Friendship is Forever

by fabrosi

Open the Door

Chapter 25: Open the Door

Twilight's mourning lasted for weeks, with Spike dutifully ensuring that she didn't starve. Among countless other things, she wondered how long Celestia had been planning this—had the idea been seeded in her mind after their battle in Maneheart? Did the war against Sustria serve as the final straw that made her regret what she'd done in life? Or had Twilight's own cutie mark been the first step in the Princess's plan to create a new, more powerful alicorn? For all Twilight knew, what happened in Maneheart might have just been Celestia's test—a way to find out whether she'd live another thousand years or a few more weeks. Twilight's room became her universe, an echoing chamber to house her pain as she struggled to make sense and meaning of everything that had happened.

The day after Celestia's death, Princess Luna found herself back on Earth, where Rainbow Dash explained to her friends and Luna what had happened, sending the latter into a deep depression of her own. She secluded herself below the castle, not to be seen by anypony.

Meanwhile wild rumors abounded throughout the rest of Canterlot, and shortly afterwards, Ponyville, and the rest of Equestria not long after that. (The most popular story was that Twilight had killed Princess Celestia and taken her powers, though the resistance groups had ample evidence to convince the majority that this was a good thing.)

When Twilight finally did leave her tower, she did so with her head held high, since Celestia had effectively made her the new princess, and given her a solemn duty to every pony in Equestria. She still wasn't sure how she was going to deal with the plagues that would arrive in a year's time, or the famines, but she hadn't forgotten a word of what Rainbow Dash had told her that day, and she had made up her mind about at least one thing.

She gave Pinkie Pie a start by appearing in the middle of Ponyville, and then told her to gather the others. When they were all in her library, she withdrew her final letter from Celestia and showed it to them.

"Wait…" said Rarity as she finished reading. "So, you're the new princess of Equestria?"

"Luna and I both, I think," replied Twilight, "and it's not going to be easy, but I've decided it's what I have to do. Equestria is still in danger of the chaos that will ensue when the enchantments run out, and I have to warn everypony. I'd like you all to come with me to Canterlot so I can let them all know the truth."

In a flash, she and her friends were back in the castle courtyard, amidst ponies who gasped at pointed at the sight of an alicorn in her midst. As whispers rippled through the growing crowd, Twilight called out:

"Where are the Wonderbolts?"

"Staying in their wing of the castle," replied somepony.

"Good. I have something to give them."

Twilight didn't know where the Wonderbolts' wing was, so she tested out her new wings for the first time and let Rainbow Dash lead the way through the air, much to the awe of those on the ground. When she knocked on their door, she was answered by an extremely startled Spitfire.

"Twilight Sparkle!" she gasped, drawing the attention of the other Wonderbolts behind her. "I'd heard you had wings now, but I thought… you know, they were temporary or something."

"No, I'm an alicorn," Twilight clarified. "At the moment, however, I have something much more important to discuss with you all."

Immediately, every Wonderbolt in the room became visibly disconcerted. Realizing they were expecting her to pass judgment for their crimes, she shook her head, saying "No, this isn't about what you've done—it's about what Celestia forced you to do." Seeing that they had no intention of telling her to come inside, she invited herself in, and continued: "From a young age, you all wore cutie marks that represented your abilities to take lives, whether or not that was what you really wanted to do. Under the princess's rule, you were all instrumental to a conspiracy against pigs and ponies alike. However, as the new ruler of Equestria, I believe that nopony should ever be robbed of such a basic right as the freedom of choice, so today, I offer you all that choice: tell me what you want your cutie marks to be, and I will make them so."

They stared at her, either taken aback by her immense generosity or shocked that such a thing would even be possible. Then, Soarin' stepped forward.

"I'm… deeply grateful for your offer," he said, bowing to her after only a little hesitation. "Please, if you will—I'd like my cutie mark to be a lightning bolt with wings, like the symbol on my uniform. Flying has always been my passion… and I'd like the special talent that I show to the world to be my real talent, and not just a cover."

"So be it," said Twilight, and she closed her eyes, concentrating on the complex, delicate magic needed to control cutie marks. The other Wonderbolts and Rainbow Dash all gazed on in awe as the skull on Soarin's flank faded away, and a winged lightning bolt appeared in its place. It was only the slightest change in appearance, but it made all the difference in the world.

"Thank you," said Soarin' softly, bowing once again. "Thank you so much, Princess Twilight." The title sounded strange to her, but she wasn't sure whether or not to correct him, so she merely smiled at him.

"…and what about the rest of you?" she asked. Spitfire wanted her cutie mark changed to a lightning bolt, as did Blast and Tyco, so Twilight repeated the process with each of them. She surveyed those who still wore skulls on their flanks. "Misty, what about you?"

She shrugged, and then winced as the motion sent a wave of pain through her wings, which were both in splints. "I never put much stock in my cutie mark, anyway. My work under Celestia was more like a regular, every-day job than a calling, to be honest."

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "So… you want to keep your mark the way it is?"

Misty looked thoughtful, as though she were deciding what to order at a restaurant. "Actually, do you think you could just remove it? It'd be nice not to have to keep that heavy suit on during the summer."

"I'd think I'd also prefer not to have a cutie mark," Blizzard chimed in. "It always felt like Celestia had branded me with it, like it was a mark of her power over me more than anything else."

Twilight secretly thought they both sounded somewhat ungrateful, but said nothing and acquiesced, removing Misty and Blizzard's cutie marks. Then, she looked around, puzzled.

"There are more than six of you, aren't there?" she asked

"Officially, yes," explained Spitfire, "but Celestia only recruited us for military service. The other Wonderbolts were only ever athletes—they weren't even told there was a war."

Soarin' and the others (except for Misty) expressed their deepest gratitude to Twilight once again. As she and Rainbow Dash were leaving, Spitfire called out:

"Hey, Rainbow Dash!" She looked over her shoulder.

"Well, it's just"—the Wonderbolt fumbled for a moment—"I remember meeting you way back at the gala, and it seems like you really know your stuff when it comes to flying, especially with that sonic rainboom of yours…" As Dash realized where this was going, she felt a heady sense of elation rise up inside her like an intense shiver, threatening to make her dizzy. "…What I'm trying to say," Spitfire managed, "is… Rainbow Dash, how would you like to be a Wonderbolt?"

The young pegasus felt as though her heart might leap out of her mouth. "You mean it?" she cried. "Of course I would!"

"Awesome!" Spitfire exclaimed with visible relief. "I'm glad we can all agree to put the past behind us. Twilight, I hope you don't mind us borrowing your friend for a while?"

"Not at all," replied Twilight. After congratulating Rainbow Dash, she was on her way, swooping back down to Canterlot to give her first public speech as Equestria's ruler.

The swarming mass of ponies gazing upon her with intense curiosity gradually transformed into an attentive audience as the alicorn took her place before a podium. She took a deep breath before addressing them all:

"My fellow ponies: you have all heard by now of the recent departure of our beloved Princess Celestia—and it is safe to assume you're all aware of my own transformation into an alicorn. If there is any doubt as to my right to take up the throne, I have evidence in the form of the princess's own writing, as well as confirmation from her sister, Princess Luna, that Celestia's last wish was for me to take her place. Furthermore, if there is any doubt as to the need for me to rule, you need look no further than the borders of Equestria."

"During Celestia's rule, so much was kept hidden: our nation's true history, the complex enchantments across every one of our cities, and even a secret war against a neighboring country."

"I intend to provide you all with the freedom of knowledge necessary to make informed decisions about the world you live in, because I believe this to be the best way to prepare you for the trials and tribulations that are to come. Specifically, in a year's time, Princess Celestia's enchantments over Equestria—which have been in place for over a thousand years—will dissipate, and we will have face storms, famines, disease, vicious carnivores, and everything else that the princess has protected us from for generations. With my magic, I will do everything I can to mitigate the damage caused by these disasters, but I can't be everywhere at once, which is why everypony in Equestria needs to be ready to do their part when the time comes."

"I know that what I'm telling you today must sound strange and confusing, so perhaps it's best that you all discover the truths of the world for yourselves. Across the southern border of Equestria are the remains of a kingdom of pigs known as Sustria. Over the last several months, Sustria was decimated by our very own royal forces without your consent or knowledge. The pigs are still there, and they can tell you what they've seen. Be warned, however: you may not want to hear what they have to say."

As Twilight expounded upon the many, many secrets that had been kept hidden from her subjects for so long, she thought she saw a change come over them—their sense of complacency and privilege, which had been sorely tried by the death of their supposedly immortal Princess Celestia, had now all but vanished, to be replaced by a sense of uneasiness and fear for the future. At the same time, however, here was a new alicorn who promised to guide them through troubled times, to provide a bastion of hope as the ruins of an encapsulated, blissfully ignorant utopia gave way to an enlightened society prepared to test its resolve against the terrors of the unknown. Death's staggering debt had been paid in full, and on a profound level, everypony present felt that just as a window had closed, a door had opened—and the time had come to open the door, get on the floor, everypony walk the dinosaur.

THE END

Author's note: there is a sequel to this story entitled "Freedom is Forever" on my page.

Comments

[Phil-Osophy]

WHY THE FUCK HAS THIS NOT BEEN SEEN BY MORE PEOPLE.

It's flat out amazing, all grammatically correct and it kept me wondering all that time. I was a little disappointed by the battle and further lack of more violence but that's because of my own bloodlust, no fault by you.

Has this been on EQD? Or Fanfiction.net? Because for this to have so little views is frankly astonishing to me. Much worse and less thought out stories have garnered fame.

Anyway, amazing work. I'm about to go read the sequel!

-James

[fabrosi]

717542

Thanks for the feedback!

My fanfiction.net account is linked on my page here, and that version is probably better thanks to the italics. EqD prereaders seemed to think the writing was up to scratch, but they said they autoreject any stories containing tyrant celestia, Solar Empire/Lunar republic, or cutie mark coercion (this has all three).

[Phil-Osophy]

717739

So basically they refuse any story that doesn't follow their tastes, what twats.

[Xeltosh]

definitely an amazing piece of art here

dunno why it has so few watches but i fave it.

somewhere in you story is a "be" missing but that´s no problem XD awesome writing, good and exciting plot, and a nice ending

9.5/10 points i would say(no 10 because if have read a story, it had touched me to no end, and that´s the only 10 atm in my list^^)

[fabrosi]

2037595
Thanks! If you're interested, I'm working on a sort-of-sequel to that fic, but I'm mostly just posting new chapters on my ff.net account: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8604469/1/Friendship-is-Forever-Redux
It's more of a re-imagining than a sequel, but a very similar story thematically.

[lancore]

Fantastic Story. I have no idea why it has so few views, it's really a shame

[Decimal]

Holy crap this is awesome.