//------------------------------// // Chapter 30 // Story: Cry for Eternity // by asylum1388 //------------------------------// Fifty-five years since the coronation of Princess Twilight Sparkle. “And furthermore, the Trotskill Company has provided approximately one-point-five thousand of jobs for ponies who would be otherwise out of work...” The paralegal droned on and on, not glancing up from his list even once at either Princess as he addressed them in the nearly full, sunlit Throne Room. “He’d have a point if more than a dozen or so of these employees were paid anything worthwhile,” Luna muttered aside to Twilight. She stared down at the stallion derisively before whispering. “Dessert tonight says he wants a tax break.” “We have also rebuilt dozens of neighborhoods in Trottingham, offering the city council very competitive rates for our work.” “Mmmmm... no,” Twilight replied quietly. “He wants an exemption to a regulation. I see your bet and raise you to a week.” “Overall, it can be said that the Trotskill Company has brought a measure of... well, maybe not wealth, but at least a marginally higher standard of living to countless ponies across Equestria.” “We have an accord,” Luna snickered, glancing back to the petitioner. “Yet despite all this, our founder and — until a year ago — CEO, languishes in prison for the victimless crime of tax evasion! This is an affront to...” “Hmph. We both lose,” Luna grumbled. “Well that’s disappointing, the chef told me he was going to make... pudding...” Twilight trailed off as a frantic Royal Guard burst into the room and made his way towards them as quickly as he quietly could through the crowd. When he got to the front, he shoved his way past the paralegal and galloped up to the Princesses and spoke quickly and quietly, his words making Twilight’s heart leap into her throat. “How many?” she asked him gravely. When he hesitated, she seized him by the front of his armor, shaking him as she screamed. “HOW MANY?” “Th-thousands...” he whimpered, causing her to drop him. “Declare a state of emergency and clear our schedules for the next few weeks,” Luna declared loudly to the confused assembly. “An earthquake has struck Manehattan. I am putting all other business on hold indefinitely. All other business. This is not up for debate.” Without any further words, the two of them left, the speechless crowd parting to let them through. “Alright, update!” Twilight bellowed as she and Luna burst into the War Room an hour later. “Two minor aftershocks. Twenty percent of the city is on fire and we can confirm ten percent beyond that is completely destroyed.” “Send word to Cloudsdale: I want all available weather teams diverted to Manehattan,” Luna said forcefully. “The first priority is to put out those flames, but inform them to keep the rain localized to the areas still ablaze. The last thing we need is for ponies trapped in basements to drown.” “Agreed. Also, notify the army to send every available unit and all the heavy equipment they can find,” Twilight added. “Yes, Your Highnesses!” “Do we have radio contact?” Twilight asked, trotting up to a pegasus fiddling around with some dials and a microphone. “Only intermittently, ma’am. All of their long-range transmitters were either destroyed or damaged. The last time they got through they told me they were working on repairs.” “Very good. Let one of us know as soon as communications are back up. Interrupt us if you have to,” Luna grunted. She and Twilight trotted over to the table in the center of the room where a massive map of Manehattan and the surrounding land was spread out. “Your Highnesses, please allow me to explain everything,” a younger Major said with a respectful bow of his head. Twilight nodded to him and he turned back to the map and pointed at several locations. “We have circled the areas with confirmed fires in red, and have set up medical camps here, here, and here. We have also—” “Are there safe corridors through the city?” Luna interrupted. “Roads that can be safely traveled without ponies having to worry about a building falling on them or the street collapsing beneath them?” “Umm, yes, a few.” “Mark them down please. And continue.” “Yes, ma’am,” he nodded, motioning for a nearby Corporal to do as Luna ordered. “Aside from that, we’ve received word that they’re attempting to rebuild the train station so supplies and rescue workers can be brought in.” “No time,” Twilight said. “Next time the radio’s up, tell them to abandon that and get back to rescuing the trapped. We’ll have the army build a temporary station here.” She pointed to a spot alongside the railroad just outside of the city. “There’s enough open space there that we’ll be able to use as a staging area and set up field hospitals.” “We have stable radio contact!” The two of them dashed over to the microphone and Luna seized it. “Canterlot to Manehattan, this is Princess Luna. Please respond.” “Princess? Oh, thank heavens! It’s great to hear your voice, Your Highness. We need all the help we can get.” “Understood. The radio operator will relay a list of orders; please pass them along to your superiors. Princess Twilight and I will be nearby.” “As you command, Princess, but before you go, I have some news I’ve been told to report to you. We have unconfirmed reports that one Miss Fluttershy was in the city when the quake hit. Again, nothing confirmed, but the last one stated that she entered the Manehattan General Hospital a few minutes after the initial quake.” “Princess, Manehattan General collapsed fifteen minutes ago,” the radiopony said quietly as the speaker went quiet. Neither Princess spoke, but their distress must have been apparent, because he quickly turned back to the mic. “Uhhh, please stand by.” “Could you excuse us for a bit?” Twilight asked him quietly, leading Luna a short distance away. The two stared at each other painfully for a minute before either spoke. “Twilight, I... I’m going to Manehattan.” “Luna, listen,” Twilight replied softly, taking one of Luna’s hooves in both of hers. “I know you were closer to Fluttershy than you were to any of our other friends, and I’m worried too, but we can’t let that distract us.” “I know.” “We only have unconfirmed sightings of her and there are tens- hundreds of thousands of other ponies that need help.” “I know...” “And even if she was there, she might... There might not be anything we can do for her.” “I know that, Twilight!” Luna burst out. She sighed and hung her head. “I just... I have to go, I have to know if she’s alright. I know that so many others are in need of aid, and I will help them however I can.” Twilight stared at her solemnly before laying a hoof on Luna’s cheek. “I know.” She leaned in and pecked Luna’s other cheek. “Be careful, okay?” “I will. I promise,” Luna breathed. She trotted over to the radio and took the microphone again. "Princess Luna to Manehattan. I am coming there to personally lead the rescue efforts. Make sure that everypony knows that their Princess is on her way; it will likely boost morale." At that, she nodded to the ponies gathered in the War Room, gave Twilight a quick kiss, and bolted out. Twilight smiled after her, then turned back to the ponies gathered with a chiseled frown. “Okay, it’s time to get to work.” She dragged the largest chair in the room over to the table with a spell and sat down. “Who here can potentially leave for an hour or so without adversely affecting our organizational abilities? I have a few things I’d like done immediately.” Four ponies lined up next to her and each bowed, awaiting instructions. “That’s it? Okay, it’ll have to do for now,” she groaned. She turned to the first one. “Relay a message to the Press Secretary, please. I want all of Equestria to know about the earthquake within the next few hours. Have him inform the populace that we’ll be doing our best to get word out to those with loved ones in Manehattan as to whether their friends and family are safe, but travel towards the city will be restricted for the time being. If ponies want to send aid have them contact their local magistrate.” She nodded and the pony galloped off. She turned to the next one. “Find either the Minister of the Interior or his Deputy and inform them that I’m ordering all forms of mass transit be restricted and that the roads around the city be kept cleared from travelers. We’ll be needing them to ferry supplies and rescuers to Manehattan, and we can’t afford to have them cluttered with ponies trying to get to their families living in Manehattan. It’s awful, but we need to worry about the ponies in the city before we worry about those outside of it.” She gave a guilty sigh as she turned to the next. “I want the castle’s staff present. All hooves on deck, especially the kitchen staff. Things are going to be crazy over the next month, and the more ponies we have here to help, the better.” She rubbed her temples, trying in vain to ward off the approaching headache as the last pony stepped up to her. “Coffee, please. Pots enough for everypony in here.” He gave her a disgruntled frown, but trotted away all the same. She glared down at the map for a short moment before speaking again. “Major, pull up a chair.” He did so, sitting down next to her, and waited for her to speak. “I want the country’s pantries opened; all of them. I want all the food we can spare sent to Manehattan. Flour, corn, sugar...” “Peanut butter, dried beans, salt...” She smirked at him. “Yes, exactly. Anything non-perishable and nutrient-dense.” “What about water sterilization systems? Filters, iodine, portable stoves, and the like?” “Yes, all that too,” she said with a curt nod. “For the ponies of Manehattan, a full belly can make the difference between hope and despair, and rescue workers can’t be expected to perform on empty stomachs.” “No arguments there.” “We’ll also need medical supplies. For now, I’d like to appropriate the military’s. I apologise, but they’re readily available, and can be relocated to Manehattan almost immediately,” she murmured. “I’ll get to work on acquiring supplies from hospitals across Equestria and I promise to replenish anything I take from the Army once we’ve got enough to go around.” “Princess, worry about the civilians first. We became soldiers to serve Equestria and its citizens, not the other way around.” “Thanks. I really appreciate that,” she said with a small smile. “In the meantime, I’m going to order a massive increase to the disaster relief budget. This tragedy alone will be enough to bankrupt it four times over, and I can’t in good conscience ask the rest of Equestria to go completely unprotected while we rebuild Manehattan.” “Uhhh, Your Highness, don’t you need permission from the Noble Council to do that?” the captain asked uncertainly. “I think? I’m not as versed in politics as I probably should be.” “No, you’re right, but they’ll give me the increase, and they’ll do it without getting a darn thing in return,” Twilight grumbled. “I’ll make sure they know that I’ll be publicly announcing the names of anypony who tries to block or slow the funding increase and sending the list to every newspaper and radio station in existence. They’ll either do as I ask with neither delay nor concession from me, or they’ll become the most hated ponies in Equestria.” “That’s.. brutal,” he said with an impressed whistle, leaning back as a cup of coffee was placed in front of each of them. “Okay, what else? One week later... Applejack and Rainbow Dash both whipped their heads towards Twilight as she walked into her office, but were unable to hide the disappointment on their faces when they saw it was her. “Oh, hey, Twi. Ya wouldn’t happen to have any news, would ya?” Applejack asked her. “No, sorry. The fire marshal’s report is supposed to be coming sometime soon, but until then, I’m just as in the dark as you are,” Twilight muttered, dragging herself to the other side of her desk and flopping down. “In the meantime, we just have to wait and hope for the best.” “I’d like to, but it’s been a week and we haven’t heard anything,” Rainbow sighed. “I want to believe that she’s not... you know...” The trio sat in silence, none of them willing to voice what they were all thinking. A few minutes later a sound in the hallway made them all perk up and Twilight opened the door with her magic, revealing a pair of older mares. “Evening, Princess,” the crutch-laden Earth Pony grunted as her Pegasus companion helped her through the door. “Hey, Scoot. Mayor Seed.” “I told you not to call me that!” “And I told you not to call me ‘Princess’, Babs,” Twilight replied cooly. “Alright, fine,” Babs grumbled as Scootaloo helped her into a nearby seat. “So, how’re ya feelin’?” Applejack asked. “I should be back home, helpin’ my ponies ‘n fixin’ my city,” Babs snarled. “Not sittin’ here while some othah ponies do my job for me.” “Babs, you have six broken bones and seventy-nine stitches. You’re in no shape to be leading rescues,” Scootaloo replied. “She’s right. You can do a lot more good from here by helping me coordinate relief efforts,” Twilight said shaking her head. She paused thoughtfully for a second. “So, have you heard from Applebloom?” “She’s still stuck on Saint Maretin. Her boat was re-routed to Manehattan to serve as a hospital,” Scootaloo groaned. “She’s pretty ticked. She wanted to help out.” “Yeah. She might be getting a little old to lift a hammer, but they could still benefit from her knowledge,” Rainbow muttered. “How’s the benefit concert going?” “Sweets said it was all ready ta go. She’s already raised a few million bits,” Babs said with a nod. “Well, that’s good,” Twilight murmured. She paused again. “For what it’s worth, Babs, I sort of know how you feel. I’d rather be in Manehattan, using my magic to help out, but somepony has to stay here to coordinate everything. It really stinks but that’s just the way it is.” “Yeah, I know,” Babs grumbled. “Incoming, by the way.” She pointed to the window where a puff of blue smoke was rapidly approaching. Twilight opened the window to let the cloud through and it hovered over her desk, coalescing into a bundle of papers that dropped lightly onto the hardwood surface. “Well... here it is,” Twilight said hesitantly. Hooves shaking she unrolled it and held it up to read, scanning the first page. “Fluttershy was in Manehattan. They have records of her checking in at both her hotel and the animal hospital.” She sighed heavily and turned to the next page. “She was actually at the animal hospital when the earthquake hit, but the damage was minimal; Manehattan General Hospital, which was right next door, didn’t fare so well.” She placed a photograph of a heavily damaged building on the desk for the other four to see. “Witnesses say she flew into the General Hospital immediately to help evacuate the patients. She helped to move all of the newborns from the nursery and managed to calm down the patients in the foals’ ward enough that the hospital staff was able to get every one of them out, even as the first aftershock hit.” “Fluttershy did that?” Rainbow asked with a mirthless chuckle. “Yeah, that sounds about right.” “Yeah. Yeah, she did. There were hundreds of witnesses; all the ponies she helped save. She didn’t stop there though, she kept going back in to help more ponies get out,” Twilight said with a small smile. She turned the page and her face fell as she kept reading. “But when she went in for another group, there was an explosion that blew out every one of the hospital’s windows, and the whole building collapsed a minute later. N-nopony could’ve survived it...” She glanced up, meeting the horrified expressions on her friends’ faces, but only for a moment. She looked down again, compelled to keep reading. “The fire marshal said the explosion was triggered by a ruptured gas main in the basement and that anything inside the building was incinerated almost instantly. It would’ve been nearly painless.” “I-I guess that’s something,” Rainbow whimpered. “She died a hero,” Scootaloo sighed. “Y-yeah, she did,” Applejack said quietly. “Ah’ll be right back.” She stood up with a waver and stumbled out, leaving the others in silence. “We’ll rebuild, eventually,” Babs said, staring at nothing in particular. “We’ll build a new hospital, and we’ll name it after her. I’ll make sure of it. Probably put a big statue of her in the lobby or out front.” “That’d be nice,” Twilight breathed mindlessly as Applejack reentered the room and placed a parcel on the table. She unwrapped it, revealing a tall bottle of amber liquid and a set of tumblers. “Twi, Dash, y’all remember that day those two varmints came to Ponyville with their crazy cider-makin’ machine?” “Yeah, of course. How could we ever forget that?” Twilight asked. “Well, I saved a bit and sent it to a distillery not too far from here, ‘n a few years later they sent this back,” Applejack said wistfully. “Brandy?” Rainbow asked, picking up the bottle to inspect it. “Yeah. Ah’ve been savin’ it for somethin’ special. Ah wanted to share it with the rest of ya on the fiftieth anniversary of Twilight comin’ to Ponyville, but after Pinkie passed, it just didn’t feel right,” she explained softly. She stared at the bottle thoughtfully before continuing. “Ah think Ah’m ready to open it now.” “Sure, I’ll drink to Fluttershy,” Scootaloo replied with a smile. Applejack uncorked the bottle and spread out the glasses, pouring a generous measure into each before passing them out and sat silently for a moment. “So... Does anypony want to say—” “Here’s lookin’ at you, Fluttershy! I always knew you’d show me up someday,” Rainbow bellowed, holding her glass in the air with a lopsided grin. She stayed that way for a few seconds before wilting. “I... just wish you were here to celebrate it with us.” “Hear, hear,” Babs muttered before draining her glass. Twilight stared into her glass before taking a small sip of the thick, sweet liquid, but put it down without finishing it. She stood up and made for the door. “Something wrong, Twilight?” Scootaloo asked her. “No... I just need to be alone.” She didn’t hear the reply as she dragged herself into the hallway. She continued silently down the hallways until she came across an empty room and entered. She crossed to the opposite wall, opened the window, and sat down, placing her hooves on the sill and resting her chin on them as she stared at the eastern horizon.