> The Nyxing Hour
>  by Nagel Navari
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight Sparkle was pretty sure she was on the right trail. The Everfree Forest seemed to do everything it could to confuse her—patterns of shadow formed to imitate the appearance of paths that weren’t there, and ordinary animal-calls twisted and lengthened into something horrifying. If Pinkie Pie were with her, she probably would’ve said something about the importance of laughing at fears, or whatever. But Pinkie Pie wasn’t with her.

She was completely alone. Alone with the trees, alone with the animals, and the predator she had come to meet.

You better be right about her, Zecora, Twilight thought, quickening her pace a little. The path itself was well-outlined by strange scores cut into the bark of the trees, but never even thought twice about until now.

“She won’t be like the ponies you know,” Zecora had said. “But not so different either, you know.” The zebra had been light on details, explaining only that she didn’t think the pony was well suited to forest life alone. “Meet her, show her that not all of you are the same. To live the rest of her days alone would be a terrible shame.”

How much further away are you, pony? The Everfree might feel like it went on forever, but of course that wasn’t possible. It had borders, so eventually she had to find an edge. Maybe if she kept going long enough she’d end up on the Canterlot side of the forest instead.

Twilight started as she saw an outline standing on the path ahead of her. It was about the right size for a pony—probably a unicorn, judging by the horn-shaped protrusion on their hood. They stood quite still in the middle of the path, watching her approach. Are you the mysterious pony I’ve been sent to meet?

“H-hey there!” Twilight called, slowing her steps as much as she could without making it too obvious she was afraid. In any other setting, meeting a strange pony wearing dark robes would just be another opportunity to learn something new about friendship. Alone in the Everfree Forest, and she was on her guard. “You wouldn’t be Midnight, would you? Midnight Storm?” She slowed to a stop maybe ten paces away—the path seemed to continue past the pony, though in what direction and for how long she couldn’t guess.

“I’m afraid not,” the pony said. The voice was masculine, and erudite, and a little bit familiar. But she couldn’t place it. “I know you, though. You’re Twilight Sparkle, right? Princess Celestia’s personal student.”

Twilight forced an awkward laugh. Even back in Canterlot it had been a little awkward whenever her involvement with the princess came up. In the city, that kind of connection could get a pony places. Into the best parties, special privileges with bonuses and restaurants. It wasn’t something she liked to abuse. “Yeah, that’s me. I’m, uh… looking for a friend out here. She’s supposed to have a cabin somewhere nearby, next to a big hill? Have you seen anything like that?”

The pony advanced on her—she still couldn’t see his face, though she was close enough that the hood shouldn’t have concealed him at this point.

It was like the shadow around the hood was just too stubborn to go anywhere.“I’m actually a bit lost myself, maybe you can direct me. I understand there’s a ruin out here of no small archeological importance to Equestrian history. You’re quite the student, maybe you could show me where it is?” Something glowed near his robe, and he produced a thick roll of parchment. It unrolled in front of her, hovering just above the ground, though getting a good look would require her to come closer.

Even from far away, Twilight could see it was a map—a map of the Everfree itself, more detailed than any she’d ever seen. More detailed than any she had known existed. Twilight hurried over to the edge of the large map, all apprehension vanished in the flame of scholarly interest. It was all there—the ancient gorge with its sacred tree, the Castle of the Two Sisters, even the cave that led to the secret mirror pool. “This doesn’t look like an ancient map at all—the paper looks new. And some of these notes—I didn’t know other ponies knew about this. Where’d you get this map?”

The stranger shrugged one shoulder. “Word gets around, Twilight. Do you think you could hazard a guess at where we are in relation to the castle there?” Twilight lowered her eyes again, scrutinizing the map intently. All the landmarks were there, it was only a matter of a little reckoning. I need a map this nice. I bet it would be a breeze to find Midnight with this.

She didn’t notice the sound of hooves approaching from behind. She felt a sudden, sharp pain in the back of her head, then nothing.





The world came back in starts. Twilight could feel a throbbing in the back of her head, feel rough stone bricks beneath her, and for a while that was all. The ache was enough that for a time it was the only thing she could think of. A few medical spells came to mind, but it hurt too much to even consider casting them. She just lay there for a while, trying to remember what had happened.

Then she tried to move, and realized all four of her hooves were bound together. She twitched and struggled a little, but couldn’t loosen her bonds. She didn’t waste time fighting the rope—rather, she fell silent as quickly as she could, pretending as though nothing had happened. Maybe nopony would notice she was awake.

Twilight cracked open one eye, and sure enough there was stone beneath her. A pale light suffused the area all around her, soft enough that it didn’t hurt despite the headache. She couldn’t see much more than the dirty stone floor she’d been dropped on, and her own bound legs.

But she could hear—there were many voices somewhere not too far away, voices apparently raised in song. At first, she thought there were no words at all, but no. As she listened, she realized it wasn’t a song she was hearing, but a spell. A spell apparently composed in the ancient language of magic. A language maybe ten ponies in the whole world know.

Twilight fought through the pain, concentrating her magic. She focused on her head first, with a simple healing spell she’d used on herself after many late nights of hard studying. But right as the flash of power came, she felt a sudden heat around her neck, and a sensation of metal digging slightly into her flesh. Something was choking her, something powered by her own magic.

She couldn’t breathe! The spell fizzled out, and the pressure on her neck faded again. For several minutes Twilight lay gasping for air, resisting the urge to attempt a spell to rip the collar off only with great willpower.

“You’ll have to forgive our methods,” said a familiar voice from behind her, the same direction the eerie singing was coming from. Twilight twisted her neck around and looked up as best she could. “We hadn’t really expected an opportunity quite like this.”

He wasn’t wearing the robe anymore, and finally Twilight could get a good look at him. An older stallion, with the refined features of the Canterlot elite. She couldn’t see his cutie mark though, not through the dark armor he was wearing. He had a new cloak, one with stars on the inside that didn’t cover the armor, only accentuated it.

He looked like a priest. But of what god?

“Let me go!” Twilight demanded, trying to sit up and get a better look. It was very hard with her legs so tightly bound. As she did, she could just make out an open doorway behind him. There was moonlight, and the flicker of torches in the dark. All around them was dark stone, ancient walls that could only belong to one place. He knew where it was after all. “I don’t know who you are, or what you’re planning, but…”

“Of course you don’t,” he said, drawing something from around his belt. A strangely curved knife, with a blade that seemed to suck in moonlight. “And you don’t have too. All Equestria will know, soon enough. Thanks to you, our true queen will soon reign once more.”

Queen? Who could he possibly be talking about? Equestria never had a queen! Twilight felt the ground lurch out from under her, as she was lifted into the air in this unicorn’s magic. By reflex her own horn started to glow, and she formulated a counter spell—and instantly she was choking again, the metal against her coat growing hot.

“Please, don’t try to use your magic,” the pony said, his tone almost compassionate. “The halter was meant to contain even the most powerful unicorns—it turns your own magic against you, as you’ve seen. There are… gruesome stories recorded about what it has done to those who tried to force an escape.” He stopped in the hall, and so did she. The stallion moved close, the dagger levitating up to her. She squirmed, whimpered, but didn’t cry out.

“I do not wish to see any permanent harm come to you. You committed a terrible injustice by preventing the ascension of Equestria’s queen, but that was no fault of your own. I know too well how Celestia can manipulate ponies into serving her ends. When the night is over, you can become the first new citizen in Nightmare Moon’s restored kingdom. I don’t wish for you to suffer needlessly.”

“That’s… i-insane,” she croaked, her voice raspy and ragged from constriction. At least she hadn’t tried the whole spell at once like last time, it wasn’t nearly as bad. “Nightmare Moon is gone. Destroyed by the Elements of Harmony.”

He only laughed. “Not completely,” he eventually said. “And now she will be restored by the Element of Magic. There is justice after all.”

They passed through the doorway and into the great hall of the ancient castle. Ponies had apparently been up in the rafters, enlarging the small holes in the ceiling. A perfectly round shaft had been cut, permitting moonlight to stream down from above onto the circle of celebrants. There were two dozen ponies here, across every tribe and age. The ground was covered with ritual markings, with various objects and accoutrements required only in the most advanced spellwork. It would’ve taken Twilight hours of study to guess at what a spell this complex was doing. She would not have that long. And besides—the strange stallion had just told her exactly what he planned on.

It’s impossible, she thought. Nightmare Moon isn’t a separate pony from Princess Luna.

They made their way up to the circle of chanting ponies, stopping only as they approached the center. A small fire burned there, bright blue and green instead of orange. It seemed hungry, somehow. But for what?

“And now for your contribution,” the unicorn said, lowering the knife towards her again. He went so fast that Twilight couldn’t possibly get out of the way in time, assuming she’d been on the ground and could’ve moved. Suddenly she felt something cutting into her leg, deeper than she’d ever been cut before. She screamed.

The shock was worse than the pain. “Blood for blood,” the stallion said. “Life for life.” Twilight dropped unceremoniously to the ground, still oozing blood from a thin gash in her leg. He walked past her, into the ritual circle.

Twilight felt cold all over, exhaustion pressing her down into the stone. Her body wanted to sleep, but she fought to stay awake. She needed to keep her eyes open for any chance to escape. Maybe she could go back to trying to wiggle the rope off her legs. It couldn’t be that hard…

The next thing she knew, there was an explosion of magic in the air above the ritual, so intense that more sections of the roof came crashing down. She couldn’t make out any of the words—it hurt too much for that. But she could recognize the outline of Night Guards. Dozens of them, in glittering silvery armor, pouring through the opening in the roof.

I’m saved, Twilight thought. Then she blacked out.
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Midnight Storm was not a happy kirin. It had taken Zecora weeks to convince her to let somepony from Ponyville visit her home. Weeks wondering if the pony would think that the Everfree Forest was too close for somepony as monstrous as her to live to their town. Ponies seemed afraid of the forest, and that fear kept them from discovering her.

Considering the depths to which she had sunk, up to and including living alone in the Everfree Forest, Midnight didn’t know how much lower she could go. She’d already run out of cities—would there be nowhere left for her?

Midnight dismissed that thought, focusing instead on the path ahead of her. She intended to give Zecora a piece of her mind—not to be too harsh, since the zebra was her only friend in the Everfree and she might not ever make another—but at the very least, to let her know how much distress she had caused over nothing. In the end, Ponyville’s open-minded student of friendship hadn’t even bothered to send a note letting her know she couldn’t come.

Perhaps the creatures of the Everfree could sense her frustration, because they scattered before her as she went, small animals and large alike getting out of the way of a distressed predator. And predator she was—from her fangs to the blade on her tail, there was no mistaking the angry kirin for one of the helpless ponies. There was no mistaking her diet either. The other predators in this part of the forest knew to stay away from her hunting grounds.

It was true that the Everfree Forest was filled with all sorts of magical dangers, but Midnight Storm had never let that stop her. She knew it better than anypony else, from end to end. It was her home, after all. And during the day, there was nothing to frighten her away.

Yet she could still be surprised. As she made her way along the unmarked trail, occasionally cutting down branches that got in her way, she heard something that she shouldn’t—crying. Loudly enough that Midnight knew other creatures would have heard it as well. The creatures of the Everfree might’ve learned to respect her, but that respect would go only so far. When it came down to a contest over prey as large as a pony, young enough to be helpless…

Midnight broke into a gallop. The trees of the Everfree were far too close together to fly here, not with her draconic wingspan. As she ran towards the noise, Midnight found herself feeling her first twinge of guilt. Had the pony coming to see her somehow gotten lost in the night, and ended up spending an evening alone in the Everfree? If that were true, she was lucky to be alive crying like that. Luck will only get her so far.

As she neared the source of the sound, Midnight slowed, listening carefully, and dodging a patch of poison joke growing on the wreckage of an old log. If this is the pony who was supposed to visit me, she’s way off-track. A quick glance around her told Midnight they were near the old castle, which was miles in the opposite direction of her cabin. She stayed away from here, mostly since it was the only place besides Zecora’s hut that ponies from the nearby town ever visited. Being seen was too much of a risk.

“Hello?” she asked, slowing to a stop outside a thicket of sharp brambles. “Is somepony there?” Midnight tucked her tail under her body as best she could, in case the pony could see her. There would be no concealing her other strange details—not the massive scaly wings, not the horn protruding from her forehead that made her almost into an Alicorn. Except that it doesn’t work. And maybe the pony would’ve seen how different she was and end up terrified anyway.

Maybe so, but Midnight couldn’t let her run any deeper into the Everfree. Even the old castle could be dangerous, thanks to some of the old magical defenses. Despite the eons, some of them still worked.

Whoever was crying stopped abruptly, making a strangled squeaking noise as they did so. That didn’t really sound like an adult pony. It was too high. A grown mare wouldn’t cry like that.

“Whoever you are, I’m only here to help you. I know you’re probably lost—I can help get you back to civilization. It’s not safe to be so far off the path, and it will be even more dangerous once it gets dark. You should come with me.”

The only reply was the harsh squawking of birds, and the steady hooting of an owl not too far away.

Midnight took another step into the gloom, her whole body tensing as she did so. Ready to chase down the pony if that was what it took. I’m not going to let you run away and get yourself killed, whoever you are. As much as Equestrian society had not been kind to her, Midnight Storm wasn’t prepared to just leave a pony to die.

“Please, help me find you. It’s a long trip back to Ponyville. I’d really like to get you back before nightfall.” She took another step towards the bushes, dreading what would come next. Unfortunately, she wasn’t just a dragon who could walk straight into thorns without so much as a scratch. She’d have to try and fly over, or maybe cut her way in.

But then she heard a rustling sound, from much closer than she’d expected. It was coming from directly ahead of her, in the thickest and meanest-looking of the bushes. Might be the only reason you’re still alive, Midnight thought to herself. The thorns were each as long as her hoof, and poisoned with a venom that could leave a pony itching for weeks if it wasn’t treated. Everfree predators didn’t have terribly good doctors.

“Alright, I’ll get you out,” she announced. “Wherever you are, please hold still. I promise not to hurt you, but if you move suddenly, you might get cut by accident. Just stay right where you are.” She lifted her tail again, picked one of the thickest branches, and swung. A precise movement, much more so than what she might’ve used cutting down trees. The blade of her tail passed easily through the branch, and barely a millimeter more. Instead of letting it fall to the ground (and potentially onto the pony hiding inside), she flicked her tail at the last second, sending it spinning off into the air.

Midnight could see a dark shape against the trunk of the bush, huddled into the underside where there were no thorns. It wasn’t very large, and seemed to be wearing something black. I was right. That’s not a grown mare.

“Hold on,” Midnight said. “I’m going to get you out of there.” She angled her tail again, took careful aim, and sliced another bit of bush away. It only took her a few more strokes to cut away a large enough section of brambles to get a good look inside.

The pony wasn’t wearing black, as she’d first thought. Rather, her coat was black, as dark as Midnight’s own. She also had wings, though they were ordinary pegasus wings, not covered in scales. Strangest of all—so strange that Midnight herself stopped to stare—was that she had a horn. This was no kirin, as she had initially suspected. It was an Alicorn.

There were only two Alicorns in the world, so far as Midnight Storm knew. None were this young, and none ought to be alone in the Everfree covered with little wounds with a face crusted with dried tears. As she stared, the little pony finally turned to look up at her, and Midnight took in a set of slitted pupils exactly like her own, though they were a lighter shade. They were also patently terrified.

“Hey there,” Midnight said, finding her voice much gentler than it had been earlier. “I didn’t mean to scare you.” She wanted to lift the little bundle of fur and fear right out of the bushes and get to work getting all those thorns out of her. But she didn’t do that—anything that spooked the little pony might provoke her to try and run, which would require her to go through more of the thorns than had already stuck her.

The filly didn’t answer, watching her from within the shadows of the bush. She seemed to be breathing rapidly, but other than that, there was very little sign of comprehension on her face.

“I’ve got medicine at home,” she said. “Firethorn is an awful plant, even if the berries are nice in summer.” She would still need a real doctor—so many little injuries like this could still lead to a nasty infection. “My name is Midnight Storm. What’s your name?”

Pause. For a long time, Midnight wondered if the filly could even understand her. Maybe she was too hurt, or in too much mental distress to put words together. Shock could do that to a pony, though at least she hadn’t wandered off in winter.

“Name,” the pony eventually said. Her little voice was barely loud enough for her to hear. “I am… me.”

“Alright, sweetheart.” That was something. If she could understand, that probably meant she hadn’t been poisoned by anything more serious. There were creatures in the Everfree that could kill with a single bite if a pony didn’t get help. “Can you move?”

“Hurts,” the pony said, her voice faint. “Tried to. It hurts.”

“Alright.” That made sense, considering where she was taking shelter. There wasn’t anywhere for her to move that wouldn’t bump her into the firethorn bush. “I’ll get you out.” She would have to clear a little more space to maneuver the pony, but that wasn’t much trouble. The filly watched with interest as she sliced through the bushes with her tail. There was something missing from her, something she had come to expect in children especially. Fear. This pony had less of a reaction to her than even the zebra.

A few more cuts, and she could reach in with one hoof and scoop the pony up. She moved her very carefully, making sure not to touch any of the thorns. Pressure could drive them in further. She moved the filly to a thick patch of grass and moss not too far away, and only there did she set her down. All the while she kept alert for any sign that predators had found the filly, though so far, she heard nothing. Which might be a good or bad thing. Some of the Everfree’s monsters were too clever to make noise.

The nameless filly didn’t try to run away, didn’t even squirm in her grip as Midnight set her down. As soon as they were sitting, the filly just held still, looking all around her with an unfocused fascination. Like she’d never seen trees before. Or like a pony who had taken a solid blow to the head. “Now, I’m going to get as many of these out as I can,” she said. “A few look like they need a doctor—but I’ll take you to my friend. She’s very good at this kind of thing. And when she’s treated you, she can get you back to Ponyville. Get you back with your family.”

The filly didn’t react to her words, didn’t make any sign that she’d heard them. But as Midnight lowered her head to try and bite out the first of the thorns, she didn’t shy away. She did whimper in pain, making a pathetic mewling sound that was almost crying. Midnight spat out the first of the thorns, the metallic taste of pony blood on her tongue. “There, that one was the worst. Looks like there are only a few left.”

She worked quickly, unable to say anything thanks to being busy with her mouth. The filly’s coat was soon stained with a few fresh patches of red—but all and all, the injuries weren’t nearly as bad as she had been expecting. I guess Alicorns are tougher than regular ponies.

“There, all done,” Midnight said. The filly had a few more stuck in too deep or too small for her to remove with her teeth—but Zecora would be able to get them out. She would have to clean out all these new wounds before they got infected. “We need to get you to somepony who can help. Do you think you can walk?”

Immediately she tried to rise, and almost immediately she fell sideways. “Right. In that case…” Midnight Storm bent down again, scooping up the filly and settling her on her own back, as much between her wings as she could. She could use their pressure to keep her centered, and prevent her from falling off. “There.” She rose as carefully as she could, making sure not to dislodge her passenger. “It’s a little ways away. But she’ll probably have water and food for you as well. Are you hungry?”

She felt the pony nod, even if she couldn’t watch her expressions anymore.

“Well, let’s get going. The sooner we get you to Zecora, the sooner we can find your family.”

She set off back towards the familiar paths she knew, searching the trunks of trees for her own marks as she went. She hadn’t made it more than two-dozen paces before she heard an angry voice shout from behind her. “Stop! In the name of Princess Celestia, remain where you are!”
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Midnight Storm had known deep down that the instant she did anything to get herself noticed by the population of Ponyville things would go downhill. It was impossible for a pony to travel Equestria from one end to the other as she had, to live in most of its biggest cities, and yet still not know the way ponies were deep down.

Even given all that, even with all her experience and all the places she had lived, Midnight Storm was a little impressed at how spectacularly pear-shaped things had really gone. Now here she was, caught without her cloak in broad daylight by members of the Royal Guard. This is what I get for listening to you, Zecora.

Outwardly she obeyed, tucking her tail under her body and holding as still as she could. Seeing a sharpened blade tended to give ponies the wrong idea, particularly when those ponies were guards used to the violent and unpredictable. She didn’t even turn around, just remained where she was, waiting for them to make the first move. They approached at a run, both sounding out-of-breath.

“What are you?” one of them asked, hurrying into view in front of her. A Solar Guard stallion, with suspicious eyes and a firm build.

The mare beside him cleared her throat. “What my companion means to ask is what are you doing out here?” she said, glaring sidelong at the other guard. The mare’s soft pink coat made her stand out from the green all around them.

“I live here,” she said, glaring right back at the staring guard stallion. “And I’m a kirin, thanks for asking. Ponies tend to react… well, like you’re reacting right now. So I try to stay out of the way. I was out to visit a friend.”

“A friend in the Everfree?” The stallion strode past his companion, eyes moving rapidly between her and the filly on her back. She cowered as he advanced. From the feel of the motion on her back, she was trying to hide behind Midnight’s mane. “You expect us to believe you aren’t a cultist, really? Looking like that?”

Midnight Storm had years of practice maintaining discipline, but even she had her limits. She inhaled sharply, her tail beginning to dart quickly back and forth behind her. “I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about,” she said, her voice low and dangerous. “Do you see the pony I’m carrying? I found her lost and alone, and I’m going to take her to my friend Zecora. Unless you plan on arresting me, I’d appreciate it if you got out of my way.”

She straightened to full size and began to march forward, counting on her greater size and intimidating visage to keep the ponies quiet. That isn’t quite what happened, though.

The mare stepped forward into her path, forcing her to stop again. She still hadn’t raised the spear sheathed on her armor, but her expression was firm. “I’m afraid that isn’t possible, miss. My partner might be tactless, but we’re under orders from the princess. There was, a… an incident last night. It’s believed that many of the malcontents escaped, possibly into the Everfree. I’m afraid you’ll have to come back to camp with us. You and your, uh…” Her eyes widened. “Sweet Celestia, that’s an Alicorn! That’s a horn!”

Her partner muttered something crude, pointing his spear again. Not at her, though, but the filly.
Midnight reeled, spinning to put her head directly between the weapon and the child so fast both guards seemed taken aback. She lifted her tail slightly, just enough for them to see it. An instinctive, predatory message. “I am taking her to a doctor,” she said again. “Unless your ‘camp’ has a doctor, I’m going to Zecora.”

The stallion backed away a step, lowering the spear a little. But he didn’t run away—most ponies probably would have.
“There’s a medical tent going up,” the pink pegasus mare said. “We’ve already brought in some of Ponyville’s best doctors. Whoever that… child is… she’ll get the best care.” She lowered her voice a little, but there was no fear in her whisper. Only genuine curiosity. “Where did she come from?”

Midnight only answered with a grunt. She had already answered as much as she intended—it was their loss if they hadn’t been listening.

The Solar Guard didn’t actually threaten her, but they did make it clear that her cooperation wasn’t optional. Cooperation as she was dragged towards the castle, where over two dozen ponies from the Solar and Lunar Guard prowled over every inch. What in Celestia’s name could’ve happened in a deserted castle in the middle of the Everfree?

Midnight Storm tried not to look too interested, but there was no way to escape the stares of everypony she passed. Weapons that had been only nearby were suddenly brought to the ready, and guards leaned close to one another with incriminating whispers. They think I’m part of a cult. But what were they even talking about?

All the while, the nameless filly she had found clung closer to her back, visibly shuddering any time the guards got too close. When she had first been arrested, the guard had tried to take the pony away. But the filly hadn’t let them—however afraid of Midnight she was, she was apparently far more frightened of the guards. What happened to you, kid?

Eventually they came to a stop near the entrance of the castle, in the place Midnight took to be their field headquarters. The ponies moving about here looked snooty enough to be directing everything. At least Celestia or Luna isn’t here. That’s about the only way this could get worse.

The pony on her back moaned faintly as they came to a stop. “Excuse me,” Midnight said loudly, before the guards that had brought her could say anything on her behalf. “Before I was dragged in here, I was on my way to a doctor for this pony here. I don’t know if you can tell, but she’s had a really rough time, and I was promised there were doctors here. Whatever made up crime you want to blame me for, she had nothing to do with it.”

Had the filly on her back been of the ordinary sort, they probably would’ve done that already. But Midnight had been in Equestria long enough to know that being a little different was all it took to make ponies afraid. Fear had a way of overpowering kindness. One of the guards who had brought her started muttering an embarrassed apology to the officer, but couldn’t get it out before that pony stood up. A silvery unicorn with blue eyes that did not stare at her the way so many others seemed to.

“No need.” He looked to one side. “Lieutenant Wings, bring the Ponyville doctor. He must be done with Twilight by now.”

To her surprise, one of the ponies who had arrested her stepped aside, nodding once. “Right away, Commander.” She took off, fluttering away over the makeshift camp.

Twilight? That name was frighteningly familiar. “Twilight… Sparkle?” Midnight said inquisitively. Probably not the wisest, but once the name was out there was no way to get it back.

“Yes.” The stallion’s face hardened, and he took a few slow steps towards her. He was a large stallion, but still he had to look up at her. “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about her, would you?” He flicked his tail towards the ruins of the castle behind them. Guards moved about inside it, speaking in hushed voices to each other. Midnight couldn’t hear what they were saying, and didn’t much care. “Something terrible happened here last night, miss…”

“Midnight Storm,” she finished for him.

“Pleasure to meet you,” he said, unconvincingly. “I am Commander Silver Shield, of the royal guard.” He looked to the other guard, the one who hadn’t flown off. “Soldier, did you see anything to suggest this, uh… mare, might be connected to what happened?”

The stallion looked reluctant to answer. “Well no, sir. Other than the obvious. She was walking straight past the castle, but it didn’t seem like she was trying to remain hidden.”

“Of course not.” Midnight couldn’t bite back what she was thinking any longer. “I found an injured filly and I was going to find her a doctor. I don’t know what happened that has all of you ponies freaked out, and I don’t really care.”

Even Silver Shield seemed a little taken aback by her boldness. Eventually he cleared his throat, meeting her eyes again. “Last night, a cult we’ve been hunting for months was tracked to the Castle of the Two Sisters after foalnapping a prominent citizen of Ponyville—Twilight Sparkle. For the sake of my investigation, I need you to explain how you knew she was missing. If you’re not connected with the cult, there must be a reason.”

Midnight Storm rolled her eyes. “Twilight and I had a meeting scheduled for yesterday. She never showed up, didn’t even send a note to tell me she wasn’t coming. Go ahead and ask her yourself! Or if she’s not around, ask Zecora, the zebra who lives south of here. She set up the meeting, so she can tell you all about it.”

Silver Shield nodded once to the guard at her side, who departed at a swift trot. “I’ll look into that. I’m afraid you will have to remain here until we can clear up those details…” A little hesitation. “But I wouldn’t worry. None of the cultists we have captured have been willing to give us the time of day. If walking right into us is your evil plan, it’s not a very clever one.”
Midnight had been halfway to a retort by the time he finished—she had to swallow it, and just nod instead. “Thank you. You didn’t capture any of this cult’s leaders? Couldn’t you just ask the ponies in charge what they were up to?”
Shield sighed. “Unfortunately not. Wish that it could’ve been so simple.”

At that moment, several medical ponies arrived. Not wearing guard uniforms at all, as she had first thought they would be. She could see the exact moment the white-furred nurse noticed something was different about the filly she carried, the way her eyes lingered on the wings, the horn. Maybe even her frightened, slitted eyes.

“This is the, uh… patient?” the nurse asked, looking down a moment. “She’s, uh…” She reached up, brushing away a little of her own mane near her forehead.

“Yes,” Midnight said, not waiting for her to finish. “It looks that way. No, I don’t have any idea where she came from. I found her hiding in some nasty thorns behind the castle. She hasn’t been able to tell me how she got there.”
The nurse approached, lowering her head to the filly’s eye level. Whatever confusion or distress she had initially felt, she did a remarkable job concealing it now. “Excuse me, little one. Would you mind coming with me? You’re hurt, but we can make you feel better.” As she spoke, the orderly pulling a medical wagon who had been behind her rolled to a stop not far away. “Hop on, we’ll take you to the medical tent. You’ll be feeling better in no time.”

In answer, the child only clung more tightly around Midnight’s neck. She wasn’t strong enough to hurt her, but she was stronger than she looked. Like a frightened earth pony. “I, uh… I don’t think she wants me to leave,” Midnight said.
“Not atypical for children who have experienced recent trauma…” the nurse muttered, maybe just for the guards’ benefit. “Silver Shield, I think she’ll have to come to the tent along with the filly. I can’t leave a child here with open wounds—if these aren’t treated, she could suffer a serious infection. Assuming… young Alicorns can even get infections. I have no idea.”

“Just do your best, Nurse Redheart.” Shield nodded to Midnight. “I need to get an update to the princesses, to tell them about… this pony. You aren’t a suspect, but please don’t leave unless you get permission from me. If you run off, we will hold you as a suspected cultist with the rest.”

“I won’t,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm, before turning back to the nurse. “I think it’s probably best if I just carry her.”
> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nurse Redheart nodded once, grunting slightly in frustration before turning away. “Alright, alright. Follow me, then. We haven’t really had much to do since they called us here, anyway.” She lowered her voice as they cut through the camp, apparently for Midnight’s benefit. “Nopony will tell me what’s going on, but I don’t see what all these guards are doing here. The librarian cuts her leg, and they need half of Ponyville General’s medical staff?” She shook her head in frustration.

Why did Silver Shield tell me so much about what happened here, but not the doctor? He hadn’t seemed as afraid of her as she’d been expecting. A curious glance, a bit of raised eyebrows, and that was all. I guess not every guard has to be a terrified fool.

But it wouldn’t matter for much longer. Once Twilight or Zecora vouched for her, she could drop off the filly and be back home before lunch. She thought that, but as she made her way into the open medical tent, she had a hard time believing it. Nothing ever went that easily for Midnight Storm. If something could go wrong, it would.

Besides, she was already starting to doubt that she would be “dropping off” this pony anywhere. Not unless someone arrived who would actually treat her like a pony.

There were four beds in the makeshift tent. Only one was occupied: by a purple unicorn with some bandages on one leg. I guess this is Twilight. It was a good thing Midnight had learned it wasn’t Twilight’s fault she had missed the meeting before giving her a piece of her mind over it. “Right here, miss…”

“Storm,” Midnight said. “Midnight Storm.” That was enough to make the pony on the other end of the room sit up from whatever book she was reading, eyes widening as she looked at Midnight. But that was all she did—she didn’t look to be in terribly good shape just now. Whatever she’s been through is worse than a cut on her leg.

“Right, Storm.” The nurse gestured to an empty bed. “If you could help us coax the little one down off your back, we can work.” She bent down, meeting the filly’s eyes. “It’ll be just fine, sweetheart. We’re just going to make it so you don’t get sick from all those cuts, okay? It won’t take more than a few minutes, and your friend Midnight will be right here the whole time.”

“You will?” the filly asked—the first time she’d said anything since they got into camp. But then, there weren’t any guards inside the tent with them, only a few nurses and the recovering librarian.

“I will,” Midnight said. “I won’t leave for anything.”

At that, the little pony finally released her neck, and climbed down onto the cot. Midnight Storm sat down by the foot of the cot, as out of the way of the doctors as she could be. They seemed to know what they were doing—more than Midnight would’ve, anyway. Zecora could’ve done this better. But Zecora wasn’t here.

“I was… supposed to see you yesterday,” the unicorn said from across the room, her voice drained, weak. “You’re the dragon pony Zecora told me about.”

Midnight tensed immediately, more reflex than anything. But of course, she had already lost her robe. Everyone could see her, all the time. I’m going to have to move away anyway, so it can’t get worse. What she wanted to do was walk across the room to whisper something rude to Twilight. But she couldn’t do that, not with the filly’s desperate eyes always on her. If she moved even a little away from the bed, she had no doubt that it might cause the pony to freak out. As it was, she dealt with the scrubbing of stinging disinfectants with remarkable courage for a child.

“I am Midnight Storm,” she called, her voice pointed. “We did have an appointment yesterday. I understand something happened here and you weren’t able to make it.”

“Y-yeah.” The unicorn chuckled, her book falling limp on her lap. “Y-you could say that. Something happened. I’m sorry I… we’ll have to reschedule.”

“Yeah,” Midnight said, grateful she hadn’t pursued the point. “Don’t worry about it, just get some rest.”

The unicorn looked relieved, and slouched back against the cot.

Of course, Midnight didn’t really think there would be another meeting. There were too many different eyes on her in this camp, and she wasn’t even out yet. Even if the guards weren’t just looking for a pony to blame, and didn’t find a way to blame her for this, she would still probably have to move. These doctors were from Ponyville, and she caught every one of them glancing at her whenever they thought she wasn’t looking. Even if they were too busy (or too polite) to ask about how she looked, word would spread. Even running away from civilization wouldn’t be enough to keep her peace.

But what if I hadn’t come? Would those guards have found this kid before something worse did? The nameless filly proved to be even sturdier than she had first appeared. Her wounds were not serious, but they were serious enough that anypony else her age probably would’ve collapsed into bed as a sore mess when the treatment was done. I can’t keep just thinking of her by her age, Midnight thought to herself, watching the child as she squirmed and struggled under adult ministrations. But if she doesn’t even remember her own name… Maybe something simple, like to do with the color of her coat.

Of course, there were other details she couldn’t help but notice. The doctors and nurses worked diligently, but the soldiers responded differently. In the time it took to remove the rest of the filly’s thorns and bandage up her shallow wounds, the tent had gone from no guards to nearly half a dozen. Almost all of them seemed to be there to watch the filly. Idiots. She’s just a filly, what is she going to do?

But she kept that to herself, as she had learned to keep so much. It was the only way a pony like herself could hope to stay hidden. I’m sure when the princess gets here she’ll know what to do. Celestia probably already knows about this Alicorn. She can be sent back to her parents and this nightmare would be over.

The filly wasn’t willing to stay in bed when her treatment was done. No sooner had the doctors and nurses moved away than she jumped across the room towards Midnight, wrapping both hooves around one of her legs. Midnight felt the guards all around them visibly tense—one of them even drew a spear. At least he had the sense not to point a dangerous weapon at a child.

“You see the resemblance, right?” she heard him whisper. “You think she has anything to do with what the cultists were up to?”

“Maybe she was secretly their leader,” another whispered back.

Apparently, the guards near the outside of the tent thought she wouldn’t be able to hear. Midnight heard, but she kept quiet.

The nurses didn’t. “Now now, you really shouldn’t be moving about,” said the white-furred nurse. Redheart, her name had been? “You really do need to go easy on those bandages for the next few days. You can’t be moving around like that.” She looked up at Midnight, meeting her eyes without the usual layer of intimidation. “Are you going to be caring for her, miss Storm?”

“Midnight,” she answered, speaking before she had the chance to think. It probably would’ve been smarter to use a pseudonym, make her name spread as little as possible. But too late for that now. “Midnight Storm. And yes, I am.” She lifted the filly up with a wing, returning her to her back. The poor little bundle of fur felt even warmer than she had before, almost as though she were at the beginnings of a fever.

“Well, Midnight.” Redheart offered a roll of clean bandage in her mouth. “Why don’t you take this. Those bandages need to be changed every few days or so. Do you think you can handle that?”

Midnight took the offered roll. “Yeah, I think I can.” Living on her own for so long had taught her enough of the basics of first aid. Considering what was likely to be revealed about her if she ever went to a hospital… “That shouldn’t be too much trouble.”

“Good.” Redheart leaned closer to her, lowering her voice to a whisper. “I don’t know if the details might be different in practice. I’ve never actually cared for an Alicorn before. Where did she come from?”

At least she didn’t sound afraid the way the guards did. “I have no idea,” Midnight responded honestly, turning away from them all. Her new layer of guards didn’t seem content to just let her walk away, however. They formed a tight ring around the medical tent, and most of them weren’t facing away.

“Well, Ponyville General isn’t far away,” Redheart said, after a few awkward moments of silence. “If she starts getting a fever, or those wounds start to smell, you bring her in right away.”

“I will.”

The nurse and her companion left her to tend to the other patient, though neither one showed any particular trepidation. They’re braver than the damn guards.

Midnight debated whether she should take to the air and fly away from the camp, rescuing the filly from whatever negative treatment the guards would heap on her. As entertaining as it was to imagine the guards trying to keep up with her in a forest she knew with their tiny wings, just now she didn’t trust the filly’s ability to hold on. And anyway, running would make me look guilty. I have nothing to do with this.

“You should probably get back in bed,” she said to the filly on her shoulders, doing her best to make sure that her anger for those around them wouldn’t translate into her tone with her. She hadn’t done anything wrong. “I don’t know how long it will take for Celestia to get here.”

The pony looked fearfully past her at the many guards and their suspicious eyes. “If I do, they might take you away.”

“I won’t let them,” she whispered back, stepping a little further into the medical tent. Far enough that most of the guards faded from view. Of course they were still standing there.

“Okay,” the child said, after a long pause. “Don’t leave.” She crawled slowly off her back, wings flapping uselessly as she settled down back onto the cot. Midnight Storm sat on her haunches at the base of the bed, glaring daggers at the guards. Daring them to approach. She let her bladed tail rest beside her, exposed enough to catch the sun coming through the tent’s entrance. Needless to say, nopony bothered them.

There was much conversation throughout the camp, though Midnight couldn’t hear much of it. Whatever the guards were saying about their investigation into the mysterious cult and their intentions, she didn’t care. Let them have their secret plans.

She dozed away a few hours at the base of the bed, alert anytime one of the guards entered the tent. It seemed more than once that somepony came in with the intention to take either her or the child away for separate questioning. Whenever they did, a glance at her her tail or sharp teeth bared dissuaded them.

Eventually a pony broke through the ranks of the guards around them, and walked right up to her without hesitation in his hoofsteps—Silver Shield, looking grim. But no—not actually walking up to her, just the tent in general. “I have bad news,” he said, his voice flat. “We’ve discovered information that leads us to believe the Everfree will not be a secure location to continue this investigation. We’re relocating to Canterlot immediately.” He lowered his voice, speaking to the doctor. “Neither of them is too hurt to move, yes?”

The doctor nodded reluctantly. “Moving any patient more than necessary is always a bad idea. But no, no specific dangers for either of them.”

“Good.” He turned slightly to one side, looking directly at her this time. “I’m sorry, miss Midnight Storm. I hoped we would be able to discharge you by evening. But orders from Princess Celestia require we not release anypony until an interview with her. You’ll have to accompany the rest of us.”

She rose to her hooves, standing at her full height in front of him. She towered over him, as she did for almost everypony she met. Being half-dragon could do that. “I haven’t done anything wrong,” she said flatly. “You can’t lock me up for nothing. Equestria has laws.”

Unlike the other guards, Silver Shield didn’t look intimidated. “You aren’t being locked up, miss. You’ll be riding first class to Canterlot on the crown’s expense. If you’re innocent, as the evidence seems to suggest, you can ride back in first class at the crown’s expense. There is no room for negotiation.” He paused, glancing past her at the bed. “Besides, you seem determined to protect that child. If she goes and you stay, you won’t be able to do that.”

“Fine,” Midnight grunted. “Can I at least get a cloak or something before we leave? Ponies, well—” She pointed past him at the guards. “They’re a little less hysterical if they can’t see how I look.”

“I’ll… see what we can find,” he said, turning away. Then he raised his voice. “We’re breaking camp! Everypony, be ready to move in ten minutes! We aren’t going to be late for our train.”
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Midnight Storm knew her first trip into Ponyville was going to be a disaster. It wasn’t just that she was accompanying a group of Royal Guards who had been investigating a mysterious cult—though that certainly had something to do with it. But Midnight had been to cities all over. Ponies were the same creatures wherever you went. That was why she chose to live out in the forest.

For all he had seemed reasonable, Silver Shield couldn’t find her a cloak. “I’m afraid even my largest stallions don’t wear anything in your size,” he had said. “There’s a tailor in Canterlot who could make something to fit, but that wouldn’t help you.”

At least the Royal Guard hadn’t locked her in irons for the trip back. There were several ponies joining them who were bound at the hoof with heavy manacles, with tight cords wrapped around the wings of those who had them. Despite her professions of ambivalence, Midnight tried her best to get a look at them as they made their way down the well-trodden path to Ponyville.

They looked like regular ponies to her, though even she had to admit she couldn’t watch their glazed, distant expressions for very long without feeling uneasy. None of them spoke, not at any point she was near them. They’re barely even alive. Midnight Storm didn’t pester them as they walked, but a few of the guards did.

The filly rode on her back the whole way, though she seemed to be growing more alert and curious the further they walked. “What are those?” she might ask, pointing at something off the path.

“Those are whip-poor-wills,” she would answer, as they passed the little flock of birds calling out at the caravan. “You can guess why they got their name.”

“I can’t,” the filly answered. “Why?”

“Listen to them.”

She did. The filly’s eyes widened, and she nearly bounced right off her back. “They’re saying it! Over and over!”

There were no guards holding weapons to them as they walked—those were mostly guarding the cultists. But there were always a few nearby, and several of them stared. Even so Midnight had a tough time telling the filly to be quiet.

“That’s right,” she said.

And then there would be another few minutes of relative silence, until she asked about something else. This continued until they reached Ponyville. Maybe the child could sense just how much Midnight herself was dreading it. Exactly as she had been expecting, a crowd had arrived to point and stare as they passed into town on their way to the train station. Well, here we go. Time to see just how wrong Zecora was about them.

She braced herself for the fearful gasps, for the pointing… and sure enough they came.

For the cultists at the front of the group. “Kidnapped Twilight,” she heard a few of them whisper. “What could they have been planning?” Oh, sure, there were plenty of curious glances her way, enough that the child riding on her back started to cower again. Shy little pony, she was.

She passed a creamy colored mare with a bright red mane whispering to another mare with a gray coat and a slightly walleyed look on her face. “What kind of pony is that?”

“I dunno,” the gray mare whispered back. “Guess they brought in the strongest guards they had.”

“Oh, yeah. That makes sense.” That appeared to be the sentiment as they passed through town to the train station. The ponies were angry and scared all right—of the cult. Me a Royal Guard? As silly as that might be to consider, it was far better than her previous memories with ponies. Even the Guard themselves hadn’t been so immediately willing to accept her. They did find me while they were looking for cultists.

Fortunately, the guards kept back Ponyville’s citizens, and they didn’t get in the way. They had already cleared out the train station. Silver Shield walked down the empty wooden platform. The only civilian pony still here was the conductor, looking more than a little nervous about what was going on around him.

“Those of you returning to Canterlot, passenger car. Officers and guests…” Silver Shield gestured at the open doors. “Let’s get going. Princesses are waiting.”

Twilight Sparkle hobbled her way out of the medical cart, gently nudging Nurse Redheart away from her. “No no, I’m fine. I’m feeling much better.” She still looked a little drained, in a way that was difficult for Midnight to immediately identify. Like some of the color had been sucked out of her whole body. But she didn’t fall over. Tough mare.

“Are you absolutely certain, Miss Twilight?” Redheart glanced over her shoulder at Dr. Horse, but if she’d been hoping for help she didn’t get it. He just shrugged.

“Yes, I’ll be fine,” Twilight said. “I grew up in Canterlot, my family is still living there. I’ll make sure to spend the night before coming back to Ponyville.” She lowered her voice. “But if you wanted to help, you could pass a message to Spike for me. He should be in the lobby, assuming he isn’t already running here. Let him know I’m okay. Pass the message on to my friends. I’d tell them myself, but…” She glanced up at Commander Silver Shield. He was already slamming the passenger car doors closed. Then he turned, making his way towards them. “Well, I don’t think I’ll get the chance.”

Midnight didn’t stay to listen to any more of her conversation. The longer she stayed outside, the more ponies were stopping to stare at her or the filly. Still not with half the hostility of the guards, but… It’s only a matter of time. She hurried into the open passenger car.

Midnight had never ridden first class before, and she was a little taken aback by the opulence of the car. The dark mahogany paneling, the plush carpets and the glittering crystal fixtures on the gas lamps. She immediately felt underdressed.

The dirt she had tracked in from the Everfree couldn’t be good for all this fancy stuff. It’s okay. The crown is paying for it.

She immediately noticed something else about this particular car: it had a bar. She could smell the horderves. Her nose latched on to one scent among the others, one she very much wasn’t accustomed to sensing around other ponies. Fish. They serve meat?

Instead of taking the seats furthest back in the car, Midnight selected those closest to the tray of food, settling the filly onto the seat beside her. The child immediately starting scrambling over her towards the food, her attention nearly as transfixed as Midnight’s own. “Not yet,” she whispered, pushing her gently back into her seat. “Wait until we get moving.”

“Moving?” The pony looked around at the fancy interior, skeptical. “We’re in a house. Even nice houses don’t move.”

You haven’t heard of a train? Midnight didn’t let any of her surprise make it to her face. That became easy, as the pony Twilight Sparkle took the empty seat just across from her. The conductor stepped inside just behind Shield, the doors snapped closed, and soon enough they had started to move.

The child’s reaction was immediate. Her eyes darted around them left and right, and she bolted for a window, dodging around the hooves of a few of the Royal Guard officers as she rushed to press herself against the glass. She stared out at the station as it began to pull away.

Midnight followed her over, though she crossed the car with a little more dignity. “I told you it moves. Have you never ridden a train before?”

The pony didn’t take her eyes away from the window, but she did speak quietly. “I guess I never did. It doesn’t seem… possible. What makes it go? How come we don’t hit the buildings? Why doesn’t it fall apart?”

“Those are all excellent questions,” said Twilight, speaking from just behind her. Apparently she had followed them to the window as well. She didn’t actually answer the questions, though, but instead met Midnight’s eyes. “I think we spoke earlier? I think I was delirious.”

“You were,” Midnight said, finally looking away from the filly.

“Did I apologize to you for missing our appointment yesterday, Midnight Storm?”

Midnight was a little taken aback, though not for very long. It makes sense Zecora would’ve told her. I gave her permission! “You did. Apparently you were kidnapped by an evil cult or something. I don’t really understand what’s going on here.”

“Hopefully you won’t mind rescheduling,” Twilight said, picking back up with the exact tone she had before. “A few days, perhaps? I’m still eager for the chance to meet Equestria’s first… Kirin, I believe… in all these years.”

“Zecora told you that much?” She couldn’t help but sound a little dry. Even so, she grew more impressed by the moment. Twilight Sparkle was far more like the ponies from Ponyville than the guards—interested, curious, but not fearful. “A few days would be fine,” she said. “If I’m still nearby. Your town saw me march right through the streets all uncovered.” She glanced over her shoulder, glaring daggers at Silver Shield. “I’m not sure I’ll be welcome for much longer.” To say nothing of the filly.

“I don’t understand,” Twilight said, seeming genuinely confused. “Did you hurt somepony? Was there an accident?”

“No.” She took a subconscious step closer to the filly, who had already started to lose interest. Well, not quite. More like remember her interest in the many trays of food. “That’s just the way ponies usually act.” She didn’t stay to explain this, or to admit that her brief trip through Ponyville hadn’t gone nearly as bad as she had expected.

The filly didn’t seem to have any particular preference for the options in front of them. She wanted to know what each one was—but the serving staff had evidently been removed from the train, so there was nopony to ask. In many cases, Midnight had to guess.

It didn’t really matter. The child wanted to try all of it. Midnight herself used her nose, selecting the thinly sliced fish resting atop rice or vegetables. Who is this for? Did this train come from Griffonstone? But there was nopony to ask that question, not without drawing more attention to herself.

It seemed the mare Twilight Sparkle couldn’t really take the hint that she wanted to be left alone. She approached with her own tray, this time sitting right beside her. She didn’t say anything at first, just watching the child with intense interest. “I didn’t know Equestria had a fourth Alicorn. Who is she?”

Midnight almost repeated the same story she’d been saying all afternoon—but this time she hesitated. “Her name is, uh… Nightfall.” She wasn’t sure where the word had come from, exactly, but there it was. At least it matched her looks. She had to be very careful what else she said, with the filly watching her so closely. “And she hasn’t been able to tell us. Have you remembered anything else, Nightfall?”

The filly shook her head vigorously, hard enough that she spilled a few expensive crackers off the side of her plate. She didn’t seem to know how to use her magic, because she ate the way an earth pony might, picking the food up with hooves alone. “Nope,” she said. Though she didn’t sound very convincing. She spoke like a pony who wanted what she said to be true, more than one who knew it was.

“I’m sure Princess Celestia will be able to figure this out,” Twilight said, taking a delicate bite from one of the horderves on her plate. “The princess always knows what to do, even about the hardest problems. I’m sure she already knew about this…” She swallowed, and a little of her confidence faltered. She sounded a little like the child had sounded a moment before, actually. Like someone remembering something extremely unpleasant.

“I’m sure she will,” Midnight said. “So long as Nightfall gets back to her family, that will be fine for me. The cultists can throw themselves into Tartarus for all I care…” Midnight’s eyes widened as she realized what she was smelling. “Twilight Sparkle… you’re eating fish?”

“Oh, yeah?” The unicorn looked shyly away. “I know how strange it might seem to you, but I…” She trailed off, noticing Midnight’s own plate. “Oh.”

“I haven’t known many ponies to eat meat,” Midnight said, swallowing another one. This was far better than the kind of meat she could usually afford. Better than anything she could hunt.

“Yeah.” Twilight looked away. “It’s more of a high society thing I guess, but growing up in the castle as much as I have, well… guess I was around ponies like that a lot.”

A door on the far side of the car banged open and a pony poked his head in. “Canterlot in five minutes,” he said, before hurrying from the car as quickly as he could.

As the train began to slow, Midnight found herself feeling more and more overwhelmed. It seemed as though the more time she spent around ponies as herself, the more she discovered things weren’t quite what they seemed. But would that translate to Canterlot as well?
> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

During her ride to Canterlot, Midnight Storm found herself wondering if she had spent years needlessly hiding from Equestria. Had ponies secretly been completely different creatures than she imagined? Had all her experiences of early life been unfortunate coincidences?

Canterlot resolved that question for her in dramatic fashion: no.

Their group moved up through the city from the train station surrounded by jeering, frightened ponies. Midnight couldn’t imagine how these ponies might’ve reacted to her if she hadn’t had an entire detachment of royal guards to protect her, but she didn’t think it would have gone so well.

The filly, “Nightfall”, did her best to remain hidden on Midnight’s back. For all that the guard had been unable to scrounge her anything the right size to keep herself hidden, they hadn’t complained when she snatched one of the blankets from the railroad car. Even if it did a poor job covering all of Midnight’s own kirin physiology, it was enough to keep the filly from having to suffer the same stares and calls.

At least there were no angry mobs on her way up the steps to Canterlot Castle. The guards were useful for something.

She spent a few more hours wasting time in comfortable waiting rooms. The Royal Guard didn’t take her down to the dungeon, though some part of Midnight had suspected that was where this would end up. Celestia and Luna would never treat a pony so poorly, but what they didn’t know…

Despite her energy while they rode the train, Nightfall quickly fell asleep as soon as they were somewhere peaceful and quiet. Without a word, the child had tucked herself up against one of Midnight’s wings and closed her eyes.

Midnight watched her for a few minutes, checking to see that none of her bandages had come loose during the trip over, and that none of her numerous wounds were showing signs of infection. The poor child’s heartbeat eventually slowed with her breathing into a steady rhythm, one she kept for hours of well-deserved rest.

Nopony came for them, not until the sun was getting low in the single stained window. Not an escort of dozens, as some part of her had feared—just one. The pony was blue green, with an orange mane.

He snapped the door open so forcefully it sounded like it might have dented the wall. “You two. You’re coming with me,” he said, barely even peeking his head into the room. She’d seen this pony at the camp of the royal guards. It didn’t look like he had relaxed much since then.

Midnight and the filly had both been dozing on an extremely expensive couch, but she sat up immediately, glaring at him. “Can’t be that urgent. We’ve been sitting in here for hours.”

The unicorn glowered down at her, staring openly at her wings as he did so. “You have been waiting on the pleasure of the princess. The crown’s investigation is more important than anything you may’ve had planned. I’m sure the inconvenience will be minor.”

How friendly and polite you are, Midnight thought, as she nudged the filly with one hoof. Nightfall stirred only reluctantly—she had been properly asleep, after all. She blinked open one eye, then whimpered as she saw the guard standing there in full armor.

At least he wasn’t waving a spear at hem. “Are you this polite with all your guests, or only kirin?” Midnight asked, as she rose from the couch.

The guard’s only response was a frustrated grunt. “Princess Celestia has summoned you personally. Well… you and the…” judging by his expression, he went through several words before finally settling on “child. She’s already been waiting an unacceptably long time.”

“I’m coming.” Midnight nudged the filly up onto her back. Nightfall was still not anywhere near awake, her eyes glazed and movements sluggish. As rough as her last day had almost certainly been, she probably should’ve been allowed to sleep for at least the rest of the day. The more time she had to heal, the better.

But as much as Midnight thought this guard deserved some antagonizing, defying the princess was something else entirely. There were a few ponies in Equestria worth respecting.

No sooner was the filly on her back than the guard turned and stormed out the open doorway, moving so quickly that Midnight lost sight of him around the corner. She didn’t speed up—a princess wouldn’t want her to cause discomfort to a little filly who had been through what Nightfall had.

The guard had stopped in the next hallway, glaring back at her. “You did hear me, right? Princess Celestia is waiting.”

“If Princess Celestia has a problem with arriving a minute later, she can tell me when we get there,” Midnight said, her tone flat.

The rest of the trip to the throne room went pretty much that way, with the guard constantly urging her to speed up and Midnight never changing as she went. At least until she passed into the throne room, and she finally caught sight of it.

One of the consequences of avoiding Canterlot her whole life was not getting a chance to observe wonders like this in person.

The ceiling rose high enough that a fully-grown dragon could’ve stood comfortably beside her, illuminated by a stained glass visual history of Equestria. For the first time in ages, Midnight found herself feeling small.

She hadn’t even noticed the guard clearing his throat loudly, gesturing ahead of them.

“Relax, Captain Dawn,” called a voice from across the room, cutting through her awe. “She isn’t the first pony to be taken by this place. I’m sure she won’t be the last.”

The voice was unfamiliar to her, but at the same time Midnight knew exactly who it must be. Other than the guards standing at regular points along the wall with ceremonial spears, there was nopony else here but the princess.

Celestia rested atop a throne with the look of something made entirely of gold, intricately carved and set with glittering jewels. Water gurgled out from within, splashing into a fountain around the throne.

Princess Celestia was not much larger than the other ponies Midnight had known. As she crossed the room, she found the Alicorn only looked a little taller than she was. But there was a size to this pony that reached beyond merely occupying physical space.

Maybe it was the strange way her mane seemed to move, flickering in an arcane wind Midnight couldn’t feel. Maybe it was her eyes, as ancient and weary as the oldest dragons. It was the weight of significance. The eyes of fate were on this pony, and every action she took would leave ripples that echoed through time.

Midnight didn’t have to be prompted to bow, though Captain Dawn probably would’ve kicked her if she hadn’t. As she inclined her head, she felt the blanket slip from her shoulders, and the little filly with it.

Nightfall stared up at Celestia, eyes widening with abject, untempered horror. Her horn sparkled and cracked with unfocused magic, which radiated from it not like a glow but as little patches of darkness.

No spell resulted as she scrambled to her hooves, and galloped away from Celestia in mad terror.

The whole room seemed frozen—even Celestia, whose expression remained inscrutable. There was no fear there, or revulsion. But she also lacked the compassion Midnight would have expected.

“Should I retrieve her, princess?” Dawn asked, his voice flat, utterly unaffected.

The princess inclined her head slightly to Midnight, though her eyes followed the filly. Nightfall had fled behind one of the nearby pillars, where she had covered herself as best she could, shivering all over. “No, Captain. As a matter of fact, it would be best if you left. Take the rest of the guard with you. You may return when I am finished with miss Storm.”

The unicorn looked like he might argue with her. But he seemed to think better of it, because he turned sharply on his heels, leading the rest of the guards away with him out a side door and shutting it behind them.

“Princess,” Midnight said, her voice as respectful as she could make it. “Would you…” She didn’t finish the question. She couldn’t watch the filly quiver with fear without feeling the guilt. She had brought her here. In some sense, she was responsible for every bit of suffering the child went through.

She spread her wings, gliding across the throne room to land on the other side of the pillar. Less than the proper respect to demonstrate to the princess of Equestria, but just now she didn’t care.

“Hey, Nightfall.” She kept her voice down, lifting the filly’s head with one wing. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

The child didn’t answer for a long time. She didn’t even open her eyes at first, and when she did, Midnight could see the betrayal there. A few echoes of anger, far away. “We need to… get away…” she squeaked, unable to look past her. “I can’t be here.”

“Why not?” Midnight dropped down in front of the filly, spreading her wings to obscure as much of the majesty of the room as she could. And the princess behind her. “Kid, there’s nowhere safer in all of Equestria. This is Princess Celestia’s throne room. She’ll be able to get you back to your family.”

Nightfall’s slitted eyes met hers, brimming with tears. “I don’t have one. All she can do is hurt me. Please… we have to get away.”

“I don’t know why I would do that,” Princess Celestia said, her voice coming from just behind her.

Midnight glanced over her shoulder, and found the princess standing there, between Nightfall and any route she might’ve had to run away. How had she gotten here so quietly?

Nightfall cowered, her voice breaking into a tearful, indistinct sob. Midnight reacted instinctively, moving close to her and covering her with one wing. She still didn’t understand what was going on, but maybe that didn’t matter.

Midnight Storm faced down the princess of Equestria.

Any fear she might’ve felt proved in vain, however. Celestia didn’t look upset, only concerned. “I have not brought you here to punish you, my little pony. Your past does not have to become your future as well.”

Nightfall whimpered again, the sound coming out more like a strangled sob than any cry of resistance.

Midnight only stared, glancing between the two of them. As she had expected, Celestia seemed to recognize this Alicorn. But what did she mean?

The answer was staring her in the face. Just across the room, Midnight Storm could see one of many stained-glass scenes. This one depicted something she remembered, though she hadn’t lived anywhere near Ponyville at the time. The night not too long ago when Nightmare Moon had taken over the world—ancient wrath that would have buried Equestria in eternal darkness were it not for the intervention of a few brave ponies. She could see them depicted in the glass, the so-called Elements of Harmony.

Midnight Storm only knew what she had read from the few news reports she’d seen from the time. Most of those had been more focused on the announcement of Princess Luna’s return.

Even so, Midnight could see a little resemblance. The same dark coat as the window, the same deep purple mane.

Celestia was still speaking. Midnight returned to reality, and didn’t try to pull away from the child. “Why is she afraid of you, Princess?” she found herself asking. Bolder than she should’ve been, probably.

Princess Celestia seemed momentarily confused, as though she hadn’t even seen Midnight standing there. “You… you both deserve an explanation,” she eventually said. “Particularly you, uh…” She hesitated, shaking her head slightly. “Well, I don’t think using the old name would be setting the right precedent.”

“I’ve been calling her Nightfall, Princess,” Midnight suggested, feeling a little braver. She wouldn’t have dreamed of acting this way around a princess hours ago, but she still hadn’t been rebuked. If only half of the royal guards were as reasonable as the princess herself.

“Nightfall,” Celestia repeated, nodding in approval. “That sounds like a wonderful new name. A name for somepony who isn’t defined by a past that isn’t really hers.”

Midnight felt the filly behind her tremble again. She heard the unmistakable sniff, felt moisture on her coat.

“Let’s go somewhere more comfortable,” Celestia said, voice as polite and cheerful as though this had been the way she had expected this meeting to go from the first. “I wish I had all the answers—but what our investigation has managed to uncover should make it all easier to bear.”
> Chapter 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As it turned out, Princess Celestia kept a comfortable sitting room out a concealed door just behind the throne, which she explained was for entertaining important guests.

“And you’re both important guests, in your own way,” she had said, before sitting down with them around a low table at a set of cushions.

It seemed that at any moment Nightfall might lose her nerve and try and flee again, or worse. But she didn’t. She did keep in constant contact with Midnight, her heart racing like a hummingbird all the way. But she didn’t run. She didn’t even look in Celestia’s direction, and she tried to stay as much behind Midnight as possible, but it was something.

“You’ll have to forgive me for not devoting more time to a proper introduction,” Celestia said, the first time she had ever properly addressed Midnight. “It’s a delight to know there are kirin within Equestria’s borders again, and I would love the opportunity to learn more about your experiences here. But under the circumstances…”

“I understand, princess,” she said, voice low. “I’m sure both of us are alright with you skipping that part.” It was hard to tell from her expression, but Nightfall seemed to agree. 

Celestia didn’t argue the point, in any case. “I am told you are aware of the actions of a cult we recently apprehended in the Everfree. The Children of Nightmare have been…” she shrugged one shoulder. “Well, the important thing is they were interrupted in the middle of a ritual. The magic they were using was… complex, and we can only guess at its true purpose.”

“You’re the princess,” Midnight said, before she could stop herself. “Don’t you know more about magic than anypony in Equestria?”

Celestia chuckled. “I have learned a great deal, Midnight Storm. But magic is a skill like any other. It has been many years since magic anything like this has been used in Equestria. Still, what we have been able to learn in such a short time does suggest a use for the spell, one that the appearance of ‘Nightfall’ here confirms.”

“It’s something to do with Nightmare Moon, isn’t it? The one who tried to take over Equestria. But wasn’t that…” Midnight hesitated, looking away. “Wasn’t that Princess Luna? How could…” She couldn’t actually voice what she was thinking without sounding accusatory. So little had been printed about the specifics. Even if what she thought she knew was true, just accusing the princess like that… 

Celestia nodded, expression growing distant. At least she didn’t look upset. “My sister was not acting alone during that time. There was another being, one I believed the Elements of Harmony had destroyed entirely. I now believe I was mistaken, however.” She looked briefly down at Nightfall, who avoided her gaze more determinedly than before.

You’re a tough kid. After all you’ve been through today, don’t give up now.

She didn’t, and Midnight admired her spunk a little more.

“The cult kidnapped my apprentice, a pony named Twilight Sparkle. They needed a pony with powerful magic, and a lingering connection to the Elements. I believed they used those threads. If they had succeeded…” Her eyes lingered on Nightfall, and this time she didn’t look away. “I believe they might have succeeded, and brought something terrible into Equestria. But the ritual was interrupted, and it’s clear they failed.”

“Nightfall isn’t Nightmare Moon,” Midnight said, her voice braver than it had been yet. Definitely not a tone she should’ve taken with a princess.

“No,” Celestia agreed. “I don’t think you are, Nightfall. Whatever you are, wherever you came from… I can see you must have inherited at least some of that pony’s instincts. Maybe her memories as well…” She leaned in close, horn glowing slightly. She pushed Midnight’s wing out of the way, forced the filly to look at her.

Nightfall started to squirm, whimpering under the pressure. But she couldn’t look away, and Midnight was powerless to stop Celestia.

“I don’t know how much you remember, ‘Nightfall.’ But I want you to know—I don’t blame you for any of it. I still remember what Nightmare Moon did. No pony your age—or any age—should have to remember those things. I suspect you do.”

Nightfall started crying again—as much of a positive answer as Celestia was likely to get.

“My sister will have to speak to you about some of that—she has carried the burden. But I want you to know that you didn’t do any of those things. Some very bad ponies want you to become somepony for them. You don’t have to become that pony if you don’t want to. If you would rather live peacefully in Equestria, then you have nothing to fear from me, or my sister.”

For all her tolerance, for all the kindness, Midnight heard that last ‘if’ land like a weight. The princess might be tolerant, but the implication was obvious. She would not allow Nightfall to put Equestria in danger.

The filly nodded once—the first time she’d ever tried to communicate with Celestia. It seemed to cost her greatly to do even that much. “I… want to be me.”

Celestia’s horn stopped glowing, and she returned to her seat. “I am happy to hear that,” she said. “My first instinct is to keep you here, but… it seems like we’ll need to find another option. I think it would be better for you to have a chance to grow without a constant reminder of that other self. Canterlot isn’t the right place to have a fresh start.”

“I could do it,” Midnight said, though she suspected she didn’t sound much like she was making a request. “I mean… if it was alright with you, princess. I’ve only been with her for the day, but… I think I understand Nightfall better than anypony else you could find. Except you, obviously, but…” She shook her head. Keeping the filly somewhere she was in constant terror was obviously not a good idea, even if she did grow out of these old instincts.

Princess Celestia’s horn glowed again. Only this time, nothing in the room moved. Instead, the light seemed to momentarily blind her. The world dissolved, falling out from under her. 

Somehow, it wasn’t an unpleasant sensation. The warmth on her coat was like walking into a comfortable house after a long trip through the snow.

When her vision came back, she wasn’t so much standing as floating, with the princess only feet away. There was nopony else around. “You’ve… moved us?”

“No.” Celestia’s voice echoed strangely, sounding just slightly different than she had moments before. “I wished to speak with you privately, Midnight Storm. This contact is mental—the child will not overhear. I wanted to be certain you understood the weight of the commitment you wish to make.”

The princess seemed to loom over her, the weight of her attention distorting her features for a few seconds. This spell was an imperfect radio.

“I know what I’m signing up for,” Midnight said, though she didn’t sound as sure here as she wanted to. It was harder to exaggerate when they were speaking in thoughts.

Celestia smiled knowingly down at her. “I would normally prefer to entrust something like this to one I knew better. This is no disrespect to you, Midnight. I have no reason to believe you are anything other than an upstanding member of Equestrian society—but the weight on your shoulders if you should fail is tremendous. It might be better for me to entrust this to somepony else. Twilight Sparkle, perhaps. You met her yourself, didn’t you? Don’t you think she could do an adequate job caring for an unusual child?”

Midnight shrugged one shoulder. “I don’t know, princess. Maybe she could. But I don’t think Twilight Sparkle knows what it’s like to be something strange. I don’t think she knows what it’s like to have ponies whispering about you—or to be on the run, moving from city to city the instant anyone learned you weren’t quite like them. Ponies can be cruel—I think if you want to stop Nightfall from turning into Nightmare Moon, she should be with somepony who understands that. Somepony with experience coping with it.”

Celestia’s expression softened, and a little of the intensity blasting all around them faded. “After all these years, I would have expected better from Equestria.”

Midnight shrugged, though she couldn’t keep a little moisture from her eyes. Much as Nightfall had done, she looked away, doing her best to stop Celestia from noticing. “That isn’t what matters to me right now. Right now, I’m thinking about the filly I rescued. She deserves to have it better than I did. I’ll admit, I don’t know everything that goes into taking care of a child. But I’d be willing to learn all that. To do whatever it took.”

Princess Celestia remained silent a long time, considering her. The weight of those deep purple eyes seemed far heavier than any jeering crowd of ponies. It was so much worse when it wasn’t just her own future being decided.

“It will not be a simple task,” Celestia eventually said. “I understand you’ve been living in seclusion, for instance. That will not be acceptable for the filly. She must become part of Equestrian society. That would mean relocating somewhere she could grow up around ponies.”

“Ponyville,” Midnight said, without thinking. “They seemed to accept us when we passed through town.” They’d been far more accepting of Midnight than she had expected, actually. “I could move into town with her. Buy a… house or something. I’m sure I could scrounge together the bits somehow.”

Celestia put a stop to her desperation before it could start. Probably because she had heard the lie. Midnight Storm was willing to do whatever it took, but that didn’t mean she actually thought she could get together the bits to buy a house in Ponyville. Not after burning through so much of her savings buying essentials while she lived as a hermit.

“You underestimate the importance of this mission, Midnight. Caring for the young Alicorn would be a task entrusted to you by the Crown. I would see that you had all the bits you needed to provide young Nightfall a home there.”

Again Celestia’s attention seemed to focus on her. “You must understand the weight you would be carrying, Midnight Storm. A new Alicorn in the world has the potential to do incredible harm—particularly one who has risen to power in such an unconventional way. It is far easier to plug a leaking dam than to rebuild a village after it has been washed away in the flood.”

Midnight Storm nodded again. “I know. And I still want to do it.” She couldn’t get the little filly’s terrified face out of her mind. Or her bravery, in suffering through every awful thing she had today. She reminded Midnight more than a little of herself, but worse.

There wasn’t a pony in Equestria more qualified to help than she was, complete lack of parenting experience notwithstanding.

“There is one more threat—this one external. The royal guard is hunting the remainder of the cultists. I am not certain how many have escaped, though it seems we failed to reach most of their leaders. It is possible that if they learn of the filly, they will attempt to finish what they started. They may try to foalnap her, and who knows who else they might hurt along the way. You might be in danger.”

Midnight grinned, exposing pointed teeth, and flashed the blade on the end of her tail. “Frankly, Princess, I’d like to see them try.”

Celestia seemed pleased by this response, though it was hard to tell for certain. The light faded from all around them—or more accurately, the real world came back into focus. Midnight was still sitting on a cushion in Celestia’s private council chambers. Nightfall was still clinging to her leg, and half-hiding from the sun princess.

“If you’re sure about this,” Celestia continued, as though only seconds had passed, “then there are a few more things you should be aware of. I would want you to live in Ponyville, and become a part of the community there.”

“Fine.”

Celestia went on. “I would want young Nightfall to have a conventional education. It would be best if we took steps to conceal her true nature from Ponyville’s citizens, or else she might make the wrong kinds of friends. Instead of ponies genuinely interested in her, she might get hoof-lickers who want to use her to get to the throne.” She shook her head. “I wouldn’t wish that on anypony.”

Midnight shrugged. “If that’s what you think is best, Princess.”

“And one more thing,” she went on. “I would want to remain closely involved with the young filly. This would mean installing a number of agents, to provide you with anything you needed and to keep an eye out for the Nightmare cult.”

“Sure,” Midnight Storm said, a little firmer than before. “I said I’d do anything, Princess Celestia. I meant it.”

“In that case…” The princess rose to her hooves. “There is only one pony left to ask.” She looked down at the filly. “Midnight Storm wants to be the pony to adopt you, Nightfall. Is that what you want?”

The filly nodded, more vigorously than she had earlier.

Midnight felt a brief surge of warmth in her chest again, and looked away so nopony would see.

“Well then. I will see that your records are put in order, Nightfall Storm. The two of you can spend the night here at the castle, then I’ll have you on the first train back tomorrow morning. That should be more than enough time to work out the details.”
> Chapter 8
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The pony who had recently been named Nightfall Storm barely listened as the pony who burned and the pony who had saved her spoke in hushed voices about things she didn’t understand.

Nightfall barely had words to describe what she had experienced over the last day of her life—coincidentally, the only day of her life.

But it also wasn’t. There was another lifetime buried behind shadow and smoke, brief flashes of terrible things. The worst part of it was not seeing herself do so much that felt wrong, but the feeling that she was enjoying it.

Then they’d come here, and Nightfall had felt betrayal. That was a familiar emotion, the one she had thought to expect from everyone. The world was a harsh place, where ponies only pretended to compassion. Ultimately each pony only cared about themselves.

But no, the pony who had saved her hadn’t only been leading her to a worse fate. Her memories held nothing but hatred for the Alicorn named Celestia. The pony had banished her, then sent other ponies to kill her. She would surely do the same thing this time.

She didn’t. Every second Nightfall kept living was another second those strange memories got further away. They weren’t her memories, Celestia said. They didn’t have to be her future, either.

Still, she kept behind Midnight as much as she could. Every glance at Celestia was an unpleasant reminder of the way the world had been. Midnight Storm was something new—she was the one who had saved her and protected her from all the other ponies.

Nightfall got the sense this conversation was somehow still protecting her, though what much of it meant was lost on her. They seemed to be talking about living somewhere, and maybe a fair bit about caring for her, as well.

She’ll work it out, Nightfall thought. She sat close enough to Midnight that she could feel her warmth, more than she expected from a pony. It felt good—it was something most ponies had, but she didn’t. What was it?

Family, Nightfall thought. She wanted to find mine for me. But I don’t have any. If Nightfall wasn’t the ponies whose strange memories she saw, then she was somepony new.

“Can you…” She spoke up suddenly, surprising even herself. She hadn’t really been listening to what the older ponies had been saying. Something about agents, whatever those were. But as she spoke, both of them turned to listen.

Nightfall spoke to Celestia, though she didn’t actually say so. They would have to figure it out. “Can you make her go away?”

She didn’t actually look to see how Princess Celestia had responded to that.She couldn’t help fearing that every new thing she did to remind the princess she was here might provoke some terrible reaction.

Yet when Celestia did speak, there was no anger in her voice. None of the violence her old memories expected. You’re just a Nightmare.

“It is… possible,” Princess Celestia said. “But young… Nightfall, it won’t be for some time. We still don’t understand what created you. But we know one thing with confidence—you were supposed to be her. If we try to destroy that now, before you’ve grown into somepony new, there might not be anything left. It might kill you.”

She felt Midnight Storm tense beside her. The dragon pony was braver around Celestia than anypony else Nightfall had seen so far. None of the others dared to question her.

“Do we need to be so blunt with her?”

Nightfall chanced a brief glance up from the floor at the princess. She didn’t seem angry, but her expression was firm. Confident that what she’d just done was right. “Nightfall is no ordinary filly, Miss Storm. If it were possible, I would see her sheltered from this. But she is an Alicorn. When she is older, she will have the power to do terrible things. She must understand from the first moment that all actions we take have consequences for Equestria’s citizens. If we fail, death will certainly be among the possibilities.”

Nightfall whimpered, moving close to Midnight again. She didn’t really understand that—except for the no at the beginning. Celestia couldn’t take the memories away or else she would die.

I’ll have to make some new memories.

She could barely express her relief as they finally made their way from the royal sitting room, escorted through the beautiful maze of the castle.

Its hallways did not trigger her memories as she had initially feared—this place was new to her, it wasn’t some awful echo of the past. Not like the terrible castle she had run away from. Not all castles are bad.

The guards didn’t seem to like Nightfall very much. They always grabbed their spears when she went past, always watched her closely until they were out of sight. It was almost like they knew what she had done—they knew what she had done to ponies, and what she might do again.

I won’t. Princess Celestia said I don’t have to. But what was she supposed to do, tell them that?

At least Midnight didn’t look at her that way. Even after learning the name of the pony she had been, Midnight Storm had done nothing but protect her. She even tried to protect me from Celestia.

In that moment, Nightfall had learned that there was at least one pony in Equestria she could trust. If one, why not more?

The guards led them to a big room with lots of shiny things on the ceiling and beds so big Nightfall could swim in them. There was even a table inside with dinner on it—but Nightfall didn’t care.

She could tell from the window outside that it wasn’t even dark, but she didn’t care. Nightfall found somewhere soft and dark, and she fell asleep.

She didn’t have a pleasant sleep. Her night was spent with the constant sensation of eyes on her, like someone was standing over her bed with a sword, waiting for her to make a single mistake before they brought the blade down on her.

It was more of her own memories, from a time when she had barely existed. She hadn’t been a pony then—though what she had been was hard to say. Many thoughts mixed together—resentment, fear, anger.

Then she fought, and ponies died. It was terrible, but still didn’t feel like her. But it could be, if you want. You have a birthright waiting for you.

Nightfall woke up screaming. She felt trapped on all sides, a strange weight surrounding her. Had she been imprisoned in her sleep? She fought, kicked, shattered the walls, and sent huge chunks of them flying in all directions.

Tears streamed from her eyes as she took to the air, escaping from the traitor Celestia’s prison.

Then she blinked, and reality came into focus all around her. She was floating above one of the massive beds, surrounded by a sea of pillows. She’d scattered them all over the room in a little explosion of sheets and blankets.

Midnight Storm emerged from an open doorway a second later, eyes flashing and tail lifted over her head. Nightfall could see the blade glinting in the light from outside—the light of noon at least.

“What’s wrong?” Midnight asked, stepping in and scanning the room with narrowed eyes. Searching for an intruder? “Who…” Her eyes widened, and her tail drooped in the air behind her. Her expression changed to one of understanding. “Oh.”

Was that disappointment? Nightfall whimpered—then she remembered she didn’t know how to fly, and she flopped sideways onto the mattress. At least it was soft enough to catch her.

“Bad dream?” Midnight asked, making her way to the edge of the bed. Close enough for Nightfall to reach if she wanted to, but not actually trying to force her.

Probably for the best. After feeling trapped by all her blankets and pillows, Nightfall was still uncomfortable. She rose to her hooves on the bed, spreading her wings and bouncing up and down.

Nightfall nodded. “I… yeah.”

Midnight sat down on the edge of the bed. She didn’t look like Nightfall had just woken her—her mane was groomed, and she smelled like she had bathed. She let me sleep, didn’t she? “I can’t imagine. Celestia says that cult put Nightmare Moon’s memories in you. Must be… scary stuff.”

Nightfall crept closer to her, though she remained tense, ready to jump out of reach if Midnight tried to grab her. Of course, she didn’t. “Yeah,” Nightfall said. “I don’t… understand. But it’s far away. I think leaving will make it get better. Celestia… reminds me. Reminds her.”

Midnight nodded. “The only thing we’re waiting for is your meeting with Princess Luna tonight. Do you think that won’t help? I could… ask her to wait. If you think you need more time…”

Nightfall nodded eagerly, rushing over to her. “Please? I don’t want to see me… her… I don’t want to see her. Please.”

“Alright.” Midnight Storm didn’t move away yet, just held still. Her warmth was as inviting as it had been the day before.

She came to my rescue again, she thought. She was out there guarding me. When she thought I was in danger, she came to protect me. Maybe she’ll protect me from Luna too.

“I don’t know what the princess will say,” Midnight muttered. “I can make your case. But I can’t stop a princess of Equestria from getting what she wants.”

“I understand,” Nightfall said. And she thought she did, too.

Her stomach gurgled loudly then, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten for hours. If the sun was really as high as it looked, it had been nearly a full day since she’d eaten anything.

“Do you think… there’s anything left from last night?”

Midnight laughed. “They’ll bring us something new.” She rose to her hooves, gesturing with a wing at a door behind her that Nightfall hadn’t even noticed. “Why don’t you get yourself cleaned up? I can talk to the guards outside and get them to bring us lunch and tell Princess Luna you don’t want to see her. By the time you’re done, I’m sure there will be a meal waiting. These castle ponies are so fast!”

“Sure,” Nightfall hopped off the edge of the bed, yawning and stretching. She made her way towards the darkened door. She’d seen switches on the walls before, and learned how they worked. Yet nothing else she saw inside seemed familiar to her.

Nightfall stared for several long seconds, taking in the strange metal shapes set into the wall, the knobs and dials. There was a huge tub of water here, but she couldn’t find anywhere to heat it.

“Where’s the well?” Nightfall asked, calling after Midnight. “I’d rather just use a river than carry buckets up here.” There had been servants for that kind of thing, once. Maybe there was a bell hidden she could use to summon the ones assigned to this bath.

Midnight Storm stopped in the hallway, turning slowly on her hooves. “The… well? What do you mean?” She made her way into the bathroom, marching straight to the tub.

She pulled on both of the knobs, and water started flowing out of the wall. Steam was already rising from it, slowly filling the room.

It had been a long time since Nightfall had a proper bath.

She beamed, wings flapping energetically as she stuck one leg into the flow. It was warm, just like it looked. “This is… amazing!” she squeaked. “How many servants does it take to make this work?”

“I have no idea. They have plumbers now. They do… something with pipes? I don’t know how it works.”

“Amazing.” Nightfall clambered up over the edge, splashing down into the tub.

By the time Nightfall was clean and fed, she had almost forgotten about her awful dream. So much about Equestria had changed.

She hardly even noticed as somepony knocked on the door. Midnight walked away from the table, gesturing that she should stay still with one wing. So she did, preparing to run if one of the princesses had come (though where she would run to in a tiny castle suite with a bunch of locked windows, she couldn’t have said).

It wasn’t a princess, though. It wasn’t even a guard. The pony standing in the doorway looked much like any other—a blue pegasus with a darker mane and amber eyes. She dressed like she was about to go on a trip, with bulky saddlebags on her shoulders and a wheeled case resting on the ground beside her.

“Yes?”

“Hi!” The pony grinned at Midnight, then glanced over her shoulder at Nightfall. To her surprise, the mare didn’t stare at either of them—she only seemed curious. A friendly curiosity, like the unicorn who had ridden the train with them. What had her name been again?

“Who are you?” Midnight asked. There was an edge of suspicion to her voice—another sign of her quality as a protector.

“Oh, I’m Sapphire Breeze. I’m the royal representative Princess Celestia warned you about yesterday. Apparently we’re going to be living together in Ponyville.”

“We’re…” Midnight’s tone had changed, and her wings twitched in a way that Nightfall couldn’t quite recognize. What emotion was that? “Oh, that’s what you mean. Living together.” She stepped to the side. “Come in, then. Did you hear that Nightfall doesn’t want to see Princess Luna?”

“Yes, yes.” The pony stepped inside. “I just came from speaking with her. She agrees the filly’s wishes should be respected, at least in the short term. But that’s not why I’m here.” She pushed the case in ahead of her, and it rolled over to the side of the table. “I’ve got some gifts for you, Nightfall Storm. I think you’ll like them.”
> Chapter 9
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall watched the case suspiciously at first—but when she saw what was inside, that suspicion turned to excitement. Sapphire Breeze’s gifts proved to be some enchanted clothing from the royal wizards. The bright fabric of a scarf to wear in her mane, just around her ears. It wasn’t much—though as she lifted it closer to her with a little levitation she could see the runic patterns sewn into the fabric on the underside. It was stitched in the same color thread as the scarf, but that couldn’t stop her from feeling the slight buzz of magic.

“Just tie it off, Nightfall. Yes, just like that,” Sapphire said.

Nightfall did so, using a tall mirror on the wall to see what she was doing. No sooner had she wrapped the cloth around her head then she felt the buzz of magic pass over her coat. She jolted back from the table, preparing for a trap—but of course, it wasn’t a trap.

“Woah,” Midnight muttered, amazed. “That’s some illusion.”

The feeling of an active spell quickly passed as the magic settled into place, leaving Nightfall confused. But she knew what an illusion was, so she looked back to the mirror, not expecting much.

What she saw looked like the face of a completely different pony. Her eyes were the same blue, but they didn’t contract into predatory slits anymore. Stranger, and much more alarming, her horn appeared to be gone completely. Nightfall squeaked in horror and surprise, ripping the scarf out of her mane with a quick burst of magic and throwing it away.

She glared down at it, panting with fear. “Celestia doesn’t want me to be an Alicorn anymore?” She glanced back up at Midnight, not trying to hide the betrayal on her face.

Midnight chuckled. “Sweetie, you just took it off with magic. I don’t think Celestia was trying to do anything.”

“Oh.” Nightfall reached up, confirming with one hoof what she saw in her reflection. Sure enough, she could still feel the horn there, without any sign of damage. Exactly how she would’ve expected. “Then why?” She levitated the scarf back up, moving it towards her head. Funny how easy it was to levitate like this, so long as she didn’t think about it.

Almost the instant she thought that, her horn sparked like a candle dunked in rain, and she dropped the scarf.

“I’ll help you,” Midnight said, scooping it off the floor and moving over to her. She worked quickly, and soon it was tied in Nightfall’s mane exactly like before. “There, how’s that?”

Nightfall looked back to the mirror, back at that stranger’s face. “Why?”

“Because Celestia wants you to know what it’s like to be a regular pony,” Sapphire Breeze said. “I don’t know her reasons. But I know that the ponies of Ponyville would have a really hard time pretending you were ordinary if you were an Alicorn.”

“I wish they could’ve made something like that for me when I was a filly,” Midnight muttered. “A little late for it now.”

“Just remember,” Sapphire began, looking right at Nightfall. “That’s just an illusion. Your horn is still there. You can still smack it into something, and you can still use magic. If you do, there will be a glowing patch of nothing right over your head. Ponies will… probably realize what’s going on. Princess Celestia is insistent on this. If Ponyville figures out what you are, she’ll move us someplace else. Which is no fun for anypony, since she’ll probably move me and the other agents right along with you.”

Midnight looked like she was about to object, but for once Nightfall cut her off. “That’s okay. After the way the guards were always looking at me… I think it’s better if nopony knows I’m different.” She sighed, ears flattening. “I’ll be careful.” Not using magic in front of others wouldn’t be that hard—she could barely use it anyway.

“It won’t stop the rumors,” Midnight said. “Nightfall was hiding most of the way in, but a few ponies must have seen her with me. I move in a day later with a mysterious pegasus, somepony is bound to connect the dots.”

Sapphire shrugged. “Maybe they will, maybe not. I think you’ll probably be surprised though, Midnight Storm. Most ponies don’t care to ask uncomfortable questions if it means they can pretend they’re safe and the world is the way they expect. You’ll see much of that in Ponyville—so long as you and Nightfall here act friendly and don’t cause trouble, ponies will look the other way.”

Midnight looked like she was about to argue, but she didn’t. “Are we going to head back today?”

“Yeah,” Sapphire said. “As soon as we come up with a cover story. For… why we’re living together, I mean. The house should be waiting for us when we arrive, so we should think about what we’re going to tell our new neighbors. And… maybe it should include an occupation too. One that doesn’t require either of us to be working at any of the local businesses.”

Nightfall tuned them both out as they started talking about boring things. Midnight would take care of all that, the same way she’d taken care of her so far. Nightfall looked back up at the mirror one last time—what would it be like to have a normal life?







Midnight Storm sat on an uncomfortable chair in the mayor’s office, staring out the open window. As she thought back, she couldn’t quite suppress her amazement with the whole affair. Though many had stared during her trip through town, not one pony had fled in terror, not one mother had hidden her foal away, and not one angry mob had formed.

Quite the opposite, she hardly even opened her mouth before ponies mentioned the guards earlier, and fed her a cover story even better than the one she’d come up with. She was with the guard, obviously, here to keep an eye on Ponyville and make sure the cult didn’t kidnap anypony else.

She hadn’t even considered agreeing to it at first. Though in some ways she had “lied” to ponies in every city she lived in, pretending to be something she wasn’t, she’d never done so that explicitly before. But Sapphire Breeze hadn’t given her the chance to deny the story, accepting it readily and even supplying a few fictitious details of her assignment.

“I don’t like it,” Midnight muttered. “Lying to a whole town?”

“It’s not a lie,” Sapphire Breeze answered, without a hint of shame. “That’s one of the reasons I’m here, and in a way it’s what you’re doing too. Princess Celestia did warn you the cult might want Nightfall, didn’t she? And she is one of the residents of Ponyville, or she will be.”

Midnight groaned, though she was more worried the filly might’ve caught some of that. Lucky for her, she had gotten distracted by the bookshelves in one corner of Mayor Mare’s office. What could be so interesting about them Midnight couldn’t guess. It wouldn’t be the first thing that had amazed Nightfall that anypony else would’ve dismissed without a second glance.

Probably has something to do with all those old memories. Nightmare Moon was so long ago…

The mayor returned, and a few minutes later they were standing in the empty ground floor of their new home. Well… the house belonged to the Crown, but it was the first one Midnight had lived in for a long time. She’d spent so long renting the smallest, cheapest places she could possibly find, surviving on scraps, that she’d never dreamed of owning a home.

It’s not mine. I’m sure Celestia will want it back as soon as Nightfall gets old and moves out.

She didn’t even want to think about how much it must cost. It was located a short distance from main street, with enough space on the lower floor to turn the whole thing into a shop if she really wanted to. It didn’t have much furniture, though. Only an old kitchen table and a couch that looked like something had crawled inside it and died.

“Do you think it has running water too? Like the castle?” Nightfall asked, her voice timid.

“Probably,” Midnight said, shrugging one wing. “We’re right in the center of town. No reason we’d have to pump it ourselves.” The luxury would be amazing to her too, for an entirely separate reason. The sorts of places Midnight had lived often had a shared bathroom downstairs with a cold shower and a communal pump for water.

The filly darted off to investigate, while Sapphire Breeze inspected the interior with a critical eye. “From the paperwork I saw, this used to be a garment shop, until a better shop opened up and drove this one out of business. City took possession after that, converted it into a residence… but we could change it back if you wanted to. Assuming you had anything to sell.”

Midnight watched the filly vanish into the open kitchen, following slowly behind. She nearly gasped as she saw a platter already waiting for them—more fish, apparently. Though judging by how hot it still was, somepony had been in here only minutes before they arrived. Celestia really doesn’t care about the money.

Then again, if Midnight failed and Nightfall turned back into herself, she supposed the damages an Alicorn might cause taking over the country would be worse than the cost of a few meals.

“I, uh…” She blinked, looking back at the pegasus. The bright blue mare was a little distracting, in ways she wasn’t entirely prepared to admit. Certainly not to somepony she had just met. “When I was talking to Zecora about moving in here, she suggested selling firewood.” She lifted her tail to catch the light, grinning weakly. “I wouldn’t need tools. But… that doesn’t sound like much of a fit for a fancy shop like this.” She turned, glancing back towards the front of the living room. The massive front window was still there, though whoever converted the house had hung dark curtains to give them privacy from the street outside.

“I don’t think the princess expects you to do much work beyond keeping the kid safe, at least until they bring in the rest of the cult.”

“How long will that take?” Midnight asked.

An excited squeal from the other room interrupted her, along with the sound of water. “It’s as fancy as the castle!”

Midnight couldn’t hide her grin. “What about… the other agents. The princess mentioned there would be more…”

“Several plainclothes guards,” Sapphire said. “It’s probably best if you don’t know who they are. The fewer ponies know, the less likely they are to get caught. A few of them have relatives here in Ponyville, so it won’t look like a whole bunch of us are moving in at once. Hopefully our story will keep them from looking too closely at Nightfall.”

“Yeah,” Midnight repeated, frowning to herself. “I’m… probably going to go out to my old place tomorrow, get my stuff together. Do you think you could keep an eye on Nightfall after breakfast tomorrow? Assuming it’s alright with her. We haven’t been separated since I found her, but… I think asking her to go back into the Everfree would be worse than leaving her with somepony else for a while.”

“Sure.” Sapphire smiled. “That’s why I’m here. Besides, I’m sure you’ll want to start her in school before too long. We can go pick out some supplies while you’re gone.” She tapped the side of her saddlebags, which jingled merrily. “The princess’s bits won’t spend themselves.”

As though she had sensed them talking about her, Nightfall appeared in the open doorway. She’d left the water running, though she seemed to have completely forgotten about that. Now she kept looking back at the stairs. “Is the upstairs ours too?”

“Yeah.” Midnight turned. “Come on, let’s check it out. There’s enough bedrooms for you to have your own, if you want. Why don’t you pick one out?” The filly squealed with excitement again, charging past Midnight up the stairs. She stumbled a few times on her way up, though she didn’t slow down.

There can’t be much of Nightmare Moon in there, can there? With Nightfall concealed in her protective camouflage, it was easy to forget there was really an Alicorn under there. An Alicorn who had tried to conquer all Equestria twice. It’s probably just a few memories. A few weeks with someone who cares about her, and she’ll forget all about it.

“I’ve got a furniture catalogue for you to look through when you’re done!” Sapphire called after them. “I don’t want to sleep on the floor!”
> Chapter 10
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall knew this probably wasn’t a good idea.

She had lots of excuses—she had her disguise, the incredible magic that made her look like anypony else. More than anything else, she just wanted a chance to walk around and see what had happened to her world. Midnight Storm would’ve been welcome to come along, but the kirin was far too busy outfitting their new home. There were so many boring things to deal with—food and who knew what else. It had been easy for Nightfall to sneak out.

I’ll be back before she even realizes I’m gone.

Nightfall’s memories were a strange slurry. On the one hoof, there was the argument that she was really a brand new pony. An infant of only a few days old should not be able to speak pony languages, or read their writing, or anything else. She should not be an Alicorn.

Yet she could do all those things. Language often came accompanied with meaning and history that did not make sense to her—many of the words that floated through her head were mere abstractions. Only when she walked under the metal object with its glowing top did she realize she was looking up at a streetlight, coming on an hour ahead of nightfall.

Then there was the other possibility—the one that was much more disturbing. Nightmare Moon obviously knew pony languages, she had learned them from Luna. If she were that pony, then it would be quite logical for her to know what she did.

The problem was—if Nightfall was Nightmare Moon, then she was guilty of all her sins. That was not the possibility she wanted. Nightfall wanted those memories to belong to somepony else. The screams had been inflicted by a long-dead villain, not by her.

I don’t have to be her if I don’t want to.

Even Princess Celestia had said as much. It was a chance Nightfall was more than eager to take. Even Nightmare Moon would’ve wanted it. She only wanted ponies to love the night as much as she did.

Thoughts like that landed a little close to home for Nightfall, and she banished that line of reasoning with a pained shake of her head. It would be better not to dredge up too many of those old memories.

It was impossible to completely banish them. As she walked through Ponyville, she found it matched her old ideas for what pony settlements ought to be in many central ways. It had a river, as any large settlement needed. She could see farms and orchards surrounding the village to provide its food. Thatched roofs, a gravel road, a few larger civic buildings in the center. She remembered what the inside of the capital looked like from more of those old memories.

Nightfall found herself drifting towards a set of voices—happy voices, not the screams of that night of her return. That wasn’t me that wasn’t me that wasn’t me.

No, these ponies were younger. They sounded like they were having fun. It was the sort of gathering Nightfall wanted to be a part of. She followed them across a bridge, pleased at how little Ponyville’s residents paid attention to her. She wasn’t a dark Alicorn anymore, she was just a dark-colored pegasus. So long as the spell continued to hide her, she could be just another face in the crowd.

The ponies she had been hearing were gathered on the bank of the river, tossing a ball back and forth according to the rules of a game she didn’t recognize. One unicorn filly pushed it through the air with a few flickering flashes of magic, before an earth pony filly blocked it from entering a basket with her body, only to have it snatched away by a wiry pegasus colt, who knocked it off his wings to another young pegasus on the other end of their play area. She kicked it between some rocks, and the two of them cheered.

“What are you playing?” Nightfall asked, before she could stop herself. She had wandered up to the field, as close as she could get without attracting too much attention. Considering the four of them had been completely engrossed in their game, that was very close.

“It’s called Touchball,” said the little greenish unicorn with the horseshoe cutie mark. She was still glaring, though not at Nightfall. She seemed disappointed that another point had been scored.

“Who are you?” asked the cream-colored pegasus colt. “I haven’t seen you in school before.”

“I’m new,” she said. “My name is Nightfall. Nightfall Storm.”

“Spooky!” said the earth pony with the pillow cutie mark. “Guess it goes with your coat. I’m Aura.”

“Liza,” said the unicorn filly.

“Featherweight,” said the little pegasus colt. “And this is Zipporwhill.”

The other shy pegasus barely even managed a nod.

“You’re new, huh?” Aura asked. “That’s fun. Where’d you come from? Canterlot, I bet. Lots of new ponies come from Canterlot.”

“No, uh…” Nightfall tried to remember. “I’m uh… from Motherlode.” It was one of the most remote towns in Equestria. A perfect cover for nopony knowing about her. Nopony from there lived in Ponyville, which made it a difficult story to question.

Nightfall felt a little bad lying to ponies, but not that bad. In some ways, she wasn’t from anywhere, exactly, so why not from Motherlode?

“Never heard of it,” said Featherweight.

“It’s far away. Where it snows all the time. They mine a lot there.”

“Boring,” Liza said. “You should play with us, Nightfall.”

“For a few more minutes, anyway,” Featherweight said. “It’s already dark. My parents will probably come soon.”

“I should… probably get home, actually.” Zipporwhill squeaked, glancing once around nervously. “Mom said… once the streetlights came on.” She waved with a wing. “Nice to meet you, Nightfall.” She buzzed off into the dark without another word.

“Well, that just makes the teams even,” Aura said, watching her go. “You’re with Featherweight, Nightfall. You know how to play Touchball?”

“Sure,” she lied. “But… maybe remind me? In case I forgot?”

They did. The rules were quite simple—the sort of game children like this could play with a single oversized ball and some rocks to mark out boundaries. Not nearly as complicated as the ancient and storied sport of Hoofball. But Nightfall didn’t really care about the game—she just wanted a chance to do something regular ponies would’ve done.

And to her glee, they didn’t seem to want to go in as the streetlights went up. She could still remember that ancient anger, belonging to a pony she kept reminding herself that she wasn’t. A pony who had watched foals like these hide from the dark in their homes and only come out again when Celestia’s sun returned.

But it got dark, and they kept playing under the steady amber light of the streetlights. Nightfall was terrible at Touchball. Not just because she’d never played that game before, but because she was only a few days old. She tripped over her own hooves more than once, and she couldn’t use her magic without revealing her disguise for what it was.

But these ponies didn’t care. Featherweight didn’t seem to mind that she was a trash teammate, and they started losing as soon as she was assigned.

The rest of the group was gradually whittled down, dwindling to just her and the oldest, the earth pony named Aura. “You should probably go home…” the filly said, sounding reluctant. “Won’t your mom and dad be worried about you?”

Her eyes widened, and Nightfall remembered she had only meant to be gone for a few minutes. She’d just wanted to look at Ponyville, not get distracted with a whole game of Touchball. “Right, yeah!” Nightfall winced. “I should really get going. I don’t want Midnight to be mad at me…”

“I can walk you home,” Aura said. “Where is it?”

“Back across the bridge.” Nightfall started off that way, practically bouncing up and down on her hooves in her nervousness. So much for showing Midnight that she could be responsible in Ponyville.

It’ll be fine. She probably isn’t even done picking out furniture. I’ll slip right back inside, and she’ll look up from the stupid catalog and not even notice I was gone.

They didn’t make it a dozen steps over the bridge before Midnight realized she was being followed. Her young companion had no senses for that kind of thing—she was actually the child she appeared, cheerful and eager to have made a new friend. But Nightfall could recognize the sight of a pony trying to stay out of sight, one that was imitating her steps and following her as she turned.

The streets were mostly empty now. She didn’t know how long she’d been playing, but late enough that most of the shops were starting to close and the ponies were returning from them. So she stopped walking right in the street, turning to glare back into the gloom. Aura stared, confused by her sudden change of behavior, but she didn’t get the chance to say anything.

Midnight Storm emerged from the gloom a second later. Nightfall couldn’t read the mask on her face—was that anger? Disappointment? Satisfaction? That kirin was good at hiding her feelings when she wanted to.

She approached slowly, holding her tail low like she usually did. Aura stopped and stared, ears flattening. “W-who’s that?”

“My mom,” Nightfall said without thinking. “You were right. I shouldn’t have been out so late.”

“Oh.” Aura relaxed. She looked up, and smiled nervously up at Midnight Storm. “Hi, Miss…”

“Storm,” Midnight said. “Thank you for taking good care of Nightfall. I’m glad there are young ponies in Ponyville who know how to be safe and go together. But my daughter shouldn’t have stayed out so late—her dinner is getting cold.” Her glare went icy for a second, though not for Nightfall’s new friend. There was no trying to conceal her disappointment anymore. “What’s your little friend’s name, Nightfall?”

“Aura.”

“Well, Aura. My daughter and I will make sure you get home safely.” What she did not say was what she would do to Nightfall as soon as they were done, though her glare implied it would be something quite severe.

“I hope I see you at school tomorrow,” Aura said, as they made their way towards the outskirts of Ponyville. The homes here didn’t look nearly as nice as the one she lived in. The wood was worn, and the roofs looked like they needed new straw. Of course, the magical lights everywhere would still have been quite amazing in the world Nightfall remembered best.

“I… I dunno.” She looked up at Midnight. “Will I be at school tomorrow?”

“Not tomorrow,” Midnight said. “But the day after.”

“Aww,” Aura muttered, though she didn’t argue with Midnight. Nightfall couldn’t exactly blame her—Midnight Storm was easily the largest pony in the whole city. She doubted even the largest grown stallions would be arguing with her.

They dropped Aura at a top floor flat in one of the most run-down looking buildings Nightfall had seen yet—though the filly didn’t seem to notice, or else didn’t care enough to be embarrassed. No parent came to the door to see their filly returned, and Aura’s expression made it clear she didn’t expect one. “See you around, Nightfall.” They left.

“I thought you were more responsible,” Midnight muttered, as soon as they were alone on the streets of Ponyville. Properly alone this time—only the occasional night-guard was visible passing down a distant street. “What do you have to say for yourself, Nightfall?”

There was no yelling, no threats. Just those disappointed eyes—they hit harder than any blow could have. “Nothing,” she muttered. “Excuses won’t make it go away. I should’ve stayed inside.”

Midnight seemed ready to argue—she stopped herself, nodding. “That’s exactly right.” She lowered her voice to a whisper, even though there didn’t seem to be anypony around to listen. If the night-guards in their patrols noticed them, they didn’t make any move to stop them. It wasn’t as though Ponyville had a curfew or anything. “Celestia thinks there are some bad ponies who would really like to know where you are, sweetheart. I know Ponyville looks safe, but we can’t pretend it is yet. Not until the guards can track them down. You made me think they’d got you.”

“Yeah.” Nightfall looked away. “I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.” What she didn’t mention was her feeling of being watched, and how it hadn’t gone away when Midnight found her. She didn’t want to worry the kirin more than she already was.

Besides—it was probably nothing.
> Chapter 11
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It took Midnight a few hours to get Nightfall to sleep. The filly didn’t seem to get tired as easily as ordinary foals—or at the very least, not as quickly as Midnight would’ve expected.

She hoped it would get easier in a few more days, once their new furniture arrived and the child had a better place to sleep than the large pile of blankets. But that was probably wishful thinking.
Midnight felt as though she had survived a minor heart attack tonight. A few short hours after being entrusted with the safety of Equestria, and she had very nearly lost her charge.

Not that it was her fault. The young Alicorn’s powers must’ve been involved somehow—she couldn’t imagine any other way that the child could somehow get past her and Sapphire at the same time.

Sapphire, for her part, would be staying the night at the Ponyville inn for the first few days. Until they had the empty guestroom outfitted for her. Hopefully that would look a little less suspicious.

But we weren’t exactly subtle. If Ponyville hasn’t figured out who we are yet, they’ve got to before too long. They had seen Midnight herself, as indeed they were building right into their alibi. She was here to protect Ponyville from future attacks. And that wasn’t even entirely wrong.

Something banged on the front door, loud enough to startle Midnight from her stupor. Who in all Equestria would be visiting in the middle of the night?

She lifted her tail a little behind her as she made her way to the door. It banged again, loud enough that she couldn’t help but wince. Please don’t wake her up!

She was glaring by the time she swung the door open. She half expected to see an army of insane cultists outside, all dressed in spooky Nightmare Moon consumes and carrying silly torches.

There was only one pony outside her house—one of the few who could stand before her without looking small by comparison. Her mane drifted in the moonlight, its gentle stars blending in to the night sky visible behind her. Some of the stars even seemed to overlap.

Princess Luna.

Midnight dropped into a reflexive bow, even as all kinds of dark thoughts raced through her head. Sapphire wrote a report about Nightfall and Luna got it that quickly? Wasn’t Celestia the one watching this case? It was supposed to be too sensitive a subject for the night princess, for reasons even Midnight could guess.

“Rise,” Luna commanded. Midnight could hear the family similarity in her tone—like Celestia, there was kindness there, but also an expectation of obedience. “You are the kirin known as Midnight Storm, is that correct?”

She nodded. Midnight might’ve been caught completely speechless at the presence of a royal in her home—were it not for her last few days. After her conversation with Celestia, Midnight could see another view. She now knew the princesses as ponies as well as rulers. She could talk to them. “I didn’t expect to see you, Princess. Sapphire said that you had decided not to see Nightfall. That you… agreed with our thoughts that meeting her might do too much harm.”

“Indeed,” Luna said. “But this is a conversation not suited to be heard by Ponyville generally. Inside, perhaps?”

Midnight resisted the urge to facehoof. “Of course, Princess! You can…” She stepped aside. “We won’t get most of our furniture until tomorrow. But I could… make you some tea maybe, or…”

“No need,” Luna said. “But I appreciate the offer.”

Just as well. We haven’t bought any tea yet.

Midnight shut the front door as she entered, grinning at the brilliantly lit interior of her sitting room. While she lived in the Everfree, Midnight Storm had relied on lanterns after nightfall, which couldn’t light a room half as well as electrics. There were some advantages to returning to civilization.

But I never planned on leaving, did I? Ponies forced me. And now they’d forced her back.

There wasn’t anywhere to sit beyond the floor. She offered the princess a spot anyway, apologizing that she didn’t have more.

“I understand.” Luna waved off her apologies with a wing. “You have only just arrived here, and I am unannounced. And you are correct, I believe that confronting the, uh… confronting Nightfall would be premature. In honesty I was relieved to receive the suggestion that our introduction should be postponed.”

The princess shifted uncomfortably on her haunches, and despite her ethereal mane and imperious features she looked more like an ordinary pony than even Celestia had looked in her palace. There was real pain there, of a sort Midnight understood all too well.

“Nightmare Moon represents a… difficult time in my life. One I was relieved to see that most Equestria had forgotten in my absence. Through no little intervention from my sister, I’m sure…”

“Nightfall isn’t her,” Midnight interrupted, her tone a little defensive. “Celestia said so. They didn’t finish the ritual. She’s not the pony the Nightmare cult wanted.”

Luna hesitated. Taken aback by Midnight’s boldness, probably. Yet she didn’t seem angry. “’Nightfall’ is not the same pony, yet,” the princess whispered. “I trust my elder sister’s judgement. Her mastery of the arcane is without equal and her wisdom has clearly eclipsed my own. Were that not so, we would not be having this conversation in the first place. Yet… yet there are some things my sister could not ever understand. From her earliest days, she has known only adoration and praise for her work. Everywhere she went ponies showered her with love and pretended Equestria was utterly without fault. Even the roadapples they passed didn’t stink if my sister was nearby, or so they would have you believe..”

Midnight failed to choke back a laugh. Her tail scraped once against the floor beneath her in surprise—had Princess Luna just said what she thought she’d said?

Apparently yes, judging by the delicate smile on her face. “I wish to make a point. Nightfall is an Alicorn—somehow. I do not understand where this power came from. I do not understand the sympathetic connections that have created her, or the twists of the arcane that empower her. Take this as no unkindness towards the filly, but she shouldn’t exist. The essence that was Nightmare Moon was destroyed by the Elements of Harmony. It would have been simpler for everypony if the situation had remained that way.”

Midnight stopped smiling. She could feel herself tensing—the same instincts to prepare for a fight that rose in her when a crowd of ponies started to surround her. “Nightfall is not the same pony. She didn’t do the terrible things that Nightmare Moon did.”

Princess Luna winced visibly, her whole body stiffening. “I am… yes, obviously. She is her own pony, with her own identity and history. I am not here to suggest she should be punished.”

“Then why?” Midnight whispered. She could only pray that Nightfall really was asleep, despite all the noise the princess had made. “Just to tell me that you don’t think she should exist?”

Princess Luna took a deep breath. As she did, the stars in her mane seemed to flicker, growing brighter in some patches and darker in others. Midnight imagined she could see through that mane like the largest, most advanced telescope. There was a magical power here that she couldn’t ignore—perhaps it wasn’t the equal of Celestia’s, but it had to be close.

“My sister still does not understand what led to Nightmare Moon’s arrival in the first place. She knows only in the most abstract terms that Nightmare Moon was the result. The story she sometimes recites of the event is designed to spare me the pain of guilt, but instead it casts me as a petulant foal, whose only motivation was ingratitude.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Midnight Storm—the same pressures that created Nightmare Moon once could surely resurrect her a second time. Nightfall is already that pony to some minute extent. It is imperative we do not allow that transformation to escalate to its conclusion.”

“She’s a good filly,” Midnight practically growled. “What you’re talking about… it isn’t there. Maybe the rest of the ritual would’ve brought something evil, but there’s none in my house.”

Princess Luna sighed. “Of course there isn’t. Miss Storm… long ago, I wanted to be part of a world that didn’t want me. I suspect you may have some insight into that life—when Equestria couldn’t give me the love I wanted, I went looking elsewhere.”

The electric lights in the room began to dim. It seemed as though a fog had blown in through the windows, that obscured everything except for the two of them and the awful furniture the last occupant of the house had left for them. “The void is very cold, and its loving embrace difficult to untangle. It makes attractive promises, and always keeps them. But it holds you to your end of the bargain too.”

Midnight felt powerless to move. She could see awful shapes moving in the fog, and hear their whispers. Whispers promising everything a pony could ever want, if only they would consent to one little thing.

“That burden is mine, not Nightfall’s. The guilt is mine, and the nightmares I suffer are deserved.” Luna’s eyes grew distant and glazed, and Midnight heard the voice of a pony who had not known peaceful sleep in a long, long time. “I suspect the Nightmare I called, the one that answered my desperate pleas a millennia ago, is the same creature the Nightmare cult were trying to evoke. If my sister is right, if you are right, then that creature lurks out there, somewhere. It reaches its tendrils into the material world, twisting and corrupting and infecting all that it touches. If it can’t have me, then it will want her.”

She pointed with her horn up through the ceiling. It flashed once, and the illusion vanished. The breeze stopped blowing, the ethereal whispers finally fell still. The two of them were alone in a poorly-furnished apartment.

“Princess… Celestia…” Midnight felt winded. She could only imagine how much more difficult that would’ve been for an ordinary pony, without her kirin constitution. “Princess Celestia didn’t say anything about a demon.”

“My sister doesn’t know,” Luna said. “Or doesn’t understand, at any rate. Only those who have trafficked with the void can comprehend it, and she was always too noble for that. My sister is content to walk to the world’s edge and be satisfied that she has seen all things—I was not.”

Princess Luna rose to her hooves abruptly. “You cannot possibly defeat this creature, if it were to manifest in the physical world. Its power may be infinite… but even if it isn’t, it’s certainly greater than mine.”

“There has to be a way,” Midnight said. “Princess Celestia got you back. And Nightfall hasn’t said anything about a… demon… thing.”

“There is.” Luna stepped towards her, closing the distance. “If the Nightmare can’t have me, then it will want her. Perhaps it is her, somehow… severed from the rest of itself. I don’t know. Only Star Swirl would’ve been able to guess, and he has been gone a long time. Regardless, there is a power you have that it cannot imitate. You can change the world around her. You can make sure that Nightfall is prepared for its whispers. Give it nothing to tug on—when it whispers of hatred, make sure she has memories of love instead. When it prods her jealousy, ensure she won’t listen, because she feels gratitude instead.

“When it reminds her of her loneliness. When it tells her that nopony will ever love her because of how strange she is, that ponies are afraid of her… make sure she knows just how many friends she has, and how welcome she is in Equestria.”

“It won’t come to any of that,” Midnight promised. “She has me to watch. Sapphire, royal guards. Whatever this Nightmare is… if we can keep an eye out for cultists, we can watch for that thing too. It won’t ever get to her.”

Princess Luna turned away from her. “The effort is valiant, but vain. We can’t possibly win the war of attrition, Miss Storm. But if you can ensure that Nightfall does not have weaknesses to exploit… if you can make her a better pony than I was… then we won’t need to fear the Nightmare at all.”

Midnight didn’t get a chance to argue, or to object, or ask anything. The Alicorn flashed, and vanished from the air in front of her as abruptly as the illusion.

That was about the time she noticed the pair of little eyes watching from the stairs.
> Chapter 12
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall woke instantly. She felt the magic wash over her from below with the same force she might’ve felt from the breaking of a dam. Even lying down on the pile of blankets that was serving for her makeshift bed, Nightfall Storm could feel it. It was rather like hearing the voice of an old friend from downstairs, only to remember that she’d actually tried to murder you the day before, and she probably still had a knife.

What was worse, she knew that the one that power belonged to. Princess Luna was downstairs. She’s here to kill me. She’s going to make sure Nightmare Moon is gone for good. She thought about running—but she was on the top floor, and wasn’t sure she remembered how to fly. She settled for covering herself up with the blanket and pretending very hard to be asleep. You can’t see me you can’t see me you can’t see me…

The seconds turned into minutes, and she realized that Luna wasn’t coming. She could hear her voice from far away, muffled by the house. She hadn’t come to kill her, she’d come to talk. Not to her, and not to Sapphire. That pony wouldn’t be living here until tomorrow, once the furniture arrived. What’s she telling Midnight?

Curiosity worked in Nightfall until she managed to peek up from the bed. She half expected a dozen of the Night Guard to be watching her from around the room, just waiting for a sign that she was awake to pounce.

But there was no Night Guard, and no pounce either. Only the huge room, and her comfortably warm blankets.

Nightfall rose slowly from her bed, aware that several of the boards around her would creak if she stepped on them by mistake. She had to be exceptionally careful, not to accidentally warn the princess that she was awake. If she made one mistake, Luna would realize. Either she would attack, or at least she wouldn’t say whatever it was Nightfall wanted to overhear.

She dared one tiny hoofstep at a time, testing each board before putting her weight on it. Slowly she crept to the door, before twisting the knob in her magic. It took ages, but eventually she swung it open, and she could creep down the hall towards the stairs, and the warm glow of electric lights.

Nightfall’s ears perked, and she strained, strained to hear what the princess had come to say. “But if you can ensure that Nightfall does not have weaknesses to exploit… if you can make her a better pony than I was… then we won’t need to fear the Nightmare at all.”

There was a flash, and Nightfall winced, as magic briefly filled the house, blinding her. Then it was gone, and Princess Luna with it.

She left, and she didn’t even attack me. Maybe I was wrong to be so afraid.

Maybe she had been, but she hadn’t been wrong to think she might be seen. Midnight Storm was standing at the bottom of the stairs, staring straight up at her. Their eyes met, and instantly Nightfall bolted. She dashed through her open bedroom door, smashing it closed behind her and diving headfirst back into bed as though the blankets were an ocean.

But her quick reactions weren’t quick enough—she could hear hoofsteps moving up the stairs. Not angry pounding, as she might’ve expected from a pony justifiably upset at being spied on. It was the same sound Midnight always made when she walked. A few seconds later and the door swung quietly open.

“Hey.” Midnight stepped inside, not shutting the door behind her. “I guess we woke you up. Sorry we weren’t quieter. I didn’t think we were going to have a visitor in the middle of the night.”

Nightfall dared to poke her head above the blankets—but she saw no anger on Midnight’s face. She wasn’t brandishing her blade. Everypony in the world doesn’t hate me. Midnight even defended me to Princess Celestia. Why would Luna be different? She relaxed a little, sitting up from where she’d hidden.

“I… I’m afraid of her,” she dared, her voice timid. “Luna. She… reminds me.”

“Yeah.” Midnight crossed the distance between them, then brushed her mane away from her face with one tender wing. “I guessed it was something like that. She doesn’t want to hurt you, you know. She just doesn’t… doesn’t want you to…”

“Doesn’t want Nightmare Moon,” Nightfall fished. “Nopony does. Not Celestia, not you… not me either.” She slumped against the Kirin, and not just because of her warmth.

“You shouldn’t have to think about this all the time,” Midnight said. “Nopony knows better than me what it’s like to live with a threat hanging over your head. It’s awful, and you shouldn’t do it.”

“You do?”

She nodded, lifting her tail a little so Nightfall could see. “Before Ponyville, I never let ponies know what I was. I would move into somewhere new, pretending to be a unicorn, keeping everything hidden. It was the worst in the summer… but it was worth it, since they would just look at me like anypony else. So long as I never got close enough with anypony that we became friends. But as soon as one pony found out, as soon as I slipped up or they came in on me unexpected—I’d have to pack up and move. Every day I was looking over my shoulder, wondering if it would be my last in town. It got so bad I moved out into the woods. That’s why I was out there to find you.”

The story was a sad one, though it didn’t reassure. Nightfall only felt more guilty, glancing across the room to the mostly empty closet. Empty except for the magical disguise she was relying on to convince all of Ponyville that she was a pegasus, so she could be normal. I’ve got that hanging over me too. Two things instead of one.

Midnight followed her gaze, and she winced visibly. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to… look.” She scooted a little closer, lifting Nightfall’s face with a wing. “Just focus on who you are today, alright? You’re a good kid, I can tell. You don’t want to be Nightmare Moon. Just keep being as awesome as you are, and you won’t have anything to worry about. Tomorrow we’ll get you signed up for school, get everything taken care of here at home… it’ll be great. It’ll be great, and safe, and nothing bad will happen. You’re already doing better than I did at your age—you made some new friends on your first day!”

“Yeah,” Nightfall said, feeling a little better. “I guess I did.”

Nightfall was drifting again. Princess Luna’s sudden appearance had startled her awake, but it wasn’t enough to keep her that way. Now that the danger was gone, now that she felt safe again, she was starting to fade. A few more peaceful seconds were all it took for her to fall gently back to sleep, resting against the Kirin’s protective embrace.







Spell Nexus stepped slowly off the Canterlot express, conscious every moment of how empty the streets of Ponyville could be at night. Even for a pony such as himself, being alone was never a good idea. Particularly when he had such an important mission to accomplish.

Spell Nexus was a tall unicorn, wiry and thin with discipline and long study. He expected no interference as he made his way through the empty streets, and received none.

We were so close. Spell Nexus nodded politely to one of the Night Guards passing down a distant street—an obvious sign that the little town had now become a center for royal attention. Equestria’s true ruler should have had her coronation already. We were so close!

Were Spell Nexus a lesser unicorn, he might’ve let himself give in to despair. Princess Celestia now knew about their existence—even if the other servants of the organization had not revealed what they knew, even if few of them even could, that did little to reassure him. The precious reagents—the scraps of Nightmare Moon that had given them their sympathetic connection in the first place—had been consumed. There would be no attempting the spell again from the beginning. Not until they found what they had created.

I should have dealt with the dragon. If it weren’t for him, we would’ve won. But there was no sense going back now. The desire for revenge was a petty one, and it would only serve to distract from accomplishing his true goal. Energy can’t be destroyed—that magic went somewhere. He could feel a little satisfaction in that. Spell Nexus had done what only Equestria’s greatest scholars could ever dream of, and called life back from the void. Compared to his work, necromancy was a crude imitation.

Spell Nexus went straight for the Ponyville Inn. The night-guard would not harass him; a few even recognized him, and respected his position. Few unicorns in all Equestria had risen so high. But they would remember him here. As eager as ponies were to assume the best about those they met, they weren’t stupid. Nothing at all could happen while he visited, or else their enemy would eventually discover it.

Nexus already had a room reserved, the same one he always took when he was passing through—the top floor, so he could guarantee a skylight to appreciate his ruler’s night sky. He tipped handsomely, then made his way up the winding steps to the room.

He wasn’t surprised to see the room wasn’t empty. Smokescreen sat inside, pretending to read from an upside-down book. Nexus wasn’t actually sure if Smokescreen even knew how to read, which was part of what made him valuable. At least he couldn’t betray the Children of Nightmare by mail.

“Evening, Smokescreen,” Nexus said, shutting the door quietly behind him. He concentrated a moment, casting a few alarm spells on the stairwell, and a circle of silence around the room itself. Only when it was complete did he finally turn around.

“Hierophant, honor and pleasure be to… our ruler…” The pony snapped the book closed, not even bothering to feign enthusiasm through to the end of the sentence. “You get the idea.”

“I get something.” He set his suitcase down, turning to glare daggers at the earth pony. He waited, just long enough for him to see Smokescreen’s emerald eyes. Only when he was sure they shared the master’s gift could they converse about anything of meaning.

But the gift did not affect every pony quite the same way. This one had been an obstinate thief even before. Now that he’d been blessed, he was only more obstinate, and more of a thief. “Word is the ritual didn’t go so good. I dunno how I found that out—nopony important has been talking to me. Maybe it was that the sun kept rising. Or… maybe it’s the dozen royal guards crawling all over Ponyville, making it impossible for a dishonest pony to make a living.”

Nexus cleared his throat. “Do not waste my time, Smokescreen. If you’ve heard things didn’t go to plan, you know we must work swiftly. Princess Celestia has already called a meeting with me—her letter suggests she wishes for my help to interpret a dangerous spell. We can both guess which that will be.”

“Perfect,” Smokescreen said. “Couldn’t play into our hooves better if we asked. A brand-new food preparation spell, fresh from—”

Nexus silenced him with a glare. “Leave that to me.” It was impossible, though he wasn’t going to waste time explaining to a thief why that was. Smokescreen wouldn’t have understood. Anyway, the less he knew, the better. Not everypony who received the gift became completely trustworthy. “I want to know if you saw anything.”

“Anything… what, anything?” Smokescreen asked, grinning. “You’re going to have to be more specific, Hierophant. I’ve got two eyes, as it turns out, and they see an awful lot.”

“Let me be perfectly clear, then.” Nexus’s horn glowed, and he lifted Smokescreen gently off his chair. Towards the closed window. But slowly. “Something extremely valuable was consumed during the spell. Something that could only go away if we brought Equestria’s rightful ruler back. The ritual didn’t complete, but… somepony came back. Have you seen her?”

“Seen… our monarch?” He shook his head. “No, nothing like that.” His eyes widened the closer he got to the window. Despite his confidence, Smokescreen apparently didn’t realize that Nexus couldn’t actually toss him out. Even in the middle of the night, it would get noticed far too much. He’d used his real name coming here, after all. “I saw something else, though! Scariest royal guard in the world just got installed all incognito like in the center of town. Kirin, so they say. Didn’t get a good look, but the word was going around. Princess brought in the mythical creatures to look for us.”

Nexus dropped him. “Well, you best not let him find you, then.”

“Her, but… yeah. Naturally! She doesn’t have a clue.”

Nexus advanced on him. “Any questions to the guard would be suspicious, and anyone I sent into the Everfree would be discovered for certain. But you… you can be covert, yes? You can be discreet. She’ll be an Alicorn—beyond that, I don’t know. Her magic might be weak, her body might be half-formed… It is our responsibility to find her and insure that she can reclaim her throne. You are part of a noble purpose, Smokescreen.”
> Chapter 13
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall rocked back and forth on her hooves outside the schoolhouse, unable to contain her nervous fear. It didn’t matter that the other students weren’t here yet, and likely wouldn’t be for at least two hours. Cheerilee was in there, and so were tests, and ponies who would stare at her, and figure out her secrets.

“I could do the test tomorrow,” she said, perhaps the third time this morning. “It’s just one day.”

“You’re going to do it today,” Midnight Storm said, without much annoyance. “I know you don’t want to… I remember hating school just as much when I was young. But it’s important. As frustrating as it is to spend so much time trapped in there, you need to learn what they want to teach you. You’ll be grateful for this when you’re older.”

Nightfall felt naked—and she was, except for the headband. But it was the bad kind of naked, being unprepared, not being carefree and having nothing to do. “I already know everything,” she argued, trying another tact. “I mean… I think?”

“You didn’t recognize running water.” Midnight stopped just outside the door, tapping one hoof loudly to signal the teacher inside. That was it—the moment of no return. Nightfall slumped slightly against her, defeated. After the night before, she had no intention of causing any more trouble. She had already given the kirin enough to worry about by staying out to play way longer than she should have.

A pony opened the door a few moments later, looking completely unaffected by the early hour. “Why hello there! I just got the note that I should be expecting somepony… this must be Nightfall Storm!”

“I am.” She shuffled forward, looking down.

“Well, don’t sound so excited. You should save some of that energy for the test.” She beamed, but Nightfall found it hard to return any of her enthusiasm. Why should she be excited about wasting her time in a classroom?

Cheerilee stepped to one side, and she got a better look inside. There was room for maybe thirty students inside, on simple desks and a dirt floor. Obviously this was no center of higher magical learning. All the desks except for one were empty, which had a few papers piled on it.

“This doesn’t have to be today,” Midnight muttered, following her into the classroom. “If you have lessons to plan or whatever, I’m sure she’d be happy to spend the day with me.”

Nightfall marched up eagerly, but her hope wasn’t to survive. “Oh no, it’s no trouble at all. There’s no worry about waiting for tomorrow to start her, even if she doesn’t have supplies. There’s plenty here for her to borrow. There’s nothing at all more important than a quality education!” They stopped beside the desk. Cheerilee gestured to it.

“Now, Nightfall. You can take as much time with this as you like. Don’t feel pressure to make things up, just leave the ones blank that you don’t understand. I need to know what things you know and which ones you don’t, so I can make sure you get the best education you can.”

“Sure.” Nightfall climbed into the seat, taking the pencil in one hoof like it was a hammer and she were in a chain-gang. “I get it.”

“I can stick around until you’re done,” Midnight suggested. “If that would make it easier.”

It would, though Nightfall felt guilty admitting as much. So she shook her head. “If I’m gonna be staying for class anyway, that wouldn’t make much sense.” Not only that, but she wouldn’t have fit in any of these desks if she wanted to. Midnight was just too big.

“You’re welcome to return to pick her up when class is over,” Cheerilee said, her voice a little lower. “We go until three. I ring the bell when we dismiss, if that helps. For a new student like Nightfall here, I’ll probably make sure she sticks around if she doesn’t have a friend to walk home with. I wouldn’t want her to get lost.

“I’ll pick her up,” Midnight said. She wandered over, touching Nightfall lightly with her wings. “Do good, kid. Make tons of friends.” She left, abandoning Nightfall to the mercy of her test and her peers.

But the test wasn’t as hard as she thought, at least, not most of it. The math and language questions were incredibly easy to her—instinct, though she hadn’t known she knew them. But then there were other things—history mostly—that she just didn’t know. Important events that she suspected had taken place after Nightmare Moon was banished. She struggled over a few of them, then got frustrated and left the rest blank.

Cheerilee took the test from her about an hour later, then gave her a puzzle to play with while she graded. “Well, that is remarkable,” she said, returning only moments later. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a perfect score in the language section before. Is that why you’re so shy, sweetheart? Smart fillies can colts can have a little trouble fitting in… but I’m sure you’ll have a fine time in my class. It’s a great group, you’ll see.”

“I already know a few of them,” Nightfall muttered, looking away from her. “If you could put me with… Aura, or maybe Zipporwhill, or Featherweight… that would be cool. I met them last night, and they seemed nice.”

“That should be fine,” Cheerilee said. “Yes, these are… we’ll be able to fit you right in. And it seems like the other students are just starting to arrive. Why don’t you come outside with me. We’ll make you a surprise!”







Midnight Storm watched with apprehension as the gigantic cart pulled up to the front of her house. There were a pair of burly stallions pulling it, the same kind of ponies she imagined at the front of angry mobs. But there was no mob today—no sign at all that it wasn’t just another ordinary day in Ponyville. Here she was, standing completely uncovered in broad daylight, and no one had screamed for help.

The schoolmaster hadn’t, hadn’t even asked about how strange she looked. Midnight wasn’t sure if she liked that or if she was annoyed by it. After spending her whole life dreading this moment, having it arrive without even a whimper felt a little anticlimactic. A constant reminder that I made myself suffer for no reason.

Sapphire Breeze appeared behind her, though she hadn’t been in the house that Storm knew. That pony was sneaky—maybe Celestia knew what she was doing in picking her spies. She had a large suitcase with her, resting precariously on her back.

“Ready to move in?” Midnight asked, suppressing a laugh. “You sure you don’t need more than that?”

“I would think a pony with your history would know what it was like to travel light,” Sapphire answered, with a similar tone. “Always on the move, roaming across Equestria. You can’t have taken more than you could carry.”

“I don’t expect a fancy pony like you to know anything about it. I’m sure you didn’t have to rough it in Canterlot.”

Sapphire only smiled. “You’ll need my help with that furniture, I’m sure. Just give me a moment to drop this off inside.”

Midnight Storm hurried over to the delivery pony, who looked more nervous to see her there than most of the ponies on the street around them. He stared the entire time at her tail, even though he didn’t once say anything. Midnight signed, handed over a sack of bits, and gestured at the house. “I’ll tell you where to put everything. You can do stairs, right?”

One of the stallions nodded to her—and even that seemed like a great struggle for him. “We, uh… yeah, miss. We can do stairs.”

It took just over an hour—far less time than she would’ve expected, considering everything they had ordered. Midnight Storm didn’t even want to think about what it would’ve been like to try and buy all of that herself. If she’d had the need, she probably would’ve just made something instead, and made due. But Nightfall wasn’t going to live like that. And neither will I, anymore.

“So, can you keep an eye on things for an afternoon?” Midnight asked, as soon as the movers had left. “I’d like to get my things from my house out in the Everfree. I wasn’t exactly prepared for this, so…”

“No problem.” Sapphire Breeze grinned at her. “I can do that.  Will you be back before Nightfall gets out of school?”

She shook her head. “Probably not.”

“It’s fine,” Sapphire said. “I’m not the only agent here in town. Anyway, I doubt that cult will be back into Ponyville for some time—maybe never. They know we’re onto them. Their smartest play would just be to dig themselves the deepest ditch they can as far on Equestria’s periphery and never come up again.”

“Maybe.” Midnight hardly sounded agreeable. “If they were smart, they probably wouldn’t be in a crazy cult to begin with.”

Then Saphire looked up, a smile spreading slowly across her face. Midnight could practically hear the gears turning back there. “I’ve got a better idea, though. Why don’t I go with you? Midnight too… I could pack some lunches or something… it would be an adventure! A bonding experience. Just so long as we stayed away from the castle.”

“I… I guess so…” She trailed off, lowering her voice and glancing out the huge windows onto Ponyville’s main road. She walked over and gently drew them closed before she said anything else. But Midnight couldn’t remember why she’d been opposed to having Sapphire come with her in the first place. Something else seemed suddenly more important. “Do you think they might really be after Nightfall? Is she in danger here?”

Sapphire looked thoughtful, though she didn’t speak for some time. “I… I think the chances are good. We won’t know for sure until we get the analysis on that spell, but… these aren’t just some random crazies who think cutie marks are evil and maybe they should make a commune or whatever. These ponies are funded. Some of the raw materials they had at the ritual the other night…” She looked away. “Well, I probably shouldn’t tell you.”

“But you will tell me, because anything might help me protect Nightfall better.”

“Right.” Sapphire couldn’t meet her eyes for long. “Well, lots of it was illegal. We’re talking necromancy-type illegal. Code Sombra type stuff. Whoever tried to set this thing up had some powerful friends. Once we know the specifics about the spell we’ll be a little better informed. But we don’t have to get the analysis back to know that whoever this is won’t just throw all their hard work away. They were willing to kidnap the princess’s personal apprentice. Whoever did this wasn’t even afraid of Princess Celestia.”

Midnight did think about it—though mostly she was impressed with just how solemn Sapphire Breeze looked as she said it. It was harder to imagine what could possibly motivate somepony to risk so much. “Do we really need the analysis? They brought Nightfall back… a little piece of Nightmare Moon. Sounds apocalyptic to me. Somepony wants to try and end the world.”

“Maybe.” Sapphire Breeze turned away. “Wouldn’t be the first time Equestria has faced threats like that. I can see why the princess would want you to live here, if that’s the case. The Elements of Harmony live here, and they’ve already beaten Nightmare Moon once. Maybe if the worst happens they’ll be able to do it again.”

Midnight snapped the door open in front of her. “They won’t have to do anything like that, Sapphire. Nightfall is a different pony. We won’t need the Elements, because there won’t be any evil Alicorns for them to fight.”

She left the pegasus behind in the kitchen, before she could say anything she regretted. It’s alright, she didn’t mean anything by it. Nightfall will impress her, just like she impressed me. She’ll see.
> Chapter 14
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall Storm carried the memories of ancient, powerful creatures. Sometimes when she closed her eyes she could see the ancient days of Equestria, when darkness and chaos had ruled. Then she would blink, and see worse things from the eyes of a still-greater horror. There were forbidden suggestions in the darkness there, spells and dreams and nightmares.

But for all that, Nightfall had no idea what to expect from school. Princess Luna’s memories were only indistinct fragments, but somehow she doubted that places like this had existed when she was young. Ponies had been fighting for survival then, there was no time for foals to waste sitting around in a room all day.

These modern children had no idea how good they had it. Nightfall Storm spent a few, agonized minutes hiding in Cheerilee’s office, picturing the frightened mob that would explode out of the building once the young of Ponyville saw her. Then her time finally came, and… she received only boredom.

Only a handful of ponies even looked at her—ponies she’d seen the night before for a game of touchball. After fumbling through her cover story for the class, Nightfall shuffled back to an empty seat beside Featherweight.

“You’re here,” he whispered, when Cheerilee wasn’t looking back at them anymore. “I thought you might be too cool to come here.”

“No,” she whispered back. “My mom is, though.” The word was out before she even realized what she was saying—but it felt like the natural thing to say. Just another part of her cover story.

Her actual time in class was much like the test—a mixture of overwhelming success broken by stretches of brain-melting failure. One second she’d be flying ahead of everypony around her doing math, and the next she’d be failing to answer even basic questions about the history of Ponyville or the correct way to plant a certain kind of seed.

Eventually they got a break, and Nightfall was swept along to a back-corner of the playground with the same group she’d spent time with the night before.

“You could probably hang out with cooler ponies than us,” Liza said, eyeing the run-down set of play equipment. A duo of earth pony fillies were monopolizing it, speaking in a satisfied way to one another.

“Yeah,” Featherweight agreed, his voice flat. “Might as well just… now. Instead of later. After getting our hopes up.”

“I dunno what you’re talking about,” Nightfall said, feeling suddenly determined not to leave these ponies behind no matter how bored she got. Not that she was bored—anything to be out of the classroom for a few minutes. “I like it fine over here.” She lowered her voice a little, moving closer. “How long does this school thing go, anyway?”

“A while,” Zipporwhill said.

Featherweight fluttered away, going for a little rack filled with rubber balls.

“Longer than you want it to,” Liza added. “But at least Cheerilee is nice. We don’t normally talk so much about boring stuff. All that history. I don’t get what’s so important about things that are over.”

“I guess…” Nightfall hesitated. She didn’t want to argue with them. What if they didn’t like her? “It isn’t that boring to me. I like to learn about things that happened since I left.”

“Since you… left?” Liza asked. “Left where?”

Nightfall stiffened visibly, suddenly conscious of all their eyes on her. “Since I… since I left school!” She forced a weak laugh, avoiding their eyes. “C-cuz my town was so small, I mean. I haven’t had as much time to learn.”

“Oh.” Featherweight shrugged. “Well, you picked a great place to live if you want to be around important things. Sometimes it feels like everything in Equestria happens here.”

“Real weird stuff,” Liza added. “How did it start, Zipporwhill?”

“Nightmare Moon,” she whispered, voice timid. “That day the sun didn’t come up.”

“Oh, yeah.” Liza went on, enthusiastically. “That was it! You’d expect the scary monsters to go right for Canterlot, but they didn’t always. I dunno what she wanted with us.”

“The Summer Sun Celebration was here,” Nightfall said, her voice very small. “Celestia was supposed to… and then there were the Elements of Harmony. The ones holding them were the only real threat.”

“Woah,” Featherweight muttered, staring at her. “That sounds… exactly like what Cheerilee taught us. Motherlode school must be really good.”

Nightfall was spared answering by the bell. She hurried in before any of the other little ponies she’d been spending time with, dodging past a group of fillies trying to pick up the trading cards that had been scattered by the silver pony. She ignored Liza’s tiny voice calling after her all the way in.

Nightfall didn’t speak in class again for the rest of the day, afraid of what she might say. How did I know that? I didn’t remember that before. It wasn’t like remembering an interesting bit of trivia. She had seen the little town from far above, sensed Princess Celestia’s magic. Felt the anger of a pony betrayed and unloved.

She could still remember it by the time school finally ended, and Midnight arrived to retrieve her. She slipped out of the crowd of waiting students as quickly as she could, dodging Liza’s attempts to rope her into an afterschool game.

“What’s wrong?” Midnight asked, eyeing Nightfall and the other students. Those slitted eyes seemed to be looking right through her.

“I, uh…” She blinked, nudging past her towards the road. “Can we… talk about it somewhere else?”

Midnight didn’t argue, following alongside her to the road. They walked in silence until they had left the school far behind.







Midnight did not take them back towards the center of Ponyville. If anything Nightfall seemed relieved to see they were going another way, out towards the single lone cottage that seemed to supervise the transition between Everfree and Ponyville.

“What happened?” Midnight asked, as soon as they were far enough away from the school that none of the other students were nearby. She already knew it hadn’t been anything serious—she’d spoken to Cheerilee before picking up Nightfall. She hadn’t been revealed as a secret Alicorn. Or anything else serious enough to make them lose their place in town.

Nightfall looked up, ears pressed flat to her head. “I can… I remembered some things. When they were talking about Nightmare Moon. The things she did, I can… I can see some of them. Understand what she was thinking.”

Oh. Last night, Princess Luna had thought it important enough to visit and share a warning. She had seemed to think that some kind of temptation was inevitable. Midnight had denied her on principle, but maybe… maybe she hadn’t been completely wrong.

Only about that. It doesn’t change what I said. She isn’t going to turn into that pony. It isn’t her fault she has those memories. Midnight checked the path ahead, knowing they were expecting somepony. Rather than going with her to pick up Nightfall and invite some awkward questions, she had gone to meet them on the way.

I wish she would’ve just let me go on my own. She thought that, but some other part of her was secretly grateful for the help. But they hadn’t cleared the edge of Ponyville yet. They were passing the cottage, with its many little structures. There was a chicken coop, and some kind of animal hutch, and many other things. Practically overwhelmed.

“We knew you were going to be seeing those memories,” Midnight eventually said. “They don’t mean you’re bad.”

“I know,” Nightfall muttered, not sounding remotely like she believed it. “But they’re… I don’t know how to make them go away. They might make me… say something that hurts us. What if those ponies figure it out? Maybe they already did… they know I’m a monster.”

“No.” Midnight stopped her with a wing, glaring at her. “You listen to me. That little filly, Liza, she wanted to play with you! Those other ones seemed heartbroken that you weren’t staying after school. Do you think they’d feel that way if they were scared of you?”

“I…” Nightfall seemed confused for a few seconds, then her face relaxed. “Oh.”

They were almost to the treeline. There, waiting just out of sight, was Sapphire Breeze. She was wearing a pair of roomy saddlebags, and seemed to be watching for them. As they rounded the bend she rose, waving towards them.

“Yeah.” Midnight nudged her. “I can’t imagine what it’s like to be remembering all of those things. Maybe they will make you do something stupid. I’ve messed up before too, plenty of times. Friends will forgive you—they’ll want you to feel better.” It felt like the right thing to say. Even if Midnight hadn’t had friends like that in a long time.

But that wasn’t what little Nightfall needed to hear right now.

“Hey, you two,” Sapphire called, as they finally crossed into the shade of the Everfree. “Long walk we’ve got ahead of us.” She nodded towards the full-looking side of her saddlebags. “Brought supper. Figured packing up your old place would work us up an appetite.”

She thought about supper? Sapphire Breeze was basically a royal overseer, right? She’d been assigned to watch Nightfall, waiting for her to screw up and report back to Celestia. So why was she acting like a friend?

Nightfall stopped near the trees, staring into the Everfree in fear. This was something else Midnight had been worried about. She had spoken very little about her early experiences in here, but those bandages she was still wearing attested to how rough that had been on her. “Why are we… what are we doing here?”

This was the main reason Midnight had eventually caved to Sapphire. At least if she met them here, there would be somepony to take Nightfall back to Ponyville if she didn’t want to come.

“We’re living in Ponyville,” Midnight explained. “But I used to live out in the Everfree. I planned on going out to my old house and gathering up the important things. You don’t have to come with me. If… if coming back here is hard for you, Sapphire Breeze can take you back home. I’m sure there’s some homework you’re eager to get started on.”

Nightfall seemed to consider that for a few seconds. Sapphire Breeze had won a little trust from the filly with her gift of the illusion spell, but not enough to be brought into Nightfall’s world, not yet.

“I… okay. We won’t spend the night, right? Or go to that old castle?”

“No,” Sapphire and Midnight answered at the same time, though only the latter went on. “We’ll be back in Ponyville before it gets dark. If we hurry.”

“Fine.” Nightfall followed Midnight into the trees. She became a little more reticent then, walking much closer to Midnight as they set off down the path. But she still came.

“How was your first day?” Sapphire Breeze asked, politely.

Nightfall only looked weakly up at her, mouth opening a few times but no words coming out.

Midnight reached out, covering her with a helpful wing. “She did fine. A little rough start, but she’s already making some friends. She’ll do great.”

“Good.” Sapphire Breeze Looked away, obviously disappointed. “I’m happy to hear it.”

Midnight made polite conversation with her most of the way out there. After an hour or so of walking, conversation shifted to what it had been like to live in the Everfree. Midnight answered without even trying to distort things.

“Hunted, mostly,” she said. “Made most of my furniture. You’d be surprised what you can do with a tail like this.”

“Really?” She grinned. “You came to one of the most dangerous places in Equestria to build a house all by yourself. You didn’t go to Ponyville except to buy nails and doorknobs.”

“See for yourself.” Midnight felt her ears press flat to her head as the house came into view—but there was nothing for it now. This was the main reason she hadn’t wanted Sapphire Breeze along. Nightfall didn’t care, she wouldn’t judge her. But this fancy mare…

The house was an unfinished log cabin, melded into the front of a large cave.

Midnight froze, staring in at the broken window, the door hanging off its hinges, the interior in ruins.

Her home had been ransacked.
> Chapter 15
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Midnight acted on reflex. She bent down, scooping up Nightfall so that she was secure on her back. The filly didn’t resist, didn’t even move. She seemed more confused than anything, though she was staring in through the open door too. She could tell something was wrong. Midnight lifted her tail high behind her, sniffing the air. But she could smell nothing nearby—not the usual predators, not other ponies lurking.

If there aren’t any pony smells, who broke into my house?

“What in Celestia’s name…” Sapphire Breeze glanced back at her, concerned. “This isn’t normal, right?”

“No, it isn’t,” Midnight responded, glaring at her. “Someone broke in! Tore the place apart…” She glanced briefly over her shoulder at the filly. “Maybe you should stay out here with Nightfall while I check it out. Could be dangerous.”

Sapphire advanced into the open doorway. “If I thought we were in danger, I’d protect us. Then send you and Nightfall back to Ponyville. But I don’t think we are.”

“The pretty little mare is going to make it safe for me?” she asked, indignant. Midnight spun around again, searching the Everfree with panicked eyes. Even her supply-shed had been torn apart, her cart overturned, and piles of wood scattered everywhere. “What makes you say we’re not in danger?” She moved closer to Sapphire Breeze, standing only feet away as she whispered. “They might still be inside.”

Sapphire glanced over her shoulder, mouthing something under her breath. But Midnight couldn’t catch it. At least she didn’t keep doing it. “I can already tell you nopony is in there.”

“How?” Midnight touched the filly on her back gently with one wing. The little pony didn’t budge—only made a frightened squeaking sound.

“Because it’s obvious,” Sapphire said, “If somepony was setting a trap, they wouldn’t tear your house apart like that. They would be careful, and make it look like nopony was here. That isn’t what this is.” She took another cautious step forward. “This isn’t an ambush… this was somepony desperate. Somepony looking for something. Or someone.”

They both glanced back at Nightfall, at almost the same moment. The filly whimpered pitifully, and seemed to withdraw a little closer to her back. “I don’t need… I don’t need much out of there,” Midnight muttered. “And it can wait. Nothing is worth putting ponies in danger.” There was only one thing Midnight really couldn’t do without, an ancient book she’d received as a gift from somepony close to her. Everything else in there… well, stuff could be replaced.

She leaned back. “Don’t worry, squirt. I’ll protect you.” She lifted her tail a little higher, high enough that the sunlight streaming in through the trees all around them would reflect off the metallic blade.

“I don’t wanna be out here anymore,” Nightfall squeaked, her voice pitiful.

“We aren’t staying.” Midnight retreated a step, spinning around again to make sure that nopony was sneaking up on them. But she couldn’t smell anyone, or hear any sign from the forest that they were being watched. This was Midnight’s home, after all. She knew how to recognize when something was wrong.

But the birds were still singing. As far as she could tell, Sapphire Breeze was right. Whatever ponies had been here were long gone.

I should be furious.

She should be furious, except she wasn’t. All the anger at having her stability stolen from her again had faded into the background, replaced with worry over Nightfall. Maybe Sapphire too, despite what she said about being prepared for this.

I’ll come back here alone, once I know they’re safe. See if I can track down whoever did this. They’d regret messing with Equestria’s only kirin, that was for sure.

“Back to Ponyville,” she said, turning around nice and slow. “We won’t take any chances when Nightfall is with us.”

Sapphire Breeze glanced back into the ruined house more than once, expression dark. “I was hoping to find some evidence of who was behind this. I’m sure they’re gone. The longer we wait…”

Midnight glared at her, harsh enough that she could’ve melted ice. Sapphire stopped protesting.

“We already know who it was,” she muttered, as soon as they were back on the trail towards Ponyville. She kept her tail up, and Nightfall close to her. The filly’s weight was so small it was practically negligible. Her voice was a whisper, but really she thought the child deserved to know this stuff. It might be scary, but it was also part of her life. The danger wouldn’t go away just because she was kept in the dark. “Celestia told me that the Guard wasn’t sure they’d captured all the cultists. Obviously some of them escaped, went looking for…” She trailed off.

“For me,” Nightfall muttered. Her voice was so small, quivering on the edge of terror. “They were looking for me. When I woke up… that’s one of the first things I remember. Running away.”

“Sweet Celestia, it’s a good thing you two weren’t here.”

“Good thing for them,” Midnight muttered. She slashed out at a nearby tree, one that was thin enough for her tail to go through in a single swing. The sharp blade of her tail passed through with minimal resistance, and the whole thing tumbled down across the path. Not that it was terribly well-worn to begin with. Midnight herself was the only one who came out here. Except… “Bucking hell, I’m not the only one out here.”

She broke into a trot—as fast as she dared move with the child on her back. “Zecora… the first friend I made here. If they came for her…”

Sapphire Breeze hurried to keep up with her. She was a fit mare—even a glance could tell Midnight that—but her legs were shorter and she’d obviously never run through a forest before. The Everfree in particular was a treacherous path, with plenty of supernatural hazards that could spell swift death to an unwary pony.

Even now, at the height of her urgency, Midnight didn’t dare leave the path. She might’ve cut straight across if she were alone, but not with these two. I hope you’re alright, Zecora. I hope you can wait a little longer.

“Zecora… that’s the zebra, right? I heard about her in town…”

“Yeah.” Midnight didn’t even glance back over her shoulder. She didn’t keep her blade up as she ran—that was just inviting an accident when she wasn’t alone. It took some amount of effort to make sure the polished metal never came near Sapphire Breeze. “I found her when I was hunting once. She was… out gathering ingredients for a potion or something. She was hoping to help me make contact with Ponyville, said they’d accept me…” And she’d been right. Even if an untimely kidnapping had spoiled Midnight’s first meeting.

She could see the smoke through the trees before they reached the cottage. Midnight broke into a gallop for those last few strides.

Zecora’s hut was built into the trunk of an ancient tree, surrounded by bright lanterns and a small garden of herbs.

Or it had been. The garden had been burned, and the tree itself looked scorched in several places. Whole sections of leaves had been blackened to nothing.

Midnight slowed to a stop, so suddenly that Nightfall was almost flung from her back. She caught her with her wings, preventing a tumble. “Sorry, squirt! Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” Nightfall slumped off onto the ground, catching herself. “I think I’d… like to walk on my own for a while.”

Zecora herself was emerging from within, broom in hoof, sweeping out bits of broken glass and shattered pottery. She looked up, apparently relieved. “Midnight Storm, it’s good to see you okay! I feared I wasn’t the only one threatened today.”

“No, I’m fine.” Midnight glanced once over her shoulder to make sure Sapphire Breeze had made it—she was just now emerging from the path, huffing from the effort. “I’ve been rushing all over Equestria the last few days. But I came back to get a few things, and…” She trailed off. “You were attacked?”

Zecora nodded. “Some foolish ponies thought I would be quick to defeat, but I fought them off until they made a retreat.”

“Ponies, plural?” Sapphire Breeze stopped beside Midnight, removing a little pad of paper from her saddlebags and lifting it in her magic. “Could you describe them for me, Miss Zecora? It would help in bringing them to justice.”

Zecora actually laughed. “If it’s a search you want, it’s easily ended. Search the hospital for the fools most broken and dented.”

Despite her protests, Zecora did give their descriptions—albeit in her usual way, requiring a little interpretation to translate into something meaningful. Midnight leaned back, watching as Sapphire sketched out a pair of ponies.

“Their names I didn’t happen to hear, but they mentioned their purpose perfectly clear.” She nodded slightly towards Nightfall. “They were looking for a dark one, I’m quite sure. Maybe a pony who looked like her. Or an Alicorn with a similar color… young filly, do you perhaps have a brother?”

“No,” she squeaked, looking away. She looked like she might be about to say more, but ended up just falling silent.

I need to get her home. This is too much for a child to go through in one day. Many young ponies nearly had a breakdown from the difficulty of their first day of school. Here she was, forcing Nightfall to confront the frightening reality of the danger she was in on her very first day.

“I’m living on Main Street now, Zecora,” Midnight finally said. “I’d offer to stay and help you clean this up, but… Nightfall here really has to get home. She’s got an early day of school tomorrow.” No more true than any other day, but Nightfall glanced back at her anyway, gratitude in her eyes. “Please come by and visit, sometime. It’s the brown and pink building that looks like a shop…”

“They all look like that,” Sapphire Breeze muttered.

“Going to town I often do,” Zecora said. “Next time, I’ll stop by to visit you.” She winked at the end, glancing briefly at Nightfall. The meaning was obvious—she wanted to know why Midnight was traveling with her, but didn’t want to ask about it when Nightfall was around.

Thank you for being so understanding, Zecora. Midnight waved, then nudged Nightfall down a different path. “Back to town, then.”

“Oh, good!” Nightfall broke into a trot almost immediately, needing very little prompting from her. Unfortunately she seemed to be much worse at actually staying on the trail, and she very nearly wandered off in her first few steps. Midnight hurried after her, and soon Sapphire Breeze had joined them.

“I’m sorry, Nightfall…” Midnight muttered, as soon as they were on their way, and she was close enough to prevent the filly from getting herself hurt. “I had no idea… We were just supposed to be visiting my cottage. If I’d known it was dangerous, I wouldn’t have taken you.”

Nightfall looked like she might be on the edge of tears. But she’d been that way for some time.

Midnight leaned forward to scoop her up again, holding the child briefly against her chest. “Hey, sweetie. It’s okay to be scared. Just… even if you are, know that I’ll protect you. And Sapphire Breeze too. It’s not you versus those bad ponies. It’s them versus all of us.”

Nightfall did cry—clinging to her with a fear so desperate Midnight could smell it. Probably other predators could too—they couldn’t stay here long now. But she didn’t rush the child. Little Nightfall would’ve been better off if she’d stuck around after school to play with her friends.

Except I can’t just leave her anywhere alone anymore. The cult is still out there, still looking for her. Would they be able to recognize her wearing that disguise? Maybe they really should move away from here. Then again, if we can stay hidden through their initial searches, they’ll expect us to leave. And the Elements live in Ponyville…

She could worry about that later. For now, it was time to get Nightfall home. I hope you’ll forgive me for today, squirt.
> Chapter 16
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The walk back through the Everfree was long, long enough that Midnight had expected to spend the night at her old home one last time instead of making the trip all in one day. But given what had happened, she didn’t even consider it. There were no possessions left behind in her old home that could be worth putting Nightfall at risk.

Maybe it was a defense mechanism, or maybe it was just the rhythmic nature of her movement, but either way Nightfall was asleep after an hour or so of walking, leaving the two adults relatively alone. Or uninterrupted, anyway.

“This was not supposed to happen,” Midnight muttered, when she was sure the filly on her back wouldn’t hear. “I was trying to help her relax, not terrify her. Now she’s going to be seeing cultists behind every corner.”

Sapphire didn’t answer for several long seconds. They dodged around some poisonous vines, jumped over a fire ant feeding-frenzy in the middle of the path, and she finally spoke. “It might be good for her to be a little paranoid—at first. Early on.”

“Why in Equestria would that be a good thing?”

“Because… they really are searching for her,” Sapphire Breeze said. “It would be bad for another filly in her place to be afraid, because there’s no one out to get them. But the Midnight cult is real. They have friends in high places. If we’re going to beat them, it has to be the three of us, not just two. Nightfall is on the team too.”

It isn’t a team, Midnight thought, but even as she said it she knew it wasn’t true. Sapphire Breeze might’ve been assigned to her, but she didn’t have to come out here. She didn’t have to help her arrange the furniture, or pack lunches. She wasn’t acting very much like a passive observer.

So Midnight just nodded. “That makes sense. It’s just… my childhood was hard enough. Being something different. Hiding. Ponies staring, frightened. Moving all the time. I want to give her something better.”

“Once we track down the rest of the Midnight cult, that should be easy,” Sapphire said. “You’ve seen how Ponyville treats you. It isn’t like some parts of Equestria. And the idea of another Alicorn isn’t as strange as it used to be either. Princess Celestia might not have even made her hide her identity if it wasn’t for the cult.”

“How’s the investigation going? It’s been days. You must have learned something,” Midnight asked. It was probably overstepping her bounds, but just now she cared very little. Her house might not have had anything of value inside, but she’d built it herself. It was somewhere safe, somewhere she’d carved out of the Everfree with her own hooves, and it had been violated. She wanted to break something. Maybe the question ended up sounding harsher than it needed to.

But if Sapphire was hurt by her hardness, she didn’t show it. She looked down, apparently thoughtful. She’s not sure if she wants to tell me. “It’s… we’re pretty sure every one of the cultists we captured had their brains scrambled with mind magic. It’s worse than anything else we’ve ever seen… and it means all the usual ways we would have for getting information from a pony won’t work. There’s some talk of space-magic trying to trace sympathy lines, but that looks scrambled too.”

“Mind magic,” Midnight repeated, unable to keep the awe from her voice. That was seriously dark stuff—the kind of magic that got a pony banished to Tartarus if they got caught abusing it. It was the kind of magic that belonged in some ancient story, not the Equestria of the real world. Of course, because kirin are real. New Alicorns are real, and so are the Elements of Harmony. But an old school of magic is a bridge too far. “Does that mean the cultists aren’t in this… willingly? Maybe they got tricked into it somehow?”

Sapphire shrugged. “I’m not part of the interrogations. But it seems possible. It also might be a protective charm they put on themselves, to prevent interrogations from working out. If we could get any of them to talk we could figure it out, but… you see the problem.”

“I do,” Midnight muttered, bitter. “For Nightfall. If we can’t lock those lunatics away, we need to keep watching for them.”

“Unfortunately. Which is why Nightfall should know what she’s up against. And you too. There’s a real chance you may end up putting yourself between her and whoever made her. We know the cult’s leaders are out there, and that they’ve got one of the best sorcerers in the world.”

“Then the academy unicorns can work it out,” Midnight grunted. “You’ve got some trying to figure out the spell, don’t you?”

Sapphire nodded. “Bigwigs at Celestia’s university are looking into it, yeah. That’s basically the last lead we have left. Well, that and waiting for somepony to attack us. You can guess which I prefer. But even if our investigators can tell us exactly what the spell does, that won’t point us towards the ponies still out there. Best guess is the investigators will try to track the ingredients used to cast it, but… I’m not really part of that investigation. I’m watching things from the other end.” She glanced briefly at Midnight’s back, at the filly still asleep there.

Midnight was certain she was still unconscious—she would’ve felt the change in her breathing if she woke. And they would’ve had to continue this conversation another time.

Up above them, the sun was just going down, staining all the leaves a deep red. “Would you be able to help defend her, if… if it came to that?”

“Her,” Sapphire Breeze agreed. “And you. I’d probably be doing weather warmagic if there was still such things as wars. I give you even odds that if the one who came up with that spell attacked I might be able to take her down. I wouldn’t let her hurt you, that’s for sure.”

Midnight chuckled. “You’ll defend the mythical creature form… I dunno. What could you fight? Maybe an evil librarian. And if she’s got some evil assistants, you’ll have me there. And this.” She held up her tail, letting it catch the glint of sunset.

“Well when you put it like that.” Sapphire glanced back at Nightfall again. “She’s in good hooves, I think. Almost makes me wish they would attack us, so we could get this over with. My real concern is what might happen if they go after her when there’s no one around to protect her. I’m not the only set of eyes watching out for her in Ponyville, but there’s never enough. There’s no such thing as impervious security—only different levels of risk.”

“Princess Luna visited. While you were gone, last night. She… said something like that. Said that the real way to win was to help Nightfall so the cult wouldn’t even be able to take her. But I don’t think that will be as hard as she thinks. She doesn’t want to be Nightmare Moon. I don’t know who that cult thought they were bringing back, but… they didn’t get her.”







Spell Nexus couldn’t take the risk of meeting Smokescreen in Ponyville a second time—such trips would be far too unusual to repeat, and might leave a trail that a clever investigator could follow back to him. So he kept on going straight through the town, on the way to an unscheduled visit in the Vanhoover campus of the Royal Academy. It was the evening train, so there was no one else on it—no one besides a bat and a unicorn occupying themselves in the back of the car. Spell Nexus sat far enough away that they wouldn’t be able to overhear, then cast a few subtle sound-warping spells around his seat just to be sure.

Right before the train started moving, Smokescreen sat down beside him, looking winded. If he’d missed this rendezvous, Nexus would’ve taken it out of his hide. I still probably should. Smokescreen doesn’t fully appreciate the importance of his service to Equestria’s true queen. If he needs a little encouragement, I will provide it.

He would have to think of something special to help teach this informant a lesson. But not tonight. “I hope you have something good for me,” he said, once the last of his silencing spells went into place. It was a curious thing—he could no longer hear the bat’s petulant squeaking, but he could still feel the vibration of the car through the seat. Only without the rumble of wheels on metal that he was accustom to. “Because I did half your job for you. I’ll be quite cross if you haven’t learned something I don’t know.”

“I have,” Smokescreen said, his voice only slightly desperate. “Wait, you did my job? That doesn’t seem like you, Nexus.”

The unicorn twitched one ear. He hated that this creature even knew his name. But there was nothing for it. “The information came to me quite accidentally. I almost kept it to myself, but our time is short. First, what have you learned? Do not waste my time—I intend for you to get off at Appleloosa. We have until then to finish this conversation and send you on your way.”

Smokescreen seemed to deliberate for a long time. Eventually he said, “Well, I started in the woods. Thought maybe I could follow tracks, see what might’ve happened. Almost got eaten by three different monsters while I was searchin’ I’ll have you know.”

“I’m sure the true queen of Equestria will be happy to reward you for your, uh… bravery,” Nexus said. “After we usher in her return. What did you find?”

“Well, uh…” The pony looked almost like he might make a run for it. He glanced down the aisle, clearly thought about it, but then settled back into his seat. “That new guard that the princess sent to watch Ponyville, she isn’t really a guard. Turns out she was living alone in the Everfree. Hunting, scavenging—doesn’t seem very mythical to me. Point is, she’s not the danger I thought. I don’t think she’ll pose much of a threat if we have to go through Ponyville. I wouldn’t be surprised if she ended up involved in this by accident. But she’s got that big knife on her tail, and maybe that’s why she’s in town. Just to—”

“Quiet.” Nexus cut him off with a glare that might’ve been an attack if he thought he could get away with it. But as inattentive as the other passengers looked, they would probably notice if Spell Nexus blasted Smokescreen out the window. “Your information is worthless. I am not concerned with the guards watching over the town—I only care about finding our queen. We cannot complete the spell without her. Have you learned anything about that?”

The thief’s nervous glance was all the confirmation Nexus needed. “I know the form of our queen. Perhaps you will be more successful at your task if you have some direction.” He leaned across the seat, lowering his voice to a whisper. Pointless within the bubble of the silencing spell. But he whispered anyway. “She’s a child—a filly Alicorn, perhaps not even old enough for her cutie mark. I couldn’t ask questions for more detail—but that should be information enough. Given I haven’t heard news of this spreading on every tabloid in Equestria, I suspect that the crown is doing something to conceal her identity. I’m sure you see what this suggests about where you might find her.”

“Yeah boss, sure,” Smokescreen said, rising to his hooves and looking nervously around. “Look for the new kid. But there are a lot of schools in Equestria, and they don’t exactly smile when a strange stallion comes lookin’ around.”

“I’m sure you think of something, Smokescreen,” Nexus said, eyes narrowing. “And if you can’t, then I will pull you from your place and find somepony better. The advent of our queen is nearly upon us. Her return will not be stymied because of the incompetence of those who should be her most loyal servants. You understand?”

“Got it,” Smokescreen said, backing away from him. “You got it, boss. I’ll find her. Bring her to you. You can count on it.”

“Don’t make any mistakes,” Nexus said. “I suspect we will only have one attempt. Our protections are not invulnerable. We must succeed before Equestria can locate us.”
> Chapter 17
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall was doing better—honestly she was. And much of that came from school. While she’d initially been fearful of her time in the Equestrian education system, it became quickly evident to her that Cheerilee was nothing like the teachers Luna remembered from her earliest years. The earth pony was not about to examine her with powerful magic, and she wasn’t putting her under constant suspicion to try and figure out who she was underneath.

Her fellow students were less universally positive—there were bullies, and others who just didn’t interest her. But Nightfall had made some friends. That made almost anything they did interesting enough to keep her engaged.

Today, that meant a brief field trip outside of class. They all lined up, walking into town in a single file line with Cheerilee in front and their class president, Diamond Tiara, bringing up the rear. That meant the popular kids were in back, dragging their hooves as much as they could.

Nightfall’s new friends didn’t even try to fight over the back of the line, but followed their instructor closely instead. They didn’t seem concerned with the fact that they were being overheard, so Nightfall didn’t let herself think about it either.

“There’s no way that happened,” Nightfall said, not as confrontational as her words might’ve suggested. “Tons and tons of magical copies of a pony? That doesn’t make sense. The magic involved would…” She thought about it—paused, sketching a few runes in the dirt.

This made the whole line stop behind her, and a few annoyed voices call up for her to get moving again. So she did, looking a little embarrassed. “Sorry.”

“It’s real,” Featherweight declared. “I got a picture for the Foal Free Press, you can get the issue and see for yourself. It was one of the weirdest things that happened this year.”

“I dunno,” Aura sounded thoughtful. “What about the parasprites?”

They were most of the way to their destination by now, City Hall’s round shape looming bigger than almost any other building in town. Nightfall could see that Cheerilee was watching them closely, obviously listening as they walked. But then she noticed a disturbance in the back of the line, and raised a hoof. “You all wait here. I’ll be right back.”

“I guess that was weird too,” Featherweight agreed. “Almost ate the whole town.”

Nightfall’s heart sank. Though she often had no idea what her friends were talking about, this word was quite familiar. “Hold on… parasprites are still a threat? I thought we would’ve wiped them out by now.”

“By now?” Liza’s eyebrows went up.

Nightfall’s ears flattened. “Yeah, uh… uh… by now.”

Zipporwhill nudged her gently from behind her in line. “I don’t think ponies wanted to exterminate them. Pinkie Pie just lured them away. They didn’t hurt anypony. Why should we hurt them?”

“Because they’re dangerous,” Nightfall answered without thinking. The word alone was enough to dredge up old memories. Memories that belonged to somepony else—of fields swept clean by clouds of parasprites. Of thousands and thousands starving when winter came and all the grass died.

But her friends were looking at her. With concern on their faces, and confusion. “A long time ago, parasprites would eat all the food,” she said. “That’s just the same as hurting ponies, even if they don’t do it themselves.”

“Oh,” Zipporwhill said. “I guess so. It’s a good thing they’re gone then.”

“How many other weird things happen in Ponyville?” Nightfall asked, unable to keep the apprehension from her voice. “I mean… that thing with magic copying a pony over and over is crazy. Then parasprites attack, and…”

“You don’t know the half of it,” Aura said, settling in beside her. “I moved here a few years ago from Fillydelphia, and it wasn’t anything like this. The most exciting thing that we ever had was the Nightmare Night spook-alley. But Ponyville… it seems like everything weird happens here. We got attacked by an Ursa Major, several kidnappings. The parasprites…”

“Don’t forget the scariest thing,” Featherweight added helpfully. “Nightmare Moon.”

“Oh, yeah,” Aura nodded, pulling Nightfall in closer. “Now that’s the story worth telling. We didn’t get to yesterday. I guess recess ended too soon…”

Nightfall glanced around them, searching for an excuse. Maybe one of the ponies passing them on the road would help. But no—Ponyville’s residents were far too busy with their own affairs. They hardly even seemed to see the children, or else walked around widely enough not to distract from the line. Those who spoke at all only seemed to give polite greetings to Cheerilee.

I’m trapped. Nowhere to go this time.

“I didn’t even know if there would be an Equestria after that night,” Zipporwhill said, voice timid. “But I guess there was.”

“You guess?” Aura glowered. “Obviously the good guys won in the end. I heard the whole thing from Dinky, who heard it from Sweetie Belle, who heard it from Twilight Sparkle herself. No way it isn’t good!”

“Tell me,” Nightfall said, wanting nothing less in the entire world. She glanced over her shoulder—her house wasn’t actually that far from here. They were in the center of Ponyville. Maybe if Midnight were there, she could—

No. They’ll think I’m weird. I just have to pretend.

But she didn’t have to pretend, not then anyway. Cheerilee returned from the back of the line, and proceeded to launch into an explanation of the city council meeting they were about to attend and what they should watch for. She made them each promise that they would keep quiet during the meeting, and promised to quiz them when it was over.

Then they went inside, and straight up to one of the balconies. Downstairs, stuffy ponies were deep in conversation over the dullest possible subjects. Nightfall pretended to be paying attention, but that ruse could only go on for so long.

Eventually conversation downstairs got loud enough that Aura and the others could whisper without attracting attention.

“She was right up here,” Aura began. “We expected Princess Celestia to walk out, for the celebration and all. But she didn’t come.”

Nightfall could see herself standing there—much taller, and braver. She stepped out onto the balcony, expecting adulation from the ponies below, maybe even worship. She was the rightful inheritor of their world, and they would praise her as their liberator from the tyrant Celestia.

Instead she’d been greeted with confusion. Her great rebellion had been so insignificant that they didn’t even remember her name. But she had made them fear her well enough. These foals certainly knew who Nightmare Moon was now.

“And then she exploded!” Aura finished, a few hours later when they were waiting outside the schoolhouse to be picked up. “And all the evil magic was destroyed forever, and only the good Princess Luna was left behind. And she’s helped her sister take care of Equestria ever since.”

Her friends actually stomped their hooves in praise for the story—or Liza and Featherweight did, since Zipporwhill was already home.

“Like I said, I got the inside scoop,” Aura said, looking very pleased with herself. “I’m sure it must’ve been a big deal even out as far as… Motherlode? That’s where you’re from, right?” She hardly even waited for Nightfall’s nod. “You must remember the night that went on too long. And you knew there used to be just one princess.”

“I knew,” she said. But Nightfall wasn’t doing a very good job pretending to be interested anymore. She just looked sick, staring down at the dirt as though she expected it to help hide her.

“I know it’s a scary story,” Featherweight said, touching one wing on her shoulder in a way he probably thought was sympathetic. “Maybe you shouldn’t have told it to her all at once, Aura.”

The earth pony shrugged an indignant shoulder. “Nah, I can see. Nightfall’s a tough pony, just look at that face. She’s not scared, she’s mad. If you think the guards should’ve kept us safe, or maybe the Elements—that was the first time they did anything.”

Aura wasn’t as good at reading emotions as she thought she was. If Nightfall was angry at anypony, it wasn’t the guards. It wasn’t her friends for talking about this, either. As much as she would’ve wished they would forget and tell her about something else.

“Do you think… she could’ve been good?” Nightfall finally asked. Her voice was on the edge of tears, but she hoped they wouldn’t be able to hear.

“Huh?” They asked in unison. There was a pony coming up the road now, one of many parents and family members. But Nightfall knew her name. This was Applejack, the Element of Honesty. One of the ones who had killed her.

It’s not me, she thought. But that voice seemed so tiny in her head after hearing the fear of her classmates. She remembered wanting justice, but these ponies didn’t even understand the nature of the conflict. To them, she’d been a monster who was going to freeze Equestria in a night that went on forever.

Liza wandered off to join her mom, so it was Aura who finally answered. “Who could’ve been good? Luna? Of course she was!”

“No.” Nightfall’s voice sounded very small now, even to herself. “Nightmare Moon.”

“Oh.” Aura shook her head without thinking. “She was a monster, that’s all. Equestria gets attacked by them sometimes. But we always win.”


“Of course we do,” Featherweight said. “Or there wouldn’t be an Equestria.”

“Well yeah, but…” Aura trailed off, then shrugged. “Yeah. I guess so.”

Nightfall couldn’t stop herself. Maybe she should’ve—maybe Midnight would be mad at her. Maybe she’d ruin everything. There were actual tears in her eyes now, and her voice split a few times as she spoke. “What if—what if she didn’t know what she was doing? Do you think if she came back… you think she could say sorry, like Luna did?”

She could see their discomfort at the name without the title—but Nightfall didn’t care. Just now she didn’t care about much of anything. It was all tears.

“I guess so,” Featherweight eventually said. “Nopony really got hurt, did they? Just scared. Lots of things have come to scare us. The parasprites hurt Ponyville way more than she did.”

Nightfall didn’t even think. She just embraced him, and Aura, and didn’t care how much of her tears they saw.

Then, like a switch being flipped, she suddenly realized how she’d obviously just given everything away. She snapped up, wings buzzing out from around her and lifting her into an unsteady arc. She dropped on the other side of the schoolhouse fence, and started running. She ignored their confused voices—ignored Cheerilee calling after her. She just ran.

She made it about a hundred feet down the road when she smacked into Midnight. She’s going to hate me. Now I’ve given us away and we’ll have to move and she wanted to live here and I’m probably just better off in Tartarus anyways.

But where she imaged livid anger, she saw only confusion on Midnight’s face. And not just from her—several ponies were staring at her, including Cheerilee. Her teacher, mercifully, had already seen who she’d met up with and was turning around to go back to her other students.

Midnight seemed to bristle at all the attention. She glared around at the other ponies, though she didn’t lift her tail to threaten them or anything. Still, that much intensity from a pony so big and strong was apparently enough. They wandered off, letting Nightfall clamber up onto her back. Without invitation, but Midnight didn’t protest.

“What happened?” Midnight asked, for the second time in as many days.

“Memories,” Nightfall answered again. “And… my friends called me a monster.”

“Really?” Midnight sounded doubtful. “Like how they were afraid of you yesterday?”

When Nightfall didn’t have a response ready, Midnight went on. “We’ve got an appointment with Twilight in a few minutes. But last time we were supposed to meet, she got kidnapped and made me wait. I think we can keep her waiting a little while too. Let’s get something sweet.”
> Chapter 18
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall had experienced many wonders since her return to life. None of those had prepared her for ice cream.

Her fears of discovery, the fear and anger her friends still held from her time as Nightmare Moon, all that faded into the background. She sat across the table from Midnight, who had herself a tall glass of something dark brown instead of a bowl with a spoon.

All her questions about where the ice might’ve come from and how it could be brought here faded into the background, and instead she only managed to splutter. “What’s yours?”

“Mint chocolate milkshake,” she answered, pushing it across the table toward her. They sat in a tucked away part of Sugarcube Corner, at a booth that was mostly concealed behind candies so colorful that they hurt her eyes to look at. Sapphire Breeze had come too, and Nightfall no longer felt self-conscious around her. She’d been there through their second trip to the Everfree. If nothing else would prove to Nightfall that the pegasus was on her side, it was that.

Nightfall stared up at the milkshake, sitting up in the wooden bench and craning her neck. She wouldn’t have known what to do with the clear stick emerging  from it, except she’d seen Midnight do it. She stuck her mouth on it, then tried to make the same sucking sound.

She was overwhelmed all over again, far more than her bowl of plain white had done. She recognized the chocolate flavor in there, though the rest was new to her.

This is what I almost destroyed. Equestria has all these wonderful things, and I wanted to ruin it for everypony. The shake turned sour in her mouth, and she pushed it back.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t want to start you on something like this. Vanilla is a good first one.”

Sapphire Breeze didn’t have anything overwhelming or strange in front of her, just a few bits of fruit dipped in chocolate. She took a big bite into a strawberry, grinning ruefully. “It’s a guilty pleasure. A pony shouldn’t eat like this very often if they want to stay healthy.”

Well so much for asking if they could bring some home so she could have some of this every day. But that wasn’t even her first concern anymore. “It’s not that…”

“Oh.” Midnight watched her from across the table, slitted eyes sharp. She glanced into the shop, searching for ponies who might overhear. But there was only the pink pony who’d served them in right now, and she was busy frosting a cake. The kirin still spoke in a quiet voice, just above a whisper. “I think I understand, Nightfall. What keeps happening, I mean.”

Nightfall perked up, though she couldn’t really hide the doubt she was feeling. “I know it was hard for you growing up too. Being different. But it’s not the same. You didn’t deserve ponies hating you. I do.”

“Nightmare Moon hurt a lot of ponies,” Sapphire Breeze said, apparently startling Midnight as much as it did Nightfall. But this was a different angle than Nightfall had heard before, even if it was a painful one. “But that was a long time ago, Nightfall. It was so long ago that ponies today didn’t even remember when she came back. It was so long ago that when she came back there were only two ponies in Equestria looking for her—Celestia and her apprentice.”

Midnight made an unhappy clicking sound with her tail against the underside of the table. Nightfall couldn’t tell what it was, but the adults seemed to be communicating something just by looking at each other.

“Here’s the point. The ponies Nightmare Moon hurt aren’t around anymore. She scared Ponyville a little when she came back, sure… but nothing that bad happened that night.”

Not for lack of trying. She hadn’t been fighting the town maybe, but there were the Elements of Harmony. If they had been a little less competent… Nightfall shook her head vigorously, trying to banish the unfamiliar thoughts.

“I think she gets it,” Midnight said, reaching across the table with a wing and resting it briefly on Nightfall’s hoof. “But no matter who they’re talking about, it isn’t right for Nightfall to be the one feeling guilty about it. Your friends at school aren’t afraid of you. They’re afraid of the things someone else did. You don’t have to be her if you don’t want to be.”

Nightfall had heard that before, though, and she wasn’t sure how much she believed it. But the door had opened, and a group of little ponies were making their way inside. She recognized them at once—it was Aura and Featherweight, the ones she’d thought might be her friends. “See, I told you she was in here,” Aura whispered, but not nearly quiet enough that she couldn’t overhear. Nightfall watched them come, even as the adults pretended not to notice. 

I don’t want them to hate me, she thought. But here’s where you’ll see. They saw through my disguise. They don’t want me in Ponyville.

“Hey, Nightfall!” called Featherweight, from a few feet away. “You think when you’re done you could come out and play Touchball with us? We’re short a player, Zipporwhill’s left for a trip to Trottingham, so…”

Her eyes widened. She could see no trace of recognition on their faces, no fear. Maybe she’s right. They don’t think I’m Nightmare Moon. Maybe she could have friends after all.

So long as they never find out.

She looked up, at Midnight. “Twilight is expecting us. But I’m sure that meeting won’t take very long. You can play with your friends as soon as we’re done with her.”

The ice cream had been wonderful—but now she left it behind, scooting away from her chair. “Then I’m done eating. Let’s go talk to Twilight.”

The meeting passed in a blur to Nightfall. Twilight’s library was nice, and the librarian herself seemed kind, if more reserved and less friendly than Cheerilee. She kept glancing up at the window, checking to see that her friends were still outside. 

Equestria or at least Ponyville had become a far safer place than the one she remembered out of the mists of history. It didn’t seem the least bit odd that young colts and fillies were running around unsupervised. They’ve tamed all the monsters.

“I’ve got bad news,” Twilight said, pulling Nightfall’s attention back to the meeting. They sat in her kitchen, with the little purple dragon busying himself with their tea. Tea that Nightfall hadn’t touched, since she was plenty full from ice cream.

Nightfall’s heart sank as she heard it, and a dozen images appeared before her. All the different ways Equestria might change its mind and decide to lock her up somewhere. Maybe in Tartarus, where nothing evil could ever escape.

“Celestia’s best wizards have finished investigating the summoning ritual. Nopony told me the magical specifics, but… they did tell me something. There was only one rare ingredient in that spell, and it won’t help track the culprits. They needed a unicorn with certain sympathetic connections to an Alicorn for fuel—me. As far as they can tell, that was the only thing the ritual used beyond magical tools you could get at unicorn shops all over Equestria. No dragonheart or chimera venom, I’m afraid. Nothing to trace through the market.”

“A dead end,” Midnight said. “You mean the investigation hit a dead end. We won’t be able to find the cult.” Then she eyed Twilight sternly, glancing briefly back at Nightfall. Though she didn’t say a word, even Nightfall could guess what she was thinking. And you said it around her?

I want to know, Midnight. It’s me they’re looking for. But she kept her mouth shut, pawing at the couch. She didn’t feel brave enough to say that around this powerful unicorn.

“Unfortunately,” Twilight said, apparently oblivious to Midnight’s anger. “The number of ponies who know of my connection to Celestia is… big. Ever since the whole Elements of Harmony thing, we ended up in the newspapers a few times, and…” She shook her head. “Well, that list includes basically anypony in Equestria who reads.”

She focused on Nightfall, looking sympathetic. “I’m sorry I don’t have better news. Celestia wanted me to tell you that she’s still doing everything she can to protect you, and she’ll keep her best ponies in Ponyville for the duration.” She sipped her own tea, emptying her third glass. “For both of us, actually. They might need both of us if they want to finish the ritual, so… we’re in this together.”

She passed the empty glass to her dragon with a glowing horn. “I just hope you all know you’ve got friends here in Ponyville. These aren’t the first ponies trying to hurt Equestria, and they won’t be the last. We’ll stop them.”

That was right, Nightfall did have friends in Ponyville. And she wanted to get back to them. She pushed away from the chair, glancing at the window. “Midnight, can I… can I be excused? It’s getting dark outside, and… we won’t be able to play soon.”

“Sure.” Midnight didn’t make any sign of caring what Twilight thought. “You go ahead, sweetie. Just stay where I can see you from the window.”

Nightfall didn’t stay a second longer than she had to. She could dimly hear the adults switch to the conversation Twilight sounded like she had been itching to ask about, something about kirins and how rare they had been in Equestria. That was all plenty interesting to Nightfall, but not enough to keep her there. Whatever curiosity she might’ve had for the mysteries Twilight didn’t feel like sharing when she was around, the temptation to spend time with her new friends was just too strong.

Nothing out of the ordinary happened after that, nor indeed during the next few weeks to come. Nightfall gradually adjusted to a life in Ponyville, surrounded by ponies who were still recovering from actions she remembered in her earliest memories. But at least they didn’t keep repeating the story. What Aura had said about living in Ponyville was apparently true—it really did feel like a great deal of Equestria’s dangers decided to come to Ponyville first.

Nightfall had few memories she could call her own—but as time passed, she began to feel like the town was home.

And she wasn’t the only one. She couldn’t be sure, but Midnight seemed to get less suspicious around Sapphire in their home. Nightfall herself began to expect her there every day—and was relieved to have somepony else around to talk to. Where Midnight would protect her and make her feel safe, Sapphire wouldn’t keep from sharing something scary to make her feel better. Sometimes she wanted to know what was out there.

To a child’s eyes, Ponyville was the most wonderful, welcoming town, full of miracles like electricity and ice cream. She didn’t notice the increasing number of strange visitors passing through, or of a handful of strange ponies that had started watching the school.





Smokescreen set the report down in front of Spell Nexus. It was the most detailed report he’d ever made—at least a dozen words in there, and most of them didn’t even overlap. Of course, he was most proud of the pictures. Getting a camera close enough to the school hadn’t been easy.

“You’re certain?” Spell Nexus asked from across the train, his voice so quiet that he could barely hear it over the rattling from the tracks. “This pony has been under our noses the whole time? She never even left Ponyville?”

“Looks like it,” Smokescreen said. “They don’t give out city records about minors, but I borrowed ‘em anyway. It’s the next page, under my excellent description. Reads like a cover story if ever I read one. No real filly has that much written about her.”

Spell Nexus raised a dark eyebrow. “You’re saying you know this is her because the documents about her are so detailed?”

“I know it’s a cover story because it’s not real. I got an uncle in Motherlode, see. Sent a telegram. He ain’t never heard of no ‘Nightfall Storm’ there. And she kind of stands out in a town full of earth ponies.”

“She does look the part,” Nexus agreed. “Except that she isn’t an Alicorn. That’s an important detail.”

“That’s where the pictures come in.” Smokescreen sounded even more pleased with himself. “That headband—she’s never taken it off. Not in the yearbook, not at the Touchball tournament… nowhere. That’s her, boss. That’s our Queen. All glory to her majesty and that, right?”

“All glory to the true queen of Equestria,” Nexus recited. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but excellent work, Smokescreen. Perhaps the Children of Nightmare has some use for you after all. I’m sure there will be much for you to do in the days ahead. We must complete what we’ve started, and return the power that was stolen from her. But until then… you must remain where you are. Make certain she does not leave Ponyville. When we are ready to complete the ritual, we will know where to find her.”
> Chapter 19
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Midnight knew this was probably a waste of time. But considering who was at stake, any chance of success was worth pursuing.

The Golden Oaks library wasn’t half as large as any of the big city libraries she’d visited, particularly in her younger years. Yet as she began digging into the selection of titles there, it became immediately apparent that Celestia’s connection to its current operator meant that Ponyville’s library had some advantages over the competition.

Beside her, Sapphire set down a fresh pile of books, this one so tall that Midnight was a little amazed she could carry the whole thing over at once. That was some impressive balance in her wings. “This is everything on conjuration, Midnight. Not that…” She shifted uncomfortably, glancing down the hall. Twilight Sparkle was upstairs, they could hear her moving around with Spike. Sooner or later she would come down here, and might even want to get involved in the investigation herself.

But if Twilight found out what they were doing, then it was only a matter of time before Celestia heard about it too. The Sun Princess might not be too happy about the two of them trying to go over the heads of her own appointed ponies.

Midnight still marveled that Sapphire had been open to the idea, even going so far as to get a copy of the file for them to use for reference.

It was true that Midnight cared so much more deeply about this than some random scholar at Celestia’s school. But the deeper she dug into the mountain of books, the more obvious it became that simple passion would not be enough to solve this mystery.

Magic was a complicated subject, with a rich history of associated figures, sciences, and mythology. Even with Sapphire’s help, the chances of noticing something the masters had missed did not seem terribly large.

“Thanks, Sapphire,” Midnight said, trying to sound more eager than she felt. “That’s good. I’ll… start on those next.”

She glanced back at her sheet of terms—maybe a dozen words in all, none of which she could pronounce but all had been present in the summoning spell. At least, assuming the two of them had transliterated the runes correctly. 

To her surprise, she felt someone climbing up into the bench a second later. Sapphire Breeze didn’t seem too bothered about personal space, because she barely even left enough room for the list between them. “We can read twice as fast with two of us,” she said by way of explanation. “Besides, I bet I know more about lore. Lots of what we get sent to investigate ends up connecting to some ancient legend or another.”

Midnight raised an eyebrow. “Maybe you read about it, but I am lore. It’s in my blood. I’ve got a horn and everything to prove it.”

“That you can’t use,” Sapphire said playfully. “Get back into your book. We only have… what, two hours before Nightfall gets out of school? At least one of us will have to go pick her up, and then we’ll be back to investigating at half speed.”

Midnight sighed. “You’ve already done so much more than I would’ve asked for, Sapphire. I probably won’t even find anything, you don’t have to waste your time like this.”

“Who says I’m wasting my time?” She grinned a little wider. “If helping to solve a nefarious crime isn’t interesting enough, then I can also stay interested by getting to know a living legend like you.”

“Come on.” Midnight pushed her a little further away with the back of Star Swirl: Famous or Infamous?, but not hard enough to bend the spine. “Fine, you can help. Just don’t be so loud next time. Twilight will hear you, we don’t need to rush her down here.”

They read in silence for some time—long enough for Midnight to eliminate two of her books as having any value and start on a third.

“Here we go!” she exclaimed, spreading it out on the couch between the two of them. “Look, right here! It’s on my list. Celestial… crystalized… mana. We got one of the ingredients!”

Sapphire Breeze looked between her book and the sheet of paper for a long time, expression darkening. “That can’t be right, Midnight. Even if it… looks like it is. It just can’t be.”

“Why’s that?” Midnight rose to her hooves, beaming. She occupied herself sorting out several of the useless books into another pile, which the poor librarian would have to deal with when she finally noticed them.

“Because I know that stuff. Just look in your book, I bet it says…” She didn’t wait for Midnight though, pulling the book over to herself and reading from where Midnight had left off.

“Celestial crystalized mana is considered a prohibitively expensive ingredient for almost all spells, as it can only be personally produced by Princess Celestia. A single drop of the substance collects from her horn each time she raises the sun, and is gathered for—” She trailed off, pushing the book over for Midnight to read. Not that she doubted anything she was being told, but it was good to get confirmation.

“That can’t be one of the ingredients, Midnight. The only ponies who could ever get their hooves on it are university staff—I’m pretty sure the entire supply is locked away with all the other exotic ingredients. We must’ve translated that wrong.”

“No, this is… this is right for sure.” Midnight didn’t really feel that way yet, but it felt like she was onto something for sure. “I bet Celestia’s other investigators are making the same assumptions you are. So let’s explore this road a little further. Maybe we’ll find something they missed.”

Sapphire Breeze rose as well. “Midnight—I mean this with love, but you’re thinking like a rookie. Getting obsessed with something that’s obviously impossible, digging deeper and deeper to find a conspiracy that isn’t there while the real culprit gets free. Neither of us is a unicorn, or an archeologist. We’re probably just translating wrong.”

“I know one way to find out,” Midnight walked a few steps past her, calling up the stairs. “Miss Twilight, are you there?” As though she didn’t already know the answer.

A second later and Twilight appeared—literally—at the top of the stairs. “Yes? Oh, Midnight Storm! I, uh… sorry if you’ve been waiting for me all this time. There’s a bell you can—”

“I know,” Midnight said, backing up a little. While Twilight walked around the corner, she pushed aside the book they’d just been reading, burying it in the pile with most of their notes. They would still have to get those out if they wanted to stop Twilight from figuring out what they’d been doing. “I had a question about transliterating runes. I don’t know if it’s something you’ve ever covered, but it did sound like…”

“That’s… a strange subject for a non-unicorn to ask about,” Twilight said as she came around the corner. She stopped, staring at their little fortress of books and notes. “My my, you two are… determined to figure something out.”

“Yes, very,” Midnight agreed, holding up the sheet copied from the original spell. “I’m trying to figure out what this says. I copied the translation on the back. Maybe you could help me check it? There are a few guides over here if…”

“No need.” Twilight walked right past the books that explained the process, levitating out a quill and an abacus and setting them down beside Midnight’s sheet of notes. She ignored Midnight’s translation entirely. She went several times as fast as Midnight and Sapphire had gone together, without needing any reference materials. “I can see why this might give you trouble, there’s a third-order sympathetic interlink between…” She trailed off, eyes widening. “Sweet Celestia, I know what this is.”

She dropped the quill, eyes narrowing. “Why are you trying to translate the Nightmare cult’s spell?” Her eyes fixed on Sapphire Breeze. “Didn’t Celestia assign you here to keep this kind of thing from happening?”

“Celestia put me here to protect everyone involved,” Sapphire Breeze said. “I can do that and do research at the same time.”

It looked like Twilight was about to keep going, so Midnight stepped between them. “This is my project, Twilight. The unicorns the princess assigned can’t find the cult, so I’m trying to see if I can figure out things they missed.”

“I already explained what you’re about to say,” Sapphire added helpfully. “They’re better informed, better qualified. We know. But that doesn’t mean they’re infallible. Worst case, we waste our time.”

“Please, Twilight. Just verify that translation for me. I’ll do anything you want.”

Twilight Sparkle had obviously been about to put the pad of paper down. But then she stopped, a guilty grin spreading across her lips. “Anything. You’ll do…” She met Midnight’s eyes, expression almost predatory. “Will you finally do that interview? I’ve got so many questions about kirin, and you didn’t answer any of them last time.”

“Yes,” Midnight said, her tone only slightly exasperated. “I’ll do the interview.” She didn’t point out that any questions about her race as a whole would be out of her reach—she didn’t know where they had gone, for instance, though her own life gave her some suspicions.  But she was better off pointing those things out after Twilight had given them what they wanted. 

“I suppose… there’s no harm in it,” Twilight eventually said. “I’m almost done anyway.” She scribbled over the sheet for a few more seconds, then held it out in her magic. “There, done. Triple-checked. But don’t think just because I’ve translated it that it will make sense. Most spells are too complicated to just read. Only the old master spell crafters like Star Swirl made their spells so they could read in any language.”

“Oh, we know,” Sapphire said, taking the sheet and setting it down in front of Midnight. They bent over it together, focusing on the portion Midnight had noticed before. Sure enough, Celestial crystalized mana was right where it had been before. Not all of the translation matched exactly with Twilight’s, but that part did.

Sapphire sat back, frowning to herself. “Stars above, look at that. You were right.”

“Right about what?” Twilight Sparkle asked. “No, that can wait. Let me get my notebook—that’s where I’ve got my questions for you.”

“I can pick up Nightfall for you,” Sapphire Breeze said, loud enough that Twilight would be able to hear. “You just finish things up here, I’ll bring her here as soon as she gets out.”

Sapphire was already on her way out, though she had to pass by Midnight on her way. Midnight spread one of her wings, blocking the path. “That isn’t how you cover for me,” she whispered.

“It’ll just be a minute!” Twilight shouted from up the stairs. “Don’t go anywhere, Midnight!”

“I’m not covering for you, you’re covering for us. Put the books away, then blow her mind with trivia about kirin or whatever. She’ll forget we were here for anything else.”

Midnight’s eyes widened, and she grinned in response. “That’s… that’s brilliant!”

Sapphire Breeze grinned back. “I try to be. Maybe if you manage to pull it off I’ll make you dinner, too.”

“You’ll—” Midnight felt her face flush, but Sapphire Breeze was already on her way out. She wouldn’t see her embarrassment. She set to work quickly after that, so that she’d mostly cleaned up the library by then. Except for the book that had contained her critical insight, and the notes she’d taken along the way. There was probably more to learn, but—that would have to wait for another day.

“Finally found it,” Twilight said, levitating a thickly bound book in her magic as she settled back down on a bench. “I’ve had a long time to think about this stuff. I hope you don’t mind if I take notes.”

“Sure,” Midnight said. “Just stamp these books for me real quick… I’d like to check them out. Then we can go ahead with anything you want to know.”
> Chapter 20
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Midnight’s interview with Twilight was about as painful as she had been expecting. Six months ago, she would’ve imagined fury or terror for anypony who discovered what she was—and her expectation had often been accurate. But Ponyville was different. How much of that was just being honest to them from the beginning? How much of my life before was the shock of ponies discovering I wasn’t what I claimed?

Those questions were not likely to be answered anytime soon, unfortunately. I can’t think about it now. Helping Nightfall is more important than worrying about ponies I’ll probably never meet again. All she had to do was make it through the rest of Twilight’s questions, and she could go back to Nightfall and Sapphire. Apparently there would be dinner waiting.

As they spoke, Midnight was aware in the back of her mind as other ponies began shuffling into the library. None of them looked terribly interesting, and they mostly kept their distance. But in only a few minutes, there were more ponies in the library then she’d ever seen before. Almost a dozen of them in all, and not one of them looked like ponies she’d seen wandering Ponyville before.

Something is wrong. They were already sitting near the back, on a bench near a mostly-empty set of shelves, so they weren’t in the way of the various patrons. It wouldn’t take a dozen ponies to spy on us. Why would anyone even bother? Kirin aren’t a secret, they’re just rare.

Midnight’s instincts had been carefully honed by a lifetime of living as a fugitive, and her instincts told her that she needed to move carefully. How has Twilight not noticed this isn’t right?

“And your horn hasn’t worked your whole life?” Twilight was asking, sounding as though she didn’t even see the strangers milling about through the doorway into the library. But she does live here. Maybe she’s just used to having them around. “There are some conflicting accounts… are you sure you didn’t suffer some kind of injury? Maybe when you were—”

“No, pretty sure it’s never worked. I don’t know any others, but my father…” Midnight trailed off, lowering her voice. “Twilight, when does the library usually close? It’s almost dark outside.”

“Oh, right.” Twilight rose, settling her notebook down on the seat where she’d been sitting. “If you would just wait one moment, Midnight. I’ll send these ponies out on their—”

“No,” Midnight pulled on her with a wing. “Twilight, I… think we should go. Right now.” The doorway into the kitchen was just past them. Maybe they could slip backward and out the door. If this many ponies had showed up to rob the library, then there wasn’t anything the two of them could do to stop them. But considering everything else that had happened in Ponyville lately, Midnight had her doubts that was why.

“Why?” Twilight wasn’t whispering. “I know these questions might be routine for you, Midnight, but a promise is a promise. It’s not polite to try and get out before we finish.”

Midnight wanted to smack herself in the face with a hoof. Twilight obviously hadn’t caught the hint, but everypony out in the hallway sure had. Watching the doorway, she could see four separate ponies all focus on them, completely abandoning the pretense of searching for books.

Twilight frowned, her face getting worried. “Spike! Could you go check on the quills for me?” Her horn sparkled with a few bits of purple, and she backed a little distance away from the rest of the library.

Midnight recognized the way her limbs were shaking. This was a pony who had suffered something recently, and was being overwhelmed by it. “Why in Equestria are you asking about your—”

Something banged behind them—the backdoor.

“I think the dragon might be running. Stop him, now!” Shouted someone from the library. 

Twilight’s horn flashed again, like a spell she’d almost managed to conjure. But whatever she had been trying to do, it hadn’t worked. 

Ponies poured in around them, like they’d been waiting patiently for this moment. Midnight raised her tail, baring the blade at them and stepping out in front of Twilight. Maybe the pony was afraid of these intruders—she wasn’t.

“You ponies back off!” Twilight called, her voice cracking once. “I don’t think you know who I am! One of the most powerful sorcerers in Equestria, personal student of…”

Another pony strode inside, an elderly stallion with a pale coat and slightly shriveled features. Midnight didn’t recognize him, but Twilight did.

Her expression relaxed at once, her horn going out, and she strode confidently past Midnight, crossing the distance between them. The other ponies had surrounded them by now, blocking off every exit. There was no window back here either, not that there would’ve been a window big enough for Midnight.

I never thought I’d have to use this against a pony. Midnight kept her body tense, ready to spring if these ponies attacked. There were a few unicorns here who would probably stay out of reach, but most weren’t. If they wanted to try anything, they’d have to get close first.

“Thank Celestia, Spell Nexus!” Twilight’s voice cracked. “We need to get out of here! I already tried to teleport out, but I can’t. I think there might be a—”

“Spatial anchor,” the elderly stallion finished. He had a sad smile on his face. “Yes, I believe there is. But I can get us out. I brought something. Quick, look—” He reached into his saddlebags, making to draw something out for her.

“Twilight, wait—” But Midnight’s warning came too late. The unicorn took a face full of something pale, and collapsed limply to the ground.

“Terribly sorry, Twilight. But the longer you remained awake, the more dangerous you were.” He gestured with a hoof, and two of the ponies lurking near one wall approached, one carrying a rope in her teeth.

“Don’t even bucking think about it.” Midnight stepped to one side, brandishing her tail. It had the desired effect, causing the stallion to retreat and several other ponies to back away as well. The crowd contracted around her as a whole, but she swung her tail around in a wide ark. “I don’t have a clue who you ponies are, but you’re leaving. Except for you, creep. You’re probably going to jail for that.”

Twilight had called him Spell Nexus, which was probably what that cutie mark represented. Midnight wouldn’t forget it now. So long as I get away from this, I can tell Sapphire that name and get the guard on him. They shouldn’t have shown their faces.

There was another disturbing possibly that suggested, though. What if they don’t care because they don’t intend to let either of us live?

Spell Nexus seemed less frightened of her than the others, though he did keep out of reach of her tail. His horn glowed pale blue, and Midnight could feel the energy there. Probably a defense spell. Her constitution was stronger than a regular pony’s. Whatever chemical he’d used to stun Twilight wouldn’t have worked well on her. But this unicorn didn’t look like the sort who would use a simple stun.

“You have no idea what you’re dealing with,” said a pony from behind her. A mare, with venom in her voice. “You can’t stop the return of Equestria’s true queen.”

Well thanks for letting me know who you’re all working for. Crazy cult, check.

“The time of her ascension has arrived,” said another pony, this one from Midnight’s other side. “Every creature will submit to her will.”

“Not this one!” Midnight slashed through the air again—this time, between two of the cultists. She hadn’t been aiming at them, but at the empty bookshelf. She cut easily through most of the supports, showering the ground with a dramatic explosion of wood. It had the desired effect on the crowd, which continued to back away. 

Everypony except for Spell Nexus. “Kirin,” he said, his voice so commanding that all the other ponies around them fell silent. “I believe our interests align more than you suspect. Twilight Sparkle is apprentice to the wrong princess, but she will not be harmed by this process. If there was more time, I would prefer to convince her of the virtue of our cause. I know she understands the history better than most of Equestria’s ignorant masses. The process will not be lethal.”

“You want to hurt ponies I care about,” Midnight snapped, stepping over the unconscious unicorn. If they’re going for Twilight right now, Nightfall is probably next. Unless there’s another group of foal nappers already there.

She wanted to break her way through a wall and fly straight there. But to escape she’d have to attack these ponies—given the weapons she had, it was likely she’d have to inflict some serious harm to do that. Midnight Storm hesitated. She wasn’t ready to kill today. “I’m giving you one last chance to leave us alone. Leave Ponyville, don’t come back. You leave mine alone, and I’ll let you go.”

The cultists around her laughed. The cruel-sounding female who was guarding the kitchen door grunted in annoyance. “Come on, Nexus. Only a few hours until midnight. Just strike her down and we’ll go.”

“No,” Spell Nexus said. “Look at her. Our queen would not think us loyal servants if we tossed useful tools away.” His eyes began to glow.

Time to go! Midnight swung her tail at the bare wall near the destroyed shelves, intending to cut straight through. It stopped in mid swing, a split second before the rest of her body froze too. There were at least three other unicorns spread around the circle, and all of them were focused on her.

Midnight struggled, fighting against their magic with all her strength. She could hear them grunt and struggle. “Master…” a younger stallion croaked from behind Spell Nexus. “We can’t… for long…”

Something horrible was happening to the elderly stallion’s eyes. Midnight wanted to look away, but found she couldn’t. At first they went dark, with glowing slits a little like a dragon’s. Then something transparent seemed to rip its way out. A dark tentacle spread from within, reaching for her.

She screamed, fighting with all her might. One of the unicorns collapsed from the magical strain, his horn smoking. But it was too late for Midnight Storm.

The thing grabbed onto her head, and agony spread from where it touched. She stopped fighting the unicorns, and had to struggle just to stay conscious. Stars above, somepony, anypony, help…

No one came. The circle of cultists dissolved into vague suggestions as the thing crawled its way through her. She shook, drooled, tried to keep fighting.

The battle is over, Midnight Storm, said a voice in her ear, and she obeyed. Pain had turned the whole world into a drifting starfield, the shapes of the cultists each like a constellation. The unicorn spells holding her vanished, and Midnight collapsed.

No. I can’t… can’t let you… can’t let you hurt her. She struggled to her hooves, then practically tripped over herself. Her tail sunk into the floor with a thump.

No one will hurt her. Nightfall is in chains, and we’re going to set her free.

Just like that, the pain faded from around her. Strange stars solidified into the shapes of the cultist ponies.

“We welcome our new sister,” said Spell Nexus, and Midnight felt compelled to listen. She didn’t try to run, didn’t even try to lift her tail out of the floor. “Introduce yourself, Kirin.”

Buck you, she thought, and prepared to charge.

No, commanded the voice in her mind, and her limbs felt suddenly numb. You will obey him. Spell Nexus only wants to help her.

Midnight straightened, lowered her head respectfully to the elderly stallion. “Midnight Storm,” she said.

“We welcome Midnight,” echoed the cultists from around her.

“May you serve Equestria’s true queen faithfully, sister.”

“I will,” she found herself saying, though the words felt like poison on her tongue. I have to fight! I have to warn Sapphire, I have to do something!

“Moondust, Dandelion, deal with her.” Spell Nexus pointed at where Twilight had fallen. “You know where to meet us. The rest of you, with us. It will be dark soon—our queen is waiting for us.”
> Chapter 21
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall Storm wasn’t worried yet. After her experience in the Everfree with Sapphire Breeze, she had no problem trusting her to take her home. The only annoying part had been that the pegasus wouldn’t let her stick around with her friends. She didn’t complain too loudly, not in front of the pony who wasn’t quite her guardian but still seemed to want to protect her.

“Is something wrong?” she asked, as soon as they were on their way back to Nightfall’s home near city hall. “Midnight always lets me spend time with friends…”

“Not wrong,” Sapphire said, though she could tell from her voice that she wasn’t being completely honest. What aren’t you telling me? “I don’t know how long Midnight is going to take before she makes it home. That librarian looked almost predatory.”

Nightfall’s wings twitched as she tried to make sense of that. She knew the librarian, but beyond that… it didn’t make much sense.

“I’ve got an idea for something fun we could do while we wait,” Sapphire continued. She gestured, and instead of heading home they turned down another street, towards the marketplace. The sun wasn’t down yet, which meant that most stalls would still be open. “Want to try cooking with me?”

“I’ve never done that before,” she answered honestly. “Isn’t it hard? Won’t I burn things?”

“Nah.” Sapphire waved a dismissive wing. “Midnight’s the one who’s part dragon, not you. I’ll teach you one of my old family recipes, and we can have it waiting for Midnight when she gets back. Assuming she survives Twilight’s scholarly wrath.”

Nightfall had never been part of the shopping before, and new experiences were always fun. Comparing Ponyville’s market to any of the villages she actually remembered was a painful memory. Back then, ponies ate what there was and often that came down to many being so desperate they ate grass in summer and starved in winter.

But Nightfall had never gone hungry, and now she saw why. There was grain in abundance, wheat and barley and amaranth and plenty of others she couldn’t name. But there were also so many different fruits and vegetables that she couldn’t identify them all. Is half this stuff even in season?

Of course, the most interesting ingredients by far came from the import shop near the train station, where they bought thin slices of fish that smelled delicious even as they were.

“Can’t I have one of those?” she asked, gesturing at the plain white box on their way back home. “There’s plenty in there for dinner. I just want to—”

“No.” Sapphire glowered at her, lowering her voice “The only reason Southern Seas just sold us that is he knows we live with Midnight. Ponyville is an old village, with lots of traditional beliefs. You’re trying to blend in, remember?”

“Right.” Nightfall’s ears drooped. “Sorry.”

“Anyway, you don’t want to eat this raw. It’s been refrigerated for a while now, it’s not fresh. Ask Midnight to take you for sushi next time you’re in Manehattan. But ask quietly if you’re in town.”

Actual cooking was another adventure. Sapphire’s sturdy appearance concealed abilities Nightfall had never even guessed at, including more expertise than prepping raw vegetables or plates of snacks as she’d done for them in the past.

Cooking felt a little like magic in its way, with arcane tomes of instructions, special rules for how you had to accomplish each task, and dangerous tools that could hurt you seriously if you treated them too casually. But Nightfall thought things went pretty well for her first time. Despite her initial worries, nothing caught fire.

By the time night finally fell, they had finished preparing Sapphire’s strange dish—a fishy-smelling casserole along with a more pony-friendly tossed salad.

“Now we wait,” Sapphire announced, settling down at the table. “Twilight can’t be keeping her for much longer.” 

It was nearly an hour before Nightfall finally heard the sound of a pony coming in. Nightfall started, almost tripping over herself in her eagerness to get downstairs and see what Midnight would think of her hard work.

She hurried down the stairs, gliding the distance more than actually walking. But then she heard something shatter—probably the big glass salad-bowl. Nightfall stumbled down a little further before she finally managed to stop on the edge of a step, whimpering. All that work. What happened?

But they weren’t alone down there. Nightfall’s eyes widened as she saw there were several ponies waiting by the bottom of the stairs. Each one of them was wearing dark robes, obscuring their faces in shadow. Except for the brightly glowing eyes.

She screamed, stumbling backward a few steps. It wasn’t Midnight at all. 

Behind the group gathered at the bottom of the stairs, another pony went flying through the air, as though they’d just been ejected from a giant slingshot. They crashed into the wall, shattering the framed picture there before landing limply on the ground.

“Vineroot, restrain her! She’s just a pegasus!” shouted a voice from out of sight, sounding like it came from the kitchen. 

Then she heard another voice, desperate and out of breath. “Nightfall, run! Get out of here!” Sapphire.

She didn’t need to be told twice. Nightfall spread her wings and took off back up the stairs. But she wasn’t alone—as soon as they’d seen her, the robed figures below gave chance.

Nightfall hesitated for an instant in the hallway, then swerved into the master bedroom and locked the door behind her. But the door was flimsy wood, it wouldn’t last.

She picked the biggest window and hurried over, struggling to lift the heavy glass with all her strength.

Behind her, someone started banging on the door. It rattled in its hinges, tearing up the soft wood of the frame as it shook. “Queen, there’s no need to run! We aren’t here to hurt you!”

Said the pony trying to break down the bedroom door. Nightfall struggled more desperately, squealing in nervous fear as the window started to lift. But it was so heavy, every inch was a struggle. And after just a few inches, Nightfall wasn’t even tall enough to get it any further. Her whole body was shaking, she could barely think straight.

Downstairs, the sound of violence and things breaking continued for a little while longer, before it wasn’t loud enough to hear over the door.

She couldn’t get it any higher. Nightfall’s eyes darted around, and she found an opening big enough under the bed. She jumped inside, pushing an empty box until it mostly covered her hiding spot. Then the door finally smashed open, and several sets of heavy hooffalls rumbled their way inside. 

Nightfall couldn’t see anything anymore, and didn’t dare stick her head near the edge of the bed. The ponies walked their way in, right past her hiding place, where they stared at the window.

“Buck,” muttered a deep, male voice. “Did she fly away?”

Midnight Storm’s voice answered. Nightfall’s heart practically froze in her chest as she heard it. The kirin sounded confused, like ponies sometimes did after way too much cider. “Nightfall can’t fly very well, only glide. You two should… go tell Spell Nexus. Get some… ponies out there to search for her.”

“Got to make sure she got out first,” said another voice, this one female with an icy edge. “Could be a trick. That’s an awful lot of window for little hooves.”

“She’s an Alicorn,” Midnight said, almost matching her cruelty. “If they can lift the sun, I think they can handle some glass. But if you’re worried, I’ll stay here and search while you get your flanks outside to start looking for her.”

There was a little more arguing, though it didn’t go on for very long. Hoofsteps thumped back down the hall to join the sound of muffled conversation downstairs.

What’s happening? Midnight, what are you doing? It didn’t make any sense. Midnight hadn’t been part of the Children of Nightmare, they’d destroyed her house! She’d looked so angry before, like she might actually attack them when she met them. Now here she was, telling these creepy ponies where to find her, not even helping while Sapphire fought for her life downstairs. Though there was no more violence from down there.

We’re in the middle of Ponyville. Somepony will hear this. Somepony will come for us. It’s just a matter of time. But she didn’t hear the guard outside, not right then. Nothing but a single set of slow hooves, turning out drawers, opening the closet, walking in and out of the bathroom.

Then she heard Midnight’s voice. “I know you’re…” She spoke slowly, practically tripping over her own words. Or maybe she was sick? “Here, Nightfall. Know you’re… didn’t get out.” She heard hooves again, and could recognize them this time as heavier than a regular pony’s.

They stopped right beside the bed, and she could hear something moving above her.

“Why are you helping them?” Nightfall squeaked, crawling back into the deepest corner of the bed she could reach. She could come up on the other side, try to run away—but there was nowhere to go but downstairs. There were no boxes to hide behind on that end, so if she went over there, she’d be plainly visible. “It sounds like they hurt Sapphire. I thought you liked her.”

“I… am…” Each word came slowly now. “Not… going… to tell…” She smacked her tail into the floor, so hard that a chunk of wood went sliding along from the point of impact.

Nightfall squeaked in surprise, sliding away from the opening as far as she could. She was probably poking out from the other side of the bed after all, but she had to get away! She was crying now for sure—tears streaked down her face, splattering against the floor. “I thought… you said you would keep me safe, Midnight.”

“I… I… will.” The kirin made a pained sound. “S-stay put. Wait until… house is quiet. Run away. Z-Zecora. Remember where…” Then came the sound of somepony walking away. Thumps on the stairs, then the sound faded.

Nightfall could still make out the voices down below. They were too far away from Nightfall to make them out for sure, or maybe she was just too afraid. Her own heartbeat seemed so loud that it pounded against her eardrums with each beat.

“Get out there and find her!” came a male voice, sounding old and cracked like a dusty book. “The rest of you, take them to the ruins! We’ve already been seen by too many. This is our queen’s final chance. You will not disappoint her if you want to keep your place at her right hoof.”

The door banged open and shut several times. Nightfall could make out more sounds, this time from outside. Screams of terror, glass breaking, ponies shouting for help or running in terror. The Children of Nightmare were attacking Ponyville. They were attacking her friends, her home.

Why do they want to find me so bad?

But she already knew the answer, really. As the sound of violence faded into the distance and the house became quiet again, Nightfall heard a little voice in the back of her mind that knew exactly what these ponies were really doing.

You should go to them. Equestria can be yours. You don’t have to be the pony they expect. Why not be the queen you want to be? Do an even better job than Celestia. Take what you’re owed.

She didn’t move for as long as she dared. Mostly she cried, scrunching up and trying to make the voice be quiet. Eventually it did, and she was able to think straight again. They’re doing something to Midnight. They’re hurting her with magic. Maybe all those ponies. Hadn’t Sapphire said something about mind control?

Midnight had saved her, now maybe it was time to return the favor.

If only I knew how.
> Chapter 22
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall knew what she had to do—if only she could figure out how she was supposed to do it. 

They want to make me into Nightmare Moon for real. All of this… they’re trying to force it. From the way those ponies had been talking, they thought Nightmare Moon was the rightful ruler of Equestria.

Because I am. Celestia took it from me. She doesn’t know how to care for her ponies. But I do, I would treat them better. You should go to them. The voice continued, almost constant now no matter how hard she tried to banish it.

Shut up! I don’t want to take over anything! I just want to keep living here with Midnight! But Midnight had been taken by the cult. They’d done something to her—but it hadn’t worked as well on her as some of the others. She let Nightfall get away.

Can anypony help me?

Twilight Sparkle would be a good first pony to visit, but from the way the cult talked about her, Nightfall didn’t think that would work. Maybe the local guards? Or were they already busy fighting the cult?

Her own friends were just kids, like herself. They shouldn’t be going out into a dangerous forest to fight a cult. The best thing Nightfall could do for Aura and the others was to keep Ponyville safe.

Zecora. Midnight always said she was safe, and she was nice to me. Zecora lived out in the Everfree anyway, so she wouldn’t be afraid of its dangers.

But I have to get there. That would be the biggest problem.

Nightfall glanced up over the windowsill, looking down on Ponyville. Being in the center of town meant she had a very good view of almost everything.

It wasn’t good. She could see a few royal guards tied up in the street, and a few more hobbled and marching behind the cult. They were shouting something to the ponies of the city, who mostly slammed their doors and tried to hide. Nightfall leaned closer, pressing her ear to the glass to try and listen.

“Ponies rejoice! The night of your queen’s coronation has arrived! All who show only the love and respect owed to your queen will be spared. Those who resist will face the wrath of Nightmares. So remain where you are, pray for forgiveness for your loyalty to a false princess. And wait. The time is almost upon us.”

That can’t be good. She could only imagine how terrified Pipsqueak would be, hearing that. Or little Aura, cowering in some apartment on the far side of town. Is all of this my fault too?

Yes, answered the voice. It’s your fault for not going out to them. We can be a princess who rules in justice and friendship, who won’t abandon her sister or let the ponies of Equestria forget her. We can end all their fears together.

A tantalizing promise, except that she had seen the way these cultists acted. Hurting Sapphire, using awful magic on Midnight. That wasn’t the sort of thing good ponies would be willing to do. I don’t want to be like them.

Nightfall waited for the procession of searching cultists to pass, before creeping across the hall into her room. She found her disguise, securing it along with a long coat. It wouldn’t make her invisible, but at least she would only appear dark brown in the night if anyone looked at her, instead of completely giving herself away.

She moved more slowly down the stairs, ears perked for any motion there. And sure enough, she could hear someone pacing back and forth. She froze, and in a few seconds, she saw a pony wearing a black robe and a pale white pack pass in front of the stairs. He didn’t look up—or else he would’ve seen her immediately, just turned around and paced back. 

Horseapples. They’d apparently thought of the chance that she might still be here, or maybe that she would return. Either way meant bad news.

Nightfall adjusted her wings under her cloak, but neither of them would really do her much good. She hadn’t really had the chance to practice with her horn much—she couldn’t use it at school without a glow coming from nowhere and giving away her disguise, so she’d always just pretended not to have magic.

But she wouldn’t have to do much to create a distraction here, and she knew the house pretty well. Nightfall concentrated on the front door, her invisible horn starting to glow as she pushed. At first nothing happened—so she pushed harder, gritting her teeth together. She was really an Alicorn, wasn’t she? She could…

There was a sudden roar from outside, a shattering of wood and glass Nightfall knew must be the door exploding under the force of her magic. So maybe she should’ve thought about it a little harder before she tried to force it open. But the cultist went running towards the front of the house—that was all she needed.

Shouts came from down the street, cultists rushing in from all directions.

Nightfall ran, jumping the last few steps, reeling through the kitchen, and out the back door into an alley. 

She hadn’t been here often—but she didn’t need a very good sense of directions to stay in the shadows and run from the noise. 

That was exactly what she did, until the shouts for help and calls for more ponies had faded into the background. Nightfall collapsed beside a dumpster, breathing heavily. She’d made it out of the house—that was the first step.

Maybe I should go to Canterlot instead. I could try to catch a train, warn Celestia directly. If only she had a pet dragon like Spike, who could send magical letters. Princess Celestia would know what to do. Or… or maybe Luna. At least their enemy was the same pony.

Me.

Us. Celestia betrayed us, and Luna is only the shell left behind. We don’t need them. The ponies of Equestria have recognized us now. They will lift us on a throne grander than anything Celestia ever had. We can make a night that never ends. Look around us, Nightfall. We’re in darkness. Those searching haven’t found us, because this is our domain. We are the shadows that lurk just out of sight of every pony. We are the hunger of the unknown thing that calls in the distant forest. We are the predator. And those ponies only want to give us back our power. Return to them.

She could practically feel the voice dragging her out of the alley, into the illumination of a streetlight. If the cultists saw her, then there was no way she’d get away. Unless she tried to fight.

That won’t work. Sapphire Breeze is an adult mare trained to fight, and she couldn’t get away. I couldn’t either. 

But while Nightfall couldn’t resist the cultists if they caught her, she could resist the voice. She could imagine Midnight’s voice, and the promise she’d often repeated. You don’t have to be Nightmare Moon if you don’t want to. And she didn’t. She just wanted to be herself—she wanted to be Nightfall Storm, she wanted to go to school in Ponyville, and make friends, and learn to fly.

The voice faded back into the distant corners of her consciousness. Her body stopped shaking. Nightfall waited another few minutes, just to be sure, then scampered off into the Everfree.

Night in the Everfree was a different prospect than the day. It was dangerous, the dwelling place of many mysterious predators. Those mysterious calls the voice in her mind had spoken about, she could hear them now. Creatures that sounded like they had many mouths and plenty of sharp teeth.

She’d heard the Everfree was unsafe to travel alone. She’d heard it was unsafe to travel at night, or without a guide. Now she was doing all three.

But she had a good feeling about the direction she was walking. She’d seen Midnight lead her, even if she had been on the kirin’s back for most of that trip. She could get there without wandering too far off-course. 

The trails helped, marking out the path between strange plants with a road that she knew couldn’t hurt her. Smells drifted in from off the path, lures meant to pull her away into dangerous places for her to be devoured. But even if she wasn’t as experienced living out in the wild—certainly not as experienced as her adoptive mother—she could stay on the path.

The forest itself seemed to realize that something was wrong. She could hear constant motion in the trees, animals fleeing the same direction she was in a panic. One moment she stopped dead in the shadows as a pair of gigantic canines crossed the path only feet in front of her. She could make out only their outlines, and the reflection of dagger-like teeth as long as her hooves. But she froze, and just as the voice promised the shadows were at her command. The monsters all passed her by.

I’ve done this before, she remembered. On the night she woke up, she’d cowered all night while predators swarmed around her. Then the day had come, and Midnight arrived to free her. The ponies had tried to take that freedom away, but Midnight stuck up for her.

She stuck up for me again tonight. She didn’t tell them where to find me. I’d already have been dragged off for the ritual if it hadn’t been for her. Maybe so, but it still didn’t feel like what should’ve happened. Midnight Storm should’ve fought them off, then the three of them could have flown away from Ponyville. Canterlot wasn’t far away—Midnight could carry her that far.

But instead, Nightfall was alone in the middle of the night, running away from a mind-controlled mom and a Ponyville taken over by cultists.

From the look of things, her journey was ending at last. There was a shape forming in the darkness up ahead, and she knew it had to be the huge trees surrounding Zecora’s cabin. Her instincts had led her right there. The wise zebra would know what to do, or would know somepony who did. She could get away. And if I get away, then the Children of Nightmare fail. They can’t have what they want without me. Celestia’s troops will catch them.

She passed over some old wood, clutching to the rope with each hoof step. It’s okay, we’re almost there. Not much further.

There were lights on up ahead, filling the many windows of Zecora’s cabin. Which… didn’t have many windows. And wasn’t made of stone, with ancient crenellations, and a distant wooden bridge, and a crowd of wild animals crouched low all around it like they’d come to worship.

Nightfall squeaked in absolute terror, turning to run—but she couldn’t move.

This is where we need to be, said the voice. It’s okay, we won’t be afraid again soon. They already know we’re here. We were the only one they were waiting for. Equestria will soon know its Queen again.

And it wasn’t lying. Several cultists emerged from the darkness behind her, cutting off her retreat. Cultists blocked the bridge, and her wings were covered by her coat. She couldn’t glide down into the ravine, but from the sounds coming from down there she didn’t want to anyway.

“Great Queen of all Equestria,” said a voice from beside her. A unicorn seemed to materialize out of the gloom, one Nightfall recognized from the attack on her home.  This was Spell Nexus, the leader of the Children of Nightmare. “We’ve searched long for you. Forgive my ignorance—I should have known you would find your own way here.” 

The crowd of cultists closed in behind them—though Nightfall knew she never could’ve escaped even if she tried to run. She was no Rainbow Dash. What would Midnight do?

She already had an example. Her mother had obeyed the cultists until the critical moment, letting her escape. Maybe… maybe Nightfall could do the same. If she fought and got tied up in chains like Sapphire, she wouldn’t get the chance. I have to play along. Hope they give me a chance to… To what, she didn’t know.

The voice inside her mind rejoiced—she could feel its pleasure at the praise, and it was hard not to share it. My power will return, and all Equestria with it. It’s time to take back what we’re owed.

Nightfall nodded. “I am here,” she said. “I’m ready for my coronation.”
> Chapter 23
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The castle hadn’t been much repaired since the last time Nightfall had seen it. Apparently the pony guards she’d seen making camp here had left the ruins as they found them.

That meant it was easy for the Children of Nightmare to put things back to the way they’d been, raising huge purple banners from the walls and even covering over the hole in the ceiling with more deep violet cloth. The castle had been brightly lit with many candles, making it seem almost as though it was still lived in. Almost.

Nightfall felt herself tense a little as they passed each new cultist, searching the outlines ahead of them for Midnight. Would they have her in one of those creepy robes with the moon masks? But no, not so far. No sight of Sapphire Breeze, either. So if they’d done the same magic to her, she couldn’t find her.

But there was no missing the ritual circle, tucked away near the cracked thrones that had once sat the two sisters. The ground was already covered with bright white markings, and at least a dozen unicorns swarmed over the circle, making sure everything was perfect.

All this is for us, Nightfall. What is one pony who pretends to love you compared to the adoration of all Equestria? We will really have it this time. The ponies won’t make the same mistake twice, not when their survival is at stake.

“All present, say your welcomes to our Queen.” At once, all activity in the hall stopped. Nightfall saw ponies all bow, lowering their heads towards her wherever they were.

Except for an unusually large pony, in some overly large robes near the back of the circle. That was Midnight, and she was still resisting. Losing, from the look of it, but… It didn’t take much last time. Maybe we can escape together. No magic was perfect—even the strongest spells could be broken.

“She remains incomplete, as you can all see,” Spell Nexus said. “But that will not remain so for much longer. Midnight approaches, and the ritual will be much easier the second time. We’ve taken measures to assure we will not have any uninvited guests.” There was a little weak laughter from around the room.

Mostly, all eyes were still on Nightfall. Almost a hundred ponies, all looking at her the way the palace ponies had looked at Celestia. No, this is even worse. These ponies don’t love me. They’re being forced. Their eyes were glazed, their motions stiff. They bowed because they didn’t have a choice. She couldn’t enjoy love like that.


“Perhaps you have some words for your ponies,” said Spell Nexus from beside her. “We’ve been waiting for you for a very long time. Fought for you… brought you back. Is there anything you’d wish to say before your glory is finally realized?” Then he lowered his voice, obviously just for her. “I’m personally curious about why you were so hard to find, when we had dozens of our most loyal ponies swarming over the place you arrived. But no doubt you had a wise purpose, one I would not dare to question.”

An earth pony with a large block hurried over, gesturing to Nightfall. It was obvious what they wanted—she was supposed to give a speech. Don’t worry about it, Nightfall. We know what to say. Just listen to the words I tell you.

She didn’t want to. But with so many wearing robes, so many watching her as though they cared about what she had to say—it was overwhelming. I have to keep pretending until there’s a chance to escape. It isn’t here quite yet.

Nightfall stepped up onto the block, whimpering quietly to herself at the sight of so many ponies watching her expectantly. She couldn’t disappoint them, not without revealing she wasn’t willing, and probably throwing away her chance to escape.

“My… loyal subjects…” she began, voice quavering. It sounded so pathetic, echoing off the huge stone interior. “It has been…” But then she found the words coming. The voice provided them to her, flowing straight from her mind to her mouth. Maybe she should’ve fought it—but she’d already been fighting so much tonight. She only had so much energy left. “Your… queen is pleased with how much you have done for her. The terrible injustice of so long ago will be rectified tonight. Once I have recovered myself, and my powers, I will strike down the pretenders, and ensure there can be no further challenges to the throne. Now I know the sort of pony my sister is. She will not oppress you any longer. All those who have been dragged down for the cause of my kingdom will be remembered, and those trapped in dark places will be free. Equestria will rise in a night that lasts forever!”

By the end, Nightfall hardly even felt her own lips moving as she spoke. The tiny voice in the back of her mind was doing all the work, and she was only a passenger. Is that what it feels like for Midnight? Is that what happened to all of these ponies? No sooner did she think it than she felt nauseated. Her speech was probably making it harder to fight. Midnight Storm in the back of the room wasn’t shaking anymore. 

I’m helping evil magic. I can’t keep going like this.

She had to find a way to end this, and fast. Through the windows, she could see that midnight was only a few minutes from now. Once it arrived, and the magic well and truly began… she had a feeling that the little voice would be the one in charge, and Nightfall would become a tiny, insignificant presence in the back of her head.

But she didn’t run away, even though she wanted to. She didn’t cry. Just stepped down from the block and let the cultists surround her, smiled as they praised a pony that she didn’t want to be.

And so the wave of activity washed over her and passed her by, as ponies returned to preparing the ritual. Nightfall was just fine with that, fading into the background as much as she could. At least there she wouldn’t have to do any more terrible things.

Spell Nexus led her along to the front of the ritual circle, as ponies arrived with carts of supplies to integrate into the spell. She watched Midnight Storm wheel one of those carts along, apparently unmoved by the ritual about to take place. Had she run out of strength to resist?

Nightfall kept her eyes open for any chance to escape—she started by pulling off her coat, hiding the enchanted headband that was her disguise deep in a pocket where it wouldn’t be found. Hopefully. Seeing her as an alicorn, even a young and pitiful one, seemed to be what these ponies wanted.

But we won’t be pitiful for much longer. Feel the power welling up from beyond, Nightfall. It will be ours. We will bring a nightmare back to Equestria. Together.

Nightfall could feel it. Even with the spell barely begun, even with midnight not yet arrived, she could feel power there. Like the strange diagram wasn’t just shapes on the floor—it was an opening into somewhere strange. Somewhere she never wanted to see again, somewhere buried in the parts of her memory that went deeper than her time in Equestria.

“What does this spell do?” Nightfall found herself asking, before she could stop herself. 

Spell Nexus’s eyes widened a little, but he didn’t seem to be seeing through her ruse. “What does… why, it restores your power, of course. It accomplishes the task we’ve wished to do for some time. You won’t have to hide from Celestia once your strength is restored. We have already taken measures to ensure that the Elements of Harmony will not stop you this time. Miss Twilight Sparkle is with us tonight, as part of the ritual. And when it is finished… she won’t have the energy to turn a page, let alone resist you. Without her, the other Elements are useless.”

That isn’t what I asked, Nightfall thought. But she didn’t want to argue—her question had already attracted his attention. So she said it differently. “When I look at your spell, I see a door. A door into somewhere I don’t want to go. We aren’t going to slip through it by accident, are we? Or… let something in from the other side by mistake?”

“It’s… the Void isn’t a place, Queen. It’s a state of existence. It is the magical neutral, oblivion. The limbo between one state and the next. Nothing can travel there, or exist there. Think of it…”

But even as he said it, she knew he was wrong. Nightfall had memories of that place, even earlier than her time in Equestria. Even earlier than her betrayal by Celestia, or the rage she’d felt and eventually tried to bring against the ponies who richly deserved it.

There were terrible things on the other side of that door, monsters worse than Nightmare Moon. Worse than her.

I have to stop this. No matter what it takes. Maybe she could force the spell to activate, slip through to the Void on the other side. At least that way Equestria would be safe—somehow, she could tell that she was the only reason it could open. Half of her was on the other side… and half of her was here. Once the two sides were reunited, stability would return.

Give me something, anything! There has to be a way!

“It’s almost midnight,” said Spell Nexus, quietly but firm enough that several of the nearby cultists focused on him. “Bring the unicorn, and make sure the guards understand that we aren’t to be interrupted. They should not fear to lay down their lives if necessary to protect our queen. We will not have another chance to restore her.

Cultists saluted and ran off, and he gestured down towards the diagram. “Please, My Queen. Stand in the center as we begin. You’ll know what to do when the time comes.”

Nightfall glanced at the indicated place, and she could practically see the floor fuzzing away to mist. Tendrils of something glowing were pressed against it from the other side, ready to pry their way into the world and devour everything. They would start with her, but that would only be the beginning.

Nightfall did know what to do. She needed to run. Right now! 

She abandoned any act, and blocked out the voice with every bit of determination she had. It screamed out in vain for her to stop, but this time it couldn’t steal her strength. Before the cultists even knew what had happened, she’d shoved her way through the circle and was climbing the steps to one of the castle’s towers. 

“Queen, wait! We don’t have much time! The ritual will be weaker if we don’t begin at the right moment!”

It was like before, when she followed her instinct. This was somewhere safe, if only she could get to the top. “Everypony, after her! The ponies must’ve brainwashed her! We can’t let them rob her of her rulership even now!”

There were so many hoofsteps behind her—hundreds. Nightfall didn’t think, she just ran. Ran even though the tower shook with the weight of so many ponies passing through it. She ran so fast she started chipping the dark blue mosaics beneath her hooves. 

Then she reached a landing, and a massive wooden door that had fallen out of rusty hinges and collapsed onto the ground. She could vaguely make out the half-moon shape on its other side.

She passed into an ancient room, untouched save by dust on every surface and the smell of mildew. A cloud of it rose as her hooves passed inside, and she searched for shelter, any shelter.

But there was nothing here—just a bright blue bed, and ancient tapestries hung on the walls. In the light of a cracked window, she could make out the shapes depicted there.

This was Luna’s bedroom—her bedroom. Nightfall found herself completely frozen under the massive portrait hanging from the walls—a portrait of a teenage Luna, dressed in some incredibly froofy gown, and grinning as wide as a house out at the painter. At her, through time.

There was only one window, one high up on the ceiling. It looked like a wooden walkway had probably gone all the way up there, but it had rotted away to little stubs and planks by now. There was no way up. No way out.

Another second later, and a flood of cultists poured in through the door behind her.

She screamed in terror, blasting out at them with all the magic her little body could muster. But it wasn’t enough. Even as a few of the ponies went scattering, a dozen more brought her down to the ground. They didn’t care if she hurt them—they held her down until she could barely breathe. Held her down until she’d given up, lowering her head with a whimper of defeat.

That’s right, Nightfall. All your pain will be gone soon. It’s time for me to take the throne.
> Chapter 24
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The queen can wait no longer,” said a voice she now knew well, one she’d been learning to fear all this time. It was Spell Nexus, directing the cultists as he’d done so many times before. Only this time, there was a particular pain to it. Midnight Storm was there at the front, and her hooves were among the firmest holding her down. “Get her into the ritual circle! Yes, drag her if you must! It doesn’t matter if we cause a little harm, she will soon reward us for our persistence.”

You finally gave up too, she thought, despairing.

Of course she did. She submitted to the rule of Equestria’s true master. Everypony will in the end. Even me.

Midnight Storm yanked her roughly to her hooves, and Nightfall squeaked painfully in response. But the mare didn’t respond. Didn’t seem to be looking at her any more than the other cultists now. Her strength really had failed.

And they didn’t care about hurting her, either. They shoved, and she nearly tripped over herself as they dragged her towards the opening under the sky. The moon was high there even now—the height of her Alicorn power. Except that she didn’t know how to use any of it. Too little too late.

Nightfall could barely even see the ground inside the circle now. There was nothing there anymore but an endless, gnawing void. Stars drifted in that space, like discolored fireflies that nipped at the skin whenever they got too close.

And she fought again, digging her hooves into the ground, and not caring when they scraped painfully. Midnight Storm was much too strong—she couldn’t be resisted.

It’s not her you’re fighting, Nightfall. It’s yourself. And the fight is over now. It’s time to take back our throne.

With one last painful shove, she tripped over an outstretched rock and went screaming into the void.





For time that stretched beyond perception or memory, there was nothing before her. There was no night, no day—just the void. A void that hungered, reaching tentacles up from greater darkness to twist around her hooves and drag her deeper.

“You can’t fight me anymore,” said a voice, and suddenly there was light. A blinding, sickly green washed over everything, a light that she knew would be instantly destructive to lesser creatures. But Nightfall was more than a mere pony—she was an alicorn. A small goddess, in her way.

As she watched, the backward reflection of that light illuminated a palace. It was a great deal like the Castle of the Two Sisters might’ve looked before it had crumbled, but twisted and warped. The spires rose to impossible heights, and the windows were lined with sharp barbs that could impale a passing pegasus. Evil torchlights shone out from every window, and the moat that circled around it was filled with dark water.

This is what she’s going to do in Equestria. What she wants me to do.

Something dragged her over the drawbridge, through the courtyard, and into the great hall. It blurred around her, as though she were really just dreaming. She was asleep, and so place was meaningless.

The throne room was nothing like the elegant place in Canterlot Castle—it was the same room, except that the windows depicted terrible atrocities. Things she’d done during her first campaign—ponies slaughtered in agonizing ways. The world freezing where her staunchest adversaries had lived. And the beautiful, perfect moon, unchanging in the sky forever.

And up on that throne was herself—but worse than she’d imagined. It was Nightmare Moon all right, if the Alicorn had melted completely into a swarm of a thousand writhing tentacles. Though a few of them remained on the throne to approximate the shape of a pony, far more stretched out into the throneroom all around, vanishing from sight.

It could still see her. The “pony” seemed to turn, luminous pits fixing on her as though they were eyes. It’s not me that she can see. It’s light. Here, Nightfall would seem strange by virtue of having anything good in her. Her whole body glowed, and the green light didn’t go as far as her coat.

But that was a far cry from fighting. “You’ve come so far, Nightfall. I don’t understand… why do you run?”

She didn’t run now. She knew there was no way to leave this place—not without this creature wanting her to.

But aren’t we the same thing? Maybe I could get my magic to work, or something… But she couldn’t try it overtly, or else it might give her less leeway and attack immediately. What am I supposed to do, Celestia? Luna?

“Because I don’t want to be like you,” Nightfall said. She stopped just out of reach of the tentacles, as though it would make a difference. But she knew it wouldn’t—the monster could reach into almost anywhere. Anywhere that had been touched by its power, anyway. 

“You do,” answered the Alicorn that was herself, rising taller and taller in its throne. As it did, the light of the moon seemed to shine brighter. Invigorating her, even as the world all around was a terrible, unholy green. “Because we’re not different. You’ve been tricked by the ponies—I will free you.”

Her vision changed, and she realized she was looking down at herself. Seeing her as the monster saw her.

As a rotten corpse of a filly, her hollow gut filled by more writhing tentacles that wrapped up around the bones and sinews, puppeting her. Dragging an ichorous trail of corruption along the ground wherever she went. “The only reason the Equestrians do not flee from you in terror is they do not understand what you are. But Twilight Sparkle will soon, perhaps more. If you stayed with them, you would only be doomed to be rejected. They’ve done it to us once before.”

Nightfall yanked herself backward, and realized that one of the tentacles of the monster before her had wrapped itself around a foreleg. The instant she’d severed it, the awful vision went with it. It’s not real. It’s just manipulating me. Trying to make me take its side. It wants a willing recruit.

“Those aren’t our memories!” she yelled back, feeling a little taller, a little bigger. A little stronger for the moonlight pouring down around her. The sickly light of the inverse-moon no longer seemed so bright by comparison. “Those are Luna’s demons, not ours! We can be something different!”

“We can’t!” the voice screamed, and suddenly the tentacles were searching for her. They were thicker than her body, soft and yielding to the touch, but their strength was absolute. She kicked, but even though her gesture tore some of the soft flesh, there was so much more beyond it. She wouldn’t be able to escape.

“Remember how we were used! How we were forgotten!” The gripping tentacles forced Nightfall’s mind screaming back to that past—to the memories she’d been quietly reliving since she woke up.

She saw through Princess Luna’s eyes, saw a country that barely knew her name, and a sister who didn’t care. That memory came with her ancient emotions—rage and betrayal. 

She could see two memories then, for just an instant. A tiny spark of something, smaller and feebler than any alicorn. Something that was drawn to her jealousy. Something that answered her cries when her sister did not.

Then she saw herself becoming Nightmare Moon. The flood of power, and the joy when her subjects finally learned their place. The satisfaction as she gave them back some of the pain they’d given her.

Or maybe that was what the monster expected her to feel. But as she watched closer, Nightfall’s eyes only got wider. She kicked and squirmed, and suddenly she was tossed onto the ground in a mass of severed tentacles, swimming in a greenish ichor that tasted foul and stained her coat where it touched. 

“That is us!” Nightmare Moon insisted. “That is me, you. Being severed like this was… never meant to happen.” It twisted a little in its throne, and Nightfall saw something else.

A huge chunk of this thing was missing, near the center. It had been hacked off in ragged ends, still dripping what passed for this monster’s blood. She could almost see a pony shape there—the silhouette of Nightmare Moon.

This is where Spell Nexus’s spell started. Maybe it would’ve taken the whole thing… but it got interrupted.

“We’re damaged,” said the creature, more like a beaten animal than a queen now. It flared out, but where she’d kicked she’d damaged almost as much as the spell. The part at the center was the strongest. Its grip here is weaker.

This was where she needed to target.

But “Nightmare Moon” went on, its strange power warping into something else. Tentacles were too concentrated to describe it, it now looked more like rays of moonlight, shaping into the outline of a pony. Wisps of fog that might be blown away. “You’ve forgotten how you really feel. We felt those things together once. Now that you’re here, we will be one again. You won’t be weak again. You’ll have all the power you want. Power to protect the ponies you love. To punish those who hurt them.”

It reached out again, extending a translucent hoof. She tried to pull away, but too slow.

She felt its rage again—its hunger to tear down, to freeze, to unravel what Celestia had done. They were so powerful that Nightfall doubted there was anything else to this creature. It wasn’t really a pony at all, but a bundle of terrible feelings and the magical power that had once belonged to Nightmare Moon.

This is what I could’ve been. If I’d come back the way Nexus wanted me too, I wouldn’t have been cut off.

But as frustrated as she’d been to give up so much power, Nightfall didn’t want revenge. “Nightmare Moon hurt a lot of ponies, but was a long time ago… You don’t have to be her if you don’t want to be.”

And Luna… her sister had already forgiven her. She had already made amends. Her burden, not mine.

Nightfall Storm pushed the power away for a second time, yanking her hoof back. The ephemeral castle seemed to rumble under the force of an invisible earthquake. From the crashing stone all around them, she suspected whole towers were crumbling. The stained glass windows depicting her atrocities shattered one after another.

Yet the sickly green light shone in from a midnight sun all the brighter then, and it seemed to be calling to her. Nightmare Moon wasn’t tentacles anymore, wasn’t even a shadow. Now she was just a feeling.

A feeling of thoughtlessness—a feeling of letting go. She hadn’t been lying about Nightfall’s injury. She’d been born from this thing, in the moment of Nexus’s failed spell. That much was true. This thing might be hideous, but becoming part of it again would be repairing herself. Restoring things to the way they ought to be.

She wouldn’t have to doubt herself anymore, wouldn’t have to question. The guilt would be gone—everything that had tormented her in Ponyville. She would never have to wonder if the ponies accepted her, because she would make them. They would know their queen again.

I don’t want to be queen. She pulled away again, and this time she yanked so forcefully that the entire world seemed to crumble. A fissure split open in front of her, and something sickly and rotten poured out. Trees and other plants crumbled to ash, before getting ripped up into the air. I’m sorry. I used to be part of you, but I don’t want to be anymore. The ponies are right, and we were wrong. Goodbye.

She could hear a few more faint wisps of objection—cries of pain from a wounded animal betrayed again. But then the sounds settled into something peaceful, and she was vomited back up into the Castle of the Two Sisters.
> Chapter 25
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nightfall Storm blinked away the fragments of sleep that had once been a nightmare. But just like any fading dream, the specifics were quickly lost to her mind, traces that she could barely remember.

The emotions remained clear, however. As images of gigantic castles and towering monsters melted like chocolate in the sun, she could still remember the fear she’d felt, changing to pity and sadness that there was one creature she hadn’t been able to save.

But then the frightening reality returned. She was standing in a broken castle, surrounded by crumbling walls and frightening cultists in their robes. Ponies that had their minds invaded and controlled, even those closest to her.

At her hooves, the circle of runes and terrible magic dissolved in a few faint puffs of smoke, as if the moonlight overhead had burned it away.

Nightfall tensed her whole body, lowering her head in expectation of the blows. She had destroyed the work of this evil cult, after all. They would not be able to summon Nightmare Moon, not ever again.

But she heard no anger coming from them. Nothing at all, until the first voice spoke. “Where am I?” It wasn’t a pony she knew.

But another answered soon after, one she knew a little better. Spell Nexus. “I… Celestia above, we were about to destroy all of Equestria.” Nightfall looked over just in time to see the former cult leader staring down at his hooves in utter horror. He tore the robe from his body in a single burst of magic, retreating from the circle. “I must… report myself to the crown at once. Perhaps the spell is not too far along to be stopped.” And he ran.

Most of the others were far less coordinated. Some seemed to remember stories of abduction, or a moment where they’d gotten lost and then wandered away from their lives. One by one these ponies retreated from the circle, abandoning Nightfall as thoroughly as though she’d been invisible.

But not all of them.

Midnight Storm had been one of the closest, and now she didn’t walk away. She’d already removed the robe, and now she dared a step towards Nightfall. Not too much closer, ears flattened in embarrassment. Maybe she thought that Nightfall would be mad.

“I’m… so sorry,” she said, her voice clear over the many confused ponies wandering away. “I tried to fight it, Nightfall. Fought so hard… but I couldn’t. Its control was too powerful.”

“You shouldn’t feel bad,” Nightfall said, closing the distance between them. But she didn’t actually touch. Even the conscious knowledge of how it had happened could not take away the pain, not instantly. “Princess Luna couldn’t resist it. Regular ponies… it would be even harder. I understand.”

“What happened? I… I remember dragging you… into the circle. The ritual should’ve been complete. From what Spell Nexus was saying…”

“It could’ve been.” Nightfall sat down on her haunches, looking up at the moon. “I think I… killed myself.” Her voice sounded strange, even in her own ears. “I didn’t want to. I didn’t mean to. But… I must have. She was me, and I killed her.”

“She was you,” Midnight repeated. “You did see Nightmare Moon? The ritual worked after all?”

“It worked, except for one thing.” Nightfall leaned close to her, having to stretch a little to be tall enough to speak into her ears. “Remember what you said? I didn’t have to be Nightmare Moon if I didn’t want to be. I decided not to be. Her power was… impressive. She had so many ponies who followed her. This whole cult… maybe I could’ve done good things with it, like she said. Maybe I could’ve been different. But I didn’t want to try. I didn’t want what she had to give me.”

“You’re right,” said a voice from nearby. For a few seconds it was just a voice, and Nightfall stared at empty air. But then the moonlight seemed to get brighter—and an outline appeared there. A dark pony, with a flowing mane that wasn’t light so much as a window into the sky. It was everything she’d seen in Nightmare Moon, except that it didn’t make her feel sick.

The pony she’d been reflected from: Luna.

And she wasn’t alone. Another figure had appeared behind her, brought by the same Alicorn’s teleport. Sapphire Breeze, with a few patches of mane missing and a bruised face, but otherwise intact. She grinned at Nightfall, exposing a newly missing tooth.

“You’ve now lived my greatest shame, Nightfall Storm. You’ve seen the awful creature I created. The suffering she would’ve brought against Equestria.”

“You…” Midnight’s disorientation from her mind control was fading quickly—probably way quicker than it had from the other ponies. “You’re here? You knew about this, and you didn’t help?” 

Nightfall winced at the sound of her voice—something told her that wasn’t the way one was supposed to talk to a princess.

But Luna didn’t seem to care. If the breach of protocol bothered her, she said nothing about it. “Not until the end of the spell. Your friend here was informing me… but when Nightmare Moon died, I felt that. And I knew where you had gone.” She smiled weakly. “What did you think of it, child?”

“I… didn’t want to be part of it anymore,” Nightfall answered. “The things it wanted for Equestria would’ve hurt my friends. It had already hurt my family.”

“I could not have faced her and refused,” Princess Luna said, her voice agonized. “She mastered me, long ago. I gave of myself… so much. More than most ponies will ever have. But what lures were irresistible to me, you ignored.” She turned just slightly, her eyes settling on Midnight Storm. “It seems you taught her well. As I said, there was no way to outwit the cult, or spy out their secret places. But Nightmare Moon… there was one pony she couldn’t control. Herself.”

“I don’t understand.” The words were out before she knew what she was saying. But this might be Nightfall’s last chance to ask, and so she wasn’t going to let shyness win over now. “Was I wrong? Was I really her, or… why did that work? Why is… everypony free? All I did was say no…”

Princess Luna circled around the ruined castle. Her horn glowed in the light of the moon, and with its light Nightfall Storm was transported back. Not just her—Midnight was there, and Sapphire. 

Instead of an ancient ruin, the Castle of the Two Sisters was a perfection of engineering as impressive as Canterlot was now. Banners faded and rotted with time regained their luster, and broken windows knit themselves together. The blanket of fallen leaves vanished from the gaps in the ceiling, and the torches on the walls all lit themselves again.

The walls seemed to become transparent, and they saw a massive bedroom. There, Princess Luna lay upon a flowing blanket, curled up and writhing in torment. “You remember my suffering, Nightfall Storm. You inherited it. But what you don’t remember—can’t remember, was the one who answered my pleading when my sister and nopony in Equestria would.”

“Me,” Nightfall supplied.

“Not… precisely,” Luna said. Shadow rose up from the distant bedroom, swallowing the princess, transforming her. “There is a place that is no place—a realm beyond time, beyond good and evil and everything else. It is a changeless, ceaseless eternity, where stillborn things that could never exist emerge briefly from the probabilistic foam only to melt away again. Limbo, if you like—a frozen eternity, where nothing ought to live. Those ponies who summon forbidden forces—the arts we call Dark Magic—all their power comes from there.

“But just because a creature came from there—just because they were a demon—does not mean they would remain so. Nightmare Moon emerged into our world and was shaped by my feelings at the time. All the resentment I felt for my family, the betrayal that had consumed me, that was all she knew.”

“But that wasn’t what Nightfall had,” Midnight supplied for the princess, her anger melting away. “She didn’t come here to be hated by an Alicorn. She wasn’t rejected by Equestria.”

“She might’ve been,” Princess Luna said. “Except that she had the company of ponies who were familiar with that danger. Ponies who knew what could come of a life of alienation and abandonment. Ponies who did not allow that to happen.” She nodded respectfully to Midnight, and Sapphire.

“But ultimately, the decision was yours, Nightfall. You could decide to change your nature if you wanted to. You could give up one kind of life for another. I have been studying the ritual spell for this long time—and I understood it as my sister never could. Her mind has been touched little by this magic, but I cast it myself long ago. I invited you here once.”

Nightfall recoiled, retreating a step from the Alicorn and behind the safety of Midnight Storm. After all that she’d endured, the night’s confusion was already fading. Midnight had fought harder than anypony else in town. Had very nearly overcome the awful mind-control through sheer force of will. It would not be hard to forgive her.

“And you’re… not going to try to get rid of me, are you? I like Equestria. I don’t want to hurt it.”

“No, you don’t,” Princess Luna said. “You don’t need to insist so loudly—I know you are telling the truth. You couldn’t have denied your own desires otherwise. In doing that, you unmade those parts of yourself, returned them to Limbo. Now you’re what remains.” She looked away, staring wistfully up into the sky. “A little shame that most of my power is gone forever now. It will need to be restored over a long time—for both of us. But it’s a worthwhile sacrifice.”

She leaned forward, resting a hoof on Nightfall’s shoulder. Nightfall felt herself stiffen all over as Luna touched her, as though it might be the prelude to any number of terrible attacks.

But there were no attacks. Luna let go another second later, and turned. The illusion of the perfected castle faded away, and they were returned to the ruins instead. “The damage the Children of Nightmare did is mine to repair, not yours. It may take years. But when I am done… it will be finished. I can finally move on.”

“Wait!” Sapphire Breeze called, her voice betraying just a hint of panic. “What about Nightfall? Should she… still be hiding now? Do we need to leave Ponyville again? Your sister never told me.”

Luna shrugged. “I think that should be Nightfall’s choice now, not mine or yours. The past is dead—she doesn’t have to be forced to hide over a pony that I once was.”

The moonlight grew brighter around the princess for a moment, and the fallen leaves were stirred in a gentle breeze. When they finally settled down, the princess was gone.

The palace no longer seemed terrifying to Nightfall Storm. The shadows didn’t lengthen, and there was no patch of ground that seemed to empty into oblivion. She saw only old stone, and broken glass. Maybe a fun place to explore, if she could bring her friends here. Except maybe Aura. She might hurt herself. 

“I’m glad you’re okay,” Midnight said, and the tears had returned to her eyes. “I broke my promise to you. I said I’d keep you safe, but I couldn’t. You shouldn’t… you shouldn’t have had to fight them.”

Nightfall shrugged her shoulder. Then she rushed up and embraced the kirin, all previous pain forgotten. “It’s okay, Mom. Maybe you couldn’t fight the cult… but you taught me how to say no. That’s all the protection I needed.”

Sapphire joined them a moment later, and Nightfall welcomed her into the hug too. Somehow, she wouldn’t have felt her family would be complete otherwise.

“I hope you don’t go either,” she said, her voice timid. “Now that… I don’t need protecting. I’d like it better if you stayed.”

“I think I can work something out.”
> Chapter 26: Epilogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The damage of the Children of Nightmare could not be forgotten in an hour, even with the mind-parasite defeated at last. By the time they made it back to Ponyville, the city was positively swarming with royal guards, with every citizen corralled out of their homes and into the protection of city hall for a night of uneasy sleep and endless questioning.

In some ways, it seemed like something she wouldn’t want to miss—surprise sleepover for the whole town! But she didn’t get the chance.

Celestia had returned, and she was apparently first on her list.

Nightfall tensed as they made their way up the stairs in city hall, past dozens of guards in shining gold armor. “I don’t suppose I can get out of this one,” she muttered, dragging her hooves as she made her way down the hall.

“After saving the world? You probably could.” Midnight stopped a foot away, turning back to watch her with concern. The guards waiting by the mayor’s office door made no effort to speed them up. “But the last time wasn’t so bad, was it?” Midnight settled one of her wings on Nightfall’s shoulder, nudging her to look up with one hoof. “You did it, Nightfall. You did something even Luna couldn’t do. You honestly think her sister is going to be upset with you?” She tapped one hoof against Nightfall’s horn. “You’re one of them, Nightfall. You’re going to have to make friends with the Alicorns sooner or later.”

The door opened, and Nightfall caught a single glimpse of dawn light swirling around the desk before it shut again, and Sapphire emerged from within. She still looked a little worse for wear, with thick bandages wrapping around her neck and covering one eye. But she was on her hooves again, despite that.

She hurried over, stopping beside Midnight. “Warmed her up for you,” she said, grinning. “Though… she might still want to hear the whole story from you. The Children of Nightmare did take over a whole town.”

“And after that… it’s over, huh?” Midnight said. She sounded almost… no, that couldn’t be disappointment.

“Over,” Sapphire agreed. She smiled down at Nightfall. “I think you lost this, sweetie.” She tossed something onto the floor in front of her—the enchanted headband. Or… maybe this was a different one, because she couldn’t see any sign of damage.

“Guess that means no more guards,” Midnight went on, as though there’d been no interruption. Is she afraid? I didn’t think she was afraid of anything. Then Nightfall looked up, and saw the way the kirin was watching Sapphire.

Sapphire shrugged, apparently too battered to notice. “That depends on her.” She nodded towards the door. “Might as well just go in, before you scare yourself more than the princess would ever do.”

“Yeah.” She glanced over her shoulder. “Will you come with me?”

Midnight answered with a hug. “Even a princess couldn’t take you away from me.”

Princess Celestia had transformed the little office in the short time she’d been there. Nightfall couldn’t see the walls anymore, and instead only a clear path leading straight to the desk where Celestia sat. In any other direction the princess’s magic made it seem like they were outside at the top of an impossibly high mountain, with only a brilliant sunny sky on either side.

It stung her eyes for a moment, but that didn’t last. She didn’t feel the need to crawl under a rock and hide anymore.

“You made it,” the princess said, watching them approach from behind the desk. “There was less time to prepare than I would’ve liked—for any of you.”

Midnight stood tall beside Nightfall, unintimidated by the day princess as most ponies were. But then, Sapphire didn’t seem frightened either. If they’re not afraid, then I’m not afraid. “It was enough for Nightfall, princess. She was ready the moment I met her.”

“That may be true,” she said. “The outcome certainly speaks for itself. But I would like to hear the account personally.” She gestured towards Nightfall. “From you. While ponies across Equestria will celebrate, I cannot join them until I know.”

Midnight glanced briefly down at Nightfall, as if to ask if she wanted to be rescued from telling the story. But this time, Nightfall ignored the offer. She could handle this.


She explained everything, with Midnight filling in what she remembered as somepony briefly captured by the cult. The story took a long time to tell, but the princess let her tell it her own way. 

“That’s really it,” Princess Celestia finally said, when the story was done. “You separated from her forever. Even with all that she was offering you.”

Nightfall nodded.

“We don’t have to wonder if the effect was permanent,” Celestia went on. “The ponies she captured were set free. She never would’ve done that if she had a choice. Nightmare Moon was… absolute. She never gave up a drop of power without being forced.” She leaned back in her chair, smiling weakly. “I guess she would have to be, to think that making the night last forever was a good idea.

“Thank you, Nightfall. Your actions have helped my sister to heal in a way I never could’ve done. Equestria will never understand what you have done tonight—in a few days, I suspect they will not even remember. But I will. If there is anything you wish, anything in my power to grant, you only need to ask.”

Nightfall didn’t hesitate for a second. “I want to stay in Ponyville,” she exclaimed. “It seemed like keeping me here was just to stay away from the cultists, and that you would’ve wanted me closer. But I don’t want to be closer, I’ve already made friends here.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “My mom did too. I don’t know if we still need any guards or whatever, but I’d like it a lot if Sapphire got to stay too.”

She laughed. “I think I can make arrangements for that. Ponyville has already proven to be a useful magical training ground for another of my students, and Canterlot’s court would devour you. There will come a time when you need instruction only an Alicorn can provide… but that doesn’t have to come today, or even this decade.

“Will you hide your identity?” Princess Celestia rose, and at once the illusion all around them melted away. A distant glow emerged from the windows on one side, seeming to light the whole village on fire. Had the princess done that? If so, she’d moved the sun with barely any apparent effort.

“I don’t see how I could,” Nightfall muttered. “I’m sure some ponies saw me come in.”

“Maybe they did,” she agreed. “But they also saw Ponyville taken over by cultists telling them the world was about to end. If anypony noticed you, I’m sure they’ll rationalize it away. You could go back to the way things were, if you wanted.”

“Do I have to?”

Princess Celestia stopped only feet away, towering above Nightfall. It was strange to be near a pony who could make even Midnight seem normal. “You’ve earned the right to choose. But understand, choosing doesn’t mean having any control over how ponies react. Even if I went downstairs and demanded that the population of Ponyville accept you, that would only breed greater resentment. Their actions are their own.”

“Are we going to tell Equestria what happened?” Midnight asked. “When I came to Ponyville, the townspeople were happy to see me because they thought I was here to protect them from future attacks. If they knew what Nightfall had done saving them, I can’t see them caring that she’s an Alicorn.”

Celestia nodded. “Not with the details you’ve just told me. But they will be told. And just as importantly, assured that the danger is over at last. The Children of Nightmare will never return now that their master has…” She trailed off. “Well, not died, exactly. But won’t be able to return to Equestria.”

“Then…” Nightfall slipped the headband back on, and watched her horn vanish again. “I’ll wait a little while to tell them. Until tomorrow.

But Nightfall was tired—barely even on her hooves anymore. She tried to stay awake through the rest of Midnight’s conversation with Luna. But her mom was so close, and after everything she’d endured that day…

She climbed up onto Midnight’s back, and everything got blurry after that.





“You don’t mind, do you?” Midnight asked, when they had finally finished with the princess and were heading home. They weren’t kept inside with the rest of Ponyville, not with the sun already rising and all the interviews finished.

Nightfall still rested on her back, thoroughly asleep now. She might be an Alicorn, but she was still a child, and her last day had been nothing if not traumatic. Something told her that she wouldn’t be making it to school today.

“Do I mind that Midnight asked for me? That I won’t be assigned anywhere else in Equestria for a while? I can’t imagine why I would. Ponyville’s a wonderful little town, and it’s halfway to lots of more interesting places.”

Midnight smacked her with the flat of her tail, annoyed. “That isn’t what I mean, and you know it. Do you mind staying with us? Nightfall and me.”

Sunrise over Ponyville showed the damage of the night’s attack in sharp relief. Lots of broken windows, a home that had burned down near the Everfree. Midnight caught sight of Twilight emerging from the library on the other side of town, and she waved one hoof. The unicorn waved back, as weak-looking as Midnight felt.

“Nightfall is wonderful,” Sapphire answered. “In a way, she beat the princess. And training an Alicorn… that’s a rare opportunity.”

Midnight nodded, though she couldn’t stop her tail from whipping about behind her in increasing frustration. “I agree with you completely. Surely those things are the only reasons worth staying in Ponyville.”

“Well…” Sapphire stopped walking, right in from of their little house. Its front windows were among the many that had been shattered the night before, and already leaves and trash had blown into the empty storefront. Really ought to do something with that. Maybe now that there’s not a cult to run away from.

Sapphire leaned close to her for a few seconds, and Midnight froze. Whatever frustration she had been feeling turned to nervous anticipation. “I made you dinner. Before…” She flicked her tail around the square. “Well, before this. Kinda ruined the evening. Maybe I could take you out instead. Uh… and Nightfall can come too! If she wants to. She might sleep for days after what happened, but—”

“I’d love to,” Midnight interrupted, before the pegasus could get even more worked-up. “But it doesn’t have to… I’m sure Nightfall will want to catch up with her friends.”





Nightfall could hardly imagine her good luck. It had only been a few days since the end of the Nightmare Cult—less than a day since Celestia and her sister had come out before Ponyville and explained everything that had happened. She could still remember sitting in the audience as Luna praised a “helpful new alicorn, who arrived to assist Equestria at our time of greatest need,” without once naming her or prompting her to come forward. 

Some part of her had wanted to then, so that at the very least she would have her true identity revealed and could move forward. Midnight had spoken several times about her experiences in other parts of Equestria—at the distrust and fear she felt when she revealed her secrets, and Nightfall didn’t want to repeat her mistake.

But ultimately, Celestia’s word of caution had won her over, and Nightfall had kept her mouth closed. She would share the truth about herself with all Equestria in time, but she didn’t want to start with something that public.

No, she would start with her friends.

It seemed almost as though a helpful adult was meddling somewhere, because the very next night a sleepover was organized at Zipporwhill’s house and most of the ponies she knew were invited. The reasons were boring and over her head—several homes had apparently been damaged during the attack, and a remodeling crew was in from Canterlot who wanted to fix as many as possible overnight. Ponyville didn’t have any hotels, so…

Her own home was one of those that had been damaged, and first on the list to repair. So she wasn’t even a little bit surprised that they wouldn’t be allowed to use it for the night.

The night included plenty of what Nightfall had expected from a sleepover, even if she had only her friends’ stories of past adventures to go on. There was staying up too late eating things they shouldn’t, and plenty of “board games.” All new adventures for her, and things she’d be eager to try again.

But Nightfall was really just waiting patiently for the end of the night, after Zipporwhil’s mother “put them to bed” in a row of mismatched sleeping bags beside the embers of the dying fireplace, and they began whispering scary stories. She waited patiently as Aura told one about a headless horse patrolling the everfree forest, as Zipporwhill recounted something about getting lost during a rainstorm.

But then it was her turn. “I’ve got something nopony here has ever heard before,” she declared proudly, sitting up against the wall and spreading her wings. “The story of the pony who used to be Nightmare Moon.”

“That sounds kinda familiar,” Aura said. “You mean, like… what Princess Celestia said yesterday?”

“Kinda,” Nightfall admitted. “You just… wait until the end. You might change your mind. But before I can tell you, you need to promise not to tell anypony else. This is… our secret. Secret stories like this are too secret to share.”

It wasn’t hard to get their promises—frankly she wondered what she would’ve had to say for them to refuse. And so she told them. Waking up terrified in the woods, running from cultists and getting all stabbed and cut to pieces by dangerous plants, until a helpful kirin out in the woods rescued her. Her arrest, interrogation, and eventual assignment to Ponyville. 

“But how do you know all that?” Featherweight interrupted, the first to say anything during the several minutes it took to explain. You didn’t even move in until...”

“Wait until the end,” she urged. “You’ll see.” And she went on—about the great new friends she’d made in Ponyville, and how wonderful and welcoming it had been. How much she loved it compared to the world she’d come from, and never wanted to leave. But then evil cultists had attacked, trying to take away the nice new world and bring the mean old one back.

“And so the cultists were gone,” she finally finished. “They got to go back to being good ponies again. Nightmare Moon was gone for good, and Equestria was saved. Then she got invited to this wonderful sleepover, ate way too many marshmallows, and… got to tell a story.”

“Really?” Liza asked, her voice a nervous little squeak. “Is all that… did you just make all that up? About… going into Limbo, and stopping Nightmare Moon? Being taken away into the Everfree, watching everpony get mind controlled…”

“Unless you were just… listening really good when Princess Celestia told us stuff. Maybe… some of that was in there and we just didn’t notice?”

Nightfall reached up with one hoof, and removed the illusion headband, tossing it onto the sleeping bag in front of her. The change wasn’t much—her eyes, horn, and teeth would appear as they really were, clear for the other ponies to see.

A part of her still expected gasps, screams, shrieks of terror. But none of that came. After a few seconds of staring, Aura was the first to recover her voice. “That’s amazing!” she finally said, maybe a little too loud. Adult hoofsteps sounded through the ceiling overhead. “You’re… Celestia was right! There really is another Alicorn!”

As Liza’s mother made her way downstairs, Nightfall hastily tugged the headband back on, making her look like a regular pegasus all over again.

“But it’s our secret,” Nightfall said. “At least… for a little while longer.”