MY LITTLE PONY:

DIAMOND DREAMS

CHAPTER 1: NIGHTMARE MOON

SECTION 1: A LAND SHROUDED IN DARKNESS

Once upon a time, in the Magical Land of Equestria, there were two regal sisters who ruled together, and created harmony for all of the land. To do this, the eldest used her unicorn powers to raise the sun at dawn, while the younger brought out the moon to begin the night. But as time went on, the younger of the two became resentful. The ponies relished and played in the elder sister's daylight, but shunned and slept through the beautiful night.

On that fateful day 1000 years ago, the younger unicorn refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn and vowed to shroud the land in eternal night, taking up the name "Nightmare Moon." The elder sister used the powers of the Elements of Harmony to stop her younger sister. As punishment, she was locked away in the moon forever. But the elder sister felt burdened by having to raise the sun and the moon by herself, only wishing her younger sister did not have to suffer.

However, it was prophesied that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars would aid in her escape. Days before the Summer Sun Celebration, Nightmare Moon escape the confinements of the Moon and shrouded the lower countryside of Equestria in Darkness, trapping its citizens in shadows and laying the area like a darken wasteland.

The remaining ponies are protected by a magical shroud around the capital city of Canterlot. But unless Nightmare Moon is stopped with the power of harmony, all will be lost.

The land of Equestria. Once a rich and vibrant countryside, now lie in a barren wasteland shrouded in eternal night, to which the sun will never shine through. Once the town of Ponyville was full of busy ponies trotting around, they are replaced by mere shadows of their former self, forced to dwell in the darkness that was laid by Nightmare Moon since her escape from the Moon. However, high above the land, one balloon floated above safe from the shroud of eternal Night.

Inside the balloon were two occupants. The first one, a purple Unicorn with a Dark-purple mane. This Unicorn is named Twilight Sparkle, the apprentice of Princess Celestia. The other, a Purple and green baby dragon named Spike. Twilight Sparkle was observing what's left of the Equestrian Countryside from the safety of her balloon, nervously looking for any patches of light remaining.

"This whole land is in complete disarray," Twilight sighed "If I had only known about the legacy of Nightmare Moon, I would have been able to stop her from turning most of Equestria into pure sorrow."

Spike immediately objected to that argument by saying "There was nothing you could have done, Twilight. Had you intervened, you could have gotten caught in the shadows of Nightmare Moon, and Princess Celestia would have lost her favorite apprentice."

It wasn't enough to calm the nerves of Twilight Sparkle. She's been a natural worrywart since she was a filly trying to get into Celestia's school for gifted Unicorns. Always trying to meet her teacher's expectations, even though she would succeed in the end. But still, her fear of failure always stuck with her, even in triumph. It was as if her life would be on the line for every test she takes, for every objective she is given, and for every challenge that lays in front of her.

"Spike, you don't understand," She grieved. "All of this could have been stopped if we only knew where the Elements of Harmony were. According to legend, the eldest of the two unicorn sisters used the Elements of Harmony to banish her younger sister. Afterward, she sealed away the elements of Harmony waiting for the day to come. If only I had those elements of harmony days ago, none of this would have happened."

But before Spike could say anything, he noticed what appears to be a lush, green forest sticking out of the shadows. An area that Nightmare Moon hasn't touched. But why? Without hesitation, Spike called out to Twilight Sparkle. "Twilight. There's a bit of land that hasn't been touched by Nightmare Moon." That was more than enough to get Twilight's attention.

She looked at the area Spike pointed out, still as bright green as ever. The fearfulness of Twilight Sparkle disappeared as determination burned within her. "Spike, take us to that location, on the double. That area may be the answer to what we're looking for."

Without Hesitation, Spike pointed in the opposite direction of the green forest and exhaled fire from his mouth, pushing the Hot Air Balloon towards the forest that bathed in light.

Much time after the balloon landed safely in the forest, Twilight Sparkle and Spike begin to set out on their quest to locate the Elements of Harmony. Using the powers of her Unicorn Horn, Twilight Sparkle placed what appears to be a necklace with a glowing white shard around her neck. She did the same thing to Spike with a similar necklace.

"Spike," Twilight stated "In case Nightmare Moon does cover this land in darkness, the power of the Sun Shard will protect us." As Twilight turned around and began to walk in one direction, Spike looked at his shard. To him, he is a baby dragon and shards remind him of gemstones. Delicious gemstones that dragons eats that allows them to breathe fire and fly. One look at that shard and Spike was about ready to sink his teeth into it.

"And don't even think about eating your Sun Shard!"

Those words that came from Twilight Sparkle were enough to stop Spike from eating his own Sun Shard. He then held his head up and walked towards where Twilight is going.

Despite how the rest of the countryside was shrouded in night, the forest itself was bathed in sunlight. Perhaps the last bit of sunlight left in Equestria other than the high peak of the Canterlot Capital. It's hard to imagine how once the whole land of Equestria was once blessed by the light of the sun, only for its light to be snuffed out in favor of eternal night. But for Twilight Sparkle, that very thought was embedded in her head as she thought of it as more of a failure than something she could not have stopped.

"Twilight, do you see anything that may resemble the Elements of Harmony, or any hint to the Elements?" Spike asked.

Twlight only responded with "No Spike. It may take hours, maybe even days, before we get any answers." But it only got worse when her stomach grumbled. It seems in her haste to explore what's left of Equestria, she forgot to pack a lunch, not to mentioned she skipped out on Breakfast.

"Maybe it was a bad idea to leave before breakfast. I actually wished I had eaten that sapphire muffin," Spike complained.

Twilight responded with nothing but "I know Spike. But I'm more concerned about the Elements of Harmony than food right now. Time isn't on our side in these dark times. Who knows where Nightmare Moon will strike? It's only a matter of time before..."

Just before Twilight could finish speaking, a white glow radiated, blinding her and Spike. Where was it coming from? As the glow began to fade, the two opened their eyes and saw the light emitting from a cave. That may be the answer to what they were searching for. Without hesitation, Twilight yelled "Spike, this way," as she galloped towards the cave with Spike running behind her.

As Twilight ran into the cave towards the light, it's warm glow began to fade deeper and deeper as the cave itself revealed to Twilight Sparkle and Spike. Further and further the two went as the light dimmed further and the cave became more visible, Twilight and Spike ran further in as they finally reached the source of the light. As the light faded, the source itself revealed to be a stone door that has been shut.

And near the door, lie 6 unconscious humans.

6 humans?

"But that's impossible," A confused Twilight responded to the finding of these 6 humans. "According to my research, humans are suppose to be extinct."

"Extinct?" Spike responded "If that is true, then where did these 6 come from?

Where did these 6 humans come from? 5 females, 1 male.

One of the females had long yellow hair that extended to below her neck, with a pink tank top and light blue cargo pants.

The eldest of the females had brown hair in a pony tail. She wore a orange shirt and blue overalls.

The youngest, a child, had long pink hair and wore a yellow shirt with a white skirt.

The second youngest, a teenager, had short black hair, wore a white shirt and purple pants, as if she were dressed professionally.

The last female had pale skin, long white hair, and wore a purple dress.

The only male had short black hair, shorter than even the black-haired girl, wore a red jacket, a black shirt and blue pants. Judging by the hair color of both the teen and the only male, it seems they were siblings.

All 6 of the humans looked as if they had passed out. Unable to move, but still able to breathe. But where did they come from? What purpose do they have in this world where the population consisted of Earth Ponies, Unicorns and Pegasi? Having forgotten about the Elements of Harmony, Twilight turned to her faithful assistant Spike and said...

"Spike, do you have enough firepower for one letter?"

"I sure do," Spike said.

Twilight responded with "Take down a letter." As Spike took out a parchment paper and a quill and began to write down everything Twilight was about say, Twilight stated the following...

"To my faithful teacher Princess Celestia. So far, no sign of the Elements of Harmony. But my recent discovery lead to something that I thought was extinct thousands of years ago. Humans. 6 of them. Where did they come from? What purpose do they hold? And are they friend or foe? I am in need of some help teleporting these humans to somewhere safe so they do not suffer the same that has befallen the lands of Equestria. Your faithful Student, Twlight Sparkle."

The moment Spike finished that letter, he then turned it around and showed the completed letter to Twilight. She responded with a "Perfect," giving the baby dragon the cue to breathe fire into the note. The moment the fire hit the letter, it burned away as the magic of that fire spread towards the mountain top capital of Canterlot.

Twilight looked up as the fire trail disappeared into the atmosphere and smiled. It was the first time she actually smiled since leaving Canterlot. "It won't be long now," Twilight said. "Now I hope Princess Celestia makes it here in time before Nightmare Moon strikes this area down." But as she finished her sentence, a white light emitted from the sky, causing both Twlight and Spike to cover their eyes. As the light grew dim, the image of Princess Celestia took shape before she stood before her apprentice.

"Princess Celestia," Twlight said, feeling glad to see her teacher and ruler of Equestria. Princess Celestia nodded to Twilight and said with a calm voice...

"Twilight, I read your letter about your report on the humans you found. While there are those in Canterlot who are weary of seeing a live human, rest assure these new guests will be considered welcome here in these dark times."

"Thank you Princess Celestia," Twilight responded. Her smile went to a frown as she added "But I still couldn't find the Elements of Harmony."

Princess Celestia only added "One doesn't find the Elements of Harmony, the Elements find them. I believe only the magic of friendship is capable of locating the Elements and stopping Nightmare Moon." Twilight was only disappointed. She set out on her journey and she couldn't find the elements. "But you must not be in despair, Twilight," Celestia added. "In time, guided by friendship, you will find the Elements of Harmony and restore this land to its former glory."

"Friendship? But why friendship?" Twilight asked as Spike stood by her.

"The power of Friendship will come to you as you journey deep into the darkness of the land itself. You, little Spike, and even those who came here through no fault of their own," Celestia responded. "I have a feeling these humans may play a role in helping you find the Elements of Harmony."

If its true these humans could hold the key to finding the elements, Twilight may have no choice. She nodded to Princess Celestia as Spike looked on. "I'll do my best," Twilight said.

"Very well," Celestia responded. "But first, we better take the humans to Canterlot. I can sense Nightmare Moon coming nearby and I fear if we don't act soon, they will become apart of the darkness. Even if their acts in the past were unforgivable, even they do not deserve to suffer in the darkness."

End Part 1