//------------------------------// // In Nights Embrace // Story: Nightmare Chronicles: Shadow of the Past // by Agent Brony //------------------------------// Chapter 1 In Nights Embrace It was a a cold and windy in the early night as 3 crystal air ships made their way southwards toward the nearly constructed Canterlot on their hulls where a painted a black shield with a demonic red skull on it, on each ship was printed a name the Defiance, Starlight and the largest of the 3 called Night Blade, they had been away for 3 months dealing with the civil war in the north fighting the evil sorcerer King Sombra who usurped the old king by killing him leaving his young daughter as a ward of Celestia who promptly put her in a stasis crystal until it was safe for her to return. The entire operation had been hush hush, off the books because since the end of the war with discord the nightmare knights had been very much in the public eye since they sacrificed a large portion of their number in the defense of the alicorn city of Celestro which once floated above Mt. Everpony now the great city was nothing but miles and miles of crystal caverns beneath the new capital Canterlot; so the full mobilization of this now elite force would not go unnoticed so the only ponies who knew about it was the princesses and those assigned to the mission. The mission however was a failure, the knights fought valiantly to retake the crystal city but the false king put a curse on it and made the crystal empire disappear for a thousand years, but not before the fleet could combine their bombardment and obliterated the king, so not a complete loss. On the flight deck of the night blade a lone alicorn whose coat was as black as night with a mane and tail a deep dark blue, most of his body was covered in black armor which seemed to be a mix of metal and crystal, he stood there; his sappier eyes looking out into the inky night awaiting Princess Luna who wished to have a personal report on the mission, he looked forward to it. He and Luna were good friends; she had been there for him after his father’s death, and she had been a friend of her father’s but he knew either wouldn't of minded being more but under law it was forbidden; a princess or prince could only wed or bed those of royal lines to maintain purity while avoiding inbreeding, so his father was out of the question regardless of the fact he was from one of great alicorn families; so he was wed to another, a unicorn from one of their great families; though his mother and father loved each other greatly she just wasn't Luna. Thinking of family had reminded him of something; it was one of his nephews birthdays soon, he couldn't recall the name but it was one of the unicorns the one who showed promise in magic, he suddenly remembered the colts name was Starswirl. What should he get him, a magical journal perhaps? His musing was stopped when a pony politely coughed behind him; he turned to see a pink Pegasus mare, in a matching suit of amour was standing there, she saluted him. “Commander Night Shade sir, Princess Luna’s chariot is arriving.” She said. Night Shade smiled happily looking forward to seeing his old friend. “Thank you captain Dash.” He said The captain coughed again. “It’s Heartstrings now commander not Dash, got married before we shipped out.” She politely corrected her commander. Night Shade nodded. “Apologies captain, I was unaware of that and congratulations.” he said while smiling. “Not a problem sir.” The captain said and then gave another salute and she turned around and walked back down the flight deck. Night Shade turned back toward the night and could see a black chariot heading toward the Night Blade, it swooped down over his head and landed lightly and Night Shade began to walk toward it just as Princess Luna disembarked from it her nebula like mane waved like a flag in the wind, she looked at him and smile and he bowed to her. “Night Shade, my greatest friend; you need not bow to me ever, thou does know how I loathe it when thou does.” She said pulling him up into a hug, one that he gratefully returned, but remembering where they both where and pulled apart, and Night Shade swore he could see a faint blush on her cheeks. He raised an eye brow at her. “Surely thou does know, that one also loathes when thou persists in talking in such monotone ways, and amongst friends; this shows poor manners indeed your highness” He winked at her, playfully as one would tease a friend at school. “Very well Night Shade, very well. You win this one.” Luna grumbled sticking her tong out at him. “Alas as much I would love to continue this, I am here on business.” She said her face becoming slightly more serious. Night Shade nodded “Indeed you are, we shall conduct the report in my quarters, you must need to relax a bit after such a journey.” He said motioning his hoof for her to follow and she did, they walked together through the halls of hard black crystal, which to Luna’s surprise were very well lit; also to her surprise and curiosity a blue light would glow faintly around her hoof where she stood, and would stay for a short while as she walked away, it was quite beautiful to her. They stopped in front of a pair of large doors; Night Shade opened to door for Luna and she walked in and eyed the room. To her the room was quite simple, a comfy looking double bed, a sofa that sat next to a coffee table, a desk with a chair and a book case next to it and to the other side of the room was a door that led to a small wash room that had a shower and next to the door was a mannequin presumably for his amour and in the center of the room was a round table with a map of Equestria on it. She moved into the room and examined the map but turned her head when she heard the click of the door closing to see Night Shade walking toward her, his amour glowing as it disassembled itself and floated across the room and reassembled itself on the mannequin, he walked past her and sat himself on a chair next to the coffee table. “Come, take a seat and I’ll begin my report.” Night Shade politely prompted and she did just that, and when she was comfortable she gave him a nod and he begun. The report itself took 2 hours, she had listened to every word he said and was currently trying to think of cover story, the entire crystal empire goes missing ponies would ask questions; once he was finished she brought it up. “Have you thought of a cover story for this, Night Shade?” She asked him. He nodded. “Yes, I think the Elements of Harmony would do nicely, though I think we should leave in the whole curse ordeal, it would make it more believable him being a sorcerer and all.” He sighed and Luna smiled and nodded to confirm her agreement. “Very good.” She said, producing a scroll and pen from faust knows were and wrote a quick message and it puffed into a cloud of smoke and sparks and disappeared. “Your cover story will be ready and waiting for our sister when she wakes up, and now with that out of the way we can catch up.” She said with a warm smile, which he returned. “Indeed, but no catch up session goes right without a drink.” He said and he levitated a bottle filled with a red liquid and two glasses on to the coffee table as he joined Luna on the sofa, he then opened the bottle and poured a small amount into each of the glasses and he set it down and picked up a glass with his magic while Luna did the same with hers and they tapped the glasses with a clink. “Cheers.” He said happily, taking a sip. Luna winced as the liquid set her body on fire. “Griffon fire brandy.” She wheezed. “Rumored to be distilled from dragon blood, your father’s bottle isn't it?” She said; Night Shade nodded. “Yes it is I found it when I moved into the quarters, hidden behind a book of the physiology of flight.” He said, looking at the bottle and smiling somewhat sadly, which Luna noticed. “You still miss him don’t you?” She said and he turned his head to her. “Yes, and I probably always will but I can deal with it.” He paused for a moment and took a sip of his drink. “How about you?” He asked. She turned away from Night Shade and looked at the bottle. “Yes I do, though not in the same way, he will always be a dear friend to me. I learned long ago that, that’s all he could be, but as much as it hurt at the time we worked it out and became better friend for it, something I’m glad of is that he managed to move on.” She said kindly. “Did you move on?” Night Shade asked taking another sip of the hellish brandy as Luna did the same. “Yes and no, I managed to put it behind me and get on with my life and started to get back ‘on the scene’ as it were.” To which the motioned her hoofs in imaginary quotation marks. “But then the war started, and all the eligible stallions of ‘the blood’ ran off to fight in it, and none returned, so that left nothing for me to move on to, but I did all the same.” She said, she turned and looked Night Shade who was still looking at her with a soft expression. She continued to look at Night Shade, her best friend and confidant for almost a millennia now and now began to view him in a different light, she had always liked him; but never in that way. She had always thought him handsome, kind, generous, loyal, honest, a good sense of humor and had a talent for making friends all things that she believed in very strongly as the wielder of half the elements of harmony it put him in a good light, but more importantly then that for her; he cared, he genuinely cared about her and she loved him for it. But only now had she realized that she did. She felt her face soften and her body warm and she leaned forward towards him, and to her surprise he did the same, the came closer and closer until their lips met. It was a soft kiss at first, but it grew more passionate and they started to smack their lips together and their tongs fought each other for control, then the passion was too much to control and Luna threw her hoofs around Night Shade and brought his body against hers, his body was so hot adding to the heat of her own. Night Shade pushed Luna softly onto her back keeping the kiss as it grew deeper and stronger as he lowered himself onto her, but not to do what his body commanded just to hold this glorious moment, but it was not to last as they both were in need of air. The broke the kiss and panted together and looked into each other’s eyes with love until Luna felt something prodding her stomach and she looked down, and then back up and gave the blushing Night Shade an evil grin. “Not on the sofa, stud” She said seductively running a hoof down his chest as she enveloped him with her magic and lifted him to the bed on his back, and fluttered her wings and hovered over and landed on him, standing over him and she pulled him into a deep kiss as she lowered herself onto him. She broke the kiss and gasped when she felt it happen and looked at Night Shade her friend and lover with a primal hunger in her eyes. Night Shade however looked worried. “What about the law?” He asked, and Luna responded by lowering herself more giving a soft moan, and earning one from Night Shade; then her horn glowed its dark blue and he heard the lock on the door click, and she gave him a small kiss on the lips. “I am the law now my love.” She said with a loving smile and she kissed him again.