//------------------------------// // Chapter 12 - Long Awaited Reunions // Story: For Whom the Twilight Falls // by iAmSiNnEr //------------------------------// For Whom the Twilight Falls Cowritten by iAmSiNnEr and Meowofy Chapter 12 - Long Awaited Reunions     Celestia landed on the hill overlooking Ponyville, even as Luna teleported to her side with Chrysalis. She watched as the dragons landed in the grassy field just in front of the hill, the purple one — Spike, she reminded herself, thudding down with a thump.     Flurry was next, slowly gliding down even as her eyes never left Spike. Then next was Princess Sunset with Radiant, the two keeping their distance even as Spike’s emerald eyes locked onto the pair. He snorted, smoke trailing out of his nostrils as he turned to the last arrival, Dragon Lord Ember. Ember gave a small nod, still holding the scepter in her claws.     Spike trudged over, folding in his leathery wings as he did so. The resulting gust of wind as he folded his wings in ruffled Celestia’s mane, messing it up a little. She winced, but stood her ground as the dragon slowly made his way over.     Flurry was the first to speak.     “Spike,” she said softly. “It’s been a while.”     A derisive snort, but Spike said nothing.     She trotted up to him, the dragon dwarfing her with his size, but she lay a hoof on his snout. Spike stiffened, but he didn’t pull away, but relaxed slowly and closed his eyes.     “The Crystal Empire misses its brave Knight,” she whispered. “Oh, how have I missed you, Spike.”     His eyes flickered open. He blinked once, twice, then finally spoke, a deep gravelly tone.     “I still remember when you were just a filly,” he murmured. “When all we had to worry about was you blasting the library’s bookshelves down or you blowing holes in the ceiling. When T-” he hesitated. “When T-twilight was teaching you magic.”     Flurry leaned against Spike as he settled himself into a lying down position, his eyes still focused on the ex-Empress. Celestia was quiet as she listened, as she watched with Luna. It was not their place to interfere.     “I m-miss Mom,” her voice was wracked with grief. “I m-miss Aunt Twilight. And then when you l-left…”     “You lost your last friend,” Spike whispered. “I’m sorry, Flurry. Sorry I never came back to check in. Sorry I never came back just to say hello, or to drop by for dinner.”     Contrary to his intimidating size, Spike actually sounded kind. Warm. Understanding. Luna settled into a lying down position too, leaning against her sister.     Flurry smiled bitterly. “Why did you leave?”     “Four hundred years without Twilight was a long time to be without someone I loved with all my heart,” he said regretfully. “I ached for someone to fill the hole in my heart.”     Flurry’s ears perked up. “You finally found someone else?”     “You’re looking right at her,” he chuckled, a deep rolling sound. “Flurry, meet my mate. Her name is Ember. You might know her.”     Flurry’s eyes widened. “You’re dating Ember?”     “Not dating,” Spike corrected gently even as Ember rolled her eyes from where she lay. “We’ve been together for six centuries. We’re officially a ‘thing’. Four eggs. Two hatched. And then on the third century, I went into a deep slumber. I only woke two weeks ago. I suppose Harmony wanted me to be here when…you know.”     “Congratulations!” Flurry said genuinely. “I’m happy for you.”     A rueful chuckle. “I suppose I wanted to find some happiness for myself. That I wanted to be away from it all.” He sighed. “I suppose it’s time to address the elephant in the room. Or dragon in the field, in this case.”     Flurry sat up. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” she whispered. “No one would blame you.”     Spike shook his head slowly. “What kind of Friendship Advisor would I be if I did that? No, I think we need to talk.” As he said that, he looked at Sunset.     “Yes, Spike,” Sunset said heavily as she trotted forward. “We do need to talk.”     His eyes surveyed Sunset as she trotted up to him. “You’ve grown taller. Last I remember, you were still at average pony height. Now you’re slightly taller than Cadance was.”     Flurry gave a wince at her mother’s name.     “Sorry, Flurry.” Spike stared at Sunset. “Did you repair the rooms I tore down?”     “I did,” Sunset replied. “But I left the claw marks. As a reminder of my failure.”     A snort. “You were always one to take everything upon yourself.” He tapped a claw on her chest. “Your heart’s there, but it’s misguided.”     “Equestria has missed its Friendship Advisor, Spike,” Sunset said as she lay down beside Flurry. “The role hasn’t been filled since you…left.”     “You mean since I threw a temper tantrum at you and burned down half the West Wing?” Spike smiled ruefully. “I take responsibility for that.”     Sunset shook her head. “I blame myself, and myself entirely. You know, I half expected you to come back and yell at me. To breath fire on me. Or to attack me. All of which are justified.”     Spike shook his head slowly. “I had six hundred years to reflect on our parting. After the first hundred of me raging at the world, blaming you for everything that had happened, I realized that all of us shared the blame. Twilight was a kind pony — strong and protective of us all. She alone held her burden for decades before she snapped, and when she did, it was because she felt neglected. You were not the only one who made a mistake, all of us did. I was too preoccupied with my own life that I never saw it coming. I am to blame too.”     Sunset gave a small pause.     Her eyes seemed to search for something in Spike’s before she put a hoof on his snout.      “I’m sorry, Spike,” she whispered. “Could you ever forgive me?”     A nod from the dragon, and then the tears flowed freely.     “Oh, c’mere, you,” Spike grumbled as he pulled both Flurry and Sunset in for a hug, nearly crushing the both of them. “I’ve never been one for the mushy side of things.”     Celestia and Luna both smiled at the scene, giving ‘aww’ noises.     However, Chrysalis seemed to grow even more downcast, her expression bordering on rage, grief and sadness.      And as the moon started rising, she looked up to see two constellations briefly appear in the sky.         Then she rubbed her eyes, and they were gone.      Chrysalis shrugged as she returned her attention to the tearful reunion.      She must have had been seeing things.     Midnight’s horn glowed, pulling the moon above the horizon.     Night time. Perfect time to call her favored creatures.     The Star Beasts.     She tilted her head back, and began to sing.     Come to me, my stars.     Remember your dance, remember your life!     Follow me again, for it is time for us to reunite.     And let it be known, that I love you all the same.     Come, wander among the ponies.     Trample those who would defy our rule.     Destroy our enemies, break those against us!     And as the song reached its peak, stars flew out from her mane and formed their constellations in the sky, if only briefly.     Come to your Creator, my favored creatures.         My Star Beasts, for the Herald of Stars calls you once more!     And in the skies, the constellations of the Ursa Major and the Ursa Minor were visible for a moment, before they disappeared again.     There was screaming from within the castle as Midnight leaned over her balcony to see the fruit of her work gather within the courtyard, stars gathering to form two enormous shapes.     The larger of them lifted her head up to stare Midnight in the eye.     Then the Ursa Major threw her head back and roared to the skies.     Midnight laughed as the Ursa Minor too joined the roar, the Star Beasts ready to follow her bidding as the Herald of Stars.     “Go,” she ordered once the roaring had stopped. “Destroy Ponyville. Bring Sunset, her two students, Chrysalis and my niece back alive, but kill everyone and everything else.”     The Star Beasts nodded, and dissipated into glittering stars as they made their way to the distant town.     Midnight gave a rare grin.     They had no idea what she had just set upon them.     Then she saw the glint on the horizon.     And as the shape grew bigger, she saw the phoenix heading her way.     Radiant Flamefeather.     Her wings beat against the air, flickers of flames on her feathers as she saw the castle in the distance. Her home.     She stopped flapping, letting the wind take her, soaring on the currents. Radiant’s wings burned, lighting up against the darkness that was about to set upon the land. The phoenix glided towards the castle, with only one goal in mind.     To do what she could not a thousand years ago.     Over the past eon, she had earned many names. She Who Watched, Flamefeather, Glory of the Sun, but she remembered one the first pony she had ever seen in her life give her the most. Friend.     Twilight was still in there. She had to believe. Otherwise, why would Midnight have spared Sunset? Why would Midnight not have destroyed them all already?     Then a bolt of magic sliced past her in the darkness.     She careened to the side, her eyes focusing on where the bolt had originated.     The balcony.     Midnight Sparkle.     The mad alicorn’s horn was lit up, her cold eyes glaring at her. Her horn lit up again, and a lance of magic struck at her. Radiant barely avoided the attack, and even then a few feathers were sliced off. She screeched in pain, flames burning brightly on her even as her magic worked to heal her.     As it were, her glide was interrupted, sending her spiraling down as she flapped fruitlessly, her momentum lost. She stretched out her wings to catch as much wind as she could, giving a quick glance at her wing to ascertain the damage. She had lost two primary feathers, and four secondaries. Bad. Very bad.     And then her world vanished.     She reappeared in a familiar room, and she crumpled onto the basin of flames she had used as her resting place for the centuries before. Immediately, she felt reinvigorated, the magical flames replenishing her energy and strength as they licked at where her missing feathers were. She could feel them regrowing slowly, returning to their place.     The door opened, and a wave of fear spread over her as an overwhelmingly powerful presence weighed upon her being. Midnight trotted into the room, her irises a slit and her skin taut around her eyes. Now she realized. Midnight had been the one to bring her here, had been the one to teleport her here.     “I should kill you,” Radiant’s heart ached at the voice. It was Twilight’s, but with a little distortion and much colder. “I should end you for the damage you brought against me in my fight against Sunset a thousand years ago.”     “Then why don’t you?” Radiant said softly.     “Because I can’t, you stupid bird,” Midnight spat. “Your kind is rare enough. And you have memories, knowledge, things that I need in that mind of yours. Your brethren are spread across Equestria, and only you know where they are. The phoenixes’ tears can heal almost any injury. I need those tears for my uses.”     “None of them will agree to serve you, Midnight,” Radiant whispered. “None of my kind will agee to follow the one who killed the first pony who was a friend to us.”     Midnight stared at her, the gaze boring into her very being. “I expect that. It doesn’t matter to me. All I need is you for now.”     Radiant shook her head. “I will only serve two ponies. Twilight and Sunset. And you’re not either of them.”     Then she took a gamble.     “Twilight, if you’re in there,” she cried out. “Listen to me! Fight! Your loved ones need you now, more than ever—urk!”     Midnight’s magic had wrapped around her neck, choking her, restraining the passage of air through her throat.     “She’s gone,” Midnight hissed. “And you would do well to remember that.”     Midnight let go of Radiant, composing herself. “You will stay here, locked in by my magic until I find out what I can do to truly hurt you, to retrieve those tears of yours,” she said as her horn lit up to cast the spells. “If you behave and give me those tears, I promise you can have everything you want. I may be a dictator, but a dictator knows how to reward those who serve her faithfully.”     “Never,” Radiant whispered. “I will never serve you.”     A flash of something in Midnight’s eyes, and Radiant’s own widened.     For a moment, she had seen Twilight’s pride.     Then Midnight was glaring at her again. “Suit yourself. I will return. Do not try to leave, it will be extremely painful.”     Then she swept out of the room, the door slamming close and locking behind her.     Radiant was trapped.     There were no windows, no escape methods to think of.     And the walls and door were made of solid stone. Nothing her flames could burn through.     But her heart dared to hope.     For she had just seen Twilight in Midnight’s eyes, and she knew…     She knew that Twilight could still be saved.