The Equestrians and Amphibians looked around and saw all the damage that was done throughout the landscape. Anne and Sasha nervously chuckled to themselves. “Heh, we really messed up your home, didn’t we?”
“It’s alright, Sasha. It’s nothing compared to the real damage we witnessed,” Spike sighed, staring at the lifeless Unity Crystals.
He tried putting them back together, but nothing happened. All the cracks, however, disappeared from all three crystals.
“So…does this mean we lost? Even though we…kinda won?” Sprig asked.
“Well…yes and no. Equestria is finally free, but at what cost? Losing our magic,” Spike sadly replied.
They turned to Rarity and Starlight failing to ignite their horns. They could only spew sparks thereof.
Then Spike noticed Discord standing above a pile of chocolate, looking at the clear night sky. He flew over to him with a look of concern.
“Hey, buddy. You doing okay?”
“(Sigh) I am, Spike. I never thought I would say this…but for the first time in my life…I feel complete,” Discord replied, slightly smiling.
“Oh? How so?”
“You know how I often helped Twilight and her friends defeat a few villains—meaning that I contributed to their efforts but not actually partake in defeating them?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, since I was a partaker in the rainbow magic formation for the first time and have directly saved Equestria this time—you guys helped too!—I feel so much more accomplished than I ever were throughout my career!”
Spike chuckled. “Well, you have grown so much over the last twenty-seven years. I mean, you’re still you but a little…different now.”
“It is a good thing, right?”
“Of course it is, Discord! I’m sure Fluttershy would say the same to you,” Spike smiled.
Discord smiled back and gave Spike a tight hug. “Thanks, buddy! I’ll be sure to add you as a reference on my résumé!”
“Squeezing…too…hard!”
Discord released him and snapped his fingers. A small gray could rained vanilla on top of them.
“Want some victory drink?”
“I’ll pass,” replied Spike, spitting the vanilla out.
At that moment, Twilight started to wake up from her sleep.
“Spike, she’s moving! She’s regaining consciousness!” Polly alerted.
Spike immediately flew back over to the alicorn and gently lifted her head. The latter opened her eyes and saw a concerned Spike over her head.
“Spike…? Is…that you?”
“Yes, it’s me! You’re back, Twilight! You’re finally free!” The Mane Five ran forward and hugged Twilight with tears on their eyes.
“Thank Celestia yer fine! We were so worried!” said Applejack.
“We missed you so much!” Pinkie Pie cried.
“We thought we would never see you again!” said Fluttershy.
“And don’t worry, Equestria is saved! The villains are gone, and everypony—er, everyone is here!” Rainbow informed.
“Including some peculiar visitors,” Rarity added, looking at the frogs, toads, and newts.
Twilight stared at the humans and bipedal frogs. “They’re from Amphibia, right?”
“Indeed! And it is an honor to finally meet you, your Highness,” Grime reverently kneeled.
All the other Amphibians briefly bowed as well. “So you’re Princess Twilight Sparkle, huh? Spike spoke so much about you, and I can imagine how much you both mean to each other,” said Anne.
Twilight looked at Spike and cracked a little smile. “You can say that.”
As Twilight got up, she beheld the devastative condition of her kingdom. She saw burnt bones, destroyed homes, flames on the ground, and the whole mountain alongside Canterlot completely gone. She hung her head in sorrow.
“You still have some alicorn magic, right?”
“Yes.”
“So there’s a chance you can return the magic to Equestria—given that you’re the Element of Magic and all,” Spike suggested.
“The Unity Crystals separated, didn’t they?”
“Unfortunately. But you can still—,”
“No. There’s nothing I can do to reverse the effect,” stated Twilight.
Spike, Discord, and the Mane Five tilted their heads in confusion.
“Furthermore, because of everything that has happened to Equestria, I am officially stepping down from being the ruler of this kingdom.”
Everypony gasped at the announcement.
“Wait, what?!? WHAT?!” Spike exclaimed.
“Furthermore, I make my final decrees as I step down from this royal position: From this day forth, Equestria will no longer require princesses, princes, or rulers; everypony will be their own independent agent. Second, Canterlot will NOT be rebuilt,” she commanded.
“Twilight, what are you doing?!” Discord shouted.
“I have failed you as a princess, I’ve failed you as a ruler, and worst of all…I failed you all as a friend. All the deaths of everypony and creature are on my hooves, and I will NEVER forgive myself for that,” she condemned herself while her voice cracked.
The Mane Five were about to speak, but Twilight lifted her hoof.
“And spare me your sympathies; I don’t deserve them. And don’t bother trying to unify everypony into friendship. As far as I can tell, friendship is dead to me…and I’m dead to friendship,” moped Twilight.
She opened her wings and ignited her horn.
“What are you doing?”
Twilight sent a spell on herself which encased her in a magical ball of light; after a minute, the magical light flew high up in space…never to be seen again.
Everyone gasped in shock as they beheld Twilight. She became a normal-sized pony with no wings; although she was still quite young, she had some gray hairs and bags under her eyes.
“Twilight…you’re—you’re a unicorn again?! How is that possible?!” Rarity yelled.
“Since when can alicorns do that?” Rainbow questioned.
“The night after I got my wings, Celestia told me that if I ever wanted to return to being a unicorn, I just use this spell. And frankly, I don’t deserve the alicorn status. I disgraced it, and Celestia made a grave mistake naming me as her successor.”
“No…”
“You shouldn’t be friends with me anymore. Starting today, I exile myself from this land—never more to return. Goodbye, everypony,” she finished, walking away.
“Twilight, NO! Stop! We still need you!” Spike pleaded.
“Not anymore, Spike.”
“Are you seriously gonna leave Equestria with no magic at all?! How are we going to live?!”
“And how will we feed our families? Earth ponies need to harvest food with our natural strength!” Applejack added.
“Same thing with Pegasi! We need magic to fly around and manage the weather!” argued Rainbow.
“They relied on magic for everything? Now I’m starting to wish I lived here!” Grime whispered.
“Hmm, maybe it’s a good thing? Depending on magic too much can produce laziness, and we all know hard work is the only true path to success,” Hop Pop whispered back.
“I understand your concerns, and fortunately for Equestria…you won’t need magic to survive. Look,” Twilight informed, pointing at the moon.
The moon started to set on its own while the sun slowly rose up. A rooster crowed at the sight of dawn.
“Dang, it’s morning already? That was one fast night!” said Sasha.
This made the ponies drop their jaw. “But…but how? How are they moving by themselves?”
“When I rid myself of my alicorn status and magic, I altered the natural order. From now on, nature will dictate your everyday lives. You will work harder to feed your families, it will be physically impossible to change the weather, and the sun and moon will rise and set according to the laws of time,” informed Twilight.
“But what about the Windigoes?” Terramar asked.
“They’re history. I made sure my rainbow magic settled that permanently.”
“Hmm, so that’s why they’re not swirling around causing a winter storm right now,” Discord realized.
“You have nothing to worry about. (Sigh) Now I must go in peace and live out the rest of my days elsewhere,” said Twilight, walking off again.
Spike jumped in front of her. “Twilight, listen to me! I get why you feel guilty about this, but this wasn’t your fault! You were manipulated and tricked into this mess! Please, you have to stay! We’re your friends, and we gotta stick together!”
“What friends?” she callously responded, refusing to look at the Mane Five.
She went past him and trotted down the hill. Spike started to get slightly angry and followed her.
“Spike, maybe we—,” Discord spoke.
“Don’t stop me!!” Spike snapped.
Spike managed to grab her tail and hold her still. “The Twilight I know isn’t selfish and has the self-esteem to realize that everyone makes mistakes and can do better.”
Twilight then stared at Spike for a few seconds. “I admire your optimism, Spike. But it’s time to move on. Goodbye.”
She kissed Spike on the forehead and left for the Evergreen Forest.
“No, Twilight. No! Please don’t go!” he pleaded.
Discord and the Mane Five prevented him from following her. “Let her go, Spike.”
Spike sobbed loudly on the grass with his knees bent. “No…”
Twilight dropped a final tear until she went past the large trees. Thus, she was never seen again by her friends. Discord and the Mane Five hugged him in an attempt to comfort him.
Sprig, Anne, Sasha, Polly, and Hop Pop joined in out of sympathy.
“I’m sorry, Spike. I really am…” comforted Sprig.
The group remained silent for a moment as they witnessed the unexpected departure of Twilight Sparkle. The Mane Five and Spike wept together, daring not to look at the Everfree Forest again.
“Well…this is awkward…” Captain Beatrix muttered, clearing her throat.
“Yeah, I feel like we should go now,” agreed Wally, kicking the dirt.
Twenty minutes later, the Calamity Trio and the Amphibians gathered together with the Equestrians.
“Well, on the bright side, it was certainly a fun ride, and we got to kick the Core’s sorry tailpipe for one last time!” Marcy grinned.
“I only wish this didn’t end on a sour note,” Anne added, frowning.
“Yeah. We’re really sorry you guys lost your magic and for your friend,” Sasha apologized, resting her hand on Spike’s shoulder.
“(Sigh) I’m sorry too. But that’s not the only worst part of this whole situation…” Spike replied.
“Our non-pony numbers are at an alarmingly low rate; there’s now ten of us changelings, eleven yaks, fifteen dragons, twenty griffons, and twenty-two hippogriffs,” Thorax reported.
“That includes the five of us, excluding Sandbar,” added Smolder.
“That’s all?”
“Yes. We are all that is left,” Sky Beak sadly confirmed.
“Wait…does that mean you’re all endangered species?!” Anne exclaimed.
Gabby and Gilda looked at each other puzzled. “Odd way of saying it but yes,” Gilda nodded.
“Then you might have to implement some sort of protection program that safeguards you all from being extinct. That’s how we humans do it in our world—the ESA is very thorough on that,” Anne suggested.
“Ehh, what does ESA stand for?” Rainbow asked, arching an eyebrow.
“Endangered Species Act. There’s a lot of stuff you can learn from us,” Anne replied.
“You sure you wanna help us? Not everypony may welcome you with open hooves,” Fluttershy warned.
“Oh, it’s fine! If anyone wants to mess with us or mess with you, then they’ll answer to us!” Sasha replied, cracking her knuckles with chaos magic.
“Very well. We deeply appreciate your help,” Thorax smiled. “I know my brother would be very proud.”
Anne and Sasha took off to the skies. “Come on, guys, let’s get you somewhere safe!”
Thus, the surviving non-ponies followed them to the outskirts of Ponyville. But before Thorax left with the rest, he briefly hugged Spike. “Good luck, Spike. I hope I can see you again.”
“Ditto.”
Thorax flew off with the other changelings. The Heroic Six looked back at their former professors who waved farewell to them. The six smiled back and went with everyone else.
“It appears that our work is done. This world is saved, Amphibia is saved, and Earth is saved!” Grime said.
“Finally! I’m getting sick from all this pony stench! Hey, circus boy, take us back home, will ya?” Beatrix called.
“That’s Mr. Circus Boy to you, miss! Sheesh, these toads have no respect nowadays,” Discord shouted, rolling his eyes.
Once he snapped his fingers, it opened the portal to Amphibia.
“Welp, see ya later, losers!” Beatrix waved, entering the portal.
As the other toads entered through, Grime made a respect gesture. “I wish you luck, my Equestrian friends. Perhaps someday, we’ll meet again.”
Spike nodded to him. After Grime entered through, the other frogs and nexts waved their goodbyes and departed.
Olivia and Yunan hugged Marcy and spoke a few words with her. “It was certainly a great treat seeing you again, Master Marcy.”
“And now we’re gonna miss you again,” said Yunan.
“Hehe, don’t worry, I got this remote control thing. I can visit you guys anytime I want to. Oh! Oh! Maybe we can have a movie night at my house sometime! Wouldn’t that be great?!” Marcy offered.
Olivia chuckled. “That would be quite fun. Together, when we’re ready.”
Then Marcy got a little sad.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, I was just thinking about…Andrias. I dunno why…but I kinda miss him too.”
Olivia and Yunan looked at each other and smiled. “I’m certain he would be happy to see you again one day—I hope.”
Then she hugged them again. As her newt friends entered the portal, she went over to Spike and the Plantars.
“You guys wanna help rebuild their town?”
“That’s just what I was thinking! This battle made me want to exercise some more! Come on, kids, I think this town needs a new makeover!” Hop Pop replied, getting his tools.
“Alright, Frobo, let’s get down to business!” ordered Polly. Frobo winked and took off to the sky.
Sprig noticed that Spike was still down and frowning. He nudged him by the arm.
“Hey, buddy?”
“Mmm?”
“Are you okay?”
“(Sigh) I’m not…but I’ll be alright,” Spike replied.
“So…all those ponies—magic is what used to keep them together or something?” Sprig asked.
“Friendship is what did. But now that the magic of friendship is gone forever, almost everypony will be hating each other.”
“Well, only between races. The unicorns, Pegasi, and earth ponies will be living their own lives apart from each other,” Discord specified.
“Seriously? That’s just sad. Won’t they ever be…y’know…friends again?” Sprig asked.
Spike sighed in depression. “I don’t know. I really don’t know. Normally, Twilight would have the answer, but since she isn’t with us anymore…I’m even more unsure.”
“Well, I wouldn’t lose faith if I were you. Maybe—just maybe in one hundred years from now, they can be friends again. Someone might rise up to bring them together, I don’t know,” Sprig thought. “I just have a feeling things won’t be gloomy forever.”
Spike gave it some thought, slowly nodding in understanding. “I hope you’re right.”
Once Marcy and the Plantars finished repairing Ponyville, they departed back to their worlds through different portals. Anne and Sasha said their goodbyes and went back to Earth with Marcy…after the former said her final farewell to Sprig.
“Hope to see you soon, pal.”
“I’m pretty sure we will, thanks to Marcy’s portal device. Sometime next week, maybe?”
“Deal!” Anne approved.
“Spranne against the world?”
“Spranne against the world,” Anne smiled. They hugged tightly for one last time until they broke the embrace.
As the portals finally closed, Discord laid his arm around Spike. “He does have a point, you know. Everyone’s gonna have to mature sometime, someday.”
“You think so too?”
“I don’t think so. I know so!” Discord corrected. “Besides, only time will tell if there will be a new Twilight for a new generation!”
Spike frowned at him.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to overstep…”
“Nah, I get it. I just doubt that somepony will follow Twilight’s hoofsteps. Considering how stubborn most ponies are, I just find it so hard to believe!” Spike vented.
Discord looked at the white clouds and grew a smirk. “Not for me. All we have to do is simply look up.”
Spike followed his direction and saw exactly what he was staring at: a cloud shaped like Twilight’s cutie mark. This made Spike slightly smile.
“Wow. There might be hope for Equestria after all.”
The sun shined through that cloud, making the whole sky beam bright.
Elsewhere in Equestria, there was an underground garden just below where the Canterlot Garden used to be before it was destroyed with the Core.
In the midst of the hidden garden stood an old three-figure statue covered with leaves and vines. The statue consisted of three legendary villains: Lord Tirek, former Queen Chrysalis, and little Cozy Glow.
They even had a small description underneath their feet that said “The Treacherous Trio: defeated by their greed.”
Suddenly, a portal opened right in front of them. A magical beam struck the statue; it managed to separate the three figures from the stone platform. The stone broke apart which released the three villains from their stone imprisonment.
They laid on the ground unconscious. After that, they were lifted in the air and sucked right into the portal. An evil laugh could be heard just before the portal closed.
“Jacob, did you clean your room yet?!”
“I don’t need to clean my room, Mom! I’m 38 years old!!” he angrily yelled.
“Oh, sure, a 38-year-old who can’t get a new job, is on probation, and who leaves burnt waffles on a toilet seat! Definitely a mature grown-up!”
“Don’t sass me, Mom! I have feelings too, you know!”
“Just get your butt off your bed and clean your room! And wash the dishes too!”
Jacob Hopkins groaned in annoyance as he sipped on his coffee. He wore a long beard, sweatpants filled with holes, and a dirty rope.
He looked back at all the pictures of him being beaten by strangers, mocked by the crowd, and getting arrested by the police.
Then he grabbed a picture he secretly took long ago. It was a picture of two girls graduating from high school, one of whom he was familiar with.
Angered, he threw the picture away and drank the rest of his coffee. He slumped back on his bed.
“I thought I had a bright future ahead of me; I thought capturing a demon and a witch would increase my chances of success…but I was wrong. I’m such a failure!” Jacob cried, covering his face.
At that moment, he got a phone call. He was taken aback by that.
“Weird? Who would want to call me of all people?”
He answered the call. “Hello? Who’s this?”
“Hello, Jacob Hopkins. I trust you’re having a fine evening, yeah?”
“Who wants to know?” Jacob asked, narrowing his eyes.
“Nah, I’m just a friend who wants to give you a second chance. I’ve been watching you lately…learning so much about you.”
Jacob then got confused. “And people say I’m a stalker?? Who the heck are you??”
“Come on, bro, you love it when someone pays attention to you. For a guy who has an obsession with discovering alien life, you just can’t help but feel the need to be adored by everyone,” said the caller.
Jacob widened his eyes in shock. “H-How do you know that about me?”
“What to know what else I know? You’ve been jobless for two years, you’re on probation, you’re wearing a torn robe, ripped sweatpants, and you always put burnt waffles on a toilet.”
Terrified, Jacob looked through his window and saw nobody on his lawn.
“Who are you?! What do you want from me?! Is this the FBI?!”
“Yo, man, easy there. I’m on your side. In fact, I have an offer you surely cannot refuse.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s something you’ve been looking for your whole life. Wanna find out now? That is….if you want to stop living at your mommy’s home.”
Jacob took a peek at his mom watching the news on TV. He quietly closed his door and nodded.
“Okay, okay, fine. Where should I go?”
“Oh, don’t worry. I’ll just take you there myself,” the caller replied.
“Wait, what? You don’t even know my add—huh?”
Black tentacles of darkness surrounded him and encased him completely, silencing his screams.
The darkness then released him, and he found himself in a new location: an abandoned laboratory that contained three unconscious prisoners—Chrysalis, Tirek, and Cozy Glow. They were chained up on a wall.
Seeing them made him gasp in shock. “How did I get here? And…what the HECK are those things?!”
“They are your new sources of power, Jacob,” a man replied, standing in the shadows. “With them at your mercy, you will gain a power you’ve never known.”
Jacob looked back and saw the man’s chest glowing red in a shape of a diamond; his eyes also glowed red in the dark. The mysterious figure evilly smiled at his flabbergasted reaction.
“You’re the one who called me?” Jacob asked.
“Correct! I have everything you need to access the world where demons and witches live. Do these look familiar?” He held the pictures that showed an owl beast looking at the camera with soulless eyes. The other was a picture of a shape-shifting demon.
“Hey, that’s the demon I captured four years ago!” Jacob remembered.
“That’s right! She comes from a world where fantasy becomes a reality. I’m sure you’ll find it…interesting?” the man smirked.
Jacob found a device that held a panoramic photo of a massive island that appeared to be the carcass of a titan.
“This will take me to their world?!”
The dark figure nodded.
“That’s…that’s amazing! I’ll finally be able to capture them for my world to see!! But…I’m confused though. Why are you helping me?” Jacob asked.
“The truth is…I was like you before. Being the odd one amongst the self-righteous dolts in a cruel world. You have so much to offer to this planet. By harnessing those creatures’ powers, you can become…a god!”
Jacob’s eyes beamed with hope. Smiling widely, he jumped up and down in excitement.
“All those people who mocked me are gonna be soooo sorry now! Alright, you demons, get ready to be swayed by my greatness!” Jacob boasted.
He looked back and saw that the man was already gone. “Wait, I didn’t get your name!” He got no answer.
Shrugging, he looked at another photo of the island which contained a name above the picture. “The…Boiling Isles? They’re not from Mars???”
TO BE CONTINUED.