//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Heavenly Turmoil // by TheManWithTwoNames //------------------------------// Heavenly Turmoil A “My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic” fanfiction By TheManWithTwoNames Standard Legal Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters contained in the following work. “My Little Pony” and all subsequent properties belong to Hasbro. There was a thunderous blast of noise that nearly threw Princess Celestia from her bed. Her heart was pounding and she was in an absolute state of panic. She looked around her bedchamber, trying to find spot anything in the darkness that would have torn her from her sleep. After a few moments, the ruler of Equestria yawned and shook her head, her flowing mane falling into disorder. Blowing a stand of colorful hair out of her face, Celestia began to calm. The pure white alicorn rested her head on her pillow, closed her eyes, and exhaled peacefully as she reflected on the day’s events. In less than a day, Equestria had seen the return of Discord, the malevolent spirit of disharmony and chaos, and was nearly torn apart by the maniac’s terrible power as it had many centuries ago. But once again, harmony had prevailed; Discord was imprisoned by the Elements of Harmony, wielded by her very own protégé and her friends. His damage had been undone, and peace returned to the world. Celestia shifted in her bed, stretched her wings once, twice, and wrapped her body in the feathery wings, listening to the sound of her younger sister’s beautiful night as she drifted off to serene sleep. Celestia jumped off of her bed, stomping the floor with her powerful hooves. Calling upon her magic, the princess’s horn glowed with light, illuminating the room. She glared at the retreating darkness, shifting her eyes suspiciously. She had been moved. Her entire bed had been moved across the room. And as the fireplace sparked to life and chased the last shadows from the corners of the room, she saw that there was more to it. The room had been completely changed – the changes were small but not subtle enough to escape Celestia’s attention. The patterns of the stained glass windows had been reversed, the crimson flowers in the vase kept in the corner of the room were now a deep blue, and even the carving on the wooden door to the room was different. “Show yourself!” Celestia commanded, stomping the floor. “Sister?” a soft voice called from outside the door. Celestia snapped her head up, looking at herself and her room in confusion. Rising to her hooves, Celestia walked out of bed and to the center of the room. Princess Luna, the younger of the two ruling sisters, cautiously opened the door and peered her head in before entering. "Celestia, is everything alright?” Luna asked, concern clear in her voice. “Oh, yes, Luna. Everything is fine,” Celestia said, smiling warmly at her sister. Her long banishment had done nothing to change Luna’s kind heart and compassionate nature, and after centuries apart, Celestia could never fully express how happy she was to have her sister and closest friend by her side again. Though she had been initially fearful that her sister might still harbor some resentment after her years alone on the moon, her worries were put to rest nearly immediately. Luna was the model of kindness, acquainting herself with the many ponies that served the royal sisters in their palace and going out of her way to help them in any way she could. “Are you sure? I was walking by and I heard noises,” Luna asked again, walking closer to her sister and looking around the room in interest. “Well… Luna, tell me, does anything in the room seem strange to you?” Celestia normally wouldn’t want to worry her sister, but sometimes Luna simply wouldn’t be satisfied until she heard what she wanted to hear. “Different? No, everything looks the same as it always does,” Luna answered as she walked a lap around the room, looking high and low for anything unusual and finding nothing. Celestia’s vision blurred as she watched her sister investigate, the room seeming to spasm and reset itself as she stepped. “I must have just been having a nigh- a bad dream,” Celestia corrected herself. Though Equestria had forgiven Luna for her violent return as Nightmare Moon, she still hadn’t forgiven herself and would fall into a depression whenever something brought her mind back to her episode. “Oh no! Do… do you want me to sleep with you tonight?” “Thank you, sister, but I’m sure I’ll be fine now,” Celestia said tenderly, putting her head against her sister’s. “I’ll see you first thing in the morning for breakfast.” Luna’s mood immediately brightened, and the princess of the night wished her sister sweet dreams as she trotted out the door, leaving Celestia alone in her room with her thoughts. And a vase of orange flowers. Celestia’s eyelids suddenly grew heavy and the princess collapsed to her bed. ---------- Princess Celestia stood proudly on the balcony outside her room as she did every morning, calling the sun to usher in the new day. She had slept well enough after Luna’s visit, but she found her mind going back to her strange visions; she hadn’t had a nightma– bad dream since she was a filly, and there was no great crisis in Equestria that should be worrying her. Hoofington had another rumor of an Ursa Major attack the previous week, but it had turned out to be a false alarm by some traveling magician to raise interest in her show. She pushed it from her mind as her unicorn guard arrived to escort the princess to the garden, where Luna was waiting eagerly at a table. The sisters had made it a point to see each other every morning for breakfast, and it was a routine that had gone happily uninterrupted for over a year now. “Good morning, sister!” Luna chirped brightly as Celestia sat down. “Did you sleep well?” “Yes, thank you.” “I’m glad! I asked Flour to make something special today,” Luna said playfully. Luna knew all of the ponies in the castle well, but she had become close friends with the kitchen staff especially, frequently visiting to chat or try to learn how to prepare some dishes. As for her progress, Celestia was just thankful that Luna hadn’t made their breakfast this morning. “You know, the garden labyrinth is even harder to get through in the dark,” Luna said conversationally. “I’m surprised you have trouble seeing at night, Luna.” “Oh, I don’t. I had to close my eyes before it got really fun.” “Is that so? I may have to try that some time,” Celestia said with a laugh. “Make sure that nopony is around when you try it. Some ponies are going to think there’s something wrong with you if they see you bumping into walls with your eyes closed.” Celestia and Luna laughed together at the thought of it. Celestia playfully shut her eyes and began to wave a hoof out in front of her, bumping the bottom of the table with her other hoof. The sisters were in tears, and even the arrival of their servers couldn’t stop their fun. The two earth pony servers carefully placed the platters on the table in front of the princesses and removed the tray covers. Luna had a sizable stack of pancakes in front of her, topped with banana slices and blueberries. Celestia looked down with a grin at the face smiling at her from her tray. Two eggs sunny-side up and several slices of bacon arranged in a goofy smile. “Very funny.” “I thought so.” Celestia and Luna enjoyed their morning ritual, watching as the pegasi soared through the air above them, pushing the clouds around and simply entertaining themselves. But whenever Celestia looked down from the sky at her sister, she saw Luna’s attention focused on the hedge maze and the statue garden. Luna met Celestia’s look and swallowed a mouthful of her breakfast before giving her sister a meaningful look. “So what did we do with the statue?” Luna asked. Celestia sighed, having been waiting for the question all morning as she wiped some egg from the corner of her mouth with her napkin. “Discord has been moved to a safe place, far away from anypony who could accidentally break the seal on him again.” “Where? Come on, you can tell me, Tia. It’s not like I’m going to go looking to wake up that monster.” “There’s an abandoned dragon’s lair about a four hour’s flight south. I had a squad of unicorns and pegasi collapse the entrance of the cave, so we won’t need to worry about him ever again.” After finishing their breakfast, Luna excused herself and trotted off into the gardens. Celestia smiled and watched her walk out of sight before she rose from the table and made her way to her throne room. She had an exciting day ahead of her. ---------- “Thank you, Your Majesty,” the well-dressed unicorn praised, bowing his head low to the floor as he backed out of the room. There was a drought in Hayti, and the mayor had traveled all the way to Canterlot to request a rain. Celestia promised the mayor that she would have the top graduates of Cloudsdale’s flight school’s graduating class move to the town to prevent any such trouble from ever hurting them again. Celestia closed her eyes to think. The mayor was her second appointment for the day, after she had been asked to decide on the color scheme for next year’s Grand Galloping Gala. It was only ten months away, and preparations had to begin. Celestia simply chose whichever theme the pony on the left had presented, the same way she had done for the last century. The ruler of Equestria sighed softly, trying to decide if she should just cancel the event for a year and see what would happen. She wouldn’t. As tired as she was of the whole thing, it was just something that had to happen at this point. It was simply the routine. “When is the next audience for the day?” Celestia asked the unicorn guard standing watch at the foot of the stairs leading to her throne. “That is all for the day, Your Majesty.” Just two today. Two wasn’t bad. At least that meant there weren’t many pressing problems in Equestria. At least none that needed her immediate attention. Just two today. Celestia let her mind wander to pass the time as she often did, thinking back to her life as a young filly. Running through the palace with Luna, getting into mischief, flying out on her own for days on end without warning and then sheepishly explaining herself to her mother when she returned. The details had begun to slip away long ago, but Celestia could still remember the feeling of pure exhilaration and freedom, and the joys of her trouble-free youth. Those days were behind her now, but Celestia still took pleasure in her occasional breaks from palace life: traveling to different towns, breakfasts with Luna, and, her favorite, the unannounced visits. “No, I don’t have an appointment, I’m – you know who I am! I used to live here! I was the guest of honor at the ceremony yesterday! Let me in!” Celestia smiled and gracefully walked down from her throne to the large doors across the room. Opening them, she looked down at her faithful student arguing with the two pegasus guards. “Twilight Sparkle, what a pleasant surprise.” The guards immediately stood aside, allowing the purple unicorn to enter the throne room, smirking victoriously at the somber guards. “Sorry about dropping in unannounced, Princess Celestia.” “Don’t apologize. I always enjoy your visits, and you are always welcome in Canterlot.” “Thank you, Princess. I came by to deliver my letter personally, since Spike still isn’t feeling great after you sent all my letters back to me,” Twilight explained as she retrieved a small scroll from her pouch, neatly tied in a red ribbon held it in the air. Twilight relinquished the letter to Celestia, letting the princess place it on the arm of her throne. “I look forward to reading it,” Celestia said. The princess looked down at the bowing unicorn and smiled with pride. This young pony and her friends had risked life and limb for each other and for all of Equestria time and time again without ever asking for anything in return. Twilight’s letters about the wonders of friendship and her stories about the friends’ adventures were the highlights of her week, and the princess’ heart swelled with motherly pride when she thought of how much her student had grown, both as a powerful unicorn and as a happy pony. “I still can’t thank you enough for all that you and your friends have done, Twilight. If there’s anything you ever need, please don’t hesitate to ask.” “Thank you, Princess,” Twilight bowed again. “But I should get back home to Ponyville now. I promised Rarity I would help her find gems until Spike gets better.” “Oh yes, of course. Don’t let me detain you.” Princess Celestia smiled sadly as her student exited the room. Her smile faded as the doors slammed shut and she began the lonely walk back to her throne. She hadn’t expected Twilight’s stay to be so brief. Celestia always enjoyed spending time with her student when Twilight lived in Canterlot, but perhaps it was better that she was spending more time with her friends. After all, that’s why she sent her to Ponyville in the first place. Celestia returned to her throne and let her mind wander, occasionally glancing at the unopened letter. ---------- The rest of the day passed without event. Celestia sat in her throne room until dinner, a mixed salad that Luna had proudly put together herself, which came out surprisingly edible. Celestia walked her lap around the palace and finally retired to her chambers. Standing in front of her modest door with Twilight’s letter tucked under her wing, Celestia pulled open the door, her scream caught in her throat as she was buried under an avalanche of letters. She kicked her legs in panic as she struggled for air, unable to see or move. Celestia shut her eyes and prepared for the end. “Sweet dreams, Tia!” Luna called from down the hallway. “Good night, Luna,” Celestia responded, waiting for her sister to go out of sight before turning back to her door. Celestia opened the door with caution and slowly entered her room, finding nothing out of the ordinary. She walked to the center of her room and kneeled on her bed, readying herself to read Twilight’s letter. Dear Princess Celestia, Today I learned that being a good friend is more than just being there. A friend should always be ready to help others, and not be afraid to be helped in return. As a certain pink pony once said, “fOR thE lovE oF AlL tHat’S gOOd I cAnt TAkE IT!” Celestia stared at the letter in confusion, watching the lines on the paper rearrange themselves before her eyes, Twilight’s neat and familiar penmanship becoming something barely legible. As soon as she took her eyes off a word, the letters fell from their place and floated around the bottom of the page. IS ThiS LiFe reAlLy whaT you werE soO DesPeRate TO fiGhT for? Celestia rose to her hooves and stood defensively as the ink began to leak off the page in a long, continuous string. The ink began to twist around, zagging and curving on the floor as it stretched to form an outline of a slender creature with the tail of a snake, legs of a lizard and a goat, wings of a bat and a bird, with an eagle’s talon and a lion’s paw. The long neck ended with a pony’s head topped with an antler and a horn. “You are killing me, Celestia!” “Discord!” Celestia stomped her hooves and aimed her glowing horn at the silhouette, daring the creature to try something. “Oh, don’t sound so surprised. You didn’t think that I was going to be trapped in that cave forever, did you?” The two foes circled each other, Celestia never letting her guard down for an instant. “This isn’t possible. The Elements of Harmony defeated you! How could you be free again?” “Nothing’s impossible for me. You should know that by now. I simply – oh, would you look at me? I’m not decent,” the outline spoke, looking around the room for something. “Gray, gray, gray…” he hummed as he walked towards the fireplace. Discord stretched his neck in front of the stone, the color filling the outline like a coloring book. “Whatever you’re up to, it won’t work,” Celestia threatened, glaring at the spirit as he stuck his arms in front of the yellow fire and filling them with color. “Celestia, I’m hurt. I haven’t done a thing. Do you really think so poorly of me?” Discord backed his body in front of the wood in the fireplace and flapped his bat wing in front of the purple walls. “Hey, could I borrow some blue or green from you? Your mane is just the perfect shade and my leg is getting a little chilly.“ “Enough! You’ve been defeated twice. Harmony will always triumph over chaos, when will you learn that you can never win?” “Do you even listen to yourself?” Discord yawned as he fell back into Celestia’s bed. “I mean really listen to yourself? I’d almost think it was an act if your life wasn’t so dull.” Celestia stood her ground, glaring at the spirit of chaos as Discord examined his nails. “What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue? Don’t tell me that I struck a nerve there,” Discord taunted before vanishing in a flash of light. “You’re stalling. You’re afraid,” Celestia shouted to the air, only to hear Discord’s laughter echoing off he walls. A sly smirk crossed the alicorn’s face as a thought struck her. “You’re weak. You simply don’t have the power to be a threat to anypony anymore.” “Oh, you of all people should know that’s not true,” Discord whispered from behind the princess. Celestia snapped her head around, but found nothing there. Turning back to her room, she shouted in agony. Celestia’s front leg buckled underneath her as she strained to open her eyes, seeing her room seizure and flicker, as if it were trying to fight Discord’s magic itself. Then all at once, it ended, leaving the ruler of Equestria physically and mentally exhausted. “You’ll never destroy Equestria,” Celestia panted as her vision blurred. Simply keeping her eyes open became a struggle. “Equestria? Please, I found something much more in need of my attention, my dear Celestia,” Discord breathed. The draconequus clutched his paw around Celestia’s face, forcing her to look at him. “I want to see you, Celestia. I want to watch as you tear your insufferably boring life to pieces. I want to see you backed into a corner by everypony you once held dear to you.” Celestia tried to jerk her head away, unable to break free of Discord’s grip. “I want to see you weep as you begin to enjoy it all. I want to see you on the edge of ruin, with your kingdom in flames and all of Equestria bearing down on you! I want to see you lost in the world, without a single friend by your side. I want to see you suffer for what you have done to me!” Discord roared, abandoning his playful demeanor. “And when the shining star of Equestria has sunk lower than anyone had thought possible…” Discord released Celestia, and the alicorn collapsed to the ground. “I want you to whisper my name, and beg me to help you.” Celestia’s world went black.