The first thing Twilight recognized as she gained consciousness was the darkness. Not the all encompassing darkness of the void she typically began with whenever she delved into her lover's mind, but just a sheer lack of light in a windowless room. Once more, however, she found herself incapable of moving which meant she was, in fact, playing the phantom guest to Nightmare's body. Twilight smiled inwardly at the comforting feel of her mistress’ form, at the familiarity of her temporary residence in the alicorn’s essence. Even if it is just a dream.

Without warning, her vision jerked to the left, a disorienting feeling when one could barely see her surroundings, to face a pair of heavy, metal doors, surprisingly plain for something that belonged to the night queen. “Why dost thou disturb Us, Commander Heart Gleam?”

“Princess Celes-”

“Silence!” Nightmare’s sharp yell cut the softly spoken words short as it echoed in the vast stone chamber. “She is a Princess of Our kingdom no longer.”

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty.” From behind the door, Twilight head the soft plunk of something hard hitting the metal followed by a hissing intake of breath causing her to giggle slightly at the other mare’s distress over the obviously failed bow. “Ow.... Scouts have returned with news of sighting Celestia in the vicinity with a vast army of soldiers. They couldn’t determine when she would be marching against us, but it is clear that she could do so at any moment.”

Twilight felt Nightmare’s lips curl up in a smile as the mare rose from the plush bedding she had been laying upon and moved over to the door. With a flash of magic, the metal portal swung inwards to reveal the small bat pony bowing gracefully before her in the warm light of multiple torches. From her limited vision, Twilight recognized the area as a very much completed version of the cathedral she had seen in a previous vision filled with rich mahogany pews and beautifully painted depictions of the lunar ruler upon the ceiling. Were it not for the urgency with which her host moved, she would have certainly stayed in that very spot for hours to take in the sheer magnificence of the worshiping chamber.

"Follow Us, Commander." The young officer quickly fell into step alongside her queen as the much taller mare strode down the aisle between pews, her longer steps requiring Heart Gleam to move at a trot. "Our sister believes we are ill-fitted to continue Our campaign. She doubts the will and resolve of Our subjects, yet, despite the resentment of many of Our subjects, We still have ever so many devout followers. Followers such as you, Heart Gleam of the Moon Gazers."

At last, Nightmare and her companion reached the massive cathedral's wooden entryway which was quickly thrust open to reveal the most amazing thing Twilight had ever seen. Thousands upon thousands of ponies, exponentially more than the meager lot gathered outside the Lunar Castle's present courtyard, moved through the streets below, their combined voices an unexpected and unwelcome roar compared to the completely silent main hall. It was the largest gathering of ponies Twilight had ever seen. It was Nightmare Moon's army occupying the grand city of Mareland.

Nightmare gestured to the soldiers with a hoof, drawing it across the night's horizon. "Celestia dost not expect so many of her beloved ponies to fight for Our cause, but, now that they have truly seen the beauty of Our night, of how truly glorious Our nocturnal realm is...." The alicorn smashed her hoof on the stone below her with a wide grin on her face, the metal of her shoes ringing loudly as they cracked the ground. "'Tis time Our sister learned who the true ruler of Equestria is. Prepare Our soldiers, Commander Heart Gleam. We shall be prepared for her to strike. If she dares to try and steal the adoration of Our subjects, then she shall learn where their true loyalty now lay!"

"Of course, Your Majesty! At once!"

Twilight watched the young commander fly off, seeking out the other similarly enchanted ponies in the distance. So, Princess Celestia is the one that moves first? That doesn't seem very tactically sound, especially since she has to know Luna is waiting for her. Suddenly, Twilight was once again moving with the alicorn, but not in the direction she had been expecting. Back into the cathedral? Isn't she already wearing her armor?

Twilight and her host move purposefully back through the grand hall, this time skirting the wall's edge, and came upon the back wall behind the pulpit. They stood under a massive stained-glass window, edged with rich navy curtains, and upon that fragile mural was a scene Twilight found very familiar save for one odd little detail. The depicted black alicorn flew, wings fully outspread, in front of a large silvery orb as if she were rising with the artfully crafted celestial object. It's just like Celestia's image of her raising the moon, but... is she holding something?

Unlike the outstretched forelegs of Celestia's depiction, Nightmare's showed her with her forelegs curled in as if she were holding something tightly to her chest. Twilight looked as closely as she could and, with her centered concentration, found a few miscolorings in the picture. There was a blotch of navy covering some of Nightmare's black and it seemed as if small wisps of darkness seeped off of the mare's side. Wait.... That's....

"Moon Beam."

From behind the wall, a soft, yet excited voice rang out. A sound Twilight found very familiar. "Yes, Mommy?"

"It is time." Twilight would have flinched, had she been capable of doing so, at the deep sadness that filled her lover's voice as she said those three words. She knew what was coming next despite having never been properly told. But... where is the tomb?

"Why can't I stay awake longer? I don't want to go to bed yet."

Nightmare sighed heavily and her horn lit to reveal a minute fracture running down the wall in front of her. Soon, a whole portion of the stone glowed with black magic until it slid soundlessly into the floor. Beyond was a small area, not much larger than the first room Twilight had arrived in, lit by bright green, magical fires. Dead center, taking up the majority of the chamber, stood a stone crypt and before that sat her future adopted filly, a resigned frown hanging heavily on her muzzle.

"Do not worry, child. It will not be long before We return and wake you."

Moon Beam rushed over to the alicorn and wrapped her tiny forelegs around the mare's much longer leg. "Then just let me stay awake! I will stay here like a good pony, I promise."

"We do not wish to risk thine discovery, Moon Beam. Our sister would not hesitate in destroying you entirely."

The filly's eyes glowed softly as she nodded her head and turned to descend into the stone crypt. "Of course, Mistress. We shall await your return."

Down, the duo plus one passenger went, magical torches igniting with their eerie green light ever meter, until they arrived in the sealing chamber. The sarcophagus lay open, its bed empty, and it was into the padded indentation that Moon Beam crawled. Nightmare's horn glowed again as the child turned to her, tears welling in her large eyes.

"Good night. I love you, Mommy."

Nightmare Moon clenched her eyes shut as she concentrated her magic around the unicorn foal and her sarcophagus, enveloping them in its cool embrace. Into the air, floated Moon Beam, her limbs outstretched and head held high by the aura. For several moments she hovered without any signs of the spell progressing until, with a bright flash, the runes etched onto the side of the coffin exploded with light immediately followed by a heart-wrenching scream from the spell's target.

Louder and louder grew the wailing filly as the aura around her grew darker and more dense until it convulsed with overwhelming power, shaking the very foundations of the tomb.

Twilight's heart ached to hold and comfort the filly she knew was sleeping soundly in her grasp, urged on by the vision's agony. Silently, she wished for the torment to end, trying to will the millenium-passed magic to come to a close.

Finally, and much to the unicorn's relief, the spell finished with an inequine howl from the foal as she dissipated into thick black smoke and was ushered into the waiting basin. The lid slammed shut and sealed with a hiss, leaving the alicorn and Twilight alone to contemplate what had happened.

Nightmare looked to the floor, her gradually clouding vision focusing on the fresh splotches of moisture beginning to gather below her. She's... crying....

"I love you as well, Moon Beam." She quickly regained her composure, forcing herself to end the flow of tears and cease all shows of emotion with practiced ease, and began the short climb back into the cathedral.

With nothing to distract it, the dream-bound mare's mind relentlessly returned to the horrific scene it had played witness to. This.... This is going to haunt me forever.... Please, Luna.... Don't let Moon Beam ever remember.... Noticing they were nearing the ground floor of the tomb, Twilight forced her attention back onto Nightmare's surroundings and, more importantly, Nightmare herself. I.... I want to blame you, Luna, for everything that’s hurt Moonie and me. I want to..., but I can't. You did it to protect her. If you hadn't, she would have been alone, awake, for one-thousand years.... I don’t even want to.... Twilight shook the encroaching thoughts from her mind, forcing herself not to dwell on them. This isn’t the time. We can.... We can talk about it when everything is over.

Nightmare emerged from the structure’s depths and turned to glare at the filly’s stone prison. The ground began to shake all around the building, upsetting the dust and a few small animals that had taken up residence there, and built up into a roar as the earth began to shift. Twilight would have believed that it was the mare’s stare alone that was causing the ground to move had there not been a powerful glow coming from the alicorn’s horn.

The unicorn started as something fell on her lover’s head, an object that she could not see, yet impacted with enough force to bow Nightmare’s neck. It seemed like the church was collapsing in upon them and, with the walls cracking and the floor beginning to sink below them, it seemed as if Nightmare was trying to accomplish just that. Much to Twilight's relief, however, over both the alicorn's inevitable injury and the loss of such an amazing structure, the awesome magic ended with an anti-climactic whumph as the tomb and some of the surrounding floor slowly sank into the ground.

As the dust settled and Twilight took in what had happened, the alicorn passed through the wall’s opening and magicked it closed without even a glance. Nightmare breathed calmly and strode regally past the pews. Twilight examined them in wonder, taken aback by the complete lack of any form of disturbance. It’s like... there wasn’t even an earthquake at all.

Her worries temporarily forgotten in lieu of the mystery before her, Twilight returned her focus to the now-visible city of Mareland, the cathedral’s doors left open behind them. In seconds, Nightmare was joined by a small platoon of enchanted ponies, all of them wearing similar armor to their leader’s. “Are you alright, Your Highness? We heard the ground quake and-”

“‘Twas nothing of thine concern, Commander. We assume that Our soldiers are prepared for battle? We do not wish to disappoint Our sister, after all.”

"Did.... Is Moon Beam finally...?"

Nightmare glared fiercely at the small batpony, making her shrink back quivering. "It is not of thine concern, Commander. Thou shouldst be focused on thine current task else We will be forced to find a replacement."

Heart Gleam's eyes widened in shock, a look of devastation replacing her fearful pose, and shook her head vigorously. "N-no, Your Hi-highness! You're r-right! I'm sorry!" She stood and spun, motioned for the armed mares behind her to disperse, then bowed to the alicorn and followed her subordinates, the distraught frown never once leaving her face.

I.... I feel so sorry for her.... She never had a chance to pursue her feelings, yet I'm... somewhat glad that she didn't. If they had become lovers, then I might not have met the Nightmare I love. She paused and joined her host in watching the soldier begin to take up formations.

The earth ponies in the heaviest armor began to form ranks outside of the city limits, far to the east. Single rows quickly became massive columns as the mares and stallions fell into their squads. Twilight cheered in her mind, recognizing the layout. It wasn't just the simple squares of a marching squad, she realized, as the outermost units began to move forward, creating a massive funnel. Behind them, a line of unicorns equipped with longbows filed in, taking up loose groupings as they checked and rechecked their equipment. The soldiers kept streaming into formation and, soon, the lighter armored infantry took up their columns on the funnel’s flanks, separated by a mighty chasm of grassy field.

Twilight started as Nightmare suddenly took to the air with titanic force, jarring the unicorn out of her observations. Below them, in ever shrinking, sizes, the Lunar Soldiers continued their preparations for battle. It'll still take them hours for all of those ponies to get into formation. At least it doesn't seem like Princess Celestia will be here before then. I just hope they have time to evacuate the city in-

Once again, Twilight's thoughts were shaken by the sudden movement of her host, this time in the form of an abrupt mid-air stop. Nightmare stared at the ground, joined by her unicorn guest, in disbelief. Where once there had been solely ponies armed with shining silver and grey leather, countless units of golden-plated soldiers stood, weapons drawn and ready to strike.

Above them flew a regal white mare, her long pink mane flowing in an ethereal wind. She, too, was clad in thick golden plate with a blazing sun painted onto the crest of her helmet and beside her floated a greatsword of gold, shining with an ephemeral light.

Using the scant seconds of shock she had created with their sudden appearance, Princess Celestia thrust her weapon into the sky. "Go, soldiers, and reclaim Our city! Shouldst they surrender, then their lives will be spared!"

Twilight could feel the fury coming from her lover, as intense as it was, as her whole body shook, muscles tensing and relaxing at random. The world disappeared in a flash of black magic only to reassert itself before the gold-clad warrior princess. The solar regent flapped before them with as calm a gaze as Twilight had ever seen, even on her typically emotionless queen.

"Sister."

"Thou wouldst use such underhoofed tactics, Celestia. Could not wait to slaughter so many of thine precious subjects." Nightmare's voice dripped venom at the biting remark, her anger poorly masked anger adding to the intended sting.

Celestia cast an impassive look down at the unfolding chaos, then steadied her gaze on Nightmare and, in turn, Twilight, causing the mare to mentally shudder. Why doesn't she care? So many ponies are dying!

"Where is the abomination, Nightmare? I know it's here. Surrender it and your control over the moon and I will allow you to go free."

Nightmare Moon burst into laughter, the hearty bellow echoing above the din of battle. "Thou expects Us to relinquish Our child and namesake?" The black alicorn blasted her sister in the breast, the surprise explosion of magic sending the unsuspecting mare hurtling through the air after pinging loduly off her armor. "Dost thou take Us for a foal!? We wouldst never turn over the only beings that matter!"

In the next second, Nightmare was once again in her sister's face, but, unlike before, she did not have the element of surprise. The next flash of magic missiles were deflected by Celestia's glowing weapon and sent aimlessly into the atmosphere. She retaliated with a lightning-fast thrust, using the momentum of her parry to amplify its speed, and grazed Twilight's host's shoulder.

Nightmare recoiled, surprised by the near effortless riposte, but refused to relent. She charged her sister, horn aglow, and released a torrent of magical fire. Celestia dodged out of the deadly flame's path and right into range of the waiting moon goddess. With a powerful flap of her wings and the force of well-toned muscles, Celestia was sent careening into the sky.

Twilight cringed at the sound of her mentor's ribs being crushed. Images of her own death at the talons of a chest injury flashed through her mind and, despite knowing the inevitable victor of this battle, the unicorn worried for the white alicorn's safety.

"Thou hast gone soft, sister! What happened to the mighty warrior princess We once rever-"

Nightmare cut her words short and erected a hasty barrier as a golden beam of light pierced the air before her and impacted heavily upon her shield. The magic barrier shattered where it was struck and the sunbeam seared into the side of the black alicorn's neck.

Nightmare's body seized from the shock and began to plummet to ground. Even without the ability to feel her hosts pain directly, Twilight blanched at the thought of anything that could paralyze her lover in a single blow. This.... Is this the real power of an alicorn? Is this what Luna is teaching us?

The lunar regent recovered from the shock, shaking the remnants of lethargy from her body, and righted herself midair with a few strokes of her sleek, black wings. Her fearsome glare glowed through the night's darkness allowing her enhanced vision to pick out several shapes flitting through the clouds where the beam had originated. "Hiding as a coward amongst thine precious ponies, Celestia?"

"Neigh, Nightmare. I was merely waiting for you to recover." The regal, alabaster mare hovered just outside of Nightmare's vision, her cold expression still etched across her features. "Surrender. Do you not see how your actions are hurting everypony? The crops have all died and the temperatures are gradually dropping further and further into freezing levels. Ponies are dying because of you."

Twilight's host raked her horn, the entire length burning with silvery flames, through the sky. From the star-speckled abyss above hurtled massive balls of rock and ice, ignited by Great Equus' atmosphere, their paths set for the clusters of gold below. Celestia's eyes widened as fear replaced the calm she had enveloped herself with. She sprang into action, firing as many explosive bolts of energy at the unstoppable masses, but no matter how many charges she unleashed, just as many more chunks of space debris continued to appear from rapidly opening portals above.

"Thou still care more of the peasants, of thine beloved ponies than you do thy own sister! Thou wonders how We could ever wish to be noticed, to be recognized for Our deeds! None care about Us or Our night! None care that We keep thine lives safe with Our magic! And, most of all, sister, thou dost not even give Us a chance!" Nightmare’s voice shook the night air as she loosed her Royal Speech and drew all attention upon her.

Twilight felt power surge through the air around them, even through the dream, and watched it coalesce into a massive silver glow in front of her. The air rumbled with unimaginable fury and was rent open by a piece of star, titanic in comparison to the ponies and buildings below. The mass of burning star impacted the solar princess, sending them both careening into the fear-stricken masses below. Homes and places of work exploded under the crushing weight of Nightmare's might and screams could be heard coming from those caught in the meteorite's devastation, yet not close enough to be killed on impact.

Above it all laughed the Moon Princess, her breaths coming quickly as she recovered from her exhaustive expulsion of magic. "Hah.... Come unto Us..., Celestia..., For We know thou... yet live!"

Twilight watched with baited breath, as did the remainder of Celestia's and Nightmare's forces, for some sign of movement from the impact site. How did she survive that!? Such... power. Nothing should have lived through being crushed by a star, but.... It's illogical! Those things have to weigh more than any building we could ever make! Just look at the size of the crater from such a short- Just as Twilight's mind began to think up even more reasons for her former mentor to be incapable of having lived, the star exploded into multitudes of rock.

Out of the rubble climbed the battered, bloodied, and horribly burned form of the sun's equine symbol, her long pink mane no longer swaying in its own hidden wind. The ponies around her, in both gold and silver, cheered in relief at the return of their princess from sure devastation. Twilight, too, sighed in relief at the sight of her godmother.

Nightmare glared at the traitorous soldiers below her, their multicolored manes popping into sight one by one as their mythril helmets were tossed aside. "Our battle is not yet over, soldiers! Celestia yet stands defiant before-"

Nightmare loosed a sharp cry of pain, rattling Twilight's mind with the sheer malice behind it. Her head swiveled to her flank, glaring at the sleek, red-stained arrow that had embedded itself in her haunch. "Thou dares to strike Us with the very weapons We have bestowed upon thee!?" She turned her molten gaze upon the mare that had fired upon her, noting the distinctive colors and shape of one of the elite Lunar Soldiers. Immediately, the mare's body convulsed and began to froth at the mouth. "We hath blessed thee with thine superior gifts and yet thee turn as just another pawn for Our disposal!?"

A dusky flash announced the arrival of Heart Gleam, the diminutive batpony easily distinguished from the others, and a small contingent of less than a dozen other enchanted mares, each flapping their leathery wings in perfect unison. "My Queen. We are all that remain of the Night Watch. The others are either dead or have removed their helmets. I cannot feel their-"

Nightmare flinched as a spear sprouted from her commander's neck, transforming her would-be words into a gargled hiss as she scrabbled to remove the sudden intruder from her body. The others could do nothing to save her or even themselves from the sudden volley of projectile weapons save for flash out of the immediate area on instinct alone.

Taken entirely by surprise and shocked by the sudden loss of her greatest equine ally, the black alicorn was unprepared for the assault. She loosed an agonized howl as unimpeded spears and barbed arrows peppered her body, propelled from the ground below by every available unicorn.

"Enough!" Having regained her senses, Nightmare Moon erected a pure black bubble around her form, obscuring her from view.

Twilight stared in horror at the bloody reflection in the sphere's reflective inner surface, as did her tattered lover, her caring instincts trying to overpower the restrictive hold of the dream. She screamed for her past-bound mate as each deadly instrument was ripped from her body eliciting a gut wrenching wail, spilling more and more of her precious blood.

As the last of the unwelcome protrusions disintegrated in the swirling darkness, Nightmare lifted her horn to the heavens and stared down its length, her nebulous mane roiling and seething with unimaginable power. Her magical appendage gave off no light to signify that a spell was being cast, but, even without the telltale writhing of the alicorn's astral mane, the spectating unicorn could tell that massive amounts of magic was being gathered around her. The moon princess howled mightily into the night and the destructive shell around her doubled in size, forced outwards by the now-tangible motes of mana raging about.

So much.... She can't maintain all of this! It's just not possible! Twilight prepared for the inevitable implosion of untamed magic, but what she expected never came to pass.

Instead of the magic pulling the shield back upon its creator, Nightmare forced the motes outwards with another controlled blast from her horn which now absorbed the moon's light with its infinite darkness. The black shell shot outwards, instantly evaporating any pony, building, or flora in its path, yet this wasn't what awed the ever-studious mare into silence.

As the shield dissipated, Nightmare's control over the rampant magic grew more controlled and her horn once again lost its aura. Each speck of mana sparked as it combined with the alicorn's will and dropped massive bolts of raw electricity upon her victims below, searing, melting, and obliterating everything upon contact. The night sky lit up as bright as day with the constant tide of magic filling the air and not even the screams of dying and despairing ponies could pierce the thunderous cacophony of each bolt.

Twilight watched through glowing turquoise eyes as a handful of soldiers tried in vain desperation to break the night mare's focus, but the few weapons that managed to pierce her skin did little but fuel her fury. They can't even defend themselves.... Even if they could hide in the buildings....

Nightmare turned her gaze upon her sister, upon her bloody and bruised alabaster counterpart, and sneered. "Thine subjects are naught but insects in comparison to Our might, easily crushed beneath hooves of steel, and doomed to live a meager span, yet you still chose them over Us! How does it feel, Celestia, to know that thou art powerless to stop their demise!?"

Still, the ponies tried to stop her, but not even with the aid of their sun princess' magic could they stop the flow of aether. The lightning began to dwindle in power as the charged motes shifted in color, fueled by the sun's magic as Nightmare latched upon the energy being directed at her, morphing into a bright orange tinged with yellow. The specks grew in size, fusing together until it was not mana that dotted the sky, but massive plumes of fire.

Celestia stared in horror at her sister's mastery of magic, truly terrified in the face of such overwhelming odds. "Sister! What have you become!? Where did you go wrong!?"

Nightmare's head snapped back to her elder sibling, the blaze in her eyes making it difficult for her and, in turn, Twilight, to get a clear view of the mare. "Where hath We gone wrong!? We hath done naught that thou hast not brought upon thyself! We came to thee, sister! We came with a simple plea! A simple request to garner the love that thee hath hoarded for thy own! Yet thou, in thine infinite wisdom, denied Us!" As Nightmare screamed the final word, the haunted howl echoing in the now silent night, the massive balls of fire shot to the city below. Each impacted exploded with unstoppable force, simultaneously evaporating even the toughest stone and permanently scarring the ground below.

Celestia sharpened her gaze and her horn flared to life as if spurred on by the need to save any ponies she could. With her magic no longer under the manipulation of her younger sibling, she concentrated as much power as she could manage and took aim. The proceeding beam of pure sunlight pierced the inferno, sucking the air from the flames with gluttonous hunger and expunging them without effort, and struck the rearing moon princess in the abdomen.

Nightmare's agonized cry shook the world around them as the concentrated attack seared through her body with ease. She plummeted to the scorched earth from her aerial perch and landed with a heavy thump on a lone patch of untainted dirt. Her body shook, convulsing from shock, as Celestia slowly limped to her landing point. She gasped for air, working furiously through the agony to heal the damage as best as she could with the lingering bits of aether still prominent in the surrounding area.

The crunch of hoofsteps on broken earth drew her attention to the alabaster alicorn now standing above her and the small force of ponies that remained from her apocalyptic spells. They stared at her prone form, weapons at the ready, as their princess stepped ever closer to the prone form. Nightmare glared at the battered, yet still regal, form of her sister even through the lingering convulsions, hatred burning in her gaze.

"Do you see, Nightmare? You are not the princess they wish to rule them."

"Do not think to speak to Us as if We are inferior! Thy foalish ponies knoweth not what We do for them, nor dost thou!" With her anger riled once more and adrenaline refueling her weary body, Nightmare threw her would-be captors away with a hastily cast repulsion shield, leaving her alone with her sister in the broken remains of a once proud city. "We shalt settle this, Celestia, once and for all, but not here. Even We do not have the magic or strength left to deal with thee and thine hoof-lickers. We shalt meet under Our moon, within the Chamber of Thrones. There, all of Our subjects shalt see thine fall and know who is rightful queen of Equestria and her borders."

Celestia watched, stoned-faced, as the black alicorn stood, favoring her uninjured leg, and took flight. Through Nightmare's eyes, Twilight gazed after her ever-shrinking mentor, both of their eyes locked on the white form despite the distance between them, until she and the squad of survivors disappeared in a flash of magic.

The moon princess focused her sight upon the horizon and the vast forest just beginning to peek up over the horizon and shivered as the adrenaline began fading away. "We art tired, yet she hath suffered more grievous wounds." Nightmare laughed through the wind whistling in her ears, the tone surprisingly bright for the dark, haggard mare. "Thou cannot hope to triumph over Us, Celestia.... Thine days as princess art numbered."

Twilight started as her host gained speed, her exhausted body slicing through the air with ease. She found herself thoughtless, unable to fully comprehend the goings-on of this single evening. A battle that should have lasted hours, ended in an instant.... More ponies than I've ever seen, slaughtered in minutes.... Turned on by the ponies she thought loyal and the one mare that truly worshipped her, dead without a second glance from Celestia.

She paused in her attempt to sort and understand all of this new information as a series of distant and fresh memories resurfaced. Flashes of Nightmare's most recent fury-driven tirade played most prominently with small glimpses of past outbursts. Every time somepony turned on her.... Every time she snapped when somebody didn't immediately follow her orders.... How she smiled gleefully when I finished Brook.... How she reacted when I died and when those ponies meant to kill me, even before our relationship had started. It all makes sense now. Her heart grew heavy as her mind toiled with the troubling discovery. Luna..., we need to talk. About everything....

The unicorn cringed as Nightmare's flight shifted dramatically as she dropped several yards before righting herself on unsteady wings. She feared that her beloved alicorn might not make it to their destination, but her worries were quickly alleviated when her host's vision cleared from the sudden daze. All around her stretched the vast reaches of the Everfree forest, the massive expanse of trees that held the most dangerous creatures known to ponykind exuding their threatening aura even up to the pair's current height, and only a short flight away loomed the past capital of the nation, Everfree City.

Once again awestruck by the thought of a city able to thrive so well and beautifully surrounded by the terror that is the Everfree, Twilight studied as much of the architecture as she could. Her eyes took in every detail of the buildings below, studying each structure with a master's scrutiny, and she smiled widely. I can't believe I passed up this opportunity in past dreams. There's so much to be learned from these ponies just by their building structures alone. Why, even one thousand years ago, they had houses to rival some of the Canterlot elite! She squealed giddily, temporarily distracted from the ominous mood of her mate's past. I don't even think there are any books on pre-destruction Everfree City. Oh, I could be the first to publish one! I wonder if Luna would be willing to help.

The byzantium unicorn giggled with foalish glee as she quickly fell back into old habits. I'll just have to make sure I remember everything I've seen. Oh! I know! I'll make a checklist! I just hope a mental checklist will be as effective as paper. Now, first on the list is building materials. It looks like stone is the primary source of material although I can't really tell what kind. It definitely doesn't look like-

Suddenly, the world twisted and blurred as Nightmare broke into a dive. Twilight could no longer see the mare's wings spread out in flight and, from the way the ground grew closer at an alarmingly fast rate, it seemed the dive had turned into a complete free fall. Slowly, Twilight's vision of the world was cut off as the alicorn's eyes slid shut, yet she could still her the shrill whistle of the wind as it rushed past them. The unicorn prepared herself for the bone shattering impact to come, knowing that, in seconds, they would smash into the roof of the royal castle, but not even she was prepared for what came next.

Nightmare's eyes shot open to sight of solid stone only yards away. In a second, her horn had lit and blasted a hole in the structure. With her passage into her destination open, the alicorn's wings shot open, cutting the speed at which she fell in half, allowing her to land with a deafening crash in the center of the Pony Sisters' Castle throne room. The whole castle shook with her impact, knocking several paintings and pieces of furniture to the floor in its aftermath.

Languidly, the night princess rose to glare into her waiting sister's eyes. "Hath We kept you long, sister? We did not mean to tarry, but a hole through Our womb is nary a simple fix."

Celestia did not respond and, instead, took the time to fix her younger counterpart with a piteous gaze almost bordering on mocking. With a deep sigh, she looked back beyond the black mare to something Twilight could not see, yet was easily recognized by Nightmare. "Dost thou truly believe the Elements of Harmony would work on Us? Thou cannot even wield them all against Us! How, pray tell, will they be of use to thee?"

The black alicorn cackled as she began to charge her horn for the opening attack and rose to her hind legs, her large form casting a sinister shadow in the moonlight. "Art thou ready, Celestia? Hath thou prepared for thine defeat at Our might? Thine rule shalt be no more!"

Celestia didn't even flinch as the black beam struck her dead center in the chest, scorching the golden gorget about her neck, yet leaving her body otherwise unharmed. She just stared past her sister as if unaware that she was even being assaulted. Another bolt struck her side, tearing a piece of her remaining armor from her pristine hide followed by a third to her muzzle. Each consecutive blast tore her ruined barding away and seemed to heal the wounds that once had the solar mare exhausted.

The barrage ended as Nightmare realized the lack of damage being done and her face twisted into a mask of confusion. "What sorcery is this!? Thou hath never matched Our strength! Why do Our-" Her eyes grew wide as she spun to face the now glowing jewels behind her.

The Elements rose, slowly, into the air and drifted to take their places beside Celestia, dancing around her as if celebrating their awakening. With the magical artifacts at her side, the day mare broke from the trance in which she had been held and cast her glowing gaze back to her sister, an unreadable expression plastered upon her face. "Nightmare Moon, for your transgressions against the kingdom of Equestria and her people, We hereby banish you from Our world to pay for your crimes and learn from your mistake. One thousand years away from Our people and those that We border. One thousand years to ponder your actions."

The Elements gained speed, swirling around the princess faster and faster, until the colors began to blend together about her legs. For a moment, her eyes lost the blinding white glow and, for a moment, Nightmare felt her fear boil into rage. "Art thou mocking us!? We will return, and when We do, thou shalt pay for thine actions. Mark this day, Harlot, for on the day of Our return, thou shalt know true fear! We will ne'er for-"

Twilight flinched as the twisting cascade of rainbow arched and crashed into Nightmare moon and swirled around her as she reared back and screamed. The deafening roar of arcane magic threatened to burst her eardrums and the painful shine of the multi-hued spell aimed to blind her, yet she couldn't tear her gaze from her mentor.

The last that Nightmare and Twilight saw before the world went white was the small smile on Celestia's lips.

Author's Notes:

Author's Notes: Welp, here we go. A single chapter and a single scene. Took forever to write as I pretty much only typed it up to and from work, but it be done! Now, by the time you read this, it may have been a day or two since I've finished as my internet port on my computer seems to have exploded, but anyhoof, at least it's done, amirite? Now, as I'm certain this is going to bring about a ton of questions that I WILL NOT be answering in the comments, I will, most definitely answer them in the form of pms if you send me them that way.

Now, as to why and a little explanation. This is the last dream sequence. There will not be any more, but that's not to say that it's the end of that little storyline. The rest of that will be explained in an upcoming chapter and, finally, brought full circle in ATFN pt 2 (which will probably be named something else entirely).

Anyhoof, send any spoiler-inducing questions to me via pm and feel free to comment/speculate below. Peppy out~!

P.S. Chapter name brought to you by.... uhh.... uhmmmm..... Allington Sinclaire