//------------------------------//
// Epilogue 
// Story: Temporary Rulers 
// by Nineveh Orion 
//------------------------------//

Celestia watched as the armada heaved too over what remained of Canterlot Castle. "I do not know how we will find room for everyone in the city now. Most of the city's citizens do not have a home to return to. They made sure of that at least."

Luna nodded, looking over the throngs of the refugee camps that now spread over much of Canterlot. "Some do not have homes to return to at all, Tia. Ponyville will take years to recover from what I hear. To say nothing of the other cities."

Twilight nodded, directing as best she could, but her heart was not truly in it. "We will rebuild. We always have. We did so after the Legion of Doom. We will do so again. I just..." She sighed sadly.

Celestia put a hoof on her student's shoulder. "You are worried about Pearl? We know that she and her family escaped to the mines along with the rest of the citizens. Ponies claim to have seen her. The traitors would have used her against you if they had found her."

Luna nodded. "Besides. She is too stubborn and hot-headed to let something like this stop her. I have not seen anypony this stubborn since Applejack. I would almost say they are related."

Twilight snorted but smiled nonetheless. "I know. It is part of why I love and admire her so. She will go places when she grows up. I just wish I knew where she was and that she was safe."

"It is the sign of a good ruler when she cares more for her subjects than she does herself. Especially one that is not family," a new voice said, as a large lion joined the trio. He was almost as large as Princess Twilight herself, and his tawny coat stood out next to his golden mane. For how young he was, though, his eyes showed wisdom beyond his years.

Celestia and Luna bowed, while Twilight merely bowed her head. "Khagan. I must thank you once more for your help in ending the siege," Twilight replied formally.

He smiled. "Come now, Princess Twilight. I believe we are past the stage of using our titles. And it was no trouble. An attack on you is an attack on all of us. The traitors paid for it in the end."

Twilight nodded, motioning Celestia and Luna to rise as well. "Not all of them, Temüjin. Maretonia will pay for this treachery. I never fully trusted them. But I had no reason to act on those suspicions until now. I will not ask you to join us a second time. The fleet from Mount Aris will make landfall in three days."

Temüjin nodded before he turned his attention to a certain group of five ponies who were doing what they could to help the refugees. "And what of the five that stood with you at the end? They showed great courage for ones so young. And to stand up to their own mother as two of them did."

Twilight smiled as she too looked at them. "I am not sure. There is a bond there that goes beyond just regular friendship. Bonds I have not felt in centuries. I do not know what it could mean. But I feel safer knowing that they are together."

"And the salvage?" Temüjin pointed to a large pile of scrap off to one side. "Some of it must be of value. Whatever these things were."

Twilight nodded, looking around. There were many such piles scattered all around them, and even more outside the city walls and down in the valley below. Foals were already playing King of the Mountain on many. A sight that made the princess smile. "We will find a use for them. Maybe Sprout can be of some use. His mother designed much of these. He has to know something."

Luna rolled her eyes. She doubted the stallion would be of any use. But she admitted that she was curious about the automatons. They were visually identical to the Dwemer machines in her Elder Scrolls games. Strange, since very few ponies even knew of the series.

Celestia, however, could not see it. "I doubt he will be of much use now. He has not left the Statue Garden since we put the trio there. I understand that one is his mother. But I am afraid for his sanity at this point."

"Sprout has always been like this. We used to be able to help him, but I don't know if we can this time," Sunny said as she joined them, trying and failing to not be in awe at the company she was now keeping. Her eyes were practically filled with stars as she looked up at Twilight with a wide grin.

Twilight only giggled as she smiled. "Hello, my little pony. I here you came to Canterlot to see me? I am so sorry that it had to be in these circumstances."

Sunny nodded happily. "Yes! I've been a huge fan of yours since I went to the School of Friendship. Not just because you're the princess, but because I believe in everything you stand for. Everything your friends stood for. All of my friends do. I wanted to visit with my dad, but he passed away several months ago. This trip was for both of us."

Twilight's ears fell. "Oh. I am so sorry."

Sunny shook her head, her smile slipping somewhat. "It wasn't your fault, princess. Dad lived a happy and full life. He might not have been able to be here, but he was with me in spirit."

Twilight shared a smile with Celestia and Luna. It was a buoy to their spirits to hear this, in a time when they needed all they could get.

"Princess!" A voice called out, causing Twilight's eyes to widen in surprise and joy before a white and crimson blur flew into her and buried their head in her shoulders. Twilight looked down at the Pegasus clinging to her in with a huge smile before she returned the hug.

"Pearl! You're alright. Where have you been young filly?" She choked out, not bothering to hold in her tears.

Pearl shook her head, letting her own tears fall as well. "We got separated from the others and ended up in the Everfree Forest somehow. We could see what was happening to Canterlot. It was so scary. And then the armada showed up, and it was awesome to watch those things burn. We've been trying to get back here ever since."

Twilight nodded, fixing her student's mane, but blinked in confusion at one part of the story. "How did you end up in the Everfree? No paths lead from the mountain down into it, let alone under it and up inside of the forest."

Pearl's parents shook their heads in confusion as well as the two joined the group. "We're not sure, princess. It just seemed to open up for us, and it just seemed right to follow it. The next thing we know, we come out inside the Everfree. It was too dangerous to come back, so we stayed till earlier," Cirrus said.

Stratos nodded. "It was strange, however. Nothing tried to hurt us while we were hidden. I understand we were on the outskirts of the forest, but I would have thought that something would have tried to."

Twilight blinked in surprise. How was that possible? The Everfree Forest had never been hospitable to ponies of any kind. Even Zecora had struggled to live in it, and she had known much of the forest compared to most.

Unless... There were older powers in this world than even the alicorns themselves. Could such a power live in the Everfree? It was not impossible, but why would it take such an interest in Pearl and her family like this? It made no sense.

She shook her head, as she pulled Pearl closer, letting out all of her emotions of the past few days. Everyone, she would never see alive again, everything they had lost. A moment later, she felt Celestia and Luna join her, as did Sunny.

Equestria as they had known it was gone forever. They would rebuild, and life would go on. But it would never be the same again.

"One day. We will make this right. One day, this will be nothing but a bad memory and a footnote in history. This I swear," Twilight whispered.

It was a promise they all swore to. Pinkie Promise.