Twilight hadn't struggled with authority for a while; She had given up on anxieties and fears a long time ago, and simply didn’t consider the weight that rested on her shoulders, day after day.

But as she nervously adjusted her glasses, looking intently at a map of Equestria, the Unicorn came to the startling realization, one that she had avoided considering for a while.

The group of rebels that surrounded her was feeling restless, weary, and yet somehow, hopeful. “Well, C’mon, Twi. What’s the plan? We gotta do somethin’...!” Applejack, who towered over the other rebels with her height, tried nudging her to speak.

But instead, she just gave her a reason to deflect. “What happened to your armor, AJ?” She asked, looking at the Earth Pony; Whose body armor was covered in gashes and splinters, and with it, she ignored the dozens of other ponies that surrounded that table, surrounded her, that waited for a plan.

The Ex-Farmer blinked, surprised at Twilight’s complete deflection. “Oh, well, Timberwolf ambush. Don’t worry, I’m fine; But it ain’t good that the creatures of everfree are antagonizin’ us even more than Nightmare Moon is! Sheesh…”

“Please, go get your armor checked and repaired; I can’t have one of my best, walking around like that!” She spoke authoritatively, but her voice often cracked.

“Well, yes ma’am– Y’all tell me what the plan is when yer done, ya hear?” The Ex-Farmer walked out of the tent, looking back in concern.

And soon enough, all eyes were on the Unicorn again, who looked at the map of Equestria, pretending to be formulating a plan.

She chewed on her lip, eyes closed, for a brief moment, being capable of pretending the crowd of ponies was not there. “C’mon Twi— If Anypony can come up with a plan to get back at that hag, it’s you!! We gotta get our friends back!!” Rainbow Dash proclaimed from the crowd, eager, confident, not realizing just how unstable the Unicorn was feeling.

“If Nightmare Moon captured all of them, it’s only a matter of time before one of them coughs up the location of this base– We have to strike now!” The Pegasus proclaimed, and plenty of other of the rebels nodded and affirmed in agreement.

“How could we possibly raid her castle!?”

“We don’t have the numbers–”

“Should we be evacuating this camp?!”

“Her forces would spot our mobilization easily; We can’t just cut and run!!”

“A frontal assault would be stupid–”

“Should we be doubling our defenses?!”

“I’m scared!!!”

“What are we going to do!!?”

Twilight shrunk into herself, as all of the ponies around her discussed endlessly. At least, with them being distracted like this, she had more time to pretend she was formulating a plan.

“EVERYPONY QUIEEEEET!!!” Rainbow shouted, Flapping her prosthetic wings around, garnering the attention of the whole tent. “Twilight has never let us down, and she’s not about to now, so show some backbone and pay attention, will ya?! Jeez!!”

A hush fell within the tent once more, and all eyes were on the poor Unicorn once more.

She was about to snap– Dangerously so. She was mere seconds away from shouting that she had no hope to give them, that there was no plan.

With an eerie flash in the tent, all of the ponies gasped in surprise, as the Princess of Valor landed right on the table above the map to Equestria.

“Urgh! Solid surface again, shit–” She muttered, dusting herself off with her wings. A mere glance around her made her raise an eyebrow. “Huh, am I interrupting something?”

Her ears twitched immediately upon hearing a familiar stutter– She turned her head, a bit too fast, and found herself face to face with Twilight sparkle. “Twilight!! Oh my gosh— Wow, you’re so small as an Unicorn– It’s– Adorable! And those glasses, wow, they’re really cute!!” She nodded, aggressively, with a dumb grin on her face, slightly flustered.

Twilight certainly looked quite different from her wife; A small Unicorn, with messy hair on a bun, wearing glasses that had been cracked from usage over the years.

Every single pony in that tent was speechless. With merely a couple of glances, Sunset evaluated what was happening, and looked back to the Unicorn. “So are you like the boss here? Gosh, look at you... Always the leader, huh? I expected nothing less!” She spoke warmly, with pride– Even without the full picture, she couldn’t help it; And the Unicorn was speechless, at this oversized Alicorn towering over her with a loving smile.

“Come to think of it, if I appeared here, then…” She turned on the table, looking around at every pony in the crowd. “Sunset Shimmer? Is there a Sunset Shimmer here? C’mon, me!”

And she didn’t have to look for long. Among the crowd, there she was, another version of her, adorned in battle gear like the rebels around her, with an utterly dismayed and shocked look in her face; Purposefully keeping herself quiet. “There you are, me!”

With one magical motion, she picked herself up– Her other self, floated her over the crowd, moved the crowd away from Twilight, then placed her other self right next to Twilight. “There. That’s better.” She said with a sly smile, then sat down on the table properly, beholding those two.

The other Sunset immediately took a step or two away from the leader and covered her face with a hoof, grimacing in confusion.

Rainbow Dash was the first to speak up. “Umm– Not to be rude, but who the hell are you?”

“Woah Rainbow, sick metal wings, dude.” with a nod, Sunset admired her friend’s battle scars; That Rainbow Dash was indeed very different from hers, weary from years of fighting, but seemingly with the same attitude.

“Thanks! Wait, how do you know me?!” But unfortunately for the Pegasus, the Alicorn turned back to Twilight and her other self.

And finally, Twilight managed to speak. “WHO ARE YOU HOW DO YOU KNOW ME WHERE DID YOU COME FROM HOW ARE YOU AN ALICORN AND WHY DO YOU LOOK LIKE THIS RANDOM SOLDIER YOU JUST PUT NEXT TO ME????!!” Her voice shrill, close to panicked, indicating just how utterly confused she was.

In almost a slurred tone, intercut with giggles, Sunset pointed at her other self. “Hey, just asking, do you think this random soldier next to you is hot?”

The tiniest gasp came from Twilight’s mouth as her voice broke. “What!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

That just elicited a loud reaction from her other self, who shouted “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU?!”

Shaking her head and blowing raspberries, the Alicorn flapped her wings. “Sorry if I seem a bit weird– Whatever I smoked with Starswirl in the last universe is definitely kicking in.”

“Starswirl!??!! L-last universe?!” Those two things piqued the little Unicorn’s interest intently, as her mind raced. Someone in the crowd understandably asked “Smoking?”

“Hangon, I just need to check something.” The Princess of Valor reached out and touched her other self, bringing her closer with magic.

I am Sunset Shimmer. And I failed Celestia. Maybe if I had been a better pupil, Nightmare Moon wouldn’t have returned– Maybe if I had been a better pupil, I would have been there to stop it. But I wasn’t. I was exiled. And now I do whatever I can to help the resistance, and not one pony here knows the truth about me. I am–

Sunset's eyes widened with concern, and she then moved to touch Twilight, confirming what she had just seen.

I am Twilight Sparkle. I was an apprentice of Celestia-- was, because Nightmare Moon returned and imprisoned her. Since then, I've formed a resistance, and I try day after day to fight to someday free my mentor--

“Nightmare Moon?! She’s taken over this world?!” The Alicorn’s hide shivered with anticipation and anger, as her wings raised, and her brows furrowed.

“Well then. Today’s your lucky day.” With one single hop, Sunset Shimmer jumped over the whole crowd, and landed on the exit of the tent, and walked out of it with steely determination.

“Honestly darling, you ought to be less careless. Look at you, all bruised…” The Seamstress stated, as she hastingly yet efficiently applied the repairs to the body armor that the Ex-Farmer wore.

Looking down, being careful not to be poked by her horn, Applejack tried her best to maintain composure. “I’m fine, Rarity. Could ya hurry it up? I think somethin’ big must be happenin’ on the meetin’ room right now, and I don’t wanna miss it.”

“Protection demands patience, darling. And nothing’s more important than your safety– Surely the strongest of us should keep herself properly protected when fighting!” She spoke strongly, plainly, demanding the attention of the Earth Pony, and almost getting it.

“Yeah, yeah…” The Ex-Farmer’s gaze trailed off the tent they were on, attracted by noise coming from outside, just in time for her to get a glimpse of a certain Alicorn. ”W-woah– Who’s that?!”

With that single statement, Applejack completely forgot what was going on outside, and allowed the seamstress to continue her dutiful work. “Eeyup.”

And with the final touches, Rarity booped Applejack’s snoot. “There! Top form once more. Now next time you’re in a scrape, try ducking, if you please.”

“O-okay. Thanks, sugarcube–” But both of their gazes turned to the entrance of the tent, as a curious Sunset Shimmer poked her head in, wings and all.

She took only mere moments looking around. “Excuse me, which way to the exit of your little base?– Woah, hey Applejack. You look badass in armor. Hi Rarity! Figures, you two would be dating in this universe too.”

With a little nervous chuckle, the Ex-Farmer shook her head. “Oh, we ain’t datin’-- we’re just friends!”

With a plain look on her face, Rarity took a few seconds to look at Applejack, analytically, from top to bottom.“Hm. Would.” Then she simply turned and moved back to her work station.

Snickering, Sunset turned around and continued on her way; The rebel base was quite interesting, lights and tents extended all around what resembled some sort of cave covered in vines and moss. Sunset could tell easily, that wherever this place was, it was situated in the Everfree forest. On all her treks through that forest with her friends, she got quite familiar with the scents and sounds.

There were a surprising number of ponies there, all usually either wearing battle gear, or torn clothes. She saw plenty of familiar faces, in unfamiliar ways, and they all looked at her like she was a comet– Gawking in surprise at the tall Alicorn walking among them.

And behind her, followed plenty of ponies, but Twilight specifically; And the other Sunset Shimmer followed along. “E-excuse me! A-Alicorn!!! Would you mind explaining to me who you are and what you’re doing and where exactly are you going?!”

And besides her, Sunset’s other self was following closely, in extreme curiosity. “Are you me from an universe where I didn’t fail Celestia?! Where I succeeded as her pupil??” Which made Twilight’s ears perk in even further curiosity and confusion; She obviously did not know that there once was another pupil of Celestia, failed or otherwise.

Snickering, The Princess of Valor allowed herself to stop, touching Twilight’s and her other self’s shoulders, allowing her to see through her own memories, if only for a moment. “Here, let me show you both.”

It happened today, actually. Me and Luna were at the same party, happily conversing with my parents, and I remembered something good; That after years of training with the Queen of the Night, I finally beat her in a fight– And a fair and square all-out one, too. And I almost challenged her again too– But my wife stepped in, kissed me, and said “No fighting.” And of course, I obeyed.

“W-wife?! M-me?! Wife!!? Y-you?!” Blinking, flustering, sweating, Twilight’s eyes shot from the two Sunsets as she stuttered making sounds almost akin to squeaks, while the other Sunset’s jaw was utterly dropped, in equal flabbergasting. “H-holy crap– So you failed, b-but…!”

“Yep. I tried again. And eventually it stuck. And it helped that I was doing it to be with Twilight, too.” Her gaze was warm and amused, as she looked at those two, both equally confused. Twilight adjusted her glasses nervously, face red as a tomato, averting her eyes from the tall Alicorn that stood in front of her.

All which was endlessly entertaining to Sunset. “Gosh you are so cute as a Unicorn, Sparkles…!” but she shook her head, snapping out of it. “FOCUS! Okay, exit’s… Thisaway?” And she turned and kept going forward.

The two ponies chased after her, Twilight herself being incredibly concerned still. “W-wait!! How will you remove the Nightmare magic’s hold over Luna?!”

“Oh, let’s just say I'm uniquely qualified for it– I’ve done similar before, for a friend.” She snickered, reminiscing.

Most of Ponyville had gone into hiding, or were preparing for the battle against the forces of the moon; The shadows had already made their intentions known– Total domination of Equestria, but one thing was clear, they wouldn’t be able to claim Princess Luna again.

Luna and Twilight were attempting to discern the plans of the shadows that lurked there, both in the Community Center of Ponyville, but they knew a threat was imminent. Sunset, Applejack and Fluttershy remained out and about in Ponyville, at a rooftop, quietly surveying the skies for any signs of the upcoming invasion.

“W-why did I even agree to be out and about with you two– We are in so much danger–” Fluttershy shivered slightly, in unease, observing the dark night sky. It was unquestionable that this would be dangerous.

Sunset, keeping her steel gaze on the moon, folded her wings close. “You’re here if things can end peacefully; Me and AJ are here if things get ugly– Don’t worry, we won’t let anything happen to you.” That was certainly an assurance, but not by much.

Applejack snarled, surveying the horizon. “Oh I ain’t lettin’ them take any more of us– And if I find out they hurt my sugarcube, I'm gonna wring their necks.”

“Atta girl– I don’t know if they have necks, but that’s the spirit.” The Alicorn nodded confidently, proud of her friend's bloodlust.

Shuffling closer to her friends, the Pegasus considered their options. “M-maybe we can do a simple parlay…? You know… Not have to fight a bunch of evil shadow monsters from the moon, and resolve this peacefully…?”

“If there is a way, I’m sure Twi and Luna will find it– But we have to be prepared for the worst too.” The Alicorn reassured her, knowing full well things could go bad.

Blowing air from her nostrils, Applejack continued to poorly suppress her anger. “I vote violence– They took my Rarity, and I’ll lasso the whole dang moon before lettin’ her get hurt–”

But just then, they were interrupted, something akin to a meteor made of smoke landed on the outskirts of town– A wave of shadows spread.

The shadows spread out– Into what appeared to be a battalion of creatures of the dark, and they entered Ponyville.

And right in front of them, a tall, dark Unicorn with suspiciously fabulous hair led the quiet charge.

“Citizens of Ponyville! Rejoice, for you will be the first ones to be assimilated into the rule of the shadows– The moon is your sovereign, and it is time for MY age, the age of NIGHTMARE RARITY!!” The tall dark Unicorn waved her enormous, fabulous constellation mane, and her horn lit the surroundings with a pale blue light.

With a grimace, Sunset realized this just got a lot more complicated. “Oh, crap.”

Gleefully, Nightmare Rarity continued to proclaim her victory, waving her mane fabulously. “It is time to surrender, darlings! The age of the shadows is here–”

“I SURRENDER!” Applejack raised a hoof, and immediately slid down the rooftop and jumped in the town square.

“AJ no!!!” Fluttershy gasped. “A-applejack what the FUCK” Gritting her teeth, Sunset remained on cover, unsure of what the best choice of action would be.

Ignoring them, the Farmer ran to the plaza, standing right in front of Nightmarity. “Ah, excellent! Our first surrender. What is your name?”

“--Sugarcube, it’s me, Applejack?...” She spoke in disbelief, looking at her love, so twisted by the shadows. Rarity’s eyes glowed like gemstones as they twitched. Her fur was pitch black.

“Don’t ya remember me…?” Tilting her head, Applejack approached slowly, in concern. Nightmarity flinched, but got closer as well. “I… Know you…?” She asked softly.

Extending a hoof, she touched Applejack’s fuzzy chest, in confusion, attempting to remember, as she studied the Farmer analytically. “It’s me…!”

Shadows surrounded Applejack, but none advanced, all the while the Dark Unicorn observed her closely, feeling her fur with a hoof. “I know you…” Looking each other eye to eye- Blue and green meeting with hesitation.

Leaning in, Nightmarity rubbed her muzzle against Applejack’s neck and inhaled– Which transitioned to her nuzzling the Farmer affectionately then and there. She then recoiled, but still kept their muzzles close as she looked deep into her love’s eyes with a smile. “I know you. You’re mine.”

“E…Eeyup…?” Was all Applejack could say in reaction, as she flustered into oblivion.

With one swift and easy magical motion, Nightmarity cast a pale blue magical chain on Applejack’s neck, and pulled it, turning around. “We’re retreating for now– I’ve got what I want right here.”

All the shadow creatures surrounding them grunted in confusion and annoyance, as Applejack willingly followed her love, bound by a chain. With a pale yet powerful magical glow, Nightmarity cast the shadows into a swirl, and they all flew upwards towards the moon.

A hush fell into Ponyville, interrupted only by the sound of a pony, somewhere, celebrating. “Yay they’re retreating!!”

On the rooftop, Sunset grimaced in annoyance. “What the hell was that?!!!”

Fluttershy nodded with a small smile. “Wow, Applejack is so smart! She infiltrated the forces of shadows for us! And even made them retreat!”

Blowing raspberries, Sunset rubbed her temples with her wings. “That was absolutely not what just happened– Ugh, I guess at least she’s gonna keep Rarity occupied. C’mon, we gotta go tell Twilight and the others.”

“R-Rarity?! She was taken over by the shadows in your universe??” Fidgeting, Twilight followed the Valkyrie close.

“It’s a long story, but don’t worry about it, me and my friends fixed it.” Suppressing a chuckle, Sunset reminisced on the fact that the moon invasion was stalled– massively, too– By the simple fact that her two friends couldn’t keep their hooves off each other, even when one of them was corrupted by darkness.

She was, however, still looking for an exit, and just her luck, a wall of vines shook and moved; showing the pale moonlight outside, leading where to go. And from that wall, Zecora passed through. “Twilight! Just the pony I wished to see! And right after Nightmare Moon’s forces nearly caught me–”

“Hey Zecora!” The Alicorn passed by her with a friendly wave of a wing, and left through the vines, with Twilight close behind.

The Zebra blinked several times in surprise and shock. “I am not sure if this is a curse or luck– but that is an Alicorn. What the fuck?”

Sunset Shimmer breathed deeply, inhaling the nightly air– She knew that this was supposed to be day– But because of Nightmare Moon, it was eternal night. And she was about to change that.

They were at the edge of a grassy cliff, overlooking the Everfree forest; And Sunset could already sense where Nightmare Moon resided, in the Canterlot castle of this world. Twilight, behind her, stuttered through a question. “S-Sunset– Are you really going to just go and fight her?!”

Letting out a confident and calm chuckle, the Valkyrie nodded. “Relax, Sparkles. I got this. Also– I only have an hour here before I'm thrown into the next universe, so I don’t got much choice. And hey, if I die, nothing will change for this universe either way!”

Her gaze alternated between Twilight and her other self, who regarded her with concern and confusion, and she ignored the few ponies that chased after her in curiosity.

“Also, I’ll make this quick– But you two have a lot of common ground, both being apprentices of Celestia– and I’m married to the Twilight Sparkle of my world– So when Nightmare Moon is defeated, you should hit it off! Celestia would adore having two pupils at once, especially with Luna around. Trust me, I know!” Her grin as wide as it could be, she nodded at them both enthusiastically, with a toothy smile.

They simply exchanged quick nervous flustered glances, unable to speak, and behind them, Rainbow dash was utterly flabbergasted. “Hey dude– I get that you’re an Alicorn and all– But how exactly are you alone going to defeat–”

But she was interrupted. With a flash, Sunset adorned her Valkyrie armor, and even in the pale moonlight, she shined with a golden glow. Every pony on that cliff’s jaws dropped as they looked at the bronze-clad Alicorn, who herself was ready for any fight.

She took merely a second to smirk back at them. “I’ll burn that bridge when I get to it.”

In a singular moment, she charged energy, and, with one massive wind blast, she flew off, even toppling some of the ponies around with her shockwave, shooting into the sky like a meteor, with one singular determined direction.

“H-holy crap. That’s fast.” Was all Rainbow could mutter, as she watched the fiery shooting star.

The ponies on the cliff watched, utterly flabbergasted, the Valkyrie cruise towards Canterlot with unbelievable speed.

Fidgeting nervously, adjusting her glasses, and even flustering a bit, Twilight looked at Sunset, who sat next to her, with the same confusion. “You… you were an apprentice of Celestia, like me…? All this time…?”

There was a tinge of sorrow on Twilight’s voice, as she considered all the years she fought thinking no pony in the world would understand her pain. “Why did you never tell me?! I could have– Maybe together, this would have been easier…”

Shaking her head, she spoke softly. “I’m sorry, Twilight, it’s just… I was her apprentice. I failed her. I wasn’t about to share that with just anypony, even my replacement, but… I had to help somehow.”

The messenger stuttered a little, being in the presence of such power, as he delivered news to Nightmare Moon in her throne room. “Y-yes, my liege– It is confirmed that our forces have captured all of the resistance fighters in their penultimate base…”

Cackling maniacally, Nightmare Moon rejoiced on her upcoming victory. The eerie blue flames of the torches in the room seemed to glow brighter with her delight. “FINALLY! Send my guards to torture the captives as much as they want– Tear them limb from limb if they must– Just GET the location of the final rebel base– And I’ll finally snuff out this ridiculous resistance!! And that little runt, Twilight Sparkle, will PAY for having ever defied me. Finally, a beautiful new age of my rule, with no opposition!!”

She stepped away from her throne, nearly prancing around, her wings spread wide, reveling in her victory. “Night will reign eternal!!! No pony will ever oppose my MIGHT!!”

Allowing herself a good moment to cackle maniacally some more, she returned to her throne and lounged. “Notify me the SECOND we discover the location of the rebel base– I will go snuff out that light personally.”

The messenger nodded emphatically with fear, and then galloped away from the room.

From her throne, she could barely contain her excitement, as she fluttered her wings and grinned madly. “Do you hear that, sister? Your last hope will be extinguished soon enough.” She teased a stained glass depiction of her sister being defeated by her, Celestia could not hear her where she was.

Merely seconds later, one of her guards flew into the room, in a panicked, sweaty state. “My queen!!! W-we are under attack!!”

The Pegasus looked back in fear, sweating, in sheer panic. “S-some kind of Sun Alicorn– She is tearing through our air defenses like butter!!! We’ve–”

“Impossible! My sister cannot escape the prison that I've bound her to. There is no Sun Alicorn–” Before she could even finish her sentence, an explosion resounded in the distance, and from the stained glass windows, they could see glowing silhouettes of their airships– On fire.

Rolling her eyes, but feeling a bit more tense, Nightmare Moon waved her hooves dismissively. “Ugh, fine, I’ll entertain you. Send in the elite guards.”

“W-we just did!! T-they–”

Another Pegasus rushed into the room, this one completely struck with fear. “MY QUEEN, THE ELITE GUARD– THEY’VE ALL BEEN SLAUGHTERED!!”

Now she began considering this threat. “Unbelievable– FINE. If my sister has indeed returned, I will send her right back to where she belongs violently– I will go meet her now–”

The stained glass windows exploded, and Sunset Shimmer arrived, leaving a trail of fire in her wake, as she landed on the throne room confidently; The two messengers ran away at the mere sight of her, her armor burning in a couple places, dents and scratches in others, but otherwise completely unharmed. “Heya, Luna.”

The Queen of the Night’s eyes widened as she examined her opponent with a scowl. “A Valkyrie?! Impossible!! Who are you?!!”

“A friend. Unfortunately, Celestia couldn’t be here today– But I’ll gladly fill in her horseshoes and knock some sense into you, Luna.” With a Smirk, she brandished her armored wings confidently.

This wasn’t even going to be a match– She knew all of Luna’s weaknesses, Nightmare Moon’s weaknesses, and her opponent didn’t even know who she was.

With a violent take off, they collided mid air, and it was clear that Sunset was the physical superior, as she stomped and hooved and even wing striked her enemy, combining all of that with powerful magical blasts and horn fencing, the Queen, even with her powerful magical barriers and blasts, could barely keep up.

The Queen of the Night tried her best to shoot the Valkyrie with powerful explosive projectiles; But Sunset was too agile, doing flips and Pirouettes or even deflecting her magic entirely, making it look easy, too.

Stomping her forcefully against the ground pushed Nightmare moon to fight back harder. “Enough of this! Feast on your nightmares, fool!!”

Her horn glowed, her wings spread wide, and a violent dark fog flew towards Sunset, who guarded herself in expectation.

Their eyes met, and Nightmare Moon was genuinely shocked. “I--Impossible?!”

“HAH! Celestia was right!!! AWESOME!!” The Valkyrie took off once more, with her confidence doubled. With her horn alight, flames spewed all around her, lighting the room, resembling daytime.

Nightmare Moon could only play defensive, and she was starting to panic, as every barrier she cast was soon broken, and any cold she manifested was quickly snuffed out, warmed up.

Sunset laughed with delight and excitement with this battle, for a multitude of reasons. “You rely too much on your magic!! Like you’re ordering takeout!!”

“But this?!?!” She brandished her hooves and wings with great pride. “This is a home cooked meal. Now eat up!!”

“UGH, WHAT ARE YOU EVEN SAYING?!” A flurry of wing strikes and Hoof stomps struck nightmare moon on her legs, neck, head, and she could no longer defend herself.

“I DON’T KNOW, I AM KIND OF HIGH RIGHT NOW!!” She laughed gleefully, as she delivered blow after blow.

And with one final bucking, Nightmare moon was thrown against her throne, shattering it, and laid on the floor, barely conscious. She coughed a couple of times, breathing haggardly. “E-even if you beat me now– Your sun will never return. And Luna will forever belong to the darkness. The forces of nightmare have won–”

“--Not on my watch.” Sunset approached her slowly, and connected horn to horn, and began a very strenuous process of multiple kinds of magic being cast at once.

I had nightmares every night, after I became a demon. Stealing Twilight’s crown was the worse mistake I had ever made, and yet, no pony could torture me more than me.

“N-no, please, just go away!!” Sunset Shimmer pleaded, being face to face with her own demon form.

“Why so scared, little me?! This is what you wanted, isn’t it?!” She spread her wings, and Canterlot burned around them. “SUNSET SHIMMER– THE STRONGEST ALICORN!!” She professed loudly, brandishing her horrible bat wings as fire spewed in all directions.

“STOP!! JUST STOP HURTING THEM!!” The Unicorn cried helplessly, unable to do anything to stop her other self. The demon was burning everything with gleeful laughter.

This was only one of my nightmares, back then. One of many. I was as helpless here as when I was awake.

The demon bared her fangs with joy. “What’s wrong, you WIMP?! You got everything you could have possibly wanted– Why the crocodile tears?!”

“I DON’T WANT THIS, I NEVER WANTED THIS–”

“ALL YOU ARE IS THIS!!” She brandished her wings, and charged at her other self.

“Not on my watch.” With a calm and soothing voice, Luna entered the dream and swiftly dispatched the demon, making it fade away, and as she flew around the city, all flames dispelled.

And yet, you were always there– For every nightmare I had, you pulled me out. I didn’t deserve it, but you couldn’t care less about deserving.

“You are Sunset Shimmer, are you not?” Tilting her head, she regarded the Unicorn with pity, and yet, a warm gaze.

She was still shaking, still shivering. With an exhale, she managed to look the princess in the eyes. “Y-yes, yes. That’s me… It’s– an honor to meet you, Princess Luna… I’m s-so sorry for the trouble–”

“The honor is mine. It is not everyday I could meet a pony that knows exactly how I felt.” She gave a slow, caring nod, as the layout of the dream reshaped into a more comfortable night in Canterlot.

You were unshakable. And yet, you and I were in the exact same position, once.

Turning her head away, it was as if she saw another pony having a nightmare in the distance. “I must go. But let it be known, Sunset Shimmer… That they will forgive you– And you will survive this, and you will come out of it stronger. Never forget their faith in you.”

In tears, Sunset stomped her hoof on the floor, not out of anger, but of desperation. “B-but it’s misplaced!! I don’t deserve it!! I don’t deserve their faith– Much less their forgiveness!!!”

With a gentle smile, Luna soared away. “And yet, it is there. What you choose to do with it is up to you. Good luck, Sunset Shimmer. And may the stars aid in your return.”

Everytime you visited my dreams, you offered me wisdom, and at some point, it actually stuck. You were the reason I started trying to improve myself– You were the reason I fought to belong with Twilight and my friends, and you were the reason, among many others, that I am as fearless as I am now.

Now that you’ve seen what I've seen, known what I’ve known, you know what you can be.

Come back to them, Luna…!

Straining, near yelling, Sunset Shimmer finished showing Luna her memory, and viciously pulled all of the nightmare energy out from her horn, burning it up then and there. “GO BACK TO THE SHADOWS!!” She yelled, after the extreme effort of unleashing the nightmare into her flames.

Luna, no longer Nightmare Moon, whimpered, as tears formed. “I–I don’t deserve their forgiveness…!”

With a smile, Sunset spoke softly. “And yet, they’ll give it to you. What you do with it…”

“--Is up to me…!” She concluded, eyes closed, not smiling, but significantly more at ease.

Sunset walked away, shaking off the exhaustion of having strained herself, blowing raspberries and stretching; She would not allow herself to feel tired, in only the third universe she accidentally stumbled into.

Curiously, Luna watched her. “...Incredible… So this was the power of Celestia’s first pupil…!”

She snickered, remembering the resistance fighter version of her. “Nooooot exactly. There is a Sunset Shimmer in this world, but she’s not me.”

Nodding, Sunset smiled. “Hopefully, the other Sunset will learn the same things you know, and understand what she could be.”

Luna could see it now– If there was even a chance that her world could have a protector like the one that just saved her, she had to fight to make it a reality. “I’ll make sure of it.” She nodded with determination.

“Heh, thanks.” Chuckling, she laughed at the idea that this victory could be attributed to the other Sunset Shimmer, and she didn’t mind that in the slightest.

Luna, for the first time in years, looked through the holes on the throne room walls, at the nightly horizon, with hope. “Well, nevertheless… Perhaps now my sister will return– And the sun will shine on Equestria once more...”

“Oh, it will. Give me a second.” Sunset Shimmer walked over to that gap, and raised her wings.

She stared at the horizon intently; her horn aglow, her gaze determined, her wings spread wide.

Sunset Shimmer nearly collapsed, feeling immensely dizzy, breathing heavily. “FUCK! Why did I even do that while I'm still high– Ugh, I feel sick…!”

“Incredible…!” Was all that the Princess could mutter, as she observed, for the first time a millenia, a sunrise, and not one raised by her sister, no less.

And moments later, with the sun raised, Celestia was freed from her prison, and flew down to the castle.

The time had come to be thrusted upon another universe– and the same light as before enveloped Sunset. “Well crap, time to go…” She started floating against her will.

“What is happening to you??” Luna’s eyes widened as she watched the Valkyrie slowly vanish.

“Don’t worry– I’m just going to another universe! Listen, remember what I said, and remember what you felt, okay?!” Her limbs were fading, and she tried speaking fast.

Celestia landed inside the room, and was utterly shocked at this sight. “A–A Valkyrie?! S-Sunset Shimmer?!?!! Y-you’ve ascended?!”

“Hey, Celestia!! I’m Sunset from–” But before she could finish her sentence, she vanished into the multiverse.

The Princess of the Sun watched, utterly flabbergasted, unable to make sense of any of that. Her gaze landed on her sister, who sat wounded on the floor. “L-Luna, is it really you?! What in the world just happened?!?!”

“I honestly can barely say myself, sister… All I can say is… I am so, so sorry…!” Tears formed in her eyes, as she stood up, unsure of anything.

Shaking her head thoroughly, Celestia regarded her with sadness. “No… It was my mistake to imprison you all those years ago. We were meant to rule together... From now on, we’re equals. I am so sorry, sister…”

The little sister ran forward and hugged her big sister, and there they remained in each other's embrace, apologizing to each other emphatically, until the moment that the resistance fighters finally reached the castle, utterly shocked to find out that everything would change, starting today.

Across the Shimmerverse

by DapperLilArts

I Light the Night