//------------------------------//
// Book 2 - Chapter XXI 
// Story: The Sunset Trilogy 
// by ocalhoun 
//------------------------------//

Book 2: Equestria Lost
Chapter 13

Twilight Sparkle stepped through yet another gaping hole in the rubble. What had happened to Canterlot? The place was a disaster, with hardly any building left unscathed and nopony to be seen anywhere... nopony alive anyway. 

She swept her detection spell across yet another abandoned building and courtyard... to come up empty yet again. It was disheartening enough not being able to find her friends, but at least the other towns had some life in them... She had nearly completed her sweep of Canterlot, and hadn't yet located a single living soul... which could be a good thing, all things considered. Pestilence was still unaccounted for. Who knew where she might be?

With a sinking heart, Twilight looked up to the final place in the city she hadn't yet explored: the royal palace. She hoped the sinking feeling that came over her was only a result of the bad memories from her last visit... but all the same, she was glad she had left Sunny Daze outside the city this time. She would be safe hiding out next to the lake below Canterlot Mountain... safer than Twilight suspected herself to be. Her heart dropping even further, she took the first steps toward the palace.


 * * * 


Twilight sighed as she looked around the desolate room. Princess Celestia's private study had seen better days, to be sure. Really, she supposed, it wasn't surprising that she ended up here. She knew her memories would get the better of her, and this room had housed some of the brightest moments of Twilight's life.

Even though the warm fireplace was now cold and dead, and even though the soft rug her mentor liked to lie on was now covered in shards of broken glass from the now gaping window, the room was still a comfort to her... and given the memories welling up inside, she could dearly use some comfort right about now.

As she turned to leave, giving one last longing glance backward, a door caught her eye... a small, unassuming door, but one of great importance nonetheless... It was the door to the princess's private room. Nopony had ever been inside, not the palace servants, not the royal guard, and especially not Twilight Sparkle... A sudden light of curiosity burned inside her... what had been in that room? That door had occupied far too much of her thoughts as a filly, of course, even after she had been burned one too many times by its powerful protection spell.

...But with no princess to power it, the protection spell would be gone, wouldn't it? Before she knew it, Twilight found herself stepping slowly towards the door, bits of glass crunching under her hooves. With an effort of will, she stopped herself. What kind of service would it be to the memory of her mentor to go snooping through her private things? Resolutely, she turned away from the door again... but found herself glancing back at it. She was searching for her friends, right? She would have to search everywhere, right?

She had only managed to half-convince herself that looking in was really the right thing to do, but that was enough to get her slowly walking toward the door again, enough to get the light of her magic surrounding the doorknob. No protection spell shot back into Twilight, no arcane wards burst into blinding light... the door was finally undefended. Hardly daring to breathe, Twilight turned the knob and slowly pushed the door open.

At first, she was slightly disappointed... no secret dungeon, no hidden, unspeakable fetishes, no magical artifacts too powerful to leave anywhere else... instead, there was a simple wardrobe, a very comfortable looking couch, what looked to be some kind of hot tub, and as the door opened further, she caught sight of an enormous feather bed... a bed that was not empty!

Twilight backed away quickly at the sight of the draconequus snoozing contentedly on Celestia's bed. Horribly, the beast was using a rather decayed pony as her pillow. Twilight winced as her back hoof came down on a particularly large shard of glass, making a particularly loud crack.

Pestilence stirred, an eye cracking open just in time to catch Twilight Sparkle turning and making a dash for safety. Three different types of claws tore into the luxurious bed as the draconequus launched herself after her most wanted prey.

Twilight risked a glance behind her as she ran down the hallway, desperate to get away... and she wished she hadn't. An eager looking, asymmetrical face was following much too close behind her! Struggling to concentrate while still running, Twilight powered up a teleportation spell. It broke as her concentration faltered when she felt a tongue brush against her flank. Redoubling both her speed and her magical effort, Twilight's horn began to glow again, and her body started to shine with sweat.

With a loud flash, Twilight vanished just as the draconequus's jaws snapped shut on thin air. The creature seethed in impotent fury before slinking back the way she came.


 * * * 


With a too-bright flash and a too-loud bang, Twilight appeared next to Sunny Daze, the startling violet explosion evidence of wasted magical energy on a teleportation spell with desperately poor control. It had worked though, as Twilight lay on the ground next to the filly, sides heaving with panted breath.

“Are you okay, Twilight?” Sunny's concerned voice broke out quickly.

Twilight looked over herself, not even sure of the answer to that question... but finally she replied, “Yeah... okay...”

“You didn't find anyone here either?”

“Oh...” Twilight panted a bit more before continuing, “I... found someone...”


 * * *