//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: Not Another Alicorn! // by LordBrony2040 //------------------------------// Not Another Alicorn Epilogue -The Night of the Coronation- “Come along peasant, that’s right, with me now,” Blueblood said, his speech thankfully not slurring as he finished off the bottle of wine that he had brought along with him. Grass crunched under his hooves as he led the mare through the twists and turns of his aunt’s garden maze; one of his personal favorite places to assert himself. Princess Celestia thought her garden was so wonderful and pure, it was one of Blueblood’s several secret victories over his white oaf of an aunt that every bit of the place had felt his presence in one way or another. The dirt pony’s name was…well, he didn’t really know. She was just some maid from the castle that had caught his eye. Ponies without money, title, or magic were all dirt in his eyes, so he just decided to call her that and be done with it. The reason for her presence was simple, she had a nice plot. It was the one good thing about Dirt and the ponies like her, their plots were always the most developed. They also had the most stamina, which sometimes suited his purposes. But it was the mare’s plot that interested him tonight. “Oh my prince, I had no idea the garden was so lovely at night,” Dirt spoke, earning an eye roll from the price. If he had wanted an intelligent conversation, then Blueblood would have been talking to himself. Another moment of blissful silence followed, then the mare spoke again. “Prince Blueblood, where were you during the coronation earlier today? I bet you had gotten a good seat along the princesses!” The reminder of the coronation made Blueblood glower at the area ahead. He had in fact, not gone to the coronation. That was just a stupid event for the common rabble to observe and gawk at the latest commoner to be brought above her station. The real important event that happened two days prior to that had him gritting his teeth. Before the spectacle in front of the crowds was even arranged, Celestia had called all the various heads of her government, the most affluent lords, dukes and other important officials as well as the highest ranking ponies among the military such as Captain Shinning Armor and Captain Spitfire. There Celestia had announced the latest commoner to be granted a horn as her heir apparent, and next in line of authority after the sisters themselves. Then, to add to the insanity of it all, she had the room at large bow and swear fealty to the newest princess for both them, and their houses. Even Princess Cadence was put on bended knee! Then it had come time for Blueblood’s turn…and he had refused to bend knee to such an inferior. Cadence had at least been kept in her place! For this newest commoner to be given such a high station was insanity! Of course, he had told Celestia such not a moment later after refusing to submit to this…whatever her name was. “I will not force subjugation on you child, all were asked to accept my new daughter, not ordered. However if you do not whish to support your newest leader, I hereby seize all lands and assists currently under your control and strip you of your position as the head of the head Equestrian Tax Collection Agency. You may continue to call yourself Prince for now and reside within the castle. But after several disturbing rumors recently coming to light about your behavior, I will be launching an investigation into your activities involving your treatment of fellow ponies. “But I do not intend to stop there. You have been given the best education that can be provided, as well as the opportunity to use it for the betterment of Equestria. Instead, I find you do little more than count bits in the treasury and use your connection with me to advance your social status. I gave you the best this country has to offer, and you have squandered it! “Therefore, I give you one year to prove that you are worthy of what you have been given. Show me that there is a reason to call you Prince, Blueblood…or I shall strip you of your royal titles and privileges, as well as cast you out of my home!” The memory of Celestia’s words left a bad taste in his mouth and a boiling of his blood as Blueblood came to its end, then took the last turn on the long trek to find what he had been looking for. “Oh my, what is that thing?” The Stallion looked up at Celestia’s latest…acquisition. The statue was done by some unknown artist, and showed a freakish mishmash of parts atop a pony that made her look something akin to Discord. Like all the statues in Celestia’s private garden, it stood on a small pedestal that allowed it to be seen over the walls of the hedge maze. “Just something Celestia brought with her after that mess a few days ago.” “When that terrible storm nearly hit Canterlot?” Dirt asked. “I must say, I was quite thankful for Princess Luna’s return that night. Did you know she directed the clouds away from the city all by herself?” Blueblood rolled his eyes at the praise for Nightmare Moon’s antics. “Disgusting thing,” he grumbled. Why Celestia had welcomes such a monster back into the halls of Canterlot and offered her a position of rulership! The creature should have been killed on the spot! But instead, Blueblood had found it was placed above him in the standings of government! “Indeed!” The comment made the stallion look over to the mare with a frown. He hadn’t been addressing her! Or have I been talking out loud too much again? Blueblood asked himself. He was certain the single bottle of wine he’d drunk wouldn’t have done such a thing. Then he realized that the mare was speaking of the statue. After all, it would have been odd to hear her praise Nightmare Moon, then condemn her a breath later. A thought occurred to the stallion to have a bit of fun before rutting the dirt pony he’d drug out into the garden to claim victory over Celestia’s newest addition to her stone garden. “Shall a slay the creature, my dear?” the prince asked in a heroic tone. “Oh yes! Save us from the beast my prince,” she replied. After a minute of concentration, Blueblood seized the pedestal under the statue and toppled it over before using the same object to destroy the Frankenstein-ish monster by repeatedly smashing it with the heavier piece of marble to the fake cheers of the mare he planned to rut in celebration of his victory. Within seconds, the grotesque statue was in pieces, and Blueblood was frowning at the odd smoke that seemed to be rising from the wreckage of the artwork. And that was the last thing Blueblood would ever see. A few minutes later, the body that had once been Prince Blueblood walked away from the restored visage of the thing that had once been its prison. The body of the dead mare who witnessed the event of its release floated alongside. It’s soul having already been twisted and placed within the statue in order to make it appear she was still within her cell. Considering the mental damage that such quick work had done to the mud pony, it was doubtful even Luna would know what to make of her dreams. A year to ‘prove’ my worth, little sister? Andromeda thought to herself as she finished rifling through the information given to her by her descendent's mind; or himself as the case now was. You make this too easy. Dear Princess Celestia As I sit here writing this letter to you…I really don’t know what to say. A few days ago, I saved some people around Ponyville and found the town cheering for me louder than they ever have before. I’ve always been a bit of a hero, but this was more than I had ever experienced before. Oh, and in case you don’t remember me, I’m Rainbow Dash, the mare who won the Best Young Flier’s competition. And my dream is to be a Wonderbolt. So I was being my awesome self, saving lives and everything, and all of a sudden my little town loved me for it. They started wearing Rainbow wigs to look like me and asking for my autograph and doing everything that, well, you’d expect them to do for a Wonderbolt. It was as if, in this small part of Equestria, my dream had come true. Then Mare Do Well appeared. I don’t know how much news about some middle of nowhere town you get up in Canterlot, but the long story short is, everypony thought Mare Do Well was some mysterious pony when in fact it was a group of four ponies posing as one; those four ponies being my friends. Sort of friends? Former friends? See that’s just it…I honestly don’t know anymore. I can’t really be angry at them for the stuff they did in costume. I mean, they helped other ponies so, I can give them a pass on what they did, it’s how and why they did it that’s got me wondering if I can still call Twilight and the others my friends. I mean, they made the town think that four ponies were a single one. And I mean a pony than can fly, a pony that could do magic, and a really strong earth pony, and Pinkie Pie with her Pinkie Sense. So with me against all of this, of course even I’m going to be outdone! But they made the town think it was a single bucking pony. They made the town forget about me! ON PURPOSE! I HAD MY HOOVES ON MY DREAM AND THEY CRUSHED IT! … Okay, had to go out flying for a bit to calm down. And, it wasn’t really my real dream, but it was…it was like the best of both worlds, you know? I know I’m going to have to leave them for the Wonderbolts one day. But, if I could have gotten just a piece of the Wonderbolts, and keep my friends at the same time…then I have to wonder if my dream would change. But that’s gone now. And I know that when the day comes, I will leave Ponyville to fulfill it. … Okay, sorry, had something to do so I had to take a break from writing the letter. I don’t know why I’m so distracted. I mean, choosing Ponyville or the Wonderbolts had always been a killer decision for me, you know? I should be taking them for making it easier for me. So why does it hurt so much? … Oh right, the lesson I learned. Apparently, heroes aren’t supposed to brag. I just don’t get it. Okay well, maybe Twilight is like that, but AJ and the others, they brag about everything. Remember that whole running of the leafs thing you looked in on that one time? Well it had started because AJ was going on and on about how much of a better athlete she was than me, then she had this competition, where I apparently ‘cheated’ to win because I was BORN WITH WINGS. You know I didn’t whine about most of the events being stolen from a rodeo INCLUDING a roping event, which she has a blue ribbon in, or her earth pony strength and stamina. Was I whinnying about how SHE stacked the deck? Here’s a clue: NO! When my friends accomplish something, I give them the praise they deserve. When Twilight saved the town from a giant space bear, I was telling her how awesome she was. When AJ was getting a bucking trophy for herding cows, I was there to sing her praises, but what happens when I get the spotlight shown on me? They undermine me at every turn. And what really ruffles my feathers is, this isn’t the first time it’s happened! Remember the Youngest Flier Competition? Remember the UNICORN that came to the performance? The one I SAVED FROM DYING AFTER SHE STOLE MY SPOTLIGHT? Well guess who made the Mare Do Well costume? So you know what? Buck them and their stupid no bragging rules! If they weren’t a bunch of high horse hypocrites, I might actually listen to their crap for five seconds before noticing the smell, but as things stand, those losers aren’t any friends of mine. … So what does that make me then? I’m supposed to be Loyalty, right? I actually had to go and look that up. Other than just being loyal (go figure) it means a feeling of devotion, duty, or attachment to somepony or something. Okay, I’m loyal to Equestria. Even Discord couldn’t beat me there! Stupid draco-whatchawhozits made me think Cloudsdale was going to be destroyed if I didn’t do something when he made everypony else lie, be greedy, and do a bunch of other junk. If he had done a disloyal thing, I probably would have been like Fluttershy or something when he made her mean, or tried to help him take over Equestria. So that’s my something to be loyal to, but what about my somepony? I’d say I’m loyal to you, but, well you ARE Equestria. So…yeah. Does that mean I have to be loyal to Twilight and the others, even when they buck me in the teeth? Does that mean I can never leave them to be a Wonderbolt? … Had to take a break again, do some thinking. I don’t think I want to not be friends with them. Is that wrong? Is there something wrong with me? Awhile ago, one of my old friends came to town, she was a griffon I met while in Junior Speedsters, and loved flying like I did. She acted like a jerk to Twilight and the others, and so I kicked her out of Sugarcube Corner and told her we weren’t friends anymore. And I had known her for longer than any of the others except Fluttershy. She was my flying buddy, it’s kind of this thing I call the pony (or griffon in this case) that I like to fly with the most. And I love flying by the way, it’s the most awesome thing in the world. But hey you got wings too so, you know how it is. So a griffon acts like a jerk to my friends, and I stop being friends with her. My friends act like jerks to me…so shouldn’t I stop wanting to be friends with them? I should. … I hate being alone, and it always feels like I am. Even when there’s a hundred ponies around me, cheering my name, none of them really know me. Because of that, I’m alone, even when a hundred ponies are around me. But it wasn’t like that with them. With my friends, it’s like…they’re really there instead of just there to be next to me. I don’t know. Never mind. … Is it like that for you? Being princess I mean? Do you feel alone, even with all the ponies around you all day? Never mind. You’re Princess Celestia. You’re perfect. You probably have what it is I’m missing when I’m with a crowd of ponies, but still feel alone. … Do my friends look down on me? Do they hate me? What did I do to make them hate me? … Don’t even know what I’m still writing this thing. A stupid book says when you don’t know what to write, just write whatever pops into your head and the ideas will come. So here I am writing what’s in my head. What’s in my head? What do I feel? I feel hurt. Why do I feel like this? I…don’t know. I hurt because my friends did what they did to me. Why did they do that? Do they hate me? This is stupid. … Went flying again, it helps me think. I don’t know what to write anymore. I don’t know what to think. I keep asking myself, why did they do what they did? Okay, they wanted to fix me. That I get. But does that mean they don’t like the current me? If they don’t like me, then why are they my friends? I can’t seem to answer that question. … Just why are they my friends? Applejack is somepony I can compete with. Rarity tries to bring out the best in ponies. Pinkie is fun. Fluttershy is my oldest friend, and Twilight likes helping other ponies. These are why I want to be friends with them. So why do they think I’m their friend, if the thing I want to be is so bad? No idea. … Is obligation the reason we’re still friends? I’ve either saved their lives, or helped all of them out at one time or another. I thought we were even because of stuff later, but…now I’m not so sure. Do they really just hate me and only feel they need to hang around me because of stuff I did? … Is the reason I still want to stay friends with them because I’ll be alone otherwise? Is that it? Fear? That’s not a reason to keep wanting to hang out with somepony. … Okay, maybe I’m not a perfect pony either, nopony is. That’s another thing that just gets to me about all this. They stood around me, judging me, looking down on me, and it wasn’t the first time either. I saw Twilight and Applejack whispering to each other out of the corner of my eye the week before when I was trying to pick out a pet, and the looks on their faces said they didn’t approve. They didn’t talk to me of course, they never do. They never do. It’s just judge, judge, judge. Like they’re perfect and I’m some big loser. … Maybe that whole just judging thing was a little harsh, I mean, Twilight did try and talk to me during the Running of the Leaves. Maybe it’s just AJ. I know sure as hay she thinks she’s perfect. Stupid Applejack, see how good her farm works when I’m not sneaking her a little extra rain from the Everfree. … Why didn’t Twilight just try and talk to me? Why didn’t Fluttershy? I thought that’s what friends do, trust each other. … Okay so, last page I got in my house here, so had to think a bit on what I learned from all this junk. Heroes aren’t supposed to brag, that’s bull crap. If anything, heroes need to brag, WE need to do amazing things to show other ponies that it can be done. If I didn’t spend most of my childhood looking up at the sky and seeing the Wonderbolts, seeing what heroes were supposed to do and asking for autographs and hearing how they chased off dragons and rescued ponies trapped on mountains, I never would have gone into that forest with Twilight and the others, I never would have tried to follow in their footsteps of being a hero and we’d all be having to look up at a moon 24/7. Or be dead, Twilight says if Nightmare Moon had kept the night going all the plants would have died, so…yeah. Don’t really like to think about that kind of stuff. Without the hero to stand up and go “LOOK WHAT I CAN DO” we don’t have other ponies thinking ‘maybe I can do it too’. What we get is a bunch of Twilights who stand around and do nothing when some jerk shows up and picks on ponies because they’re afraid of looking awesome. And if they’re afraid of looking awesome, they never are, and then nothing awesome is ever done, and if we’re not doing awesome things then what’s the point of even getting up in the morning? Because the world would be full of the same, dull, ponies that never even try to do anything better than what‘s already been done, change anything, or make anything better. That’s not the type of world I want to live in. Friendship lesson? Well, I went back and reread this whole thing, and I noticed I started calling Twilight and the others my friends somewhere halfway through all this. So…yeah, I guess there still my friends, or I’m at least willing to hold off on the whole throwing away everything we’ve been through on one event. Okay two events, although Rarity apologized for the whole Fliers thing, so I can’t be mad at her for that anymore. She said she was sorry, and I forgave her, cause that’s what friends do. So I’ll forgive them too. But, having friends is hard you know? It’s not all sunshine and rainbows. If some plot-head were to try something like this to me, I would have just shrugged it off and pointed out how he was cheating at the hero thing while being more than one pony in that costume. I mean, that’s competition. But when my friends did it? It hurt, bad. It’s like…you know how pegasi have magic to protect them from crashes and junk? Air cushions and windshields or whatever the technical name is? Well it’s like normal ponies I just walk by on the street are outside that shield, and when they do something, it’s like a normal crash. I just get up, get hurt a little, then shake it off and go on being awesome. But friends, its like they’re underneath that shield, and when they cause a crash, it hurts, bad! Really bad. So bad it makes you think that not having them there at all is better. Is that what it’s like for you? I mean, when I wrote that question earlier, I as thinking about it a lot and I realized something, for everything we really know about you, I can’t think of anypony whose really your friend. Hay, even Twilight didn’t know about your pet phoenix and seems to think you’ll banish her to the moon if she forgets to write a letter to you every week, but anypony with half a brain knows you’re way too nice and cool to let something as stupid as that get you so worked up. Are you afraid of being hurt because of something your friends do too? I guess I can see how somepony’s would want that. Can’t crash if you never fly, right? But hey, if I got a choice of risking being hurt sometimes, or being cold and alone all the time, then it’s way better to let ponies in and crash sometimes, then ever fly at all, at least to me anyway. So, yeah I forgive them. Hay, I know sometime down the line, I’ll probably do a few things to make them mad, and actually be in the wrong, but they’ll forgive me for it too. It’s what friends do. And for the Wonderbolts thing, I hope they can find a way to support my dream, or else I really will have a decision to make. But I guess I’ll have to cross that bridge when I come to it. Your Subject, Rainbow Dash. Twilight looked up from the last page of the letter, then over to the alicorn standing across from her. “You know…I never connected the whole heroic to the Wonderbolts,” she mumbled. “No wonder she was angry. And now, she’ll never be one. All things considered, with her ascension tied to this letter…I really did crush her dream, didn’t I?” When the other pony in the library didn’t reply, Twilight gulped. The look on Princess Celestia’s face was one of sadness as she finished reading her copy of Rainbow Dash‘s homework. The unicorn tried to find something to talk about. “Um…it’s smaller than her first copy, apparently Rainbow scratched out a lot of stuff when she wrote it the first time. So…yeah.” The silence continued on for a bit more, and Twilight looked around a bit. Then, she looked behind her and giggled. “Well, no wings, so…guess this isn’t the great revelation that would change pony society that I was hoping for, huh?” “Actually, I think the spell choosing her has to do more with Rainbow Dash’s age than anything else,” Celestia spoke in an empty tone. “I based the qualifications for ascension on her past actions, when she was in her prime. By the time she was twenty years and six months old, the day Cloudsdale was founded. Since she’s technically the same pony that did that, the spell just snatched her up when she met the age requirement.” Twilight blinked and looked away from her mentor for a moment, to gather some courage, then back to the goddess. “Princess Celestia, what’s wrong?” “She’s right about me, you know? I don’t really have any friends,” she said in a solemn tone. “I haven’t had any for years, centuries even. I keep everypony I knew these days at forelegs length, and it’s because I’m afraid of the pain they’ll cause me. That’s why the Elements rejected me, with Luna gone, I no longer had the connections needed to power their magic, and…I’ve been alone ever since.” The Princess’s declaration sent a shiver down Twilight’s spine. “W-What do you mean Princess?” she asked. “How…how can somepony hurt you? Celestia looked up to the purple unicorn with unshed tears in her eyes, and for the first time Twilight thought she understood some of the weight that the goddess in front of her carried. “They die.”