on what needed to be done to save Twilight, and indeed the entire world. “You look worried, Celly,” said a rough-hewn and gravelly voice, startling her out of her thoughts. She turned to face the yellow-coated stallion, who was scratching as his scraggly white beard. His golden eyes gleamed in the dim light of the evening as he half smiled at her. “You didn’t used to worry like this,” Star Swirl continued, keeping his voice soft.

“I didn’t used to have very many things to worry about,” Celestia said sharply, then winced. Her temper really was a lot more raw than it ought to have been. “But then, so very much has changed since I saw you last, teacher. Walking into the mysterious east, vowing to one day return.” Celestia glanced up at the imposing edifice of obsidian stone and silver, and shook her head slowly. “What happened out here? What did you learn?”

Star Swirl The Bearded sighed deeply, rubbing at his eyes with his hoof. “You know, you don’t have to dance around the subject, Celestia. There were some things I kept concealed from you, hoping that you would never need know about them.” His step was slow but sure, full of purpose and confidence, even if he hesitated over his next words. “I have spoken to Luna, Celly. For whatever it is worth, I am sorry about… about my final words to you.” His voice was soft again as he spoke, and Celestia felt a stab of anger and pain deep in her heart.

“Sorry for what?” Celestia spat, wheeling to face him with a glare. “Sorry that I very nearly lost my sister because you couldn’t be bothered to warn me about this Shadow? Sorry that I had to rule alone for a thousand years, bereft of all those I had loved, knowing naught if I would ever see them again? Sorry that my most precious student has now been taken from me by that very same creature!?!” Her voice spat venom and fire, and for the first time in centuries she felt a truly overwhelming urge to hurt somepony. “Sorry that you forced me to choose between the most precious pony to me in all of the world, and some vague and nebulous threat I knew nothing about? What in the name of the powers could possibly make you sorry for THAT?”

But there was no sign of fear in Star Swirl - no sign of intimidation. Just that steady, calm, and infuriating gaze of his. “Celestia,” he said firmly, but gently - his gravelly voice making an attempt to be soothing. “You are correct.” His head bowed for a moment, and she could see his half-balding head, still rimmed by a frill of bright white mane. “I erred terribly. All I can do now, all I can attempt to do now, is tell you why I did such a thing… and how perhaps…” His head came up again, and there was a sparkle of pride in his eye. “How perhaps you may have unknowingly given us the key to victory.”

Celestia stared at him for a moment, trying to decide between her rage and her desperate need for hope. As she had so many times before in her life, she swallowed her pride and took a deep breath. “All I care about now, teacher… is to make safe the ponies I love, and most especially, how to save the life and soul of my student. If your words can bring me such a result, I will listen to anything you wish to say.” Then Celestia paused and sighed softly. “And for what it is worth, I forgave you a very long time ago, Star Swirl. I even gave you that library wing you’d always wanted in Canterlot.” She couldn’t help but feel a faint smile cross her face. “It’s the same place you always used to get drunk and practice your magic.”

That produced a bright and cheerful grin on his face, transforming it from the wise and dour magician into the irreverent scholar she knew he was - deep, deep down inside… “Well, I suppose then I ought to make this worth it. But come - we ought to join young Dancer and Luna. This is a tale I’d rather not tell more than once.” He jerked his head over his shoulder, and began to walk towards the fire. Celestia felt a tug of a smile cross her face and trotted up beside him - walking slow and regally even as he took a greater pace, her longer limbs forcing him to rush to keep up with her.

He half glared at her, muttering something about Alicorns and old ponies, eliciting a giggle out of Celestia by the time they reached the fire. “Oh, good,” Luna remarked with a half smile. “I was afraid you were going to try to kill him given how you were raising your voice, Tia.” Luna and Moon Dancer sat next to a cheerfully crackling fire, upon which Moon Dancer was carefully tending to roasting vegetables and very studiously not looking directly at Celestia.

Celestia felt her smile turn a touch weary. She was long used to the batpony race being somewhat afraid of her. For so long she had been the literal devil who had shattered their armies and imprisoned their goddess upon the moon - she couldn’t blame them for that fear. Still, with Luna’s return, relationships had improved markedly once it became clear Luna had lost no affection for her older sibling. Of course, this one had more reason than most to fear the mighty Celestia. She had - by her own admission - been one of those who had led Twilight down the dark path.

But after three millennia of life, Celestia had long since learned to see past the surface to the truth hidden beneath. This pony - this black-coated batpony - was playing a far, far deeper game here than either Star Swirl or Luna realized. What was more, she was gambling something that was incredibly, vastly important to her. Celestia was not sure what that thing was, but she was certain that Moon Dancer was prepared to do just about anything to make sure she didn’t lose it. In a way, it simply made her choice easier. Moon dancer had something impossibly important tied up in this just as much as Celestia did.

She exhaled deeply and tried her best to look comforting and motherly. “Moon Dancer, you need not fear me. We are all here for the very same reason, and we shall be far more effective in seeing that reason accomplished if we can look one another in the eye.” She injected a hint of teasing into the last words, and the batpony mare flushed a little and lifted her head defiantly. Luna gave Celestia an amused smile, Celestia beaming at her in response. “See, isn’t that better? Now, teacher, would you please enlighten us as to exactly what you intend?” Celestia tried very hard to keep her voice light. She needed to remain hopeful and focused.

Star Swirl took his seat and took in a deep breath, then exhaled just as deeply. “When Clover and I first came to Neighpon, we noticed something remarkably different about the ponies here. They believed very strongly that an entire society of gods and goddesses existed who ruled over…” He gestured with his hoof. “... everything. All the fundamental forces of the world and then some. It was remarkably similar to the early belief systems in Roam, with one notable exception.” Star Swirl’s horn lit with a silvery white magic and inscribed a strange sigil into the dirt. “The Goddess of the Shadows, Umbra. A much feared deity in the local culture, and the first time I and Clover had ever realized that Umbra was known outside of those few scholars who had read The Dark Book.”

Star Swirl dashed the symbol from the dirt, and Celestia felt a little knot of fear worm its way into her heart as her mentor continued to speak. “We spent much of the next decade casting complex teleportation rituals and traveling all over the world. We spoke to the Zebricans and the Griffons. We consulted with the most ancient of dragons and delved into forgotten libraries, searching for answers and finding very few. Then, in the dead of night as we were about to come to Canterlot… we were visited by the White Doe.” Celestia’s eyes widened a fraction and could not disguise her shock… nor could Luna, whose jaw had dropped quite seriously.

“But that is not possible!” Luna interjected before Celestia could get the words out. “The White Doe does not leave her woods - ever! She hath not done so since the Hart placed the care of his deerfolk in her hooves long before I or Celestia were even born!” Luna stomped a hoof and glared at Star Swirl. “It would take a disaster of…” Luna’s words trailed off, as Celestia began to nod in sorrow at her. “... of world-ending proportions,” Luna said in a whisper, her hooves coming up to cover her mouth. “Oh, Faust...” Luna said harshly, half to herself and half to the night air.

Celestia reached over to squeeze Luna’s hoof and received a brittle smile in return. Star Swirl shook his head, his own smile quite dry. “Yes. She knew of me - and of what had occurred between myself and poor Cabbage Leaf.” He sighed and rubbed at his eyes again. “She did not blame me for my choice, which surprised me greatly - apparently, the young pony was the only reason that Umbra was not marching to corrupt the world once again.” His eyes gleamed in what Celestia could only call pride. “The young colt, for all of his faults, was so stubborn, so wholly committed to preserving Equestria, that Umbra could not get her hooks into him.”

“However…” Star Swirl drawled, and Celestia felt her ears perk. Her teacher was finally going to get to the meat of the problem. “We still had to face the fact that Umbra was a menace that could not easily be dealt with. We consulted with the Doe for several weeks before concluding that we needed more time. Or rather, that the world needed time to recover from the depredations of the Windigos and the slow decay of the second Griffon Empire.” He shook his head slowly, sadness written in his form. “We had no ideal solutions. There was no telling how long it would be before a champion powerful enough could be found to face her.”

He looked directly at Celestia then, his golden gaze hard as iron. “It should have been your student that faced her and ultimately defeated her… but there was a complication. Umbra was supposed to have been banished to the moon alone.” Luna gave off a strangled gasp of sound, and Moon Dancer’s eyes shut as she shied away from the group of powerful ponies which surrounded her. As for Celestia? She sat there in cold silence, staring daggers at Star Swirl. The last thing they needed now was dissent and…

Star Swirl shook his head slowly. “But that did not happen. The love of a sister for her sister preserved Luna’s life, and ultimately changed the course of history. And now that I have seen and heard even only a little of what has happened, I cannot say it was the wrong choice for Celestia to make.” Then he smiled at them both - a wan, gentle sort of smile - a rueful smile. “I never was terribly good at the magic of Friendship, and once again it has proven far stronger than I could possibly have anticipated.”

Star Swirl leaned forward, his face cast into a bright and gleeful light by the warm fire. “For our foe Umbra has made a critical error. By all accounts, she has seduced and…” he nodded to Moon Dancer, “fully converted the young unicorn to her ways. Yet we also know that in spite of that, she remains almost pathologically attached to her friends. It is this!” He slammed his hoof into the tree trunk he sat upon, his smile widening to almost a frightening degree. “That gives us our opening. It is proof that no matter how powerful she may be, no matter how capable she is at adaptation and corruption, Umbra cannot break the bonds of the Elements of Harmony.”

Celestia absorbed that news for a moment of silence, and then a glow began to grow in her chest. A bright light and warmth that had seemed absent these past few weeks as they had flown in desperation through the skies. A swell of energy, of hope and life burst forth from her chest, and she felt the first smile in many a day shatter her brooding resolve. Star Swirl smacked his thigh and grinned triumphantly at her, even as a dawning comprehension came over Luna’s face. Moon Dancer, however, still looked puzzled. “I… I apologize, but I do not understand. Would Umbra not then control the power of the Elements?” she asked, her voice trembling with fear.

Celestia shook her head and smiled slowly. “The Elements of Harmony have very specific uses, Moon Dancer. They are powerful, yes, but not unlimited. What is more, they are intrinsically linked to their bearers - and their bearers are inextricably linked to one another.” Celestia leaned in, feeling a rush of pleasure as she did so. Twilight could be saved. Equestria could be saved. “That means that no matter what Umbra does, she cannot deprive them of the one power in the world that she has no hope of opposing… Friendship.”

Moon Dancer’s eyes widened and Star Swirl grinned, a face echoed by Luna who was now clapping her hooves together in excitement. “Settle down now,” Star Swirl began in a gently chiding tone. “It will not be nearly as simple as all that. Umbra’s power and influence will undoubtedly run deep, and we have other pressing matters to attend to.” Celestia’s warmth turned to shock as she stared at Star Swirl. More pressing than Equestria? Madness! But Star Swirl shook his head ruefully. “Celestia, even if we were to leave on the morrow, it would take us nearly eight weeks of hard travel to reach Equestria. Moon Dancer must be with us, and you know how I feel about flying.”

Celestia facehoofed and Star Swirl chuckled absently. Star Swirl had legendarily hated being carried by Pegasi for any reason - it was the one thing in the world he simply would not do. Even hot-air balloons made him very twitchy. “And,” he continued with his damnable logic, “I cannot safely teleport us anywhere until I have recovered my staff, and even then it would take weeks to form the ritual.” Celestia felt a stab of pain in her heart and closed her eyes - only to feel a gentle and insistent hoof shake her shoulder. “Even aside from those concerns, there is more. We will need help, Celestia. Fortunately, I have already arranged some.”

Celestia was getting awfully tired of the shocks she’d been getting today, and this one only made her more irritated. “Oh? From where, might I ask?” she shot back at him, trying to keep the sneering tone out of her voice. “The Griffons will hardly believe a word we say about the world coming to an end - they still blame us for Discord! The Zebricans never get involved in the affairs of other nations unless their home islands are threatened, and do not even get me started on the Diamond Dogs or the rest of them! Who will you call to for aid, teacher? The damnable Changelings?” The last word came out in a spit of contempt and anger. She still had not forgotten what had happened at the Royal Wedding, nor would she for a very long time to come.

“The Changelings will have a part to play, Celestia,” Star Swirl said very quietly, stunning her into incoherence, “and before the end, you will be glad for it. But that is not of whom I speak.” He gestured around him. “This temple was built, and I housed within it and kept safe, because I struck a deal with the Ki-Lin Empress.” He leaned in and folded his hooves, his voice gentle and intense. “You see, the mares of her house have long had the gift of prophecy, and she herself had been visited with visions of her kingdom awash in flames and falling under the yoke of the Shadow. But if the Goddesses of the Sun and Moon were to one day visit her court and proclaim themselves for all the world to know…” He trailed off as Celestia stared at him in disbelief. Surely he wasn’t being serious.

Luna was giving him the same blank look, and Star Swirl coughed before speaking. “Celly, Lulu… I am fully aware how uncomfortable you are with such things, but I had little choice. I had unwisely revealed my relationship to you two in one of our conversations, and she was adamant that presenting you two to her court would be a part of our bargain.” Celestia sighed and facehoofed - and amusingly - so did Luna. Star Swirl’s voice came out of the darkness behind her hooves, sounding vaguely pained. “I am sorry, you two, but you’re just going to have to take your medicine on this one. Once you have proclaimed yourselves to their ponies, the Empress will have no choice but to recognize your authority as being divinely superior to hers. We will be able to fold their armies into Equestria’s and-”

“Now wait just a minute!” Celestia burst out, dropping her hooves and then throwing them up into the air. “No, Star Swirl! I will not do it! I swore two thousand years ago that I would never use my power to seize away control of any free creature’s nation!” She stood up abruptly, realizing she was very nearly using the Royal Canterlot voice. She took a moment to master her emotions before continuing in her most intense voice. “No. I will not become the iron hoofed Tyrant of the Sun my detractors have long accused me of being. Not even for you, teacher. The very idea is utterly repulsive.” She shivered a little, wanting to take a bath after even contemplating such an action.

Then Star Swirl stood up, and his hat floated from the ground to grace his head. He walked around the fire with the bells jangling in a forced cheeriness that set Celestia’s teeth to grinding. He walked until he stood directly in front of her, and glared up at her without fear. Few creatures indeed would look directly into her gaze in such a way, but Star Swirl had always been exceptional. “Then would you do it for your student?” he asked in almost a whisper - a quiet, intense voice. “Without the armies of Ki-Lin, we will be hard pressed to find the forces fit to battle our way through Umbra’s armies of shadow. Without their resources, it will take us months to reach Equestria, assuming we can reach it at all, and then more time to reach Canterlot. That is time your young Twilight does not have. That is time Equestria does not have.”

Celestia stared at him for a long few moments, then slumped to the ground slowly - barely able to control her descent. “I... I cannot... I…” She stuttered for a few moments, then lowered her head “I cannot lose her, Star Swirl. I cannot.” Celestia whispered softly, trying to keep Luna from hearing - even though that would be next to impossible, she still tried. “I… very well. I will do… I will do what must be done.” Celestia looked away, wondering if she would be able to cleanse herself of this feeling of disgust. “I will play the Goddess for these ponies. For her. For Equestria.”

Star Swirl nodded once, and gently turned Celestia’s head back to face him before embracing her around the neck for a brief moment, before sitting down next to her. His next words surprised her - but perhaps they shouldn’t have. “Tell me about her,” he said with infinite gentleness. “Luna has told me a little, but she is your student.”

Celestia turned her gaze up to the stars for a moment, wondering how in the world she could boil down her most faithful student into words. “Her full name is Twilight Sparkle…” she began slowly, feeling a lump catch in her throat. “You would very much like her, teacher. She is much like Clover was, so very long ago…”

Luna gently chivvied Moon Dancer away from the fire, leaving Celestia to work out some of the emotions that undoubtedly had been building up in her since their trip had begun. For that, she needed privacy - and besides - Luna had her own questions that needed to be answered. Moon Dancer had been unaccountably diligent, but she expected no less from one of her Children of the Night. “I shall need you to swear that you will speak no falsehood to me, young one,” Luna said as they turned around one corner of the temple to find a secluded little hill that had a perfect view of the moon. “Our time is short, and I shall need to know every detail if we are to have any hope of victory.”

Moon Dancer crossed her hoof over her chest and bowed deeply to her. “I so swear, My Queen. What would you ask of me?” Her voice was deep, and actually quite attractive. There was a real intelligence in those eyes in addition to the usual dose of batpony cunning. She would have been a dangerous opponent for even a seasoned schemer… and Twilight Sparkle had been no such thing. It was no wonder she’d been instrumental to her downfall.

But now was not the time. “I need to know everything that Twilight has done, and everything that has happened to her. And I need you to leave out no detail, no matter how disturbing or depraved. I need to know everything you can tell me about this Shadow power, and what it is capable of.” Then Luna frowned - a purposeful act to try and drive home her next point. “And most importantly of all… I need to know what you and your lover are trying to pull.” Moon Dancer swallowed visibly as Luna displayed every inch of her considerable power as the Princess of the Night, and directed it straight toward Moon Dancer.

Perhaps this Shadow truly believed that it was the true ruler of the darkness and the Night.

Luna was going to show it otherwise.

Author's Notes:

And here we go again, folks....