Chapter III: The Chase (Edited+Revised)
After a long day of work, I finally made it back home. As I opened the door, Scootaloo exploded out of the hallway and forced me to the ground, pinning me. “Hey, Sunset!” Scootaloo said a bit nervously. She peered down into my shocked eyes, and a sheepish grin played across her face. “So, you know when I said that Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were coming tomorrow?” I nodded, and she added, “Weeeeell…”
My eyes widened as I realized what she was telling me. I shoved the pegasus off of me and stood up, running into my home. Scootaloo frantically followed me, shouting, “Wait!”
As I got to the kitchen, I gasped as my suspicions were confirmed.
A yellow earth pony sat at the table, her red mane bouncing around lightly. She wore a white spotted handkerchief around her neck, and her cutie mark was a zap apple. I recognized her immediately as our friend Apple Bloom.
Next to her sat a white unicorn, her pink and purple mane curled and beautiful, as if she was used to being pampered. Her cutie mark was a heart with music notes surrounding it, and I was positive it was Sweetie Belle who I was looking at.
I was too shocked to speak as the two looked at me with confused expressions. Scootaloo cleared her throat behind me awkwardly.
Before I knew what was happening, I whirled myself around. “Scootaloo, what the hay are they doing here today?” I said, not controlling myself as I yelled at my roommate, my blood boiling and my face most likely turning red.
Scootaloo put a hoof on the back of her head and chuckled nervously. “Um… there maaaaay or may have not been a miscommunication in the date times?” Scootaloo said, her voice much higher than usual.
I furrowed my brow and grumbled under my breath. “Why you little—” I stopped myself before I said anything that I would regret. I quickly whipped around and put on a fake smile, facing our untimely guests. “I’m sorry about that. It’s not that I didn’t want you here, it’s just I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow.” I told them, doing my best to make them think I was not crazy.
Honestly, I don’t think it worked. They stared at me with a shocked expression, looking at each other and then back at me again.
It was Sweetie Belle who broke the silence saying, “Oh, um... That’s fine.” Bloom just smiled at me politely.
I smiled back. “I hope you will excuse me. I have some work to do. Scootaloo will get you some tea.” I turned around and gave Scootaloo the evil eye as I walked out of the kitchen and into my bedroom.
Sighing, I sprawled on my bed, lazily levitating a spare scroll. For a second, my girlish fantasies tempted me to write to Blueblood, asking him if he wanted to go get some coffee or something. But soon, I returned back to reality and muttered, “What am I doing?” Blueblood is a prince, and however hot he may be, I sincerely doubt he even has an inkling of that kind of feeling towards me. Besides, we just met. And he was known for being a total douchenozzle. In fact, it was weird that he warmed up to me quickly. Just yesterday he had been pissed at me and wanted nothing to do with me.
I threw myself back on the bed in frustration and looked out the window at the ponies running around everywhere, anxious to get on with their nightly lives. So busy, that it’s really hard to think that it used to be even busier than this, back before the Eternal Night.
When the Queen took over, it was as if a nuclear bomb had been dropped on us. The only city that was left mostly unscathed was Canterlot.
~~~~~~
Ten Years Earlier, After the Defeat of Twilight Sparkle…
Nightmare Moon looked at the space that had once been inhabited by Twilight and scoffed. “Stupid foal, thinking she could defeat me.” She stomped her forehoof in anger and triumph, ready to begin something she had been waiting to do for a long time, ever since her former jealousy of her sister returned.
She turned around and spread her massive, black wings and took to the sky. She flew through the wrecked halls of Canterlot Castle before exiting out onto the streets of Canterlot where she looked down upon the ponies that gazed at her with fear.
Nightmare Moon grinned victoriously as a burst of magic willed the sun to be gone, forever. She felt her powers growing ever stronger as the sun dipped lower and lower, far below the horizon, until finally it disappeared completely. Victory had never tasted so sweet, as her plans had finally come to fruition. She looked down on her subjects and bared her fangs in a vicious smile. “Citizens of Canterlot!” she greeted menacingly. “I am Nightmare Moon, the Queen of the Night!” A clap of thunder echoed through the city, and the audible sounds of pony screams filled the newly made night sky. “I have defeated your princess,”—thunder boomed again—“the Elements of Harmony, and the sun itself. Nopony, nay, nothing can defeat me! Bow to my will or perish!”
The frightened ponies bowed, their shouts barely reaching Nightmare’s ears. For she was in pure bliss.
But deep in the Crystal Kingdom, chaos ensued. An unnatural darkness loomed over the crystal city, and the ponies were reminded of the evil that King Sombra had brought to them years before. Some were driven to madness from fear, and resorted to running around endlessly and begging not to be taken by the villainous king.
Princess Mi Amore Cadenza desperately flew over her kingdom, trying in vain to calm her subjects down, but all in vain. The anarchy only continued when she noticed some of the affected ponies started taking their own lives. They would rather die than put up with the tyranny of King Sombra.
The rest were so frantic that they didn’t even realize the moon causing changes in the gravity. Equestria was not used to the moon being as it was. Waves from the ocean nearest to the Crystal Kingdom turned into hurricanes and tsunamis, ravaging the land. Those who couldn’t fly were killed, along with Prince Consort Shining Armor.
The princess had no time to grieve. The pegasi of the Crystal Kingdom fled quickly to the next town over, which had been hit by the hurricane as well. At this point in time, one fifth of the population of Equestria was dead or dying due.
Princess Mi Amore Cadenza fled to the one place where she would get some answers as to what was happening: Canterlot. The city was the only one in Equestria that was untouched, protected by the magic of Nightmare Moon.
The next city targeted by Nightmare Moon was Ponyville. The alicorn placed a simple spell on the town, taking over the plants of the Everfree Forest and destroying it with poisons and strangling its inhabitants. Only a few ponies survived, fleeing from the town at first sight of the evil from the Everfree.
Scootaloo was one of them. She ran as far as she could, but once she ran out of energy, she was a sitting duck. That was when her true wings were born, and in a leap of faith, she flew with the other fleeing ponies to Canterlot as well.
Ponyville was obliterated, and the genocide devastated Equestria’s population.
The moon wreaked havoc on Equestria, the foreign pulls of gravity causing earthquakes, hurricanes, and mass thunderstorms that killed off about half of the population. The only form of safety was going under Nightmare Moon’s reign, and even that was difficult.
Nopony knows what happened to Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, but they do know that Nightmare Moon is not to be trifled with. If she can destroy half of her own subjects in a fit of rage, nothing is impossible for her.
And Celestia withered away, as did her sun, dismissed as an old foal’s tale. The tale of the Mare in the Sun.
~~~~~~
Scootaloo shook me awake. Apparently I had fallen asleep a couple of hours before, and it showed. I rubbed my head with my hoof, feeling the groggy effects of sleep.
When I finally was awake enough to understand her, I noticed a particularly giddy expression on her face.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, flipping my mane off of my eyes.
She clapped her hooves excitedly, hovering in the air. “Prince Blueblood is outside! He just knocked and said he wants to speak to you!”
I was taken aback. “Why would he want to speak to me? I saw him a few hours ago anyway. Couldn’t it wait till tomorrow?” I retorted.
“I dunno. I didn’t ask the guy! Besides, I’d rather just push you out to talk to your boss than speak to him personally. That guy is a jerk.”
I scoffed. “Then why are you so excited right now?”
Scoots rolled her eyes. “Because a prince wants to talk to you, a simple country girl.”
“I’m not country! I grew up in Canterlot!” I retorted, going off-topic.
“Dude, if the prince wants to talk to you privately, it’s bound to be good. Don’t be stupid, Sunset! Go talk to the damn prince!” Scootaloo pushed me off of my bed.
Reluctantly, I grumbled and walked to the doorway, eyeing Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom, chatting quietly in the kitchen. They were good mares, they really were, and I loved them as much as I loved Scootaloo. They had come with Scoots to Canterlot originally, but split up with her and tried to find their siblings, the late Applejack and Rarity.
I opened the door to my house only to find Blueblood standing in front of it, looking over his shoulder. Then my gaze shifted to Sparkler, who was a short way behind him and almost looked like she was keeping watch. The familiar white hood covered her mane, so I could only see her looking away.
“Sunset! I have to speak to you,” Blueblood told me in a very formal tone.
I sighed. “Couldn’t it wait for tomorrow?”
He looked at me sternly. “No, Sunset! This is urgent. The Queen—”
I scoffed, cutting him off. “Oh, she finally wants me to pay off the money I owe her for the storage room incident? Tell that lady to buck off. It was science, ponies! Science!”
“No! The Queen, she’s angry at you for something—”
“Over the storage room incident, I know!” I nodded sarcastically at him.
“Be quiet!” Sparkler snapped from behind him, her eyes looking at me with worry and anger. “Listen to him!”
Blueblood looked at me urgently. “Sunset, she called the guards on you. They’re taking you to her.”
My jaw dropped, and a wave of confusion and fear washed over me, causing me to almost tip over. I silently closed the door behind me and stepped outside of my home. “W-what?! I’ll pay the fines, I swear! I’ll pay double! This can’t be happening… this can’t be happening!”
Blueblood sighed. “Whatever this is, it’s not about the storage rooms. But that’s not the point. I’m here to take you away,” he said.
“T-take me away? What do you mean?” I stammered, trying to make sense of it all.
“Listen,” he cut me off, looking around for telltale signs of guards, then continued. “I’ll explain later. But right now, I need you to come with us.”
“O-okay?” I shook my head roughly, trying to comprehend what was happening. “But… I’d have to take Scootaloo. She’d… she’d die without me!”
Blueblood smiled weakly and gave a curt nod. “Hurry. We brought basic supplies. Get the belongings you need and meet us here.”
I quickly nodded and slammed open the door, rushing to the kitchen where Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom were sitting, chatting normally.
“Hey, what are you doing?” Scootaloo asked me, cocking her head in confusion at the spectacle.
“Scootaloo, I have to get away from here. Royal guards are on my flank for whatever reason they have,” I told her, breathing heavily.
She gasped behind me. “No, Sunset! This can’t be happening! What did you do to the Queen to make this happen?” She gulped, and I could hear her sniffling. She was on the brink of tears, but who could blame her? There was a moment of silence before a brave statement, “I want to go with you. I have to. You’re my lifeline, my only… my o-only family.”
I smiled, tears forming in my own eyes. I quickly levitated my saddlebag which was laying on the kitchen counter, replying, “Yes, Scootaloo. Please come with me. I love you, Scoots, and I couldn’t bear to live without you.”
“If you’re going somewhere, I want to come with,” said the voice of Sweetie Belle. “I got my things packed up right here. I could just take those.” She stood up from the table and pushed her chair in.
“Same here,” came the voice of Apple Bloom. “Ah wanna go wherever you guys go. Y’all mah best friends, and Ah can’t even think of leavin’ ya alone.”
Fastening the saddlebag to me, I gestured to Scootaloo, who ran out of the room. “Are you sure? You’re not tied into any of this,” I told them.
Sweetie and Bloom nodded in unison. “Of course, Sunset,” Sweetie replied. “We would do anything for you!”
I sniffled and nodded, starting to head out of the kitchen, but my eyes kept straying and looking around the room that had housed me for almost ten years. I felt sad that I wouldn’t live here anymore. This was my home, and now I am leaving it.
“It’ll be okay, Sunset,” I heard Sweetie Belle say. I turned around only to see her give a sympathetic smile, which I returned gratefully.
“Thank you, Sweetie. Being with you two and Scoots will ease the pain of going away.”
Just then Scootaloo pushed into Sweetie and Bloom, displaying her bulging pack. “Do we have food? Necessities? I didn’t pack any of that stuff!” she said frantically.
“The prince should have some,” I told her, rushing out of the room. “Now we have to go!”
Outside, Blueblood was gone, probably thinking of a way to get out of Canterlot. I still had no idea what the guards would do to me if they found me out, but I knew it wouldn’t be good, and I would at least lose a limb.
Sparkler was still keeping watch until I walked over to her and nudged her. She sprang around, facing me. “Shhh!” she scolded. “The guards—they’ll be coming soon. We have to go—now!” Then her expression changed into confusion as she realized the extra ponies. “Oh, no. Blueblood only said Scootaloo, not your entire gang! Besides, wouldn’t they look for a famous singer, a Shadowbolt, and one of the most important members in the Apple family business? It would be publicized all around Equestria!”
“Uh oh. I didn’t think about that,” I told them. But it turned out that we didn’t have a choice. A loud yell from inside the city shook me to the core as I realized that it was Cloud Crest herself, yelling out commands.
“Find her and bring her to me now, ALIVE!”
Sparkler took one look at me and my friends, nodded, and suddenly we were running past my old home and into the forest that surrounded Canterlot some ways away. Blueblood met up with us soon, running at a pace I thought that princes would never do.
And yet Blueblood ran, pushing harder and harder and blinking back the tears that arose when the thought of his friends, his home, his life all gone in a flash.
~~~~~~
Hours and hours went by, and yet we didn’t stop running. Finally, we collapsed onto a moist ground, surrounded by a lush forest.
“This... must be the... end of the Everfree... Forest!" Sparkler managed to say between gasps for the air she’d deprived her lungs of, for so long.
And it was indeed. The Everfree Forest circled around the ruins of the town once called Ponyville all the way to the edge of Canterlot that lay on a cliff. Just beyond the Everfree, which stretched hundreds of miles, stood the grand Mountain of the Sun.
Nopony knows what lies deep in the Everfree, but some say that it’s not all forest. It has crevices and endings and magical areas that house creatures unknown to Equestrians.
And now we were in the deep, dark, never ending pit of the forest.
The moon glowed bright, as if it was trying to light Cloud Crest and the other guards’ way to us. It was ominous, to say the least, and it made me wish for the sun to come back even more.
Blueblood sighed and dropped the pack he’d been carrying. “Holy Celestia, that was hard.”
There was a moment of silence before Apple Bloom said, “We’re not in Equestria now. It’s okay to say ‘Celestia’.” We all breathed a sigh of relief at that.
“Anyway,” Blueblood started, clearing his throat. “I have something to talk to all of you about. Something important, and if I was ever caught saying it to you I would be executed or thrown in the dungeon, despite being a prince.”
We all got quiet and looked at Blueblood. All except for Sparkler, who shifted uncomfortably and looked at her hooves. What a weirdo.
“Do you know why you got fired?” Blueblood asked me.
I nodded in return. “Yeah, I blew up that storage room.”
To my surprise, Blueblood shook his head. “No. Do you recall a conversation between you and Cloud Crest about rays of light peeking over the corner of the Mountain of the Sun?”
“Y-Yeah…?” I shifted awkwardly, trying to keep up with the conversation.
“And did you reply, ‘maybe the sun will come out soon’?” he asked me sternly.
“Y-Yes,” I replied.
Blueblood grunted. “That’s why you were fired. That might also be the reason why Nightmare Moon sent the guards after you. You remember when I had the stressful meetings, I presume? Well, the reason they were stressful was because they were discussing a prophecy from ten years ago, something that Celestia’s magic conjured before she was banished. ‘The one who hold the sun shall bring forth my return, through pain and journey she must learn’.”
“So what?” Scootaloo cut in. “So she said an unprofessional thing in front of the Queen’s personal protege. What does it matter?”
“Not only that. But she was a student of Princess Celestia, was she not? Celestia always told her to be patient for she will receive her reward. And even her name! Sunset Shimmer. Nightmare Moon has a very logical answer as to why she would think the prophecy spoke about you.”
For me? I was stunned. I opened my mouth to say something, only to be cut off by Blueblood.
“That’s why I brought you out here. If you really are the one from the prophecy, then that means that you will be the one who brings Princess Celestia—and the Elements of Harmony—back to defeat Nightmare Moon and restore peace back to Equestria.”
Swallowing, I turned my head to look at the depths in the forest. “So what do we do?” I asked.
“Right now?” I heard Blueblood say. “We sleep. We worry about the rest later.”
Yes! New chapter. Thanks again to Polaris and SirRage for editing/proofreading, I couldn't have done it without them, as well as Drgnwolf for the second round. 
EDIT: Fourth chapter revoked for revising.
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Dark Equestria
A fretful sky
An absent sun
A distant heat
A deathly hoof
City against city
While the planet turns from gold to gray
And gray to black
No yesterday
No tomorrow
Just an everlasting now
Fleeting and forever
Circle, cycle, scythe.
And the six-sided architect
Freethinking
Unblinking
Holds the fate of all things
In the palm of her hoof.
4047275
Wow. That's good. Could I maybe use that?
4047978
Why thank you
And yes u can use it
4047995
Yay! It will most likely feature in the next 1-2 chapters!
This is an interesting AU. Now that Sunset knows she's needed to release Celestia (and hopefully the Mane 6) from their prison, she'll start thinking of ways to achieve that goal. It seems to me like she's been reacting to everything that's happened since she left for the human world, and it's left her a bit tunnelvisioned. Speaking of the human world, should the Epic Quest(tm) fail or take long enough, it could be a refuge from Nightmare Moon's forces, as she would have the experience advantage over there and most magic being nonexistent through the portal.
As far as the story goes, it is well-paced, enough details to let the reader fill in the blanks themselves, but not too many to distract from the plot, which you seem to be focusing on as opposed to character development. With things speeding up, the party will have to survive the horrors of the Everfree with nearly nothing but their wits, which I have always enjoyed.
Favorited, and I eagerly anticipate your next chapter.
4050014
Thank you so much! I am very happy that you enjoyed it, this is one of the stories that I am working on the most.
4063672
I just love Silver Spoon... might try torturing her next!
4063766
)
Poor Silver Spoon... (says the guy who, apart of putting her through horrors of war, thinks about writing a dark slice of life fic about her struggling with drug addiction...
3898789 This person gives bad advice and should not be listened to.
Just saying.
4127628
Why is that?
4127635 That crap about punctuation. It's terrible advice. Haven't read this story yet, just added it to my RL list, but skimming the comments, I caught that mess and couldn't not comment on it.
4127641
Oh, okay. That's fine. And thank you for putting it in your RL list.
Beautiful and lovely. Now this is the kind of AU I can dig.
Can't wait for more chapters! Keep up the awesome work!
4127770
Really? I'm really glad you like it! This is the one I actually like the most out of all of my stories...
Thank you so much!
More chapters will be up either today or tomorrow, depends on when I can get it to my editor.
Just reading the description makes this story seem epic!
I'll give it a read.
Please don't send me back in time!
After reading the first chapter I can tell you that this story is now in my faves.
After reading some of the comments, I would like to say something. If a planet is in tidal lock, the planet would not die completly. One side would get really hot, the other cold. The part that is in between that would stay relatively warm. Anything sapient, (or sentient, for that matter.) would move to that outer ring of warmth.
Sorry, I love me some science!
4149502
Thank you! Glad you like it!
That is true. We could appeal to the scientific side of things. However, in the world of magic where the sun is completely gone from Equestria, all sides and all, I was thinking more of a spell that holds the world and saves it from destruction, which also appeals to why Canterlot is the safest because it is in the source of the spell.
But that will be revealed in Chapter 5, so no spoilers
4149689
Yah, I was going to put something in there about the magic but I think people reading a fanfic about MLP would know about magic. It still makes me laugh!
I honestly wish there was a way to live with no sun, I love the night so much!
4149734
Haha, me too. But then again, even though I love the night, I still think there should be daytime. Half and half is good for me, I just hate how the night gets hated on so much.
I wish half of the population were nocturnal and the other diurnal. That would be cool.
4149743
Being crepuscular would be interesting as well.
I think I am nocturnal, considering that, during the summer, No matter what I do, I end up sleeping till 3 in the afternoon and go to bed at around 6 in the morning.
4149780
That's awesome, I wish I could do that.
But alas, school is always on the horizon, and my daring efforts are told off as misguided and irresponsible.
4149815
I know how that feels.
But don't worry, once you get a little older you can do almost anything. And if you are good as a kid, your parents might be a little more lax on ya.
Like my mom for Ex.
She said that my GF can come over any time without asking. And she is letting me go to a convention 100 miles away for three day with just my friends!
She fu*cking rocks!!
4149848
Sounds awesome!
My mom is really strict, but that's okay. I am only 13. But she's a fun mom, always trying to do something nice. I love her a lot.
Hopefully-maybe-I'll get more freedom when I'm older. I hope I do.
4149873
I read your profile and I saw that you are a polish weeping angle.
Does that mean you live in Poland?
4149886
lel "weeping angle"
Well, no. I live in the US. But I am Polish.
Also glad to know people actually read my crap.
4149893
O I C
The first thing I do when I follow someone is read there profile.
(I like to know stuff about people.) That is why I asked you where you live.
4149946
Oh, I thought you were going to look me up, find out where I live, come to my house during the night, break in, and watch me sleep.
So do I. I read people's profiles just so I can know a bit more about them.
And then I stalk them on Facebook like a normal teenager.
4151651
How did you know I was going to watch you sleep?No, I don't do that kinda thing...
>.>
<.<
maybe...
4152211
Who would want to watch me of all people sleep? I'm not special.
4153074
Said the person with 126 followers...
4153171
Most of the people who followed me followed me because of my page and my name. Not for my stories or for who I am.
4154163
I follow you for who you are and the stories you write, so no worrys.
I never follow just for a name. If I see a name that catches my eye, I will start talking to them, read one of there stories, and go from there.
4154186
Thanks
Glad some people don't just follow because "hey, why not!". But I'm still grateful for those who follow me despite the circumstances.
4156318
Eeyup.
4328284
I'm in the middle of revising that chapter, so there are mistakes. I'm working on it.
what happend to chapter 4?
4383918
Oh, I'm editing it and revising. It'll be back soon.
4384549
How soon is soon?
Huh, this might actually be interesting. An alternate elements of- *sees Blueblood as an element of honesty*
s2.quickmeme.com/img/cb/cb2b84f28538b8e291e2178136c08dc0b01b903d40379b379b943c229b9bb16d.jpg
I enjoyed this quite a lot actually. Can't wait for the revised chapters.
Out of curiosity, is the title perhaps a reference to the book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin?