Twilight recoiled as she stepped into the dark stairwell. This had not been her first time down these steps, and in fact, before now, she had looked at the moss covered stones as a sign of knowledge left untapped. Only Celestia could give permission to a pony to enter this part of the castle, and thus, she held it in high esteem. No, it wasn’t the darkness that she feared. It was the smell.

The smell overpowered that of the damp earth that shared space with the stone, surpassed the dust that had come over the unused passage, and even beat out the incense that burned on every other step to guide her way. The smell wasn’t one Twilight knew, but a primal part of her told her to avoid it. That this smell was one no pony should be this exposed to. Still, Princess Celestia had beckoned for her, so onwards she had to go.

A steady splash filled her ears, but she was thankful for the noise. The journey down to the catacombs was long, and there had been many a night in which she had almost driven herself mad with simply the sounds of her own hooves. Her horn came to life, and the light at the end only helped to make her feel even smaller, a simple beacon in the darkness for anything that may lay below.

She shook her head clear of the thoughts and scowled at herself. “You’re starting to sound like some scared foal, Twilight. Princess Celestia would never let anything dangerous come down here. Not while she was here as well.”

This thought comforted her right up until the moment she found a platoon of guards standing at the end of the stairs. Pegasi with spears had made makeshift fortifications above the others from wooden planks that looked like they could break at any moment, ready to strike at anything they were watching for. The unicorns were resting on steps further up, having spent their magic on magical barricades that were almost fifty feet high. And just in case something got past that, almost twenty earth ponies in brass, back horseshoes were waiting with spears at moments notice from being pointed at an intruder.

The guard captain checked behind them and scowled at Twilight’s arrival. “Princess, we’ve been expecting you.”

Twilight swallowed hard as she stepped forward and the earth ponies stiffened at the sound of hooves. The guard captain cleared his throat. “Rise! Seperate! Cover!”

Each command came at such a volume that it could be heard echoing far beyond where they stood. With each order, the guardsmen moved. The pegasi’s spears rose, pointed just beyond the barrier while the third and fourth rows of the ground squad pushed outward. Each squad took more steps than the last to the side, and Twilight faced a narrowing vee, just before each pony raised their weapons, covering the one in front of them, as well as the whole barrier. The captain turned to Twilight. “All clear princess.”

A pale Twilight nodded as she took unsteady steps forward. Each member she passed would tense at the sound, and she could see sweat coming down their muzzles. For a moment Twilight thought it may be from a lack of practice, but one thing told her it was something else. During her descent, she had heard nearly no noise. A whole platoon like this should have declared their presence to her at least five, ten minutes ago. And yet, nothing.

Their fear passed through Twilight as she slipped through the magical barrier, leaving the comfort of the stairs, and entering the catacombs proper.

One of the doors slowly creaked open to her right, and a white hoof stepped out. Soon, the rest of Celestia joined it, and Twilight gasped at the sight of her teacher. Her hair barely moved, her eyes were almost shut, and there almost wasn’t a part of her coat that was not coated in grime and dust, turning her beautiful white into a light gray. She managed a weak smile and barely bowed to Twilight. “Good evening, Twilight. I do hope the journey wasn’t too hard.”

The purple alicorn dashed forward, almost wrapping a hoof around Celestia before deciding to gently rub into her side. “Th-the journey was fine. What happened to you though?”

Celestia rubbed her eyes and attempted to chuckle, only to end up coughing. “Don’t worry, I just need some sleep. Taking care of Luna this past week has just made me a bit weaker, that’s all.”

Twilight paled further. “Taking care of Luna? Is something wrong with her?”

Celestia’s eyes glanced down before she managed a nod and gestured for Twilight to enter the room she had come from. Walking in, she was greeted by the scent from before becoming almost unbearable. Her legs shook, and she found herself entering the darkened room further, if not just to keep her balance as the room swayed. “What is this?”

A single voice rose from the corner. Raspy, weak, and only but a whisper, it stated one word. “Blood.”

Celestia came beside her student just as Twilight retched onto the floor. She slowly rubbed the poor mare’s back before yawning. “Don’t worry, not about that at least. Something else carries that stench, not Luna or I. Now, go say hello to her.”

Twilight glanced back at her teacher, drawing strength from her before trotting forward. Only now could she see the difference in blacks that were the shadows and the blanket that covered Luna. A single hoof came up from beneath the fabric and pulled the blanket away. Twilight gasped at what she saw.

Luna lay in the bed with a swollen stomach, breathing heavily. Her hind hooves retracted as she grit her teeth, a hiss of pain escaping her muzzle. What hair was left on her body was barely clinging to her form, and she shivered in the cold air. One of her eyes turned to actually look at Twilight before she tried push herself up. “H-hello, Twilight.”

Twilight rushed over and put a hoof gently on Luna’s side. The exposed skin was taut, and dry, like leather, and it sent shivers up the young mare’s spine. “You-you stay down, Luna. You don’t need to get up for me.”

The princess nodded before slumping against the pillow, with snores coming soon after. Celestia put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “Come, we have much to talk about, and the faster we get done, the better.”

She only nodded, and the two slowly left the room. One more glance back and Twilight could see the princess shaking in her sleep. “Does she have cancer?”

Celestia created a weak ball of light, only to then be replaced by Twilight’s own purple globe. She hung her head low, and her barrel quaked as she breathed in, trying to stay conscious. “No… no she doesn’t. She has been infested by something though.”

Twilight started trotting, just before Celestia began to lean on her. “Where...where are we going? And what could have wormed into Luna that you couldn’t purge?” She swallowed hard as the shadows seemed to deepen, even while her globe stayed the same.

Celestia shook her head, trying to keep her eyes straight ahead. “Not… not infected. I’m just not thinking straight right now.” She felt Twilight lean away from her, but weakly pulled her closer with a wing. “We’re going forward. The heart of the catacombs isn’t far.”

Twilight nodded and kept to her course, the smell somehow growing stronger, even now. “Sh-should I know what I’m about to see?”

The other princess shook her head. “It probably won’t help, but it will be unlike anything you’ve seen before. What I can tell you is that you do not need to fear it… not yet. Luna made sure of that.”

The dripping Twilight had heard was all that met the response. Twilight felt that she had to see this before anything Celestia said made sense, and she was willing to wait. It was only once they reached a large, golden door that she felt her want to question come back. She held a hoof in front of her to keep the blazing enchantments from possibly blinding her. “Celestia, why is the sound of dripping growing louder?”

Celestia shook her head, unable to answer as her horn glowed hot white. A single beam of light left it and made contact with the door. Mechanisms within clicked and whirred, unlocking not only the complex workings within, but the enchantment outside as well. And then, with a final creak, it began it open.

Directly across from the entrance, the first thing Twilight saw was what looked like a doll. It was of a creature from the world on the other side of the mirror, and at first glance, she had assumed it to be alive. The doll wore a light brown, embroidered shawl that covered her shoulders and arms, over a darker brown corset. From this distance, Twilight couldn’t tell, but she thought it might just be made out of leather. The corset led into a long, black skirt, finished with a white, lacey trim at the bottom. Looking at the pale white face, framed by snow white hair, it almost took her breath away. It was such an effective distraction, that she only noticed the blood that coated the floor because she stepped in it, which caused her to tear her eyes away from the doll, and examine the rest of the room.

In one corner sat a long, discarded arm. It was gray, with just enough skin to hide the large bones within. Twilight thought it would take at least ten ponies to lift the arm, and that was simply because of how long it was. Its bony hand had long, slender fingers, ending in deadly points. It alone sent her stomach straight down, but then, Celestia pointed up.

Above them, hanging like a chandelier in the middle of the large, circular room, was a creature. A creature large then Cerberus, larger than an Ursa Major, and even possibly, larger than Tirek at full power. It’s whole body was almost only bone, covered in the same gray skin over seven more arms, and two legs, finished with a tail. It’s missing arm was not where the blood came from though.

That, was the head.

Twilight put a hoof to her mouth as another long draft of blood splashed onto the ground from a large hole in its ‘head’. The top appendage came closer to resembling a closed egg made out of mismatched, dying brambles, with smaller, black spots giving the appearance of holes, then a head. Celestia wrapped her wing around Twilight as the smaller mare shook, unable to process what she saw.

“This, is the nightmare that comes for my sister this time. I have no idea what these are, or where they are from, but at this point, I can only believe they mean harm, despite the doll being our only hope for answers.”

Twilight swallowed hard. “Wha-what is that? What happened here?”

The shrill tone sent chills through Celestia. She had known it was useless, but she had truly hoped her student might be able to stay calm. “Luna came down here almost a week ago. She had not known about the doll, and yet nonetheless. she felt it necessary to come. Inside, she says she saw nothing. At first.”

Pointing to the arm, Celestia continued. “She told me of a purple aura that came over this area, just before that creature grabbed her. She immediately felt a presence form within her, and try to wriggle into her mind. That is about the time that this foul beast lost its arm, and then part of its head. Since then, it hides. We can see it, but nothing can touch it, In fact, you can even fly through it. All that connects it here is that its wound stays open and bleeds onto the floor.”

Twilight blinked a few times as her knees started to shake. “B-but Luna couldn’t get rid of the presence, coul she?.”

Celestia could only look down at that. “No, she didn’t. Instead, she got pregnant, and very quickly. We suspect anywhere from a week, to a month, for when the child comes. And from what Luna tells me of her dreams, I believe with its birth, we will lose Equestria to this thing that resides above us.”

A dead silence passed over them. Different solutions ran through Twilight’s mind on how they could fix this, but either they were rebuffed either by uncertainty, or the fact that in all likelihood, Luna would have to die in the process. Turning to her teacher, she had no answers. “Please, tell me I am not only here to execute Luna.”

The solar princess shook her head. “If anypony is to do that, it will be me. You are here to find another way. A way I was too afraid, and now am too busy and weak to seek.’’ She held up on hoof. “You are to make a contract with it.”

Twilight’s gaze followed Celestia’s hoof, and it only brought her attention to the toy on the other side of the room. “It’s a doll.”

“It’s a doll that came through a rip in time and space, and begged for me to make a contract. To end her world’s dream so that the hunters may rest. I never understood, and kept her here, just in case it was a trap. With this things appearance, and its decision to rest over the doll, I can only guess that her contract may at least give us an idea as to what we need to do,”

Twilight spent almost no time in thought before she took one more long breath. The smell of the blood in the room closed her throat and made her eyes burn, but she tried not to care. She had a chance, a plan, and that was what she truly needed for. “As an element of harmony and a princess, it would be my honor to serve in this capacity, again.” She smirked at Celestia, but found no warmth in her mentor’s eyes.

“This isn’t like that world you’ve been to. This one has already proven hostile, and dangerous.” She put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “Even if you succeed, I… I don’t know if I can bring you back. If you go, it has to be for you, not for your duty.”

Twilight’s smile faded and she looked away. So many ponies that she knew and loved, only to leave them behind. The thought was terrifying. One look at the creature above them as it spewed more blood into their world though, and she knew it was worth it. A month with them was not worth whatever this thing, or the thing in Luna, would do to them. “I’ll do it. For my friends, my family, and myself.”

Celestia nodded, trying, and failing, to hold back tears as she barely levitated a package from underneath the doll’s cloak. It was single bag, filled with black liquid. “This was all she had with her besides the clothes, and it has instructions for use on it. Merely grab it, and plunge it into your leg. I don’t know what will happen past that.”

Twilight took the bag into her own magic and grimaced, her stomach becoming knots. She lifted the bag up to Celestia in a mock cheers as a tear ran down her face.. “I-I’ll miss you.”

Tears started pouring down Celestia’s own face as she whispered, “You… you always have to make me proud, don’t you?”

Twilight only nodded before plunging the Yarnam blood vial into her leg, before she slumped onto her side, her corpse soon evaporating into white dust.

Author's Note

There is nothing to vote on this time, so I'll take this as a chance to explain how this will work. I'll be playing alongside Twilight's journey. When she dies, I die. Chapters will usually be made then, and detail the path she went (somewhat) and the better fights that happened. They will also stop if something big happens, like killing a boss.

However, I do promise that I will be adding plenty of my own twists so as to make sure this is special and interesting, even to those of you who have memorized every bit of BloodBorne they can. Attempts will also be made to make sure that those reading who have not played may hopefully enjoy and understand this as well.