(*New*) Intermission - Chapter 5: The Reunion

Shattered Equestria

Jagged Reflections

By

TheSleeplessOne

This story has been proofread and edited by Icarus720. A big thanks to him! Any additional errors should be pointed out in the comments section.

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Intermission - Chapter 5: The Reunion

“What have you done?” A panicked look overtook Celestia as she rushed to Luna’s side.

Star-Swirl’s responded with a confident chuckle. “Taking advantage of the situation as I taught you all those years ago.” A hint of mischief glinted in his eyes. “Truly, I’ve never seen an alicorn submit to Nightmare. Even if she is only a lesser alicorn like myself it should be entertaining.”

Luna’s form huddled on the ground with a groan. Small whispers of “Not again, not again.” accompanied spasms. Darkened blue magic leaked from tightly closed eyes and her face contorted in concentration, the battle of wills having already begun.

Celestia couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “Are you insane? You mean to bring back Nightmare Moon?” She couldn’t hold back the contempt she felt. The sadness and disgust clear on her face. “Have you fallen so low that you enjoy our suffering this much? That you would resort to... to this!”

“Still ruling like a foal. Your enemies will use every advantage to take it away from you.” He glanced at the now writhing form of Luna and turned away for but a moment. “Whatever we were is no more. You still protect the few at the cost of the many. You can’t even contain him.” An exaggerated sigh caused his shoulders to slump. He pointed his hoof in the general direction of the Everfree Forest. “I feel him. I feel his chaos infecting the land and why. Were you not able to contain him even with your crutch of the elements?”

Glowering down upon her like a misbehaving student he continued his rant, “I would have defended this nation until it was but rubble. My studies into longevity were to allay my own fears as much as to live long enough to do so.” Bringing a hoof towards Celestia his demeanor changed and the words were aggressive. “You couldn’t let it happen! You let your feelings about hurting a few ponies that weren’t even from this universe cloud the larger picture. You let the fact that you two were the only living alicorns make you think you were special. Well now we are enemies and the last lesson you will learn from me is how idiotic your idea that you can save everyone is.”

The words stung. Her nation had thrived under her leadership but that didn’t keep his accusations from slipping through her doubts and biting deep into her soul. She was aware that her ideals kept the nation on the brink of disaster. Time and time again she had failed to be the protector she felt she was. She had failed her sister and relied on the Bearers to reform Nightmare Moon. Twilight, not her, was the one to not only save the realm from Discord’s escape but her friend, Fluttershy, found a way to quell his chaotic tendencies with her friendship. Even Chrysalis managed to get into a position to best her in one on one combat. Through the union of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor, the threat had been averted.

Despite all this, Celestia’s convictions held true. For over seven hundred years ponies had enjoyed an era of peace and harmony their neighbors hadn’t. Without that peace, the very ponies who saved them likely wouldn’t exist. As long as ponies like that existed she could continue to believe that salvation awaited even the worst creatures.

Celestia stood over her sister, shielding her with her body. “Some of what you say is true Star-Swirl. I’m not a perfect ruler but I’m anything but the monster you’ve become. I will continue to believe that nothing is beyond redemption.” Her rigid features relaxed upon viewing her sister’s struggle against the nightmare. “My sister is proof of this!”

Luna’s color had already started to shift towards black. She no longer whispered and lay still beneath Celestia.

“Your sister is but proof of your repeated failures. How do you hope to stop me and her together?” Star-Swirl spat the words with displeasure.

A clacking sound garnered their attention. Rivaling the height of her sister, Luna had risen to her hooves. Two voices mixed and reverberated. “Leave us to deal with this cur. Please leave sister… I can’t win. Just like before, o-our will fades.” One leg almost faltered on her first step forward. The battle inside took everything she had but even so she took another step. “Let Nightmare Moon deal with this. Then eternal night shall be-” Luna caught herself mid-sentence and opened her eyes revealing the light blue, predatory irises.

Luna almost fell with the next step but Celestia caught her, using her flank to keep her steady on her hooves. “I won’t leave you. I won’t abandon you again.”

The expression Luna gave Celestia was confusing. It said “Thank you” but something was off. With a jerk, Luna staggered forward again and smiled. Her lips continued to curve upward revealing row upon row of sharp teeth. Her mouth parted and a sinister laugh with a voice of one wracked her weakened body. “You drive a hard bargain! But it would be my pleasure! A sister for a body!”

Nightmare Moon reared up and kicked Celestia with expert precision. The kick caught the side of her skull and sent her flying through the wall near the doorway. Her crumpled body lay somewhere beyond, unconscious.

Shadows filled the room, rotating and slithering on the walls. Nightmare Moon’s blackened coat pulsed and she raised her head towards the ceiling. Continuing her previous laugh the shadows converged underneath and clung to her. Each pulse of her coat consumed the shadows until a burst of darkness erupted from the ground beneath her, obscuring any vision. As the geyser of energy subsided, Nightmare Moon remained standing proud, adorned with her blue-silver armor.

As her laughter stopped, Nightmare Moon’s gaze turned to Star-Swirl. “Let me correct something for you, you feeble old pony. I will be the one to destroy Celestia.” She unfurled her curved black wings and took a low stance. “You are competition to a throne you have no right to. There will only be me by the time night arrives!”

The golden barrier around Star-Swirl crackled against the blast that Nightmare Moon fired. So much stronger! He focused on dodging the follow-up bolt and a bone-crunching kick sent him flying. I don’t understand it! Luna was never this strong. Is this the power of an alicorn under Nightmare? I shall have to look into this. He stopped just short of the wall with his magic and accessed his damage. Most of the kick had been diverted into the future by an invisible temporal shield but enough had gotten through to bruise a rib.

“You can’t be reasoned with? There is much to gain by working together here.” The offer had little hope of success and Star-Swirl knew this but if he could distract her just a bit longer.

Nightmare Moon’s response was a beam of crackling black that fired with enough force to drag her back several feet.

Neither the barrier or the temporal shield would hold against this attack. Summoning a defensive spell; he raced to compact and release it. The beam slammed into the spell, shattering and dispersing the beam like a hail of arrows. Rays of solid black peppered the walls leaving baseball-sized craters on impact. A few of the beams continued and exploded into Star-Swirl, dissolving his barrier on their way through. Each impact jerked his body as he struggled to hold his ground.

The final stray beam struck Star-Swirl’s chest causing him to grunt in pain. Through gritted teeth, he said, “A retreat is probably in order. What a fascinating creature you are.” He called to the gatestone through his attunement and the space behind him wavered and tore open. “A warning to you. Banish her, torture her, beat her within an inch of her life, but you will leave her alive. Do not let this meager victory assure you that I am not a threat. ” As he finished the final word he slipped back into the opening and vanished.

***

What happened? Drums pounded in her ears with each heartbeat. The savage pain in her temple was already calming against her natural regenerative properties. A heavyweight shifted atop her and she blinked her eyes open. Blurry blue moons filled her vision. A few more careful blinks wiped away the fog to reveal a pair of slitted pupils inches from her face.

“Sleep like a princess?” Mocking laughter followed Nightmare Moon as she hopped off the pile of rubble that was Celestia and the broken wall. She stomped her hoof through a section of stone and ground it in place. “Get up. We have unfinished business. I shan't wait on your slow recovery from a kick that I should have used to fell you. Twould be that I, Nightmare Moon, have to make such a deal to regain my own body.” Her irritation grew as the clouds parted, bathing the hallway with sunlight.

Celestia groaned, putting two hooves under the other and rising from the debris. Pulverized marble fell from her colorful mane in a small cascade that resulted in a coughing fit. Shaking more of the powder from her head she whispered, “What deal?”

“I don’t have to explain anything to you. Regain your senses and stop delaying my eternal night with your weakness.” Nightmare Moon finished the sentence by lowering her horn towards Celestia.

Even with the disasters of the day, Celestia felt a strange calm. “You know I won’t raise a hoof to you, sister. We can find a way to restore you without the elements.” Each word cleared her mind and emboldened her stature. “You’ve come too far to lose now.”

Nightmare Moon considered banishing her. To suffer the same fate sentenced upon her for two thousand years. But the fake alicorn wanted her alive. Even threatened her. Nightmare Moon answered to no one.

The dark alicorn horn dashed forward for Celestia’s neck. She feared the worst but stood her ground. A tearing sensation and the warmth of her own blood was her reward.

“No! We will not stand for this. You shall not have thine body at the cost of our sister’s life!” The mixed voice poured from Nightmare Moon’s mouth as a thin line of blood drew down Celestia’s neck. A small tuft of her white coat hung from her horn.

A new battle of wills began and Nightmare Moon’s body staggered backward. “Is even your word worthless, Luna?. This body is mine!” Her head swung, eyes rolling around. “Thine agreement was to let my sister live! We know your thoughts!” Metal on stone screeched into the hallways when her head slammed into the stone wall. “Flee sister, she is no longer part of me but something new. He did this to us!”

“If that is true I have even less reason to flee,” Celestia said as the flesh was already knitting back together under her crimson stained coat. “We both know I cannot let Nightmare Moon loose into Equestria. I know you have the strength to win against her now.”

A vicious black glow gathered upon Nightmare Moon’s horn before being jerked downwards into the stone. Waves of black pulsated into the floor. “Stop interfering! I am far stronger than you ever have or will be!” The deep voice of Nightmare Moon overrode Luna’s and her body went still.

The gears were already turning inside Celestia’s head. She had a plan but it wasn’t a good one. Incapable of harming Luna, she’d have to contain Nightmare Moon. Given enough time, she had confidence that Luna would be the one to govern control. Luna’s growth since her reformation at the hands of the elements surprised everyone. Interacting with the populace and gaining popularity for her appearances on Nightmare Night, along with helping ponies find solace in their sleep. All she had to do was build upon that confidence until Luna’s light shined over the darkness in her heart.

“Ah! So much quieter. Now back to business. I believe I was about to end your miserable existence.” Looking up for a reaction, Nightmare Moon found none. A darkened shield enveloped her body for the impending attack, but it never came. Pivoting on her hooves, she caught sight of Celestia, already several feet down the hallway, charging a spell. “You can’t escape m-” A blinding flash of light responded to the threat.

No matter what she will follow me. Celestia knew it to be true. Her plan hinged on that fact. If only she could make it to the hall containing the stained glass mosaics. Past that, a room expanded to contain dangerous magical artifacts, the original room of the now useless elements, might have her answer. There was no time to tarry so like an arrow she shot down the hallway to her target.

Nightmare Moon thrashed against the lancing pain her eyes provided her. How dare she! Even the thought hurt against the overwhelming light of the sun. “Run while you can. I will find you. Day must give way to night eventually!” A nasty snarl followed, her vision fading in and filled with spots. A glimpse of white turning right at the end of the hallway spurred her into action. Glossy black wings pumped with her hooves, accelerating her in pursuit of the troublesome alicorn.

Both of them knew how to navigate the maze of hallways in the castle. Celestia lived there and Nightmare Moon could draw upon Luna’s memories. To her credit, Celestia kept pace ahead of Nightmare Moon but Luna had always been the more physical of the two. It was only a matter of time before Nightmare Moon caught up.

The hallway came into sight, deep in the castle. Lined with the achievements and events of the ponies of history, it was long. At the end awaited a door that only one of the sister’s horns could open. Before she’d taken a step into the hallway a shadow loomed over her. Nightmare Moon landed, facing her with a grin.

“Enough with this cat and mouse game. You are a fool if you think you can outrun me.” Nightmare Moon cackled and advanced upon Celestia. “Eternal night waits for Equestria. Lower the sun and I might let you live, after I punish your insolence. You can watch from the moon as your ponies come to love me and not you!”

Celestia shook her head, slow and sad. “You know I cannot give in to you. Step aside so I might right this wrong. Your time ended when the elements defeated you.”

Nightmare Moon’s eyes narrowed and a fangs showed beneath the confident grin. “I know what you are doing. Luna knows, therefore so do I. There is nothing back there that can stop the might of Nightmare Moon.”

“I won’t know unless I try.” Celestia mapped out the path to get around Nightmare Moon in her mind. “And for my sister, I would try anything!” With that, a mote of magic crawled up her horn and she teleported behind Nightmare Moon.

Silky blackness trailed behind Nightmare Moon as she became a whirlwind of motion. Springing forward into the wall, she rebounded upwards and opened her wings. Celestia hadn’t even materialized completely when Nightmare Moon’s hooves crashed into her back. The blow slammed Celestia to the ground with Nightmare Moon landing beside her. Nightmare Moon stomped into Celestia’s chest.

Wind blasted out of Celestia’s lungs from the sharp impact. Hooves scraped against the slick floor in an effort to move toward the door. The pressure increased and she heard, “Going somewhere, Princess? Here let me help you.”

A kinetic bolt of energy sprang from Nightmare Moon’s horn into Celestia, spinning her down the hallway. The grunts she made when she bounced off the wall was music to Nightmare Moon. She began a slow trot forward, watching Celestia struggle back to her feet. “You’ll never defeat me like that. The words that fool spoke earlier are true. You failed Luna in the past and only the elements could keep you from facing your mistakes.” Her neck craned down until her lips tickled the hairs in Celestia’s ear. “There is no one to save you now. Not those six nuisances or Luna.”

The next kick caught Celestia across the face, flinging her further down the hallway. Whether by fate or Nightmare Moon’s twisted sense of humor, she’d landed below the mosaic of the Nightmare Moon’s defeat. A beautiful stained glass work of art showing Twilight and friends using the elements to free Luna from the Nightmare’s grasp. She slumped against the wall and looked up, blood trickling from her torn lips and adding to her already stained neck. The situation was bad but seeing the picture gave her hope. Her injuries weren’t serious for an alicorn of her nature but she had to reach the door before she ran out of magic to soften the wicked strikes Nightmare Moon handed out.

“Still you hold out, even after being beaten bloody?” Nightmare Moon’s form towered over the Celestia. Upon viewing the mosaic, she froze. Memories of that horrid event even caused her to back away. What an insulting thing it was. It had to be destroyed. Blackened energy roiled at the base of her horn before rocketing forward in a beam. The eruption of magic passed through the glass and sped off into the sky.

A winded chuckle regained Nightmare Moon’s attention. “You have Luna’s memories but you don’t remember that magic doesn’t affect dragon blasted glass.” Celestia’s features relaxed into a smile. “I guess Luna never did pay attention when we were being taught as fillies.” She staggered to her hooves, those precious few seconds allowing her to heal. The only sign she’d fought was the blood trail along her lips and the matting on her neck.

The stained glass hadn’t taken any damage, just as Celestia described. Nightmare Moon’s head turned and an excellent idea came to her. “Immune to magic you say? What about-” Her head changed angles and fired another solid black bolt into Celestia’s midriff. It tossed her into the bottom of the mosaic and a small crack appeared where Celestia ricocheted off. A meaty thump announced Celestia’s reunion with the floor. “How unusual! I just used magic and cracked it.” A second shot between the floor and Celestia’s prone form brought her eye level with Nightmare Moon. “Once more!” This bolt caught Celestia in the flank, spinning it around into the glass.

The world wouldn’t stop spinning. Bolt after bolt juggled Celestia into the window, each impact one step closer to shattering it. The barrage stopped, Nightmare Moon panting. “I will not… be bested… by such an… ugly thing.” Whether the mural heard her words or not the damage reached the metal holding it in place. A loud groan preceded the entire piece falling onto Celestia. Pieces of glass scattered across the floor with the centerpiece surviving the impact. Nightmare Moon watched as the tiny fissures methodically disintegrated the Bearers. Each crack came together in the middle flowing upward before cutting the image of Nightmare Moon in half, Celestia’s head revealed beneath.

Luna roused at the sight. Surging upwards through the consciousness that was Nightmare Moon, she wrested control of her body back. A voice screeched in her mind, “What? No!”

“Thou cannot suppress us further. I have not the strength to banish you but you will not harm my sister any longer.” The same blackened magic that had battered Celestia’s body now uncovered and lifted it. Tendrils slithered out from the aura, plucking bits of glass from Celestia’s wounds. Laying her as one might a newborn foal, Luna nestled Celestia on the cleanest portion of floor.

Closing her eyes, Luna’s voice was clear. “We will settle this with you once and for all.” Inward she went, the power of dream creating a grassy field covered in moonlight. Two alicorns stood on opposing sides, the petite Luna and the larger darkness, Nightmare Moon.

Nightmare Moon was the first to speak. “How did you- nevermind. Somehow in your weakness you’ve forced me to this place.” A soft wind sent shivers through the illuminated grass, small blinking bugs taking off from the disturbance. It was cool, a bit of moisture hanging in the air. A full moon oversaw the field and Nightmare Moon could feel it’s strength. Where exactly was she?

Luna let the breeze flow through her starlit mane. “We were able to bring you here because we are one and the same. We realize that now.” The image of Nightmare Moon splitting in two replayed in her mind. “This is where we used to go to escape it all. Where we thought about how the ponies of Equestria hated us. We made the decision that led to you here as well.”

The place felt familiar. Like a home Nightmare Moon never knew. “I have access to everything you know. I can’t remember this place.” Every second seemed to calm the turmoil of emotion that drove her. It had to be some kind of trick.

“We don’t understand it either. Whatever Star-swirl did to us, you are not the Nightmare Moon that the elements destroyed.” The wind picked up, causing small ripples of light to cascade through the bowing grass. Luna brought her gaze downward. “We cannot forgive thou for what was done to our sister. Second chances are something our sister believes in.”

Nightmare Moon took a more aggressive stance and laughed. “You mean to threaten me? Fool, do not forget who took control from you so easily.” The words sounded wrong. Forced. What was it about this place that was throwing her off. “Eternal night shall be-” What about eternal night? Is that what she wanted? She wanted to show the world that she deserved as much respect as Celestia. To drown out the sun so that it could never create another shadow that she would be forced to walk in again.

“You are Nightmare Moon,” Luna brought her head up and took in all that was Nightmare Moon, “of that we are certain. But, thou are no longer us. You couldn’t be here with us if you were not your own pony.” Nightmare Moon struggled to make out the next sentence. “We are not strong enough to help our sister on our own. We never have been. We have learnt so much from the ponies since we returned.”

Luna couldn’t keep the pleasant memories from showing on her face. “We are not hated, not any longer. We are feared, but in a way that makes them love us. We have friends, the same ponies who used the elements.” Pride seeped into her voice. “All the needs that made us give into the Nightmare have been fulfilled, but one.” Luna wrestled with what she wanted to say. “Star-swirl is beyond our power. We want to be useful to our sister, but we cannot alone. We offer you this, help us and we will free you.”

It took a few seconds before Nightmare Moon responded, “Is this a joke? You can’t be serious.” She stood to her full height, proud and regal. “I am Nightmare Moon and your body will be mine whether you wish it or not. That is my freed-”

Luna cut her off, already trotting towards the edge of the meadow. “We will let you think it over. We will be waiting for your answer.” The last wisps of her mane disappeared into the darkness that surrounded the area.

With a snarl, Nightmare Moon charged towards the ring of darkness that Luna slipped into. Her body crumpled against the solid wall of blackness. She screamed into it, “No! I will not be locked away again!”