Grogar took an uneasy, almost shaky, step forward. “So. Uh… where do babies come from?”

I could only place a hoof over my face and take dozens of rapid breaths to try and keep myself from losing all semblance of sanity. It was a battle that I was not meant to win by any means. Please, if the old gods have any mercy on me… end this now!

That’s when I felt it. Grogar must have sensed it too, as he snapped around to face the same direction I had.

The thick and ancient wooden double doors sealing the roofless chamber burst open in a magical blast of such power that it almost had me reeling. Out of the cloud of dust flew in Celestia looking less like the dignified princess of Equestria, and more like a blazing star given sentience. Her mane—normally an awe-inspiring rainbow of cerulean, cobalt blue, turquoise, and heliotrope—was alight with a flaming aura of golden solar fury. Her whole body was encased in the same golden armor she once donned like a second skin some one thousand years ago. It made her look less like a pony, and more like some kind of god-empress.

The first thing she did the instant the dust cleared was unleash a wave of energy that knocked all of Grogar’s followers down with such force that a few landed a few dozen meters away as nothing but twisted heaps. The few that didn’t get bent out of shape quickly got back up and charged.

Celestia made short work of them with a combination of magical attacks and nimble acrobatics that seemed impossible for a pony so heavily armored. I had to remind myself that the armor was enchanted, making it virtually weightless to her. Not so much for everyone else. I just hope she doesn’t brag about it on the way back home.

“Sister!” she cried out, setting her eyes on me, one of the cultists still wrapped in her telekinetic grip. “I came as soon as I was informed!” She tossed the masked pony aside and rushed to me, but not before delivering a blow of such ferocity that the metal mask on his face bent inwards. “Are you injured?”

Rather than give a spoken reply, I tried to stand up. But as I endeavored to do so, I stumbled back down and landed on my belly. I couldn’t help but yelp as I got the wind knocked right out of me, leaving me as a gasping mess.

My sister’s ears fell upon her head as her eyes lit with blazing fire the likes of which I had only seen once in my life: right before she delivered the smack down upon King Sombra. She glared at Grogar, who just stood there unfazed by eyes that would have made anyone else tremble and soil themselves.

“Fiend! What have you done to my sister!”

“Well,” Grogar started, “I, uh… hmm... well...” He rubbed the back of his neck and sheepishly grinned. “I-I might have borrowed... most of your sister’s magic,” He turned his attention back to me for a split second. “To, uh, recreate, Nightmare Moon!”

Celestia’s eyes fell on the miniature blue sun, at which point they widened to the size of small plates. “How the Tatarus did I miss that?” she half-muttered to herself. It was only on second inspection that the full magnitude of the blue ball of arcane plasma truly sunk in. “Is that... a SUN!” she shouted, taking a step back out of sheer shock.

Grogar laughed in reply. “Why, yes! Yes it is!” He teleported himself next to the infant star and placed a hoof on its surface. Against my expectation—or desires, for that matter—his limb went un-burnt. “Not too bad for a first attempt. Am I right?”

Celestia took a step forward, brow furrowed and teeth bared. “Did—did you say something about Nightmare Moon?!” she bellowed loud enough that the roofless chamber shook. She could have given my old Canterlot voice a run for its money.

Grogar’s eyes lit up. I wasn’t sure if it was with excitement, or fear. “Ah, yes. I did. You see...” He turned to face me, grin still plastered on his lips. “I originally thought that Luna was pretending to be ‘reformed’, and that she was still Nightmare Moon at heart.” He turned back to Celestia. “But I was wrong. Turns out she gave up on that personality the day she was defeated. Not wanting to force her into something she did not want, I instead opted to do a bit of Sourcery to make a new Nightmare Moon instead.” He once again rubbed the back of his neck. “But things have… changed. I’ve just been told by Luna that what I am doing is essentially giving birth to a child.” He stood on his hind legs and stretched his forelegs as far as they would go. “Isn’t it wonderful! I’m going to be a daddy!”

Celestia seemed to have ignored everything spoken by Grogar except for one thing: “Did you say you performed Sourcery?!” she asked, her posture quickly becoming one of battle readiness.

Grogar pouted for the second time that night. “Why is everyone acting like it’s a big a deal?! It wasn’t that difficult to do!” His smug smirk returned in full force. “Then again, I am talking to a wamby-pamby fluffy princess!” He snickered at what he no doubt he thought was a great insult. Had he been paying attention, he would have seen the fire intensify in my sister’s eyes to the point that she could have set any lesser being ablaze with her glare alone.

Celestia stomped her forehoof hard enough to leave cracks on the granite. “You! You seize my sister, strip her of her magic, trap her and attempt to force her back into the shadows, abuse natural forces that are beyond anypony’s right to control in order to create something that should not be, and still have the gall to insult me!?”

Grogar placed a hoof on his chin.

“YOU REALLY HAVE TO THINK ABOUT IT?!” I growled, unable to keep the question as an inner thought anymore.

Celestia lit her horn, the shimmering miasma glowing along with the pale moonlight. “Just who are you really? You cannot be the same Grogar spoken of in legend.” Her eyes hardened. “That Grogar, the one known as the Necromancer God, was vanquished long before the formation of Equestria. Our ancestors gave everything—everything—to seal him in shadow for all time!”

Grogar kept his smile intact despite the weapon directed at his being. “You are right in that I am not him.” He turned his head just enough to direct a single eye at me. “‘God’ does not mean I’m willing—or able—to rule.” His full attention went back to my sister. “But that doesn’t change the fact that I still control all of his power. Like it or not, I am his undisputed successor!” He laughed so wildly at his words that his sharp teeth glistened with the moonlight. “Sure, I’m no goat, demon, or demon goat—but who needs to be those when power and knowledge is all that really matters in the end?!”

The blue sun began to hum in a dull monotone. Every five to eight seconds, it dimly pulsated. Much like a beating heart.

Grogar turned to face his creation, eyes growing wide with what I could only really describe as ‘pride.’ “She’s almost ready to return to this world!” he giddily purred as he turned back to face my sister. “You might want to teleport to the nearest store to buy a gift or two. I think new Nightmare Moon will appreciate the gesture.”

Celestia’s already bright eyes did something I thought all but impossible: they intensified even further. I was shocked she wasn’t already shooting beams of fire from them. Her mane erupted like a volcano, losing all color and staying as bright and yellow as the sun. Her pale white coat turned a bright gold as the very ground she stood upon started glowing white hot.

Grogar snickered at the sight. “Whoa there, Celestia. All that fire can’t be good for your body!” He charged his three horns, his eyes setting themselves upon my sister’s being. “I know just the place for you to douse that fire of yours!” There was a bright flash of crimson that temporarily blinded me. When the light faded and my eyes had adjusted, she was gone.

“Wa-! Whe-! How…?” I growled and glared at Grogar. “Whe-where is she?!”

He chuckled. “I sent her someplace where she could put out all that fire.” Grogar lilted, the smile on his lips remaining absolutely serene. “I just hope she landed in a good spot, and not one of the more… unsavory locations.”

There was another flash. This time of a radiant gold. When the light faded, Celestia stood facing Grogar. Only, she was drenched head to hoof in both water and mud, and reeked of rotten plants and stagnation. Not even the gold armor was safe from the muck stains.

“I guess I miscalculated the landing zone. Oh well, at least you aren’t a little fireball anymore.”

Celestia’s glare only intensified. I could see the smoke rising from Grogar’s body as my sister’s scowl tried its best to turn the changeling into a pile of ash.

He stuck out his tongue at her. “Guess you didn’t like the bogs, did you?”

Celestia let out a roar. It was loud, primal, and absolutely filled with fury. The very earth shook in response.

“Still a little too hot to handle, I see. Maybe this time, you need to chill out.” Grogar’s horns became enveloped in magic once more. Celestia’s glare was barely on him when she once more vanished in another flash of red.

Grogar shook his head. “Really now. I was expecting her to be more serene than this.”

I slammed my hoof on the floor. It was about the only thing I could do to defy my enfeebled state. “She’s the sweetest, kindest, most forgiving being you will ever meet in this or any other life!” I shouted, my voice already feeling coarse. “You’ve done the impossible by angering her!” I felt a cold shiver run down my spine as memories of that fateful day played in the back of my head. “Only one other time has she been this furious at somepony else.” I set my glare on the changeling. “And I think you already know who that other individual was.”

Grogar shuddered. “Don’t remind me. Still get all shivery just thinking of having holes all over my body.”

Yet another flash of golden light. Celestia appeared from it again. This time though, half her body was encased in a thin crust of ice. What few parts that were not outright frozen sported small flurries of snow. Even the armor looked to have lost some of its gold hue. Despite the absolutely furious death glare she was giving Grogar, she could not stop her body from shivering.

Grogar took one look at her and broke into laughter. “OH, that’s just too much!” He stood on his hind legs and wrapped his forehooves around his chest as he let his body fall back as he hit the floor, rolling around in absolute jubilation. Even I had to bite my hoof to stop myself from giggling. It was terrible that I was finding my sister’s situation so amusing.

Celestia wrapped her whole body in flames this time. I could feel the heat even from my distance away.

“YOU. WILL. RESPECT. ME!” she bellowed, forming a sphere of solar energy.

My eyes widened. She meant to use the same spell which she had used against Chrysalis and her army at the battle of Trot. The same one that had left every single of the ‘lings forever scarred with holes If she uses that here, she’ll most certainly bring the whole place down!

I tried to raise my voice to stop her, but I was too late. With a mighty war cry, she unleashed the spell. The blast of pure white-hot arcana traveled towards Grogar in a matter of seconds. I could feel the hot air singe at my coat. It was like standing meters away from the sun itself!

Grogar stood back up just in time to face the blast. Against my expectations of him dodging or teleporting, he instead lowered his head and charged his horns. The blast made contact, swallowing his being.

“Hey!” He called out from somewhere within the blast of magic. “Trying to catch me off guard, huh? That ain’t nice!”

My sister’s eyes widened in absolute horror. Grogar, horns ablaze with his own scarlet energy, pooled the energy and redirected it skywards using nothing but his forehoof. The blast travelled into the ether of space, no doubt looking like a pillar of fire to anyone that bothered to be stargazing.

With a sigh and sly grin, he waved his hoof around. It was emanating smoke, yet looked no worse than an appendage that had been dipped in hot water.

He shook his head, all the while clicking his tongue. “Princess, you naughty you! Trying to strike me at my most vulnerable moment! With a spell that would have no doubt hurt your sisters, no less! Why, if all the rumors about you weren’t true, I would say you’re no better than that Tirek brute from a decade ago. For shame!” He trapped Celestia in his telekinetic grasp. “Since you’ve been a very bad filly, I think it’s only fair that you get a bit of a time out.” The grin on his lips grew.

Celestia glared swords at him. “You wouldn’t dare!”

Without another word, my sister vanished in a flash of red light. Grogar levitated his whole being, hooves placed together as he hovered towards me. “Question. Why was Celestia so angry at me?”

The stupidity of the question almost made me have an aneurism. Still, something compelled me to speak. “You really want to know why? Well then, sit your flank down and shut up while I tell you just why!” I took very deep breath and set Grogar with my harshest glare. It was somewhat livened by the fact that he had, in fact, taken a seat on his flank just as I had asked.

“Let’s start from the beginning.” I said, my voice staying as razor sharp as I could keep it. “You are the successor to the Necromancer God, a being whose exploits were etched into the very fiber of many civilizations’ myths. You foalnapped me during a time of celebration for Equestria and planned to see me transformed back into Nightmare Moon!”

“Which is not going to happen anymore, might I remind you,” Grogar interjected.

“That’s not the point!” I retorted, nose flaring as I tried to keep my anger in check. “You still abducted me! That alone is bad enough, but then you had to go and add fuel to the fire by having that ridiculous plan of yours!” I sat on my own hunches and crossed my hooves. “And after that, you went and stole most of my magic and used that to make little sunshine back there,” I motioned to the still pulsating blue sun in the ruined chambers. “And all for what? So you could live out a stupid little desire that makes absolutely no sense!”

Grogar’s brow furrowed. “What part of it makes no sense?” he asked, snapping his head upwards and huffing. “I think my plan makes perfect sense!”

“Oh really?” I leaned my head forward, smile creeping on my lips as I raised an eyebrow. “Have you seen the world lately?”

His ears folded.

“Have you noticed the lack of—oh, I don’t know—conflict?!” I snapped. Before Grogar could use that mouth of his to fib his nonexistent point, I interrupted him. “The world’s more at peace now that it has ever been! Sure, it’s not perfect, but that’s part of life!” I stomped my hoof and grimaced. “The way I look at it, the only conceivable reason you would want Nightmare Moon back is not because you think she can rule the world fairly—which she won’t. I can guarantee you that.” My grin widened. “It’s because you fell in love with her a thousand years ago!”

Gods dammit. Had I just said that outloud? What was wrong with me?!

Grogar stood up and took a step back out of sheer shock. “N-no! Y-you’re lying!”

Screw it. I’m already down this path. Push the advantage while I still have it!

“If you really wanted a companion,” I continued, rising quickly to add to the weight of my words. “Then why not go out there and find somepony instead of reviving a daemon to be one for you!?” I shouted the last of my words, the anger that had built up in me all but overriding the tidal wave of embarrassment. I couldn’t really tell if the fire now raging in my cheeks was because of the anger or the sheer awkwardness of the situation.

“B-b-b-but Luna,” Gorgar started, his face closer in coloration to a boiled tomato. “I-I-I’m—No—C-ca-can’t!” He took a visibly painful gulp. Of what, I didn’t know nor wanted to know. “N-N-Nightmare Moon was really the only one to understand me!” His eyes grew forlorn and large. I was reminded of a puppy’s stare. “She told me so herself before the fateful night of her banishment!”

I walked up to the him and grabbed hold of his shoulders, shaking him as hard as I could. “You idiot!” I bellowed, following that up with a single slap to his face. “She was manipulating you!” I slapped him across the other cheek with the back of my hoof. “Can’t you get that through that thick skull of yours!? She never actually liked you for who you were! She only wanted your power!” I grabbed hold of his head and twisted it to face his ‘star womb’—whose glowing pulses had increased to almost one every five seconds. “If you bring her back, you’re only going to be hurting yourself! Stop this lunacy before you make a mistake you’ll regret for the rest of eternity!”

Grogar shook my hooves off and took a step back from me. “I-I can’t.” He wrapped his right foreleg around his left forelimb. “I-I can’t—end—the process. It’s now self-sustaining! New Nightmare Moon will be born tonight!” He fixed me with a dull, but still fierce glare. “Stopping it now would be akin to murder!” His eyes grew steely. “And I will not kill. Ever!”

With each pulse, the figure of a small young mare was starting to become visible. Already, her power was matching that of my sister and myself. I furrowed my brow and tried to think of a way to end the madness unfolding before me, but every single conclusion I came up with involved destroying the star womb in some way. There was life inside that sun, even if it was something as potentially dangerous as Nightmare Moon. Life was still life.

What right did I have to end it?

I bit my lower lip. Maybe she’ll not be the same as I was a thousand years ago, I mused. After all, Nightmare Moon had been borne out of neglect, jealousy, and hatred. She hadn’t just come about overnight either. For years, she had existed in the back of my mind. She had started as a thought. She then turned into a second conscience. Then, a reflection that stared back with every glance of a mirror. Day by day, she grew more and more powerful as the neglect continued. Day by day, she convinced me she was my only salvation, and day by day I believed her to be absolutely right. Dark thoughts became moves of conspiracy against my sister, each ploy meant to further push Nightmare’s agenda and our grand plan. When at last I snapped, there no longer was any distinction between Nightmare Moon and myself.

I had become Nightmare Moon.

Maybe if we show her kindness and give her the attention I once craved? It was a bit of a long shot, but if Discord—the very spirit of disharmony and a god of chaos—could not only be reformed, but redeemed, then anything was possible.

If nothing else, I at least have to believe.

There was what sounded like a muffled thunderclap. Grogar was the first to look up. I turned my head to follow his gaze: the moon.

A small flash of sunlight emanated the celestial body, forming a growing ring of light that traveled the whole of the moon’s surface until it faded away into space. I didn’t have to think too hard about what had created the blast.

Despite my best efforts, a grin had formed on my lips as I looked at Grogar. “You sent her to the moon?”

Grogar opened his mouth to speak—probably would have said something witty—but at that precise instant, a flash of gold light erupted in the room. When my eyes again adjusted, I saw my sister.

Yet… that possibly can’t be her…

She stood behind Grogar, her entire being once more wreathed in sunfire. Her horn was lit with radiant gold arcane energy, which I instantly recognized as a very powerful form of telekinesis. Her face twisted into a vicious snarl, eyes devoid of any emotion other than pure anger. Raised above her head was a magically ethereal blade of gold and fire.

What she did next…

She forcefully lifted Grogar into his hind hooves so hard that I heard a snap of bones. The instant he was vertical, she plunged the blade downwards with such ferocity that a single blink of the eye would have caused anypony to miss it.

The magical weapon entered a little below the shoulder, likely traveling down where the lungs and heart would be. It exited right from the middle of his chest, the fire leaving a searing yet gaping hole. The smell of burnt flesh was overpowering. Sickening.

My eyes widened in absolute horror as I covered my mouth instinctively.

Celestia stood there, a victorious yet vicious grin forming on her lips.

Author's Notes:

As usual, next chapter will be posted next Saturday. Thanks to those who have read so far. Hope you are enjoying the story so far.