(Toya’s PoV:)

I’ll never forget the day Celestia, Luna, Morning, Starswirl and Clover returned from the Crystal Empire. It all started out so normal. My siblings woke me up early and we ate a big breakfast which consisted of root vegetables, some roasted potatoes and grilled rabbit. Then we played hide and seek in the tunnels. Pro tip, if a diamond dog offers to play hide and seek with you, don’t. Their ability to quickly tunnel makes it nearly impossible to find them.

It all came crashing down when Luna walked down into the village. When she came up to me I instantly knew something was wrong. There were deep bags under her eyes as if she hadn’t slept for days and her mane was barely moving. She knelt down to my eye level and pulled me into a hug.

“I-is Dad in the carriage?” I asked, a sinking feeling forming in the pit of my stomach.

Her grip on me tightened and I felt something wet land on my back. “We art sorry, Toya,” she whispered. “Something terrible happened in the Crystal Empire. King Sombra used dark magic on thy father that caused his Angel Arm to fire.”

My heart sank as soon as I heard that. Dad had told me about the arm before and said that it was insanely dangerous.

“We teleported him out of the city upon his request,” Luna continued. “We then attempted to use the Elements of Harmony on Sombra. However, he did something that locked away the Empire and kept it from our reach just as the beam struck him. Once we had gotten Morning to the warmed carriage, Celestia and ourself went to search for thy father.”

The wet spot on my back grew and I felt Luna shudder against me. “Finding where the arm fired was a simple matter, there was a large crater with an even larger ravine within it. We went down into the ravine and searched it for hours but found no signs of him. Not even a scrap of clothing, merely rubble from the glacier.”

A haze formed over my vision and my mind came to a screeching halt. Luna let out a sharp cry that I barely registered and pulled away from me. Without realizing it, a layer of frost was forming on my skin and was spreading out along the cavern floor.

I didn’t want to accept it, I couldn’t accept it. I mean, I was five. Death was still such an alien concept to me. Even if the literal goddess of it was my great-grandmother.

“Toya!” Luna cried, snapping me out of my trance.

I took a moment to take in the damage my outburst had caused. Several diamond dogs were trying to shake frost off of them while the rest regarded me warily. I fell to my knees and started to sob, apologizing profusely for my outburst.

Just as I was about to get lost in my own little world again, Luna pulled me into another hug. She stroked the back of my head and wiped at my tears. “We know it hurts, let it all out.”

I sniffled, squeezed my eyes shut and returned her hug. I don’t know how long we stayed like that; we only started to make our way out to the surface once I was physically incapable of crying anymore. Morning, Celestia, Starswirl and Clover offered their own condolences. I quietly acknowledged them and the rest of the ride was spent in silence.

The days following that were spent in a sort of autopilot. I’d get up and go through my daily routine but I wasn’t really taking anything in. I did my lessons with Starswirl and Clover, but my heart wasn’t in them and most of my spells would fizzle out. Even food seemed to lack any flavor.

What stuck out to me the most within that time was the memorial held for my dad. Celestia and Luna unveiled a statue made in his image. It had a large grin on its face and one of its hands was thrust out and making a gesture where the middle and pointer finger were crossed. I broke down and started to cry for the first time since the diamond dog village. The rest of the day passed in a blur.

The next important event was one that caught us all off guard. Morning had been throwing up a lot and we were getting worried that she was coming down with something serious. The castle doctor examined her with his magic and found something. Two additional magic signatures inside her.

The next few months were spent doting on her as her stomach swelled. She hated when she had to take a break from her duties as captain, but Celestia and Luna got her to listen to reason.

The birth of the twins was eventful to say the least. Celestia and Luna were by her side the entire time with their magic at the ready. The two were fraternal to put it mildly.

The first one to be born was a little pegasus colt. His fur was a deep red, his eyes were the same shade of blue as Dad and Morning’s and his mane was spiky, sticking out past the back of his head. The main color of it was yellow with a few streaks of red that resembled lightning bolts.

The other twin was a little filly. She took after Morning in more ways than one. Her fur was the same shade of yellowish orange as Morning’s and her mane was the same mixture of red and yellow. She also had a rounded little horn poking out from her forehead. She also inherited Morning’s lower half. Instead of legs, she had a short snake tail with scales that matched her fur in color.

Before Morning could get the chance to get a good look at her newborns, she fainted. I didn’t know what was going on and rushed to her side. I tried to shake her to get her attention, but she didn’t respond in any way.

“Toya, step back,” Celestia told me. “And take the foals with thee. We shalt resuscitate Morning.”

I nodded and scooped the twins up into my arms. Once the umbilical cords were cut, Celestia fired a bolt of magic into Morning’s chest. The twins started to wail as Morning convulsed. I did what I could to try and console them, mostly just whispering softly into their ears. After a few moments, she gasped and shot up in the bed she was laying in, going into a coughing fit.

After she settled down, her gaze fell onto the twins. A warm smile spread across her muzzle and she motioned for me to hand them to her. Once they were in her arms they settled down and laid their heads on her chest.

“They art so precious,” she said, giving them a tender squeeze. Tears welled up in her eyes. “If Vash were here to see them, he would be gushing.”

I felt like there was a dagger in my heart as soon as she said that. I saw an image play out in front of me. Dad with a manic grin on his face taking the twins from Morning and twirling around the room with them. I had to wipe at my eyes with the back of my arm to stop my own tears from falling.

“Now that the little ones have drawn their first breath, we believe they need names,” Luna chimed in.

Morning nodded, looking between the twins. “Thou art right.” She paused, her brow furrowing as she examined them. “Say hello to Shooting Star,” she placed her hand on the pegasus colt’s head, “and Morning Glory,” she shifted her hand to the naga filly.

“What wonderful names for such wonderful foals,” Celestia said with a smile. She then turned to me. “Thou art officially a big brother once more, be sure to set a good example for thy siblings.”

I nodded at her, turning my attention to the twins as they settled against Morning. I balled my fists at my side, making a silent oath to protect them.

That night I couldn’t sleep, my mind was filled with thoughts of my dad and the twins. Eventually, I crawled out of bed and went to my balcony. I hopped onto the ledge and turned to face the roof of the spire where my room was. I jumped and quickly found handholds, pulling myself up. Once I was on the roof I lied down to look at the stars.

I had no idea how long I was out there before the soft sound of flapping wings caught my attention. “Toya, why art thou still awake? T’is far past thy bedtime.”

“Sorry, Mom,” I said, turning my head to her. “I couldn’t sleep.”

“We take it that something weighs upon thy heart?” Luna guessed, sitting down next to me.

I nodded and looked back up to the sky. “Yeah, I wish Dad was here to see the twins.”

“We understand thy feelings all too well,” she said, following my gaze upward. “Every night we feel as if he will come to spend time with us during night court as he always did.”

“It’s not fair,” I said, a frown forming on my face. “Dad was a good guy, he helped save Equestria and made a place where ponies and changelings live together.” I looked at her with tears in my eyes. “So why did he have to go?!”

Her expression fell and she pulled me up to give me a hug, wrapping her arms and wings around me. “That is not a question we can answer for thee. Even in this land where day, night and the weather act on the whims of ponies, some forces cannot be controlled.” She rubbed the back of my head.

I sniffled. “I miss him so much.”

Luna hugged me tighter. “We do as well, Toya. Not a night goes by where we do not think of him.” Silence hung in the air for a few moments to the point where I could hear her steady heartbeat. “Dost thou wish to know something?”

“What?” I asked, looking up into her eyes.

“The day we met thy father we found him staring out at the stars like thou art. He was laying out and thinking of his new lot in life. He was such an enigma to us then.”

I rubbed at my eyes, a small smile on my face. “Can you tell me more?”

We continued to talk late into the night until I passed out in her arms. I decided to make visiting Luna at night court a regular thing after that night. We’d talk or play a game together until I’d fall asleep.

Things continued like this until my seventh birthday came and went. I was sitting in one of the secret rooms that Dad had shown me and was reading a book. It must’ve been about the time for the changing of shifts for the guards because I heard the sound of metal clinking together getting closer to me.

“I do not know why we must stand in one spot in that library as our duties,” a voice grumbled.

“Art thou a complete dullard?” a second voice admonished. “That is where Sombra’s confiscated spell book and journal resides. Within it are spells that can twist minds and even summon the spirits of the dead.”

I perked up at that. A sudden idea came to mind. If that book could teach me to summon spirits, then I could find Dad and see him again. I could even show him the twins.

I pushed the stone that opened the door to the secret room and made sure it closed behind me. I then headed for the library. There weren’t many ponies inside, just the librarian and a pair of night guards. The librarian was at the front of the library, checking books for any damage and fixing what she could. Towards the back, right hand corner were the pair of guards in the purple armor of the night guard.

“Greetings, Toya,” the librarian said.

I turned to smile and wave at her. She was a rather short mare with a round face. Her fur was a light cream color and her mane which she had tied into a bun and was a chocolate brown. Finally, her eyes were a bright yellow that sparkled with kindness.

“What brings thee to the library this evening?” she asked, turning away from her work to give me her full attention. “Hast thou finished finished the book thou borrowed?”

“No, I’m still reading it, Miss Hardcover,” I replied, shaking my head. “Thanks for telling me about it.” I flashed her a bright smile. “I’m just here to grab a book to help with my studies.”

“Very well, let me know if thou require my assistance.”

I nodded and went to the shelves to pretend like I was looking through them. I stuck one hand in the pocket of my trousers and used magic. The guards and by extension the two books seemed to get closer. The journal was rather plain. Just a brown cover with a lock on it. The spellbook on the other hand had an inky black cover with a strange sigil on it.

I committed the look of the books to memory as a plan formed in my head. I then cut off my magic flow and pulled my hand out of my pants. Once I did that, I grabbed a book on enchantments and checked it out from the librarian.

Once I had placed the book in my room I rushed down to the throne room to spend time with Luna. We chatted for a while, though my thoughts were preoccupied with my plan. A pang of paranoia shot through me during a game we were playing. The last thing I wanted was for her to suspect I was up to something so I feigned fatigue and excused myself to my room.

I spent the next few days after that gathering materials. I found two blank books that matched the basic appearance of the ones in the library as well as some tools. I was careful to not get caught as I etched the sigil into one of the books. Once everything was ready, I set out into a hidden tunnel that Dad showed me.

I stopped and pulled on a slat in the wall that revealed a pair of eyeholes. I looked through them to examine the library. The pair of night guards were in the same spot as the last time I had came in and the librarian was still on duty.

I took a seat on the floor and waited for a few hours. I fended off the boredom the best I could. Hours passed and the librarian left. A wide grin worked its way onto my face and I lit up my magic. I took careful aim and fired two bolts of magic right at their heads. Once they were hit, the guards’ heads lolled downward as they lost consciousness.

I pumped my fist, pressing on a stone in the wall to let myself into the library. I stepped around them and pulled the books from the shelf. Once they were in my arm I replaced them with the decoys.

I slipped back into the secret passage and made sure the wall was back in place before releasing the two guards from the spell. If I did everything right, then they wouldn’t remember they were ever unconscious.

I had to keep myself from running down the passage as I made my way to an exit. Once I had the books stashed away I snuck into my room and went to sleep. This was made difficult by my racing thoughts, but I did eventually drift off to slumberland.

Keeping myself sane through my routine the next day was nearly impossible. I fidgeted like crazy in my seat during my lessons with Starswirl and Clover. When I was given spells to practice, I made sure not to use too much energy. The last thing I needed was to tire myself out before cracking open my new spellbook.

Before I knew it, I was free to roam the castle and zipped through the halls to go into the hidden room to grab the books and start looking for the right spell to contact spirits. I found them quickly and took a seat on a couch in the back of the room. For some reason, I was drawn to the journal. I lit up my magic and placed my hand on the lock. A few moments later and I heard a click with the lock popping open. I then opened the journal and started to read.

I spent a lot of the night reading the journal. It detailed Sombra’s time from taking the spellbook from some sort of cult to what ultimately led to his decision to start doing dark magic himself. Apparently the Empire was in dire straights with yetis raiding trade caravans that carried supplies they needed and rumors of a nation west of them that might attack them. I felt a pang of sympathy for him as I continued to read and saw his attitude slowly shift with each entry. I didn’t forgive him at all for what he did to Dad. There’s no way I could ever do that. But I sort of felt that I could understand his actions.

I frowned as the entries started to sink in. If a full grown adult could be corrupted by dark magic, then what could it do to me? Just from the entries I could see that Sombra was a good ruler trying to do the best for his nation.

After thinking on it, I put the journal away and went to grab some more tools. Sombra had mentioned that a magic artifact would mask any signs of dark magic use. And I had just the thing in mind.

I grabbed a chisel and hammer and snuck out of the castle. I conjured up a ball of light so I could see where I was going and quickly found a path that led downward. The path then turned rocky before I spotted a large cave. I pressed on and after a bit more walking I found a large tree that seemed to be made of crystal. I stood at its base, putting a hand to the bottom of its trunk. A sense of calm seeped into me, causing an easy smile to spread across my lips.

For the second time that night, I stopped to reconsider what I was doing. Sure, I missed my dad and wanted the twins to be able to see him, but this was dangerous. If I did something wrong I could become just like Sombra. Or I could wind up unleashing some sort of ancient evil on the world. I trembled for a few moments, the chisel and hammer threatening to slip from my fingers.

I don’t know how long I stood like that, but I eventually came to a decision. I took the hammer and chisel and carefully removed a chunk of the tree that fit in the palm of my hand. I put it in my pocket and rushed out of the cave, not daring to look back at the tree. It might’ve been my imagination, but it felt like the tree was judging me.

I made it back to the castle without incident. Considering everything that I had done, I decided to go to bed. The next night, I went back to the hidden room with the gem in tow. I then cracked open the spellbook for the first time. I scanned the pages, leafing through them until I found what I was looking for.

I groaned in frustration and dragged a hand across my face when I saw what was needed for the preparations. I walked out of the room in search of chalk and some candles. Luckily, I was able to quickly gather them up and returned to the room. I scrutinized the diagram that went with the spell and drew what was described as a summoning circle and placed the candles around it. I double checked the circle to be safe. The book had warned that a spirit could escape if there were openings in the circle. Once everything was set up, I looked over the page again to figure out what to do next.

I turned back to the circle, placed my hands on its edge and tapped into my magic. It felt and looked different from my normal aura. The color seemed to be separated into two layers. The bottom one was an emerald green while the top one was purple. Instead of shimmering or rippling like my normal aura, the purple layer seemed to billow and bubble. I also noticed wisps of purple smoke rising from the corners of my eyes.

I grunted in effort, trying to pour magic into the circle. The edge of it started to glow, causing my hopes to rise. This didn’t last. Just as the glow started to spread, the aura in my hands sparked for a moment before exploding in a burst of energy. I flew backwards, slamming into a nearby wall. I groaned in pain, falling off the wall in a heap.

I managed to pull myself off the ground, the room spinning around me. My body ached, but nothing felt broken. I picked up the book again, trying to figure out what I did wrong. I scanned the details of the spell, looking for anything I had missed. I grit my teeth, apparently this was an advanced spell. If I wanted any hope of doing it, I’d have to build up my proficiency for some time. I flipped through the pages, looking for a simpler spell.

I continued to sneak out at night to practice dark magic. It went on for weeks and my skills with it grew steadily. Using it was addicting. I felt powerful, invincible really. I learned things like creating spires of crystal, melting into shadows, summoning a familiar from shadows and many more. I finally felt ready to attempt the spirit summoning spell again.

I redrew the summoning circle and placed the candles around it. I then accessed my magic and let the familiar dark aura flow outward. A tingle went up my spine and a smile etched itself on my face. I put my hands on the circle, pushing my magic into it. The edge of the circle started to glow, spreading along the rest of the chalk lines.

Once the entire circle was glowing, arcs of energy started forming in its center. The arcs converged and a bright flash of light filled the room and for a moment I feared I had failed again. When the light died down however, I saw a figure standing in the summoning circle.

The figure appeared to be made out of translucent shadows and had the shape of a unicorn mare. That was, sans the eyes which glowed within the dimly lit room. The figure took a moment to examine the room before settling its gaze on me.

“And what dost we have here?” the figure questioned, sounding like a mare. “It seems times hath changed since our death.” The air around her seemed to shift as it almost felt like she was looking through me. “T’is hard to believe that one with such innocent eyes summoned us.”

I had to keep myself from trembling, something about the spirit felt dangerous. I turned back, grabbing the book in order to send her back to where she came from. “I’d give you a history lesson, but you’re not gonna be in this plane of existence for much long.” I didn’t look up from the book, doing my best to hide my nerves. “You’re not the spirit I’m looking for.”

She let out a ‘hmmph’, crossing her arms under her chest. “How rude, thou hast summoned us and thou dost not have the common courtesy to introduce thyself.”

Dark magic swirled around my hand as I prepared to send her back. “Manners aren’t really my top concern at the moment.” I pushed my hand outward, ready to release the spell.

An air of urgency emanated from her as she held her hands out defensively. “Wait!” she cried. “Thou said thou art looking for a specific spirit, correct? Perhaps we could be of assistance?”

I lowered my hand, eyeing her warily. “And how would you do that?”

She put a hand to her chest and a sense of confidence filled the room. “We were quite the spellcaster in life. Thanks to that and our connection to the realm of the dead, we can locate any spirit thou wishes.”

“Alright, then I want you to look for a spirit that looks like me,” I told her.

She nodded and the glow in her eyes increased. She paced within the summoning circle for a few minutes before looking back at me. “We are unable to find any such spirit.”

My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. “What?! But that’s impossible!” I frowned for a moment before something dawned on me. “Wait, did you look for him based on his magic signature? Because my dad doesn’t have one of those.”

“Nay, that is not how we searched for him.”

A shudder went down my spine as her eyes bore into me.

“Now, we believe we deserve some compensation for our efforts.” The glow in her eyes increased again and she stepped towards where melting wax had smudged the chalk circle. “Perhaps thy body will do?” Her body shifted, taking on a smoke-like quality as she rushed to the smudged area.

My eyes widened and I rushed for the exit to the room as she slowly started to escape the circle. There was a bright flash of light and an explosion of energy as the circle’s effects were broken. I barreled out of the room and into the hallway, looking behind me to see her following me in the form of a smoke cloud. I kept running, guards noticing the disturbance. A few of the unicorns fired magic, only for the cloud to shift away from it. The guards then joined me in running from the cloud, ready to put the castle on alert no doubt.

I kept running for a while until I barreled into the throne room. Luna saw the state I was in and jumped out of her throne. The cloud followed suit and Luna lit up her horn to fire a bolt of magic at it. The bolt struck at it before it had the chance to dodge and Luna quickly put herself between the cloud and me.

“Oh, now what is this?” the spirit asked, seeming to recover from the attack. “A manner of pony we hath never seen before.”

Luna didn’t respond, keeping her horn lit. The spirit rushed at her, spreading out to encircle the alicorn. Luna fired a bright white beam and swept it around the room, causing the spirit to dissipate.

She turned to face me, wafts of the remaining smoke drifting into her nose. “What is the meaning of this?”

Tears welled up in my eyes and I wrapped my arms around her legs. My emotions were a conflicting maelstrom, mixing together with none staying at the forefront for very long. I broke down into a sobbing mess, holding onto her for dear life.

“I’m so sorry, please don’t banish me!” I cried out, squeezing my eyes shut.

She put her hand on my head, stroking it gently. “Why would we banish thee, Toya?”

“B-because I used dark magic,” I answered, hiccuping a bit between sobs. “I-I’m so sorry, I just wanted to see Dad again and let him meet the twins.”

Luna picked me up and rested my head on her chest. “Shh, everything is alright, sweet child.”

I turned my head up to her with a gobsmacked look, trying to stop the tears. “B-but I-”

She put a finger to my lips, cutting me off. “Thou hast made a mistake, Toya. One that thou hast already recognized. We will not banish thee.” She gave me a soft squeeze. “No, we could never do that. We believe the terror the malevolent spirit put thee through is punishment enough. Just promise us that thou wilt never use such magic again.”

I nodded and hugged Luna tight. “Y-yeah, I promise.”

She smiled and kissed my forehead. “Excellent, then let’s put thee to bed; thou hast had enough excitement for one night.” With that, she teleported me to my room and tucked me in.

Later that night, an explosion woke me up. I jumped out of my bed and looked out from my balcony. My pupils contracted into pinpricks from what I saw. Celestia was having an aerial battle with someone. They were wearing light blue armor with a crescent moon symbol on them. Their coat was as black as night and their purple mane and tail had swirling stars within them. For a few moments I stared on in confusion until a moment replayed in my head. The smoke that entered Luna’s body. The spirit must not’ve been entirely defeated.

I watched on in horror as the possessed Luna seemed to have the upperhand. Celestia bobbed and weaved in the air, limiting herself to dodging and not returning fire at all. I cringed at every blast that struck the castle, my father’s work literally crumbling away. I gasped as one of the blasts struck Celestia in the chest, sending her crashing outside my line of sight.

I trembled, unable to move from my spot on the balcony. I wanted to go out and help Celestia. I wanted to do something, anything. Instead, I just stood there and silently hoped that Celestia could free her sister. Then, Celestia rose up with six gems that I assumed were the Elements of Harmony spinning around her. A rainbow colored beam shot out from her horn and raced towards Luna.

When the beam reached the possessed alicorn, it turned into a sphere and encased her. The sphere then rocketed into the sky and to the moon. When it reached the moon, the shape of a mare’s head appeared on the surface of the moon. I dropped to my knees again and broke down into tears for the second time that night.