“Captain Night Wing!” I jolted awake and was on my hooves in an instant finding myself face to face with Silent Rain, my second in command. Flourish was close behind him. “Sir, you have to come quickly!”
“Rain?” My mouth asked without consent. It was then I noticed we were in the archives at the castle. “What’s wrong?”
“The sun has yet to rise and the Mare in the Moon is gone!” He responded.
Right then, this is a dream. A memory of when Nightmare Moon returned.
“Has there been any word from Celestia or her guard?”
“No sir, nothing.” Rain said.
“Our first priority is securing Canterlot.”
“But the-” I cut him off.
“We have contingencies in place. The princess has likely been moved somewhere safe by Captain Armor. We have to ensure the safety of the civilians. Rain, you take squads two, three, and five into the city. Clear the streets and get everypony back in their homes.” Having orders seemed to calm Rain’s nerves, and he shot off to follow them. “Flourish you’re with me. We have to secure the castle.”
“Sir?” She called as we ran from the back room, “Are you sure the princess is safe?”
“Yes,” I replied. “The princess is always prepared. If Celestia had already been defeated then Nightmare Moon would be storming the castle to take back her throne.”
“Is that what we’re checking for?”
“If she were here, we would know.” At that moment the entire castle shook as a powerful voice rang through the halls.
“Ponies of Canterlot, the ruler of the night has returned!”
Sometimes I swear the universe has it out for me.
“Captain,” Flourish said. I turned to her. I’d never seen her so scared. She’s so hard to shake up. That face is something I’ll never forget.
“Come on,” I said. “We’re going to the throne room.” My dream shifted, skipping over our sprint. Good thing too, I remember being pretty scared myself and that’s not a feeling I enjoy reliving. When we did reach the throne room Nightmare Moon was waiting for us.
“And who are you two supposed to be,” the dark alicorn sneered.
“I am Night Wing, current Captain of Canterlot’s Lunar Guard.” I responded, hoping I sounded much more confident than I felt. “And this is First Lieutenant Flourish, the most talented unicorn under my command.”
“Flourish? Really?” Nightmare Moon scoffed, “Such a soft name, but you I like Night Wing. I could use you.”
Ok, don’t remember that, I thought as her horn lit up and the shadows of the room began to converge around me.
“You claim to be a Lunar Guard?” The shadows reached my hooves and began to engulf me turning my coat gray. It felt like being encased in ice. “Then submit to your princess!” As the shadows continued to climb my body I felt my wings flare of their own accord. The icy feeling reached my neck, my breath caught in my throat. The shadows clawed at my mind and I couldn’t bear it any longer. I opened my mouth to scream but no sound came, then I heard a voice.
“Enough.” The world stood still and the shadows melted away. “You never told me you had nightmares.”
“Luna?” I asked, still a bit wary after my memory had just become so distorted.
“Yes, it’s really me.” She replied. “Dreams fall under my jurisdiction as well.”
“You never mentioned.” I said shaking off the last of the chill the shadows had left behind.
“You never asked.”
“Right, so why are you in my head? I’m sure there’s some filly or colt somewhere whose nightmares require more attention than mine.”
“Her,” she said as she walked past me.
“Seriously? I know better than anypony that she’s no threat to me. Besides, this isn’t even the way things happened.”
“Dreams can be very real Night Wing.” She turned to face me. “Sure, they may be all in your head but when your mind decides that something is real, it becomes very hard to convince it otherwise. The mind is a truly amazing thing. Its power is both great and terrifying. More importantly, dreams are a way for the mind to unwind. You can learn a lot about a pony from watching their dreams.”
“Luna.” I called in an attempt to break her out of her rant.
“Tell me,” She continued, unfazed, “do you harbor any fear concerning me at all?”
“Why would I be scared of you?”
“That wasn’t the question,” she said. Her horn lit up and the throne room dissipated into a white mist that hung around the two of us. “Just think about it.” Then she dissolved into the mist as well.
I’m afraid of losing you.