//------------------------------//
// Intermission I 
// Story: A Thousand Years of Eternity 
// by Outcast4Ever 
//------------------------------//

	Princess Celestia landed heavily on the ground. Wielding the Elements of Harmony alone had taken its toll on her, and her legs felt like lead due to her exhaustion. Still, there were a few things she had to do before she could give in to her need for rest. She folded her wings loosely against her sides, heading for the chamber where the Elements were stored in order to keep them tucked away safely until they were needed again. Which, hopefully, would not be for a long while.

She trudged down the corridor, not acting like the regal being she was in that moment at all. She wasn't even sure she could keep up an act should anypony stumble upon her. Her passage into the Element Vault was thankfully uneventful and allowed her some time to sort through her thoughts and emotions in order to compose herself.

She had just placed the Elements back on their pedestal when she heard hoofsteps behind her. Celestia turned to find Captain Solar Shield a short distance away. "Yes, Captain? Do you have information for me?"

"Yes, your highness. We have identified four guards loyal to only Nightmare Moon, and we suspect they helped her get into the castle undetected."

I suppose I don't have to tell them exactly what happened. It would be best to just let them believe that Nightmare Moon defeated Luna... "Take them to the throne room. I have a few things to take care of, and then I will deal with them."

The captain nodded, turning and leaving her to her peace and quiet. Well, relative peace. She was horribly saddened by the loss of her sister, but she would have to bear the loss alone. No one else would understand her sacrifice.

With a sigh, Celestia replaced the Elements on their pedestal, seeming to consider something for a moment before sealing them in stone. She could easily break the enchantment, but with what just happened she wasn't taking any chances. She then looked up at the sky and lowered the moon, replacing it with her sun. It felt like a betrayal to do this, to take over Luna's job as the Princess of the Night. 

Except Luna was gone and she was the sole ruler of Equestria now. This wouldn't be the only thing to change with that.





Celestia walked into the throne room to the lack of any guards of the night and bit back a sigh of disappointment. Solar Shield was a wonderful Captain, truly, but sometimes he tried her nerves. Her eyes looked over the new decor and she was nearly sick at the reminder of her sister over the back of the throne. Without looking she changed it all back to normal, and with a deep breath she turned to the Captain of the night guard.

Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly and her anger flared, as did her magic. She picked him up and brought in the other ponies guarding the throne room and one other whose name she found in the Captain's head with minimal prodding. So these are the ones loyal to my corrupted sister, she thought after a bit more probing that they didn't feel and that lasted mere seconds anyway.

Without a second thought, she banished them to the one place where no one would find them. The night sky.

Little did she know that the Elements had a plan for them, and that traces of the Elements' magic still lingered with her own until after that spell.