//------------------------------//
// Making Things Right-ish: Rope 
// Story: Imbalanced 
// by Nameless Narrator 
//------------------------------//

[Blazing's Entry]

My magic has never been a concern and since even my ability to levitate things wasn't really delicate and well-controlled I used to spend time learning how to write without using a horn. My father always said at such times something along the lines of me being stupid for not using the powers fate gave me, acting like a mudpony and wasting time on unimportant things. In time I grew to believe him when my wasting time became more serious - using hooves instead of telekinesis for menial things, doing martial arts instead of usual unicorn techniques - and I believed him when he said that it would be useless later in life.

Shows what he knew.

I think his problem with me wasn't caused by anything I've thought of until now though. I can't say I agree with what Void said in the library but it made me think...

...and it made me scared. Without thinking, I may have doomed this reality by killing my local self. 

[End Entry]





Sitting in a chair inside Golden Oaks library, I'm done with being interrogated by both princesses and have a cup of tea as my only companion. I was worried about Luna asking questions but the 'loss of my horn caused by an enemy' was enough to bring up their compassion and leave me alone for now. It is actually possible to outplay Luna's sense of truth and I have two ways of doing so. The first way is my magic dampening which should allow me to lie without Luna noticing her magic is gone. I've never tried it but it should, in theory, work. The second way is just to answer vaguely while connecting different circumstances like I did tonight. Usually, my answers would probably be under heavy inspection but my saving Sharp and probably everypony else as well gave me some credibility I would otherwise not have.

I also gave Void the shortened version of events leading up to this point and when Luna interrupted our chat we decided to leave the questions for later, which is now.

Focusing on Void, I keep crunching some cookies and get ready to get things moving.

Your story is disturbing but how do I know you are telling the truth?

Firstly, I knew you'd end up inside me. Secondly, I'm doing this for and because of you. Thirdly, to get you to cooperate faster your other self told me to tell you that (I quickly flip the pages of my diary) 'The green curtains with yellow carrots sucked'.

I must admit all that cannot be a coincidence.

What's that thing about curtains anyway?

Nothing important. Just a little dispute I had with Scream over decorations in our first house.

Is that it? I thought you'd have given me some epic secret of the universe only you know.

This IS something only I know. It is unimportant enough not to be held in any biography about me somepony might have written somehow and it is something I will never forget as it led to Scream's experiments with carrots and subsequently other long and hard items. Cucumbers also come to mind.

After talking to her twice, I really shouldn't be surprised and... I'm not.

One thing does not make sense though. Why did I send you through time and space to save Scream in a different reality?

Something about my artificial body not belonging to any reality anymore.

I did not mean that, I know the specifics of the spell. What was my reason for asking you to save different Scream? My own was dead anyway, or at least severely limited and it would take very long time for her to reappear no matter what I did.

You said something about you being able to sense the mood of other Voids in different realities thanks to being the alicorn of Death.

Interesting...

What is?

Let me ask you something different. Why did you agree to my request? You said your ending had everything you wanted.

You... made my friend very happy.

The batpony. Choking Darkness, was it?

Yeah.

Everything you do seems to revolve around her.

That doesn't matter. The thing here is to make things right while saving Scream.

I am not sure that is the case.

What do you mean?

I might love Scream to the core but I would have been livid thanks to what she did. Even after my time in Tartarus I would have let her think about her deeds for some time.

I don't know. If I was a better pony and Chokey was in Scream's position I'd have probably done the same thing as you if I wasn't able to jump myself.

That is the other interesting thing.

Stop being so damn mysterous. We don't have time for it.

Right now, time is what we have plenty of. What I asked of you was a very selfish thing, considering the way it was presented. What did I offer you in return? It cannot have been a chance for a new life since you are saying you will die anyway in the end.

I think you liked Chokey and she liked you as well so you promised me you'd make her a very happy bat for the rest of her life.

It is starting to make sense to me. There is something you did not tell me, I think. What was between you and the batpony?

Nothing.

I disbelieve that from the depth of my soul.

I mean it. Well... I was crazy about her then but I think she fell in love with you during the time you were in Canterlot. It makes sense to me now but it didn't at the time and when I asked her out she refused me. Now I know it was your doing.

That makes even less sense. I took your only chance at being together with somepony you loved and you-

You're thinking about it the wrong way. I know how it looks but you don't know me. Her rejecting me freed me from all things I had in the world and I was able to do what I had to. When I thought about it, and I've had enough time to think about it, I knew that you made her happy in a way I wouldn't have been able to so in a sense I owed you a lot. 

Alright, I believe that dancing around the subject will not bring anything useful anymore. I lied when I told you the thing about me feeling my other selves from different realities. I can do no such thing.

So you wanted me to save Scream for... what?

I did not want you to save Scream at all. It seems that my self from your reality wanted you to have a chance at finding happiness for yourself.

... that is stupid.

Why?

I was content with finally being dead and leaving Chokey in the best hooves around. Equestria was safe from the invasion and all the bad guys were dead.

Maybe I thought that your friend was not in the best hooves she could have been.

Oh don't give me that crap. Compared to you-

Compared to me you died for her, lived for her, saved the world for her and gave away everything including your own hopes for the future for her.

That's all nice but in the end the result would have sucked anyway. I hate to remind you that she chose you and I can easily see why.

I think you are wrong.

And I think YOU are wrong. The difference is that I know myself. I spent a year jumping through dimensions and the things I had to do, no... I chose to do, to move forward were disgusting. I'm the reason an entire world is dead, all that because you made a mistake. I even killed my mother for Celestia's sake.

Everypony makes mistakes.

Good. Now stop the nonsense about me and think about how to save Scream and make the Crystal Heart blow up again.

I was talking about you. If there is somepony who can understand you then it is me. I was imprisoned in Tartarus for killing millions of ponies and it took me millenia to get over it. You are in a similar situation and I think you just need to forgive yourself.

I can't just 'forgive' myself.

You are not the same pony you were then. It helps to realize that. You changed, your mistakes changed you and you think about things differently than in the past.

Please stop that, Void. I'm not better than I was. I will make mistakes again and I will hurt others again if I'm allowed to go on. I don't want to, I'm just... clumsy, useless and stupid because I can't think things through so let me be a hero for few seconds and then a cloud of dust forever.

Nopony can see into the future and nopony can see the impact of his actions in their entirety. Mistakes will be made, experience will be acquired and bad things will be avoided eventually.

Give me one reason to bother. If I do things right then I will get the result I want. I will not exist anymore. I will not hurt anypony anymore. The world will be saved and everypony will be happy.

And I will be back home with Scream while your batpony girl will be moping after losing her friend.

Shit. Can't you... spend some time with her? I mean so she enjoys the good things your promised me she would get in my world. A mere sixty or eighty years shouldn't be too much to ask or not?

Why are you trying to push this on my shoulders?

Because I know that will work. I know you can give her what she wants.

I will not.

WHY?! I'M HERE BECAUSE OF YOU! I'M TRYING TO HELP YOU! I DON'T CARE ABOUT THIS DAMN WORLD BUT I'M STILL GOING TO TRY TO SAVE IT JUST BECAUSE I PROMISED IT TO YOU! WHY CAN'T I GET EVEN A LITTLE THING BACK?

You have just answered you own question. You do not care about this world and yet you are willing to go through nightmares to save it. All that because there exists a little, insignificant batpony whom you will not even meet again after she causes your death for her selfish reasons. The real question is whether or not she is even remotely good enough for you, not the other way around.

You can't be serious.

What is more, you do not even entertain the thought of her not being some kind of holy light, a miracle gracing this world with her presence. You are so blind to her faults that you cannot comprehend that she is just a mare.

But... she doesn't want me. She can't want me. She deserves the best. She deserves... you.

Why do you refuse to be happy?

I can't be happy knowing my happiness causes somepony else to be unhappy.

Such foalish thing to say. Goals of different ponies are always in contrast. The pain caused by victory of the winner gives experience to the loser who, if he is good enough, will use it to win later.

Wisdom comes from being kicked in the face is what you're saying?

Very much so.

That still doesn't matter. Chokey still deserves the best and I will blow up the Crystal Heart. If you don't agree to do what your other self did then I will take Scream down with me again.

I doubt you will.

Why do you have to be so stubborn? What's so bad about few decades when you're immortal?

Think about Scream for a second. If her plan fails then the last thing Equestria will need is an angry, immortal grandmaster of magic plotting revenge again. I will have to be there by here side to calm her down and make the reason for her insanity go away for good. I will not have time to be in somepony else's life.

I didn't think of that. Can't you help... somehow, anyhow?

My other self sent YOU here. I think that if you want your friend to have the best then you have to become the best for her. All I can provide is advice and my first would be for you to stop putting her on a pedestal.

I can't change what I am.

No, you cannot. But you can realize what you truly are.

Liar, cheater, murderer.

And you had the audacity to say I was stubborn. I see there is nothing I can say to change your mind, I am not the right pony for the job. Tell me then how I can persuade the princesses to let me get my body back faster.

I don't know. You and Chokey did that all by yourselves but I think I can make this a bit easier for you.

With that I rip out two pages from my diary and begin writing two letters.


Chokey, I forgive you for killing me, no harm done.
What I need you to do now is to help Void with whatever he wants.
He's not a threat no matter what anypony says. 
If you don't believe this then ask Sharp when did I give him this letter.
When I get back I'll try to visit you and persuade princess Luna to help as well.
Also, if you drug me again then I'll really think about doing something scary and terrible to you.
And if by some chance I'm wrong and I won't be able to get back then you and Void will have to find a way to save Equestria.
No matter what happens next, you were the best friend I could have ever had.

PS: Seriously! What WERE you thinking with the pep pills?


This should give Void some leverage when Sharp tells Chokey he recieved the letter on Nightmare Night and should do the trick with Luna... I hope.


Princess Luna,
Blueblood is a bastard who will try to rape Chokey in the castle library and I'll get killed as a result.
To make things short - he will threaten to kill her and that will be the reason for me not talking during the interrogation.
The important thing is that I'll get resurrected by an alicorn named Scream who is for all intents and purposes evil, I will explain everything later.
I need you to help Void get his body back otherwise this Equestria is doomed.
I'm writing these letters while you're talking to princess Twilight about a doppleganger threat but the real deal is that an invasion from Equestria's twin world is coming and Void is the only one who can help you stop it in case I fail.
I'll try to get to you as fast as possible and explain everything.
Blazing Light.

PS: You have to teach me the spell that summons a beam of light which makes everything in its path wobble and disappear. Can't figure that one out no matter how hard I try and it makes fighting you impossible.


Perfect. Now to make Chokey drug me, get caught by Rising, save her from being raped and then get hanged.

Are you thinking this through? As I said, you are not the same pony you were at the time and your actions might have different outcomes.

I'll have to act in the right way then. I'm not bad at reading and manipulating ponies but I hate doing it. My part isn't the difficult one though. You didn't tell me what your problem with Celestia was and, honestly, I don't care but you were trying to fight me, Sombra, Scream and his minions side by side so I think you must have resolved the issue.

I will do my best.

With the plan laid in front of us, I give the letters to Sharp and tell him to give one to Luna and one to Chokey the day after tomorrow.





As it turned out, I didn't have to act much because with me being completely spent thanks to mirror Twilight's spell I wasn't really happy with Chokey banging on my door so early in the morning. I might have been a bit more agreeable towards her request out of being glad to see her again after so long but my seeing colors naturally not occuring in the world after breakfast at Joe's proved to me I played things out correctly.

Even without being able to use swords, fighting Rising Thunder was a complete breeze and after his defeat he did what he was supposed to. The good thing was that I arrived to the library at night a bit earlier and began smashing Blueblood's head into the wall without waiting. I still let Rising get me from behind, he he, but this time it will be a bit more difficult to clean Blueblood's mess from the carpet.

Now I'm standing in the castle gardens with Celestia reading my judgement with a noose around my neck. Blueblood's brutalized face in the crowd just makes me grin and gives me an idea. I really have grim sense of humor and everypony around will get their fair share.

Hey Void! Do you think these guys like those bubbly wines with corks that go 'pop'?

I guess so.

And do you want to see Celestia's shocked face?

Indeed.

Then check this out.

"Any last words?" asks princess Celestia.

Trying to block out what will happen if my plan fails, I make my armor as heavy as possible with the exception of my neck.

Hey Void!

Yes?

Think I can hit Luna's room from here with my head?

What?

"Yes. My last words are," I jump into the air and close my eyes, "WHEEEEEEEE-!"

Pop.