The Foundation of Memory's Past

Once we arrived, and Luna cooled down from the afterglow of our little engagement, the two of us guided both parties to the Canterlot Castle. Ditzy, Luna, Amethyst, and Dinky were at my sides, while the others were a bit more distanced.

I noted that Blossom and Silver were a bit closer to each other than they were to Nether Flame, who in mind, seemed somewhat bitter. Maybe they had a thing going on and Nether was jealous? Or some other thing happened between them?

I could also be wrong, and that could just be the dynamic of the group.

Luna began to press into my side, and I occasionally felt her wings brush against my own. It tickled, but I did my best to pay it no mind.

Ditzy was seemingly enjoying the walk, admiring the beauty of Canterlot in its entirety, and completely unaware of me and Luna's little 'session' in the cart, thankfully. That spice scent wasn't able to jump between people, right? Because at this point, I'm starting to think it's pheromones.

I thought that she would at least be able to smell it on Luna, but I had a feeling that she wouldn't want to go that far with me just yet. I mean, we only spent, what, two days together in total, and one date? Technically two since she misread the first one, but I wasn't going to ruin it for her.

Well, I did in a way, and I felt like a prick because of it.

I wasn't much for talk, and enjoyed the silence that came along with a good walk. Especially when you could enjoy it with someone. We weren't getting much side glances from anyone outside of the group. Mostly nobles who either did not have interest in us, or they were just walking with their noses up. It looked a bit stupid, but I knew that they were probably raised that way.

That, or money corrupted them and made them think they were better than others.

Looking back to our path, The Castle was closer than I thought. Almost a good 15 minutes from The Castle to the train tracks.

Blossom and Silver Shot were still chatting up a one-sided storm, with Silver listening respectively, and nodding and agreeing with Blossom. Nether was also interested, but just listened in like Silver.

I grinned, finally, someone more socially awkward than me.

Well, maybe not but still.

"Luna, what're the plans for tonight?" I asked her.

She thought for a second and let out a tired sigh.

"We do not know. We, I am fatigued from our journey thus far and cannot recall for the moment. We believe that sister hath something planned for tomorrow and the day after, though we are unsure." She said, bags slightly visible under her eyes. Was that my doing?

"Oh yeah. You've been awake for a while now, haven't you?" I asked, realizing she must be exhausted.

"Yes. That, and our sleep schedule has been disorganized. Tis another factor in our predicament." She said.

"Uh, speaking of sleep, where will we be staying?" Ditzy asked, speaking up.

I thought about this for a moment.

"I think we can arrange something for you. I'd have to be somewhere near my room so I can keep a close eye on you three." I said, spotting Dinky trailing between Ditzy and Amethyst.

"Especially since we got ourselves a little adventurer with us!" I said, shifting my voice to earn a smile from Dinky. She giggled and smiled at me, and I smiled back.

"We knew thou was great with foals." Luna said, her eyes shifting to a more soft gaze.

"What can I say. I know what they like." I said, creating a small ice cream and giving it to her.

She took it happily, and thankfully no one noticed besides Luna, Ditzy, and Amethyst.

"How can you do that? I've been meaning to ask for a while now." Amethyst asked.

I shifted my voice again.

"Magic." I said, making two pig snorts.

"But didn't you say that, you know." She said, her expressions telling me about my other 'magic' set.

"Oh, right. I think I'll tell you about this when we're alone as a group." I said, earning a round of nods from everyone.

We arrived at the Castle doors with little to no interruption.

Except, unfortunately, fan girls.

"Um, e-excuse me, Your Highness?" I heard to my immediate right.

Turning, I saw this small group of mares, all eyeing me with some form of amazement.

"Yes?" I asked, stopping entirely.

"W-we were wondering if you would l-like to j-join us in our herd." She asked, clearly shaking from either fear or worse, excitement.

"Uh, I don't think it works that way." I said.

Luna was by my side immediately, and stared down at them.

"What is it that's keeping you, Dear Franz?" She asked, as if wanting to anger the group if mares here.

I tried counting them, and each time I made eye contact with one, they would get red or try and wink at me, but in a obviously shy, and pitiful way. Honestly, I feel embarrassed for them.

"I think that these mares wanted me for something." I said, counting 12 in total. I might have to make a break for it.

"A herd, I think." I said, gaining a round of nodding heads form them.

Ditzy was nearby, watching the whole thing play out with narrowed eyes. Oh shit.

"Well, I do think that we should make it back to the Castle. We need to prepare our guests for their stay in their suites." Luna said, glaring at them intensely.

They all seemed pretty sad, and scared as I was starting to not enjoy this kind of attention anymore. Sure it was fun for a bit., but who knows how long Celestia has had to deal with this.

"Yep. Let's a go." I said, trying my best from letting them have their way with me in their imaginations. Holy fuck this is weird.

Walking up to Ditzy, she fell by my side with Luna on the other and left the area those mares were in.

"What was that all about?" Ditzy asked.

"Just some over-hormonal mare's trying to get my attention. You know, the usual." I said, sounding like a prick again.

"Well, actually, this was the first time they did this, and who knows how many times it'll come. No, wait, there was one other time. Two. Jeez, I think I've been swarmed a few times by mares. Thankfully no Stallions yet. No, wait, I have." I rambled, getting looks of confusion from Luna and Ditzy.

"Sound's interesting." Amethyst said jokingly.

"Not really." I said, noticing Celestia near the entrance.

She smiled, and everyone bowed, even Ditzy and Amethyst.

Dinky seemed amazed by her, and bowed with her eyes staring right at her. It was cute, and I smiled at them.

"Greetings, sister. We hath returned from our journey." Luna said, walking up to her side.

Celestia noticed our small group, and I saw her features shift slightly into puzzlement.

"What do we have here?" She asked.

"Randomized selection for a trip to the Canterlot Castle. They were the highest contenders for the raffle." I stated, nodding my head a bit.

She smiled and closed her eyes.

"You may rise, my little ponies. Welcome to the Canterlot Castle. I'm certain that you are exhausted from the trip. Allow the Castle staff to escort you to your rooms." She said, opening her eyes when she started talking.

I walked up to her and whispered in her ear.

"Can you have her close to my room?" I asked her, giving my head a tilt to show who I was referring to.

She gave me a very subtle sly look, and smiled soon after. Wait, did I never tell her about me and Ditzy?!

There was staff here, helping them with their things as they entered the Castle with amazement.

"Ditzy." I said, earning her to look at me.

I motioned for her to come. I gotta get this out of the way before more problems arise.

She walked over in slight fear. Probably cause of Celestia's height. I knew that Celestia wouldn't harm anyone purposely. At least, not yet.

Celestia smiled at her.

"Ditzy Doo, am I correct?" Celestia asked softly.

"Yes, Your Highness." She whispered shyly.

"Celestia, can you teleport me, Luna, Dinky, and Amethyst to my quarters, along with yourself." I asked her.

"What for?" She questioned back innocently.

"For a private conversation."

She gained a look of understanding and nodded. Instantly, we teleported into my room once she charged the spell.

Well, they did. I was halfway clipped through the floor.

"Uh, I think something went wrong." I said, catching their attention.

"Dear Franz!? What happened to thee!?" Luna cried in surprise.

She walked over to me and looked where I was clipped into.

My legs were almost entirely through the floor and I was starting to lose feeling to them. Wonder if this might become a common occurrence if we teleport a bunch.

"Is this normal? This isn't the first time this has happened either." I asked Celestia, who stared at me in shock.

"This has happened before!?" Luna basically yelled.

"Yeah. I usually try and teleport again higher, but that's my plan." I shrugged, only to feel my limbs slightly under more pressure.

"No. This is extremely dangerous, and should be handled with the most caution." Amethyst said, her eyes scanning my as her face morphed into a thoughtful one.

"How dangerous?" I asked.

"You shouldn't be alive, kind of dangerous. What do you feel?" Amethyst asked in a worried tone.

"Well, I feel like there's a bit of pressure on my legs, but other than that, I feel okay. As long as I don't move too much." I said, lighting my horn again.

In a flash of light, I was back in the room how things should be with a small drop. I think I hate teleporting now.

"But other than that, I don't think I'll be doing this again." I said, giving my limbs a needed stretch.

"So you could've died?!" Ditzy asked out of surprise.

"Yeah. But I would normally re-spawn." I shrugged off. Not that dying was cool, I still felt the pain and everything.

"R-re-spawned?" Ditzy asked, not entirely understanding the situation.

"Yeah, if I were to die, then I would come back to life with a new copy of my body. Not that it's fun to do it, it still hurts, but I at least know that I won't die permanently." I said, waving an arm around to show emphasis.

"But what about your body? Old one at that." Amethyst said, looking slightly sick.

"I usually delete it, but I haven't gone to the extreme's yet. And I don't want to either." I said, giving her a look of worry.

Dinky, who I had forgotten until now, was surprisingly quiet. Taking in all of the information like a sponge.

"It's true. I've seen him fall in battle and come back with a vengeance." Celestia said, looking at me with unamused eyes.

"Well, it also helps that I have different properties to my prowess. Most of which I've yet to tell any of you." I said, smirking at her.

She gave a me a look slight annoyance.

"What was the subject at hoof before we got distracted?" Asked Amethyst suddenly.

"Oh yeah." I said, remembering what I had intended to do.

"Guards!" I called.

In an instant, four guards arrived and stood at attention.

"Could you four show these two to their quarters?"

They gave a slight nod, and Amethyst took Dinky along with her. She didn't want to at first, but left with Amethyst after some convincing.

Once they cleared the room, I turned back to Celestia.

"Celestia, this is Ditzy. She has two daughters, and they are going to be a part of my, uh... herd." I said, an odd feeling rising in my gut as I said herd.

Celestia looked at me with a neutral look. Not even a reaction.

'Oh shit, quick! Think of something!'

"And since I'm expanding my herd, I figured why not." I rambled.

'Wait, this could work!'

"So, I've decided on my split second decision, that I give this whole thing a chance. I've been a bit of a jerk, and I want to make it up to you." I said, looking her in the eyes.

Her expression slowly turned to that of surprise, then small tears formed at the base of her eyes.

"Luna, do you accept Celestia as a fellow herd member?" I asked, turning to Luna.

Luna had a smile, and nodded.

"Yes, we would like to see our sister feel the same emotions thou creates for us." She said, nodding.

Nodding to her, I turned to Ditzy.

"Ditzy, do you accept Celestia as a fellow herd member?" I asked her.

She looked flustered, and gave a nod.

Taking that as confirmation, I turned to Celestia, who was surprised by the whole thing, and was getting teary eyed.

"Celestia, do you accept the invitation to-?" she cut me off.

"Yes!" She said, pulling me into a giant hug and nuzzling my cheek.

"Whoa, okay!" I yelped, feeling her trying to crush my spine. I hugged back, trying to make her feel welcome.

I noticed that Luna and Ditzy were smiling. Luna probably out of humor and Ditzy from how adorable she looked.

"May I?" She asked.

"Hold up, we aren't there yet." I said, earning a glare from Luna.

"Franz, thou will kiss our sister this instant." She growled. What a world, being told to kiss your partners sister? Never would have expected that. I gave her a look of slight fear, and looked back at Celestia, who in mind, was already puckering up.

'When in Rome.' I thought.

"Eh, I don't feel like it." I said, letting a wave of tiredness hit me.

"Franz, just do it." Ditzy asked.

I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep, letting loose a short, obviously fake snore.

Luna didn't look impressed, and neither did Ditzy.

"Oh come one! I waited until it felt right with you two! Well, more so with Luna. Ditzy, you were pretty straight forward." I said.

I felt something touch my cheek, and I glanced over at Celestia, who was smiling as she kissed me. She let loose a short laugh and took a breath.

"This is exhilarating! I don't think I've been more relieved to hear you give me a chance! I just can't believe it!" Celestia rambled.

"Yeah." I said, still being held by her.

"Dear sister, we believe that we are to return to our quarters for our needed rest. But first." Luna said, turning to Ditzy.

"Doth thee know what our Dear Franz truly is?" Celestia let me go at this question, and let my spine shift back into place. So she DID paralyze me! By accident anyways.

Ditzy looked surprised at the sudden attention, and slightly shrank.

"What do you mean?" She whispered, sounding not entirely herself.

"I've told her. She, along with Amethyst and Dinky, know what I am. A Human." I spoke up, in an attempt to ease the attention off of her.

"Thou did?" Luna asked in surprise.

"Why?" Celestia followed up with.

I felt myself get uncomfortably warm, and tried to cool off a bit with some adjustment of my legs.

"Well, I actually showed her when I formed our relationship. So, there wasn't any misplacement of trust between us."

Celestia seemed to ponder on my words.

"While a major leap of faith, we believe that this has worked for the better. Tell us, Ditzy, what is't thy plan for us?" Luna asked.

"Uh, um, I, well, wanted to be with him after I got to know him. I know that I won't be there forever, but I want to support our herd as long as I can!" Ditzy stated, growing more and more bold as she went on.

After a brief silence, Luna smiled and nodded.

"Okay, now can we go to bed?" I asked, feeling a sense of sleep creep into the back of my mind. Oh hey, the edges of my vision were going dark.

"Of course. I'll see you in the morning, everypony." Celestia said, winking at me before teleporting away.

"I'm going to bed too. It's a little late and I have to make sure that Dinky and Amethyst are okay." Ditzy said, muffling a yawn.

"Okay, have a good night." I said, closing the distance between us and giving her a kiss. She returned it with gusto, and we went a little overboard. I wasn't sure why, but whenever I kissed either Luna or Ditzy, I felt like I didn't want to let go.

Prodding her mouth, I tried to explore it, and she let me, going into a full on make out session. Hugging her, and she wrapped her forearms around my neck, squeezing me of my warmth.

I let out a grunt to let her know that someone was still here. We broke the kiss, and I felt flustered from this.

"Sorry, but you're just a good kisser." She said, blushing lightly.

"So I've heard." I said.

"Goodnight, Franz." She smiled.

"Goodnight, Ditzy." I returned.

And so, she left.

'Wait a minute.'

"We didn't eat dinner, did we?" I asked turning to Luna. She gave a shrug and went into the bathroom.

Waling over to the bed, I flopped onto and let out a sigh. Damn, it's been a good couple of days so far. I heard the sound of the shower being turned on. Oh right, Luna wasn't as clean as I was. Maybe I should put that effect on her sometime.

Turning on the projector in the room, I turned on the Switch and played Smash Ultimate some.

I wasn't sure why I didn't have any of the DLC characters yet. The most recent one I had, to this date, was Joker. I could always get the other DLC, but I wasn't sure what would happen if I gave Luna a broken character. Minecraft Steve in her control would be a nightmare.

I decided on playing against a level 9 Donkey Kong, with my Kirby. It was fairly easy fight.

"Shit."

For the bot, of course.

I started with charging into it and prodded with a forward air, all while the Kong was charging it's special.

Some damage got on him, and I pulled back.

Donkey Kong went for a grab, but missed, as I went for an air dodge to my side of the platform on the right.

The bot followed me, and I tried going for a Forward Tilt to get him away.

The bot, with robotic like speed, dodged behind me and went for a Neutral A, which gave me damage, and knocked me back.

It followed with a running attack, but I hopped up and away from it with my Kirby facing away from it.

It went for a down spike, and I made for a counter with back air. Obviously, since Donkey King has more reach than I do, hit me first, and followed me closely.

It quickly went down to the platform, and jumped back up and hit me with his neutral air.

I wasn't able to do much, except try and make some distance between us.

In an attempt to give him some damage, I rushed him and turned Kirby into a ball of flame.

Donkey Kong, being the bot he is, spot dodged and made with a back air.

I was thrown off the platform, and almost knocked out. The bot played it safe and waited for me at the platform.

I did little jumps until I was close to him, where he went for a spike.

Out of reflex, I made for a neutral air, and knocked him back.

I made for a grab, and was successful, and threw him forward onto the platform with a follow up forward air.

I glanced at our percent damage. Mine was pretty high up, and his was barely getting over 100%.

Not giving him a chance, I made for a Up Special, and miraculously, got him in my loop, bringing him down into the platform where I could hit him again with a small energy slash.

"Come on, come on!" I growled, as I sucked him up and gained his ability.

Charging it up until he was going straight for me, I evaded off to the side behind him as he made for the grab, and let what I had stored up into him.

He was sent pretty far out off the stage, and I followed him until I was at the edge waiting for him.

He made his jump towards the edge, and I went for a Forward Air, missing the first two kicks from his spot dodge, and landing the second.

Pushing him back, I went back to the stage where he would try and use his Up Special to try and save himself.

As I predicted, in his vain attempt to try and save himself, he failed and couldn't reach the platform, and lost one of three stock.

I charged his stolen ability and waited for him to return, which he did and tried to hit me immediately.

I dodged, and ran to the other side of the stage on the left, where I would try and bait him.

He went for a grab, and I let it rip, hitting him and getting an instant 40%. I was a bit disappointed, sure, but I could handle it.

Charging it again, he came back and charged me again.

Knowing that these bots don't fall for the same thing twice, (unless they're level 3 or lower) I waited until he would evade again behind me.

I was surprised that he leaped into the air, and went for a kick at me, sending me high into the air, and almost out of the stage.

In my attempt to save myself, I made Kirby into a 100 ton block, and plummeted downwards when I recovered.

He leaped again, and tried to hit me, only to be pushed back a bit and took damage from it.

Popping out as Kirby again, I got the jump on the bot and released the stored up punch I was saving from earlier, hitting him and knocking him away again.

I was at a dangerous percentage, and I would almost get two stock before I lost one of mine.

Whipping out a hammer, I charged it and waited until it started giving me damage, but not a lot.

The bot recovered, and tried to use it's Neutral air, but I let go first and hit the bot, sending it out of the stage and off the side, earning a blast of visual lights as I took yet another stock.

I charged the stolen ability, when I thought I heard the shower stop. I didn't pay much mind, and focused on the task at hand.

Donkey Kong re-spawned, and I ran away until his invincibility wore off.

Once it did, I turned and hopped into the air, letting the powerful attack go.

However, the bot had the same idea, and punched my character straight in the face, and sent him flying off the stage.

'One to two, not bad.' I thought.

I re-spawned and charged Kong again, trying to finish him off before I lost my nerve and lost to him.

He simply ran away, trying to get space between us and went for an attack.

It hit me right as the Invincibility wore off, and knocked me back.

I decided to slow time down a little, and watched as they fought in slow motion and used my power in life for the game.

I slowly recovered, and tried to poke at him to get him to drop his guard.

He used his shield, and I hit him on the third Forward Air, pushing him back again.

I chased after it, and it used it's Forward Air in an attempt to spike me into the stage.

I air dodged behind it, and evaded to the edge of the stage, where I made for a Forward Tilt.

Kicking it in the face, I knocked it back some and followed with a forward air.

The bot tried to air dodge away, and managed as I missed my follow up.

I gave chase, and turned Kirby into a ball of fire, heading straight into Donkey Kong.

And I would have hit him, if he didn't throw his charged special.

I was nearly knocked out of the map, and I had to really shake the joy stick around to recover from it.

Going for little hops, I made myself close to the edge, where the bot slowly leaped off and went for a spike.

Using my air dodge, I grabbed onto the edge and hopped off when the bot tried to recover.

Using a Down Air, I got multiple hits and got away before I was pulled down with it.

It still tried to get back to the stage with it's Up Special, but missed as I finished it off with a final back air.

It hit the underside of the map, and was spiked down as I won the match.

The screen slowed down, and I resumed time to it's normal state of flow.

I watched as Kirby danced around while Donkey Kong just clapped with his over sized hands.

"Franz." I heard Luna say in a certain tone.

Turning off the projector, I turned and saw Luna with a slightly tired look.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked, seeing her look so exhausted.

"Tis nothing, we are just tired from the journey. All we wish to do right now is to rest with thou." She said as she walked over to the bed.

"Okay, come on over." I said, patting the bed space next to me.

She climbed onto the bed, and pulled me into the bed with her, nuzzling my cheek and showering me with affection. I responded with a kiss to her forehead, underneath her horn.

She shuddered and smiled from my contact.

"Doth thee really wish to let Celestia into our herd? Not that we mind, tis just a sudden thing for even thee." She asked.

"Well, I've been rude to her, and I wanted to make it up to her for being oblivious about her feelings towards me all those years go." I said, removing my armor for a more comfortable rest.

"Yes, thou art always more compassionate when it comes to others. More so that thou often forgets to take care of thyself." She said.

"I guess." I said softly.

"See?" She poked, smiling at me.

"Sure." I whispered, and gave her a light kiss.

She pushed back, and I opened my mouth for her to explore.

We wrestled with out tongues, fighting for dominance as we slowly started groping at each other.

I wrapped a hoof around her plump rear, earning a slight gasp from her while she was caressing my back. While one of my hooves worked on her ass, the other went to the other cheek and brought her closer to me.

She giggled, and I felt myself getting excited.

"Thou art definitely more forward than usual. Pray tell why?" She asked.

"I wouldn't want to ruin the moment." I said, flipping over on top of her.

She let out a cute squeak, and I smiled.

"You're pretty cute sometimes, you know that right?" I said, earning a reddened face from her.

"Thou art jesting." She said, adjusting herself to a more comfortable position.

"Oh really?" I asked.

She gave me a small laugh.

"Quite."

I looked over her entire body, admiring all of the hidden details that were now on full display just for me. Her chest had a very prominent amount of fur beginning to become more noticeable as she seemingly tried her best to puff it out. Was she doing that on purpose?

"Franz. Doth thee love us?" She asked.

"I would probably be dead if I didn't." I said, almost jokingly.

She gave a small pout.

"We art serious." She deadpanned.

I chuckled, and gave her a kiss on the lips.

"Of course I do. Sure, I was reluctant at first, and then again when I returned, but I would never stop loving you for who you are. Almost like we're bound to be." I said, giving her a genuine look.

"What if we were to deem this relationship unsatisfying? Would thou still love us then if I were to end it?" She asked, getting somewhat worried.

'This is a test, isn't it?'

"That, would probably break me. I've known you for the longest time here, and I've enjoyed every second of it. There's nothing to worry about. I don't plan on adding more members to our hers if that's what you're worried about." I told her.

"Not even for the Elements of Harmony?" She asked. What?

Getting off of her, I brought her to a sitting position next to me.

"Tell me, what's wrong?" I asked her.

She looked a bit disappointed in herself for ruining the moment, but spoke with her usual tone.

"We art concerned that thou will lose interest in us. We hath seen thou spending some time with the Elements, that we got worried. Long ago, thou said that the best path is the direct path. We, I mean, I wasn't sure what you meant up until now." She said shyly.

"And, what made you feel this way?" I asked.

"Seeing all of the mares giving thou lustful glances, and thou unknowingly dangling it in front of them. Pay attention to their demeanor, it will show thou much on the subject at hoof." She said, lowering her head slightly.

"We apologize for ruining the mood. We shall rest now." She said, grabbing the blanket with her magic and bringing it up to her shoulders.

"Goodnight." She forced herself to say.

I could hear her trying to not cry, and it made my chest hurt like hell.

"Luna, we're a herd now. We shouldn't have to keep things from each other. We face our problems together, as a family." I said, putting a hoof on her side.

"..." She stayed silent.

"Okay. I'll be here when you're ready to talk. Goodnight Luna. I love you." I said, feeling my eyes sting at those words.

Pulling the covers over my shoulders, I slumped next to Luna with a hoof draped over her, and shut my eyes in a vain attempt to keep them from crying as well.

I heard her tighten up, before I heard her take shaky, shallow breaths to calm herself.

Seeing her like this, shivering and crying silently, made me hold her closer. I wanted to tell her everything as going to be alright, and it would be.

I felt my heart gain a heavy feeling as she slowly managed to ease herself to a more controlled paced breath, before pushing herself into me.

Wrapping my wings over her in a protective manner made me feel better, even if slightly.

I felt myself drifting off, feeling the gentle swaying motion you'd get when entering a REM cycle.

Submerging into a conscious dream, I found myself not in control of my dream for long.

The landscape was deserted, almost barren of anything living for miles, and anything that once resembled a living creature, was mangled beyond recognition.

I stood, alone in what looked like a large town, or a small city.

Walking several meters ahead, I found another one of the mangled bodies, being clueless as to what, or who it used to be.

The scenery shifted again, but slightly. I felt it in my core, but I didn't notice anything different.

"Hello!" I called, only to receive nothing but the slight howl of the wind.

I thought I saw something in the distance, but it vanished as soon as I had found it.

"Is anyone here?" I called out again.

I found a car that I thought had people in it, as in humans, but from what I saw I knew that they weren't. At least not anymore.

From where I was standing, it looked as though they were shaking their head impossibly fast, as if saying no. I went around the car with caution. There wasn't anything that I could use for protection except rubble, maybe melted rebar.

The sound of several people fighting caught my attention, and I ran towards it in hopes of finding help.

I encountered several people, their heads shaking impossibly, beating someone with their bare fists and screeching like animals. The woman, as I now identified, was panicking, desperately trying to get away as the demons wailed on her.

A mix of fear and anger at the sight flared up, and I charged at them.

They didn't seem to notice me at first, and I landed a solid hit on the first one, knocking it down and earning a backhand from the other.

I crashed into a car and grabbed the nearest item that was near me, a bottle.

The distorted human jumped on me and tried to hit me with its hands. Swinging the bottle at its head, the glass smashed
and was knocked off of me.

Getting up quickly, I tried to get the jump on it when I was tackled from the side from the other one and lifted off of the ground.

It grabbed me with a single hand, and lifted me up towards the sky by the neck, the arm extending in a monstrous way that would kill a normal person.

I struggled to breath, my lungs feeling as though they were beginning to burn.

Kicking the arm did nothing as the once human creature began squeezing my neck, closing off my breath before I could recover.

I saw the lady get up, her hands charged with some type of energy, and blast the one I had knocked away, a hole in its chest.

'What the...' I trailed off, my visions blurring.

The creature threw me off to the side, slamming me against the side of a wall. I gasped for air, not being able to recover fast enough to help the woman with magic-like abilities.

Something spattered across my face, and the smell of iron in the air as my vision returned.

"Art thee alright?" She asked, in old English. She held out her hand to me.

"I'll live." I choked out, accepting the help.

"Hurry, we must find the exit to this Nightmare before we get hurt." She said.

"I don't think this is any Nightmare, ma'am. I think it's the end of the world actually." I said, my breathing more controlled and eased.

"Dear Franz? What art thee speaking of?" She asked, her voice seemingly familiar.

"Hold on, I think I recognize that voice. Are you an actor or something?" I asked, not sure what was happening.

"What?"

Looking over to the bodies, I saw that they were indeed dead.

"I don't think you're a normal person, aren't you?" I asked.

"N-no, Dear Franz, this is all but a dream! We are in a nightmare at the moment, and we came to thy's aid. What is the matter?" She asked.

"Holy shit, you're really familiar. Did you voice a cartoon character or something? I swear I remember your voice." I said, feeling a headache hit me.

"Dear Franz, thou should rest. Come, let us find the exit to the dream. Doth thee remember where thou awakened?" She asked.

"I don't think that's a good idea. I'm pretty sure I saw some more of those things back there." I said. Who was she? I recognize her voice, and mannerisms, but from where?

"Fear not, for we shall protect thou!" She stated.

"Can I get a name at least?" I asked.

"Of course, we are..." She trailed off, pushing me out of the way and blasting an energy beam at another thing that had spotted us. It died from her attack.

"Luna. Our name is Luna."

"Luna?" I asked, feeling something in my head click.

"Luna! What's going on?! Where are we?!" I asked, panicking slightly. Everything right now was a Nightmare, so I could control it, right?

"Yes! Take control back from this Nightmare! Change the realm as thou see's fit!" I heard Luna say.

I felt something happen, the landscape, the presence of a threat, the horrible monsters, everything disappeared in a blur of motions. The nightmare faded, and the normal dream area returned.

Taking a sudden breath, I saw that we were now in an empty white room with just me and her here.

"Oh thank god, I thought I was going to die." I said, feeling relieved.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"I've yet to figure out." She said.

I took notice of her features. She had light, smooth skin, dark blue hair and clothing, and a small, black sword at her hip. She wore boots, jeans, and a dark blue button up flannel for some reason. And somehow, was able to walk without a problem.

But something seemed off about this room.

No.

Oh god.

No, it can't be. Not here. Not again! Not now!

"Dear Franz? What doth thee mean? Not again?"

"Hello, dumb ass. I see you brought your girlfriend. Finally got the balls to fuck her, didn't ya?" I heard, making me growl in anger.

"YOU!" I yelled, pushing Luna behind me to protect her from my perverted iteration.

"Franz?" Luna asked.

He laughed maniacally. I wanted to rip him apart for letting her in here.

"Oh, what's the matter? Afraid I'll take advantage of your weakened mentality? Please, not in front of a lady." He said, bowing in his DOOM armor.

"Dear Franz, who is this?" Luna asked, a worried look on her face as she grabbed my arm.

"He never told you?" He said, an unsettling laugh echoing from him.

"Ah, dearest, I'm his inner self that he tried to leave behind on Earth. Surely you know what he thinks of you, right?" He asked.

"What are you getting at!?" I shouted, glaring at him.

"Shut it you. I'm more interested in the new one here. Tell me, does the word Tantabus, mean anything to you, dearest?" He asked.

Luna didn't respond, and I looked for the door.

"Ah, ah, ah! No leaving this time. I want Luna to watch this." He said, breaking into a full sprint towards me.

I raised my hand to blast him with my power, but nothing happened.

Realizing that I, once again, had no power, I pulled out Luna's sword and swung it at him.

It struck, the blade bounced off with a ping, and I felt it through my arms.

It barely fazed him, his face lighting up in his wicked smile of excitement.

"Not quite!" He said in a sing-song voice, followed with a backhand across the room.

I slammed into the wall, knocking the wind out of me as I clawed my way back to Luna, who was being held to the wall by her neck.

"I wonder what'll happen if I kill you in his sub conscience?" He asked, making her eyes widen out of shock.

"N-nay!" She grunted, and blasted him off of her.

He was pushed back, but recovered quickly and tried to punch her. She barely managed to evade his attack and shot a beam of concentrated magic at him.

I felt my ribs boil, and I screamed out of pain.

"Dear Franz!" She cried, keeping her guard up and hurrying over to me.

I felt my back beginning to flare up, and the pain nearly made me vomit.

"Dear Franz, what ails thee!?" She asked, lifting my shirt and seeing my burning skin.

"What?" She said to no one in particular.

The other me laughed.

"You should know that whatever you do to me, will happen to him. There is no winning this situation. You will lose, and in the process, eventually kill him. What ever shall thy do?" He mocked, and let loose another laugh.

"Dear Franz, rise! Please rise! We cannot take this being ourselves!" She said, tears forming in her eyes.

I cupped her cheek, and pulled her in for a hug.

"Franz?" She asked.

"It's the only way." I said, pulling out a knife she had in her boot and thrusting it into my skull.

"NOOO!" She screamed, and it plunged into my head, greeting me with darkness.

'You'll never live up to her expectations, you'll fail her, like always.' Was the last thing I heard, before waking up next to Luna.

Opening my eyes, I sprung out of bed with a gasp of air, desperately trying to fill my lungs with the rich oxygen that was ever present.

Luna woke up at the same time, and tackled me off the bed, landing on top of me as I hit the cold, hard floor.

"Nay! Thou will not perish on our hooves!" She shouted, pulling both of my arms behind my back.

"Luna! It was just a dream! Why are you like this!" I cried, feeling her not as strong attempts at keeping my arms behind my back.

I peeled her off, and tossed her back onto the bed, and noticed that my armor wasn't on the cabinet anymore. Looking down, I saw that my armor had been called during the night, and was now gripping their respective spots.

"Dear Franz, what was that being from last night!? T'was nothing like we've ever seen!" She said, seemingly in shock.

"I have a theory, but I don't know if that isn't the case." I said, noticing the doors open.

"Your Majesties, is everything alright?" Asked a Night Guard.

"Yeah. We're fine." I said, pretending everything was.

It really wasn't.

"Yes, leave us be." She said from the bed.

He bowed nervously and left, leaving me with Luna to talk.

"What is't thy theory?" She asked, shuffling towards the bed. I took in a breath, and just hit her with it.

"You remember when, you were your other self, Nightmare Moon?" I asked.

She seemed a bit worried, and nodded.

"We do recall that abomination." She said, gaining a sour look.

"And do you remember our Soul Bond? I continued.

She quickly put two and two together, and shook her head.

"Nay, tis not possible! Our Soul Bond is unable to do such a thing!" She said, trying to deny it.

"When was Soul Bonding a thing?" I asked. Maybe I can fill in the gaps.

"Committing to a Soul Bond was a new process when we were tampering with the properties of one's life. We believe that there was an accident that hath lead to it, but soon after, many ponies began wanting to copy this spell. Some with more success than others, but we art entirely unsure what could have been an ailment, since we formed one two months before our exile, and thou's disappearance." She said.

Closing my eyes, I tried remembering what I read/remembered on the matter.

"I remember seeing, or I think figuring, that some things can cross a Soul Bond, and kind of merge with the other member unknowingly, or passively." I said, laying it out for her.

Luna looked horrified, and I saw her panicking.

"No, t-thou can't! Tis not possible!" She cried, gaining a furious, yet sad look in her eyes.

"I think I may have my own version of Nightmare Moon in me."