//------------------------------// // Divisions // Story: Equine Fall // by ModMCdl //------------------------------// It's been six years since the Changeling War. Six years since our world has simply been turned upside down by fires and warfare. How we survived... I don't know. We just did. They attacked suddenly, and randomly, starting with Canterlot. Our capitol didn't stand a chance. They rained down upon it like hail, and destroyed everything in their wake. Princess Celestia barely made it out, and Luna... Princess Luna didn't make it. And even Celestia' s escape was in vain. She was killed on her way to Ponyville. Taken down out of the sky; tossed carelessly on top of a hill, halfway between the burning ruins of the majestic city, and the safety of my palace. "Princess Twilight!" The royal guards burst into the chamber with an urgency that the element of magic had only seen when Canterlot was under attack during the wedding. "Princess!" their voices echoed across the room. "Canterlot has fallen, and their dead... both of the princesses." There had been a monotonous tone to their voices, as if they had been trained all of their lives to speak those words. They probably had been. The Crystal Empire fell next. They were utterly unprepared, they had no idea that they were even under attack until the very end. Chrysalis herself personally slaughtered Cadence and my brother. I remember hearing the news. "They're dead?" There was the hope of doubt in my voice. First Celestia, and now Cadence and... my brother. There was no possible way that this could actually be happening. "I'm sorry your highness. But I'm afraid it's true," the informant relayed the news with a genuine tone of regret and sympathy. "Citizens are fleeing the north as we speak." It wasn't long before they targeted Ponyville. Perhaps Chrysalis had a personal vendetta with me as well. It was clear that she wasn't merely attacking to try and take control of Equestria. She was seeking revenge for those who had caused her the pain she undoubtedly felt. And I had definitely played a role in that. If it wasn't for me, she probably could've succeeded in taking over Canterlot during the wedding. Luckily for us, she underestimated the power of the Elements. If she even knew about them. Unlike the other villains we had defeated in the past, we, as the Elements, didn't play a part in her downfall. She had fallen to the power of Cadence' s love alone. This fact would later be used to our advantage. The five others lined up next to me. We took that infamous stance, one of our front hooves outward, breasts pushed out in an authoritative stance, sending a clear message that we were going to defend Equestria at any cost. And we did. The rainbow arched up and outwards, coming down on Chrysalis, encasing her in a glow of white light; pure magic. We had defeated her. But victory always comes with a price. I rose up, unsure of when I had fallen. The brightness was beginning to clear, and I looked around. Sometimes the price is small, something that can be forgotten in time. At first the situation was unclear to say the least. But the actuality of the results came to me pretty soon afterward. And sometimes the price is too high to bear. In the places where each one of my beloved friends stood, was a corresponding amulet and a patch of scorched grass. They were gone. So, here I am six years later. Princess Twilight Sparkle: bearer of the Elements of Harmony, and the single ruler of Equestria. --- We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us. - Joseph Campbell --- Divisions 006 PCT (Post Celestial Rule) Memorium of the Sunset Twilight stepped back from the podium. She had finished her speech, as she had done for the five years since the new government had organized this. A mass memorial for all of those who had died protecting the land. Maybe they were trying to prove to the citizens that their deaths weren't in vain. Maybe they were trying to spread hope. Maybe it just felt right. Does there need to be a reason to justify a broken world mourning their dead? Maybe. Maybe not. Proceeding out and away from the stage, Twilight kept her eyes focused on the guard's helmet in front of her. Looking at the sorrowful faces of her broken ponies did nothing to help her mood. The crowd cleared for her, and the alicorn stepped into her regal carriage. She knew that she could fly perfectly well, and had insisted to for several years, but apparently that wasn't professional, whatever that meant. The guards insisted that she take a carriage, and after years of objection, she resigned to just doing it. She supposed that it gave her a sense of power. It helped her stand out. After all, she was the single-hooved ruler of an entire land. 'Now I know how Celestia felt for centuries...' she thought to herself, without any sort of humor. Twilight chuckled mirthlessly to herself. 'Me, Twilight Sparkle, town librarian. Oh, also the ruler of Equestria. Amazing how fast times can change.' These events always seemed to make her look back upon her past. It must have been all the memories that were dug up each year. Her aids had told her that the feeling would pass, that it would become easier over the years. They were wrong. It didn't. As usual, Twilight spent the entire trip staring out the window. Watching a desecrated landscape pass by below her. The horizon was tinted that ominous shade of orange and dark grey that they always describe in stories. How ironic. She focused her attention on a crystal spire rising up out of the ruin on a hillside. A beacon of hope in a land of disrepair. The carriage landed and the lavender princess stepped out, briefly fluttering her wings in annoyance at the assistants insisting on helping her walk. She could walk perfectly fine. Hay, she could even gallop. And yet, she was too fragile for them to let out of their sight. She walked in through the grand oak doors into the vestibule of the palace, and was instantly assaulted by a blur of purple and green attaching itself to her foreleg. "Twilight!" cried Spike. "I missed you." Indeed, even Spike, the brave and fearless assistant, had not been immune to this new world of fear, loss, and sorrow. "Hey, Spike," said Twilight, forcing a cheerful tone into her otherwise depressed voice. "I missed you too." She wasn't lying. While Twilight had only been gone for three days, he was still the only real friend that the former element of magic had left. She honestly didn't know what she would do without him. Some days, he was the only thing that kept her from sinking into the overwhelming self-pity and depression that constantly haunted her. The pair walked to the new throne room. Twilight sat in the golden throne, and Spike cuddled up next to her, pretty much in the alicorn's lap. In the time before, he would've said he was too old and too mature to sit in anypony's lap. But times have indeed changed, and now we all need the comfort. Plus, the citizens adored the scene of their Princess letting her young dragon sit in her lap. Twilight was pretty sure even the guards thought it was cute. But they'd never tell you if they did. Thankfully, the Princess had very few visitors that day, most of them having reserved the day for the ceremony prior. The emptiness made the time pass swiftly. Soon, she was in her personal suite, Spike still clinging to her side. Twilight enjoyed his company. It was relaxing. He was her best friend before, now he was like her brother. Again, she don't know where she would be without him. As Twilight sat there gazing into the sunset, her thoughts drifted. Eventually they found their way to a certain pony. It was foalish of her to be thinking of pointless things in this day and age, but Twilight really couldn't help it. "Why do I miss her more than the rest?" she asked out loud. Spike knew whom Twilight was referring to. They had discussed this far too often over the past few years. It seemed to be their way of coping with the loss, discussing their old friends. The small dragon beside her sighed. "Well, you loved her." He just spoke what he knew was true, because trying to spare his caretaker's heart was a moot point. It was already broken beyond repair. "You just never got to tell her." That was what had killed the lavender mare. Twilight had loved the mare so much that it had almost driven her crazy. And then she died, not even knowing Twilight's feelings for her. Every single day, that fact just ate away at the alicorn. And that perhaps was the reason she hated this new life. Everything she had dreamed of, everything she had hoped for, everything she had planned... was gone. And there was no getting it back. It was too often that she found herself dwelling on the past. And yet, it couldn't be helped. Twilight couldn't stop thinking what her mind wants to think about. It just does it. Not like anypony can control it. Twilight and Spike continued to state into the sunset. Even today, when the sky was stuck eternally in that phase, being there nopony to raise or set it, it was still quite a beautiful sight. It reminded Twilight of Sunset Shimmer, and her human friends. 'I should really go see them,' she thought. But The Crystal Empire was not in her list of places to visit. And the portal she had made is a twisted mess of trash somewhere in the ruin that once was Ponyville. That was another thing that tore at her heart. Ponyville was gone, and instead, The Twilight Castle, her palace, was atop a hill, high enough to overlook what was left of their beloved Equestria. The hill really didn't have to be so high... The two gazed out into the horizon, Twilight wishing for what one was, and Spike probably just numb. That's a good way to put it. Twilight was forced to immediately attempt to overcome her grief, and become the ruler of this Celestia-forsaken land, but Spike has had six years to mope around in this place. Well, Twilight really wouldn't call it moping. More like a state of depression so deep that you just become used to it, stuck in a point where you don't care anymore. "You don't know that they're dead." Twilight must have really looked bad. Spike only had brought up that possibility once before, when all of this seemingly started and then ended at the same time. "You didn't see them dead," he continued. "For all we know, they could've just teleported somewhere." In the previous conversation, Twilight had stopped him as the topic began. But now, either she genuinely wanted to hope, or the mare just want strong enough to argue with him. Probably the latter. But, he did make a very scientific approach. The alicorn used to like that, science. To bad she didn't have time for it anymore. "Come on," Twilight rubbed his back. "Let's get you to bed." He didn't complain. He rarely does anymore. For both of them, sleep is the escape from reality. The princess tucked him in, another action he would've hated prior to mass apocalyptic destruction of their known lives, and kissed him lightly on the forehead. 'Forget older sister, I'm practically like his mother now.' Twilight stepped out of the room, and walked down the maze of hallways to another room. Releasing the magical seal of the oak door, Twilight walked in, reconstructing the seal behind herself. The crystal lights hanging above the table before her slowly came up to full brightness, illuminating the room. Twilight's attention focused on the crystal dais before her. On it was a translucent projection of former Equestria. She had an accurate one in a main room levels below her, but she kept this one. The alicorn had salvaged it from the ruins of her old palace. As a reminder of the land she had grown to love. It still works. She had tested it a while ago. Gave the guards a scare when their Princess suddenly appeared in the ruins of Canterlot. Now they overestimate her magical powers. She didn't know why she had lied to them, maybe she was convinced that they would take this last memory away from her. Twilight doubted they would. However, the display was not the reason she had come in here. No. In the corner of the room was a circular marble pillar. He had told her when he left that all she needed to do was etch a tally mark in the side of it to call him. The surface of the marble was pristine. 'I wonder if even after all this time he will still come...' Signing, the royal alicorn summoned up her magic. A faint dot appeared on the side of the pillar, and it moved swiftly downward, leading behind a deep scratch. The glow dissipated, and Twilight sat back waiting. An hour later, still no sign of him. Figures. Why would the exact opposite of harmony come to help harmony? True, he was reformed, and there really wasn't much that the lavender mare could hold against him anymore, but still. Eventually, she decided to go back to bed. It wasn't worth waiting for him to show up this late. Twilight was the sole Princess of Equestria, and she had to wake up early tomorrow just for that reason, whether there was work to do or not. Spike was fast asleep when the alicorn walked in. She smiled at the sight of him snoring peacefully, blankets clutched up to his chin. Twilight savored the moment, for genuine smiles were a rare thing nowadays. Walking over to her own bed, she pulled the covers away with her magic. Then she screamed. Discord was laying in the bed. The baby dragon on the other side of the room was at his caretaker's side in an instant. "What?! What?" Twilight's heart was racing. "You couldn't just show up in the other room could you?" she questioned the draconequus in her bed, probably much more harshly than was needed. Naturally, he just shrugged the question away. "I tried," he began. "But somepony put a spell around the room, and I couldn't get in. So I decided the most reasonable thing to do was take a nap." He looked up at the alicorn. "Now, did you need me, or did you just miss me?" Discord had a smug grin on his face. Twilight really wasn't up for this. "You can teleport to any pony you know, right?" she asked. He nodded in confirmation. Sighing, preparing herself to ask the next question, she raised her head to face him. "Take me to Rainbow Dash." He laughed. He actually laughed. Discord was lying on her bed, laughing at her. She would kill him if she didn't need him. "Twilight, my dear," he managed to choke out. "You do know that they are no longer... of this world, correct?" He looked at the mare with what appeared to be genuine concern for my mental state. Twilight just glared back at him. "Do it," she commanded. "Now." He grunted in an annoyed manner, and looked at the wall across the room, apparently concentrating. Suddenly, a peculiar expression came across the master of chaos' s face. The room grew with a brilliant white light, and then, Twilight and Spike were no longer in the palace. He had teleported the trio somewhere. And that meant he had located Rainbow Dash. And that he had sent them to her. The blinding light cleared, and Twilight looked around, her heart aching, longing to see her long-lost friend. They were in a flat, barren, desert landscape. Crooked spires rose up in the distance. And even further away, a summit boasting the ruined spires of what was once Canterlot. However, she saw no sign of the prismatic mane that her heart so longed to see. She looked over to Discord, thinking that this was just some cruel joke. He looked back at her, seemingly just as confused as Twilight. Spike just stood next to her, too drowsy to even begin to contemplate the situation. "Well," poke Twilight. "Why did you take us here?" Discord scratched his head. "Because, like you said, I can sense ponies, and I seem to sense that the late Rainbow Dash is here." Twilight looked around again, hoping that she had just missed some key detail or something of that measure. There was another blinding flash, and suddenly, Discord was gone. "Great," she grumbled. He had just left them here. In the middle of the desert, alone. Then, as suddenly as he had left, he reappeared, holding the amulet belonging to the element of loyalty. "How did you get that!?" cried Twilight in utter disbelief. He looked at her with a strange look on his face. "It's not like it's locked up anywhere," he spoke with a tone of confusion at the alicorn's own confusion. "It's on display in that lovely doll house you call a palace." Twilight rolled her eyes in frustration. "Under maximum security..." He just chuckled. He placed the necklace on the ground at his feet. "Uh huh, just as I thought," he said. "What?" Twilight questioned impatiently. Discord looked at me. "She's alive," he said simply. Her heart swelled immensely with rejoice, however Twilight kept a doubtful look. He cocked his head at her. "What? You're the one who told me to take you to her. Obviously you knew this already." The princess gestured around the area. "Well, where is she?" He looked around. "I'm not sure." He, too, gestured around me. "Here, I guess..." She looked around again. 'If I had enough proof, I could just...' "Oh, screw it!" cried Twilight. What was the harm in false hope? --- The hole was already a few hundred hooves deep within an hour. The crews Twilight had brought were working tirelessly, all on the premise that somewhere below us lay what may be the element of loyalty, alive. The pegasi had already returned, convinced that there were no clouds above the area that Rainbow Dash could be residing on. Iron Clad, head of the guards, had already confirmed that we were in the bad lands. This just added to the pile of questions that were already forming in the studious alicorn's brain. Especially those pertaining to the theory that the Changeling Hive was located somewhere in the bad lands. What a coincidence, right? She doubted it. Discord was sitting in a hammock that had somehow spawned in, with Spike leaning against one of the supports. Two guards were standing on either side of them, eyeing the draconequus wearily. Understandable, especially with what these guards had heard of him. It probably didn't help that he would occasionally spring up a conversation about someone named Jean-Luc. Who in Equestria names their foal Jean-Luc? After two hours, the whole was another few hundred hooves deep, and still nothing. They ended up waiting another four before they managed to get something. Seven hours into the dig, Twilight heard a soft shout come from the hole. Approaching the edge, it appeared to be easily a mile deep. Small specks of ponies at the bottom were moving around excitedly, focusing on what appeared to be a patch of black rock in the center of the hole. She couldn't really make out what they were trying to say so the alicorn teleported down, Discord following along with Spike. It turned out that the black rock was the center of attention. Its surface was rough and patchy, with pores dotting its exterior. The crew kept uncovering more and more of it as they kept digging. It soon became apparent that it had a slight curve to it. "Can you dig though it?" Twilight asked. She was genuinely curious. Forget major. this was the first development in the "missing elements" case, if you could even call it a case. It became a legitimate idea only about seven hours ago. However, all she got in return to the question was negative shakes of ponies heads. She decided to take matters into her own hooves. Twilight's horn flared, and a thin sheet of purple magic encompassed a section of the foreign material. In about three seconds, all that Twilight had learned was that it was made out of organic matter, and it was too thick to determine what was on the other side. There was a grunt of disapproval from behind her, and Discord walked forward. "Now, now, my little ponies," he said in a disappointed voice. "Time to run along! This is a matter for the adults to handle." 'All right, why did I bring him along?' Instantaneously, all of the crew teleported back up to the surface, and Spike, Discord, and Twilight were the only remaining at the bottom of the hole. "Well, Twilight. I guess it's time to see if you're old pals really are still alive." There was a flash of white light that Twilight had somehow become accustomed to in the past day, and the world vanished around her. --- The light gradually faded, and Twilight found myself in a dark place. The constant noise of dripping could be heard echoing around the area. Forcing herself to stand, she looked around at the apparent cavern she was in, and took in the details. The roof and walls were made of a familiar black stone with large gaping pores in the surface, large enough to fit at least 2 ponies through comfortably. A viscous greenish-blue liquid was dripping from random holes, and pooling on the floor in large puddles. The goo was seemingly luminescent, and was providing the only source of light in the room. Other than that, it was pretty much and ordinary cave. Upon further inspection, the alicorn concluded that the walls were made up of the same material as the rock that the crew had found in the dig, and that Discord tried to teleport through. Wait... he took Spike with them! WHERE ARE THEY?!?! As if on que, a voice echoed off the walls of the cavern. "Twilight, Twilight, Twilight..." Discord's voice was mocking. "Quite a pickle you've gotten yourself into. Unfortunately, I seem to be in an even bigger one." A cacophony of shouting could be faintly heard in the background. "Your petty guards seem to think I have killed you or something atrocious like that. So, I am needing to be gone now." The voice faded, and then issued a reprise: "I believe you'll find what you're looking for down there." And that was it. The voice of Chaos was gone, and Twilight was left to her own thoughts. She wandered around the labyrinth of caverns, not even caring if she got lost. Discord thought that Rainbow Dash was somewhere in here, and unbelievably, she trusted him more than herself. The mere hope that Rainbow was in here kept her pushing herself to her limits. Time was countless, and pointless. Twilight had no idea how long she'd been in here, or how much longer she would stay. Hours felt like minutes, and minutes felt like hours. All that mattered to her was giving herself a point to be in here, and hoping that the conclusion would be in her own favor. These thoughts and more were running through Twilight's head as she turned the next corner. But the sight before her made her stop in my tracks. Nothing could have prepared the lavender mare for what she saw, even though she had been warned and hoped for it for however long it had been. Walking across the expanse in front of the princess was a cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane. Rainbow Dash.