The trek South was long and harsh. The snow made it nearly impossible for the caravan to move with significant speed. The strongest were at the front, pushing snow away so the few carts the village had could move. It didn’t help much, because the wheels kept getting stuck in the snow and mud mix left behind by the hoofsteps of so many ponies. When that happened, ponies would either help pull the cart out, or dig in the snow for anything still green to eat.

Even worse, ponies began to disappear during the night after the 6th day.

At first, it was thought they simply wandered off in the night as they woke up to make water and couldn’t find their way back. The bloody bones of the fourth pony to go missing the next morning disabused the caravan of that notion. Something had dragged her off in the middle of the night, and then had eaten her. It was after that discovery, a militia was formed, using makeshift spears made from reasonably thick and sturdy sticks sharpened to a point and hardened with fire. The already solemn mood soured after that. Ponies going missing from the village was not a new event, usually happening once or twice a year. But the caravan was exposed without the admittingly meager protection of their huts. And the villagers knew it.

As the number of days spent on the road increased, the dark seemed to press in closer and closer. While the formation of the militia did seem to ward away more attacks, a few more ponies still disappeared into the night. When the Sun fell below the horizon was the worst. Occasionally, you would see movement, or glowing orbs out of the corner of your eye. Or hear soft snarls or snapping twigs in the snow covered underbrush.

It was during this time I learned there was no such thing as gremlins. But wolves made of rotten wood, or horrifying amalgamations of bee and bear, or reptilian titans that seemed to be made of stone more than flesh, were real. Very real.

While attacks no longer happened nightly, the denizens of the night made their presence known. Only the bravest or most powerful monsters tried their luck.

It was on one such night my life changed forever.

The sounds of the night were filled with the howl of wolves, of monsters growling at each other as they postured in their pecking order. I huddled against mom, practically trying to hide underneath her as I watched the treeline in the distance, barely reflecting the light from several campfires. Tia was huddled on the other side, our rears facing the nearby fire. Our fronts pointed towards the dark. Everypony contributed to the night watch, about a third of the village awake at any time. If not for the exhaustion of marching and foraging in the snow for a month, the whole village would’ve been awake with all the sounds that made the night far too alive for comfort.

The only comfort was, despite being the winter months, the weather was getting warmer. The snow had covered less and less the further South we went. Even the vegetation had remained green when the snow had finally been left behind.

A sound, a slight rumble you had to strain to hear, gave pause to the monsters on the other side of the darkness. The silence reigned with eerie stillness compared to the wild orchestra of gathered monsters. While the ramport was scary in on itself, simply because the monsters were announcing themselves, the silence was worse. Sounds had to be coming from something, and if that something stayed away while making those noises, all was well. Or at least less bad. Silent monsters meant they were hiding. Hiding from something else, or sneaking in for another attack. You never knew which.

While the silence did lull a few with drowsy eyelids, most of the awake ponies stiffened and prepared for something to come out of the treeline. Almost as suddenly as it started, the silence ended. But the returning cacophony of the wild monsters didn’t really soothe the nerves of the villagers.

Hours passed before the same rumble as before sounded, closer this time. Silence fell once again. Exhausted ponies drifted into slumber without the constant reminder that they were being hunted. But the eerie silence kept me wide awake. Mom was breathing steadily, but was awake and alert. I could hear Tia’s relaxed breath as she snuggled against Mom.

The deceptive tranquility was broken with a loud roar that was far too close.

Tall shapes loomed above the trees, scales reflected flickering fire light. Ivory teeth as long as a pony’s forelimb seemed to glow with a warm light. Six bright yellow eyes shone from the night with malevolent glee.

“HYDRA!” Somepony screamed.

The Hydra pushed its way into the camp, its three heads snapping at nearby ponies who were still getting up. The camp became a rush of color and chaos as ponies began to panic, the hydra wading through the pandemonium with ease, several screaming ponies disappearing down its gullet.

“Luna!” Mom exclaimed. I looked over to see Mom and Tia running to the center of the camp, away from the Hydra. Nodding, I followed, having got up at some point in the chaos. The more level headed ponies began to rally around the centermost campfires. Makeshift spears held in hoof and magic.

“Drive it back with fire!” Mr Torchwood exclaimed, a ray of fire leaping from his horn. The Hydra screamed in pain behind me as the spell connected with its target.

By now, the rest of the ponies had regrouped with the spearline, picking up rocks and still burning sticks when they couldn’t get their own spears. The Hydra swayed as it stood over the abandoned part of the camp, its teeth now stained with a glinting liquid that seemed black in the poor light. It roared again, and lunged for the front most ponies. Now much more prepared, the ponies jabbed at the Hydra’s heads, trying to discourage them from snapping up more villagers. More ponies still waved their burning sticks in front of the Hydra’s eyes, making it hiss like a giant snake as it backed up towards the camp’s edge.

Something shifted in the Hydra’s eyes as it seemed to realize these ponies would not let themselves be an easy meal. The largest, centermost head began to convulse and gag as it regurgitated.

“Look out!” Mr. Hoarfrost exclaimed.

“BLURGH!” the Hydra convulsed, a stream of dirty green liquid spewing from its mouth. Several ponies were caught in the stream, screaming in pain as the acid began to eat into their skin. Several Unicorns began to throw their spears at the hydra, aiming for its eyes or open mouth. Only one or two managed to find their marks, but they didn’t seem to slow the Hydra down. The other two heads began to vomit acid, catching more ponies as they began to panic and break again.

I found myself standing still in this new chaos. The Hydra looming above me, its center head held imperiously high, as if inviting anyone to challenge its might.

I glanced around, ponies were running...

Fleeing...

Dying.

A mare whose name I never learned had her back half completely melted away. She was thankfully far too still to be alive. Another, a stallion this time, found himself in the left head’s mouth, his spear jabbing at an eye as he tried to free himself.

This was wrong.

This wasn’t working.

Suddenly I noticed the red tinged crescent moon far in the distance. I knew the other ponies feared the moon, but I suddenly got the impression of a silver mare, wearing a black veil, sitting on a wrought iron bench. Her hind legs crossed, her head resting on a hoof with a bored yet expectant expression.

Dumbly, I looked down in shame, because I didn’t know what I could do. This was a Hydra! There were very few stories about Hydras, and all of them said the same thing. “Don’t fight a Hydra. It will eat you.”

At some point, Sir Snuggles had fallen from my pocket, and he lay trampled in the mud. The light from a nearby campfire reflected off his helmet. I could almost hear him saying something heroic.

“Slay this beast and protect your charges Lady Lu!”

I knew what I had to do.

A spear had fallen nearby, thrown away by a fleeing villager, or dropped by a pony who had been eaten, I didn’t know. But it would have to do. My magic grasped the spear with uncharacteristic ease as I floated it before me. I glanced all over the Hydra, fearfully looking for a weakness I wasn’t sure existed.

There.

In the center of its belly, something far bigger and meaner than me had scraped away some of the Hydra’s scales. Leaving a hole the perfect size for a spear to puncture.

I wasted no time as I charged with my new spear.

“RAAAAAAAGH!” I screamed a wild cry as the Hydra loomed larger than life ahead.

And just like that, the spear had found itself half buried in the Hydra’s guts, my aim had been true. The Hydra screamed in pained rage. Its heads flailed as it tried to balance itself, but none of the heads could agree how to. The Hydra fell with a titanic crash to the forest floor, its lungs working in vain for air. And then it took its last, rattling breath.

Silence reigned as the remaining ponies came to terms with what just happened.

“L-Luna…” came a haggard, yet familiar voice.

I looked over to see a sight that would haunt me for the rest of time.

At some point, Mom had been hit by a splash of acid. Even now, over half of her chest was gone, her still twitching, and acid soaked organs exposed to the air.

“Mommy!” I squeaked, my old fillyhood self returning to the surface.

“Luna…” Mom repeated breathlessly. “I’m so proud of you Luna.”

“Mom!” Tia scrambled into view on Mom’s opposite side.

“Celestia…” Mom sighed happily. “I’m so proud of both of you.”

“Don’t say that Mom, we’ll get you better. I’ll-”

“Don’t Tia.” Mom admonished. “I’m done. Hydra acid is far too powerful.”

“But Mom… You have to stay with us… I don’t know we’ll live without you.”

“I’m sorry Mom.” Tears began to stream down my face. “I wasn’t fast enough. I could’ve been faster. I-”

“Oh you two.” Mom sighed again. “I’m proud of both of you. Tia, you’ve got a good head on your shoulders. Someday I expect you to be a great leader of ponies. Lulu, you’re braver than many soldiers of the Royal Guard. You’ll be a fine swordmaiden when you grow up.” Mom started to cough. “T-take care of each other, apart you will be great. But together you will rewrite the fate of the world.” She coughed again. “I-I’m sorry I could not leave you with more. But you have been the best daughters a mare could have.” Mom’s visible organs had nearly disappeared.

“Stay with us Mom! We’ll save you!” Tia screamed hysterically.

“I love you both-” Mom sighed one last time, falling still and silent.

My vision began to cloud over completely as tears filled my eyes. I buried my face in what portions of Mom’s coat were undamaged from the acid, her warmth already beginning to fade.

“Mom? Mom?!” Tia shrieked.

We cried for what felt like hours. The movement and grieving of other ponies was the only thing that connected us to the outside world.

Nebula Glow, Mom, was gone.