The Nightmare of Night
All is calm and peaceful as I slowly make my way through the long winding paths of the Everfree forest. The howls of distant Timberwolves echo in my ears, the study beats of my heart warning me to turn back.
“Turn back to what?” I ask myself, speaking aloud. “We have all been wrapped in nights embrace for far too long now. It’s time somepony steps up and dose something about it,” my eyes look to the moon losing sight of my steps before me.
*SNAP*
A large stick crunches beneath my hoof the sound echoing through the forest. Crows take flight in a panic covering the sky, washing me in a sudden wave of darkness, the last glimmer of light melting away giving way to a lonesome despairing black. I feel myself whimpering, the sound of hundreds of beating wings filling the air leaving no room to move or think…
Light returns to me bathing me in the moons reserved glory. I realize I had been crying, the stick still beneath my shaking hoof. All is silent in the forest but my heavy rampant breathing.
“I’ll be fine so long as I stay on the path Word Bringer,” I reassure myself under my breath, I shake my head clearing horrid thoughts that were beginning to take root in it. I look around at the enchanted forest before me. It is more and more evident with each passing moment that I’m nearing Luna’s domain. On trees are craved with warnings to turn back, the sky is showering me in a colder more foreboding light and the dirt path I tread is tinged a dark purple from the vile magic surely surrounding the area. With some effort I manage to drive my legs forward once more. I tear my eyes from the ground and force them to gaze a head, guiding my legs along the untried path.
Finally I approach a small rope and wood bridge spanning a black gorge. Trotting forward I peer over the side, the bottom is hidden by a dense fog that seeming to crawl from its depths like tentacles of a sea breast writhing awake from its thousand year slumber, the fog rises above the bridge warping the other side into a twisted parallel of where I stand.
A small sign is posted next to the bridge reads,
“All whom pass through The Mist without reason or permission will henceforth forfeit their lives to Princess Luna’s will!”
“On pain of their death!”
With a gulp I look back to the other side of the bridge. My mind tells me that it should be like night and day but in reality there is no true difference between the two forests other than a simple threat and fog.
A CREEK erupts as my first hoof steps down upon the bridge giving me some pause, ‘this would be so much easier if I weren’t an earth pony,’ I think to myself. I look behind me taking one last glance at the forest behind me as the rest of my body follows in suit my sight lost as I enter the fog. I begin to slowly creep across the old bridge unsure of its safety. The fog no longer blinding me as I pass through the thin wall my attention turns to before me. Nearing the middle, my heart pounding, a shadow crosses my face once again bathing me in darkness only to pass a moment later. I stand frozen in fear, had somepony noticed me? Was I being followed? A small butterfly silently swoops in front of me brushing my nose. I watch it as it flies off into the dark forest toward a castle. The feeling of stupidity punches me in the gut for having been scared by such a small timid creature.
I continue to slowly walk forward to the end of the bridge when a small tearing sound enters my ears. My eyes widen at the sound and flicker around searching for the source. They fall upon the far end of the bridge in front of me. On one side the rope fraying, the other side struggling to make up for this loss in strength. I freeze unsure of myself as the second rope starts tearing. My mind finally kicking into gear I dart forward towards the end of the bridge, the ropes giving loud rips with each fall of a hoof. Half way there, two thirds, three quarters, the ropes give a loud snap as I give a final push leaving me with the feeling as though I was flying. Time looks to slow to a crawl as I hurl forward still surfing on a sea of darkness and terror the edge growing nearer with every moment and just as swiftly as I found myself in fear I find hope, I was going to make it! My fore hooves reach out before me looking for purchase on the rough purple dirt of the path as the rest of my body slams into the side of the cliff with a THUD. My hoofs scramble as I try to pull myself over the slowly crumbling edge of the cliff. With the last of my strength I rise over the edge and roll onto my back panting out my fear and exhaustion, legs numb from effort.
After fleeting moments of rest I’m awoken to my senses by something poking my neck. I attempt to swat it away trying to hold onto the last thread of relief in my body. My hoofs movement is met with another grabbing it and forcing it to the ground holding it there. My eyes snap open to find two ponies fully armoured in lunar fatigues above me. One is holding the spear in his mouth to my throat, the other holding my hoof to the ground his eyes glaring hate at me. The second speaks, “How dare you attempt to hit a royal guard. I should have you killed now just to save the princess her time.”
I stare at him in a panic, “I wasn’t attempting to hit him, I swear!” I plead in hopes it buys me some time to think of an excuse, the one I had devised seems as fled from my mind during the excitement.
“Quiet!” demands the guard pony, “What business do you have to be here?”
‘Buck!’ my mind still foggy with adrenaline I race to find an answer to his question. With my skills as a diplomat and as pony looking to save my own life I have nothing.
“Out with it!” orders the guard again. I feel the point of the spear dig deeper into my neck.
With a heavy sigh I speak up, “I’m a friend of your princess,” a blatant lie in its truest form.
He squints his eyes at me as though he was searching for a reason to believe me, “She will recognize a friend at sight of them, are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure she will remember me.” I restate.
I feel the spear being removed from my neck as I climb to my hooves. The first guard, putting his spear to his side, speaks up, “You seem quite unforgettable now don’t you.”
While we walk toward the castle the guards eye me with suspicion. I look myself over relived to finally be without the threat of death, at least directly. My white coat now a dirty shade of light purple, white only peeking out in some reserved places and my bright orange mane tangled it a way that will take hours to straighten. I was a mess, and about to enter an audience with to enter an audience with a princess who has never met me.
We approach the castle. The clear sky overhead is filled stars shining with full force as though they were happy. I shudder at the darkness that fills the gaps between each glimpse of beauty, the sky longer a soft blue but perfect black.
As we pass through the courtyard guards look to me curiously. Some of the more senior officers let their eyes linger far too long for my comfort, “Do you get visitors often?” I ask in a hushed tone.
The guard carrying the spear responds in a malicious voice, “Oh we get plenty, only most come through here screaming for help or begging for mercy though.”
I take a deep breath and shiver at the thought, “And why is that?” I question.
“They are actually smart enough to try to get out while they can,” he answers with a sadistic grin.
The other guard cuts in rolling his eyes, “Stuff it, Luna doesn’t kill everypony, she only kills intruders, spies and thieves,” he turns speaking to me, “and I’m sure you’re none of those,” he says cocking his head with a smile.
I nod my head trying to keep my confidence; I didn’t exactly come here on a good will mission. Simply to intruding upon the castle, spy on Luna’s plans and steal three of the elements of harmony, yup simple as can be. We keep walking as the guards snicker at my discomfort with as much subtlety as a zebra standing in a room made of rainbows.
The large wooden doors fold inward reviling a massive throne room covered in beautiful paintings of the night sky matching the consolations that peak through the large tinted glass windows. The light refracting off the widows casts shadows of ponies on the floor that, as from what I have heard, dance with the moon as it floats overhead. I fear for how long it has been since the shadow ponies have moved.
At the other end of the room Luna stands’ inspecting me but this is not the Luna I or any pony knew this is something else entirely. Her coat black with malice and dread, instead of the soft dark purple blotch as background for her cutie mark, it is now a lighter purple emanating power and control and her usual caring eyes replaced with the eyes of a dragon powerful and spiteful. I quiver in fear at her sight wondering just what could do this to her.
The thought is thrown from me as I’m pushed forward. The two guards stand tall behind me and bow, the one without a spear speaks his voice powerful carrying its self through the room, “Your majesty, this one clams to be a friend of yours.”
She eyes me as I straiten myself doing my best to hide my fear. Her face emotionless as she approaches me her eyes peering into me in a way that makes me wish I could look away, “Where do I know you from?” her quiet voice, yet rich with power, echoes around the massive room. She speaks with the authority of a Queen and from her height she demands the attention of all whom don’t yet offer it.
I clear my throat with a squeak and do all I can to look at her eye to eye, “Y-your majesty,” I stutter, “you know me from my foalhood I grew up here with you and others,” I feel my whole body trembling in fear of what will come next.
She pauses in mid stride and looks me over a grin cracking over the corner of her mouth, “Oh my, is that you Dusk?” ‘thank Celestia she bought it,’ I think with a sigh of relief “I haven’t seen you or any of your friends in such a long time, not since abandoned me,” her voice grows grim as I cough up the relief that had just washed over me, “it’s very nice to see you again, how are your parents doing?” she asks, her voice sounding as though it is a ligament question.
It hits me like a knife to the heart. I pause perfectly still as I think of a proper response such a question. I decide to answer as vaguely as I can and move from the subject, hoping I answer correctly, “Been better,” I say flatly.
She cock an eye at me, “That’s too bad; well I suppose you will need a place to sleep. We can disuse reasons for you being here later tonight,” she smiles and drops back into her commanding state, “Guards, take this pony to guess room two!”
As the two guards again grab me push me through the door I am left wondering what this means for me. Am I safe? Or will I be killed? Or will this all workout at all? I ponder the question for the long walk to the guest room.
We approach the top of the long spiral staircase that tunnels up the west tower. “Here you are,” speaks a guard stopping me at a door with his spear, “Your new home. Oh and I hope you don’t mind but we had a small problem last time we had a pony in here so the window is all boarded up. Hope you like the dark.”
I’m snap out of my trace of thought at the mention of dark, “wait what…” I start but it’s too late I feel myself being pushed into a black room the door shutting behind me.
It’s amazing really how the simplest thing can ruin a pony’s day. Like not being able to see where there falling, or not knowing what else is in the room with them. The darkness wrapping my body in a cold blanket of sorrow and regret, amplifying everything I feel to a painful level. I try to get my barring’s on this new environment that I’ve been forcefully plunged into.
A voice booms through the dark room, “Do you truly think I will let you get away with what you have done to me? No you must suffer my fate as well, alone in the dark for the rest of you pitiful life,” a cackling laughter beaks through the room fading away from earshot.
Franticly looking around there is only one source of light in the room. A few thin beams of radiance peek through small cracks in the boarding over the window. Keeping my eyes fixed on my only salvation I slowly start to drag myself toward to light.
As I continue to pull myself through the darkness I feel as though my skin is being torn from my bones, the darkness eating away at my very body and mind. Tears of pain roll down my face silently hitting the floor beneath me. The floor smooth and soft but still firm enough to hold my weight as I drag myself across it. The air growing heavier and more recycled as I move, terror weighing down on me.
As I continue sliding along the floor my hoof connects with something. I freeze in my place. The object feels warm and furry to the touch. I prod it a little more to get a better feeling for what it could be. With a last poke my hoof is illuminated just barely in a deep red glow pouring down from above me from above me. My joy to finally in light again short lived as I look up to find two glowing eyes staring down at me intently. I close my eyes and cover my head in a scream of terror and wait… and wait… but no strike comes. Slowly I open my eyes and look up to find nothing there. I have never been so happy to see blackness. I turn my attention back to the light that I was crawling towards. Two red eyes open in front of me.
I spring back sliding across the floor on my back my screams echoing ominously through the dark room. Franticly I look around for the eyes. There is a creak from behind me and as I turn I flail my hoof into where the sound came from.
There is a loud CRACK as my hoof connects with the object, the outside is soft, the inside seeming to shatter under the force of my punch, the word it was attempting to speak echoing though the room a soft broken voice pleading one thing, “Help.”
My ear twitches as the last of the sound echoes through the room. A small thud escapes the new silence next to me. ‘That sounded like a mare. But that’s impossible I’m there only pony in here.’ My heart sinks where I realize that I have no reason to think that Im the only one in the room I cant even see in front of me.
I feel around the floor in front of me. There is something hot and sticky running across the floor towards me I feel the ground further until I find what I can only imagine to be a face. “No please be ok, I didn’t mean to hurt you, please!” I cry into the darkness and strangely the dark wasn’t what bothered me at that moment. Not been imprisoned by an evil goddess or hunger or lack of sleep. The one thing that truly scared me right now was me. I became so caught up in my own worries that I lashed out with no reason in homicide fear and it seems that somepony paid the price.
I slump to the ground trying not to let my fears gain control of me once again. Letting the darkness surround me, choke me, kill me. I whimper at the thought that I will never see light again.
A laugh fills the chamber once again, “Had enough?” ask the voice crying out to me, speaking down to me as if I was a colt.
“Yes, I have had enough of this.” I growl “Fear may surround me and that I can’t stop but I can push through it.” I struggle to find my way to my hooves the darkness fighting me for every inch. “I can fight through it.” I make my way to boarded window. I reach around and pull and pull until the first board is ripped from its place covering the window, then the second, then the third. “Then nothing can stop me!” I yell.
All the panels now lay on the ground and I’m bathed in lunar glory. For a split moment I think to praise Luna for such a beautiful night. Shunning the thought I take a deep breath and not daring to investigate the room behind me I climb onto the windowsill carefully dodging the shards of glass that remain dormant in the broken window. For a moment the moon disappears from my sight again and the very same butterfly from before flutters around my face and down the tower stopping at the bottom as if waiting for me.
The ground seems to fade down out of focus as I realize just how high I am. Taking a deep breath I slowly start lowering myself down the side of the tower clinging on for my life. At a snail’s pace I lower myself down the building.
As I near the bottom there is a loud crash from above as Luna’s head pears through the window “What are you doing!?” she screams in demand, “You can’t leave your Luna, not again!”
Ignoring her I lower myself to the ground and non to soon either as takeoff galloping there is a thud behind me. Looking behind me there is a slumped body on the ground. SWEET CELESTIA she was tossing corpses down trying to hit me. I see it twitch climbing from the ground glaring its red eyes at me and in this moment it seems that the entire world stands still. My vision of it blurry it flicks itself to the side it head realigning with its body, grey fur painted red in some areas. No not corpses but something worse. I turn seeing the butterfly again as it fly’s across the stone bridge at the front of the castle and deep into the forest as I follow far behind a shrill scream following from behind me.
As I reach the bridge across the mists ponies ready to give me chase look in awe at the creature following me. In front of me ponies form a line cutting off the path through the forest. Realizing this knew I only had one option. Turning hard as I leave the end of the bridge I cut into to forest in the same place the butterfly did and run, long after I stop hearing sounds of pursuit still I run.
Finally I slow to a stop to tired to continue any further, hardly able to see five hooves in front of me a single thought runs through my mind, ‘so long as I stay on the path.’ I know I’m lost but there can still be a safe way out.
The butterfly flies past me slowly drifting its way through the forest. ‘This could be my only hope’ I think to myself and with that I drag myself after it.
Soon I lose sight of the butterfly but I continue in the same direction until I’m confronted with the glowing red eyes once again and as my demon roars in rage intent to end my life I realize just what this was. This wasn’t going to be my story or the story of a twisted demon, this was going to be the story of how jealousy and loneliness wore down the best of us all until they were forced to try to rebuild themself alone, in the dark. How the creature the emerged was nothing short of a nightmare searching for help in rebuild what she once had. My life is but a page in this epic that is The Nightmare of Night, and even as the demons strike reaches out to me I utter a small prayer for Luna leaving only on question to go unanswered, whose punishment was I serving and what was there crime?
The End
