Chapter 18: The End Crowns The Work
The End Crowns the Work
The Sun was setting amid the orange sky as the conflict gradually died down, nothing replacing it save for an eerie silence, punctuated occasionally by the gasps and gurgles of the wounded and dying.
Applejack tortuously shimmied up the hill, groaning and moaning all the while, every little inch of her battered body afire and hurting. Still the orange mare persisted, anchoring her chipped and bloody hooves on the nearby rocks dragging herself upwards yet another few yards, the scrape-scrape of the deadly saber furrowing the earth, a thin red trickle proceeding to fill it. Applejack could feel it: she was slowing down, her movements more and more erratic, weaker, growing weaker…
But had she made it, her hoof impotently swishing against thin air. The mare had crested.
Applejack gained no pleasure from this accomplishment. Exhausted, it was all she could do to roll over onto her back, head resting against the ridge, tongue lolling, eyes glazed over. She had gotten up here for what? She couldn't really remember.
Her blurry and dying vision revealed very little to the country mare. Some dark and some patches of orange: that was about all she could make out in the evening light. The ground below her was mostly shades of dark. Mostly motionless, some twitching, a few dots hobbling away into the horizon. Lucky them.
Applejack remained on the hilltop, slowly awaiting the darkness that would soon encompass her, the eternal night-
Eternal Night! Applejack’s slowing heartbeat jolted into life a few times at the thought. Oh, the night! The darkness! The ponies in her dreams, chasing her remorselessly, hot on her hooves, cursing her over and over again as they did so.
Except, this time, it would be forever…
“Applejack,” Twilight Sparkle interrupted.
Time abruptly stopped. Applejack rolling her head sideways, the breaths in her body growing shallower and shallower, the pain rising in her abdomen once more. She was here already? That couldn’t be – Applejack wasn’t asleep yet – it wasn’t possible!
“Applejack,” Rarity joined in.
The rustic pony instinctively looked back up with terrified eyes, almost not daring to open them- but there they were, shadowed against the emerging stars: the lavender unicorn, the white fashionista, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy!
The farm pony’s breath cut out. “I- “
Her instinctive reaction, honed by weeks and weeks of mental anguish, was caught abruptly in her throat. Something was different here. These ponies looked normal.
Applejack gulped. “All of you... you’re here.”
“Well, duh!” Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes. Her bouncy hair and cheerful complexion were things the orange pony had nearly forgotten.
Applejack gulped again. “But… “
“Darling, whatever’s the matter?” Rarity asked, fabulous and cheerful as ever.
Applejack let out a trembling wheeze.
Twilight Sparkle giggled at the pony’s reticence. “Oh Applejack: we’re your friends, right? We’ll keep what you say secret, honest!”
“B-but… ” Applejack coughed fitfully, not daring to believe the ponies in front of her, so effectively melting away any last vestiges of pride- “…but you’re all d-dead! Y-y’all can’t still be alive!”
Fluttershy cocked her head uncomprehendingly. “But we’re here, Applejack.”
“No. No!” Applejack slammed her hooves onto the ground, her heart giving out from a mixture of anger and sorrow. “You don’t understand! I… ”
They were my friends… and I… and I-
Oh, by Celestia: what have I done?
The orange pony burst into tears. “I’m sorry!” she bawled, body shuddering with untold effort. “I’m sorry; oh, I’m so very, very sorry!...”
A comforting hoof on her shoulder. “Applejack,” Twilight soothed. “It’s okay.”
The country mare shook her head vigorously. “No. You don’t understand!” she burbled. “It was my fault. All my fault. You were always my friends... I should've never- “
“Oh don’t cry, Applejack!” the party pony exclaimed. “You’ll make us all sad! And I don’t like being sad!”
The pony couldn’t take it anymore. “No! Please!” she cried and cried. “Stop! Stop. It!”
“Darling,” Rarity knelt next to the dying pony, the scent of her perfume wafting through the crisp air. “Do stop being so hysterical. All that’s in the past now.”
“We forgive you,” Fluttershy added quietly.
Applejack continued twisting and convulsing like a madpony. No. This was too much. Too much. She didn’t deserve their forgiveness. This pony, who had so brazenly cast all of her friendships to the flames; this pony, who had schemed and plotted beyond all moral qualms; this pony, who had just sent hundreds upon hundreds to their graves… no. This wasn’t possible. How could these stains be wiped away – ever be wiped away- ?
“You can, Applejack, you can!” Twilight encouraged her onwards, just as she had done so many times, back in the Old Place, the others behind her, cheering Applejack on, cheering Applejack ever on-
Wait. Twilight. Rarity. Pinkie Pie. Fluttershy. Weren’t there six of us?
Twilight… Rarity… Pinkie-
Suddenly in one impulse, Applejack violently thrust herself off the ground with shuddering hooves, the world around her clothed in impenetrable darkness, her head spinning around with the effort, her breaths, her heart- Rainbow Dash! Rainbow Dash was still alive!
“Rainbow Dash!” Applejack screamed forth with her last bit of life, quavering pleas soaring off into the far horizon. “Rainbow Dash! Rainbow… Dash! R…r… ain...bow…”
Dashie… so, so sorry…
*
A light drizzle pitter-pattered down as Fluttershy climbed out and surveyed her work. Physical exertion had never been the pegasus’ strength – her limbs ached from the toil, her mane matted with sweat – but it was worth every second, worth every second just to be here.
The day the news had reached Ponyville, Fluttershy had immediately fled for the horrible scene, bawling and crying every step of the way. The stench was already unbearable even at the horizon, the actual debris even less so: putrid corpses and half-ingested innards, strewn all over the blood-red arena like some savage sacrifice, stinking and decaying under the vicious Sun. The pegasus wandered around the abandoned fields, despondently calling for anypony who was still alive.
Now the third day was nearly at an end, and Fluttershy was standing alone on the hilltop, two makeshift graves in front of her.
“A-Applejack,” she announced to nopony in particular.
Solemnly, she picked up a familiar old Stetson – all she could find of the orange mare. She had earlier caught a glimpse of a red-and-black thing some ways down, but seeing that it was distinctly mangled even from Fluttershy’s viewpoint, the yellow mare wasn’t sure she really wanted to know if that was Applejack.
She gently cast the hat into the shallow grave, where it landed with a small thump.
Now the other pony. There was nothing remaining of the cyan pegasus. The yellow mare rummaged around in her bags for something fitting.
“Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy murmured. A light-blue daisy floated slowly into position.
It only took a few more nudges to fill in the earth. So that was that.
Fluttershy put down the shovel and resumed her vigil before the two graves: standing, thinking.
She really ought to cry. These were her friends after all, and she had cried earlier when she had taken flight for this dreadful place.
But really, it was best that Fluttershy didn’t cry.
After all, murderers don’t cry for their victims.
It was she who started this. She who was too weak, too useless to govern her own county; she too scared to continue on when everypony else was begging her to stay; she who abandoned her friends in their time of need, flying away while Twilight and Rarity and Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash and Applejack killed each other…
There could really be no mercy for so heinous a crime.
“And Fluttershy,” the yellow pony whispered bitterly, drawing out a box of poison hemlock.
*
Princess Celestia stepped off the carriage onto the hilltop, slowly surveying the scene like a hawk. Reclamation had already begun, visible in the green shoots poking between parched bones, audible in the chirps and calls of returning fauna, sensible in the light whiff of lavender coasting ever-so-slightly upon the sharp tang of sagebrush.
A few generations, and nopony would ever remember this place existed.
A dwarfish pony followed the Goddess, black from head to hoof. The Changeling Ambassador viewed the scene equally mournfully. “So much killing,” he commented pensively. “Reminds me of our past conflict, my Lady.”
The alicorn shook her head in pained resignation. “Hate springs eternal. Few have yet learnt how to master it.”
A sudden crack prompted the Princess to glance sideways. Her bodyguards had happened upon and were gingerly dissembling a skeleton, hoping to prepare the bones for burial.
The Princess stretched out a hoof in command. “Stop. Leave the dead be. This is a memorial to those who have lived and died in these lands – the lesson of war.”
The soldiers halted their morbid work.
Celestia looked over the crest and at the distant desert landscapes of the Outer Lands. Her millennial visage betrayed no emotion.
The Ambassador thought it was probably time to say something. “My Liege. Your recalcitrant vassals, the Changelings, do offer our sincerest apologies- “
“Your kind did not cause this,” the Princess acknowledged. “In fact, this sorry episode has shown that the ponies clearly remain unworthy of occupying such territory. The Princess Luna and I shall therefore cede the Outer Lands back to the Changelings; a sign of our penitence.”
The Changeling started for a moment, hastily prostrating himself on the ground, hooves scattering dirt and dust over his body. “We are not worthy of such a gift from Your Majesty!” he groveled.
“Not so, Ambassador,” the Princess consoled. “The rulers who ruled this land: they were too arrogant, too fearful, too complacent in the belief that their friendship would hold with no additional effort. I need to try again, Ambassador; try until I find somepony worthy.”
The Ambassador gazed into his liege-Princess’ tender eyes, his own welling forth with unspoken gratitude.
The Princess, ever so graceful, leant in closer, smiled, and her eyes glinted.
The Elements of Harmony would soon be carted back to Canterlot.
“Besides… these lands have served their purpose.”
~END~
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And once again it was all part of Celestia's master plan...
Well that was a good read. I'll be on the lookout for another fic from you.
Crusader Kings II?
Ah, finally I am not the only one here who loves Paradox games! Oh well, off to Europa Universalis!
3502897 Actually CKII is probably my least favorite. Victoria II and Europa Universalis come first
3502912 Eh, my headcanon is that they were expelled as some sort of 'buffer zone' to Equestria.
Wow...
All I can do right now?
media2.giphy.com/media/b9aScKLxdv0Y0/giphy.gif
I have many unanswered questions as to Celestia's true motives, but I feel that you meant for it to end that way; we'll never know why, and that serves to make the ending all the more tragic.
This has been a fantastic read, thank you for taking the time to write - and finish - this fic. There were times when I thought you had given up on it (especially after the 6 month gap), but you didn't, and for that I thank you again.
On a final note, congratulations! This story is in the featured box! What a way to commemorate the end of the story, you've certainly earned it!
3502958 Thank you very much, mikemarksman. You always reminded me of my unfinished story whenever you replied to my forum posts.
Assume I finished the story because of you lol
The whole story had me remembering the warriors games Samurai Warriors and Dynasty Warriors. The full endings and story makes one think on what the meanings of honor, friendship and leadership means. This story dose the same.
Said beauties
Flowers fall
Rivers red flow
Souls wing aloft
I can't start to tell how much I loved this story. You do politics and ponies really really well.
That ending. It was a long game all along. It makes perfect sense Celestia's perspective. You can't have six heroes running around. They might a threat sometime down the road, and you can't have them killed. Good thing ponies are flawed.
Just fantastic from beginning to end. And the sad thing is that we knew if they just talked to each other and stopped for a sec, they could have stopped this at multiple times. Too bad, once it got rolling, it went out of control.
And I thought just for a sec at the end that it was all some master plan by Fluttershy, but it wasn't. All of them pawns. All dead pawns.
This definitely is an interesting idea and I know that I WILL get disliked for this; I simply wish for the author to continue to improve on their works to become a great author... I, by all means, don't hate this story (merely the ending, but other than that, you forced me to be real picky on my critics)... This story lacks a good motive for the characters to do as they did at some scenes. Twilight's lack of magic in some of the chapters did confuse me. It also confused me on how time passed between the 15 and 17 chapters. First Rainbow declares war on Twilight and next, they're at the last stand? This being said, Rainbow and Applejack are superb friends (ie. Running of the Leaves) I can understand a change in character due to the changeling war, but even in the early chapters, Applejack is doing country-wide economics. Celestia's role in this is my huge problem with this story. It, in all honesty, was the only thing that I couldn't stand. Her reasoning, even though explained, was based off of some crude belief that common ponies thrusted into leadership roles would bring peace. Celestia's role in this more so seems to be similar to the Capital, from the Hunger Games. She held 6 ponies that were respected by Equestria and made a mockery of them, showing that none were equal to her. Her mindless, sadistic use of the Mane 6 is why I have yet to favorite this story.
Even if you don't like my opinions on the story, I hope they will provide insight into character development in a story...
3610613 Well Celestia does seem to be a major #$&@* in my stories so far
.
Thanks for reviewing the story. Yeah it was a slightly warped story, brought along by a couple thousand years of not-writing. I guess I must have had in mind something like what you would in Crusader Kings II (which this story is based out of) - if you want to survive as head of a feudal realm, you need your underlings to fight each other rather than fighting you.
I will take what you said to heart. Thank you once again.
EDIT: No need to be afraid of dislikes, it's good criticism after all.
Ok...
plays a long game.
I hated her sometimes before reading this, but I truely hate it when
I mean, hell, she's playing one on the show too.
...sorry for the rant...
3610920 I take it you don't like Celestia then?
3643826 Nah, just in line with how a real ruler needs to behave in order to survive in the absence of real oversight. I'm a student of international politics, you see.
3643964 okay that makes sense, like being pragmatic right?
3646278 Yeah.
3646295 Well I respect that, I always felt that being pragmatic is important for a leader. you have my respect then.
I'm not going to complain. I read the description, I saw the Tragedy tag, I figured it wouldn't end well, and yet when I see things like this I find myself compelled to see how things get so fucked up and if they might get better. I think I'm some sort of literary masochist where our little ponies are concerned.
I can't really fathom the Mane 6 ending up like this, but, aside from Twilight's initial overreaction to Dash's idea (which may not have changed much anyway) and Applejack's sudden paranoia regarding Pinkie, "Dashie" and the rest, there was no real point where I could say, "No, they would not do this." So, props, I guess.
I wondered if this was some sort of gambit by Celestia to wipe out the Mane 6. I mean, she's kept Equestria going for over a thousand years, and while she's made mistakes, she could not possibly have so completely misjudged all of their personalities and ruling capabilities.
Well, hopefully Bureaucracy is Politic will wash this out of my head.
5054792 Hey, thanks for taking the time to read this. This story was my first story, and there certainly are bits where I could have improved on (you touched on one of them). I'm supposed to be writing another fic and continuing with Bureaucracy is Politic, but some major family issues have cropped up during the past half-year and so all that has unfortunately gone on the back burner a bit.
I'm trying to get back on track, but it's going to take some time before I get up to speed (mainly because I've also finally gotten around to playing the Mass Effect series).
Thanks again for taking the time to read this, though
That moment when all of your vassals gain the envious and amitious trait
This story, after I had began to read it, held a sort of dark allure after the second or third chapter. I saw tragedy and figured it would probably be a character dying in battle to save their lands, despite my mind constantly telling me ' this is a political game, there's no way anyone's getting out unscathed'. This is one of the best stories I've read on this site and that's sayin something. This had me on edge wondering who was scheming what next for almost the duration of the story.
Just to clear some slight confusion from the beginning, Intermission 1, my understanding of it is that the changelings attacked, Applejack almost got killed, and Spike was killed. That right? That and how much time passed between that chapter and the next?
Somehow, I figured in the end this would be Celestia's fault, and not by accident.
The political game here was incredible, and I almost missed a lot of the hints and clues that were dropped throughout the story.
As I said, this was an amazing read, and to be honest, I hardly ever re-read a story no matter how much I liked it, but it will still hold a place on my favorites list.
5561515
Hey, thanks for your really nice comments. It really does mean something to me!
Intermission 1 is a flashback, where the ponies attack the Changelings in revenge for their Canterlot raid back in the end of Season 2.
5569543
Ah, ok thank you!
Random comment: While at work today, I was listening to my usual music. When a certain song came on, it had me thinking about this story. Music and books mean a lot to me and I put a lot of value to it, so thanks again for a great read.
This is the song: This fits pretty well with AJ and RD's conflict if IMO
your story was wrong
this was one of the best story's I've read on this sight!!!
Well, curious... I wonder, even so... What could happened if things had gone different... Maybe RD sending a messenger to Celestia, or she deciding to do something before it had gone like that