//------------------------------// // Breaking Free // Story: Troubled Twins // by Wayofthepen //------------------------------// “This statue is directly from the garden in Canterlot! Was very dangerous, too, with all the animals running about.” What? “Starting price for... What in Celestia’s name?!” Bright light surrounded me as I heard the sound of stone cracking. A few seconds later, I was in a room on a stage next to a very freaked out earthpony. I looked around and saw about twenty or so other ponies, staring at me in shock. The pony next to me trotted closer to me, scanning over every part of my body. “Can I get some personal space, please?” At the sound of my voice, he nearly jumped out of his coat. Some of the ponies gasped, others remained quiet, while most just stared. “An... Alicorn? They’re extinct though!” Extinct? That can’t be right. I turned to him, giving him a confused glance. “You must be mistaken. What about Celestia?” All the ponies in the room looked down in sadness at the mention of her name. “You mean... No, that’s not possible. It was just a few moments ago I felt her presence...” At this point, I was rambling. I heard a scream come from beyond the crowd as it split in two, making a clear row in the center. A grey earthpony flew through a cloth and slid up to the stage, still screaming. “Touch me that way again and I will gut you.” A very familiar female voice called as the unicorn entered the room. Silent! She’s here too! And as if on cue, she galloped to the front of the stage and leaped to my level. “Finally! I have been looking for you. Only reason it took me so long was because that little pony decided to get a little dirty.” At this, I shot him a glare that sent him scurrying away. I would have to catch up with Silent later. Now, I need answers. “Listen up!” Everypony looked straight at me, some with fear (likely because of Silent) and some with no expression at all. “Can anypony explain to me what happened to Celestia?” The stallion from before trotted closer and volunteered himself. With a cough to get everypony’s attention, he began his tale. “Five hundred years ago, Celestia disappeared from her rule, leaving all the duties to her younger sister Luna. Celestia had said to have disappeared because of her not being able to handle the job anymore, or because she was looking for something. The whereabouts of both sisters are still unknown, as Luna disappeared one hundred years after. Canterlot now lays in ruins due to a war of power between the three races. Equestria has become worse than you can imagine. Pony’s fighting over food, water, weapons, and even other ponies.” “Well, sounds like this place really went to shit.” The stallion nodded, still eying me nervously. “I’m sorry for what I did to you. It’s all my fault...” I looked around frantically for the voice. It sounded like Celestia, but it’s proclaimed she is missing. “Kin? You heard it too?” Looking back to my sister, she seemed a bit paler. I gave her an agreeing nod. She continued to look around for a little bit, until something caught her eye. Following her glance, there was a group of cloaked ponies looking towards us. “Silent. I got a bad feeling about this.” Her turn to give me a nod. As the pony’s inched closer to us, the feeling grew. When the three were right in front of us, they removed their hoods. One was a blue unicorn, another a red pegasus, and the final a yellow earthpony. The leader inched closer and spoke, “The archives never told of a third alicorn. Who are you?” I gave off a smirk, “Depends on who’s asking.” The leader gave a short nod and motioned her ‘friends’ to wait outside. Turning back to me, she said, “I am Eclipse, the new leader of the Celestian Crusaders. Our order has existed for four hundred years, not stopping our search once. Well, until we couldn’t make the trip to Canterlot Castle.” I gave her a confused look, “Do you go in the day or in the night?” She nearly laughed where I stood, “It hasn’t been day since Luna left. No unicorn could raise the sun, as it takes an alicorn’s magic to do so.” I gave a nod and jumped off the stage. Trotting through the crowd and leaving the room, it was nearly pitch black, minus the few lights here and there. I flew into the sky to get a look at where I was, and was horrified. Entire buildings reduced to rubble, shacks built from the debris, ponies slowly inching their ways into the desolate world. After the ponies filling the shattered streets looked up, most stared in awe. Seems like Celestia forgot her place, and let the world crumble. When and if I find her, she’s going to have some explaining to do. I flew back down to the ground and took a deep breath. Letting my magic overtake my body once more, I focused it all towards the moon, which was just sitting in the middle of the sky. It’s time for this eternal darkness to learn it’s not so eternal after all. I put all of my being into focusing on the moon, commanding it to move from it’s locked position. “What is all that... Is that what I think it is?!” A random passerby screamed as the moon inched it’s way out of view, with a bright light starting to overtake the forsaken land. By the time the sun had fully risen into the sky, most ponies ran back inside, afraid of what was happening. I took a deep breath and let go of my grip on the sun. Never again will I underestimate the power required to do this job, as I am currently swaying. I could hear the sound of hooves hitting stone as I fell, darkness overtaking my sight. - - - - Canterlot Castle (Past) - - - - Shadowkin was trotting through the halls of the castle, aiming for one room in particular. He turned many corners, escaped long corridors, and finally made his way to a large set of doors with the image of the moon painted on. He gave a nod to the two night guards who opened the door, allowing him entrance to the bedchambers. He trotted into the room with a smile on his face. Luna’s room was quite simple for royalty. She had a bed, dresser, nightstand, the basics. As he searched for her, she called to him from the balcony. As he trotted next to her, gazing at the starry night, he noticed she had a sad aura emitting from her.. He sat down close to her, coat to coat. “What’s wrong? You’re usually your happiest at night.” She slowly turned her head, face matching her aura. “Kin, I feel as if you are the only pony who truly appreciates the night.” He put a hoof and a wing around her, resting his head against hers, “The night may not have a blue sky, but it has the stars of the worlds beyond. I’m sure Tia feels the same way as me, but you know her. Emotionless as always.” The two shared a laugh as they watched a falling star shoot by. “I heard that if you make a wish on a falling star, it comes true,” Luna said, turning her head towards Shadowkin. He turned his head to her, “How about Celestia’s approval? She isn’t hostile, but she isn’t polite either. Do you think we’ll ever get along?” Luna gave a sheepish smile, “Maybe. Would you stay here with me?” Shadowkin grinned and rested his head against hers again. “Nothing could keep me away.” The image of the two started fading from his view as reality grasped him. - - - - Present - - - - I woke up to my coat covered in dust and several ponies staring at me, mouths agape. I got up slowly, realizing how tired I was. Shaking myself awake, I addressed the crowd, “As much as I love the night, four hundred years is too long. I am not taking over as the pony to control the cycle, but I know somepony who will. I am going to Canterlot, and I will find our lost princesses.” The crowd cheered, both at his statement and at the sun. The leader trotted up to me, “Then it was true after all. The monsters that live in Canterlot should be gone, as they are all nocturnal, unlike we ponies. If you fly there ahead of us, you could start the search early. It will take us about two hours from our current location.” I gave her a quizzical look, “Where are we?” The rest of her crew, as well as my sister, galloped over to us as she spoke, “The remnants of Ponyville.” With a nod, I flew into the sky and searched for the mountain that the castle was located on. Spotting a half destroyed castle on a equally destroyed mountain, I flew for the entrance. The world has been in the dark for four hundred years, the princesses are missing, and I am having dreams of things that didn’t happen... Or did they? I’ve lived my whole life with Silent, how could I have been even close to the castle? Things just aren’t making sense...