Blood and Ponies

by GreyGuardPony

The Ship

Luna re-appeared with a pop.

Almost immediately, her legs gave out from underneath her and she collapsed to the ground. Shame and anger coursed through her. How could she have been so stupid? She was so focused on chasing the vampire that she had been oblivious to the trap that had been set. Groaning, she extended her magic towards the thing burying itself into her neck. It took a supreme amount of effort with the energy she had left to pry it off, but the engorged leech-

A leech. An actual leech.

Delirious giggles escaped her lips as the bloated monstrosity flopped to the ground with a wet splat. While hunting for a metaphorical leech, she had been undone by an actual one.

“Damn that Chrysalis,” she grunted. “Overgrown...cockroach.”

She attempted to force herself back to her hooves, only to collapse to the ground again. She was in no condition to fight. But Twilight-

-
-
-

Luna gasped as consciousness snapped back to her. ...How long had she been out? ...It was still dark out at least. Groaning, she glanced over at the sole figure she had been able to drag out of the trap with her.

The vampire.

With the stake still buried in her chest, her expression was locked in a glassy stare forward. Why had she even grabbed the vampire? The question echoed in Luna’s mind, her brow furrowing as she tried to remember the answer. It had almost been instinctual, her attempt to grab as many as she could.
Again, she tried to stand. To push herself to chase after Chrysalis. She had managed to slip a tracking spell upon the changeling in the battle. But it was no use. Down she went again with pained groan. If Twilight and her friends were going to be rescued…

“Spirits preserve me, I can’t really be considering this, can I?”

Yet, those ponies did clearly care about this vampire. ...Did she care about them at all? One thing she did know, however, is that the minute she removed that stake, the vampire would be right back to her normal self.

“...Harmony, let me be right about this.”

Reaching out with her magic, she ripped the stake free.

- - - -

Sun sprang back to her hooves, ready to lash out at Chrysalis-

She was in an alley, not a penthouse. Princess Luna was laying at her hooves alongside a bloated leech...slug...thing and breathing heavily. And considering that there were no other ponies present, Sun could only come to one conclusion.

Shit had officially gone south. ...More south than it already had at least.

“What. Happened?”

“Chrysalis used you as bait. Ambushed us when we arrived. Captured almost everypony.”

“They have Twilight too...I went to get her help when you tried to murder me!”

Luna chuckled dryly. “Well then, now you have a chance to prove the depths of my foolishness. I am too weak to oppose the changeling queen now.” Her horn glittered for a moment and Sun felt a tingle settle over her. “That is the tracking spell I managed to place on Chrysalis. If you do truly care about other ponies...I regret that you will have to save them.”

“Wait...what? How! That bug kicked my ass the minute I set foot in that penthouse!”

But Luna was no longer conscious and was instead snoring away amidst the light scattering of litter.

“Hey! Hey! Wake up!” Sun shouted. Grabbing Luna by the sides of her head, she shook the alicorn with all her might. “You expect me to do this myself?”

But Princess Luna did not wake up, continuing to sleep away. Sun groaned, letting her thud back to the ground.

“How the fuck am I supposed to handle this? Chrysalis is totally above me…”

Her eyes fell upon the massive leech, gorged with blood. Luna’s blood. Alicorn blood. Groaning, she ran her hooves through her mane. This was insane! There was no possible way she could fight Chrysalis...right? ...She could walk away right now. Find some other pony to save her ass. ...She could abandon Deep Digger and the ponies she had brought in to help her to an emotional vampire. She could, in effect, be every skulking elder vampire, throwing away pawns on a chessboard for her own means. She could feel the vague tug of Luna’s spell, pulling her elsewhere in the city like a mental beacon.

There really was only one choice.

She picked up the slug and extended her fangs.

- - - -

Manehattan’s wide waterfront district was almost a sprawling maze of buildings, docks and industrial constructions. It was a hive of a different sort, one of industry and commerce rather than tunnels dug into the rock.

It made a quite a useful place to blend into for Chrysalis’ operations in the city.

It was in one of the various warehouses, squatting on the edge of the river, that Chrysalis had brought her prisoners. Neatly wrapped up in binding cocoons now, they would be smuggled by ship to her main hive the Badlands. Far away from the hooves of Celestia and making them that much harder to find. And once there...oh, the wonders she would show them!

After hours of waiting, the boat under her control had finally passed all of the legal checks to dock. Now it was time to get underway and out of this city.

“Get them loaded up, quickly! Luna won’t be down forever and I want to be far away from here by the time she comes to!”

Her brood dutifully carried out her commands, bearing the cocooned ponies on their backs as they scuttled up the gangplanks to the hulking cargo carrier. While not perhaps the size of the behemoths that used to ply the waters of the world that was, she could still hide her equine cargo among legitimate goods and walk the bearers and their friends right past Celestia’s nose.

While the ship got underway, Chrysalis stood on the edge of the deck, watching the lights of Manehattan glitter and twinkle against the night sky. Part of her was expecting Princess Luna to drop from the black velvet of the sky to challenge her once again. But as the ship began to pull away from the docks and steam back towards open ocean, no alicorns appeared to fight her. Smiling to herself, she turned and trotted into the depths of the ship.

- - - -

A little while later, they were back into the open ocean, steaming their way south. They’d basically follow the coast until they reached Neigh Orleans. From there they’d cut back inland on foot before turning south again and heading into the vast deserts of the Badlands. Twilight and her friends were properly stored in the cargo hold. The deck was being patrolled by drones, while Chrysalis herself watched from the bridge.

So far, everything was going according to plan.
Which meant that it was the perfect time for things to go wrong. Reaching out on her mental link, she brushed against her drones. Each one mentally responded in turn, sounding off with a quick acknowledgement. Until-

A shriek of panic echoed across the mental link, followed by silence. A few moments later, another rang out. Followed by a third. And a fourth. Then a fifth. All coming from the drones she had stationed in the cavernous cargo hold.

All drones, to me! We have an intruder on board!

Like the good little drones they were, they all fell in on her. The press of changelings behind her became a creeping carpet of black and glowing green eyes as they descended into the looming chamber, full of cargo containers.

The stacks of metal and wood loomed above them, forming a maze of corridors within the steel walls of the ship. Chrysalis paused, her drones following suit. Thirty at her disposal on the ship. They could move as one, but then locking the vampire down in one place would become tricky at best. But if they spread themselves too thin…

Small groups it was.

At a silent mental command they split up into pods of five and setout through the winding stacks, Chrysalis taking the lead of one. As they advanced the only sounds that reached their ears were the groaning of the metal hull, the occasional creak of wooden crates and their own hooves clicking against the floor. But then-

“Chrysssssssalissss…”

Chrysalis stopped. The vampire’s voice had seemed to come from all around them. “You shouldn’t have come here kindred,” Chrysalis called out. “I have the numbers and I have your bane.”

She punctuated that declaration with a jet of fire crackling off her horn. To her annoyance however, the kindred did not opt to run away. Instead she cackled back at her.

“You’ve over-extended yourself.”

Screams echoed through her mental link while the sound of wet crunches rose from one of the other rows.

“You know, as sweet as pony blood is, I’m starting to enjoy the tuti-fruity flavor of your changelings.”

“You shouldn’t be worrying about my drones, kindred. You should be worrying about me!” Chrysalis snarled.

With a buzz of her wings, she flitted to the top of one of the crate piles. From there, she could see most of the cargo hold-

Something slammed down on the crate next to her with a massive crunch of splintering wood. Chrysalis whipped about, green flames dancing along her horn. She found herself facing down a roiling cloud of shadow with two glowing red eyes burning from the depths of the cloud. Chrysalis unleashed a torrent upon said cloud but it was just as suddenly not there. In the next moment, something slammed into her from the side and she was catapulted across the length of the cargo hold. The impact of her body against the hell resulted in a mighty clang as she almost punched straight through the metal and onto the other side.

The blob of shadow returned, dropping down in front of Chrysalis. As she glared at the mass of darkness, it parted, revealing the form of the kindred within. She looked distinctly different from the last time Chrysalis saw her. For one, her eyes had taken on an unearthly reddish glow. Her wings were bigger now, effortlessly holding her aloft with barely a flap. But it was her expression that was probably the most different. Wide eyed and grinning, she looked like she was enjoying the prospect of a fight, rather than stewing in anger like before.

All at once, Chrysalis realized that she had made a tactical error in allowing Luna to escape with a creature that reacted strongly to the blood of magical creatures.

The kindred grinned, showing off every inch of her teeth and razor sharp fangs. “You know, I’ve been pushed around by all powerful beings a lot. More than any person should ever have to deal with in their life. Breaking you in half is going to be a thrill!”

Chrysalis chuckled back. “Oh, my little vampire. Better monsters than you have tried.”

Kicking forward, Chrysalis’ body began to swell and change.

- - - -

There was something different about this transformation from the others, Sun could tell that immediately. There was no burst of flame that came with this one. This was more like a insect discarding its shell, or an actor throwing aside a mask. Chrysalis doubled in size, then doubled again, quickly reaching the size of your average bus. The equine shape of her queen bugginess gave way to something much more scuttling and primal one.

A cockroach. Chrysalis was a giant cockroach.

While that truth was still sinking in, her mandibles parted and a crackling wave of fire spewed forth. Sun wheeled over, trying to avoid the fury of the flames that roared through the air, clawing and grasping for her body. Strangely, her vampire instincts were silent as she wove and dodged around the grasping tendrils of fire.

Then again, she was still charged from the blood she drank. It had been an almost indescribable feeling as the power had coursed through her. It had been so powerful that the taste (that of a very fine cheese for some reason) had almost been lost in the torrent of perfect...power. Hell, she was actually flying thanks to the boost!

Shooting high above the flames now, she dove back down towards Chrysalis’ wings. The mighty membranes buzzed and thrummed as she swooped in, the shadows gifted to her by Luna’s blood already reaching forth to pluck the things from her shell. But before the shadows could reach forth a cloud of buzzing wings and biting mandibles. Roaches were crawling all over her, biting and tearing into her with a fury and strength that they normally shouldn’t contain within their little bodies.

Snarling, she shifted the flow of her shadows the tendrils flicking out to try and dislodge the little bastards from her body. But distracted as she was, trying to remove the the magical cockroaches she missed the giant limb swiping at her from the side. Chrysalis’s strike was more of a driving punch of a hit, spiking Sun into the floor of the cargo hold. Sun responded by biting the offending limb with all her might. The crunch crumpled the limb, spraying ichor across Sun and the floor. Chrysalis responded to that by whipping Sun like a baseball. She smashed through multiple metal containers before coming to a stop.

For a moment all was quiet, but then one of the massive containers shifted. With her Potence supercharged by alicorn blood Sun effortlessly lifted the shipping container over her head.

“Catch!” she shouted, throwing it with all her might.

Thousands of pounds of metal soared across the cargo hold. It stopped an inch away from Chrysalis’ face, caught by the changeling queen’s shimmering green magic. That didn’t stop Sun though. She spun around and ripped a door off another container and threw it. Then another hunk of metal. And another. She added her Celerity to the mix, a blur of metal shards and chunks screaming across the way and slicing into the form of Chrysalis. Chrysalis roared back, throwing the first shipping container back at Sun before summoning even more spiritual cockroaches to tear at the vampire. Her drones heeded the call as well, swarming in on Sun with furious cries.

Despite her boost in power, Sun was still losing.

Snarling and lashing out, Sun spent more blood now calling upon her Presence and thrusting it towards the changeling horde. For a moment, they froze in their attack. In the next heartbeat, they pounced on each other, biting, tearing, punching and kicking. Screams of rage filled the air as normal changeling instincts were overridden by a wave of violent emotions. Sun whirled about and vanished into the stacks again, aiming to find a new angle of attack. If only she had some backup!

“Where’s that bravado you had just a little while ago?” Chrysalis shouted. There was a glee in her voice.

Sun could hear the sounds of cargo containers being smashed aside as Chrysalis charged after her. The containers spilled open as her massive form plowed through the stacks. Cans and boxes of food were scattered across the floor in a wave of waste. More blood was spent by Sun as she pushed a wave of shadow behind her, sweeping the horde of spilled cans under Chrysalis’ legs. Briefly, the massive cockroach slipped and stumbled.

With her mandibles buried in the slurry of burst food tins and bent metal, Sun had a brief moment to reassess.

There!

Across the way, she could make out five round green shapes among the ruined remains of the cargo hold. In those green shapes, she could make out five vaguely pony shaped figures. Back the other way she went, using her new found flight combined with Celerity to shoot over the head of Queen Chrysalis.

Landing atop one of the pods, she struck without hesitation.

- - - -

Twilight Sparkle awoke, her head swimming with confusion.

...Hadn’t she gone to bed just a little while ago?

Now she was dripping with green goo and she could hear something screeching nearby-

“WAKE UP!”

“Gah!” Twilight yelped.

She found herself staring up into a pair of burning red eyes. Angry, evil-

“Twilight! Snap out of it! I have an angry changeling queen on my hooves here!”

That was Shang’s voice!

“I will tear you apart, kindred!”

And that was Queen Chrysalis.

Twilight groaned, pulling herself out of the ruins of the pod she had been in. Shang was back to clashing with an absolutely massive cockroach. Wincing, she began to channel magic through her horn. Weaving a spell, she began to weave a glittering circle of magic in the air. It was painful work, as her head was still throbbing from her time in the cocoon. The spell she created was barely one. It was more raw mana, crudely hammered into an arcane loop of crude magic. With her creation forged, she whipped it outwards, wrapped it around Chrysalis’ legs and yanked it tight.

The Queen of the Changelings toppled forward, crashing to the floor in a splatter of half crushed food and other waste. Shang didn’t hesitate when Chrysalis fell. She pounced, slamming her hooves repeatedly against the changeling’s head. The impacts shook the whole of Chrysalis’ body, the metal underneath her groaning and warping from the strikes. Each punch was shaking the whole hull, from top to bottom.

Twilight realized what was about to happen, a minute before it did.

She reached out with her magic again, wrapping it around the cocoons that held her friends. Right as the floor of the ship gave way with a horrific shriek of metal she completed the teleportation spell and they vanished.

- - - -

When Twilight reappeared, she collapsed to the ground, her lungs burning and body aching. Sand was under her hooves, tickling their frogs as she just laid there for what felt like a very long time.

That was, unquestionably, the worst teleport she had ever pulled off. And one that she hoped to never do again.

Another groan escaped her lips as she lifted her head. She was near the edge of the water and out in the distance, she could just barely make out the silhouette of a ship, illuminated by its own lights, slipping below the waves.

It was gone.

While she was worried about Sun, her more immediate concern were her friends in the cocoons. A quick scan of the beach turned up a broken seashell. Using it, she sliced open each one of the pods, her body still aching the whole time. One by one her friends spilled out of the goopy interiors, coughing and hacking as they came too.

“What happened?” Rarity asked as she pushed a goopy mess of her mane out of her eyes.

“We were captured by the changelings. Sun managed to save us I think,” Twilight muttered. She was still slightly confused about it all. “There was a ship...it sunk.”

“What about Sun?” Deep Digger asked. “Is she okay?”

“I...don’t know. I tried to grab her too, but my head was swimming. I think she went down with the ship…”

Deep Digger gasped, but Ming Xiao placed a hoof on her back. “I wouldn’t worry,” Ming said. “Vampires don’t need to breathe. It would take much more than a sinking ship to kill her.”

“But she went down with Queen Chrysalis...I think,” Twilight groaned. “I mean, she wasn’t a giant cockroach the last time I saw her, but-”

“Many of us wear faces different than we did in a bygone era,” Ming said. “That was an old mask of Chrysalis’.”

“What should we do now?” Fluttershy asked.

“I’m not sure there’s much we can do, besides wait,” Twilight said with a sigh. “That teleport...was really exhausting. I don’t think I could magic my way down to that ship if I wanted to.”

So they sat and waited, watching the ocean waves lap against the shore. The first warm rays of the dawn were just beginning to creep into the sky when a shape began to emerge from the water line.

Sun Shang came stomping out of the water, soaked to the bone and looking as disgruntled as a very wet cat.

“Bitch escaped,” she grumbled. “Couldn’t see a damn thing underwater and she slipped away in the darkness.” Her gaze roamed over the collection of ponies before her. “But hey, you’re all okay. I’ll call this one a win.”

Slumping to the ground, she eyed the lightning horizon. “Which is good. Because I think that I’m officially out of time.”

Twilight could only helplessly watch as the sun rose fully over the horizon. Smoke began to rise from Sun’s body, the vampire giving them an oddly serene smile.

“At least I went out doing some good for the world.”

And then the whole of her body was wreathed in flame. She was screaming as the fire roared over every inch of her form. The horrible stench of burning hair and sputtering fat filling the air. Rarity and Fluttershy were screaming, Ming Xiao was watching with a horribly pained expression and Deep Digger-

“Twilight! Do something!” she shouted.

Twilight bit her lip. She could try the transfer spell, but if Sun was still on fire when she did that… Grabbing a whole mass of seawater, she whipped it into a shimmering sphere and engulfed the Sun’s body in it. The water hissed, bubbled and sputtered furiously, sending hot droplets in every direction.

The fire did not go out.

Twilight grit her teeth and wove another spell now, plunging the temperature around the sphere of water. But the fire simply roared higher, shattering the forming sphere of ice with ease. The flame and light built and built, becoming almost blinding as Sun began to rise off the ground. She could feel a swell of magic building in the area, one that was near overpowering.

“Get down!”

The building magic exploded as everypony threw themselves to the sand.

- - - -

Whiteness. It was the only thing around Sun Shang. She turned in place to make sure, squinting against the omnipresent whiteness that saturated everything.

“...Is this what being dead is like?”

If it was supposed to be Heaven...it was really unimpressive. If it was Hell, she would have expected more fire.

“Shit! Am I in Limbo?”

Hmmm. So there was one left…

The voice echoed straight to the depths of Sun’s soul. She whirled about again, finding no source for the legion of tones that had come together to form such a single, powerful, force.

“Hello?” she called out. “Who’s there?”

The voice opted not to answer the question, instead continuing to mutter to himself...itself? Theirself.

Many deaths. But a willingness to sacrifice herself for others as well. Hmmmm.

“Come on! Don’t talk about me like I’m not here!”

She made the effort, at least. Let this be the end of the accursed line.

Suddenly, Sun felt like she had been placed under a massive microscope. The full attention of the mysterious voice was focused on her and her alone.

Shang Xiang Sun. Through the power and mercy of the heavens, I give you pardon and peace. I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Those final words slammed into Sun like a battering ram, the white void falling away from her. As it fully vanished from sight, the legion of voices offered one final set of words.

May you live well, daughter of Eve.

- - - -

Sun awoke to someone prodding her in the side.

“Mmmph! Leave me alone. I’m tired.”

It was true. She felt tired in a way she hadn’t felt in...well, a long time. Admittedly, she hadn’t expected final death to feel so warm.

...Wait, if she was dead, why was she being poked?

“Come on Sun! Wake up!”

That was Deep Digger.

Slowly Sun opened her eyes only to immediately jam them shut again. Bright. Everything was way too bright! Opening her eyes again, she shielded them with a hand as she sat up.

Wait...a hand?

Now the brightness was forgotten as she looked herself over. She was human again! Completely naked, but human all the same. Whatever had happened, had undone Digger’s spell. Her heart was beating a mile a minute as she looked around-

Her heart was beating.

She could feel it beating in her chest. She could feel her chest rising and falling without needing to force air through dead lungs. Shakily, she reached a hand up to the side of her neck and pressed two of her fingers against her main artery. Her blood continued to pump and her skin was...warm.

“Somebody...please tell me that I’m not dreaming?” she asked, her voice hitching.

Deep Digger was beaming as she placed a hoof on Sun’s back. “You’re not dreaming.”

Tears were streaming down her cheeks before she could even stop herself. The sobs of joy came immediately after, the whole of her body shaking. Deep Digger almost immediately wrapped her in a tight embrace. Sun hugged back, letting the intense sense of relief flow along with her tears.

“But...how?” Twilight exclaimed. “You were on fire!”

Ming Xiao rubbed her chin. “There have always been legends among the kuei-jin of a kindred that came from the west, seeking absolution for his curse. He never found it. It seems that Sun managed to find what he did not.”

“An interesting proposal to be sure.”

Everypony turned towards the advancing form of Princess Luna. Deep Digger moved to position herself between Sun and Luna, but the alicorn princess raised a hoof.

“Peace, Professor Digger. There is no need to enact a bloody solution now that the Curse of Caine has been vanquished.”

Sun glowered at her, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “I’m so glad. What happens next though?”

Luna’s eyes glowed. “Sleep.”

Eyes rolling into the back of her head, Sun collapsed to the sand.

- - - -

When she awoke again, Sun was thoroughly tired of being randomly knocked out by powers that be. Sighing, she sat up to examine her surroundings.

Having been in prison before, she recognized her current accommodations instantly. The small cot, the bars on the window, the bars that were the door. Still, the walls were painted bright colors, the bedding felt soft and the pillows were fluffy. She was dressed in a simple orange prison outfit that seemed like it had been adjusted slightly to fit her frame better. Which she supposed made sense, considering the general lack of humans in Equestria.

“Ahh, You’re awake.”

A guard had paused outside her cell. He was giving her an odd look. Like he didn’t quite believe she existed but was holding back on commenting because of professionalism.

“So...what am I in for?”

“Twelve counts of murder according to Princess Luna.”

...Oh yeah, all those guards I killed.

“Anyway, your arraignment is tomorrow morning. You’ve managed to already hit the evening editions.”

“Don’t suppose I’m entitled to an attorney in Equestria?”

“...You are actually. How’d you know?”

“Call it a hunch.”

“Well, she’ll meet you before court tomorrow. For now, I’d suggest you get some rest.”

He moved on, leaving Sun along with her thoughts. Sighing, Sun flopped backwards onto the cot. Jail was a less than ideal place to be, that was for sure. Yet, despite that undeniable fact, she still felt light on her feet. She was free! Free of the curse! Free of needing to hunt for blood. Just...free. Even if she was behind bars.

Of course the question was what to do now. Fight the charges? Confess? Try and strike a deal? There was no question that she had wracked up a tally of dead bodies since her awakening. Maybe the best option would be to try to get out on good behavior?

Still, as she learned back and considered her options, she did so with a smile on her face.

- - - -

The next morning Sun was lead to large room full of tables and chairs. Prisoners were chatting away with friends and family at about half of the tables. Not as full as she would have expected for a major city, but not a complete collection of sunshine and rainbows either.

At one of the tables, a collection of familiar faces were waiting for her. Deep Digger, Fluttershy and Twilight Sparkle had been joined by a new mare. She had a cream colored coat and a short brown mane and tail. Judging by the stern looking square glasses balanced on the end of her snout, the crisp gray jacket and matching dark blue tie and the briefcase on the table, she was most likely a lawyer. Sun saw no horns or wings, so she must have been an earth pony.

Sun took a seat opposite them, giving a warm smile as the new mare extended a hoof.

“Pleased to meetcha,” she said, with what sounded like a distinct Brooklyn accent. Which was a nice trick, considering a lack of Brooklyn in Equestria. “Buttercup Spring’s the name. I’ll be your public defendant for this case.”

Sun shook her lawyer’s hoof. “Nice to meet you Buttercup. Give it to me straight. What are we looking at here?”

“We can discuss the details a little later, when there aren’t ponies around that’ll violate privilege. ...No offense your highness, but I’ll be damned if I’ll put my client in a position where you could be subpoenaed to testify against her.”

Twilight sighed but nodded. “None taken. You have to do what’s best for her.”

Buttercup nodded. “So, the long and the short of it is that Princess Luna is throwing the book at you and she has the punch to back it up, since she got a chance to look inside your head while you were sleeping.”

Sun blinked at that. “What?”

Deep Digger crossed her forelegs, her lips twisting into a derisive sneer. “Dream walking, I’m afraid. I never thought that Luna would stoop so low as to use that as part of a prosecution!”

“...And she can do that?”

Buttercup nodded. “Magical evidence is legal. Luna’s dreamwalking magic is a known thing. She’s essentially testifying as a witness to the events.”

Sun sighed, running her hands through her hair. “Can’t we discuss a deal of some kind?”

Buttercup frowned and looked at the ponies around here. “Can you girls give me the table for a bit?”

“Okay,” Fluttershy said with a slight nod.

The fell back out of the room for now, leaving Sun and Buttercup alone. Buttercup steepled her hooves and looked Sun right in the eye with a stern look.

“So...fourteen counts of murder. Twelve guards, one shopkeeper and a griffin thug. Did you do it?”

Sun nodded. “Yup. But in the case of the shopkeep, it was self defense. With the guards...well I knew that Chrysalis had Twilight Sparkle and they were protecting Chrysalis…” She sighed and shook her head. “Look, I’m not sorry about what I did. People needed protecting. I’m fine with doing the time. Some of those poor bastard guards probably had no clue who they were working for. I’d just like the opportunity to get out if I keep my nose clean.”

Buttercup was quiet for a little while as she drifted off into thought.

“Considering that you were under the effects of a magical affliction at the time, I might be able to cut you a deal based on the idea of not being completely in control of your actions at the time. ...But understand, if you go this route, you will be spending a decent amount of time in prison. Are you sure that you’re okay with that?”

“I did a lot of horrible things as a vampire, Buttercup. I think it's time I paid back to society, at least a little bit.”

“...Alright. I’ll make the arrangements. If you’re sure?”

“I am.”

Buttercup nodded and shook Sun’s hand again. With the decision made, she trotted out of the common area to do her lawyer thing. Sun watched her go with a smile. This was the right call and ultimately, her decision.

Whatever happened in her life from here on out, it would be under her control.

Author's Note:

And the last chapter goes up!

An epilogue is coming as well as my general final thoughts on this fic. Though that will probably go up on a secondary blog post.

Comments

[Paulon]

Sun grew up, and is prepared to face the consequences of her choices. Luna still doesn't seem to have learned anything, not from the Garou's imitation of her flaws, not from the Apocalypse, and not from Nightmare Moon. Nor does she seem to be facing any consequences for her own latest mistakes.

[TheStratovarian]

Figures on luna, no wonder you and celesta keep playing the worf card. And why a particular survivor keeps getting away. Shame you couldn't have given a line towards "The elders would be proud of you luna. It was a very kindred thing you did here."

Still, kudos to ya sun. You chose, and now can live with the freedom of such. Though the LDoE is a noddhist thing, and more to imply the end.

8702891
You can't teach an old dog new tricks. And yes, im inferring what I am there.