It had been a very long time since I last had a nightmare. So long that I would not even remember it if I did not go out of my way to recount my failures, they are many, but worthy of remembrance. More than any pony in Equestria I can rightfully claim that I have never made the same mistake twice. I paused and reflected with some annoyance that this has not stopped me from making all new ones.

Walking through dreams is a complicated affair, but one I had grown accustomed to. They say in order to perfect an art one must invest at least 10,000 hours. I have invested quite a bit more in my nightly charge. Even so, no amount of familiarity could prepare me for what happened next.

Sleepers are like little worlds, but they are rarely isolated. Threads connect us to the ponies we love, and indeed the ponies we hate. Finding yourself in Pinkie Pie’s dreams is a simple endeavor. I often found myself there quite by accident, much to my chagrin. I did not have many of these connections at all. So you can imagine how I felt when the two closest to me were severed, one at a time.

My teacher, my other half, my big sister. Just like that, she was gone, and tremors shook the dreamlands as my heart shattered. I curled up on the soft grass of some nameless landscape and tried to recover, but fate would not offer me any respite. My first real friend since becoming a nightmare myself, she was gone too. I felt something very vague, and undefined. This was betrayal, but I knew not of what sort.

I pressed a hoof firmly against my chest and struggled for a breath that should not have been necessary, and yet...

Tears started to pour down my face, matting the fur and falling to the ground with a steady tapping sound that seemed to send echoes through the world around me. I had failed again, everypony dreaming that night would no doubt feel the echoes of their ruler’s despair. Such weakness is... it is unseemly.

But what did they matter, anyway? Celestia and Twilight Sparkle were gone. I had never been more sure of anything before in my life. Even in this state of heartache, my past betrayed me. You finally got your wish it said, do you not remember when you longed for this day? Now you are truly alone, and nopony will be there to stop you from doing whatever pleases you.

It’s the final straw. I did not know myself then, so how can I know myself now? How can I ever know myself again without Sister to show me? Without Twilight to guide me? I lowered my head to the ground and shielded my face with a wing, listening to the soft metronome of too loud and definite tear drops splashing to the ground.

Drip.

Drip.

I blinked, and the cruel solidity of my chambers begins to crowd my beleaguered vision. “How long did I sleep for?” I grumbled as the soft glare of sunlight managed to bore it’s way into my mind like a railroad spike. I have delicate eyes.

A steady drip of soda pop fell down from the distant ceiling and splashed against my ear, which I flicked with irritation.

“Oh don’t worry, you slept through the entire night! Just like a wittle filly...” That sardonic tone barely required a thought to be placed. "I've actually been trying to wake you up for hours. Screaming in your face didn't work, mooning you didn't work, It's always the little things that annoy us enough to force a response." He snapped his fingers and the dripping stopped.

“Discord... I am not in the mood for your games.”

“And why not? You didn’t sleep well? The princess of dreams didn’t have any nightmares did she? That would be such a shame...”

I finally rose from my cushion, a suitable replacement for a cloud in the heavens, and looked around for my persistent tormenter. “If I did, it would be no concern of yours! I...” I stop short and finally begin to remember the events from before I awoke. “Discord... Where is my sister, and where is Princess Twilight Sparkle?”

“You know some ponies don’t really like watching trains, but I find it really fascinating to watch them switch tracks.” His serpentine likeness was only just visible in the corner of my room. Damn glare, the sun can be such a nuisance.

“Where. Is. My. Sister!?” My sister and... colleague, had encouraged me to avoid such acts of intimidation, and had claimed that it was a sign of wisdom and restraint to avoid that particular voice amplification spell. I was far beyond playing games with a spirit of chaos, however.

Discord reached up with one clawed hand and dug around furiously in his ears before removing a comically large fragment of brimstone. “She’s gone, your little friend is too.” His sneer was awful, just like old times. “You’re all alone, Luna.”

“It... It cannot be so!” My terror was impossible to restrain. “Tell me where they are immediately! Or I’ll-”

“Or you’ll whatt? Poke around in my dreams and keep me from getting a decent night’s sleep? You haven’t been relevant for just over 1,000 years now. The only thing that ever gave you strength was your sister, and I didn’t even need to get involved. You threw that away all on your own, didn’t you?”

With a wail of rage I leapt from the ground and soared at my offender. I was so stupid. Had I not made that mistake the first time we confronted each other, all those centuries ago? So much for my perfect record on repeat offenses. Of course he vanished in a puff of smoke, and of course that damnable snapping of digits echoed through my chamber not a second later. Chains of liquorice wrapped around my figure and pulled taut, slamming me into the ground.

“Tsk Tsk... You know, I was going to let you be my understudy. Nightmare Moon wasn’t all that bad, at least you had ‘some’ style back then. You weren’t entirely without flare, but that said I can’t say I find your present demeanor agreeable. Besides, eternal night is not nearly chaotic enough to suit my interests. I don’t think I’m going to let you set one hoof on this stage now.”

“I will never forgive you for this!” I struggled uselessly against my imprisonment. Even magic did not avail me, as the bonds merely absorbed any magical interference before growing in size. It was starting to get quite painful.

“Oh come on, like I’ve never heard that line before.” He snapped his fingers and I found myself face to face with the villain. “See Lovely Lulu, there’s a reason why you’re destined for irrelevancy, you’re just not that creative.”

I admit that despite my rage, it hurt to hear such a critique of my character. It hurt even worse because it was coming from him. He had betrayed me, betrayed my sister, betrayed Twilight... I hadn’t even been involved in one step of the dance.

“Now take me for example, I can get very creative. I just love improvising!” He coughed loudly and dramatically. “By way of example!”

For Five Score! Divided by Four!

Your Memories Removed! Your Body Confused!

He halted his chant, the dark aura of chaotic energy swirling around him seemed to recede a bit. He coughed again to clear his throat and pulled a script from the air behind him, a pair of reading glasses materialized on his loathsome snout.

“Blah Blah Blah, Insolence, Blah Blah Blah Far Away Land... Ah! Here we are!”

Your inhibitions unchecked, your sanity wrecked!

A lifetime of irrelevancy is sure to be a bore!

But you have to admit! It’s better than the moon!

I smiled and gloated, or at least as much as one can while bound in crushing candy chains. “Thou thinkest that thy curse will hold true? The ending does not even rhyme!”

Much to my alarm, the receding chaos stormed toward me. This wasn't the trickster magic I was accustomed to. This wasn't cotton candy, chocolate milk, and bamboozled stallions. This was darkness. I shuddered because what it really reminded me of was myself, the way I had been one thousand years ago.

The last thing I see are his sickly yellow eyes and furious sneer. “Since when did Chaos ever need to rhyme?” Next Chapter: Nothing to Write Home About Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 8 Minutes