A Fierce Eclipse

Metamorphia yawned as a knock came to her room's door. She stood and walked to the door "Yes?" She opened the door and asked when she saw Jiles standing with a dress of the darkest black satin "You have thirty minutes to get ready for your audience with Prince Sunrise, I have brought you the dress the tailors fixed up for you, now if you have any make up you should forget that, the prince cannot stand to see a mare mask her natural beauty under make up, he will be getting ready for his party this evening and I understand that he wishes you to be there, but I do not know if you should or should not go, if he mentions it or invites you then you should go, if he doesn't then do not" Jiles smiled as he walked in and handed the dress over to Metamorphia "Now you will need to be careful with the dress, it is a fragile thing the sleeves can easily tear if you are not careful with your fore legs, and the satin can unravel if you are too tough with the material, other than that you shall look just fine in the dress"

"Umm thank you but could you step out please" Metamorphia blushed slightly, she was fine without the dress but she had the habit of dressing without watchers "Of course Madam, I will be outside if you need me, and if you have any thing you need the prince to look at remember you have exactly thirty minutes until the scheduled time" Metamorphia smiled and nodded as Jiles stepped out. She walked over to the mirror in the room and looked at the dress, its midnight black color matched her coat with ease the white lining at the neck and edge of the sleeves and the small gold ribbon would be the only things that would mark the dress separate from her body. It brought out the emerald green of her eyes.

"Well it is beautiful but I do prefer white but no complaints" She smiled as she coughed a little before slipping the dress on over her head easing it over her forelegs and slowly getting use to its feel. "Oh it feels nice too, but huh I feel over dressed for this audience" She didn't have anything else needing done so she stepped out into the hall to the waiting Jiles. "Good, now that you're ready follow me" Jiles took off without waiting to see if she was following. Metamorphia sighed and rushed to keep up being careful not to mess up the dress. It all had taken her just over fifteen minutes.

Jiles walked with an unbelievable speed as if he was born to make ponies feel inferior with his speed, but he had to walk this fast to keep up with Prince Sunrise. Metamorphia was panting with exertion by the time they reached the gardens and she saw that there were two party areas the gardens were decorated with beautiful ribbons and many tables for food and even a small stage set up for entertainment. "The prince will be raised from being a colt into being a Stallion tonight, that ceremony will be held in the ball room at midnight and from there the guest will move out into the gardens for some entertainment then at dawn they will leave" Jiles explained when he glanced back at the confused changeling. "Come along we have six minutes until you are to meet the prince, if you had dressed faster we wouldn't have to worry about the time."

"I am sorry I am nervous I tend to be a bit slow when I am nervous" She was good at hiding her nervousness with her voice and facial features but she slowed down when it was extreme. The walk took exactly twelve minutes leaving two minutes to spare.

Metamorphia waited as Jiles knocked on the door and a strong and firm voice called from the other side "You may enter" Jiles looked back at Metamorphia and waved her forward as he opened the door and announced her "Queen Metamorphia to see you my prince" He waved her into the room and as she came in she saw Princess Celestia helping her son with his mane and getting him ready for an important event "Oh I am sorry I will com…" Metamorphia tried to say when Sunrise sighed "It is alright you can come in, go ahead and take a seat I will be with you in a moment, mother I can handle the rest, I would like a private word with Metamorphia" The way he said her name made Metamorphia shutter and blush "Of course my son, remember when the ceremony starts" With that Celestia smiled and moved away from her son and as she past Metamorphia, she sighed in defeat.

Sunrise stood and looked over at Metamorphia, his face was a cold mask and she was scared she had made a mistake. "I see you are wearing a dress, I am willing to be that was all Jiles' idea" Sunrise walked over to the chair opposite Metamorphia's and as he sat down the cold mask disappeared and was replaced with a happy grin "I am glad you could make it, Oh before I forget, I am having a party this evening and I would love for you to come" He smiled as he placed a hoof on hers and lifted it to his lips "In fact it would be my pleasure for you to be my date" Metamorphia gasped at his words, shocked that he was being so open with her, from what she had heard from the court ponies and Jiles, Sunrise rarely showed emotion to anypony other than his mother and aunt.

"Oh my I didn't expect this" Metamorphia placed a hoof to her mouth as he leaned closer to her to whisper in her ear "To be honest I was smitten by you the first moment I laid eyes on you" Sunrise kissed her cheek making Metamorphia blush "Really you like this horrid frail and decrepit body of mine?" Sunrise moved back from Metamorphia with an angry glare in his eyes "I could care less about your looks, I value the inner beauty over the outer, and I see great inner beauty in you Metamorphia" Just saying her name got Metamorphia to blush, this was obvious to Sunrise and he relished in it as he could actually make somepony blush without having to mention his title and his rank in the world. "So what do you say, Metamorphia would you like to b my date?"

Metamorphia's blush deepened as she thought about being by Sunrise's side all night long, not this Sunrise, but the hard Prince Sunrise "I will if you promise me something" She blushed even deeper waiting for his answer "Sure what is it you need" Metamorphia looked him in the eye the way only a royal could "Be yourself, no masks or hiding your feelings this night" Sunrise raised an eyebrow "Is that all you need, well done then"

Celestia sighed as she watched the guest show up for her son's movement into adulthood each pony was dressed for the occasion after all it was a grand thing for a royal to finally receive their status as an adult pony. She was in a golden dress that hugged her body like a lover's gentle embrace but she was worried about what this night would reveal in her son, his feelings for the queen for a race that had betrayed the Equestrian Kingdom but she did want her boy to be happy. She greeted the guest in her sons place as he prepared for the ceremony she glanced to her right as a break in the stream of ponies came as the guest began to thin down. She looked at her sister, who was flirting with somepony, knowing instantly that she was going to make a mistake this night, or the best decision of her life.

Celestia smiled as she heard the trumpets signaling the arrival of her son. She sighed as her son dressed in a military dress suit, something she never thought to see on her peaceful son. Her attention was then averted to the pony by his side, the Changeling Queen Metamorphia, and she wore a satin black dress that blended well with her body save for the strips of white lace at her neck and the ends of the sleeves, she had a worried but still happy smile on her face. Celestia wondered what would become of the evening as the ponies in attendance would find out that their prince was in a relationship with a changeling. She sighed and looked away, because she had promised not to interfere.

Sunrise smiled as he made sure his military suit was straight; after all he was to be raised from colt to stallion and every prince of the kingdom that was old enough was to be a military leader. He looked to his right to where the pony of his dreams stood. He couldn't believe she had said yes to be his date tonight. He was worried about her though as he could see the frail and sickly aura around her from the curse laid on her kind.

"So I have a speech to give at the stroke of midnight but after I am all yours Metamorphia" Sunrise smiled as he walked proudly beside Metamorphia and he appeared to be happy, and without a mask over him to hide it.

Metamorphia sighed as Sunrise moved away from her to the podium at the front of the ball room. He called for silence as the clock struck signaling the coming midnight, one strike eleven to go. Celestia moved to Metamorphia's side, two strikes ten to go.

"He will give his speech of a crown prince then he will tell all of the ponies of Equestria who he plans on courting to complete his claim to the Sun Throne" Celestia told Metamorphia and there was a twinge of sadness in her voice that hinted at something dark. Three strikes nine to go.

Everypony waited expectantly as Sunrise prepared for his speech, four strikes eight to go. Sunrise felt a small ache in his head but he didn't think anything of it. Five strikes seven to go. He smiled as he readied his voice for the speech, six strikes no, seven strikes five to go. Sunrise let the final strikes resonated one two three four five, he cleared his throat as the ache grew in his head.

"I am Sunrise Eclipse only son to Princess Celestia, I am the heir to the Sun Throne, to seal my heir ship for the throne I must court a pony of noble blood, I am here to day to claim that courtship, but before that I must announce my movement up to adulthood." The ache grew to what seemed to be unbearable odds but Sunrise endured "I have grown from a foal to a colt and now to a Stallion, Tonight I am a leader of Equestria Crown Prince Sunrise, I have stepped up to the position of Royal Commander of the Army and Commander and Chief of the Royal Guard, and from this day forward let it be known to all in Equestria that I, Prince Sunrise will defend you all from any threat that comes to our borders." Sunrise smiled and hid away the pain that was pulsing just behind his eyes "I swear on the first Eclipsian Ruler to bring a peace that will last for millennia to come" His eyes began to throb with the pain as his mind swirled with a strange pull on his thoughts as he spoke "I now will claim my right as the Crown Prince of the Sun Throne by courting Queen Metamorphia"

This got gasps from every pony in attendance, their prince had just claimed to be courting a changeling queen. It even surprised the two ponies that knew it was coming, and it surprised Metamorphia most of all. Sunrise smiled weakly as he was about to say another word before he stepped down but the pain in his head had gone too far and he cringed as his eyes began to glow with magic. His entire body began to glow with a dark aura with streaks of gold running through it.

Metamorphia gasped as her body felt the powerful magic at work. On the blank flank of Sunrise Eclipse a cutie mark appeared a Golden Sun and Silver Moon being eclipsed in darkness. The moon completely full this evening was shrouded in a dark aura as it began to darken then it became apparent that it was being eclipsed. Sunrise spoke in a deeper voice with a sinister tone that was what most ponies felt it as but Metamorphia knew better.

"I AM THE LORD OF THE ECLIPSE, I RULE ALL DARKNESS AND NO PONY CAN FACE MY DARKNESS, I WILL SHEILD ALL IN DARKNESS"

As the magic left Sunrise he passed out with increasing speed. It was hours before he came too no pony save Luna Celestia and Metamorphia could be seen, darkness covered the land save for the few torches in the ball room "Ugh what happened all I remember is a searing pain in my head then nothing and why is it so dark"

Luna and Celestia both looked at each other with worry before Metamorphia rushed to hold Sunrise in her forelegs. "I thought I had lost you for a moment there, and as for what happened that is best left to your mother to explain after you have rested."

"Hmm alright, I am exhausted but still I have a feeling this is somehow my fault" Sunrise yawned as his mother and aunt helped him to his feet but as they did he slipped and caught a glimpse of his flank, and he saw his cutie mark "A Sun and Moon being eclipsed that's my Cutie Mark…."

He passed out again from exhaustion and was carried back to his room by neither his mother nor his aunt. He wasn't carried by a Royal Guardspony, he was carried by his new love Metamorphia who was using what little of her waning strength to heal his hurt mind.

To Be Continued.

Author's Note: Hi ponies This story's progression will be slowed down to an update on every Saturday to give me time to work on a collaboration with my pony cousin, and those fans of Last Crusade I am sorry but I will not be working on it while I am working on the collab so it will be put on vacation until I finish the collab. Now to my note on this chapter, it is shorter than the third but it is a two parter with Chap five.