As soon as they got inside, the ponies could see why the entrance had seemed so black, even in the light from Nightsong's horn. The entire entrance hall was black with soot, and the smell of cooked meat was still thick in the air after more than a thousand years, making them all gag and cover their noses as it forced them back into the clean air for a moment. Finally, Nightsong managed to brace himself for another trip inside, only to be stopped by moaning.
Seven zombponies, three in what could only have once been the armor of the Solar Army, shambled from the darkness of the temple. They barely resembled ponies, however. What cloth there had been on their bodies was long since gone, and any metal they had had on when they died had fused to their skin, or what skin had been protected by the searing heat that had killed them, at any rate. Their heads were nothing but skulls, with bits of rotten cooked meat hanging off here and there, and even the bones that showed through where skin should have been were partially melted. The had no weapons, and they were unable to walk properly as the joints that had served them in life were now fused, making single pieces of bone where there should not have been. Only able to move by rocking forward and back until they got somewhere, the zombies attempted to make for the group, even more slowly than the zombies they had fought earlier, and unable to have the bursts of speed, either.
Everypony in the group recoiled in horror and pity at the sight of the deformed zombies. Nightsong used his magic to knock them over, watching in pity and disgust as they attempted to right themselves unsuccessfully, their jaws, which had somehow remained operable, clacking loudly in the silence. The black unicorn's horn glowed, and seven large red ethereal swords appeared over the zombponies' heads,poised to remove them from this plane forever. As the blades fell, he heard several gasps and sobs from behind him, even as the undead horrors twitched their last, the red light going from their eyes. Nightsong turned to see the Elements huttled together, staring in shock at the dead creatures, tears flowing from their faces.
“I put them out of their misery,” he explained, and they each nodded, though it was still several minutes before any of them managed to contain her emotions and follow him into the temple.
Twilight was actually the first to recover, which surprised her immensely. Noticing that Nightsong was no longer with them, she cast bubble shields over herself and her friends to keep in the fresh night air as they went inside, instead of having to smell the awful stenches that made their homes in the halls and rooms of the temple. Taking a deep breath the steady herself, she started trotting towards the temple, smiling as her confidence returned with the soft clopping of hooves behind her indicating her friends were following.
Twilight gasped in amazement. They had caught up to Nightsong on the other side of the blackened area of the temple. Whatever spell had been used, while powerful, was obviously not a far-ranged spell. Ten feet of hallway in the entrance had been burnt and blackened by it, but beyond that, there was no evidence of the spell. That was not what had caught Twilight's attention, however.
On the ceiling of the hallway, dancing and moving seemingly without regard for the fact that they weren't even supposed to be there, were thousands upon billions of stars, swirling through the cosmic colors that had, for millions of years, signaled the Milky Way to those who had embraced the night sky. Instead of moving in a uniform pattern, however, these stars seemed to move randomly, albeit still with regards to the laws of the universe, judging by how they flung each other across vast distances. Twilight's eyes devoured the scene, and eventually, some movement caught her eyes. Moving through the vast galaxy of stars was what appeared to be a small bear made entirely of stars. Twilight stared for a few moments, and finally realized what she was seeing. “Is that...An Ursa?” she asked quietly, not daring to move.
Nightsong followed her gaze, and smiled when he saw it. “Fascinating, isn't it? The Order was formed to serve our Lunar Princess, and her first decree when she heard that was that must also protect her beautiful night. Since then, not only have we worked to bring the glory of the night into the world, but we have also cared for the night and her creatures.” He pointed to another shape, bounding across the star filled ceiling. “This ceiling was created to remind us of our duties. However, as ponies took it upon themselves to hunt down the Celestial creatures, it also became a refuge for them, one where they could live without fear if they so chose.” He glanced back at the burned portion of the hallway, frowning at the blackened, starless expanse that had probably also once contained the miniature galaxy. “It is such a shame that it did not remain that way.” He noticed a pink blur bouncing in the corner of his eye, and turned to look.
Pinkie was bouncing in place on the stone floor, attempting to reach and touch the stars with each jump. Each time, she seemed to get a little closer, until finally she managed to touch one... And yowled with pain.
Her friends rushed to her side, each voicing their concern over her injury. Nightsong stood back to admire their friendship once more before stepping forward, pulling a medical kit out of his bag with his magic. “Be careful. That is not an illusion. It is an actual miniature galaxy of stars, and it does hold its own dangers if one is not careful.” He finished applying a burn ointment he had pulled from the kit, stepping back as bandages wound themselves around Pinkie's hoof, sealing in the ointment and giving the pink pony something to stand on instead of the burn. Suddenly, his ears flickered, hearing something the others missed, and he turned towards the first turn in the hallways. “We should get going.” He declared, galloping off to the left turn and disappearing around the corner.
The Elements looked amongst themselves for a moment, confusion plain on their faces, before they all got up to follow the black unicorn deeper into the temple.