---{Dilan Shier}
Somewhere in a distant dream...
Several nights later, I was sensing something very strange. It kind of felt like a Nightmare fragment, but it felt... wrong. I wasn't sure how to describe it. Maybe it wasn't really a piece of the Nightmare at all. Whatever it was, it was making Posh breathe more erratically than usual.
"What is this tearing feeling that we are sensing?" If I didn't know any better, I'd have said that her hair was standing on end. "Is that another me? Does that other me possess more strength than me?" She growled simultaneously as her audible breath. "I have a sudden urge to eliminate myself!"
Spectrum hovered over and crossed her front limbs. "I bet I know who could tell us more." Next thing I knew, she punched me in the face.
---
"Wah!" I leaped out from under the covers. I was immediately re-introduced to my old acquaintance the floor. "Oof." Though, there was little time to rub off the pain as I remembered why it was so imperative to wake up. "Princess Luna!"
Using Posh's power in my mane, I slipped into the shadows. Sprinting in this form to Luna's room took exactly an instant. Though, I needed to stand back up to properly communicate. But as I stood in the middle of that room in Nightmare Moon's pony form, I noticed a distinct lack of Luna anywhere. Instead, there was a growing crevice in the middle of the air. It almost looked like a disruption in space itself.
That didn't surprise me nearly as much as what happened next. A large muzzle started flowing out of that crevice. It looked an awful lot like the Pony of Shadows. I stood wide-eyed with my mouth open. How could that be here? I already had Posh inside my subconscious. There was no way she could be here, too.
I shook my head and gave this leaking threat my best determined face. If this was another Nightmare fragment like Posh, I'd take it on and remove it using my secret weapon. I willed my red, smoky tail near that shadowy figure and let him go to work. ... Except, he wasn't doing his work.
"This... is not hatred," whispered Tail Demon. "This is... guilt. I cannot feed on guilt."
"Say what?!" I exclaimed. The doors slammed open after that.
"What's going on?" demanded Spirit Sword.
"What is that?!" exclaimed Faith Shield while pointing a hoof at that shady thing emerging from the crevice.
"I don't know!" I admitted. "I'm trying to get rid of it, but Tail Demon is saying he can't."
Spirit huffed, unfurling his sharp wings. "Then we have to take care of business the old-fashioned way."
"Sounds good to me," said Faith, opening his wings too.
The bat-ponies took flight and rushed forward. They sliced through the entity, leaving an X-shaped mark in it. I punched my hooves against each other before flying in with Spectrum's lightning punch. I was surprised when it felt like my hoof hit nothing but air. I yelped as I started falling through the crevice. I felt a strong grasp against each of my hind legs as well as the grunting voices of Spirit and Faith.
I struggled, trying to figure out what to do with my front half so I could help them pull me back. It was then that I gasped at the entirety of space that was on the other side of the crevice.
"Is this... one... giant... dream of... Ponyville?"
There were ponies flying around that shouldn't have been as well as costumes stranger than a Halloween role-playing convention. The rest of the shady entity was standing on this side, slowly trying to trot through. That was all I saw before the night guards managed to yank me back into the real bedroom. All of us groaned after the impact with the floor.
"Some pony should probably let Princess Celestia know about this," muttered Faith.
A night cap sauntered in, followed closely by a sleepy Celestia. "Some pony should probably let me know whaaaaaa?!" Any signs of being half-asleep evaporated from her features instantly, as did the night cap. Her eyes wobbled, as if she had taken a pounding to her heart. "Oh, Luna... why didn't you tell me?"
"Princess Celestia!" I called out, while pointing a wing in the shady figure's direction. "I can't seem to stop this Nightmare."
"That is no Nightmare. It is a parasite of oneself." Celestia lowered her head briefly, somehow hiding her eyes behind her mane. She slowly nodded. "I will do what I can from this end. But the rest is up to Luna."
"But where is Princess Luna, Your Highness?" wondered Spirit.
She didn't answer. Instead, she pointed her horn up. A thin, golden beam erupted. Her concentrated point of magic collided with the forehead of thing she had called a parasite. The rate at which the shady entity was sticking its head out of the crevice slowed down considerably. However, I could still see it advancing. Gritting my teeth, I called upon Star Bright's blue magic to try and float that shady entity back. Its advance slowed down even further.
I'm not sure how long Celestia and I spent holding it off. After what felt like forever, the parasite suddenly growled in a questioning tone before sliding all the way back. With nothing left for my magic to hold onto, I fell to the ground on my chest. I did manage to look up long enough to watch the crevice close itself.
"What just happened?" Spirit blinked uncomprehendingly.
"I don't know." Faith scratched his head in just as much confusion.
"Did... Luna do that?" I wondered. "And if so, from where?"
Celestia smiled gently and looked toward the bedroom window. "If I had to fathom a guess, she's having a sleepover with Princess Twilight and her friends."
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