The Nightmare

by NATOstrike

Rating: teen
Tags: Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Alternate Universe
Length: 1785

There was never a 'Nightmare Moon'. There was never a 'Solar Tyrant'. There was only two sisters

Nightmare Moon is a myth raised out of the true horrors of war. 'The Nightmare' was once nothing more than the name given to a terrifying six year conflict brought on by the jealousy and rage of two ponies with near unlimited resources. 'Nightmare Moon' never existed as real pony, nor did 'The Tyrant Sun'. There was only Celestia and Luna.

A selection of journal entries of two soldiers, each on opposite sides of the front-line of The Six-Year Nightmare.

Published 2012-11-08 10:10:01 UTC
Last updated 2012-11-08 10:10:01 UTC

Tomorrow

October 30, 1028 AF

After four months of basic training and an additional two months of guard training, I received my orders to the Palace of the Royal Pony Sisters, and today I completed my first day of guard duty. The captain handed me over to a veteran guard to show me the ropes and explain what I am supposed to do exactly. Apparently, I will be guarding a door.

I am not entirely excited to be guarding a door. I was told to not allow anypony to enter, but allow them to come out. What does that mean? How can a pony leave a place that they have not entered?

Oh well, I suppose it is not my place to question my duty. I will guard the door to the best of my ability, and hopefully I will have a chance to catch a glimpse of Her Royal Highness during my time here.

—PFC Swiftwing, Royal Guardspony

October 30, 1028 AF

I have decided to begin writing this journal as a personal account of my involvement in the attempt of dethroning the false-god, Celestia, by a large group of ponies under command of the rightful ruler of Equestria, Princess Luna.

We have been building our armies for four long years. There has been unfounded rumors of the existence of our forces, but thankfully, those rumors never became more than that. Our recruits were carefully drafted over the course of three and a half years. The past six months has been spent gathering the soldiers to one of three rally points, culminating in this: The second-largest military force to ever be amassed on this planet.

The three divisions of the Lunar Imperial Army are 80,000 strong, and the only army larger than ours is the standing defensive forces still loyal to the current ruler of Equestria. They are spread across the land and will take time to mobilize, however, and we have ponies within the Royal Equestrian Army that can take action once the attack begins.

The invasion force under my command is the 1st Infantry Division of the Lunar Imperial Army. There are 27,000 troops comprising the various battle groups and 3,000 filling support roles. We will be responsible for taking the capital city, Equinis. They have the tactical advantage of being inside of an easily defensible fortress-city, but as long as we are able to keep the element of surprise, this will be a very short-lived war.

The remaining divisions have been charged with the capture of two of the larger provincial capitals, Trottingham and Manehatten. As soon as our occupation is established, in these three cities, four brigades from each division will split off and continue on to Canterlot, posssibly the most daunting task of this stratagem.

The ponies and griffons of D’Lorame have been in the midst of a trade war with Equestria for the past decade, and have been on the losing side; their economy has been decimated and most of their manufacturing capacity has been shut down. Tensions run high, but D’Lorame does not possess the resources for a direct military conflict against the might of Equestria. The citizens are living in squalor and the ruling classes are not much better. They need this change as badly as we do, and this has made them quite receptive to Princess Luna’s request for the use of their land as a rallying point. She has promised, that as soon as the coup is successful she will dissolve current import tariffs and product restrictions placed on trade between the two nations.

Without outside help from our neighbor to the north, we would never have been able to muster this army unnoticed. We are currently camped 45 kilometers to the northwest of Equinis, on the far side of the mountains that demarcate the border with D’Lorame. 600 kilometers to the west of us is the 2nd Infantry Division, and deep within the Whitetail Woods to the south, the 3rd awaits the attack.

It is mid-autumn. The decision on the timing of our attack was made to coincide with harvest season. If the invasion goes well, it will make no difference; if this drags on, however, we will require the food resources from the farmlands that surround Equinis.

Tonight, we march. Tomorrow, we take Equestria. Tomorrow, we change the course of our future.

For the Glory of the Lunar Empire,
—Major General Nighthoof, Commander, Lunar Imperial Army 1st Infantry Division

The Insurrection

October 31, 1028 AF

The attack did not go as planned. Things began to go wrong from the start. With luck, our comrades to the west and south have had more success.

We left the relative safety of our camp in D’Lorame last night to begin our march for Equinis. Shortly after our departure, a platoon under the 23rd Combat Engineering Squadron deserted. A tribunal was held as soon as they were returned, and they were executed for desertion and treason against Empress Luna. Twenty ponies dead, due to their own cowardice.

Our run of bad luck did not end there. The weather quickly deteriorated while crossing the mountain pass, slowing our progress significantly. Our pegasi did what they could, but they could not keep up with the fast building storm. They were trained for battle, not weather patrols.

The original plan was to arrive predawn and attack the capital at first light. Unfortunately, due to the previously mentioned delays, we did not arrive to the outer settlements of Equinis until an hour after the sun rose above the horizon. Several homesteads were commandeered for the use of the officers, while our soldiers made camp and tried to get some sleep before the attack commenced. It was broad daylight, and we had probably been spotted as soon as the first light of the day washed over the land. It was too late to mount a surprise attack, and the Equestrian troops stationed at Equinis were likely making preparations by this time.

Princess Luna arrived at the camp just as the soldiers were finished packing up for the final march against our target. She gave a speech to the soldiers of our army, detailing how important this battle would be. Against the advisement of her top officers, she went ahead of the first-wave battle group to Equinis, in an attempt to reason with her power-hungry sister. A closed minded tyrant cannot be reasoned with, however. Before leaving, she told us to watch for the ‘signal’ to begin the attack, but she would not tell us what that signal would be, only that we would know it when it happened.

She could not have been more correct. Minutes before noon, an ethereal darkness fell across the land as the moon was positioned directly before the sun, blotting out almost all of the light cast by the star controlled by Celestia. It was one of the most impressive sights that I had ever witnessed, and it rallied our troops like nothing else could have.

It only took moments after the eclipse began for our entire force to fall in rank and begin the final march to Equinis. It was to be our day. It was to be our victory.

It was nothing of the sort. I write this now from far behind our front-line at the gates of fortress city. It is very late, and I can see the flashes of magic and hear the explosions from just over the horizon to the east. They were ready for us. Who knows how long they had been expecting our arrival, but it is obvious that they knew before today that we were coming. I lost nearly 1,000 of my infantry ponies in our first advance on the fortification, before the order to fall back reached the front.

I would be unable to accurately estimate casualties at this time, except to say that they are greater than what is acceptable.

It has been five hours since the attack commenced. Our siege machines have been assembled, and are now chiseling away at the walls of the city using magic-imbued projectiles in an attempt to circumvent the barrier protecting the parapet. There are three catapults firing as fast as they can be reloaded. As soon as a breach is made, we will establish a beachhead and enter the city.

My superior, Field Marshal Fleet, has given the order to raze Equinis in its entirety; it is my understanding that this order comes directly from Her Highness. Furthermore, we are to take no prisoners—they only sap resources.

Our only hope in winning this war quickly now lies with Princess Luna, and her ability to subdue the false-god.

For the Glory of the Lunar Empire,
—Major General Nighthoof, Commander, LIA 1st Infantry Division

October 31, 1028 AF

They took my eye. I don’t know what I’m doing here, in this city. When I enlisted I was told nothing like this would ever happen; I’m just a guard, charged with the duty of guarding a single door. I am not a soldier. It is not supposed to be like this.

I am so scared. I can still hear the noises outside. The sounds of soldiers yelling, the dull thud as imbued boulders ram the wall. The medic said that I have four hours to rest and recover before I will be cleared for duty and sent back out. Out there. I just want to go home. I need to go home. What if this isn’t the only city under siege?

I was one of the lucky ones that escaped with his life when the first volley hit inside the city wall. One of the magic projectiles fired blindly over the wall by the opposing force’s battle mages in the opening attack exploded near me and a piece of debris hit my eye. It was terrifying and excruciating.

Although, I was probably lucky. I was not able to see the aftermath of the attack. Every time I tried to open my remaining good eye, the searing pain caused me to close them tightly again. I’m not sure how long I was blindly stumbling around, or how many dead bodies I nearly tripped on, before the medics found me and brought me to the infirmary. They took my eye after that. They said it was too badly damaged. I don’t want to die in this city. I need to go home.

I am going to be ordered to go back out to that horrible place again. This time to fight. I don’t want to hurt anypony. This isn’t what I joined the Royal Guard for. I am so scared. I just want to go home.

—PFC Swiftwing, Royal Guardspony