Twilight’s day had been difficult to say the least. When she got back to the library in Ponyville, Luna had raised the moon, and Twilight didn’t even spare a thought on the theory she’d been working on for the past week. Instead, she flew straight up to her bed and started climbing under the covers. “Spike,” she called, hoping her assistant wasn’t already asleep. “Can you get the lights?” When she didn’t get a response, she called the baby dragon’s name again, looking over toward his bed. It was empty.
Fear struck through her heart, and she looked around wildly.
“Twilight!” he cried, his voice coming from the balcony. “He—” His voice cut off abruptly, sounding muffled.
“Spike!” she shouted, going out onto the balcony at a full gallop. “Spike!” Once she was on the balcony, she looked around, her gaze landing on an imposing alicorn perched on the railing. This alicorn wore a silver helmet, and small bits of armor covered various portions of her black body, leaving bare her flank, which glowed brightly—almost as brightly as her white mane and tail, swirling around her eerily.
“Finally,” the tall, black alicorn sneered, using her white magic to drop Spike onto the balcony from where she’d been holding him aloft. “The new little princess arrives.”
Twilight sank back on her haunches, confused and frightened at the same time. “N-Nightmare…Moon?” she mumbled, wondering how this could be the alter-ego of the now beloved princess of the night.
“NO!” she bellowed, her mane and tail swirling more violently. “I am not my mother! Had I a child, I certainly would not abandon her to the world, leave her to DIE!” With each word, her voice grew louder, drawing the attention of the citizens of Ponyville, including Twilight’s close friends. The five ponies made their way quickly to the balcony to protect their friend and princess. “Oh, and the gang’s all here! Come to take something else from me, hmm?!”
“Who the hay do you think you are?” Rainbow Dash snapped, flying up to literally stare the threat in the eyes.
“Yeah,” Twilight agreed, slightly anxious. “Nightmare Moon didn’t have a daughter.”
“I am Nightmare Light,” she hissed, swatting Rainbow Dash out of the air as though the pegasus were only a fly. “As for Nightmare Moon not having a daughter…well, why don’t you try spending a thousand years with nopony else around. Eventually, you would use whatever magic you could to keep from losing your sanity!”
“Nightmare Light, your mother doesn’t exist anymore!” Rarity piped up, one hoof taking on a faint tremor of fear. “You need to understand that!”
“Oh, she exists,” Nightmare Light scoffed, grabbing the unicorn with her magic. “The princess you call Luna is her cage now. She’s lost sight of what she was working for. So now it’s my turn.” In an instant, she flashed to stand before Twilight, looking down at her in scorn. “Tis a pity, really, that I couldn’t have a sister. You would have made a fine assistant.”
There was just an instant of warning when Nightmare Light’s horn lit up white before she shot a beam of pure energy at Twilight. An instant the princess used to flash herself and her friends out of the library, Spike clinging to her back. The energy that would have at least injured Twilight made a gaping hole in the wall of the library, causing the balcony to fall. Nightmare Light roared in anger, surging up into the sky as the balcony began to disconnect from the tree-building, turning to see the six ponies and Spike running down the main road, the majority of Ponyville’s population ahead of them.
“What do we do, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked, panic in her voice. But then, Fluttershy panicked fairly easily.
“I don’t know, girls,” Twilight responded, worry spurring her to run faster. “If we had the Elements, I’d say we get them and fight her off. But since they’re in the Tree…”
“Ah know it’s not ideal, but we’ve gotta hide for now,” Applejack cut in. “We’ve gotta find a way to hide where this Nightmare Light won’t be able to find us.”
“But where would we hide?” Pinkie Pie cried. “She knew where to find Twilight, she’ll know where to find the rest of us!”
Just then, another beam of energy struck the ground right in front of Twilight, making them all come to an abrupt halt. “Oh, is the princess afraid of a little light?” Nightmare Light laughed, swooping down to land in front of the group. “And what is this I hear about Elements? Would you be saying that you don’t have the Elements…of Harmony?” She laughed louder, rearing up in excitement. “Oh, my timing couldn’t be better, could it?!”
“It could,” Discord cut in, finally intervening after hearing Fluttershy’s panicked voice. His appearance painted a confused look on Nightmare Light’s face. “You have heard of me, haven’t you?”
“What are you?” she muttered, her eyes looking him up and down repeatedly.
“I’m hurt!” he gasped, falling back dramatically, only to reappear on her back. “You truly haven’t heard of me? Discord, god of chaos? Reality altering powers?” When her response was only to buck him off, he sighed. “I suppose I'm not terribly surprised. I was trapped in stone by the Elements of Harmony for over a thousand years. Rather tedious, I must say. I'm free now, though, because I've agreed to do good for the princesses.” He raised an eyebrow, his physical form growing a bit for emphasis.
“What does that have to do with me?” Nightmare Light sneered, her horn lighting up again, building up more power than before. She was just about to blast the entire group in front of her when Discord’s paw snaked out, seemingly from nowhere, and grabbed onto her horn. Her magic instantly died away, and she felt suddenly weaker.
“Perhaps you should fly away,” Discord suggested, his voice eerie, pulling his paw back as she stumbled back. “Know what you’re up against before making another stand.”
Nightmare Light’s eyes widened in realization that she was being given a chance to escape an enemy she couldn’t fend off just yet, and she took off, flying fast out of Ponyville…