//------------------------------// // You Found Me // Story: The Unchosen One // by MagnetBolt //------------------------------// The Unchosen One Chapter 12: You Found Me By MagnetBolt A meteor crashed into Canterlot Palace, turning the city into a firestorm in an instant. The Royal Guard was wiped out in one stroke, and Celestia and Luna along with them. There was nopony left to oppose the Nightmare. She watched as ponies fled from the burning city into the wilderness, the entire world cast with the shades of a bonfire by the endless twilight she had imposed, the sun and the moon hanging at opposite ends of the horizon, frozen there by her power with the perfect grid of the stars above. It would take generations before the ponies learned to accept their fate. The griffons and minotaurs faded from the world as Twilight pushed them further and further away from Equestria. Discord, Chrysalis, and all of the others who had once threatened the land were destroyed with her new power, the blazing might of the Pisa Sol making it impossible for anypony to challenge her. Nightmare Twilight was the sole ruler of the world. No one dared to oppose her. Until one day, six ponies stormed her palace. “We've come to free the world from your grip, Tyrant!” shouted one, a pink pegasus with blue hair. It would have been called sky blue in the previous era, before the sky had been turned permanently red, orange, and black. “We won't let you rule us with your evil powers any more,” agreed the white unicorn, her mane purple and blue. “The six of us are going to bring peace to Equestria.” Twilight raised an eyebrow at that.“Peace? Peace?! This is peace! The world is orderly and perfect! No one wants for anything and the only threat to anypony is traitors like you causing trouble for the loyal ponies who appreciate my work!” The lavender earth pony, her cutie mark a burst of white flowers, shook her head. “They just live in fear that you'll destroy them, like you did to our home.” Twilight laughed. “Oh, I see how this is now. You're all from that pathetic city that tried to break away from rightful Equestrian rule. You were warned of the consequences for defying me. Speaking of which, if you begin begging now I might allow you to live.” “D-don't talk about them like it was nothing!” Shouted a pink pony with white dots decorating her flank. “You killed all those ponies! And the fields of flowers, everything turned to fire...” a tear trickled from her eye. Twilight snorted with disgust. “That's not all!” yelled a turquoise pony with green hair. “We know you're the reason there are almost no unicorns left! We heard all about how you used to be a good pony and turned evil and started destroying things!” “What?” Twilight frowned. “What do you mean you heard about it?” She had expunged all records of history at the beginning of her rule, to make things easier in the long run. There was no need to let her subjects know of what she'd done to bring them such peace. She suspected that Celestia and Luna had done the same when they had taken over from Discord. “A blue unicorn told us all about what happened,” said the last of the six, a cream colored unicorn with red hair. “Trixie told us about what you did and how we could stop you.” Twilight's eyes went wide. “Trixie?! That's impossible! It's been hundreds of years-” “And she gave us these.” Amulets appeared around each of their necks. “The Elements of Harmony,” Twilight whispered. She was too stunned to react before a rainbow-colored beam of energy washed over her and she dissipated into smoke, screaming. *** “I know it isn't easy, Twilight. You have to fight.” *** “You hurt all of your friends. Rainbow Dash might never fly again. Trixie might not even survive the night. The entire world is in chaos because of the false order you tried to bring.” Twilight looked down, not reacting, as Celestia paced around her. “And you're telling me you think you deserve to rule, just because you're stronger than I am?” “It is a formal request,” the Nightmare said, standing. “I could simply wipe this city out. It would be easy and clean, and prevent any clever plans you might have later. You know you can't stand against me, even with all of the guards you have. Even if every pony in Equestria stood with you, I could turn them to ash with a thought.” “That would would even consider that just goes to show that you do not deserve to rule Equestria.” Celestia stopped to fix Twilight with a glare. The Nightmare spread her wings, and flames roared through the room, setting the furniture on fire. Celestia was unharmed, the alicorn inured to such displays of power thanks to her connection to the sun. “I am not asking! I am telling you! I am the greatest power of this world and you have only one chance to stand with me! If you dare to stand against me than you will fall just as surely as all of the others! I am not the foal you taught! I was the learner, and now I am the master!” “No, Twilight. The power has mastered using you, not the other way around.” Celestia sighed and looked away. “I have no choice, then.” “Good. You may formally turn your throne over to me after the court has assembled.” “You don't understand,” Celestia said, turning to look at her former student. “After we defeated Discord, Luna had to stop me from doing exactly what you're doing now.” “I remember that,” Twilight nodded. She still had most of Luna's memories thanks to the Element of Dominance. “Do you remember the promise we made after that?” Celestia asked, quietly. “You promised... that you'd do whatever you had to do if it meant stopping the other from becoming a tyrant like Discord had been.” “I fulfilled my promise when Luna became Nightmare Moon. I banished my own sister to the moon for a thousand years because I swore an oath to her that she wouldn't destroy Equestria. I don't know how much of you is still left in there, Twilight, but that promise still stands. I won't allow anypony to do what you're doing.” “And how do you expect to stop me?” Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow. “That artifact is the Pisa Sol. The Ring of Sol Invictus. It was not meant for you.” Celestia's eyes lit up, and the ring vanished from where it had been hanging as a halo around Twilight's head, reappearing around Celestia's. White flames poured from her as her mane changed to a glowing golden color. “I am the Unconquered Sun and it is my power to wield, and a pretender cannot keep it from me.” “No!” Twilight screamed. A beam of deadly energy shot towards Celestia, simply evaporating in midair before reaching her. “I wish I could be as gentle with you as I was with my sister, but the Sol Ring is not a precision tool like the Elements of Harmony.” Celestia braced herself. “This is goodbye, Twilight. I'll think of you whenever I raise the sun.” A golden wave enveloped Twilight, and she was suddenly in a blinding place of crushing pressure and impossible heat. The center of the Sun. Just before she died, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of blue. *** “You don't have to listen to the Nightmare anymore.” *** Twilight looked up at the perfect, orderly sky. Maybe it was just nostalgia but she already missed the familiar constellations. She had spent so many nights studying the stars, and like this the mystery was laid bare. There was no romance or art to it. It was just there like a map already filled in, nothing left to discover. She looked down at her flaming hooves. For the first time since she had put on the Element, she felt doubt. A surge of some nameless emotion pulsed from the Element. She wasn't sure if it was fear or anger or something that was both at the same time. She understood what it meant, though. She was so close to her goal, and she was thinking about giving up on it. She'd already sacrificed so much. She had even sacrificed her friends for this. She felt a pang of guilt at that. But what did it matter? Guilt was for ponies who were too afraid to go after what they really wanted. And this was what she had wanted. She had a world that was perfect, and if something wasn't right, she could change it again until it was! It was intoxicating, having enough power that she could just undo any mistakes she made. If she really wanted the constellations back she could put them in their place. She could even improve them, add a few of her own. Maybe she could make a habit of it, changing them every year so ponies could have something new to see. Not that her friends would appreciate it, after what she'd done to them. Twilight frowned and shivered. A voice deep inside her was trying to tell her that everything she was doing was wrong, that her friends were just as important as the world. It was silly, of course. She was immortal. She'd last forever. Time enough for even better friendships in the future. She could replace her friends, or learn to live without close relationships at all. Celestia and Luna had done it. Except Celestia had her sister, and had raised Twilight like a daughter. Had she always known Twilight's destiny was to become an alicorn? Did she free Discord so she'd have another immortal to share the burden of living through the ages? In Twilight's perfect world she'd end up as alone as Celestia had been since banishing her sister, a subject that the princess still didn't discuss. Twilight stood and watched the sky, trying to decide what to do, her resolve shattered. A blue star twinkled above her, shining down with silver light. *** “A nightmare can't last forever. They always end.” *** Twilight stood in the rain, her mane drenched and her coat wet to the skin. She stared down at the recently turned earth and the stone that had been placed there. Trixie Lulamoon was carved into it, along with her cutie mark. Somepony had found her old hat and cape and they decorated the stone as if the granite was her, instead of belonging to the broken body lying below. Twilight had done this to her. The repeated beating to her already broken body had simply been too much. When they got the armor off of her, what was inside was hamburger. It had been enough to snap Twilight out her her mad lust for power. She'd tried every healing spell she knew, but even with the power of the Nightmare, even with the power of Pisa Sol, it simply hadn't been enough to return life to the dead. The Pisa Sol had been sealed away again. She'd undone what she could. When Celestia had come to challenge her, Twilight had given up without a fight. She hadn't even been allowed to come to the funeral. She was only here now under heavy guard, in case the Nightmare should take over again. It was raging at her in the back of her mind, demanding that she stop moping and do something useful. She had found the strength to ignore it, but it had taken too high a cost. “Are you ready to go back?” Luna asked, quietly. Celestia couldn't bear to see her student in such a state, and had asked Luna to take care of things for now. “I'm sorry,” Twilight whispered. “Sorry isn't good enough sometimes,” Luna said. “And as long as you wear that amulet you will never be allowed to leave the dungeon again.” “I know,” Twilight said. “As long as you understand. Guards, escort her back.” The Night Guard closed in, and Twilight fell into step with them, following their leader, whose silver tail twitched in front of Twilight's downcast eyes as they walked. *** “Dreams can hurt, but they aren't real.” *** Twilight tried to pick herself off of the floor. She was surrounded by broken fragments from a shattered stained glass window. The largest part sat unbroken before her, her own image appearing on it, looking back at her through time, like a more innocent version of herself sitting in judgment on all that she had done. “How did it come to this?” Twilight asked. Lightning crashed outside the castle, the howling wind roaring from the black moon in the sky. She picked broken glass from her coat and shook raindrops free of her mane. “This is where you should be,” said a voice from the dark. Or was it in her head? “The palace, where you were raised, where you should rule from. This is your destiny.” “I didn't want to hurt everypony!” Twilight shouted. “I thought I could make things better but I just made them worse.” “You're weak. You could have been strong. You could still be strong.” “No, I can't.” Twilight sobbed. “We will rise up again and escape this lotus-eater's trap. Then we will conquer Equestria!” “I never wanted that at all! I just wanted my friends to be happy!” “You wanted them to love you for it. Why should you have friends who don't appreciate you? With my power you can make them love you.” “It's not what I wanted!” Twilight shouted. “Who are you?!” “I'm the part of you that isn't afraid to use the power we have.” “No. I don't believe that! I'd never- I'd never do those things if it wasn't for you!” “I am you!” “No!” Twilight screamed, tearing off the Element of Dominance and running through the empty corridors, the wind howling behind her. A blue shadow watched from outside. *** “Even the worst dream ends eventually.” *** Twilight was in a dark place. There was only blackness around her, and she was floating through an endless abyss. And it was angry. Icy cold washed over her like she'd jumped into a river. Twilight struggled and tried to swim away, but she was dragged down, further and further, an endless spiral of fear and cold. She could feel things watching her in the blackness, whispering quietly. Whispering about how if she'd just put the Element back on that it would all stop. Twilight could feel it, just out of reach. If she strained for it, she'd be able to get it and put it back on and then she could be the nightmare instead of a victim of it. She remembered, dimly, the things it had made her do, and she stayed her hoof, curling in on herself and starting to weep. Somepony started stroking her mane, a comforting hoof in the dark. *** "Only the dreamer wakes up." *** “I can't believe the changelings came back!” Twilight said, knocking a flying changeling away. “And on national cake day!” She was standing in the National Cake Museum and Bakery, one of the oldest and most revered of the government institutions of Equestria. Changelings were flying in and taking the form of the gathered nobility and dignitaries, who had assembled to taste test the new Gold Standard cake, a pineapple upside-down cake that would never spoil. “Watch out!” Somepony shouted. Twilight was pushed aside as somepony jumped in front of her to take a blow from a changeling. The armored pony spun and kicked, knocking the changeling and and forcing it to revert to its insectile form. “Trixie? What are you doing here?” Twilight asked, confused. Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Trixie is the captain of your guard. Of course she's here. You can't expect me to sit on my flank when you're in trouble!” She blasted another changeling out of the air. “Now are you going to help me clean this up or is Trixie going to have to do all the work herself?” “I- of course I'll help!” Twilight blinked. Why had she been confused. Of course Trixie would be there. It was natural. She'd been guarding her flank for years. “Curse you, Twilight Sparkle!” Shouted Queen Chrysalis, as she stormed into the Cake Reserve. “I will have the Golden Pineapple Cake! My changelings will feed on the love that went into making it and gain untold power!” “That cake is needed to stabilize the economy!” Twilight yelled, a burst of power sending the changelings flying. The Queen remained untouched, sneering down at them. “Twilight, we can't just beat her with brute force!” Trixie looked around. “We're going to have to do that.” “Wait, that? What's that?” “Trixie can't believe you're so dense. Even the kilogram cake knows what I mean and it's more than twice as dense as pound cake!” Trixie leaned in and kissed Twilight. Twilight's eyes closed as she lost herself in the moment. The wind howled, but it was far away now. *** "You're done dreaming, Twilight." *** Twilight looked at herself in the mirror, her heart pounding in her chest. The air was thick with the smell of roses and lavender. She closed her eyes for a moment to steady herself, and then looked at her reflection again. A white dress, with a long train, completely covering her in lace and silk. Her crown, which usually sat uncomfortably on her head, somehow fit better now with ribbons and a veil laced through it. Her wedding dress, just as she'd always pictured it. A stray whisper carried on an icy wind asked if it wouldn't look better with just once more piece of jewelry. An amulet, maybe. Like the one on the stand just over there. Twilight looked at the dark star sapphire. “It wouldn't go with the dress,” somepony said. Twilight turned and found her mother and father standing there and smiling. She rushed over and they embraced. “Mom, Dad! I was afraid you wouldn't come!” “Why wouldn't we come?” Her mother asked, squeezing her. “We couldn't be more proud of you. Now my little foal is a grown-up princess and getting marred to the pony she loves.” “I was just worried,” Twilight said, smiling. “I know it's silly. But when I didn't get a letter back from you after the invitation, I thought you were made because I was, you know.” She blushed. “Actually, um,” Spike coughed, spitting out a letter. “I'm kind of backed up. I've never had to deal with this much mail before. I think this one is from Tuesday...” “At that rate you should have our letter in another week,” Twilight's father noted. “But we'd never be angry at you. Is it too late to ask if I can give my little girl away?” He smiled. Twilight teared up and nuzzled him. “Of course, Dad. I wouldn't want anypony else to do it.” Bells started ringing above. Twilight looked up. “Twi! It's time!” Applejack said, running into the room. “Ah hope yer done fiddlin' with yer dress, because we got a wedding goin' on and yer the star attraction!” Twilight nodded and grabbed a bouquet of flowers, the Element forgotten. Her father led her out into the hall, and Twilight looked down the aisle, where all of her friends were standing and starting to clap as she walked along a red carpet covered in flower petals. Her five closest friends were standing to one side of the altar, with Celestia, Luna, and Cadence standing in the center. “Congratulations, Twilight!” Somepony from the crowd shouted. Everypony started congratulating her, one after another, as she walked past them, towards the most important ponies in her life, and standing, waiting for her with her armor polished to a shining orange and silver, Trixie smiled down at Twilight. *** "Twilight, Wake up." *** “They're so cute,” Twilight whispered, looking down at the two small shapes in their crib. The babies were only a few weeks old now, a girl and boy, twins with coats that mirrored each other. The foal had a silver coat with violet hair, and the colt had a violet coat and silver hair. They snored lightly as they slept next to each other, sharing a quilt that had been hoof-stitched by Fluttershy. “Don't wake them up,” Trixie said, sighing. “It took an hour to get them both asleep at once. If Trixie had known how much trouble having foals would be-” “You'd still have them,” Twilight teased, nuzzling her lover. “I know you love them even more than I do. Don't pretend I haven't caught you coming in here at night just to watch them.” “Well, maybe you're right,” Trixie admitted. A damp chill washed over the two. Twilight looked up and saw one of the windows was open. She shut it quietly, keeping the dark and cold at bay. It didn't belong in this place. Something glittered in the darkness beyond, weak and almost forgotten. “It's like this is all some wonderful dream,” Twilight said, with a sigh. “I never want to wake up from it. I thought I knew what I wanted in life, and it wasn't this, and I was wrong. This is more wonderful than anything I could imagine.” “That's because you didn't have to imagine it alone,” Trixie said, standing next to her and moving her away from the window. “But it all has to end someday.” She looked at Twilight sadly. “We've been dreaming this wonderful dream, and we could tell stories to each other over and over again, but we have to let it end.” Tears fell from Twilight's eyes. “No! I don't want it to stop!” “It has to. No matter how nice this is, it's not real. We have to let it go. Trixie wishes she could stay here with you forever too, but it wouldn't matter. This is just playing pretend. Trixie wants to have the real you, not just a nice dream.” “I know,” Twilight whispered, looking at the foals. They'd never have a chance to grow up, or become who they were meant to be. Even if they did, it wouldn't be real. They were just daydreams. “But I was having such a nice dream...” *** “Wake up.” *** A pure white space, light coming from everywhere evenly. Twilight walked on a surface that only seemed to materialize under her, as solid as stone but as ephemeral as a cloud. She felt like she'd been walking for a very long time. Once in a while, she could see shapes in the mist. Ghostly images, fragments of dreams. Or maybe she wasn't seeing anything, and it was just in her head. Something solid appeared in front of her. Twilight stopped, then cautiously advanced, the mist parting as she neared it. A mare, sitting and waiting. It had been so long since Twilight had seen anyone that it took her a few moments to remember how to speak. “Hello?” She asked, her throat dry. The mare turned to look, and smiled. “Hello.” “I didn't know that there was anyone else,” Twilight said, sitting next to her. They were quite as they looked into the mist. She hadn't even known anyone else was real. She'd thought the world was just this, endless walking and vague images. She couldn't remember anything before it. “I wasn't sure either,” the mare said, nodding. “Where were you going?” Twilight asked. The mare thought for a moment before answering. “I think I've forgotten.” She smiled sadly. “It's all just slipped away from me.” “I forgot too,” Twilight admitted. “I think my name is... Twilight.” “That's a good name,” the other mare agreed. “What's your name?” “Um...” She thought. “...I think it's Trixie.” They sat for a time in silence. It could have been a few minutes, or a few days, or a few years. It was impossible to tell in the timeless, unchanging space. “Do you want to go together?” Twilight asked. The other mare nodded, smiling. *** “Twilight!” ***