Nightmare Moon stood before the mirror, studying herself. She could not help but smile at the sight in front of her.

She looked hot, sexy, and dangerous. More importantly, she looked almost exactly as she did when she had first returned during The Summer Sun Celebration. She was a tall and powerful alicorn -- about the same size as Princess Celestia herself -- with an ethereal mane and tail filled with stars floating behind her.

It was an impressive set of illusionary magical spells.

It was also a little upsetting to see. First, it was a reminder of what she had been. The frightening and ferocious alicorn that had come down from the moon, and instilled fear into the hearts of the little ponies. She had thought herself as all-powerful and unbeatable. She had been wrong. Still, she missed the form and the power that came with it.

Although, what would she do with it if she had it now? She did still want to rule Equestria, but to what end? As she had said to Luna at The Grand Galloping Gala, she would no longer create an eternal night. She wanted ponies to worship her, to fear her, not to freeze or starve to death.

Nightmare looked at the figure in the mirror, no longer smiling. It seemed like the pony she now saw was no longer her. Even putting aside that she was only a pegasus while the figure before her was an alicorn, she just did not feel like that was her any more. The months that she had spent in Ponyville as a mortal seemed to have changed her.

So if she was no longer Nightmare Moon, then who in Equestria was she? Everything about her had been stripped away, and all that remained was an illusion of who she had been. A pale reflection of the creature that had descended from the moon to create a dark world where she would rule over all.

That was the second thing that was upsetting. The illusory version of Nightmare Moon could just as easily have been played by any pony. Actually, it probably would be a lot easier for some to play the part than her. From what she had been told, Luna simply used a plastic set of fangs and her own magical shifting abilities to look like Alicorn Nightmare Moon. Twilight Sparkle could easily cast a few spells around herself to do it as well.

Pushing the thoughts aside, Nightmare Moon turned her attention to the barding instead. That was far different from what Alicorn Nightmare Moon had been wearing when she was first appeared. It was the same color, but more like actual armor. A metal horn protruded from the helmet, set directly under her "horn" and offering it some protection as well. Instead of having her neck bare and unprotected, the criniere covered it like plates on an armadillo. The peytral was larger and more ornate, protecting not only the base of her neck and chest, but covering her shoulders and the base for each wing as well. The new armor also had a flanchard to protect her backside, although the opening in it to show off her cutie mark made it far less protective than it should be. Still, it did look quite impressive.

"Ma'am?" a stallion called out.

Nightmare turned and looked at him. He was a dark, charcoal grey pegasus. His mane and tail were hidden by the night guard style armor that he wore. Shame it had not been enchanted to make him look like a batpony, but the way he currently looked would do pretty well for the most part.

"Should you not salute your leader?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. The stallion rolled his eyes and gave shake of his head, but still brought one of his hooves up to his head.

"Very sloppy," Nightmare stated with a shake of her head. "Perhaps I should send you back to basic training."

"If you think that you can find a suitable replacement in the next few minutes, go ahead," the stallion retorted. "Anyway, I'm here to tell you that everything is set up as you asked and the effects are about to begin."

"Good," Nightmare said as she started toward the door. "Let's get in position and ready then." The stallion moved aside to let her pass before moving to join her.

"I am curious," Nightmare stated. "How did you come to be involved in this... event?"

"I volunteered," the stallion answered. "Rumble -- my little brother -- missed it when Princess Luna showed up during the last Nightmare Night. When the weather team got word of what was going on, it sounded like a great idea. I figured that by being a part of it, Rumble would have more fun." He grinned. "You should have seen how excited he was when he saw me in the armor."

"How... nice," Nightmare said softly, turning away from the stallion and looking at the wall.

"Is something the matter?"

Nightmare Moon considered the question. She had no ponies that she could call family. The closest thing would be Princess Luna who she had possessed, and Princess Celestia who she had tried to overthrow multiple times. Oh, and Rarity and Sweetie Belle in a way, which again was tied to her having taken possession of one of them. There were only about two ponies that could be seen as friends. One Nightmare did not like to think of in that way. Sure, she could not hold a grudge against Twilight for all that happened, but she still did not wish to get along with her. The other was a mare that she was in love with. A part of her was terrified at the idea. Love meant vulnerability, allowing a pony to get close meant that pony would have the ability to hurt her. Even if it was by having something happen to them.

Cherry...

"Fine," Nightmare stated. "Now come on." She pushed the door open. "I want to be in position to hear the story about this night."

Shutting the door behind them, the two took off. Using the clouds and buildings as cover, the two made their way to the town hall. As Nightmare Moon flew, she took notice of how thick the cloud coverage was around the building. There was still plenty of clear skies for the stars and moon to shine down, but also more than enough for Nightmare's big entrance.

Landing on the topmost walkway, Nightmare Moon walked around to where the stage had been set up and ponies were gathering. Taking off her helmet -- and dispelling her alicorn illusion for the moment -- she set it aside and laid down. Slowly she poked her head over the side. This way, she would be able to watch the presentation without being too noticeable and also wait for her cue. Very few ponies would bother to look up, and those that did would most likely just assume that she was just another pegasus trying to get a good seat.

Once settled in, she watched as the presentation started.

"There," Nightmare called out. "That is our cue to begin." Standing up, she grabbed her helmet. "Go and begin the thunder and lightning."

"Right," the stallion said and took off.

Nightmare placed the helmet back on her head, watching the ethereal mane appear behind her. Her wings ran along the criniere to make sure they were properly laying down, then she moved around to other side of the town hall again. Even as she moved, Nightmare could catch sight of the lightning flashing.

Taking off, she flew around to where the crowd was. Stopping, she allowed another flash of lightning and crash of thunder to fill the air. Once it had passed fully, Nightmare lowered herself beneath the cloud coverage. She gave a flap to rise and spread her wings out wide, hoping the timing was right.

There was a flash of lightning directly behind her. She could see the light from it move around her. The roar of the thunder filled her ears, echoing through them and deafening her. The armor protected her from both the lightning (in case she actually got caught in the flash instead of in front of it) and the worse of the ear-splitting explosion. Still, it was loud enough to keep her from hearing any gasps of the ponies below.

The entrance had the desired effect. All eyes were on her. Ponies were staring at her, jaws hanging open in shock.

Grinning widely, she let herself glide down to the ground. Landing with a gentle thump, she posed, spreading her wings as wide as they could go and lifting her head high. Taking a deep breath, she tried to mimic The Royal Canterlot Voice.

"Citizens of Ponyville!" she bellowed out. "I, Nightmare Moon, have RETURNED!"

Her announcement was marked by another flash of lightning and boom of thunder.

The paralysis that held the ponies in place finally seemed to give way. High pitched screams filled the air, and Nightmare Moon noted that not all of them were from foals. Many of the ponies began to run around in panic. A trio of mares fainted, flopping to the ground where they had been standing.

Not all of the ponies were running and panicking. Some merely stood, just watching her. The Cutie Mark Crusaders stood next to Big Macintosh, seeming unfrightened. No surprise since they were aware of the performance, and having such a large stallion protect them probably helped.

As she looked at the remaining ponies, one in particular caught her eye. Standing off to one side was a pink filly with a pale violet and white mane and tail.

Diamond Tiara.

The little brat was standing there, watching Nightmare Moon with wide eyes. A large pink horn stuck out from her mane, just below the namesake piece of jewelry that she wore. There was also a large pair of pink wings protruding from her sides, spread open for all to see.

Nightmare's eyes narrowed as she grinned, showing off her sharp teeth. She moved toward Diamond Tiara.

"You have every right to be frightened, my little ponies," Nightmare shouted as she walked. "For I hunger for the flesh of foals, and so I have decided to make Ponyville my feast for tonight." Opening her mouth, she licked her lips hungrily. "And I think I have found the perfect place to start: a nice, juicy little princess."

Diamond Tiara's eye went wide as her ears dropped. Her entire body seemed to shrink down, as she tried to make herself smaller. Whether it was from fear or courage, she did not run.

The same could not be said for the gray filly that had been with her.

Nightmare reached out with a hoof and placed it on top of Tiara.

"My, my," she purred out. "Such a lovely little princess. I bet you'll taste absolutely delicious." Leaning down, she opened her mouth wide, showing off her teeth. A squeak from the filly beneath her reached her ears.

It would be so easy. All Nightmare Moon would have to do is take one bite out of Diamond Tiara. Not enough to injure the filly, or do any sort of permanent damage. Just enough to cause a little bit of pain and quite a bit of humiliation. Everypony that used to fear her would know that she had been frightened, that Nightmare Moon had bitten her. In truth, no other pony would actually care, or they would be sympathetic to her plight of being bitten by a monster, but the little wannabe princess would see it as a loss of her power. The brat would see it as weakness, that she had lost part of her authority as a big pony of the playground. All Nightmare had to do was lean a little more and bite down on-

"You can't do that!" a voice called out, drawing Nightmare Moon from her malicious thoughts and turning her attention away from her supposed meal.

Standing not far from her was a little white colt with a brown spot over one side of his face. His mane and most of his body was covered by dark purple armor. The young colt stood up as straight as he could, legs wide as he looked directly at Nightmare Moon. There was a momentary flinch when his eye met hers, but otherwise he did not move.

Nightmare suddenly liked the brave little colt. Foolish, if this had been real, but brave. Plus, his reaction and appearance were some things that she could work with.

Straightening up, she turned away from Diamond Tiara -- hearing the filly scurry away from her quickly -- and turned her full attention to the armored colt.

"Well, well," she said as she took a step forward, "it seems that Princess Luna has sent one of her guards to stop me. Tell me, little soldier, what is your name?"

"Pi-Pipsqueak, ma'am," the young pony squeaked out.

"Pipsqueak, you say?" Nightmare asked, tilting her head as she raised an eyebrow. "A lieutenant, I assume. So tell me, Lieutenant Pipsqueak, what do you mean I can't do that?"

"You... you can't just show up and start eating ponies," Pipsqueak stated. "I mean, we're supposed to have a chance to collect candy to give to you so you'll leave us alone, right?"

Nightmare Moon sat down, brought a hoof to her chin, and tapped it as she pretended to think. Admittedly, while she was tempted to take a real bite out of Diamond Tiara, actually biting any of the ponies was never part of the plan. The threat of it had merely been a part of the show, same as her pretending to consider the question. Had no pony stopped her, she would have done so herself, claiming to give the ponies a chance to save themselves for another year.

"Yes," she finally said, "I suppose that will work." She stood up and stomped her hoof.

"Very well," she called out as she turned to face the largest groups of ponies, wings spreading wide. "I shall grant you all one chance to save yourselves this night. You all already know when and where to bring the candy. If I am satisfied by the tribute, then you shall be permitted to live unharmed for another night. However!" She searched for Diamond Tiara. "Should you fail to do so, then I shall have my fill of pony flesh instead. Starting with the princess."

Diamond Tiara let out an audible gulp and took a step back as an armored hoof pointed at her.

Nightmare then turned back to Pipsqueak and said, "you are a very brave little soldier. I am sure that Princess Luna will be impressed with your courage when she reads the report."

With a flap of her wings, Nightmare Moon took off, heading up into the night sky.

"And remember, ponies!" she called out. "I will be watching!"

With that, she flew up into the clouds and out of sight of the ponies.

"Come on," she managed to hear somepony shout out. "We have to get as much candy as possible so she doesn't eat me."