Story Of An Alicorn: Luna's Nightmare

by Applepip

New Ally Of Darkness?

Valder followed the guards all the way back to their camp, and it wasn't a small one either. From his hiding place Valder surveyed the camp, multiple guard towers, hundreds of ponies and many tents. To Valder this place seemed more like a staging area than an outpost or a supply depot.

Valder carefully made his way closer to the cloth materialised outer walls of the camp. Using his horn Valder cuts a thin strip down the cloth and slides in. Slowly moving his way from tent to Valder got impatient, there were too many tents for him to search, that was until the conversation of two night guards got his attention.

“You see the pony the patrol brought in?”

“Yeah, it was Princess Luna. Though I thought she was in her command tent?”

“She is, I wonder who this imposter is?”

Valder heard enough and with his magic he grabbed one guard and slammed him against the ground, the other tried to run but was pulled back and his mouth held tightly shut. Valder held the guard up and stared directly into his eyes.

“I am going to give you one chance to answer me and your not going to lie, got that?” The guard nods. “Where did they take my daughter?” The pony mumbles something and Valder releases the guards mouth.

“I don't know your daughter!”

Valder tightens his magic grip. “The pony the patrol brought in! Where did they take her!?”

“The medical tent! That way!” The guard points towards the centre of the camp. “You can't miss it! Big red cross on the side of it!”

“Thank you.” Valder says before slamming the pony into the ground and hiding the two unconscious guards.

---

Luna opens her eyes, her body racked with pain. She tries to move her head but blinding white lights cause her to wince and close her eyes again. On her third try to take in her surroundings Luna manages to find herself in a bed with blurred shapes moving about outside a curtain.

“Father? Is...Is that you?” Luna rasps, her throat was dry. When there was no response Luna speaks louder. “Hello?”

A figure stops outside the curtain and a hoof opens the fabric and peers inside.

“You are awake. That's good.” The figure states. “You were hurt badly when they brought you in.”

“Where am I?” Luna asks.

“You are in the nightguard staging area, some of our guards found you outside the camp.”

“My father, is he here?”

“Father? I don't understand princess, your father has been dead for five years.” The figure replies.

“B-But that can't be! He was with me only moments ago! Who are you!? Where am I!? Somepony help!” Luna shouts as the figure stabs something into her leg. Luna finds herself drifting off but catches the last thing the figure commands to another passing pony.

“Get the princess, the patient is hysterical.” Luna sees the figure turn their gaze back to her as her eyes finally close.

---

Valder sneaks past more guards, his size not making things easier. Valder stops and hides behind a tent as seven more guards pass by in some form of single file march.

Moving again the medical tent comes into sight and it wasn't going to be easy to reach it. The tent stood almost in the middle of several other tents equally as large, and the twenty or so guards standing around wasn't good either.

“Dammit!” Valder curses to himself. A smile rises as he spots armour hanging on racking near by. Reaching inside himself Valder uses a magic spell he hasn't used in a long time and turns himself into a white pegasis of standard height. Looking over his body Valder nods, the effort required for this ability was taxing but for Valder he could keep it up for a while.

Grabbing the armour in his magic and 'borrowing' it Valder slips it on, noticing how the armour morphs to change him into a bat like pony.

“Guess this will have to do.” Valder states giving himself one last look before with a heavy sigh he steps out into the open. “Here goes.”

Valder crosses the field and approaches the large medical tent.

“Halt!” A guard shouts. “ State your business!”

Valder stands to attention. “I was sent here to guard the imposter until the princesses arrival.” Valder replies trying to sound as official as possible.

The guard looks Valder over. “I haven't seen you before.”

“I just transferred over, heard this was the best unit.”

The guard narrows his eyes. “Carry on.” The guard moves out Valders way.

Valder walks passed the guard and let's out a held breath as he walks through the medical tent. Valder walks pass many beds with injured ponies resting on them. He thinks about healing them but the effort would cause his disguise to fail, shaking his head he tries to find Luna.

Valder comes across a bed surrounded by a curtain with three guards standing by, Valder goes to enter the curtain but a guard stops him.

“The patient is not to be disturbed until Princess Luna gets here!”

Valder wanted to say something witty but nothing but a smirk came to his face.

“Oh but you see, the patient will be coming with me and there's nothing you can do to stop it!” Valder's horn glows bright and the guards step back a few steps. “You should run now.”

The guards all look to each other an then bolt for the exit, Valder smiles as his disguise fails and he was now standing in his tall white glory. Several nearby patients cover there eyes, some just stare in awe at the large white alicorn standing near them.

Valder opens the curtain and peers down at Luna lying on the bed, her eyes were closed but she was breathing steadily. Valder lifts up a hoof and prods Luna.

“Luna wake up, we have to go.” Valder smiles as Luna starts to stir. “That's it, it's me, father.”

“F-father? Is it really you?” Luna says, opening her eyes and giving Valder her own faint smile. “My body aches....”

“We have to leave, they have called you from this time.” Valder says, turning his head to see that nopony has turned up yet. “She will be along any minute.”

“I can't....I feel so weak....I can't move...” Luna tries to move but her body gives way and she falls back to the bed.

Valder feels a slight bit of panic rise in his chest, in a small use of his magic Valder lifts Luna off the bed and places her on his back.

“Father you can't fight them all.” Luna says weakly.

“I can very well try!” Valder states, turning around and heading for the exit.

Valder breathed a sigh of relief as the medical tent exit quickly approached.

“Luna we're almost out, then we can go somewhere safe.”

Valder exits the tent only to snarl as half the guards in the staging area were waiting outside with one angry looking princess at the fore.

“WHO ARE THOU?” The princess shouts.

Valder snarls again. “DON'T YOU YELL AT ME MISSY!”

Valder stands his ground as this times Luna walks forward.

“You dare speak to me like that!” Valder was mentally sighing in gratitude she didn't use the voice again.

“I speak to anypony that shouts at me like that!” Valder stands up tall as Luna on his back shifts around.

“Interesting.” The princess moves around Valder, keeping a wide distance. “You certainly are an alicorn I have no doubt about that, but who are you?” The princess stops and gazes at her duplicate on Valders back. “And why are you removing her from our care?”

“I'm called Valder and you already know her name.” Valder replies nodding his head to Luna on his back. “I am taking her away because I can't trust you or anypony here to help her.”

“And you can?”

“More than you know! My magic isn't weak.”

“Oh I know I can sense it, but it's curious. Your magic is familiar to me and yet it's not.” The princess walks back and stands in front of Valder. “Wait, I see something, something in your eyes when you look at me. And you called my duplicate your daughter, that can't mean....” The princess steps back. “GUARDS!”

Valder flinches as a pony comes from nowhere and bucks him in the side, Valder growls and uses his magic to fling the pony through another tent nearby.

“You hurt my daughter and I’ll kill you!” Valder shouts as two more ponies attack him.

“Stop!” the two guards stop mid attack and back away from Valder. “You are him aren’t you? Your Darkside....My father?”

Valder spits to the ground. “Don't you dare call me that name! I am nothing like him!”

“I can see it in your eyes, the darkness and hate. You were there too at Erlinberg, all those years ago.” The princesses horn glows and Valder readies himself.

“Stop this!” Both alicorns freeze as Luna on Valders back raises her head. “Why are you two fighting? Father, she has remembered us and discovered the truth. I can't walk let alone help you, stop this foalishness and just accept her help.”

“I can't Luna, if I give in all she's going to do is lock me up away from you, I won't have it!”

“What if I gave you my word you won't be harmed or locked up?” Valder turns his gaze back to the princess. “Contrary to belief I'm not that kind of ruler, my sister on the other hoof.”

Valder laughs suddenly and the princess gives him a curious look.

“Why do you laugh?”

“I'm sorry but it's funny, I'm standing before the princess of the night with half of her forces surrounding me and you are saying your not harsh like Celestia.” Valder replies, slightly shaking his head. “I just find it funny, considering.”

“Considering what?”

Valder shakes his head again. “Sorry but the future shall remain the future.”

“Fine but answer me this, why are you here?” The princess sits down, narrowing her eyes.

“I can tell you but first I need to heal my daughter.” Valder says lowering Luna to the floor and giving her a scan with his magic. “I know what's wrong.”

“Fine, heal her and then we can talk.” The princess waves a hoof at the guards and they disperse.

Valder lowers his head and nuzzles Luna before lighting his horn and touching Luna on the forehead, seconds later a yellow aura surrounds Luna and then disappears. Valder watches as Luna raises her head and slowly gets back to her hooves, a look of pain still on her features but she manages a smile anyway.

“Thanks father.” Luna says nuzzling Valder in return. Turning to her past self Luna drops her head low. “I'm sorry for all of this, we are trapped here but if there's some place we can talk we will tell you all that we know.”

“We can speak in my private tent.” The princess says, turning around and walking away.

Valder and Luna follow after the princess, passing by a few guards they both notice the stares which are immediately stopped by Valder when he gives the guards a glance.

“I don't like this Luna, it feels wrong.”

“I know father, I can feel it too. But please make this work, I know she is a memory but Darksides magic has changed everything. She shouldn't be able to remember us and certainly not you as her father.”

Valder sighs. “I just hope that something good will come of this.”

Both Luna and Valder follow the princess into a large tent, unaware that several creatures of chaos origin were watching them from afar.

Author's Note:

Hello readers, no this story is not dead. I just spend more of my time on my other stories, but when I get inspiration I write more for this story.

Anyways Enjoy!