//------------------------------// // Part 2 // Story: In the Pale Moonlight // by ScottTrek //------------------------------// Nightmare paced down the halls of her once grand castle, muttering to herself. “Six… always six…” At first she didn’t know why withdrawn from the intruders who had dared to violate her realm. They were small and weak, no matter what weapons they carried. She was the Empress of Equestria! She who had slain Discord and Tirek! She who had created the Moon Eternal! But… she was nothing if not patient. And so she stepped back and watched them from afar. She observed how they acted and how they worked together, battling against the environment and the creatures that lurked within. And then she saw it. It hadn’t been obvious at first. They were far rougher this time, shifted from what she had known before. The body count was off as well, but the twinned ‘Anglers’ were more one being than two, as if to just ram it all home. “It won’t work… It won’t work oh no no.” She whispered to self, letting her legs carry her through the dimly lit winding corridors. “Not this time. No… No… I made sure of it… I killed it. I KILLED IT YOU HEAR ME!” For a moment Nightmare Moon closed her eyes, hear ears ringing with the sounds of shattering crystals, a tree falling, cries of agony and the dying laughs of a madman. Then the memory faded. She opened her eyes and saw that her legs had carried her to a particular end of the castles, one of the old spires that pierced into the night’s sky. She was stood in front of an old oaken door. It was battered and weathered, the wood swollen and warped into its frame. Any identifying marks or lettering had been worn away long ago but it didn’t matter. It’s not like she could ever forget. “You hear me?” She whispered, the faint smell of sunflowers in drifting from within the room. “This changes nothing…” She stepped closer and raised a hoof to the door. A few long seconds passed but she couldn’t bring herself to open the door. Instead she turned and walked back down the steps. Back into her palace. Had it always been so dusty? Once her palace had stood as a bold statement to the world. All would see it and know it as her symbol of her power, and a constant reminder of the respect she deserved, that she demanded. Now the silent towers and fallow halls stood as a different statement. “I will not give up.” Nightmare Moon declared, eyes darting around. Peering into the corners so dark even she could not see through them. “EQUESTRIA IS MINE!” Her pace quickened. Turning at random. Anything to get away from the memories now dancing at the edge of her perception. “They will fail in their quest!” She yelled at the sky. “All who oppose me shall fail!" “Your titles mean nothing to me.” “Does she think she can frighten me? She means nothing to me! SHE IS NOTHING! I am not afraid! I AM FEAR!” Nightmare Moon burst into the library, a thunderstorm echoing through the room. Suddenly she stopped her eyes alighted on something odd. There was a book sitting on a nearby table. It worn, well-loved pages sat open, free of the dust in a shaft of pristine moon light. She did not remember putting it there. Slowly, curiously she walked over and looked down. Nightmare smiled. Then she sat down and began to read. Three days. For three days the Red Hand had endured sub-zero temperatures, impossible landscapes and… things… hunting them through the snow. But now they were close. Ember looked down at Zante, her brethren shivering and gripping her arms tightly as the team marched through the incoming blizzard, tied together to avoid being separated. Zante had been on edge for hours. She refused to tell the others what she could hear, but Ember knew the little psion was suffering.  But still she trekked on, leading them through the frozen hell, following the signals only she could hear. On the first day something dark and red had attacked them. Like a bloodstain moving through the snow the burning eyes and crimson horn had ripped through them with a desperate ferocity. In the battle to slay the monstrosity Zante had both her left arms torn clean off. The expression she had worn while Brighteyes had worked to reattach the limbs was nothing compared to the one she wore now. Defiantly close. “Ember!” Sobek called through the howling winds, “We need to stop and rest somewhere.” “In case you haven’t noticed we’re in the middle of a blizzard, in the middle of snowfield!” She yelled back, peering back through the near opaque snowstorm. “If you can see somewhere to rest please speak up!” “I Know I Know…” Sobek replied, sputtering to get snow of out his jaws. “But is we weren’t tied together the Twins would blow away! Plus some of us actually feel the cold!” “Maybe I could dig a hole?” Ceto suggest, voice barely straining to be heard from somewhere in the back. Ember squinted back through the maelstrom at her shivering comrades. In truth none of them were built that well to resist the cold, with the possible exception of Ceto, though if given he chance he would have carried them all on his shoulders regardless of how tired he was. Ember didn’t want to stop. It felt like sitting down in front of a Deep-Drakes jaws. But if they kept going now someone was going to drop dead on their feet, including herself. “Alright Ceto a hole in the ground sounds great.”  She said turning back round. “Zante do you feeling up to some wards… Zante? ... oh Gaầrek’ma” Ember stared down at the severed rope dangling from her waist. “ZANTE’S GONE!” With newfound energy the group surged forward, Sobek and Brighteyes’s keen senses pushed to the front searching for any sign of Zante. With a growl Ember reached for her sword… and yelped in surprise as the world suddenly wrenched sideways. “So… they’ve actually made it.” There was no turning back now. Ember was trying very hard to not throw up. Her stomachs turned cartwheels and white noise burst in her head. Pulling herself back to her knees she glanced around, surprisingly the snow seemed to have vanished and the air lay sickeningly still. The rest of her team lay scattered about in the long grass now surrounding them, all groaning as waves of nausea sunk through them. Ember staged back to her feet as she spied the Twins, the Anglers were curled up on the ground holding each other tight and jabbering in their native’s tongue. With a chill she realised they were no longer speaking in sync. Thankfully at the moment Ember felt a polite tap on her shoulder from behind. Zante stood arms full of some kind of flower, of which she was shoving fistfuls of into her mouth. Antenna sparking with energy Zante spat out a blob of plant goop and draw a small glyph on Embers forehead. Almost immediately that nausea melted away and with a contend nod Zante set to work treating the others. World no longer swimming Ember took another look and the world around her. Dominating the skyline a massive castle stood straddling the land, clad in moon-silver and the deepest blues it stretched into the sky where overhead the moon hung low and heavy in the sky, casting a pale moonlight across all. Around the castle the landscape was a patchwork of meadows, woods and what looked to be small settlements. The patchwork extended as far as the eye could see, even the way they had come. But as ember stared back, puzzled, the moonlight suddenly caught upon a slight ripple in the air a few feet away. Ember stepped forward and stuck her hand into the ripple, rewarded with her hand vanishing into a biting chill and flurry of snowflakes. “Woah that's weird.” Ember turned to see Sobek back on his feet, holding a bunch plants. He looked over at Ember’s invisible hand and did a double take. “Well THAT and this.” Holding up one of Zante’s flowers, “The plants here are green instead of black.” Delicately Ceto leaned over and took the flower from Sobek, held it close to his toothy snout and breathed in, “The world has not been this way in a very long time, not since my kind had wings with which to soar.” Ember had never heard of Golems who could fly. But as she looked at her friend, his face almost… nostalgic… it occurred to her she had no idea how long a Golem could live. Maybe… Brighteyes joined Ember at the border, shaking her from her thoughts. Brighteyes also stuck her hand through the barrier. “It seems in the realm of the moon that never moves, neither does the world.” “Indeed.” Zante agreed, stating up from treating the Twins, who still held each other tightly. “A time-lock, a single moment of the past, frozen forever in place.” “She can do that?” Sobek grimaced. “Apparently so.” With their bodies shielded from the time-lock the Red-Hand made their way down the hill, creeping towards the palace of Nightmare Moon. Ember motioned them towards some nearby trees, though they were out of the snowstorm they were still weak. She didn’t know how much cover the trees would provide, they were in ‘her’ realm after all. Still… half of being a leader was at least ACTING like you had a plan. As Ember carefully made her way through the shrubbery and meadows. Though the moon above casting more light down than any of them had seen in days it seemed to make the world darker. The sallow lighting was screwing with her depth perception so much none of them saw the creature until it was looking right at them. The Hand skidded to a halt as they stared down the entity in front of them. It had the same basic shape as Nightmare Moon but was far smaller and lacked the wings and horn. There was little in the way of other discernible features on the creature; apart from the two faintly luminous white ovals for eyes, it was nothing more than a shadowy mass. For a few seconds nobody moved, then with almost no reaction the creature looked away and went back to work. Ember watched curiously as it finished pushing a number of baskets under the nearby trees. Before lining up its back legs with one of the trunks. Thump. Rumble rumble rumble. The fruit that fell into the baskets was small and sickly looking but the creature was apparently satisfied and moved onto the next. Thump. Rumble rumble rumble. Thump … The creature stared at the empty basket. It stared at the empty basket far longer than it had stared at Ember and the others. Suddenly its whole body seemed to judder and fizzle with something that might have been a framework skeleton glitching through its body. And as the group looked through the glade they could see similar scenes playing out over and over. “These… These are Equestrians?” Brighteyes gasped, almost stepping forward to help the juddering creature before Ember held her back. “No I think they're just… memories.” Ember replied, moving forward. “Memories and echo’s held up by her magic.” Raka and Rana cowered away from the shadow being but followed on. “Smoke and mirrors." “Telepaths nightmare…” Zante grumbled, suddenly shivering and looking up. “We got incoming.” Three more of the Shades were flying towards them down through the canopy. In addition to bat-like wings these creatures had more definition about them; they had clothing and discernible facial expressions. Blank expressions though. Instead of attacking as expected the lead Shade instead reached into a pouch and presented a scroll. Carefully Ember edged forward, took the scroll and broke the royal seal. On the scroll was a short message, surprisingly written in elegant Common script. Ember quickly read it then in disbelief handed it to the others. “We’re invited to the Palace?!” “Yes? What is it?” “…” “Ahh excellent. I will meet them in the main courtyard.” “…” “As you were.” Nightmare stood from her desk, briefly looking down at her new project. It was progressing much faster than she’d anticipated, which was fortunate since the Outsiders had arrived much sooner than she’d expected as well. Her mind was much calmer than it had been before. It was interesting having new goals to work towards. This would be a momentous day… Two lines of Shades, in varying degrees of degradation, stood in formation up the promenade. The middle of the courtyard was dominated by a statue, a sheer edifice of un-decorated obsidian. And as the hand rounded it, doing their best to shirt away from the Shades, they saw her. Nightmare Moon. She stood poised against a back-lit by two blue braziers, drawing all attention to herself. This was a different beast to the one they had seen before. Back in the forest she had been more like one of her subjects, body indistinct and vapours as if it could not contain the hatred and spite contained within. This being was the pinnacle of dignity and elegance. She looked down on them with an expression that seemed to look kindly, or at the very least placid in the presence of outsiders. “Welcome!” Her voice boomed out. “I must congratulate you on making it this far.” “You certainly did not make it easy!” Ember called back, matching Nightmares pitch and tone. “Indeed, but you have proven yourselves to be worthy challengers! More than I had thought possible from non-pony peoples!” Nightmare said, descending the steps towards them. “And for that reason I have decided to invoke the ancient rites of hospitality!” Ember was briefly stunned, but motioned the rest to hold back as she walked up to Nightmares face. “And what guarantee’s, may I ask,” She said, reaching one hand up and taking a hold of her swords hilt. “That you will keep your word?” Nightmare Moon smiled wide, staring right back into Embers eyes. “I swear it by the moon.” A second ticked by. Ember released the grip on her sword.  “Your hospitality is accepted.” The next few hours were a surreal experience. Nightmare Moon lead them inside and after their packs, weapons and survival gear was removed by porter Shades and they proceeded to a grandiose hall, also lit by unearthly blue braziers, and served a ‘feast’. The food was… edible. Fortunately they all had strong stomachs, having all experienced far far worse in the past, and all took what was presented to them. Nightmare Moon was surprisingly pleasant company, first politely enquiring about their journey to find Equestria, then asking about the lands beyond her borders before speaking at length about her own realm and its history. There were times during the conversation Ember could have almost forgotten who, or rather what, they were talking to. When one them spoke about their home and people she was perfectly attentive and engaged. And when she spoke she held the rooms’ attention masterfully, even Ember finding herself rapt. It was only after the food had been finished the veneer begun to wear thing, though not in the way Ember had been expected. Continuing her hospitality Nightmare offered them a tour of her castle, and as they walked she continued her account of Equestrian history. It was at this point Nightmare Moon began to repeat and contradict herself, sometimes within the same breath. The castle began to show its age as well. Nightmare led them through increasingly dilapidated corridors and rooms, dust and mould choking the air, at points the woodwork and masonry crumbling beneath their feet. More than once one of them had to scrambled to avoid falling through the floor. Nightmare remained oblivious to all this, a world away seeing something else entirely. Thankfully the tour came to its eventually end without major incident and Nightmare Moon deposited them at their quarters. And with a little scavenging and cajoling of the Shades they managed to scrape together enough usable furniture for the night that didn't immediately crumble. Nightmare stood once again at the top of the castles spire, this time her back was turned to the sealed door. She stood on the balcony opposite, looking out upon her land. She could hear the footsteps coming far before Ember rounded the stairway and silently moved over to join her. “It seems my castle may be in need of more repair than I thought.” Nightmare said, not taking her eyes off the horizon. “I thought you hadn’t noticed all that.” “Hmm… I didn’t at first. But when I went back I couldn’t help but notice after falling down that new hole in the armoury floor. My apologies.” “Heh… it’s quite alright. In fact I came here to apologise to you.” “Oh?" “When we fought before at the border I used a title that I now realise was… disrespectful… you certainly made that clear.” Nightmare Moon stiffen imperceptibly. “I see…” Ember leaned against the railing and turned to look at Nightmare. “I know who Luna is.” “I… see…” “She... She was your sister right? The one you killed and took the place of.” Ember said, voice level. “Took the place of… and took control of her sky…” “I… I… did kill Luna.” Nightmare sighed, “I was just trying to help her, you understand… but in the end she just… I just… I couldn’t save her from herself.” A few long moments passed. A heavy blanket of silence covering them both. Nightmare Moon finally looked at Ember. Her erstwhile enemy was no longer clad in armour but still had her great-sword strapped to her back, the agonisingly familiar energy humming just below the surface. Out of her armour Ember was surprisingly lean and sinewy, truly like the praying mantis of old had learned to walk upright. “You know…” Ember said, voice soft. “I think at some point you and I weren’t so different…” On another day Nightmare Moon would have struck down a lesser being for comparing themselves to her. At the very least she would have laughed in their face. Instead she asked, “How so?” “We were both born different. Both had to fight everyday of our lives.” Ember glanced back over at Nightmare. “Both of us have seen more bloodshed than any being deserves to see.” “Hmm…” Nightmare mused. “Your honour me.”  Ember shifted in her position. "There’s one more thing about us that's the same. We both possess a sheer unshakeable, unbreakable will to keep fighting for what we believe in. No matter the cost we don't give up. Honour is loyalty to your ideals, even if they are a delusion." For another long moment the world was silent. Then she stood to leave “I don’t want to be an executioner you know.” “I wouldn’t want that either.” Once Ember was out of earshot Nightmare turned back inside to rest her head against the sealed door. “They don’t even remember you. For all your brilliances. For all your splendour…” When the Red Hand awoke a note was waiting for them. It directed them to the main Library they had passed through the other day. At Embers direction they equipped themselves and carefully made their way there, the palace was silent and empty, even the Shades seemingly having abandoned it. The only room lit by the flickering blue flames of Nightmare Moon was the library, shadows dancing off the rearranged furniture. Everything in the room had been pushed aside apart from a single table in the middle, upon it sat a single closed book. “My guests…” Nightmares voices sounded through the darkness, seeming to emanate from every direction at once. “Before you came to Equestria I believed that no life existed beyond my borders that was worthy of my attention. I am pleasantly surprised to have been proven wrong.” Ember motioned her companions in, carefully making their way towards the table. “The other thing I have come to realise,” She continued, “Is that the world beyond has forgotten us, our history, our culture… everything. And this I cannot stand. The book you see before you has been enchanted with my strongest magic’s, and contains all that is Equestria.  Our history, our culture… our legacy.” With the greatest care Ember picked up the book, as Nightmare continued. “I wish you to take it. Take it back to the world beyond… and promise me you will remember us. No matter what may happen… Will you promise that you will remember us?” “We will.” Ember said, handing the book over to Brighteyes. “Thank you…” At that moment all the shadows in the room coalesced. They were surrounded by Shades, each of them armed to the teeth. Above the stood Nightmare Moon, clad in gleaming armour and flanked by ponies of burning shadows. One exuding malice and hatred, one with eyes like broken hearts. “NO! Wait!” Brighteyes cried, realising what was happening. “Of course, now that the world is once again ready to bear witness to our magnificence we do not truly need to be ‘remembered’.” Nightmare declared. “And unfortunately since you would… object to that… consider this your one chance to submit yourself to me.” “You don’t have to do this…” Brighteyes said pleadingly. Ember put a hand on her shoulder. “Yes…Yes it does." With measured motion Ember drew her sword, "She has to try." The two sides met like a hurricane. Glowing weapons flashing through the shadows. The Twins spun like dervishes deflecting crackling bolts away. Zante sung glimmering spells through the air. Dark Magic once powerful enough to bring cities to its knees cracked and crumbled before the seven hero’s as countless more Shades swarmed in only to fall upon arrows and knives and hammers. And then Ember broke through. Swatting aside the remnants of rulers long past and leapt before the Nightmare. The two stood, weapons raised, mirroring the scene that had played out not a few days before. Ember nodded at her enemy. Nightmare smiled and nodded back. And with a roar they charged.