//------------------------------//
// The Stars' Come Night 
// Story: Book 1 - The Behemoth came to Canterlot 
// by Equimorto 
//------------------------------//

The first portal appeared a little before midday, in the middle of the Empire's central square, somewhat far from everyone there. It stood there for a few minutes, and the ponies stood motionless watching it. Finally, a single pony stepped out of it.
Even with the protection spells Twilight had designed and cast on everyone, everypony's first natural instinct was to gag. It was a forced reaction, nothing they did consciously. Some took it better than others, though none were pushed so far as to actually vomit. But even still, the mere presence was enough for them to feel nauseous and light-headed. Enough to make some part of their brains scream that they should have been running.
Nightmare Moon stared at them from the middle of the square. Her eyes scanned the place at first, then settled on Twilight. "I offer you peace, little ponies." Her sharp teeth were bared as she spoke, though they did not stand out as they might have if the aura of darkness around her hadn't been there dampening the Sun's light. She stood in a slowly expanding pool of shadow, a shard of night jammed into the day. "Surrender to me, and I will spare you." Her expression went to something between a grin and a feral snarl. "Defy me, and I will destroy this town and slaughter your loved ones."
Everyone was silent, waiting for something more to happen. Twilight, quiet as the rest, held Nightmare Moon's gaze and stared right back at her.
The black alicorn's smile only widened. There was a small quiver of her starry tail, its end still beyond the portal. A moment later, something else was shoved through.
Even though they knew it would happen, it still sent audible murmurs of shock through most of the ponies present.
Princess Celestia, blindfolded, her hooves tied, her horn wrapped by metal bindings, her wings limp against her body, though not broken. The bulk of her mane and tail had been severed, leaving her only a tangled, roughed up head of hair too short to even get a quarter of the way down her neck, and not much more on her tail. Her feathers and white hair were not faring well, tattered, messy, matted by sweat and dirt, missing in places where visible scars and bruises marked her skin. One of her lips was swollen, and had broken at one point. Some dried blood was left under her nose. She breathed still, though slowly. She barely held herself up as she could, exhausted. 
Nightmare Moon looked sideways at her, chuckled, then placed a hoof over her head and pushed it down to the ground. "Your Sun has already been defeated," she bellowed out. Her voice was suddenly much deeper, and much more distant and cold, like words carried by wind from the bottom of a deep dark gorge. "Spare yourselves her fate, and surrender."
Again, Twilight stared down Nightmare Moon, aware that more than a few of the others were looking at her. She flapped her wings, took off from the balcony, and flew down to the edge of the square, now the closest pony to Nightmare Moon. Her knees held firm, even against the wave of malaise exuding from the alicorn. Her voice was calm as she spoke, despite all the anger raging up inside her. "No."