Two Months Later
Night Wing
‘Just hold on Luna!’ I raced down the hallway with Luna in my magic. ‘We're almost there!’ I burst through a door and into a large empty room. Celestia was waiting there with a large stack of towels.
“OOOOOOHHH!” Luna yelled out as I set her on the bed. Doctor Healing Touch barged in behind me along with Nurse Lavender. I had asked for them specifically to be there for the birth.
“How far apart are the contractions exactly?” Healing asked calmly.
‘About two minutes apart.’ I answered as I held Luna’s hoof.
“Aaaah! It hurts!” Luna clinched down hard on my claw. Yep! I can tell! I thought I heard a few cracks in my poor claw.
“I’m here! How far along is she!?” Midnight rushed in and shut the door.
“She is very close.” Healing turned to Lavender. “Get the towels ready Lavender, I’m going to apply a small numbing spell to our friend here.” Lavender took the towels from Celestia’s grasp as Healing leaned over Luna. His horn began to glow as he touched it to Luna’s stomach. “I am applying a simple numbing spell your highness, as well as checking the health of your foal.” After a moment of standing there he pulled back. I could see Luna’s muscles relax slightly as she sighed in relief. “Good news, your foal is perfectly healthy. In fact she should be born any moment now!”
“She!? We’re having a girl!?” Midnight asked excitedly. Suddenly Luna tensed up again, and Midnight was picked up from the ground by his neck.
“You did this to me!” Luna screamed as she pushed hard.
“Lavender! Come help me, it’s coming now!” Healing and Lavender ran over to Luna’s back end while Celestia tried to pry Midnight out of Luna’s magic.
“Aaaaaah!” Luna yelled loudly. I, having no interest in watching child birth, moved over to yank Midnight from the air. I flicked Luna’s horn with my talon and he dropped like a rock. Then I received a punch in the beak. My wing rubbed my now cracked beak as I sat on the floor, wondering how I got there. “AAAAAAH!” Luna screamed one final time, then her whole body relaxed as she panted loudly.
“Whaaaaaaaaaa.” A soft cry filled the room and Lavender carried something over to Luna. She was looking at it with amazement. Luna reached out to grab the small bundle, and hugged it to her chest.
“She’s beautiful.” Luna whispered. I peaked over Luna to see into the blankets, dragging a half conscious Midnight with me. When Midnight saw his child he snapped fully awake. In the blankets was a beautiful black hippogriff. The front half was covered in black feathers with dark blue tips. The back half had dark blue hair, and dark blue tail with a single black stripe in it. Luna wiped a little blood from the child’s beak as tears filled her eyes.
“What are we going to name her?” Midnight hugged Luna tightly as they stared intently at the newborn. Luna’s eyes sparkled as she spoke a simple name. Yet a name that would be remembered for centuries.
“Sapphire Tip.”
One Week Later
Rich Soil
I stood outside the window on Princess Luna’s balcony. I watched as the beautiful Princess slept, Her beauty only ruined by that wretched griffin prince. And the one other body that lay between them. The horrible spawn of Princess Luna’s unwanted marriage. I turned to my best friend, who appeared beside me suddenly. “What to do. What to do.” I shook my head slowly. “What do you think Friend?” He turned to look at me, his dead eyes boring into mine.
“The anssswer is obviousss. Remove what bindsssss them, and they will fall apart.” My friend whispered, and yet I heard every echoing word clearly in my head.
“Of course. It’s so simple. Thank you my friend, our work is almost complete.” I looked through the window at the small lump between the two parents. “I shall free you Princess.” No emotion was present on my face as I charged my horn and began to form a large black spike in front of me. Then, when it was done being created........I launched it.
Midnight Glory
My feathers tingled. I rolled slightly trying to fix them. I frowned as they continued to tingle. Why......tingling. My sleepy mind forced open my eyes as I looked around the room. Nothing. I checked on the baby before I relaxed for a moment and my eyes closed once more. Still tingling. My eyes looked toward the balcony, thinking maybe the door had blown open.
CRASH! Time slowed as something flew through the air toward the bed. toward my child. I didn’t know what it was in my sleepy state. I just knew it was dangerous, and was heading at my child. With a heave I threw myself in front of the object.
Night Wing
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!” I jerked up as a scream echoed through the castle. I kicked the covers off my bed and kicked open my door.
“KKKEEEEEEEEAAR!!” I screeched at the various guards in the hall. ‘With me!’ They where all already moving, having heard the scream as well. We arushed through the castle until we reached Luna’s mahogany door. I kicked it open without a second thought, and froze up at what I saw. Luna was sobbing on the bed as she help Saphire protectively to her chest. The bed was covered in blood, and she was leaning over a form I recognized all too clearly. I took one glance at the broken window and connected the dots. The stone floor around my feet shattered as it froze instantly. “KEEEEAAAARR!” I shattered what remained of the window in a shower of sparkling glass. It fell to the ground, tinkling in the night as I soared through the air. I circled the castle twice before seeing a form running off into the forest. AAAAAHHH!! I screamed in rage internally, as I dropped like a rock from the sky. Wind whistled by me and my eyes narrowed as I drew closer to my prey. Time slowed when my feet connected to their back.
We both hit the dirt and rolled. I was instantly back on my feet, and though I didn’t have my blades on I was far from defenseless. I swung a wing out and threw several feathers at the pony, my magic hardening them into small blades. Three of the five connected with their side as they stood. A dark, distorted voice spoke from under their hood.
“Well, well, well. If it issssn't the princesssses little pet. Come to play have you?” The feathers were pushed from his skin by a black aura. “Hahaha, a shame this will be over quickly. I will enjoy removing yet another impurity from the princesses lives.” Suddenly he stopped what he was doing and turned his head to the right. “What?” He fell silent again. “What do you mean friend?” I cocked my head in confusion. What is he going on about? I growled in my head.
“CAAAAW!” My voice cut through the night. ‘Surrender now, and I may make your death les-‘ I didn’t get to finish as I was slammed into a tree.
“Shhh, shh, shh. Don’t interrupt me while I’m talking to my friend.” The pony looked at the ground in thought. “Yes, yes my friend. That will work wonderfully.” The crazy pony looked at me with a large grin on his face. “We will turn him against the princesses, and let them wipe him from existence.” As he approached me his aura dissipated and I fell to the ground in a daze. “Don’t worry poor little bird. This will only be excruciating.” His grin seemed to grow even more as his horn touched my head. It seemed to absorb the light around it as he cast something on me. Then, it was over. He back away from me cackling like an idiot. “Rise. RISE, my minion. Go, and make the princesses realize that you’re vermin were not meant to be!”
I just sat there staring. Dear god. He’s insane! “Well!?” He yelled at me. “Shoo! Go do my bidding! Or are you too stupid to understa-“ My talon wrapped around his throat. Then he vanished in a dark cloud of smoke. My claw collapsed on the empty air.
Luna cried for three days straight. Celestia had to take care of Saphire, as Luna was too distraught to do anything. I finally had enough on the fourth day. I had to do something. “Chirp?” I quietly asked through her door. She hadn’t left her bed the whole time. We had to pry Midnight’s body from her grasp. We had him preserved until the burial. “Chirp?” This time a bit louder. I heard the sniffling die down slightly before the door creaked open. I quickly entered and shut it behind me. I slowly walked up to Luna and sat beside her on the bed. We had lifted her off the bed to change the sheets, but as soon as they were changed she ran back and buried herself in them. She was in that same position from that day. She hadn’t eaten or drank anything and, judging by the smell, she hadn’t bathed either. She looked horrible.
‘Luna. You need to come out.’ I rubbed her shoulder soothingly. ‘Please. You need to eat and drink, and your daughter needs you. Midnight’s family are here, they want to see you. Celestia wants to see you, I want to see you.’ I nuzzled her gently. She didn’t respond, and I sighed. ‘Maybe later then. Do you mind if I sit with you?’
“Leave me alone Night.”
‘Not until you come out Luna.’ I firmly wrote. Luna sighed and she sank further into her bed.
“If I promise to come out in the morning will you leave. I just want one more night alone.” I could hear the pain in her voice. I looked out at the darkening sky and hesitated.
‘If you promise. And I will make sure you keep that promise.’ I leaned over her to look into her eyes.
“I promise Night. Now please, leave me alone for one more night.” She turned her eyes away from me and I stood from the bed. I quietly made my way out the door and shut it behind me. I never even noticed the books scattered around her bed.
I was dreaming, that much I could tell. The second thing I noticed was fear. Overwhelming fear consumed me. I don't know why, but I turned around and looked at the moon in my dream. There, there was the source of my fear. A baleful blue eye had replaced the moon and was staring blankly at me. As it met my eyes it suddenly vanished, and then the dream was over. I slept fitfully the rest of the night, have nightmares about all seeing eyes in the sky. And somehow, I knew who that eye belonged to. Luna.
With a gasp I shot up from my bed. Only, I wasn’t in my bed. I was in a cave. A bright light from behind me made me turn around quickly. There stood the tree of harmony, silent in its vigil. A glow emanated from its trunk that soon morphed into a familiar shape. A shape I hadn’t seen in forever. Before me stood the human women that could only be Harmony. “Hello Night Wing, it’s nice to see you again. I only wish it could be under better circumstances.”
‘And where were you?’ I practically growled. All the stuff that has happened recently, and she decides to speak up now?
“I can’t interfere with the way things happen Night. That’s why I have you.” She frowned a little. “Unfortunately, some things must remain the same. Things concerning the future of a certain pair of sisters.”
‘What are you talking about?’
“Come now Night, you are dreaming. You don’t have to write on your wings here.”
“I-I asked what you were talking about.” I stuttered as I heard a voice I had forgotten.
“You should know quite well my dear Night.” She pointed to the sky, and I followed her finger. Above us was the large Equestrian moon. And on it was the Mare in the Moon.
“No. I-how could I forget that!?” I started panicking. Luna, alone on the moon, for one thousand years!? “I can change it! I have to!” My gaze snapped down to Harmony against my will.
“You will do no such thing.” I tried to speak in return, but my mouth wouldn’t move. Harmony started pacing “If you do that, then think of what that will mean for the future. Villains that were defeated won’t be, disasters that were stopped will not be stopped. And a certain purple princess and her friends won’t exist.” She spun around to face me. “While it is true the show you watched is not the exact way things will really happen in this world, that moment, the banishment of Luna, is pivotal in the development of this world.”
“Forget your development! I won’t let my family suffer anymore!” I managed to force out. Harmony just hung her head sadly.
“Then I’m afraid I must stop you. I apologize for this, I truly do.” Suddenly white tendrils shot from the crystal tree behind her. They impacted my head, and all I knew was darkness.
I woke with a loud yawn, not remembering having any dreams through the night. I heard a loud commotion outside, and turned to my door as it creaked open. I turned to see my fellow Lunar Guard members watching me. They all looked sad, and the normally cheery, fun loving Lotus spoke in a sad voice. “We tried to stop her night. We really did.” I jumped up and tossed open my balcony doors. Outside Luna stood on a stage with a manic look on her face. She held the assassin in the air on her right side, and a large battle axe on her left.
“Today, I have my vengeance!” Luna swung the axe down, and with a solid thunk the whole crowd started screaming.
I'm guessing that this is when ponies start fearing luna?
Fuck this chapter
9458745
Um....May I ask why?
Call me sadistic but for some odd reason I was hoping that midnight would not get to the child in time, just me I guess.
Nd that is why the tree of harmony isnt to be trusted
I'm confused, I thought Rich Soil was the culprit and got away from Night.
Odd use of first person here. Not sure if this was a mistake or a sign of Rich Soil's shattered psyche.
9458778
Shoot, thanks for finding that. I rewrote that section, and apparently I left that in on accident
Oops.
Well damn. There goes 500 bits... Still. Good chapter. And showcasing how the path of "Harmony" is not, exactly, good.
Oh, yes, and poor gryphon king and-... Oh. Who's gonna look after the kid?
9458801
Luna?
This whole section is a bit odd: Firstly I don't remember if any perspective changes kept it in first person, but I could be wrong there. Secondly, the last paragraph of this section switches to second person and just feels super off.
9458803
Ah. Fair point, this is just the start of Luna' s Downfall, not the exile quite yet. How did I not notice that at first? Oh well. Chalk down another failed perception check.
9458808
I’m not drunk on sleep deprivation! Not one bit! XD again, it has been fixed.
Luna is crazy
9458825
Well, she did just have her husband murdered.
9458832
But most victims don't try and block out the sun for all eternity
And thus, Luna's decent into madness has begun
9458765
Think of it more of a doctor who viewpoint, it is a fixed point in time and if changed it can cause a whole slew of problems for the future
9458803
Would that even be a good idea considering the fact that Luna is currently out of commission in the sanity department?
Told you! Midnight was gonna die!
Damn, rip lulu's sanity.
9458765
Even complicate the matter is that Night Wing does have knowledge of what to come.
...*reads the last of the chapter* well shoot, things are dropping and hitting the fan.
great chapter, hope to see more soon
Well... can't say she had no right to do it...
9458760
For very obvious reasons.
Video file:
Not good
Except you have already created an uncountable amount of changes by introducing Night to the world, and disasters and villains can be stopped differently so any argument you have Harmony is invalid
9459290
I was under the impression their trains still ran on coal power. Though now that I'm thinking back on it, what's the point in either of them? We've already seen a spell that animates (even if it was as simple as "go forward") objects. Why use coal/steam or whatever is powering the trains when they can just magic the trains forward?
Really? You are going with "certain moments in time cannot be changed". One of the most bullshit excuse in any story involving time travel or the past.
I respected this story before that stupid scene with Harmony.
Having Luna still go Nightmare Moon isnt the problem. The problem is the entire scene with Harmony shouldnt have happened. Then it wouldnt feel like you were railroading the story.
Instead we could have seen Night do everything he could to stop Luna's decent, and deal with its effects on the budding Equestria and on Celestia.
The sisters are extremely powerful, and Night wouldnt be willing to hurt them, which perfectly limits him.
Just a small change in perspective is all it takes to go from, Harmony forcing Luna's banishment with no regards to proper plot development, to Night failing to save Luna and Celestia being forced to use the Elements to stop her deranged sister from killing someone (could even use Starswirl or Luna's baby for this part).
Holy shit, that got dark fast!
9459182
What about Twilicorn?
9458845
Pssshhhh, she isn’t there yet. Lol, we still have about a hundred years before that happens!
9459307
Well. You are correct about that. I didn’t have to do the Harmony scene. But, I just couldn’t think of another way to have Luna banished without Night stopping it somehow. I never even had the idea of him trying and failing to stop it. Thank you for the input, I may rewrite that spot. Just a few tweaks here and there, so his memory doesn’t get erased or whatever. Then again, I may not. There are things I have planned for this story, and I need them to happen. So I have to make certain events happen in certain ways. But I may be able to change that one, I’ll have to think on it.
9459314
Fair enough
9459307
I feel there may be a misunderstanding here. I am fully aware that Nightmare moon doesn’t have to happen. In fact, I originally wasn’t going to have nightmare moon in this story. But imagine it from Harmony’s point of view. She is trying to protect the world from various threats that are going to happen. Most of the solutions originate from Luna’s banishment. Now sure, Night may be able to stop them a different way, but is it worth the risk? Is it worth risking the world on a maybe, when you already know it will be fine if it happens a certain way?
But was that really "Harmony", or is Nightwing ... maybe ... colorblind?
9459309
Wether Twilight is born or not, turn into an alicorn or not isn't the point i'm trying to make.
My point is that when Harmony introduced Night to the world and more importantly when he started to interact with others (especially the two sisters) the course of history was changed massively from show canon and the future is therefore very unlikely to play out in the same way.
And if she refuses to allow him to change things then what was the point of even bringing him there to begin with unless either.
A. She messed up with something and she needs to change things by using Night to fix it.
Or
B. Someone else messed things up and she needs another pawn to make things procceed the way she wants them to.
9459410
That just raises the question of why she brought Night into the world to begin with if she already knew things will work out fine.
Introducing a being like Night will massively change things and put the happy future that she knows of at risk... especially if he ever figures out that she stopped him from keeping Luna from doing what she just did
9459322
Needing the story to go a certain way is fine, just have to make sure it is a, i hesitate to use this word, realistic way for it to happen.
No railroading. Remember, Night is only one being, and he cant be everywhere regardless of how powerful he is. Not to mention he isnt all knowing either. Nice thing about flawed characters is that we like to see them succeed because they can, have and will fail occasionally.
9459455
Very good points. Or maybe Harmony = the author and the author is just too lazy to come up with something else. No insult intended towards the author, of course. It is a great story. Could be Harmony is the big bad Night has to contend with later. I dunno. Or it could possibly be that Harmony saw a possible future(the shows timeline) and how to achieve it, and she is uncomfortable with the idea of an unknown future. Kinda like that "immortal wise spirit thing doing things 'for your own good' trope."
9459464
Then to, chrono mitsurugi had a better idea. I like thise kinds of stories a little better. This is a continuation on my last response to you.
9459410
I feel like this is a reply to a different comment.
But I'll give my opinion on this.
Harmony's perspective is "the needs of the many over the needs of the few." A very cold outlook for an individual to have. Usually made by those completely disconnected from the ones they are affecting. But its understandable.
Night on the other hand isnt going to just stand by and let someone suffer in front of him, especially someone he cares about. And if it changes the future, then he will deal with the changes when they come.
Neither are wrong,
9459410
How does Harmony have temporal foreknowledge?
I can get a brony interloper trying to micromanage events to set up the G4 mythos. I can't get an in-universe character doing so.
Is Harmony in this story a Christian-style all god that has total knowledge of all that is, was, or ever will be? Because without that, the deus-intervention doesn't make sense in-story.
I concur that this chapter, especially that dream scene needs some tweaking. It currently comes across as if the story has strayed from it's outline and is being railroaded back to it by the shortest path.
9459455
9459577
9459836
Oh I love it when I get long comments! Ok, so Harmony first brought Night in order to fix the whole shadow beast problem. She can’t do everything herself, and she doesn’t really want to intervene unless she needs too. We already have proof that the tree of harmony knows a lot of things, and is immensely magical in nature. Take the cutie map for instance. So, while she may not know all the details of things to come, she does know the basics, and has hints as to what they could be. For example, she see Luna go through a traumatic event. Couple this with the knowledge she got of the show from Night’s head, and she can safely assume Nightmare Moon is approaching. Maybe not soon, but eventually.
9459640
Yes. Harmony cares about individuals, but her main focus is the greater good. She is the guardian of the planet, not just Equestria. Now, she may favor ponies a little, but if there is a devastating event in the griffin lands, or dragon lands, she is going to help.
9460101
Doesnt Luna going Nightmare Moon classify as a catastrophic event?
i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/282/190/d80.png
9460101
So I was close with one of my guesses. *smacks lips* K then.
9460136
Yes, and the way she is helping is by letting her get banished to the moon so she can be reformed later by Twilight.
9460155
Lol, can’t tell if that was a happy smack, or a sarcastic smack.
9460180
Happy. Like eating peanut butter. Without the peanut butter.
9459048
I’m confused about what the very obvious reasons are.
9460176
img.memecdn.com/i-see-what-you-did-there_o_520433.jpg
9460255
Lol
9460101
( You like long comments, here's a decently sized comment)
I understand Harmony's reason and the logic behind it but I can't agree with her, since what she had before Night arriving sounds like a very bery brief summary and the information she got from Night's head is from a childrens cartoon where nothing really bad will ever happen... we have already had multiple bad things happen, and if she needed Night to deal with the shadow beast then that means things are already very different from the information she got from his head... there is also the fact that Night doesn't exists in either of their information and her trying to push things in the direction of the show will likely just cause more problems down the line.
(Essentially it's the Butterfly Effect, by bringing in Night she caused a rather strong gust of wind that will cause many big changes to the future that she thinks she knows the best outcome of thanks to the information in Night's head.
That's my thoughts on the matter anyway, I will love to see how things will be different later down the line