Twilight's friends became completely silent as Nightmare Moon delivered a stern, yet mocking, gaze to them.
"I cannot believe you ponies fell for such a trick!" Nightmare Moon scoffed.
"What trick?!" Rainbow Dash demanded furiously.
"The one in your book," the mare in the moon explained. Twilight's friends gasped, and this time, Twilight listened to and watched her friends and Nightmare Moon closely.
"Stop!" a voice echoed from the stairs.
Princess Luna emerged from the stairway and trotted up to Nightmare Moon. "Do not hurt them!" she warned.
"And what will you do if I do hurt them?" Nightmare Moon asked mockingly. Princess Luna stepped back, fury burning in her eyes. She remained silent. "Is somepony mad?" Nightmare Moon mocked the princess of the night again.
"No, I will defeat you," Princess Luna said defiantly. Nightmare Moon frowned, unimpressed.
"Hmm, how dangerous," the corrupted pony said sarcastically.
Nightmare Moon bared her sharp teeth at Princess Celestia's younger sister. The dark alicorn spread her large wings and slammed her left wing into Princess Luna's body.
"Ah!" the Princess gasped. She was flung across the room, then she crashed into the hard and cold floor.
"Princess Luna!" Twilight called, alarmed. The purple pony galloped over to the princess of the night, then examined her wound. "It's just a bruise..." Twilight muttered. She looked at Nightmare Moon, her eyes filled with anger.
"Oh, how adorable. You're saving your precious princess of the night," Nightmare Moon said, rolling her menacing eyes.
"Yeah, what's wrong with that?!" Rainbow Dash yelled across the room.
"Oh, nothing..." Nightmare Moon said in an innocent tone
.
Rainbow Dash dashed up to the evil mare.
"You want a fight?! Then I'll give you a fight!" Rainbow Dash said. The rainbow-maned pony slammed herself into Nightmare Moon's side.
"Gah!" Nightmare Moon yelled as she fell to the floor.
"Rainbow! Stop!" Applejack begged the quick pegasus.
"No!" Rainbow Dash said firmly.
"You've gone too far..." Nightmare Moon muttered grimly. The dark mare rose and glared at Rainbow Dash. She bared her sharp, glistening teeth at the pegasus.
"Uh oh..." Rainbow Dash murmured to herself. Nightmare Moon's horn glowed a dark blue color.
"Rainbow Dash, r-run!" Fluttershy ordered her friend. The blue pegasus ignored her friend's command, and simply stood there, scared. Nightmare Moon fired a blue beam of magic at the rainbow-maned mare.
"No!" Princess Luna protested, getting up. She jumped in front of Rainbow Dash and halted. The princess of the night's horn glowed blue, then she set up a forcefield, just a second before the beam of magic hit Rainbow Dash.
"What?!" Nightmare Moon said in confusion and anger. The forcefield dissipated, then everything became silent.
"Nightmare Moon, do not do anything. You will never make the night last forever," Princess Luna pointed out.
"Silence!" Nightmare Moon commanded.
"You cannot tell me what to do! I am the Princess of the night, not you!" Princess Luna said firmly.
The two broke out into a fight.
"Ohh, this is really entertaining!" Pinkie Pie commented.
"Oh my..." Rarity said in shock.
"Do something, T-Twilight!" Fluttershy pleaded.
Twilight turned and stared at Nightmare Moon and Princess Luna.
"You cannot defeat me! You do not have the elements, or the key to victory! There never was one here, and it was never here in the first place!" Nightmare Moon screamed.
Princess Luna stopped fighting Nightmare Moon and jumped back.
"What?" Twilight echoed in disbelief.
"I only did that to waste your time, and in only a few hours, the night will last forever..." Nightmare Moon explained grimly.
"A few hours? That is just enough time to make sure you perish!" Princess Luna yelled, charging into Nightmare Moon.
A blue aura appeared around Princess Luna's horn again. She shot a beam of magic at the corrupted pony. Nightmare Moon easily dodged it, and Princess Luna stopped in surprise. The aura disappeared from Princess Luna's horn.
"What...?" she questioned.
"A puny attack from my former self won't hurt me at all!" Nightmare Moon pointed out. "What a weak Princess..." Nightmare Moon added, insulting her former self.
Twilight glared at Nightmare Moon.
"We can still defeat you!" Twilight called.
"Hmm?" Nightmare Moon groaned, looking at Twilight.
"We may not have the elements, but we can still represent them with our personalities!" Twilight said.
Her friends began to look defiant and brave. Twilight's friends trotted forward to stand beside her and glare at Nightmare moon. "We have what you don't have, Nightmare Moon...the magic of friendship!" the purple alicorn shouted at the dark mare. A rainbow spun around the group of friends, then turned and charged at Nightmare Moon.
"What? No! No!" the mare in the moon protested. The rainbow surrounded her and rose, then a white flash blinded every pony in the room.
The white flash disappeared, then Twilight slowly opened her eyes. Nightmare Moon was gone, but she noticed that every pony in the room was unconscious. She got up and looked at her hind leg. The timberwolf bite was gone.
"Hey...it healed..." Twilight said to herself in relief.
She noticed her friends starting to stir, then Princess Luna, who was on the other side of the room, woke up. The Princess slowly trotted over to the group of friends. "Are you okay?" Twilight asked the dark blue mare.
"Yes..." Princess Luna replied, tired.
Twilight and her friends were tired too. "Come, we must return to Canterlot," the Princess of the night reminded the others. Twilight nodded.
"Right," she said hastily.
They all left the room silently and made their way back to Canterlot, proud that they had defeated Nightmare Moon once and for all.