//------------------------------//
// Chapter Ninety Two 
// Story: HiE - A Hollow in Equestria 
// by Charlie_K 
//------------------------------//


Chapter Ninety Two


On numerous occasions before, Twilight had heard the phrase "on pins and needles" being used to describe the conditions of restlessness, unease, and agitation. That uncomfortable inability to simply sit still and exercise calmness, that often motivated ponies to pace restlessly, simply so they had something to do to occupy themselves with.

It was a sensation she'd experienced numerous times before in the past. And it was a sensation that she was currently experiencing right now as she fidgeted, and anxiously shifted from one hoof to another. Right now the Golden Oaks library might as well be the show room for a freaking cactus farm, or a broken glass emporium, because there was no way she could bring herself to actually sit down! She had tried several times, but she'd utterly failed miserably in each one of her attempts. Ultimately she simply couldn't remain still for more than a few seconds, before feeling compelled to move about once again.

Celestia's assurance that Luna and the others could be found had filled her with optimism and hope. But now those were turning into anxiousness as she tried to let Celestia do her thing without interruption. But it was just so, so hard to just stand back and do absolutely nothing; not even ask any questions. The urge to help out in some way -any way- was simply overpowering. Whatever sort of magic her mentor was working while sitting their motionlessly, with but a soft golden glow emanating from her horn the whole time, she had no real clue. 

"This is most unusual," Celestia stated, speaking up for the first time since she attempted to find Luna's position. "I have no idea what it is, but I'm running into a great deal of interference that's preventing a positive lock on Luna's location," she explained as she sat up straighter.

"Interference?" Applejack asked, successfully beating Twilight to the punch before the lavender unicorn could present a more rambling form of the question for consideration.

Celestia nodded in response. "It wasn't there previously, but something is serving to oppose my efforts at tracking her. It's as if a dampening field was suddenly erected over a considerably large area shortly after her departure. I know that Luna is somewhere in it, but I can do nothing to actually pinpoint her at this time," she explained.

Twilight's brow furrowed at hearing this information. What sort of magic did Nightmare Moon have access to, if she could deploy a dampening field that even Celestia herself couldn't cut through? Just how much magic did she actually have at her disposal, to actually be doing something like that?

Or alternatively, could it be something that Luna was currently doing, in an effort to keep them away? Was she so set in sparing them the atrocities of what she was going to do, that she was going all out in keeping them away from her?

Before she could actually ask the question -or any question really- she was interrupted by feeling the sensation of a tremor running through the ground. It was subtle, but it was still noticeable enough that she felt it in the bottoms of her hooves, and observed as several of the smaller items around the library trembled.

"Uh, wha' was that jus' now?" Applejack asked, also having taken notice of the tremor.

A second later there was a second tremor that followed the first, but it was significantly more forceful, and carried a greater measure of strength at it shook them, the library, and the contents within.

"While we're on the subject, just what was that!?" Rarity asked.

"I don't know. But I doubt that it's anything good," Twilight stated. The timing of the tremors was far too coincidental to be explained away as just being a matter of that.

But if there was a connection between the tremors and Nightmare Moon, she simply wasn't seeing it right now. There was just far too much information missing, for her to be able to form any sort of hypothesis.

"Whatever it is, there's not doubt it isn't good," Spike stated firmly. Nothing else that'd been happening up until now had been good, so why should he really expect the pattern to be changing?

"Ah'm gettin' that same feelin'," Applejack agreed. And it was a feeling that'd been building for a very long time now. Apple Bloom was missing, and in danger out in the middle of the forest, and there was no telling what might've happened before -or even after- Ulquiorra got there to resolve the matter. She'd been trying to remain calm, trying to just leave the matter to Ulquiorra to deal with as he saw fit. But the news of Celestia being unable to actually find their location had simply been too much for her to tolerate. She was no camel, but that announcement was the straw that had broken her back.

She had no idea what that interference amounted to in terms of difficulty for teleporting after Luna and the others to help. But she suspected that it was going to be significant. And if it was, if it was going to prevent her from making sure Apple bloom was alright, then she was going to march into the Everfree Forest and find everyone by herself if it had to be done. She didn't care if Nightmare Moon was out there and posing a threat; when it came to her family, she'd even face down Ulquiorra if that was what she needed to do.

Not that she had any expectations of actually succeeding in that endeavor; far from it actually. But standing down just wasn't an option for her.

She glanced towards the library door, weighing her available options, and pondering if she'd be able to slip out unnoticed as the others talked about matters that simply weren't registering in her mind, before they could actually stop her. 

Before she could actually move one hoof towards her destination, she caught sight of Spike looking back at her.

Rather than speaking up, or otherwise proceeding as intended, she slowly tilted her head in the direction of the door.

In response, Spike slowly shook his head.

Applejack's brow furrowed in response, interpreting this gesture as Spike saying that he wasn't about to let her head out like she was planning. She responded by giving a single, slow nod in his direction, before tilting her head towards the door again.

Yet again, Spike slowly shook his head in response. Which she took to mean that he wasn't going to go running off with her either. And if that really was the case, then that put her in a difficult predicament; one she'd much rather not find herself in, if it were at all possible to do just that.

Unfortunately that wasn't the case. That was the situation she found herself in, and there really wasn't much she could do about it. She could make a mad dash like Rainbow Dash had, but they'd be on her just like they had been previously. They'd never let her head off into a dangerous situation on her own, just like they wouldn't head out without some sort of plan for dealing with this situation.

Maybe that was what needed to happen, though. Maybe she needed to make a declaration of intent to get something actually set into motion. If she told the others that she was planning on leaving, would that manage to get the ball rolling, and get them closer to actually doing something?

Screw whether it would or not. She was going to go ahead and do it regardless.

"Y'all. Ah know this is important an' all. But Ah ain't waitin' around even one more minute. Ah'm goin' ta find Apple Bloom, even if Ah have ta go inta the Everfree Forest all by mahself," she stated firmly. "An' so help me, if anyone gets in the way of findin' mah little sister, Ah swear Ah'll flatten 'em," she added with equal firmness.

Waiting around had gotten them nowhere but frustrated. She was as patient a mare as one could reasonably be expected to be under these circumstances. But that didn't change the fact that she had her limits, and she was quickly being pushed to them. 

"Well then, Applejack, if that's how you feel, then I'm afraid that you'll have to "flatten" me," Rarity spoke up as she effortlessly positioned herself between her friend and the door. She could see the discomfort of her friends as she did this, but it was something that simply had to be done. And if it had to be done, then she might as well be the one to do it.

Before Applejack even had the chance to object, she was already speaking again. "I understand how you feel right now, darling, I really do; you're not the only one with a little sister out there in the forest. But charging off blindly just isn't an option right now. Luna and Ulquiorra are already on the matter, and I dare say there's very little that either of us could do on our own to be of assistance to them. All we could really do is get in the way..."

It wasn't a statement that was easy for her to make. She didn't like admitting to the fact that she was more or less useless to everypony. But she wasn't foalish enough to let her pride trick her into believing she could actually do anything under these circumstances. Against somepony like Nightmare Moon there simply wasn't anything she could do; certainly not on her own anyway. They'd been lucky last time. And until the Element of Loyalty finally resonated with Rainbow Dash, she and the others could only sit on the sidelines and wait it out.

Pinkie nodded in agreement with Rarity's statement, her mane bouncing about in the process as she did. "Yeppers! And besides that, the terror fog is still out there, just like Ulqy said! He's the only one that's not affected by it, so he's really the only one who can do anything," she stated in a -surprisingly- serious tone.

All Applejack could do was sigh in defeat as the others started ganging up on her. She suspected that this was going to be the case, although she certainly hadn't expected Rarity to challenge her like she had; that bit had thrown her for something of a loop in all this.

Celestia didn't say anything, but she was thankful that it wasn't her who felt motivated to speak up first in response to Applejack's statement. Because if she had... well her response would've been much like Rarity's had been. She, too, had a little sister that was out there right now, and up against who knew what. Unfortunately there was no comfort for her to take in the fact that Ulquiorra was out there with her right now. Nightmare Moon was... well she didn't know if even the Espada would be enough to stop such a wicked and vile entity. Ulquiorra might've been a top predator back in his dimension, but this wasn't his dimension. There was no telling what might occur, or just how badly things might go wrong.

Making it all the worse was how helpless she felt -how helpless she was proving to be- with this interference, making it impossible for her to find Luna and...

Wait.

Wait!

Immediately her head flew up as she looked in the direction of the library's door. She didn't even offer a word of explanation as she got up, and quickly made her way across the room, her horn flaring to life as the door was pulled open, allowing her to charge outside without having to smash her way through it.

"Now wha' was that all about?" Applejack asked, completely at a loss for what she'd just seen.

"Only one way to really find out," Spike stated, before following Celestia's lead and running out the door.

The others looked at each other for a brief moment, before wordlessly doing the same, each making a break for it to the outside, to see just what had drawn their ruler out of the library.

They'd known for sometime that there was quite a gathering of ponies outside; anxious parents and other family members who were chomping at the bit to find out if the foals were going to be alright. It was anything but a peaceful gathering the last time they'd been outside. But now, as they tried to make their way through it all, it was positively chaotic to experience! There was so much commotion and chaos going on as various ponies screamed and pushed and shoved, it was practically impossible to even see Celestia, despite her greater height.

"Outta the way! Seriously, make a hole!"

But through it all, one shouting voice was making itself known through force. Looking towards it they could see Rainbow Dash forcing her way out of the crowd by flying up and over it, and setting down on the nearest clear spot that was available to her.

"Rainbow Dash!" Rarity yelled.

Naturally they made their way over to her; both relieved at the news that their friend was back safe and sound, and desperately seeking answers as to what was going on.

It was only then that they noticed the fur on her face was soaked and stained in what they could only presume was blood. Beyond that she looked like she'd been battered to Tartarus, and her armor looked considerably less than pristine now. Actually she was starting to look like a walking corpse at the moment.

"What... what happened? Are you okay?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah, I'm good. Look, I'll tell you all what happened, but first there's something that I really gotta know. Is the Element of Loyalty working yet? Are we ready to move out?" she asked quickly, not wanting to waste even a second in waiting.

Twilight opened her mouth to respond, but no words were forthcoming. She looked at the rest of her friends uncomfortably, before closing her mouth once again as she turned back to Rainbow Dash, and just slowly shook her head. "I'm sorry."

In her current state, Rainbow Dash felt floored by this statement. After all of that, after charging into the Everfree Forest to face off against Nightmare Moon, without a second thought as to what might happen to her, that still wasn't enough to get it properly resonating with her!? Everything she'd gone through, it'd all been for nothing? She hadn't been able to help even a little bit?

She'd given it everything she had, put everything on the line, in hopes of her actions being able to amount to some demonstrable good in the end. Even when she knew she could've been killed, she'd still gone all in without hesitating. And now she was finding out that nothing had come of her efforts. The foals were safe and sound now, sure, but she hadn't actually been integral in that happening. Had she simply stayed in Ponyville with the others, the results would've been the exact same.

For all of her efforts, she hadn't actually amounted to any good. She'd gone hoof-to-hoof with an imperfect Nightmare Moon, which might amount to bragging rights later on, but ultimately her intervention had done nothing at all that made the situation any better. She was physically exhausted, the Elements of Harmony were no closer to functioning than they had been a week ago, and now Nightmare Moon had regained her physical form and might, and was thus able to put Equestria in danger once again. She may as well have been spitting into the wind for all the good she'd done here tonight.

She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. She wanted to rear up and slam her front hooves against the ground over and over again. She wanted to go tearing off back into the forest, and throw everything she had left at the problem, all the while hoping against all odds that the mad tyrant of an alicorn would be short-sighted enough to cut her own throat in the meeting. 

Right now she just plain wanted to do something -anything- that didn't involve sitting around, and lose what little composure she had left to herself.

Such a course of action never got past the idea phase, however. Before she could actually contemplate acting on such instincts, she felt herself subjected to a firm embrace, even through the armor she currently had on. Looking to her left, she realized that Rarity had come up beside her, and was now currently holding onto her, as if she'd sensed her rapidly failing strength.

Despite Sweetie Belle being back, she'd still come over to see her.

"Your coat's gonna get all bloody doing that," she pointed out.

Rarity merely shook her head in response. "I don't care about that, you're far more important. You're my friend, and you brought Sweetie Belle back safe and sound. I'm not about to let something as trivial as my coat get in the way of all that."

Rainbow Dash wanted to protest Rarity's assessment. Luna had been the one to bring Sweetie Belle and the others back safely, not her. If anyone deserved to be getting hugged right now, it was undoubtedly Luna, not her. But try as she might, she simply couldn't find the strength that was necessary to protest right now. For the first time in what felt like over a year, her mind was finally free of Nightmare Moon's evil influence, constantly whispering to her that she had to kill Rarity and the others. For the first time in so long, it was finally silent up there, and she was truly free. 

Try as she might, all she could do was slump against Rarity for support and shut her eyes, simply too tired to try and struggle any further.

One by one, in short order, the rest of their friends quickly joined in on hugging her, surrounding and enveloping her in a sense of things being right, that she simply hadn't felt in a very long time. Against all of that, she just couldn't mount any resistance. It was a completely shameless tactic, and one for which she simply had no defense.

She'd just settle in for a little bit, and do nothing but enjoy the familiarity of it all.





Teleportation over a long distance that wasn't guided by sight, was always a tricky endeavor when it came to both accuracy and safety; especially when it came to teleporting into the midst of an assembled group. Mass teleportation of one sizable group into the midst of an another sizable group was even moreso, as it required even greater skill, finesse, control, and above all a sufficient quantity mana. 

For someone -almost anyone- else, such an endeavor might not've been physically possible. But for Luna such simply hadn't been the case. She, Rainbow Dash, and the remaining foals had all set down safely in Ponyville, far removed from whatever carnage was unfolding in the midst of the Everfree forest right now, as Ulquiorra did battle with Nightmare Moon.

As soon as they had arrived, their little group was both besieged by others, and scattering to meet with said others as anxious families were reunited. Rainbow Dash herself had wasted no time in fleeing the scene, barely taking the time to state something about going for the Elements of Harmony, as she disappeared into the assembled crowd in a frantic fashion, all but pushing and shoving her way past them as they obstructed her path of travel with their mere presence.

The sight of the foals reuniting with their siblings and parents brought a smile to her muzzle, but it was ultimately short lived. Seeing their happiness just served to remind her of those that would never experience such joy again, all thanks to the likes of Nightmare Moon. Just thinking about how many families had been violently ripped asunder by the likes of that demon infuriated her to no end.

Making it all the worse was the fact that she had not been able to do anything to actually prevent it. Nightmare Moon had seen to that, keeping them all engaged, occupied, and otherwise distracted while she went about devouring more souls for the purpose of making herself stronger. For all the ones that had successfully been rescued, those that had been lost weighed heavily on her.

Having to leave Ulquiorra behind to face Nightmare Moon alone was also a source of contention for her. She understood the reasoning for why he had sent them away, but she still didn't like that they'd just run off and left him like they had. He had forced the issue, but she still didn't like it one bit. She should be the one out there right now, putting an end to Nightmare Moon once and for all; not running away in order to foalsit while someone else tended to danger!

Why? Why did fate seem so intent to render her useless, and fit to be forgotten like last week's garbage?

"Sister!"

Recognizing both that voice, and the sound of quickly approaching hooves, Luna looked up and saw Celestia full on galloping towards her, with other ponies just barely managing to get out of her way as the distance between them was crossed in short order.

At least her sister seemed to be functioning to an acceptable degree again. If nothing else, at least there was that. Setting out to face Nightmare Moon, she had been afraid of what her departure would mean for Celestia; there was no telling how bad her impaired state was, or how bad it could be in her absence. But she appeared no worse for wear, thankfully.

Bracing herself, she made no move to avoid the eclipse that Celestia performed on her. She simply intercepted her sister's tackle, letting herself be taken to the ground in the process.

"It is good to see you too, sister," she stated simply.

"Are you alright, Luna? Were you harmed? Did that monster do anything to you?" Celestia asked, her tone bordering on frantic as she spoke.

"I am fine, Celestia, although I fear that will not remain the case much longer," Luna explained, already aware of the fact that foals were beginning to talk and tell of what they'd witnessed and experienced. Word of Nightmare Moon was quickly spreading like wildfire, which would lead to fear, which would in turn make her even stronger than she was presently. "The situation is far worse than we had initially feared," she stated, preparing to tell of what the details were, and all the while hoping that Ulquiorra would be able to rectify the matter soon.

"Ulquiorra Cifer, please kill her quickly," she mentally pleaded.





Fast! 

That was the one coherent thought Nightmare Moon's mind was able to process at the moment, as she battled against Ulquiorra above the Everfree Forest.

It could be argued that, up until now at least, their battle so far had simply been little more than the two of them feeling each other out, trying to gauge each others' strength, while simultaneously looking for exploitable weaknesses, and at the same time guarding themselves to avoid demonstrating such potential weaknesses. 

It was a lot like a game of chess being played out currently, only which much higher stakes, and at greatly accelerated speeds; a fact perfectly illustrated as Ulquiorra appeared in front of her in less than the blink of an eye, with his right leg swinging towards her head.

Up until now, their battle so far had simply been little more than the two of them feeling each other out. But now it was getting to be quite serious.

She could see the speeds at which he was currently moving. But being able to comprehend what was being seen, did little good to help one who lacked the physical capability of actually responding accordingly. She could see his foot swinging upward to catch her under the chin, but there was nothing she could actually do about it, that would result in the blow either being stopped, or otherwise avoided.

The blow landed with considerably more force than she'd been expecting, far more than she could've braced herself against, proving to be sufficient for sending her flying skyward without her even having to give a single flap of her wings.

However her unplanned ascension was stopped by a sudden, sharp, dull blow delivered to the back of her neck near the base of the skull, that sent her rapidly tumbling, and crashing into the ground with a significant degree of force.

And then she saw the glow of a green light forming above her. Demonstrating that things could indeed get worse for her.

"Oh, this bodes poorly," she thought to herself, right before she felt the impact of Ulquiorra's Cero slamming into her prone form.





Not being surrounded by ponies who could potentially get in his way -or otherwise be made into hostages he would have to take into account- Ulquiorra was free to open up, and demonstrate a greater degree of strength than he could otherwise. It was a fact he was taking full advantage of in this case as he dealt with Nightmare Moon, as only he could.

Early on into his stay in Equestria, when it became apparent that he was going to be here for quite some time, he had researched a great many topics and subjects, in order to properly familiarize himself with his new surroundings. One of those topics had -naturally- been the various threats that Equestria had faced since its inception. 

Among those recorded threats had been the entity known as Nightmare Moon, and the lore that surrounded her; it was quite literally a tale as old as history itself.

But as he went about actually fighting her for himself, he couldn't help but note that what he was experiencing for himself, simply didn't live up to all of the hype that surrounded the recorded accounts of her.

In pony standards, he could certainly understand how she might amount to a credible threat to this world. She possessed sufficient durability to withstand being struck by not only his Cero -which only one other being had been able to do- but also his Gran Rey Cero, which was several times stronger, and considerably more destructive. She possessed a significantly high level of reiryoku, and the reiatsu she generated as a result was more than the Diez Espada normally managed. She certainly wasn't really on par with the diarchy, but any normal pony would be hard pressed to stand up to her.

But in Hollow standards, Nightmare Moon would more accurately be regarded as being trash. Some might even say she was the rubbish that aspired to one day being trash. From what he had seen so far, he could classify her at approximately the same level of strength as a Gillian-Class Menos Grande; certainly more than any human -or even low-level Shinigami- could ever hope to stand up to. But against a Vasto Lorde of his caliber, it was simply no comparison. Murciélago wouldn't even need to be unsheathed for dealing with this matter.

Then again, despite looking the part, this Nightmare Moon wasn't a true alicorn. She didn't possess Princess Luna's body, therefore she didn't possess the same magical strength and aptitude that she once had access to. This Nightmare Moon before him, was but a pale imitation of what the legends spoke of with such reverence, assembled with a number of souls from the three pony tribes, and held together with untold levels of harvested fear like a macabre rag doll. It was nothing more than a broken remnant of a period long since passed, that should've ceased to exist a long time ago, but still refused to relinquish its own pitiful existence. Whether that refusal was born from fear or stubbornness, he didn't really know. Nor did he particularly care.

With her currently down on the ground, he let loose another Cero on her prone form, at a straight, ninety degree, downward angle, to insure she experienced the full force of what she was up against; both concussive and explosive. Things that he simply couldn't do, if Princess Luna and the others had stayed behind.

Trash deserved to be disposed of. It was as simple at that. And he would dispose of it.

"Well now. Your stamina is quite impressive. To think that you could do that multiple times without becoming exhausted as a result..."

Ulquiorra frowned at hearing that; both Nightmare Moon's voice, and the way in which she'd phrased her statement. The first part meant she was technically still alive, while the second part meant she was looking for ways to mock him; which overall meant she didn't fear facing him.

That, or she was actually getting turned on from getting the fuck beaten out of her, and was now flirting with him in response. 

Between the two standards, he didn't know which was the worse one to be facing.

"You should've died from that. I could feel your cervical vertebrae shatter from the force of the impact," he stated as he turned his attention to the clearing smoke, opting to ignore the more vulgar aspects of her previous statement. Just as he opted to not comment on her teleportation skills, as that was likely the only way she avoided meeting her death at the end of his Cero.

Perhaps she'd come prepared, and had a full variety of healing spells at her disposal. Perhaps a broken neck wasn't as deadly as he'd first anticipated it as being. If that were truly the case, he'd simply have to work harder at it.

"Well, you know the old saying. Should've, could've, would've," Nightmare Moon commented as the smoke in the clearing dissipated, assisted by the flapping of her wings as she hovered at his level off the ground. "You'll find that I'm just full of surprises, Espada..." she practically purred.

"What you're full of is theatrics, and arrogance born of your own hype; nothing that amounts to being of actual substance," Ulquiorra stated as he faced her. "The fact you're still alive is nothing more than an inconvenience. An inconvenience that will soon be solved."

At hearing this, Nightmare Moon cackled with amusement. "Oh that's just so precious! Thinking that you could actually stand up to me!" she howled, before growing quite serious again, and glaring in his direction. "Impudent biped! You stand no chance against the likes of me! I now have twenty one souls in my being, with an even spread across the three pony tribes! Even the diarchy couldn't contend with the power of such an amount! What could you ever hope to do against the likes of me!?"

"Hope is a matter of delusion and irrelevance. What I intend to do, is kill you," Ulquiorra commented, far calmer and more measured in his delivery than Nightmare Moon was in hers. "You speak highly of the number of souls you've consumed, as if it were truly significant and meaningful. Perhaps in this world it is in some fashion, but where I come from, such a meager amount would constitute a small snack. I have no conscious memories of my earlier existence, but half a million would be a conservative estimate for the number of souls I consumed, prior to becoming a Vasto Lorde."

At hearing this, Nightmare Moon's eyes went wide with surprise. "H-half... half a... million?" she asked in disbelief. She tried to issue a whistle of stunned amazement, but found that her mouth wouldn't actually work right for such an exercise.

Recognizing that he had her at a disadvantage, Ulquiorra pressed the assault further. "Perhaps many more than that. As I said, I no longer actually remember such minute details. Names and numbers are completely irrelevant, when the only conscious thought going through your mind at any given moment, is satiating an oppressive, ever-present hunger that can never truly be filled. Friends, family, neighbors, total strangers, all of them become nothing more than fodder, with no consideration for previous ties that were once had," he explained. He then allowed that to sink in a moment, before pressing onward. "Of course that amount is estimated based on the number of Hollows that were consumed. Factoring in the number of souls that they may have consumed prior to their own demise, that number could be in the tens of millions, if not hundreds of millions."

"Hundreds of... millions!?"

Nightmare Moon's eyes went even wider at hearing this further elaboration, a lump forming in her throat as the full weight of his words registered with her. This biped, this Espada.... this monster was far worse than anything she'd anticipated him as being. The depths of this madness were truly astounding. She had slaughtered a number of foals to make her comeback a possibility, but he had slaughtered several nation's worth of subjects, all because he'd been hungry for something other than a salad at the time!

What other sorts of horrible depravity had he been responsible for in his time? How many atrocities had he committed, and regarded them as being nothing more than just business as usual? How many-

Before she could even finish that thought, he'd completely disappeared from view. Just literally vanished into thin air, in the space of blinking her eyes. She wasn't even certain if she had blinked or not. It was-

She quickly found it necessary to guard, raising a force field to intercept Ulquiorra's right fist before it could plow into her face. His speed was simply much too great to adequately contend with, seeing as the point of impact had been mere inches away from head; more specifically her face. And that said nothing of his strength...

"You... you monster, you!" she screeched in between her periods of panting for air and grunting to try and maintain the shield. "I'll admit, I might've done some truly heinous things in my time, but those were actually out of necessity! But you... you did them because you wanted to! If Celestia and Luna knew about the true depths of your evil nature, they wouldn't hesitate in uniting with me against the likes of you!"

"Am I supposed to be offended by your evaluation of me?" Ulquiorra asked, unmoved by Nightmare Moon's critical ranting as he pressed onward with his assault. "The diarchy is already fully aware of my past, and my nature. And despite all of that, despite all of the horror such a revelation has caused them, they've still come to accept that I'm indeed necessary, in maintaining the safety of Equestria. I can do what they themselves can't. Whatever factors in play that allowed you to survive the Elements of Harmony won't save you this time around. This is one encounter you won't be walking away from. This time around you're going to die, because I'm going to kill you myself," he stated as he continued applying pressure against her shield.

Nightmare Moon grunted as she pushed back harder, fighting to not only keep Ulquiorra at bay, but actually push him away from her. But that was proving to be no simple feat to accomplish; he was deceptively strong for his scrawny size, and trying to shove him was like trying to shove a mountain.

"And yet-" she grunted through clenched teeth, "and yet you're failing at doing just that!" she shouted, before shoving back far harder than previously, serving to effectively separate the two of them from one another once more.  As well as serving to provide her with some much needed breathing room. "You talk a tough game, biped, but when it comes to delivering, you're falling far short on your promises. As you said yourself, that blow to the back of the neck should've been enough to kill me. But as you can see for yourself, I'm still alive and kicking!" she taunted.

"As am I," Ulquiorra replied, far more restrained in his delivery than Nightmare Moon had allowed herself to be. 

Nightmare Moon snorted in response, far more annoyed than amused at his little quip. He had no idea of what he was dealing with, and she was going to impress that fact upon him. She was going to make it perfectly clear just how in over his head he was, and how he couldn't possibly comprehend the situation that he was facing. But that was interrupted when he suddenly appeared in front of her, his right leg pulled back.

"Oh crap, he's going to kick me again, isn't he?" she mentally asked herself as she helplessly perceived his course of motion.

She was, unfortunately, correct in her observation, as she felt his foot slamming into her, underneath her chin yet again, and sending her catapulting helplessly once again

This time around, however, she was prepared for such a tactic actually being deployed against her. And being prepared for it, she managed to focus enough on her magic, to -almost- instantly halt her upward travel, and right herself once more.

"Alright," she said as she directed her attention to where he currently floated. "I'm going to need to ask you to not kick me anymore. It's getting to be really annoying," she stated.

"Fair enough," Ulquiorra replied as he slipped his hands back into his pockets.

Nightmare Moon... wasn't expecting him to relent so suddenly, or so easily. And yet it had happened. She blinked in response, unsure of what to think. "Wait, really? Just like that?"

"Since you're apparently durable enough to not die from the force I'm using, there's little point in continuing with tactics that've been proven  as ineffective," Ulquiorra explained. He could kick her like a football from now until dawn, but there wouldn't be much point if doing such didn't have the potential of ending her existence. Perhaps it was something that could be considered as "fun" but that was entirely irrelevant right now. "I'll simply have to go with a more brutal approach to killing you."

Nightmare Moon gulped uneasily at hearing this. The very idea that her opponent had possibly been holding back this whole time, on the amount of brutality he could generate was... very uncomfortable to give any consideration to.

"Er, before you actually do that, would you perchance mind answering just one question to sate my curiosity?" she asked anxiously.

"If it has sufficient merit to warrant answering it," Ulquiorra stated in return. Nightmare Moon was, for all intents and purposes, already dead. Answering one question posed no threat to anyone; certainly none that he could see anyway.

"Alright then. Just how have you proven to be so impervious to fear!? So many ponies have already fallen victim, terrified out of their minds from what I've forced upon them! Even Celestia and Luna fell to my wrath! But not you! You've been exposed to just as much terror fog as they have; even more so since you just strolled into the field like it was nothing, but you aren't reacting at all! Why are you simply not afraid!?" Nightmare Moon demanded to know, practically seething through gritted teeth at this point as she spoke.

"That was two questions," Ulquiorra pointed out in response.

"It was a two parter," Nightmare Moon grumbled and glowered at him.

"No matter, the answer to both is the same," Ulquiorra replied and shrugged dismissively. "As I said when I first arrived here, unlike any other species you might've encountered in this world, be it pony, dragon, changeling, zebra, griffon, or any of the countless others, I quite literally have no fear that can actually be exploited. Both your tricks, and your tactics, have no effect on me, because there's simply nothing there to be affected. I'm no more prone to feeling fear, than a brick wall would be under the same circumstances. There's quite literally nothing that you could do, that would result in a fear response from me; it's simply impossible," he explained.

Nightmare Moon frowned at hearing this. She'd been expecting something different than that. She wasn't quite sure what it was that she'd been expecting, but it certainly wasn't that the one she'd been facing couldn't be made to feel fear. That was simply unacceptable.

"You don't say," she grumbled. "That actually sounds like a challenge to me. I'll admit, you disregarding the visage of your own executioner wasn't something I anticipated being possible. So then I'll just have to dig deeper in figuring out what'll make you scream."

"You could use the psychic equivalent of a steam shovel in your digging efforts, and it still wouldn't do you any good. The simple fact is that there's nothing beyond what you see before you," Ulquiorra replied, not amused by Nightmare Moon actually interpreting his answer as being a challenge to her. "However it's all a moot point. You're about to die, and will soon be forgotten by those that have witnessed your return."

"Oh? Is that so?" she asked him. For being so devoid of emotion, he was certainly arrogance in his opinion of himself. "I'm afraid that simply won't do. I have far too much to tend to before I die. And if you refuse you pay proper tribute unto me, then I'll simply have to go to those that will!" she roared as her horn flared to life.

Quick as a flash, even quicker than Ulquiorra could reach her and stop whatever she was planning, she had completely disappeared. Not merely from his view, but the area entirely.

Had she planned this? Had she plotted out her departure ahead of time, and used her question to him in order to mount a distraction? Perhaps to buy herself the necessary time to successfully teleport away?

And then there was her message about being paid tribute. Some might judge it as being cryptic, but it wasn't cryptic enough to leave him wondering about what she was talking about. It was primarily speculation, but it was safe to conclude that Nightmare Moon was going after those in Ponyville, because unlike himself, they weren't impervious to fear. And if she really was feeding on fear in order to increase her strength...

"Damn it."

She might not pose a significant threat to himself currently, but if she were to permitted gorge herself on the fear of an entire village full of ponies -a significant number of which had likely been filled with fear by his declaration of intent just a few minutes ago- such might not remain the case for very long. He'd already gotten in trouble once before, for not taking a potential threat seriously enough. He wasn't about to let something like that happen a second time around.

In a burst of sonido he was off, leaving the forest far behind as he moved to intercept Nightmare Moon, and stop her efforts at stacking the deck in her favor any further than she already had. 





"Get that damn iodine away from my face already!"

Through a combination of efforts on the part of multiple ponies involved, the town center had more or less been quickly converted into an ad-hoc first aid center. 

Nearly every available doctor, nurse, and even orderly at Ponyville General Hospital who was available, had been immediately summoned to the scene, and instructed to bring as many medical supplies as could be carried with them, for the purpose of providing whatever care could be administered under the present circumstances.

Actually moving to Ponyville General Hospital had been considered first and foremost. But that idea had been discounted when it was considered just how many ponies would actually be there, and how chaotic and crowded the building would become as a result of the parents not wanting to be separated from their foals again for whatever reason.

As such, rather than bring them to the care, they had brought the care to them, in an area with considerably more room to work with. 

All of that, however, had alleviated only one issue they had to contend with.

Almost immediately upon returning to the safety of Ponyville, and being greeted by friendly and familiar faces once again, the foals had been all too eager to share what they'd experienced out in the forest; which had included the matter of Nightmare Moon.

The ensuing panic resulting from this news had been swift and violent. Celestia had managed to bring it under control before things could get completely out of hoof, but it hadn't been any small feat on her part. The effort involved in preventing widespread pandemonium from consuming all of Ponyville had been... considerable. It was doable, but  it had still been considerable.

Right now she was exercising a substantial bit of magic for the purpose of suppressing the natural panic -just as she had at Ulquiorra's party on Sweet Apple Acres- illuminating the entire area so those providing care could see what they were doing, and conversing with Luna in hushed tones and arcane dialects as a more complete picture of the situation was painted, so they knew just what they were dealing with.

That more or less left the others that were present to their own devices in the interim.

"Quit fidgeting so much, and I'd be able to get done faster!" Redheart stated, her voice carrying just as much agitation as Rainbow Dash's, as she did her best in trying to tend to her unruly patient.

It was patients like Rainbow Dash currently, that made her sometimes wish she was a unicorn. That would make managing her significantly easier.

But, alas, such wasn't the case. And she found herself saddled with a squirming, agitated pegasus, while the foals were being looked over by other competent medical care providers who got the easy stuff.

"I don't know who bandaged you up, but it just made a worse mess out of everything," Redheart stated.

The cut on Rainbow Dash's thigh had required the most care, but it'd been considerably easier to deal with than the minor head wound. The makeshift bandage had done little to staunch the flow, and had just made the resulting mess all the worse, and even harder to clean up and get an accurate idea of just how bad the damage actually was. 

Pealing the dirty, blood-soaked bandage away from her head had caused whatever coagulating had occurred previously, to come away with it, and simply start the bleeding all over again.

"It stings," Rainbow Dash protested as she flinched away once again.

"It's going to sting much worse if you don't quit fidgeting, and I wind up dabbing you in the eye," Redheart warned.

"I-" Rainbow Dash started.

"Oh, honestly, Rainbow Dash. Sit still and let Nurse Redheart do her job!"

Rainbow Dash turned at the sound of the familiar voice and saw Rarity approaching her, and not looking the least bit amused.

That, combined with the bloodstains her coat bore from hugging her earlier, combined to make her actually look intimidating.

"You went out to face off against the likes of Nightmare Moon by yourself. Surely this can't be worse than that," she added as she stepped closer.

"Don't bet on it," Rainbow Dash mumbled as she full-body flinched at the burn of the disinfectant-soaked rag being pressed against her forehead.

Rarity just sighed softly and shook her head as she gave Redheart a sympathetic look of understanding. She responded by taking up a position behind Rainbow Dash and bracing against her, holding her in place with her forelegs to keep her from moving about, and allow the poor nurse to continue with her work.

Rainbow Dash squirmed, but found herself unable to actually get loose without having to get rough with Rarity in the process. And right now she simply didn't want to do that. Ultimately she let out a defeated sigh, and allowed Redheart to swab her head, grimacing at the chemical burn of the iodine that was being used to both clean her fur up, and clean her wound so it wouldn't get infected.

As she settled in to accept her fate, she found that the hold Rarity was using on her was morphing more into a hug.

"How are you holding up anyway, darling? You came back to us, looking like you were on the verge of death," Rarity stated, unable to keep her voice steady as she spoke.

"To be honest... I think I was," Rainbow Dash replied uneasily. She'd gone multiple rounds against fog manifestations that Nightmare Moon had been using as her puppets of engagement, and she'd gone against them quite hard. Some would say too hard. 

She hadn't been fit for combat when she'd headed out, and she certainly hadn't been fit as the engagement just dragged on for what felt like forever. By the time they'd actually made their way back to Ponyville, she'd been running on nothing but fumes, adrenaline, and being severely pissed off. Those could carry you through a lot, but they could only carry you so far, and she'd learned that first hoof. She'd more or less collapsed when her friends had hugged her, offering the first bit of calm comfort of the evening.

The rapid infusion of more sports drinks and energy bars supplied by Pinkie had gone a long way in helping stave off the effects of her boneheaded decisions, but she knew that it was only a temporary measure. She knew that sooner or later she was going to crash, and crash hard. It wouldn't be pretty, it wouldn't be pleasant, and there wasn't a thing she could do to avoid it.

"Really, the only reason I'm still alive, is because Ulquiorra and Luna were there to keep me from getting myself killed," she explained. Had it not been for them being there, she was certain she'd be dead right now; if not through Nightmare Moon's direct actions, then her own full burn approach that had exhausted her. "The only reason we got out of there, was because we were all watching each others' backs."

Rarity had no retort. Instead she simply opted for continuing to hug Rainbow Dash where she sat, just thankful her friend was still alive and thus actually able to complain about how things hadn't gone according to whatever plan she'd been following.

"Is it really appropriate to be addressing Her Majesty in such an... informal manner?" Redheart asked as she dabbed at Rainbow Dash's head. "I mean, especially when she's right here, and could be hearing you doing such?"

"Well it was actually her idea to be informal, not ours," Rainbow Dash replied and shrugged. "Besides, it's kinda hard to be formal with somepony when you're napping together, and using them like a pillow."

That caused Redheart to stop her actions, and regard Rainbow Dash with uncertainty. "You what?"

"Oh really now?" Rarity asked, intrigued by what she was hearing. She'd known since the changeling incident that Luna wanted them to regard her as more a friend than a ruler, but the idea of Rainbow Dash using her as a pillow was something that just struck out as being hard to believe.

It was also something that was very adorable to think about. When this was all over, she'd have to inquire further about details.

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash replied, "nopony really knew what to do with providing care when I was up there; mind rape was pretty much out of our league. So we were just playing it all by ear. It made for some really... unconventional, but interesting stuff being done..." she admitted as she remembered some of what went on. She wasn't about to say she enjoyed what had happened, but there had been some moments that hadn't been so bad. "You wouldn't believe how soft Luna's fur really is."

Redheart just mumbled to herself, as she went back to swabbing Rainbow Dash's head, opting to focus on what she knew, rather than prying further. That could always be reserved for later. Right now she had more important things to focus on.

"We should probably get this armor off so we can check for other injuries that might be present," she pointed out.

"Yeah, about that. I don't really know how to get out of this getup," Rainbow Dash sheepishly admitted. Having it teleported onto her, she really hadn't been shown anything about what was involved with getting in and out of it. For all intents and purposes, she was stuck like this until Luna decided to take a can opener to her, and actually release her.

But then again, she really wasn't in the mood to get out of it, until after she was certain that Nightmare Moon was actually dead. Until that happened, she was content to just stay in her armor, hot as it may be.

"Oh? Oh dear, I suppose that does present a bit of a problem," Rarity commented. None of them really had seen what went into actually getting into the armor. So figuring out how to go about removing it would be a challenge. She certainly wasn't seeing what looked like any snaps or buckles. And she didn't even want to think about how complicated it would be in freeing up Rainbow Dash's wings from the armor that currently encased them. If done wrong, the potential for injury and harm was likely significant. "I suppose we'll just have to wait then, and manage as best we can for the time being."

Redheart simply nodded, before going back to wiping down Rainbow Dash's head. Once she managed to get all the blood cleaned off, she could call in Dr. Stable to seal the wound properly; just as he'd done her thigh, before moving onto other patients who were in need.





Celestia closed her eyes as Luna concluded briefing her on the severity of the matter currently at hoof. And that severity was quite substantial; she'd realized that from the moment she'd gotten some semblance of her sanity back. But to actually hear it being confirmed as factual by Luna, simply ramped it all up in a horrible way.

"So that's it then."

Ulquiorra being on the case as they spoke helped somewhat, but it did little to assuage her current fear. Ulquiorra was without doubt an expert on matters of dealing with threats, but none of that changed the fact that he was currently facing off against Nightmare Moon herself. If it were any other threat, she might not be worrying quite so much right now. 

But it wasn't any other threat he was currently facing off against. No, it just had to be Nightmare Moon that was threatening their world once again. The same Nightmare Moon who had stolen Luna from her for more than a thousand years. The same Nightmare Moon who had been subjecting them to unimaginable terror for the sheer sadistic enjoyment of it all. The same Nightmare Moon that had left Fluttershy pondering as to whether or not she could actually possess Ulquiorra's body, and use him as her new physical form.

She had seen the horrors that resided in Ulquiorra's head. But even so, she still didn't know how they'd stack up against each other. There was just no telling where this battle could go. Would he need his released state to be victorious? Would it be enough? Did Nightmare Moon have other tricks in store for them, if things should go poorly for her?

There were far too many unanswered questions present, for her to have anything resembling peace of mind. And they were just piling up as they went on.

But of all the questions they were currently faced with, none of them were quite as disturbing as the mystery surrounding the absent foals.

In the heat of battle, when panic was running high and attention had been directed elsewhere, nopony had really thought to stop and perform a headcount, and insure that everyone was actually present and accounted for. They'd all been -understandably- more focused on getting as far away as possible, not bothering to stop and ask any questions at the time. 

But now that they weren't at ground zero for whatever was happening, they could actually catch their breath, and finally take stock of the situation. And as they took stock, they came across the undeniable fact that not everypony who had gone missing had actually returned. Even factoring in and allowing for the four foals that Nightmare Moon had already... utilized... and those who had lost their parents as a result of the manticore attack, there were still three more foals missing that they currently knew of. Twist, Shining Lights, and Java Bolt. Earth pony, unicorn, and pegasus in that order. The implications behind their absence were quite serious. Had Nightmare Moon already devoured their souls for the purpose of making herself stronger? Had she hidden them away from the others in the event of things not going according to her initial plans, in order to give her a potential bargaining chip over them?

Ultimately the only one who had any answers on the matter was one who had no inclination of telling them what they needed to know. And short of going after Nightmare Moon, and forcefully extracting a confession from her, they weren't about to find out anything. That fact above everything else just made Celestia all the madder. She needed to do something other than just stand around, and think about what they didn't have any answers to. And she needed to do it right now!

"Look after the others, Luna, I have something I need to take care of," she stated as softly as she could under the circumstances.

"And pray tell what is that, dear sister?" Luna asked in turn, curious as to what this previously unexplained matter was.

"I'm going into the Everfree Forest, and making sure Ulquiorra is alright. And if Nightmare Moon is still drawing breath when I get there, I'm going to put an end to her myself," Celestia stated, unable to keep the hard edge out of her voice as she spoke. 

After everything that they'd been put through, she wasn't about to leave this matter up to chance. She was going to oversee this matter herself!

"That would be unwise, sister. Ulquiorra Cifer was... quite insistent that we not interfere in this matter," Luna stated quickly in an effort to head off what could ultimately prove to be a very bad decision on Celestia's part. Ulquiorra had threatened to kill them in an effort to hasten their retreat so he wouldn't be disturbed while he worked. What would he do if her sister just suddenly teleported in without warning?

"He can insist until he's blue in the face for all I care. The last time I checked this was still our kingdom. We're still the ones who're actually in charge here, and I'm going to do everything in my power to protect it, and everyone that resides within, against the likes of her," Celestia stated firmly.

Ulquiorra was strong, there was no denying that fact. But they couldn't simply rely on his strength, and do nothing themselves. They'd been tasked with keeping Equestria safe long before his arrival, and there was no excuse for shirking those responsibilities now.

"... Very well then," Luna conceded with a nod, knowing that she couldn't actually stop Celestia. She could certainly try, but it would end poorly. "But this is under protest. I do not like the idea of you venturing off on your own in your current condition. You are barely holding yourself together as is, and I do not have enough glue on hoof to put you back together if you break once again."

Celestia smirked in response, amused by Luna's assessment of the situation. Even in times of such stress, she still found the opportunity to deliver a verbal jab at her.

"That's quite alright, Luna, I'm quite certain we'll have plenty of glue by the time we rend Nightmare Moon limb from limb for everything that she's done," she replied.

"That's what you think!"

The voice high above angrily ripped through the relative silence in Ponyville, startling everypony and causing them to reflexively look upward to identify the source.

As they did, they saw for themselves that it was indeed Nightmare Moon, hovering high overhead with flaps from her powerful wings, and the distance doing utterly nothing to hide the furious glare she was giving all of them. Much like it had been with Rainbow Dash, her glare had proven sufficient enough to send the majority of them into a panic; but with theirs being much more visceral as they screamed and ran.

Celestia couldn't help but scowl. Nightmare Moon had actually brought the fight to them, rather than being sought out. There was no way this could be good.





"That's it, ponies! Give into your fear! Give into the night! I am your true ruler, and you will worship me!" Nightmare Moon howled, watching with glee as those present scattered and screamed in a most beautifully panicked manner. In the span of just a few seconds, the air had become thick with fear; very thick indeed. Thick enough she could smell it, she could taste it! It was so tantalizing to experience firsthoof.

Not wasting any time, her horn flashed to life with a dark blue light as she began working her magic. There was too much precious fear present to be wasted on indulging in its bouquet like it was a fine wine; that could be done later on.

Down below her she observed as a black fog began wafting off of their frames, being carried upwards on phantom winds, as it swirled and coalesced, before being drawn into her body through the top of her horn. And as this was done, she allowed a low moan of pleasure to escape her lips, as her eyes slowly closed. She hadn't intended to savor it, but that couldn't be helped now.

For so long she'd been gathering scraps of primal fear in order to sustain herself, fighting for every little bit of power that had gone into fueling her return. For so long she'd had to struggle patiently, the fear practically being administered with an eye dropper. Even with all of Ponyville being thrown into chaos, the flow of fear simply hadn't been enough for her. It had been close, but close simply wasn't good enough. It was like dying of thirst, and only having tiny little sips of water that just barely managed to wet the mouth. But that had all changed! She was surrounded by an ocean of fear to drink in now, at rates that simply couldn't have been managed previously in her non-corporeal state. Now such wasn't the case. Now it wasn't a mere teaser of coming attractions, but rather than main event. The fear coming from Ponyville was so rich and thick at this point, it was practically chocolate sauce that she was guzzling down at a rapid rate. 

She moaned loudly, the bliss simply exquisite to experience as she managed to gorge freely. The power! The power currently flooding her body! Her whole frame shuddered in pleasure as she sucked down untold levels of fear and kept coming back for more. She felt invigorated and strong once again; stronger than she could ever remember being in years! All of the hunger, all of the suffering, everything she'd been forced to experience since being forcefully ripped away from Luna's body, it was all just melting away with now, leaving nothing behind but the current moment of pure and utter bliss and tranquility. For one brief moment in time, absolutely everything felt right.

And then she felt a dull thud against the back of her skull, bringing her attention back to the present and what was going on around her. She had a sneaking suspicion as to what it was. Turning around slowly, she saw Ulquiorra hovering behind her, still wearing that same look on his face that he had since his arrival in the forest.

"Were you seriously trying to kill me just now? Or did you simply want to get my attention, and let me know that you'd arrived?" she asked him, all the while the glow of her horn remained undisturbed, just like the effects of the spell that was still being carried out.

"Had I wanted to get your attention, I would've opted for kicking you squarely in your exposed backside; the target area is certainly sizable enough," Ulquiorra commented dryly, earning an annoyed scowling snarl in response. "Make no mistake, you're going to die before this night is over. That is a statement of fact, not an opinion, nor an empty bluff."

Nightmare Moon simply cackled in response to hearing this. "Oh, you arrogant biped, you! You couldn't possibly comprehend the true weight of the situation you're facing right now! You're so convinced in your own perceived superiority, that you just can't see how horribly outclassed you really are right now!"

Ulquiorra remained unmoved by Nightmare Moon's boisterous rantings. "If we're merely going to rehash previously established talking points, there's no sense in waiting any longer before proceeding with killing you. You're already proving to be more trouble than you're worth," he stated. 

"Oh really? Well now, if that's how you feel, you're going to positively hate what's coming next," Nightmare Moon stated and grinned wickedly, her sharp teeth on full display for him in the process.

Before Ulquiorra could respond, either by asking her what she was planning, or otherwise punching her in the snout, she had already vanished from view, teleporting away form her current position, and reappearing down below where everypony had been gathered previously. 

The magic she was currently utilizing hadn't gone unnoticed; in fact he'd noticed not only it from the moment he'd arrived, but how it was also affecting the ponies down below. It bore a strong resemblance to what he'd witnessed when Queen Chrysalis had been feeding on Princess Celestia in the dungeons of Canterlot palace. As best as he could determine, based on what information he presently possessed, she was currently feeding on the fear of those present in order to make herself stronger; he'd certainly felt it when he'd punched her in the back of skull, and how different it was this time around as compared to back in the forest clearing. This time around it hadn't even rattled her, whereas last time it'd knocked her right out of the sky.

But beyond the fact that she was feeding freely, he was witnessing what else she was doing. She had deliberately taken up position in Ponyville, putting herself in close proximity to the other ponies; ponies who were far too weak to withstand the full magnitude of his strength, or even a portion of it. He had chased Princess Luna and the others out of the forest for that reason, so he wouldn't be hampered by their presence. And now Nightmare Moon was putting him in that exact same position once again, surrounded by far more ponies who couldn't realistically be expected to evacuate the area.

She was smart, he would give her that. She knew that his current strength level couldn't kill her, so he'd have to utilize a great deal more to achieve that goal. She also knew that the others couldn't withstand being in close proximity to him when he opened up, and the destructiveness of his techniques meant pinpoint precision and a lack of collateral damage simply weren't what he was capable of under most circumstances. So she'd sought out soft targets to hamper the full extent of strength that he could freely utilize, while simultaneously feeding on their fear to further tip the odds in her favor. Even the diarchy wouldn't be able to fully open up on her in her current position, despite their close proximity. 

And if she didn't know about these aforementioned points beforehand, she likely learned of them in the five minutes leading up to when the foals had been successfully rescued, and taken back to Ponyville.

Well played, Nightmare Moon. Well played indeed...





Both Celestia and Luna had been beside themselves in a mix of fury and other emotions when Nightmare Moon appeared in the sky above Ponyville. All of their efforts and hard work at maintaining calm and order - as fragile as it had been- had just been trampled on like a patch of filthy weeds. The sheer arrogance she commanded in storming their location like a dragon barbarian, and then having the audacity to actually begin feeding on the fear of their subjects right in front of them, just made this unfortunate turn of events all the more unacceptable to deal with!

As far as either of them was concerned on the matter, this was an open declaration of war against not only them, but all of Equestria. This course of action was not to be stood for!

Before either of them could actually respond, however, Ulquiorra had appeared on the scene, and had launched an attack against Nightmare Moon's exposed back. Now things were beginning to look up!

Or at least they were, until they realized that Nightmare Moon hadn't even been harmed by the attack. If anything it looked like she was more annoyed by the interruption than actually injured.

This was seriously starting to not bode well for them.

And then Nightmare Moon went and proved once again that her audacity truly knew no limits, as she touched down right in front of the both of them, wearing a purse-lipped smirk of such arrogance and superiority, that it was practically daring them to attack her.

If all the ponies present hadn't been screaming and running in terror before, they most certainly were now. Not that it did them much good, as the reach of the spell being used on them looked like it didn't have an upper limit on distance.

"You must have quite the set of brass cojones, to actually come here and face us, Nightmare Moon," Celestia practically growled as her eyes narrowed in a hard frown.

Nightmare Moon chuckled in response to Celestia's statement. "Oh, my dear Celestia. When this is all over, both you and your sister will both be polishing my cojones to a mirror-like finish with your tongues, and thanking me for the privilege daily, after I ascend to my rightful position as the true ruler of all Equestria," she practically purred.

"I will be tearing right off and/or out, whatever cojones you may have before all is said and done!" Luna screamed, her halberd erupting into existence as she spoke, as she made ready to go about using it on her selected opponent. She was going to exact her vengeance upon this demon for the last millennium and three years she'd been put through, and she was going to do it right now!

"Ah, ah, ah," Nightmare Moon stated as she held out her right wing and waved her foremost primary feather from side to side, as if she were scolding a mischevious foal. "You wouldn't want to go and do something rash that might lead to complications, now would you?" she asked, her voice completely devoid of anything resembling fear at having just been threatened with bodily harm.

It was at this point that Ulquiorra had joined the rest of them on the ground, standing just to the left of Princess Celestia. Although his presence went unnoticed and unacknowledged by them. Especially by Nightmare Moon as she continued speaking as if nothing had happened.

"None of you three are powerful enough to hurt me, never mind kill me, without demonstrating a significantly greater deal of strength than you are currently; strength that's so hard to control in such a confined and congested area like the middle of a town, where they are so many potential victims who could be caught in the ensuing destruction. It would be so tragic if you were to accidentally kill them in the process of trying to kill me. What would everypony say? What would happen to your precious kingdom when it comes to light that you were willing to kill countless innocents to put down a single threat?" she asked, the arrogance of her voice no longer being concealed at all. As she spoke she was practically purring.

Luna growled furiously, teeth grit and lips pulled back in a vicious snarl. She wasn't the least bit surprised by Nightmare Moon's tactics. Disgusted, most certainly, but not surprised! She had seen the foul demon utilize this strategy already, so she knew it was par for the course. But to have it flaunted in her face so openly, was simply unacceptable!

"As opposed to the number of famine and pestilence-related deaths that would naturally result from eternal night being implemented?" Ulquiorra asked in response. "A quick death would be a blessing to those that would be affected by what you're planning. "

Nightmare Moon scowled in response. But before she could even open her mouth to offer up a retort, Ulquiorra was already speaking again, effectively cutting her off, and not letting her get a word in edgewise.

"Under normal circumstances, your strategy would be sound. Distasteful to those with moral convictions, but still sound. But these aren't normal circumstances. I'm not a pony that holds the same regard for life as others that would face you. If some should die as a result of killing you, that's simply how things are. It makes no difference to me," he stated.

Nightmare Moon remained expressionless for a second at hearing this statement, and the utter callousness in how it had been delivered. But then that expressionless state gave way as she snorted with amusement, and grinned once again.

"You'd be a masterful poker player, biped. But I've already seen your cards, I know that you're bluffing. You chased the others away from the forest clearing so that they wouldn't get hurt when you opened up on me; not that it did you much good anyway," she stated, unwilling to suppress the grin that she currently wore. "You act tough, but your actions have betrayed you. You hold just as much regard for the life of all these worthless innocents, as anypony else present. None of you can move to oppose me without hurting them in the process, and you all know it. What could any of you possibly hope to do, since I hold all the cards in this game?"

Luna's angered growling only intensified as Nightmare Moon spoke, demonstrating unbelievable levels of arrogance with each word issued. But making the matter all the worse was the fact that she was right in her premise. The three of them would have to exercise a significant deal of strength to beat her, especially as she continued feeding on all of those that were presently subjected to her magic, all the while growing in terms of strength. And if they opened up to whatever extent was necessary to stop her, that posed a significant risk. The greater the force, the lesser the control they had over that said force.

As rich of a target as she presented right now, as open as she was, to actually go on the assault was simply too risky. They had to get her out of Ponyville, if they were to have any chance against her.

"Spare us your useless posturing and egomania," Ulquiorra stated, his voice never swaying from his usual dull tone of address. Although if he could be motivated to actually do such, listening to Nightmare Moon's ramblings of self importance would certainly be sufficient to do such. "Even in your current state, it would take very little effort to put you in a choke hold, and compress the blood vessels in your neck. Assuming your basic physiology isn't dissimilar from that of an earthy pony, you'll be unconscious in seconds. You'll be dead in less than a minute. You won't even have time to panic, before the flow of blood to your brain is completely cut off."

Nightmare Moon's eyes widened momentarily at hearing this. However it was only momentary, as she soon began chuckling once again, her withers shaking with amusement.

"And yet, despite the fact you can supposedly kill me, you're not actually making a move against me right now. Instead you're just standing there like every other slack-jawed idiot in this town," she stated and smirked at him. "You know that you're fast, but are you actually fast enough, biped? Can you keep pace with my skills in magical teleportation? Can you strike me down before I manage to nab a hostage, and thrust them into my place for you to kill instead?"

Ulquiorra said nothing in response, for there was nothing he actually could say. All of his knowledge pertaining to Nightmare Moon's skills was based on what he'd encountered ten minutes ago. She couldn't compete with his sonido then, but what about now? She had been gorging herself on great quantities of fear this entire time, and had already demonstrated greater resilience to his fist than previously. What if her reaction time really could now compete with his own? Him moving to impale her, only to wind up doing such to an innocent bystander being quickly thrust into his path of travel, would simply make the situation worse than it already was.

Nightmare Moon merely smirked in response to his silence. "I'll take your lack of a comeback, as acknowledgement of my tactical superiority in this matter, biped. Every card that has value, I hold it in my hoof. And there's not a thing that you, or the diarchy, or anypony else can possibly do about it," she said as she gave the three a taunting grin.

Her good mood at events turning in her favor was quickly spoiled, as she felt the most horrible, pounding sensation erupting out the back of her skull. She shrieked ineloquently, screaming in horrible pain, and nearly falling to the ground, her senses going fuzzy and leaving her cross-eyed for several long seconds, before she finally got hold of herself once again. Whatever had happened, it had been enough to completely cut out her spell.

That assault hadn't come from the front, it couldn't have. She hadn't seen any sign of the three of them even trying to move, much less make a move against her. Not even the biped had moved from his current spot. The only logical conclusion she could draw from that, was that somepony had actually dared to attack her from behind!

"Just... just..." she stuttered as she whirled around to eye them, nearly falling over in the process from the pounding in her skull flaring up again. "Which one of you impudent little nothings dared to assault your queen!?" she shrieked.

"I DID!"

Nightmare Moon blinked in response, both to try and clear her head, and to better see who was currently addressing her in such a disrespectful manner. She had suspected a -very small- number of ponies being so bold as to volunteer for their own execution, but to her surprise it hadn't been any of them. Instead of a pony, she was confronting a very angry looking dragon, firmly clutching a hammer with a head that was currently smoking.

"Ulquiorra and the others can't kill you because we're right here in the line of fire? Well then I'll kill you myself!" Spike roared furiously.

For far too long now, he'd been helpless in this entire mess. Helpless to do anything to help his friends. Forced to stand by uselessly and watch them get brutalized by forces that they didn't understand, unable to do anything besides take down messages to keep Celestia and Luna up to date on the state of decreasing mental health in Ponyville. And then it had gotten to the point where he couldn't even do that much, and could only stand by uselessly and watch as Twilight assumed his duties of corresponding. He had been unable to do anything except watch his friends suffer, and in the case of Rainbow Dash, he'd even been forced to hurt his friends.

And on top of all of that, here Nightmare Moon was, using them as hostages to protect herself from getting beaten by Ulquiorra? She was putting his friends in danger again, and taunting them about that fact in the most unsubtle approach he'd ever seen? He wasn't going to stand for it any longer! He'd been pushed as far as he was going to allow, and now it was time to push back!

"Bold words from a broken baby dragon," Nightmare Moon replied with a sneer, not yet certain if she should be upset, or amused with how he was addressing her. "What do you intend to do against me, faint again?"

Spike, rather than wasting the effort needed to use his words in articulating just how furious he felt, instead growled in response, before pulling back, and hurling his hammer at Nightmare Moon with all of his might.

Nightmare Moon just smirked in amusement at Spike's poorly thought out -and ultimately impotent- efforts of trying to hurt her. His hammer might pose a threat to her if she ever let him get within swinging range, but all of the enchantments in the world wouldn't do him any good if he couldn't hit what he was aiming at; a fact demonstrated as she so easily sidestepped the poorly planned ballistic approach to the matter, allowing it to easily sail right on past her without so much as even a glancing blow being struck.

She had an incredibly biting retort ready to unleash on the poor dragon, mocking him for his pitiful efforts at trying to oppose her. Although that retort was quickly squashed as she felt her throat being grabbed tightly, just underneath her jawbone, before she was actually lifted up right off her front hooves!

She'd been so focused on the dragon, she hadn't even noticed the Espada coming out of nowhere, until it was far too late to do anything about it!

"I grow tired of needing to constantly remind you that your fight is with me; not with anyone else," Ulquiorra stated as he established eye contact between the two of them, forcing her to look at him as he spoke to her. "As such I'm going to fix that problem now."

There was no flash, or any other form of warning that alerted the others to what was going to happen. All anypony knew was that one moment Ulquiorra had Nightmare Moon by the throat, and the next moment they had both disappeared completely from view, with nothing but a booming echo of static left in their wake. 

Those that were unfamiliar with Ulquiorra's skills jumped in surprise at what they'd just witnessed. But those that did know him, knew exactly what this had been; he'd just used his sonido to forcefully remove Nightmare Moon from Ponyville entirely, thus taking away her primary advantage over them, of having so many potential hostages close by.

Twilight still vividly remembered just what it had been like to experience travel via Ulquiorra's sonido for herself. And he'd been quite careful with her. She couldn't even begin to imagine just what sort of stress Nightmare Moon's body was being subjected to right now, with him more or less dragging her along by her neck at such high speeds. If that didn't kill her, or at the very least break her neck, she'd certainly be surprised.

"Goodness! Where did they go?" Rarity asked.

The question was answered almost immediately by an explosion sounded in the distance, as bright blue and teal green lights flashed over the horizon, indicating that Ulquiorra and Nightmare Moon had wasted no time in going at it.

"I'd say over there would be a pretty good guess," Pinkie spoke up and gestured in the general direction of where all the commotion had been coming from.

"It looks like he kicked her all the way back into the clearing we were in," Rainbow Dash commented.

"Sister," Luna spoke up to gain Celestia's attention. "While I have no qualms with allowing Ulquiorra Cifer to kill Nightmare Moon -and I do wish her death to be a painful one- I fear it may prove necessary to actually stop him from doing such. We do not yet know where the remaining foals may be at present, and if he kills her now, we may never know such. There is no telling what has happened to them, or what may happen to them."

Celestia didn't immediately respond to Luna's statement, even though her sister did raise a very good point. Nightmare Moon had already demonstrated twice that she wasn't above taking hostages if she believed it benefited her, and it certainly did. So long as any innocents remained at stake, there was little they could do in dealing with her; they knew that fact, and she unfortunately knew that fact as well. Ulquiorra could potentially justify sacrificing a few in order to save many countless others. And while the argument was sound from a purely logical perspective, the simple fact of the matter was that none of them were Ulquiorra. Nightmare Moon had already claimed far too many victims, they couldn't afford to let her claim any more.

It was so strange, just how suddenly the entire dynamic of the situation they found themselves in had shifted. When they first found evidence to suggest Nightmare Moon had returned and was responsible for terrorizing them, there had been concern that they might need to protect Ulquiorra from her, as there was no way of knowing just how a fight between the two of them would turn out. Now here they were, and actually forced to contemplate the need of protecting Nightmare Moon from Ulquiorra! The irony of it all was just far too much!

No matter what course of action they took, she suspected that some unacceptable loss was going to occur regardless. The only question was, when this was all said and done, which loss were they going to be forced to deal with?

"Then we'll simply have to to do whatever we can, in order to prevent that from happening," she stated, already working to steel her nerves for what would lie ahead. 





The element of surprise had certainly been an important aspect in Ulquiorra's successful removing of Ponyville. Had she not been focused on Spike's anger-filled rant, and -unsuccessful- attack from behind, the surgical precision of his efforts would've more than likely been lacking. Had it not been for that distraction, it would've been necessary to see for himself if Nightmare Moon's sudden increase in strength had allowed for other enhanced attributes, and if said attributes would allow her to rival his sonido.

Provided this engagement was survived, he would make sure to mention the fact to Spike later on.

Presently his quarry was looking worse for wear after her unexpected -and undesired- travel. She was wide-eyed, sick looking, and her heart was beating at a greatly accelerated rate. She might've been able to teleport across miles of distance with ease, but sudden physical travel at such high speeds was an entirely different mess to deal with. Twilight Sparkle and Spike had both learned that for themselves, although they fared far better than Nightmare Moon.

Then again he had taken greater care with them, ensuring that they were relatively secured before exposing them to travel over what were considerably shorter distances.

However that was irrelevant right now. For now it was strictly business, which meant killing Nightmare Moon. 

"Now then. About that choke hold we were discussing earlier."

He realized the mistake made in talking rather than killing, but it was only realized as he felt Nightmare Moon's shod rear hooves connect with his midsection, and forcibly break his grip on her as he was forcibly shoved away. 

Apparently Nightmare Moon wasn't as close to death from her travels as he'd first anticipated. That was a miscalculation on his part, that he was not about to repeat anytime soon.

"You're certainly a vicious demon, I'll give you that," Nightmare Moon panted, doing her best to glare angrily as she spoke. "Under different circumstances, I'd actually have respect for someone like you, and the talents you possess; I could've used you! But-"

She quickly found it necessary to stop talking, as she realized Ulquiorra was going on the offensive rather than heeding her words. By the time she managed to react he'd already partially unsheathed his zanpakutō. The only reason he hadn't managed to pull it all the way out, was because she'd been fast enough to ensnare his wrist in his magic, and halt his movement entirely.

Actually keeping his arm restrained, however, was proving to be more difficult than she'd first thought. Despite the awkward position his arm was in, he was demonstrating a considerable deal of physical strength to contend with!  She still had a headache from when he'd punched her in the head, and she didn't need anything else adding to that mess.

"Sweet stars above!" she grunted as she struggled to keep him contained. "How are you this strong? How can you seriously be this strong!?" she demanded to know.

Ulquiorra remained silent, saying nothing in response about the utter stupidity demonstrated by Nightmare Moon's question. Instead he opted for bringing his left hand forward, ready to discharge a Cero in her face. He knew full well that it wouldn't be enough to kill her; he'd already seen such for himself. But it would more than likely be sufficient for breaking her concentration, which would free up his arm, which would in turn allow him to fully unsheathe Murciélago.

What hadn't been taken into consideration as being a potential variable was Nightmare Moon relinquishing her hold on his right arm of her own accord, and focusing all of her efforts on forcefully wrenching and twisting his left arm around just before his Cero was discharged, ensuring he caught the full blast of it right in his face.

Once a Cero had been initiated and discharged, there was no way of altering, halting, or otherwise stopping it. That left him with no option but to weather it, until it naturally concluded on its own.

Being caught by the blast of one's own Cero was something that simply didn't happen. If the other Espada had witnessed such occurring, they would never let him forget about it. And seeing as Aizen -generally- had rules against the Espada killing one another, they would never have let him forget about it.

Once the blast had finally dissipated, he found he had new issues to contend with. His vision was compromised, a cross somewhere between being blurred and seeing double. His hearing was also compromised, leaving him unable to hear nothing but a dull and simultaneously high-pitched ringing. He was vaguely aware of Nightmare Moon's current location in relation to his own, and he could note that she had yet to take the opportunity to flee. He was also vaguely aware of the fact that she was actually laughing at him for what he'd experienced. Personally he didn't care about that one way or another, as he would never stoop to such pettiness... but he was still going to make her pay for it nonetheless.

"Clever," he admitted, once he could start hearing through all of the interference once again. "But you won't be doing that again."

"If it's what I want, it's what I'll do, biped," Nightmare Mon replied and huffed. "I've been paying attention in all of this. Your attacks take a lot of time to utilize; time that I can use to launch counter assaults against you. Meaning not only am I stronger than you, I'm faster than you as well."

Ulquiorra would admit, that was a development he hadn't foreseen occurring. He was the analytical one, and yet Nightmare Moon had been analyzing him, and looking for opening to exploit. Not only looking for them, but apparently finding them as well. This was going to require reevaluating the matter, and formulating a new plan of approach.

"You've yet to see everything that can be done," he replied as a red static charge began appearing around his hands. Perhaps she could exploit the charging time of his Cero, and redirect it back at him. He'd simply demonstrate the futility of getting excited over such a minor accomplishment. With that thought in mind he thrust his right fist forward, sending a Bala hurtling in her direction.

She didn't even have time to react with surprise before the blast slammed straight into her face and exploded. Certainly not enough to kill her, but more than enough to establish that she was overconfident in her abilities.

"What was experienced by yourself just now is called a Bala," he explained, before throwing his left fist forward and unleashing a second attack on her position. "While not nearly as strong as a Cero, it makes up for such by being twenty times faster, both in charging and travel speed. Along with being able to be utilized in rapid succession," he continued, demonstrating just such a fact as he unleashed a volley of Bala fire on Nightmare Moon's position, continual explosions rocking her entire frame as they obscured her from sight, but not from his own pesquisa. He currently had her pinned down, leaving her unable to move as he subjected her to the assault. That would allow him to get into position to deliver a more fatal strike, and bring an end to this entire mess. It was a fact that he was going to demonstrate right now, as he moved in behind her while she was still bracing herself for a frontal attack, in order to deliver a strike right to the nape of her neck, and completely remove her head from the rest of her body.

“GET AWAY FROM ME!”

His ears were the first to be assaulted by the piercing shriek, and then the rest of him shortly after by an all-encompassing darkness. It’d all happened so fast, he wasn’t sure what to make of it. There’d been an explosion of black magical energy radiating off of her body, like some sort of shock wave, as black sphere rapidly expanded outward from her body, before slamming into him with enough force to send him flying.

Whatever that was, it’d been substantial to say the least. The entire surface of the sphere had demonstrated what looked like arcing bolts of electricity. The same was observed not only on his own body in the aftermath, but also on Nightmare Moon’s body. The entire experience had been... quite painful to experience, in ways that he couldn’t adequately articulate. Nightmare Moon, however, seemed to be faring worse than himself in the aftermath, looking like she’d just subjected herself to considerable physical exertion without allowing for proper pacing. Even the amount of reiatsu her body was currently generating had been affected.

If he had to speculate, based on what information was currently available, he would conclude that what he’d just witnessed had been a defensive move on her part, born out of desperation and fear from being dominated as she had been. It would explain the force of the attack, the shrieking, and how exhausted she currently appeared; she’d panicked and reacted violently in a desperate effort to save her own neck.

In simple, uncomplicated, easy to understand terms, she’d blinked.

“What was that you were saying earlier, about fear being for mortals and the weak to experience?” he asked.

Nightmare Moon did her best to glare angrily in response at being mocked so openly, before simply huffing, and opting to recompose herself once again. She wouldn't let him get to her with such foalish taunts.

"Fear? You thought that was fear just now?" she asked, before shaking her head dismissively at such a notion. "Biped, that was nothing more than a natural response to being annoyed by one who fails to understand that they possess all the significance of a mosquito. You're more frustrating than actually threatening," she practically purred. "You might've succeeded in getting me out here, away from everypony, but it won't make a difference. In my current state, you don't pose me any actual risk. My greatness is of such a magnitude of leaps and bounds beyond you, you couldn't possibly comprehend its full scope."

Dismissiveness, ignorance, and more arrogance. If nothing else, Nightmare Moon was at least consistent in how she handled herself.

Perhaps it was time to put that consistency to the test as well.

"You held far greater intrigue and mystery when you were still operating within the shadows," he stated. "Completely random and unpredictable attacks on ponies with no rhyme or reason as to why they were targeted, no discernible pattern for identifying who might be next, attacks that couldn't be defended against, spreading terror and distrust throughout Ponyville and the surrounding area like they were a communicable diseases. We had no clue who we were dealing with, no clue what we were dealing with, we were forced to constantly remain on alert and on our toes, in a constant state of alert as we waited for the next shoe to be dropped. We were all but defeated, helpless to do anything other than wait for the inevitable, and react after the fact."

"You shameless flatterer, you," Nightmare Moon replied, but still beamed with a sense of pride at his words of praise.

"And then the reveal occurs when you make your return, announcing your identity and presence to the world, and suddenly all that intrigue is gone," Ulquiorra continued, ignoring Nightmare Moon's interruption entirely. "All that buildup, and you're what is to be had. Such a disappointment."

Now Nightmare Moon frowned. Was he dismissing her? Was he actually dismissing her just like that!?

"If this were a work of fiction intended for entertaining others, the only purpose justifying your current existence, would be to provide an effective way of showcasing my own strength, by allowing me to slay a supposedly unstoppable tyrant that terrified the world for a thousand years. In a literary sense, your presence would be nothing more than a cheap, overused, poorly executed plot device," Ulquiorra explained further.

"Wow! Talk about arrogance!" Nightmare Moon stated, somewhere between amused and infuriated at how he'd been addressing her. "You've certainly got a creative interpretation of the situation, biped, but unfortunately for you this isn't some work of fiction! This is real life, and this is the world in which we all live. My existence does indeed have a purpose that I intend to carry out, and I won't be stopped by the likes of you!"

She felt the impact of Ulquiorra's fist punching her in the abdomen before actually seeing the event transpire, doubling her over as he effectively knocked the air right out of her lungs.

"Resist all you want. Simply cease with telling me about it. Your voice is proving to be as irritating as nails on a chalkboard," Ulquiorra replied calmly. Whether or not she actually heard him over her attempts at breathing again wasn't a matter of importance as far as he was concerned.





"This was a very, very bad in coming here like this," Luna stated, reiterating the sentiment she'd had since before they set out on their journey to once again confront Nightmare Moon, and stop Ulquiorra before he could do any further damage.

"This is Ponyville. Bad ideas one bit for a gross here," Rainbow Dash commented as she hovered off just off the ground.

Luna just grunted, finding no comfort in Rainbow Dash's evaluation of the matter, even if it did accurately sum up the situation. The others -not even Celestia- had seen and felt what she had for herself, they had no idea of just how dangerous it had been in coming here. And all of them had insisted on coming regardless, because Ulquiorra Cifer was their friend.

It hadn't helped matters in the least that Twilight Sparkle had informed them that if they weren't brought along, they would simply find their own way out. A message that had surprisingly been reiterated by the rest of their friends as well. And knowing what she did about the young unicorn and the others, she knew for certain that they meant it as well. At least by traveling together, they could ensure some level of security, as Celestia could manage the teleportation, while she encased their group of nine in a force field to protect them in case they wound up smack dab in the middle of an intense battle between the two opposing forces.

Fortunately the shield hadn't been necessary; at least not yet. There was certainly a commotion taking place, but other than the devastation from previously, there were no signs of either combatant present.

"Nevertheless, it still remains a bad idea," she repeated once again.

"I'm beginning to feel the same way," Rarity replied more or less absently as she surveyed the damage that surrounded them. It was certainly a clearing they stood in, but the manner in which it had been cleared left much to be desired. There were large craters in the ground, devastated trees, and countless other signs of wanton destruction. "Did Ulquiorra do all of this?"

"Ulquiorra, Luna, me, Nightmare Moon... we all did it. We fought hard," Rainbow Dash explained. Although granted the others had done the majority of it, she'd more or less just participated even though she'd given it her all.

Fluttershy could only whimper to herself as she observed the amount of destruction all around them. To pony standards it might not seem all that bad, but to those that made their home in the Everfree forest, it would be at near-cataclysmic levels.  She honestly didn't want to think about how many poor animals had been rendered homeless to what unfolded here; she was just barely holding herself together, and she knew that if she gave that idea any thought, she would just break down crying all over again.

"So jus' where in the hay are those two anyway?" Applejack asked as she looked about, trying to catch some sight of Ulquiorra and Nightmare Moon. If this was indeed the right place, where were they right now?

Twilight looked around briefly, before her horn began glowing as she tried to feel their presence in an effort to pinpoint their location. Finding Ulquiorra shouldn't prove to be all that difficult; he was basically a black hole for mana, and anytime he was present, she could feel the mana in the area being drained as a result as his body fed on it. The real problem was going to be in tracking down where Nightmare Moon might be, and if she was even still alive. She doubted that he'd let her escape again. That wouldn't even really be a problem, if not for the fact that she still had hostages they had to rescue; that was the most infuriating part of it this whole mess they were currently in!

Why? Why did Nightmare Moon have to be so damn smart!?

"Incoming!"

Pinkie's sudden yell broke her concentration, causing her to look skyward just in time to see something flying in their direction. She reached out to intercept it with her magic, but Luna was much quicker, and effortlessly stopped what turned out to be Ulquiorra before he could slam into the ground.

"I trust the matter is not going well?" Luna asked rhetorically as she turned Ulquiorra right side up, before setting him back down on his feet.

"That's one way of describing the matter," Ulquiorra replied, his voice never changing from its usual monotone delivery. "Your decision in coming here was a bad idea," he added.

"Perhaps so, but it was a necessary one," Celestia stated. "Several foals are still missing, and as such, it proved necessary to stop you from killing Nightmare Moon, before we could extract what we need from her," she explained.

The news that Nightmare Moon had actually possessed enough intelligence to not keep all of the foals clustered together -not putting all her eggs in one basket as it were- was certainly an unexpected development as far as Ulquiorra could see. That fact, combined with how she'd taken up a position in Ponyville in order to keep him at bay, was demonstrating that she was far more intelligent than he'd assumed.

"She won't tell you anything of actual use. So long as she keeps the information to herself, you have reason to keep her alive. She more than likely is aware of this, and will respond accordingly," he pointed out.

Celestia knew as well as anyone, if not better than anyone, that Ulquiorra's assessment of the situation was correct. Nightmare Moon was under no obligation to tell them anything that they wanted to know.

But she also knew that they couldn't simply stand by and do nothing, if there was any hope of rescuing the foals. As rulers of Equestria, it was their sworn duty to do everything in their power to protect their little ponies, and they couldn't fulfill that duty by simply considering them to be dead and gone.

"Perhaps so. But regardless of that possibility, we still have to make an effort at securing their safe return," she explained, "through whatever means necessary," she muttered further as she began walking forward.

Despite the heat of the summer weather, Pinkie felt a chill run up her spine at Celestia's words, and it wasn't due to her Pinkie Sense either. She didn't know if it was the words, or the manner in which they were spoken, or just that it was Celestia speaking them, but there was something terrifying to be had in it all.

"Oh really now? How very ominous..."

Nearly everyone looked skyward at hearing the voice as it slowly descended upon their position, as Nightmare Moon once again entered view, her large wings flapping to keep her aloft as she looked down on all of them.

Ulquiorra was prepared to reengage Nightmare Moon, picking up right where they'd left off when she'd flung him away, during the moment he'd been distracted by the -unwanted- arrival of the others. But he was stopped by the feel of a large, white, downy wing being placed on his left shoulder. Apparently Princess Celestia was aware of his intentions, and was moving to intervene before he could take any action.

"You've managed to pique my curiosity, Celestia, just what do you intend to do? Just what does "through whatever means necessary" entail with you? Are you going to try and torture the information out of me?" Nightmare Moon asked, a sadistic grin crossing her features as she spoke, eager to see what Celestia thought she could really do in this situation.

Celestia looked back to Luna silently. Luna returned a hard, unyielding look of her own. But she found it impossible to maintain the staunchness of her expression when she looked into her sister's eyes. Her expression softened and her withers drooped, and her only available response was to give a dejected sigh, and nod solemnly.

"As much as I'd love to do something along those lines, I believe you're too sick for it to actually work," Celestia replied as she turned back to face Nightmare Moon and withdraw her wing from Ulquiorra's shoulder, tucking it back in at her side. Beyond that matter of Nightmare Moon potentially being a masochist, she knew from Ulquiorra that torture rarely ever worked at getting viable information from the subject. "No, this case requires a different approach. For that reason, in exchange for information as to where the foals are, we're prepared to... issue a royal pardon for the various crimes you've committed since your return..."

"WHAT!?"

It was a nearly unanimous statement from everyone present at hearing what Celestia just said, save for Luna who stood by silently, and Ulquiorra, whose only response was quirking an eyebrow. 

Not even Nightmare Moon was really believing what she'd just heard, as it'd come very far out of left field.

Before any of them could protest the notion, or otherwise ask if they'd heard what they shtought they'd heard, Celestia was already talking again.

"Your life in exchange for theirs, Nightmare Moon. You return the foals to us, alive and unharmed, and we'll allow you to leave unharmed; nopony will even be allowed to make a move against you," she stated as she began speaking again, once more addressing their foe up in the air as she walked forward. "That's the deal currently in play. Do you accept it?"

"Well now, Celestia, this is certainly a turn of events I didn't see coming. The sanctity you hold for pony life truly knows no bounds!" Nightmare Moon laughed. "It's certainly a most generous offer, one I'm sure you just plain hate presenting so freely! It must be tearing you up inside to know that you have to resort to offering me freedom, just to secure the return of three little nothing ponies!"

Celestia frowned, but continued to hold her tongue regardless. She refused to allow herself to be goaded into snapping.

"There's just one teeny, tiny problem with the deal you're offering me," Nightmare Moon continued. "You can't actually offer me either freedom or safety. Not a single one of you has the strength necessary to actually kill me! Your... associate... has certainly been doing his level best at trying to do just that, and all he's been able to amount to is a minor nuisance. So you'll understand me when I say, take your pardon and shove it where your sun doesn't shine! The foals will remain mine, the kingdom will be mine, your subjects will be mine, you and your sister will be enslaved, and I'll rule Equestria by myself for all eternity, even if it means killing everyone that would try and oppose me!"

At hearing the bold declaration Nightmare Moon had to offer, Celestia could do little more than give a dejected sigh of defeat, and shake her head sadly, much as Luna had done barely even a minute ago.

"Well, Luna, it looks like you were right. She really didn't fall for it..."

"As was to be expected."

"... Huh?"

Once again, it was a nearly unanimous statement from everyone present at hearing what Celestia and Luna were talking about, save again for Ulquiorra. 

"What? What kind of nonsense are you going on about!?" Nightmare Moon demanded to know. Were they intentionally talking in riddles to try and keep her off balance or something?

"My sister was quite certain that Ulquiorra Cifer would have you pleading for mercy before long, and willing to tell us whatever we wanted to know in exchange for calling him off. But it would appear even his unique talents are not enough to break you of your wicked and arrogant ways, foul demon!" Luna offered up in explanation as she stepped forward to stand side by side with her sister. She knew better than anypony just how futile such hopes were.

And, once this was all over, she was so going to be collecting on the wager that'd been made!

Celestia nodded in acknowledgement that Luna had been right. No matter how hard one might try, it simply wasn't possible to beat the wickedness out of someone who had no intention of changing their ways. It certainly might be fun to try, but ultimately it would be nothing more than an exercise in futility, and a complete waste of time.

"Not that we would've ever honored such a deal anyway," she admitted and shrugged. Nopony might've hurt Nightmare Moon, but as Spike had so eloquently pointed out some time ago, Ulquiorra was no pony, so technically it wouldn't have been a lie, had they been concerned about such. "I'm afraid in this case "through whatever means necessary" will involve having to weigh the needs of the many, against the needs of the few, and having to accept that not every life is going to be saved by the conclusion of this mess. Certain sacrifices are, sadly, going to have to be made..."

Luna nodded in agreement. "Sad to say, we cannot afford to wait in resolving this matter any further. If you will not give them up, we will simply have to conclude that they are dead, just like all the others. And is such is the case..." she paused as her magical halberd was summoned forth once again.

"Then there's no point in leaving you alive any longer," Celestia added as she follow Luna's example and summoned her sword. "We'll just cut straight to the chase and kill you right now."

"Indeed," Luna stated with an almost sadistic glee in her voice. "Ulquiorra Cifer, if you would be so kind as to look after the others while we tend to this matter."

"Neither one of you possess the mental fortitude necessary for what needs to be done here," Ulquiorra stated bluntly as he addressed both members of the diarchy, and making it quite clear that he didn't hold their opinions of themselves in high regard right now.

There had been far, far too much dialogue going on since their arrival. Far too much time wasted on banter and threats, that could be better utilized for other purposes. If he hadn't been distracted by the undesired arrival of the others, he could have gotten the drop on Nightmare Moon, and potentially demonstrate the power of his released state to her. But instead of doing that, he had to stop and listen as words and insults were exchanged in an overly diplomatic fashion. And now they simply wanted him to step aside?

How they'd avoided being killed up to this point, he couldn't even begin to speculate.

"This is a matter best left to the professionals. Take the others, return to Ponyville, and stay out of my way until this matter is resolved," he instructed as he moved forward, ready to disregard all of this shit he was forced to put up with, and get straight to business.

"Ulquiorra."

And then he heard Princess Celestia utter his name. And the tone in which she'd uttered his name, had done much to convey the fact that she was quite serious right now. Serious enough that it was sufficient to make him turn his back on Nightmare Moon, and once again face them directly.

"While I certainly appreciate your willingness to spare us the unpleasantries of what needs to be done, it isn't your call. We're still the rulers of this nation, and as such it's our responsibility to wither the duties of safeguarding our subjects. This is something that we must do by ourselves, not you. Now please, look after the others," Celestia stated.

Despite the calm tone that was used, Ulquiorra understood that she was giving him an order, and that he was expected to comply with it, even if he disagreed with it; which he did. He could argue the point, laying out exactly why they were unqualified for undertaking this mission, and why it would be best for them to simply listen to him. He could easily crush the both of them with simple logic, and lay out the follies of what they were trying to do.

But perhaps it was best if he didn't. If they were so dead set on getting involved in this matter, perhaps the best course of action was to simply stand by, and let them figure out just how unprepared and unqualified they were. It would be a hard, bitter lesson for them to learn, and further emphasize that he knew what he was talking about.

"Very well then," he said as he slid his hands into his pockets, and turned to make his way over to where the others stood. If they couldn't handle Nightmare Moon, at least the bearers of the Elements of Harmony wouldn't suffer as a result.

"Oh this is just so precious!" Nightmare Moon squealed from her vantage point. "So you two think you can fare better against me than your bipedal friend? Oh it's going to be so much fun to crush your spirits! I'll even give you two the honor of the first move! Give me your best shot, so that I can show you true despair!" she howled.

Ulquiorra merely grunted from where he currently stood, but otherwise made no movement.

"She's getting more arrogant by the moment," Celestia muttered and shook her head, before looking towards her sister. "Are you ready for this, Luna?"

"I was born ready, dear sister. Let us do this at once! Together!" Luna replied ferociously, ready to get it on.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Celestia replied.

Ulquiorra had been on the verge of commenting how the time for talk had long since passed, but that notion died out immediately once his pesquisa detected just what was going on. The diarchy hadn't simply been standing idly by while doing nothing, but instead they were demonstrating significant levels of strength as they became deadly serious. Their individual reiatsu levels were flaring to degrees he hadn't seen before, even during times of great emotional distress on their part. Even when he'd led Princess Celestia to believe he'd murdered a number of ponies in Ponyville during the changeling invasion, that still paled in comparison to this. It was quickly reaching the point where it was painful to be in this proximity to them, and left him wondering how long it would be before he would be forced to move back further for his own sake.

That was when things suddenly changed, and he was left experiencing something far different from anything he was familiar with. It almost felt like how a Quincy could draw reiryoku into their body, but even that didn't do an adequate job of explaining it. No, this was something new. The diarchy wasn't so much flaring their reiatsu outside of their bodies in a violent demonstration of power any longer, but rather it was flaring inside their bodies. They were strengthening themselves to levels he had never seen before, going more for substance than presentation. Instead of auras to emphasize how strong they were, their bodies were glowing, as was their regalia.

And then the glowing of their bodies ceased, but that of their regalia didn't. Instead it just kept glowing and... and changing! It almost looked like it was unfolding outward, as numerous new plates began growing out and entering plain view. Numerous plates and pieces sliding together to form new sections of what could only be described as armor, accompanied by a myriad of clicks and mechanical sounds as it was reformed around them, covering greater portions of their body. And while not everything was covered by the finished product, it still offered far greater coverage and protection than the armor worn by either division of the royal guards.

Exactly how the mechanics of it all worked, he couldn't even begin to speculate. All he knew was that what he'd just witnessed would explain why Princess Celestia's crown had felt so heavy for its size, what with how it had morphed into a helmet.

He was vaguely aware of how the others were torn between cheering and being in a state of utter disbelief, but he couldn't properly focus on just who was saying what. He was more focused on how much more commanding of a presence the diarchy had about them now, as the glowing of their armor ceased, and the size of their weapons seemed to increase in proportion to their newly displayed strength.

It went without saying that the matter before them had just become far more interesting than previously.

High up above, Nightmare Moon watched in interest as the two sisters went about what they were doing.  They had certainly become far more serious in this matter than they had been, but ultimately that would do them little good. They could flex their strength as much as they wanted to, but it would ultimately do them no good. They would learn just how helpless they were, whether they wanted to or not.

"Well then. This should certainly be fun..." she stated and grinned, biting at her bottom lip in the process. 

Another bright flash of light occurred during the pause in her speech, this time  bringing something with it. And much as both Celestia and Luna had  demonstrated on their own previously, Nightmare Moon herself now  possessed a weapon forged of pure mana. But unlike Celestia's sword, or  Luna's halberd, hers was a scythe with a long, curved blade. And unlike  what had been witnessed previously with Nightmare Moon's magic, this  construct was made up of a blood red field, giving her an even more  intimidating appearance as it illuminated her features.

"If you think that you're ready, then let's see just what you've got..."