It had been three weeks since it had happened; Twilight, her friends, and Trixie Lulamoon had been pulled into a sinister game of revenge, composed by Queen Chrysalis. The game had resulted in loss, traumatization, and for some of survivors, much worse.
When the game was orchestrated and the choices were made by Starlight Glimmer, three victims had been killed horribly. Rainbow Dash was the first, her death being caused by her life being sucked from her shell of a body that was grinded to nothing shortly afterwards. Trixie Lulamoon was the second, being sawed in half, unable to run or move out of the saw blade's path. The last was Starlight Glimmer herself, who had made the choices to put her friends in harm's way, and only after seeing that the end result was inevitable, chose to save whoever remained alive in the restraints of the death machine known as "the Wheel of Choice."
The survivors of this sinister game were the fun-loving Pinkie Pie, the generous fashionista Rarity, the honest apple farmer Applejack, the shy and kind Fluttershy, and the alicorn that represents friendship, Princess Twilight Sparkle. However, with their survival came a grim truth that had set their fates in stone from the moment they had awoken in the confines of the wheel. Chrysalis had cursed every victim from the start that would forbid any survivors revealing any word of what would've occurred in the game. If any survivor were to attempt speaking any bit of the events, the curse would trigger and immediately kill them.
Speaking of the events wasn't the only trigger action either, any attempt to alter or lift the curse would trigger the curse as well, so not even otherworldly beings like Discord nor any of the alicorn princesses would be able to break the curse. It was sealed in stone from the start of the game.
In three weeks, two suicides and two cases of two ponies falling to insanity and becoming unstable had been reported. The traumatization from what had happened in Chrysalis's game of pure horror had led to countless nightmares for the timid Fluttershy, and as a result to escape them and the curse, Fluttershy had poisoned herself.
She was found in her bedroom, which had been boarded shut from the inside. She had multiple bruises and physical wounds all over her body, showing that she had become violent towards herself, giving the nightmares and being such a gentle soul. Foam was visible at the mouth, along with large amounts of blood seeping out of her eyes, ears, mouth, and any other opening. It was clear suicide with boxes of rat poison and a waterglass shattered on the floor being the only objects within the room when Fluttershy's body was discovered by Twilight.
That was only three days after they had managed to escape, and it wasn't long before another suicide report was made by young Apple Bloom, who had made the horrifying discovery of her older sister hanging in a noose in her bedroom.
It was clear why Applejack had taken this path, seeing her limbs had been hacked off in Chrysalis's game. However, Applejack had left with a message carved into the far wall of her bedroom; "Escape."
It was at this point that Twilight, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie had become ponies of interest in finding the reasoning behind the suicides, but seeing Rarity and Pinkie had suddenly fallen to unstable states of mind, Twilight was the only remaining stable pony who could possibly enlighten the detectives on a possible reasoning behind the suicides. Due to the curse, Twilight had no choice but to remain quiet or lie, which caused the cases to go cold.
Ever since, Twilight had to resort to remaining unseen, due to her cutie mark being nothing but a thing of the past now, and with her still being a pony of interest to the detectives, she couldn't risk exposing herself with a missing cutie mark. As much as she wanted to speak the truth, she knew the consequences if she did, and it infuriated her to have to obey to Chrysalis, still feeling like she was in the game and had never escaped at all. Two of her friends were now dead, with two others too unstable to even think straight.
She had lost too much, and couldn't do anything about it. She was tired of playing Chrysalis's game and wanted out. She wouldn't be played any longer.
Two weeks later
In less than a month, Twilight had arranged and attended two funerals. Due to her role as the Princess of Friendship, funds were not an issue, nor did she care about things like bits anymore. The only thing keeping her alive was her drive for anger and vengeance, seeing she had lost nearly everything.
Happiness had abandoned Twilight, along with friendship. Spike had seen a change in Twilight's demeanor, being much more angry and snappy toward even the smallest things, and he had become scared for Twilight's sanity and even himself. Spike had seen Twilight on the edge of insanity before, but this was different. From locking herself in the library to the sleepless nights, it seemed like Twilight was nearing the same state as Rarity and Pinkie Pie, and that frightened Spike, afraid that he would be left alone.
It pained the alicorn to know that she had hurt her loyal assistant, and it pained her even more to do what she planned to do, leaving him alone and clueless
Twilight stood just inches from the casket where Fluttershy laid in an eternal and peaceful sleep. Twilight couldn't bear to look, knowing her emotions would get the best of her, and she had already cried enough. She knew why Fluttershy was in that casket, and to keep that secret, she attempted to hold her best poker face during both of the funerals. However, one pony saw through Twilight, knowing she was indeed hiding something; the pony that knew Twilight best, Princess Celestia.
Celestia had noticed over the past month that Twilight had went from happy and cheerful to being paranoid and unsocial with ponies. Something that she thought she would never see out of her most loyal student, and caused her to wonder. With Rainbow Dash, Trixie Lulamoon, and Starlight Glimmer missing, Fluttershy and Applejack dead, and Rarity and Pinkie Pie unstable, Celestia knew Twilight was hiding important information. Twilight knew all of them best, so how could she not know something?
Celestia had decided to confront Twilight in a mentor-to-student manner, being careful not to cause a scene.
"Not a tear, Twilight? Is it that you are afraid to cry or something more personal?" Celestia asked with concern.
"I've cried enough already, there's no tears left to shed," Twilight replied direct and bluntly.
Celestia took a second to comprehend what she had just heard. It sounded like Twilight, but the tone did not match anything she had heard from Twilight in the past.
"Twilight, you and I both know that you are hiding something. I know you all too well, and if what you are hiding is something you prefer not to tell the authorities, then tell me," Celestia persuaded.
"If I had anything to say, I would have said it by now," Twilight replied in the same blunt voice as before, surprising Celestia once again. "Have you fallen to their level as well, Celestia? To the level of using bribery as a way to get what they want?!"
Twilight's voice had grown to a much more noticeable volume, causing heads to turn. Celestia quickly calmed the situation.
"I'm only trying to help you, as your mentor and friend, Twilight," Celestia stated.
"There's nothing left to say, Celestia. Nopony can help me," finalized Twilight, turning away. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a book to finish back in the castle library. Goodbye, Celestia."
The hooded alicorn turned away, but was stopped by Celestia.
"Very well, but before you leave, there's something I have to give you. Something found at Applejack’s crime scene" stated Celestia, holding out a sealed envelope with a single word on it; "TWILIGHT."
Twilight was intrigued and wondered why Celestia had waited up to now to give her something like this. Either way, she didn't care and took the envelope from Celestia, sticking it into a spare pocket.
"Think hard about what you choose next, Twilight" Celestia stated, immediately causing Twilight to stop.
"What do you mean by that?" Twilight asked.
"With three disappearances, two suicides, and two unstable ponies refusing to talk, I'm afraid that the next pony that may end up in a casket may be you, Twilight. Please, think before you act, if your thoughts may resort to what I fear," Celestia concluded.
Twilight just nodded her head, and with many questions in her head, walked out of the funeral home.
Back at the library, Twilight had proceeded to looking further into the envelope that Celestia had given her out of nowhere. Twilight found it strange that Celestia would wait so long to give her something that could explain maybe a secret message that Fluttershy may have written before her slow and horrid death. Nonetheless, it was time to find out what was in the envelope and why it was strictly addressed to her and her alone.
Using her teeth, Twilight carefully ripped open the the top of the envelope, and gently pulled out what looked like a folded up letter. The paper was regular parchment paper, so nothing seemed out of place, as Twilight unfolded the paper and was immediately confused at what was written on the paper in black ink.
Free yourself to free others
That's all that was written, immediately causing Twilight to express a look of confusion, looking over the rest of the letter for anything else that may help the words make sense. After some time, Twilight concluded that nothing else was there, and tossed the note to the side.
"What the hell, Celestia?" Twilight questioned angrily.
She didn't know if this was somepony's idea of a sick joke, planting it at the crime scene where Fluttershy had been found dead on the floor. She concluded it as nothing more than a red herring, crumpling up the paper and tossing it into the garbage on the side of the desk.
"I don't have time for tomfoolery like this. I have more important matters to tend to," Twilight stated, pausing.
Anger infused within Twilight, as she took a moment to compose herself fully. The memories of her friends and all the times they had shared together flashing before her eyes like a slide show. A tear escaped Twilight's eye, as she stated one last thing before preparing for her journey the following day.
"It's time for this game to end! I won't be played anymore!" Twilight stated with anger and confidence.
Twilight had not slept, nor had she in a long while after escaping Chrysalis's game, broken and defeated. She had left late in the night, taking a train to the destination closest to the area where Chrysalis had chosen to commence her game of revenge.
The directions to the area were burned into Twilight's mind, remembering the long trek back to Ponyville afterwards. It took nearly three hours to just find a sign of society and ended up taking a detour to a hospital in another town, seeing Applejack was nearly to the point of dying from blood loss.
To make their conditions seem believable, Twilight had to make up a story that they had been in a terrible accident, and Applejack had endured the worst of the injuries. Miraculously, the doctors believed the story, and all five of them were able to get by unscathed. From there, the remaining four took a train back to Ponyville, and didn't speak to each other.
Once Twilight had reached the uncharted territory of what seemed like an endless dried up desert, she knew exactly where to go next; the imprinted hoofprints and small splats of blood stained into the ground creating a clear path. The horrors of what created those blood stains caused a chill to slither down Twilight's spine, as she proceeded forth, being careful to follow the tracks.
Three hours passed, before Twilight had come to a cave carved into the base of a large mesa. The exit all five of them came to after exiting the room where the Wheel of Choice was located. It was about a ten minute walk to the exit, so Twilight stepped forward and after ten minutes, came to the now-closed off room where the wheel remained, along with the remaining memories of what had happened that dreadful day.
"I know you're here," Twilight said bluntly, knowing Chrysalis wouldn't abandon a place where she had accomplished something she would take as a huge victory against the species she hated with a passion.
A laughter emanated from the darkness that made Twilight's blood boil.
"Back so soon? To what do I owe this pleasure?" Chrysalis spoke sarcastically.
"Cut the act, Chrysalis! I'm not here to beg or ask for my cutie mark back, because even I know that's impossible," Twilight spoke, a sour taste of defeat tainting her words. "I'm here to end it."
"And what exactly are you talking about?" Chrysalis questioned.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" Twilight objected with anger. "Don't play dumb, Chrysalis! You've wanted this all along, and knew that when Starlight died, the game still wasn't over, was it!?"
Chrysalis laughed, knowing Twilight had finally caught onto her original intentions.
"So, you're not as stupid as I thought," Chrysalis mocked. "You and your pathetic friends were all pawns, even after Starlight Glimmer was disposed of. I had intended this from the very start of the plotting of my revenge. One pony wasn't enough! No, if I TRULY wanted show you ponies and have you experience the feeling I felt when my kingdom was taken from me, then I had to plot something more eternal and inescapable!"
"The curse wasn't enough!?" Twilight snapped, feeling her blood boil in her veins. "It's because of you I've lost my friends, and why I've even bothered to return to this horrible place!"
"All part of my plan, princess. Now you know what it feels like to lose everything! EXACTLY how I felt when I lost my kingdom! Tell me, how does it feel? How does it feel being alone and broken? Defeated and helpless!"
Twilight didn't have anything to say, because there was no word to describe the feeling of losing everything. It was a feeling unlike anything that she had ever felt in her life.
"That's what I thought," Chrysalis finalized.
"Then tell me, how many ponies was enough? If there is even a number?" Twilight asked in defeat.
"Well, as we stand, exactly eleven," Chrysalis answered.
Twilight was surprised. An exact number? Not all of Equestria? Another thing that caught her attention was the fact she said "as we stand" in her answer. What the hell was Chrysalis up to, seeing it was clear her game of vengeance was still active?
"Eleven? Twilight questioned with confusion.
"Oh, my apologies. You must be confused, so allow me to enlighten you on a few things," Chrysalis explained. "For one, my plot for vengeance upon pony kind didn't start at the Wheel of Choice."
Immediately, an expression of pure shock and disbelief spread across Twilight's face.
"W-what?!" Twilight stuttered.
"Shocking, isn't it, princess? No. My plan all started during the construction of the Wheel of Choice, and sending a letter to your beloved, Princess Celestia."
"The letter was composed only of a simple warning that would be the prelude to what she'd go through not long after reading it. A letter stating "be careful what you choose." With the use of a simple spell and some Changelings that chose to stay with their true queen, Celestia along with Luna and even Cadance were put into a deep sleep, and just like you and your pathetic friends, were put into a game as well."
"They were given three options, just like Starlight was, dear. However, their choices were much different, and only if they thought equally and trusted each other the whole way through, would they avoid death and escape alive. With no magic to escape, they had to use their instincts, and much to my surprise, they escaped alive by a thread, but not without a cost."
"Just like you and your friends, they were cursed prior to the events as well, forbidden to say or do anything. Now, you may think that that's as far as my plan goes, but now time for the twist. You see, remember how the wheel ran on mechanical parts? Well, the truth, is that I never controlled the wheel once. All I ever provided was the weapons for decapitation and the choices. The wheel wasn't designed to run on Changeling magic, only alicorn magic."
That statement immediately made Twilight's heart skip a beat. Was Chrysalis really telling the truth, and the wheel was controlled by alicorn magic, or was she lying? Twilight just continued to listen.
"I see you don't believe me. Well, then let me explain the rules that were implied into your princess's game. Unlike your game, their task was much simpler. All they had to do was give up a certain amount of magic, then they would be set free."
"They had three choices; the first was to give up a certain amount of magic for that round, but it didn't come without having to experience pain or lose something. If they did, the pony next to them would lose that much of their life force, just like what happened to poor Rainbow Dash."
Chrysalis followed that statement with a chuckle that made Twilight shed some tears while gritting her teeth.
"Don't bring her into this, you monster!" Twilight snapped.
"Seems like I've struck a soft spot. Such a weakling. Now, back to the main subject. Of course, your princesses were stubborn, refusing to give up their magic, so I gave them two other options. The second option was to inhale a slow-acting gas that attacks the nervous system and the vital organs needed for even an alicorn to live, equal to the amount of magic needed to be given in that round."
"Poor Celestia used that option the most, and even ended up with so much damage being done to her organs. Even poor Cadance endured too much, and it even damaged her body so badly that her reproductive system was rendered useless. Sorry princess, but don't look forward to another niece or nephew in the future!"
Twilight was at a breaking point, feeling her body collapse from the news that Cadance was unable to ever have another foal naturally again. Anger engulfed Twilight's soul, continuing to listen.
"The last option was to do nothing, but once again, it came with a consequence. You see, across the room they were kept in, a wall of spinning saw blades were present, and if the third option was the preferred choice, that wall would move toward the pony next in line, equal to the amount of magic needed that round."
"Now, you might be thinking that they could've just used the second and third option sparingly, but that's a negative. I set it up to where if they chose to do so, at least one would die, not that it was necessary. Luna was the first to give her magic, damaging Cadance even more. Therefore, your princesses are what even made it possible to power the wheel."
"So, it's thanks to your own beloved princesses that the game we are playing is even possible. Their magic ran the wheel and all it's mechanical components, while I sat to the side watching with joy and amusement!"
"It's thanks to them that all the ponies that died on the wheel are dead and why we are even having this conversation."
Twilight was broken. She didn't want to believe what Chrysalis was saying or telling her. It didn't seem possible, it just didn't, but it matched up with everything perfectly. Like a final piece to a puzzle revealing what all the scattered pieces created an image of when assembled. Chrysalis had once again covered her bases. It seemed useless.
"I know it's a bitter pill to swallow, dear, but sometimes the truth hurts," Chrysalis mocked.“However, a game is never won until a victor is claimed, and six players still remain. Therefore, I feel it's time that we enter the end game.
At that moment, Twilight began to feel dizzy, hearing Chrysalis laugh in the darkness. She attempted to run in the opposite direction, but was stopped instantly by a shield of Changeling magic, blocking her way. Twilight continued to pound against the shield, feeling her limbs become heavy and her vision blur to pure black. The last thing Twilight remembered was a pair of piercing green eyes emanating from the shadows, before her vision finally faded. The end game had begun.
When Twilight awoke, she was in a completely different room, restrained to some sort of device. Just in front of her muzzle was what looked like a gas mask, with tubes attached that led to large containers above her, and across from her was a wall of inactive saw blades. It was just like the game Chrysalis had described putting Celestia, Luna, and Cadance into, causing Twilight to panic in desperation.
Twilight's panic was broken by the sound of what seemed like hooves approaching. From the darkness, Chrysalis slowly walked into the dim light of the room, staring at Twilight with malevolence.
"Welcome to the end game, princess," Chrysalis started. "The rules are simple; choose one of the options provided. Life or death."
Twilight was confused on where this could be going, as she listened further.
"I know that after our confrontation, you had no intentions of returning to Ponyville, and planned to follow your friends’ actions to escape the curse, and be free at last. Therefore, I went to the liberty of putting you right where you want to be; in the face of death."
"Before you, are two ways to die. One fast and painless. One slow and painful. Shall you select "death" your choice of death will be given to you on a silver platter; decapitation of the head or organ failure, that choice is yours to decide. However, shall you select "life" you will be declared the victor of the game, be freed from death's grip, and I will be the one that dies."
Twilight's eyes bulged at the conditions of the "life" option. Was Chrysalis serious? Would she really follow through, or was she just giving Twilight false hope as torture?
"The choice is yours, princess; life or death?" Chrysalis concluded.
Twilight wasn't sure what to think, as she stared at the blades across the room. She was literally staring into the face of death in two ways and realized now, that staring at death was more frightening than she could've ever imagined.
Thinking and saying that you want to die is one thing, but now that Twilight had been put into a situation where death was being served to her, she was thinking twice about dying. She could've only imagined how Trixie felt when she was sawed in half against her will with nowhere to go, except to death.
Here, Twilight had a choice to live or die. She could escape and be free, unless Chrysalis was lying, and she would die no matter what she chose. Is death what her friends would've wanted her to choose, or would they have wanted her to do them justice by disposing of the one who had caused all this mayhem in the first place?
Twilight had nothing to lose, and despite if Chrysalis were telling the truth or not, this game had to end somehow. Twilight had made her choice.
"I choose, life," Twilight stated, awaiting the worst.
Chrysalis didn't laugh or even chuckle, only proceeded to grabbing something from the provided metallic podium that she stood before. No words. Not even an insult. Twilight shuddered at the fact that Chrysalis was being silent in this situation. The situation suddenly turned from silent to deadly, as Chrysalis revealed a sharp blade, placing it inches from her throat.
"Congratulations, princess. You win," Chrysalis said, then with no hesitation, slit her throat.
Twilight watched as the former Changeling Queen and main cause of her losing her friends fell to the floor into a growing pool of green blood. Chrysalis choked and convulsed, as Twilight's restraints freed her from the face of death, and she fell to the hard floor, watching as Chrysalis's convulsions slowed more and more.
Twilight just watched, feeling her hunger for vengeance lift, knowing it was finally over. Chrysalis had lost due to her own actions, and she could only smile as Chrysalis’s final breaths died down. Once she was sure that Chrysalis was gone, Twilight rushed to find an exit from the room, only to discover that the door to the exit was encrypted with a five digit code, which Twilight didn't know.
Just as she was about to suspect Chrysalis pulling a dirty move as her last goodbye, Twilight spotted two things on the podium; two sealed envelopes with the one word on each. The left one was labelled with "life," and the right was labelled with "death." Seeing she had chosen "life" as her final choice, Twilight picked up the left envelope and opened it with her teeth. Inside was a folded up piece of parchment paper, which Twilight carefully unfolded, unsure of what to expect.
Written on the sheet was a large number of words in the form of a letter. Twilight wasted no time, and read over the letter carefully.
Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle,
If you are reading this, then I am dead, and you are the official victor of my game. However, in choosing this option, you have failed to save the other remaining players from death. In our confrontation, I told you many things, but I didn't tell you what happened after the princesses had managed to survive.
They may had been cursed, but the conditions were much different from your own. They had two tasks; keep their mouths shut and keep me alive. Their curse was linked to my soul, and shall anything happen to me, the curse will trigger and kill them. By killing me, you have doomed the lives of your precious princesses. The mentor that taught you everything, your beloved sister-in-law, and the Princess of the Night. All dead, because of you.
Have you had chosen "death," your princesses would have been freed from the curse, but instead you chose to go against your motive for coming all this way. You even said it yourself when you first arrived "I'm here to end it," and you and I both know what you meant. Had I not gone into the end game, there would've been a dead alicorn impaled by sharp rocks not long after.
You know I'm right and now regret not keeping your intentions on coming here true to their word. It's like I said before, sometimes the truth hurts, and now that you've chosen to live, you must live with the fact that you’ve doomed Equestria. With no princesses to raise the sun and lower the moon, you have succeeded in filling in the final piece in my plot for revenge upon ponykind. No sun. No moon. It's a bitter pill to swallow, isn't it, princess?
Congratulations on completing my work and being the cause of the end of Equestria. Perhaps, if you would have thought harder on the warning that I gave you prior to your arrival, you could've saved them by freeing yourself from the game I stuck you in.
Looks like revenge, anger, and the desire to die were too strong to help you see the message for what it really was. Your friends did, by freeing themselves to save others. It was all part of the game, and you failed to understand that. Even your friends left you clues as to what you needed to do when the time came.
Celestia even tried, giving you the key to victory; the envelope that came from Applejack's crime scene. Celestia was just playing her role in the game. She was nothing more than a deliverer, delivering the same envelope to each pony, starting with Pinkie Pie then to Rarity, Fluttershy, and lastly Applejack.
Pinkie Pie and Rarity’s deaths were kept classified by Celestia to avoid any problems, seeing she was literally fighting to stay alive, along with Cadance and Luna as well. You were the final piece of the puzzle, princess, but it's too late now, and I (the only thing that was keeping them alive) am dead. I hope you enjoy your victory, princess.
Time is short before Equestria dies slowly, and only YOU are to blame. You can tell all of Equestria what I've done, now that your curse is lifted, due to my death. But what good would it do? Perhaps you should've thought harder about your choice and should've listened to Celestia, instead of just shrugging it aside, but the game is over and what's done is done.
Farewell princess. The combination is 17529.
Twilight dropped the letter with shaky hooves. She thought back to the letter; "Free yourself to free others." It was all clear now, and thanks to her blindness, Chrysalis's entire plan had been fulfilled, and Equestria was doomed. She thought back to the last words Celestia said to her; "Please, think before you act, if your thoughts may resort to what I fear." Celestia was afraid of her making the wrong decision, and was trying to warn her before what had happened happened. The additional message that Applejack left prior to her suicide; "escape." She was telling Twilight that there was no way to win, except to escape; free herself to free the princesses from Chrysalis's control.
It all came together like a puzzle, but it didn't matter. Equestria was already slowly dying. It was the end. It was end game, and all Twilight could do, was scream.