Twilight's Nightmare

by Nightsclaw

CH 48.2 Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept it

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The open scroll floated in the air wrapped in magenta magic. Twilight's eyes traced Celestia’s elegant calligraphy. The relaxing sensation of the brushes across her body were now nothing more than background noise.

Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle,

It is with great regret I must inform you that the Blighted have spread beyond our borders. The Griffonstone ambassador has invoked the defence clause of their treaty. Myself, Luna and Cadance are committed to the defence of our ponies and cannot be spared.

I will not order you to do this. I leave the choice to you and the consequences of breaking our treaty with the Griffons.

You are a Princess. I trust your judgment. You may do as you wish with my blessing.

Celestia.

Twilight's gaze lingered upon Celestia’s beautiful signature. For the first time, the Princess had given her a choice about accepting a mission, and yet there was no choice. We can’t simply ignore this.

They’re just griffons. Night scoffed.

A nation we are at peace with and have treaties with.

And so we should leave our ponies to protect themselves, we should spend time away from our daughter? Night's disdain dripped upon Twilight's resolve like caustic acid.

It’s the right thing to do…

Spike’s scales rasped across each other as he shifted nervously. Twilight’s ears twitched, the almost inaudible sound loud to her Alicorn magic enhanced senses in the silent room.

“Twilight?” His tone subdued, his expression twisted with doubt.

“Yes, Spike?” Twilight's voice was too calm even to her own ears.

Spike looked into her eyes. His worry shifted to something deeper. The little dragon’s heart rate picked up. What had he seen behind her eyes?

“Is everything going to be alright?” He asked, his voice steady despite all the signs he could not hide from her senses.

It was but the effort of a moment to draw the small dragon into an embrace. “Yes, Spike. Everything is going to be alright.”

The little dragon’s eyes once again found the black ribbons that had bound the scroll. An omen of death and doom. After the attacks, the ponies they had lost, it was no wonder he was scared.

Twilight nuzzled the first life she, or more accurately the original her, had brought into the world. “I will keep you safe.” Her words were no mere promise, they were a simple statement of fact. Anything or anyone that tried to challenge that law of nature would regret it.

So you still wish to run sisters errands?

Twilight listened to Spike’s calming heartbeat. Its slowing rhythm soothed her. She nodded, then wrapped her wings tightly around her son-brother-assistant. Whatever he counted as, he was family.

There was a lot she would have to get done before her trip. Her mind settled into a familiar routine. Every problem could be broken down into multiple smaller ones. She pulled back from her body a little, the Grand Golden Oaks Library overlaying her vision as Dreams floated over a clipboard and quill.

Point one, her Knight and Guard Captain needed healing. A twinge of guilt added a few inkblots to her mental checklist.

A turbulent storm of emotions stirred in her chest, trapping her thoughts and words in chains of her own making, only to be washed away by a fridge blizzard. One by one, each fear, each doubt, every single worry froze enveloped by Night's chilling will.

Night…

You made your choice, now is not the time for your soft emotions.

Something inside Twilight shivered at the former Nightmare’s tone before that too was swept aside. She smiled. Cold logic and reason sat behind her eyes as her mind danced through plans and possibilities. Everything was clear and in focus, like the difference between staring at the night sky when she was but a unicorn, and what she could see now she had ascended.

That's better, my Host…

Twilight nodded.

"Spike," Twilight’s voice oozed warmth and love. Not just because she felt it, no, a part of her decided it would be the most effective tone to use to motivate her Best-Brother-Son-Number-One-Assitant or BBSNOA as she would write it. A giggle started to rise in her chest, but she clamped down on it.

“Yes, Twilight?”

“We have some letters to send and some preparations that must be completed.”

His little arms tightened around her. “You're leaving.” It was not a question.

“I have to… even if we did not have a treaty with the griffons, allowing the blight a chance to expand unchecked now will only mean a more difficult battle later.”

It was clear in her mind. With few spell casters and no solar aspected ones, the gryphons would not be able to fortify and secure areas. Without aid, the number of their blighted population would expand exponentially. That was an unacceptable threat to her ponies. She would not allow it.

Night flashed a fanged smile out from Twilight's reflection. My host, you take care of things in Ponyville. We will start planning our campaign. Do you have any maps?

Mentally Twilight left her library and trotted over to Night and the viewing portal that looked down upon her physical body. The storm-charged air filled Twilight's lungs with power. The obsidian under her hooves felt right. That fact alone should have been disconcerting, but it was not. Another note added itself to her checklist right down in the 'deal with after saving the world' section.

The duality of sensations would require more practice before she would feel confident acting both here and in the physical world simultaneously. Her quill danced above the clipboard, adding a new path of self-improvement to her training schedule.

A simple effort of will was all it took to summon a book from the Grand Golden Oaks Library and present it before Night.

Thank you, Twilight. With a stomp of Night’s hoof, a dark table rose from the endless plane of obsidian. Placing the book of maps upon the table, it shifted. Its surface rippled and a topographic representation of all the known lands of Equus rose, forming a dark imitation of the cutie-map.

Twilight tilted her head. There were so many possibilities if this could be connected to the map and if it could be paired with the scrying array. The quill added yet another objective to her list. A glint of light and motion drew her attention from the mental space.

Out in the physical world, Spike's eyes, the windows to his very soul, stared up at her. The fear of loss, the hope she would be alright. Twilight nuzzled him, the feeling of his scales against her coat such a familiar one. “I’ll be counting on my number one assistant to keep things running smoothly here.”

“You can count on me, Twilight.” His pride was a good mask, but it could not hide his doubt from the pony that practically raised him.

“I know I can,” Twilight said, resting her hoof on his scaled shoulder. “Yourself, Emerald and Candice, when she recovers, will be responsible for keeping our ponies safe.”

---

The distinct sound of her hoof-falls on crystal kept a steady beat as Twilight walked her castle. It was still filled with so many ponies. Everywhere she looked, there were signs of all those souls that were sheltering within the crystal walls of her home. Stacks of the few personal effects they managed to save, so many scents on the air. Even without all the beating hearts she could hear, there were enough secondary signs to have a good idea how many ponies were there. By the scents alone, she could count them one by one if she really paid attention.

Her eyes longly lingered on the entrance to the library. Oh, how pleasant it would be to curl up in here with a good book or ten, yet she could not. Every moment wasted only meant more Blighted to face. Even with that, she could not feel guilt for the hour she spent holding Spike before he fell asleep. She had at least gotten all the letters she needed written.

Eventually, she found herself outside Rainbow's room. She would be the test case, the proof of concept. Taking a calming breath, she walked in. She was not using her friend as just a test subject. Her aura enveloped the door, opening it for her. The battered and abused body of the prismatic maned pegasus still lay in traction upon the bed.

Twilight lit her horn, letting her magic survey the damage. Within moments her plan solidified, each spell, each operation she would need to perform in its place. Twilight felt the wide smile that stretched her face. She did her best to restrain it. She did not want to scare her friend after all.

“Rainbow, it’s time to get you back in the air, my Knight.”

---

Comments

[DarkGred]

Blighted in the griffon lands? ouch, that sounds like a massacre...

[Tillion]

[Killer20]

So is this just BS from Celestia to get Twilight away from Ponyville/ Equestria?
Maybe there are Blighted , but Celestia just wants to see how Twilight deals with them?
Celestia probably doesn't really care about the Griffons.
Big Confrontation between Twilight and Celestia coming soon?
Midnight Scroll doing something scary ?
And now Luna doesn't trust Night anymore, yeah there will be some crazy stuff happening soon!

[RegMoDII]

10879276
If the brutes could face the flood then the griffins can face the blighted

[RegMoDII]

10879415
I was figuring that when Twilight saw the extent of the damage Celestia did to Luna or Night restored Luna's memories of the past that that would lead to a confrontation

[Bloody_Tofu]

Million bit pony side story?

Always glad to see this update ty.

[Spellflame]

10879917
Which chapter was this?

[hive vs machine]

10879537
dud, nice reference

[Spc jacko]

10880013
She can rebuild her. Faster,stronger, better.

[Admiral Q Ponyform]

10883650
then she is a moron

[Snowkitsune]

10880013
daft pony may they rest in peace

[Devonlui]

“I know I can,” Twilight said, resting her hoof on his scaled shoulder. “Yourself, Emerald and Candice, when she recovers, will be responsible for keeping our ponies safe.”

Honestly I enjoyed the story way more without Candice