A Long Time Ago...
Flurry Heart, Luna, and Spike stood in front of the Crystal Heart, watching it slowly rotate, as they listened to the muffled commotion outside.
"This citizens are assembled, Princess. There is no going back after this," Luna told her.
"I wouldn't be ordering an evacuation if I thought there was," Flurry replied.
"Not just this city, Flurry. Equestria as a whole. The relics needed for the ritual have just arrived on the train. Once this is done, Equus will be forever changed. No magic, at least for now. Pegasi will no longer be able to control the weather. One of the fortunate side effects will be the axial tilt; it will finally be restored and will not need to be maintained by magic; day and night will cycle on their own. Lastly, this city will likely be lost to the Frozen North, if we alter the Crystal Heart's magic."
"If they don't need to focus on the sun, moon, or weather, maybe they can bring renewed effort on helping each other," Flurry said, turning from the heart and going towards the large curtains, currently weighted down to resist the constant wind. Taking a deep breath, she passed through them out onto the balcony, looking out over the city streets and the crystal ponies down below as her mane began to blow in the icy breeze.
"My citizens..." Flurry began, her voice commanding and overtaking the howling wind that had been hammering the city for days. "Dark times have befallen us. I know not what lies ahead, but I do know that it is no longer safe to inhabit the Empire due to this unending storm. Therefore, I am ordering an immediate and mandatory evacuation of the city. The train and every available carriage will be made available to all of you. I ask that you take only what you need to survive. I do not expect for you to be able to return. Know that this is my last act as your Princess. I know word has begun to spread about the increasing unrest down south. I cannot advise you on what to do when you reach safer climates. Whatever you do, I implore you to spread the light and love of the Crystal Empire wherever you may go. I will remain behind with trusted allies in an effort to put a stop to what is to come. It has been an honor, my crystal ponies. Go forth, and godspeed."
Murmurs of uncertainty continued as she heard her Crystal Guard began to bark orders, and advising citizens to return home to gather what food and necessities they could carry. They had drilled evacuations before, and before this time tomorrow, the city would be empty. Flurry stood on the balcony a moment and watched as the evacuation effort got underway, before returning inside to the Crystal Heart chamber.
"Spike, I'm going to go floor by floor of this place, making sure it's empty and no one is getting left behind. I want you on the train out," she instructed.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but I'm not going anywhere. My place is with you. If this storm worsens, as you keep warning us it will, I'm not going to rob you and Luna of a heat source."
"Conduct your search, Flurry. Spike and I will go to the train and unload the relics needed for the ritual." Luna told her.
Unwilling to argue with her assistant, Flurry Heart ascended to the third floor, leaving Spike and Luna alone in the Crystal Heart chamber.
"You didn't tell her," Spike remarked to the elderly alicorn.
"We needn't shatter her resolve before everything is ready, Spike. There will be a time to tell her what will be necessary to see this through. But not yet, Spike. Not yet."
Oh, dear. I don't think Luna is going to be around much longer.....
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Celestia is seemingly already gone, so.. yea,
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Which leaves us with the question of how long it was between eras.
Excellent work on this latest chapter. Really appreciate the work going into the exchanges, characterizations and future chapter set-up. I definitely have to respect the work that went into getting the relics needed for Flurry's plan as well as the train and carriages already being there to evacuate the Crystal Ponies in addition to the mention of they will no longer need magic to raise and lower the sun and moon after they got this done. Also liked Flurry giving that last speech to the Crystal Ponies and Spike refusing to go along on the evacuation. Though, yeah, Luna mentioning something major that will be needed to see this through? Yeah, I can see why Luna would be reluctant to tell Flurry the full details too soon. Hopefully, at least Flurry and Spike will still be there to eventually meet Sunny and her friends though.
Definitely looking forward to more of this.
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officially it's been at least 500 years, and a lot of things both good and bad things can happen in that time, Kingdoms can rise and fall, you get the idea.
Well it looks like flurry heart is going through the evacuation of the Crystal Empire it was a tough decision but she has to save them and I wonder what Luna is talking about guess we'll find out next time
Oh no, didn't tell her what?!
Let's hope Luna's gamble works
I wonder... How many Crystal pony descendants walk among the tribes in the new Equestria?
If they are walking among the normal ponies, then does that mean that they lost their unique gradient manes and tails over the years? And if they have, is there a chance that they may be able to get them back in the future?
Not going to lie, this sounds like a nightmare for the crystal ponies.
Think about it. First your government says that their no longer able to protect you. Then they say that you're forced to abandon your home forever, and that they don't even have a plan for where you're supposed to go. THEN your magic, something very important to your way of life, suddenly disappears and you have no idea why.
I'd be surprised if Equestria wasn't sent back to the stone age.
I’m thinking that luna meant that a sacrifice will be required for the ritual to work, perhaps an alicorn or two will have to sacrifice their magic and very life essence for the ritual?
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I gotta say, I don't at all approve of Flurry's decision to abandon her citizenry in favor of this eldritch gambit. Her responsibility is to her people, not whatever ungodly mess Twilight managed to create down south, pitchforking them into said mess just makes it all worse, and the fact that she's planning on kneecapping their entire civilization on the way out is the icing on the cake.
Frankly, considering the way these things usually go, the Crystals will probably catch the blame for magic disappearing, and that'll go about a well as could be expected.
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This is a no-win situation. With the unending blizzard, staying in the Crystal Empire is a death sentence.
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But she's not going with them, and she's not sending them out with a cohesive plan beyond evacuation. Leadership is critical, and these poor ponies will be aimless without her or a clearly defined successor.
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She feels more pressed to fulfill her premonitions. If she doesn't, she feels that any evacuation would be merely delay the inevitable return of the Windigos.
Luna and Flurry sacrifice will be never forgotten. TwT
It's the price they'll have to make for the tough situation they're about to do.
If only that were to happen Flurry.
Something tells me it's not gonna be good at all nor will Flurry approve of it. 😰