Burden of the Crown

by Disciple of Chrysalis

Rating: teen
Tags: Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Princess Cadance, Dark, Sad, Princess Luna, Tragedy, Princess Celestia
Length: 1168

They all died, and Cadance was alone

They all knew the rule, they never spoke of it, but it was always hanging above their heads, every time they were called 'Princess' they were reminded that one day, they might have to ascend.

Published 2016-12-08 06:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2016-12-08 06:00:01 UTC

Queendom

Author's Note

My attempt at a small return to writing.

Queendom

Cadance stood upon the balcony, as had become common of the early morning and late night hours, the city of Canterlot spread out before her, no longer protector of the Crystal Empire, no, she ruled from Canterlot in their memory, after Chrysalis had crawled through the depths of Tartarus and freed Tirek, they tore through Equestria stealing all the Magic and Love they could find, they soon made their way to the Crystal Empire, Chrysalis to drain the Heart and Tirek to capture the weakest of the Princesses, the plan failed for everyone involved.

~~~~~~~

The Princesses had gathered at the Empire to ambush the two villains, and they had appeared to be winning until Tirek betrayed his changeling companion and drained her of her Magic and Love. He easily began to gain the upper hand after that, Cadance had detached herself to aid her fallen foe, taking the strength the others needed with her, everything else after that was a blur, she remembers Twilight's body, unsure if she was alive or dead, being flung across the horizon, surely dead now, and she remembers a blue and white blur striking the ground with enough for to damage it, Celestia and Luna.

Cadance was truly alone now, the only sound now was Chrysalis's pained breathing, she looked into Tirek's eyes now, he was so much larger now, a hulking monster fueled by stolen powers, they stood like that for a moment, Cadance absorbing the reality of this moment and Tirek relishing his soon to be had victory. He finally began his slow walk towards Cadance, each hoof step like thunder, she looked to Chrysalis for a brief second and, deciding against her better instincts, picked up the changeling and running as fast as her hooves could carry her, she tried to think of anything else aside from this painful reality she was now in and all that sprung to mind was Chrysalis is heavier than Shining Armor. she ran towards the city's heart, towards the only relic that might have the power to save the Crystal Empire now, the Crystal Heart.

It wasn't a short distance, but she was far from unable to make the distance, and the thundering steps that became closer and closer provided good encouragement to move faster. She saw her citizens peeking through windows and cracked doors as she ran, thankfully none came outside because she didn't have time to herd them back in. She finally saw it, the Heart, giving of a soft glow that seemed to beat not unlike a real heart, she gave herself a final push towards it, hoping to put a little more distance between herself and the monster chasing her. When she finally reached it, she felt its aura wash over her, renewing her and giving her the love and hope she needed to succeed and do what must be done.

She gently lowered Chrysalis down next to the Heart and turned, surprised to see how far behind Tirek had been, having kept to a gentle walking speed, she realized the thundering steps she heard hadn't been purely him but also her own heart beat, now soothed by its crystal counterpart. Gingerly encasing the relic in magic, she took it from it's resting place and held it aloft before her, closing her eyes, she concentrated on reaching out to the hearts of the Crystal Ponies. "Well now" she heard Tirek's deep and monstrous voice say, finally caught up to her "Have you finally given up, praying to whatever silly god you ponies have for an easy death, I assure you, it won't be."

He gripped her forcefully with his stolen magics, squeezing her tightly, she felt the people's hearts and they were feeding the Heart their love. He opened his maw, filling the air with a disgusting odor, as he prepared to draw in her magic, the final piece he needed to become all powerful "You want my magic so bad" she croaked out, her voice weak from the pressure being placed upon her by his magic "Then take it."
She unleashed the growing magic being stored within the Heart, taking the monster by surprise, he let out a scream before being cut short as he shared Sombra's fate, turned to crystal and shattered. She fell to the ground with a thud, finally feeling relief that it was over, she recovered and hoisted the Heart back up and limped to it pedestal, placing it back, Chrysalis hadn't moved but she still breathed, which was enough for now, then it hit her, the others were dead.

It hit her with concussive force, falling down and starring blankly into the horizon, Celestia, Luna, Twilight, they were all gone, all dead, she was the last Princess, she remembered the rule, the last Princess must ascend, the last Princess must become Queen. She looked to Chrysalis again, vision blurred with tears and heart breaking, her fellow queen was awake now, breathing still pained and eyes slightly dulled "Welcome to the Queendom" she said, putting a lot of effort into saying each word, she didn't last long, passing out before she could say more, Cadance cried and screamed, her world broken beyond repair.

~~~~~~~

Cadance touched the sun, it glowed hot and angrily, it never seemed to want to comply with her, but eventually she wrestled it down below the horizon, she wondered if Celestia had that problem, once she had wrestled the sun down, she reached for the moon, the soft and gentle moon, always willing to move, always willing to go where it was needed, Luna had the easy gig she thought, a little smile gracing her face, it was such a rare thing these days, once she had smiled brightly and often, now they were close lipped and rare. She looked down into the city, massive statues stood at the heart of Canterlot now, carved from Diamond, Sapphire, and Amethyst, it resembled a totem pole in some respects, resting at the bottom was a diamond sun, holding aloft a sapphire moon, and rest atop was an amethyst star, they were made to look like the Fallen's cutie marks, Cadence thought it was a nice tribute.

She spread her wings and soared down to it, there were three plaques on it's base that Cadance had created, she had memorized every word upon them and could recite the,, but now she wished to read for herself.

In memory of Princess Celestia, May her spirit soar with the Sun she guided.

In memory of Princess Luna, may she at last rest with the knowledge that she is loved.

In memory of Princess Twilight, the youngest princess, but the greatest friend anyone could ask for.

Reading for the thousandth time, she cried a little, no sobs shook her body, but tears fell, they always would when she thought of their sacrifice, though they may be gone, they would never be forgotten.