“Don't allow your mind to tell your heart what to do. The mind gives up easily”

Luna is shoved onto the cold floor of the throne room in Canterlot Castle. Flanked by two caribou guards and with her arms bound behind her, she moans from the injuries she sustained as Dainn, the king of the caribou regime, sits upon the throne.

“Your escape attempt was pitiful, ‘Princess’. Did you really think you could escape from your place? Did you think that you could get away from me?”

“Unghh… This land isn’t yours! It was never yours to claim! YOU DON’T BELONG HERE!!” Luna retorts, raising her voice as much as she can. The guards beat her with their shock batons in response.

“I beg to differ. Equestria, and all the mares in it, are mine. And it’s about time you accepted that. Now… what to do with you. Why don’t we ask your sister, Celestia?” Dainn extends a hand out to his side to reveal the Princess of the Sun, kneeling beside the throne, a red collar around her neck.

“N-no…”

“What do you think we should do with your disobedient sister?”

“…I think she needs to be punished, master.”

“Hahaha! You see, Luna? When mares are put in their rightful place, beneath the feet of male kind, they truly shine. I hope you will come to see this. And if you don’t, well, that’s ok. Because I have all of eternity to make sure you break. And I’ll enjoy every moment of it. Guards, replace that collar with a black one. And get her ready for the re-education procedures.”

The guards forcefully grab the restrained Luna and carry her away as she kicks and screams.

“No! Let go of me! Tia! Help!! Please!! I don’t want this! No!”

They toss her into a pitch black room, where she can feel the presence of others. Glowing eyes pierce the blackness and converge on her. She can feel dozens of hands starting to grab and grope every square inch of her body.

“Aahh!! Stop! No!! Keep your hands off me!! Let me go! S-stop! Please!!! Make it stop!! MAKE IT STOP!!!”

The stone floor beneath her suddenly collapses into a black hole of nothingness, sucking Luna down into the abyss.

“NOOO!!!!”

Luna woke up with a blood curling scream, her eyes widened in fear. She pants almost uncontrollably as she holds herself, anxiously scanning her surroundings. The room she is in is unfamiliar. There are carpets covering the stone floor, a small table off to the side, and a large bookshelf, all lit by various candles and torches hung on the walls. Luna’s bed is soft and warm, a comforting feeling she has not experienced in years.

Before Luna gets up, the wooden door of her room flings open. Two noctrals scan the room, alerted by Luna’s distress. Luna is surprised to see them, though is quite familiar with their race, as she had earned their loyalty over a millennia ago. The two noctrals rush to Luna’s bedside, with worried looks in their cat-like eyes.

“Princess Luna! Are you alright? What happened?” Questions the noctral mare as she kneels by the bed, followed by the other, a stallion.

“Must have been a nightmare.” He guesses.

Luna remains terrified from her ordeal. “Where am I?!”

“Calm down, Princess Luna, everything is ok. You’re in Umbra’s capital, Cyllene.” States the mare beside Luna. Her eyes glow a radiant orange, unlike the common yellow irises of bat ponies.

Luna instantly recognizes the name. The Kingdom of the Noctrals, Umbra, is a very quiet and hidden nation. It rests past the eastern borders of Equestria, in the center of an oval-shaped mountain range. The capital is the largest city, though it is very simple in layout and design. Luna is completely dumbfounded as to how she was brought so far east so quickly.

Luna then realizes how suddenly different she feels, noticing that she is wearing clothes. Quickly grasping her throat, the red collar that was once clamped on her is no longer there. She tosses aside the bed sheets and turns to look at her back. The red wing sleeves are gone as well, revealing featherless and sickly looking wings. The two noctrals shudder a bit upon seeing her move them.

“I’m… Finally free… Thank you! Thank you so very much!!”

Luna reaches out and grabs hold of the noctral mare beside her, grappling her into an extremely tight hug. The noctral is shocked, but returns the hug with a smile. The stallion smiles as well. He turns around and notices the door opening again.

“The Elder is here.”

Appearing in the doorway are two more noctrals, giving escort to a much older noctral mare, the Elder. Her excessively grey mane and wrinkled eyes spoke her age, and she used a polished cane of black wood.

The Elder approaches Luna, who exchanges bows with her.

“Princess Luna, I am Vigil, the High Elder of Umbra. You may remember me, as I was at your welcoming festival when you returned from banishment.”

“Please forgive me if I don’t exactly recall. I… It’s been hard to think.” Says Luna, rubbing her head.

“It’s quite alright. We are beyond thankful to have found you, Princess. It was Night Seer and Lantern who were the ones to discover you, and bring you back here.”

Lantern, the mare with the orange eyes, nods as she and Night Seer, the stallion, give Luna approving smiles. Luna returns their gestures in kind.

“How did you know where to find me? How did you know about my escape?”

“We didn’t,” explains Lantern, “We have been watching Equestria since the caribou invaded, and after the first year we began to send small scouting teams past the borders at night, to learn more of what was going on. We were… horrified, with what we saw.”

Night Seer cuts in. “We happened upon you in the forest below your capital city by chance. Our planned scouting route that night was in a completely different direction actually, but we had to take a detour to avoid the wildlife. You’re very lucky, Princess Luna.”

Luna takes his words to heart. If she hadn’t decided to escape that night, she might have been captured again, or worse. Though thankful for the amazing amount of fortune she has been given, her situation now leaves a question; what next?

Elder Vigil notices Luna’s contemplative stare.

“You have a host of different paths to choose from, Princess Luna. The decision on what you will do next lies only with you. When you’ve chosen, you’ll find me in the city’s consulate building, in the Circle meeting hall.”

Luna nods in acknowledgement as Elder Vigil motions for Night Seer and Lantern to follow and give Luna some peace. They give Luna a look of assurance before closing the door behind them.

Alone once again, Luna rises from the bed, her limbs and back feeling quite sore. She makes her way to a nearby bathroom, leaning over the sink and splashing water into her weary face.

Luna gazes at the mirror, looking over herself. The empty space where her horn used to be makes her head look funny, and the stress in her eyes told her she was still tired. Her spindle-like wings, devoid of all feathers, are nothing but useless appendages. Her mane, once a brilliant hue of blue that shone with beautiful stars that mimicked night itself, is now ragged and damaged, lying still and growing pale in color. Nothing about herself felt right. Everything felt alien to her.

Thoughts swarmed into Luna’s head. Fate had granted her a chance, to do something, be it hide, run, or fight.

She could stay in Umbra, and live in peace with the loyal noctrals. But for how long? If King Dainn, the supposed ‘ali-caribou’ could live forever, he would not stop with Equestria. He would find Umbra eventually, and there would be no one to stop him. On the other hand, she could leave Umbra and keep running, fleeing to the very ends of the world, where no pony has ever gone. But she would leave everyone behind, and she would live eternally with the guilt of abandoning them to the horrid fate which was once her own.

Or, she could go back, and fight to reclaim Equestria. But how? Through betrayal, deceit, surprise and tact, the caribou were able to defeat Equestria in only days. Celestia and Luna were the trusted leaders of their land, and they had failed to defend it. They became powerless to Dainn, who overcame them with his seemingly limitless power. Luna could organize a resistance, perhaps gain allies. But who would follow a fallen leader who had failed everyone in the beginning? With no edge, no Elements of Harmony, no magic of her own, there was nothing.

Luna grabbed hold of the sink in frustration, bowing her head and clenching her eyes shut. She kept thinking.

There HAS to be a way! There must something in this world that can match them! There has to be… something in this…world. No… Not in this world…

Lifting to see the revelation in her reflection, Luna quickly exits the bathroom and her room, making her way outside of the building. She runs out of the house, stepping onto the frost-laden street. The cold air catches her by surprise, but she ignores it. Luna looks up at the clear night sky to find the one thing that could make a difference, which could help turn the tide.

The Moon.

“There is a way…”

The following night, Elder Vigil meets with the Circle, the primary governing body of Umbra. They await the arrival of Princess Luna, who had sent word she would be addressing the Circle formally.

“How has our Princess been?” asks a noctral member of the Circle, turning to Vigil. The Elder sighs in response.

“I am…unsure. She has gone through unspeakable torment. I do not know what she will choose to do-“

Suddenly, the large doors to the Circle meeting hall swing open, revealing a determined Luna. Garbed in a dark blue cloak made for noctral diplomats, she makes her way to the gathered members of the Circle, who are all sitting in their respective chairs, which form the shape of a crescent moon. Elder Vigil sits at the middle of the form. In attendance are many noctrals of the city, sitting in rows off to the sides of the hall.

“Elder Vigil, Circle of Umbra… I have made my decision.”

The entire hall falls silent, with the many Noctrals looking on.

“…I will return to Equestria, and do everything in my power to see it brought back to what it once was.”

A slow, resounding clap from several of the listening noctrals echoes through the hall. The Elder and the Circle remain silent, until one of the Circle members speaks.

“Do you have an idea of how you’ll accomplish this?”

“Yes. I stayed awake the entire day compiling thoughts and notes on a plan of action. It’s a complex plan, but in the simplest explanation; I will raise an army.”

“What about their king?” says another Circle member, “According to what we have learned, he was able to personally defeat you and your sister, Celestia, and then take control of Equestria in a matter of days. An army alone will not stop him.”

“Those that choose to follow me will not fight him, but his armies of caribou. I alone will challenge him.”

“And how do you propose to do that?” spouts another.

“…There are relics. Ancient items that once belonged to Nightmare Moon. If I can recover these relics, then I may have a chance to defeat Dainn.”

Whispers of uncertainty echo out from the attending noctrals and among the Circle. The Elder calms them down with a wave of her hand, then directs her attention to Luna.

“While you sound confident in this plan, you said these relics ‘may’ give you a chance. Are you concerned about their effectiveness?”

Princess Luna remains stalwart. “The relics have not been touched in over a thousand years. I still know where to find them and how to use them but… I need to understand the enemy more in order to fully be certain that the relics will aid me.”

Princess Luna stares at the Circle and the Elder. “I won’t be able to do this alone. I will need many allies from all walks of life. And so, I would like to ask the Noctrals of Umbra to listen to my plea.”

In a display of humility, Luna kneels before the Circle, bowing her head but still retaining her level of voice. Her diplomatic abilities have not waned during her imprisonment.

“You have sworn your loyalty to me for over a millennia, and I am more than grateful for that. If not for your temperance, curiosity and patience, I would not have escaped Equestria. Now, I come to you asking for your aid in reclaiming Equestria from the caribou. There is no other presence I can count on more than you in this time of need.”

The Elder and the Circle turn to one another to mutter between themselves. Luna patiently waits, but is surprised by how quickly they come to a decision. Elder Vigil makes her way down from the crescent chairs and stands before Luna.

“The Circle of Umbra have come to an agreement, upon hearing Princess Luna’s proposal. The noctrals will lend any and all assistance to Princess Luna. We will stand with our Princess of the Night, to take back Equestria.”

A round of excited clapping and cheer fills the air. Luna lifts herself up, smiling. She gently embraces the Elder, as is customary to solidify promises in Noctral culture.

Pulling away, Luna chuckles. “The Circle agreed much quicker than I had expected.”

Vigil grins. “If it were any other pony, they would’ve said no.”

Since the day the noctrals had pledged their allegiance to Luna’s forces, several months have passed. During this time, Princess Luna has been working with the best economic, diplomatic, and military advisors of Umbra, traveling to other cities within the kingdom. As per the agreement with the Circle, Luna has been appointed the head of Umbra’s resources, most in particular being the military, which in itself is a considerably small yet capable force. While she worked on building on their strength, Luna sent intelligence-gathering teams out to continue the scouting of Equestria and neighboring lands, in order to be in as constant update as possible. Now back in Cyllene, Luna awaits the arrival of Night Seer and Lantern, who have gathered together the intelligence procured by the scouting teams.

Entering the administration building in which Luna has her living quarters, the two noctrals knock on the door of Luna’s room.

“Come in!”

Opening the door, Night Seer and Lantern see Princess Luna doing chin-ups on a metal bar hanging from a door frame. It looks as though she’s been at it for quite some time.

“Hope we aren’t interrupting.” Night seer says casually.

“No, no… Just let me…. Finish this… Last set…”

Luna does three more chin ups before dropping to the floor, panting. Months of physical training and exercise have rebuilt her muscles, returning the strength and stamina that she had lost. She grabs a nearby towel and quickly wipes her face and her shoulders with it, approaching Night Seer and Lantern.

“Welcome! You’ll have to forgive me if I’m carrying an odor.” Says Luna, smelling herself over.

Lantern shakes her head. “You’re fine, Princess. We’re here with the collected intelligence reports from the last scouts.”

“Ah, yes. Come, we will discuss them in the war room.”

After taking a quick shower and dressing in her usual attire, Princess Luna meets Night Seer and Lantern in her personal war room. The two have spread out various sheets and reports across the round table in the center of the room, which contains a circular scale map of the known world.

“Thank you for waiting. Now, tell me of the findings.”

Night Seer gets up from his chair to move to one end of the round map, shuffling around some sheets. “We’ve culminated the reports into four major sections; Equestria, Zebrica in the south, Saddle Arabia in the south east, and the Griffin Kingdoms of the northwest. These sections summarize their current situation, as we can tell.”

He hands a few papers to Luna to look over, as he touches upon the first report.

“Equestria hasn’t changed much in the last few months. The caribou continue to fortify it, but they are in no rush and have been working lazily. The resistance efforts that were once very active have recently gone into complete hiding. It seems as though due to a mole or a leak, they had lost many of their hideouts in the past month alone, and have retreated into the shadows. It will take some effort to locate them again.”

Luna nods with a sigh, sitting down in a chair as Lantern takes the next section.

“Section number two details the Zebrican Lands, south of Equestria. Zebrica is made up of many different tribes. Though the caribou have not invaded them yet, these tribes are currently in a civil war, between the majority of the tribes who want to pay tribute to the caribou, and the minority of the tribes who don’t. It would be a perfect time for the caribou to intervene, but they aren’t, because the zebras loyal to them are winning on their own. We don’t know how long the smaller tribes will last against them."

Lantern continues onto the third report. “The report on Saddle Arabia is very short, as not many of our teams were able to reach that far south. From what we could tell, Saddle Arabia has been completely untouched by the caribou, and is guarding its borders heavily. They are in complete isolation. There isn’t much more we could find out.”

Folding her hands together in front of her snout, Luna nods. “And what of the griffins?”

Lantern looks at Night Seer, who agrees to explain it.

“We’ve noticed something very strange happening there. When the caribou invaded Equestria, as I’m sure you know, many stallions had chosen the new regime and adopted caribou culture. The caribou left them to their devices. But when the caribou entered the Griffin Kingdoms…” Night Seer pauses, as if questioning himself on what he is about to say, “They began to slaughter any male griffin they came across. They’re intent on wiping out the entire male population.”

Before Luna can express her shock, Night Seer continues.

“There’s more. We know that when the caribou came to Equestria, not every stallion joined them. A scant few resisted them. We believe that there may be something influencing them on a mental level. Something that cannot influence griffins.”

Luna contemplates this. “Was any evidence recovered?”

“It’s just a theory right now. There’s no proof. But if the caribou are so willing to kill the entire male population of griffins, then why don’t they do the same for Equestria? Or in Zebrica? Doesn’t make much sense.” Night Seer sits back in his chair, crossing his arms.

“Regardless, it’s a theory that we should hold on to for later. Thank you for your work, you two. And be sure to extend my thanks to the teams who gathered the intelligence.” States Luna, smiling.

Contrary to the Princess’ smile, Lantern’s expression bears sadness, her eyes glued to the floor.

“We lost two teams in Equestria. We don’t know what happened to them.”

Upon hearing this, Luna shuts her eyes, clenching her fist. She tempers her distress and quickly relaxes.

“…Their sacrifices won’t be in vain. And wherever they are, they won’t have long to wait. We are ready to take our first step into Equestria.”

Luna stands tall, looking sincerely at Night Seer and Lantern, who rise to meet her gaze.

“I’ll be making the final preparations tonight among the generals. I would like you two to accompany me.”

“Of course.” Night Seer bows respectfully, followed by Lantern.

Princess Luna surveys the round table map once more, overlooking the nations of the land. Umbra, The Griffin Kingdoms, Zebrica, Saddle Arabia, and Equestria. If the caribou are not stopped, they will have them all. The known world would change, and it would be lost forever. Freedom and liberty as they know it would cease to exist. It would be a time of darkness worse than infinite chaos, or eternal night.

“…”

“Princess Luna?”

“…Their reign will not last. For so long as I can feel, breathe, and live, I will do everything in my power to put an end to this madness. This, I swear.”

Author's Note

Thanks for reading! =]