Flight to Dreadlands

by Prince of Cavia

Four

Awoken After Millennium - Love And War - Alicorn’s Eyes - Discarded

---

Shining Armor drove through the streets of Crystal City.

The haze of magic still lingered in the sky. Shining’s head felt light. Still, he managed to keep his composure.

He looked towards the streets. The city looked and felt abandoned. There were only a few Crystal Ponies outside, despite the warm and sunny late May weather. The ponies that were outside were either standing still, or moving as if in trance.

Shining saw Crystal Ponies act like this before. The day when he led the Equestrian army to seize Crystal City from Sombra, eighteen years ago.

Eighteen years? It felt far longer than that. When he was promoted to be the Captain of Equestria’s Royal Guard, the world seemed a different place. Celestia kept peace and harmony reigning supreme. Ponies were happy and content. Those who joined the army were here mostly to keep in shape, learn new skills or occasionally deal with a rogue monster. Nopony thought an actual war would happen.

Then, Chrysalis attempted a decapitation strike on the day of his wedding. She was defeated, but she returned several years later, leading a modernized army with tanks and guns. Shining and the Crystal Army held the line, and Changelings were defeated, after a long and brutal war. The war changed the Crystal Empire and changed Equestria.

After the Great War, and after the two smaller skirmishes with Stalliongrad and the Arctic Empire, it seemed that peace finally returned to Equus. Yet, it wasn’t so. The warmongering dictator of Karthinian Empire has attacked New Mareland, starting another war, even larger than the one with Changelings.

Then, a week ago, in the middle of the night, something happened. Nopony was sure as to what. It seemed only the closest advisors to the Princess knew it. There was a bright flash of green light that knocked out everypony in the city.

Shining saw a similar flash before. Over the northern horizon, just before the information came from the frontier that Sombra had returned.

No, Shining. She’s not at all like Sombra. She knew what she did, he thought, more to reassure himself.

After driving through the city, the car reached its destination. Crystal Fields Air Force Base.

Unlike the city, the air base was busy with activity. There were ponies walking around, and planes were getting ready. Shining saw a pony fall over, and many only barely managed to walk, but discipline and will to fight made them push through the magical haze that clouded their minds. Luckly, nopony was trying to fly. Shining was a strong mage, and was resistant to magical exhaustion, and if he felt as if he was barely awake, how would other ponies do?

Shining got out of the car and walked towards the command center. He saw three important ponies standing next to it.

There was a red pegasus stallion with a white-brown mane. Martini Markerlight, Chief of Crystal Air Force. There was also a pink earth pony mare with red and white mane. Dusty Ember, general of the First Army.

Between them, there was a mare in a military uniform. She was far taller than either of the officers. Her expression was serious, as she spoke to them, explaining another of her brilliant strategies. She was as fair as her mother, and as strong as her father. Shining knew her as a brave warrior, ambitious leader, a diligent and erudite student. Her mere presence seemed to demand obedience and discipline.

Most importantly of all, this mare was his sixteen years old daughter.

“Field Marshal,” said Dusty and Martini, and saluted to Shining Armor.

“Welcome, father. I am glad you managed to attend the meeting,” said Princess Flurry Heart, Princess of Crystal Empire and Princess of Ponies.

“Hello, Flurry,” Shining replied.

He knew there was something off about Flurry. Maybe not a possession, as if the few remaining naysayers said, but there was something. It started when she was eleven, and started parroting the anti-penguin rhetoric of Cadance. It became even stronger when Cadance appointed her as her main advisor at age fourteen. With Cadance’s declining mental state, Flurry became the de facto leader of Crystal Empire. Eventually, Shining and the rest of the cabinet managed to pressure Cadance to step down, and for Flurry to be crowned the new Princess.

Looking at his daughter now, Shining was having doubts.

“I hope you will finally tell me what’s up with the magical fog over the city,” said Shining, trying to keep the tone.

“Yes. Follow me, I will show you something.”

The officers walked through the airfield. They were guarded by a group of soldiers. Shining had to appreciate the discipline in their movement, especially given that they suffered from the effects of the fog as well.

The group reached a gate. Flurry opened it with her magic. They walked on a road for a short while, and then Shining saw what Flurry wanted him to see.

The road just stopped at a point. It seemed as if it was cut by magic. Shining saw that the trees surrounding it were also off. Some had branches seemingly cut.

“So, it is true. We are in the future,” said Shining. He was suspecting it, and the soldiers in the city were spreading rumors. Now he saw it.

“Indeed. We are over one thousand years in the future.”

“But, why? Why did you decide to send the city into the future?”

“My job was done.”

“What about Equestria? Why had you abandoned it?”

“They outgrew their usefulness.”

Shining was quite unnerved by the way his daughter was speaking. He looked into her eyes, and he didn’t see his little filly in them. It was as if something took control of Flurry.

“What do you mean?”

“They're gone. Equestria, Karthinia, all of them. At least, they should be, but given the sun and moon are still moving, Celestia and Luna are still alive.”

Shining looked towards Dusty and Martini. They seemed completely unfazed with this information. As if they already knew about it, and approved. “Gone? How is that possible?” he asked.

“The Dread Tide washed over Equus, stopping it. The plan that we made was to finally reach the conclusion. As you can see, the mission is not done yet.”

Shining was unnerved and couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You mean… the rest of Equus…”

“Should have been destroyed, but it seems the plan had some unexpected flaws.”

“The plan?!” Shining shouted, finally losing his composure. “You want to tell me you planned to destroy the continent? That you somehow managed to move Crystal City thousand years into the future? Why? How could you?!”

The guards wanted to move, but Flurry stopped them. “Father… I knew you might not understand why it needed to be done. That’s why the plan was being kept secret from you. As the Princess of Crystal Empire, it is my duty to keep my ponies safe. Equus was doomed to fall no matter what I did. I just ensured Crystal Empire will survive.”

“Survive, by letting the entire continent be destroyed?”

“Celestia, Luna and Twilight were left in Equestria. You think they did nothing to stop the fall of Equus? If the sun still rises and sets, it means ponies of Equestria survived. Possibly fled the continent before the Dread Tide even reached the borders of Equestria.”

“That… might be true. Still, that’s no excuse for…”

Flurry walked a few steps towards her father. Shining felt her power. Mere presence of Alicorns had an effect on ponies, but Flurry seemed to be even stronger at this. She was their leader. She was the rightful Princess.

“I will need your help if we are to save the ponies. Can you help me?”

Shining looked Flurry in her eyes. There was something that unnerved him in these eyes. Still, Flurry was his daughter. Even with a rough exterior, she was a good pony at hearth. She was.

“Yes, I will help you,” Shining said. I can’t lose you like I lost Cadance, he added in his mind.

---

After the meeting at the airbase, Shining Armor returned to the Crystal Palace. Flurry stayed in the base, personally overseeing the preparation for the upcoming mission.

The Crystal Palace felt empty. Sure, there were servants and guards, and in the lower levels there were politicians and office workers, but there was a vital element missing.

Shining’s thoughts were interrupted by the sight of a family member. “Spike, good to see you,” he said.

Spike, Shining’s adopted brother, was one of key advisors for Cadance. Mostly, his duty was to shoot down the more unhinged ideas the Princess got. There were many arguments during the council meetings, and Shining suspected that Spike kept his position only thanks to his popularity in the Empire and the fact of being Shining’s brother.

The dragon hadn’t looked well. “Is it true? Are we really in the future?”

“Unfortunately, yes. Flurry showed me that all the infrastructure outside of Crystal City is just gone, decayed after a millennium of unuse. She thinks ponies evacuated the continent shortly after we left.”

“I should have quitten when I had the chance. Take my family back to Ponyville.”

“How is Gemini, by the way?”

“I haven’t told him yet. Poor boy, he loved to visit Twilight. How can I tell him that…”

“If anypony could find a way to survive a continent-destroying cataclysm, it's her. Besides, she’s an immortal alicorn. She’s fine. Flurry plans to find her.”

“Are you completely sure about that?”

Shining lowered his head. “I hope so. You know what Sombra’s spells looked like?”

“He absorbed magic from blood and bones. Pony sacrifices were commonplace. Do you think that Flurry…”

“She told me the spell used the lifeforce of Griffons from Karthin, Falcor and ten other cities. She dropped megaspells on them.”

Spike’s eyes went wide. “She sacrificed griffons?”

“The worst part was that she seemed confused as to why I got angry at her,” Shining said, defeated. “What in Harmony's name happened to her?”

Shining remembered a day from back when Flurry was eleven. It was after the end of the war against Stalliongrad. Princess Cadance made a plan to start another war, this time against the Penguins of the Arctic Empire. Many supported getting rid of the last non-harmonic nation on Equus, but some opposed it. There was one staunch supporter of the war.

“... Will we stand idly by and watch them arm themselves while Crystal Empire is undefended? Or will we disarm this threat before it grows beyond our power?”

Eleven years old Flurry Heart was listening patiently to the recording of her mother’s recent speech. The tensions between the Crystal Empire and the Arctic Empire were growing. The Crystal Armed Forces, which helped defeat Stalliongrad merely three weeks ago, were on the move towards the Polar Bear Communities, a Crystal protectorate in northern Equus. War seemed inevitable.

Shining Armor looked at her daughter. She was becoming interested in politics. It was a good thing considering she was the heir to the throne, but Shining was getting worried about her.

“The so-called emperor Orvar is an evil bird! We need to throw the penguins to the ocean! There can only be one Empire in the north!” Flurry shouted.

“Flurry, how about you go play with other foals?” asked Shining.

“Dad, you know I’m right. Attack is the best defense. We must deal with the penguin menace as soon as possible.”

Shining wasn’t sure how to argue with that. Flurry was getting more and more like Cadance.

He still remembered how his blood went cold as he realized that he thought of it as a bad thing.

---

When Flurry was a baby, before the war and everything, Shining often thought about what she would do in the future. Would she be a scholar-princess like her aunt? Would she travel around the Three Continents and beyond, spreading friendship and harmony?

Shining remembered clearly the day four months ago. The day Flurry took over the Empire.

On a cold January morning, the most prominent politicians and generals of the Crystal Empire meet. Shining Armor, Spike, Sunburst, Idol Hooves, Flash Sentry, Martini Markerlight, Cloudie, Deimos Falafel, Silver Stone and Dusty Ember meet on the request of Flurry Heart.

“My mother fell ill. I request you to help me convince her to step down, and for me to assume the role of the Princess of Crystal Empire.”

Flurry had recently turned sixteen and became a legal adult. Even before, since the age of fourteen, she attended the government meetings. With Cadance’s declining mental health, she became a de facto leader in her place. The coronation would be a formality.

“Have you spoken to Cadance about it?” Shining asked.

“I am sure she would cooperate.”

“You have my full support, Princess,” said Martini Markerlight, known for sharing Cadance’s obsession over airplanes and almost cult-like loyalty to her.

The rest of the staff agreed. Shining felt a bit of conscience about plotting against his own wife, but he knew Cadance needed professional help. Leading a nation at war was not something she was capable of doing right now.

“Me and Flurry will talk to her. She will accept it,” said Shining.

“What if she refuses?” asked Spike, always the voice of harmony and reason.

“She will be arrested for the sake of our country. I will strive for friendship and harmony in the world, no matter what it takes,” said Flurry. Shining was concerned about her tone. Still, he hoped his daughter would do the right thing. She was a good filly.

After the meeting, Shining and Flurry moved towards the dining room. Cadance was supposed to be there. Shining looked out of the windows. He saw soldiers waiting for something. He started to understand why his decision to send Crystal Armed Forces to defend New Manehattan was overruled and why the army was ordered to gather near Crystal City instead.

Shining and Flurry entered the dining room. Cadance was there. Shining’s heart sank. Cadance’s mane was unkempt, she was shaking and her eyes were full of fear.

“Mother, it is time.”

Cadance shuddered in her chair. “Discarded. Unneeded. It needs better…” she babbled.

“Cadance, you need serious help. It pains me to say this, but you are in no condition to continue leading the country. You should abdicate in favor of Flurry.”

“Better. Rightful. What it needs…”

Shining walked closer to his wife, grabbed her hoof and looked her in the eyes. It was bad, she hasn’t even reacted.

“She has now grown old enough to rule the Empire,” Shining said. Flurry placed a document on the table. Official act of abdication.

Something changed in Cadance’s expression. The fear was gone, replaced by... something that Shining couldn't put his hoof on. “So it is decided.” Cadance said calmly. She picked up the pen and signed the document. Then, the strange glow in her eyes suddenly faded, and she fainted.

“Cadance!” Shining shouted. The doors opened, and guards came here. Shining turned towards them. “Bring a medic here. Quickly!”

Shining held his unconscious wife. He looked at Flurry, and saw her changed.

Flurry looked at the guard. “Tell the staff to gather in the war room. As the new Princess, I need to take action,” she said. Shining saw something in her expression and her eyes. Terrible eyes, just like those that Cadance had at her worst. As if whatever was inside Cadance’s mind suddenly changed its host and took root in his daughter.

Shining often reminisced about if he made the best decisions. This time, he again was not sure if he did the right thing.

---

After the talk with Spike and remembering the events from Flurry’s life, Shining Armor found himself walking the streets of Crystal City. He headed towards the Crystal City Neuropsychiatric Hospital. The biggest and most modern of such institutions in the world. Cadance was interested in developing medicine and investing in mental health, before the threat of the war changed her. Now, after her abdication, she was the most important patient there.

Shining entered the hospital. The doctor personally responsible for Cadance led him to the meeting room.

“Princess is waiting for you,” he said.

“How is she?” Shining inquired.

The doctor sighted. “Not good, I’m afraid. Since the flash, she’s been worse.”

“Is there anything you can do?”

“It seems like a magical-related illness, but nothing we tried helped. Possibly it is due to her unique Alicorn status. We don’t have much information about Alicorn physiology, and history showed us that they might have something that causes them to lose themselves in magical delusions. We will try everything we can.”

“Thank you, doctor.”

“I may say that being with family will for sure improve her well-being.”

Shining and the doctor reached the meeting room. Shining entered it alone.

In his eyes, and in the eyes of many stallions in fact, Cadance was the most beautiful pony to ever live. The Alicorn Princess of Love, the noble ruler of a nation recovered from darkness, a great wife and mother.

Yet, since the uncertain times just before the Great War, something seemed to be off about her. Illogical decisions that made sense many months later. Sudden interest in all things military. Increasing militarization of the country and aggressive foreign policy. Finally, her obsession about creating the greatest air force in the world. Many ponies assumed all Alicorns act this way, as it was well known they are far more than mere ponies. Others just blindly followed what Cadance said, as her already great charisma increased even more. Some, very few, silently whispered that the Princess was getting mad.

Seeing the unkept mane, the dulled coat and overall state his wife was in, Shining’s heart itched.

“Hello, my love,” he said. Cadance didn’t respond.

He sat down in a chair next to her, and looked into her eyes. These eyes were empty, as if something was missing.

“I just returned from the Crystal Fields Air Force base. Everyone was asking about you. They miss you. You remember how happy you were when the base finished construction?” he said. Cadance still hasn't acknowledged him. “I feel good. Granted, I’m not as young as I used to, but I still can show the recruits how a real warrior fights,” he mock-bragged. Cadance still looked at something in the distance. “Caddy, what about you? How do you feel?” he asked. He still hasn’t gotten an answer. To see the mare he loved so much in such a state, it was breaking his heart. He continued talking “Flurry is doing great as a princess. The Crystal Empire is safe…”

“Safe,” Cadance replied absent-mindly. Suddenly, she seemed as if she awoke. She looked at him. “Shining.”

“I’m here,” he said with a smile.

“Flurry. She’s not safe. Not safe at all. We’re not safe. It is coming…”

“With the amount of fortifications you and Flurry build around Crystal City, I’m pretty sure even your Ultima Ratio won’t scratch it.”

“The world will break! It wants it to. We have to make it stop!”

Shining’s expression soured. He wanted to help Cadance, but didn’t know exactly how. “No matter what would come here, I will protect you and Flurry. You may count on me.”

“It chose Flurry. I was just a means to an end. Flurry can stop it. She’s better than me.”

“Stop what, exactly?”

Seeing the expression of horror, panic and disgust on Cadance's face, he instantly regretted the question.

“Caddy, calm down…”

“The monster. It wants us! Help Flurry make it stop! Please, I beg you. Make. It. STOP!” Cadance shouted. Shining grabbed her hoof and hugged her. She broke down into tears. “Make it stop.” she repeated a few times.

“Shh. It’s okay. I will protect Flurry, I promise. Don’t worry. She will be safe.”

Cadance hugged Shining back. “I love you, Shining,” she said, in a voice similar to the loving mare he married. The two just sat in silence for a long while. Shining Armor wished the old Cadance back. He wished that whatever made her the way she was now would be gone.

Most importantly, he thought of his daughter. She went on a dark path, and it might be too late for her to turn back. Shining however wasn’t a stallion that gave up. He promised to keep Flurry safe, and he will do so.