Twilight trotted behind Pinkie Pie as they slipped back through the narrow streets of Ponyville towards Sugarcube Corner. The pink pony's knees continued to budge and pinch, but it seemed that over time Twilight Sparkle's doubt of her signs had grown back like moss clinging to a rock.
"I'm telling you Pinkie, nothing scary is going to happen." She said.
Pinkie shook her head slowly. "Twi, I wish I could agree with ya! Be safe now, look out for scary things!" She beamed, then her smile faded and she pushed her way inside of her house.
Twilight stared after her, something deep inside of her growing cold. She stared as the door closed shut, then snorted and turned away, hurrying off down the frosty street, eyes half squeezed closed.
The moon was now at its highest point, and the marks of the Mare on the Moon were prominent. The clouds had been chased away by Pegasus ponies, and all was silent. Twilight slowed, flicked her ears, and turned around to the sound of a hoof stomping the ground, then being drawn back in the gravel.
"Pinkie Diane Pie, by Celestia, if that is you-" She was cut off by a squeal cutting open the air like a blade, making her jump. "Rarity!" She twisted around again, seeing the lights inside of the boutique flash on and off.
The lavender mare galloped to the door and slammed her hooves down on the wooden frame. "Rarity, let me in!"
Inside there were loud sobs, and screeches of terror and pain. Twilight slammed on the door harder, eyes widening to a point where it hurt. She tried to draw another breath to call out again, but something was stopping her.
"My beautiful sister!" Rarity cried from inside.
Twilight reared back on her hind legs, threw her front legs forward, and charged at the door, horn glowing with dazzling light. She burst into the boutique, skidding to a halt on the smooth ground and almost crashing onto her side.
Rarity was leaning over Sweetiebell, who was thrashing restlessly on the ground. Blood smeared in places on the clean floor. Twilight's heart felt as if it had turned to stone. The filly had her eyes screwed shut in pain, tears sliding down her cheeks. Along her forelegs, long slices had been cut across her flesh, down to her hooves, which were bloody messes.
"Sweetiebell! Rarity, what happened?"
Before the scared white pony could look up through her wavy purple hair, the lights died out again, and Sweetiebell's shriek cut the silence that followed.
"NIGHTMARE MOON!"
As soon as Celestia has left the room and slipped back down to her own room, yawning and going on about something to do with letters Luna had pushed open her window, checked wildly to make sure the royal guard weren't passing by her room, then thrust herself out of the small gap and into the night.
At the touch of moonlight her mane seemed to billow out more, it gained a sparkling sheen like the glittering stars above. She beat her wings for a long moment, then spiraled for the ground, eyes closed, listening to the beat of her heart.
Sudden darkness fell over her, like the moon had been switched off, and as her eyes flew open, she crashed on the concrete, shoulder scraping on the rough ground. She let out a hoarse wince, but it felt as if hooves were pressed to her throat, and she struggled to breathe.
"H-help..." She choked, spine arching as she coughed and wretched about the place, eyes rolling back in her head.
"Luna, have you come to banish me to the moon?" Said a small, filly voice. Sweetiebell was standing in the middle of the dark street, face twisted in pain. Blood streamed from her little legs onto the ground.
Luna looked up, confusion gripping her with icy claws as she gasped for air. "Sweetiebell... what are you talking about?"
The filly ran at her, crying and wailing, and Luna reversed so fast she fell back on her haunches and let out a muffled cry. A hoof pressed to her muzzle, silencing her.
"Hush little Woona, don't say a word," A cold voice whispered in her ear.
Her eyes flew open at the same time that her wings did, and she threw herself into the air and let out a terrified scream. Sweetiebell was gone, replaced by a dull gray stallion with tatty dark hair, and patches that looked like he had rusted.
"Get away from me!" She hissed.
He spread his wings and floated up to her, so she could see deep, rutted scars on his legs. The closer he got to her, the more they cracked open, and more blood began to drip to the ground.
Down from the ground came the sound of hooves running on the ground, voices calling. Luna tried to call out for help, but the stallion swiped his hoof at her, and with a gruesome crack, hit her right across the jaw. Tears burned at her eyes and she yelped, but the noise was followed by another strike to the face.
"Woona, my love, do not cry. I've had so much pain my little Princess, you can handle this."
"Sweetiebell?" Rarity dashed around the corner and skid to a halt, staring at Luna and her mystery stallion hovering in the air, one ghostly and bloodied, the other twisted in pain. "P-princess Luna... TWILIGHT!" She wailed, turning and fleeing.
The stallion faded away with dark smoke that made Luna cough, and she slumped from the air to the ground. He reappeared in Rarity's way, a knife held tight it his teeth. He waved his head past her legs, dragging a long slice across both of her knees. She shrieked and toppled forward, and he sliced again the other way, right across the base of her horn.
Luna groaned. "Stop... Blitz..." She knew who this stallion was, this gray pony with a hunger for revenge.
"Knife got your tongue?" He said, stepping over the shivering heap that was Rarity, and jabbed the blade between Luna's lips, so it gouged her gums and teeth. She let out a cry and blood bubbled from her mouth.
"Where's my pretty nightmare?" He roared, rearing up, then bringing his heavy hooves down on her neck.
Before his blow struck, there was a beam of light, and a flash of white soared past, driving him back with a squeal like a pig being chased, as the light around it engulfed him. Celestia landed and galloped straight at him, then flipped her head back, horn glowing like white fire.
The darkness shattered like glass as she raised the sun, but there was a chuckle from behind her. It was not the stallion though, he had shrunk into the shadows. Luna was on her hooves, blood dribbling from her face. She slowly turned her broken, twisted face to stare at the sky.
"Thank you sister, for restoring my glory..." She whispered.
The sun had been dragged into the sky, but the ghastly moon had not been lowered. Their paths crossed, and the town was lit with the silvery, ghostly light of an eclipse. In Luna's place was a darker mare, taller, with a wild look in her eyes. Nightmare Moon.
The stallion and Nightmare Moon stood side by side, both of their forelegs scarred and tattered, torn, ravaged- tortured.
"Celestia, my dear sister, you're legs are so perfect..." Nightmare Moon murmured. "Let me fix that for you."
Celestia whirled back, eyes rolling back in her head, nostrils flaring. "Sister- please, stop!"
The gray stallion watched Nightmare Moon drive her sister into the shadows, snapping with her teeth at Celestia's clean white legs teasingly, never giving away at what moment she would actually strike. He lifted his knife and watched, listening to the Princess of the Sun's blood-curdling cry echo through PonyVille, and the sun behind them began to sink away like a pebble being dragged through the river.
He floated forward, clutching the knife in his teeth. "My love, you have what you wanted, forever night." He said quietly. "Now it's my turn. You know I've always wanted your heart."
The last noise PonyVille heard was Nightmare Moon's anguished screams, before it was plunged into forever night, scarred like the scars on his legs.
Night had fallen over Equestria, shadows swallowing the landscape. Staring from her bedroom window, Luna's eyes were ashen, sunken, hunted even. She looked exhausted, hunched against the wall, staring through the glass at the dark land that unfolded before her like an unrolled scroll.
"Luna?" The door cracked open a little, letting a spear of light fall in.
She whirled around, heart leaping right out of her chest. "Tia? Thank goodness, it's just you..."
Her sister trotted across the room, eyes glowing with amusement. "Who else?"
Luna cast a glance over her shoulder, past her billowing tail, and back out of the window. "No-one." She breathed.
~
The sound of wind chimes rattled through the streets of Ponyville. Spots of rain began to darken the dusty ground. Small voices began to grow from the darkness, those of confused pegasi. High up in Cloudsdale, ponies ran back and forth, some glided higher, some peered through the cloud layer. The rain was not of their creation. It was just... happening.
Twilight was turning over and over in her bed, restless. "N-nightmare... moo... moon." She moaned.
Her hooves churned as if she was running in her dreams. She tossed around more, until her blankets when flying and landed over Spike's bed. The dragon raised his head sleepily. "Twi?"
Her eyes flashed open. "CELESTIA!" She wailed, then looked around wildly, panting.
"What's going-" He closed his mouth as Twilight galloped past him and down the steps into the library.
She pulled a scarf from a hook and whirled it around her neck, then disappeared into the night.
The street was silent besides the whispers of leaves in the trees. Twilight breathed roughly, looking around, breath billowing around her. She shivered against the cold. It was Summer, but she felt as if she was flank-deep in snow.
From somewhere ahead, behind Rarity's boutique, came the sound of quiet hoofsteps. Twilight's eyes widened and she stepped forward into the light of the full moon.
"Who goes there?" She said, legs trembling.
"PINCHY KNEE, PINCHY KNEE!" That was Pinkie Pie- what was she doing behind Rarity's boutique?
Twilight peered around the corner, to see the pink pony creeping along the wall, her front legs wobbling all over the place.
"What are you doing?"
She looked up with a gasp, then sighed with relief. "Twilight! I got a pinchy knee- that mean's something scary is going to happen!"
"Scary? Oh come on Pinkie, go back to bed. It's late."
"Then why are you out here?"
The lavender pony turned to stare at the moon, the faint mare shape in it seemed darker that night. "I had a dream... about NightmareMoon, and somepony..."
"Somepony? Who?" The pink pony blinked, looking furiously down her nose at her knees.
Twilight shook her head slowly. "No-one."
