Mortal Coil

by Reeve

Epilogue - Story's End

Rarity finished her tale, giving out a long sigh before continuing. It hadn’t been physically exhausting as such to recount the whole adventure, perhaps because she was unsure how much of her story had been conveyed through her own words, and how much had been represented through scattered visions, that made it feel as if she had really been living it all for a second time. Still she sighed, if only because of how real reliving it all had felt, before she continued speaking.

“And that’s that,” Rarity said at last, turning to look at the figure in the grey cloak, who looked as if they hadn’t moved the entire time. “After that I… I’m actually not sure how I got here; I’m not even sure where this is. Am I dead… again? As in, for real this time?”

“I certainly hope not,” the figure replied in a neutral tone, that implied they didn’t really care one way or another. “Because if you are dead, then perhaps I am too… that would be unfortunate.”

“So… where are we?” Rarity asked at last, unable to rack her thoughts and memories for a conclusive answer of her own. “Did the elements send me here? Is this… Tartarus? It doesn’t look like it.”

“No,” the figure stated. “Although you are not far off, this place is known as the Sea of Tranquillity, it is the plane of existence where dreams come from.”

“So how did I end up here?” Rarity asked, looking out over the grey waves. “And is there any way out?”

“I would imagine…” the figure began, a hoof reaching out from under their cloak. “That your friends sent you here accidentally, when they were trying to reign in the power of the Elements.”

Rarity glanced around at the sudden movement, her eyes widening in amazement when she saw what the other pony was holding out to her. It was the Masque, her Masque, her Element of Unity, the Element of Inspiration. She began reaching out for it, almost entranced by its smooth, silver face, its calm, serene features, the grand, deep purple gemstone in the forehead, shaped like her own cutie mark… the terrible gash running diagonally across the face, an awful black scar in the otherwise pristine face.

Rarity’s hoof retracted slightly as she saw the tear, the mark left by Blueblood and his last desperate attack, the very reason she had ended up disconnected from her friends and thrown into the firing line.

“My apologies for keeping this from you,” the figure said, as she reached it further out for Rarity to take. “But I wished to know what it was before I blindly returned it to you, it is after all, very different from the last Element I saw.”

Rarity nodded, reaching out and taking the Masque back, grimacing slightly at the ugly wound.

“As for a way out…” the figure said suddenly, tearing Rarity’s gaze away from the offending mark. “Well, now you hold the key in your hooves.”

“I… can use this to go home?” Rarity asked, almost daring to hope. “How?”

“The Elements are connected,” the figure explained. “Just as you and your friends are. If you think about them, if you remember your times together and your feelings for each other… then the Elements will remember too, and no matter how far apart you are, they’ll bring you back together when you need them to.”

Rarity nodded slowly, sure she understood. Shutting her eyes, she began thinking back, reviewing the story she had just told, picking out individual moments for closer inspection. She remembered how Applejack had been there when she was alone, with nowhere to go, so ready to offer her a place in her own home and among her family. She remembered how Twilight Sparkle had comforted her when she began to fear what her family would have thought of her if they knew the things she had done. She remembered how Fluttershy had flown her to the highest tower of the Bask and properly introduced her to the night sky. She remembered how Pinkie Pie had held her in that awful prison cell after coming to her rescue, and returning her father’s compass to reignite her spirit.

Finally, she remembered how Rainbow Dash had embraced her following her rebirth, letting her cool façade slip just to show how much she cared. When she opened her eyes again, the figure noticed they were shining with unshed tears, but Rarity didn’t notice, as she was too focused on the Element in her grasp, which had suddenly lit up like a spotlight. As if on cue, there was a spark of light several metres from the bow of the boat, appearing in the air directly ahead of them, a single twinkling star in the drab, lifeless world. As Rarity looked up into it, the tiny sparkle exploded outwards, growing into a divine doorway of near blinding light.

Rarity stood up on the boat, the Element still clutched in her hooves as she stared into the door. As she looked, she felt something calling to her. She felt it in her heart, five distinct voices all calling her name, calling her through the doorway to come back to them. That wasn’t all however, amidst those five voices; she could here dozens of others, slightly quieter than the first five, but no less touching. She recognised the voices of the Apple family and Scootaloo, of Grass Snake and her three fillies, of Water Lily and Rose Bud, even though she had never heard the latter utter a word of his own, she just knew in her heart that it was him.

She heard all their voices, all the ponies whose lives she’d touched and connected with, and she heard her family. Her mother, her father, her sister, they were all there too, calling her home. Rarity smiled, still unaware of the tears running down her face she turned back to the figure who had sat with her throughout her whole story, and reached out her free hoof for them to take.

“Come on,” Rarity said in a voice brimming with joy. “We can go back together.”

But the figure simply shook their head, a simple gesture that seemed to carry the weight of years of sadness.

“I cannot,” the figure said in a quiet voice. “I would wish for nothing more than to leave this place, but… my time has not yet come.”

Rarity lowered her hoof slowly, not understanding.

“But…” the figure began, her voice returning to its usual volume. “I think that time is coming soon, certain details of your story made me realise… well, that can wait, but I feel you and I shall meet again, Rarity. Until that day comes however, would you pass on a message to somepony very important to me?”

“Of course,” Rarity replied, eager to do whatever she cold for this lonely pony.

The figure stood up, standing much taller than Rarity, as they began to lower their hood. Rarity stared up in awe, for a moment she was simply lost in the other pony’s face. As impossible as it was, Rarity couldn’t help but feel a strong connection to this pony; it was almost as if she had seen her before. The pony bent down slightly, so her muzzle was right beside Rarity’s ear, and as she whispered her message, Rarity nodded, reciting the words to memory.

“I promise I’ll…” Rarity began as the other pony pulled back, but as she turned to face her once more, she saw that the pony was no longer there.

Rarity looked around for a brief moment, confirming that she was indeed alone. With a small sigh, she turned to face to doorway again, her frown turning back to a smile as she opened her heart and listened to all the voices a second time. Taking one final breath, she began walking backwards until she was as far back as the small boat would permit. Drinking in her last view of the Sea of Tranquillity, she focused her attention on the door in front of her… and made a run for it.

The boat shook and wobbled beneath her as she galloped, but she refused to be slowed down. It was only a few strides from one end to the other, so she soon found herself jumping onto the bow, and using it to propel herself forward as she leapt for the door. Once she was hanging in the air, she clutched the Masque tightly to her chest, savouring its warmth against her skin as she came closer and closer to the portal. As soon as the tip of her horn passed through the doorway, it was as if time sped up, and she felt her whole body plunging through the light.

She no longer felt like she was jumping, rather she was falling, spiralling faster and faster through the ocean of light. As she fell, she heard the voices, louder and clear than before, and the further she went, the closer they felt. She kept her eyes open the whole time, seeing as the light around her changed from being formless and ethereal, to more fluffy and tangible. It took Rarity a moment to realise that what she was looking at was clouds forming around her, and after that fact became apparent, she realised what had happened.

The Element had brought her back to the world she knew, but at a rather inconvenient place. The gold light she saw now, was entirely just the sun’s rays reflecting off the cloud layer she was now plummeting through, the bloody Element had decided to drop her out of the sky. As she dived through the clouds, she burst out into open sky, seeing the world stretch out beneath her. It was indeed very beautiful, getting such a panoramic view of Panchea, from the snowy caps of the Wyvern heights to the dense forests in the west, however, it didn’t justify falling to her death.

She began to panic, but not for long before she caught a glimpse of something sparkling on the ground directly beneath her. More accurately, she saw five somethings sparkling directly beneath her, and while most were remaining fixed to the ground, one was getting incredibly close, incredibly fast. The next thing Rarity knew, her vision was all a rainbow blur as she felt something swirl around her, slowing her down, before reaching out and taking hold of her. This time when she began to fall, she could feel the flapping of powerful wings and the feel of familiar hooves wrapped around her. Twisting her head around, she broke out into a wide grin, despite the rush of air, as she looked up at the smirking face of Rainbow Dash.

“I told you I’d pay you’d back!” she shouted over the howling wind, giving Rarity a wink before returning her attention to flying, and ultimately landing without being pulverised on the ground bellow.

As the pair began to descend slowly to the ground, Rarity could see the other four rushing to meet them, and beyond them, the rest of the Union army. Rarity could see dozens of familiar faces among their ranks, and she felt a warmth in her heart as she recalled how they all called out to her from across worlds to help bring her home. As Rainbow touched down and Rarity was released, she was very quickly caught in another embrace as Pinkie dived in and wrapped her hooves around her.

Rarity tried to object, tried to ask the others for help, but they were content to simply add more pressure by joining in. Rarity quickly forgot about her lack of oxygen, or the pain in her ribs, as she simply basked in the love of her friends. She could just about make out the Masque pressed against her chest, still glowing brightly, as were all the other Elements, which her friends were still wearing. When they finally did let Rarity go so she could breathe, she noticed more ponies rushing down to meet them. Rarity was looking forward to seeing them all again, to be able to talk to them, knowing that the adventure was over, that their enemies had been thwarted and peace was finally restored to the land.

Twilight gave Pinkie a slight nudge with her muzzle, Pinkie suddenly remembering, reached around behind her and pulled out a bundle of clothes from nowhere. Rarity immediately recognised them as her own, and resting on top was her father’s compass and spyglass. Twilight gave a small wave of her horn, and the clothes were caught in a flurry of magic, becoming translucent as they swept over Rarity’s body, reforming around her so that she was once again fully dressed. Fluttershy walked up and hung the two pouches around Rarity’s neck, placing her treasures inside each of them, as Rainbow presented her with her trio of knives and rapier.

Once Rarity was comfortable, she felt a slight pressure on her shoulder, and glanced over to see Applejack standing beside her, looking just as happy as Rarity felt.

“Welcome home Rarity.”