When it was announced two weeks before the 1000 summer sun celebration that it would be taking place in Ponyville, there was a town gathering where Mayor Mare announced the good news. I think she was expecting the crowd to cheer, not to go deathly silent. When the mayor asked for volunteers to be put in charge of making sure the town was ready, only 5 hands went up in the crowd, not including my own. One of the local farmers, Applejack asked to be put in charge of the food for the celebration. Captain of the weather team, Rainbow Dash said she will personally be in charge of making sure the skies are clear. Rarity volunteered to be in charge of decorations. The local recluse, Fluttershy said she and her animals would be happy to be put together a chorus for the Princess. And the resident enigma known as Pinkie Pie said she will take care of planning the party for the representative Celestia will be sending to town, how she knew that I don't know, but I have learned to trust what she says.

When asked what I would like to be in charge of, I told the mayor I would like to be in charge of security. To which she raised an eyebrow to.

"What do you exactly plan on doing for security?" She asked

"I have an invention that I think will be more than enough security. It also gives me a chance to show it off to the public for the first time."

"Do I want to know what this invention is beforehand?"

"Eh, 50/50 really. I plan on bringing it into town a day or two before dawn the day before the celebration."

"Am I going to regret agreeing to this?" she said crossing her arms

"I hope not. But I'll write you a check for half a million bits just in case." I said while pulling out a pen and a checkbook from my pocket.

"I am already regretting agreeing to this."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." I said as I finished writing the check. Handing it over to the Mayor, she gives it a once-over and nods in my direction.

Walking out of the mayor's office, I see the other girls outside talking on how they plan on getting the town ready. As I go to walk past, Rarity flags me down and motions for me to come over to the group. Putting my hands in my lab coat pockets, I walk over to the group of mares. As I recalled what I knew about the mares

Pinkie Pie had a bubbly personality and generous ass. I remember when she moved into town, she threw a party for everyone in town and made the entire town just brighten up. Her happiness was infectious, even if she regularly seemed to pop out of nowhere half the time. For 3 month I was addicted to her special cupcakes, I swear the only thing that is more addictive than those damn things is meth. And even then, it is a close call.

Rainbow Dash had a tomboy personality and athletic appearance. She lived up in a cloud house, which I didn't know was a thing until I actually saw it. When she wasn't busy doing aerial stunts and crashing many times, I usually spotted her tail hanging off of a cloud as she took her daily naps. Never really had much of a reason to interact with her.

Fluttershy with her shy demeanor with how she liked to hide in that large green sweater of hers and was by far the kindest pony I have ever met. Seriously, she was able to calm down raging animals with ease. However, she really only came into town a few times a week, as she usually stayed in her house near the forest. But from what I hear, animals love her. Her house is practically an animal sanctuary.

Rarity had that elegant look of a fashionista, and more generous than Bill Gates when it comes to helping others. She is one of the more recent arrivals, only moving to town 4 years ago. To which she immediately bought a plot of land near the center of town and build a boutique. I have to give her props on her work. The sundress that Sunset bought a year ago from her was damn sexy and showed off all the right things.

Applejack with her visible muscles and was oozing with what could only be described as southern charm was attractive in her own ways. She was a farmer by trade and was actually born here in Ponyville. I have to say, her family had the best cider in town, and whenever it went on sale the entire town went nuts for it. She could give anyone a run for their money if it came down to an athletic competition.

"Yo, what up?" I asked

"You are Moonshadow right? You own that big plot of land near the gorge, right? With the big house and the other large building?" Rainbow asked.

"That is right. You are Rainbow Dash, right? Captain of the weather team?" I asked to which she replied with a nod, "Pleasure to finally meet you." I said as I shook her hand.

"Good to meet you too." she replied

"The reason I call you over darling is we were curious to what you were planning to do for the Summer Sun Celebration. As well, none of us really know what you do. Even though you have been here for years, anyone I have asked has said all they know for sure is that you have regular deliveries of large quantities of materials." Rarity asked in an elegant voice.

"Well, as for what I plan to do for the Summer Sun Celebration, I plan on providing security with one of my inventions. As for what I do, my talent is in Transmutation, so I mainly focus on my field of study in my lab. But I also write course material for Chemistry and Atomic Theory, as I am the leading expert in both fields. With my student Sunset Shimmer being the second leading expert. So, we usually spend months at a time doing research and developing new spells, materials, or inventions."

"Why would the celebration need security?" Fluttershy quietly asked

"And what kind of inventions?" Applejack asked

"Well, to be honest, I'm using the security pretense to show off one of my inventions. As to what kind of inventions I make, your farm has a new Mustang 6-cylinder Tractor right?" I asked Applejack

"Yeah, we just got it 2 months ago. It has already made plowing the fields monumentally easier. Why?"

"Well, the engine in that Tractor is one of my inventions, along with the fuel and lubricants for it. It has made me quite a lot of bits over the years by selling licenses to companies to make and use it."

"That's a might impressive. I guess I have to thank ya for coming up with something like that. I cut the time to plow the fields down to a day rather than 5 days." Applejack said.

"No need for thanks. Now if you will excuse me, I need to go and get my invention ready in time for the Summer Sun Celebration. It was a pleasure meeting you all." I said as I started to walk away, but I stopped after 3 steps. "Hey Pinkie, you got any of those cupcakes?"

"Only if you have some of the fun stuff." She said with a smirk. I really shouldn't have introduced her to that stuff.

"I do. But you know this stuff is super addictive and can take years off your life, right?" I asked her. Thanking myself that besides Pinkie only Sunset and I know this stuff even exists.

"Eh, I never planned on living forever anyway." She said as she pulled a box of cupcakes out of her mane. I honestly will never know how she does it.

"You also never told me why you had a purple silk pouch full of baking soda that day." I said as I pulled out a small purple silk pouch from the inside of my lab coat and traded it to her for her special cupcakes.

"Nor will I ever tell you." She said as she took the bag from me. with the others looking oddly at both of us.

"Why do I have the feeling we just watched something illegal happen,” Rarity asked

"It isn’t illegal is there are no laws on it in the first place. Anyways, I bid you all adieu." I said as I walked away with the box of goodness. Once I got back to the house, as I placed the box of goodness on the counter and took one of the cupcakes bit into its goodness. I took my time to savor the flavor and texture of the cupcake. It was fluffy like angel cake and tasted of strawberries and cream with some. I was so engrossed in the flavor that I didn't hear Sunset walk up behind me.

"I thought you swore off those cupcakes after that 3-month period where you ate nothing but those things."

"I did. But I missed them so much."

"So, what was the big meeting in the town about?"

"Oh, the Summer Sun Celebration is being held here in two weeks, and the town was freaking out about how to get ready. In which I volunteered to provide security, but I will really be showing off the tank."

"Wait... they are having the Summer Sun Celebration here? Why here of all places?"

"No idea. But like I said I'm going to take the chance to show off the tank. Possibly shoot a boulder or two."

As the days grew closer to the Summer Sun Celebration, I spent most of my time getting the Tiger 2 tank ready to roll out of the hanger and into the town. I even loaded 10 shells of High Explosive and 20 Armor Piercing Shells with the sole reason of showing off the potential to Celestia when she arrives. And a days before the celebration, I hopped up into the commander's position, and Sunset hopped into the driver's position and we started the engine. Thankfully, it wasn't as loud as a normal tank due to replacing the engine with one that runs off of mana batteries and sounded more like a hybrid car. Which quickly changed as the tank started moving and the sound of the tracks became part of the mix. I felt like Erwin Rommel standing up out of the commander's hatch as we rode into town. As we leave the hanger, I could see a golden chariot pulled by two Pegasus guards fly out of the town. Huh, wonder who got dropped off.

It takes us about 10 minutes to get the tank to the main entrance of the town. And to say heads were turning our direction would be an understatement. Many ponies who were busy getting ready for the celebration stopped what they were doing to stare at the massive 10 ft machine rolling down the main road. Several of the young ones ran beside us for a while as we made our way to the center of town. I had to tell them several times to be careful of the tracks and wheels as to not get crushed. As we rolled up to the center of town, I could see the mayor talking to a purple pony at the entrance of the town hall. The purple pony was wearing a blue shirt and purple pants and had a brown book bag slung over her shoulder. And it looked like she was having a heated discussion with the mayor. Which I was stopped when she finally heard the tank approaching the building. I have no idea how she didn't hear a 71-ton tank rolling down the main road, I mean the electro-magic engine did reduce the noise a lot, but still, it is a tank. But she definitely saw it when the mayor pointed in my direction. As the purple pony turned around, I saw the mayor grab a flask from her jacket and started drinking from it as she went back inside.

As I parked the tank outside the mayor's office and turned the turret to the left, so I could open the engine hatch. Pulling myself out of the commander's hatch, I hopped down onto the engine deck and with the power of magic opened the heavy access panel. I wanted to check on the electro-magic engine since it hasn't run in over 6 months prior to today. It should be just fine but considering this is a new technology, I wanted to make sure it is working properly. Less I want a Porsche Tiger situation where it catches on fire and breaks down often. As I was inspecting the engine, the purple pony walked up to the tank.

"You are the pony in charge of security, right? Might I ask what who you are, what are you doing, and what is this thing?" She asked

"The name is Moonshadow Flash, and if you can't tell, I'm making sure my invention here is working properly," I replied to the purple pony without looking at her. "Hey Sunset, what is the battery gauge looking like?" I yelled to the other side of the tank.

"It is sitting at 75% charge!" She yelled back

"Thanks!" I yelled back. "Now, I told you my name, who might you be, and why are you here?" I asked while elbow deep in the inside of the tank.

"I am Twilight Sparkle, personal student of Princess Celestia. I was sent here to make sure everything is ready for the celebration. So far, you are the only pony left I need to talk to." Twilight said

"Wait, your Twilight Sparkle?" I asked while pulling my arm out of the engine compartment and hopping down to the ground to be level with her, "I remember hearing about you from Celestia years ago. How is the Princess doing? I haven't had the pleasure of talking to her in quite some time."

"Princess Celestia is doing well. May I ask how you know her?"

"Oh, I met her during my entrance exam when I attended Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. She took an interest me after I made a solid diamond statue of her during my entrance exam. I would also like to think it is due to the fact I am a rare case of being a unicorn with thestral ancestry."

"I know of that statue; my assistant Spike actually took a bite of it a few years ago actually."

"Who is Spike?"

"He is a dragon I hatched during my entrance exam, he should be right behind me." Twilight said turning around to look for her assistant. And while she was looking, I saw a purple and green dragon in blue pants, with a green shirt, and a purple jacket holding a bunch of scrolls running down the main road towards us. He looked no more than 7 or 8 years old if going by pony standards.

"Is that your assistant?" I asked pointing towards the dragon

Twilight turned in the direction I was pointing, "Yeah that is him. Spike! Where did you go?"

As he reached us, he took a moment to catch his breath, "Sorry about that Twilight, I had to find the notes you had me take after getting ran into by a grey mail pony." he said

"Is your assistant going to be alright?" I asked Twilight

"He will be fine. He just needs a moment to catch his breath." she replied

"A gem wouldn't hurt either Twilight. The lunch we had wasn't very filling." Spike said

"Fine. Let me grab you a gem to snack on." Twilight said as she reached into her bag. I watched as she fumbled around in her bag for a good minute before slapping her head. "I must have forgotten the gems back in Canterlot. I'm sorry Spike."

"Need some help there?" I asked

"You wouldn't happen to know a place that sells gems, would you?" Twilight asked with an embarrassed look on her face

"I can do you one better. But before I do, what kind of gem do you want?" I asked Spike

"I mean, I would really go for some amethyst right now." Spike said.

"Not a problem." I said as my horn was encased in the Prussian Blue glow of my magic. I started pulling Silicon from the ground and oxygen from the air to form the amethyst. I watched as thin strands of the silver silicon were pulled from the ground and were bonded with the oxygen from the air. and after 30 seconds, a 20-carat amethyst was floating in the air encased by my magic. Another 30 seconds and it was 60 carats. Another 30 and it was 200 carats. And finally, after another 30 seconds, it was 500 carats. Plucking it from the air, I tossed it over to Spike. "Here ya go. One 500 carat amethyst."

"Thank you!" he said as he bit into the gem. "Wow, that has to be the best amethyst I have ever tasted. It is so crisp and juicy!"

"I have to ask, what does amethyst taste like?"

"It's hard to describe. But if I had to compare it to something, it is crisp like an apple, and tastes like grapes."

I grab a notebook from the inside of the tank, and write it down with my magic, "That is interesting to learn if you both stay in town after the celebration, do you mind if I ask you how other gems taste?"

"I would be happy to tell you if you can provide more gems like that." Spike replied.

"Excellent. Now Miss Sparkle is there anything else I can do for you. Or can I get back to work?" I asked turning towards her. Only to see her furiously writing in a notebook.

"What spell did you use to do that. I have never seen anything like that." She asked

"Really? I made sure to include that spell in the advanced coursework I sent Celestia."

"What coursework?" she asked

"Advanced uses of Atomic Theory in Transmutation. I know I included it in there when I wrote it."

"I think I was going to learn that next year. I'll have to ask Princess Celestia if I can learn it earlier. Anyways, I'll let you get back to work. Come along Spike." She said as she started to walk away.

"Coming Twilight. Thank you for the amethyst sir." Spike said as he ran after Twilight.

"No problem kid!" I said to him as he ran after the purple pony.

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful, other than having a crowd around the tank most of the time. Sunset answered questions while I was busy working on various parts. And getting ready for a demonstration we were going to do during the Summer Sun Celebration. Including going to the edge of town near the Whitetail woods and setting up a shooting range that involved a lot of rocks, some brick walls, and a 2-inch thick plate of steel. While I was doing this, Pinkie stopped by and asked me if I wanted to come to the surprise party for Twilight. I politely declined saying that I still have more work to do before the celebration tomorrow. She said she understood and went back into town. When I was done setting up the demonstration area, the moon was already in the sky as I went back to the house to shower and get some rest to get up early for the celebration.

As I slept that night, I had an odd dream. I was in a ruined castle in a forest, and there was a midnight black alicorn with blue split eyes wearing blue armor looking over a bunch of ponies lying on the ground.

"You have failed to defeat me. Now I shall bring eternal night to Equestria and rule it as the one true ruler!" She said letting out a cackle.

One of the ponies of the ground spoke, but their figure was covered in shadows, and their voice was distorted. "As long as I live, I will not bow down to a false ruler. I will get the Elements of Harmony, and I will come back and defeat you, Nightmare Moon!"

Nightmare Moon? Like in that old wives’ tale?

"And that is why I shall not let you live." Nightmare Moon said as she cast a spell, engulfing the ponies on the ground in blue flames.

"Now my followers of the night, rise up. Rise up and, Rise up and follow your true Princess!" she said.

As she said that, my head started hurting. It was hurting really badly. I clutched my head and screamed. And as I did, I sat up in my bed, the pain in my head still persisting. As I clutched my head, voices in my head started whispering to me.

"She has returned. Our Princess. We must obey. We must follow. We must bring night to the lands that did not worship us." the whispers said over and over again. Growing with intensity with time. As I clutched my head, I tried to cast a spell, but the voices made it impossible for me to focus long enough to cast the mind shield spell. I hobbled out of bed, and with my hand on the wall, I walked down the hall towards Sunset's room. The voices getting louder and louder with each passing second. And the pain intensifying.

As I reached Sunset's door, the voices were deafening. I started pounding on Sunset's door.

"Sunset! Sunset! I need your help now!" I yelled

"Moonshadow, it is the middle of the night, what could you possibly need." I barely heard her talk through the voices now screaming in my head.

"Sunset, I need you to cast the mind shield spell now. Something is preventing me from casting my magic, and there are voices screaming in my head!" I yelled. And after a moment, the door was slammed open and on the other side was Sunset in a pink nighty. I didn't have time to admire it as the voices were becoming too loud that I had to clutch my head with both hands now. Sunset took my head in her hands, and I assume cast the spell, as the voices started to fade, and the pain subsided.

"Moonshadow, are you alright?" Sunset asked

"I'm alright now. But this all started when I was asleep." I said as we went over to the couch in the living room and I went into detail of the dream I had.

"So, if I'm understanding this correctly, this has something to do with Nightmare Moon and the Mare in the moon story. Right?"

"From what I can understand. Yes." I said, "Wait... the Mare in the Moon!" I said as I jolted up and ran outside to look at the moon. Looking as I looked up, I saw the Mare in the moon still there, but then four starts near the moon glowed really bright for a moment, and the Mare was gone.

"Oh shit. SUNSET! Get dressed, now."

"Why? What’s wrong?" Sunset asked as she followed me outside.

"Look at the Mare in the Moon." I said

"What about it?" She said as she looked at the moon, "Wait... where is it?"

"I just saw it disappear. I think that wasn't a dream. But rather a prediction of the near future."

"I'll go get dressed. What are we going to do?" she asked

"After we are both dressed, we are going to look for anything on Nightmare Moon in our library before we need to be at the Summer Sun Celebration. Once there, we need to be on high alert. And not hesitate to use the tank if needed."

Over the course of the next 3 hours, we wasted no time scouring the books we had for anything on Nightmare Moon. With the only real information being the legend itself. How Princess Celestia banished her to the moon using the elements of harmony in the Castle of the Two Sisters.

As the time of the Summer Sun Celebration grew closer, we both went back into town and got the Tiger 2 tank ready just in case. We turned on the engine and loaded the gun with an armor-piercing shell. We were staying vigilant, watching for any signs of Nightmare Moon outside of the town hall as the Summer Sun Celebration was happening. Looking at the time, the sun should be rising any second now. But as the seconds turned into 5 minutes I knew something was wrong. Something must have happened to Princess Celestia. I wasn't sure what, but it can't be good.

Before I could wonder any more exactly what happened, I heard an evil cackle from the inside of the town hall, and Ponies started running out of the building.

"Sunset she must be inside the town hall. We need to get in there now! Use the Tank to knock down the wall!" I said as I ducked down into the turret of the tank and closed the commander's hatch and looked through the periscope. As I did, I could feel the tank move, and a few seconds later, I saw the wall in front of the tank break down and standing where Princess Celestia should be is what can only be Nightmare Moon. She looked exactly like she did in my dream. Knowing full well that this will hurt the ears of the ponies in the room, I took aim at Nightmare Moon and fired. As the explosion echoed through the room, the shell flew true and went straight through Nightmare Moon, leaving a gaping hole in her chest. I thought for sure it would have killed her, but I saw the hole close and Nightmare Moon fire a beam of magic at the tank. The beam of magic hit the tank, and I watched as the charge of the battery rise quickly and was at capacity when the beam finished. I looked back to where Nightmare Moon was, and I saw her disappear in a blue mist with a cackle.

Opening the Commanders Hatch, I looked out at the ponies still in the room. Most of them were on the ground clutching their ears and were in shock at what just occurred.

"Sunset, back out of the town hall please."

As we reversed out of the hall, I saw Twilight running towards Golden Oaks Library, with Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy a good 60 seconds behind her.

"Sunset, follow Twilight Sparkle. She might have more information on what is going on."

Author's Note

Sorry for the delay. Midterms are coming up. Part 2 should come within a week or so. If any of you spot any errors in the chapter, let me know and I should have it fixed within a few hours.

Here is what the tank looks like but instead of grey, the tank has a Mineral Alloy (link) look to it: Tiger 2 (link) Model belongs to World of Tanks.