NaNo2014: Shadows of Friendship: Part 14

Pretty much all the ponies that she had spent time with the day before were there. Even Rarity, much to her surprise was in amongst the crowd gathered around trading cards and duelling one another, though to the purple unicorn’s complete lack of surprise she could see that there was a rather pretty looking mat underneath her.

It was to that group that she headed, figuring that she probably had more in common with them then she did with some of the other local ponies. Raindow Dash budged over to make room, smirking at her. “Decided to emerge then?”

“Spike said you were duelling?” Twilight nodded, not bringing up the earlier prank if no one else was.

“Yeah, Pinkie set it up.” Rainbow nodded, grinning, “She might be prone to pranks but she knows how to get everyone enjoying themselves.” Twilight winced slightly at the ‘pranks’ comment causing Dash to chuckle at her, “You realise there’s not a pony in Ponyville who hasn’t been caught by Pinkie once or twice, right? Well, except Fluttershy, no one pranks Fluttershy.”

That kind of made Twilight feel better. Pinkie had not singled her out, she had been including her in the general pranking. It was an odd way to think about it, but it did help her mood considerably even as she snuck peeks at the shelves, trying to see if she could spot anything on the Elements of Harmony upon them.

It was hard to see anything around the horde of ponies that were gathered in her library and for a few moments Twilight resented it. Libraries were supposed to be quiet and this was her space. None of those present besides herself and Spike had permission to be in her home, but they had invaded anyway. She had wanted a nice, quiet night to get some research done before Nightmare Moon showed up. That plan had gone spectacularly out of the window.

Then she did not have time to resent it as Rainbow set her up to duel against a stallion she had never met before and by the time that they were all due to leave, Twilight had not only gained a small following of impressed Duellists but had gotten to know them all a little better. Since this was a step towards the Elements of Harmony working with her, or even possibly understanding the ‘Unity’ mentioned in Celestia’s letter, it did not feel like she had completely wasted the night, but she still not in the position she had wanted to be in when she was herded from the library and along to the town hall.

Something was off as she entered the building, not that she was entirely sure what it was. She could just feel an odd taint creeping through the building. To her magically honed senses it felt like a strange mist that was slowly oozing between their hooves and spreading out into the streets of Ponyville through the open double doors. She did not know what it was, or why it made her feel so uneasy but as she moved towards the front of the crowd she had a horrible feeling that the alicorn on the balcony was not going to be her tutor, Celestia, but her tainted sister.

The mayor stepped forward to give a speech but Twilight was not listening. She was too busy paying attention to the fact the darkness was building around the balcony where the Princess was due to appear. Something or somepony was coming and the darkness knew it. Twilight just did not know how she was supposed to deal with that fact.

If she was the ‘Guardian of the Shadows’ now, then this was her first test in her new role. She would have to stop Nightmare Moon here, before she could do any damage. She just was not sure how.

“And now,” The mayor announced after thanking everyone for their hard work, “I welcome to Ponyville, Princess Celestia!”

Fluttershy’s bird chorus started up and Twilight held her breath, praying that she was wrong. That the tales of darkness and shadows in Celestia’s letter had made her just image the mist at her hooves and the creeping tendrils of power she could feel surrounding the balcony and reaching behind the curtains.

When they opened, Princess Celestia was missing, causing panic to start rising in the assemblage, including Twilight, who sidestepped, having feared this would happen. Fluttershy’s birds trailed off mid-chorus as Rarity let out a frightened cry of, “She’s gone!”

A dark and slightly deranged cackle started as a purple and black fog swirled around in a tornado of power. Power that was far too reminiscent of the pulse of magic that had erupted from the puzzle when she had completed it for Twilight’s liking, but like it had been multiplied by a thousand.

“Oh horsefeathers…” Twilight whispered to herself as she watched it explode out, coating the walls and ceiling in the same weird maelstrom of an odd mixture of purples, blacks and blues. With the tornado gone, a midnight blue alicorn whose mane and tail were made up from the night sky and flowed like water stood tall and proud where Princess Celestia should have stood. Her silver armour glinted ominously in the strange light that was cast by the power and she looked around with a toothy smirk at the terrified crowd below.

“Bow before your Princess.” Nightmare Moon demanded, “For I have returned and the night will last forever!”

Twilight could feel the power coating the room like a lead weight baring down on her and the temperature had dropped several degrees, leaving most of those in the room with her shivering, though it was hard to tell if it was because of the cold or the fear. It was hard to think through the oppressive atmosphere and Twilight struggled to react to the possessed alicorn’s ravings.

“Where’s the Princess!? The real one!” Rainbow Dash demanded, trying to fly up to the balcony only for Applejack to catch her tail between her teeth and hold her back.

“What’s the matter?” Nightmare Moon demanded with a snarl, glaring at the Pegasus pony, “Am I not royal enough for you? Does my crown no longer matter after five thousand years?! Do you know who I am?!”

“I do!” Twilight bellowed, saving Pinkie Pie from attracting the attention of the dark creature on the balcony by bellowing over her, “I know who you are! You’re Nightmare Moon!”

Several ponies whinnied in terror as the alicorn turned an amused smirk on her, only to freeze, her eyes widening as she took in the unicorn who had called out. “You.” She hissed, anger clear on her face, “You will not stop me this time. I will kill you again! And this time you won’t come back!”

Twilight did not understand what she meant, but she did understand what the wave of purple the alicorn sent at her meant and she threw up a hasty shield spell that protected not only herself but anypony close enough to her to be hit. The powerful attack washed down the sides of her shield and joined the darkness coating the floor around her.

“Who are you this time, Princess?” Nightmare Moon demanded, sarcastically emphasising the title as she glowered down at her, her wings flaring up as she snarled out, “What name should I put on your headstone?”

“My name is Twilight Sparkle, I am Celestia’s Personal Student.” Twilight replied as her shield flickered out of existence, its magic spent, “And the Guardian of Shadows. I won’t let you win. I can’t!”

“The last time you were an alicorn and even then, alone, you could not defeat me, you stand no chance now, little Twilight.” Nightmare Moon hissed, drawing up her magic for another strike. “You will die here and now, before you can seal me again! My Shadows will destroy you!”

Twilight’s world slowed down as the demonically possessed alicorn unleashed a wave of Shadows that would kill everyone present. She could not stop it. She knew she could not stop it. She was not strong enough, but she tried. She dragged up every ounce of magic that she possessed and then drew more from the puzzle, building it into a shield that would cover the ponies in the hall.

The Shadows hit it with the force of a hurricane and Twilight shuddered, barely able to maintain her protective barrier against the sheer weight and potency of the dark power she was facing. Her hooves slid backwards as the barrier shuddered and slowly retreated back from the force pressing against it. “I…I’m s…sorry…” She bit out to the ponies surrounding her as her forelegs buckled for a moment and she only just caught herself in time, “I…I can’t…”

“Die!” Nightmare Moon crowed, knowing she had won as she drove more of her power into the blast.

The shield buckled as Twilight did. The unicorn started to collapse as her shield started folding in on itself, unable to take the force of the attack.

Then the puzzle glowed brightly, surrounding Twilight in a golden glow as the same golden glow bolstered the shield and helped it hold. The ponies of Ponyville watched in shock as the glow took the shape of an alicorn and then died down, leaving a tall, proud, purple Princess in the place of the unicorn, her cutie mark the same as before, her wings badly torn and damaged and quite clearly unable to sustain flight, but sweeping gracefully along her back and draping over her like a noble’s cloak. She glared up at Nightmare Moon with narrowed ruby red eyes. “I don’t think so!” She snapped back, “You will not hurt anyone here!”

Nightmare Moon watched in furious shock as the other alicorn’s magic soaked up her blast and stood firm. She was not prepared for this battle. Not tired as she was from fighting the Sun Goddess. She had expected to sweep into the peaceful, quiet city and take over, not wage war with another Goddess in the middle of her victory speech.

She had the advantage though. The Princess before her was ground bound. The wounds that had occurred during the battle so very, very long ago seemed to have latched onto her soul and been carried over to the modern day.

Which meant that she, in this mortal frame she had stolen from the Goddess of the Night, could fly away and recover, while the Princess before her would have to walk to find her and burn up more energy, not really getting the chance to pull herself together before they fought again.

“If you think you can stop me,” Nightmare Moon crowed, “Come and find me. I will be at the heart of my old Kingdom!” With that she flapped her wings and lifted off, flying out of the window and into the night. Rainbow Dash broke free of Applejack’s grip and tried to fly after her, but Twilight did not get to see the result as her shield failed and she collapsed, her wings vanishing, her form shrinking, returning to the unicorn she had originally been as her world went black.

NaNo2014: Shadows of Friendship: Part 1

One thousand years ago in the Castle of the Two Princesses.

Celestia was beyond tired as she gazed up at the form of the Alicorn who had once been her most trusted companion and best friend and beheld the monstrous power of the newly forged Nightmare Moon. The dark blue coat of the mare floating in the skies above her matched the midnight blue of her mane, the stars shimmering within the flowing clouds made of the night sky matched the ones twinkling above and if it had not been for the silver armour gracing her form, Celestia would have almost been fooled into believing that the Alicorn above her had faded into the night.

She had been a foal to think that she had stood a chance of talking her sister around. Ever since Luna had gone to Saddle Arabia and come back with all her notes on the strange, dark magic she had encountered there, she had been different, twisted, and this new form, this dark dangerous form, would destroy all of Equestria and everyone within it.

And as much as it hurt to think about, the Alicorn of the Sun could not let that happen. Still she balked at what she knew she had to do. She did not even know if she could use the Elements of Harmony on her own, yet alone whether the rainbow power that protected her country was strong enough to erase the dark taint from her sister’s mind and soul and bring Luna back to her.

“Please, Luna,” She tried one last time, “You know what you’re doing is wrong. Our ponies can’t survive in your night. They need the day to grow food. Without the sun they’ll starve.”

“You lie.” Nightmare Moon bellowed back, rearing up at her. “You just want to keep them for yourself, want to keep me pushed aside forever and keep them loving only you. Well no more. I’m done playing your games, dear sister, and my night will reign eternal!”

“No, Luna.” Celestia’s voice was firm as she pushed herself to her feet, her muscles trembling beneath her pure white coat at the effort it took. She shook her head as she staggered, trying to shake some of the dust from the destroyed castle out of her glowing rainbow mane, “I’m sorry but I can’t let you kill them. Not now. Not ever.”

“And what do you think you can do against me?” The Alicorn formerly known as Luna demanded with a harsh, victorious laugh as the dark purples and blacks of her strange magic, the magic which had allowed her to overpower Celestia so easily, surrounded her once again, warning the Sun Goddess that her sister was preparing to strike, possibly for the last time. “You are weak, defeated, there is nothing in your arsenal that can handle my power now.”

“Oh my sister, how I wish you were wrong.” Celestia breathed as she called up her magic, calling on the power that she had taken in a long time ago, when she and her sister had stood side by side to defend their home from those who would have seen it destroyed and knowing that this would either end the battle or end her, “How I wish that there was another way, but if I cannot defeat you, then I have no other choice.”

“W…what are you doing?” The tainted Moon Goddess demanded as six glowing balls of light erupted from her staggering, nearly defeated sister and circled her in a steadily faster motion that soon looked like one circle of light, “No, I will not let this happen! You will not seal me! I won’t go, not again!” With her final exclamation the dark Alicorn loosed her magic, which only seemed to grow in strength as it sped towards the light, seeming to feed from the incredible power before it.

For Celestia time seemed to slow down as the tidal wave of what could only be described as shadows rained down upon her, breaking over the hastily cast shield she had erected and washing down the sides, tainting the land around her as it swept outwards.

“My sister, my precious Luna,” Celestia spoke, unsure if her words would reach her best friend from wherever she was within the crazed mind of the one calling herself Nightmare Moon, but praying they would, “I am sorry and I swear to you by everything we treasure I will find a way to free you from this dark madness. When you return, when a thousand years have passed and my seal breaks, I will have found a way, even if it costs me my life, for in losing you, I have already lost everything I treasure…”

“You think you can seal me?” Nightmare Moon snickered, “I, who defeated the Alicorn Princess of Equigpt and had the world bowing at my feet? Who talked your precious sister into turning her back on you after you did the same to her far too many times? Who could erase you and your precious Equestria off of the map with little more than a thought and a little push?! It took Her life to seal me before, you think you can do it with a light show and a prayer?”

“I don’t know who this Alicorn you talk of is or what magic she used to defeat you before, but I don’t plan on sealing you forever.” Celestia allowed, “Only long enough to give me time to find the way to exorcise my precious sister of you, demon. You who dares think that you can claim Luna’s form and speak using her voice. In a thousand years I will see you again and my sister will be freed!”

With that she let the power of the Elements loose. They erupted from their circle in a blazing beam of rainbow brilliance, cutting through the continuing surge of shadows and striking the dark Alicorn. Celestia stood firm as she heard Nightmare Moon scream as the blast hit, knowing that she had done this and if she did not see it through, it would be a betrayal just as bad as pushing Luna away until her sister had been tempted enough to fall to the ancient dark magic in the first place.

“No! Nooo!” Celestia could hear from the twisted creature above her, “I can’t…I won’t! I will not let this end this way!” The whinny, somehow, could be heard over the noise of the blast, “When one thousand years have passed I will return and I will bring my night and you will see me reign forever!”

Those were her final parting words. As Nightmare Moon tried to call up the darkness for one last strike, the magic of the Elements of Harmony blazed up and cocooned her in a kaleidoscope of colours. Celestia’s eyes watered as she beheld the great, glowing orb in the sky, which shone like the sun and scorched away the darkness lying upon the ground and the ruins of the castle.

Then it was gone. Vanished from the skies, taking its prisoner with it. Celestia did not bother to blink and clear her eyes of the sunspots. Instead she turned her gaze upon her sister’s moon and felt relief mingle with grief as she saw an image appear upon it. The outline of her sister’s head and neck, proved to her that her desperate seal had done its job. That, at least for now, Nightmare Moon was no longer a threat.

With her sister sealed away, the Sun Goddess had no trouble in raising the sun once again, as she had done every morning for uncountable years and then, exhausted, as if seeing that sun and realising that it was finally over, she fell to her hindquarters.

She did not even get a chance to utter one note of grief before she let out a startled and pained cry as the Elements, which she had found and recovered with her sister’s aid, erupted from her, forming six spheres in the air. The Element of Magic shattered, disintegrating into ashes and blowing away in the wind, while the other five, the Elements of Loyalty, Laughter, Kindness, Generosity and Honesty, petrified into stone.

The heavy marble spheres slammed to the ground around the Sun Goddess, who could not take this in on top of the battle that she had just brought to an end and she stared around at them blankly, unable to comprehend what had just happened, despite the facts before her. She stared at the Element of Loyalty for long enough that the sun was high in the sky before it finally hit her and she broke down in tears, screaming out her heartbreak to the heavens above.

Her sister was gone. The Elements of Harmony, the shields of her ponies, had abandoned her.

She was all alone.

She did not want it to be so. She wanted to do something, anything to take it all back, to head off the dark insanity before it had ever been able to take root in her precious sister but it was too late and the path was set and for the next one thousand years she would have to fight alone.

“How?” She begged the skies, “How can I fight on now? How can I protect our country when the bond I thought would never, ever break has shattered? When I had to send away the Goddess of the Night? When I had to betray my sister?”

There was no answer from the skies. The earth either did not hear her or did not care to answer and the Elements, which had served her and her sister so well remained within their stone tombs and would not break their silence either.

The emptiness where once her sister would have answered ripped at Celestia’s heart as she staggered to her feet, knowing that her ppnies would need her now more than ever and trying to draw strength from her duty.

She had one thousand years to find a way to atone for her failures and with every minute that ticked by, her chances of finding the key to saving her sister from the demon that had merged with her heart grew slimmer.

She did not have a moment to waste.