As I made my way back to Equestria I began to hear voices.
I didn't know what they were saying, but they would intermittently grow louder and quieter as I trotted along. Sometimes they were whispers, but other times they grew into loud shouts.
Sometimes they were just guttural noises and sometimes they were inequine shrieks of rage, pain, and despair. I could hear them everywhere i went, and I didn't know where they were coming from.
As confusing as it was, what was more confusing, was that these voices didn't bother me. In fact, it felt as though I should be hearing them—like it was my duty, my obligation to hear them.
It was difficult to put into words, really.
The trek back was surprisingly uneventful given how brutal my journey into Tartarus had been. With seemingly no threats to worry about for the moment, I took some time to try and parse what the voices were saying.
It sounded like they were coming from everywhere at once, and with them all speaking simultaneously, I couldn't make anything out. Even when I felt I was able to separate a voice, the meaning of the words escaped me.
With a small sigh, I shook my head and just let the incoherent babble wash over me. I figured if I was meant to understand the voices, then they'd make themselves clear.
With that thought in mind I continued on my way.
It wasn't until after another hour or so of trotting that I came across any of the creatures I had seen before. Even then it was only a fleeting glimpse of a massive black mantis-like creature that had fled into one of the many caves dotting the walls as soon as it saw me.
That was... interesting.
I recognized it as the same mantis that had sliced me open and left me for dead on my first trek through this place. Now that I wasn't being accosted by deadly Tartarus wildlife, I found myself wondering why the thing hadn't tried to eat me.
Whatever the case was, it seemed I was free to continue unhindered by the beasts of Tartarus. I wasn't about to complain, not that I would've if any had shown up at all.
It was just as I finished crossing the rocky bridge over the bottomless chasm that I felt something change. At first I wasn't sure what it was, but as I focused my senses, two things became apparent.
The first was that the voices as a whole seemed to be getting louder—more restless... agitated... angry. I felt their rising fury more than heard it, though it was clearly audible in my ears.
The second thing I had noticed was that I was getting hungry again. I had managed to suppress it for the last few hours or so, but it suddenly spiked to the point where it was almost unbearable.
The steamy wisps of light once again began to rise from beneath my fur and, this time I couldn't hold it back. I felt my alicorn form slipping away, and I heard the voices grow to an enraged cacophony.
Then I heard something else... something familiar. It cut through the voices and pierced right through me. The dam broke, and my alicorn body all but evaporated, replaced by the massive ethereal pony shaped silhouette of light.
All thought left me and my hunger overtook me at the sound of that wretched howl. I needed to feed, and the one thing that could sate my hunger was close.
So very close.
Up until now, I hadn't seen how Cadence was able to move around and find me no matter where I went, but now... now I was able to spot her almost as soon as she appeared.
One instant there was nothing.
The next, there was Cadence.
She stood a few yards away, her monstrous black form constantly twisting and writhing into impossible to understand shapes.
Rows upon rows of razor sharp teeth snapped and gnashed at me—her countless mouths vanishing and reappearing all over the nigh incomprehensible, yet sometimes vaguely pony shaped mass that was her body.
The voices cried out for her demise, and I was all too willing to comply.
I took a step forward.
Cadence didn't move.
I took another step.
Still no movement.
I let out a warbling, echoing screech and took a third step.
Cadence took a step back.
Somewhere beneath the mindless hunger this surprised me. Was this a case of the dark being afraid of the light? Either way I didn't stop, and I was getting impatient.
Before Cadence could make any other move, I lashed out with a tentacle, smashing it right into where her chest would've been and expanding the shining limb outwards until it completely enveloped her.
She screamed and began thrashing about as I dragged her towards my widening mouth. The voices were in a frenzy, eager to see the inevitable outcome.
"Twilight stop! Please!"
I froze.
The shock I felt was so great, it overrode the overpowering hunger. My mouth slowly closed, and almost unbidden, the tentacle wrapped around my would-be meal receded and reverted back to a wisp of light.
There, crumpled up pathetically on the ground right where the monster had been only seconds before, was Cadence.
Not the monster, but the pony.
With my tentacle no longer holding her, she had dropped to the ground, coughing and gasping for breath. After a few moments she unsteadily rose to her hooves and stumbled a bit before looking up at me.
"T-Twilight?" she asked, looking just as shocked as I felt, "w-what... what happened to you?"
I didn't answer.
The voices were quiet now. They sounded... confused. Unsure. The hunger had abated and with it gone, I once again reverted back to an alicorn—or the guise of one anyway. At this point I was fairly sure I wasn't a pony of any sort... not anymore.
"Cadence."
The pink alicorn winced at the monotonous and unnatural sound of my voice, but didn't shy away. Rather, she took a step closer, concern and bewilderment written all over her face.
"Twilight, what's going on? Why do you look like that?" she paused and looked around as if just now noticing her surroundings, "where are we?"
"This is Tartarus," I replied flatly, "I came here to find the power to destroy the monster that destroyed Equus. I believe I've found it, and I intend to finish what that monster started."
I tilted my head and stared at the shivering mare before me.
"You've been possessed by the monster, and I can no longer trust that you won't turn on me when my guard is down."
"What?!" Cadence cried taking a step back, "but, Twilight... I wouldn't—"
"I'm going to find and devour the monster," I interjected, taking a step forward, "you don't seem to have any memory of your time as its puppet, so I doubt you'll be able to tell me where it is or how it gets around."
"Twilight, please, listen to me!" Cadence pleaded, taking another step back, "I have no idea what's going on! What happened? Where's Auntie and Lu—"
"Like you, the other two Princess' have fallen to madness and corruption, becoming possessed by the monster. I am the only one left who has control over her own body and mind."
I paused a moment.
"I do need to get a handle on my... appetite," I amended, "but other than that, I'm the only one left with the power and mental clarity to oppose this monster, and I will see to its demise without fail."
Cadence took one more step back and fell to her haunches in disbelief. For several moments she just sat there and stared at me.
"It's like you're a completely different pony," she whispered, tears streaming down her face. Her gaze traveled over my body and stopped on my flank, her eyes widening in horror, "you don't even have your cutie mark anymore..."
"I'm no longer a pony, Cadence," I replied dully, "why would I have a cutie mark?"
That just made the tears come faster.
"Oh, Twilight!" she sobbed, "I'm... I-I'm so sorry... if I was stronger, I could've—"
"There was nothing you could've done, Cadence," I said, moving closer until I was standing over the crying mare, "there was nothing any of us could've done. We were all up against an unstoppable force."
"But... b-but still!" Cadence cried, her teary eyes meeting my blank white orbs, "I should've held on! Tried harder! I should've realized you weren't... w-weren't..."
"We couldn't fight it," I continued as Cadence trailed off, "we couldn't run from it, we couldn't hide from it... its victory was inevitable," I looked away, staring down the path ahead, "in the end, I broke down... I gave up just like you, Celestia, and Luna... it really did win after all."
There was a long beat of silence, and then...
"There really isn't any other way... is there?"
My ear twitched at the tone of Cadence's voice and I looked back to see her rise to her hooves. She wiped her tears away and stared back at me, a sudden spark of conviction burning in her eyes.
"It's already too late, isn't it?"
I blinked before giving a slow nod. She lowered her gaze a moment, her determined frown faltering briefly. She let out a shuddering breath before looking back to me.
"Then you need to eat me."
I tilted my head once more with a small frown and waited for an explanation.
"I may not remember what I did while I was... under that thing's control," she said, putting a hoof to her chest, "but I can still feel it. Its power is still inside me, and I can tell that it's scared... scared of whatever you are now."
I said nothing in response and she continued.
"Maybe that's why it let me go... I don't know," she said, shaking her head helplessly, "but what I do know, is that as long as the other Princesses and I are alive, you'll never be able to end it. So..."
She took another deep breath and stood as tall as she could, though I could see more tears building up in her eyes as she spoke.
"Please, Twilight," she pleaded, her voice wavering, "j-just... be quick, alright? I-I don't want Auntie and Luna to suffer anymore... I don't want to suffer anymore... and maybe... maybe you'll find a way too."
"I won't Cadence," I replied, turning to fully face my sister-in-law, "once the monster is dead, I'll remain here and alive until the very planet crumbles away, and even then I still might continue to exist."
She let out a choked sob, but quickly recovered and stepped towards me.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, before pulling me into a tight hug, "I'm... so sorry, Twilight."
I didn't say anything as she held me. The voices, which had been quiet up until now, suddenly grew louder, and my hunger began to return.
Wasting no more time, I slowly, reluctantly returned Cadence's hug as my body shifted once more. I may not have felt anything for what was to come, but I at least could've humored my sister and former foalsitter one last time.
She stepped back and watched me with a small smile, even as my open maw hovered over her.
"Sunshine... sunshine... ladybugs awa—"
Clap your hooves... and do a little shake...
Ok that was sad and depressing
Wow now I feel bad I hope twilight gets some sort of happy ending after this
Wow... just wow...
Kill me. I'm crying.
This went a different way than what I was hoping.
By the emperor....
How good she is still there
A PART OF HER POWER RETURNED THERE'S STILL MORE
FOR NOW AND SUFFICIENT TO DESTROY MONTRO
GO NOW RUN BITCH RUN
Yeah, sorry Cadance. You were weak and pathetic enough to listen to it in the first place, so you totally had this coming.
Same with Luna and Celestia.
Such a sad end to Cadance, nice touch with the secret handshake/mantra closing.
9073314
Oh well that explains it.
9072327
By this point? The happy ending options are, rescued from nightmare-curse that some villain locked her in, followed by systemic memory-wipes. Or mutual annihilation in the impending fight. There does not even appear to be a sun to fly into, and I guarantee hard vacuum won't do it anymore.
One Princess down, two to go. Twilight Sparkle is gone.... only the monster remains. Once it defeats it’s future self.... the cycle is inevitable. The monster itself says so to Cadence in this chapter.
Also that ending, man.
The chapter title too. Just drills in the fact Twilight is gone.
9074560
i read the whole thing carefully and i didn't see a Single hint towards whatever twilight is being the same thing as the monster she's about to throw down with now. One the creature she became needs to Eat so straight up destroying it's food (what it did when it blasted the planet to death) is a big hint that they aren't the same. Two the original monster is Afraid of twilight, if this was some constant cycle of death and rebirth it wouldn't be Afraid of itself. Three whatever twilight is has Red eyes in it's true form, while the monster in the sky has two tone eyes (that of an eclipse). And the Final point i'm going to make. Four
This is the message left two chapters ago by the guy/gal behind the story
9074560
i like that your trying to make theories and all and i respect you want to invest allot of time and energy into some of this stuff, but please double check what your saying so they have good evidence
9074711
I appreciate you placing your own thoughts. But allow me to clarify some things.
1. Twilight and the monster are practically synonymous at this point. Twilight IS the monster. The monster IS Twilight.
2. Twilight is hearing voices and is having an uncontrollable hunger, as evidenced by her wanting to eat Cadence.
So, imagine what would happen if Twilight kills Celestia and Luna and then fights the thing that destroyed Equus, which, according to my theory, is her future self.
Present Twilight wins the fight and eats her future self. But now, there's no one left to eat anymore. The hunger is EXCRUCIATING. Twilight goes insane, and in that insanity, she travels back in time (Which is something she's capable of, thanks to Ambient Magic) to trigger the events that allowed her to get the power of Tarturas in the first place. That's why the monster corrupted Cadence, and caused Luna to go Catatinic and Celestia to go blind. ONLY PAST-TWILIGHT can get the power because that's what future Twilight remembers. I know it seems weird, all time travel is, but considering this story's tone and the fact that we haven't really seen the monster's true form yet.... I really think this is the only logical direction.
9075339
those are valid points, but so far none of it really addresses the main concern of "Why the monster killed everyone instead of Eating them". We have seen how twi attempts to eat multiple people ala kirby, if the monster really was a starving twi, wouldn't she have vacuumed the planet instead of destroying ALL the food?
9075351
Well, that's because the monster wants to eat the most powerful thing it can. But there's only one being that can match her level of power. Herself. Remember, this monster would still have Twilight's memories.
Have you ever seen Season 3 of The Flash?
9075363
i have, but until the story concludes we can't assume Anything. Especially when we're posting comments on the writers page. they might tweak the ending if we Blatantly take a guess and end up actually guessing their grand design, or we'll end up looking stupid when it comes out and we were both proven wrong.
9075363
We are our own worst enemies right now, and the beast will use that to break us like he did the alicorns.
9075533
If I could interject, I already have the last few chapters planned for the most part so right or wrong, I ain't changing a thing.
9075534
That shouldn't mean we can't make theories and predict. If someone guessed the ending to my story and put a tremendous amount of thought into doing so, that's more a compliant to BOTH of us. One as a reader and the other as a writer.
9075533
But it's not just a guess. I have various context clues and story details that back up my theory. If it's wrong, it's wrong. I don't let it take away from the fact that this story is a good story.
Gave me fucking chills bro
God fucking damn it, here goes the hope for a good ending
9078114
you act like there could have been a happy ending in the first place.
!
In any other story, or taken out of context, that line is unintentionally silly. But here? It's devastating. And worse still is that Twilight doesn't feel any grief or anguish over what needs to be done. Seeing her as an emotionless Spock-type being is almost as chilling as what's happened to Celestia and the others.
9098750
That was my reaction. Seriously, the ending was a figurative punch through the chest, ripping my still beating heart from its cavity to hurl it into the sacrificial flames
9139688
God...
never, have i ever, felt this bad before.
i feel like i just had my gut torn out and put in backwards.
Jesus Fucking Christ it all went to vore.
9267688
And that’s saying something when it comes from you, doesn’t it?
Twilight's situation reminds me of how being a god in Sanderson's Cosmere works. In that you are still yourself, but the instincts of the power you wield are nearly completely overpowering, and you can't act outside of their nature without a LOT of effort.
Well this was sad.