Confrontation part 1

Moonbeam stood near the edge of the tree line, looking out past the canopy of trees to see the field that stretched beyond and Ponyville. She couldn’t help but be nervous about what would be happening in just a few short hours.

*I hope that Twilight can convince everypony.* Moonbeam thought to herself. She had not slept well last night, being to nervous about the day ahead of her. She had told Bastion about her plan, and he had watched her as she mentally communicated with Twilight Sparkle. After She had finished telling her story and asking for help, she and Bastion had gone over what would have to happen tomorrow.

She put a hoof up to her horn, feeling the small magic restraining ring that she had asked Bastion to put over her horn. Bastion had explained that even with her hooves she would not be able to remove it, only the magic of another unicorn would be able to remove the ring once it was in place. That did not stop her from fidgeting with it at times.

*I hope that he is okay, I don’t want him getting in trouble because of me. Having him leave was the best decision.* Moonbeam told herself for what must have been the hundredth time that day.

Moonbeam waited. She had told Twilight that she would come into the town just after noon came. The sun was still rising in the sky, but it was almost time. She wondered if any guards would come to escort her as their prisoner. If they did, she would have to assure them that the magic restraint was actually functioning. She hoped that they would see that she was willing to cooperate.

*The worst part about this restraint at the moment isn’t my inability to use magic.* She thought to herself. *The worst part is not being able to contact Twilight Sparkle to see what is happening in the town.* Moonbeam didn’t know how to deal with all of the nervous energy that she was feeling as she waited for noon.

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Twilight was pacing back and forth in the library that she called home. After her outburst yesterday, she had not heard anything more from Nightmare Moon, who had insisted on calling herself Moonbeam. She had also not been able to contact her at all either, which concerned her.

Twilight was not fully trusting Nightmare Moon. She knew firsthoof the kind of tricks that she could pull. Her encounter with the corrupted princess while she and her friends had been searching for the Elements of Harmony had shown her just a hint of what Nightmare Moon was capable of.

After she had interrupted the speech outside of town hall. Luna and Celestia had still issued the evacuation warning, they did not trust Nightmare Moon, and took Twilight’s recount of her ‘change of heart’ with more than a grain of salt. Celestia told her that they would go along with the idea, but they would be sending a group of guards, headed by Shining Armor, to gather the evil specter. She had also demanded, not asked, that Twilight and her friends be on hoof with the elements of harmony.

Twilight looked over at the crown that represented her element, magic. She wandered over to where it sat. The others had all collected their necklaces earlier, but something seemed to be keeping Twilight from putting hers on. It was like a part of her was telling her that she shouldn’t use it, that she should believe in Nightmare Moon. But she couldn’t be sure that everything was going to well.

Slowly, she reached out and picked up the crown. She felt it’s weight, it was light. With a sigh, she put the crown on top of her head.

“We need to have a security policy for if Nightmare Moon is setting us up somehow.” Twilight said. She turned around, looking toward the front door to the library. She pushed all of her conflicting thoughts away, and started walking to the door.

“We’ll just have to see for ourselves if Nightmare Moon has really changed.” Twilight said to herself as she pushed the doors open. Stepping out into the light of the sun.

Spike was waiting by the door, he walked up to her as she exited their shared home.

“Is everything alright Twilight?” He asked, trying to read her face. Twilight tried to give Spike a smile to reassure him, but she didn’t feel like it was genuine. Spike seemed to pick up on how forced it was as well.

“I’m fine, Spike.” Twilight lied. “Now come on, we need to get going, the princess and the others are all waiting for us on the edge of town.” She said, motioning for Spike to hop up on her back while they walked, which he did.

The walk to the town’s edge passed in near total silence. Spike and Twilight not wanting to talk about what was going to happen in roughly an hour. The silence was not helped by the absence of many of the town’s residents. Roughly two minutes later, Twilight could see where her friends and Celestia had all gathered.

Celestia was looking out toward the Everfree forest, her gaze cold. The rest of her friends, including Cadence and Luna were all watching and waving as she approached. Twilight started trotting to close the distance between her and the group. She had to be careful not to dislodge the crown from its place on her head. She doubted a fall would actually harm one of the Elements of Harmony, but she didn’t want to chance it.

“Sorry I’m a bit late.” Twilight apologized. Her friends all waved off the apology, saying that it was unnecessary. She looked over at Celestia, whose gaze had not left the Everfree forest. Twilight shuddered a bit, seeing Celestia with a look like that was terrifying to her. As she recovered from the odd feeling of seeing her former teacher in such a state, she noticed Luna walk up beside her.

“Hope you don’t mind if we talk like this.” Twilight suddenly heard across the mental link they shared. She looked over to Luna.

“Of course I don’t mind, Moonjumper.” Twilight responded.

“I don’t want ‘Tia to know, but I am actually very nervous about what is going to happen.” Moonjumper confided in her. Wanting to comfort her, Twilight leaned into Moonjumper slightly.

“I think we all are. We don’t know how this is going to pan out. I’ve just been hoping that everything goes well since yesterday.” Twilight said.

“It is good to know that I am not the only one.” Twilight heard Moonjumper once again. “I know I shouldn’t be, but I keep comparing how I’m feeling to how ‘Tia is acting. She doesn’t seem to be disturbed or shaken at all.” Moonjumper revealed. Twilight looked at Celestia once again.

“I’m actually glad that you aren’t acting the same way.” Twilight confessed. “She seems so different, so unapproachable. Like she might snap if you do anything to distract her from her prize.”

Moonjumper looked over at her sister once again, taking in her stance. Her cold, hard set facial expression. She had to admit that She looked like a mare bent on getting what she wanted.

“I suppose… you may have a point there.”

Suddenly, Cadence appeared before the two of them. Twilight and Moonjumper stopped their little exchange as they saw her approach.

“It is nice to see you here, Twilight.” Cadence said, giving her sister in law a small hug. “Celestia sent Shining Armor to Collect Nightmare Moon just a few minutes ago. We’ve been waiting for you both.” Cadence told her.

“I’m glad that I made it here before Shining made it back.” Twilight said. While she wasn’t exactly sure what she thought of Nightmare Moon’s apparent change of heart, she knew that she should err on the side of caution.

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Shining Armor walked down the path that led out of town and toward the Everfree forest. Standing at both of his sides two royal guards. Celestia had told them to use restraints if they felt they were necessary.

Shining looked back over his shoulder, back toward the town where his wife and sister were waiting. He shook any lingering doubts from his head as he looked back at the forest.

*This will be nothing that we can’t handle. Even if this is a trap, she likely isn’t going to waste her surprise attack on a group of guards.* Shining Armor assured himself. They reached the edge of the forest within minutes. Nightmare Moon was nowhere to be found however,

Shining Armor waited for a few moments to see if she would reveal herself. If he was remembering what Twilight had relayed after her conversation with Nightmare Moon yesterday, the mare said she would be within sight of the forest edge.

“Does anypony see anything?” Shining asked, starting to feel slightly exposed standing in the middle of the path. He looked back at the small detail of guards with him. Everypony shook their heads. Shining Armor narrowed his eyes slightly.

He looked carefully up to the sky, seeing that the sun was indeed at its highest.

*Is she hiding herself?* Shining asked himself. He did not trust Nightmare Moon for a second, but this also made no tactical sense, They had stationed guards at all other important vantage points to ensure that Nightmare Moon did not slip off out of the woods. But he did not hear or see any of the signals that had been agreed upon that would let him know that this had been a setup.

*She has got to be in there somewhere.* Shining reasoned. Carefully, he took a step forward, toward the entrance to the forest. He told the other guards to keep still. When he stood ten paces in front of his fellow guards, he called out into the forest.

“Nightmare Moon, This is Shining Armor, Captain of the Canterlot royal guard and brother to Twilight Sparkle. We are here to escort you to the town and present you before Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.” Shining Armor announced. “Present yourself and we will refrain from using force.”

A few seconds later, Shining thought he could see movement. From behind a group of Trees, he could see a dark silhouette. He could see the dark figure approaching his position, and as they got closer, he realized that it was a fairly tall unicorn mare.

*And there she is* Shining thought, glad that he didn’t have to try and back up the threat. He stood still, waiting for Nightmare Moon at the edge of the forest. As she approached, Shining took notice of a small ring that sat at the base of her horn. He instantly recognized the device as a magic restraint.

*Why would she have one of those, and why would she willingly put one on?* Shining Armor pondered. It was possible that one of the guards who had been patrolling the forest had dropped the ring. That still didn’t answer why she would have it, or why she would have willingly put it on.

Soon enough, Nightmare Moon stood before him, her face unreadable. Shining Armor tried to make himself look as imposing and in control as he could before he spoke.

“I see that you have chosen to come with us of your own free will. Smart choice. As I told you, we will refrain from using force unless you give us reason to. Do you understand?” Shining Armor asked Nightmare Moon, his tone almost business like. Nightmare Moon nodded, not showing any other indication that she had heard him. Shining decided to ask about the magic restraint.

“Before we begin heading back to Ponyville, explain how you came into possession of that magic restraining ring you are wearing, and why you are wearing it.” Shining demanded. Nightmare Moon did not react at first. Shining was about to repeat his demand when she suddenly spoke up.

“I found the ring at the remains of a camp that your royal guards set up while combing the forest for me. As for why I am wearing it, I told your sister Twilight Sparkle that I would wear a magic restraint if it would make this process go smoother.” Nightmare Moon explained. Shining Armor narrowed his eyes.

“When did you find this restraint?” He asked, not believing how she had come into possession of the ring.

“A few days ago, I was walking through the woods back toward the town and decided to pick it up. Originally I was going to make use of it for my attack on the town, subduing the best magic user in the area, but once I decided that I no longer desired fighting I put it on.” Nightmare Moon told him, her face showing no emotion. Shining Armor was not sure if he believed that, but at this point he was unlikely to get any more out of her.

“Alright, I need to make sure that it is actually on correctly for safety reasons, bend your head down and allow me to see your horn.” Shining Armor commanded. Nightmare Moon did as she was asked, lowering her head to give Shining Armor access to her horn with his hooves.

“If this is on correctly, then I should not be able to move it by hoof.” Shining Armor explained to her as he put his hooves on either side of the ring. He tried to pull, gently, as the ring would simply slide off if it was not put on correctly. Satisfied, he told Nightmare Moon to raise her head once again.

“Alright, we are going to escort you back to Ponyville, if you make any sudden moves, we will be forced to incapacitate you either through magical or physical means. I suggest you remain on your best behavior.” Shining Armor told her. He called the other guards over and they all got into a small circle around her. Nightmare Moon did not respond, her lack of protest making Shining think that this was going far too smoothly. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind.

“Alright men, we have the prisoner, now march. The princess is expecting us.” Shining Armor called out. The group started walking back up the road, Nightmare Moon in tow.

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Moonbeam looked toward the town as they approached, she didn’t know what to expect. She hoped that her cooperation and offer to cease all aggressive acts would win her some chance to speak. Maybe explain herself. She briefly wondered if there would be many ponies there to see ‘the end of Nightmare Moon’.

*It’s no use running all these what if’s through my head* Moonbeam thought to herself. She would just have to make the most of whatever hand fate decided to deal her. She thought again of her short time as her own pony. She had grown, in some way, from the mare that sought to shroud Equestria in eternal night. Her Previous existence had been tainted by hate from the being that had created her.

Her time in the forest, time to think and reflect away from all of the hate, it had reawakened something that she had forgotten existed within her. She had once loved Luna. Not in a romantic way like she now shared with Twilight, but in an almost sisterly way. Before she had been corrupted by hate and anguish, Nightmare Moon had only wanted what was best for Luna, for the both of them.

Moonbeam shook her head, giving a small sigh.

*It wasn’t just the time to reflect by myself though. Bastion helped me grow, even if he didn’t know it.* Moonbeam thought. Ever since their second meeting, Bastion had been showing her kindness. He had been there for her through her moments of doubt, and had refused to abandon her when she finally revealed her true identity. He was the only pony that she thought of as a friend.

*I hope he isn’t planning anything stupid. I’m not worth him risking his life or position.* She thought. She brought a hoof up to her mane, and felt the bandana that she now had tied in her hair. *Please, let me get through this. I want to see him again.* She decided.

They were almost at the edge of town at this point. Moonbeam could see the the gathering of Ponies waiting for her. It was… smaller than she had expected. She could make out Twilight Sparkle and her friends, as well as Luna, her sister, and another pink Alicorn. There seemed to be a few more ponies standing around, but they hung back, as if they were afraid to get too close.

Finally, Shining Armor stopped in front of her, the guards surrounding her as well.

“Your highnesses, we have brought the prisoner as you so ordered.” Shining Armor said, bowing down in front of Celestia. Moonbeam looked at each of the gathered princesses. Her face not showing the terror that was beginning to set in. She also saw that Twilight and her friends were wearing the Elements of Harmony.

*Are they going to destroy me?* Moonbeam asked herself before she returned her attention back to Princess Celestia, who had begun speaking.

“As I understand it, Nightmare Moon, you stand here today because you have decided to surrender yourself. Ceasing all hostile actions toward Equestria and the ponies that live within its borders.” Celestia began, her gaze cold and piercing. Moonbeam fought the urge to shiver.

“That is correct, your highness. My time in the Everfre-” She tried to explain only to have Celestia cut her off.

“And you agree to answer for the crimes you have committed in the past? Including attempting to usurp the throne, and covering the land in eternal night?” Celestia asked. Moonbeam couldn’t help but to wince at this, but she recovered quickly.

“Yes, your highness. I am willing to receive any punishment that you deem fit.” Moonbeam said. She was almost certain she knew what was coming next.

*Bastion, I’m sorry that we won’t get another chance to meet.* Moonbeam thought, her eyes closing as she hung her head. Celestia began talking once again.

“Then by my right as Princess of Equestria, I order this prisoner be executed!”

Author's Notes:

So, I appologize up front if Celestia seems very out of character. I know she generally is level headed and kind and all that other stuff that everyone likes about Celestia. I just like the idea the she has one thing that makes her blow up, that being Nightmare Moon. And I believe that it would have precedent.

She sees Nightmare Moon as the thing that forced her to loose her sister for 1000 years, Nightmare Moon sealed her away when she returned to Equestria. In this story so far she has always put forth effort to stop Nightmare Moon, and she wants a permanent solution. If this is jarring then I apologize.

Also, sorry to leave a cliffhanger like this, but the chapter is already 3000 words and change, given that I normally write chapters about 1000 - 2000 words in length this is already a bit long for one chapter for me.

Other than that, I hope this wasn't to jarring to read. This is the first chapter in a while (if not ever) that I actually between Twilight and her friends and Moonbeam in chapter.