When Darkness Falls

That night I couldn't sleep, the thought that Luna may never come back tormented me. The same Luna that I had known since I was only 8-years-old, and thought as more than just a friend...had changed. She just left it all behind, with only the regret that she had not left sooner. I finally gotten up out of bed, submitting to the fact that I couldn't get rest and slowly trotted to the window. Everything was quiet, the only light radiating from the moon. It was truly something to see, the wind whispering in the air was all that could be heard. As I watched the night go by, I tried to think of why Luna would be unhappy with what she had control of. The night was just so calm and peaceful, it was beautiful the way the moon would leave small rays of light across the rivers. How in all of Equestria could she be unhappy? "I just don't understand", I said to myself still taking in all the beauty that the night had brought to Equestria. The door to my room then opened, the guards were here to wake me up as they usually would. As bad as this predicament with Luna raddled my mind, I had to face facts....Luna was probably never coming back...and I had to move on and do what I swore I would no matter what was happening. I brushed the curls and knots out of my hair, put on my armor, and trotted down the hall to wake Celestia. I opened the door, only to see that Celestia was looking out her window as well. "Couldn't sleep either?", I asked still standing in the doorway. "Not at all...", she replied in a depressed tone of voice. I trotted up behind her and placed a hoof on her shoulder, "Are you okay?" "No...I'm worried about Luna. Somethings changed her.", she said flatly maintaining the depression in her voice. "I know. You've known her longer than anypony else, but I've known her long enough to know that she would never make a decision like that without reason. I'm just hoping that it was for the right reasons.", I said. "I am too, Sunny. I am too." We both sat there still looking out the window, waiting for when the moon would go down....only it never moved...

Celestia and I waited for over an hour before finally sending a letter to Luna asking why the moon was still in the sky. Thoughts began going through our minds that something might have happened to her, something horrific. But soon after the letter was sent, we had gotten our response. The response that we had waited anxiously for would cause an unforeseen chain of events that would ultimately lead to one of the biggest tragedies to ever fall upon Equestria. Written on the letter was just one sentence, a sentence that caused shock waves that would still be talked about a thousand years from that fateful dark day:

The moon shall never be lowered again.

• Luna

We stood there looking at the letter in complete shock while silently re-reading the letter continuously, making sure that our eyes weren't deceiving us. "What in the name of Tartarus has gotten into her?!", I said breaking the silence. "I don't know. What I do know is that this isn't Luna anymore." "What do you mean?", I asked in confusion. "Luna would never do something like this, she knows that the world cannot survive in everlasting darkness. Something has changed her, into this...whatever she is now." "You don't think that somepony is controlling her do you...?", I asked. "That isn't possible, there isn't anypony on the face of this earth that is strong enough to directly control her. But it is possible that she is being influenced to bring out this anger. Given the fact that this hatred has been getting stronger over the last few weeks, influence is the only logical explanation for all of it." "But who is what I want to know.", I said. "It has to be somepony that she is around a lot of the time, or somepony that is connected to her in some way that she would listen to them willingly. But as far as we know, the only ones that she trusts that deeply are you and me.", she explained. "If she did trust somepony else, she tried her best to keep it a complete secret. But why would she do that?", I ranted still trying to contemplate all that has happened. "I don't know...but we're going to find out." Celestia immediately took up a parchment and quill, and began writing a letter. "Who are you writing to?" "Luna, asking if she will meet us so that we can straighten all of this out. Either we will have our answers or possibly can talk some sense into her.", Celestia said. "And what if she refuses to listen to reason?", I asked dreading what answer I may get. "We can only hope she is willing to at this point..."

Luna had agreed to meet us, but on her terms. That we come alone, no guards; and that she chooses where this so called 'meeting' would take place. Ultimately Celestia agreed. Luna wanted this meeting to happen at the monument in the main square of the kingdom. Celestia and I then set off down the main strip heading for the monument, ordering all guards to clear out from the main square. We had arrived at the monument of Celestia and Luna, that represented the end of Discord's reign. I then had gotten the idea that what if somehow he was involved, but Celestia would have suspected as much long before I did. We stood looking at the land mark for no longer than a minute when we heard: "Thou had enough respect to show yourselves." We turned to see Luna was standing behind us with an emotionless look on her face. "Luna...", I began to say before she rudely cut me off. "That is Princess Luna to you." "Whats happened to you, why are you acting this way?", I asked becoming quickly agitated. "Nothing hast happened to us, we have simply just grown tired of the way things resided." "Luna, Sunny's right. You've changed drastically, and your refusing to lower the moon. I don't know who you are, but you are not Princess Luna and your certainly not my sister." Luna suddenly explodes with anger, growing louder by the second and the wind begins blowing faster than it should. "You dare disrespect us! After what we have been through for the last 350 years?! WHILE THOU SAT ON THY THRONE AND WATCHED OUR SUBJECTS EMBELLISH IN YOUR DAYLIGHT WHILE THEY SLEPT OUR BEAUTIFUL NIGHT AWAY??!! THOU UNDERSTANDS NOTHING AND NEVER HAS! BUT YOU SHALL, FOR DARKNESS WILL REIGN SUPREME ACROSS THE LAND FOR ALL ETERNITY!!!" The wind began blowing faster with the force of a raging storm as we stood and watch Luna lift off of the ground and become engulfed in dark thunderous clouds, laughing more maniacally than any demon that crawled from the depths of Tartarus itself. The clouds around her suddenly dissipated as she touched back on solid ground, revealing this....monster that was a towering size. Dawning a pitch black fur tone and a mane that looked as though you were starring into the night sky itself. She was shrouded in darkness and wearing a metallic armor of some type. "I...AM NIGHTMARE MOON. AND FROM THIS DAY FORTH, DARKNESS SHALL BE ETERNAL!!!"

"Sunny, get everypony out of here, now!" I quickly turned and looked at Celestia as if she was crazy. "I'm not leaving you alone with this monster!" "Sunny, go. Now." I stood there starring at her for several seconds before finally giving in: "...yes, ma'am." and I flew with haste to the barracks to signal for immediate evacuation for the entire kingdom. When I had exited the barracks, I barely caught a glimpse of Celestia and Nightmare Moon fighting and hearing a crash while seeing bright flashes of magic. I couldn't stop and look, I had to get everypony out of the city. As I helped the Guard with the evacuation I could hear booming sounds of magic exploding through the air. They had fought all over the city, causing the buildings to crumble and fall and leaving scarring burn marks everywhere in their path. At certain moments you could clearly see them fighting in mid-air as if they were in an all out slug fest. Just as I had cleared out the last house, I felt a tug on my armor coming from behind me. I quickly turned to see an orange filly holding a little foal in his arms. "Mister please, I can't find my parents.", he pleaded. I turned to look back at Celestia and Nightmare Moon still fighting, and I then turned back to face the filly. "I'm sure they're outside the city by now.", I said as I tried heading for the town square before feeling him tug once more. "Mister please help me find them", he pleaded again. "Get out of the city and look for them there. Get out of here, NOW!", I finally said before a very loud boom could be heard echoing across the city originating from the monument in town square. I immediately flew back to the square, only to see Celestia lying where the monument once stood. She was exhausted and hurt badly. Nightmare Moon then landed in front of her, still laughing. "You can't defeat me, dear sister. And you never will." As she raised her hoof up above Celestia's head to deliver the final blow, I bolted forward flying as fast as I could, hitting Nightmare Moon like a battering ram. She flew back some distance but only because I had caught her by surprise. As she made her way back to her hooves, I screamed in pure rage: "If you so much as come near her again, I WILL KILL YOU!" Nightmare Moon then looked at me with complete anger in her eyes, "YOU DARE THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT ME!?" As those words left her, she picked me up with her magic and slung me like a rag doll. I suddenly stopped, my back wrapping around a tree. Time slowed down at that very second, I could feel each individual rib snapping into two or three pieces. The pain amplifying with every snap, making me scream loudly in complete pain. I feel to the ground, trying to breath through the pain and broken ribs that I had suddenly felt full force. "Little pony believes he is stronger than Nightmare Moon. HA!" I slowly began rising to my hooves, still trying to catch what breath I could manage. I then felt a pain on my back, I turned my head only to see that my right wing was completely broken. I turned my attention back to Nightmare Moon, breathed as deep as my ribs let me, and then charged in full gallop. "Sunny, NO!", I heard Celestia scream. But I didn't listen, I charged on. Nightmare then picked me up once more and threw me into a tree that had been knocked over during her fight with Celestia. As soon as my back hit tree, I suddenly felt a strong sharp pain in my side. I looked down to see a branch protruding from the side of my lower abdomen, I had been impaled. "I warn you both now, surrender to me. For next time we meet, I will kill you both." She then disappeared into the night, as if she was just merely a shadow, laughing like a demon the whole time. As I saw everything begin to blur and fade, I barely made out that Celestia had forced herself to her hooves and was slowly limping toward me. I then started to realize as I lost what consciousness I was trying desperately to cling on to, that this...was only the beginning...