//------------------------------// // Revealment // Story: Enlightening Circumstances // by ExoskeletalEccentric //------------------------------// Chapter 9: Revealment Celestia was troubled. For days now she had been feeling a strange sense of apprehension, as if something were about to happen. Currently she was seated at her window, looking down at the gardens at one statue in particular, one that represented all that she was against. Sunlight made the stone Draconequus's eyes appear to gleam as she looked at it, a sobering reminder of the pure evil and malevolence contained within the unassuming statue. However, there was nothing to indicate the spirit’s prison weakening. Celestia went to turn away from the window and go about her business. Wait. She felt something. Something that she had thought she would never feel again. "That power..." She murmured. Suddenly she turned from the window, and her hooves clattered on the marble floor as she galloped to the room on the opposite side of the castle. "Luna?!" She urgently called, skidding to a halt as her sister appeared in front of her, wearing a troubled expression. "I feel it too, sister." "But, if you're...how-?" "I don't know. We must hurry." The Sun Princess nodded. Their horns shined gold and cobalt, and they disappeared in a flash and a rush of displaced air. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A dragon!?" Yelled Rainbow Dash, seemingly more annoyed than scared. She glared at me angrily. "One of his friends, too?" What was with this pronoun misuse? ("'His'? I'm a she, damn it! Why don't you get that?") I snapped. Twilight walked between us. "Uh, dragon? We need to focus!" she reminded. Turning to me. "Ashni! This is the dragon you fought before?" I held up my hands defensively. ("I swear that it was totally dead last I checked!") Twilight rolled her eyes. "I don't care if you did or didn't kill it before. Just tell us how to get rid of it now!" ("I don't know how! I just hit it with a big lightning bolt until it fell over! And as you can see, it obviously didn't work!") I heard a derisive snort. Twilight and I turned to see Rainbow Dash flaring her wings in preparation for flight. "Ugh! All this talking isn’t getting us anywhere! It’s time for Rainbow Dash to get things done!" She said with steely determination. "No, Rainbow! You can't beat this dragon on your own!" Twilight pleaded with her. The dragon, which had been remarkably patient throughout all this, spoke. "My fight is with the insect, not you, little pony. You'll get your destruction soon enough. Wait your turn." This infuriated the prideful Pegasus even more. "Excuse me?! It's me you should worry about! You're looking at the fastest flier in all of Equestria!" She bristled. The scaly beast nonchalantly puffed a smoke ring over to the fuming mare” Forgive me, but you are hardly threatening. Your mane looks like a failed art experiment." He said casually. There was a moment of silence "Oh. You. Are. Dead." She shot up into the sky at top speed, her trademark rainbow trail gleaming behind her. She had soon reached the highest clouds, by now a small chromatic blur in the sky, the sun shining through her wings. She gracefully positioned herself above the dragon. And dropped from the sky with the force of a rainbow coloured meteor. She screamed through the sky, and as she reached halfway to her destination, a colourful shockwave rippled out from her, indicating that she had broken the sound barrier. The dragon was watching the object hurtling towards him with vague interest, as if he did not truly believe that this pony could harm him. He was wrong. Rainbow slammed into his head, smashing it straight into the ground. My jaw dropped as an enormous rainbow coloured mushroom cloud bloomed up from the point of impact, the shockwave shattering windows and blowing over a few stalls in the market. I winced; that was going to be expensive. The Atomic Rainboom! I remembered the fan made name for this manoeuvre. There were a few tense moments as the dust settled. "What did I tell you?" Came a smug sounding voice. The owner of the voice soon became clear, as the wind revealed Rainbow Dash standing proudly in front of the dragon, whose head lay in a good-sized crater. "I always get things done." The dragons head rose up out of the crater, and the reptile spread its wings rising up to its full height in an intimidating display, forcing the brash Pegasus to back away. "Ouch." The dragon said gruffly, moving a clawed hand to his jaw to rub it gingerly. "I think I just bit my tongue. And with teeth like these, that hurts." His mouth twisted into a threatening leer. "Perhaps you are worthy of a demonstration?" He moved his talons to snatch up Rainbow Dash. I had to stop him. ("Stop!") The dragon ceased its movement towards Rainbow and moved to face me. It stared at me with mocking interest on its face. "Oh?" I swallowed nervously, but managed to speak. ("If I fight you, will you leave the others alone?") The winged demon grinned. "Ashni, no! We have to fight it together! Friendship is more powerful than any magic!" Twilight was silenced by a glare from the dragon, who then spoke. "Truly? You would place the lives of these..." He waved a clawed hand towards the others. "Ponies. Before your own?" I hesitated, but nodded. "Interesting. Then you have my most sincere promises." ("Regardless of the outcome?") The dragon leaned back and smiled. "Well, we'll have to see, won't we?" Not really satisfactory, but it would have to do. I took off as quick as I could, injured leg smarting from the push. I had to end this quickly, or I would have no chance at all. I connected with the gem around my neck like I had the first time, drawing in as much power as possible. I drew the line to the dragon, and pushed everything I had through it. The huge bolt connected with the dragon, its crackling glow hiding it from sight. My whole body shuddered with the force of keeping it going. “Incredible!” Twilight gasped. “That electromagic bolt is much larger than the one that I recorded. This “Crystal Power” has some amazing ramifications for magical storage!” “Yeah!” Said Pinkie, wide eyed. “And it’s really sparkly!” “Meh. I’ve seen better.” Dismissed Rainbow Dash. Finally, I could no longer sustain the blazing corona of energy, and it flickered and died. To my great dismay, the dragon was completely unfazed. "Has the insect lost its sting?" It mocked. "A shame. MY TURN." He breathed in deeply, and I barely had time to dodge before a seething mass of black flame came writhing towards me, singing my hair as it passed over my head. ("P..perhaps using all my power in the first shot was a bad idea...") The hunger was back, and worse than ever, a constant gnawing at my sanity. I felt storm clouds brewing overhead in response to this. It's not going to be enough. I need more. More power. More energy. So hungry. Need it. Soon it overwhelmed all other thoughts, my mind repeating it over and over. Need power. More power. So hungry. More power. More power. I could vaguely hear Pinkie Pie amidst the roiling thoughts of hunger and need. "Wow! There's lots of pretty flowers! They're growing all over the place!" I felt the presence of the things she spoke of. Rich and full of magic. I turned to them and dived. I had to use them; I had to have more power to defeat the dragon. The beast made no attempt to stop me, and instead gave a satisfied smirk. "No!" Screamed Twilight urgently. "Spellblooms are dangerous! Nopony knows how-" I touched the petals of one of the flowers, and made the connection. I screamed in agony as black fire scorched my mind. In my head I could hear a voice, mocking and cruel. "Ahahahahahaaa! And so, your purpose is complete! You certainly set back my little plan when you ran off to make friends with the ponies, but that no longer matters. At last, Equestria is within my grasp! I tried to reply through my thoughts.. "I don't understand! Who are you?" I questioned. "I am the one they called Nightmare Moon, though this was not my name." "Are you the one who brought me here? Took me away from my family?" The presence seemed highly amused by this. "AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You mean you still believe that? I expected you to have figured that little change out from the start!" "What do you mean? My family is real!" I protested. "Oh, really? What's the name of your brother, then? "I..I don't know..." "Your mother? Father? What were they like? What did you get for your 14th birthday? Did they rock you to sleep when you had a nightmare, their comforting embrace filling you with the knowledge that nothing will ever hurt you? Did they? The voice asked mockingly. "I can't remember! You made me forget!" I shouted. "Did I? Let me refresh our memory!" Suddenly, images formed in our mind. Being forced back into the gap between dimensions by the Elements. Finding a parasite, a weak creature, feeding off of the scraps of energy present in the rift. Changing, it, warping it to fit our purposes. A face. My face. As I reeled from the revelation, the voice began to speak. "You see? I cannot break through into this world by myself. I require a host. But once inside one, my thoughts are clouded by their own desires and aspirations. Once I was forced back into the void after possessing a particularly powerful host, I began to think. If possessing an existing host leaves me open to their thoughts, I would have to possess one with no aspirations of their own. And then, I found you. A parasite living between worlds, leeching spare power from the dimensions and the creatures that dwelled there. No thoughts other than a base hunger. Formless. Perfect. " I took you, molded your form to suit my needs, modelling it after a species I had seen through one of the small rifts in space. Then, I planted seeds of my magic inside the place with the weakest barrier, and waited. I did not have to wait long. A unicorn came into the forest, practicing magic. When she began the spell, I latched onto it, and using my magic, brought us into this world. All you would have to do would be to touch one of the flowers, and allow me through." Here the tone turned slightly annoyed. "But you ran off straight away, leaving me to defend you. Who do you think guided you? Against the cockatrice? Finding food? The fight against the dragon? And then you got yourself injured despite my intervention, befriending the very ponies who stopped me before, blissfully unaware of your true purpose. Until you touched the flower, the extension of my power. "This can't be true!" I said in distress. "I know who I am!" "Why deny it? You are a parasite, whose only purpose is to gain more power. We can give you that power. It is your fate, really." It said. "No! What about Twilight and the others? They became my friends! I don’t have to do this!." “Friendship? You call this…” Images of ponies filled my mind, staring at me with distrust, whispering about me. Rainbow Dash, following me through the town, trying to find evidence of the slightest wrongdoing. “Friendship? Face it; they never would have accepted you. You were too different, too strange, to ever be their equal.” The voice had become difficult to distinguish from my thoughts, with both blending together into one. And as terrible as they were, I knew that they were true. “…Maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s better this way…” “Yes…And the you don’t have to do a thing. Just relax, don’t worry. I will do all the work. You won’t have to feel sad, or angry, or anything at all, anymore. All you have to do…is let me in.” The voice crooned. “…Okay. But…I don’t want anyone to be hurt-“ My weak protest was cut short by the voice. “Hush. No need to worry. No need to think. No need to feel. Just…relax…” I felt my mind shift, and my thoughts changed from ones of loneliness and confusion to ones of plotting and gleeful domination. I spoke in my mind, trying out the processes of the form that I had crafted for myself. “Such a pathetic soul. Easily controlled. Now to gather enough power to bring myself through entirely. And then… Equestria is mine.” I smirked, enjoying the feel of my new body. Perhaps I would make my form similar to this one, once I was free. "And all shall know my glory." I whispered. I opened my eyes. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The assembled ponies had been staring with horrified fascination at the swirling vortex of black smoke and lightning that had risen up from the Spellblooms as soon as Ashni had touched them for a while now, their attempts to get closer foiled by the black dragon strafing crackling black fire whenever they moved in. "What do you think is happening?" Asked Pinkie Pie fearfully. "Yeah! You're smart, Twilight. What's with the crazy light show?" Rainbow Dash chipped in. Twilight shook her head in befuddlement. "I'm not sure!" Noticing the panicked tone in her own voice, the level-headed unicorn forced herself to calm down and think rationally. She began to recite. "Spellblooms are first recorded over 1000 years ago. Nopony knows where they come from, only that they hold an enormous amount of magic. However, nopony has been able to examine them, as they defend themselves with magic, teleporting away and using simple transformation spells. Since no plant is that intelligent, there is evidence to suggest that they are merely extensions of a larger being, but again, because of their nature, this remains a mere hypothesis. This, combined with the fact that they are only found in the Everfree Forest, means that ponies just leave them alone. I myself actually encountered some a few days ago and they...caused a slight malfunction in the spell that I was attempting..." She trailed off suddenly. "Well? What else? What's happening now?" The chromatic Pegasus impatiently asked. Twilight looked disturbed. "I knew that I recognised that magic. That same aura...I felt it before! It's..." There was a great flash of gold and cobalt, and the Goddesses of the sun and moon were there, wings spread and heads held high. "NIGHTMARE MOON!" They both called, the Royal Canterlot Voice amplifying their voices and making them a terrifying spectacle indeed. "Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!" Pinkie, Dash, and Twilight exclaimed in unison. "Ehehehehehe." Laughter echoed out from the maelstrom of energy and smoke. Everyone turned to the slowly dissipating storm, and the source of the noise was made clear through the fading smoke. "Nightmare Moon...the name that you gave us...dear Princess Luna and I, that is. It is not my name. You know less than you think you do, little ponies." Sneered the Entity possessing Ashni, draconic green eyes shining through the fog. Luna gasped in recognition. "You! I remember your voice, telling me...telling me all those things! And I believed you! You were real?!" Celestia turned to her in confusion. "Luna, you know of this creature?" "Well, not in this form, but that voice is unmistakable. It is the voice which made me believe that my situation was one of great injustice, which turned me against you, my sister!" Luna said more firmly. "Hah!" Scoffed the Entity. "I was not the one to turn you. You did that yourself. I cannot directly influence your desires or beliefs. I simply guide. How you interpreted what I said is your fault." "Lies!" Yelled Luna with anger, whirling round to glare hotly at the sylph, who only smirked in response. Twilight interrupted. "Forgive me Princess Luna, but we must hurry! Princess, do you have-" "The Elements." Celestia finished. "Yes, I brought them with me. Where are your friends?" "Right here!" Came the response, and all turned to see Applejack, Rarity and Fluttershy running up from Ponyville. Fluttershy offered an explanation. "I could see the storm from my house, and i..it looked really scary, so I wasn't sure I should go, but then I thought that my friends might be in danger so..." She trailed off. Applejack nodded. "And ah could see that big ol' lightnin' storm brewing from way back on my farm, so ah ran on over to Rarity's place and told 'er what was goin' on." "And then Applejack and I made our way over here as fast as we could, meeting up with Fluttershy along the way.” Rarity finished. "Great! Quickly, girls, the Elements! Nightmare Moon has returned! You must-" Twilight began to say. Suddenly, the Entity was there. Scooping up the Elements of Harmony with tendrils of magic, she flew up out of range of Celestia's return kick. "Not so fast, Avatars of Harmony. Did you really think that I would just let you banish me once more? You know what they say, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." Everypony stared blankly at her. "I've never heard of that expression." Twilight said after a few moments. The Entity was flabbergasted. "Really? Not at all?" Six head shakes. She turned to the Princesses. "Celestia? Luna? No?" "In all of my many years of ruling Equestria, I have never once come across that saying." Celestia said with finality. "Well it's a saying somewhere!" Snapped the godlike being. "Now be quiet whilst I consume the power of the Elements of Harmony!" Her hand stretched out to the floating Elements. "No! Not the Elements" They're the most powerful magic we have!" Shouted Luna in alarm. A few awkward moments passed, during which there was distinct lack of powerful magic being drained. It was said, in fact, that never before in the history of Equestria has there ever been a moment more lacking in ancient artifacts having their power drained by strange entities. "Uh...is somethin' supposed ta be happenin'?" Asked a confused Applejack. "I don't understand!" Cried the Entity. "I can't feel anything! Useless trinkets!" She shook them in impotent rage. "Bah! If I can't use them, then I'll just take a leaf out of Discord's book and hide them!" The Elements zoomed into the sky and vanished with a twinkle. "Good luck finding them!" She turned to the dragon, which had been looking very confused the entire time. "And as for you, O' dragon. You made a useful tool, but I am afraid that I will need all the magic that I can get. Return my essence to me." Black lightning burst forth from the dragon and into the Entity's outstretched hand, to the chorus of the great dragons roars of pain. It was over shortly after it had begun, and the dragon fell to the ground with a heavy thud, scales shining an iridescent green once more. "Aaah..." Sighed the Entity, flexing in mid-air. "It feels good to have so much of me in one host. Everything seems clearer, sharper. Much better than when I was in dear Luna. All that grey..." Celestia reared in anger. "Where have you taken the Elements?" The Entity looked surprised, as if she had forgotten the presence of the two most powerful ponies in existence. "Ah, yes. Wouldn't you like to know?" The being mocked. "That is for me to know, and for them. Here she pointed at the Mane Six. "To find out." And just to make sure they don't cheat and get you to help..." Celestia sensed what was coming and threw up a defensive shield, just in time for a spider’s web of black lightning bolts to come crashing into it. This turned out to be a bad move, as the white alicorn suddenly felt a tug on her magic. Accompanied by a crackle of power and a change in pressure, the shield shattered spectacularly into brilliant shards of light as the Princess's magic was drained away. "Princess Celestia!" "Sister!" Cried Twilight and Luna, but it was over before they could even try to help. With the magic that once filled her gone, Celestia's wings could no longer support her, and the seven ponies watched in horror as she tumbled from the sky. "Sister!" Luna screamed, diving down to Celestia's falling form. The Entity watched thoughtfully as Luna caught the Sun Princess. "Hmm. That was a lot of magic." She chuckled as if she had not just attacked the ruler of Equestria. "She certainly earned the right to be the Goddess of the Sun. Not anymore though, obviously. Now, if you don’t mind every...pony. I will respectfully take my leave. Places to go, magic to consume, you know how it is." Giving a particularly showy mid-air bow, the Entity gathered the energy in her hands that would be needed to twist into the crude shape of a teleportation spell. "WAIT!" The buzzing electricity that the being held died down, and she turned to whoever had made this request. "You have to give us a clue about the elements! Discord gave us a clue!" Pinkie Pie demanded. The Entity looked affronted. "I don't need to do anything! Discord was a fool! Why would I give you a clue about...?" Something that may have been discomfort or pain momentarily flickered across the Entity's face, so fast that almost everyone missed it. "...Very well. I will give you your clue. I'll have more than enough magic by the time you figure it out anyway." Clearing her throat and adopting what she probably thought was a refined pose, the Entity began to recite a clue. "Return to the place where your friendship began. With spires that stretch since before your lifespan. If you are to defeat me, you must reach there soon. The place of regrets, of the Nightmare Moon." Raising herself up on sheets of lightning, she gathered her power once more. "Cheerio!" There was a burst of black light and sharp pop, and the possessed creature was gone, leaving the Avatars of Harmony and Luna to worry over Celestia, despite her protests. "Please, everypony, I am fine. I merely feel...weak. I cannot use magic or fly, but I can stand." To prove her point, Princess Celestia shakily got to her hooves. "You sure yer okay, yer Majesty? That thing hit ya pretty darn good." Asked Applejack with a concerned expression. Princess Celestia waved her away. "I am sure, Applejack. What we need to worry about is finding the Elements of Harmony. There is no way that we can defeat this threat without them." Pinkie gasped. "Ooh! There was a clue! Remember?" "Hmm..." Twilight put a hoof to her chin in thought. "'Return to the place where your friendship began?' What could that mean?" "Uurrrgh..." A rumbling groan came from the prone form of the forest dragon, causing Fluttershy to jump behind Rainbow Dash. "Uh..um. Shouldn't we do something about that d..d..dragon?" Gulped the timid Pegasus. "Yes, cannot simply leave it there. It looks so out of place!" Rarity agreed. Luna nodded and stepped forward, her horn glowing. "I can send him back to the Everfree Forest." "Wait, Princess!" Twilight exclaimed, then trotted over to the Princesses and bowed her head. "I wish to speak to the dragon, if you will let me." "Of course, Twilight, if that is the course of action you feel is best." Celestia answered. "Thank you." The purple unicorn tentatively made her way to the waking dragon. "Umm. Excuse me?" Asked Twilight, who gasped and jumped back as the scaled beast suddenly stirred. "Aargh...where are you insect? Come to me, so I may rip you limb from limb!" The dragon roared weakly, before unsteadily getting to his feet. Twilight shuddered from being so close to the threatening creature. "Um, the 'insect' isn't here. She teleported away." The dragon lowered his head to meet Twilight's level, and narrowed his eyes at her. "A pony? What is that you say, little pony? Not here?" Raising his head to the sky he roared once more, stronger this time. "Then I will find it, and crush it. It will pay for what it did! My thoughts are my own, not to be twisted by some insect!" "Well, actually, that wasn't her. At least, not then it wasn't her. But it is now, or it would be had it been. Or...something. Anyway, the point is, Ashni-the 'insect'-is possessed, and the only way to defeat her is to use the Elements of Harmony." Twilight explained. The dragon was intrigued. "I see. And why do you tell me this? Go, then! Use your 'Elements'! Leave me in peace." "Well, I was hoping that you would help us. I mean, you want revenge on the thing that possessed you, right? And you would certainly be a big help!" The studious unicorn asked sheepishly. "Help you? Why would I do that? Your pony affairs are of no concern to me." The reptilian behemoth said dismissively. Twilight steeled herself, and looked the dragon straight in the eyes. "Because it's not just a pony affair. If she is not stopped, the Entity will ruin the lives of all creatures. Pony, griffon..." She stared pointedly. "Dragon. All will be lost. We need all the help that we can get." She finished her speech, and waited anxiously for a reply. A thoughtful silence continued for a few minutes. At last the dragon spoke. "...Very well, pony. You have made your case. I will help you." Spreading his wings wide, he rose up to his full height. "Point me in the right direction, and I will go! Swift as an arrow, and thrice as deadly!" Boomed the great creature. "Well...actually...we don't know where the Elements are, yet." Twilight said hesitantly. The dragon looked a bit off-put. "Well, how do you plan on finding them?" Inquired the dragon. "We were given a clue, in the form of a riddle. I think I have an idea, though.".”Now, if we are to work together, I think that we should know each other's names. I am Twilight Sparkle; this is Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy." The ponies nodded as they were introduced, except Fluttershy, who just cowered. "And this is-" The dragon moved forward when Twilight gestured at Princess Luna and Princess Celestia. "Princesses Luna and Celestia. It is an honour to stand before you." The scaled creature gave a bow, and swept a wing in front of it. The two Princesses were taken aback by this display. Celestia was the first to recover. "I did not realise that dragons acknowledged Equestrian rulers." Spoke Celestia in a curious tone. The dragon shook his head. "We do not. However, it would be foolish to not show respect for the millennia old beings that control the very day and night." Returning to a less formal position, he continued. "Long ago, as a hatchling, I witnessed your majesty raising the sun. A wondrous sight to behold, indeed." Princess Celestia accepted the compliment with a gracious smile. "Thank you...but do not forget the beauty of the night sky." The reptile’s eye's widened. "Oh, of course not! Many a night have I been grateful for the wonders of the moon and stars to guide my path." Luna gave a pleased smile. "I do try my best. But what is your name? I do not remember hearing it, O' dragon." Sweeping once again into a bow, he answered. "I have been called Razorfang, Your Highnesses. Also Sharptooth, Swiftwing, Longtail. But most recently, Greenscale has been my label." "Then we are pleased that you have chosen to aid us, Greenscale." Said Princess Luna. Rainbow Dash yawned. "Yeah, right. Now that's out of the way, let's get on with the important stuff! Element's of Harmony, here we come!" Greenscale leaned in to Twilight, and whispered in voice still loud enough to be a shout. "I am not fond of the rainbow one. She is loud and annoying. She does not have to come with us, I hope?" Twilight held back a grin. "She is one of the bearers of the Element's of Harmony, so I'm afraid that you will have to put up with her." "A pity." Greenscale sighed. The rainbow-maned Pegasus in question bristled. "Hey! What did you say about me!? I'm not afraid of you! I dare you to say it again!" The dragon looked irritated. "Yes, very annoying indeed. And I seem to vaguely remember being hit by it. Odd." "What!?" Applejack shook her head in amusement. "Just let it go, Rainbow. ‘Sides, you can be kinda...persistent." She said tactfully. Rainbow just huffed. Twilight Sparkle cleared her throat and spoke again. "When we do find the Elements, we will need a plan. I suggest that we go to the library to make one. But first..." She looked up at the intimidating form of Greenscale. "We may need to do something about you." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Author’s Notes: Well, here it is! My favourite (And longest) chapter so far! And within the week, I believe! Shock and horror! It would have been up earlier, in fact, but I was distracted by attempting to create characters using the Hero Generator 2.5. Oh, and there was a History GCSE exam, or something, as well. Probably not important. Anyway! I hope that you like this chapter, as I do, for two reasons. One: It was my original idea. As in, this was the first chapter that I had an idea for. And Two: It is the first (And hopefully not the last) chapter that was looked over by the wonderful BrilliantPoint! Thanks, BrilliantPoint, for taking time to plow through the mess of fragments and vague plot devices that I call writing! Everyone go and say nice things about him now. Oh, and my story. That would be nice. Be excellent to each other!