Nightmare: Rise of the Demons

It was evening when Twilight Sparkle and her five friends set camp at the border between the lush green lands of central Equestria and the mountain-closed Badlands. The harsh hot winds blew even as the sun set, polishing the windswept boulders scattered across the unending rocks of the desert. The air wavered above them still, and no clouds covered the desert. Without weather control, the weather was constantly dry, unchanging for many years. Maybe there used to be a forest, a swamp, fields, but any evidence to that had long since been erased by the heat and the wind. Now, it was just a wasteland where few lived and even fewer were known to live.

Twilight Sparkle decided it would be best to wait until the desert cooled before stepping into it. Instead, the six will wait until a few hours before morning when the rocks and the sand are at their coolest, and they would travel until they either found Luna or had to set up camp to avoid the searing heat of the day when it became too much. For now, they sat around a campfire, chatting between themselves.

"Are ya sure Princess Luna headed that way?" Applejack asked, using a stick to poke into the fire to make sure it burned correctly. Out of all of them, she had the most expertise when it came to the outdoors, "Ain't nothing worth visiting there, definitely not for a princess."

"Indeed," Rarity easily agreed, "Oh, I'm very glad it's not entirely a sand desert. I don't like sand - it's coarse, rough, and so very irritating, and it gets absolutely everywhere."

"Princess Luna is there somewhere, I feel it," Twilight assured, "Maybe she's on a special mission. You know I can't tell you much, I promised."

They made some small talk before going to sleep in their tents, none of them noticing eyes watching them in the dark. Just like they didn't notice the black shapes closing in and casting spells, making sure the ponies wouldn't wake up just yet.

Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis were in what amounted to a conference room, a map of Canterlot on the table before them, various writings and signs on it. The plan was quite simple, although it required Chrysalis' direct participation undercover. No one but her could possibly do it without rousing suspicion, considering her vast experience in infiltration and mind control of her victims. Nightmare Moon didn't precisely like what the changeling queen admitted to doing, but the two reached an understanding. Kidnappings and replacing ponies would stop completely and immediately once changelings could freely walk the pony lands. As the two discussed one of the stages of the plan, a pair of changeling guards entered the room, standing at attention once their Queen graced them with a look.

"Your majesty, there has been an intrusion into our lands," one of them spoke, "Six ponies were apprehended at the border. They're currently detained, unconscious under spell."

"Six ponies?" Nightmare Moon looked sharply at them, "Are they mares? Was anyone else with them?"

After Chrysalis motioned for them to answer her, the changeling continued:

"They are mares, no one was with them," they said, "They only had camping supplies on them as well as a letter."

They gave the letter to their Queen. She opened it and read, her expression neutral. Wordlessly, she handed the letter to Nightmare Moon, who read it quickly.

"I need to see them," the alicorn demanded, "It is of utmost importance."

"Lead her to them," Chrysalis agreed, "In regards to those ponies, listen to her as you would to me."

Through the cavernous maze that was the changeling home, Nightmare Moon was led deep down below the surface, to the dungeons. They were a small complex of cells in the driest part of the underground, a half-circle around the guard post, separated into three distinct sections by walls. Only the guard post had a view of all the cells. They were currently empty save for one cell where six ponies were bundled together, still asleep and unaware of their predicament.

Nightmare Moon was pleased by this development. The Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, the most troublesome bunch that could prove her undoing, was there, right in front of her, defenseless and ignorant of what befell them. If there was a perfect time to deal with them, it was now. Preventing them from making a mess of her plans was a must - she couldn't underestimate them, not when the Elements chose them as their bearers.

Perhaps they could even be swayed to her side with enough effort, although there was little hope for it. While they were young and impressionable, they were very loyal to Celestia. Twilight Sparkle would certainly be the most problematic out of the six - she was practically raised by the solar alicorn, guided through her studies and into adulthood. The two would always share a connection that would never be possible to break completely.

"They need to be separated," she spoke to the guards, "The six are at their strongest when together. They should be spread out in different cells, unable to help one another even with words. And allow me to take the lavender unicorn with me to an interrogation room - I believe she holdeth the answers I seek. Restrain her as well - her talent in magic is great and cannot be allowed to be used."

Once the mares were separated and Twilight's hooves and horn were bound with magic-nullifying restraints, the unfortunate unicorn was carried to the interrogation room. It was as dimly lit as the rest of the hive, featuring nothing but two seats and a table between them. It was hardly necessary - crime didn't exist among the changelings, and they rarely brought ponies to interrogate in the first place. The room was certainly quite dusty, making the alicorn's nostrils twitch in irritation.

Nightmare Moon placed Twilight across from her as she sat down on one of the seats. She told the guards to leave and lock the door. A simple spell was needed to reawaken the unicorn. She blinked groggily at first.

"P-princess..." she trailed off as her eyes widened. At this point, Luna's body changed enough to reflect who was in control. Much darker fur, the mane and tail flowed ethereally as an ocean of stars. Her eyes were a piercing aqua, her vertical pupils studying the unicorn with interest and a certain amount of wariness.

"No, I am not," Nightmare Moon spoke in a calm, measured voice.

"Nightmare Moon!" Twilight Sparkle shouted and attempted to jump, only to slump as the magical restraints drained her energy enough to prevent her escape.

"There is no use trying to run away," the alicorn said, "Thou art restrained, physically and magically. Thy cooperation would let thee free far quicker than resistance."

"When the princesses find out!-"

"They shall, in time," Nightmare Moon interrupted, "Now, calm thyself. Panicking will not do thee any good - there is no way for thee to escape. However, thou needst not fear - I shan't hurt thee."

"As if I'll believe that!" Twilight spat.

"Have I hurt thee before?" she quirked an eyebrow, "First time we... met, Andromalius was sent to scare thee and thy friends away from the forest. None of you was to be hurt."

"He's always been in league with you, hasn't he?"

"Oh, he was not," the alicorn denied, "He was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Fortunate for me, but quite unfortunate for him at that moment. I suppose that is why Celestia-"

"Princess Celestia to you!"

Nightmare Moon let out a long sigh. Twilight's attitude wasn't exactly out of character, but the alicorn expected her to be at least somewhat fearful and polite to her, considering that the unicorn was at her complete mercy. Aggravating the captor was never a wise decision.

"In a way, she is still my sister," Nightmare Moon spoke calmly, hiding her irritation, "There is no need for anger. The sooner thou answerst what I have to ask, it will be over."

"Why do you think I'll tell you anything?" she turned her head away, "You won't learn anything from me."

"There is a conspiracy against the princesses brewing in Canterlot," the alicorn began simply.

"Led by you?"

"Be silent, petulant foal!" Nightmare Moon hissed, anger clear in her eyes, "Thou art wearing my patience thin! Thou shalt listen or I shall... deal with thee," the exact threat went unsaid. Not that the dark alicorn would hurt Twilight - the unicorn was a promising student regardless of her allegiance. It would be a waste to get rid of her.

The unicorn gulped in fear, closing her maw. The alicorn smoothed her features once more, pushing down her anger. As temperamental as she could be, it was neither the time nor place. Even if Twilight Sparkle, the student of Celestia herself, had yet to prove herself worthy of the alicorn's tutelage. She wore emotions openly, seemingly having no cunning at all.

"This conspiracy," Nightmare Moon continued slowly, "Was not started by me nor is it led by me. Luna hath learned of it some time after her return."

"Luna? You're not Luna?" Twilight blinked in confusion.

"We were inseparable at one point," the dark alicorn nodded, "However, due to thine and thy friends'... exploits, I was given a separate mind. How, I do not know, and neither doth it matter in the grand scheme of things."

"What happened to Luna?" the unicorn whispered, fearing the worst.

"She is quite safe, I assure thee," the alicorn said, "She heareth us even now, although she is unable to act. In time, either I shall get a new body or one will be made for Luna instead. It is undecided. However, I do assure thee Luna will walk among us again someday.

"Now, let us return to the matters underhoof. As I said, the conspiracy stands against the princesses, aiming to use them for the ends of the conspirators. Unfortunately, it hath been quite successful for the longest time."

"Who are they?"

"Patience, Twilight Sparkle," Nightmare Moon's voice sharpened at the interruption, "Now, their true identities or numbers are unknown. However, it is clear they have a certain degree of control over Equestria. Celestia hath been blind to their machinations, but it appearth something is beginning to clear her head," she summoned the letter, "Truly, she may yet not be a sorry excuse for a ruler, not completely."

"Don't call her that!" Twilight bristled.

"What thou failst to understand, young mare, is that she hath failed," Nightmare Moon replied harshly, "'Tis her duty to ensure her mind is clear and her thought process is logical and reasonable when governing. Nothing less must be expected from a ruler. Yet she hath let herself fall to the whims of mere mortals," she huffed, "It is completely and utterly disgraceful to be fooled like this. Ponies are but foals to us, never to achieve what we can. However, Celestia hath failed to see the ambitious slithering their way into the circle of her trusted. She hath failed to notice the opportunists trying to usurp the rightful place of their betters."

Nightmare Moon took a deep breath, calming down. It was of no use pouring her anger at Celestia on a much younger and much more ignorant student of hers.

"Now, Twilight Sparkle," she spoke calmly and slowly again, "Thou shalt tell me what exactly prompted dear Celestia to open her eyes."

Some time later, the dark alicorn marched out of the interrogation room, bristling with anger she had not felt in many years. Celestia, in her utter foolishness, had forgotten one very important rule they were taught - to inspect every enchanted object interacting with them regularly and without fail. No enchanted object was to be ignored, no matter the seeming simplicity of one. Celestia had grown far too trusting, far too lax. No wonder Equestria hadn't had much progress since Luna's banishment - it was surprising the country hadn't fallen apart in the thousand years.

"This arrogant, naive excuse for a ruler..." she muttered to herself as she made her way to Andromalius' temporary quarters, "Incompetent, lazy, foolish, idiotic..."

Not only that, but Twilight Sparkle was the perfect product of Celestia's teachings. Skilled in magic and its textbook use, but not very creative or sociable. To think that she was the protégé of a princess of Equestria! Unthinkable how far the standards had fallen since Nightmare Moon's time. Undoubtedly the doing of the conspirators, may they rot in Tartarus. Cunning, ambitious, smart, and resourceful - the worst combination to deal with. And apparently they managed to keep it together for generations, proving them to be more than capable, dangerously so.

Despite the grudging respect Nightmare Moon could give them for fooling an alicorn of all ponies, she held much contempt towards the said alicorn. Beings such as the two sisters and herself should never allow themselves to be fooled. Being an alicorn meant great power and agelessness - and one must spend their time learning, always finding and figuring out new things to be not one, not two, but many steps ahead of all possible competition at all times. They had earned this advantage and needed to use it. Yet Celestia had become lax, lazy, unambitious, completely destroying the image an alicorn was supposed to represent.

"Andromalius," she addressed the hell stallion once she found him, "Come, we should train."

"You look really annoyed by something," he commented, noticing the stiffness in her body and a blaze in her eyes.

"Indeed I am, and that is why I expect thee to withstand my magical assault for as long as it taketh me to unwind," she said, continuing to the hall the two claimed for training. Deciding it would be unwise to argue, he followed her without a word. Then she continued, "When emotions get to thy head, when thou canst not block them out, thou shalt need to aim them productively. Spellcasting can be benefitted from thine emotional state, so use it to thine advantage. When thou art calm again, analyze and see what can be used differently next time. Do not let thine emotions hinder thee, harness them instead, direct them for thy benefit and advantage."

The two reached the training hall and soon Nightmare Moon released barrages of all kinds of spells from all sorts of angles at the hell stallion. He did his best to block or redirect them, even sending some of them back her way, which pleased her. Andromalius perhaps wouldn't be able to play politics due to his looks, but his strength didn't lie in the subtle and the hidden - he had magical and physical power unlike anyone else, and honing the two would prove to be very useful, especially if he also learned to be smart about them. He would be feared and respected, and none would dare to even mutter anything about he looked as long as he was thoughtful about using his much stronger sides to his advantage.

As her anger at Celestia faded, she studied Andromalius. He was struggling under her power, yet he wasn't about to give up nor would he be the first to call it off. There was a fire of determination in his eyes, something she hadn't seen in him before he removed the curse from his soul. Now, he was different, and she was pleased to see he was growing to become a powerful and smart wielder of magic.

She was wise to take him under her wing.