//------------------------------//
// Queen 
// Story: The Night's Stars 
// by SC_Orion 
//------------------------------//

Almost immediately, the six ponies had fallen asleep without any resistance. Whether they dreamed peacefully or had haunting nightmares mattered little. It was none of Nightmare's concern. Right now, she had more important matters to take care of since she had put an end to Celestia's plan to stop her.

Nightmare kept expecting something to happen. Surely, it couldn't have been this easy and simple to stop her sister's plan! Celestia had one thousand years to prepare. But yet nothing else happened. No assassins from the shadows, no grand army suddenly appearing to challenge her. She couldn't believe it. She won. It was her grand victory over Celestia! She had finally triumphed. Equestria was hers- she was Queen now, or would be soon, and her night would last forever.

But it still felt like a hollow victory. So much had Celestia denied her- the pleasure of fighting her and bringing her low, the pleasure of making her beg and of breaking her, and the pleasure of a meaningful challenge to taking Equestria. She kept expecting to feel like she had accomplished her victory, but it just never came.

Even banishing Celestia was a bittersweet victory- she inflicted the same punishment on her that she had endured, but in doing so, defiled the visage of her glorious moon, as it had been for the past thousand years.

'Must you continue to deny me everything!?' In rage, she stamped her hoof down on the stone floor, creating a spider web of cracks expanding outward from her hoof. She growled, wondering if perhaps, it was part of Celestia's plan to deny her the sweet taste of victory by simply making it feel so utterly worthless.

But still, now that Celestia's student, along with her 'friends,' was incapacitated, she didn't have to worry about them. And the Elements were stowed away in a pocket dimension. It was a short-term solution to the problem- holding the Elements in a pocket dimension took more magic than she wanted to devote to containing them. But, it gave her time to think and revise her plans as necessary. She could kill Twilight Sparkle and her friends, but instead, she knew they could be useful.

Nightmare had already decided on her course of action regarding Twilight Sparkle- attempt to persuade her to become her student. Twilight was a threat to her, but there was simply too much potential to ignore. The curious part of her simply wouldn't allow her to throw away that potential without at least trying to convince Twilight to become her student. And there was something about her she still couldn't place.

'But how do I best approach this problem?' she wondered. She barely knew anything about this Twilight Sparkle, other than she was a powerful unicorn filly, the student of her sister, bearer of the Element of Magic, and she had more than enough potential to be her downfall.

And even if Twilight did accept, who was to say it wasn't a ruse? She frowned at that thought. 'Then if you accept I will have to keep you on a leash, won't I?'

But she would have time to think and deal with them later. For now, Equestria called to her, seeking out her rightful Queen. She was needed in Canterlot- she needed to affirm her rule and crush any potential dissent, and investigate the Captain of the Guard and this other princess. Perhaps she would learn more about Twilight Sparkle in Canterlot. Since Twilight was her sister's student, she would likely find out more about her in her sister's chambers.

But first, she needed to do something with her captives. As she looked over the sleeping mares, she briefly considered just leaving them there. They wouldn't be able to escape, at least on their own. But there was the chance that somepony would come by to free them, and that would cause her undue stress. And then, of course, there was also the fact that they would be rather vulnerable and exposed. Even inside the castle's throne room, there was a chance that some animal or creature would come by and find them an easy target.

And that simply wouldn't do.

Scowling, she levitated the sleeping mares in her magic, then started the journey from the throne room to the castle's dungeons. After the first step, she paused and glanced down at her dented chestplate. Rather than take it off or examine it further, she simply bent it back into shape with her magic. Sadly, the armor no longer held the same gleam that it did- it had been battered by Applejack's kick- and even with her magic to bend it back into place, it wasn't perfect. It still showed the signs that it had been damaged. Her chestplate had been her constant companion for a thousand years. Seeing it damaged and so abused now that she wasn't in a battle was strangely disappointing.

But, nonetheless, Nightmare had a task at hoof. She pushed the concern from her mind and made her way out of the Throne Room, then into the castle's passages. Walking the castle's ruined corridors was peaceful, with the only sounds coming from her magic and the click of her boots on the stone floor. Nothing stirred- it was as if every animal had forgotten about the castle's existence, or purposefully avoided it.

Most likely, it was the latter. After all, they knew she was back, and that they would not be welcome in her home. As she walked past one collapsed doorway, she grimaced. 'I will have to find a temporary residence while repairs are done to the castle... Celestia's chambers will do.'

Eventually, she made her way down into the dungeon. The cold seemed to seep into her coat and sap the warmth from her core. It brought back fond memories right alongside memories she'd rather forget. Most of the cells were too small to house all six of them comfortably or were in a state of disrepair, but she managed to find one cell that would do. With an application of her magic to the gate, she forced it open with a loud groaning, then levitated the six mares inside and laid them down without awakening them. She briefly looked them over, then shut the gate and locked it with her magic.

Before moving on, she looked over them again and found her gaze drawn to Twilight Sparkle. Out of the entire group, she was easily the youngest, by at least two years, perhaps more. Judging from how Rainbow acted at the library, Nightmare suspected that Twilight Sparkle barely knew any of them and that the journey to her castle had been the extent of their time together. She also didn't seem to recognize them as friends until they came back for her.

As she pondered this, her gaze wandered over Twilight's body. She was small and weak. Vulnerable. Defenseless. It would have been so easy to just end her life right then and there. And oh, the temptation was there, even with her plan in mind. And yet, there was something else there too. The filly was a curiosity and held her interest. Her gaze settled on her flank and she took in her cutie mark once again. 'So much potential...' She licked her lips, then shook her head. She turned away, only to pause and look back at the filly. There was something else too, aside from the curiosity at her potential, but try as she did, she couldn't find an answer for what else it was that made the filly stand out so much.

For a moment, she hesitated, then she used her magic and laid Twilight down closer to the rest of her friends. She pondered the choice for a few seconds, unsure of why she wasted her time doing that, but she took some sense of enjoyment from it. Twilight Sparkle still looked scared in her sleep, but it seemed that being closer to the other ponies helped. 'Herd instinct?' she wondered.

She broke her gaze from Twilight, then examined the cell's gate. Like the rest of the castle, it was run down. Although it was usable, it wasn't in the best condition, and that didn't sit well with her. With the mares and Twilight so secured, they would be defenseless if something managed to break into the cell.

Based on that, she spent a few seconds reinforcing the gate with her magic so that no stray creatures would be able to easily break into the cell. Once she was satisfied that her captives were secure and protected, she turned and marched out of the dungeon without any further thought, leaving them to the cold darkness.

Like the trip to the dungeons, the trip back up was uneventful, leaving Nightmare to her own thoughts as she navigated the castle from memory. No longer distracted by the need to stop her sister's student and disable the Elements of Harmony, she found herself taking time to enjoy the moonlit stroll.

It had been so long since she had enjoyed her night and had been able to just relax. For a thousand years, she was locked away from her night and peace had been so far from her mind. The anger, bitterness, and resentment were still there as she walked on, but it was simmering in the back of her mind. For now, she could take a moment to relax.

There was work to be done, but the biggest threat was out of the way. As she walked out into the courtyard, she found her mind drifting back to how hollow her victory felt. It was wonderful to triumph over her sister, but it wasn't what she had hoped it would be. It was nothing like she had envisioned. But she still took pleasure in her victory and putting a stop to her sister's plans to stop her. And, of course, she could take pleasure in knowing Equestria would be hers in the next several dozen hours after word had spread and she had established her rule.

And perhaps she would have a student of her own.

Nightmare slowed and pursed her lips. 'Were it one thousand years ago, the idea of me taking a student would have made me laugh at the absurdity...' she mused. 'But now, I look forward to that prospect and I'm already used to the idea... interesting.'  She spread her wings, then kicked off and launched herself into the air. With powerful beats of her wings, she ascended far above the castle's ruined towers and the tree canopy, flying towards Canterlot.

Feeling the chill of the night wind against her black coat brought a genuine smile to her lips. She closed her eyes and flew by instinct. She felt the subtle shifts in the air currents, she felt the air pressure, and she felt the faint humidity on the air. But more than that, she felt the night- her night. In the soft moonlight, she felt so alive and refreshed!

For a time, she flew freely towards Canterlot, ignoring the unextinguishable inferno of hatred for her sister, letting her mind wander freely. Even uncontrolled, her thoughts kept drifting back to her sister's student. Her thoughts weren't of ire, but of curiosity. Who was this Twilight Sparkle?

However, once she flew beyond the range of the Everfree Forest, she took control of her thoughts once more. Her anger and bitterness returned to the forefront of her mind. Canterlot stood on the side of the mountain in the distance like a jewel. But no, not just any jewel- it was the jewel of her sister's crown. The seat of her sister's power.

It was a shame that she needed someplace to stay and use as her capital while she had her home rebuilt, but how fortunate her sister left her a place that would suffice.

Now that her fury had returned, her flight no longer felt so relaxing nor calming. So rather than simply waste her time flying the rest of the way to the grand city in a futile attempt to gain some pleasure from it, she lit her horn and teleported high above the city.

As she appeared in a flash of dark blue light, she cast her gaze down and surveyed the city. In the moon's soft glow, the city was beautiful and far grander than she had expected. Truly, the city of Canterlot was one that proudly displayed wealth- it stood as a beacon on a mountain, befitting a princess or even a Queen like herself. The City was built upon stone platforms of some kind, in several large circles. She could feel magic and enchantments radiating off of the city's foundation- the city wasn't just built on a mountain for looks, it was built to last, survive, and thrive.

The countless buildings were all massive- perhaps nearly every structure could have been described as a mansion, although Nightmare was sure that the city's population meant that a good portion of the buildings were residencies for multiple families. Everything appeared to be constructed of marble and gold, which definitely rang of her sister's doing; she would have chosen silver over gold. The largest structures dominated the central, highest-up platform: the palace. Calling it a castle simply did not do it justice, it was extravagant. Going outward from the palace at the city's center, the structures gradually grew smaller and shorter, but they were still just as extravagant as everything else in the city.

Even with the city jutting out from the mountain, it was walled, and the walls were formidable- easily six ponies could stand shoulder to shoulder on tops of the walls, although they were only as tall as the roofs of the smaller one-story structures. And oh, there wasn't just one wall surrounding the outermost parts of the city's platforms. There was the outer wall surrounding the entire city, and then there was an inner wall protecting the central platform that housed the palace. Aided by how raised the central platform was above the other surrounding platforms, the wall reached to the tops of the multistory mansions nearby and then stood higher still, granting no vantage point to rain spells nor arrows down upon the defenders.

Truly, this city conveyed power, and Nightmare beheld in her eyes a great power. Building a city so grand would have been a monumental feat, and her sister had pulled it off in her absence. 'What else did you accomplish while I was gone, sister..?' the thought came without anger, but with a genuine curiosity.

While it wouldn't have taken long to rebuild her home, she knew that the effort she would need to make to turn her home into something so formidable and striking as this city would take much longer. And even then, she would only have her home, her castle- she wouldn't have a grand city like this.

And she was unsure how protected her home would be compared to Canterlot. The city was, after all, on the side of a mountain. Looking around, she found that she could see only one path that an army could have taken to attack the city- and it led to the main gate of the outer walls. The path twisted up a long path all the way up the mountain; any invading army would have to climb a great distance, giving the defenders another advantage.

In comparison, her home would have the short ravine and then the Everfree Forest. She did not discount the Everfree Forest- so many creatures called that forest their home. Creatures that could turn a pony to stone just by looking at them, creatures that could swallow a pony in one bite. It was a good defense, and anypony trying to send an army through the Everfree had to be insane, but it was still doable.

However, her home also had one advantage Canterlot didn't. Very few ponies knew about the existence of her home, apparently. Perhaps she could keep it that way- rather than making her old castle her capital, she could keep it as her home, her retreat, with only a few dozen guards and servants. Perhaps it could be a place of solitude for her, where she could relax, but also where she would be safe should the need arise. She could weave her magic into the castle, so much magic that nopony could have a hope of destroying the castle, nor stealing what she hid away there.

Keeping Canterlot as her capital, then, seemed to be the best course of action. Her sister truly would let her have no victories. Nightmare scowled.

Briefly, she wondered if her pegasus messenger had arrived yet. She cast her gaze towards the walls in turn, then examined the palace. There seemed to be activity, but even with the moonlight illuminating the city, she was simply too far above to make it out. She angled her wings, then slowly descended towards the central platform and the palace it held.

Silently, she glided through the night air. No sentries raised any cries of alarm, despite her expectations. No pegasi guards flew up to intercept her, as she had prepared for. But finally, as the moon cast her shadow over the courtyard, the guards reacted. Calls rang out, soldiers stopped and looked up to behold Nightmare's terrifying visage.

She landed gracefully, with her hind hooves clicking against the stone before her front hooves. The instant she touched down, she flared her wings out wider and swept her gaze around, letting her slit-pupils take in the forms of the guards gathering around her.

Everypony wore the same accursed golden armor that the rest of the guards she had encountered wore- it simply wouldn't do, one of the first things she would have to decree was a change in color- silver would be much more fitting a color for her guards under her reign. As an added benefit, the darker color would stand out less than gold. It would blend in better with her night.

After the armor, the next thing she noticed was that there seemed to be only a few coat and mane colors present in the gathered stallions- white coats and tan coats, and then bright blue manes. Upon closer inspection, she could fell a subtle magic at work coming from their armor. 'An illusion spell,' she realized, 'to keep them looking similar, so they appear as one imposing force. Clever.' There were far more white-coated stallions than tan coated stallions, leading her to ponder if it was some indicator or rank.

Next, she noticed that the guards gathered around her were disproportionately unicorns, then pegasi, with the minority by far being earth ponies. She pondered why this would be, but there were a dozen possible answers, and she didn't know which one was the real reason, or if it was some reason she hadn't considered.

But of course, even with their far greater numbers than her, her form struck fear into them. Their legs trembled, but they were more sure of themselves than the pegasi guards she had encountered before. Not that their numbers mattered- if they stood up to her, she could crush them in an instant.

Nightmare smiled at them and let her eyes continued to wonder over them, stopping to rest her gaze on each soldier for a brief moment before going onto the next one. Taking in their reaction to her sharp teeth was oh-so-priceless, and even with a herd of them present to protect one another, they still simply couldn't fight off that natural feeling of fear she invoked- after all, ponies were prey. And she? She was the predator.

"Since none of you have attacked me, I am going to presume you will not attack me. Good, you value your lives," Nightmare acknowledged harshly. The guards stood their ground, neither rising to challenge her, not backing down, but their fear lingered. "Then I will make this simple. I am Nightmare Moon; Princess Celestia ordered you to surrender to me and obey my command. She is my prisoner, and you will never see her precious sun again. Equestria is mine. Spread the word, but I must speak with the 'Captain of the Guard.' Challenge me at your own peril." Issuing her challenge, she matched the gaze of any and every pony who looked at her with the slightest hint of resistance.

But it seemed it was unnecessary. A sense of dread and hopeless acceptance rolled through the group, accompanied by grimaces, shock, or glares at her. It seemed the pagasus hadn't lied; they did have some form of order to stand down when faced by her.

"You... wished to speak with the Captain of the Guard?" one soldier reluctantly queried.

Nightmare's gaze fell on him. "Yes."

"Come with me-"

"That's no way to speak to your Queen," Nightmare hissed.

The guard winced and shifted his weight. "Y-yes, my... Queen..." he said hesitantly. Though Nightmare could see the disdain, perhaps even disgust, with which he said it, she didn't bring it up. "Please follow me, your majesty..." he said through clenched teeth.

But at that resistance, Nightmare couldn't help but smile in amusement. It was so forced that it was as obvious as the scarring on her moon that he held no love for her, nor any respect. He was an ignorant foal. Perhaps the horn on his head was getting to him.

"Perhaps," Nightmare started, making the guard come to a stop and look back at her, "you would be more useful as an example, since you refuse to respect me." She leaned her head forward threateningly, then took a step forward. The rest of the guards backed off. The target of her ire, however, swiveled around and lit his horn. "Let me make myself perfectly clear. I am not a patient Queen. Your princess is my captive- I defeated her." She looked around at each individual guard once again. Several of them, disproportionately the tan ones, were starting to sweat, and had gone rigid. Slowly, she leveled her gaze back on the impudent foal. The glow around his horn had vanished. "And none of you could stand a chance against me. You will serve me- standing orders or not, or things will not be pleasant." 

And it wasn't an idle threat. Oh, no. It was a threat that once made, she had to follow through on if she wanted anypony to take her seriously. It was a threat she would follow up on. She would follow up on it gladly. These ponies? They were expendable. They were replaceable. Did they have families? Did they think that would make her stop? Perhaps it would give her a moment's pause if they were parents, but they had made their choices.

Nightmare jerked her head at an angle and smiled wildly. "DO I make myself clear?" she demanded.

The guard- along with the rest of the soldiers present- all hastily nodded in affirmation. "Y-yes, y-your m-majesty!"

"Good," Nightmare growled. She lifted her head back and took in a deep breath. "Now, take me to this Captain of the Guard. The rest of you? Spread the word and then return to your posts," she hissed.

The guards all galloped off without a bow or even a word- except for the lone guard with whom she had tasked to bring her to the captain of the guard. Now alone, without his comrades, he went rigid with terror.

Nightmare strode towards him. "Do not keep me waiting!" she ordered.

In an odd mixture of rigidity and trembling, the guard turned around in a mechanical motion, then took off towards the castle's massive doors at a brisk trot. He lost his composure the moment he started, barely managing to maintain any semblance of training and professionalism as he visibly forced himself not to break out running.

Nightmare sneered at the pathetic excuse for a soldier. She enjoyed striking fear into her enemies hearts, but with these ponies? She just couldn't enjoy it- she didn't have to put any effort into it. It agitated her. Regardless, she followed after him. Two unicorns stood guard at the castle's door, and at their approach, they watched her unsurely, cautiously. But they had certainly seen her display, and so they opened the door for her, pushing each side inward so that the door parted in the middle.

Like the exterior of the palace, the interior was extravagant- built of marble, a royal red carpet stretching out along the length of the room with two arms leading to two doors to other rooms. In a wasteful display of abundance, the carpeted walkway was lined with gold. Completing the long, open room, were massive marble pillars stretching up to the two-story high ceiling. The pillars alternated between a tapestry hanging from them and a magical light that weakly illuminated the room, maintaining the feeling of night, but enabling the guards see well enough to navigate without stumbling. The magical lights caused a multitude of shadows to extend outward from the pillars and gave the guards several shadows in diverging angles. 'And this,' Nightmare thought, 'is just the entrance.'

The guard trotted on inside. Nightmare followed behind him. As she walked inside, she cast her gaze at the marble columns and the tapestries that hung from them. There were tapestries depicting what she presumed to be the flag of Equestria, Celestia with a sky-blue backdrop, and, to her surprise, a depiction of Celestia and Luna, Sun and Moon, chasing one another in the day-night cycle that she knew had been the flag of Equestria.

She stared at that tapestry. She'd be damned if she didn't try to stop herself, but she just couldn't stop staring at it. The fact that such a tapestry existed, along with how so few ponies recognized or remembered her, and the fact that said tapestry was on full display, left her bewildered. She didn't know what to think of it. It made her angry. It made her sad. It made her feel betrayed. It made her feel numb.

Eventually, she walked passed the tapestry. She craned her head back to continue to stare at it, guards watching her be damned. She'd stare at that tapestry if she wanted to, if they wanted to judge her as strange for that, they could go to Tartarus.

Finally, after a few more steps and her neck started hurting, she looked back ahead, but her bewilderment persisted. 'Why do you have such a tapestry!?' her mind immediately demanded. 'Why does that still exist!? Do you continue to insult me even from your prison!?' It made her blood boil.

Her soured mood seeped out into her expression, she could feel the corners of her lips pulled back in rage and disgust. The guard she followed didn't notice since his back was to her, but the two unicorns guarding the next door were in duress at her approach. Trembling as they were, she was shocked she didn't hear the rattle of their armor.

Even despite their duress- or perhaps spurred on by it and wanting Nightmare to pass by them as quickly as possible and with a minimum scrutiny, they pushed open next door, which once again parted at the middle. The room beyond was square in shape, large and open, and judging from how grandiose the door to the next room was- inlaid with golden swirls and edges- it was meant to hold ponies while they waited for an audience with Princess Celestia.

Except soon, it would be Queen Nightmare Moon, rather than Princess Celestia.

Nightmare smiled threateningly in delight at the prospect.

Yet, the design of the castle also made her scowl. The entrance, then a waiting room, then, if her assumption was correct, the Throne Room. All in a straight line. No mazes, no alcoves for traps or soldiers, a simple straight line from the entrance right to the Throne Room.

It reeked of tactical stupidity. Her lips curled in disgust, baring her sharp teeth. Celestia truly was an idiot. In fact, her stupidity clearly knew no bounds. Her display when she returned, her whispering of her student, placing all of her plans on her student, and then having her castle designed so poorly? Truly, there was no doubt in Nightmare Moon's mind about this fact.

And it was a perfectly good palace, too, albeit far too extravagant and filled with too atrocious a color scheme, but it was all ruined simply by the ease at which intruders could reach the Throne Room. But that wasn't to say it couldn't be salvaged. Already, a few thoughts wandered through her mind as her hooves carried her over to the next set of doors.

As she neared the next set of doors, the two guards- once again unicorns- tensed up, rather than trembled. 'Perhaps they actually have a backbone,' Nightmare thought, 'unlike everypony else who has the audacity to call themselves a Royal Guard.' But despite their apparent bravery, one quick glance from Nightmare Moon's serpentine eyes was enough to make them shift their weight in a quick, nervous jump.

But that didn't stop them from doing their job. Either they knew what was expected of them- and not to ask questions- or they were too afraid of Nightmare Moon's form to put up any resistance. Nightmare wasn't sure which thought she preferred.

The door parted inward in the middle, revealing a large, vaulted room with a red carpet going right down the middle, leading to a set of stairs for a large, circular platform, which had two thrones. Nightmare stopped, her eyes narrowing at the sight of the thrones. One was larger and golden, the other was smaller and made of silver- more akin to suit Luna than herself.

Her teeth bared in anger at that. Had she been a dragon, her enraged snort would have engulfed the room in flames. 'You impudent foal! Luna is dead!' screamed out in her head. Every fiber of her being demanded she teleport straight to the moon and skew Celestia on her horn. Again, and again, and to throw lance after lance of magic through the length of her body. Her mane and tail rippled behind her in a furious storm, her magic begging for release on something- anything. Her legs trembled, but hard as it was, she held herself in check against her enraged desire.

Even though the thought did cross her mind, 'It would be good to set an example for these foals to know my wrath!'

But it would not do to destroy the palace, nor Canterlot. There was too much value there that she could use and twist against her sister. Oh, how wonderfully sweet she could imagine that honey being- twisting Celestia's precious capital to her own will and bidding, making it her own, and using Celestia's seat of power as her own, fully displaying her dear sister's failures and holding them over her to torture her with them.

However, while she held her magic in check, her rage showed through, and the temperature of the room suffered for it, almost feeling a few degrees cooler. And the guards? They all certainly noticed it- they trembled, regarding her with weary, watchful expressions- haunted expressions- all of them ready to bolt as fast as they could in a moment's notice.

Not that it would have helped them any.

Nightmare took a moment to let her rage permeate the room, filling everypony present with dread. While the moment lasted, she slowly swept her head around in a manner that conveyed power and supremacy, pausing a second every time her gaze fell on anypony- and during that second, she made it clear who was in charge- before her gaze finally settled on one stallion flanked by two unicorns holding spears.

Unlike the rest of the guards she had encountered, he displayed a sense of pride and confidence. Alongside this, his armor stood out- rather than the eye-sickening golden armor, it was colored purple with golden edges. What drew more of her interest, however, was the six-pointed pink star emblazoned on his chestplate. Oh, she would recognize that anywhere, and her thoughts immediately drifted back to one Twilight Sparkle, then followed by the Element of Magic.

"Nightmare Moon," he acknowledged, his voice almost grave in tone.

Nightmare smiled pleasantly and took a few steps forward. "You know who I am. Then I am to presume you are this 'Captain of the Guard'?"

"Yes..." he all but growled under his voice. "We have orders to-"

"To surrender to me and obey my command," Nightmare said succinctly. Her smile grew, but twisted- rather than pleasant, it became mocking, a smirk, as if twisting a heated knife inside his chest.

He didn't immediately answer. Slowly, his head drifted left, then right, his jaw muscles visibly straining under his coat. "Yes..." he finally admitted. "I don't know why or how or-"

"Be silent," Nightmare ordered swiftly. The Captain went silent, as ordered. Nightmare took a few long, drawn-out steps towards him, only stopping when she was but a few steps away from him. "You're going to ask about the night, and you're going to ask about your precious Princess of the Sun," she hissed. "Perhaps my messenger wasn't clear enough," she growled, "so allow me to explain: Celestia is my prisoner," she stated. One step forward. "Nopony will ever see the accursed sun rise again," she spat, "instead, my beloved night will envelop Equestria for all time!" Another step and she leaned her head down closer to his height. "Equestria is mine. You and the guard are mine. You will obey my commands and respect me, or I will kill you. Understood? I am Queen now!" One last step to punctuate her declaration, bringing herself nearly nose to nose with the guard.

He stood resolutely, but only just. For a few seconds, he managed to match her gaze, but eventually, the weight of the situation seemed to sink in. Either because of Princess Celestia's standing orders, or because of fear, he backed down, then slowly fell into a bow- it wasn't quite respectful, but it would do, for the time being. "Yes, my... Queen."

Nightmare felt bitter at that, the words were spoken with such sarcasm and absolutely no love nor respect. Any semblance of a smile left her expression, and she glared at this insolent unicorn as she lifted her head back up to her full height. "You are replaceable, you know," she growled.

He wasn't phased by her threat.

It was obvious that he wasn't happy with this change in authority, but he had no say in it, so it did not matter. Perhaps in time, he would grow to respect her. Or, perhaps he would be a constant thorn in her side, destined for replacement at best. Regardless, he still had his uses- at least for the moment. "I have questions," Nightmare stated, "and you will answer them."

Slowly, he rose from his forced bow. "Yes?"

It wasn't respectful, but he held back his disrespectful, mocking tone. He was arrogant, or perhaps just in distress from her presence and declaration. Perhaps a display of power would have been a good choice, after all, there wasn't anything any of them could do to stop her, or even offer much in terms of resistance. But there were other options available besides such a display, and while she would welcome being able to vent, killing the guards would be a complete waste of time and resources, to say nothing of how it would affect morale, possibly cause rebellions, and make it harder to create an army to serve her.

Perhaps, then, Celestia continued to make things difficult for her even still, despite the 'standing order' she left.

"It would do you well, Captain," Nightmare started, "to remember that your beloved princess is my prisoner," she stated emphatically. Tilting her head to the side, she smiled wickedly, enjoying the display of uncertainty offered by the stallion at her reminder. "And, of course, that means that I can make things easy for her," she offered in a honeyed voice. And just as quickly, her expression darkened with hatred and rage, "Or I can make every single second of her existence an unending nightmare," she growled. Quickly, she tilted her head to the other side. "Which will it be, Captain?"

The stallion shifted his weight on his hooves uncomfortably. Gradually, he looked away from Nightmare Moon. "Forgive me, your majesty," he relented, his tone much more neutral than before- resignation.

"Wise choice," Nightmare acknowledged.

Still avoiding looking back at Nightmare, the guard asked, "What questions do you ask of me, your majesty?"

Satisfied at his resignation, though not fully pleasured by it, some of Nightmare's anger cooled. "I have been mostly out of touch with Equestria and the world for a thousand years, and I would very much like to know what has happened in my absence."

He nodded hesitantly. "I'll have some history books brought to... your..." he trailed off unsurely.

"You will escort me to Celestia's chambers; I claim them as my own," Nightmare answered.

He winced at that, and for a few seconds, Nightmare watched a conflict play out over his features, then settle back down into resignation. "Of course," he answered.

"I will also need to know the state of Equestria- law, politics, military, and the like. Cities, populations... I need to know my Empire," Nightmare stated, drawing a terse nod from the Captain. "And I, of course, need my rule established, and you- and the Royal Guard- will help with that. I want everypony to know of my return, and that I am now Queen. You will obey my commands and enforce my laws." A hesitant nod from the Captain this time. "I will also need to know the state of the world and world affairs if I am to make Equestria my own and deal with potential threats."

Pausing, Nightmare licked her lips. "But I suppose that can wait. I am, however, much more interested in this third princess I've heard about. A Princess Cadance, I believe?"

The Captain went rigid the instant he heard that name spoken. His gaze focused straight ahead at Nightmare's chestplate, and the crescent moon emblazoned on it. A few seconds passed without answer. Nightmare scrutinized him, but it did not take long for her to feel his quickening pulse with her magic. Another few seconds passed in silence before he seemed to recover. "Ca-Cadan..." he trailed off, eyes widening. "P-Princess Cadance?" he quickly corrected, though the damage was done.

Tilting her head, Nightmare sized up the guard before her as a predator looking over her prey. "You know this 'Princess Cadance' personally," she acknowledged sweetly. Smiling, she showed off her sharp, intimidating teeth and fangs.

He squeaked. The stallion actually squeaked. He took a step back. The rest of the guards, for their part, ignored that. Nightmare, however, was left bewildered at his reaction. "C-Cadance... w-why do you want to know about Princess Cadance?" he asked quickly.

Nightmare's expression went flat. "I am Queen now, I will not tolerate any challenges to my rule," she growled. The guard shrank back further. Incredible! Threatening Celestia made him back down, but threatening Cadance? That scared him. "You love her," she ventured.

His eyes darted right, then left, quickly as they could, before settling back on Nightmare's chestplate. He did his best to avoid her gaze.

Nightmare casually scanned the room, eyeing the guards, searching for anypony who she may have missed before or who looked out of place. Sadly, it seemed the princess was nowhere to be found, although it looked like one of the guards had left while she wasn't watching. That knowledge made her cautious, but even with that, her eyes once more came to rest on the stallion before her.

"P-Princess Cadance isn't a threat to you," he said quickly.

"I will be the judge of that," Nightmare retorted. "Tell me about her," she demanded.

He hesitated, his head slowly gravitating to his right side until his gaze came to stop on the wall. A battle played out across his features. Would telling Nightmare help to protect Cadance? Would telling Nightmare about her betray Cadance? Was he willing to betray the mare he loved? Would not telling Nightmare about Cadance be disobeying Celestia's orders?

So many possibilities, Nightmare wasn't sure which ones were his thoughts, be she could see his conflict. But even that eventually collapsed with resignation, the way a general would recognize a complete, total defeat, with nothing to be salvaged from it, nothing to be gained from continuing to fight- not even delaying the inevitable. "She's... the Princess of Love..." he ventured.

Nightmare's lips pulled back to show her teeth. "Another alicorn?" she demanded.

The captain tensed and looked up at her to meet her gaze. "Y-yes, but-"

'Another alicorn!?' screamed out in Nightmare's mind. Her rage knew no bounds. Celestia hadn't just imprisoned her, thrown her away, made everypony forget about her. Oh, no. Apparently, Celestia even replaced her, or at the very least, that damned mare she had once been. 'Couldn't handle the weight of your sins, dear sister!? So you decided to make another alicorn to replace me!?'

Her anger demanded venting, consequences be damned. She lifted her head towards the ceiling and let out a primal scream of rage, her throat hurt, and she could feel the reverberation of the scream bouncing off of the marble walls and ceiling. She screamed until she was hoarse, then let her head back down, twisted to her left, flared out her wings, batting the Captain hard enough to throw him to the floor. Bloodlusted, she threw her horn towards the two thrones on the platform.

Her arteries in her neck throbbing from her pounding heart, she shot a massive pillar of magic out of her horn at Celestia's accursed golden throne, then at the smaller silver throne beside it. The two beams impacted the thrones, releasing an earth-shattering crack, shredding the stone, pulverizing the chunks of rock into a fine dust, and throwing pebbles and molten metal away from the epicenter of the blast.

Her legs trembled, she panted. Where the thrones had stood was now but the rim of a crater.

It still wasn't enough. She bared her teeth in rage, reared up into the air, then slammed her armored hooves down into the marble with enough force to cause another earth-shattering crack that split the marble across the width of the room.

It just barely helped, yet she still trembled and panted from hatred. For a few seconds, she continued to face the ruined thrones, not caring about any potential attacks. Anypony stupid enough to attack her now that she was enraged would simply serve as a way for her to both vent and teach these foals a lesson. It took her a while to get her breathing under control, but she managed. Slowly, methodically, she lifted her head back up and calmly folded her wings to her sides. She turned back to the right to face the Captain, who was trembling uncontrollably, along with the guards that she saw peeking out from behind cover as she turned. The moment her eyes came anywhere near looking at them, those guards all disappeared completely behind whatever cover they hid behind.

In hindsight, Nightmare regretted that display, if only because it would take time to fix that damage and because most likely, there was no way the Captain would be any help to her now regarding this new alicorn. Or really any help at all now, until both of them had recovered.

She snorted in disdain, then turned away from the disheveled captain. She walked towards the doors with a hastened stride. She glanced at the guard on the right. "Take me to Celestia's chambers," she ordered.

The guard scurried away from the door. "Y-yes, your m-majesty," was his quick answer. "T-this way," he instructed, heading towards a door off to the left and back about ten paces from the crater she created.

Nightmare followed behind the guard. Casting her glance around as she walked by the crater, she eyed the recovering guards slowly coming out from their hiding places. "You have your orders! See to them. And get this mess cleaned up," she hissed. All at once, the guards scurried to their hooves.

Without wasting more time to ensure that the guards took to their new duties, she turned ahead and walked on. The guard who led her, was unsurprisingly, another unicorn, and he opened the door with a quick flourish of his magic. Without pausing or looking back, he continued on into the hallway beyond.

As she walked into the hallway, Nightmare was reminded of the entrance. The only thing missing was the plush red carpet, lined with gold. Instead, the floor was solid marble, stretching the length of the hallway. Both sides of the hallway were lined with tall pillars that supported the ceiling. Rather than bother scowling at the Celestia-themed decorations, she ignored them and focused on the journey ahead. At the end of the hallway, which probably extended a hundred paces, it came to a T, with another hallway to the left and right.

As she expected, the path to the right met with another hallway, the one from the door on the other side of the room. What she didn't expect, however, was that the decor shifted from solar-themed, to mixed, and then to lunar-themed going away from where she stood.

There was no doubt in her mind: Celestia was continuing to mock her, even now, locked away in the moon. 'Truly, you had one thousand years to plan, sister, and rather than focus on trying to stop me, you simply focused on insulting me.' She bared her teeth in disgust at the mockery and turned away from it to continue to follow the guard leading her to Celestia's chambers.

The journey took far longer than she expected. Even knowing the size of the palace, basing the location of her sister's chambers on her rather abhorrent tactical or defensive knowledge proved to be a mistake: while the throne room was vulnerable, getting her sister's chambers- her chambers, proved much more difficult. So many hallways, turns, and stairs, but she finally made it there.

She welcomed the change of pace, even if looking at the entrance to Celestia's chambers left her feeling sick. Emblazoned on the center of the door was her sister's cutie mark- one that certainly wouldn't do. It would have to be replaced, but it could wait, at least for a time.

The guard that led her there shifted his weight unsurely. Nightmare's eyes darted to him. "Return to your post," she spat.

The guard didn't need to be told twice, leaving Nightmare with the other two tense stallions who stood guard over Celestia's chambers. She gave each of them a passing glance as she opened the door with her magic. The room beyond the door wasn't anything like she had expected.

Rather than opening the door to find the entire room composed of gold, or that everything was inlaid with gold, and emblems of the sun everywhere, the room was almost bland. The floor was pristine white marble, the walls were marble, but painted shades of browns that invited anypony- even herself- into the room. The ceiling had golden swirls inlaid into it, but it wasn't overdone- it was simple and elegant. Directly across from the entrance was an aged, brown desk. Mahogany, at first glance.

A few books, scrolls, and quills, along with accompanying inkwells, occupied the desk. Lining the right side of the room was a bookshelf that hid the wall, and to the left, embedded in the wall was a fireplace. The room actually gave off a comforting, cozy feeling to her.

Walking inside, the atmosphere felt even more comforting. She felt like she could let her guard down and relax, but simply because of that, she kept her guard up. It wasn't that hard to recognize the effects of enchantments, but upon scrutinizing them, she was shocked to find not a single one engineered to be her death. There were protective spells in place, but none of them were designed to stop her. In fact, they'd work for her, even without modifications to them.

She shook the confusion off and closed the door behind her. On the left, breaking the bookshelf into two sections was an unassuming door. She walked towards it, then opened it. Inside was Celestia's bedroom, as evidenced by the large bed fit for a queen taking up the middle of the room. The frame reached up above the bed and thin, translucent blue curtains provided some semblance of isolation, although they were pulled back and tied together for the moment. The bedsheets were a soft, bluish-brown in the moonlight, while the pillows were a dark blue.

Turning her head to the left, she found that there was a door that opened up to a balcony. The door was left open, and she could feel a cool, gentle breeze blowing into the room. Diagonally across from the door to the study was another open door that led into a large, extravagant bathroom. Even without approaching it, she could see that the bath was large enough for at least a half-dozen ponies to bathe comfortably. Turning her eyes back towards the balcony, she looked out at the scarred face of her moon. The sight once again brought a scowl to her face, although perhaps it did not invoke her wrath as much as it had the first time she saw it.

Nightmare looked away from the moon and calmly walked over to the balcony door, then stepped outside. Canterlot was laid out before her, but it wasn't the focus. No, the focus was on the Equestrian heartland, bathed in the soft, beautiful light of her moon. She could even see that small town where the Summer Sun Celebration was being held, and beyond that, the Everfree Forest. Truly, at least she could take comfort in knowing that Celestia's features scarring her moon didn't detract from the beauty of the light it gave Equestria. Looking out at Equestria from Celestia's balcony and seeing the Equestrian heartland basked in the soft moonlight helped to alleviate her anger and rage.

It was a beautiful, peaceful view. The world looked so serene and mystical under her moon's light. Truly, how could anypony have been so foalish as to ignore this wonder? How could those ponies from so long ago have shunned this beauty!? Hidden inside during the wonderful night, only to experience the world under the sun's harsh light.

But at the same time, the view once again displayed Celestia's stupidity. The balcony was unguarded. Anypony, or anything, really, that could fly could come right up here and attack her in the night. Guards, save for pegasi, wouldn't be able to help, excepting those who could get through the doors, or unicorns who could cast spells from the courtyard.

But, then again, the room did have enchantments to deal with that. Still, it didn't sit well with her, although from an aesthetic standpoint, she most certainly found it pleasing.

After a few more seconds, she walked back inside and silently closed the door with her dark blue magic. Though she did wonder why the door was left open, it didn't matter. Instead, her thoughts drifted elsewhere. 'Another alicorn...'

At the thought, she clenched her jaw. There were so many possibilities now facing her. Now that she thought about it, she knew she shouldn't have let her anger get the best of her- she made a mistake that could cost her if this 'Princess Cadance' could capitalize on it.

'Was this your plan? Distract me with your student while Princess Cadance mobilizes?' she asked. No clear answer came to her. She simply couldn't understand it. Celestia would have sacrificed the Elements of Harmony- the greatest threat to her- if that was the case. Unless, of course, Princess Cadance was a bigger threat to her than the Elements. She found it hard to believe that any alicorn could be stronger than the Elements, although, from the potential that Twilight Sparkle had, she knew it was a slight possibility that during Celestia's one thousand years of planning, she could have found somepony with as much, if not more potential than Twilight Sparkle. And she would have had centuries to train and groom her for this battle.

But even if Princess Cadance was able to outmatch her, perhaps she still had an advantage. After all, Nightmare had seven prisoners. Prisoners who, if Princess Cadance failed, would be at Nightmare's mercy. And that, of course, was assuming she didn't immediately withdraw and pay her prisoners a visit- or bring them to her and force Princess Cadance's surrender.

Alternatively, if they fought in Canterlot, she could switch tactics to maximize casualties. After all, if this Princess Cadance was trained by Celestia, focusing on causing casualties would at least be a strong distraction, one that might give her the upper hoof. She would also have plenty of potential hostages.

Pushing the plan to the back of her mind, Nightmare looked around Celestia's bedchambers once again, searching for any books or documents of value. But the room was clean. There were no books nor documents lying about, at least in the bedroom.

Her gaze drifted towards the bathroom door, and despite knowing that she needed to prepare for the confrontation with an alicorn who could be on par with herself, she couldn't help but feel a strong pull towards the bath. It had been a thousand years since her last, and that desire to feel the warmth of a hot bath soaking into her coat and wings was absolutely irresistible. Being pampered sounded even better, but that would have to wait for a few nights until things had settled down from her return.

In truth, she didn't need a bath. She had kept herself clean with her magic, at least as best she could, but magic did nothing to simulate the feeling of warm water, nor did it truly wash away what her sister had done to her.

Nightmare sauntered into the bathroom, then closed the door behind her. The room really had far too much gold for her liking. Even the darkness didn't alleviate it, her eyes were too sharp. She lit her horn, then used her magic to illuminate the bathroom from a few orbs which glowed with a light akin to the light of the moon. It was a soft, dim lighting, but with her enhanced vision, it was as if it was a normal pony walking during her sister's accursed day. It was the perfect lighting for relaxing and enjoying a bath.

She sauntered over to the golden bathtub, then examined it until she identified the faucets, and with a quick spell from her magic, she turned on the water and heated it up as it filled the tub. For several minutes, she stared at the tub as it slowly filled with water, the gently babbling and splashing of the water the only sounds disrupting the silence.

Eventually, the tub filled with a vast pool of water. She could almost see steam rising from the surface, but the water wasn't nearly that hot. She turned off the flow, then picked up a forehoof to dip it into the water, only to pause and look down. Her boot was still on her hoof, as it had been for the past ten centuries. It was an odd feeling, having expected to feel the hot water on her bare hoof, but instead, only feeling the resistance of the water and the warmth radiating through the metal protecting her hoof. A few seconds passed with her starring at the cyan metal. 'You have accompanied me for so long...' she mused.

Nightmare glanced around quickly, then used her magic to take the metal boots off of her hooves. She shivered each time her bare hoof connected to the cold stone floor. After so long, she could hardly remember what it felt like to have solid ground, rather than metal, directly underhoof. The texture of the smooth marble was so incredibly rich, smooth and coarse and polished, but also so incredibly pleasant, compared to the harsh metal of her boot. Yet the pleasant, unfamiliar sensation still left her longing for her boots. They offered her hooves protection, while the air did not.

But, for the moment, at least, she could relax. She levitated her boots aside and then levitated the cyan helmet off her head, lifting it up until it rose above her horn. The cool night air brushing against her fur felt alien, once again not having felt the sensation for centuries, but it was a welcome feeling. She brought the helmet down in front of her and looked it over for a moment, then carefully set it down with her boots.

Next, her eyes fell on the dented, imperfect chestplate she wore. Try as she did, she simply couldn't find it in her to remove the chestplate. It felt like she would be betraying her oldest and closest companion to take it off now, so soon after it had been injured.

And she was not ready to take it off, either. Not yet. Even if she was alone, even if she was relatively safe, for the moment, that third alicorn still lurked somewhere, just beyond her reach. It simply wouldn't do for this 'Princess Cadance' to not only catch her bathing or off-guard, but also without any armor on.

So Nightmare left the chestplate on. She lifted her right forehoof, then dipped it into the surface of the warm water. A shiver of pleasure raced through her body from the feeling. Her lips pulled into a smile. Oh, how much she had missed this feeling.

Slowly, she stepped into the bath, then sank down into it. She closed her eyes as the warm water rolled over her back, rushing in between her feathers, and warming her coat. Water flowed in between the chestplate and her body, making her black fur soft as silk, sending shivers of delight throughout her body. The warmth permeated her body, enveloping her. It felt refreshing, inviting, and welcoming. After a thousand years, this was something that she deserved. It was a small taste of the plunder that her victory would give her.

She took a deep breath, then sank her head into the water, going down and down until at last, the tip of her horn was submerged. The silence was deafening, the warmth all-enveloping. She could feel her heartbeats pulsing through the water, pressing against her ears. The water wasn't fully able to touch the magic of her mane or tail, causing them to leave areas almost void of the water, but the water embraced everywhere else.

The way the water flowed around her made her think of the air and flying, except the water was thicker and denser, and carried with it a pleasant warmth the air could just never match. Only a few things could have made the soak more enjoyable- Celestia cowering before her, begging for mercy, not having to worry about another alicorn attempting to kill her, servants tending to her needs. 'Perhaps even Twilight Sparkle, my student, my servant,' she mused. It had a nice ring to it. Or perhaps, Twilight bathing with her while servants tended to both of their needs.

The thought was enough to make her mind wander back to thoughts of that unicorn. 'So much potential...' she thought with a shiver, despite the warmth. 'What did you have planned for her after you had her imprison me again or kill me?' Perhaps Twilight Sparkle would have remained her sister's student, forever a scholar. She shivered again. 'I should have asked the Captain about you,' she mused, 'and how to convince you to become my student.'

There was an unshakable appeal to Nightmare for her to be able to call Twilight Sparkle her student. Twilight Sparkle was dangerous, she had so much potential, and that potential drew her like a moth to a flame. A part of Nightmare wanted to see what would happen to that flame with the right encouragement and grooming, a more sadistic part of her wanted to see what would happen to that potential by forcing it out, even at the risk of it coming back to haunt her.

Perhaps taking Twilight Sparkle to be her student, rather than Celestia's student, would end up sending her back to the moon. As much as she didn't want to ponder it, it was still a risk. But the benefits still outweighed the risk, and her curiosity simply wouldn't give her the choice to withhold that offer.

But her mind was drawn elsewhere, and her thoughts sharpened. She had soaked long enough for now. There was work to be done, she could relax later, using her enemies as a hoofstool. Perhaps Twilight Sparkle would end up among them, or perhaps she would stand beside her throne.

She slowly lifted herself up above the surface of the water, calmly exhaled, then inhaled. Her vision darkened for a moment before slowly lightening again. Her heart pulsed more intently as oxygen returned to her body. She bared her teeth in disgust. 'Next time I should not stay under so long without a spell,' she noted.

Pushing the concern aside, she stood up, letting the water roll off of her body and splash into the rest of the bath, then stepped out onto the marble floor. Water continued to roll off of her body and drip onto the floor, and in place of the warm embrace of the water, the air sapped the warmth from her body. Almost immediately, a longing set in for the warmth she had lost, but she crushed it with an iron hoof. She lifted a wing and spared a brief glance back at her wet, slicked-down coat. Her black coat almost reflected the soft white light from the orbs, and her damp feathers dripped water onto the floor.

Rather than waste time waiting for herself to dry naturally, she lit her horn and washed over her body with her magic. In just a second, the dripping of water stopped and her fur dried. She cleaned up the pool of water beneath her, then emptied the tub. One at a time, she put her boots back on her hooves, and then, finally, she donned her helmet.

Though there were still so many problems and distractions ahead of her to deal with, she took solace in her bath. She felt much, much better now, but her despise for her dear sister wouldn't be quenched so easily. Not after everything she had done.

Opening the door, she strode back out into the bedroom; after all, it was her bedroom now. Looking around with disinterest, she found it exactly the way she had left it. A small part of her was disappointed by that, but nonetheless, she continued into Celestia's study. Pausing once she stepped into the room, she looked over at the desk, wondering if, perhaps, anything on the desk held more information about this Princess Cadance, or Twilight Sparkle and her sister's relationship with her.

Curiously, she approached the desk, then examined the items. She picked a few up with her magic, but nothing caught her interest for more than a second until she found an unsealed scroll. Unrolling it, she first found that it was addressed to her sister, 'Dear Princess Celestia.' She scowled at that, and would have put it down, or perhaps incinerated it, but there was an elegance to the writing, and the 'Dear' seemed out of place. Swiftly, she skimmed the scroll, finding it to be a letter, then finding mention of herself, Nightmare Moon, the Summer Sun Festival, one thousand years, and lastly and oh-so-perfectly, signed 'Your Most Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle.'

She did not immediately incinerate the letter. It held her attention. She wasn't sure what to make of this development, that her sister's student Twilight Sparkle was apparently her 'Most Faithful Student,' every word capitalized as if written with utmost importance. 'Perhaps,' she thought, 'Twilight Sparkle is displaying arrogance. But if that were the case, would Celestia keep her around?' Based on Twilight's potential, she couldn't decide. She would need to learn more, perhaps find a letter addressed to Twilight from Celestia, to determine more.

It weighed heavily on her mind. On one hoof, the idea of convincing Twilight to become her student, perhaps even her 'Most Faithful Student', took on even more appeal. Being able to twist the dagger of turning Celestia's student into her own student inside of Celestia's chest was a wonderful thought. On the other hoof, if Twilight Sparkle was Celestia's 'Most Faithful Student', how could she ever trust her? For all she knew, Twilight Sparkle could lie to her, time and time again, all just for power and getting close to her for the opportunity to betray her and free Celestia.

Perhaps she would need to put Twilight Sparkle on a literal leash.

She smirked at that thought, then cast her amusement aside to read the letter in its entirety. But before she could start, a knock on the door interrupted her. She growled and slammed the scroll down onto the desk, not that it made a sound or did anything to vent her frustration.

With one swift motion, she swiveled around, then marched towards the door. Without coming to a stop, she nearly tore the door open. "What is-"

A scrawny pink alicorn stood in the doorway. Nightmare stopped. The pink alicorn winced and tensed up as she looked at Nightmare's visage. She even took an instinctive step back from the door. Nightmare found herself staring blankly at her. There was no question, it was an alicorn. Her pink wings had purple feathers, and her pink horn extended from her forehead. Her mane was a mixture of colors- pink, purple, and a pale yellow. And yet, this 'alicorn' was so scrawny. She stood maybe a head taller than average ponies. At first glance, there was no doubt in her mind that she wasn't a fighter. She was anything but a fighter. Her build was so light and slender, reminding her of what the captain had said: 'The Princess of Love.'

Lighting her horn, her magic only further confirmed it: this alicorn was a weak, pathetic excuse for an alicorn. She couldn't have been much more than two decades old, hardly a newborn compared to her or her sister.

Despite her fear and dread about meeting this 'Princess Cadance' and possibly facing an alicorn that was a greater threat to her than the Elements of Harmony, she had been looking forward to it, if only for the challenge. This? Her disappointment was so great that her wings went from firmly held at her sides to slack as if she was tired, or defeated.

'Is this all just some joke?' Nightmare wondered desperately. It was all too easy- her victory left nothing for her to take pride in. Celestia had surrendered, Nightmare had captured the Elements of Harmony and their bearers- which included Celestia's student- taken over the Royal Guard without much challenge, and now this pathetic excuse for an alicorn, the third princess had just shown up at her door, clearly posing no threat to her.

'Maybe,' she thought, 'your plan is simply to make this so empty that I just give up... it won't work.' Nightmare pressed her wings back to her side and inhaled deeply. "You're Princess Cadance, I presume?" she asked coldly.

The scrawny pink alicorn before her seemed to develop second thoughts about being here, but she still nodded. "Y-yes..." she answered meekly. Her voice was soft and sweet, almost musical, and so foal-like. "N-Nightmare Moon?" she questioned.

"Yes," Nightmare answered. "I am assuming that you're going to just surrender instead of fighting me, since you're clearly no true threat to me."

She hesitated.

Nightmare narrowed her eyes. "Or, of course, we can do things the hard way."

Princess Cadance still hesitated, but it only took a few seconds for her head to droop. "Celestia... sh-she... yes... just please, don't hurt anypony..." She caved oh-so-easily.

"I will make no promises; I will do what is in my best interest," Nightmare retorted. Princess Cadance looked up at her, panic in her eyes, and took a step back. "But luckily for you, right now, I have no desire to waste my time hurting ponies, so long as they stay out of my way and serve me."

"I... can't fight you..." Princess Cadance drawled.

'Just like Celestia...' Nightmare thought bitterly. "You're still a threat to me," Nightmare spoke, "but provided you're good, I will grant you mercy."

The young alicorn winced, shying back from her.

Nightmare's magic wrapped around Princess Cadance, binding her hooves in shackles, chaining them together, and binding her wings. A ring appeared around her horn, sealing off her slightly not insignificant pool of magic. Cadance trembled in fear and wilted, staring down at the floor beneath her hooves. Nightmare glanced at the two guards standing at either side of the door. "Take her to the dungeons," she spat.

Neither guard liked the order, but they both had enough sense to obey. Begrudgingly, they coaxed the princess to turn around, then flanked her and led her off.

Nightmare stood in the doorway for a few seconds longer, then retreated into her chambers, shut and locked the door, then sat down on her haunches. 'Why is this so easy? Is there nopony to challenge me!?' It was ridiculous. It was too easy, something had to be wrong. 'How could Equestria be so soft!?' her mind demanded.

But a thousand years had passed, and she had no answer for that question. Were things truly as simple as they appeared? Did Celestia really just give up without a fight? Or did she make mistakes somewhere along the way? Did she ruin her entire plan to the point that Nightmare won by default?

Nightmare Moon couldn't wrap her head around it. Her intelligent mind raged, crying out that something was wrong, but everything she knew simply told her that her sister had made a mistake.

But if her sister had made such a mistake, what did that mean? Did she plant her insults just in case she did fail, or did she intend, rather than imprisoning her on the moon again, to strip her of her power, then flaunt all of the so meticulously placed insults against her? Or had she intended to mock her while she was trapped until her student freed her?

She wanted to scream. She couldn't understand, she couldn't grasp it. It made no sense! The victory felt so pointless. Did she actually best Celestia, or did Celestia simply let her win? Was that her goal, just to let her win, in the hopes that somehow it would change things? But then, what about her student? Had she purposefully betrayed her by whispering of her? Had it been a slip-up? Did she plan for her student to get defeated, then later for her student to somehow escape and defeat her?

Nightmare bared her teeth and growled. With these thoughts, she felt her victory was moot. Inhaling sharply, she rose to her hooves, then strode into her bedroom. Ignoring her bed, she marched straight to the balcony. As soon as she cleared the doorway, she spread her wings. Without slowing down, she approached the railing, lifted one hoof after another to climb up onto it, then leaped forward.

As soon as gravity tugged her downward, she swept her wings downward, pushing herself back into the air. With a few more beats of her wings, she flew far above the courtyard below. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. For several seconds, she held that breath. Rather than focus on the rage burning inside of her, or the insanity of her sister, she focused on her surroundings, what her senses told her.

The air was cool, pleasantly so. The combination of the city's height on the mountain, along with the lack of a sun to boil the air left it feeling so serene- rather than sapping her strength, it invigorated her, caressing her body and wings, flowing between her feathers and in between each hair of her coat. The cool helped to calm her rage, and gave her some semblance of peace, along with the sweet ecstasy of victory- no longer was she bound on the moon, she could spread her wings and soar, free from her accursed sister's shadow.

And yet, she still felt her dear sister's presence. On her moon, scarring its visage. Mocking her.

She opened her eyes, growling lowly. With a powerful flap of her wing, she ascended further into the air. 'Perhaps a walk would serve me better than a flight,' she mused. Reluctantly, she reangled her wings, then slowly and gracefully descended towards the ground. Without a sound, she glided through the night, nearly invisible, for she was in her element. Looking around, she found what appeared to be a garden on the castle's grounds. Without breaking her elegance, she banked and continued her downward glide, a specific destination in mind.

Silently, she landed on well-kempt grass growing from rich soil- the castle's garden seemed to be mostly natural, as if it was meant to help one forget about the fact that Canterlot was an artificial city, built on stone platforms extending out from a mountain. The palace rose up at her side, with the mountain rising up even farther far behind it, yet, with the hedges, flowers, and grass, she could almost mistake it for something truly natural that had been lovingly tended to by ponies who put their hearts and love into bringing out the garden's beauty.

Disregarding whether it was natural or artificial, the garden was beautiful. Only enhanced by the soft, pale moonlight, the garden was such a peaceful sight to behold. The hedges rose up, almost as if to direct one's walk, but never to impede it, while the grass offered bare hooves a reprieve from the hard, unforgiving stonework. Flowers lined the hedges, a vast assortment of reds, purples, and blues, but no white or yellow flowers were present. Roses crawled up the hedges, meticulously tended to, appearing completely natural, but lovingly worked so that they weren't wild and chaotic- the vines looked as if each was placed precisely with a specific meaning in mind. And everything from the flowers to the grass to the hedges had a certain soft beauty drawn out by the moon's light- a beauty that the sun could never bring out. The details seemed to blend together so richly and effortlessly, hiding any and all imperfections that the garden could possibly contain. The sun would only have drawn them out for full display.

Nightmare had to stop to admire all of this and more. The sound of gently trickling water filled the atmosphere, coming from fountains deeper within the garden. Truly, the sound was akin to that of a babbling stream one would find out in a forest. Gentle and peaceful- never once threatening anypony, offering life and a chance to rest.

The garden only truly missed trees. To her surprise, Nightmare found herself letting out a soft sigh. It had been a thousand years since she had the opportunity to admire anything close to this. A thousand years and then some. She could enjoy this, but only so much. The thoughts of her damned sister still lingered at the back of her mind, simmering. Even if for a moment she could dampen those flames, they were still there.

But maybe, that was what her sister wanted. Never to let her have any peace. She closed her eyes, then took a deep breath. For a few seconds, she just stood there, listening to the sound of the running water, feeling the gentle midnight breeze, smelling the soft, caressing aroma of the flowers.

She forced the thoughts of her sister out of her mind. She would never enjoy any peace if she let her sister constantly steal her pleasure. Opening her eyes, she slowly strolled forward, walking deeper into the garden. As she walked on, she found herself alone- no guards passed her by or stood at attention as she approached. A part of her frowned at this lapse in security, and yet, she still welcomed the chance to be alone. Another part of her smiled at this, after all, they must have been busy tending to her orders, which gave her this garden all alone.

It didn't take her long to come across one of the fountains. It was made of a rough, yet smooth stone, richly textured and aged, yet clean and well taken care of. The circular base had a pool of clear water in it, in which she could see the reflection of her moon, and the scarring of its surface, though constantly rippling. Water cascaded down from the top of the fountain, where there was a small pool in what almost looked like a stone flower that constantly overflowed, letting a constant, gentle trickle of water fell down into the pool below. Looking away from the fountain, she took in another statue: the graceful form of a unicorn mare standing on one hoof, her left hind leg outstretched behind her, falling in something of a bow with her two forehooves outstretched. Her mane seemed to roll from her head, gracefully clinging to her neck, while her tail seemed swept down and out, as if on the downward motion of a flick.

Though the statue looked nothing like her, Nightmare's mind wandered back to Twilight Sparkle. In the place of the statue, she could almost see Twilight Sparkle there. She shook the directionless thought from her mind, then sauntered deeper still into the garden. Every statue seemed unique in some way, though none of them truly held her interest. Each fountain was an elegant display of artwork, but they could never match the beauty of her night.

And look as she did, she never once found a single white or yellow flower. The colors of her sister were nowhere to be seen. It perplexed her, but it left her feeling almost content.

That feeling, however, was not meant to last. Deep within the heart of the garden, she beheld one statue so different from the others it made her come to an immediate stop. Her intense gaze fell on it, and her slitted pupils took in its form. Her spine tingled with caution and unease. It brought back memories, which, for the briefest instant, didn't draw hatred, but concern. Fear, even.

'Discord...' her mind growled.

Nightmare found herself hesitant to approach any closer to the statue. If Luna had hated that abomination, then her hatred for him was immeasurable. Discord was more than an existential threat to Equestria- to order itself, as chaos was his nature, and disorder his name. Before her sister and Luna had stopped him, he had turned Equestria inside out, upside down, and destroyed more societies and civilizations than she could list. He did it for fun, but not in a way Nightmare could respect.

It made her feel so incredibly hot and cold at the same time. She felt pins pricking nearly every single part of her body as she stared on.

But he was imprisoned in stone, still, even despite her thousand-year absence. Knowing he was still safely locked away did wonders for her, but in the back of her mind, and though she'd never admit it, seeing Discord- even imprisoned in stone- scared her. Even with all of her power, even with being able to bring Celestia to her knees, if she had chosen to fight, Discord would simply have to snap his talons to kill her or destroy Equestria, and then she would have nothing to rule over but a checkerboard of chaos.

For over a thousand years, she had forgotten about him, so consumed with her rage had she been, but seeing him now was a reminder of how things had been. Even with Equestria as hers, there were still existential threats out there that could pose a serious threat to her or her rule. Perhaps they would know better than to challenge her, but if they did, she would have to teach them to fear the night yet again.

But not Discord. Damned that she was to admit it, there would be no way for her to stop Discord if the bindings of harmony containing him failed. Her sister and Luna had been powerless to stop him together, and it had taken the Elements of Harmony to stop him. But the bindings of harmony containing him simply couldn't fail, right?

Except for the simple fact that her escape proved they could. And Discord? He was far, far more powerful than she was. She couldn't even begin to describe his magic potential. There simply weren't words befitting his power.

She could feel him watching her from inside the stone. She could practically feel him smiling. She could almost hear his insane, careless laughter, as clear and maddening as it had been so long ago.

But he had been careless. He wasn't concerned with anything except his own entertainment. He wasn't a tactician. He wasn't a strategist. He was even more naive than her sister. And he was the antithesis to Harmony, even more so than herself. Harmony would do everything in its power to keep him contained. That was a fact.

But, that did not mean she could simply ignore his existence. She needed a contingency plan in case something, however unlikely, did happen.