The Sorrow and the Temptation

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 4

Chapter 1

Thus follows the account of how the world was made, and how the reign of Discord was foiled. The Serpent was cunning in all of his ways, and he did attempt to elude the Sisters holy. His attempts were all for naught, as they sought justice and an end to his foul tyranny. Through the caves of the very underworld they fought, until they came unto the surface, which was not clothed in fine grass or bathed in the light of neither the sun nor the moon. Many a spell was cast, parried and returned, and it was such that their battle, the Sisters’ and the Serpent’s, was waged for what seemed eternity, for no perceivable celestial bodies had yet been placed in the heavens above, with which to measure the days and nights. Finally, at long last, the Serpent was cast down, and the Sisters summoned the Elements of Creation, made of crystal adamant. With these powerful and blessed tools they sealed the Serpent in a statue of warded stone which had no imperfections, so that the Serpent could not turn it to his release. With his time on this world completed, Discord sank into his imprisoned slumber, and a new age was begun: The Age of Creation. Celestia, Dawn of the morn, took up the great pillars of fire, and placed them in the sky just as her Mother had told her too. With these flaming rods the sun was born. Luna, Dusk of the eventide, took into her hoofs the great boulder of the night and cut it in half. Casting the dark half into the Pit beyond, she crafted from the light half our bright moon, just as her Mother told her to.

Now the world was still formless, and jagged was the earth beneath the Sisters’ hooves, for Discord was a cruel master of both land and animal alike. The Sisters looked unto each others’ countenance and said in unison, “Let us make this world in the image Mother envisioned. Let there be rolling plains with much grass, clear blue waters of spring, river, lake, and sea. Let there be great forests, forever free, where many a creature can dwell. Let there be valleys and mountains, plateaus and hills, fjords and caves.” And the Sisters made it so. Using the powers of the Elements of Creation, they created all that has been written here, and upon seeing all they had made, they found it good. And then from the earth came forth all manner of creatures, many of which are still present in this day and age. Each nation brought forth a leader, whether by trial, battle, or election, to represent their race. On that day, when each race's champion was chosen and presented to all other races, names were chosen by each race for themselves and their members.

Here are listed the champions of each race with wits enough to speak and write:

Diamond I, King of the Unicorn tribe

Hurricane, Chief Commander of the Pegasi

Puddinghead, Chancellor of the ponies earthern

Shadowwings, Head Covenmaster of the Antrozi

Mariana, Matriarch to the pony sons of the Great Ocean

Tch’kala, Shaman Chief of the Zebharan tribes

Adric, Grand Gladiator of the Griffon kingdom

Siegfried Vielknochen, First Emperor of the Diamond Dog Empire

Red Plain, Chieftain of the Buffalo Nomads

Adonis, Warrior King of the Minotaur nation

Leviathan, Overlord of the Dragons

The first three of these nations chose to unite under one banner as the nation of Equestria. It was these three nations who saw the truth; that Celestia and Luna were the intended rulers of all the world. The other races, by their own self-delusion, chose to go their separate ways, and they spread across the four corners of the compass.

The Griffons settled in the mountains of the North or in the skies above, and it is where they make their eyries and homes to this day.

The Diamond Dogs, even then known for their avarice in regards to precious stones and all manner of objects pleasing to the eye, dug deep into the ground, creating many caverns below the surface. It is even said that they dug into Tartarus itself just to find one or two exquisite jewels.

The Dragons, aloof to all races but their own, took to the North and East to the barren canyons there, which they made their summer home. When the icy grip of winter spread across the land, the dragons would as one creature fly to the South and West to the volcanic plains located there, where the heat was generous and the gems plentiful.

The Buffalo Nomads wandered to the West, seeking to find where the sun fell every night, and to set up for themselves a land to call their own; hallowed and peaceful.

The Minotaurs, by nature a prideful and haughty race, splintered into eight different clans almost immediately after the Great Naming Day. Each clan head claimed his or her right to superiority by single combat, feats of strength, or oratory (eloquence is highly valued among many Minotaurs). These clans in their own time journeyed Southward and Eastward, to stake their claim on the coastal lands near the Sea of Furia. In due course of time they would found the great megalopolis Labyrinth, which would become a great source of culture and wealth in the southern regions.

The Zebharans, initially willing to accept the rule of the Sisters holy, were not permitted asylum in Equestria because of their strange customs, magic, and speech. They wandered into the Far East, where the ground is nothing but fine sand, and Celestia’s sun beats down on all things.

The Sea ponies also were forced to take their own path, for they were not blessed to have hooves to feel the grass beneath them, but were instead given tails of muscle and fins to swim about. In later years, a great plague struck the Sea pony race, one which has never been matched before or after its happening by any other race, and the Sea ponies were lost to the ages. It is claimed that not all perished from the pestilence, and that some Sea ponies still guide the storm tossed and pitiful into safe harbors from the wrath of the great Furia Ocean.

The Antrozi, being reclusive because of their nocturnal lifestyle, received the suspicion of all ponies. They slept in caves during the day, and came out at night to feed on fruits and insects. However, it was believed by many a commonpony that rather than feeding on fruit, they swept about in the night feasting on the blood of the fearful and foolish.

This is the story of how the younger of the Sisters holy, Princess Luna, attempted to bring together the Antrozi and her subjects. Little did she know of the incalculable cost, both to herself and to the Antrozi Nation, that these actions would bring.

Author's Note

Special thanks goes to Cytotoxin, with whose help this took so much less time planning than if I would have done it on my own. My deepest thanks to you.

Chapter 2

The first year after the foundation of the nation of Equestria had been tiresome. The three tribes that composed the nation; the Unicorns, the Pegasi, and the ponies Earthern had spread to all four points of the compass, and they settled in whatever place made them most comfortable and was best suited to their needs. The ponies would farm the land, mine the ground for gems, accumulate moisture, or have fun rolling in the grass, running, and simply enjoying life. Then the sun would go down, and all the ponies would go into their homes and sleep. The nights in those early days were not peaceful; creatures were always around, lurking, flying, slithering about; always ready to dine on a good sized pony as their dinner. Ponies who bedded down for the night never feared the night though, because they knew one very important thing which the average predator did not; they had a guardian in the shadows, a great protector of the night. These monsters, if they so much as came too close to a home or settlement found out something rather unsettling, and that was that the shadows were alive, and they would take form as an azure winged unicorn, who would force them back to wherever they came from. Luna had utter contempt for the creatures who sought her ponies harm, sparing them only so little mercy. To her ponies, however, she provided the glorious moon, constantly alight with its silvery splendor, and dreams both joyous and peaceful.

It was not long until the Equestrian government was officially created, and it was of course believed by all that the two alicorn sisters should rule. It was Celestia who decided that the both of them should take up the title of Princess. “Why would we only take up the title of ‘Princess’,” it was recorded that Luna said, “We are to be the rulers of the country, why shouldn’t we be ‘Queens’?” Princess Celestia looked to her sister, giggling as she snorted in laughter, “ ‘Queen Celestia’? ‘Queen Luna’? The two of us would sound like a pair of dusty old hags!” So by royal decree, the highest position to be held by an official in the government of Equestria was to be that of Prince or Princess. With this began the Golden Diarchy, an age of harmonious rule that would last another 399 years, until the rise of the waking Nightmare. Work was begun on constructing a castle almost immediately after the Diarchy was made realized, and in the course of twenty years, Everfree Castle, capital of Equestria, was finished.

It would be in later years that the alicorn sisters would become aware of their plight; they were immortal, but their friends and their lovers were not. The first of their husbands were laid to rest thirty years after their arrival in Everfree Castle, but the sisters, thinking themselves merely blessed with a longer but mortal life, took second and third husbands. No children were ever blessed to the sisters as heirs, though they came to realize the superfluousness of having heirs when one is immortal, and in due course the second and third husbands were laid to rest in the Everfree Castle crypt as well. After the loss of these husbands, the sisters came to the decision that they would no longer marry, so as to spare themselves and their lovers the pain that death imparts to those left behind.

Years passed without any physical effect on the sisters, but things changed quickly for mortal ponykind. In the span of three hundred years, ponies had grown, lived, learned, and loved so very much. Villages became towns, and towns in time became cities. Manehattan and Trottingham, which would rise up to become the two largest cities in Equestria, held between them less than five hundred ponies of all types. Cloudsdale was a tiny island in the skies, with less than thirty Pegasi for its population. Ponies were not scared of the things that lurked in the night, however they now no longer held gratitude for the one who had kept it so. They could now indeed defend themselves, a thing both sisters found pleasing, however, the Princess of the Night was feeling less and less needed and appreciated by those she cared about so deeply, and she found that to stave off the melancholy she would take walks throughout the countryside. It was on one of these walks that she stumbled into a portion of the Everfree even she was not aware of, and whose treetops were so thick one could not fly out of or even see the sky. Hours and hours were spent, simply trying to find a way out, either by hoof or wing, but to no avail. In time, she came across a cave which she felt compelled to take shelter in, and there she rested.

Chapter 3

Now it had come to pass that the Antrozi had gone their own way after the Naming Day nearly three hundred and seventy years before. They had splintered into smaller and smaller covens until such point that each coven contained less than fifteen members. One of these covens had made their home in the very same cave that Princess Luna had taken refuge, and they pondered anxiously as to what she would do when she woke up. Would she be angry at them, and tell them to leave their home? Attack? They were unsure of any action, so they waited. The Princess did eventually wake up, and she was surprised to find herself in the company of the grey furred, leathery winged bat ponies before her. She looked at each of them in turn, and each of them continued to look at her.

“Who be ye,” she asked them inquisitively.

The Antrozi were timid to answer, save one; the youngest among them, a mere colt of five years, walked toward her. With no doubts about his actions, he came right up to the Princess’ face and booped her on the nose, “We’re the Antrozi, purple lady! Who are you?”

His parents and elders tried to scold him for such a greeting, but the Princess simply chuckled to herself, “No, please don’t reprimand the little one! He is young and honest, and both are commendable qualities. I am Luna, what is your name?”

The young bat pony stood proudly and flared his little leathery wings, “My name is Orpheus!”

“It is wonderful to meet you, Orpheus,” the Princess said while smiling warmly.

An elder Antrozi, the Covenmaster, stepped forward as well, “We know who you are, Princess of the Night. We are blessed that you would take shelter in our home. If it is not so bold of me to ask, would you please allow us to keep this cavern as our home?” Perplexed by this request, Princess Luna was initially stunned to momentary silence. The Antrozi, taking this silence as a sign of the Princess’ rising anger, took several steps backward and covered their faces with their wings, for they had heard of the great power that the alicorn sisters held in their hooves. Orpheus, both brave and innocent, was the only one to stand before the thoroughly confused Princess now.

She leaned forward and whispered to the young colt, “Why do your relatives act so timid? Have I wronged them in some way?”

“They know you are powerful; we’ve heard stories of what you can do, even here in the Everfree Forest.”

“Only monsters need fear my power, little Orpheus, not you and yours.” Directing her voice to the elder coven leader she spoke, “We mean you and your kin no harm. What is your name, Covenmaster?”

“Acaeus, your grace.”

“By the powers invested in me as Princess of the Night and Guardian of all Dreams, I, Luna, will never seek to harm you, and will provide protection for you and your kind. This I solemnly vow on my mother’s spirit.” The Covenmaster and other bat ponies were put at ease when this declaration was made. “Pray tell, meek Antrozi, for what reason do you take shelter in this barren cave?”

“We fear for ourselves; all other ponies that we have encountered have treated us with unfounded distrust and aggression. We have found over the years it is simply safer to hide ourselves away from where others may find us. We are without want here; we have food and water plentiful enough, and we are safe.”

“We have not heard of such things from others! Why have you not sought sanctuary with my sister and I in Everfree Castle?”

“We were afraid to approach you, believing you to be of similar mind to your subjects.”

Princess Luna stamped her hoof, and she flared her wings, “You are my subjects as well, and I will not let this injustice pass. You will come back with me to Everfree Castle, and we will settle this mess properly. What say you?”

Orpheus looked up at Princess Luna with curiosity, “What is it like at Everfree Castle?”

Princess Luna looked down at the little colt and smiled, “Everfree Castle is large, full of tapestries and grand chambers with large stained glass windows. It is warm and safe. The moonlight illumines the halls with beautiful patterns, and there is a large tower from which you can see the stars throughout the entire horizon.”

“What are stars?”

“Soon, I’ll show you.”

“I’m afraid that I must decline this hospitable offer, your Majesty,” Acaeus spoke up, “I fear for my kin, in that we would still face recriminations for our appearance.”

“If you encounter any such cruelty, you will speak to me, and I will set it right.”

“I’m still very apprehensive of this decision, your Majesty.”

“Then I hereby order you to join me in Everfree Castle for the time of one fortnight, and then you may decide whether to stay or go.”

All the bat ponies were jarred by this decree, while Orpheus was absolutely delighted. Acaeus was resigned to the wishes of the Princess. “As you command, Princess; we shall follow you.”

“Splendid. Now if you could be so kind as to lead us out of this wild part of the Everfree, we shall be on our way.”

Chapter 5

The Antrozi had come to accept the protection of Princess Luna, and several weeks had passed since their initial arrival to Everfree Castle. The staff of the castle had their doubts of the new guests. Whispers, gossip, half-truths, and whole lies flew within and without the castle walls, but never near the earshot of the Princesses or the bat ponies themselves. The soldiers that were garrisoned in the castle, under the watchful Captain of the Guard, Storm-Eye, were trained to hold no doubts or reservations about their new charges; if the Princesses welcomed their presence, they should not question the wisdom and judgment of their insight. Even so, guards would involuntarily shift their body into a prepared stance in the company of any of the Antrozi, ready to spring into action at a moment’s notice if one of them were to attack. Even on Orpheus this fact was not lost, and though he noticed such things occurring, he never knew why the guardsponies acted the way they did.

On one night in particular, in the early hours of the eventide, Orpheus was playing in a corridor of the castle, perhaps daydreaming of training to be a great fighter or a knight, his fantasies played out by waving an imaginary sword in his two front hooves, when he heard the sound of two ponies coming. Acting on instinct, Orpheus took to the air, flying into the wooden rafters of the castles high lofted roof, where he perched on one of the smaller beams with his back hooves. It would be a while before they actually entered the hallway, on account of the colt’s sensitive hearing, but in time two mares, both members of the cleaning staff, came to wage their daily war on the forces of dust, grime, and general messiness.

“I can’t believe that we got assigned to this stupid hallway again for the second month in a row! I swear, the Housekeeper despises us.”

“It could be worse, remember that much!”

“How could it be? Scrubbing the same bleeding floors, dusting the same bleeding tapestries for two months straight, with no happy distractions such as the lords or ladies coming to petition or conversations we’re not supposed to overhear because we work the bleeding graveyard shift!”

“You could have volunteered to clean their room.”

The first mare blanched in fright, “Do I look like a pony with a death wish? I’m not going anywhere near that vam-pony brood!”

“Makes these ‘bleeding tapestries and floors’ seem more appealing, no?” The second mare smirked at her partner while she idly polished an ornate silver vase. The only response she received was a frustrated growl and an increase in the tempo of the first mare’s scrubbing of the stone floor.

Orpheus silently let go of the rafter he had been clinging to, and drifted down the hall away from the cleaning staff. With skills afforded to him by his racial disposition, the little bat pony silently made his way to the rooms where he and his Coven were safely away from prying eyes and whispering lips. The conversation the two maids had had with each other troubled the child greatly; why were they afraid of him and his family, and what was a vam-pony? Acaeus would know for certain; he knew just about anything under the moon! Seeking out the wizened Covenmaster was not a hard task; he was in his private quarters meditating, as was his near midnight custom. Orpheus made sure to knock quietly on the wooden door and wait patiently until he heard a soft “Enter” from within. So permitted, the colt made his entrance and softly closed the door behind him. All around the small but comfortable room were unrolled scrolls, each with different colors of ink decorating their surfaces. Some simply held the written Antrozi language, detailing parables, fables, or accounts of honorable warriors who had fought battles against the great beasts of the Everfree Forest. Others were grand depictions of some of these stories through the artistic abilities of Acaeus’ calligraphic endeavors. Each stroke, whether by quill or brush, was flowing and elegant. The characters and pictures depicted within each scroll radiated a sensation that put one at ease, which helped to clear Orpheus’ mind of fuzzy distractions and gave him peace simply by looking at them. Acaeus was seated on a pillow in the center of the room, with a bureau behind him from which he created his artwork, a pillow before him for his company to sit, and to his left was a window with deep burgundy curtains.

“Hello, little Orpheus! Come, sit with me,” the old bat pony smiled warmly as he spoke to his kin.

“Thanks, Grandfather!” Orpheus politely said as he sat down on the soft downy pillow before his Coven Master.

“What is on your mind, child? What guidance can I give you?”

“I was in the western corridor when I overheard some of the maids talking about us.”

“Oh, I have no doubt of that,” Acaeus said, “We are the most excitement the rumor mill in this place has had in many years.”

“They’re afraid of us.”

The old Antrozi stallion nodded, “All too often ponies are afraid of that which they do not understand.”

“They called us vam-ponies. Grandfather, what is a vam-pony? I’ve never heard that word before.”

Acaeus looked at the young colt before him passively for an instant; no emotion was to be found on his face. In time, he closed his eyes and let out a slow, soft sigh. “Orpheus, we are Antrozi. We hold the spirits of both the Day and the Night in us. We are part pony and part bat, but our race more strongly identifies with our winged mammalian cousins. Thus we eat as bats do, live as bats do, and act as bats do. As I said, ponies fear what they don’t understand, and because of our different lifestyle and appearance, we have garnered the suspicions of our pony cousins.”

“But how is that fair,” Orpheus spoke up, “a pony shouldn’t judge somepony else based simply on their appearance or race. They have no reason to be afraid of us.”

Acaeus’ old eyes brightened the tiniest bit as he gave a small chuckle, “You are blessed with wisdom beyond your years, little one. But the ponies around us are afraid, and they do have some reason to be so. Our race has..a condition. Look here,” he pointed at a scroll whose designs depicted bat ponies mingling with unicorns, pegasi, and earthern ponies, “In the early days of the world, gone hundreds of years now, we the Antrozi did in fact live side by side with some of these ponies. Of the three outcast races, we were the second closest to being one with the people of Equestria, behind the Zebharans. It was in this time we discovered our disease.” He pointed now to a scroll filled with many dazzling shades of ink, and a bat pony flipped on its back, “The unicorns can create wonderful displays of color with their magic, and so can some Pegasi. These flashing lights are what trigger the illness. Antrozi would fall to the earth as if they were dying, their mouths overcome with froth and their eyes rolling like marbles. The other ponies would become alarmed upon seeing such fits, thinking our people had dealings with the evil spirits from the pits of Tartarus, and all other twisted creatures that may emerge from its dark, unmerciful maw, like the Windigos and the Shapetakers. In time, the more imaginative folk thought we would in these fits become as one of the vampire bats, preying on the unwary in the darkness, feasting on their blood and kidnapping their children to make them like us. Because of this, our race holds this stigma of being called “Vampire ponies”, or “Vam-ponies” for short.”

Acaeus rose from his pillow and placed his forehooves on Orpheus’ tiny shoulders, “This is why,” the old bat pony solemnly continued, “you must always be on your best behavior. Others will fear you, and some may try to use your heritage against you. You must learn to fight with your words and your smile as well as your hooves and your teeth, and you must be beyond reproach of any sort.”

“But Princess Luna is protecting us. Can’t she just order everyone to like us?”

“It is easy enough to make a law, and only a little more difficult to enforce it, but even Princess Luna with all her power cannot immediately change the hearts of those around her or around us. You cannot rely solely on her Majesty to help us out of all our problems. You must use your mind, above all else, to help you survive. Though we are in caves of fine cut stone and in groves of pruned gardens, the hunt is afoot, and our predators could be anyone at any time. Remember; be wise, be on your best behavior, and be beyond reproach.”

“I think I understand, Grandfather.”

“Very good, Orpheus. Now I’m sure there is something you’d rather be doing, so go ahead and have your fun with what remains of the night.”

Orpheus got up from his pillow and embraced Acaeus, “Thanks Grandfather. I love you.”

“I love you too, Grandson. Now go on, enjoy yourself.”

Orpheus trotted to the door and opened it partially before he paused, and his face became clouded with his thoughts. Taking notice, Acaeus trotted to his side, “What is it, Orpheus?”

The young bat pony looked back to his elder inquisitively, “I was just thinking, does our family have the sickness that our ancestors had? Could it be that someday we might collapse and be seized by the flashing lights of others’ magic?”

“I don’t know. I can only hope that for our sakes we are spared our ancestors’ pain.”

Chapter 6

Twenty years had passed since the Princess of the Night had stumbled across the coven of bat ponies she would later take into her and her sister’s home. So much had happened in those twenty years. Acaeus and the others had gone the way of all mortals, and they were buried in the Everfree Castle crypt. The nobles had protested greatly, as they feared that at any time the Coven would rise again to curse the corpses of their ancestors with spells of undying thralldom, but they were ignored by Princess Luna. Only Orpheus and two of his Covenmates, Aequitas and Agathe, remained of that Antrozi Coven line.

Orpheus had gone on to pursue a position in the Royal Guard. Where others were apprehensive, Storm-Eye, the Captain of the Guard, was pragmatic. Upon first meeting the bat pony, he glared at him. This was Storm-Eye’s way of knowing whether a stallion had a good spine or not, and it was the reason for his name. Orpheus stood his ground, showing neither fear or anxiety, for he had none.

“Can yeh fight?” Storm-Eye gruffly asked the young stallion as he began to circle him.

“When necessary, sir,” Orpheus replied.

“Can yeh learn?” the Captain of the Guard continued.

“Whatever you’d like, sir.”

Storm-Eye stopped in front of Antrozi recruit and stared into his yellow slitted pupils, “Are. You. Loyal?” He prodded Orpheus in the chest with his front hoof with each word.

“Resolutely, sir.”

Storm-Eye grunted and turned away from the bat pony, “Yeh start with the second nightwatch, just afteh midnight.” It was not a pronouncement Storm-Eye regretted one bit; Orpheus had become a cunning military strategist in later years, rising to become Storm-Eye’s lieutenant. Aequitas, Orpheus’ younger brother, became a practitioner of Equestrian law in the hopes that one day he could argue for equality of rights for his herd and other herds in Equestria. Agathe would later be married to an Antrozi of another clan, Malkus, and she would become a mother of three.

As word had spread of Princess Luna’s benevolence to the Antrozi herd, many Antrozi came to Everfree Castle to seek further sanctuary from oppression by other ponies. This drove the populace near the brink of madness out of fear and suspicion.

“It’s a conspiracy to take over the government! The Princesses have fallen to Antrozi witchcraft,” some of the citizens whispered.

“We can’t keep our children safe anymore. They are monsters! They don’t deserve audience with Everfree Castle or any other civilized pony towns. We must drive them out,” others muttered.

There was one lord in particular who held the beliefs of his fellow pony deeply to his heart, and that was Lord Adamant. Lord Adamant was a handsome stallion among the handsome, his voice was as thick and sweet as honey, and he was a direct descent of the Diamond Dynasty, which offered him some of the greatest prestige of unicorn kind. “Our races, Unicorn, Pegasi, and earthern ponies, must band against this social menace which has plagued our fair country. I and several others are willing to provide land to create a separate nation on which the Antrozi herd can live off of in peace, away from our assembly.” Some took this offer, and did in fact start their own nation on the lands provided. The Antrozi who accepted the deal, however, were not allowed to grow the fruits that were staple to their diet, and in time the micro-nation of Antroz was on the verge of starvation. None of this would reach the ears of the Royal Sisters until years after the rise of the Nightmare. The failure of the independent Antrozi nation was blamed on an ‘unorganized bureaucratic misplacement of resources and information’.

Petitioners came and went from the Royal Court by the hundreds, each one with a message just as similar as the last, “Make the vam-ponies leave now.” Behind closed doors in the castle the Princesses argued back and forth on the matter for hours at a time, and each time it would follow the same pattern.

“I told you this would happen, and in a couple years this might have even been possible, but you had to step on the Lords' and Ladies' hooves, and now with each passing day the Antrozi are in greater danger,” Princess Celestia said.

Princess Luna would reply, “The nobles should have respected their rights as fellow ponies to simply live and be free. If they cannot do that, then they should respect us instead.”

“You cannot force the nobles to simply accept our will.”

“Yes, I can!” The azure alicorn would go on, “Your problem, dear sister, is that you are too soft. Your actions lack conviction and thus even in spite of all your power, you are utterly inept in ruling this country.”

“You have no idea how to run this country, Princess Luna! Balancing what is required to lead, accepting the noble’s troubles and desires, while also maintaining the general happiness of the populace takes delicacy! Delicacy which you most certainly lack!”

“I don’t need delicacy! If I had my way, I would blast that useless group of nobles from the face of the earth and be done with it! There is no need for those self-righteous pigs! They were royalty for all of a week before they made us their sovereigns, and they have been thorns in our sides for the past near four hundred years!”

Princess Celestia spluttered, “You must be joking! Wipe out the nobility? They’re the backbone of the unicorn nation.”

“Then it is time for a new backbone to take its place, one of strong iron rather than a degenerate aristocracy’s slime!”

“I will not allow such a thing!” Princess Celestia roared.

“I don’t care what you allow me to do or not; I am a Princess as well, and I can do as I please, such as bringing balance to pony rights rather than balance the despicable noble’s demands!”

A guard entered the room where the Princesses were having their verbal battle, “Your Majesties?”

“WHAT,” both of them bellowed in the Royal voice of Declaration.

“A gathering has formed outside of the Castle walls. It appears to be a riot.”

“What’s causing it,” Princess Celestia asked in frustration.

“A group of bat ponies appears to be the source, Ma’am. It was loud, but when I left there was no harm to them, but that could have changed.”

“Show them to me,” Princess Luna commanded the guard pony, and she began walking out the door.

“Princess Luna, I strongly advise not to do this,” Princess Celestia intoned.

Princess Luna turned to her sister, and with acid in voice said, “Your advice be damned to Tartarus. Somepony is out there who needs me, and I will not fail them like you have.” She then turned to the awaiting guard and curtly grunted, “Move!” and they left behind the aggravated Princess of the Sun.

Chapter 7

The situation had remained as the guardspony had left it; tense, but nothing unforgivable had occurred yet. Three bat ponies were isolated in a circle being made by a gathering of assorted ponies. The crowd was restless; some expressed it through deep snorts, others through the pawing of their hooves, but what was common among them all was that each and every one of them had their eyes on at least one of the Antrozi in the center of their ring, and each was prepared for anything that the grey furred bat ponies may try. Royal guards had begun to make their way through the crowd, each pushing firmly against the other ponies in the crowd to make their way to the surrounded bat ponies. The bat ponies' heads were slowly turning to gauge each member of the crowd. The three of them remained where they were; running simply wasn’t an option and neither was flying, as there was at least five Pegasi to each of them. They would be torn apart in the sky by such greater numbers if they tried to flee. The Royal Guard encircled the bat ponies and quietly began to shove their way through the now noisy crowd towards the castle courtyard. The crowd, expecting that this was some kind of arrest being made, simply followed the guardsponies toward the courtyard, and the spirits and the voices of the crowd grew wilder and wilder.

Storm-Eye and Orpheus trotted onto an elevated stone dais in the courtyard from which the both of them could see the whole of the crowd, the guards, and the Antrozi being brought forth to stand before them on the dais.

“Wha’ the bloody ‘ell is goin’ on here?!” Storm-Eye roared, as he glared down at the crowd. The crowd’s cacophonous jabbering instantly silenced. “Does one of yeh fine fillies er gentlecolts wanna explain teh me what’s started thes ruckus? EH?”

Nopony spoke, though there were a few nervous coughs. Finally, a mare stepped forward from the masses, and she projected her voice so that all could hear her, “One of those vam-ponies was trying to steal my fruit.”

“Es that a fact,” Storm-Eye replied, his glare now turned to the three bat ponies before him. “Do yeh know what Equestrian law says about stealin’, lads?”

“It is a lie, sir”, one of them spoke up, to which the crowd roared in denial.

“Imprison them!”

“You can’t trust them! They’re vam-ponies for Celestia’s sake!”

“There’s one right next to that glaring bloke! Imprison him too!”

“QUIEEET!” yelled Storm-Eye, and the crowd grudgingly complied. “Word of thes event has been sent to the Royal Sesters, and they will be with us swiftly to determine thes lot’s fate. Untel such time as they deign teh arrive, we’ll sit on our flanks an twiddle our hooves untel they do!”

“And what exactly gives you the right to talk to us like this, pegasus?” asked a haughty male unicorn.

Storm-Eye flared his wings, and stared down at the unicorn. The ponies surrounding the unicorn backed away, trying to get out of the range of Storm-Eye’s stare. His voice was barely above a whisper as he spoke to the presumptuous unicorn, “You mus’ be new en town, because ahm the Celestial-damned Capten o’ the Guard, and while you are in the walls of thes castle, you answer teh me!”

There was a small gust of wind as two large wooden doors opened to the courtyard, and Princess Luna stepped out of the castle, her eyes filled with frustration, and her entire body as tense as steel. The crowd before her remained absolutely still as she processed out to the dais to meet all of her subjects.

“Storm-Eye, Orpheus, what is the meaning of this?” she asked.

“It is believed that the Antrozi before you are thieves, your Majesty,” Orpheus replied with a bow.

Princess Luna looked down to the three terrified bat ponies, and her eyes and voice softened, “What say you to these charges, you three?”

“We are not guilty, your Grace. We were seeking asylum here, and we stopped at a fruit stand to buy ourselves some early breakfast. The vendor was going to charge us triple because of our race, and when we refused to pay the amount, she called us thieves!”

“Liars!” screamed out the fruit vendor, “Liars and thieves; stealers of children!” The crowd murmured their agreement.

The Princess of the Night continued to look down at the accused as she spoke, though her agitation was growing and her voice made it clear that it was, “I can prove your innocence, but only if you trust me and give me consent to enter your mind. Would you allow this?”

“Please, your Majesty. Just save us from their ridicule,” the spokespony of the three whispered.

“Very well,” Princess Luna said as she placed the tip of her horn to the bat pony’s forehead, and the both of them closed their eyes.

The crowd anxiously looked up to the Princess to see what she was doing and what her pronouncement would be. She sifted through the bat pony’s most recent memories and she found that what he had said was true; the vendor had tried to charge the three Antrozi three times the normal amount.

Finished with her journey into his mind, Princess Luna took away her horn from the bat pony and projected her voice to the crowd, “These three are innocent, go back to—“.

The crowd did not let her finish her sentence as their cries grew in anger and frustration.

“You’re known for taking their side. This is a mockery of justice!”

“Why don’t you care about us, your real subjects?”

“You never look out for our interests!”

The Keeper of the Night flared her wings and declared even louder, “I SEEK JUSTICE FOR ALL, NOT JUST THE MANY.”

“You are not fit to rule over us!” some unseen pony yelled out from the crowd.

The crowd’s vigor died instantly, and the silence that followed was deathly quiet.

Storm-Eye drew in his breath with a hiss, “Treason,” he murmured.

“You care more for these monsters than us! You don’t deserve your crown!” Somepony else said in the crowd.

Slowly, the crowd’s life returned, and the voices continued.

“We will seek our own justice!”

“Down with this fake Princess! Celestia cares for us!”

“Down with the pretender!”

“FAUX PRINCESS! FAUX PRINCESS! FAUX PRINCESS!” the crowd roared, and they rushed the dais as one creature to try and seize every pony that stood there. Storm-Eye and Orpheus stood their ground, ready to defend the Princess with their lives. The three Antrozi, driven near mad with fear by the wails of the crowd, took to the skies, but they were intercepted by several Pegasi. Unicorns started to fire spell after spell into the sky without a care in the world what they hit, just so long as they could hit one of those infernal vam-ponies. Orpheus collapsed to the ground and one of the other bat ponies fell from the sky, each succumbing to their ancestral condition. Their eyes rolled back into their heads, and their bodies began to convulse rapidly as they were overcome by the seizure. Princess Luna, barely heard Storm-Eye as he quickly got onto his knees next to his Lieutenant, “Orpheus, lad, wha’s wrong with yah? Get up now, lad, get up!”

It was all a blur; things were happening too fast. The crowd had brought the other three Antrozi down, and they were mercilessly stomping their hooves directly down on their captives. Screams filled the air of all kinds; the Antrozi, Pegasi who had been hit by unicorn magic, even some in the crowd who others had believed had been infected with vampirism. It was too much, everything was collapsing into Tartarus. The Princess grabbed her head in the agony of it; tears flowed down her cheeks in great gushes as her ears were filled with screams of agony, terror, and the still continuous chant of ‘FAUX PRINCESS! FAUX PRINCESS!’

Then, she snapped.

Her eyes flew open, and the irises were as thin as a dragon’s; her pupils had changed to a glacial blue, frozen like ice. Her astral mane multiplied in size and its waving patterns writhed about viciously, as if they were serpents fleeing a great and enormous fire. Her throat was filled with a growl which traveled upward until it escaped her mouth in an ear-splitting screech. A ferocious dark blue light emanated from her horn and a titanic shockwave blasted forth in all directions. All the ponies in front of her were swept several feet back, knocked into the walls of the courtyard or blasting through the gates which had been left open in the chaos of the crowd.

As the ponies picked themselves up, confusion and sense returned to them in equal amount as each realized what had just happened. And then they looked up to the stone dais. What befell their eyes was a great and terrible phantasm, a black nightmare that seemed to have left the realm of dreams to haunt the living, and it saw through each and every one of them with its piercing serpentine eyes.

“GET OUT,” it bellowed in its rage, and its mane appeared as violet hellfire, reaching out, it seemed, to devour their very souls. Ponies ran in stark mad terror to get away from it, until all that was left were the injured and the dead. When they were all gone, Princess Luna, returned to her natural form, collapsed in exhaustion and grief, and though she was unconscious to the world, her tears and muffled sobs still rang out for all to hear.

Chapter 8

It was dark; so dark, even for her vision. She couldn’t see a thing, not even her own horn light when she tried to cast a spell. Total darkness enveloped her, until she saw it in the distance. It was the galloping form of a black horse, its wing helping to propel it through the darkness. Its mane and tail trailed thick purple smoke, and its eyes were glowing teal and turquoise. She felt herself being pulled towards the horse, which she now saw was a full grown alicorn mare. Faster and faster she was propelled toward the obsidian colored pony, until it seemed she was going to collide with her. The black mare opened its mouth, and it had razor sharp incisors and teeth, ready to rip into any form of flesh it met. It grew to a massive height until it was fifty feet tall. It lunged for her, and it swallowed her whole.

Princess Luna gasped and lurched forward in her bed as she returned to the real world. Her most recent memories returned to her as she continued to awaken; the screaming crowds, the fury and pain. She could still hear the ringing of the crowd in her ear; ‘Faux Princess. Faux Princess.’

Orpheus glided slowly to the floor from where he had posted himself above, and he came to a pinpoint landing by the Princess’ bedside. “Your Majesty, how are you this late afternoon?”

The Princess looked to her guard with mild frustration, “Orpheus, in spite of the fact that you are a member of the Royal Guard, you are allowed to call me Luna.” Mischief momentarily filled her eyes, “Although, if you really desire it, you may still call me ‘Purple Lady’ like you used to when you were a young colt.”

A full on blush pervaded Orpheus’ face, but he modulated his voice to that of a serious tone, “Luna, do you remember what happened when you were last awake?”

She paused momentarily before she finally spoke, “A little.”

“I was seized after the unicorns began attacking the three Antrozi. From what Storm-Eye has told me, you collapsed soon afterwards.”

“What happened to those three,” Princess Luna inquired.

“Ma’am?”

“What happened to the three Antrozi?”

Orpheus’ ears drooped and he placed his right hoof over his chest, “They were killed. They were trampled by the crowd.”

The Princess froze. How? How could it be that even after proving them innocent she had still lost them? “No. Nononono, oh noo,” she slammed her hooves against her head repeatedly, eventually cracking the glass shoes she wore, “Damn it all!”

She hyperventilated for several minutes while trying to calm herself down. How could she have failed them? They trusted her and now they were dead. She didn’t even know their names, or if they had family who were waiting for them. The Princess felt utterly useless, and the words kept repeating in her head; Faux Princess. Faux Princess. “What about the rest of the crowd,” she asked after several minutes of silence, “Where are they?”

“Most of them were locals who we rounded up on charges of racketeering and unlawful assembly, but the others were simply passersby from other surrounding villages.”

“What of the ones who vilified me? Where are those treasonous lepers,” her voice growled as she continued to speak.

Orpheus shook his head, “We never found them, and even if we did they wouldn’t have confessed to it.”

“Then you should have searched harder, and made them confess,” Princess Luna’s voice had become cold and sharp, while her face had darkened an extra shade of purple. Her eyes were glazed over as she stared off into the distance. Her pupils began to dilate to small slits.

Orpheus’ neckhairs stood on end upon hearing those chilling words, “Luna?”

The Princess shook her head; she was now alert and her face and voice were returned to normal, “Pardon? What is it?”

Warily, the bat pony continued, “You said we should have found the ponies and forced them to confess treason.”

“I never said such a thing.”

“I’m sorry, your highness, but you did.”

“Orpheus, you know me, and you know beyond a doubt that I would never say such a thing. Are you sure you are all right? I know you had a seizure during the ordeal yesterday. Is it possible that your mind is still idled by it?”

The bat pony sighed as he continued his report, “That is another pressing matter that needs to be discussed. Princess, it wasn’t yesterday. It was five days ago.”

The Princess gasped in alarm and leapt out of her bed, “Five days?! You mean to say that the sun has not set and the moon has not risen for five days?!”

Before Orpheus could reply, Princess Luna burst out of her quarters and barreled down the hall toward her sister’s chambers. How could she have possibly let everypony down like this? It was a literal astronomical dereliction of her duty to have allowed such weakness to affect her and not raise the moon at its proper time. Faux Princess. Faux Princess. She almost ran over a servant passing into the corridor, but she was fortunate enough to teleport around him, and she continued on.

In a short amount of time she found herself in front of the two doors leading into her sister’s chambers, each emblazoned with Princess Celestia’s Destiny Brand. She knocked heavily on the large wooden doors and in the process accidentally shattered one of her two cracked glass shoes. “SISTER?! ARE YOU IN THERE? WE’VE COME TO PERFORM OUR DUTIES,” she bellowed in the Royal Voice of Declaration.

There was the sound of hoofsteps from within the room, and Princess Celestia poked her head out of the door. She was greeted by her elder sister with a solemn smile, “Good afternoon, Princess Luna. Did you sleep well?”

“The jesting can wait for later, I need to raise the moon immediately! At five days exposure to your sun the fields and crops must be..singed.” As she had been talking, Princess Luna had only just noticed that the castle had gotten much darker from when she had awoken. She whirled to one of the windows, and she was alarmed beyond all comprehension by what she saw; the moon was rising, but without her command and not under her control. She quickly turned back around to her sister in panic to ask if Discord had somehow broken free of his prison to tamper with Nature itself, only to notice that Princess Celestia, now fully out of her chambers, had her horn aglow with golden energy.

Her sister coolly answered her unspoken questioned, “Without your guidance to raise the moon, our mages had to think very carefully to find a solution before the entire planet and our heavenly vessels were tossed out of alignment. The easiest solution was the most obvious; the moon needed an alicorn to raise it, and so an alicorn did raise it. I must admit, it was difficult at first; your moon wields like a two ton hammer compared to the finesse required for my sun, but I’ve done very well with the job if I do say so myself!”

Princess Luna turned again to the window, and she examined the sky with an eye that was now more aware of the situation, “There are no stars out. It’s too cloudy. Everything is wrong.”

The Regent of the Sun huffed, and she flicked her wings and tail irritably, “Give me some credit! I only had to cover the essentials while you deigned to frolic through dreamland for five days.”

Princess Luna turned around so fast that her sister didn’t even see her physically do it. The azure Princess’ face was only a couple inches from her sister’s; her eyes flared serpentine, her visage became dark once more and her voice was like icicles, “I would not have been in such a position if your populace had not deigned to murder three innocents and some of their own, the traitorous scum!” Princess Luna’s appearance returned to normal in the blink of an eye, but her face was still lodged near her sister’s, “You will leave my moon be from this day forward, dear sister.”

Princess Luna picked up the fragments of her glass shoes that were left on the floor with her telekinesis, and she stormed back to her chambers for the night. She didn’t care whether she had hurt her sister’s feelings or not; the moon was her property, and the night was hers to command; now and forever more.

Chapter 9

Darkness enveloped Princess Luna again. The major difference between this most recent turn of events and her previous plunge into this darkness was that now she was aware that it was a dream. Once again, from a distance she could see the outline of the pitch black alicorn. The mysterious mare galloped at a steady pace, regality emanating from her every stride as she moved through the murkiness of the Princess’ mind. Rather than allow the dream to overtake her and wake up as she had before, the Guardian of all Dreams decided to find out a little more about the strange obsidian spectre. She moved her mental projection to run alongside the interloper, and their hoof falls synchronized instantly. The black mare chanced a single glance at her, and then turned her eyes to where her hooves were leading them; where it was she was going the Princess didn’t know, but this was her mind and she was going to interrogate this elusive intruder.

“Who art thou? Identify yourself,” she commanded.

The mare didn’t reply, but instead transmuted into a thick cloud of dark purple gas that flew upward.

“You will not be rid of me that easily, insidious ghoul!” the Princess yelled up to the dark cloud, and she quickly took flight to pursue it.

Through her mind she heard a chuckle that carried a dark allure to it, “Oh please, Princess. Once you know me, you wouldn't be able to part from me even if you tried.”

Ignoring the cryptic statement, the Princess continued her chase of the strange cloud, each of them tumbling, twirling, and trapezing through the near-impenetrable umbra of her mind. Without warning, the dark mare materialized in front of the Princess, her luminous serpentine eyes piercing the darkness. Princess Luna easily forced her mental projection to instantly stop. The dark mare continued to stare into her eyes. The Princess stared right back at the black stranger.

The black alicorn scoffed, “You always did like a staring contest. Shame your sister always won. Then again, she knew how to let her mind wander while keeping her eyes still, while you didn’t.”

“How do you know such things about my youth,” Princess Luna asked as the dark mare began to circle her.

“I know everything about you, little Luna. I’ve been following your exploits for as long as I can remember. You could say I’ve been an admirer from afar.”

“Who are you?”

The dark spectre chuckled and cupped the Princess’ face with her tendrils of smoke-like hair, drawing her face to look into her own eyes, “Don’t you already know?”

The Princess’ face was as hard and unreadable as granite, and she was silent.

Sighing in exasperation, the unsettling apparition walked a few steps away from the Princess before conjuring an iron throne with plush crimson pillows for herself, “I’d forgotten that you don’t like puzzles.”

“I have no quarrel with puzzles, but arrogant mares who patronize me do test my limits.”

“My character is irrelevant in this matter,” the obsidian spectre flashed Princess Luna a fanged smile as she sat back into the throne, “The truly important matter at hoof is this; what are you going to do about your sister and her herd?”

The Princess was silent for a while, until she at last replied, “They are my herd as well.”

“You don’t sound so convinced of that,” the apparition said, “And why should they be your herd? They despise you, they spit on your name and your work. When you took in those Antrozi as your own subjects, what did they do? They questioned your right to rule them and they murdered them. What sort of herd would you call them now, hmm?”

Silence was all that Princess Luna’s response was. The obsidian mare continued, “And your sister, she’s known of both the herd’s lack of moral judgment and of the Antrozi herd’s suffering. She has done little to act on her ‘proposals for social reform’; she said so herself!”

“She’s been trying to change the herd through education about the vam-pony myths and their falsities over a span of time,” the Princess replied, but it was obvious even to her that her doubts were starting to creep into her mind and voice.

“But it would seem that the evidence you yourself have seen with your own two eyes refutes that idea. Children will not willingly teach themselves their own lessons, and I believe that both you and I know that what children need most of all in their lives is discipline. But who is truly to blame for children’s bad behavior; the children themselves, or their parents as well? You’ve been doing your part by defending them from the things that would cause them physical harm, but while you’ve been away your sister has been shirking her duties, allowing the nobility to spread their greedy hooves into the powers of the crowns while keeping both you and the masses ignorant! Celestia has been all too willing to allow such events to unfold because it allows her more time to sit on her fat flank and eat cake! She is an accomplice to the nobility’s crimes.”

“I don’t believe you,” the Princess finally interrupted the obsidian alicorn, “It has been several years since I and my sister have seen eye to eye, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that my sister would never consciously allow such things to happen. She would never allow any innocent life to come to harm without justice being served on the perpetrator of the crime.”

“We’ll see,” the black alicorn said.

The environment began to blur as the dream began to slowly seep away, and with the last of the blackness to dissolve into the mists of Princess Luna’s mind, she awoke.

Chapter 10

Five years had come and gone as quickly as the light of day. News of the events of the Everfree Massacre as it was later known had spread like wildfire across the nation of Equestria. Antrozi that had been coming to the Princesses for sanctuary quickly turned tail and fled, and all bat ponies went into hiding, lest they be killed by the crowds who now sought their blood more than ever. These were strange times, the five years leading up to the waking nightmare. The weather was spiraling out of the Pegasi’s control, tornadoes and blizzards were a regular occurrence, and the droughts that occurred during the summers and autumns were merciless. Ponies of all sorts, regardless of race, age, or gender, were having bad dreams. Each night, when they would lay down for their sleep, a single recurring dream would overtake them; an image of a malevolent black horse would stride across the night under a quarter moon, and it would make its way to Everfree Castle. Soothsayers and dream interpreters believed that it was evidence of Princess Luna’s dealings with the evil spirits of Tartarus, and no matter what she tried to do to help the ponies who came before her for relief, she could not excise the dream from their minds. The Princess in time could stand it no longer; she could not take the mistrust, fear, doubt, and hatred. She locked herself in her wing of the castle and took no visitors but the servants, her friends, and her sister.

“I don’t understand,” she’d murmur to herself, “I protected them for hundreds of years. I made them safe even in the darkness; how could they just turn against me? How could they dismiss all I’ve done for them? I thought they were decent, and kind, and caring toward others. It seems I was wrong.”

She would ask these questions of Orpheus once in a while, and his response would always be to comfort her, “Even if there are none outside this castle who would ever know what you tried to do for all the herds of Equestria, I will know. We know, and we all thank you for trying.”

“But I’ve failed,” and here the tears would begin to flow, “I’ve failed, and I’m a failure! I can’t protect you and your family; I cannot keep the vow that I took those twenty five years ago to protect you and your kin.”

“You have not succeeded, that is true. But you have only failed in this immediate time. You’ve forced the issue of my people’s suffering into the open, and it must be addressed! Who knows, perhaps in five or six generations, the Antrozi can live freely.”

“But I can’t make you free, Orpheus,” the Princess’ eyes continued to water, “When you were a child, I saw the hope and the joy in your eyes when you first saw my stars. In your eyes I could see the zealous fire to be free! I’ve taken you from a life where you could live out your days in the Everfree Forest to being imprisoned in a castle full of plush things, mahogany, and crying mares,” she grimaced a little at her self-depreciation, “But no matter what one tries to fill this drab place with, it remains a prison for the both of us.”

The quietness of her chamber was only filled by her silent tears and Orpheus’ breath. “Luna,” the bat pony slowly spoke, “You asked me all those years ago what I thought of your night sky, and I said ‘I wish it could last forever’. If I had never known you, I never would have seen all the heavens have to offer. I never will regret having met you, and I will never believe you are a failure, no matter how much you may try to convince yourself that you are.” Orpheus wiped away the tears staining the Princess’ cheeks, and she looked into his amber eyes. Orpheus smiled as he softly said, “There’s no need for tears, purple lady.”

The Princess simply stared at the bat pony for a short time. Eventually she closed her eyes and leaned in towards him, her lips inviting him to kiss her.

Orpheus stopped her lips with his hoof, “No, Princess.” She tried to protest, but he continued, “Don’t you dare. You and I both know I’m past my prime, and I will not allow you to break your heart on my account.” He got up from his place on her soft bed, and he left her for that night.

Elsewhere, there was a conspiracy brewing. Lord Adamant had a son in the Royal Guard, a young stallion by the name of Corundum, who was highly favored by some of the court to be the new Captain of the Guard when old Storm-Eye would retire in the coming year. There was only one problem; Orpheus was the most trusted lieutenant of Storm-Eye, and the most logical choice to succeed to the role of Captain of the Guard.

“I will not see an accursed vam-pony favored above my son, especially for a position that should rightfully be his! If it weren’t for the meddlesome Princess Luna, sticking her snout into what she clearly doesn’t understand, this wouldn’t be a problem.” That was when Lord Adamant concocted a scheme; a plan that would ensure his son would receive his due position, and the bat pony would not. “What good is a guard if he suffers fits? My son is in excellent physical condition, and it can be proved that Orpheus is certainly not. Near the time of Captain Storm-Eye’s retirement, Orpheus will suffer an accident. He will fall during his nightly flight patrol, and the physicians will declare him unfit for active duty afterwards, leaving the path to my son’s rightful place unimpeded by that interloper.”

The day Storm-Eye left the guard came nearly a year later. The week before the office was to be transferred to Orpheus, he was out on patrol, soaring above Princess Luna’s tower. The evening was serene; all was at peace with the world, and the bright skies were full of stardust and moonlight. Orpheus was always deeply captivated by the Night Princess’ work, and tonight it was no exception. Soaring on the cool breezes of the night, he did not see three equine figures gathered on a lower causeway n an adjacent part of the castle. He saw mournful skies of beautiful deep purple and the light of dozens upon dozens of stars. His eyes were turned skyward, dreaming of the possibilities of the night and his race, when the fell magelight flew past his eyes.

The three unicorns, two servants of Lord Adamant, and Corundum himself, watched as the form of the Antrozi guardspony fell slowly from the sky. A cool breeze suddenly gusted as Orpheus’ seized body fell, and rather than falling onto the balcony before Princess Luna’s chambers, he plummeted onto the stone balcony ledge. Even from their position, the three unicorns heard the thick crunching sound of a body heavily impacting on carved stone. Orpheus’ limp form fell another thirty feet to another balcony just below.

“By the flames of Tartarus, you idiot! We were sent by your father to maim the vam-pony bastard, not kill him outright,” one of the servants angrily whispered to Corundum.

“Be silent, whelp,” the lordling replied, “We may have wanted him alive, but it seems nature has decided otherwise. We can’t be blamed for that. Now run you blasted fools, run!”

The unicorns quickly vacated, just as the Princess came out on to her balcony to discover the source of the peculiar noise. She quickly noted through the darkness that the unicorn bringing up the rear had a wine flask as his Destiny Brand. It was probably a group of some half-drunk madponies taking their liquor and wasting it by throwing the bottles at her tower walls, wasting their contents. That thought only lasted until she saw the minute crack in her balcony. It was coated with a meager amount of red. Slowly, she approached the balcony’s edge, and then she looked over. The still form of Orpheus lay below, and blood was slowly congealing around his fallen body.

Chapter 11

“ORPHEUS,” Princess Luna shrieked as she leapt off the balcony and plummeted to his side. She landed hard on the cobbled surface, all of her glass shoes shattering into pieces. Her joints ached from the landing, but she would not feel it until later. The broken bat pony lay on his side, his right forehoof crumpled beneath him. Having taken the majority of the final impact, it had dislocated his leg altogether and crushed the bones near his shoulder. His right hindhoof had suffered no better with a compound fracture. His ribs had been cracked in both falls, and the second fall had caused one to puncture his right lung. Both of his fine leathery wings were broken.

“SOMEPONY! ANYPONY! PLEASE HELP! MURDER! MURDER IN THE CASTLE,” the Princess bellowed, her voice cracking under the strain of raising her voice to fill the entire castle. The bat pony’s form shuddered, and his left eye slowly slid open. Even now in the throes of deepest agony, the fire had not died from his eyes. “Princess?” he called out weakly.

The azure alicorn quickly returned to her friend’s side, “Orpheus! I’m here!” she half whispered as she choked out the words, “I’m here! Oh thank my stars, you’re alive.”

“Princess,” he spluttered. He began to weakly cough as blood slowly pooled in his lung.

“Hold fast, Orpheus. I know several healing spells,” the Princess quickly used her magic, her horn glowed deep blue as she attempted to reconstruct her dear friend’s broken body.

The Antrozi guardspony’s moaned and softly shrieked as the rib that was occupying his lung was slowly removed and reconnected to his ribcage. “Stop! Please,” he groaned in deep pain.

The Princess quickly stopped her attempts to mend her friend, which she followed with frenetic apologies, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—I wanted to ease your pain! I’m sorry! I’m sorry.”

The night staff that had heard the cries of ‘murder’ had made their way into the Night Princess’ study, and had gathered some distance away from the Princess. In a short while, Princess Celestia joined them as well. She had been awoken by the servants who had heard her sister’s cry, and in her haste to join her sister she had forgotten all her regalia, and her pink hair was a mess.

Everypony was silent but the spluttering breathing of the bat pony and the short sobs of the Princess of the Night. “Princess,” wheezed Orpheus, and he slowly lifted his left forehoof to the sky, “Look.”

She did look up, tears falling from her face, to see her handiwork. The moon was at its epoch, and the North Star was bright upon the dark backdrop of her astral canvas, as were all the others. “Isn’t it beautiful?” he quietly asked.

She looked back to her dearest friend, and she cast a spell to read his condition. His heart rate was dropping, and he was already going into deep systemic shock; he would not survive for much longer. She sobbed silently as she cast one last spell for the battered Antrozi. Lights fell across the sky as shooting stars fell across the horizon; it was the first ever meteor shower. Orpheus softly gasped in awe, as did the other ponies in the room. The night sky was crying, just like its mistress.

Princess Luna saw the joy that filled his eyes at the spectacle she created just for him. “I wish,” he coughed and heaved, “that this..could last..forev—“. Alarm filled her as the last syllable never made it past his lips, but his last breath did.

The fire died. His eyes were misted over. Orpheus, first lieutenant of the Royal Guard, was no more.

The silence continued after his passing. Princess Luna slowly got on her haunches, and she brought his body to herself, cradling his brokenness in her hooves. Her tears were unending as she realized the child and the stallion he had grown up to become, the bat pony she had befriended, was forever gone from her.

Orpheus’ Covenmates, Aequitas and Agathe, had come into the study at this time, and upon seeing the body of their brother, their Covenmaster, they came to Princess Luna’s side and mourned as well, sending their wails to the heavens above. They embraced as one and joined with each other in hooves and tears. They mourned with each other until the break of dawn.

With the rise of Celestia’s dawn came a blood red sun. Aequitas and Agathe gathered up their fallen brother and they meant to fly away.

“Wait! Please! Stay! Please stay,” Princess Luna softly said.

“We cannot,” Aequitas said, “What little this place offered us is gone now. This castle and you are a curse on Antrozi everywhere. We should have never come here at all. Do not follow us; we will bury our own in our own way.” They spread their wings and carried up their brother into the Everfree Forest, and after that day no Antrozi was ever seen in Everfree Castle ever again.

Princess Luna slowly turned away from the balcony. She silently made her way past the servants, past her sister. Her eyes were exhausted from her weeping, and though she continued to quietly sob, no tears would come to her. She made her way to her chambers up above, from which she passively lowered the moon. Exhausted, she collapsed on her bed, praying that the emptiness of dreamless sleep would come to her.

Chapter 12

Black as night; Princess Luna’s dream from so many years ago returned to her in her time of grief. Once again the obsidian alicorn mare was there, and once again they held conversation. What surprised the Princess of the Night more than anything was that tears were flowing down her spectral companion’s face as well.

“What reason do you have to shed tears this day,” asked the Princess quietly.

The serpentine eyed alicorn blinked profusely. She turned her face from Princess Luna and concealed herself with her smoke-like hair, embarrassed to be looked upon with sympathy, “I’ve.. I’ve lost a good friend today.”

“Nay, not you as well?”

“Yes. But the worst part of all this is that neither of us can find solace in the company around us. We are alone.”

“..Aye. ‘Tis true.”

“You have not received any consolation from your sister?”

The Princess’ face fell and her voice became dark with anger, “Nay, I have not.”

For a while the two alicorns shared a silence with each other.

“I’ll make you a deal,” the phantasm finally spoke, revealing her now dry face to her fellow mourner, “I know the house of the servant who is responsible for your friend’s demise. Oh yes,” the dark mare quickly interrupted Princess Luna’s state of shock, “This was no accident. It was cold and premeditated murder. I will help you find evidence to bring the three responsible for your friend’s death to justice. In the meantime, you must do something for me.”

“Name it,” the Princess coldly replied, “I will offer you almost anything under my power for the identities of the blackguards who did this crime against me!”

“I am a phantom, a dream that comes to ponies in the night. For a short time each night I have meaning, but as soon as ponies wake up, I am returned to the sepulcher of oblivion where all dreams rest during the day. I want a corporeal form.”

“This is a strange request,” the Princess of the Night declared.

“Is it really?” asked the phantom.

“During my time of power in the world you can easily traverse the minds of all who dream. You have the ability to see and comprehend things only I can imagine. What need have you of such a mundane thing as a body?”

“What good is all the knowledge in the world if you don’t have a place to stand in that world?” The obsidian alicorn paused, looking for the correct words to describe why she wanted what she wanted, before sighing deeply, “I will be honest with you; I’ve envied you for years. I’ve followed you for ages because you have so much that I’m jealous of; you can stride dreams as I do, but you also stride the lands above as its mistress. You can make a permanent impact on the world, while all I can do is be stuck between being a night terror and a half remembered dream. I want physical meaning. I want to feel the moonlight on my eyes and see the willows sway in the breeze of the night air. I want to hear the quiet trickle of the brook and the joyous chorus of the animals that sing in the twilight. I want to be known by others, and I want to be loved.”

The Princess thought for a time on this plea; it was a passionate request, but how could such a thing as giving a dream substance be done? “Even with my most powerful spells I could not create a body or an illusion thereof for you on my own. The task may not be possible.”

“Why not use the powers of the Elements of Creation,” the black mare suggested.

“I am unsure if I could even attempt to wield them on my own. I will think of a means of giving you sustained consciousness in due time, you have my word. Now,” the Princess took two steps forward, her face was veiled in darkness once more, “Tell me the name of the den of murderers I seek.”

The black mare constructed a large looking glass of obsidian from her smoky mane. She forced it to appear before the Princess’ vision, and in the near liquid clarity of its reflection she could see the image of Lord Adamant, descendant of Diamond I. Rage slowly poisoned every fiber of the Princess’ mind. It took every single bit of her will power to maintain her composure in front of her spectral guest.

“Thank you for this information,” she finally muttered, “I will remember our bargain.”

The black mare nodded before replying, “Good hunting and good luck.”

“Only the unskilled need luck,” the Princess bitterly replied.

The day had passed quickly, and Princess Luna awoke near the time when the moon was to rise. She quickly administered the spells to raise the moon, but she purposefully left it so the stars above remained unlit. The moon rose, but it appeared as if it was the eye of a predator seeking its prey. In this way, it was similar to the mood of its administrator. It was but a short time later that Princess Luna had strode to the front of Lord Adamant’s estate. It was a large château, with its front doors recessed in a large stone porch. A spacious lawn filled out the front of the house, and both the house and the lawn were enclosed by stone walls that reached up to the arch in the Princess’ back.

The Princess momentarily stopped before a set of iron gates that shut out the world from the unicorn royalty’s castle. She waited only an instant before opening the doors before her with her magic. The gesture was a little too forceful, as she unintentionally blew the doors out of the upper pair of the set’s hinges. She didn’t mind the property damage. The act of breaking and entering set off a magically created caterwauling within the small castle itself. Good; somepony would be awake to answer the door. Before she even got the chance to use her magic to rap the doors down with the door knocker, the head butler of the house presented himself before the Princess. It was apparent he was surprised to receive anyone so late at night, let alone one of the Royal Sisters. “Your Majesty,” he quickly offered, “What can the Diamond house do for you?”

“I require the immediate presence of your master.”

“I’m afraid Lord Adamant is not in residence. You see, he has taken an unexpected journey, and he will not be back for some time.”

“Where?”

The butler gave a conciliatory bow and replied, “I’m afraid my Lord did not say.”

The Princess’ eyes narrowed and her anger began to creep into her voice, “Tell me, you are the head butler?”

The butler remarkably managed to maintain his mask of cool professionalism, “Yes, your Grace.”

“And you are constantly at your master’s side and his consul?”

“Such is my duty, your Majesty.”

“Then tell me this; Am I a half-wit foal?” the Princess lowly growled.

“Ma’am?”

“You are either the most incompetent servant I have ever met, or you have just told me a blatant lie. I will only repeat myself once; where is your master? Be exacting in how you choose your next words, servant, or the next chamber you shall set eyes on will be my dungeon.”

The butler paused for a time, and then sighed, “I’m afraid I must repeat myself as well, your Grace; My Lord Adamant is—“ There was a blinding flash, and cold stone walls met the eyes of the butler of the Diamond house, just as he had been promised.

The Princess stalked into the foyer of the castle where she bellowed into the bowels of the house, “ADAMANT! I KNOW YOU ARE HERE! PRESENT YOURSELF AND YOUR STAFF AT ONCE TO ME!” Dust left the rafters to fall to the floor in the wake of Princess Luna’s vocal barrage. Servants rushed from their quarters further in the house, partly out of confusion and partly of alarm towards the front halls of the house, when the entirety of them stopped in their tracks to bow before the Princess of the Night as they realized who the summons came from. No small amount of time later, the master of the house presented himself along with his wife. Lord Adamant and Lady Amethyst descended from their chambers in the upstairs quarters, and their son Corundum came shortly afterwards. The family was dressed in their finest clothes, which Princess Luna assumed in her angry state of mind had been to make her wait as long as possible while also flaunting their power and prestige.

Lord Adamant looked to Princess Luna’s presence as one does to an inconveniently placed speck of dirt on an otherwise clean white surface, “Your Majesty, while I do realize that your duties leave you to work at..unusual hours, might it have not been more prudent to have me come to you at the castle at a decent hour, rather than to raise Tartarus by breaking and entering into my home and waking my entire household?”

“Spare me, Adamant. Can you confirm that this is all of your staff?”

“What does it matter to you how many servants I have?”

“Because your house is stained with the blood of the one who was to be Captain of the Guard! Where is the one who has a wine cask for his Destiny Brand?”

“Amontillado has been ill, which is why he is not present.”

“Liar! I witnessed him and two others run from the site where Orpheus was murdered just yesterday!”

“You come into my house,” the Lord of the manor spoke with growing frustration, “You accuse my staff of murder, and I have yet to hear of any secondary witnesses or of corroborative evidence to back up your unsubstantiated claims.”

“There is no need for further evidence,” the Princess of the Night roared, her pupils slamming into turquoise slits, “I am the Princess, and my word is law!”

“My Princess’ name is Celestia,” Lord Adamant coldly replied, “and I do not recognize your authority.”

The household servants blanched in terror at this declaration by their master; he had uttered treason directly to the face of a Princess, and now their fate would be bound up with his, however horrible it may be. The shadows in the entire house lengthened, the darkness grew deeper and deeper, and the Princess’ fury grew as well. With a great and guttural roar, the Princess stood on her hind legs and meant to blast the royal unicorn and his household from the face of the earth.

Chapter 13

Before Princess Luna could finish casting her spell to end the life of Lord Adamant and his family, a blinding golden light emanated from behind her field of vision. She was knocked off balance by a magical force, and her spell flared into the ceiling, singeing the large wooden beams directly above. The gold light faded, and her sister walked into her field of vision. The Sun Princess looked on the sight before her with a grave face. She looked down to the Princess of the Night and then to Lord Adamant and his household. Finally she said in a low, serious tone to the Lord of the manor, “We will discuss this in the morning.” With that, she transported Lord Adamant’s butler back to the chateau from the dungeons, and then teleported her sister’s stunned form and herself back to the interior of Everfree Castle.

As Princess Luna began to stir, the first words she heard were, “What in the name of the sun and stars were you thinking?!”

The azure alicorn began to regain her senses, and she noticed that she was in her sister’s quarters. She slowly began to pick herself up, “They needed to be punished. They murdered Orpheus!”

Princess Celestia turned away from her sister, “But can you prove it? That’s the most important thing!”

“I am a Princess! My words are truth incarnate!”

The Sun Princess whirled around toward her sister “No! We may be princesses, but even our testimony must be validated by a court of law. You can’t just go out and exact your own justice on whomever you please. Even we must be under the law, otherwise we risk becoming tyrants! The law is ultimately what provides structure and happiness to ponies’ lives!”

Princess Luna yelled, “WELL I’M NOT HAPPY!” Tears began to flow afresh down her face, “Everypony I’ve ever loved like family is gone, because of your ponies and their hatred, I’ve lost everything.”

“They’re your ponies too, Lulu,” Princess Celestia tried to say, but the Lunar Princess continued, “No, they’re not! Not anymore. I’ve given them protection and safety for hundreds of years, and when I asked for one thing in return, they revile me and make me out to be a witch. They despise me in spite of everything I’ve done for them.”

“If you had listened to me and followed my plan,” Princess Celestia replied, “this wouldn’t have happened.”

“Shut up,” Princess Luna growled, “I hate you. I hate your plans. I wish you and every last one of your stinking foals would disappear! I renounce our familial bond, and I cut ties with you from this day forward!”

The Princess of the Sun was stunned beyond all belief, but she weakly tried to speak as she raised her hoof to her sister, “Luna, please.” Princess Luna turned away from her sister, and she walked out of her sister’s quarters in dead silence.

The trial that was held regarding the death of Orpheus was mostly a formality on the court’s part. No verdict was ever reached, due to lack of impartial witnesses, and the case was ultimately dropped. Princess Luna had expected as much; no justice for a supposed witch and a vam-pony in the public’s eyes. In accordance with her promise, the Princess began to research ways to bring the black alicorn mare from the world of dreams to the waking world. Months passed like days as she sought with furious madness a means of bridging the gap between the mind and the real world.

In time, the two of them together found their answer. “We shall craft magically imbued armor to enhance my abilities,” the Princess declared. She pointed to her shadowy compatriot with her hoof, “You must design the form of the armor itself; the magic will not bind if the spell and armor are both made by one of us. Ideas that come from dreams and pure imagination will translate into the greatest anchor between our worlds. Once you imagine it, I shall create the armor in physicality, and this will be the bridge between our two worlds.”

“Excellent,” the phantasm flashed a smile of triumph, “Now, I’ve thought of the exact day we should do it.”

“When,” the Princess of the Night curtly asked.

The black alicorn chuckled, “The longest day of the year, in three years from now. Ironically, the stars will be perfectly aligned to make you more powerful than you could possibly dream, even more powerful than your sister on her day of triumph. There won’t be another like it for a thousand years. It also means we can take vengeance on our enemies at that time.”

“Vengeance,” muttered the Princess.

“Yes! For Orpheus. For all Antrozi. For you. What say you, Princess? Do you have the mettle to take what is rightfully yours?” the dark alicorn offered out her hoof to the Princess for a shaking of hooves.

Princess Luna stared at the hoof for a long time, as she truly considered the thought for the first time; vengeance..Yes, there was a blood debt to be paid back in full, with interest. She raised her hoof, and shook the black mare’s hoof, “We have an accord.”

“Splendid! Now,” the black mare tossed her head in a slow motion, and from her smoke-like mane materialized a dark lavender helm. She reared up on her back hooves and in similar fashion a regal chest plate adorned with a quarter moon and armored horse shoes appeared as from thin air. The dark alicorn phantasm grinned at the Princess, “Well, what do you think?”

Princess Luna studied the ensemble for a moment before nodding, “It is good! It truly appeals to me.”

“I thought you might like it,” the dark mare smiled with closed lips, “But we’ve played enough, and talk is pointless now; let’s get to work.”

The Princess nodded, “Aye," and her dark dream began to collapse around her.

The Princess woke from her eventful slumber and immediately set to the task of creating her arcane armor. A feverish obsession filled her with each passing moment that she worked on it; calculating the exact measurements of her body, designing the spells she required, and ticking off each day until her time of due vengeance would arrive. She did not sleep a single day or night that she worked on the armor; neither did she eat or drink. Only a small portion of her mind mused on how she could press on for so long without food or rest, but she ultimately dismissed it; it was irrelevant and unnecessary. She never left her room, save to go to the library to search for a scroll or ancient text, or to quickly receive materials she had called for from mages or armorers. The servants had started placing food outside her door when they realized her chambers remained locked at all times, but over time as they noticed that the food remained untouched outside the door to the Princess’ chamber and that the occasional servant would see her in the night bustling about the castle, they simply stop bringing food. She seemed alright, the servants thought; perhaps she was getting food from somewhere else, because she certainly couldn’t be going months on end without food, right?

The nights were bitterly cold during the final three years of the Golden Diarchy. The stars only occasionally shone in the night; there was too much cloud cover more often than not. The skies in those days appeared to have been haphazardly made, and the moon was frequently filled with only the dullest light. It was apparent for all to see that the artist of the night no longer cared for her work. To what her thoughts and craft were turned to, though, nopony had the faintest idea.

Chapter 14

The skies were golden in the afternoon light. Princess Celestia had just received and excused the last petitioner of the day from her court twenty minutes previous, but she remained seated on her throne. She glanced toward the setting sun through the large windows in the western wall. Melancholy had not been something that the Regent of the Sun was used to, but in the days following Princess Luna’s declaration of their severed kinship, she had found just what the sad state of mind felt like. She had expected her sister to have remained angry for several months, and then things would just settle back into normalcy, and all this mess would be a forgotten part of the court’s history. It had been nearly three years to the day since she had truly seen or heard from her sister, and even though physically they were still very near to each other, their relationship had been anything from close.

The Princess sighed deeply and leaned back into her seat; she’d had a kingdom to run, and subjects to take care of! Surely Luna understood that? Her sister comprehended sacrifice, but only that of blood and sweat. While her sister had been fighting monsters deep in the Everfree forest and along the borders, she did not understand there was a homefront to maintain. That she had always overlooked; the people needed not only a protector, but a shepherd as well. The greatest virtue any shepherd must know is patience, and the sacrifice of time that is an integral part of it. Princess Celestia’s herd, her children, were slow to learn, that much was true. Deep down, though, in spite of all their flaws, she believed that her ponies were good; they had just succumbed to..confusion, that was all.

“Your Majesty?”

Princess Celestia snapped from her introspective stupor to find that the cleaning staff had come to tidy up the room.

“Are you all right, your Grace?” one of the maids asked her with deep set concern.

“Oh, yes. I’m sorry to have held you up in your duties,” the Princess murmurred and faintly smiled.

“Oh, not at all, your Majesty! Please do not feel rushed to leave. We can work around you, if you’d like.”

“No,” the Princess stood from her throne, “I believe it’s time I should leave. I have other duties that need attending to.”

“Your Grace,” the cleaning crew bowed as the Princess processed out of the court.

The Princess began to walk to her chamber to carry out her duties of lowering the sun, when she paused. A kingdom is only as strong as its two members; the ruler and the ruled. In Equestria’s case, there were three, with two rulers and the ruled. Was it not each ruler’s duty to safeguard the other, so that no harm would come to the system as a whole? Yes. It was her duty to try to reach out to her co-ruler, and it was her duty as an elder sister to look out for her younger sibling.

She strode with determination toward her sister’s chambers, but all that courage seemed to drain away the closer she got to her sister’s door. Had Luna’s anger dulled at all? Was there any real possibility of reconciliation?

The Princess leaned in toward the dark oak door, “Lulu, are you there?”

Silence was the only response she received.

She sighed as she continued, “I just wanted to say I was sorry for not looking out for you as an elder sister should. I haven’t been there for you when you needed me, and I didn’t defend you when you were being attacked.”

The silence remained.

“I realize I have not been the best sister I could be to you, and I’ve allowed our herd to come between us. Could we please start again? I want to try to understand you and what you care about now. Will you please help me to understand?”

Nothing happened.

“Please Luna, answer me!” the Sun Princess begged with all her heart.

No reply came to her.

She sighed in defeat, and placed her head against the door and spread her forelegs to the door frame, as if she was trying to project an embrace into her sister’s room, “Good night, Luna.” She left her sister’s quarters in grief to lower the sun from her own.

Five minutes later, Princess Luna returned from the library with several tomes she had sorely needed for the final phases of her plan. Before entering her chambers, she noticed a slight disturbance in the ether around her door; Celestia had been here very recently. Her face hardened into a stony expression; no doubt her dear sister had been trying to spy on her. Fortunately, the precautionary wards she placed on her door could keep out any kind of nosy individual, especially the self-righteous, arrogant white nose of her sister. She quickly forced the door open and then closed it shut behind her. There could be no interruptions now; the Summer Sun Celebration was only a five days away after all.

Chapter 15

The preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration had been going on for almost two months before the actual event. It was to be a time of unimaginable joy; the four-hundredth festival in honor of Princess Celestia’s leadership and her rule over the Sun. It was to be a day to be remembered and spoken about for generations to come; but it was not for joy, light, and happiness that this day would be remembered.

The day before the festival was to take place, Princess Luna did something she had never done before; she slept through her night. The sky was darker than it had ever been during that night; no light from the moon, the stars, or any other astral body shone on Equestria. A darkness so deep covered the land, one could not see their hoof in front of their snout even if they had wanted to. The nightmares that had gripped ponydom for years returned with a vengeance that night; nopony was spared the image of the black alicorn phantasm that night, save one. Never once had Princess Celestia seen the image; she did not know of her herd’s plight, and, more importantly for Princess Luna’s plan; it meant she would be soft, reveling in her day as much as her ponies would. She would not see her vengeance coming.

The Princess of the Night rose late; it was ten o’clock in the morning when she finally awoke. She felt rested and invigorated as she never had before. She waited patiently as the minutes ticked by; half past ten, eleven. At half past eleven in the morning, she set about her last preparations. Using her telekinetic magic, she raised the helmet she had crafted in front of her face to examine it in detail. It was perfect, and it was just as ready as she was for the task ahead. She placed the helm on her head, delicately clamped her war regalia to her chest, and slid her hooves into her armored shoes. She looked toward her vanity to size up her appearance with her completed ensemble of armor, and she was surprised to see the black alicorn, also bedecked in armor, standing just next to her.

“How is this possible,” she asked the mare who had until this time solely appeared to her in her dreams, “Have you found another way to this physical plane?”

“I am not actually here,” the false reflection of the obsidian mare declared, “you and the power of the armor are giving me just enough anchor to create a minor illusion spell, nothing more.”

“I see.”

There was a pregnant pause as the two mares looked at each other.

“It’s nearly time,” the black mare pierced the silence with her words.

“Yes. Now that our time of reckoning is upon us, though, I feel the heady giddiness one gets before going to battle.”

“Is the cunning and determined Princess Luna losing her edge?” asked the dark phantom with a teasing grin.

“Nay. I am but flesh and blood, just as you are about to be,” the Princess of the Night said to the mirror.

Princess Luna took a step to her right, and her eyes became serpentine in the blink of an eye. A devilish sneer parted her lips, “Good. I can’t have you, my one true friend, abandon me now this late in our endeavors. I think it’s time for us to show ourselves to the world, and to take what is rightfully ours. Don’t you agree?”

The Princess returned to her original position. Her eyes had returned to their normal shape and color, and she wore an expression of determination, “Aye. Let us begin.” The Princess smiled to herselves.

She sauntered onto the balcony immediately outside her bedroom chamber, seemingly without a care in the world. The sun’s light reflected off her armor while simultaneously passing through her semi-transparent mane and tail. The bright orb was near its apogee; it was almost high noon. From the balcony she could not hear the celebratory mood of the ponies in the courtyard and in the town beyond, all of it for precious, fleeting, and feeble daylight. The Princess began summoning all the energy she could muster from both herself and her armor. The power within her grew and grew and grew. She could feel the heavenly bodies her phantom friend had spoken about. She reached out with the power she had, and she did not ask, but demanded their power as well, and she ripped it from them. Her form had become so concentrated with magic that she began to slowly levitate into the air, and her ascent marked the beginning of the summoning. Wave after wave of arcane energy boiled off of her as she finally cast the spell she created to bring her friend to the waking world.

Almost immediately after the process was complete did she realize that something was horribly wrong. She felt the moon, her moon, cease its revolution around the planet.

Panic consumed her, “What is this madness? What is happening?”

“Everything you ever wanted,” the obsidian alicorn suddenly appeared beside her in the air. “For years now we wanted to avenge ourselves on our foes, and now we are finally achieving it in full.”

The Princess whirled to the western horizon, and just at its edge she could see the silhouette of the moon began to rise, “The planet won’t survive if you cause the moon to stop! You’re going to cause it to collide with the sun!”

“Oh, we didn’t plan anything like that! We planned the greatest insult to the Princess of the Sun of all time! We shall eclipse the sun with the moon, and when we stand victorious over the bloodied corpse of Princess Celestia, we shall take her sun and snuff it out, creating an eternal nocturne over this planet!”

“This was never the plan we agreed upon, vile shade! You have betrayed me!”

The dark mare cackled, and it was a sound that could make marrow freeze in a stallion’s bones, “But Princess, how could I possibly betray myself?”

Princess Luna instinctively looked down at herself, and with horror realized her coat had change from a deep azure tone to that of black onyx. She looked back to where the phantom had been, but there was nothing next to her but the cold air above her tower.

The Princess’ eyes slowly began their final metamorphosis to those of dragon’s irises. Her eyes glistened as tears slowly began to form, “You lied to me all this time? This was never about acquiring a body for you, was it?”

Her head snapped to the right and she smiled deviously, “Of course it was! I needed a body, so I decided to take control of ours. And now, I don’t need you anymore!”

Her neck contorted as Princess Luna spoke to her darker nature, “I won’t let you do this! It’s my body!”

“Wrong,” the dark phantom from within her bellowed, “It’s mine now! Besides, I’m granting you what you wished for! Everyone who wronged us will die, I will permanently silence those who dispute our rule, and I will create a place where all will be equal; beneath my hooves!”

The Princess struggled for a little longer, but with each passing moment her will fatigued and gradually faded altogether. Just before she was greeted by the dark oblivion of her own subconsciousness, she thought to herself, Mother, Sister, forgive me.

The dark mare, now fully in control of the body she and the Princess had shared, mused to herself. She had never chosen a name for herself, and she had never received one from Princess Luna. She was simply the mare who walked through the Night Princess’ dreams.

Well now..she was a mare of the night, and now it was time for her to haunt the world of the aware and the alive. “I am..Nightmare. Nightmare Moon.”

She smiled; it was a name that would bring apprehension and fear as soon as it passed a pony’s lips.

Excellent.

“I am Nightmare Moon!” she boomed out to the world. The moon had cleared the horizon, and it was speeding toward the sun. “Now, let the endless Age of Night begin!”

The last of her spells were cast, and the eclipse began.

The mood of the Summer Sun Celebration was jovial as the sun reached its apex. Ponies were merry as they talked, danced, played instruments, and sang to their hearts content. Princess Celestia looked over all of her subjects enjoying themselves, and she sighed in contentment; the day was going well, and she was happy.

Then somepony took notice of the sky. They pointed to it and others’ gazes followed their hoof; what was the moon doing out during the day? The Princess saw the moon rising quickly across the horizon, and she was just as equally confused as her subjects; what was Luna doing? Then the moon appeared to meld with the sun, and from the union of the two celestial bodies was a black orb that radiated light from the heavens above. Fear gripped everypony; lords, ladies, magistrates, guards, commonponies, even the Princess herself. She winked out of existence for an instant as she teleported to her sister’s chambers. She looked all around the room for her sister; the bed, the wardrobe, the balcony, even the ceiling for good measure, but she did not find or see her sister anywhere.

It would take the moon only eight minutes to fully blacken out the sun, and the chaos that ensued was planet wide. One side of the planet thought that the moon had dropped from the sky to impact somewhere into the surface of the earth, and the other half thought that the sun was dying, and that they only had a little time before the world ended. Upon seeing the Princess disappear, the ponies at the Summer Sun Celebration were frightened all the more, and a stampede began as everypony tried to abandon the celebratory grounds.

Lord Adamant and his family were some of the few to make it back to their homes in one piece. As the doors of their estate were closed behind them and they shivered in their ornate but ripped clothing out of stark terror, she appeared out of the shadows, as silent as death. Her eyes were as sharp as a predator’s, and she was dressed for war in fuchsia armor. She bared her teeth; she had incisors like a snake’s fangs.

“Lord Adamant,” she airily spoke, but beneath her words she acted as a lioness ready to pounce on its prey, “I’d like to speak to you.”

The unicorn lord visibly gulped as he summoned the courage to respond, “And too whom do I speak?”

“Nightmare Moon.”

The lord’s eyes darted back to his wife and son for a moment before returning to the black alicorn, “What is it you’d like to speak about?”

“Blood and darkness,” she slowly began to approach the noble family.

“Treason and ambition,” the alicorn drew a large magical blade from the ether and locked all the doors and windows leading to the manor’s foyer.

“Blasphemy and murder,” she whispered into the doomed lord’s face.

And then the lioness pounced.

Chapter 4

Princess Celestia had noticed the absence of her sister, but had not thought much of it until a full day and night had passed. The moon was not late in its rising, but her sister had not done it from her customary place in the castle, which was Luna’s tower in the northern wing. She had sent a detachment of pegasi to search the skies and grounds below, but none yet had reported back about the whereabouts of her sister. It was now midafternoon on the second day, and Princess Celestia found herself pacing anxiously about the hallways of Everfree Castle. She was walking past the Hall of the Court, her vibrant pink hair trailing lazily behind her, when she heard a loud and agitated commotion through the door.

“What in the name of the Royal Sisters?”

A mare screamed shrilly, “what are those hideous beasts?”

“Out! Get out of my way! They’re vam-ponies!” cried a stallion.

The doors burst open and several ponies of all kinds were thrown through the air by the summoning of the Royal Voice of Declaration, “THAT IS ENOUGH OF THAT KIND OF SLANDEROUS TONGUE WAGGLING!”

Princess Celestia would recognize the voice of her sister anytime, any day, and any decibel. What she had the hardest time believing was that Princess Luna was holding some sort of court, and in the company of a coven of bat ponies. “Sister, what is the meaning of upsetting the petitioners to our court, and in bringing such kind as these Antrozi here?”

Princess Luna looked to her sister with stern cold anger and she quickly shortened the gap between herself and her sister with several hoof strides, “You mean to say you’ve known the plight of this unfortunate herd, dear sister? For how long?”

“Princess Luna, answer my question. What are they doing here?”

“They have come here under my protection. Do not attempt to evade my question, Princess Celestia: How long have you known of the mistreatment of the Antrozi?”

“Several hundred years.”

“Several hundred years?” Princess Luna jaw gaped in surprised frustration, “You mean to say you have known of the repression and injustices laid upon this innocent people for nothing more than their appearance?”

Princess Celestia arched an eyebrow, “You never were that much of a socialite, were you? You mean in all these years of living with our subjects, you never once thought to actually learn some of the issues of the day? You never once stepped out of the castle and just mingled?”

“I never had time, Tia! I was busy actually doing something to protect the ponies of this nation, rather than just being a beautiful face who could afford to delegate her duties to others so she could run outside and play with the other fillies and colts like an immature little foal!”

The room was silent but for the heartbeats of everypony present. Princess Luna drew in her breath and spoke again, “Our mother taught us to love and care for others as if they were family; as if they were our children,” she snorted vaporous breath out of her nostrils, “How can you allow acts such as this to occur to our subjects?”

Princess Celestia was doing everything to control her voice and her temper, “We have to love our subjects for everything they are, Luna, including their faults and frailties. Am I happy that such things as these occur in our realm? No. Is there anything I can do about it? Yes, but nothing that can have an immediate effect. I have tried to make it so that in the course of time the Antrozi herd and other herds like them will be accepted, but you know as well as I that stubbornness is a trait that all ponies seem to share.”

“Mandate change then,” Princess Luna countered, “Publish an edict stating that all ponies, regardless of origin or race should be treated as equals.”

“One cannot sway a populace one way or another simply by ordering it so! Laws are only good and proper if ponies follow them both in spirit and in fact, and Equestria’s spirit is not ready yet for such a drastic transition of civil rights!”

“But it’s wrong to allow such crimes to continue, Tia!”

“I KNOW!” Celestia roared at the top of her lungs. The floor shook the tiniest bit, and dust fell from the eaves of the court.

Alarm was written across every single face of the bat pony coven. Some were gripped to the spot where they stood out of fear of somepony else exploding in rage, while others were trying their hardest to remain unseen as they attempted to slip away. Princess Luna closed every door leading out of the Hall of the Court with a flash of her magic, and she turned to face them, her eyes flashing white, “Stay where you are! You should not be ashamed to receive restitution for what’s been done to you.”

Princess Celestia took a step forward, her voice still edged with agitation, “Luna, if they want to leave, let them go.”

Princess Luna whirled around and her white gaze was now upon her sister, “I promised that I would protect them, and that is what I intend to do!”

“Did they have any say in the matter?”

This gave the azure alicorn pause; she had ordered them to the palace without truly thinking out the consequences of what could happen. Her eyes closed, she sighed, and she released all her anger, letting all of it flow away, allowing her eyes to return to normal. She looked to Acaeus, Orpheus, and the other bat ponies present, “Antrozi, I have in my rashness not allowed you to choose your own fate in this matter. I..apologize for my presumptuousness. Whatever you choose, I will respect your decision.”

The Antrozi did not respond for a full minute. They looked to each other, looking for somepony else to make the decision of what they should do, and then they all turned to look at Acaeus. The Covenmaster stepped forward to address both of the Royal Sisters, “Thank you, your Majesty and your Majesty, for allowing us to see that there is compassion for even the most downtrodden of ponyfolk in this land. Tradition stands that says that whatever the final decision of the Covenmaster, the rest of the Coven is honor bound to follow suit, whether for good or for ill. I am old, though, and whatever blessings you will bestow on my people will never belong to me or my generation. The choice, I believe, should be made by our youngest, for he will be the one to reap either the blessing or curse of what is to come in time.” Acaeus searched about himself, as did the other Antrozi, “Where is Orpheus?”

Princess Celestia smiled as she looked to one of the clear windows that was housed in the Hall of the Court, beneath which stood little Orpheus, looking out at the waning sun. Twilight was fast approaching.

“Sister,” Princess Luna said quietly to Princess Celestia, “He’s never seen the stars. Could you lower the sun a little early today?”

The Regent of the Sun looked to the Keeper of the Night, a pleasant smile still on her face, “I don’t see why not. Make the stars spectacular tonight!”

“Don’t I always?” Princess Luna huffed.

Princess Celestia closed her eyes, and her horn was enveloped in golden light. With her increased concentration, the softly glowing red orb in the sky began a measured but quick descent to beyond the horizon's reach. Princess Luna now in turn closed her eyes and utilized her magic to clear the atmosphere of any weather that might block her canvas. There was to be no overcast skies tonight: tonight was to be a labor of love, to make everything absolutely right!

The strong and vibrant orange, fiery red, and soothing green of the day was replaced with tones of deep blue, ravishing indigo, and strong ebony. With the darkness came the most beautiful display of starlight ever know to pony eyes. The cosmos was alive and well, each of the stars dancing in slow time to the Mistress of the Night; dancing singularly, in pairs, and in vast groups through the ballroom of the sky, each with its own brightness and hue.

Orpheus gasped as he looked on the display, utterly bewitched and dumbfounded by the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on. Princess Luna smiled bemusedly as she finished her handiwork, and she silently made her way to Orpheus’ side. She looked down to the little colt and smiled, “What are thy thoughts, merry little Orpheus?”

“It’s really pretty,” the bat pony colt said in a whisper, almost as if he feared that by speaking any louder he would stop the eloquent display of nature’s beauty, "I wish I could look at it forever and ever!”