//------------------------------// // One Last Lie // Story: The Disaster Pokemon // by Onomonopia //------------------------------// "Absol, what have you done?" Celestia asked Absol. She held up a hoof to silence him before he could speak. "No. Don't. We all know what you've done. I may not have any idea why it is suddenly a different day or why my castle has been obliterated, but all of us here saw what happened. It may have been in a fog like state, by we saw what you did. You...killed Sol." "Are you sure about that? You were unconscious," Absol pointed out. "Do you take us for fools?!" Luna snarled as she pushed past her sister. "There are wounds on our bodies akin to those that you have inflicted upon your foes. We saw your winged form battling with Sol over the skies of Canterlot, before you ripped him apart with your power!" "What?! No! He was fighting Spiral!" Limestone snapped back in reply as she stepped forward, only for Absol to hold out a paw to stop her. "What?! It's the truth!" "Perhaps to us. But not to them." "You must have suffered a head injury yourself Limestone, for Spiral is dead. And we saw who Absol was battling with. It was Prince Sol," Twilight informed Limestone, giving Absol a nasty look as he did so. "So why did you do it Absol? Why did you strike down one of the kindest and noblest royals in the history of Equestria?" "Are you all idiots?! That wasn't-" "Of course it was! We all saw it happen!" Limestone turned to look at the crowd of ponies that had gathered, all of them having gained a backbone with the arrival of the princesses and the Ambassadors. "Absol used his mind powers to force those two mares into helping him! He attack the princesses and the Ambassadors! He killed Sol!" they all roared at Absol. "It seems that Spiral has played one last trick on me," Absol said with a small smirk. "We saw him for what he was. But apparently the princesses and the Ambassadors saw him for the prince still. As far as they are concerned, I struck down their beloved prince." "Absol...I admit that I judged you based on what I had heard. But when I met you in person, I thought that I had misjudged you. That perhaps you were not a bringer of disaster, but instead one that would help us. Now I see I was wrong," Celestia said in a whisper. "You brought Palkia to this land. You attacked my sister and my ponies. And you've...killed a member of my family that I had just recently reclaimed. There are no words to describe the unyielding hatred I feel for you right now." "Prince Sol, my ancestor, was going to help us finally fix Equestria," Luna added on, glaring daggers at Absol. "He had come up with a strategy to put an end to strife, to the evils that had constantly plagued our world. He brought joy to the faces of the citizens. He...he was going to help us usher in a new era of peace. And you took him from us." Absol stared back at the princesses with unreadable eyes, before he turned and glanced over the crowd of ponies. A lot of them were glaring at him with eyes filled with hatred. But some of them were sobbing to themselves, while others had looks of despair on their faces. And he knew that all of those emotions were because of him. Because, in their eyes, he had struck down one of the greatest ponies that had ever lived. "I am sorry that my actions have hurt you so. I do not regret what I did," Absol said in a somber tone. Limestone looked at him like he was crazy, while Marble bit her lower lip, having figured out what Absol was about to do. "That's all you have to say?" Twilight whispered in disbelief. Absol turned to look at her, finding that her and all of her friends, sans Pinkie, were giving him the same look of anger and hatred that the princesses had been giving him. "You kill Prince Sol and this is all you have to say for yourself?! That you don't regret what you've done?!" "That is all you will listen to. Anything else I say will fall on deaf ears," Absol said, having been in this same spot many times before. "And know this. Despite how you feel about me, despite how I have hurt you, know that I would do the same thing again to protect all of you." "Ponies. With me," Celestia snarled as she motioned for the Ambassadors to join her and Luna. "We must find a worthy punishment for this...bringer of disaster." The ponies formed into a group and began to talk amongst themselves, leaving Absol to stand alone in silence. Marble and Limestone ran over beside him, the latter of the two practically blowing steam out her ears with how angry she was. "Of all the ungrateful...grah! I can't believe them! You save them all and this is how they repay you!" Limestone growled, her hooves cracking the bricks beneath her. "I swear if I wasn't on the verge of passing out I would run through that crowd and deck every single one of them!" "That would not help. Besides, this is all that can be done," Absol said somberly, getting Limestone to look at him in confusion. "The crowd, the Ambassadors and especially the princesses believe that I have killed somepony they all cared about. Somepony that would be the saving light that they have all waited for. Their anger at me, at least in their eyes, is justified. They believe I killed their hero." "So we just tell them the truth and-" "They won't believe us," Marble cut her sister off. Limestone tried to look her sister in the eyes, but Marble avoided her gaze. "They all fell for Spiral's lie. They all believe that he's the incorruptible hero that he said he was. They would rather believe that Absol struck him down than they would believe that he was Spiral. After all, Absol is the bringer of disaster and Spiral wasted no time in poisoning their minds against him. He knew that they would turn on Absol." "Then...what are we going to do about it?" Limestone asked as she looked up at Absol, only to find his face was calm, determined...and filled with acceptance. "No, no you can't be thinking of what I think you're thinking..." "The ponies will not believe my words. And even if they did, the knowledge that Spiral is Sol, the pony that they all admired so greatly, would bring a pain to them that they might not be able to heal from," Absol revealed, before a bitter smirk crossed his face. "But if them pinning their pain and anger on me protects the lie that keeps them happy, that makes them believe that the royals are kind...then I can bear their hatred and anger. I have done so all my life." "But you did nothing wrong. You saved us," Limestone pleaded with him one last time, getting Absol to turn to look at her with sad eyes. "It's not fair." "My mother did nothing wrong and yet she was killed. I fought to save others from disasters and I was hunted. And even here, I am believed to have killed the Prince that they love so much. The world has never been fair to my family. It is our curse," Absol said to her with a small smile. "We have the power to predict and try to prevent disasters, but we shall always be blamed for them. But if that is what it takes to prevent these ponies from suffering, then I can bear it one last time." As he said this the princesses and the ambassadors all split apart, glaring at Absol the same way the crowd was glaring at him. "Absol, we have talked it over and we have decided what your punishment shall be for your crimes against Equestria. You shall be banished to the darkest pit of Tartarus, never to be heard from again. Is there anything you wish to say?" "No. I will not resist. This is for the best," Absol said with a bow of his head. The princesses nodded to each other before their horns began to glow, using their combined magic to create a vortex in the center of the square. On the other side of the vortex the ponies could see a land of fire, agony and chains, a land that held only the most evil and dangerous criminals in the world. Absol figured that he'd fit right in. "Marble. Limestone," Absol whispered as he turned back to face them. "Thank you for being there for me. Marble, for lending me your kindness and for believing in me. And Limestone...I'm sorry. So sorry that it has to end like this. But please, know that I do this to-" "NO!" The bellow of rage that came from Limestone not only silenced Absol, but also caused everypony that heard her to jump in the air. Limestone began to walk forward with a look of absolute fury on her face that was so intense that everypony, even the princesses, backed away from her with fear. "No! I am not letting this happen! I am not letting you take the fall once again for something that you didn't do, not when they should be singing your praises for saving them!" Limestone snarled, before she spun around to gaze at the massive crowd of ponies. "You wanna know what happened? Well here's the truth! Spiral and Sol are one in the same. They always have been. Spiral used the guise of Sol to trick others into trusting him, where he could then do what he wanted unopposed. He put the princesses under mind control and would have done the same to this whole stinking city had Absol not stopped him. That's the truth about your so called hero. He was scum." "Do you have any proof of your accusation?" Celestia asked in an annoyed tone. That tone was smacked off of Celestia's face when Limestone spun to face her with the fury of hell in her eyes. "I don't need proof. I've got her," Limestone spat before she pointed at Applejack. "Pinkie told me how your powers work, Ambassador of Honesty. You can tell when a pony is lying and telling the truth, can't you?" "Ah...um...ah suppose that is one of mah powers," Applejack admitted, only to shrink back slightly when Limestone marched right up to her. "Then here's the honest truth and you can tell me if I'm lying. Spiral and Sol are one in the same. He tricked his brother Solace and he tricked all of you so that he could take over this world. And Absol saved all of your sorry flanks and then was prepared to take the fall so that you could all live under the illusion that he was some great hero. So tell me, Applejack, was any of that a lie?" The crowd, the princesses and the Ambassadors waited with baited breath as Limestone glared down Applejack, who was processing what Limestone had told her. "No...none of it was ah lie. What she's saying...is the truth." A massive gasp came from the crowd and all of the ponies began to speak with one another, unable to comprehend what they had just heard. The Ambassadors all looked at one another with shocked eyes and the two princesses stared down at the street, looking like all they had known had come crashing down on them. "And if that isn't enough for you, before this whole fight went down Absol told Pinkie to watch Sol incase he tried anything," Limestone snarled to the crowd, regaining their attention once more. "Pinkie, got something you wish to say?" "My sister...is right. I was keeping an eye on Sol as a favor to Absol for keeping my family safe. And...Sol mind controlled all of us," Pinkie admitted, getting the ponies to gasp once more. "I wasn't sure at first...my mind was like a fog when I woke up, but I remember it clearly now. Him gathering us together. Him casting his spell on all of you. The confetti cannon I set off. And then him controlling me. It's all true." All eyes then slowly moved from Pinkie to Absol, who glanced around to see devastation, betrayal and pain in all of the eyes of the ponies. Pain and betrayal felt from having learned that their greatest ruler turned out to be their greatest threat. He quickly moved beside Limestone and turned her to face him. "Limestone, what are you doing?! This is what I was trying to avoid," Absol told her, only to get a less than amused expression in reply. "This pain, this suffering...they've just lost their faith in a pony that-" "A pony that lied to them, experimented on them and then tried to pin everything that he did on the real hero of this world," Limestone replied before she turned to all the ponies, who were looking at her like they had no idea what she would say next. "What's the matter? You want to believe that Spiral was a good pony, that he wasn't responsible for so much pain? You want to believe that Absol brought all this disaster, when in reality he was the one saving you from all of Spiral's plans? You want to pin all this on my Absol? Tough," Limestone spat to the entire crowd, including the princesses. "So get this through your thick skulls. Spiral is Sol, both of them are trash and Absol is the hero that nopony here expect me deserves. Have a great rest of your day." And with that said Limestone turned and walked over to where Pinkie was, leaving the crowd, the princess and the Ambassadors to deal with the bombshell she had dropped on all of them. Marble and Absol followed slowly after her, not sure what she would do next. "Come on Pinkie, with Spiral dead maybe now we can get the rest of our family out of the sphere that he trapped them in. I want to introduce them to Absol before anypony else tries to tell them about him." "Um, okay, but why is that your biggest priority?" Pinkie asked, looking around at all the others who were trying to make sense of what had just happened. "Oh, because Absol's my coltfriend and he's going to be staying with us," Limestone replied deadpan. Pinkie looked from her to Absol, who shrugged in reply, before she shook her head and gave Absol a sympathetic smile. "You weren't wrong. You just can't escape disaster, can you?" "Hey!"