by neorenamon
Twilight struggled in vain to escape her chains. She was so close to Celestia but couldn't say anything to comfort her. It seemed like her magic was blocked and she had no physical means to escape Discord's magical imprisonment. She felt growing anger at how easily they were all betrayed by the draconequus. How they were so powerless to resist his will.
She looked about to see that the others were struggling just as hard as her to get loose. Everypony but Celestia. It seemed like she had surrendered to Nightmaretron's will. That she felt like she was powerless to stop the coming Eternal Night.
'You can't give up now,' she thought, 'As long as you're the Princess of Equestria, you have to keep fighting for every pony you rule. It's not just you now. They all need you.'
"Just look at those precious sun-loving faces," hissed Nightmaretron as she opened the cage door and walked in. They all gasp against their bound muzzles and gagged mouths as they saw the Elements of Harmony floating along behind her. "If you think these baubles are going to save your sorry flanks," she continued, "you are truly and sadly mistaken!"
'There's only five,' thought Twilight, 'That means they haven't found them all yet.'
"Oh, and if you think you're Autobot allies are going to save you," she growled, "you're twice the foal and doubly cursed! Even as we speak, Princess Megatron, Discord and their assorted minions are turning them into scrap!"
'NO!!'
"As soon as Discord returns," she scowled, "I'm going to CRUSH the Elements of Harmony before your very eyes! The! Night! Shall! Last! FOREVER!!" Then she broke into a long bought of evil laughter as she watched the spirits of her prisoners falling as she gloated.
'Please! By Celestia's horn, it can't end like this!'
"After the Elements are broken and gone, I'll BREAK ALL OF YOU!"
'I'll NEVER voluntarily serve you! Even if you destroy the Elements, I'll find a way to beat you!'
Nightmaretron laughed again as she gloated, "Look at all of your defiant stares. Those looks of determination. If looks could kill... Only my sweet sister knows that all is already lost. That my reign has already begun." She walked over and put her hoof under Celestia's chin. "Perhaps I'll banish you to the sun for 1,000 years just to see how much you like it!"
Tears welled up in Celestia's eyes as she looked up into the cold hard stare of her once sister Luna.
"Don't think those puppy dog eyes or those crocodile tears will move me, big sister! The time for such forgiveness has long passed!"
One of the Elements floated before Celestia's nose.
"This is the Element of Kindness!" she hissed, "The thing YOU NEVER SHOWED ME!!"
The inert stone shattered against the cold stone floor even as they stared powerless to stop her. Flutterstorm shuddered as if she were kicked in the stomach. But Nightmaretron didn't seem to notice... or care if she did.
"This is the Element of Generosity!" she hissed, "The thing YOU NEVER SHOWED ME!!"
Another stone shattered against the cold stone floor even as they stared and wept bitter tears. Rare Seeker shuddered as if she were kicked in the stomach.
"This is the Element of Laugher!" she hissed, "The BIGGEST JOKE OF ALL THE ELEMENTS!!"
Another stone shattered against the cold stone floor even as they their hopes fell to the floor beneath. Pinkie Maximus shuddered as if she were kicked in the stomach.
"This is the Element of Honesty!" she hissed, "I'll save this one if just to EXPOSE all of your LIES to the ponies of Equestria!!" The inert stone just dropped to the floor. "It will serve as a token of your failure to rule Equestria!"
Apple Buster simply cried harder as she watched the stone lay there powerless. As powerless as she felt.
"This is the Element of Loyalty!" she hissed, "I'll save this one if just to show that every pony should be LOYAL TO ME!!" The inert stone just dropped to the floor. "It will serve as a sign that I was meant to rule all along instead of YOU!!"
Twilight cried harder at the notion that Nightmaretron was the one meant to rule them all under the endless night.
About then, Princess Megatron stalked into the area just outside the open cage door.
"Well," said Nightmaretron, "Tell me about how you crushed those Autobots!"
"That hasn't happened yet!" hissed Megatron.
"The one called Discord interfered!" said Astrotrain.
"Oh, I had a feeling I couldn't trust him!" she replied.
"He locked us into these... ugh... organic forms!" grumbled Blitzwing-griffon.
"Still we could have crushed the Autobots in their pony forms if it wasn't for Rainbow Bolt!"
"What could that foal have done?"
"She returned with weapons packs we didn't have access to," she muttered, "and she brought a large squadron of support ponies as well! We were massively outgunned! Discord stayed behind to cover our withdrawal!"
"Or perhaps he's making a better deal with our enemies!" said Astrotrain.
"Oh I wouldn't put it past him!" hissed Nightmaretron, "But it's all in vain now! I've already destroyed half of the Elements of Harmony!"
"I don't care about that," replied Megatron, "All I care about is getting back my AllSpark and leaving the planet in your hoof servos."
"Say... where is the one called Lugnut?"
"Fallen before the onslaught of my enemies," she replied, "but his sacrifice for the cause shall not be forgotten."
"Even if we didn't try to save him," muttered Astrotrain.
Megatron cut him off with a glare.
"I wouldn't be surprised if Discord saved him just to get into the good graces of our enemies," she replied, "But they'll soon discover that he's just as untrustworthy to them as he was to us."
"I thought the Elements were the only things that could stop him."
"Oh I have an idea or two about how I'm going to reward Discord for his betrayal," she hissed, "One that should get him out of my hair for at least a thousand years." She looked at Celestia as she added, "I think you two will have fun tormenting each other because you two DESERVE to be together."