//------------------------------// // Vanishing Act // Story: Last Mare on Earth // by Coyotek4 //------------------------------// The orders were flying in! But that never stopped Pinkie Pie in the past. Still, it seemed as though every pony in Ponyville was celebrating the defeat of the ‘Terrible Trio’, as Tirek, Crysalis, and Cozy Glow came to be known. Barely a week had gone by, and the mood around the town … possibly around the world, for all Pinkie knew … was one of celebration and mirth. And of course, celebrations meant parties. So many parties! It was as if every pony in town were celebrating his or her own birthday, plus that of all their family members and pets. Alas, Pinkie Pie barely knew the meaning of the word ‘no’ … or of ‘restraint’. Accepting one order after another, she soon found herself baking cakes by the half-hour. She knew she had it in her, thinking back to when she performed as much under Starlight’s spell … but now that she was conscious about it all, she learned quickly: it was HARD!!! Thus, it was a welcome respite when familiar company walked into Sugarcube Corner just as she had set aside her twelfth cake of the morning … “Fluttershy! What brings you here this morning? Don’t tell me: you want to schedule a party! And if so, the answer’s ‘YES’! Anything for a friend!” Fluttershy looks around the shop, her eyes widening at all the work put in on the day. “Goodness, you seem super-busy today!” “Yeah, I still gotta prepare cakes, for Lyra, Bon Bon, Rose, Daisy, Amethyst, Octavia, DJ-Pon3, Filthy Rich, Lyra, Aloe, …” “Uh … I think you said ‘Lyra’ twice,” Fluttershy points out. “Yeah, and another for Bon Bon, too. Something about a double-celebration, I dunno. Anyway, what would you like?” “Oh, no, we just came in to say ‘Hi’ and see how you’re doing.” “Oh,” Pinkie replies. “Well, sure, I’m doing fine … but you said ‘we’?” Fluttershy turns her head, quickly noticing she’s now alone. “Discord? …” Instantly, the trickster draconequus appears directly in front of the pegasus, startling her. “Oh, sorry, sorry,” Discord assures. “I just got caught up in something.” Fluttershy shoots a furtive look at Discord. “Now it was your idea to do more walking, after your bout of fatigue running from those meanies last week,” she states. “Yes, yes I know,” he pleads. “But I think this is really something you ought to see. Here:” Discord snaps his fingers … which pass right through themselves with no effect. “Huh?” he says, inspecting his fingers; the color quickly fades from his now-transparent face. “What is it?” Fluttershy starts, before seeing the same. Panic sets in: “Oh dear … not again! Discord, were you trying to force order on yourself again?” “Not at all, I swear!” he urgently replies. “I … I don’t know what’s causing this,” he continues, his image becoming less pronounced. “What should I do?” Fluttershy asks herself, before turning towards the cakes on the shelf. Quickly, she rushes over to the shelf, grabs a cake, and smashes her head inside. “FLUTTERSHY, WHAT THE HAY???” Ignoring Pinkie’s words, Fluttershy grabs another cake and stomps on it, scattering cake and frosting all over the area and making a general mess of the place. “FLUTTERSHY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING???” “I’M TRYING TO SAVE DISCORD!” Fluttershy angrily retorts, icing dripping from her face and mane. She turns to Discord, hoping to see a change in Discord’s condition. “Anything?” “No,” he meekly replies, fading more quickly. “Fluttershy, listen to me … I love …” … “Discord?” “DISCORD???” Tears mix with the frosting in the pegasus’s eyes; she drops to the ground, holds her hooves to her eyes, and sobs. Forgetting entirely about the mess, Pinkie rushes over to console her friend. “Fluttershy, I am so sorry,” she says, tears now coming to her own eyes as she holds her friend in her forelegs. “I … I don’t understand,” Fluttershy says, her words stilted. “He was his … usual self coming here … what could have …” Pinkie hugs her friend. “It’ll be OK,” she attempts to assure. “Maybe … maybe this is just a prank he’s playing on you.” Fluttershy turns to Pinkie. “That would be a horrible thing to do!” she insists. “Well, yeah, I know … but Silly Foals Day is just around the corner. I know I’ve had my moments for that particular holiday. Maybe … I mean, don’t just think that he’s … ‘gone’ gone, right?” Fluttershy shakes her head. “He was scared … really scared. You saw it. That’s not him.” “Well maybe Twilight can think of a better explanation.” No sooner do the words leave Pinkie’s mouth, when Twilight bursts in with Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash. “Thank Celestia I found you two,” Twilight starts, before inspecting the scene. “Uh, what happened here?” “It’s Discord,” Pinkie responds. “We think he may have … vanished?” “You probably could’ve just stopped at ‘It’s Discord’,” Applejack suggests. “THAT’S NOT FUNNY!” Fluttershy angrily declares, shaking off more bits of cake and icing. “Look, there’s no time!” Twilight insists. “We have to get to Canterlot, right now!” “What, now? Why?” Pinkie asks. At that moment, she hears rumblings from outside. “And what’s going on outside?” “Take a quick look, and then I’ll teleport us to the Princess,” Twilight replies. Curious, and seeing Fluttershy regaining her composure, Pinkie walks over to the door and pokes her head out. She sees numerous ponies in the streets, all staring at the sky. She cranes her neck up and … “Twilight? Why are the sun and the moon both up right now?” Apparating just outside the castle, Twilight leads the others up the marble steps and into the castle proper. Security allows them to race past as they gallop down the hallway, finally reaching the large, closed, double-doors. Twilight raps the doors with her hooves. “Princess Celestia? It’s us.” Moments later, the door opens a crack. Celestia pokes her head out. “Come in, but be quick,” she commands. Twilight and the others nod and step inside; the door quickly shuts and locks behind them. “Princess Celestia,” Twilight starts, “what’s going on? Why is the moon up now? And where’s Luna?” Celestia attempts to maintain a stoic façade, but Pinkie and Fluttershy see in her a similar portrait to how Fluttershy looked. “Princess,” Fluttershy asks as she steps forward. “Is Luna … gone?” “Gone?” Rainbow asks incredulously. “That’s ridiculous! She’s a princess!” Immediately, she regrets her words as Celestia breaks down. The others rush to her and hug her in both support and solidarity. A minute passes. Then, Celestia whisks away her tears and addresses the group in a serious, hushed tone. “It came out of nowhere,” she says. “Everything was perfectly normal … and then, Luna started to fade. She felt no pain, no weird sensation … but her image became transparent. Before we could take any real action, she … she just, disappeared. I have no explanation for this.” Celestia turns away and chokes back more tears. Twilight and the others turn to each other, unsure how to proceed, before Celestia again regains her composure and addresses them. “Nopony else knows about this, and we need to keep it that way; the panic that would result is more than Equestria can bear.” “Begging your pardon, Princess Celestia,” Rarity starts, “but seeing the sun and moon in the sky at the same time is already raising some eyebrows.” “I had to,” Celestia insists. “I need to be certain that they’re in the sky and not set, in case …” “In case of what?” Twilight asks. “In case the same fate befalls me,” Celestia finishes. “Whatever happened to my sister, I fear she won’t be the only one.” “She’s not,” Fluttershy responds. “Discord also … disappeared.” “Then it is even worse than I feared. Twilight, I confess that I have no answer to what’s causing this; I need you to research this; try to find a way to stop whatever is causing this.” “Stop? Princess Celestia, you don’t think …” “This won’t stop with my sister. And it won’t stop with Discord. Without any knowledge, there’s no telling who else may be affected by …” Her eyes grow wide with shock as her mouth gapes. The others turn towards the princess’s focus … and watch as Fluttershy turns transparent. “Oh no,” she meekly says, inspecting her appearance. “This can’t be … I don’t want to …” … The others gasp in horror, the others then turning to Twilight. “What do we do?” Applejack pleads. Twilight closes her eyes; in an instant, she and her four friends transport back to Sugarcube Corner. “I’m heading back to the Canterlot Archives,” Twilight informs the others. “Maybe there’s something there that can tell us what’s causing this.” “But what about us?” Rarity asks. “You four … be with your families. Just in case.” Twilight closes her eyes one last time and pops out of site. The scenery passes by as a blur. Voices … screams … all lost in passing as Pinkie Pie sprints off at breakneck speed towards ‘Ponyville Adjacent’. She quickly reaches her sister’s cavern entrance. “MAUD!” she screams as she enters. “PLEASE SAY YOU’RE STILL HERE!” A silhouetted figure steps out, and Pinkie exhales a sigh of relief. “Maud! Thank Celestia you’re still here!” She stops as she eyes the vacant expression of her sister. “Mudbriar is gone,” her sister calmly states. “One minute he was here, and the next he was gone.” “Oh, Maud! …” Pinkie rushes to Maud’s side and embraces her. “I’m so sorry!” “Pinkie Pie, I need you to promise me something.” “Anything!” Maud gently nudges Pinkie aside and walks over to a table holding a small rock and a stick. “Just in case, I need you to watch over Boulder and Twiggy. Promise me you’ll do this.” The request catches Pinkie off-guard, but she nods in acceptance. “Anything for you, Maud. You know that.” Maud focuses on the rock and stick. “From what I saw, Boulder and his friends will be fine. So will Twiggy and his friends. They just need someone to take care of them.” “Sure thing,” Pinkie agrees. “You can count on me.” Maud turns to Pinkie. “It was weird. Mudbriar was here, and then he wasn’t. Just like this,” she continues, noticing a slight change in her appearance. “No … no, it can’t be … not you!” Pinkie’s pleas go unheeded as Maud’s appearance begins to fade. “Don’t cry for me, Pinkie … I’ll always be with you …” … Miles away, the birds could here Pinkie’s cry of anguish … before they, too, disappear. The long, lone walk back to Ponyville was sullen for Pinkie Pie. It was only after she had returned that she saw the full extent of what had happened. The streets were now empty. No more pleas for help or cries for those who were lost. Just quiet … strange, eerie quiet, pervading throughout the town. “Is anypony here?” she cries out. “Anyone? At all?” “Pinkie Pie!” The cry of a young filly causes Pinkie to turn and she sees Sweetie Belle rushing towards her. For a moment, a glimmer of hope returns to the pink pony. “Pinkie Pie, what’s happening? Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, they just vanished! And then Rarity vanished too! Even Opalescence …” Sweetie Belle pauses and gasps upon seeing her forelegs. “Pinkie Pie, you gotta do something! Why are all of us …” … Strangely unfazed by what she had just seen, Pinkie Pie slogs off to Sugarcube Corner. As she opens the door, she hears a loud *POP* and spins around to see a frantic Twilight. “Pinkie Pie, you’re still here!” “TWILIGHT!!!” Pinkie rushes towards Twilight, who puts up a force shield to block her advances. “There’s no time; it seems like the whole world is disappearing! I think I found something, but it’s really a longshot. Anyway … no, no, NO!” Twilight notices her own features disappearing as Pinkie frantically waits for Twilight to continue. “Twilight, hurry!” “Pinkie Pie, listen to me … it’s important that you wait thirty …” … Pinkie Pie opens her mouth, but finds nothing to say. She shakes her head, turns, and enters Sugarcube Corner. Ignoring the mess, she trudges up the stairs to her room, places Boulder and Twiggy on the table, and climbs into bed. “Don’t worry, everypony,” she assures to no one, “I’ll be joining you soon enough.” She closes her eyes and drifts off to sleep … “And yet, here I am,” she tells Sans as she concludes her story.