//------------------------------// // 5|1 ◈ A Friend // Story: Splintershard // by TheMajorTechie //------------------------------// "So that's it then? You're stepping down?" "Yes." And without another word, the Alicorn was gone. "Twilight?" Starlight's voice echoed down the narrow stairwell. "Twilight!" "Starlight?" Twilight's voice echoed back up in response. "Twilight, it's been so long, I--" Starlight paused in her descent. "What are you doing down here? Why weren't you there for me all those years ago when you put me and Spike in charge? You even said that you would oversee the transition of po--" "I could ask the same about you. Why don't you come down here?" "Why don't you come up here?" Starlight shot back. "It's the least you can do now. The world's a mess; all you did was talk on the radio." Silence. Slow hoofsteps began to ascend the stairwell, each step punctuated by its own echo. "Twilight?" A dim point of light lit up in the distance, followed by a chilling blast of air. "Starlight." "Yes, Starlight! I'm Starlight Glimmer!" Starlight shouted back. The wind intensified, forcing the mare to brace herself against the wall. The point of light grew closer. Stronger. And then it stopped. "You have some nerve seeking me out." Twilight's voice, audibly weaker now, remained shrouded by shadow. She took a few more tentative steps, emerging into the light of Starlight's own horn. A frown crossed her face. "You. You're not Starlight. You don't have her face." "I... know I don't, but it's still me!" Starlight stepped back as Twilight drew closer. The alicorn's face was deathly pale--whether from the dust, or perhaps the lighting--it made for an unsettling sight. "Or at least, my reincarnation. Sort of. Er--" Twilight sprung forward, locking squinted eyes with the mare. Starlight grit her teeth. Slowly, she took another step backward. "You are her." Twilight sighed. She retracted from her old friend, slumping back against the rotting railings. "Dear Celestia. You died, didn't you?" Starlight gave a nod. "--And Equestria. What became of it?" "No, no." Starlight stamped a hoof. "You answer my questions first. Why did you disappear? The world's in shambles, and your disappearance is the cause. I died trying to defend what was left of the nation, Twilight. What were you doing when war broke out? When little fillies and colts were conscripted against their will to fight for a league of nobles who wanted nothing to do with me?" "Too much." "Wh--too much?" Starlight scoffed. "You were Princess of Equestria for decades! How was a civil war too much for you to intervene in?" "I never wanted to be a ruler." Twilight bowed her head. "Long ago, I was only a student, carrying out an assignment. I didn't expect, let alone believe, that that assignment would lead to my ascendance to the throne. I wanted a normal life. One where I could grow old, start a family, and eventually, pass on." "Well you could've just said that during one of your talk shows, you know. And what about the war?" Twilight remained still, her head still bowed to the floor. "I have spent many years far from Equestria's borders, though in the past few months I have taken residence in these tunnels. I figured, perhaps, if I were to disguise myself upon emerging, then I would remain anonymous. I could roam the streets as I once did as a filly, and then vanish again without anyone questioning my disappearance by daybreak. Coming back in wartime would only serve to further inflame tensions. I am still unsure if I made the correct choice even today." "Well, you apparently didn't. Now you get yourself out of this hole in the ground and take your stance, because out there, a whole new war is about to break out. This time, however, they have my old time travel scroll." Twilight jerked to her hooves. "They what now?" "Finally, something broke her out of her funk," Emily grumbled. Starlight silently hushed the girl. "That scroll I used long ago. The one that for a moment in time, shattered our reality. That scroll. They found a copy." Twilight cringed. "Fine then. You have me." She took a deep breath. "What do you intend to do now? Parade me around and say that I'm not dead?" "I'm... not actually sure." Starlight was the one to avert her gaze this time. "I never expected to find you down here. Emily and I were actually intending to escape the city and flee back to her world." "Emily?" "That's me!" Emily blurted through Starlight's control. "Starlight kinda... sorta... well, reincarnated into my body. And then I got turned into a pony by some weird magical backfire." Twilight blinked. "...Okay." "Soooooo yeah." Emily sat down. "I asked Starlight to let me check out her world, and she did. One thing led to the next, and I ended up getting pulled into all of this. We were so close to destroying the main stockpile of copies of the scrolls, but then we were caught." "And that's why you are now attempting to flee." Twilight nodded. "So you want me to assist in destroying these scrolls, then?" "Mm-hm. Definitely would be nice if you can. I'm gonna let Starlight take over again the rest of the way." Twilight furrowed her brows as the mare before her momentarily lost all bodily function. "Starlight again, I assume?" "For now." Starlight brushed herself off. "I will say that it's a little annoying when Emily forces me aside. But... yes, what she said is more or less the current plan. She wants to go home, and since it was my fault for dragging her into this mess, I'm going to get her out. Find a way to bring back her old body, and from then on I'll just be the little voice in the back of her head." "Right. And you expect me to take power once more after all this is done and over?" "I mean, it'd be nice and all--" Starlight began to turn away from Twilight, taking another step up the stairs. "--but you said that you don't want to rule, and after all that's happened, I don't think it'd be a good idea to anyway. Just help us destroy the scrolls and turn this pony body back into a human, and then you can go back to doing whatever it was you were doing down here." She could hear Twilight beginning to follow her up. "I'm in."