//------------------------------// // ...the Night After... // Story: Shadows of the Blackest Night // by Talguy21 //------------------------------// ...the Night After... Night awakened late the next day, under careful supervision of Lunar medics. Once he roused, he was subjected to several tests which strained his new body to its limits. His speed, reflexes, power, and his situational clarity had increased significantly, meeting or breaking all of Luna's expectations. Though much of Night's success in Luna's trials was credited to his exemplary skills beforehand, he had no doubt become the greatest soldier many had ever seen. It was then decreed that several more willing pegasi of the lunar guard be changed into Noctrals by midnight ritual. Before long, Luna had to move their operation to the distant Great Mountain to keep their plot under wraps. It was there, deep in the crystal caves beneath that Luna's army grew. By seeking out recruits in their dreams, Luna had found the most willing and devoted of the pegasi, and soon her army of Noctrals numbered nearly a thousand. It was then that urgent news came from the north. Celestia and Luna stood, side to side, seeing the carnage swept across the barren tundra. Crystal Pony warriors locked spears and swords with the ponies of the guard, urged by some dark force to fight their distant kin. Sombra himself seemed to be omnipresent, yet nonexistent, his mocking laughter and sneering distracting the guardsponies and terrifying his own with threats of punishment should they disobey. It was at this point that Celestia had had enough. Not since Discord's defeat decades ago had Luna seen Celestia in such a rage. Her mane was ragged, flowing almost like flames, as her eyes radiated the most pure hatred the princess had ever seen on her sister. In a brilliant blaze of golden light, the battlefield was stripped of its shadows, and Sombra lay exposed at the heart of the melee. The Crystal Legion froze, turning to regard their King with looks of sheer horror. It was in this pause that Celestia spoke, her voice ringing loudly across the tundra. "That is enough, Sombra! You are nothing but a slave driver! A true monarch of any good standing holds their subjects first, as you clearly do not. Such disregard of common decency to our fellow pony cannot be allowed, Sombra... but I will not kill for the likes of you. I won't become what you are." The light from Celestia's horn intensified, and Sombra's body began to dissolve into shadow. As his form began to sink into the ice, Sombra merely began laughing. "You think imprisoning me will save these pitiful insects? You fail to understand my connection to them, I see." He smirked, his body beginning to vanish. "Very well, Princess, but I'll return more powerful than ever. Along with my slaves." His horn let loose an eerie green light as it began to dissolve, with each crystal pony flickering from sight, one after the other, until the whole crystalline city behind them flickered out of existence. It was that day that Luna realized the true scope of her sister's power. Mere armies could not defeat her. Not even she, in her own right, could have hoped to conquer Sombra as Celestia had. It was with a heavy heart that Luna returned to her soldiers. "My beloved children, I bring ill tidings. I have learned today that our strategy is invalid. I knew not the scope of Celestia's might, nor shall I underestimate her again." She announced, hushing the crowd with a hoof. "You- once common pegasi- have become the soldiers of my nocturne army, and you have done me proud! Rest assured, your sacrifices have not been in vain, for it led me to discover something beautiful! A realm, of pure unadulterated shadow." With these words, Blackest Night stepped up beside the princess, his eyes flashing as a rift materialized before him. Luna's horn lit, projecting an image of the interior across the room, cloaking it in darkness. All around, streams of shadow coursed across like rivers, with the ground growing dark and the skies gaining a million flickering points of light. Trees grew from the dark soil, bearing fruit ranging from deep purples to the deepest black, while all the while, the stars above constantly flickered in a cosmic dance. Every pony in the room was amazed at the sight, and as the spell faded, some seemed to try to grasp for the fleeting image. "In the interim during the next phase of planning, we seek our refuge here. You, my children, can live happily in your own world of beautiful night while I prepare this one for us all. If I have need of you, I will summon you. You need not fear it, for I will always be here for you all. Now go: Equestria is not yet ready for you, but when it is, I will welcome you back with open hooves. Cast aside all of your fears, and fly, my Noctrals, and let you find sanctuary in the shadows." In the interspersing centuries, many tales arose, of Vamponies, to Boogiemares, to all sorts of horror stories. However, we know now that from the shadows themselves, the Noctrals, and their descendants, kept us safe from such monsters. Foraying occasionally into Equestria, some found links with Light Ponies, and families and friendships were tentatively forged in secret. It was not until Luna's return that we returned fully to the light, but to this day, we are misunderstood. We will serve our princess, as we owe her what we have been given. As the hologem shut off, held in a midnight blue hoof, a voice called through the blackness of the Shadow Plane. "And you see, Starfire, that is the story of my people." A mare's voice said.