Author's Note

"Life is because of the gods; with their sacrifice they gave us life.... They produce our sustenance... which nourishes life"....Aztec proverb on sacrifice to the Spanish Conquistadors.

Where is your heart?
You give your heart to each thing in turn.
Carrying, you do not carry it...
You destroy your heart on earth
 Nahua poem

Stadium...

It Happened In September...

The night air was stiff and still, how long had it been? An hour? A minute? A lifetime? All was silent in sleepy Canterlot City. Not a soul stirred in their beds, completely unaware and uncaring. The city of Canterlot knew nothing of the sheer and utter horror that had just happened in the darkness of the night miles away from their sleeping heads. Unaware of what had just transpired miles away in the distance, in the marshy wetlands of the meadows with only the highway to break up the wastelands. Far beyond the lights of the city in the few buildings still using them. One structure briefly broke up the monotony of the darkness, the Metzler Stadium. For a brief moment the stadium had been not unlike how it had always been; a rising circular arena and stadium to entertain the masses. The structure itself was seven hundred and six feet by five hundred and ninety two feet and towered a hundred and forty four feet in the air. The red seats inside it visible from above, the circular ramp walkways to the seats and covered escalator tubes to the upper floors.

One minute in the last second before midnight there had been little more than a silence from the awe struck fans in the seat who thought what they had seen had been all part of the show, then...it all became a scene taken right from the depths of hell. From the train station on the outskirts of the stadium where the crew of the train waited for the concert to end. One second the behemoth of the F train that went back to the city was silent, then it lay tilted over with a creak and groan of steel. The train lay on its side a few cars still standing as the shocked crew members who barley saw their deaths before they were spirited away forever, lay dead on the ground. Some where crushed under the toppled cars, a bloody stump of arm or leg the only thing sticking out from under the metal an indication that a human had lived once.

In the parking lots; one second there had been happy tailgaters, people with no tickets but still there listening to their music and watching it on their TV's mounted in their cars. Merry and happy as they partied, barbecue and beer flowing as it did back in the halls of Equestrian when there had been festivals and feasts. The next...Everyone was dead, dead and gone without even knowing what killed them. Windows on cars were smashed in and some where flipped on their sides. A whole family had been flattened by their own RV when the blue blast of pure energy hit from the stadium in the distance, and several buses lay on their sides the inner party lights flickering softly as the headlight shined on the dead party goers outside. Bodies...bodies everywhere...from the lots to the gates. People crammed stacked like firewood as the bodies piled out from the stadium gates...the few who had realized too late just it was that was happening tonight.

On the upper level above the main gate with the logos of Pepsi Cola indicating the gate it was, their bodies piled one on top of each other as they made a desperate run for the railings. A few lay leaning over said railings, and some poor sods where even impaled through their chests on bits of bars that had been lodged loose by the impact. Bellow on the street level, more flooded in a wave of death out onto the main gates of the plaza entrance. some people had been slammed into the walls; gates, trash cans and trailers for food and bag checks. And everyone from civilians to security guards and dogs were dead. The whole scene was...like an explosion or an atomic blast ground zero only the structure sans broken glass and caved in steel in a few spots. was still standing, not to mention a blast wouldn't have left bodies.

The stadium light for a brief moment where still bright and vibrant, like that final moment when the titanic sank. That last second when those shining lights in the darkness of the cruel icy Atlantic and then they went silent forever. Only these lights did flicker back on, emergency generators kicking in and lighting the horrifying scene of the dead surrounding the stadium up again. Inside there were more dead. Masses and masses of crowds who started to flee at the very last second before life was ebbed away from them. They collapsed and began falling on top of each other, or down onto the football field turned stage below. Some leaned over the sides of the stands or in piles on the seats...other where falling off the edges and onto the lower levels, and the blood. Oh the blood, so much of it...all going down the drains of the stadium as its metallic smell filled the air with the stents of death as it flowed and dripped, a modernization of the offerings to the Gods, blood for fulfillment of what mortal beings desire.

Was anyone left alive in the midst of such a tragedy of epic proportions? Where there any survivors of this scene that no living person should ever see? Well...there where some. The first sign of life was in the upper box of the control room, where the stadium's sound and PA system was controlled. A shield like spell, cast by one of the two of the Humane seven, the magical as a pony unicorn Rarity and Pinkie. The two girls lowered the shield they used to protect their classmates at Canterlot high from when they lead them up here for safety. Among them were Rose-luck; Lily and Daisy Valley. Vinyl Scratch and Octavia melody, who had just gotten jobs as announcers a week ago at this stadium, Treehugger Tendergrass, Lyra Heartstrings and Bon Bon Sweetie Drops, Eric Inkpot and Dante Brushstrokes.

"Who...dudes...what the...what happened?" Treehugger asked as she looked through the Plexiglas window of the booth, intact thanks to the glass reinforcement and the shield charm. When the survivors saw just had happened outside...it hit them. The sight of seeing so much death, so much destruction one could only ask...why? It is said The emotional toll from a traumatic event can cause intense, confusing, and frightening emotions. And these emotions aren’t limited to the people who experienced the event. Round-the-clock news coverage means that we’re all bombarded with horrific images from natural disasters, violent crimes, and terrorist attacks almost the instant they occur anywhere in the world. Even today when the words of our fellow man right from the source often have more truth and meaning than what's spoon fed us by the archaic and manipulative platform of the mass media. Repeated exposure can trigger traumatic stress and leave you feeling hopeless and helpless. Whether you were directly involved in the traumatic event or exposed to it after the fact.

Some like Tree and the others could only stare in silence at what they were seeing, the sight of so much destruction and those people, lives swept away in a a single action by...

"Holy shit...my God...what...what could have...what could have?" Vinyl asked as she noticed Pinkie Pie, the usually bouncy and happy girl...was silent. She reached over...to the controls for the music system Vinyl was usually controlling. She began to play a song.

The crooning of the singers was...almost fitting. The way it seemed to echo the sight before them all, The others turned to Pinkie and looked at her like she was crazy, but in some ways this was just...her way of coping with seeing a tragedy. In the men's room a few feet down, Flash Sentry and Shining armor also lowered a magic shield. a very rare instance of boys tapping into their pony forms, but it made sense to protect innocent people. Flash Sentry stumbled from a stall and looked around, the survivors including Dean Cadence; Lemon Zest, Sugar coat, Indigo Zapp, most of the students from crystal prep, even Principal Cinch. He seemed to have lost it.

"Captain Shining, I need a sitrep and I want the legate to lead these civilians to a secure location." He said picking up a broom handle and brandishing it like a spear, he'd been deluded by the shock into thinking he was his pony version, a commander in the royal guard. Shinning was confused.

"Dude...what are you talking about? We...ponied up as it seems and protected these people...relax and calm down." He said looking around for his wife Cadence and their daughter...He found her holding the sniveling infant in one of the stalls, a miraculous survivor of this terrible tragedy. "Hunny? I think we should go now, get everyone out of this place. Cadence didn't even look up from her daughter as she rocked her, a crazed look in her eyes.

"Go? Why Shinny, why would we ever want to go? we're nice and safe from everything out there...shhh easy there Flurry, mommy's got you." She began singing hush little baby to her daughter.

"Legate Zapp, report? What is your status? I wan you and the others in position to garrison this location in case the hostiles return." He said brandishing the broom handle at Indigo.

"You're crazy Flash...back the fuck off with that crazy talk or I'll...shove that broom where the sun don't shine!" Indigo was going through anger. They survived but they'd never be the same. Here and there, pockets of survivors emerged amidst the carnage. Down on the field, where the stage was set up for the performance, the front row center audience looked up from cowering in fear, thankfully alive. Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle in their most powerful forms for just a few moments more, looked up to see them, thankful they all survived. Among them included The Dazzlings; Jim Spades, Sour Sweet, and...oh no.

"Starlight?...Starlight?" Sunset said as Starlight lay on the grass of the football field, she wasn't moving. It wasn't the blast of magic that broke through the barrier that got her, it was a bit of stage light that struck her in the skull..."wait...look, she's breathing...but just barley." She said as Trixie Lullamoon crawled over to them, her clothes had some rips and her lips were bleeding. It wasn't all her blood though, she'd used them in a last ditch effort in a fight. Trixie placed her hand on her Starlight's head and focused as much as she could in her state.

"Take care of her." Twilight said softly as the two girls turned to look up at the stage...at what they had tried and somewhat failed to stop. The stage had been decorated in the typical trappings of a stereotypical metal band. Eastern Star, a steel devil head wired with fire and smoke, and statues of The Sumerian gods Moloch and Bapthomet, devours of the innocent and small, and the corrupters of men. There was nothing about these eulogies that was for show though, for there in the center of them was the one responsible for this travesty.

"My queen, take this blood, take this flesh and live again." He said this to a stone sarcophagus with the body and head including the headdress of an Egyptian queen. He himself wore a black tee and jeans, heavy boots and he looked like he was dressed in very convincing zombie makeup. Only thing...it wasn't makeup. "wait...what's happening? Why isn't she awakening?" The rock-star turned necromancer said to the stone. There was an eerier chill and an echoing voice that could be hear over the looping music from the sound booth.

"Because some of them survived you FOOL! You have failed me little mortal man, you do not deserve to take me as your bride, and you don't deserve to be restored to full flesh, stay in your state of living necrosis and forever be outcast from any world you run away too, yes...even returning to where you lived as a trotter on hooves, they will see you for what you are." The voice died down as he turned to see the survivors on the grass bellow the stage.

"NO! My queen, my Goddess, please they interfered...take their bodies and forgive me...I'll kill them myself and make you see
I am worthy of your love." He said pulling a knife from his belt. He turned and leapt from the stage, right at Sunset Shimmer...Shimmer..Shimmer...

"MS. Shimmer!" Ms. Cheerilee, usually not a teacher to raise her voice to her students shouted across the class room to the still sleeping Sunset Shimmer. Ms. Cheerilee usually was willing to look the other way when that happened but Sunset had been sleeping in her class for the past hour, at least three classes had past and she had't even moved. She was almost going to call the nurse to see if something was wrong with her. Sunset's eyes flew open alert and awake, she reached to her chest to steady her heart from it's increased pace.

"Ms. Cheerilee! Are...Are you alright?" She asked as the memory of everything she saw was still fresh in her mind. It all felt s o real, like she had some kind of precognitive vision of the future.

"Of course I"m alright, but if you're going to sleep for an hour in school, may I recommend you see a specialist?" She said with a huff as she gave her a pass to the class she was supposed to be in.

Sunset didn't tell anyone her dream, especially when a few things that began to line up with she'd began to start happening in teality. It started in the lunchroom, she took her seat and could barley eat. She woke from her dream tired as hell, a side effect of a bad dream. A much happier girl, Vinyl took her seat beside her and looked over at her her frown faltering some.

"Whoa Sunny, you look like a road apple run over by a semi." Vinyl said as she popped the lid on her Tupperware of crasins and nuts. Sunset looked up from her gardenia salad and tried to smile.

"I'm okay, just tired...anything new with you?" She asked trying to take a bite of her food.

"Well...I got a sweet new job...get this...I'm."

"The sound and music technician for Meltzer stadium?" Sunset said her head snapping up instantly awake. It was all starting to become surreal and like...a warning. Vinyl chuckled softly in amazement at how accurate she was.

"Gee Sunset you psychic or something?" Vinyl said as she ate, she was only half joking but for Sunset, it was no joke. Sunset could only rest her head on the table as she didn't see a spiky haired student pass her by, she didn't see the song he started listening too on his MP3 player either. It was a new cover of God of thunder by a new rock band that had something of a unique gimmick to their act. This band went by the name Maximum Mayhem, and claimed to have a once thought dead rock star in their band. A rock star that allegedly died years ago when his show was "reenacting" an ancient necromancy ritual on stage, a ritual stunt that went..wrong, and a pyrotechnic "accident" had killed him. Though no body was ever found and now Maximum Mayhem was claiming that his "death," was actually the biggest publicity stunt for the biggest comeback tour of all time.

A death metal rock star though killed by the lifestyle they so dearly embraced, now actually "back from the dead?" It's the ultimate stunt any rock star could ever pull!...It is just a stunt right?...right?