//------------------------------//
// 70 - Sacrifice 
// Story: Re:Harmony 
// by starcross7 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 70 - Sacrifice
 
From an awful color to royal purple, the glistening gem hovered before the Diamond Princess, rendering her hypnotically transfixed.  She heard it sing a song of beauty though it spoke no words and uttered no sound.  It called out to her.  She called out to it.  They both answered one another.  Her heart beat not out of fear, but out of wanting anticipation. 
 
"Thy call hath been heeded," the gem spoke.  "Thou art the foundation who seeks to support the pillars of creation.  Receive thy power, bearer of the Element of Empowerment, and bridge the unbreakable bonds against those who seek to shatter all of creation."
 
Before her mind even agreed, her hooves had already tapped the gem and established contact.  The jewel blasted out a flash of light, and yet Rarity could see it forming two golden wings that became its necklace.  The light immediately died down, and before she knew it, a new accessory replaced the black crystal ring around her neck, one that was gold and purple.  Its weight felt surprisingly light, but then she felt something hanging off towards her back. 
 
And what's this?  Rarity waved what she thought was cropped was now whole.  Her pristine and glittery curled tail had been restored.  Oh, glorious day!  Her new accessories would not go to waste!
 
Then the sun pegasus suddenly leapt over towards the Diamond Princess and bowed before her.  Rarity knew not who she was and why she was doing this, but then she noticed the top of her head glowing. 
 
"I accept thy gift," she said, "the gift of magic."
 
Bathed by the Element's lavender glow, the sun pegasus arched back towards her hind legs, and a million points began to create a unicorn horn on the top of her head.  So many things had happened, and now Rarity, to her astonishment, bore witness to the birth of another alicorn, the same as her stepmother. 
 
"Bearer of the Element of Empowerment," said the sun-alicorn.  "I am Sunny, the one who have accompanied Twilight and her friends in their long journey to reunite the Elements of Creation.  I am at your service."
 
Shouldn't it be the other way around?  Unicorns should be the ones bowing before the alicorns, the rarest and most legendary of all ponies. 
 
But the fight was not over.  The Spire Cannon had been stopped, and Rarity had halted the suffering of her friends and family.  Crafty Blueblood--underestimated Blueblood--had stood by witnessing the Rarity's acceptance of the Element of Empowerment and Sunny's ascension into an alicorn with growing anger.  From the tip of his horn he fired a large magic ball in the hopes of trapping Sunny and Rarity in orb prisons.  Sunny crouched down, ready to defend the Princess with a leaping strike, but Rarity extended her hoof to make her stand down.  The Element spoke to the Diamond Princess, and the Diamond Princess knew what to do. 
 
Rarity gripped the Flim or Flam's dropped flail between her teeth and flung its spiked and chain ball into the air.  Upon her will, the purple diamond gem in her golden necklace glowed, and power flowed forth into her weapon just in time.  Blueblood's magic ball shattered upon her empowered flail.  His initial shock rendered him speechless with a gaping mouth.  With Rarity advancing towards him, he backed away shaking and sniveling like his usual self--or his pretend self.  But she wasn't going to fall for it again. 
 
"I-I was only trying to do the right thing!" he whimpered. 
 
She spat out her fail.  "Really now?" Rarity asked.
 
"Please, I beg of you!  We used to have our spas together.  You once said that one day you'd marry me."
 
"I do remember dear Blueblood, but that handsome stallion from long ago is gone.  All I see now is a sniveling coward who lets others do his dirty work and cares not for their well-being."
 
"Cousin, have mercy on me!  I just had my coat waxed!"
 
"Oh, then that makes your punishment even more worthwhile.  Element of Empowerment, I command you: overflow this poor and pathetic pony with the gift of life!"
 
Her Element fired a small diamond shot straight into Blueblood before he could even flee.  The impact made him flinch, but he recovered himself once he discovered that fact he suffered no damage.  Then Rarity started her hard gallop at him.  A normal pony would have already fled or set himself into a fighting stance against an advancing adversary.  Yet Blueblood appeared as if he was staring past her second cousin with a dumb look.  He didn't appear frozen, at least physically.  Yet his body was moving very slowly, just as Rarity expected.  Her "vitalizer" technique caused his mind to move faster and out of sync with his body.  With everything moving so slow in his perception, he watched helplessly as Rarity socked him in the face with a right hook.  Slowly and excruciatingly he felt his head swerve and his jaw shift.  Then to his dismay, a tooth squeezed itself out of the surrounding bone and gums, and flew right out right of mouth as his mind and body resumed their normal sync.  The rest of his body followed the same launch, sending him off the floor to slam into the cage holding Spike and the pets, which freed them upon impact and without harm. 
 
"That felt good," Rarity smirked.  Not bad for a Lady Princess, but it seemed her Element of Empowerment did more than just serve as a viable fashion accessory. 
 
Above, her friends and family, despite appearing ragged and tired, could not contain their cheers for their Princess savior, and her little sister and her new little friend pounded against their orb prison hooting.  Admittedly, she had timely help from Sunny the alicorn, but if there was somepony to save the Empire, it would have to be a Princess. 
 
Quickly, they secured Blueblood's unconscious body into the Opalescence and her friends' former cage before placing the black crystal ring around his horn.  With Sunny's help, Rarity helped freed Applejack and Twilight, who then proceeded to free the other ponies from their orb prisons.   Friends and family were reunited.  Finally, Rarity tearfully hugged her little sister, and she soon received the warm embrace of her beautiful stepmother and fearsome but kindhearted stepfather.  She had noticed that Sunny and Twilight nuzzled one another rather closely, almost like a mother to a daughter.  Sunny was certainly a strange pony. 
 
"I knew it!" Pinkie bounced right into Rarity's face.  "I knew you're going to be our next party member!  Still kinda bummed that you beat me in that one eating contest (and I still want a rematch).  But this is awesome!  Since I'm the spoony bard of the group, maybe you can play the role of geomancer, a monk class, or a--"
 
"Er, thanks for the offer," said Rarity. 
 
"Or better yet, you should join our rock band!  We have openings for a lead vocalist, a ukulele player, or a--"
 
"I know we are searching for the Elements and their bearer's," said Twilight, "but we can't force the Diamond Princess to accompany us in our dangerous journey." 
 
"Agreed," said Sunny, trotting before all with a hint of royalty in her eyes.  "There is still one more Element to acquire before we could obtain the sixth."
 
"But I want a ukulele player in the band," Pinkie pouted. 
 
"Pinkie!" cried Twilight.  "Rarity doesn't play the--"
 
"Knife!" Fluttershy cried.  "The Duke has a knife!"
 
Amidst gasps, Rarity discovered her twice-removed cousin getting ready throw his own body onto the gleaming silver knife he held between her hooves.  The unicorns quickly fired all their magic to obliterate his cage, but they did it too late.  He was still falling, falling into the blade that would end his life. 
 
Then he smiled. 
 
Blueblood rolled away far from any unicorn's immediate magical reach or anypony's peripheral vision.  He then threw the silver knife dead on towards Twilight before the purple unicorn could react, but Sunny immediately shielded her with her very own pegasus wing.  The alicorn grunted in pain and nearly fell over.  Though she bled, the knife appeared cursed, and began spreading a silvery infection all over Sunny's feathers. 
 
Blueblood now charged at the freed fillies like a mad horse with his horn pointed for the kill.  Rarity's heart thumped hard in a panic.  There was no time for her to know how to use her Element to help save Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom.  Instinctively she leapt in front of the girls next to Applejack, a friend and comrade-at-arms who felt the same overwhelming desire to protect one's sibling. 
 
It was all but a feint: Blueblood suddenly made a sharp gallop and greedily grabbed the Empire's most important treasure with his entire body.  With Sweetie Belle under the safety of Fluttershy, Rarity finally got a better look at Blueblood's condition, both physical and mental.  He backed away wild-eyed with the Crystal Heart carried underneath his front hoof.  He had a deep bruise on his cheek and blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.  His mane was messed up, and the white fur underneath his silver armor was stained.  Yet nopony dared get close to him, and even unicorns deprived of their magic could still pose a threat. 
 
"If I can't have the Empire," he said, "then nopony can!"
 
He did the unthinkable: Blueblood threw the Crystal Heart to the ground and smashed it to pieces with his front hooves.  The instantaneous shock distracted all the ponies, preventing them from reacting to his sudden jump out of the Spire's window.  Despite what he did, Rarity shuddered to even visualize the result of his ruined body splattered upon the castle grounds, but seconds later he reappeared riding in a crystalline gyrocopter machination piloted by none other than Flim and Flam.  Blueblood held what appeared to be one of those industrial remote control devices similar to what the Diamond Princess had seen in her brief slave tenure in the underground mines.  He held it high for everypony to see. 
 
"And here's my parting gift for all the traitors of the Empire!" Blueblood cried. 
 
He pressed the button hard.  The crystal computer console suddenly rumbled until it exploded into flames, and before anypony could chase after the fleeing crystal gyrocopter, the Spire Cannon went out of control.  Blasts of its dark rainbow magic began shooting down upon the Empire, leveling buildings and tearing streets apart in its wake while the Castle shook with each shot.  Even if nopony was hurt, the destruction of Crystal Heart rendered the protective barrier inoperable.  Fierce blizzards of snow began blanketing the land, and its chilly winds blasted their way into the top of the Spire.  Below, the freed citizenry and the Diamond Dog mercenaries cried out in a panic as they tried to force themselves out of the coliseum, but even if they made it to the streets, only winter and destruction awaited them. 
 
Rarity had never imagined this day would come, but her beautiful home was going to be obliterated.  She pulled Sweetie Belle into her bosom, and felt the little filly's tears stream down her fur.  Despite the anger she harbored towards Blueblood, Rarity would like to cry. 
 
"Esteemed Guests," said Lord Umbra.  "The Empire has fallen.  I request that you leave as soon as you can.  Please, take my wife and my daughters with you."
 
"Sir, there might still be time," said Twilight.  "If we can recreate the Crystal Heart…"
 
"The Crystal Heart cannot be recreated in time, and not even a legendary Twilight could do it.  Even if you could, the Empire would be destroyed by then and overtaken by the snows of the Frozen North.  There is no time now.  Take my wife and daughters and go."
 
"Just us?" Cadence asked.  "What about you?"
 
"A king must see to the fall of his Empire until the end, even as the castle falls.  This is my punishment for ignoring Blueblood and cowering behind the face of truth.  I am expendable, Honorable Wife.  As long as you, the Pillar of the Empire, survives, maybe one day our land would be restored."
 
"Forget about that!  You don't have to blame yourself for what Duke Blueblood had done."
 
"I have issued my royal order, my last.  As my wedded wife, you must obey it!"
 
Her stepmother trembled before Lord Umbra's mighty roar.  She almost withheld her tears as she bowed her head and folded her wings in dutiful piety.  It was clear that there wasn't anything anypony could do, and if they stayed any longer, the Crystal Castle would collapse under the constant firing motion of the Spire Cannon.  One by one, the captured ponies and their animal friends left in a single file.  The first to go down were the Crystal Rebels, and despite their many years of opposition, gave Lord Umbra a salute with the utmost dignity.  Following them were a Lady Bon Bon and Lady Lyra, two mares she had never seen before yet heard so much about along.  Then Ingrid the bounty hunter followed afterwards. 
 
Next were Twilight and her friends, who lingered half-ashamed at their inability to say or do anything to help dissuade Lord Umbra from his firm decision.  Only the Crystal Queen, with her tears now dried, firmly gestured them to move on.  She levitated Sweetie Belle and Opalescence onto her back, and motioned her other stepdaughter to follow her down the stairs. 
 
Yet Rarity hesitated.  She lingered to take one more look at her stepfather, and realized for the first time how masculine and royal he appeared.  He stood by the window watching with proud stoicism the crumbling of the Empire before his eyes.  She saw no tears, but she could feel the sadness behind his fearsome facade.  Truly, there was no pony nobler than him. 
 
But she couldn't turn away.  Her heart and mind prevented her from fleeing his side, and whether it had to do with the Element of Empowerment speaking through her soul, it didn't matter.  It shouldn't end this way.  There was something she could do, and she must do it. 
 
"My daughter, Diamond Princess," said Umbra without turning around, "I thought I told you to leave."
 
"Rarity, come on," cried Sweetie Belle. 
 
From the corner of her eye, Rarity saw her stepmother, her little sister, and Sir Spike hanging by at the top of the stairwell.  A deep pain welled from within the Diamond Princess's heart.  She didn't want her family to watch, but for the sake of the Empire and its citizens, she had to do what was necessary. 
 
"Sweetie Belle," said Rarity.  "Become a good princess for me."
 
She galloped to the Crystal Heart's floor sigil before anypony said a word, and then she clasped a fragment that was closest to a heart shape between her front hooves.  Upon her subconscious will, the Element of Empathy transformed itself into a transparent diamond-shaped barrier she began floating inside of.  She heard the desperate cries of her family, but with overwhelming regret, she chose not to listen. 
 
"Element of Empowerment," she declared.  "I wish to save my Empire by restoring the Crystal Heart."
 
"To restore such an artifact comes at a great price," said the Element.  "Thou must offer up an equivalent sacrifice."
 
"Very well," said Rarity.  "My sacrifice will be my life."
 
The Crystal Heart fragment flew from her hooves and Rarity's body jolted into a stiff position.  The Element of Empowerment began to reconstruct the Crystal Heart bit by bit, and at the same time she felt her own life slowly draining.  This was too slow.  The Castle rumbled ever more violently, and smoke billowed from the ruins of the city.  The Diamond Princess grit her teeth harder, forcing more of her life force into the reconstruction and forcing herself to stay conscious and not pass out.  She would give up everything: her life, her mind, and her soul, all to save the Empire she loved and for Sweetie Belle to rule over when she grows older. 
 
Then she saw her family and her friends, pounding their hooves on the diamond barrier that surrounded her.  No magic, not even Applejack's Sword of Truth could cut through.  Rarity wanted to close her eyes, for the sadness on their faces was too much to bear.  Yet this could be the last she would see them alive, and she could look back with a solemn smile.  
 
To her horror, Sweetie Belle painfully managed to pass through the diamond barrier and extended her hoof towards the reconstructing Crystal Heart. 
 
"You dumb Element!" cried Sweetie Belle.  "If you're going to take my sister's life, then you'll have to take mine!"
 
"No, Sweetie Belle!" Rarity's limbs were locked into place.  As much as she wouldn't she could not reach out and push her little sister out of the Element of Empowerment's diamond barrier, and the pain it inflicted upon Sweetie Belle made Rarity both sad and angry with herself.  The restoration couldn't go any faster, and it would not reject Sweetie Belle and siphon up Rarity's life force immediately.  She watched with utter hopelessness as the petite princess began lapping between consciousness and unconscious. 
 
"Big sis," Sweetie Belle winced.  "I'm coming with you, and I won't take no for an answer!"
 
"But you'll die with me!" cried Rarity. 
 
"At least we'll see mom and dad again."
 
She smiled tearfully.  Truly, this was going to be the end of the royal dynasty, but at the very least the ponies of the Empire would survive.  With little strength they had left, the two sisters reached other and hugged one another. 
 
As their lives drained away, they found themselves wrapped in the purple-tipped pink wings of their smiling stepmother.  How, or why she got in, Rarity couldn't think straight to determine.  But she knew that from her stepmother's eyes, there was one more sacrifice to be made. 
 
Instantly, the fragmented Crystal Heart glowed hot white, blinding everypony within its presence, and the Diamond Princess felt a low, reassuring boom reverberating in the air.  Now she was on her back.  Purple-tipped feathers danced in the air as familiar faces surrounded and shouted for her, but she couldn't hear anything.  The completed and beautiful Crystal Heart hovered above her, and she began falling far and far away until everything faded to black.