Moonlight 05

>Dusk, Canterlot Citadel, Luna

>Celestia spreads her wings to the sky.  Her horn hums with immense power, guiding the Sun in a graceful arc over the horizon.  An outside observer would perceive nothing amiss but, her perfect poise and serene expression do not fool you.  Your sister is exceedingly weary.  She turns and smiles; it is time for you to raise the moon.  Wings spread and eyes closed, you let the magic flow.  The moon hears and obeys, rising up to light the night sky.  You turn to your sister and nod.

"I must retire, dear sister," she says with a playful yawn.

"So you must," you reply, perhaps a little too quickly.  "May you sleep well until morning."

>Your curt response elicits a look of concern.  You look away, unable to face her.  How can you?

"Luna"

>Your eyes squeeze shut.

"Luna"

>The tears come, unwanted and unbidden.

"Luna, my dear sister."

>You are so sorry, you are trying your best but, but... but then she's there, wings around your neck, chin resting upon your head, and you melt into her embrace.  You stand there silently, side by side, swaying on the balcony.

>...

>...

 

>...

 

>The moment ends... your sister leaves... and you remain... alone.

 

>It is beautiful tonight, the sky clear and colorful, the moon soft and radiant.  Glorious night is all around you and yet you are blind to it, lost in thought.

>You are worried.  Something dreadful is happening but you know not what it is or what to do.  For the past several months there have been foreboding signs.  Strange nightmares have been haunting your subjects' dreams.  You try to intervene but the nightmares vanish upon your arrival.  They retreat as if organized, baiting you across the realm of sleep.  Night after night they lure you from dream to dream, only to strike again when you move on.  It has been impossible.

>If that is not horrid enough, nopony can remember what the visitations are about.  You are waging a one-pony war against a completely unknown enemy with more ponies afflicted every night.  Overwhelmed, you fear what may happen if it continues to worsen.

>Yet you wish this dreadful burden was yours, alone, to bear.  Your poor sister has been incapable of getting a full night's rest for weeks now and you cannot help her.  Whatever evil is plaguing the land has taken hold in her dreams and locked them from within, leaving you powerless to assist.  Your heart breaks watching her, seeing how worn down she is becoming.  You can see the strain right through her smiles.  You are failing her...  You are failing them all...

>The tears start welling up.  What can you do?

>No!  You shake your head vigorously, falling tears glittering in the starlight.  These self-destructive thoughts are unproductive.  You cannot afford to despair, your ponies need you!  Think, what has happened recently?  What overlooked fact could be the key to your kingdom's deliverance?

 

>Where is Discord?  Your Sister claims that he is reformed but you do not believe it.  How can one reform Chaos itself?  His power is great, perhaps even great enough to be the cause of this calamity.

>You sigh.  Discord is not to blame for this.  While he may behave like a foal and use his abilities merely for his own entertainment, he is no true villain.  No, he is more like a force of nature than a foe:  inconvenient, disastrous even, but not evil.  Sadly, he is quite difficult to keep under surveillance and has been eluding your scouts, only making appearances to visit with the Element of Kindness from time to time.  It is strange, the hold that little filly has upon him, but he does seem to value her friendship.

>There are others.  Could Queen Chrysalis or King Sombra be involved?  You do not think so.  The changelings have been quiet as of late and there have been no signs that Sombra even survived his expulsion from the Crystal Empire.  No, this does not feel like their doing.

>Then who could it be?  Who could be responsible for poisoning the dreams of your little ponies, the dreams of one as powerful as your sister?

>What of your experience last evening?

 

>Eyes closed, you attempt to relive last night's encounter with the moon-beast.  You had been chasing a retreating nightmare when you felt it.  Something was calling to the moon, calling with a primitive magic you had never felt before, and the moon was answering.  Intrigued, you broke off your pursuit to search for the source of the strange power.  You followed its aura into the wilderness, far away from anypony.  Eventually you found the creature, lying on the forest floor.

>You could not discern its physical body whilst dreamwalking, but it was obviously not pony.  Its primal connection to the moon, like a silken strand, shone brightly in your mind's eye.

>Now, normally you ignore the dreams of non-ponies but, your curiosity was piqued.  You steeled yourself and peered inside.  What you found was amazing!

>Its dreams were unlike any you had seen before.  Half dark and half light, they swirled with images of an alien world.  The darkness was rage and hunger, images of a ferocious, savage monster surfaced again and again.  The light was reason and logic, visions of strange objects and stranger animals dominated the scene.  It was exceedingly peculiar.  How could the dreams of one being, one mind, be so polarized?  It almost felt like- And that was when you felt the pulling on your spirit, the pulling of somepony needing your protection.

 

>You open your eyes and sigh.  Were it not for the current crisis, you would have watched the creature's dreaming the whole night through.  Yet, however fascinating, you still had an important duty to uphold.  You left the moon-beast there, dreaming in the wilderness.

"Princess"

>The sudden noise startled you, you were so wrapped up in your thoughts that you did not notice the guard approaching.  You let go of your memories and turn your focus towards the kneeling Nightguard.

"Yes, Captain?  What did you find?"

"My Princess, we searched the target area and its surroundings.  We found no creatures matching either of those you described."

>You thought as much but, it was worth a shot.  After Celestia had fallen to sleep, you sent your Nightguards to search the woods around where you had found the moon-beast, but it had apparently moved on.  Perhaps it was only a chance encounter; a traveler from another realm simply taking a rest before continuing on to places unknown.  You do not let your disappointment show.

"Thank you, Captain.  Leave us."

"Yes, my Princess!"

>And just like that, she was gone.  Your thoughts quickly drift back to last night.

 

>The moon-beast.  Was it the cause of your kingdom's woes?

>Why were you so preoccupied with this being?  What was it about this creature that enticed you so?  It could not be simple curiosity, there are many such oddities in the world.  No, it has to be something else but, for the life of you, you could put no name to it.  Oh well.

>You unfurl your wings and stretch.  The night sky opens up before you, inviting you to take flight.  How you would love to leave your cares behind and just soar in the starlight!  Sadly, there was protocol to be observed.

"Captain?" you call.

>At once the captain is by your side.  She is a swift little filly, unquestionably loyal, fulfilling every command with exactness.  An adorably boring soldier.  You wish you could talk with somepony about what was on your mind, but you do not think it should be her.

"Yes, Princess?"

"Prepare our chariot, we fly to Ponyville."

"Yes, my Princess!" she responds with a bow.

>Perhaps you would ask Twilight Sparkle about the creature you found, she is such a smart little filly.  While you are there you will ask her about Ponyville's arrangements for Nightmare Night and how you can assist.  Though the kingdom may be under siege by a mysterious force, it is important to keep up the citizens' morale.  A holiday like Nightmare Night may be just the thing to raise ponies' spirits and, besides, you hear that the fun has been doubled since last year...  You giggle to yourself.  Ah, you needed that.

>Surely things will turn out alright.