//------------------------------//
// Chapter Thirty 
// Story: Starlight 
// by PurpleFire135 
//------------------------------//


Epilogue


~3 Months Later~

You know, in stories, it’s always the end when the bad guy gets beaten. The heroes don’t have to go hide in the woods again while the world figures itself out, they just beat the baddies and they live happily ever after. I thought that was what it would be like when we defeated the Guard and fixed the sun, and brought the unicorn’s star-based magic back….

But that wasn’t really happened, of course. I’m starting to learn that real life is a lot more complicated than the stories I’ve read make it out to be. I never realized that when a hero goes on an adventure they actually could be scared, or that it was actually painful and sad sometimes. I guess that’s what makes a story a story. In the end, we didn’t really defeat the Guard. They’re still in power and the council still rules Equestria with a strong anti-magic fist. 

It’s been three months since my star appeared in the sky and the sun went back to normal. We’ve built a new camp, centered around Fluttershy’s old home in the woods. Well, what was left of it anyway. It’s nice, even if we always have to worry about being found….

But, we’ve noticed something. The ponies of Equestria aren’t really so sure that they want to be lorded-over by the council anymore. There are rumors of dissent all across the nation, and new ponies join the resistance every day.

Every pony can see the sky, and every pony can see the symbol of our small, but crucial victory against the Guard. The new star, our only star, has become the mark of the resistance, a way to show to each other that we are on the same side. The resistance is getting very big, now that ponies are starting to see the destructive power of the Guard and the council. 

We have new networks of spies all over, in cities as far and near, including the City and the Guard itself. Many of the Guard ponies that we fought that night either quit the Guard entirely or started working for us from the inside. 

It’s not moving fast, and it’s going to take a long time before Equestria has true peace and harmony again. There is a lot of fear. But…there is also a lot of hope. It’s not much, but it is definitely a start. Who knows how it’s going to end up?

As for me, I don’t really care…well, at least not right now. I’m sure that I will someday, but for the first time in my life, I have a home, and even more importantly, I have a family. All of us are living in camp now, along with Apple Bloom and Zecora, and of course, all the other camp ponies, and a bunch of new recruits. 

Applejack, after a long and lengthy working-it-out discussion, mainly with Rainbow, has taken the reigns of the resistance. She’s really good at getting stuff done and she never stops working once she has a goal in mind. On top of all that, she has more reason than most any of us to want to see the Guard destroyed for good, and now that her brother, Big Mac and her granny have moved into the camp, she doesn’t have to worry about the Guard using them against her anymore.

Pinkie has gone back to baking full time and is running the kitchens. She’s teaching me how to make cupcakes tomorrow. I’m really excited. I love cupcakes! I hope we can make strawberry ones, those are my favorite. Fluttershy is taking care of animals and ponies, just like she always has. She’s a lot happier now that she isn’t all alone in the woods…well, I have to assume she is. I sure am. 

“Hey! Starlight, Apple Bloom and I are doing a perimeter check, wanna ride along?” Rainbow asks, breaking me out of my thoughts. I look around at the tent I’ve been sitting in, slowly realizing I’ve been staring off into space for some time. 

“Equestria to Starlight! Come in Starlight!” Rainbow laughs. I shake my head and smile. 

“Starlight reporting! A perimeter check sounds invigorating! I will arrive post-hast!” I joke. Rainbow gives me an exasperated look before joining in my laughing. 

“Hey before we go can you get my goggles out of the drawer?” She asks as she flexes her wings. 

“Sure.” I turn and lock the drawer handle in my magic and pull out the goggles, then float them over to her. 

“Thanks! Well, come out when you’re ready.” 

I look around our tent. Oh yeah! I forgot to mention! Rainbow has been letting me share a tent with her. I have my own little bed in the corner, and my own bookshelf right next to it. It’s cozy, and I love it. 

…I never did tell Rainbow Dash about what Twilight said to me that night….I think it would complicate things. Rainbow, and of course the others, were Twilight’s closest friends, and they don’t even know she had a kid. I don’t know what happened back then for sure, and I don’t know why Twilight didn’t tell them, but I’m not going to go back on whatever reason she had…even if it doesn’t exist anymore. Besides, I am who I am, regardless of where I came from. 

I don’t know how the other ponies in camp would react if I told them, that in addition to being the only unicorn alive, I’m the daughter of an alicorn princess. Yeah, it still sounds weird even to me. 

“Starlight! Come on!” Apple Bloom yells from outside. I jump off the bed and run out the door flap into the brilliant sunlight over the camp. Rainbow and her new weather team have done wonders with keeping some of the Everfree weather in check lately. 

I rush over and hop up on Rainbow’s back as she takes off into the sky. I don’t think I’ll ever really get used to flying, though I definitely like it better than the first few times I flew with Rainbow. 

I look out at the camp spread below us. Apple Bloom and Big Mac have already started growing a natural wall around it, with even more complicated defenses this time around. The only real building is Fluttershy’s old cottage, but there are the foundations for several others around it. We may not have much, but, with any luck, this could be the start of a whole new Equestria…for every pony. 

I smile and look up at the sky, the sun on one horizon, the moon on the other, and the star in the middle. We have a lot of work to do, but for me, I’m happy just where I am right now, especially since it took a whole lot of work to get here. 

“Hold on tight!” Rainbow calls and swoops into a dive. I hold on and let out a whoop of pure joy. Yeah, I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be, with my family. 

END