~Chapter 2
~Where is Night?~
It was sun set and the sky was painted in numerous colors, varying from reds and oranges to blues and purples. The sun was just at the horizon and the moon was half way up the sky. Stars, too, had started to shine brightly in the already lit sky.
Night watched as the sun sunk further, disappearing under the earth. The sky then changed from the varies colors to a deep blueish purple color with white specks from the stars.
After a while of looking at the night sky, Night Shine turned and went back into the palace. She headed to her mother's room. Inside, it was empty. She went to her aunt, Celestia's room. Empty. She ran around the palace. No pony was there. She kept running, hoping to find some pony. Any pony. But no pony was there.
She went back out to the gardens and walked to the fountain. She looked up to the sky and a tear fell down her cheek, into the fountain, making it ripple.
Night looked down at her reflection in the water. The sparkling water started to faded into black. The world around her was gone.
Pure darkness surrounded her.
Night Shine woke with a dull, aching thud pounding in her head. When it subsides, she awkwardly stumbled up onto her hooves and took a cautious look around. Her head started to spin at the unfamiliar sights.
She was surrounded by trees that seemed to be towering over her. The ground beneath her was made of sand and pebbles. Ahead of her, there lied two paths. One headed East, the other West. Night looked down both paths, as far as she could, but both looked the same. She started to pace back and forth as she thought about which way she was to go.
Down both, all she could see was the trees and path. There was nothing to guide her into taking the right path. As she paced back and forth, a thought came to mind. What if there was no right path?
What if there was no right path for her to take?
Behind her, she heard a stick break. She turned and looked around with a terrified gaze. Again, another twig snapped. Night jumped and ran down one of the paths, running faster than what she thought was possible.
Eventually, Night slowed down, and took a look at her surroundings. Many trees still stood tall over her, but there was a clearing up ahead. She smiled, and ran to it. After the few lengths she had to run, she entered the clearing and took a look around.
The clearing was like a sandy beach, with pebbles and grass. It was outlined with varies plants, grasses and rocks. There were many rocks that seemed big enough to house a pony or any animal. But on the northern side, one rock stood out from the rest. Night decided to take a better look at it. She went up to it, and on the opposite side, was a carved out tunnel.
Night Shine looked at it with curiosity. What could be in there?
It was still day at the time she decided to explore the mysterious cave tunnel. Cautiously, she looked around the entrance of the cave. The grey rock was covered in moss and thick vines covered the entrance.
She pushed through the vines and slowly entered the cavern. As soon as she was in, the vines fell back into their original spots and left Night in pure darkness. She turned and looked at the vines, debating whether to go in or leave.
Deciding to go in, she took a deep breath. Carefully, she placed her hooves on the ground as she walked forward. The only noticeable sound was the clicking of her hooves as they made contact with the rock's surface.
All Night could think about was what could be hiding in here.
Shaking the thought from her head, she kept walking onward. She tried to ignore the silence. Night was never one to be particularly keen to silence. Up ahead, she could faintly make out a small glow. She smiled and started to run towards it.
When she was close enough, she saw a hole in the rock's wall that let the light shine through. Turning her attention to what was ahead of her, she sighed. There were, again, two paths for her to chose from.
Darkness filled both paths, so she couldn't make out what was down either way. She sighed in irritation. Night didn't know what to do.
Suddenly, the light that came through the hole was turned and now pointed down one of the paths. Night stood still at first, shocked by the movement. Then, taking the light as a sign, she followed the path that the light had lit.
She followed the path, hesitantly, wondering what could be lurking in the shadows of the cavern.
Night heard the sound of footsteps behind her, making her stop in her place. Her eyes widened. Again, they echoed through the tunnel. Night was scared, so she ran. She ran down the tunnel as fast as she could.
Eventually, at the end of the path, there was a large clearing. Night looked around, cautiously. She was scared of what could be lurking in the shadows, waiting for some pony like her to enter.
She walked in and took a look around at the rock. Many jewels, gems and metals were sparkling all over the walls, floor and ceiling of the clearing. Night Shine became mesmerized by the sparkling items. It reminded her of the night sky.
Suddenly, she felt something brush up against her. She tensed. Behind her, coming from the tunnel, she heard a growling sound. She felt something come close to her ear.
"Hide!"
Before she could react to the strangers word, she was roughly pushed against the wall, behind a huge rock. Night stood up silently, shaking her head. The stranger was rude. Then curiosity entered her mind.
Why did the stranger push her and tell her to hide?
Silently, Night peered around the rock. She gasped. In the clearing was a creature. It was so unfamiliar to Night, but she knew it was dangerous by the look in it's eyes. Anger. That was what filled the creature's eyes.
Night Shine started to shake with fear. It wasn't so much the creature that scared her, but the unknown.
Also in the clearing was a pony. The pony seemed to be about the same age as Night, maybe a little older, and the pony had a blue coat. She watched with interest as the pony used magic and skill to fight the creature.
Night wasn't sure what interested her more. The unknown creature, or the pony that was brave enough to try and fight against it.
She watched, intensly, wanting to know who that pony was. The creature before the pony was large. A couple lengths taller than herself, with a red scaley body and a tail that could curl around her entire body. It's eyes were green and filled with anger.
The creature looked over towards where Night was hiding and as soon as it's eyes caught hold of hers, she ran back behind the rock, cowering down closely to the rock that was before her.
She listened to the sounds of the fighting, hoping that the pony would be alright. Night really wanted to know who that blue pony was. She had caught the pony's eye for a brief second, but now, she couldn't forget it.
That pony interested her. He was intriguing.
After a while, the sound of fighting dissolved, leaving the cavern in silence. Night tried to open her eyes, but they felt heavy with sleep. She kept trying to fight it, as she wanted to see the brave pony, but soon she gave in.
Darkness fell over her.