//------------------------------//
// 6|1 ◈ An End 
// Story: Splintershard 
// by TheMajorTechie 
//------------------------------//

Sometimes,

When danger rears its head,

Someone needs to step up.





"H...hi, Twilight," Fluttershy hid herself in the tangled mess of her own mane. "I heard arguing coming from here, and I'd hate if anypony got hurt."

"Element of Kindness," Sunset whistled. "Didn't think I'd see you in the flesh again. Er... well, a you, I suppose. I knew your human counterpart from a lifetime ago."

Fluttershy's eyes widened. "Another me? Was she--"

"She was the kindest person I'd ever met. It took some time and an absolute disaster of a Fall Formal domino effect thanks to Twi's counterpart transferring in the middle of the school year and crashing my takeover plans, but the seven of us stuck together all through high school and into college, and beyond even that. Though, as time passed..." Sunset avoided the draconequus's gaze. "It became clear that I was aging much more slowly than everyone else. It was little things at first--wrinkles, stretch lines--'life marks', Pinkie called them. Me, on the other hand? I looked hardly half my age at forty."

The words escaped Emily's lips before she'd even noticed. "And so you left."

Sunset nodded. "It seems to be an unfortunate theme among us alicorns. Even if I wasn't technically one yet. My return was in search of a way to prolong their lives to the seemingly unnatural length of my own, though the Equestria I'd returned to..." Her eyes drifted to the side of the room. "I think you already know what I emerged to find. The mirror portal was destroyed by the time I had the chance to access it again."

She stamped a hoof, jolting everyone back to the present. "So. To reiterate. Emily, are you absolutely certain that you wish not to return to your home as of yet? I do not want my own fate to befall you."

"Yeah. I mean, look around us! We've got what, three, maybe four alicorns on our side to end this war, assuming that Twi and Cady are willing to do something for once. Our chances to end this war are better than they've ever been, and I will fulfill that promise. It's what Starlight died for, and I'm not letting her second chance go to waste."

Sunset bowed her head slightly. "Then I shall honor that wish as well. I believe I have a plan in mind already if you all would allow me to share."

"Go ahead," Emily sat down.

"Acknowledged. The primary issue that stands in the way of ending this simmering war once and for all for the longest time has been a complete and total breakdown of communication channels. Though the Old Guard wished to see an alicorn return to power, the last I remember of my interactions they actively refused to speak with me on the grounds that I, in their words, 'lacked power' in the nation I had been elected to rule.

"To address such concern," Sunset began to pace the room. "I had initially considered a show of force. A military exercise, if you will--though I fear doing such a thing would only agitate the war into active conflict. Instead, I believe a signal of our unity would be a better convincing argument. After all, if their primary motivator is the idea that this nation is some kind of backwaters anarchic conglomeration rather than something they'd consider as a 'proper' nation, then addressing such concerns should be a top priority."

She lifted the tiara from her head, letting it float on a cushion of her magic. "We could open trade relations. Let the Old Guard see all that we have to offer. Equestria doesn't have to be whole again. It just has to be in harmony with itself again."

Emily's gaze turned upward as the tiara floated over her own head.

"Seeing as you are already familiar with Blueblood, would you be willing to be our representative in peace talks?"

"Er--" Emily ducked away from the tiara. "Two problems. First, I was human the last time I was anywhere near Old Guard territory. Secondly, it's possible that they've realized I snuck out rather than that I was kidnapped. Especially after the whole 'whoops all of our experimental weaponry went boom' bit."

Sunset cocked her head. "Would you like to solve that first issue now, then? It would be useful as well if you still own the shard of Harmony that initiated the transformation."

Emily tapped her own horn. "How are you going to turn me back, by the way? Twilight said that she'd revert the transformation as well, but I wasn't ever told how that would work."

Sunset glanced at Twilight, who remained stoic in her posture.

"You said that a magical backfire involving the shard was what caused the transformation, yes?"

"Yup."

"Then I believe that the fusion of the shard in the form of a horn to your body inadvertently modified your form into something more... compatible with the expression of Harmony magic, for lack of a better term. Alternately, perhaps the shard had an affinity toward Starlight's control over magic, and reverted your body into one of Starlight's own native form."

Sunset replaced the tiara atop her head. "So as a final confirmation, you with full confidence wish to return to human form, here and now. Yes?"

One more nod.

Sunset's gaze shifted to Twilight.

"Hm? Oh, uh, right--" Twilight stepped beside Sunset, though she kept some distance between herself and the other alicorn. "Alright, how do we do this?"

Emily could feel Starlight's eye-roll.

Sunset mirrored the mental gesture with a raise of her brow. "Given the circumstances of her transformation, I believe our best option is to attempt to reverse the fusion of the Harmony shard with Emily's body. I am unsure of how much magical energy this may take, so if I may, would you please lend me your strength as an alicorn?"

She turned her attention to Cadance next. 

Twilight placed herself between Sunset and Cadance. "I'll provide as much as you need."

"Very well then," Sunset lit her horn, gesturing for Twilight to do the same. "Emily, I believe you may want to lay down for this."





An electric jolt ran through her body.

Emily shaded her eyes with a hand.

She was standing on that same old pathway again. 

Where darkness once stood, a blazing light now filled the void.

"Almost home?" an excited voice chirped.

She turned her head. There was the crystal once again--or at least, its fragments. Her duplicate selves stood on either side of the destroyed structure.

"Y-yeah. Almost home," Emily raised a thumbs-up.

"Almost home!" her leftward counterpart cheered. She repeated the phrase to the rightward counterpart. "Almost home!"

A wide grin grew across the other counterpart's face as she locked eyes with Emily. She gave a brief salute. "See me soon, me. Good luck out there."

And then the light overtook them all.





Emily gasped awake.

"Hey, you. You're finally awake," Twilight looked up from her book. "Before you ask, it's only been a few hours. Sunset had to leave to handle some paperwork."

Emily felt a weight set on her lap. She sat up, noticing some much-missed curls of hair drift into her periphery. She grasped the thin blanket beneath her. She could actually feel the fibers now! And--she could feel her heart racing as she lifted a hand--she was human again!

"It took a bit of careful work, but we were able to separate the shard without issue."

"Thank you!" the words left her mouth in a half-gasp, half-laugh wheeze. "Thank you, so, so much... and Sunset, too. I..." Stray chuckles and heaves began to escape her. "I really didn't think that I'd be able to get my body back at this point. Like, no offense, but it really didn't seem like you were actually going to turn me back when it was brought up in that hallway."

"No offense taken, I didn't actually have any idea how I'd do it myself anyway."

Emily sat quiet for a moment. Maybe Starlight still hadn't awoken yet after the transformation was undone. She glanced to the side, immediately locking onto the shard of crystal that'd gotten her into this mess in the first place. She flopped back onto her cot. It felt nice to be back in this body. Her fingers, her toes, having her nose instead of a full-on muzzle... having ears she could swivel was neat, she supposed, but it was hard to imagine ever getting comfortable in that body.

This... she held a hand up to the light in the room, watching each digit flex.

She sat up again. There was plenty of time to enjoy this return to form while she got things done. The sooner this brewing war was put to an end, the better.

Emily swung her legs over the side of the cot and promptly fell flat on her face. She could hear hoofsteps approaching.

The door opened. "Emily?" Sunset stepped into the room. "Er, I'll give you some time to reacquaint yourself with your body if you need--"

"No, I'm ready," Emily raised a thumbs-up as she pushed herself from the floor. "Just a little wobbly on my legs, that's all. What are we doing first?"

She felt herself lift off her feet, surrounded by a teal glow, as Sunset placed her back on the cot.

"You will accompany me in traversing to the Old Guard's capital within the Everfree. If not a peace treaty, I hope we can at least call a truce. If all goes well, then trade negotiations may begin from there."

"But what about the whole thing about them not seeing you as truly being in power?"

Sunset tapped the tiara atop her head. "They will have to deal with that sentiment on their own. I will not be wearing any disguise to mask my identity, so they must either accept that I am the rightfully elected leader of this nation, or..." her face sunk into a deep frown. "...hopefully, the alternative does not occur. Regardless, as mentioned before, you will accompany me into their territory, seeing as you are already somewhat familiar with Blueblood."

Emily glanced at Twilight, who continued reading. "What about everyone else? Twilight's just kinda here, and Cadance isn't. Are they gonna be doing anything themselves?"

"Cadance has left to revisit the Crystal Empire under my orders. Twilight may do as she wishes, seeing as she refuses to have any part in the ongoing conflict."

Twilight lowered her book and stuck her tongue out at Sunset for that.

Sunset's attention now turned to the shard of crystal beside Emily. "Do you intend to take this piece of the Tree of Harmony with you?"

"Yeah."

"Might I ask why? You are under my protection once we set off for the Old Guard's territory, after all."

Emily shrugged. "I know the risks at this point. It'll be good to have a way to defend myself in case if you aren't able to, anyway. Like, I know that several times now I've made some big explosions to break myself out of places, and I think into one place as well. And then there's the big harmony laser thing that I'm pretty sure I shot off once, though that might've been all in my head from when I turned myself into a pony on accident... and..."

"Is something the matter?"

Emily picked up the shard, turning it in her hands. "Well, I don't really hear Starlight anymore. She was growing quieter and quieter recently, and after I woke up, I didn't hear her at all. It's like she's been separated from me or something. Maybe..." she bowed her head, touching the shard against it. "Maybe she's somewhere in here. I can feel it."

Sunset's hoof pulled her hands away from her face. "Will you be able to handle this without Starlight? You seem rather reliant on the mare."

"I think so. I kinda remember--ooh, real quick--" Emily shot up, nearly smacking Sunset as she did so. "Do you have a big stick? Or something long that can conduct mana that I can attach to the crystal shard?"

"We... have some wood from a recent tree-trimming, if you'd like to browse."





"Alright, this one's a little too stubby... ooh, maybe this one?" Emily pulled a gnarled branch from the dumpster as Sunset watched from behind. "It's a little big, but I think it might work if I snap some bits off of it. Easier to cut something down to size than to piece a buncha tiny pieces together, y'know?"

Sunset gave an absentminded nod, though her attention seemed to currently be on the sky.

"Something up there?" Emily gazed upward herself as a hulking shadow enveloped them both.

"Run. Run--" Sunset tacked Emily to the ground as a fiery explosion ripped through the alley. "Go, take cover! I'll handle this!"

"But your wi--"

"I'll be fine," Sunset snuffed the smoldering flames eating into her coat. "You won't. This isn't your war to fight."

"What about the negotia--" Emily stopped short again, though this time not by Sunset's words.

"It's too late," Starlight's voice came in barely audible whispers.

"They're sending more in," Sunset landed with a whoosh. "Some sort of mass teleportation from how it looks. There's an entire fleet of those floaters stationed above Canterlot now."

Another explosion rocked the alley, forcing the alicorn to conjure up a protective bubble around herself and Emily. Loose debris bounced off and around the two as jets of flame blazed down from above.

"Well... at least they came to you first?" Emily forced a smile.

"Not the time, Emily," Sunset unfurled her wings again. She hovered in the air as she continued. "I will not refuse to protect my citizens from harm, and that includes you."

"Wh--"

Emily vanished in a flash of light.