Night Court

The following week, I left that torture chamber.

It was two in the afternoon and I needed to get something to eat. So I ran to find the dinning area… Which was the second most difficult thing I had to do. The first was ordering something from the chef.

The medical wing was close to the barracks. That meant I had to walk to the other side of the castle. Not sure if there’s a rule about flying in the castle but fuck it, I got to eat!

I lifted off and started zooming down the halls. None of the staff even noticed, not even the day guards. I can become invisible to nearly anyone when I want to be.

“Ooomph!”

Unless I hit someone.

“What the heck?! Watch where you’re going!” Nightingale grunted.

“Sorry, I’m heading to the dinning hall to grab something to eat. Bye!” I darted past her.

“Oooh, epic quest,” Nightingale snidely stated as she kept up with me, “Try not to wet yourself when you meet the chef.”

“We crossed paths last week.”

“Seriously? Wow, you’re tougher than I thought.”

“What’s that suppose to mean?” I felt downright insulted.

“Incase you haven’t noticed,” Nightingale pointed to my side, “You’re the smallest pegasus in the castle.”

I huffed, “I may be small but I have some sweet advantages because of it.”

“Like what?”

“Like being the fastest thing in the castle!” I shouted as I zipped my way down the hall.

I made it to the dinning room and up to the kitchen window. The chef was there with an intimidating scowl. Despite my irrational fear of him, I walked up to put my order in.

“What would you like?” he asked.

“I- I’ll have a burger.” I stuttered.

The chef grinned and pointed at me, “We’re going to get along quite well,” he then trotted back to the kitchen.

I decided to take a seat near the window to wait for my meal. The chef might be friendly now but I would love to be prepared for when a stray knife is thrown through the window. Just keep an eye out on it and I’ll be fine.

“Hey, Teddy.” Nightingale shouted. I assume she was trying to scare me.

“Hey.”

“Really? Not even a little jump?”

“I did jump. You just couldn’t see it.”

“You’re not that fast.” Nightingale frowned.

“Speed doesn’t have anything to do with it,” I chuckled, “Most ponies never notice me.”

“That’s sad.”

“It’s safe.”

“Like watching for the chef to throw a knife at you?”

I kept my eyes on the window throughout the conversation. There is no way I am ever going back to that “doctor.”

“I know he’s scary but he’s not going to kill you.”

“If he doesn’t, that doctor might.”

“Oh,” she realized, “What he do to you?”

“He gave me an unwanted heart transplant,” I explained, “Called it his ‘über charge’ project. Not only that but he want to ‘test’ his project and started pumping magic into me.”

“That lasted the entire week?”

“He had plenty of hearts,” I sighed.

“Ouch, so what were the results?”

“Apparently my S.P.E.C.I.A.L. chart got a huge boost in the luck category… and his ‘über charge’ is a success.”

“Ah, Luna must’ve given you that boost so you could live through that blast,” Nightingale nodded, “Some have called her ‘lady luck’ you know.”

“I thought she was the princess of the night?”

“You’re from Las Pegasus, aren’t you?,” she scowled at me, “What do they do over there?”

The chef came by and delivered my burger with a smile. The burger looked lovely and smelled sweet. Cheese tasted fresh, must’ve been made in the kitchen. Arugula? Awesome! Not much of a fan on tomatoes but I’m eating it so the chef doesn’t go mad. What type of bread is this?

“Hehehe, Chef Ramsknee does make some pretty sweet stuff, doesn’t he?” Nightingale chuckled.

“Ramsknee? That’s his name? Sounds familiar.”

“If you’re done ogling over that burger, can you answer my question?” Nightingale scowled, this is going to become a common thing with her isn’t it?

“Yeah, yeah, Las Pegasus, city of sin, metropolis of wonder, gambler’s paradise, what about it?”

“Funny how it’s a nocturnal city with a lot of gamblers.”

It took a moment for my brain to connect the pieces, “Oh…”

“Eeyup, the princesses get power over three things,” she exclaimed, “Luna get full reign over the night, dreams, and luck.”

“I would’ve thought she only had reign over the moon.”

“The moon is a part of the night, a big part maybe, but still only part of it.”

I finished my burger and started walking away after saying goodbye to Nightingale.

“Uh, where do you think you’re going?” she asked.

“I’m uh…” I realized I didn’t have anywhere to go.

“Luna told me to escort you to your room when you got out of the medical wing.”

That explains why she followed me to the dinning room, “Great, so uh…”

“Yeah, we can talk more when we get to your room.”

We started walking but didn’t start talking until we got out of the dinning room.

“So you’re the fifth pony to survive Luna’s first test.” Nightingale stated.

That statement made me nervous.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to make it sound that bad… ok, it is that bad,” She laughed.

“Just get to the point,” I grunted as I rolled my eyes.

“Alright, I’m going to tell you what the secret of these tests are,” she ominously said, “They’re based on the aspects Luna has reign over.”

“So… Night, Dream, and… Luck…” why do I have the feeling I’m going to hate the last test. Actually, how the hell am I going to pass the dream test?!

“That’s right!” Nightingale sarcastically cheered, “You must’ve been the smartest stallion in your class.”

“You’re a real bitch, you know that.”

“I have been told that I’m a pain in the neck,” she flashed her fangs at me.

“That reminds me, what exactly did you mean by you being a vampire?”

“We haven’t had any contact with other ponies until recently,” Nightingale grimaced, “Long ago, a unicorn sought to find a means of immortality. He experimented on all types of ponies and animals. Nopony knows if he succeeded or not. He disappeared after his lab exploded. It could’ve been assumed he was dead but stories about him kept showing up years later. Anyways, he did manage to succeed in creating three different types of ponies. Vampires, which are like pegasi only we got bat like features such as these beauties,” she grinned flaring her leathery wings.

“Right…” I’m having a hard time believing her.

“Ok, I’ve seen that look. Yes, vampires have been seen a… bloodsuckers… especially in movies and such. But really, we’re just like anypony else. With the exception of the obvious.”

“If you say so.”

“The other two were Lycans and Revenants. Lycans look like a cross between a dog and a pony. Revenants, however,” Nightingale shivered, “THOSE guys are disturbing.”

She refused to say anything else about the ‘new’ species. Except for the fact they were created via unicorn magic. Unicorns, always doing some sort of weird shit.

“We’re here!” she dramatically presented the door.

We walked into my new room.

It looked… blank. Understandable since I didn’t have much. I noticed my vest was hanging on a coat rack. Only a television and a bed made up the rest of the room.

“Comfy…” I dryly stated.

“Took us a while to get here. It’s already eight!”

I turned to look at a clock on top of the tv. Sure enough, it said eight.

“Try not to have a mental breakdown while I’m on patrol.” Nightingale growled as she rushed off.

The remark confused me. I closed the door regardless. Nothing else noteworthy happened. I watched some tv but that it. I went to be around midnight.

What I didn’t expect was Luna to appear in my dreams.

“Greetings, Teddy,” she smiled, “It’s time for your second test.”

Looking around, I saw… blackness… As if to say my head was empty.

“So… What happens next?”

“First we have to find Black Light. He’ll aid you with the test.”

We started walking through the black void. Wandering aimlessly. I felt like we weren’t moving at all. Just staying in the same place, forever trapped in one spot. Luna seem unfazed by it. I suppose she’s used to it if she has dominion over dreams.

After what felt like an eternity, I saw a faint magenta glow in the distance. It grew closer as we walked. I noticed Luna wore smile. The glow began to take the shape of a stallion. An outline grew brightly then faded away as features of a unicorn settled in front of us.

“Good evening, Black Light,” Luna greeted the stallion.

“Charmed,” he said with no emotion, “This must be Teddy. I’ve head fractions about you.” He didn’t even look at me when he said that.

“O…k… So, about this test…”

Black Light raised a hoof, “In time, for now you must learn dream rules.”

“Black Light was a member of my sister’s ‘Dream Police’ when I was,” Luna hesitated with an enraged expression, “occupied.”

“Lucky for you, the rules are simple,” Black Light stated, “First; when you’re in the dreamscape, only the dreamer can change his dreams, understand?”

I nod my head with annoyance. This guy is starting to piss me off.

“Second; do NOT damage anything in the dreamscape, you may cause permanent harm to the dreamer.”

A moment of silence lingered before I nodded my head again.

“Finally; do NOT repeat the same actions multiple times.”

Alright, that last one was cryptic. I just nodded so we could move on. Of course, Black Light didn’t believe me and fired an arcane bolt at me.

I ducked just in time for me to get a minor burn.

Another arcane bolt struck at my hooves. I started running only to find Black Light in front of me. I ducked, expecting another arcane bolt, and was hit hard with a shovel. Black Light disappeared. I looked around for him but only saw darkness.

“A real disappointment. I expect better from Luna’s assistant,” He taunted.

A little ticked, I made a quick thought about what to do. After getting bitten by fuzz balls that appeared out of nowhere. So far I’ve been attacked from the top, front, bottom, and sides… That only left…

I quickly turned around and thrust my hoof in the center of Black Light’s face. He vaporized and I ran forwards to meet him again. This time, I pinned him to the ground.

“Ah, quick learner, excellent,” he chimed, “A greater pick than the last five. Did any of them past the test?”

“Only one,” Luna ominously growled.

That means my chances of getting this job is smaller than before. Great! I love it when the job I’m after has a chance to kill me or worse! Bring on the next test!

“Are you positive he’s fit for this position? A unicorn would be more pleasant company.”

“Hello, right in front of you.”

“Or so you think.”

“What?”

Black Light vanished.

I blinked and turned to Luna with a confused look.

“He has as much to learn as you do,” she sighed.

“Did I past the test?”

“No. It has yet to begin.”

With a wave of her wing, a portal opened. The swirling violet vortex was soothing yet frightening. Luna swiftly trotted through the portal. I hesitantly stepped towards it. Closing my eyes, I dove right into it.

On the other side I found Luna. Instead of absolute darkness, I found myself in a landscape of pure madness. Butterflies of various colors formed into houses. Butter slid across the ground as if it was alive. Trees had disturbing features and appeared to be the tortured remains of forgotten ponies. In the center of the landscape was a wooden castle.

“What… the… fuck…” I gasped with amazement.

“This one has been scared from a terrible past,” Luna frowned, “My sister was not efficient with her Dream Police.”

“We’re going to find the pony having this dream.”

Luna nodded with a smirk.

With a jump, she fly off the cliff we stood on. She gracefully glided into the disturbed forest. Reluctantly, I followed.

In the forest, I felt absolute terror. The trees… They moved with eyes and gapping mauls. I swore they were following us, blocking our path, and planned on murdering right there!

“Teddy, you must be calm,” Luna soothingly whispered, “What you see and feel are illusions. They cloud the mind to prevent accomplishment. Do not fear that which is not there.”

I began to relax. Being near Luna helped greatly. I don’t know why but I felt safe near her. Similar to a child being near their mother. The way she spoke was authoritative and nurturing.

We continued our trek toward the castle. Keeping close to Luna, I shuddered as the forest closed behind us. Preventing us from leaving the castle. Luna ignored it and continued walking up the steps. The door was a massive wall with the engravings of alicorns waging war against each other. I heard Luna huff in frustration. She kicked the doors open. The wind echoed a wailing moan that sent shivers down my spine.

Passing through the doorway, I once agains saw pure darkness. This time, however, there was some visible stuff. It appeared to be normal castle decor. Paintings, sculptures, potted plants, whatever you’d find in a castle was here. I accidentally bumped a vase of a table. The exact second the crash made a sound, a maid popped out of thin air. She seemed to be in a panic and constantly cleaning everything.

“Busy, busy, busy,” the maid muttered, “Have to keep everything clean for the princess.”

Luna quirked an eyebrow at her. I shared the same expression. Did she not see Luna?

“You know the princess is right here?”

The maid looked up, “That’s not the princess,” she stated before going back to cleaning.

This is insane. She refuses to not do anything except clean! I tried pulling her away, moving the mess she was cleaning, pinning her to one spot. Luna stayed back and watched me. She had that expression your teacher would get when he asked a question and expected an answer from whoever he called on but didn’t get it right away. We sorry some of us have to use our fucking brain to find the answer to a problem! Oh, she finished cleaning the last mess. And now she’s scrubbing the same spots again. Ugh, that Black Light told me not to do the same things over and over but what about others doing the same things?

We watched the maid repeat the same cleaning cycle for a couple hours. I was thinking of some way to stop her. It became obvious this was my test since Luna did nothing but stare at me. I watched the maid closely to see if I can break the pattern. She kept repeating everything. Then I got an idea.

“The princess said you’re fired!” I shouted.

The maid stopped, dead in her tracks. She whimpered for a small moment and collapsed. She curled into a ball and started crying. I felt bad and decided to comfort her.

“W-Why did she fire me?” she whispered, “I’ve been a good maid. I clean and clean and clean.”

“But you didn’t have to keep cleaning. Everything was already clean.”

“That’s my job! How could I be fired for doing my job?!”

I showed her the objects she had been cleaning for the past few hours.

“The decor lost its color because you would not stop cleaning it,” I explained, “It’s fine to keep things clean but you have to learn when it’s appropriate to stop.”

The maid nodded and stood.

“What made you so desperate to keep everything clean?”

A loud rumble answered my question.

Luna stood, ready for battle. Somehow she had a sword and armor.

The maid coward in fear and tried to hide from whatever made that noise.

I turned around to see a nightmarish creature. It looked like an old mare, a grandmother perhaps, except it was pitch black with claws and tendrils extruding out of it. Its glowing yellow eyes pierced into my soul. Dread filled my mind. This creature was not only the cause of the maid’s fears but the very essence of them.

“WHY HAVE YOU STOPPED CLEANING, DEAR?” the thing boomed.

Luna drew her sword in a defensive pose.

“You must be the princess,” I smirked.

“BOW BEFORE ME WELP!”

“In your dreams,” I chuckled a little, “or should I say nightmares?”

The creature slammed tendrils down on top of me. To which I dodged. Luna kept her guard near the maid. Looks like I’m on my own here.

The thing slapped me with a claw. Sending me through a painting which acted like a portal to a bedroom. The bed sheets animated itself and wrapped around me. The thing slithered in, creepily lashing its tongue around its lips. With a steady claw it tickled my sides and forcefully opened my wings. Big mistake.

I waved my wings forward to send a gust of wind in the monster’s face. I succeeded in sending it flying out of the paint portal. The sheets limped off me. Quickly, I darted through the paint portal to make sure it was gone.

In the room I originated from, Luna fought the monster. The maid scurried away to hide under a table. With the monster busy I grabbed a shard of a broken sculpture and jammed it in the thing’s back. It wasn’t very effective. The monster grabbed me and embedded me into the floor.

“YOU ARE WEAK AND PATHETIC!” the thing growled, “JUST LIKE THAT WORM UNDER THAT TABLE.”

The maid yipped and ran away. Only to be snatched by a tendril.

“I THINK I’LL HAVE FUN PUNISHING YOU,” the thing grinned as tendrils tore pieces of the maid’s outfit.

I got out of the floor as the maid struggled and screamed. I weighed my options. One thing I could do was attack the thing again. But that was proven to not work well. Luna might be able to help but I felt if the situation got out of control she would’ve done something by now. I noticed the maid was a unicorn when a tendril threw her hat off. A third option opened up.

“Go for the eyes!”

“What?”

“Stab it with your horn!”

The maid glanced at her horn. Her outfit remained nearly intact with numerous tears. In a desperate attempt to free herself, she threw her head right into the creature’s face. Her horn pierced through an eye. Bright light emitted out of the wound. The monster released the maid as it glowed florescent white. Anyone who learned about magic knows white light is the most dangerous magic to be near. I flew to the maid, grabbed her, and dove behind Luna.

Luna managed to create a shield to protect us from the sudden explosion. Only white light could be seen. We all closed our eyes until the havoc settled. When we opened them, we were inside a cozy little apartment. The orange haze of a setting sun shined through a nearby window.

Luna put a hoof around me.

“Well done,” she smiled.

The maid glowed warmly as she trotted around her apartment. It seemed that we were no longer there to her. Well, that was my first thought before she turned to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I suppose it’s not everyday a stallion attempts to save you from a nightmare monster. She’ll most likely forget this whole thing in the morning. It was a dream after all.

Still, if I got this recognition for just a brief moment every night, it’d be worth being forgotten about. The back of my mind tells me Luna disagrees with that.

Luna had opened a portal back to the dark void.

“Amazing,” she gasped, “Only two others have passed this test.”

“But not the final one,” I realized the last test was going to be similar to throwing your life savings in a poker pot with only an ace and a five.

“Only one took the test,” Luna sighed, “The other quit.”

This final test was the epic decider. Do or die. If I quit, I wouldn’t be able to find another job in time to survive another night. I also didn’t have a place to stay and was dependent on the castle’s free food. If I went with the test I may or may not survive. If I did survive I’d get the job, free food, and a nice room in the castle…

I put up with these last two tests. How bad can this final one be?