The Tragedy of Faust, the Pony Queen
A Play in five Acts
DRAMATIS PERSONAE
GROUPS
The CHORUS. A mysterious group outside the narrative. The CHORUS has no leader.
The HEROINES. Six mares of varying species chosen by FAUST to defeat NIGHTMARE MOON. Led by TWILIGHT SPARKLE.
The SETTLERS. A group of Earth Ponies who settle the town of Appleloosa. Led by BRAEBURN.
INDIVIDUALS
FAUST. The Pony Queen who created Equestria and the Princesses, CELESTIA and LUNA.
CELESTIA. The first Princess and current ruler of Equestria. A benevolent leader.
LUNA. The second Princess of Equestria. Once known as the evil NIGHTMARE MOON (see below), who threatened to bring about eternal night, LUNA was imprisoned in the moon for a thousand years. She has since repented and now wishes only to serve Equestria.
NIGHTMARE MOON. The evil form of LUNA, born from her bitterness at the world.
TRIXIE. A prideful unicorn.
Miss HOOVES. A meek pegasus.
The Tragedy of Faust, the Pony Queen
A Play in five Acts
ACT I
SCENE 1
[The Ponyville library, at midnight. Silence, darkness, and an enticing emptiness pervade the air. Enter FAUST, alone. She looks through the window, at the moon.]
FAUST: O bright and beautiful night, why must it be
That you would shine alone, with none to see?
A world with none to know it is no world.
I made you from the wishes of my soul,
Those carved in turn from childhood memories
Of ponies come and gone, since long ago.
You are the culmination of my self,
Yet none can see us. Oh, what hell is this?
If there were but an audience from out
Beyond the confines of this child-place,
I would know friendship in the threads that bind
My soul to others in this wondrous place.
Yet none outside take notice of my work,
For want of something far less feminine.
If only I could share these wonders yet,
My life for just a moment of that joy!
[FAUST moves toward the balcony. Pausing, she releases a prolonged sigh, then opens the window. She looks up at the night sky; the twinkling stars become the eyes of the CHORUS.]
FAUST: Watchers of this World, hear my cry!
Behold the fruit of countless nights I spent
Creating worlds of intricate detail!
Nopony could resist such joyous art!
[The words of the CHORUS faintly echo from beyond the edge of visibility.]
CHORUS: What nonsense could this be? That we grown men
Would ever deign to watch a girls' show?
There's nothing here could ever catch our eyes.
If there, perhaps, were something more intense,
A villain, say, whose gaze could strike great fear
Into the hearts of fan and pony both,
We'd know this world was worth our following.
[A cloud now obscures the stars.]
FAUST: The world does need a villain; that I knew.
But who could challenge such a peace as that
Which graced this wond'rous world since it began?
[A pause. FAUST slowly turns her gaze upward, from where the stars once shone to the still and brilliant moon. A devilish smile unfolds over her. Exit.]
SCENE 2
[An empty stage. Enter LUNA, alone. She takes center stage, and prison walls rise around her. She looks skyward, to the world from which she was banished.]
LUNA: O bright and beautiful night, what have I done?
While you—my birthright—shine without my aid,
I am imprisoned in this lunar tomb.
Have I not truly learned my lesson yet?
Have I not paid my debt? Repented wrongs?
I am the one called “Nightmare Moon” no more.
O night, I call upon thee: let me go!
Release me and I swear upon the Moon,
That I will grant this world all that I am.
I will serve all of ponykind in grace.
[The night gives no response, save a brace of bitter coldness. LUNA sighs.]
LUNA: I see. There can be no forgiveness soon
For bitterness toward our higher Lord
That turns to hate what once was love and trust.
One thousand years I have been waiting here,
One thousand more, if need be, I will wait,
Until I prove no Devil anymore.
[LUNA closes her eyes. Exit.]
The Tragedy of Faust, the Pony Queen
A Play in five Acts
ACT II
SCENE 1
[The moon. Enter LUNA in her prison, stage left. No longer staring at the world above her, she averts her gaze away from what she no longer feels she deserves. In the dustly lunar ground, she sketches the fierce visage of what was once known as Nightmare Moon. Silently she mouths her former name.
Suddenly, a clattering of hooves on rock is heard, from stage right.]
LUNA: Who goes there? Show yourself to me at once!
[Enter FAUST stage right, flanked by two Pegasi. Separated by the bars, she approaches LUNA. The latter eyes her cautiously.]
FAUST: You, pony black as nightfall, speak your name.
Are you the legendary Nightmare Moon?
You don't quite have her legendary face,
Once said to strike such fear into the eyes
Of ponies as to dark their very souls,
But softer, lacking malice and contempt.
[LUNA shakes her head.]
LUNA: The one you know as “Nightmare” is no more.
I was that mare, but far too long ago.
Reflection brings repentance. But alas—
Repentance in itself is not enough
To pardon such a grievous sin as I
Once cast upon this holy land we love.
So I remain myself, up here, alone.
[LUNA turns away from FAUST, who only draws closer, touching the bars.]
FAUST: But what about the legend? Your return
Is prophesied to come one thousand years
After your fall from grace. You are to come
And bring eternal night upon the world.
[LUNA looks back at FAUST with sorrow in her eyes.]
LUNA: Nothing I want less than that exists.
The world above us is so beautiful.
To scar it with eternal night would be
So terrible an act I could not bear.
So why would I? What could I stand to gain?
FAUST: That world is beautiful, indeed. I know.
It's not unlike a painting in a cave.
With none to gaze upon it, can it be?
Alone, it is without a real soul.
The worlds which we Goddesses create
Surely deserve their better fates than that.
[LUNA's eyes widen.]
LUNA: You are a Goddess? Can you really be
Who made the world that has forsaken me?
Speak not; your eyes tell me your words are true.
But why come here? Why speak with little me?
And what have I to do with my old home?
FAUST: You are its greatest hope. As Nightmare Moon
You'd bring about such conflict as would make
A story worthy of the worlds out
Beyond our comprehension. You could be
The bringer of the wonders of this land
To those who otherwise would never know
Their joy. And all you have to do for them
Is take again your old identity,
Act out the legend we all know so well,
And make for all those pony folk a foe—
A villain's all this story really needs.
LUNA: I save the world by terrifying it?
Even for you, I could do no such thing.
The anger in my heart has long receded.
There is no way I could return again
To that old body, evil Nightmare Moon.
That self was born of darkness and of hate.
They gave me strength, when they were all I knew.
Without that strength I could not step one hoof
Into the plan you have laid out for me.
[FAUST sighs, and steps back from the bars. A silent moment passes. Another. FAUST looks toward LUNA, whose eyes are closed and whose body is so still as to look almost slumbering.
Then, an idea strikes FAUST. Her sudden gasp brings LUNA back to attention.]
FAUST: Behold, dear Princess, I have realized
A way we both can get what we desire.
I merely need to grant to you my soul,
That you can use its strength to light again
The power lying dormant in yourself.
With me to aid, you can again become
The fiercest pony threat to all the world,
And bring about eternal night; with it
Will come the watchers of our little land.
You need take but one year. After such time,
The pony folk will surely have you beat,
You can return to goodness after that.
My soul comes back to me again at last,
Along with joy of knowing that my work
Is loved by all outside it, far and wide.
So won't you undertake this quest for me?
Your freedom can be nigh, if only you
Give just one year toward the noble cause
Of spreading happiness abundantly.
[An extremely long pause. There is fear in LUNA's eyes. She stares into FAUST's eyes and speaks quietly.]
LUNA: I fear that I will quite soon come to loathe
What I will start tonight. Yet I cannot
Deny the altruism in your eyes,
Nor speak against the soundness of your plans.
I will take back the form of Nightmare Moon
And carry out your wishes. Free me now!
[With a soft, but sincere, smile on her face, FAUST unlocks the door to LUNA's prison. The bars fade into the darkness of the moon's surface, and LUNA is freed.]
FAUST: Now come to me, great Princess, and receive
The soul that will become your second self.
[FAUST and LUNA meet, and touch. A flash of light turns quickly to darkness. Then, from that darkness emerges NIGHTMARE MOON. FAUST is nowhere to be seen. NIGHTMARE MOON begins to laugh, an evil, cruel cackle. Exit.]
The Tragedy of Faust, the Pony Queen
A Play in five Acts
ACT III
SCENE 1
[Princess CELESTIA's castle, midday. The princess is alone in her room, reading a book entitled “Lands Beyond Pony Ken.” Next to it, also opened, is a book written in an ancient language, its pages tattered from many years of reading, its ink also faded. CELESTIA closes her eyes for a moment.
Then, a tiny burst of fire. A scroll appears in midair. Of its own volition it opens and presents itself to the princess. She begins to read.]
CELESTIA: 'Twas years ago by now that I first met
Young Twilight Sparkle, brilliant as her name.
Yet even now she still amazes me
With such a knack for sharp deduction. Yes,
Young mare, there will indeed be troubles hence.
I should take action; you and I agree.
And yet...
[CELESTIA rises to her hooves. On the wall, concealed by skilled pony magic, is an order from the only one to whom the princess answers, one whose very existence is unknown to most of Equestria. It is written in the same ancient language as the elder book.
FAUST has told CELESTIA of this situation. Acting as though that scroll were FAUST herself, CELESTIA nods to it.]
CELESTIA: I heed your orders, Lady Faust.
Thy will be done. The best of Ponyville—
The brightest and the most endearing souls
We know shall enter in this narrative.
Their friendship truly will be magic, for
With them as well this story must be told.
[CELESTIA looks briefly out the window, in the direction of Ponyville.]
CELESTIA: I will select five ponies for you, Twilight.
First Pinkie Pie, whose laughter warms cold hearts,
Then Applejack, whose charm exceeds her years,
Next Rainbow Dash, so spirited and bold,
And Rarity, of elegance and poise,
Last Fluttershy, a truly loving soul.
I will construct the day's events so that
Your meetings with them all will come to pass
Whether you wish for them to be or not.
By this I will ensure all is as planned.
[CELESTIA looks upward, through a crack in the ceiling. She can discern nothing above her; a tiny hint of disappointment can be seen on her visage, if only by the most careful of viewers.]
CELESTIA: I do not know if worlds beyond my sight
Can every truly be, as she described.
But I know only this: Thy will be done,
O Faust, who gave me all I rule and love!
[Exit.]
SCENE 2
[A ruin in the Everfree Forest. The scene outside is dark, until—a brilliant light shatters through the forest, illuminating the night sky. The HEROINES are triumphant.
Her form obliterated, NIGHTMARE MOON has ceased to be. The shattered remains of what was once a hybrid soul lie scattered across the cold stone floor. Among them lies LUNA, weak and crying.
Beyond our ability to hear, CELESTIA forgives LUNA. All except LUNA return to Ponyville. The younger princess turns her head back toward her old body. A spiritual form rises from the crystalline ashes. It is FAUST. LUNA kneels in deference.]
LUNA: No words can hope express my sorrow, queen.
We were to have one year to serve your cause,
Yet not a day has gone, and all is done.
Has any good arisen from this night?
Does anypony new know of your land?
FAUST: It is not ponies, dearest Luna, whose
Attention we now seek. The watchers out
Beyond this land are unfamiliar souls,
Who look upon mere ponies as you might
A household dog or cat. They are as gods.
To answer you, I can only observe
That gods need entertain no passing thought
On something so short-sided as what came
To pass this most unfortunate of nights.
Our plan has failed. We can do no more.
[LUNA stifles a tear.]
FAUST: Cry not, my little pony. Hope lives on.
I will illuminate our heaven yet.
I have eternity to try again.
[At this, LUNA is unable to contain her sadness. The tears burst from deep within her heart, pouring out toward FAUST. The latter is confused and concerned. After a moment, LUNA regains her composure, and begins to speak.]
LUNA: I am afraid, my queen, that is not so.
You bound your soul with mine, and when you did,
You tied your link into our world to me.
Since Nightmare Moon, that self, is here no more,
So too will fade your presence in this world.
You can't outlive the year you gave to me.
Upon its end, your soul will vanish too.
[LUNA again collapses into tears. FAUST approaches her. She tries to pull the pony's chin up, but as a mere spirit, she just passes through LUNA's body.]
FAUST: That saddens me to hear, but I confess,
It saddens me much more to see you cry.
For even just one year is time enough
For me to show this world how to shine.
I can do precious little in this form,
But wait, you'll see. What little that I can,
I will turn into something beautiful.
Equestria deserves but nothing less.
[LUNA manages to slow her tears, and looks up at FAUST with a cautious hope in her eyes. FAUST smiles warmly.]
FAUST: I thank you, Princess, for your time with me
Has started something grander than I'd seen
When I had wrought this world all on my own.
The Heroines who just departed here
Are ponies of a most delightful sort.
With them I have a tale to tell anew.
One year is all the time I need to share
This story with the watchers of this world.
[With confidence FAUST lets her spirit rise out of LUNA's view. The latter, her tears now dried, looks uncertainly outward. Exit.]