88 - Requiem for a Butterfly
Few of the Returners of the Dawn particularly wanted to be alone, save Long Road who moved to enter his own room. He was denied by a following Rarity. Spike had separated from the group and gone to perch at the top of the castle silently with a supportive but awkward Rainbow Dash to keep him company. This left Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Soft Mane together.
When they had settled down, Fluttershy sank into the softness of one of the Canterlot bed and buried her face in her fetlocks. Pinkie perked an ear and moved closer to the bed, following the faint noises until she found Fluttershy weeping almost silently. "Aw, c'mon Fluttershy, it isn't that bad!"
Fluttershy peeked out of her fortress of hooves at Pinkie Pie. "Yes it is," she said in a barely audible whisper.
Soft Mane tilted her head at the bed, "We'll bring Twilight back. It's a matter of when, not if. We won't let her down..." Her teeth clenched hard a moment before she sagged, "I already did that once."
Pinkie glanced between the two, "What do you mean, Soft?"
Soft sighed gently and rolled a hand, "I already told you my dad died, right?"
Pinkie started to nod, then shook her head, "Kinda? But OK." She slowed in her speech, unsure with how to proceed.
Soft leaned back against the wall she was along, "I was way too young to help him, and we didn't have enough money for it anyway, but... Twilight is friends with a queen, two queens! We can afford to help her, easy! We just need to get her to someone with the power."
Pinkie nodded, "Then we'll just have to do that!"
"It's my fault!" suddenly cried Fluttershy, burrowing down into the covers almost angrily before the sobbing resumed, "I could have saved her!"
Soft looked over at Flutter, "How do you figure that? Your backup is the only reason the rest of us even survived. You were amazing, Fluttershy."
Fluttershy threw up the blanket and slipped beneath it as it came down, "I felt her! I was so close to catching her I could feel her wings against my hooves! I wasn't fast enough, just a little bit more... Rainbow could have caught her. Rainbow would have caught her. I'm a useless pegasus that can barely fly when everything depends on it."
Pinkie frowned as she reared up on the bed, resting her forehooves on the edge, "Fluttershy, everypony did what they could. Everypony did their part. This isn't your fault."
Soft Mane crossed her arms, "What stopped you from getting to Twilight? I'm guessing you didn't smash into the ground since we found you on the roof being mauled."
Fluttershy's form quivered with terror at the mention of her experience with the demon, "That... horrible pony... She caught me with a rope before I could grab Twilight. She took me away from Twilight, and... she hurt me. She laughed and she hurt me. It still hurts any time I..." She trailed off as the sobbing resumed from beneath her soft tomb.
Pinkie Pie hauled herself up onto the bed and settled beside Fluttershy's distraught form. She wasn't sure what to say, so instead gently gathered her friend up, through the blanket, and held her.
For a single moment, there was nothing for Twilight. She passed through a tunnel so narrow only the fact that she had no true body allowed her to pass. Suddenly there was pain. Her life flashed across her vision in snatches and glimpses as she pressed against it, still determined to escape the goddess that had chased her. She could see the astral plane. She could see herself and Celestia, her mentor so full of pride and joy. She gained her wings and proved to everypony that she was truly the element of magic, nay, the princess, of magic, of friendship.
She saw the demon driving the blade into her barrel, twisting the magic steel and destroying her internal organs while mocking her gently. She could see herself falling, she could feel the impact of the ground, and she screamed.
Twilight burst through the tunnel, emerging into the throne room with a wail of torment that echoed powerfully through the castle. the guards that were nearby went wide eyed, some even making puddles as they ran away in stark terror. Twilight gritted her immaterial teeth as the pain grew worse. It was hard to think, but she fought against it, struggling as she hovered there, above...
She looked down and beheld the peaceful form of her dead body, almost smiling as it laid there in its intricate casket. With a shudder of revulsion, Twilight recoiled from the form to find herself several feet above the detestable sight.
"Oh Twilight..." came a new voice, a familiar voice. Twilight jerked her head around to find a familiar pink alicorn looking up at her with the saddest expression.
"Cadance..." The word came out as a low moaned whisper. Twilight surged forward, soon before her startled and frightened looking sister in law. "Cadance! Help me. It hurts..."
Cadance reached out, but her hoof fell through Twilight's immaterial form. The attempt seemed to only enrage Twilight, who growled in frustration, "Cadance! Help!" She swirled around Cadance with an increasing fury, "Do something!"
Cadance took a soft swallow and a breath before she spoke, "Sunshine, sunshine. Ladybugs awake!" Twilight stopped circling and paused before landing before Cadance. She repeated the words and followed along as Cadance sung the rest, "Clap your hooves and do a little shake." They ended it with their rumps pointed at one another and a gentle smile on Cadance's face. "It is you, Twilight. Please calm down. I'm here. I won't leave you."
Twilight felt a glimmer of joy, of hope, and bobbed her head quickly. "Thank you. Please make it stop hurting. It's hard to... think."
"You have broken things," came the voice of Celestia as she stepped into the room, wings spread wide. "Twilight Sparkle, this is... not the way."
Twilight recoiled back at the accusing tone and words, "I had to! There was this terrible pony, a god I think, and she wanted to take me away, from you, from Cadance, from everything!"
With a flash of magic from Celestia's horn, a mirror appeared. Twilight was mostly transparent from head to hooves, though her cutie mark stood out bold and solid looking. Twilight jerked back at the vision of herself, "What am I?"
Cadance put a hoof in front of Celestia's barrel, "Let's stay calm. Twilight, you did the unlikely, again." She smiled gently, "You were always my special little filly."
Twilight nodded, the praise seeming to soothe her a little, "I didn't want to leave you..."
Celestia set the mirror aside, "Twilight... I am overjoyed that you are here, but this is... not how I wanted it."
Twilight bobbed her head, "Give me a chance, Princess. We can do it, we can fix it! Just... can you make the pain stop?"
Celestia shook her head, "The pain you feel is what keeps you anchored to this world. It is the fury you built up to break free of the resting place and return... as you are. You're a ghost."
Cadance cuffed Celestia on the shoulder, "Auntie! Ghosts aren't real."
Twilight sank to her haunches, "No... that makes sense." She rose up and walked despite having no need to do so. She approached her dead body with a shiver, "Where did you put all of my things?"
Celestia gestured with her head, "Stored safely. You can't make use of them for now."
Twilight sighed, "That may be true... but my books! I need my spellbook, and the one Queen Iliana gave me." She stomped a hoof only for it to fall through the floor. The act baffled her a moment before she frowned, "Being a ghost is... strange."
Cadance approached Twilight's spirit form and leaned forward. Her horn shone with soft pink light as she bathed Twilight with love. Twilight began to relax immediately, sinking to lay on her belly beneath the magic, "It... stopped hurting. Please, keep it up." Cadance had little intention on stopping, but her energy soon ran out.
With a soft huff, Cadance frowned in thought, "Maybe you just need your friends? They all love you."
Celestia smiled gently, "Even in death, Twilight Sparkle, friendship will be your salvation."
A sudden coldness swept through the room. Reality was rent asunder as Soft Whisper stepped through, breathing with labored draws of breath.
Celestia frowned at the new presence, "Who are you?"
Soft Whisper drew her pick from her side, "I am Soft Whisper, native god. I mean no disrespect, but your dead has done a naughty thing." She locked eyes on the trembling Twilight, "I am here to bring her back and see she gets her proper rest."
Cadance quickly moved between Soft Whisper and Twilight with a scowl, "You can't hurt her anymore." Her wings spread wide as if an additional shield against the threat.
Celestia shook her head, "You are trembling, foreign god. I do not think you have the strength to do what you say."
Soft Whisper snorted loudly as she took a step forward, only to wobble and fall to a knee, "It is my duty. She is a good pony. She does not deserve this wretched existence."
Twilight peeked around Cadance and called out, "It was my choice. I will fix things. I will put it right."
Soft Whisper slowly gathered herself back up to a standing position as she nodded, "Your choice. It is at that." She thrust the pick back into its holder and raised a hoof to point at Twilight. A grey beam reached out from it, wrapping around Twilight's form instantly. "When you tire of this game, simply close your eyes and wish for the embrace of death, and it will be over instantly. I have time. It is all I have."
Twilight shuddered as the alien magic dug through her spectral form. The pain lessened noticeably as Soft Whisper explained what she had done. "It... doesn't hurt so much."
Soft Whisper nodded, "Your soul rejoices, because now... now it is truly your choice. Trouble not the living. Fulfill your destiny swiftly, and return to me, troublesome mare."
Cadance nodded her head and looked a little sheepish, "I... thank you. I'm sorry for snapping at you."
Soft Whisper shook her head, "My word rarely brings pleasure to the living." She turned away back to the slowly sealing rift in space and forced it wide enough to start walking back through it.
Celestia didn't stop her from leaving, but watched the space intently until the disturbance was entirely gone. She turned on Twilight with a sigh before her horn began to glow. She pulled Twilight's form over in her magic and embraced her in the golden light. "Troublesome mare, that about summarizes it, my talented little Twilight."
Twilight began to giggle, comforted in being held, and in the proud little note in Celestia's talking. "Everything's going to be OK. Actually, I think I need to make a stop by the archives. I'll try not to scare anypony on the way." She lifted up, then suddenly darted through a wall, gone.
Cadance moved up to nuzzle Celestia gently, "She'll make it work. She always does."
Celestia returned the affection, "I can't even start to describe how I feel. The thought of watching her fade away in that place.... It was too much."
Cadance knew what place Celestia meant, having been there once herself. "I thought... I was coming to pay my respects, and there she was, hovering over her dead body. She looked so lost and hurt."
Celestia gave a gentle smile, "And her favorite foalsitter knew exactly how to soothe her."
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How much rice would it take for Soft Mane to pull Lashie out and make with the miracle sauce?
well might seem like i am repeating my self but i really am enjoying this story. and am very glad you did not kill off twilight. ^_^
5641100 Twilight does not strike me as a pony to take death lying down.
Also, it seems "de Nile" isn't just a river in Egypt... but Equestria, too.
Ponyfinder gods to Celestia and Luna: Y U NO HAVE WORSHIPERS?
Huh. Well, it's nice to see that Soft Whisper can be somewhat reasonable. You know, when there's no other choice. Don't get me wrong, I can certainly understand her position; few death gods are big fans of undeath, and it rarely ends well. Still, this seems to be one of those times. Yay.
Of course, I can only imagine the rest of the party's reaction. Spike's probably going to see Twilight as an unliving symbol of his failure, and Long Road is going to be faced with a very distressing dilemma. Also, Pinkie may need to be careful when she laughs.
Fluttershy, meanwhile, has her own concerns, and I'm concerned for her. I really don't know how she's going to come out of this. I see a number of possibilities, from the heroic to the horrific.
Eagerly looking forward to more. Also, one typo spotted:
Missing "and."
5641067 Just keep piling it high. I'll tell you when to stop.
5641125 Soft Whisper is also weakened, being a goddess that has suffered terrible losses of her tribe, though not as complete as the entirely forgotten Lashtada. At her full strength, she wouldn't be knee-wobbling from a little plane shifting.
Typo fixed, and sheets updated for new and improved Twilight Sparkle with optional ghost attachment.
5641125
Forgotten Gods of Everglow makes it clear that Soft Whisper only tolerates undeath when the pony becoming undead chooses that existence. Interestingly, this ideology casts her as the foe of necromancers, but makes her more or less okay with liches.
Death is already cheap in this story; the iron golem killed a number of characters, and they were brought back.
5641142
So.. All of it?
This can be a major power boost for the party really, especially if Twilight is lucky on her ghost hoodoo. C'mon possession!
5641152 Which is another reason Soft Whisper backed off when Twilight said she chose undeath, as opposed to falling into it. There is still a lack of resurrecting power in Equestria. All that hoodoo's off in Everglow, where they're used to dealing with this sort of shenanigans.
am I the only one who feels sorry for Whisper?
5641171 Who weeps for the death gods? Very few. They work alone and unloved by many frightened mortals.
5641175
doesn't help that their usually portrayed as evil.
It's nice that you didn't do that.
5641169
Good thing the Equestrians have the means of getting back to Everglow, then, isn't it?
5641171
No, you're not. In my case, however, it's not for anything she does here, but for her backstory as relayed in Forgotten Gods of Everglow.
Soft Whisper is the mother that Binky never had?
Twilight used the classic Get out of Purgatory card, that cmes with a range of nasty side effects, the least of which iss not the papercut.
How many minutes before Pinkie comes up with Ghost Cupcakes?
5641175 I do not weap for them, yet I accept their pain as a grevius necessity for the continuation of the afterlife. I would worship them only to ease their burdens.
Also, all Twilight needs now is a necromancer and clerics expertise, that is if you could get the two into the same room without killing each other.
A cleric to heal the body, while the Necromancer anchors the soul, or convinces Twilight's spirit to merge with the body and evolve from the mortal plain into the goddess of magic incarnate.
5641182 In the forgotten realms the original death god wasn't evil, but the evil god of all bastards decided that he wanted to add 'death' to his portfolio along with 'murder' and killed him.
Or something like that. Being a god in the FR was not a safe vocation.
5641157 Maybe Zecora can bind her into a scary mask that lets her possess whoever wears it.
Excellent job with Fluttershy's sadness; while short, I feel you represented how she'd handle that situation perfectly. While I'm not clamoring for things to stay dark, I do hope that she doesn't simply get over it with a few hugs from her friends and reassurances that ghost-Twilight is halfway to being resurrected. As awful as it sounds, her pathos lends depth to her character.
On a related note, I hope that we'll get to see the interaction between Long Road and Rarity. It'd be nice if we found out just why Rarity's so taken with him, since I don't think that's been discussed (or for that matter, even confirmed that she does like him, though the hints that have been dropped are fairly heavy at this point) up until now. It seems slightly out-of-character for her, as she tends to go for looks and/or status, rather than moral fiber.
I'm slightly ambivalent regarding a Rarity/Long Road pairing. At this point, it seems attractive mostly for how it throws off the all-but-expected romance between Long and Twilight, but as mentioned above, I'm having a harder time seeing it from an in-character standpoint.
...though the idea of ghost-Twilight's jealousy causing her undead mentality to further deteriorate seems like a wonderfully-nasty surprise just waiting to happen!
Now who's mixing their genres?
Some interesting developments in this chapter. Soft Mane has some baggage to deal with, Fluttershy is believably traumatized, the grim reaper is a good sport and Twilight can read even while dead. *subliminal suggestion{get the Book of Lashtada}eerie noises*
5641100
Technically, he did kill off Twilight. He's just still using her anyway.
5642890 She got better...
5641150
I just noticed that in your character sheets, Pinkie is the only pony not at the default weight. It looks like she's packing around 7 pounds of cupcakes, if you know what I mean.
5642965 They all have default, but pinkie is a heavy earth pony, instead of a pegasus or what not.
5642951
You have an odd idea of better. Well, at least she can read now.
5642984
And she works at a bakery.
5643008 And Cadance has arrived!
5643021
Speaking of Cadence, congratulations on making her relevant. In that scene she came off looking more practical than Celestia, ladybugs notwithstanding.
5643126 Celestia was quite vital. If she wasn't there, Soft Whisper would have pursued Twilight much more firmly. A forgotten god doesn't really want to bash heads with a fully empowered one, on that god's home plane, in her throne room. That's not smart.
5643153 No doubt, but Celestia seemed to be considering sending Twilight back herself at first.
5643153 home plane? Só equestria isn't a prime after all, but a demiple domain of celestia/luna/discord? Hmm... So are ponies petitioners? XD
5644669 Neither Everglow nor Equestria are huge planes as far as planes go, but they largely operate as prime planes, mostly... Everglow is worse about it, with its constant elemental bleeding. Celestia and Luna and Discord are the closest Equestria has to gods.
So if this is indeed Pathfinder is she the ghost creature, or a wraith? Cause wraiths are badass! Just ask Talion and Celebrimbor from Shadow of Mordor...wait why doesn't Twi possess her corpse?
5726775 She became a ghost, as in a ghost. Being able to possess a dead body is a very specific ability, which she did not have. She did have ghostly telekinesis and a very scary scream.
5726779 she was close though to becoming something darker. The rage and fear is what turns a good spirit twisted and vengeful. Thankfully cadence was there to calm her.
has discord been reformed already ? I'd like to see him interact with a god, or the world of everglow in general.
Fuck it i wish to see a pissed off discord fight for real. Against something nasty. I don't know if you think the same, but he is probably powerful enough to take on a duke of hell (chaotic neutral/good don't mesh well with lawful evil) or other demigod.
To come back to the story, aren't ghost supposed to become evil, twisted by undeath ?
7922151 Twilight has issues, but she's still Twilight.
7922151
Hmm... Actually, in my head canon, Discord created a Tarrasque. A F***ING TARRASQUE. Tia & Luna could barely put it out for a few centuries, and having its life-force ripped from its body only "killed" it for 1000 years. He could probably take an Outer One and win.
Hmm, will she find a way to truly live again or will she attempt to become a higher class of undead? I can already kinda guess it’s the former. Shame, as Twilight would make a badass Lich, and it would solve her romance problems