All the king's horses and all the king's men

Princess Celestia looked at the retreating redcoat as he rejoined his men. The two emotions that were most prominent in her were boiling anger and a sort of pity. It seemed that the humans had, as of yet, not realized that they couldn’t return to their land. They continued to serve a king and an empire that they would never see and that would never be able to acknowledge their achievements. She watched as a few of them moved into a circle to confer about something. She turned to Luna and whispered

“Sister, I have made you the commander of the Equestrian Guard for a reason. What in your opinion should we do?”

Luna looked at the humans with an assessing look on her face.

“They seem to be armed with naught but spears and blades. They also seem to lack armour…” She mumbled more to herself than to Celestia. “I think we should advance the line, we will be able to assess their true intentions by observing their reaction.

Celestia nodded and turned to Shining Armour. Looking him in the eye she said “Captain they are not to be harmed if possible. My subjects take absolute priority but that doesn’t mean that we can’t avoid bloodshed, as you know I hate violence.”

Shining Armour nodded and threw up a salute and ran to the front of the line of ponies. Looking at the humans and leveling their spears they began to move forwards in a slow march.

Celestia and Luna looked across the snow covered field and noticed the humans’ sinister smiles as they lowered their supposed spears and pushed their ends into their shoulders. Realization struck Celestia as she saw Ramsay suddenly spin around and look at her with a look of shock and disbelief. Even at the distance the two sisters could see his face go white as he began running towards the line of redcoats, waving his arms in the air and yelling incoherently.

~.~

“Ramsay, they’re advancing!” One of the dragoons yelled, making Ramsay spin around to face the ponies. He looked at Celestia in disbelief; he hadn’t expected them to call his bluff. He then noticed the regulars and loyalists level their weapons, his face went as white as the snow around him as he watched his plans fall apart before him. He began running to the line of redcoats yelling for them to hold fire. Ramsay wasn’t willing to harm these innocent creatures... yet.

“NO!” He yelled, diving for the closest musket and yanking it out of the regular’s hands.

However it was already too late. The sound of flint and igniting gunpowder filled the air before being followed by the dreaded *CRACK-BANG* of the shot itself. Ramsay was forced to watch as the fore most line of ponies fell, screaming into the snow. Looking at the enemy Ramsay saw dabs of red here and there as pony blood was spilled, melting through the snow and turning the beautiful arid landscape into a ruined canvas. There was one consolation though as he looked upon his fallen foes, he saw that all of them were moving and screaming. At least this meant that by some miracle they hadn’t killed any as far as he could tell.

“YOU FOOL!” Ramsay screamed into the face of the closest redcoat. Suddenly though he felt a warm tingling in the back of his neck. Slowly he turned on the spot, his eyes immediately drawn to the source of his discomfort. Across the field Princess Celestia glared at Ramsay. Though she had seen him try to stop the bloodshed she still blamed him for her wounded ponies. Soon the heat built into a burning pain as Ramsay and Celestia looked into each other’s eyes. Ramsay felt a stabbing pain in his mind and began to swoon. His friends and allies immediately supported him, worried as to what was wrong. Ramsay blinked his eyes. Every time he closed them he found himself seemingly floating in a celestial, starry void. In his visions he saw Celestia standing before him; though in truth she still stood across the field. In his vision he saw what looked to be a sparkly purple mist shift from Celestia to him. When it began to seep into him he suddenly felt a mixture of emotions; hate, anger and most of all, greed.

In his pain he only managed to convey one sentence.

“Retreat…”

At this the redcoats all stole furtive glances at one another before turning and bolting back for the gate. At that very moment the ponies charged, running across the field towards Ponyville. Soon all of the regulars were inside of the protective barricade and were in the process of closing the gate. At that moment Ramsay had recovered inexplicably and jumped to his feet. The others all looked at him curiously, wondering what happened and why Celestia had that effect on him. He quickly ran to the middle of the entrance and looked through the rapidly closing gap.

In only the briefest of moments Ramsay had determined that they wouldn’t be able to close the door before the equine guards reached them. However they had a plan in the case of this circumstance and were ready. In an instant the infantrymen wheeled eight pounder cannon into the gateway. The ponies saw the weapon and scattered just in time, the gun fired and recoiled, sending the ball thundering inches over the ponies’ heads. The ball then bounced off of the ground and continued…right into the carriages loaded with the siege equipment.  The old, unused wood of the pony weapons gave and crumbled before the force of the shot. Before the ponies could even recover from the shock the gates had already closed with a defying *THUD*.

~.~

Princess Celestia had long since stopped paying attention. She had just felt all of her negative energy that had been building up recently dissipate, leaving her feeling oddly content. She looked over at Ramsay and noticed something purple fade into his skin. Soon though she fell back into reality and gasped. Looking down she watched her royal guards attempted to batter the gates down to little effect. She then looked over to the destroyed carriages, still attempting to dismiss the strange occurrence between her and the human.

“Captain” Princess Celestia said turning to Shining Armour “do we have any other siege equipment?”

“No you’re majesty; that was it.” He replied.

“What do we do?” Celestia said, her tone was that of surrender as she looked at the town before her. She couldn’t risk any more ponies after she saw what the human weapons could do. And if the look on Ramsay’s face said anything it was that the fact that nopony was killed was nothing short of miraculous.

“Sister…” Luna said quietly, shuffling her hooves as if she was nervous about something.

“What is it Luna, do you have an idea? Please tell me; I can’t bear to see anypony suffer.” Celestia said, her voice hopeful, almost pleading. Luna knew how much Celestia cared for her subjects. Seeing them colonized then seeing half her guard cut down was beginning to show through her impeccable face of calm.

“Well there is spell I know of and have power over, however I would advise against it because it is… well…cruel.” Luna said in barely more than a whisper, forcing both Celestia and Shining Armour to lean closer just to hear.

“What is it?” Shining Armour asked as the wounded guards passed behind him on stretchers.

Luna looked between the captain of the royal guard and her sister. Soon she began hyperventilating as she shook her head, almost violently.

“No, not even Nightmare Moon dared use it…”

“Sister please tell us.” Celestia urged, desperate to help her subjects who even now she was sure were bearing the punishment of the invaders. At this Luna sighed and said a single word that would change the tide of the battle.

“Alright.”

~.~

Ramsay and the redcoats all breathed out a sigh of relief when they heard the thudding on the other side of the gate cease.

“Well” Ferris said, trying to catch his breath “that could have gone better.”

Ramsay suddenly felt a violent surge of anger as he remembered the newly discovered information. He stalked towards Twilight’s library, causing a crowd of both ponies and humans to trail after him, wondering what could have possibly angered him so.

Twilight sat in her library reading a book and having a cup of tea when the door suddenly flew open so hard that it rattled in its hinges.

She gasped as Ramsay stepped through it; she had never seen him more livid than this. She was so shocked that she forgot about her teacup that floated just before her mouth. Suddenly Ramsay smiled at her. The smile was in no way kind, it was the kind of smile one wore just before dispensing pain.

“Are you enjoying your tea princess?” He asked, putting emphasis on the ‘Princess’ and clasping his hands before him.

“I…I…” Twilight said, still shocked at the sight of Ramsay. She could almost feel the anger radiating off of him.

“You’re case of informational lockjaw cost us this battle!” He screamed, flipping the table in the library and making Twilight scream.

Twilight backed into a corner and Ramsay advanced on her. The sounds of struggle wafted from the library. The commotion was so loud that it drew Nicholas to the doorway.

“Ramsay lay off, it wasn’t her fault…” He began until Ramsay rounded on him.

“Get the hell out of my sight private Bertroft!” He screamed so loudly that the redcoat disappeared instantly. Ramsay then turned back to twilight and grabbed her by the horn, dragging her to the door. He was so rough that Twilight actually began crying. He dragged her outside to the astonishment of the crowd and marched up to the dragoons.

“Fire the library and the homes of any cretins that try to stop you!”

Every human and pony looked at Ramsay silently for a moment before the dragoons began to look for torches.

“NO!!!” Twilight screamed, tears streaming down her face as she tried to pull away from the human. She even tried to teleport; however the pain in her horn broke her concentration, preventing her from focusing on casting the spell. In response Ramsay dragged her before him and hefted her off of the ground by her horn.

“Shut Up!” He bellowed into her face silencing her instantly.

“Hey!” Spike yelled, running out of the library and unleashing a flurry of underpowered, feeble blows on Ramsay’s leg.

Ramsay drew his leg back and let loose a savage kick, it connected with spikes stomach and he fell back in a heap, clutching his stomach and retching up his breakfast. In the back the dragoons threw lit torches through the windows of the library, setting the dry wood and the books ablaze.

“Let this be a lesson to those who conspire against the crown!” Ramsay yelled before dragging Twilight to the town hall. When they arrived Ramsay flung Twilight into a winged chair. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his head accompanied by a voice that was both soothing yet demanding.

“This is her fault…” The voice whispered “it was your first command and it could have been you’re victory…”

“Yes…” Ramsay mumbled. Twilight stared at him with tears in her eyes; she immediately deduced that this was abnormal behavior. The human was talking to himself and seemed to be lost in thought, his sentances were coming out in short bursts, as if he were responding to an unheard conversation.

“Ramsay…” Twilight said cautiously “are you okay?”

Ramsay suddenly spun around to face her. His eyes were bloodshot as he looked at her.

“She’s right, it’s your fault!” He yelled pointing an accusing finger at Twilight.

“Who is she?” Twilight asked, fearing for her own life.

"Its always the same" He continued ranting, thuming his chest with his hands "Its always either me or them, them or MEEEE!"

Suddenly he glared at Twilight. It was then that she saw it, his pupils, they had elongated into a reptillian shape and his once chestnut brown eyes had turned a dark midnight blue.

“I demand satisfaction!” Ramsay finally said angrily, pulling his pistol off of his belt and pointing it at Twilight’s head.

Twilight squeezed her eyes shut and prepared for the end. She heard a loud *BANG*and knew she was done for. After a while though she began to wonder why she wasn’t feeling any different. She opened one eye to see Ramsay lying unconscious on the floor. Standing over him was the largest of the redcoats; Zane flexed his hand, shaking it out. It seemed that Ramsay’s pistol had discharged into a nearby wall.

“Twilight!” Pinkie Pie yelled and she and the rest of the Mane six appeared from behind Zane. Twilight embraced each and every one of them, tears streaking down her face as she did.

“What drove the man to this?” Zane asked, kneeling over Ramsay’s unconscious form.

“H-He kept talking to himself…” Twilight said, still being held by all her friends.

“It is not unheard of; men developing some form of mental illness.” Zane pondered. Soon though he turned to Twilight and apologized for Ramsay’s actions and for the damage done to her library. Apparently the dragoons had only just set it alight when the other regulars insisted that they put it out. Surprisingly it didn’t take much to sway the minds of the cavalrymen and they put it out with only minimal damage to the exterior.

"However" Zane continued "I’m sorry to say that the bulk of your literature has been destroyed by the flames."

~.~

After a few minutes they had successfully manacled Ramsay to the flagpole outside the town hall and were now waiting for one of the few beings Twilight thought could help with this situation.

Zecora looked over the unconscious human, occasionally tapping him or sprinkling some mystical powder on him. To say that the platoon medic al officer was skeptical about her methods was an understatement.

Soon though Zecora tried something else, she placed her forehead against Ramsay’s and closed her eyes. In an instant she suddenly drew back with a gasp, moving away from the sleeping form as quickly as possible.

“Well Zecora, did you find anything?” Twilight asked.

“yes” She whispered, hanging her head before turning to the amassed humans.

“Tell me of all the men in the platoon was he the only one that did swoon?”

“Aye” The redcoats all affirmed as Zecora’s fears were realized

“Then he is doomed for this the essence of Nightmare Moon.” Zecora said, making the ponies all recoil and the humans stare at her with curiosity in their eyes.

“I have a potion here that will quell the fear, but be warned and filled with fright, for the cure won’t last for but a fortnight.” Zecora said, pouring some viscous liquid down his throat. After the potion disappeared down Ramsay’s gullet his eyes immediately snapped open and he strained against his metal bonds. He retched heavily and threw up. The regulars all gasped when they saw the discoloration in his vomit, it was a dark purple.

“Is he possessed?” One loyalist said, backing away from the manacled human.

“In a way” Twilight said, explaining how Nightmare Moon was a manifestation of the worst emotions, and wondering how she could reappear if they had destroyed her.

“Then why don’t ya use them ‘elements of ‘armony you was talking bout?” A regular asked, stepping forwards.

“We can’t, not safely. You see you attacked Ponyville by choice, not design. So if we were to use the elements of harmony to purge Nightmare Moon then Ramsay would be turned to stone. And with him being a non-magical being the process would either be permanent or cause severe bodily harm. It could even kill him!”  Twilight said, starting a wave of murmurs to spread among the troops.

“So what do we do?” Ferris asked, looking strangely forlorn as he looked again to the closed gate, as if he could see the army that stood behind it.

“We hold until he recovers, as of now we keep watch.” Nicholas said, hefting his musket over one shoulder.

The Mane six turned to the humans and looked at them sadly.

“Why can’t you just surrender?” Twilight asked “Hasn’t there been enough suffering?”

Zane turned to face the small pony and sighed. Silently he shook his head and walked off to join his men muttering something that sounded like ‘you wouldn’t understand’.

When they had all gone to patrol the wall the girls turned to face each other.

“Well you have to admire their resolve.” Rarity said, looking at the redcoats as they went about their business.  Their conversation was soon disrupted by a moan from Ramsay’s motionless body. Tentatively Twilight moved next to him and gave him a soft poke, eliciting another moan from him.  Soon he began to truly stir as his eyes fluttered open again. After a few minutes he looked at Twilight blankly before his eyes widened and his mouth fell open.

“Oh god what have I done!” He said miserably, tears welling up in his eyes. Ramsay was no stranger to violence; he had fired people’s houses before and watched their lives were erased before his cleansing flame. However there was something about these equines that made him feel as if he had a duty to ensure that they would not come to any harm. And yet he felt so conflicted now, one half of his mind screamed for him to calm down while the other spoke in that serpentine, alluring voice, telling him to vent his anger and frustration on the colourful ponies.

“I-I am no longer fit to command men, lead troops into battle… I hereby relinquish my command.” He said quietly, slumping down in his bonds.

Twilight looked at her friends faces after he said this; they all looked as torn as Twilight felt. She was conflicted, more so that even when Princess Celestia proposed turning discord. Part of her felt gleeful at watching the cause of her pain suffer, as much as she hated to admit it. While the other felt sorry that he had to go through all of this turmoil due to something beyond his control.

“I’m sorry Twilight; I know not what came over me. Now please leave me be, I desire to be alone.” Ramsay said, slumping even further in his bonds.

The girls all looked at each other, pity in their eyes. However they heeded Ramsay’s world and left him be.

~.~

Later that night Luna stood alone atop the hill, behind her stood Celestia and Shining Armour. When Luna had explained her ‘forbidden’ spell Celestia was so aghast that she immediately insisted that she not use it. Shining Armour on the other hand wasn’t so resistant after he had seen Twilight’s library go up in flames. And soon he had convinced Celestia to allow the use of the spell for the good of her citizens.

Luna looked in the direction of Ponyville and closed her eyes. She focused on the humans and gritted her teeth in concentration. Her horn glowed a dark blue before suddenly becoming as silver as the moons light. It continued getting brighter until a palpable sheen was emitted from it. When it reached its peak it fired a bolt of silvery white light towards the moon at a lightning’s pace, soon it disappeared into the sky. Just when everypony was wondering if it worked the moon suddenly glowed and shone brightly over all equestria.

~.~

“What the bloody hell was that?” Nicholas asked the loyalist on duty who shrugged in response.

“Urgh” Nicholas moaned, turning to head back into the town “I’m going back to bed, keep a sharp eye out for those ponies, I don’t fancy having my throat slit in my sleep.”

Nicholas went back into the town hall and found his hammock. Gingerly he stepped into it a let a sigh of content. He closed his eyes briefly, but before long his brow furrowed and his eyes opened. Grumbling in annoyance at his insomnia he got out of his hammock tiredly. Shakily he walked back towards the door, intending to swap his watch with the guard on duty. However he was stopped in his tracks when he heard a moan come from a nearby bed. He turned and was shocked to find the general sitting up in his bed looking around curiously. Nicholas rushed to his side; soon he noticed all of his peers emerge from their respective bedchambers.

“I’m guessing none of you lads could sleep neither, eh?” Nicholas said look at their tired faces.

~.~

It had been fifteen days since Luna cast her spell and the ponies were seeing less and less local intervention from the redcoats. All the ponies remembered the strange events of the first night. The humans had all stormed into the street and summoned twilight so loudly that they had roused all of Ponyville. It seemed that they couldn’t get any sleep. Quickly they ordered her to cast a sleeping spell on some of their number. Needless to say Twilight was shocked when the selected test subjects didn’t fall into the embrace of unconsciousness.

As time went on they seemed to become frustrated. They began harassing everypony that cast a sidelong glance at them, seizing anything that they found even vaguely obstructive. Soon though the frustration gave way to suffering, ponies actually began offering help to the distressed men to no avail. They were beginning to look more and more dishevelled. Their eyes were bloodshot and noticeable stubble became clear on their faces. It was on the evening of the thirteenth day that one of the regulars finally collapsed.

It was young Robert Cassowary who fell. He was overlooking the crowded market place when it happened, as it was customary for at least one redcoat to stand in the centre of the square during market day to keep the peace and, supposedly, to quell any talk of rebellion against the British forces. The normally attentive, helpful young man was instead of going about his usual duties of aiding mares carry their purchases, was standing awkwardly, leaning heavily against his musket. It was Bon Bon and Lyra that finally noticed something wrong. They approached him and asked him kindly if something was wrong. When he didn’t respond Lyra walked up to him and tugged on the folds of his jacket. When she did the young Englishman teetered and fell, face forward into the dirt at the feet of the two ponies. His tricorn hat caught in the wind and bounced a few feet away from his body.

~.~

Ever since then more and more of the unfortunate redcoats had been brought to the town hall in a sleepless stupor. Twilight had examined them extensively and found out something incredible. It seemed that their bodies had collapsed due to sheer exhaustion, but their minds were still active, it seemed that an ancient and powerful magic that was far beyond Twilight was keeping them landlocked in a tortuous bay of awareness. To explain it to the other soldiers she managed to dull it down to ‘they are so tired that they collapse but are still unable to sleep.’

When they asked her what was preventing them from getting any sleep she stated that an extremely rare and powerful magic was the cause of their insomnia. A magic that twilight simply couldn’t break. On the fourteenth day things had gotten really bad, most of the humans were now incapacitated and some had crumbled into the abyss of insanely laughing and giggling in a corner. Those that hadn’t yet given in to exhaustion were simply too tired to do anything and spent their days slumped in chairs, waiting their turn at either a tortuous, sleepless paralysis or insanity. Finally though the regulars had banned all ponies from entering the town hall, including Twilight and that was the last anypony saw of the redcoats for the next twelve hours, save for the thudding of hammers as they barred themselves in. later on they heard a single shot ring out, marking an end to any and all noise from within the hall.

~.~

‘Today was the day’ Luna thought as the pony forces marched carefully towards Ponyville, ready to bolt at the sound of the first shot. To their immense happiness no shots were fired as Celestia, Luna and Shining Armour approached the gate.

Celestia’s horn glowed as she charged up a spell and let loose it against the wooden barrier. The gate immediately caved and fell in a shower of splinters and wooden shards. When the dust cleared the three leading ponies gasped. Before them was Ponyville, in pristine condition. Some ponies even looked away from their daily business before immediately bowing to the princesses.

“Where is Twilight Sparkle?!” Celestia said loudly so that everypony could hear.

“Princess” Rarity yelled, running up to them from the crowd and bowing quickly “thank heavens you’re here.”

“Rarity” Celestia said anxiously “where’s Twilight?”

“She’s in the library princess. I was just helping her repair it, she isn’t happy with the damages done to it though, I must say that I haven’t seen her this angry since her first encounter with the pinkie sense.”

With that they all trotted towards the Ponyville library, as the royal guard trailed behind the princesses the ponies of Ponyville all emerged and began cheering for their liberators. When they finally found Twilight she was digging through a small collection of charred books that had, partially, managed to escape the flames. When she saw them Twilight let out a squeal of delight and ran up to nuzzle her mentor.

When they separated Celestia looked at Twilight seriously and said only three words.

“Where are they?”

Twilight silently pointed at the town hall which still had the royal union flag fluttering over it.

“Nopony has wanted to go near there since…” Twilight trailed off as they got closer and closer to the unmanned fortification of the town hall.

“Since what?” Shining Armour asked, hoping to get some answers as to the result of Luna’s spell.

“Since the screams stopped.” Twilight continued.

When the ponies reached the building a guard trotted up and examined the barricaded windows.

"looks like they didnt want anypony to get in." The guard called to Shining Armour.

"No" Luna said “They barricaded themselves in so that they couldn’t get out.”

At these words all of the ponies went silent as they finally came to the boarded up windows and doors that now became clear on the structure’s exterior.

Shining Armour then used his magic to unlock the door and remove any of the planks the humans had used to board up the place. Tentatively they stepped into the consuming darkness. Celestia cast a spell that lit up her horn, shining a gentle yellow light into the otherwise endless pool of darkness. The main hall was devoid of any life, papers littered the floor and massive banners of St. George's cross hung ominously from the ceiling. As they moved forward the light caught more and more shapes, slowly bringing them into focus. There was a ruined desk, most likely used to board the windows. Then came a set of tools scattered over the floor, confirming the previous assumption about the desk. Finally though the light caught something reflective, pooling outwards from the darkness.

“Oh no!” Twilight suddenly yelled running up to the still form of one of the regulars that sat, propped up against the adjacent wall which was covered in blood. As Twilight got closer she found the discharged pistol the man had used to kill himself with as well as a crumpled up piece of paper that lay at his side.

“Oh sister what have I done!” Luna stuttered, tears running down her face as Celestia put a comforting wing over her.

“Look at this note.’ Twilight said, beginning to read it to herself.

“To Whom It May Concern, my name is John Pinner; I ask whomever finds this note to please inform my wife and child in England of my demise. Tell them that I love them dearly, with all my heart and that it pains me to have to do this. I am the last of my outfit that is not unconscious or laughing like a madman. The misery has become too much to bear and I ask what have we done to offend our lord so that he should punish us like this? I result to believe that he has forsaken us for the sins we have committed in this new world. The men have agreed though that we are not to surrender, we shall not be the ones to bring further dishonour to our country and our king. Once more, Ethyl, Young Michael… I love yo…” Ant the note cut off there, a speck of dried blood concealing the final letter.

As Twilight finished reading she was snapped back to her surroundings when Celestia turned and ordered her guards to search the building for any survivors and to bring them outside. In a last gesture Twilight put the note in Pinner's jacket pocket, placing his hand over it, as if he were holding it close.

The three Leaders continued through the converted town hall. It had been decked with the Union flag and various weapons lay here and there, occasionally accompanied by a bloodied bandage or a series of documents concerning the state of the town under the British rule. Along the way they found a few more redcoats slumped down in their chairs, completely exhausted, their pupils flicking left and right in a vain attempt at sleep. They were about to leave when they heard the guards yell from the back door of the building.

“Princess!” The guards suddenly yelled as they surrounded the flagpole the humans had erected behind the town hall. When the Princesses managed to get past the circle of guards they saw, chained to the flagpole, Ramsay’s slumped over form. His shoulders and hat were covered in a thin layer of snow. Celestia stomped up quickly and knocked his hat from his head. Celestia then immediately took a step back in horror as Ramsay slowly raised his head to look at her.

When he opened his eyes the ponies let out a collective gasp. Nightmare Moon’s influence had progressed significantly since the last time Twilight has seen him. His right eye had become green and its pupil elongated, almost as if it was that of a reptile. The veins on the right side of his neck became a clear black against his pale skin. He smiled cruelly at Celestia and spoke, only it wasn’t Ramsay’s voice that came out. It was clearly Nightmare Moon even with the prominently male tint.

“Well Celestia, we meet again.” Nightmare Moon said, malice shining through her one corrupted eye.

“Nightmare Moon” Celestia spat “And here I was thinking that the elements of harmony had finally defeated you.”

“Oh they did, I was broken. But I just happened to find something else to anchor myself to.” Nightmare Moon said, smiling through Ramsay’s face.

“You mean this poor creature.” Luna said angrily.

Nightmare Moon looked at Luna and sneered.

“Of course not you foal, I mean your sister here.” She continued, nodding in the direction of Celestia “The most powerful being in the history of Equestria. I was lucky that you showed up when I was originally defeated. Otherwise I would have had to take control of one of those less powerful beings.” Nightmare Moon said, nodding in the direction of Twilight and the rest of her friends who had just shown up to accompany her.

“Of course I couldn’t take control of Celestia like in you Luna. Celestia is too… good.” She continued, spitting out the last word.

All of the other ponies were looking at her open mouthed, waiting for her to continue her retched tale.

“Of course there wasn’t much hate, anger or greed for me to feed on with you Celestia. I couldn’t even switch to another host I was so weak. But then I felt it, the delicious anger…hatred, all directed at this pitiful creature that I now inhabit. I made my move then, transferring my consciousness to him. I will give him this though, for all his weakness he does have a marvellous capacity for stubborn resistance and… violence.” Nightmare Moon said, turning back to Luna.

“Though Luna, I think I misjudged you. In all our thousand years I would never have imagined that you would use the insomnia spell, even I thought it was too cruel. Oh you should have felt their suffering… it was so glorious. My host here felt all their pain as I slowly broke his defences, taking my time, pleasuring in his distress as I get closer to total control. Your little spell made him weak enough for me to gain a true foothold.” Nightmare Moon then turned to Twilight and smiled.

“He was so sorry for what he did you know. He is still trying to fight back.” She said as Ramsay’s body jerked awkwardly and his one uncorrupted brown eye began to water.

“Leave him alone!” Celestia ordered, taking a step forward.

“Or what?” Nightmare Moon snickered “The elements of harmony won’t work on a non-magical body, and I doubt that you would kill in cold blood.”

Celestia glared once more at the nightmare-hybrid that had consumed the once proud human.

“Guards, find a cage and take this fiend to the dungeons.”

Nightmare Moon suddenly snarled and Pushed Ramsay’s body to its feet, launching him towards Celestia. Luckily for her the shackles on Ramsay’s wrists were just too short to allow contact. They caught and became taught as his body was stopped in mid-jump. With a sickening *CRACK* Ramsay’s wrist broke, a single piece of white bone jutting forth. Then the body switched back to Ramsay’s voice and let out a long, pained howl of agony, making all of the ponies take a step back and causing fluttershy to faint.

Once more Ramsay collapsed to the ground, his good eye looking at the jagged shard of bone that jutted from his wrist. After his outburst Nightmare Moon spoke again, her voice gleeful.

“Oh good, it seems I don’t feel his pain.”

“T-to hell with you” Ramsay’s voice replied just seconds after. Needless to say two voices coming from the same being was strange enough that Luna finally lifted her spell and Ramsay’s eyes mercifully fluttered closed. Just before he fell into unconsciousness he whispered a barely audible thanks to her.

~.~

Twilight Sparkle had an extremely difficult choice to make; Celestia had told her that since she is the princess of Ponyville the punishment these men would receive fell upon her shoulders. She had considered many options, everything from banishment to imprisonment.

All around Ponyville ponies celebrated in their conquerors downfall, burning their flags and dancing in the streets as they rejoiced.

Twilight and the two regal sisters had just decided to sit at a table as Celestia lowered the sun and Luna raised the moon when they saw two young foals running about with wooden swords, wearing tricorn hats that had been taken from the regulars and were far too large for them. As they watched their mother appeared and began scolding them.

“What have I told you about staying up after bedtime, and take those hideous things off!” She said angrily throwing the hats to the ground before walking off with her foals. Twilight watched as the hats were caught in a breeze and blown into a nearby bush.

“Twilight” Luna whispered “You must decide upon a form of punishment for the humans, they committed many crimes that must be punished.”

“Where are they?” Twilight asked, still thinking about a suitable form of punishment.

“The Royal guard have locked them in some cages I brought along just in case.” Princess Celestia replied with a sigh.

“Sister…” Luna said “What I did…h-how could I?”

“Luna, your actions may have saved many a pony’s life. And you saw how they were acting; it was only a matter of time before they hurt somepony more than they already have.” Celestia smiled, both she and Twilight putting a wing around Luna and comforting her.

“Thank you Tia, you always know what to say.” Luna said with a content smile on her face. Celestia smiled back, though behind the smile she still doubted her very own words. Were the humans really that bad? She had spoken to Ramsay as an enemy but they were under pressure. She couldn’t help but wonder what first contact with them would have been like under different circumstances.

“Well I’ll sleep on it and think of something suitable tomorrow.” Twilight said as she rose and began her walk to a tent that had been set up for the regal sisters. Soon after Luna bid good night and followed Twilight. Celestia sighed and decided to walk about the town. She couldn’t sleep, there was far too much occupying her thoughts. She remembered stories of the humans being vicious creatures that would just as soon eat a pony as speak to it. As she contemplated these thoughts she heard whispered voices coming from nearby. Sneaking to their source she found some bushes that would provide adequate foliage that would hide her form as she snuck up on the source of the whispered voices. Soon she realized that they were the voices of Ramsay and Nightmare Moon. Hiding she listened intently to their conversation.

~.~

“I don’t believe you.” Ramsay said anger clear and present in his voice.

“You should human; I can sense your desires. Your desire for power and wealth I can provide, and when I am strong enough to create my own body I may even give you love…” Nightmare Moon responded, her voice heavily coated in alluring overtones.

“You take pleasure in my suffering and the suffering of others, how would I know that you will keep your word?” Ramsay responded, cautiously.

“Very well, what is it you desire?” Nightmare asked grudgingly.

“Return control of my body over to me, and I will help you escape. I will nurture you with hate, anger and greed until you are powerful enough to create your own body. Then I will help you take this land.

“What did you have in mind?” Nightmare Moon asked, intrigued as to how one human planned to take the most powerful kingdom in pony history.

“I have more men; they are currently concealed within the forest. Let me take you there and we will take this land and rule side by side.” Ramsay whispered

Nightmare Moon considered. She was planning on killing this whelp as soon as she had enough strength to leave him, so she supposed that being lenient for the time being could do no harm.

“Very well” She replied reluctantly returning Ramsay control of his person.

In the bush Celestia let out a silent gasp, she would have thought Ramsay more intelligent than to fall for the most obvious of traps. Nightmare Moon had played on nearly every male’s common desires for Power, wealth and physical pleasure. She swore to herself that she would get revenge on the both of them after she discovered the location of Ramsay’s other men.

She watched as Ramsay silently rose and moved over to the door. Once there he reached into his britches and pulled out a spare bayonet he kept hidden there. He inserted the tip into the keyhole and twisted violently. With a crunching sound the door swung open.

“Ooh, you’re smarter than you look.” Nightmare Moon commented as Ramsay took off through the snow towards the Everfree forest, clutching his broken wrist which had been placed in a cast by nurse Redheart. Neither the human nor Nightmare Moon noticed a silent white shadow trailing them through the sky.

They ran through the forest for about an hour before Ramsay finally came to a stop in an empty, snow covered clearing. Celestia landed in a nearby tree and hid herself, watching silently as Ramsay doubled over to regain his breath. Once he did he began shivering violently.

“Are you cold?” Nightmare Moon asked sarcastically “Now where are they?”

“Y-You fool.” Ramsay said with a smile as Nightmare Moon realized that she had been tricked.

“How dare you lie to me!”  Nightmare Moon screamed suddenly “For this I shall kill you when I gain physical form and there is nothing you can do to stop me!”

“There is one way…” Ramsay wheezed through one of his trademark sinister smiles “you fell into my trap beautifully.” He continued

“Look around you Nightmare Moon, what do you see?”

Nightmare Moon looked around with his eyes and replied with what she saw.

“I see nothing.”

“Exactly, you told me that in your state you cannot maintain an external form without a host. I am going to deprive you of that host.” Ramsay said levelling the bayonet at his torso.

“You foal, I cannot be killed. I will simply find another!” She screamed back.

“Tut, tut” Ramsay said mockingly “I thought you were smarter than this… think about where you are, Where I led you.”

Realization as cold as the biting winter around them dawned on Nightmare Moon as she realized that Ramsay had taken her to a place deprived of a hoast. He intended to take his own life and destroy her by forcing her into the open, without a host anywhere nearby.

“Wait!” Nightmare Moon said, worriedly “Why would you do this? You have nothing to gain by helping those who fight you.”

Ramsay’s smile turned warm and his voice radiated with it as he replied “As a wise, great leader once told me, sometimes it requires a caring heart to be strong. That is your undoing Nightmare Moon. It is something that you couldn’t possibly comprehend.”

For a moment the entire world seemed to fall silent, nothing moved except for the falling snow that landed around them. Celestia’s eyes watered at hearing her own words from a man who was going to make the ultimate sacrifice for his enemies, Ponies that hated him from the very beginning and imprisoned him as soon as they got the chance.

Suddenly Ramsay thrust the bayonet at himself. However before it even came to within an inch of his crimson coat his other hand, veins showing dead black against white caught the blade.

“You didn’t think that I would let you totally free of my grasp.” Nightmare said as each side of Ramsay fought for dominance. Dropping to his knees Ramsay realized that he was losing this internal battle and clenched his teeth in preparation for what he knew he would have to do. He unexpectedly released his grip on the bayonet and moved his hand down to his belt. There he clenched the tomahawk given to him by the Native American warrior just before they left their world. In one swift motion he brought it down upon his other hand, severing it, thus rendering Nightmare Moon powerless to stop him before he did the deed.

She screamed a horrid scream inside his head as Ramsay crawled towards the bayonet which had fallen a few feet away. He finally reached it, feeling Nightmare Moon tearing at his very being as he thrust the blade into his gut.

Once again the entire forest seemed to go quiet as Ramsay froze, kneeling in the snow. Celestia cringed; tears in her eyes as she saw the first drops of blood dribble from his mouth in a thin stream as crimson darker than that of his coat blossomed on his torso. After what seemed an eternity Ramsay Keeled to the side and fell. Celestia had to restrain herself from rushing to his aid, reminding herself that if she did then nightmare moon would survive and his sacrifice would have been for nothing. Ramsay’s body rolled onto its back and arched as the familiar purple mist left it. As soon as it was free Ramsay’s body slumped back to the ground. The shadow form of Nightmare Moon flew swiftly around the clearing, searching hopelessly for any creature she may inhabit. To Celestia it was almost pitiful as she watched her arch nemesis struggle for her life. Finally Nightmare Moon stopped her futile search and turned to Ramsay and seemed to look directly at him. He simply stared back, blood now pouring from his mouth.

“It is satisfying to know that I died for something worthy.” He said as his breath began to catch, finally he opened his mouth one last time before he fell still. “I shall be joining you in hell, whore” He gurgled through the blood that flooded his mouth before he finally fell still, his brown eyes glassing over.

Nightmare Moon’s mist seemed to vibrate with anger as she took on a ghostly apparition of herself and leapt at the human’s body, fangs bared. Just before she reached his throat her form dissipated, having exhausted her time without a host. As she left this world Celestia swore she could hear an echo in the distance screaming.

“NOOOOO!”