Star Orchid hadn’t known what to expect when she found her way into the Immortal City. She had imagined a city full of the greatest ponies of her world, filling the sacred realm with their hymns of eternal praise. Maybe Harmony itself would be here, its presence unseen and unknowable, but incredibly powerful.
She had not expected to find a unicorn tied up in her bedroom, banging desperately for escape. Now that unicorn finally rose onto her hooves, massaging aching limbs and occasionally looking up nervously at them. Half of her still expected this pony to react with hostility as the others had, sensing the impurity they brought to this sacred place. She didn’t.
“What time is it?” she asked, her voice gravelly and hoarse. Maybe she’d been yelling into her gag all day. But if so, it obviously hadn’t amounted to a rescue. There are some creatures here, right? Someone has to run the place. Maybe they do increase their population over time, letting the worthiest stay. Her Uncle Cedar might still be here. The unicorn glanced to the window, then took one step towards it and nearly fell over. “I can’t tell through the shutters; my eyes are still adjusting.”
“Not sure,” Star answered. “I don’t know how to measure time in a place like this. It looks like maybe ten or eleven outside?”
“Ten or eleven…” The unicorn slumped onto her haunches, ears flattening. “We’re doomed, then. We can’t stop her from casting the spell. We’re trapped, and we don’t even know it yet.” Then she turned back to Sunset, expression growing grim. “And you’re… surprised to see me. Don’t sugarcoat, Sunset. How long have I been in here?”
She retreated from the stranger’s harsh green eyes, wilting under her gaze. Despite her insistence, Star could see just how badly Sunset wanted to lie. It wouldn’t be hard since there was no way to verify it from inside. They could’ve been a brave rescue team sent inside to stop time from curving back. Of course she’d see the truth once they escaped, but that wouldn’t matter. By then, they wouldn’t need her cooperation.
Sunset shook her head. “I don’t know exactly how long, Sweetie Belle. But I can tell you that it’s been long enough that… nopony you knew outside this bubble is still alive. Except the princess, but you don’t need me to tell you that.”
“Everypony I knew, gone.” Sweetie stared down at her hooves, moisture welling in her eyes. “That idiot Rumble. If he’d listened to me, we wouldn’t be here. It was so obvious what she was doing!” She straightened, her voice lowering to imitate somepony else. “Just be there for the first group of ponies, and I’ll have a new crew sent in tomorrow morning. Just one lie, and Equestria will survive.”
She shook her head, clearing the tears from her face. “A-at least we got that part right. An eternity of… bloody murder, and Equestria survived. I hope it was worth it.
“That’s one word for it,” Windbrisk said. “The princess has been doing her best to exterminate life on this planet. Equestria doesn’t even have a dozen cities left. Every other creature who doesn’t bow to her religion has to live like vagabonds, never knowing when death will fly overhead.”
“Sweet Celestia,” Sweetie croaked, her head sinking into her hooves. She took several unsteady breaths but managed to keep from falling. “I knew it would be bad, but not…” She shivered, looking back to Sunset. “Is that true?”
Sunset spun around, trying to hide her anger at Windbrisk’s callous admission. “Equestria has faced many terrible enemies and survived, Sweetie Belle. Windbrisk is right about what Princess Twilight has become. But you don’t need to change her or do anything else for that matter. My friends and I have a mission, and we need to get back to it.” She nodded towards Star Orchid. “Her spell has to be under the ruined Castle of Friendship. We’ll probably have to fight our way in, he’ll know our target.”
“You’ll never make it!” Sweetie said, surging between them before Star could even open her mouth. “Princess Twilight, she knew that the ones who visited might include monsters trying to destroy her work. It had to be strong enough. But I helped build it. I know how to get through without the spells or the guards finding you and throwing you in with the others.”
Star could see from Windbrisk’s face that he was going to argue. He wouldn’t trust this stranger, discovered all-too-conveniently right when they needed her. Could Harmony be toying with them, leading them to destruction for their trespass? Star couldn’t start second-guessing herself now, though. If she started on that road, she might spend the rest of her life wondering how every little coincidence was actually Harmony punishing her for turning against Equestria’s government.
“Sunset, do you trust this pony?”
Sunset nodded without hesitation. “Not all my memories are clear, but the older ones are strongest. When I was alive, her and the other Crusaders helped hold Equestria together during the Umbra. If she says she’s on our side, then she’s on our side.”
Windbrisk shook his head, but he didn’t argue. “Guess we don’t have the luxury of picking our allies on this one,” he muttered. “So know this, Sweetie Belle. If Twilight continues to rule, my race has no future. I have no ill-will against ponies generally—but if you’re fighting for her, I will do whatever is necessary to keep my family safe.”
“I, uh…” Sweetie wilted, as any Concord pony might’ve done when exposed to such harsh language. But maybe she was stronger, because in the end she nodded. “I understand what it’s like to know your world is ending, and to be willing to do anything to protect them. The princess tricked me and my friends. I’ve spent centuries… tied to a bed.” She touched one hoof to the dent she made in the wall, shivering all over. “If you’re gonna destroy it, then I’m on your side. We can worry about everything else once that’s done.”
Jamie lay on the floor of the black cavern, utterly overwhelmed by what she had seen and felt. But where the little piece of music she shared had felt almost as though she was listening to it again, this was different. She could still see distant Equestria, in a world that she barely knew. But the memory of her own past was only a faint touch on her mind.
Jamie saw herself in a world of stone and dust, listening as the civilization she had always known burned above her. Every few minutes brought the revelation of another city destroyed, or an evacuation ship discovered lifeless in orbit.
They’re going to shoot the platforms down. They’ll crash into one another and make Earth impossible to escape.
Then came the Kessler chain-reaction, as smaller pieces smashed into larger ones. Soon the entire sky was an impassable prison. A part of her wondered if the universe would be better off that way. Given everything humanity had done, maybe someone else should inherit the stars.
With the world melting above them and the deaths mounting, Jamie got into line with everyone else. While she switched to a diet of pre-cryo fluid—swapping out the radioisotopes in her body for atoms that wouldn’t cook her alive over the thousands of years asleep—she listened to a radio as one by one their colonies stopped broadcasting.
The sky-platform on Venus was the last to go, with terrified screams of an all-consuming gray bio slime melting every person aboard as it swept through the ducts—then there was quiet. She didn’t know anyone in the shelter, and most of them didn’t speak English very well anyway. She curled up in her quarters sipping banana-flavored slime and pissing out radiation for almost two solid months.
She sat up suddenly, her limbs back under her control. She kicked and squirmed, and nearly struck Solar Lens right in the face. He backed away, dropping the cup he was levitating. He caught it before it shattered. “Are you alright, Lady Empathy? Are the memories gone?”
Her eyes settled on him, the only distinct shape in a world of featureless black. “There were humans,” she stammered. Her own memory felt pale and shallow compared to what she’d seen through Flurry’s eyes. “You’ve known about them for that long?”
Solar Lens barely reacted to her words. He offered the glass, and she took it. Normally she’d be more skeptical of a vaguely tea-like smell, but just now her throat ached. She swallowed the whole thing in a few sips and didn’t even care about the heat. “That isn’t the common name. Most creatures call them ‘Devourers’ after what they did to Equestria. And… presumably the world before us, though none could explain how.”
He gestured over his shoulder, back the way he’d come. “I won’t be burdening you with more than one memory on your first night. Even the body of an Alicorn has its limits, I’m sure. Come with me.”
She did, even managing to canter as they left the memory room behind. She had to get out, before they could trap her in the past all over again. “Have you seen that memory before?” she asked. “The one I was meant to see?”
“I… can’t say, precisely,” Solar answered, quickly catching up and matching her pace. “Most common creatures cannot endure too long in the Well without their ego dissolving. Yes, that is exactly as awful as it sounds. I have seen many of the memories stored in this well, but not all. Even as the Sacred Dean of the Well, with access to all its secrets, I must be selective with what I see, and when.”
That didn’t show humans as monsters, Solar Lens. Was that intentional, or do you just not know what you’re doing with me?
“I could escort you back to your quarters in the castle, but I believe the princess would be unhappy if I did. She’ll want you spending as much of your time as possible studying here. We do have a single guest-wing, suitable for visiting dignitaries. Hopefully you can be satisfied with what little the Arcanum Well has to offer.”
Jamie would be happy with a slab of cement and a blanket to sleep on, she felt so exhausted. How could she get more from him without giving away her sympathy to the human side?
“The memories were of another Alicorn,” she said, speaking as slowly and delicately as she could. “It must be a very old memory, since ponies seem convinced there can’t ever be another Alicorn.”
Solar Lens nodded. “The princess wishes for you to learn to control your magic as quickly as possible. There may be wiser, more gradual ways to accomplish that task. But all I know is that Alicorns have the magic of all pony tribes. Showing you each one in turn would take too long. Hopefully another Alicorn’s perspective is not too jarring for you.”
They breached the top layer of stone, and suddenly there were ponies all around again, each one hard at work on their compositions. They scattered from in front of them, occasionally bowing fearfully at her first. Some were too afraid to do even that. “What happened to Flurry Heart? Where is she now?”
The unicorn’s expression was unreadable. Maybe he hadn’t even recognized the name, though Jamie had a hard time believing that. This creature had so much obvious ambition, no way he could just let it all go, and abandon all the knowledge he guarded. “If the Well continues to select memories for you along this track, then I suspect you will eventually know the answer,” he said.
Moments later they arrived at a door, as unmarked as all the others. He levitated it open for her, exposing a plain-looking bedroom. At least it wasn’t a prison cell. “Sleep while you can,” he said. “The first memory shared can sometimes feel unbearable, but it will pass. The princess insists that your Alicorn mind will weather the storm in the way my ponies could not. You should be ready for your next trip tomorrow.”
Jamie nodded, hurrying inside. “Just have a real breakfast waiting for me before I go in. More than a little tea.”
Jamie slept deeply, so deep that she didn’t dream. Maybe that part of her mind had been completely ground down by her time viewing the memories of the past. Whatever the reasons, Solar Lens was there when she woke, with an oversized plate of hay crackers and cheese.
“It isn’t much,” he said apologetically as soon as she’d finished. “I know you must be starving. But if you go under with too much digesting, you can regurgitate while unconscious and drown on it. The hunger will fade once you are viewing a memory—so long as the pony wasn’t hungry then.”
Jamie didn’t ask for more to eat after that.
Solar didn’t let her delay, however much she might fear going back into the Well. Some other part of her was curious—how had things gone so completely out of control after such a polite first meeting? Flurry Heart had seen exactly what Jamie herself would’ve wanted the ponies to know—humans were strange, and they might be desperate to survive—but that didn’t mean they had to be enemies.
“Remember the regent’s instructions,” Solar said, not crossing the threshold to the dark space this time. “She ordered us to prepare you to fight. I am sorry for the things you have to see. The same memories that would prepare you to use your Alicorn magic will scar you. I’ve seen some of them.”
Jamie shivered. “You sure you couldn’t just… show me a classroom? If time gets funny, then I could watch years of classes. Wouldn’t that be easier?”
“No,” he said. “The ancient Flurry was much as you probably feel now. Suddenly in possession of outrageous power, without knowing how to use it. Her mastery will be yours, in a way that no number of years in unicorn school could be.”
The weight came on her so fast, the Well’s tendrils extending up unseen through the floor, wrapping around her legs and binding her there. She wouldn’t be able to argue for much longer. Jamie did her best to lay down into a comfortable position, but couldn’t be sure how far she got before the whole world faded again.
Sweetie wasn’t lying about understanding the castle defenses—or if she was, she’d memorized a fake to such an amazing level of detail that even Windbrisk was convinced by her presentation. It was a good thing they had her, because otherwise their mission certainly would’ve ended in death. Killing those who had been in the loop from the beginning would do nothing, assuming it started over again. But if one of them died here, they wouldn’t be coming back.
“She really didn’t want anyone breaking in,” Sunset muttered as soon as Sweetie had finished her presentation. She’d taken up a station at the whiteboard in the old sewing room, using pins and bits of cloth to demonstrate the castle’s various defenses. “I’m not sure how we could stand a chance. Magical locks and making the space teleport-proof is one thing… but a spirit patrolling the halls? We could never be fast enough to avoid being seen! One look, and we’ll all be dead.”
“Ordinarily, yes,” Sweetie said, showing her first hints of a smile at their reaction. That looked like real pride on her face. But if she had really helped build it, Star could understand why. “But there are ways to distract it. The princess didn’t give me power over it… because she planned on imprisoning me here to be complicit in the murder of every creature she sent. But I don’t need to know how to shut it down to get it out of our way. See, that spirit will search for anything it thinks is a risk to Equestria. Ponies breaking into Twilight’s Crystal Core, they’re obviously a very serious threat. If you want to get past it, all you have to do is give it something bigger.”
“Something bigger,” Windbrisk repeated. “The Core keeps her flying city in the air, it’s the threat she holds over the heads of creatures from Yakyakistan to the Dragon Wastes. There’s nothing more important to her than that spell.”
The old unicorn mare said nothing at first, looking between them slowly. “I wouldn’t break a promise normally, but… it’s been so long that it probably doesn’t matter. But before I do, I wanna know what you’re fighting for. What will you do to Equestria if you win?”
Star answered before the others could. “No more evil princess ruling over everyone. No more destroying the settlements of creatures on the ground. No more executing creatures because they don’t believe in Harmony. Disband the Unification Army, and make peace with the survivors.”
“You’re not lying to me,” Sweetie muttered. “Or if you are, I can’t tell. So I hope you’re not lying, because if you are, a lot of ponies are going to get hurt. But it’s been so long that it’s probably out of date anyway. Maybe it doesn’t even matter.”
“Go on,” Sunset said, gesturing impatiently. “Sweetie, we don’t have much time. If the sun comes up and we’re still in here, I don’t know what happens. Maybe we get shot out the back of the spell, maybe we just get erased. Either way, you get tied up again, and you forget this conversation ever happened. Just tell us.”
“The one we’re fighting, the Governing Intelligence… it’s here.” She pointed out a window, looking confident. “The princess is so convinced that Ponyville is sacred and perfect she couldn’t see it. I swore I’d never say… but I think Dawn would understand. It sounds like stopping Twilight is the only way to save the world.”
“Alldeath is… in the Immortal City?” Star Orchid asked, utterly dumbfounded. It was about the most absurd thing that Sweetie Belle could’ve said. The greatest evil in all the world was hiding in their most sacred place.
If that’s true, then it’s all lies. All of it.
Sunset Shimmer didn’t even blink. Not that it would’ve been a fair comparison since she never did. “I thought the Governing Intelligence was destroyed. We won the war, that’s why Equestria survived. The Umbra stopped.”
Sweetie shrugged. “From where I’m standing, the Umbra was yesterday, and building this shield was a last, desperate defense against it. If it ended, then… I guess you know I’m telling the truth.”
“I wish we could talk to Landon,” Windbrisk muttered, pawing weakly at the ground. “She’d know what to do about that. I know the humans think the Governing Intelligence is gone too. If it isn’t, does that mean we’ll fight again?”
“No,” Star finally said, recovering. “I mean… two of you were there when the war started, so maybe you think differently. But I don’t think either side has much reason to keep fighting. So many creatures have died that I feel like both sides will want to stop. Just go home and live peacefully, how hard can it be?”
“I can’t decide what you do,” Sweetie Belle said, turning away from the whiteboard. “I don’t even know you. But if you want to try and break in, we don’t have much time. If you’re going to give up and run… I’ll come with you. I’m not going to spend the rest of eternity living today over and over.” She rubbed her sore legs again, wincing. “I guess it’s… probably a good thing I can’t remember anything.”
They’re all looking at me, Star realized. Was she really the leader here? The human had acted like she was in charge, but she wasn’t here anymore. “We’re going,” she said. “The princess will notice that we tried to get into the Sacred City. She’ll strengthen the defenses so much that we’ll never get another chance. How do we lure out the castle’s protection?”
“First we have to get through the guards,” Sweetie said. “But you look like good fighters, that shouldn’t be hard. All we need after that is some evidence pointing towards the shelter. The castle’s spells won’t care that we broke in if we have something much more dangerous to distract them. I don’t know how long it will take for them to reach the shelter and destroy it—but if we shut the core down before that happens, then we save the shelter too.”
“Sure, evidence,” Sunset said, her voice drawling. “All we need is proof of something that would’ve changed Equestria’s whole future, that only you know, and we only have a few hours to get it. Simple!”
The unicorn was undaunted. “Princess Flurry Heart went inside—she was better friends with Dawn than I ever was. Most of what she saved blew up when the Castle of Friendship was destroyed. But not everything. She kept a few other artifacts tucked away somewhere secret, but I know where they are. Follow me.”
There was no time for more argument, particularly with how far away the “artifacts” had supposedly been stashed. Star followed at the back of the group, frequently looking back towards the Friendship School for any signs of more guards being sent for them. There was plenty of movement on the border, and an oppressive weight on the air like the worst dark magic, but none came towards them.
They’re harvesting those people, she thought. The latest group of pilgrims to the Immortal City are dying right now. Maybe the moral thing to do was turn around and fight, even if they would be easily overpowered and killed. She resisted the impulse. We’re saving all Equestria this way. If we win, we don’t just save one group, we save all the groups that haven’t come yet.
“I know this way, unicorn,” Windbrisk said, after they’d been walking almost half an hour. “We’re headed back out of town. The farm is out here.”
“Sweet Apple Acres,” Sweetie Belle agreed, not skipping a beat. “Princess Flurry was younger than the Crusaders and I, but she joined the Ponyville chapter when she was little. Once she grew up and got her mark, she stayed closely involved with the Crusaders. I bet you all the bits in Manehattan that she used our treehouse to stash anything she wanted to hide. Out here only her real friends would know where it was, and no royal princesses.”
It was a plausible-enough theory that Windbrisk didn’t object, though he did glance nervously back up the road towards the still-lit farmhouse. Had that pony sent warnings ahead?
Apparently Sunset was thinking along the same lines because she nudged Sweetie in the shoulder. “What about Apple Bloom?” she whispered. “She’s in here too. Is she helping with the…” Apparently even the former soldier couldn’t manage “institutional mass murder.”
Sweetie sighed. “Apple Bloom didn’t do well after her sister died in the Battle of Desolation. You’ve probably seen it yourself, Sunset. Eventually a creature has seen too many awful things, and the last bits of hope are squeezed out. They’re not dead, but they’re not really alive after that.”
Sunset nodded gravely. “Too many times. I think creatures like that would’ve made Twilight’s first recruits for… what happened to me.” She shook her saddlebags weakly, expression grim. “Never know fear again, all the pain and regret and guilt gone. All the joy and love and beauty too, but you know a sales pitch. The downsides are always in the fine print.”
They walked in silence through the trees. For a field surrounded by a constant stream of dark magic, they seemed to be in good health. They might even be ready to harvest soon—but of course that moment would never come. Those ripening apples would stay on the trees forever unless they succeeded.
Finally they reached their destination. Tucked into the border of an apple field with pears, a sturdy treehouse had been built. Where once it might’ve been rickety and unsteady, thick wooden beams anchored it to the ground at various points, holding up its several additions and attachments.
A few ponies could probably live here full time if they wanted. “So where will we find what we’re looking for?”
“I’ll go in,” Sweetie said. “Our magic wasn’t as advanced as Twilight’s, but… if any of it’s left, it will give everything up to me instead of hiding it. Just wait here.”
She climbed uneasily up the ramp. For a unicorn she might only be middle-aged, but being tightly bound and fighting to escape all day had obviously not been easy on her body. But she made it, vanishing through the little door. A few minutes later and she returned, levitating a cloth bundle in front of her.
“You found what we were looking for?” Windbrisk asked, hovering until he was at eye level with her, watching her come down. “Will the sentry believe our evidence?”
Sweetie said nothing until she’d made it down the ramp, opening the old blue cloth. There was almost nothing inside, just a thin glass rectangle with a wider section at one end.
There’s no magical resonance on that. If I don’t know what it is, how will a sentry spirit?
“It’s all gone,” Sweetie muttered, defeated. “This is it.”
“What is that?” Windbrisk asked, lifting it with a claw. At his touch, the little glass object became an image.
SYSTEM IDENTIFICATION
DR. DAWN HARDY
EMERGENCY SHELTER 004.12-PSI
FULL CUSTODIAL ACCESS
“You said the Governing Intelligence was here?” Star Orchid asked, levitating the little object up towards her and inspecting it. A human face was captured there—a smiling peach-colored woman with a mess of hair down her back. Certainly not some ancient buried monster that wanted to slaughter everything good in the world. “Part of the Immortal City?”
Sweetie nodded. “I know where. My sister was the reason we found it, and Starlight told me.”
“Then take us,” Star said, tucking the key away. “If we need proof, we’ll get it ourselves.”