War of the Fallen Race

by PegasusKlondike

Bonus Chapter: Nightmare Moon

The War of the Fallen Race was ancient history to those ponies who bothered to learn what little they could about it. But to Princess Celestia, her failure to save humanity was an everyday reminder of her ever increasing pile of failures. They had chased Discord across the face of the Earth for centuries, the creature had taunted them at every step, always two steps ahead. The humans had struggled to survive Discord's onslaught, but after two centuries succumbed to the mad monster of chaos. She had failed, and now it had been eight hundred years since a human had last been seen alive.

Worse, Luna had finally succumb to the cursed darkness. She had left Celestia, proclaiming herself the Queen of the Night, Nightmare Moon. She had changed physically, Luna had become taller and leaner, her wings and mane little more than the living darkness that consumed her soul. And now she kept the sun from rising, keeping her moon high in the sky. The Eternal Night some were calling it. But Celestia knew she would have to change that.

She knew the horrible promise that she made to herself a thousand years ago would have to be kept. Princess Luna had to be dealt with, there could be no mercy.

Celestia gathered the Elements of Harmony, the same fount of power they had used together to imprison Discord. But Mother had not told Celestia one thing. She, being only one, could not tap the full strength of the Elements. Their power would serve her, but only to a lesser extent.

And so Celestia now flew to Nightmare Moon's fortress, located deep within the wild and untamed Everfree Forest. She spotted the castle, a twisted visage of an ancient human fortress. Nightmare Moon worked her magic atop the tallest tower, sending her tendrils of corruption out into the world to forward her mad plans. Celestia flared her wings as she landed, but Nightmare Moon had been waiting for her. She hurled lightning bolts from her horn, but Celestia leaped to her left and hid behind some of the rubble left by the lightning crash. Using her magic, she picked up a stone, and leaping from her cover hurled it at Nightmare Moon. Nightmare deflected it with a wing. But Celestia had the distraction she needed and threw down a magical shield to encompass Nightmare Moon. Having the dark one held securely, Celestia summoned the Elements of Harmony.

"Luna, I know you are still in there. Forgive me."

"The one called Luna is dead! There is only me, Nightmare Moon, Queen of the Night and rightful ruler of Equestria."

"No! I know that somewhere inside of you resides my little sister! You, Nightmare Moon, are nothing more than a scar upon her mind made by human magic!" Celestia shouted to her enemy.

The ink black alicorn struggled against her magical bonds. "It is a great irony is it not? That after a thousand years, the Fallen Race continue to leave their mark upon this world! And you believed they could be saved!"

"There was good in them, Nightmare. We did what we could to save them! They had their flaws and so do we. You still hold the grudge against just one of them, the one who corrupted you and flaunted his escape!"

"You foal! I would never bend myself to hold a grudge against a pitiful demon!"

"I'm sorry I have to do this," a tear fell down Celestia's cheek, falling to the stone of Nightmare Moon's fortress, "I love you, Luna." The Elements began to glow with Celestia's magic. She could not banish the evil from Luna's soul, another pony would have that fate. But she could remove Nightmare Moon from the world until the ones destined to wield the Elements were ready to do so. A portal began to shimmer into existence, coalescing around Nightmare Moon. Celestia would send her some place off this world where she could not threaten ponykind, the harsh and inhospitable moon.

Snarling at her nemesis and making one last attempt at breaking her bonds, Nightmare Moon glared at Celestia, screaming her declaration and her revenge. "Know this, Princess Celestia! In a thousand years, upon the longest day the stars themselves with aid with my escape! And upon that day I shall cloak the world in eternal darkness!" The magical vortex enveloped Nightmare Moon, taking her and her evil influence away from Equestria.

The sun dawned over the hills, and Celestia wept. She knew this day had to come, and with the Elements she had stood victorious. But she knew that somewhere in the world existed the taint that humanity had released in its dying throes. Though nearly a thousand years dead, their actions and memory still haunted the Earth. From that day forward Celestia did everything she could to keep their memory and their influence as a part of the past.

Comments

[Ariel Schnee]

When will we get to the part with the humans waking up and emerging again.

[Shpoople96]

245975
This.