//------------------------------//
// Cold Loneliness, Part I - The Beginning of the Storm 
// Story: The Taking of Tartarus 
// by Rakoon1 
//------------------------------//

In the past,

In the past, Equestria at a time, when the Light Kingdom lived under the reign of Princess Aurora and before Celestia and Luna took their duty as regent princesses, was ruled by the latters’ parents, Queen Galaxia and King Cosmos. They were both alicorn, transformed by the Lord of Order years after the foundation of the Light Kingdom, having been chosen to rise up the Sun and the Moon respectively and ensure the balance between day and night.

One day, their two daughters, Celestia and Luna, who inherited the alicorn characteristics of their parents, played happily in the garden of their huge castle in Everfree Forest. It looked like they were playing hide and seek, but they were the ones who were seeking...

"Where do you think she is, Celestia?" Luna asked.

"I don't know, Luna” Celestia answered. "She should be here."

They passed through a bush that suddenly moved the leaves. Curious about what could have caused that, the two little princesses approached for a closer look and it was then that somepony appeared, throwing herself to them, what made them fall to the ground on their back. Celestia and Luna looked and saw a filly slightly older than both of them. She was an alicorn like them with a white coat, even whiter than Celestia’s. Her mane glowed and flowed like liquid silver and her blue eyes were like a sky.

"Ingrid!" Celestia and Luna exclaimed, sketching a huge smile.

"I got you" she said, getting out of them and letting the two princesses getting up.

After that, the three shared a big group hug. They were the three daughters of the King and Queen of Equestria and it seemed that nothing could separate them. But that wasn't true.

In the present...

In Tartarus, the Lord of Chaos descended to the solitary in order to release a one more villain who could finally give him the victory that he wanted. While he walked, he said:

"I have to admit. Without Fire Punch, this became quite tedious. After all, I don't have no one to discharge my anger."

And that's when he arrived to the two last cells whose doors he didn’t destroy yet: those that contained the villains that were defeated by Golden Paladin and Heartbeat.

"I never thought I'd have to use any of these two, but desperate situations call for desperate ways" the Lord of Chaos said. "Having only two options left, it's pretty obvious which one I should choose?"

And, having said this, he began to break down the door with Heartbeat’s Cutie Mark. When it fell shortly after, the Lord of Chaos entered in the cell. There was no one there except a pillar that had only a golden urn. The Lord of Chaos approached the urn and said:

"So this is where Heartbeat put you. Poor thing... Closed in an urn for over a thousand years. But what terrible fate. Fortunately, I can finally free you from this prison and grant you freedom."

Having said this, the Lord of Chaos took the urn, opened it and turned it upside down, making a white liquid being spilled on the floor. The fluid moved a few inches and then stopped, starting to lift and to shape. Soon, it was shaped as a pony with wings and horn, an alicorn. It was then that the liquid just turned into flesh. 

In its place, there was now an alicorn mare whose coat was so white that glowed with a snow flake as Cutie Mark. Her silvery mane undulated as if it were liquid silver, adorned with a crystal crown, and her eyes were opened, revealing a deep shade of azure, where once were full of joy, only to now have sadness and loneliness.

Her mere presence made the air heavy and cold and ice began appearing throughout the cell. She looked around and then saw the urn that was at Lord of Chaos’s hands. She pointed her hoof and she created an icy wind that hit the urn, freezing it in such a way that it was destroyed and broken in a lot of pieces.

"I'm glad you're back... Princess Ingrid "the Lord of Chaos said.

"Princess Ingrid died" she replied, coldly. "Now, there's only the Snow Queen."

"Of course" the Lord of Chaos said. "It couldn't be otherwise."

"Why did you let me get out?" Ingrid asked.

"I need your help to rule this world" the Lord of Chaos replied, approaching Ingrid. "Of course, to do that, Equestria will have to fall. As well as your sisters."

"I have no sisters” Ingrid answered. "Not now, not ever."

The Lord of Chaos was pleased to see that the hatred that Ingrid had for her two sisters was still persisted.

"Good, that means you won't have problems in helping me" the Lord of Chaos said.

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to get involved in matters that have to do with Equestria" Ingrid replied.

And, with this, she began heading to the exit of the cell, but the Lord of Chaos appeared in front of her and said to her:

"I get it. I was betrayed by my own brother too. I understand your pain. But I can end it. I can end your pain, your suffering, your loneliness. I can make this world a better place."

"Destroying it?" Ingrid asked, a bit skeptical.

"Yes, destroying it" the Lord of Chaos answered.

When Ingrid was not yet convinced, the Lord of chaos said, while surrounding her:

"Didn't you like that all those who made you suffer to pay? Think about it. You could get Celestia and Luna who turned against you. You could get Heartbeat that imprisoned you in an urn for over a thousand years. You could get your revenge from everypony. And so I had destroyed this world, you can rebuild it with your ideals. Bring back the perfect life you had as a filly."

Those attractive words of the Lord of Chaos began to take effect in Ingrid who really was contemplate them and trying to figure out if she would be willing to follow the Lord of Chaos’ plan.

In Canterlot, Celestia was in the throne room when his sister, Luna, entered.

"Luna, are you awake at this time of the day?" she asked.

"I just needed a few hours of sleep" Luna answered. "Don't worry, sister. I'm well rested."

"Good" Celestia said, as they headed towards the balcony of the throne room and saw Canterlot in the light of that spring day where it could feel the arrival of summer. "There’s nothing like some quality time for us to spent together as sisters."

"Yes, you're right" Luna agreed.

But that moment was interrupted when heavy clouds filled the sky, hiding the sun.

"This is weird" Celestia said. "According to reports that I received from the pegasi, today it wasn't supposed to rain."

The clouds, instead of making rain fall, made snow fall, something that has left the inhabitants of Canterlot quite flabbergasted.

"Snow?" Luna asked, not wanting to believe. "When we're near the summer?"

That snow left Celestia edgy. It could not be the work of pegasi. There was something strange in that snow. Seemed like... magic. Then, to her shock, she realized who was behind that snow.

"No…" she said, stepping back. "It cannot be..."

"What's up, sister?" Luna asked.

But before that Celestia could say anything, a strong cold wind began to blow, turning that snowfall in a storm that made the two princesses back into the castle, squinting. When they were able to open them again, they found Ingrid, hoofs a way of them.

"Hello, my sisters" she greeted. "Miss me?"

"Ingrid?!" Celestia and Luna exclaimed.

"So, do you remember me" Ingrid said.

"How could we have forgotten you" Celestia said, advancing one step. "You're our sister. We love you."

"Of course, you love me so much that you left Heartbeat trap me in an urn and then put me in a cell in the solitary of Tartarus" Ingrid said.

"You left us no other choice" Luna replied. "You were out of control. We had to stop you somehow."

"And now the situation is reversed" Ingrid said. "To be able to achieve my goals, I will now to stop you."

"Goals?" Celestia asked, don’t liking it one bit. "What goals?"

"You don't have to worry about that" Ingrid replied while charging her horn with magic. "You won't be here when I achieve them."

Celestia and Luna exchanged a look and then the last said, moving forward:

"Please, Ingrid, whatever the Lord of Chaos said to you..."

But she didn’t finish, because Ingrid launched against her a magic lightning, with Luna puttin a hoof in front of her face to protect herself. As soon as she was hit in the foreleg, Luna froze, becoming an ice statue of herself.

"LUNA!" Celestia exclaimed, turning to Ingrid. "How could you do this, Ingrid? You're our sister!"

"Don't worry" Ingrid said. "She will be fine, as long as nothing happens to her. It is not that my intention is to hurt you so easily. But I have plans, plans that don’t need the interference of two certain alicorn princesses to be realized."

Having heard Celestia’s cries, a group of Royal guards entered, led by the captain who said:

"Your Highnesses, is everything okay?"

But before they could do anything, Ingrid launched her magic on them and also froze them. She turned then to Celestia, but saw that she was no longer where she was before, having taking flight from the balcony.

"There's no way you're going to escape me, sis" Ingrid said.

She also took flight and began a pursuit. Celestia was trying to fly as fast as she could, but the snow and the cold that existed due to her sister’s presence in Canterlot were hindering his breathing, she tired more quickly. Ingrid, on the other hand, just kept getting stronger and faster.

The Snow Queen released her magical beams against Celestia, trying to freeze her in the same way as Luna froze, but she could always escape. The ponies down there, wondered about what was going to be snowing like that, could see the fight that was happening above.

Ingrid was starting to get quite frustrated by her sister being avoiding her attacks, since in that snowstorm she had advantage. Using all her anger and frustration, she released more magic beam. Celestia tried to Dodge it, but, to her great shock, one of her wings was hit and frozen. Without it, Celestia began to fall, to the shock of everypony watching. Ingrid began to fly down to be at the same level as Celestia.

"This time, you cannot escape."

And, having said this, she launched its magic on Celestia and managed to freeze her. Before the ice statue could fall on the ground, Ingrid used her magic to keep it in the air and then took it back to the castle. Landing in the throne room, Ingrid put the ice statue of Celestia next to Luna’s, saying then, referring to them:

"You are very lucky you haven’t broken into a million pieces. However, I want you to be witnesses of the kingdom I will build, while you are trapped in the same way I was trapped for centuries. This world will know the real winter, a winter even more terrifying than the Windigo’s."

And, with this, she began to unleash her magic through her horn, while laughing evilly. That magic began to create ice that started covering all throne room and, shortly after, the whole Castle. The storm intensified and began spreading in all directions of Equestria, having Canterlot as its center.

In the Light Kingdom, preparations were being made in the castle for a large event that was bound to happen: Prince Star Knight’s first anniversary. Having a few days remaining before that day to come, Twilight had already called her friends to come help in the preparations. 

Pinkie Pie was responsible for organizing the party, making sure everything was going perfectly, while Applejack was responsible for the catering and Rarity for the decoration of the Great Hall. Rainbow Dash would help in tasks that demanded her strength or her wings and Fluttershy was training the light birds, which lived within the borders of the Light Kingdom, so they could sing at the party.

The Generals were also giving their contribution. Golden Paladin would make sure that nothing and nopony would ruin the party to the little prince; Mirror Coat and Purple Smoke would each one make a little show of entertainment with the former using his mirrors and the last using his transformation expertise, using an assistant that would be who would be transformed (a way of Purple Smoke show that his abilities to transform other ponies had improved), and the one who had accepted his invitation to be his assistant was the most crazy and insane pony known in that world: Pinkie Pie, who said it would be fun to be Purple Smoke’s guinea pig (even, in her words, she wasn’t a guinea pig); Melody would also act at the party, singing the happy birthday song to Star with Fluttershy’s birds; Leaf Mane would bring beautiful plants to decorate the Hall to give a more natural look, like ivy and colorful flowers, and Heartbeat was dealing with the gift from the Generals to Star. All Generals said she was the best at giving gifts, because she knew always what gift a pony would like to receive, although she kept it a secret so that all would know at the time of the party.

During a break, when everypony sat down at the table to eat a small snack with tea and cookies, Twilight said to her friends, being next to her husband, Blue:

"Thank you very much for helping me, girls. I know that’s a long way between Ponyville and the Light Kingdom."

"Don't be ridiculous, Twi" Applejack said. "We would give an entire lap around tha pony world jest tah take a snack like this with ya."

"So I had to get out of Ponyville a few weeks before you get the snack" Pinkie Pie said. "And this is just counting only traveling on land, because there would be also the seas and the oceans."

"No one can go around the world so fast" Heartbeat said. "Well, I can, but..."

"It was jest a figure of speech" Applejack answered them.

"Oh!" the two exclaimed.

"But then why didn't you say so?" Heartbeat asked.

"Yes, Applejack, you know by chance that when you say something with the wrong words you can create misunderstanding?" Pinkie Pie asked.

That made Applejack to pass her hoof though her face, while everyone else laughed.

"But continuing with our original conversation, I have to say, Twilight, that doing the trip in the Light Express makes it much faster and comfortable" Rarity said.

"Yes, even my foal agrees that was a very comfortable trip" Fluttershy said, passing her hoof by her big belly.

"It's hard to believe that Thunder Night left you come without him" Twilight said to Fluttershy.

"Yes, when Twilight was a few weeks of having Star, I wouldn't leave her side even for nothing" Blue said.

"Well, he also wanted to come, but he had to go take care of some things in Hollow Shades, as after the wedding he will come to live with me" Fluttershy said. "However, there was no problem."

"Yes, that's because it took us a little while to arrive" Rainbow Dash said. "Imagine if I could fly at the same speed as that train? I would be the world's fastest pony."

"Technically, the second fastest" Heartbeat corrected. "I am the fastest pony."

"I bet I can beat you in a race with my eyes closed, Heartbeat" Rainbow Dash said. "After all, you're nothing but a filly."

That left everyone in suspense.

“Rainbow Dash, please tell us you didn't say that" Melody said.

"What?" Rainbow Dash asked. "I can be faster than this little filly? But of course I can."

Heartbeat contorted her face, angry. The ground started to tremble slightly, as she began to unleash her unstable power. All ponies, except Rainbow Dash, found shelter under the table, not wanting to be in front of Heartbeat right now.

"You're going to be sorry for challenging, Rainbow Dash!" Heartbeat exclaimed.

"I don't think so" she replied, grinning provocatively. "I think you're the one who will regret for challenge me."

"Going to a race?"

"Anytime, anywhere."

"Cool, a race!" Pinkie exclaimed, coming out under the table. “Who wants to bet? I bet two bits on Heartbeat."

"What?!" Rainbow Dash asked, not wanting to believe. "You're going to bet on her, Pinkie?!"

"No offense, Dashie, you know how I love you, but I can't deny the evidence that Heartbeat is faster than you" she replied. "Besides, she is more scary than you."

After what Pinkie tell, Heartbeat turned to her with a smile and said:

"Oh, thank you, Pinkie. That's the nicest thing anypony said to me today."

And with Heartbeat calming down, the earthquake stopped, which made everypony go out safely under the table.

"Wow, that was close" Purple Smoke said.

"We were sav’d by Pinkie" Applejack said. "But who would have guess’d. This is one of tha few times that happens."

It was then that the doors of the Great Hall opened and one of the guards appeared, carrying with his magic a big, rectangular, brown package.

"I'm sorry, but a package came to Miss Heartbeat" he said.

He hadn't even finished the sentence when Heartbeat appeared right next to him, using her speed.

"Good, my order arrived!" she exclaimed, getting the order with her magic, while the guard got out.

"You see?" Pinkie Pie asked to Rainbow Dash, referring to Heartbeat’s speed, something that made the pegasus roll her eyes.

"What is that, Heartbeat?" Twilight asked.

"It's just a little thing that I ordered to made with something I found" she replied.

"Little?" Purple Smoke repeated. "You've got to be kidding. This thing is anything but little."

"It's Star's birthday gift" Heartbeat said.

That captured Purple Smoke’s interest and he asked:

"And what is it?"

But that earned him one of Heartbeat’s piercing looks which made him swallow and say, while he sat:

"Forget my question."

"Well, I'll put it in my room and hide it very well" Heartbeat said. "Don't even try to look for it because you will never find. Until the party, that is."

And, having said this, she went out of the room.

"Damn, I wish I could know what is that thing" Purple Smoke said.

"You might as well give up trying to guess" Melody said. "Have you forgotten what happened the last time you tried to find out what Heartbeat would give to Princess Aurora on her birthday?"

That made Purple Smoke have a shudder and say:

"I don't even want to remember."

"What happened?" Twilight asked, curious.

"Let's just say it wasn't pretty" Melody answered.

"I said I don't want to remember" Purple Smoke said to Melody. "Can you stop talking about it?"

And that made all laugh.

But the happiness was short-lived when Heartbeat’s alarm started to sound.

"What?!" Twilight asked. "Seriously? When it's very little time for Star's birthday?"

"The sound that alarm is doing, it seems to me that is one of the villains from the solitary, right?" Blue noted.

"You're right, Prince Blue Sword" Golden Paladin replied. "It is precisely that. And, given that there's only two left, there is no reason to celebrate. I just hope it's not who I'm thinking."

"Are you referring to the villain you defeated?" Twilight asked.

But Golden Paladin didn't answer her, which was odd because he always answered her, even if it was something he didn't know or preferred not to give his reply.

"Mirror Coat, what villain is?" the leader of the Generals asked.

Mirror Coat’s shone with a light blue glow for a few seconds and, when they returned to normal, he said:

"Oh no, it's the Snow Queen."

"Ingrid" Golden Paladin said. "So now it's her."

"But who is she?" Blue asked.

"Ingrid was defeated by Heartbeat" Leaf Mane said. "She's pretty powerful."

"I just heard my name" Heartbeat said, entering the Great Hall. "Who's powerful?"

"Ingrid" Melody replied. "The Lord of Chaos freed her."

"Princess Ingrid?" Heartbeat asked. "Well, it was to expect. After all, the Lord of Chaos is running out of resources when it comes to the villains from the solitary."

"Wait a minute" Rainbow Dash said. "Mirror Coat just called her Snow Queen, but Heartbeat called her Princess Ingrid. But who is she anyway?"

"It's an alicorn Princess, just like Princess Twilight and the other princesses" Golden Paladin answered.

That information left everyone amazed.

"Wait, ya mean there's an alicorn princess helpin’ tha Lord of Chaos?" Applejack asked.

"Technically, she's a fallen princess" Heartbeat said. "She handed the light of her star seed at the Lord of Chaos’ service."

"She's very powerful," said Leaf Mane. "It's known as the Princess of Winter. The Lord of Order planned her birth so she could compensate my powers’ flaws in the balance of seasons. For that reason, my power over nature is not strong enough against her power over ice as fire and ice are my only weakness, acting as key drivers of its renewal. She also could withstand the attacks of all of us, but, fortunately, Heartbeat defeated her by imprisoning her inside a special urn."

"But what does she want?" Twilight asked.

"In my opinion, revenge" Golden Paladin replied.

"Against who?" Blue asked.

The Generals traded looks with each other, as if pondering if they should answer Twilight’s question.

"I hate when they do that" Rainbow Dash said.

Finally, they seemed to agree to answer. Golden Paladin said:

"Mainly, against whom she thinks that betrayed her, the ponies that share the same blood as her."

"Siblings?" she asked. "But who?"

"The only alicorn princesses at this time that existed at the time when she was captured by Heartbeat” Golden Paladin answered. "She is Princess Celestia and Princess Luna’s older sister."

That information got all flabbergasted and speechless.

"Hold on a second" Pinkie Pie said, while she drank all her tea and then spat it out at once.