Darkness and light can describe the surrounds in a physical way or they can describe a person, what is inside them. Each and every person has their light and their darkness. However, there is no "balance" a lot of people speak of, thinking that if the "balance" is not present then all is lost, destruction comes and darkness takes all.

It is untrue. Some people have more darkness, others have more light, and in some people either of the two or both aspects are absent, the latter being the rarest occurrence.

There are people who are born with darkness and there are people who are born with light. However, these attributes of a person need to grow, become stronger with said person. Some are influenced by the light more than the darkness, others have it the other way around. Even then, many things depend on how a person is raised, what they experience throughout their life.

Many people experience darkness and adopt it as their own, thinking that they don't need light, that it makes them weaker. Others see darkness and transform it into the light, trying to balance it out or overcome it. There are people who strive towards the light but fall into darkness, no matter what they try to do or try to avoid. They might or might not be strong enough to climb out of the pit others dug for them.

Why blame others? Blaming others for your problems might seem arrogant, blind to their flaws, but in many cases, it's not true. In fact, many people hate themselves for being the victims.

No one would ever want to dig their own grave.

"What is with her? You must keep her alive!" Queen Chrysalis shouted at her subjects. A pool of blood was forming under Iclyn's shaking and twitching body. "What sort of magic is this?"

Anastasia couldn't believe her eyes as she stared at Iclyn, her ears folded against her skull and her eyes open wide. Wave Rider was staring blankly at the body of his friend, his own shaking as he fought back painful tears. Iclyn was dying and he could do nothing about it.

Sirius fell to the ground, his whole body spasming as he thrashed around, screaming on top of his lungs. Words were mumbled, no one could understand them but Anastasia could swear she heard... an apology? It didn't make sense to her. Frankly, nothing did at the moment.

The changelings subdued the former human by casting paralysis on him again. His body stopped moving, only shivering slightly, his eyes spinning out of control as his maw opened and closed, the beating of his heart loud and fast.

Anastasia sat down, overwhelmed by the events. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. Suddenly, she felt a presence in her head.

"Everything will be alright." a familiar voice was soothing, its soft words making Anastasia yawn. "Help is on its way. You need to rest."

The girl's eyes closed slowly and soon she drifted off to a peaceful sleep. Unbeknownst to her, a rescuing operation was in effect, a squad of royal guards was on their way, Princess Celestia herself taking the lead, commanding the guards personally.

Princess Luna and the Figure were staring at each other, their eyes unblinking and their bodies unmoving. Iclyn was lying behind the mightly alicorn, wheezing as blood streamed out of her horrifying wound. However, the blood flow began to slow down until it stopped, Iclyn fading into nothing as everything turned black, leaving the princess and the nightmarish creature alone.

"At last we meet again, Luna." the Figure spoke, its hands having a tight grip on the flamberge sword, its eyes looking at the alicorn with searing hatred. If looks could kill, its would burn the princess to ashes and then scatter them. "I've been waiting for you to finish you off for good."

"You must let Sirius go." the nightly princess demanded, glaring at the creature, determination in her eyes.

"Who said he wants to return?" the Figure replied. "You are the reason we are here. What you've done to him is unforgivable, princess."

"I've not done anything to him." Luna argued. "I want what's best for him but I've never done anything to him. He achieved it all by himself. You are his darkness, you clouded his mind and judgment. You are the reason he suffers."

"You can't lie your way out of this. I know your kind all too well. You know all about darkness, don't you?" the nightmarish being circled around the princess, staring her in the eyes. "Nightmare Moon... You almost murdered your own sister for the throne, and you dare call me darkness? Well, then..." it pointed its sword at the alicorn. "Show me yours."

Suddenly, Luna felt acute pain in her chest. She kneeled, almost unable to breathe as dark emotions took over her mind, flooding it from the depths. She remembered that day clearly, she remembered when her resentment, her bitterness, fear, and desperation made her do the unthinkable. All the pain she endured, her own sister overshadowing her, their subjects fearing her and ignoring her wonderful night, it all got to her, blinded her, enraged her, almost making her take a life... The life of her own sister, the one that loved her most.

The pain in her chest was a reminder of her darkest times. Banished from the face of Equestria and the whole world, imprisoned in the moon for centuries, Luna endured the pain, she had no choice but to go through it.

However, she had a choice now. She had to do something to help Sirius, to help him escape the darkness. Help him do something she couldn't do herself.

"May it be so, then..." Luna whispered, rising. She blinked, her eyes changing their color, their pupils becoming slit. Fangs peeked out of her mouth, her mane turning into a mass of stars and cosmic dust. "Fight fire with fire..." her heavy gaze fell on the Figure, the fire of determination in them. The Figure watched her with both interest and a hint of fear, the grip on its flamberge sword as tight as ever, the blade ready to be used. The princess inhaled deeply, and then said: "And darkness with darkness."

https://youtu.be/1BwcoSDQH0Q

Luna's horn started glowing, a greatsword appeared out of nowhere. Stars appeared around her, the whole cosmos backing her up. Her blade of black steel absorbed the light and yet gave some back, reflecting it, just like the moon.

The princess charged, propelling herself forward with her wings, pointing her sword at the Figure. It dodged and then swung its own sword, trying to get the princess. She blocked the hit, turning to face the nightmarish being. She redirected her opponent's blow away from her and struck, almost getting the Figure. It jumped back a few steps, keeping its sword in a defensive position. Its empty, glowing eyes were looking straight at the alicorn, its position shifting slightly, its steps light and fluid and yet filled with strength.

Luna was on the offense, her sword raised and ready to strike. She gritted her teeth, feeling the anger building up inside her faster and faster. Her heart was beating fast, her breaths quick and yet deep, adrenaline coursing through her veins.

"Sirius has already beaten your nightmare." the Figure spoke coldly. "I am your nightmare now."

A fierce battle commenced, both duelists swinging ferociously, trying to get the other. Clashes of steel echoed through the cosmos, resonating with the stars. It was no longer a duel but a fight between wolves as they tried to bite at each-other with their swords, sparks flying around as blades clashed, illuminating them like stars.

Luna was completely on offense, barely giving the Figure time to react. She swung her sword swiftly, counting every move, remembering many years of her training. However, her opponent was nowhere near giving up, deflecting, dodging and parrying her blows, making counterattacks whenever possible.

They were equals on the field of battle, their swordsmanship parallel to each-other's skill, making it impossible to determine the victor.

Suddenly, the Figure pulled out a revolver from thin air. Luna's eyes widened when she realized what was in the hand of her opponent. Jumping back, the nightmarish being aimed the revolver at the princess and fired off two shots. One of them grazed her neck and another hit her in the chest, making her grunt as blood immediately started to stream from the wound.

With a roar, Luna charged and impaled the Figure through the abdomen, pushing the creature backward as well. Not stopping, she swung the sword, cutting through the flesh and bone like butter. Continuing the motion, she cut off the firing hand and followed it up with swift decapitation. Before the body or any of its parts could fall to the ground, it disappeared into black smoke, fading away soon after.

"Ending it all is not as easy as killing me by swinging a sword around." the Figure's voice resonated inside the head of the wounded alicorn. "If you thought otherwise, you were foolish."

Luna breathed heavily as she woke up, sweat rolling down her body, making her wounds sting more than they already did. She looked at her chest and saw blood streamed down, staining her fur and the sheets of her bed. Her body weakening by a second, she summoned all her strength and got up, grunting. Stumbling as her vision went black for a moment, the princess made her way to the door. She blasted it open with a spell, trying her best to stay on her hooves. Blood dripped from her, accumulating on the floor under her.

"Guards!" she called, and two stallions were by her side soon after. "Hospital... now!"

"Right away, Your Majesty!" one of them nodded, charging up a teleportation spell. A second later, the three ponies disappeared.

Celestia and a squad of royal guards were right outside of the cave, preparing for the attack. Magic at the ready, crossbows loaded and prepared, swords drawn out. When the last moments passed, the group rushed into the cave, non-lethally taking down the first changelings. Without any mistakes or errors on their part, the group advanced deeper inside the cave until the came right to where Chrysalis was keeping the hostages.

One of the cages was surrounded by changelings, their horns glowing. Their queen was sitting on her throne, overlooking the process, Sirius lying at her hooves. Anastasia and Wave Rider were asleep in their cages, lying down and breathing lightly. It was the perfect time to take all of them off-guard.

The spells were cast, rendering most of the changelings unconscious. The group rushed in, taking out the remaining changelings save for the queen herself.

"Stay back!" Chrysalis yelled, holding Sirius. "Or I w—"

Her words were cut off as Celestia threw her against the wall, effectively knocking her out while leaving Sirius unharmed. The princess finally sighed in relief, her operation successful with zero casualties.

"That's for the wedding." she said, huffing. Then she turned to the guards. "Bind the changelings, extra care with the queen, we don't want her to escape again. Rush Iclyn to the hospital, check if others are alright."

The guards obeyed her orders, and soon Iclyn was carried out of the cave, unicorns keeping her alive while trying to stop the bleeding. Anastasia and Wave Rider were woken up and escorted out of the cave soon after.

"Your Majesty, Sirius is... in an unknown condition." one of the guards said, inspecting the former human. "Paralysis spell and something else I'm not sure of."

"Carry him out, take more guards if you need to, keep an eye on him constantly." Celestia ordered. "Report to me if anything about his state changes."

"Will do!" the guard saluted, returning to his work.

Princess Celestia sighed deeply, a frown appearing on her face. The day was more than a handful. Chrysalis' escape nearly cost lives of innocents. The alicorn could sense something in the air, something very dark. The whole cave, and especially the prison section, was drenched in something disturbing, something better left unknown.

"Torture..." Celestia whispered, fearing that the word itself would bring dire consequences. Sirius, his friends, and his lover weren't brought there to be killed, they were brought for torture. The princess sighed shakily, glad that she managed to prevent at least some of it from happening.

As Sirius was transported, she glanced at him. In his eyes, she saw immense fear and pain. No rage, no anger, no hate, just a feeling of being lost and alone, of losing something very valuable.

"I'm sorry..." he whispered on repeat. "I'm sorry..."

Celestia didn't yet know what it was about but the tone of his voice sent shivers down her spine, making her shudder as if her insides were suddenly filled with cold.

It was all far from over, and the princess wasn't sure the ending would be good. Even without knowing what Sirius or Iclyn were enduring, she knew it had no simple solution. And even if there is one, she doubted it could be good for either of the two ponies.

Author's Notes:

Finally, the chapter is done. Sorry for the wait.

Anyway, I want to hear what you think about the music and the pic.