This story is a sequel to Cheer Princess
Princess Celestia followed Sunset Shimmer through the mirror portal and became stranded in another world. Without her, Princess Cadance was the only pony left capable of moving the sun and the moon.
With the help of Zecora, Cadance learned to move the heavens, but as she brought about night for the first time, she accidentally released Nightmare Moon from her prison.
Now, with the assistance of Princess Cadance, Nightmare Moon rules Equestria. As the search for Princess Celestia continues, Cadance strives to reach the heart of Princess Luna, to restore her to the gentle and kind mare she once was, while Nightmare Moon learns what it truly means to rule a kingdom.
Chapters (2)
as the other story is still on going and this takes place at the same time as it, this is a side story not a sequel, not that my ocd nitpicking is done keep up the good work on both stories
Oh dang, it's the other side of that story. Gotta read it.
9193626
Eh, pretty sure that's just how the site labels it, there's not really any other mechanism for linking stories.
9193626
FiMF only gives the option to label stories as sequels, not sidestories. It isn't a thing I can control, so there's no use pointing it out.
9193644
sorry then
I'm really looking forward to how this story develops.
You should write in the description that is a side story, regardless of what the side says automatically there XD. oh well, in any case, I'm reading this XD.
Finally!
... ha! I get it!
Yes, I have been waiting for this. Nightmare Moon is in for a lot of trouble. A 1000 years to catch up to won't be easy on top of a thousand years of politics and law making... Joy...
And this is where a competent villain (or conqueror) would just execute Cadance at once. (But then, we would have much less of a story, wouldn't we?)
I was a little surprised to see this but it looks great so far. Looks like everyone convinced Nightmare Moon to take her rule one step at a time.
That line is way funnier when it comes from a villain like Nightmare Moon.
9194164 Given how NMM acted in the show... she's about as far from competent as one could get. She got defeated by 6 untrained mares, only one of whom even suspected she existed... and only, like, two days beforehand. So it's perfectly in-character.
NMM was about as cunning and subtle as a sledgehammer to the face. People gotta realize SOMBRA was more competent! At least he left traps.
9194164
Hahahahahahaha next you'll be telling me Celestia is a mighty warrior.
9194378
And then there's Chrysalis, who's just become more and more pathetic over time.
She paused at the window of the two sisters sealing Discord. Several seconds passed in uncomfortable silence. Finally, the Nightmare turned away and muttered, "Didn't even get my good side."
In any case, this should be a gripping read indeed. Eagerly looking forward to more, especially when the topic of raising the sun comes up.
9194164
But even in her Nightmarish state, Luna doesn't want to be a villain. She may be willing to settle for fear, but what she has always wanted from her subjects is recognition, respect, love. It's one thing to conquer. It's quite another to rule sustainably afterwards. The question is how long NMM's patience will hold out against her egomania and paranoia.
9194437 Yeah, Chrysalis' original plan worked out of sheer luck. She clearly had no idea what to do against the Princesses, and had Luna not been plot-conveniently absent for the wedding itself, it would've been game over instantly.
After that, she shows up again and the show hands her victory over the ponies without even explaining how. Then all her changelings suddenly decide to become Skittles bugs... somehow...
Tirek actually won. The Tree just threw the ponies a Deux Ex at the last second.
Discord almost legitimately won. He turned the Bearers against each other and didn't expect them to recover.
Sombra was a legitimate loss. The ponies were looking for the Crystal Heart the whole time, so it's not as if it was an unknown property.
Nightmare Moon... sheer, where to even begin. Thinking retroactively, her loss makes even less sense if the Nightmare was indeed a part of Luna's mind all along. Luna would have known full well how the EoH were made and how they worked, AND ABOUT THE TREE. NMM didn't seem to know a damned thing.
Eh, but this is all less about the villains' competence and more about the show's sloppy continuity.
9194514
Not long, I think.
Gimme. Gimme gimme gimme! I MUST HAVE MORE!
9194514
Considering that Cadance has openly declared her intent to continuously defy and undermine Nightmare's rule, killing her wouldn't even be villainous or paranoid, it would just be NMM dealing with sedition and treason and stabilizing her rule.
Yeah, it would upset ponies in Canterlot, but anything less than Celestia 2.0 will upset them anyway, and it's not like anypony outside of Canterlot even knows Cadance exists (at least in Cannon).
It was just me musing aloud anyway, MythrilMoth's stories are generally too lighthearted for such things (not that that is a bad thing).
Oh yes, I'm happy to see this one and looking forward to where it goes!
I get that this is a side story, but no lies when I first saw 'sequel' I was a bit sad as I really really really want to see more on the human side of the mirror.
Strong start for this though! It will be grand if Twi becomes Nightmare's protege, cause if you think about it the parallels are there in universe.
9197406
You do know Cheer Princess isn't done yet, right? I'm still writing it, it's just that I needed to get rolling with this story too and the inspiration to work on it finally hit.
9197515
I know, I just meant that for a second the whole sequel tag on the site made me sad till I reminded myself of that
9196836
Um, you did catch the part were Cadance declares that she will keep NMM "in check" and keep Equestria from being NMM's "plaything", right? Yes, Cadance has knowledge about the current government and current society, (both very useful, but neither are something NMM actually needs to rule [NMM was ready to rule through fear from the get go, after all]) but when she has made it clear that she will not be using her knowledge to help NMM's rule, but instead will only use it to limit and circumvent NMM, as well as to manipulate NMM into ruling the way Cadance wants her to, that severely reduces the value of the knowledge. Especially since all of Cadance's knowledge (except for personal knowledge of Celestia) can be acquired from other ponies (ponies who are not rivals for the throne). Then there is the whole "taking rulership advice from someone who is openly opposed to, and trying to undermine, the regime" thing ....
Yes, letting mayors and bureaucrats and (possibly) even nobles remain in place to keep the government running is necessary, but Cadance doesn't actually do anything (that we currently know of), so she is irrelevant to the running of the government. But she is a symbol of Celestia's regime that rebels and malcontents will rally around.
9198313
A succesful evil overlord, however, does not randomly destroy useful resources,. NMM knows what Cadance is doing- and it is better to have your enemies close at hand and under control than having random callow youths raising rebellions around the countryside.
Until NMM successfully appraises the current situation (as MythrilMoth appears to be making a reasonable attempt to show the effect of a thousand-year reign and possibly the societal and technological disparity of an entire millenium[1], getting rid of a usual resource - despite it being uncooperative - would be unwise.
(And killing her would just turn her into a martyr, for that matter.
Now, quietly finding some leverage (e.g Shining Armor - or Twilight) with which to ensure Cadance doesn't get any funny ideas if necessary, THAT'S what she shold be doing.)
[1]Celestia must, incidently, be commended for managing to quash lingual drift for a thousand years. Let's not forget that English speakers weren't even speaking MIDDLE English a thousand years ago (which is just about comprehensible i you've ever had to read Chaucer), but Old Englisg (which isn't.)
9198393
Hey, we're talking about magical talking ponies here, I wouldn't be surprised if they're still using the exact same language (with a few new words) as Hurricane, Puddinghead and Platinum.
that of the ruling candence, while cely, is in the other world?
Sometimes I forget, about what I read some time
more and very good, more I found a bit rooted, that in his first time doing the work, she released the equivalent of the ponies of anti-christ
9198393
Again, Cadance's usefulness to NMM is actually very minimal and very replaceable, and the "random callow youths raising rebellion" will likely happen anyway once it gets out that NMM is in control, having Cadance around will just give them a "true princess" to try and put on the throne. So it becomes a question of a dead martyr or a living symbol who is also actively trying to undermine and subvert NMM's rule. Dead causes far fewer problems.
Getting leverage over Cadance isn't a bad thought, as far as it goes, but it still requires NMM to keep Cadance around, even though any profit to NMM from that is debatable at best. (Like we're debating it right now
)
9198473
But is Cadance a competent administrator? She seems to have no place in the government, not even as a diplomat, that we are currently aware of. And she certainly isn't popular outside of Canterlot, Rarity (who adores anything to do with the royalty and lives in a nearby town) had never even heard of Cadance before the wedding. Even if NMM trumpeted Cadance's execution across Equestria, it looks like most ponies reaction would be "Who?"
As for your successful tyranny question, my opinion is: yes, NMM could control all of Equestria as a tyrant (bloody-hooved or otherwise). After all, nothing in Equestria is a physical threat to her, and she can see and manipulate her subjects dreams to find revolutionaries and alter (albeit slowly) how ponies see her (or leave them in abject terror of her).
Thank you, Kobla, Aotrs Commander, FanOfMostEverything, for an interesting discussion, but as has been pointed out, Cannon NMM was very much not competent, so this will have to remain in the hypothetical until we see how MythriMoth portrays his NMM.
9198773
vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/mlp/images/d/d1/Baby_Cakes_wondering_what_Pinkie_is_doing_S2E13.png/revision/latest?cb=20121216203342
I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't speak...whatever language that is you're typing in.
9198782
idiot translator
well, I found it funny, that on his first day at work
candence, released the equivalent of ponies
of anti-Christ
and if it happens a lot of time, I forget what I read
9198781
Oh, absolutely.
A competant, effective NMM (of the sort who would be a welcome recruit to the Army Of The Red Spear, for instance) might have done the following:
1) Not appeared dramatically publically, after... Doing whatever she did with Celestia[1].
2) Instead, used her night-based stealth abilities to lurk around and do some recon; find out the lay of the land, ascertain what possible threats to her powers would, numbers, weapons, etc. (Including "will eternal night actually cause catastrophic environmentalt problems that will kill everyone?")
3) Construct a very careful plan to take the most critical region under control (which may not be the capital)
4) Quietly eliminate any located threats (e.g. Mane Six or, more likely Twilight (since without NMM being there, Twilight almost certainly wouldn't have worked out how to activate the even if the others accompanied her).
5) THEN enact conquest plan.
That would, of course, be an entirely different (and likely much darker) story to either this one or canon.
[1]Jury is out whether it may or may not have been prudent to kill her out of hoof - one the on hoof, she'd be permenanly out of the way, on the other that's a big source of to-level information you just wasted; access to necromancy, of course, allows you to have both, though NMM probablyt didn't.
9198810
9198853
Okay you two? Outta here, now. Take it to PMs.
9198861
My apologies; I am not sure precisely what the poster in question took offense to (I was directly debating with Dorath, and I was sort of on their side) - perhaps to me merely being my usual Evil self (which is fair enough), but I had pretty much said my piece anyway (nor would I have continued in any case if threatened to become uncivil as it has done); so you may consider my part of this closed, my good sir/madam/small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.
*mimes zipping his jawbone shut*
*tips helmet*
9198910
No harm, no foul.
*tips helmet*
YAY!!!!!!! Thank you so much for writing this. I've been looking forward to this fic since NMM was freed in Cheer Princess.
I'm seriously loving this so far. Although it does make me wonder how thing's will work out for Twilight being destined to being the Princess's student, and both her and the other EoH becoming a thing. Chosen by the Tree of Harmony.
9198807
Rather like with that comment. He's pointing out you have horrible spelling, and had no idea what you were writing because your spelling and sentence structure is atrocious. It's physically painful how bad it is.
For instance, Cadance is the proper name, and canonical name of Princess Cadance. Not Candence (which isn't remotely right). And you don't cap names. Also another tip. You don't slaughter a sentence by splitting it to multiple lines, breaking the sentence randomly. You have 3 - 6 sentences (on average) of connected sentences. Then you space it out one or two lines. Then make the new paragraph.
9211111
first, if we forget or lose an accent or letter, the translator changes the whole sentence type ohe the difference
dog
ciao
the first word to be translated is thus ... cão ... Already the wrong word is like this, ... cõo ...
and your translations have changed completely
so if you never miss a word when writing anything, my congratulations, you can speak badly about how I write, otherwise, just point me that I wrote wrong, and I'll try to correct
9214158
Dude, let it go.
9214476
Sure sure. NP.
now I'm curious for what he wants, that he said
NMM: "Always those hard decisions..."
In her defence, you just ordered your guards to remove the mirror...
Poor, put-upon Nightmare Moon. None of the things that were fun 1000 years ago are really a thing anymore.
I'm curious to see how (or IF) she'll adjust to the modern, peaceful era.
You have to ask. Just what did Nightmare Moon expect she would get if she took over Equestria. Obviously she doesn’t reallise that things may have changed a little in the thousand years she has been gone.
"REEEEEESEARCH...!"
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9265947
You’ve seen episode 900
And hopefully haven’t gone “twilynanas”
9265954
Saw it, loved it. I think it's better than most of season 8.
9266028
Haven’t seen S8 (NETFLIX!!!!!!!!!!!!!) yet, sounds like it’s absol-ute shit
"Her subjects adulate her because she does all of this, Your Highness, and the rewards of ruling are more work."
Poor Luna. Her expectations of sole rule were terribly inaccurate even before they were a thousand years out of date. At this rate, she's going to welcome Twilight challenging her right to rule. ("An adversary! A leader of the rebel forces! Finally! I've been bored out of my skull.")
Of course, knowing these two, Twilight's going to end up with the best playmate ever.
Also, I do wonder when NMM will check on the sorry state of the dreamscape...