Thorns by Night

by Pyrus Nightwrite

Prologue

Nightmare Division Tip #1: You do not exist. As a pony of the Nightmare Division under Princess Luna, you do not officially exist. According to the citizens of Equestria, there is no division of personal fighters loyal to Princess Luna. You must constantly be aware of that fact, and fight to protect it. Your first weapon and last resort is to disappear into the shadows that Luna provides.

One day. All it took was one day, and Equestria fell apart. Fear, Love, and Chaos work surprisingly well together, somehow. It took only one day for Discord to fall for a queen we all thought had perished at the hooves of Princess Cadence and her love for Shining Armor. It only took one day for the Queen of the Changelings to invade and dominate most of Equestria when it was at its weakest. As it turns out, it’s difficult to fight a war against ponies that aren’t themselves when your allies turn into black bugs of love and mob you when your back is turned.

I’m getting ahead of myself here. Let me start by introducing myself. My birth name is Constellation, but that’s a name I threw off years ago. I used to float effortlessly in the night sky, my light grey wings easily finding the difficult-to-navigate heat thermals that are needed to fly and are uncommon at night when it’s colder. That was less than four years ago, but it seems like so much longer than that.

I am now a dark, greyish-purple tint, which I share with my brothers and sisters of the Nightmare Division of the Equestrian Royal Guard. My wings, which used to be feathered and soft, are now silky, leathery, and black, like wings one might find on a dragon or bat. My mane and tail have a purple and black stripe pattern now. My body has been streamlined for speed, and hardened for combat. Even my name is different; my name is Roseshadow, and I am a sister, friend, and defender of Princess Luna.

One day. The day that I refer to is the one we all call the “Changeling Insurgence,” which marked the beginning of the largest war that ponykind has ever faced. That day didn’t start like every other day. It had stormed every hour the night before, all over Equestria. Lightning flashed everywhere, from Manehatten to Las Pegasus, and the Crystal Empire to Appleoosa. Storms this size usually marked a dark day in Equestrian history, and this storm didn’t stop in the morning. The pouring rain and deafening thunder clapped into dawn; Most of the Royal Guard had a very bad feeling about that day…

unfortunately, we were right.