Chapter 1: Nightmare

Lost,

Chapter 1: Nightmare.

The thunderous booming of hooves, marching in rhythm to the hymn of war. Even across the clouds of Cloudsdale, these stalwart warriors could be heard ushering in the tides of war. The Pegasi of this once peaceful city now up in arms, ready to die for the one they believed in. Ready to bring about the change that Equestria so deserved. They sought nothing more than to unite their war torn country, under the rule of Equestria’s true princess. Heretics they had been branded, denied the respect that they once commanded, because of their devotion to the night.

The Lunar Republic had formed and with it, they had shown those who worshipped the sun that they would not bow. Every mare and Colt gathered fell in line behind their brothers and sisters in arms. A tide of black armor massing at the hooves of their ruler, their princess. Shouts rang out as they stopped, poised and ready to do as she saw fit.

“Come my children of the night,” A booming voice called out. “Tonight! This very night that I have bestowed upon you all! It is this night that we shall take our rightful place as Equestria’s elite!” Even more shouts rang out, rallying behind her every word. Nightmare Moon stood before her army, a smile broad across her face.

“For too long we have been shunned! For too long I have been pushed into the shadows and denied my rightful place as sovereign of our land! Yet my time in the shadows has only made me stronger, for I have embraced the darkness! I have surrendered myself to it and become that which I was born to be! I now ask all of you to do the same! Stare deeply into the darkness of your hearts and draw strength from it! Do not fear that which you will find, because it is that darkness that will carry us into victory!” She continued to smile, stepping forward and walking through her gathered soldiers.

“My sister and her defiant sun, will be stamped out! I swear to you all that I will end her myself, but I cannot do this alone! Who among you are ready to fight at my side!? Who among you will shed blood for our cause!? Who here will rise to the challenge and help me bring an end to the Solar Empire!?”

The entirety of those gathered erupted into frenzied shouts, all signifying their willingness to do as she commanded.

“Good! When this has all ended and we have achieved the victory that we so deserve, you will reclaim the honor that was stripped from you! I will ascend you all to the status of gods and all those who oppose you shall tremble in your wake! Now come! For our homes, our loved ones, our honor… we go to war!”

“FOR THE LUNAR REPUBLIC!” The battle cry echoed, spilling over the clouds at their hooves and rolling throughout Equestria. Their voices as thunder, preceding an oncoming storm.

“We march! Follow me, for tonight… we take the Everfree Forest!” Nightmare Moon’s wings flew open and she soared up into the sky, her army quickly following suit.

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“No!” Twilight shouted as she sat up in bed, sweat covering her body. She could feel an uneasy tension, as waves of nausea washed over her. Her body trembled, her eyes darting back and forth through the darkness of her room.

“Are you okay, Twilight?” Spike called to her as he lit the candle at her bedside. Worry was spread across the young dragons face as he stared up at her, waiting for an answer to his question.

“I’m… I’m alright, Spike. I just had a bad dream.” she replied.

“A bad dream? Didn’t Princess Luna show up and help you?”

“No, she didn’t. Actually I’d rather not think about Princess Luna at the moment, if that’s alright,” she replied, sighing heavily.

“Alright,” he said with a confused expression. “Well, would you like to talk about it? I mean, you look pretty shaken up over it.”

“No… no I really don’t want to talk about it.” she paused, swinging her hooves over the edge of the bed and softly landing at her bedside. “Why don’t you go back to sleep, I’m sorry that I woke you.”

“It’s alright, but what are you gonna do?”

“I’m just gonna go grab a drink and do a bit of reading, until I get sleepy. Now you get some sleep mister, we have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow,” she smiled.

“Alright, but I’ll be right here if you need me. Okay?”

“I know you’ll be here and I appreciate it.”

Twilight patted the young dragons head and pushed him towards his bed, offering him a kind smile, as she turned and made her way out of their shared room. She made her way down the staircase she’d come to know so well and soon stood in her library, her place of refuge. A sigh escaped her as she stretched, unfolding her wings and giving them a good once over.

Soon the darkness of the library was pushed back by the young princesses magic as she made her way to a candle and lit it. Another sigh escaped her as her eyes scanned over the dimly lit books that lined the walls.

“What was that all about?” she mumbled to herself. She made her way into the kitchen, drifting somewhere between her thoughts and her actions. She absentmindedly went about making herself a cup of hot chocolate, setting it on the kitchen table behind her. “I don’t ever remember reading anything about a Lunar Republic, or a Solar Empire, and I’m certain Celestia has never spoken of either. So could I have just imagined it? Or dreamed it up, I should say.”

Twilight sat at the table, taking a small sip of her drink, wracking her brain in thought. As she attempted to delve deeper into what clouded memories she could retain of the dream, she could hear the soft sound of hooves drawing closer. “Who’s there?” She called out.

“I’m sorry if I startled you, Twilight.” A familiar voice called to her. An eerie silhouette played at the doorway of the kitchen. The dim light of the candles seemed to vanish into the coat of this newcomer, when she finally stepped into the kitchen.

A sigh of relief, albeit hesitant, escaped Twilight as she sat down her drink and offered a weak smile to Luna. “Princess Luna,” she replied. “Whatever do I owe this visit?” Twilight moved to stand and offer Luna a proper greeting, but was quickly waved off by the Princess of the night.

“There is no need for you to stand, we are long past the time for such formalities. I’m sure I need not remind you of your status now as a princess yourself?”

“No, there is no need to remind me. Admittedly I’m still getting used to it, but I’m well aware of it. So then why have you come to visit me at such a late hour, if I may ask?”

Luna sighed heavily and took a seat opposite of Twilight, before staring at her for a moment or two. There were no words, only silence, as they just sat there. Twilight could feel unease spreading through her once more as flashes of the nightmare came to her and she tried to avoid the gaze of the princess in front of her.

“Is there something wrong Twilight?” Luna asked suddenly, finally breaking the silence.

“N-no… nothing…”

“Are you sure?” Luna continued to press the young Alicorn.

“Yes, everything is perfectly fine.” Twilight replied, taking another drink of her hot chocolate.

“So if I were to ask if you’ve had any bad dreams, or nightmares, lately the answer would be no?”

Twilight’s eyes went wide. Had Luna seen into her dream , the one that had not even woken her but twenty minutes ago? Her eyes darted between Luna and the ground, trying to find an answer to her question. “I… I uh…”

“There is no need to lie, Twilight. I know that you had a nightmare and that is why I am here.” Luna paused as she spoke, taking a moment to allow Twilight to collect herself.

“But… if you knew that, then why didn’t you come into the dream and help me through it?”

“I could not.” Luna replied simply.

“You couldn’t?”

“Yes. I could not enter your dream and help ease your sleeping mind.”

“Why not?”

“I do not know, to be honest.” Luna sighed and looked out the small window of Twilight’s kitchen. “I could sense the fear you felt, as I walked the dream sphere and I tried to enter your dream. Something kept me at bay though, some unseen force of magic, that even I know nothing of. Try as I might I could not enter. Stranger still… I could not even gaze into your dream. It’s entirety shrouded in a fog, that I could not penetrate.”

Twilight sat silently, listening to Luna as she spoke. She couldn’t help but slip into thought. The nature of the dream, what she could remember, Luna’s inability to enter or view it. What did all of this mean?

“Then,” Twilight began. “Why have you come here?”

“I came to apologize. I could feel your fear, but I could not help you with it. I simply wished to tell you I was sorry,” Luna replied. “I had also hoped to ask what the nightmare was?”

Once more Twilight hesitated, not knowing how to answer Luna’s question. Luna had become a good friend of hers and she would do anything to keep from hurting her. She knew full well that telling her that a dream of Nightmare Moon had been the cause of her distress, would undoubtedly hurt Luna and Twilight did not want that.

“There is no need to apologize, Luna. We all have nightmares, every once in a while and you can’t be there for everypony at once. You also said that something kept you at bay, so really, there was nothing you could do.” Twilight paused and took a quick sip of her drink, before clearing her throat. “As for the dream, well… I can’t remember anything about it. It’s memory was gone as soon as I awoke.”

“I see.” Luna thought over Twilight’s words, before rising to stand. “Then I will take my leave of you, Twilight. I need not keep you awake any further.” Luna offered Twilight a smile and turned from her. “However if such a dream, or nightmare were to arise again, then I shall try my best to help you through it.”

“Thank you princess,” Twilight smiled in reply. Just as she had appeared, Luna was gone. She had seamlessly melted into the shadows of the library, leaving Twilight alone in the kitchen with her thoughts.

It didn’t take long for Twilight to stand and walk into the main section of the library. Her magic illuminated the vast room as it resonated from her horn and seemed to light every candle in unison. She hummed a low tune, lost in thought as she scanned the books that lined the walls of her home. Of course she knew where every book, every story, every piece of information she could need was… but she didn’t know where to begin.

“I have to figure out what that nightmare was. I know it can’t simply be my imagination, not when so much seems to be going on.” She mumbled to herself, before pulling a book from the shelf. “The history of Equestria is well documented. However I’ve never even seen a single sentence about a Solar Empire, or Lunar Republic and yet… it was there… playing out before me.”

She examined the book she had chosen and flipped through it’s pages, not particularly looking for anything. “Based off what I saw, there was a war between ponies. Luna, or should I say Nightmare Moon, at the helm of the Lunar Republic. I can only assume that Celestia was the leader of the Solar Empire, but that doesn’t make sense. Shortly after Luna became Nightmare Moon she was banished, defeated by Celestia and the Elements of Harmony. I saw that with my own eyes.”

Twilight let out a frustrated sigh, replacing the book on the shelf. “Then again… what I saw in that nightmare… that seemed just as real.” Suddenly Twilight was reminded of what Luna had told her. “My nightmare was cut off from Luna, clouded to her… why?” Twilight asked allowed as she began pacing in thought. “Why would my dream be cut of from Luna? What kind of magic could have been in place to hold back a power like Luna’s? There are just too many questions and not enough answers.”

Twilight came to a dead stop, she looked up to the windows, noticing that dawn was breaking. “Have I really been up this long?” She mumbled to herself. “Spike!” She called suddenly, turning towards their room. “Spike are you awake!?”

A loud thud echoed from the room, followed by a pained groan, before the small dragon could be seen opening the door. “Yes… Twilight?” He replied with a tired yawn.

“Spike, I need you to make us some breakfast and then clear off my entire to-do list for today.”

Spike nearly closed the bedroom door and went back to sleep, refusing to believe Twilight would make such a request, outside of a dream.

“Spike!”

“Are you serious?” Spike asked. He made his way down the stairs, stopping in front of Twilight. “I mean… the entire to-do list?”

“Yes. Everything is to be cleared off, Spike.”

“Okay… and why is that?”

“Because,” she replied with a smile and an excited glint in her eye. “We have research to do.”

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