Elsewhere, deeper into the Everfree Forest, there was a different atmosphere prevailing for a different group of ponies. While Twilight and her friends were feeling despair and sadness, the remaining hooded ponies were experiencing a helpless feeling of uncertainty as they licked their wounds.

Raven Feather walked through her makeshift camp of refugees with an irritated expression on her face. Her followers, the only soldiers she had left in her silent rebellion were all standing around the area with forlorn and exhausted expressions on their faces. The only supplies the group managed to get out of the mansion were laying around on tarps or in small boxes as the group rested.

“*Sigh*… how did it come to this?” Raven Feather muttered to herself in a depressed tone. Everything she had planned was now crashing down around her, and the only remnants she was clutching onto weren’t guaranteed to succeed.

Suddenly, the black mare noticed one of her underlings rushing up to her. The hooded stallion seemed to have an urgent air about him as he trotted up to her and caught his breath.

“Miss Raven Feather! We found Shadow Mist.” The messenger reported with a frantic tone of voice.

“You did… then he’s alive?!” Raven Feather asked in a shocked tone. As much as she trusted the red stallion to complete his mission, she thought that he would have perished along with the others stuck in the mansion.

“He is, but he is badly injured. We found him stumbling around outside of the secret tunnels. They should be bringing him in right now.” The hood explained while looking over to the rest of the camp. Sure enough, there were two ponies assisting a red stallion with walking into the camp in the distance.

“Go tell Raincloud and the others… quickly.” Raven Feather instructed in a concerned tone while looking over to the newly arrived stallion. Although she couldn’t see what condition he was in, she could tell that he was limping even with the help of two ponies carrying him.

“Right away ma’am.” The hooded pony said with a brief salute before rushing off to complete his appointed task.

Satisfied that the others would be notified in due time, Raven Feather rushed towards the red stallion with an urgent expression. As she got close enough to see Shadow Mist better, the black mare gasped in utter shock and horror at what she saw.

To say that Shadow Mist was injured would be the understatement of the century. The stallion was almost completely missing one of his front legs, with only a bloody stump remaining in its place. His left eye was flinched closed, with dry blood caked over it. His face was pale, and he looked like he was barely holding onto consciousness.

“Good lord… what happened to you Shadow Mist?!” Raven Feather asked while rushing up to the injured stallion and helping to steady him.

Before the injured pony could answer, the sound of frantic hoofsteps drew Raven Feather’s attention behind her. She noticed Raincloud, Dust Kicker, and Grimwood trotting up to see the red stallion, only to drop their jaws in shock as they saw the state he was in.

“Oh shit!” Raincloud exclaimed in a shocked tone while observing the bloodied pony. She seemed to be taken aback from seeing one of her colleagues injured in such a horrific manner.

“What happened to him?!” Grimwood asked in an alarmed tone. The shock apparent in his normally blank expression told much of just how mortified he was.

“I don’t know. They found him like this outside of the mansion.” Raven Feather explained in a concerned tone.

“Is my face ok?” Shadow Mist asked while managing a slight chuckle.

“You look like hell Shadow Mist… what happened back there?” Raincloud asked in a concerned tone.

“I ran into some trouble with getting out, but I got everything we need.” Shadow Mist explained while motioning to the bag he had around his shoulder. Raven Feather gently took the satchel and skimmed through its contents.

“I knew I should have stayed. *Sigh*… you did a good job for all the hell you caught because of it.” Raven Feather said in a sympathetic tone. “Grimwood, can you see if you can heal his injuries?” She asked curiously while turning to the pale colt.

“I don’t know if I can heal anything this severe… but I can try.” Grimwood said while shaking his head sadly.

“Good… I’ll go see if I can figure out what we’re going to do next.” Raven Feather said in a frustrated tone. After making sure that Shadow Mist was in good hands, the black mare walked off with the satchel in her possession.

Raincloud and Dust Kicker helped to move Shadow Mist over to a less crowded area of the camp. They dragged a tarp over and sat the injured stallion down before looking to Grimwood with concerned expressions.

“Let us know if you need any help Grim.” Raincloud said in a sympathetic tone.

“Ok… thanks.” Grimwood said with a nod of dismissal while watching the two ponies walking off. Finally he was left alone with the red stallion.

“You don’t need to worry… I got everything we need before I got out.” Shadow Mist said while reaching down to his side. He used his powers to produce a smaller hidden satchel from a puff of shadows before handing it to the colt.

“You didn’t need to get yourself nearly killed to get these.” Grimwood said while looking at the contents of the satchel. There were four vials filled with red liquid sitting inside, presumably the blood from the remaining elements of harmony.

“Well it wasn’t exactly my intention to lose a leg and an eye.” Shadow Mist said with a slight chuckle. He stopped smiling once he noticed the pale colt was being more somber than usual.

“I never intended for this to happen… I hope you know that.” Grimwood said in a sad tone while examining the stallion’s wounds.

“Of course Grim… I’ve known you and Raven Feather since she ran away from home with you in her arms.” Shadow Mist said in a reassuring tone.

“She doesn’t like to talk about our past that much around me. What did she run away from home for?” Grimwood asked curiously while gently examining the stallion’s eye.

“She never told you? Ow!” Shadow Mist yelped as the colt touched his eye in a tender area.

“No… all she said was that everyone shunned her for her powers, and that we were better off on our own.” Grimwood replied while channeling shadow magic to his hoof. The red stallion looked at the fiery ball of shadows on the colt’s hoof and thought back to the day when he first met him and his sister.

“Raven Feather discovered her aptitude for shadow magic at an early age. She had no idea what it was at the time, and she had little control over it. Your parents didn’t understand it either… and most people fear what they don’t understand. For several years, Raven Feather was shunned or bullied by everyone around her. She did her best to suppress her abilities, but eventually they got too strong for her own good. One day she accidentally hurt someone, and just like that she was labeled a threat to society… heh… kind of ironic if you look at her now. Anyway, your parents had just recently had you, so they were probably very nervous about having a bomb of magical energy waiting to go off in their house. They contacted the princess to take Raven Feather away and study her, and she was oddly ok with that. But on the day they came to pick her up, she saw you using shadow magic yourself.” Shadow Mist explained in a somber tone.

“So that’s why she ran away…” Grimwood said in an understanding tone.

“That’s what I figured. She couldn’t stand the idea of you having her life… being treated like a freak just because you were different from the others. So she took you and ran… she ran and she didn’t stop running. The entire town was trying to catch up to her to take her back… they probably would have caught her too if it wasn’t for me.” Shadow Mist said with a smirk while thinking back to how he helped the black mare.

“She told me about that part. You grabbed us and hid us from the others with your powers. What did they used to call you… the ghost of Canterlot?” Grimwood asked curiously.

“Yeah... but that was back when I just used my powers to steal and mess with people.” Shadow Mist chuckled warmly at his memories before wincing in pain as Grimwood placed his hoof against his missing limb.

“*Sigh*… I’m not sure if I can restore your eye or your leg. All I can do at this point is to seal up your wounds.” Grimwood explained in a somber tone.

“Well… I guess I wasn’t expecting anything else to be fair.” Shadow Mist said with a disheartened tone while resting his head against the tree behind him.

Suddenly, the pair heard the sound of someone approaching them. Grimwood quickly grabbed the small satchel and used his own shadow magic to hide it. Just after he got done, he looked up to see his sister walking over with a somber expression.

“How is he?” Raven Feather asked in a concerned tone while eyeing the wounded pony with a sympathetic frown.

“I’m sorry… but I can’t do anything more than making sure that he doesn’t bleed out.” Grimwood explained with a disheartened expression.

“It’s not your fault Grim… if anything this is my fault.” Raven Feather said while looking to the floor sadly. She might not have cared for many of the people in her group, but those who shared her gifts were considered to be as close as family to the black mare.

“Hey, it’s not your fault either Raven Feather.” Shadow Mist said in a reassuring tone. The black mare smiled slightly as she saw how chipper the stallion was. Her smile shifted to a scornful expression as her thoughts shifted elsewhere.

“You’re right… it’s not my fault. If anyone is to blame for all of this, it’s Celestia and her sister.” Raven Feather stated with an angry expression while putting a hoof on Shadow Mist’s shoulder. “I can promise you one thing Shadow Mist… I’m going to make her pay for everything she has done to us.” She said in a confident tone while smiling devilishly. Shadow Mist and Grimwood nodded to the black mare as she resolved to bring about her retribution on the princess. They were confident in one thing. They would be shaping the world as they saw fit, even if they had to help Raven Feather along the way.

-An hour later-

Outside of the royal guard station, Rainbow Dash and the others were enjoying a moment’s peace as they waited for Twilight and the others to emerge. As they looked up at the clear night sky, they couldn’t help but to think back to everyone they lost at the mansion.

“Do you think she’s going to be ok?” Pinkie asked in an uneasy tone. Everyone immediately knew that she was referring to the princess.

“Ah don’t know Pinkie… Twilight is telling her that her sister died. That has to be a horrible thing to go through, even for Princess Celestia.” Applejack explained in a somber tone. Everyone frowned sadly as they thought about what the princess must have been feeling right now.

As much as they wanted to be inside with the purple unicorn to comfort the princess, they weren’t sure if they could handle being in the same room with her. Even if they had no part in her death, they were all there when Luna was left behind. They all felt some kind of responsibility. What if? That single thought permeated the ponies’ minds and flooded their thoughts. What if they had done this? What if they had said that? If things had gone differently, maybe they could have saved everybody.

“It isn’t fair… why is any of this even happening? Things were still simple a week ago… the worst thing I had to deal with was mind numbing boredom.” Rainbow Dash said with a saddened shrug. “Now there are ponies out there trying to throw Equestria into chaos… and as much as I hate saying it, I think they have done a good job of it.” She sighed heavily while sitting down and resting her head against the building behind her.

“We’ll find Raven Feather, and all of her followers. Things might seem bad right now, but… we’ll pick up the pieces eventually.” Rarity said in what she hoped was a reassuring tone. Despite her good intentions, even the white unicorn was unsure of whether or not her words were true.

Everyone looked down and shrugged sadly. They had never felt so utterly hopeless in their lives. The situation at hand was manageable, even if it was a sorrowful time for everyone. But the thing that was uncertain to the ponies was the future.

Suddenly, the sound of the front doors opening drew everyone’s attention away. They looked over to see Twilight, Tom, and Glimmer Shine walking outside with a group of guards following behind them. While Twilight walked over to join her friends, Tom and Glimmer Shine continued walking away with the guards joining them.

“Where are they going?” Fluttershy asked curiously.

“Glimmer Shine is taking a team back to the mansion to search for survivors… Tom volunteered to help him.” Twilight explained while watching the group leave.

“That was nice of him.” Rainbow Dash said with a small, empty smirk.

“Well, you know him… he wants to make sure that the mansion is safe before anyone else goes in there. Plus… I don’t think Glimmer Shine wants to recover the bodies alone.” Twilight said while looking down sadly.

“How is the princess?” Pinkie Pie asked in a hesitant tone. The subject of the princess being brought up made the purple mare frown in a sorrowful manner.

“*Sigh*… she held up a lot better than I would have. I suppose she didn’t want to break down in front of me… still, she was on the verge of tears by the time I left.” Twilight explained sadly.

“Should we stay with her for a little bit? I mean… is she going to be ok?” Rainbow Dash asked in a concerned tone.

“She wants to be alone for tonight at least. She said to tell you that she’s sorry for putting us through all of that.” Twilight said in a sympathetic tone.

“I can’t believe she blames herself for all of this… that can’t be healthy for her… especially not right now.” Rarity said in a concerned manner. All of the grief the princess must have been going through was more than any pony should have to bear at one time.

“She said she was fine… as fine as she can be at any rate. She just needs some sleep… we all do.” Twilight suggested while taking note of her exhaustion. Even with all of the sadness she was feeling, all of the energy she had used during the raid at the mansion was starting to catch up to her.

“So what… we’re just supposed to go home and try to sleep after everything that happened?” Rainbow Dash asked in an uneasy tone.

“Yeah, I guess we are. We have a lot to do in the near future. We still need to hunt down Raven Feather and however many of her followers she has left… and then there are the funerals to consider.” Twilight said with a disheartened shrug.

“F-funerals?” Fluttershy asked in a surprised tone. She seemed taken aback by the prospect of accepting that some of her friends had died, even though it was obvious. Twilight merely nodded silently in response with a somber expression on her face.

“The princess wants to know if you guys will come to Canterlot in the next few days to attend. I think she will wait until Cadence and Shining Armor can get there to hold Luna’s funeral, but the others will be held as soon as they can get everything ready.” Twilight explained sadly.

“Of course we will come… we owe Neon and the others that much at least.” Fluttershy said after a brief moment of contemplation. The others nodded in agreement to the yellow pony’s statement.

“I’ll see you all tomorrow… I just need to rest for tonight.” Twilight said while walking away slowly. She hung her head sadly as she tried to avoid thinking about all of her troubling memories.

“Goodnight Twilight… Try to get some sleep.” Applejack said in a concerned tone while waving at the unicorn. Twilight waved back at her friends before walking towards the rest of town where her home waited for her.

After a while, only the sound of her own hooves clattering against the street could be heard. Twilight looked around and saw that she was alone, which was perhaps for the best. She needed time to process her thoughts. So many things were flooding her mind, from sad memories, to horrible revelations, to frustrating thoughts about the hooded ponies and the future.

Taking a look up to the night sky, the unicorn noticed the moon hanging low on the horizon. The night would be ending in a few hours, but that wasn’t what was making her sad. Twilight still couldn’t believe what had happened back at the mansion. Luna was gone, and she couldn’t do anything about it. She had watched Luna’s journey as she adjusted to life in Equestria after her banishment. She got to know the blue alicorn as a friend, but now she would never see her alive again. She would be lucky to see her again at all depending on what that cloud of energy did to her body.

“Luna… I’m so sorry.” Twilight muttered sadly with tears welling up in her eyes. She sniffled quietly while letting a few tears drop to the street below. Right now she didn’t feel like Celestia’s student. The one that her mentor would trust with important missions, the one that ponies could count on in times of crisis. Right now she just felt like a helpless unicorn that was faced with an insurmountable challenge, one that would determine the fate of Equestria as a whole, and yet one she felt like she couldn’t handle completing.

After a few minutes of self-reflection and silent walking, Twilight found herself standing in front of the library once more. The building that served as her home was an almost surreal sight to the purple mare. Several times before now she had wondered if she would ever get to see it again, if she would ever get to walk through that door again, and if she would ever see Spike again.

“Oh… Spike…” Twilight said in a sorrowful tone. She didn’t know what she could say to the young dragon, or if she could even say anything in her state. Still, she couldn’t just say nothing. As much as she wanted to just ignore her problems and curl up in bed to cry herself to sleep, she had to at least explain to her assistant what had happened.

Taking a deep and shaky breath, the unicorn reached up and grabbed the door handle. Whatever was going to happen, she just wanted to get it over and done with so tonight could end. Still, she could feel the emotions building inside of her as she imagined the young dragon’s reactions to what she would have to tell him. Not only that Princess Luna and several others had died, but that she failed to save them and stop the hooded ponies. The only way she could even convince Spike to let her go with a sound mind was to promise him that she would be in complete control of the situation at all times. Clearly, she had failed miserably at her promise.

As she opened the door and took a brief look around, she discovered that there were no lights on anywhere in the library. Of course there weren’t, she thought. It was late in the morning hours after all. Spike was probably asleep upstairs. She hoped that he didn’t spend too long staying up and worrying about her. It must have been horrible for him to go to bed without knowing if she was safe or not.

Twilight slowly walked up the stairs toward her bedroom. She stood outside of the door and listened for a moment. There were no sounds coming from inside, and there was no light on inside either. Deciding that it would be best for her to not wake up the young dragon, she opened the door as silently as she could.

The room inside was dark and peaceful. As she expected, Spike was sleeping in his bed a few feet away. His blanket was only half way draped over his body, and he had a somewhat troubled expression, as if he had tossed and turned in his sleep. The unicorn briefly wondered if he was troubled because of her absence.

The harsh click of the door closing behind her made Twilight cringe uneasily. Hearing a soft rustling in front of her, the unicorn realized that she had disturbed the dragon from his slumber. Spike sat up in bed and looked around in a confused daze for a moment before noticing the purple mare standing in the dark.

“Twi…light?” Spike muttered sleepily while rubbing his eyes. Once he realized that he wasn’t just imagining things, he pushed his blanket aside and sat up further.

“I’m sorry Spike… did I wake you?” Twilight asked in a friendly tone. She knew full well that she had woken the dragon up, but she needed some sort of emotional buffer to keep herself in check. If she didn’t focus on faking a friendly and cheerful exterior, then she would doubtlessly break down crying.

“It’s ok… I’m just glad you’re back. How did the mission go?” Spike asked curiously as he remembered why the unicorn was gone for so long. He paused suddenly as he noticed that Twilight seemed to be hiding her true emotions.

“It was… it was…” Twilight muttered while trying to think of something to say. Despite her attempts at sounding happy, a twinge of sadness managed to show through in her voice.

“Twilight? Are you ok?” Spike asked in a concerned tone while getting out of bed.

“Oh, I’m fine… I-I just…” Twilight stammered while racking her mind to find out how to explain everything that had happened in a gentle way. The more she thought about telling the young dragon about the tragic events at the mansion, and the more she thought about the tragic events themselves, the more her façade started breaking down.

“Twilight… are you crying?” Spike asked while noting the soft sound of the unicorn’s voice trembling. She was trying desperately to hold down her building sobs, but she could barely keep herself from thinking about everything that had happened.

Finally, Twilight could take it no more. She slid to a seated position against the door and started weeping openly. The sudden shift in the unicorn’s behavior caught Spike off guard. He had no idea why she would suddenly break down like this, but he knew that he had to comfort her.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Spike said in a concerned tone while walking up to the crying pony. He sat down next to her and placed a hand on her knee. Twilight continued crying for a moment before composing herself enough to face the dragon. She still had tears streaming down her face, but somehow seeing her young assistant trying to comfort her made her feel slightly better.

“Everything… everything’s gone wrong Spike.” Twilight said while stifling a sob.

“What…? Twilight… What happened? I can’t really help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.” Spike explained in a helpful tone. As the purple mare looked to him, he flashed a warm smile.

Twilight looked at the young dragon smiling back at her with a sad expression. She knew that he was just itching to help her, to find out what was amiss so he could at least try to make it better. She had always been there for him on his sad days, so he was always eager to repay the favor. Still, she couldn’t bear to say what came next for fear of erasing that smile of his.

“Spike… I need to tell you something… something awful.” Twilight said while wiping the tears out of her eyes. Spike stopped smiling and shifted his expression to a more somber one as he realized just how serious the purple mare was being.

“Does this have to do with the mission? The hooded ponies… did you find them?” Spike asked in a hesitant tone.

“Yes… we found them. But… they left a trap for us.” Twilight explained sadly. “We got trapped inside of their base… and… and…” She muttered while trying to find the best way to explain such terrible events to her young assistant.

“It’s ok… you can tell me.” Spike said in a reassuring tone while offering the unicorn a soft expression.

“Something bad happened… I’m just not sure if I can tell you.” Twilight explained while shaking her head sadly and hiding her eyes from the dragon.

“Twilight… I know you, and I know that whatever happened, we can get through it. We always get through it… now, tell me what happened.” Spike asked in a sympathetic tone.

“Spike… I don’t know how to say this, so I’m just going to say it. Princess Luna is… she’s dead.” Twilight said with fresh tears falling from her eyes.

“W-what…?” Spike backed up with a shocked expression on his face. He hoped that he had somehow misheard the unicorn.

“She’s gone… her and Neon Streak… and Peppermint… and Brimstoke. They’re all gone.” Twilight explained in a shaky voice. She had to use every ounce of strength left in her not to break down crying again. Now she had to be at least a little strong for the young dragon.

“But… but… h-how did…” Spike muttered with a shocked tone of disbelief. He looked at the purple mare for any signs that she was telling a lie or some messed up practical joke, but she was dead serious. A single tear started falling down his face as he started to comprehend the situation.

“How did this happen?” Spike asked in a more distraught tone. Twilight could hear his breathing starting to become more erratic as silent sobs started building in his throat.

“I’m so sorry Spike… I’m so sorry.” Twilight said in a despaired tone while reaching forward and wrapping her arms around the young dragon. She held him close as he started weeping openly into her shoulder. She started crying as well as she imagined just how much pain she had caused Spike by telling him about the others.

After spending the next few minutes crying and hugging each other tightly, the pair’s embrace was cut short as Spike pulled away.

“Did you… *Sniff*… did you catch the hooded ponies?” Spike asked while wiping his face on his arm.

“No… they got away. There wasn’t anything I could even do to help.” Twilight said while looking down sadly. She was surprised to feel the dragon walking up to her and hugging her again. The unicorn looked up to see how he was faring. She expected to see him with a distraught expression, but he didn’t. While it was true that he was still sad, he had a small smile on his face.

“You’re… you’re not upset that we didn’t catch them?” Twilight asked in a surprised tone.

“Upset? Why would I be upset? I’m just glad that you’re ok… What happened to the others was awful, but I don’t know what I would do without you.” Spike said in a surprisingly cheerful tone. “I was so worried that you wouldn’t come back… I stayed up waiting for you for so long. I knew that the mission would take a while, but I just couldn’t sleep without knowing you were safe.” He said in a more concerned tone while looking down sadly.

“Oh Spike… I’m not going anywhere. No matter what the hooded ponies do, I’ll always come back home to you.” Twilight said while lovingly putting a hoof on the dragon’s head and ruffling his hair.

“Promise?” Spike asked while managing a small smile.

“I promise.” Twilight said while mirroring the dragon’s happiness. Suddenly, a stray yawn returned the unicorn’s attention to her exhaustion.

“Are you sleepy?” Spike asked curiously.

“Definitely… it’s been a long night. Why don’t we get some sleep? We have a lot of things to do in the next few days.” Twilight said in a more drowsy tone while walking up towards her bed. Spike smiled before walking back over to his own bed.

As the pair settled in for the rest of the night, their thoughts again shifted to those who had died earlier. Neither one of them could believe that so many people had died, much less that Princess Luna was among the casualties.

Despite spending the next few minutes tossing and turning in a sorrowful unrest, the two finally managed to get to sleep. Even if they only got a few more hours of sleep, it would be needed for the long days ahead of them.

Meanwhile, all over Ponyville the elements of harmony were settling in for a night of sadness and unrest. Many of them were lying in bed, clutching a pillow close or hiding themselves under a mass of blankets, trying to forget about what they had experienced. Some were just staring up at their ceilings and crying themselves to sleep. They had nearly lost their lives tonight, but they had lost something else in their place. They lost many friends and colleagues, they lost the confidence that they had won the war against the hooded ponies, but most importantly, they lost the hope that things would ever return to normal.

Even with all of the things lost in the mansion, some were far more costly than others. For most of the group, they had lost friends and colleagues to the ghosts, but for Princess Celestia, she had lost her younger sister. As the white alicorn sat in a quiet room of the guard station, she looked to the floor and slowly gave in to her grief. The revelation that her sister was dead still hadn’t sunk in fully while Twilight and the others were with her, but now that she was alone with time to think, she started to accept that it might be true. As she stared out of the window at the moon, the sadness she had been hiding was starting to surface.

“Luna…” Celestia muttered quietly as tears started building in her eyes. She hadn’t had to face her own mortality or the mortality of her sibling in what seemed like forever. She never thought that by letting her sister go on her own, she would be sending her to her death.

The quiet sound of the door opening behind her drew Celestia’s attention away from her lamenting. She turned around to see the door cracked open with a familiar white unicorn peeking inside. Glitterball seemed to be hesitant about entering the room, but she also seemed to be concerned judging from her expression.

“Umm… Princess? Are you okay?” Glitter asked while opening the door further and stepping inside. She took a look around at the dark room and noticed that the only light was coming in through the window and bathing the princess in pale moonlight.

Celestia sighed in a dejected manner while lowering her head. She managed a small smile as she looked at the unicorn trying to check on her. Everyone in the station must have been worried about her given that she shut herself into a dark room for several minutes. Still, to see Glitterball trying to comfort her given her own trauma from the mansion made the alicorn feel warm inside.

“I’ll be fine Glitterball… thanks for asking.” Celestia said while walking away from the window. She looked down at the unicorn and frowned slightly as she thought about what she must have been through. She had lost three friends in the span of a few hours, and yet she seemed to be well adjusted, on the outside at least.

“How are you and Sunspot doing?” Celestia asked in a concerned tone. Glitterball looked away for a moment as she thought back to her time at the mansion.

“We’re doing ok… all things considered. I think Sunspot is trying to avoid thinking about it too much… and quite frankly I don’t blame her. I don’t even want to think about how Glimmer Shine is doing.” Glitter replied in a sad tone.

“I still think that he shouldn’t have gone back to the mansion with the others.” Celestia said with a worried shrug.

“Well… I think he wants to get some kind of closure. I just hope he has the sense not to be with them when they find Pepper.” Glitterball said in a sad tone. Celestia frowned as she thought about the stallion and his departed sibling. She became even sadder as she thought about her own situation with her sister.

“I should be there with him. If he has the strength to retrieve his brother’s body, then I should be there to bring Luna back home. But… I just can’t bear the thought of seeing her dead body.” Celestia said while hanging her head and closing her eyes sadly.

“Don’t beat yourself up, Princess.” Glitterball said in a comforting tone. “It’s ok to be a mess of emotions from time to time… especially at a time like this. You’ve ruled over Equestria fairly and compassionately for centuries. The least that we can do to repay your kindness is to help you through this difficult period.” She added while putting a reassuring hoof on the alicorn’s leg.

Celestia looked up to see the unicorn offering her a warm smile. She couldn’t help but to smile herself as she realized that she was right. She had always tried to appear strong in front of her subjects, but right now she needed time to process her emotions.

“Thank you, Glitterball. I really appreciate your kind words.” Celestia said in a happier tone. Glitterball was pleased to see that she had a positive impact on the princess.

“If you need anything at all, just let me know.” Glitterball said while walking towards the door.

“Thank you, but I think I’m going to stay here for a while and think. There is so much that needs to be done… contacting Neon and Brimstoke’s families, preparing for the funerals… and then there is the matter of finding Raven Feather and her remaining cohorts.” Celestia said with an exhausted shrug.

“Ok… I’ll take the others and come see you in Canterlot tomorrow. Maybe we can help with at least something.” Glitterball said while nodding in a sympathetic manner and walking out of the room. Celestia shrugged as she was left on her own again. As she looked back to the moon in the sky, she frowned sadly. She would have to raise the sun soon, which now meant that she would have to lower the moon herself. A task she hadn’t done in what seemed like forever.