It was a foggy night, carriage with princess Luna flew thorough extremely dense fog. She flew to honor the deaf of ponies who died during Pony-Griffin war, five hundred years ago. Their memorial was located in Griffin Empire. Now she was preparing for landing, but the fog completely blocked visibility.
“Captain I can’t see a shit” said one of pegazi pulling a carriage.
“I know, it is ridiculous, we should get out of here not try to land when I can’t see end of my muzzle”
Then one of the spells of enchanted carriage activate itself, magical voice said:
PULL UP, PULL UP, PULL UP
It was a clear signal that they were close to the ground.
“We are going to the second circle” decided Captain.
Suddenly in front of them form the fog emerged shape.
“TREEE!!!” shouted second pegazi
“FUCK” was what Captain manage to say.
Week later- Canterlot
Twilight was walking in the big hallway towards the throne room. She was in somber mood, everything changed in last week. She still remembered that morning, when the news hit her like a bolt from the blue. She still carried a newspaper issued that day. It was like some kind of relic to her, or maybe she still couldn’t believe what was written in it. In her heart she believed that maybe it was just a bad dream and the main page will suddenly changed.
She once more pulled out the newspaper, this article was still on the front page.
Equestria Daily
Latest News
Princess Luna dies in chariot crash while visiting Pony war memorial in Griffin Empire.
She pulled out another newspaper.
TNews24
Princess Celestia resigns from position. Full of despair, Is she unable to rule? Princess Twilight Sparkle taking charge of the country.
She went to the window and looked outside, Equestria flags were lowered to half mast and decorated with black ribbons. Country was in mourning state. She saw how Ponies, Griffons, Zebras, Minotaur’s, simply everyone were lighting candles in front of the palace, there were hundreds… no thousands of them. All of them united on this day. If only it would not be caused by such a tragedy. she would have rejoice to see such a harmony amongst everyone.
“What has become of us, that to forget about our differences such a thing must happened.” She thought.
Twilight was a fair ruler, during her reign all members of society flourished. The minimum wage has been raised, unemployment decreased. She tried to treat everyone the same, regardless of who they were, pony or not.
But darker times where in the horizon.
A mouth after a tragedy, princes Celestia in her grief, lost her mind, she started to blame Griffons, and Twilight for what happened. Twilight would never forget that day.
She was visiting princess like she used to do. Twilight came in to Celestia’s apartments, princess was sitting in the end of her bed, clearly crying. She was doing this a lot, Twilight tried to comfort her, but there was nothing she could do.
“Princess…” she said.
“You planed this didn’t you?” said Celestia. “ You planed this all along. You and the Griffins! You killed her so I would abdicate and then you could take a throne!” She was shouting now, Twilight had no idea what was happening, than she saw a newspaper on night table, in the front page was picture with her and Griffon empress on the crash site, it was showing moment when empress is comforting her, putting her claw on her shoulder.
“Get OUT, Get OUT you traitor you will pay for everything you had done!” Celestia fired a magical blast at Twilight, she quickly teleport out of the room to avoid being hit.
After that it was only worse, society divide itself into two blocks, those who believed that it was a ancient and those who consider her as traitor.
She couldn’t simply forbid princess from public speaking. She couldn’t also undergo Princess to the psychological examination, it would be major political scandal, not speaking about more conspiracy theories that would arise after this. All of this simply reduce her legitimacy to the minimum. And the only way to stabilize it, were the elections.
Twilight was left with no choice, she had to take part in the elections.
Hornpipe was a unicorn, he was raised in the one of the noble families in Canterlot. All his life, he believed in princess Celestia. She was their benevolent ruler, she was like mother to all of them, so when Princess Luna died, it was like he would lose his aunt. He toke it very hard, like most of ponies. So when Princess Celestia spoke that day he believed her instantly, she was their princess, she had to speak a truth. Why princess Twilight would do that, he didn’t know, but in the end it didn’t matter. She betray them, they whole country.
Now he was asked by princess Celestia herself to came to her champers, and here he was in front of her door. He knocked.
“Enter” he heard and door magically opened.
“Your highness, you called for me”
“Yes welcome Hornpipe, I am glad that there are still true Equestrians out there”
“True Equestrians?” he asked.
“Yes, those who knew what really happened, those that had heard my voice and didn’t betray me. Those for whose, Equestria is in the first place.”
“Of course, my Princess there are many of us.” He said.
“Good, you see Sparkle cannot hold her title for long, because of our unbreakable will, we managed to forced her to make a free elections. But we will not be free as long as she rule. Unfortunately I cannot candidate myself, there is so much controversy around me, Sparkle tried to compromise me, and she succeed, but you… you are clear, you will be our voice, now listen to our plan.
Twilight could believe, it was some kind of nightmare. Half of Equestria believed she killed her friend, and now out of the blue some random stallion appeared. She couldn’t take it, it was too much, now everypony blamed her for unemployment, and that she weakling the economy, when everything was raising, slowly but stably. She was blamed that she done nothing or worse. And yet she had to prepare for campaign. It was most hard thing she ever done. On one side Ruling a country on another visiting cities meeting with workers/businessponies. She hardly slept. She saw survey results after survey results how her popularity shrinking.
Hornpipe was promising everything, she couldn’t lie so well as him. Yes she made a promises herself, but they were realistic. She knew that half of Hornpipe promises would cripple Equestrian economy. It was painful to watch it. But she knew that he was just a puppet what she was afraid of was a puppeteer.
She couldn’t win, not with this promises. But she couldn’t lie.
Twilight sat and cried, it was the end, she couldn’t win against such a hatred, and Celestia experience in politics, she sat and cried, in front of her were a newspaper headline announcing:
Hornpipe 52% Twilight Sparkle 48%, Sun and justice party candidate winning the elections.
Picture was showing Hornpipe in the state of euphoria along with his supporters. Behind him was Celestia… smiling.
Twilight cried, it was it, everything she done, future of her country, all was lost, to the madpony.
“So hear me out those who not faced such a tragedy, beware of what is happening around you, learn how to recognize if someone is promising you something, because you never knew what is his or hers agenda. To preserve our freedom we have to stand against those who speak about better or worse Equestrians, whose speaking of hatred toward others. Even if they offering us everything we want, their don’t doing it to help us, but only to manifest their hatred.” Said mare
“Mrs. Helping Hoof, was this all real?” asked one of the griffin orphans.
“That’s a story for another day, now of you go, to your rooms” she said smiling.
She stopped smiling when children went to their rooms.
“It is more real than you thought” she said to herself. After that she pulled out a small picture presenting pony in military uniform, sitting in the trench… smiling.
“And we paid for this one mistake, dearly”