• Published 11th Sep 2012
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Cry for Eternity - asylum1388



After Celestia's death, Twilight must take on a role she is woefully underprepared for.

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Chapter 18

Author's Note:

Before we go anywhere, I'd like to point everyone in the direction of Literature Pie, a youtube channel run by one of my editors, PiquoPie. He and a few other writers have been posting videos on the subject of writing fanfiction and writing in general. I strongly recommend that you check it out, whether you're a newbie in need of tips to get started, a veteran just looking to brush up on your skills, or someone in the middle seeking that extra bit that'll push your fics to the next level.

Pre-readers: PiquoPie, and f0xhole.

One year since the coronation of Princess Twilight Sparkle.

“I have returned, Darling,” Luna called out as she trotted into Twilight’s bedroom, a white box floating in behind her. “And before you ask, yes. I have retrieved it.” The box floated over to where Twilight sat in front of a vanity mirror; and Luna gently set it down in front of Twilight.

“Thanks. You’re the best,” Twilight replied with a smile, “and ‘Darling’ doesn’t work for you. Rarity, maybe.” She opened the box and reached inside, gingerly taking the contents in her hooves. She held the Tiara of Magic in front of her and smiled nervously. “D-do you really think this is a good idea? I can’t imagine much of the nobility will like this. Or anypony else, for that matter.”

“They will hate it, without a doubt,” Luna smirked, pulling Celestia’s old tiara off Twilight’s head and rubbing it reminiscently, “but that doesn’t matter. Since the moment you took the throne everypony has treated you simply as ‘Celestia’s replacement’, expecting you to act as Celestia did, and all many of them have tried to do is to manipulate your desire to see everypony happy, as they did to her.” She set the golden crown down on the vanity and took the starred tiara from Twilight’s hooves, placing it on Twilight’s head. “But you are not Celestia, you are Twilight Sparkle; a proud, intelligent pony with ideas of her own. If my sister had intended for you to be a mere extension of herself, she would have molded you as such, but she did not.”

Luna backed away and cast a mirthful eye over Twilight. “She wanted you to dream grand dreams and find your own path; to guide Equestria with your own wisdom. I believe it is time to remind everypony of that. What better way than by wearing a crown of your own? And what better time than the first anniversary of the day you took the throne?”

Twilight stared at Luna, grinning sheepishly. “You rehearsed that, didn’t you?”

“Perhaps,” Luna giggled. “Did it have the desired effect?”

“Yes,” Twilight said, faking an exaggerated groan. “You know... you could teach Spitfire a thing or two about giving a pep talk.”

“Then maybe I will offer her some advice,” Luna said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. “The real question, however, is have you rehearsed your speech?”

“Yes I have. I’m not making that mistake again,” Twilight retorted. “I doubt Ambassador Stoneshatter will ever let me live that down. How was I supposed to know that the minotaur phrase for ‘I am honored’ sounds similar to the phrase for ‘I am foolish’?”

“A little research could have told you that, and rehearsing your speech could have prevented you from finding out the hard way,” Luna teased. “Still, what better crowd to make such a mistake in front of than one that will laugh with you rather than at you, such as the minotaurs?”

“That’s true; they even took me out for drinks afterwards,” Twilight chuckled, straightening her tiara in the mirror. “Well, I think I’m ready. Shall we head down?”

“I think that would be wise,” Luna nodded, motioning for Twilight to lead the way. “Oh! One last thing!” Luna exclaimed, stopping Twilight with a hoof. She leaned down and gave Twilight a quick peck on the cheek. “For luck.”

Grinning, Twilight trotted off in the direction of the Throne Room with Luna close behind. As she rounded the first corner, she collided with a much smaller, clipboard-wielding creature who stumbled back. “Oops! Sorry, Spike!”

“Twilight? Where have you been? You were supposed to be downstairs ten minutes ago!” he shouted. “This is awful. You can’t be late for this!”

“Oh, relax, Spike. These things never start on time anyway,” she giggled, scooping him up and placing him on her back. She began moving again at a quicker pace. “Alright, hit me with it.”

The dragon quickly looked at her, then to Luna, and back to Twilight again. She shook his head and glanced down at his clipboard. “Umm, okay! Quill-Pen told me that everything’s all set up and that she’s going to start letting ponies into the throne room in ten minutes, but that was fifteen minutes ago, so the Throne Room’s probably full. She also said that she prepared a few index cards, just in case you need them for your speech,” he shot rapidly.

“Spike, please slow down. There is no need to tax yourself,” Luna interrupted sternly, yet gently.

“O-okay.” He nodded to her gratefully. “Anyway, Edifying Scroll’s going to introduce you since the Prime Minister’s still in Trottingham; he sent a note saying he’s sorry by the way. And the Royal Kitchens reported that everything was ready for the reception.”

“Perfect!” Twilight chirped. “And thanks, by the way. Quill-Pen told me that her life’s been a lot easier since you started giving her a hoof- err, claw.”

“It’s nothing. Really,” Spike muttered, blushing a bright red.

“It’s not nothing,” Twilight giggled, turning her head around to nuzzle him. “You could’ve gotten jealous and tried to compete with her to show everypony that you’re still my number one assistant, but instead you’re co-operating with her. That makes all the difference, and that’s why you’re still my number one assistant.”

“I hate to break up the moment, but we have arrived,” Luna snickered.

Spike jumped down from Twilight’s back and scurried towards the doors leading to the Throne Room. “Okay, I’ll let them know you’re here. Wait for your cue, then come in!”

Twilight took a deep breath and smiled at Luna. The pair stood in silence for only a moment before a magically-amplified voice echoed throughout the castle, “Fillies and Gentlecolts; all rise for Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Equestria.”

Twilight put on a serene face and trotted into the Throne Room, her hoofbeats echoing through the eerily silent hall. She nuzzled Spike and stepped up to the podium, glancing around the hall at the intent stares of the ponies in attendance as Luna sat down behind her.

“Good afternoon, everypony. Thank you, all, for coming,” she proclaimed as majestically as she could. “One year ago, I was crowned Princess of Equestria after the passing of Princess Celestia. This past year has been a difficult one, from the terrible toll that her death took on us. From our emotions, to the damage that the sudden lack of her leadership did to our economy, to the Stalliongrad crisis, as it’s now being called. Yet despite all this, we have managed to endure.

“As of now, our nation is stable, with Stalliongrad currently in the charge of ponies who understand the value of cooperation. In addition, the economy has made a moderate recovery; and while it will likely take years — or even decades — to reach the prosperity we were once at, we have managed to avoid a full crash and will be able to continue to provide for all of our citizens for the foreseeable future.”

She paused as a wave of applause shook the hall as her audience stomped their hooves against the polished marble.

“More importantly, however, is the spirit of our citizens. By remembering the tenets of the Elements of Harmony, we pulled together to comfort one another during our time of mourning, and came out stronger as a result. To honor this spirit, Princess Luna and I have created the Royal Medal of Grace, to be awarded to any Equestrian citizen who displays the utmost leadership and self-sacrifice during a time of national crisis. It will be the third-highest medal to be available to a citizen outside of military service, just below the Moon’s Tear and just above the Solar Diamond.

“Next Friday we will have a banquet, here at the castle, where this new award will be given to four ponies and a zebra, all of whom set aside their own lives and gave most of their time, energy, and money to help ease our nation through this terrible ordeal. Nothing we can say or do will ever adequately express the extent of our gratitude, and so we — that is, Luna and I — hope that this small token of thanks will forever remind them of how much they have done for us.”

Applause once again resonated through the hall as the ponies in attendance thundered their approval, but Twilight held up a hoof to silence them.

“There is another pony who we must honor. Shortly after I was crowned, an attempt was made on my life, but I was saved by a brave member of the Royal Guard, who lost his life while protecting me. With the Royal Guard and the Ministry of Justice having closed their respective investigations into the incident, I have been given permission to publicly honor my rescuer. Therefore, next Saturday, an assembly will be held where Lance Corporal Bright Eye will be posthumously awarded with the Equestrian Star — our nations highest military award — and promoted to the rank of Second Lieutenant. The Lance Corporal’s wife and son will be in attendance to accept the award, and I urge all to attend. After the ceremony, his name will be inscribed in the Hall of Grief with the names of all other recipients of the Star.”

Another round of thunderous applause arose; one that Twilight allowed to run its full course.

“While we remember those who gave much, or in the case of Lance Corporal Bright Eye, gave everything, to ensure a better future for all of us, I feel it wouldn’t be fair to let their sacrifices be wasted, therefore I would like to dedicate the rest of this speech to announcing a five-point plan to ensure Equestria’s prosperity,” Twilight exclaimed with a genuine smile. She paused to shuffle her notes a bit, but didn’t bother to read them. She knew her speech word-for-word.

“First and foremost: agriculture. The tumult that Equestria experienced last Spring affected every aspect of our lives, and as a result less food was produced during last year’s growing season; while it’s true that we never experienced even a vague threat of a food shortage this past winter, we came closer than we have in the past seventy years. I, personally, find the idea of anypony in Equestria going hungry to be abhorrent, so I find this unacceptable and have been working with my Cabinet to find a solution. After studying the causes of the problem, we have come up with two.”

To illustrate her point, Twilight levitated two packets of papers, allowing one to hover on each side of her. “Both of these proposals are designed to increase the number of farm workers in our country, which — according to the statistics available to us — would generate a substantial increase in farm productivity.” She gestured to the one on her right and continued, “The first will provide financial incentives for farm owners to raise the wages they offer their employees. We believe that increasing the pay of farm workers in this way and making them more able to provide for their families will make it a more desirable career choice, and thus a more popular career choice.”

“The second,” Twilight said, motioning towards the packet on her left, “will relax our immigration laws, specifically to Zebrica. Zebrica has been experiencing a population boom lately and its younger generations have been leaving in droves to explore the world. Given the fact that most zebras have a natural talent in caring for plant life, it makes sense to welcome them. As such, several members of my Cabinet pieced together this proposal with the help of Ambassador Zecora. Next month, each of these proposals will be put up for a general referendum for all citizens to vote on, and will be adopted by a simple majority vote. You may vote for one, both, or neither, though it is my sincere hope that both are passed.”

Twilight couldn’t suppress a proud grin as another round of applause rang out.

“The next thing I would like to focus on is education. While most of Equestria’s schools are performing better than ever, I have received a few letters from concerned parents about Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. For those of you who don’t know, as Princess Celestia’s heir, I am officially the Headmistress of the School, but I have been... ‘neglecting’ would be the word, I suppose, my duties as Headmistress; deferring to the Vice-Headmaster to run the place.”

She paused for a few seconds and sighed, hanging her head slightly, “The truth is that I personally don’t feel ready to take the responsibilities of Headmistress. One day I will proudly take up the mantle of teaching the youth of Equestria, but for now I feel as if I’m neither experienced enough, nor have enough time to devote to such an important task. If anypony has any additional concerns—”

“I do!” an unseen member of the audience called out. “Do we get our tuition money back if our foals turn into complete eggheads like you?”

Twilight could only stare dumbfounded at the crowd, unable to believe her ears. “Ex-excuse me? Could you—”

Luna, however was far less forgiving. She snarled and stepped in front of Twilight protectively. “Where are you hiding? Get out here, wretch!” she screamed at nothing in particular. “I knew I caught your foul stench when I entered.”

“No need to shout, my dear Luna,” a voice echoed. A voice that grated on Twilight’s last nerve.

“Discord...”

“In the flesh!” the draconequus exclaimed, rising out of the crowd.

“Why are you here?” Twilight growled, her fur bristling as she stepped down from the podium. “What do you want?”

“So hostile! I thought you were supposed to be a benevolent ruler,” he sighed, leaning back to recline across the heads of the ponies in the crowd.

Twilight’s eyes flicked between Discord the entranced crowd. “You hypnotized them. If you’re here to cause trouble, then so help me—”

“Nothing of the sort. I actually came to congratulate you!” he chuckled.

“Con-congratulate me? For what?” Twilight stammered incredulously.

“I had fully expected for Equestria to collapse into all manner of chaos and strife within a week of your taking power, yet here you are, a year later and still free and prosperous,” Discord proclaimed with a flourishing gesture.

“Expected, or hoped?” Luna hissed.

“Both, of course, but seeing as it didn’t happen, that hardly matters,” Discord sighed wistfully, turning over to lay on his belly. “Somehow the unsociable bookworm succeeded in uniting a grieving country. As disappointed as I am, I must admit that I’m impressed.”

“So why wait until now to come bother me?” Twilight sneered. “Any threats of civil war were over months ago.”

“I had to finish the tasks Celestia left for me first,” Discord started matter-of-factly. “Quite an extensive list she gave me, but I did all of it to the letter.”

“And what tasks did she give you?”

“You mean she didn’t tell you? Either of you?” Discord asked skeptically glancing between the two alicorns before rolling onto his back, cackling wildly. “Oh this is rich! Well, if she didn’t see fit to tell you, than why should I?”

Twilight let out a frustrated groan. “Well, in that case, hold still so I can turn you back into a statue.”

“For what? I haven’t done anything yet,” he wheezed teasingly. “I doubt Fluttershy would be too pleased.”

“You... How dare you use her against us! I SWEAR I WILL—” Luna shrieked angrily before being cut off by Twilight.

“Fluttershy won’t be around forever,” Twilight interrupted coldly, barely above a whisper. “Why shouldn’t I just take care of you now and spare myself the strife later? Fluttershy might be angry with me for a while, but she’d understand.”

“And what makes you think that I’ll cause you strife later,” Discord scoffed, pulling the helmet off of a nearby guard and inspecting it in his claw. “A few hundred headaches maybe, but as much as I like getting under your skin, I like not being a statue even more.”

“You’re not known to be a creature of your word,” Twilight started pointedly. “How can I be sure that you’re not just biding your time and gathering your power?”

“Fine, let me spell it out for you in nerdeese,” he sighed, reaching into the helmet and pulling out a massive chalkboard that spanned the length of the room, covered with complex mathematical equations. “Now if you look at the top left of the board, you’ll see that as you continue to grow your power will continue to increase according to equation 34a. At the same time, my power will actually decrease at the rate shown by equation 5f. Now if we multiply the inverse of equation 25c with the derivative of equation 10, and solve for z where z is the lowest estimate of Fluttershy’s lifespan, assuming she dies a natural death, you’ll see that your power will nearly triple mine by the time we have to worry about her passing.” He snapped his claws and the board disappeared, leaving a thick cloud of dust. “And that’s without accounting for Luna’s power.”

“And..?”

“And I’m not stupid enough to hurt anypony when I’m at that much of a disadvantage,” Discord griped.

“I see,” Twilight muttered. “So is this supposed to be your way of bribing me? ‘I won’t cause trouble if you don’t turn me into stone’?”

“Pretty much,” Discord nodded.

Twilight glanced at Luna with a frown before turning back to Discord. “...It’s against my better judgement, but I’m going to trust you. This is only for Fluttershy’s sake though! If you make me regret this, I’ll let Luna do whatever she wants to you.”

Luna grimaced at Twilight. “What? But he— you... fine. We will discuss this later,” Luna grumbled before turning to Discord. “As for you. If you breach Twilight’s trust, you’ll spend five hundred years in the moon, followed by five hundred years in the sun, then, for good measure, I’ll cast you into the deepest pit of Tartarus, where you’ll remain until the end of time.”

“That seems excessive, but I suppose that I don’t have a choice,” Discord muttered.

“Good,” Twilight said forcefully. “Just tell me where in my speech you hypnotized my audience, then you can leave.”

“I believe the last thing you said was ‘Good afternoon, everypony,’ so I’d start there.”

The beginning? Are you kidding me?” Twilight groaned.

“Not even a bit,” Discord chuckled, disappearing in a flash.


“I really hate him,” Twilight snarled as she stomped into Luna’s room later that night, a tray laden with tea and various pastries floating in behind her. “Though not as much as you, obviously,” she continued when she saw the skeptical expression on Luna’s face. She trotted over to Luna and joined her laying down on the bed, carefully placing the tray in between them. “When did Spike fall asleep? I brought him one of those ruby danishes he’s taken a liking to.”

“Shortly after you left,” Luna replied softly, pouring tea for herself and Twilight. “I decided that it would probably be best to just let him rest.”

“Yeah, he’s had a long day. Thanks for putting a blanket over him at least,” Twilight murmured, picking up a nearby deck of cards with her magic, shuffling it, and dealing herself and Luna ten cards each and placing the deck on the bed between them..

“You are most welcome; it was a long day indeed,” Luna started plainly, taking her cards and drawing one. “I must say, however, that I question your judgement in trusting Discord.”

“Honestly, so do I. But I trusted Celestia and she’s the one who let him go in the first place,” Twilight sighed. “I also trust Fluttershy. Besides, he was legitimately worried when I threatened to turn him into stone; I think he was being truthful today.”

“I got the same feeling. Gin.”

“What? Already?” Twilight exclaimed. “Fine, next round. You said that you had played this before, not that you were good at this.”

“I never said that I was bad, either,” Luna giggled. “Now, where were we?”

“Memoria Tristia,” Twilight muttered, re-dealing the cards.

“Ah, yes. The Solemn Memory, which, despite its name, I made to commemorate a happy event.”

“...Which was?”

“The first Alicorn born to non-Alicorn parents after Celestia and I took our respective thrones; six hundred, twenty-two years after, to be precise,” Luna said with a smile.

“You mean pegacorn?” Twilight asked skeptically.

“I am aware of the common nomenclature for such a being, but the truth is that they are Alicorns,” Luna corrected.

“How is that possible?” Twilight stammered, glancing up from her cards.

“Long ago, that is centuries before my parents were even born, it was a relatively common for Alicorns to... ‘mingle’ with the other three pony races, so most ponies nowadays would be able to claim trace amount of Alicorn ancestry. Not that any of them would be able to prove it. And not that any of them would know. To be honest, not even Celestia or I could tell,” Luna muttered thoughtfully. “By the time I was born the practice had become taboo, but that didn’t change the past. Gin.”

“Again?” Twilight whined exasperatedly, scooping up the cards to re-deal.

“On the rare occasion though it is possible to point one out. A pegasus with pointed wings, or a unicorn with a longer than normal horn, or particularly large, yet slender earth pony,” Luna continued. “However, once in every few hundred years, when bloodlines mingle in just the right way and the flow of magic runs perfectly, an alicorn is born. Not like you, Celestia, or I, mind you, with a lifespan measured in millennia and god-like power, but a true alicorn. They’ll be bigger than most Earth Ponies and more powerful than most Unicorns, with uncanny resistance to disease and a lifespan several decades longer than normal ponies.”

“Like Cadance!” Twilight chirped, understanding what Luna was hinting at. “And I’m going to go down with this hand.” She placed her cards down on the bed with a confident smirk that melted away the instant Luna did the same. “You still outscored me! How..? Here, you deal. Maybe I’ll have better luck that way.”

“Exactly like Cadance,” Luna chuckled, picking up the deck herself. “The pony I made the star for was named Skystrider, and was born to a pair of Earth Ponies.” She dealt the cards and gave Twilight a twisted smile. “Earth Pony peasants. You can imagine how thrilled the nobility of the time was.”

“Did they revolt?” Twilight asked nervously.

“No. They insisted that he was demonspawn and demanded that he be hanged,” Luna grumbled distastefully. “As you can imagine Celestia and I intervened. She made a public declaration that he wasn’t demonspawn, but a gift from the heavens. I crowned him a Prince and gave him permission to found his own noble House.”

“Which house did he found?”

“House Glimmer of Wheatsdale. You wouldn’t have heard of them, they died out 1,100 years ago,” Luna sighed shaking her head. “I don’t doubt that Skystrider still has some descendants around, but I couldn’t even begin to tell you who they were. But to continue, Celestia and I have done the same for every Alicorn born since. The lastest, as you know, being Cadance. She happened to be born into nobility, but all of her children will be of House Cadenza instead of the House she was born into.”

“That’s really amazing,” Twilight purred with a grin that quickly turned into a frown. “Why is Blueblood called a ‘Prince’ than? Please tell me —”

“Blueblood is not descended from any alicorn born after Celestia and I. His only claim to fame is the one he is always touting: having Princess Platinum as an ancestor,” Luna interrupted reassuringly. “Besides, the children of alicorns are only granted the title of ‘Duke’ or ‘Duchess’. ‘Tia and I had no idea how frequently new alicorns would be born and we both agreed that having dozens of princes and princesses around would be... problematic.”

“That’s good. The last thing anypony needs is for his head to get any bigger and being related to an Alicorn would do just that,” Twilight grunted.

“Indeed. ‘Tis a pity that some ponies believe that they are better than others simply because of something their ancestors did,” Luna spat.

Twilight nodded and made to place a card into the discard pile, but stopped to glare suspiciously at the innocent smile adorning Luna’s face; she smirked confidently and placed an entirely different card down. Luna responded by immediately scooping it up and placing all of her cards on the bed. “Gin.”

Twilight gaped at the cards Luna lay on the bedspread before groaning loudly. “Alright, forget this. We’re playing something else.”