//------------------------------// // What an Artist // Story: My Brave Pony: Starfleet Nemesis // by Scipio Smith //------------------------------// What an Artist The torches were dim, dying in their sconces that lined the walls of the throne room. They cast the room in flickering shadows, the light barely reaching the edges of the red and gold carpet that covered the central traverse. Eighty pillars lined the way between the doorway and the royal dais, and before each pillar stood a guard - a Starfleet guard, not one of those inefficient Equestrian ponies on whom Celestia had relied - armoured in a cuirass of gleaming gold over their white Starfleet body armour. Each guard carried a spear in one hand and a round hoplon shield at the other, and all watched the solitary figure who made her way down their corridor to approach the two thrones. Two thrones, not three. He had been forced by the demands of reassuring the Equestrians who, like asses bearing diverse loads, must either by led or driven, to the threefold galaxy divide and to Princess Luna concede a nominal third share and accompanying nominal triarchal state; but he would not accord to that dark creature a queenly styling nor a seat beside him and his wife upon the royal dais. There were only two thrones here: Celestia's golden throne and his own throne of cold, hard iron on which he sat. Grand Ruler Celesto, Child of the Gods, Protector of the Empire and Ruler of All Things Under Heaven, was not a pony given to modesty, nor one driven by a need to avoid ostentation. He sat upon his seat in armour of gold, encrusted with so many jewels and precious stones that a lesser pony could not have stood up in the weight. His long black mane was threaded throughout with diamonds so that it seemed to sparkle in the darkening light of the throne room. His arms were weighted down with golden bands, his three golden horns were polished to a shine; the Grand Ruler glittered more brightly than all the stars that so delighted his sister-in-law, he shone more brightly than the sun that was his wife's domain. But his throne and crown alike was made of iron. Plain, brutish iron. There was a message there, to all who had the wit to see it. For those with more wit than the foolish girl advancing towards him. Twilight Sparkle, who was accounted so wise and yet seemed to him to be so…stupid. Celestia sang the praises of her intellect, and yet she could not see the meaning of his throne of iron: naked power, devoid of nobility, legitimacy or justice; power that was hard and dangerous. The message was there for all to see, yet still Twilight Sparkle walked towards him without fear. No fear. Though she was surrounded by spears on all sides, though she was walking towards him, the ruler not only of this land but of many realms throughout the length and breadth of the stars, she showed no fear. Truly, these ponies had been at peace too long, they had forgotten how to properly show fear in fearful situations. She also seemed ignorant of the way that she offended him by not wearing her uniform. Instead she wore a civilian dress, well made and well tailored perhaps, but she ought to have worn her uniform to petition him for a favour. Twilight Sparkle stopped when she reached a white line draw across the throne room, ten metres away from the royal dais on which the Grand Ruler sat. She was confronted by Captain Emerald Shaina, the commander of the Grand Ruler's guard, who barred her way with physical presence even as the white line barred her path with protocol. Twilight did not bow. She ought to have bowed. Instead she stared at him, with frustration in those purple eyes, and waited in silence for him to acknowledge her. "Move aside, Captain," murmured the Grand Ruler. "Let us hear what my beloved daughter has to say." Without a word, Captain Shaina stepped aside, clearing the path between Twilight and the Grand Ruler. "Grand Ruler," Twilight murmured. "I had asked to speak with you and the Queen both." The Grand Ruler smiled indulgently. "Alas, this business with Prince Fratello has taken a great emotional toll upon my wife. She has retired to rest in the privacy of her chambers, while I endure the heavy burdens of rule for both of us." "I see," Twilight said softly. She sounded disapproving. She always sounded disapproving. It infuriated him. He endured her childish tantrums, her bore her insufferable speeches, he accepted the place she held in the heart of his wife, none of it was enough. One day, he vowed, he would punish her for her insolence. One day, a reckoning would arise. "What is the matter, Twilight?" Grand Ruler said, attempting to adopt a fatherly tone to her. Celestia loved this mare like a daughter, though he did not understand why, and he attempted to play the father to her in his turn. She did not seem to understand that he expected to be obeyed like a father by his children. "Why did you wish to see us at this hour?" "I wish to plead for the life of Fratello," Twilight said. The Grand Ruler frowned. "Lieutenant, I know that Princess Cadance is dear to you, but you should realise that we cannot allow evil to menace the world simply because of sentimental attachments." He addressed her by her rank, rather than her royal title, in attempt to recall her to deference and to obedience. "Just because he is evil now does not mean that he must always be evil," Twilight protested. "He was good once, he may be good again." "I find that highly unlikely," the Grand Ruler replied. "He is more machine now, than pony. He cannot be recalled to the stallion that he was." "You don't know that, not unless you let me try!" Twilight said loudly. "Do you know a way to purge him of the evil that infests his soul?" he demanded. "No, not yet," Twilight admitted. "I need more time." "United Equestria does not have time, lieutenant," the Grand Ruler reminded her. "The robot attack could take place at any moment." "Why can't we try to capture and contain Fratello?" Twilight asked. "Then I can work on restoring his...restoring him to himself." "I appreciate your feelings-" "No, you don't!" Twilight snapped. "I'm sorry, your majesty; it's true that he is Cadance's brother, and it's true that I love Cadance, but that isn't what this is about. This is about a pony, a good pony who has been corrupted by forces greater than him, a pony who is fighting desperately to save the ones he loves. A pony who needs my help, and I would try and help him even if he was a stranger to me." "Evil is evil," the Grand Ruler said gravely. "Only if we give up on it," Twilight replied. "Nightmare Moon, Sunset Shimmer, how easy would it have been for me to dismiss them both, to say that evil is evil, to crush them. But I didn't, and now Princess Luna rules alongside Celestia again, while Sunset Shimmer is a hero and the champion of her world." "Her world, indeed," Grand Ruler said softly. "Tell me, Twilight Sparkle, dear as daughter, why is it that travel between that world and ours has become impossible?" Twilight blinked, looking suddenly unsure of herself. "I... with all the disruption occurring here I thought it best to close the conduit." "Then you can open it again?" Grand Ruler asked. "No," Twilight said. "With so many threats to United Equestria... if our world fell I didn't want the other world to follow. So I had Sunset close the portal from the other side. It can only be opened from there." "I see," Grand Ruler said. That was a pity. He would have liked another world to add to his dominions, and that world sounded quite intriguing. Was there another Celesto, ruling from that world? Probably not, considering what he was. And, even if he did by some miracle possess such a doppelganger…he would have to be killed. There was only room in the galaxy for one of his greatness. "I am afraid that I cannot agree to your request, Twilight. Fratello must die, as all our enemies must." Twilight's eyes widened. "Why are you so in love with death? What is it about the very idea of forgiveness that frustrates you?" For a moment, the Grand Ruler said nothing. For a moment, every guard in the throne room held their breath. "You are dismissed, and given leave to swiftly leave this place" the Grand Ruler said coldly. "I advise you to leave at once, lieutenant, while you may still leave under your own power." The Grand Ruler plucked the strings upon his harp as he finished the piece he had been playing at breakfast. It was one of his own compositions, for why should he, a child of the gods, stoop to play music composed by any lesser hand? Why should he subordinate his genius to another's baser vision? "Applause, please," he murmured, and at once all of those in attendance upon him at breakfast began to clap and cheer as one. The Starfleet generals and admirals, the New Canterlot nobles, the bureaucrats, all of those who fought and vied to stand in the same room as him while he took his morning repast now began to compete with one another to see who could make the most noise, and praise his skill to the appropriately fulsome degree. "Bravo, your majesty!" "My eyes were brought to tears!" "Such beautiful melodies!" "What an original composition!" "You are the greatest musician that has ever lived, sire!" The Grand Ruler took especial note of that one. Him that spoke it had good taste, and would need to be rewarded for his excellent ear. The rest he dismissed, raising a single hand to silence them all. At once, the clamour ceased. The Grand Ruler smiled, had any pegasi ever had such power to calm the storm as he had power to make a room, a building, even a city fall silent at his whim? He plucked the strings of his harp a few more times. "Ah, what an artist this nation has in me, for as I pluck the strings upon this harp so do I pluck the strings that run across this world and across the stars to our dominions there. Mark that, Castor, a ruler must be a musician, for how else but by plucking each string will he ensure that all his subjects sing his song?" Prince Castor, his son, nodded gravely. "I will remember that, father." With Celesto for a father and Celestia for a mother it was little surprise that his coat was white, and he had his father's dark eyes and dark blue coat. More importantly, he also had his father's golden wings and golden horn, though the Grand Ruler had been disappointed in his wish for a tri-horned son like himself. He was inclined to lay the blame for it upon the boy's mother, who had weakened his inheritance with her lesser blood. "I find that being a ruler is more like being a conductor than a musician," Celestia murmured. "I allow each pony to play their own tune, to sing their own song. My task is to see that all those songs blend together into harmony, and to deal with those who will not harmonise or actively seek to disrupt the greater song." Grand Ruler looked at his wife with the slightest touch of a glare in his eyes. Celestia and Castor were, along with him, the only ponies sitting at the table, eating breakfast instead of watching it be eaten. She had not dressed to please him. Her gown was less revealing than he would have liked, and it was pink even though she knew that his favourite colour was gold. Still, she was not only the ruler of Equestria but the only mare in all that country whose beauty approached his own, and so political considerations as well as desire had compelled his marriage. Now, however, he was beginning to wonder if the usefulness of their arrangement might not be coming to an end, and if his half-Equestrian son might not be able to command the same loyalties as his Equestrian wife. Still, he forced himself to smile through his anger at being contradicted as he said, "So, my love, you see the duties of a ruler as being those of a conductor? Tell me then, how you see the duties of a wife?" Celestia's eyes blazed for a moment, before she lowered them to the table. "Forgive me, my beloved; it was not my intent to contradict you. Of course you are correct; forgive me, I forgot myself." She turned to their son. "So, Castor, how are your lessons progressing?" "Very well, mother," Castor said. "The new tutor is much better than the old one." "I am glad," Celestia murmured. She looked at her husband. "My lord, I was hoping that we might have Leilani to breakfast with us as well. At least once a week." The Grand Ruler's face darkened. "Clear the room," he growled. "All of you leave. Now!" The attendants, the ambitious generals and conniving nobles, scrambled for the doors in an unseemly mob. Even the servants fled. Soon it was only the three of them: Celestia, Castor and the Grand Ruler, the first and last facing one another across the table while their son looked on. "You bring this up in public?" the Grand Ruler demanded. "You bring her up in public?" "There is no shame unless you make it so," Celestia said softly. "I, for one, will not be ashamed of my daughter. I do not see what is so obscene about the idea that she should eat with her parents on occasion." "It is not possible," the Grand Ruler replied, his tones clipped. "As you know full well. The child will remain where she is. Out of sight." "The child is my daughter," Celestia said. "And yours. How can you speak as if you have forgotten that? What has she done to make herself unworthy of love?" "It is not what she has done, but what she is," the Grand Ruler said. "Leilani is a child," Celestia cried. "And you will not even let me see her." "I allow your creature to visit with her, is that not enough?" the Grand Ruler demanded. "Her name is Sunset Shimmer, a good faithful mare," Celestia said sharply. "And as grateful as I suppose I am that you allow Leilani a friend she is not Leilani's mother, nor can she be." "Why not?" the Grand Ruler asked, allowing himself a smirk at her discomfiture. "She has replaced Twilight Sparkle in your affections easily enough." Celestia's whole body quivered as though she had been struck. "It is true that Sunset was once my student, as Twilight was. It is also true that they share similar qualities of bravery and intelligence. But to suggest that Sunset is merely another Twilight demeans her, and to suggest that anyone could replace Twilight demeans Twilight; and to suggest that I would simply forget Twilight and find another... favourite demeans me." She dabbed at her mouth with a napkin. "May I withdraw, my lord? I find I cannot stand to be in this room any longer." "You may go," said the Grand Ruler softly. "But before you do, recall you tonight's banquet? I think you should invite your Sunset Shimmer. I would like to meet her, this princess that almost was, this second student of yours. So bring her with you, tonight." Celestia stared at him. "If you insist upon it-" "I do." Celestia curtsied. "Then it shall be my pleasure to please you, my dear husband. By your leave." She turned to go, her footfalls echoing across the floor. Castor looked from his departing mother to his father. "Go," Grand Ruler commanded. "Your father has business to conduct. Go to your lessons." "Of course, father," Castor said as he rose, bowed to his father with impeccable manners, and then made his way out of the room. "Guard!" Grand Ruler shouted. "Yes, majesty?" a guard said as he bowed his way into the room. "Summon Professor Brain, Colonel Glimmer and Commander…no, send not for Lightning Dawn; send rather for Major Starla Shine. Send for them all, they are to attend upon me at once, in the throne room." "Yes, majesty," the guard said, before he hastened to obey. Sunset's hoof-falls echoed on the steps as she ascended the EastTower. She didn't know if it was intentional that Princess Leilani was kept in the highest, darkest tower in the new palace, but as she climbed up the cramped, gloomy staircase she wouldn't have been too surprised. She reached the top to find a Starfleet guard outside the heavy metal door. It was soundproofed, which Sunset found especially cruel. Not only do you keep a little girl locked away but you also make sure that she can't even talk to her gaolers? Come on, seriously? The guard looked at her with undisguised contempt. Although it wasn't always the same guard - Sunset had counted a dozen different ones on rotation - they all wore the same look when they looked at Sunset Shimmer on her four legs. They looked at her like she was an animal, in fact. Sunset ignored them. "I'm here to see the princess." "She's within," the guard said. Sunset rolled her eyes. "Well, of course she is, you never let her out. Can you open the door, please?" The guard turned around to enter the code into the keypad beside the door. He positioned his back so that Sunset couldn't see the number he was putting in, but Sunset had seen various guards entering the numbers often enough that she had worked out that the code was 1-1-7-3-0 from paying close attention to the way their arms and hands moved as they typed the numbers in. Not that she was going to tell them that, they'd change the code and she'd have to start all over again. No, that bit of knowledge was something that Sunset was keeping in her proverbial back pocket, in case she needed it. The guard entered the last number, and the grey metal door slid open to reveal... another metal door on the other side. Starfleet, it seemed, was so paranoid about one little girl escaping from her cage that they had an inner door and an outer door, and never the two should be opened at the same time. Sunset walked into the chamber between the doors, and listed to the whirring and groaning sound as the outer door closed behind her. She glanced upwards at the camera above, and winked impishly at whoever was watching. The inner door was also metal, but painted red with white warning stripes along the bottom. This door rose, with even more mechanical whirring and groaning. Sunset was a little surprised that there wasn't a warning klaxon just to make extra sure that Leilani felt dangerous and unwanted. Once the door was raised up, Sunset walked under it into a smallish but comfortably appointed chamber with- "Sunset!" A white blur threw herself on Sunset so hard that, if she had not possessed the extra balance of four legs instead of two, Sunset might well have been knocked off her feet. Leilani wrapped her arms tightly around Sunset's neck, burying her face in Sunset's shoulders. Sunset smiled fondly as she placed one hoof around Leilani's waist. "Good morning, princess." Leilani stepped back from Sunset, bright smile upon her face. "You don't have to call me that, Sunset. We're friends, so Leilani is fine." Sunset nodded, but said, "You are the daughter of a princess. That makes you a princess too." "That isn't what Colonel Stern says." "Yeah, but who's cooler, me or Colonel Stern?" Sunset asked. Leilani giggled. "You are, Sunset. He never brings me any presents. Or tells me any stories." She sat down upon a sofa covered with a blue velvet throw. "Are you alright?" "I'm fine, princess," Sunset said. "And how are you?" "I'm lonely," Leilani said quietly. "But then, I always say that, don't I?" "I know," Sunset said. "And I’m sorry that there isn't anything I can do about it." "No, I didn't mean that," Leilani said quickly. "I love you coming to visit me, I just..." "Yes?" Sunset asked. "You tell me so many wonderful stories, about the world and the people in it," Leilani said. "I wish that I could see it for myself." I wish you could too, princess, Sunset thought. If I had my way I would take you away from here and never bring you back. I would take you to New Ponyville and have Pinkie Pie throw you a party every day until every lost birthday and Hearth's Warming had been made up for. I would get Rarity to make you a beautiful dress, and ask Rainbow Dash to take you flying. I would introduce you to Applejack and Fluttershy and Spike. I would take you all the way to the Crystal Empire and beyond. I would show you griffons and minotaurs and even dragons. I would show you the world, if I could. And I would let you meet your mother. If I could. Princess Leilani had the same white coat of her mother and father, and she had a pink mane that might well grow into her mother's rainbow if she lived as long. She had been born with mismatched eyes, one purple like her mother, the other black as a starless, moonless night in the human world. She wore a mask on one side of her face, to cover up the 'hideous scarring' from a bout of illness that had ravaged her as a child. Sunset had actually seen behind the mask and at worst it looked like mild sunburn on one cheek, but apparently her father found her visage - and the fact that her wings had failed to develop into anything more than feathered stubs sticking out of her back, that showed no signs of growing to the point that she could fly - so unbearable that he had locked her away in here, with only a doctor, a Starfleet tutor and Sunset Shimmer for occasional company. "I'm sorry, princess," Sunset murmured. "I told you those stories because I thought that they might amuse you. I should have realised that they would only make your situation worse." "No, please, don't stop," Leilani pleaded. "Please, I love all your stories about the little princess and all her friends. I couldn't...please don't stop." "But if they make you unhappy..." "They don't," Leilani said quickly. "It isn't your stories that make me want to go outside, it's...not being able to go outside. Your stories just make being stuck in here bearable. I can't go anywhere, but when I listen to you, and I imagine the little princess and all her friends having their adventures…it's like I'm already somewhere else." Sunset smiled. "Your mother once told me that a good story was a far more enjoyable means of teleportation than a magic spell." Leilani's face fell. "I'm sorry, princess," Sunset said. "You know that your mother would visit you if she could." "Would she?" "Have I ever lied to you?" Sunset asked. "No," Leilani admitted. "I just want to see her; and my father and Castor too." "Your mother loves you," Sunset said, saying nothing about her father. "I asked Colonel Stern if my father would ever come visit me. He said no. He said I was lucky to be alive." "Did he?" Sunset growled, wondering if it would be worthwhile paying Lieutenant Colonel Stern a visit. "Does he say a lot of things like that?" "Sometimes," Leilani admitted. "He also tried to take my friends away once, but I wouldn't let him. I hid them all in the safe place, and he was too big to get them out." Sunset grinned. "Clever girl. Why did he want to take them away?" Leilani got off the sofa and ran across the room to the fort that Sunset had helped her build in one corner of her room. It was a simple thing, a few boxes and some cloth draped over it, that kind of thing, but it also had a 'safe space' that Sunset had created using magic. It was a crawlspace, essentially, large enough for Leilani to fit into but too small for a grown Starfleet pony to get in after her. It wasn't that Sunset didn't trust the Starfleet but...well, actually it was exactly that she didn’t trust the Starfleet. Even amongst the general public there were all kinds of rumours circulating about ponies disappearing because they didn’t look like everypony else, or think like everypony else. Rumours about camps, and mental rewrites. Sunset’s work with the resistance meant that she knew more of the sickening truth of what went on at some of those secret facilities than most. She didn't want that to happen to Leilani. She wouldn’t allow it to happen to Leilani. Not while she drew breath. Leilani came back out, holding a collection of small stuffed dolls in her arms. They were representations of the little princess and her friends, the heroes of the stories that Sunset told her. "I tried to introduce Colonel Stern to everyone," Leilani explained. "But when I got to the fire demon he hissed and said that all demons were evil. He said that we had to destroy them all. He said that that's why father's work is so important." She looked at Sunset. "But if all demons are evil, then why did the little princess make friends with one?" "Because she was wiser than your father and all his warriors," Sunset said bluntly. "Because she knew what they do not and never will know." Sunset looked into Leilani's eyes. "There is evil in the world, princess, I don't deny that. And that evil must be fought. Sometimes that evil must be fought desperately. But for every truly wicked creature, there are ten like the fire demon: sad and lonely creatures who do wrong not because they are irredeemably evil, but because they have no one to turn to when the cold sets in. That is what the little princess understood: that acts of compassion are often stronger than acts of hatred. Now sit down, and I'll tell you another story." Leilani beamed as she sat down. "About the little princess?" "No," Sunset said. "Not this time." "Then is it about fashion pony and country pony? Those stories are some of the funniest." Sunset chuckled. "I know. But no. This is the story about the Fire Demon and the Lost Girl. You remember how the Little Princess had saved the world from the Fire Demon, but having saved her, she did not destroy the demon but reached out, and offered her friendship? And do you also remember how the Little Princess and the Fire Demon joined together to vanquish the Sirens?" Leilani looked a little impatient as she hugged her dolls close. "Of course I do, Sunset, I remember all your stories." Sunset smiled as she nodded. "Good. This story begins after those two. Once upon a time there was a lost girl, one who felt all alone in the world." "Was she locked in a tower too?" Leilani asked. "No," Sunset said. "She was surrounded by people every day, but each and every one of them had closed off their hearts, and none would show even the smallest kindness to the Lost Girl. They only cared about demonstrating their strength and speed, about proving that they were the best at everything. None of them understood the magic of friendship, and none of them could offer that magic to the Lost Girl." All of Sunset's stories were based on something that had actually happened. They were supposed to entertain Leilani, but also to educate her, to show her a better way than the one offered to her by her father's goons. She had come up with the idea of counteracting Starfleet's philosophy with the example of Twilight and her friends, and so she had shamelessly pillaged Twilight's journals for incidents, and created characters firmly based on the heroes of Equestria that Leilani would most likely never meet. And on herself, for the Fire Demon was none other than Sunset Shimmer at her worst and most desperate, before Twilight had reached out to her and offered mercy and compassion to one who was in desperate need of both. Sunset hoped that, as well as being a shown a world beyond her walls, Leilani would also be shown a way of living beyond warfare and violence, a way full of friendship, kindness, loyalty. The way that Twilight had shown her. The way that she, in turn, had shown to the other Twilight. So Sunset wove a spell with words, telling the story of the Friendship Games as though through a refracted mirror. "...And then the Fire Demon became very angry, and she screamed at the Lost Girl, 'How dare you put my friends in danger! You don't understand anything!' And the demon's anger terrified the Lost Girl, and she ran away, crying. And the Fire Demon hid her face, for she knew as she heard the Lost Girl's sobs that she had done a terrible thing..." "...But then, when the two of them were all alone, with no one else to see, the Fire Demon did not attack. For she remembered that once upon a time she, too, had been all alone and in need of help, and she remembered the kindness that the Little Princess and her friends had shown her. And so she said to the Lost Girl 'Let me help you. The way someone else once helped me.' And then the Fire Demon took the Lost Girl by the hand and led her out of the darkness and into the light." "And that," Sunset said. "Is why you shouldn't kill all demons." Leilani laughed. "That was a wonderful story, Sunset. But..." "But what?" "Sometimes, when I think about how wonderful the Little Princess is, I feel so useless," Leilani said. "I'm a princess too, but I can't do great magic or anything like that." Sunset smiled as she placed a hoof on Leilani's heart. "If you believe that, then you have missed the greatest lesson of the stories, princess. You have a kind heart, and that is worth more than all of your mother's magic, and all of your father's armies." "My most virtuous and beautiful wife," the Grand Ruler pouted as she slouched upon his iron throne. "What a comfort and support she is to me. Gods, how such lies stick in my craw, I nearly choke upon the utterance of them. She presumes to instruct me upon the proper duties of a ruler. Me, who have aligned the stars in their proper courses, who was cast into the wilderness with nothing and built an empire out of blood and magic, having been born without a single advantage in my life. And yet she presumes, she dares, to instruct me as if I were a foal to learn at her feet." "Your majesty requires no instruction from anyone in any matter,” Starla declared. In Lightning’s absence, in Lightning’s spiritual infirmity, the dying curse that Twilight Sparkle had laid upon him, the Grand Ruler found himself relying more and more upon Starla to be the strong right arm that Lightning should have been. It was not, perhaps, the role that a good space pony wife ought to be playing, but at the same time it was not wholly unexpected that she would rise to the occasion. She came from a heroic lineage, her mother had been a warrior without peer, and after Galaxia’s death the Grand Ruler had taken pains to ensure that she was brought up properly. Looking at her now, grown into a fine young woman, strong and beautiful in equal measure, a paragon of her race, the exemplar of all that a space pony mare should be…he was filled with a mixture of delight and disgust. Delight, because she was dearer to him by far than the wretched daughter of his body and he rejoiced in all that she had become; and disgust that fate had decreed that he should have neither wife nor daughter who gave him half so much joy, or were half so admirable as Starla was. "Certainly you do not require instruction from the likes of her, spoiled and pampered creature that she is, ruler of a world mired in corruption and all the vices that destroy the virtuous. Your majesty, and you well know that this is the know flattery but the purest truth which ever I do seek to offer to your ears, is the worthiest prince that ever drew breath across this dimensional universe of ours. Whoever denies that truth, whoever presumes to think themselves better than yourself, betrays their ignorance and overweening pride in equal measure. Some might say that they betray yet more than that. Some might call it betrayal positive, which goes by treason’s name." Grand Ruler nodded sagely. "In truth, I have of late often given thought to the notion that it may be time to put my wife aside, to make a new marriage or not as the humour takes me." "Will you give up Celestia's dowry as well as her hand in marriage?" Starlight Glimmer demanded acidly. The Grand Ruler turned his gaze upon her. Alone in the room Starlight Glimmer was not a Unicornicopian, but an Equestria. She had risen high in Starfleet Intelligence by demonstrating a willingness to, as it were, take out the trash and bury the bodies, and during her meteoric rise her various superiors had all come to find her invaluable (many of those same commanders had later found themselves entertaining various members of the security services thanks to evidence provided by none other than the indispensible Starlight Glimmer, but what was that to such as he? Yes, she had her plots and schemes, he knew that well. Some of those same schemes were even directed against him. But he was the Grand Ruler, child of the gods, and she would learn if and when she attempted to move against him that he was not so easily dealt with as her previous commanders. Although it might be somewhat amusing to watch her try). The Grand Ruler had also come to find her useful since she had begun to work under his personal supervision, but that didn't mean that he was going to tolerate an impertinent tongue like that. "You had best explain yourself quickly, colonel," he growled. "Before someone takes offence." If Starlight Glimmer trembled in fear of his displeasure she did not show it. She merely bowed with a simpering smile upon her face and said, "Your Majesty knew when you wed Celestia that it was unlikely to be a match founded in love. How could you not, being as you are so very wise in all things?" Grand Ruler's eyes narrowed, but he said nothing. "You wed, not for love, but for politics," Starlight continued. "To bind together the Unicornicopian and Equestrian nations. And your marriage continues to bind the nations together. I might go so far as to say that it is the only thing that is doing so." "What are you suggesting?" Starla demanded. “Sir.” Starla blinked. Her pretty blue eyes half bulged out of her head. Her voice, once she found it, was as sharp as the tip of any arrow that had ever leapt from her bowstring to strike down the foe. “Excuse me?” “I believe that as your superior officer I have the right to be addressed as ‘sir’ or ‘ma’am’ or perhaps ‘colonel’, Major Shine.” Starla made a sound that was half gasp, half laugh of disbelief. “I…you impudent blood flightless mule! I should take you outside right this moment and give you a horsewhipping for-“ Colonel Glimmer spread her hands disarmingly. “I merely point out that I am your superior-“ “My superior?” Starla demanded. “I am Starla Shine, whose list of honours would take longer for me to state than it would be worth my time to waste on you, unicorn. My mother was Galaxia Shine and you are not my superior. You will never be my superior in anything. Your Majesty, will you allow this insolence to stand?” “I will not, my dear,” the Grand Ruler assured her. “Calm yourself, there is no need for anger. Colonel, as valued a servant as you are you are not half so valuable nor dear to us as Major Starla Shine, whom only an admirable devotion to duty has prevented from rising as high as the heavens themselves. You will show proper deference to a hero of our people.” Colonel Glimmer bowed her head. “Of course, your majesty. Major Shine, Lady Starla, I offer my humblest and most heartfelt apology. I meant no offence, but I confess my ignorance of what you truly were. Now that I know, I will avoid doing anything to offend you in the future.” Starla snorted. “You’d better. Now explain yourself. What do you mean when you suggest that His Majesty’s marriage to Celestia is the only thing holding the nation together?” "Intelligence is my business, Major, and my intelligence is that Starfleet is not well loved by many Equestrians." "What care I for their love?" Grand Ruler demanded. Colonel Glimmer shrugged. "You may not want it, Majesty, but you need it. Queen Celestia is well liked by her people. Many still remember the days of her rule, and the peace and prosperity she brought. I am sorry to say, Majesty, but amongst the people all you are associated with are wars, curfews and food shortages. And yet, for Celestia's sake, they will endure all of that. They may not endure it if you put Celestia aside, still less if she were to... suffer some kind of accident." “They will endure it if they know what’s good for them,” Starla declared. “It is not love that has built our empire but the power of Starfleet; just so the fear of Starfleet will keep these lesser ponies in line.” "Fear will not suffice once they begin to hate you," Colonel Glimmer said. "Already Princess Luna grows more discontented by the day, and if you harm her sister... it will be civil war." “Good,” Starla said. “Let them rise up, if they are fool enough to do so. Let them rise up so that we can see who our enemies are. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, all of them who hide their malice behind false faces. Let them rise up and we will kill them all. I will kill them all if I must. Let it come to civil war, if it does then we will win it handily. It will scarcely deserve to be called a war. I would prefer a battle than this constant subversion of our values by those who call themselves our friends.” Colonel Glimmer frowned. “Perhaps you’re right, major. Perhaps a war would be over before it had even begun. But who will feed the warriors of Starfleet once all of the farmers are dead?” "Enough," the Grand Ruler snapped. He sighed. "Colonel Glimmer, you once again vindicate my wisdom in granting you my trust and heeding your council. You are quite correct; much as we despise them we do require the Equestrians for some essential functions of the country. And I fear you are correct that Celestia is necessary to maintain their loyalty. How long, do you think, until they are as loyal to Celestia's son as they are to her?" "I fear never, Majesty," Colonel Glimmer replied. "Equestrians follow rank, but not bloodlines. Celestia earned the loyalty of her people over many years, earned their love. Ponies follow the mare. If you wish your son to become the lynchpin he must earn that right." "And until he does, what then?" the Grand Ruler demanded. "Must I be saddled with this cold marble statue in my bed? This virtuous bore who regards my every appetite with disdain." "Your Majesty's desire to keep his marriage vows is commendable, but not strictly necessary," Colonel Glimmer said. "There is no reason you cannot amuse yourself while maintaining Queen Celestia in her royal state." Starla scowled at that, but said nothing. The Grand Ruler turned to the third person in the room. "Professor, I do not suppose that the Research Division is able to offer any assistance in this matter? A clone of Celestia more fitting to my wants, perhaps?" he laughed. Professor Brain coughed. He was an old green space pony, who wore a black lab coat over a plain jumper and leaned heavily on an ebony cane. He ran a hand through his shock of silver hair. "Actually, Your Majesty, that may not be such a fantasy as you, ahem, suggest. Already the Stage Two and Three Sentinel prototypes are nearing the maturity stage, and if Sentinel Three functions correctly... it will be a great proof of concept." Colonel Glimmer's eyes narrowed. Clearly she wanted to know more. The Grand Ruler, however, did not intend to enlighten her. Nor did he intend for Starla to know of these things. Not now, at least. “Starla, sweet girl, I must ask you leave us now,” he said. “There are matters which must now come under discussion to which you cannot be privy.” Starla glanced at Colonel Glimmer, as if to ask why she could be privy to knowledge denied to her, a space pony; but she said nothing. She curtsied. “I take my leave, your majesty, until you have need of me again.” The Grand Ruler waited until she had departed before he spoke again. "Now, professor, you tell me that the second and third stages are almost complete. What of the Stage One prototypes?" Brain frowned. "Flawed, Your Majesty, as I have told you, but under the leadership of Sentinel Two we should be able to get some use out of them. Despite their eccentricities they at least proved that it could be done." "When Sentinel Three emerges we must take great care in how we reveal her," Grand Ruler said. He chuckled. "It will be worth remaining married to Celestia merely to see how she takes it." "If I may, Your Majesty, I have a notion as to we may field test the new Sentinels, prior to entering into mass production," Brain said. "Indeed?" "You have recently given orders for the members of, ahem, Friendship is Magic to be dispersed across the Starfleet, have you not?" Brain said. "But I think that you do not intend for them to remain in their new positions long?" "Indeed not," Grand Ruler said. "I mean to kill them all. I did not get the chance to order Twilight's death, I shall content myself with her friends. And, with their heroes gone, the Equestrian identity will suffer another blow.” "Quite so, Majesty, an excellent stratagem," Brain said. "Might I suggest that the Sentinels would be a tool to do the deed? A test of their effectiveness, as it were." Grand Ruler considered the idea. "I had meant to send my Valkyries to destroy not only Pinkie Pie but the Queen of Zebrica. I may use your Sentinels instead, when they are ready. In fact I shall, provided they are ready soon." "Oh, they will be, Your Majesty. I guarantee that they will be," Brain said. Colonel Glimmer murmured. "Your Majesty means to kill all five of them?" "I do," the Grand Ruler said. "What of it? Does it displease you? Do you still harbour sympathy for your fellow Equestrians?" "I am a loyal subject of Your Majesty, as I have proved by my conduct," Colonel Glimmer replied. "But I am also aware that Major Rhymey loves his shy little wife, and he is a valiant soldier. Has he not earned a little consideration, or will you hurt him in order to hurt a dead mare?" Grand Ruler thought about it. It was very tempting to kill Fluttershy anyway, if only to hear Celestia wail about it, but on the other hand Colonel Glimmer had a point. Rhymey had fought bravely for him, and he was one of Lightning's friends, and the Grand Ruler…he would not hurt Lightning for all the world. Not if it could be avoided, at least. "Very well," he said. "Fluttershy shall be spared. The rest, they shall die. Their names are pricked." "But it will be accidents, to the people?" Colonel Glimmer asked. "No arrests, no trials?" "No arrests, no trials," the Grand Ruler confirmed. "Thank you, officers, you may leave me now." Professor Brain bowed. "Majesty." Starlight curtsied. "Majesty." Grand Ruler looked at her. "Thank you, Colonel Glimmer, you are slowly but surely proving yourself to be one of my most trusted and capable advisors." Starlight smiled. "It is an honour to serve, Your Majesty." "A state banquet?" Sunset said. "Yes," Celestia replied. The two of them sat together in Celestia's room, sitting down on the carpet like they would have in the old days when they were teacher and student. "Attended by various generals, admirals and dignitaries. My husband is quite keen that you attend." "Will you be there?" Sunset asked. "Yes," Celestia said. "I confess... I will be glad of the company." Sunset smiled. "Don't worry, princess, I've got your back. So...Princess Luna won't be attending then?" "No," Celestia said. "Luna...Luna does not play the game, as I do. My husband makes little effort to include her in the government of the state." "He includes me, but not your sister?" "I think he is curious about you," Celestia said. Sunset grinned. "It's nice to be a mare of mystery, I guess. There was a time when I would have enjoyed something like this." "Really?" Celestia murmured dubiously. Sunset hesitated. "Probably not, but I would have enjoyed being thought important enough to ask along. Now...how bad is it likely to be?" "That depends," Celestia said. "Sometimes they can be passably civil. Other times...try not to lose your temper. I fear someone will try to provoke you to an outburst. I also fear that my husband will attempt to get you to open the portal to the human world." "I can't," Sunset said. "We used the other Twilight's amulet to drain the magic out of the portal from their side. Only she can re-open the portal from her end. And she won't, not until I give her the word. And I won't give the word, not for them." "I am glad," Celestia sighed. "The thought of them having access to yet another world to make their own...I confess...it is a terrible thing to think so ill of your own husband." "It is a terrible thing to have to marry for the sake of your people," Sunset replied. "You are very brave, princess." "I am what I have always been: a servant to my little ponies," Celestia said. "As my head supports the rich crown of gold, so do my shoulders bear the weight of all their hopes and dreams, and of their very safety. I must guard them all. I am the only one who can." "Not alone," Sunset said. "You have me. I know I'm not the pony that should be here but-" "But you are very welcome," Celestia said with a smile. "How is your work progressing?" "Very well, your highness, Twilight's friends have been very helpful in supplying details." "Excellent," Celestia said. She hesitated for a moment. "And Leilani?" Sunset smiled. "She is a sweet girl, princess, and very well all things considered." Celestia closed her eyes for a moment, and Sunset almost thought that she might cry. "It is a cruel twist of fate," she said. "That you spent so long envying me and desiring to become me, and now it is my turn to envy you. You are more a mother to my daughter than I am." Sunset said. "No, I am not a mother to Leilani. I don't see her often enough, I don't do any of the hard stuff. I just show up to check on her and brighten her day every once in a while. Like a cool big sister. I've never had to make her go to bed when she didn't want to, or take her toys away to punish her for being naughty, or anything like that. Princess, do you remember that time when I got sick, and you stayed by my bedside, and made me soup? That's what a mother does, I think. I don't do anything like that for Leilani." "I am sure that she appreciates all that you do," Celestia said. "I wish I could do more," Sunset said. "She deserves better." "I know," Celestia said hoarsely. "This world deserves better. Twilight deserved better. Sometimes I wonder where I went wrong, what mistake I made to bring us to this point. Whether there was anything I could have done to avoid it." "Starfleet was too strong, you couldn't have refused to share the world with them," Sunset said. "If you had, they might have taken everything by force." "Perhaps that would have been better," Celestia murmured. "A quick defeat, a swift fall, preferable to this slow decay, this poisoning of all that we are." "Last stands sound noble to those who aren't making them," Sunset replied. "We are alive, your daughter is alive, and while we live who knows how our destiny may change for the better." "You believe that it will?" "How can I not, after what I've lived through?" Sunset asked. "Keep fighting, princess. Don't give up yet." "No," Celestia said. "That would never do, would it? I shall bear up, and play the good wife to the fullest, and while I play I will keep Equestria safe as best I can." Emerald Shaina, Captain of the Royal Guard, stood before the doors to the throne room with her eyes front and her spear butt resting on the ground, wishing that she could close her ears. She was a good officer, a loyal officer. The Shaina line had a long, proud history of service to the Starfleet, and Emerald had been equally proud to play her part in continuing that history. When she had been appointed captain of the guard, she had been so proud that she had marched all the way down Victory Way in Rainbow City, back in old Unicornicopia, in her dress uniform, getting salutes from all the guards and the off-duty serviceponies and the veterans, until she had arrived at her mother’s house to show her how far she’d come. She was proud of the rank that she had earned. She was proud of the brave warriors that she commanded. She was proud of her gleaming cuirass, of the red armour that marked her out as the commander, set apart from all the other guards in white. She was proud of her bronze helmet and its metallic crest, of her red cape and blue sash. She was proud of her spear and her shield and her sword. She was proud of the grave responsibility with which she had been entrusted. She was proud to serve the Grand Ruler, creator of them all. But he didn’t half make it hard sometimes. It was easy to take pride in her job when she was defending the Grand Ruler and his Queen as they sat in royal state, receiving the petitions of the commoners, or dealing with the governance of the realm. It was harder to feel quite so proud when she was stuck outside the throne room, guarding the door, listening to the burlesque (and that was a kind word for it, Emerald could have found descriptors worse and more accurate) floorshow going on inside for His Majesty’s entertainment. “Why, Rainbow Dash, I see that you’re not just fast when you’re racing!” someone said from inside the room. Based on what else she had overheard, she got the impression it was meant to be Princess Twilight. “Ten seconds flat indeed!” Emerald Shaina could hear the Grand Ruler laughing uproariously from inside the throne room. Emerald didn’t think it was that funny, but she would take laughter over… some of the other things she had to listen to during His Majesty’s entertainments. For as long as Emerald had served in the guard, the Grand Ruler had enjoyed such things. For as long as she had served in the guard it had been his especial pleasure to have the roles in these little plays performed by the children of high ranking officers and civic notables. Once, in old Unicornicopia, the majority of the players had been handsome and pretty young officers of good family – Emerald herself had played her part in her time, being chased around the room by a stallion dressed as a wolf before allowing him to ‘catch’ her and have his way – but ever since the union of the two thrones an increasing number of Equestrian nobles had been taking their turns before the throne. Emerald had spotted the Queen’s nephew, Prince Blueblood, amongst others present today. Those who played their parts well, as judged by how pleasure the Grand Ruler obtained from watching them, would be rewarded with rank and honours for their families. Those who left His Majesty flaccid might find the fortunes of their line entering a steep decline. She was not sure why Twilight Sparkle and her friends had increasingly become the subject of the performances, and she was not sure that she wanted to know. Dinner was every bit as bad as Sunset had expected it would be. She sat as stiffly in her seat as any statue in the gardens outside, and pretended not to hear the whispering around her, the sniggering under breath, the way the high and might officers and their wives looked at her pony form with a mixture of pity and contempt. "Miss Shimmer," one lady said to her. "You don't appear to be eating very much." That was true. Most of the banquet consisted of meat, which Sunset did not eat, so she was left picking at the salad around the edges of the steak. "I don't partake of flesh," Sunset murmured. "Why ever not?" asked an admiral's wife. "Surely you understand that as the dominant species, it is our right to feed upon those creatures beneath us, and to use them as we will." "Your forgetting, my dear, that Sunset Shimmer is not the dominant species," said the admiral himself, red faced with wine. "Strictly second tier." Sunset glowered, but forced herself to ignore that as she had ignored all the more tacit insults thrown in the direction of Celestia or herself over the course of the evening. The admiral's wife laughed. "Of course. Do forgive me, Miss Shimmer, but for we members of the master race...well, we feel entitled, of course. I think these creatures should feel honoured to serve their betters." Sunset smiled. "Perhaps you're right, ma'am. I hope that, when someone comes along to eat you, you too can have the decency to feel honoured." The admiral's wife paled, her eyes widening in shock. Sunset's grin remained fixed in place. Yes, I have a fork in my tongue as well, and I remember how to use it. "Miss Shimmer," the Grand Ruler growled. "That was rather discourteous." "Do you think so, Your Majesty, I thought it was rather witty," Sunset replied. The Grand Ruler sputtered wordless for a moment. "It would be well for you to apologise," he said. "Or did you mentor neglect to teach you proper manners?" Celestia did not flinch from the insult, nor did she give any sign that she heard the laughter directed her way. Sunset's eyes narrowed. "My teacher taught me a great many lessons. Amongst them to always apologise when you have something to apologise for and to always stand up to bullies." The Grand Ruler glared at Sunset. Sunset glared right back at him. "Your Majesty, I beg you, do not upset yourself," a mare said, one who looked disconcertingly like an alicorn Rarity, but without the fashion sense. She looked to be wearing her body armour, which was a kind of pastel pink colour, and a knife at her hip even in this place. "This is a banquet, not a debate. And in any case," she smirked in Sunset's direction. "The ruler of so many dominions should not waste his time quarrelling with a beast who walks on four legs." Sunset waited for the laughter to die down before she said, "I don't believe I've had the pleasure, madam?" "My name is Starla Shine," alicorn Rarity said. "Major Starla Shine of the Starfleet, heir to the Shine dynasty and wife…wife of Supreme Commander Lightning Dawn. And you are the notorious Sunset Shimmer, the only pony on all fours. Tell me, does it make you feel special, being so unique? Is that why you stubbornly refuse to convert to the superior form?" Sunset said, "I spent some years as a biped, in another world. The magic made me that way, as it has made me four legged again now. Who am I to argue with the magic?" "That’s right, you’ve come back from another dimension, haven’t you? That one from the movies," Starla said. “Yes,” Sunset growled. “That one from the movies.” She wasn’t particularly fond of either of those films, they did a disservice to everyone involved, even Lightning Dawn if that was possible "Perhaps you should have stayed there,” Starla suggested. “We’d probably all be happier if you were back there doing…whatever it was you did." "I defended that world from the powers of evil," Sunset said. "And I did it without killing anyone." “Then that was rather stupid of you, wasn’t it?” Starla said flatly. "How do you know that the threat will not return now you are gone? You could have doomed the world because you were too weak to do what needs to be done." "I have faith," Sunset said. "Faith?" "I believe," Sunset clarified. "There's magic in believing, isn't there?" The Grand Ruler snorted. "Perhaps, Sunset Shimmer, you can do what Twilight Sparkle could not, and permanently re-open the portal to that other world." "I cannot... Majesty," Sunset said. "The portal only opens from the human side now." "Is it wise to give such power to mere primitives?” Starla asked. "It is in the hands of those I trust completely," Sunset said. Left unspoken was the fact that she did not trust anyone associated with Starfleet. "You do not think that there might be advantages to closer contact between our worlds?" the Grand Ruler asked. "I think," Sunset replied. "That neither species is truly ready for such contact." I'll be dead before I let you take over that world, too. For a moment, she thought the Grand Ruler would have more to say, but instead he turned away from her and rose heavily to his feet. He picked up his wine glass, filled with a liquid as red as blood, and held it aloft until it caught the light for all to see. “Good friends and loyal lords, admirals and generals, faithful captains and other valiant officers, distinguished guests; you know your own degrees, yet each to first and last a hearty welcome.” “Thanks to your majesty,” Starla said. “The honour of attending on you is all hours.” “Nay, nay, my child,” the Grand Ruler declared. “For though I am in royal state set higher than a king, and though I am of sparkling blood and from the loins of highest heaven sprung, yet like you I am but fashioned of the flesh; like you in much, as different in much else. And for that reason we ourself do mingle with society, shall play for you the humble host, and while away fair hours in genial talk with those of you on whom we do rely the most and have, in just and well deserving consequence, set highest amongst our race.” He glanced at Celestia. “Our hostess keeps her state, but in good time we will require her welcome.” “Pronounce it for me, sir, to all our friends,” Celestia murmured, not meeting the eyes of anypony present in the dining hall. “My heart bids them all welcome.” The Grand Ruler chuckled indulgently. “Though yet of Twilight, dear as daughter’s death the memory be green, and that it us befitted to bear our hearts in grief and our whole realm, all vast dominions under our sway from star to shining star to be contracted in one brow of woe…yet immortal though her memory shall stand within our heart, we also must make remembrance of ourself – so far has discretion fought with nature that it must yield to prudence, as we think – that we must put aside unmasculine grief and embrace once more the joys and flowering passions of a life well-lived. Such, we feel, would Twilight herself desire of us.” Don’t pretend that you give a damn about Twilight, Sunset thought. If you did you wouldn’t have been in such haste to tear down everything she stood for. “Here had we now our empire’s honour roof’d, were but the graced and greatly missed and even more greatly mourned person of Princess Twilight present here with us,” the Grand Ruler. Yes, all the honoured ponies of your empire…apart from Twilight’s friends, the heroes who saved Equestria. But then, I suppose they’re not really honoured any more, are they? And then…and then as Sunset turned her head away from the Grand Ruler in disgust…she saw her. Twilight. Twilight Sparkle was sitting there, on her haunches, beside one of the pillars that lined the hall. She glanced Sunset’s way, and it seemed to Sunset that she almost smiled at her, before she reached out with one trembling hoof though the distance between them was great. “Twilight,” Sunset murmured. “Sunset,” Celestia, too, spoke in a low soft voice. “What do you- oh my goodness.” “You see her too?” Sunset whispered, not daring to take her eyes off her for a single moment. “Yes, but I don’t know-“ There was an almighty crash as the Grand Ruler dropped his cup of wine. It shattered on the table, staining the crisp white tablecloth with a blood-red stain that would be murder to wash out. If it ever washed out. If the stain of the act could ever be removed beyond all knowing. “Which of you has done this?” the Grand Ruler demanded. “Which of you is responsible?” “What, gracious majesty?” an officer asked, his voice trembling in the face of the Grand Ruler’s fury, and it took Sunset a moment to realise that he could see Twilight, too! He could see her, and it was upsetting him. “You…you cannot say I did it,” the Grand Ruler declared, sounding as though he was about to choke. “You cannot shake your gory hooves at me!” Sunset couldn’t help it, she looked away from Twilight to behold the greater-than-usual pallor of the Grand Ruler’s face, the trembling of his hands, the shaking of his head back and forth, the way his eyes were wide and his voice shook. He was afraid, he was afraid and he was… Guilty. I knew it! I knew it! I knew that you had something to do with it! I swear, no matter what it takes I’ll see you pay for what you’ve done. “His Majesty is not well!” someone declared. Starla lurched to her feet. “Sit, all you worthy and most honoured guests, there’s no cause for alarm. His Majesty is often thus and has been since the…since the grief of Twilight Sparkle’s passing so greatly did discomfort his most noble soul. The fit will pass, and in a while he shall be well again. Avert your eyes, eat, drink; if you mark him over-much you will offend him, and extend the passion besides.” “If I stand here, I saw her,” the Grand Ruler murmured. Sunset followed where his gaze went, and sure enough Twilight was gone. “Most noble majesty,” Starla said firmly. “As your honoured guests I fear we lack you.” The Grand Ruler seemed to recover himself. “I did forget. Forgive me, one and all, and do not muse at me my worthy friends and most leal subjects; Twilight Sparkle’s death has bred in me a strange infirmity, yet to those who know me well, as our dearer than daughter does, it’s less than nothing. Come, love and health to all, then I’ll sit down and let the general merriment commence. Bring me a fresh cup! Fill it with wine! I’ll drink to the general joy of this whole table, and to our dear beloved Princess Twilight whom we miss and…” He stared again, and shook again, and there once more Sunset beheld her friend…and glanced once more to see the Grand Ruler distempered with pure horror at the sight. “No,” he muttered. “No! Begone and quit my sight! Your flesh to ashes by the funeral pyre was rendered! The dust is cold that yet remains of you! The light has left the eyes which now you glare with!” “Um…think of this as a custom, everyone,” Starla said. “The only difference is that it…it rather spoils the mood. I, um…begone, all of you!” she flipped the dining table over with a tremendous crash, heedless of the astonished gasps of all the other honoured guests. “He grows worse and worse because your gawping enrages him! Begone, and stand not on the order of your going, but get out!” “Goodnight,” Sunset said. “And I hope His Majesty’s health improves.” Starla glared arrows at her. “Goodnight, Sunset Shimmer. We’ll see each other again, I’m sure of it.” Well, I’ve got so many enemies already, what’s one more? Sunset left, finding herself near the back of the crowd of guests heading for the doors which, once all had departed, were shut behind them. “Sunset.” Sunset turned in response to Celestia’s voice, the voice that had spoken so softly and so tremblingly. As trembling as was Celestia herself, as she stood by the doors, looking as though she were about to faint. “You saw her, didn’t you?” Celestia said, waiting until the corridor was clear before she spoke. “You saw Twilight, didn’t you?” Sunset swallowed. “I did.” “And he saw her as well,” Celestia said, and her voice sounded as weak and confused. “And he blenched, and babbled and it frightened him. She frightened him.” “It wasn’t really her,” Sunset said. “Twilight…Twilight’s gone, and as much as we might want to get her back…we can’t.” “Then what did we see there?” “I don’t know,” Sunset admitted. “But it was you that taught me there is no spell that can bring back the dead. Death is the final journey, and for the well-ordered mind-“ “Another adventure, yes, I remember, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy having my words quoted back at me.” “I’m sorry, princess.” “Why was he so afraid?” Celestia asked. “Why did she affect him so?” Sunset didn’t know what to say. She knew that Celestia was as capable to putting two and two together as Sunset herself, and though there was no evidence that Celestia had been predisposed to suspect the Grand Ruler from the start…she wasn’t an idiot, no matter how much it pleased the Grand Ruler to treat her as though she was…there was no way she could be blind to the implications. “Did he…” Celestia’s voice shook. “Did my husband…did he kill my girl, my sweet, brave…did he kill Twilight?” “Raven killed Twilight, princess.” “But did he have a hand in it?” Sunset wanted so desperately to lie. She wanted to deny it, she wanted to put Celestia’s mind at ease because she knew, she knew how much the truth – what she suspected was the truth – would torment her. And yet she had sworn to be honest with her old mentor. And so she said, “It’s quite possible. I have thought he might have for some time.” “Oh no,” Celestia said, and she looked as though she might fall at any moment. “Oh, Twilight. I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” “Princess,” Sunset murmured. “None of this is your fault.” “I brought them here,” Celestia said. “All else has flown from that one choice I made. What have I done, Sunset? What have I done?”