//------------------------------//
// 14 - Nightmare Moon 
// Story: The Story of Everfree - a Narrative Chronicle 
// by Recon777 
//------------------------------//

Over the next year, Luna struggled and fought with odd urges. She became strangely resentful toward her sister, coveting the attention Celestia had received in her role as benevolent ruler of Equestria. Luna began to get more irrational, exhibiting emotions such as bitterness in increasing amounts. Worse, she had completely lost touch with the concepts of righteousness and justice—concepts that she had based her life on for over four thousand years.

Luna looked at her sister and the attention she received from the mortals and became envious. It was a feeling she had not experienced before. Her station in life was of her own design; she had never begrudged others for not giving her the same attention as they gave her sister. Luna preferred the solitude her position offered. At least, she used to.

Where had these feelings come from, where she suddenly felt compelled to demand fairness with her sister? She was not her sister, and their roles were different. But the feelings soon turned to envy and rage that her sister enjoyed an audience and a glory that she did not.

Luna kept these feelings hidden from her sister for the most part. But eventually, they had arguments over it. Celestia was confused as to why Luna suddenly wanted attention she had not previously craved. Celestia tried to reason with her, but this only brought more strife as Luna became more irrational.

One night after a bad argument, Luna simply... stopped fighting it. She was not strong enough to resist the temptation. She could see what was coming, and she was frightened—the image of a jet-black mare with slitted eyes, who cared for no one but herself. But she could no longer resist. 

With tears, she submitted to the dark power that had been building up within her for the past year and became Nightmare Moon. Her body physically transformed, and she abandoned everything she had based her life on. She decided to forcefully take what she desired. And that first thing was to usurp her sister's position as sole ruler of Equestria. She would also bring eternal night, which her subjects would be forced to appreciate.

Celestia was horrified at the transformation. She wasted no time confronting her sister. Luna had always been the better warrior. The two fought for hours in intense combat over the land and air, but Celestia was no match for the rapidly growing strength her sister wielded. There was only one answer, and it crushed Celestia's heart.

Broken and bleeding, Celestia took the Elements of Harmony and used them against her sister. In an act of horrific irony, Luna's anti-alicorn weapon was used against Luna herself. She was banished to the moon with a spell that would last a thousand years.

Celestia wept over the loss, blaming herself for allowing Luna to feel so neglected. She was not aware of what it was that had infected her sister and caused her to lose sight of her own values and purpose. Afterward, Celestia took on the responsibility of ruling Equestria by herself.