Cadence ran towards her mother and screamed for help. The blast seemed to awaken Tamaar who bolted down the hall to get guards while Shining Armor crawled over and tried to awaken Sombra, neither with no avail. It seemed they both had been hit by the blast, Amore more so. The guards and Rabia arrived and they quickly ran them to the healers. Shining Armor was in shock and kept stammering. "It was an accident!", "I swear I didn't mean to!", or "I'm so sorry!" Back in the infirmary Cadence sobbed into Samaar's chest while Rabia held Selena to keep herself calm. "Please not my only other baby." She muttered to herself, nervously petting Selena who looked around not understanding the situation. Once there was an available healer she came to see Cadence. It was an umbrum healer, an elderly one who had white eyes.

"I'm Ukara your highness, do you mind if I examine you dear?" She asked her as she glanced her over.

"How's my mom?" She whispered between sniffles. Ukara explained they had gotten her to the two best healers in the Empire and they would do the best they could. Sombra was being seen by the last crystal pony healer since he had been hit less than Amore. How? Ukara assumed she must have tried to pull him away as well but failed to pull him completely away as he was in a shadow form. Cadence and Tamaar seemed to have gotten the least injured. Shining Armor was still in shock and suffered multiple burns on his face and forelegs. Sombra was burned on his while Amore had been hit in the neck and chest. Ukara's best explanation was that it had swipped Sombra's side and then hit Amore.

Cadence was cleared to return to her room to rest for the rest of the night and they would come get her for any updates on the two's condition. Rabia wanted to stay behind in the waiting area in case, snarling at any who tried to make her leave. Samaar agreed to watch Selena with her and the two rested on Cadence's bed after putting Selena to sleep. Samaar gently held the princess as she went from tears to sleeping throughout the night.

The two were rustled quickly awake a few hours later when Rabia came in wailing. Her husband ran over to her and pulled her in his arms asking the deafening question with no words. Cadence shook not wanting to hear the answer either. Rabia just sobbed before she curled into her husband's chest.

"Amore." She whispered.

Cadence couldn't hear or see once she heard the name. She didn't hear Selena scream, Rabia wailing, she just stared. Her best friend. Rabia's best friend. The queen. The most kind and beautiful pony in the Empire. Cadence bolted past Samaar and Rabia down the hall.

"No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No." Tears streaked her face by the time she arrived in the healers infirmary. When the healers saw her face Ukara pressed her eyes shut and lowered her head to the floor full of shame and guilt. The other two made their way to her and the female hugged her tightly. The larger male explained that she had crashed in the night and they tried their best but her wounds were too severe. Cadence sat in the healers arms and eventually Rabia, Samaar, and Selena arrived. It felt as if no time passed. The group grieved in the waiting area for their lost family member. Samaar was pulled aside and the healer explained that Sombra had not awoken but had been stabilized.

The next day the news of the queen's passing was delivered to the kindgom. The Crystal Court began to plan and schedule the funeral and Cadence's coronation. Cadence didn't leave her room the rest of the day.

Cadence didn't leave her room until the funeral.

The funeral was held below the palace a week later. The subjects grieved the loss of their queen but understandably no one took it as hard as Cadence. Samaar attended for the viewing and quickly left to head back to the infirmary since Sombra had still not awoken. The healers said he was in a trance-like state like Tamaar was and they could deal with his physical wounds but weren't sure if they could wake him themselves.

Cadence just existed. Once moment she was having the time of her life, the next her mother was dead and Sombra near to it. She couldn't bring herself to go visit him.

Shining Armor was grief stricken as well. He blamed himself for what happened. The healers said he would often just lay in his room and cry. Cadence knew it was an accident and as much as she wanted him to suffer the way her mom had she knew her mother knew he was innocent. It was an accident and he was set free. The public were not told he caused it as to avoid him being threatened. Shining Armor was moved into a little house near the castle.

Cadence's coronation was nearly a month later. The kingdom needed time to grieve and Samaar stood in until Cadence was ready. She postponed the coronation twice and Sombra had still not woken up. A few hours before the coronation Cadence finally went to visit him.

He laid on a small dark cot with a small blue blanket covering his lower half, laid on his side with his head propped on a pillow. Cadence lightly pushed his shoulder like she used to. "Hey." She said as she looked down at his sleeping form. "You know everyone here misses you. It's been over a month now." She climbed her upper half on the cot next to his forelegs. "Your mom and dad really miss you. She can't wait to see you wake up." A tear fell down Cadence's cheek and she climbed the rest of the way onto the cot. She squeezed her eyes shut and blinked a few times. "Selena really misses you too." She lightly chuckled to herself. "You know her first word was Sombra." That broke her. She started sobbing and leaned into him. She wrapped her forelegs around one of his as she nuzzled him. Each time he slumped back down. "I miss you!" She nuzzled his neck. "I can't lose you too." She breathed in his familiar scent. "I haven't done a puzzle since and I barely leave the castle. I can't do anything that reminds me of you without the though of forever doing it without you." She let go of his foreleg to squeeze into his neck. She sobbed, "I can't imagine a forever without you in it."

She laid there until Rabia and Samaar pulled her away and started prepping for the coronation. The outfit they picked was beautiful but Cadence didn't care. She had always imagined this moment with her mother giving her the crown. She got through the coronation quickly and went back to her room.

A month later and Sombra had still not woken up.

Author's Note

RIP Queen Amore