AT THE TEMPLE OF THE MOON
PART OF DARK HORIZONS
BY thewriter133
Discord reappeared in a bizarre home that would make M.C. Escher proud. There were stairs going nowhere but also going to other stairs that were upside down. In the middle was a large waterfall with weird cubes and stairs going to it. It was also over a small river that had a water mill running. Some weird fungi trees were growing outside what looked to be a door to what may or may not be a city of madness.
He looked around sighed and walked up some stairs only to reappear in another bizarre home. This one was not as mind boggling. It still had garish colors and as Fluttershy looked around she saw Pinkie Pie shaking uncontrollably. She also saw that Cheese Sandwich fella being tended to by a peach colored filly. Off in the corner she saw Sugar Belle and Party Favor out cold and being tended to by Double Diamond and Night Glider.
All the ponies had lost their luster. She heard crying and looked towards the left side of the home to see Carrot and Cup Cake. Both looked ill but not as bad as the others. Their foals, Pound and Pumpkin, were lacking luster and being fussy.She heard Pinkie cry out for her mother and father. She quickly penned three letters and had Discord send them off. He soon collapsed afterwards like a wet noodle.
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Rarity looked as her dragon fire emerald sparked to life and a rolled up letter shot out of it. It left a distinctly cheesy after smell. She read it over and then turned towards Bulk Biceps.
“Bulk, dahling, Little Fluttershy is helping some sick ponies over in the former equality town. Take the train until it goes no further then find a village. By now it shouldn’t be hard to find. Last I heard Discord was helping them rebuild.”
Bulk and Skull flew off towards the Friendship Express. She then pinpointed where Luna was. After noticing that Celestia was in Canterlot. She then focused on Luna and vanished. She arrived next to Luna to see they were at the foot of the temple of Coyolxauhqui. As they entered Rarity couldn’t keep her eyes off the walls.
A voice spoke “I see you looking at the markings of the nine lords of the night Xiuhtecuhtli, Tezcatlipoca the Smoking Mirror, Piltzintecuhtli, Centeotl, Mictlantecuhtli, Chalchiuhtlicue, Tlazolteotl the filth goddess, Tlaloc, and Tepeyollotl the Mountain Heart. Beautiful isn’t it. The temple that I shall resurrect Nightmare Moon in. I thank you for coming Luna. Now that the two my lady possessed are here the ceremony can begin.”
Luna snarled “Show your wretched face.”
A half vaporized mare walked away from the shadows. She had a cutie mark of nine pillars. She smiled a sickly half smile as Luna gasped.
She looked dispassionately at Luna “Yes it is I, New Moon! With you both here the nightmare can be resurrected.”
Rarity snarled “And how do you plan on killing us?”
New Moon stomped on the floor “Marecilius Ficus once said that the body must be dissolved in the subtlest middle air, dissolved by its own heat and humidity. Where the soul, the middle nature holds the principality in the colour of blackness all in the glass of which blackness of Nature the ancients called the crow's head, or the black sun”
The two were teleported to the top of the pyramid. Where a large etching of a black sun was carved into the very stones themselves. New Moon appeared and her horn glowed. Before she could fire the spell of execution the ancient Amarezons used she was sliced into many small cubes by Rarity who had created gem knives out of thin air.Luna looked on as the knives became dust and blew away in the wind. Rarity walked over to the bloody bile and crushed a black gem with her diamond horseshoe.
Luna stared at Rarity “THOU ART NOT RARITY BELLE! WHO ARE THEE! SPEAK BEFORE I END YOU!”
Rarity pulled out her travelling mirror and began fixing her mussed and blown back hair “I am Rarity Belle. The dramatic mare who runs a boutique is merely a facade. I am Agent Platinum.”
The two vanished. and the black sun glowed faintly. A sound of a lock unlocking was heard.The two had teleported into the excavation site and before Luna could speak, they were alerted to a noise. They noticed some rubble move.
They walked over and Luna lifted the stone up revealing “Spitfire!”
The orange mare with the fiery mane looked terrible. Her body showed no sign of the plague but that was a small consolation. One wing was completely sheered off while the other was crushed beyond repair. Both her hind legs were completely flat. If she had bones back there they were dust. Half of her face looked like half had been skinned off.
Spitfire looked up “Oh hi princess. Sorry seem to have misplaced my face. Heh Heh get it because..”
Luna shoved her hoof in what was left of Spitfire’s mouth “How did thou survive?”
Spitfire gasped for breath “Dunno. Last I remember was getting slashed by a griffon.”
Rarity finally wrapped her mind around Spitfire’s appearance “Rainbow said she vaporized you!”
Spitfire lay there quietly while Luna repaired some of the inner damage. During this time she allowed Rarity to tell her what Rainbow said. She then looked at herself in Rarity’s armor. A massive gouge was in her face. One eye was completely missing. Her muzzle was ripped in three places and a part of her lips were in tatters. She looked back at her wing. She would never be able to fly or walk again. She had splotches of crimson on her fur and half her mane had been burned off.
Rarity finished and they all heard groaning. Turning towards a large pillar Luna lifted it up and tossed it into the forest. In front of them lay Daring Do. She was in pieces. She got up and sealed her legs back on her torso before grabbing her tail and shoving it mercilessly back on. She dusted herself off looking at them “What?”
Luna was dumbfounded “How are you alive?”
Daring Do looked at herself “I suppose it had to come out eventually. I am an immortal from Om. I came into existence from a mare who dreamed my adventures up before writing them down. I became able to manifest when all those readers believed I was real. I am unable to die as long as ponies and other sapient races believe in me. Same goes with Ahuizotl. Just don’t tell anyone.”
Rarity and Luna both spoke “cross my heart hope to fly, Stick a cupcake in my eye. I will not reveal your secret.”
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Back at the friendship castle a camera zoomed deep into Twilight’s mind. She was dressed up as a Canterlot pony. She began speaking in an upper crust accent.
I like big books and I cannot lie.
You other readers cannot deny
that when a book walks in with
a good plot base
and it’s big spine in your face
you get sprung!
You want to get out your notepads
Cause you noticed that book was dense.
Several facsimiles of her, that looked like her friends, began dancing in the background shaking their hind ends.
Deep in the book I am reading
I am hooked and cannot stop
speeding, through pony
I want to get that literature
and sit by the fire
they try to train me
But that book you have
makes me brainy
baby got books
All the Sparkle clones struck sultry poses and drenched themselves with letters. Outside the mindscape Twilight wrapped her hooves around an encyclopedia babbling happily with a little drool coming from her mouth. She began nuzzling the book cooing like an infant.