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#Post#: 2903--------------------------------------------------
The Origin of the Nightmare
By: Dream Warden Date: June 10, 2014, 4:58 am
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The moon. One of the two celestial bodies in the sky and little
sister of Sun, shone brighter than ever. Nopony really knew what
had happened, but the moon was ornated with silhouette of a
pony, one can only guess who. A hooded figure raced through the
forest, towards the castle of two sisters. They knew that it was
now or never, if they wanted to find something, anything worth
of great power from there. After all, one of two immortal beings
had just fallen there. She reached a small hill that had a great
view at the castle, and was covered by big rocks. The hooded
figure took cover in the rocky formation. That was when a bright
flash filled the sky, and an ear piercing scream could be heard.
The pulse from the strong spell send the unicorn flying, and she
hit a rock that stopped her fly short.
The unicorn got up from the ground, her hood dropping down and
revealing her features. Ember shook her head, to clear her mind
from the hit on her head. She didn't let this small set back
stop her, and she climbed back up, to get a view at the castle
again. There was not a single creature to be seen there, the
clash between two alicorns must have driven them away, to hide,
out from the harms way. But it was a plus for Bright Ember, as
all the predators had left as well. Ember reached the castle
gate in minutes. She had witnessed the bright beam and the
agonizing scream of the younger sister, or what was left of her
in that, warped new form of hers. Ember began to approach the
gate, but quickly hid behind a ruined pillar, as the fallen
alicorn's sister flew away from the castle. Where she was going,
Ember had no idea, nor was she interested in that. The gate had
been damaged, and was easy to get through. Ember entered the
castle through a small opening and was walking in the now empty
hallway of the castle, that belonged to the rulers of Equestria.
The feeling of being there already brought a sense of might to
Ember, but she knew that it wouldn't be enough. Ember looked
around for a moment, before picking a random direction from
numerous hallways and galloped down that way.
After a short while Ember arrived to what most likely was an
armory. She took a quick look around, but everything there
seemed to be standard issue armor and weaponry for the guards.
Maybe they held all the enchanted equipment elsewhere, or maybe
they had took it away from there, to be used against the
corrupted Princess... Ember discarded the piece of armor she had
inspected and moved on. She went through the barracks and
towards the living quarters. The eerie silence in the hallways
started to creep ember out. She hadn't really noticed it before,
but now it was overwhelming. Ember took a small, rather dull
dagger from under her cloak and held it close to her with her
magic, hoping that it would make her feel a little bit safer
there.
A walk that seemed to last forever, eventually brought Ember to
a door that was slightly open. The door has a symbol of the sun
encrusted to it. Ember brought her hoof up and gave the door a
gentle push, but for some reason, she couldn't go in. Touching
the door gave her a strange feeling. It must be protected with
magic, or something else like that... The strange feeling grew
into an uneasy one, and it was forcing her to step away, to
leave the place she was currently standing in. Ember tried to
resist it, but couldn't and eventually she had to leave. The
crest on the door was shining dimly, giving away an impression
that it was doing something. Ember left the corridor before the
door could do anything else. She was slightly afraid that maybe
the door had somehow "alerted" Celestia of her presence, and
didn't want to take any chances with it. Ember left the upper
wing of the living quarters and headed to search the lowers
ones. They didn't seem to have any kind of protection placed on
them, but their contents were nothing worth celebrating. mostly
beds for ponies to sleep in and closets for the said ponies to
store their clothing. Dream kept going through the rooms one by
one, still slightly scared that The Princess of the Sun would
appear there and catch her just rummaging through her castle,
but at the same time she was wondering, why The Princess wasn't
there already. Why the castle was completely empty in the first
place? Ember gave up with searching for trinkets in the living
quarters and headed towards the throne room.
Getting the door leading to the throne room open was a challenge
of it's own. The room was in ruins, and the door had been
blocked by rubble, but Ember managed to get the door open enough
for her to slip through it. She took a moment to observe her
surroundings. In the middle of the room was a strange looking
pedestal, but it seemed to be empty. Slowly and carefully, Ember
made her way to the two thrones in the end of the room. She
approached the darker and slightly smaller throne and climbed up
to it. The moment she sat down, Ember heard a voice speaking to
her from somewhere around the room. She had no idea where it
came from, but it sounded like it was close.
"Greetings, young one..." The voice said, while sounding
friendly, it still caused Ember to instantly jump down from the
royal chair and draw her dagger out. She spun around, keeping
her dagger pointed to the direction she was looking at, trying
to find the source of the voice, but simply couldn't see anypony
else there.
"W-who's t-there!"
#Post#: 4222--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Origin of the Nightmare
By: Dream Warden Date: April 5, 2015, 8:32 pm
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From one of the corridors, a brilliant, majestic alicorn stepped
out. Her form greatly resembling that of Luna's, but the alicorn
was glowing bright moon blue, and seemed to be just a ghost, and
not an actual pony. Ember turned to the now visible pony,
pointing her rusted dagger at her "D-don't come any closer..."
Ember warned the approaching stranger, but the unicorn's words
seemed to have no effect. The bright blue alicorn kept walking
towards her, until she was standing right in front of her, and
with her hoof, pushed Ember's dagger down "Please... There's no
need for violence... We are not here to harm you..." The alicorn
assured. Ember didn't resist against the hoof pushing down her
only defense. The stranger's presence gave her a soothing, safe
feeling.
"W-who are you...?" Ember asked, after her dagger clanked down
to the ground.
"I am what remains... Of the moon..." The alicorn answered with
a sad tone "And you would be Bright Ember... The foal of farmers
Sweet Dew and Fresh Dirt... A sort of a prodigy, if i'm not
mistaken..."
"H-how did you-?"
"I am your princess of the night. I have visited you in your
dreams... You're quite a talkative type Ember..." Before Ember
could answer, the alicorn walks past her, and looks up to the
new moon, and it's new face. Ember sees a tear drop down her
cheek. She walks next to the alicorn, and looks up to the moon.
"P-princess Luna...? W-what happened to you...?" Ember carefully
asked, turning to look at Luna.
"Envy... Selfishness... Anger... Rage..."
"WE TRIED TO TAKE WHAT'S RIGHTFULLY OURS!"
Ember turned to look behind her. A bit frightened, she began
scanning the room as well as she could. She could swear she
heard something, screaming, shouting in unison with Luna's
gentle voice.
"Do not fear, little one... The nightmare is gone now..." Luna
assured her, placing her hoof on Ember's shoulder, before she
began to walk back to the corridor she first arrived from. Ember
hesitated for a moment, before hurrying after her. Once she
caught up with the alicorn, Ember slowed her pace to match hers.
Ember doesn't speak, she's just looking at Luna's ghostly form,
that gracefully walked forward, passing multiple pieces of
furniture, some broken, some carrying extremely fine details in
them, before stopping by a mirror. Ember turns to look into it,
seeing real, living Luna's image in the looking-glass. "We are
afraid... That our journey is at it's end..." Luna suddenly
speaks up
"WE HAVE FAILED!"
There the voice was again. Ember couldn't explain how she was
currently feeling. Her whole being wanted to run, but at the
same time carry on, as she felt both threatened and safe with
Luna. The feeling was obscure, almost like a dream
"We require your assistance, young one... Our essence cannot
exist while our body is locked away... We will not survive this
imprisonment..." Luna spoke, turning to Ember "The moon needs a
sanctuary... Someone to keep us safe..."
"WE CANNOT LET OUR EXISTENCE FADE! WE NEED A HOST!"
"... Somepony to bear the burden... Will you help us, young
Ember...?"
"THOU DOST NOT DARE TO DENY THY RULER!"
Ember yelped, and took many steps back, before scrambling down
on the stone floor. The voice was piercing through her head. She
could acknowledge it's presence, but not what it tried to say.
She looked terrified, but the feeling of terror faded, when Luna
placed her hoof on Ember's shoulder again. "Will you safeguard
our life...? Make sure the moon can still have it's
princess...?"
"WE CAN MAKE YOUR PARENTS PROUD OF YOU! WE CAN MAKE SOMETHING
OUT OF YOU! WE CAN GIVE YOU A LIFE!"
"What do you say, young Ember...?"
"YOU CANNOT REFUSE!"
Ember felt like she knew the answer. No... She knew that she
knew it. But there was only one answer. How can one know the
answer, but still get it wrong when there is nothing but one
answer to the question? "I-i'll do it..." Ember said, feeling a
strong gust take over the entire corridor right after that.
"Find the mirror... Young Ember..." Luna spoke for the last
time, before her form disappeared
"COME TO US!"
Ember fell down from the throne, hitting the floor below quite
hard. She rubber her jaw, that she could swear was disjointed
now. She then remembers the dream that she just had, but still
cautiously looks around the room. To her shock, she sees her
dagger, all the way down the stair, on the floor where... No! It
couldn't have happened. It was just a dream. Just a dream...
Ember hesitantly looked at the corridor she had walked with
Luna, the one that lead to a mirror. A frightful image in the
looking-glass inscribed in her mind. Ember walks down the
stairs, picks up her dagger, and starts her trek down the
corridor, expecting, hoping, to not find the mirror in the end
of it. She gets an uneasy feeling, as she passes by furniture,
all looking too similar to her dream, to the last detail.
#Post#: 4224--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Origin of the Nightmare
By: Dream Warden Date: April 6, 2015, 11:20 am
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The walk to the mirror was way longer that Ember remembered, but
after a while, she arrived to the looking-glass, that she saw in
what could have only been a dream. I felt really genuine though.
Ember inspects the frame, silently reading what's written on it
"Somnus... Aeternam... *mumble* Somnium... Aedilis..."
"Thou hast arrived..."
Ember spun around, once again grabbing her dagger in her magic,
and pointing it out towards the darkness. She backed up to the
wall, and against the mirror. There was only one way to her
location, and she kept her eyes fixated to the corridor. The
voice speaking sounded new, and definitely not Luna from her
dream. "I-i'm warning you... I-i'm armed...!"
"WE MAY BEGIN!"
Ember had no time to react, before multiple appendages shoot out
from the now rippling surface of the mirror, and began to pull
her inside. Ember tried to struggle free, but couldn't fight the
weird forces pulling her in. She lost her cape, and small
leather satchel she had, her belongings falling down to the
stone floor. Ember saw Luna arriving from the hallway, the
ghostly form of the princess watching at her with sorrowful
eyes. Ember tried to reach out to her, and cry for help, but her
screams were muffled by the appendages, and she was pulled under
the surface of the mirror.
The surface of the mirror rippled for a moment longer, before
settling still, turning solid again. Luna walked over to the
mirror, her form twitching, as her gentle features twisted into
nightmarish terror. Her mouth widened, multiple sharp teeth
sprouting out to fill the new space in her mouth. Her eyes sunk
away, leaving only empty sockets behind, that held one, small
light in each of them. Her nostrils grew longer, her entire head
looking more like a skull now. The light blue feathers from her
wings fell of, revealing broken, twisted mixture of normal
wings, and leathery bat pony wings. Her body and hooves took a
more skeletal and skinny form, and her flowing tail and mane
darkened in color, and they lost their smooth shapes. The horn
on the twisted being's head became jagged, and crooked. The
thing laughed, before striking it's bony hoof against the
mirror, shattering it into million pieces.
Ember gasped, waking up on the throne she had sat down on. She
panted heavily, as she looked around the throne room, that
seemed unchanged. She noticed that she was missing her cape and
satchel. She jumped down from the throne, to look for her
belongings. After looking behind the thrones, and walking down
the stairs, Ember heard familiar voice speak to her.
"You had a nightmare, young Ember..."
Ember spun around, and saw Luna standing on the mouth of a new
hallway, that Ember couldn't remember seeing there before.
"L-Luna...? What's happening here...?" Ember trotted over to the
princess, who seemed to be even less visible now.
"You are in deep sleep... No doubt because of me... Do you
remember what i asked from you? What i asked you to do?"
Ember nods "I do... B-but... The mirror... What is that
important? I saw-"
"I know what you saw, young Ember. But you don't need to burden
your mind with it... Forget the mirror..."
"THE MIRROR IS IMPORTANT!"
"Please... Follow me... I have something to give you..." Luna
began to walk down the hallway, Ember following shortly after
her, and they soon came to a set of stairs, that began to
descend underground. The stairs seemed to go on forever, and
were very poorly lit, Luna's glow being the only thing that made
advancing possible. Ember remained close to the princess and her
eyes fixated forward, as the dim lights caused shadows to dance
and twist around them. Ember couldn't hake off the feeling that
something was following them. They reached the bottom after
several minutes of descending stairs, that ended in a huge door,
bearing a crest of the moon, but not the same crest accompanying
the sun in the sisters banners. The crest glowed dimly, when
Luna approached it, and opened at her command.
Behind the large door, was a simple, small room, and in the
middle of that room was a pedestal, that held a small, blue orb
on it. Luna led Ember inside. "Here it is... What remains of
us..."
Ember gazes at the orb, feeling like she was gazing at the dream
itself. She was snapped out of the orb's trance, when the huge
door slammed shut, causing Ember to get visibly fearful
instantly.
Luna noticed this and spoke up. "Don't be afraid... This is to
keep the nightmare out... Now take it, and keep it safe... We
trust in you..."
Ember eased up a little, but was still feeling quite panicky
"B-but why me...? Why not somepony else... Somepony educated
and... Better than me...?"
"Call it fate, young Ember... We feel like you are meant to
carry this torch forward... With this you can-"
"YOU CAN IMPRESS YOUR PARENTS! YOU CAN TAKE YOUR PLACE IN THE
HISTORY BOOKS! YOU CAN BE SOMETHING!"
Ember couldn't hear what Luna said. A loud banging suddenly
hitting the door, and growing more and more intense by the
second. Ember backed off from the door, and against the opposite
wall. It didn't take long for the door to begin to dent, and
crack.
"Take the orb, young Ember... Only then you will wake up... You
probably feel confused, and afraid, but don't be... It will all
make sense to you... Take it... And meet me in the dream
world..." Luna's fading form disappeared completely, her light
retreating to the orb. Ember was breathing heavily, her eyes
racing between the orb, and the door, that was about to give in.
She didn't want to know what was coming through the massive
piece of metal, and wanted to escape, to wake up. Ember picked
the orb up. It shattered at her touch, and she absorbed the
fragments, and felt a sudden surge of power go through her body.
Ember looked up at the door, that was ripped in two, the twisted
alicorn breaking it's way through. It's sickly smile, and empty
eyes stared at Ember, before charging at the unicorn, opening
it's huge mouth and going for the kill. Ember covered her head
with her hooves, and waited for the pain to come.
Ember felt a moment of serenity, a moment of clarity. She felt
like she was staring at the heart of dreams, seeing countless
ponies dreaming, and what they were dreaming. She stared in awe,
before seeing a quickly approaching wall of light, that blinded
her eyes.
"IT IS DONE..."
#Post#: 4225--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Origin of the Nightmare
By: Dream Warden Date: April 6, 2015, 11:56 am
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Ember woke up outside the castle, resting on a bed of flowers,
morning sun's rays gently glowing through the three canopy, and
to Ember's eyes. She wiped the last bits of dream off, and got
up from the forest floor. First think she realized to do was to
check her belongings. Almost to her surprise, she had everything
with her. Ember climbed up a small hill, to get a view at the
castle again. There seemed to be lot's of ponies there. Lot's of
commotion. Guards and such. They were collecting the resources
of the castle, probably to transport them somewhere else. Ember
was confused, on how she got out from the castle, and why it was
empty in the first place during the night. Ember snuck in to the
small makeshift camp stationed outside the castle gates, and
with little effort, managed to get hold of a armor meant for a
mare. She had to get inside the castle. Ember hid her cape and
satchel under a small mount of moss, and put on her disguise.
Being a farm pony, Ember managed to stay standing with the full
armor, but her walking was a little wobbly.
Ember tried to act casual, as she walked inside the castle among
few other guards, each of them turning to go to different parts
of the castle, but Ember continued forward, towards the throne
room. The doors were open, and apparently cleaned of rubble,
that Ember remembered to be there, blocking the door. She looked
around the room, many guard going around the huge hall, carrying
things and going about their duties. Ember turned left, to the
corridor that had had the mirror. First thing she noticed, was
familiar looking furniture laying around the corridor. Ember
tried not to pay any mind at them, and continued forward.
She arrived to the end of the hallway. She was both shocked, and
relieved to find the mirror there. Identical to the one she saw
last night, up to the finest details in it. After going through
the frame, Ember looked into the mirror, but yelped and jumped
back, tripping on a long carpet and falling down to the ground.
Ember saw the creature from the last night, with it's wide smile
and empty eyes stare back at her, smiling and looking pleased.
One guard ran to the spot from a connecting hallway, that Ember
could swear wasn't there last night. The guard asked "Are you
alright? What happened?"
It took Ember a moment to be able to answer. She panted a
little, and tried to sound convincing, as she replied "I-i'm
fine... I just... Tripped on the carpet..." Ember picked up her
fallen helmet, put it back on and offered the guard a nervous
smile. "If you say so... Are you sure you're okay...?" The guard
asked, not entirely content with Ember's answer. "I-i am... No
worries... Mate..." Ember replied, trying to upkeep her grin.
"It's sergeant to you, private... Let me know if you need help
with anything... We don't need any injuries here, not after what
happened last night..." The guard returned to where he came
from. Ember sighed, slouching down on a throwaway chair that
happened to be near her, to catch her breath. She carefully took
another glance at the mirror, but this time she saw just
herself. The mirror felt important to her for some reason. Ember
stopped another guard that passed by, judging by his armor he
was a higher ranking officer. "S-sir... What shall we do with
this mirror...?"
The guard stopped and turned to Ember. "Our orders are to leave
it there. It will not be moved away from the castle. Anything
else, private?"
"I-i see..." Ember answered, looking back at the mirror. Her
attention snapped back to the guard when this asked her a
question with a firm voice "N-nothing else, sir!" Ember saluted,
like she had seen the guards do.
"Get back to work then." The guard said, before continuing on
his way towards the throne room. Ember followed after the guard
shortly after, wanting to go see the vault. When Ember arrived
to the throne room, her face slumped pale, and she felt her
hooves tremble a little. Where the hallway leading to the vault
was, was just plain wall. A look up revealed that there was a
window leading outside on it, and nothing behind the wall. She
began to inspect the wall, knocking on it every now and then.
Few passing guards threw confused glares at her, but payed no
mind, as they thought she was under some weird orders. After
solid ten minutes, Ember gave up. She didn't dare to try and go
to the living quarters, and instead left the castle. Slipping
out was as easy as finding a extra suit of armor and slipping in
was. Ember retrieved her belongings, and started her journey
towards home. She arrived home in the evening, running inside to
tell her parents about what happened to her, but she arrived to
hear sorrowful news...
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