Chapter 5
“How the mighty have fallen, that Sombra is reduced to terrifying little girls!”
From neck to toe, Nightmare Moon wore armor of moonlight silver. The hilt of a broadsword jutted from behind her left shoulder, and the neck of a guitar from her right. By the steely look in her eyes, she knew how to use them both.
The crowd parted around her as she walked towards the stage. Impossibly nimble for someone in full plate, Nightmare Moon planted one hand on the edge of the stage and vaulted upwards, landing upon the boards hard enough to splinter them beneath her steel boots.
“OR THAT NIGHTMARE MOON WOULD SEND THEM TO FIGHT IN HER PLACE.”
“They made their choice.”
“A FOOLISH ONE.”
“They yet live.”
“EASILY REMEDIED.”
“Oh?” Nightmare Moon unslung her guitar and struck a casual chord. The sonic energy shimmered through the air, and cracks spiderwebbed their way through the crystals holding Sunset Shimmer and her friends. The quartz prisons shattered a moment later, and the girls were free. Nightmare Moon didn't take her eyes off of Sombra. “Flee, children. I shall finish this fight.”
“No way!” Rainbow Dash said, kicking the last shards of crystal from her boots. “We're not going to let you have all the fun!”
“Hate to say it, but she's right.” Sunset Shimmer fell in beside Rainbow. “This is our fault-- which is why we're going to fix it.”
“I expected as much. Take up your weapons!”
Sunset Shimmer and Rainbow Dash exchanged a silent nod, and then picked up their guitars. Pinkie Pie and Applejack retrieved their instruments as well, while the other three stood by
“SUCH SENTIMENT SICKENS ME. YOU HAVE GROWN SOFT, NIGHTMARE MOON.”
“And you're just as arrogant as I remember.” Nightmare Moon strummed her guitar again, and the stage shook.
“I HAVE LEARNED SINCE WE FOUGHT LAST.” Smoke coalesced between the evil spirit's hands, and a jagged guitar took shape. “DEFEATING YOU SHALL BE TRIVIAL.”
“Prove it.”
Sombra attacked first. His clawed fingertips struck strings of fire and thrummed out a tone so deep it bordered on the subterranean. Steady and inevitable, the notes came like the footsteps of an enormous, inevitable predator.
Nightmare Moon braced her feet and turned her lips up in a tight grin. Her eyes blazed as she looked over her shoulder at the Rainbooms. “Follow my lead.”
She started with a single, high-pitched note-- one that slid downward in pitch, like a plummeting bombshell. Nightmare Moon took her finger off the string, and let the bare tone hang in the air for a long moment before she belted out a flurry of short, quick notes. She danced her fingers up and down the neck of her onyx guitar in a reckless, winding melody-- a stark contrast to Sombra's droning violence.
Sombra played on. Phantasms of smoke and stone formed behind him, bearing their own instruments. And yet, their movements perfectly matched Sombra's as they fell into musical lockstep with their master.
“That's our cue!” Rainbow Dash said, and launched into her own guitar playing, adding her will to Nightmare Moon's. It pained the girl to be thrust into a secondary role, but Rainbow at least took solace in playing second guitar to Nightmare Moon.
Applejack, Sunset, and Pinkie began to play as well, supporting Nightmare Moon's sound with their own. Sombra countered by playing and chanting louder, each of his purposeful notes reverberating through the Rainbooms' very souls with echoes of hate and despair.
The battle played on.
Minutes passed, or hours, or perhaps even days; it was hard to keep track with the haze thrown up by clashing magics. Sparks showered down from stage lights as they exploded, and a circle of blue flame surrounded Nightmare Moon and her allies. The glow of the eldritch fire held Sombra's smoke at bay, through the incessant pounding of his metal dirge. Fingers of blue fire licked and lapped towards important-looking electrical junctures, only to be hastily extinguished by Fluttershy.
Nightmare Moon played, and played, and played. Never stopping, she danced between the beats of Sombra's funeral march. But even as Nightmare Moon kept playing, the hateful chant of the lich-wraith grew louder, faster.
Flecks of scarlet began to mar Nightmare Moon's armor. Thin red lines dripped down from her left hand, seeping from the joints in her gauntlet.
“She's bleeding!” Rainbow Dash said.
“Just keep playing!” said Sunset Shimmer.
“MORTAL FRAILITY.” Invigorated by the sight, by the scent of blood, Sombra loomed larger, and the smoke coating the stage rose to waist level. “YOU CANNOT KEEP THIS UP FOREVER, NIGHTMARE MOON. EVENTUALLY, EVEN YOUR WILL SHALL BREAK, AND THE INEVITABILITY OF MY POWER SHALL GRIND YOUR SOUL TO DUST. ALL SHALL BOW BEFORE ME, AND PERISH.”
Another wave of hate-magic flowed out of Sombra. The shockwave hit Rainbow and her friends hard, scattering them in all directions. Nightmare Moon buckled under the onslaught, and fell to one knee. Her guitar strap broke, and her instrument fell from her bloody fingers. It made an inelegant twanging sound as it struck the floor.
Sombra held up a hand, and his terrible music stopped, as if someone had flicked a switch. Silence hung over the amphitheater.
“YOU HAVE FAILED, AS I KNEW YOU WOULD.” Sombra reached down and cupped Nightmare Moon's blue chin, tilting it upwards so he could gloat to her face. “NOW, FEEL THE STING OF DEFEAT, AND KNOW THIS WORLD IS DOOMED.”
“I have a question.” Nightmare Moon said.
“I SHALL INDULGE YOU A FINAL BOON BEFORE OBLIVION.”
“There's no room for friendship in your heart, Sombra." Nightmare Moon bared her teeth in a savage grin. "But is there room for steel?”
Nightmare Moon's sword shone silver in the night as she yanked it from its scabbard. Lightning-quick, she struck, and thrust the blade clear through Sombra's chest.
Sombra let out a wordless, choking cry, and fell to his back, clutching at the weapon. Nightmare Moon pushed herself back to her feet and followed. She planted one boot on Sombra's chest, and held her bleeding fist over his face. Sombra's armor sizzled where the red drops fell.
“By this blood, shed in righteous battle, I banish you to the far ends of the cosmos!”
Sombra reached up with one skeletal claw in a futile gesture of defiance. His body cracked as it crystallized, only to crumble to dust a moment later. A cool evening breeze wafted through the amphitheater, scattering what was once Sombra to the winds. Every last trace of the evil spirt and his magic simply blew away.
Rainbow Dash poked her head out from behind a toppled pile of speakers. “That. Was. Awesome.”
The audience agreed.
“NIGHT-MARE MOON!”
“NIGHT-MARE MOON!”
“NIGHT-MARE MOON!”
The blue-haired amazon stared out at the chanting crowd, and smiled.
“My work here is done.”
She left.
There was no encore.
By Monday, everything was back to normal. Or, at least as normal as things got at Canterlot High. A few bandages around Vice-Principal Luna's fingertips were the only sign that any such battle for the fate of the world had been waged.
“How're you feeling?” Sunset Shimmer poked her head into the darkened office.
Luna looked up from her paperwork. “Just fine. There's no reason I wouldn't otherwise.”
“Uh-huh.” Sunset said, disbelieving.
“Miss Shimmer, if we let things come to a halt every time someone diverted a magical apocalypse, we'd never get anything done.”
“That's … depressingly practical.”
Vice Principal Luna shrugged. “That doesn't make it any less true. Is there anything else I can do for you, or did you just want to check in on my well being?”
“I also wanted to thank you-- we all wanted to thank you for, you know, rescuing us and beating Sombra and everything.” Sunset Shimmer smiled a bit. “Uh, little warning, though. Pinkie Pie wants to throw you a surprise party.”
“Thank you.”
“I'm … still a little curious, though.”
“About?”
“Not that I'm complaining, but it was pretty convenient that you showed up when you did. Especially since you said you'd never be Nightmare Moon again.”
“I … had a change of heart.”
Sunset Shimmer sat down in the chair opposite Luna, and leaned forward. “Now, I don't know how much you know about magic. And honestly, I don't even know if magic here works exactly the same as where I'm from, but--”
“But?” Luna arched a brow.
“I've studied magic. A lot. And I know a full banishment is a lot harder to manage than a simple binding.”
“Your point?”
“I imagine that's why you didn't banish Sombra the first time you faced him.”
“Logical.”
“So, here's my question.” Sunset Shimmer steepled her fingers. “What changed between then and now?”
“I grew. I learned. That's another one of those depressingly practical parts of life.”
“Maybe.” Sunset Shimmer mused. “Or, maybe something was different this time around.”
“Such as?”
“You mentioned Sombra was most vulnerable when he was most powerful … something about how much of his power was devoted to manifestation?”
“You know more about magic theory than I do.”
“Something tells me that might not be entirely true.” Sunset Shimmer pulled in a breath. “Because it's pretty … convenient that Sombra manifested himself thoroughly enough so he could be physically attacked, much less banished. If he's as ancient a wizard as you say he is … well, he'd know not to commit himself too much. Unless, of course, something drew him out. Gave him a false sense of confidence.”
“An interesting theory.”
“You used us as bait.”
“You would have fought Sombra, no matter what I did.”
“You didn't warn us.”
“Sombra knows … knew, mind control. If he had the chance to reap the secrets from your minds … “ Vice-Principal Luna fiddled with her papers, and then tucked them away in a plain manilla folder. “I had confidence in you, Sunset Shimmer, or else I wouldn't have taken the risk.”
“But it was still a risk.”
“Nightmare Moon is not evil.” Vice-Principal Luna mused. “But that doesn't mean she's not a little bit bad.”
Sunset Shimmer stared at Luna for a long few seconds, and then broke out into giddy, half-mad laughter. “I guess if anyone could understand that, it'd be me.”
“Why do you think I told you?”
“Do you miss it?” Sunset Shimmer asked. “You know, being Nightmare Moon? The performing? The fans? The … inhibition?”
Luna paused. “I've … I've moved past that. I've grown.”
“Fair enough.” Sunset Shimmer reached inside her jacket, and pulled out a folded piece of paper, and set it flat on Vice-Principal Luna's desk. “But, if you change your mind, I heard the local Repertory Opera Company is having auditions next week.”
“Nightmare Moon doesn't sing opera.”
“I know.” Sunset Shimmer stood, and headed for the door. “I just wonder if Luna Faust does.”
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I will say that Nightmare makes an excellent anti-hero/dark hero. More stories should do it.
*Metal Squee* Brutally great! Thanks for writing!
Yay, great conclusion! I do wonder how much of this was accidental or intentional. Luna probably didn't intend to endanger the Rainbooms, but once Sombra was out... well, things worked out anyway. Especially liked that last chat between Luna and Sunset. Neither is evil, of course, but both of them are still a little bit dark.
METAL!
METAL! METAL EVERYWHERE!!! GREAT STORY! ROCK ON MOTHERF*CKERS!!!!
It aint over till the fat lady sings.
I dont hear no fat lady.
Not yet.
This was... interesting. The only thing that kept me reading was the metal and Nightmare Moon, but this ending I felt was a little too rushed. I mean, I get that there's no point dragging it out... but still.
Also, is it just me, or was Rainbow Dash extremely annoying in this story?
...I think it's just me. Oh well.
You should write a sequel or two addressing something Luna said a few chapters back about how magical apocalypses occur with a frequency that is not limited to the Rainbooms' activities.
Also, I absolutely loved the last line for headcannon reasons.
7083176 I find Rainbow Dash annoying in general, so this was no issue.
So, it was a Batman Gambit all along! Draw the demon out and then send in her understudies so that he believes he has the advantage. Then it's just a matter of beating him down when she already has the deathblow spell set up and ready to go.
Cold-blooded? Maybe but a high-level mage like Luna is probably all too bitterly aware of just what 'The Greater Good' costs in terms of lives and your own conscience. Sometimes, though, there is no choice.
7082879 I'm more of a classics fan: Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest...
I gave Slipknot several tries (most against my will). They're... Not my kind of band. I give them respect for being classic metalheads, but...
The classics are where the power of Metal truly shines brightest.
Conclusion a bit too calm from what I expected, but still good.
7083960 You know that feeling you wished you were born earlier, when the music was still real? Not like the seventies! I mean earlier... like... the EARLY seventies.
I will soooo steal this qoute! Also, I can totaly see Luna dominating the opera stage.
Great story, a more than worthwhile read. Bravo!
will there be more to this universe?
7084365 I could see The Overlady using that.
Also, is Nightmare Moon's band based off of Dragonforce?
7084836
That is the plan.^^
7084928 Awesome!
Hate to be a bother, but when is the next chapter coming out?
7085099
With some work and some luck, this weekend. Have several in the making actualy.^^
7085137 Yay!
7084232 "What do you do with a bunch of kids who don't know how to do anything but bang their heads all day?"
"...You start a revolution, Lars."
"Dude, what is that sound?"
"It's an angel singing!
"It's a demon crying!"
"Whatever it is, it's f
kin' awesome!"
I love that game.
7081521 You start a revolution.
7085354 Still play it every now and then. The music, story and humor are what keep it safe from the harsh passing of time.
Oh, and Ozzy and Lemmy are great in the game.
img01.deviantart.net/91b7/i/2015/207/d/b/my_little_brutal_legend_by_ruhisu-d92vyhv.png
I didn't make this, just found it on Google
7085512 This pleases me.
Rule #7 of the Interwebs: If it exists, there's a pony version of it.
7061569
And for the record ...
Pinkie Pie loves to polka, natch. Or really, she digs anything upbeat with a bunch of horns, so she digs ska, too. Maybe a little bit of the 90's Swing Revival. Oh, and she loves Weird Al, even if half the time she doesn't know the original versions he's parodying.
Rainbow Dash digs anything fast and loud. So Metal (as the fic shows), but also a lot of punk. And Jim Steinman, because Jim Steinman is awesome.
Rarity is all about the classical and the opera. You know, CULTURED music. She's got a weakness for New Wave, though, since she plays keytar.
Fluttershy: Musicals. So many musicals. Only she saw Little Shop Of Horrors once, and she couldn't sleep for a week, so nowadays she sticks to Disney.
Applejack listens to country. PROPER country, with murder ballads and everything. So mostly oldschool stuff, with a little bit of indie country in there like, say, Those Darlins.
Twilight is a super nerd, so she mostly listens to They Might Be Giants and maybe, like, Rush or something.
Sunset Shimmer was kind of odd, considering she's technically only been human for what, a year? Two? Still, I see her listening to a lot of semi-dark stuff with female vocalists. So, y'know, Amanda Palmer.
Great conclusion. Your tribute to the Gods of Metal has been accepted.
Ormagoden be praised.
PS: Luna Faust is too perfect.
That rocked.
Also:
Rainbooms vs SOMBRA, basically.
Well, that was exquisite. A magnificently crafted story from start to finish. Thank you for it.
Still, I can't help but wonder what Celestia got up to while Luna was recording...
7086107 Rainbow would like DragonForce then?
That was...SO AWESOME!! <3
That was the single most metal thing I have ever read. And you even had Luna defeat Sombra with a witty one-liner in proper heroic fashion. Well played.
Victory through stabbing!
7086107 THAT WAS AMAZING!
if she sings again can we hear.
"Out of the Silent Planet" by Iron Maiden?
Dang, and here I was expecting Celestia to show up as an Ultra-Pop Goddess, channeling the spirits of Freddy Mercury and David Bowie. Cause y'know, they're the antithesis of Death Metal.
7127492 oh yes. Very true. Forgot about that.
7130009 [youtube=Cq8_tDJpePk]
I literally just finished reading today's new chapter of that story (which was pretty good, as always).
Are you also a closet mage, by chance?
Great Story. ~hug
Ah, i suppose it is the mark of a good story to leave you wanting more. I'm not quite sure if that's because it was good enough that I wanted more, or that the ending was unsatisfying. I'm not sure. I'm tired and it's hard to see the screen about now.
Well, it was a fun ride. One more for old time's sake.
img10.deviantart.net/aa82/i/2015/054/a/6/you_like_krabby_patties__don_t_you__squidward__by_katehasboobs-d8j8p5i.jpg
This was very fun to read, well done!
7220983 It would probably have to be inside out.
Rappers wear pretty much everything either inside out or backwards anyway.
7221091 But a regular wizard hat looks the same inside-out as outside-out! They would need a closer look at the hat to see stitching before they realize a thug mage just roasted the fool.
I'm not sure, but I think that last line was an insult to metal bands.
7222289
fuuuuuuuuuuck my brain hurts.
\m/ \m/
Too bad Luna's canonically an alto. Casting her as the Queen of the Night from The Magic Flute would be wonderfully meta...
7470343 Ah, but there is no Alto in opera; it is a choral term. In opera, they instead have Mezzo-Soprano, which is in fact used for many female leading roles.
Next thing you know, we have a story about Luna writing an opera story about a warrior-queen who attempts to save her kingdom from a horde of eldritch, otherworldly beings. Queen Chrysalis actually is one of those beings, and challenges Luna to a singing duel, which Luna declines, and so Chrysalis uses her shapeshifting powers to sabotage Luna's efforts until she finally caves.
I just binged on all your Equestria Girls stories. It was a happy afternoon, they're all such fun!
I did like this one the best though, there's just something quite wonderfully inspired about the reimagining of Nightmare Moon as a guitar wielding, heavy metal rockstar who battles black-hearted fiends.
Characterisation of Rainbow Dash and Sunset was excellent too, and the ending just perfect!