Author's Notes:

So I accidentally deleted the third chapter (great fucking job me) and me not wanting to republish it same with my co-author we decided to make the second and third one chapter. I mean there was already some people saying the second and third chapter should of been one chapter anyways.

Thirty years into the future
Zebrica
The Resistance Base

Cadance felt like her heart was going to explode. It was beating faster and faster every second as she heard the clock’s ticks. Her eyes were glued to the clock on the wall. She paced back and forth in her private study. How can I do this? repeated in her mind. She stopped pacing when she caught sight of her own reflection in a mirror.

Damn you, Nova. And damn you, Shadow Blaze. The war had significantly changed her look, mostly because of her granddaughter and the Captain of the Crystal Guard. Nova, adopted by her daughter and raised as her protégé. Nova had ripped out part of Cadance’s ear with her own teeth and burned Cadance with her magic. Ares, the Captain of the Crystal Guard had caused multiple scars all over Cadance’s body with his swords — he even ripped out part of her mane and tail.

Her eyes wandered to her wings, one of them unpreened and battered, as it was broken multiple times. The other was a mechanical as her old wing had been ripped out completely by Equestria's dictator in the battle for the Crystal Empire. The doctors had told her that if her broken wing didn’t start healing soon, she’d need a second mechanical one.

Damn you, Flur— Cadance cringed. No… I’m sorry, Flurry Heart. I love you and I always will.

Whenever she looked at herself in that mirror, she was no longer Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, General of The Resistance, she was just Cadance, the mother of Equestria's Greatest Monster.

She felt the waterworks coming and quickly wiped her eyes. No. No more crying. I cried enough when my daughter, Skyla, was killed by her own older sister when she made the Crystal Empire her army. My subjects are now having to live under my eldest daughter's tyranny. My Empire has been taken away from me. My aunts were killed by their own adoptive great niece. Thank the stars for Shining and I’s train being held up — it saved us from going to that meeting. Pinkie Pie, Spike, Rarity, and all the citizens of Ponyville who died in the town's destruction. Thank Goddess, Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, Fluttershy, Starlight, and Sunburst were safe in the Everfree forest with Zecora at the time. My adoptive parents — they’re gone too. The new Element of Laughter, Cheese Sandwich, the new Element of Generosity, Coco Pommel, Discord, Zecora, and Shining… dear Shining… they all died in the battle for the Crystal Empire. My sister-in-law, who used up almost all of her magic to protect us in that failed invasion… comatosed. My fallen soldiers. l've lost so much and I can't bear it. And it's all because of… her.

Cadance sighed. Where did I go wrong? What did I do to make her do just atrocious things?! One day she was my daughter, Princess Flurry Heart, future ruler to the Crystal Empire. The next day she's Queen Flurry Heart, the tyrannical dictator of the Equestria.

She was several feet under the barren semi-desert of Zebrica. Although the zebras couldn't do much to help, they sheltered The Resistance. They couldn't go to war — they would be defeated in a matter of a few hours.

Equestria had made all nations feared them as they mixed technology and magic together, making weapons of mass destruction. Their weapons had no match such as them making anti-magic generators — even Discord couldn't defeat them mix that with a dictator who had taken the magic from her alicorn victims. He had been defeated quickly, sacrificing his life to save Fluttershy. The Resistance was at war with Equestria, but ever since that failed invasion of the Crystal Empire which had claimed Shining Armor’s life, The Resistance had been losing the war badly.

A guard came into the former ruler of the Crystal Empire’s room with a mixture of shock, worry, and fear on his face. He was Lieutenant Moonstone Mustang, one of the only crystal ponies who had managed to escape The Crystal Empire when the tyrant of Equestria mind-controlled the crystal ponies to be her army. He was an old friend of Shining Armor, and Cadance's most loyal companion. "Your Highness, I’ve been informed that you are planning on going back in time again."

Hair covered the ashamed General’s face — she couldn't look him in the eye. Tears welled up in her eyes. "I–I… I will go back in time for the seventh time. But I will do something different. All my plans to reform her before she destroyed everything have… failed. This war has gone on for twenty-two years and I must stop it. Before we all are killed."

"Do you not love your daughter anymore?" asked Moonstone Mustang.

The Princess sniffled. "Of course I do. I might not ever forgive her, but that doesn't mean I can't still love my daughter!"

Moonstone nodded tears also welling up in his eyes. "W–What happened to her? Why?! What are we going to do!?"

"Not a day goes by that I blame my parenting for all of this, Moonstone. She became power hungry and corrupted by dark magic like… like Aunt Luna," responded Cadance. The alicorn looked at the clock. It was eight o'clock in the morning — the time she was dreading. "Guess it's time for me to go."

"May I escort you?" asked the lieutenant.

Cadance nodded and Moonstone Mustang trotted by her side to the meeting room. The pink pony took in a deep breath and pushed open the door with her magic.

Inside the room was a long table seating the remaining highest ranking officials in The Resistance. There was Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Starlight Glimmer, and her husband, Sunburst.

"Hello, Princess," choked out Sunburst.

Cadance let out a heavy sigh and took a seat. "Hello…" The alicorn's eyes scanned the room. All of them held in tears. Although Flurry Heart had taken so much from them, she was so close to their hearts. The elements were like aunts to Flurry Heart. Yet she’d killed two elements and put another in a coma, and the Element of Magic’s assistant.

Sunburst was Flurry Heart's mentor and her Royal Crystaller. They had a relationship like Celestia and Twilight's relationship. Sunburst was almost like a second father to Flurry; he’d been there ever since she was only a few days old. She’d even been his Best Mare when he had wed his childhood friend. And she was close friends with their daughter, Starburst. Yet not long after she turned into a tyrant, she’d killed Starburst and betrayed them. Hell, she’d betrayed all of Equestria, but killing Starburst was something none of them had ever been able to forget.

"Princess Cadance… are you sure?" asked Starlight. There in her hooves was the spell she’d used to try to ruin the friendship of Twilight and her friends. She’d kept it for all these years. Flurry Heart had destroyed Twilight's castle in the destruction of Ponyville that had killed Spike, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie, but she kept the cutie map and wanted the Starlight’s time-travelling spell so that she could go back in time to kill her mother.

Cadance had first came up with the plan to go back in time. The first time she’d proposed it, it had been eagerly accepted by the weakening Resistance. Cadance, after the failed invasion, went to the Crystal Empire to get the map. And there it was, the map in the corner, she could use to save Equestria. Three of the alicorn princesses were dead. One of them was the one who killed the three. And one was in a coma. Cadance was now the only ruler that ponies could turn to.

Since then, Cadance had gone back in time six times to try to persuade her daughter not to turn into the tyrant she was now infamous as. Each time was a failure, and each time her support from the other members of the Resistance had dwindled.

But now she had a new plan. Her plan was to kill her daughter as an infant, before she could grow up to be a monster. At first it experienced backlash, but eventually it was accepted as the only remaining option.

Cadance took a seat. "Yes, I'm sure it's our last possible thing."

Starlight blinked back tears. "Very well..."

She used her telekinesis to pass the paper containing her spell to the pink alicorn. Cadance read through it for the umpteenth time.

The six rushed over to the former ruler of the Crystal Empire and embraced her.

"Please be safe," said Fluttershy.

"I'll try," replied Cadance.

"Princess?" asked Applejack.

"Yes?"

"Please jus… make Flurr's death quick an' painless."

Princess Cadance's heart wrenched as she heard the nickname she gave her daughter. "Flurr" and Empress Flurry Heart were two completely different ponies. Flurr was dead and all that remained was Empress Flurry Heart.

Rainbow Dash took the cloak and long sharp knife off the table and handed them over to the alicorn. "You'll need them both, Your Highness."

Cadance put on the cloak and put the knife in a beat up saddlebag that had seen better days. The pink alicorn brought up the old scroll with her magic. It crackled with energy for a moment before sending a beam into the center of the table. The map manifested itself, spreading out toward the edges.

A wind began to blow through the room. A small ball of blinding white light grew into a glowing, translucent dome set with arcane symbols that ticked and shifted like the gears of a clock.

Cadance looked behind her to see the six ponies she held so dear. "Thank you for everything you have done, my friends…" A large boom rattled the ears of all seven ponies, knocking them onto the floor. Smoke poured through the door, out of the hallway. The Princess of Love heard the battle cries of her soldiers. Her daughter's forces had found her. The resistance base had been compromised.

"GO NOW!" screamed Rainbow Dash.

"B-But I-" muttered Cadance.

"NOW!" ordered Rainbow Dash, getting into a battle stance.

The princess used her magic to float herself up toward the wormhole she’d created. "Goodbye..." That was the last thing she said as the dome sucked her into its lower opening like a vacuum cleaner and she and the scroll disappeared from sight. It then contracted to a ball and winked out, the wind dying away in time.

Cadance awoke groggily. She cringed as she could hear crickets chirping, and feel grass brushing her fur. Cadance slowly rose to her hooves, rubbing her head.

Oh no… Dread filled the alicorn. Her friends… her friends were going to die. Cadance almost started to hyperventilate. Wait! If this goes correctly… the future will be rewritten for the better.

Cadance examined her surroundings. She was in a garden. What… where am I…? Cadance gasped as she saw a statue of her ancestor, Princess Amore. Of course! This was the castle gardens! It had been so many years since they’d looked like this — so lush, so green.

Cadance let out a relieved sigh but it was cut short as she remembered why she was here. Past me and Shining Armor will be heartbroken, but it's for the better. They'll have another foal at least. The future and I would cease to exist. I'm glad I won't exist — I won't be able to live with the guilt.

She heard hoofsteps coming she quickly grabbed the scroll with the time travel spell written on it, stashing it into her saddlebag. In her mind, she tried to visualize her old castle — it had been a very long since she was there. Teleportation only worked if you’d been in the place before, and it had to be close if you didn't want to exhausted. Before the guard came to her, the alicorn teleported away.

Cadance almost fell on her face, now in one of the old castle’s halls. Sweat poured down her face. Guess I went too far…

Cadance put on an invisibility spell — just in case — although it would only last for a few minutes. She silently hooftoed through the halls. She came across one with the doors looking fancier than the others. Are these the important rooms?

She creaked open a little bit of a door, but in the room was instead that of her long deceased aunt, Princess Luna. She was peacefully sleeping and Cadance wanted to go over and hug her and cry into her fur. She’d never gotten to say goodbye to anypony who’d died because of her daughter.

She slowly but quietly closed the door. Yup, these are the the old guest rooms. The pony from the future went along the hallway and around a corner. She pushed open another door and saw her past self and her now dead husband, sleeping peacefully, completely unaware of what was going to happen to them. She sighed in disappointment and closed the door.

She slowly opened a bit of the two other bedchamber doors, to her disappointment as instead of her baby was her aunt, Princess Celestia and her sister-in-law, Princess Twilight Sparkle.

She trotted to the last door in the hall. Part of her hoped it was her daughter's room, but part of her feared it was her daughter's room. She hesitated to open it at first, but took a deep breath and slowly swung the door open. There was her sleeping daughter.

She closed the door quietly behind her and slowly trotted towards the crib, her invisibility fading away. Fear clenched her chest. Can… can I do this…!? Just slice open the neck. Just one cut and she will die peacefully.

Cadance took out the sharp knife from her saddlebag and held near the foal’s throat. I can do this. She took a deep breath. She won’t feel a thing. She exhaled. It will all be over quickly. Another deep breath. This will save so much suffering. Her daughter slowly awoke.

Giggling.

She heard giggling. She looked down in horror as her daughter was giggling and making adorable coos. She looked so different from the tyrant she’d grown to fear in the future. Her coat was no longer a pale pastel pink in the future, having grown much darker with age. Her former elegant mane and tail had become messy and duller in color.

C'mon one slice… just one slice! The Princess of Love gritted her teeth, her eyes becoming misty. I… I am going to murder my daughter… She sniffed and pressed the blade against her baby's fur. The foal let out a confused noise. She was far too young to understand what was happening.

Before she could slit the infant’s throat, the door abruptly swung open. Cadance felt dread clench her chest again. An ear piercing shriek pained Cadance's ears. She quickly pocketed the weapon and grabbed Flurry Heart, who wailed and screamed.

The window?!

Cadance scratched that thought as she heard the the pony who witnessed her trying to murder cry out for the guards. Her horn lit with power as she prepared for teleportation, charging towards the pony who had walked in.

To the Princess of Love’s surprise, it was her past self. It's… it's me!? She didn't have time to ask questions as she teleported to avoid her past self.

“Stop!” shrieked Past Cadance, running after her. In the corner of the time traveler's eye, she saw Luna banging on her older sister's door.

Guards! The pink alicorn gritted her teeth as she released a blue wave of magical energy which flung the Crystal Guards back against the cold wall, knocking them unconscious.

The cloaked alicorn jumped in surprise as the Princess of the Night teleported right in front of her, unknowingly firing a powerful spell at her adopted niece. Thinking fast, Cadance threw up magical shield around her to block it just in time, and the two beams of magic clashed into each other, the ponies locked in stalemate. Fallout from their battle tore up the floor. Cadance strained to keep back her adoptive aunt.

To her surprise, her past self demanded Luna to stop, helping the time traveler push back Luna’s beam. “Don’t harm her — she has Flurry!” shrieked Past Cadance.

Luna at once let her magic drop, giving the pony from the future the upper hoof as she knocked the Princess of the Night off her hooves.

“Give me back my baby!” Cadance's past counterpart shouted, charging once more at the her future counterpart, who saw her throw her shoulder. The future pony once again teleported behind her past counterpart and bolted in the other direction down the corridor.

Cadance suddenly found herself not able to run anymore as a pink aura pulled her off her hooves and into the air. She lit her horn again to free herself, but nothing worked. Her hooves waved helplessly in the air. “What’s…? What’s happening?”

“I’m lifting you up,” announced a familiar voice Cadance recognized as her sister-in-law.

“And I’m blocking your attempts to teleport away,” added the voice of the Princess of the Day, who Cadance hadn't heard in what felt like forever.

I failed… it's all over… As the four princesses surrounded her, Cadance was carefully lowered to the floor. She sighed in defeat. There's no way I can escape now…

Several Crystal Guards surrounded the alicorn from the future, pointing their spears at her.

“Your majesties, are you alright?” said one Crystal Guard.

“We will be,” answered the past counterpart of Cadance, who turned her attention to her future counterpart. “Return my daughter unharmed, and I give you my word that we will be merciful.”

The princess took her daughter from Cadance's hooves. Past Cadance tried to calm down Equestria's future greatest monster.

By now, other ponies were now starting to arrive at the scene. “W–What happened?” asked Starlight Glimmer. Cadance could feel the stares of ponies on her.

“Somepony tried to kill Princess Flurry Heart,” past Cadance explained.

The new arrivals gasped at the unexpected news. “Let me at’tem!” an Applejack much younger than the one Cadance was used to demanded, marching towards her, until Rarity held her back.

“Not just somepony,” Luna corrected. “I fought her… this could only be a very powerful unicorn… or… no… it couldn’t be Chrysalis, could it?”

“There's only one way to find out,” said Twilight. Using her magic, she lifted off the cloak covering the time traveling pony.

There's no use now… why fight it? thought Cadance.

The ponies assembled, and stood in disbelief of Cadance's appearance. Shining Armor was the first to speak. His eyes moved from Cadance to her past self and back again. “It’s… it can’t be… it looks just like…”

Twilight walked up to her brother, and stood beside him. “Yes… it’s Cadance.”

Cadance felt the room begin to spin as she passed out, exhausted from the stress of her mission.