Luna traversed the dream realm. Though the night had not come as of yet, she could still gander around. A miniscule amount of dreams scattered the area. Gazing into each dream, she could see the same nightmare since the return of the Phantasm Kirin.
“I do hope this ends soon. I grow weary of watching such wretched scenes.” Luna thought, still staring into the flames that engulfed the landscapes. The horrified cries of ponies flooded her conscious, making her feel somewhat responsible for allowing a monster have an advantage over her, in her own realm no less. As guilty as she felt, she knew she could do little to help.
“Kirin, why have you wrought such torment on us?”
“Do not ask what has already been answered, Princess Luna.” Luna spun around, greeted by the sight of a tall, purple shadow with a white smile. Slowly, the dreams began to fade as the entirety of the dream realm became dark.
“Revenge should be below Kirin. Think of your ancestors. Would they be proud of you?” Luna asked, remaining calm. The Kirin let out a low laugh, flashing those crimson eyes at her.
“I’m certain they could voice their opinion if they still lived. I lack such a luxury to live with one of my own, and I have your subjects to thank for it.” The smile had disappeared; replaced by a solid expression.
“But during the massacre, your kind did not fight back. They did not seek revenge.”
“Of course they couldn’t seek revenge. They were dead.”
“You misunderstand. The Kirin only wanted to bring the races together, and even accepted the thought of dying in the process. You wish to torture others for the suffering they caused you. That is no Kirin, but a monster.” The Phantasm Kirin began to grimace, showing a slight bit of annoyance.
“You are at no position to speak, Nightmare Moon. Who was it that grew jealous of her sister? Who was it that let that jealousy corrupt them? Who was it that wanted to bring eternal night? You have the gall to point out my flaws when you are no saint.” Luna stepped back, but quickly regained composure. The words stung, but that did not waver the princess.
“I was but a child then. I put such petty emotions behind me now, so why can’t you do the same? You’ve lived longer than my sister and I, yet you cannot let the past go? I am everything but a saint. That much is true. But I’ve learned from my trials, so why can’t you do the same?” The Kirin’s eyes began to glow as it became agitated.
“You had a childhood. You grew up with the comfort of family. As I emerged from my mother’s womb, I fell onto a bloody battlefield. I watched my mother struggle for life, only to lose it. I viewed the corpse of my father and the decaying hides of my brothers and sisters, and you wonder why I want to see your land suffer?” Luna’s eyes began to glow white as she braced herself for an attack. To her surprise, thought the Kirin had a displeased look on its face, it never attacked.
“I suggest you rise now, Luna. This isn’t merely an illusion within your mind…”
Luna’s eyes shot open as she sat up. She had fallen asleep, a risky move, after Twilight and the others returned with a badly wounded Leviathan. She shifted her eyes to her window. The sun hadn’t even reached the noontime position. How she longed for the day to be over. She continued to stare out the window, a yawn escaping her mouth. The sun’s light brought peace to the troubled princess, until the tranquility was broken by the sound of hooves. Luna turned, only to meet the eyes of an unwanted guest.
“…you.”
“Me.” Luna sat on her bed, petrified at what she saw before her. There, in the flesh, stood a tall slender figure. Its fur was black with glowing red marks along its body, the glow synchronized with its eyes. Its white mane flowed like the Royal Sisters’ mane did. The horn it bore was black, but was tinted with purple.
Luna was staring at the Phantasm Kirin itself.
“You’ve… changed since last we met… but how did you get here?”
“You act like this is the first time I’ve been in these chambers. It was a well-kept secret, was it not? You even managed to fool Princess Celestia. Shame. Shame. Shame.” The Kirin walked toward Luna’s bed. On reflex, Luna kicked up the covers and shot a magical blast through them. The Kirin shook its head as it intercepted the magic with its horn, absorbing the blast, “You of all ponies should know better than to aggravate a Kirin.”
“Leave now, demonspawn, or face our unending wrath.” Luna opened her wings and ascended from her bed as the Kirin stopped walking forward. The expression of annoyance that Luna had seen in her slumber disappeared, replaced with a smile.
“Such a loud voice. Reminds me of an even louder one from the past.”
“We warned thee to never speak of that day as long as thee can draw breath.” Luna said, her eyes glowing white. The Kirin laughed a bit, only to match the vibrant white glow with its own intense crimson one. Three dark purple rings began to surround the Kirin’s horn. One by one, the rings flew off. With no time to react, Luna found herself latched onto by the rings, which had grown in size and surrounded her horn, her mouth, and her wings. Once completely attached, Luna’s wings began to feel heavy.
“What have you done?” Luna’s voice decreased in volume due to the ring that bonded her mouth. To the average pony, this would sound like mumbles, but the Kirin understood perfectly. Luna’s wings began to droop as she was dragged down. Every time she would get a little higher, the weight became heavier. She wanted to strike back with her own magic, but the ring around her horn absorbed any energy that emerged.
“There’s no use fighting it, my dear Luna. Soon you will fall. You shall fall here, just like you fell those many ages ago…”
Fall, oh beautiful moon,
Fall, to your coming doom.
Fall, for you see,
Fall, you belong to me…
That poem, how Luna hated it. She fell before the Kirin, her wings now pinned down as she took a bowing position. The Kirin smiled as it lowered its head next to Luna’s ear.
“Oh how you loved those four lines. You’ve spent centuries trying to put our encounter behind you, when I can bring it back in seconds.” The Kirin whispered. Luna stared down. For the longest time, no one mention of her relationship to the Kirin. Like the fiend said, it was a well-kept secret. Those who got too close to knowing the truth were either brainwashed or exterminated on the spot; such things a princess would want to forget. Yes, during the youth of her rule, she did cut a few ponies’ lives short. Celestia once caught her in the act, but to her surprise, her sister simply never asked why. Most of those who searched for the connection were criminals on death’s row; ones who wanted to see the Royal Sisters fall. Besides, Luna dispatched them without the use of brute force. Celestia assumed that Luna was saving them from public humiliation and a death that one could see.
“…why now? Why be released from your prison now? Why must you bring torment to my friends?” Luna continued to stare down, avoiding the gaze of the Kirin.
“You really shouldn’t be asking questions when you already hold the answers, Luna. I can, however, see your honest curiousity when it comes to my revival.” The Kirin smiled, using its hoof to raise Luna’s head up to meet its eyes, “How about I just show you?”
With those words, Luna began to feel her hooves going numb. Her wings felt free and arched up, but froze in a stretched out position. She looked down, only to see a gray colour climb up her legs. She realized what was happening, and desperately hoped that she was hallucinating.
Princess Luna was slowly turning into stone.
As the Kirin turned away, it said, “I wonder who will free you of your prison? Surely, you believe the Elements of Harmony will cut your shackles?” it slowly walked away from Luna, “Oh Luna, how I wish it didn’t have to come to this. You could’ve ruled with me ages ago. Imagine an eternal night where everyone would be able to see your beauty and nopony would dare ignore it. Alas, that can no longer be done. I gave you that chance, and you rejected it. So, now you must be trapped. Farewell, my beautiful moon. May your light forever shine on your people.” The Kirin faded as it walked away, leaving Luna to succumb to the petrification. However, with the Kirin gone, the ring her horn faded, allowing her to use her magic for the few moments she still had. She couldn’t break free of the spell, and the stone had already covered her mouth. With her last moments, she wrote a letter and sent it, hoping it would reach its intended recipient.
“The Kirin may have claimed victory over me, but he forgot about one small thing…”
After the tears were shed, Leviathan regained his cruel personality, vowing that if anypony spoke of his breakdown, he’d freeze them to death. Ripper didn’t care, seeing as if anything spoke of it, they wouldn’t get past the first sentence. Titan almost shed a tear, but was able to hold it in. Sighing, Twilight and the rest of the group decided to leave the bounty hunters in the infirmary.
“That went relatively well… ish.” Spike remarked as they exited.
“Eeyup. Considering that them hunters barely showed much at all to start with,” said Applejack. Everyone was in agreement. That incident was probably the most they’d get in terms of emotions when it came to the dragon trio.
“How dare he threaten us? Such terrible manners. I was hoping we would at least get some gratitude,” said Rarity. Obviously, ladies don’t like to be threatened.
“I don’t mind bad manners if the other option is…” Fluttershy shuddered at the thought.
“I’m sure we can reach them some other way.” Twilight said as they walked down the hall.
“Maybe if we got some ge-” Spike was about to suggest a plan before he was interrupted by a familiar feeling. His stomach began to growl as his cheeks puffed up. With a loud belch and a flash of emerald, a scroll with a crescent moon seal materialized from the dragon’s flames. Recovering, Spike caught the letter.
“Celestia, why would Luna send Spike a letter if she could just tell us what she wanted to say? We’re in the castle,” said Twilight, as she and the others examined the scroll. Celestia suddenly became distraught. Quickly, she took the letter and opened it. As she read, she looked at the group, panic in her eyes.
“We must get to my sister’s chamber immediately.” The urgency could not be made clearer. Still holding the letter with magic, Celestia and the group rushed toward the room of Princess Luna.
Celestia wasted no time and barged through the door. As everypony caught up, they were all stopped dead in their tracks.
“What the hay…” Applejack was the first one to speak as they all gathered their thoughts. Celestia walked forward, placing her hoof on the petrified Luna, who was now completely composed of stone. Celestia noticed tears coming from her sister’s eyes, which had also been turned to stone. Slowly, she gave the letter to Spike, who read it aloud.
Dearest Sister,
By the time Spike receives this, I have already been turned to stone by the Kirin. I was too weak to face it. This is no surprise, as a Kirin is a powerful being. The issue is that I never put up a true fight, and there is a reason behind this; a reason I have kept from you for centuries.
When we first encountered the Kirin, we were held captive as we were exposed to our worst fears. That is what you believed, and that is what I went with. However, I believe it is time to tell you what really happened.
After we were held captive, the Kirin gave you phantasms, but spared me the terror. Instead, it showed me reality. It showed me the ponies asleep during my wondrous night, and that stirred jealousy within me. It said it could- wait- HE said he would make sure to give me the respect I deserved if I joined him. I abruptly refused, so he went to another form of persuasion.
I don’t know what it was. Was it his flowing mane? Was it his dazzling, azure-tinted, and white fur? Was it his intriguing ruby eyes? Was it his power? I’ll never know, but I know it was mutual and sincere. It pains me to say this, but I had an intimate relation that day with the Kirin. I know it’s sudden and seems ridiculous, but it is true. I understand if you cannot forgive my lust-filled desire.
With the Kirin’s magic intertwined with mine, I became pregnant. You never noticed it as I cast my own illusion spell. Once more, please forgive me. A few months later, I conceived a child. It was no alicorn, unicorn, earth pony, or pegasus. It was an infant Kirin. I know it holds the memories of the Phantasm Kirin, but it also holds memories of mine. In secret, I took care of it, releasing it beyond the Everfree Forest when it reached the age of a teenager. I know not of where it resides now, but if you look hard enough, I’m sure you’ll find it.
There is no guarantee that this child will be able to defeat its father, nor prophecy that claims for him to be the chosen one. I do know, however, that the child is one of our best option against the Kirin. I cannot say that it will remember me, so you may have a fight to deal with. Its name is Lunar Blaze. As the name suggests, its gift is fire. I also know that it cannot speak verbally.
Seek my child. Together with the Elements of Harmony, the dragons, Discord, and yourself, you will be able to finally vanquish this menace.
I wish you luck, Celestia, and if I am never freed from my stone prison, I want you to know…
I love you,
Princess Luna
“…” The room was silent as Spike finished the last word. Tears had formed in Celestia’s eyes as she cast herself on her sister’s statue. Twilight looked at her friends as they all took in the information. Their thoughts were interrupted by a certain being.
“Another Kirin? In Equestria? Things just got a little more interesting…” everyone looked up to see Discord flying with a small smirk on his face, “Still can’t believe Lulu here is a mom. Must be hard to fathom at this moment, huh.”
“Quite. Where have you been Discord?” Celestia asked as she wiped the tears from her eyes, regaining her royal composure. Discord descended, landing in front of Luna.
“Studying, believe it or not. The Phantasm Kirin is one of the evilest forces ever born to Equestria. We know it’s stronger than you and Luna. He… wow. Kinda weird to refer to the ‘it’ as a ‘he.’ Anywho, He’s stronger than ponies and puts dragons to shame.”
“Thanks, Captain Obvious,” Rainbow Dash remarked, earning a small chuckle from Discord.
“Though a Kirin is powerful, no one said anything about one versus a draconequus,” said Discord. Celestia shook her head.
“No. You can’t face it. We can’t risk losing another,” said Celestia. Discord simply brushed it off with a grin.
“Look, Celly, you don’t have much options left. I’m your best bet at getting that child Kirin here while staying alive. I’ve beaten you before, so I have a decent sporting chance,” said Discord. Celestia pondered his offer. He had a point. Without the Elements of Harmony to stop him, Discord was nearly unbeatable. Maybe Chaos could combat Phantasms. She looked back at the Elements and Spike. Twilight nodded in agreement to Discord’s idea.
“Princess, Discord can hold his own. The Phantasm Kirin may be powerful, but I doubt even he can predict someone like Discord,” said Spike. Celestia nodded. Discord was the best option.
“I assume it’s settled then,” Discord said as he turned around, outstretching his wings. He turned back with a sly grin on his face, “Be back in a few,” and with that, he disappeared.
“After all these years, ah STILL can’t understand Discord,” Applejack said.
“No duh. He’s chaos after all.” Rainbow said as she looked at Luna’s statue, a small bit of rage building within. That monster was going to pay.
Finally regaining her full composure, she gestured for the group to check on the dragons. All of them followed, still unsure on how to soften up the hunters. However, they all agreed that maybe softening up Leviathan and his group wasn’t the best idea if they were to have any chance of beating the Kirin.
Twilight stayed at the back of the group, pondering the events that had just recently passed. Looking out the windows the group passed, she sighed to herself. The sun hadn’t even passed noon yet, but she was used to thinking early in the morning. In just a few short hours, the Phantasm Kirin had revealed himself, damaged Leviathan, and encased Luna in stone. It made all the strategic moves, like a chess game. Each piece was crucial, and each had to be moved to the right square. So far, the Kirin was able to predict the moves they made. Maybe a trick piece; maybe chaos is what they needed.
Perhaps now the Kirin would slip up, and they would gain an upper hoof.
“Beyond the Everfree Forest lies my fabled prize. The moon told me that, much to my surprise. For the moon had stopped, frozen in time. Shocked and hurt was that friend of mine. So along came a chaos, a force unmatched. A force so powerful, only the strongest could catch. But the chaos was chaos, not some fairy tale hero. The chaos was I, and… I am out of rhymes,” said a poetic Discord as he soared the Equestrian sky. Of course, every cloud he touched became cotton candy. The little things in life made him happy.
Discord continued his flight, passing the Everfree Forest. Nopony had ever gone that far before, or nopony had gone that far and lived. There was Saddle Arabia and other ethnic places, but they were in the other direction. At the end of the forest was a cliff. It was quite a drop.
After that drop was land, but it contrasted to Equestria. There were no lush fields or running rivers. There was no civilization. The land was barren, no sign of any life apparent in the lifeless earth. The skeletons of ponies scattered the area, providing little shelter for the scrawny insects. Flags stood high, but their code-of-arms were tattered alongside the sand that resided on the once glorious fabric. The area was simply known as “Death’s Playground.”
Discord paused right before the cliff, landing safely. Death’s Playground was uncharted and nopony dared to set foot past the cliff. Discord simply smiled. It seemed like the perfect place for a Kirin to hide. Breaking to drink some chocolate milk, Discord stared at the sky. The sun was almost at noon.
“To think that today will really be the longest day. Well, Celly can raise the moon, so hopefully this can blow over soon,” said Discord as he stretched his wings. He ascended, flying into Death’s Playground in search of a Kirin.
“Leviathan, stay down. You and I both know that you cannot fight like this.”
“I’m said I’m fine. Now get me out of this robe. My scales are beginning to itch.” Leviathan attempted to get out of the cot, but no matter how strong his will was, he couldn’t move. Titan tried to keep him down, but his stubbornness made it a challenge. Ripper had perched himself on the windowsill, eating a reserve gem. The bounty hunters never accounted for Leviathan’s injury. They had hoped to get in, kill, get out, and feast on gems back at the base. Unfortunately, that plan no longer existed.
“Titan, don’t waste your time. The boss’ll get out eventually. Here. Catch.” Ripper turned and hurled a gem at Titan, who caught it in his mouth. Chewing, he went over to Ripper, gazing out the window.
“What do you think the ponies are doing?” Titan asked. Ripper chuckled some.
“The little buggers are probably thinking of a plan. The Kirin has been way ahead of us so far.”
“And to think it isn’t even lunch time yet. When we get back to base, I’ll finally be able to finish that book,” said Titan. Surprisingly, the hulk of a dragon had brain to match his brawn. Ripper often caught him reading some philosophical passage or calculating how to get the most reward from any job. In his spare time, Titan would even write poems. Ripper would listen in on recitations.
“Heh. Books. Maybe you and that purple pony should have a reading date or something,” said Ripper as he finished off his gem.
“Maybe you need to read something that will help your short-term memory loss,” replied Titan. Ripper scratched the back of his head as he smirked. He never was really good with names. Actually, Ripper wasn’t great at remembering things in general. The only things he could effectively remember were Leviathan and Titan. This was due to blunt trauma to the head a long time ago.
“Leviathan, are you out ye-” Ripper began, but was greeted by a smack to the face. This brought him down. Slightly dazed, he looked up to see Leviathan standing with a wicked smile spread across his face. However, he had even more scars on his body.
“I’m up. Still in a little pain, but nothing a good killing won’t fix,” said Leviathan. Normally, it would take a dragon a few days to recover injuries that severe, but Leviathan was a frost drake. Their ice, while deadly, is also an effective treatment for wounds. They numb the pain, periodically re-freezing the area. Ripper smiled as he got up.
“Glad to have you back boss.”
“Glad to be back. Now both of you. Get off your sorry hides and follow me. We’ve got a princess to talk to.” And with that, the bounty hunters left the infirmary, rejuvenated and ready to fight.
Spike stood out on the balcony of Celestia’s chamber, gazing over the houses of Equestria. Sighing, he was reminded of the unrelenting inferno that haunted him in his sleep. The cries of ponies still resonated within his head. Cursing beneath his breath, he continued to look over the land.
“Spike? Are you okay?” Twilight had been talking with the others, but went over to check on her assistant. Spike looked back and sighed once more.
“I’m just so exhausted. No peaceful rest, brutal training, and running around with a dragon is hard stuff. I keep hearing the nightmare over and over again. I just want this to stop…”
“I understand Spike, but have a little hope. When Discord returns with Luna’s child, we can finally put an end to this nightmare. Hopefully, this only lasts for today,” said Twilight as she joined Spike in looking over Equestria. Spike smiled and put his arm around her, who in turn put a wing around him.
“Maybe after this is over, you can come back to the Library for a bit. It’s odd not having the town bookworm freaking out about reports anymore,” joked Spike. Twilight sighed as she smiled.
“Whatever. Just for that, I’ll make you take over a hundred letters for no good reason.”
“You sneaky devil.”
“I try,” said Twilight as she and Spike laughed. Both of them looked up. The moon was high up in the night sky, stars twinkling, bringing a peaceful feeling over the two friends…
Wait… Twilight kept staring at the moon. Why was it up now? Were they all so lost in thought that Celestia lost track of time? The last time she checked it was a little past noon. Spike noticed it as well. Both of them glanced at each other before Twilight rushed back inside.
“Celestia? Why’s the moon up?” asked Twilight. Celestia shook her head.
“I don’t know. I never raised it. I would theorize Discord, but he’s still on the search for Luna’s child. He can be quite serious about work,” said Celestia. Twilight nodded and turned to her friends, who were all talking to each other to explain the weird appearance of the moon.
“Spike?” Twilight turned back to her assistant. Spike hadn’t come in yet. Spike was trembling, sweat running down his back. Twilight walked toward him, concerned. Spike turned back, his eyes while as he struggled to say something.
“L-l-Look… in… the-the… sky…” Spike’s voice was shaky, but audible enough to draw the attention of the rest of the group, prompting them to go outside. Spike’s claw raised up to point at the night sky.
“Oh… my…” Fluttershy mustered her strength to say two words. The night sky was darker with a giant silhouette of a certain figure. The Phantasm Kirin smiled, his white fangs gleaming.
“Good evening, Equestria. I am the Phantasm Kirin. Lately, there have been a few… issues with lunar management. I have taken the liberty to rectify that. So I trapped your lunar princess in stone. How sad for Luna. Despite that, the moon must be raised, and seeing as Celestia would not do it, well, you see the sky. Don’t worry. The sun is lowered, and may it never rise again. The moon shall stay in the sky forever. Should any of you disagree with this…” The group looked to see a flurry of azure lightning bolts strike places of Equestria. Their nightmare was coming true. Flames erupted from houses as ponies fell like flies. Cloudsdale, much to Rainbow Dash’s horror, became the beacon of destruction. The lightning seemed to start there.
Suddenly, the Kirin turned his attention to the group at Canterlot, a wicked expression of glee on his face. Spike growled as he flashed his claws. The Elements crouched low, their necklaces glowing in anticipation. Celestia also began to glow as a sun-shaped rune emerged below her.
“Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock, Elements of Harmony. Your time is almost up. Gather your allies and attempt to end my art as soon as you can. The longer you wait, more ponies die. Such cruelty.”
“You’re gonna pay, buster,” growled Rainbow, earning a faint chuckle escaping the Kirin’s mouth. He then focused his attention on Celestia alone.
“Who should we thank for this? Who shall we thank for not stopping a force as great as I? Who thought it was foalproof to trap a Kirin in stone? All hail the solar ruler, Princess Celestia,” said the Kirin with a smile. Celestia grimaced, realizing what he had done. He was inciting unrest in the populace, making their job of defeating the Kirin even harder.
“By the word of my sister, I shall see to your destruction,” said Celestia.
“Such a threat! I’d love to take you up on that offer, but there are sleeping ponies in need of some phantasms.” Before anyone could object, the visage of the Kirin vanished. The group looked at each other, then back at the moon. Smoke rose into the night sky as the cries pierced the heavens.
Their nightmare had come true.