//------------------------------// // 19: Afraid of Her Own Shadow: The Climactic Finale [Adventure] // Story: Thirty Minutes Shy // by Esle Ynopemos //------------------------------// ((Prompt: Write the ending to a story you have unfinished.)) “One!” Hat Trick cackled, the flashing lightning catching sparks in his eyes. A trickle of blood ran from the base of his horn down over the mad grin on his face. The strange metronome kept on clicking in its triplet rhythm. One, two, three. One, two, three. Energy arced from the top of it, feeding the glowing orb above. The ball grew and grew, expanding like a balloon, if balloons were massive blood-red things that crackled with bolts of arcane lightning. “Two!” The mad sorcerer kept spinning, his hooves dancing to a waltz only he and the metronome could hear. The wind whipped his mane and tail into a spiral in the air as magic poured from his horn. The orb nearly rivaled the sun and moon in the sky now. Soon it would; that was Hat Trick's plan, after all. Fluttershy clung to the yellow pony next to her, squeezing her eyes shut against the howling wind. If only she had paid better attention! If only she had listened to what he was trying to do, instead of getting distracted by her own problems, she might have stopped him, or at least warned somepony who could. Now Equestria would be torn into thirds, and it was all her fault! A white rabbit emerged from her mane and charged toward the center of the dais. “Angel, no!” cried both of the yellow ponies in unison. “Thr—” Hat Trick was interrupted from his count as a half-chewed carrot smacked the tip of his horn. He glared down at his tiny assailant. “Filthy, disease-ridden rodent!” he snarled, spittle flying from his lips as he wrapped Angel in his hazy telekinetic aura. “Breed no more of thy pestilence!” The aura darkened as he squeezed. Angel squirmed and struggled against the magic field. With a tiny squeak, he pointed over the unicorn's shoulder. Hat Trick glanced behind himself. No longer guided by his magic, the metronome went out of control. One, two. One, two, three, four, five. One. Sparks and smoke poured out of the machine. “No! Nononono!” Hat Trick cried in panic, dropping Angel on the floor and rushing over to the metronome. “One, two, three! One, two, three! Work, thou infernal contraption!” He circled the thing, desperately trying to return it to its three-part beat. The orb above lost its red color, turning pitch black. Gravity slowly reversed its course, lifting small stones off the platform and sending them hurtling upwards into the orb. Angel struggled to his feet and scurried back to cling to Fluttershy's mane. Fluttershy shared a glance with the teal eyes of her doppelganger. Both of them wrapped their hooves around the stone railing at the edge of the dais. Hat Trick did not seem to even notice as he was lifted into the air. He had begun ramming his head into the metronome as he shouted at it. “One! Two! Three! One! Two! Three! Damnation!” His voice faded under the howling wind as he was sucked upwards into the swirling storm of blackness above. Soon he and the metronome both disappeared into the void. A low groan sounded out as pieces of the old castle crumbled and fell into what was now a spiraling fissure in the sky. A moss-crusted tower shattered into rubble and tumbled upwards. Fluttershy cried out in terror as pieces of the railing she held onto broke away. Dust filled the air as a massive crack split the dais. Fluttershy's double shrieked as she fell upwards. “Shy!” Fluttershy reached out and caught her hoof with one of her own. “Fluttershy!” Shy held on, terror plain in her eyes. “Fluttershy, you're slipping!” Fluttershy's hold on the railing was indeed failing. One hoof was just not enough to hold the weight of two ponies. “I... I've got you,” she said, sweat forming on her brow. “No, you don't.” Shy met Fluttershy's eyes. “...Fluttershy, you need to let me go.” “What? No!” Fluttershy's grip slipped another hair. “Look.” Shy's voice took on a serious tone. “Ponyville only needs one Fluttershy.” She smiled through her tears. “It's okay. Let me go.” Fluttershy shook her head. “I need you, Shy. I won't let you go!” Her hoof held onto the rail by only the very edge. Shy smirked grimly. “Do you want to flip a coin for it?” “Shy, no!” Shy opened her hoof, letting go of Fluttershy's. She fell backwards towards the sky. Her rear hoof was grabbed tightly between both of Fluttershy's front hooves. Shy's eyes widened and her lips formed an 'o' of surprise as her fall was arrested once again. Fluttershy hung by her tail, which was tied around the stone railing. Angel Bunny tugged on the knot and waved. The fissure eventually folded in on itself and collapsed into nothing. Both Fluttershies fell to the ground, exhausted. The sky slowly returned to its natural blue, an eerie calm settling in the wake of the magical storm. Shy laid on the stones, panting. “Fluttershy...” She coughed on the dust. “Did you... did you mean that? About needing me?” Fluttershy rolled over to face her. “I meant it,” she whispered, running a hoof through her tangled mane. “Please, don't leave me alone, Shy.” Two yellow ponies returned to Ponyville that day.