Nightmare Moon stepped onto the landing field for the sky carriages, once more carrying Twilight upon her back, and looked about for her personal transport. She could see the pegasi in the distance as they prepared themselves for flight, stretching their wings, checking to make sure their harnesses were fully functional, and ensuring that everything was in perfect condition for flight. A soft mumble and stirring from behind her brought her attention once more to the mare resting upon her back. Her cold gaze softened slightly when she heard traces of her own name from the unicorn’s lips. She truly strained herself in order to impress me today. Her mind recalled the happenings mere minutes before.

Fancy Pants turned to carry out his Queen’s orders, trotting off towards the pegasus flight team’s temporary quarters. Nightmare Moon watched him go until she heard a soft ‘eep’ from beside her. Her eyes turned and saw Twilight lying upon her side, her eyes drooping as she fought unconsciousness. Moon Beam was running about the mare, the sound having come from her, as she tried to figure out what had befallen the unicorn.

“Auntie Twilight! Are you okay?!” She stopped before Twilight’s face and watched the unicorn with a worried expression upon her features. “Ohhh... You look sleepy….” The filly frowned slightly and nudged her with her nose. “You can’t go to sleep here, Auntie! You’ll catch a cold!”

Nightmare Moon gazed upon the slowly fading unicorn, concern slipping through her mask. “You do not seem fit to come with me on this trip, Twilight. Perhaps you should stay here and rest. You certainly deserve some sleep.”

Twilight’s eyes shot open as she brought herself to full alertness and quickly raised herself upon her hooves once more. “No! I…. I want to go with you. I haven’t had the chance to meet any other races aside from ponies and griffons, so it’d be a great opportunity. I also… don’t want to leave you alone….”

“I will be fine, Twilight. It would not be the first time I have performed my duties as Queen on my own.” She watched as Twilight slowly began to slip away once more. “You can hardly keep your eyes open. It will not do either of us any good if you cannot function properly.”

“I won’t be a burden, I promise!” She walked closer to Nightmare Moon and looked at her with pleading eyes. She began to totter as she moved closer before falling against the alicorn’s side, her head resting on the mare’s back. “I… just need… a little sleep….”

She passed out leaning upon Nightmare Moon, her steady breaths tickling along the moon queen’s coat. She sighed and lifted the mare upon her back once more. “Moon Beam.” The filly jumped to attention and smiled up at the alicorn expectantly. “I want you to stay here with Commander Horizons and the new arrival. You can do whatever you want until I return. I will be bringing Twilight with me for the trip, as she desires.”

Moon Beam smiled and nodded furiously. “Okie dokie, Mommy! Ohhh, I know! I’m going to go see if Cloudy and Birdie want to play! I’m sure the new pony would love to play with me!” She hugged Nightmare’s leg before dashing off down the halls, leaving a trail of wispy mane behind her.

The sound of hoofsteps nearby snapped Nightmare Moon out of her reverie, causing her to spin her head in the direction of the sound. One of the pegasi that was to pull her carriage had stepped before her and was now bowing. “Your carriage is ready, My Queen. We are prepared to leave whenever you wish.”

“Good. I do not wish to tarry any further. Allow myself and my consort to make ourselves comfortable, then begin the trip without delay.” He bowed lower and then turned and moved back to the elegant black carriage, shouting orders to the other pegasi in his team. Nightmare Moon moved hastily behind him and stepped into the waiting passenger door, careful to avoid knocking Twilight’s head on the frame. She gingerly levitated the sleeping unicorn off her back to place her upon one of the plush cushioned seats before sitting herself beside her. The pegasus chauffeur peeked in through the door to make sure they were situated. “I am settled. We will depart.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

He bowed low once more and shut the door to the carriage, the lock clicking to secure the door from the inside. Nightmare Moon felt the initial lurch of the carriage being pulled into motion and glanced to Twilight. The movement had seemed to only make the unicorn move closer to the alicorn in an unconscious effort to seek comfort from her. As the carriage lifted from the ground, Nightmare Moon’s gaze remained fixated upon Twilight’s sleeping form while her mind focused on the tasks ahead of her.

Cloudy stepped up to the entrance of Fancy Pants’ chamber and took a deep breath. She hadn’t dealt with emotional distress from anything in several years and wasn’t entirely sure how she would be able to help the filly. Breathing in once more to help settle her nerves, she raised a hoof and gently rapped upon the wood then sat to wait for a reply. She could hear faint traces of movement from the opposite side as she imagined the filly stirring from slumber. She smiled softly; an act that lasted until she heard a word sounding just beyond the doorway.

“Mommy?” The voice was soft and weak, slightly hoarse from overuse.

Cloudy’s stomach clenched. She could hear the desperation in the voice and knew that the moment she opened the door, she would break the filly’s heart. She also knew, however, that no action at all would be even worse. She steeled herself and slowly pushed open the doors, keeping her face as kind as she could. When she came into view of the filly, she saw her face turn from hopeful desperation to utter despair as tears began to well in the pony’s eyes.

“I’m sorry. I’m not your mother.” The filly began to cry, her breaths coming out in stutters as tears poured down her face. Cloudy felt like her heart had cracked, her usually stoic mind set in turmoil by the filly’s anguish. “I….” She looked to the filly and felt her own tears stinging her eyes. I haven’t…. I can’t cry. I am stronger than this. She touched a hoof to her face and wiped away the building liquid before stepping closer to the filly then, finally, moving right beside her. She swept her up into a tight embrace and sat upon the floor as the filly cried into her chest.

“I…. I want… my mommy….” She wailed out these words over and over as she pressed her muzzle into Cloudy’s chest, smearing tears and mucous on the dark armor covering the mare.

“I’m sorry…. I wish I was your mother….” She stroked the filly’s red mane and cooed in her ear in an attempt to soothe her. It worked with mild success as, eventually, the sobs lessened and the foal’s cries for her mother began to subside. Cloudy smiled slightly when she felt the filly move her head in an attempt to get more comfortable in the mare’s embrace. “Shhh…. Don’t worry. I’ll stay with you for as long as you like.”

Her tears spent, the filly calmed a little more and clutched Cloudy closer. The pegasus continued stroking the filly’s mane as she held her. “I…. Is mommy going to…? Is mommy going to come back?” Her words were unmistakable even through the muffling provided by the mare’s armor.

Cloudy’s smile dropped as she pulled the filly back so she could look into her soft pink eyes. “She won’t be coming back. I’m so sorry. I know how it feels to lose somepony you love….” The filly, drained of the ability to cry, simply lowered her head. “I’ll take care of you though…. It won’t be the same, I know, but I’ll always be there for you. My name is Cloudy Horizons. What’s yours?”

“Cherry… Tart….” She sniffled and looked up into Cloudy’s one blue eye. “You…. You won’t ever leave? Ever?”

Cloudy smiled down at her and kissed her forehead before brushing some of the filly’s frazzled mane from her face. “I’ll never leave.” Cloudy couldn’t help but to feel somewhat guilty for making that promise. I am the Queen’s highest commander…. I can’t be expected to be able to watch her all of the time…. I’ll have to go to battle sooner or later and I cannot predict what will happen…. She kissed the pony’s forehead once more and stood up. “Come with me. I’ll take you to our room so that-.”

“Auntie Clooouuudyyyy~!” Moon Beam burst through the doors and stopped dead in her tracks, the sight of the depressed filly halting her excitement. “Oh no! You can’t be sad! Little fillies and colts should never be sad! We’re supposed to be happy!” She smiled brightly and hopped up to the shocked Tart. “Hi, I’m Moon Beam! What’s your name?”

“Ch-Cherry T-Tart….” She was too stunned to form a lengthier reply, but Moon Beam hadn’t paid any heed.

“Oh wow! That name is so cute! I’ve never tried a cherry tart before! Mommy Moon never lets me have too many desserts, but Auntie Twilight always sneaks me some when she isn’t around! I wonder if she’ll get me a cherry tart someday.” She shook her head and refocused her attention on the still gaping filly. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to forget about cheering you up! I know! Maybe we could go outside and-.”

Cloudy halted her sentence by placing a hoof to Moon Beam’s mouth. “I’m sorry, Moon Beam, but Cherry needs to get some sleep.” The navy unicorn frowned, but Cloudy ignored her. “Come on, Cherry. Let me take you to our room. I’m sure you’d like to get some rest after all of what’s happened.”

“Tart….” Cloudy looked to the filly, confused. “Mommy always called me Tart since her name was Cherry, too. So…, please call me Tart….”

Cloudy smiled and hefted the filly onto her back eliciting a soft ‘eep’ as she was picked from the floor. “Alright, Tart. Let’s go get you to bed. You can come as well Moon Beam. Just try to be quiet.”

Moon Beam nodded her assent and bounced along behind the pair excitedly. I’ve never met another pony my age before! I can’t wait to see what games she likes to play! Maybe we can play tag or hide-and-seek! She hummed happily and followed closely, plans of befriending the yellow filly brewing in her mind.

Nightmare Moon closed her eyes and breathed in deep. They had been flying for several hours now and, when she had looked out the window of her carriage, she could see the passing rows of exotic trees not native to Equestria. It had been over a thousand years since her last trip outside of her own country. She could scarcely remember her visit to the foreign countries, but she could still remember approximately where each country was save for minor border changes over the centuries she had been banished.

A soft stirring and a quiet uttering of her name brought her attention to the dark unicorn at her side. Twilight’s soft purple eyes opened to gaze up at the alicorn; the moment of concern from their conversation earlier was washed away when she realized they were both in the Queen’s sky carriage. “Thank you… for bringing me along. It means a lot to me that you allowed me to come... even in my current state.” Nightmare Moon nodded her head and continued to watch Twilight as she moved to look out the window. “Wow! All these trees are so amazing! I’ve only read about these kinds of plants in books back at the Canterlot Library! I never thought I’d be able to see them firsthoof!” She turned around and gently settled herself back down next to her Queen. “Ummm…. May I ask you a question?”

“I do not mind. What is it you wish to know?”

“I’ve been curious for a while about this. Back when you first returned to Equestria, when you stopped my friends and I, how were you able to stop the power of the Elements? I always thought they were the most powerful source of magic in Equestria.”

Nightmare Moon smiled and stared into Twilight’s purple eyes. “Ahhh…. I can see why you would be curious about that. I must say that I had never planned to tell you about this, but you have proven yourself to be more than loyal to me.” Twilight blushed, but kept her gaze fixed expectantly upon the alicorn. “Well, I had known of the Elements of Harmony before my initial banishment to the moon by the hooves of Celestia, but was not capable of defending myself from it back then. I spent the thousand years of my banishment figuring out how to defeat them when I realized I had the exact thing I needed at my disposal.”

“The moon, right? You used the moon to block them.”

“Partially, yes. As I’m sure you saw during the encounter, I created a shield to defend myself against the destructive powers that are the Elements. I had spent that millennium drawing magic and power from the moon in order to protect myself from the spell of the Elements. That would not have been enough, however. I remembered from the times my sister and I had used it to imprison one of our greatest enemies when we were much younger. Both of us controlled three of the elements each. I was the master of Magic, Laughter, and Honesty while Celestia held the powers of Loyalty, Kindness, and Generosity. We were not able to use each other’s elements for ourselves until the day we faced off with Discord. That day, after they were fully activated and attuned to us, if one of us displayed enough of an element we could bend that particular Element to our will.

“That was how she banished me. She manipulated the elements to her will and used their combined power to send me away and, in that realization, I had found my way to stop their use a second time. Together, the Elements can defeat anything. Even the power of the moon after being steadily siphoned for a thousand years, but, if even a single element is missing, they are nowhere near their potential ability. I used my affinity to magic in order to cancel out your Element’s spell thus making my lunar shield capable of withstanding the onslaught of the others.”

“That’s…. That’s amazing! I never would have thought that you could do something like that! I had thought that, when we activated the Elements, nothing could go wrong.” She thought for a moment. “If we had tried to use the Elements again, we could have defeated you, couldn’t we?” The alicorn nodded slightly, but Twilight smiled up at Nightmare Moon. “I’m glad we failed though. I’d never have found my love for you if we hadn’t.”

Nightmare Moon could feel the emotion coming from the unicorn and it startled her. Every time Twilight had said those words, she had brushed them aside as the love one should feel for her Queen, but the raw feelings being relayed through their link spoke otherwise. She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind and looked away. “I will admit that I am most pleased that you hadn’t thought to try a second time. It is unfortunate that my subjects loathe me so and that we must seek aid from others to support our war.”

Twilight frowned at the dismissal of her words, but curiosity took over. “Where are we going? I haven’t been outside of Equestria so I am not entirely familiar of the landscape here. I don’t know much about the outlying countries due to the limited knowledge of them in the books.”

“We are heading to Zebria in order to request assistance from the zebra Caesar. The zebras were the closest race to ponies back before I was banished and so I believe we will be more capable of acquiring their aid than some of the other races.”

“I cannot wait to meet the zebras! I’ve read a few books on their race seeing as they are so closely related to use, but I’ve never been able to meet one myself. I wonder how their government works.” She placed a hoof to her chin in thought and smiled. “From how you called their leader a Caesar, I’d say they were a patriarchal society with the Caesar being somewhat akin to a king. Do you think they have a democracy or would their entire country be run by the decision of the Caesar alone similar to ours? I’m sure they have their own armies as well. The zebras depicted in my books always seemed like they were a type of graceful fighter.”

Nightmare Moon could feel the enthusiasm and excitement filling the unicorn and smiled again, the link beginning to affect her own mood. Twilight stopped her rambling and looked to the Queen. “You know…. You should smile more often. I think it makes you look amazing.”

The alicorn watched Twilight’s features as she grinned warmly up at her. She has changed so much. She never would have said something like that a month ago. “Why do you compliment me so?”

Twilight momentarily averted her gaze. “It’s because… I love you.” She looked back, her eyes wavering in the soft light of the moon.

“Love me? I am your Queen. It is your duty to love me. Is that not all it is?” She continued to gauge Twilight’s emotions through the link and could feel a warmth building in her chest. “I can feel your soul through our connection and, despite what I believe, I can feel something different from you. What is it?”

“It’s… love…. I don’t really know how to explain it. When…. When I had come to save you from Brook, we were talking together in your room. We had been seeing each other in secret for weeks and I thought she cared for me….” Her gaze never left the Queen’s, who kept her face even and unreadable. “She told me what she was going to do. She told me that she was going to kill you and Moon Beam then come back to kill me. I trusted her more than anything and she betrayed me….” Tears had begun to well up in her eyes, but she blinked them away and smiled. “That was when I realized that you had never betrayed me. You always did what you said you would and even defended me from those four stallions a couple months ago. You may have beaten me if I messed up, but you also rewarded me for my successes.

“I should have realized it sooner, but I knew that I could depend on you to always lead me like a true Queen should. As time went by, I began to notice changes. I could feel my devotion to you becoming something more. I wasn’t entirely sure what it was until the griffon attacked. When I saw his blade drawn and ready to attack, my feelings clicked into place. I knew that I had grown to love you. Not as a monarch, but as a mare. Were it not for that, I likely would not have taken the blade for you.” Tears burned at Twilight’s eyes once more, but she allowed them to fall this time. “When you came for me in Death’s realm, I was so happy. I…. I know that I’m just your consort, but being by your side is all that I could ever hope to ask for. I just…. I want to know what you think of me. I don’t mind if you don’t love me back or if you merely tolerate me, but I just want to know….”

Nightmare Moon was stunned. She could feel every little shift in Twilight as she twisted through different emotions. The fear, anger, sadness, betrayal, joy, and, most of all, love all played through the alicorn’s mind. She had never had to deal with such passionate feelings before as, since before she had been banished, nopony had ever cared for her more than what was required by her status. I… do not know what to say. I have never had an issue with words before. Why can I not think properly? Is this-?

A dull thud sounded from the top of the carriage drawing the attention of both ponies inside. They heard a cry of pain from the head of the craft followed by orders being shouted. “My Queen! Stay inside the carriage! We will defend you with our-!” Another cry of pain and the voice of the head pegasus was cut off and drowned out by the sound of weapons clashing together.

Nightmare Moon stood and glared out one of the windows. For a brief moment, she caught sight of a griffon speeding by unhindered by the large craft. “Twilight, stay next to me. The griffons have figured out what we are doing. Do not worry. I will keep you safe.” She watched as Twilight nodded, but could still feel the apprehension coursing through the unicorn’s brain. She shut out her mind and focused on the battle raging around them. She hadn’t brought many pegasus guards so she would appear less hostile to the Zebrians, but it ended up leaving her open. I figured that this spur of the moment trip would have left me safer. I should have expected them to attack when I am lightly guarded.

Twilight quivered behind the alicorn, fearing for the both of them. She looked down at the dragon bone pendant and willed it back into its dagger form before taking it in her mouth. I… may not know how to use this…. She swallowed hard around the handle and glanced about. But I will not let them hurt my love!

A harsh scraping followed by several more clashes of weapons sounded from above them and, after several moments, more screams of agony echoed through the air, signifying the loss of the final pegasus guard. They had heard very few griffons screech in pain and guessed that they had only suffered minor casualties. A clicking could be heard on the roof as griffon claws scraped and clacked against the metal plating until the movement stopped. The sky carriage halted completely and, after a few moments, a black-feathered head peered through an open window.

“Ahhh, Nightmare Moon. I must say that I am quite glad to have met you before you died at our talons. I have to thank you for all of the assistance you’ve given us by removing the Royal guards and Celestia.” He smirked and laughed. “Fear not, however. We will certainly rule over your land quite fairly. Every pony will be eaten without discretion. We are carnivores after all, and pony meat is by far the most delectable. We’ll even raise some of them as cattle! It will be such a joy.”

“You foal! Do you think that you can stop me here?” Her eyes glowed and a bolt of lightning struck him in the chest.

“You bitch!” He squawked and stripped the metal plating from his sizzling chest, the feathers burnt where the bolt had struck. “Very well, then. You get to die the slow way. Granis! Drop the carriage! I hope you enjoy the rest of your life. However short it will be.” He grinned sadistically and, after a few clicks, disappeared from view as the sky carriage instantly began to lose altitude.

Twilight screamed in terror as they freefell towards the forest, the carriage beginning to spin about as they slowly started to float in the large space. Nightmare Moon turned to Twilight and grabbed ahold of her with her forelegs. “Hold on to me and do not let go!” Twilight’s screaming halted the moment their bodies touched and felt her face heat up despite the serious predicament they were in, but she complied and wrapped all four of her legs around the alicorn’s body.

They rapidly approached the ground, the sky carriage picking up speed as gravity increased its momentum. Twilight clenched her eyes shut, fearing the inevitable and softly whispered into the alicorn’s ear. “I love you so much….”

Nightmare Moon’s horn erupted in magical flames as pure energy exploded around them, obliterating the carriage and the rising trees below them. She unfurled her wings, the great black appendages catching the rushing air and cutting their momentum. Nightmare could feel the bones breaking under the instant force placed upon them, but left them extended until, to her great relief, she slowed to a glide before settling on the ground. She gasped in pain and let her wings hang uselessly at her sides, the bones and muscles broken and torn, but kept her stance above Twilight who had settled shakily to the ground.

“Nightmare Moon! Your wings…! They….”

“It does not matter as long as you are safe. I will live. Given time they will heal, but for now it does not matter.” She looked up to the descending griffons and charged her horn once more. Another bolt of lightning arched from the tip and struck a tawny griffon in the face. Her features melted around the point of impact and, without a scream, fell dead to the ground with a sickening crunch. “I….” Another bolt and another griffon fell, his heart stopped by the jolt of electricity. “Will not….” A third hit the ground, his stomach burnt open and trailing his guts along his crash course. “Let them….” Two more dropped, a single bolt penetrating through the first and striking the second with enough force to paralyze him. They too landed among the growing pile of corpses. “Hurt you….” Her horn flashed again but failed to hit. She was getting tired and her accuracy had dropped considerably.

“Please, stop! I don’t want you to hurt yourself for me! I know you still have enough magic to teleport yourself away! Just….” Her tears stained the shaded grass as they poured from upon her face. “Please…. I don’t want to… see you die…. I don’t have… the strength… to save you….” Her shuddering sobs broke her sentence as she tried to move from underneath the alicorn in order to help her escape, but Nightmare Moon stood her ground.

“No.” Another bolt arched through the air, the smell of burning ozone filling their nostrils. “You did the same thing for me and I could not understand why.” A flash of light followed by a screech of pain signified another griffon’s death. “Now I will return the favor…,” she looked at the unicorn below her body, trapped underneath in her protective embrace and kissed her forehead, “and your love.”

“Awww, how touching! The Queen and her whore, falling in love while on the verge of death. How cliché.” He squawked with laughter and shook his head. “I’d say I was impressed, but you only managed to kill six of my thirty-seven soldiers. That hardly counts as an impressive feat. Any last words before I finish you and your unicorn sex toy?”

Nightmare Moon affixed her gaze upon the griffon, but he didn’t so much as flinch. “If you touch her I will tear your body to pieces like the last griffon that did.”

He laughed again and drew a long silver blade from his back and held it in his talons. “I don’t think I’ll have to worry about that, bitch.” He raised his claymore high above his head and, just as he was to bring it down upon the alicorn’s head, a slight rumble shook the ground. He dropped his sword and glanced around. “Is this another one of your tricks? You think to scare me with an earthquake? Hah!”

Nightmare Moon’s eyes widened in shock as a great lumbering form came crashing through the tree to her left. The massive body plowed into four of the griffons and lifted them from the ground in its two huge arms. They screeched and squawked as the giant hugged them to its chest until, after several horrifying pops and great bursts of blood, the four griffons were crushed in half, their two halves dropping to the ground with sick squelches. The form stood to its full twelve-foot height and looked at the group around it. Its massive bull head was attached to the torso of a hairless gorilla which rested atop a pair of bovine legs.

They all stared wide-eyed at the creature until Twilight looked up into its eyes and saw only gentleness. “It’s… a minotaur!”

“My brethren!” The minotaur bellowed, his deep voice echoed through the forest. “I have found the griffon scourge and our fair alicorn Goddess!”

More shaking could be heard from all around them as the minotaur’s comrades followed the sound of his voice. The griffons all looked to their black and gray leader who promptly turned tail and fled into the sky, fleeing in terror. The rest of the pride attempted to follow suit, but the clambering forms of dozens of other minotaur began grabbing them or crushing them with massive steel hammers as they took flight. Only eight of the thirty-three were able to escape with their lives.

The first minotaur stepped up to Nightmare Moon, who kept her protective stance over Twilight, and bowed as gracefully as his large form could. “Greetings, Pony Queen. I am Jahurl, Lord of Valtaura. I wish to extend the aid of my people to your war against Griffonia.”

Author’s Notes: Awww now isn’t that cute? BUT IT’S- Oh no, wait. That is right. Proceed then. Well, here it is! Chapter 26 in all its glory! Hope you don’t mind but shipping starts in… NOW! Yup! It’s official! Shipping is a go! Hope you enjoyed the read cause I REALLY enjoyed writing it. Ally not what you were expecting? What a ! Anyhooves, Peppy out!

Editor's Note #1: Dr.Jekyll here and I officially love you, Peppy (no homo). BEST. CHAPTER. YET. So much D'aww to be had between Cherry/Cloudy/Moon Beam and Twilight/Nightmare Moon that I had fifty-eight consecutive heart attacks while reading this. I can't express how much I'm lovin' this right now. And *fake gasp*, Minotaurs, didn't see that one comin' *shifty eyes*. Well..., I think I've said all I can, so I'll be seeing all of you in the next chapter. Tah-tah.

Editor’s Note #2: Sukasa here, a little slow on the keyboard today but here nonetheless. Quite the chapter, and now we get the best stuff, political intrigue! Haha, just kidding. I hate politicians. Shipping is fun, let’s look forward to that instead~