All of the ponies gasped when they saw the empty spot where Princess Celestia was supposed to appear. Nobody knew if this was a prank of hers or part of the celebration.
Mayor Mare began to freak out. “Calm down! I’m sure that the Princess isn’t missing… this is probably just… p-part of the celebration!” She tried to calm the situation but was failing miserably.
At least one was being amused by this whole situation, a certain earth pony with a pink mane. “Ooh, is the Princess hiding? If she is then she’s very good at playing the hide-and-seek game!” She told a certain lavender unicorn who was looking really worried.
Just then, the earth pony gasped as a blue mist appeared in the room and surrounded the spot where the princess was supposed to appear. Soon, she appeared:
Taller and more slender than every pony in the room, she wore a smooth lavender helmet from which a black Unicorn horn protruded from. On either side of the mare’s torso were dark wings, reminiscent to those of a Pegasus. On its flank was a splotch of purple, a crescent moon upon it. The pony’s mane and tail resembled a field of stars, flowing in a nonexistent wind. Around her neck was some sort of regal breastplate, bearing the same mark as on the flank. A cyan eye with a slit pupil gazed out upon the collection of ponies.
“Oh, no… Nightmare Moon!” The unicorn whispered quietly as Nightmare Moon began to laugh.
“I have returned once again, my faithful subjects!” She laughed in a regal tone.
“What did you do to our princess!?” One of the ponies - a cyan pegasus yelled as she attempted to fly straight at Nightmare only to be held by her tail thanks to an orange earth pony with a Stetson hat.
The Mare in the Moon became annoyed at how only her ‘sister’ was mentioned instead of her. “Hmph! Is my face not respectable enough for you? Does my crown not bring mention of me?” She asked them all.
Instead of answering, they were shivering in fear except for the pink-colored pony. “Ooh! You’re the Dark Queen! The Misty Star!” She tried to guess.
The first name made Nightmare chuckle. “A fitting name but not fully correct… did you not read the signs? Did you not read the legend?” She asked them all.
“I did!” Someone spoke and the lavender unicorn stepped forward. “I know who you are! You’re the mare in the moon - Nightmare Moon!” She declared much to everyone’s surprise.
Nightmare’s amused face morphed into one of amazement. “Ah, so it appears that you are aware of who I am… then you must know why I am here?” She asked.
The lavender unicorn attempted to make a brave face. “You’re here… because… Ummm… well…” She was at a loss for words.
Nightmare cackled evilly. “What a brave pony you are… but very foolish! Before I plunge the world that refused to cherish me into eternal night, I think I must teach everyone here a lesson in opposing me… I’ll start with you.” She decided and powered up her horn.
The lavender mare gulped as she realized how outmatched she was right now against a powerful alicorn like Nightmare Moon. What was she going to use in order to escape? A teleportation spell?
The spell was charged as Nightmare prepared to fire at the unicorn. “If it's any consolation, you’ll be with the princess soon!” She declared.
Fortunately, the shot never came as a hole opened above them and someone fell from the other side. Said person had a light olive complexion while her long and wavy hair was colored black with her eyes being amber. She wore a black ribbon which was tied in the form of a bow along with black low-heeled boots and stocking that started black at her hips, but gradually faded to purple as they near her shoes. On the outside of the stocking there were white emblems along with black ribbons on both of her arms with a black detached sleeve and a silver band on her left arm. She had a black buttoned vest with coattails and a white sleeveless undershirt that exposed part of her midriff with white shorts complete with a zipper on the front of each leg, a detached scarf-like collar around her neck and gray magnetic plate strapped to her back.
Every pony became confused at the arrival of this mysterious ape with black-colored hair.... especially the lavender unicorn and Nightmare Moon.
“Ugh… in hindsight, I knew that I shouldn’t have trusted that fucking Merchant…” She paused for a moment before looking around and seeing rows of ponies overlooking her.
“Oh, you’ve got to be shitting me…” The girl spoke with a tone of disbelief before she was interrupted by a stomp coming from Nightmare.
“What is the meaning of this!? What kind of ape are you!?” Nightmare demanded as the girl flinched.
“Jeez! Turn down the volume, horse!” The black-haired girl rubbed her ears and sent a look at Nightmare.
She glared at her and fired a beam causing a small explosion that spread smoke all throughout the room. Every-pony coughed as the smoke cleared, revealing a crater, nothing of the mysterious creature remained.
The lavender unicorn was in disbelief before she looked at Nightmare. “You killed her… how could you!?” She asked.
The mare chuckled without a hint of remorse. “But of course! Nobody calls me a horse - especially the princess of the night!” She declared.
“Princess of the night? You? Seems like you truly are a self-centered bitch.” A familiar voice called out and interrupted her little parade. The same black-haired girl that she thought that she killed was sitting on one of the balconies in Town Hall.
“What!? But… how... You… DIE YOU WORM!” She launched another beam only for the girl to fade quickly and reappear behind her.
Nightmare looked around. “Where did you go!?” She demanded before feeling a blade to her neck. “Move a muscle and I’ll put you down.”
Nightmare and the rest were in disbelief. Who was this creature and what kind of powers did she possess!?
The mare in the moon glared at her. “You will pay for this… I promise that the next time we meet, I won’t show you mercy!” She warned her before fading away.
All of the ponies were confused at what just happened while the girl prepared to make her escape. Before she could move a muscle…
“How’d you do that!? What type of powers did you use!?” The cyan pegasus got in front of her and started eying her suspiciously.
This along with Nightmare Moon trying to kill her and appearing in a world filled with ponies really made her sigh heavily. “I really don’t have time for this.” She told her before fading away using those mysterious powers of hers.
Silence filled the entire area which soon turned to confusion and panic. What in Celestia’s name just happened!?