A New Era
It was hot.
Far too hot.
Twilight stood in the castle courtyard, right where the sun was most intense, her coat glistening with sweat. No matter where she went, she could not seek any refuge from this sweltering weather. The heat index was on its third day, and rain had been very scarce since the summer began. The courtyard grass beneath her hooves started to turn a light brown, and the brittle blades crackled and snapped under her every step.
Her pace was slow and clumsy; the heat was already taking its toll on her body. She paused in front of two white stone statues. Both were nearly identical, depicting alicorn princesses with long, flowing manes. They faced each other, rearing on their hindquarters. Two horns were nearly touching tip to tip, and between the gap was a small stone carving of the moon and the sun, the only two things with color against the rest of the white stoned sculptures.
Right under their hooves was a large plaque, its length stretching from one alicorn to the next.
Princess Celestia, Ruler of Equestria, and riser of the Sun.
Princess Luna, Second Ruler of Equestria and princess of the night.
The very sight brought a tear to Twilight’s eye, and she wiped it away. It took almost ten years for her to agree, but she finally permitted the construction ponies to build a monument for the two princesses. She kept the plaque vague, however. All she wanted was to remember who they were and how they have served their kingdom over the millennia.
Twilight rattled the metal bars maniacally, screaming “MURDERER!” repeatedly. She screamed until her voice grew hoarse and her hooves ached. With one last cry, she released her hold on the bars and slumped down onto the hard, stony floor, weeping uncontrollably.
On the other side of the bars sat a lonesome prisoner, who kept his composure and watched the purple alicorn’s tantrum impassively. He was a feeble looking creature with scrawny brown hands and brittle fingers. The hood of his dark grey cloak obscured most of his face, but two yellow glows of his orbs shone through the shadow like the eyes of a predator.
“I see you are upset, princess.”
The calmness of his voice only intensified Twilight’s contempt. With swollen eyes, she glared at him and bared her teeth. “It’s all your fault,” she indicted, her voice wavering.
“So, it is,” he replied.
Princess Cadence appeared by Twilight’s side. A long, thick scar stretched across her right eye and ran all the way down to the base of her jaw. One of her wings was missing, and a stump of where it used to be took its place. Bruises of all colors and sizes splotched across different regions of her pink body, and she winced with every movement she made.
She wrapped her remaining wing around Twilight. “We have to decide what to do with you, Tirek.”
Tirek intertwined his fingers and rested his hands against his chest. “Indeed. That is why I am incarcerated. There is not much I can do; I am completely at your mercy.”
“Which we possess none for you,” the pink alicorn spat, fixing a harsh glare at the prisoner. “I am not one to support violence, but I say you deserve the death penalty for what you’ve done!”
“I killed both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.” He said it as if he had done nothing more than steal a cookie from the jar.
“Your murdered them!” Cadence’s voice echoed across the dungeon. Even Tirek was slightly taken aback by this intensity. A tear trickled down Cadence’s cheek.
After a moment’s hesitation, Tirek answered, “if you want to get technical with words, then yes, I murdered them.” And then gave her an empty yet slightly sadistic smile. “You would’ve met the same fate had the elements of harmony not defeated me.”
The muscles in Cadence’s jaw tightened, and her body vibrated with anger. But she said nothing.
Twilight held tight into her sister-in-law, and focused on Tirek. His wrists were bounded together by cuffs and a magical gag hung around his mouth as a group of sparkling dust. It was to disable him from sucking anyone’s magic. There was no way he could do anymore damage, and he had no way to free himself from the inevitable. And it appeared that he had come to terms with his fate.
Seeing this only made the purple alicorn tense. She had so many questions, but she could not comprehend past the fact that he had ruthlessly slaughtered Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. It didn’t even matter to her right now that how it was possible to kill somepony immortal; they were gone. Gone.
Gone...
“It’s very hot outside; you should be in doors!”
Twilight did not turn around. “Please, Blueblood, let me be.”
“What are you doing out here?” The prince pressed, and he then appeared next to her. Twilight watched as his lips twitched, as they always did whenever he gazed at the alicorn statues. “Don’t tell me that you still think that somehow they’ll come back.”
It was a stupid thought on her part, but she could never let that go. “They’re immortal.” It was an excuse she would always use, and it seemed to be the most supportive for her little fantasy, which had been slipping away over the years.
Prince Blueblood snorted. “They’re dead, honey. You saw their bodies, you watched them die, you witnessed their burial. Tirek told you himself that he killed them. It’s been eleven years and they haven’t risen from their grave.” He gently took her chin in his hoof and turned her head so their eyes would meet. “They’re gone.”
“Please,” she whispered as she pulled herself away; she wiped her eyes. “I know; I know.” The tears would not stop coming. “But, maybe… it’s just that… they’ve lived for over thousands of years and... it’s impossible.”
“But it happened,” he said, his voice softening. “They’re gone.” He paused, looked at the sky, and then added more softly. “And so is their magic.”
When the black, thorny plants kidnapped Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, their absence created mayhem, leaving both the sun and the moon suspended in the sky simultaneously. Half the sky was as blue as daytime, while the other half sparkled with stars against a dark sleepy canvas. But something else changed with their death. It was as if the sun and the moon were no longer dependent on their magic.
“Their magic isn’t gone,” Twilight’s voice crackled. “It just turned into nature.”
“Nature?” Blueblood echoed.
The princess nodded. “I’ve done some research over the years after the princesses were murdered. I came across some books that talk about worlds that do not have ponies or other creatures control the weather or the earth; in fact, some of these places are completely devoid of magic. All of these things are controlled by a phenomenon called nature.”
“Nature,” Prince Blueblood repeated again. “And so Equestria is now under nature’s control?”
“Yes,” Twilight replied, running a hoof over the plaque. “Besides for the basic magic and spells ponies still have - you know, being able to levitate objects with our unicorn horns, pegasus being able to fly - there are now forces that have become beyond our control.”
“The course of nature being one of them,” Prince Blueblood finished thoughtfully. He then frowned. “Well, I suppose nature is being a tad more than rude,” his voice was seething with sarcasm, “because it has not rained in quite some time and it’s been unbearably hot. I say it’s an evil being.”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Nature is not a sentient being. At least, not that I found in any of my research. It’s just a natural phenomenon like gravity, or inertia, or magnetics.”
“I think you’ve been doing a bit too much research since you became queen,” Blueblood scowled in her direction. “Whether or not nature has a malicious intent, it still is creating problems. Haven’t you realized that this heat has destroyed numerous crops across Equestria, causing thousands of ponies to starve? But you’ve spent all these years buried in a library reading all your educational books!”
“Excuse me!” Twilight snapped. “Don’t you dare accuse me of hiding in my books! You think I’m unaware of what’s going on? That’s why I’ve been researching. It’s to look up ways to help improve our new life and take care of all these problems.” She was beyond offended. “Didn’t you realize that one of my best friends lives in an apple orchard and she’s come to me many times throughout the summer asking for help because the weather’s been terrible?”
“Of course you’d be aware of her problems,” the prince growled, turning his head from hers. “Outside of your little circle of friends and the mounds of books in library, I doubt you don’t know what’s going on in the rest of Equestria.”
“I do too.”
“Hah!” Prince Blueblood snorted and smiled, but it was not of sarcasm or malice. “Then how come I’ve always been the one greeting the ponies that come into the castle - aside from your friends - for help? Meetings are held nightly, to which you rarely attend. You even fail to tell me some basic information that you’ve learned from your research. Hence, my lack of knowledge regarding nature.”
As he continued, his voice edged with pain. “I know we’re not in love, but we are married. As a husband and second ruler of Equestria, I feel that I at least have a right to know certain information from you.” And then his voice hardened. “And I do expect some participation on your part. I cannot make decisions and run to different regions of our kingdom alone.”
“You really don’t think I do anything around the kingdom, do you?” Twilight retorted, her face growing hot. “That’s because you’ve been spoiled your whole life until Tirek stole all our cutie marks and murdered the princesses!”
“Please, Twilight-”
But the princess’s passionate rampage would not cease. “You’re complaining about putting effort in after you’ve had everything spoon fed to you up until recently? And now you have the audacity to accuse me of lazing around?”
“Sweetheart, stop this! Your face-”
“And don’t think you’re just going to sweet talk me out of this by calling me some pathetic love names because I… I…” the scene around her started to take on a shade of green and the sun suddenly became dim. Her ears felt like they were stuffed with cotton until she heard a low pitched hum resonating in her head.
She could hear Prince Blueblood speak, but his voice sounded like it was in the distance. When Twilight turned her head to face him, the statue of the two princesses wobbled violently. The floor beneath her caved down and then suddenly popped up like a wave, constantly rippling up and down. Her hooves felt weak beneath her weight and she stumbled forward into her husband’s grasp.
“The heat is getting to you,” he said into her ears. “I fear you may be dehydrating.”
Dehydrating?
“I need water,” she murmured.
“Yes,” Blueblood replied, gently guiding her in a direction that was unclear to her. “And we need to cool you down. I’ll send the servants to get a fan, and maybe set up a cool bath, too.”
Twilight’s head was throbbing so hard, she could not even think straight. Helplessly, and still internally clinging onto her fading passion, she followed her way to somewhere cooler.
“I can’t do this,” Twilight whispered, closing her eyes.
“Equestria needs a new ruler,” Shining Armor replied, resting a hoof on his sister’s back. “Cadence and I must take care of the Crystal Empire. Celestia’s and Luna’s magic’s absence has created havoc there. Their crystal powers are draining, and the wintry land is now closing in on the kingdom. We need to make sure we can help these ponies survive.”
Twilight opened her eyes and gazed at the sun setting. On its own. “But I am so young, Shining. How can I rule an entire empire? I lack leadership experience. My whole princess career has been geared towards learning the power and magic of friendship. Princess Celestia never taught me anything regarding sovereignty or how to run a monarchy. I… I can’t do this. At least, not alone.”
“What about your friends?” Shining Armor suggested. “You’re all the elements of harmony.”
“I can’t burden them with that,” Twilight replied. “They have their own problems to take care of. Fluttershy is working with other animal specialists to tame the animals. She can no longer understand their language, nor do they possess the ability of a sentient being’s comprehension. Rainbow Dash is working with many other pegasi to figure out why they cannot control the weather. Applejack reported that earth ponies cannot work the ground the way they used to. There’s so much change - I doubt we’ll even survive.”
“I have a suggestion.”
Both Twilight and Shining Armor turned their attention towards the source of the voice. Prince Blueblood stood by the doorway, his demeanor very different from when Twilight last recalled seeing him. Unlike his usual haughty and snobby disposition, the white unicorn carried himself more humbly and he seemed wounded. When he had spoken, his voice was quiet and slow, as if he was carefully choosing his words.
As soon as he had their attention, the prince continued. “Actually, it wasn’t really my idea. But I agree with it, and I want to make sure Princess Twilight would agree as well.”
“What is the idea?” Twilight asked.
It seemed difficult for Blueblood to answer. “I would like to take your hoof in marriage in order to help you rule Equestria.”
The idea seemed so preposterous that Twilight almost laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”
He shook his head. “I am not.”
Twilight turned towards her brother. “BBBFF, is he for real?”
Shining Armor narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the prince before him. “And exactly who put this idea in your head?”
“The council,” Blueblood answered. “They held a meeting this morning to discuss suggestions for Twilight’s dilemma. I was there. A few said that she should get married and have a king beside her. It wasn’t my idea, but I volunteered to help.”
Before Twilight could speak, Shining Armor spoke. “And the council agreed to this? You are the most incompetent pony ever. Cadence remembers when you were a colt. She’s not one to gossip, but based on what I’ve heard from her, and what I’ve seen from you, you are nothing but a spoiled, arrogant, high-horsed, pathetic drip!”
“Shining,” Twilight remonstrated. “If there is one thing I will not tolerate at a time like this, it’s insults.”
“But he’s right,” Prince Blueblood’s voice sounded pained. “That’s why I’m asking you, Twilight, for your permission. The council only agreed because I have royal blood. But that’s the only quality I have.”
The alicorn had never seen the unicorn prince speak with such humility. Either he was acting, or he had changed. Twilight believed the latter; everypony was deeply affected by the tragedies that were inflicted upon Equestria, and he was no exception.
Shining Armor vehemently expressed his disapproval of the idea. “You do not have what it takes to rule a kingdom. Why should we give you that authority?”
“I do not have what it takes to rule a kingdom, either,” Twilight retorted.
“And why are you defending him?”
She wondered why herself, but words formed naturally on her tongue as she answered. “Prince Blueblood has been involved with royalty longer than I have. He may have some knowledge that I don’t. Also, all decisions are not only going to be incumbent upon us. We’ll have the council to help us in the beginning. I can’t do this alone, and… maybe I do need to have a king to help me.”
“But him?”
“I will give him a year to prove himself worthy,” Twilight said, as if making this decision was natural to her. She turned her attention towards Prince Blueblood. “For the next year, you and I are going to work on how we can take care of Equestria. If you prove yourself worthy, then I will take your hoof in marriage.”
“And if I don’t?” The prince asked.
Twilight looked away. “Then I guess I’ll just learn how to run Equestria myself.”
Twilight gazed out the window, and a cup of water sat readily next to her on the window sill. For the rest of the day, she had been suspended indoors with nothing more to do than listening to her subjects' chattering around the castle hall. Prince Blueblood had banned her from the library for the remainder of the day. The library, he claimed, was too stuffy and that would only prevent her from recovering that slight dehydration, which almost reached the point where she would've needed medical assistance. Fortunately, a cool room and continuous sips and gulps of water worked well, and she now felt significantly better.
However, her mind still felt muddled from the sheer boredom that plagued her. The prince made it a point to keep his eye on her, and Twilight was so annoyed by his constant presence that she deliberately ignored him. When he spoke, she drowned out his words with thoughts of her own. This time, she was watching the late afternoon sun making its decline towards the west. It would be evening soon, and Blueblood would have to leave her to attend another meeting.
Even if she decided to attend, he would probably not let her. It was a big relief.
When Blueblood was called for the meeting, Twilight felt a large weight lift off her shoulder. She enjoyed the solitude, watching the sky change colors as the large orb slowly sunk into the horizon. The evening air was still warm, but the weakening of the sun's rays felt much better.
It wasn't too long until there was a knock at the door.
"Come in," Twilight called.
"Your highness," said the royal guard as he entered the room. He bore a grim expression with a hint of disappointment. "The meeting has requested your presence immediately."
That caught Twilight off guard. Would Prince Blueblood allow this? Knowing him, he probably grew tired of handling these meetings himself. She could not figure him out. Either he acted as an overbearing mother, or somepony that treated her like she was completely incompetent. Perhaps these behaviors were one in the same.
"Tell them I'll be by in ten minutes."
Stats
Page generated in 0.016 seconds
Total duration
1,002 users online
2,109,503 hits today, 2,073,628 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
This looks like it's going to be awesome!
Wait, Twilight is queen now, isn't she? Is Blueblood king? Is prince his name?
Twilight seems to be acting like a bigger baby then shes accusing blueblood of being by not even letting him or others know the info shes researched.Spoon fed or not just being told you have to suddenly take care of an entire kingdom would be taxing on anyone. If she doesn't want to attend meetings unless demanded to then I'd think others would see that as a ruler who doesn't care.