Commission for darksmirf
And so it came to pass, deep inside the castle ruins of Everfree forest, that the six bearer of the elements of harmony combined their bonds of friendship into the mightiest source of power the land of Equestria ever had created, ultimately defeating the evil spirit by the name of Nightmare Moon. In a tempest of rainbow colored energy, her possession over the innocent alicorn princess Luna came to an end, and her evil will passed away into oblivion. As soon as the princess of night was released, her elder sister, the sun goddess Celestia, tamed the poor soul with her tearful offer of friendship. Luna obliged, hoping her sister could forgive her for what the alter ego had caused. The ponies of Equestria rejoiced, celebrating their saviors and the return of Princess Celestia, as well as welcoming their new co-ruler into her role as the symbol of the dark canopy that blesses them with rest.
But what history never told of was the involvement of yet... another enemy. One that lived to serve Nightmare Moon to his dying breath. In the great evil's shadow he stood, pledging his loyalty to the one and only pony he saw as the true empress of this sacred land. His loyal eyes never stopped watching the youth of midnight, a true joy he thanked Nightmare Moon for blessing him with.
The mightiest unicorn ever to come out from the void of darkness.
Midnight Watcher.
The nightmare's consort
Part 1
The sun's radiating heat was no rare sight for the inhabitants of Ponyville. Both earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns woke up from their blissful sleep to greet another day of light. Foals running out to play or go to school, adults to do their everyday routines or work for the sake of their family. The pegasi of Cloudsdale could always watch the burning orb's might raining over their cloudy city, a gift in itself for them to bask in while clearing the skies. It was nothing but an honor for them to make way for their princess' sun so everypony could share it. Sun reflected on the monocle of a wealthy stallion, his smile grew wide as a grateful thought struck past his mind. He wanted to thank destiny for giving him the life of a rich pony in this glorious city named Canterlot.
It had been a day since the festival of the summer sun celebration, which had been temporarily postponed for reasons everypony knew of, and today there was nothing else to do than relax and enjoy the sun's return...
But in one place, far away from all that was civilization, the craggy mountains of Equestria remained cold and deserted. The gray and dead ground served only as temporary homes for the dragons during their wanderings and pilgrimages. A chilly wind swept past the surface, dragging some dust and gravel with it in a short-lived journey before continuing up in the air. As the breeze dispatched, a slight jolt appeared from nowhere over a flat piece of ground. As sudden as it appeared, it was gone without a trace.
After a few seconds, the jolt returned with an increase in quantity. Crackings and rolls resembling the might of a thunderstorm filled the empty air, expanding slowly into a lump of electricity with the size of a smaller boulder. The lump continued to grow in size and began to consume more and more space around it. Thunder bolts shot out like roots from a tree and sought down to the hard surface, binding its source firmly before spreading further down into the mountain's inner. The electricity illuminated the area violently, moments form creating a flash of blinding light.
In an ear-cracking explosion, the cool air of the mountain top combusted into an ocean of lightnings shooting everywhere. If ponies would have turned their eyes to the mountains at that moment, they would have seen a small twinkle from the highest peak.
Smoke and ashes rose up in the sky, filling the pure air with tainted scorches as it left the ground. When the giant smokescreen finally died out, an equally giant searing had drawn several lines all over the dead ground, forming a mark impossible to see if you didn't see it from an higher altitude. In the middle of the epicenter, a silhouette revealed the pony that had arrived with the harsh outburst of magic. The equine wobbled for a brief moment before it took a step forward, the art of walking was a challenge worthy its entire attention and focus. As the second step seemed to achieve more progress than the previous one, the third and fourth were nothing but normal movements.
A dark gray horn appeared, tightly followed by a blueish and light purple mane hanging loose over a gray muzzle. The pony shook his head without opening its eyes; that was still another task he couldn't complete just yet. But as his long tail was visible, which was knotted into a shortened style nopony had seen for many years, an inhale through the nostrils was all needed to give him strength.
The gray eyelids opened, revealing the cat-like irises in his dodge blue eyes. His legacy spoke not only of a pony's, but a dragon's too.
He blinked once, then twice to clear out all dust from his dry eyes, now his vision had full access to what was around his line of sight. Pain pulsated uncomfortably inside his head, an ache which had been held back for a time he didn't know of, a result of his recent state which he just exited. The pain convulsed and forced the unicorn stallion down to his knees, gritting teeth and tensed eyelids was his only escape in this personal pony hell he experienced.
"Argh... what... how... long have... I..." he mumbled without any success to keep a clear mind.
Suddenly his horn began to glimmer. The hurt intensified due to his channeling, but this was now his final resort to be free. A small but steady stream grew from the tip of his magical cusp, this would surely help in all ways possible as long as nopony interrupted him...
"What is this...?" an incredibly deep voice like a demon's said before several tons of weight landed next to the concentrating pony. Hard scales all over the body, massive muscles in each limb and torso, sharp talons and teeth able to cut through stone, and to finish the dreadful sight, a set of large wings decorated on the back of this giant creature. A fully grown dragon with the color of emerald green had arrived to the scene.
"I don't know, but the light came from here" a light blue dragon said as he also decided to put his feet on the craggy ground, flapping his wings one last time to ease the landing.
The unicorn didn't notice them, he was way too occupied with channeling his puny amounts of magic into an orb smaller then a pea. His muscles tensed as perspiration broke out from his forehead.
Meanwhile, the two dragons looked down from their height at the tiny pony. Their sharp eyes immediately noticed the markings all over the ground, sadly something they completely ignored. Their monstrous teeth were revealed in two sinister grins as pretty much the same idea came up in their mind. "I suppose we at least didn't come here for nothing" the light blue beast stated and glanced up at his friend.
"It's not much, but I suppose it's something" the other one replied while licking his split tongue over his upper row of teeth. "Let's make it crispy, at least...".
The two dragons snickered in unison while their prey kept his focused state of mind. The orb from its horn was still way too small to give the appearance of doing any harm. Thus, the giant monsters leaned back with wide-open mouths to inhale air. Their lungs filled up the fresh oxygen and defiled it with their own innards' putrefying abilities. The air they stored became heavily combustible as it shot up from their throats again.
The pony almost succumbed to the pain that now spread to his entire body, but the magic kept growing.
Two jets of fires flew through the air, incinerating everything on their way to the common target. As just a few meters remained until the high-velocity bursts would reach their victim... the dark gray unicorn flashed open his dark blue glowing eyes.
An enormous amount of magical energy expanded from the tiny orb into a protective shield surrounding his body. When the sea of flames collided with the sudden obstacle, the sphere immediately started to crackle with even more magical substance. Several beams of gray shot from the equally colored horn, increasing the power output to ridiculous levels. Black streams surrounded the orb like belts, the energies grew unstable, another surge of expansion took place, and then the host of all this magic arched his eyebrows in rage. His body levitated up from the ground, leaving him floating in the orb he fed with magic. His mane and tail burst into dark blue flames and his entire body shifted into pitch black, only his dark blue eyes and gritting teeth were visible.
The two dragons only had time to widen their eyes in shock before another flash of light exploded with the sphere closely behind it. Their giant bodies disappeared in the light, consumed just like the rest of the surroundings. Gravel and dust shot like shrapnel in all directions and big parts of the mountain top cracked into smithereens, crushing the peak in the process.
In the remains of destruction, four hooves gently levitated down to the ravaged mountain surface. Hardly a sound was made when his body finally could lean comfortably on their steady pillars. The mane and tail had returned to their normal states, leaving no trace of what just happened to them. His eyes were also 'normal' again, slit-like just like the dragons he just turned into nothing. The pain was gone, his magic was restored thanks to the outbreak, and the clear eyes could now finally behold where he was.
A disappointed grimace was all he could afford for the moment. "Dragons? Those pathetic creatures still exists? Hmpf... then it can'st have been that lo-".
He cut himself off once he realized the bitter truth peeping up from a big cloud. His bestial eyes widened in terror as what he least expected to see again emerged from the thick clouds. Warmth and light covered the entire mountain with its massacred top, showing the lone unicorn its full presence in the canopy. It was the very evidence that Celestia's might still ruled Equestria.
His lips trembled in fear, his eyes stared in terror, his entire muscle system collapsed in defeat, absolutely nothing of what just happened in front of him was approved. A fore hoof full of anger and hatred raised up in the air, gathering all physical might it could summon before striking down to the hard ground.
"MAY YOU BURN IN PONY HELL, CELESTIA!" his extremely loud voice shouted at the sun. His slit eyes narrowed, pressing together the darkness it hardly let through as a flood of memories took shape in the blackened void...
Year 350
The Canterlot mountains
An all consuming night stained with millions of stars, an eternal cloak of darkness stretching out to the horizon. This was the work of a pony carrying powers without any worthy adversary, and the very being who decided to taint the clear blue sky with this darkened counterpart had decided to behold the fruits of her blessing.
A body more pitch-black than the night itself, an ethereal mane and tail reflecting the very symbolic ideals of a clear sky's pattering stars in a cloud of cobalt blue, the elegant shoes, chest piece and unmistakeable helm, a piercingly sharp horn that dignifies the standards as magical and the majestic wings showing the capabilities of flying, and last but by no means least the body height combined with a proud pose... created a most perfect pony meant to rule with a hoof harder than diamond.
The divine spirit Nightmare Moon cast a look colder than ice down from the high cliff, observing what her subjects had decided to do during this eternal night. She was pleased so far, judging by the satisfied smirk on her lips. The ponies of Ponyville had no choice but to wander in the night, awake and aware of what was to come during their new ruler's rule.
Her head tilted slightly for every time she wished to see another part of her empire, there was no need for her to come close and look; being a part of the night gave her the unique ability to see much clearer than during the time of day.
She simply had to snicker at the humorous thought. Sunlight? Ever to appear again? Virtually inviting Celestia to take part of her reign? A breath of laughter finally escaped Moon's lungs, providing a terrifying tone echoing down the high cliff. The sound traveled all the way down, ending up as a breeze of reminding to all the subjects who still doubted their ruler's good will. Foals cried, mares curled and stallions shivered; none of them wanted to hear the tyrant's prosperity...
However, terrifying as the laughter was, there was yet one pony who simply couldn't imagine a more beautiful song playing through his ears when the divine mare showed her good mood. Walking out from the evil mare's shadow, a dark gray unicorn with a bluish and purple mane had taken the choice to stand right next to his empress. Moon glanced down at the stallion who basked in a fresh gust of wind blowing through his mane, she certainly liked what she saw.
"Well...?" she simply asked without any explanation to what she meant. But there was no need for it, the stallion knew exactly what the topic of conversation was about.
A deep inhale of chilly night air, then he spoke. "I've visited every settlement and tribe in Equestria. They've been properly informed of the change of power, my empress. And of course, all of those who immediately opposed you... have been properly obviated" he explained with a stain of sadism and death reflecting in his slit-like eyes
The addressed mare could now see her loyal servant kneeling, a very usual sight to behold for her. "Good. And... any words of where that coward Celestia might be hiding yet?" she asked with a significantly stronger hope for good news. But as the unicorn glanced up with a frown at her, she understood it was a negative. Anger pulsed through her mind as a fore hoof stomped the ground.
"May Discord haunt her dreams! I simply cannot understand how the ponies of Equestria could let this weak alicorn rule them. As soon as she sensed my almighty power approaching her throne, she escaped it! Abandoning her loyal subjects like nothing and then hides without leaving any traces? Is this what the so-called 'sun goddess' Celestia is capable of?".
Her voice increased in strength for each breath she took, enhancing into fishtail winds cracking through the calm air. The divine mare snorted in frustration for each time she found displeasing thoughts in her head, especially the ones about a very sad fact...
As long as Celestia carried the crown of Equestria, Nightmare Moon couldn't call herself a true ruler of these lands until she had claimed it. That was the major reason for why the search for this specific pony was the most important task at hoof for her.
The unicorn known as Midnight Watcher sighed with a confident smile as he rose from the kneeling. "Celestia is nothing but a misguided alicorn believing she had what it takes to rule a land. Her very acting is the strongest proof of why Equestria has been saved and not 'stolen' from her weak grasp..." his slit eyes looked deeply into the larger mare's almost equally shaped irises.
"The puny cries from your subjects are just a side-effect from the sudden change your beautiful night have given them. It's just a simple matter of time before they realize what an indescribably generous gift they have been blessed with, and then... nopony will remember the light of the sun or even their failure of a leader...".
Moon tilted her head down with the eye-contact in place. The doubtless expression her servant gave pleased her to no end, his immortal loyalty was her pride, something she always congratulated herself for. Another snicker from her black lips.
"Oh my, dear Midnight... if my inner voice didn't know any better, It'd suspect you for being a silver-tongue..." she explained while turning around to face her servant.
The male chuckled delightfully over the recently spoken words. "My tongue was made to spread your message, my ears to obey your commands, and my eyes to witness the night's stunning beauty... " he paused just to cock an eyebrow before finishing that praising sentence.
"... as well as its creator's...".
The divine mare narrowed her ice blue eyes. Those words were of several kinds in her mind.
"Your loyalty is remarkable, but the bold nature of your soul is what truly marks who you are... PEASANT!" she suddenly yelled with violently arched eyebrows and gritting teeth.
Midnight's eyes shrunk in an instant before his immediate kneel to the dirty ground. Fear clenched his heart, but there were no regrets in his intentions for using that last sentence. But he knew how pleasing his empress found it to punish her subjects, and as she just clearly stated, he was nothing but another subject to rule over.
Her royally decorated hooves stepped forward to the unicorn, each one enhancing the dark aura she brought with her. And as soon as she looked straight down at her servant, the moment of revelation was in.
Suddenly, her magical mane moved out to touch the gray chin almost scraping the ground. With a quick snap, the pony stood up again with his muzzle aimed directly at Moon's, giving the cyan eyes a moment to send a wave of lust into Midnight's entire soul.
"And that's why you one day will earn the warmth from a divine mare and ruler..." she whispered.
The unicorn didn't have time to feel the exploding blush on his cheeks until the majestic alicorn tossed him down to the dirt again. "Make sure you continue looking for Celestia. I won't rest easy until her presence is vanquished by my hoof" Moon said as she reached the end of the cliff she stood on.
The stallion got up on his legs again, absolutely much more grateful with his position after hearing these extremely exalting words. "Of course, my empress! I live to..." he was about to say until the mentioned pony looked over her shoulder.
"Now..." she hissed with a glare able to kill.
Midnight Watcher halted, nodded and then focused magic from his horn to finally disappear in a flash...
The roar traveled far out from the mountain top, but the even greater distance prevented anypony to hear even a chirp of the angered sound. Even more frustration echoed inside Midnight's head, the scarlet emotion boiled up under extreme heat and transformed into renewed hate. He couldn't understand how Nightmare Moon could have failed again. The odds were so insignificant they shouldn't even be considered an option. Not when it came to her, not even close. The return was supposed to be her most prepared attack ever and nothing would be able to stop it.
Not even those cursed elements...
Midnight knew he had to cool down and think. If, against all odds, Celestia would have defeated her opponent, would she be so ruthless and merciless that she'd go for a kill?
No, she was too weak for such a cunning strategy. The feelings she always held for her fellow ponies would tell her to stop and instead try to convince the enemy to form a pact of peace. According to Midnight, that was completely ridiculous... so that simply had to be the truth. Celestia must have imprisoned Nightmare Moon after her inglorious victory, probably in the deepest part of the Canterlot dungeon.
The dark gray unicorn closed his eyes for another second, the overflowing emotions still hadn't calmed down in his inner mentality. All thoughts about how disgraced his empress had to be right now, how utterly pathetic she must feel, the very mortification in letting an alicorn of lower dignity and power overthrow her, a horror he suffered for each moment that passed. So there really was nothing else but to act at once and save his empress. He had to travel to Canterot and release the almighty being, even if Celestia who obviously is guarding her would prove to be a worthy adversary versus himself. After all, Nightmare Moon was much more powerful than him...
With dedication and a burning thirst for revenge, the unicorn stallion channeled up enough magic for his teleportation spell while he recalled the image of his intended destination. Since he actually had no idea of how long he had been gone, safety was necessary; he certainly didn't want to end up being materialized in a wall or tree. And as soon as he pictured the perfect spot, a flash occurred, and what once was a silent and chilly mountain top, could now continue its rest as the remains of an immense explosion and what seemed to have been a one-sided battle.
Meanwhile in the wonderful city of Canterlot, several ponies had succeeded to find what today could offer. If it wasn't a fancy restaurant, it was a boutique with Hoity Toity's latest brand of clothes for the rich pony. Stallions with their top hats and monocles, mares wearing pompadour dresses and expensive make-up, those were the main inhabitants of the wealthy and refined city. Not a disturbance in sight as long as the eye could reach along the exquisite roads.
On a square not too far away from the Canterlot palace entrance, there was a famous bakery many ponies happily took their time traveling to. In the midst of the road there were several tables and chairs made for outdoor serving so the customers could enjoy their fabulous afternoon sun.
"I'd say, my dear. These scones are certainly the most delicious treats I've ever laid taste on" a fancily dressed stallion said as he leaned back on his chair. "You sure you won't have another one?" he then asked the mare sitting across the table. She giggled while waving her paper fan with a fore hoof. "Oh no, dear. I do have to think of my shape. Can't trot around with a swollen flank now..." she excused.
The fine stallion chuckled. "Do ho ho ho! Don't think of such things, my dear. Sure, you might not be a Fleur de Lis, but that flank of your isn't that big...".
In that instance he realized what he just said, causing him to drop his monocle in fear of the grievously hurt mare. She glared in anger as she leaned over the table. "What... did you just...".
She never had time to finish that sentence. Right when her yells of anger were supposed to hail over the poor stallion, a magic flash appeared right next to her.
Dark gray magic illuminated the whole area for a brief second before vanishing again as a male unicorn carrying the exact same color as his magic appeared from nowhere. The couple jumped in fright. "Oh my sweet goodness!" the fine mare yelled as she fell off her chair and landed on the hard ground. The stallion quickly adjusted his monocle and stared in even more fright at what just happened, unaware of exactly who stood just a hoof away from him. When he realized it was a unicorn who obviously used some fancy magic trick, he furrowed his eyebrows while his mare got up from the dust.
"I'd say, young colt! This is no place for meddling magicians to do their frazzle and dazzle!" he stated to prove his point.
The unicorn Midnight Watcher glanced slowly at the arrogant stallion, seriously annoyed of the noises escaping his mouth. He noticed the fancy clothes on the pony, something he didn't quite understand. Such garnets was more than a rare sight, but that didn't really concern him even the slightest. Instead he wanted to prove his own point. "Keep your muzzle silent, peasant..." he hissed with a shade over his eyebrows.
Sadly, the stallion didn't catch the hint. Instead he stood up from his chair and prepared a scolding he never expected to use in his life. But when he opened his mouth, a magic collar surrounded his neck in an instant, halting his movement as it squeezed his soft neck.
"I said... keep that ignorant muzzle shut, or I'll make sure it will never speak again" the even angrier unicorn said and shrunk the collar to suffocate his victim even more.
The fancy pony got up on his hindlegs with his fore hooves struggling to get off the deadly grip, but nothing else than puny grunts and choking noises came out. At that moment, the mare realized what happened, thus used her high-pitched voice to scream in terror. Midnight glanced at her and summoned another magic collar from his horn onto her neck, giving her the same kind of terror the fancy stallion experienced. As the annoying sound stopped, he shifted his eyes between the dying ponies.
"It would seem the ponies of Canterlot haven't lost their ignorance. There are needs for many changes when Nightmare Moon comes back..." he stated and levitated the two ponies up in the air, only to directly throw them away from each other. As the refined equines hit the ground in loud tumbles, Midnight released the collars from their necks and walked past the outdoor serving. Several ponies had heard the scream and gathered around the scene. Several of them ran away to warn the guards of this violent pony...
With little to no obstacles in his way, Midnight casually beheld all the structures he never had seen before. A little doubt tainted his heart when buildings made out of colored cement instead of wood and marble appeared in every corner he saw. He didn't understand the architecture at all. Last time he visited Canterlot there were no buildings this high or sturdy. Why were there glass over the windows? What in Equestria were those banners on the house walls saying? 'Fashion Show'?
Too much unusual things filled Midnight's mind, so many new objects and so little time to spare. Had Celestia really been able to reinstall and practice more influence on her subjects during this short...
The unicorn stopped dead in his tracks with wide-open eyes. All air around him stilled as his heartbeats actually ached for a moment. How... long had he been gone, actually?
Year 350
Outskirts of the Cloudsdale tribe
The winds were usually chilly and continuously moving past the spread clouds of what one day would be the greatest city in the sky, but lately they had been steadily enhancing due to the lack of sun. The pegasi always shivered, their wings slowly growing weaker for each day that passed during their new reign. No happy thoughts lived inside their heads, no will to smile existed, yet they all smiled reassuringly wherever they walked, knowing somepony always watched them. A young pegasus colt disobeyed his mother and walked out from his cloud tent just so he could glance up in the sky for a second. When the frightened mare hasted out to grab her foal, she accidentally looked up too.
They both stood frozen in fear. The bloodcurdling sight of the divine alicorn who stood on a smaller cloud made them realize what was so important to do whenever those cyan slit-irises saw them. The two ponies instantly curved their lips into sheepish smiles, temporarily pleasing the evil being staring down at them before they turned away.
Nightmare Moon couldn't stop smiling either. As she gently focused magic into the little cloud so she could move away a little distance, a snicker almost developed into a madpony's laughter. But before she could reach that level of entertainment for herself, a dark gray flash appeared behind her.
"Good. You're here..." Moon stated instantly without even bothering a glance over her shoulder. Instead she kept her muzzle pointing directly at the Canterlot castle, allowing her servant to quickly use the walk-on-clouds spell on his hooves. A comforting smile dressed Midnight's lips as he bowed down in submission.
"Why of course, my empress. When you call, I obey..." he said and rose up again. The alicorn lost her smile at the very same second.
"There is a matter you will participate in hearing now. I will make myself clear the first time, so listen carefully" Moon stated with a sigh. Midnight didn't have any intentions else but to do as he was commanded, even if the lack of eye-contact would have felt better for him if this really was that important. But the other pony didn't turn around.
"My suspicions have spoken to me lately, and it would seem that Celestia isn't merely hiding; she must be preparing something."
The unicorn cocked an eyebrow in disbelief. "How come, my empress? And preparing for what?".
Moon arched her eyebrows due to the incompetence she heard from behind. But perhaps an explanation would help her slow subject "Lately... I have felt a presence gaining strength all over Equestria. The night remains, but it's like the air itself and the very ground the ponies walk on are boiling with intensity. The winds are telling a tale of change, my soul... is actually growing unsure of what is going on. I can't predict it! It MUST have something to do with Celestia!".
She stomped a fore hoof on the dark cloud, causing a lesser lightning bolt to strike down to the earth in the split of an already split second. Midnight widened is eyes in shock of what just occurred before his eyes.
Using his most respectful way of talking, he decided to open his mouth. "My empress. Celestia is no near your potential, less your wisdom... but..." he paused to ready his next words, knowing they could be dangerous. And as predicted, the divine mare finally turned her head around, awaiting the words she didn't allow.
"... But since your senses are feeling this approach, I can understand... if... fear is..." he cringed before saying.
The darkness in Nightmare Moon's cat-like irises consumed all colors in her eyes, creating two voids of black that outmatched the shade on her coat. Faster than the lightning she just ccreated, a burst of magic shot from her horn directly at her servant's horn, dispelling the magic around his hooves. The male pony could only gasp in the face of his possible destiny... that until another shot of magic grasped his neck like a collar.
He levitated through the empty air, now hanging defenselessly in front of the furious mare. The grip wasn't so tight, so he could still breath regularly. But when he understood his magic was disabled after the beam to his cusp, plus minding the extreme altitude beneath, he knew how close death still was.
"Fear... you say?" Moon asked with an echoing voice traveling far away. Her eyes were still covered in darkness so frightening it actually unnerved Midnight Watcher. "Look into yourself! What do you feel?" she yelled and moved him a little closer to her head.
The unicorn couldn't stop staring into the two voids, the chill they brought up his spine was way too terrifying for him to even come up with the idea. No thoughts stood still, they all ran around in his head randomly without any goal. That feeling of insecurity and fear of death ate him up from the inside, digesting all his cool and self-esteem into pure... fear. His facial expression imitated the feeling, a reflection with wide-open and bloodshot eyes, followed by frowning eyebrows and reluctant lips.
Moon grinned, this feeling showering over her had a very invigorating effect; it was almost too fun to end.
"Do I look like somepony who 'fear', my dear little peasant?" she asked, causing the pony in her deadly grasp to shake his head violently. She finally decided to end this little game, thus turned her eyes back to normal and shot a beam of magic at Midnight's horn before throwing him back on the cloud again. The stallion slowly got up on his hooves again, utterly ashamed of being so easily converted into what his empress even easier could repress. But while he focused on standing up again after the tumult he just experienced, Moon continued to her point, looking directly at her loyal servant this time.
"I don't fear, my subject. But I have decided to take precautions... and that involves you" she continued and took a light step towards Midnight.
The downed stallion had managed to get up on his knees at least when responding. "Y-yes?".
"Let's say... hypothetically... that Celestia somehow would walk away victorious once I confront her. What would you do in that case?" she asked, expecting no answer else but...
"I'd dedicate my useless life to take vengeance on that cursed creature of a pony..." he answered without a stain of doubt as he finally stood up again.
Moon saw the dedication in his eyes as usual, therefore she had to snicker again. "Yes, that is you... my little pony. I knew your answer before I even asked... but that is also why I must do...".
The stallion blinked.
"... this..." Nightmare Moon said casually just a second before the spell she had been working on for a while charged up from the tip of her horn and immediately shot at her servant again. He shut his eyes tight, believing she had decided to kill him for his disobedience. But to his big surprise nothing particular happened. When he looked again, a transparent shroud of dark blue magic had completely covered his body. A few seconds later, the coat melted into his body, disappearing into his flesh. Looking like a question mark, Midnight carried the most confused stare he knew of.
"I must defeat Celestia alone. And if I can't do it, you will be even easier for her. That's why I just cast this spell on you..." she explained with relaxed eyes at the unicorn.
"But... what purpose does it serve? I've never seen this kind of magic before..." the still confused stallion responded while looking at his chest, hooves and then his back.
Moon was a little more tolerant on his lack of knowledge this time. She had invented and completed that spell just a few days ago, so nopony could know of it. "I say again: if I somehow would loose against Celestia... you and I will share the same fate" she stated very matter-of-factual.
Midnight didn't need much time to understand what she meant by that. He had just lived through fear, so it shouldn't have been that easy accepting the fact his soul was kept hostage. He didn't understand her reasons for why she wanted him to follow the same path of destiny as his empress. But none the less, he actually felt honored to be the bearer of Nightmare Moon's enchantment no matter what it did. She simply had to have some idea with this. "I see, my empress..." he said in a tone of appreciation and bowed his head.
The alicorn mare smirked in satisfaction. "Very good, my loyal servant..." she said with narrowed eyes "Now go and keep looking for Celestia".
Midnight nodded and charged up magic from his horn. In a flash, he disappeared to the next part of the realm he hadn't searched. He sure didn't doubt obeying Nightmare Moon, his loyalty to her was so strong that it only could grow weaker. However, he did have some thoughts still surrounding the enchantment placed on him. What did it actually mean? And could it perhaps have something to do with... what she said the last time they met? The unicorn blushed as that specific idea started to create images in his head...
At the front gate of Canterlot castle, several guards stood in front of the bridge leading over the moat into the very castle yard. All dressed in their golden armor, they looked so similar it was almost ridiculous. However, most of the guards had a black or very dark brown coat and only one of them was completely white like snow. In fact, all of the black guards leaned at the only one sticking out like a sore thumb, all looking rather annoyed and ready to fight.
"WHAT... did you call us?" one of the dark brown stallions asked the white one.
He was filled with insecurity and fear, forcing him to go into a defensive behavior. "Hey, I'm sorry! I thought it was... okay using... that word since you always do it!" he excused with shifting eyes looking everywhere but at the other guards.
"That's OUR word! You're not allowed to use it! If you say that again, we have a problem here! You got that?" another of the black guards pointed a hoof at the poor male. The rest grit their teeth in anger and leaned even closer.
"Okay, okay! I get it! Sorry, I was just trying to fit in and..." he was about to excuse again when his nervous eyes landed on a dark gray unicorn about to cross the bridge from a distance.
All of the other guards turned their heads to the pony of attention and dropped their arguing. The four guards held up their sharp lances just like they always had done after years of field exercise. But none of that were of any concern to the unicorn walking like it was nothing heading this way.
One of the armed stallion took a step forward. "Halt! What business do you ha-" he had time to say until he realized the male unicorn didn't pay him any attention at all and kept walking towards the line of guards. "I said halt!" he repeated, but still didn't even get a glance. The professional guard kept his cool and aimed the spear in his right hoof at the unicorn, all the others did the same while standing right next to him.
"This is your last warning! Trespassers will b-".
Faster than the blink of an eye, a beam of highly volatile magic was shot at the guard in the middle. As the magic hit his coat, a large explosion of heat and combustion blew away the other guards in a sweep. The ground trembled for a short second before a large collection of smoke descended up in the air, leaving the now trespassing unicorn free to walk out of the smokescreen like absolutely nothing had happened. The bridge had taken a beating, but it was still sturdy enough to let him pass before falling into pieces together with the torn and scorched corpses of the guards down in the moat.
Midnight's eyes were still radiating heat. In normal cases he wouldn't go really that far with such weak opponents, but due to the thoughts still haunting his mind... there wasn't really anything else he wanted than to kill everypony who served that wretched hag of an alicorn...
As he entered the yard, the paved road to the castle was nothing he found interest in rather than just walking straight through. He hadn't reached the castle yet and nopony knew of his recent act, so why not just keep walking casually like he was just a visitor that had been approved by the front guards? After all, he HAD been hiding in the shadow of his empress, so nopony would recognixe him anyways.
But as he kept walking, it sure was rather interesting to see how quickly all of the guards had forgotten about who they previously served. Like it was just another regular day, like it had been hundreds of years ago since Nightmare Moon was defeated. Finally he had reached the end of the paved road and found himself standing before the great door leading into the Canterlot Castle. It was just like he remembered it with its high towers, colors and... the glassed windows he didn't quite remember.
Midnight didn't like this. Not at all. Just HOW long had he been gone?
He looked around and saw two guards standing vigilantly at each side of the big door. Both of them glanced and then walked up to him. Midnight decided to play it cool for as long as it worked.
It was just another white stallion, dressed in golden armor and a sharp lance just like the rest of his comrades, built with strong muscles and an expressionless face meant only for guarding and absolutely nothing else. Midnight wondered for a brief moment if that stone-face even knew how to smile. Not that he cared, but it'd be interesting to know the facts.
"Welcome to Canterlot Castle, sir. Since you're here I presume the front guards already have asked you this, but are you here to see princess Celestia?" the white pegasus stallion asked, holding the standard serious expression. Midnight smiled gently at first, remaining silent for several seconds while looking straight into the guards eyes. An awkward ambiance almost took place until the guard asked again. "Uhm... sir? Are you here to visit the princess, I asked?"
Midnight grinned maniacally as a vein of anger popped up from his forehead...
Meanwhile in the royal working chamber, a majestic pony carrying the purest shade of white rested comfortably in a pile of pillows. The long, white horn decorated her forehead ever so perfectly, her equally white wings were wide enough to reach her own length, truly a grace to behold whenever they were used. But two things that easily could outmatch the feathered limbs and the great headpiece were without doubt the mane and tail, both beautifully moving in their ethereal forms and vary of colors. The crown and chest piece were absolutely nothing but mere jewelry compared to this stunning alicorn's beauty.
Her kind smile and rejoicing eyes were evidence that whatever was in front of her certainly gave her a better mood than she ever had dreamed of. Yes, there was something she beheld and also had spent limitless time with since yesterday. And yes, she intended on spending even more than just a single more day. But just when she was about to open her mouth again...
"Princess Celestia! Princess Celestia!" a muffled voice yelled behind the door into the working chamber. The mentioned mare quickly glanced, understanding something had to be really out of order for that specific pony she heard to be this devastated.
"What is it, captain?" she exclaimed and slowly got up on her legs.
The handsome stallion with a white coat and a blue mane, Shining Armor, gathered his thoughts for the report. However, as a drip of blood from his forehead fell down to the floor, he wasn't sure on how to actually say this. The ache could have been worse, especially compared to what he just had lived through to see.
"There... there's an intruder in front of the castle gate and he's... he's" Shining tried to explain further, but no words seemed to work together anymore when the memories came back. Instead he closed his eyes and hung his head in shame.
Celestia furrowed her eyebrows when she understood how utterly serious this had to be. So she walked up to the reinforced wooden door to see her captain. Sadly, as her magic opened the door, a certainly not comfortable sight got stuck in her eyes.
The white, armored stallion had several bleeding scars and bruises on his body, evidence of what horror he experienced before he ultimately got away to tell the princess what was going on. Celestia gasped and took a step back, shocked to see her best soldier all bloody and beaten up.
"My dear goodness! What happened?" she asked more out of fear than as a order. But the stallion received it as such. "There... there's a male, dark gray unicorn wreaking havoc outside! The whole castle yard has turned into a battlefield and I fear he... h-has already killed some of my men!" he exclaimed the last part of the sentence with dedication and discipline to hold back the pain.
The white mare widened her eyes, unaware that Shining Armor wasn't done.
"He keep screaming something about... Nightmare Moon... I think! And his magical power is absolutely unmatched, not even I can hold him back..." he ended with his head hanging down in shame again.
Celestia felt her spine shivering as her heart skipped a beat. A combination of fear and anguish brewed together into an unstable concoction overflowing inside her mind. Realization had never been so uncomfortable as now, and what once seemed to have been a problem she never needed to attend had gone from bad to something much more horrifying than worse.
A glance over her shoulder fell on the object of her interest. "Wait here... I'll be right back" she stated, hoping the one she talked to wouldn't care to ask what was going on. Whatever she looked at replied in a way that made Celestia understand it was okay to leave. "Lead the way, captain..." she than whispered to Shining who simply nodded and galloped down the long hallway together with his empress.
Meanwhile outside the big castle door, an ambiance only resembling with war had taken its place around the involved ponies. There was a serious difference in numbers between the two sides, but the one keeping the highest number had since long realized the lone enemy was good enough to take on several squadrons of them. Reeking craters from recent explosions, pieces of broken armors, knocked out ponies and still standing ones in defensive stances, these facts were just a taste of what power the unicorn Midnight Watcher could offer.
Standing alone just a few meters from the door he tried to enter before, the dark gray stallion looked in every direction for new opponents to defeat.
"Well? Are any of you pathetic degenerates finally going to tell me where the great Nightmare Moon is? Or are there anypony who still thinks they're holding the ghost of a chance against me?" he screamed out in frustration.
Midnight was certainly out of his focused mind. His old plan of trying to infiltrate the castle in discretion had turned out to a suicidal attack on the front gate without any plan of getting away. The anger inside him had developed too much, it kept growing for each time he recalled the darn name 'Celestia' being mentioned by those even more darned guards. They were all going to face his wrath no matter what the cost. However, his way of reasoning had missed one very important detail.
Wouldn't this massacre catch the attention of the last pony he should face right now?
The remaining guards weren't many, but they intended to obey orders from their captain: buy him time to reach the princess. The brave stallion himself had already tried getting his hooves on this perpetrator, almost ending up like the two guards holding the door who were now nothing but smithereens.
And just as the dark gray unicorn charged up another beam of the volatile magic from his horn, the chanceless guards jerked back as they felt the hoof of death touching their necks.
"Enough!" a loud voice demanded from the door.
Midnight's eyes widened for a second when that way too recognizable sound vibrated inside his ears. The channeled amount of magic withdrew from his horn as he looked over the shoulder. There she was, in front of the wide-open door into the castle, the greatest alicorn alive today and ruler of Equestria. Her wings were straight erected in anger over what she beheld. The sight of her loyal guards either dead or seriously wounded laying all over the castle yard engulfed her senses into anger, just like the pony she was about to confront had live through. The only thing holding her calm was the fact that many of the downed guards were still alive. The ones still standing sighed out of relief.
Even though her eyes had the ability to stare straight into the unicorn's soul, it had no really effect in unnerving him. "Well, well. If my eyes aren't deceiving me: the unworthy princess Celestia herself. No games of hide and seek this time, I presume?" he taunted with an arrogant tone.
The words were as useless as the mentioned pony's ice cold stare. She simple took her time understanding who it was that had caused a ruckus out here in her own castle yard. Their eyes met in a hostile connection before Celestia decided to speak. Even if the truth wasn't pleasant, it had to be revealed.
"Midnight Watcher, I presume...?" she asked which caused quite a shock to the dark gray stallion.
He raised an eyebrow. "What? How can you..." he wanted to ask, but the answer proved to come out faster than his words.
Celestia inhaled deeply before her great sigh. Even though she felt a little more relaxed, her eyebrows remained arched in anger. "You speak praising words of one of the most evil beings ever to walk this world, carries magical power beyond any mortal unicorn even could achieve, and you even have the same kind of eyes as the mentioned spirit you seek...".
Midnight didn't quite understand until she continued. Why he even bothered listening was actually a little of a question mark for him.
"I know all of my subjects, and you are most certainly not an exception. I've seen you standing in the shade of your empress, hiding your mortal body behind her powers and serving as a traitor to your true leader!" she finally stated, which kindled a flame in Midnight's bestial eyes.
A hoof hit the paved ground beneath him, silencing Celestia for his own words to dominate the silence. "Don't you dare tell me who's my true leader, you weak and pathetic excuse of a princess! Nightmare Moon held power far beyond your limits, and you know that too!" his own words kept throwing wood into the raging fire, killing his interest for what Celestia knew and giving rebirth to his true goal with all of this.
"I've had enough of your ignorance! And I demand you tell me where you have imprisoned Nightmare Moon!" he finally exclaimed with exposed teeth.
The divine mare furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. Did he seriously believe she was still around when the sun stood high? Nightmare Moon's mere presence brought darkened skies of night, didn't he know that?
"What?" she thus asked, pretty much making her hostile visitor even angrier.
"Yes! Lies won't help you, because I know you're too weak and soppy to kill anypony! But I don't know what you've done to seal her power since I'm fully aware you don't control the elements of harmony anymore. But I don't need to know, because you're going to die here and no-".
Midnight stopped speaking when he saw the white foreleg pointed straight at him to signal 'stop'. It felt bad to actually stop talking there, but nor was he prepared for what Celestia was about to say either. She didn't doubt anymore. This unicorn knew much more than she expected, but there had to be a few details he really didn't know off. Her first question was therefore settled.
"Dear Midnight Watcher... may I ask how you've been able to survive for this long?".
The unicorn froze. That question hadn't really been reached in his head, but small suspicions had started to take growth. And he also didn't suppose his hiding had been a secret, so why not answer that question and perhaps return with his own ones.
Thus, he glanced at the ground before facing the celestial being again.
"When my empress still resided, she laid an enchantment on me. Its purpose was to let me share her destiny in case you somehow would win against her. But since she didn't expect any resistance from you, the spell was more of a pure formality for my undying loyalty. However, your elements of harmony took her by surprise and thus lead to your... inglorious victory."
He glared a her during the last two words, something Celestia didn't pay any attention to.
"And when you banished her to the very sphere we both worshiped, I shared her destiny as promised by the spell. But before it finally grasped me into a prison of stasis, I heard of the prophecy that one day... Nightmare Moon would return and bring ever-lasting night again, and that YOU... wouldn't be in possession of the elements anymore! In short: your defeat was only delayed! And now...".
"... She's been defeated yet again" Celestia ended his sentence like nothing.
Midnight felt an urge of killer instinct racing through his brain. But what she spoke of was undeniably true. "Yes... but it can't have been by your elements of harmony. I don't know what trick you used, but it's not going to work on me!" he stated and secretly began channeling magic from his horn.
Celestia saw it but didn't care even the slightest. She had already measured this unicorn's power, and he wasn't really that much of a threat to her. Besides, her concern rested on the recent answer she was given. "A stasis... but I presume it wasn't the moon you went to?" she asked further.
Midnight shook his head. "No. The enchantment could only imitate to a certain level. Since the elements of harmony proved to hold so much power, it apparently couldn't do the exact same thing. I suppose stasis in oblivion was the closest thing the spell could manage to imitate. Once I returned I had to restart my magic... and since I was lucky enough to absorb a few dragons in the process, my powers are back at full potency again" he explained casually in a try to distract Celestia from the magic he concentrated.
But as mentioned, she didn't care the slightest. "I can't imagine one thousand years on the moon, nor less a thousand in obl-" she almost finished.
"Wait, what...?" Midnight said as the first nail of shock struck him. His eyes opened wide and his magic dispelled in an instant. Celestia tilted her head to the left. "Yes... the year is 1350. Nightmare Moon was imprisoned on the moon for a thousand years, or a millennium if you prefer those words. So I presume you did the same in your stasis... plus one day".
The unicorn stallion slowly dropped his jaw. Denial washed over him, but the bitter truth made too much sense for such weak defenses to remain solid. The majestic mare thought it would be wise to continue crushing his self-esteem with some more facts.
"And don't you even think I've just been sitting on my behind during those years. You might have been a possible adversary in the past, but ten centuries of freedom gives you quite the opportunity to train and sharpen your abilities..." she said in a rather subtle way to prove how pointless a battle would be between them.
Midnight was no foal on that subject. If he really had been gone for so long and if Celestia really knew of Nightmare Moon's return, she must have prepared herself since the elements wouldn't be present for her disposal. A jolt of concede tilted the unicorn's mind. He was truly chanceless against this opponent. And if there was something his empress didn't need, it was weakness. One thought started to sweep through him, one and only.
What was the purpose of living if he couldn't serve his ruler. There was only one solution, a solution that would lead him to the ultimate sacrifice for the only reign he believed in. He didn't regret his choice while scraping a fore hoof on the ground.
"Very well. Then there is only one way left" he stated with a reluctant smile as his horn channeled up an overcharge of magic ready to fire any moment soon.
Celestia sighed in disappointment. "So it will end like this?" she asked, hoping there was still a possibility of a peaceful solution. Midnight destroyed that hope by nodding.
His entire body started to illuminate, turning his mane and tail into magical, blue fires raising up in the air. "I will fight you... as the last defender of Nightmare Moon's rule. And I will give my life without a shred of doubt!".
The earth beneath his hooves split up in small cracks due to the awesome power he decided to use. Second by second he added more from his reserves to launch a full-scale attack, literally going all in with every last drip of power he could summon. Celestia saw the threat, thus did the same and channeled up her divine magic from the majestic headpiece. The guards turned their hooves and ran away when the lights from both magical ponies consumed the empty air around them. Soon the two opponents were left alone on the battlefield.
"For I will pledge my loyalty! I will do whatever I can to avenge my empress! If it so requires my life..." he stated as rocks and loose pieces of earth ripped up from the ground around him. An entire swarm of lifeless objects levitated by the sheer power he summoned from his magical cusp. His mane and tail burned more passionately than he could remember, his dedication was in its strongest form, the selflessness was pushed aside to levels that he simply didn't even know how to care for himself.
Celestia broke a sweat of fear. Even if this huge amount of volatile magic wouldn't pose any bigger threat to her, it most certainly would annihilate the ground they stood on and the castle behind her. No matter what the outcome of this showdown would be, it would be disastrous. And just as she thought that, Midnight's eyes had turned into voids of darkness together with his pitch-black body.
"If I can't win, I will at least bring as many as possible with me in death!" he said with a deeper voice resembling a demon and prepared to lower his head.
Celestia gulped and prayed, begging to her mother and father that they would forgive her for this inevitable outcome. And as Midnight grinned like the maniac he currently had become, Celestia grit her teeth. The earth trembled, the air burned, the sky lightened, and the magic floating everywhere was so thick you could inhale it.
Destiny was about to play out, leaving the next chapter of Equestria's history ready to be written...
To be continued...
Author's Note:
This is a commission to Darksmirf, and I sure do hope you guys find my change of genre a little entertaining. There will be more explanations in the second part.
Buuuuuuut you know me! That mature tag isn't there just for the violence (hint hint, wink wink).
Anyhow, this is ALSO a one-shot, but it proved to be a little longer than expected. So just head on to the next chapter, fellas! That's the last and second one!
No brohoof yet...