//------------------------------//
// Chapter 4 
// Story: After Discord 
// by Faindragon 
//------------------------------//

Nightmares.

We all have them sometimes in our life.

It is normal for the smallest of Celestia’s children.

But even the old have them.

And when the old have them.

Are they often so much worse.

And do you know what the worst part is?

You do not know that it is a dream before it is all over.


*^*


I woke up in a narrow room. No windows decorated the wall, no windows to let in the grace of either of the celestial eyes. The room was illuminated by four torches, each making the shadows move across the room. The air was cold and still, every hair in my coat stood. What had happened? I was in the same cell as I was in years before, when I was arrested after I had fallen down on my knees in prayer in front of the castle. I bolted up from the bed I had awoken in.

Where was Honey?

Was she hurt? Was she around here? Had they come for me before she came back?

My nostrils picked up the smell of sweat, of old mold, of dirty water.  A rat rushed past my hooves, holding something that looked like bo... no I do NOT want to think about what that looked like. My eyes wandered around the narrow room, looking for a way out. I could not find any, other than the wooden door at the end of the room. I slowly walked over to the door, putting my hoof against it. I pushed as hard as I could, it did not budge an inch. And the worst part was the fact that there was no keyhole in the door. 

I walked back and forth in the narrow room, thinking back to the day I had last been here. Had the door had a keyhole then? I could not remember. The only thing I remembered was that it had one day been open. 

I turned around as I thought about the open door, and found myself standing in front of the now opened door. 

What is happening to this place?

What is happening to me?

I slowly walked forward to the now open door. This had to be a trap. I gently placed my hoof on the stone floor. 


*^*


I found myself in a circular room. In the middle of the room stood two thrones on a plinth. Stairs lead up to the twin thrones. The room was richly ornate, red and golden symbols was embraced with silver and black ones at the walls. Sun and moon circled each other in the roof. Beautiful paintings of various landscapes covered part of the walls. Celestia’s eye graced me with its light here, it had yet to reach its peak. And on the thrones sat THEY.

THEY seemed to ignore me.

“It is to early, he is not ready yet!” the white mare said.

“How did he get here? What happened? Is Discord’s magic still this strong?” the black mare called out.

To early for what? What am I not ready for? It felt as someone had emptied a bucket of ice water over my head, I over came the shock.

I was standing in front of the goddesses. 

I knelt on the spot, at the middle of the silver and golden carpet.



*^*


I felt my knees hit a cold, dusty stone floor. I opened my eyes again.

Only to find out that I was back outside the cellar. The door was closed behind me. The hallway was the same as the one so many years ago, only... dustier. Torches illuminated the narrow hallway, filling it with a golden light and shadows. I rose up again, looking more around me. I feared was I would see but I let my eyes wander towards the staircase, but I did so anyway.

I feared to see the same guard again, to relive that memory.

But my eyes found nothing. Nopony stood at the staircase, it was as if the building was abandoned. The dust on the floor was so thick that nopony could have been down here in years. 
I took a step forward.


*^*


“Why do you resist? What is the fun in your life right now? What do you do with your life?”

I looked around in confusion. Or, I would have looked around if I had a body. 
What is happening?
“Who’s there?” I called out to the darkness, my voice weak. I was afraid. “Show yourself.”

I was only met with laughter.

“Who’s there?” I called out again.

“You do not need to know my name, as little as I need to know yours. Now, answer my questions before I have to drag them out from you!” the voice said with a touch of impatience.

“What do I resist from? The fun in my life is to see my daughter smile every day, to bring joy to her.” I said, not knowing if these answers would be the ones he.... it wanted. “And with my life do I strive to clean Trotholm from the filth.”

“What filth? Trotholm is the only clean city there is out there. Have you SEEN the ‘goddesses’ rule?” the voice asked, making the word goddesses seem like a curse. “And you resist me.”

“Trotholm has the filth of corruption over it, I will cleanse the city I love. And if I resist you then it is good, seemingly how you think about the goddesses.”

The voice laughed again. 
“I will soon see you again.”


*^* 


I found myself in front of a door. I remembered that door. I knew every line in it by heart, they had etched into my mind. Some of the golden letters had fallen away, only three was left. D, E and N.

I nudged the door with my hoof to open it. It fell inwards.

I looked at the door in surprise. What had happened? Then I looked into the room.

“You can’t escape me. You can’t resist me. Enjoy your freedom while you have it.” A voice called out, from where I did not know.

I spun around.
“Who’s there?” I shouted towards the hallway.

I don’t know how long I stood there before I turned around again.

The door was standing again, blocking the way.

The letters had formed a word.

END.

I spun around, walked away from the door. 


*^* 


I felt. The darkness was around me. Cold air rushed around me. Stars twinkled in the distance, slowly fading away one after another. 

In the end was I surrounded by complete darkness.

“Do you see it now?” the voice was back.

“See what? I can not see anything in this pitch darkness.” I answered.

“It is because you have not opened your eyes yet.”

Suddenly, two red eyes stared at me, pierced my mind with the ruby shards that was their glare.

“Don’t you see what is going on around you? Are you blind? Is not the people of Trotholm happy? Do you want to take that away from them? It is not they who are evil.” the voice mocked me.

“They live without knowing the truth, they live in an illusion, of course they are happy when the illusionist tells them to be.” I answered. “I will shatter the illusion, give them true happiness. Remove the evil and corruption that soak this city with its filth.”

A laugh pierced my ears.
“Remove the evil from the city? Would not that be you, the one who strives to remove their happiness?”

The eyes faded away.


*^*


I opened my eyes, found myself still in the dusty hallway. I ran up the stairs and hurried outside. I was met by Celestial’s grace that shone upon me, her eye had nearly reached its peak. A couple of ponies stared at me as if I had returned from the dead. I looked at myself in a window closeby. I was covered in dust, my coat stood out in different angles. I looked wildly around, stared back until the other ponies looked away. A couple of guards walked towards me.

I turned around and started to run, the guards shouting after me, order me to stop. 

I did not care.

It did not take long before I entered the darker parts of Trotholm, the guards stopped in track, refusing to follow me any longer. I was not of importance it seemed.

I slowly made my way towards The Black Stable. Celestia’s eye closed in the distance to its peak. I had to be back in my room before Honey came back, I could not make her worry about me, or believing that I snuck away.


*^*


The worst with a nightmare is the times when it is not a dream.

The times the nightmare is what really is happening around us.