Nathaniel's heart was filled with fear as he looked upon the midnight black mare. Her cold teal eyes looked at him with a primal hunger for blood, something that made the human slowly back away. Nathan quickly looked around for some sort of escape route, his fight or flight instinct working overtime as the Nightmare-ish mare jumped him, her fangs showing.

Nate was frozen in fear and his legs felt stiff. For a second he looked into the open maw of the beast, time seemingly slowing down around him, before the teen was tackled to the side by Rose. The sanguine looked at what had been Luna moments before in horror, her hooves searching for the throwing knives in her saddlebags.

"Princess! Stop!" Osiris yelled and ducked under a blast of magic from the corrupted mare.

"I am not some lowly princess! I am your queen! I am Nightmare Moon!" She growled and unfolded her wings, air sweeping into the room from the hole in the wall.

The eclipsed moon seemed to glow an ominous red as crystals spread across the floor. They were red in colour and reminded the human of the twisted throne room Sombra had created for himself. That bastard had done this to Luna, he had turned her into some kind of monster. Nathaniel felt both fear and anger over what was happening as he looked at the mare, her eyes filled with so much hatred.

"Luna you must stop! The world cannot live in darkness!" Celestia's voice yelled over the throne room, she sounded so broken as her eyes looked upon the corrupted being Luna had become.

"Is it better to be blinded by your light dear sister?" Nightmare hissed and put all focus on the white alicorn in front of her.

They were all spread out in the once glorious throne room. Celestia stood in the middle of it, the two thrones and the hole in the wall behind her. Nightmare stood in front of the open doors at the opposite of the thrones, her mane and tail covering the ceiling like a dark blue smoke. Nathan and Rose was to her left, the two having gotten up while Nightmare argued with Celestia. Blaze and Osiris looked at the them all from the corrupted mare's right, the wolf suddenly bolting towards her with a loud barking.

"Stop dammit!" The scout said and tried to grab the wolf, but he wasn't quick enough as the hound ran for the black mare.

The alicorn simply lit her horn and sent Blaze flying backwards with a shock-wave, hitting Osiris. The scout and wolf tumbled across the floor, the stallion moaning in pain. The human looked at them and with a growl sent a blast of magic from his hand towards "Luna", the mare deflecting the beam back at him with a dome shield. He was sent back into the wall with a groan, hitting the stone floor with a 'thud'.

Rose rushed to his side and tried to help him stand, looking at the demonic mare with fear as blue cracks started to spread across the wall Nate was leaning on. The man looked up to see large chunks of the roof coming plummeting down towards them, the large pieces of rock glowing with the same blue cracks as the wall. The human simply grabbed Rose and covered her with his body, holding his hands over his head in fear.

But instead of being crushed by the rock were they suddenly somewhere else, laying next to Osiris and Blaze. Celestia's horn was lit like she had just preformed a spell, her eyes intensely focused on Nightmare Moon. Her once scared and broken look was replaced with one of rage, the white alicorn growling.

"Leave them alone you damn demon" Celestia said and blasted a great white bolt of magic at the corrupted mare.

Nightmare simply deflected that spell as well, the beam hitting the walls and ceiling. The throne room had so many holes in it now hat it was a wonder the roof hadn't buried them all yet. The black alicorn dashed for Celestia, the princess of the sun unfolding her wings to get out of the way. The two alicorns collided and the impact was powerful enough to leave cracks in the stone floor. They both flew out through one of the holes in the wall and the human desperately started to search his bag.

"We need that damn water!" Osiris said as he got up with the wolf, seeing the red crystals growing onto the walls.

"By the gods, the corruption turned her into some sort of beast from Tartarus" Rose said in disbelief as she watched the hole in the wall.

Soon yellow and black beams of magic started to light up the sky, Celestia fighting back against the monster that had taken her sister. Yet it was clear who of them seemed the most ready for a fight, as the eagle eyed sanguine could see Celestia being hit several times. Nathan could see it as well in the corner of his eyes, finally finding the vial of water. They would need to get it into Nightmare's body, something Nathan had no idea how to do.

"We need to get outside. Now" Osiris said as the castle shook, thunder starting to echo over the great building.

"We will have to force her onto the ground! I am not flying after her into that storm!" The bat-pony said as they ran out from the throne room.

Celestia's POV

I felt like my bones almost shattered when she hit me. The impact sent us both out one of the holes she'd made in my castle's wall, the darkness from the sky making it hard to see castle grounds below. I looked at her snarling face as she tried to blast me with another powerful dark spell, those eyes still belonging to my sister. She was in there, I had to get her out I had to save her.

My thoughts cost me precious time, a blast of magic hitting my head. I fell for a few meters before managing to unfold my wings and heal myself. I could feel blood dripping down my snout, my head throbbing with pain. This couldn't be happening, not to Luna. She hadn't done anything wrong, my little sister had fought for our nation and forged an alliance with the dragons. She did not deserve this.

It was with a heavy heart I fought back. I dove under her blasts, kicked her side if she got close and used the power of the sun in an attempt to blast her out of the sky. I only needed to subdue her, then I could help her. I had already lost one sibling, I would not loose another. He had deserved better, I would not fail Luna the same way.

"Please sister! Stand down!" I yelled over the thunderstorm starting above us.

Deep down I knew it was pointless. Luna was no longer in control, or at least not good parts of her. This was not my sister that feel out of the nursing tree when we were foals. This was not my sister that told our brother she'd become the most skilled warrior in the world. This was not my sister that had ruled our nation as I mourned. This was a monster, a monster that had stolen my beloved little sisters eyes.

"Never" She hissed and a torrent of lightning bolts hit the castle, the screams of the ponies inside could be heard from even up here.

The mere thought of this beasts hurting those ponies made me see red, finally allowing me to see past the body she had taken. If this creature wanted to fight then I would give her one. With a battle-cry I teleported in front of her, slamming my body into her's to break her focus. It worked at first, the sudden impact stopping the lightning bolts hitting the building. Yet I soon saw ponies seemingly made out of shadows run into a broken wall of the castle, seeing Nightmare Moon's smirk.

"You can never save them all" She said before a great light lit up the sky, a lightning bolt missing me just barley.

I simply sent another bolt of magic her way, trading blows and raising shields to protect myself from her attacks. Yet as I grew tired from casting spell after spell she didn't seem to tire whatsoever, the black alicorn only grinning madly at me. Her laughter soon started, that cold heartless laughter that reminded me of something out of a horror story. I only kept sending every ounce of power I had her way, the corrupted alicorn simply blocking or dodging the spells. When I manged to hit her she was barley phased, pushing on to kill me.

"The darkness grants me my power sister! You cannot control me anymore!" Nightmare said with a cackle as more lightning crashed over the sky.

I growled in response and dashed for her. I allowed my magic to teleport me right in front of her snout and I slammed into the mare, wrapping my wings around her to keep her from flying away. We hit the stone roof and I felt some of the bones in my wings crack, making me scream out in pain. I rolled off Nightmare who got up quickly, blood dripping from her head. She growled and blue crystals started to grow over her body, forming into armor.

"You think that's enough to burn away the darkness!? You disgust me" Nightmare hissed, summoning a black scythe into her magical grasp.

The was Luna's favorite weapon. It had been forged by our father, blessed by our mother and decorated by our brother. It was a reminder of what once was, a reminder of happier times. I could still see Luna in those cold eyes, some part of her looking out at me. I summoned my own weapon just before she swung the heavy scythe at me with a downward angle, the black weapon met by my sword's blade.

The weapon had been our father's, used in rituals and to protect our village from the whatever tried to hurt it. He had given it to me with a prideful smile, told me to always look out for those I love. I had promised him to not fail him, to protect my family at any cost. If he saw me now he would be so disappointed, so heartbroken.

I felt my heart grow heavy with each blow sent my way by the Nightmare, her mad screams making it ache. I deflected strike after strike, sent spell after spell her way. The corruption let nothing affect her, like some sort of shield. I could only hold back tears as I saw Luna in front of me, twisted into a creature of hatred. I had caused this, this was my fault. By the gods, I felt so weak.

"I'm sorry.." I whispered as she slammed her weapon hard enough into my blade to send it flying.

With a scream she drew her scythe back for the killing blow, my eyes following the blade's trajectory. I lit my horn and felt the thunderclouds above me, waiting for a command to act. I closed my eyes as I brought down a gigantic lightning-bolt on us both, feeling the ceiling give away under my hooves.

I fell down the hole, my muscles locked up and my body crying out in pain. I hit the stone floor with a wheeze, as did Nightmare a few meters away from me. The storm outside lit up the dark castle hallway and I looked in disbelief as the corrupted mare stood up, dragging her blade across the floor. She should have at least been unable to move after that, but the mare just looked more angry than ever.

"You dare take control of my storm!?" She yelled and I felt a tight magical grip around my throat, picking me up from the ground.

I could see clearly one of my wings looking bent and broken, the appendage starting to hurt as the effects of the lightning subsided. I looked once again into her eyes as I felt my air supply being cut off, her dark smile making me terrified. I kicked and tried to scream as darkness started to overtake my vision, her teal eyes constantly there, watching me die with glee. I spat and tried to cast a spell before I felt consciousness starting to slip away.

"I can hear her, she's crying out for help. But you failed her, just like you failed yourself" She said and dropped me to the floor.

"Luna.." I said and tried to crawl away, casting Solaris Mico at the Nightmare as a last ditch attempt.

She yelled out in pain and held her burnt face as the spell passed, the most common battle-spell having done more to her than any advanced technique taught to us by Starswirl. I managed to get up and stumbled towards the door containing the elements of harmony. The magical gems had to be able to cure her, they were my only choice left. I had ignored the sounds of fighting in the castle until now, but I could clearly hear it. My soldiers were trying to survive the onslaught of Nightmare's shadow creatures.

"Do you hear that!? That is where your rule leads Celestia! Despair and chaos! You're not any better than Discord!" She taunted and I stopped, turning around to look at her smirking face.

"Don't you dare say his name" I growled and sent another blast of Solaris Mico her way.

The lightning suddenly brought down from the roof however made my spell-casting useless, the rubble sending me backwards and blocking off the hallway for us both to engage in any further battle. I saw the hole in the roof and unfolded my wings only to cry out in pain, remembering that one of my wings were broken. I started up a healing spell and stumbled out a hole in the wall.

I had stumbled out into the garden and looked out towards the ballroom, seeing a large hole in its walls. Shadow ponies had it under siege, my guards trying desperately to push them back. I could only growl and started to move towards the chaos when I saw my sword laying there in the dirt. It must have fallen from the roof when Nightmare knocked it out of my magical grasp.

I reached out and picked it up with my magic, feeling better about having the weapon once again in my grasp. It was then I noticed the army of shadow ponies around me, they seemed to form from the shadows. I raised my blade and glared at them, dried blood and ash being mixed in with mud as the rain fell from the sky. I would not be able to get to the hole, I could only hope my Guardians were there and helped the soldiers.

"Hold out sister, just a bit longer" I said and buried my sword in a shadow's head.

Lord Protector Silver Wing's POV

I looked at the sea as we left the small island behind. We had been forced to rest as we made our way to the zebra nation, the dragons not being able to fly the whole way. The largest dragons left had taken a long time to join us again, having hidden the remaining eggs in some undefinable cave. The griffin troops would occupy the capital and search for any remaining dragons or eggs, but they would all be gone by the time they got there. I was happy that the dragons had joined us, willing to serve the human in a war against those who had killed their leader.

Yet I knew deep down the human was not the safest bet. He was a young creature with no seeming control over his power and already developing a habit of drinking. As the honorary guardian of princess Luna I had expected better by the time I met him in the Crystal Empire, but he had turned out to be a disappointment. Maybe now he could finally grow beyond his seeming unwillingness to serve and help our nation. He was blessed by the goddess for crying out loud, a serving spell or not, that should make any creature feel pride in protecting their kingdom.

"My Lord" I heard Violet say, her voice sounding annoyed and tired.

"Report commander" I told the mare.

"The dragons are getting restless. They crave revenge for the Dragon Lord yet as we're taking time to deliver that their trust in our mission is faltering" She told me and I growled.

"They know we need more than a couple of dragons to win a war. Our navy is still on its way back and the Dark Kingdom is not a good choice for us at the moment" I told my commander who sighed.

"The Raven could be wrong. We have always been given strange reports about the Dark Kingdom, most have turned out to be lies" Violet insisted and followed me as I made my way over the deck.

"I will trust the information given to me by the Solar Guardians. They always manages to get needed information out fast" I informed her and she rolled her eyes.

"If you say so my Lord. Just know that every day spent trying to get the Zebras help is another day for King Guto to invade our country" The mare told me and walked below deck with a huff.

The dragons weren't the only ones who were getting agitated it seemed. I simply sighed and walked up the stairs to the helm, Spectral Vision looking out over the ocean. The stallion had been quiet since we left The Dragonlands, always looking towards our next destination.

"Permission to speak freely sir?" The unicorn asked, I simply complied with a nod.

"We will never make it back in time to face the first invasion force. Even with our fastest ship on route will the capital burn before we get there" He said with a frown.

"What do you suggest then?" I asked the white eyes unicorn who grinned slightly.

"We make use of what we know of the griffins weapon and what knowledge we have ourselves" The stallion told me and looked back to a box behind us, marked with the Archmage's cutie mark.

"Let's hope that mad old wizard drew some good diagrams.." I muttered and walked over to it with Spectral.

Nathaniel's POV

The man rushed down the hallways with his companions following him close behind. The battle between Celestia and her corrupted sister raged outside, lightning bolts hitting the castle grounds as they clashed. The man was just trying to get to the garden as quickly as possible, hoping to save his friend. The way his footsteps echoed as he ran down the hall added an almost haunted feeling to the empty castle, where had all the guards gone?

Soon they could hear screams from servants and angry shouts from guards, the walls of the castle crumbling from the power released by the two alicorns battle. Fire was also spreading throughout the castle, old banners and pieces of the ceiling filled with smoke. It was hard to imagine that mere minutes before it had stood tall and proud, seemingly ready to take on an army. Now it was being destroyed, torn to pieces by the lightning and powerful magic attacks.

The four of them came running into the ballroom, seeing guards overwhelmed by ponies made from shadows. They reminded Nathaniel about Sombra, their very existence a result from the corruption. Rose didn't hesitate and rushed into the well lit room, her hooves hitting the white tiles as she threw a knife into the head of one of the shadows. It died from the attack to the man's relief but the three others taking its place worried him.

The ballroom was large, large enough to hold at least five hundred people, or ponies in this case. It was decorated with suns and moons everywhere, shields bearing Celestia's and Luna's cuite marks placed on all the pillars in the room. A silver chandelier hung from the dome ceiling, the thing shaking from the battle outside rocking the castle. The walls and floors were a sterile white, only being lit up by a few banners or red carpets here and there. There was a section of the room that was slightly elevated, instruments like a piano and guitar could be seen laying around.

The ponies in the room were also a concern. Many servants were hiding under the unprepared tables, all from maids to cooks yelling out in fear as the shadows got close. The massive amount of guards in the room were also another roadblock for him to get to Luna, all of them having created one large mass of battling ponies.

One of the walls had been blown up, leaving a large hole in the middle of the ballroom. The shadows seemed to come from that hole, many of the golden clad guards trying to push them back into the gardens. Yet even with the valiant attempt at keeping the evil at bay did some still slip through, explaining the many shadows running around in the room. So far it didn't seem like there were any casualties, but a few servants ans guards looked to have broken limbs.

"Eyes sharp kid. Don't loose that water, save anyone you can and don't die" Osiris told him with a nod before he threw himself into the frenzy.

The battle raging in the ballroom was hard to describe. The shadows moved almost to fluently as they attacked, their speed making it hard for the human to pinpoint where they would strike. Nathan reached for the enchanted war-hammer and took a defensive stance before he was suddenly sent flying. A shadow had rammed into him from his left, sending him further away from his companions.

The human landed with a grunt and felt the war-hammer escape his grasp. The sudden loss of his greatest weapon didn't sit well with him as the shadow quickly advanced on the downed man, a crocked smile spreading over the smoke pony's face. It seemed to form a blade made from the same thing in mid air and then it ran for Nathan. He quickly rolled out of the way and drew his own blade as the shadow brought it down on the ground. The tiles he had laid on moments before cracked under the smoke sword's weight, the creature growling at him.

"Come on! I've killed worst things than you!" Nathaniel yelled and it lunged for him, only for a grey blur to hit its side.

Blaze and the shadow pony rolled across the floor for a few meters before suddenly coming to a stop. The wolf's thick magic-absorbing fur easily protecting him against the strikes delivered by the smoke sword, allowing the hound to bite down on the shadows head and crushing it. The shadow turned to dust and the wolf ran to his owner's side, the human petting his head.

"Good job bud" He said and Blaze barked in response before they both turned their attention to the battle.

Rose and Osiris had both helped the guards clear a path through the shadow ponies. The two Lunar Guardians both used their speed to their advantage, cutting down as many shadows as they could in one section of the ballroom before moving on to the next one. The human didn't want to let them do all the work, so he quickly searched for Valkyrie with his eyes. Where was the damn war-hammer?

Nate was forced to fight only using his sword however when a group of shadows suddenly attacked him. They all tried to grab at the bag around his hip, the very same bag he had stored the holy water in. He couldn't be sure if these creatures knew what was inside the bag, but it didn't really matter. They were trying to destroy the only thing that could save Luna and he would not accept that.

With a battle-cry the man and his wolf attacked the six shadows surrounding them. It was a moment of pure instinct as Nathan ducked under each blade swung his way, trying to avoid the same fate as Luna. With the help of Blaze grabbing a hold of one of the shadows legs with his jaws could Nathaniel bury his sword into its chest. The creature died with s shriek and turned to ash, its brethren trying extra hard to kill them because of it.

For several minutes were there nothing but slashes and parries in the man's head, the sound of battle becoming part of the background noise as he focused on staying alive. He moved across the dance floor as more and more shadows joined in on the attempt to kill him. It was getting harder and harder to deflect a blow sent his way as the minutes passed, almost twenty shadows crowding him.

It was then a large portion of the creatures were sent flying by a green light and a recognizable metallic clang. The human saw how a large stallion dressed in thick golden armor stood behind the shadows. The gray horn on his head and his blue eyes were stuck to the human as he wielded the war-hammer dropped by the teen. The shadows tried to aim their blows at the newcomer instead, his large helmet absorbing any strike delivered to his head.

"I think this belongs to you guardian Sol" The stallion said with a deep voice and threw the legendary weapon to the black haired man.

Nathaniel caught it and dropped his sword for a second, swinging Valkyrie around him in a circle. The weapon hit every shadow near him and sent them flying with a green flash of magic. The stallion that had saved him drew a broadsword from his back and proceeded to crush any shadow that wasn't caught in Nathan's strike. Soon the mass of shadows that had tried to kill him were dead.

"Thank you" Nathaniel said over the sounds of the battle to the stallion.

"Thank me later Guardian. We still have hostiles in the castle" The giant stallion said and hurried off to help deal with another wave of shadows flooding into the room.

The next half hour was a blur. Nathaniel slowly managed to make his way across the ballroom towards the large hole in the wall. At times the human ran into one of his companions, quickly helping them dispatch of a shadow or two before pushing on. With the help of Valkyrie it became easy for the man to clear out any single shadow coming towards him, the guards rallying behind him as the green shockwaves of his war-hammer lit up the room. Whenever the shadows swarmed him the man would strike at them with all he had, trying to get to Luna.

When a sudden explosion of light erupted from outside the man almost went blind. The following sound shattered a few of the windows and caused Nathaniel's ears to ring for a second. Many of the shadows screamed in pain because of the sudden sound and light, the guards now given a chance to push them back into the garden.

The man rushed after them only to see Blaze sniff the air and run towards one of the many closed doors in the ballroom. The doors seemed to be connected to other half of the castle, smoke pouring out from under them. Rose and Osiris also saw the wolf's actions, giving Nathaniel a nod as they all hurried to the closed doors. Nate tried to push them open but they wouldn't budge.

"Those things are still a threat to the servants and castle guests, so be quick" The golden furred stallion said and the human nodded.

He let Valkyrie rest on his shoulder and Nate put his weight on his right foot. The human forced the doors open with a great swing of the war-hammer that sent splinters down the hall. Fire and smoke flew out towards them and they all coughed, the wolf running ahead of them. Nathaniel didn't want his friend to get hurt, so he followed the hound down the burning hallway.

At the end of the hall was a great stone door. Runes had been carved into it in a ring pattern. The largest ring surrounded a smaller ring and that ring of runes surrounded another. In the middle of them all were a hole, just a round hole where one could insert something. But the gate wasn't what caught the human's attention, but rather the guards on the ground. They looked like hell, bones broken and a black liquid flowing from their mouths. The corruption had started within them.

"Help us.." One gurgled out before he passed out.

"Goddess preserve us.." Rose said as red crystals started to spread across the floor.

King Guto's POV

I looked over the mass of Griffins below me, all their faces looking up at me in awe. I loved that look in their eyes, that utter and total submission. They knew I was their king, they knew only I could lead us back to the glory we once held and they knew I had the means to do it. It was intoxicating, being so close to fulfilling the promise I made to my father. I was so close to victory I could taste it.

"My dear subjects! I speak with you today to answer those questions that linger in your hearts! I know many of you are afraid of conflict, that you see war as the death of our proud nation! But I am here to tell you what war truly is! War, is beautiful" I said, the idol humming behind me to add more power in my words.

"We used to be an empire feared by all the world! We stood as the prime example of what it meant to lead! We pushed the savage Yaks and Minotaurs back to the mountains and forced the Zebras to submit! We killed the demon sitting upon the Black Throne! We had control of the trade routes and we were all kings!" I yelled, the people below cheering.

I could see my son watching me from my left. The balcony we stood on were wide enough to hold the entire court if I so desired, but I only needed for him to see this. My son, a half-breed, was tied by the ancient law to pick up the crown upon my death. If I was to put a half-breed on my throne then I would show him how to truly lead a people.

"Yet, we have fallen from grace! We were pushed out from the south by the dragons, the Changelings killed old king Tyr, the Celestial ponies forced us to submit all our land to the west! The zebras forbade us to mine in land rightfully ours! The savages of the mountains came down and raided out settlements to the north! All of these things because we're no longer feared!" I said, catching my breath before I continued.

"The world council is a disgrace! Among the seats we have two Princesses who have taken control of the sun and the moon, a Dragon Lord to lazy to burn the mutants hiding in the desert, a Queen of spies ready to stab us all in the back, an Empress so incompetent she allowed the deserts remain unguarded and a King who rules a nation of traitors" I growled, I could see anger spreading across the crows as I named the council.

Even some of the ponies in the crows seemed to be patriotic, looking angry at the mention of their former leaders. Perhaps there was something salvageable from their pitiful race, but I doubted it. I would make sure this time that there would be no obstacle, that a war would happen. With the lust for blood rising in the air I couldn't wait for them to hear the reports from my commanders.

The sudden eclipse that had just appeared served my point well, showcasing the sword those ponies held to our necks. With power like that there was no wonder my grandfather had signed away all that land. The old bird had died regretting that decision, begging my father to set things right. When he failed to come up with a plan good enough to take control of Equestria he had made me promised. Now we were here, two generations later and war would finally happen.

"I will no longer sit idle as these parasites leach on our proud nation! We will not be part of a council made up by nations that stole their land! We can rise to the glory we once held by crushing them all under our talons! From this day forward we are officially at war with Equestria!" My voice carried out over the King's Road Square, the griffins and hippogriffs below slowly starting to shout excitedly.

My son watched them all with me. His brown eyes saw their happiness over war, all of their yellow eyes starring up at us with outermost submission. This is what the idol had promised, this is what the old relic had shown me in my dreams. A united people taking back what was originally theirs. It was beautiful, or at least I thought so. In my son's eyes I could only see horror, his young soul not hardened enough to stomach war.

"We have already killed the Changeling Queen and the Dragon Lord! Our fleet attacked both their nations and wiped them out! Whatever scraps remains have fled! We have the Dark Kingdom's submission, the Crystal Empire is gone and the Zebras will soon no longer be threat! Only Equestria remains and once it fall we will once again rule this world!" I yelled and spread my wings, my subjects below doing the same and chanting my name.

"I want you to sign up for our army, to help me take back our rightful land and power!" I finally said, the crowd cheering even louder as I walked back into the castle.

My son followed me quietly, his eyes flicking to the paintings on the walls. He looked nervous, afraid. As my firstborn he had a standard to follow, a way of live he couldn't change. I could see that he wanted to say something, Tyr always had been a talkative one. His younger brothers, his pure-blodded younger brothers, always knew when to show respect. You did not question your king's decisions.

"Father, we cannot go to war" Tyr said, my yellow eyes flicking to him quickly.

"Explain your words son" I said and gripped the idol tightly in my talons.

Had I picked the relic up when I walked away from the balcony? I had a hard time remembering, small details didn't matter these days. The war mattered, now with all the pieces in place. I kept a steady glare on my son, his head kept low. It was a good thing he knew when to show respect, I wouldn't mind punishing him otherwise.

"A war will only cause destruction for us all. We will only gain burnt farmland from the ponies and the zebras would rather blow up their mines than give them to us" He said, a defiant look in his eyes.

"A war will be the thing save the soul of this nation. I've told you this many times child" My voice carried a hint of softness to it.

There was not many creatures I had felt affection towards. Tyr and his mother were two of those, two creatures I could claim I loved. But my half-breed of a son had not inherited my heart for battle, nor my manipulate mind. I would be forced to train him for a ling time if I wanted a son worthy of our steel throne.

"And what is that soul exactly father? Is it a legacy of conflicts filled with death or a reminder of a nation that had so many poor they made up over a fifth of our population?" Tyr asked me with a snarl and I sighed.

"Its a soul of a warrior, a soul not afraid of battle" I said before stopping.

"All warriors need rest father, perhaps our nation should put down its blade?" The grey feathered griffin asked, my stiff glare silencing him.

"Tell your mother I said hello" I told the young hippogiff simply.

"One day she would like to hear those words in person.." Tyr mumbled and jumped out a window, flying off.

I followed him with my eyes for a moment before I was given a letter by one of the guards. It looked a few days old and I recognized the black seal on it, the seal of my puppet Empress. I headed to my private study and locked the six locks on the door before opening the letter. What it said made feel so much anger I threw it to the side and punched my talon into the rock wall, leaving clear cracks.

"That idiot! Does she think she can fail me!? I will send back her boy's ear for thi..!" I started before feeling my throat closing.

I couldn't breathe, I felt like the life was being squeezed out of me. I held my throat and desperately tore down a few books from a shelf. I looked to the idol and saw its pulsing yellow light, that beautiful yellow light. I could feel its disappointment, its anger and one word whispered through my mind that made me feel very small.

"Failure" The idol whispered and I fell to the ground as pain spread through my body.

"I did not fail! I will take conquer this world!" I croaked out and felt the force let go of my throat.

I gagged and spat onto the floor, feeling like a Yak had chewed on me. Had the idol just taken away control? Had it just tried to kill me? I looked at the artifact with much more caution as I got up, my own words ringing in my head. Had I been right or wrong about it requiring no price? As the idol suddenly swept a wave of calm over me I didn't care. Any price was worth what this artifact could offer, right?

Nathaniel's POV

The human looked at the corrupted guards and rushed to their side. The wolf must have heard their cries and smelled the disease among the smoke. The smell of the burning building couldn't cover up the stench of death in the air, the many ponies on the ground crying out for salvation. The corruption was a horrible disease, it destroyed whatever it touched.

"Dammit we need healers here now, they won't last long" The stallion said from the human's left.

"She tried.. She tried to open the door.." One guard coughed out, dried blood clinging to his coat.

"What is behind that door?" Nathan asked his fellow guardians and Rose looked at the old gate.

"The elements of harmony. The weapons that vanquished Discord and defeated Lord Tirek" The sanguine claimed.

"We need to force Luna to drink the water, perhaps they can help" The man said and hurried up to the door.

As the man examined the door his companions looked over the guards. They shook their head as they reached a few that laid still, a dark pool of black liquid under them. Lives would be lost because of whatever had taken Luna's body, and it would suffer for it. As the man looked at the small hole in the door Nate could feel the war-hammer humming, a strange metallic humming that got stronger the closer it got to the door.

"Who made this door?" The teen asked his companions.

"The princesses mother, the goddess of fate. Why do you want to know kid? Only Celestia can open those doors, which is the reason the elements are safe from the Nightmare" Osiris told him.

Without answering the young man inserted the slim handle of the war-hammer into the hole and then twisted it. The rings of runes lit up with a green glow and the ancient door opened. His companions and the guards that still were conscious looked at him in awe. Nathaniel looked at the strange pedestal in the middle of the room, six gems resting upon it. They all glowed when he entered the room, a warm feeling spreading across human and his friends.

"I thank you human for opening that door. Tearing off Celestia's horn would have been a waste of time" A dark female voice said from behind him.

Before Nathan could react had he been flung backwards by a great forced and rolled across the floor. The Nightmare stood there with a grin on her face as each gem was picked up by her smoke like mane. Rose spread her wings and threw herself at the mare. The bat-pony was knocked out of the sky as the black mare used her tail like a whip, hitting Rose in the side and sending her into one of the walls.

Osiris and Blaze both tried to force Nightmare Moon away from the door with raw strenght. The wolf bit into the mare's leg while Osiris slammed himself into her side. Both were picked up and thrown aside, Nightmare sending Blaze out a window and Osiris out a hole into the garden.

With two friends gone and one knocked out it became a battle between the green eyed teen and the black mare. Nathan raised Valkyrie into the air and slammed it into the ground, sending a shockwave towards Nightmare who formed a shield. The alicorn growled and lit her horn, a dark smirk on her muzzle.

"Kneel, servant" She hissed and the man could see his arms glowing.

With her horn lit ablaze the alicorn activated the servant spell placed on the human. He could see the magical tattoo swirl around his forearms, the chains flouting just above his skin. The pain hit him like a truck, sending him onto his knees screaming in agony. Lightning flashed over his body, leaving burn marks and imprinting the chains onto his arms. The spell suddenly stopped, the man sitting on his knees.

Nathaniel was panting, his eyes open wide. The spell had been worse than the one in the cage. When they had first captured him the lightning hitting his body hadn't left him with scars, this attack had done more than that. His clothes looked burned and the sword on his hip surged with magical energy.

"My sister at least did one good thing before sending you away. Leaving you without that fail-safe had been disastrous for my plan" The Nightmare said and dragged him over the floor with her tail.

His vision was blurry as she dragged him out into the gardens. Osiris called out to him and tried to get up only for thick vines to wrap around his limbs, holding him still. Soon the grass that he was dragged across was replaced by black tiles, the Nightmare dragging him past the statue of Discord.

"There was no other way" A voice said in his mind before the statue got out of view.

Nathan had a hard time staying awake as his body screamed for rest. Nightmare Moon finally let him go before summoning a black scythe. She raised it above her head and grinned, her white fangs almost glowing. The eclipsed sun looked over them both, the two celestial bodies glowing dimly.

"I hope she will remember this. How you died under her own moon" The mare said before bringing down the blade towards the man.

"Luna.. I'm sorry.." Nate mumbled and closed his eyes, awaiting the blow.

But it never came. The teen looked up to find the scythe surrounded in a light blue aurora, a clear opposite of Nightmare's hard and cold dark blue one. For a second he didn't see Nightmare's eyes, but the tear filled ones of Luna. It only lasted a second, but a second was all he needed. The man grabbed the vial of water from his bag and popped the lid. With one fluid motion he poured the content into Nightmare Moon's jaw and forced it shut.

The black alicorn swallowed it without even thinking, gagging and screaming in pain as the holy water burned away at the corruptions hold over Luna's body. She growled and kicked the human in the chest, sending him onto the ground. Nathaniel let out a pained whimper as he hit the floor, several of his ribs broken from the kick. His vision went dark but he could see Nightmare stumbling about, dropping the elements.

The Nightmare's body looked like liquid water for a second before taking on the form of a sticky dough. The shape trashed and screamed in anger before something seemed to come loose from it. Luna's body slipped from the corruptions grasp, falling onto the floor with burns and cuts all over her body. The being now without a host shirked to the heavens, looking more like a melting clay figure than an alicorn.

The human saw how the elements were picked up by a golden glow, a large figure standing above Luna protectively. The princess of the sun had a crack in her horn, a broken wing, a hind leg she refused to stand on and her coat was covered in ash and blood. But the thing about her that made him shiver was her eyes. They were filled with so much hatred, so much anger Nate was certain she would call down the burning celestial body upon them all.

The six gems started to spin around Celestia as what was left of the Nightmare shirked and tried to jump her. The gems simply created a see through bubble shield around the princess that the creature hit, screaming in agony. Celestia only gave it a cold glare as the gems suddenly lit up the sky, an enormous beam coloured like the rainbow hitting Nightmare.

"Nooooooooooooooooo!!!" It screamed before shattering into millions of tiny pieces, the rainbow coloured light traveling over the castle.

The man didn't know what happened next as his vision darkned. All he knew was that Luna was safe and that was all that mattered. He couldn't properly make out the voices as he slept, but a familiar barking and growling made him feel safer. Nathan had saved his friends. Nathan had saved Luna. The human could finally rest knowing they were all safe.

Author's Notes:

And that was chapter 18! Sorry this took a little while longer than expected. I had a math test and the like, so writing had to take a backseat. I hope you all are well and that you enjoyed the chapter. I was thinking for a long time what I would do with Luna, and I now have an idea. I hope you leave me some feedback in the comments, I always love getting some tips on how to improve my writing.

Anyway, thank you for reading.