• Published 3rd Jun 2016
  • 6,719 Views, 770 Comments

Alicornae: The Legend of Starlit Sky - PortalJumper



The land of Equestria is a dismal place, forgotten as it is by its five Princesses. Now, a chosen unicorn has been tasked with returning the Princesses to their thrones, lest the world rend itself asunder.

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PreviousChapters
Part V: Chapter 14 - The Means

Alicornae: The Legend of Starlit Sky

Part V - Chapter 14: The Means

* * *

Slowly, gently, like cradling her own child, Starlit Sky floated Setting Sun's prone body to the scarred and ruined marble floor below. Her ethereal horn ached and burned, and from the fragment of the Heart of Fate that she held she could feel a horrible, malign influence trying to pierce into her mind. She quickly tossed the fragment away, lest it try to do to her what it had done to Sun.

A roll of thunder cascaded across the sky, and a flash of multicolored light drew Starlit's eye to the miasma of magic hanging above her head. She was then quickly distracted by the sound of four gasps of exhaustion to her right, where the former Princesses of Equestria were steadying themselves.

"That was a brave thing you did for us," Starlit said to the four, her echoing voice soft and soothing.

"It was… all Twilight's idea," Luna gasped out as she sat back on the floor. "I haven't felt this… worn out in centuries."

Starlit turned her attention back to Sun's body on the ground, her heartbeat quickening when she saw that he wasn't stirring. The silver veins in his skin had all receded, but his fur was still deathly pale and his horn stump was slowly trickling blood onto the white floor.

"No…" Starlit whispered desperately as she knelt her head down to place it against his chest.

There was no beat in his chest, no sound of air moving through his lungs. His body was as cold as the floor. The breath caught in Starlit's throat before she slowly raised her head on its elongated neck.

"Starlit, are you alright?" Celestia asked from behind, her voice wavering as her hooves clacked against the floor.

Starlit paid the alicorn no mind as she tried her best to roll Sun over onto his back. All his limbs splayed out like some kind of horrible spider, and with her newly enlarged hooves she started pressing rhythmically onto his chest. She fumbled around with her new proportions and her long, gangly legs, but Starlit eventually fell into a steady rhythm to try and get his heart beating again.

There was a small gasp of shock when the clacking hooves behind Starlit stopped, be Starlit's hooves kept pumping vigorously. She was finding herself having to hold back her newfound strength, if only so that she didn't break Sun's body anymore than it already had been.

"Starlit, I don't think he—" Celestia began.

"Either help me or be quiet!" Starlit snapped, keeping her eyes fixed to the body. Her proclamation echoed in the ruined foyer, the only other sound being the roll of magical thunder high above.

For minutes Starlit pressed down on the matted fur, pausing to check the heartbeat every so often only to return to the compressions with singular focus. She grew more frantic as the time wore on, only briefly breaking her rhythm when she noticed blood dripping down from her horn stump. She grunted with exertion, trying desperately to force life back into Sun's body; he had a home to return to, ponies to spend his life with, and Starlit would be damned if she made a liar out of him.

"Starlit, I… I don't think this is working," Celestia said softly, putting a hoof to Starlit's shoulder. A jolt ran down Starlit's spine at the contact, so focused was she, enough that her hooves slipped against Sun's ribs and skittered against the marble floor. A sudden weakness in her legs caused them to fall out from under her, her armored chest landing on top of Sun's unmoving form.

All the anger, all the pain, every bit of stress and worry that Starlit had been building up in herself for over a month suddenly streamed out of her eyes, tears falling down her godly face as a low, keening sob intermingled with the rolling thunder over head into an arcane dirge of sorrow and regret. Starlit, for the first time since she had first died in Sunspire, didn't know what to do with herself. This was a problem she couldn't figure out how to fix.

The soft clack of hooves against the marble momentarily drew Starlit out of her malaise, and she turned just enough to see Twilight, Luna, and Cadance coming forward to join Celestia. They all looked haggard, Twilight especially so, but in the moment they seemed to care more for Starlit than they did for themselves.

"He's dead," Starlit said unprompted, turning to face away from the quartet of alicorns. "He's dead, and I don't know if there's any way to bring him back. He was only ever revived once, and that was when Chrysalis, or the Heart of Fate, had its hooks in him."

The tears fell harder now as Starlit said out loud what her mind and her heart had been telling her during the entire futile attempt to get Sun's heart beating again. Her voice was catching on every word, and even as she rose to her new height she had never felt smaller.

"He was a good pony," Starlit continued. "He was smart, and kind, and brave to a degree that I'll never know. He followed me into the bleakest places imaginable, weathered uncounted hardships, all because he felt like he owed it to me to do so."

Slowly Starlit turned around, forcing magic through her horn stump to gently lift Sun's body and nestle it across her back. The alicorns each were avoiding eye contact, whether out of respect for Sun's sacrifice or shame at the role they all played in his death Starlit couldn't say, but of the four only Twilight was shedding tears.

"I hope the four of you understand the weight of what you have done," Starlit chided, "and I hope that you go on living with the knowledge that the power you coveted for so long isn't yours to hoard anymore."

Luna was the first to speak up as Starlit began to walk out of the foyer towards the castle courtyard.

"What would you have us do?" Luna asked.

"I really don't care," Starlit answered. "You've lost all of your power, all of your influence in the world. Maybe you could try living among normal ponies for a change; gain some perspective."

The loose pebbles lining the courtyard clicked and scraped as Starlit walked across them, the cold weight of Sun's body nestled underneath the spectral wings that refused to vanish from her shoulders. She didn't know if her state of being now was permanent, but she couldn't muster up the ability to care.

"Starlit, wait!" Twilight called out across the courtyard, her cry punctuated by another clap of thunder from the roiling sky.

Starlit turned her head back to see Twilight come rushing down the stairs to the courtyard, wincing with each step as the other alicorns looked on with various expressions of confusion and regret.

"Twilight, I have a friend to go bury, so make it quick," Starlit replied, the echo to her voice adding far more menace than she had intended. It wasn't unwelcome, but unintended all the same.

"You… you might not have to," Twilight said, her words coming on labored breaths. "He's been revived once, and he has one of the pieces of the Heart of Fate still in him from… what I did all those centuries ago."

"Get to the point, Twilight," Starlit cut in, trying not to let the glimmer of hope Twilight was offering take root.

"This is a long shot, and even if it works all of us will be… diminished," Twilight continued, "but I might be able to use what I know about how the Heart works to bring him back."

"With what power? You gave all of it to me," Starlit countered, turning fully to face Twilight, "and I'm not nearly skilled enough to try and give it all back to you."

"We don't need your magic, we need that magic," Twilight replied, gesturing up to the sky and the multicolored haze of light and thunder hanging over them.

As Starlit stared up at the swirling miasma she couldn't help but believe, if only because she was still trying to work through her grief, that there could be a chance. She was certainly not the most knowledgeable mare about the ways of magic, but she had had quite a bit of experience at this point with coming back from the dead.

"If it doesn't work then they're still stuck with no power," Starlit mused, her brow furrowed as she watched the magic swirl, "and if it does work then there may just be some hope for them yet."

"Like i said, it is a long shot, but I feel like it's the very least we co—" Twilight continued before Starlit cut her off.

"How do we draw it down?" Starlit asked, turning her steely eyes to the fallen Princess.

"It will be considerably difficult with our diminished strength," Luna interjected as she stepped off the stairs, followed closely by her sister and Cadance. "Since our own Hearts were destroyed when Twilight bound them back into the Crystal Heart, the aspects that we all ruled are going to try and go back to their natural states, I'd wager."

Slowly Starlit lifted Sun's body off of her back, feeling the sting in her horn stump as she channeled the magic through its spectral replacement.

"What you need is a focus, something to store enough of the magic into channel properly," Starlit guessed as a thought gestated in her mind.

"We would, something similar enough to the Crystal Heart that it could recall the magic to itself," Cadance replied.

With a quick swish of light Starlit unfolded her ethereal wings, taking off towards the tallest spire of the palace with only a quick exclamation from Twilight to send her off. The wind whipping past her face and through her hair helped focus her as she made her way up, before turning into a downward glide and stopping at a hover in the wrecked throne room.

Still floating where Starlit had left it were the remnants of her spear, her old fragment of the Heart of Fate still fused to the solidified slag. It glowed with a soft grey light as it hovered over the open pit that both the Crystal Heart's destruction and the giant construct had created in the floor, pulsing every few seconds like a steady heart beat.

With a quick flourish of the head Starlit ripped the spear from the air, feeling its gentle pulse ebb and flow as it contacted her own magic. It was a familiar sensation, and one that she prayed that after today she would never have to feel again.

Racing back into the sky Starlit flew up and up, beating her wings as hard as she could as she flew up into the clouds of raw magic hanging in the air. She wasn't precisely sure how she was going to channel the energy into the crystal, but brute force had worked for her thus far so she figured it would be best to simply go with what she knew.

All of the fur on her face stood on end as she flew into the clouds, and tiny currents of electricity coursed through her mane and tail as she flew through a shimmering blue cloud, one that twinkled with a million pinpricks of energetic light. It smelled faintly of smoke and some tangy, metallic scent that Starlit recognized from the machinery in New Selene.

"Alright, let's see if this works," Starlit said to herself, steeling her will as she channeled her own energy into the cloud of magic around herself.

The sparks of energy shooting in haphazard bolts throughout the cloud sharply changed their trajectories, tracing brilliant lines through the deep blue cloud and into Starlit's spectral horn replacement. Her whole body tingled and hummed with the power that she was absorbing, slowly draining the cloud and the sparks until she found herself floating in a single patch of clear blue sky.

Starlit felt like she could fly from here to her home and back, such was the vibrating intensity of the energy inside of herself, and just when it felt ready to burst out of her she touched her spectral horn to the crystal and drained off the excess into it.

There was a crack and boom of thunder as a bolt of bright blue lightning shot out of her horn on contact. The immense sound left Starlit's ears ringing and she was briefly blinded by the flash, but when she regained her senses she saw that the ruined spear was sparking with blue electricity and the stone itself was now swirling with deep blue mist.

Starlit held the spear up to the light, feeling the crackle of its power running through her own magic as it set her fur on edge, before turning her attention to the shimmering cloud of orange a few dozen yards away. Even from that distance she could feel the warmth of its radiance dapple across her face, and when she dove into it she felt as if she were being wrapped in a warm blanket fresh from the laundry line.

With another focusing of her magic she drew the radiance away from herself and into the spear, and when Starlit could draw down no more the warmth shifted to bitter cold before an eruption of light and heat burst forth from the crystal. She could feel her face and chest get singed from the shear heat, but her pain was well rewarded when Starlit saw the swirl of orange dancing next to the blue inside the crystal.

Twice more Starlit traversed a cloud of magic, the first one cool and calming to wade through, only for a stinging, biting blast of cold that sent shudders of sadness and longing through her heart when she pulled the magic into the black crystal. The second felt familiar; Starlit knew the haze of magenta was Twilight's magic as she siphoned it away and stored it with a bright flash of light, the wave of energy slightly restorative to her battered form.

Even with the quick refreshment of her energy, Starlit's horn stump ached and her wings felt leaden when she finally landed back down at Sun's body. She quickly held the spear out in her magic in front of the assembled alicorns.

"Your magic, contained and ready to use," Starlit said through gasping breaths. "Heal him like you promised, there's one last thing I have to do."

Starlit dropped the spear with a clang of metal and clink of stone before turning on her hoof and marching back to the castle. She wasn't going to expend any more energy trying to fly, for she had more important things to spend her precious energy on.

"What are you going to do?" Twilight called out.

"Release the stranglehold that you all have held on Equestria, once and for all," Starlit answered.

* * *

Twilight held the spear aloft in what little magic she had left, watching with a knot forming in her guts as Starlit marched back to the palace. Twilight's heart hammered as Starlit marched away, purpose guiding her every hoofstep.

"Twilight, are we doing this?" Cadance asked, drawing Twilight from her stupor.

Twilight cast a glance to her left and right, taking in her fellow Princesses for what might be the last time as she had come to know them.

"We are," Twilight answered softly, laying the stone onto Sun's chest.

"She's going to destroy the Heart of Fate, isn't she?" Celestia asked, her eyes still fixed on Starlit.

"Almost certainly," Twilight answered again as she reached out to the vestiges of her magic locked within the black stone.

"That seems like the sort of thing we should be stopping," Luna chimed in. "If she destroys it then magic will run wild in Equestria."

"As if things were much better when we were controlling it," Cadance replied, a sheen of pale blue illuminating her horn. "We were all fools to think we could control that which shouldn't be."

A silence hung in the air, save for the hum of magic as all four alicorns started to manipulate and siphon the magic from the black stone back into themselves. Twilight could feel her old power churn and roil inside her body, a familiar and delightful sensation that she was sad she would probably never feel again.

"Do you think the ponies of Equestria will do alright without us?" Luna asked to nopony in particular, a slight strain to her voice.

"Even if they don't, it won't be up to us anymore," Celestia answered as golden light began to suffuse her body. "Why worry about it when it won't be our problem any more?"

"We've spent so long blighting the country, it just feels wrong to fade into the annals of history," Luna answered back, her body now glowing a deep blue as her eyes transformed into teal, cat-slit eyes.

"We'll still have time after this, though," Cadance said, her mane beginning to levitate as an glowing aura of frost wove through its strands. "Won't we, Twilight?"

"We should, but only as long as the average pony," Twilight answered, her voice echoing with power as her eyes began to glow solid magenta. "So, maybe another fifty or sixty years, if we're lucky."

"That should be time enough to get Equestria back on its hooves," Cadance said, the frost now coating her body as steam exhaled with every breath she took. "What say we spend our final years wandering around, helping the places we've neglected for so long?"

All three pairs of eyes looked to Cadance, and for the first time that Twilight could recall she saw a smile dance across her sister-in-law's face. There was hope in her slowly frosting eyes, and Twilight couldn't help but feel a burst of happiness at the suggestion.

"It would be nice to see new places after so long cooped up in the monuments to our own folly," Celestia suggested. "Maybe I could give the desert some help, work the land and plant a few groves before my time is up."

"There is still quite a bit of political turmoil in New Selene that I could attend to," Luna admitted, "and my technological acumen would certainly be a boon to them."

"What about you, Twilight?" Cadance asked. "How will you spend the rest of your life?"

Twilight looked down at Sun's body, then out towards the palace that Starlit was now deeply ensconced in. The world was about to turn, and everything she thought she knew had been torn down and replaced with the terror of uncertainty.

"I'm going to travel and learn," Twilight answered, eyes still transfixed to the middle distance. "There is so much that I don't know about; about the world we ruined, about struggle and hardship, and friendship and compassion. I need to learn, and more than that, I need to use what I learn to help others."

Twilight's glowing eyes fell back to Sun's body, the magic now siphoned out of the spear save for the simple, fluttering grey sprite of magic in the black crystal.

"But first we need to help that simple, stubborn unicorn," Twilight continued. "After all of the pain and agony we've put her through, this is the least that we could do."

"I couldn't agree more," Celestia chimed in.

"It's a shame that we had to do this badly to learn this lesson, though," Luna said. "There must certainly be better ways to figure out that selflessness and humility are worth the effort."

"Then we had better get to work on figuring out those better ways," Cadance replied. "Are you ready?"

Twilight nodded before lifting the spear off of Sun's body, pointing the crystalline tip down towards his heart. With a deep breath as her magic swirled inside of her, Twilight let out a beam of magic and connected it to the crystal. She could feel her energy mix with the natural magic of the shard, before it refracted through the crystal and made a translucent, grayish spotlight covering Sun's body.

A beam of dark blue impacted the crystal, followed by a beam of periwinkle and a beam of orange, and with each new source of magic the grey spotlight grew brighter and brighter. The energy from the crystal hurt to look at, and Twilight could feel her energy being sapped and drained away, the churning of her magic fading away as she emptied everything she could into making this spell work.

Second after interminable second passed as the magic, refracted through the prism of the black stone, poured into Sun's dead form, and Twilight knew that she was giving more than her soul could take. They would all be changed to make this spell work, but it would give an innocent stallion another chance that he deserved far more that Twilight's own second chance. A tear rolled down her cheek as she felt the spell finally come to an end, and with a crack of finality the black stone shattered into a fine, grey dust.

Twilight looked down at Sun as the dust alighted on his body, sparkling like starlight as it sank into his burgundy fur. Twilight's eyes flicked to her fellow Princesses as she waited to see if the spell worked, and her heart ached when she saw what had happened to all of them, and by proxy to herself as well.

Celestia had the most dramatic change, having lost her wings and horn and shrinking to half of her normally statuesque height. The pastel rainbow of her hair was gone, replaced with a simple light pink that provided a bit of color to her milk-white coat. The only thing that remained unchanged were her vivid purple irises, as even her jawline and eye sockets had warped to a more round and soft shape.

Luna hadn't had an appreciable change in size, only shrinking by about half of a head, but her coat had lightened considerably to a neutral midnight blue. Her mane and tail had both turned into a dusty, pale blue color as opposed to the floating field of stars it normally was, and her horn had vanished completely, leaving her only with her wings

Cadance, having been the only naturally born alicorn among them, was the only one to keep her wings and her horn. Instead she simply shrank to the point that she was shorter even than Luna, and her mane and tail had lost its tricolor of pink, purple, and yellow, leaving it only as a light purple with a few stray streaks of yellow and pink. Her mane also hung down over her face, obscuring her vision before she pushed it aside with a hoof.

"Did it work?" Luna asked, her voice now higher and with a slight lisp.

Twilight looked back down at Sun, the remnant dust from the shard having sunk completely into his body. He was still and silent, and for a moment Twilight feared that it had all been for naught.

With a low, shuddering gasp Sun drew in a breath, his eyes fluttering open. A smile flew across Twilight's face, followed by a long, low rumble deep beneath them that told Twilight all she had needed to know about Starlit's status.

* * *

Starlit slowly marched into the chamber that housed the Heart of Fate, now the only piece of it that she knew was outside of a pony's mind and not contained in her spear. It thrummed and beat, sending pulses of grey light across the ruined equipment and furniture in the cavern.

Wasting no time, Starlit carved a circle into the stony floor with her spectral horn, drawing in the sigils with carefully shot magic. On completion she poured a few motes of magic into the lines and raised a ward around herself, a shimmering dome of teal littered with her runes and lines to reinforce it. She would need protection for what she was about to do.

Taking a deep breath to calm her shaking knees and fluttering heart, Starlit stood resolute and carefully put the barest tip of her horn beyond the ward. With a great inhalation, Starlit shot a brilliant lance of teal light at the Heart, impacting with a resolute crack of magic striking magic.

"You know not what you are doing," the Heart protested as it fought back, using the voice of Starlit's grandmother to try and cow her.

"I know exactly what I'm doing," Starlit countered as she poured the energy into the first initial crack. "You aren't going to keep the world shackled to you any more."

"What you see as a shackle around the world is in fact a leash on magic! Without us then magic will run wild! Forests will grow uncontrolled, storms will assail you, and tyranny will reign based solely on who is given the most power by chance!"

Starlit shot another pulse of magic, widening the cracks in the Heart's surface as it let out a low groan of pain.

"For too long ponies have been under the thrall of those who held power over them," Starlit replied. "Whether it be Princesses stealing magic to prop themselves up or you forcing us to stay under your hoof, we have never been given a choice. We were never allowed to live how we truly wanted, never allowed to control our own destines, and that ends now. I have the power to end this, and that's what I'm going to do."

"Freedom is a curse! An illusion that the weak use to make themselves feel better about their position in the order of things! You don't truly want freedom, you just want power like everypony else!"

"If you were actually my grandmother, then you would know that that is a lie. You have nothing to offer me that I don't already have."

"You have nothing!" The Heart roared back. "You are weak, trying to destroy us with stolen magic! You are no alicorn, you are no Princess, and you certainly aren't powerful enough to destroy us!"

Another pulse of magic followed by another further split the Heart, this time a roar of pain echoing out through the cavern as Starlit fell to a knee as she kept the beam going.

"I may just be a unicorn, but I know that you can do nothing to hurt me," Starlit countered, rising to her hooves again as she could feel her borrowed magic drain out of her body. "I have a home, a family, and a life after all of this, and that's enough for me."

Pulse after pulse of magic travelled down the beam of magic linking Starlit to the Heart, and with each impact the Heart screamed and cried in pain. Every pulse drained more and more of Starlit's power, but she knew that it would all be worth it.

Just as Starlit's legs finally gave out completely, she sent one final burst of magic racing along the failing beam of magic. The Heart's surface was a cracked and pitted mess, leaking grey energy into the air like smoke from a fire, and when the final pulse of magic struck its surface a thunderous roar exploded from the massive black crystal. Grey energy streamed out in every direction, buffeting and battering against Starlit's pre made ward until, as swiftly as it had begun, the light ceased and the Heart crumbled into a pile of grey, pitted rocks.

* * *

Sun's head pounded and his bones ached as he sat in front of the assembled Princesses, if they could even be called that now. All four of them were, for lack of a better word, much more normal than he remembered; only Cadance was still an alicorn, and Twilight was about on eye level with him as opposed to being almost a head taller than he was.

Sun remembered nothing from after he left the Changeling Hive, but Twilight had done her best to fill him in. She seemed far more contrite than Sun remembered, especially when she described her role in what had happened. Sun did his best to listen attentively, but couldn't help but keep his gaze from flitting between the four ponies as he took in their new forms.

"You gave everything up just for me?" Sun asked as Twilight wrapped up the events of the last few days.

"For you and for Starlit," Twilight answered. "She's done more for the four of us than we've ever done for her, so it only seemed right."

"I… I really don't know how to thank you for this."

"You could start by just living a good life," Cadance replied, pulling the mane out from in front of her face. "After all the pain that you've been through, you deserve it."

"Here, let me help you," Sun said as he took his cloak in his teeth. With a quick jerk of his neck he tore off a long strip and handed it to Cadance.

"For your hair," Sun added.

Cadance quickly tied her mane back, exposing her now thinner face. She still had some of her former beauty, but now in a much more homey and understated way.

The clack of hooves on stone behind him drew Sun's attention, and his heart skipped a beat as he saw Starlit walking down the steps. Her horn was missing, as was his own, and she walked slowly and carefully in shaking legs, but overall she seemed alright.

Sun stood up when Starlit stepped onto the gravel at the base of the stairs, and before he even knew what he was doing he had run over to her and wrapped her up in a tight hug.

"I've missed you so much," Sun said through tears as Starlit returned his embrace.

Starlit didn't reply, only letting a low, joyous sob leave her lungs as they both sank to the gravel, holding each other tight. Relief, grief, and weariness all washed over the two friends as they took each other in through tear-filled eyes, seeing every scrape, bruise, and cut from their time apart.

"At least we still match," Sun said with a nervous chuckle, gesturing to Starlit's horn stump. "I wonder what Eclipse is going to think."

"You had better just hope Warden's alright with this," Starlit countered. "We used to be a matched set, after all."

"I'm sure he'll be alright. I got you back mostly unharmed, after all," Sun replied.

With a shared laugh of relief, Starlit turned towards the former Princesses, now just ponies, an expression of gratitude written across her face.

"Thank you," Starlit said. "The Heart of Fate has been destroyed, for whatever that means."

"Then this is a new age for Equestria," Twilight replied. "One that I'm glad I'm here to see."

"What will you all do now?" Sun asked. "You don't have the power or the claim to rulership anymore, so where do you go from here?"

"We're going to spend what time we have left traveling the country," Cadance said, "trying to help Equestria come into this new age with its best hoof forward."

"And we wouldn't have this opportunity to right the wrongs of our pasts without the two of you who, despite everything, showed us mercy and kindness when we didn't deserve either," Luna chimed in.

"That sounds like a plan, then," Sun replied before looking to Starlit. "I think the two of us are going to go home, though."

"That sounds about right," Starlit said as she started to walk towards the ruined gates. "I've about had it with world-changing adventures."

Sun quickly followed behind Starlit, taking care to not stumble as he got his legs back under himself, with Celestia following at his side and the other three taking up the rear.

"Speaking of homes," Celestia said, "do you think there might be a place for me where you're from? I wanted to help revitalize the land around the Searing Plains, but I will need a place to stay."

"I'm sure there's a place in Appleoosa for you, but you'd better be prepared for Applejack to put you to work," Sun answered, still getting used to not having to look up at Celestia.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Celestia answered before falling back with the other three former Princesses.

Sun caught up with Starlit, who for the first time that he could remember actually looked like she was at peace. Sun opened his mouth to speak, but thought better of it. He was tired, as was she, and right now he felt that they could both do with nothing but a bit of quiet.

There would be time for talking later.

* * *

PreviousChapters
Comments ( 23 )
JMP

... So how are they all getting home?

Anyway, this was a fantastic story and it was a pleasure to be along for the ride.

The loss of 4 immortals for one normal life is... a questionable decision at best. But I guess they had to make some final gesture. It's certainly not something I would ever consider.

10735366
... Look, willing suspension of disbelief has to count for something, right?

Thanks for the compliment, and the epilogue will probably clear a few things up.

10735374
I like to think that a pretty consistent theme of this story has been “what are you willing to lose to make things right”, and that moment is probably the greatest example of that I could think of. They still have some time to get things going on the right foot, but ultimately they willingly gave up their power to both pay Starlit back for all of the faith she placed in them, and because they understand that their time is over whether they want it to be or not. I like to think of it as a “the elves leaving for the Grey Havens” moment; the old order of the world is falling away, and now is the time for ponies to prove their worth outside of the purview of gods and princesses.

JMP

10735380
Epilogue? You marked the story as complete.

10735381
It's funny you mention that. That concept was something I also had a great many issues with, especially because the Elves didn't bother to even start fixing the mess that was in large part their own. 'Nope, we're out, toodles.'.

But my personal opinions don't matter. Everything that happened here is internally consistent and well-said. Thank you for guiding us on this journey, and a separate thank you for not abandoning your creation like many other would.

10735524
That’s just for the main story, the epilogue isn’t really necessary for it, but serves as a bit more of a “happily ever after” compared to the final chapter. Sorry for the confusion.

10735555
And thats why I specifically had the decision to use what time they have left to try and fix up some of what they did come from within their ranks. It was ultimately their own choice, after seeing how much struggle and pain Starlit put herself through trying to fix things, to follow he example set before them with and use their knowledge to set the world they nearly destroyed on the right track before they go.

Time for healing and new beginnings.

This was an enjoyable story, thank you.:twilightsmile:

Is it really completed?

Well, I just found this story, and boy am I glad I did. It was a fun journey, even if I'm still a bit on the fence as to how I feel about the ending for Twilight.

Though I can't help but question, what about the fragments of the Heart of Fate that Twilight implanted in everyone? If I understood correctly, these are the things that cause everyone's magic to be weak. Is there anything to it in the epilogue, did I miss some fragment about those, or is everyone doomed to eternity of weak magic?

I wouldn't also mind hearing more about the ponies in the areas where Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy live. They are either unaffected or have negated the influence of the magic-eating shards. While we know the reasoning behind Sun and other ponies in Appleoosa having more magic, all we got about one of these groups is "we have these crystals, fuck knows where those came from". I wouldn't mind hearing about how or why of both these. Will those go unexplained?

That's it! I'm glad I was able to witness an ending to this remarkable story. Solid plot, smart main character, good side characters and locations full of their own atmosphere. Nice job PJ, the ride was worth it. Gonna reread it all soon. Best of wishes to you, for this good piece of fiction.

I've enjoyed the way this story started.
I've liked the first two parts.
Then I was just generally ok with it.
Started to dislike it starting with the introduction of the Spike Sublot, to the extent of the full-stop drop of the story at the start of part 5.
Now I've read the Epilogue - And well, it's a disappointment.
Certainly, It's just me, but I always hated this theme, and it just hits all of the buttons to trigger it to the maximum effect.

Thanks for the efforts.
GLHF.

10739892
Well, ya can’t please them all. Thanks for your candor, and sorry that I couldn’t reach your specifications with my writing.

10742003
Eh, Preferences are individual and it can't really be helped. I got used to the eventual disappointment in the vast majority of cases nowadays.

It still is a good story, and I certainly enjoyed some parts of it. Hope it was enjoyable to write and added experience to your writing skill =)

Sun quickly followed behind Starlit, taking care to not stumble as he got his kegs back under himself, with Celestia following at his side and the other three taking up the rear.

I could be wrong but shouldn't this be 'legs'? I mean perhaps it's local slang from where Sun comes from or perhaps he's the metaphorical pack mule (no offense to any mules).


This was a great story, I might have been a bit confused on certain aspects or character decisions but nevertheless this is one I wouldn't mind having on my real-world bookshelf if you ever considered going that route. I'll be looking forward to the epilogue and might see if I can bug Obabscribbler into looking at this amazing story.

I swear there was a epilogue yesterday but either way it was a great story

Is it just me or is the table of contents in the epub version of this novel broken for anyone else?

Ah, another story nice and well finished. It's only... 5:40 in the morning... Welp, I took far too long reading this story, and now that I am properly satisfied in finishing this story I can sleep.

I did it. After months of procrastinating and putting off reading it, I finally finished the story that started it all. The story that I saw got updated on that one Equestria Daily post and brought me to FIMFiction in the August of 2019, allowing me to discover the wonders of this website. Thank you very, very much, Mr PortalJumper, for your work.

Wow i should have read this sooner.
Loved it.

So, where is the epilogue?
Seems that it was removed...
Otherwise, an excellent story, even if at times a bit confusing. One that I will be rereading many times in the future.

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