Final Reign

by Lise

Everlasting Twilight

"My little ponies," Twilight called out from the castle tower. Below, hundreds of thousands had gathered to hear her, filling the space from the Imperial square to the surrounding blocks. "I don't have to tell you about suffering and sacrifice. You feel that every day. What I want to talk to you about is hope."

Twilight's horn shone a magnificent blue. The whispers in the crowd stopped. All eyes were focused on the light radiating from the alicorn's spell, its rays almost as bright as the fading sun.

"We are at war with Equestria, but it wasn't always so." A large aethereal image of Princess Celestia appeared above the tower. "We had a ruler—a glorious, noble ruler who protected Equestria and all its subjects. Most of you might not remember, but her name was Princess Celestia. She was your Princess of the Sun, ruler of Equestria...and my mentor." Twilight paused to blink away the beginnings of a tear in her eye. Her mentor may have been the last true noble, the last one who truly tried to protect everypony; she had been wise, capable, kind, and caring. Twilight did her best to fill those shoes herself, despite their impossible size.

Not now. Twilight clenched her jaw. There weren't supposed to be tears today. Not when she was addressing the crowd. War and rations had hurt the crystal ponies enough. With love and magic fading as well, they needed hope more than ever before.

"She was the one who gave your Princess wings," Twilight continued. "She was the one who gave me wings." The image of Celestia was replaced by that of Twilight’s coronation ceremony. There had been so much joy back then—thousands of ponies had galloped to Canterlot to witness the event. Millions more had listened to it in their homes. If even half of a tenth of one percent of that joy could reach the hearts of the ponies gathered below, Twilight would be ecstatic. "And she still lives on."

The most difficult part of the speech—telling a lie in a way that it became truth. Twilight had plenty of practice in that, but each time she felt as is a piece of her heart was torn off. Why can't I tell them the truth? Why are they so fragile? She had tried to do it once in a small village. All of the ponies there were her friends; they had held her trust, and were strong enough to take it. Or so she had thought. An hour after her fateful speech, the entire village was gone. Those who hadn't killed themselves had gone mad, charging at each other with murderous intent. Twilight had been forced to erase the village from the map. A broad crater marked its location now—a symbol of her eternal regret and a constant reminder of her folly.

"The Tyrant couldn't kill her." Drops of sweat formed on Twilight's forehead. Maintaining complicated magic spells of such magnitude was taxing even for her. "That's beyond him. He wants everypony to believe he did. That way he can plunge Equestria into despair and rule it." Just a few seconds longer. Twilight gritted her teeth. "The wars, the light rations, the lack of dreams, all is to drive you into despair. He doesn't control love or magic, and that frightens him." Her left hind leg was beginning to tremble under the pressure. "But above all he is terrified of hope, because he knows that if you have it he'll never be able to conquer you!"

The aether image vanished. Shouts and cheers filled the air. letting out a sigh of relief, Twilight looked at the crystal ponies. They were happy, as much as anypony could be in a dying, fading world. Waving to the crowd, she turned around and walked into the tower. That was enough talking for one day.

"How did it go?" a weak voice asked from the bed at the far end of the room.

"Well enough." Twilight stretched. "It will keep them going for a few weeks. Months if we're lucky." She went to the table and poured herself a glass of water. It tasted bland, just as the rest of Equestria. "I'll do better next time. A few minor tweaks to the spell and—"

"There'll be no next time," the voice interrupted.

Twilight froze. The magic round her glass vanished, leaving it to fall to to the falls, smashing into pieces. No, not yet. She glanced at the bed. Wrapped in a robe of spider silk, leaning against her pillow a figure looked at her. Once this had been a pony, a close friend, one she trusted, one she depended on; now she was more ghost than pony, barely connected to the world.

"You knew it was coming," the figure said, a faint purple glow flickering at her every word. "You'll be fine, though. I trust you'll be fine."

"But..." Twilight moved closer to the bed. "I could use more magic. If I—"

"Hush." The figure leaned forward. In the darkness a faint contour became visible. "You'll need it more than I do. The ponies will need it."

"They need you!" Twilight shouted. "Not some fake who shakes her flanks from a balcony! Without you they are lost. Without you, Blueblood..." She stopped. There was nothing worse than stating the obvious. But what else could she do? Her lips trembled. She shut her eyes again, determined not to let her tears show.

"Starlight," the figure whispered. "My student. My ever faithful student. You aren't a fake. Without you, the Empire would have fallen years ago. Without you I wouldn't have had time to complete my spell...my final spell."

"But—"

"No buts, not this time." The voice sounded amused, almost as if the figure was smiling. "Can you do me a favor? Please take your normal form. I'd like to look at you as you were before I go."

Twilight nodded. Silent, she took a step back and raised her head. A single spark of magic appeared on the tip of her horn, growing larger and larger until it covered her entire body. A bluish-purple light shimmered around her. Her wings twisted off her back, disappearing in flash of green flames that went on to consume her crown, her face, her turn. Seconds later Twilight was gone, and a pinkish-purple unicorn stood in her place.

"Changeling magic," the figure said. "I'm a little sad I never got to learn that. I think it would have been interesting."

"But why can't you stay?" the unicorn asked, tears shimmering as they trickled down her muzzle. Now that she was Twilight no more, the gates that kept her emotions in check were gone. Now she could finally cry. "Why must you go?" She placed her head on the specter's shoulder and wept.

"My sweet Starlight." A smile shone in the darkness. "I’m already too far gone. The sickness took my sight, my feeling, my touch. Apart from yourself, I can't perceive ponies anymore. Even Shining is like a blur. In a few more years they will vanish completely, leaving me in an empty world." She moved Starlight's head off her shoulder. "Blueblood was wrong. I can see that now. Nothing can save Equestria. It was foolish to try. We could have had a few years of joy, then gone to sleep as we should."

"You should have let me kill him," Starlight hissed.

"No. He would have killed you like he did my friends." There was a pause. "I should have killed him."

You could have, Starlight thought. Before Blueblood had become the Tyrant, his understanding of magic had been a joke. Even with wings, he was no match for the Princess of Magic. Yet Twilight had believed in his plan, and had devoted her time and energy to finding a way to save everyone—a greater spell, a more powerful artifact, an ancient being. Starlight had helped as much as she could, but as her mentor transformed into a being of pure magic, she couldn't keep up. The difference had become too large, but it didn't matter one bit. Twilight had gone through all the variables, asked all the questions, considered all the options, and learned the truth: there was no answer.

"And I will," the specter added.

Starlight looked away. The message was clear.

"I want you to leave," the specter went on. "Leave the castle, leave the Empire, go somewhere where nopony will find you. After years of being me you've earned some time for yourself. Enjoy it and help all you can."

"Easy for you to say." You didn't cause all your friends to die.

"Life's like that. It's always easier for everypony else." Soft laughter followed. "You were very close to me. My first student, my last student. It saddens me we couldn't have spent more time together as equals."

Shut up! Silent tears trickled down Starlight's cheeks.

"I know it's too much to ask, but can you do me one last favour?" The specter glowed. "Cast a spell on me. I want to be Twilight one last time."

One last spell, Starlight thought. She never imagined she'd be the one to cast it. Taking a deep breath, she concentrated. The spell was simple but demanding. Rays of magic light blasted from her horn onto the specter, giving it form and substance. Hooves formed, followed by a head, a pair of wings attached to a slightly plump body. Starlight continued, bathing the specter in light until her entire body was visible.

There. The spell ended abruptly, bringing Starlight to the floor. Gasping for air, she tried to push herself back up. Her legs fought her, but a minute’s effort brought her up onto her hooves. Shivers passed through her body—the specific type of cold one got from using too much magic. It couldn't compare to the alicorn plague, though.

"You've been a perfect me." Twilight placed a wing over her former student’s back. "Now go be yourself. And please tell my brother to see me. I need to give him something."

Starlight nodded. Her mentor stood in front of her as if she had not aged a day since since they started working together. And yet even as they hugged she felt so very distant, almost as if she wasn't there at all. Starlight whispered a "thank you" in her ear, then left the room. Floating down the stairwell, she cast a spell. A brilliant magic aura mixed with the light of the torches. When her hooves touched the base of the tower, she was no more—there was only Twilight.

"Equestria will always need Princess Twilight," Starlight whispered as she trotted through the crystal corridor. "And they will have her. Always!"

Comments

[Xzrea]

8047354
He only managed to hide a sliver of the old world away from whatever happens. Nothing more.

Nice twist with Twilight here. I wonder, did she see that there is really no answer ... or maybe she wasn't ready to accept what answer there is?

[The oracle]

So, the student has become the teacher, or at least become the memory of her.

[josue]

More

[The Great Derpsby]

8078201
We don't know if he could only manage so little, or if he was so arrogant he didn't think he'd need to do more. As for Twilight... I'm wondering if what she's planning isn't a mercy kill. Blueblood is causing wide-spread suffering through his desperate attempts to keep the world alive—including to himself. He's sacrificing everyone and everything, perhaps it's less cruel to kill him now and let him believe you've robbed him of the change to save Equestria instead of him realising he's tortured and murdered and betrayed for nothing.