It was quiet under Trans Equestria Creative. Following the lead to her next retirement has brought her here. This tunnel the building sat on. Dark but not complete, the lights attached along the path did little to illuminate her way. barely showing anything at all. but it did help keep her on her course.
"Stop." a voice in the darkness said. Far ahead of Twilight.
She kept her weapon in her hoof but the safety off. Watching and listening for anything that might be a threat or her target.
"Stop. I knew you were going to come for me sooner or later." said the voice ahead of her. It sounded sad and resigned. Giving up on fighting, now just waiting for it to happen. "I thought about running away. But honestly where could I go? You or somepony like you will just find me eventually. Besides you took almost everything that meant anything to me. What's the point of living without the things you love? Stop."
Twilight was surprised the words stung her, but she continued on. "Are you mad?" she asked as she walked.
"More sad than mad. I want to be mad. I want so much to be angry at you. But I can't, I just can't. Stop."
Walking on Twilight heard a rush of noise coming closer to her at a rapid place. The continuous flapping of many things coming at her, growing louder of the steady beats of their wings, until she found herself surrounded by them. She brought her front hooves up to protect her face as she felt many tiny things collide with her limbs. They tangled themselves in her mane, buzzed in her ears, they roamed around her body chaotically, confusing her. Twilight brushed them off, trying to get them away from her and off her body.
And then they were gone. The flock flew further on down the tunnel. "Please be careful." said Fluttershy. Her voice echoing throughout the tunnel. "They are harmless. Stop."
Twilight Sparkle gently untangled one of the creatures that was stuck in her hair, realizing it was just a tiny bird. Too dark to see what kind it was, she let it loose for it to fly further on, catching up with the rest of them. "What is with all these animals?" she asked.
"Stop. Mistakes. Growing an artificial isn't exact as ponies like to believe. Their are mutations, defects, degenerations. For everyone successful animal we created their is another that's unsellable. I take the ones that they deem worthless and bring them here. It's not much, but its better than euthanization. Please be careful, I don't want you to hurt them. Please stop."
As her eyes adjusted to the dark Twilight could see various animal shapes along the floor. But something didn't seem right to her, Some moved erratically, some moved in circles, some were not moving obviously dead, or dying as she could make out chests rising and falling on some of them, even with the poor lighting.
Twilight didn't know what to say as she walked on, avoiding them as best she could. "Stop. I wonder if they would think of me." said Fluttershy. "In the brief time they have. I hope they will think of me as a friend. A pony who cared about them, but in the end what does it matter. I couldn't stop it."
The tunnel led to a room filled with cages, most of them empty by now. A few animals still stuck around here and their. It was dark like the path to here but at the other side she could see a wall of soft lights emanating from the wall. Weaving her way around she followed the light.
"Stop. Those were my best friends." said Fluttershy. "I have been with them for so very long."
"You must be very proud of yourself." said Twilight edging her way closer.
"Doesn't matter in the long run. You're still going to get me. Stop." Twilight could hear Fluttershy's hooves scrape across the tiled floor from adjusting herself. "Right now I just want this to be over. There are only two of us now, and shortly there will be one. Stop. How do you think it feels to be retired when you don't know what you did wrong. What any of us did wrong."
"You want I should let you go?" asked Twilight to keep her talking, home in on where she was.
"I know you would never do that. You know you would never do that. That was a silly question to ask. Stop."
Rounding the corner of empty cages Twilight Sparkle spotted her. Standing in front of a collection of cages holding birds that squawked quietly behind their bars that held them in. Behind them was the only lights that poorly illuminated the room. Making black silhouettes of the cages, the birds and Fluttershy.
"There's only two of us left, in a moment there will be one. Stop." Fluttershy said. "Their are so many things I wanted to do in my life. I will miss it all. But I will be with my friends soon, and that makes me happy. I miss them so much Twilight could feel Fluttershy's eyes piercing her. She wondered what she was thinking of, meeting the pony who retired her friends and will retire her. She felt a gnawing sense of guilt running through her body. Staring at the little pony staring at her. "What is your name? Stop." asked the pony to Twilight.
"Twilight. Twilight Sparkle." she said automatically.
"Twilight means the soft glowing light from the sky when the sun is below the horizon, caused by the refraction and scattering of the sun's rays from the atmosphere. Sparkle is a glittering flash of light. Stop. So that means you are the beautiful scattered light of the sun when it is below the horizon. It's nice to meet you. I am Fluttershy. Stop."
"Why are you keeping those birds behind you?" asked Twilight. "You have released the others. And why are they acting weird?"
"Stop. I have a question Twilight Sparkle. The birds behind me are called Equestria Birds of Paradise. They became extinct a few hundred years ago due to a bird flu that wiped them all out. We brought them back for pets, but no one wanted them. Thought their colors were ugly. I think they are the most beautiful animals I have ever seen. Stop. What you see behind me are the last of them. When their gone their will be no more. They are just a small passage in our world."
Twilight stared at the caged animals unable to get a good look at what they were or what they looked liked. Just bird shaped animals in the bright light.
"In order to keep them under our control, all our artificials are encoded with a gene that makes them dependent on the food we give them. If I release them, they won't be able to digest anything they eat and will die in twenty-four hours. If I keep them caged they will stay alive longer. But I was the only one who ever came down here. When I'm gone they will be alone in these cages until they expire. Imagine spending your life in a cage, in darkness. You world is nothing but that. Stop. My question is which would be better for them? Experiencing a day of life, or years of death. And how could I live with myself either way. Stop."
"I don't know." said Twilight. "There doesn't seem to be a right answer."
"Very True." said Fluttershy. As the cages opened up and out flew the birds. They flew past the two ponies to vanish out of the room and into the world beyond them. "If it makes you feel any better I have answered the question for you. Stop. I am prepared beautiful scattered light of the sun when it is below the horizon."
"I'm sorry." said Twilight Sparkle.
"I know you are, and I forgive you. But you're still going to do what you're going to do. Stop." said Fluttershy, voice barely above a whisper. "So just do what you need to do. Their is still one of us left, and I believe she won't go down as easy as I am."
The gun shook in her hoof as she aimed it at the silhouetted pony standing in front of her. A million emotions conflicted inside of her, making everything so much harder.
"It's not easy isn't it?" said Fluttershy. "I made it difficult, haven't I? Will this help?" she continued on. Turning herself around, With her back towards Twilight Sparkle. "Now I'm just an artificial. I have no soul, no emotions, no thoughts of my own, no dreams, or goals in my life. I am just a piece of skin to do with as the world wants. Discard me when I am no longer needed."
Twilight Sparkle couldn't stop tremors running all over her body. Finding herself crying, as she stood their fighting herself to finish the job Celestia sent her to do. "Goodbye Fluttershy."
"Stop..."
The rain felt refreshing on Twilight as she stumbled from the tunnel to the outside world, making her way over to her vehicle, sitting in the lot next to the Trans Equestria Creative building. Wiping her mouth from getting sick earlier she fought the waves of nausea still hitting her, as she fumbled with her car keys.
The door opened easily as she propped herself in and shut the door. Sitting down in the soft seat she listened quietly to her own rhythmic breathing and to the drops of dirty rain hitting her car constant beat. Twilight Sparkle crossed her limbs over the steering wheel, placed her head on top, and cried.