An intense chill overcomes me, inside and out.
Yelping with sudden frostbite, I jump to my hooves. Opening my eyes, I discover a vast field of snow, a clearing in the middle of a forest. The Moon shines overhead, bathing the field in a dull light that stings against my coat.. I try to cast a spell for warmth. Struggling to make it work, my horn doesn’t do anything.
Looking for shelter, I notice a building in the distance, just on the edge of the forest. Gray and obscured in snow. I gallop towards it, but the deep snow bites at my hooves and threatens to stop me in my tracks.
Running past an overturned chariot and a series of barrels, I spot a window. With no other entrances in sight, I dive through it with what’s left of my strength. My hooves skid to a stop as I come face-to-face with a pony. I… recognize them.
“Twilight!” she exclaims. “We almost thought you didn’t make it in!”
I tilt my head.
“She looks like she’s freezing!” I am. To the side, two others stood together, an expression of worry on one of their faces.
“She doesn’t know it’s a dream yet,” the other reasoned.
... A dream?
Suddenly, clarity washed-over Twilight, lessening the cold and calming her shivering. “R-right, a dream!” With understanding came a warmth that melted what little snow remained on her coat. With that realization, a new sensation joined her.
It was a strange feeling; like being in two places at once... she could feel herself in bed, in the school's clinic, and yet… standing here didn't feel so unreal either.
“That warmed you right up!” Minuette acknowledged with a smile. Twilight politely reciprocated, but turned to the important matter at-hoof.
“Where’s Moondancer?” She asked, examining the room they found themselves in. A rectangular room of gray stone, dilapidated, dirty, and generally not all-together. A few wooden crates and barrels rested in the corners while a curved staircase dominated the middle of the structure, blocked by an upturned sofa. There were multiple windows like the one she leapt through. Lanterns hung on the walls, casting warm light that dissipated near the edges.
“None of us have seen her yet, but we know where to look next.” Lemon Hearts gestured to a wooden door in the corner.
Minuette approached it, giving it a firm kick with her hind legs, the door not budging an inch. “But none of us have been able to open it.”
“Our horns aren’t working either,” Twinkleshine added with frustration. Twilight turned back to the window she entered from, placing her front hooves on the sill.
“Let’s try to get around outside. Maybe there’s another window-”
Lemon Hearts slid her hoof between Twilight and the window. "We can’t. Even lucid, the moonlight out there hurts. There’s no way we’d be able to make it far enough.” Twilight didn't like that answer. Pushing Lemon's hoof aside, she prepared to climb through the window and make her own attempt. She was promptly interrupted.
Celestia’s voice echoed, distorted somewhat by the dreamscape. "Careful Twilight, your friends are right. I still possess the ability to alter this dream, to an extent. I will attempt to open the door from here, one moment." Her voice seemed to be coming from nowhere in particular.
"There's somepony out there!" Lemon Hearts called out. Peering through the window, she was soon joined by the others.
Twilight cautiously approached behind them. "Is it Moondancer?" Looking over everypony's shoulders, Twilight could barely make-out a figure stumbling through the snow.
"I'm afraid it is not," Celestia’s ethereal voice explained. "It would appear Nightmare Moon is raising forces in an attempt to stop us." Soon more figures rose from the snow, joining the first in a shambling trot toward them.
"How are we supposed to stop them without our horns?!" Twinkleshine asked, straining to elicit a spark from hers.
"Fret not, my little ponies. I will conjure a solution." Celestia sounded determined, a genuine concern for them, Twilight could tell. Minuette went back to attempting to kick the door open, while Lemon Hearts kept looking between everyone. Twinkleshine continued to strain her horn to cast something, anything, to no avail.
Twilight continued to observe the approaching - and growing - crowd outside. She could make them out more clearly now: they were ponies, for sure. However, their coats were dulled of color. Their disheveled manes in various states of distress. Their tails lashed furiously. Most of all, Twilight noticed each of them sported a set glowing, white eyes.
Wooden boards flew into place over the windows, startling Twilight into stumbling backwards.
"My apologies, Twilight. That will hold them, but not forever. I will continue to work on the door. In the meantime, check the crates - you will find something to defend yourselves with." Celestia offered, confidently.
Twinkleshine was first to the crate. Reaching inside with her mouth, she retrieved what seemed to be a simple, if somewhat bulky, metal ring. Taking it into her hoof, her eyes widened in realization, and she quickly slid it down her horn. Her horn gave a faint glow once the ring was in place. "Oh hay yeah!" She exclaimed, giving an experimental zap at the wall. "My horn works!"
The others followed-suit, taking identical rings from the box and putting each of them on. Twilight took one herself, inspecting it in her hooves. It was boxy and rugged, far from the elegant curves of decorative horn rings she had come to recognize. "A conductive metal, no visibly-apparent gems to collect or project magic... what are these?"
"I am having to work within the limits of the dream. I can't return your magic to you directly - but I can give you something to do it yourselves." Celestia's disembodied voice echoed. “Those ring will harvest the ambient dream magic and convert it into something usable.” After one more look-over, Twilight slid her horn ring on. She could feel a type of magic course into her horn.
“That’s a start,” Twilight mumbled to herself, her horn alight with power. She felt pleased.
"I'm afraid your magic will be limited. The dream is fighting me every step of the way." Celestia’s voice seemed to take on a tone of grave concern. "Stay strong, my ponies. Remember, this is only a dream and you will not be harmed - but the consequence of failure could be dire."
"They're coming!" Twinkleshine exclaimed, pointing a hoof toward one of the windows. One of the pseudo-ponies had reached it, and was forcibly working to remove the wooden barrier, an angry growl escaping its maw.
Twilight rushed over to the window, surging a purple streak across the room, hitting the monster square between the eyes. It vanished in a cloud of dark smoke that then turned into a golden mist. The mist surged into the ring around Twilight’s horn, causing her to tense-up. "What was that?!"
Twilight looked back to see Minuette, Lemon Hearts, and Twinkleshine had all taken to the other windows, and were busy fending off their attackers. Twinkleshine was brave in her attacks, casting several spells in close proximity to the monsters. Counter to that, Lemon Hearts had stood back and seemed to be taking pot shots at her designated window, missing several of them.
Twilight returned her attention to the closest window, seeing more of the monsters approaching. She sent out magical blasts toward each of them, causing all of them to dissipate into smoke. With each elimination, she felt the magic in her horn grow more powerful. The sound of magical blasts filled the air, echoing through the room behind her, making one thing clear:
The siege had begun.
Twilight relied on her instincts: see a monster, attack it. She lost track of time with each blast. Each monster fell easily, but more rose to replace it. She was able to keep them away for the time being. Never turning away, she remained resolute and focused.
Twinkleshine’s horn was stuck out of the window, firing blasts with such ferocity that nothing was able to get close. The determination on her face dared the monsters to try.
Minuette’s attacks were slower, but she hit most of her targets. When one of the monsters pressed itself to the window and grasped at her, she stepped back, leveled her horn, and delivered an accurate blast. She would take the time to breath if she wasn’t busy holding her breath for the next shot.
Lemon Hearts had stood back against the wall, and was leveling shot-after-shot at the window, most hitting the frame or wooden boards. One-by-one the monsters were able to tear the boards down, and the next slinked through, falling to the floor.
With a terrified shriek, Lemon Hearts fired repeatedly, missing each shot as the monster rose to its hooves and lunged at her. “Help!” She called out.
Twilight turned around just in time to see Twinkleshine deliver a volley toward the monster, three shots in quick succession. When one of them impacted its side, the monster dissipated into smoke that pooled over Lemon Hearts, before turning to a gold shimmer and arcing across the room into Twinkleshine’s horn.
Twilight yelped with a stinging pain against her shoulder, stumbling back as she saw one of the monsters lashing at her. She fired an immediate blast, defeating it. With a quick glance at the room, she returned to looking out her window, finding nothing else out there.
One of the monsters hung onto the boards of Minuette’s window, and after taking aim, Minuette dropped the monster, a board going with it to the ground and disappearing in its smoke.
With that, silence suddenly took hold. Everyone was on edge, checking each of their windows for strays.
“Is… everypony alright!?” Minuette called out, finally content to turn around and inspect the room.
“I- I think so,” Lemon Hearts replied with a shudder, sliding into a sitting position against the wall and holding her hooves close.
Twinkleshine rubbed at her horn. “That was… tough,” she admitted, turning toward the others. “I thought dreams weren’t supposed to hurt!?”
“Oddly enough, this one’s a little different,” MInuette smirked toward Twinkleshine with a wink.
“I’ve had dreams hurt before, but nothing like that,” Twilight explained, rubbing her shoulder.
Lemon Hearts looked mortified. “Are you gonna be alright, Twilight?”
“Yeah, I think so,” Twilight replied. The sensation faded quickly, but she wasn’t eager to get trounced on by more of them. “What’s stranger is… I actually feel … more powerful.”
“Uh… Princess?” Minuette called out to the open air. “How’s the door coming along?”
Like a soothing beacon of hope, Celestia’s tone filled the room, washing away the eerie feeling the monsters left behind. It fueled their determination. “I believe I may have worked something out. Try your magic on the door, Twilight.”
Twilight approached the door, the others behind her. Lemon Hearts cowered behind the group, scared of what they may find. Twilight lowered her head, and her horn lit. A beam made contact with the door, and after a few moments time, the door swung open.
Twilight ceased her magic, and she sighed tiredly. “Now I… I feel weaker,” she admitted over her shoulder.
“These things absorb magic,” Minuette explained. “That’s what the golden mist is. Maybe opening the door, maybe you shed some of that magic?” She speculated.
“Maybe,” Twilight acquiesced. Come on, let’s go through.”
“Careful!” Lemon Hearts added from the back of the group, each one of them slowly making their way through the door.
“Let’s make sure they can’t follow,” Once on the other side, Minuette turned, and pushed her hoof against the door. It wouldn’t budge, so she tried harder. The door didn’t move an inch.
“You’ve got to be kidding me…” Twinkleshine grunted in frustration.
“At least it won’t lock us in,” Lemon Hearts offered hopefully.
“We’re already locked in! In the dream, in this stupid building…” Twinkleshine remarked.
“Would it have killed Nightmare Moon to hang a few oil lamps?” Minuette tsked as she walked further into the room, flashing a quick mood-lifting smile at the others. Twilight couldn’t help but feel a little less tense.
“Let’s focus,” Twilight replied, turning to the room and lighting her horn, coating it in a magenta glow. The room was empty of monsters, but had two windows, and a pillar in the middle. A staircase led up to another door.
A series of muffled growls punctuated the silence, and told Twilight everything she needed to know. She stepped up to take charge; “Okay, Lemon Hearts try the door. Minuette, Twinkleshine, pick a window and get ready.”
“Gotcha,” Minuette replied, bounding off to a window.
“You don’t need to tell me twice,” Twinkleshine retorted, taking up position at hers.
Twilight turned back to the door they came through, already seeing a group of the monsters coming toward it. Magical blasts surged in her ears from behind.
Twilight chose a target and fired a blast. The monster flinched, but continued to walk. She fired twice-more. The monster finally vanished.
“They’re soaking it up!” Twinkleshine shouted from behind, peppering one with a successive three blasts that ended only the one monster.
“Aim for the face!” Minuette shouted back, leveling her monsters with a single well-placed shot each.
Twilight took after Minuette, and began precisely calculating her shots through the doorway. Although a few missed, the rest landed, and the mob thinned. She could feel power returning to her.
“I can’t get it open!” Lemon Hearts called out. Once she turned away from the door, she gasped as she saw Twinkleshine was forced to back away, monsters clearing her window.
Twilight turned to help, but was interrupted by a series of growls. She saw more coming from the opened door. She had to focus. Trust the others, she told herself. Lemon Hearts whined as she began to fire blasts at the monsters cornering Twinkleshine.
“Min, look out!” Twinkleshine called over the mob just as monsters from her window came up behind Minuette. Minuette recoiled in pain as several of their hooves made contact at once. Wincing with a sharp inhale, Minuette wasn’t able to aim her shots.
Lemon Hearts picked up her pace, charging beam-after-beam at a rate that’d make even Twinkleshine proud. She made her way toward Minuette, who was quickly buckling. Lemon Hearts could see more of the monsters at Minuette’s window, tearing down boards.
Twinkleshine fired from her corner, hitting more shots than not. She was safe for now, but surrounded. “Twilight!” she called out. Twilight looked between the group and the opened doorway, and with little hesitation rushed over.
Twilight stood beside Lemon Hearts as the two attacked the monsters lording over Minuette. Twilight could hear winces, grunts, and gasps of pain from the twitching blue shape hidden among the gray. “There’s more than last time!” she called out through the pain.
Twilight and Lemon Hearts together made quick work of the monsters over Minuette. Twilight looked over her shoulder, spotting more pooling from the opened doorway. She turned to hold them off as Lemon moved to help Minuette.
Minuette flickered in place, as-if she were about to be forced out of the nightmare entirely. Doing the only thing she could think of, Lemon Hearts aimed her horn and cast a spell at Minuette. After a moment’s time, it seemed to work, stabilizing her. Minuette looked over to see Twinkleshine had cleared herself from the corner.
“Get the door!” Twilight called out as more poured from the windows. After Lemon Hearts helped Minuette up, the three backed up the stairs, Twilight tailing behind them. The group fired multiple blasts into the oncoming crowd.
As more of the monsters shambled toward them, time seemed to slow. Twilight’s hooves grew chilly against the stone floor, and her horn ached with an arctic chill. She could hear the others shivering, but it only fueled her determination to empty the room.
With a loud creak, the door behind them swung open, Twinkleshine’s horn fizzling with residual energy. “Back it up!” she called out to the others. Once they were all through the door, they focused their efforts on the new bottleneck.
The shambling monsters, try as they might, could not get past the doorway. Each one fell into a thick cloud of smoke and vanished in a golden mist. The doorway was nothing but a mess of growls, billowing smoke, and beams of light as one-after-another fell.
“Why’re there so many!?” Lemon Hearts called out over the cacophony of sounds.
“What’re we gonna do, Twilight?!” Minuette called out, backing up.
“Princess,” Twinkleshine called out to nowhere, “we could use some help here!”
“Please!” Lemon Hearts added.
For the longest time, there was no reply, and the group were forced to fend for themselves. Until suddenly, the constant trail of golden mist coalesced into a bright, golden orb that glowed with yellow light. It kinda reminded Twilight of the Sun.
“Touch it!” the Princess’s voice called out to them. It sounded strained, muffled through some kind of barrier.
Twilight quickly ducked under the group’s spellcasting and lunged for the orb. As soon as she made contact, the orb convulsed, and burst into energy, washing over the room like a wave. Every monster it touched dissipated immediately, and soon enough the doorway was cleared with a deafening boom. For the time being, silence regained the soundscape.
Twilight fell to a sitting position, breathing deeply. The others reciprocated in kind.
“We can’t keep… going like this… where’s Moondancer!?” Twinkleshine stressed between breaths.
“We have to be getting close,” Lemon Hearts whined. “Poor Moondancer, all alone in this…”
“Princess?” Twilight got up. “Princess, please tell me you’re there.”
Silence.
“I… am here. It is getting harder to get through to you. I believe you’re getting close.”
“To Moondancer?” Twilight asked.
“To Nightmare Moon’s influence…” Celestia clarified.
“Well, the two have to be together, right?” Minuette suggested.
“What would Nightmare Moon want with Moondancer, anyway?” Lemon Hearts shivered.
“I don’t know…” Twilight put a hoof to her chin. After a moment she looked up at the new room they had entered. There was an open doorway ahead, and through it a hallway that seemed to go left and right. Directly opposite the door, a pair of small windows. Approaching the left window, Twilight looked out of it and gasped.
Down below, in the middle of an outdoor courtyard surrounded on all sides by the structure, a dark figure floated. With a coat dark as night, and armor covering portions of her body, the resemblance was obvious, further punctuated by a crescent Moon cutie mark:
Nightmare Moon.
“And look, there’s Moondancer!” Twilight saw Minuette at the other window, pointing. Below Nightmare Moon’s large form, Moondancer laid curled up, her hooves over her head.
“What’s she doing to her!?” Twinkleshine growled over Twilight’s shoulder. Twinkleshine shoved Twilight aside and attempted to break the window. Her horn bounced off harmlessly, and her magic dissipated against the window harmlessly. “This is useless! We have to get down there!”
A raucous cackle rang out from the courtyard, and in an instant a barrier of energy sprung up beside Twilight. She stumbled backward, Twinkleshine catching her before she fell over entirely. “Easy, don’t lose your hooves yet!”
“We’re cut off!” Minuette’s muffled voice sounded through the barrier. Twinkleshine and Minuette both tried to blast through the barrier, and soon Lemon Hearts and Twilight joined in. All four of them together were unable to bring it down.
Before they could attempt anything else, a voice spoke to them, echoing in an unnatural cadence previously unknown to the ponies. “So… Celestia thinks she could send a couple of weak magic students to stop me?”
Everyone turned back to the window, and were greeted by Nightmare Moon’s glowing gaze. Her teeth were bared into a wicked grin, her eyes glowing with pure, white energy. With a humored cackle she looked off into the distance. “What’s wrong Celestia? Art things not going according to thou plan!? Art thou desperate!?”
She turned the other direction. “Thou planned to release me under the guise of ‘prophecy’... I have something far greater! True prophecy, and something far greater to rule over! Equestria is merely a stepping stone!” Twilight turned back to the window. Celestia… planned to release her?
“We need to get moving,” Twinkleshine whispered over Twilight’s shoulder.
“But what about them!?” Twilight looked back through the barrier at Minuette and Lemon Hearts. Lemon Hearts was still watching the window with worry, while Minuette was inspecting her surroundings, checking the hallway.
“They’ll be fine, I trust them! And if we can get to Moondancer all of us can leave the dream together!” As Twinkleshine led Twilight down their respective hallway and around the corner, Twilight stopped and looked toward Minuette; Minuette looked back and waved Twilight away, she disappeared around the corner ushering Lemon Hearts along.
“Insolent foals… thou do not know what thee is up against!” A guttural laugh filled the air, and as Minuette and Twilight began to work on the next door, Nightmare Moon’s tone shifted, deepening into a tone Twilight thought unreachable by ponies…
“FETCH ME THOU SOULS!”
What Twilight expected to see were more of the monsters bounding the corner. But she didn’t hear a mass of hoofsteps. Instead, she heard a single set… readying her horn as it rounded the corner, Twilight’s determination turned to horror.
At the end of the hallway stood a pony-shaped monster, covered in violet flames. A branching horn, with glowing white eyes. A scaly carapace.
With a startled yelp she fired her magic, bumping into Twinkleshine in the process, who turned to chide her. “Hey, watch it! … What the hay?”
The monster rushed down the hallway, trailing flame the entire way. With a few more shots, the monster fell over, flickered in and out, and vanished. just as Twinkleshine opened the door behind them.
“Come on!”
The two began to run the length of the building, weaving in and out of the hallways and rooms along the way. More of those fire monsters attacked from windows, doors, seemingly appearing from nowhere in a flash of light.
Twilight wasn’t as useful at this moment as she cared to admit. Her hoof tips felt chilly, her coat getting colder, her fear heightened. Her heart raced, her breath paced with each shot, with each new monster. To Twinkleshine’s credit, she made up for Twilight’s shortcomings and kept the two safe.
“Don’t thou foals see? Thou fear is the fuel I need to lay ruin to you all! And Moondancer here has been a wonderful well of fear and insecurity…” Through a series of windows along the way, Twilight could see Minuette and Twinkleshine on the opposite side of the courtyard making progress. They were a little bit behind, but they were keeping up otherwise.
They finally reached another door, and with testing from their magic, neither of them were able to open it. They’d be forced to take a stand here for the moment. Twinkleshine and Twilight both put their backs against the door and leveled their horns.
“Alright Twilight, here’s what we’re gonna do. I’ll go fast, loosen them up a little. You go for the heads and finish them off.” Angered growls came from the other end of the hallway, and Twinkleshine charged her horn.
“I-I don’t know if I can…” Twilight admitted. “These… These are the monsters from my nightmare!”
“We’ve seen worse today,” Twinkleshine retorted. “I know you’re not as accurate as Minuette, but… just do whatever egghead stuff it takes to level your aim, alright!?”
“R-right…” Twilight took note of the hallway, the distance. The height of the monsters. Her horn’s angle. Time seemed to slow as the first monster leapt around the corner. Twinkleshine was already peppering it as Twilight got her shot off. It was a successful hit, and the monster flickered, vanishing.
“Why didn’t it-...?”
Some monsters are more real than others.
Soon enough, they were coming two at a time, and before Twilight could finish off the last one, it got close enough to burn. Both Twinkleshine and Twilight winced and hissed from the heat, and after delivering a wayward shot the monster flickered and vanished like those before it, returning the air to a cool chill.
“Thy have already gained much information, and so, so much more than that!” Nightmare Moon lorded over Moondancer’s limp form. “Although I have failed to corrupt thine friend, I shall still achieve victory over you miserable whelps!”
“Will somepony shut her up already?!” Twinkleshine protested, opening the door behind them. Twilight took time to catch her breath, backing into the next room behind Twinkleshine, and they met the corner. They were finally on the other side of the building. Here, the hallway turned and merged with Minuette and Lemon Hearts’. Twilight cast a worried glance down the hallway.
“Soon enough I will be inside each of thine heads, my little pony… you cannot escape thine own nightmares!” Nightmare Moon echoed with deep laughter. Twilight’s ear twitched, sensing another layer to her voice that she hadn’t heard before.
Twinkleshine led the two along down the hall, through an opened doorway, and found a staircase down to the bottom floor. Growls emanated down the hallway, and soon enough the next wave had begun pouring in, lashing and snarling on approach.
Twinkleshine began to cast, and that was when Twilight spotted something above the door; some kind of loose cabling. Blasting it with her horn, the doorway found itself doused in various magical currents. When the horde reached it, they attempted to cross through the new barrier, and dissipated into smoke for their trouble.
“That’ll buy us some time,” Twilight turned to Twinkleshine.
“Nice thinking, but I doubt she’ll let that stand for long,” Twinkleshine chided the closest window. “Let's hurry and get down there.”
“Wait, what about Minuette and Lemon Hearts?” Twilight asked, gesturing toward the other doorway opposite the one they just blocked off.
“They’ll be fine either way! Either they’re ahead, behind, or they’ve woken up! Now come on!” Twinkleshine ushered Twilight down the stairs, and they soon found themselves at the threshold of the courtyard. Twilight checked the sky, finding no sign of Nightmare Moon.
In the center of the courtyard, across a series of stones, laid Moondancer. Twilight could see her open her eyes, twitch, and close them again. Twilight stepped out to her, but was forced to retreat when she felt a biting sensation in her hoof. That’s when she noticed the courtyard was bathed in moonlight, coating it in a thin layer of ice.
“We have to get to her!” Twilight shouted to Twinkleshine. She was interrupted by the sound of shambling down the stairs, it would seem the monsters have found a way around.
“Go, I’ll hold them off!” Twinkleshine ran back to the bottom of the stairs. She and Twilight shared a nod, and turned to the tasks at hoof.
As Twilight heard various magical blasts behind her, she took a deep breath, steeled herself for the pain ahead, and took her first steps out into the moonlit courtyard. Each step froze against her hoof, and her mane and coat soon found themselves unnaturally chilly, frostbite approached quickly, and Twilight picked up her pace toward Moondancer.
It was so… so quiet here… as if sound stopped at the entryway. There was nothing but an eerie silence around Twilight and Moondancer, and Twilight was forced to break it.
“Moondancer-!” she called out to her.
“I won’t,” Moondancer coughed on the ground, “fall for any more of your tricks, you monster!” Her eyes were closed, her glasses on the ground beside her, one of the lenses cracked.
Twilight recoiled. “Moondancer, it’s me, it’s Twilight! Sparkle!”
“That’s what you said the last dozen times!” she retorted. “I know Twilight, she might be distant, but she’s not a monster like you!” Moondancer whined.
Twilight noticed she was covered in frost and ice crystals. How long has she been here…?
“I WON’T HELP YOU, AND IF STAYING ASLEEP IS WHAT IT TAKES TO KEEP YOU FROM HURTING HER, THEN I’LL STAY ASLEEP!”
… Moondancer had been protecting her. But why did Nightmare Moon care about Twilight so much, she wondered. Twilight held a hoof to her heart, her cheeks raised and her mouth agape, thoughts spiraling through her head. Frostbite eventually woke her from her stupor.
“I don’t need your help!” Twilight replied; “I’m here to help you!”
Moondancer blinked, lifted her head, and squinted. “W-wha-?” Twilight held out her hoof, and Moondancer stared at it. “Twilight…?”
“I’m here,” Twilight spoke softly, her eyebrows raised with worry, but a comforting smile on her face.
“TWILIGHT!” Twilight turned to see Lemon Hearts tumble down the stairs, and passed several monsters, narrowly missing Twinkleshine. When Lemon Hearts flickered and vanished, Twinkleshine had run to the doorway and been forced out into the cold. Between the cold and the monsters hot on her tail, hitting her repeatedly, Twinkleshine collapsed, flickered, and vanished.
Twilight turned back to Moondancer when she heard a gasp. “Twinkleshine…?”
Twilight turned back to Moondancer. “Please, take my hoof! You have to wake up, now!”
“H-how do I know this isn’t another trick? What if you just want me to wake up to control me or something!?”
“Moondancer, I’m NOT Nightmare Moon! It’s… it’s taken me a while to see it, but I haven’t tried to be a good friend to you! I haven’t been a good friend to anypony, I didn’t think I needed any friends, but… now I know I do! And… and I guess you never lost faith in that… look, I’m here now! I’m here to help you!”
Moondancer looked around, checking the sky, the monsters quickly approaching the two of them, and Twilight herself. After a moment of hesitation, Moondancer took her hoof, and in an instant everything vanished into a bright white light.
…
“Wait…”
…
… “She’s coming out of it!”
“They’re waking up, Twilight did it!”
Twilight gasped, suddenly sitting up from the bed. Rubbing her eyes with deep breaths, she was met with the eyes of Lemon Hearts and Minuette, grinning down at her. “It was touch-and-go there for a moment, Twilight. Once I went down and Lemon Hearts ran, I thought that was the end of it.”
“I told you I was sorry!” Lemon Hearts replied with an apologetic whine and hooves over her face.
Minuette gently bumped her shoulder with a playful smile and a nod. “Hey, we made it.”
Twilight reciprocated a small smile to the two of them, then turned to look at the rest of the room. Twinkleshine was by Moondancer’s bed. Moondancer sat up, took the glasses from her bedside table, and put them on. With a few blinks, she looked in Twilight’s direction.
“So… it wasn’t a trick,” Moondancer replied. Twilight could see tears gather in her eyes.
“It wasn’t,” Twilight replied. “I meant every word of it.”
Moondancer gave a few quiet sobs. “T-thank you…”
Twinkleshine looked across to Twilight with a smile, and gave a quiet nod.
“Thank you all,” Celestia stood straight, exhaustion evident in her eyes. “I have never seen such strong convictions between friends before today. You’ve done more than I could have ever asked of any of my subjects.”
“Oh, it was nothing, Princess.” Minuette replied with a half-salute, which Lemon Hearts mimicked with a bow. Twinkleshine and Moondancer both breathed sighs of relief.
Twilight’s eyes lit up with approval, and looked to all of her… friends. To see them happy, to know she helped to make that happen, it was a wonderful feeling she did not know until today.
But…
“Princess, I worry this isn’t the end of this…” Twilight began. “She… Nightmare Moon said,” Celestia held up a hoof to stop her.
“I know, Twilight… I heard everything. I’m not sure how she managed to escape her imprisonment, but I was aware a time like this was coming.”
“What did she mean, that it wasn’t going according to your plan…?” Minuette asked.
“I was aware a time like this was coming. I have been making preparations for a long time to stop Nightmare Moon.” Celestia’s head tilted downward, and Twilight could’ve sworn she heard a whisper.
“Princess… if may,” Moondancer spoke up, holding up a hoof as she sat straight-up in bed. “Nightmare Moon… she’s found something.”
“Found something?”
“I’m not sure, just… I think there’s a lot more going on in her head than we realize,” Moondancer replied with uncertainty.
“Do you know anything she’s planning?”
Moondancer put a hoof to the bridge of her muzzle, thoughtfully. “I… I don’t know. She’s close to getting what she wanted, but… I think she’s tired. She… I think she’s gone for the time being.”
She will always be with you, Moondancer.
“Good,” Twinkleshine replied. “When she returns we’ll stick it to her… again.”
Suddenly, the door to the clinic opened, an armor-clad royal guard just beyond it. “Princess! Sunset Shimmer, she’s attacked several guards… she’s gone crazy!” Twilight turned to Celestia in time to see a flash of light emanate from her horn and envelope the room.