Transference

Chapters

Step Into the Light
Lost in the Dreamscape
Limitations and Implications
Who’s a Silly Pony
To Be Expected
Of Hopes and Dreams
Walking Your Own Path
Unwanted Promotion
Patience Is a Virtue
Choice of Options
An Intriguing Offer
One Day and One Night
A Different Dawn
Medley
Pent-up Desires
Of Confrontation and Escalation
Artificial Friendships
Are We There Yet?
Like-Minded Ponies
Mutual Decision
Of Forgiveness and Sacrifices
Going to Sleep Early Tonight
Every End Is a New Beginning

Step Into the Light

Slowly opening the door, trying not to wake up the sleeping patient, the nurse on duty peered into room 1.22 as she passed by during one of her nightly check-ups. With a worried face, she realized her fear to be correct, and the young man lying in the hospital bed seemed to struggle to find rest for yet another night as he was, like all nights before, mumbling incomprehensible things in his sleep while trembling with a pained expression on his face. It looked like it must have been another nightmare. However, she chose not to wake him up, since he was already having difficulty finding any sleep at all.

A cancer patient for many months, his condition worsened each day with no sign of improvement. After his cancer was declared terminal the day before, all treatment was stopped. He was given only a few more days to live by the doctors in charge of his case. Under the influence of strong painkillers, he was now waiting for the end of his suffering.

Although the nurse had seen this exact scenario play out repeatedly without end throughout her career, it still made her feel sad and helpless every single time she witnessed these unequal fights against inevitable death. When patients had most of their lives still ahead of them but were cut short by illness or accident, it was especially heartbreaking.

It all just seemed so unfair to her, she could never get used to this part of her work. In her desperation, and despite not being religious at all, she prayed that maybe some god would show mercy on this man and at the very least give him a chance for another go at life.

As the nurse was standing at the entrance, ruminating about life, she felt a light draft coming out of the room. She stepped in to investigate the source and found that the window on the far left was wide open. It was likely that one of the day shift nurses forgot to close it after airing out the room during the day. It would be noted in the night report and brought up at the next team meeting, though. The patients could do without catching a cold on top of their already fragile conditions.

As she closed the window and was about to leave, the nurse noticed something hanging on one of the corners of the bed. It was an almost otherworldly-looking dreamcatcher with blue feathers. She could have sworn it wasn't there just a moment ago.

The Princess of the Night, also known as Princess Luna to her fellow subjects, had already fought many nightmares and was about to get some rest for herself for the remainder of the night when she suddenly felt a strange disturbance in her realm. From one moment to another, it seemed as if the dreamscape had suddenly expanded beyond her usual domain. The unexpected sensation made her shiver for a moment as it felt unnatural to her. It was only moments later when she heard something in the far distance and she focused on that instead.

A faint voice reverberated throughout the void, but Luna was too far away to understand what it was saying. Despite the unclearness, she could feel the sorrow and pain the voice carried her way. Not questioning the circumstances, Princess Luna followed the voice and eventually found what looked like an old, fragile mirror floating in the air. The round mirror was pale and showed no reflection of her in it.

The mirror was quite similar to an entrance of a dream, but Luna believed there was something more to it than that. Holding out one of her hooves, she touched the cold surface of the mirror and closed her eyes. Luna somehow immediately knew she would not be able to pass through to the other side, but she could now clearly hear the voice and feel the emotions of the one in peril.

Without a doubt, the young subject had a nightmare, but not just that alone she feared. Luna also felt life itself fading away from the foreign being, and she wondered what she was supposed to do here and what led to this situation in the first place. However, there wasn't much time left and she had to make a choice sooner than later if she wanted to be of any help to the one in need.

"Please, someone help me!" Pleaded the man that was engulfed in flames up to his hips.

The unknown man tried to put out the fire by rolling on the ground, but the flames would not go out, no matter how many times he repeated the process. Despite being able to hear running water close by, he was never able to locate it. After a while, he was unable to find a clear thought, so in his frustration, he just wailed in pain, with the only source of light being the fire burning on himself. Nevertheless, even that light was about to fade eventually as there wasn't much left to be taken by the unending hunger of the raging fire. He could have sworn the flames were laughing at him as he collapsed to the black ground.

Luna had made a decision for herself. That being might not have been one of her own subjects, but she could not abandon it now when it needed help so desperately. If the nightmare continued it would take what little of the man's life energy remained that very night. She would deal with the consequences of her actions later.

Filled with determination, Luna put her horn to the mirror's surface and enlightened it like a beacon in the night with her magic. She then took a deep breath.

"Step into the light!" Echoed Luna's Royal Canterlot Voice.

While barely conscious the man on the ground heard a familiar voice that he couldn't place at the time. Above him, he could see what looked like the moon shining down a ray of light.

"Step into the light!" The moon seemed to command him in an almost terrifyingly loud voice.

Looking up to the moon and back down before him, he didn't hesitate any longer, and with what little strength he had left he obeyed and crawled into what appeared to be a beam of moonlight to him.

As the nurse continued to ponder about the origin of the dreamcatcher, she had an eerie but familiar sensation. She checked the patient's pulse and breathing to confirm her suspicion. The patient had just passed away. Silently, the dreamcatcher disappeared into nothingness as the nurse took note of the time of death.

Author's Note

This is my first story, hope some of you like it.

Constructive criticism and grammar correction very welcome in comments!

Possible title for next chapter: "Lost in the Dreamscape".

Lost in the Dreamscape

Like a shooting star, the mysterious being flew through the air and landed not too far away from the floating mirror.

The mirror shined bright one last time before it shattered to the ground, breaking into a thousand pieces. The glowing fragments made the dark ground appear like the night sky for a brief moment.

Luna had already taken a few steps back and was watching the arrival unfold. Lying on the ground was now a glowing creature she had never seen or heard of before. As there was no sign of movement, Luna presumed the biped to be in shock, which didn't come as a surprise.

The being reminded Luna of a mix between a minotaur and a diamond dog, so rather unappealing in her books. While she was still examining the being, while keeping her distance, the unknown creature started to transform. The process was almost instant, and after another bright light had illuminated the void around them, it looked as if the biped had shifted into a more familiar equine form. A pony.

While this was nothing out of the ordinary in the dream realm, if one wished upon it, that is, Luna doubted it was a deliberate act of the former biped. It rather confirmed to her that the entity simply did not exist in this world in its former shape, and therefore had adjusted to something more befitting to the rules of the reality it found itself in.

After the light had dimmed, Luna walked over to the pony. She could now clearly see that it was an earth pony with pale gray fur. The mane and tail in a charcoal shade gave a strong contrast. The shine of the fur also almost gave the impression as if the body was see-through. The citizens of the Crystal Empire came to mind. He also seemed to have no cutie mark despite being an adult.

Luna sat down in front of the colt looking down at him. The bright turquoise eyes of the pony were still unfocused, not looking at anything in particular. He obviously needed more time. But so did Luna, for she knew that there would be questions following soon, for which she had no answers to offer yet.

My eyes hurt and I could barely see. All those bright lights. What was happening? Did I die?

Focusing my eyes in front, I saw a familiar horse looking down at me. Which didn't surprise me much, though. I was used to seeing things like that and other weird stuff quite often lately. They really must have been giving me the good stuff those past few days in the hospital. So I just smiled and waved at her, noticing my hooves while I did.

"Oh, that's new!" I giggled while clopping my hooves together.

"You are finally awake. And in good spirits it seems," said best princess.

Looking at her with big eyes, my smile wavered. They had never talked to me before.

"I must still be dreaming," I said out loud in an uncertain voice.

"Yes, you could put it like that," Luna said with a warm smile.

Looking around me, I noticed the place I was in. Mostly dark, but still with light coming from various directions in different colors. Looking like a pitch black night sky with a few stars coming to life here and there just to die out and fade away again, while the occasional stream of color was drawn through the air like it was pulled by some force in the distance.

"I am the Princess of-," Luna started to speak.

"Ok, thanks, now shut up for a moment, Luna. This is freaking me out and I need to think," I said before closing my eyes, trying to calm myself down.

I would surely wake up soon, no doubt. Or had I been put in a coma? Did this dream feel so different because I was dreaming while being in a comatose state? I couldn't tell, maybe I had dreamt this realistic before but just couldn't remember afterward. Thinking of my cancer and latest prognosis, I wasn't sure if I wanted to wake up anyway. But this was all a bit too much for me right now and I wasn't really in the mood to interact with anyone or anypony in this case.

With anger and bewilderment showing on Luna's face, she came closer and looked me straight in the eyes. "I do wonder how you know of my name. But do not think I will let you further speak to me in this tone without consequences. And just so we are clear, it is Princess Luna to you."

Looking at her beautiful eyes, I just dumbly nodded. I then remembered vaguely what had happened. I had stepped into the light to escape the fire and excruciating pain. I felt ashamed, since she did save me from a nightmare I had. Exactly like in the show! So I chose to play this along. I mean, why not? It's just a silly dream.

With remorse, I asked for forgiveness. "Please, Princess Luna, forgive my disrespect, for I was not in a clear mind."

Having no problems standing up on my four hooves, which was probably due to all of it just being a dream, I even managed to bow before her.

"I hope that I will remember this conversation when I wake up", I said, still looking down, noticing the floor was riddled with small shards.

With a frown, Luna looked at me. "I'm afraid, you can't go back to your world."

"Wait, what do you mean? I mean, not that I'm looking forward to my sweaty hospital bed and piss-bags," I said confused but with a grin trying to lift my mood with a bit of dark humor.

"That nightmare you had, would have been your last if you had stayed in your world," Luna explained. "Your soul, spirit, what you are right here and now, would have ceased existing as your body stopped functioning. This would have meant for your life to have ended as your soul would have carried onwards beyond. Way too soon for a youngling like you. It didn't feel right to me to let that happen. So I brought you here instead."

Still perplexed by what Lund had said, I tried to process what it all meant.

"So you saved my soul," I said, trying to follow this up from my side. "So I can continue living here in Equestria instead?"

Concluding that I had just cheated death and the promise of a new, healthy life in pastel pony-world, I started to cheer up visually. I couldn't believe it.

"Yes, but..." Luna said slowly.

That wasn't good. I didn't like that kind of but.

Waiting for her to continue, I just stared at her to tell me what the catch was to all this. It did seem too good to be true.

"Again, I don't understand why you seem to know about Equestria and myself. But you will not, at least for the time being, be able to leave the dreamscape here. You have no equivalent to your spirit here, no physical body." said Luna in an unusually regretful tone.

The realization finally hit me and I had to take a deep breath. "I am trapped here.. You trapped me here... in this no man's land?"

Luna, visibly uncomfortable with the situation, "I will find a solution for you to continue a normal life, do not worry, everything will turn out to be fine. Besides, you can do whatever your heart desires here in the dreamscape, so it's not all bad."

"I..." was all I could muster saying at that moment.

Luna, looking into the distance like she had heard something. "I will have to go for now. I have other duties I must fulfill. Please, trust that everything will be alright."

"You are leaving me alone in here, right after you presumably saved me?" I said with disbelief and with panic dwelling up inside me again.

Luna started to fade, "You are safe here. You will not have any worldly needs. Set your imagination to whatever your heart desires to keep you entertained."

And just like that, I felt more alone than I ever had before in my past life.

Unsure about what to feel, I just sat there silently as a pony, looking around the dreamscape and wondering about my life choices and the choices that had been made for me.

Ruminating, I realized something rather important that distracted me from the rather serious situation. Luna never asked me my name and I would have to come up with a pony name, obviously.

My old past was dead, that's what she said. Then so was my old name to me. I couldn't help but smile at the thought and started thinking about one more befitting me.

Author's Note

Constructive criticism and grammar correction very welcome in comments!

Also name ideas, since the mc has not been named yet :)

Limitations and Implications

This was so much harder than I thought. My lack of imagination really showed itself. I just couldn't come up with a pony name there, no matter how hard I tried my brain cells. Looking down at my flank, I confirmed that I also had no cutie mark, which I could have referenced my name to.

Should I wait until I discovered my special talent before I named myself? Or was this a chance to influence the cutie mark that I might get eventually? Would a fancy name related to magic give me powers like Twilight had, for example? I heavily doubted it worked like that, but the thought was quite intriguing.

I decided to let it go for the moment and just let myself be without a name for the foreseeable future. Maybe all I needed was some inspiration or I could always ask another pony for their opinion. I'm sure a real pony would find a fitting name for me in a heartbeat. That was if Luna ever found a way to get me out of there for me to interact with anypony. Thinking of Luna, I would ask her as well when she returned.

Playing around with the limited imagination I apparently had, I shifted into different forms. From my old human self to a changeling to even Princess Celestia herself. It was fun, but, it was getting old much quicker than I thought it would.

Even flying wingless around the mysterious night sky had a certain aftertaste of it just being nothing but a thought-up illusion in my mind. It didn't feel as if I was experiencing any of it myself, more like playing a video game instead. I felt that it was all missing the warmth of real life.

Walking around the almost desert-like realm, I noticed a reflection in the distance. It looked like a colorful flashing star. While getting closer I realized that it was a floating mirror instead. I was pretty confident I knew what I was looking at there. It must have been a dream of another pony.

Looking in the mirror, at first, I saw only myself standing there. But then, almost as slowly getting a faint signal, the mirror showed a familiar-looking barn in the far distance behind my own still shown reflection.

Oh, I knew that barn! That must have been one of the Apple's dreams. Sitting there, I expected to see the dream unfold and be shown in the mirror, kinda like on a TV, but nothing happened. I imagined that I heard a distant voice coming from the mirror, but it was too quiet for me to understand clearly. I wondered if this was different for Luna, would she be able to see and hear it in more detail in my place?

Luna never explained how she was able to pull me into this world. So I wondered if some of her nature and magic had rubbed off on me in the process of getting my soul into this alternate reality. Was it possible that my existence here in the dreamscape between other ponies' dreams also had gifted me the ability to enter them as well? I really hoped it did, to be honest.

Only one way to find out, I thought, getting quite excited, now barely able to control my tail from wagging back and forth. Sitting there, I wondered if I should wait for Luna's return before doing experimentation on my own. Probably should, but then, these were just dreams, right? What was the worst that could happen? Maybe I'd break a good dream at worst or end a nightmare early at best. Besides, Luna told me to entertain myself and this seemed like a good way to pass some time. Not that I knew how time passed here at all. I had long lost any perception of time since my arrival.

Putting one of my hooves forwards slowly, I tried to touch the surface of the floating mirror. Only for it to go right through, and the surface of the mirror started wobbling like it had become some silver liquid. With a bright smile, I stepped a bit back from the mirror to get some more distance.

For a brief moment, I pondered over my newest decision in life, but I knew I had already made up my mind if I were true to myself. I ran up to the floating gate and jumped through it.

Orienting myself, I realized that I had appeared right at the entrance of the family farm. It was apparent that it was all a dream as a lot of the surrounding area was suddenly cut off and unfished looking.

I tried to fly again like I had before, but was unable to. It seemed as if I lacked the power to alter the dreams of others. This confirmed the limitations I had compared to what Luna would be capable of when it came to her abilities.

As I walked in the direction of the barn everything became more refined and clear. I must have been close to the center of the dream, or at least to the one that was having it.

"Would you look at them apples", said an excited apple horse.

Applejack was standing next to what appeared to be the spill from the recent harvest. Giant apples as big as basketballs were pilled up next to her as she examined them.

Ah, silly pony being silly again. The trees around the farm didn't match the size of the apples at all, and the branches weren't bothered by the additional weight. Physics had its own laws here in Applejack's dream. Don't want to be the equivalent to Newton in her world, I thought, smiling as I watched her.

Walking up from behind her, I silently thought for a moment about how I should approach her and introduce myself. Should I immediately call her by her name? Thinking back to Luna's reaction, it might be better not to. But then, Applejack and the Apple Family, in general, were well-known around town, and I was a pony as well now. I saw now harm this time.

"Miss Applejack?" I said unsure of myself.

Applejack was still inspecting her harvested apples, not acknowledging me in any way.

"Hello, Applejack!" I walked up in front of her. "I'm very sorry to disturb you, but do you have a moment?"

Applejack looked right at me with a smile, not saying a single word. It felt very awkward.

Waving a hoof in front of her, I realized that she wasn't looking at me at all. She was looking through me at her damn apples! She didn't notice me and apparently also couldn't hear me either.

I was devastated beyond words. Here, it seemed as if I were nothing more than a ghost, watching her silly apple dreams. In a last desperate attempt to get myself noticed, I tried pulling her tail.

And then we both screamed.

Who’s a Silly Pony

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a comfy bed. With still tired eyes, I looked outside the window, seeing that the sun was already coming up in the far distance. A rooster close by announced the arrival of a new day.

As the sunlight lit up the room, I felt the need rise in me to go outside and put my hooves to some hard honest work. And, for some other odd reason, I was craving apples. Lots and all kinds of apples. Cause apples were the best, obviously.

No... No. Fucking. Way. Or should I say bucking?

Looking around the room, I saw Applejack's hat gently placed on a chair close to the bed. At that point, it was nothing more than pure curiosity when I looked at my hooves, confirming the orange hue. I already knew exactly who I had become.

Still lying in bed, looking up at the ceiling, I needed a moment to process the new situation I had put myself in. This wasn't a dream. I could tell the difference as I felt better in this new body than I ever had before in my whole life as a human.

Did my soul somehow replace Applejack's?

While I indulged myself in the feeling of such a healthy and strong body, I silently prayed that I didn't accidentally kill Applejack in some way, or else that would have been a really bad start here in this new world for me.

After getting out of bed I stood in front of a large dressing mirror looking at myself for a moment. I slowly turned around and my face already lit up crimson red even before I started lifting my tail to get a glance at my private parts, or Applejack's for that matter. She's a mare, so there's that.

It was a strange feeling being naked and didn't come to mind much while I was in the dreamscape. But here, where I felt more alive, I was painfully aware of it, and it felt so wrong.

While I considered looking for AJ's gala dress in her wardrobe to cover my flank up a bit, there was a light knock on the door.

"Applejack, are you alright in there?" asked the muffled voice I believed belonged to Apple Bloom.

"You were supposed to milk the cows before breakfast, ya know", said the young filly in a rather accusing tone. "And since you were nowhere to be found, Big Mac made me do it instead, on top of all my other chores! You owe me one, ya hear me?"

"I... I'm sorry, eh, sugarcube, I must have lost track of time. I'll make it up to you, I promise", I said awkwardly through the closed door.

Cosplaying had never been my strong suit, and I feared it would cost me dearly sooner than later.

After a pause, the filly behind the door spoke up again. "Alright, if you say so, AJ. Will you come down for breakfast now?"

Looking around, as if I could find an answer in the corner, I swallowed before giving my answer. "Maybe I should take the day off, I'm not feeling at my best today."

The door opened and Apple Bloom entered the room while looking at me with big eyes. "Say what now? Take a day off?"

Startled about the sudden intrusion, I instinctively stepped back, leaning against the window with my back.

"Wow, did I startle ya?" asked the young Apple with a grin forming on her face. "Had a spooky nightmare or why are ya actin' like some scaredy cat all of a sudden?"

"Okay, stop! Just leave me alone for now, alright? I don't need this right now!" I said much harsher and louder than I wanted to, panting heavily.

Apple Bloom was not impressed at all. With a raised eyebrow, she addressed me. "Sheesh, AJ, you are not you when you're hungry. Come sit down with us and eat some hot apple fritters! They always seem to lighten up your mood."

Apple Bloom looked back with a warm smile on her face while walking out before closing the door behind her.

I really couldn't deal with the whole Apple Family right now. All of this drained me and I already felt exhausted after just this short interaction before the day had even really started for me. I also had a feeling that Applejack's inability to properly lie would affect me as well, should I have the need to.

Looking back out the window, I thought it'd be best to leave the farm for now to avoid any further interaction with the Apple Family.

The stairs down would be too risky. They would certainly spot me if they were sitting down there having breakfast. So I decided to climb out the window in the opposite direction.

Reaching the firm ground, I looked around myself. Nopony had spotted me, good.

As I made my way to the apple orchard I noticed a creature running up to me from the side, suddenly standing still, not too far away from me. I recognized it as the dog Winona.

She sniffed the air and suddenly Winoa flashed her sharp teeth at me and started growling fiercely. "Grrrrrr!"

"Wow there, easy now!" I tried to calm down the canine. "I get it, you know I'm not your owner, but I'm just passing through, okay?"

She was circling me and started snapping at my hind hooves. Instinctively, I pulled my left hind hoof back and bucked Winona.

I could hear bones audibly breaking and I winced. "Buck". I had underestimated the strength of that damn horse.

In a state of panic, I picked up the unconscious dog with my mouth and just ran as fast as my hooves allowed me to.

"Sister! I must speak with you at once!" Luna spoke out loudly as she walked into her sister's Day Court. Not minding the objections from the nobles sitting in a circle around her.

"Luna? Shouldn't you be asleep at this hour?" Celestia looked at her sister with surprise.

The nobles around them were starting to make their displeasure known about the sudden interruption of the lesser princess.

With a loud voice, Luna announced, "Court is adjourned, come back tomorrow or feel free to attend Night Court for once."

Any backlash that rose from the attendees was swiftly met with an almost murderous glare by Luna until the room cleared of everypony but the princesses.

"Sister..." Luna started again while looking away into a corner. "I need your help. I might have made a grave mistake."

After Luna told her sister what had transpired in the dreamscape, Celestia took a moment for herself before she addressed Luna again.

"The biped you are describing is not unknown to me, sister," said Celestia.

Looking at the stained glass windows, Celestia continued, "During your absence, we discovered an artifact, a gate in form of a mirror, and that mirror led to the realm of those beings that you just depicted. They are known as humans."

"A student of mine was sent out to this world and soon reported back to me that these humans were an unpredictable and self-destructive species not to be trusted in any way," Celestia said, almost absent-minded.

"In her last letter to me, she described that some humans had discovered the gate and so she had chosen to destroy it before any of the bipeds could pass through."

Celestia looked down at her hooves. "I haven't received word from Sunset Shimmer ever since and I believe her to be deceased by now as it was a few lifetimes ago."

"Sister..." Luna said in a soft tone. "I don't believe one species could be that bad as a whole. And, while I think it was noble of your student to sacrifice herself, she might have overreacted a bit, don't you think? I mean, have you met one of the humans yourself?"

"No, Luna, I have not. But I trust the judgment of my students," said Celestia in a firm tone. "Nonetheless, the human in question shall be fairly judged before any help is considered."

"I will write a letter to Twilight to assemble the Elements of Harmony," said Celestia, not leaving any room for Luna to protest.

To Be Expected

With a blank mind, I just ran in the direction that I had left the farm from.

The wind felt so good in my mane. I just wanted this feeling to remain forever. Applejack's body sure felt like it was able to run for all eternity. But I knew it was not to be. I had to face the consequences of my actions eventually.

I had been running for a while when a forest came into view and I started to slow down. Heavily panting, and still holding Winona by her neck, I looked in the direction of the forest that I assumed to be the one the ponies here called the Everfree. Her cottage should be close, I thought.

Looking around, I spotted a little cozy cottage that I believed belonged to Fluttershy. I ran in the direction of it and made my way over the little bridge that made her home accessible over a small stream. I knew it was all in vain. Winona had stopped breathing a while ago. I had felt her leave this world while holding her in my mouth.

I wasn't particularly fond of dogs in my old life, but it still made me tear up. Mostly for my own sake, though. I knew this would have some consequences later for sure. But if there was one pony able to help in this situation, it would be Fluttershy, which I was absolutely sure of.

When I stepped on her property, all the animal sounds that could be heard from afar suddenly died out instantly. They must have been aware of my presence. Was I some kind of predator to them? Or did they just feel that something was off? I didn't know, but it surely made me feel unwelcome.

I knocked on the door, and waited patiently, the sack of dead meat still in my mouth.

"One... One moment, please," said a faint voice, which clearly must have belonged to Fluttershy.

After what felt like a lifetime, the door opened and Fluttershy looked at me.

"Oh, hello Applejack!" Fluttershy said while looking at me. "Please excuse the wait, the animals were acting weird all of a sudden."

Looking me up Fluttershy pointed out, "It's not often that I see you without your hat."

I just stared at her with big eyes, the lifeless dog still hanging there. Was she for real?

"Oh, did you bring Winona for a check-up?" Fluttershy finally asked, acknowledging the dead dog in my mouth. "Is she asleep?"

"Yeah... sure. Would you be so kind as to have a look at her? She hasn't been eating well lately," I said mumbling with a full mouth, making something up, hoping for some kind of miracle to happen in the process to follow.

"Of course, Applejack! Just bring her into the back, please," Fluttershy said, not doubting my lie in the slightest. Must have been one of the benefits of the Element of Honesty, I thought to myself.

I felt so bad. What I was I even doing there?

After I had gently dropped Winona off on the table, Fluttershy asked me to wait in the living room.

I just sat there on the couch, staring at a wall. Waiting for Fluttershy to come up to me screaming about that dead dog I had brought to her. I noticed some animals in the corner of my eyes just looking at me, not making a beep.

"Enjoying yourself so far?" whispered a voice into my ear.

Almost a bit disappointed, I turned my head around. "What do you want, Discord?"

On the couch in front of me materialized a way too familiar draconequus.

"Huh, I hoped for a more, eh, thrilled reaction?" Discord said with a smile, not showing any displeasure with my lacking response.

"What for, exactly?" I said angrily. "Just spit it out, what is your part in all this?"

"Well, you're no fun," Discord said, acting all insulted, crossing his arms while floating before me. "But, if you must know..."

Suddenly excited like a kid, he told me, "There was this, mhh, oh, prayer! Someone wished for you to have a chance at another go at life, isn't that nice? And you know what, I actually answered the call, me!" Discord looked at me with his hands up in the air, expecting some sort of positive reaction out of me.

"Oh, fantastic, and then what?" I looked at him with dead eyes.

"I finally put my aquired craftsmanship into good use, I tell you," Discord said proudly. "After all these birdhouses I had to make," he visibly shivered. "Luna didn't even notice the missing feathers."

Floating down, he looked at me. "I gave you the chance that was asked of. Everything that followed after was not my doing, it was your and Luna's choice, do you understand me?" A pause followed. "But I must say, so far, you do show a lot of potential. I'm really looking forward to the chaos. Ever since the villainous trio was imprisoned in stone, it has been all too quiet lately."

His babbling at least gave me an idea of where I was on the timeline there.

"Obviously, you won't remember this conversation," Discord said with a sly smile. "Don't need you to go crying to the princesses."

He snapped his finger in front of me... and nothing happened.

"Right, I'm pretty sure I remember everything, Discord," I said, still looking at him, somewhat unimpressed. I was so exhausted already, I didn't even care anymore.

Discord looked at me with an unfamiliar blank expression.

Snap. Snap. Snap. Discord held his fingers in front of me, snapping them fiercely for a while.

"Oh, hmm," Discord looked around the room and then back at me. "This is... unexpected". His face lit up visibly. "Fantastic!"

And then he just poofed without any further explanation.

Looking back at the wall, Fluttershy finally made her long-awaited entrance.

"Applejack..." Fluttershy entered the living room with her face looking down at the floor. "Winona... I... there was nothing I could do. She's... she's dead."

"I know, Fluttershy," I said with a warm smile while my eyes teared up. "I shouldn't have come here in the first place, I apologize."

"The animals told me that you might not be the real... Applejack?" Fluttershy had herself half hidden behind a couch as she spoke to me, tears flowing down her face. "Who are you?"

"I..." I tried to say something, but then just looked away from her.

Then, there was a barrage of heavy knocks on the door.

"Fluttershy, come! Twilight has received a letter from the princess. We need to go to Canterlot, asap. It's an emergency!" said the voice of Rainbow Dash through the closed door of the little cottage.

Of Hopes and Dreams

As I was sitting there in the nothingness, somewhere in between other ponies' dreams, I noticed a shadow slowly approaching from a distance in front of me.

Luna appeared like a mirage in a dark blue desert. Growing bigger as she came closer. The stars around her seemed to have suddenly come to life, almost cheering, as if they were celebrating the return of their ruler.

She sat next to me, looking in the same direction as I did.

"Something happened while you were gone," I began, not having the courage to look at her then.

"We are aware of the incident," Luna said matter-of-factly. "Including my sister and the Elements of Harmony."

I looked at her, a mix of defeatand shameshowing on my face.

"It is my given task to guide Twilight and her friends to you, tonight," Luna continued while observing my reaction from the side.

I shook my head while looking down at the ground. "I'm not some random new villain, I don't need reforming. It was an accident, I swear!"

The princess seemed amused by my interpretation. "They are not coming with your reformation in mind. My sister made it clear that you are a foreign entity that needed to be" - Luna looked away from me and up into the dreamsky - "freed from this world."

After what Luna had told me when I first came into this world, I didn't need any further explanation of what was implied there.

"Oh, she's sending out a killer commando to remove a potential threat, I see," I said, not showing any emotions as I stated the obvious out loud.

I looked at her, already content with my fate. "I'm sorry. They surely blame you as well for what happened. I should have just died when I was supposed to, hahaha..." My laugh sounded hollow.

Luna frowned, not happy with my artificial reaction at all. "I want you to tell me everything that followed after I left you here alone, in detail."

I wondered what this was about. But since there was nothing to lose, I told her everything. Even the involvement of discord in all this.

In thought, Luna summed up, "You possess the ability to enter the physical body of others through their own dreams, but only for a limited time."

Luna was not looking at me while she started to circle me, still deep in thought.

"The subject will then dream their own interpretation of what happened during the possession, likely through what they had felt, and are also able to perceive you afterwards," Luna further summarized.

Looking at her I just nodded. "I think so."

"Touch me!" Luna commanded suddenly.

Blushing a bit, I just looked at her dumbly. "Huh?!"

Rolling her eyes, Luna came up to me, poking my belly with one of her hooves while closing her eyes.

Nothing happened... oh, that's what she meant, of course.

"As I thought, it seems I'm not affected by this," Luna stated while opening her eyes. "This likely has something to do with my involvement in bringing you here through my dream magic."

Luna looked at me like I was some sort of mystery to be solved.

"There is a possibility that you'll be able to claim a body more permanently should you repeat the process with the same host multiple times. Being able to see you after the deed seems to imply a lasting imprint." Luna said, sitting down again.

My face lit up visibly. Such a promising hypothesis. If it wasn't for the fact of me being obliterated by rainbows soon. I returned to a more stoic expression after the realization of my imminent, and likely final, demise.

"What do you think about Discord," I asked, watching her think. "He said he crafted something with some of your feathers."

Luna shook her head. "I stopped questioning him. It is futile to think about it now. Besides, he's correct, it was out of my own decision that you are here now. And I would do it again."

"Thank you," I said with teary eyes. "But I believe you have a task to carry out, do you not? How much longer do I have?"

The thought of Luna being more or less the reaper of my soul made me more comfortable with the imminent end than it should have.

Not acknowledging my question, she just sat there, watching her domain intensely.

"Luna?" I addressed her before noticing my error. "I mean, Princess Luna?"

While turning her head slowly in my direction, she asked, "What are your desires in life? What do you seek to accomplish? And please, call me Luna from now on."

Surprised by the question, I needed a moment to process it. I then thought about it for a while and decided to show her.

I closed my eyes and imagined my thoughts. They took visible form around us.

There were all kinds of scenes that I wished for. Running in the autumn, while feeling the wind. Having fun with friends and so on. A simple life, a life I barely had the chance to experience myself. That was my main desire.

With shock, I noticed some more mature scenes that I wasn't able to immediately suppress after I had conceived them. They disappeared just in time before Luna turned around, curious about what I was looking at, after noticing my pale expression.

I guess those were some of my more hidden desires as well. I couldn't help it. Surely, I would have died of embarrassment right there if she had seen them.

"I see. You mostly want the life you were denied from living," Luna concluded.

Around us appeared hundreds, maybe even thousands, of ponies, all having their eyes on Luna beside me. Then they bowed to her in unison.

"This is my only desire, always has been. Before and also after my banishment." Luna stood up as she made the illusions of the crowds fade around us. "I want to finally be acknowledged by the masses."

With a warm smile, Luna held out a hoof to me. "I believe, that we could complete each other in our abilities, and make our desires come true, all of them."

Unbelieving, I just looked at her dumbfounded.

"How do you choose? Luna stood there waiting patiently with one hoof still stretched out to me. "Join me or be finally free."

I didn't have to think twice.

The Princess of the Night ensured that the Elements of Harmony completed their assigned task that night.

Walking Your Own Path

"Is it done? Have the six successfully freed me from existence?" I asked after Luna had materialized next to me.

Luna graced me with a smile of hers. "Indeed, but only after you put up a proper fight, worthy of a true villain."

"Huh", I just said while I sat down next to her.

Surely she must have outdone herself with that dream. I wished I could have seen what she had imagined for the grand finale.

Luna turned around and started to walk away from me. "Come now, the night is still young but we mustn't waste any more time."

I stood up and followed her. "Where are we going?"

"To my sister's," Luna said without looking back at me. "You will have to enter alone, as I am unable to."

"Wait, what? Why do you want me to enter her dream and why can't you accompany me?" Uncertainty was written all over my face.

This was Celestia we were talking about. I didn't want to accidentally burn Canterlot to a crisp with the power of the sun.

Luna stopped in front of a gold-framed mirror and sat down, "My sister has always been cautious of me. The regalia she wears is an artifact made especially to restrict me from entering her dreams."

"Oh, so you want me to tamper with that so you can visit her dreams without her knowing?" I asked curiously.

Luna sighed, "Not quite. You will see soon enough."

There was a long pause of us just sitting there, looking at the mirror.

"After you take over, you must open the balcony door so I may enter her royal chambers as well. It has a seal that opens only by my sister's magic," Luna continued, not going into her reasons behind my newly assigned task.

To be honest, I didn't care much about the why. I only wanted to please Luna in every way possible. I doubt I'd ever be able to say no to her.

Answering noddingly, "I understand, I'm glad you will join after all. I'm still uneasy after what happened with Applejack's pet."

Luna looked at me from the side. "Your conscious is weak if that still bothers you. We will change that soon. We have to."

Not sure what to make of that last part, I made my way to the mirror testing if the surface was liquid.

I looked back one last time before I entered. "See you on the other side, Luna."

Celestia's dream was odd. She just sat on her throne, ruling her subjects, like she always did. I had hoped for something more sophisticated.

When I touched her, it was different than with Applejack's take-over. There was no pain this time. But I could feel a faint resistance break in the back of my mind when I entered.

It was still dark outside when I woke up in a big and comfy bed. A full moon illuminated the night and partially lit up the room as well through the windows.

I took some time to get adjusted to the alicorn body. The wings felt amazing when I spread them out. That's how an angel must feel.

The horn I barely noticed. I knew it was there and how I could use it. It almost felt as if I had a long invisible arm extended when I lifted a small pillow from the bed.

There, next to the bed on a nightstand, was Celestia's regalia. The crystal, which had some resemblance to Twilight's cutie mark, almost seemed as if it was blinking at me angrily. It was likely the source of the resistance that I had felt when entering.

Sounds of loud snoring came through the closed entrance doors. Curious, I made my way over and pushed one of the doors open a little, enough to see outside.

Two royal guards outside were fast asleep. Her own day guards. Celestia must have truly been wary of her sister if she didn't trust Luna's night guards to protect her during nighttime.

Finally, I made my way to the balcony door. Grasping the handle with my magic, it immediately unlocked itself.

Standing outside in the cold night, I heard the sound of wings gliding through the sky and I stepped back a bit as Luna landed before me, flaring her wings.

"Luna!" I welcomed her whispering, afraid somepony might hear us.

"You can talk freely. The guards have been taken care of and our royal chambers are magically soundproofed. We can hear what's on the outside but not the other way around," Luna said while entering, making sure not to close the balcony door fully.

"So, what now?" I said, looking at her expectantly.

She just stood there in front of me, with a thoughtful and determined look.

I could feel fear, but I knew it wasn't mine. It was Celestia's mind that affected me. The eery situation must have triggered something in her subconscious.

"This is an unparalleled opportunity that I never would have dared dream of!" Luna stood now very close to me, almost booping our muzzles while looking up in my face.

Blushing red, I tried backing up to get some distance. "Oh, eh, Luna?!"

Luna followed suit, not looking away from me.

Finally reaching a wall behind me, her nostrils made contact with mine. What was happening? I just looked down at her with big eyes.

"Did you truly think you could hide your desires in my realm? Luna said with an unreadable look in her eyes. "Don't misunderstand, this shall only be your compensation for what's to come."

Looking confused I asked, "For what's to come? What do you mea-"

Luna closed her eyes and forced her mouth into mine sideways.

I was so surprised I almost bit her tongue. This was wrong, but I didn't fight it.

My wings sprung open immediately. I had no control. My mind was shorted and I just let it happen. Eyes now wide open as if I had seen a ghost.

It had only been mere seconds when Luna stepped back with some glittering salvia still connecting us for a brief moment before it broke off.

Luna looked at me with a sad look in her eyes, "Close your eyes and do not move."

"I... ok." I gasped heavily, back still to the wall.

I couldn't move even if I wanted to. This had taken me by complete surprise. I was in a sort of shock.

After I closed my eyes, I felt Luna bundle a vast amount of magic into her horn, making it glow in a dark aura, that could even be seen through my closed eyelids.

Silence followed, and I could hear her breathing faster. It seemed to me as if she was standing a bit further away now.

Without warning, Luna ran into me.

I opened my eyes and looked down. I could feel the coldness of her magic rip me apart from the inside and I wailed out in pain. Luna had aimed for my heart.

Luna pulled her horn back, making blood flush out of my wound. The pain was too much for me to handle and I drifted away into unconsciousness.

I found myself back in Celestia's dream. All sensation of pain left immediately.

Almost as if an earthquake had hit, everything around was now shaking and shards of glass fell from the sky bursting into pieces. I didn't want to find out what would happen if I overstayed my welcome, so I ran to the edge of the dream to exit.

I was shaken internally about what had happened, but I also felt so very alive. Without feeling remorse, I looked forward to what was to come.

Celestia opened her eyes in pain and looked into Luna's, who was still standing close, looking down on her as she was slowly dying.

"Luna, why?" Celestia barely managed to ask, her white fur stained with blood.

"You know exactly why!" Luna answered with a coldness in her eyes. "You knew that I was still the same after my return. It was long overdue. This is the only way for me to grow, because you won't let me."

Celestia's eyes lit up one last time as she looked at her. "I'm sorry, Luna. I had hoped to show you a different, better path, together."

"Fret not, dear sister. For I am following a path I set out over a thousand years ago," Luna said while watching her sister leave.

A few hours later, Twilight was standing on her balcony, looking up into the dark sky.

"I know that something isn't right. The moon is down, so where's the light? It's 9 am, it should be bright!"

It almost sounded as if she was singing.

Author's Note

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btMbDTqGsT4

Unwanted Promotion

The sun was still nowhere to be seen when Twilight teleported herself right into the middle of the throne room.

She knew something must have happened as Spike had been unable to reach out to Princess Celestia. The letter addressed to her would always fall to the ground, no matter how many times the dragon tried sending it off with his fire.

As she was looking around in the dark, the stained glass windows around her suddenly lit up from the bottom upwards, slowly illuminating the throne room in colors.

The sun was finally coming up. A sight that reassured Twilight greatly.

In the half-lit room, somepony could be heard entering the throne room by the main entrance.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight exclaimed while turning around, before realizing her mistake.

Luna had her horn still engulfed in magic, guiding the sun up to its dedicated point in the sky.

After a pause, Luna looked at Twilight for a moment, before turning her head to one of the glass-stained windows that depicted herself and her sister.

"Twilight," Luna began, still looking at the window. "I bring sad news".

"Where is the Princess?" Twilight asked, not hiding her concern.

Luna, now looking at Twilight. "Princess Celestia is dead. Murdered."

There was an eerie silence in the throne room.

Twilight slowly sat down, trembling, processing the information while her face became near white, her eyes unfocused.

She remained in that position for a while before she suddenly puked on the glossy floor and lay down, not paying attention to the mess she had made.

"The being we banished last night must have found a way to her, likely before our fight with it. I am to blame as well, for I could not sense the imminent danger we were all exposed to," Luna said in a monotonous tone.

"But... how?" Twilight cried, holding her face with her hooves. "This makes no sense. We were all there in your realm, we could have helped her!"

Luna sat next to her and let her cry. She made sure to have some distance between them, though.

"Can I see her? Twilight asked with tears still flowing and snot slowly dripping down.

"I'm afraid that is not possible, Twilight. My sister has left clear instructions on how to handle her possible demise," Luna said in an absolute manner.

Luna continued, "My sister wanted to be remembered by her subjects as she was when she was still alive. Nopony shall see her lifeless corpse. I ask you to respect her wish."

Tears still flowing, Twilight nodded, "I... I think I understand... Where is she now?"

"My sister didn't want a grave or tomb, but to be taken by phoenix fire and her ashes spread out in all of Equestria," Luna said while looking back to the stained glass windows. "Philomena provided that fire as a last tribute before being released back into the wild this morning."

Twilight held her tears while she was listening to Luna.

With a throbbing heart, Twilight looked in the same direction as Luna, noticing a moving light beyond one of the windows. It must have been close.

As she made the connection in her mind, she started smelling a faint trace of smoke in the air.

Twilight almost puked again but managed to hold it in. While holding her mouth, she continued to cry with closed eyes.

"This is terrible!" Twilight whispered into the throne room at no one in particular.

"Twilight Sparkle," Luna addressed her in full. "You must focus, as there is more to my sister's last will than the conclusion of her dead body."

Looking up, visibly exhausted, Twilight tried focusing her attention on Luna with watery eyes. She didn't have the strength to talk anymore.

"You will take my sister's place beside me, and together we shall rule Equestria. Princess Celestia wanted it so," Luna announced.

Twilight just lay there, looking up at her, as if she had seen a monster.

Luna continued, not minding Twilight's gaze, "Starting tomorrow, you and your friends will make the recent events known while you scatter the remains of my sister around Equestria."

That was it. Twilight collapsed in her self-made puddle of sorrow and grief.

"You are back," I stated the obvious as Luna appeared next to me. "Must have been a long day."

With a tired face, Luna answered, "Indeed, but it was required of me. It took Twilight a while to compose herself and accept her future role."

"What about the other Elements?" I asked genuinely wondering.

"I'm sure they know by now, either by Twilight directly or by other means," Luna said, tiredness in her voice, "A week of mourning will follow as they spread the ashes all over Equestria."

"Mhm," I mumbled unsure of what to say.

Luna looked at me. "I hope you understand that I have no feelings for you. The kiss between us was a settlement for the pain I caused you."

"Sure, I get it, it's like a friendship with benefits kinda thing." I laughed.

"You mustn't worry, there will be a time and place for you to satisfy your worldly needs and desires", Luna specified after my last remark.

Despite being in the dreamscape, I couldn't muster to imagine my blushing away. Her looking at me while turning red didn't help either.

"Right... apart from that, you know..." I addressed her as a tomato. "The, ehm, disposal of your sister? Why?"

Luna gazed into her dream sky. "You must understand, I never hated my sister. Unfortunately, she was against anything that would have threatened her position of power."

I listened closely while I watched her rearrange the stars above to picture her story.

"Celestia was always of the opinion that her ponies were of a higher race, unicorns being a prime example of that belief, because of their magic."

The stars started depicting the slaughtering of what I believed were non-pony creatures, but some victims seemed to be earth ponies as well.

"Celestia made sure that the most gruesome acts committed by her loyal followers were lost in time. Ponies now only seem to know about my own past."

I just nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"Already thousands of years ago, I had tried to help all creatures equally, no matter their origin, no matter if they were a pony or not, much to my sister's dismay. She started spreading made-up stories about me behind my back, to lessen my influence all over Equestria."

The stars above depicted two sides. One side with Celestia and her ponies, and one side with Luna and a mix of different creatures standing against each other.

"Over the course of many years and generations, the masses started to shun me and my night. Celestia had an active part in forming me into the true nightmare I unfortunately became."

The stars now showed a picture of Nightmare Moon. There were ponies but also griffons, diamond dogs, and other creatures unknown to me who ran away from Luna.

"What I want you to understand is that there is no change possible with Celestia, she always tried to keep me small and would have continued to do so for all eternity. She lived long enough," Luna concluded her little story.

"So, you think Twilight will be different then?" I asked while looking at her.

Luna looked away from her stars and into my eyes. "Well, that also depends on you."

Patience Is a Virtue

How much time had passed since Celestia's death? It felt like it must have been decades ago... a whole potential lifetime lost yet again.

The initial plan had been for me to take over Twilight, or anypony else for that matter, should it become necessary for Luna's wish to come to fruition. I was very much on board with that at first.

Luna wanted me to be some sort of fall-back in case somepony were to oppose her vision of a united world. Getting things in the right direction by taking over other nations' leaders, or at worst, removing them completely from the equation for the greater good.

I had hoped for an opportunity to find a host in the process. A potential enemy, for example, would have been an ideal candidate to test out Luna's theory for a permanent takeover.

Unfortunately, such a chance never came to pass.

Turns out, Twilight had been the perfect mare for the job and the sister Luna always wanted by her side. A pair of equals, loved by all and with almost the same mindset. There was simply no need for further bloodshed or deceptions.

After Twilight took the crown, so many years ago, one of her first acts as the newly appointed co-ruler, was giving all species the freedom to live and work in their pony kingdom, wherever they wanted and without restrictions, even Canterlot was open.

Before that, only the students of Twilight's School of Friendship had these rights with a special student visa. Something that had taken Twilight quite some persuasion for Celestia to give her consent back then.

Of course, not all ponies were open to the idea at first, mostly nobles. However, Luna and Twilight were able to deal with them on their own. A few threats from Luna, some heartwarming words of true friendship by Twilight, and voila, done. So there was also no need for me there.

Her close friends, quite a bit past their prime, also became great ambassadors and were highly successful in their given tasks to promote this new era. The openness was adopted by the other kingdoms very quickly after its success and its benefits became known all over.

Today you can see all kinds of creatures living together. Pegasi and Griffons, just being one example, living together in Cloudsdale and Griffonstone, sharing their cultures and advancements with each other more than ever before in pony history.

Another well-known story around Ponyville was Pinkie's sisters, who had moved to Yakyakistan to open their own rock farm and employed many yaks there. They called it rock-crushing there, though. Yaks became known as the best rock crushers.

Twilight had truly grown into a princess worthy of the title. She now looked a lot more like the other princesses as well, regally tall, and slender. Even had her own little faithful student. Luster Dawn was her name.

It was all going perfectly well from what I could tell, true world peace, or something. A fairy friendship tale... Luna had already achieved what she so desired. Good for her.

An intervention from my side was not required. Forbidden even at this point in time.

I did truly believe that Luna was still looking out for a possibility for me to come into the world of the living again. However, I had the feeling we both had very different understandings when it came to perceiving time.

For Luna, a natural immortal, who had already spent a thousand years banished to the moon, a few decades didn't mean much at all. So it appeared to me as if she wasn't in a hurry to find a quick solution. At the same time, I felt like my mind was deteriorating at an alarming rate.

Luckily, I realized that I could take copies of items out of a dream. Books or newspapers, for example, if they were part of one. Most books I found were from Twilight's dreams. She dreamt of libraries a lot, who would have thought.

Sure, I was aware that I wouldn't die of old age there, but the mind of a human was not made to live forever in a place such as this one. I was missing out and it was hurting my psyche a lot.

While being reduced to a sole spectator of others' dreams, I felt how my sanity slowly drifted away with each day that passed. I wanted to feel alive again and touch them. In more ways than I wanted to admit to myself at first.

I had changed over time, that much was clear to me. I could hardly remember who I even had been before. I had no true identity or values anymore, a true nopony.

Not wanting to displease Luna, I did my very best to suppress my feelings and the perversions that were creeping into my mind lately. In vain, of course, Luna knew damn well how I felt in her domain. The feeling of being read openly at any given time didn't help.

I wondered if she observed me while I was dream-walking. Did she truly trust me to follow her word?

Ruminating, I just sat there, looking into the void. Sometimes making my mind come to life to find some entertainment.

"I noticed some concerning changes in your behavior," Luna noted after appearing next to me while looking at the images floating around me. "You must be patient, the time for you will come, I promised you that."

Not looking at her I answered, "Don't worry, I can differentiate between what's real and what's not... I think."

A pause followed. The images around me turned wild. Awkward, but I didn't feel shame any longer.

Luna looked at me, and sighed. "Fine, but please, you mustn't threaten the peace we have achieved. Do not do anything rash out of selfishness."

I looked over at her with tired eyes. "Sure, Luna, let's talk again in another ten years or so," I said, not meaning what I said seriously.

"Of course, I shall leave you alone for now. Until we meet again," Luna said her goodbye, dead serious.

With an open mouth, I watched her turn around, fading away into a light blue mist as she walked away from me.

I mean, surely I would see her sooner than that again, but the way she had answered made me feel anxious. At least I could still feel something.

How much longer? Another decade, a hundred years, maybe even thousands of years?

Mumbling to myself, I started walking in circles.

I couldn't take this anymore. I wanted to get out of there, sooner than later.

Choice of Options

I was going through the options I thought were available to me while walking among the dreams that plastered my surroundings, many of which were not from ponies as far as I could tell.

Waiting for Luna was no longer a vaild choice for me. My desperation in seeking a way to live again became worse by the day. I would need to find a way to explain myself to somepony and answer questions right away when I had the chance to talk. And that needed to happen soon, while I was still somewhat sane. Otherwise, I was at risk of being hunted down, again. This time for real.

How would Twilight react, knowing that Luna killed her former tutor if I were to tell her? What would she think of my part in all this? Hidden for so long in the dark, now suddenly appearing out of nowhere because I needed help myself. Would she even believe me or think that I was trying to deceive her in some way?

And I couldn't just tell her in her dreams right away. I would have to possess her first before I could interact with her at all. A risk I was not willing to take just for a talk, at least not for now.

Leaving a note in the waking world saying 'Hey, you were lied to and your idol was killed, by Luna and me, how do you feel about that?' Also didn't seem like an ideal way of handling the situation... but that could also have been because of my lack of communication skills.

There was the option of talking to her in her dreams right after I had taken over. But I feared she'd be too upset and confused to listen right then. Even if she did, what was she supposed to do? Probably call for Luster Dawn to figure it out, if she was anywhere close to Celestia had been, I imagined.

And who was to know what Luna would do if she found out during the interaction? She had the power to change Twilight's dream making her forget about our conversation and therefore the takeover altogether. Unless I did something drastic that involved others while being Twilight...

No, I really didn't want to endanger Luna's and Twilight's newly achieved status quo with the other species too much, no matter how desperate I was to talk to somepony else than Luna. I didn't want Luna and Twilight to turn on each other if something went wrong. There must have been another way.

Luna might be tempted to sacrifice me if she had to choose between her own happiness and mine. At least, that's what I would do in her situation when confronted about her involvement in the past. In the end, a princess likely chose in favor of the greater good.

The only other mare that could currently see me in her dreams would have been Applejack, since I had possessed her before. But I wasn't sure suddenly popping up in her dreams after all that time would be a good idea either. Surely the dream would turn into a nightmare upon seeing me, and Luna would notice and interfere.

I only wanted a chance at real life, as short as it may be... If needed I'd go someplace else far away. Twilight and the other main characters didn't need to know what had happened. This was all about my own life.

Then there really was just one other option available. One more who knew I even existed in this world.

Discord...

I had tried finding his dreams before, but to no avail. And I wondered, did the draconequus even dream or sleep at all? All that and more went through my head as I made my way to a mirror that had a familiar little cottage shown - Fluttershy's.

My guts turned inside of me. I had no good memories of that place, which was one of the main reasons I had never visited her dreams. And the possible wrath of Discord, should I dare tamper with his most favorite pony.

Luna told me she avoided Fluttershy's dreams for the same reason. But there never seemed to be a need anyways, as she had no nightmares. No need to provoke conflict with the Spirit of Chaos.

So I was certain I'd come in contact with Discord somehow if I took over Fluttershy or entered her dreams, but it did make me anxious...

How would he react if I did that? Back then it seemed as if he had no control over me. But I was sure he had other ways to make my life even more miserable if he truly wanted to. Who knew, maybe he'd bring me back to life just to torment me. After all those years, I was desperate enough to dare.

Discord was a wildcard, one that I needed. He probably knew that Luna was involved in Celestia's death, but didn't tell anypony. I also heavily doubted that he told Fluttershy about his part in all this, still unsure what that was exactly. He did something that involved an item he made if I remembered his words correctly.

It would be in Discord's best interest as well, that this affair remained a secret. In the show, he always seemed cautious not to displease Fluttershy too much. So if worse came to worst, he would likely fix things on his own if it involved her, and I had a feeling that Luna would not try to oppose Discord if things escalated in a still manageable direction.

All in all, it seemed like a free trial run to me. One without permanent consequences. Maybe. I was likely lying to myself to find the courage to go forward.

I was shivering all over when I lifted one of my hooves to touch the mirror's surface.

Solid, like a real mirror.

Wait, what?

I knocked on the surface a few times, just to be sure, and the sound of my knocking on the mirror echoed through the dreamscape.

"Oh, well, guess that was never an option, to begin with", I said disappointed, but also a bit relieved, to be honest.

I was about to turn around and think of something else when I suddenly heard a familiar voice out of nowhere.

"Coming, one moment," said the voice from somewhere behind the mirror, barely audible.

Just sitting there, I looked at the mirror with an open mouth.

The mirror opened inwards, just like a regular door, and I could see Discord's face between the crack.

"Well, hello there, my murderous friend!" Discord exclaimed. "I was wondering when you'd finally show up."

He opened the mirror fully and made a gesture for me to come inside.

We looked at each other for a while. He just smiled noddingly while holding the mirror-door open for me.

I stood up and walked through while shaking my head, not rewarding him with an answer of mine.

An Intriguing Offer

"Please, have a seat," the draconequus, in a terribly good mood, pointed to a bench in the garden behind the cottage while hovering close above me.

As I sat down I noticed Fluttershy, not far from us, tending to two timberwolves and a cockatrice. It seemed that she was dreaming of taking care of the more exotic animals of the Everfree Forest. Such a pure soul, even in her dreams.

"Fluttershy isn't aware that we are here," Discord said in an unfamiliar light tone while looking at her with concern. "She is getting older, you know. I have to be even more careful these days not to upset her fragile heart."

"What is this about, Discord?" I asked him impatiently. "You said you were expecting me to show up at some point. Please, be so kind as to elaborate why?"

Discord descended on my level and sat in the air, arms and legs crossed. He just floated before me like that for a while, not averting his gaze off of me, seemingly thinking about what to say next.

With a smile forming on his face, he addressed me, "We both know why you are here, poor little soul. You are looking for a way to come into the living world, are you not?"

Closing my eyes slowly, I took a deep breath. "Real mastermind right there, asshole."

Acting all offended, he threw his arms up in the air, "Oh, please. I'm not holding you here. There's the door if you want to leave," he said as he pointed multiple arms in all directions to the edge of the dream.

I considered leaving. Nothing good would come out of this, I thought. What was I even thinking coming here? He was partly responsible for my suffering.

"But..." Discord started talking again. "Just so you are aware. Luna won't find a way for you to safely cross over without hurting a pony in the process. She has been desperately looking for a viable solution, with no success thus far."

I looked up to him, some fear building inside of me. "Wha... What do you mean?"

Discord sighed as if I was a bit slow on the uptake, "For you to permanently take over somepony else, would mean for the other soul to lose its connection to their own body. So basically dying... or, even worse, the soul being irretrievably lost in the process. Luna won't tamper with that again, I assure you. She has learned her lesson, and you are an eternal monument as a reminder to her. She made a mistake bringing you here."

Was what he was saying true? I actually expected that the potential host needed to have its soul removed for me to take over permanently, to die... I had been okay with that, really, which is why I was on the lookout for some potential villains. But if it meant for Luna just to have another soul lost in her domain or permanently shattered... that complicated things.

"I'm lost forever, and Luna won't even tell me the truth," I mumbled to myself.

Discord sprang up, now dressed in a suit, almost looking like some sketchy car salesman, "Ah, don't you worry, for I have just the thing for you, my dearest of friends!"

He flew over to Fluttershy wildly waving one of his arms, "What do you think about this second-hoof model, hm? I know, she's quite old and her rump is a bit soggy, but I assure you, she still has a lot of mileage in her!"

I just looked over at him, perplexed, "What, why Fluttershy? What difference would it make? And isn't she like your special somepony or something?"

This was making me nervous. Why would he suggest something like that? With Fluttershy no less.

"Oh, for you see, I'll give you a special discount. A safe way to transfer into a physical body, no harm will come to Fluttershy's soul in the process, I assure you, how does that sound to you, hm?"

That sounded too good to be true. There must have been a catch to it. I mean, sure, Fluttershy was a mare past her prime, but I wouldn't even mind, I'd take anypony available at that point.

"Discord... what's the catch, what's in it for you? How would it be different than with Luna?" I asked, already looking over Fluttershy's body longingly from a distance.

With a poof he appeared before me again in his former sitting position. "I want her to be mine, human. She shall be mine alone, forever."

He looked at me with half-closed eyes. I had never seen him that serious-looking before, he gave off an unusual dark aura. I was getting a bit scared for a moment there.

Discord leaned over to me, uncomfortably close. "Fluttershy is getting old and she will eventually die. I'm not interested in her body, I want her soul. I need your help as much as you need mine. I can't just take it."

Processing what he had just revealed, I looked over to Fluttershy again and then back to Discord. "You... you planned this, didn't you? You fucking bastard... I'm only here for your own goals!"

I stood up, angry about the realization. Only to sit back down again after I had thought about it for a while. What was I supposed to do? Was there even another way out of this than what he offered?

"How would you accomplish that, what happens to Fluttershy after?" I asked, contemplating the consequences.

Discord chuckled. "Interested, aren't we? She is a fine mare after all..."

Out of nowhere, he made something appear next to him out of thin air. It was some sort of web with feathers dangling from it. A crystal in the middle of it all... some sort of dreamcatcher, I presumed.

"This will make you forcefully stay in her long enough for her soul to be pushed out of her body and eventually be collected by the stone this holds," he said with an intense look on his face. "I will tend to her forever after, you mustn't worry about her well-being. I love her with all my heart."

He was a complete maniac. I saw it in his eyes. But he was the maniac I so desperately needed to move on.

"Does she know about this?" I asked, knowing the answer already.

He looked at me, his expression telling me the he was disappointed that I had asked. "She will have enough time to accept. And please, don't act like it makes a difference to you."

"Do I even have a real choice?" I asked, more myself than him.

If I had to stay any longer in the dreamscape, I'd likely go insane and start possessing ponies uncontrolled. Thinking it all over it really wasn't that bad. Sure, Fluttershy would be at his mercy, but he wouldn't dare harm her, right?

Discord held out one of his arms to me. "Do we have a deal?"

I looked up to him and grabbed his arm with one of my hooves. "Deal!"

Before I knew it, he had me yeeted in the direction of Fluttershy.

One Day and One Night

It was a new day, and the sun shone brightly through the windows.

I could feel a pile of warm bodies leave my side the instant I woke up.

There was a lot of commotion going on in my, or rather Fluttershy's bedroom. I could hear voices with strange accents all around me, all asking the same question.

Who was I and what had happened to Fluttershy?

They knew I was an imposter. Just like Winona did so long ago...

"So noisy", Discord said annoyed as he was snapping his fingers.

The animals had all vanished when I looked around the room. Any eerie silence now filled the cottage.

"What did you do, where did they go?" I asked, still drowsy from waking up.

"The Everfree. They're finally... free," Discord chuckled. "Fluttershy and I can't take them with us anyway, and I doubt you want to tend to them afterward."

Unsure of what it all meant, I looked around the room again to orientate myself.

Then Discord approached me while I was still lying in bed.

Surprised by his sudden proximity, I raised a hoof to cover my face on instinct, just for him to gently shove it away again.

Discord put the earlier shown dreamcatcher around my neck like it was some sort of collar. It actually looked quite good on Fluttershy, I thought, not that it mattered much.

"One day and one night you will wear it," Discord looked at me while he spoke, "Don't dare try taking it off. I'll be around should there be any interference."

And just like that, he poofed into nothingness.

I felt quite nauseous but was unsure if that was due to the hippy necklace I wore around my body.

Despite feeling sick, I enjoyed the sensation of being alive again. I just lay in bed for a while, breathing, and thinking about my now possible future. Enjoying the sunlight on my skin. True bliss after all this time in the dreamscape.

Finally, I had a body of my own again. Sure, it was an older mare, but I didn't care at all. I was long over all the gender stuff. I just wanted to live again on my own.

When this was all over, I'd just leave Ponyville. Walk away from it all, and start anew, live like a simple vagabond. A smile crept on my face at the thought of it.

I wondered if I would be able to keep Fluttershy's talent of being able to talk to animals. It surely would come in handy along the way.

When I finally found the motivation to get out of bed, I made a beeline for the kitchen. I was craving food badly. I hadn't eaten for decades, after all.

With a tasty pickle in my mouth, I was wandering around the cottage taking it all in. The smell was so friggin bad. How could anypony live like that? Fluttershy was like the ultimate cat lady, just worse.

It was kinda weird seeing the cottage so empty after Discord had 'freed' all the animals. Were they really fit to live in the Everfree on their own?

Surely, Discord wouldn't have done something against Fluttershy's will...

I thought about that for a moment and came to the same conclusion as before - I had to leave as soon as possible.

What if there were some pets in my care at that moment? Not that I actually cared about the animals, but I didn't want to think about the possible confrontation with the owners and the drama it would invoke.

Thinking about it, did I have to stay in the cottage for the process of taking her over? I looked down at my new necklace, seeing a weak yellow glow starting to come from the stone in the middle of the web.

No, I could leave immediately if I wanted to, leave this all behind without further ado.

So I started packing.

Fluttershy had all the essentials in her cottage. Food, warm clothing, and medical supplies, just in case, should I need them along the way.

Despite Fluttershy's uncertain future, I was feeling more excited than ever since I had arrived in this world. Finally, I'd get the adventure I had been so desperately hoping for in this pastel world.

With two full saddlebags on my back, I stood a the entrance door, ready to leave, contemplating my options and consequences.

Should I leave right now or wait until the body was fully mine? I still had an uncertain night before me... Where would I find shelter when night fell?

A bit disappointed, I lay down the saddlebags next to the door. I had to wait until the next day until the takeover was complete. Just to be safe.

So I waited for the day to end and went back into bed. Waiting for sleep to take me again.

Heartbreaking crying filled the air.

"Where are you?" Fluttershy cried out loud, running around her empty cottage and the nearby surroundings outside, looking for her missing animals in her dream.

I was hiding under the little bridge that crossed the small river to her cottage, hoping she wouldn't see me.

I realized that leaving the dream would be impossible. There was no exit. I'd just reappear in the middle of the dream if I tried to.

"You!?" Fluttershy cried out, sobbing as she finally noticed me as she was looking below the bridge, still looking for her animals. "But... how? Why are you here? We banished you!"

I noticed the surroundings change in color. The dream was changing into a nightmare.

"Calm down, Fluttershy!" I tried to appease her. "This is just a... eh, dream?"

"A... dream," Fluttershy repeated, actually calming down a little. "So my animals are still around?"

"Yes, of course!" I lied directly in her face.

I noticed that she steadily became see-through. An effect of the ongoing takeover I assumed.

I couldn't do this. I had to tell her the truth.

"Fluttershy..." I started. "Discord... I... I'm taking over your body as we speak."

Fluttershy looked at me, disbelief showing on her face. "But... I told him, I don't want this."

Fluttershy sat there, holding her face, crying.

I just stood there, with half my body submerged in the cold stream, awkwardly looking at her. I felt terrible.

"What about our foal?" Fluttershy said, still crying into her hooves.

"Wait, your what now?" I asked, hoping I had misunderstood her there.

A Different Dawn

Fluttershy was pregnant.

I couldn't believe it.

Discord had served me a knocked-up body...

This wasn't part of the deal, but it was still fixable. I wasn't even feeling mad about it. Negatively surprised, sure. But not mad.

I would get a body of my own at the end of the night and that was all that mattered to me.

Did they know about the concept of abortion in Equestria? I wasn't sure, the topic had never come up in the dreams I visited, nor had I read about it in Twilight's books. I'd find out soon enough, I thought to myself in silence.

Still standing under the bridge, I looked at the sobbing Fluttershy and wondered when I had become so cold inside. The change couldn't have been that long ago.

"You're taking this surprisingly well," Discord said as he emerged from the water in front of me. "Well, the body will be yours and all that comes with it... as I promised."

"This is low, even for you, Discord," I hissed at him. "You should have told me."

Fluttershy looked up and turned her head at me with teary eyes. "...Discord? Is he here? I don't see him. Please tell him to stop this! I beg you, both of you!"

It was hard to look her in the eyes, but I managed surprisingly well. I had to see this through and show resolve. There was no other way I feared.

I turned to Discord, who was now floating next to Fluttershy. It did seem like the sight of Fluttershy hurt him, but he didn't say anything to me in response after he had heard her heartbreaking plea to me.

"He can't stop the process. It's too late," I answered, not caring if there even was a way to stop it so far in.

I wanted this over and done. Fluttershy would live one way or another. I was certain of that. She'd have a good life, afterlife... or whatever else it was Discord had planned out for the two of them.

Fluttershy looked away from me again, muttering something inaudible. She then continued to cry her soul out.

Why did she have to be like that, come on now... Did she really have to make this so hard for me?

"I... What name?" I asked her while looking at the underside of the bridge.

"H..huh?" Fluttershy sniffled, hooves on her face.

"What name have you chosen for your child?" I asked more clearly, now looking at her with a hint of guilty conscience showing.

I noticed Discord giving me a strange look before rolling his eyes.

"M... Medley," Fluttershy managed to say while wiping away her tears. "Just... Medley."

She had stopped crying, but I could see that she was a broken mare now.
It looked as if she had accepted her fate, now just sitting there on the grass at the edge of the river, looking at her reflection in the water.

"That's a nice name, Fluttershy. I'll see what I can do about it."

I had no intention of raising a child after my newfound freedom. But maybe I could at least let it be born and drop it off at an orphanage or something... a compensation for her body. I would think about it later.

"It's almost over, Luna didn't notice us, I made sure of that," Discord mumbled, watching Fluttershy slowly disappear before him. "You have done well so far, and I'm sure you'll continue to make me proud, human."

Looking over at him with one of my eyebrows lifted. "I'm not going to-."

I could not finish the sentence as the dream abruptly ended. Fluttershy had disappeared, as had the corresponding mirror in the dreamscape with her.

The sun was about to come up, but the room was already lit by a strong yellow glow emitting from my necklace.

Fluttershy... I felt her close to me.

When I stood up from bed, I could immediately tell that this was now my own body.

Looking myself over, I noticed that Fluttershy's cutie mark was gone, leaving a blank spot. That probably meant I wouldn't be able to talk to animals in the future, too bad. That would have been so helpful.

What struck me as a bit odd was that my belly now seemed a lot bigger than last time. Did I just imagine it because I knew that she was pregnant now?

Pondering whether or not I should get a tattoo on my butt to not draw too much attention to the missing cutie mark, Discord made his awaited appearance out of thin air.

He lifted the dreamcatcher slowly with his magic from my neck over to him. He grasped it gently out of the air and gazed at it longingly for a while.

I could see him pluck the little crystal out of the web and swallow it with a comical gulp before me. The rest of the dreamcatcher lit on fire and disappeared into nothing but ash.

He faced me and spoke almost fatherly, "It is time for me and Fluttershy to leave you now. You have the whole world here as your playground. I'm sure you're going to have a whole lot of fun but try not to overdo it, you hear? You want it to last for a while."

Well, this was awkward. What was this about now? Was he talking to me or the child of his inside me?

Before I could say anything in response, he opened a portal and stepped through, waving one of his arms as a goodbye for a moment before it closed.

And then I was alone. Alone but finally alive.

I took a deep breath in.

Not wasting any time, I gathered the ready saddlebags by the door, left the cottage, and never looked back once as I made my way out of Ponyville.

Luna ran around the dreamscape, looking for the human soul. She couldn't find or feel him anymore, and it made her anxious for the first time in many decades.

A strange report had come in this morning.

Zecora had apparently found what appeared to be the remains of Fluttershy's animals, not far from her hut. All had been taken by the wild animals of the Everfree Forest.

Fluttershy was nowhere to be found. And no sign of Discord either.

Twilight had already tasked Rainbow Dash and Applejack with searching for Fluttershy. Twilight said she'd follow soon after with the rest of her friends.

Luna transpired back into the waking world and flew out into the broad daylight from her balcony.

She had to find the human first. At any cost.

Medley

Something was wrong with my new body.

I had already been walking for hours, following the edge of the Everfree Forest, when I realized that my belly became larger still. Slowly but steadily, like some yellow skin balloon.

This was not a regular pregnancy. That much was clear by now. Not that I ever thought it would be.

It hurt so much.

Barely able to move, I started to limp, tears flowing down my face from the excruciating pain. I had barely lived a day in this new form and already felt like I was about to die...

"Fuck you, Discord. Seriously!" I groaned out loud.

Not being really content with my fate, I started looking around for a spot to lay down to get some rest.

I found something suitable under a large tree on a small grassy hill, close to the edge of the forest.

As I lay down on my back in pain, I looked up to the horizon, watching the sun go down in the distance. At least I got a nice view for my inevitable end, I thought.

What a joke my life had become. Guess I earned that for taking Fluttershy's body without her consent...

I could feel my skin start to tear as my belly puffed up even more in size.

What would happen next? Would I be able to move on, now that I had connected to a physical body, or would I just end up back in the dreamscape again? A never-ending cycle...

Who knew? I barely even cared anymore. I was done with this crap.

The damned spawn in my belly started to move violently. I screamed out from the pain it caused and slowly drifted into unconsciousness.

The sun beamed on me like the scene was some holy happening.

It couldn't have been more wrong.

Where was I?

I could not see nor move. I was trapped in some form of warm liquid.

I tried to breathe, but my surroundings would not let me.

This was even worse than the dreamscape. I didn't want this.

In a state of panic, I tried to free myself.

I pressed my back to the edge of my newfound prison as hard as I could.

It gave way, slowly but steadily, so I continued to put all my strength into pushing against the slippery surface.

With a vile, but strangely satisfying ripping sound, I was free again and in the fresh air. The sun beamed on me warmly for a brief moment before it set behind the horizon.

Soaked in blood and other bad-smelling fluids, I looked down.

I stood inside Fluttershy. Or what remained of her...

Standing there, blood still dripping from my face. I had to say, I had never felt better in my life. What a thrill to come to life, I thought. It had been worth the pain.

The sight of the open carcass of Fluttershy was something to behold. But it was nothing but an empty hull now, like a cracked egg. Her soul was elsewhere, anyway.

But I wondered what had happened to the initial soul of the foal. Did it leave with the process of taking over Fluttershy? Was it meant to be this way for a being of chaos, to have a child? I doubted I'd ever get an answer, but it still made me think.

I took a moment to see who I had become.

No wonder it had hurt so much. I was almost as tall as Fluttershy now. And I could feel that I was still growing further to my full size.

A forming pile of blood showed a reflection of what I could not see directly myself.

I was still mostly pony. The fur was a few shades darker than the yellow from Fluttershy. The mane was a mix of pink and black strands. The horns, wings, and tail I had inherited from Discord.

Licking my teeth I could tell that I was no longer a herbivore if the fangs were anything to go by.

The only thing that I presumed was still part of my old self were my eyes. But I could have been mistaken. It didn't matter in the end, so I didn't think about it further.

Oh, and I was obiously male again I realized while looking between my legs. This also didn't matter much, but I was a bit more comfortable that way. It saved me all the trouble of learning how a mare's body worked long-term.

There was still quite the feminine touch on me, I thought. Must have been Fluttershy's colors and the slender body.

Feeling quite hungry after my recent birth, I looked down at my old body again. Instinct told me that I had to eat as soon as possible.

And so I feasted.

"Applejack, I think I can see them!" shouted Rainbow Dash from the sky. "There, up on the small hill, under the tree!"

Applejack squinted her eyes. Was that really Fluttershy and Discord? It was hard to tell. The sun had been down for a while now.

Aj started galloping even faster. "Alright, let's go. Maybe they need our help."

As they came closer, they slowly realized that something was very wrong there.

A grotesque being, that looked like a mix between Fluttershy and Discord was laying next to what looked like... Fluttershy herself?

They both had to compose themself after they were close enough to see the remains of their longtime friend.

The smell of fresh blood didn't help.

Still drowsy from my little nap, I noticed Rainbow Dash and Applejack standing close, just staring at me with their mouths agape and tears in their eyes.

"Wow!" I sprang up. "This isn't what it looks like, I swear!"

I looked over to Fluttershy's corpse. "Well, maybe it is, depending on what you're thinking, I guess." I smiled awkwardly at them, mouth still stained in blood.

"You... you monster! "What have you done to Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash cried. "Is it you, Discord? I knew we couldn't trust you... I never did!"

Applejack didn't say anything. She just looked at the lifeless corpse that was resting next to me, presumably in shock and mourning.

"What?!" I gasped. "I'm not Discord, how dare you!"

"Who are you then?" Applejack asked, looking up at me with a heartbreaking gaze. "Have we met before? You seem strangely familiar to me somehow..."

"I.. I'm..." I stuttered before realizing that I already knew exactly who I was. "They named me Medley."

Rainbow and Applejack looked at each other, "Who named you?" Aj and Rainbow asked, almost in unison.

"My parents, Fluttershy... and Discord," I said matter-of-factly. "I'm their son, I suppose. Close enough at least I'd say."

Applejack grimaced in disbelief at that. Guess she knew I wasn't telling the whole truth.

"Oh, great! What better way to show you're their son than to murder your mom, ...our friend!" Rainbow Dash screamed out, still crying and overtaken by emotions. "I believe none of that, you are coming with us. The princesses will know what to do with you!"

Aj nodded silently, now with a murderous look on her face.

The time for talking was over. Rainbow and Aj charged at me.

I didn't know what to do. I wasn't sure what I was capable of and I didn't want to hurt them, so I just put my hooves up for them to grab.

Then I felt something strange when they touched me. A connection.

No... two connections.

I grasped them with my mind. They stopped holding me.

When I looked up, I saw them staring at me with blank expressions.
In my mind, I could also see their view of me sitting before them.

I was in control of them and I felt the breeze of the cold night wind on their fur.

"Oh, well, that's... interesting," I said as a creepy smile crept on my face.

Pent-up Desires

Warning: sex and non-consesual tags added to the story

So there I was, sitting in front of the two older mares. Looking them over with a scrunchy face as they stared back at me with blank expressions.

I had to get used to seeing myself in their minds as it was quite disorienting.

It would have been a great chance to get away safely or make them fight each other for a diversion... but I didn't, as I longed for something else entirely.

Letting them turn around themselves, with their tails high up in the air, I was able to get a good look at what they had to offer back there.

I started to blush fiercely and had to look down to the ground.

The grass was really green up on that hill.

This was so fucking wrong. What was I thinking?

Had I become that much of a desperate pervert during my time in the dreamscape that I'd exploit a situation like this? That I'd make my fantasies become reality the first chance I'd get out here?

Needless to say, I would not pass on this chance.

Too much had built up inside me to just let this go now. Who knew what would happen to me later?

There would be a time and place for me to fulfill my worldly needs, Luna had said that multiple times. Well, here it was, right in front of me.

I looked up again, trying to ignore the darkness that started slowly clouding my mind.

I made Applejack walk over in front of Rainbow Dash, so they could boop their noses with each other gently.

A shiver went through my body when their nostrils touched.

The warmth that their close proximity gave off, the slow breathing, and even their love for one another they already shared. I could feel it all. It was an exhilarating experience beyond explanation. A drug.

My mind was racing from all the senses it had to take in at the same time from just that little interaction alone. But I knew I'd have to handle much more than that for what was to come.

I licked my lips and just stared at them in front of me for a moment. I wanted so much more. With a tense body, I had my front hooves firmly on the ground.

Despite the coldness of the night, I could feel a fire build inside of me, warming up my surroundings. Like a predator, my eyes became slits as I observed them, as if they were prey.

Just a simple thought was all it took from my side, a little push into the direction I wanted to see them go. And they acted on their own from there onwards.

Applejack started licking Rainbow's face slowly. Rainbow, in turn, let herself be pushed down to the ground by Aj during the act and lay on the grass on her back.

I could feel the muscular earth pony putting her weight on Rainbow. Following her neck with her tongue up close to her eyes, licking up all the sweat and leftover tears that had accumulated before. Rainbow kissed Aj back on her cheeks and neck whenever she got the chance to.

It all felt very familiar. That wasn't the first time they did that. I could feel both of them getting wet already. My little Discord seemed to get the same idea as it started rising up to greet me while I was sitting there.

Rainbow grasped Aj's head with her hooves and pushed her away from her face downwards to her belly. Only for Aj to blow a raspberry into her.

They both laughed out loud. Lovingly gazing at each other, while they did.

It felt so... genuine. It almost made me feel a bit better about what I was doing. I knew I could sever the connections I had with them at any given time if I wanted to.

Applejack continued her way downwards without Rainbow's guidance after that. Eventually finding her way between her friend's spread legs.

I'd finally get to taste the Rainbow, I thought at the scene unfolding before me.

Aj knew how to please. She nibbled carefully on Rainbow's clit, evoking a small moan out of her. I could feel the wet lips grasping her and had to let out a moan myself in unison with her.

Blushing even harder, I put my hooves up to my face to shut it. That was embarrassing as hell, but I couldn't help it. Aj had acquired some skills through the years, no doubt.

Rainbow got excited and grasped Aj's head again. She pushed Aj's whole snout into her marehood like she was some sort of furry pleasure toy.

I felt the wetness around Aj's mouth and I just sat there, blown away by both of their senses and the taste of little milf Dashie. I had my own head back with my tongue out. "Mmm, Rainbows..."

That was it. It was almost as if I was in a sort of trance.

I stood up and made my way hastily to the backside of Aj, who now had her rump at the ready in the air for me, while she was still going for Rainbow with her whole damn face.

I just put my nose to her and took a deep breath, taking her scent in fully.

Oh wow, it took everything to stay somewhat clear-minded. My own added sexual senses seemed to slowly overload my brain. I knew it was the sort of pain I couldn't live without anymore. I was totally hooked.

I licked her back there for a while, even her little backdoor, as it was clean as could be. Skittles and cider made for an oddly satisfying combination in my head.

Rainbow and Aj were both moaning alternately now, with Aj having a little trouble getting enough breathing in between her short pauses outside of Rainbow's pussy.

I tried my best not to moan at the same time they did, with little success.

Two at the same time were too much for me to suppress. So I moaned as well, loudly into the night. It echoed far and wide. I could hear some birds fly up from the close forest.

Lining myself up to finally enter and get my pent-up juices out, I mounted Aj. Not wasting any time, I slid my colorful pink horse-cook right into her.

True bliss.

I just had to take a moment to take it all in. And then I started rutting her as hard and fast as I could. Making Rainbow Dash stop holding Aj's head as my thrusts were now enough to get her in and out with her snout. My dick was wide enough to hold her tight.

Something inside me told me that I had control over whether I wanted to impregnate or not. But I had no intention, of course. Like I'd share this world with another spawn of mine.

As I was thrusting I could feel all three of us getting close at the same time. With control over all three, I was easily able to align the moment, pausing down when needed and going faster to keep up.

Then I came, Rainbow came, Aj came. We all came at the same time.

And all senses united in me. I felt as if I had fulfilled my destiny, but no threesome cutie mark appeared, unfortunately.

While I came inside Aj I stepped back to get my cock out and and shower Rainbow's face with some white glory as well.

That was the moment I noticed something in my mind from Rainbow's point of view, who was still lying on her back.

Next to my dick, there up in the tree, sat Luna, looking down at us with an unreadable expression.

"Hey," I said, not sure what else to say, while still cuming all over Rainbow's face.

Author's Note

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-4P1WPE-Qg

Of Confrontation and Escalation

Luna was standing beside the two now sleeping mares on the ground.

She had cleaned them with her magic and was likely altering their memories of what had transpired that night as well in the process.

I doubted they'd remember my little interaction with them even without her interference, though. But better safe than sorry, I suppose.

She hadn't been there from the start, so I told her what had happened with Fluttershy and who I was now. Until the end, it was impossible for me to deceiver what she was thinking until she started speaking her mind.

"I can't believe you are capable of doing such atrocities," she said with a disappointed look directed at me. "I had been aware of your deranged mind, but that you actually had the will to commit to these thoughts was beyond my imagination."

I looked away from her, up to her stars. "I suppose I crossed a line there... but it's not that bad, is it? I mean they were already a known couple, right?"

Luna only gave me a look filled with unspoken accusations as an answer.

"Don't look at me like that!" I lashed out at her, my voice becoming louder and my eyes teary. "This is your fault too, you know?"

Anger visibly formed in Luna's expression. "Human, are you accusing me of having an active part in all this?" She pointed to the two on the ground. "You are the monster here, not me!"

"Don't call me human, my name is Medley!" I cried out. "And you, calling me a monster? The one that killed her sister out of sheer insecurity and envy?" I laughed at her. "Right, I think we are done here."

I stood up and walked away from her down the hill, not looking back.

"Where do you think you are going?" Luna spoke out loudly, following me close behind.

"Doesn't need to concern you, my little princess," I said with the most disrespect I could manage.

Luna stopped in her tracks behind me, mumbling, "I... I can't help you." She teared up and sat down.

"What did you just say? I asked unbelievingly while turning around. "Can you repeat that for me, please?"

"I have failed you," Luna said while looking to the ground. "You are beyond my help now."

Shaking my head, I answered, "Wow, it's a bit late for that, don't you think? Besides, it's fine. I'm happy with what I have now, so you don't have to worry your pretty little head about it any longer."

I turned around again to continue on my way when I realized that my hooves had become a lot heavier than before.

Looking down at them, I saw that they were already fully encased in stone. And I could feel the magic slowly traverse up the rest of my body.

"You wouldn't dare!" I screamed back at Luna, who was just sitting there, looking at me with her horn engulfed in magic.

Luna looked me directly in the eyes as she stood up and came up close to face me. "There is no possibility of me letting you roam free. You are a danger to us, you have proven this to me tonight. I warned you not to threaten the peace we have achieved. I could not have imagined a worse outcome."

I wasn't able to do anything but watch myself become a statue. I didn't have the same powers as Discord to defend myself.

"You... fucking cunt!" I could feel the hatred flame up in me. "I'll get back to you for this, you hear me? This isn't the last time you see me. And just so you know... I'm pretty damn sure it was mostly Twilight who achieved your dream for you!"

With delight, I could feel that my last remark hit a spot, as Luna looked at me through half-closed eyes with a disapproving glare.

I bared my teeth at her like a wild animal as I slowly turned to stone.

This was the absolute worst.

Soon after I had become stone, Twilight showed up with Pinkie and Rarity in tow. Luster Dawn was there, too, with her own group of friends.

Luna told them all a fabulous story of how Discord must have used Fluttershy to bring an evil human into this world and how she managed to save Aj and Rainbow before any harm could come to them as well.

She made it an important point that it needed to be passed down the generations to never let me out of my prison, as reformation was impossible for a being like myself.

Luna even used Celestia's old statements about humans to further reinforce her point in her name. And Discord of course, as his reformation had failed, once again.

Unbelievable.

I think Applejack noticed something as well when Luna told her little story, but she didn't say anything at the time.

At least I could be certain now, that Luna was not even considering bringing me back in the near or far future.

They placed me in the royal gardens after that for everpony to look at me. A monument to Luna's heroic achievement. What a joke.

I was aware of everything around me. There was no rest. No sleeping.
Just being a stone statue, damned to witness how time passed without me, once again.

The laughter and cheer of the ponies around me made me so mad. I wanted to physically hurt them. And so much more... darkness shrouded my mind more often lately.

During my time in stone, I realized how terrible ponies truly were. They were even worse than humans. This punishment was the worst I could imagine, and in the show, they even did this to a little foal in the end.

As weeks and months passed I was slowly becoming insane, more than I already was. How did the others in their stone prison fair? Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy Glow? They must have gone mad as well.

I could see their statue. It wasn't placed that far away from me.

Only Discord would manage something like this. It probably only fostered his chaotic nature back then, before the laughable reformation attempts. But I couldn't take it. This would definitely break me for good in time.

I felt anger and desperation steadily grow inside me. My hatred for Luna grew immeasurably, with every day that passed.

And then one day, something came to me. A dusky fog, promising me power.

I wasn't entirely sure, but I had some idea what it was, thinking of Nightmare Moon and Sombra.

It didn't ask for anything in return, it seemed to me as if it knew exactly what I craved, and it only wanted to nurture that emotion.

Needless to say, I welcomed the darkness and let it consume me fully. I had been hoping, no... begging, for something like this to happen ever since I had turned into a mere statue.

They wanted me to be a villain so desperately. Who was I to deny that wish?

In the middle of the night, the stone encasing me started to fall off slowly, piece by piece. I waited patiently.

I opened my eyes, slightly illuminating my surrounding from the dark shimmer they gave off.

Looking over to the other statue with the infamous trio, I noticed that my power had increased, as I felt three connections that were close by. One was just a faint signal.

My dark aura extended over to the statue, slowly freeing them as it had freed me before.

Tirek and Chrysalis were mere shadows of their former self. Their eyes showed no life, nothing. I wasn't sure they'd ever recover. They were practically useless to me in their state.

Cozy Glow just lay there, and I knew she was dead. It had been all too much for the little filly to handle. She must have died of shock upon release.

I wonder if that was my fault. Would it have been different if one of the princesses had freed them in the future? I doubted it in my mind.

Tirek went over to gently pick up the little body. He showed no expression while doing so. He was but an empty hull moving without life. And it scared me. It remembered me of my time in Luna's dreamscape.

I didn't dare touch their minds. I had already witnessed what it was like to be imprisoned this way. I had no intention of experiencing how they felt after all this time, as I feared it would affect me negatively.

They both looked at me and nodded in a way of saying thank you, probably too exhausted to speak. Without asking any questions, they went on their way. Cozy was gently placed on the back of Tirek.

This wasn't quite what I had expected. But maybe they just needed time to recover. It was unlikely to me, though. The two gave off a weird vibe and I wondered if they'd hurt themselves later. Might be better to check on the two when I had the chance.

Sitting in the garden, I took a moment to gaze at the starry night sky above me.

I'd come back here to Canterlot last. Just so Luna had enough time to witness Equestria fall apart around her.

It was time for her to experience a nightmare of her own.

"Ha, ha, ha!" I laughed awkwardly into the night at the thought.

I had to work on that laugh. It was embarrassing and I was glad nopony was around to witness it.

Artificial Friendships

Twilight was at a loss. What was happening in her once so peaceful Equestria?

Since the statues had disappeared from the royal gardens barely a week ago, reports steadily came in from all over. The first reports were only minor incidents. But they became worse with each day that passed.

Below Cloudsdale, on the hard forest ground, a pair of griffons had been found days prior. A well-known younger couple, with their wings tied behind their backs. The bodies were barely recognizable. They must have died immediately by the force of impact. At least, one could only hope they didn't suffer.

The perpetrator was found to be a jealous pegasus who had been rejected by one of the griffon victims and committed the atrocity out of resentment for the loving couple. Cold-blooded murder. But not just that, the dead body of the female was found to have been defiled as well.

Twilight was getting sick again.

And so it was of little wonder that the relations between the pegasi and griffons were currently heavily strained in Cloudsdale, with smaller incidents following still after in the sky city.

There were many reports similar to that, and they did not stop coming. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before the Windigos started reappearing.

Now, this newest report that had come in was especially personal to her.

There had been a gruesome incident involving the Pie sisters in Yakyakistan just the day before. Twilight couldn't believe what the letter, which Spike had handed her bare minutes ago, was saying.

Allegedly, one of the two sisters, Marble Pie, had been... - Twilight had to pause and read that line twice - ...sexually assaulted by multiple yaks on their farm.

In the events that followed suit, the other sister, Limestone Pie, had come to her aid and fought off the offending yaks, severely injuring them while doing so.

It was made clear in the report that all of the male yaks would never be able to conceive offspring of their own again. One of the yaks was so badly injured that he bled out on site before his wounds could be treated.

Twilight had to take another pause as she closed her eyes and held a hoof to her forehead, massaging her temple lightly in little circles.

"Twilight, are you okay?" Spike asked worried, himself visibly shaken as well by the written content.

Sitting on her throne, Twilight looked over at him with a forced smile. "I'm fine, Spike," she lied, almost whispering as she continued reading. Tears started to slowly form in her watery eyes.

Limestone Pie had been stoned to death by the yaks the same day following the event. Marble Pie was exiled and their rock farm re-possessed by order of Prince Rutherford.

Disgust and grief showed on Twilight's face. "Why? ...How?" she whimpered out. Tears started dropping on the paper in her hooves, slowly soaking it.

Spike came over to her and hugged her tightly with his muscular arms. "It's alright, Twilight, it's not your fault. You hear me?" Spike teared up himself at the sight of her broken posture. "I'm sure this was all just a tragic misunderstanding."

Was it, though? Did this new villain, Medley, have a connection to these current happenings? Luna never went into detail about the capabilities of Discord's spawn. Was he capable of influencing others? A shapeshifter like Discord was?

Discord... Fluttershy never would have wanted this to happen.

In the back of her mind, Twilight started to have doubts about Luna's involvement in all this. She had always been very vague about the origins of her knowledge of the former human. What was she hiding from her?

Nevertheless, they needed to find this 'Medley' and the rest of the villains fast. She wasn't sure if the four had teamed up or how they escaped their stone prison in the first place. But it didn't matter. They needed to stop them all before disharmony could spread further.

"How... how is Pinkie fairing?" Twilight asked barely audible while trying to sweep away her tears. "Where is Marble now?"

Spike looked down to the floor, searching for words. "Pinkie... is not well. I saw her very briefly this morning. Her mane is deflated and she is giving off a weird vibe. She has taken Marble in to comfort her together with Cheese Sandwich... but Pinkie will likely need some help herself in the coming days that follow."

The dragon looked up to Twilight before he continued. "She wants you to know, that she is stepping back from her position of Official Friendship Ambassador to the Yaks, effective immediately."

Twilight wasn't surprised, of course, it was to be expected, but it still hurt hearing it. It would be near impossible to find a replacement for Pinkie's position. This would surely complicate things even further with the yaks.

If there even could be a future with the yaks... It had been hard enough for the ponies to bond with them, even without such a gruesome act. Rarity had helped Pinkie in the past, due to her having less time with Little Cheese, but she heavily doubted that she'd take over the role now.

This was all getting out of hooves.

What was she going to do about the situation? Was this even a friendship problem anymore or something else entirely? She couldn't bring it over her to task Luster Dawn with this.

It was an issue beyond the capabilities and experience of the young student to handle on her own. Even Twilight didn't know what she should do, and she was the Princess of Friendship and co-ruler of Equestria.

A loud knock on the entrance gates filled the throne room.

"You may enter!" Twilight spoke out loud after composing herself. She still had a role to fill, after all. She needed to be strong for her ponies.

In came one of her loyal royal guards, a griffon named Gallus. He looked rather at odds with himself as he approached the throne. "Princess... Twilight, we have found the trio that escaped."

"At last, some good news!" Twilight said, with her mood visibly lifting a bit as she looked down at him expectantly.

"Tirek and Cozy Glow are no longer with us, I'm afraid," Gallus announced with a stern expression.

"What? Twilight exclaimed. "Did... did you use lethal force on them? You know that I have forbidden all acts of such unnecessary violence!" Twilight had lost her composure again and was visibly trembling now.

"No! That's not it!" Gallus answered hastily, upset by the accusation. "Cozy was already dead when we found them, buried by the other two it seemed."

Gallus had to look away from Twilight's unbelieving glare before he could continue. "Tirek... he... drew a dagger and cut his throat open right before us, the moment he knew he couldn't escape. He said he'd rather die by his own hands than go back to stone... There was nothing we could do to stop him."

Twilight only looked at him with a blank expression, processing the information she had just received from him.

Cozy Glow was dead. Presumably killed by the other two villains.

She had always felt terrible about how the royal sisters had handled her punishment. It was too much for a young little filly. Twilight had planned to free her in the upcoming months and to task Luster Dawn with her reformation. It would have worked, she was sure of that.

But she was too late... Another precious life was lost under her incompetent rule.

Twilight couldn't hold back the tears any longer and cried quietly, not minding how unbecoming it was for a royal like her to show such emotions to her subjects publicly.

Gallus and Spike just stood there and watched her cry, exchanging sad looks with each other in hope for some guidance.

"Do you want me to come back at a later time, Twilight?" Gallus finally asked after a while, not using her royal title.

Twilight tried to compose herself again and looked down at the Griffon. "No, please continue your report," she ordered, tears still flowing down her cheeks as she sat up straight on her throne again.

After waiting a few more moments to give her some time to breathe, Gallus continued his report. "Chrysalis is still alive. She was subdued without putting up any resistance from her side. However, she refuses to speak to us."

Twilight sighted. "Spike, take a letter and inform King Thorax about the situation. He shall decide what do to with her. We already have enough problems on our hooves as it is."

Spike nodded, a letter already in his hands, he wrote a few lines and sent it off with his fire. "Done."

"Is this a bad time?" asked a voice coming from the entrance. The gates were still left wide open after the griffon had entered prior.

"Luster? What are you doing here? I haven't called for you," Twilight said with a stern voice not answering the question that was asked.

"Well..." Luster started speaking, "I heard there is this new villain on the loose and I thought you might want to see me. You know, as your faithful student and so on? Surely, you'll need me to hunt him down, right?" Inappropriate excitement could be heard in Luster Dawn's voice.

"Luster..." Twilight looked at her in disapproval. "I know that you are fed up with my friendship lessons, but this problem is out of your league. Go back home, please."

Luster Dawn's face turned at the rejection. "Aw, come on! All I do is your lame lessons with the artificial friendships you forced on me. And now, when finally something exciting is happening, you want me to stand to the side and let you have all the fun? That's not fair!"

"What is the meaning of this?" Luna yelled out in her Royal Canterlot Voice while she walked into the throne room, closing up behind Luster, staring her down. "Do you think this is some sort of foal's play? Do what your tutor is telling you, and leave, this instant!"

Luna was visibly tired, as could be seen by the huge eyebags. She must have been lacking sleep, while she was out on the hunt for Medley.

Luster looked up to the taller Night Princess without fear. "Sheesh, calm down, Luna. I was only offering my help to Twilight."

A hoof with a metal shoe swung through the air hitting Luster Dawn on her forehead, leaving a laceration. "I will not tolerate your disrespect towards me, you fool!" Luna said in an almost terrifyingly calm manner.

The room stood silent. Nopony moved.

Luster Dawn was in a sort of shock as her vision started to blur by the blood that flooded down into her eyes. "Wah.?" was all she managed to say before she sat down.

"Luna!" Twilight exclaimed in shock. "Luster..." Twilight ran up to her student to magically close her wounds. "Luna, are you out of your mind?" she addressed her co-ruler, only to be looked down upon by a murderous glare.

"You all don't seem to understand what is to come to you," Luna said, still unnervingly calm about it all. "The dreamscape is filled with a sort of nightmare, I have never seen before. And trust my words, you don't want any of it in your waking world."

With a sigh, Luna turned around and walked out of the throne room again. "We will discuss our further proceedings in this matter later, Princess Twilight."

Silence filled the throne room again, only to be disturbed by the noise of an arriving letter that materialized out of thin air in front of Spike.

Spike looked over to Twilight, who was still holding Luster tight, to wait for her approval. Twilight gave him a tired nod.

"King Thorax wishes for Chrysalis to be transferred over to the Changeling Kingdom for the continuation of her punishment."

Author's Note

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmjWqEe06CI

Are We There Yet?

Warning: You should stop reading this.

Luster Dawn's head still throbbed with pain from the day before. The unending shaking of the airship she was on didn't make it any better.

Why did Princess Luna even have to butt in on her conversation with Twilight? She was Twilight's student, not hers! And the audacity of bucking hitting her! For a such small trifle, no less...

The alicorn must have become senile over all those centuries of 'terrible nightmares' that she always babbled about. How could Twilight even put up with somepony like her? Was Luna even still fit to properly rule Equestria? Was she ever?

Despite the immediate help of her tutor, the injury would clearly leave a mark on Luster's forehead. The way the scar looked like a little crescent made her downright furious. "Bucking stuck-up whorse," Luster muttered to herself while looking out of one of the little windows around her.

Twilight thought she had found the ideal compromise in sending Luster to the Changeling Kingdom with the former villain in tow, which had been declared 'safe' enough for her to handle on her own. And it was also an important time to maintain good relations with their allies and form new fresh bonds.

It almost felt like she had become some sort of friendship prostitute being hoofed around.

Luster was becoming more and more frustrated with her life. Friendship here, friendship problem there. She wanted so much more out of life than that endless cycle of colorful butterflies and rainbows. Something more exciting...

They were flying in the exact opposite direction of where she initially had planned to head out to before Twilight made her go on this little appointed 'mission'. Clearly, she just wanted her to be engaged with something while the princesses figured out the more interesting stuff without her.

Sure, she had the chance to have a look at one of the former infamous villains, Chrysalis. But honestly, there really was nothing to look at or study. The bug had been a big disappointment. She was nothing more than an empty husk now.

The former queen was sitting close to her in a cage that was a tiny bit too small for her to sit comfortably upright. An anti-magic ring was set tightly on top of her jagged horn and her four hole-riddled hooves were shackled to the cold metal ground. When addressed, she would not answer back. The bug had her eyes closed for the entire trip so far. Her broken posture reminded Luster of a depressed cheese grater.

How boring. That wasn't what she had hoped for.

"How much longer until we get there?" Luster asked one of the guards standing close to her. "I want to get this over and done with as fast as we possibly can."

A pegasus mare, dressed in royal uniform, answered back, "It will be at least four more hours until we reach the outer edge of the Changeling Kingdom, Miss Dawn."

Luster just groaned in response. She really should have brought something with her to read. "Great!" she commented in an ironic tone before looking out of the window again, a hoof holding her face up.

A feathery shadow flew by next to her, and then another two shortly after.

Luster put her head to the glass, following them with her gaze. "Griffons?" she asked aloud as she heard them landing on the deck above her. "What are they doing here in these parts?"

After a short eerie silence, a commotion could be heard breaking out on the upper deck. What was happening?

"You two, with me!" A unicorn stallion with brown fur, that looked important enough to be in charge, commanded two more stallions to follow him outside to the upper deck.

Luster watched them all hastily trot up the stairs with spears at the ready.

She was now alone with the captive bug pony and the guardsmare that had answered her before. Both ponies looked at each other for a brief moment before directing their gaze to the ceiling, listening attentively.

The sound and voices were damped through the thick wooden planks that separated them from the outside above them. But Luster and the other mare could both make out fighting. And the screams and screeching of pain that followed from both sides, ponies, and griffons.

Concern slowly built on the face of the guard, which then slowly turned to fear as some disgusting ripping sounds mixed into the fight above her. It didn't help that one of her colleagues fell down close by the windows, sprinkling the glass red on his way down, as he was desperately trying to fly with one wing before disappearing into the clouds below.

Panic built inside the pegasus as she held a spear close to her in her wings.

Luster couldn't have felt more different compared to the guardsmare.

Luster started kneading her hooves in a rhythmic back-and-forth motion, like some cat, almost purring. She had her eyes focused on the ceiling and the blood-sprinkled window, taking it all in. She almost seemed to be in a trance. The seat below her slowly became wet from her excitement.

Chrysalis opened her eyes to look at the unaware Luster for a while before closing them shut again.

All the noise above them had died down on the upper deck, followed by a short eerie pause.

And then they heard somepony slowly come down the stairs, the wood creaking forebodingly of the weight that was put on it.

The pain I felt was easily bearable for the time being.

One of the griffons had managed to slit open the underside of the pony that looked like he was in charge here. Fortunately, without damaging the underlying organs too much.

It would hold together long enough for a little bit of fun.

Looking around I confirmed what I had already known from the connections I had sensed in my mind close by.

A changeling, obviously Chrysalis, and two more ponies. One of which I recognized as Twilight's faithful student, Luster Dawn. I didn't know she'd be there, but I wouldn't complain. She was quite the sight to behold. Young and beautiful. Likely untaken.

A creepy smile formed on my face. I couldn't help it.

"Captain, what is happening up there?" The young pegasus looked at me with fear in her eyes, looking me over. "Sir, you are hurt!" She pointed a hoof out at my belly, which had some guts starting to bulge out of the wound.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about me," I said while slowly trotting over to her and the cage, checking on Chrysalis' current state, realizing that she was almost the same as before.

Maybe a little bit of stimulation was in order. A kickstart for her senses.

I opened the cage and shackles before removing the ring from her horn with the knowledge of the pony I was in control of.

"Captain, what is the meaning of this?" The mare was now pointing her spear at me. "Explain yourself, right now!"

"I'll be with you in a moment, Sweetheart," I answered as I put the ring on Luster Dawn's horn instead with my magic. "Don't want you to do anything stupid before it's your turn, alright?" I addressed Luster.

Luster was giving me an odd look as she nodded. She didn't look afraid at all. More... excited?

Huh, we'd see about that later, I thought as I turned back and made my way over to the young feathery guardsmare.

"Stand back, whoever you are," warned the young guard, visibly trembling now.

Looking at her with a grin, I said, "I won't stop, so you better commit to that spear in your grasp."

She couldn't do it. I was able to make my way past the uphold spear that was directed at me. And I grinned at her as I slowly reached her with my outstretched tongue as she whimpered, licking up her many salty tears.

The spear fell to the ground. Her wings were retracted tightly to her body, almost as if she was trying to shield herself.

"How nice of Twilight, to open the guard up for some female equality," I noted while trying to turn her around with my magic. "I'll make good use of that, I promise."

"Please, just stop!" The mare moved away from my magical grasp in tears until she backed up into the wooden walls of the airship with her back. "Please, stop..." she cried with her hooves up to her head.

I wanted to say something in return, but I noticed that Chrysalis wasn't in her cage anymore. "What?" I said while I looked around and noticed Luster moaning out, barely noticeable at first.

Luster was still sitting on her seat but had her legs now wide open for Chrysalis to have easier access to. Chrysalis in turn, was licking Luster's privates intensely with her almost serpent-like tongue.

"Oh," I just said, looking at them dumbfounded. "Well, guess that works, too...?" I looked over at them, feeling a bit jealous of Luster.

The pegasus tried to make a run for it during the distraction. Only to bump into my own physical self at the end of the stairs. "Good thinking, but we aren't done here!" I clarified as I pushed the pegasus back down the stairs.

My dark violet-black aura formed around me and extended over to the lying mare.

I split my grasp between her four hooves and held her flat in the air, upside down. She wailed and tried to fight it, but she was without a chance against me.

The captain, instructed by my desires, made his way over to the floating pegasus.

I lowered her to a comfortable height for the unicorn to enter her tight and dry marehood.

As the rutting started the organs started to slowly fall out of his belly, accumulating on the lower part of the mare. The blood that accompanied the guts provided for some well-needed momentary lubricant.

The pain of the unicorn was getting too much for me, but it would still be manageable for a bit through the adrenalin that flowed through his body.

Luster Dawn was moaning loudly close to us during the act. Chrysalis still going at her down there, soaking it all in like a sponge.

Curious, I grasped Luster's mind for a moment, only for Chrysalis to stand up and scream at me. "You get out of there, right now! She's mine, you wait your turn!"

Startled by the sudden talkativeness of the bug, I severed the connection again. "Alright, calm down!"

I didn't expect her to turn around that fast.

What I had felt for the brief moment I had taken over confused me. Luster Dawn was genuinely enjoying this all and that completely without any influence from my or Chrysalis' side.

That would make for an interesting conversation when our little group session was done, I thought while feeling the captain come into the screaming mare.

Like-Minded Ponies

It took a while for me to overcome the awkwardness of the situation that I had maneuvered myself into again.

Chrysalis had gone back to her cage and was now judging us silently, lying on her folded hooves. It looked like she still had some trust issues to overcome regarding me. Almost like some traumatized mutt from an animal shelter that had been taken into a new home. But we were making progress fast if what happened was anything to go by.

I smiled at her brightly, only to receive a bloodcurdling hiss in response.

Well, maybe not that fast...

She had gone to town on Luster like a wild animal, taking her innocence with her unholy tongue in the process, judging by the faint traces of blood around the bug's mouth.

The sight of Luster's messy entrance reminded me a bit of her cutie mark. She didn't seem to mind it at all, though. Quite the opposite, Chrysalis and I had sensed it both on our own before.

Sitting on her soaked seat, she was still heavily panting, head back in her neck, looking up at the ceiling with unfocused eyes. It was probably going to take a moment for her to calm down after her bug-induced climax.

She had been herself through the whole ordeal. I knew that for a fact. I couldn't have hoped for Luster Dawn to turn out to be this way... What was I supposed to do with her now? I couldn't just dispose of her like the others. It would have been a huge waste of potential.

The unicorn captain died just a moment ago, his slowly cooling corpse now lying on the still sobbing pegasus mare. There was no need for me to hold her down by force anymore. She was totally petrified by what had happened earlier. The muffled sounds of her crying mixed in with the constant hum of the airship's propellers and made for quite the annoying background noise.

Touching her with my dark aura, I took over to shut her up. Her body was mostly unharmed and I'd still require a puppet crew from here on onwards. Together with Luster and the two remaining griffons on deck, it should give off a believable front of a diverse crew for the remaining transfer and handover to the changelings. Looks like the pegasus just got promoted by sleeping herself to the position of captain, even if unwillingly so.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to keep control over more than a hoofful of souls, which also needed to be in close proximity to me, so I couldn't keep too many potential connections anyway. That limitation had been the main reason for me to come here to free Chrysalis once more in the first place. I had realised that I needed allies if I wanted to accomplish my goals.

Her changeling drones, following willingly or under control through one single hive mind would be an ideal network to spread coordinated chaos through the land. That was my theory, at least...

Otherwise, Twilight and Luna would always be quick enough to extinguish the little fires I laid down. It was all too slow for it to take any meaningful and long-term effect in Equestria. Total disharmony would not be achieved efficiently the way I had been doing things until now, I feared. Twilight had preached her ideology of friendship and harmony too well for that to happen this easily, and the roots had grown strong over the time of her influence.

I noticed that Luster had finally come back to her senses as she looked at me with big eyes.

"Ehm, hello, Luster Dawn, correct?" I asked her. "Care to explain your little... eh.." I nodded my head to the side to Crysalis and the two guards on the ground, making it more clear what I meant.

Luster's head turned crimson as she answered, "It's just... It's hard to explain, really," she said, looking away to the side. There was a mix of fear and excitement coming from her.

I turned her head back to me with my hoof stretched out, looking straight into her eyes. "Try explaining it, we have plenty of time." I smiled at her with a creepy expression, fangs bared.

Of course, I already knew and could have easily taken her over again to confirm it once more, but this was so much more fun.

Instead of a vocal answer, she moved her muzzle closer to mine, trembling while doing so, playfully nipping at my lower lip.

"Oooh, that's cheating!" I chuckled, letting it happen nonetheless.

She let go of my lips and moved her mouth further, to the side of my head, to continue using her lips and tongue on my ears, so skillfully, licking them clean as can be.

"Mhmm, didn't know I needed that in my life." I sighed in pleasure, losing my concentration.

Then she bit into my right ear with force, blood sprinkled on her face.

I screamed out in surprise, "AHWAhaa! You bucking BITCH!" I punched her in the belly making her keel over. "God damn it, Luster..."

Pretty sure she had peed herself a bit from the blow, but she was already looking up at me again, gracing me with a disturbing smile, a bloody piece of my right ear between her teeth. "Worth it," she mumbled with her mouth full, chuckling while holding her belly in pain.

My ear would take a while to heal. But I for sure had received a satisfying answer from her. That mare was something else... What were the odds for somepony like her in this pastel pony world?

Chrysalis gave me a disgusted sideways glance, putting her tongue out while she did.

"Fine, you can be my student. No... faithful pet!" I declared, looking down at her. "So not much of a difference of what you had before with Twilight, really."

She looked up at me, wagging her tail in response. "YES! This is going to be so much more fun than mere friendship lessons, finally..." Luster looked truly happy at the prospect of her new, and likely deranged, life to come.

Having that settled, I made my way over to Chrysalis' open cage.

Before I could say anything, she made one thing clear to me, "I will not be your pet, whoever you are. I'd rather off myself, as Tirek did!"

"Easy there, that was not why I'm here for!" I assured her. "But since you brought it up..."

She hissed at me again. Her horn started to glow and her back was up in defense like some stray cat.

"Just kidding!" I chuckled. "My name is Medley." I graced her with a quick bow. "I'm looking for allies, Queen Chrysalis, that's why I have freed you once more. I need you and your drones."

Chrysalis shook her head and sighed. "You might not know this, but I have long lost my title and subjects. I am no longer a queen. It all belongs to that rainbow moose now, King Thorax."

I nodded and looked at her with a smile. "I'm well aware, and that's why I have a proposition to make to change it all. Including true vengeance at everypony that did you wrong."

It seemed as if I had her attention, at least for the time being.

Mutual Decision

It was a quiet and peaceful day for the students of the School of Friendship. An ideal environment for learning one would think.

And like almost every other day, the students were learning about the importance of friendship. Who would have guessed?

In one of the more colorful rooms, on the upper floor, Ocellus had asked the class in front of her what they thought was the most important thing in a sincere friendship.

A young griffon in the front row held up his left arm in confidence.

"Yes, Gael, what do you think?" Ocellus asked him, a warm smile on her face.

"Trust! The most important thing is to trust and believe in one another!" Gael exclaimed with his arms crossed, nodding in approval of his own given answer.

Ocellus stared at him as if she had seen a terrifying monster.

"Oh... was... was that the wrong answer?" Gael asked unsure of himself, as he looked to the student sitting next to him, but only receiving a shrug in return.

Ocellus stepped forward slowly, still having the griffon in view. Her eyelids started fluttering nervously as she approached close to the student.

Gael shifted in his seat at the strange sudden motions of the changeling.

Without saying anything, Ocellus put one of her hooves forward and held the griffon's head by the feathers. Her magic made sure the rest of his body could not move away.

Gael looked up at her as she was holding him. "Is... is this a test of trust or something?" Nervousness started showing on his face at the lack of a response from his teacher.

The other students were quietly observing, expecting some sort of lesson to follow before them.

And they would be proven right.

In one quick motion, Ocellus slammed the griffon's head on the little desk in front of him, shattering his beak. The desk was now sprinkled in red.

She brought the head of the griffon back up immediately. Small pieces of the beak continued to fall down on the desk, creating a contrast with the red.

Gael and the rest of the students all needed a moment to process what had happened. Silence filled the room.

Then Gael started wailing in pain, blood flowing down from the wounds the splinters had left on his face. One of his eyes was swollen up. It looked really bad.

Panic seized the classroom. Students were screaming and trying to leave the room as fast as they could, shoving away the others that tried to do the same. In the end, it all came down to instinct at that very moment.

Multiple calls for help could be heard shortly after from the aisle.

Ocellus looked down at her student, almost as if she had realized something, and whispered, "This... isn't me. I... I don't want this... We don't want this!"

The changeling stepped back, shaking her head and repeating what she had said before.

"WE don't want this!"

"We DON'T want this!"

"WE DON'T WANT THIS!"

"GET OUT OF OUR MINDS!"

And then they all knew in unison, what needed to be done. To protect them, to protect their friends.

It was the only way to escape. They all decided at the same time as they were one.

Ocellus teared up, looking at the young griffon before her. "I'm... sorry." She turned her head to the front, the hard metallic surface of the blackboard on the wall in focus.

A pony teleported to the entrance of the room with a bright flash that briefly illuminated the room like a picture had been taken.

"What is going on? The students all came crying for help in panic!" Starlight Glimmer asked troubled. "They said you hurt Gael?"

The changeling slowly looked away from the blackboard to her. "I... I'm sorry." Ocellus started to slowly walk over to the other side of the classroom, sobbing all the time while she did. "We don't want to hurt our friends any further."

Starlight walked up to the sobbing griffon, who had his head covered in his arms, trying to evaluate the damage that had been done.

"Ocellus, what is the meaning of this? What are you saying?" Starlight asked, still confused about what was transpiring.

Something like that had never happened before in the school.

The changeling smiled. "Tell our friends that we love them..." Ocellus stood there for a moment looking at her, crying openly, and then she started galloping as fast as her hooves allowed her to.

Starlight just sat there next to the griffon as she watched one of her friends run headfirst into the wall, a bloodcurdling sound of cracking chitin accompanying it.

The blackboard was splattered with changeling fluids, almost as if it had been the topic of the day.

"OCELLUS!" Starlight ran up to the lying changeling, who had her head split open and was breathing her last breaths. "Why, why did you do that...?" Starlight asked her, holding her in her hooves in tears. "Why?"

And then she felt something familiar.

Knowing that time was of the essence, she put her horn to the head of the dying changeling and used her magic to confirm it.

Someone had been in control of Ocellus. She could feel the source it all came from. A picture formed in her mind.

The connection broke off. Ocellus and the rest of her reformed kind had ensured their freedom until the end.

"What the actual..." I exaggerated annoyed. "They... they all decided to bucking kill themself in unison? I couldn't stop them. Holy crap!"

I was sitting there next to Thorax, who had a puffed-up belly from all the eggs Chrysalis had pumped into him. I knew the feeling, not a cool way to die. I decided to leave his mind before I had to relive a certain event.

"You were too full of yourself," Chrysalis said matter-of-factly. "The hive mind is more than just one single mind, it was to be expected that they wouldn't comply for long. Still impressive that you made them desperate enough to do that. It saves me the time to hunt them down later."

I sighed. "This wasn't the plan, I hoped I could use them for longer. Guess the friendship thing was more to them than just becoming a moose..."

Crysalis looked at Thorax's swollen body. "Don't worry, my little degenerate. This new generation of changelings will have a refined taste. There will be no need to tell them what you want. They will seek it on their own."

We both looked at each other and started laughing evilly.

I was becoming a lot better at this laughing thing.

Of Forgiveness and Sacrifices

One year had passed since the rebirth of Nightmare Moon.

One year of unprecedented terror, heartache, and sadness that Equestria had never seen before.

A year of a total solar eclipse in veiled darkness.

And Luna had to witness it all, helpless like a little foal set aside in a crib, watching the human nightmare spread death and disharmony in her name.

Having only the dreamscape as a retreat to temporarily avert her gaze from this new ugly reality. A consequence of her long past actions.

Even there she was not safe from the horror of the waking world, as the screams of her subjects haunted her, reliving the hideous deeds done to them.

She could hear the voices clearly in her domain. Luna had long forsaken them, as she was without power, and could only watch their battered minds falter against the horrors they faced. Many mirrors had shattered and were beyond help.

The princess had begged for the nightmare to stop, but he would not listen. She had offered herself in return, everything, but it mattered not. He only wanted her to suffer and for his wicked desires to come to reality, no matter the price somepony else had to pay to make it so.

The human had long lost any restraint that might have held him back in the past. Luna couldn't endure the scenes that formed in his mind, so she tried to hide away from his atrocities, whenever the human would willingly let her have a break from the unending torment, that is.

But he'd always find her again, whenever he wanted her to see what new ways he had found to hurt another innocent pony, to see him satisfy his neverending lust.

He was playing with her in his mind. In their shared mind. There was no escape.

Letting her find just enough rest to not wither away, to barely have enough strength to endure another dawn of unimaginable cruelty being committed by his hooves, by a will so deranged and strong in what it sought out, that Luna had to give up on hope entirely.

Chrysalis changelings had hatched and were roaming the lands freely.

They were born pitch-black, eyes glowing red in the dark, with long fangs that ended in barbs to inflict pain and to hold their prey down without giving the unfortunate victim a chance to escape their hunger and lust. They had become creatures of nightmares themselves.

The new generation of changelings thrived off the emotional pain the creatures in this world were suffering from. Some had become as tall as Chrysalis herself. Some hunted alone, some in packs, their hive-mind seeking only one thing in unison. The fulfillment of their desires.

And they were efficient at that.

With their appearances changed, they created distrust and disharmony among all creatures far and wide, even among the pony tribes, that Luna and her sister had united under their rule so long ago. It was all gone.

Windigos came naturally and aided the human even further in his quest. Through them alone, thousands had died from the unforgiving cold they brought.

How could this all have happened because of an act of kindness towards one foreign soul? What had happened to their conscience along the way?

There was only one time she had felt some sort of remorse come from the human in the past months. The night he had gone too far and killed Luster Dawn.

Luna remembered it well; the wicked spectacle she'd never be able to forget.

The human had defiled Luster without restraint; that cursed night, ripped her body apart after losing control in a frenzy, with vicious tentacles formed through his aura, penetrating her in all openings in a gruesome display of misplaced violence.

The screams... The smell... It had all been too much for Luna.

There was no joy in Luster's expression when she had realized her imminent death that night. His guilty conscience didn't last long, and he soon found new toys and pets to play with, to fornicate with... to murder coldly after he was done with them all.

The nightmare and Chrysalis went their separate ways after that night.

Chrysalis had taken a liking to Luster and felt it had proven to be unsafe to stay anywhere near the former biped, for she thought he had felt the same for Luster as she did. His very apparent instability and insatiable lust would kill her one day as well if she had chosen to stay close.

It mattered not to him, for Chrysalis had fulfilled her role, and was continuing to do so as the queen lay egg after egg, each day without pause. Their mutual co-acceptance in Equestria was a symbiosis of evil that benefited them both.

New constant nightmares were born into her realm every day. Two more appeared weeks ago that made her particularly sad as she knew the affected, and once very cheerful ponies, personally.

Nightmares of a family left behind by the Element of Laughter, Pinkie Pie.

The pink pony had been unable to mentally handle the loss of her friends and family members and had chosen to take her own life. Leaving behind a grieving father and child. It was an unimaginable tragedy. The hue around their mirrors was black and would stay like that for years to come.

Luna's only light in this laurenforsaken darkness was the shimmering dream of Twilight and some of her close friends who remained unaffected by the nightmares until the end.

They held strong, they still had hope, even when Luna did not. They were like a beacon in the night among all the nightmares around her.

She visited their dreams often, and, after having waited for months to come forward, decided to finally talk to Twilight about her involvement in it all.

To finally confess what she had done.

And what she should have done.

She remembered Twilight being in tears after the revelation of the circumstances of it all... of her tutor's death. Of her lies.

Twilight had already had a presumption, after what Applejack and Starlight had brought to her attention. Even so, it completely destroyed her view on friendship and trust.

Twilight became a broken mare, and the hue of her dreams had changed for many nights to come.

Luna had disappointed them all, but she felt the need to confess before it all ended. So maybe, one day, she could find peace with herself.

Unexpectedly, the hue around Twilight's mirror became bright again, a sign of positive emotions and hope. It was lit in the color of her magic.

So Luna dared to enter Twilight's dreams once more to understand her change of mood.

Twilight told her that they had found a solution that would fix everything.

A miracle.

Together with Sunburst and Starlight, they had crafted a spell that would stop the human and the disharmony he had brought upon Equestria. In tears, Twilight told her that everything would be alright.

On the day of the Summer Sun Celebration, the same day Luna knew the human had planned on coming to Canterlot, the spell would be cast.

"Everything will be alright, Luna!" Twilight reassured her once more, swiping away a single tear with her hoof. "We'll see this through, together..."

Ponyville was like a ghost town. The school of friendship had been abandoned. There was nopony to be found. To play with.

Quite a bit disappointed, I spread my wings and flew up into the air to make my way to Canterlot Mountain.

It was very likely that Luna had told them that I had planned on coming on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration.

But it mattered little. I was inevitable. Nopony would be able to hide from me.

A pack of changelings accompanied me out of their own free will. They must have sensed that they'd be fed well, very soon, if they stayed close to me.

I had to smile, for I was hungry as well.

We're all animals in the end.

"Twilight... Are ya really sure about this?" Applejack asked unbelieving, trying to hold back her emotions without success. "You can't be seriously considering this!" Aj held up a hoof as she started to cry.

"There must be another way!" exclaimed Rainbow Dash. "Please, Twilight!" Rainbow started sobbing.

Rarity trotted up to Twilight and hugged her tight. Her mascara smeared as she started to sob around Twilight's neck. "Please... don't... don't do this, not after Pinkie Pie!" Rarity now wailed openly.

Spike, Starlight, and Sunburst stood close, each of them holding a crystal.
They already knew what needed to happen and had given their farewells to Twilight after they had formed a plan of action the day before.

They had to cry again nonetheless.

"Please," Twilight began calmly, "promise me that you will not resent Luna for what she did. It wasn't her who did all this in the end, she had only meant good. You will need to work together to bring harmony back."

Rainbow's face turned at the mention of Luna's name. "That backstabbing BITCH? I'll kick her ass the moment I see her!"

Aj nodded in approval at Rainbow's words.

Even Rarity seemed to consider a bit of violence, in moderation of course.

The recent events had changed them, too. Their minds were clouded.

Twilight brought all three of them close to her as she spread her wings around them and hugged them tightly.

"Each one of you represents a different tribe, but all of you represent the thing most important to me. True friendship. Please promise me that you lead everyone back on the path of harmony. You must, or it will be all for nothing." Twilight was now crying openly as well as she held her friends close.

The three in question sobbed quietly into her royal fluff.

"We'll miss you, Twilight!" Aj, Rainbow, and Rarity said in unison, accepting her decision.

"I swear, we'll make you proud!" Rainbow reassured her.

"I hate to break it to you all, but he's coming!" Starlight exclaimed, still in tears herself, looking over to the dark being that approached, barely visible in front of the eclipsed sun.

Luna saw them from afar through the nightmare's eyes.

She could feel the excitement of the human as they came into view on top of a marble stair leading to the castle entrance.

Immediately her head was filled with all the atrocities the human had in mind for them as he flew even faster at their sight. Lusting for fun.

"No... please, I beg you!" Luna cried. "Not like this!"

She hoped that Twilight truly had found a way, or else this would be the end for them all. Luna was sure she'd lose her own sanity if she had to see the rest of them massacred in front of her.

As the nightmare drew closer, she was able to see Applejack, Rainbow, and Rarity standing close to each other forming a triangle, each one of them holding a different crystal above their heads into the sky.

Twilight stood in their midst, eyes closed.

Starlight Glimmer and Sunburst were standing behind them, their horns engulfed with magic directed at the crystals the trio held up.

The crystals formed a visible magical connection with each other.

Twilight spread her wings and flew through that connection. A line of magic followed her high up into the sky, where she then remained in place, looking at the nightmare that approached.

The mind of the human suddenly stopped in its tracks.

Strange things came to her mind that she could not make sense of.

G5... Unity Crystal?

Luna didn't know what it all meant.

Suddenly, she could feel the human panic.

What was happening? Did he know something?

Luna noticed the changelings were now flying away. They must have felt the panic the human was feeling, a being much more powerful than them.

The human nightmare had the horn engulfed in magic, trying to blast the ponies with magic from afar. The dark aura extended as far as it could as the nightmare flew in the direction of Twilight.

To no avail, he knew he would not reach Twilight in time.

Luna could feel his fear.

Flying in an upright position, Twilight held her hooves away from her and opened her eyes, which were glowing white of pure magic power.

And then there was light. A sudden flash.

Luna couldn't see for a moment, but she felt a force in her back, flowing in the direction of Twilight and the crystals.

It felt and looked similar to a sonic rainboom, but in reverse.

Magic was gone. She felt it instantly.

Warm sunlight was now shining down on her fur as her moon had released the sun on its own.

Luna glided down to the lower end of the marble stairs.

She was in control of her body again. The human was gone; she was no longer Nightmare Moon.

What was the meaning of this? How? And where was all the magic?

Luna made her way up the stairs slowly, by hoof, having an eerie feeling about it all.

As she reached the top, she could see Twilight lying on the marble floor, surrounded by her friends. Twilight was slowly fading away.

"Twilight?" Luna asked as she drew slowly closer.

Twilight's friends looked her way with tears in their eyes.

Luna could feel their disapproving stares at her, but the grief for Twilight was so much stronger at that moment. They let her pass.

"Luna..." Twilight whispered, moving her head weakly up to her.

"Twilight..." Luna stood next to her, eyes teary. She could feel her leave, her soul slowly fading from existence. "I... I'm so sorry... For everything!" Luna wept, looking at Twilight who she now held in her hooves as she took her final breaths. Luna's tears fell through her dematerializing body to the ground.

"Luna," Twilight began, barely visible anymore, "I forgive you." She smiled at her one last time. "And so does your sister."

The Element of Magic, Princess of Friendship, their friend...

Twilight had left them behind.

And Luna cried; she cried for all she had done, for all that was to come; she cried, for it was an ending she did not wish for.

Author's Note

Thank you for staying with me through the end.

Please let me know your honest opinion in the comments.

Going to Sleep Early Tonight

Fluttershy ducked away from behind the couch and hastily made her way to the door. A look of concern on her face before she stepped out of the cottage, not saying another word to me.

I was able to hear her whisper something to Rainbow Dash outside, but the voices were too faint through the closed door for me to understand. All I could tell was that Fluttershy seemed upset while Rainbow tried to calm her down. Fluttershy must have realized I was responsible for Winona's injuries.

My vision was blurry and I felt as if I had been awake for days already. And that was despite the tense situation I found myself in. Adrenalin should have kept me awake at that moment, but I could barely keep my eyes open. The tiredness felt unnatural to me. After a short struggle, I started to doze off.

When I woke up, I found myself back at the farm. The oversized apples made it clear it was Applejack's dream again.

Walking around the empty farm, I suddenly heard a window open at the back of the house. When I investigated it up close, I saw Applejack climb out the window.

Shaking my head, I watched the scene unfold, hoping to be wrong about what was about to follow.

Applejack made her way to the ground and as she was halfway to the orchards, Winona came running up from the side.

"Here, Winona, come here to me!" Applejack called out to her pet. "Good girl, good girl!" She praised as she petted the head of Winona, who was happily wagging her tail.

Positively surprised, I started to hope for a different outcome, at least in her dreams. I knew it wouldn't change reality, but I was glad she could at least have some peace in here.

Applejack turned around, still looking at Winona.

She bucked the dog like one of her apple trees with her hind hooves, bones breaking, yet again. It looked intentional from a distance. The dog howled out in pain, but Applejack didn't stop there. She was enjoying it.

Applejack walked calmly to Winona and picked her up gently by her neck, only to swing her around aggressively, smacking her to the hard ground several times until the unholy sounds of Winona finally stopped.

She then looked in my direction with a blank stare. It almost seemed as if she was able to see me now after I had entered her body before.

That's not how it happened... it was an accident! I turned around and ran away from the scene with tears already flowing. That's not how it happened! I ran back to the entrance to the family farm and beyond as fast as I could, not daring to look back at Applejack even once.

This wasn't the colorful show I remembered. It all started to become more like the old world of pain and sorrow I had already experienced.

"Applejack, wake up already!" Rainbow Dash said while shaking her friend with both two hooves.

Applejack was on the floor, twisting and turning in her sleep.

The animals had come out of their hiding but were still keeping their distance from Applejack. Angel Bunny had told Fluttershy about the change they all felt in her just a moment ago.

"Wha..?" Applejack opened her eyes looking at her friends standing before her. "What happened, why am I in your cottage?"

Fluttershy looked away and whispered, barely audible, "Applejack..."

"I had a terrible dream but it all felt all so real..." Applejack visibly shivered.

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were unable to answer. They switched from looking at each other, and back down to their hooves multiple times, searching for the right words.

Looking at the open door to the familiar back room, where Fluttershy examined all her animals, Applejack stood up, looking back at Fluttershy again.

As she noticed that Fluttershy's eyes teared up, Aj knew instantly. She slowly walked into the backroom, looking at the table with a small body covered by a white sheet.

She walked up to the table and lifted the sheet to confirm what she already knew. Applejack closed her eyes and put her head to Winona's to say goodbye, not holding back the tears any longer.

Rainbow walked up to Aj from behind and put a hoof on her shoulder, "We have to go, Aj. Celestia has summoned all the elements. But don't worry, you don't have to right now. The princesses will surely understand. We will figure out together what happened when we come back."

"No!" Aj said in a firm tone. "I'll come with you. Something made me do this to Winona. I must inform the princesses. There was somepony there in my dreams before I woke up."

Luna was aware of all the judging eyes on her. It didn't bother her too much as she was used to it by now.

Celestia explained the situation to the gathered elements and her fears she had of the humans, not involving Luna in the process.

After Applejack shared her story of what had apparently transpired with her pet today, everypony seemed to silently accuse Luna as well.

She was also at fault, for bringing an allegedly evil spirit into this world. At least, that was what she thought they were thinking of her looking down on them. The whole situation made her remeber the days before her banishment.

It had truly been a mistake to leave the soul unattended. The fact alone, that the human was able to enter the dreams of others surprised Luna. That he then was also able to possess the body of the one dreaming almost made her feel a bit jealous.

Looking to the side at her sister she thought of the potential of such a rare power. Could it be that Celestia was more afraid for herself than her subjects? Or the possibility of Luna having control over such a tool on her own alone? Did she know something about this? Was there more to the story about her former student?

Celestia concluded, "Twilight, Luna will come to you and your friends in your dreams tonight. She will guide you all through the dreamscape and lead you to the human. As the respective Elements of Harmony, you should have the necessary power to free this spirit from our world and return the balance."

Free the spirit... Luna knew what that meant in this case. She had tried talking her sister out of it, but Celestia was adamant that the foreign being had to be removed sooner than later. One foreign soul was a small price to pay for the secured safety of this world.

"Princess," Twilight, being a princess herself, addressed her former tutor. "What do you mean by freeing the spirit? What will happen to the soul Luna brought here after?"

Luna was now also looking at Celestia, wondering about the answer that would follow. Celestia's face was completely unreadable to her.

"I expect you to make the right choice when you all encounter it," Celestia said with a warm tone in her voice, not answering the question.

Celestia looked at Applejack in the back as she continued. "Today, one of you here has lost a loyal pet. What will you lose tomorrow?"

That hit. Applejack looked up at her with panic in her eyes, imagining Apple Bloom the same way as Winona on the table earlier.

"Let's go to sleep, it was a long day," Applejack said as she walked out leading the way.

The other elements, being somewhat uneasy about the task given, followed suit.

Luna looked after the elements as they left. She would surely take her time gathering them tonight, for she had an offer to make to the former biped first.

Every End Is a New Beginning

What was transpiring in the Changeling Kingdom?

Luna felt so very tired of it all.

Twilight's friendship advisor had been unable to get a response from King Thorax, no matter how often he tried throughout the day.

The letters from the dragon were always sent out successfully, but no response would come back in return. This was highly unusual for the King, as he had always answered timely in the past.

And then there was this gruesome incident in Twilight's school... and the rest of Equestria. The reports had all been similar in nature. A lot of ponies were injured or killed by the changelings, despite the short timeframe in which it all happened.

As she passed the dreams of her subjects, she could already see and feel the toll it had taken on their minds far and wide.

Nightmares of the worst kind, everywhere one would look. She was unable to help them all as they were way too many for her to handle on her own.

Starlight Glimmer had been able to confirm that the changelings were influenced through their hive mind as she witnessed it happen with one of the teachers, one of her close friends no less.

Luna had always wondered about Starlight's talent. Would she have been part of the solution back then with the human? Was she capable of interacting with souls? A cutie mark was linked to one's soul... so there was a possibility.

It didn't matter anymore.

She had felt the stares on her, earlier in the throne room. Twilight and Starlight had lingering questions they wanted her to answer. She was able to dismiss them once more through the urgency of the matter at hoof.

Did they know or suspect her involvement? That she herself was to blame for it all?

The princess shook her head as she flew through her realm, looking for one dream in particular. The one that belonged to the disrespectful student, Luster Dawn.

Medley himself didn't seem to dream anymore, as she was unable to find his mirror. Maybe he was still capable but decided not to. He did hate her dreamscape now, after all. Likely a feat he had inherited from Discord.

She'd arrive soon in the waking world, for she had immediately set out for the Changeling Kingdom on another airship. They would only bring her as far as the border, as she instructed. Nopony else had to die tonight. It was up to her to correct her own mistakes, once and for all.

There would be no mercy this time.

Should the human somehow reappear in her realm after, she'd make sure that he'd be met with further appropriate punishment, forever.

Luna almost hoped that would be the case, once his physical body was turned to dust. A smirk formed at the thought.

There was still time for her to ascertain the situation in the hive and talk to Luster Dawn in her dreams. See how she had faired so far, if she was still alive, that is.

Truth be told, she did overreact back there when she hit her. So Twilight made her promise that she'd apologize. It was the friendship thing to do.

Luna sighed.

There, in the far distance, she saw the dream mirror in question. It surprised her as she had expected a completely different hue.

It was no nightmare she was having, quite the opposite, in fact.

Walking around the barely breathing bodies of the reformed changelings, I noticed that the mountain of letters next to Thorax was still growing in size. The ponies were desperately trying to reach out to him.

I had told Chrysalis and Luster that we had to leave, first thing in the morning. They'd likely send somepony out soon to check on the situation after what had happened.

The bodies would need to be moved onto the airship, so we could find a better place for the eggs to hatch. A task for the griffons, maybe Luster too, should I feel like making her do some hard and honest work.

Thanks to the open architecture of the hive, I was able to gaze upon the beautiful night sky above me.

I wasn't afraid of Luna. Even if she'd come for me here, I felt strong enough to fend her off. Killing her was not an option. She needed to stay alive to suffer as much and long as possible. We weren't done yet.

Not far from me, Luster Dawn was sleeping on some sort of carpet on the floor. It looked rather cozy.

She was snoring cutely with a huge smile on her face. It looked like she had been enjoying herself with us.

Her company was welcome.

Being evil sure was lonely sometimes. Of course, she was also a huge risk to me. Luna would likely enter her dreams to find me in the coming days, when she found out that she had defected over to us.

I needed something to hinder Luna from entering her dreams. So I was planning on stealing Celestia's regalia, which was put on display in a museum in Canterlot. It had the necessary powers required to do so. I'd make Luster a nice dog collar out of that, worthy of my pet.

A smile crept on my face.

I walked over to her and looked at what was on display for a while. She lay on her back, hooves stretched in all directions from her, so I had a good view. She seemed to be dreaming something lewd, as her marehood glistened in the moonlight.

My cock was slowly coming out of his sheath. The fruity aroma in the air coming from her pussy was making me downright horny. I hadn't had the chance yet to get to know Luster better.

"Hmm."

But I also didn't want to wake her up. I was not that kind of monster. It had been a long day and she needed rest. My newly acquired toy had to last for a while, after all.

So I took her mind over with as little interference from my side as I could muster.

I couldn't see what she was dreaming of, but I felt her emotions. If I had to guess, I'd say she was dreaming of Chrysalis egging the other reformed changelings. She had taken a liking to that, from what I could tell.

Seeing the bug do that was kinda hot, not gonna lie. Might have to ask her later for a session with some unfertilized eggs for Luster... and maybe for myself too.

I flustered at the thought.

Being now as horny as only a horse can be, I kneeled on my hind hooves and guided my now throbbing cock into her slowly. A visible bulge formed on her body when I had it in.

I felt myself and her at the same time. Almost like bucking myself, but so much better as the feelings were still separable in my mind.

In slow thrusts, I moved inside. The bulge on her bouncing up and down every time.

I put my front hooves down with weight on the spot the bulge formed so I could feel my cock through her skin on the downside of my hooves.

Oh! I wouldn't last long. This felt amazing and I had to moan softly.

I cursed the bug, sleeping not far from us, for taking her innocence before I had the chance. First come, first serve, but still.

With a slopping sound, I pulled out and turned her around so she lay on her belly. There was still one other virginity to take.

Her anus looked tasty. Tight and clean.

Ponies in this world always kept their asshole in pristine condition. And I loved them for that. It looked like it was powdered too.

I put my large tip on her little ponut entrance, prodding a bit to test the resistance.

With my hooves next to her head, I slowly went forward with my hips. Her body moved with me as I pushed her across the floor. She was tight, alright...

I pulled back, putting some distance between my cock and her asshole, only to buck it in hard with one nice swoop.

For a moment I felt the thick tip of my cock being squashed by her amazing muscles until it was past that point and I was in with half of my shaft.

Oh my god. I should do that a lot more.

Of course, I also felt pain, her pain, but since it was not my own body, it didn't hinder me much. I enjoyed it quite a bit, to be honest, and started rutting a lot harder into her ass while holding her in position with my front hooves.

It didn't take long for me to fill her brown with my white and I moaned loudly when I came.

"Would you mind keeping it down a bit?" Chrysalis asked with half-open eyes, slightly annoyed. "I'd like to get some rest after today's events."

"Sorry!" I said with an awkward grin while pulling out of Luster's ass.

There was still a lot coming, which I directed at her open muzzle. I had to be careful not to drown her in her sleep.

My cum tasted quite nice, I thought, as it filled her snoring throat.

The egg-filled bellies of the nearby reformed changelings wiggled more alive than before. They probably felt the emotions of their surroundings.

Looking at Luster, satisfied with myself, I slowly let go of her mind and let her continue her beauty sleep.

I could have sworn that her smile was even wider now than before.

Chrysalis stood up in a panic, looking in my direction.

"Is something the matter?" I asked her, confused about her sudden movements.

"Behind you, moron!" Chrysalis screeched. "You left yourself wide open!"

"What?"

I turned around, with my cock still at full length, only to see Luna standing tall before me in her battle armor.

She didn't say a word, but cut my throat with her glowing horn in one quick motion of her head.

The wound was deep. I wasn't able to speak as I desperately tried to stop the bleeding with my hooves.

I felt my head slowly fall backward, still attached to my neck, and I could see Chrysalis again. Just upside-down.

A fountain of blood rushed out of my neck into the air and sprinkled us all in red.

Luster was awakened by the commotion and watched the scene unfold before her with unreserved excitement. It didn't look like she was sad to see me go, and that hurt me a little.

Luna was calm as she watched me bleed to death on the ground.

I died.

Slowly I felt myself leave the spawn of Fluttershy and Discord.

They must have seen it too, as they all looked at me, as I levitated above my dead body.

"No!" Luna exclaimed in shock. "This... this cannot be!"

I looked around but I couldn't see my body. What had I become? I was unable to speak.

Luna stood there, shivering, with eyes wide open.

I looked at her, seeing my reflection in her eyes.

My soul had connected with the darkness, I realized as I saw the fog of black and violet.

It would not leave me and I could not leave it.

Feeling my surroundings, I noticed something interesting.

There was a new connection available, one that wasn't there before.

Luna.

In realization, Luna turned around, trying to flee, but it was inevitable.

I engulfed her with my whole being and the transformation took place.

Nightmare Moon emerged once more.

Luna was there in my mind with me, reduced to a mere spectator and movement limited to her dreamscape.

Chrysalis looked at me unbelievingly and shook her head. "Please don't say it."

"The night will last forever!" I announced and laughed more viciously than ever before.