Reflection
The Cost of Life
Twilight Sparkle awoke with the sunrise.
Golden light streaming through the window beat back the pale bluish-white of fluorescent tubes above her. Her eyes, fighting off their weighty lids, immediately set onto the brightest object in the room.
“Good morning, Twilight,” the white stallion greeted with gentle cheer.
“Mmm, morning,” Twilight replied, her thready voice nearly lost beneath the beeps and whirrs of the life-support machinery at her bedside. “How long have you been here?”
“Not long. It was already getting light out when I came in.”
“Good,” she declared with a weak sigh. A satisfying yawn brought forth a smile. “As endearing as it is for my big brother to keep a bedside vigil all night long, it was starting to get kinda creepy.”
Then, she noticed.
“Hey, you’re awfully happy. Like, really happy. What’s going on?”
The other pony turned aside guiltily. “I’m just glad I get to look at you.”
One of the purple mare’s eyebrows gained altitude. “Nuh-uh. I'm not buying that. Last time you were here you could barely keep it together. What’s going on?”
“Well…” The stallion hesitated. “I’m happy because everything is going to be all right. You’re going to be all right.”
“Wh– what are you talking about?” Seeing his reluctance, she prodded further. “I’m going to find out one way or another. Out with it. Now.”
“Twilight, they found a donor. You’re going to get the operation – today. And you’re going to live a long time and you’re going do so much. That’s why I’m happy.” He leaned down and nuzzled underneath a purple ear.
The smaller unicorn struggled to push him away, having barely the energy to lift her own hoof. “Wait, how– how is that possible? They found a compatible donor?” She received an assured nod in reply. “But– but– I read all the reports. The TGLH-1 antigen is this crazy mutation; it’s not in the population at all. Only ponies in our family have any chance of expressing it and even then…” Her eyes went wide. “Wait. Y– you?!”
“Yeah.” Grinning all-too-proudly, he tapped a hoof to his chest. “They ran all the tests. TLGH-1 positive. Compatible donor, right here.”
Twilight’s face pulled back into an expression of unmitigated horror. One of the machines started beeping noticeably faster. “No… no…”
Her previously weak, small voice exploded.
“NO! You can’t do that!”
“Twilight, calm down.”
“No! You can’t do that!” the terrified mare screamed. “Are you crazy?! Do you even know what you’re saying?!” Her attempts to rise from the bed were futile, as the minimal force of the stallion’s hooves easily pinned down her thrashing frame. “You can’t do that! You’ll die!”
“I know. Twilight, it’s okay.”
“No! Shut up! I won’t let you! You can’t!”
“Shhhh…” The stallion took no notice of the purple forelimbs pounding ineffectually against his chest. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“Then tell me you’re not going to die!”
His head shook sadly. “I can’t lie to you, Twilight.”
Her momentary burst of energy exhausted, the purple mare’s struggles stopped and she lay limply on her back, tossing out further objections between ragged breaths. “You can’t… I won’t let you… They won’t let you… It’s… it’s a violation of medical ethics. And… and they need my consent anyway… so it won’t work. You understand? …Your stupid plan won’t work!”
A pinkish magical aura brought a cloth to her face and began drying the wetness there.
“You can’t do this…”
“Twilight, you’re more important than you know. Equestria needs you.”
“What? More than it needs you?”
“Yes.”
“Shut up!” Twilight’s horn sparked briefly, only to sputter out. She grabbed the cloth with her hooves instead and pressed it to her nose, blowing fiercely. “You’re not going to kill yourself for me. I’ll let Princess Celestia know, and she’ll have you put under watch, and you won’t be able to do anything!”
“Celestia already knows.”
“You’re lying! The princess wouldn’t allow that!”
“Twilight, I already told you I can’t lie to you. I wasn’t even supposed to say anything in the first place. It’s very bad for you to get stressed like this. I’m sorry.”
“You’re crazy,” she repeated. “You’re talking about suicide. A clear symptom of mental illness.”
The larger pony laughed openly. “You do realise that makes the entire Royal Guard into a nuthouse, right? Every single pony in the Guard has to be willing and able to give their life to save another at any time.”
“That’s different. It’s… it’s not the same thing at all…” Now lacking the energy for both anger and sadness, Twilight settled on the latter and sobbed, punctuating it with a few coughs. The beeping was slowing down. She soon found a pair of powerful forelegs wrapped around her, lifting her upper body just a few inches.
“Listen,” a caring voice whispered in her ear, “because this is important. This is my choice. Don’t let anypony – even yourself – ever tell you different. I’m doing this because I love you. I love you, Twilight, more than you can understand. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I didn’t do absolutely everything I could to help you.”
The mare’s voice was barely audible. “What about Cadance… the… the Crystal Empire… you can’t…”
“It’s all taken care of. Believe me.” He loosened the embrace, and met her eyes. Their horns touched. “I know this won’t make sense to you right now, but this… this is my destiny. This is what I was meant to do. My whole life is about this moment. I always knew it… even before I met you. I knew.”
Twilight stared at him.
He was still smiling.
“You are crazy.”
“You know what? I’m not even going to argue with you. I’ve screwed things up enough already.”
She gave an incredulous look. “Not going to argue? Admitting you screwed up? That explains it. You’re not really my brother, are you?”
A chuckle. “Nope. I just look and sound exactly like him.”
Fresh supplies of tears pooled in her eyes. Her weak limbs somehow found the strength to latch on tight. “You can’t do this. I love you. Please. You’re supposed to be my B.B.B.F.F. That last ‘F’ doesn’t count if you just up and die on me! I’ll hate you forever if you do this!”
The stallion’s muzzle rubbed softly into her neck. “Twilight, you’re being selfish.”
“Whuh?”
“You’re thinking it’s going to hurt, knowing that I died to save you. But if you die, it’ll hurt me a lot more. So you want to spare your own feelings and hurt me in the process. That’s selfish of you. Stop it.”
Twilight choked back more sobs. “This isn’t fair… I can’t argue with you now… logic… ethics… I’m an expert. I could beat you any other day… It’s not fair for you to do it now…” Her eyes closed, and her body relaxed as a hoof massaged her withers. “It doesn’t matter,” she whispered, “I’m going to stop you. Can’t outsmart me, you jerk…”
The white pony’s horn was alight. “Always remember, Twilight, that your brother loves you very much. Don’t get so mad at him, okay?”
The mare reopened her eyes to discover a pink halo surrounding her. “Is– is that…?”
“Good Night Sleep Tight,” he confirmed. “Cadance taught me.”
“Not fair… cheater…”
With that, her eyes shut once more, head lolling against his shoulder.
A final droplet rolled down her cheek.
He laid her unconscious form back down on the bed, tucking in the sheets carefully around her. His lips delivered a kiss – soft and fleeting – at the base of her horn. “When you wake up, everything will be okay. I promise.” He lingered for a short while more, simply taking in the sight of the sleeping pony with marked contentment.
A militarily purposeful trot took him out and down a short length of sterile hallway, to an equally-sterile room distinguishable from the many others only by the number on its door.
Three other ponies waited for him there.
“I’m ready,” he announced, his assured tone interrupting the stark silence.
Two of the room’s occupants – a stallion and mare clad in white doctors’ coats – looked quickly to him, then to the final pony. She stood head and shoulders above them, so they both had to crane their necks upward to see the alicorn’s curt nod giving them permission to leave. Their stares fixed firmly on the floor as they vacated.
The new arrival watched them go with a small frown. “Not very personable, are they?”
“Please excuse them,” Celestia replied, her stoic voice and countenance marred only in the slightest measure by a tinge of nonspecific anxiousness. “I’m certain they do not mean to be rude. I expect that they simply don’t know how to act in this situation and so fall back to cold professionalism.”
The unicorn nodded. “Heh. I get that.” He paused, then smiled. “Kinda ironic, if you ask me. Everypony’s getting so worked up. It seems I’m the only one who doesn’t see it as such a big deal, and I’m the one who’s about to die.”
The princess examined his careless, boyish grin. “Death, when it is known in advance, is often hardest for those around the one who is to leave.” She extended a wing, and draped it over him, pulling closer so that they were now side-to-side, and gave a small, troubled smile of her own. “Although their reactions may seem negative, it simply means that in one way or another… they care for you.”
“I guess… that’s a pretty nice thought.”
On those words, the two ponies stared ahead into nothingness. An uneventful minute passed.
“I really should get on with it now, shouldn’t I?”
Celestia’s wing gently retreated. “A few minutes will change very little for Twilight. Is there anything else you wish to do? Anypony you’d like to speak with? Cadance, perhaps?” Her smile was gone, and her questions had a hint of pleading to them.
“Nah.” He waved of his hoof. “She’d just get upset again.”
“Anything else then?”
“Hm.” He scratched at his chin. “Some hay fries would be nice right about now, but I think the doc said it’s not a good idea to have a full stomach…”
“It cannot be so important. I’ll call the nurse and we can place an order–”
“I was joking,” he clarified, suppressing a chuckle, “I’m not really hungry.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, there’s nothing left,” he summarised. “I’m done.”
Celestia’s eyes desperately searched for something that, for all her effort, could not be found.
A way out.
She inhaled deeply. “Are you certain you wish to do this yourself? The doctors have methods – typically used in cases of euthanasia – but I’m told they would be quite effective…”
“So that I can pass away peacefully in bed, in my sleep?” The unicorn’s head shook, his mouth scrunched as if the idea had physically bitter taste. “It’s just not me. If it’s all the same in the end, I’d rather die on my hooves, with my eyes open.”
The alicorn nodded. “As you wish.” Another pause. Another round of searching. “And you know the spell?”
“I learned it forwards and backwards. It’s not even that hard; basic magic. I’m sure I can manage it.”
“It is painless,” Celestia assured, though she seemed to be speaking more to herself than him.
“You know, I’ve been thinking about that,” he said with sudden focus. “How does anypony know it’s painless? If it’s one hundred percent lethal, there isn’t anypony around to give a first-hoof report of the effects, is there?”
The alicorn’s head pulled back a fraction of an inch, her lips thinning uncomfortably. “I suppose that it is thought to be painless because it is nearly instantaneous. There simply isn’t time to feel pain.”
“Time is subjective, isn’t it, though? Heh. I should know better than anypony.” His gaze turned distant and strangely amused. “What if that tiny fraction of a second is so horrible that it actually feels like years of agony? Guess I’m about to find out.”
He finally took notice that Celestia had the appearance of sitting on a bed of needles surrounded by lava in the middle of a changeling hive.
“Sorry,” he said, his ears sinking apologetically, “I have a problem with knowing when to shut up.”
The mare swallowed hard. “You don’t have to do this.” Even barely above a whisper, her voice was still authoritative and clear. “Despite anything I may have said before, despite what’s at stake, and how important Twilight is to me and to all of Equestria, I can’t – I won’t – order you to lay down your life for her. Know that if you choose to walk away, nopony will stop you.”
This brought forth a smirk. “Getting cold hooves?”
She looked to him with a pained half-smile, her eyes crinkling at the sides. “Just trying to convince myself there is a difference between asking and demanding that you do this… even though I know there is none.”
The stallion snorted. “Ask, demand, order… it doesn’t matter. I knew what I had to do from the start. With all due respect, princess…” His body turned to face her head-on, their muzzles apart by inches, eyes determined. “…you couldn’t stop me if you wanted to.”
He moved away a few steps, planting his legs in wide stance and, with unwavering smugness, threw up a hoof in quick salute. “It’s been an honour to know you, Princess Celestia.”
She mirrored the motion, and added a respectful tilt. “Likewise. Good journey. And… thank you.”
Her gaze found the exit.
“I suppose I will leave you to it, then.”
“Actually…” he stopped her in mid-step, his voice and smile at once a shade softer. “I reconsidered that part. If it’s not too much trouble… I’d like it if you stayed. I don’t think I want to be completely alone.”
The alicorn took her place by his side, and once more he was within her plumage. “Of course.”
“Tell Twilight that I… nah, never mind. She’ll figure it out.”
The unicorn took a deep breath, and, standing no further delay, charged his horn. The aura at the tip grew brighter, progressing gradually from its natural rosish glow into a brilliant, almost viciously blinding white spark. He squinted against the light, but remained true to his word – he refused to shut his eyes.
In an instant, the build-up released, deadly energies surging back to their source. The pony’s every muscle tensed, then immediately went slack. His frame would have toppled over if not for Celestia’s wing still against it. As such, she was able to lower it gently to the ground.
“Doctors!”
Within seconds a duo of physicians, followed by a further three somewhat-awkward-looking nurses pushing a gurney, filed into the room. Immediately they set upon the downed body, placing it on the gurney, attaching various bits of medical equipment, diligently examining it from the core to the extremities, shining light into the eyes, measuring responses to various pokes and prods, and making other sundry tests. One pulled open the jaw and expertly thrust in a breathing tube, which was then connected to a machine pump. Short, informative assertions about heart rate, oxygen level, magic charge, and reflex responses flowed among the group. After several minutes, the pony in charge separated himself from the rest to dispassionately announce their conclusion.
“Time of death: Five twenty-five A. M.”
Celestia reclaimed the space she had given them to work. The announcing doctor turned to face her approach, looking suddenly nervous as he made his report.
“We– uh… We’ve confirmed brain death. The rest is, as near as we can tell, in perfect condition. That includes all vital organs.”
“The constituent field?”
“We measure it stable at point two two. It looks like our theory was correct, thank Celest– uh– thank heavens. We can keep the organs viable for a few days at least, but in Miss Sparkle’s case, we’d like to proceed sooner rather than later. I believe she’s being prepped for surgery as we speak.”
“Very well. Proceed.”
She followed the stretcher out. Her ears twitched at the sound of another pony approaching at full canter.
“Cadance,” she stated somberly. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“Don’t you dare speak to me like that,” the younger princess hissed. Then, to the medics, “I want to see him.”
“It is already over,” Celestia insisted.
“I want to see him.”
With the smaller alicorn looking ready to do grievous harm to any opposition, and the larger offering no further objection, the white sheet was pulled back. The former stallion’s eyes had been shut, and the slow, rhythmic expansions of his chest produced by the mechanical ventilator gave him the appearance of a pony asleep – ill, but certainly not dead.
Still, nopony could doubt the truth of the situation.
Cadance let out a tiny gasp. Her hooves reached out, brushing the blues of his mane and tracing his cheeks. A few tears dripped from her muzzle to wet the material of the gurney.
A unicorn stallion arrived at her side, adding to the already-crowded hallway. She shrugged off the comforting hoof he tried to place on her.
“This is sick,” she told Celestia through gritted teeth. “You’re sick for thinking it up.”
“Cady, please don’t,” Shining Armor pleaded.
“And you’re as bad as she is,” Cadance snapped back, “going along with it!”
The unicorn’s distressed gaze wavered between his wife and his own deceased double. “It’s... it’s what he wanted. It’s what I would’ve done in his place.”
“It’s much more than that,” Celestia explained. “When Shining Armor looked into the mirror pool, his thoughts were of Twilight, and his desire to save her at any cost. This… pony… is quite literally a reflection of Shining Armor’s love, dedication, and sacrifice for his sister. To die for her was his destiny, in the truest sense.”
“Is that supposed to make it right?!”
Celestia’s regal countenance was tempered steel against Cadance’s fury. “I doubt any of this will ever feel right. I do not claim that it is. But it was necessary.”
“I wonder if Twilight will agree with you. You never even gave her a choice, did you?”
“Cady...”
“Quiet!”
Shining’s Armor’s ears pinned back, and he retreated.
His wife wiped her soaked cheek, thunderbolts still in her eyes. “I love Twilight, too. But I know she wouldn’t want this.” She choked against her own tears, and waved off the doctors, who were all too relieved at the chance to escape with their prize. “When Twilight gets better, you better believe I’m going to help her rip you both to shreds!”
With that, she stomped off.
Shining Armor made to follow, but Celestia held him back.
“Give her time. She will come around, eventually. So will Twilight. We will simply have to be patient.”
Her words had no effect. With no warning, he swung, taking out a chunk of wall with his bare hoof. “Dammit! I should’ve just gone through with it myself! Why in blazes did I let you talk me out of it?!” A few pants escaped his muzzle. “I’m a coward,” he concluded.
“Shining Armor, you are no coward, and nopony can question your dedication. This was a matter of doing what was best for everypony involved. His death is a tragedy, but your death would have been much worse. You have an empire that needs you, a wife and a sister who love you deeply… and from what I hear, a child on the way.”
“So that makes my life more valuable than his,” he mocked.
“You know I cannot say that. But the consequences of his absence are… easier to deal with. I don’t deny that he was a good pony, but he had no past. No future beyond helping Twilight. No responsibilities and no family.”
“No!” Shining Armor countered. “You’re wrong! Maybe he only lived for a few days, and maybe he wasn’t born the same way the rest of us were… but he had a family.”
He turned and walked away, chancing only a single, agonised look back.
“He was my brother.”
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You are a cruel person, for posting this. Because now I have to read it.
....God.
Dammit.
Huh.
Well, I guess I have a really weird view of ethics, because once I understood that Celestia didn't just brainwash Shiny, I don't see the problem here.
Yeah same here, I would have done the same without looking back.
2518547
You know what, even I can't recommend this story. Feel free to pass.
2518560
2518594 2518784
So, no moral objections to creating a sentient being for the express purpose of killing them in order to harvest their organs? Okie-dokie lokie.
Woah... heavy stuff right there.
Still, I like it. Well done.
2518919
Not when you're copying yourself, and (if I read it right) both instances of you would have consented to being the donor themselves, no. Shiny was prepared to sacrifice himself before duplicating himself, and the fact that one instance of him can now live didn't change that, so (assuming they didn't play the old "no, take him!" game) there's no moral dilemma here. The only thing that makes this weird is that they both know who the original was, but the copy apparently didn't have a problem with that, so no problem.
I can say only a few thing now.
"Fuck"
"You"
"Excellent"
"Work"
~Skeeter The Lurker
What a twist!
great job good sire!
2519103 Why, thank you, ma'am.
2519149 Mirror pool duplicates are not exact copies. They lack all the memories of the original. Clone!Shiny was "born" knowing almost nothing except for the fact that he was supposed to save Twilight (and this was probably more a deep-seated instinct than a conscious thought). The entire situation had to be explained to him. So the "yourself" bit is questionable at best. The key is that they created a pony with his own mind and a personality similar, but not indentical, to Shining Armor's. It muddles things a bit.
For the record, though, I do think it was the correct decision under the circumstances.
Twilight, though, will be absolutely pissed at the idea that anypony died to save her.
2519237 2519322 Glad you liked it!
Wow! That was apologetically cruel. I would interested in reading an epilogue. Nice twist too. For the greater good, indeed.
This was despicably excellent.
I can see where everyone was coming from on both sides, but yeah, even though Twilight hasn't actually lost her brother, she'll be pretty pissed when she comes out of surgery knowing another sentient being copied from her brother died to save her life.
2519483
Maybe I'm actually a guy...
Seventh Wave - Devin Townsend
Here's hoping they can keep Twilight from banishing a vital organ back to the mirror pool.
2519483
I think she'll be too busy dealing with the guilt of the hundred or so Pinkie clones she casually murdered now that its definitively proven (in this story) that Mirror Pool copies ARE alive.
Every question of morality and righteousness went out the window in this story. The fact is, someone was going to die. Better it be a clone, than a Bearer of an Element.
That ending was COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED!
Excellent twist. Maybe it's just my cold, analytical heart, but there was nay a feel to be seen. Ensure the elements keep on ticking for a few more years, potentially saving Equestria and the world on countless more occasions? Logically, there isn't really even a choice. It's that cut and dry.
A true gut punch would have been to have the real Shining Armor die, and then reveal at the end that Dash/one of the other elements had died moments earlier doing something stupid, thus completely negating Shining's sacrifice.
This part makes that I don't see any problem with their decision. Since he was willing to sacrifice himself, but had a responsibility to his unborn foal, I totally agree with what he did, and I would probably do the same.
Also, whether clones have the same memories or not, they do have the same personalities and ideals (all pinkie copies were hyper, liked fun, and broke the laws of physics) so since they didn't force the copy to sacrifice himself, he was more or less giving his life to protect his nation, although in a strange way
Anyway, this story is great (it's so delicious and moist)
have a
~N
2518919
Well. At first, I was like
pinkie.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/img/mlfw4496-BVqwB.gif
Then, when we find out the twist, I was like
dashie.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/rsz/mlfw1165_huge.png
Now, after the ending, all I can say is
dashie.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/img/mlfw4342-1334925891719.jpg
2520436
That alt ending...oh my god. I don't think I could've taken that.
A simply marvellous and emotional read! I thoroughly enjoyed every word of it.
Hats off to you, good sir/madam.
2519601 Really, I don't know what I'd put in an epilogue. Twi waking up and raging? Celestia trying to cover up her plans? Cadance divorcing SA? (No, I wouldn't do that. Cady will get over it.)
2519781 You know what? I give up. I thought you said that you were female, but I just checked and you only complained about everyone assuming you were male, which I guess isn't the same thing.
I'll just combine "Sir" and "Ma'am" and call you "Sam".
2520094 I only hinted at it in the story, but there's another thing that made this plan morally questionable. There were a lot of assumptions being made, and there was a possibility that clone!Shiny would just dissolve into magic mist or something when he died, making the entire exercise futile.
2520311 Twilight "sent them back". Is that different from "killed"? I dunno. Might be something for Twi to think about.
Clone!Shiny is definitely dead as a doornail, though.
2520374 2520436 We seem to have a lot of consequentalists commenting. I was hoping to hear from at least one deontologist.
2520627 The Pinkie clones resembled real!Pinkie on a surface level, but they lacked her concern and empathy, being rather selfish and obsessed with "fun".
I don't know how well it came across, but clone!Shiny was pretty much the exact opposite. He was all about self-sacrifice (for Twilight) and thought of his own needs (if any) as completely irrelevant.
My headcanon is that the mirror pool captures the mental state of the pony at the moment of duplication, so you get interesting effects depending on what's on the pony's mind when they clone themselves.
2520403 Whew. Good. I was dropping hints early on, and was worried I was being too obvious.
2520766 I DON'T KNOW!
2520847 Glad you liked it!
Oh, and you can call me Sam.
2520952
Well yeah. But I thought those hints were typos...
2520959
2520952
If it helps, this story further convinces me that following you was a good idea.
2520961
Yeap. Those were some mighty strange typos now that I think about it...
2520952 I know you can't really argue on head-canon, but in mine they lacked empathy and concern because of their lack of memories. It's not that the pinkie-clones didn't care about pinkie's friends but by not remembering them, they didn't understand their feelings, thus seeming non-empathic.
Also, forgot this in my last post but
fc05.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/104/e/e/i_see_what_you_did_there_by_deadwoodpete83-d4w6of0.jpg
~N
Absolutely positively love love loved this!
Why would twilight be upset over this? Didn't she do basically the same thing to like 50 pinkies?
2520952
Can i call you Bounty Soft?
2520966 Man, what do I have to do to convince people I really don't know what I'm doing with this "writing" business?
2521049 The mirror pool is never fully explained, so we'll probably never get a definite answer. I honestly expect even a memory-wiped Pinkie to be a bit more considerate than her clones were, and their single-minded obsession with "fun" was downright creepy. It told me they weren't quite the same as the original. It's all up to interpretation, though.
2521188 Thank you so much!
2521296 Well, "sending them back to where they came from" and "frying their brain and chopping up their body" aren't necessarily the same thing.
2521322 Sure thing, Sam.
i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/6264037632/h3CA1077F/
2521580
THIS
This story was so confusing. Two Shining Armors? Was the one talking to Twilight and Celestia the real Shining Armor?
2522760 Shining Armor, on Celestia's advice, cloned himself using the mirror pool (from "Too Many Pinkie Pies"). This story follows the last moments of the clone until he kills himself in order to save Twilight's life. The real Shining Armor only arrives at the very end of the story, after the clone has already died.
The clone is aware that he is not the real Shining Armor, but he loves Twilight as much as the original and is willing to die for her, so he is fine with this arrangement.
2522806 Then why is Cadence mad and why do they assume Twilight will be too? Why did Princess Celestia and Twilight spoke to him as if he was the original, not just a clone?
2522829
Twilight doesn't know about the whole cloning business. Why? Because she would openly refuse to have another pony - clone or not - die for her, and both Celestia and Shining Armor know this. Thus, they keep her in the dark until after her surgery.
Celestia does not speak to him as if he were the real Shining Armor. She does speak to him as a pony she has grown to respect.
Cadance is mad because:
(1) Shining Armor and Celestia created a sentient being for the sole purpose of having him die. (The clone was willing, but this was the best possible outcome. The whole thing was a huge gamble in many ways.)
(2) This plan goes against what Twilight would want, and Cadance is the only one who respects that. (Celestia is thinking strategically of Equestria's well-being; Shining Armor is blinded by his love for Twilight.)
I... I was really hoping most of this would be clear.
2522872 Oh! I get it now. Sorry I didn`t understand, but I was totally lost when Shining Armor began talking to Cadence. I sort of guessed it when you mentioned the mirror pool, but because Twilight, Celestia and Cadence acted differently than I thought that they would with a clone I was confused.
...oh.
That pretty much sums up my reactions. I really don't know how to feel about this.
Like on one hand, it makes sense; but on the other, it's ethically murky, so I...
I really don't know.
Thought-provoking at least.
Well, my one criticism is that there are a few spots where it seems that you need either a Horizontal Line, or a better transition. That said...
Below is my review, there are spoilers. Read at your own risk!
I liked this. I honestly saluted clone Shining Armor, before I realized what was going on. Personally, I fail to see the ethical issue here. Assuming that Shining Armor was willing to go through with it, until Celestia brought up the alternative, and that the clone was in a similar mindset... Nope. Nothing. I tell you what though, the second it was revealed that was his clone, the tears ceased. I still salute the brave soul, but there are no more tears, now that I know both Cadence and Twi will still have Shining Armor around... After all, I would give my life in a heartbeat for my brother.
So, TL;DR; The Clone aspect killed the ethical conundrum, almost entirely for me.
Did you get the whole, 'clone that exist for the sole purpose of being an organ doner to powerful individuals that are dying', from the book "House of the Scorpion"? Because if you did,
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2524771 "Ethically murky" is exactly what I was going for. So, thank you.
I'm actually a just teeny-tiny bit disappointed at how many people have said "Nope, no ethical dilemma here."
2524862 Fun fact: this story almost came out divided into three chapters (called "Twilight Sparkle", "Celestia", and "Shining Armor" - I'll leave you to figure out where the chapter breaks were, though I think you already did). Yea or neigh on this idea?
Interesting reaction with the "tears ceased". It hits the major question: Was the clone's life really worth less than Shining Armor's own? And why? It worth determined by one's uniqueness (What about natural twins, then)? One's past? One's relationships? Were your tears for Shining Armor himself, or for the ponies around him who you thought would have to deal with his being gone?
2524945 Sorry to disappoint. I've never read that book. I'm sure the idea isn't all that original and has been done quite a few times, but my inspiration came from the godawful series "Star Trek: Enterprise", specifically the godawful episode "Similitude".
2525767
Possibly because the clone isn't thought of as "real".
this is no different than all the parents that have a kid for as perfect match as possible to save another of their children. usually its for marrow or something like that and not something a little more vital but
2524945
I thought of this book too, actually.
2524945
Sounds a lot like The Island
2525934
He was real enough that, in the matter of the few days that he lived, Celestia developed a healthy respect for him and Shining Armor started to think of him as a brother. I tried to present him as having a real personality, similar to but distinct from Shining's.
2526475
Um... what? Care to finish your sentence?
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Yep, the idea's been done before. I never claimed to be original.
2527617
Oh, nothing's original anymore. The point is to make it enjoyable, and it was. In a 'holy crap I really hope I never have to make this kind of choice' kind of way.
I am... angry. On the one hand, Twilight brings up very good points about how Shining is needed alive; however... Shining is certainly understandable in his want to save his sister, even at the expense of himself... but not his clone. Would it have been better for Shining to kill himself instead of creating a sentient clone? Or would it have been better to do nothing, letting Twi die, and everypony moves on? I don't know, but either way would have been better than this! The clone is the most morally unambiguous character (thanks to the magic of the Pool giving him a one-track mind--a horrible implication all by itself), yet all would have been much better off (ethically) if he was never created in the first place... I could barely keep reading when Celestia mentioned it was "necessary"--personally, I believe that anything that isn't right, by definition, cannot be necessary. Putting "life"--continued existence--even if it's not one's own, above moral integrity is shortsighted and selfish. Lastly, it's almost difficult to believe that Cele would do such a thing that's not only against Twilight's wishes, but, obviously, against her morals as well... From a certain point of view, it could be argued Cele never cared about Twilight as a pony at all, but only "cares" about her as a person would care for a handgun (which they only use for self-defense).
Ugh. I disagree with almost every character (and what seems to be a majority of commenters), yet I must leave a thumbs up because (unfortunately) the characters' actions are believable from certain (canon-supported) interpretations of their personalities...
Oh, and it's well-written, of course.