Luna dove through the armory window almost crashing into the rack of spears. Torches flickered in the wind of her speed, as she ran to a large violet chest with her royal insignia painted elegantly on the lid.
She blasted the chest open with her powerful magic, splinters flying every which way to reveal a set of majestic azure armor. She slipped on the pieces as quick as she could, finally she reached into the chest with her magic and pulled out a blade, it was bloody crimson and the point was sharper than a dragon’s claw.
She reverently sheathed the blade in a sheath matching her armor. Finally fitted for battle she began channeling a powerful spell, ancient runes engraved themselves around her in a circle. She increased the power through her horn to its limit. Her eyes began to glow a sickly purple.
Celestia awoke with a start cold sweat dripping down her muzzle, she sensed dark magic afoot. Throwing her sheets off she dove out the nearest window, chill air catching her wings as she followed her senses. They led her to the armory, she burst through the door, only to find her little sister, black magic dripping from her horn clad in her war regalia.
“Luna!” shouted Celestia, she dashed toward her sister only to be stopped short by a barrier made of lunar magic, “Luna stop!” she cried.
“I cannot!” shouted Luna her voice warped and deepened with the use of evil magic, “I must save my stallions!”
“Luna stop this is not the way! Please, this magic will destroy you!”
Luna looked toward her sister a tear rolled down her face, “I am sorry sister...” Luna released her spell, the runes were ripped from the floor surrounding her, in an instant she was transformed into a new pony. Her fur was pitch black, her teeth sharp as piranhas and her wings were leathery like a bat’s.
She quickly readied a teleportation spell, a simple flick of her horn and she was gone. Celestia fell to her stomach, and wept for the fate of her sister. She wept because she knew she may never see her again.
Nightingale’s wings pumped faster and faster. He could not afford to be slow this time. He knew his crew was behind him, but how far he had no idea, he had left Twilight to ride on Royal Flush so that would slow them down all but Stormwind who was right on his tail. He felt something at the back of his mind, prodding at his consciousness. There was a sudden rush of purple around his field of vision, it consumed him, he lost control of his body and he plummeted toward the ground. He caught sight of Stormwind who had suffered a similar fate. He felt something come into contact with the side of his head and was engulfed in blackness.
It’s cold down here.
Thought a gold maned Pegasus, he was laying on a stone floor, one wing nearly snapped in half. A golden helm split in two pitiful halves lie next to him and an ancient zweihander stuck in the ground several paces from his helm, its handle had been sheered in two pieces making a hoof and a half sword with a far too large of a blade. It had once been a weapon of great power, crafted by Zirdzin Ticiva in the great forge of the Crystal Empire now it was just a useless piece of steel as far as the pegasus was concerned.
Sunstriker was his name, a name that described his post as a paladin, or it did.
He attempted to stand only to have hot blood drip from his forehead and into his eyes blinding him. He sank back down to the cool floor.
Arise, champion of light. A female voice echoed through his head.
Arise and carry out thine destiny. The voice commanded
He stood shakily to his hooves, wincing as every shift of his body caused his wing to move. His mind cleared enough to form words.
“Fate is so unkind... I should have known... I had been... blinded by the light...reaping my very soul. If it all amounts to nothing... Then, why. Why am I standing here?” he begged.
“Because Sunstriker, you still have a duty, to your princess and to Equestria...” the ominous voice reverberated about the room. He tried to open his eyes but to no avail, the blood had crusted his eyes shut.
“Duty? Duty ends after death ma’am...” he said somberly, “my brothers knew this well, they moved on. But I guess I’m just too stubborn to even die proper. And are you to know of me?”
“Death is but a part of a greater service young paladin...” soothed the voice, “your brothers are well and happy serving She that made the cosmos.”
Faust? Wondered Sunstriker, it was said the deity had formed the foundation of the universe and appointed her children to watch over it. Merely a-
“Foal’s tale?” queried the voice, “truly you are without faith paladin, how do you expect your god’s favor like that?”
“My ‘god’ abandoned me to the claws of my enemy!” he shouted angrily, “if she is even a god at all.”
“Mayhap you are in search of a new god?” suggested the voice.
“What god would take me into their service if I have already been forsaken?”
“One who can see your potential...” the blood crumbled off of Sunstriker’s face, “Master Paladin Sunstriker.” the voice addressed him in full title, he turned around and was confronted with her glorious night Princess Luna, “wilt thou renounce allegiance to The Light and accept my offer of servitude to The Night, for the greater good of all night dwellers and bring swift justice when thine post demands it?”
This was serious, Sunstriker had only ever taken this self same oath before, but for its opposite... The Light. This was truly out of nowhere, he had been told the night princess could be spontaneous, but requesting his oath of service after a minute of anonymous conversation? He looked back to his broken wing, stained red by his own blood, red like dawn, the same dawn that had left him broken in this place. He set his jaw decided on what to do.
“I, Sunstriker, Master Paladin, Light Vigilant, and Keeper of Dawn’s Light, hereby renounce my allegiance to The Light, for the greater good of all night dwellers and to bring swift justice when my post demands it... I serve The Night!” he proclaimed.
“We accept your oath, welcome my son of night, Nightingale, Master Doomknight, Stalker of Evil, welcome to The Night...”
Wait on my calling young doomknight...