Princess Luna's eyes scanned across Equestria for any signs of danger. Normally, she would stand at the top of the palace tower in Canterlot and gaze out across the dark lands as her moon illuminated the villages and towns, but for the past few days she had been having trouble merely standing by, and she could no longer do so. If her fears were realized then Equestria would be placed in the utmost danger and she wasn’t sure it could survive this particular danger, no matter who stood against it.
Still, if she could prevent it, if she could stop it before it began, then nopony would have to worry and she could keep her secret to herself. She hated herself for allowing the situation to get this far out of hoof, but she wasn’t thinking right all those years ago, and up until very recently she hadn’t given thought to her dark creation. She had created it shortly before she became Nightmare Moon, and that monster was going to be the ace up her sleeve. It was the perfect weapon to fight alongside her and vanquish any foe that stood against her. She dreaded the thought of having to face what she specifically made to be unstoppable.
The signs were clear; she could not put it off any longer. If it was awakening, she had to be there. Her presence might just complete the awakening cycle and unleash her dark creation, but if she could arrive in time and stop the process altogether, then this hellish curse could be ended once and for all and disaster would be averted.
The mountains were cold and quiet as Luna descended upon them. She was almost out of Equestrian territory by now, but she had intended for her weapon to be kept hidden from Celestia’s gaze all along. To both her relief and dread, Celestia never did find out about her secret work here. Part of her wished that her older sister did figure it out, but the creature had been asleep for over 1,000 years and it was being awoken by something…she was sure of that now. Perhaps its power had just grown too immense to remain in a state of slumber.
She could feel the power flowing out of the cavern’s maw, enticing the monster to retreat from its sleep and return to Equestria to fulfill its mission. Her royal etiquette and posture left her as the mountain wind blew past her backside and through her mane, leaving her to quietly and quickly enter the darkness of the cave. Her very presence was disturbing to the natural order of the cavern and the chills she got when she wandered in were proof of that. She heard her words from long ago echo throughout the rock passages; dark magic was a truly awful force to get involved with, and a horrifying opposition to fight.
Let one rise that shall not fall; let one come from beyond who cannot fail,
Let him conquer in the name of night; let him make the sun’s light frail.
Let one come who will not be deterred and will not be defeated,
Let one come who knows death, and Tartarus, has cheated.
Let my champion arise from black fire and complete his lunar task:
Let him vanquish all the sun’s light; let nopony in such things bask.
The words of Luna’s ancient enchantment crept along the walls and whispered in the wind. She vaguely remembered her words echoing around her as she brought it to life, but they were hardly noticeable. Now, they overtook any possible majestic qualities of the mountain and corrupted it entirely, made it shadow, kept it in darkness and despair.
Luna looked behind her before going down another dark passageway that had been forged from the rock long ago. She followed it down as the enchantment rang out again, slightly louder and more intimidating this time. She had to compose herself every so often, for the darkness inherent in the cave was shed from her own spirit once upon a time, and she knew that while that side of her was completely subdued, it was not destroyed. It could never truly be destroyed, not in her, not in anypony. Yet as she drew near the creation of her dark magic and evil spirit, that side of her screamed and fought to come out again and rule her as it once did. She was the slightest bit tempted to unlock the prison for it and let it possess her in an unholy corruption, but such thoughts were immediately swept away by the light inside of her.
At last she came upon its chamber. The entrance was sealed away by a magical spell that was impossible for almost anypony to undo, but being the caster, she was easily able to release it, and did so with uneasy confidence.
A foul wind shot through the stone gates as they opened. A black, magical aura encased the lone, still figure of a pony in its power. When she last left it, the magic around the figure was barely sustaining it, but keeping it preserved until she needed it. Because she was never able to summon it to her before her banishment, it had been resting all that time, gathering in strength and raw power.
Let one rise that shall not fall; let one come from beyond who cannot fail,
Let him conquer in the name of night; let him make the sun’s light frail.
Let one come who will not be deterred and will not be defeated,
Let one come who knows death, and Tartarus, has cheated.
Let my champion arise from black fire and complete his lunar task:
Let him vanquish all the sun’s light; let nopony in such things bask.
Her old words were now encased in a shadowed voice that instilled doubt and fear into Luna’s soul. She shed a single tear and gathered her magic to her horn, preparing to forever end what she had desecrated and brought back so long ago for such a futile purpose.
Yet as her horn glowed brightly a new aura entered the room and blew past her. Her eyes widened with shock as the familiar energies of the Nightmare Force, that which stalked her as she descended into jealousy and frustration, and later even possessed her and turned her into Nightmare Moon, entered the dark aura of the still figure.
She fired her magic at it and encased within her blast as much power as she could muster, so much so that her horn was singed and smoked as she saw the figure’s eyes go white and absorb the power of her attack. It had been lying on a rock slab when she entered, but now it levitated and slowly turned its face towards her.
“No…” She whispered in disbelief and fled as it set its hooves on the stone floor, keeping its head down and white eyes looking into the mountain below it.
She was too late; doom was certain for Equestria now, for The Reaper of the Night, the Darkest Warrior of the Moon, the horrifying and dreaded Deadpony had awakened.
Luna raced through the skies as thunderclouds began to form around the mountain range she left behind. She knew that the ponies in the villages and settlements near her old hideout were in grave danger, but she had to find Celestia first. When her sister knew of Luna’s mistake they could take action against it together, but to act alone was foolish. Luna wasn’t strong enough alone, and even with Celestia it would be almost impossible to defeat the Deadpony now that the Nightmare Force had empowered and possessed it. Thunder struck and lashed out from the skies near the mountains as they shrunk from Luna’s view. Time was of the essence now that it had been awakened. Time was another enemy they had to fight in this battle.
…
Celestia’s face seemed fixated on the floor while Luna revealed all that she had done before her betrayal and banishment. The Princess of the Sun took in the information and dwelt on it, dissected it for details and hints as to any possible weakness or strategy worthy of use against the Deadpony. Luna looked somewhat flustered and ashamed, but to her credit did not cry or break down, and was able to admit her foolish actions with bravery and a will to amend the situation. When Luna had finished explaining, her sister looked up with solemnity and what Luna could best describe as a pained look.
“Sister, I am…very sorry and very ashamed for doing this and I-“ Luna tried to explain her actions, but was stopped quickly with only a glance from her older sister.
“I understand your actions. We can discuss this more later if you’d like, but I do not hold this against you any more than I do myself. It was an action taken out of spite and fueled by anger...an anger directed at me. I think we both hold regrets from those days, but we now must deal with the Deadpony and ensure Equestria survives,” Celestia said with an urgency that combined well with her natural grace and understanding, making her the ultimate leader in Luna’s eyes.
The Princess of the Night nodded in agreement and watched her sister fly up to the balcony, following her a few seconds later. The moon was still shining proudly and the land still shrouded in many places as the sisters looked out earnestly towards the mountain range that kept the Deadpony hidden for so long.
“How did you create the Deadpony, Luna?” Celestia asked after a few seconds of gazing out upon the gathering storm from the direction of the mountains.
“I used a long dead pony warrior…before you and I ascended, before Starswirl…before most known history, he existed, I think,” Luna answered, a little bit of the shame from before coming back to her as she explained.
“What made him so special?”
“I was…drawn to him. I stumbled upon his makeshift grave by accident, actually, in a forgotten battleground not far from those mountains. I do not know for sure, but I believe the Nightmare Force possessed him once, before finding me. I think it drew me to him in my quest for a loyal, powerful ally.”
“I see…that is most troubling.”
“Somehow I knew that the long dead unicorn was powerful, and I knew I could make him even more powerful if I reanimated him, so I began exploring dark magic. Not long after that, I had created an undead warrior to do my bidding, and shortly thereafter, I became Nightmare Moon.”
“Perhaps if the Deadpony has a connection to the Nightmare Force we can exploit it,” Celestia wondered aloud to her sister, “You were defeated with the Elements of Harmony, so I’d naturally assume that would be our best bet against him.”
“I would think the same thing, but having reanimated him myself, I know that he is specifically resistant to most magical attacks, and even a potent blast of mine when he was just awakening had no effect. I know the Elements are powerful, but I’m not sure if their magic is more powerful than that which binds together the Deadpony,” Luna replied and got closer to her sister as the Princess of Day began to write on a scroll.
“In any case, we need all the help we can get. I’m summoning the Elements now.”
“Should we get Cadence and Shining Armor?” Luna asked and looked out to the storm again as its ominous clouds crept slowly away from the refuge of the mountains and towards the citizens in the outskirts of the land.
“Yes. The Deadpony is certainly a force to be reckoned with, and I doubt we could defeat him without all three Princesses.”
“Sister…?” Luna asked, sounding more unsure than ashamed for the first time.
“We will defeat him Luna. Equestria has faced grim odds before, but the Nightmare Force fared as well as Sombra, Discord, or Tirek from long ago. The Deadpony is not unbeatable,” Celestia assured and finished her letter, transporting it to Twilight Sparkle in Ponyville.
“I know we will…I was just going ask you if you knew the Spell of Reanimation Unsealing.”
“What?” Celestia asked, caught off guard, her eyes going wide for a moment, and then smiling softly for a brief second, replied, “I do not know it. I am aware of it and I know Starswirl knew it, but I do not. It is a rare magical talent.”
Luna looked down in disappointment, “To reanimate a pony, only one is needed, but to break a reanimation spell, two are required. Is there anypony else who would know it?”
“I doubt Cadence would know it…and Shining Armor is completely unfamiliar with dark magic. If anypony else would know it or would know how to learn it, it would be Twilight.”
“Let us hope she can; the dark magic reanimation techniques are some of the most difficult to learn, and if you are not well prepared to learn it and commit to it, you will fail.”
“I know Twilight well enough to confidently tell you that while I and Cadence may not be able to learn it in time, Twilight will be. She exceeds both you and I in her ability to quickly and efficiently learn magic, she will go farther than any of us ever have before.”
“Very good…our attacks will likely prove ineffective, and I wasn’t sure another reanimation user could be found, but if Twilight is as good as you say, then we have a sure way of defeating the Deadpony.”
“Yes…the problem will be allowing the two users time and opportunity to cast it…and knowing how tough of a foe the Deadpony is, that will not be an easy feat,” Celestia commented grimly, yet still retained glimpses of her natural grace and composure.
“Agreed. I detest the notion of sending in guards, being that they are powerless against such a foe, but the Royals and the Element users alone cannot bring about the end of the Deadpony,” Luna told her sister, speaking the hard truth that Celestia, though used to bearing by now, still dreaded to acknowledge.
“I know. As guards it is their mission to defend Equestria at any cost, but it would not be unlike making a filly wrestle with a Manticore."
“They are prepared to do their jobs,” Luna responded, unsure if her elder sister had actually been considering not making the guards go, but the look the Princess of the Night received taught her better. Celestia valued all life, but she knew that the guards were trained to defend the land, no matter the opponent. To keep them from this battle would not only make a mockery of their work and their lives, but make the burden that much heavier for the Royals and the Elements.
“Then we should muster up the entire Canterlot force and gather the militias from nearby towns,” Luna said with a slight look of peculiarity, almost feeling as if she were giving orders to her sister.
“If only we had something else to rely on…” Celestia spoke up and trailed off, going deep into thought and leaving Luna silent as she prepared the summons for Cadence and Shining Armor.
“Do you have anything in mind?” Luna asked once she had gotten about halfway through the summons and noticed that her sister was still silent.
“I am ashamed to have thought such a thing,” Celestia admitted with what Luna was shocked to perceive as bashful embarrassment.
“What is it?” Luna again inquired, now quite curious to find out what Celestia was thinking.
“It is an unthinkable act that I refuse to resort to unless all else fails,” Celestia replied with more noticeable shame, and turned her head from Luna’s view.
“But what? Why won’t you tell me?” Luna asked in concern and the slightest of aggravation, having realized the immense threat of the Deadpony was already beginning to strain its opposition.
“No. I will not speak of it. It is something we cannot do. Not unless Equestria itself is at the very brink of utter destruction and absolute peril will I even consider taking this course of action. Do not persist in this matter,” Celestia warned and caused Luna to turn away silently and go look out at the storm again.
The first town was just barely out of reach of the fogs of the Deadpony, and she knew that soon enough Equestria itself would be in such danger. It was only a matter of time before all felt the wrath of the Deadpony.
…
Applejack and Rarity rushed into the Golden Oaks library as Owlowiscious let out a hoot while the winds tattered across the sleeping town.
“Twilight, everypony’s here!” Rainbow called out to a pacing Twilight, who quickly stumbled down stairs and ran towards the now completely gathered group of friends.
“Oh thank Celestia you’re finally here,” Twilight exclaimed, “we have to leave for Canterlot right away! Princess Celestia has already sent several sky chariots down for us.”
The group rushed outside behind the large tree and found six pegasi guards with three chariots waiting for them.
“Twilight, what in Sam Hay is going on?” Applejack asked, looking towards the purple unicorn, then at some of the others to see if they knew anything about the situation, but as of yet Twilight had not shared any information.
“A great danger is approaching Equestria,” Was all Twilight told them as she and Fluttershy got into the first chariot.
“Think you could explain a bit more than that?” Rainbow asked as she and Applejack climbed into the second chariot; Rarity and Pinkie hopped into the third, and then they were off.
“Princess Celestia has summoned us to Canterlot immediately in order to take up the Elements. A new threat has risen against Equestria. She called it by name only once…The Deadpony.”
“Deadpony?” Fluttershy repeated quickly and dove straight into Twilight’s side, grasping at it for dear life and looking around the chariot nervously as if the Deadpony itself was about to spring upon them any second.
“As in...dead…dead?” Applejack asked, fearing the answer to come.
“Yes. She didn’t tell me much, but the Deadpony is an ancient, undead warrior who has now been possessed by the Nightmare Force. This will be the toughest battle Equestria has faced in a long time.”
“Is he like Discord bad? Discord was pretty bad!” Pinkie exclaimed with a swift chipper that didn’t fit the situation well but fit Pinkie herself like a glove.
“Princess Celestia only said that the Deadpony is a threat not to be taken lightly,” Twilight replied in all seriousness.
“But surely the Elements can deal with this Deadpony, just like Discord and Nightmare Moon, right?” Rarity questioned as Canterlot drew nearer.
“Princess Celestia isn’t sure, but we have to try it. We have to try anything that might stop it,” Twilight responded and let herself exhale nervously as the group climbed the clouds.
For the next few minutes, silence abounded and the group was dropped off and greeted by Princesses Celestia and Luna, and lead towards the Elements.
“Thank you all for coming in this time of great need. I will not lie to you, this will be a vicious conflict, but with you there to assist us, it can be ended sooner and cause less destruction and pain,” Celestia welcomed the group while Luna chose to remain silent as they walked on.
“But Princess, where is the Deadpony? And what does he want?” Twilight eagerly inquired of her teacher.
“I won’t reveal everything to you, but I will tell you that he is coming here to Canterlot,” Celestia told them and raised her hoof out towards an ominous storm far away in the distance, “and he seeks only to bring pain and horrors upon Equestria in his pursuit to bring eternal darkness and evil.”
“Oh my…” Fluttershy cowered behind Rainbow, sticking close by the fellow pegasus as they entered the hall and walked on towards the room where the Elements were kept.
“Beware my little ponies,” Luna spoke to them for the first time, “I know his power well. You must be cautious at all times. Stay well behind us and use the Elements as soon as you can. If that does not work, then you must flee, for you will have no useful weapon against him.”
“I won’t run away, I’ll fight for Equestria until the end!” Rainbow boldly declared, but was shot a look that spoke of needed discipline by Luna as Celestia unlocked the door and the mane six took possession of their Elements once more.
“I will explain the plan of attack to you while we wait for Cadence and Shining Armor to arrive. Once we are all assembled, we will go out and meet him at the limits of the city,” Celestia declared and led them off, leaving behind only Luna, and Twilight, who had been stopped from going away.
“Twilight, you must work with me to learn a special spell that will be able to stop the Deadpony. Nopony else can learn it in time and you must be able to perform the spell with me if all else fails so that the Deadpony can be stopped,” Luna informed her sister’s pupil with a serious and commanding tone that felt a little unnatural to her character, but at the same time was a side of The Lunar Princess that Twilight admired and wanted to see more.
“What spell is it?” Twilight questioned Luna as she led her away from the room where the Elements were normally locked in.
“It is the spell of Reanimation Unsealing. It is a dark magic technique that is extremely difficult to learn and use in a short span of time, but you are special Twilight Sparkle, and you will be able to learn it in short time we have been allotted. I will guide you.”
“I understand,” Twilight replied with a boldness and determination to not let everypony down that actually shocked Luna for a small moment.
“The Deadpony will meet minimal resistance as it makes it way here, so we will have a limited amount of time to prepare. When it arrives, we must be ready to use the Elements and if need be, also this spell, to stop him.”
“How do we know it will come here?” Twilight asked, her curiosity to know the full complexity of the situation taking hold of her.
“It seeks to bring upon the world everlasting darkness. It will come after Celestia and I, for it is we that control the sun and moon.”
“I see…”
Luna took Twilight out to the gardens and stopped her in front of a batch of shrubbery.
“Now, focus Twilight Sparkle, focus on that bush,” Luna instructed, pointing towards a neatly trimmed Canterlot bush near them, “focus on its natural energy and life force, and when you can fully feel and grasp it, you must extinguish it.”
“Extinguish it?” Twilight asked in concern, completely breaking her concentration and looking on at the Princess of the Night with a look of concern.
“The Deadpony was raised as an undead reanimation. He has a life force, albeit a tainted and foul one, like everything else, and in order to stop him, we must be able to extinguish his life force. Unlike that bush, however, the Deadpony will be able to fight back and break our concentration and our hold on his life force. The idea is that the others will distract him long enough so that we can defeat him with his own conquered life force. Yet, you must be as skilled as you can be with the spell by the time he arrives, for it will be no easy task, regardless of the assistance we will receive,” Luna told her before making her focus on the bush again.
“OK…focus on the life force…” Twilight repeated and stood still, working on the spell that Luna and the others required her to learn. Twilight only hoped that things would never get so desperate.
Her friends watched Princess Celestia lie out the plan and give them their roles. Each was scared, especially poor Fluttershy, and each dreaded to meet the foe that caused them such fear to be born in the minds of the Princesses, but Twilight say them each ready to do their part. Their commitment made her all the more eager to play her own part and help stop the Deadpony before it was too late.
“Princess Luna?” Twilight caught the attention of the Princess of the Night who was looking out to the storm far away.
“Yes Twilight Sparkle?” Luna responded with the slightest of annoyance.
“How did the Deadpony find its way to Equestria…I mean, how did it get its purpose?”
“As I would expect you are the first to seek the knowledge behind our enemy. You need not concern yourself with his history, only know that he is a strong opponent that will not falter in his blows and will not easily allow himself to be destroyed. Be wary, Twilight Sparkle, be wary of this battle, and make sure you can do what id required of you.”
“Yes, Princess,” Twilight quickly replied and turned her focus back on the spell.
Clearly the sisters did not want to divulge the entire story, and it was not Twilight’s place to demand it, but she hoped that more would be revealed later.
…
A squadron of royal guards hurried through the quiet streets as citizens huddled together in fear as they passed before continuing to evacuate. The storm was abnormally low to the ground and very, very close to the small village.
“Get into position! He’s coming!” One of the officers shouted to the rest with confidence and pride in his command. Meanwhile the storm seemed to head over the nearby hill and a figure made its way up.
The unicorns got behind the Earth ponies while the Pegasi took flight, hovering above their comrades but taking care to avoid the wrath of the storm.
The lone figure of the Deadpony, now fully within sight, was covered with a black aura and many shadows. The body itself was composed of reanimated, black flesh and its eyes seemed to be sinister, bright, white flashes within the eye sockets, very much akin to the flowing mane and tail. Its horn had been cracked at some time in his life, and the crack also shone with white light. He was quite tall, taller than every guard present, and his cutie mark, a sword sticking into a grave, lit up with the same white light as the eyes as the soldiers looked intently upon him.
The thunder and lightening ceased for a moment as it set its own eyes upon the large group of guards that opposed it. All were quiet and no living pony dared do much more than breath silently as their foe took in the scene. Even if their commander gave them an order, many were too awestruck to move.
In an instant the thunder and lightning roared out like nopony had ever heard or seen before, and almost every pegasi crashed into the ground swiftly and painfully.
No words came from the Deadpony’s mouth, nor did he make a sound, as the officer finally managed to order the troops to attack. It silently let the few foolish enough to face it do what they pleased. Three Earth ponies charged at it with shaky battle cries, holding their javelins out as best they could. The Deadpony lit up his horn and white energy flowed from it. The stallions were immediately seized with his magic aura and struggled to move and breath as the same white aura in the Deadpony’s eyes filled theirs. They all stopped the struggle and fell to the ground in catatonic states.
Several guards were still too shaken to move or react, but many had regained their willpower just enough to charge in after their fallen allies. The unicorns fired magical blasts at the still figure of the Deadpony, only to have him erect a shield that reflected the blasts back at the attackers. The magic of the blasts was now tainted with the power of the Deadpony and rendered anypony who was hit in the same condition as the first three.
The Pegasi swooped down and attacked from the air while the other earth ponies ran in with javelins and swords. The Deadpony summoned a wave of fire that burst forth from his figure, singing and roasting any pegasi that got too close as well as preventing the earth ponies from reaching their target. The unlucky pegasi fell to the ground and rolled around wildly and screaming as their fur was burned and their tissue seared with pain.
“Come on! For Celestia, for Equestria! Charge!” The same officer shouted, but his rally was to no avail. All the guards that were unable to attack before now fled after the civilians. Those who dared to stay and fight grouped together and prepared their strategy in low voices.
“Alright! Unicorns follow the Earth ponies; be prepared to teleport if things turn sour. Pegasi, keep moving and make a distraction, we’ll take him yet,” The officer explained the new plan, but he was immediately teleported away from the group and onto the floor in front of the Deadpony. The leader’s limbs were trapped at his side by the powerful magic of his undead foe and he could not escape the tight grip he was held in.
“Captain!” One of the other guards cried out and began to run over with the others, not making it a few steps before stopping completely.
All were paralyzed by fear upon seeing the captain levitated up to the eye level of the Deadpony, each staring with a different emotion into the other. The captain’s eyes filled with dread as the eyes of the Deadpony shown with power and supernatural mystique. The guards saw the leader’s very strength taken from him as his toned muscles shriveled up and hung limply from his bones. His scream went from masculine and strong to weak and sickly.
The leader dropped with a thud and attempted to crawl away as the Deadpony stepped over him, heading towards the group of soldiers who fell into disorder with their commander incapacitated. All had forgotten or forsaken the new plan, for all finally realized how very futile it was to stand against the Deadpony, and brave as they were for standing up to him this much, none could muster up enough prowess to fight him any longer.
The Deadpony spoke for the first time since his rebirth, his voice coated with the eerie potency of his power and a deep tone that spread terror among their ranks: “None shall leave this skirmish unharmed, for it is the unholy charge of the Deadpony to bring darkness to all. Now…enter darkness and live your miserable lives in utter despair and tragic unfulfillment.”
With that, their unimaginably powerful foe bound each guard with his magic and rendered them unable to move, talk, or think as their eyes filled up to match that of the Deadpony’s. They all dropped to the ground and lay motionless as the Deadpony walked through the town, destroying buildings and laying waste to that which he found with his dark talents.
The guards that could do nothing more than flee now looked back from a distance upon the town as fires blazed across it and earthquakes made it shake and crumble.
“We failed…we could not stop him,” One of the youngest guards told his compatriots.
“We couldn’t slow him down,” Another corrected as most of the group stopped to look back with them.
“We were no match for him. May Celestia fare better, for if not, then the world has as much a chance as that town,” A third added in shame and lowered his head in both respect for those who had undoubtedly fallen and in repentance for his own cowardice in the face of the gravest danger in many generations.
