MLP: The Second Chapter

Twilight led her friends into a ferocious battle. Even Fluttershy, through her kind soul, bit and scratched at the young one. But Midnight wouldn't go down. She continued pouring hell on Equestria. Twilight and Starlight flew together and fired dual magic blasts at the filly, but they simply bounced off of her. Rainbow Dash buzzed around her head, trying to distract her. Pinkie and Rarity charged at Midnight, swiping furiously with their sharp hooves.

But nothing they did worked. Midnight's coat was burning like the sun, and she had complete control over Equestria. Twilight looked on in horror as her daughter fulfilled the prophecy of her birth. She looked down and saw Ponyville in flames, as cottage after cottage burned to the ground with ponies screaming for their lives. She saw Flash and the guards of the Castle of Friendship helping as many as they could. She couldn't help but smile at their bravery and selflessness.

Then, suddenly, Celestia and Luna arrived in a flash of light. Twilight's mouth fell open in shock, but then she broke into a smile. "Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!" She called out. Her fellow royals quickly flew up beside her. "Twilight, the hour of reckoning is here," Celestia said loudly, "we must fight for the future of Equestria!"

Twilight's look suddenly turned grim. "But what future is there to fight for?! Look down there, Celestia! Ponyville is destroyed, and Equestria will follow suit! The prophecy…"

"Forget the stupid prophecy!" Celestia suddenly said sharply. Twilight shrank back a bit. Her old mentor had never once spoken to her like that. Had she done something wrong? Was she still on too low of a level to address Celestia by her first name, without the proper title? But I've addressed her without the title before, she said to herself, and she's never once gotten angry about it. What could I have done?

"Forgive me, Princess," she said, "if I did something wrong."

"You did nothing wrong," Celestia responded seriously, "but this isn't the time to worry about the prophecy. There's one thing about prophecies that I forgot to mention: there's always a way to stop the bad ones from coming true."

Instantly, Twilight returned to her conversation with Starlight when she told her the exact same thing. "Yes," she said to Celestia, "I know. But this situation seems so utterly hopeless! I mean, just look down there!"

"Twilight, get ahold of yourself! Yes, it looks hopeless, but you've faced these before, and come out a winner!" Twilight looked down, but suddenly Celestia grabbed her face with a hoof. "Look at me, Twilight! Don't look down! Keep looking ahead, and keep looking to your friends, and you'll solve this problem! Keep fighting for the very thing you love so much and work so hard to defend: the magic of friendship!"

Twilight realized that Celestia was absolutely right. If they were going to die, then they were going to go down fighting for their homes, their loved ones, their friends, and the land they all held so dear. She looked up and saw that Celestia and Luna had moved away from her and were engaged in heavy combat with the filly. "GIVE ME BACK MY SUN!" Celestia screamed. Her scream sent chills down Twilight's spine. She had never heard the Princess of the Day scream before, and it was unnerving, to say the least. But she quickly snapped out of it, and flew up to help them.

She, her friends, and the two princesses fought their hearts out against Midnight. Luna cast a freezing spell on the filly to try and remove the flames from her coat. But Midnight broke out of it and flew at Luna. Somehow, she was able to retain control of the sun and the elements while fighting all of them at the same time. Twilight couldn't help but be a little impressed with her daughter's ability. Still, though, the way she was using it was despicable and she accepted that the only way to defeat her might be to end her life. When she screamed her "sentencing" earlier, it had been a complete bluff. She wanted to shock Midnight into surrender. But Midnight wouldn't come quietly.

So, with tears in her eyes, she flew at her beloved daughter and began firing lethal magic blasts. You made me do this, she thought, I tried to love you. I tried to guide you. I tried to put your hooves on the path to friendship and harmony. But I guess my love wasn't enough for you. I'm so sorry, my precious Midnight. But…I have to do this.

But how could she? All she could see was the small, helpless foal she had cradled in her arms for so long. She saw the filly that had come to her when she had been frightened of something. She saw the filly she had nurtured and cherished for so long. But she also saw what could be for Midnight, and thought it was all for nothing. She saw that Midnight could grow up into a kind, sweet, strong, determined, wonderful Princess of Friendship that all of Equestria could be proud of.

Her mind clouded her aim, and her shots went haywire. "HEY!" Rainbow Dash called, her tail having been grazed by one of the shots, "watch your aim, Twi!" Twilight smiled sheepishly and reloaded her horn for another blow. She looked up and saw her daughter, holding her own against Celestia and Luna. How is she so powerful? She asked herself, and then shook her head. Never mind. I have to defeat her, for my friends and for Equestria.

She charged and aimed carefully. Then, with a scream that imparted both a princess's rage and a mother's love, she fired at her daughter. It was a direct hit. Midnight's small body hung limp for a few moments and then plummeted towards the Earth below. As quick as lightning, Twilight teleported beneath her and caught her, cradling her as she gently fluttered to the ground. She laid the small filly out and began to mourn silently. It was a tearless mourning. She couldn't cry. Her sadness and despair transcended all tears. All she did was sit there and stare into space. Her beloved foal was gone, and she had been the one to deliver the death blow.

Meanwhile, Celestia and Luna regained control of the heavens. They shot magic into Cloudsdale that calmed the weather factory. They erased all the tornadoes and all the hurricanes that had been plaguing the land. They also came together and shot one gigantic magic blast that ceased all the floods and destroyed all the fires. Celestia caused the sun to shine brighter than it ever had, hoping to encourage her subjects with its light. But it only illuminated the absolute devastation.

From where they hovered, they could see all of Equestria, and the sight caused them to hold each other as tears came. Their beloved home of Canterlot had been demolished by an earthquake. Their castle had crumbled, its once lofty towers now lying in a heap in the plazas below. Celestia could see her bedroom's corpse, mangled and broken. Luna looked towards her precious library, but could only see dust and the wayward pages of books that had been stripped away and now fluttered in the air.

They both turned and looked towards Manehattan. The mighty skyscrapers of the city had collapsed into dingy, dusty heaps. The Statue of Mareberty had been torn in two and its great head now lay in the middle of the Horseson River. All of its famous shops, museums, and tourist areas had been completely destroyed. Midnight had ravaged Manehattan.

As they looked around Equestria, every town their eyes fell upon looked worse than the last. Las Pegasus had been turned from a vacation hotspot into a mess of broken glass and shattered ponies. Baltimare's famous harbor had been polluted with a mess of drowned boats and sand that had been swirled up from the sea bed with the mighty winds of a hurricane. The small towns like Hoofington and Maneford had their homes destroyed and their farms uprooted and tossed away with the strength of the tornadoes.

Finally, their eyes rested on Ponyville beneath them. It was the worst of the worst. Every single cottage in the town had burned to the ground. The smoldering remains of the citizens' personal belongings festered within those ruins. The smoke wafted up and the acrid smell invaded the princesses' noses. They could hardly bear to look. How many ponies had died? How much destruction was there?

But the most devastating sight was Twilight huddled over her dead daughter. Celestia and Luna floated to the Earth and sat around her. She looked up at them with a face that betrayed her grief. Her lip quivered. She silently got up and moved to where Celestia was. She gave her a gut wrenching look and buried her head in her shoulder. Then the tears finally worked their way out. Celestia ran a soothing hoof down her back. How? She questioned herself, how am I going to find the words to say to comfort her? How are we going to fix all this devastation? Will Luna and I ever be able to rule Equestria the same way again? These questions fiddled with her mind as she let Twilight cry into her coat.