Saying Goodbye
And continuing on. I only.s I us own my OC's and the plot. Enjoy.
The Adventures of the Elementals
Chapter 33: Saying Goodbye
Whoever said saying goodbye was easy obviously had no heart inside their body. That was the only thought that ran through the minds of the six bearers of harmony as they awoke early to a still darkened sky. It was only half past three in the morning when their doors were knocked on by the members of Luna's guard. Bat ponies in similarly grey shades wearing blue armor stood outside each residence while the foreign ponies walked out of their temporary homes and into a carriage each hooked up to another pair of lunar guards. Once the Alamantians, their possessions, and their partners were in the carriages, they were off to Canterlot.
The trip lasted a couple of hours if not a few minutes longer. One carriage at a time arrived in front of the castle where Princess Celestia and Luna awaited them. The first ones to arrive were Twilight and Pyro. Alongside them were Cadence and Spike. Not too long after they had landed, the others showed up as well. The last ones to do so were Terra and Applejack. The thing most noticeable about Terra when everypony saw her was her face was totally green. Applejack hopped out of the carriage quite swiftly in fear of getting in the way of the earth mover's mouth. Princess Luna walked to the poor yellow mare and her horn glowed as she cast a spell to cure severe nausea. Once it had worked, Terra's normal shade of yellow returned to her and she hopped out of the carriage.
"I hate flying so much." She grumbled.
After that, she rejoined the group at Applejack's side and all twelve ponies looked to the solar Princess with flat mouths and frowns.
"I understand that this is unsettling for you." She addressed all twelve of them..
"Understatement of the millennium." Agua snapped.
"Agua, don't make this harder than it already is." Pyro shot back at him.
Agua grumbled and looked away from everypony else as Celestia continued.
"I know you all must have some ill feelings towards me right now and you have every right to. But I still want you to know how grateful I am for your cooperation no matter how shaky it may be."
No response came to her that time. She just looked to her left and gestured down the road.
"Please follow me." She instructed as she began to walk.
Everypony did follow her and they left the castle heading east towards the border of the city. As they walked through the streets, they saw nopony in sight. Cryo in his case really wished they hadn't taken that particular street because a certain pony lived there in her apartment building which was just recently completed with renovations from the last time all six Alamantians were in the city.
And just as his luck would have it, that mare happened to be awake fetching herself a glass of water at the very moment they passed by her home. She heard the hoofsteps outside her window and walked over to open it and peer through the curtains. Octavia smiled seeing her boyfriend and even though it was still late, she wanted to go say hi. She threw on a robe and headed to her door.
Meanwhile down in the street, the ice mover was trying his best to make everypony else move at a quicker pace.
"Hey what's with you? Are you in such a hurry to leave us behind?" Pinkie asked a bit sternly.
Stern was a tone Cryo had yet to become familiar with when it came to Pinkie Pie. He was a bit surprised to hear it but nevertheless he still wanted to get off that street.
"No no no it's not that, Pinkie, I swear." He told the truth.
"Well then what troubles you?" Princess Luna asked him.
Before he could answer, all of them heard a door opening a standing in the doorway was a grey cello player pony. One by one, starting with Cryo, every single head turned to look at her but she only looked at her boyfriend.
"Cryo. I wish you had told me you were coming to Canterlot before now. I would have set aside some time for us."
"Uuuuuhhhhhhh....." The ice mover struggled to find words to respond with.
Cryo had remembered to pack his things just fine. But there was one crucial thing he absolutely forgot to do. Tell his girlfriend he was leaving.
"Are you alright?" Octavia then noticed the bags hovering next to him. "Are you staying in town for a while?"
He didn't have any choice now. The others went on ahead at Cryo's request so he could tell Octavia everything. It didn't take long to explain what was happening and she seemed content with it all until she asked the last question. She asked when he would be coming back.
"Um......."
He was hoping to come up with a lie or something but he just couldn't do it. If he had learned anything about being a boyfriend in the short time he was one he learned that being honest with your mare comes before anything else.
"I'm not, Octavia." He finally answered and her facial expression changed. "Princess Celestia is deporting me and my other siblings out of Equestria. We can't come back."
That expression that fell onto her was easily identified as fear, shock, and disbelief all rolled into one.
"D-deporting you? But whatever for? What did you do? Did you break any laws?"
"No, I didn't do anything, Octavia. It's just...a lot of things have been happening. Very bad things. A lot of ponies think myself and my siblings are responsible but we're not."
"Well then why are you leaving? If there isn't any reason for you leaving then why do you have those bags?"
"Because she made her choice and I can't go against it. Otherwise it will just make things worse. Please you have to understand..."
"But......but what about us? Does this mean you and I....are through?"
That question made Cryo's heart feel like a knife had gone straight through it. He was clueless on how to answer but he knew what the answer had to be. He stepped forward and hugged the mare ever so gently and then backed away with the saddest look he had ever been seen with.
"I am so sorry, Octavia."
Those were his final words before turning away from her and walking back to the others, leaving Octavia there in the doorway just starting to cry. Once she shut the door, Cryo looked up from the ground and noticed that everypony else had stopped to wait for him.
He didn't like it.
"Was it really necessary for you to watch that?" He grumbled.
He received no reply and they just kept on their way. Once they reached the edge of the city, they came upon an airship dock with a decently sized ship with two decks, upper and lower. It didn't seem to have a name plastered on the side or anywhere nor was there any paint anywhere on the body of the craft. It looked like it was just recently finished in construction.
"This airship will be your transport. Once you cross out of the Equestrian border, the magic lock I have placed on the steering will release and you will be free to steer it wherever you wish." Celestia explained.
"Except for back here." Agua growled at her.
The princess of the sun looked down at the water mover again saddened in her face.
"You have every right to be angry with me, Agua. But please-"
"Angry is an understatement. Right now I downright despise every cell on your body."
Celestia sighed looking at the water mover wishing there was something she could say to make him ease up. She knew even attempting it would be a vain effort though.
"I must agree with what your brother said earlier, Agua. This is difficult enough. I beg of you to not make it more so."
All Agua did was growl and looked back to the ship.
"Where the hell are we supposed to go anyway? There aren't any known islands in between here and Alamante." The water mover reminded everyone.
"We'll decide on our direction once we get clear of the border." Pyro said.
Just as he said that, one of Celestia's unicorn guards walked over carrying a large trunk with a lock on it. Celestia took it herself in her grasp and passed it to Pyro.
"This chest contains items that will benefit you on your journey. A map, compass, some blankets, and other things." She explained.
The fire mover nodded and ignited his horn into a fiery orange glow which then enveloped the chest as he grabbed it. He thanked her and then the hardest part of the whole thing came.
Saying goodbye.
Each pony turned to their respective partner unsure of how to even begin the process. The three princess decided that this was something that called for privacy so they backed off. One of them turned around and began to fly away completely not wanting to see anymore. That one alicorn was Luna. Hearing her wings flap, Celestia turned around and called to her.
“Luna? Where are you going?”
“Aunt Luna, aren’t you going to say goodbye to them?” Cadence asked.
“No!” Luna shouted at both of them startling the two. She landed a few meters away and faced them. “What you’re doing sister, it’s a mistake. And I will NOT be a part of it any longer.”
Celestia approached her sister before she had the chance to take off again.
“Luna, I know you do not approve of this. But there is nothing I can do. The ponies are scared. This is the only way.”
Luna shot a glare at her older sister upon hearing those words come from her.
“That is the most cowardly thing I have ever heard you say.”
It wasn't just the words themselves that made Celestia take a step back. It was icy tone it was said in mixed with a low growl.
“If you really think someone as vile as Nightmare Moon can be trusted to keep her word, then you are the biggest fool I have ever seen.”
"What choice do I have, dear sister? This is the one and only way to ensure a better chance of victory."
"Now you are just repeating yourself." Luna spat again. "I am done discussing your stupidity, sister. I have already bid Agua and the others my farewell. And now I bid it to you."
Luna took off the ground again and there was nothing Celestia could do to bring her back. Cadence couldn't think of anything to say to Celestia that would help her feel better. In truth, she agreed with Luna. She agreed that this was a stupid decision. She just didn't have the courage to speak against it. There wasn't anything else to do now but watch as the six Alamantians bid their partners farewell.
Terra and Applejack stood at the base of the entrance ramp to the airship looking back and forth between each other and the ship itself.
"Well......this sure isn't how I thought I'd be saying goodbye, Jackie."
The farmer mare looked back into the eyes of her partner trying to hide her sadness but failing to do so.
"Yeah. Me too....but....who knows? Maybe we'll see each other again someday. Maybe really soon." She tried to sound positive and reassuring but the doubt in her tone was visible to anypony.
"Well....you never know..." the earth mover muttered.
A few seconds went by until the two of them hugged each other not wanting to let go.
"You take care of yerself, alright, Terra?"
"Aside from the occasional puff, you got it."
Applejack made sure Terra packed all of her smoking equipment not wanting to let Applebloom stumble across it. Although she never cared for Terra's decision to smoke, the orange mare chuckled knowing she would miss her antics, high or not.
Cryo could only wish his goodbye with Pinkie was as easy as it was with his sister. Pinkie was grabbing onto him hard as if her hooves were bars of steel unable to bend free. Tears were streaming freely down her face as she made no attempt to cover up her emotion like most ponies were.
"Cryo, please don't go!" she wailed.
Hugging her back, Cryo's voice came back clearly saddened.
"I don't want to go, Pinkie. I want to stay with you in Ponyville, I want to keep dating Octavia, I want to be around for all of the awesome parties I know you're gonna throw in the future......but this is how it has to be. I don't want it to be like that anymore than you do...I don't know what else to say."
A few sobs came from Pinkie as her grip tightened and Cryo began to struggle for an air intake.
"But it's not fair! We're supposed to stay together! Skaldi said so!"
The only thing Cryo could do was sigh and keep apologizing. He couldn't think of anything else to say as Pinkie kept crying.
Rarity and Agua seemed to be having the most unemotional farewell which to everypony was no surprise. For the longest time all they did was stand there before finally trying to talk.
Agua had left something behind at Rarity's house intentionally. He had all his things, but his beloved pet clam was still in the pond he dug behind Rarity's home. The reason behind this was Agua felt that Bobo would have a better home with Rarity and it would be better than just lugging him all around the world to who knows where never knowing if they'll have another home as good as that one again.
Between the two ponies who were partnered together, they were still unsure of what to say to each other at a time like this. Both of them struggled to find words to come out of their mouths but whenever one of them tried to while he was packing, nothing came out. This was the last chance to try.
"Um....Agua....." Rarity went first. "I'm........I'll take good care of Bobo for you....."
Agua nodded and smiled being reminded of his gargantuan pet.
"Thanks....I know he'll be happier at your place. Just make sure to feed him right, okay?"
"Yes...quite right....I will...."
Agua opened his mouth to say something but before he could utter a syllable, Rarity threw herself at Agua and crushed him in a hug of her own. The water mover was hesitant of course but one of his own forelegs found itself wrapping around Rarity's back softly patting it.
"Maybe if we see each other again....you won't be such a jerk." Rarity muttered.
Agua chuckled at the thought.
"I make no promises."
At first glance, it seemed as if Rainbow and Gem were having the same problem as Rarity and Agua. They just stood there not talking. However, Rainbow broke the silence sooner than expected.
"This totally sucks. We still had so many more awesome things to do together. I bought tickets for another Wonderbolts show to make up for the one that got ruined in Canterlot. I was gonna surprise you with them...but you know...here we are."
"Y-yeah." Gem murmured back. "That was really nice of you, Rainbow....too bad I won't be able to go....maybe you can take Scootaloo. Cybelle knows she'd love to go anywhere with you."
Rainbow let out a few chuckles knowing Scootaloo well enough for Gem's words to be true.
"Yeah. She's a cool little filly." The word "cool" made the pegasus think of what more to say. "I meant what I said before, Gem. You will always be the one and only pony who is cooler than me. No lie."
It always brought some tears of joy to Gem's eyes whenever somepony told her she was good at something or just downright cool. It never made her not smile to hear somepony thought she was worth something.
"Rainbow Dash.....thank you..." She sniffled a bit. "I'm gonna miss you so much."
She stepped forward and hugged the taller pony in front of her without hesitation. Not caring about her rough exterior image, Rainbow didn't hesitate either in hugging her back.
"I'm gonna miss you too."
As they parted the hug, Rainbow began to make sure Gem had everything making sure she didn't leave anything behind. Fluttershy did the same thing to Typhoon going over every little thing to try and make her stay longer as subtle as she could. But then, like most of the others, they fell into a silence for a while until it was broken.
Fluttershy barely got out one word on her own.
"Typhoon......"
The owner of that name merely looked to her with a gentle upturned mouth.
"Eet's okay, Fluttershy. You don't have to say anything."
That little line made Fluttershy smile a tiny bit.
"I never did...you always know how I feel." She replied.
The aerokinetic let loose a giggle.
"Can't help eet."
Like the others before them, the two mares engaged in a soft, gentle hug.
"Now you take care of yourself, okay? Wherever you go, make sure to eat, drink water, and most of all....be safe."
Typhoon giggled again at her friend's caring attitude.
"Of course I will, Fluttershy."
It did seem all of them were going about things nice and peacefully. Though there are a lot of times where there is an odd pony out. Those two were the ponies of fire and magic. Over with Pyro, Spike, and Twilight, the latter was still fuming about the situation.
"This isn't fair....this just isn't fair and you're still going along with it. You know that if you leave it only gives Nightmare that much more of an advantage over us."
Both Spike and Pyro had been listening to her talk about this nonstop the entire trip to Canterlot. The groan coming from the dragon couldn't have been any more of a clear signal that he was fed up with it all. Not that he was wanting Pyro to leave. Spike just wanted Twilight to stop ranting about it just for one minute.
"Twilight, I know that. Believe me, I do." Pyro said back. "But if we go against Princess Celestia's orders it will cause more problems than we already have. The ponies of not only Canterlot but other cities too will get wind of us and grow afraid. They'll think we're against Equestria or something like that."
"But you're not! You're part of the hope that Equestria NEEDS in order to survive! Without you and the others what chance do we have of defeating her?!"
"There is still a chance you can win, Twilight. You just need to keep your heads strong. The elements of harmony themselves are still very powerful and can still win. Have faith."
As encouraging as he was trying to be, even Pyro himself knew that those words were doing very little in accomplishing their goal. The next words out of Twilight's mouth confirmed it.
"What's your plan here, Pyro?" She asked. "I know you. I haven't been your friend for as long as the harmony bearers but I still know you well enough. There's something going on here. There just has to be. You once told me that nothing would stop you from destroying Nightmare Moon yet here you are giving in to her demands. What is your plan? Please just tell me."
A somber expression on his face, Pyro hung his head down and expelled a sigh.
“There isn’t any plan, Twilight.” He sadly said. “I have tried to think of something. But the princess has spoken. There is nothing more I can do for you except wish you luck. From here on out, this fight is your own. I have been retired.”
"But....I....I don't...." Her eyes slammed shut trying to force back the tears but they leaked through anyway. "I....I d-don't want you to go..."
The stallion of fire closed the gap between him and his partner by embracing her in a hug as she began to softly weep into his chest.
"I know, Twilight." He gently murmured. "I don't want to leave you either. Being your friend and having you in my life is one of the best things that ever happened to me. I will always cherish the time we spent together, both good and bad."
Twilight was trying hard to make herself less emotional so she could say something back to him but before she could, a guard walked up to them.
"Mister Pyro, it's time for you to go." He said firmly.
Pyro nodded to the guard and gently nudged Twilight off him. He couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt go through him when he looked into her eyes which were still brimmed with tears. He raised a hoof to her face and gently wiped it dry himself. Then he took a look downwards to the dragon.
"You take care of her, okay, Spike?" he requested.
"Yeah. You can count on me." The young drake looked up at his friend with a smile. "Good luck out there, Pyro."
With a final nod, Pyro got his things with his magic, then turned away from the two of them walking to the entry ramp to the airship alongside his five siblings. Pinkie Pie wanted to desperately to just rush up that ramp and pull them all down demanding that they not leave.
"WAIT!"
She was beaten to it though. That voice belonged to Shining Armor who seemed to be out of breath. The six Alamantians froze on the ramp and turned around quite surprised to see the stallion had come.
"Why are you here, Shining Armor?" Pyro asked.
The captain of the guard rubbed the back of his head before he looked to Typhoon. He then took a step towards her before firing up his horn. In a flash of magenta near his head, a long wooden object appeared in front of them.
Typhoon immediately recognized it as the Aero Tribe staff she "borrowed" from that store during the Canterlot fight.
"I spent the past two days searching for this.....I thought it would be a good start for a peace offering....guess it's too late now...."
Typhoon walked forward to the stallion. Anypony looking at her was unable to tell if she was mad to see him or surprised to see the staff. She captured the wooden weapon in an aerokinetic grip and smiled at Shining Armor to his surprise.
"Eet's never too late to say you're sorry, Shining Armor. Merci beaucoup."
Shining Armor sighed. He was happy to see Typhoon accepted it but he still needed to say something.
"I wish that were so, Miss Typhoon. Your brothers were right about me. I didn't really hate any of you. I was just jealous of you and I shouldn't have. All six of you are amazing ponies and what you all did for Equestria deserves nothing but my own and everypony else's respect. I mistreated you for no reason...and I did the same to my wife."
On that last sentence he turned around to look at his wife.
"Cadence, I'm so sorry for everything I said. Especially to you. I was a jerk and it kills me that I hurt you. You were just being a good friend to them and I blew up at you out of nothing but my blind stupidity. Can.....can you forgive me?"
Those words were the ones Cadence had been waiting on for a long time. Finally hearing them ring through her ears made her leap at Shining Armor and embrace him in a tight hug, immediately which the stallion reciprocated.
"Of course I forgive you." She whispered to him. "I love you."
"I love you too." Cadence returned the favor.
Sadness for the Alamantians leaving aside, everypony present had to admit they were happy to see the two ponies reconcile. He wasn't done apologizing yet. There was still his younger sibling he needed to speak to. Gently he pulled away from his beloved alicorn bride and walked over to Twilight.
"Listen Twiley....I-"
He didn't get another word in before Twilight threw herself onto him in a tight hug.
"I forgive you, BBBFF."
It was as simple as that and Shining Armor was happy it was. His hoof patted her back and he turned back to the Alamantians again.
"I'm sorry I never took the chance to get to know the six of you better....maybe one day we will."
The six cosmic siblings all shared glances with one another before looking back to the captain. Five out of six of them sporting reassuring smiles in his direction, the odd pony out being the stallion of water.
"Yeah....just....don't be an ass." Agua responded.
"Hopefully we'll be able to take you up on that offer." Terra added.
Typhoon rejoined her siblings upon the ramp and they resumed their way up it. Pyro remained behind for a few more seconds to take one last look at not only his partner, but the many friends he made while living with her.
“We WILL see each other again. Someday."
Twilight took a single step forward.
"You promise?"
Before he turned around to walk to the airship door, the stallion gave his lavender friend a half smile and three words to go with it.
"Word of honor."
With that said, his face returned to its normal expression of unidentifiable emotion and flatness. He along with his five cosmic siblings walked up the ramp to the entrance and then they were inside the ship. Once the door was sealed shut, Celestia's horn ignited into a bright golden yellow glow as she cast a spell onto the airship. The engine of the craft powered on and it began to lift off the ground and float away from Canterlot out over the forest below the cliff side city.
As it got farther away from them, the six mares of harmony could only now watch as it, along with their friends flew farther away from them. Princess Celestia went alongside her student in hopes of comforting her.
"I know this is hard for you and your friends.....but in time, you will see that this was the right choice."
Out of the six of them, none of them believed it. They all disagreed with this choice the moment they realized Celestia was serious about it.
“Princess, I love you like a mother.....but this is something I can’t agree with you on.” Twilight said.
"This ain't the right choice. Sendin' them away isn't gonna make things easier at all. Ah don't know why you think it will." Applejack added.
A glow in the night sky before them made everypony divert their attention away from the ship. In the direction they now faced, two cyan catlike eyes shone out at them.
"Well well well. I see you decided to give in to my demand. I must admit I didn't think you actually would."
"So what does this mean now?" Rainbow Dash snapped. "What's the point of you demanding the princess to deport them."
"Oh that's actually quite simple." Nightmare was quick to respond. "I've been working on a spell that takes weeks to charge up, and now I have an easy shot."
Nopony had a clue what she meant. There wasn't any known spell that takes such a long time prepare. That only made them think as to what kind of spell it could have been. However, when Spike saw something out of the corner of his eye, his thoughts were put on hold.
"Look!" he pointed back to the ship.
Everypony followed his claw and noticed what he was looking at but it was too far away to identify. Twilight's horn immediately flared to life as she conjured up a telescopic spell that produced a screen in front of them and zoomed in on the airship. The ship was fine but up above it, the night sky looked like it was starting to warp. From the warp, dark bluish-black energy began to form and swirled around. Twilight's eyes widened already knowing what was about to happen.
"NO! YOU CAN'T!" she cried.
Celestia took to the sky like a shot with Cadence behind her, flying straight for the ship, horns armed and ready. Their wings flapped roughly pushing themselves to the limit to try and reach it in time to surround it with a force field and block the oncoming blast. If only they had taken off just a second earlier.
The dark energy finished charging and rained down upon the aircraft in a destructive wide beam with a dark blue glow. That color soon changed to a fiery orange once the ship exploded and fell to the ground in scraps. Celestia and Cadence were thrown backwards off balance by the force of the blow. They both managed to get themselves upright with their wings again only to look down upon the blazing wreck with nothing but fear for its passengers.
“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
Celestia and Cadence heard that wail and instantly knew it was Twilight. Once she deduced it, the princess of the sun not only feared for the lives of the six Alamantians. She instantly feared having to face the six harmony bearers now that they had just been proven correct in their assumption. Putting the Alamantians on that ship was a big mistake.
The two alicorns landed beside each other right as everypony else showed up sprinting. The six mares, Spike, and Shining Armor who had brought along quite a few of his troops. Seeing the scale of the wreck, the captain gave his commands to the guards.
"Put out these fires then sweep the area! Dig through the debris! Find them as fast as possible!"
"YESSIR!" All the guards shouted.
The entire squadron, the six harmony bearers, Cadence, and Celestia all ran into the crash site searching the site for the six ponies who were on board the ship. A few of the unicorn guards, Shining Armor included, put their horns to use in dousing the flames in and around the crash site to make sure it didn't spread.
Rocks were turned, heavy scraps were lifted, everypony was putting 110 percent into finding those six ponies and making sure they were still alive. Pinkie Pie was digging faster than any miner anypony had ever seen. Twilight was not only lifting rocks but also blasting some of the heavier ones because she didn't want to waste any time asking another unicorn for help. Applejack was bucking whatever was in her way out of it, not really caring what direction it was sent in. Rarity, though hating to get dirty, put those feelings aside greatly fearing for her blue partner's life. Fluttershy was known to move fast in case of emergencies and this was one of them. Her body was moving at least five times its normal speed desperate to unearth somepony. The same thing applied to Rainbow Dash. Minutes passed until finally Cadence called out.
"OVER HERE! I FOUND GEM!"
Rainbow Dash zipped away from where she was and nearly tackled Cadence out of the way. Gem was there and half her body was covered in debris. The half that was seen showed severe wounds and fresh blood. Her eyes were just barely open and now looking up at the cyan pegasus who was trying her best to not cry.
"Gem, don't you quit on me!" She wailed as she tried her best to get the rest of the debris off her small purple body. "We can get you healed! You're going to be alright just stay with me!"
Gem didn't respond at all. She just lied there unmoving, barely able to keep her eyelids from closing all the way. The tension on her body eased up when Rainbow finally got the last big chunk of destroyed airship off the lower half of her frame. Then she returned to looking at her young partner in the face.
"Gem, can you stand?....please stand...move, blink, do something! Just.....don't just lie there...." She pleaded.
The others stopped their search for a short while and stood behind Rainbow glancing down at the young unicorn begging for her to be alright inside just as Rainbow was on the outside.
Those thoughts intensified greatly when her eyelids closed and she expelled every last bit of air out of her lungs. Rainbow Dash, viewing it in front of her, began to panic.
"No.........nononononono! Gem, don't you dare do this!" Rainbow frantically looked back and forth between Gem and her own neck hoping for something to happen. "Come on come on! Why isn't my stupid element showing up?! COME ON YOU DAMNED NECKLACE! APPEAR ALREADY!"
No matter how many times she screamed and pleaded, nothing happened. It took two more minutes for her screaming "wake up" and nudging her body until she stopped only to realize the horrible truth. Gem was indeed no more.
".....no.....Gem.....please......wake up......."
Rainbow Dash's eyes slammed shut trying so very hard to hold back the oncoming waterfalls about to burst from them. Her eyelids leaked horribly though. She grabbed Gem's body and clutched it to her own not wanting to let go. Once the others saw that happening in front of their eyes, they froze in fear that they would probably do the same thing if their own partners were found in the rubble.
Twilight tried to take a step forward. As she did, her hoof lightly impacted with something that didn't feel like a rock. She looked down and saw the tip a red cracked horn sticking out of the rubble. Immediately her own eyes began to water up upon seeing the appendage. Hoping his physique was much more durable then Gem's to survive the explosion, Twilight immediately began to move rocks out of the way to get to Pyro's body. However, she only needed to move one. Once the first rock was moved away from the horn, it fell showing the base, revealing it to have been snapped clean off from Pyro's head. A very light gasp escaped her lungs right before she broke down herself clutching the broken appendage in her grip similar to how Rainbow had Gem.
The emotions of all six of the harmonious mares seemed to be in sync with one another. All of them were thinking the same things. They felt rage at Nightmare for executing them with a cheap shot, they were extremely upset with the fact that Princess Celestia ordered this to happen. Most of all though, they felt the most upset they had ever felt in their entire lives once they realized that they would never see the faces of those six Alamantians alive ever again. Once that thought rang through their heads, part of them broke. What sounded to them like a balloon popping really turned out to be Pinkie's mane and tail losing its curly form and going perfectly straight. Her coat color had also lost its bubbly brightness. It fit considering she had also lost every bit of hope she carried for seeing Cryo again.
While one of the medical troopers gave Celestia a quick look-over in case of frag injuries from the explosion, another guard walked over to her removing his helmet and bowing his head not out of respect, but sorrow.
"We found the other five, your majesty.....I'm sorry, but they're all gone."
The princess hung her head down, eyes closed and disappointed in herself for being too slow to get to them in time.
"Bring all of their bodies back to the castle. Take the skies so nopony else sees." She softly commanded.
The guard nodded and proceeded to follow the orders given to him and relayed them to his fellow soldiers. A unicorn guard slowly approached Rainbow Dash fully expecting her not to waiver her hold on the body she held to her own. His horn flared to life in a silver aura that soon covered the purple corpse as well. As soon as she felt Gem's body begin to get tugged away, Rainbow's eyes shot open thinking briefly she was alive. Once she saw what was really happening, she jerked her away breaking the telekinetic grasp on her.
"No! Don't you touch her!" She screamed and tightened her grip like a mother holding onto its child.
"Lady Rainbow....I'm sorry. But I have my orders." The guard responded.
"Your orders be damned! Orders are the reason she's dead! Just leave her alone!"
"Lady Rainbow, please. I don't want to just take her from you."
She still refused to relinquish the body. Rainbow Dash only spread her swings and launched into the air hovering above the guard and making sure he was farther away from her. Her tears lightly darkened the ground below her in a light sprinkle. The other five harmony bearers couldn't think of anything to say to Rainbow to make her let go. If it was any of them in the same position with one of their partners, they would have most likely done the exact same thing.
When Rainbow heard the gently flapping of another pair of wings, she hoped it would be Fluttershy to back her up. When she opened her eyes, she saw wings belonged to Cadence and she was looking at the cyan pegasus with a look of sadness almost matching Rainbow's.
"Rainbow Dash....I'm sorry. But there isn't anything you can do for her now." The alicorn of love said with nothing but regret. "Let go."
Once Cadence's words went into Rainbow's ears, her sobbing returned. Her grip on Gem slightly loosened up and the unicorn guard below took hold of the body again. This time Rainbow didn't fight it and let her float down and away. She then latched onto Cadence trying so hard to stop crying but failing miserably.
"She was fourteen........SHE WAS ONLY FOURTEEN!"
Once all six of them were completely unburied, they were covered with sheets brought from the castle and placed onto a cart latched to a pair of pegasus guards. Before they took off, Pyro's horn was placed inside with them by Twilight herself. After that, the pegasi took off for the castle as soon as the bodies were secured to the cart, leaving the others there to grieve.
They huddled together only gazing at the crash site not speaking a word. Celestia tried to approach the seven of them. Her hoofsteps were easily heard and they all turned their heads to give the solar princess an ice cold glare. Twilight, in deep breaths, spoke.
"You......you sent them to that ship......you killed them........."
Then Rainbow Dash joined her.
"Fourteen....just fourteen..." she muttered.
"What am Ah supposed to tell mah little sister? She loved Terra!" Applejack cried.
"He may have been unpleasant at times but I didn't want to watch him die!" Rarity shouted.
"BRING HIM BACK!" Pinkie was hysterical. "I WANT TO SEE CRYO! BRING HIM BACK HERE!"
Applejack and Rarity had to hold her back from lashing out at Celestia, something which surprised them all. Fluttershy had absolutely nothing to say. She was still in shock from seeing the corpse of her friend she was rendered motionless. She actually needed help to get into the huddle they were in right now.
"Please, my little ponies, you must-"
"We ain't listenin' to anything you have to say anymore." Applejack growled. "You already killed our six friends. Are ya gonna say somethin' that'll get the rest of us dead too?"
"I would do nothing of the sort!" Celestia responded quite surprised at what was just said to her. "What happened to them was tragic and completely unforeseen. I didn't want this anymore than any of you did. I'm sorry."
"You're...sorry?" Twilight's voice had lowered into a very angry growl. "You gave us a lecture on how sending them away would be the best thing, and it ended up killing them! SORRY IS NOWHERE NEAR ENOUGH!"
Celestia took a step away from her once her voice got to that level.
"Twilight....."
"Don't you dare say another word to us." She growled. "Don't ever talk to me, again. Girls.....let's just go home."
"Twiley...." Shining Armor put a hoof to his sister's back. "Are you sure? You can stay with me if you want to."
"No, Shining Armor." Twilight refused the offer. "I need to be back in Ponyville....and away from her."
She looked right into Celestia's eye with pure cold anger on those last words. Shining Armor and Cadence both agreed that it was probably for the best that they leave. The two of them and Celestia escorted the group to the train station and bid them goodbye. Celestia of course said nothing knowing it wouldn't have been a good idea to.
She turned away to walk back to the castle seconds before the train pulled out of the station to begin its journey back to Ponyville. The entire walk, she couldn't shake the image of Twilight's hateful gaze out of her head. Her favorite student, her adoptive daughter, had called her a murderer right to her face. And Celestia knew with all her heart that she deserved it.
"I am so sorry, my dearest Twilight."
Once the doors to the castle closed with her on the inside, Celestia retreated to her chambers.
"But I do not regret my actions one bit."
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Oh my god...you killed them...
I feel angry right now...no, angry isn't the right word. This is bullshit!!!
Seriously, another good chapter but also a frustrating cliffhanger. I hope you update a bit more.
CELESTIA YOU ARE A BUCKING HEARTLESS SACK OF MEAT THAT I ACTUALLY WANT TO KILL RIGHT NOW WITH THE FURY OF A DRAGON!
I really hope Celestia had them teleported out or something. It shouldn't logically be that hard to create a body double long enough for the Mane Six to get furious and leave.
This chapter...
My emotions...
I loved it and I await the next chapter upon the very edge of my seat
I see what's happening. 2 outcomes. Either Celestia has a very well thought out plan in motion or she is really a cold hearted bitch. Take your pick.
3846123 my feelings too
3846251
), but now I find myself waiting for the big body double reveal. question being: how long will we have to wait.
Her having an Ace up her sleeve is pretty much the only way the fic can continue. though I will say that this is the second fic to make me hate and sympathize with Celestia at the same time (the first one belonged to the Immortal Dilemma genre and involved the Applejack dying and the rest of the Six having a foot in the grave while Twilicorn has the power to make them immortal). I wanted to feel that she was pressured into making this decision but then impale her with one of her own guards spears for making it. I kept hoping that the Six were gonna be sent on the ship as well (surprise!
3846372 My sentiments exactly. I agree with the body double idea. Pretty much the only way for this to go on. Unless Celestia has the power to resurrect them. But that will create so much hate for the story as that then introduces religious elements... (Pun intended.)
I don't know why but I am SOOOOO looking forward to seeing their faces if it turns out Celestia planned this all along~
3412063
So close, and yet so far.
Ahem. A plasma is a gas that has been ionized. Electrons are separated from the now positively charged atoms, which has some interesting effects. Since the positive and negative charges can now move independently of one another, the gas becomes electrically conductive. Likewise, the gas will respond to magnetic fields.
Plasmas may be formed by extreme heat - particles colliding at high speeds will knock electrons loose. They may also be formed by high electrical fields, which cause a chain reaction, called a Townsend avalanche, wherein free electrons are accelerated to sufficient speeds to knock loose more electrons, which in turn knock loose more. This latter kind of plasma is called non-thermal, because the ions typically remain near the ambient temperature unless otherwise heated.
Some common examples of low-temperature non-thermal plasmas are neon lights and fluorescent light bulbs.
So far, so good.
"Pure energy" is a nonsense phrase. There is no actual limit to energy density, as any number of photons may coexist in the same space (for instance). In another sense, since E = mc^2 - that is, since mass is simply one way that energy may be expressed - matter is always pure energy. And while, yes, the ions do repulse one another, they are also attracted to the electrons. The results of that interaction can be quite complex, but do not make anything more 'purely' energetic.
As for "spikes at the changing point" for superheated plasma, I'd really like to see a reference and description of specific conditions. Or a better description of what you mean. A plasma remains a plasma until it ceases to be ionized. This means the rate at which new ions are formed must fall below the rate at which they recombine, both of which are influenced by a variety of factors (temperature, pressure, electrical field, ionizing radiation, composition, etc.).
As an interesting aside, the original Greek conception of the four elements was more closely related to the states of matter than to the composition. Earth, water, and air were the quintessential examples of solid, liquid, and gas. The inclusion of fire was a bit of a misunderstanding, and the correlation to plasma is more of a historical coincidence than anything.
...I think this comment may have gotten away from me a bit. I'd better wrap it up here.
Prediction time!
The six Alamantians aren't dead, they're all dopplegangers!
…Well now, how will you explain the bait-and-switch? Because it's far too early to kill all of the Elementals unless you plan on ending this story soon. Or on a tragic note.
AWWW Celestia you bitch that last line just made me body turn cold with rage. I'm fairy certain that they aren't dead but still I hate you
Okay, show of hands, who thinks they're actually/permanently dead?
This chapter is very reminiscent of Tranformers: Dark of the Moon. You know the part. It was pretty well done. Just hope you pull off their "We were never dead" part nicely. Have an awesome day or night!
3850473 One word for you: Chessmaster...
Wait a frakin' secound. Am I the only one to see the parallel here?
Allies, living under disguise, aid in battling an enemy, equally disguised.
Allies succede many times. Enemy switches tactics. Enemy convinces gouvernment that allies are the actual danger.
Gouvernment decides to deport allies. Enemy attacks form the shadows destroying all at once, or at least belive so because it was all a ruse in a ruse.
?
3848806 Oke, seems Im not.
3846958 My thoughts exactly. I often wonder why people tend to forget that Celestia is that type of pony who has a backup plan for almost everything (except decpetive changeling invasions and tentacles of chaos). Also, why does everyone become so emotional and rage filled? Are they lacking reason, logic and understanding to comprehend the entirety of the situation?
Am i the only one that doesn't hate Celestia right now? I mean It was a risk (a very big one at that) because it would have probably in something bad (and it did) And she was doing it for the best. Not to mention the fact if they did stay something equally bad would probably happen and the whole canterlot ponies rage would increase.
So, tbh, Both decisions were pretty bad, she went with one of them, something bad happened. yeah.
Inb4 i get -10 Downvotes for my opinion
3853340 i give you an upvote just for being pessimistic.
And i think they are dead, but... given they control elements AND are part god, i think they can reconstruct their bodies..
Maybe
3853340 I can understand fully where you are getting that from and honestly it is a very solid point.Though,due to her evil nature and (mostly) stero-types,most if not all the readers could tell she was simply trying to get celestia to send away their only GOOD means of defense or something along those lines.
And we right,sad to say.
3855003 I doubt the story will end with the Elementals dead and Nightmare Moon takes over Equestria.
It is obvious that the elementals are all alive
Because if my theory is correct, the elements of harmony would have been able to resurrect their partners
My guess is that Celly is doing the stupid thing of not letting woona in on the bait and switch plan
And remember Commander. We will be watching
I was near the point of crying at the end of this chapter, only a few story made me near the point of crying this was your best chapter for sure.
3858825 What if Luna IS the bait and switch plan that no one accounts for?
3862299 possible... i like the way you think my good sir
So ... I finally caught up with this story ... and in general, I have just a few thoughts.
The first one is: oh gods, you really can make a cliffhanger.
The second one: I love the idea of this story and I also like your OCs.
The third one: Your writing is unbalanced. One chapter is terrible, other is mediocre and the next one is absolutely perfect. This phenomenon is getting weaker towards the most recent chapters, but it is still there.
So ... conclusion. Thanks for writing this, it is enjoyable read. I will give it 3.5/5 internets so far. And I am really looking forward to future chapters. I expect that rating to go higher as this story proceeds.
3863953 Thank you. I just figured since Luna left not too long before the whole event happened, she just ported them off to somewhere safe to help train them while switching the real ones for copies.
3847408 I agree
I tried. I truly did. But I can't read anymore of this.
I don't hate Celestia.
If someone can recall chapter 31 I bet some of you could agree that she has a plan, or she think that the Six of them aren't dead.
But still, that cliffhanger came out of nowhere I almost flipped my laptop.
3852891
well, one does tend to act without reason in cases like: fear, anger or in this case deep grief and sorrow.
At least i think so.
4322170 Yeah, you are probably right.
Very well, i finally caught up. 33 chapters in less then a week
Despite what i said back in chapter 11 (i think) i had a great time reading this.
Also the idea of making a game out of this is a fantastic idea.
Call me a cold bastard, but i did not feel any sort of hate towards Celestia or Shining Armor when he was being a asshole.
I guess i just knew it had to be deeper then that or im just cold.
Anyway great job AK.
She doesn't regret any of his actions?! YOU *** ** * ***** !!!
Very good chapter.