//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: First Impressions Count! // Story: Nightmares Are Tragic // by Jordan179 //------------------------------// The instant before her leap, Nightmare Moon had homed in on one particular soul, one that blazed like a Solar flare next to the mere candles by which it was surrounded. Celestia, my sister, she thought as she jumped. Tonight I shall have my revenge! Tonight you perish! Traveling at close to the speed of light, the packet of paramagnetic energy flashed into the largest structure of the new town which had grown up north of the Castle of the Royal Sisters. Nightmare Moon could have leveled the building in the moment of her manifestation, but something made her prefer stealth to display. Her sister was cunning. This could easily be some sort of trap. So at the last instant she phased into a form which could penetrate the walls without interacting them in any way, then recohered herself in a room adjacent to the main hall. She reached out with all her senses. Celestia was gone! But she had been here very recently. Nightmare Moon could smell her trail. At the moment the Nightmare had arrived from the Moon, Celestia had leaped from this building to the new Royal Palace on the mountain, that complex from whose gardens Celestia had so many times sung to … taunted and reviled her, the Nightmare within her supplied to her wandering mind. She felt the urge to leap in immediate pursuit, to tear apart her faithless sister, leave her bleeding corpse in the burning ruins of her collapsing palace. That would be the true path of Revenge. That is what Celestia will expect me to do, she thought, reconsidering her tactics. She’s probably there with her most powerful mages and half the Royal Guard, ready to blast me to quantum foam the moment I arrive. Oh, no, Celestia. I’m not biting at your bait. First I will declare myself here, then I will establish myself at our old castle, gather together a few things. The panic will spread. By the time I confront you in person, I shall hold the decisive advantage. She attenuated herself into cold plasma, oozed toward a balcony of the great hall. The hall was hung with all the banners of the kingdom: those of every province she knew, and many she had seen before only from a quarter-million miles away. It was full of ponies – mostly Earth Ponies and Pegasi, with a small scattering of Unicorns. As she expected, there were only a few Royal Guards here. She was right. Celestia’s presence here had been a ploy, to get her to scout out this insignificant town from the Moon, then leap too rapidly to the Royal Palace, which she had not surveyed as thoroughly. Clever, sister, thought the Moon Princess, but you forget that I was with you from the start, including on all your major campaigns. I know how you think. Because we were … The Nightmare quickly completed her thought. … rivals, using each other to gain a power that we knew even then we could not forever share! Time to let your previous subjects meet their new Queen, Nightmare Moon thought. She drew herself together on the balcony. As she coalesced on the balcony, before she had even started to become tangible, a bubble-gum pink Earth Pony, with an incredibly wild light red mane, was the first to scream. I must be terrifying, the dark alicorn thought with pleasure as she materialized. Though it’s – strange – that she was able to react so fast. She must know of my reputation! She heard some other mare – not the pink Earth Pony -- say softly: “Oh, no. Nightmare Moon.” She could not immediately identify which mare had been quick to recognize her, but she was glad that two mares, now, had recognized her. She gazed forth at the multitude – the first multitude of anything, save craters and Shadows, she had seen up close in a millennium. And she was pleased. “Oh, my beloved subjects,” she began. The crowd gasped in dismay. Oh yes, they expected my beautiful sister, didn’t they? Anger flared in her at this realization, and it crept into her voice. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen your precious, little, sun-loving faces.” She was practically hissing now as her gaze swept the crowd. Three very young fillies – they weren’t even Marked yet – cringed in utter terror, their faces twisting into the expressions of terrified foals. For a moment this bothered a part of her – Why are they so afraid of me? I’ve always loved young ponies, she thought confusedly, then the Nightmare reminded herself – Their minds have been twisted by more of Celestia’s lies! She returned, happily, to her hatred. “What have you done with our Princess?!” cried a blue, rainbow-maned pegasus, leaping up with wings flaring, clearly ready to do immediate battle with her. Nightmare Moon readied an ion bolt to strike her down, then realized that the pegasus was being held back, by the tail, by her friend. Her friend was a big blond-maned, tawny light-chestnut coated Earth Pony mare, wearing a broad-brimmed leather hat, and Marked with three red apples. Apple Clan, thought Nightmare Moon, instantly recognizing the obvious markings. Strong. Tough. Fearless. Good to see that some of them are still around. Though she might prove a problem. The Apple Clan had historically given birth to some of the doughtiest Earth Pony warriors in Equestrian history. So far, though, the Apple mare seemed more interested in saving her friend from the results of her own folly than in hurling herself to her doom against the powers of a Nightmare Alicorn. She said something indistinct to her friend, muffled by the rainbow-hued tail she clenched in her mouth. Nightmare Moon laughed. “Why?” she asked with mock-innocence. “Am I not royal enough for you?” Blank looks all around. “Don’t you know who I am?” she snapped. Surely someone must recognize me, she thought. There must have been records – at least legends. The bubblegum-pink Earth Pony mare, who Nightmare Moon had thought had recognized her on first appearance, perked up at this. The pink mare looked disturbingly happy, considering the obvious potential for violence in the situation. “Ooh, ooh, more guessing games!” she bubbled in a voice like that of a hyperactive young filly, despite her obvious physical maturity. Is she simple? the Moon Princess wondered. Still – there’s something familiar about her – where have I seen her before this night? There was a tantalizing hint of memory – but from when? Next to her, the Apple mare shot her a worried glance, but was unable to intervene due to the necessity of holding on to her rainbow-maned friend, who was still trying to literally fly at her. “Um – Hokey Smokes!” the pink mare guessed. “How ‘bout – Queen Meanie? No – Black Snootie! Black Snootie!” Using one hoof, the Apple mare shoved a small pastry into the pink mare’s mouth, gagging her. Nightmare Moon was impressed by both the Apple’s quick thinking, and the sheer strength it must have taken to do such a thing while holding on to the still-struggling rainbow-maned blue pegasus. Most of the crowd was now backing against the walls. She saw they were within a moment of stampeding. A few still had the courage to stand their ground. She turned to one of them, a beautiful banana-colored pegasus with long pink mane and tail, who hovered next to a perch full of songbirds. The songbirds flew away in alarm at the dark alicorn's approach. “Does my crown no longer count,” she began reasonably enough, “now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years?” The pegasus cringed from that glare, turning and trying to wrap herself in her own mane to avoid her regard. Won’t even meet my eyes, the dark princess thought dismissively. She continued, turning to a white-coated unicorn mare with an elaborately-styled bluish-purple mane. This pony looked somewhat braver, being actually willing to make eye contact. ”Did you not recall the legend?” she asked, stroking the white unicorn’s cheek with a wisp of her star-filled plasma mane. The unicorn stood her ground, but winced a bit with what the dark alicorn realized with a shock was revulsion. Anger flared. “Did you not see the signs?” she asked, slapping the unicorn lightly with her starry mane, not really hurting her, but making contact with enough force to rock her head back. Hit her harder, something within her urged, but she knew that once she used serious force, the stampede would begin, “I did,” came a firm voice, the very same voice she had heard right after her materialization. “And I know who you are.” The Princess of the Night turned to see a purple unicorn standing before her, legs firm set, nostrils flaring, eyes narrowing, voice cold. For no very obvious reason, this new unicorn was standing protectively by what looked like, but logically could not actually be, an unconscious purple-and-green baby dragon. “You’re the Mare in the Moon,” the purple unicorn said. “Nightmare Moon!” The dark alicorn’s eyes widened. There was something very familiar about this purple unicorn. Indigo hair with a purple streak, those great violet eyes … her Mark, a big star surrounded by a spray of smaller ones … It’s her, Nightmare Moon realized. That little filly with the telescope. Full-grown now, but obviously the same pony. The one I thought could be my friend. Is she instead to become my foe? It was a testament to her long experience in a variety of royal courts that Nightmare Moon at most betrayed a brief flicker of her ears in response to her surprise. “Well-well-well,” the dark alicorn replied, her voice softening despite the situation. There was still something strange about this unicorn … she couldn’t quite figure it out. “Some pony who remembers me.” She again sensed some eerie bond between them, the same one she had felt from the Lunar surface … No! I can’t afford to be distracted now! “Then you also know why I’m here!” she stated curtly. “You’re here to – ” the purple unicorn winced, obviously remembering something. “To –” Her face grew frightened, her ears laid back. She cringed, and gulped in obvious terror. Nightmare Moon felt a curious disappointment at the purple unicorn’s fear. You should have stood up to me longer, she thought. It’s not like you to give in so easily. Wait, what was she thinking? I know nothing about this mare. Why should I assume that she is fearless? She’s just a poltroon, like all other ponies! the Nightmare decided. She laughed at the young unicorn’s fear, then at the fears of the whole crowd. They’re all just weak little cowards, she thought. None of them deserve to live any longer. Her laughter rose to what she deemed was a hearty peak as she realized just how worthless were they all. “Remember this day, little ponies,” she declared, “for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will last forever!” Laughing again, she summoned her might and formed a great cloud of cold ionized gas. Lighting flashed from within her miniature storm, and the ponies – her new subjects, for as long as they might live, trembled before her. “Seize her!” cried somepony who looked as if she might be a local official. “Only she knows where the Princess is!” The minor official was a light tan mare with white hair and some sort of elaborate collar. The threat posed by her was laughable, but three armed and armored pegasus Royal Guards stallions rose at her command, flying at Nightmare Moon. “Stand back, you foals!” the Princess of the Night warned them. Strangely, she found herself unwilling to actually start killing the ponies. The Guards paid her no attention. Very well, then I have no choice, she told herself. She quickly concentrated. At the last moment, she decided to mute the force of her spell. Lightning spat from the stormcloud, striking the stallions. They dropped as if pole-axed, and fell to the floor – stunned and injured but still alive. Bah! she realized. There is nothing more I can accomplish here, save for slaughter! She had better things to do. Transforming once again into a swirl of cold plasma, she surged past the crowd, who scattered in terror from her onset, and whipped out into the night through the main door. As she sped off toward her ancient castle, she was dimly aware of the blue-furred, rainbow-maned pegasus, now loose from the jaws of the Apple mare, crying out angrily behind her. Then she accelerated to hypersonic speeds, and was gone, leaving both the oddly-persistent blue pegasus and the small town dwindling in her wake.