//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: The Cutie Mark Trinity // Story: Equestria in Ruins // by Eclipse Shine //------------------------------// My yellow and black mane glimmered in the dim sunlight as my silver coat brushed against a zapapple tree; they have been in bloom ever since Equestria turned upside down. My wings were still quite small making it difficult to fly but I had no purpose for them anyways. Awaiting me under the shady tree was my teacher, Apple Bloom. She never got her cutie mark…Not many ponies were able to get theirs since their optimism was drained away and nopony could find a talent they could stick to. I’m still a filly and although I have yet to get my cutie mark, I’m rather optimistic towards earning one soon. Hopefully… Apple Bloom was not a qualified teacher but she was the only thing I had. She sat on a tree stump and told stories about her friends: Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle and Babs Seed. Babs helps Apple Bloom to operate the farm but little business had sprung since everypony is getting tired of the once highly appraised zapapples. Now they have everything from zapapple jam, pie and even cider but sales have been difficult making it so we end up eating half our stock since we can’t afford to buy any other type of food. Big Macintosh, Apple Bloom’s older brother could no longer do labour work on the farm and spends his day making various types of food using the zapapples. Babs is caring and as good as a mother to me since I got separated from my family long ago. Apple Bloom and Babs would tell me that they perished but I don’t believe them! They would tell me stories about how much my parents loved me and would do anything to be here with me. Since I have no immediate family, Babs and Apple Bloom would take care of me, they have since they first heard that I was without siblings. Sweetie Belle had died long ago when the chaos was first unleashed upon Equestria. Nopony was ever specific about how she died because even they had no clue. Scootaloo had to join the royal guard since very few stallions were capable of keeping Canterlot safe. The guard no longer operated under royal orders since Shining Armor never truly got over Cadence’s passing and is no longer capable of giving orders to them. The Royal Guard now served as peacekeepers and they had their hands full. I’ve only seen Scootaloo once but if the circumstances would have been different, I know we could have been great friends since unlike the other members of the guard; she had confidence in her ability even without a cutie mark. Apple Bloom glanced at me as I trotted towards our usual learning spot. For once I saw a bit of a glimmer in her eyes; it could be happiness or just a reflection from the dazzling Sun. The Sun and Moon maintained their cycles even after catastrophe had pierced Equestria since Celestia, with the little will she had left, had cast a spell preventing either eternal day or night. As I sat down, Apple Bloom offered me cider; without hesitation, I drank it to quench my thirst, indulging in its familiar taste. “Today is a very important day”, she started, “Shining Armor is heading down to Ponyville to view the solar eclipse. I want you to be on your best behavior…” She stopped for a second, “Aw. You brought your friends!” Unity, a green-eyed unicorn with a purple/pink streaked mane and a mint green coat followed by Starshard trotted up from the shadows of the zapapple trees. Starshard had a lunar-like white mane and a black coat with a hint of orange in it; her eyes were orange and reflected the dazzling sunlight. She was the most majestic earth pony in Ponyville since she resembled the night itself. “Oh I didn’t invite…” Apple Bloom stopped me and smirked, barely holding back her content at my attempt of justifying their appearance. “It’s fine”, she declared with a grin on her face, “I always love company”. “While we’re here, why don’t we go see the eclipse together?” Unity spoke with innocence. “We can’t look at the eclipse directly, we’ll go blind!” Starshard uttered with arrogance. “Yes but that’s why Shining Armor is here”, Apple Bloom whispered, drawing the ponies near. “With the little magic he has left, he will attempt to raise a barrier for us to observe the eclipse without losing our sight as the Moon drifts away from the Sun” ~ Once we arrived at the spot where we could observe the eclipse in security, we each picked a spot where we would be seated while we waited for the celestial event. The rocks which we sat on resembled petrified tree stumps, long forgotten like the marvelous olden days of Equestria. The meeting place was a high peek of one of the various mountains that overlooked Equestria. Apple Bloom said it would be worth the wait but all I could think about was a bed of hay as I recalled the warmth of the barn I call home. The sun was scorching our coats and everypony was drenched in sweat from the long journey. Shining Armor awaited us at the top of the mountain. Although I knew that this eclipse business was just a publicity stunt for an electoral campaign I paid little attention to, promising a better Equestria, I couldn't help but anticipate this once in a lifetime opportunity. “Shining Armor!” Apple Bloom screeched in delight as we all bowed before him. “There’s no need for that.”, he whispered to Apple Bloom, signaling us to get back up. “How have you been doing?” Apple Bloom was quick with this question although she knew what the answer would be. She was met with a look of shame from Shining Armor. “It’s not like that…” Shining Armor quickly followed “I know”, Apple Bloom seemed to understand the position Shining Armor was in. The mountain quickly gathered with ponies greeting each other with short-lived joy. Even though I knew this atmosphere wouldn't last long, I embraced the warmth it brought to the small community of chattering, half-lively ponies of every shape and size. Hours had passed from our meeting at the tree and Shining Armor was ready to raise a force field to shield us from the harmful rays of sunlight that would ultimately burst from the darkness of the moon. As Shining Armor got up from his resting place, the Moon was slowly creeping towards the Sun. With a majestic veil of light emitted from Shining Armor’s horn, the world bellow was shadowed as the Moon drifted across the Sun. The sight was beautiful to the point that everypony was speechless, glancing at the celestial phenomenon. The joy died and with its death came the wake of catastrophe. Shining Armor’s efforts proved unsuccessful as the Sun exploded, its rays blinding everypony in its path. My eyes were starring right at it, captivated by its destructive beauty. “Unity, use your magic!” I came to my senses as the words exploded from my mouth. Unity used all of her power to raise a temporary barrier that prevented further damage as the ponies started to realize what had happened. As the terror subsided, I noticed something on Unity’s flank. She got her cutie mark! A pink heart housed the universal sign of peace and shone in the glimmering rays of sunlight. “Unity!” I screeched, “You got your cutie mark!” “So did you!” Unity jumped pointing in the direction of my flank. It was the image of a solar eclipse. What could this mean?! We ran up to Starshard, gasping as she glanced at our cutie marks. We stopped beside her, panting from excitement. “Um…Starshard, look at your flank” Unity declared barely holding in her excitement. On Starshard’s flank, the rays of sunlight exposed her cutie mark. Four orange shards resembling a compass’ coordinates seemed to emit a light of their own, illuminating Starshard’s coat. At this point, everypony had their eyes focused on us in defiance.