"Uh. Chrysalis, she just disappeared!" I exclaimed. My look was disconcerted as I turned to face Chrysalis.

Chrysalis' shot a panicky look at me. With a bright flash, her horn kindled with magic. She discharged kinetic wave of magic at me, causing me to fly back a few steps backwards.

I looked forwards in confusion. Soon enough, I understood why she did that as a blade suddenly impaled the tree, stopping just inches away from Chrysalis. The blade glistened in the sunlight before it finally retracted back behind the tree.

Landing with a thud, I groaned as I quickly recovered as I dusted off the dirt on my robes. "Uh. Thanks, I guess," those words were simply ignored by Chrysalis as I saw the blade cleaving through the tree in a span of a split-second. Bone-breaking gusts of wind was sent off behind the tree as it was sent hurling towards me at a ridiculous speed.

I quickly dashed to the left, narrowly avoiding being pulverized into a mangled mess. A gust of wind brushes me as the huge piece of lumber went past me.

I had no time to recuperate as a blur went rushing after me. My eyes widened as I withdrew my book from my clothes in instinct, raising it slightly above my forehead.

A metallic clang resonated just inches away from my face as I saw the metallic edge of a sword caught in the cover of the Grimoire. Despite the splitting sharpness of the blade, my book took the blow off as if it was nothing. The whole sword was engulfed in a blue, semitransparent light, indicating that telekinesis is being used to suspend it in the air.

Standing just a few inches away from the the menacing was her; Princess Luna. Her eyes that were fixated onto my soul were brimming with both intense vengeance and determination. Her piercing mien was enough to strike hesitation into me. Her mouth was open, revealing gnashing teeth.

I gulped as I prepared what I was about to do next. Moving in perfect motion, I swiftly grabbed the handle of the knife that I had sheathed on my belt with my free hand. Flourishing the knife, I cut away at her throat.

She deftly leaped backwards, dodging my blow with ease. My blade simply sliced through the air, causing me to jerk forwards. I saw her blade rearing itself as she moved her horn. Directing the tip of the blade at my chest, she prepared an attacking stance.

Her mouth moved as if to say something, but whatever words that were about to come out of her was disrupted as concussive blast of green flames sent her flying meters away.

Behind where she once stood was Chrysalis, her horn permeating smoke. With a triumphant smirk, she spoke out to me, "You can thank me later! For now, we have to finish her off!"

I nodded as I approached her. "Should be easy enough. Do that a second time and you might force surrender on her!"

Chrysalis shook her head. "That won't do. I used up all of my reserved magic for that one attack."

Before I could even reply, I heard a faint sound of a pained moan. I turned to the right reflexively, setting my sight at Luna who was standing with shaky legs, her eyes shut as she bit her lip to endure the presumably incomprehensible amount of pain she suffered. The trees around her were being devoured with green fire as a result from Chrysalis' spell.

She left a crater on the ground on where she landed. Dirt and debris alike decorated the blackened grass circling her. There were also gryphons and ponies alike scattered around her, all of them rendered incapacitated as a result of collateral damage.

Brushing off the charred spots of fur on her body, Luna awoke herself with a muffled, pained groan. Standing feebly as her legs faltered, she directed a scowl at me.

"Well, at this rate, she's going to go berserk and end up scorching this whole forest to the ground." I heard Chrysalis state from behind me as I took a faltering step back. "I gave you a fighting chance. With her injured to that extent, you should be able to plant a well-aimed stab at her neck."

A sudden display of emerald flames flashed behind me, causing me to recoil somewhat due to surprise. Turning back, I was appalled to see that Chrysalis has evacuated herself from the battlefield.

"Chrysalis? Chrysalis! Come back! Don't expect me to do all this alone!" I yelled out to no avail. "Dammit..." I said as I turned back to look at the Lunar Princess.

She spat out what seemed to be blood from her mouth before she soared high up to the skies, her formidable wings allowing her to reach over hundreds of feet in the air in a matter of seconds effortlessly.

Suddenly, she suddenly shifted directions--aiming towards me as she descended to the ground at the speed of a shooting bullet. Her face was akin to that of a murder's. Feathers from her wings fell off, decorating the sky as they fluttered slowly to the ground as the violent winds brushed her descent.

I dove to the right as the ground that I previously stood on promptly exploded as dust rockets upwards to the sky. I could simply stare at the haze of dust as a silhouette formed in the center of it. Suddenly, the silhouette began to shift.

A whirlwind of wind formed in the middle of the dust cloud as Luna furiously beats her wings. The miniature tornado victimized several of the plants as ivy and bushes were sent spiraling to the sky. I cursed inaudibly as I braced my footing in order to avoid being blown away.

Leaves and brittle sticks rained down on the ground as the cyclone finally stopped. I opened my eyes warily, daring to glare at Luna who was wheezing in fatigue. I had not noticed this before, but several pirates were spectating me just behind the bushes. On Luna's side, there were several ponies and gryphons observing the battle that is about to unfold as well.

The specific part of the forest that Luna and I stood on had its greenery removed; It was turned into a clearing. There were no longer shrubs to hide in--no, there was not even a single leaf within a good thirty-feet radius around me.

"Go kick her ass, boss!" a spectating pirate cheered for me. Soon enough, several other cheers began to emanate from the far bushes. Likewise, the other side were cheering for their respective leader. Seconds passed as the whole forest was deafened with inspiring chants.

Determination began to accumulate in me as I readied myself. I glanced at my rival who just finished recovering from exhaustion. She readied her blade, brandishing it in the air just away from her body.

I approached her, circling around her with my knife and book ever-ready in my hands. "Why do all of this? If you insist on pursuing me, even more will die! Can you not see that?" I pleaded.

Luna snarls at me as she began to step closer towards me, her glowing blade looking just as intimidating as it did before. "Have you not a single idea of what you've done? Do you not grasp what is entailed because of your actions?"

She dashes forward, bringing her blade downwards. Catching her blade with my knife, sparks flew as metal collided with metal. A clanging sound resonated before she continued, "Because of you, hundreds of families have been erased!"

She withdrew her blade before she brought it swinging downwards at me once more. I simply had to budge my knife just a few inches to the right in order to block it effectively. "Because of you, they're dead!" I briefly saw a glimpse of a tear forming on her face.

A drop of sweat fell from my head as I decided now was the time to retaliate. Seeing that my knife was fending off the sword, I decided it was probably best to use the book. "I have not-" I paused as I swung my left arm, the book slamming into her snout, causing her to wince, "the slightest clue who you're referring to!"

She staggered backwards, as if genuinely hurt. Wincing, she placed her hoof on her nose. 'The book burns all those who touches it that is not its master. Convenient feature.' Suddenly, the book faintly glowed with a light that was similar to Luna's magic. The air around it became dense with a feeling that is undoubtedly magic.

"My magic... it's weakened." Luna shot eyes of persecution at me. "You thief! You stole a portion of my magic, didn't you?" Her sword pointed horizontally at me. Briefly enough, she cuts away at me in a wide arc.

I barely reacted just in time to bend my body backwards. The blade just grazed my black robes, just abrading the cloth. 'Too close!' I cursed in my mind.

With my right hand finally free to move, I positioned my knife for a stab. With its tip pointing downwards, I raised my arm before dropping it downwards.

Luna predicted the attack with ease, and acted accordingly as she simply took a few steps backwards to evade the poisoned tip of the blade. Of course, I anticipated such a sloppy attack to miss.

Luna swiftly counters with a downward slash, bringing her sword crashing down on me. I sidestepped, causing the blade to hit the ground rather than its intended mark.

With a flourish of my wrist, I applied just a bit of momentum to toss the knife vertically, making it go just above my hand. Catching it by its tip, I extended my arm. I threw the knife with excessive force, sending it hurling towards the midnight-blue princess. "Please don't miss," I muttered silently.

She cocks her head to the right, allowing the knife to pass through with no disruptions. A fell scream could be heard as the knife sliced through the head of gryphon observer. "Dammit! That's not what I meant by not missing!" I cursed sharply to myself.

'Without a weapon, it would be a hardly fair fight. I'd be killed in a span of seconds...' Time seemed to decelerated as I feverishly searched for anything I could use for a weapon. Unfortunately, my search proved fruitless.

Clenched in my hand was my book--the only viable thing I could use right now. 'Dammit, what's to lose, anyways? Other than my limbs, freedom, and, or, life.'

Allocating as much strength allowed in my arm, I catapulted the book towards Luna.

Luna didn't even bother moving as she simply lit up her horn. It was foreseeable. She was preparing a telekinesis spell. Unfortunately for her, the book ignored her magic and simply continued on bolting towards her face.

The book scored her face with a satisfying crunching sound. The thick cover of the book did more than a good job at denting her face. She winced in pain as the book both bludgeoned and burned her simultaneously.

Losing her concentration, she dropped her sword to the ground as she continued on taking agonized steps backwards.

Seeing the opportunity, I dashed forward, snatching both the Grimoire and the sword. I placed the edge of my newly acquired blade onto her throat. Without giving her time to react, I positioned my book right onto the tip of horn.

As expected, the book began drawing her magic. Luna could only stare helplessly as the book's brilliant light intensified as it siphoned her magic.

The book began to emanate a faint, red smoke. 'Alright, the book is nearing its containment limit. If I keep this up, it'll probably explode." I took the book off of her horn.

"Fall back now." I commanded as I backed away from her, my blade pointed at her throat. "You've lost already. Don't ever come looking for me ever again."

Luna leered at me with murderous intent in her eyes, but despite that, I could see fresh tears staining her face. "Don't... expect Equestria to not hunt you down."

"You've lost this fight. What makes you think you'll win the next one, should you keep up with this hunt for me? I've taken the lives of innocents; I know that, but you'll just end up plunging even more lives into death if you keep this up!" I lashed out.

Luna regained her composure as her legs finally quit trembling from weakness. "It will all be worth it in the end."

I sighed as I looked at her dead in the eye. "Did I ever tell you the definition of insanity?"

The entire forest went silent. Not the slightest sound was made--no wind, no rustling of the bushes, no cries of the wildlife. Nothing. The forest was absolutely devoid of sound.

I continued, "The definition of insanity is: doing the exact same thing over and over again, expecting different results."

Just as I finished speaking, she vanished. She used the last of her magic as her horn flickered with weak sparks. All of a sudden, I was engulfed in a flash of light.

Shielding my eyes with my hands, I cautiously lowered my arm as I opened my eyelids. Princess Luna was nowhere in sight. However, everywhere I looked, there were reflections of me everywhere. The reason for these reflections were because of colossal, crystalline crystals plaguing this, what appears to be, huge cavern. What alarmed me was the fact the crystal structures were radiating with magic.

"No..." I shifted uncomfortably in realization. "She's trying to regain magic by sapping these crystals..."