The foggy landscape of the Velvet Room surrounds me...

I look around, seeing the girls appear in the dreamscape one by one. As Pinkie shows up and catches sight of me, she smiles encouragingly but a bit sadly. Sonata gives a half-wave and a half-smile. The others...

None of the others want to meet my eyes. They don't look angry so much as uncomfortable, for the most part. Applejack has a somewhat resentful look on her face, and Rainbow is frowning, but I don't sense any real hostility, just...

I don't know.

And then there's Twilight. As soon as she sees me, she makes a point of walking as far away from me as she can without leaving the group entirely. Pinkie sighs, shakes her head, and walks over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Cadance is the last to appear; she looks around and grimaces. "Do we...really need to do this? Now, with things the way they are?"

"I wonder that myself, kind nurse," Zecora says as she emerges from the mists. "The timing, I fear, could not possibly be worse." She looks around at all of us. "You may, of course, abstain from battle. Do not feel you are being herded like cattle. But take heed, for this is an important detail: if you wish the truth known, you must prevail."

Fluttershy steps forward, shooting me a mild frown. "Excuse me, but...I have to ask. Are we even fighting for a reason anymore? Is there a point to all this?"

Zecora gazes steadily into her eyes. "A point to these Trials, there is indeed. They provide valuable growth and experience you need. You believe yourselves ready, but is that true? Or is there still more your group has to do?" We all grimace at that. There are still so many things we don't know...and yet, right now, none of it seems to matter...

Twilight looks at me, then looks away. She sighs heavily. "I can't," she whispers hoarsely. "I...I'm sorry. I just...I can't."

And with that, she disappears from the Velvet Room.

I feel a sharp pain in my chest as she vanishes, an icy needle through my heart. Everybody shifts uncomfortably.

Zecora turns to me. "I am afraid I have further woe to impart," she says. "If you fight this battle, you do so with an incomplete heart."

"Tell me about it," I say, not looking away from the spot where Twilight previously stood.

The door bearing the Hierophant Arcana rises from the floor. Zecora gestures to it, then steps aside. "The choice is yours, as it has always been," she says. "Turn away and leave, or face what lies within."

I look around at the girls. They frown, fidgeting awkwardly, saying nothing. I cough. "I..."

Pinkie walks over to me, as does Sonata. "We'll stand with you," Pinkie says. Sonata offers a thumbs-up.

The other girls look at one another, then at Cadance, then back to the three of us. "We'll...we'll stay," Rarity says. The others nod, but none of them look particularly thrilled...

I take a deep breath, then walk to the door. Perhaps focusing on fighting a powerful enemy will...will help clear my head a little...

The door opens, and pale moonlight spills out. Vice-Principal Luna walks out, dressed in ripped jeans, a leather jacket, and a T-shirt covered in blood. Her gaze sweeps over all of us.

When Celestia offered me this job, I took it because I wanted to scare kids like you straight. To stop kids from turning into the kind of delinquent wretch I used to be.

Her eyes turn gold on black.

But what good is it? You kids aren't afraid of me. The world has changed. You kids do all your delinquent, deviant, perverted, criminal shit on your computers and smartphones these days, and I'll never be able to keep up with you in that world!

She chuckles.

Kids...you're all the same. There's good kids and there's bad kids, but it's harder and harder to tell the difference when you all dress the same and you all have the same hi-tech shit. And where does that leave an old fossil like me? I can't even keep one school under control because none of you are afraid of me!

She toys with a switchblade.

Maybe it's time I made you fear me.

Purple-black flames wreathe her body as bands of sheer black light fade into view, flickering and spinning around her.

I am the Shadow, the True Self! I'll put the fear of rules and discipline in you delinquent little brats if it kills you!

The bands of black light coalesce into a solid black shell as we ready ourselves for battle. Luna's Shadow explodes upward, becoming a coal-skinned titan of a woman clad in a blue steel bikini with knee-high stiletto-heeled steel boots, elbow-length steel gloves, and a steel skull cap with a long, tapered unicorn horn. Her eyes are pale and slitted, her mouth is full of sharp fangs, and a diaphanous blue silk cape trails along her generous curves. Her hair billows out behind her like a curtain of starry night.

LET NIGHTMARE NIGHT BEGIN WITH A FRIGHT!

THE FUN HAS BEEN DOUBLED!!

She throws her hands wide, scattering toy bats and spiders which enlarge and become very real, very dangerous-looking vampire bats and tarantulas.

"So, uhh...anyone wanna tell Luna she's a few months early for Halloween?" Rainbow quips as she summons Nike.

Masukukaja

A blur surrounds us all.

Tetrakarn

Fluttershy erects a reflective barrier.

Double Fangs

Two of the bats attack Fluttershy. The first slams into her barrier and takes damage; the second bites her but doesn't even scratch her skin. As they return to their mistress, the third bat comes after me, crashing into Fluttershy's barrier and dispelling it as it takes damage from its own attack.

"Too many icky things!" Pinkie declares. "PERSONA!"

Mahamaon

Euphoria appears, aiming her urn at the Shadows like a cannon and firing off a noisy blast of pure white light. When it fades, the Shadows are unaffected. Pinkie pouts as Euphoria fades away.

While the others have been setting up, I've been skimming through my phone. A lot of my strongest Personas are sealed...

I could summon Gojira, but until I have a better idea of what Luna's Shadow is capable of, I don't want to drain myself too early. I decide to summon Sephiroth.

Maragidyne

Sephiroth sends a wave of searing flames spreading through the Shadows with a wave of his sword. Two of the bats and one of the spiders manage to avoid being burned, but Luna's Shadow and the rest of the Shadows are hit. The one bat and two spiders I hit curl up on themselves and screech in agony.

//The bats and spiders are weak to fire!// Cadance reports. //Do it again!//

Maragidyne

"PERSONA!" My second attack hits more of the Shadows than the first one did, but one of the same bats from the first time still dodges, as does a spider. Still, the opening lets me attack one more time, hitting everything except that same really agile bat and Luna's Shadow. As Sephiroth fades, I step back to catch my breath.

"Nice, Flash!" Sonata says.

Mabufudyne

Rarity summons Wadjet-Bast, whose deadly ice storm engulfs the Shadows. It doesn't do much damage, but at least she manages to hit everything.

Tidal Wave

Sonata summons Leviathan, whose tidal wave hits everything except the bats, all of which fly out of range. Sonata pouts as her Persona disappears.

Poison Fangs

The spiders skitter forward, coming after me, Sonata, and Pinkie. The two that go after the girls collide with Fluttershy's barrier and take damage, but the one that comes for me sinks its fangs into me. My vision blurs as a fire burns through my veins.

//Flash has been poisoned!//

Applejack steps up. "Alright, Ah don't want us t' be here no more'n we hafta. PERSONA!"

Matarukaja

Gaia appears, imbuing us all with enhanced strength.

Eclipse

Luna's Shadow throws her arms into the air. A massive full moon slides into view above us, blotting out all light in the Velvet Room while bathing her in a silvery glow. The blurring effect from Rainbow's Persona fades...

//Be careful! She's lowered your defense and raised her attack! Also, I think...yes! That thing she just did healed her a little!//

"Okay, I kick Luna's butt all the time in video games, I can kick her butt here too! PERSONA!"

Magarudyne

Rainbow summons Nike Invicta, who unleashes a storm of cutting winds into the Shadow horde. Her attack hits one of the bats, two of the spiders, and Luna's Shadow, but doesn't do much damage.

Starlight Breaker

"ARTEMIS!" Fluttershy's Persona appears, unleashing her magical-girl storm of glowing arrows at the Shadows. Luna's Shadow and two of the bats dodge; everything else is hit. The bat and spiders cry out in pain.

Life Drain

One of the bats flies at Rainbow Dash while the other two fly at Fluttershy, screeching and flapping as they bite the girls deeply. Both girls cry out and try to slap the bats away; when the bats flap back over to Luna, glistening blood drips from the girls' bite wounds.

Orgy of Death

"EUPHORIA!" Pinkie's Persona dances into the Shadow swarm, thrashing and kicking and hip-checking, but none of her attacks land. Pinkie lets out a frustrated groan as a sheepish Euphoria returns, shrugging.

My vision is still blurry and the poison burning through my body hurts, but I can still fight...

Maragidyne

I summon Sephiroth again, whose hellfire scorches all the Shadows. Another sweep of magical flames incinerates the spiders, who evaporate into inky nothingness, but one of the bats manages to dodge.

Mabufudyne

Rarity unleashes an ice attack that hits everything, doing considerable damage to the bats but barely ruffling Luna's Shadow.

Virus Wave

Sonata summons Leviathan, who brings a sickly purple wave of poison to bear against the enemy. It has no discernible effect...

Gaia's Wrath

"GAIA!" Gaia slams a fist into the ground, causing an earthquake beneath the Shadows that sends plumes of lava and chunks of ice into the air. One of the bats is caught in a lava plume and burns away, screaming.

God's Hand

Gaia lurches forward and slams a punch into Luna's Shadow's jaw.

Luna's Shadow is doubled over, weaving and listing drunkenly, glaring at us with narrowed slit pupils.

FOOLS...I WILL TEACH YOU TO RESPECT YOUR MISTRESS OF THE NIGHT!

The Night Begins To Shine

A rocking eighties power song floods the Velvet Room, and everything turns painfully bright. Pastel pinks and purples take over the normal hues of the Velvet Room; the fog turns pale lavender as bright stars and planets fill the space above us. Healing light washes over Luna's Shadow as a nimbus of power surrounds her; I feel a weight dragging down on my arms, making me feel sluggish.

//Careful! She's powered herself up and lowered your attack!// Around me, the girls are looking as sluggish as I feel. Meanwhile, Luna's Shadow stands up straight. With an evil cackle, she tosses three more toy spiders to the ground, which enlarge into a fresh batch of giant tarantulas.

THE FUN HAS BEEN DOUBLED!!

"God I hate when they do this," Rainbow mutters as she summons Nike, who slides onto her knees and jams out a prismatic power chord that sends a shockwave through the Shadows.

Sonic Rainboom

It misses the bats entirely, as well as one of the spiders, but knocks the other two spiders over. Luna's Shadow grunts as it hits her.

Magarudyne

Fluttershy's Persona releases deadly buzzsaws of glowing wind into the fray. Two of the spiders dodge; the bats take damage, as does Luna's Shadow and the third spider.

Life Drain

The bats both fly at Fluttershy, biting and scratching her; she yells a string of profanities as she tries to ward them off with her staff.

Orgy of Death

As they retreat, Pinkie summons her Persona again, who finally manages to do something useful in this fight, as her attacks strike home on each available target—but they don't really do much damage.

Maragidyne

As soon as Euphoria fades, I summon Sephiroth again, sweeping the Shadows with fresh flames. The first wave of flames leaves the bats on the ground screaming; the second wave incinerates them completely, but Luna's Shadow staggers out of the path of the flames. She's looking winded again. The pain of the poison eases and ebbs away, and my vision clears.

Mabufudyne

Tidal Wave

Rarity's next wave of ice hits everything, as does Sonata's Tidal Wave.

Poison Fangs

Masukunda

The spiders skitter forward; one attacks Applejack and manages to damage itself, one tries to bite Fluttershy but fails. The third, however, weaves a glowing web of magic and sends it flying over all of us. We try to avoid it, but it snares us, sinking into our skin and fading but leaving us all feeling trapped and slow.

//Your Evasion is down! Be careful!//

God's Hand

Applejack summons Gaia, who tries to punch Luna's Shadow again. She misses.

Luna's Shadow snarls at us and brings her hands together. Her hair streams straight up, the sparkly stars in it shining brightly. The horn on her helmet lights up a brilliant cerulean as a painfully bright glow builds up in her cupped hands.

Megidolaon

She flings her hands forward, and a wave of solid light SMASHES into us. It hurts; we all stagger from the impact.

Magarudyne

Rainbow snarls and rips loose with a massive wind attack that hits the spiders but misses Luna's Shadow.

Mediarahan

Fluttershy summons Artemis, who heals us.

Orgy of Death

Pinkie's Persona attacks the Shadows again, hitting them all but not doing any appreciable damage. Pinkie is growing visibly frustrated; her hair is limp and her eyes are dark.

Maragidyne

I summon Sephiroth again, blasting the Shadows with flames. One of the spiders dodges, but I hit the others and Luna's Shadow. My next attack hits everything; as the spiders skitter around burning and Luna's Shadow sags, I unload one more blast of flames. This one misses Luna's Shadow but incinerates the spiders.

"Dude, sweet," Rainbow offers as Sephiroth fades away.

//The spiders and bats being so good at dodging is actually working against this Shadow,// Cadance says. //Since they're all weak to Fire, they're just giving Flash more chances to keep going.//

"Shame they're not weak to ice as well," Rarity comments as she summons her Persona, who encases Luna's Shadow in a huge ice crystal.

Bufudyne

She staggers as it explodes with a sharp crack.

Pierce Attack

Sonata aims her crossbow at the Shadow and fires, but misses.

God's Hand

Applejack summons Gaia, who punches the Shadow right in the chest, sending her reeling.

//It's almost over!// Cadance tells us.

FOOLS! I WILL NOT FALL SO EASILY!

The Night Begins To Shine

THE FUN HAS BEEN DOUBLED!!

The Shadow does that thing with the song again, then tosses out a fresh wave of bats and spiders. We all groan as six fresh monsters appear in front of us, weaving in the air and skittering on the ground.

Matarukaja

Rainbow summons Nike, who infuses us all with enhanced strength.

Starlight Breaker

"ARTEMIS!" Fluttershy's Persona appears, firing glowing magical arrows into the Shadow horde. Two bats and a spider dodge, but the rest of the enemy party takes the hit.

Eerie Sound

One of the bats flies toward Pinkie and begins screeching loudly. Pinkie's eyes suddenly glaze over, her hair frizzing out. She starts doing the pee-pee dance, curling in on herself.

//Pinkie Pie is in distress!//

The other bats fly toward Rainbow and Sonata, making the same sound. It has no effect on Rainbow, but Sonata joins Pinkie in frantically pee-pee dancing in place.

//Sonata's distressed too!//

Amrita

"EUPHORIA!" Euphoria appears, spraying us all with a calming rainbow mist. Pinkie and Sonata calm down, blushing sheepishly as they get hold of themselves. I snort and summon Sephiroth again; the flames sweep over all the Shadows.

Maragidyne

Another wave of fire crashes over the enemy, missing Luna's Shadow, one bat, and one spider.

Mabufudyne

Tidal Wave

Rarity and Sonata attack with ice and a tidal wave, respectively, dealing damage to all enemies.

Evil Touch

The spiders skitter forward, their bodies quivering and their eyes glowing with an unholy red light. One approaches me, one approaches Fluttershy, and one approaches Rarity. They jump onto us, rubbing all over us with their creepy, hairy legs...

I shiver in fear. I've never especially been afraid of spiders, but something about being climbed on and rubbed all over by a giant tarantula...wooogh...

Gaia's Wrath

I watch as Gaia takes a swing at Luna's Shadow and misses. Luna's Shadow suddenly seems far more terrifying than she was just a moment ago...

Ghastly Wail

Luna throws back her head and lets out an unearthly scream that shakes the entire Velvet Room. I can feel my brain melting under the force of her yell...black spots dance in my vision...

The next thing I know, I'm lying on the ground, Euphoria hovering over me. I sit up woozily, rubbing my head. "What happened?"

"You died," Pinkie says quietly. "Fluttershy and Rarity are dead too."

"Damn," I mutter.

Samarecarm

I slide Lovers onto my phone and summon Serenity, resurrecting Rarity. As she rises to her feet and looks around, Rarity grimly summons her Persona to resurrect Fluttershy as Sonata uses her Tidal Wave against the Shadows, who are all looking ragged.

Evil Touch

The spiders charge forward again, latching onto me, Fluttershy, and Rainbow. Again, that feeling of terror and dread fills me...

"Uh-uh, that ain't happenin' again," Applejack mutters grimly. "PERSONA!"

Gaia's Wrath

Gaia appears, and the ground erupts with elemental fury beneath the Shadows. As the spiders burn in magma, Gaia strikes again; spears of lightning stab through the bats, driving them to the ground in screeching agony. Luna's Shadow is on her knees, chest heaving...

"One more! GAIA!"

God's Hand

Gaia surges forward and drives a powerful double-handed blow into Luna's Shadow's head. She falls to the ground, screaming. The bats and spiders all screech as they melt away into nothingness.

The Velvet Room returns to normal; the wave of terror and dread that has overtaken me ebbs away into nothing as the massive Shadow melts away, replaced by the normal Shadow Luna, her head bowed and her hair limp. She chuckles ruefully.

Heh...I give up...I'm pathetic...no wonder my school is running rampant with delinquents and bad seeds. There's nothing I can do to make you kids afraid of me...

I shake my head. "You're looking at it all wrong," I say. "It isn't about fear, it's about respect. And we do respect you. We really do."

"Yeah, and screw those kids that don't show you and Celestia any respect!" Rainbow says. "They're gonna get what's coming to them, just watch and see."

Luna wraps an arm around herself. I just don't...want to see any child turn into what I used to be if I can help it...

"All you can do is try to give guidance and discipline," I say. "Just do the best you can. Some people...can't be saved. Others, well..." I shrug. "Just...do your best..."

Luna sighs. I suppose...you're right.

She fades away...

The Hierophant card appears briefly, but it's intangible, like mist. Before I can reach out to it, it vanishes like smoke.

Zecora returns, coughing softly. "In three days, we will convene again," she says. "Please put your lives in order by then."

I look around at the girls. Now that the battle's over, the awkwardness has returned. Without a word, they all retreat into the mists and vanish. Pinkie, Sonata, and Cadance all offer me encouraging, worried smiles as they disappear.

Fluttershy is the last to leave. She frowns, then disappears.

The Velvet Room fades into uncomfortable dreams and nightmares...