Episode 1: Nightmares and Lunascapes

by mr lovecolt

Lunascape

A heavy fog surrounded Edger as he made a few tenuous steps on the bridge. He could hear his hooves clack against the wooden planks and the tightening of the ropes as he walked past. The sounds flew out in all directions around him, but the echoes were inaudible. Edger looked up, but the fog was so thick he couldn’t even see the moon above. Edger continued to make his way across the bridge, but stopped when he saw the dark figure that stood on the other side. Edger’s lip trembled, but his eyes never wavered. He watched as the shadow’s body remained still, as though they both sized the other up and found each other wanting. At that moment, Edger could see two large blue eyes open up on the shadow’s face. No shadow’s eyes have done that before, Edger thought, which means they must be getting stronger. Another wave of energy burst through the air, and Edger couldn’t help but to sit down on the bridge and raise his hooves to his head. The bridge creaked even louder this time, and Edger knew he had to get off, and soon. Edger looked up, but the shadowy figure was gone.

“Shadow!” Edger shouted as he ran the final steps to solid ground, “Please, take me!”

Edger took one step onto the ground, and a screech filled the air. Edger jumped and turned to the source of the sound, only to find a small raven in a tree. The raven stared down at Edger and tilted its head so that its white eye could stare directly at him. Edger looked into the white of the eyes for a moment; the white took the same hue as Luna’s moon. The raven screeched again, took to the air, and as it flapped its wings, Edger could hear the sound as it beat against the air around him. The raven flew away and further into the fog.

Edger continued through the fog, but he noticed the sound of his hooves as they fell to the ground. This time, it wasn’t the sound of the earth that he heard, but the sound of wood. Edger wondered whether he had gotten turned around in his confusion, but that was when he noticed a door in front of him, and the sound of other ponies behind him. Edger knew the voices; they were the sounds of the elders, and they were getting closer. He could hear them as they whispered behind. Edger knew the door; it was thick and brown. There were cross beams built into it for extra strength and Edger could see the hoof-beaten metal latch that Forge had built. He moved to the door and could make out each dent in the metal. Edger reached out his hoof to touch the latch, but the metal clicked over and a heavy snap filled the air as the door unlatched. He pushed the door open, and that was when he saw himself sitting over Forge’s body.

“I’m sorry, Forge,” Edger heard himself say, “I’m so sorry that I did this to you.”

Edger continued into the room and made his way over to Forge’s body. It was beaten until even his tan body had turned a deep red. Edger looked to Forge’s face and saw that blood had begun to ooze out and puddle onto the floor. Edger watched as his self cradled Forge’s head in his lap, and the blood began to stain onto his hooves. This is my dream, Edger thought to himself. A shadow grew behind him and darkened the room. Edger turned around to see the shadow with blue eyes once again in front of him.

“It is time.” The voice said as it held out a hoof.

“No,” screamed the small pony that stood behind him.

Edger turned around and watched as his dream self clutched onto Forge’s body even tighter. Edger shuddered at the sound of Forge’s dead body as it was pulled closer. The shadowy creature remained still for a moment. It was at that moment that Edger realized that the shadowy creature hadn’t been in his dream like this before. All of these years that he had this dream, he always dreamed that it was one of the elders. But as he tried to remember his dream through the eyes of the small pony behind him, he realized that the voice didn’t match. This shadow’s voice was higher than the other elders. Edger watched as his dream self lowered his face to Forge’s

“I’m never leaving him.”

The shadowy creature slowly turned and left, but Edger immediately followed. As he stepped out the door, Edger noticed that the shadow was always strides ahead of him down the hall.

“Wait,” Edger yelled, “Take me with you!”

The shadow stopped for a moment, and Edger watched as fog began to form at the shadow’s hooves. Edger turned for a moment and saw that the door was gone, replaced by even more fog. As he turned back, the shadow stood before him. Slowly, the shadow began to take shape; its form took on a dark blue shade similar to Edger’s. The darkness around the shadow’s head turned into a wavy mane like the night sky. Edger fell down onto the floor in a bow.

“Princess Luna.” Edger whispered.

When Edger looked up, he saw that Princess Luna stood with a blank expression on her face.

“Why are you in my dream?” He asked.

“I have been in your dream for the past four years, Tiller.”

“Please,” Edger asked, “Don’t call me that.”

“Yes,” Princess Luna replied, “You prefer to go by the name Edger now.”

“You’ve been in my dreams for the past four years?” Edger asked.

“Yes,” Princess Luna continued, “I have the ability to enter the dreams of all of my subjects. I try to clear the nightmares they have, but my powers can only do so much.”

Edger watched as Princes Luna waved her hoof, and just like that, the fog was gone, replaced by the main atrium of the old castle ruins of the Everfree Forest. Luna made her way through the atrium and stood in front of a raised platform, where a collection of rusted pieces of armor lay. He watched as Princess Luna looked over the broken pieces of armor, and then turned back to Edger.

“I have tried to reach out to you, Edger,” Princess Luna continued, “But only you can wake yourself from this nightmare that you have been having.”

“Am I still in the nightmare now?” Edger asked.

“I think the proper question is this; have you ever allowed yourself to wake up from it in the first place?”

“I’ve tried,” Edger said, “I tried to get my nightmares out of me with everything I could think of. I even tried writing them down on paper.”

“So you thought that you could get rid of your nightmares by giving them to others?” Princess Luna asked as she raised an eyebrow.

“No, it’s not that… I-”

“You cannot rid yourself of your nightmares by giving them to others, Edger. I know this firsthoof.” Princess Luna picked up the armor and then held its broken form in the moonlight. “I was able to break out of my own because I learned about friendship.”

“I don’t have any friends.” Edger replied.

“We all have friends, Edger,” Princess Luna smiled, “It is simply that you have not met them yet is all.”

For a moment, neither pony spoke. Princess Luna twirled the armor in her hoof, and Edger tried to think about what friends he had in Manehatten. His readers were simply fans who liked his stories. Script was simply his agent who helped give him his medications.

“Do you realize what your special talent is?”

Edger looked up to Princess Luna.

“Tilling?”

“Yes, but not in the way you think. What does it mean; to till?”

“To till – to work by plowing, sowing, or raising of crops.”

“That is close to what you do. You break the surface of things, Edger.”

Edger slowly moved towards Princess Luna, who still stood and stared at the armor. Edger thought of the meaning of the word again. To break the surface of things, Edger thought, but not like crops. Another wave of energy floated through the air, and Edger immediately thought of the creatures he kept seeing.

“The shadows that I see,” Edger asked, “They really exist, don’t they?”

“They do.”

“It’s because the prescriptions my agent has given me don’t work anymore. The ponies that have been hurt by them… it has all been my fault, hasn’t it?”

Luna’s eyes widened for a moment as she turned her attention back to Edger. Edger watched her speak, but the sounds had gone away. A screech echoed through the room, and Edger watched as Princess Luna’s body slowly drained of color and then turned into a shadow once more. The shadow finally disappeared, leaving Edger alone in the room.

“Princess Luna! Princess Luna!” Edger yelled, “Please help me! I’m sorry for making you look crazy in my book! Please!”

Edger felt his chest tug at him and pull him away from the old ruins. The walls were slowly replaced with thick trees of the Everfree Forest, and before he knew it, he was standing in front of a large stallion. Edger realized that he had the taste of dirt and sweat in his mouth. Edger stared in terror and knew what was about to happen next. A strong hoof slammed against the back of Tiller’s head and the last thing he saw was the tip of the old ruined spire that he was just in moment ago as it glistened in the newly formed moonlight, but with a dark blue shadow in it, as everything turned to black.

*****

Four ponies ran through the Everfree Forest. The tangle of vines twisted at their legs and slashed at their hooves. When they made it to a small clearing, they took a moment to catch their breaths.

“Script,” Twilight Sparkle asked, “Tell us more about these… prescriptions that you make.”

“I’d much rather not, Princess Sparkle. The implications that this has for Edger and, more importantly, myself are already deep enough as it is.”

“Then I’ll just have to send a letter to the princess to get the information out of you.”

Script huffed and leaned against a large tree. Twilight Sparkle seethed but watched as Caramel took a few steps towards Script.

“I’d be more than happy to use some of my own methods to get some information.”

“Oh please,” Script laughed, “You wouldn’t dare.”

“We need to know how to help Edger, Script.”

“Oh my, a bit protective of the gelding, aren’t we?” Script moved forward. “I’ll bet Edger was quite taken with you, then.”

Caramel rolled his eyes and shook his head as he made his way to Pinkie Pie.

“You know Script,” Pinkie Pie said, “There’s no reason to be such a meanie pants about everything. And when did Edger become a gelding?”

“Finally,” Script yelled, “A pony in Equestria who hasn’t read the story.”

“What story?”

“Oh, you are in for a treat, Miss Pie.” Script sneered as he moved forward yet again, “Did you know that your two friends were each other’s special somepony?”

“Script, please stop this.” Caramel said.

Caramel and Twilight Sparkle looked at the scene as it unfolded. They watched as Pinkie Pie’s expression grew more confused and the sneer on Script’s lips grew more pronounced.

“Of course I did. That’s why I wanted to throw them a party.”

“Let’s just say the rest of your village didn’t take too well the news that two stallions were rutt-”

“Enough!” Caramel shouted as he launched forward and slammed a hoof into Script’s face.

“Caramel!” Twilight Sparkle yelled as she rushed forward to hold Caramel back, “That is enough.”

Script lay at the base of the tree with his face covered by his hooves. He stopped trembling a moment later and slowly got to his feet. He touched his chin with his hoof and grimaced. He then stood still for a moment and glared at Caramel.

“Well, hopefully I was able to help the naïve pony put together those simple pieces.” Script reached to his saddlebag to feel for the prescriptions. “Let’s just get these pills to Edger so that we can just get this over and done with, shall we?”

Script turned on his hoof and made his way back into the Everfree Forest towards the old ruins. The others caught up with him, but when Twilight Sparkle turned to look at Pinkie Pie, she noticed that her friend’s eyes darted back and forth, as though she began to process what Script had told her. As her face became more concerned, she watched as Pinkie Pie’s hair began to deflate once again.

“Twilight?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Yes?” Twilight Sparkle said, knowing what she was about to be asked.

“Tiller was punished because he loved Forge, wasn’t he?”

Twilight Sparkle just sighed and wrapped a wing around her friend.

“And they got punished because the elders found out about it, didn’t they?”

“Pinkie,” Twilight Sparkle said, “Don’t blame yourself for this. It wasn’t your fault. You didn’t know. You couldn’t have known they would react that way. What they did was their own actions. They chose to react how they did.”

“I know it’s not my fault, Twilight.” Pinkie Pie replied, “I just don’t understand why they would do that.”

Twilight Sparkle smiled. He was grateful that Script hadn’t gotten to her as she feared he would. She was happy that her friend at least knew that what had happened to Edger wasn’t something she should blame herself for.

The brambles gave way, and they found themselves at the beginning of the old wooden bridge that led up to the old ruins. Caramel and Script stood at the edge of the forest and waited for Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie to catch up. When they reached it, Pinkie Pie let out a small laugh as her hair inflated.

“Hey Twilight, does this bring back memories?”

“Oh Pinkie Pie,” Twilight Sparkle laughed, but then suddenly stopped.

Twilight Sparkle and Script looked at each other, but Caramel and Pinkie Pie made their way towards the bridge.

“Pinkie, Caramel, stop.” Twilight Sparkle said as she held a hoof in the air. “Script, do you feel it?”

“Yes, Princess Sparkle, I do.”

Script and Twilight Sparkle looked around the small clearing between the Everfree Forest and the bridge. Another wave of energy burst through the air, and they saw it. It wasn’t so much that they saw something, but rather that the air they looked at seemed out of place, as though they were staring at the air in front of them at the bridge through a piece of concave glass. The concave moved around a bit, but it stood just at the base of the bridge. It slowly moved forward a step.

“Twilight? Script?” Caramel asked as he backed away with them, “What’s going on?”

“Oh guys don’t be silly.” Pinkie Pie said, “Remember what I taught you about ghosties?”

Pinkie Pie began to dance around the three other ponies as she started to sing.

When I was a little filly and the sun was going down

The darkness and the shadows, they would always make me frown

“Is she actually singing?” Script asked.

I’d hide under my pillow from what I thought I saw

But Grannie Pie said that wasn’t the way to deal with-

Suddenly a screech rang out, and the others watched as Pinkie Pie’s body began to float through the air. Her ear disappeared for a moment, and when it reappeared, all that was left was a bloody stump.

“Move back!”

Script shouted and he lowered his head. A small white light emerged from his horn and sent wavy lines of light through the air that surrounded Pinkie Pie, only to reveal that she was held up by a shadowy pony. The shadow pony stopped moving for a moment, but his body moved closer and closer to Pinkie Pie’s neck. Script’s body began to tremble as the light began to waver.

“Caramel,” Script shouted, “Buck it, you stupid foal!”

Caramel snapped out of his trance and immediately ran over to the shadow. When he did, the shadow dissipated into the air. Pinkie Pie fell to the ground and cried as she struggled to stand. A moment later, they all heard the sound of Edger’s voice.

“Princess Luna! Princess Luna!” Edger yelled, “Please help me!”

“We have to get to Tiller!” Pinkie Pie shouted and made her way across the bridge.

“Pinkie, wait!” Twilight Sparkle shouted to Pinkie Pie, “You’ve been injured! We have to get you to a hospital.”

The three ponies followed Pinkie Pie towards the ruins, only to see a dark, black light emerge from one of the spires.

“Okay fellas,” Twilight Sparkle said, “We know that is where he is. Everypony stay close.”

Caramel and Script exchanged a pair of confused looks as they were surrounded by a purple aura. A moment later, they found themselves in the main atrium of the room where they had just seen the black light. They heard echoed hoofsteps from the staircase next to them. Caramel and Twilight Sparkle breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Pinkie Pie at the entrance to the atrium.

“Pinkie Pie, you are injured.”

The four ponies approached the raised platform, where they saw Princess Luna and the unconscious form of Edger. The other ponies didn’t move for a moment, but Caramel made his way towards Edger and gasped. Edger must have torn his pants asunder while he made his way through the Everfree Forest, because Caramel could finally see his cutie mark; or what was left of it to be precise. Caramel could make out the shape of a scythe as it touched the ground, but he couldn’t make out any other details because of the two letters that had been branded so deeply into his flank that even the fur that grew around it couldn’t cover it. Edger’s leg had bent forward in his sleep, and Caramel shuddered as he couldn’t help but stare at what was left of his underside. It looked like somepony had removed all of the insides of his penis and scrotum and simply left the skin. A moment later, he was joined by Pinkie Pie, who looked just as shocked as he did.

“The elders did this?” Pinkie Pie asked to nopony in particular. “My father did this?”

Pinkie Pie stumbled back for a moment. The blood had been dripping from her ear for some time, and Pinkie Pie turned around and finally noticed the small red dots that had followed her throughout the castle. The others circled around her as they watched her slowly fall to the ground into unconsciousness.

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

Who is the beige pony in the character tag?

[mr lovecolt]

2492095 The beige pony would be Caramel. However, in the fandom universe, there seems to be two of them, the effeminate one that always tends to somehow end up with Big Mac, and then the more masculine one which seems more in character with the show. I have decided to use the latter version.

[Jordan179]

Now that you've explained what's going on, I have a problem with two of your chosen victims. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie both have powerful defenses against semi-real creatures. Fluttershy has the Stare, which would probably straight-out destroy a sending; and Pinkie Pie is a Reality Warper, which means that she can dispel illusory or semi-real things. In other words, I think you've picked two of the three Mane Six least likely to be vulnerable to the attacks: Applejack, Rarity or Rainbow Dash would have been more vulnerable, because they don't have those kinds of psychic defense. (Twilight's just too powerful).