The Fall of Canterlot Kingdom

by JzanderN

Chapter 11 – The Fall of Canterlot Kingdom

Sunset was early to the dance. She was always early to important events, giving her plenty of time to set things up in her favour, and of all the events she would attend, this would be the most crucial.

She wore her usual attire, having no money for a dress and no-one to provide her with one – not anymore, at least – but that didn’t matter. That never mattered.

She walked through the gym doors, deciding what to do first, and her thoughts were interrupted by the scenery. Everything in sight was decorated with cards: the walls, the tables, the balloons, even the disco ball had a few stuck on it as it spun in place. It was the same card over and over; red and black with some sort of symbol on them. Something about them didn’t sit right with her.

They seemed to attack her in a place she didn’t know existed. Gingerly, she took the closest one and examined it. It was decorated back and front with red and black circles hypnotically laid upon each other. On the front, it had a mask with a white, flaming eye wearing a red top hat, shadows cast all over it, and the words “Take Your Heart” spelled out underneath. On the back was a written message, every letter looking like it was cut out of a magazine:

Madame Sunset Shimmer, the Wannabe Queen of Greed.

You have lorded over your fellow students, and caused great fractures and suffering amongst them in the name of power and control. Thus tonight, we have decided to steal your distorted desires.

We will not fail.

From,

The Phantom Thieves

She couldn’t believe what she was reading. She had no idea what the card was talking about, yet it resonated deep within her. It felt like it took her time to process it, yet her response was instant, unthinking, automatic.

“Who did this?!” She looked around the empty room, looking for the phantom culprit. “Who did this?!” Her mind jumped to the two boys and Hana. A familiar voice echoed within her, brimming with hidden emotions, saying, so they want to rebel? Very well. I’ll throw them into the dust like everyone before them! and she immediately forgot it.

“Who’s there?” Vice Principal Luna called as she opened the doors and slowed to a stop at the sight of the place.

Principal Celestia walked alongside her, though unlike the Vice Principal, she didn’t stop. “What is this?” she asked as she walked around the room, looking through all of the cards.

“Did you do this?” Vice Principal Luna asked, her eyes boring through Sunset.

She finally finished processing everything. “No,” she said simply.

“These are all addressed to her,” Principal Celestia said. “I don’t think she’s the culprit behind this.” Vice Principal Luna looked over the cards herself. “So whoever did this is targeting you. Do you know who it could be, Sunset?”

By the time she asked, Sunset had fled the hall and soon left the building. She couldn’t go back in there. She’d give the crown to Twilight rather than face those again. She thought she saw shadows moving in the corner of her eye, but paid them no attention. It didn’t matter if they were the culprits or not. Everyone was guilty on this night, and everyone would bow to her by its end.

She’ll get her crown another way. She would tear it straight from Twilight’s hands if necessary.

---

Devon watched Sunset storm off from the shadows, Alec and Hana beside him. “If that isn’t a sign that it’s worked, I don’t know what would be,” he said. The two nodded in agreement.

“Only a little bit more to go and it’s done,” Alec said. “Just a little bit further.”

“Let’s be careful not to trip in the last stretch,” Hana said. “I have a feeling this will be the toughest part.”

“But it will be the last part,” Devon said. “Let’s go.”

The three took out their phones and entered the Metaverse. The first thing they noticed was the skies flashing red over all of Canterlot. The second thing they noticed was that it wasn’t just the sky; it was as though the air itself was shimmering a faint red.

Fahran walked up to them, looking up at the skies himself. “So this is what the place looks like on high alert,” he said. He then clapped his paws and rubbed them together. “Right! The Shadows are going to be swarming in there, looking for us. Let’s make sure to be careful, guys.”

Gale and the other two nodded. “Right then, let’s go!” Fahran said, and the group entered the castle one last time.

Gale lost track of time sneaking around the Shadows. They had flooded the building, to the point of blocking their usual route. Aqua was able to take them another way that was less populated, but it was longer, and still took time getting around them without being seen. None of the team wanted to get into a fight, big or small, if they could avoid it. If he had to guess, it was probably a few hours before they reached the Treasure Room. He wondered if the Fall Formal had started yet.

“Right. Where’s the treasure?” Ohm asked, clapping his hands together. No-one had to answer. Everyone saw the crown. A golden tiara holding a purple, star shaped gem, floating in the middle of the room where the mist once was, except far higher. It was the Fall Formal crown, and out of reach, as far as anyone could see. “How are we supposed to reach that?” he asked. “Can our Persona go up that far?”

“We’re not going to find out standing around,” Fahran said. “Let’s just find a way to grab it and get out of here.”

“No. I don’t think you will.” Sunset’s voice came from the other side of the room. Gale looked, only just realising the throne was covered by shadows. They dissipated, revealing her sitting in it, leaning on her hand and staring at the four. “Even if you could reach it, there’s no way I’d let you escape with it. Not that it matters. The crown will descend tonight, and I will have it in my grasp, one way or another.”

“And then what?” Aqua asked. Gale wished she hadn’t.

“What else happens when a monarch receives her crown? She gains her right to rule, and I don’t intend on keeping my kingdom in just Canterlot. I will invade and conquer with an army fit for a Queen!”

“No-one’s going to follow you,” Fahran said. “Crown or not, no-one will decide to follow you!”

Sunset gave a knowing grin. “When I get my crown, they’ll have no choice.”

“What’s so different about this crown?” Aqua asked. “You’ve won plenty of crowns before."

Sunset’s frowned.“They were all false crowns. Mere plastic, nothing more. This is a true crown from my own home country. I brought it here by my own hands two days ago, only for it to be stolen away from me. I would have taken it back, if it weren’t for the opportunity for the peasants to crown me properly.”

“So you’ll gain phenomenal cosmic power or whatever when you get the crown,” Ohm said. “Big deal. Did you really think we’d let you get it? If you can reach it, then we can reach it, and there’s four of us and only one of you.” He brought out his hammer and took up a fighting stance.

Sunset let out a loud laugh. “You think you can defeat me? Don’t you realise that I’m the most powerful Shadow in this Palace?”

“Is that why you kept running away from us?” Ohm said. Devon wished he hadn’t.

“Why should a monarch dirty her own hands? Far better to send others to do it for us.” She looked down at Aqua, who wilted slightly under her gaze. “But when we do, a true monarch makes sure she shows her power. After all, what gives you the right to rule if you’re not the strongest there is?”

“Even if you’re stronger than any one of us, don’t be so sure you’ll be stronger than us put together!” Fahran said with a smile. “I like our chances.” Ohm seemed to agree, but Gale wasn’t so sure, and Aqua didn’t seem that confident either.

“And I like mine,” Sunset said with a grin. “Let’s see whose are better.”

She stood, pulling out a golden helmet to match her armour and sliding it on her head. She then grabbed a sword that lay on the back of the throne, as long as she was tall. She unsheathed it, cast the scabbard aside, and held it straight at the four. Gale quivered at the sight of her, but nonetheless summoned Fuu-ki and brought out his staff. He heard Ohm and Fahran summon their own Personas, but didn’t hear Aqua. With his Persona at his side, he felt a bit safer, but not much, especially when Sunset’s gaze swept over him.

He drew upon Garu, calling the wind and sending it towards her like a blade. He saw lightning join it, but in one motion she moved out of their way and leapt towards them. She was greeted by fire, but she ran through it, seemingly unaffected, and straight at him.

He quickly whipped his staff around and his Persona blocked her first attack. She elbowed him and he felt a blow to his chest, quickly followed by what felt like a blade slashing across it. He collapsed, his back hitting the solid floor and his Persona leaping back to him. He was unaware of what was going on anymore, except a golden figure coming into view, raising what looked like a pillar and bringing it down on him, only to be stopped by someone jumping in the way.

He felt a cooling sensation on his burning wounds, enveloping them until they disappeared. He shook his head and saw Ame-no-Uzume above him, her fans holding Sunset’s sword, and Aqua standing beside him. Sunset disconnected, and was rushed by another Persona before she could strike again.

He stood up and summoned Fuu-ki again, seeing Fahran’s Persona clashing swords with Sunset. He sent his Persona charging at her, whipping his weapon down. She met his blade with her sword’s guard, its tip still holding Uriel’s sword. Despite the double offense, she held her ground until she was interrupted by a hammer crashing into her, sending her flying backwards. Thor summoned lightning (and Gale withdrew Fuu-ki, afraid of the coming storm) and threw a bolt at her.

She screamed in pain and stood up, her eyes angry enough to kill a small animal, and terrifying enough to make him feel like one.

---

Sunset knew she had no way of winning the Fall Formal; the entire school would vote against her with a second option. If they wouldn’t crown her at the Fall Formal, she would have to settle for manipulation, blackmail, and even brute force if need be. She had her two remaining minions take Twilight’s dog (she never intended to hurt it, but Twilight didn’t have to know that) and used it to lead her outside where, hammer in hand, she gave her an ultimatum: hand the crown over, or have her one path home destroyed forever.

And she didn’t fall for it. Despite everything she had back home, despite all of her friends, family and power, she would rather be trapped in Canterlot High than let Sunset take her crown. She would defend this place from her even if it meant she could never leave. Sunset couldn’t bring herself to go through with it. Part of her said she never intended to in the first place, but she didn’t listen. She had no choice but to give up. She dropped the hammer.

“You are so awesome!” one of Twilight’s new friends said. Sunset felt a twinge inside her.

“I can’t believe you were gonna do that for us,” said another. Sunset felt anger fill her, bubbling underneath her skin.

“It’s no wonder you’re a real life princess!” a third said. Everything in Sunset exploded.

“Yeah, she’s so very special!” She jumped at Twilight, tackling her into the ground and reaching for her crown, but she held her back. Sunset reached harder. It was almost in her fingertips, and the dog grabbed it.

The crown was passed between her friends, from one to another to another to one. Sunset and her minions chased it. One of them even managed to hold it for a few seconds before it was taken back. But as it exchanged hands, it was only a matter of time until it was so kindly given to her, ironically by Twilight herself.

“I’ll take that!” she said triumphantly. She couldn’t help but laugh in glee, finally holding it in her hands. “At last, more power than I could ever imagine!” She placed the crown on her head and immediately regretted it.

---

Gale breathed heavily, exhaustion beginning to settle in his bones. He didn’t realise how much effort it took to draw Garu until his fifth attempt. He had been much more conservative using it after that. What he wouldn’t do for a cup of coffee.

The storm had calmed; a ceasefire had taken place as everyone caught their breaths, waiting for the first person to restart the fight, each side staring at one another. He had no idea how long they had been going at it. It seemed to have been an hour, but for all he knew it could have been half that time, or maybe twice as long.

He glanced at his teammates. Ohm looked like how Gale felt, though with a few more faint bruises on him. He suspected that some of them were due to his larger physical attacks, which he used sparingly, but more than his lightning.

Fahran looked in better shape, having used much less of his fire since figuring it didn’t do much against Sunset, but was still notably tired. Perhaps it had to do with the occasional feeling of being thick. Not heavy, but like he had a few layers of bulk added under his skin. Sunset’s sword hurt less when he felt like that.

But by far the worst of them all was Aqua, something he could have guessed without looking at her. While she had almost never used her ice, she was far from sparse with her healing touch on Gale, and he could only assume Ohm got it even more. He was thankful Fahran was good at avoiding hits, or she would probably have collapsed by now. If the fight dragged on much longer, he worried she would soon anyway, and he didn’t see a victory without her support. As much as he wanted a coffee, he would hand one to her first.

He turned back to Sunset who, by contrast, he had a hard time figuring out, but she must be feeling the strain too. As much as she gave out more she took, she had to spread it out among the four of them and take it all herself and, as far as he could see, had no way of healing like they did.

She was also chuckling, which he did not see as a good sign.

And then he saw what the joke was; the crown was slowly floating down towards her. It must have been for some time, but only now was it finally in reach. Before Gale or any of the others could move, Sunset reached up and grabbed it with both hands, dropping her sword, and placed it on her head.

The crown glowed blue and surrounded her with blue rings, trapping her inside. From the look on her face, this did not seem to have been what she intended. A pillar of blue light with a black edge then erupted from underneath her, the faint outline of her inside seemed to change, and soon the pillar exploded in a blinding white light.

When Gale could see again, she had changed from a Queen to a demon. She was different shades of red, except for her hair, still like a flame, and black boots. She had also grown a tail and a new dress, both the same colours as her hair, and wings with red insides and a black outside, and where her eyes had once been white, they were now completely black, leaving her glowing, yellow irises as the only part not swallowed in darkness. What’s more, anything they had once done to her, wounds or fatigue, had seemed to have disappeared.

If Sunset had reservations when she had put the crown on, they had all disappeared as she marveled over herself, laughing as she did. “Finally,” she said, taking to the air. “I’ve waited so long. I’ve done so much for this.”

“Damn it,” Gale heard Ohm mutter, yet he stood straight anyway. “Shame it’ll be all for naught.” He could hear the fake confidence in his voice, and hoped Sunset didn’t.

“Yeah!” Fahran said. “If you think you’ve won already, you’ve got another thing coming! You’ve still got to fight us!”

She laughed. “Why should I bother fighting you myself? It’s far easier to make you fight each other.” She looked at Gale, her crown glowing and her eyes hypnotic. He saw new memories flash before his eyes. Memories of Ohm betraying him, of Aqua tormenting him with Sunset, and Fahran attacking him with the Shadows of the Palace. He tried to push them out and looked away from her eyes, but they still poured into him, pushing what he once knew away until he couldn’t remember it anymore; only the people he hated and had to kill.

“Gale?” he heard the Traitor approach behind him. He summoned Fuu-ki and swung his staff around, sending Ohm flying backwards.

“Devon! What the hell?” Ohm yelled as he recovered to his feet.

Gale stared down at him, recalling a time when he had struck him with lightning and how painful it had been. He drew from Garu, ignoring his fatigue, and sent the wind against him, slicing through the air and hitting him like a blade. Ohm cried in pain and collapsed to the floor again, this time staying down. Gale moved to send another wave after him, but his staff was blocked by the Accomplice with her two fans.

He withdrew his Persona, threw Aqua off him, and thrust the bottom of his staff into her stomach. She grunted breathlessly, and he brought his staff around, striking her side and dropping her to the ground. He then looked to his side, where the Shadow was, just in time to see it crash into him, sending both of them tumbling into the floor.

“Snap out of it, Gale!” Fahran yelled. Gale grabbed it, picking it off his body and stood up. He then threw it in the air and struck it with his staff.

He looked back at Ohm, who was struggling to get up again, and summoned Fuu-ki. He reached out to Garu, intending to send one more wave after him, when he heard his own voice echo in his head. No, no! The voice took over and he broke out of Sunset’s control, falling to his knees. All of his false memories disappeared without a trace, but everything he had done remained.

“You broke out,” Sunset said. “Unexpected, but it shouldn’t matter when you’re all fighting each other without mercy!” The crown glowed again, and this time she looked at all four of them. Gale looked away, knowing it wouldn’t do much good, and tried to resist everything she would put into his brain.

The room shook, knocking him off his feet. Everything burned, and his ears were filled with everyone’s screams, his own included. He opened his eyes. A blinding rainbow had filled the entire room, and all he could see was his team and Sunset. He thought perhaps she had caused it, only she was screaming the loudest of them all.

“What’s going on?” Ohm asked.

“I don’t know, something from outside, maybe?” Fahran shouted.

Gale could see Shimmer holding onto her crown as if someone was pulling it off her, muttering a mantra to herself.

---

Sunset had no idea how Twilight had done it. She had brought magic from their world into this one, and right now was throwing it right at her.

It wasn’t over yet, though. It was unbearable, but she still had the crown. If she could survive this, her victory would be guaranteed. All she had to do was hold onto it with all of her might.

---

“Get the crown off her!” Gale shouted.

“Persona!” Aqua summoned Ame-no-Uzume and, with what must have been the rest of her might, lunged at the crown, taking it clean off of Sunset’s head and out of her hands.

---

An accident, a slip of the hand, a small mistake, and Sunset lost her only hope of victory. The crown was launched from her hands and she took the rainbow at full force.

---

The rainbow disappeared and Sunset fell to the ground, her hair in disarray, her breath heavy, and her armour in tatters. She was no longer a demon, but neither was she a Queen. The silence of the aftermath was broken by the light clang of the crown bouncing on the floor.

“It’s over,” Ohm said. “Whatever that was, it’s over.”

Gale nodded. “And more importantly, we won.”

“Someone get the crown,” Fahran said. Ohm was the first to move, walking over to the crown and picking it up.

“How did you beat me?” Sunset asked, still gasping for breath. “Is friendship really that powerful?”

“We’re not friends,” Ohm quickly said. “Me and Gale are, but we just met Fahran, and we’ll be happy to drop Aqua once we’re out of here.” She winced at his statement, and Gale couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable about it himself. Ohm then started walking away. Gale and Fahran followed, but Aqua didn’t move.

“Wait,” she said, and they stopped and turned to look at her. She walked up to Sunset and crouched to her level. “That fortune teller we saw. She told you this would happen, didn’t she?” Sunset didn’t respond. “Perhaps if you listened to her, this wouldn’t have happened. There’s a lot of people you could have listened to, and none of this would have happened. But more than anyone else, you should have listened to yourself.”

Sunset looked up, visibly confused. “What do you mean ‘I should have listened to myself?’”

“Your inner voice of reason. I ignored mine for a long time, but eventually listened to it. I know those two went through the same thing. That’s how we managed to get the power to defeat you.”

“You listened to your Shadows,” Sunset said. “But I am the Shadow.”

Aqua shook her head. “I think it’s more complicated than that. This isn’t the only part of you you’re ignoring, just the part that’s controlling you. You used to be kind, and then you turned into this, but I think that part of you is still there.”

She stood back up. “Listen to others, listen to that voice, and I’m sure you’ll find how you lost, and how you can get better.”

“You’re right,” Sunset said. “You’re absolutely right. I should have listened. I’ll make sure to from now on, and when I find what I’m looking for, I’ll hold it tight and never let it go.” She glowed a white light, becoming more transparent, and disappeared in a flash.

“What was that about?” Gale asked, both about the disappearance and Aqua’s talk.

“I had to try to get through to her,” she replied. “Even if I didn’t know how, I had to try.”

“And what did that accomplish?” Ohm asked.

As if on cue, the Palace started to rumble. The walls cracked, and the ceiling dropped small bits of debris, threatening to drop larger.

“That!” Fahran yelled over the noise. “Come on!”

---

Sunset had lost. She laid in her crater, struggling to get up. But despite her loss, even because of it, she gained something she hadn’t had in years.

She opened her eyes. New eyes, fresh on the world. Eyes free of desire. She looked at everything she had done; back to when she had stolen Twilight’s crown, back to when she had taken over Canterlot High, back to when she was a student of Celestia. She looked at it all with fresh eyes and she realised exactly what they had all led her to become.

She heard Twilight speak, her voice commanding, and something inside her beckoned her to listen. “You will never rule in Equestria,” she said. “Any power you may have had in this world is gone. Tonight, you’ve shown everyone who you really are. You’ve shown them what is in your heart.”

Sunset looked up to Twilight, barely aware of the tears welling down her face. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I didn’t know there was another way!”

---

Devon watched Sunset, Alec and Hana by his side. They couldn’t hear her (they were too far away, hiding behind the school’s corner) but she looked devastated. She was talking to the new girl Twilight, who seemed to be giving her a lecture, and she listened while all of her emotions ran down her face.

“She looks so different,” he whispered. “It’s like watching a different person going through this. I don’t know how to feel about this.” Hana nodded, and even Alec said nothing before walking away, going behind the school building away from the scene. Devon followed, Hana not far behind.

“So that’s it? It’s destroyed, right? It’s done?” he asked.

“I think you know the answer, but there’s only one way to check,” Hana said. He nodded, taking out his phone and opening the app. There was no bookmark on it like before, but he tried anyway just in case.

“Sunset Shimmer.”

Candidate not found.

He let out a sigh at the response, and heard Hana do the same. “That settles it, then. We won,” he said. “Fahran must be happy.”

“It’s a shame we won’t see him again,” Alec said. “He’s a nice cat. I would have liked to know him better, but we all knew it was coming.”

“I wish I could have said goodbye, at least,” Devon said.

“Is this a bad time to speak up?” he looked down to see a cat – a real one, not the cartoon they had grown used to – that looked unmistakably like Fahran, right down to wearing a red collar.

“Fahran? What are you doing out here?” Alec asked.

“I don’t know. I was expecting to go into the main part of the Metaverse, or perhaps to another Palace at least, but here I am, through the door.”

“Maybe it was the power of our friendship all along,” Devon suggested with a cheesy grin, earning him a playful shove.

“That would just be stupid,” Alec said, rolling his eyes. “This is thief magic, not friendship magic, you dolt.”

“So what was the treasure, anyway?” Fahran asked.

“I don’t know. Some sort of book.” Alec passed a large book to Devon with the same sun symbol they had seen throughout the Palace. He opened it, flipping through a few pages.

“It looks like a journal or diary,” he said. Oddly, it seemed to have been used by two people.

Hana looked over his shoulder as he flipped through them. “Yep. That’s Sunset’s handwriting alright.” She closed the book in his hands. “And we shouldn’t read it. I don’t care how she is or was; it’s still a breach of privacy.”

“That’s fair,” Devon said. “But what should we do about it? I don’t think we should just throw it away.”

“Well, I don’t think any of us should take it home,” Alec said. “Let’s just hide it in our coffee room for now. We’ll figure it out later.”

“There’s something weird in it, though,” Hana said. “After every entry, someone else added their own comments to it. Someone who taught her personally, if her constant use of ‘my student’ is anything to go by.”

“Really?” Fahran said. “Who could that be?”

“I don’t know, but the handwriting looks awfully similar to Principal Celestia’s. In fact, if we could compare them, I’d bet they’d look exactly alike.”

“Wait, wait, are you saying that she may have personally taught Sunset?” Alec asked. “But hasn’t she been Principal for, like, a thousand years?”

“It’s probably just the Metaverse interpreting it,” Fahran said, shaking his head. “Maybe she had a personal teacher like this once, and Celestia is a stand in for her. Or maybe she just took that much away from Celestia that she perceived her as her personal teacher.”

“Well, whatever it is, we should probably split,” Hana said. “Or at least I should.”

“Why? Have somewhere to go?” Fahran asked.

“No, no, let her go,” Alec said.

“Not specifically. I just have a lot of people to apologise to,” she said. “Thanks for letting me help.”

She left, no-one but Fahran giving her a goodbye. He also took off, saying he was going to see what the real world looked like. When they were both out of sight, Devon spoke up. “You know, despite everything she’s done for Sunset, Hana really came through for us.”

“I don’t care. I’m not ready to forgive her yet,” Alec said.

Will you ever be? Devon wondered. “If it weren’t for her, we’d still be searching for the key to the door, we would have waited longer to pull off the heist, and we certainly wouldn’t have survived the fight. And she didn’t have to be the one to finish it.”

“So, what, I should just forgive her for everything?”

“I’m saying that after everything she’s done for us, she deserves a couple of friends rather than being all alone. She deserves a chance.”

“I’ll let other people decide that.” Alec started walking away, clearly done with the conversation.

“She’s as much a victim as us, Alec. She wouldn’t have helped if she wasn’t.” Devon wasn’t sure if he heard him, and was not done with this conversation yet, but for now decided to let that be the final word.