“Late. Again? Sheesh, every year this happens and I’m stuck in the hot, stuffy armor waiting for him!” Celestia said, pacing before the Tree of Harmony. The heavenly body of all harmony in Equestria glowed in its multitude of shimmering colors, the plant itself almost blinding to stare directly at. Deep in the canyon, so late in the day, it was the only source of illumination.“It’s nearly time, and he still hasn’t arrived.”Celestia stamped her hoof into the dirt and snorted.
From the corner of her eye, a glimmer of light caught her attention. Looking up into the sky, she saw it - he was finally here, it seemed. Slowly the mote descended, sparks of red, white, and blue falling down to the canyon floor below before it finally settled into place on the ground.
"I see you have finally arrived," she said, standing tall.
Only silence greeted her.
"Hello?"
Nothing.
Celestia slowly stepped forward one step towards the mote, then another, only to jerk backwards as it exploded violently in a shower of sparks, whirling flames shooting up into the sky with a loud whistle as thick smoke poured up from the floor of the canyon.
A figure slowly emerged from the smoke, coughing as he waved one hand in front of his face, then jerking in alarm as several of the sparks fell on his coat, brushing them away as it began to smoke. As the fireworks died down behind him, he straightened up to his full height, a full head taller than Celestia. Carefully, he reached up to dust off some stray powder from his hair, before his hands fell down to straighten his coat, the blue surface somehow immaculate despite his ignominious arrival. He reached down slowly to his side, his fingers wrapping around the pommel of his sword as he drew it forth, leveling it before his face as the golden pads on his shoulders glimmered in the dim light.
“Well, better late than never, eh, George Washington?” Celestia called out. “You had me worried I wouldn’t be seeing you.”
“You’ll be forever doomed to confront the face of freedom each Fourth of July, Celestia. No exceptions!” Washington replied, halting before the mare. Standing still with a back as straight as a pole. “Freedom is late for no man—or mare, to be more specific in your case.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Celestia said. She squared her shoulders, a small smidge of her magic focused on the handle of her sword strapped to her side while the rest of her body was raring to go, like a spring ready to be sprung. “Let us hope you put up more of a fight this time; your performance last year was disappointing.”
Washington smirked, unsheathing his sword and pistol all at once. “Likewise, Celestia,” Washington shouted, leaping forward as his pistol roared loud as thunder. “Likewise!”
Now, while this battle between one of America’s most famous Founding Fathers against the greatest princess in Equestria was indeed quite a marvel to behold, it was something quite more for a certain other princess who had decided to sneak in and observe the battle for herself. Not Luna, who was busy on the moon in her own battle, nor Cadance, who was safely outside the borders of Equestria to care about reincarnated Founding Fathers springing up all over the place. It was Twilight Sparkle who was carefully hidden away to overlook the battle for the very protection of Equestria itself. And her reaction was completely what one would expect when faced with a situation that dealt with their teacher fighting a bipedal figure who dressed strangely and seemed to be able to go toe to toe with said teacher who is supposed to be one of the most powerful ponies in the world. Her jaw hung low, one of her eyelids twitched slightly, and a bug managed to fly into her mouth and back out her nose with no trouble whatsoever.
Washington’s pistol shot bounced off of Celestia’s chest armor. Withdrawing her sword in a stunning display of light, Celestia locked weapons with Washington. With just the merest of touches between the two blades the adversaries were driven back, the shockwave of force so great it was still ringing in intensity to their ears.
“You can’t keep me from the Tree of Harmony forever, Celestia!” Washington warned, as he surged forth once more. Swift as the wind and stronger than a storm, Washington drove back the alicorn with blow after powerful blow. “Year after year I've endured! Battle after battle I have fought to take my rightful place amongst the Elements! My conviction will never waver! My fortitude is unmatched! I will succeed!”
Celestia jerked her head as one of his blows slipped past her blade and struck her across the cheek, blood staining her alabaster coat from a long cut ending an inch from her eye. Growling, she countered, driving her blade straight towards his heart with all her strength; her foe only barely countered, catching her blade at the base of his sword, but the strength of her blow threw him backwards, his boots leaving a furrow in the canyon floor as he struggled to remain on his feet.
“Washington, I’ll never let you join the other Elements!” Celestia stood before the Tree of Harmony, her sword pointed directly at Washington’s chest. “Patriotism has no place in Harmony! Allowing you to join the Elements would throw the country into chaos!"
Washington's face contorted in rage, his twisted gold and ivory dentures exposed in a grimace that would make even the bravest of men tremble quiver in fear. “Do you not understand my pain? My curse? I will only obtain rest when I join with the other Elements! After countless years of this charade did you not even gain an ounce of sympathy for my plight?”
“I know you do not lust for battle, Washington! I understand your pain, that what you have become is not your fault, but an attempt for achieving freedom for yourself and your countrymen. But this is Equestria. It is not your home, not Earth, not the United States, and most of all, not filled with the humans of your own world. I am responsible for it, and if anything was to happen, it would rest on my shoulders to bear those troubles.” Celestia narrowed her eyes, drops of blood dripping like tears from her cheek. “Which is why I can never allow you the solace you seek, for the consequences are too great to imagine.”
Washington nodded. “I thought you would say something like that. But like my fellow countryman Mr. Henry used to say, ‘Give me liberty, or give me death!’” And with that, Washington took a running start at Celestia, his single shot pistol spewing forth an impossible rain of bullets.. Celestia deflected each one in turn, until she was met with the keen edge of Washington’s sword once again, pressed perilously close to her neck. “And we both already know death is no longer an option for me, Celestia, so let it be liberty instead!”
Throwing Washington back, Celestia struck back, every lightning-quick stroke of his sword met by a thrust of her own, the crash of swords and the spark of steel on steel putting any thunderstorm to shame. Sparks flew from their blades as they met in the dance of battle, the sound of steel striking upon steel filling the air like the ringing of bells. Whenever one would seem to gain the upper hand, the other pulled out an extra pocket of strength from somewhere deep within to drive them back with a barrage of attacks that could only barely be contained back. Soon, Celestia’s perfectly polished armor from before was pockmarked with dents and tarnished by scrapes. Washington's attires were almost in tatters, his body bruised and beaten, but the unresisting resilience of the general within never gave up or admitted defeat.
“Just give up, Washington. You are but in control of one Element, while I have power of three!” Celestia shouted, barely heard over the clanging of their swords. She twirled the tip of her blade about and was successful in slashing a wide gash across in chest, his shirt already covered in a copious amount of bloodstains.
With an enraged snarl Washington beat Celestia back, driving her to her knees with a particularly powerful strike that made her blade quiver the force of the blow. “You seem to forget, Celestia, while you have power over three of the Elements, I am an Element!” Holding his arms straight out from his sides, Washington screamed, the heavens tearing themselves asunder. Illuminated in a stunning aurora of red, white, and blue, Washington pointed his sword to the air as an eagle-shaped lightningbolt hit the tip of his blade, charging him in a field of raw power unlike the which anyone has ever seen. “For I am the Element of Patriotism, my blood spilled on countless battlefields in the pursuit of freedom! My might is unmatched and my power truly just! So prepare yourself, Celestia, for what patriotism can really do!”
“Wait, seriously?” Twilight asked, moving out of her hiding place behind the Tree of Harmony. “You’re the Element of Patriotism? How is that even a thing?”
“Twilight?” Celestia called, glancing over her shoulder. “What in blazes are you doing here? This fight is much too dangerous for yo—”
Celestia’s words were cut off by Washington’s mean right hook, the power of the punch lifting her off her hooves for a moment before she crashed to the ground on her side. Jumping over her body, Washington made a mad-dash for the Tree of Harmony. “Patriotism is victorious once again! USA, USA, USA!” Washington laughed, saluting to Twilight as he ran past her.
Twilight was at Celestia’s side in an instant, holding her teacher’s still body in her hooves as tears ran down her cheeks. “No… no, it can’t be! Princess Celestia! Celestia, please, wake up!” Twilight called out, shaking her teacher in a desperate bid to awaken her. Twilight shook Celestia’s head like a ragdoll, nearly dislocating her neck. “No, I can’t lose you like this! Not like this, never like this!” Tears rolled down Twilight’s face like a stream as Celestia remained unresponsive, her tongue splayed out while her black eye twitched involuntarily.
Sniffling, Twilight cradled Celestia’s head, petting her mane slowly as her helmet fell to the ground. Ever so slowly, Twilight closed her eyes and pouted her lips, drawing her face closer to Celestia’s until their lips were nearly touching. That is, until Celestia opened one of her eyes, her first sight being Twilight’s lips nearing her own.
“Whoa, whoa, hold up!” Celestia said, shoving a hoof against Twilight’s face and pushing her back. “I was only ‘dead’ for less than five seconds and you already were trying to kiss me?”
Twilight’s face turned a deep red, sweat instead of tears dripping down her face. “Well, I-I thought it was… was standard procedure for when someone close to you died and… well, you were just laying right there and I—”
“Twilight, you were going to kiss me when you thought I was dead! You know how gross that is? Kissing a corpse? Just… ugh!” Celestia slowly got back to all fours, her balance thrown off but not completely gone. “Okay, we’ll talk about this with a therapist back when we get back home. Where’s Washington?”
Twilight pointed to the Tree of Harmony. “I think over there jumping up and down while fistpumping.”
“Finally, after an eternity of suffering, sweet release shall be mine!” Washington cheered, touching the surface of the Tree of Harmony. The contact enveloped Washington in a halo of illumination, his body quickly dissolving into small orbs of different colored lights that floated up and quickly disappeared in the air. “I’m finally coming home, Lady Liberty, into your sweet bosom of freedom!” And with that, Washington was gone.
“Oh no. Ooooooh no, this is bad,” Celestia whispered.
“How bad?” Twilight asked.
Suddenly, the earth began to shift and crack. With a burst of dirt, a decaying hand burst forth from below, soon joined by a second, then a third, waving around as the ground began to subside, revealing more of the dead things as they struggled to rise.
“Huh. So, the prophesied apocalypse is a horde of zombies?” Celestia said, standing still before the tide of newly awakened undead as she slowly surveyed them. “That’s… pretty anticlimactic, now that I think about it.”