Shadow of a Nightmare (Part 1: The Trap)

A violent crack of thunder roared across the midnight heavens. As the torrential rain hammered down across the Everfree forest, every pony caught out made a mad dash for shelter. Even the pegasi of Cloudsdale—ponies who usually dictated the schedule of the weather between Canterlot and Ponyville—had to take shelter from a storm as violent as this. With anchors set just outside Sweet Apple acres on the outskirts of Ponyville, everyone was well and truly stuck in the middle of this tempest tonight, forced to endure through its duration.
All except for one pony. Midnight Glider flicked the soaking wet fringe off his hair over from the side of his face, tucking in his wings tight against his body to prevent the thin membranes that aided him in flight from getting too water-logged. He was grounded for now, but this was not the worst of his problems. An ill-timed flash of lightning had resulted in the bat pony's hind leg getting stuck in a bear trap. Pounding at the metal contraption as hard as he could, Midnight cursed the individual who had planted this device, blatantly ignoring the laws set by Princess Celestia that made such things illegal.
Suddenly, the grey- and purple- coloured stallion caught something out of the corner of his eye. He snapped his head around to the right to try and see what was there, but in yet another flash, it was gone. Midnight shook his head. It was a ridiculous notion that he would be spooked by anything. He was a bat pony for Luna's sake! The night was his domain, just like how the farmlands of Appleoosa was the ideal home for Earth Ponies and Buffalo alike. Creatures were supposed to be afraid of him, not the other way around.
Then another image darted between the trees. Midnight's pointed ears pricked up at the sound of puddle splash, signalling another presence behind him. The situation of Princess Luna's eldest servant was already looking dire, but now it had gone from bad to worse. A bellowing howl rang through the night, a sound that, to Midnight, may as well have been the ringing of a bell tolling his impending demise. A pack of more than a dozen timber wolves had surrounded the bat pony, their jaws drooling at the scent of an easy meal.
Timber wolves were nasty creatures, spawning as animals entirely consisting of wood of fallen trees, brought to life by a sinister magic that few dared to speak of. No one knew exactly how these things came into existence—not even the two celestial sisters—but what was known would always be explained for the express purpose of one important message; stay away. Snarling with a ferocious lust for food, their eyes shone with a wicked glow, piercing through the dark to isolate their prey before moving in for the kill.
Even with the predators closing in around him, Midnight continued to hack away at the metal trap, hissing and baring his sharp fangs in frustration. “Do your worst, fowl creatures!” he spat, refusing to let any signs of fear show on his face, in spite of his heart beating faster than it had ever had before. “My soul is ready to join Princess Luna in the dreamscape!”
Just as the wooden lupine constructs leapt out from the undergrowth to attack, a dazzling spark of light forced Midnight's eyes shut. Several moments passed before the bat pony realized he was still among the land of the living. Tentatively, the dark stallion pried his eyes open. This sudden illumination was not merely a brief onr, but a consistent glow that turned the night into day. Once the bat pony's eyes had properly adjusted, he could finally get a good look at his saviour.
He expected to see a Unicorn coming to his rescue, but the pony before him was of a very different nature. With a pristine white coat and a flowing pink mane, Crystal Moonlight was a beautiful sight to behold.
“C-Crystal? Is that you?” Midnight stuttered, rubbing his eyes. It was unusual to see a crystal pony outside of the majestic crystal empire, an expansive city ruled by the pink alicorn Princess Cadence far up in the frozen north. Yet, here she was, standing right in front of the bat pony, protecting him from outside threats with her magnificent shine.
“What in Equestria do you think you're doing out here?!” Moonlight snapped, a harsh scowl spread across her face as she glared down at Midnight.
“You of all ponies should know why,” the dark pony retorted, taking a deep breath to ensure he retained a calm demeanour. “Tonight is the perfect time for nightmares to brew.”
Moonlight cocked an eyebrow at her stricken friend. “If that is the case, then we should leave it to Princess Luna. Let her be the guardian of pony's dreams, as is her royal duty.”
“How long have you known me?” Midnight's objection bore more than a little resentment. But after taking another deep breath, he regained his composure. “Princess Luna has tasked us, the bat ponies, to defend the waking world from the lingering remittent of the nightmare forces, which as you know, is the very thing responsible for nearly turning us into traitors to Celestia's throne. As such, since I have the most experience, I am the one to ensure that no one gets lost in the darkness tonight.”
“Maybe so, but even you have your limits,” the crystal pony sighed, “Look, this storm isn't going to get any better for quite a while. So lets just forget about this pointless argument and head for shelter, okay?”
As much as Midnight wanted to protest, the pain in his leg told him that there was little chance of continuing with the mission in his condition. “Alright then, just as soon as I can get this thing off my...”
“You mean this thing?” the glittering mare interjected, smirking as she twirled the spiky contraption around on one of her front hooves.
“How did you-?” the elder bat pony couldn't even bring himself to finish that sentence, the words falling apart in his mouth as he looked back and forth between his leg and the trap in confusion.
“Trade secret,” Crystal said as she combined a wink with a playful giggle. “Now, lets get a move on before my shine spell runs out.”
A warm smile grew across Midnight's face as he extended one wing over the shoulder of his sparkling companion, taking the weight off his bad leg. Luckily for him, it wasn't a far walk from the nearest entrance to the network of cavernous tunnels that ran deep below the forest, all connecting in the centre to the magnificent tree of harmony.
Midnight's only hope was that the rest of his kind were having better luck at defending the tree than he was.