Nightmare Moon - Attempt 1
Hoof steps echoed across the stone floor growing louder with each step.
”Insolent foal. Does thou believe that thou can defeat us? Our night shall be eternal and there is nary a thing anypony can do.”
The buzz of electricity filled the air, growing in intensity until it became deafening.
“As for thee, we shall dispatch of thou immediately. Farewell knave.”
And then there was silence...
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“Well well well, look who’s back again for practically the millionth time. When will you learn your lesson my dear, Twilight?”
Twilight slowly opened her eyes to find herself in what looked to be an office, laying on a rather comfy couch. She pushed herself up to a sitting position and looked around. The room was huge, with bookcases lining the walls like a library.
Each book was not labeled a title of a subject, but rather a name of some pony.
She noticed a desk in the middle of the circular room where a rather large book was propped up, the title read Twilight Sparkle. She was about to get up and walk up to the book before there was a chuckle that seemed to come from all around her.
“My my, still don’t recognize where you are I take it? How many times must we go through this song and dance before you remember this place‽ Actually, on that matter, do you even remember who I am?”
A creature stepped out from behind the book that Twilight didn’t recognize. She tried to recall anything that looked like it, the best she could come close to was goblins, orcs, ogres and apes.
His hair was jet black and slicked back as if he ran his fingers through his hair from front to back, his eyes different colors; one green and the other blue. His grin seemed to stretch his face from ear to ear as his teeth seemed to shine from the light. His nose barely made an impact on his face, it’s presence overshadowed by his over exaggerated smile.
But what quickly caught Twilight’s eyes was not the disturbed imagery of his face, but the blue suit and tie that he wore which had green vertical pin stripes. The man looked all business but at the same time ready to act as the main clown at a circus.
“What are you?” Asked Twilight, not immediately recognizing what this creature was. This seemed to upset him greatly.
“What am I? What AM I‽ I have told you this EVERY SINGLE TIME you woke up here and you STILL haven’t remembered who I am have you,” asked the man. He had closed the gap between him and Twilight rather quickly, his face nearly touching hers as his hands gripped the back of the couch. Rage filled his eyes and Twilight could see it clear as day. “Can you AT LEAST guess my name‽”
“You’re crazy!” Shouted Twilight, recoiling in shock of the sudden events.
The man suddenly straightened up, his expression quickly changed from rage to amusement as he put a finger to his chin. “No, Crazy would be my brother who lives in the Asylum just outside of Canterlot. I’m sure you’ve met him a few times… Fine, I’ll tell you again; my name is INSANITY. Say it with me, IN-SAN-IT-Y… Oh come on Twilight, you didn’t say it.”
“Insanity?”
“There you go! Now can you guess what it was that we agreed on?”
Twilight remained silent, looking at this creature with a furrowed brow, afraid of what he might do next.
“Are you serious‽ I think she’s serious. Are you seriously telling me that you forgot what we have agreed on,” Insanity shouted as he stomped back to his desk. Suddenly, his demeanor changed yet again as he made a tiny laugh. “Oh that’s right. I’ve been making you forget every time you can here. I can’t believe I haven’t thought of that before. Hahaha!”
“Making me forget? Forget what?”
“All the pain and the sufferings you had to endure, my dear! I thought I was being nice by preventing you from remembering the painful moments. But I guess the mental block was stronger than I intended, making you forget everything you have learned from this experience!”
“I… I don’t know what you are talking about,” Twilight whimpered while curling into a ball on the couch, holding her tail and shaking.
“Of course you don’t know what I’m talking about! Haven’t you listened to a word I just said‽ But you know, I think I’ll let you remember your last venture… Starting from when you left Canterlot by order of Princess Celestia…” Insanity walked over to Twilight, placing a hand upon her head as she started to cry out of fear and confusion.
And suddenly her eyes lit up white.
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“Twilight, the Princess really thinks you should make some friends! Why don’t you just-”
“Spike, no. I can’t believe that Princess Celestia would just ignore such ominous warnings and send me away to do something so mundane as to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration! I thought she trusted me…”
“I’m sure she trusts you Twilight but you have been reading a bit too deep into those story books. Maybe after we check up on the festival preparations, you can look for some answers in the Library?”
“That’s it Spike! You go ahead and take care of checking up on the preparation. That will free up time for me to go and look for a way to convince her of Nightmare Moon’s return!”
“But-”
“No time to lose Spike! I leave it to you to make sure everything is in order,” Twilight shouted as she jumped off the carriage as soon as it landed. “Thank you, Sirs. Give the Princess my regards.”
Before Spike could say another word, Twilight galloped off towards the Golden Oaks Library, having seen it from the sky. She practically ignored everypony who bothered who tried to talk with her and slipped into the library. Time passed as she studied intently, looking for some way to convince her mentor of the dangers that awaited them all.
Twilight woke up to a claw prodding her face, Spike having returned from the inspection. “Twilight, wake up! It’s already almost time for the Summer Sunrise Festival!” Said Spike with a smile, in his other claw he held an ice cream cone decked with several flavors.
“Spike? Ugh, where did you get that ice cream?” Asked Twilight, rubbing the sleepiness out of her eyes.
“My new friend Pinkie Pie threw us a party but you weren’t awake for it. We just finished up and they headed off to the Town Hall to wait for the Princess.”
“The Princess! I have to warn her! I found a book on the Elements of Harmony and it says the only way Nightmare Moon was defeated was through the power of the elements! I have to convince her we need to find them before Nightmare Moon escapes before it’s too late!”
“But Twilight!” Spike watched as Twilight galloped out of the room at full speed, heading towards the Town Hall and sighed. Shrugging, he casually jogged after her as fast as he was willing to go.
Twilight could see Town Hall and was about to use her magic to throw open the doors when they suddenly burst open, a shadowy mist flying out at speeds that made it look like a blur.
“Come back here!” Shouted a rainbow colored pegasus as she tried to give chase, giving up as soon as the mist disappeared from sight. Twilight watched as the pegasus’ head lower in despair as she lowered herself to the ground.
“Excuse me, do you know what that was?” Asked Twilight through her pants.
The Pegasus looked at Twilight, her eyes filled with hopelessness and said, “She said she was Nightmare Moon and she said she ‘did away with’ Princess Celestia.”
Twilight took a few steps back before sitting down on her haunches. She looked at the ground in disbelief as her worst fears have been confirmed.
“But who are you anyways? Are you a spy?!” Asked the Pegasus as she regained her thoughts and senses.
“A spy? For who, Nightmare Moon? I didn’t even know what was going on until now and you think I’m a spy?”
“Well excuse me for seeing somepony new who just so happens to appear right when all this starts up!”
“It’s alright Rainbow Dash! She’s not a spy, she came with me from Canterlot to check on the preparations for the Festival!” Cried out Spike who just managed to catch up.
“Spike? She’s with you?” Asked RD, looking over Twilight with skeptism.
“Yes, I was researching the legends pertaining to Nightmare Moon’s return. and I-” started Twilight until she was interrupted by another voice.
“Hold up, so ya’ll ‘re sayin’ that ya know what’s goin’ on?” Asked an orange pony who emerged from the Town Hall with a few other ponies close behind.
“Hey Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and… Rarity…” Greeted Spike, the last name he spoke with such adoration that even Twilight picked up he had a crush on.
“Well darling? Are you going to finish what you were saying earlier before you were so rudely interrupted?” Asked Rarity as she moved some hair out of her face.
“Right, I found the only weapon powerful enough to defeat Nightmare Moon can only be found in the Ancient Castle of the Two Sisters. The Six Elements of Harmony that represents Honesty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, and Loyalty. The last element is unknown and will only show when a spark ignites the magic of the elements.”
“So all we have to do is go and find these weapons right? Well let me at ‘em!” Yelled Rainbow Dash as she flew up into the air.
“No, I will go alone since one pony would attract less attention from Nightmare Moon. It would be best for you all to go back to your homes and keep everyone here indoors until Princess Celestia is able to raise the sun.” Said Twilight before running off on her own. A few of them tried to call out to her but she ignored them as she believed they would only slow her down.
Her gallop slowed to a trot as she got deeper in the Everfree Forest, the path getting harder and harder to see as the canopy blocked the moonlight more and more. Her trot eventually slowed to a careful walk as she could barely see her hooves in front of her face. She continued until finally she rested against a tree, letting her eyes accustom to the darkness.
“Wow, the forest gets really dark it’s so hard to see even a few inches ahead of me… If only I had a light… Oh right, magic.” Said Twilight with an embarrassed giggle before lighting up her horn, illuminating the area around her to find herself face to face with a pack of wolves made of wood. The lead wolf snarled, baring it’s fangs as it inched closer to Twilight, its yellow eyes glowing with hunger. It lunged forwards to find it’s face colliding into a tree as Twilight ducked and started to run deeper into the forest.
“What do I do? What do I do?” She asked herself over and over again as she started to duck and weave between the trees, doing her best to avoid the jaws and claws of the Timberwolves that wanted to eat her alive.
Sliding to a stop, she found herself at the edge of a steep slope and almost falling over the edge. She quickly turned around to see the Timberwolves slowly inching towards her, watching intently for any signs of movement to anticipate how she would try to escape. One finally grew tired of the waiting game and lunged at Twilight, its jaws snapping at thin air as Twilight fell backwards down the slope and finally into the river. The Wolves peered over the edge, howled in anger of losing a meal and disappeared.
Twilight burst out from under the surface of the water, gasping for air after being stunned from the fall. She coughed up some water that managed to slip into her lungs before looking around. She was finally safe from the wolves but now she realized that she would have to drag herself through the river to reach the other side of the bank where, at the top of another slope, she could see the tops of towers that just had to be part of the castle she was looking for.
“Oh Princess Celestia… I wish you would have listened to me and prepared yourself for her return…,” said Twilight as she tried to pull herself onto what looked like a stepping stone that spanned the river. But as she managed to get her full weight on it, the stone shifted and a tail threw her back into the river.
Twilight burst through the surface with another desperate gasp for air before seeing what it was that threw her. A giant crocodile had woke up when she tried to climb it and was now looking at her with such hunger in its eyes. Twilight screamed as she knew she was no match for the beast in the water but her cries for help was cut short as a shadow blocked out not only the moonlight, but the entire sky.
There was a deafening screech as something heavy crashed through the surface of the water and what sounded like giant wings flapping pulled the shadow away from the surface. Twilight dared to open her eyes towards the shadow to see it flying away as a silhouette against the luminescent surface of the moon, the shadow of the crocodile as a tiny speck in its talon. Twilight immediately recognized the bird-like shadow as a Roc, a bird claimed to be as large as a mountain and lays stone eggs the size of hills once every thousand years or so.
As Twilight pulled herself onto the shoreline, she collapsed in a whimper. She didn’t want to do this anymore. She was tired, battered from the elements, her confidence was beaten by the struggles against the forest, and to top it all off she may have to confront Nightmare Moon to retrieve the Elements of Harmony. She laid there on her back, staring at the stars in the sky and the moon that was now bare of the mark that was the proof of the legend as her mind started to grow blank.
Almost as if someone was calling for her to move, she could feel herself being forced to her stand. No matter how much she fought it, she could feel herself getting up. Behind her eyelids, she could see images of ponies in pain, suffering under the tyrannical rule of Nightmare Moon and she started to steel herself. She couldn’t let this future happen without giving it her all. She may not be able to defeat Nightmare Moon on her own with her meager powers, but maybe she could get the Elements to ‘spark’ like it said in the reference guide, she could use their powers with the final hidden element and defeat the Evil Goddess.
It took her a half hour to find a safe way up the river bank and get to the front of the castle. Her breath was heavy, not from the long trip but from the anticipation of confronting her worst fears and nightmares. She stepped lightly through the front entrance, her eyes scanning the walls, balconies, the rafters, everywhere for any signs of the evils that await her… She scoured the hallways, the dusty rooms, the library (where she did her best to keep herself focused on the task at hand), and finally found herself in the Ball Room where a statue near the back caught her attention. A mysterious structure bearing five orbs of stone with a strange marking on each one of them which, Twilight could guess, represented the element they were supposed to portray.
“The Elements.” Said Twilight with a look of joy as she started to run towards the statue. But she slid to a stop as she watched a purple and black mist rise from the ground and swirl around the statue, a heinous laugh filled the air as Nightmare Moon stood upon the nearby stage with the elements laying on the ground around her.
“We must applaud thee, our little pony, for thou hast done well to make it this far. Pray tell, what is thy name.” Asked Nightmare Moon, her voice thunderous as she used the Old Canterlot Royal Voice as she found proper.
Twilight hesitated, her eyes fixed on the elements for a moment before looking towards Nightmare Moon with determination and strength. “My name is Twilight Sparkle, student under the direct supervision of Princess Celestia.”
“Twilight Sparkle? Thou hast a very mysterious name. She has chosen well to have a pupil strong enough to brave the forest and find herself standing before us. But we have a proposition for thee: Thou leaveth Celestia’s side and join us as our pupil. It would be nice to have such a promising youth to serve under us.” Said Nightmare Moon with a laugh.
Twilight didn’t even bother with a response as her horn started to glow, her head lowered towards the ground as she pointed her horn towards Nightmare Moon. “Thou must be joking. Does thou truly believe that thou can defeat us? Fine, if thou shalt stay loyal to Celestia, then you can join her in eternal nightmare!”
Twilight fired a beam of magical energy from her horn before Nightmare Moon slipped around it was a wisp, her essence quickly surrounding Twilight before flinging her into a nearby pillar. The unicorn screamed out in pain as she could feel a rib crack upon landing on the ground and slowly tried to push herself to her hooves through the pain. Stumbling to her hooves, she watched as the mist materialized through her tears before a beam of light struck the ground beside her, launching her into the middle of the room the cracked rib fully breaking and digging deep into her muscle.
She screamed as she felt a hoof fall upon her side, digging into her body and making it so much harder to breath. Through the haze, she found herself staring longingly at the entryway as she heard the voice of Nightmare Moon shout at her but her senses were dulled from the pain. A bright light started to blind her as she whispered her final words: “Somepony… Anypony… Please help me.”
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Twilight suddenly awoke from her vision to find Insanity sitting at his desk, reading a book with bubbles over the cover. He was laughing periodically while pushing up his reading glasses when they slip down his nose. He looked up towards Twilight who was staring at him and with an awkward laugh, he set the book down and took off his reading glasses before standing while clearing his throat.
“I was, er, reading up the lifestyle of a particular pony I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting first hand. She… Well, she screws up everything she does… Because of her eyes you know… And she, well… Where the hell am I getting at and why am I still talking about it? Welcome back Twilight! How was your trip back from the movies?”
“Trip to the what?”
“The movies! You know, pictures on the big screen? Well, in this case you were dreaming weren’t you…? Maybe I should have said, ‘Good Morning, how was your nap?’ No, that wouldn’t be right either...”
“So no matter what I do, I’m no match for Nightmare Moon… I guess that’s it then. It’s all over…”
“What are you talking about Twilight? Why do you think you are here in the first place! Why do you think I’ve been pulling you here time and time again after each and everyone of your failures?”
“What are you talking about? This is the first time I’ve even seen this place!” Shouted Twilight as she stamped her hoof on the coffee table just in front of her.
“Oh that’s because I screwed up and kept making you forget over and over again. But now you will remember what you have done before! I mean, that’s what the whole point of this game we agreed on after all.”
“Game? What game?”
“You don’t remember the game?! Of everything that has happened between us Twilight, I’ve thought you would at least remember that one little detail. Do I really have to go over the game and it’s rules with you? I’ve already explained it a thousand times over,” said Insanity as his shoulders slumped and he fell back into his office chair, spinning around as he did so.
“And who’s fault is that? Certainly not mine,” said Twilight with an annoyed look. “If you made me forget everything over and over again, that’s something you are going to have to deal with.”
Insanity leaned back in his office chair until he suddenly fell with a sudden yelp, snapping Twilight out of her attitude as she looked towards the desk. Suddenly, Insanity appeared sitting next to her, making her nearly jump off the couch. “Relax, my dear Twilight. Just relax. I’ll fix everything in time. While I do, I guess I’ll just go ahead and tell you about the game:
“The game is designed to have you live your life over and over again until you live the best possible life, a life where you die of old age and with no regrets. The rules are simple: 1) You die, you start over…”
Twilight stared at Insanity for a moment before raising an eyebrow. “And?”
“And what? That was it! No more rules, just live the best life you could! But you know what, I think I shall add one more rule to the mix: 2) If you tell anypony about the game, you must start over again. This means you can’t even tell Princess Celestia about the game or how you know what will happen. I don’t want them all to think you are crazy now do we?”
Twilight looked towards the ground, thinking her options before turning her head towards Insanity only to find him inches away with his toothy grin and eyes opened wide. “So you ready to go?” Asked Insanity as he raised a hand. Before Twilight could say anything, Insanity snapped his fingers and her world went dark.
Nightmare Moon - Attempt 2-23
“Look at the brightside, Twilight! Princess Celestia arranged you to stay at the library in town so you at least can look forwards to reading tonight!” Came a familiar voice.
Twilight opened her eyes and looked around to find herself riding the carriage pulled by two pegasi of the Canterlot Royal Guard. Besides her stood Spike, parishment in hand and with a familiar smile on his face. Twilight thought to herself for a moment remembering as much as she could before realizing that this must be the work of Insanity. She turned to Spike with a smile.
“Hey Spike, can you do me a favor?”
“Sure, what do you need?”
The chariot landed and Twilight thanked the two guards before turning towards Spike again. “I have to do something really quick, can you start the inspection without me? I’m sure you can handle it.”
“Wait, Twilight!” Spike called out to her as she didn’t even bother waiting for a reply. But instead of heading straight to the Golden Oaks Library, she decided she would get to the castle as quickly as possible. Maybe if she could get there early, she could find the Elements of Harmony before Nightmare Moon does, she could discover how to use them and defeat Nightmare Moon.
Twilight’s gallop slowed to a trot and then to a slow walk as she approached the Everfree Forest’s edge. She took a deep breath and pushed herself forwards, hoping that she would not encounter the terrifying creatures that chased her last time. Her eyes darted from shadow to shadow as she started to go deeper into the forest, thankful that the sun’s light was strong enough to pierce through the leaves and light up the pathway. She only hoped that this pathway would take her straight to the castle itself.
About a quarter mile into the forest, Twilight came across a fork in the road with no indication on where to go. She looked into the distance of each pathway, unable to see if either leads to the castle but both turns in opposite directions. Twilight sat on her haunches, hoof to chin, as she thought about the last time she went into the forest. Could she determine the direction of the castle even though it was so dark out that she couldn’t tell which way she was facing?
She decided to take the left path, as she felt she ducked to the left more when being chased by the Timberwolves, trotting down the path as fast as she was willing to go. The trees started to blend into a brownish blur as she went down the path, merely scanning for trouble before turning the corner where she broke into a full gallop. It wasn’t long before Twilight encountered an obstacle.
She happened across a rather large and fast flowing river with a single bridge spanning it’s width but the top of it was blocked by what looked like a giant rock. Twilight groaned as she approached the rock, wondering how she was going to move it. Her horn lit up as she attempted to move it but jumped back when the rock started to move on it’s own. It stood up on it’s hind legs and turned around to face Twilight with a gravelly voice, “Who trying to cross MY bridge?”
The creature was hunched forwards but still stood nearly seven feet tall. It’s skin was rough and cracked with bumps all over, some of them oozing out pus. Scars ran deep in its skin showing that it has fought hard to keep its bridge. It’s beady black eyes stared down at Twilight as it swung the makeshift club against it’s hand in a threatening manner.
Twilight took a step back, intimidated by the creature at first but decided that if it could talk, maybe she could reason with it. “Er, Good day Mr. Troll. I, um, I would like to cross your bridge if that is alright with you.”
“No,” said the Troll. His breath was so vile, Twilight could feel herself almost throw up as soon as she got a whiff. “You no cross my bridge. You go away.” The troll froze as they both heard its stomach growl. “Hungry… Okay, you cross when you give food.” With that, the troll curled up into his sleeping position without another word.
“Give food? But… What do trolls eat?” Wondered Twilight to herself as she turned around, heading back to the pathway. She looked around and noticed a tree with a curious type of fruit.
She levitated it down with her telekinesis and inspected it closer. It’s skin was thin and waxy, kind of like a lemon’s skin and had five prominent ridges that ran from the top to the bottom.She pulled it in half and looked at the inside and noticed that the fruit made a star shape.
Taking a lick of the fruit, she pulled back a little bit but thought that the combination of sweet and sour was rather delicious. She ate the rest of the star fruit herself before pulling off several off the tree and headed back to the bridge.
“Hello? I brought you some food Mr. Troll.”
The creature stood up and once again, turned towards Twilight. It’s eyes focusing on the fruit that she had brought before looking back towards her. He takes the fruit as she levitates them towards him and throws them all into his mouth in one go. As he chewed, Twilight thought it was safe to cross but suddenly she felt a large hand wrap around her.
“Wa-wait! What are you doing?! I thought we had an agreement.” Shouted Twilight as she frantically tried to break free of the creature’s grasp.
“Still hungry. You no pass,” said the Troll as he started to squeeze a little tighter. “You make good meal too.” Twilight screamed as the troll lifted his club with his free hand and swung down hard…
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Twilight jolted up in a familiar room. The couch, red and bouncy, cushioned her exasperated sigh as she let herself lay back down. She stared at the light above her wondering if this was real still before a familiar face came into view and hovered over her.
“Welcome back my dear, Twilight. Nasty creatures those trolls are. Not satisfied with anything and will never let anything across their bridge without a wallop.” Said Insanity with a smiling sigh. He shrugged his shoulders, palms open to the ceiling before backing out of Twilight’s sight.
“Insanity? So this is real…” Said Twilight as she sat up, only to have her ears droop upon the realization.
“Oh why so glum, chum? Disappointed I wasn’t your dear Princess Celestia? Come now, I thought you would be glad to have another crack at those Elements of Harmony!” Said Insanity as he sat down in his office chair and kicked up his feet onto his desk. He reached towards the ground and then proceeded to lift up two tea cup, a tea pot, a plate piled high with triangle sandwiches, a stand holding a plate of scones with a glass dome lid over it, a few napkins, and a greyish pony holding a cello and bow.
“What the- what happened? Where am I?” Asked the pony looking around frantically.
“Miss Octavia, it seems you have died with some doubts in your past life. I think it had something to do with an object that wubs,” said Insanity as he set the pony down. As she looked at him, he turned towards Twilight and motioned for her to sit down. “So I’ll make you a deal. Play some music for me and my friend here while we have a friendly little chat, and I’ll send you back to before you and Vinyl had that ‘heated’ argument.”
Octavia was going to say start asking questions but then sighed. “I suppose… I didn’t think that the bass cannon was something she actually made but… I guess I’m wrong.”
“Yes, yes. You’ll have your chance to apologize, so please play for us, if you would.” Said Insanity as he started to pour tea into the cups.
Octavia gave another sigh before putting the bow to the cello, producing the most entrancing music ever as Twilight reluctantly walked over and sat down opposite of Insanity. Twilight kept glancing over towards Octavia, wondering if she knew of Insanity as well.
“So… Why do you keep doing this?” Asked Twilight, her horn glowing as she levitated her tea cup to her lips.
“Doing what?”
“This. Making us relive our lives until we live the best life possible?”
Insanity looked at Twilight with a solemn look as he set down the tea cup on the saucer. He rested his hands upon the knee of a leg he crossed before taking in a slow deep breath.
“This may be hard for you to believe, but my kind are not all inherently evil. In fact, we don’t understand this moral system of good and evil you mortals have developed. No, we take interest in a particular aspect of each one of your lives and observe. My interests lies in the tenacity of those who cling to life, trying to make the best out of it as they can.”
“So this game is a way for you to help us?”
“Oh no, no, no. Far from it. Your struggles are just so interesting and entertaining because if you are given the same situation to deal with, you all take another route than you normally do with the hopes of the same results you imagined in the first place. Much to the opposite of my name, if I may add.”
“What do you mean?”
“Tell me Twilight, do you know the definition of Insanity?”
“Of course, it’s the process of doing the same steps over and over again but expecting different results… Oh, I see what you mean. So you are interested in our sanity then?”
“My dear Twilight, there is no such thing as sanity or insanity. Think about it: No matter the situation, you try something new every time expecting the results you want to happen. Do this enough times and the process itself is insanity. They just end up cancelling each other out by definition.”
Twilight didn’t have a response for that. Hypothetical debates are hardly ever won or even worth the effort to pursue. She started eating a sandwich as Insanity went back to enjoying his tea, wondering what he was going to do next. Nearly five minutes of silence passed before Twilight set down her tea cup with a loud clang before slamming her hooves on the table. Octavia stopped playing, startled by the sudden upstart from Twilight.
“I can’t take it! What do you want from me?!”
“What, can’t I have a simple cup of tea with a friend?”
“We are not friends, Insanity.”
“Just because you don’t see me as a friend doesn’t mean I can’t see you as one. Besides, come here enough times and you will learn to enjoy my company. But if you want to go back so badly without enjoying yourself for a while longer, I’ll be happy to oblige.”
Before Twilight could say anything, Insanity lifted a hand while taking a sip of tea and snapped his fingers enveloping Twilight in darkness.
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Twilight opened her eyes to see a familiar sight. She was back at the bridge, the troll was slowly laying back down on the bridge. She looked around and saw the star fruit tree that she picked fruit from the last time. She looked towards the ground with a sigh.
”He sent me back to this point? I guess this would be where I’d ask him to put me if he could instead of the beginning..” She thought to herself with a weary smile.
Twilight looked back to the troll and thought about it, the creature was not satisfied with the star fruits that she brought it and insisted on eating her. At least it had the decency of knocking her out before it did that. ”So the creature is an omnivore? That means it eats fruits, vegetables and meats, right? Oh, why did I have to encounter such a creature..”
Twilight walked back a bit deeper into the forest before slipping between the trees to look for something for the troll to eat. It was not long before she happened across a gathering of rabbits that immediately scattered in every direction. Twilight gave chase to every single rabbit that was closest to her but eventually gave up in frustration.
“Get back here you furry balls of cotton,” shouted Twilight as he horn started to glow, lifting several of the rabbits into the air. Levitating them close to her, she look at each and every one of them with sorrowful eyes as they gazed back at her with looks of despair and fear. “I’m sorry but I need to get to the Castle of the Two Sisters. Please forgive me…”
With that, Twilight returned to the bridge with more fruit from the tree she found earlier and presented them to the troll. It grabbed the rabbits, still alive and trying to squirm free, and gruesomely bit off their heads in one fell bite. Twilight cringed at the sight of the blood splashing all over the trolls hand and even a few drops falling upon her.
The troll finished eating and looked back to Twilight, licking the remaining blood off it’s fingers. He reached over and picked up Twilight in one of it’s grimy hands. “W-wait! I thought you had enough to eat! What are you-”
Then the troll placed her down on the opposite side of the bridge. “Pony feed me. Grull did as pony ask and let pony pass. Grull goes to sleep now.”
Twilight watched as the troll laid down back on the bridge and went to sleep. It was a curious sight, a creature so brutal could also have enough sense of honor to keep its word. Twilight shook her head to clear her thoughts as she refocused herself to the task at hand. Continuing forwards, Twilight continued down the path hoping to get to the castle before it grew dark.
As she continued down the path, she found herself staring into a cavern where the path seemed to continue on through. Twilight wondered if this was pony-made and was also a way to the castle but when she looked towards the sky through an opening in the trees, she could tell that she would have to ponder on that another time; the sun was quickly going down.
She ventured into the cave, keeping to the pathway as best as she could in the darkness but it wasn’t long before she heard a familiar sound: a low raspy growl. Her immediate thought was that she had wandered into a den of Timberwolves as she brightened up her surroundings with her horn… But instead she found herself face to face with an Ursa Major with her cub, just waking up because of the light.
Oh no, thought Twilight as she started to back away from the two. The Ursa’s rubbed the sleepiness out of their eyes before they got a good look at whoever just rudely woke them up. Their first reaction was curiousity, what was this creature in front of them? Is it a threat? Is it food? Why does she glow a bright light in such a dark cave?
Finally, the minor started to get tired of the light and swiped its paw at Twilight. Twilight lowered her horn and a beam of magic came out in defense, knocking back the cub’s paw and causing the Ursa Minor to give a cry of surprise. The Ursa Major was not too fond of Twilight doing that.
The Major gave out a roar with Twilight in near point blank range, throwing Twilight against the wall with the force of it’s voice. The unicorn didn’t know what to do at this point, her eyes darting from left to right and back to the left trying in vain to find a fast way out. Her attention turned back to the Ursa Major as it lifted a giant paw and swung it at her… The last thing Twilight felt was her head ripping off her shoulders from the sheer force.
______________________________________________________________________________
Twilight awoke in the office yet again, groaning upon recognition. She slowly deadpanned to her left as if expecting Insanity to be sitting next to her doing something utterly ridiculous as he normally did.
“I’d say welcome back but then I’d just be repeating myself for the twentieth time.” Said Insanity from Twilight’s right, causing her to jump. Twilight turned towards Insanity to find him in a chef’s top hat and wearing an apron that had the words ‘Kiss the cook” designed on it. Oddly enough, it was encrusted with a rather large amount of gemstones that Twilight thought looked familiar but couldn’t quite put her hoof on it.
“You know, if you could just lend me a hoof, things would be easier and you wouldn’t be so annoyed all the time. You do know what I need to do to defeat Nightmare Moon, right?” Asked Twilight moreover annoyed with Insanity refusing to help her. That was the thirteenth time she had died to the Ursas. She already tried stealth, rushing through, appeasing, outright fighting, pretty much everything one could think of doing but the results were the same. She couldn’t just get by the mother and her cub.
“Twilight, my dear. You know I hate spoiling an ending for anypony, right? Besides, you know as well as I do that your story is still an ongoing one and thus… There is no ending to be told.” Insanity flipped a patty on a grill, smiling to himself as he continued to cook.
“If there is no ending, why do you always act as if you know what I should be doing in the first place?” Cried out Twilight in frustration. She threw up her hooves to bring them down on the sofa that she sat upon only to find herself hitting nothing. She looked around to now find herself at a dinner table on a seat being pushed in by Insanity. In front of her was a freshly grilled hay burger, one of the few delights she experienced in Canterlot.
Twilight eyed the burger and Insanity as the man walked around the table and sat down with his food, a wonderfully grilled steak with a side salad. Twilight shuddered at the thought of a sentient creature being eaten but forced herself to remember that Insanity was not really part of her world.
Insanity picked up a bottle that read ‘A1 Steak Sauce’ before looking back towards Twilight with a sigh. “It’s true, I already have spoiled myself to your ending by being involved with another pony in your world. Her fate was rather tied to yours in the end but that was only her story. Truth be told Twilight, though I am interested in seeing you live the happiest life you can have, I’m more interested in the failed attempts you take to get there.
“As such, I just refuse to give you the answer straight out of the gate. To see what lengths you will go to in order to defeat Nightmare Moon and return Eqeustria to the peaceful lands it once was.” Finished Insanity after drowning his meal in the steak sauce. Twilight grumbled under her breath for a moment, levitating the burger to her mouth before taking a bite.
Much to her surprise, it tasted like the very first hay burger she ever had when she was a filly, before her taste buds had even considered the burger something edible. She quickly scarfed the burger down, reminiscing in her childhood with her brother and foalsitter, Cadence. Then she was rudely awoken by Insanity as he handed her a napkin, explaining she had grease and ketchup all over her face.
Twilight grew a bit embarrassed that Insanity saw that part of her, accepting the napkin with her magic. Insanity however, paid no attention to it. He immediately went back to his meal finishing up the last few bites before wiping his own mouth. “So have to figured out how to get by the Ursas? Or are you going to try a different path?”
Twilight looked towards Insanity in surprise. This was the first time he asked her if she would like to try something different further back in her timeline. “What do you mean?” Asked Twilight wondering if her guess was what Insanity offered.
Insanity took a few drinks from his cup before setting it down with a satisfied sigh. “I mean that I don’t have to send you moments before your last death. If you want, I can send you further back in your life to another milestone so you can try something different.”
Insanity leaned back in his chair as he looked towards Twilight with a sly smile. It wasn’t like his usual toothy grin which made Twilight believe that he had an ulterior motive for his actions.
“You’re getting a laugh out of how I die aren’t you?”
“Of course I am! What makes you think otherwise? It’s so interesting to see how many times you are going to repeat yourself until you finally decide that what you are doing will get you nowhere. Once that happens, I’ll let you start off at any point in time you have already lived. So in the end, I’m still helping you.”
Twilight sat back and contemplated the new opportunities that Insanity had just presented her. She realized now that she could easily change any decision she made before and change her own future, not having to keep tackling the same obstacle again and again. Twilight looked towards Insanity with hopeful eyes and with a small smile asked, “Can you send me back to the fork in the road?”
“Your will be done my dear.” Said Insanity with a toothy smile and snapped his fingers.
