Luna stepped gingerly through the ash and glass, the moon inching closer to the horizon as her night began to wane. She sighed as she looked to the castle across the valley; it would not be long before her sister raised the sun and weakened her thestral guards. She knew this kind of work was well below the elite unit’s abilities, but they were amongst the few she dare trust at the moment. Even the royal guard was not above her suspicions lately.

She had been at this for just over a week now, every night and often through the day combing the ever expansive fields of ash across the mountain; and she’d yet to find any sign of what truly transpired. Her sibling claimed Maze had used their lowered guard as an opportunity to once again try and claim her power for herself. For the safety of the city she drove the cyborg across the valley where she could finally use more of her power without endangering anypony.

That last part made sense but still did not account for this kind of destruction, Luna had not even been aware of the attack until the mountain was already completely ablaze. Even the reports say a single streak shot out and then it was an immediate inferno. It was almost as if her sister intentionally masked what she was doing so as to fight Maze alone; which brought Luna to the true reason she was out here.

She knew her sister was lying.

She knew that the Maze she ate with just moments before the battle was no Bloodletter, no longer a demon caring only for power and sadistic pleasure. She could see it, hear it and most importantly feel it; their friend had returned after long last and her sister saw fit to kill her all the same. She however, had no proof or even a reason why. So night after night, here she came to sift through the ash.

“Princess Luna” Her lieutenant called out as he landed deftly at her side “It will not be long now before your sister wakes; we are willing to continue into the day your highness, if you so desire.”

“I know lieutenant, I will remain but you may take your troops and retire for the day.”

“If you remain princess, then so do we. We have many hours left in us yet your highness; the nights are still quite short these days after all” the thestral replied with a small smirk. It was true her nights were still short even if they were once again growing longer, her sister’s solstice already past not long ago. She gave the soldier a grateful nod as he saluted and took back off in his sweeps.

She had been exceptionally shocked when she learned the thestral guard had persevered throughout the centuries; maintaining their vigil over the night and proving that the ‘creatures of the dark’ have nobility and righteousness as well. Her second night back she’d been led to a barracks to find the elder Thestral waiting with their whole gathered force. He had strode up to her without a word and gazed upon her pensively before asking but a single question.

“The nightmare has passed?” to which she gave a meek confirmation, earning an immediate chain reaction of bows from the gathered ponies “Then we are yours to guide once again Princess.”

It was a truly humbling experience; despite her fall and long absence they remained loyal and ever ready to follow her again. Humbling and comforting, as the transformative rituals left them often a good deal more powerful and capable than the average guard; and with the new technologies their abilities had grown greater still. She was eternally grateful she still held their confidence.

She sighed as she saw the slight rim of orange breaching the horizon, her sister would be up and her own forces would arrive to "assist" them soon enough. Her shoulders slumped but she soldiered on all the same, determined in her search no matter its end.

“You sure about this Twi?” the rainbow maned mare yawned, looking away from the scenery passing by the train under the rising sun. Twilight met her gaze from her seat next to the element of kindness.

“She’s never tried to issue nano upgrades to the militia before; never without foreword and a good explanation at least” Twilight stated firmly “And while I’m admittedly not AS adept with the technical side of things as say Lyra, I DO know for sure that something’s really weird with the magic side of the upgrade.”

“Well, they have offered us upgrades in the past… I mean, it’s not like we’ve never taken them” Fluttershy added quietly.

“Yes but it’s never been this direct… or forceful. They’ve also only been instructions and designs, things our own techs would work with and adapt. These were just injections; injections of nano magic carrying some very disturbing possibilities. Not to mention no modifications to meld with what we already have” Twilight explained “It’s as if they’re just meant to replace what’s there with no explanation of what this upgrade actually does…”

“It sounds like you’re saying the Princess is trying to pull a fast one on us Twi” Rainbow said worried.

“Oh no! Oh no no no, I don’t mean anything like that!” Twilight quickly corrected herself “All I’m saying is that they may not have considered the full implications of these changes. Perhaps she’s merely shaken by last week’s confrontation and feels the need to rush these advancements, causing some oversights in the process.”

“Then why are we headed to the capitol? Can’t we just tell the guards to pass the message along? Or send her a letter with Spike?” Rainbow asked.

“I have done all that, but the guards assure me nothing’s wrong and she’s yet to give a… thorough response to my letters…” she sighed “But I’m convinced this isn’t something to just grin and bear.”

“Is it really that bad Twilight?” Fluttershy asked, concern clear in her blue eyes.

“It could be; these new ‘features’ I’ve observed seem to delve into some very questionable territory. It’s nothing new for nano machines to deal with the balance of nutrients and chemicals but these new ones creep into the territory of the brain” Twilight explained.

“Don’t they already?” Dash inquired.

“No. Not directly and certainly not like this! They can enhance reaction times and focus attention and the like sure, but These kinds interactions were barely even theorized about last I read of it!” Twilight began to grow slightly frantic “The kind of damage these machines could do to a pony’s brain chemistry, perhaps even structure… These kinds of advancements require years of testing, even if the process and results seem perfect it would be massively irresponsible to release this kind of development to the public without knowing with absolute certainty…"

“Yeah, it does sound pretty bad when you explain it like that…” Dash began to agree “And you’re right about the guards; they’ve never tried to push an upgrade on us like that before. Those guards said they already got the upgrade and they were getting pretty dang pushy.”

“They did seem to be getting a bit impatient with us… and they looked rather upset when we asked them to leave” Fluttershy added “Maybe you were right to tell the militia to wait…”

“…Thanks for coming with me girls, I know you didn’t have to.”

“Eh forget it, what’s a day of hanging out at the capitol for a friend?” Dash smirked at her before the other pegasus piped in as well.

“I know I wouldn’t want to make the trip alone, even if it wasn’t for something so important” Fluttershy said with a warm smile “...I do hope we won’t be bothering the princesses too much though.”

“I’m sure even if this ends up just being nothing that she’ll still be happy for the distraction,” Twilight consoled her before a small giggle escaped her “When I was a filly Celestia even used to have me interrupt particularly tedious meetings just so she could have a break!”

The friends shared a laugh as the train’s PA announced they’d be arriving within the hour.

“Your highness I assure you, we haven’t missed anypony; nopony that could feasibly aid them within the kingdom at least” the advisor informed the solar monarch as she strode about the exceptionally busy throne room now turned command center. Scientists and workponies darted about between consoles and workstations in preparation of the launch.

“You’ve checked with maybe a dozen ponies, how could that be everypony?” Celestia growled back at the passive agent.

“Because that’s all there is Princess; Sasaki’s acquaintances are all within the guard, Lulamoon seems to have only her elder sibling who’s currently in the Neighpon, the changeling is practically an unknown element and you would know Agent Sweetie Drop’s situation better than any of us” the stallion continued calmly “It would seem Miss Heartstrings is the only one with significant contacts, of which most reside in Ponyville. We’ve already put surveillance on the few school friends still here in the city and haven’t seen mane or tail of them.”

Celestia scowled at the pony to only receive a blank stare back. She finally let out a heavy sigh, glancing out the window to see the dark specks fluttering about the ashen mountain.

“She’s still at it then” she muttered. Ever since she informed Luna of Maze’s ‘betrayal’, the younger sibling had become drastically more distant; the spark of trust between them instantly extinguished after the event.

“Yes your highness, it would seem she still does not believe you” he confirmed “The other guards present, as well as the undercover agents amongst the restoration crew, will inform us of any developments though.”

Celestia’s scowl grew even deeper. She knew her sister would find nothing of Maze; she had scryed the entire mountain herself after the cyborg's disappearance and even had her own guards comb the ashes to be sure. Yet it still troubled her that her sister had remained this persistent. She had been hoping to have her voluntary support in this matter; especially considering she may be too powerful for forceful compliance.

“Princess!” a guard called from the halls great doors “They’re here!”

A smile far too convincing graced the princess's face as she strode toward to the doors opening to reveal both Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and her head of security and special somepony Shining Armor. Celestia met the much younger Alicorn with a hug as Shining stood rigid in salute. Celestia giggled and hugged him as well, catching the unicorn by surprise.

“It is good to see you and have your support in this momentous occasion” Celestia said joyously as the pair marveled at their surroundings.

“I knew this to no mere day trip Auntie, but I certainly wasn’t expecting anything like this!” Cadence spouted, watching the ponies dash about to double check calculations and coordinate efforts elsewhere.

“It looks like you’ve turned the hall into some kind of… War room” Shining added, a good bit more concerned at what he was seeing; particularly the unusually large number of guards and special agents surrounding the hall.

“Oh, oh no! Quite the opposite Shiny; we’re standing in the new Control Center of PEACE!” Celestia beamed, spinning with her arms out to the surrounding stations “In mere hours we’ll be launching the newest innovation of unity and harmony! We'll be connecting our ponies in ways scarcely even imagined and ushering a new era free of pain and doubt!”

The pair looked at her with expressions wonder and bewilderment.

“How?” they asked in unison. Celestia rounded back to face them, a nearly manic smile plastered across her face.

“Let me show you…”

Twin gasps were muffled by hands suddenly clasping tight across their muzzles, strong arms seizing the pair from from behind.

“Princess.”

Luna jumped slightly. Her attention was so focused on the royal guards now meandering around a specialist examining a patch of seemingly untouched flora, she hadn’t even noticed her captain’s approach.

“Now captain, it’s past midday; you really should not risk your ponies’ heath just to help satisfy my own-”

“Princess” he interrupted, a rare enough occurrence even without the dead serious tone “You need to see this.”

Luna nodded quietly and followed without question, giving only a quick glance to the guards to see if they noticed.

“We wouldn’t have found it if private Night Wind hadn’t noticed the smell” the thestral explained as he lead her through the varied landscape. It was odd how fire sometimes acts; parts of the mountain seemed little more than flat plains of ash while others still held dead, blackened tree trunks and bushes. Then there was the small patch like the one the specialist was studying or the one they walked through now; ash still dominated the area but the trees and bushes still held leaves somehow, even if brown and unhealthy.

“Smell?” she asked as the captain lead her to a small clearing where another two thestrals waited. Whether it had been a natural clearing or one burned away, she couldn’t be sure but one could already see it had seen damage beyond mere flames. Charcoaled thatches of shattered trunks littered a ground spotted with divets and miniature craters… this is where the battle took place, she was sure of it.

“Blood, your highness” the youngest of the trio, Private Night Wind, answered for his captain.

“Blood? Something else was harmed here after the fire?”

“No Princess, this is not a fresh smell” he replied solemnly “I almost didn’t notice it at first but…”

“Surely any trace would be gone by now private, for any to still be detectable after a week there would have had to been an awful lot of…” Luna petered off as her face grew pale, the trio’s sad looks confirming her own fears “By the makers…”

“That’s not all Princess” the captain continued, gesturing to the last of the three. The bat-pony carried something bundled in a cloth now caked in ash, he held it out the night bringer as he revealed its contents.

Luna’s pupils shrunk to dots as she took in the sight. Her shoulders slumped as the weight of the truth hit them; she gingerly reached out and took the cloth, lifting up the broken, crimson metal to better inspect it.

“Was this all you found?” she asked grimly.

“Yes your highness, I’m afraid so…” the subordinate soldier answered.

Staring down at the partial blade, her brow furrowed slightly. The pattern of the break was wrong; she had been privy to a great many battle in her long life and knew too well this kind of break was caused by no simple blow. It was almost as if it had been snapped, but one didn’t not simply grip a High Frequency blade let alone snap it.

'And to have snapped This blade…' Luna’s mind reeled at the implications.

“We’ll begin anew from this clearing outward Princess. If there is anything to find then-” the captain began before Luna held up her hand.

“Thank you Captain, but there will be no need for that now. This should be enough” Luna stated, lifting the shard as her magic began to flare. It was true that finding Maze or any of her tools with magic was an exceptionally difficult thing to do, if one carried a significant portion of one however; well, it wouldn’t necessarily lead to Maze but...

The blade rose above the cloth, swirling slowly as is the dark glow danced over its form. It suddenly shot out across the clearing, a sparkling trail in its wake. They followed it through a path of shattered trees, further deepening her concerns as they came across another fallen log the blade had bounced off of. Handing the shard back to one of the guards she easily hefted the burnt wood, a good deal crumbling away as she did so.

There underneath, lying in the compressed soil and ash, is where she found the blade’s other half. Her face fell further as she picked up the hilt, seeing dried blood still caked upon its surface. She inspected one spot in particular, brushing away some of the flaking brown to see the bio-lock indicator light; nothing but a flat black met her gaze.

A heavy sigh escaped her as tears began to threaten from behind her eyes, the reality finally sinking in. Unless Maze had found another way to escape the weapons range, a rather unlikely event, then she really was gone. Reverting to a stoic sadness, calling a strength reserved for only for her most undesired royal obligations, she turn to address her thestrals; her mourning would not be theirs or any other’s to see, not yet at least.

Her words never came as the hilt suddenly beeped, the bio-lock glowing a bright white. As she stared wide eyed at the dot, a small whine issued from the hilt accompanied by the loud click of the bio-lock releasing. A cool female voice spoke in an even tone.

“Analyzing… Genetic and Magical Signature Recognized- Beginning Playback”

“-NE THAT!”

Luna instantly recognized her sister’s voice as the recording began, followed by the sounds of a what seemed to be a very one sided fight. She looked up to see the equally bewildered faces of her troops when they all suddenly jumped at the shriek that cried out from the hilt.

‘I thought I had imagined that’ Luna face blanched as she remembered what could have been the sound, distorted by the roaring flames and dense smoke. Guilt wracked her as she thought of herself dismissing it at the time.

“FOR PEACE MAZE! FOR ORDER!-”

The group stared on in awed silence, the night princess’s face growing ever paler and appalled at her sister’s insane rant. The sounds of further violence followed the ramblings until a deathly calm came through, even in the recording.

“Goodbye Maze.”

Another click echoed and the playback cut out with four ponies still staring slack jawed at the hilt, shocked horror upon their faces; one would never have thought such dark ponies could turn so white. The guards’ gazes panned over to a long, wide trench melted into the mountain side, now realizing it must have been the solar monarch’s final strike against the human; it was no wonder nothing was left.

The thestrals suddenly jumped as the hand abruptly clenched the hilt, a violent aura erupting from their princess that threatened to rend apart the mountainside anew.

Her head snapped to the castle, furious cyan eyes burning as she glared at its walls.

Twilight paced back and forth as her friends fidgeted in the room’s chairs.

“Twi we’ve been waiting for hours!” Dash exclaimed “Maybe she’s just doesn’t want to see us.”

“I can’t believe that Dash! And even if that were true, this is far too important to just let drop because of a little wait!” Twilight snapped before realizing it and sighing “I’m sorry, it’s just… it feels like we’re being ignored.”

“That was kind of my point Twi. We don’t even know if she’ll listen” Dash added “This whole operation seems A LOT bigger than just some sudden nano machine updates now that we’re here. I haven’t seen the castle this busy since the wedding invasion!”

Twilight was about to respond when the door opened, a guard alerting them the princess was at last ready to see them. The walk was quiet to say the least, not that the guards weren’t usually diligent but they seemed exceptionally stoic today. They would usually at least smile or nod to her, today they just stared straight ahead blankly.

“TWILIGHT!” She heard her mentor cry happily as they entered the throne room, ponies dashing across her path oblivious as she ran up to hug her student “What was I thinking not inviting you?! Of course you should be here for this!”

“And just what is this exactly?” Dash asked looking around at all the consoles and diagrams.

“This, Young Rainbow, is PEACE! The path to a new tomorrow, full of ponies united in ways they’ve never even considered!” Celestia cried as she strode back up to her throne past a very still unicorn.

“Shiny?! Cadence?!” Twilight asked surprised as the two smiled… warmly? back at her. Something was seriously wrong here “Princess, I hope this doesn't have to do with that new nano magic that’s being dispersed.”

“Of course it does Twilight!” Celestia stated slightly amused “They’re the linchpin to the entire process!”

“But Princess these machines have fundamental flaws! They tap directly into several control centers of the brain!” she exclaimed “They have the potential to radically alter one’s perceptions and emotions!”

“Well I would certainly hope so! They wouldn’t be any use otherwise!” Celestia exclaimed, Twilight looking on aghast at the princess's joy. The monarch’s expression fell to one far more serious “You haven’t upgraded yet, have you? I sent a crate to Ponyville with specific instructions, did you not take the injections?”

“Of course not!” Dash called “Why would we willingly take something that would screw with our heads!?”

“For PEACE! How many times do I have to say that!?” the princess snapped, the trio flinching back “Don’t you understand?! I’m creating a world without fear or pain!”

“HOW?! By getting rid of our ability to feel?!” Dash questioned.

“EXACTLY!”

The three stared on in horror as those surrounding them continued on as if nothing was even happening. Fluttershy was, surprisingly, the first to speak.

“But… B-But that’s-” she stammered “That’s MONSTEROUS!”

Celestia looked back at her like the pegasus was out of her mind.

“Fluttershy, I would expect you of all ponies to appreciate this!” she said “All of your anxiety, fear and shyness? Gone without a second thought! No more doubt or sadn-”

“IT’S MONSTEROUS!” she screamed back, the guards straightening sharply at the outburst.

“Princess you can't seriously be considering this! It's MADNESS!” Twilight cried “CADENCE! SHINY! How could you possibly just stand there at a time like this!?”

The pair just stared back at her passively, nary a response between them.

“Shiny!” she yelled striding up to her brother “Shiny what’s wrong with you?!”

The guard pony no longer even met her gaze, staring blankly forward.

“What did you do…” she began, glaring back up at her mentor as she tried to step past him “WHAT DID YOU DO TO HI-”

*CRACK*

“TWILIGHT!” the two pegasus called before the guards snapped forward, their weapons leveled at the two.

Twilight pushed herself up from the carpet, bringing a hand to her muzzle to find it coated with blood as she pulled it away. She looked up horrified at the blank faced sibling staring back down at her, a light spatter of red on the back of his gauntlet.

“Shiny… Shiny no…” she sobbed weakly, scrabbling backwards on her hands and hooves until she backed into her friends still surrounded by guards. They quickly helped her to stand, tears already joining the light trickle of blood from her nose as she looked up to the corrupted ruler “WHY?!”

“I’m disappointed in you Twilight,” Celestia stated grimly, stepping forward to stand at the top of the steps “As one who values rational thought so much, can’t you see this is the only true path to harmony?”

“YOU CALL THIS HARMONY?!” she spat, the trio glaring defiantly back with eyes darting about to the slowly approaching guards.

“All that grooming to just have you betray me in such a way” the sun mare muttered “I had hoped to keep you as you were, aiding in guiding the new world order. Still, I will not let such an intellect go completely to waste; Take them.”

The guards suddenly rushed forward, the three element bearers bracing in defense when a second, far deeper crack suddenly boomed though the hall.

A streak of pure black lightning flashed and they found themselves in the eye of a virtual maelstrom of dark energy; ponies, consoles and equipment alike flung about like mere leaves. They looked on in awe as Princess Luna materialized before them and the royal voice began shaking the rooms very foundations.

“TIA!” she screamed at one of the few figures still standing against the arcane currents “THIS MADNESS MUST END!”

Celestia shielded herself against the forces assailing her, staring back at her enraged sister through gold covered feathers.

“I see the Nightmare was never truly gone then!” she shouted back, fully lost in her delusions “DO YOU NOT SEE THIS IS FOR THE GREATER GOOD SISTER?! DO NOT STAND AGAINST PEACE LIKE THE CYBORG!”

“YOU BRUTALLIZED HER!!” Luna shrieked, the forces growing ever more furious; even within the relative safety of the eye, Twilight still had to cast a barrier to protect them against the younger sibling’s wrath.

“Do not force me to do the same to you” Celestia replied darkly, runes and magic circles appearing across the windows and walls throughout the hall. The elder alicorn’s magic flared, bathing her in golden flame as she approached. Her own aura began to encompass Luna’s energies, the younger leader pressed back against her sister’s pressuring forces as best she could, but she could already feel them begin to give as the runes began draining her relentlessly.

“I had suspected you would not be an easy sell dear sister, but I am still saddened to see my preparations were not in vain” Celestia said grimly. She crossed her arms in front of her face before slashing through the air, her sister’s storm literally shattering as is was dispelled. Luna stumbled back toward the elements, panting as her power dwindled “You did not truly believe to best me did you? During the day and in front of my own throne no less?!”

Luna merely growled in response, her weapons flashing into existence as her horn glowed. A spark shot across her body, sending her to her knees as her spell rebounded.

“You really think I’d just let you teleport away after this?” Celestia asked coldly, slowly stalking toward the group. The guards began standing again as well, their injuries completely ignored as they surrounded the mares again.

“What is wrong with you dear sister?! What evil has taken you to drive you to this insanity?!” Luna pleaded.

“You will not stop me from bringing peace to my world!” she snarled, her own weapons flashing into sight as she pounded forward. She halfed the distance before abruptly stopping, bewildered as her ears shot up.

Even several stories up as they were, a muffled tune seemed to be blaring from just outside the windows.

One of the rune covered walls exploded, a guard Humvee crashing through and skidding across the tile. Celestia didn’t have time to respond before the fish-tailing vehicle’s back end slammed into her. She immediately sprung back to her hooves only to find an rpg colliding with her chest, launching her back though her throne and shattering it into splinters to rain around her tumbling from.

She quickly rose again covered in a golden sheen to see a quartet of glowing lances fire of into the walls surrounding the group. A current sparked between the four javelins, forming a great ring of magic around her prey.

“STOP THEM!” she ordered. The guards opened fire, their rounds peppering harmlessly against the ring's barrier. Others charged with spears ready only to be thrown back as soon a they made contact.

Celestia growled and took to the air. Flying at the circle, she dodged another rocket fired from the unicorn atop the mangled Humvee as she rapidly closed the distance. Only too late however did she see the heavy hatted mage chanting at the ring’s center.

Furious, purple eyes snapped open, matching her glare just before the final command word was uttered and the ring erupted into a great pillar of blazing blue light. Celestia’s flight halted as she brought her wings against the blinding rays, a thunderous boom shaking the room as it blinked out of existence a second later… with nothing but a charred spot of stone left in its place.

Celetsia looked on in stunned silence, her face growing ever redder as her flames burned pure white.

Ponies throughout the capitol abruptly stumbled and cowered at the enraged scream now suddenly bellowing across their city and beyond.

Author's Notes:

AN UPDATE?! Yep! Sorry for the wait readers, really. As I've stated a number of times, I'm still struggling to get some kind of crossover going so I don't have to punk out on how Maze escaped and came back. Hopefully more will develop on that front soon but I thankfully do have at least a couple more chapters I can do without our leading lady, so fear not.

In the meantime however... I do have ANOTHER displaced story in the works and the first two chapters are up- it hasn't QUITE been approved for the proper displaced folder but it does have one positive vote and one "I like it so far but need more than 2 chapters to decide" so hears hoping!
It's called Locked Heart- and here's hoping you at least don't hate it

Now until next time readers, as always: Thanks for reading, I hope to see you for the next chapter and Have a good one!