//------------------------------// // Snow // Story: Embers in the Snow // by GreyTheGriffon //------------------------------// It was a particularly cold day in the Crystal Empire, the air itself carrying shards that cut much deeper than the weather could. Ponies still milled about, taking care of their errands, getting some exercise in, or what have you, but they all walked slower than they did a few weeks ago. Nary a breath could be exhaled without a reminder of the cold, its shards cutting a little deeper with each inevitably shaky inhale that followed.  Still, as the citizens of the kingdom of boundless hope, the Crystal Ponies thought it their duty to hold their chin as high as they could manage and keep on going. So, despite the cold, they got up in the morning, they showered, and they went along with their daily routines.  But there’s only so long that a pony can withstand the cuts before the wounds open wide, and they break from the pain. But breaking is not an option for the Crystal Ponies, so they stay quiet and they keep their brave faces on until they can see their beloved Princess Cadance in her court. Court was held in the throne room every day for a certain slot of time in the late afternoon, the time having been changed from the evening as of late to escape the extra chill that came with nightfall. Despite this, the throne room was still one of the coldest places in the Empire. For the most part, the throne room looked no different to how it did a few weeks ago; the tapestries depicting past rulers of the Empire were all still carefully hung on the walls, the rug leading to the front of the room was still pressed flat against the crystal floor, and the stained glass windows were still polished to perfection. But there was one glaring change in the throne room that ruined any semblance of normalcy. There was only one throne. And there Cadance sat, in the lone throne, waiting for the last pony scheduled to come into the court today to walk through the castle door at the far end of the hall. She sighed as she straightened her posture, her face plastered with as much of a neutral expression as she could muster. As much as Cadance despised sitting there with no other throne at her side, it hurt less than sitting idly all day with no stallion to spend her time with, so she looked forward to court every day.  Her ear pricked as she picked up the distinctive sound of hooves walking on the crystal floor. The steps were slow and measured, trying their best to limit the click clack they made on the floor as much as they could.  Cadence straightened her posture, took a deep, shaky breath, and cleared her throat. “There’s no need to be so cautious,” she projected, her voice still measured and soft despite her volume, “you’re not going to offend or upset me by walking normally.” The pony at the end of the hall had frozen in her tracks when Cadance spoke, then continued forward at a faster pace after she was done. Cadance beheld a young Crystal Pony mare— about teenage age, she guessed —meekly looking up at her with her ears folded level with her head. Her general disposition could be described as ‘shaky’. Cloudy tears obscured the mare’s eyes, but she refused to let them fall. The mare looked up at the princess, her ears still folded, and spoke. “H-Hello, y-your majesty…” She gave an awkward and shaky bow. “M-My name is Tempered Heart—” she took some index cards out of her saddlebags and fumbled with their order for a few seconds, “—I came here because I wanted to ask how the Empire is going to proceed from now on?” Cadance’s whole body tensed at the question. It was asked frequently since Shining Armor’s passing, and she was never properly prepared for it; how could she be? She inhaled a deep breath, then regarded Tempered Heart with as much compassion as she could. “The passing of my husband is an unprecedented tragedy for the Empire,” Cadance said with her eyes closed and a hoof to her heart, “but I have full faith that, so long as we support one another in this time of mourning, we will be just fine.” She offered a warm smile. Tempered nodded weakly. “Thank you very much, Princess, but that’s not really what I m-meant.” She flipped through her index cards again and shakily cleared her throat. “O-Our Empire is one of the best defended in Equestria, but only because of the Crystal Heart. W-With all this uncertainty going around, and with the, um…” She looked down at the ground, fidgeting with a hoof. “With the greatest source of love g-gone, the Crystal Heart i-isn’t going to be as s-strong, i-is it?” Tempered was shaking more visibly now, her tears now flowing, though unbidden. “S-Sombra’s gonna come back one day! Or maybe something even worse! A-And we don’t have the Heart, and we don’t have our general, a-and nopony has any faith! The entire Empire is doomed!” She broke out into uncontrolled sobs and dropped to the floor. Without a second thought, Cadance leapt down from her throne and embraced Tempered Heart, squeezing as tightly as she could. The two stayed in an embrace for several minutes, until Tempered stopped shaking and stood back up. “Now,” Cadance started, her voice firmer than before, but not without the motherly quality it always had, “I want to ensure you that Sombra is defeated. He will not be coming back. As for any other threats, we are not helpless just because the Heart’s magic is weaker. We still have one of the greatest militaries in Equestria, we still have our magic, and if all else fails— which it won’t, I assure you— we can call the Elements of Harmony here.” Cadance put a hoof on Tempered’s shoulder and stroked it softly. “We’re okay,” she whispered, “we’re okay.” Tempered wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled at her princess. She nodded, then turned to leave. “Thank you, Princess.”  As Tempered trotted out of the castle, her hoofsteps not as strained as before, Cadance sighed and returned to her throne. She waited until she could no longer hear the click clack of hooves against crystal, then put her face into her foreleg and cried. She cried alone for a while, then took a deep inhale, the shards only nicking her a little, and sat with her eyes closed. Wrapping court up for the day was always quite a process; it usually took up another 15 minutes of her schedule. Then, she heard the distinctive click clack of hooves on crystal again. Her ear pricked at the unwelcome sound, and her nostrils flared. Quickly, she remembered her station and composed herself, rationalizing that she must have just been mistaken about Tempered being the last pony for the day. She looked down to the end of the hall, trying to get a better view of the pony coming in.  The pony that walked in was of average build, her coat a rather dark navy blue; almost dark gray. Her mane was an interesting dark blueish-green seafoam color and had waves that flowed over her head in a way Cadance couldn’t help but passively admire. The pony bowed once she reached what she must’ve considered a respectful distance from the throne, though Cadance thought it a little far. “Greetings, Princess. I am here to ask you a few questions, and then I’ll be right out of your hair. I do not mean to impede upon your schedule, but I deem these questions important enough to come into your court unscheduled.”  Cadance raised an eyebrow, and her nostrils flared involuntarily for a moment. “You may proceed.” She couldn’t help but notice how calm this pony seemed. It irritated and confused her, but she forced the thought down, instead deciding to appreciate the change of pace a calm court-goer brought. The pony nodded. “Regarding the Crystal Heart, I’ve noticed as of late that the magic in the air has been… thinner, to be frank. Are things alright between you and Prince Shining Armor? Or has something else happened?” Cadance’s face tensed. She inhaled deeply, so much so that the pony in front of her noticed and recoiled. “I’m going to… give you the benefit of the doubt, and assume that you’re just recently coming back into the Empire after a long trip.” She inhaled again, more steadily this time, to calm herself. “Three weeks ago,” she continued, her face as neutral as she could force it to be, “during an attack on the Empire by King Sombra, Prince Shining Armor, my husband, the l-love of my life—” she took in a shaky breath and stifled the tears that were beginning to form in her eyes “—he… He was lost.” The room fell silent, and the pony in front of Cadance froze. “What… I…” She stuttered. After a few moments more of silence, the pony bowed to Cadance, hiding her face. “I-I understand. I apologize for intruding upon you during this time of mourning.” She swiftly turned and started toward the exit, Cadance still recovering from the unexpected jab in her still-fresh wound. But something was bugging her. It just seemed too unlikely that anypony, let alone a citizen of the Empire, hadn’t heard of Shining Armor’s passing; it was in all the newspapers, all across the country. And the pony who had just left hadn’t given Cadance her name.  Curiosity started to build, and since it was starting to overpower her grief, Cadance decided to feed it. She stepped down carefully off her throne, then removed her hoof guards and quietly deposited them on the floor. Cadance followed the mysterious pony from a distance, making sure to walk softly so as not to alert her. The strange pony made a turn, which she shouldn’t have done, since the path from the entrance to the castle to the throne room was a straight hallway. Her curiosity piqued even further, she picked up her pace and leaned carefully around the corner. She gasped as she saw the pony taking a route that Cadance recognized: the path to her own chambers. She waited at the corner until she saw the strange pony step into the royal suite, then rushed in after her, an irritated yet determined look upon her face. “You! What are you doing in my chambers!” She shouted, her magic prepared to restrain her if she tried to run. The pony snapped her head toward Cadance and glared, then readied her own magic, which was a sickly green that Cadance recognized immediately. A pyre of green flame surrounded the pony, and she transformed into the charcoal-gray, hole-ridden Queen Chrysalis. Taking advantage of Cadance’s guard dropping due to her surprise, Chrysalis blasted her with a bolt of magic and jumped over her, sprinting out the door and into the castle.  “G-Get back here!” Contempt oozed from Cadance’s voice, though her surprise mixed with a twinge of fear led to a stutter. She took to the air, her eyes full of a dark determination powered by hate and fear, and shot after Chrysalis like a bullet.