Chapter 18: Rough Travels

Shining Armor had no idea how to get to Canterlot without transportation other then walking via the train tracks. It would be a long journey but that is the only option that he could come up with. He pulled out his sword and carried it in his magic. Shining made his way onto the train tracks a distance from where the station was. "Please let Canterlot and Twilight be ok, I need to see my sister again." He could only pray that his sister was ok as he made his way down the tracks.

Shining Armor had traveled for about thirty minutes and not a single walker had appeared on the tracks. The rain continued to pour down, thunder boomed and lightning crashed. Other than his magic, the lightning had been the only light he had been given. "What's up with the Pegasus, why aren't they controlling the weather?" He continued forward and though there aren't any walkers around, he could definitely smell the stench of the dead. The smell made him want to vomit but he took control of his stomach.

After a couple minutes, Shining found walkers all over the tracks. He couldn't just run through or he would die for sure. Sneaking around them isn't an option as there is cliff to one side and rock wall on the other. "There must be some way around them; there is no way that I can kill them all." He looked around trying to find some way around, an alternate route possibly. The wall is steady; an avalanche is impossible to make. A rather large boulder sits at the edge of the cliff but he would have to go through the walkers to get to it. There wasn't a single thing he could use to distract the undead with.

Soon the horn of a train could be heard roaring toward him. All the walkers turned in his direction. "Fantastic." Shining drew his sword and got ready to attack while looking for some alternate way out. There wasn't much else he could do being trapped between a train and the walkers. Then an idea came to mind. "Perhaps I can use my magic and time it just right to land on top of the train, assuming that the train is coming my way." The sound of the horn got closer as the seconds disappeared. Shining Armor backed away from the walkers as they got closer and hoped to see the train coming. Soon the lights from the train could be seen. He flipped around and ran toward the train and just as the train reached him, he teleported.

When Shining Armor reappeared, he flinched from a pain in his back left leg. He looked back at his leg and found it broken, the bone sticking out. As soon as he looked at his leg, the squishing sound of walkers being killed could be heard below him. The train then derailed as it hit more and more walkers. The train shook and began tipping over throwing him off balance. "This is gonna hurt!" Without thinking as the train tipped over, he teleported himself inside the train. Once he reappeared, he fell to his knees as he felt his hurt leg crack more. He managed to distract himself from the pain as he focused on keeping himself within the train. Food, trays, and other things in the car fell off tables and onto the floor. He stumbled back and forth as the train continued to tip over.

The train began skidding along the track. The trains' cars began moving forward ever so slightly until the front of the train came to a halt which sent the back cars flying forward. Shining Armor continued to stumble back and forth until the car stopped, unfortunately, his car is now hanging off the side of the cliff. He looked around to see what he could find to pull himself up but the only thing around to grab onto are the seats and tables. At a slow and steady pace, he climbed up the car slipping now and then as the train car moved downward off the side of the cliff.

After what seemed like an eternity, Shining Armor finally made it to the top of the car. The door to the car jammed as he tried to open it. He pulled out his sword and stuck it in the door to try and pry it open. The car slipped again forcing him to grab onto something to keep from slipping downward. Again he tried to pry open the door and after four hard pushes, the door opened and broke his sword in the process. "At least I can get out now." Shining climbed through the door and escaped as the train once again slipped. This final slip caused rocks from above to fall down, some small, others huge. Shining limped as fast as possible to move out of the way.

The rocks from above pummeled the train cars and released the ones hanging off the cliff. "Glad I made it out before that happened." Shining then felt a sharp pain shoot through his whole body. He knew at that point that his hoof had been crushed by a stray boulder. He used his magic and lifted the rather small boulder off his hoof. He knew that he may not make it to see his sister again. "Walkers will surely smell me now, there is no way to" Shining Armor stopped mid-sentence seeing a horde of walkers coming his way. At this point, he accepted that he would never see his sister again. With his sword broken, his leg broken, the train and rocks blocking his path behind him, and walkers heading in his direction; he had no chance of getting out alive. His energy and strength hit an all time low as he continued to lose blood from his broken leg. "I just wish I could have seen my sister one last time." Shining Armor collapsed onto the ground when Luna landed next to him.

"Shining Armor, you're badly hurt." Luna went to pick up Shining but it only caused him pain. "I'm sorry Shining Armor; to try and save you would only get us both killed."

"I know, could you tell my sister, I love her and that I'm sorry that I couldn't reach her." Shining Armor said his last few words before his heart stopped beating and his breathing stopped.

"Of course but first," Luna stood above him and looked at the incoming walkers. "I still have time." Luna looked at Shining Armors body, apologized before stomping on his head destroying the brain and then flew off as the walkers reached his body and began feasting on it.

Luna looked at the scene below her and frowned as she got further and further away. When she turned back around, she found Pegasus walkers flying awkwardly toward her. Luna backed away not paying attention to where she is going and backed up into a Pegasus walker. Luna hadn't had time to react before a sharp pain shot through her back. Luna knocked the walker off of her and flew toward the ground. Once she landed, a voice could be heard in her head. "You will never get rid of me now my pet of darkness."

"I'm not your pet and I'm not evil. It's your fault that I ended up as Nightmare moon. I know your real name, Bête Noire, I know a lot about you so don't think I'll let you get to me again. I will not be Nightmare Moon. I never chose that path, you chose it for me!" Luna hollered.

"I can save you from this death and I will Nightmare Moon." The voice said as the book came from behind a tree, its pages flipping as it moved closer.

"I want nothing from you." Luna tried to move but couldn't find the strength or ability to do so. Luna began to panic as the book moved closer to her and became even more frightened when she saw a specific pink earth pony. "Pinkie Pie, how?" Luna felt a sharp pain in her head; she began coughing up blood and became spastic. She could feel her body changing and she tried to fight it but she couldn't. Whether she liked it or not, she would change. Her eyes closed as she stood there, the pain finally leaving her body. She opened her eyes to reveal turquoise eyes with a slit down the center. She looked at herself and found that she looked just like Nightmare Moon again but this time, she didn't have any control of herself. All she could do is watch herself do things, whatever they would be.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter and please review, thank you.