The First Ruler

by TheWulf05

Bucephalus

Author's Note:

This is more of a lore dump on the location and what happened that day at the nightclub and why it was being redeveloped and how this leads to the archeological site. Don't worry the next regular chapter will come soon.

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What happened that day

The site of the Bucephalus was located on a large lot of land in the Artemis District of Zephyr Heights. The size of the plot was about 30 acres from the street to the base of the mountains. Before it was a nightclub, it was originally a factory that manufactured hayburger buns. After the factory closed, if was bought by two ponies, Luck Hooves and Jane Filly, who saw it as a prime grounds for a nightclub.

When the Bucephalus opened in 1989, it was a massive hit with the locals as many famous music artists would headline the club. From bands like Electric Blue and to singers like Platinum Jubilee.

The Bucephalus would remain popular for many years as a popular site until March 7, 2005.

On the day of the fire it aas Rock n Roll night. Which was always a popular event and most of the club would be sold out.

But rumors had spread earlier that week that the monarchs of Zephyr Heights, King Rex IV and Queen Haven would be at the club to be surprise guests. Because of the rumors, as many as 1,000 ponies went into the nightclub for a chance to see the monarchs. Later on it woulbe confirmed that they were in the club that night.

As the 1,000 ponies were in the club, hundreds of others were outside as the club as it was overfilled above the listed capacity. Which was 850 for a fully booked event in the club.

During the second song played by the headliner Electric Blue, a connection to a speaker exploded and sparks ignited the curtain next to the stage.

In a less than 1 minute the entire dance floor was up in smoke as the club used flammable materials for walls and decorations. The sprinkler system didn't activate because of improper repair work done by the owners.

Much of the horrific event was captured on camera by paparazzies and news crews as they were there for the royal monarchs, also some of the event was captured by others outside as a large group of ponies were waiting outside at the full venue.

As ponies were panicking in the venue many rushed to the entrance as smoke filled the venue. Others tried smashing windows and other doors to their freedom. Some of them were lucky, while others weren't. During the rush to the entrance a horrific crush occurred at the entrance of the club. About 115 ponies were trapped on top another as others outside tried to free the ones that were trapped.

During the chaos the monarchs did escape, but King Rex new that others needed help as they were beacons of hope to the citizens'. So in a act of bravery, he rushed back into the club. He was responsible for saving about 15 ponies during the event. King Rex would unfortunately never make it back on his final trek around the club. He would be found deceased in the kitchen shielding a 10 year old foal who had snuck in. The foal would survive because of his sacrifice.

In total 345 would die in the fire and 600 injured mainly from smoke inhalation. Around 130 victims were found around the entrance area in a heap and only 3 were pulled alive as the bodies shielded them from the smoke and flames. While the rest would be scattered around the club from the dance floor to the bathrooms. The ages of the victims varied. They were as old as 73 while the youngest was a 15 year old, who snuck in the club undetected. As many as 60 underage foals from 10 to 17 years had sneaked in through open windows and unmarked doors to see the monarchs. Most would survive as they escaped from the ways they entered in.

Some victims were famous at the time. Besides King Rex IV who's death hit the entire city and the royal family. Electric Blue's manager Brownie Strings would pass away in the fire.

The owners of the Bucephalus Nightclub, Lucky Hooves, and Jane Filly would also die in the fire. But investigations led them both to be the main ponies responsible for the fire as they never properly repaired the sprinklers, or replaced the flammable materials that made up the building, which would had saved lives, and they never kept the building up to modern code at the time.

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The Discovery

After the investigation the building was demolished and a small plaque was erected by the Bucephalus's former location.
The Bucephalus only took up 1 acre when the tragedy occurred, so much of the land was believed to be undeveloped for most of its history, until recently.

Legends have been said that the Bucephalus site supposedly had riches like gold and silver from ancient times and was a contender for the site of Ilum Guia, the first castle of Zephyr Heights.

The ground was left undug during the investigation. After the nightclub was demolished, the land had been stuck in limbo for years as nopony new what to do with the land. Some wanted to build a memorial garden, while others wanted to build more housing and shopping developments as that land was some of the last buildable land in the city.

When magic returned to the three tribes, many ponies from Bridlewood and Maretime Bay started to move to Zephyr Heights, which lead to a compromise. The development would happen but at least some of the land would be used to build a permanent memorial to the victims of the fire.

Building had been going smoothly for a few weeks until some remains of bricks were recovered underneath the ground of the site.

Some thought it was from the former nightclub. But test show that these bricks are much older than realized and a new discovery may have been found. Later on similar artifacts like copper coinage that has a portrait of of unknown monarch lead to the possibility that Ilum Guia, might be in this location.

But much more evidence needs to be proven before it can be confirmed.