Twilight Sparkless

by Shores2510

Rating: teen
Tags: Alternate Universe, Dark
Length: 2688

As a filly, Twilight Sparkle had a very serious arcane burst, thus never really recovered well from the magical incident.

As a filly, Twilight Sparkle had a very serious arcane burst, thus never really recovered well from the magical incident. In fear that another arcane burst may occur, Princess Celestia had come to a decision that in order to prevent a horrible incident again, the unicorn must go through a life-risking process:

Surgery.

Removing Twilight's magical horn seems the only way to prevent the arcane bursts from happening again. The rest of the Elements of Harmony are worried, however, for that they are unsure if, since Twilight is the Element of Magic, this surgery will render the Elements useless? Even Princess Celestia herself is concerned about the future of the Mane Six, and the fate of Equestria. Maybe, perhaps there is something that is more stable for Twilight to use her magic with?

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-10-25 06:27:07 UTC

A Grim Enrollment

There is always talk about young unicorn fillies having an episode of arcane bursts. This is a very rare accident, and it's not much of a huge problem. But what if Twilight, instead of passing her enrollment test without a scratch on her, cast an arcane burst triggered by the Sonic Rainboom?

Twilight was extremely nervous about taking the enrollment test in order to partake in Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. Sure, she'd been practicing even before her parents offered to sign her up for the school in Canterlot, but this was her big day! The day that would decide whether she would be eligible or not. This was going to mean a LOT to her!

Twilight and her parents walked into the empty classroom, except for a few Unicorns that were there to judge Twilight's performance in her test. She looked back at her mom and dad, who gave an encouraging smile, and then looked back at the judges. Then, through the doors on the opposite side of where they came in from, a pony came in with a small wagon with a rather large egg on it. On the side of the wagon was a picture of a baby dragon hatching out of an egg, which indicated that Twilight had to use her magic to hatch the egg that was on top of the wagon.

"Well Miss Sparkle?" said one of the judges, "We're waiting!"

Despite practice at home Twilight had seemed to struggle trying to get her darned horn to do it's work. Her face scrunched up, trying to "push" the magic out of her horn and onto the egg. She loosened up and exhaled in exhaustion after her failed attempt. She tried again. Nothing. She looked up at the judges with a sad look on her face.

"I'm sorry wasting your time," the disappointed filly weakly finished.

The judges were just about to wrap it all up when suddenly....

BOOM!!!

The loud, startling noise scared the young unicorn so much that the adrenalin caused her magic to burst out of her horn and onto the egg, thus hatching it! However, Twilight couldn't stop! Her magic went out of control, sending out shape-shifting spells on her parents, the judges, and an aging spell on the newborn dragon, turning him into a confused, adult dragon!

Princess Celestia was walking peacefully on the walkway near the building when she noticed the commotion. She flew in to see what was going on, only to be blasted to the wall when Twilight's magic had exploded! Thankfully, the Princess didn't go unconscious. She realized that the purple unicorn's magic had gone unstable! She quickly used her Alicorn magic to calm the filly down, and change everypony else, including the dragon, back to normal.

Twilight just lied there, lacking consciousness.

"MY BABY!" her mother cried! She rushed to her daughter, followed by Twilight's dad, the judges, and Princess Celestia. Twilight's mom put a hoof on the poor filly's neck.

There was a very, very weak pulse found.

The unicorn's dad looked up to Celestia, "What happened???"

The Princess's face was very grim, "It seem's she had caused an incident that very few filly unicorns have face in their lives. What this was, was an arcane burst."

The mother and father unicorn stared blankly at the Princess for a few long seconds. Twilight's mother then burst into tears and her father just stared back at her daughter in disbelief.

Celestia, being too afraid of what might happen in the future if she left twilight unsupervised after this incident, she approached the ponies a little closer.

"I will  take Twilight Sparkle under my wing to guide her through recovery from this horrible accident, and also teach her magic under my private studies."

She gave out a little smile, "I also believe that she may have the potential to be successful in her studies." She motioned her head towards the now stirring Twilight, at her flank, where a glowing image appeared. It was Twilight's cutie mark; the symbol that marked her destiny in magic.

One Trip to the ICU Later...

Twilight Sparkle was rushed immediately to the hospital. She was put into the Intensive Care Unit, and attached to an IV. Her parents watched in sheer concern and sadness as their poor daughter was being monitored.

After a few minutes, which seemed rather like a half an hour, Twilight's doctor turned to the unicorn's parents, "Twilight is going to be okay. However, there are a few broken ribs and she's has a moderate concussion. We also scanned her brain, and found signs that she may never fully recover, for that the signs can cause her to go paranoid, depressed, or have major headaches in the future. I'm terribly sorry. There is nothing much else we can do."

The filly's mother rushed over to her child and held her in her arms, and wept. Her dad sat there in thought for a few seconds, and stood.

He looked at the doctor, "There has to be a way! There just has to!"

"I'm really sorry," the doctor replied, "but the best we can do for now is to put her on handicap. She will still be able to partake in her upcoming studies."

Twilight's dad sighed sadly and nodded. He went to over to join his daughter and wife.

Princess Celestia walked into the hospital. Her suspects around her bowed to her on sight, but the Princess motioned them to stop bowing. She went up to the counter.

"Hello, I'm here to see Ms. Twilight Sparkle?"

The nurse nodded, and led her to Twilight's room. As they walked, she noticed some other fillies in the ICU that were there for the same reason as Twilight's. She forced back some tears, and continued onward. How could this happen to these children? What could have caused such an injury like this?

In the room, Twilight was sleeping, as well as her mother, who was leaning on the bedside. The filly's father was sitting in one of the chairs, seeming to be deep thought. His face was slightly damp-looking, as if he were sweating.

Princess Celestia spoke up, "Is she is going to be okay?"

Twilight's dad looked up, and hastily bowed before her.

"No, it's alright," Celestia assured, "that's not necessary."

Twilight's dad brought himself back to his hooves, and then slumped back into his chair.

"The doctor said she would be fine," he answered, "though she will have a few mental issues."

Princess Celestia sadly sighed, "I am so terribly, sorry. Is there anything I can do you three?"

Twilight's dad was about to speak up when...

"Twiley!"

Twilight's BBBFF, Shining Armor, and his girlfriend, Princess Cadance rushed in into the room, and to the filly. They knelt beside the bed.

"Oh Twiley,"  Shining softly spoke, "what happened to you?"

"Shining Armor?" Twilight weakly murmured.

"Shhh, it's okay, I'm here," Shining cradled his little sister in his arms, and he and Princess Cadance softly wept.

Princess Celestia knelt down. This was getting all inside her head. The incident at school, the other fillies, Twilight's future. She couldn't hold it in any longer. She began to sob in grief.

What will Twilight's future be like? Will she be alright? Will she ever live a normal life?

A Lovely Day

Twilight's magical skill had greatly improved with Princess Celestia as her teacher and mentor as the years soared by. However, she has been scarred by her deadly accident that happened on the day of her enrollment test, thus never really fully recovering from the incident. She was almost always tired, weak, and paranoid. A few times, she even fell into depression. Discovering what friendship could be and making friends with the rest of the Elements of Harmony had somewhat helped her, but she still struggled greatly. She was lucky that the Mane Six had managed to stop Nightmare Moon from  deploying Eternal Night, and stop Discord from wrecking havoc in Ponyville with his power of Chaos.

One day, Twilight was walking with her friends, Applejack, and Rarity to Sugar Cube Corner, for some cupcakes and tea. Applejack and Rarity had to help Twilight stay on her hooves due to her mild fatigue, but otherwise, the unicorn was having one of her good days.

The three ponies entered the Sweet Shop to be greeted by an excited Pinkie Pie, who had realized she should probably take it down a notch since Twilight was there. She didn't want to do any harm to her by accident. They all sat down, except for Pinkie, who was taking her guests orders. After the orders were placed, she went into the kitchen to bake the cupcakes with the Cakes.

After a few moments of silence, Twilight spoke up, "I'm very glad you two brought me out here today. Thanks."

"Sure thing, Twigh!" Applejack replied, "No trouble at all!"

"It certainly is a lovely day for this," Rarity added.

Twilight smiled. She was grateful that her friends at her side to help with her troubles. If it weren't for them, who knows how she'd be right now?

Pinkie Pie came back out from the kitchen with four, delicious looking cupcakes and four cups of tea on a tray. She sat down with her friends and they ate, chatted happily.

And to think nothing would go wrong.

After some time, Twilight felt a slight pulse of pain in the base of her horn, but it went away after a split-second. She was about to take another bite out of her cupcake when the pain came back, this time feeling worse.

"Ow..." the unicorn muttered, rubbing her forehead.

Applejack looked towards her in concern, "You okay there, sugar cube?"

"I'm fine," Twilight answered, "It's just-- Owwwwwww!"

The poor unicorn fell of her chair and onto the ground, clutching her head in pain. The other three ponies quickly knelt down to Twilight and tried to help her. Applejack's eyes started to fill with tears, while Rarity held Twilight in her arms and hummed a soothing song to help reduce the stress on the purple unicorn, and Pinkie's hair slowly started to fall straight.

Meanwhile, back in Canterlot, sat Princess Celestia in her throne, eyes closed, as if she were in meditation. Her eyes suddenly shot open wide.

"Twilight...." She whispered....

"NO!!!"

Old Wounds Reopen

From what Celestia had thought, this was probably the fastest she's ever flown. She could imagine what the ponies below where thinking when they saw the flashing white blur soaring through the sky, towards Ponyville. The horrid memories where flowing through her mind; Twilight Sparkle's accident at her enrollment test; the sadness in the unicorn's family she saw at the hospital; the struggles her faithful student had gone through over the years....

She zoomed into the town, nearly crash-landing onto the ground before Sugar Cube Corner. She burst through the double doors, looking rapidly for Twilight. When she spotted her and the Mane Six, in which Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash had caught up with the rest of their friends.

"Twilight!" She cried.

The Princess galloped to the Mane Six and knelt beside Twilight. Twilight was lying unconscious, breathing very weakly. The other five had been shaken horribly. Pinkie Pie's hair was now completely straight. Applejack just sat there, facing the floor, saying nothing. Fluttershy was crying in Rainbow Dash's shoulder, with Rainbow Dash tearing up as well, something she rarely ever does. Rarity had been hyperventilating.

Princess Celestia got up on her hoofs again and levitated Twilight onto her back. Tears were pouring out of her eyes.

"I have to take Twilight to the ICU in Canterlot," she managed, "Do not visit until I say it is okay."

And with that, she hurried out the door, and took off with strong force, but was gentle enough so she wouldn't let Twilight slip off her back. About a few minutes later, they arrived to the ICU at the hospital in Canterlot. Celestia flashed inside, and came up to the mare at the desk.

"Twilight is suffering from severe, constant pain in her head," she hastily told the nurse, "get her into intensive care immediately!"

The nurse jumped up from her seat so fast, that she hit the ceiling on liftoff. She quickly rallied the other doctors in the immediate vicinity, and they all came to Twilight and set her on a bed. The rolled her into a room in the ICU, patched her up with an IV, and scanned her head with an x-ray.

Princess Celestia paced outside Twilight's room for what seemed like an hour to her. Finally, to her relief, Twilight's doctor came out from her room. However, his face was grim, giving Celestia a dreadful feeling inside her.

The doctor spoke up, "What's causing Twilight's pain in her head is her unicorn and her magic. The effects of her arcane burst from her filly years have came back, this time, severely. The only solution is to remove the horn. I'm sorry, but there is no other way."

The princess let that sink in. She didn't think there wouldn't be any removals from Twilight. She slowly nodded and walked into the room where was laying unconscious. The doctor follow suit. Princess Celestia crept slowly to the bed Twilight was stationed at. She stared down at the unconscious unicorn.

She began to think. How would Twilight be if her horn was removed? She's the Element of Magic, for crying out loud!

This was the most difficult decision the Princess had to make in years.

The Device/Discussion in the Barn

After ten minutes of thinking, Princess Celestia turned to the doctor.

"Is there any way possible," she asked with a tiny spark of hope inside her, "that you can make still be able to use magic without her horn?"

The hesitated, then replied, "Well, we do have a special device that needs to be tested. It's an artificial unicorn horn created by a team of unicorn scientists and engineers. Like I said, it hasn't been used before, so this may..... or may not be a risk to Twilight."

Celestia thought for a moment, and then nodded saying, "Very well. This may be the best solution for Twilight. Without her, the Elements of Harmony could be rendered useless."

Back in Ponyville, the Mane Five were set in Applejack's barn, discussing this afternoon's horrible incident in low, almost mumbled voices. They were still pretty shaken from Twilight's break down. Applejack had been starring out the window above the barn doors, deep inside her thoughts. Pinkemena was trying her best to cheer up Fluttershy, who has been crying nonstop since the incident, but with Pinkemena not being in the best mood either, it was difficult. Rarity, now calmer than earlier, was humming softly, trying to keep the warmth in the Mane Five's hearts. Rainbow Dash, all stressed out, was pacing around the barn interior.

For the first time in a few hours, Rainbow broke the silence, "What do you think is gonna happen to her?"

Applejack, snapping back to reality, sighed sadly, "Not sure, Sugarcube. We'll just have to wait."

"Maybe we could throw a get well soon party for her?" Pinkemena suggested, showing a little smirk, but you could still see the sadness in her eyes. Her hair remained straight as well.

"We'll see," Applejack assured, giving a sad smile.

"Will this any affect on the Elements of Harmony?" Rarity piped up, "I mean, not to say that Twilight will from this, but if she does, the rest of the Elements could become useless!"

"That is something we should keep in mind," Applejack agreed, "but Ah assure you, Ah don't think Twilight's gonna die."

Rainbow Dash, now growing impatient, deeply sighed, "Ugh, what's taking Princess Celestia so long? We gotta find out how Twilight's doing!"

"I think she'll be here very soon, darling," Rarity said simply.

Fluttershy lifted her head from her hooves.

"I h-hope she's o-okay," she squeaked.

"Ah think she'll be okay," Applejack assured.

The Mane 5 slept thankfully soundly together in the barn that night.