I stared at my reflection, watching as the shadows danced across my faced. I shouldn't have been able to pull that kind of power against Sombra. I shouldn't have been able to call on something like that without it burning me up in the process. But here I sat, staring at myself in the polished crystal mirror in my bedroom.
It wasn't just the power, though. There was something else about it. There was something terrifying waiting out in the world, and it was ready to come out then and there. It was ready to be unleashed upon the world. It was the power Sombra had intended to unleash. But instead, in a desperate effort, I had grabbed onto that power and thrown it against him and his kingdom. I had banished an entire empire to cold nothingness to keep him from setting loose something that could throw the world into eternal darkness.
But there was a cost. There was always a cost. This time, I had to use that same power Sombra was breaking out to stop him. And now, all I could do was stare.
Power like that was never easy to deal with. The safest course of action would be to lock it away, seal it inside something that could contain the power for a few centuries to give me time to think of a way to deal with it. I would definitely need help from my sister. She had always been stronger in magic than I was. She would know how to destroy something like this.
But you can't destroy it, I thought. Something this powerful would leave a vacuum large enough to break Discord free of his statue. There's no way you let that happen. But if you just locked it up, someone else could try to set it free, just like Sombra.
There was, of course, another solution. It was a huge risk, but it was the best option. If I could hold the power at bay, then maybe we could harness it instead. Maybe we could use this force to save lives. Maybe we could use this power to stop wars before they ever happened. Maybe, I could be the hero of this-
"No!" I chastised myself. "Thou hast seen where that path leads far too many times, Luna. Thou are no better than any of the others, and wouldst surely fall just as they had then."
But the idea was so tempting. For once, I could be the one that everypony looked up to. Just this once, I would be the one that everypony admired. I could be the one worshipped like a goddess while she stared in awe at my magnifi-
"NO!" I screamed, lashing out at the mirror and shattering the stone. Shards fell to the ground, showering it in glisten sparks of silver and red. I stared at the wall, a few fragments of the mirror hanging jaggedly before me. A few drops of blood dripped from my hoof.
I slowly pulled it back to look. There were a few small cuts where the stone had broken into it, but I didn't feel it. It was as if I was looking at another pony's hoof.
I shook my head and walked over to a cabinet to wrap my hoof. It would start to sting eventually, and I didn't want it to get infected, anyways. That would simply add more to worry about on top of these thoughts and this dark power.
You know about me, something else said inside my head, causing me to yelp and look around frantically. The tone was smooth and cultured, that of true nobility and power. I could feel the knowledge rolling off its voice, as well as the power. It's been so long since I found a creature that actually knew about me.
"What dost thou speak of, creature?" I demanded to the empty room. "I know nothing of thou."
You know more than you realize, it responded. You have every creature of the night in this lovely head of yours.
My eyes widened as it said that, my mind going frantic and throwing up as many mental defenses as I could. I moved to the center of my room, sitting in the protective circle I had carved into the stone a century and a half ago. As soon as I closed my eyes, I entered my mindscape to root out this thing.
"Oh, I was wondering if you knew that trick," it said, the voice echoing around the cavernous expanse of my mental home. Walls started growing out of the ground as I focused on blocking it out. "It must've taken you a long time to perfect this."
"Only a few years," I snapped back, dropping all sense of formality from my voice. "I've made it more comfortable over the centuries."
It chuckled richly, the sound bouncing off the space. "Indeed you have. And a panic room as well. You truly are powerful in and of yourself. I can only imagine what kind of power is wielded by your sister."
I stopped. "What are you talking about?"
"The jealousy in here," it said, the voice beginning to quiet down a bit. "It's all towards your sister because she's so much more powerful than you are, in magic and in politics."
"You know nothing about me," I snarled, looking around to try and find the intruder.
"Well I may not know everything about you, but I certainly wouldn't say I know nothing," it commented, the voice coming from behind me.
I spun around and faced the creature that had been speaking, gathering power into my projected body so I could blast the beast to smithereens. But what I saw stopped me from doing that.
In front of me stood no shadowy, formless figure, no manticore or dragon. Instead, a simple pony stood there. The stallion stood as tall as I did, a frame of muscle showing obvious use, though he also looked as if he hadn't used it in a long time. Green eyes sparkled against his dark red coat and a black mane and tail were styled as if he had just come from an opera. In fact, he seemed like quite the gentlecolt.
"I do apologize for not being a better houseguest, but I didn't really have much to work with," he said, his voice rolling out in a sophisticated accent. "This place is truly impeccable."
"What do you want?" I growled at him.
He arched an eyebrow at me. "Not one for pleasantries, are we?"
"Not when they come from a creature such as you."
He sighed. "You really think I'm just a creature? Think for a moment. You know of everything that hides in the dark. They live your domain. They fear what you would do to them if they were to step outside their boundaries. Do I look like any of them?"
I did pause and think. He was just a pony. But that could easily be a shape to take on to throw me off guard. But then why not attack? Why spend this time chatting when he could be fighting me for control? Why act friendly at all?
Then, I remembered. I knew what he was. I knew what he could do. And I knew why he was waiting.
"You're..." I paused for a moment, hardly able to believe it. "The Darkness."
"Give the mare a prize," he said sarcastically. "Though I tend to go by Dark at this point. It's shorter and easier to say when cursing something with a final breath."
I let out a sigh. There was no way for me to stop the Darkness on my own. I would need my sister's help, and I was starting to get tired of repeatedly having to go to her whenever something big happened. I needed to be able to things on my own! I needed the power to stop things like this! Maybe I should've been the one take up the throne and-
I shook my head again, pushing the thoughts back. The last thing I needed right now was a psychotic episode in my own head.
"I could help you with that," he said with a grin. "Those pestering, primal thoughts. The ache for power and independence. I can give you that. I can give you all of it, and the good sense to use it properly."
"Just like the good sense you put into Sombra?" I snipped back at him.
His grin fell into a frown. "That unicorn had no clue what he was dealing with. He was half mad before he came to me. I simply gave him some knowledge."
"Knowledge that cost thousands of lives!" I yelled.
"Thousands is nothing compared to the lives you could save," he responded.
I stopped. Again.
"You don't just want the throne and all the power that comes with it. You want to be able to protect those around you. You want the ponies out there to see you for the guardian you truly are. You want to be truly appreciated, not for your power alone, but for the work you do, for the service you provide to all of them. I can give you that. I can give you everything you want."
It was most certainly tempting. I could finally get what I deserved for all of those nights I spent protecting the ponies of Equestria. I could finally get credit for all the work I'd done crafting the night sky into its current beauty. I could help carry the burden of the throne with my sister and show her that we can be more than equals. I could get everything with the power of the Darkness.
But at what cost? My sanity? I had a lot of knowledge from centuries of life, but he had millennia. That much knowledge could drive me mad, and I wasn't the most stable pony to begin with. Then I could cause far more harm than good.
Or maybe the cost would be far worse. Maybe taking on this power would start a war over who controlled what land and resources. Maybe taking on this power would force me to choose- like I had only yesterday- between two evils, and hope I chose the lesser one.
But would it be worth the cost? Would it be worthwhile to accept this power and risk everything for the benefits it could bring?
"No," I said. "I can't accept your offer."
He looked at me for a moment, curiosity glimmering in his eyes. "Very well. But don't think this is a one-time deal. If you ever need me, I'll be here. Waiting."
I grimaced, but nodded as I left the sealed room of my mindscape. I had no idea how much time had passed while I had been in there, and I would be needed for further duties. Hopefully, I would be able to find my sister as well and see if she could do something about the being inside my head.
~-*-~-*-~-*-~
I leapt over the fallen tree and fired another blast of energy at the creature that was fleeing. It dared to enter the city to feed on the unaware, and it would pay for that choice. I wasn't going to let a lone changeling start something that would fall on all of the ponies I watched over, nor would I let it harm one of them.
But before I could catch it, it made its way back into the caves it called home. I skidded to a stop, blue magic overflowing from my body in a cloak of power, and leaving shining hoofprints in my wake. "Chrysalis!" I called into the caverns.
A few seconds later, the freshly crowned queen of the changelings flew out of the caves and landed at the mouth, her insectoid wings buzzing in the otherwise silent night. "This is unexpected," she said cautiously. "To what do we owe the honor?"
"One of your drones attacked a pony this night," I said, not caring about formal speech. That habit had started dropping more and more in the two years since I had spoken with the Darkness. "I intend to punish that crime."
"Which one was it?" Chrysalis asked.
"The one that recently reentered your hive," I responded quickly. "Give me that one and I will leave you in peace."
Chrysalis looked over her shoulder into the shadows of the cave for a moment. After that moment had passed, a lone changeling moved forward and stood next to her with its head hanging. "I can assure you," Chrysalis said, returning her attention to me, "that he will be properly punished for this act. I simply request he left behind to face the judgement of the hive."
I looked at her squarely. "His crime was against those under my protection," I said steadily. "And I intend to show just how dear a mistake that was. There need not be conflict here, so don't bring it."
"You're right," she hissed back. "There doesn't need to be any conflict here. I guarantee he will be tried by a jury of his peers, just as you and your sister rule out justice. He will be punished for his crime. However, I will not give him over to you simply because he needed food. That would not be justice."
I stared at her, thinking over my options. If I took the criminal by force, it would likely end the truce we had going with the race of shapeshifters. That would likely lead to war, and there was no benefit from that. She would be able to rally the entire hive against me, claiming the single drone had been out there for food. And Celestia would not be far behind on who was resented, for she was the one who gave them the caves in such proximity to the city. It would seem like taunting if I tried something like that.
But she had a good point as well. If he truly was just looking for food, then all of it would be pointless. There was no possibility of that drone receiving a fair trial with the prejudices against the insectoid creatures in our courts. If I left him here to suffer as his own race saw fit, he would be properly punished without bias.
But how would I know the trial even happened? Chrysalis wasn't the most trustworthy of creatures, though definitely moreso than most of her species. But who's to say it would still be a balanced trial?
You know how to handle this, the voice of the Darkness said to me. You could squish them all like the bugs they are, and no pony would ever know. Or you could simply give them a show of strength. Prove to them that you are the Princess of the Night, and you are not to be tested! Show them your power. Or show them mine...
"I concede your point," I stated plainly, ignoring the Darkness. "However, I request that you let me be present for the trial." That drew a surprised look from her. "I simply wish to see how it turns out. I will not interfere. You have my word."
Chrysalis looked back at me quizzically. "Very well," she said after a brief moment. "The trial will be held in three days, so the defendant can build his defense."
I nodded firmly. "I will return then," I stated, turning around to leave. "Thank you for your consideration."
"And thank you for your mercy," Chrysalis said flatly.
~-*-~-*-~-*-~
I watched as the legal proceedings went on. It was actually quite similar to our own proceedings, with two sides presenting a story and a jury deciding if there was guilt to place. Chrysalis sat in place of where my sister or I would, presiding as judge. It would've been quite interesting to watch, but I had other things to worry about.
Throughout the entire thing, I had a strange feeling I was being watched. It was expected, of course. I was an outsider, and the reason one of their own was on trial, so I would be getting a few stares here and there. But there was something else here. There was a feeling of unease as I sat there, my instincts crying out that something big was going to happen. So I glanced behind me to see if there was anything unusual going on.
At first look, it seemed I was truly alone on the balcony overlooking the courtroom. But with my instincts crying out like, there had to be something else. One doesn't survive for centuries without listening to her instincts, after all. So I cast a brief spell that I didn't even need to channel through my horn, and looked back again with sight to reveal the truth behind me.
What was waiting for me was a virtual army of changelings.
Of course they would be there, the Darkness whispered. And haven't I told you to call me Dark? You're the reason one of their friends is on trial, you said so yourself. At least a few of them would want some payback.
I thought over what could happen. They were deceptive creatures, relying on trickery and half-truths to do what they needed to. Seeing them gather like that meant they didn't care as much, especially with so many of them staring right at me. That meant they wanted more than just a simple trick. They wanted real vengeance for putting one of their own on trial in front of the hive. Of course, they wouldn't kill me. They may be angry, but something like that would draw the full wrath of Celestia, like a boot to an ant.
But what did that leave? Would they try a mass feeding on me? Would they cause me to hallucinate things so they could be justified in doing me harm? Would they simply try to drive me mad so my own sister would have to take action? That fit their tactics, and with the ever-growing group behind me.
Of course, I didn't have much time to contemplate it, as one of them noticed me staring. I had been sloppy, and hadn't turned my attention back to the trial once I had seen them. The drone hissed at me and lunged, dropping any sense of a veil that it had over it. I didn't think at that point; I only acted. I sent out a single bolt of energy and hit the changeling in head the head as it came at me.
A second later, the body landed at my hooves.
The courtroom fell into silence at the sound of the magic bolt. The thud of the body drew gasps from those who didn't hiss at me. Chrysalis looked at me, resentment and pain in her eyes. I looked down at the body slowly, not entirely sure what had happened. It was only supposed to be a stunning bolt, but that body was lifeless.
That's when chaos erupted. The group behind me all charged, some from the air, some simply running at me. Some from the courtroom joined in, attacking me from all sides. There was no possible way I would be able to make it out of this one. And they had the perfect story: I had attacked first, and the others simply reacted. Celestia might be able to do something, but there was no possible way for her to do anything significant without starting an all-out war.
That was the last thought that went through my head before I was covered in changelings. I felt them everywhere, kicking and biting. Some of them even threw magic at me, trying to keep me down. I couldn't fight off this many. Maybe a dozen, but this was easily a hundred or more. I didn't have the raw power I needed to keep them off of me.
But I do, Dark said. I can give you the power you need to get out of this. I can give you everything.
I needed to get out of this alive. If I didn't, Celestia might very well go to war in her anger and grief. She might even try to banish them to the Badlands on the southern border of Equestria. And I wouldn't be able to do anything, because I'd be dead. The only way for me to stop this was Dark.
So I took in the power. I tore down the walls and let it run through me. I felt it charge my body, stretching my body to properly accommodate the presence I now held. I felt the rush of energy as my wounds healed faster than they were inflicted. I could feel the cloak of power fall across my shoulders in a way it never had before, shadows dancing to my will.
And with a thought, I built a bubble that threw all of them off of me.
It was exhilarating. All of that power running through my veins, the rush it gave, the control. It was simply amazing.
Soon, I lost track of how many I had to kill. I didn't care. I would never have to rely on someone else ever again. I could protect everypony under my rule. I could show the world who their true guardian was.
What felt like seconds passed and I left the caves in ruins. Those bugs would never harm another pony again. All I had to do was finish the job. I just had to kill their queen and leave the rest to starve.
But it would be oh-so-sweet if they watched her do the same. That sounded like a much better plan, in fact. Leave them all to starve and whither away. Let her subjects watch as she weakened and died. Let them see that their foolishness and selfishness lead to the downfall of the entire species.
With a flick of my horn, I blasted a hole in the rocks and sealed the only entrance to the caves. Let the bugs die. Let them feel fear and pain like that they intended to inflict upon my sister.
Let them see the Nightmare I can truly be.
~-*-~-*-~-*-~
"What have you done?!" Celestia screamed as I entered the throne room. "What did you do to the changelings?!"
"They attacked me," I said calmly, my voice coming out far richer than it had before. "I simply retaliated with due force. They got what was coming to them."
"So you sealed them up under the city?!" she continued. "You left them with no alternative but to attack us?! How could you have done this? Why?"
"I was defending myself! I repeated. "They swarmed me and tried to kill me! They would have killed everypony in the city had I not done what I did! The way I see it, I even gave them a chance to survive by not going through and killing every last one of them personally."
Celestia gaped at me. "They aren't just mindless creatures," she said in shock. "They're sentient beings, just like you or me. They may be vastly different, but they still deserve a fair chance."
"Not when they threaten my kingdom," I replied swiftly. "Not when they only prove to be an untampered threat to the ponies living here."
"What happened to you?" Celestia asked in a quieter tone. "Why are you being so cold? Have you forgotten the lesson from the Elements?"
"The lesson that Kindness will bring a stable life?" I responded. "That Generosity will bring favor? That Laughter will quench all fears? Are these the lessons you're talking about? Because I see a world consuming itself in a mad scramble for power. I see a world where ponies are threatened by creatures that won't respond to Honesty or Kindness. I see a world on fire, burning under the hate and fear that one day, these virtues will be lost to time."
Celestia simply looked at me with pleading, confused eyes. "What about Loyalty? What about those who will stand by each other when things get difficult? What about those who know that though not everypony shows these virtues, the should do so to make the world a little better for those who have known so much pain? What about Magic? What about Friendship?"
"They are all strong virtues to hold," I conceded. "But those bugs threatened every one of them! I did what I needed to do to ensure that better future. And perhaps there's more to be done."
Celestia stood at that one. "What do you mean?"
"I mean maybe it's time to show the world what they have to fear if they threaten the peace," I explained. "I mean to say it's time all the creatures of this world saw the Darkness, saw the Nightmare. Maybe it's time to show them all that I will show no mercy to those who may threaten the safety, the calm safety of my wondrous night."
"I can't let you do that," Celestia said. "I can't let you force subjugation on anyone or anything, and I will not let you kill an entire species just to make a point."
"What can you do to stop me?" I asked. "What can you possibly do to hope to stop me?"
Celestia's face turned into that of reluctant resolution. "Please. You know what I have to do. Don't make me fight you."
I snarled at her, channeling magic into my horn and feeling my connection to the moon solidify. With some focus, I pulled the moon from behind its curtain drew it up between the sun and the planet. "It's time they all stopped living in your precious light," I growled. "It's time they respected me for who and what I am. If you intend to stop me, I'd love to see you try." I took a step towards the throne.
And Celestia charged.
I threw up a shield, not caring to put much into it. She had always pulled her punches with me. It wouldn't take much to knock her to the side with the power now screaming through me. And I had been right. She bounced off the shield and off to the right, falling to the ground and rolling to the wall.
I took calm steps toward the throne. There was no rush. They all needed to see that I was the true ruler of this great country, and that I would do things in whatever manner I see fit. They needed to see that the light of the Sun was nothing but blinding to the truth that they refused to accept. And once they had accepted it, once they knew what was really out there and what to do about it, they would never fear the dark again. They would never go running into the light because they would have no need to fear.
But I felt a blast hit me in the side and throw me into a pillar by the throne before I got to it.
I stood up, looking back at Celestia, her face a mask of grim conviction. I stood slowly, never taking my eyes off of her. If she wanted a fight, she would get a fight. And then, there would be nopony to challenge my rule. Then I could build a better world on the ashes of the old one.
I moved forward at lightning speeds, clearly taking my sister off guard. She barely got a shield up in time for me to blast it away a few feet in front of her. Charging up, I rammed my horn into hers, pushing down and keeping her pinned against the wall. I saw the pain and surprise as I pressed further, my horn glowing with Dark's magic.
But she knew how to retaliate. She angled her head and pushed out with her hooves, shoving me away with all the strength she could muster and out of the wall on the opposite side, forcing me to take to the air to avoid falling to a very painful loss. A few seconds later, she came charging out the window, her horn glowing with golden magic as she fired a burst of magical blasts at me. I lifted my hooves, horn glowing deep blue, and shoved the bolts aside as she flew past me at near supersonic speeds.
I wouldn't let her escape. I couldn't rule if everything and everyone thought I was so weak as to let my predecessor escape. So I followed as fast as I could, firing as many blasts at her as I could.
Then she stopped. I only had a second or two to put up a shield before I slammed into her and pushed her back, golden and blue energy flashing in brilliant displays of light. We flew around each other, occasionally ramming into one another in an attempt to gain an advantage. Eventually, though, Celestia simply sent out a blast twice the size I now stood at. I threw up a shield with all the power I possibly could and forced it to bend around me. Seconds burned by as I strained my newfound power to hold off the assault.
She is nothing compared to what you now are, Dark said to me. Prove it to her. Prove your strength and worth to her. Prove to her that you are the one who should be on that throne. Call on the Moon and finish it!
I called on my pent up anger and frustration. All of the centuries of being ignored and under-appreciated, all the pain of never having anyone who truly understood, all of loneliness. I called on that strength and the power of the moon, channeling it all through my horn as I expanded the shield and caused the beam to explode outward, giving me a prefect opening. I threw out a smaller, more focused beam of my own, pushing all of that emotion and power with it. I watched as the beam split through the air, hearing it superheat and crackle with raw power.
Celestia, however, still had enough time to throw a beam of her own at me. They met midair and burst in a ball of light and power. I felt the pressure as she pushed with calm resolution. But she didn't know my power. She didn't know my rage. So I pumped everything I had into that beam, feeling the power push the sphere back and into her, exploding on impact with her.
I watched as her limp form arced through the air and back through a wall into the castle. I hovered there for a moment, staring at the hole in the wall before gliding down through it and landing in front of her. "Give up, Celestia," I said, panting a bit from the exertion.
She lifted her head, looking at me in pain and grimaced. "I wont... let you... do this to them," she forced out through pained breaths, her horn glowing. "I can't let you use fear as a weapon like this."
"It's a deterrent," I said simply. "One that you are simply not willing to use." I pushed her aside with a weak beam and watched as she slid across the ground and into the altar of the Elements of Harmony. "And your greatest deterrent can do nothing to stop me, because I will bring Harmony everlasting under my rule."
Celestia looked up at me pleadingly as I towered over her. "Please..."
"I won't kill you," I said. "I'm not a monster. Not right now, anyways. If I need to be one, I will be. But right now, I am the hero that saves this great country. I am the one who will protect and serve. I'm the hero of this story, and I'm going to save everyone."
I watched as her horn glowed, picking up the Element of Magic. There was nothing she could do with it against me. None of them would work without disharmony or a bond to give them strength. She was simply trying one last thing to stop me, so reached forward to knock it out of her weakened grip.
But I was stopped by a shield of color so bright, I stumbled backwards. I watched as the other Elements surrounded her and started charging up with immense power. I watched in horror as I realized exactly what those six gems could do, and charged forward. I had to stop it. I couldn't lose now. I couldn't let her strip this power from me and turn me to stone.
But a blinding white light burst from it and hit me, throwing me against the wall. I fell to the ground, my chest aching from the impact. I looked up in time to see a rainbow of colors fly at me and push me through the wall and into the sky. I felt the air around me thin and a bubble form around my body to preserve my life as I left the atmosphere. I felt the power surround me and throw me against a rock larger than anything on the planet. I felt the power surround the huge expanse of space around me and solidify into a barrier stronger than anything I would ever be able to break out of.
I lied on my back for a moment, recovering from the impact of hitting the moon at those speeds. Glancing to the side, I saw a new crater that I had created when I hit. There was so much emptiness, so much nothingness.
I cried. I had failed. I was supposed to be the hero, and I had failed. I had lost my chance to save them all. I had lost my sister. I had lost my position. I had lost everything.
You have not lost me, Dark said, calming me. And you will get another chance. This is only a prison, and prisons can be broken. All this does is give us is time to plan.
Yes, a plan sounded good. It sounded very good. Magic faded with time, and I would have plenty of that. And as soon as it faded enough for me to break out, I would. And I would show Celestia that I was the one who deserved the throne. I would show her that I was the one who would make our ponies stronger.
Because if I failed to be the hero, if Celestia so desperately wanted to take that role, then I would be the villain needed to strengthen those she ruled over. And then we would see who would win the day.
Author's Note
Here you go! Have a story! Don't kill me for not having finished Iron Mare 2 yet!
Really, this is just an interlude story I thought you guys might enjoy while I work on the EMU. Hopefully, I can finish more chapters faster and get it out to you guys within six months. But thank you all for reading and staying with me through the long pauses.
And of course, thank you to Jarkes for editing and theponymaster for pre-reading.
