Sombra's Bat

Just before sunrise, I slip into bed, mulling over the whole situation. I've decided that I'll assume all of this is real until I find some proof that proves otherwise. So far, I've come up with empty hooves, but then again, when you live in the Everfree Forest there isn't a bounty of history books or a library sitting around anywhere.

Wishbone thinks that this King Sombra wants to use me to take over the Crystal Empire and then the rest of the world. He sounds pretty crazy, to be honest. All those poor ponies who lived under his leadership before the Empire vanished. I still can't understand why he would come after me of all ponies. Perhaps because of my connections with the royalty of Equestria, but I've already tried so hard to sever those ties. They've not done me any good, after all.

I am on the very edge of dozing off when I hear the knock at the door. "Moonlight?" I hear Wishbone call.

"Wish, let me sleep. I'll discuss anything important this evening."

"Stop talking in Old Ponish and pretending to be some stuck-up Canterlot noble. We need to tell the Princesses about you."

"No," I tell her firmly. The very thought of stepping back into Canterlot Castle is horrifying. Why is my past all of a sudden catching up on me?! "Tell the Princesses about Sombra if you wish, but leave me out of this."

"This is so much more than you and Princess Luna," she pleads. I wince as she says the name of my old mistress. "This is about all of Equestria."

"All of Equestria can wait."

She flies in through the skylight/hole in the roof. "It can't. King Sombra could be dangerous, Moonlight. I don't care what you think about me or anypony else, because this isn't just about you. We're going to the castle."

"And how are you getting there? Can you do long-distance teleportation?"

"I'll try."

"Go on, then."

Her furry ear tufts are surrounded by golden magic, then there's a bright flash of similar golden light. We teleport and arrive in the entrance hall of Canterlot Castle. It looks just how I remember it from a year ago: decorated in the Princess of the Sun's favourite colours, far too bright and bold for my tastes. It makes me sick to be here. She hurt my old mistress and turned her away, and then when we grew closer, she shattered our friendship and made me more alone than ever. If Wishbone hadn't taken me in, the leg injury Luna gave me would have been infected, and that could easily have turned into fatal blood poisoning. I push the details out of my mind.

"We need to see Princess Celestia urgently," Wishbone tells a pegasus stallion stood outside the throne room. "May we speak to her?"

The guard grunts. "What is it that's so important?"

"The Crystal Empire?"

He shuffles in his spot uncomfortably. "Go in."

Wishbone drags me into the throne room and I look at the floor as I walk towards the Princess of the Sun, who is sitting regally on her throne, the sunlight streaming in through the stained glass windows and shining on her snow white fur. Muttering obscenities under my breath, I bow to her as Wishbone does the same.

"Princess Celestia," Wishbone says. "My name is Wishbone Willow. This is my friend, Moonlight Shade. We think the Crystal Empire has returned and that King Sombra is back again too."

Princess Celestia does not gasp, but instead scowls at me. "Moonlight Shade? The old guard who was sent to the moon with my sister?"

"Yes," Wishbone answers for me. "She's changed a lot since then, although I think somepony still has a grudge over being sent to the moon for a thousand years." She chuckles, walks over to me and uses a hoof to lift my chin up. "Come on, Moonlight. I'm sure Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have changed as well."

"That's part of the problem," I grunt.

"Never mind, Moonlight. We need to tell Princess Celestia about your dreams."

I watch Celestia's eyebrows slant upwards. She clears her throat and asks me, "Moonlight, what are these dreams?"

"I've been having a lot of flashbacks to events in my past," I tell her with great reluctance. Wish gives me a small shove and a look of disapproval. "A stallion by the name of King Sombra might have paid me a visit in my dreams."

The look of alarm on Celestia's face is faintly amusing. Her next words less so. "I heard that the Empire was back, but this is much worse. You will both stay in the castle until further notice is given. We need to see if it is actually King Sombra in your dreams or not." She turns to Wish. "Wishbone Willow, have you been troubled by him as well?"

"No. I'm a Dreamwalker though, and I think I saw him in one of Moonlight's dreams. He tried to speak to us, but all I could hear was growling. Moonlight, did you hear anything other than his name?" she asks me.

I shake my head. "No. All he did was introduce himself." I don't want to tell Wishbone and I really don't want to tell Celestia. Why, I'm not entirely sure, but it feels wrong to tell them what I heard.

"Right. I will still keep both of you here for a few days. Princess Luna will monitor your dreams over this time period. She has trained a few others in Dreamwalking who can take her place temporarily, so she should have some time. Also, Moonlight?"

I grudgingly look up at the Princess of the Sun whom I hate so much.

"I would like to apologise for all that I have done. I sent you to the moon for a thousand years and I took from you the only friend you had for those thousand years. That is a huge mistake on my part, but I hope that this apology lessens any negative feelings."

That's it. She does the absolute opposite of what I expect, and confuses me completely, but a weight - a very small weight - is lifted from my chest as I digest those words. I still can't forgive her for wrecking my life twice, but I think I might be able to swallow my feelings towards her more easily and stop yelling at the sun every time I see it. Even if it's all lies, the fact that she bothered to say that makes a tiny difference.

"It does," I say truthfully. "Thank you, Princess."

We are led out of the throne room by two guards, up flights of stairs and down corridors that I don't remember. I can appreciate the castle's design more now: the swirling patterns on the wall are intricate but not messy; the tapestries are woven to perfection; and every stained glass window tells a story. I try to figure out where in the castle I am when we approach a familiar corridor: the one that leads to Luna's bedroom. I lost count of how many times I was on guard duty there before the Nightmare Moon incident. I internally groan whilst trying not to do so on the outside. My reunion with Celestia went without any hiccups, but I doubt the same can be said for Luna.

A guard knocks on Princess Luna's bedroom door, then steps back respectfully as the door swings open and the Princess of the Night appears. She looks just as she did before she became Nightmare Moon: tall, with a midnight blue coat and a darker mane that flows in an ethereal breeze. "What time d'you call this?" she yawns, forgetting her Perfect Princess Voice for a moment.

"Princess, two bats from the Everfree Village are here. One claims to have had dreams of King Sombra's return and the Crystal Empire."

"Bat ponies, you mean," she corrects him. Her eyes scan over us two, then her eyes grow wide and stares at me hard as she recognises me. I glower back. "We meet again, Moonlight," she snarls. I think - it is hard to tell. She might be happy, but I have mixed feelings. She's not Nightmare Moon, after all.

"I have changed, just as you have, Princess," I reply. "Your sister wants you to watch our dreams for a few days. Believe me when I say that I was just as unhappy with this-"

Luna suddenly has me in a huge embrace, and begins to silently weep on my shoulder. "I am so, so sorry for how I treated you the last time I saw you," she whispers. I am taken aback by this sudden attack of kindness, so I say nothing. She asks, "Can you forgive me?"

"I - I don't know. I th-think so," I stutter. "It will take time. First of all, help us out. We think this Sombra pony is popping in my dreams, but I have no idea why. Do you think you can help us?"

"Hmm, King Sombra. Yes, I can help. It means that I will have to go in your dreams as well."

Of course it does. The blood drains from my cheeks, and I don't say anything.

"Moonlight's scared of Dreamwalkers, but we've been working on it, since I've been a Dreamwalker for a few years," Wishbone answers for me. "This is serious, so I'm sure we can do something."

"That is fine. We never knew that King Sombra could Dreamwalk, so I am interested in what else we can learn from him. I know somewhere that we can go and won't be disturbed." She turns to the Solar Guards and tells them, "Guards, you are dismissed. I won't be spending much time in my chambers over the next few days because this is an emergency."

The guards nod and hurry away. Princess Luna leads us back the way we came, down an unfamiliar corridor, up a flight of stairs and to a tapestry. She casts a spell to extinguish all of the light in the hallway.

"It's a hidden passage. Walk through," Luna tells us.

Gingerly, I walk towards the wall, then it completely disappears. I see a torch burning in its bracket ahead and know that I am on the other side of the passageway. When I hear Luna and Wishbone are here, I let Luna take us wherever she thinks is the best place to keep an eye on us. All the while I feel like I am going to be a prisoner, and wish more than anything that nothing happens in my dreams so that I can go back to a normal life in the Everfree. All I want to do is forget the past, and now it's trying to creep up on me again.

Princess Celestia's POV

I pace back and forth in my chambers, digesting that little spanner that has found a home in the works. It cannot be. I thought Luna had scared her off for good. As if there was not enough to deal with, what with the Crystal Empire returning, and King Sombra too... She has to show up as well. The one I swore I would never speak to again. The little vampire; the thorn in my rump; the product of Grogar's dark magic, a traitorous vampire guard and dear Lulu's lack of sense. Daughter of the Night, Princess of the Stars, the one threat to my kingdom and my reign that the Elements of Harmony have been unable to cure.

I cannot let her get in my way. My subjects need me just as much as they did when I first became the ruler - no, co-ruler - of Equestria. If King Sombra has spoken to her, then they could all be in trouble.

I use my telekinesis to pull open a drawer in my vanity table, and grab a bottle of ink and a quill. Dear Cadance, I write, the one I told you about has returned, and has spoken to Sombra. You, Shining Armour and all the guards could be in danger. I will be sending the Elements of Harmony to help you so that the situation does not get out of hoof. If you can keep Sombra out of the Crystal Empire for long enough, I can keep the vampire occupied so she doesn't cause trouble. I will keep in touch. Your loving aunt, Celestia.

I send the letter without a second thought. Regardless of what has been said in the past, I will not let the darkness win. Even if she wrote it in the stars herself when she allowed Nightmare Moon to return, she will not bring the eternal darkness I fear.

She will fail, one way or another, and the sun shall remain in the sky.