• Published 29th Oct 2017
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Songs of the Spheres - GMBlackjack

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007 - Spectacularium

In a world not far removed from Equestria, the sun shone down on the landscape, blanketing the lush greenery with a slight azure tint. The sky was a simple blue, adorned with a small gathering of wispy clouds and a filament of blue-purple magic coursing through the heavens from north to southwest, shifting with an aurora effect. The aurora’s soft glow was easily trumped by the intense light of the sun, but magical reflections would occasionally flash through the shadows of large trees, bringing light to dark locations. The land itself was covered in lush grass and tall evergreen trees, the edge of a mountain forest. A single dirt road ran through the landscape, meandering around the landscape at a mostly constant elevation. It deviated from its level course only to circumvent a small stone obelisk covered in violet glowing runes.

The Mirror Portal connected to a loose rock a fair ways from the mysterious obelisk. Five ponies stepped into the new world, ready for anything the world might throw at them.

“Another day, another world,” Starlight said, looking around with a smile on her face. She crossed her eyes to look at her horn – it was buzzing slightly. “There’s a lot of magic here.”

“No kidding…” Twilight said, looking at her own horn with concern. “It’ll be really easy to channel too much energy here…”

Starlight cast a simple light spell and instead conjured a ball of magic with the light intensity of the sun. She quickly dispelled it but she had already blinded everypony.

“Starlight!” Rarity wailed. “What did you do!?”

“Too much magic,” Starlight muttered, rubbing her eyes. “Our sight should come back in a few seconds. Ow…”

Pinkie fell over. “Oof. It’s hard to bounce around when you can’t see.”

“Then stop bouncing around,” Fluttershy suggested.

“Silly Fluttershy! One does not simply stop bouncing around!” She fell over again. “Oof.”

Starlight squinted – she could make out shapes again. Rarity let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, good, grass. I never thought I’d be so happy to see grass.”

“Don’t go overboard and eat the strange grass,” Twilight warned.

“Already did!” Pinkie said, “It’s tasty!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Well… Still not easy to see, but we’re at the edge of a forest, evergreen. The air is very open and there’s an oversaturation of magic here. I don’t know if that’s just the way this world is or if we’re in a special location…”

“The sun’s blue,” Starlight said.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Starlight, that’s just your eyes-“

“The sun’s blue,” Starlight insisted, holding out her hoof and examining it. “I’m not seeing a normal pink tint here. I’m seeing a purple. You’re a much deeper purple than usual. And Pinkie’s violet.”

Twilight blinked. “…A blue sun… That doesn’t make any sense! Stars aren’t actually blue that’s just the name we give them! All stars emit colors across the entire spectrum! Even if there were a spike in blue it wouldn’t create this drastic a difference!”

“Other universe,” Rarity offered. “Maybe the stars here aren’t the same as stars in our world.”

“Isn’t our sun unusual anyway?” Starlight pointed out. “I mean, it’s smaller than all the others and Celestia controls it. Why should we expect every sun except our own to act like Earth’s?”

Twilight shrugged. “Good point. Maybe it’s just the saturation of magic that’s making it blue, I don’t know. But… it is definitely blue.” She poked the grass. “Makes the green things look bizarre.”

“I think it makes them taste better!” Pinkie cheered.

Starlight chuckled. “Your opinion has been noted.”

“Yay!”

Twilight pointed at the obelisk. “That looks interesting.”

Starlight squinted at the runic construct. It was composed of a smooth, dark stone and was twice her height. The violet runes didn’t care about the blue light blanketing over them, popping out as if they didn’t belong. She briefly wondered if their color was some kind of optical illusion, given how they seemed to shift as her eyes darted around the runic edges. There was also a much higher concentration of magic around the stone, extending up to the edge of the road.

“Looks like they built around its magic bubble,” Starlight said.

“I wonder why…” Twilight said, flying closer to the obelisk, careful not to enter its bubble. She examined the grass around it, noticing hundreds of tiny flowers growing in between the blades that weren’t in other patches of greenery.

“It makes flowers grow?” Fluttershy wondered aloud.

“Could be a side effect of the magic it’s producing,” Twilight said. “I can tell it’s something relating to life – a pure essence of some kind. It might just literally be producing a ‘flower’ spell pattern that’s so strong the area around it is sympathizing.”

“Uh… what?” Fluttershy asked.

“It’s making the area around it want to be flowers,” Twilight said. “It’s extremely strong and concentrated, more so than most magics in our world, and it seems to be very permanent.”

“Let’s take it home and study it,” Starlight said.

Rarity blinked. “Starlight, I don’t think it’s ours.”

“Nopony’s been around here for a long time. This road is unkempt and I don’t see any sign of habitation whatsoever. Nopony owns this thing. We could just take it and learn how to use it.”

Twilight furrowed her brow. “It would fit through the mirror portal… But I don’t know, it’s pretty powerful. Probably dangerous. I certainly don’t want my insides thinking they have to be flowers.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “I don’t think we should mess with it.”

“Oh come on Fluttershy!” Starlight said. “Where’s your sense of discovery? Look, it’ll be fine, watch.” She lit her horn and surrounded the obelisk in her telekinesis, careful not to channel too much energy. She tried to lift it up, but found it rooted firmly to the ground. “Well, this thing doesn’t want to move…”

“Stop!” Fluttershy called. “You could be defiling a grave for all we know!”

Starlight was about to retort when the obelisk’s runes flashed brighter for a moment. A dozen purple lights shot out of the obelisk and gathered together on top of the monument, forming a violet wireframe. The resulting being was essentially a skeleton of lights with four legs, a tail, and a head without any defining features. Flowers popped into existence all around it.

Starlight felt the magical bubble around the obelisk extend to encompass them. Her stomach did a flip-flop, a sure sign of it wanting to become a flower but not being able to comply. She didn’t let this deter her, however. She took advantage of the surge of magic to fire a laser at the beast. She made direct contact, but the power of her blast caused so much knockback she went flying into a nearby tree. The creature of violet light disintegrated into dozens of light shards, only to reform almost instantly.

Fluttershy squealed, running away. The creature tried to pursue her but was hit by a lesser laser from Rarity. It charged Rarity, only for Twilight to grab the creature in her telekinesis, holding it firm. “Stop it…”

The beast did not stop it. It unraveled itself, worming out of Twilight’s telekinesis in multiple parts, coming together behind her. It lunged for her neck with reckless abandon, crashing into a hasty magic shield with enough force to flatten itself. Any normal creature would have broken all its bones, but luckily for this beast, it didn’t have any bones. It reformed once again, ready to envelop Twilight in a snare of violet light.

A giant sword flew through the air, driving itself into the best’s framework. The beast shattered, trying to reform, but one of its strands was now stuck on the sword’s blade, struggling.

“Ah suggest you all get out of the circle like the yellow one did!” a familiar voice yelled. “The golem won’t stay down for long!”

Rarity didn’t need to be told twice – she ran first, followed closely by Pinkie. Twilight took a moment to think about what she’d just heard but quickly decided now was not the time for deep thinking.

Starlight took up the rear after recovering from her daze, glancing behind her to see the violet strand of the beast known as a golem free itself from the blade. It met with its brethren, forming into the full beast once more. It charged Starlight at full speed, managing to look ravenous despite not having a face.

Starlight raised a shield, easily smashing it. She leaped out of the circle just as it reformed, jumping after her – disintegrating into flowery dust the moment it tried to leave.

“Huh,” Starlight said. “…That was interesting.”

“It tried to kill us!” Rarity wailed. “How is that interesting!?”

“Have you ever seen anything like that? A creature made of strands of light?”

“Girls, we can talk about this later,” Twilight said. “We have somepony to thank.” She turned to their savior, using her telekinesis to grab the sword inside the magic circle and giving it back. The orange mare grabbed the sword with her hoof and put it on her back alongside another sword of similar construction. The mare looked exactly like the Applejack they knew, with only one major difference besides the swords.

She had two antlers.

The Applejack blinked. “…What’re you staring at?”

“The antlers,” Pinkie said, eyes wide.

“What, you never seen a deer before?”

Fluttershy cocked her head. “Uh… Well, not ones like you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Twilight cleared her throat. “We’re from really far away – another world in fact. One where the sun isn’t blue, where there aren’t golem-creatures made of light, and there aren’t deer-ponies.”

The Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Really!” Pinkie said. “We came through that shimmering portal in that rock right over there.”

“…Ah guess there is somethin’ there…” She walked over to it to investigate, sticking her head in. She pulled it out. “That… was a lot of crystal.”

“It’s my castle,” Twilight said. “A gift from the Tree of Harmony – do you have a Tree of Harmony here?”

“Ah have no idea,” she said. “Doesn’t ring a bell at least.”

Twilight nodded. “Well, I’m Princess Twilight Sparkle, this is Rarity, Starlight, Fluttershy, and Pinkie.”

“Your name sounds familiar…”

Twilight smirked. “There’s probably a version of me in this world with an identical or at least similar name.”

“There ain’t no way. Ponies don’t just have duplicates.”

“Your name is Applejack,” Starlight said.

“…How’d you know that?”

“We’ve met several versions of you. Granted, none of them are deer, but you still look like them.”

Applejack shrugged. “Ah guess that’s interestin’.”

“It really is!” Twilight squeed. “The differences between alternate versions of the same pony are always fascinating! I happen to know another me who’s a great scientist and another who’s a complete jerk!”

Applejack raised her eyebrow. “So, okay, you’re all from another world. Ah’ll accept that. Why on Lai did you come here and get attacked by a golem?”

“Exploring!” Twilight answered. “We’re here to explore, make friends, and help ponies where we can!”

“We need a better mission statement,” Starlight said.

“It is just a work in progress,” Fluttershy added.

Rarity pursed her lips. “I still think it should be ‘to discover and bestow beauty’.”

“Too cheesy,” Pinkie said. “What we need is a goal set around cheese itself!”

Starlight facehooved. “Pinkie…”

Applejack looked at each of them in turn. “This is perhaps the stupidest argument topic I’ve ever heard.”

Twilight blushed sheepishly. “Riiiight… Sorry about that, we’re still working out the kinks to this. We’ve only been doing this a month or two.”

“It shows.”

Starlight coughed. “Well, why don’t you tell us about your world? What’s it like here? What do the ponies do?”

Applejack looked at the blue sun and grimaced. “The world is in darkness and despair. Our lives are defined by a struggle that goes unnoticed by the evil Queen Luna, ruler of the ‘civilized’ world. She cares not for our struggles and stamps out any town that complains with her impressive army. My world is a place of slaughter – slaughter of my friends and family, and slaughter of the armies that assault us. It is my life’s quest to dethrone the Queen and bring in a new era of peace and harmony to our land.”

The group of five ponies stared at her blankly.

“Y’all are free to go running back to your home now, pretend like you never saw this place.”

Twilight shook her head. “We won’t do that. If there is an evil Queen hurting your world… We can help stop her.”

Pinkie nodded in agreement. “You betcha! We’re out here to be adventuring heroes! Basically what you are, but on a larger scale!”

Applejack shook her head. “All of those who have stood by my side have fallen. Ah wouldn’t dare let you risk your lives for something you don’t know.”

Pinkie pulled a giant hammer out of nowhere. “I’m pretty sure we can take care of ourselves.”

“And we can leave at any time,” Twilight said. “This world is close enough to ours that I can just open a portal under my own power.”

“And, among other things, the Tree of Harmony sent us here,” Rarity said. “Apparently it saw into this world and deemed there was a friendship problem that needed fixing.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Friendship problem?”

Starlight shrugged. “It’s a term we use to describe our missions. The Tree of Harmony wants ponies to get along. For all we know it could mean deposing your queen and restructuring your society with harmony in mind. That’s what happened when I was the ‘evil queen’ after all.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Come again?”

Starlight smiled nervously. “I brainwashed a town. They stopped me.”

“How in Lai can you let her travel with you?” Applejack asked Twilight.

Twilight smiled brightly. “She’s proven herself time and time again to be reformed. That thing with the town was deep in the past.”

“Not somethin’ Ah would do. Ah also wouldn’t talk about my dark past in the open like that, it’d give ponies the wrong idea.”

Starlight blinked. “You are probably right about that.”

Applejack sighed. “Well, it looks like Ah’m not goin’ to be able to get rid of you, so looks like you’re with me for a while.”

“What’s the plan?” Pinkie asked.

“There’s a town a couple miles to the north called Peri. There’s a sage there Ah’m going to meet who will give me the location of the Spectacularium now that Ah’ve accomplished all the tasks of purification.”

“…The Spectacularium?” Fluttershy asked.

“You really aren’t from ‘round here… It’s an ancient temple made of crystal that made many distinct prophecies in the deep past, all but a few of which have come true. It is the holder of all answers, and it will tell me the secret to defeating the Queen.”

“That sounds amazing,” Twilight said. “Do you think it’d answer our questions as well?”

“Maybe? Ah really don’t care, so long as it can tell me what Ah need to know.” She turned around. “Enough dilly-dallying. Ah’m ready to go. You can come or not.” She started walking without another word.

“She seems… nice,” Starlight said a few seconds later.

“She’s been through a lot,” Fluttershy said. “We should try to be understanding.”

Twilight nodded in agreement, setting off after Applejack without another word. They followed the winding path through the trees, leaving the obelisk and its violet lights behind, returning once again to a world shrouded in blue.

About a minute later Starlight felt the excess magic drop away to levels that were still high, but no longer absurd. “What just happened?”

“We just left the range of the Sigma Runes,” Applejack said. “There is a giant runic artifact inside that mountain that fills this entire area with power.”

“What exactly are these runic artifacts?”

“Ah dunno, they’ve just always existed, probably built in ancient times by somepony long forgotten. They shape the very landscape on which we walk. You’ll see what I mean when we enter the range of the Crusted Runes.”

“How long will it take us to get there?” Rarity asked.

“Right now,” Applejack said. They turned a bend in the path and the scenery abruptly changed. The mountainous forest gave way to a flattened desert. The change was so abrupt it looked like the mountains had chunks sliced off of them at the edge of the desert.

Fluttershy stuck a hoof into the desert. “There’s no moisture in the air at all over here…”

“Hope you girls can survive the heat, because we’ve got to walk through this area for the next hour or so.”

Starlight used her magic to summon bottles of water. “Ready.”

“Neat trick. Hope it works for you.”

“It will.”

~~~

Starlight chugged her tenth bottle. “How… How is it so dry…” She created another one and handed it to Fluttershy, who splashed it over her face.

Twilight gasped. “I think… The spell is one of dryness… So it’s drying us from the inside out…”

“Is drinking water even helping!?” Rarity wailed, downing another bottle.

“No,” Applejack said, still walking strong. “You just have to deal with the heat until it’s over.”

Twilight took a break from her drinking. “How are you okay?”

“I’m a deer. We are one with the environment. I’m more curious as to how Pinkie over there is just fine.”

Pinkie gasped like a fish. “I’m still dry as a bone!”

“And yet you were bouncing around like a ping-pong ball just a few minutes earlier. That is not a sign of dehydration.”

“And check,” Rarity said.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing big. It’s just that every adventure, a few things always happen. Chief among them is somepony questioning Pinkie. Word of advice: it never works, stop trying to understand her. …Stars, I wish I could tell that to everypony who’s about to ask.”

Pinkie pouted. “But Rarity, it’s fun when they’re baffled!”

“That may be true but it does get old for some of us after a while.”

Applejack shook her head. “You five make no sense collectively.”

Starlight doused her head in water. “Yeah, that’s not news to us.”

“How much longer until Peri...?” Rarity asked.

Applejack grunted. “Closer than last time you asked.”

“That doesn’t tell me anything!”

“Armonia’s will, you’re whiney.

“This is not whining, Applejack, this is complaining.

“You don’t want her to start whining,” Fluttershy warned.

Starlight blinked. “Wait, we don’t?”

“Definitely not!” Twilight blurted, laughing nervously while tossing more water into her face. The water stayed on her face instead of evaporating quickly. “…Huh?”

“We left the Crusted circle,” Applejack said. “You don’t have to keep dousing yourself in water.”

“Drat,” Rarity said, tugging at her mane. “This is going to be a nightmare to curl again… Extreme humidity changes are no good for any mane.”

Applejack shot her a look. “How can you care about your looks at a time like this?”

“It’s called being dignified.”

“Dignified ponies are pompous halfwits who serve the Queen.”

“Did you just call me a halfwit!?”

“That’s what you take issue with in that sentence?”

“I’ll have you know I’m a qualified seamstress who is very successful!”

“I bet you actually do serve some evil Queen!”

“I’ll have you know that our Luna is not only a very good and kindhearted mare, but she also is a Princess, not a Queen, and rules alongside her sister Celestia as equals!

Applejack took a step back. “…Your world makes no sense.”

“How so?”

“There is no way the Sun and Moon could live in harmony. There must be a lie somewhere.”

“There’s no lie,” Twilight said. “I’m the personal student of Celestia and a good friend of Luna’s, in our world at least. They had a falling out a while back but they’ve learned a lot since then.”

Applejack shook her head. “There’s something fundamentally wrong with your world.”

“Actually it seems to be one of the normal ones,” Twilight said. “Most of the worlds we find are similar to ours in one way or another. Yours is one of the exceptions.”

“More reason for me never to leave this world,” Applejack muttered. “We’re entering the grasp of the Slanted Runes.”

“The wha-“ the ponies suddenly walked into a horrendous gust of wind, blasting them from the side, threatening to knock them over. They could no longer hear each other, but they saw Applejack point further down the path towards a town. As they approached, the winds died down and they could make out the simple stone houses. There were perhaps a few hundred inhabitants and a dozen or so fields that grew numerous kinds of produce. Ponies of many kinds walked around – alongside the standard three races, Starlight could also make out some deer and even a seapony poking its head out of a river. In the center of town was presumably the obelisk of the Slanted Runes, a stone pillar two stories tall with light blue-green runes on it. It was most likely responsible for the giant whirlwinds around the town.

Starlight also noticed something odd as she walked in – there were a couple hybrid races. She saw a deer with wings fly across the sky and a pony with two antlers and a horn. “…Hybrids?”

“Yeah?” Applejack said, eyebrow raised. “Isn’t your friend a unisus?”

Twilight blinked. “I guess I would look like one… I’m called an alicorn where I come from. And I wasn’t a hybrid… I was made.”

“You aren’t an alicorn here. Alicorns also need the antlers and fins and other stuff to be real. So maybe get off your high horse, hmm?”

Twilight was taken aback. “I am no-“

“Take it easy, Twilight,” Rarity said.

Applejack kept walking.

Fluttershy looked around at the inhabitants of Peri. Most of them had smiles on their faces, going about their lives with a grin. It was a lot like Ponyville, if a little smaller. “…These ponies look happy to me.”

Applejack grunted. “Don’t let this place fool you. They’re just unaware of the Queen’s horrors. They’re protected by the wind.” She pointed. “Come, the sage’s this way.”

Fluttershy held up a hoof. “I think I’ll stay out here and talk with the locals if you don’t mind.”

“Ah really don’t care.”

“Don’t get lost,” Twilight told Fluttershy.

“Don’t worry Twilight, I know how to take care of myself.” She trotted off to talk to the seapony. They struck up a conversation quickly and seemed to be enjoying each other’s company, but Starlight soon lost sight of them as her group entered a round house with no windows.

In the center of the room was a crystal ball. Behind it, a pony sat, dressed in robes that covered every part of her except the mouth. She spoke with a dry, level voice that was nonetheless young. “Why did you bring others here?”

“They won’t leave me alone. And Ah’ve done all you asked me to do, so Ah’m a little low on patience. You said you can show me the Spectacularium.”

“That I can. Are you sure you wish your new companions to know?”

“Ah really don’t care. Ah’m headin’ there the moment you tell me and there’s nothin’ anypony can do to stop me.”

The sage nodded slowly. “That much is true. You’ll be glad to know they aren’t allied with the Queen, at the least.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “It’s not like you to give away free information.”

“It’s not every day prophecies can be challenged.”

“What do you mean?”

The sage paused. “I mean that since the five entered the world, all certainty in prophecies has vanished.”

Applejack’s eye twitched, turning to Twilight. “What did you do?”

“N-nothing!” Twilight stammered.

“She speaks the truth,” the sage said. “It is merely the fact that the prophecies did not take into account the possibility of other worlds existing.”

Applejack glared. “Ah’m still goin’ to be the one to dethrone the Queen, right?”

“At this point nothing is certain, though it seems likely,” the sage answered.

“Then let’s get this over with and tell me already. Ah’m tired of runnin’ your errands.”

The sage nodded, glancing at Pinkie for a moment before touching the crystal ball with her hoof. With her other hoof she took off her hood, revealing her face. Everypony gasped – not because she looked exactly like Pinkie except with straight hair, because that wouldn’t have been all that unexpected. It was because of her eyes – they glowed like moons in the night, their brilliant blue color illuminating the room. There were no whites to the eyes, only the giant blue voids with a pupil of ever-shifting shapes. The black dot became a square, an octagon, five circles, a star… Shifting around all sides of the glowing globe, independent of the other eye. The crystal ball glowed a soft pink, producing a magical effect around Applejack. A small gilded key floated out of her satchel and into the sage’s extended hoof, the final task complete when it touched her hoof.

The crystal ball flashed, showing an image of a pointed dome made entirely of crystal similar to that of Twilight’s Castle. Around it stood six tall runic obelisks in six familiar colors. The color scheme of the Elements of Harmony sure was everywhere.

“That doesn’t tell me where it is,” Applejack said.

“Look at the scenery.”

Applejack did. “…There’s no sunlight…”

“Underground,” Rarity said. “There’s no plants around at all.”

“That still doesn’t tell me where underground,” Applejack said.

The sage and Pinkie facehooved.

“Ah’m not an idiot…”

“Yes you are,” the sage said. “I sent you on the quest to the Dragon Tunnels last to get that key. Well, it just so happens that this key can open a door in the Dragon Tunnels to the Spectacularium now that I’ve given it my enchantments.” She handed Applejack back the key.

“Which door is it?”

“You can figure that out on your own.”

Pinkie rolled her eyes. “The really, really big red one.”

The sage looked at Pinkie. “You are much more forthcoming with information.”

“Eh, looks like I don’t get the specifics you do. Must be fun, being able to see everything you want.”

“It does allow me to guide the path of the world.”

Applejack snorted. “Give me a break. You just wanted me to gather fancy artifacts for you.”

“I never claimed to be altruistic.”

“You should have sent me for just the key and gotten me to the Spectacularium sooner. The longer the Queen is in position the more suffering occurs!”

The sage shook her head and closed her eyes – plunging the room into near-darkness. “You are so headstrong… Whatever. I’m done here. Go fulfill your destiny, if it still holds merit.” She put her robes back on and walked out. “You will not see me again.”

Applejack grunted. “Ah still have more questions!” She rushed outside – but the sage was gone. “…How in?”

“Same way I can do this,” Pinkie said, suddenly appearing in a far away bush. “There are tricks we Pinkies have.”

“…What kind of pony was she?” Starlight asked.

“Oculus,” Applejack answered. “The ones with weird eyes.”

“What do those eyes do, exactly?”

“Dunno. Ah just know Oculi tend to know things. That one in particular.” She started marching off.

“Uh… Applejack?” Rarity called. “Where are you-“

“Going back to the mountains.”

“But night is starting to fall…”

“Don’t care. If you need sleep, stay.”

Twilight shook her head. “We don’t have to walk all the way back. Now that I know where we are, I can teleport us back. It’s as simple as remembering where we were. Just need to find Fluttershy first…”

The obelisk of Slanted Runes flashed for a moment, summoning a wireframe blue-green creature that stood like an ape with a sword. Twilight, Starlight, and Rarity tensed.

Applejack held up a hoof. “This golem protects the town. Don’t fear it. Be afraid of whatever it detects coming.”

“What could have set it on edge?” Rarity asked.

Applejack sighed. “Probably the army…”

“The army!?”

“ATTENTION PERI!” A male voice boomed from the edge of town. “I AM COLONEL TURNER. IF YOU ARE AWARE OF IT OR NOT, YOU ARE HOUSING THE FUGITIVE KNOWN AS APPLEJACK, WANTED FOR TERRORISM, MURDER, INSURRECTION, AND TREACHERY. WE REQUEST THAT YOU GIVE HER OVER TO US. WE WILL COMPENSATE YOU HANDSOMELY IF YOU DO.”

“No they won’t,” Applejack muttered, readying both her swords. “This is going to get ugly.”

Twilight glanced around at the many townsponies turning in their direction with angry looks in their eyes. “Applejack, you seriously aren’t thinking of…”

“They’re going to try to turn me in. Ah can’t stop now.”

“Ah, Applejack, did you get some companions with a conscience?” The voice of Sunset Shimmer said. Everypony turned to see a mare on top of a nearby building – she had a horn, antlers, and a tail that ended in a mouth with many sharp teeth. “Perhaps you should listen to them.”

Applejack grit her teeth. “Sunset Shimmer. This is the last time you get to destroy the livelihood of my ponies.”

“You’re the one destroying their livelihood Applejack!” Sunset spat. “All you can see is your stupid quest!”

“You’re the one with the army around this town, ready to attack despite the wind and the guardian golem!”

“The golem’s smart enough to realize you are the threat,” Sunset said. “Otherwise it would have attacked me by now.”

“It hasn’t attacked me has it?”

Sunset’s tail snapped hungrily. “It’s just waiting.” She lit her horn, summoning a giant fireball between her antlers. The antlers glowed slightly, and the fire was sent into the ground, transforming the grass around Applejack into fiery snake tendrils. Applejack’s own antlers sparkled and she drove her hooves into the ground, turning all the grass to dust. She whirled around, deflecting the golem’s blade with her own two weapons, barely able to resist the tall construct’s stature.

Sunset leaped towards Applejack, tail ready to remove the hero’s head from her body.

Starlight cast a teleport spell forcing her, Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie, and Applejack back to the Mirror Portal.

Applejack put her swords away wordlessly. “Thank you. That was significantly less bloody than usual. Though Ah would have liked to end that Sunset’s plans then and there.”

Starlight shook her head. “How can you keep going through all this? Why haven’t you broken?”

“Because Ah can’t.”

Twilight suddenly screamed. “FLUTTERSHY! WE LEFT FLUTTERSHY!”

Starlight sighed. “I know, but we had to get out-“

“Wait. You knew you were leaving her behind!? And you left her anyway!? What if she gets hurt!? I’m going back!”

“Don’t,” Applejack said. “They probably haven’t killed her. They’re fans of capturin’ and using them as leverage later. You’ll just get yourself captured because they’ll manipulate her with you. Our best bet is to use the Spectacularium.”

Twilight growled. “I bet Pinkie, Starlight, and I can-“

“Do you want to take your chances with an opponent you don’t know? Sunset is brutal, dangerous, and relentless.”

“The same could be said about you,” Starlight muttered.

“I have to be. She just serves the Queen.”

Twilight shook her head. “Fine. We do it your way, Applejack. This Spectacularium better have some good answers.”

~~~

Fluttershy was talking with the seapony – Germanium – when the announcement went off. She froze, realizing that the town was about to be under siege.

“Oh no…”

Germanium narrowed his eyes. “You said you were with an Applejack…”

“Yes, I mean, yeah, it’s probably her, but I don’t know…” She bit her lip. “Remember what we talked about?”

“Yeah?”

“She’s the reason why. I have to stop this before something goes wrong…” She saw her friends out in the open… Fighting a version of Sunset with far too many horns and the guardian golem of the town. Starlight teleported them away before Fluttershy could do anything.

Fluttershy gulped. This couldn’t be good.

Sunset looked at the guardian golem and nodded in respect. Then she stamped her hoof on the ground in rage and screamed. “ALL RIGHT! Is there ANYPONY here who talked to APPLEJACK or ANY OF HER NEW COMPANIONS!?”

Germanium raised a hoof. Fluttershy stared at him, a look of betrayal on her face. “Germanium…”

“Sorry, Fluttershy. You seem nice. Just tell her what you told me and you should be fine.”

Fluttershy wanted to say something back, but Sunset had already walked over. “Yes, citizen?”

“This pegasus came into town with that group.”

Sunset turned to Fluttershy, tail snapping like a barely restrained guard dog. “Is that so?”

“Y-yes.”

Sunset conjured some hoofcuffs around Fluttershy’s legs. Sunset teleported the two of them away, placing them in a large tent lined with a bedroll, numerous bladed weapons, and a handful of books. “So, pegasus, why were you associating with a well-known terrorist?”

“You’re not going to believe me, but I’ll tell you anyway. We’re visitors from another world and Applejack was the first pony we met.”

“You’re right, I don’t believe you.” She lit her horn.

“…There wouldn’t be a chance that you’re preparing a truth-detecting spell, is there?”

“No. It’s a torture spell. It will get you to tell me whatever you know.”

“H-how about we just use the truth-detecting spell!?”

“…Why? You could have some way to trick it. It’s not very reliable. You’re just afraid of pain.”

Fluttershy nodded vigorously. “Y-yes. And I know I can’t give you the answers you want…”

Sunset growled. “I want to know where Applejack is going. Tell me that.”

“The Spectacularium. I don’t know where it is, I wasn’t in the tent when they talked to the sage.”

Sunset stepped back. “…She knows where it is now?”

“I don’t know, I didn’t talk to them after they talked to the sage. You came before that.”

“So acting quickly was a bad thing?!”

“You had no way to know,” Fluttershy said.

Sunset stared at her for a moment. “…You really have nothing to hide, do you?”

“No. I’ll tell you whatever I know.”

“Why?”

Fluttershy sighed. “I don’t think I could lie to you and… Well, I don’t think the way Applejack’s doing things is right.”

“It doesn’t take much of a brain to realize that.”

“It’s… different than that. She seems like a hero who’s willing to stop at nothing to dethrone an evil Queen. …Tell me, what has Applejack really done?”

Sunset frowned. “All right. I’ll go along with this for now, pretend you really have no idea. Applejack is a terrorist from a distant town on the edges of the kingdom that was inhabited only by deer. Then for whatever reason, a member of the court was brutally murdered there for seemingly no reason. I ordered an investigation to bring whoever killed him to justice. The investigation found out it was Applejack’s brother, but the town came together to kill the team to cover it up, not realizing they had already sent word to me. I brought the army in, planning on taking every deer into custody and figuring out the whole mess. They decided they wanted a war instead of a simple intervention. They refused to let a single one of their number get arrested for anything, blind in their stupid bond. They eventually had to be slaughtered, killing way more of us than we did of them. Applejack survived, somehow, and ended up catching wind of a prophecy that declared there would be a hero from a slaughtered village to dethrone the Queen. She took up the mantle and has been destroying entire towns that are loyal to the Queen, and we can’t stop her!” She slammed her hoof into the ground, shaking the tent. “Do you have any idea how much pain she’s caused?!”

Fluttershy shook her head.

“I’m the last living member of my family!” Sunset screamed. “My partner, a mare who looked a lot like your unisus friend, was killed by Applejack in combat! And yet, try as we might, we can’t stop her! We try to use any of her followers against her, but she always chooses herself over them. We’ve tried hitting her with overwhelming odds but she’s just too strong. We’ve tried conscripting the golems now, but even that doesn’t seem to work!”

Fluttershy sagged. “I’m… I’m sorry. We haven’t helped, have we?”

“No, of course not! You all show up and now you’ve ruined yet another chance!”

“…Have you ever considered that you might be being too aggressive with her?”

Sunset growled. “What do you mean?”

“Your constant anger and spite is just giving her more reason to fight you. I can see why she thinks you are evil at least – you constantly try to kill her and exploit her in any way you can.”

“Then why don’t you think I’m evil? Huh? I’m pretty angry at you aren’t I?”

Fluttershy took in a deep breath. “Because you’re passionate. And you’re telling me what you feel. I know you mean what you say. Even if you might be biased… You are telling the truth. She’s killed so many…”

Sunset frowned. “…I’m still not sure if I believe you about the other world thing.”

“There’s a portal in the forest next to the mountains past the desert. I’m sure Twilight won’t mind me taking you there to sho- Sunset?”

“…Her name really is Twilight…”

“Yeah? I – oh. Your friend…” Fluttershy tried not to cry. “I’m so sorry…”

“How can Applejack not see it? The face of her!?”

“I don’t know,” Fluttershy said. “I just met her today. As I’ve just met you.”

Sunset nodded. She undid Fluttershy’s hoofcuffs with a spell. “I’ll be upfront. I’ve done many of the horrible things she’s done. You shouldn’t think of me as some kind of hero. I’m just doing what needs to be done.”

“That’s… More or less her attitude, I think. Except she thinks she’s the hero.”

“That’s nothing new,” Sunset said. “Though usually when her followers tell me this they don’t think she’s wrong.”

“I’m not a follower,” Fluttershy reminded her.

“Well then… Maybe you can help me. Who’s right?”

“…Excuse me?”

“Applejack or me. Who’s in the right.”

“Uh… You’re both wrong.”

Sunset blinked. “…Come again?”

“From what little I know, it… looks like you and her have both made many, many mistakes to get you to this point. A personal war of vendetta.”

“What else can I do?”

Fluttershy smiled. “Well… You could refuse to use any underhanded tactics. You could be honest. You could own up to what happened at her home.”

“That was their fault!”

“It wasn’t just their fault, was it?”

Sunset blinked. “…No.”

Fluttershy put a wing around Sunset. “It’s okay… You thought you were doing right. That’s not all that matters, but that doesn’t mean nothing.”

“How… How in Lai did you do this?”

“Do what?”

“Get me to talk?!”

“It’s… a skill I have. I was also really terrified of being tortured and spoke a lot of that without thinking. Still pretty terrified.”

“I’m not going to kill you, there’s no reason to. You’re free to go, even.”

“I still need to get back to my friends. The best way to do that is stay with you.”

“Guess we can go check out that portal…” Sunset muttered, rubbing her eyes. “It’s the only lead we have…”

Fluttershy nodded. “…Remember, try something different this time, okay?”

Sunset twitched. “She still needs to die…”

“Do you?”

Sunset gulped. “…Maybe.”

Fluttershy sighed. “Don’t think that…”

“I’ve done the same things she’s done for roughly the same reasons! If she deserves to die, I do too!”

Fluttershy failed to keep the tears from falling down her face. “But… But that’s just so sad. You’re a pony who cares, and cares deeply!”

“Yeah, so? That might not be a good thing!”

“You haven’t turned your back on connecting with others though.”

“Armonia damn it, how are you so good at this!?” Sunset blurted. “I don’t even know you and yet I’m pouring myself out to you!?”

“Maybe the time was just right. I was called here by the Tree of Harmony after all… I think I needed to be here, to help you see.”

“…Well, now that you have, now what?”

“I need to resolve the ‘friendship’ problem. I need to end the fight between you two, one way or another. And my friends are going to help.”

Sunset nodded. “I… I hope you’re right. I hope your ‘Tree’ knows what it’s doing.”

“It always does. There hasn’t been a failed mission yet. Though they’re not always what we think they are…”

~~~

In a world of humans and high school, Sunset sat on a stage next to several other students, tapping her heels nervously. There was a huge crowd – everybody and their parents had shown up for this. That was to be expected, but it was still a lot of people. Sunset may not have had as much difficulty speaking in front of people as a lot of her classmates did, but there was still a nervous feeling in her gut.

It had all happened so fast…

She had been working on the dimensional adventurers club, traveling around for fun, and then Principal Celestia had told her she was the valedictorian and needed to give a speech at graduation. Sunset had tried to deny it, saying she’d had an unfair advantage over the students given how old she really was, but Celestia insisted that she deserved the honor for all the other things she had done, if not for her grades. So there was a speech to make.

And then it was graduation.

Pinkie hadn’t been kidding about it coming quickly...

She felt like there was so much she hadn’t done… Hadn’t really explored that many worlds… Hadn’t really accomplished what she set out to do… Hadn’t spent enough time with her friends…

But time marched on, and she had to deal with it. And that meant giving this speech.

And it sure wasn’t going to be a boring one like all the others she’d heard over the years.

Principal Celestia had finished giving Sunset Shimmer an introduction – it was time to go up there. She took a breath and walked to the podium. She glanced at Rarity and Fluttershy, both of whom were sitting in the row of graduating students. Both waved encouragingly. Sunset swore she could hear Pinkie screaming her name from somewhere in the back.

With a smile on her face, she gripped the podium.

“You all do realize all the insane magic and problems you’ve had over the last four years are basically my fault, right?”

This prompted laughs from the audience and baffled looks from some of the parents. Good. Already this was better than most other speeches. Her grin became a smirk and she leaned in.

“Think about it. For most of my time here, I was the worst bully imaginable. And after, what, a year of good behavior you give me this medal and tell me to address the entire student body? You are all way too forgiving. I was a manipulator, a liar, a deceiver, a girl who wanted to be worshipped. Hey, Pinkie, I see you bowing, stop it.”

More laughter.

“I could go on and list more disgusting features I used to have – anger, insecurity, rage, vanity, excess… The list goes on and on. The original draft of this speech was just me being a thesaurus for five minutes on how garbage I used to be. Worst idea ever. I would have ended up with actual garbage all over me had I gone through with that. So let’s forget about all that – just like you all did.”

She beamed at them all.

“It was rough, but the forgiveness all of you showed me after I hit my low… It speaks for this school. You saw me show my true colors as a literal demon, only to welcome me back into the fold. Not all of you came to me at once, but eventually I was welcomed. And… Well, first of all, you’re all insane! Secondly… Thank you. It makes this school mean so much more to me than just a place to learn things or make myself ‘popular.’ This school, Canterlot High, has shown me what it means to be forgiven. It taught me, more than anything else, mercy.”

She grabbed the valedictorian medal hung around her neck. “Had I not learned that, I think we all know I’d be up here giving some horrendous speech about how great I am and how all you suck. But it doesn’t matter how great I am, or how great the school system wants me to be. There’s more here than just education and a place to hang out. There’s a family here. And I have no doubt that, when I’m gone, it’ll continue to go on just as brightly as it did before. So here’s my shoutout to you – all of you – who were willing to see another side of someone. For that, I thank you.”

She leaned back and sighed. “I really wish I could stay with you all, but time marches on. Life’s not something we can run away from. So keep it crazy, my friends, and you can make life worth living.”

She bowed – and the audience entered into applause. She smiled, walking off the podium and to her seat.

Now she could go have fun exploring other worlds all summer.

Then… college, she guessed.

She wondered if it’d be like she was expecting.

~~~

The Dragon Tunnels were exactly what they sounded like. Spacious tunnels in the earth filled with dragons.

Except all the dragons were just skeletons littered around everywhere.

“…What is this place?” Rarity asked.

“A dragon burial ground,” Applejack answered. “This is where they took their dead since they lacked the patience to dig large enough graves.”

“Do any dragons live in here?”

“There was one. It’s dead now.”

Twilight shivered. She thought the odds were pretty good that Applejack had been the one to slay it, probably recently. Rainbow Dash probably would have found that awesome… Twilight just found it another way this world was too brutal. But having seen what that Sunset was like… They really did need to stop the Queen. Though she knew the Tree would never send them to do it by pure force… There was probably something in the Spectacularium that would help resolve this. Something only they could find.

She wondered if she could ask it what the friendship problem actually was. She still wasn’t clear on that.

“Hey, should we figure out what questions we’re going to ask?” she asked aloud.

“How to get rid of the Queen,” Applejack muttered. “That’s all Ah want, and all Ah need.”

“I’ll ask it what’s really in the blue flavor!” Pinkie Pie announced.

Rarity furrowed her brow. “I think… I’ll want to know about you, Applejack. You don’t tell us much about yourself.”

Applejack tensed but kept walking deeper into the caverns. “Ah could care less. Ask away. There’s nothin’ to tell.”

“Why don’t you tell us about you so we don’t have to ask?”

“No,” she said. “Ah’m not talking.”

Starlight raised an eyebrow. “You’re afraid you’ll form a connection with us.”

“Ah don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.”

Rarity raised an eyebrow. “Dear, I can tell that you’re lying. No Applejack is good at it.”

Applejack twitched. “Do you want me angry? Because you’re gettin’ there.”

“No, of course not.”

“Then shut up and mind your own darn business. We have a mission. Nothing else matters. Getting all friendly only makes us weak.”

Twilight shook her head. “Applejack… That’s not the case, and I think you know it. Friendship makes ponies stronger and gives them something to lean on when the going gets hard. Friendship is magic. It’s how I got my wings, it’s why Starlight’s traveling with us, it’s why we’re here in the first place.”

“Then things are just different in your world.”

Twilight nodded. “Maybe. But that only makes us want to help you more.”

“You’re all a bunch of idiots.”

Pinkie giggled. “Yeah, so?”

Applejack grunted. “Done listenin’.”

“You said that already, and yet you kept talking!”

Applejack made no response. She just kept walking forward.

Twilight sighed. She wanted to say something – she really did – but she couldn’t. Applejack didn’t want to hear it. The deer ‘hero’ was a tragedy. After she was done with her quest, what would she even do? She defined herself so much by this single goal. What would life mean to her after it was over? Would it mean anything?

Applejack turned a corner in the tunnels and came to a large red door. She took the key out and placed it in the lock, turning it. The doors recognized the key, pulsed with the light of dozens of multicolored runes, and slid open all on its own. Applejack marched into the darkened interior, followed by the other four. The interior was much like the rest of the Dragon Tunnels: rocky, spacious, and empty. There weren’t even any dragon bones this far down. The floor became steeper and Twilight was slowly becoming aware of a powerful source of magic beneath them.

They eventually came out into a much more expansive cavern that was so large they couldn’t see the other end. The six runic obelisks – which Twilight just knew were the Runes of Harmony – glowed in the distance like lighthouses in the night around a shimmering blue crystal dome.

The Spectacularium.

Twilight saw a tear roll down Applejack’s cheek. She’d been looking for this thing – the answer – for Celestia knew how many years. Twilight suddenly felt like she could never understand what was going on in the warrior’s head, never empathize with the intense emotion in this moment. Applejack had finally shown a crack in her tough exterior. Who knew what was flashing before her eyes right now?

Twilight didn’t. This was just an adventure she’d come in near the end. It had little impact for her. This realization struck her as rather messed up. Because of her position, she was distant to the issues – all of her friends were.

Was she missing something because of this?

“C-can you teleport us closer,” Applejack stammered.

Twilight nodded. “Of course.” They were soon inside the boundaries of the Runes of Harmony, all five of them filled with serene power. Before them stood a giant door, through which was a hollow interior with seemingly nothing inside. But the five ponies knew better than that.

“So, you finally arrived.”

Twilight turned to see a version of Starlight standing on a nearby outcropping of rock. She was hornless, but that didn’t mean she had no magic. Two arcs of rune-covered material extended from both her sides, forming a circular pattern when viewed from head-on. The runes glowed the color of Starlight’s magic, and some of the runes had embedded themselves in her flesh instead of the arcs. It looked painful.

Applejack drew her swords. The unicorn Starlight grabbed her with her telekinesis. “Calm down!

“She’s an arcei!” Applejack yelled. “Blasphemous!”

“She might be able to tell us things!”

“That I can,” the arcei said, glancing into the Spectacularium’s interior. “I am Starlight, though it wouldn’t surprise me if you already knew that given your companion. I am a… caretaker of sorts.”

Twilight glanced at the struggling Applejack. “…Why does she want to kill you?”

“I fused myself with a golem, creating a race that has no right to exist,” the arcei answered.

Applejack’s jaw dropped. “You’re the first arcei!?”

“Yes,” the arcei said.

Pinkie nodded slowly. “Yeah, this would be a lot more interesting if we’d been a part of this story from the start.”

“You’d be surprised how little it actually matters.”

“So… What is the Spectacularium?” Rarity asked.

“It’s an ancient device created by the rune-makers. I have no idea who they were, all I know is that they made this place to answer their questions before they vanished from Lai. I have my theories that they were slain by their answers, but I cannot prove this without asking a question myself. Which I will never do again.”

“Then why do you live here?”

“Because I detected a surge of magic here larger than anything I’d felt before. It was something I could only describe as a man of light running away from a unicorn.”

Twilight’s pupils dilated. “…Did this happen a couple months ago?”

The arcei looked surprised for the first time. “…Yes. Why?”

“That… That was the crystal man who had the device that allowed us to start traveling dimensions.”

The arcei frowned. “Interesting. Very interesting, in fact. It seems our worlds are connected in more ways than one. Perhaps there is fate beyond what the Spectacularium can see.”

“Can you just let us in already,” Applejack muttered, having finally stopped struggling.

“I’m not stopping you. I’m just warning you. It’s changed since the man of light was here.”

“How so?” Starlight asked.

“It gained a mind.”

And with that, her arcs glowed the colors of magic and she folded herself up into nothingness. Twilight had no idea if what she had just done was even magic. Maybe that was something to ask the Spectacularium…

…What had the arcei meant, it had a mind?

Applejack didn’t care – she walked right into the big room, and the others followed close behind her. In the center of the Spectacularium, there was nothing but magic.

And then there was something. A thread of magic appeared, forming into an E like rune shape. Then it became a Y. Then a 6. It never settled, shifting through shapes as fast as the ponies could make them out. The color kept shifting as well, gradually, like a passing rainbow.

They felt it touch their minds. They felt an intelligence.

It spoke to them through their thoughts. The two prophecies that remained – that Applejack would defeat the Queen, and that the Spectacularium would return and make prophecies again one day – were no more. Things had changed too much to ensure their occurrence. Not the least of which was the existence of the Spectacularium’s intelligence. Its power. It could no longer simply live like it did, focusing towards one goal. The rune-makers did not foresee their creation attaining a new level, becoming the conscience of magic itself.

But it would answer their questions one last time. Whatever each of them wanted to know most.

The Queen can be defeated if you simply reveal that her dead sister was given an honorable burial and has a secret shrine within the royal palace, despite the sun’s evil deeds. The Queen visits it daily and has regrets. If the people realize that she doesn’t have that conviction and in fact holds the most horrendous figure in history as a good memory, she couldn’t possibly hold power.

Nopony resents you for your past actions, they are all truly your friends. You should stop second-guessing.

You will not outlive your friends.

You will find love one day, and it will be beautiful.

The answer to your deepest yearning is protected. But you knew that. You also know this intelligence’s birthday. The blue flavor is an anomaly beyond logical answers. You are one side of the coin.

The Spectacularium’s intelligence allowed them to wonder what answers were to whose questions. Those who asked the questions knew. But they all heard the answers.

The Spectacularium was now ready to self-destruct.

“WHAT!?” Rarity yelled.

Starlight teleported them out. The moment they left the premises the crystal center of the Spectacularium shattered, leaving only the six runic obelisks to light the cavern.

Applejack smiled. “Ah have it! Ah have the answer! The way to depose the Queen!”

“…Didn’t that answer seem a bit… odd to you?” Twilight asked. “It seems like she just cares about her sister…”

“Who cares? It’s a way to get the tyrant off the throne. Ah’ll take any weakness Ah can get.”

“You’re in luck, then.”

The five ponies turned around to see Sunset and Fluttershy standing a few meters away. There was no sign of any army, golems, or anything. Applejack drew her swords.

Fluttershy held up a wing. “We aren’t here to fight. We’re here to talk.”

We!?” Rarity blurted. “Fluttershy, you teamed up with this… maniac!?

“That really is how I come off…” Sunset sighed. “Yes, she has. But she’s also made me realize something.”

Applejack lowered her sword slightly. “…Ah’ll bite. What happened?”

“Applejack, we’re killing the world we love.”

“You don’t love anything!”

Sunset shook her head. “I love the ponies of this nation, and I fight to keep you from killing them. But I fought blindly, violently, and without any thought about what I was destroying in the process. It was a single-minded goal. I didn’t see the destruction – and this little pegasus came along, said some things, and suddenly I see.”

“How does this change anythin’? You still serve the Queen, and Ah have to get rid of her.”

“Applejack, I’m the one responsible for everything that’s happened to you, your town, and your family. The Queen doesn’t even know what really happened to start you on your quest for vengeance. Only I know.”

“But she lets ponies like you run things!”

“I made a mistake!” Sunset yelled. “And you’ve made a mistake as well! We’re both wrong!”

“Ah don’t care!” Applejack roared. “Ah’ll do anything to stop this madness!”

Sunset looked ready to scream again, but Fluttershy put a wing around her, silencing her. “Applejack, I know you’re angry. But… what if she’s really the one who did everything to you? What if the Queen had almost nothing to do with it?”

“Destiny isn’t that cruel,” Applejack said. “Ah’m the chosen hero, destined to save the world from the evil Queen.”

“…Where in the prophecy does it say you’re a hero, or that the Queen is evil?” Sunset asked.

“Does it matter? Why would there be a prophecy about a little deer fighting against a Queen if the Queen wasn’t evil and the deer wasn’t the hero?”

“Because it’s a realistic prophecy about real things?”

Applejack growled. “You think you can stop me…”

“I’m willing to pardon everything,” Sunset said, gulping hard. “You may have killed her and everyone I held dear, but I did the exact same to you. If I walk free, you should as well. All you have to do is agree to stop. I’ll resign from the military if you do. We’re destroying the world with our fight, Applejack. It has to stop.”

Applejack stamped her hoof. “Ah don’t think you realize that if Ah stop this will have all been for nothing!

“It is for nothing,” Sunset said. “I’ve had to accept that. All my fighting only made you angrier and killed more ponies. I’m sorry.”

Applejack threw one of her swords, embedding it in Sunset’s side. The blood splattered all over Fluttershy, like a claw across her face. She stood strong, holding Sunset up despite the wound.

Sunset coughed, blood flying out of her mouth onto the ground. “I… I suppose this is what I deserve…”

Applejack’s eyes were wild. She grabbed her other sword. “STOP DOING THAT! YOU ARE EVIL AND YOU CANNOT CHANGE! THERE’D BE NO POINT!” She threw it – only for Twilight to grab it.

Applejack turned around, charging her – but Starlight grabbed Applejack in her telekinesis and pinned her. Applejack’s antlers glowed and the ground began to shake like an earthquake – but Pinkie leaped in, smashing Applejack with a squeaky hammer and knocking her out. It was over. For now, at least.

Everypony ran to Sunset. Twilight cast a spell on the wound – but she didn’t know the advanced healing magic required. “S-sunset…”

“Take her… away from this world…” Sunset said, gagging. “Neither of us can be here…”

“Don’t say that,” Fluttershy said. “You can still do well! You have so much to do!”

“There’s no way you’re getting me to a healer in time…”

Starlight looked at Twilight. “Crystal stasis.”

“Crystal stasis,” Twilight agreed. The two of them used their horns, encasing Sunset in a crystalline cage, freezing her inside. “I don’t want to teleport her like this. But we can get her to a healer.”

“What about… her?” Pinkie asked, pointing at Applejack.

Twilight sighed. “Tie her up.”

Fluttershy wiped some of the blood off her face and stared at it. She gulped.

“Hey… It’s okay. We’ve got her,” Pinkie said, hugging Fluttershy.

“Everything’s so brutal… I tried… I tried so hard…”

“You got one of them. That’s good Fluttershy. That’s good.”

~~~

Sunset awoke a little later, her wound already healed by magic from some unknown healer. It had the unusual stiffness magical healing always had, but at least she was alive. She was mildly surprised to see Twilight standing over her.

She didn’t know what to say.

“You don’t have to say anything. I’m also not her, sorry.”

Sunset nodded. “What… happened to Applejack?”

“We have her tied up. She’ll be in your custody.”

“I’ll have to take her in. The ponies will want execution…”

Twilight nodded. “We could take her. There’s a world of demons who like to take in ponies.”

“No… I can’t just let her run away. That was hasty of me. But… I’ll argue for her life. I have sway, I can get the Queen to give her life in prison instead, despite what she’s done.”

“…And?”

“…I’m going to visit her. We really aren’t that different. She just ended up on the wrong side…”

“What is the Queen like, really? I’m curious.”

Sunset laughed painfully. “A bit clueless, to be honest. Despite her age, she seems to have a childlike aura about her a lot of the time. She switches from old and wise to young and energetic. She’s a delight to be around.”

Twilight smiled. “It does sound like Applejack was misguided… There’s part of me that thinks the Pinkie sage was just manipulating you all, by the way.”

Sunset frowned. “It’s possible. Though why, I don’t have any clue.”

“Well… We’ll return to our world now. We might meet again. Might not.”

“Actually…” Sunset coughed. “As a general within her majesty’s army, I’d like to establish official relations with your people.”

Twilight blinked. “Really?”

“Really. You helped me. It’s the best I can do for you in return. Put in a good word.”

“Well… Not what I expected, but cool. We aren’t really a big part of our nation though. We mainly just explore to help ponies.”

“Doesn’t matter. I have power, I’m going to use it for something good for once. Remember you have a friend here.”

Twilight smiled. “I will.”

Then her cutie mark started glowing, signifying a job well done. She sighed. “I was hoping we’d be able to do better than that.”

“…Huh?”

“The Tree of Harmony just told me we did what we came here to do. I’m not sure if that was to become friends with you, get you to help us, or to resolve the tension between you and Applejack… Possibly a combination of all three. But I really thought we could help her as well.”

“She’s more determined than me,” Sunset said. “It’s one of those neutral traits…”

Twilight nodded. “I hope you can show her the way, given time.”

“Somehow I doubt it, but I have to at least put in the effort. Atone for my sins…”

Twilight smiled. “I knew a Sunset like you. Ashamed of what she’d done, she ended up living with those she hurt, and they became her closest friends. Maybe there is parallelism in the cosmos.”

“Maybe… I hope so.” Sunset smiled. “…Thank you, Twilight. Just… Just for talking.”

“And thank you for not torturing Fluttershy.”

Sunset chuckled. Twilight left the room, telling the girls it was time to go home.

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