//------------------------------// // Fire Fire, Through the Night // Story: No Elements, No Harmony // by Fret //------------------------------// Twilight continued to glare at Discord, wondering just how to react. Seconds went by, though they felt like hours, before she began to pull her hoof back towards her, hoping the cuff would somehow slip off of it before it could tighten itself any more than it had. She also began to do the same with her horn, trying to spark any kind of magic she could to loosen the metal off of her. It was to no avail, as she soon became fatigued from the struggle. She took a couple of breaths before trying again, even taking a few steps away from the draconequus, yet she could literally feel the cold material choking her horn and hoof by that point. “Twilight!” She heard Rainbow call from above. It was hard for her to turn her head to look up at her with something pulling it in the opposite direction. “Twilight, you have to fight back!” “You think I’m not trying?” she retorted, now holding her gaze with Discord again. “My magic is gone! What am I supposed to do at this point?” “You didn’t use your magic before!” Applejack pointed out. “You still have your wings free, use them!” Twilight then let out a breath, before flapping her wings away from Discord, while still keeping an eye on him. Though, all she managed to do is hover in the same place, despite her feathers pushing any sort of breeze in front of her so that she could fly the other way. “It’s no use… I’m still not a strong flyer…” she half said to herself. It wasn’t at all loud enough for her friends to hear. “Solar Flare,” Nightmare Moon suddenly caught her attention. She landed on her hooves again and glanced at the black alicorn, noticing an unmoving mare next to her. What did they do to… “Mhmm?” Solar answered. “You and Discord take care of these lot. I have something I must do with this one here,” she told her, pointing to Luna. The queen nodded, watching the two being teleported to what Twilight could only assume to the castle. “What the hay did y’all do to her?” Applejack yelled, still stuck in Spike’s claw. Solar, for a moment, didn’t even react. Then she jerked her head up to the farm pony. “None of your business,” she replied coolly, before turning to Twilight. “Either way, you lot are all coming with me.” “Thanks, but no thanks,” Pinkamena scoffed. “Erm… I don’t think I really want to,” Fluttershy chimed. “I know very well it won’t be a fun experience,” Rarity commented. “Pfft. Come at me, scumbag!” Rainbow challenged. Applejack didn’t say anything, but knowing her, she probably just raised a brow, giving a disbelieving glare. Twilight gave a snort, smoke almost appearing out of her nostrils. “You know what? Fine. Take me. Just leave them out of this, they’re not part of this as much as I am!” “Well, no,” the alicorn began to stalk around her. “However they did commit their own crimes, whether they believe what they’ve done is wrong or not.” She stopped moving once she got to Discord. “You may be punished after this, but not so harshly since you’ve seemed to come to your senses.” She lay a hoof on him, however he was quick to shake it off. “Whatever…” he muttered. Twilight’s muzzle scrunched up. “Discord, how could you do this? I thought you wanted to help us!” Discord shrugged. “I did. It’s a shame though, really. Not even six of you could save the day…” He dragged Twilight forward by her chain. “I’d give friendship a chance if it could break these chains.” Twilight remained confused for the next few moments, before erasing Discord from her mind as she turned away. Yet, when she did, she had no idea what her next move would be. She was pretty certain Solar Flare wasn’t going to show any mercy towards her or her friends, so there was no use lecturing her to submission. There was no point in fighting back when there was nothing to fight with… Oh, Celestia… I really wish you were here… --- Luna had no idea where she was. From what she could tell, the floor below her was solid and grey, with a rough feel as she ran her hoof over the surface. It also had a slight shimmer of light shining on it, but from where, she wasn’t sure. Above her, the sky was dark - no moon, no sun, no stars. Nothing. In fact, from what she could tell, she was in a crevice; she had just noticed two black silhouettes of the walls of a gorge towering above her and surrounding the path ahead. “Do you know this place?” She whipped her head around to see who was behind her, though she knew that voice all too well. It was a voice she heard every time she opened her mouth. “No, I don’t.” Nightmare Moon raised both of her brows as she stalked towards her. Unlike the last time Luna saw her, she wore no armor on her body. Once the black mare had reached her side, she continued to speak. “You’ve never dreamed up this place?” “No, I have not.” Luna glared at her. “Why?” “I come here every slumber.” Nightmare didn’t look at her, instead stared ahead, where the pathway faded into darkness. “I never move, though. There’s no point in going over there… there’s nothing.” Luna raised a brow and followed her gaze. “...Why are you telling me this, exactly?” Nightmare didn’t respond for a moment. “I… I was just wondering if you’ve had the same experience,” she stated, shrugging. “Just curious… and wondering if we had at least that in common.” “...Sorry to disappoint you?” The black mare shot her a disbelieving glare. “Disappoint?” she echoed, rolling her slit pupils. “Oh, no. I’m glad.” Luna watched the mare begin to trot closer to the end of the gorge, before pausing and her ears perking as she stared down there. “Why, exactly?” Luna tilted her head. Nightmare did not reply. “Typical. You just never know the answer to anything, do you?” “You’re one to speak,” she retorted, still refusing to look at her. “Yes, I am; I’m over myself - you are not.” Luna’s ears were flat against her head at this point. She then could see a smirk appear on Nightmare’s face. “...Are you?” Her head finally turned to face her. “Tell me, Luna, what do you dream about?” “...What?” “Just answer the question.” The princess’ ear twitched and she bit her lip. “I… just normal dreams.” Nightmare raised a brow. “Are they, now?” Luna slowly nodded. “...Liar.” “You’re not one to speak,” she spat. Nightmare just rolled her eyes. “Neither of us are,” she stated, trotting to Luna’s side to glare down at her, before pacing around her repeatedly. “I’ve asked you these things simply to prove we’re one in the same.” She turned away from Luna to focus on where she was walking. “Honestly, Luna, do you really think Equestria would just forget about what you did?” She gave a smirk as she glanced back at her counterpart, who was glaring right at her. “Of course I don’t.” --- The footsteps of the seven mares echoed down the dark hallway. Twilight unwillingly lead her friends to the edge of a flight of stairs, which seemed to fade into black as they got further down. She paused at the top, thinking that maybe there was still a chance to run… but there wasn’t. “D-Do we have to go down there?” Fluttershy whimpered, her tail in between her hind legs at this point. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “No, they’re gonna take us to a beautiful paradise where everything is fixed.” “Quit it, Rainbow!” Applejack scolded her. The pegasus glared at her, but didn’t speak. “Discord,” Solar Flare called for the draconequus, who was following behind them silently. At her command, he slithered forward until he was at her side. Once he was, Solar continued. “Take those five down to the two guards who are already down there. They’ll take care of them.” Discord glanced at the five mares she was talking about. “...What about Twilight?” “I need to take care of her myself. Now go.” The draconequus nodded, before signalling the five ponies to follow him down the stairway. They reluctantly followed him until they were out of sight, leaving Twilight alone with her teacher’s counterpart. She stared at her. “What?” Solar Flare bit her lip as she glared back at her. Twilight shifted nervously under the flaming gaze. “...What did you need?” Twilight tried to get her to speak again. Solar Flare finally blinked for the first time, her blank expression replaced by her usual look. “Twilight Sparkle,” she began. Twilight glanced to the left, then the right, not having a clue how to respond. “Err… yeah?” she responded slowly. “What do you want?” The large alicorn then lowered her head so that both of their eye level was equal to one another. Twilight scrunched her muzzle and jerked her head back a little, the stench of the queen’s breath making her hold her breath. “...I know you.” The lavender mare blinked. “...Could you repeat that?” she rasped, feeling tiny under the queen’s gaze. “I remember you,” Solar said. “You were only young…” “What are you talking about?” Twilight took a step back. “I’m… I don’t exist in this universe! Not anymore, anyway…” She looked away from her. “...I know. I was there.” Twilight’s ear flickered as she glanced back at the mare. “What’s that supposed to mean?” When she looked at her, she saw something she didn’t expect. Solar Flare’s ears were drooping, and no longer had a serious expression glued onto her face. Instead, she frowned, and gazed at her with solemn eyes. “She’d still be here… if it weren’t for me,” she muttered through gritted teeth. Twilight fully turned her head to face her, while also taking a step towards her. “...What are you getting at?” “What’s your life like in Equestria?” she suddenly asked, ignoring her previous question. The princess’ eye twitched, but even so, she answered. “...It’s… good? I mean, I have a new castle which I’m still trying to get used to... but other than that… everything’s fine.” She paused for a few moments, wondering what else to say. “Why’d you ask?” Solar Flare sat down on the cold stone floor. “Do you like magic?” “...Yes? Yes, I love studying magic. But why-” “What got you into magic?” Twilight narrowed her eyes. “What are you trying to do?” “Answer the question.” Solar Flare’s tone suddenly changed. She glared at her, awaiting her response. Twilight sighed. “...Celestia got me into magic,” she replied, making sure there was no fear of any sort to be heard in her voice. “She inspired me to do what I do. Obviously, though, that didn’t happen here.” The queen then relaxed her tensed up muscles. “I wonder how you figured that one out…” Twilight gave a scoff. “Don’t try and joke with me, not after what you did to my friends!” She stalked right up to her. “I’m not interested in having a conversation with you. I’m just interested in their safety!” Her hoof was raised so that it pointed to the dark hallway that lay at the bottom of the stairway. “You’re just like her…” Solar murmured. “Wha… What are you talking about?” Her voice’s volume was beginning to rise. “I’m talking about you. You were much younger… it was only five years ago, and yet I keep thinking it was much longer than that…” She moved closer to her, their muzzles almost touching. “What was five years ago? My death?” The queen was quiet for a moment, before nodding slowly. “Yes.” “...Oh.” Twilight bit her lip. “That’s… nice to know-” Her mouth was then shut by the cold touch of Solar’s hoof armour. “No need to be nice, Twilight.” At this point, the heat of her mane could be felt by the princess. “Then what do you want me to do?” Twilight arched a brow, jerking her head back so that the flaming tresses wouldn’t touch her. “I want you to listen,” she murmured, her bright pupils moving away from her. “I didn’t get a chance to say this to you all those moons ago… so I might as well say it now.” “...Say what?” Twilight pouted, the sound of her hoof scraping across the floor echoing in the hallway as she tried to distance herself from the alicorn. “I… I’m sorry,” she sighed, her gaze now piercing right through hers. “For what’s about to happen. I don’t even know what’s about to happen, I just know that it won’t end well… at least not for you.” “What…” Twilight shook her head, before using her hoof to push the queen away from her. “Why are you apologizing? You can stop this!” She began to raise her voice. “My friends are in grave danger, and you’re apologizing, despite the fact that you can stop all of this!” Solar Flare’s ears drooped. “I know that I should… but I can’t.” The princess’ lip curled. “Except you can! You could’ve stopped this one thousand years ag-” “No, I can’t,” she spat back. “You don’t know me like you know your precious mentor. That is unless…” The anger in her voice was replaced by a taunt, however she didn’t smirk, to Twilight’s surprise. “You consider Celestia and I to be one in the same?” Twilight glared at her, her body unmoving. Her eyes darted up and down Solar as she searched for an answer. Then, she let out a loud sigh, before turning towards the stairs. “Don’t think that I’m giving up, because I’m not,” she rasped as she sauntered down the stairs. As she did so, she could’ve sworn she heard Cele- Solar Flare whisper in reply, “I don’t doubt that.” --- “So you admit it,” Nightmare chuckled. “You can never escape what you did.” Luna stayed silent. “Aww, I have seemed to forgotten how adorable I was when I was you.” She raised her counterpart’s chin so the two’s eyes met. “No comeback? No nothing?” “I didn’t let myself escape what I did,” she answered. Nightmare flickered an ear at this. “How so?” “I wasn’t about to let myself off easy,” Luna hissed, slapping the black hoof away. “Nor was I about to let myself forget what I did.” She took a step towards her. The queen didn’t move from her spot, however. “I made sure that I reminded myself, every slumber, just how much of a nightmare you were to Equestria.” “By what? Giving yourself the same nightmare every night… or whenever it is when you sleep?” the queen snickered. “Well, yes.” “...” “...” “I seemed to have also forgotten how dumb I was when I was you,” Nightmare stated. Luna rolled her eyes and snorted. “Oh, you’re one to speak,” she snapped back at her. “Your life is probably boring at best. Everyone, even your own guards, fear you.” Nightmare snorted and flickered her ear dismissively. “Not true. My sister doesn’t fear me.” Luna gave a scoff of disbelief. “How do you know that? Maybe that’s why she hasn’t dethroned you yet.” The black mare’s muzzle scrunched up and her lip curled - her fangs visible. “She’s had a thousand years - she’s clearly not planning such a thing.” “Probably not. I have not a clue to what her motives are-” “She has no motives,” Nightmare interrupted. “She’s quite happy where she is, thank you.” Luna had to stifle her laughter. “Mhmm… sure she is. I can tell by the angry glare she gives towards literally everything.” Nightmare’s eye twitched as she said that. “Alright, you know what?” Her horn began to glow its blue aura. “I was going to try a different method of punishing you, but it seems you’re not going to cooperate.” “Different method of what now?” Luna tilted her head, only to gain a magical glow around her neck as a response. “Okay… nevermind…” she choked out, trying to pull away from the grip on her throat. “Enjoy your time in the black pit of torture,” the queen said in a joyful tone, dragging Luna off of her hooves and holding her above a gorge which bottom was swallowed by darkness. The princess stared at it, not looking very phased. “You could’ve named it something less obvious,” she muttered. “Nonsense! The name simply adds more fear to the situation!” Nightmare giggled excitedly. “I haven’t actually used this nightmare in a while, so it’s nice to return to some old punishments!” “How fun,” Luna said dryly, before shooting a blast of her own magic at her counterpart. Nightmare stumped to the side, only inches away from the singed space on the floor. She stared at it for a few seconds, then looked back at Luna with an unamused look among her face. “Well, if that’s how you’re going to be.” She noticed another glow coming from Luna’s horn; this spell did not look like it was going to harm her. A bright flash replaced the shape of the princess, however she was still there after the light faded, to Luna’s dismay. “Wha… why am I still here?” Her eyes darted back and forth as she realized her teleportation spell had failed her. “Sorry, my dream, my rules,” Nightmare stated, giving her a pout. “Can’t let you teleport out of my sight now, can I?” The alicorn tapped for a moment, acting as if she were thinking what she had just said through. “Oh wait! Yes I can. Bye bye, woona!” With that, the aura around her horn and her neck faded, allowing the princess to fall into the blackness below. Nightmare watched calmly as her counterpart disappeared from her sight, and was about to walk away, satisfied, when the alicorn came shooting back up, her wings carrying her. “Ha! You forgot about these, didn’t you?” Luna gave a proud smirk. Nightmare blinked, her expression not changing. “Oh, right. I did. Oops.” Poof. Luna glanced at her left and then at her right. The bright light had seemed to stolen her wings - now she was merely a unicorn. She had to think quickly - her own horn began glowing again, hoping that her magic would allow her to get her wings back. She focused hard until her horn went numb. Wait. She ran her hoof over her head. No horn. “You can’t do that!” Luna protested desperately, being held by the hoof by the queen’s magic. “My dream, my rules.” “It’s my dream too!” she retorted. Nightmare chuckled to herself. “Oh, no. You’re simply in my dream. Now, bye bye!” With that, the blue aura around her hoof disappeared, and the next thing Luna knew was that she was falling into the abyss below her.