Everlasting Nightmare

by CreatureofTheNight

First published

"What is the Nightmare of the Master of Dreams?"

Princess Luna is sleeping during the day and comes face to face with a being from her past in her dreams that she never wanted to see again.

Cover Art By: Oak Sabletwist

Everlasting Nightmare

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It was in the middle of the day in the city of Canterlot, in the Kingdom of Equestria, during this time of day Princess Luna, the Princess of the Night, sleeps soundly while her older sister Celestia runs the Kingdom. Princess Luna, rested as she new that tonight was going to be a busy night for her as always as she was preparing to stop as many nightmares as she can that night as always with her gift to enter the dreams of other ponies and see what is on the minds of her citizens. That gift helped her so much to recover faster from her shame, her ultimate shame, Nightmare Moon.

Luna heard a noise and then opened her eyes. She looked around as she opened the door and then stumbled falling down a deep abyss. She started to flap her wings rapidly, and then saw that her hooves could touch this void. She looked around and saw that there was nothing, just a pitch black void in the middle of no where. "What is the meaning of this!?" She ordered looking around. She heard something in the distance and then paused and looked at blue light piercing the darkness. She looked away at first but then slowly but surely she walked toward the light. She then saw the blue light turning more darkish blue, and paled slightly. She turned to run away when suddenly she found herself back in her old home, the Castle of the Two Sister. She looked around in quiet confusion but saw that it was covered in the darkness of the night, slowly causing Luna to turn her head and seeing a mirror on the balcony. On the Balcony, Luna looked as the mirror was angled in a way that it was showing Luna's reflection staring back at her. Luna backed up quietly, as the reflection slowly walked outside, slowly mutating looking down at her. "Surprised to see me, Princess Luna?" Her reflection mocked as it slowly twisted and contorted changing into an aura of darkness, the figure smirked and said "You shouldn't be, I am that part of you that you can never be free of, after all...I am you" She smirked as the figure changed into Nightmare Moon, staring down her counterpart from above. "The true Princess of the Night, the Mare in the Moon,"

Luna looked back at her and said "This is a dream, you aren't real" Realizing what was happening pretty easily, as the reflection started laughing. "You aren't me, the Elements of Harmony freed me from your terrible grasp. I regained my sanity, You aren't real"

Nightmare Moon smirked turning into a starry mist descending standing next to Luna and said "You're both right and wrong, this is a dream but I'm plenty real. I am your darkness, all the emotions you're repressing. You're true self" She smirked "The pony you always will be."

"I am nothing like you, I have redeemed myself from your terrible atrocities" Luna said in defiance, as her dark counterpart started to circle around her, given a menecing look. "I'm free of you, you have no control over me"

A smile appeared in Nightmare Moon's mouth showing her jagged razor sharp teeth, the wicked alicorn smirked and said "Oh I have no control over you , you say? Come Luna, do you think me as stupid? I know you better than any mare and colt in the world." She smirked and said "Your hopes, your dreams, your memories, your emotions, your dark thoughts that fill every corner of your mind." Luna backed away from her and then Nightmare Moon smirked. "Have you forgotten? Perhaps you need a reminder" Nightmare Moon's horn glowed and a screen appeared from it, showing Luna one of her memories.

It was of Celestia and Luna as fillies, they were playing with each other when it was time for Luna to lower the moon. Luna smiled and did what she usually did, then paused as she looked out. She saw many ponies going to sleep as Celestia walked outside and stood next to her. Luna asked Celestia, "Sister, why do they go to sleep during my night? Don't they appreciate all the hard work that I do?"

Celestia smiled and said "Of course they appreciate it. They just need to sleep, all ponies do. It is nothing you should concern yourself over. Lets play"

Luna couldn't help but smile at Celestia, but suddenly Nightmare Moon gave Luna a reminder of her emotions both at the time, and deep down inside of her. "Aww how sweet, words of kindness from a pony who knows nothing of being ignored. The perfect child, remember? Your parents always did favor Celestia over you, the Princess of the Sun, their perfect burning light daughter." Luna backed up. "A pony who knows nothing of being ignored, nothing about having all the hard work they put in unappreciated, a pony who is worshiped like a god, while you sat in the background her constant shadow, the lesser sister. " She looked at Luna looking away from her trying to ignore Nightmare Moon's words. "Surely she has the right to say such kind things to you? She knows nothing of your struggle, then, and she knows nothing now."

Luna was about to say something when Nightmare Moon's horn glowed again and saw another vision of her past.

This was the Two Sisters talking in their castle, Luna looked at Celestia and asked quietly. "Sister, may I ask you something?"

Celestia responded with, "Of course little sister, you know you can ask me anything"

Luna asked "Can we make the night just a little longer? Maybe an hour or two, I think our subjects would really love to see our night instead of just sleeping through it." Luna asked so innocently, but paused as she her Celestia laugh a little.

Celestia noticed the hurt in Luna's eyes as Luna got up and left. Celestia tried to say something but Luna was already gone

"Laughed at you" Nightmare Moon reminder Luna. "You were in a moment of crisis, you needed support you needed reasoning, you need love. Instead, what happened? You were laughed at, mocked for making a reasonable request."

Luna looked at her and said "Stop it! She apologized for that!" She said, more reminding herself then her dark counterpart. Nightmare Moon smirked "You can show me all the images you want, but Celestia apologized profusely to me, so be silent" The Blue Alicorn said acting defiant to not show that Nightmare Moon was getting to her.

Nightmare Moon laughed, but twisted her voice so it sounded like Celestia's laughter back then. "Who are you really trying to convince me or you?" Luna looked away from her. "This is how you really feel Luna, why fight it. Why fight to change who you really are? Go on, give you sister what she really deserves."

Luna growled at that and said "Back off, you aren't me, you aren't my darkness, you aren't real. You are just a part of my life that I will never go back to, I refuse to turn back into you." She said trying to defy her counterpart, but slowly her skin was turning as black as Nightmare Moon's.

Another laughter came from Luna, this time sounding like multiple figures laughing at the same time, it then said "Oh but you are wrong Luna, I am inside of you. I know how you really feel, I'm all that repressed emotions you have deep inside of your body. You call me a part of your life that you will never go back to? Well guess what, I am inside of you, because no matter what your pain will never, end! You can fight it all you want, but this is reality. If you ever want to become nothing more than Celestia's little sister, you will stop this foolish resistance and embrace who you are. After all, your subjects know who you really are. Why not give them what they want?"

Luna's legs gave out under her as she tried to stop the memories of the citizens cowering in fear from her, her sister's nervous reactions to Luna having a little complaint here or there, and many other things. Suddenly she looked ahead and saw herself in the mirror. She saw her body slowly shifting to Nightmare Moon, and paused horrified at herself. She then looked away trying to fight it, when suddenly she started to have other memories surging in her mind.

It was the first night back from her imprisonment on the moon, when Celestia sat next to her. Celestia said to Luna, "Are you okay?"

Luna looked away from her and said "Celestia, I'll be fine...it's just...I mean...I..." She said not trying to find the words to say, she was just processing how long she's been away, one thousand years of anger and hatred, and it all was just undone just like that. Luna finally said something, after a moment of silence "How could you just, forgive me just like that?"

Celestia smiled and hugged her, "Because I love you, it tore my heart out having to seal you in the moon. If I just listened to you more often, maybe this whole thing would have never happened." She smiled and said "I love you no matter what Luna, you're my little sister, and nothing that you do, or I do, can change that"

A brilliant light emanated from Luna as the darkness surrounding her body started to slowly shatter into hundred of pieces. She looked at Nightmare Moon who backed up in shock, "It is you, who know nothing" She glared the infamous Mare in the Moon down and said "You're wrong about me, you always have been and you always will be." She looked at her dark counterpart down and said "You are right about one thing, you are the manifestation of all my dark feelings." She sighed. "I can't lie to myself, even after all this times it does bother me a little still that ponies sleep through the night, it does feel like they don't love me as much as they do my older sister. That holiday does offend me a little since I'm free of you, there is no reason for them to fear me. The jealously that fills me about Celestia's worship over mine, is sometimes more than I can bear." She then glared as she said to Nightmare Moon, "But here is where you are wrong, I've grown since I've turned into you, because now I know better. Even if they don't show it, ponies do show their love and appreciation from my night. That holiday should offend me, and it does a little, but it's also at least one night, where ponies are away appreciating my night and all it's wonders, and it is fun to play the games there. As for Celestia, the monumental support she's given me, has made me almost worship her as much as her subjects of the light does." She stood defiant, a light eminating from her teleporting her to the balcony as figures of Celestia, Twilight and her friends, and all the other ponies who have given her support appeared behind her. "I am Princess Luna, the Guardian of the Night, you are no more than a demon, and you need to just go away now"

The door's to the Dream Castle of the Two sister's opened revealing a dark void of terrible memories and just ominous emotions was sucking down Nightmare Moon. Nightmare Moon glared and said "You'll see, one day you'll accept reality once again. It's only a matter of time"

"Good bye and good riddance, Nightmare Moon" Was the only response as Nightmare Moon was dragged down the void with tremendous force, sending the Nightmare demon down to the bottom causing the door to slam.

Suddenly Luna heard the door knocking as Celestia said, tired, "Luna, It's your shift. I'll see you in the morning little sister"

Luna smiled and said "Okay" She got up and opened the door to go raise the moon. She then said "Hey Celestia," Celestia paused heading to bed, "Good night" She smiled and then went to do her normal duties.