The Sky Was Naught But Dying Stars ...
" For Centuries I have watched ..."
Nightmare Moon, lying in her bed was jolted awake by the powerful voice. She rose to her feet securing her armor quickly with her magic. Moonlight came in silver beams through the castle windows. She hesitantly approached her chamber door, ready to confront what lie ahead. She burst through the door, horn glowing bright and with a vicious look on her face. Nothing was present in the grand hallway.
"Foolish mortal ... You think the obvious, and are blind to our ways. We approach a time of reckoning, mortal ... "
"I am not a mortal! Impudence! You shall be slain by me personally swine! show thine self coward!", Nightmare shot back, a growl in her voice.
" As you wish ..." A speck of sand dropped from the ceiling, hitting the dark mare's snout. She looked up, curious as to the location of her "visitor". Again nothing. Once more a grain of sand fell upon her. And then two grains. And then four. And then twenty. In no time, the ceiling collapsed, letting a torrent of sand flood in, engulfing Nightmare. The sand swirled around like a tornado, blinding the mare.
"Show yourself coward!" , she screeched, firing bolts of magic into the sandstorm, causing only more to sand to be kicked up. She continued to blindly assault the storm, spinning in circles, and letting loose crackling bolts of magic from her horn. Slowly, the storm began to die down, allowing her vision of the scorched and crumbling sections of floor. She snarled wildly, beating the ground with her hoof. She began to turn around, only to be met by a wall of a creature.
The creature was obscured from her sight, hidden in darkness, but it grabbed her with one mighty hand by the neck, lifting her off the ground. The immense hand fug into her throat, as she struggled to breath. She began to channel magic into her horn, but before anything could occur, the massive creature grasped it with its free hand, and with one mighty yank, the horn snapped in two. Marrow and blood oozed from the destroyed bone, as the creature stepped forward, into the moonlight, revealing its intimidating visage.
The creature stood nearly twelve feet tall, and resembled a diamond dog in many ways, although it's features were much more defined, and in a way, held an aura of intelligence around them. The face was distinctively canine in appearance, with glowing blue eyes that shone through the darkness. The hulk of a beast was adorned in cloth wraps around its legs, hands, and arms, and wore a light sash. It wore a vizier helmet, with spiked earpieces, and was also fitted with ornate shin and arm guards, along with a an intricate piece of chest armor, engraved and with inset gemstones. The entire suit of armor shone an unearthly gold, and revealed the muscular brown fur underneath.
"Now that we have been acquainted, it's time to get down to buisness, shall we?". spoke the beast in a refined, ghostly tone.
Nightmare could not even begin to come to terms with what had happened in a matter of seconds. She had been rudely awakened, torn from her sleep, assaulted by a sandstorm, and had her source of power destroyed. It was too much to take in, even for the queen of the night. The massive being threw her aside, letting her roll a few times before settling on her back, facing away from him. He stood there, observing her for a moment.
"Let me tell you a story from my life, evil one. I once knew many beings like you. Those that believed themselves better than others. Those that believed they were gods and had divine rights. That was a long, long time ago. I can only assume the fight still continues to this day between the righteous and the evil. But even so, through all of this, nothing phased me. Not the killing of fellow friends, not the destruction of cities and stores of knowledge. I remained stoic in the face of all it. But one thing, more than anything else, disturbed me. You see, I had a brother once. His name, is ..." the creature passed for a second, and then continued, "... His name was Renekton. He was an astounding individual, always by my side. But rage burned away all that was good in him, and he is but a pale shadow of my brother who was lost long ago ..."
Nightmare struggled to stand, the overwhelming pain in her head paralyzing her as the beast approached. "I, am Nasus, the Curator of The Sands, and I have come to measure your soul, not because of what you've done to this land. While despicable, and evil, it is not my place to intervene. But I have watched for centuries, observing your late sister and yourself, and I can say, I am sorry. I'm sorry I did not act sooner, and I am sorry that what befell my brother, has befallen you. Moreover, you foolishly try to attain immortality, even when eternity is beyond your reach. Face it Luna, your spirit is hollow. You are just like Renekton, you are but a body, possessed by evil intent ... "
Nightmare Moon began to yelp quietly in a hoarse voice, wincing from the pain, calling for hear guards. She gathered up all the air in her lungs, and shouted loudly once last time. She could hear Nasus laughing to himself quietly, as ten guard burst through the hallway doors. They stood stunned for a second by the creature that stood before them. But with a rallying call from their captain, they charge towards the beast, bat-ponies wielding spears, and unicorns with horns aglow.
What happened next both impressed, and horrified the queen of the night. With a flick of his hand, a vortex of swirling energy encircled the five pegasi, engulfing them in a storm of time. Within seconds, each guard withered to dust, floating to the ground as the remaining unicorns considered retreat. Nasus summoned his halberd, a swirling mass of sand appearing from the ground, and straightening into a long mass as he held out his hand to catch the newly materialized staff. He snarled at the guards, and twirled the halberd over his head for a moment, as a ring of fiery energy exploded in a circle around the guards. Ethereal energy emanated from each one, as their soul was torn from their body, each pony toppling over, eyes blank, expressionless. They were but husks.
"Now then my rude friend, shall we continue?", Nasus asked mockingly. He grabbed Nightmare by the tale and began dragging her across the hall, stopping in the center, and raising her up to his face, all while she thrashed wildly. " Death is a harsh mistress Nightmare. I, bring death. " With the final words, Nasus smashed Nightmare into the floor, the alicorn shooting through the floor, and crashing into the stairwell below. She tumbled down several stairs before she could stop herself. Her body ached, covered in bruises and cuts. Searing pains plagued her whenever she attempted to move.
Nasus slinked through the hole overhead as a cloud of sand, reappearing in a swirl of sand besides Nightmare. "There is such potential in one mortal life, and yet, you have chosen to waste yours. I can assure you evil one, once you have been death with, you legacy shall drift away, blown into eternity, like the sands of the desert ... How fitting for one that seeks to deprive the world of any other path."
The curator wrapped his massive hands around Nightmare's back, gripping her tightly, leaping through the stairwell walls, and out into the courtyard. He landed with a massive impact, shattering the delicate stone path beneath him. He lay Nightmare beside him, and he sat down on a large, polished piece of marble.
"You know Nightmare, the past is a tapestry, of what lies ahead. You were defeated once, and yet you chose to try and succeed in your evil pursuits. Eons have passed like days as I watched you and your sister grow. I was always hopeful that you would one day, you would be able to join me in my immortality. But your species seeks everlasting life in the wrong way. Immortality lies between life and death, it is not simply life everlasting. And yet, in a way, it was amusing to see you two toy with the premise of it. To try and find your way ..."
The black alicorn had resigned herself at this point, simply hoping for an end to the immobilizing pain she was in. She tried to ignore the beast, passing his words off as delusional monologue. But, something did get through to her, in her weakened state, she remembered how things used to be. She remembered, a time long ago, when chaos still ruled the land, when Tia' and her were inseperable, and, if only for a moment, she felt grief for what she had done.
"But no, you chose to disregard morality, and what is right. You chose to steal your sister's power in a feeble attempt at immortality. You forget, foolish mortal, life is part of a cycle, and yours, is at an end. Soon there will be nothing, at least in your twisted eyes. I seek to restore this land to its glorious past, and your helpless to stop me. Everlasting night must end, along with your life ..."
The mare stared up at the stars as she felt the embrace of death taking her. She saw the billions of specs of light, reveling in their glory.
"Some spirits are fated to burn princess. Your soul will be measured, and you will pay for your crimes. And yet, you must understand one thing before you journey into the beyond, returning to dust. One thing, you never anticipated. Just one single thing, so simple a lemming could see it. You failed to understand, that no dawn comes ..."
"W-W- .... Without .... D-Darkness ...", the dying princess managed to whisper hoarsely.
"So you do know then. Such foolish mortals, expecting to prevail even in the face of what they already know to be impossible. In a way it is admirable, but no less stupid. So now then, Nightmare, the time has come."
Nasus rose from the marble, readying his halberd, and striding over to Nightmare. "Before you go though, I want you to look at one last thing. Up there." He gestured towards the stars, with a grim, and stoic expression. Nightmare once again observed the bright light of the stars.
But then, one by one, as if one command, they began to flicker, and go out. Nightmare witnessed it, with her very own eyes. Trillions of balls of hot gasses went out, exploding into brilliant fireworks and mosaics of color. "Those stars have been dead for billions of years princess, and only now, can you look upon them and see the darkness in the sky, and in your heart."
The display continued on for several minutes, each star going out, and dying, in an explosion that shook the heavens themselves. Nightmare Moon, in her final moments of life, began to feel sorry. Sorry for everything she had done. Sorry for murdering her sister. Sorry for all the souls she had eviscerated, and all those forgotten names that were lost to the sands of time. To the very end, this one pony, possessed by multiple characters, had always truly been pure, even as her soul was left to wander blindly through the dark of the night, she still managed to find a light in the end. To find her way back to the path of the pure, if even for the briefest of moments, after the suffocating darkness she had endured, was the ultimate act of redemption.
"Burden's sleep best in their tombs Nightmare ..." With a sudden blink, the entire scenery changed to that of the moon's surface. Nightmare was horrified, as Nasus approached, his halberd exuding bright purple energy. " ... And your burden will rest in its tomb, never to return. Now be gone!"
With his final words, Nasus raised his weapon overhead, grasping it with both hands, and crashing it down upon the queen of the night, destroying her, once and for all. He thought to himself that some things must remained buried, so Nasus turned from the body, withering it with the sands of time, the princess fading to dust, and eventually nothingness, as he looked upon the blank and empty sky. For on that night ...
The sky was naught but dying stars ...
