Hyacinth looked down at the long dress draped over them. It was something chosen for two purposes: Regality and concealment. They were not a normal pony by any definition; everyone knew that. But they had an appearance they wanted to project: Equestria was hurt, and Hyacinth wanted as few lines drawn between them and the populace as possible. They looked down at Rarity, whom was smoothing out one of the large, diamongular protrusions of their dress. "Thank you for making this for me, dear. I know it can be hard to work under mourning," They expressed.

Rarity looked up at the large equid. "Yes, well… I don't suppose we have much choice," She commented, sighing. "You look wonderful in this. It befits an immortal ruler such as yourself," She expressed.

Hyacinth nodded slowly. "Thank you," They repeated, echoing the mare's sigh. "I wish it hadn't come to this. To think they'd all succumb at the same time…" They closed their eyes for a moment. "I will do this for them. They would lament me forever if I allowed the world to decay, with or without their absence."

Rarity nodded. "I'm sure it will be appreciated," She expressed. "You're ready, I believe."

Hyacinth smiled gently down at the unicorn. "Thank you," They replied. "You may go rest, now, if you would like."

"I will listen to your speech from here," Rarity replied.

Hyacinth nodded, turning to face the balcony. They took a deep breath in, stepping forward.

Hyacinth felt a pang of pain run through their body as they stepped out onto the balcony, flanked by both their own Praetors and pony guards. The sky, and the land below it, was dark; almost pitch black. With no sun or moon, the only lights were artificial, or distant stars that contributed insignificantly to the ambient light around. Despite the low light, they could see the crowd. The fear, the uncertainty, the mourning. Hyacinth closed their eyes for a moment, taking a breath. The crowd went quiet. The low, ambient rumble of all of their children living and working was now silent. All was still.

Hyacinth opened their eyes. "Thank you for coming, all of you who managed to make it," They began, speaking in a loud tone to project into the Canterlot square. "These past weeks have been difficult for all of us. The loss of the Princesses, the evacuation of the Crystal Empire, and the growing chill of our sunless sky have taken their toll on everyone. My children and I are doing what we can to make things comfortable for all of those affected. I… Cannot replace them; not in your hearts, nor in mine," They took a shaky breath and closed their eyes. "Before I continue, I would like to take a moment of silence; for them."

The square fell deathly silent; the loss had been felt by everyone. It could be felt in the very air and sky around them: None of the sun's warmth, nor the night's pleasant stillness, remained. The air was simply dead; devoid of energy, of care, of life. As silence reigned, that feeling only seemed to sink further in. Hyacinth could feel it, however; ponies crying into their sleeves, or biting their tongues. Hyacinth wondered, for a moment, if this was all too soon. It had hardly been a month. Surely Equestria needed more time to grieve than that. But, that was time they hadn't yet bought. The world was slowly starving, freezing, and dying. They had a great deal of work to do.

After a long moment, Hyacinth opened their eyes, letting a single signal flow through them; through Cambrians first, but then into Auroras. One by one, fake suns began to light up; Auroras blooming to life with burning magic, painting the bleak black skies shades of gold. It was… Fake. It couldn't replicate the true feeling of the sun; the placid, blue days. It was more like a constellation burning just at the edges of the sky, harsh lights under some intangible ceiling. But, fake as it was, it was warm. It stained the ground, made things visible, helped ease the bones of weary ponies. The impulse radiated outward, painting more and more of the distant skies with golden false sun.

"As I succeed the ones we've lost, and find ways to supplement that which they've taken with them, I hope to take care of each and every one of you to the best of my ability. Equestria was their child, and it is up to me to adopt it," Hyacinth spoke, standing taller under the Auroras' light. "I understand if you have concerns, or even objections to my ruling. I did not put as much effort to integrate into Equestria ahead of time as I should have. My children do not easily speak pony languages, and many of us are large and dangerous on a scale most of you would reasonably fear. But as I ascend, I will do everything in my power to ease the transition for all of us."

There was another moment of quiet; even Hyacinth seemed unsure of what to think of their speech, never mind the crowd. But the ceremony had to go on, so Hyacinth briefly looked at Shining Armor behind them. The guard captain had become the closest thing to Equestria's ruler in the intermission period, and was thankful to have found some sort of successor to the throne. He stepped forward, pulling a large bronze circlet free of a red cloth. It sported a pair of flowing wings, painstakingly cast to appear graceful. Hyacinth lowered their head a bit, closing their eyes to accept the circlet.

Shining Armor placed the circlet on Hyacinth's head, careful to seat it in a way that didn't gravely interfere with their mane. He then turned to the balcony to address the crowd. "Everyone," He tripped over his words slightly, the normally sure stallion off-kilter from the situation. "Please welcome our new ruler: Empress Hyacinth," He finally declared.

The reaction moved through the crowd like molasses; a slow, steady progression, first of soft applause, then some cheering. Hyacinth could feel the turmoil in the ponies below. They didn't know all the exact reasons, of course, but they could guess that the mourning and fear of change had something to do with it. Hyacinth simply smiled, lifting a leg to gently wave before turning and walking back into the castle.