//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 // Story: The Light Side of the Moon // by Black sun and white mist //------------------------------// Moonlight shined down on the sky city of Cloudsdale. A once magnificent city, Cloudsdale was now a wasteland. Garbage littered the streets and there was usually no pony around, but tonight a mare was out and about. Her orange coat and purple mane was covered in a thick layer of dirt and garbage from her endeavor for food. It was all worth it though. The food wasn't for the orange mare. It was for the little foal she called sister. The orange pegasus carried her sister everywhere. It was for the foal's protection. Foals were taken away to join the nightmare army. That wasn't going to happen with this mare's sister. The orange pegasus mare jumped when she heard a wail from inside her saddlebags. Quickly realizing it was her sister, the orange pegasus coddled the foal to quiet her down. The orange pegasus took out a bottle and stuck it in the foal's mouth. "It's ok," the orange pegasus cooed. "Scootaloo is here." Scootaloo smiled warmly at her sister. Then, Scootaloo's wings tingled and she knew exactly what it was. Her wings were completely useless flying but they could sense magic better than any pegasus. As the tingling became an agonizing pain, Scootaloo ran into a nearby alley and ducked into the shadows. Tears fell from Scootaloo's eyes as the pain got worse and worse. Through her blurred eyes, she could see an electric, purple light emitting from just outside of the alley she was in. Just like that, the light burst out and Scootaloo's wings felt no more pain from the powerful magic. She wiped the tears from her eyes to see what the magical light produced. There, stood five mares. Two unicorns, two pegasi, and an earth pony stood there. Scootaloo recognized them as old residents of Ponyville and the newcomer who visited a year ago when the night became eternal. To Scootaloo's delight, Rainbow Dash was among them. Rainbow Dash was Scootaloo's idol or her old one anyway. When Nightmare took over, Rainbow Dash and five others disappeared. Scootaloo decided to move back to Cloudsdale since there was nothing left for her in Ponyville. Scootaloo was relieved to see Rainbow safe. Something was off about Rainbow and her friends, though. Upon closer inspection, Scootaloo found that each of the five had jewels on their bodies. Scootaloo knew that the jewels meant they were high in the ranks of the nightmare army but that didn't mean they were beyond evil. Scootaloo flinched when she looked into the eyes of each of the ponies. They had cat-like irises just like Nightmare Moon's. Scootaloo still didn't think of them as pure evil. She knew Rainbow Dash was as good as can be and if she wasn't evil, neither were the others. Scootaloo perked up her ears to listen in on the conversation they were having. "Why can't we just let Nightmare do it?" the mare Scootaloo recognized as Rarity complained. "Because if she looks into Pinkamena's dreams too closely, she'll find out about the plan," the purple unicorn, Twilight Sparkle, explained. "We have to find Pinkamena first." "I'm...kind of tired myself," the yellow pegasus, Fluttershy, whispered. "You be quiet," the orange earth pony, Applejack, snapped. "You're the only one who knew and didn't care to tell us!" Fluttershy pawed at the ground. Rainbow Dash laughed. "Poor Fluttershy," Rainbow mocked. "You need to learn how to buck-up and I know how." Rainbow Dash spun around and slashed at Fluttershy with her wings. Scootaloo heard a scream and saw that Fluttershy had a cut in her cheek. The others laughed and Scootaloo watched in horror. "Evil,"Scootaloo thought, "Pure evil." Scootaloo turned around to run but accidentally bumped into a trash can. It made a clanging sound and the conversation behind Scootaloo, stopped. Scootaloo could feel magic wrap around her. She tried to break free but it was no use. Scootaloo closed her eyes and waited for her fate. When nothing happened, Scootaloo cracked open an eye to find her face-to-face with Rainbow Dash. A green glow was coming out of her lightning bolt shaped chest jewel. "Lookie what we have here, girls," Rainbow Dash said darkly. "A little runt." All five of the ponies' eyes were narrowed. Even Fluttershy's gaze darkened. "Rainbow. Please," Scootaloo begged. "Please what?" Applejack snapped. "Do you know what we do to eavesdropping foals?" "Wh-what?" Scootaloo whimpered. "To the dungeons," Twilight said. Scootaloo squeaked. She couldn't go to the dungeons. How would she care for her sister? Out of true coincidence, a cry came from under Scootaloo's wings. The five ponies realized what it was and grinned. "I have a better idea," Rainbow said. Rainbow took Scootaloo's sister in her magic and handed her to Fluttershy. Fluttershy took her. Tears formed in Scootaloo's eyes. "Looks like we have a crier," Rarity sneered. "I think we need to teach her how to buck-up as well." Rainbow nodded and flew off with Scootaloo still in her magic. They reached the edge of Cloudsdale. Rainbow flew to the ground and lifted Scootaloo over the edge. Scootaloo shivered in fright as she looked at the ground below. "I seem to remember that you can't fly," Rainbow commented. "Please," Scootaloo cried. "No." Scootaloo looked into Rainbow's eyes but found no sympathy. Rainbow's jewel stopped glowing and Scootaloo went plummeting down. Rainbow turned back around and flew off to join her cohorts. Scootaloo fell at high speed. She tried to use her wings to lower the speed but it was a fruitless attempt. Fortunately, she could see a lake and aimed for that. Scootaloo reached the lake with a big splash. It took a few minutes but Scootaloo dragged herself out. She was sprawled out on the ground. A thought came to her mind "I'm going to get my sister back," Scootaloo breathed, "no matter what it takes. I will end the tyranny of Nightmare Moon. Watch out Rainbow Dash." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cheese groaned when he rose out of bed. Tonight, he felt considerably more tired. When his hooves touched the floor, Cheese staggered. The sudden weight threw him off balance. With a few stumbles, Cheese managed to reach his bathroom sink. Cheese glanced into the mirror and gasped at what he saw. Two large horns came out of the side of his head. Cheese's muzzle was much larger and his eyes were huge. He couldn't even see the whites of his eyes. Cheese took a step back to look at the rest of his body. His stomach almost touched the floor and brown covered parts of his coat. The once bushy tail on his rump was now long with a brown tuft at the end. Cheese looked at his hooves. They were much like a goat's or a...a cow's. Cheese was a cow. Cheese tried to scream but it came out as a deep 'moo'. He covered his mouth and wondered how this could have happened. It was either a master prank or he really was a cow. Quickly grabbing his bed sheet and covering his entire body, he ran into the hallway outside his room. Cheese bumped into multiple items and/or ponies because he had his face covered. A faint scream rang through the hall and Cheese stopped. It sounded like Pinkamena's. Cheese shook his head and continued on to find Shining Armor. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pinkamena trotted through the dark halls of Canterlot Castle. She had no idea why she was running or how she got there but she knew she had to keep running. Hoofsteps could be heard behind Pinkamena. They were solid and slow but the hooves seemed to keep up with Pinkamena. The hall came to an end and Pinkamena swiveled around to find a tall, dark figure. "Shining Armor,"Pinkamena thought venomously. Pinkamena reached into her magic reserves but when she pulled at the source, it fought back. Pinkamena became confused and then a light flashed from her neck. She looked down to find a magic-blocking collar. "I don't need magic," Pinkamena yelled at the unicorn. "I have hooves!" Pinkamena lunged at Shining but he dodged. Pinkamena felt something pound her back and she fell into the void. She heard a voice from above cackling with glee. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pinkamena twisted around in her bed. She couldn't get a wink of sleep. Eventually, she gave up trying and stepped out of bed. She shivered when her hooves touched the cold, stone floor. When she opened her eyes, she found her eyesight all blurry. She had to squint to find the puddle in the corner of her cell. A dripping sound from the ceiling confirmed her location. Pinkamena dipped her hooves in the earthy water and wiped her face. Her eyesight was still terrible even after she washed. Through her poor eyesight, she could see a large, pink blob in the puddle. She leaned in closer to find that it was her own reflection. Her mane was curled with a big forelock and something was incredibly wrong with her eyes. They were large ovals and not their usual slits. Pinkamena felt around for her tail. With one touch, she could tell that her tail was like her mane. Her jaw dropped. She screeched as loud as she could. Pinkamena looked like her old, fun-loving self. Not only that, but now she no longer had the eyes that made ponies recoil in fright. She started to hyperventilate. Over and over she thought, "No. No. No. No." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shining Armor lazily looked through scouting reports from the nightmare army. It was always the same but this time, Shining found something interesting. Apparently, Nightmare was planning on attacking the griffon kingdom and she was going to fight herself. The report stated that it would happen a few months from now but opportunity still stood. The griffons were a proud race who fought their battles head on. Shining knew it was a fruitless tactic and the griffon kingdom would eventually succumb to the nightmare army. Nightmare would be weakened after the battle...that was when Shining could strike. Sure, it would be easier to take over while she was gone fighting. The problem was that Nightmare would find out, stay in the griffon kingdom to recuperate, and come back as fresh as a daisy. The Cult of the Sun's army wouldn't be able to take the sheer might of Nightmare's power so it seemed logical to do it when she least expected it. A loud knock pounded on his office door. Shining used his magic to open the door. A cloaked figure ran into the office quickly and Shining jumped back. His horn lit up, ready to attack. He shot a disintegrating spell at the figure and the cloak instantly disappeared. There stood a cow that looked a lot like Cheese. "May I help you?" Shining asked confused. He powered down his horn because cows weren't exactly threatening. "I neeeeddd your help," the cow mooed/squeaked. "Sorry for my voice buuutttt this is an emergency, Shining." "How do you know my name?" Shining asked. "It's me," the cow said through a strained voice. "Cheeseeee Sandwich." Shining moved closer to inspect the cow. "Prove it," Shining said simply. "Uh...," the cow muttered. "Oh!" The cow pointed to his flank. Shining took a look and saw the same accordion cutiemark Cheese had. He rubbed the cutiemark to confirm its authenticity. It was indeed real. "How did this happen?" Shining asked rubbing his forehead. "That's what I don't get." "I reallllllyyyy don't know," Cheese mooed. "I came to youuuu to find out." "Please don't talk anymore," Shining told Cheese. "Your voice is like nails to a chalkboard." Cheese nodded solemnly. Another knock on the door got Shining's attention. "You better hide." Cheese looked around for a place to hide. He dove behind Shining's desk and broke a lamp in the process. With a sigh, Shining opened the door. Two guards stood there with a cage on their backs. They threw it down. A stunned Pinkamena sat in the cage, her eyes staring into space. Shining noticed her curly hair and wide, non-slitted eyes. "There's something wrong with this one," one of the guards reported. "It didn't respond when we brought its food," the other guard said. "We figured that we'd bring it to you." "You were right to do so," Shining nodded. "You may leave." The guards turned and slammed the door. "You can come out, Cheese." "Did you hear hoooowwww they were speaking about her?" Cheese growled not-so-frightingly. Shining noticed his hair bristling. "She's not an 'it'. She's a poooony like us!" "You mean like me," Shining corrected. "You're not a pony anymore." Cheese shuffled his feet. "Beside's, 'it' is more fitting and it seems you're not the only one having trouble today." "Do you knoooowwww what happened?" Cheese asked, his gaze growing lighter. "It most have been something you either ate, drank, or touched." Shining listed. "Pinkamena may have experienced the same thing." Cheese looked over to the pink lump in the cage. He realized that she looked kind of like a filly he saw once... "I didn't realllllyy touch anything out-of-the-ordinary," Cheese told Shining. "Just a blue flower that I gave to Pinkamena." "I knew it was you," Pinkamena spat, coming out of her trance. "I tore it apart." Shining could see that Cheese was surprised but the cow quickly regained his composure. "So the blue flower," Shining reasoned, "it was something you both touched. Where did you get it, Cheese?" "From a patch of it in Everfree," Cheese told Shining. "I waannnttted to give it toooooo her as a gift." "Poison Joke," Shining said. "Poison what?" Pinkamena asked with her forelegs crossed. "Poison Joke," Shining Armor confirmed. "Like poison oak but this plant plays pranks on ponies who touch it. I don't know if there's a cure but if there is one, there is a zebra shaman here in Everfree who knows it. You need to find her." "And how are we going to do that?" Pinkamena growled accusingly. "I can barely see and by the sound of it, Cheese is having a hard time moving. Even talking sounds challenging for him." Shining looked over at Cheese and noticed that the once-pony was looking tired. "I'll give you a map," Shining told her, trying not to pound her. "You and Cheese will go together. You will be handcuffed so there is no way to escape. Cheese will use his eyesight and you will use your muscles to drag him along. Am I clear?" Cheese gave a little nod but Pinkamena wasn't going so easily. "I don't want to lug him around!" Pinkamena protested. "And what makes you think I won't escape?" "Cheese may be at a loss right now but you need the cure just as much as he does," Shining told her. "And when you're cured, I believe Cheese and the zebra will keep you from escaping." Pinkamena huffed. As much as she wanted to kill him, she had to admit he was right. A shaman could easily overtake her with magic and even if she did escape, she would just be arrested for looking like 'too much fun' before she ever reached Canterlot. "Hmph," Pinkamena snorted. Shining smiled victoriously. "I'll call for a wagon." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pinkamena sweated profusely as she pulled the wagon up a hill. It wasn't made easier when she couldn't see and her curls kept swatting at her face. It also didn't help that she was pulling a Nightmare-forsaken cow! She was also handcuffed to the aforementioned cow. She felt that she couldn't sink any lower. "This is the worst," Pinkamena said gritting her teeth. Cheese only glanced up from the map he was looking at. "Why did you have to pick that stupid plant from this stupid forest?" "It waassss a gift," Cheese argued. "What did I say about talking?" Pinkamena snapped. Cheese sighed and continued to read his map. Pinkamena glared at the ground. She was disappointed by Cheese's lack of fear at her. Curse this puffy hair and wide eyes! This 'Poison Joke' was going to be set on fire once Pinkamena got home. Pinkamena didn't understand why the flower existed. Armor-butt explained but she tuned him out. It was hard to listen to a more annoying voice than cow-Cheese's. What she heard was "blah, blah, blah, cheese comes from cows" and "blah, blah, blah, this makes you angry". Darn right it made her angry! She reached the top of the hill panting. Pinkamena fell to the ground and a pool of sweat formed under her. Wind blew through her mane. Her eyes were adjusting to the sudden switch in pupil size. That scared Pinkamena a bit. Getting used to this eyesight was just the first step to becoming Laughter again. Cheese cleared his throat. "I'm going. I'm going!" Pinkamena exclaimed. "Jeez." She stood up to walk again but felt a sharp pain in her legs. Her legs buckled and she fell to the ground. She couldn't move. Pinkamena groaned. Unfortunately, a low growl came from a bush next to Pinkamena. It was probably a nightmare creature. Pinkamena could deal with it easily. The creature walked out of the bush. It was a large dog-looking animal with big rippling muscles. "Just a werewolf,"Pinkamena sighed relieved. Werewolves were a creation Nightmare made out of her hate for laughter. Puppies made ponies laugh so, naturally, Nightmare turned them into beasts and sent them all over Equestria. It was a clunky idea since it was Nightmare's first creature transformation. It still worked though. Pinkamena looked into the slitted eyes of the nightmare creature. "I, Pinkamena Diane Pie, head of the nightmare spy division, order you to leave at once," Pinkamena ordered. The werewolf cocked its head to the side and looked at Pinkamena with a "Are you serious?" face. The mutant dog formed a growl in its throat. "Are you deaf?" Pinkamena scrunched her nose. "I said leave!" The werewolf dropped on all fours and paused. Pinkamena knew what was coming next. It was obvious that the wolf didn't recognize her. Her magic was blocked so identifying her by that was out and she didn't have the trademark nightmare eyes. She couldn't move or do anything to stop it. Pinkamena closed her eyes to ready herself for her fate. The wolf pounced but failed to notice the cow in the wagon. Cheese quickly stood up and snapped his hoof out. The wolf hit the hoof and stumbled backwards. Realizing that it was hit by something else, the wolf turned his attention to Cheese. Cheese walked out of the wagon and stood defensively in front of Pinkamena. Pinkamena opened her eyes to find Cheese protecting her from the threat. The werewolf advanced on Cheese. It tried to pounce on the cow but it was too late. Cheese ducked under the attack. The werewolf fell to the ground. It got up but before it could turn around, Cheese bucked the wolf hard in the back and sent it flying. That seemed to do the trick because after a few long minutes, the wolf didn't come back. Cheese nodded, satisfied then fell to the ground. Pinkamena got up and limped to Cheese. She pushed him back into the wagon. Pinkamena felt something twinge in her chest. It was the same feeling she felt towards Fluttershy. Respect. It was just a little twinge but Pinkamena still felt it and she was fine with that. After that event, Cheese deserved that reward. Just a little, not a lot. Not many ponies could obtain such a great prize. Pinkamena glanced back at Cheese. She took the map in her mouth and continued to the zebra shaman's hut. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The zebra shaman sat atop her balancing stick. This was a great way to meditate. The loud sound of her door being slammed against the wall knocked her off her stick. The zebra looked to find the source of the interruption and saw a pink mare with dark pink curls walk in with a wagon behind her. "Are you Zecora?" the pink one asked. "Who are you?" Zecora asked. "You are some pony new." "I'm Pinkamena and we need something from you,"the pink one said. "We?" Zecora asked confused. "In my home there isn't three." Pinkamena gestured towards the inside of her wagon. Zecora looked in to find an orange cow. "Do you know a cure for a plant called Poison Joke?" Pinkamena asked in her most polite voice. It sickened her to be nice but it was needed to get what she wanted. "That is a cure I can do," Zecora told her. "I will mix up a cure for you. Though all of this comes with a fee. Otherwise you won't get anything from me." "Stop talking in rhyme!" Pinkamena growled irritated. "What do you want?" "I want you to not yell," Zecora said. "I only want to know what put you under this spell." "Spell?" Pinkamena asked confused. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Will you mix a cure now?" Zecora sighed. "Alright," Zecora surrendered. "I won't put up a fight." Zecora took down a multitude of elixirs from her shelf. A hour later or so, Zecora told Pinkamena to get into her cauldron. Pinkamena was skeptical but did it anyway. It was uncomfortable with her arm sticking out so she wouldn't rip Cheese's arm off. When she was done with the bath, she had her beautiful, straight hair and her amazing slitted eyes. "A nightmare," Zecora remarked. "Now I see why you don't want to share." Pinkamena glanced at Zecora then pushed the the cauldron over. The content's spilled all over Zecora's clean floor. Pinkamena took a deep breath and pushed her wagon over with all her might. The orange cow fell to the floor into the spilled cure. In a matter of minutes, the cow turned into a lanky stallion with chocolate brown curls. Zecora was surprised. Even she didn't know that the Joke could do that much damage. "We're leaving now," Pinkamena said swishing her tail. She tugged at the cuffs, dumped Cheese into the wagon, and put the wagon strap around her body. Pinkamena continued to walk out with the still unconscious stallion. "You're welcome!" Zecora yelled out the door. "Lot's of selfish ponies and then some." Zecora picked up her balancing stick again and continued to meditate.