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// Chapter 13: Demons of the Night 
// Story: Before the Dawn 
// by SilverMuse 
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Chapter 13: Demons of the Night


The dream, nay, nightmare Luna entered was frigid and foreboding. Sombra’s most recent dreams had not been entirely pleasant before her arrival, but never had they felt like this one. It was as if a biting, purple mist had arisen and now sought to block her from reaching Sombra. It coiled itself around Sombra’s sleeping mind much like a snake crushing its prey. Luna flew into the violet cloud and heard whispered noises that she could not discern. A barrier came up between her and Sombra, causing her to jerk to a halt in midair. She waved her horn, sending moonlight through the darkness, but the shadows held together longer than she expected. An extra burst of magic was needed to make the web of shadows finally dissolve. 
Luna placed her silver moon in its proper place in the sky to chase away the darkness. She flew around silently, trying to clear the mist so that she could create the grassy terrain that she and Sombra so loved. The stars refused to rise, however, and when she finally broke through the rest of the barrier, she found Sombra sitting, not on grass, but on stone ground within a wall of onyx crystals and jagged mirrors.
Dread filled her, and she swooped towards him quickly. He sat, staring at an image of himself. Both he and the reflection looked drained, worried. His eyes were bloodshot, as if he had not slept in days, though she knew he had since she had tried to visit him every night while he slept.
She landed near him and took a timid step forward. “Sombra?” she called to him. Her voice echoed strangely, causing her to look around in surprise. 
The whispers started up again, but Luna pushed them aside. Sombra continued to stare, unmoving.
What is wrong with him? she wondered. She drew closer and touched his shoulder with a hoof. “Sombra?” she said more forcefully this time, shaking him. 
Sombra jumped and spun around in a panic, his horn glowing bright green. His eyes filled with rage, and he planted his hooves on the ground, ready to defend himself. “Get away from me.”
Luna drew back in alarm. “Sombra, it’s Luna. Don’t you recognize me?” she asked.
Sombra’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t lie to me. You’re just an illusion, nothing else. Get out of my head. You’ve done enough damage. I won’t let you hurt me!” His magic started to grow brighter as he prepared to attack.
Luna didn’t give him the chance. In this realm, she could not be injured. She ran forward, and as he reared back to strike, Luna grabbed his cheeks and pulled him into a kiss.
Sombra resisted at first, but very slowly, he leaned into it, and the magic around his horn faded. By the time Luna pulled away, Sombra was on all four hooves, his eyes damp.
“Luna?” he whispered. “I-is it really you?” 
“What has happened to you?” Luna asked as she looked him over. So tired...oh, he looked so tired. Why had the shimmer faded from his coat? “You were well the last time I spoke to you.”
“I... bad dreams. I’ve been having bad dreams,” he told her almost distantly. He looked around, but Luna had cast black shrouds over the crystals and mirrors to make the dream look more like the night. His shoulders sagged in relief, but he still looked exhausted. 
“Where are you?” Luna asked him.
Sombra swallowed and pressed his head to her neck. “The caves. I...I did something terrible today, and I had to escape.”
Luna felt a lump rise in her throat. “Tell me,” she urged him.
Sombra quietly began to explain the performance he, Blue Belle, and Ambersong had put on for the ponies. All seemed well, until he explained how the ponies had laughed at him, though his friends had told him otherwise. Blue Belle and Ambersong had tried to comfort him, but he’d lost his temper and attacked them. “I...I don’t think they’re hurt, but...but I could have really injured them,” he whined. 
Luna wrapped her wings around him and pulled him into a loving hug. It was such a terrible situation, and she feared how he had lost his temper. His magic was stronger than even she had imagined, and it meant he could do great harm if he did not restrain his rage. Yet, those warnings were not what he needed to hear at the moment; he needed comfort. “Shhh, you did not mean it. I know you never meant to hurt them, and I think they will understand that too if you go back to them.” She pressed her cheek to his. “You need to leave the caves, Sombra. The Nightmist might start to toy with you, and I do not wish to lose you before I arrive.”
“Arrive?” Sombra asked in surprise. He looked at her with wide eyes. “Are you returning?”
Luna nodded. “Yes, we received a note from the Queen herself that the Empire fell under attack for several nights. She requires my aid.” She saw the confusion on his face. “What is it?”
“What attacks?” he asked, his eyes darting left and right. He slipped out of her hold, his frown deepening. “Luna, I have not heard of any such attacks. If they have occurred, then Gemfyre has said nothing of them to us.”
Suspicion crept into Luna’s thoughts. Celestia’s reminder that there might be traitors in the Empire made Luna draw back just a little. “Are you certain? Quill brought the message.”
Sombra stared at her and his eyes suddenly darted to the right as if he was listening to somepony. He stared at nothing then looked back at her, the stress even more apparent in his gaze. “I’m sure I have heard of nothing. I don’t know, Luna...” He edged slightly away from her now, keeping an uncomfortable distance between them that had not been there before.
Luna’s paranoia grew, though at the same time her conscience told her that Sombra would not be the type of pony to betray her. They loved each other. And yet…
“I wish to ask you something, and I want you to answer me honestly.”
Sombra blinked. “Yes?” he asked hesitantly.
She pointed to his horn. “Why did you lie to me about how you broke your horn?”
“...what?”
“Celestia told me that you broke it when you used a powerful blast of magic to try to hurt one of the foals teasing Blue Belle. The magic rebounded and broke your horn.” Luna lowered her hoof. “Did you lie?”
The silence was affirmation enough. Sombra shifted uneasily on his hooves. His mane bristled a little, and he snorted. “How would you have reacted if I had told you, upon our first meeting, that I had almost hurt a foal because I lost my temper?”
“I would have respected you more had you told me the truth from the beginning,” Luna said honestly. “I do not like those who lie to me, and perhaps I could have helped you had I known your magic was so strong yet uncontrollable.”
“I can control it just fine,” Sombra hissed at her, though he immediately appeared to regret the words. His face flushed, and he bowed his head. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Luna watched him with steady eyes, wishing there was something she could do to just fix all that had happened. She saw the shame in his face and the hurt, and his ears just kept flicking, listening to an unheard sound. “Why did you lie to me?” she whispered.
Sombra shut his eyes tightly and turned his head away. “Do you want to know what happened after I used my magic? Fillies and colts refused to come near me. A group would be playing a game, and the moment I approached, the ponies scattered.” His eyes started to water and he looked up at her. “I couldn’t even talk to one of them without the pony shuddering and running away. I just wanted to be loved and wanted. I had no parents, and what friends I had made, save for Blue Belle, abandoned me after the magical incident. They all turned me away.
“And the ironic thing is,” he said with a sardonic, tearful laugh, “that neglect did not make me hate them; it made me hate myself for what I had become. Weak. Pathetic. Broken. My horn was no longer a threat, but they still saw me as one, and it hurt so much. Had Blue Belle and Ambersong not opened their hearts to me, I might have just left the Empire and been lost, or…done something worse.” He reached up to scrub a couple of tears out of his eyes. “I lied because I did not want to scare you away, too. I know you suffer abuse and neglect from the ponies you govern, but tell me, did you ever endure such loneliness as a filly?”
“...No," Luna admitted softly. “But when I was young, and after my parents vanished, all I had was Tia. We were the oddities of Equestria, and it took us a while to find unicorns and other ponies who could help train us. But...at least we had each other.”
“Did they fear you, the other ponies, I mean?”
“Sometimes...” Luna murmured and shuffled her hooves. “They feared our power because we were alicorns but...they did not scorn us as the ponies did you.” Her voice softened. She watched him, standing away from her with such a shattered look in his eyes. She saw the fear he felt of her turning against him. Luna’s heart ached and she stepped forward and pressed her head to his. “I’m so sorry, Sombra. I did not realize how terrible it was for you.” 
Sombra choked back a sob and shuddered against her. “I can’t do anything right. I just hurt the ones I love. When I saw the terror in Ambersong’s and Blue Belle’s eyes, the way they cowered, I just felt like my world would end. I didn’t want to see the same fear from you. I just want to help. I never wanted to hurt anypony. I’m so sorry…forgive me, Luna, please. 	Please…I beg you.”
Luna swallowed hard and drew back to look at him. His eyes were red-rimmed and puffy from crying. His ears drooped limply to the sides; he was an absolute. Luna wanted to be mad at him for the deception, but the longer she stared, the more she just wanted to help him. Here was a unicorn who had been dealt a terrible lot in life. He’d been abused, neglected, and lied to, and yet he showed so much regret for almost hurting his dear friends. No pony who felt that much could be truly evil.
Luna sighed and reached out to nuzzle him again. “Yes,” she said. “I forgive you. I just hope you tell me the truth from now on, Sombra.”
“I will...” he said in earnest and sniffed. When he looked up again, his eyes were clearer. “I am being honest when I say that I know nothing about the attacks on the Empire. Perhaps they occurred once I was in the crystal cave.” He eyed her worriedly. “When will you arrive?”
“Before dawn,” Luna replied and reached up to stroke his cheek. “When I do, you had best be out of that cave, Sombra, or I will go in there and drag you out.”
He cracked a tired smile. “I will, Luna. I promise.” He rubbed his nose against hers and left a chaste kiss on her muzzle. “Fly safe and true.”
“I will, beloved,” Luna replied and hugged him once more. “I must return. Come find me once I land.” She winked an eye then fluttered backwards. The dark cloths left the mirrors and crystals and wrapped around her.
When she opened her eyes, she was still seated beside Quill who had curled up on her side to rest. Luna touched her back then leapt from the chariot and began to fly beside her fellow ponies. They tipped their heads respectfully to her, which Luna returned. The night stretched long before them, the moonlight guiding their way to the Empire. 


~*~


The hours passed as they soared through the sky. Luna went to check on Quill once or twice, but the pony was still fast asleep. Luna couldn’t blame her; it must have been a strenuous journey for her. In fact, Luna’s wings were starting to wear thin. The night guards were used to flying for long stretches, but she was not any more. She flapped carefully over to the chariot and settled down beside Quill with a sigh.
“We will reach the Empire shortly, Princess,” one of the guards said as he flapped closer. His webbed wings caught the wind easily, his golden eyes glinting as he watched over her protectively.
Luna nodded. She was anxious to see Gemfyre, as well as Sombra. Their conversation had not been the most comforting, but at least they were not fighting. His violent reaction when she first entered his dream had her worried, however. What had set him off like that? And why had he kept glancing around? He had acted as if someone else had been speaking to him besides her. 
Could it be the voices have been haunting him, but he has not told me? Luna wondered worriedly. She hoped that that was not the case; she did not want to lose him to the Nightmist. Gemfyre had already told them what might happen should they allow that voice to overtake them. The thought of losing Sombra to those de—
Fooom! 
Luna jumped as a great ball of red light crashed into the guard furthest from her. The pegasus cried out in pain, his wings igniting with fire, and he plummeted towards the ground with burnt membranes. When one mare broke away to help him, another ball of light surrounded her and sent her collapsing after the first with a wail. 
Luna cursed and brought a shield around the chariot and the two ponies carrying them, but not before another blast hit the underside of the chariot and burst it into two pieces. 
Quill was tossed to one side, Luna to the other. Luna managed to sweep out her wings to stay aloft, but Quill, now awake, shrieked, and started to fall towards the earth. 
Luna spared her guards a single glance—only three remained—before she dove after Quill. An extra burst of magic sent her forward, helping her catch up faster to the flailing, weeping unicorn.
“Be still!” Luna cried as she reached down and caught the mare. They tumbled briefly as Quill fought, and by the time Luna tried to fly back to her entourage, it was too late. Her remaining three guards fell from the sky, their fur and manes steaming from the blow of magic. Armor had either been melted or knocked loose from their falling forms. She heard the painful thuds of their bodies and hooves and the clatter of their loose helmets and breastplates as they hit the trees. Luna didn’t know if they could have survived the fall, but they would have had a better chance than Quill with their remaining armor and wings.
Luna held the frightened unicorn close and started to flap upwards. 
Red magic shot into the sky, aiming to take her to the ground. Luna deflected the blasts with her shields, causing them to ricochet through the trees. She heard several branches crack followed by a pony’s cry of pain, but she felt little sympathy for the fate of the ones that had unjustly attacked her and her guards.  
She saw a stallion skid beneath the trees and launch another blast of light at her. Luna pulled Quill closer and swung her head, sending a stream of white light down to split the unicorn’s red magic. Her power slammed into his chest and sent him flipping backwards into the bushes. A mare aimed for Luna’s right wing, but another shield deflected the power and sent it streaming back towards the unicorn. She dodged out of the way, leaving a scorch mark in the earth. 
“Look out!” Quill screeched.
Luna looked behind her seconds before a red orb crashed into her left wing. She cried out in pain, the appendage crumbling beneath her weight. She and Quill fell once more, only, this time, there was no stopping their fall; their bodies crashed violently into the trees. A blow to Luna’s right side broke her and Quill apart. Wood scratched at her cheeks and sides, leaving thin bloody scrapes. Luna flopped against a thick branch then fell and hit the ground in a tangle of leaves, twigs, wings, and limbs. With a groan, she rolled onto her side and searched the trees for Quill, but she could neither find, nor hear, the pony.
Please be unharmed, she pleaded for the sake of her guards and Quill. 
She wobbled dizzily back to her hooves and flapped her wings, but the left one scarcely moved; she’d damaged it in the fall and it dangled limply along her side. Luna immediately redirected her magic to heal herself. She was not going to let the unicorns defeat her this easily. She huddled against the tree to give herself a moment to mend and watch the nearby clearing.
One by one, the unicorns that had attacked at the coronation and at the crystal caves came into view. All bore thin necklaces save for the main five who wore thick golden chains with their ruby hearts. The quintet had their horns alight with red magic that matched their pendants. They stopped several feet away from her and stood in a circle, staring at each other, as if they were preparing a spell.
Luna narrowed her eyes. Her left wing started to move more easily, and she considered flying into the sky and escaping, but her dignity fought with her. Should she try to defeat them, to show them what it meant to attack the Princess of the night, or would it be better to fight another day? 
Find Gemfyre. They may be trying to separate us, she argued with herself. 
She took a step back, started to turn, and felt somepony jump onto her back. She flapped her wings in surprise and choked as something wrapped tightly around her throat, cutting off her air for a brief moment. Her unseen assailant slid off of her and kicked her in the rear, hard, sending her tumbling into the ring of five unicorns. 
Desperate, Luna lashed out with her magic at the five unicorns, but red shields sprang up in front of them. They moved as one, sending their crimson curses streaming at her...no, not exactly at her, but at whatever was now wrapped around her neck. Luna looked down and saw a necklace against her throat that had the head of a unicorn and the wings of a pegasus. 
An alicorn? 
Right in the black and silver center was a tiny red gem that glinted. Luna stared at it in confusion then gave a cry of agony as all five beams of red light from the unicorns struck the gem.
Pain sliced through her body. Luna threw her head back with a scream and let all of her magic go to her horn. Her eyes turned white, and the power that exploded from the tip of her horn was brighter than even the moon. It flew towards the unicorns, aiming to strike every single one of them down.
Nothing happened. 
As the red magic poured into her, she felt her moon power drained from her body and horn. The powerful white blast flickered and faded before it neared the unicorns. 
What was happening? Why couldn’t she use her magic?!
Luna started to stagger as more power was pulled out of her. She wavered, her head dropping low as she tried to hold her ground, but there was nothing she could do. Each time she tried to strike, it was as if they anticipated it and stole her magic. The necklace throbbed against her, nearly burning her flesh. 
She moaned and felt her legs crumble beneath her. She flopped onto her side, the strength leaving her in an instant. She felt so weak and so helpless in this, her desperate hour. 
“Death to the alicorns,” the unicorns started to chant as they approached her, their voices echoing in her ears.
Luna fluttered her eyes open and watched a sixth pony approach her. Familiar red armor graced his white body and brow. His crimson helm matched the demonic glow in his eyes. 
“You…” Luna whispered weakly.
The unicorn pushed his horn to Luna’s forehead and sneered.
“Death to the Princess of the night.”
Magic ignited in front of her eyes. Time slowed as her black crown cracked into two pieces. Luna watched dimly as it tumbled to the ground. Red light glinted off a corner shard of the tiara, like a dying flame. The world started to spin into a circle filled with fire and white unicorns. 
With a groan, Luna dropped her head to the ground and fell into darkness.