Just a few years ago, it would have been inconceivable to bring an alicorn injured to the extent Tempest was to Ponyville General Hospital. At one time it had been nothing more than a small clinic, with a very limited range of services. Anything worse than a simple break or sprain required the patient to be referred to Canterlot or one of the other nearby towns with proper medical facilities.
That had all changed shortly after Twilight moved to Ponyville. Playing host to Celestia’s sole student had necessitated certain changes occur in order to protect and aid her should she ever come to harm. Celestia’s aid had also played a large part, the small clinic rapidly expanding into a proper hospital. This was also before Twilight’s ability to attract bizarre, destructive events to the small, quiet town had come to light. The facility found expansion a part of their routine, new services added at a quick rate. The staff’s training was greatly enhanced as well from having to treat the residents time and time again after each ‘Twilight Episode’ as they came to be known, resulting in professional level treatment that rivaled the best locations in the nation.
It was Twilight’s ascension, however, that had given the small hospital its final push into a premier facility. Upon finding out that the newly crowned Princess Twilight was laying claim to Ponyville for her home, Mayor Mare wanted to be able to provide the same level of treatment Celestia’s and Luna’s own personal physicians could. Thus, the alicorn protocols had been established.
So it was that despite the mere fifteen seconds head start Twilight had, Celestia arrived in an already busy hospital lobby. Half a dozen staff swarmed a mobile bed that had Tempest’s prone, broken form upon it while Twilight mutely watched protocols developed for herself put into use. Celestia’s presence barely registered on the staff’s radar, their full focus on their creed of preserving life, of which Tempest was in dire need of.
Noting how Twilight appeared frozen, staring at the scene before them, Celestia knew what her priority should be. “Twilight, trust them to do their job, you’ve done what you can.” She spoke softly, her voice somehow cutting through the much louder ones of the medical staff. “It is best to be out of their way, come.” Celestia began nudging Twilight with a wing towards some of the seats. The lobby was fortunately empty, thanks to the night’s festivities, and a brief barrier spell from Celestia ensured it would remain that way for a short time.
The wing insistently nudging her side was enough to get Twilight to move, wordlessly shambling to a seat before collapsing into it. Her eyes were glued to where the doctors were working on Tempest for a few more seconds, before shifting to look at Celestia, who had taken a seat next to her. “I’ve never,” Twilight weakly started as Celestia met her gaze, unable to conjure up the proper words in her state of shock.
Peering into the smaller mare’s eyes, Celestia paused, her own words forgotten for the moment just as surely as Twilight’s had been. Within those lavender orbs, something new loomed, a look that Celestia was intimately familiar with, having seen it within the eyes of so many subjects over the millennia. That Twilight was now one of them so shortly after her ascension shook Celestia to her very core. It was something she had wanted to spare her for as long as possible.
A white wing wrapped itself around Twilight’s back as Celestia leaned in, eyes glancing for a brief moment towards Tempest. “It’s difficult, isn’t it?” she quietly asked, gently squeezing her for a few seconds. “Through all the, trials I put you and your friends through, you’ve never seen it before, have you? Dealing with a full grown dragon, Sombra and the Crystal Empire, even Discord… this is the first time seeing someone injured to such an extent.”
Looking at Celestia with newfound curiosity, Twilight slowly nodded. “... yes, Princess,” she whispered, eyes drawn unbidden to a bit of Tempest’s blood on the hospital floor, even as the mobile bed was hastily moved through the double doors leading into the body of the hospital. “I’ve read accounts, plenty of them, about wars in the past. I can list off at least a dozen books on anatomy that I’ve read, including the detailed pictures… even if I can’t seem to recall their titles right now,” she uneasily rambled for a bit. “But to see it in pony with such, recklessness?” she paused, her mind beginning to run through every possible synonym that could better quantify that last spoken word.
“Yes… it is never easy to stomach. It still troubles me, and I have been witness to dozens of wars and countless disasters through my millennia,” Celestia sadly remarked, her magic going to work scrubbing the hospital floors of the blood dotting its surface. “And it is why I have done my best in recent centuries to avoid war. It’s a gruesome affair, seeing another beaten to such a degree. I had hoped to spare you such sights for many, many more years to come, but one cannot plan for every variable of life, no matter how hard I try,” she finished with a long, drawn out sigh.
Twilight looked confused at that, her mind slowly shifting towards logical thought. “But like you said, Princess, you’ve tasked my friends and I with all sorts of things. Dangerous things, to be honest. The situation with the buffalos in Appleloosa alone could’ve turned violent quickly, if just one thing had gone wrong, correct? And Chrysalis…” Twilight trailed off and violently shivered. Only Luna’s intervention had completely obliterated those nightmares.
Interjecting before Twilight could continue, Celestia sheepishly nodded. “Yes, it does sound a tad hypocritical of me, doesn’t it? But, I knew you would be fine. There are, forces, greater than you or even I at work in our world. Magic. Fate. Destiny. There are many terms one can use to refer to them as. The Elements of Harmony are one such agent. They can somehow reach out to the very fabric of reality, touch it, influence it. They are how I knew you, and your friends, would be safe regardless of the trials you faced.”
Silently mulling over the information in her head, Twilight attempted to make sense of it all. “Ah. But, that doesn’t really have any logic to it, there’s no substantive evidence to prove that. It can’t be more than a hypothesis, can it?” she mused aloud, a brief look of confusion on her face, bringing a small smile to Celestia’s. “And the only way to test that assumption would be danger, which if proven wrong would yield highly unfavorable results. Or, I suppose I could closely examine all of the past events, but then there wouldn’t be any sort of observational elements in play.”
Unable to hold back a small laugh at Twilight’s scientific mind beginning to tackle the problem, Celestia decided to chime in. “Agreed, it would be quite a dangerous experiment, wouldn’t it? Luna and I tested it extensively, although definitely not on purpose. Including observational spells. The best ones of the time, even.” She paused, smiling reminiscently before a thought brought a frown to her face. “They’ll protect you, up until you break your connection to them…”
A voice cut through their conversation, causing both heads to turn towards the intruder. “Princess?” An older unicorn stallion questioningly spoke, looking slightly nervous. “Princess Celestia, I mean. I’m Doctor Scalpel, and am in charge of Nightmare Moon’s treatment. Never thought I’d be saying that,” he added with a quiet whisper before continuing. “We could really use your assistance. It appears we need a bit more magic than what we have stored to treat Nightmare Moon.”
Nodding to the doctor, Celestia removed her wing from Twilight, smiling reassuringly. “You should go back to the library, spend the evening with your friends. It is the best remedy I’ve found, and there is nothing further you can do here. For now. Worrying about it will only cause unnecessary pain to both your mind and heart.” Getting up, Celestia took a few steps before turning back to Twilight. “And please ensure Luna has done her best to get the festivities rolling. We can discuss other things in detail tomorrow.”
“Twilight?” Doctor Scalpel softly spoke, knowing better than to call her princess. “The princess is right. Thanks to you, she was kept as stable. Prevents further injuries that way, much better than us having to go and get her, so you’ve done quite a lot for us here,” he reassured her with a small smile before heading off deeper into the hospital.
Following Scalpel, Celestia paused just before the doors, turning back to witness Twilight still sitting there with a mixed expression. “Go, Twilight, enjoy the night. Please do not make me ask Pinkie Pie to come and get you. Spending time with your friends and the town will be good for you. Trust me now as you have so many times before. Please?” she softly pleaded with a warm smile.
Celestia softly sighed once Twilight disappeared from the chair, thankful that she had gotten through to her. Turning back towards the double doors, she let the barrier spell she’d previously cast drop as she caught up to Scalpel. “Doctor, I was under the presumption that you had sufficient supplies to treat Twilight? Was I wrong?” she curtly enquired, more than she’d meant to as her nerves showed for a moment.
Clearing his throat, Doctor Scalpel nodded. “No, Princess, you’re not wrong,” he quickly stammered out before taking a moment to compose himself. “The key word, however, is sufficient for Twilight. With Nightmare Moon’s increased size, not to mention the power drain her astral mane and tail require, we need your aid to stabilize her,” he admitted. After a few moments, Scalpel hesitantly asked what was on the forefront of his mind. “And just how did she come to be injured? It might not be my business, but were she any other pony, Princess, I would be calling the Royal Guard in under normal circumstances. I honestly don’t know if we could save her, were she not an alicorn.” Scalpel made a turn into one of the surgery suites, holding the door open for Celestia.
A few moments of terse silence passed before Celestia shook her head. “Do not worry about it, all that matters is healing her so we may either redeem or banish the mare,” she firmly deflected. “It is being handled, though,” Celestia firmly stated, following Scalpel, through the magically powered decontamination hall. The tingling sensation running over her body told her that the magic was doing its work to keep the room they were entering clean.
Leaving the small hall behind, Celestia stepped into the operating suite behind Scalpel and paused, taking in the scene before her. “Just how extensive are her injuries, doctor? I believe I can help with the magical problem, but the rest will have to be up to you and your staff, I’m afraid,” she softly spoke, faintly grimacing at the sight of blood and things that were better left inside one’s body rather than outside. It was sadly familiar, yet still an unwelcome sight to her.
Scalpel’s horn lit up, levitating a small clipboard over to them both, which he began reading. “Like I said before, Princess Celestia, it’s… barbaric would be one word. Too many lacerations to count, for starters. Her ribs are a mess, half a dozen of them are broken, and the rest seem to have fractures. All of them,” he scrunched his nose in disgust as he kept reading. “Her wings are a mess as well, one is broken in three places, the other is riddled with fractures. We’ve got enough blood on hoof to deal with the high rate of loss she’s currently suffering, even with magical aid it’s higher than any normal pony could survive.”
Sighing, Scalpel glanced from the chart to the mare in question, shaking his head. “I understand she is, was, an enemy of Equestria. But honestly, the rest of this?” He shook the clipboard, which Celestia enveloped in her own magic and began reading for herself. “If we can stabilize her magic, our work will become mostly setting bones and suturing the lacerations. Without that, she’ll be here for a year, minimum. Suffering from acute arcane exhaustion as she is, a case of which is worse than Princess Luna suffered upon her cleansing, will potentially leave her crippled for years to come.”
A look of disgust mirroring Scalpel’s own crossed Celestia’s face as she set the chart down, shaking her head. “That would sound about right, I believe I can help her though. It may take a bit of effort to mimic the cleansing effects my sister went through but it would greatly alleviate the drain on her magic. That should allow the infusion to actually take root,” she explained, looking at the ponies hard at work before her.
Scalpel let out a small sigh of relief. “I was hoping that would be the case. I’ll just have everypony step back for you to work, Princess, and then we’ll finish up. Hopefully this will mean she’ll be on her hooves in a week, perhaps two. I know your sister was up and about immediately, but with the injuries on top of the arcane exhaustion…” He trailed off, shrugging his shoulders. “Everypony, please take a step back and allow Princess Celestia to work for a minute.”
Approaching the table even as everyone but Scalpel stepped back, Celestia scrunched her nose once more, this time at the heavy scent of blood and antiseptic that pervaded her sense of smell. “Just look at you, so weak now. Were you conscious, no doubt you would be fuming at the sight,” Celestia whispered quietly. “You took my sister, forced my hoof against her, and now, I could finish what Luna started. Were it not for my promise I made to myself all those years ago, I would end you. For my sister, my ponies… for myself.”
A throat clearing distracted Celestia for a moment. “Princess Celestia, any time you’re ready,” he politely pointed out, all of the staff now out of the way.
“Doctor Scalpel?” Celestia softly spoke, feeling a weight on her chest she needed to remove as her horn began to softly glow that golden color, a feeling of warmth tickling those present. “Have you ever wondered at what point it is acceptable to violate the Hippocratic Oath, for the greater good? Knowing that your vows could possibly unleash countless horrors and complications on those you know and care, could you make that slip?” she quietly asked, horn glowing brighter with each passing second.
“I…” Scalpel started, somewhat fearfully at the unexpected question. He took a few moments to gather himself before speaking just as quietly as Celestia was. “I would think, Princess, that I would not. I am a doctor. Not a judge, nor jury, and certainly not an executioner. I cannot begin to fathom what you must go through each day, and for so long, but… if you make one exception, where do you stop?” he finished, fearfully glancing up to her.
Shoulders slumping ever so slightly, Celestia glanced towards Scalpel, giving him a glimpse for a few seconds into eyes filled with millennia of pain and sorrow. “I sometimes wonder if the easy way out would be best. Then I remember that easy does not necessarily mean the best. I’m sorry for burdening you with such a heavy question, Doctor,” she finished.
Horn glowing almost as brightly as her sun, Celestia raised her shoulders once more and glanced to the ponies in the room. “Shield your eyes, this may get brighter yet,” she warned them all, giving them ample time to do just that before going to work. Her magic formed a spell, which seeped into Tempest. It sought the connections to the worst drains on her internal magic, slowly severing them for the moment so that what little magic remained could be used exclusively for healing.
The light flared, just as Celestia said it would, the spell going to work and enshrouding Tempest’s form in magic. As the light faded and vision returned to those within the room, the effects of her work were readily visible. While still direly injured, Tempest was now the size of Twilight, perhaps even a smidge smaller. The ethereal mane and tail were gone, replaced by long, flowing strands of midnight blue hair much like Luna’s. Lastly, her horn had lost its sharp point, instead being rounded at the tip like any other pony.
“Doctor Scalpel, her magic should be fully focused on healing her now, rather than being wasted elsewhere,” Celestia started, taking a step back. “I gave her a small infusion of my own magic to aid the process, from this point it is up to you and your team,” she explained. A small part of her wished she could heal the mare, but she knew that it was one of the few restrictions magic held.
Scalpel’s own horn lit with a magenta glow even as Celestia spoke, scanning Tempest for a few seconds before his look of disgust finally shifted to one of optimism. “Thank you, Princess. We can definitely handle it from here now. It’ll be a long few weeks for the mare, but weeks are better than months. We’ll be keeping her in a magically induced coma while the worst of her injuries heal. I estimate three days or so?” He watched as the staff swarmed Tempest once more, going back to doing their work.
“I see,” Celestia started, plans and actions needed to be taken already swirling about her mind. “I’ll be sending some guards your way in the next few hours, please ensure her room is pointed out to them. I’m afraid we’re going to be making your hospital rather busy these next few days, especially once she wakes up,” she apologetically mentioned. “But, since my work is done, I must be off. There are many plans that need to be set in motion if we are to redeem this mare.” Not waiting for Scalpel’s reply Celestia charged a teleportation spell and in the blink of an eye vanished, her list of tasks growing ever longer with each second.
Had this story sitting in my favorites folder for a long time now, and im very happy to see it continue. From my point of veiw i didnt see anything wrong, and found it very enjoyable to read. Keep up the great work.
Is it "update really old fics" season? I swear this is the 3rd fic in my tracker list that got updated after more than 1 year of waiting :D
(Not complaining at all!)
Personally, I hope Tempest/NMM tells them all to go f*ck themselves. This is the point where I'd say "f*ck this shit, I'm out..." and leave.
interesting. Honestly I thought her non ethreral hair would be purple since she is seperate from Luna.
It's good to see old stories being updated again. I am pleased by this, continue.
Nice chapter
Now we need more
7213311
Got a little over 1,000 words of the next chapter, but it might be bumped back to the chapter after next, so might have nothing for the next chapter... most of my work is on this story though.
7213315 ok good to know that it's updating again
Yay! It's back! Time to read...
So epically awesomely fantasticarific.
Glad to see this back in business. An enjoyable chapter to be sure.
Tempest didnt even stand a chance. Like sitting on a couch and someone kicking in your door and beating you down with a baseball bat.
Please, dear author, may we have more?
7213705 Luna is going to feel like an ass when everything is worked out and they realize who Tempest is...and isn't.
Such an ass.
Not to mention Celestia, who openly considered murdering her on the operating table.
Dr. Scalpel could charge by the stories he appears in -- but then, he'd have to change his name to -- Filthy Rich!
7213113 With a noticeable limp that smears guilt all over the princesses' snouts.
7213886
That right there is... way out of character for her. When Celestia fought Nightmare Moon she did it with the deepest of REGRET. See Canon Show and Lullaby for a Princess. Celestia had to make the hard and awful choice - Equestria, no matter the cost - and she did it but she hated it. There was no triumph there; just tears...
Celestia is not a tyrannical murderer who considers KILLING PONIES ON THE OPERATING TABLE. If anything, she would be full of hope, itching to get started with redeeming her...
7214089 I would call to your notice Celestia's emotions and mannerisms during the consideration. It was like in her way she was briefly entertaining a course she already knew she would not take.
Heh was actually kinda hoping that Tempest would get to talk to Celestia while under the effects of drugs that make people a little loopy. Have a conversation with her like the ones on Youtube where someone has just gotten a root canal and the anesthetics haven't worn off.
7213113 Maybe once she's healed make it known she maybe doesn't want to live in Equestria, since the local rulers have a tendency to haul off and beat you like a rented mule.
7214064 "You all can go die in a fire! I'm leaving...ow...ow...ow...ow...*Sound of doors opening*......ow...ow...ow..."
All of them watching as she slowly, ever so slowly, "storms" out of the room.
7214289 "Heeeeey White Horse. Do you.. Do you like Bananas? You look like a banana kinda person!"
rainbowdash.net/file/noirbatch-20121102T210103-d96jgfu.jpeg
Yays
7214289 "Whoa! Celestia! Check it out, this place has a ceiling!"
Back from vacation I guess?
Tempest always was Nightmare Moon, simply given the chance to grow up happily. That being said, she is not who she was before. Hell of a welcome party, though. "Welcome to Equestria! We're going to hospitalize you now! And maybe murder you on the operating table!"
I wonder where the twins ended up.
7213096 tell me about the other two they may be a part of my hiatus group that I erased and it's taking a long time to find them again. (ps. They not always were refered as such.)
7218476 Well there's "Song of the moon" which got it's last chapter released (Had to wait for 2 years!), and there's "Asylum"
Me: Hey Doc. What's the assessment?
Doctor Frankenstein: it's alive... IT'S ALIVE!?! Hahahhahahahahahah!
Drop the "as".
If she even needs redeeming. I guess it is time to play "let's not listen to Twilight's observations" again.
7214289 A la David after Dentist?
7220587 Nah not funny enough maybe more like..
I need to read this story to survive. Please do not deny me my dinner.
This does not bode well for Princess Luna, and it once again raises the question as to what authority two supposedly legally equal Princesses have to punish one another in such instances.
What does Princess Celestia view as fitting punishment, and what can she legally impose on her sister? Will she even impose a legally defined punishment, or will she perhaps do something else?
Your story, "The Worst Nightmare Of My Life" so far is one of the better human as an equestrian villain fics. This story and, "A Nightmare Come To Life" by Alcatraz have got me hooked on this little sub-genre.
--
And HOLY SHIT THAT COVER ART
m.popkey.co/4498d2/e0eR6.gif
Hope the next chapter comes out soon. But may yet be a while. Writing is hard.
So far so good
I hope this story will continue. I feel sort of hypocritical to gripe about that, because I know I'm terribly slow about turning out new chapters too. . . Well, everybody is free to gripe to me about it too. Maybe if we gripe to each other enough we'll eventually get some writing done.
I can't help feeling that you've sort of painted yourself into a corner here, with the extreme of Luna's reaction and the amount of physical harm she's inflicted on Tempest. I'm not saying it's necessarily a crazy or out-of-character thing for her to do, under the circumstances, but. . . Now the focus of the story could very easily become more about Luna than about Tempest, and how ponies (including herself) will view her once the magnitude of her error becomes apparent.
It could be dire. Doesn't Luna have enough burden of guilt already?
Anyhow, I can't help wondering if this is really the direction you wanted to go, especially since it's not the impression I got from the story description.
outstanding story. their is a lot of care put in, and the way you portray the characters, brilliant.
I hope you keep the mistrust between nightmare moon and everyone else, i would love to see the fallout. regardless of what i say, i wait for the next chapter.
I bit too heavy and gruesome in my opinion when Twilight clearly stated Nightmare moon doesent know who she is apparently and the lack of doubt and any remorse is appalling really, while Celestia is helping her she doing it just out of duty.
I hope new chapters will deal with Tempest fcking hating them both out of pure spite for the pain she went thru because of Luna's temper and Celestia's coldness.
Plus if you dont address the things between Twilight and Luna as to how heavily she hurt Tempest i will probably leave this story as Twilight herself knows that wasnt Nightmare Moon and Luna hurt an innocent. And no amount of hurt or rationalizing will make this right. If there is no fallout of some kind this will be a very shallow story.
just saying.........
and that was a real miracel.
I hope that she didn't meant that she was controling part of what happened, I somehow don't like that idea.
I like that, it makes the same amount of sense as with those people who are always saying why every Human or character should bow to them, or call them princess if they don't want to be called like that. Long story short, I like that the ponys in this story listen to stuff like what Twillight actually prefers.
In a way I would be angry that Celestia didn't even wanted to spill the beans, that way Tempest could probably hope for an apologize at most.
7815030 I don't want to say anything against the author yet, but something that usually happens would be, that she is either alrealdy accepting the apology while she is sleeping, or she is mostly three chapters long mad at them, and then she is practially forced to forgive them for some weird reason.
I get this might not be the case for this canon, but: Aren't those "magical" veins? Like, there are blood arteries and veins, and then there are magic arteries and veins? So, severing them would potentially harm her more than letting them go?
I read this one story where that was the case. An alicorn severed some of his own connections because a cursed artifact was draining their magic. It nearly killed them, made this huge bruise where the severed "veins" were, lost feeling in their lower body because of it too.