> According To Time > by illWillPress > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Prologue > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Wonderbolts soared through the air, performing amazing stunts and tricks, leaving the on looking audience in awe. What they didn't know was what had just transpired. During the beauty of this day, power was shown and power was taken. On the floor lay one loved by many with its great power striped from its very being. ********* Princess Luna gleefully galloped through the hallways of the castle with her royal guards at her sides on her way to visit her sister, who had been feeling ill. I have a very bad feeling about this, the guard to Luna's left thought to himself. As Luna quickly approached her sister's chamber, a chill went down her spine. She had been having strange, unexplainable, dreams. Going near her sister always gave her the strangest of feelings. Touching her would nearly cause her to faint from sudden exhaustion. What they both didn't know was that a war waged in her very soul, Celestia vs. Time. This war did not last long of course, for the strength of Time easily overwhelmed Celestia's soul. Luna slowly opened the door, trying not to wake her possibly sleeping sister. "Sister?" Luna asked, hoping to see what used to be her cheerful, vibrant sister. As she slowly peeked through the doorway, what see saw horrified her. She instantly launched herself at her sister, needing to know if her beloved sister was still breathing. What she saw on the floor of Celestia's room was not her. Her mane no longer flowed, but it was nothing but a dull pink color. She was missing her horn and wings, as if they were never there. But what horrified Luna most was her sister's wide open grey eyes. Luna couldn't look at her sister any longer, for she was already in tears for what she thought was the loss of her sister. By now Luna's guards had already rushed in, investigating the scene. Luna was leaned against the wall outside her sister's room, her eyes flowing with tears. "Tia," Luna cried quietly to herself, "What happened, why did you have to leave me like this?" Luna continued to cry, her eyes closed, tears flowing. Her mind was racing with thoughts of who would ever kill her beloved sister. Memories of the wonderful times they had together. All she wanted was to open her eyes and see her sister, back to her normal, graceful, self. When her mind started to slow she could here a voice. That's Tia's voice! Luna thought to herself with overwhelming joy. "Luna, Luna, open your eyes...." Her sister's voice began to trail off as she slowly opened he eyes, her vision still clouded with tears. "...Tia..." Luna said weakly. As the princess opened her eyes she did not see her sister, what she saw was a royal guard screaming to her to open her eyes and listen. "Princess, PRINCESS LUNA! WE NEED TO GET YOU OUT OF HERE NOW!" "Wha-" Before the princess could say one word, she was stopped by a hoof being shoved in her mouth. "No time to talk we need to get you to the bunker, NOW!" Instantly she was surrounded royal guards. To Luna everything was a blur of colors. As she was forced through twists and turns, her hooves where barely touching the ground. Soon she reached the bunker, it was in a section not even she, the princess herself, had even seen nor heard of. The hallway carved in to the mountain seemed to go on for miles. Once they reached the bunker, it seemed even longer before she got any answers, until one stallion finally spoke up. "Princess Luna," the guard spoke clear but seemed to be hiding something, “We have taken you here for your own protection. It is clear something unknown has attacked your sister. We needed to get you here so whatever got to her, wouldn't get to you." Princess Luna spoke obvious fear in her voice. "But what of my sister, is she really dead?" "From what I've heard, your sister is alive but on the brink of death. She has lost all her power, and she can’t even more, she can only see and hear." Luna began to sob deeply once more, but these where tears of joy for now she knew her sister was still alive. At that moment the door to the bunker burst open in what seemed to be a blur of white. They past by her not giving her a single glance, but as they pasted time seemed to slow when she was looking directly at Celestia. When Luna saw Celestia she did not see a fear in her big sister eyes but she saw...peace. Looking into her sisters eyes, Luna knew soon she would be gone. The doctors quickly took Celestia to what looked like an entire hospital all in one room. Wasting no time, Luna strode to her sister. Using her royal Canterlot voice, Luna spoke. "STAND ASIDE; LET ME SPEAK TO MY DEAR SISTER!" "BUT LUNA," one doctor spoke almost as loud as Luna, “IF WE STOP NOW, CELESTIA WILL DIE!" Luna returned to her usual voice. “Do not fret, my loyal subject, for there is no hope for my sister..." Luna slowly walked over to her sister, and to everypony's surprise, Celestia spoke, in almost her normal voice. “Luna, my dearest sister, you must not waste any time, the Great of Few must be gathered..." Celestia's voice faded away, and with that, she was gone. ********* The sun set early that day, Celestia was given a princesses burial and the news of her untimely death spread like wild fire through out Equestria. Luna was the last pony standing at her sister's grave after the ceremony. All was quite except for the rain for the weather team saw it fit the melancholy everypony felt, but Luna soon heard a voice that sound like a lone man but also like a collection of voices. The voice seemed to surround her yet it also seemed to just be in her head. But the words where clear and it simply said: "the Time has come." Hearing that made her slip out of her trance-like state and that's when she noticed something.... she hadn't set the sun that day. **************************************************************************************************** > Growing insanity > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Time sat idly on his throne, staring at the Hourglass. He had been watching over it since the world first began, waiting for it to empty so he could fulfill his duty. The sand continued flowing in a steady stream into the lower half of the glass. He continued staring. Hours, days, months, years passed of staring. He never once took his eyes off the hourglass. Not since he formed the blood pact with Celestia and Luna. Ding....Dong...Ding Time snapped out of his trance, noticing it was time. The top of the Hourglass was nearly empty, The Great of Few would soon gather, to determine the end times. He would need to prepare it, ready the apocalypse. Celestia, the one who moved the sun... She was the first target... It was part of the agreement at the blood pact. In return for her powers, Time would be able to reclaim his power in the end, and anymore that she gathered from the sun over the years. Time got up off of his throne. He looked into a pool of water, which showed Celestia sleeping peacefully. Time extended his arm, releasing a supernatural leach from his sleeve. It slithered through to Celestia, and worked it's way to her heart, where it would slowly take from her Godly blood pool. The other Gods would soon notice, and prepare to gather in the chamber. If the judgement did not pass, all would be undone, but not even Time could predict what the other gods would say.... ********* Typewrite sat peacefully at her home writing a new novel when she got a knock at her door. Typewrite was a star author, she always seemed to know how to fascinate her readers with her romantic/dramas and the occasional historical fiction. She was renowned for her stunning beauty. She had a bright white coat, a flowing magenta mane, and bright yellow eyes. Typewrite released her novel and and quill from her magic. I wonder who that could be, she thought to herself. She got up from her chair and began to walk to the door. As she opened the door she found a grey, yellowed eyed, Pegasus standing at the door. "I've got a letter for you." The Pegasus said in a strange tone. (A.N: If your wondering, the courier is a descendant of Derpy.) "Thank you." Typewrite replied in a pleasant tone. As Typewrite walked back into her home she got an ominous feeling, but she simply ignored it. She sat back down, proceed to open the letter, and then read it aloud to herself: Dear Typewrite, I am indeed glad to hear that you will soon be ready to publish your newest creation. However, I am going to be in Canterlot for the next few months. My mother is sick and I will be accompanying her, and helping her get back on her hooves. Since she is Princess Luna's assistant, she will be in the royal palace hospital. This does not mean I cannot help you publish your book. When you arrive at the palace, tell the guards "It is Time" and they will take you to me. Sincerely, Fine Print Typewrite looked at the last part of the letter in confusion. The word 'Time' seemed to stick out for some reason. Not to mention, "It is Time" is an odd pass phrase to begin with. She also wasn't sure when she would be finished with her book. Her rough estimate was about five days time. Fine Print did say she would be there for months though, but that was odd as well... What sickness lasts for months? The feather flu? No no no, that was cured a while ago... Oh well, what does it matter anyways... I'm just worrying myself. Typewrite thought. ********* Celestia was resting peacefully resting after one of her only good days. The conference went great, the Griffon ambassador agreed to all construction of rail road tracks to increase trade, and a new foreign policy that benefited the ponies. Celestia grinned in her sleep at the remembrance of this. But while she reminisced the day gone by, she was having quite a strange dream. She was dreaming of an hour glass, which was rather large. As she dreamt, over her point of view of the hour glass came a shadow of a strange, unrecognizable, figure. The figure seemed to reach out and at that moment all went black. There was a loud 'HISSSSSSssssss' like that of a distorted cat, suddenly, just for a split second, she saw what seemed to be a leach. Then there was a pain in her chest, and she awoke. She was baffled by what had just went through her head. On one side of her mind she wanted to know what she had just dreamed of, on the other, she was scared to know. ********* Typewrite barely got three hours of sleep that night. She couldn't get those three words out of her head, no matter how much she tried. It is Time, it is Time, it is Time. It just kept repeating in her mind. "Why wont it just go away," she tiredly groaned. "Please just leave me alone." She wasn't just asking now, she was begging. The words were becoming louder every time it repeated in her head. Then it all seemed to stop. "Oh thank Celes-" She was then cut off by another voice in her head that was a whisper but booming at the same time. Speak for me... It seemed to say several more times but Typewrite only heard it once. She was so tired and confused she didn't know what to think of it all. Now in the sudden eerie silence, she could could barely keep her eyes open, much less think. So in the now quiet of the night, hoping it was all a very bad dream, she closed her eyes and went to sleep. ********* Ponyville, Equestria, four days before the apocalypse. Typewrite awoke the next morning with a thudding headache and no recollection of the night before. She pressed her right hoof against her head and let out a loud, tired groan. To her, it seemed to be years before she tossed the covers aside and slowly twisted and leaned up to a sitting position. With some effort, she was soon able to push herself off the bed where she stood on her back hooves for a moment and then fell onto all fours. For a couple seconds she stood, motionless, dazed in confusion of what happened the night prior. After a few slow moments of silence, her thoughts where interrupted by a tapping at her window. It was a crow. Typewrite had always been a very superstitious pony, engorging herself with books on legend and symbols in nature and she particularly liked reading of darker symbols. Seeing this she remembered one of her favorites. The crow was a symbol of death. Not wanting a bad omen looming over the rest of the day, she snapped out of her daze, rushed over to the window, and shooed it away. Feeling the slightest bit better, she began to trot down the stairs and into the kitchen. Grrrrrr. "Well," Typewrite said in her almost normal voice, "Guess I'm hungry." Typewrite opened the refrigerator to see all she had was a leftover apple slice sandwich. She started to levitate the sandwich out of the refrigerator but couldn't. She out a sigh and picked up the sandwich as her migraine returned. Typewrite lied down on her couch, grabbed her book the table to her left, and began to write once more. She was writing something different this time. She had no idea where she got the inspiration, but she wrote anyway. Her story was of plague. Her plague struck without warning, no symptoms, no change in appearance, no cure.pars After she had gotten in three more chapters, and finished her sandwich, she decided it was time to head out to town. As per her normal routine, she went into her bathroom, showered, got out, dried her mane, and spent a full hour making it perfect. She then proceeded to trot back down stairs, checking her mane and tail one last time, open the door, and started for Ponyville.