//------------------------------// // A Day in the Life. // Story: Fallen Sun // by shademaster24601 //------------------------------// Fallen Sun By Shademaster24601 Chapter 1: A Day in the Life The stars above a wasteland with no end speed by in a blur. The infinite space streaked by from the view on the desolate rock. This was a comet that had flown through the cosmos for thousands of years. In an event that the stars themselves could not predict, a passenger was taken aboard. He walked, scanning the stars or hanging his head. “So dark…then bright, then dark again. Star light, then blackness. No…keep looking. Moving too fast. Can’t see it.” He wandered about for what seemed like an eternity. It was sure close though. Not a soul was on the rock, save for him. The silence went on forever unless he broke it. As he continued his one thousand seven hundred and forty-second time walking the radius of the comet, he collected his thoughts. “The whispers are back. They’ve been going on for about three hours. Can’t…process…telling me things I already know. I shouted at a rock today. Don’t know what for. Just some primal scream induced by the familiar rage. I think last time it was the stars. Either time, all I could see was her. I’ve come to the conclusion that I’ve gone slightly mad…slightly mad, only slightly.” He stopped and fell against some standing rocks. First he stood leaning, then gradually slid down it’s side till he lie on his stomach, chin to the ground. “I don’t suppose it helps that I’m talking to myself.” He sighed. “Exhausted, furious, on the verge of a mental breakdown,” he paused, and then focused his magic. After a moment or two, he let his connection go and opened his eyes, then draped a wing over his face. “and it’s only morning.” Morning in Equestria and all was well. Celestia beamed with the joy and warmth of the new day dawning. She stood on her balcony with a smile as she watched her sister finish lowering the moon. When it was out of sight, she spread her wings as the signal to begin. With a leap over the railing, she dove, down toward the garden, pulling up at just the right moment so she could catch the scent of the flowers. She flew over statues, the shrubbery, and then over the castle walls. Every beat of her wings stood out in the silence, as did the whistle of the wind as she would glide around a tower before heading for the horizon. Celestia loved this part of her job. With a tilt of her horn, she made her connection to the great, life-giving, source of light. With a deep breath, she gently pulled her head back up right. Once it was up, so was the sun and the princess opened her eyes to the familiar, warm, light that made her pristine white coat shine and her flowing mane sparkle. She let out a little laugh, then began her descent down to the nearest balcony. Through the stained glass door and into the hall, Celestia had a little bounce in her step. She didn’t know why, but it felt good. She passed by two guards standing watch as she made for the throne room. “Happy Wednesday.” She told them in a joyful voice, with a sweet smile. The guards saluted and returned the smile. When Celestia was in a good mood, it just resonated throughout the palace like a warm summer wind that lifted every pony’s spirits. “To you as well, your majesty.” Celestia hummed a little tune as she stepped down the long carpet leading to her throne. She took a moment to admire the windows and reflect on the great moments each one immortalized. Twilight and her friends uniting for the first time to stop Nightmare Moon, Discord’s defeat, Cadance and Shining Armor's wedding, the restoration of the crystal empire, and the most recent, and possibly Celestia’s favorite, the coronation of Princess Twilight Sparkle. There was, however, one window she refused to look at. It sat empty near the entrance on the left side of the room. Celestia paid it no mind and focused on the throne. Once she got there, she rose up into the air, hovered above her seat, then plopped herself down. Her assistant stood at her right side, ready for duty. Celestia smiled warmly at her. “Good morning, Raven.” The unicorn adjusted her spectacles with a smile as she checked over the schedule. “It certainly is, your majesty. Lovely work as always.” Celestia laughed a little. “Heh, why thank you. So, what’s on the agenda for today?” Raven looked over her papers. “Let’s see…first is breakfast, the chefs have already begun working on a fine meal for you, all of your favorites. After that, we need you to approve a new budget for your school for gifted unicorns.” “With all the new students attending they’ll need the extra funds.” Noted the solar princess. Her assistant nodded. “Quite right. After that there’s an art auction, all proceeds going to charity. I managed to squeeze in some down time with Princess Twilight after she’s done with her meeting with the Griffon King.” Celestia’s eyes widened. “That’s right. Today’s Twilight’s first big political meeting with a major dignitary. I hope she’ll be alright on her own…oh who am I kidding? Of course she’ll be alright.” Raven just smiled at the princess’s confidence. “Then there’s just the matter of sorting the mail and you’re done until it’s time for sunset.” The princess sat back and let out another little laugh. With a warm smile she just couldn’t resist stating the obvious. “Hmhmhmhm, today’s gonna be a great day!” She made this proclamation in her Canterlot voice. It was very rare that she used it, only when she got really excited, but when she did, every pony in the castle knew. It was so strong that it actually shook the foundation a little. It caused one of the vases to fall off it’s pedestal and shatter. Celestia blushed. “Sorry.” This got a big laugh from Raven, the guards outside, and the princess. A warm summer wind “It’s going to be a monstrously dreadful day.” The wandering exile sat on his comet and looked into the streaking space with deadpan misery. To anypony else, seeing what he was seeing would be a once in a lifetime opportunity that they would cherish forever, but to him it had always been a curse. Like a taunting sign of everything speeding out of his reach as the comet traveled. He was depressed, angry, and a little motion sick. He got up, put on a deep scowl, and then just paced around glaring at the ground. He paused and turned his head. It was the rock he was staring at earlier. It just sat there; about as wide as he was tall, tall enough to reach up to his chest. He stared at it for the longest time. The silence soon broke as his face thickened with rage, baring his teeth and glaring with a burning red glow in his eyes. With a fierce snarl that turned into a roar of anger, he charged at the rock. When he was in range, he reared up and brought the hooves of his forelegs down on the rock. The force was enough to break it into a burst of gravel and dust. His face twisted into a beastly look of the highest caliber of rage, his chest heaved with the heavy breathing accompanied by a few angered grunts. He shut his eyes, reared back his head and let out an unrestrained cry of anger that rang out louder than an air-raid siren. Twilight let out another yawn as she made her way through the palace. It seemed like only yesterday that she had fixed Starswirl the Bearded’s spell and was crowned a princess. Then she remembered all that had happened since. There was Pinkie’s congratulations on becoming a princess party, the day she spent with Rarity getting all her outfits modified for the changes that had occurred, flying lessons with Rainbow Dash, and of course the incident with Sunset Shimmer. Twilight rolled her eyes at the memory that had followed that. After trying to pursue a relationship with Flash Sentry, the newest princess struck out after two days. She remained confident that it was his loss. She was beautiful, kind, and down-right adorkable; that being the mantra she told herself repeatedly, while trying to drown her heart-break with a tub of ice-cream. All of that aside, Twilight was settling in rather nicely to her role as princess. She passed by several of the castle staff on her way to her meeting. She waved, gave the usual “hello” or “good morning”, except when she passed by Flash at his post, during which time there was an uncomfortable silence with awkward dead-pan expression. If you listened closely you could hear the princess mutter “jerk” as she ducked through the door to the next hall. Soon, the lavender alicorn was met with a familiar voice that made her smile. “Greetings, dear Twilight. I trust you are enjoying this glorious morning that my sister has brought us.” Twilight smiled. “As much as I can.” She gave her friend a little nuzzle. “I’m glad you came to see me before the meeting, Luna.” The princess of the night returned the warm gesture with gusto, then stood beside Twilight as she continued her trip to the chamber. “Still nervous?” Twilight sighed as her relieved smile turned into a nervous frown. “Oh most definitely.” She looked away, feeling a bit embarrassed. “I mean, I’m not a stranger to the details. I know what needs to be discussed, the details of said issue, and I’ve studied how possible solutions could affect both parties. But this is different than writing a paper based on theoretical political situations. This is a one on one meeting with the Griffon King to deal with a real issue!” Twilight was getting excited; the bad kind of excited. She tried to do the breathing technique Cadance taught her, but it was doing little to calm her. “What if I mess up? The fate of both kingdoms is on the line! I could end up throwing us into an economic downward spiral or, worse yet, start a war!” Luna rolled her eyes, then gently draped a wing over the younger princess. This seemed to calm Twilight’s panicked breathing and bring the mare’s attention to the kind eyes and gentle smile of the night princess. Luna then spoke in a level voice. “Twilight, you’re just going to discuss the silk trade agreement. You aren’t going to spark an international incident over scarfs.” The lavender alicorn blinked at the statement, then let out a little giggle at how foolish she was being about the whole thing. “You’re right,” She said in a relaxed tone. “It’s simple, the policy we have going now is doing wonders for both sides. It shouldn’t be more than clarifying the terms and resigning documents, or just signing in my case. I guess I’m still readjusting to the leadership status. I really don’t know how you and prin…I mean Celestia take it all in such great stride.” Luna raised an eyebrow at the little slip of the tongue. “Still having trouble dropping ceremony when it comes to speaking of my sister? You didn’t have any trouble with me.” She said the second part with a mock-hurt kind of tone. Twilight blushed. “I know. It’s just…well it was easier with you. After studying under Celestia for so long, I got to see her with a bit more reverence, as a teacher and, at times, a second mother. You I see more as the sister I always wanted.” Luna was touched. “Awww.” The two shared a laugh as their walk started to come to a close. They stopped outside the door to the meeting chamber. Luna lifted her wing, folded it back to her side and turned so the two mares were face to face. Twilight smiled. “Thanks Luna. I really needed that talk.” Luna nodded and returned the smile. “It was no trouble. After you’re done, we should try and organize a little get together with your friends. It’s been a while since I last had a moment to unwind.” Twilight was eager to the idea. “That sounds wonderful.” The two said their farewells and Luna went to attend to her duties for the day. Twilight took one more deep breath to steady her nerves. She then turned to face the door, placing a hoof on it as she did. With a little push, the door opened just a little and Twilight poked her head in. There he was, the king of the griffons. He looked stoic, with a hint of age, but just enough to relay wisdom and experience. He had a strong build brown fur and white feathers with a hint of gray around the tips. He wore a green vest with black trim and golden shoulder pads securing his black cape. His crown was not extravagant, but still projected his authority with it’s shining onyx and golden lining, imbedded with emeralds. The top of the front point only reached a little bit over his head, the rest stopped just beneath. The griffon king saw the young princess enter and gave friendly smile. Twilight smiled back, seeing a kindness in his eyes that she associated with a good and reasonable man. She entered casually. “Hello.” The prisoner had, finally, finished his rage shout and was now trying to regain his breath. The length and force of the cry had exhausted his throat and emptied his lungs. He hung his head, eyes bulging, as he panted heavily. He knew this feeling. It had been a routine he had been forced to experience thousands of times. It seemed like every other day, he would erupt. “It’s not fair…” He finally managed to gasp. There was more panting, then he turned his attention to some offending rock formations with a cruel glare. “It’s not fair!” A bolt of crimson red magic shot out of his horn and completely obliterated the formation, leaving a massive crater, almost big enough to fit two barns in, smoldering in it’s place. “It’s not fair…not…not fair.” He whispered. He collapsed, with those words flying around his head. Memories came flooding back and his scowl thickened. He gnashed his teeth and cursed her name under his breath. All he had done, all he had worked for, everypony he knew, and they were all gone. He counted the days, counted the years…the years. His eyes shot open. “Wait…” Spike was in the middle of an easy-going day. He and Owlowiscious had been tasked with running the library while Twilight was away. It was hard adjusting without her, but he knew that she’d be back when she had gotten the full swing of her princess status. On the plus side, she wrote him every day and he had a lot of extra time to spend with Rarity. Right now, he was working on something interesting, or at least having something to do for Twilight made it interesting. “Where is it?” He said to no one in particular. He rummaged through Twilight’s work-desk looking for some old astronomy works Twilight had picked up after Luna’s debut on nightmare night. It left the young mare with a greater appreciation of the night. So, she went out to learn as much as she could. “Let’s see…Agriculture and You, no. How To Look Like You’re Enjoying Dubstep, nope. Is Your Pet Plotting to Kill You ,” He to a moment to think of all the ‘playful nibbles’ gummy would give. “I’ll hang on to that one. Aha! Clover the Clever’s Guide to Astronomical Events and their Timing, just what the princess ordered.” He removed from the desk a book as big as he was, with four scrolls tied to it. The text was the basic learner’s book filled with the reprinted knowledge Clover had written thousands of years ago about the vast galaxy that the night opened a window to, and the scrolls were a collection of hoof-written notes from both the long ago days of Clover and the more recent additions made by none other than Twilight. Both sets of notes were instructions on how to calculate cosmic events such as the arrival of comets, even how to determine if and when a newly discovered one will come into view of the naked eye. Spike gave a smile, then took a deep breath before using his flame to send the aforementioned works to Twilight. Once the sparkling smoke was speeding on it’s way to Canterlot, a bell was heard downstairs. “Hello?” came the unmistakably soft voice of Fluttershy. The young dragon hopped off the desk and headed for the stairs. He scuttled down to the lobby and smiled at the sight of Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie. “Hey, girls.” He greeted happily. Spike stepped up to the unicorn of his dreams with the usual love-struck look. “Hi, Rarity.” She smiled. “Well hello, my little Spikey-Wikey.” The white unicorn said this as she scratched under the little dragon’s chin. As expected this made him swoon, so Rarity reached out to catch him before he hit the floor. She straightened him up and patted him on the head. “We thought you might like to join us for a nice lunch, my treat. I filled a big order of ball gowns and I’ve got bits to spare.” Spike snapped back to reality. “Sounds great. Where are we eating?” Pinkie jumped in. “Oh, oh, I found this really cool new restaurant while I was helping the cakes with a delivery and I saw it and thought “Wow I bet Rarity would like this place." I went in and asked to see a menu and it turns out they serve dragons too and there’s a whole gem based selection of meals and I just had had had to get you there too.” The little dragon licked his lips at the possible dishes. “Sounds fantastic.” Rarity got back in. “Plus, it’ll be good to get you out of this stuffy old library. You must be so bored since Twilight went to Canterlot. Are you sure I can’t set you up at the boutique? I hate the thought of you being here all alone for so long.” Spike waved it off. “Nah, I’m fine.” As much as he wanted to punch himself for turning down the chance to live with the girl of his dreams, he maintained his cool. “Besides, it’s not like she’s not coming back.” Pinkie chimed in. “And she sends us letters every day.” He continued. “In fact, I think we’ll be seeing her soon. Last I heard from her, she said she had made some kind of discovery and had me send some old scrolls from when she picked up star gazing. Plus, she was asking what everypony was doing in the coming week. The white unicorn perked up. “Oooh, maybe she’s planning another night-time picnic. The meteor shower was simply divine.” The four of them started off on their outing. Spike concluded the conversation as they headed out the door. “Yep, I bet right now she’s got her nose in a book, planning out the perfect time." He began writing. The moment he got the idea in his head, he set to work. Scribbles and calculations in the dirt, starting in the top-most corner of the crater and circling along the line, went on and on in a vicious cycle. The stranded outcast racked his brain, forcing every detail he could remember. Down to the very last decimal, he was working out where the comet had been, how fast it had gone, what gravitational forces were acting on it, and the years that had gone by since his exile. He exhausted himself, using both front hooves and a jagged piece of rock. He had to know, he had to be sure. “Velocity increased here and here, but decreased momentarily at here and here. Planetoids in this sector increased gravitational resistance, but that was dissipated when it sling-shot around that star. No, no, no…yes! If you take this acceleration, subtract from this…yes yes.” He had filled half the crater with one long equation after another. “It’s happening…After all this time, it’s finally happening.” He could feel his pulse quicken. “Oh…this…this is absolutely…” “Perfect.” Twilight found herself stating as she checked off the last of the calculations. She had one eye on the sky and another on her writing. She recalled when she first used her magic to enhance her telescope. At first she just wanted to clear up a blurred image, but now, night or day, she could now use it to see the heavenly bodies whenever she wanted. It was during this happy magic accident that she had spotted something incredible. She checked all her books and indeed, nopony had ever discovered it before. A comet with a dark red tail raced across her view and through the cosmos. Twilight was seeing planets that had rarely ever been seen and now she was seeing into their system. That comet, however, held her attention the most. Now, a year and a half later, she was watching it again from the open window and she was sure of one thing. “It’s heading this way.” She let out a little giggle. Twilight was feeling proud of herself. Her meeting with the griffon king went absolutely perfect. He was kind, patient, and very friendly. They discussed the trade agreement, shared stories of what they experienced in their time, and then signed what needed to be signed to finalize the deal. It helped solidify in Twilight’s mind that she was more than capable for a role of leadership. There was a knock at her door “Come in.” She called happily. The door opened and none other than Celestia walked in with a warm smile. “Well hello, princess.” Twilight beamed with joy. She turned away from the telescope as she finished a few last notes and made her way to her mentor turned peer. “Celestia.” She made a mental note “Yes! Got it.” The lavender alicorn trotted other to greet the sun princess. “I’m glad you stopped by.” Celestia gave a little laugh. “I thought I’d check in to see how the big meeting went, but from bumping into the griffon king in the hall, I was glad to hear that everything went well.” She craned her neck down to nuzzle her. “I’m so proud of you. I knew you’d handle it marvelously.” Twilight blushed. “It was nothing special. I just took a deep breath, and went through it calmly while just trying to be myself.” Celestia pulled back and smiled as she met Twilight’s eyes. “Hehe, and that, my dear Twilight, is why it was so special. You’ve come so far since the day I met you at your entrance exam. You’ve grown into a wonderful and exceptionally capable princess.” The young princess was touched. “Thank you…thank you so much, but I wouldn’t be who I am today without you and all that you’ve taught me.” Twilight couldn’t stop herself and threw a hug around the sun princess. Celestia gladly accepted and returned the hug. They stayed like that for a little bit. The elder princess was the first to speak. “You know, I have some free time on my hooves before I have to set the sun.” Twilight’s eyes widened. “Oh! I almost forgot. Luna thought it would be a good idea to get together with the girls. I was just finishing up plans for what to do. Care to join us?” Celestia smiled at the thought. A chance to sit down with her sister, Twilight, and the other elements of harmony would just make everything perfect. She gave a hushed giggle, thinking about the last time she had contact with Pinkie Pie. “Sounds wonderful. What did you have in mind?” Twilight went back over to her notes. “A starlight picnic. I’ve been experimenting with my telescope and I’ve made a brilliant discovery.” “Oh?” Celestia asked with an adoring smile as she rolled her eyes as Twilight’s adorkable nature started to kick in. “Yes,” Beamed the younger princess. “It happened about a year and a half ago. I was practicing a clarity spell so I could get a better view through my telescope and though I’m not proud to admit it, I lost control. When I went to check the results of the spell, I found that it worked even better than I had hoped. I was seeing planets that only come into view on rare occasions and others that had never been seen before. However, what intrigued me the most was a comet with a most unusual tail.” “Comet?” Celestia asked in almost a gasp. Her previously happy expression suddenly dropped a view tones. Twilight nodded. “Uh huh. It was so peculiar; I just had to find out more. There wasn’t anything in any of the record books about it, so I had to do some work on it myself. I mean, I couldn’t just proclaim I had discovered a new comet without being sure that it would actually come into view. Using some calculation methods created by Clover the clever, I’ve determined that this comet is not only newly discovered, but will in fact be coming into view tonight at midnight.” Celestia was quiet, she was almost in a state of shock. Twilight didn’t notice. “I’ve just finished confirming in my notes and was about to send a letter to Spike inviting him and the girls to see it. It’ll be wonderful to share this moment with the ponies I care about the most. So, what do you think?” Celestia heard Twilight, but couldn’t process at the moment. “Comet…” She thought. “It couldn’t be…no it hasn’t been…has it? Have to…” She shook herself loose from her racing thoughts. “Oh Twilight…I just remembered I have some important documents to fill out.” Twilight was confused. “But you said…” Celestia stopped her. “I know…I just…I was caught up in the moment. I’m sorry, but I promise we’ll find some time to spend together. Excuse me, but I have to go.” She turned and made her exit. She left the room calmly, but as she moved through the hallway, her pace quickened, escalating into a dead run. She was heading past a guard post. They tried to ask the source of her distress, but were cut off. “I’m going to my study. Nopony is to disturb me until further notice!” She continued her run through the palace until she reached her private bed chamber. There was a slam, the sound of locks, then a barrier went up around the room. She made sure no one would interrupt her. Celestia’s chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath. “This can’t be happening.” The exile stood and looked upon his work. The expansive crater was now completely filled with complex calculations, scribbled sentences, and images. With a flap of his wings he flew above the great canvas. “It’s happening.” He said this with absolute certainty. “I wouldn’t believe it if I wasn’t looking right at the numbers, but there it is.” He tilted his head ever so slightly, then turned and flew where his horn pointed him. Over crevices and rises in the land, he eventually landed on a small plateau. He scanned the great darkness that surrounded him. He was still unsure, but like a glorious bolt of opportunity, there it was. Five hours away if had done the math right and he knew the math was right. A microscopic speck of blue in the expansive black, sat right in the focus of the exile’s vision. He didn’t smile, he wasn’t happy, more…determined. In his cold state, one truth remained clear. “I’m going home.”