//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 // Story: Changing Lanes // by AutoPony //------------------------------// Surprisingly, you managed to get some sleep once you got back to your room. Twilight certainly did, as she had finally passed out at the desk by the time you got back. In fact, she was still asleep by the time you left, heading for your house. Rather than teleport there, you decided to fly to the outskirts of Ponyville where your house lay, enjoying the evening sky. While you had previously been afraid of heights, having a pair of majestic wings to hold you aloft quelled those fears. Touching down lightly, you stride up to the front door, knocking instead of barging in. It's your house, but in this scenario, it's really not. After a few moments, the door opens, your former self standing there. "Anonymous!" Luna cries. "Come in, come in." She holds the door open as you walk in, closing it behind you. It feels so odd being a guest in your own home. "Hi Luna," you respond, turning to her before scanning the rest of the room. "Hey, where's Rainbow Dash?" "Oh, Rainbow had to head home for a bit, she should be back in a while," Luna says as the two of you walk to the living room, plopping down on the couch. "So, how did last night go? You are here, so you must not have done anything too bad." "It wasn't horrible, but it was very boring," you tell her, as she nods in understanding. "I had only a handful of visitors, so I mostly just perused a bunch of paperwork Celestia had left." "Ugh, we hate it when she does that," Luna says, rolling her eyes. "Usually I only go through a few sheets and leave the rest for her in the morning." "Now I understand why nothing ever gets accomplished in government," you say, earning a giggle from Luna. "So I assume everything has been going fine with you, I didn't see an angry mob outside." "Yes, after a bit of frustration we figured out how your television device works. Rainbow and I have mostly been watching your collection of films," she says, pointing to the neatly stacked tower of DVD cases. "By the way, where is Twilight Sparkle? I would have assumed she would visit as well." "Getting sleep finally. I'm pretty sure she hadn't slept in well over a day, though she tried to convince me otherwise," you reply, shaking your head. "So I assume a fix for our mistake has yet to be found," Luna says, her enthusiasm diminished. She looks down at herself, then back up at you. "I did not mean for this, Anon. I truly am sorry," she says. You wave a hoof at her. "Don't be too hard on yourself. I mean, yes it sucks there isn't an instant fix, but this has been an..... interesting experience," you say, flaring your wings out and looking them over. Knowing everything is still going fine, your attention turns to this morning's events. "So, before I went to sleep this morning, Celestia showed me something I thought was pretty neat," you say, causing Luna to perk up in curiosity. "She saved all your awards and pictures from when you used to race. Why didn't you tell me about that?" Her demeanor instantly changes. "We do not talk about that time in our life," she says, a scowl on her face. Surprised by her reaction, you find yourself unable to resist probing further. "I don't understand, are you ashamed of it?" "If anypony should be ashamed of anything, it is you for prying into my private life," Luna growls, clenching her teeth. You put your hooves up, recoiling back a bit as you hope to defuse the situation. "Luna, it wasn't my plan, Celestia said she had something to show me, so I-" "You should have said no!" Luna yells as she stands up, facing you. Fury burns in her eyes. "Luna, stop!" you cry, genuinely unnerved by the exchange. "I'm sorry, I'm just trying to make sure no one gets suspicious. How was I supposed to know she was going to show me that? I mean, Celestia is proud of you, she feels bad that you had to stop raci-" "Get out!" Luna points to the door, trembling with anger. "I am not talking about this, I do not want to see you again tonight!" Your ears droop, seeing no sense in continuing to fight. Lowing your eyes to avert her gaze, you drop off the couch, shuffling to the door without a word. Opening and closing it with your magic, you feel sick to your stomach as you slowly trod away from the house, unsure where exactly you're headed. You lose track of time as you wander, trying to collect your thoughts and hold yourself together. If you had known she would be that upset, you would never have brought up this part of her past. When you finally raise your head and look at your surroundings, civilization has disappeared. Instead, you've wandered into the forest, a thin trail guiding you along for who knows how long. By this time, the sun has almost set, a few stray rays of sunshine probing through the dense canopy of trees. You have no idea where you are, not that it matters much. You can just teleport out. Rather than head back to Canterlot, you stride over to a shallow river ahead of your path, taking a seat next to it and peering down at your reflection. It still seems so odd to you being in Luna's body, and yet feeling so normal. Part of you wonders after this magical mishap is undone, if Luna will want anything to do with you. "Don't beat yourself up too much. Luna has always been a bit... touchy, about her past," a voice softly says. "Yeah, she seems to have a lot of secrets she would rather bury," you respond. It takes you a moment to realize you are alone, looking up and around the general area. "Down here," the voice says in a feminine, rather sultry voice. You oblige the voice, seeing only your reflection in the still water. "Oh, ha ha," you call out, rolling your eyes. All sarcasm fades as your mirror image slowly begins to darken, the eyes beginning to glow with an eerie turquoise light. "Sorry, I forgot you're new to this world," your twisted reflection says. "Not to mention this body." As it speaks the thing slowly begins to rise off the water's surface, gaining three-dimensional shape before stepping off onto land beside you, spreading her bat-like wings. She is taller than you, roughly the size of Celestia, but with a jet black coat. The alicorn smiles at you, flashing a pair of wicked fangs as her eyes stop their glow, revealing feral slitted pupils centered in a pool of turquoise. You remember this pony from Luna's little flashback. "So, I'd assume you're Nightmare Moon?" you say after a moment of hesitation. It feels strange talking to something that was just a minute ago an image in the water. Her toothy grin only gets wider at the utterance of her name. "So you've heard of me? I'm truly flattered," she says, circling around you. "Why are you here?" you ask. Questions continue to bubble up in your mind. How can she even be here? According to your history lesson from Twilight, not only did Celestia clean her clock, but so too did Twilight and her group of friends. "Well, I never really left," she says, stopping in front of you. "It's another one of Luna's little secrets. I've always been right there in the back of her mind." She pauses before her grin turns somewhat mischievous. "Your mind. I've just been.... sleeping, so to speak." "Then what woke you up? You haven't answered what you even want," you say. "You did. Or more specifically, the presence of a different consciousness," she says, looking a little annoyed with all the questions at this point. "I just wanted to meet my new... friend." The way she looks at you as she finishes her sentence is unnerving, like a cat eyeing its injured prey before pouncing the final time. "By the way," Nightmare says, interrupting your thoughts, "you should be getting back to the castle. It's almost time for your shift." You peer through the treetops, realizing how dark it has become. You don't dawdle, instead teleporting back to the castle right away. "Celestia really needs to change this place up. For somepony that should be co-ruling with her sister, there sure is an abundance of white." It has been six hours since the start of your shift, and the whole time, Nightmare Moon has not shut up for more than a minute. At this point, you have a raging headache, as you close your eyes, rubbing your temple with a hoof. "Pardon me, your Highness, are you alright?" You open your eyes to see a guard at the base of the steps leading to your throne looking up, concerned. "I am afraid I have a bit of a migraine," you say. "Is there anyone waiting outside, or any outstanding matters?" "Ah, ah, ah. You should have said 'anypony.' Now you're going to draw suspicion," Nightmare Moon says, hovering next to you. God, just shut up for five minutes. Is it really that difficult? "No, it is a quiet night, your Highness. If you would like, we can summon you if a need arises, perhaps you would rather rest?" You rise off your seat, nodding your head in agreement with your guard's suggestion, as the two standing by the double doors pull them open for you. "Thank you," you say, as you walk down the stairs and out into the hall. The guard detail is rather light inside, so your attention turns to the black alicorn only you can see. "Is it really that difficult to put a lid on your mouth? I've got a splitting headache because of you," you growl. Nightmare Moon chuckles in response. "That's good, it means I'm getting to you," she says, her sly smile returning. "Besides, I've been silenced ever since that purple runt and her gang of misfits got the upper hoof on me." What does she mean by 'getting to you?' You don't have to ask the question aloud, as Nightmare reads your mind. Or more specifically, hears you through your mind. She is able to hear your every thought, being tied to you. "Oh, I suppose if you really want me to spoil the surprise, I will," she says, her words dripping with sarcasm. "You see, I'm the odd pony out. I don't get a body. But with you here, all I need to do is get rid of you, and I can claim Luna's old self for my own!" Your blood runs cold, realizing she isn't joking. "You think I'm just going to let you in? You're insane," you tell her defiantly. Nightmare Moon lets out a truly sinister laugh as you stop in the hall, turning to face her. "You already made the mistake of opening the door for me. Just by talking to me. That was the hard part," she says, smirking. "Now, all I need to do is get you unhinged, make you crazy enough that you let go." With that final statement, Nightmare Moon fades away with another bout of laughter, her feral eyes staying a moment longer before disappearing as well. For the first time tonight, you are alone, which perhaps is even more nerve-wracking. Making your way down the quiet halls, you finally reach the library, where you expect Twilight will be. As you search the various aisles for your friend, you debate on what to do. Do you tell her this most recent development? You don't want to make her panic. But will keeping quiet about it put you in more danger? After covering about half of the ground floor, you finally find Twilight, nearly barricaded by the stacks of old books around her. "How's it going, Twilight?" you ask. She jumps in surprise, knocking over part of her leather-bound fortress. "You scared me, I didn't hear you walk up behind me," Twilight says, blushing a bit in embarrassment. "What are you doing here, shouldn't you be presiding over open court?" "It's a slow night again," you tell her. "The guards said they would notify me if anything came up, I have a bit of a.... headache." You pause a bit, distracted as Nightmare Moon reappears behind Twilight. "Ugh, this little foal. How I'd love to get my hooves on her," Nightmare says, swinging a hoof at Twilight. It passes harmlessly through her, though you still flinch a bit. Twilight picks up on your obvious distraction. "Is something else bothering you, Anon? You seem preoccupied," she asks. "Yes, is something bothering you dear? You can tell us," Nightmare Moon echoes in a mocking, sarcastic tone. You strain to force yourself to ignore the irritating hallucination, as you focus on Twilight instead. "I'm fine, Twilight," you lie. "How long have you been here? I left to visit Luna before work, and you were still asleep." "Oh, I don't know. Maybe a couple of hours. I found this whole section in the library that focuses on manipulation spells," she says, her voice picking up in excitement. "I haven't found what I'm looking for yet, but I think I'm getting close." Nightmare Moon's cockiness instantly vaporizes, as she scowls at the purple alicorn. "I see I don't have the time to be subtle anymore," she says, before fading away. Her ominous words send a chill down your spine. "I know it may seem out of the blue, but I'm curious," you start, as Twilight's attention quickly snaps from her book to you. "What do you know about Luna's... when she went off the deep end?" Surprised by the question, Twilight is unable to respond for a moment. "I don't know much, Anonymous. I mean, Equestria did not even know that Celestia had a younger sister. What information existed was presumed to be legend, rather than reality. it was not until Nightmare Moon's return and her defeat that Luna's existence was even known," she says. "The only ponies that would have any idea are the two that witnessed the events, Celestia and Luna herself." Wonderful, you think to yourself. Luna is already upset with you, and asking a question like that to Celestia is not a good idea, either. She already is haunted enough by the past. "Why are you bringing this up?" Twilight asks, interrupting your thoughts. She focuses on your face, as if looking for a clue. "Nothing, just curiosity," you say. "I think for now, I'm going to head back to my room, this headache isn't getting any better." Not waiting for a response, you turn and head back the way you came, out of the library and into the halls. Rather than dawdle, you pick up your pace to a near trot, eager to try to relax after an already stressful night. You're getting much better at navigating this place, as you find Luna's room quickly. Closing the door, you leap onto the bed, sprawling out and stretching your tense muscles. Suddenly, the door to your room slams shut, making you jump up. Nightmare Moon stands at the foot of your bed, sporting a cocky smirk once again. "I'm sorry, I don't know my own strength, it seems," she says. "Please, just leave me alone. This night has already been hell," you say, sitting up. Nightmare's smile turns upside down in an instant. "You think this has been hell? I assure you, you have not experienced anything close to hell," Nightmare says, her tone growing colder by the second. "Do you know what it's like to be sealed up, frozen in time for a thousand years? Do you know what it's like to be damned for eternity to being an extra in a pony's mind?" "I don't care! I didn't do it to you, stop bothering me with your shit!" You feel your head throb as you raise your voice, anger pulsing through your veins. "Anon! Who are you talking to?" Turning your attention away from Nightmare, you see Twilight standing in the doorway, looking at you with uncertainty. "Talk your way out of this one without sounding completely insane," Nightmare says, chuckling lightly. Like a bottle under pressure, you finally lose your temper, growling as you focus on your horn, charging up a spell. Just as you are about to heave it at the black alicorn, a sharp pain erupts from the back of your head. Your vision blurs as you suddenly feel dazed, weak. Unable to fight it, you fall to the floor, everything around you fading to black.