Chapter 8 - Nightmare in the Moonlight

When I opened my eyes, I was in the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters.

“How did I get here?” I wondered. Last I remembered I was in the Everfree forest. I wasn’t sure how I got here but I knew something wasn’t right. Suddenly a Manticore appeared out of nowhere. I wasn’t about to fight a Manticore so I turned and ran. This wasn’t a very smart move. The Manticore turned aggressive and ran after me. I ran as fast as I could, but the Manticore was gaining on me. I ran until I came to a cliff. I was trapped with nowhere to turn. I readied myself to attack but was stopped by a soothing voice.

“A warm welcome to you chosen hero” The voice said. The Manticore transformed into an Alicorn with a blue mane and a mystical glow. “I am Luna, princess of the night. I have been assigned to protect your dreams and mind.”

“What do you mean?” I asked. “Why does my mind need to be protected?”

“The demonic spirit that has been summoned to the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters can enter into ponies’ minds and cause horrible visions. The Manticore you saw earlier was one of those manifestations.” Luna explained. “You must be careful. If it is allowed to enter you mind, you will be completely powerless to defeat it.” I felt myself beginning to wake up as I watched the vision fade. “Train yourself to resist its power. Only then can you defeat it.” She said as she disappeared.

I woke up late into the night. I turned to see that Twilight was still next to me. It was just a dream I thought nothing more, but I knew that it was more. I knew that who or whatever was in the castle was more powerful than I thought. Still the fact that I was under the protection of Princess Luna was shocking to me. I saw that Twilight was stirring as well. Perhaps she was visited by Luna as well.

“ugh…princess?...Princess!” Twilight jumped. She turned to me. I could tell she had experienced the same vision I had. “I…I saw Princess Luna.” She exclaimed. “She told me to guard my mind. What does this all mean?” she asked.

“It means that whatever is in the Castle of the Regal Pony Sisters is stronger than we thought.” I said. She looked at me with a concerned look on her face. “Don’t worry.” I said comfortingly. “We’ll be fine.”

“I hope your right.” Twilight replied.

I hoped so too. I wondered what would happen if we failed. Would Equestria fall to the power of Sombra? Would I never find the rest of our friends, or would my mission start over like in a video game. All these things began to swirl around in my mind and made my head hurt.

“Dawn is approaching and we have a lot to do in the morning so let’s try to get a little more sleep.” Twilight motioned. I agreed with her. We needed to get as much rest as possible. I lay back down and closed my eyes and returned to sleep.