Only the Broken, Only the Cursed (please read blog post)

by DougtheLoremaster

Chapter 1- Tortured Soul

The face of the purple Unicorn dripped with sweat as she stared at the imposing form of her mentor. Her body was marred with burns and scars, as she stood there shivering; struggling to stay standing. Her horn was sparking as she desperately tried to gather enough magic to cast another spell.

It was 8 years after the test that had changed her life. 8 years since Twilight hatched Spike; who now sat behind her, cheering her on. In front of her stood Princess Celestia, who remained stock-still; unmarked, and watching her with a piercing glare.

“Again.”

Almost 20 hours had gone by, with Twilight launching non-stop attacks on the tyrant. The Princess had not cast a single defense or moved an inch, yet still, she remained untouched and unfazed. Her instructions to her young apprentice had been simple:

“Try to kill me. Hold nothing back.”

Twilight had done exactly that. For the past 20 hours, she had given it her all, and now she was close to passing out from exhaustion. Her vision was going blurry while her horn sparked feebly. The Princess’s eyes softened at the scene. Sighing, she spoke to Twilight.

“That’s enough, let’s have some dinner, my faithful student.”

***

“You are a demon, you know.”

“So I’ve been told.”

Both Celestia and Twilight sat at the royal table enjoying a decadent dinner of freshly fried apples. Due to the sweet tooth of the Princess; each had been drizzled with caramel sauce and covered with a fine coating of walnut crumbs. Both plates had been prepared by Celestia herself; a secret hobby of hers.

Both were laughing and sharing some much deserved time, just casually talking. And both wore genuine smiles; neither could hide how they felt around the other.

“How did you get so strong anyway?”

“I have had many a year to practice, Twilight. I must say your abilities have been improving vas-”

Instantly the mood shifted as the Tyrant of Equus; Princess Celestia’s eyes went expressionless. All traces of emotion vanished from the Alicorn once the door to the banquet hall was blown inward. The Alicorn remained completely emotionless and still as both were surrounded by about 50 masked and cloaked figures.

“I told you she would be easy to capture. See? She’s terrified of us.”

“All praise the Nightmare Moon!”

Out of the corner of her eyes, she watched Twilight lift the fork to her mouth, completely ignoring the intrusion. Her eyes were blank and expressionless as well. The princess, however, could feel Twilight’s rage building. And then it happened; Twilight snapped.

One of the figures, wearing a black cloak emblazoned with a silver NM on it, shot the fork out of Twilight’s hooves with a blast of magic. The fork embedded itself in the nearby wall, and the plate shortly followed, while Twilight lifted her head to stare at it for a moment in silence. She watched as the lovingly prepared meal slid down the wall. Her eyes flashed a devilish jade green but only for a second. Her voice was enough to chill any creature to the bone as she whispered.

“You’ve just made a grave mistake.”

Slowly rising from her seat, her eyes rapidly flashing from amethyst to jade green and back again; as if she was trying to hold something within, back. Her words filled the room as her rage was made known.

“Mistakes will not be tolerated!”

A shocked gasp went up from the cultists who had been chanting their Nightmare Moon rederick. Standing before them, was a truly horrific image. Twilight’s purple fur was matted with dark red patches and burn marks. Crisscrossing her barrel were scars showing her times of failure as an apprentice to the tyrant. And worse still, were her eyes; as soulless and empty as Celestia’s own. She spoke again; her voice causing many amongst the group to shiver. It was soft-spoken and yet could be heard by all; dripping with venomous hatred.

“Let me tell you where you went wrong before I send you all to Tartarus.”

Her horn began to glow with a bright purple.

“One, you came into the castle without an invitation. We do not appreciate castle-crashers.”

The glow around her horn grew brighter as she gathered her magic.

“Two, you mistook Celestia’s silence as her being weak. Only an idiot would fail to realize she was giving them a chance to leave unscathed. And only a bigger fool would refuse to take such a precious gift of life with gratitude.”

The ground around her began to glow and spread outward.

“And three. You ruined the dinner that the Princess made for me, herself!”

The glow now encompassed the entire banquet hall. Some of the more adventurous cultists ran forward to stab her, as Twilight’s eyes glowed with the same purple as her horn. Her next words fell on deaf ears, as all invaders were suddenly engulfed in a bright flash of violet light.

“And for that; you will die. Begone from my sight.”

The light faded as Twilight sat back down and Celestia took a sip of tea. The 50 or so standing around them had completely vanished leaving only charred spots where they once stood.

“Nicely done, Twilight. You have improved quite a bit.”

“Are you making fun of me again?”

“Not at all. Last time you failed to make the corpses vanish. Though you did leave the same burns on my floor again.”

“Er sorry about that. What’s my punishment?”

Celestia looked over at Twilight, silent for a moment. The teen’s eyes were hooded over in acceptance of what was to come. She gave it her all and her abilities have gotten much sharper. Perhaps I can let this mistake go. Better yet-

“A night on the town.”

“What?”

Twilight’s eyes flew open in surprise at the announcement. Celestia’s face gave nothing away as to what she was thinking. Her words were even, with an inflection of coldness.

“I said your punishment is to patrol the town tonight. You are to look for and eradicate any Nightmare cultists you come across. Use any method you prefer; I don’t care how they die. However-”

Celestia’s voice grew slightly warmer as she remarked.

“If you were to partake in any social events you came across in the process, I would turn a blind eye, just this once.”

Twilight’s amethyst eyes lit up with excitement.

“Really?”

Celestia raised her teacup to her lips once more, a secretive smile on her face. Placing her cup upon the saucer in front of her, she spoke to Twilight. Her words were aloof as she off-handedly remarked.

“Back by sunrise, No hard cider. Grab your cloak and get going, you brat. And take your dragon with you.”

***

The tyrannical Princess watched as Twilight ran down the pathway out of Canterlot towards Ponyville; Spike sitting on her cloaked back. Sweat dripped down Celestia’s face as she thought about the cultists; she was immortal. Twilight, however, was not. Don’t let your guard down, vent your rage, and stay safe.

She noticed a fire’s light on a hill nearby where a group of black-robed figures seemed to be watching her apprentice as she ran. Eyes narrowed in rage, Celestia’s horn glowed a bright golden moments before the hillside erupted in a raging hellfire.

Turning away from the window unfazed by the screams of the burning, Celestia thought about the recent increase in cultist behavior. They’ve become far more brazen as of late. My sister’s return is nigh.

***

Whereas Celestia was concerned for Twilight; the teenage Unicorn was excited at the prospect of running into cultist members. She loved the idea of hunting them down and relished the thought of extinguishing their lives.

Her eyes flashed with a jade green for a moment; only seeing the desecrated forms of her brother and his wife, Shining Armor and Princess Cadence of the Crystal Empire, lying on the floor of the shattered hall of the Crystal Castle. That day she would never forget. They took him from her. He had been her only support at that wretched academy. And now he lay buried within the crater that had been the Crystal Empire.

Her eyes transitioned back to her natural amethyst as she thought about the day she had found them; the same day the Crystal Empire vanished shortly after. Her blood began to boil at the thought. She hated all of them. She grinned with a venomous smile. They would pay. And by her hoof, they would all perish!

Laughing maniacally at the thought, the Apprentice to the Tyrant and Chosen Heir to the Throne, continued galloping towards Ponyville. The light of revenge blazing in her now unnaturally jade green, serpentine eyes.

Comments

[Argentyros]

Well, well, here we go. A Twilight raised by a form of Tyrantlestia, and who has seen the things that come from that, plus the event noted here in this chapter. Time to start exploring how much of canon Twilight is left after the school and hands on teaching. Certainly looks like there is going to be some work to do if Celestia wants Twilight to rule any differently than she has, and what quirk of ascension you're going to come up with for Twilight, given the "only Alicorns can rule" and the fact that she's neither a Nightmare nor a Daybreaker.

Once more, I'm in for the ride.

[DougtheLoremaster]

10359749
So many assumptions; that only time will tell the answers to~
Enjoy the ride. <3 your commentaries.

[Carbon]

10359749
No, it seems Twilight just another blood-crazy future alicorn wannabe.

[DougtheLoremaster]

10359851
I'm afraid you've picked the wrong story if that is what you are after. There is quite a bit more at stake.

[Carbon]

10359877
I dunno.
She just killed 10 ponies and doesnt have any regret about this.
How she suppose be better than Celestia?

[DougtheLoremaster]

10359952
she killed 50. Though to answer your question, I would suggest sticking around. We'll both find out together. I never plan what happens, I just know the beginning and the ending of what I write; the rest is freeform. Chapter 2 is coming soon, but as always, things are never as straight forward as they seem. Enjoy the ride~

[Pete100]

So, twilight kills 50 ponies, and she gets a reward? I’m starting to like Celestia a little bit.

[PixelatedPerson]

Are sunset and starlight in this au? I wonder what they are like if so.