New seeds for Stable two

We arrived at the grounds of Hope and were welcomed by a small gun turret hidden in a bush by the roadside. Perched atop the turret was the detached head of a green unicorn mare, grinning at us. I activated my S.A.T.S. as the turret sprang to life - two shots from my laser rifle and the turret exploded. Yay, managed without S.A.T.S. this time, I thought as I collected the head. Then, gently closing the poor thing's eyes, I levitated the crate I found in our wagon. I couldn't keep asking Appletree to dig graves for me each time. I spoke the words to send the poor soul to Luna; then Lili looked at me thoughtfully.

"Hey, Dusty, there's something I don't quite understand. Well, actually, two things." I looked at her curiously as we continued walking. "There haven't been any Children of the Night for about two hundred years. But, well, you're Luna's priests, her church, right? I've seen preachers and priests acting in her name too. How does that fit together? Isn't that another kind of church, or does Luna not care about those ponies? Because they can't do impressive stuff like you." I pondered. Naturally, I knew the history of the church, and answering this question was simple. "We, the Children of the Night, and the Keepers of Day are the will of Luna and Celestia.

Through us, they act in Equestria where they cannot be themselves. The preachers and priests are their voice. I am both. There were times when the Children hid and times when we openly operated. The reason for these two groups is that, firstly, due to our deep connection, we were infinitely loyal to them, and secondly, their power could only extend to a limited number of ponies. Like the Keepers of Day, we are also bound to only one of them. That's another reason why there are preachers and priests. They mostly act in the name of both goddesses. Each of us acts for only one. At its peak, there were up to 50 Children of the Night and 50 Keepers of Day, and now I'm the only one, alongside Sunny. And before you ask: I don't know why Luna hasn't chosen priests for so long. Perhaps because a time of hope has come, and she wants to help." Lili nodded and then asked another question, looking a bit more embarrassed.

"How does Luna communicate with her other priests then? And, well, can they somehow do what you can do?" I recalled legends I had read about, tales of miraculous healings by lay priests. "Luna is the Mistress of Dreams. That's how she speaks to each of us, whether priest, Children of the Night, or just a regular farmer pony. As for your second question, there are legends of miracles performed by lay priests - not Children or Keepers. There, Luna briefly lent them her power."

After our nice little chat about the church, which I effectively got to rebuild, we had hidden behind a couple of old trash cans. I peered over them to see what was happening on the other side. The barricades made of wood, scrap steel, and barbed wire had been recently erected, completely shielding the entrance to the factory. The access for deliveries had a ring wall with a double gate for transport carriages. The walls were manned with gun turrets and patrolling raider ponies. Additionally, I noticed searchlights sweeping around, setting off an alarm at the slightest wheel-rustle. They had also mined the area. I counted about ten raiders on this side of the building, then I saw a carriage approaching - pulled by a gray earth pony and escorted by six raiders. The carriage was full of slaves; especially noticeable were the six zebra foals.

The stallion looked at the raider mare sitting in a small booth embedded in the sidewall of the gate. "One bottle cap per head for entry," said the pink mare at the entrance, seemingly bored as she fiddled with her hooves. It was the first pony I'd seen since us who cared about hoof care. "Ugh, fine, here's your forty-seven," the stallion tossed her a bag. She counted and pulled a lever. The gate opened, revealing a sign on a wall that read "Welcome to Broken Hope." The stallion grinned. "It's really great that there's finally a stopover here, going from Zebratown to New Appleloosa without a decent break is really crappy." The mare nodded, no longer entirely disinterested. "We've got a bar and a brothel here now, even though we've only been here a short while," she said, grinning. "Once you've parked the wagon, inform the administration. If you pay accordingly, we can arrange transport to New Appleloosa."

I scratched my head thoughtfully. What should we do now? Keep moving? Leave the slaves to their fate? Or clear out this nest? I looked at the others questioningly. "What now? There are easily 30 raiders in there." We ventured into the ruins of a remote residential complex; a few apartments were still intact enough to give us four closed walls. "Let's just clear them out!" Ferrax said firmly, utterly convinced. "Maybe we can negotiate with them? They're afraid of you, Dusty." I gave Appletree a grumpy look. "We'll play a bit of psychological terror tonight and tomorrow. I bet they patrol around here at night too. We'll disable them, and you'll bury them properly, with gravestones and all, and then we'll leave traces leading there. Then they'll realize you're here without doing anything bad. And you, Appletree," Lili grinned, "You hunt the patrols. Tear up a few of them so that it looks like you've half-devoured them, and we'll place them in front of their gate. And you have to howl a lot at different places here at night."

Lili's plan seemed to be the most sensible to me. They only understand two things: violence or money. "It's a bit against the principle, Celestia protects and Luna defends, but well, these people are just monsters. We can ask them to surrender first and then fight if needed." We planned to strike after sunset. I found some lightweight rectangular panels in the walls that I used to make gravestones. I hoped the bodies could be identified so I could write the names on the tombstones. It got dark, and Appletree stretched. We had briefly informed home, and Appletree transformed again. "Do you still have the plan in mind, little wolf?" Lili asked. She nodded and said in a dual tone, "A couple of raiders will pose, wait until they shoot at me, then best to kill and shred them. I can do it." She grinned a bit more confidently than usual. Lili stroked her mane. "Happy hunting, little wolf." I called after her, "Remember Rule One!" She leaped into the night, her deep howling filling the area around Broken Hope. I was genuinely uncomfortable with the plan; it felt wrong to ambush these people somehow. They were monsters, but something bothered me tremendously—I just couldn't quite put my hoof on what it was. I sighed and prepared. I let three of the prepared panels float beside me while I checked my laser rifle again. I found the scientific enthusiasm poured into this device wonderful. This technology must have been so versatile before and during the war; for welding and medical treatments, for instance. The area here was more filled with houses than I initially thought.

There were several alleys full of destroyed houses downhill. That's where we set our first ambush. I had hidden behind a fallen refrigerator, Ferrax had disguised himself as a trash can, and Lili sat behind a half-collapsed chimney. The raider group consisted of two earth pony stallions and one unicorn mare. When they halted at the planned spot, I teleported in front of them. Ferrax simply aimed the Gatling at them, just like I aimed my laser rifle. I tried to put as much grace and elegance into each of my steps as I could. I had conjured a small ball of moonlight that enveloped me in sparkling, silvery light. The two stallions readied their weapons until they noticed the floating energy Gatling hanging at their head level. I smiled kindly, "Good evening, my little ponies. I'm here to offer you something." One stallion still looked skeptical, the other lowered his revolver. The mare sat on her hind legs, her eyes widened in shock, seemingly praying. I noticed the Luna and Celestia pendants around her neck, which she clutched desperately. "In the name of our Goddess Princess Luna, I want to give you the chance to leave your old life behind. Stop being raiders. Go out into the world and be good ponies - farmers, caravan guards, or something; but stop being marauding monsters." Now, my gentle smile faded, replaced by a serious look over my glasses.

The one stallion muttered, "Let's just kill the witch!" He kicked the Gatling before it could come to life. "Die, witch, your head's worth money!" I sighed. I had given them a chance. I teleported back a bit as a revolver bullet pierced my side. I cursed in Old Ponish, then activated S.A.T.S. I targeted the stallion who spoke and fired at his flank. Three shots later, he dissolved into a cloud of dust. I asked Luna for forgiveness. Meanwhile, Ferrax had simply beaten the other one to a bloody pulp, laughing hysterically with the Gatling. I shook my head. My E.F.S. marked the mare as yellow. I cautiously approached. She was still praying, looking at me with wide eyes; she murmured, "Luna, forgive me, for I have sinned. Celestia, forgive me, for I have sinned." Her weapon was still in its holster. It was the mare from the entrance of the raider outpost. I hugged her gently, tears streaming down her cheeks. Then she said with a trembling voice, a mixture of fear and reverence, "I...I want to accept your offer, Children of the Night." I nodded gently, "What's your name, and do you know the names of the other two?" I asked softly, "Butcher and Bloodface, I'm Moonbeam." I inscribed the names on the signs. "Alright, then you can go. Don't come back and live an honest life." She hesitated, "I want to become a Keeper of Day." She said firmly. I looked at her surprised.

She looked ashamed, "You want to follow Celestia, but you were—" I quickly corrected myself, "You were a raider. Why do you now wish to follow Celestia's path, which is the exact opposite?" She looked down, "To survive. I only did what I was ordered to survive. I never violated, and only rarely assaulted anyone." She looked up at me again, now anxious. "Then seek out the one the DJ calls the Paladin. She's the current Keeper of Day. She'll decide if you're worthy. She should be near Manehatten." The mare nodded, then let me float a few small vials towards her. "As a little thank you." It was hoof polish in many different colors. I squealed happily and hugged her. Then I gave her a blessing for better sleep on her way. May Luna guide you to Celestia, that you'll become a good pony, I thought, smiling.

Burying the bodies quickly and properly was not easy due to the searchlights, but I managed to create three graves about twenty meters from the main gate. "Once this is over, I'll create a proper cemetery, with flowers and everything!" I thought, somewhat annoyed. I had never shoveled so quickly before. I could see shredded bodies in front of the gate, but only two. Appletree must have shown mercy to at least one pony. By midnight, we had encountered two more stubborn raider groups. Each of the two other exits received its small cemetery. After finishing our work, we retreated to rest. I just lay there in our quarters, lost in thought. I had separated myself somewhat and gazed out of a broken window at the stars. This forest was the only place in Equestria where the cloud cover was not completely closed. And that made it beautiful here. But my thoughts weighed heavily. Am I doing the right thing? I've killed, repeatedly. For a good reason, but could I have handled it differently? I had killed less than a dozen - yet each of them left a little hole in my soul. And I felt the gaze from that hole. "Luna forgive me, for I have sinned; Celestia forgive me, for I have sinned," I murmured toward the moon.

My gaze was fixed on my reflection in the window panes - only, it wasn't me I saw. Void Nova smiled as my reflection, and Moony's voice whispered in my soul, "You can use this power anytime; force it to obey you. You don't have to kill. You can simply rule. You'd be nearly as powerful as I once was. And not even Celestia could stop me alone." I looked back outside and slowly, tremblingly said, as a cold shiver ran down my spine, "I am better than you!" She just grinned mockingly as Void Nova, "I took over in a situation when you were slightly irritated. Now, think about how easy it'll be when you're really angry." I could already feel the anger rising within me, and the dark blue crept into my field of vision. I screamed and released a beam of pink energy from my horn. The scream was loud; louder than expected. It was the Royal Canterlot voice, or at least it sounded like the descriptions. I stamped on the ground and struggled to clear every non-dark blue inch of my field of vision. My mane slowly started to blur at the ends. I continued to scream, and sobs mingled in. I saw pink sparkling tears rolling down my cheeks. "I want to be a hero, not a MONSTER LIKE YOU!"

I pressed myself whimpering to the ground as I felt my wings slowly forming. I wanted to be the priestess, not the calamity Void Nova. LEAVE ME ALONE! I screamed in my mind. "Come, you're almost through the transformation. Then I take over, and the raiders are gone. You'll be the hero you want to be. Like the Stable Dweller, Security, or the Paladin. A princess like Luna or Celestia. They'll worship you." I realized Moony's voice was not just in my head anymore. She was speaking through me, to me. "Enough have died tonight, alone! This must stop!" I closed my eyes and curled up on the ground. I felt that my eyes and my mane had completely transformed already. I curled into my wings, but they offered no warmth as I had hoped. They were ice-cold. My whimpering was interrupted by something warm. I opened my eyes and saw Luna's concerned face.

"Why are you here? Did you lock her away again, Luna? Or are you here to take your power back because I'm not ready yet?" Then Luna licked away my tears. I chuckled, Luna's face blurred, and Appletree's face replaced it. Lili and Ferrax looked worried through the door. All three looked at me with concern. "Are you turning into Nightmare Moon?" Lili asked from behind. My sister wrapped her forelegs around me and spoke soothingly. "Shh, everything will be okay, Dusty - shh, shh." Lili came up with an idea, which was both good and bad; she fetched a brown bottle from her bag and retrieved a few shot glasses from the remains of the kitchen. Then she poured one for each of us, and we sat in a circle around it. I raised the glass with the brown liquid to my nostrils. It smelled good, definitely alcohol. I took a sip and let the alcohol find its way into my cold insides.

I relaxed as the warmth filled my belly but recoiled when Appletree and Ferrax warned, "Watch out with your weird wings." I folded them carefully. Now, Lili and I examined them more closely. They were batpony wings, but in absolute darkness with stardust in between. To my relief, however, they slowly shrank back. I looked embarrassed and sad at the others. My cheeks were red with embarrassment. "I'm sorry. I'm afraid you'll see this more often in the near future. Nightmare Moon wants to rise again and will take advantage of any situation that arises." I sighed heavily, then looked serious again. "Before this transformation, which you witnessed the beginning of, takes place, she'll have complete control over me. Before that happens, you must stop me..."

I paused, looked down, and swallowed. My blood was pounding in my ears. I was afraid of the next sentence. "If necessary, you must kill me." Silence. I didn't dare look up. Then Lili started giggling and put a hoof around my trembling shoulders. "Don't worry, before we turn you into pony cheese or dust, we still have these." She pulled out a weird weapon from her bag; it looked like a pistol, but the ammunition were small syringes. "With this stuff, you can even get a dragon to sleep. So if you lose it, we'll just send you to count Luna's sheep." She said gently, and the trembling slowly stopped. I gratefully released myself from Appletree's embrace, and we had two more shots. I had never had alcohol before, and to calm down a bit, the stuff worked really well, I had to admit. The night passed, and the next morning arrived.

Ferrax had transformed into a fly and had spied on Broken Hope. There was stress in the base; the leader of the prostitutes, a certain Rita, had fled to New Appleloosa with her three girls. When the raiders tried to stop them, she simply shot the three girls. Of the original thirty raiders and slave guards, there were only ten left - and six were now leaving the gate with a slave transporter. We waited in ambush. I walked elegantly and smiled gently towards them, "A Celestia-blessed good morning." I indicated a polite bow.

The stallion in front of the cart eyed me suspiciously. "What do you want? Are you responsible for the massacre?" He pointed to the gravestones lining the road. "I shot a raider in self-defense and prayed to Luna for forgiveness and a safe journey to Luna for him. The graves, of course, are mine; it's my task given by the goddess." He nodded slowly and looked at me skeptically again. "And what exactly do you want from us now? Do you want to buy slaves or what?" I shook my head as the two rear guards began to murmur. "I offer you, in the name of Luna's infinite grace, to reconsider your lives. Don't be slave drivers and raiders anymore. You could achieve so much positivity." I smiled gently, and now three of them were already talking behind the cart. "You could be traders and caravan guards or protect a defenseless village." The stallion pulling the cart just laughed mockingly. "I won't take advice from you, not from a mare with two eye colors who thinks she can divert others from their path." I paused for a moment. Two eye colors? What's going on with my body now? Is my sister's condition contagious after all? I looked at a metal plate on the roadside that was clean enough to reflect. My right eye was perfectly normal green. My right... a cold shiver ran down my spine. I managed to suppress the trembling. The iris was brightly pink. Great, thanks, Moony, you just won't let up. Then one of the raiders approached the draft horse.

He nodded and put the cart in reverse with a load of groaning and stinking slaves in distress. He just grinned and said, "Wow, priestess, your pretty two-colored head is worth 5000 bottle caps." I looked confused as hell broke loose. The first raider opened fire, and I could barely duck away. The second threw a grenade at me before aiming his assault rifle at me. A beautiful line of stars faded as the bullets bounced off my cloak. The next volley... destroyed the small bone spur on my hoof. I screamed and retreated into the ruined building behind me. This pain was strange, and the smell of blood and bone marrow didn't help me concentrate. My laser rifle was already there, and I entered S.A.T.S. The first raider received two laser beams directly into his chest. He stumbled back and, amidst loud cursing and the smell of ozone, threw a grenade into the room. I managed to stop it just in time with my shield spell; it exploded right in front of one surprised raider, shredding his two front legs. The remaining four raiders had a nasty surprise. They were pounced on by Appletree, and on both sides, half a raider could be seen sinking. From another building, a tentacle shot out, and the sounds were like a terrible slurping with screams of desperation as a raider disappeared inside. Meanwhile, Lili had simply blown the head off her raider. My second raider now jumped into the building as my shield fell. He had drawn a knife and immediately struck. And blood was seeping from my right leg; I fell back, and the metallic smell of my blood filled the room. I hated that smell! I continued to back away, only to realize that I had been cornered. The green stallion grinned victoriously over his knife; - and I did the only thing that came to mind in the panic that overwhelmed me: I grabbed the laser rifle and began wildly hitting his head with the butt. He easily avoided the first few swings. The second one cut right above his shoulder.

Trembling with total overwhelm, I stuttered lightly, "Luna, show me the way, be my light in the darkness," my Pipbuck briefly flashed in the moonlight, and I sensed what to do. I entered S.A.T.S. again, and my strikes hammered his head until he lay motionless. "Thank you, Luna." Then Appletree's concerned face appeared in the window. "Dusty, all okay?" Well, I've just almost met my end because I didn't think properly, was all that raced through my mind. "Is everyone alright?" I asked as I stepped out. The air now smelled of death and ashes again. I took out my shovel and got to work. After Lili and Ferrax had taken them out of the cart, the liberated ones talked among themselves. And I actually got help with digging. Two earth pony stallions were so kind. They said they would gladly help me in my service to Luna, as I had given them hope last night. One of them told me that the raiders and slave traders had become increasingly nervous after each new grave. And then there were Appletree's little "gifts" in front of the gate. She actually cared for the zebra foals, giving them water, taking them in her hoof, and playing with them. After I had fulfilled my dutiful duty to Luna, I approached the foals with a gentle smile. They all shied away from me, and I could see pure fear in their eyes. Are they afraid of me, the situation, or is my coat again covered in dead pony? I smiled gently after checking my fur.

"Is everything alright, little ones? Do you need something? Are you hurt?" I noticed two empty healing potion bottles on the ground. A young zebra stallion stood protectively in front of the rest of the group, while I was still somewhat confused. "You're evil! You've been touched by the evil stars! And you almost look like Nightmare Moon! Leave us alone! We want nothing to do with you!" The boy's voice was assertive. But I understood where this was coming from. I was still somewhat crestfallen and lay down briefly to rest by the side of the road. Then I hummed the melody of my initiation song, while I noticed someone sitting down next to me and gently placing their wing over my back. Lili smiled gently at me, "Please don't take it personally; in the beliefs of the zebras, Nightmare Moon and Luna are the same, a living image of the evil stars. I've told you that before." I nodded resignedly. "Can you tell them that I'm not evil and just want to help?" I stretched out as Lili's wing stroked my back, and I realized, feeling embarrassed, that I had started purring like a cat. Lili chuckled amusedly. "So, someone likes being petted with a wing." She grinned, gave me another minute of strokes on the back, and then flew back to the foals.

With the adult ponies, I had more luck. I could use Luna's gift more often to calm the other ponies. After a while, they also began to make their way back to their homes. Only the foals remained. I approached the others and looked at the foals questioningly. The little colt looked at me with mixed feelings. Lili gave him a small nudge with her wing, and he managed to speak up. "Lili says you're not evil, even though you were touched by the stars. She knows our legends, so we'll give you a chance. You're now Nightmare Star." Great, just 'Dusty' would have been enough... He fell silent for a moment. "Can you take us to Glyphmark? Or rather, to the tunnels under Canterlot? From there, we can find our way home." I simply nodded. "Of course, we'd be happy to. But I warn you - you're afraid of Nightmare Moon and still of me, I see that in your eyes. If you see both of my eyes turn pink," I pointed to my pink eye, "run for your lives and don't come back until it stops. Because then Nightmare Moon is here in my body - and I don't want anything to happen to you." The colt's eyes widened, and he swallowed hard, nodding hesitantly and starting to discuss with his friends. Appletree was still at their center. Why didn't you become a kindergarten teacher? I thought, smiling.

After a while, we were back in the house ruins, observing Broken Hope. There were still ten Raiders there, plus their boss; I recognized him immediately. I was already familiar with power armors from home, after all, Appletree's legs were the legs of a prototype of such armor. The Earth pony stallion had a minigun and a flamethrower attached to his armor. This was going to be a heated dance, I realized, and the others were concerned too. I asked the others about the plan. The kids had settled comfortably in the cart and could easily call us via comms if there were any problems. Lili scratched her head thoughtfully. "Does anyone have Spark grenades? Then we can disable the power armor. That's the only challenge, along with getting the gate open. They've pushed a bus behind it; I don't think we can get through there. And we'll have a hard time attacking from above because of the gun turrets." Appletree just smiled. "I'll take care of the gate," she said, with a shy smile. "And how? There's a bus behind it, how will you manage that?" Now she grinned. "My legs are running at minimal capacity. I'll push them to the maximum." Lili's eyes widened. "What, you can go faster with those parts?" Appletree nodded. "It works, but not for long - and a lot can go wrong because defective Spark generators were installed back then. But since I never had any issues, we left them in."

We found the right position, and the Spark generators in Appletree's legs began to rev up. I cast my shield spell around her, and under heavy fire from machine guns, pistols, and even a rocket launcher, she dashed toward the gate and bucked it. With a loud hydraulic thunder, the gate shattered into a thousand pieces, and Appletree's legs were already glowing red. Then the wrecked bus crashed against the building. Appletree ran through the cloud of debris, out of sight. Ferrax and Lili had, in the end, warmed up to the idea of playing with the gun turrets. Ferrax flew past them, attracting the attention of all the turrets with a beep and opening fire. Lili didn't need much with her sniper rifles, but... She popped a pill, started giggling hysterically, flapped her wings against her combat saddle once, and it clicked. Waves of bullets poured over the turrets and Raiders, resulting in a dark hum as the turrets either shut down or exploded. The spectacle ended only when Lili stopped laughing hysterically and sadly lay down in her position. Ferrax turned the remaining wall Raiders into small piles of ash and chuckled even more hysterically than Lili had before.

I crept through the piles of rubble. Appletree's shield was still there, but I noticed it taking damage. I tried a female raider via S.A.T.S. shot in the head, but she dodged like she did it every day. Now I tried a weak stunning spell. The small, glowing green bullet hit its surprised target and the mare with the combat shotgun was just able to pull the trigger again, causing pain in my chest, before she slowed down and I was able to simply keep her at bay with my laser rifle. I also tried to convince her to be better, her answer was just "Die, cunt." I turned her into a pile of ashes with apologies to Luna, which I immediately put in an empty Sparkle Cola bottle. Then I saw Appletree having a tough fight with the raider leader. The power armor was rusted and reeked of blood and death. His sand-colored fur was also covered in dried blood and his red mane stood out like a zebra's. His battle saddle included a minigun and a flamethrower. He also had strange devices on his hind hooves that were integrated into the armor. I aimed and aimed. The S.A.T.S. warned me that I had a good chance of meeting my sister.

I fired a shot. The raider grabbed Appletree and threw her into my beam before she could react. She howled as the beam hit her side. Tears welled up in her eyes when she saw who the beam was coming from. She looked at me in disbelief before shaking her head briefly and smiling painfully. You know I would never willingly hurt you. I thought to myself as chaos broke out. The raider's minigun charge turned Appletree's flank into a grotesque sight of red and green as he jumped back again, his flamethrower coming to life. Appletree jumped into the air and used the momentum to throw himself at the raider boss. He gasped as the air was forced from his lungs. The armor might protect him from some things, but not from the sheer force of an approaching farmer. Appletree reared up and brought his claws down, right over the armored man's flank. There was a disgusting squeak, but apart from a few thin scratches nothing had happened.

Appletree used the momentum to turn to buck, but the raider was faster - and now kicked her with both hind legs. With a bang, the attachments to his armor activated, Appletree flew through the air in a high arc and landed on a strut of the bus door, which pierced her entire stomach. I screamed in fear and panic for my beloved little sister, and then everything went blue. This time I willingly gave myself to Nightmare Moon; All the images of our past passed before my mental eyes and my glittering tears covered the floor. I felt my body grow and my wings grew. The smell of blood and death was masked by the smell of incense; Moony's voice in my head didn't feel wrong. “You saw what he did. With luck she's still alive. We can save her when this monster is dead. Have fun destroying him, little Nova.” I started laughing and the raider looked at me in panic. my voice was deep and melodic “Now you crazy have done it. You killed the only thing that stopped me from giving myself to Nightmare Moon - you will die and your soul will go straight to the eternal nightmare!" I rose playfully into the air; I drew my scythe from a black hole that I manifested next to me. He fired his minigun at me in a panic.

I simply made a black hole appear in the line of flight and redirected the bullet current straight back into his face. Unfortunately, only a few bullets hit, but enough to make him even more panicked before he could dodge. Lili was floating behind me and I felt her aiming the needle at me. “Lili, everything’s fine, I’m still in control. I need Nightmare Moon's strength to help Appletree right away. Please stabilize her.” Lili nodded hesitantly while Ferrax shot at me. The laser beams burned my fur and I cursed. “FERRAX, ARE YOU NOT LISTENING?!” I only now realized that I was using the Royal Canterlot Voice. Ferrax started and flew to Lili, whining. The raider now threw a grenade at me and shouted “DIE YOU CRAZY”. I let the grenade split in the air through a black hole and it fell ineffectively to the ground, then I began to chant a prayer: “Luna, forgive me, because I have sinned - and will now kill someone with the power of your dark side. Please forgive me, my beloved goddess.” I let it happen, my armor blocking most of it. He then detonated several grenades underneath himself as I easily decapitated him with my scythe. The blast from the explosion threw me against a wall. When I got up in a daze, I was lying next to Appletree. It was still there. Lili had given her painkillers and, like Ferrax, looked very worried. "She won't last much longer, Stard...Void Nova"

I nodded; My horn glowed pink and silver as I began to envelop Appletree in my magic. She floated off the spike and her wounds closed. While she was still in flight, her breathing returned to normal and when I saw that she was okay again, I heard in my head, "This is my thanks for letting me play again, little Nova." I heard something like happiness for the first time from Moony's otherwise bored monotone voice. Then I collapsed, unconscious, in indescribable pain.