Chapter 12 The Final Moves
In the Twilight of Harmony’s End
Chapter 12
The Final Moves
****
The ground beneath Void's hooves was smooth, stomped flat by the great red dragon that was chased away by the Elements of Harmony a few years back. Void slowly walked to the precipice, gazing out over the surrounding wilderness. She could see the Peak of Smokey Mountain, all across White Tail Woods, to the Unicorn Ranges, and even as far as Ponyville and Canterlot, especially on a clear night like tonight.
A slight noise caused a shift of Void’s ear, the unintended sound informing her that she was getting some company. Two black-coated Dreads emerged from the cave, looking around themselves in bewilderment.
As their gazes fell upon Void, both gasped. Her wings snapped open and waved them forward. Carefully, Twilight and Rainbow Dash trotted out to stand on either side of Void, who only continued to gaze out over the peacefully sleeping Equestria.
After a few more agonizingly quiet moments of gazing out across the impressive expanse, Twilight finally took courage and spoke up.
“Void, why… Why do-”
“Sit.” Immediately, Twilight and Rainbow's rear ends met the cold ground.
“What the?” Rainbow Dash asked as she looked incredulously at her own flank.
“Just a demonstration. You are not as free as you may think, my young Dreads,” Void said firmly, then gave a sigh. “Nevertheless, throughout the ages, I have come to learn that the best mind control… is the mind control a pony inflicts on themselves. At the moment, you have two compulsions that are foreign to you. The first is that you cannot continue ignoring something simply because you don't like the way it fits in your view of the world. Second is that you cannot refuse any order that I give. Apart from that, you are all still yourselves at the core.”
“Oh… I see,” Twilight said as she nodded in understanding. “I was actually surprised at the feelings I could feel towards you when I woke up. I thought you would just have… wiped my mind clean.”
“Now that would have truly been a waste.” Void sat and chuckled merrily. “No, you are a group of astounding individuals. Once you come to see what I'm trying to do, the wrongs I’m trying to right, I'm quite certain you will all start following my orders without any need for control whatsoever…” There was a small pause as she gazed towards the rainbow-maned mare sitting on her other side. “Wouldn't you agree, Rainbow? You have, after all, seen quite a lot of my life at the orphanage several times by now.”
Rainbow's shoulders and head fell, as she stared down into the ground, not daring to look towards Void.
“Are… Are you really her? Is Scootaloo… alive?” Rainbow managed to ask in a stuttering voice. A flash emitted from Void’s eyes, and, in the next instance, Rainbow’s own went wide as saucers.
“Yes… I am in here, Sister…” At Void’s last word, Rainbow flinched as if she had been physically struck.
“Don't… Don't call me that… I don't deserve it.” Rainbow Dash looked back up at Void with tears running down her cheeks. “I'm so sorry! I had no idea! I'm so… so sorry!” Rainbow was shivering now. “How… How could you live through that Scootaloo? I… I wanted to kill myself just a few days in. Why... Why didn't you?”
Void spread her left wing over a very surprised Rainbow’s back.
“I had three things keeping me alive through all my suffering: Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and... you. It wasn't until I lost you three that I broke,” Void explained. “It was then that Nightmare found me… sensed me is more correct.” There was a small tilt to Void’s head. “How could I not–the despair and sorrow she emanated was drawing me to her like a magnet. Seeing it from both sides as I do now, it was almost as if it was meant for the two of us to become one. Two damaged souls drawn together to heal one another. The more time goes by, the more closely we will merge. Creating something new, something… better.”
There was another drawn out silence after Void’s monolog. Rainbow continued crying as she was held close to Void’s side.
“May I ask a few questions, Master?” a very thoughtful-looking Twilight suddenly asked.
“I wouldn't expect anything less than a few hundred questions from you, Twilight, so yes, ask your questions. But do try to keep them somewhat relevant to the present,” Void answered as she looked down at the dark blue maned Dread standing to her right side. Twilight still had her characteristic pink and purple stripes running through it, as before her Dread transformation, but her mane was now far longer as it swept down her side, stopping only inches above the ground.
“Right…” the thoughtful Dread Alicorn muttered as she looked over towards Rainbow. “First off then, I have run a few calculations in my head, and, according to them, Rainbow should be under the illusion she's you… or Scootaloo. And that was the best case scenario. From the amount of time she spent living through Scootaloo’s memories… Rainbow should quite frankly be a vegetable right now.”
“That would have been true, if I hadn’t made it so that she saw my memories from the outside nine times out of ten, remembering exactly who and what she was. Only the tenth time did she go through my memories believing she was me.” At this point Void withdrew her protective wing from Rainbow, who once again looked like she had been kicked by the action. “It actually turned out to be an even more effective punishment than I had initially intended, since while she watched me suffer, she would also remember exactly what she was doing at the time. Like every time she flew off to take a nap she really didn't need, while sending me back to take a beating and so on. I do remember one particular thrilling moment where I actually begged to come with you to a picnic with the rest of the girls… Do you remember Rainbow? It was just before the wedding of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Shining Armor.”
Rainbow clenched her jaw and nodded.
“You hadn't eaten for two days, so you had been… bugging me for food the whole afternoon since I got off work.” Rainbow turned her head away from both Twilight and Void. “I was getting annoyed, thinking you were only out to score some free snacks or something… and then I saw her.” A shiver of pure revulsion went through Rainbow, making it perfectly clear she was talking about Miss Bad Winnie. “And… and I called that bitch over! Told her how you have been bugging me for food all day! Sent you off with her, while I went and had a yummy picnic with my friends! While I was stuffing my face, you were being beaten and tossed back into the shed again for thinking you deserve any food at all!”
Rainbow had curled up into a ball on the ground again covering her head with her for hooves.
“I'm sorry, Scoots! I'm so, so sorry!” The sniffling mare bawled.
“I know…” Void said softly and absentmindedly patted Rainbow on the head, “And I may forgive you… someday.”
“You may?” Rainbow asked with both hope and apprehension in her voice.
“Yes, once you've proven your loyalty to me. You will have earned your forgiveness.” Void stated while lifting Rainbow's chin up to meet her eyes.
“I will! I swear to you I will!” Rainbow's desperate promise echoed out from the cliff side.
“Good…” Was Void’s only response.
“Why didn't you ever tell any pony?” Twilight suddenly asked still caught in her own musings.
“Twilight! Get off it! We bucked up, so Scoots doesn't have to tell us anything!” Rainbow shot back at her friend, taking a quite threatening stance.
“And why don't you react when she's called you Scootaloo?” Twilight continued not really noticing the shift in her friend's attitude.
“Be still Rainbow, she's caught in her own little world again,” Void said soothingly, placing an outstretched wing between Rainbow and Twilight.
“Eggheads, go figure…” Rainbow spat and walked away grumpily while Void focused back on Twilight.
“And most importantly, why didn't Luna find you in your nightmares? You must have had hundreds over the years! It just doesn't make sense!” A much frazzled Twilight exclaimed when she was not able to figure out the answer.
“To answer your second question first, Rainbow sees me as Scootaloo because I want her to. She will without a doubt be my most loyal and fierce protector.” Void narrowed her eyes at Twilight. “The rest of you girls saw a mere fraction of my life at the orphanage. Rainbow has lived through it, with me, several times over. How far do you think she will go to keep me safe from all threats in the future, having seen what I've been through so intimately?”
“She… she would die for you… without a second thought,” Twilight whispered.
“Exactly… as for your first question, I was a scared little filly. Who had already received proof that no pony believed anything she said. If no pony believed me when I said I hadn't stolen a fruit at the market, was it so strange that I thought no pony would trust me when I said Miss Bad Winnie was systematically beating and starving me?” Void asked and then glared down at Twilight. “You yourself proved rather efficiently how that would have most likely turned out.”
Twilight cringed down at the accusation, but at the same time, now she understood how a little filly could without too much trouble be convinced that even if she told some pony, nothing would really change. More likely, it would lead to far worse suffering for her instead.
“Finally, when it comes to Luna’s inaptitude to find me and many others...” A magical construct formed between Void and Twilight, it consisted of a circle with what looked like webbing inside the circle and feathers hanging down below. “This is a dream catcher; it's a technique from very olden times, yet surprisingly potent, dream magic. Its original purpose was to help Luna keep away nightmares. But with a few small tweaks, it will block all dream magic, essentially making the one who sleeps behind it invisible to even Luna. If I remember correctly, it was actually some enemies of old who perfected this technique, wishing to keep Luna out of their heads at night. Evidently it also works very well to keep her from noticing little fillies and colts, no matter how much they cry out for help in their sleep. Surprisingly, an easy step-by-step explanation of how to build one of these can be found in most libraries. Just look under ancient folklore and curses, you know, stuff most contemporary scholars call humbug.”
With her explanation done, Void unceremoniously crushed the supposed dream catcher between her front hooves with quite an excessive amount of force. Twilight just sat silently for a while, processing what Void told her, before finally looking up.
“So, what now?” Twilight asked while she gazed out towards Canterlot in the distance. “Will you attack Canterlot and take the throne?”
“I already have the throne, so there is no need to rush with that. The first step has already begun: wherever I or one of you six has been seen, abuse and neglect have somehow been uncovered shortly after. Furthermore the culprit has been dealt with or brought to justice in the case of ponies who knew about neglected and abused foals without reporting it. Most of Equestria thinks that the way you six look is merely a theatrical illusion, meant to scare the bad ponies we hunt. The general public is becoming aware of the fact that Equestria is not at all the paradise they thought it was–your shadow self on the throne is receiving more and more reports every day of possible neglect and abuse from around Equestria. You Dreads are already becoming something of underground heroes, moving through the night, protecting innocent foals wherever you go. A view we have been very effective in promoting, of course,” Void explained.
“Awesome! So we get to kick some foal abusing flank! Let me at them! I'll tear them apart!” A very enthusiastic Rainbow Dash shouted while shadowboxing against nothing.
“How do we know anyone is not innocent?” Twilight questioned.
“Easy,” Void said with a smile. “I send in a shadow in the form of a colt or filly as a new addition to the orphanage, talk to the other children, do a few mistakes that shouldn't require too much of a punishment. It usually doesn’t take more than a couple of days for the caretaker’s true colors to emerge. Once that happens, whichever of the seven of us is closest pays them a visit and ends their miserable lives!” Void’s manic smile now disappeared as she moved on from the execution part of the plan. “We then release all the children. They tell others from their community their stories: how they were being treated and just what was going unnoticed by ponies. Of course, we also make sure every pony knows how they were saved by us Dreads in the end.”
“I see…” Twilight said thoughtfully. “So when the time comes to reveal that you already control Equestria, you’ll already have a majority of the population thinking of you as a hero… This could truly work; if we proceed correctly, you can take control without any more innocent bloodshed.”
The look of relief that was painted on Twilight's features actually made Void smile more pleasantly again.
“I'm not here to destroy what's good about Equestria, only that which is bad,” Void stated reassuringly.
“I'm starting to see that…” Twilight said with a little smile. “To be completely honest with you, I was actually afraid the forests would be on fire and Canterlot itself scraped off the mountainside when we emerged from the cave.”
“And if our places had been reversed I would have thought the same Twilight,” Void admitted as she looked her fellow Alicorn in the eye. “But I took my anger out on you six instead of the rest of the world, and I did not only do it for my own pleasure. I wanted to show you all what true helplessness felt like before making you stronger and tougher for going through this baptism of fire. Only by knowing what it is to be a victim could any of you truly comprehend what we are fighting against.” Now Void’s gaze hardened. “Or can you stand here, in front of me, and claim that you would have understood if I merely told you what I and so many others have gone through?”
“No…” Twilight answered while Rainbow sat down beside her, both now looking towards the cave they had spent so many months in. “No pony who has not been in that situation can completely understand.”
“Then we are in agreement: Let the past be the past; we start anew today.” with that, Void’s horn glowed and the sun started to rise, coloring the sky in a wonderful purple twilight. “Come now, my young Dreads: we have much work to do.”
With that, Void launched herself off the cliff, followed closely by Rainbow who flew perfectly on Void’s nine as a true wonderbolt would, while Twilight followed at a safer distance.
****
Four months later
Princess Twilight Sparkle sat upon the throne, ready to begin today's court proceedings. The two huge golden doors at the end of the audience hall leading into the court of the sun opened wide, admitting noblepony and commoner alike to partake of today's proceedings. There were numerous murmurs running through the court. There had been quite a lot of sightings of the new heroes calling themselves the Dreads, to inspire fear in the heart of the wicked.
And if the rumors were to be believed, they seemed to be heading towards Canterlot, and Princess Twilight Sparkle had made it known that they would be more than welcome at the Palace to receive the recognition they deserved. As time had gone by, it had become apparent that two of these heroes were in fact Alicorns.
At first this had spread a bit of panic throughout Equestria. They might have been the ones to banish Princess Celestia and Luna. Or been behind the attack that left Princess Cadence and her husband Shining Armor sealed in Crystal at the top of the Crystal Tower.
These whispers had been quickly swept aside however. Especially when it became obvious the strange new ponies were actually saving foals all over Equestria. And by the sound of things, they had needed saving for quite a while–long before Princess Celestia and Luna had disappeared. Furthermore, Princess Twilight Sparkle had revealed one shortcoming after another from the former rulers.
“Welcome my little ponies! Welcome to today's sun court!” Princess Twilight Sparkle announced happily from her throne. “It brings me great happiness to finally present you Queen Void! And her noble Dreads!”
With that announcement, a gasp went through the crowds as a fanfare sounded. In through the open doors a magnificent black Alicorn walked. She was big enough to rival even the former Princess Celestia. Queen Void wore only purple regalia as she strode up to give a small curtsy to Princess Twilight Sparkle, who in turn bowed deeply to this unknown Queen, causing more than a few nobles to mutter disapprovingly at the response. Not even the Griffon or Minotaur King was granted such a respectful greeting. And now that one looked closely, did she not seem quite similar to Nightmare Moon?
“Now accompanying Queen Void’s Dreads are our very own Elements of Harmony!” Princess Twilight Sparkle announced to more than a few relieved nobles in the stands. The Princess had obviously been cautious enough to take precautions it seemed.
Leading the procession of… very similar-looking mares was the rumored second Alicorn, she was much smaller than Void… actually she looked quite similar to Princess Twilight… very similar indeed.
The procession walked in to stand in front of the throne where now both Princess Twilight and Queen Void stood together, looking out over the excited assembly. Looking down Void smiled widely and motioned for the second Alicorn to join them up in front of the throne.
“Please Twilight, come and take your rightful place at my side,” Queen Void said loudly followed by a very surprised murmur as the black Alicorn stepped forward.
This Alicorn was named Twilight as well? This might get confusing… wow… now that they're standing side by side they really do look alike don't they? In fact, doesn't all the Elements look astonishingly alike their Dread counterparts?
The increased murmurs at the realization of just how similar every pony in front of the throne seemed to be now really took off.
“It seems that you have all begun to see the truth!” Queen Void’s voice proclaimed merrily. “But I don't think you grasp the whole truth yet!”
“Please! Stay calm every pony!” Princess Twilight Sparkle announced soothingly when she saw the increased tension forming in the crowd. “The truth of the matter is, you have all been under the rule of Queen Void since the moment I claimed the throne after Celestia’s and Luna’s disappearance.” Now the Dread Twilight stepped forward and spoke with the same voice, “Void has been your Queen for almost a year now, and has she not made things better?”
At the sound of Dread Twilight's voice, the whole assembly went quiet. Then, a snooty voice rose in defiance.
“Preposterous! We have seen Princess Twilight Sparkle every day in court, ruling our kingdom!” A very high male voice that made both the Rarity’s cringe. “I for one will not stand for this!”
As Prince Blueblood tried to make his way through, up towards the throne he so blatantly coveted. Even going as far as to several times try to maneuver the young, and what he had hoped, impressionable, new Princess into accepting the only proper proposal for marriage there was… him.
However, to Blueblood’s surprise and outrage, he was quite resolutely blocked and pushed back. He was just about to call out for the guards when his eyes fell upon who was standing in his way.
“Sorry darling,” the prim and proper white unicorn from his nightmares proclaimed, before what could have been her twin stepped up beside her and continued in the exact same voice, “But if you don't step back my Prince, cake in your mane will be the least of your trouble.”
As Prince Blueblood snapped his head from one to the other in rapid succession, a horrible realization dawned on him.
“Oh by Celestia! There are two of them!” The Prince screeched before running for the door. His exit was followed by much laughter. Especially from the two Pinkie Pies that somehow seemed to appear at the door just as Blueblood was running through.
In a perfect synchronized movement, the two of them made a pirouette through the air before landing and sliding towards the none the wiser Prince, giving him a double flank bump that launched him through the air and out of the throne room.
“Mind the fountain!” The pink mare yelled after the Prince just before a loud splash was heard from outside of the doors. “Never mind!” The Dread Pinky then yelled to even more uproarious laughter as the two of them skipped and jumped back to their friends just below the throne.
“Very funny Pinky…” Princess Twilight Sparkle said through a facehoof while Dread Twilight continued, “He will be cranky for weeks now.”
“Come on! That was awesome!” Rainbow Dash proclaimed while her Dread counterpart hoof-bumped both of the returning pinkies.
“Ah've never been one for pranks Pinkie,” Orange Applejack stated before black Applejack continued, “But I gotta hand it to ya, that was funny.”
“This has all been very amusing, my little ponies,” Void said in a very mirthful voice. “But we still have serious things to attend to. Namely, my first proclamation as Queen of Equestria. First of all, return to the ether, shadow clones.”
No sooner had her proclamation been made did the Elements of Harmony and Princess Twilight Sparkle melt into shadow and disappear into their Dread counterparts. Twilight has suggested it be done this way, because seeing the shadow clones being sucked into Void might not be looked upon as favorably as if the shadows disappeared into their Dread counterparts.
Quite a few gasps were once again heard throughout the audience chamber as they melted away. Before any type of panic could ensue, Void continued her proclamation.
“I am Queen Void of Equestria! And you, my wonderful little ponies, will have plenty of time to get to know me, I will be holding today’s sun court, and tomorrow's, and all that will follow. Spread the word, if anypony has any questions, I will be more than happy to answer them. With time, we will build an even better Equestria: an Equestria where the weak are not trampled upon simply because they cannot make their voices heard. Where colts and fillies will always have the protection they deserve. I have only started the Reformation that has so far brought forth several evil ponies. Ponies that once were able to all hide in plain sight under Celestia’s negligent rule. But no longer! Celestia may have been satisfied so long as all looked peaceful from atop her ivory tower, but this will not be allowed to continue under my rule! Because now, even evil has something to Dread!”
At the end of Void’s speech, many ponies started stomping and hooting in approval, and it wasn't long before the whole throne room was thundering with happy hoof stomps as the new Queen ascended to the throne to sit down with her six Dreads spread out in front of her, all of them smiling happily out at the gathered crowd.
****
One month later
“Are you sure? Are you really, really sure?” a positively giddy Twilight Sparkle repeated for the millionth time that day.
“Of course I am; we are now viewed with overwhelming approval. Our hold on Equestria is firmly cemented. Besides, you have performed well above my expectations. Reuniting you with two of your loved ones is not without risk for us. But if it makes you happy, it will be well worth the risk, Twilight,” Void said with a little smirk as the two of them finally made their way up on top of the crystal tower at the heart of the crystal empire.
Twilight immediately ran forward until her hooves clacked against the black crystal which held within it Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Shining Armor.
“But are you sure they're okay?” Twilight once again asked anxiously.
“Yes. They should both be in magical stasis, so even your brother should be fine,” Void repeated, for she didn't know which time during the last hour alone; sighing she put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. “I only told you Shining was dead because I needed you to use black magic. I hoped that the despair and anger you felt at that time would have been enough to push you over the edge. But as we both know, you resisted.”
Nodding in understanding, Twilight once again pressed her muzzle up against the crystal, trying to catch a glimpse of Cadence and Shining inside the crystal structure.
“I was so close to doing just that; the things I felt when you said my brother was dead… it… I… I never want to feel that again,” Twilight whispered while a tear ran down her cheek.
“I am sorry for that Twilight,” Void said in all sincerity before giving the Alicorn Dread a playful smack to the back of her head. “But seriously, I was a flower filly at their wedding. And once I got to know the real Princess Cadence and Shining Armor, I adored them almost half as much as I loved Rainbow Dash at the time.”
“Yes, you really did get along pretty well with Cadence and my brother at the wedding.” She looked back apprehensively at Void “But still… why didn't you tell me Shining was still alive before now?”
“Come now Twilight…” Void answered with a sigh. “We both know that if you knew he was alive, you would have spent every waking moment trying to come up with a scenario where I would have to release him. Or can you honestly say that would not have been the case?”
“No…” Twilight said as her ears pressed down against her head. “I would have done anything within my power to have you release them…”
“And you are both smart and powerful Twilight.” Void continued with a chuckle, “You would have most certainly found some way to make it happen. For instance, have you found a way to circumvent my compulsions yet?”
The horror etched into Twilight’s face at that question told Void all she needed to know.
“Ye… yes… and no,” Twilight stammered as she looked up at Void pleadingly. “It's just theories… but with enough time and resources at my disposal I could most likely break your command over me… and my friends.”
Twilight was now sitting slumped against the crystal holding her brother and Cadence. Tears run down her cheeks as she thought she had blown her chance at having her brother back.
“Do not worry, my young Dread; I am not angry.” Carefully, Void put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder making her look up at, to her surprise, a smiling Alicorn. “We are both very long-lived creatures, and I never planned to keep you under my thrall forever. I’ll even make a wager with you Twilight Sparkle. If you can break my control over you within five years… I will bring back Luna.” At those words, Twilight’s jaw went slack. “Even though she wasn't technically conscious during those thousand years on the moon… It pains me to have her there once again, though it's necessary at the moment. After all, Luna doesn’t deserve to take the punishment for something that is in fact Celestia’s fault again.”
“Again?” Twilight wondered curiously.
“Just as Scootaloo at the time, Luna had very real reasons to seek my powers, and that is all I'm going to say on that subject… If you want to know more you have to ask Luna yourself,” Void said and stepped back, motioning with her wings for Twilight to follow her.
Obediently, Twilight did so. When they had gained enough space, Void’s horn lit up and powerful magical runes begin to encircle the black crystal in front of them. As Void finished her work, there was also a smaller rune circle in front of her.
“Now just as I told you before, the runes will take care of everything: all you will have to do is supply the power,” Void instructed while motioning for Twilight to take her place in the middle of the smaller circle.
“I understand,” Twilight answered snapping her eyes open, both of which were glowing from within with power.
Slowly, she rose into the air as more and more magic flowed through her. With the sound of thousands of mirrors breaking, the crystal structure shattered and melted away into shadow.
Twilight thumped down on the ground again, steam rising off her as she staggered up on her hooves. She looked over towards where the crystal had formerly stood just as the wind cleared away the smoke that was concealing Cadence and Shining Armor.
“Brother!” Twilight yelled as she saw him lying motionless on the floor.
She stumbled over as despair and panic rose within her. Scooping up her brother in her hooves, she put her head against his chest and listened.
…
“Please…”
…
“Shining please…”
…
Thump-thump!
Twilight eyes flew wide before she let out an almost hysterically happy laugh at the sound of Shining Armor's heartbeat.
“He's alive! He's alive!” Twilight yelled gleefully while she cried tears of pure happiness.
“Happy birthday Twilight…” Void said soothingly from where she stood at the unconscious Princess Cadence’s side, “It will take a little time for them to regain consciousness. Why don't you take them down to their bed chambers. I'm also sure that the others will be happy at the news that everything went well.”
“Thank you…” Twilight whispered from where she was still sitting and hugging her brother fiercely. “Thank you so much Void! You have no idea how much this means to me… I… I… Thank you…”
“That's all right. I have almost never had to use compulsion on you Twilight; you have earned my trust, so I will put them in your care. Make sure they don't do anything stupid when they wake up.”
“Of course… you have my word,” Twilight promised before teleporting away with Cadence and Shining Armor.
Void stayed where she was, wondering how long it would take.
“You can come out you know…” Void voiced.
“Ohhh… You're no fun!” A grumpy male sounded. “It's very hard to hide in the shadows when they whisper my secrets to you.”
Void turned around with a smile, and looked at Discord who stood leaning against one of the pillars with a rather perturbed appearance.
“So you're going to release Luna? I guess of the two of them Celestia is the one needing a time out the most,” The spirit chuckled.
“Come now, Discord; you know just as well as me that the banishment spell I put on them will only last one hundred years in a best case scenario: ten in a worst-case.” Void said while she walked up towards Discord who grunted in response.
“True, and with all the power being focused only on Celestia, you will make sure she will suffer the longer sentence,” Discord said as he popped into existence behind Void leaning on her flank making her give an annoyed snort.
“Quiet… Besides, Luna still doesn't carry much favor with the rest of the equines. Bringing her back will make me seem very lenient, without having to worry about Luna gathering support to try and overthrow me.” With that Void turned into a sparkling cloud and let Discord fall through her only to faceplant into the crystal floor beneath.
“You know,” Discord mumbled while his right claw grab the back of his head only to pull himself up from the ground. With a loud pop as his lips left the crystal smooth surface, he shut up into the air revealing a very flat face. “For half of your personality now common from a little filly… your plans seem very thoroughly thought out.”
“Oh…” Void stated as her body turned solid again. “You more than anyone should know just how powerful a filly’s imagination can be.”
“True!” Discord exclaimed with a wicked smile. “There is after all a reason why I love them so much; the chaos they can bring is truly breathtaking!”
“Speaking of little ones… How are things with you and Fluttershy?” Void wondered.
“At first I was a little apprehensive about what you'd done to her… Nevertheless, she's still her ever-loving and adorable self at the core,” Discord said as he got all do-eyed. “And she's so much more open with her feelings and thoughts now, it’s actually quite refreshing.”
“I'm happy,” Void said honestly and quite relieved.
“Well, talking about that little ball of adorableness,” Discord said as he put his hand up to his ear. “I think I hear her thinking about me. I did promise her dinner in Prans tonight.”
With that he snapped his fingers and was gone again. With a happy smile across her features Void started to make her way down into the crystal palace again.
****
Two months later
“That was hilarious!” Rainbow exclaimed as she flew in through the massive golden doors leading into the throne room, followed by the rest of the gang.
“I know!” Pinkie giggled as she somehow popped up next to Void on the throne. “I can't believe that guy was supposed to be some sort of all-powerful-superduper-meanie-pants!”
Void giggled at the pink mare’s antics before lifting her up and dumping her back with her friends again.
“I agree darlings,” Rarity said dramatically as she puffed up her long flowing mane. “But it was a good thing we came with dear old Discord; that Lord Tirek fellow was quite the smooth talker.”
“I reckon you're right Rari,” Applejack affirmed. “No offense, but he was spinning you around like, three sixty, Discord. If we hadn’t been there you would have ended up as his little sidekick for sure.”
“Come now AJ, we don't know that,” Twilight retorted and then looked thoughtfully back at Applejack. “And if you turn someone around three sixty, they only end up back where they started. It wouldn't have made any difference!”
Applejack’s response was to blow a raspberry at Twilight.
“Don't you start using your fancy mathematics!” Then Applejack also got a thoughtful expression on her face. “Besides he's already done it once… kind of… Don't you all remember that chaos seed thing he pulled earlier?”
“Hey I resent that!” Discord exclaimed as he and Fluttershy popped into existence behind Applejack. “I fixed that little problem… eventually.”
“Besides… the vines work really well now as extra security throughout the gardens of the palace.” Fluttershy pointed out happily as she hugged Discord from behind draping herself over his shoulder.
“Oh shucks…” Discord said with a blush. “Anything for you Flutters, you know that.”
“Ahem…” Void cleared her throat a little bit to get everyone's attention. “I think we were discussing Lord Tirek.”
“Oh! Of course my Queen, sorry, so-” then Pinky cut in two Twilight's explanation.
“So Discord is like standing there with meanie pants and Tirek says like.” Pinky grabbed her mane, forming it into two horns before saying in a very dark voice, “Help me to grow strong and be rewarded with something far greater than friendship.” Pinky’s mane sprang back into its poufy self as she continues, “This is when Fluttershy lands on Discord’s shoulder and gives him a big smooch so Discord just snaps his fingers sending Tirek back to Tartarus. And you should have just seen the look on Tirek’s face as it happened.” her whole being now looked like it was about to explode, “Priceless!” Pinky proclaimed as she threw her hooves up into the air before falling backwards giggling for all that she was worth.
“Yeah, we really should have had a camera! That expression was like, so awesome!” Rainbow agreed with a grin from where she hovered above the still-giggling Pinky Pie.
“Thank you, Pinky,” A very annoyed Twilight said. “That was truly a very informative explanation.”
“If you want to, you can write a report on the incident. Have it on my desk by tomorrow evening,” Void said smiling down at Twilight who immediately shown up at the prospect.
“Oh, that's an excellent idea!” Twilight said giddily as she clopped her hooves together in excitement. “I'll get started right away!”
Immediately there was a purple flash as Twilight teleported straight to her study, which left Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Discord standing before Void on the throne. The Queen smiled down at her most beloved subjects before she spoke.
“Now then, Rarity, you will be heading back to Manehattan to continue our work there. I've had three troubling reports for you to look into,” Void said as she nodded towards the fashionable Dread.
“At once, my Queen,” Rarity said with an elegant bow, before disappearing out through the doors.
“Applejack, there has been some reports of colts and fillies being made to work much too hard for it to be called ‘chores’ in Appleloosa and Dodge Junction. Look into it and make sure we don't need to intervene,” Void said sternly as she looked down at Applejack.
“Will do, my Queen,” Applejack responded and bowed in respect before making her way out of the throne room.
“Fluttershy…” Void then continued with a smile. “You and Discord can return to Ponyville if you want to. From what I heard you two deserve a little break to enjoy yourself after this latest adventure.”
“Oh, thank you very much, my Queen,” A smiling Fluttershy answered.
“Oh come on, that's too boring. What do you say Flutters! Don't you feel like joining Rarity in Manehattan for a bit? I've heard about this lovely café in the harbor,” Discord said and giggled, which immediately made Void narrow her eyes at the spirit of chaos.
“If you bring the Mare of Liberty to life again we will have serious words Discord,” Void said with no small amount of warning in her voice.
“You're no fun at all sometimes! I'll have you know the Mare of Liberty is quite a good conversationalist, once you get over her whole judgmental aspect to her personality…” Discord now actually frowned a bit as if he remembered something not entirely pleasant about that particular incident. “Actually, I think I will let her be this time around.”
“Good… Have a nice time you two, wherever you choose to take your little vacation,” Void said quite pleased as Discord snapped his fingers, disappearing together with Fluttershy.
This only left Rainbow Dash, who jumped up next to the throne, taking up her position as personal guard to Queen Void.
“So anything interesting you can tell me Rainbow?” Void wondered.
“Nah… The immediate threat of Tirek has been taken care of, and all our other plans are proceeding on schedule. Except for Spike–he is actually ahead of the curve in his training, and will become very useful before too long. Also, Cadence and Shining Armor are keeping things civil in the Crystal Empire, even though they don't really like us for understandable reasons. They have kept their word of keeping to themselves for now. Furthermore, the more they learn about us the less likely it is they will even think to start trouble to begin with.”
“Good… Very good… Keep me informed of Spike’s progress and make sure we have enough informants throughout the Crystal Empire to notice if anything changes,” Void said contently before looking over towards the Herald standing ready at the massive doors. “You can send in the next petitioner; a Queen’s work is, after all, never done.”
The End
****
Thanks to Mikemeiers - pre-reader/editor
Thanks to Evanescyan - pre-reader/editor
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My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
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I hope you have all enjoyed the story, and I want you all to give a big thanks to my little helpers:
Pen Perfect - pre-reader/editor
Mikemeiers - pre-reader/editor
Evanescyan - pre-reader/editor
Captain Syvvak, the Pirate Judge - pre-reader/editor/ninja… Because sometimes he is just gone
Feel free to comment and leave your thoughts, I am always interested in opinions and creative critique. How else am I supposed to get any better at this little hobby of mine?
Until the next time, have a nice one!
Dude, this story was simply amazing in my opinion.
Now I'm sad, because it's ending!
Unless there will be a sequel?
4607431 it was good. I guess..
Please say this will someday get a sequel? Also awesome job on doing Void. I was worried for a bit that she'd pull a NMM and plunge the world into eternal darkness or as Twilight said:
I'm glad that she had multiple aspects to her personality, and was rather civil in her actions. Great fic, and I can't wait to see what you do next with this, if you do something next with this. All in all, a great ending to this story. Also: WhooHooo! Tia and Lulu only have a century max in their prisons. Their return will be quite interesting.
*hoofstomps* sequel, sequel, sequel....Absolutely amazing story!
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A sequel is not out of the question, I left it open for a reason. However, that will be further down the road when my other stories are finished. But still yes, I have a few ideas of where this is heading from here.
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Yay! Awesome, thank you. Could you please PM me when you get around to making the fic? I'd love to follow it when it comes out. Or are you thinking of posting a link chapter?
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Link chapter will be forthcoming if a sequel is initiated. You have my word.
This is awesome. I truly mean it.
When I first started reading this, I couldn't possibly see a way that this could be solved, without all of them dying in some horrible manner.
And then you thrown the holy hand grenade that is the Dread Possession. A completely wonderful skill of persuasion I must say.
I seriously think this idea of Dreads should be used far more commonly throughout our fandom.
Anyways, I'm off to abuse Scootaloo in the hopes this might actually happen
eventually
Thanks for the great read, as always!
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Thanks, I'm happy you liked it, and dread is a nightmares natural companion. So I thought it would work were well in this story.
Have a nice one!
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Sorry I wasn't able to get on it. I was actually going to tell you to go ahead an post. Good job with the story.
The ending was kind of disappointing, to be honest. It just sort of... fizzled out. I feel it could have been done better.
Very well done. I was following this from the start and trying to see where it would go. Along the way I saw two most likely outcomes: that it would end dark with the mane 6 being killed off or made to suffer endless torture; or that it would go the redemption route where Scoot's sees that what's happening to everyone is wrong and not what she really wants, breaks free from the 'control' of what seemed be an evil entity, and the story would continue to end on happy or sad note, depending on the direction it went. But, I'm glad you managed to keep me guessing and curious as to what would happen. Though, I was partially right, it did kinda take the redemption route, just not how I thought it would. Very good job. Only one question was left unanswered for me, what ever happened with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle? They were Scootaloo's greatest supports to deal with her terrible life and her tipping point when taken away. Are they now playing with a shadow Scooaloo, or are they never to see their best friend, in any shape or form, again? If it's the latter, then even though Void is trying to making a better world, for two little fillies a good part of their happy world is gone forever.
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NP Syvvak, you have been helping a lot, and I'm very grateful for it. But still, I couldn't pass up that trolling when you make it so easy for me at the end of the last chapter!
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Well then, hit me with your thoughts. If you are allowed to have it your way, what would you have done differently? I'm always interested in how others view my work.
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A very good question Mekel! I'm actually surprised I haven't heard of until now, and to answer your question… There will actually be a bonus chapter further down the road which focuses on just this dilemma. I tried to work it into the last chapter. But it just wouldn't fit no matter how I twisted and turned.
Long story short, there will be an Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle chapter with their interactions towards Scootaloo/Void.
Just don't tell anybody else, it's our little secret.
4612683 deal
. I look forward to it.
4612644 Well, for starters, the Mane Six learned their lesson and in the end just end up the brainwashed minions of Void. It feels like a "Bad Guy wins" ending, and whilst Void did have some noble intentions, it's hard to say that her ends justified her means given how ridiculously cruel she was, even more so than Ms. Bad Winnie, really.
My point is, the Mane Six realized what they had done was wrong and genuinely wanted to make amends whereas Void just wanted to hurt and enslave those who had wronged her. Whilst she also wanted to make Equestria a better place, she was openly sadistic when it came to dealing with her prisoners. She was not, and is still not at the end, a good pony.
A great ending can be pretty hard to put together, but I think that If Twilight were to escape from Void and find access to a time travelling spell or something in the Canterlot Archives, she could go back in time and stop Scootaloo from ever becoming Void. She could kick down the doors to the orphanage, oust Bad Winnie, and whisk Scootaloo to safety or something like that.
I dunno. I just feel like not all that much was accomplished by the ending. The bad guy wins and the Mane Six are her slaves. Oh, and Equestria is maybe a better place.
Also, you never showed Celestia's or Luna's reactions, or Cadence's for that matter.
A very good story, and leave room for expansion if one feels it needs done.
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Thank you very much for your honest reply Coli Chibi.
So let's take a look, first of, the Mane Six learned their lesson but end up as nothing more than brainwashed minions…
Well true, but still not, you do remember they only have two compulsions they have to follow, I quote: “The first is that you cannot continue ignoring something simply because you don't like the way it fits in your view of the world. Second is that you cannot refuse any order that I give. Apart from that, you are all still yourselves at the core.”
So yes, they have to follow Void’s orders, but other than that they are still pretty much themselves. And then we also have that ‘bet’ Void made with Twilight. Void already knows Twilight will sooner or later break her control over the six friends. So why try to stop something you know is inevitable, instead she makes it seem that that's what she actually wants. Quote: “I’ll even make a wager with you Twilight Sparkle. If you can break my control over you within five years… I will bring back Luna.”
I don't think it will be too much of a surprise but Twilight succeeds, and that is actually where the second story will continue whenever I get around to it. That also explains why I haven't shown Celestia's or Luna's reactions, they are still not around to have a reaction to show.
So, then you say Void is actually more evil than Ms. Bad Winnie… really… I mean, I know there are different opinions out there. But still… really?
I mean, in Void/Scootaloo I wanted to show that evil is created and not born. At least most of the times, there are of course exceptions, aka psychopaths.
But what we are dealing with in Scootaloo is created evil. Which she handles by imprisoning and torturing the ones she'd viewed is being responsible for her circumstances. But she still knows that it is wrong, and even through everything, Scootaloo still couldn't bring herself to actually hurt Rainbow Dash in a really physical way. Opting instead to let her see what her own life had been like.
So yes, when it comes to the ones that in her mind hurt and betrayed her, Void is not a very good guy towards them initially, and as you implied right down sadistic. But to the rest of Equestria, she's seen and thought of as a hero. Void has ascended to the throne in a peaceful manner, which she definitely didn't have to do, she's known to be rescuing and helping the helpless, in particular foals. This you put up against Ms. Bad Winnie, and say Void is more evil…
First of all, Ms. Bad Winnie actually created Void. She is even more sadistic, in the fact that she tortures not grown-ups, but children. She really doesn't have any excuse for doing what she does, except being a unicorn supremes that blame everyone else for anything that goes wrong in her life, then taking out that frustration on Pegasus and Earth pony foals, in this case Scootaloo.
There is no doubt Void went a little overboard, but she was working her way through a whole life of pent up anger and rage which she got out of her system in a few months. Ms. Bad Winnie has been going for years, and she wasn't getting better, Ms. Bad Winnie was getting worse with time. Murdering Scootaloo was not far off in the future for her, and after that who knows how many more…
So no, I do not agree with your view of Void being more evil than Ms. Bad Winnie.
As for your thoughts of a time traveling ending… as long as I haven't started writing the next story there is no problem that being your own head canon of what happens.
As whit, that nothing really happened in the end… Well, Scootaloo in the beginning of the story only wanted to escape Ms. Bad Winnie and then the rest of the mane six. Void however ended up not just escaping, but making the entirety of Equestria a better place for all… How is that not accomplishing something?
So once again, thank you for your thoughts and input. And there is one thing you are correct about. Cadence and Shining Armor are back, and I should really have shown their reactions to everything. To tell you the truth I didn't really think about it, I was too preoccupied with trying to figure out how to bring Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle back into Void’s life. That is as I've already said an upcoming bonus chapter.
But you’re questions about Cadence and Shining Armor is quite valid… I might actually have to make two bonus chapters. Thank you for pointing out that I've missed something completely. Now that I look back on it, it’s quite obvious that there should be a Cadence and Shining bonus chapter as well.
I hope my answers were somewhat enlightening and how I thought of the story. Until the next time Coli Chibi, have a good one!
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4615551 I am well aware that the Mane Six are, at least in part, still themselves. I'm reminded of the character the Mule from sci-fi author Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy. The Mule was a mutant who had the ability to permanently influence the emotions of others, forming an intergalactic empire with his abilities. Whilst his minions were all still themselves, they were all completely loyal to the Mule and could never resist or betray him. In short, just because people are still themselves in a case where they are being brainwashed doesn't really change much. They still possess their personal likes and dislikes on certain subjects, but their morality has been severely warped to fit Void's purposes. They are permitted to have some of their old likes and dislikes so long as they do not interfere with their master's plans. In short, they are practically shells of their true self. Another good example is Kain from Final Fantasy IV. When he is controlled by the villains of the game, he is still essentially himself, harboring unrequited feelings for the female lead, Rosa, being a cool and confident man with a rivalry with his friend Cecil, but he is loyal not to his friends but to the wizard Golbez and his minions. He is still loyal, yes, but his loyalty is to those who are manipulating him. When he is freed from the control, he admits that while he was under mind-control, he still had some free will, such as his feelings for Rosa and his rivalry with his friend Cecil. Like with the Mane Six here, both cases display people who are under mind control but still have semblances of free will, but only free will that the one who is controlling them will allow.
Being a Catholic, I might come off a bit preachy when I say that morality is what truly makes a person. Views of right and wrong, good and evil, are very important for us as human beings to make decisions as we go through life. Like I mentioned above, the Mule's minions and Kain were controlled by evil and while they had personality traits that they had before they were certainly not themselves, as their senses of morality had been altered to suit their purposes. They ceased to be good people because of the control and became, for lack of a better word, evil pawns, which is exactly what happened to the Mane Six.
Well, it's hard to be worse than Ms. Bad Winnie, to be honest. She was a pretty one-dimensional character, I'm sorry to say.
To be honest, whilst I love villain origin stories, I generally dislike stories where the villain wins, even if it sometimes feels like the villain's actions are justified.
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Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy, I have not read, but I have now ordered a copy, so thank you for the recommendation. Final Fantasy IV and Kain I am more familiar with. And yes, this is exactly what is happening with Void’s control over the mane six. Nothing I can say about that really that I haven't said already in my last comment.
The only thing that I do disagree with is when you say they are pawns of evil because they are ‘controlled’ by Void. I actually don't see Void as purely evil by a long shot; she is definitely in the gray area. But with her background and what she's been through, I say she's doing pretty well.
Since I am from Sweden, Scandinavia, a very unreligious part of the world. I tend to see more or less all religion as light to heavy mind control. It was probably meant to be a very good thing, living by these virtues and rules a few thousand years ago. But unfortunately mankind has twisted it beyond recognition sometimes, making it acceptable for them to kill whoever they want in the name of often the same God…
Especially in the Bible there is some pretty messed up stuff, like Exodus 21:7 where the rules of how to sell your daughter as a slave is explained… so yeah, that's not creepy at all… and it’s definitely not the only creepy part in that book that is still left in their either.
That is also one of the reasons I have a little bit of problems with people waving any religious text that is a couple of thousand years old around. Saying they are what stand between good and evil, and that their morality is better than others… Burn that which! She has medical knowledge! Kill that infidel he painted our prophet! Etc etc…
There isn't even a rule in the Koran says you're not allowed to paint the prophet… but that's just beside the point.
The only religion I truly think lives by its own rules is Buddhism.
Anyway now I feel like I have become very preachy instead… I hope you didn't take any of this personal; this is just my point of view where I'm from. Sweden is after all a very liberal place, and I do have quite a few friends around the world that are religious and we get along swimmingly.
Once again, thank you very much for the book recommendation, and your thoughts and views on my story. I like hearing what people who have very different points of views think of what I do.
Have a nice one!
4622162 Even if someone isn't religious, morality is important, even if only from a humanitarian perspective. Even ignoring that I am religious, I do firmly believe in the existence of good and evil, and that there are actions that are justified and actions that are not. Scootaloo's actions are not, as of yet, justified.
John Barth once said, "Everyone is the hero of their own story." From Scootaloo's perspective she is the hero. However, Adolf Hitler was the hero of his own story, and even people who claim that good and evil are just matters of "perspective" aren't going to readily rise up to defend him. Well, not if they like living or freedom that is.
To be honest, religion... and my father will kill me if I say this... is comparable to magic in this case. Magic can be used to manipulate people and religion can as well. However, magic can be used for good, as can religion.
In short, good story, sh*t ending, wish it had ended different, au revoir.
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Very true, morality is important, but it is a very double-edged sword.
For example, you stand in front of a choice, push the red button and your family will go free. But at the price of 1000 people you don't know dying. Press the blue button, and the reverse is true.
I can tell you right now with 100% certainty; I would choose my family every time. Does that make me evil? Morally speaking I should push the blue button since more people will be saved.
You can also take the example of Hitler as you mentioned.
You are a firefighter, and as you rush into the burning building you find a young Hitler trapped in a way that you can easily get him out. Even knowing all that he's going to do, morally speaking it’s your duty to rescue him even though he will kill so many people later on in life. Does that make you evil if you save him, or if you leave him?
Morality… Got to love it…
4622650 Technically, you wouldn't necessarily be evil, but it would be an evil thing to do.
Morality is never an easy thing. That's why there's conflict in the world. The conflict in your story had, in my opinion, a distasteful ending that had very little morality in it. A better conflict would be Void struggling internally over whether or not she should use mind control to make the world a better place at the cost of taking away of all free will.
The moral of the story is the Decepticon Slogan: "Peace through Tyranny." I like the Decepticons as villains but I wouldn't want a story where Megatron wins, even though he had (in several continuities) just reasons to begin his war against the Autobots. Ganondorf from the Legend of Zelda had good intentions at one point but became corrupted and soon forgot about saving his people from the ugly desert they were forced to live in. Anakin Skywalker had good intentions, but he allowed himself to do evil for the sake of those intentions, ultimately resulting in the downfall of the Jedi Order, the end of galaxy-wide democracy, instillation of the Galactic Empire, and the deaths of millions of billions of people.
In short: "The Path to Hell is paved with Good Intentions." But that's not the moral of this story, at least so far. So far the moral of the story, as stated before, is "Peace through Tyranny," even if it's a very gentle tyranny when compared to many others. I know you're planning some bonus stuff, but if this is how the story ends, I'm just going to be dissapointed. But hey, if you're satisfied with the story, that's your business.
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Thank you were much for sharing your thoughts Coli Chibi. It's been an interesting conversation and you have definitely presented an alternative point of view from my own experience.
There will be two bonus chapters to come, and I do think some of your opinions will have influence on how I formulate them. Not the Sweetie and Apple Bloom chapter, but definitely the Cadence and Shining Armor one.
Thanks again, and that is that from me. Have a nice one!
4623134 You too.
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Came to this fic to see if there was a sequel, and saw the Chibi+Your convo. I can't wait to see the bonus chapters, and I have to say that I don't see Void as truly evil. Was she rediculously harsh in her manner of dealing with the Mane 6, yes. But she could've been much worse, and in the end she let them be 85% themselves.
Even knowing that Twilight is going to break her control, and even knowing that the celestial sisters are going to be free eventually, she has done things as peacefully as possible and is at least in my opinion the purpose of why Tyranny's were originally formed (rather than the darker connotations it has in the modern world). Is she pure? Not really, but she's not really evil. More of a burning sword of justice to those she sees as evil, and a shield of safety to those whom she sees as non-evil.
Can't wait to see the Bonus chapters, and definitely am looking forward to the sequel. Do you think you could PM me when the sequel comes out?
So far, this story is the best Nightmare Moon story that I have seen on this site!
The reason for this being, is because this time around, not only does Nightmare Moon win (and I love it when the so-called villain wins) but she's not actually a villain! She's more like Equestria's version of The Mega-City One Justice Department (which is the justice department that Judge Dredd works for.) Here is the song about Judge Dredd in order for you to understand that reference better:
(You know, it just occurred to me. Void's lieutenants in this story are known as Dreads and they travel the land acting as judge, jury, and executioner. Judge Dredd does the same exact thing, except on a much smaller scale. This random thought brought to you by the letter D)
Huh a bad ending it would have been better with pictures though lol