Epilogue
Three Days Later
Rarity gasped as the sound of the doorknob turning roused her from her fitful sleep. She blinked the fog from her mind as she looked up to watch Rainbow Dash step inside.
She glanced towards Pinkie and, seeing the mare still sound asleep in her bed, Rarity pulled herself to her hooves. She beckoned Rainbow towards the wardrobe.
The pegasus was still in her dive suit, cradling the armored helmet under one wing. The injuries she had sustained during the battle three days prior were still healing, and patches of missing fur left bare her fading bruises and scratches. A trio of jagged scars had formed running down one side of her muzzle. She answered the beckon with a stiff nod and followed Rarity to huddle in the corner of the room.
“Did you find—anything?” Rarity whispered.
Rainbow shook her head. “Still nothing.” Her eye flicked over to the sleeping Pinkie Pie. “C’mon. Let’s talk about this in the dining hall with the others.”
The two mares stepped out into the hall, closing the door behind them as silently as they could. They walked for a few seconds, putting distance between themselves and Pinkie, before speaking again.
“Is there anywhere left to search?” Rarity asked.
Rainbow shrugged. “A bit, yeah, but I don’t think she’s gonna be there either.” Her armored hooves thudded against the carpet as they passed by a collapsed section of wall outlined in scaffolding. The villagers had been working hard since the battle, but the damage to Titus’ estate was too extensive to fix quickly without endangering crop harvests.
“Well, why didn’t you look there before coming back?” Rarity snapped. “We have to be certain!”
“She’s not there, Rares,” Rainbow insisted. “I flew all the sky around this island for miles in every direction, and Trails has done the same for the seafloor. There’s nothing but the same old monsters down there.” She paused, pursing her lips. “She’s gone somewhere.”
They came out into the dining hall. The blood and rubble had all been scrubbed up and cleared away here, but the cracks in the walls remained. Applejack and Fluttershy were engaged in quiet conversation at one end of the table. The former was covered in sawdust and rock dust, and the latter was scrubbing idly at blood dried onto her apron. Both of their coats had a sheen of sweat.
Applejack dipped her head in greeting. “Did y’all tell her the idea yet?”
“I only told her what we found,” Rainbow said. “Or didn’t find, I guess.”
Fluttershy waved a hoof. “How’s Pinkie?”
Rarity answered with a wan smile. “She’s holding up.”
“Poor gal.” Applejack sighed as she took off her hat and shook some dust out of her mane. “Losin’ her legs like that. I feel for her.”
“At least she still has them,” Rainbow said. She plopped down into a seat, perhaps harder than necessary. “I bet Twi can get them working again.”
“If we can find her,” Fluttershy added.
“We’ll find her!” Rainbow snapped. “She’s out there somewhere.”
“But how can you be sure, darling?” Rarity asked. She sat down opposite Rainbow, extending a hoof to touch hers. “Maybe we should start talking about—”
“She didn’t give up on you,” Rainbow said. “An entire island fell out of the sky, and she wouldn’t even sleep until we went down to—to at least find your bodies.”
Applejack cleared her throat. “Y’all don’t really reckon that Twi would just—y’know, do ya? That filly’d barely close her eyes for a nap before she plans her schedule. Way I figure, she’s still got her mission and she ain’t gonna be puttin’ too much thought into any kind of sleepin’ till she sees it through.” She let out a low chuckle. “Shucks, I bet she ain’t caught a wink of shuteye without us hoverin’ over her.”
Fluttershy cracked a smile, but Rarity was too tired to consider laughing. Rainbow Dash just arched a brow. Applejack’s smile faded, and she hid her face behind her hat for a moment before placing it back atop her head.
“Plus there’s the whole ‘don’t follow me’ thing,” she continued. “Sounded kinda like she was goin’ somewhere, and didn’t want us to worry.”
“I’m, um, worried,” Fluttershy mumbled.
“We all are, darling,” Rarity said. “But how can we even know where to begin? There’s all of Equestria out there!”
“She’s probably scared,” Fluttershy whispered. “And lonely. I would just want to go hide under my bed if I were her.”
“Except we kinda crushed her treehouse as soon as we got here,” Rainbow said. She shook her head. “And then with Owloysius? I dunno if she’d want to go back.”
“She did have a home before Ponyville, dear,” Rarity said. “Perhaps Canterlot? It’s dry still. She might have gone back there to gather her bearings.”
Applejack shrugged. “I ain’t got any other ideas.”
Rainbow sighed. A small jet of steam vented from her armor as she stood up. “Well, I guess I’d better get going. The Argo will just need a bit of resupplying and then we can head out.”
“Now y’all hold your horses,” Applejack said, standing up. “Y’all know I’m comin’ along.”
“I would like to go as well,” Rarity said, raising a hoof. She let out a quiet “Oh, goodness” as her leg complained about the effort. She glanced around the room, hoping her friends hadn’t noticed.
All eyes turned to Fluttershy, who hid behind her mane. “I, uh, think somebody should stay behind and watch Pinkie. And all the soldiers, um, need me, too. Is that okay with all of you?”
“That’s quite alright, dear,” Rarity said. She reached over to pull the yellow pegasus into a sidelong hug. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”
“Reckon that settles it, then,” Applejack said. “The three of us’ll join Sabre’s crew and go check out Canterlot. And hopefully we find somethin’, cause frankly I ain’t got a clue of where to check next if we don’t.”
“We’ll find her, dear Applejack,” Rarity said. She gave each of her friends in turn the most confident smile she could muster, shutting out her own doubts. “We’ll find her.”
With a grunt, Gava shoved the heavy wooden beam to the side.
It fell back to the ground with a crash, splitting down the charred middle section where it had burned through the most. She grimaced as she looked down at the shriveled and burnt corpse that had been hidden underneath it. A few patches of blue fur had survived around the ring of its horn.
“Sorry, Top,” she muttered, pushing him out of the way. “We had a good run.”
She ducked through a collapsed wall, waving the lingering smoke out of her face with a wing. A couple other bodies were hidden here, though she didn’t recognize them. She stepped over them without hesitation, making a beeline for an iron-bound wooden chest half-buried in rubble.
After a few good tugs, the chest came free with a great clatter of falling wood. She held her breath as she gingerly lifted the cover.
A bleached white griffon skull waited within. She let out the breath she had been holding as she picked it up and held its forehead up to her own.
“Hey, Dad,” she whispered, closing her eyes. “I really fucked up.”
She let several seconds pass in this way, feeling for her father’s spirit. His disappointment was clear, but he was also proud of her for admitting her mistakes. For a brief moment she was a fledgling again, listening to him lecture her on the dangers of pride. It was a lecture she had received many times.
With a sigh, she gingerly placed the skull back into the chest, making sure to nestle it snugly among the cushions within. “I’ll keep her safe. Promise.”
The chest closed with a solid click. She cradled it in her forelegs as she weaved her way out of the belly of her crashed ship and back to open air. She would have to find a new, safer place to store her father while she considered the best way to free Ana.
Somebody cleared their throat. She whipped around, drawing and cocking her revolver in the same motion that she lined up the sights.
A pale blue unicorn stallion was standing in the shade of one of the few trees lucky enough to have survived the airship crash. He greeted the barrel of her gun with a polite smile. “Good evening.”
She scowled down at him. The arm holding her gun shook with its weight. Fucking injuries. “What are you doing here?”
“I was hoping we could come to an agreement.” The unicorn dipped into a precisely measured bow. “My name is Whitehorn. Do you mind if I sit?”
“You can put your plot where you want, pony,” Gava said.
“Thank you.” He straightened up, tugging the creases out of his silver vest before sitting down against the tree. “I know you’re not one for wasting time, so I’ll get right to the point. I need you to stop hunting those Gifted.”
“What?” Gava snorted. “What do I care about what you want? Fuck off before I eat you.”
Whitehorn’s smile didn’t falter. “You’ve caused me a great deal of inconvenience with your interference, Gava. I need you to stop.”
Gava narrowed her eyes at him. Her tail swished from side to side. Why isn’t this one getting scared? She lifted a talon still stained with some of her own blood. “You got a deathwish, pony?”
He shook his head with a civil little laugh. “I’m not here to fight you, Gava. I do have some understanding of your motives, after all.” He reached into his saddlebag, pulling out a pouch as big as Gava’s head with a small grunt of effort and tossing it onto the floor between them. The bag’s contents jingled alluringly as they settled.
“You’re gonna pay me off?” Gava asked, arching a brow. She tugged at the bag’s tie with a claw, loosening it enough for her to confirm its contents. Gleaming golden bits stared back at her. Designs from several different islands were stamped onto their faces. A real traveler, huh?
She looked back up to him. “This isn’t nearly worth what all those Gifted would be. Not even a fraction.”
Whitehorn’s smile grew thin. “The stories I’ve heard weren’t exaggerating when they mentioned your arrogance.”
Gava pounced. She was on the pony before he could even react, bearing him to the ground and pinning him on his back. He grunted as she slammed into him, but didn’t offer any resistance as she brought a talon up to his face. “Insults will get you nowhere, food. Any last words?”
He grimaced as she pushed down on him with her weight. “If you kill me, you’ll never see Ana again.”
Gava hesitated. She picked him up off the ground by the neck, spinning him around and slamming him against the wreckage of her ship. “Where is she?!”
He grasped at her talons with his hooves, tugging weakly. “Can’t—breathe.”
She snarled as she let him drop to the ground. “Talk!”
He sucked in a few quick gasps of air and let out a breathy laugh. “Whew. She is being held by Duke Titus.” He looked up to meet her eyes, the same courteous smile returning. “He intends to execute her as soon as he can spare the time.”
Gava glared down at him for a few seconds. “So I’ll break her out, then. But for now, ready to die?”
“Still?” Whitehorn picked himself up and wiped some of the dust off his vest with a hoof. “You can’t save her, Gava, not on your own.Titus is on high alert after the attack on his home, and he knows that you will likely make a rescue attempt.” His smile grew a bit wider. “And after all, isn’t she the one with all the plans?”
Gava snatched the bag of bits up, shaking it so its contents clinked together. “I’ll buy help.”
“From who?” Whitehorn asked. “Who will be willing to attack a Duke’s home just days after some unknown monster sliced a piece of the island off the mainland and caused earthquakes for miles around?” He paused, letting his words sink in. “You cannot free her by force. But if you cooperate, I can ensure she survives.”
“So you’re blackmailing me,” Gava spat. She turned away from him, digging her talons into the ground.
“I am inviting you to join me,” Whitehorn countered. “Look at your situation, Gava. Your ship is destroyed, your crew is gone, and your partner is awaiting execution with no way for you to rescue her. You’re at the end of your line.”
She could hear his hoofsteps coming closer as he spoke. He put a hoof on her shoulder. She stiffened, but forced herself to keep still instead of ripping his leg off.
“But I’m giving you another chance. I could use a pair of skilled individuals such as yourself and Ana in the days to come. They will be trying times, and I expect I’ll need actors willing to do what must be done to further a noble cause. And once it’s all done, I will make sure that there’s a place for both of you in the new world we create.”
Gava shot him a sideways glare. She entertained a brief fantasy of cutting the smile right off his face.
“If nothing else, Gava, you will be well compensated in bits,” Whitehorn added. “And we can part ways once it’s all over.”
Gava narrowed her eyes at him.
He smiled up at her, as courteous and mannerly as ever.
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Hmm well one thing is for sure, twilight is going to seriously need a therapist.. Wonder if Discord is available, I can't imagine he'd mess her up worse than she currently is plus its not like Luna or Celestia are exactly available.
This first story was great! Cant wait for the next act!
and held it’s forehead up to her own
1. Its.
Looks like Whitemane might turn out to be a black horse after all. How far will the plans go I wonder?
Holy shit, this was unexpected. I thought you were going to put the whole story in this one fic, but you've surprised me.
Now you have me excited!
Oof, Pinkie's spine got a little tweaked there, huh? Might want to go see a chiropractor about that.
Well that was certainly an ending. Twilight goes on a murderous rampage, seems to have paralyzed Pinkie to some extent, and Whitehorn is not quite so noble as he seems. Makes sense, though. You do seem to need at least a bit of cunning to get by in this world. I look forward to Act Two!
9336920
please do and also tell me about the characters again, who they are.
Whitehorn, you sauvé double dealer.
What are you up to?
9337351
Just making the world a better place, one step at a time.
9337092
You can pop into the Discord and I'm sure find somebody willing to summarize things for you, if not myself.
9336987
My man, you know I could never do you like that.
9336894
Hooey, that's a lot of comments. Glad you're enjoying the fic!
9336514
Sounds like someone hasn't been reading the blog posts.
Just to be sure: Did Pinkie lose control of all four legs or only the two back ones? Because being tetraplegic is way worse and I am not sure the universe would be able to handle a Pinkie that does't move.
9337477
Just the rear two. She won't be totally paralyzed.
...
Apparently I started reading this the very day it got completed.
Great worldbuilding, enjoyed reading it. Looking forward to Act 2 now
Definitely, this belongs in my Best of the Best bookshelf, as well as my Silver Screen Material shelf.
I shall be eagerly awaiting Sunken Horizons
9337404
I would be more inclined to trust him, if he wasn't giving off that "Everything is going according to plan" vibe.
9337652
Good timing, eh?
9338364
After all, nothing is less trustworthy than a good planner, amiright?
9338389
It's not that he's a planner. It's just, he has the air of someone who says one thing, but you know there is something else behind it.
It's mostly just from the epilogue, I certainly didn't think of him as an evil mastermind before now.
And the plot thickens considerably!
Where has Twilight gone? What will happen to her? What is she even thinking?
What is Whitehorn planning? What is his true agenda? Does his interests really match the ones of our heroes?
And most of all, how will our remaining heroes deal with all of this?
Let's find out in the sequel!
This has been an epic story, well written with good pacing and lots of depth to how you have handled the characters, I love how you handled the progression of both Twilight and Rarity. I am really looking forward to seeing what you do next. There are so many questions about what is going to happen next and what is really going on, like what is really going on with Luna and Celestia.
9338609
Watching you react to the whole story as you read it has truly been an odyssey of the mind.
yeah done with this story too much dark
Hoooboy...that's a doozy of a cliffhanger.
9338949
Glad to be of service.
I myself love reactions. One of the reasons I scour YouTube for reaction videos and FimFiction for first contact scenes and the like.
Anyway, I look forward to Sunken Horizons.
Concordia et Amicitia superabit.
When I saw the completed I got concerned a bit. You're doing it the act way and breaking them up. I can respect it. Surprised you don't wanna keep it all together but then sometimes big monsters of a story scare people away. I'll definitely be awaiting the next installment. Understandably, stories like these are hard to come by on this site. But I'm damn glad you're doing one.
HO-LY CRAP.
HOLY CRAP.
That was AMAZING!!!
Damn, good shit! Discovered this story yesterday morning and binged all day just finishing it this morning. Actually highly considering reading it a second time. Added to my favorites and following. Can't wait to find out what happens in the next act!
9341033
That's exactly one of the reasons that I split it up. See ya in the next one.
9341532
They say the story is always better the second time around. Maybe you'll pick up some stuff you missed.
I'm absolutely LIVID right now. Gava survived, idiot Duke Titus survived, and the heroes got dicked. Rarity is still obligated to the idiot duke and Whitehorn has turn-coated.
.
Huge arc, amazing world building, and a fuck-all of a cliffhanger. I hate you and I can't wait for part 2
Starting, here we go.
Wow. This was a great read!
Excited for#2.
9343505
All in one day, huh? Nice.
9343783
Yeah, I'm known for reading a lot, especially when the story is AWESOME.
Ah, well.
Lol, this dude. Gotta seize the means of control.
Well... downloading on mobile, and time to start reading... I remember reading 5 first chapters, liked it, couldn't wait for more, founded something else to read, and kinda forgot... few times I was thinking about starting it again, but, then, "eh, I wait for it to finish". Now it's time, at last. :D
Just want to say I've read your fic for a while now and re reading it after such along time reminds why its so damn good, gotta say what an awsome job you've done :)
Ooh! This looks exciting.
Thankfully it's over. Won't get left in incomplete purgatory or hell for years or forever while reading.
This was awesome! A great story with great quality! I saw the synopsis, “completed” tag , and the length of the story on Equestria Daily and thought it would be a good read, and I definitely wasn’t disappointed.
I’m nervous that this is only Act 1, though. Please don’t let this be another story that doesn’t get finished. It has great mysteries and world building, and I would hate for it to be just another story that gets forgotten.
9346712 9347200
I look forwards to your feedback! Comments are the author's succor, after all.
9346943
Glad to hear you enjoyed it, man. Stick around for Act Two!
9348176
Hey, I've got no plans of ditching it—and certainly not with so many readers asking for more! You can expect the next story to be published either January or February, and I've got some details in my blog.
Two and a half years later, sequel bait.
:(
9364481
This is the end of the first act. Three acts have always been planned, and I'm just splitting them up to make it more digestible.
Well, that was quite a ride, which I can't call strictly "enjoyable", all things considered
But it was certainly riveting, and I'm eagerly looking forward to the next installment.
derpicdn.net/img/view/2018/7/14/1780986.jpeg
And at long last, we hit the end of the beginning, and with at least a somewhat clear idea of what’s next. Good to see the others so focused on looking out for Twilight after everything.
So I guess the Other really is kind of like Nightmare Moon- it’s Twilight, or a facet of her, but given voice by something that may or may not be largely responsible for the state of the world. At least it’s kind of a relief for that horseshoe to have dropped, even if it brought a lot more angst.
9365265
There have been many stories that have big ambitions for three story acts that only to end up abandoned.
9431740
While that may be true you should also try to stay positive about it. Thinking you or somebody else wont be able to make something has rarely helped ever before.
So if you think you can write this story the way you wanted to go ahead and try it. But if something does not work out the way you wanted, remember that it is your story and you alone can control were its going, so do not be afraid of some changes to your plans.
(I hope I was able to make my point understandeble and have not made a total mess of a comment)
9431740
Thanks for informing me!
By god, and I'm sorry for being so blunt, but Twilight and Rarity were extremely frustrating. Their arks started out well but didn't really go anywhere, but the main issue for me was that they constantly had their priorities mixed up. Even when facing the likely death of her friends and herself, Twilight wouldn't use her magic to solve the problem. Even when the story built up the grand event when she finally accepts the help of the dark magic and removes the threath facing them, she just mopes that she doens't wanna give in. She'd rather see her friends die. Based on the escalation of events, which were well paced by the way, I was expecting her to snap and finally use the dark magic to save her friends, but it never happened. She does give in, and her breaking out of the ring was cool, but then she just kinda skulks away saying "dont follow me". I know you planned a sequel with the same villain, but I still felt let down.
Same with Rarity. She's more concerned with her fantasy of being a noble and wearing pretty dresses than her own and Pinkie's safety. She also wants to change the social structures with brute force, instead of observing and then acting accordingly. It felt a little shallow to me. Her goal was well realized, but her methods were doomed to fail less some outside force helps her change the status quo. She even got tricked into marriage to save a few inconsequential characters. I get the plot needed it, and I see what you were going for, but at the moment reading it I could only shake my head at her naivete. She play rightfully played.
Apart from all that and some minor grievances regarding the worldbuilding, I enjoyed my time with this one. It certainly has potential, and it kept my interest throhought. I'm keeping an eye for act two.
9445188
Twilight lasting so long before the darkness took over was a strength of character, though. How much evil could she do under it's influence? Would she ever have agency again if she willingly gave in? She has no reason to think that some narrative contrivance will redeem her later, even if we do.
Going away to "sulk" was a bit meh, but it's a pretty typical trope for corruption plots. And it's a very Twilight thing to do: she often seeks to solve problems alone with research and magic, nevermind the corruption probably pushing her to be alone and her own desire to isolate herself from ponies she fears she might hurt.
9605210
Well, I've read the whole thing, so I know what happens.
Enjoy your read.
If the main OCs in this story were voiced, what would they sound like?
9613677
We've actually put some thought into that!
Ana. Gava. Sea Sabre. Star Trails. Whitehorn. Titus. Pontius. And for Flintlock just imagine a roughshod Australian dude.
Saw Sunken horizons in the featured box, saw this came before it, decided to give it a read. I was not disappointed.
I'm a bit surprised by how short it was.
Well.
"Short" is a bit of an understatement. But most of the fics I've read that are something like this don't usually break into parts like this. They normally feel a bit more, well, complete when they finish, and when a sequel/second act starts, it's a related, but still separate adventure. Didn't stop this from being as good as it was though.
I can honestly say that this did not go too fast nor too slow the entire way through. It started off fast, the pacing kept up, and there were breaks when the story required it. Although there were a few jolting transitions, like how they would be introduced to a location and then immediately go to "three days later" after they left, overall I have no complaints.
Goodness, I wanted this to be just a short comment praising this fic and now I'm rambling. Please forgive me.
Anyway, I quite enjoyed this. It's been a while since I've been looking forward to reading the next chapter and getting past each cliffhanger, and I'm extremely happy I found out about this story after it was completely finished, as I read it all in about three days.
I will be a bit irritated when I get to the cliffhangers you've no doubt left for the readers in the sequel, and I have to experience the agonizing wait like everyone else, but if your writing and plot for the second story is anything like this one, I will no doubt enjoy it immensely.
Fantastic fic, liked and favourited, as it and you, deserve.
P.S. F%#king Gava. Always.