Dealing With the Consequences
Chapter 1
The world stood still that day. Everyone looked around at each other with terror in their eyes… watching… wondering, what might happen next to them on this day, that would go down in history as legend.
The citizens of Canterlot who weren’t cowering under the nearest park bench or table in the busy streets of the capital, was holding onto the nearest person to them for reassurance.
There were however those with their own Idle curiosity thinking that if they turned their tired and tear stained eyes to the sky, they might see the one who had guided them through thick and thin these last few hundred years.
The one that they wanted to see however, to tell them that everything was alright again, would never show her face that day.
Princess Celestia the controller of the Sun, deity of the land of Equestria, was in no mood to be praised, right now… she couldn’t even bear the look of her own reflection in the puddle of tears that she had made. Her mane was a mess. She was bruised, battered and bleeding from multiple wounds across her face, legs and sides. Amongst the broken pieces of stained glass strewn all over the floor of the cold stone room, not even the dim torchlight could even bring the faintest comfort of warmth to her.
Princess Celestia Lay curled up at the base of the alter of the Elements of Harmony. The most treasured defence of Equestria.
As she gazed at the sixth element, (the element of magic) she observed as it’s vibrant purple colour began to drain, slowly at first, starting from the tips of the six points around its starry shape, and gradually getting faster.
Celestia pounced on it like a crazed cat, panicked, and picked the element up, cradling it in her hooves delicately.
“NO...NO NO NO NO NO NO!” She cried as the last of it’s colour came to a focal point in the center of the precious gemstone. Looking closer with her blurred teary eyes, she watched as the element began to crack where the focal point of the elements energy lay causing a purple aura to seep out of the gap and drop onto the floor where it dissipated leaving behind only a blackened shell.
Terror gripped the Solar Monarch at this point, eyes darting around for something, anything that could fix this. She finally looked up at the horn protruding from her forehead and spawned an Idea.
Using all her concentration, she pointed said horn at the element and charged up a spell, searching deep down for what shreds of kindness, hope and affection she could find to maybe re-kindle the life of the Element of Magic, the most powerful of the elements in the arsenal.
When the energy in her golden aura had come to a critical moment Celestia closed her eyes, concentrating hard, a bead of sweat making its way down her brow, she finally, gently touched the tip of her horn to the element, allowing her magic to flow into it as if she were giving a dying patient CPR.
“Please” she whispered “Work…”
The element responded, there was a violent flash of light, sending the startled ruler backwards, crashing against the same altar she had started from.
The alter shook from the impact, sending the other elements crashing to the floor where they all in turn shattered into a thousand shards each.
Celestia could only stare, as time seemed to slow down, she named each one as it touched, paused and then exploded in a colorful light show making her pink mane wisp behind her as if it were smoke.
Kindness, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity and lastly, the one that broke her heart…
Laughter.
Celestia was engulfed in a rainbow of colour that washed past her caressing her mane stinging her still bleeding wounds as they travelled the length of her form like each one were punishing her that little bit more than she needed at that moment in time.
Begrudgingly she turned, no expression on her face but a mask of utter hopelessness, her mouth ever so slightly agape, and watched as the rainbow wafted past her eventually dissipating as it drifted out of the shattered window above the door to the chamber and out into the cold air.
That was the crippling blow, Celestia stood shaking from the effort and the contained rage, her lower lip began to tremble, her eyes squinted as fresh water came from her eyes and cascaded down her face, she looked back to the cursed altar and chose it as the target of her anger.
“YOU!” she snarled, bearing her pearl white teeth to the inanimate object.
“HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN!” She advanced on her target slowly, a maniacal look in her eyes.
“YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO GUIDE HARMONY, NOT LET IT FALL APART!”
“YOU PROMISED ME PEACE! YOU PROMISED A BRIGHTER FUTURE!”
Celestia gulped for air, burning her lungs, crying herself hysterical
“YOU WERE THE ALLY TO OUR NATION”.
Turning in a flash she reared and bucked the stone with all her might, smashing it as if it were made of glass.
Breathing hard, eyes and lungs burning, the broken mare lifted her wearisome face to the sky, as it stared back at her, taunting her, and let out a blood curdling scream, not caring who heard her tattered cries here in the depths of the castle grounds.
All she cared was that her sister, Luna, the only one who ever knew her, loved her and she had loved back, was gone without a trace and she had only herself to blame, her own foolish, blind self.
Eventually Celestia heard a sound that made her ears perk forwards. Looking down at the floor between her hooves, Celestia notices a piece of the shattered glass window that had been broken earlier.
Like a dagger in her heart, Irony was a cruel mistress this night, the shard depicted an alabaster mare with a multi-colored mane elegant as the northern lights, Golden tiara proudly adorning her head, wings flared above her head as the character beamed down her nose back at Celestia.
She kicked the shard, making a distinct sound of her metal clad hooves contacting glass. It skimmed away across the floor into the furthest reaches of the room. She made a mental note to destroy it later.
Finally energy spent, all breath gone from her slender frame and not a tear left to give. The Monarch looked away in disgust and turned. Trying to take a tentative step forward to get away from this mess, she tripped, stumbled and collapsed in the corner of the now dark chamber.
With no defences of tactics left up her sleeves, Celestia succumbed to the weight of her treacherous eyelids, feeling her head fall to the floor, causing her to drown in the depths of slumber.
This night had been a night of hurt, fear and sadness.
It was a night of nightmares
This was the first, Nightmare Night.