“How is she?” inquired Luna, leaning over the special bed in which Celestia had been installed. She was still unconscious, breathing regularly, as if deeply asleep.

“Stable,” responded Hippiatros.

“Will she regain consciousness?”

“Once more, I’m afraid I can’t give you a definite answer. She might, but it seems that her brain has somehow partially shut down in order to protect her. Ampiphilin secretion is majored under stress, so maybe it is best for her that she remains in this state, cocooned from reality… However, if you need her awake, I can risk a shot of epinephrin, which would counteract the effects of ampiphilin for a short while. She’d probably wake and be able to do some basic things like speaking, standing up and walking, for an hour or two at maximum. But this is no cure, just a makeshift.”

“We’ll call on this only as a last resort,” said Luna. “Meanwhile, try to keep her as comfortable as possible.”

“We’ll do our best, your Highness,” responded Hippiatros, bowing.

Luna mused for a moment, then: “Do you think her condition can somehow be linked to the irruption of the intruder?”

“I hardly see how,” answered Hippiatros. “Can you be more specific?”

“I mean… An intruder that takes the shape of my sister, and even the guise of some other pony, sounds very much like a changeling.”

“It seems a reasonable hypothesis.”

“And what do changelings feed on? Energy. Could it be that this particular changeling has channeled and consumed all Celestia’s mental or magic energy, giving rise to that odd hormonal unbalance?”

“There is no way to answer that question, your Highness,” explained Hippiatros. “Changeling anatomy is totally foreign to us. And while I suppose changelings do have physicians, too, there never were any scientific contacts between us. How changeling feed, and how they impact the metabolism of their victims remains a mystery, up to that point. I am deeply sorry.”

It might be a changeling, yes. But it does not explain why she was glistening like the true Celestia yesterday night… I am lost. “Does she need something special?” asked Luna, cocking her head toward the bed.

“No, just quietness and–”

“Princess! Princess!” shouted Twilight Sparkle unexpectedly rushing in. “I found it! I found it!”

“Mum!” ordered Luna. “Don’t disturb my sister, she needs calm,” she added more softly. Hippiatros scowled at the rumbustious mauve pony. “Please, behave yourself!” he commented harshly. “This is a medical section, not a school quad during a recess.”

“Ooops! I beg your pardon,” apologized Twilight awkwardly. “I didn’t see Princess Celestia, I thought the room was empty.” She blushed in embarrassment.

“No harm,” said Luna, “but let’s huddle somewhere else.” She trotted off the room, asked the nearby nurses for a private nook, and finally decided to settle in Hippiatros’ private office. They walked in, and Twilight closed the door behind her. “So, what have you found?” asked Luna.

“Princess, you must immediately cancel the licence you gave to the guards to shoot!” squeaked Twilight. “The intruder you discovered is not a changeling. It is Princess Celestia. I mean, sort of. Well… a part of her. If anybody kills this… other half, then our beloved Celestia is hopelessly doomed.”

“WHAT?” exclaimed Luna. “What do you mean it is my sister? My sister is sleeping in a bed ten meters from here, she is not traipsing through the castle in search of a stallion to satisfy her sexual pulsions with…”

“The psyphotic beam has replicated her,” explained Twilight. “She has been psychologically split in two.”

“Please elaborate!” ordered Luna.

“I found the relevant information in a book called ‘Experiences with psyphota’ by an old scientist called Phrenologus, that was lost in the middle of the underground shelves, and not even mentioned on the catalogue. No wonder you didn’t find it. Basically, here it is: as soon as the psyphotic beam is shut down, the soul ought to return to the body. If it does not, then it must be forced in as soon as possible; with every second lost, there is an increasing chance of triggering what the author calls a psychodiplopoiesis, that is, a soul-splitting. If that happen, then after the first half-soul is finally reunited with the body, a supplemental body materializes later, at a random time, to sustain the second half-soul.

“Now, both bodies are identical, but the half-souls are not. Each one inherits from opposite tendencies that coexist and conflict in everypony’s mind. For example, one will be rational and the other crazy; one shy, the other shameless; one benevolent, the other ruthless; and so on. There is no way to predict along what trait or traits of personality the fracture will take place. Needless to say, neither the replicated individual nor the replica are viable. The unbalanced personality exerts a psychological stress on the brain that causes major physiological failures. If nothing is done to reunite the bodies–and the half-souls–the life expectancy is about six hours at most. I think Princess Celestia has already greatly exceeded this figure.”

“What shall we do?” inquired Luna.

“You must rebind the half-souls,” Twilight insisted. “Gather both bodies so that they can be lit by the same psyphotic beam at the same instant. Re-send both half-souls in the ethereal plane, cast a binding spell, and then, and only then, shut down the psyphotic lamp. You need both bodies, both alive.”

“Understood,” acknowledged Luna. “I’ll give new orders at once.” She stood up and ran off.

“ATTENTION ALL PERSONNEL, THIS IS PRINCESS LUNA ONCE MORE!” shouted her voice a minute later through the alarm system. “The intruder MUST BE CAPTURED ALIVE. I SAY ALIVE. AT ALL COSTS. IMPLEMENT!”

Luna was pacing up and down restlessly in the main hall of the medical section. She had sent Twilight to ready all the necessary stuff in the ruined royal laboratory, in preparation for the future operation. On the other hand, she had decided to remain here, in case something unexpected would happen to her sister. However, everything seemed still; Celestia was sleeping quietly. The latest blood sample was dismal, though: it had shown a steady increase in the ampiphilin levels of the princess. How much time would she withstand this internal chemical pressure, Luna durstn’t bet.

She was in the middle of her thoughts when the eagerly awaited message finally came. “We’ve found her!” declared the captain of the guards through the intercom. “She has retreated and locked herself in a small closet nigh Princess Celestia’s bedroom.”

“Great job captain!” answered Luna. “Stay put. Take all measures you deem necessary to avoid her escape. She is probably weak, but even a weak alicorn wields an awesome power. Be very wary, never stay alone. I’ll join you as soon as possible. Luna out.”

The blue alicorn hurried to the bedside where Hippiatros was busy charting some figures. “Hippiatros!” she called.

“Yes, your majesty?” responded the doctor, slightly disconcerted by the sudden interjection of his name.

“The shot you told me about two hours ago… Epi… Epi…”

“Epinephrin,” finished Hippiatros.

“Yes, whatever. I want it now. I need Celestia to be able to walk as soon as possible.”

“Acknowledged. But remember, you have one hour, two at most.”

“Point well taken. Go! NOW!” commanded Luna.

The medic took a syringe, capped it with a long needle; he filled it with a clear liquid drawn from an ampoule, which he injected at once in one of the hind legs of Celestia. “Done,” he said. “It should take effect in less than a minute.”

Luna gazed intently at her sister. At first, nothing happened. Then her hind leg twitched, as if her brain had eventually registered the pain caused by the pinprick. She winced and opened an eye. “What did you do to me?” she asked in a weak but suspicious voice.

“Trying to mend you back together,” said Luna, “both in the figurative and the literal sense. I shall explain to you later. How do you feel?”

“Like I had been plunged in a deep, cold and gloomy lake for an eternity,” she answered, and her voice gathered strength. “All my body aches, and I still don’t feel any magical capacity within me. But I suppose it’ll return soon?”

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, but you’re not out of trouble yet; it’s just a brief remission. But we shall heal you once and for all in a few moments, if all goes well. Can you walk?”

Celestia rolled over and got up carefully. She stretched her legs with a slight grimace. “I think I can, yes. It’s a bit painful, but I can easily manage.”

“Great! We will head for your bedroom. I will fill you in while we walk. Ready?”

“Let’s go!” said Celestia cheerfully.

They were welcomed by the captain of the guards, Archoplites. “She is still in the closet,” he declared to the princesses. “We didn’t register any suspect activity. Some noises, as if she was moving round, nothing more. The last of which we heard a few seconds before you arrived, so I’m positive she’s still inside and alive. We didn’t dare open the door, though.”

“Well done general, compliments!” congratulated Luna. “Now, let me get this over with. I’ll stave in and–”

“Don’t!” Celestia cut in. “I shall handle this myself.”

“You’re not strong enough to withstand a possible attack. I can’t let you in,” objected Luna.

“I have no intention to go in,” replied Celestia. “I want her to get out. Let me do this. Luna, please. She is me, after all. That’s a personal business.”

“Okay,” grunted Luna. “But no foolish move!” she warned.

“Promised,” said Celestia. She creeped forward, and pattered at the door. “Celestia!” she called gently, “that’s me. Well, you.” She snickered. “Answer, please.”

There was a prolonged silence, and then a barely audible, but unmistakable voice–the selfsame that had uttered the words before, but with a harsh tinge–rasped: “Go away. Leave me alone.”

“Celestia! Don’t be stupid. If you remain here, you are doomed: in a couple of hours you will be dead. Look how weak you are. Come to me, and I shall save you. I shall save us”

“No, you won’t. You want me dead, I know it!”

“Nobody wants you dead. Who told you that?”

“Luna. She clearly ordered to shoot me if necessary. I heard it clearly. I know she has always hated me… us.”

“Luna does not hate you. Luna needs you and me to live. She needs you as her big loving sister. Full-time.”

“But you… you don’t need me. You never let me free. You fettered me, for eternity. For you, I am the dark side, the evil child, the one you are ashamed of, the one you smother. You always wanted to get rid of me, so that you would be wholly her and she would be wholly you. Don’t pretend you care now. Let me croak here.”

“I know and I am so sorry,” sighed the Celestia in the bedroom. “It’s true, I’m the toast. But it’s so hard for her sometimes, that I should always win. Always smiling. Always benevolent. Always forgiving. The epitome everypony should follow. The graceful, caring, adulated, omniscient, omnipotent sovereign of a prosperous and blissful country. Everypony watches everyone of her steps, everyone of her grins, everyone of her hoofshakes, everyone of her words. And you, you’re here, at the back of her mind, telling her to care first about herself, to break free, to taste all those pleasures that I deny her… to let go, have fun, frolic, gambol… and she never does. She seems so callous with you. But she needs you, nevertheless, I can assure you. As much as she needs me. Badly. Without you, she would  just be weak, sheepish, irresolute, squeamish; she needs you to muster her strength of will, her capacity to decide and command, her leadership. She needs you to rule. She can’t be just a lamb, she must also have the fangs of the wolf, to fight and defend herself, to fight for and defend her kingdom. Come on, please, believe me, she needs you. Desperately. And I promise I shall let you more leeway from now on.”

She paused and tottered, as if the stress had exhausted her. Then she resumed, in a supplicant voice: “I am not your enemy. How could I? We are twins. All I want is to clinch you. I am waiting for you, right here. Nopony will do you any harm, I swear. Join me, I beseech you. I need you to live, as much as she needs you to live. Please!”

A hush fell, broken by a shuffling noise. A faint click, and the lock rattled. A big thud followed immediately. “Hurry!” cried Celestia. She opened the door, and discovered the body of her double, sprawled on the floor. “Luna!” she called. “Carry her to the lab’. Every second counts now.” Her sister magically lifted the limp body in the air, and they dashed into the corridor, galloping, as fast as Celestia’s condition would allow, towards the laboratory where Twilight Sparkle was expecting them.

They rushed into the devastated room. Celestia trod into the magic circle, and Luna very carefully put the body of the other Celestia on the floor, next to her. She then whirled to face Twilight. “Is anything ready?” she asked.

“At your command, Princess,” replied Twilight.

“Then go! Don’t wait.”

Twilight switched the psyphotic lamp on. Immediately, the bright ray sprung from the big bulging lens, and the crude light permeated the bodies of both Celestias. The upright Princess shivered and then stiffened, and their eyes went blank. “Now the spell Princess. It’s over here!” squealed Twilight. Luna snagged the scroll, read the formula aloud. When it was done, Twilight flipped the switch off, and the ray vanished.

Celestia sagged heavily on the ground, falling partly over the body of her twin.

“What is going on?” panicked Luna.

“Wait,” replied Twilight. “Don’t fret. Up to this point, this is perfectly normal.”

Luna fidgeted in silence during a few seconds that seemed to stretch forever. Then, at last, the first of the two bodies stirred, and its eyes winked.

“Celestia? Is that you? How do you feel?” croaked Luna.

“How do I feel?” responded Celestia, and her voice, tense and flimsy as it was, was exactly that of their beloved Princess. “How do I feel?” she repeated. “I feel… whole again,” she said with a smile. “How will I ever be able to thank you, both?” She rose clumsily, and stumbled out of the circle. Turning around, she glanced at the other body, still lying on the floor. “What about… her?” she asked.

“I’m sorry,” responded Twilight, “I had no time to warn you. The whole shebang reunites souls, but the bodies remain. When the mended soul comes down from the empyrean, it selects one of the two bodies, randomly, as its future host. The other…” she broke off and pointed at the decumbent and inert white shape. At this very moment, it hiccuped, gave out a sigh. Then the ever-shifting mane darkened, ceased to wave, and the delicate chest went down one last time. It was over.

“She’s dead?” whispered Celestia. She lowered her head.

“Yes, Princess,” confirmed Twilight sadly. “Body and soul are one. They can’t be severed one from the other. The body needs the soul to sustain it. Absent, it cannot live for long…”

“Don’t mourn,” said Luna softly. “She looks dead, but that’s mere appearance. It was just an empty husk, anyhow. In sooth, she’s living within you my sister. And we won’t forget her.”

“You’re right,” approved Celestia, her eyes bleary. “I can feel her inside my head right now. Telling me that…” Her horn glimmered with flurries of light, and the corpse of the white alicorn was hauled and moved outside the circle. “Telling me that it’s no time to be namby-pamby. Your turn now, Luna!” she carried on, and every trace of weakness had vanished from her voice. “I recall you telling me the Moon is still threatening our world! Are you ready to dive in?”

“Of course, sister!” Luna replied. And she grinned broadly as she padded inside the circle. Celestia beckoned Twilight, who switched the lamp once more.

“One hundred…”

“Fifty…”

“Now!” commanded Celestia. Twilight cut the power. This time, all had gone well. No vortex, no incident. No duplication. Both sighed in relief, watching the dark alicorn gradually coming back to her senses.

“So?” asked Celestia as Luna was grumpily trying to recover from her spooky experience. “Did you see him? Did he gave you the spell?”

“Yes,” replied Luna. ”I saw him, as you saw him, almost as transparent as a ghost. He seemed to be fine, though. As witty and crisp as ever! But what spell are you talking about?” she asked in bewilderment.

Celestia, befuddled, stared blankly at her sister. “But… But…” she muttered. “Don’t tell me that–”

“GOTCHA!” shouted Luna merrily. “Of course I asked him, and he gladly gave me the words. Twilight, ready to write down?”

“Pffff…” groaned Celestia. “Please sister! I have already been put through the wringer. Don’t top it up with tasteless humor!”

“Humpf!” protested Luna. “Despite what your uncouth former half claimed, you too can be such a killjoy sometimes!” She grinned brightly. “Never mind,” she said, facing Twilight. “Here it is…”

The moon was shining brightly in the clear and starry night, bathing the Everfree forest in a fairy and unreal glimmer. Everything was quiet, the eerie silence hardly disturbed by a soft rustle of leaves when small gusts of wind were shaking the branches and boughs of the serried trees, or by the occasional loud cries of owls. It was as if Nature had decided to enter into a long and peaceful hibernation.

Yet, in the midst of this hush, a lonely, palely glistening large hooded figure was steadily trotting down the secret path that led to the cave where the Tree of Harmony was hidden; it was followed by a large and black crate, that glided in the air. Neither this strange visitor nor his odd load were making any sound as they were progressing, though, as if the soil had suddenly been changed into a mushy layer of cotton.

Soon the silent pilgrim reached the entrance of the cave. He removed his hood, revealing a long horn and two bright eyes whose keenness pierced the surrounding darkness. It was none other than Princess Celestia. She put the wooden box down, pattered on into the grotto until she was no more than a few feet apart from the towering tree. Her horn started to glow as she begun to excavate a deep hole from the friable soil. Once she seemed satisfied, she magically seized the pall she had left by the entrance, moved it carefully into the hole and shoveled back the earth. When the ground was leveled again, she kneeled and stooped. “Farewell my unfortunate twin,” she whispered. “May you rest here in eternal peace, and may those who dwell outside the circles of this world welcome you in their infinite kindness and grant you bliss and oblivion.” She remained unmoving for a long while, as if engrossed in a profound reverie, her silhouette softly shining in the gloom. Eventually she rose, put her hood back, headed for the exit and cantered away.

The next morning at dawn, Luna knocked at Celestia’s bedroom door. “Come in!” shouted Celestia from somewhere inside. The blue alicorn opened the door and walked in. “Since when do you politely knock at my door before entering?” asked Celestia amused.

“Oh!” responded Luna. “I think I too learned one or two lessons from this adventure.”

Celestia smirked as she faced her sister. She fetched a notebook, and they left the room.

“I feel really sorry for the guard,” said Celestia. “He didn’t deserve what happened to him. What a grisly way to die. When do his funeral take place?”

“Tonight at 6 pm,” responded Luna. “I know, it’s no going to be easy to get over his death. Hopefully, nobody but me saw what happened, so I told Archoplites that he had sacrificed his life to defend his Princess against the ruthless and violent intruder. I propose we decorate him with the Honor cross, even if it is posthumous.”

“Sounds right,” approved Celestia. “I’m going to write a short speech that I will personally read at the ceremony. His name should be added to the honor roll. And then, maybe it’d be nice if his family was entitled to receive an allowance.”

“Very well. I’ll do what’s necessary,” acknowledged Luna.

“It’s not going to ease my qualms, though.” She paced on silently. “That’s what happens when we let the worst of us take over, I guess.”

“Oh yes,” said Luna. “And believe me, I know exactly how you are feeling right now. All too well, alas! And you will have to put up with it all your life…”

Celestia nodded gravely and smiled at her sister, as they trod into the royal hall. Next Chapter: Alternative ending Estimated time remaining: 1 Minutes