Fall of the Crystal Empire

by Blaster Master

Chapter 1

Prologue

Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, long before Twilight Sparkle or any of her friends, there lived two Unicorn sisters. They were named Celestia and Luna. They lived their lives contently, until a creature named Discord arrived in their fair country. He was the spirit of chaos, and amused himself creating strife and disharmony across the land. Unable to stand by as Discord tore the land asunder, the two sisters embarked on a daring quest to find six artifacts called the “Elements of Harmony”. Their journey was perilous and long, but as the two gathered the Elements one by one, they learned lessons on the true meaning of friendship. When they had all six, they unlocked the true power hidden within the Elements, and defeated the villainous Discord, trapping him in stone for all time.

Their acts of bravery, wisdom, and love forever changed them, allowed them to ascend to a higher state of being, and the two sisters became Equestria’s first Alicorns, embodying the strengths of all of Ponydom. Celestia became the Princess of the Day, and raised the sun, while Luna became the Princess of the Night, and raised the moon. They were heralded as saviors and the ponies of Equestria begged for their wisdom and guidance. And so, the royal sisters were chosen as the sovereign rulers of Equestria. And together, their rule was just and true.

As rulers of their country, the two sisters became acquainted with many other rulers, but none more closely than the Crystal Ponies to the far north. The sisters considered the Crystal Empire and its fair king a valuable ally and friend. Little did the Princesses know of the darkness that dwelled in the Crystal Empire…

Chapter 1
The wind howled and the snow fell heavily in the North. A procession of Pegasi flew through the dark and stormy skies, led by a shining light at the head of the column. Celestia, Princes of the sun, used her horn as a shining beacon so that her royal procession might follow her. Close by her side was her younger sister Luna, Princess of the moon, and behind them was their personal guard, clad in furs to protect themselves from the biting cold of the North.

Ahead, the Crystal Empire gleamed like a jewel, its vast meadows and crystalline spires gleaming brilliantly. The royal procession flew into the Empire’s protective bubble and warmth and light hit them instantly, drying their wet coats and lifting their spirits. They flew across the main city and landed in front of the tall Crystal Palace where a company of Crystal Guardsponies awaited them, their armor glistening as brightly as their coats.

Celestia stood forward, her quad-colored mane flowing as she raised her head proudly.

“NOBLE GUARDS OF THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE!” Celestia boomed, using the traditional Canterlot Voice, “AT THE BEHEST OF YOUR LORD AND MASTER, WE HAVE FLOWN MANY MILES TO ENJOY THE HOSPITALITY OF THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE! WE WOULD HAVE AN AUDIENCE WITH YOUR KING SO THAT HE MAY RECEIVE US!”

A few moments later, the great gates into the palace opened and a male Crystal Alicorn stepped forth. He was of equal stature to Celestia and also sported royal regalia, including the silver crown of the Crystal Empire. It was a simple band of silver, sporting two spikes over each temple, yet is signified the Alicorn as the king of the Northern lands.

“GREETING, PRINCESSES CELESTIA AND LUNA!” The Alicorn bellowed, “I, KING LUZRA CADENZA, WELCOME YOU TO MY FINE HOME!”

***

“Must we do that every time we see each other, Celestia?” King Cadenza asked at the dinner table, a short while later. The table was laden with fine foods from across the Empire; fruits, vegetables, pastries, and sweets fit for a royal palette. The king sat at the head of the table, with his queen at his left. The seat to his right was empty.

“Tis tradition to speak unto subjects and at formal occasions with such intonation!” Luna clarified, her royal vocabulary ringing out just below a shout, “As it has been for royals of Canterlot for generations!”

“Still, perhaps since we aren’t in Canterlot, we should abide by the wishes of the king,” Celestia advised, her voice at a more reasonable volume.

“Verily…” Luna said, much quieter and somewhat embarrassed.

“I’m glad you invited us over again Luzra,” Celestia said down the table “It’s been far too long. Cadance hadn’t even been born when we were last here!”

“She’s grown into such a beautiful little filly,” Queen Sonatina said with pride, putting a hoof on her chest.
“Where is she?” Celestia asked, “I thought she’d be here at dinner with us.”

“She’s probably off exploring the castle,” Luzra said with a smile, “She likes to run around, pretending to be on adventures. I have Commander Citrine looking for her.”

“And are we missing somepony else?” Celestia asked, looking at the empty seat next to the king.

“Ah! Just my brother” Luzra said with a dismissive wave of his hoof “He probably won’t join us. My little brother’s always studying in his tower, I’m lucky to see him at all! Still, he’s come up with some phenomenal advances in magical studies, but isn’t ready to release his findings to our scholars yet. He says they need ‘fine tuning’.”

“Will you excuse me, sister?” Luna said as she stepped back from the table and headed for the door.

“Luna!” Celestia called, surprised “Where are you going?”

“Just to get some air.”

And with that, Luna left, using her magic to close the doors behind her.

“It seems we have more in common than just our shared duties, Celestia” Luzra remarked “We both have siblings who like their air of mystery.”

***

Dusk was falling over the Crystal Empire, and the last vestiges of sunlight were shimmering upon the Crystal Palace. The collision of lights upon the glassy surface was truly breathtaking. But it went unnoticed by one set of eyes. A set of eyes focused intently on its task.

Lord Sombra, younger brother of the king, stood in his tower’s study. Here, he conducted his research into magic. Book shelves lined the walls and crystals of varying shapes and colors were scattered about, along with rolls upon rolls of parchment with notes. Sombra stood before a three foot tall pile of icy chunks brought in from the wasteland which sat, slowly melting, upon the floor. He consulted his notes, read them thoroughly, and set them down.

This time it had to work.

He focused his magic into his horn. He concentrated on the ebb and flow of his magical energy in his body and how it came from his horn. Dark beams fired from the red horn and enveloped the icy pile. It began to move and shift, arranging itself into something. Fruition! It was working! It was-

“Uncle Sombra!”

Startled by the sudden interruption, Sombra lost his focus and the spell was broken. The magic flow ceased and the ice blocks collapsed back into a simple pile. Sombra whirled around, furious.

“Oops…”

It was Cadance, still a mere Unicorn foal. She had only recently gotten her cutie mark, a blue crystal with gold trim. She had come to see her uncle, who was always doing some kind of cool experiment; he let her watch sometimes and she thought it was funny when he used big words like “extrapolate” and “quantifiable”. But it looked like she had interrupted something important.

“Sorry…” Cadance apologized meekly.

Sombra’s teeth grated audibly and a vein pulsed in his forehead. He exhaled through his teeth, making a hissing noise akin to a snake. Then he closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, and let his breath go. And just like that, his composure was fully restored.

“That’s quite all right, Cadance,” Sombra said evenly, “Just make sure you knock next time, rather than barge in.”

“OK!” Cadance said, her good cheer back “Whatcha up to? Some new magic stuff?”

She approached and saw his pile of ice.

“Are you trying to make this ice into something, Uncle Sombra?”

“Actually, I am. Watch a moment, and stay perfectly quiet. I think you’ll be surprised.”

He went back to concentrating. His magic flowed from his horn into the ice. He set his brow and made his focus laser-like. The ice began to move again, this time without interruption. Before Cadance’s eyes, she saw the beginnings of legs, and then a body, and finally a head and tail. Sombra had crafted the ice to look like a large dog, even taller than the young princess. Then Sombra’s eyes gleamed with purple energy as he sent the last push of his energy into the construct. Its ‘eyes’ glowed a sinister yellow. Its mouth opened to reveal rows of razor sharp, icy teeth. It stepped towards Cadance, giving a slight growl as it bore down on her. The foal began to retreat, scared by her uncle’s creation.

“Now, now…” Sombra assured her in a tone that was far from assuring, “Don’t be afraid…”

“HOLD CREATURE!”

Again surprised, Sombra turned to see Princess Luna in the doorway, reared up to her full height with her wings spread menacingly.

“BEFORE THOU LAY A PAW UPON THINE FOAL, THOU SHALL FACE THE WRATH OF-!”

But Sombra raised a hoof, interrupting Luna.

“Please, your highness. There’s nothing to fear here.”

He turned back to the creature he had created and his niece. His horn glowed and the creature stepped forward, and in one swift motion, put his head between Cadance’s hooves and rolled her onto his back. He began a simple trot around the room, much to the delight of the little princess.

“But, that is an Ice Wolf…” Luna said, stupefied.

“Yes,” Sombra replied offhandedly, “And I made it. I crafted it with my own magicks and I control its every movement. They’re simple creatures to control; the difficulty is in forming them.”

“Amazing! We’ve never met a Unicorn able to fashion golems like that!” Luna complimented.

“I’m sure few Unicorns have put in the study time that as I have,” Sombra replied “But where are my manners?”
Lord Sombra gave a bow of his head.

“Welcome, it is always a pleasure to welcome the Princess of the Night into my tower.”

“When we saw thou were not at dinner, we decided to seek thee out,” Luna said, somewhat bashfully.

“I assume my brother invited you and your sister here for pleasantries?” Sombra inquired as he made his way to the balcony.

“Verily,” Luna replied, following after him, “But we had hoped we might get a chance to speak with thee, Lord Sombra. We find your theories of magic most interesting.”

“Oh? My theories were all you wished to discuss?” Sombra questioned, pouring on the charm.

“Well… We…” Luna stumbled over her words for a moment, then regained her voice “We initially sought thou out for discussions of magicks, but if there are other topics thou wish to discuss, we would not… Be adverse to this.”

The two went out to the balcony, leaving Cadance to play with the harmless Ice Wolf in Sombra’s study.

Author's Note:

First of, I know there's a fair about of head-cannoning going on, but it's a fan fiction, right? Second of all, I know that, officially, Cadance was a Pegasus who became an Alicorn. But I wrote this story before I learned that, and for the sake of my story she starts off as a Unicorn.

Comments

[Ese Wey]

Very good my fine sir, I am enjoying this very much I shall follow your story. Also may I know were is this pegasus cadence story, I havent heard of it and would love to see it.

[TimeKeeper112]

Continue :)

[Starlight Nova]

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