Author's Note

Important!

Just to let you all know, ALL interludes and bonus chapters will be 3rd person point of view. I hope you enjoy and to Warrior Kitten, the song is at the top my friend. Thank you all for reading and SO sorry it took so long!

Interlude: Luna's Nightmare

"Not Ready to Die" by Avenged Sevenfold (Authors note: Hell Yeah!)

It was a beautiful night in Canterlot. The stars were scattered across the sky and the moon shown bright. A perfect night that Luna herself had created for two reasons. One, to keep a close eye on this supposed Assassin Graymayne, and two, so she and her dear sister Tia could spend a moment together watching this beautiful display of what Luna herself liked to call ‘Lunar Art’.

She sat there trying hard not to think of the ‘Assassin’. She could remember a time when those who even thought about attacking them would meet a slow death either by Celestia’s golden blade or her own midnight blue blade. It was a time when guards fought to the bitter end to protect her and her sister. Of course they still did but they seemed a bit weaker than they used to be, smaller even; a time when ‘Assassins’ had their claws or wings cut off; tortured endlessly, and soon, beheaded.

Why had her sister been so lenient on this young stallion?

Tia told her that this stallion was confused, tricked, lied to, which of course was true, but he still didn’t believe them and Luna was sure of that. What she had said in the dungeon to the lowly assassin was the truth.

Try to harm her sister again and she’ll end thy where thee stands.

There was also the problem with Graymayne being a lost relative of Twilight Sparkle and Shining Armor. That was the most annoying fact of all. Twilight actually thought she could make this ‘Assassin’ any better. Luna scoffed at that. It made her laugh! To honestly think such a blackened soul could reform. He was lost, no hope, drowned in blood.

She had already been into his mind, seen the many doors of the ponies and other species he had murdered in cold blood. It disgusted her.

Graymayne, same as Sombra, was far gone, lost into shadow… forever. There was no possible way to save him now. She knew deep down what he desired… and it only made her want to rip his spine out of his back, force it through his neck and watch him slowly bleed to death.

It would only happen if he tried it…

The sound of a door clicking made Luna jump and turn, horn ablaze, only to see her sister Tia, without her regalia, entering the room.

“Am I not allowed to enter?” Celestia asked with a giggle.

Luna sighed in relief and gave her sister a small smile. “Thou hast only startled us dear sister. How art thou?”

Celestia only giggled again. “I’m fine, how are you?”

Luna smiled at her sister. It had been rough for her since returning to Equestria… the whole Nightmare Moon incident. But, now she was home and that’s all that mattered.
Only if they didn’t have little midnight blue ‘assassin’ in their manes…

“We art doing well, sister. But… something bothers us…” She replied giving her sister a frustrated gaze.

Celestia’s smile shrank a bit but she tried to ‘keep her cool’. ‘Is that what the colts were saying today?’ she thought. It didn’t matter. She trotted up to her sister and wrapped a wing around her. She pulled her sister close and looked up into the night sky.

“And ‘who’ would that be dear sister?” she asked, a bit concerned for her sister.

Luna’s eyes widened in shock as she looked up to her sister. “How doest thou know?”

Celestia sighed. “Don’t think I’m not worried either Lulu. Graymayne is a dangerous stallion and it brings me great worry to leave him with Twilight, but I’m almost certain that she can handle him,”

Luna smiled on the inside at her old pet name given to her by Celestia or ‘Tia’; the pet name she had given her. “But what if thou student cannot handle him? He has had some... Unsettling dreams…”

Celestia looked at her sister with curiosity and hint of concern. “What did you see?”

Luna sighed, remembering what she had seen that night. The sanctuary, Graymayne, and… the ‘thing’ he was talking too. “We saw a creature in the stallion… he was familiar to us… though we did not recognize him.”

Celestia thought about this. They had faced many foes in their time: Tirek, Sombra, Discord, and so many more. Their never ending battle to protect their home, their little ponies, their world. Celestia could only remember one such being that came close to taking it all away… but he was long dead…

…even today though, did his name still haunt her.

“I would ask of you to keep an eye out on this creature. It may be a threat later if we’re not careful,” Celestia said to her sister a bit concerned.

“We shall do so Tia,” Luna replied with a weak smile.

“Now,” Celestia said, her smile returning as she held her younger sister close. “What do you have to show me on this beautiful night sky?”

Luna did a mental ‘squee’ when she heard those words. With that, her horn glowed its normal midnight blue and the stars shown bright in the night sky. It was truly a sight to behold. The stars seemed to illuminate the land before them and the moon shown full for those who stayed up this late to see. Such a magnificent beauty to behold…

Luna only wished more ponies were up to see such a sight...

But, at least she could spend these moments with her dear sister. No more lonely nights on the moon. No more Nightmare Moon trying to consume her. Nothing could destroy this moment; everything was perfect at this one moment.

…Or at least she thought…

Off in the distance, one single star started to glow an unnatural crimson red. An evil essence emanating from it and Luna only looked in curiosity. She stared at the star and soon could hear something… sinister…

A dark and demented chuckle

Celestia focused on the night sky before her, happy to have her sister back after a thousand years of loneliness. She missed her so very much and couldn’t bare the fact that in some way, she was also responsible for her dark transformation all that time ago.

All that mattered now, though, was that she was home. “Lulu, this is amazing. I almost forgot how well you made the night so majestic.”

No answer.

“I was thinking about that question you asked me all those years ago” Celestia paused hesitantly.

No answer.

“About the night lasting longer…” Celestia paused to look at the moon: still shining brightly in the night sky.

No answer.

“Why don’t we host a time during the year for the night. Something like the Summer Sun Celebration. Would you like that Luna?”

No answer.

“Luna?”

Celestia took this moment to look at her sister. What she saw frightened her…

Luna’s eyes were dilated and tears streaked down her cheeks. She was frantically mumbling to herself and shaking. The constellations in her mane seem to die out and fade, her eyes full of fear, and her eyes were blinking…from white to the evil green.

Celestia rushed to hold Luna and pulled to face her. “Luna! Luna, what’s wrong!?” Luna only stared at her, horrified, fearful, and mortified.

Celestia had no idea what Luna was really seeing.

Luna saw her ponies, their ponies, her land, their land. Fire everywhere, burning away the plains and ponies running also set ablaze, screaming in agony, their flesh smoldering and sizzling away. Bodies of their ponies shot from the sky in fiery blazes and impacted the ground in bloody explosions. Everywhere, blood and death ravaged the land. Everywhere, their little ponies died in the cruelest ways possible. Demons flew through the skies and walked along the ground, causing massacre to them all. Pony after pony was cut down, piece by piece, limb from limb. This was her personal hell.

This was the deepest depths of Tartarus revealed to her. The torture, the bloodshed, the massacre all overflowing and she had only known one Drac- no… demon which would do all this without mercy.

As that thought crossed her mind, a dark silhouette was shown standing in the field. The figure was tall, his silhouette deformed, mixed and matched with different pieces. Two horns protruded from the back of his head, both different from each other. His arms were slender and one covered in fur while the other looked sleek and shiny, both ending in a razor sharp claws that gave off a dark energy. His torso deformed, with two spiked shoulder guards. His legs, one which gave off a cool mist and the other dragons leg, both ending in sharp claws that could cut through steel.

Luna stopped gazing upon his body and focused on his face, the twisted and toothy smile that splayed itself on his face just underneath those eyes. The eyes that haunted her and her sister for thousands of years, his right eye being a bright crimson that shown the souls of a million sinners being tortured and burned, the left eye was pitch black and spilling dark mist from the side. In that moment, one name crossed her mind… a name that her and her sister had done everything in their power to erase from the pages of time.

“V-“

Before she could finish, a high pitched ringing sound stung her and made her jolt back. She clutched her head in pain; her eyes clenched shut as the ringing seemed to get worse. Whispers’, crying of foals, shouts, screams of agony and despair struck her ears in a never ending onslaught.

She tried desperately to open her eyes but couldn’t, even as the sounds of approaching hoofsteps were then brought to her ears. She shook her head violently left to right in an attempt to rid herself of the distraction. She knew HE was coming for her! Those hoofsteps were HIS and HIS alone!
The sound of hoofsteps grew closer… and closer…

And closer…

Closer…

Then stopped in place
Luna was now shaking in pure fear, still clutching her head. Fearful of what he would do to her when he wrapped his golden and burly claws around her throat. She knew HE was standing right in front of her and she hadn’t been more afraid in her entire life. It was over…

It was over for her… and she knew it…

HE had returned…

She was going to die here and now in HIS grasp. Sin will have finally had its victory.

She waited…

Waited…

…And waited…

‘Why wasn’t anything happening? Why hadn’t HE killed her yet? What was HE waiting for? Did HE want her to run, for HIS own amusement? Did He want her to beg for the mercy, that HE had none of?’ Luna thought about this for a while the figure standing in front of her changed. Morphing its appearance to an all too familiar Alicorn.

‘If HE thinks I will BEG for mercy! Then HE IS WRONG!’

With that, Luna ripped her hooves from her head and opened her eyes to glare at the figure in front of her and screamed. “KILL ME ALREADY YOU MONSTER!”

“Luna… why… why would I kill you…” the figure flinched and whimpered. Luna only stared, shocked at the figure before her. Their coat was pure white, a scarlet red mane and matching tail, and bright blue eyes. The cutie mark that she could never forget. A feather pen and ink well.

“Doth my eyes deceive me…? Mother Faust…?” Luna asked.

“Yes my dear, what’s the matter?” Faust asked, worry clearly evident in her voice.

“I… I thought… thou were dead...” Tears now began to streak down Luna’s face. The last time she had seen her mother was when HE-

Before she could finish her thought, Faust grabbed Luna and pulled her into a tight hug. “No Luna… No. I was never gone. I’m here. I’m here for you.”

Luna did the only thing she could think of and pulled her dear mother into the tightest hug she could. Gripping her closely and crying into her shoulder. “There, there. Everything is going to be fine Luna. I’m here now and I am not going anywhere ever again.”

Luna felt the many noises she heard before fade and the warmth of her mother’s hug calm her. Soon, her crying ceased and was reduced to simple sniffles. Luna took this opportunity to look up into her mother’s soft, caring eyes.

Only to see a dark red shadow, looming over them and two familiar eyes glaring down at them.

“LUNA, RUN!” Faust screamed, pushing Luna away. “RUN AND DON’T LOOK BACK!”

Luna did as she was told, turned and ran as fast as she could. Though she didn’t follow all of what her mother had said and turned to look back. Faust had now risen up into the air to meet the shadow face to face. In that instant, Faust didn’t waste a single millisecond and shot a beam of pure light into the shadow’s dark form. Within the shadow, dozens of explosions erupted and shook the shadow’s form along with a ear piercing roar, which eventually ended in sadistic chuckles.

Faust fired off more blasts of power into the shadow trying desperately to destroy it and protect her youngest daughter. The shadow simply laughed at her attempts to attack it and prepping its own little move.

What Faust didn’t see was the long, slender like golden claw shoot toward her. Faust flapped her wings quickly but was too late, as the claw wrapped around her entire body, squeezing it tightly.

“Enough of your puny attacks…” a deep and demonic voice spoke.

Faust only glared at the shadow in pure anger. “You will not take my home! You will not take the home that I worked so hard to create! You and your kind have LOST!”
A chuckle escaped the shadow and it pulled Faust closer, now completely looming over her gripped form. “You don’t understand dear Faust…” it spoke. “We’ve already won…”
In that instant, a long and large muzzle left protruded from the shadow. Opening up to reveal a row of razor sharp teeth, some diamond, some pure gold, and others silver.

Faust looked up into the mouth of the large beast, fearfully and shaking, before looking in Luna’s direction…

Tears now fell from her saddened eyes. “Luna… I love y-“

She was cut off by the sudden lunge of the beast’s maw, its razor sharp teeth biting into her neck and engulfing her entire head. The beast’s maw jerked left then right, and with one final jerk to the left, Faust’s head was ripped off. Blood began to spew up and the beast began to chew viciously and eagerly.

A loud gulp was echoed through the room now and was soon followed with a dark chuckle. All Luna could do was stare in horror at the beast who had murdered her mother so animal like. The next thought that crossed Luna’s mind was what her mother had told her to do…

Run.

She turned tail and began a gallop in the opposite direction, hoping to escape the enormous creature. Before she could get her hooves to move off the ground, a set of golden claws made contact with the ground around her and began to close in.

“And where do you think you’re going…?”

Luna tried desperately to squeeze through the claws and run but her attempts were futile as the beast’s claws closed tightly around her form. She squirmed around in its grasp, hoping to get free but once again, her attempts were futile.

“Surely you remember me little Luna…” the beast spoke, looking down upon his prey. “Before you go running off to tell your pathetic sister that I’m back. I want you to know…”

The beast moved closer to her, his hot breath setting down on her. Luna only looked up in horror at the massive beast who glared down at her with the eyes of a demon.

“No matter what you do... I will be free again. Your world, the world you STOLE from US! We will take it back and your sister, your little ponies and even you... will SUFFER!” In that instant, the beast roared and brought it’s maw down to eat her.

Only for her to join the real realm again in a screaming fit…

“Luna!” Celestia screamed. Luna looked around, guards, Lunar and solar surrounded them, ready to do their job. All Luna could do then was grab Celestia and pull her into the tightest embrace possible.

Celestia was shocked. First, her sister went and had a mental breakdown right next to her. Second, she was screaming at the top of her lungs and speaking a language that she didn’t recognize at all. After an hour of trying to calm her, she finally had snapped and here she was, hugging Celestia tightly and crying vigorously into her shoulder. Celestia hugged back with the same embrace, wrapping her wings around Luna.

One guard approached but was stopped with a wave of Celestia’s hoof. Soon, guard after guard began to leave the room, leaving Celestia and Luna to themselves.

“There, there. I’m here Luna. I’m here.”

“Tis the same thing mother said before…” she returned to her crying.

“I know… I know… I’m sorry, Lulu. I know how much mother meant to you. She meant the same to me as well…”

Luna continued her crying, often sniffling. After what seemed to be an hour, Celestia heard the soft slow breathing of her sister. She moved back and looked down at her now sleeping sister who had fallen into a deep sleep from her recent outburst.

Celestia took this opportunity to levitate Luna into her own bed and kissed her goodnight before leaving the room herself. She turned with a sigh and made her way back to her room. She already knew what she had seen. When Luna had the outburst, her eyes flickered from white to green… then black. She knew now that HE had returned. In that single instant, one word crossed her mind.

A word that she despised with every fiber of her being the moment the young foals of today started using it. Yet, it described their current situation.
Bucked.

{}{}{}{}{}{}{}

Elsewhere, deep within the depths of a certain assassin’s mind, the beast watches over the small town of Ponyville.

“One pony princess broken… One pony princess to go, but first…”

The beast’s claw waves through the darkness, creating an image of an all too familiar lavender unicorn. The creature gazes at the image of this unicorn. The assassin’s sister, the princess’s student…
His prey.

“WE MUST ATTACK HER HEART!”