//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: "One Crown is Worth a Thousand Lives" // Story: The Redemption of Tempest Shadow // by twilightsparkle3562 //------------------------------// The pony that had been formerly known as the Storm King's second in command wandered through the streets of Canterlot in deep, deep thought. She knew that it was hard to imagine the fact that several hours earlier, she and her forces had come to Canterlot and turned it all upside down. Now, the former lieutenant to the Storm King had no choice but to wonder what was next. What fate awaited her? Would she stand trial for her crimes? Be sent to prison or banished to Tartarus? Maybe even be exiled for life? As she walked the streets of Canterlot, Tempest felt something on her left hoof, something sharp. "Ow!" She exclaimed, backing away for a moment to inspect her hoof. There was a small cut mark where the sharp object had pricked her. "What in…?" But before she could say another word, Tempest looked down and saw what appeared to be a broken piece of gold metal among a few other dozen pieces of gold metal. Several red diamonds were also found and Tempest noticed that there was something familiar about these pieces. Her heart sank when she knew what these pieces represented. "What have I done?" Tempest thought to herself, even as she began to bleed a bit from the cut. "What have I done?!" "Tempest!" Called a voice and the broken horned unicorn turned to see Princess Twilight Sparkle, the pony that she had captured for the Storm King to absorb her magic. A hint of nervousness was shown in her face as Twilight stood before her. "Is everything alright?" Then she took notice of the cut. "Oh dear, you're bleeding!" Reacting quickly, Twilight levitated over a bandage and some disinfectant. "Well, aside from that, are you doing okay?" Twilight asked. "Well," Tempest sighed remorsefully. "Not really. I've just been doing some thinking, or rather, a lot of thinking." "What are you looking at?" Twilight inquired, before she noticed the scattered gold pieces on the ground. "It looks like…" "It's your crown," Tempest interrupted, not wanting to keep lying in front of the pony who'd offered her friendship. "Look, during the invasion I got frustrated that I didn't catch you initially and…well, I smashed it into pieces," She was quick to add. "I'll…I'll make it up to you, I swear!" Twilight walked over and looked down at her destroyed crown that had been made for her to wear for the festival. Tempest could only watch and wait for Twilight to unleash her fury on her for this action. Surely, the princess would be furious. "I understand your frustration," Twilight sighed, turning to Tempest. "You aren't the first enemy, and you certainly won't be the last enemy of Equestria to have a desire for Alicorn magic. At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if we start selling them on the market! 'Come on down to Canterlot and buy your one of a kind sample of alicorn magic!'" The two ponies shared a small laugh at this bit of humor, however, the humor was short lived and Tempest turned to see Twilight's fellow princesses, Celestia, Luna and Cadence watching from a short distance away. "I think I know what's going to happen to me," Tempest sighed, turning away from seeing the Princesses behind her. "You and the rest of your fellow princesses are probably going to banish me to Tartarus for my crimes, along with the Storm King, or whatever's left of him. Heard he kind of fell to pieces." "Never mind the Storm King, Tempest. Only worry about yourself." Twilight cautioned. "Only worry about myself, Twilight?!" Tempest remarked, feeling slightly incensed at being told so. "How could you say that?! If there's anypony who should be sharing responsibility for my actions, it's him! I was desperate to regain my horn, Twilight, and I felt I had no other choice. What was I supposed to do when my horn got chipped off?!" "All you needed to do was to accept friendship," Twilight answered, calmly placing a hoof on Tempest. "And that's what you did by capturing me, and ultimately standing up to the Storm King, risking your life." "After all I had done to you?!" Tempest cried in a shocked voice while stepping back. "And yet, you still forgive me when somepony else wouldn't have. I put you and everypony else through torment, Twilight, and if I could turn back time and erase all that I did, I would!" As she listened, Twilight looked down at her destroyed crown and analyzed it briefly. Even though she was a princess that would prefer to avoid wearing a crown, Twilight couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness at the destruction Tempest had inflicted on it. But, she knew that it was only just a crown and it could be replaced easily. But there were more important things to worry about. "Tempest," Twilight sighed again, turning her attention away from her crown. "We can't turn back time, because what happens is we just relive the nightmare all over again. I remember what you showed me after I was captured. Would you want to relive losing your horn all over again? Take it from somepony who's dealt with time travel more than once, it doesn't erase the problem or even make it go away for a while. All it does is leave you stuck in the same loop as before. Even my former student, Starlight Glimmer, can attest to that." "I… guess you're right, Twilight," Tempest briefly pondered. "But, I would like to try and at least redeem myself for all I've done to you, and everypony else. At least, before I probably will have to stand trial and answer for my crimes. There's no way I can restore my horn to what it used to be, or take back ever joining Storm King's army and serving him faithfully for so long. But I would like to give myself another chance, to start my life all over again if I have to." "There is a way, Tempest," Twilight motioned down at the destroyed crown. "I want you to look at my destroyed crown for a second. Every piece of the crown represents a pony that you affected when you served under the Storm King. The four red diamonds represent myself and my fellow princesses. You can't fix your errors with magic alone, only with friendship. For there's no greater magic than the magic of friendship." "What are you saying then?" Tempest asked. "I'm saying that as the Princess of Friendship, I command you to perform various acts of friendship from here on out," Twilight officially declared. "A sort of community service for the time being, to give you a chance to earn your redemption. Your acts of friendship shall range from the most affected to the humblest side street speakeasy. And for every time that you spread an act of friendship, a piece of the crown will be put back together." Tempest absorbed everything that Twilight told her. "When do I start?" She asked the princess. "You're welcome to stay with Starlight Glimmer and I, at my castle back in Ponyville," Twilight offered. "Plenty of ponies from Ponyville were at the Friendship Festival and if you want, you can start in Ponyville and work your way from there. It's probably best if you leave Canterlot for a while, let tempers cool off and give the city a chance to heal. Besides, there's a lot of cleaning up to do, and not just from the invasion. Friendship festivals aren't held often for a very good reason." "Thank you, Twilight," Tempest nodded.. "I promise to redeem myself for my actions. And whenever my trial date is set, I'll try my best to stand and answer for my crimes." Smiling at this, the two former enemies shared a brief embrace before turning back towards Celestia, Luna and Redemption of Tempest Shadow was about to begin...