Epilogue
One year later, Twilight and Applejack met upon the path leading to the old schoolhouse.
They nodded hello and fell into step, plodding toward the school. Autumn leaves rustled underhoof. The path had begun to sprout grass, for want of use.
"How does Apple Bloom like the new teacher?" Twilight said at last.
"Fine," Applejack said. "Miss Scribbler is fine."
"Well, good. And the new schoolhouse?"
"It's nothin' like the old one. That's what matters."
Silence fell again. A moment later, the two emerged from the edge of a copse of trees, and the old school came into view. But for the unkept grass and bushes around it, and the mildew on the windows, it looked nearly ready to open. The two mares stopped at the bottom of the hillock, and remembered.
"I've decided what will be done," Twilight said.
"That's good," Applejack said. There was no gladness nor edge nor affect in her voice. She merely said it.
"The schoolhouse and grounds will be preserved in perpetuity. So will the houses of..." A little crease appeared on Twilight's forehead and was gone just as quickly. "... The victims. Each will have memorials, and there will be a historical marker here." She indicated a prominent spot on the lawn, near to the path.
"What'll it say?"
"I'm working on that—researching how markers are written." Twilight's gaze drifted up, as if to avoid looking at the battleground too long. "It has to be perfect."
"What good will it do?" This time, a little harshness crept into Applejack's tone.
Twilight looked to her friend, blinking in surprise. "What do you mean?"
"You build a memorial. Fine." Applejack glared a little and pointedly stared forward. "What good does it do?"
"Everypony will know what happened."
"Doesn't do our dead much good, does it." Applejack's words were flat.
Twilight took a long breath before answering. "What do you suggest?"
"I don't know." Applejack began to study the ground between her forehooves. "It happened, and all we can say is we stopped it before it killed anyone else. But what's even the point of it all? Nopony gained anything; nopony would be worse off if it had never happened. Apple Bloom..." She shut her eyes tight, and her voice cracked. "She has night terrors, Twilight. I don't know if they'll ever stop. And she still hasn't tried to talk to her friends again."
Slow, with utmost tenderness, Twilight extended one wing, draped it over Applejack's shoulders, leaned close, and spoke softly. "You're right. That's why this is important. The old zebra shamans' hiding of the truth didn't work; we won't make their mistake. Because everyone will know we destroyed that thing, it will never be able to come back again. The truth will serve as a warning to all people not to let themselves be destroyed by ideas."
At the last word, Applejack's eyes flew open, and she wrenched away from Twilight's embrace. Her next words were spoken through gritted teeth. "You call that thing an 'idea'?"
Twilight spoke quickly and waved a foreleg in an allaying gesture. "Applejack, tulpas are ideas! There are good ideas and there are bad ones. This wasn't the first time ponies have been killed because of a bad idea."
"So?" Anger and sorrow were wrapped in a single word.
Twilight hung her head. "So, there is something else that we can do—that we must do. The Bearer of Kindness is dead, but did Kindness die with her?"
Before Applejack could answer, the schoolbell rang.
Both ponies jumped in surprise, and as the air around them vibrated, Applejack dashed into the schoolhouse while Twilight flitted up to perch on the roof beside the short bell-tower. They searched inside and out, and they disturbed the year's layer of dust, and they flung open every door and cupboard.
But no one was there.
Meeting outside the door a few minutes later, they looked first at each other, then up at the tower, then back, each expecting the other to remark on what had just happened. At last, Applejack turned and began to proceed down the path.
"Come on, Twilight."
"Where?"
"I think the others might be in need of company."
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Such a strange, unsettling ending...
I can't tell if it's meant to be hopeful, like maybe the bell was a sign from Fluttershy or Cheerilee, or if it's a sign that maybe the monster they put down isn't really gone.
Definitely an interesting Halloween-style story for the season, Horse Voice. Thanks for it!
Titanium Dragon is going to love this story because you murderized poor, dear Fluttershy.
It did a good job being a serious treatment of Krastos, for sure. Spooky and unsettling and vaguely depressing, which I mean...it should be. So kudos, HV. Kudos.
A good read, but I think it would have benefitted from being again as long. Horror that happens so fast that no real sense of dread or desperation can develop just isn't quite as strong.
Glue? Fucking gl—oh. Oh I see how it is.
Well, shit, that was bleak. D:
Actually quite like that ending -- if I'm reading it right, it's the exact inversion of the original tulpa: Kindness or some other force, believed in by Twilight et al., protecting the town from future invasion. Heh -- imagine, with the right magicks, you could build a nation on something like that. Perhaps even Friendship . . . ?
8342533
It may not have been a hit, but at least the theme is clear. Thanks for the feedback.
¡Darned CMC! ¡Always waking monsters!
Fuller review here, but in brief: a silly premise turned into a genuine chiller. I was scared, I was upset, I was even angry with a character at the end (speak Fluttershy's damn name, Twilight!), but I always kept reading. Faved.
8939787
Much thanks for the feedback!
Yes, I recall you mentioning that you were wary of this one. Regarding Twi's behavior, I must confess I can't actually remember why I decided to have her act that way. Perhaps I thought she was having trouble reaching the acceptance stage. I do not think I would be quite so cruel these days.
It is gratifying to see this story garner praise from critics, as it was largely ignored by the reading public on release. Believe it or not, this was the first pony story idea I ever got, way back in 2011, but did not then have the writing chops to make it work. There was a lot of brainstorming, throwing ideas away, and incorporating new canon over and over again. In the end, nearly all my accolades have come from stories I wrote as practice for this one. But reviews like yours make the effort worthwhile.
This was fun. It lived up to the hype you built for it, and it was properly spooky. I had a great time!
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Oh, I know. It was a silly thought
9079167
Thank you, thank you! This one may have been a numerical flop on release, but comments like this make the effort worthwhile.
Very scary and well done!!! Made me sad though
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