Floor IX: Which Life is More Important?
Rarity, Trixie, and Luna continued their trek up the stairs, going to the ninth floor. Trixie confirmed for Rarity that she had indeed absorbed the last memory fragment, leaving Rarity wondering what was left for her to do. A small part of her still wanted to try and go home, but she still felt a need to see what was at the top.
Trixie, Rarity was beginning to notice, was having second thoughts about her place in this. She didn't know when it happened, but at some point she began to support Rarity and actually wanted to save her. She wished for the life of her that she could remember what their relationship was when Trixie was alive, but if she was anything like this then Rarity felt they had to be friends.
Luna on the other hoof was probably the most somber. It was her plan to bring Rarity back with her and to begin reclaiming her memories herself, but Rarity's stubbornness prevented that. Rarity wondered if she was always this stubborn. If she still had her memories, would she be willing to go to the top? Rarity knew that Luna was a little irritated with her, but at this point she couldn't just leave.
At the top of the stairs Rarity, Trixie, and Luna saw a larger door than what they saw earlier. Was this her destination.
"Wait... this is..." Trixie said, catching Rarity's attention.
"What?" Rarity asked.
"This door... it leads to the All Mother's chambers," Trixie stated.
"But I thought I was supposed to see Vale next," Rarity said.
"Apparently that was a bold faced lie," Luna said seriously, "The All Mother didn't expect you to get this far."
"So, I was supposed to be deleted by one of the Avatars," Rarity reasoned. She looked over at Trixie, who had her head down in shame.
"Whether we're here to get your memories back, or to wake up Vale, we have to get through the All Mother," Luna stated, "Rarity, are you sure you want to proceed further?"
"Yes," Rarity said stepping forward, "Trixie, you'll come with me, right?"
"Of course," Trixie said walking forward, "I need to know the truth of what's happening here. There's to much here that I wasn't briefed on. Luna, I know that there's no way I can make up for this, but-"
"What happened here wasn't your fault," Luna said with a slight sigh, "Come, we have answers to get."
"Right," Rarity nodded and pushed the door open. For such a large door, it was shocking how light it was. It wasn't locked or anything. She didn't know what to expect on the other side of the door.
What she saw was not anything she expected.
She saw an alicorn standing in the center of the room facing the back wall. This alicorn was taller than Princess Luna, but not by much. She had a white coat and a long golden mane and tail in a style similar to Vale's but both were longer and fuller. Her cutie mark was odd looking. It was a half opened eye in the middle of a triangle. Rarity vaguely remembered reading about that symbol. It was the symbol for God in Equestria. She didn't remember much, but that much she remembered.
Symbol for God? This alicorn couldn't be...
"I have been expecting you, Cipher," the alicorn said. Rarity recognized that voice. It was the voice that spoke to her before, "Though you have a larger entourage then I thought you would."
She turned around and faced them. The alicorn was probably the most beautiful being Rarity had ever seen. Her eyes were green, and her expression was both serene and full of authority. The way she walked was a saunter, but there was nothing sexual about it.
"Y-you're..." Rarity said, her heart racing looking at the mare in front of her.
"A simple Avatar shouldn't have been able to defeat their friends one by one, but your desire to survive surpassed my expectations. I had originally planned to simply escort you to the top floor of this chamber, but it appears things have changed," the mare looked at Luna and smiled, "Hello Luna."
"Mother," Luna said curtly, shocking Rarity.
"Wait, this is your mother?!" Rarity exclaimed.
"Not only is she the direct mother to both Vale, Celestia, and Luna," Trixie said slowly, "She's the being that made all of Terra, and all life in it," Trixie met eyes with Rarity, "That, Rarity, is Faust."
"Faust..." that was all the convincing Rarity needed. This entity wasn't a pony, at least not like she was. This entity was the creator of everything. This entity was the All Mother.
This entity was God...
"You seem surprised, Cipher," Faust said with a sideways smile, "You have earned this audience with me, after all."
"Earned?!" Rarity said, now at her wits end, "What the hell has all of this been about?! Why did you make me destroy Avatars of my friends?! Why can't I remember anything about my life?! I demand answers NOW!"
"Rarity!" Trixie said in shock, "That's the All Mother you just-"
"It's fine, Azure," Faust said calmly, which Rarity thought was strange, "She has every right to be angry with me. The way of God is not to be understood by mere mortals, and she has a mortal mind," Faust looked at Rarity again, "Do you remember what Azure told you when you arrived here? You'd lose something important, but you'd have to proceed onward?"
"I remember," Rarity said.
"When I first saw you, I thought you had stolen my dear Vale's life," Faust explained, "If that was the case, you were just an Avatar that could be defeated by mere angel drones. However, when you defeated the angel at the first floor, I knew that there was more to you. You aren't a mere Cipher anymore."
"What is a Cipher?" Rarity asked, "What am I?"
"I believe that the best way to explain that is for you to see it for yourself," Faust said walking over to Rarity. When she was right in front of her, Luna put her wing out to defend Rarity, "You have nothing to worry about, child. If the Cipher and I are to fight, it will be entirely her decision."
"You mean you actually wish to fight Rarity?!" Trixie asked, "All Mother-"
"As I said, that is entirely up to the Cipher," she lowered her horn to Rarity's as a familiar light tranferred to her, "This is a fragment of my memory, which I have programmed for you to view it. This will explain what you are."
Rarity closed her eyes, allowing herself to meld with the fragment. This time she didn't become Vale. Instead, she became somepony else.
Faust...
"How is she?!" Faust exclaimed running over to an angel examining Vale.
"Her biomagical make up is breaking down!" the angel said, "She's taken in too much demonic energy, and it's killing her from the inside!"
"That demon she fought, the Destroyer of Equestria, how was she able to do this much damage to the Guardian?!"
"The Destroyer was created not just to destroy Equestria, but to destroy the Guardian! That demon must have planted a virus into Vale!"
Faust trotted over to the pod that Vale was floating in. She weakly opened her eyes and looked at her mother.
"Mother..." Vale said weakly, "How is... Equestria..."
"Your Earth Pony friend is fighting the Destroyer as we speak," Faust said, "She's taken in all the Elements of Harmony and became a makeshift god, but she will not survive that fight."
"Bay...onet..." Vale said shedding a few tears, "I'm... sorry... my friend..."
"Guardian, I can save you, but you will have to be in stasis for a long while. There will come a time when you are needed again, so until then you must rest."
"Mother... I'm sorry... I failed... my... mission..."
"Not at all," Faust said, "You did wonderfully. You deserve this period of rest."
Vale closed her eyes, and something came out of her chest. A small cloud of light. An angel went over to it and grabbed it with his magic.
"That's Vale's heart," Faust said, "Prepare a Cipher to receive it. When Vale is needed again, we will send the Cipher to survey the area."
"What about an angel? We can't leave Terra unguarded," the angel said.
"Begin training Celestia," Faust said, "She may only be a B-Class, but she's the best we have. I'm sure she'll be able to protect Terra."
"But her sense of logic is-"
"Do not question my judgment!" Faust shouted, "That Earth Pony won't be able to kill the Destroyer permanently, and when she is found we'll need an angel to fight her. At least to keep her held off until Vale is reawakened."
"Yes, All Mother," the angel flew off, leaving Faust with her fallen daughter, "Sweet dreams, my dear Vale," she said, for the first time in years using her chosen name.
Millenniums later, Celestia was sent to Equestria, and along with a mysterious dark blue alicorn Faust refused to divulge the origins of, was made into royalty. Faust was beginning to wonder if Equestria would need the Guardian again, as Celestia and her Terra born "sister" Luna were doing just fine without her.
But one day a dark wave ran through Equestria. Faust knew what that wave was. Her brother was preparing for his second campaign against Equestria.
The Destroyer of Equestria was returning.
"Is the Cipher ready?" Faust asked an angel.
"We can send it at anytime," the angel said. Faust look at the screen, showing an image of what the Cipher would look like when it reached it's early twenties. It was created in the image of Vale, but it's mane was purple instead of deep blue. This particular Cipher was a unicorn.
Faust pointed her horn at the Cipher, sending the energy of Vale into it. This Cipher, though it wouldn't have Vale's soul, would possess Vale's heart and life force, so it would mimic Vale's personality traits and mannerisms. Those things would guide it, so it would act as if it were alive, but the Cipher would have no soul of its own.
An empty, soulless copy of Vale. Faust hated using these things, but they still needed more time to save Vale. Hopefully the Cipher would do until Vale could return.
"Deploy the Cipher," Faust commanded, "Target the country of Equestria, near the town of Ponyville. Target age should be around a single year old to start."
"Yes, All Mother!" the angels all said in unison. The Cipher was shot down toward Equestria, actually in the same spot that Vale would always enter Equestria from. There Faust watched as a unicorn family arrived near the landing spot and picked up the Cipher. It would have a family at least.
"Watch over that family," Faust said, "When Vale is to reawaken, she will go with them and explain the situation. Also, prepare the soul of Bayonet as well. Vale will need help in fighting the Destroyer again.
"The soul of the Master of Harmony will take longer to prepare for reincarnation. Should we prepare a Cipher for her as well?"
"No," Faust said, "If the Master of Harmony is a little younger when Vale reawakens then so be it." The angel nodded and ran back to work, leaving Faust to her thoughts. She had never used Ciphers like this before, so she had no idea how this would effect Vale upon reawakening. Would she still be Vale, or would the Cipher's identity rule over her own?
Only time would tell.
Rarity stepped back upon reawakening. The ponies that picked her up were her parents, right? So did that mean Rarity was adopted?
"A Cipher, as you saw, is a shell designed to follow certain ques from the angel's heart that they represent," Faust explained to a traumatized Rarity, "When the angel is revived, the Cipher is broken down and everything they've seen is transferred to the angel. I had originally commissioned for your memory to be erased so that your memories wouldn't taint Vale's, but things didn't play out the way I had planned.
"First was Azure Sky, who you know as Trixie Lulamoon. She invested a lot more interest into your well being than I originally planned. I told her what you were, and yet she still saw you as a life worth protecting.
"Next thing was the arrival of my mortal born daughter, Luna. She knew upon meeting you that you were a Cipher, yet she was still willing to fight for your life. Why was an angel willing to defend an empty life.
"Finally was the moment you started using Vale's powers. That much shouldn't have been possible, yet here you were, a mere Cipher using angel powers. I didn't understand it, but it sparked an interest in me. I had to see how far this would play out. So I changed my plans, and instead of waiting for you to escort you to the room where Vale is, I've decided to give you a choice."
"A... choice...?" Rarity said looking up at the All Mother.
"The door behind me is the chamber where Vale sleeps," Faust said, "If you wish, I can escort you to the chamber, where I will then break you down and return Vale's life force energy and heart to her. You will cease to exist, with no evidence of your existence beyond the memories of those who remember you."
That scared Rarity, the thought that she would just vanish. But if what she learned was true, then she never truly existed at all. Perhaps she should just give her life back to Vale.
"The second choice is right here," Faust said, prompting Rarity to look up. Floating above them were six multicolored lights.
"Wait, those are-" Luna started.
"If the Cipher wishes to reclaim her memories, then she will have to show me that desire to live she seems to possess," Faust said, "I'm sure you know what that means, don't you Cipher?"
She did, and the thought was beyond anything she ever thought. She was going to have to take her memories back by force. She would have to fight the All Mother. Fight God.
"Why are you giving Rarity this choice now?" Trixie asked, "You don't expect Rarity to be able to defeat you, do you?"
"Do you now have faith in the Cipher?" Faust asked, "Besides, she does not have to defeat me. All I wish to see is her desire to live. I want to gauge how much she loves life."
"So this is a game to you then?!" Luna exclaimed, "We ponies aren't pawns for you to play with for your amusement! Rarity has ponies waiting for her back on Equestria, and I came here to take her back to them, not to play some silly game!"
"What happens next isn't for you to decide, Luna," Faust said, "I am putting the choice directly in the hooves of the Cipher. So Cipher, what will it be? Will you fight for the life you claim belongs to you, or will you surrender it to give it back to Vale?"
"There's no way..." Rarity began, "For Vale and I to just coexist?"
Faust looked away gravely, "That is impossible, Cipher. You have within you everything that makes Vale who she is. Without that, she will never wake up."
"So you're asking me to choose between myself or her, is that it?!" Rarity asked, bursting into tears, "Damn it, how can anypony make that choice?! How can I make that choice?!"
"Rarity..." Trixie said somberly.
"I want to live, I do!" Rarity sobbed, "But Vale deserves a chance to live as well! Why do I have to make this decision?!"
"Because Vale herself cannot," Faust said, "I can almost imagine what Vale would do, but she is not here to make that choice. Come now, Cipher, will you stop here? Are you just going to give up, or can I see the drive to live that you showed Azure?"
Rarity hated the way things were playing out. She now had to choose between living with the knowledge that Vale would never wake up, or fading into oblivion to be replaced by Vale. When this began, all she wanted was the ability to choose the outcome herself, and now she had that choice. The question was, could she make it?
After calming down a bit, she thought back to the one she loved. She couldn't remember his face, nor his name, but she remembered his love. At the very least she wanted to remember who he was if she could.
And there was only one way to do that.
Rarity stood up and wiped her eyes, looking at the All Mother with all of the intensity she felt within, "I want my memories back!"
"Rarity?!" Trixie exclaimed as Luna nodded in acceptance.
"I don't know what I'll do concerning Vale or myself, but I want to make that choice as myself completely!" Rarity continued, "If you want me to disappear, then you'll have to kill me, because I'm not leaving here until I remember who I am!"
As strange as it was, Faust closed her eyes and smiled. She then started laughing, laughing. It was the scariest thing Rarity had ever seen, knowing who this pony was. Her entire air changed at that moment. She seemed so serene before, but now she seemed terrifying.
"There it is! That's the fire I wanted to see!" Faust said, in a voice so unlike her, "That glare almost reminds me of Vale! It's enough to make me want to rip you apart myself!"
"A-All Mother...?" Trixie asked, "Are you okay...? You seem a little..."
"I'll wait for you in the next room, Cipher," Faust said, "I'll assume your entry in that room is a declaration of you not running away."
"Not that I would!" Rarity said.
"Well then, I eagerly await our upcoming fight, Cipher," with that, Faust vanished, bringing the six lights with her. Rarity wasted no time running to the door.
"Rarity, wait!" Trixie called out stopping her, "Are you sure you want to do this? The All Mother is not like anything you've ever faced! She's beyond anything we could comprehend!"
"If I die here, then I guess that's it," Rarity said, "But I need to remember! I can't make any decision if I can't even remember who I am!"
"Then you will need our help," Luna said, "Let's-"
"No," Rarity said, "This is between me and her!"
"Rarity, don't be foolish!" Luna shouted, "You're talking about fighting a God! You can't do this on your own!"
"She took my memories, and my life!" Rarity retaliated, "I'm the one she wants to fight, so I'm the one she's fighting! If I die, then tell everyone on the surface that I love them, even if I can't remember who they are."
With that, Rarity turned to the door and ran, not stopping for a second. She heard both Luna and Trixie calling out to her, but she didn't even let that stop her. It was time to end this. By the end of this fight, Faust would know, she wasn't just a Cipher.
Her name was Rarity! After this fight, Faust had better say her name!