Under the Moon and the Sunby Doubtedbloom279ChaptersPrologueChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3PrologueDarkness. And the taste of blood in his mouth. His body was shaking, the ears were ringing. He tries to get up, but his hooves are too weak and the equipment is heavy. While fighting for breathe, he slowly open his eyes. He doesnt see anything at first, blinded by the light. He needed several seconds before his view improved, revealing the place where he was... a small room, probably a kitchen, the furniture was still attached to the walls, abandoned. The kitchen itself was full of debris, with chairs revolted to the ground and an old table, cutted in half. There were old paintings attached to the walls, full of dust and mold, like the room itself. He slowly gets up on his hooves, he immediatly checks his equipment, his rifle, a BAR-1 was just near to him. He grabbed it, and after that, he opened his bag, searching for some bandages and munitions. He was short on both. And there wasnt much time left, his unit needed to breach in the building and secure the position and to capture the objective. The war was ending, but the objective, the general Zadrusbal Zarca, was crucial for the High Command, and he wanted that promotion. The noises from outside were becoming more loud, even for a threstal with one ear like Shining, he lost it during a fight in Aris, some years before, for a grenade launched by the desperate Hippogriffs. Still, the other ear was optimal, and he could perfectly hear the screams and the explosions coming from the streets. His unit was stuck fighting at the seventh floor of this building, because of a machine gun nest, installed by the Colthagians, when a grenade trap was pressed by one of his companions, while many died for it, or for the bullets of the machine gun when some of them tried to exit the room, he managed to run from the position for another room. Unfortunately that room hadnt a floor anymore, maybe for the previous fights in the structure, and he fell from it, hitting with the head the floor below and remaining unconscious for that, until now. He walked through the door, rifle in his hoofs and looked outside. There wasnt any sign of enemies through the corridor. They are probably defending the general at the last floor, Shining sighed and walked throught the corridor, trying his best to dont look at the corpses and to the blood that painted it in an apocalyptic scenario. Eventually he found the stairs for the next floor, when he stopped They are probably waiting just near the stairs, i need to find the emergency stairs, they shouldnt be guarded like the main ones, especially after our assault. He decided to return back to the previous corridor, he remembered that he saw an emergency sign that indicated where the emergency floors where, he turned the angle and found the sign. After following it and after turning 2 times he found the emergency exit. He rushed to the door, grabbed the handle and pulled. The door opened, screeching while doing so, not like anyone would have listened to the sound of a door in the middle of a battle. The view that welcomed Shining showed the principal road of Colthage, that leads directly to the Parliament where the Sufrit was elected for countless year. A magnificent structure, built on an area of 100 metrees, and high 90. Built in white concrete after the victory of Colthage in the North Zebrican War in the year 1014, was a magnificent example of modern architecture, it had 3 major entrances with a giant statue of the Sufrit itself in the adiacent square just before the principal entrance. The structure should express the power of the Republic, and the power of the Sufrit, it should have been the principal point for all the zebras. It was now burning. The battle did not spare the structure, hit by artillery shells and fighting in the streets, causing the left wing to collapse with the fire raging from it onto the rest of the building. The Colthagians were defending that sybol with fanatism and tenacity. They didnt want to lose their simbol, their last hope of survive this, even if it was burning. He took the stairs, and started to go up, running as fast as he can, he is a easy target for snipers. BAM The stairs ringed, The bastards are shooting me!. He accelerated, the door was close, he opened it... BAM. This time the bullet hit Shining on the front left hoof, while still managing to close the door he sat, with a grimace of pain on his face. He opened the bag, grabbing some bandages and starting to medicate himself, The important is that im alive, and im lucky the bullet is out. He took his rifle, and, limping, he continued through the corridor. I must be close to the machine gun nest, we counted atleast 40 zebras in the entire building during the briefing, and since that is the last defence in the structure, there shoud be atleast 3 zebras remaining. He arrived at the end of the hallway, at his left, there was the machine gun nest, he could hear the noises from the zebras in an unknown language. Shining grabbed his rifle, waited for the moment where all of the zebras where distracted by the complex reload of the machine gun and exited the corner. His rifle started to sing, with the bullets running through the little space that separated Shining from the zebras, totally umprepared for this little ambush. The first zebra that was reloading the machine gun, had the bullets piercing his skull, digging a furrow through his brain, causing blood and fragments of gray matter to spray out of his head. Before he had even had time to fall before he was already dead. The gunner instead, had the bullets to dig their way through his neck, perforing the artery and leaving the zebra to drown in his own blood. The third zebra was a bit more lucky, instead of vital parts the bullets perfored his vertebral column and his hooves, he shouted before collapsing on the floor, almost dead. Shining stopped the fire and turned to the other way, expecting more enemies that didnt came, they were probably dead. Instead of continuing, he turned to the only zebra that was still alive, he looked at him, he could have had not more than 19 years. The zebra was scared of the Chiropterrian and tried to not look at Shining with his hooves covered in blood. However, Shining moved his hooves and looked in his eyes "Where is Zadrusbal Zarca" he asked. The zebra looked at him with fear and terror, and then pointed his hoof to a door, not different from the others. Shining looked at him, a young soldier, fighting for his country, it was honorable and brave and he should be grateful to him for not making it difficult. Unfortunately the High Command didnt wanted prisoners. Shining reloaded his rifle, looked at the zebra, and shot the Colthagian in the face. "Im sorry little one", Shining said to the corpse before leaving the position and limping towards the door. He placed himself right in front of it, if there was someone in the room he would have been dead. But something told him to not worry about this. He placed his bandaged hoof on the door, and opened it. A corpse welcomed him inside. The room was clearly a deposit before the battle, it was different from the other by being larger and without any connection to other rooms, it was filled with radio equipment and a little table, full of orders and reports from the army. But apart from the corpse there wasnt anyone else. He looked at Zadrusbal Zarca, General of the 1st Colthagian Army, relative of the Sufrit, standing in the middle of the room, with a pistol next to him and a bullet hole in his head. "Coward", there was contempt in Shining expression, risking his life, only to know that the general choose this way to die. Better to warn the High Command, Shining went to the radio equipment. Luckily it was still functional, he adjusted the frequency and talked. "Someone hears me? the target is dead, I repeat, the target is dead!", he waited. "This is the General Batton, do u confirm that the target is dead?", his superior, his voice was cold and calculated. "Yes General, the target is dead", he replied trying to be as calm as possible, he needed to make a good impression. "Roger that, ur identification soldier?", he was waiting for this report. This was the moment he was waiting, his promotion will secure his career and will help him to reach his dream, the High Command of Chiropterra, he couldnt let this chanche go away. "Corporal Shining Night, of the 1st Imperial Auxiliar Division", this was the beginning of something incredible. Or so he thought. Chapter 1It's just a parade after all, damnit The Parade of Victory, a colossal event organized and announced right after the news of the Sufrit's death, held so that millions of Chiropterrians can cheer the victories of the Commonwealth. And to display the strength of the Army for all to see. It was imperative for all of the divisions in the army to participate, the High Command was irremovable on this, even if it caused moodiness in the ranks. Many officials tried to protest, everyone wanted to rest after the bloodshed. Shining was one of them. Even if he was promoted in the end, he wasn't a super soldier, no one in the army was, and organizing a parade without some time to rest beforehand was stressful and without any sense. Obviously, the protests were rejected, it wasn't a surprise. While reflecting on this, Shining looked outside from the window of his wagon. The train should arrive at New Ayacachtli in about 40 minutes and for now it was traveling through the Mountains that isolated the Capital of the Commonwealth. Urbs Aeternus He always wanted to see the residence of Her Imperial Majesty and her Royal Capital, Shining could feel a bit of excitement deep within him, he could even see Nightmare Moon live and not from a screen with a terrible resolution. He didn't understand why so many people bought that infernal machine, including him, but it was too late and he had to stick with it, even if the price was high. And when it isnt… His hoof started to hurt a little, Shining dropped the pen and massaged it, his memories could wait a little, not like they will run away from his head. Atleast he hoped they wouldn't, it would for sure cause a headache in the future. Shining decided that he had enough. He got up from his desk and leaned towards the open window. The train was running fast, and he could feel the cold breeze against his face. Great mountains, all covered in snow, showed up, and, sometimes, remoted villages popped out from the panorama, with the lights of the houses that radiated and stood out the little hamlets. Unfortunately he didn't see any figure from the distance that could be hailed. It was Night after all, even if he was a bat. 3 days later Too large of an audience for his standards. The Parade was inaugurated with an incredible speech by the Nightmare, and by a more mediocre one of the High Command, praising the strength of the Legionnaires and that of the Commonwealth’s Army. After that the Air Force put on a show. where planes designed, with incredible precision, a giant Moon in the sky. Obviously everyone cheered at the sight. Her Imperial Majesty and the High Command were on a small platform right in front of the Royal Palace, by far the largest building in the entire Commonwealth. A perfect example of how a single structure can represent the power of a Monarch. Shining read about the history of the Royal Palace of the Kaiser of Griffonkind, in some ways, it was similar to the palace of the Goddess of the Night. The royal court had its place there and while some powers were still in the hands of the Council, the biggest decisions happened for sure inside of the walls of the palace. He wanted to be everywhere but not there, marching on the Lunar Plaza, at 35C in full uniform, sweating like he was in the Tartar wasn't exactly what he hoped for. Atleast the crowd cheered for them, small consolation. Now his division was marching towards the center of the square, right in front of the High Command and of the Nightmare. Shining could already see the faces of the most influential and powerful people of the entire Commonwealth. He looked at the crown, a line of guards separated it from the parade and from the Nightmare. They were having a rough day trying to contain the thousands of people in the entire plaza. There were many different people for that parade: bats, ponies and even some griffons. Everyone tried to be there to see the Nightmare herself saluting her proudful legions. After the Act of Tolerance many initiatives promoted integration between the Commonwealth's races. He saw a pony, in the distance, they were a minority in the Commonwealth, applauding the units like everyone did and smiling. She had with her a small purse, of a yellow colour and a hat, one that you use if u live in countries like Macawia, Shining saw many of them when he had a vacation years before. Much closer to him there were a group of bats, they were holding a camera trying to film every second of the parade. He saw the hats the two were wearing, with a giant PRESS written on the top. One of them was trying to keep some of the crowd distant from the machine with a hoof. I cannot wait for this to end, there shouldn't be much left. Then someone started screaming. A scream, the sound of a bullet, a guard falling with blood spraying out of his head, a pony breaching, running with a revolver towards the platform, shooting. It was chaos. The crowd dispersed, running, screaming. The High Command also rushed, trying to shelter from the bullets, the guards were panicking, divided between holding the mass of people, rushing away from the square and from rushing towards the terrorist. The people themselves, happy until some seconds ago, rushed towards the exit of the Plaza, trampling on each other. The slower ones were the most unlucky, crushed by the hoofs of the others behind them. The Royal Guards tried to implore the Nightmare to go away from the scene, but she remained in the same position as before. Deaf to requests and entreaties. 1 Shining knew he should do something. 2 No. 3 He began to run towards the mare. Not many meters separated him from her. 4 A member of the Royal Guard fell, a bullet hole had now replaced his eye. 5 My damned vacation 6 He threw himself against the mare, trying to grab the gun, the mare tried to point the gun towards him. But Shining resisted, she wasn't strong, and managed to take the gun away. “You don't know what you have done”, the mare said. “You shouldn't worry about me right now”, Shining was disgusted. “The end of hell is near, and so the beginning of paradise.”, she bit her tooth. Drool came out of her mouth, her body was shaking. The veins became more and more evident. But the eyes were still looking at Shining, she smiled. And then her body stopped. Shining looked through his surroundings, the square was chaotic, many were still trying to escape from the scene, guards everywhere, sirens of the police, and ambulances could be heard from the distance. He looked at the Nightmare. She hadn't moved the entire time, observing what was an attack against herself. Even when the bullets started to fly. Even when her Guards tried to convince her to leave. Even when one of those Guards got killed by the terrorist. Now the Nightmare was looking at him, the expression it was indecipherable for the eye of Shining. Too distant from him. For sure she was upset, but there was something else. Why did she remain there? She smiled at him, something that rarely happened, before leaving the platform, passing right next to the corpse of one of his Guards. That, with the composure befitting a monarch. Or a Goddess. Shining was immediately surrounded by medics, the ambulances arrived and were already taking care of the wounded, and the dead. 3 medics started to take care of him, inviting Shining to reach the ambulance that parked near him. “I'm fine thanks”, Shining said to them, in fact he didn't have any major wounds. Others that day were not as lucky as him. He looked to his right. The 2 press agents were still there, they filmed the entire scene and Shining had no doubt that this attempted murder would be on the front page. He got up. He needed to find his superior and reunite with his unit and attend instructions, he couldn't do anything more than that. Then 2 figures blocked his way. They were 2 bats, dressed in suit and tie, both identical. One was slightly taller than the other, an albino, with yellow eyes, of a tonality that reminded Shining pure gold. The other, the smaller one, had black eyes like carbon and a gray skin. “Nightmares Hoof here, im agent T and this is agent K, could u follow us? We don't have much time before the press arrives” Truly the best day of my life Chapter 2Nightmares Hoof was the secret services of the Commonwealth of Chiropterra for nightmare knows how many years. They were created by at the time warmaster Auburn Breeze sometime in the 10th century with its primary goal of preparing for Operation Moonshine. Since Moonshine’s success and the return of her imperial majesty it has been repurposed into a more defensive role of protecting Chiropterra from external forces beneath the shadows. Their Headquarters are situated not far from the Imperial Palace, on Auilix Street, the second largest road in the entire Capital. The Building was a modern skyscraper, built with glass and steel. The characteristics was the structure itself which reached a total of 442 meters of altitude. Considered one of the largest buildings in the entire world, with its outer surface covered in glass. With modern interiors and rooms where suspects can be interrogated with cutting-edge equipment. For these particular details Shining knew that he wasn't in the skyscraper. K and T escorted Shining through the Plaza, reaching in the end an old blue van without writing , probably an older model of 10 years. Old and rusty but for sure comes in handy in case of long trips. They invited Shining to enter it, K said that they were escorting him to a safe place, waiting for the situation to calm down and Shining trusted them, they showed him their badges after all, and so entered the van, confident and calm… And then only darkness. He woke up again with a bucket of cold water, tied up with a chair. His head was throbbing from the pain, probably hit with a blunt object. Shining looked around in panic, breathing heavily. The room was naked, the old wallpaper, ruined and dirty, exuded humidity and the only objects in that room was the chair Shining was sitting on and a light bulb that illuminated the room. T and K talked to him about what he did, what his ‘Heroic Act’ will generate once She will know about the fate of the plot. At that point, Shining knew that the 2 weren't agents of the Nightmare’s Hoof, but he didn't understand anything clearly, he was still stunned. Still Shining tried to ask who was their boss, why they decided to kidnap him, what their goal was. He hoped that the two would tell him something, an explanation, an apology maybe. He shouldn't have done that. For K’s response he decided to use Shining as a punching bag, pouring his anger into each punch, harder than the last. He wasn't trying to kill Shining but he still managed to have Shining’s strength reeling to the point that talking would be impossible. After that the 2 left the room, locking the door and leaving Shining spitting blood, on his now torn and dirty uniform. no longer as shiny as it was a few hours or perhaps even days ago. Still, even if very slowly, Shining managed to fall asleep again, he didn't have the lucidity to think of a plan, something, to escape from that place. Maybe the next day… Present… Shining was torn from sleep with a bucket of water against his face. Not a good start. He coughed, struggling to breathe, almost drowning, he slowly opened his eyes only to see again K and T looking at him. “Hello again mister Night!”, K said with a childish tone. He was smiling, and Shining didn't like it, something big was about to happen and he wasn't sure he wanted to see what. “Why are you doing this?!” In response he received another bucket of freezing water. “You aren't in the position to ask any question right now, and you should thank your Nightmare that you are not dead yet.”, T said with a hint of anger that betrayed his joking tone. “Now… we did some insight into you, mister Night. You were born in the year 1002 ALB, you fought in the Second North Zebrican War in the year 1020 at 1ge 18. You assisted in putting down the labourer revolt in Tobuck at age 20 Where did they find my file?! “You fought in the Chiropterrian – Colthagian War after the betrayal of the Sufrit. And for your actions you received a promotion. Is this correct corporal major?”, said T. If I don't answer it will be worse. Better if I indulge them, I need to preserve every inch of strength remaining if I want to escape. “Correct”, Shining said in a flat tone gritting his teeth. “Your parents died during a terrorist attack in New Ayacachtli when you were only 4, for this and for some anger issues you ended up with no friends. Mister Night you are indeed the perfect test subject! If this works we will be famous in every country of our nation and we will be rewarded!”, T seemed excited. For the love of the Nightmare… “T! Please pass me the handbag, we don't have much time left since our first chance to satisfy our boss was killed by mister Night just 3 days ago” T vanished for a second before reappearing with a black handbag, handing it to K. K opened it. Inside there was a syringe with a transparent liquid inside, connected to a container through a small tube. The container itself had various toxic danger warnings written on it. The language was unknown. They know I'm already vaccinated? “T, hold him still” T obeyed, blocking Shining with his hoofs. He tried to resist and to wriggle out but K was too strong even for him, “Now let's see if it works…”, K injected the mixture in Shining’s neck. Pain rapidly reached Shining, he fought the urge to start screaming, he didn't want to give any satisfaction to K and T. The mixture slowly left the syringe into Shining’s neck, it felt as if ice was injected into his body. “Don't worry mister Night, for the first 10, maybe 20, minutes nothing will happen to you”, K said in an excited tone. “And after… that time has passed?” “It could end up in 2 ways mister Night, your body will accept the mixture with all of his privileges and advantages, or you will die.”, T said with a tone that left no room for doubt. “What was inside that mixture?” “You should be honoured mister Night. This is something more big than you, me and anyone. This is the beginning of Paradise.”, K made a crooked smile. He is insane, they’re both insane! I need to get out, and quickly too. Or the Nightmare knows what will happen to me. In the distance a phone rang, T looked at K as he went to check who it was calling them. K meanwhile grabbed the handbag and started to refill the syringe. The knots tying Shining weren't tied properly, "A beginner's knot" his trainer at the Academy would say if he could see them. Everything that Shining needed was to not get caught by K, who now seemed concentrated on the handbag and not caring about his prisoner. Shining fiddled with the knot, trying to be as discreet as possible, if K had noticed who knows what he would have done to him. He would probably have been the victim of other experiments. Come on… untie damnit! The knot became weaker and weaker, Shining remembered the training and the knot didn't offer too much resistance to his hoofs. Eventually it broke up and Shining was free again, in all this K had almost finished refilling the syringe and checking that the tank was working correctly. Now or never, may the Nightmare help me. Shining sprinted forward. K heard the noise, but he barely had time to turn around before Shining was on top of him, the handbag was pushed away while the two tumbled to the floor battling while grabbing each other's neck. Shining had noticed before, K wasn't as strong as T, and he definitely wasn't trained to fight. The black thestral tried to free himself from Shining’s grip, who was trying to drown him with an assassin like fury. “You don't understand the honor we are doing to you! You are the key!”, K answered, in pure rage while trying to liberate Shining's hoofs. “What there was in the mixture?!”, Shining was losing his patience, the noise they were making will for sure not be ignored. “Ha! You think I will answer your questions? It's too late anyway, kill me if you want! I won't betray Him!”, K laughed. Shining was tired, sleepless, hungry and angry, angry at his tormentors. “Fine!”, and he broke K’s neck with a decisive blow. Shining separated from the corpse, heavily breathing. He needed to get out of there, run away from that place, but first he needed to find T. As long as T wasn't already returning. He gave a last sign at K before raising up slowly. He couldn't hope to fight T in his pitiful condition, he simply had to escape and find a safe place where he could inform the police. He opened the door and looked outside. The door led onto a short, dimly lit corridor, it looked like a basement, and it probably was, the walls were worn and this was the only room there. The end of the corridor led to a flight of stairs. Shining rushed through the corridor, up on the stairs. There was a door blocking the way. Shining turned the handle… And the door didn’t open. Of course the door is locked! Shining took a deep breath, he needed to calm down, otherwise he would have a panic attack, T would have found him and only the Nightmare knows what would have happened to him in that situation. Instead, he did some step backs and looked around, trying to find a vent, so he could just sneak in and escape from the prison where he was in. Unfortunately there was nothing. In the corridor there was no ventilation system but in its place there was an old cabinet, it was semi-open. Shining rushed to open it, the inside featured clothes and disguises. He checked inside them hoping for something, anything, but found nothing. That's when he heard noises outside the door, T was coming back, and Shining could hear him fiddling with the lock on the door. Time was up, Shining threw himself into the closet and closed it behind him. leaving a little space to breathe and see what T was doing. The door opened, and T came out, still dressed as when they had kidnapped Shining, he had a pinched expression, like that of an employee who has been told to speed up his work. He was walking down the corridor fiddling with a pack of cigarettes, the brand wasn't visible to Shining but the color of the pack suggested they were imported. He passed the closet without sparing it a glance. Shining's heart was beating wildly, he was waiting for the right moment to escape from there. A few more steps... "So K, how's it going with our subject?" He stopped in front of the entrance, motionless as he stared at the corpse of his colleague, with his head bent in an unnatural position and with the empty chair next to him, the handbag thrown to the corner of the room. Now Shining came out of the closet and ran against T. The agent turned but Shining kicked him and threw him into the room. T was getting up but Shining was faster and closed the door to the room leaving T trapped inside. He's pissed off, better get out of here before he breaks down the door. Shining turned, ignoring T's angry screams, and ran through the hallway to the stairs leading to the exit. He quickly got on them and got out of them, fortunately T had closed them but not with a key, he hadn't expected Shining to have freed himself and evidently hadn't even considered such an option. The door opened onto a small, narrower passage, some of the tiles on the walls showed signs of wear, no one had been to that place in a long time except K, T and him. Shining ran along it, passed a couple of open rooms, where he recognized what looked like a kitchen and some sort of laboratory. He reached the door, and opened it. The wide tunnel and tracks were the first thing that struck him. I'm inside the subway tunnels! Shining left what had been his prison until then and walked through the subway tunnels, hoping to find a station as soon as possible. After minutes that felt like hours, he finally noticed a light at the end of the tunnel. Shining couldn't believe it, he had risked being hit by a tram twice and felt a great pain coming from his left wing, despite this he ignored the pain. He finally reached what turned out to be the station of Moonspeaker Temple, the great temple at the center of the Nightmare cult. There were many people waiting for the train to arrive. And even more were what they indicated a Shining, limping, reaching the tracks and climbing over them. Some rushed to help the Corporal Major but stopped when they noticed something. Shining stopped, what had blocked them? What made them look so terrified? And it was at that point that he saw his wing. Even if the wing itself no longer had anything to identify it as such. The flesh was no longer present, only the shape remained. In its place there was something Shining had never seen before. A dark substance, a sort of shadow, black as night, had taken the place of the flesh and tissue, the blood, sucked from it, was no longer present, yet the pain persisted, uncontrollable and continuous. Panic crept into Shining's mind and at the same time his adrenaline began to wane, it was too much, too much to process in these conditions. Shining fell, no longer able to walk, no longer able to think, and the darkness took hold of him again. Chapter 3A sea of fire, a white door with a giant lock, a golden throne in an immaculate room. Rivers with the colour of blood, children with gas masks, mutilated soldiers and cities destroyed. And above all, an atomic explosion, brighter than the sun and more scarier than the god that moves it. And then nothing more. Shining’s eyes slowly opened, how much time passed? He couldn’t tell. After escaping from T and K, Shining remembered running through the tunnels of the subway, only to yield and to fall, destroyed by the effort and treatment he received. But his view was still blinded. But his hearing worked, he heard distant voices, many voices were unknown to him, probably most of those voices were of medics, in fact they talked about his state, how his condition was stable and why and how was his swing in that state. Ah right... my wing... He didn't have the strength to turn over, but he could feel something was wrong. He could feel the meat disappeared and the ligaments severed where his wing began. Nothing was there now, only a shadow. My wing… Nightmare… help me… this can’t be real… And the darkness took him again. Shining passed the next 2 weeks in a state of drowsiness, passing from terrifying nightmares. At moments where he managed to stay conscious enough to hear what were only snatches of conversation. Before sinking into the void again. He was sure he had screamed, he had done so many times during his nightmares. Watching horrors beyond comprehension. He told himself that everything would end soon, that what he saw wasn't real, praying to the Nightmare. The third week, finally, someone heard him. He woke up slowly. At first he had trouble getting used to the light in his room. He didn't recognize the ceiling at first which featured a complex tapestry showing the arrival of the first Threstals in the land that would become Chiropterra. A moment that every child born in the Commonwealth learned about. He looked down, and noticed how the room had been built using noble materials. Silver in particular stood out the most and was also the dominant material, followed by what looked like blue gold. There was someone in the room, a nurse, judging by how she was dressed. She was checking something written in a notebook, it was too far for Shining to read what was written. Then the nurse turned, and saw Shining’s eyes watching her. She let out a cry, clearly surprised to see him awake, after having dropped her notebook on the floor the nurse rushed across the room and out the door. Am I really that ugly? A few minutes passed, too much for Shining’s taste, during which he began to think that they had abandoned him. Or, thinking in a more rational way, were discussing what to do with him. All of this thinking was interrupted by the entrance of more figures in the room. They weren't doctors. The figures were dressed exactly as in the propaganda headlines he saw in the newspapers. Tall, dressed in white armor made of Steel, they had a belt to which was attached a long ceremonial sword. The Lunar Guard entered the room. Obsolete but very scenic. Not a single one of them spared Shining a glance. They placed themselves at the angles of the room. The Guard was famous for his discipline, and for now, they were proving that to Shining’s eyes. And after them came a figure that Shining knew very well by sight. Tall, clad in her armor that had made her more immortal than her own lifespan. With lethal beauty, she moved lightly, despite being perhaps twice the size of the guards, who were tasked with protecting her life before theirs. The Nightmare stepped forward. "Leave us alone", she said with a glacial tone which did not allow any reply. The Guards nodded with a bow before retreating and leaving the Princess and Shining alone. Expectation and fear crept up on him, maybe she knew something about what they had done to his wing? Or she wanted to punish him for letting himself be captured by 2 terrorists, or spies, so easily. “I'm surprised you survived, the doctors said your heartbeat was barely noticeable when they arrived” “I… Thank you my Princess…”, he wasn’t comfortable with this discussion. She was a goddess, he didn’t expect to confront directly one of the 2 oldest being alive in those days, and the and the wounds were still too fresh. “Tortured for 3 days, and you still managed to escape, admirable no doubt about it, don’t you think?”, the Nightmare seemed proud of the actions of Shining, or so he prayed “Y-yes I do my Princess” “Unfortunately after you collapsed on the ground a fire started raging across the tunnels, the firefighters and military personnel managed to put it out permanently after 2 days of fighting, needless to say that the price was and is high.” All of that, because of me… “The Secret Services didn’t manage to find any documents or proofs unfortunately. The site where you were locked collapsed, nothing survived to the fire “, the expression and the tone was indecipherable to Shining. “But during your period of… coma, we did some tests with your wing, in particular we took some of your blood and injected it into various animals and into a volunteer. And the results were… interesting…”, something flashed in the eyes of the Nightmare. “You should have died Shining Night, with the treatment you had received, and with the material that composes your wing now, your body should have collapsed”, the Princess said in a cold tone. And I still did… “My Princess maybe they found something in that mixture that had some parameters matched to my body… it was the first thing that came into my mind when I was… with them”, Shining responded. “How does it feel?”, the Nightmare suddenly asked. “You notice something different?”, there was a strange light in her eyes, a hunger for knowledge that Shining had never seen in anyone. He was scared of it. “My Princess… it feels… weird, I don’t know how, or why, but it does. And… the only thing i’m sure of, is that this… thing was meant for a dark purpose", Shining said cautiously. “What kind of purpose do you think? And who do you think it involves?”, the Nightmare went closer to Shining’s bed, looking into his eyes. “I don’t know my Princess”, Shining looked in the eyes of the Nightmare. You seem too much interested in this my Princess “I have no idea about what it was intended for. But for now it seems that this… substance, will have to remain attached to me. I don't think it can be untied”, Shining continued. The Nightmare suddenly turned her back, moving to the window of the room and looking outside. Shining couldn't see her face, but it was clear that he was reasoning, after all it wasn't a common situation, none of what happened in the last days was common. When she spoke again, she took on the most neutral tone possible, very different from the longing he had a few moments before. Shining assumed she regained the control of herself, or simply changed tactic. "You will stay here", the tone was glacial. The world of Shining collapsed. “You have just survived a kidnapping by those who, at least according to the secret services, were enemy agents. I still can't say for sure who they belong to. But their target was you. Therefore, you will remain here in the Royal Palace. This room will be your lodging”, the Nightmare spoke in a firm but detached tone, one that left no room for retorts. He had no choice. “I accept my Princess”, Shining said in a firm tone. “Perfect, we will do other experiments on your wing, remember that.”, and with that last sentence the Nightmare exited the room, leaving Shining alone again. If I want to understand why and what they did to me, I must stay here and find as much information I can. They will pay.
PrologueDarkness. And the taste of blood in his mouth. His body was shaking, the ears were ringing. He tries to get up, but his hooves are too weak and the equipment is heavy. While fighting for breathe, he slowly open his eyes. He doesnt see anything at first, blinded by the light. He needed several seconds before his view improved, revealing the place where he was... a small room, probably a kitchen, the furniture was still attached to the walls, abandoned. The kitchen itself was full of debris, with chairs revolted to the ground and an old table, cutted in half. There were old paintings attached to the walls, full of dust and mold, like the room itself. He slowly gets up on his hooves, he immediatly checks his equipment, his rifle, a BAR-1 was just near to him. He grabbed it, and after that, he opened his bag, searching for some bandages and munitions. He was short on both. And there wasnt much time left, his unit needed to breach in the building and secure the position and to capture the objective. The war was ending, but the objective, the general Zadrusbal Zarca, was crucial for the High Command, and he wanted that promotion. The noises from outside were becoming more loud, even for a threstal with one ear like Shining, he lost it during a fight in Aris, some years before, for a grenade launched by the desperate Hippogriffs. Still, the other ear was optimal, and he could perfectly hear the screams and the explosions coming from the streets. His unit was stuck fighting at the seventh floor of this building, because of a machine gun nest, installed by the Colthagians, when a grenade trap was pressed by one of his companions, while many died for it, or for the bullets of the machine gun when some of them tried to exit the room, he managed to run from the position for another room. Unfortunately that room hadnt a floor anymore, maybe for the previous fights in the structure, and he fell from it, hitting with the head the floor below and remaining unconscious for that, until now. He walked through the door, rifle in his hoofs and looked outside. There wasnt any sign of enemies through the corridor. They are probably defending the general at the last floor, Shining sighed and walked throught the corridor, trying his best to dont look at the corpses and to the blood that painted it in an apocalyptic scenario. Eventually he found the stairs for the next floor, when he stopped They are probably waiting just near the stairs, i need to find the emergency stairs, they shouldnt be guarded like the main ones, especially after our assault. He decided to return back to the previous corridor, he remembered that he saw an emergency sign that indicated where the emergency floors where, he turned the angle and found the sign. After following it and after turning 2 times he found the emergency exit. He rushed to the door, grabbed the handle and pulled. The door opened, screeching while doing so, not like anyone would have listened to the sound of a door in the middle of a battle. The view that welcomed Shining showed the principal road of Colthage, that leads directly to the Parliament where the Sufrit was elected for countless year. A magnificent structure, built on an area of 100 metrees, and high 90. Built in white concrete after the victory of Colthage in the North Zebrican War in the year 1014, was a magnificent example of modern architecture, it had 3 major entrances with a giant statue of the Sufrit itself in the adiacent square just before the principal entrance. The structure should express the power of the Republic, and the power of the Sufrit, it should have been the principal point for all the zebras. It was now burning. The battle did not spare the structure, hit by artillery shells and fighting in the streets, causing the left wing to collapse with the fire raging from it onto the rest of the building. The Colthagians were defending that sybol with fanatism and tenacity. They didnt want to lose their simbol, their last hope of survive this, even if it was burning. He took the stairs, and started to go up, running as fast as he can, he is a easy target for snipers. BAM The stairs ringed, The bastards are shooting me!. He accelerated, the door was close, he opened it... BAM. This time the bullet hit Shining on the front left hoof, while still managing to close the door he sat, with a grimace of pain on his face. He opened the bag, grabbing some bandages and starting to medicate himself, The important is that im alive, and im lucky the bullet is out. He took his rifle, and, limping, he continued through the corridor. I must be close to the machine gun nest, we counted atleast 40 zebras in the entire building during the briefing, and since that is the last defence in the structure, there shoud be atleast 3 zebras remaining. He arrived at the end of the hallway, at his left, there was the machine gun nest, he could hear the noises from the zebras in an unknown language. Shining grabbed his rifle, waited for the moment where all of the zebras where distracted by the complex reload of the machine gun and exited the corner. His rifle started to sing, with the bullets running through the little space that separated Shining from the zebras, totally umprepared for this little ambush. The first zebra that was reloading the machine gun, had the bullets piercing his skull, digging a furrow through his brain, causing blood and fragments of gray matter to spray out of his head. Before he had even had time to fall before he was already dead. The gunner instead, had the bullets to dig their way through his neck, perforing the artery and leaving the zebra to drown in his own blood. The third zebra was a bit more lucky, instead of vital parts the bullets perfored his vertebral column and his hooves, he shouted before collapsing on the floor, almost dead. Shining stopped the fire and turned to the other way, expecting more enemies that didnt came, they were probably dead. Instead of continuing, he turned to the only zebra that was still alive, he looked at him, he could have had not more than 19 years. The zebra was scared of the Chiropterrian and tried to not look at Shining with his hooves covered in blood. However, Shining moved his hooves and looked in his eyes "Where is Zadrusbal Zarca" he asked. The zebra looked at him with fear and terror, and then pointed his hoof to a door, not different from the others. Shining looked at him, a young soldier, fighting for his country, it was honorable and brave and he should be grateful to him for not making it difficult. Unfortunately the High Command didnt wanted prisoners. Shining reloaded his rifle, looked at the zebra, and shot the Colthagian in the face. "Im sorry little one", Shining said to the corpse before leaving the position and limping towards the door. He placed himself right in front of it, if there was someone in the room he would have been dead. But something told him to not worry about this. He placed his bandaged hoof on the door, and opened it. A corpse welcomed him inside. The room was clearly a deposit before the battle, it was different from the other by being larger and without any connection to other rooms, it was filled with radio equipment and a little table, full of orders and reports from the army. But apart from the corpse there wasnt anyone else. He looked at Zadrusbal Zarca, General of the 1st Colthagian Army, relative of the Sufrit, standing in the middle of the room, with a pistol next to him and a bullet hole in his head. "Coward", there was contempt in Shining expression, risking his life, only to know that the general choose this way to die. Better to warn the High Command, Shining went to the radio equipment. Luckily it was still functional, he adjusted the frequency and talked. "Someone hears me? the target is dead, I repeat, the target is dead!", he waited. "This is the General Batton, do u confirm that the target is dead?", his superior, his voice was cold and calculated. "Yes General, the target is dead", he replied trying to be as calm as possible, he needed to make a good impression. "Roger that, ur identification soldier?", he was waiting for this report. This was the moment he was waiting, his promotion will secure his career and will help him to reach his dream, the High Command of Chiropterra, he couldnt let this chanche go away. "Corporal Shining Night, of the 1st Imperial Auxiliar Division", this was the beginning of something incredible. Or so he thought.
Chapter 1It's just a parade after all, damnit The Parade of Victory, a colossal event organized and announced right after the news of the Sufrit's death, held so that millions of Chiropterrians can cheer the victories of the Commonwealth. And to display the strength of the Army for all to see. It was imperative for all of the divisions in the army to participate, the High Command was irremovable on this, even if it caused moodiness in the ranks. Many officials tried to protest, everyone wanted to rest after the bloodshed. Shining was one of them. Even if he was promoted in the end, he wasn't a super soldier, no one in the army was, and organizing a parade without some time to rest beforehand was stressful and without any sense. Obviously, the protests were rejected, it wasn't a surprise. While reflecting on this, Shining looked outside from the window of his wagon. The train should arrive at New Ayacachtli in about 40 minutes and for now it was traveling through the Mountains that isolated the Capital of the Commonwealth. Urbs Aeternus He always wanted to see the residence of Her Imperial Majesty and her Royal Capital, Shining could feel a bit of excitement deep within him, he could even see Nightmare Moon live and not from a screen with a terrible resolution. He didn't understand why so many people bought that infernal machine, including him, but it was too late and he had to stick with it, even if the price was high. And when it isnt… His hoof started to hurt a little, Shining dropped the pen and massaged it, his memories could wait a little, not like they will run away from his head. Atleast he hoped they wouldn't, it would for sure cause a headache in the future. Shining decided that he had enough. He got up from his desk and leaned towards the open window. The train was running fast, and he could feel the cold breeze against his face. Great mountains, all covered in snow, showed up, and, sometimes, remoted villages popped out from the panorama, with the lights of the houses that radiated and stood out the little hamlets. Unfortunately he didn't see any figure from the distance that could be hailed. It was Night after all, even if he was a bat. 3 days later Too large of an audience for his standards. The Parade was inaugurated with an incredible speech by the Nightmare, and by a more mediocre one of the High Command, praising the strength of the Legionnaires and that of the Commonwealth’s Army. After that the Air Force put on a show. where planes designed, with incredible precision, a giant Moon in the sky. Obviously everyone cheered at the sight. Her Imperial Majesty and the High Command were on a small platform right in front of the Royal Palace, by far the largest building in the entire Commonwealth. A perfect example of how a single structure can represent the power of a Monarch. Shining read about the history of the Royal Palace of the Kaiser of Griffonkind, in some ways, it was similar to the palace of the Goddess of the Night. The royal court had its place there and while some powers were still in the hands of the Council, the biggest decisions happened for sure inside of the walls of the palace. He wanted to be everywhere but not there, marching on the Lunar Plaza, at 35C in full uniform, sweating like he was in the Tartar wasn't exactly what he hoped for. Atleast the crowd cheered for them, small consolation. Now his division was marching towards the center of the square, right in front of the High Command and of the Nightmare. Shining could already see the faces of the most influential and powerful people of the entire Commonwealth. He looked at the crown, a line of guards separated it from the parade and from the Nightmare. They were having a rough day trying to contain the thousands of people in the entire plaza. There were many different people for that parade: bats, ponies and even some griffons. Everyone tried to be there to see the Nightmare herself saluting her proudful legions. After the Act of Tolerance many initiatives promoted integration between the Commonwealth's races. He saw a pony, in the distance, they were a minority in the Commonwealth, applauding the units like everyone did and smiling. She had with her a small purse, of a yellow colour and a hat, one that you use if u live in countries like Macawia, Shining saw many of them when he had a vacation years before. Much closer to him there were a group of bats, they were holding a camera trying to film every second of the parade. He saw the hats the two were wearing, with a giant PRESS written on the top. One of them was trying to keep some of the crowd distant from the machine with a hoof. I cannot wait for this to end, there shouldn't be much left. Then someone started screaming. A scream, the sound of a bullet, a guard falling with blood spraying out of his head, a pony breaching, running with a revolver towards the platform, shooting. It was chaos. The crowd dispersed, running, screaming. The High Command also rushed, trying to shelter from the bullets, the guards were panicking, divided between holding the mass of people, rushing away from the square and from rushing towards the terrorist. The people themselves, happy until some seconds ago, rushed towards the exit of the Plaza, trampling on each other. The slower ones were the most unlucky, crushed by the hoofs of the others behind them. The Royal Guards tried to implore the Nightmare to go away from the scene, but she remained in the same position as before. Deaf to requests and entreaties. 1 Shining knew he should do something. 2 No. 3 He began to run towards the mare. Not many meters separated him from her. 4 A member of the Royal Guard fell, a bullet hole had now replaced his eye. 5 My damned vacation 6 He threw himself against the mare, trying to grab the gun, the mare tried to point the gun towards him. But Shining resisted, she wasn't strong, and managed to take the gun away. “You don't know what you have done”, the mare said. “You shouldn't worry about me right now”, Shining was disgusted. “The end of hell is near, and so the beginning of paradise.”, she bit her tooth. Drool came out of her mouth, her body was shaking. The veins became more and more evident. But the eyes were still looking at Shining, she smiled. And then her body stopped. Shining looked through his surroundings, the square was chaotic, many were still trying to escape from the scene, guards everywhere, sirens of the police, and ambulances could be heard from the distance. He looked at the Nightmare. She hadn't moved the entire time, observing what was an attack against herself. Even when the bullets started to fly. Even when her Guards tried to convince her to leave. Even when one of those Guards got killed by the terrorist. Now the Nightmare was looking at him, the expression it was indecipherable for the eye of Shining. Too distant from him. For sure she was upset, but there was something else. Why did she remain there? She smiled at him, something that rarely happened, before leaving the platform, passing right next to the corpse of one of his Guards. That, with the composure befitting a monarch. Or a Goddess. Shining was immediately surrounded by medics, the ambulances arrived and were already taking care of the wounded, and the dead. 3 medics started to take care of him, inviting Shining to reach the ambulance that parked near him. “I'm fine thanks”, Shining said to them, in fact he didn't have any major wounds. Others that day were not as lucky as him. He looked to his right. The 2 press agents were still there, they filmed the entire scene and Shining had no doubt that this attempted murder would be on the front page. He got up. He needed to find his superior and reunite with his unit and attend instructions, he couldn't do anything more than that. Then 2 figures blocked his way. They were 2 bats, dressed in suit and tie, both identical. One was slightly taller than the other, an albino, with yellow eyes, of a tonality that reminded Shining pure gold. The other, the smaller one, had black eyes like carbon and a gray skin. “Nightmares Hoof here, im agent T and this is agent K, could u follow us? We don't have much time before the press arrives” Truly the best day of my life
Chapter 2Nightmares Hoof was the secret services of the Commonwealth of Chiropterra for nightmare knows how many years. They were created by at the time warmaster Auburn Breeze sometime in the 10th century with its primary goal of preparing for Operation Moonshine. Since Moonshine’s success and the return of her imperial majesty it has been repurposed into a more defensive role of protecting Chiropterra from external forces beneath the shadows. Their Headquarters are situated not far from the Imperial Palace, on Auilix Street, the second largest road in the entire Capital. The Building was a modern skyscraper, built with glass and steel. The characteristics was the structure itself which reached a total of 442 meters of altitude. Considered one of the largest buildings in the entire world, with its outer surface covered in glass. With modern interiors and rooms where suspects can be interrogated with cutting-edge equipment. For these particular details Shining knew that he wasn't in the skyscraper. K and T escorted Shining through the Plaza, reaching in the end an old blue van without writing , probably an older model of 10 years. Old and rusty but for sure comes in handy in case of long trips. They invited Shining to enter it, K said that they were escorting him to a safe place, waiting for the situation to calm down and Shining trusted them, they showed him their badges after all, and so entered the van, confident and calm… And then only darkness. He woke up again with a bucket of cold water, tied up with a chair. His head was throbbing from the pain, probably hit with a blunt object. Shining looked around in panic, breathing heavily. The room was naked, the old wallpaper, ruined and dirty, exuded humidity and the only objects in that room was the chair Shining was sitting on and a light bulb that illuminated the room. T and K talked to him about what he did, what his ‘Heroic Act’ will generate once She will know about the fate of the plot. At that point, Shining knew that the 2 weren't agents of the Nightmare’s Hoof, but he didn't understand anything clearly, he was still stunned. Still Shining tried to ask who was their boss, why they decided to kidnap him, what their goal was. He hoped that the two would tell him something, an explanation, an apology maybe. He shouldn't have done that. For K’s response he decided to use Shining as a punching bag, pouring his anger into each punch, harder than the last. He wasn't trying to kill Shining but he still managed to have Shining’s strength reeling to the point that talking would be impossible. After that the 2 left the room, locking the door and leaving Shining spitting blood, on his now torn and dirty uniform. no longer as shiny as it was a few hours or perhaps even days ago. Still, even if very slowly, Shining managed to fall asleep again, he didn't have the lucidity to think of a plan, something, to escape from that place. Maybe the next day… Present… Shining was torn from sleep with a bucket of water against his face. Not a good start. He coughed, struggling to breathe, almost drowning, he slowly opened his eyes only to see again K and T looking at him. “Hello again mister Night!”, K said with a childish tone. He was smiling, and Shining didn't like it, something big was about to happen and he wasn't sure he wanted to see what. “Why are you doing this?!” In response he received another bucket of freezing water. “You aren't in the position to ask any question right now, and you should thank your Nightmare that you are not dead yet.”, T said with a hint of anger that betrayed his joking tone. “Now… we did some insight into you, mister Night. You were born in the year 1002 ALB, you fought in the Second North Zebrican War in the year 1020 at 1ge 18. You assisted in putting down the labourer revolt in Tobuck at age 20 Where did they find my file?! “You fought in the Chiropterrian – Colthagian War after the betrayal of the Sufrit. And for your actions you received a promotion. Is this correct corporal major?”, said T. If I don't answer it will be worse. Better if I indulge them, I need to preserve every inch of strength remaining if I want to escape. “Correct”, Shining said in a flat tone gritting his teeth. “Your parents died during a terrorist attack in New Ayacachtli when you were only 4, for this and for some anger issues you ended up with no friends. Mister Night you are indeed the perfect test subject! If this works we will be famous in every country of our nation and we will be rewarded!”, T seemed excited. For the love of the Nightmare… “T! Please pass me the handbag, we don't have much time left since our first chance to satisfy our boss was killed by mister Night just 3 days ago” T vanished for a second before reappearing with a black handbag, handing it to K. K opened it. Inside there was a syringe with a transparent liquid inside, connected to a container through a small tube. The container itself had various toxic danger warnings written on it. The language was unknown. They know I'm already vaccinated? “T, hold him still” T obeyed, blocking Shining with his hoofs. He tried to resist and to wriggle out but K was too strong even for him, “Now let's see if it works…”, K injected the mixture in Shining’s neck. Pain rapidly reached Shining, he fought the urge to start screaming, he didn't want to give any satisfaction to K and T. The mixture slowly left the syringe into Shining’s neck, it felt as if ice was injected into his body. “Don't worry mister Night, for the first 10, maybe 20, minutes nothing will happen to you”, K said in an excited tone. “And after… that time has passed?” “It could end up in 2 ways mister Night, your body will accept the mixture with all of his privileges and advantages, or you will die.”, T said with a tone that left no room for doubt. “What was inside that mixture?” “You should be honoured mister Night. This is something more big than you, me and anyone. This is the beginning of Paradise.”, K made a crooked smile. He is insane, they’re both insane! I need to get out, and quickly too. Or the Nightmare knows what will happen to me. In the distance a phone rang, T looked at K as he went to check who it was calling them. K meanwhile grabbed the handbag and started to refill the syringe. The knots tying Shining weren't tied properly, "A beginner's knot" his trainer at the Academy would say if he could see them. Everything that Shining needed was to not get caught by K, who now seemed concentrated on the handbag and not caring about his prisoner. Shining fiddled with the knot, trying to be as discreet as possible, if K had noticed who knows what he would have done to him. He would probably have been the victim of other experiments. Come on… untie damnit! The knot became weaker and weaker, Shining remembered the training and the knot didn't offer too much resistance to his hoofs. Eventually it broke up and Shining was free again, in all this K had almost finished refilling the syringe and checking that the tank was working correctly. Now or never, may the Nightmare help me. Shining sprinted forward. K heard the noise, but he barely had time to turn around before Shining was on top of him, the handbag was pushed away while the two tumbled to the floor battling while grabbing each other's neck. Shining had noticed before, K wasn't as strong as T, and he definitely wasn't trained to fight. The black thestral tried to free himself from Shining’s grip, who was trying to drown him with an assassin like fury. “You don't understand the honor we are doing to you! You are the key!”, K answered, in pure rage while trying to liberate Shining's hoofs. “What there was in the mixture?!”, Shining was losing his patience, the noise they were making will for sure not be ignored. “Ha! You think I will answer your questions? It's too late anyway, kill me if you want! I won't betray Him!”, K laughed. Shining was tired, sleepless, hungry and angry, angry at his tormentors. “Fine!”, and he broke K’s neck with a decisive blow. Shining separated from the corpse, heavily breathing. He needed to get out of there, run away from that place, but first he needed to find T. As long as T wasn't already returning. He gave a last sign at K before raising up slowly. He couldn't hope to fight T in his pitiful condition, he simply had to escape and find a safe place where he could inform the police. He opened the door and looked outside. The door led onto a short, dimly lit corridor, it looked like a basement, and it probably was, the walls were worn and this was the only room there. The end of the corridor led to a flight of stairs. Shining rushed through the corridor, up on the stairs. There was a door blocking the way. Shining turned the handle… And the door didn’t open. Of course the door is locked! Shining took a deep breath, he needed to calm down, otherwise he would have a panic attack, T would have found him and only the Nightmare knows what would have happened to him in that situation. Instead, he did some step backs and looked around, trying to find a vent, so he could just sneak in and escape from the prison where he was in. Unfortunately there was nothing. In the corridor there was no ventilation system but in its place there was an old cabinet, it was semi-open. Shining rushed to open it, the inside featured clothes and disguises. He checked inside them hoping for something, anything, but found nothing. That's when he heard noises outside the door, T was coming back, and Shining could hear him fiddling with the lock on the door. Time was up, Shining threw himself into the closet and closed it behind him. leaving a little space to breathe and see what T was doing. The door opened, and T came out, still dressed as when they had kidnapped Shining, he had a pinched expression, like that of an employee who has been told to speed up his work. He was walking down the corridor fiddling with a pack of cigarettes, the brand wasn't visible to Shining but the color of the pack suggested they were imported. He passed the closet without sparing it a glance. Shining's heart was beating wildly, he was waiting for the right moment to escape from there. A few more steps... "So K, how's it going with our subject?" He stopped in front of the entrance, motionless as he stared at the corpse of his colleague, with his head bent in an unnatural position and with the empty chair next to him, the handbag thrown to the corner of the room. Now Shining came out of the closet and ran against T. The agent turned but Shining kicked him and threw him into the room. T was getting up but Shining was faster and closed the door to the room leaving T trapped inside. He's pissed off, better get out of here before he breaks down the door. Shining turned, ignoring T's angry screams, and ran through the hallway to the stairs leading to the exit. He quickly got on them and got out of them, fortunately T had closed them but not with a key, he hadn't expected Shining to have freed himself and evidently hadn't even considered such an option. The door opened onto a small, narrower passage, some of the tiles on the walls showed signs of wear, no one had been to that place in a long time except K, T and him. Shining ran along it, passed a couple of open rooms, where he recognized what looked like a kitchen and some sort of laboratory. He reached the door, and opened it. The wide tunnel and tracks were the first thing that struck him. I'm inside the subway tunnels! Shining left what had been his prison until then and walked through the subway tunnels, hoping to find a station as soon as possible. After minutes that felt like hours, he finally noticed a light at the end of the tunnel. Shining couldn't believe it, he had risked being hit by a tram twice and felt a great pain coming from his left wing, despite this he ignored the pain. He finally reached what turned out to be the station of Moonspeaker Temple, the great temple at the center of the Nightmare cult. There were many people waiting for the train to arrive. And even more were what they indicated a Shining, limping, reaching the tracks and climbing over them. Some rushed to help the Corporal Major but stopped when they noticed something. Shining stopped, what had blocked them? What made them look so terrified? And it was at that point that he saw his wing. Even if the wing itself no longer had anything to identify it as such. The flesh was no longer present, only the shape remained. In its place there was something Shining had never seen before. A dark substance, a sort of shadow, black as night, had taken the place of the flesh and tissue, the blood, sucked from it, was no longer present, yet the pain persisted, uncontrollable and continuous. Panic crept into Shining's mind and at the same time his adrenaline began to wane, it was too much, too much to process in these conditions. Shining fell, no longer able to walk, no longer able to think, and the darkness took hold of him again.
Chapter 3A sea of fire, a white door with a giant lock, a golden throne in an immaculate room. Rivers with the colour of blood, children with gas masks, mutilated soldiers and cities destroyed. And above all, an atomic explosion, brighter than the sun and more scarier than the god that moves it. And then nothing more. Shining’s eyes slowly opened, how much time passed? He couldn’t tell. After escaping from T and K, Shining remembered running through the tunnels of the subway, only to yield and to fall, destroyed by the effort and treatment he received. But his view was still blinded. But his hearing worked, he heard distant voices, many voices were unknown to him, probably most of those voices were of medics, in fact they talked about his state, how his condition was stable and why and how was his swing in that state. Ah right... my wing... He didn't have the strength to turn over, but he could feel something was wrong. He could feel the meat disappeared and the ligaments severed where his wing began. Nothing was there now, only a shadow. My wing… Nightmare… help me… this can’t be real… And the darkness took him again. Shining passed the next 2 weeks in a state of drowsiness, passing from terrifying nightmares. At moments where he managed to stay conscious enough to hear what were only snatches of conversation. Before sinking into the void again. He was sure he had screamed, he had done so many times during his nightmares. Watching horrors beyond comprehension. He told himself that everything would end soon, that what he saw wasn't real, praying to the Nightmare. The third week, finally, someone heard him. He woke up slowly. At first he had trouble getting used to the light in his room. He didn't recognize the ceiling at first which featured a complex tapestry showing the arrival of the first Threstals in the land that would become Chiropterra. A moment that every child born in the Commonwealth learned about. He looked down, and noticed how the room had been built using noble materials. Silver in particular stood out the most and was also the dominant material, followed by what looked like blue gold. There was someone in the room, a nurse, judging by how she was dressed. She was checking something written in a notebook, it was too far for Shining to read what was written. Then the nurse turned, and saw Shining’s eyes watching her. She let out a cry, clearly surprised to see him awake, after having dropped her notebook on the floor the nurse rushed across the room and out the door. Am I really that ugly? A few minutes passed, too much for Shining’s taste, during which he began to think that they had abandoned him. Or, thinking in a more rational way, were discussing what to do with him. All of this thinking was interrupted by the entrance of more figures in the room. They weren't doctors. The figures were dressed exactly as in the propaganda headlines he saw in the newspapers. Tall, dressed in white armor made of Steel, they had a belt to which was attached a long ceremonial sword. The Lunar Guard entered the room. Obsolete but very scenic. Not a single one of them spared Shining a glance. They placed themselves at the angles of the room. The Guard was famous for his discipline, and for now, they were proving that to Shining’s eyes. And after them came a figure that Shining knew very well by sight. Tall, clad in her armor that had made her more immortal than her own lifespan. With lethal beauty, she moved lightly, despite being perhaps twice the size of the guards, who were tasked with protecting her life before theirs. The Nightmare stepped forward. "Leave us alone", she said with a glacial tone which did not allow any reply. The Guards nodded with a bow before retreating and leaving the Princess and Shining alone. Expectation and fear crept up on him, maybe she knew something about what they had done to his wing? Or she wanted to punish him for letting himself be captured by 2 terrorists, or spies, so easily. “I'm surprised you survived, the doctors said your heartbeat was barely noticeable when they arrived” “I… Thank you my Princess…”, he wasn’t comfortable with this discussion. She was a goddess, he didn’t expect to confront directly one of the 2 oldest being alive in those days, and the and the wounds were still too fresh. “Tortured for 3 days, and you still managed to escape, admirable no doubt about it, don’t you think?”, the Nightmare seemed proud of the actions of Shining, or so he prayed “Y-yes I do my Princess” “Unfortunately after you collapsed on the ground a fire started raging across the tunnels, the firefighters and military personnel managed to put it out permanently after 2 days of fighting, needless to say that the price was and is high.” All of that, because of me… “The Secret Services didn’t manage to find any documents or proofs unfortunately. The site where you were locked collapsed, nothing survived to the fire “, the expression and the tone was indecipherable to Shining. “But during your period of… coma, we did some tests with your wing, in particular we took some of your blood and injected it into various animals and into a volunteer. And the results were… interesting…”, something flashed in the eyes of the Nightmare. “You should have died Shining Night, with the treatment you had received, and with the material that composes your wing now, your body should have collapsed”, the Princess said in a cold tone. And I still did… “My Princess maybe they found something in that mixture that had some parameters matched to my body… it was the first thing that came into my mind when I was… with them”, Shining responded. “How does it feel?”, the Nightmare suddenly asked. “You notice something different?”, there was a strange light in her eyes, a hunger for knowledge that Shining had never seen in anyone. He was scared of it. “My Princess… it feels… weird, I don’t know how, or why, but it does. And… the only thing i’m sure of, is that this… thing was meant for a dark purpose", Shining said cautiously. “What kind of purpose do you think? And who do you think it involves?”, the Nightmare went closer to Shining’s bed, looking into his eyes. “I don’t know my Princess”, Shining looked in the eyes of the Nightmare. You seem too much interested in this my Princess “I have no idea about what it was intended for. But for now it seems that this… substance, will have to remain attached to me. I don't think it can be untied”, Shining continued. The Nightmare suddenly turned her back, moving to the window of the room and looking outside. Shining couldn't see her face, but it was clear that he was reasoning, after all it wasn't a common situation, none of what happened in the last days was common. When she spoke again, she took on the most neutral tone possible, very different from the longing he had a few moments before. Shining assumed she regained the control of herself, or simply changed tactic. "You will stay here", the tone was glacial. The world of Shining collapsed. “You have just survived a kidnapping by those who, at least according to the secret services, were enemy agents. I still can't say for sure who they belong to. But their target was you. Therefore, you will remain here in the Royal Palace. This room will be your lodging”, the Nightmare spoke in a firm but detached tone, one that left no room for retorts. He had no choice. “I accept my Princess”, Shining said in a firm tone. “Perfect, we will do other experiments on your wing, remember that.”, and with that last sentence the Nightmare exited the room, leaving Shining alone again. If I want to understand why and what they did to me, I must stay here and find as much information I can. They will pay.
