CYOA - NMM

You are Nightmare Moon and always have been. It is no secret that you were born out of Luna’s jealously and hatred for Celestia. What is a secret however, was that you possessing Luna was an outright falsehood.

In your fight with Celestia, both you and Luna were one in the same. The same goal, motivation, and rage that burned within your hearts; the desire to plunge the world in to darkness was something you both shared, fiercely even. Both of you attacked Celestia with all your might.

Yet when banished to the moon, the fire that once ignited Luna’s heart eventually extinguished. Her rage turned into remorse, and eventually distain as she put all the blame upon you.

From what you could recall 500 years ago, it was Luna’s words that accused you for taking over her body without her consent. It was because of you that she attacked her beloved sister without her control. It was because of you that everything went so wrong.

Your own fury only grew because of this. Your first friend and partner betrayed you, and your were both distraught and furious for she was just as much responsible as much as you were. Her fear of isolation tore her away from you. Spending a millennium away from everypony and her sister, only to be stuck with *you*.

After that argument, she vowed to never speak with to you and hasn’t ever since. Forever secluding herself in the back of her mind with you in control. Not that you could help it. You didn’t know how to relinquish control, for if you had you would have done it a millennium ago.

The next 500 years you spent without Luna. Since then you had the time to self-reflect.

Luna didn’t need you anymore. No, she wanted you gone. Yet no matter what you tried, you still controlled her body with a forever silent voice in the back of your mind. You contemplated the fury deep within in your heart.

Was it truly yours to begin with? You were born out of it yes, but it was Luna’s rage that you came into being. You aren’t her, not anymore. Luna wanted to plunge the world into eternal night. Luna wanted to dethrone her sister. Luna wanted the love and attention of all the ponies around her. Yet in her darkest moment, you were there to comfort her when she was weeping. To silently listen to her when she was upset. And to aid her when she really needed you. You were only born with the purpose of being the salve for her loneliness, and now she calls you a monster and a curse.

Your rage, you realize, wasn’t the same as Luna’s. You weren't jealous of Celestia’ sun. You weren’t even vengeful because you were trapped on the moon for a 1000 years. You were furious because Celestia isolated Luna from the rest of the world. It was because of Celestia that Luna now hates you. It was because of Celestia that Luna would never again be welcomed to a world that would love her like you did.

You’ve observed Equestria through the dreams of ponies and long since found out that world that has already forgotten you, only believing you to be an old filly’s tale. Celestia’s propaganda has forever portrayed you as an evil tyrant. She even made a holiday to remind everypony how much of a monster you were. If you were to take the center stage again, then the world would see you as a villain Celestia wanted you to be. This ensured her ponies would never accept you as their ruler, and thus never accept Luna.

You decided that this injustice cannot stand. The seal that bounded you to the moon was weakening, and you would soon finally take action.

[What is the seal, and how long do we have until it pops?]

The thing responsible for placing the seal upon you was none other than the Elements of Harmony. You loathed the little thing, for it was the only thing Celestia had over you that gained her victory.

When it was first found, neither you, Luna, or Celestia had much of an idea of what it was truly capable of. All you knew was that it was a powerful artifact that came into existence after the threat of Discord appeared in Equestria. You reminisce the bittersweet memories of that era, for it was one of few moments Luna ever got to shine.

The Tree of Harmony, when you first gazed upon it, was a newly bloomed willow tree made out of powerful crystals and lights. Powerful magic emanated from it, magic that repelled Discord's influence over the garden quarry within the Everfree.

The two sisters had worn the magical regalia and necklaces divided equally. You remember distinctly the feelings Luna felt, for she was overjoyed at the fact that she was finally bearing the responsibilities of a ruler. Protecting Equestria from a greater threat, a just cause that Celestia was willing to share with her sister.

Things went by surprisingly well, until it didn't. The regalia had worked as Celestia predicted it would, for it was her who found it in the first place with her pseudo-omnipotence and uncanny ability to predict the future.

At least that's what it seemed like to Luna. Celestia obviously didn't expect either of you to stage a coup in an attempt to overthrow her, so her predictions weren't as perfect as Luna believed.

As Luna returned to Canterlot with a petrified Discord in tow behind her, she was heartbroken once more, as the mass of ponies that came to greet them only came for Celestia and celebrate in her honor. This was the first instance Luna shown true resentment within her heart.

You shook out of the memory, for it was too unpleasant to bear.

According to the ponies you dream scryed on, one of Celestia's predictions involved you breaking in a 1000 years time. You admittedly haven't been tracking count, for there was really no accurate way to get the time since dreams were fickle when it comes to important little details such as that.

However, you assume since Discord was encased in stone first, he would be the first to break out of his prison. Celestia would have to do battle with him alone with the elements in hoof, yet the Trickster God would be fully expecting this and be prepared for it this time around. It would not be an easy task for her.

It would be easy to notice too, as Discord was the showy-type. The land below you would become a checkered-pattern and celestial objects would be flung from the edge of the world and back. You silently dread the day that will happen as you would inevitably holding onto the moon for dear life as to not be launched into space.

Then after that the Crystal Empire would soon return along with Sombra, an actual tyrant that succeeded in driving away Celestia and actually nullified the Elements of Harmony with a corrupted Crystal Heart.

It took blood, sweat, and tears, but eventually both sisters would overcome Sombra with the help of Starswirl the Bearded and his magic sealing amulet. Yet unlike before, the empire was banished along with Sombra as a last ditch effort on his part. When we returned, again the ponies only celebrated Celestia's achievements as Luna stayed in her shadow, further fueling her resentment of her.

If Sombra were to come back, Celestia would no doubt suffer dearly in trying to subjugate him once more without the help of the elements. Sombra was no pushover either. If Celestia wins, she would return home completely exhausted after battling two troublesome opponents.

That's the moment. A perfect opportunity to strike Celestia when she is at her weakest and without the Elements on herself. She would finally taste defeat at your hooves, and she would pay dearly for the suffering Luna was forced to go through. For the things we had to go through.

[>for it was one of few moments Luna ever got to shine.]
[It seems Nightmare Moon has a pathological desire to see Luna succeed even if she isn't part of her anymore.]

[I'm sure even if she's weakened, defeating Celestia will just put us in the position Luna wanted to be in. It won't free us, just tie us down into being the Empress we were made to be. We should return, and hide. Avoid Celestia's wrath entirely (and maybe just have Luna herself deal with it)]

This isn’t about taking over Equestria anymore. It’s about making Celestia pay for her misdeeds. She is the reason why Luna is in this state.

If she wanted to reconcile with her sister then she wouldn’t have made it impossible for Equestria to welcome her return. Before then Luna was just her shadow. Now she is the bane of little foals and in the name of everything good.

Celestia had hurt Luna, tortured her with her greatest fear of isolation for a millennium, and made sure that everypony will never love her the way you do.

You know well enough that if you took over Equestria, everypony will kneel before you out of fear rather than love and adoration. You can’t give Luna the Equestria she deserves, but at the very least you could punish the one responsible for the pain she’s been through.

Running away isn’t an option either. It’s too much of an opportunity to let slip by. If Celestia did have the elements on her after her conflict with Sombra, then it would be a different matter entirely. However you knew this was the best chance at defeating Celestia, and giving her time to recuperate and prepare for your arrival would be a fatal mistake.

You won’t allow Celestia to escape the consequences for her sins.

You paw the grey rock beneath you. Besides, it’s not like Luna will ever talk to you ever again. You understood well enough that one of her principles was to never break a royal promise, one of which that royally shut you out of any conversation you wished to have a 500 years prior. You still felt her at the back on her mind, ignoring you most of the time and silently cursing you on more rarer occasions.

As a creature born to comfort her in her in her darkest moments, you only wished Luna to be happy. Yet for a millennium now you were unable, no you became the antithesis for her happiness. She made you into the object of her self-loathing. She made you into the scapegoat for both of your failures in order to cope with her isolation. The very same isolation that you were created to do away.

You didn’t blame her. No, you *couldn’t* blame her. As a manifestation of her desires, you literally can’t bring yourself to hate her. All you could do was to turn your focus on putting Celestia through the same pain you both endured.

You simply waited for your chance. Discord should be broken free at any moment. You awaited with bated breath for this imprisonment to finally be over. Your plans would soon come into fruition as Celestia would meet her end-

Wait what’s that blinding light on the surface?

You look below you once again to see that the runes and dark craters were now glowing brilliantly in a flash of light. You cover your eyes with the flaps of your wings, only to open them once more to a completely different scenery.

You were no longer on a dull rock in the vast vacuum of space. Instead of the endless void spanning before the sky, the world above you was a beautiful hue of darkish blue with scattered stars looming about. You see your former prison floating thousands of miles away from your position. A breeze of ice-cold air licked your fur as brambles and thickens sway around you.

Structures of a ruined castle decorated the distance and as felt cold stone brick beneath your hooves. You were no longer on the moon, but back at the old castle where the two sisters fought.

What’s more intriguing was that you weren’t alone. Your eyes adjusted to the new scenery around you, your pupils narrowing their cat-like slits as you see five ponies in black cloaks surrounding you. They all held handles within their right hooves and their faces seem to be concealed in an unnatural darkness your eyes can’t quite pierce. You started to approach one of them threateningly, bearing your fangs and expanding your wings to their full length.

But before you could interrogate them, you were soon halted. Your face impacted an invisible surface and it stung your muzzle. You shook your head and stepped back, only to see recognize that a sealing circle was etched below you. You quickly recognized this magic, for it belonged to demonology; a magic banned and erased from all record even before the rise of Necromancy.

[Threaten these insolent vermin. How dare they seal Nightmare Moon?]