//------------------------------//
// — Chapter Ten — 
// Story: Finding Friendship 
// by Kamen-Zero 
//------------------------------//


--- The Visit ---


The Celestial City of Canterlot, the capital of the nation of Equestria.

The many buildings that made up this city were all beautifully constructed, each a piece of art in and of itself, almost cathedral-like in terms of how they had been built. Ornate pillars and majestic archways or white and gold were commonplace in the architecture construction, practically mundane in this town with how many there were. And while there were many, it never got repetitive in construction. Each feature had something to it that made it unique, not so much so as to throw out the idea of uniformity, but enough to give each one just that tiny bit of individuality that made it pop to the eye ever so slightly. The biggest contrast to the white and gold architecture were the islands of grass and trees that had been placed every city block or so, just to add a bit of color to the town, accompanied by courtyards that were paved in beautiful stones of various intricate patterns. And standing above it all, visible from just about any point in the city was the royal palace. The towers and spires of the township itself paled in comparison to those of the castle itself, tall enough to practically pierce the heavens, standing at the highest point in the entirety of Equestria, even atop this mighty mountain.

It was a truly breathtaking sight to behold, a worthy monument to Equestria's centuries-long peace and prosperity. Few ponies from beyond the city walls would ever get to actually see such sights for themselves, and paintings and written words can only do so much to portray its beauty. But to Twilight Sparkle and many other citizens of the city? It was simply their home, nothing out of the ordinary.

The young alicorn slowly strolled through the lustrous streets with little care in the world, outside of the book she had chosen to accompany her on this particular walk. Walking and reading might not have been the safest activity, but it was an art that she had mastered over the years of advanced literacy. Or at least that's what she had told herself, but this was unceremoniously disproven when Twilight walked face-first into a street lamp.

"Ugh, who put that there?" Twilight groaned, rubbing the point of impact in hopes that a noticeable bump wouldn't be formed. "I swear that wasn't there yesterday..." Shaking her head to force herself to focus again, Twilight reclaimed her book and went along her way as if nothing had happened. Hope nobody saw that...

But that walk was cut tragically short by the sounds of screams echoing out over the city. Looking up sharply, she was suddenly greeted to a dozen horrified ponies rushing past her as if their lives depended on it. And when the haunting howls reached the young alicorn's ears, she had a sickening realization as to what was happening.

Looking up from her book, she saw that the Canterlot citizens were all scattered in a panic, screaming and crying in a vain attempt to deter their tormenters. The timberwolves in question were unmoved by their frightened pleas, continuing their brutal hunt in vast numbers. Twilight nearly vomited at the sight of one pony vanishing underneath a horde of the wooden beasts, a sickening gurgling scream the last thing to escape before the monsters began to feast. It wasn't long before the canines took notice of the disguised pony just standing there, quickly moving in for the kill on what was to be an easy kill.

Of course, Twilight knew exactly what to do in this situation. Every attacker was thoroughly extinguished via an arcane bolt from her horn, or an impossibly powerful kick for someone of her stature. She pushed through the debris and the continuous attackers, blasting every timberwolf that got too close for comfort with magical might. The city guards had made themselves known at this point, fighting off the monsters as best they could, giving Twilight the freedom to worry about her own safety.

But no matter how many she blasted, or how much further she went into the city, the attackers never ceased or seemed to falter in number. For every timberwolf that died, there was always another to take its place. And that fact was evident not only to Twilight, but the brave armored ponies also figured this out quickly enough.

"Get to the palace!" One soldier commanded to the populace in an attempt to direct the crowd. "Come on! Move, move, move!" Following the first guard's lead, the rest shifted their priority to clearing a path for the frightened civilians to escape through.

The plan had merit, Canterlot Castle was easily the most fortifiable position in the entire city. And while these invading beasts were brutal and vicious in their own right, they were far from an invading army. Rampaging through the streets was one thing, but besieging a castle was far beyond their capabilities. Twilight herself had resigned herself towards the back of the escaping crowd, doing what she could to assist the guards in their plan. Which seeing as she was an alicorn, she was capable of pulling her weight and then some. And while their duty required them to yell for her to retreat with the others, they weren't about to actually force away someone who was helping them fight these monsters off. And with how things were going, they needed all the help they could get.

And then, Twilight froze. She ceased her counterattack against the wood-made beasts, prompting the city guards to pick up her slack so she didn't end up being eaten herself. But she didn't care about that right now, for she had just remembered something very important that held a vast priority in her mind. In all the excitement, she had only just now realized that her saddlebags were absent from her person. But more importantly, a particular occupant of those bags was also not in attendance.

Where's Spike?! She asked herself, over and over, wracking her brain as she tried to retrace her steps this day to no avail. All she could remember was grabbing that book and going out for a nice stroll in the town. In fact, the more she thought about it, that was the only thing she did remember. She didn't recall waking up, eating breakfast, nothing at all! Just that book, and that walk.

And stranger still, she was still holding that book. Strange, she thought, she could have sworn she had dropped it in the chaos of the sudden feeding frenzy. Yet here it was, floating right beside her in her own magical aura. Why did she hold onto it? What possible reason could she have for keeping this book, when her life was of far more importance? Looking to the book's cover in hope of answers, Twilight stifled a gasp as she read the golden font.

Corul Luminii Lunii. Those were the words written in elaborate gold lettering on the cover of the dark blue, almost black, tome. Written in Searăn, when translated the title read as "The Moonlight Choir." 

That was the only decoration the book had aside from the large, silver crescent moon emblazoned just below the title. Age had clearly taken its toll on the passage, as the corners of said cover had been bent and dinged up over time, the many pages within holding the distinct yellow hue of aged paper. It also looked like there had been other gold or silver engravings on the front at some point, but they had long since been lost leaving behind only faint indents as proof of their existence.

"When did I...?" The question trailed off into silence as she mindlessly observed the tome, ignorant to the carnage surrounding her on all sides. Almost imminently, she opened the book back up and began to scan the pages diligently. Yet, much to her surprise, each and every single page was utterly blank save for three words. "Beware the sky...? What does that even—?!"

The question was answered with an ear-splitting sound that resonated throughout Canterlot, shaking the Celestial City down to its very foundation. Everything stopped with that roar. The panicked screams of the citizens ceased, the guards halted their counterstrike against the timberwolves, and even the wooden beasts themselves shuddered in abstract terror. For each and every single living thing in the vicinity knew what had made such an announcement, and all eyes turned towards the shadow that was slowly growing over the city.

Silhouetted by the afternoon sun was the unmistakable visage of a massive dragon, its burning eyes currently the only distinguishable feature as it dived towards the city made warzone. Outstretching its wings, the behemoth altered its flightpath into a slightly upward glide, its intentions made clear with another piercing cry. It swooped over Canterlot Castle, and a vast portion of the city, in addition, spewing a monumental torrent of burning red death over the capital. Instantly, the scene was painted red as the dragon returned to the sky. But not for long, as everyone in attendance could see it making a turn for another pass.

In one impossible moment, Canterlot had fallen.

And with this, the equines and the timberwolves were united in a common sense of fear. Everyone scattered to the winds, all sense of order or reason lost as all in the area fled in terror of the red-scaled beast now raiding the city. Twilight was the only one left to face the titan as it readied another scorching attack, but this was not a brave rebellion or a final stand. The alicorn was just left unable to move, unable to process what was even happening. It didn't help that she very clearly recognized that dragon. The very same she had narrowly escaped from those weeks ago.

The only thing she could do was brace herself for the end. Eyes shut lightly, pulling back instinctively from the unbearable heat she knew was coming. This was it, she was going to die, the realization was heartbreaking. Relieving, in a sense, but no less tragic. She never thought that this would be how it all ended, but there wasn't much she could do now. The best thing to do was to just accept her fiery grave alongside Equestrian civilization. 

It has been quite some time since we hath seen our home.

A thousand voices all spoke as one, resonating from every direction. From everything. The sky, the ground, Twilight's own thoughts, everywhere. The noise was all-encompassing, almost overbearing, and with it came a sudden sensation of clarity to the young alicorn. Memories that had been blocked off suddenly began rushing back into her mind, the last thing she really remembered was showing Spike to his new room, much to his excitement, and then a quiet evening before going to sleep. Which had, undoubtedly, happened back in Ponyville. There was only one answer, and Twilight knew for a fact that it was the correct one. She was dreaming right now, fast asleep in her home in Ponyville.

Her eyes shot open, yet the nightmare around her remained. Fundamentally different then it had been a moment before, however. Everything had stopped. The screams, the flames, time itself had slowed to a halt. Even the mighty dragon just hung there in the sky, frozen in a single moment. Twilight seemed to be the only one spared this fate, left entirely alone in the paused city.

"Okay... weird dream..." She wondered when she would be waking up from this nightmare, looking around the scene her subconscious mind had painted. But, she stopped. The sound of armored hooves clacking against the stone walkways echoed endlessly throughout Canterlot. Slow and methodical, almost like a drum beat, closer and closer they came. The young alicorn slowly turned to face whatever interloper her psyche had conjured.

The interloper in question was tall, draped in a tattered black robe even heavier then Twilight's own. Despite its apparent weight, the garment still lightly rustled as if caught in a breeze that Twilight was untouched by. The robe's hood was drawn upward, casting a pitch-black shadow over the face of whoever was wearing it. The only defining feature that Twilight could see was the dark horn that poked out from underneath that hood. It looked like one that would belong to a unicorn, though even that wasn't an accurate description. This appendage had an upward curve and had a rounded triangular shape overall, a far cry from the straight spiraled cone that was a unicorn's horn. It was unlike any appendage that had ever been seen on a pony before. Otherworldly, even.

The robbed figure paid Twilight no mind as they slowly strode through the city. Despite the hoofsteps clearly echoing from them, the entity moved as if they were gliding. Hovering just above the ground as if they were a specter. The figure stopped, silently looking up to the burning spires of Canterlot Castle. And then the voices once more spoke. Though now, one voice seemed to dominate the others, a feminine one. 

"Though truth be told, we did not wish to see it in such sorry states."

Ever so slowly, a hoof was raised by the mysterious hooded figure, pushing out from underneath the cloak. The appendage was black as night, almost indistinguishable from the robe itself if not for the silver adornments around the hoof itself. Something akin to a mixture of jewelry and armor, fierce and jagged in its design. The hoof was spun a few times in a slow, lazy circle. And much to Twilight's surprise, the world around them seemed to react to the gesture.

Following the pace of the unknown pony's gentle motion, slowly speeding up over time, the events that Twilight had just lived through began to undo themselves. The dragon's assault was undone, and the beast looked to be pulled back into the sky as time continued to reverse. The scattered ponies and timberwolves also returned, their actions being rewound and reversed in a manner most disturbing. On and on it went until the dream had been entirely reset. The only change was that in this strange process of restoration, the day had rapidly shifted into night. Only Twilight Sparkle and the unusual hooded pony were left untouched by the strange magic and said figure then lowered their hoof, now content with observing the newly restored city.

Twilight was at a loss for words. She had long since figured out that this was a dream by this point, but the events she had just witnessed felt unnaturally real. This hooded entity that had made itself known to her did not feel like it belonged here, it felt like some outside force had invaded her mind. A trespasser in every sense of the word and Twilight's first instinct was to repel them as quickly as possible.

Do not think we have left you unnoticed.

The collective of tones was no longer dominated by a single voice, once more they were equal in their volume. And the voice's effects were immediate to see, the young alicorn suddenly feeling an impossible weight bear down on her, holding her in place. She couldn't move, she couldn't breathe, she couldn't even blink. It was like she had been frozen in time as just her dream had been moments before. Yet still, Twilight was left entirely aware of her surroundings. Unpleasantly so, she realized, as the hooded figure turned its gaze towards her own. From deep behind the veil of shadows, Twilight could see the eyes of whatever this entity was, glowing with an ominous white light that shook Twilight down to her core.

So many burdens. So many fears. So many secrets kept very near.

Frighteningly so, the figure began to approach. Their hoofsteps echoing throughout the halted city once more. And with each clack, each inch the figure advanced, the overbearing pressure holding Twilight grew greater and greater. And as the force continued to escalate, so to did her own sense of alarm. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't. She wanted to run, but she was unable. She wanted to cry, but was left with no tears. Soon, the figure was upon her, standing taller then almost any pony Twilight had ever met. They leaned down close, allowing the light of their eyes to show Twilight the absolute faintest impression of a pony's face in the pale glow.

Yes... we remember these terrors. We remember you.

And then Twilight woke up.

The overbearing sensations she had just experienced had shocked her awake, sending her back into the darkness of her room with a stifled gasp. She felt the cold sweat that had formed around her in her slumber, contradicted heavily by the unearthly chill that was still prevalent in every inch of her body. She simply laid there for a time, unsure if she was even able to move, left to contemplate that thing from her dream.

It knew me... The thought shouldn't have been as unsettling as it was. It was her dream, why wouldn't an aspect of her own mind know her? 

But it didn't feel like some construct of her subconscious mind. It felt like there was someone else in the world of dreams with her, some outside force that had invaded and made itself known to her. Something that knew Twilight. That's what disturbed her the most, the fact that apparently remembered her. And the more she ruminated on that idea, the more she started to get this strange sense of déjà vu. Like she had some previous encounter with that creature before, but she couldn't recall when. 

That quickly became the least important thing on her list of concerns, however, as a loud scream made itself known within her home. And since it wasn't Twilight herself who had done the screaming, there was only one other option as to who could have made that shrill sound. Twilight practically flung herself from the bed, her wings flapping wildly in an attempt to help keep her balance, and she nearly broke the hinges off of her bedroom door when she forcefully pushed through it. The dark hallway went by in a blur as the alicorn rushed to Spike's bedroom.

"Spike?!" Twilight called out in a frenzy as her horn brought a bright magenta light to the dark space. "SPIKE?!"

No answer. Twilight swore she could feel her heart stop beating at this prospect, mind wracked with what possibly could have happened. But then came the sound of stifled wimpers and sobs, quietly leaking out from underneath the long dragon's bed. There was a brief respite once the alicorn realized what this meant, kneeling down beside the bed to gaze underneath. As expected, Spike was found underneath the piece of furniture. Rolled and folded into himself to make himself as small as he could, his foreclaws were grasping at the sides of his head as he shuttered and shook. He was horrified.  

"Spike?" Twilight asked worriedly, still to no responce. He didn't even react to her presence, or the light that was being emitted from her magical appendage. Ever so gently, she reached out to try and get his attention with a light tap. This proved to be a mistake.

Spike violently recoiled from the light touch, scrambling out from underneath the bed—away from Twilight—with quick haphazard gasps. He fortified himself in one corner, turning around with a vicious feral grimace. He growled and hissed like a beast, ready to stand his ground or die trying. That changed when he saw Twilight stand back up on the other side of the bed, and both looked at each other with looks of absolute shock.

Twilight had never seen Spike act like this before. To say it was shocking was an absolute understatement of the grossest variety. It was painful to see him react like that, and it was even more painful to think about whatever it was that could have done that to him. It seems this wasn't lost on Spike, either, as he stared back to Twilight. He said nothing, he did nothing, for what felt like eons. Until finally, he broke.

Tears ran like rapids down the dragon's face, and he leaped and bound over the bed directly into Twilight, who hardly had enough time to react and catch him. They both crashed into the ground with a thud, but Spike didn't care, he only pulled himself closer to Twilight. He dug his face into her chest and pulled himself closer with his claws. Twilight would have been lying if she said it wasn't uncomfortable, his grip wasn't exactly gentle and his scales were digging into her a bit too much. But a bit of temporary pain was bearable, especially if this was helping Spike in any way. The alicorn managed to pull the two of them up to a sitting position, taking Spike's hint and pulling him into a hug just as he was to her. She then doubled down by stretching out her wings and wrapping them around like some kind of blanket. It didn't do much to quell his crying, but there wasn't much else she could do at the moment.  

"Shh, shh, it's okay," she spoke softly, gently stroking the back of his head in an attempt to calm him down, "It's alright... I'm right here." His wailing didn't cease, but it did show signs of slowing down. He was calming down, if ever so slightly, which was a good sign. But still, the question lingered. "Spike, what happened?"

"B-b-b-bad d-d-dream," the young reptile managed to stammer out between sobs.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"C-c-c-c-cloak... p-pony i-i-in a cloak..."

Thankful that Spike couldn't see her from where he was at right now, Twilight's eyes became cold and lifeless as she contracted some of the dragon's fear. For Spike wasn't the only one to dream of a hooded figure this night, as the purple pony clearly remembered all too well. She didn't know how it was possible, but somehow she and Spike had both experienced nightmares revolving around the same central figure. Something that wasn't necessarily impossible, but it was highly improbable. Especially at the same time such as this incident.

It came to Twilight fast and hard, the alicorn having to stifle a gasp as the realization hit her. She remembered why she vaguely recognized that figure. She knew why it had felt like her mind was being invaded by some outside force. And she knew exactly who had been hiding beneath that hood. Twilight's gaze turned towards the window, the curtains were still drawn closed yet a few slivers of silver light managed to break on through regardless. Turning back to Spike, Twilight was quick to try and push these thoughts out of her head for the moment. She didn't want to face the grim truth of their situation.

They had just been visited by the Mare in the Moon.