Chapter 10: A Human Heart
When the dust from the collapsed castle finally settled, it was as if there had never been a castle at all, with only the stone rubble piling up over the beach all the way into the ocean being the only evidence that it had ever been there. And flying over it all were the four alicorns, returned to the world once again.
Twilight looked at her fellow alicorns as and joyful tears crept up in her eyes. “Princes Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance. You’re really back.”
Celestia, the eldest and grandest of the alicorns, was truly a sight to behold. With a coat of the purest white and a long multi-colored mane and tail that sparkled and moved about as if caught in a light breeze, she had all the elegance and grace of a goddess. She offered her former student a smile before pointing her horn to the sky and summoning forth her power.
Luna, the youngest sister of Celestia, and second eldest of the two sisters, was the polar opposite of Celestia, though just as grand. With a coat of dark grayish blue and a dark sapphire blue mane and tail that slowly sparkled and moved about in the non-existent wind, she too aimed her horn at the sky, and it glowed with magic.
Slowly, the moon started to descend from the sky. And in its place, the sun began to rise for the first time in months. As the light from the sun fell across the land, it was as if a curse had been lifted, banishing all the evil that had taken over it for far too long.
Once she finished raising the sun, Celestia returned her attention to her former student. “Well done, Twilight. I never lost faith in you. Not even when things looked their darkest.”
“We are most pleased with you as well, Twilight Sparkle!” Luna announced, accidentally reverting to her overbearing royal voice like she tended to do at times.
The last alicorn, Cadance, while less majesty, was just as grand. Mostly pink with purple tipped wings and a long multi-colored mane and tail that curled at the ends, she flew over to Twilight’s side and nuzzled her affectionately. “I’m so proud of you, Twilight.”
So many feelings were going through Twilight right now, from the greatest of joy to the deepest of sorrow, that she didn’t know how to feel right now, and the two conflicting emotions almost seemed to be canceling each other out. But one thing was for sure, she was very happy to see her fellow alicorns again.
“Princesses,” she with tears of joy and sadness in her eyes, “I’m so happy to see you again.”
“Hmm,” Celestia said almost knowingly, “I don’t think it’s us you should be seeing right now.”
She looked down to the three humans below. With the vanishing of the black crystals, Flash now lay down the beach with Sunset and Micro Chips by his side. Twilight looked down at them as well before looking back up at the eldest alicorn, feeling the need to explain herself. “Princess Celestia, I-”
“Whatever you have to say to us can wait,” she told her. “There is somewhere else you need to be right now. Go to your friends. We will speak on things later. And something tells me that you will have a surprise waiting for you when you return home.”
Then she, Luna, and Cadance flew off into the morning light in the direction Twilight knew Equestria to be in. But Celestia was right, she had other matters to attend to, and she flew down to the others.
Sunset was cradling Flash’s head in her lap, openly weeping over his still form. She looked up as Twilight landed beside her, and smiled slightly as she reached out for her.
“You came back,” she said as Twilight nuzzled her hand.
“I don’t know what to do for him,” Micro Chips told her worriedly as he looked down at Flash. “He’s dying, and I don’t know how to save him.”
Twilight looked down at Flash. Closing her eyes, she let her magic flow over him for a few moments. Then she spread her wings and took off, heading for higher ground to put some distance between herself and them.
Flash began to stir, and his eyes slowly crept open. He saw Sunset and Micro Chips kneeing by his side, and he slowly sat up. “What’s going? What happened? The last thing I remember, I was…” He held up his hand as the morning light shined in his eyes. “Wait, is that the sun? But then that means… Where’s Twilight?”
Micro Chips pointed up at the alicorn. She looked down at them with a smile on her face and tears in her eyes. “I’ll remember you,” she promised Flash, and herself. “I’ll remember.”
The words were said and felt like physical arrows piercing the hearts of those that heard them. Then Twilight spread her wings, as if showing off all her glory one last time, before teleporting away. And mere moments after she disappeared, Flash forced himself to get up and made a run for where she last stood.
“Wait,” Sunset called after him, “where are you going?”
He skidded to a halt and turned back to her. “Where do you think? I’m going after her. I know we can’t be together, but I still want to be with her. I can be content with that much.”
“You can’t, Flash,” Micro Chips told him. He took a deep breath, hating himself for what he was about to say, but knowing it needed to be said. “Just as she has her duties as the Princess of Friendship, you have your own duties. You’re the captain of the royal guard, but you’re also so much more than that. I know of all the things you’ve been doing for the people. You’re a hero to them, a leader even. They need you now more than ever. With Tirek gone and the kingdom without a ruler, they now have a real chance to start over and live happy lives in a land that’s finally been purged of evil. Twilight knows this as well. That’s why she fled, because if she stayed, she wouldn’t be able to bring herself to leave you, and she knows you wouldn’t either.”
A tormented look crossed Flash’s face as he looked back at the spot Twilight had been before she had disappeared. He felt torn, but he also knew that Micro Chips was right, about everything, from the way he felt about Twilight to his duty to the people. He had been trying to do good for so long while under Tirek’s rule. Now that the centaur was gone, he could actually do some real good, make a real difference rather than simply making their lives slightly less miserable.
Fists clenching at his side, Flash forced himself to turn away. He took a deep breath as he fought down the heartache and gave Micro Chips a nod. “Yes, you’re right. I hate that you’re right, but you’re right. I have a duty to the people.” He looked back to where Twilight had once stood. “We both do.”
Feeling truly sorry for both of them, and that she hadn’t tried to prevent this heartbreak, Sunset hugged herself and hung her head. “I’m so sorry, Flash.”
He shook his head. “Don’t be. I wouldn’t trade away what I feel for her for anything in the world. I just… I feel like there’s so much I still wanted to tell her. I just wish I could tell her how much she really means to me, to let her know what’s truly in my heart.”
Micro Chips walked up to him and placed his hands on his shoulder. “She knows, Flash, for it’s in her heart too. And she will remember your heart for all time. She is an alicorn, as eternal and as ageless as time itself. They say you never forget your first love, and it’s true, for it’s the first time your heart and mind are open to such feelings as you experience them for the first time. You’ve been loved by an alicorn princess, and she will remember you and your heart when humans are gone and books are written by rabbits. Out of all the magical creatures in this world that ever have been and ever will be, she is the only one who will truly know the human heart. She will always remember you and what you two meant to each other, forever. Take solace in that.”
Flash nodded grimly. “I’ll try,” he said, looking back to where Twilight had been one last time. “I’ll try.”
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Flash knew he had a lot of work to do, but he still saw fit to provide Micro Chips and Sunset with some transportation for their travels. And so he had some horses brought to them with plenty of supplies. And so they prepared to go their separate ways.
“Make sure to come back and visit soon,” he told them. “I’m quite eager to seeing the future artwork of the famous Flanksy, and read any books written by the soon to be world famous scholar of magic.”
Sunset gave him a smile and playfully punched his shoulder. “Will do. And I expect to see this kingdom thriving when I return, otherwise I’m going to have to spread my street art everywhere to make it less gloomy.”
Micro Chips pushed his glasses further up his face. “And I will be sure to mention you both in my books, and send you and autographed copy.”
Flash smiled. “It’s a promise. And I’ll look forward to it.” He gave them a look great fondness. “You know, after everything we’ve been through together, I feel like you guys have become my best friends.”
Sunset chuckled. “Aww, same here. And don’t worry, I’ll be sure to write, so keep an eye out for my letters.”
“I’ll be looking forward to them,” Flash told her as he climbed up onto his horse. “Goodbye, my friends. I wish you luck on your travels.”
With that, he rode off, heading for the nearest village to do whatever he could to help the people. Sunset and Micro Chips watched until he was out of sight before they finished preparing their own horses as they got ready to head out.
“So,” said Micro Chips as he climbed onto his horse, “if you don’t have any specific destination in mind, I wouldn’t mind the company.”
“Hmm,” Sunset muttered as she pretended to think about it. “I guess that will be fine, at least until we reach the end of Tirek’s kingdom. But don’t get any funny ideas.”
He chuckled. “Wouldn’t dream of it, Miss Shimmer.”
Taking the reins, they began heading down the path that would take them out of Tirek’s kingdom. They were silent for most of the ride as they thought back to everything that happened the past few months, and how it had changed both their lives.
It had only been a few days since the alicorns had returned to the world, and everything seemed to be back to normal. The sun and moon rose and set like they were supposed to. Even the land seemed to be slowly healing from the evil Tirek and Sombra had brought upon it, and the now fully powered Crystal Heart helped speed that along. Yes, the natural order was in motion again, and harmony and balance had been restored to the world
Later that night, shortly after Micro Chips and Sunset had set up camp and settled in for the night, Twilight returned to them. Sunset had already gone to sleep, and so Micro Chips went to greet her.
“I’m glad you came back,” he told her happily. “We didn’t really get to say a proper goodbye.”
Twilight gave him a small nod. “I know, and I’m sorry for leaving so suddenly, but I didn’t think I would have been able to say goodbye if I hadn’t left when I did. But I didn’t want to leave things the way I did between us after everything we’ve been through.”
He shook his head. “No, it’s fine. I totally get it. That finally battle with Sombra was really something though. You really went through a lot.”
She chuckled. “We all did. Although I’m sorry your magic device got destroyed. I guess unleashing the rest of the magic inside it caused it to burn out or something.”
But Micro Chips just waved this off. “Ah, it’s fine. I’ve had time to think about it, and I think that creatures that don’t have magic shouldn’t have it for a reason. I still have every intention of continuing my studies, but I plan to do it strictly as a magic scholar, not a magic user.”
Twilight almost looked relieved at that. “Well, as long as you’re happy, then I’m glad.”
The smile slowly fell from Micro Chips’ face as he gave her a concerned look. “And you? How are you doing?”
A sigh escaped Twilight. “To be honest, I’m little afraid to go home. I’ve been human, and a part of me is human still, and always will be. I’ll never go back to the way I was before.”
“That’s not exactly what I meant.”
Twilight closed her eyes. “Yes, I know what you meant. And I would be lying if I said it didn’t hurt. I know that what happened was for the best, but still, I regret it. I never thought I would ever regret making the right decision, not when it came to friendship, and especially not when the fate of the world was at stake, but I do. I regret the life and love I could have had, and the future that could have been if I had been able to stay a mortal human girl and live out my life with the man I love.”
Micro Chips cocked his head to the side. “Do alicorns not love?”
She gave a sad sigh. “Of course, we alicorns are just as capable of feeling love as anycreature, but no other has ever been human, and thus understands the human heart like I do, and I am forever changed by it.”
Micro Chips winced as if he had been physically struck by her words. “I am so sorry, Twilight. I did something horrible to you when I turned you human. I never intended for you to experience such pain and heartbreak. Please forgive me.”
But Twilight just gave him a reassuring smile and shook her head. “Don’t apologize. In the end, your actions helped me in saving the other alicorns, and I could never have any regrets about that. Except for the one, for what could have been.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Sunset had woken up and was making her way over to them. Twilight gave her a smile before giving them both a hug.
“I guess this is goodbye for real then,” she told them both. “I’ll try and go home to pick up where I left off. Farewell, my friends. I will miss you both.”
Having said her goodbyes, she spread her wings and took to the air. She circled overhead a few times as Sunset and Micro Chips waved to her before heading back towards Equestria.
As she flew along, she surveyed the land beneath her. With the sun’s return, the land was recovering after having been in the dark for so long. Many of the more dangerous creatures had also crawled back into the darkness from whence they came. She could also see that Celestia, Luna, and Cadance had used their own magic to help heal the land on their way back to Equestria as well, and that healing would spread to the rest of the world.
Eventually, the familiar sight of the Everfree Forest came into view. Her journey was almost over. She was glad for it. These passing months had been very long ones, where she had experienced so many things, almost more than she had during all her time in Equestria. Now she was ready for a good long rest.
But as she approached her home, she saw something new and quite unexpected. Her simple little house was gone, and in its place was a grand crystal castle. Where had that come from? Was it somehow born from the magic she had unleashed from the Crystal Heart?
Coming in for a landing, she set down in front of the castle. The doors magically opened for her to grant her admittance, letting her know without a doubt that this was indeed her castle. Celestia had said that there would be a surprise waiting for her when she got back, and it seemed like this was it.
She wandered how long it would be before her pony friends came to visit. Knowing them, they would probably come knocking the moment they found out she was home. And when they did, she would have quite the story to tell them. But for now, she just wanted to rest for a little while and give her poor brain and heart a break from everything that had happened. She could figure out where her life would go from there after she woke up.
And so, still feeling hesitant and uncertain, she stepped through the entrance to her new castle, and the doors shut behind her with a heavy bang.
THE END