//------------------------------// // Fifth Night // Story: CMC's NiGHTS into Dreams // by Amereep //------------------------------// Nights was floating in the center of Ponyville, waiting for everypony to to arrive. Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle all arrived to meet Nights and shocked at finding that each other was here as were. "Scootaloo! Sweetie Belle! What are you two doing here?" Applebloom questioned her friends. "What about you? I thought I was the only pony here" Scootaloo proclaimed. "Nights, do you know how we all got here?" Sweetie Belle asked. Nights peered to her but looked away "Well, it's because all of you are special." The lie didn't fool anypony, the three fillies were giving irritated expressions at Nights. It tried changing the subject "Did you noticed on the lack of ponies here?" Nights' sidetrack actually worked "Now that you mentioned it, yeah." Applebloom wondered aloud. "Truth is, I'm the only pony here" Nights continued. "There is no other resident in Nightopia. Everypony else is part of... well, part of the team that I was in. Those ponies were family to me once, but I couldn't follow them on doing the wicked works they were doing." It then hit Applebloom "Your saying, your a Nightmaren?!?!" Nights gave a blank look at her "Yes. I started to feel guilty for the dreams I've stolen, so I ran away from my family." "That can't be right!" Sweetie denied "You said that those things were created to steal dreams." "Yeah!" Scootaloo added "And yet you said that you had a mo..." everypony was looking at her for a reason to the sudden silence. Scootaloo was in a state of shock at the sudden thought that crossed her mind "A... a mother." Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were now sharing the same speculation about their Nightmaren friend. A mare pony that creates creatures that are like nightmares, and she plans on concurring the dreamworld. There was no doubt about it, it has to be her. All three fillies looked at their flying friend wondering how to confront it with their question. "Nights..." Applebloom volunteered herself "...who created you?" Silence lingered after that question for what seemed like minutes until a response was made. "So this is where I find you, among with the likes of those filthy scum." Everypony heard an echoing voice in the air from the last being they wanted to hear from "WE ARE DISAPPOINTED AT THEE, NIGHTS!" Nights was suddenly encased in a cobalt blue bubble, and soon the caster of the bubble made herself known in sky "We should've guessed thou would degrade itself to their level." The fillies saw the pony they were thinking of only moments ago in the sky. She was hovering in place with her horn glowing in the same color as the orb she formed. It was the Mare in the Moon herself, they were seeing Nightmare Moon flying in the sky. Nights was giving a grunt, trying to break free from the magical encasing of its creator. "Princess Luna" Applebloom grabbing the Alicorn's attention "Let go of Nights!" she pleaded. "Luna... THOU DARE TO SPEAK OUR NAME?" Nightmare yelled at Applebloom "PATHETIC INSECTS HATH NO RIGHT TO SPEAK OUR NAME!" Moon lifted her horn and it began to shine brighter. Soon the world around the ponies started to shake and began to crack. Jagged openings started to form on the streets of Ponyville that lead to a dark abyss. The floor began to crumble beneath the fillies' hooves, and they had little time to react to it before they fell through the floor. The little girls screamed as they fell through, leaving only Nightmare Moon holding Nights who cried out to them. Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle were screaming in the darkness as they fell into nothing. Each of their voices began to fade from one another, leaving each filly hearing only themselves and the wind blowing by them. They started to free fall and began to feel their hearts climbing into their throats. Their life began to flash before their eyes. Then they began to think... Everypony has helped me through my struggles of finding myself. Rainbow Dash, you were always an inspiration for me. Rarity, you always cared for me through my troubles. AJ, Big Mac, Granny Smith, all of you never stopped helping me. But, I can't look up to you forever. You won't always be there to help me through my battles. That's why I think it's time for me to stand on my own four hooves. I need to be brave. I need to be strong. But most importantly... I need to have faith in myself! A light shined before Applebloom. She is shot through the light and finds herself floating above the city of Canterlot. She was flying, flying just like she would if she was dualized with Nights. Applebloom's view of the city was like a giant front lawn, what with its towers surrounding the city like a fence. The 'front lawn' was filled with majestic buildings that complemented the castle quite well. Applebloom saw Nightmare Moon flying towards Canterlot's castle, having the magical barrier Nights was encased in fly beside her. She wasted no time and started flying as fast as she could towards the nightmare pony. "LET NIGHTS GO!" the yellow filly yelled. Nights turned in the sphere to see Applebloom coming, it then started to push against the barrier in fear for it's friend's safety. Moon just glanced her head back "Thou hath surely lost thy mind to challenge us alone." "I'm never alone!" Applebloom barked back. Nightmare Moon turned towards the brave filly "Allied or not, THOU IS DOOMED!" She emitted a magic pulse that send Applebloom spinning backwards. The country gal was spinning towards a rooftop and would no doubt be slammed onto it, but an orange flash collided with her. Applebloom's vision wouldn't stop spinning, "I can't let you out of my sight for a minute, can I?" a pony close by said. Once her visioned settled, she saw that she was being carried by Scootaloo. She too was flying and heading towards Nightmare Moon to get her friend back Nightmare starts to charge her horn for a fierce attack at the two ponies. Nights begins to yell out to its friends about the income attack and Scootaloo was prepared to dodge it at any moment, but she didn't have too. A light green magical bullet walloped Nightmare Moon's horn and broke her concentration she had on her attack and hold on Nights. Applebloom and Scootaloo looked at the source of the bullet and saw the last pony they expected to use magic, let alone to use it offensively. They cried out Sweetie Belle's name, surprised to see her attack and flying in the air as well. She looks at the two and flies up to the two with a smile, proud at her action "What? You thought I was some kind of marshmallow?" Nights flies over to its friends. The three girls were wearing smiles on their faces as they looked at Nights "Thank you" it said "all of you for helping me." "What good will come from your freedom?" Nightmare Moon said, trying to regain her formidable view. "We were planning on reforming thou, but now... THY ONLY PUNISHMENT WILL BE DEATH!!!" The three fillies flew between the 'night mare' and the Nightmaren. They were in a battle ready stance while they looked at Nightmare in the eyes "We'll stop you before you even lay a hoof on our friend" Applebloom announced bravely. Nightmare Moon laughed mockingly "Stopping us will only destroy all that we have made." The guard the three little girls were giving was starting to look flimsy from hearing those words before Moon shattered it "NIGHTS WOULD VANISH ALONG WITH US!" The girls now felt crushed at the idea that they were going to lose their friend. The thought that this was a bluff did cross some minds, but none were willing to risk it... except one. "Then I guess we'll be going down together!" Everypony look at Nights after its comment. "Nights, no! Don't do this!" Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle begged Nights to change it's mind. Nights viewed their pleads and returned them with a smile that said 'that everything would be fine.' "We can't let her take over everypony's dreams. No matter what happens to me, we'll always be friends." The girls didn't show any motivation at following Nights' reasoning for its sacrifice. "Hey," Nights said at a soft tone "I want all of you to do me a favor. I want all of you to have hope and never give up on your goals, if you keep those in mind then we're bound to meet each other again. We may not see each other tomorrow or even a decade later; but as long as you have a dream, you'll always have a friend." The three fillies gave a weak smile towards Nights. It stretched out its hoof towards the three "Come on, lets make sure she never steals another dream again." The young mares were scared of the final outcome of their friend, but the confidence Nights was giving kept telling them that their was nothing to fear. One by one, they all connected their hooves with Nights and soon a bright light shined as they Dualized with it. When the light faded, there was not one, not two, but three Nights at ready to stop Nightmare Moon. "Does thou truly think that those foals would make much of a difference?" Moon insulted the united team. Our heroes didn't respond to the insult as they were psyching themselves up. They weren't going to allow Nightmare Moon to push them around any more. "Very well," Nightmare admitted that her psychological warfare wasn't working "FACE THE POWER THAT WE HOLD!" Nightmare Moon's horn started to glow and tornadoes formed around everypony, blowing them in every direction. The dualized trio began to fly at the sorceress to the best of their ability. One of the Nights were able to collide with Moon, but she had a barrier around her to stop the dualizers in their tracks. The sudden barrier had an effect on the tornadoes; they seemed to have weakened, using two different and powerful types of magic can be hard to control. The other two Nights took this chance to charge at Nightmare to break the barrier. Now all three of them are pushing with all their strength to break through and Moon couldn't keep them at bay. The barrier shatters and all three of the Nights ram Nightmare across the sky. She quickly vanishes and appears elsewhere in the sky and summons swarms of fire blazing meteors towards the group. They caught sight and quickly scattered to avoid the space rock, but the rocks only turned their trajectory and homed at a Nights that was closes to them. Each Nights quickly flew as fast as they could at avoiding each rock and started to get closer to Nightmare Moon. Once one of the Nights charged at her it was all over for her. She repeated the process of making a barrier to stop Nights, and soon enough, the other two come flying in to help break through the barrier. The sound of shattering glass was heard as the Nights broke through and plunged at Nightmare Moon. She gives a curdling cry as she flies through the air, before she bursts into a white orb of light. The light began to increase in size and didn't seem like it was going to stop anytime soon. Nights separated from its friends and looks at them smiling, proud at how far they've come. The girls started to get teary eyed as they see their friend take a bow and gets engulfed into the white light.