I don't know how to feel about it, but at least I know that Celestia still hasn't paid for everything she's done.

Holy shit

In trying to reconcile her two loves, the two parts of herself, Twilight lost them both. Also her life.

I guess Pinkie could just see through invisibility magic, and avoid detection herself, somehow. Maybe Luna helped?

At any rate, what are the odds Celestia just goes on a furious rampage and ends all human lives on the planet now?

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Was it something I said?

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Pinkie didn't know where they'd be or what they'd be doing. All she knows is what Twilight told her in the woods.

Slice your palm with it, and smear its face with your blood. Then, close your eyes and say my name aloud." Twilight stalked her way to Pinkie, paralyzed in fear, and slowly pressed the weapon into Pinkie's palm. "The magick of the dagger will take effect. When you open your eyes, you will be by my side. Where you belong. Use it when you change your mind and wish to join me in the castle.

Pinkie knew the dagger would bring her to Twilight, so she didn't have to see them go into the tunnel.

As for Celestia going on a furious rampage... I have plans for a sort of epilogue story, chronicling what happens next to Celestia. I'm not sure if anyone would really be interested, or if the story might be better off without such an epilogue, but it's a possibility.

Maybe one day, I'll share with you her fate. For now, you'll just have to guess

11661707
No. That's just all I have to say in response to the insanity of this chapter.

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I figured. Was just being cheeky, because, y'know, I wrote it. So technically, yeah, it was something I said.

Don't mind me, just having a laugh

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Oh, I completely forgot about the magic dagger! In hindsight, yeah, giving that to Pinkie may not have been the best idea.

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A little inside baseball here, each of the "antagonists" of The Handmaiden are motivated by one or two particular traits (Rarity's, for example, was envy). Throughout the story, Twilight slightly adopts these traits to a degree.

Luna's trait was arrogance, and that was what really motivated Twilight to give Pinkie the dagger. The idea that Pinkie would use it for anything short of doing exactly what Twilight wanted just didn't occur to her.

well, sad ending. and I really wanted everything to work out for them (Twilight and Celestia). However, that's what you get when you try to build trust on deceit and cover-ups.
Never again did the Empress open her heart. they say that on that day Twilight carried him with her to the next world.

Such a sad and bitter Sweet ending, but I feel like it fits the story she rose from nothing, and now she dies with nothing. I hope that in the afterlife if she has one, she’s happy with Pinky finally free of Celestia‘s corruption in control, and I hope Celestia not being able to bear any of this kills herself to get rid of it.

Wanted to stop by and say I've been following this since the beginning and that you've created a lovely and tragic story here. I was pretty well gripped right from the start as Twilight slowly, and often times painfully, climbed her way up the medieval hierarchy. I was rooting for her, even when she took some turns that made her into the very thing she was trying to change. Her arc reminds me of Delita from Final Fantasy Tactics, both in terms of the moral grey areas the characters stumbled through and how things didn't quite work out in the end.

Celestia is a fascinating character study. Her starting out as this cruel and unforgiving monarch that slowly thaws and mellows thanks to Twilight's actions was great to watch. I really thought she'd turn out halfway decent by the end. Unfortunately, Twilight's own baggage caught up with them and it's possible she'll only get worse from here.

Other characters came and went (did we ever learn what Applejack was up to?), but the focus remained on the two stars (heh). I'm glad to have seen this through and wouldn't mind in the least if it ended here. However, if you do write an epilogue, I'll be sure to check that out too.

Well done!

11661956
Applejack was a retired guard, the former bodyguard for Rarity when she was still learning to be Chancellor. She sells Twilight a goat in the chapter To Do What Is Best. I wanted to make it a point to show every major character in some capacity throughout the story. The Mane Six, The CMC, and all of the princesses (save for Flurry) or at least mentioned.

The epilogue, I'm sort of iffy on. I kind of think it's darkly appropriate for someone like Celestia, who seemed to know everything, to have a future that you can only wonder about. That said, I think the epilogue would be really interesting. Keep an eye out for news on that front.

Thank you so much for giving this admittedly strange story a chance, and for sticking with it to the very end.

Well... I didn't want Celestia to win and I got it.

I can't remember, did we ever get an explanation on why Celestia hated lying so much, if Twilight had told her she was rejected by pinkie will her reaction had been the same. That line "She took The Empress’ favorite toy and smashed it to pieces" was that all Twilight was to her deep down, a nice toy that had some value and fondness but now damage was now worthless, could Celestia had healed Twilight but since she failed her was left to die.

Why were Twilight's last thoughts that there was nothing awaiting for her when she got solid proof that there's something after death when dealing with Luna ?

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Celestia doesn't really have any particular reason why she hates lying. For herself, personally, she thinks that lying is beneath her. Why would someone like her have to fear the truth? No matter how awful it is, there's nothing anyone could ever do about it.

If Twilight had told Celestia what really happened in the woods, she would've tracked down Pinkie and killed her herself.

And finally, you mentioned Celestia choosing not to heal Twilight, as well as Twilight's fear of nothingness. I'll simply say this; Go back and give Truth, Choice, And Destiny a reread. Really think about the mechanics of how the dagger's enchantments work

Just finished it, I hope we get another book.

I understand the ending and it's ramifications, but a sad ending like that.....so sad.

And the people there to celebrate a wedding.

I may or may not be in the minority, but I’ve never prayed for a protagonists downfall harder than twilights and it’s satisfying how I got it. I only wish Celestia dies too but obviously that wasn’t going to happen.

With that being said good work on the story. The writing was magnificent and the lore intriguing. This might seem weird but I hated twilights and celestias characters in a good way. Their story and actions kept me invested and curious as to what was next regardless of what I thought if their personalities and how they treated others. Nice work.

OOOOOF. I figured Pinkie would return and ruin Twilight's day, but damn does that hurt!

I loved this story, I got real Game of Thrones and Spartacus: Blood and Sand vibes from it. Can't wait for the epilogue!

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Even better, can’t wait to finish it

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So I reread the chapter and I understand that the dagger was powerful enough to kill Celestia but it doesn't say anything about barring someone from the afterlife. Matter of fact wasn't Luna killed by that very same dagger but before she was she said that she'll see Twilight in chaos a form of afterlife.

4 years to the day since this story started. Not one for the tragedies myself usually but this was a damn fine story.

11662202
The blade rends the soul. No soul, no afterlife.

Luna's statement wasn't really a threat, just a general "fuck you" to Twilight

11661986
I have to ask would you mind doing an epilogue for Celestia? I kinda wanna see what happens to her after all this.

11662365
It's still in consideration. Without showing my hand, there's something that would be set to happen in this hypothetical epilogue, and I'm not certain if this character deserves that.

I have basically the whole thing mapped out in my head, so it would be a shame if it didn't see the light of day, but my primary concern is maintaining the integrity of the current narrative.

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All right, show it or don’t show it Either way, this was a good story

11662281
Damn, that makes the ending even more heartbreaking. Well considering what Twilight became she probably wasn't heading some place all that great, makes you wonder if Celestia using that blade to kill to Luna was a form of mercy to prevent her from being claim by discord or her general cruelty by using the very same weapon that Luna made.

Oh my GOD...
Fuck around and find out and HOW.

Just when we thought of some of bittersweet end for Twilight, mans hit us with the big swerve in the final minutes of the game! For her only to end up losing EVERYTHING thanks in part to the one person she originally vowed to be with. Why did Twilight give Pinkie the dagger, that thing was the McGuffin to the DespairEvent Horizon!

Marvelous storytelling from beginning to end this was! Glad I was able to keep tabs on this the best I could for the months it took to delve into such raw, unfiltered, dystopian-like universe twisting the harshness that love can take a person in fiction. I'd love to see an epilogue of sorts to this but not focused too much on Celestia and more of what happens to everyone and everything else following the events of the final chapter. But if wanting leaving the story as is and us interpreting what happens after, that's fine too. Kudos for this completing this story, and for its publication of the final chapter exactly four years to the day it started back in 2019. Happy belated anniversary!

I hate you. I love this story, but god damn it I hate you, that ending???? Why must you hurt me so!

Seriously though, this was amazingly epic, and is probably one of my favourite fics. Brilliant from start to finish, and while I would have prefered a happy ending, that is one hell of an ending all the same!

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To give you a sense of my mindset when writing this story, this was the happy ending.

I'm glad this story was able to resonate with you. I hope that it sticks with you as a reader in the same way that it will stick with me as the writer.

Much love, LC

11663668
I am...concerned about what the unhappy ending is then, though I do know the draw of a nice grim dark and brutal ending if mine are any to go by XD

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The bad endings that I considered include, but are not limited to, Luna successfully assassinating The Empress and plunging Equestria into Chaos, war with the allied force of The Isle of Calypso and The Hive, a rift forming between Sweetie and Twilight after Rarity's death, and one particular ending with Spearhead that's so dark that I hesitate to even mention it.

In this ending, Pinkie gets a measure of revenge on the sole source of her misfortune, and she inadvertently saved Equestria from an eternity under a cruel Goddess. From that perspective, I'd say this is the good end

Damn… wasn’t expecting that. Still dope though.
Been reading this story sense day one and it’s always been a treat. Hope you return to this world at some point

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How did she save Equestria from a cruel goddess? Isn't Celestia immortal and still ruling, and probbly even more unhinged than before?

Either way this was an incredible styory that captivated me from beginnign to end, with a bad ending that was abrupt but worked, hell did it work.

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“This… This is not an appropriate time to discuss this. But… There is a certain ritual that one can perform. With the right sorcery added, it can bind the soul of one to another, ensuring that, for as long as one can live, so can the other.” Celestia turned away from Twilight, to hide her face. “I had hoped to offer this to you, when the time was right. So that we could live and rule together, for as long as this world spins.”

Celestia bound her soul to Twilight's. What happens to one, happens to the other.

Celestia's soul was just torn to shreds, rendering her weak, frail, and most importantly, mortal.

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Ah ok. She was talking too fancy for my American brain to catch.

Well that dagger was far more important than anyone thought. And not the ending to this story I expected.

First of all, I wanted to say that this was one of my favorite stories.I always checked for updates.
Also I loved that bit when Twilight "explained" why she didn't accept the wine from Sonata.The wine could've been fine, but the fact that Twilight poisoned Adagio, she was afraid it was gonna bite her in the ass.
I didn't know at first why Celestia was so mad at Twilight to the point she even let her die, but after reading your comments about the soul, I understood.But if that's the case, wouldn't Twilight survive too, if Celestia does?
And on a more sad note:did Celestia truly loved Twilight, or was she really just a toy?

reading through some of the comments and such, if you do do an epilogue, maybe write it as either a legend of long ago, or perhaps the god empresses reflecting on everything while on her death bed, just a couple thoughts that come to mind

with the ending here though, with Twilight and Pinkie, it makes me wonder whether Celestia's hold on Twilight was magical in nature and once that was withdrawn the real twilight came out

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The Empress only lies once in the entire story, and it's in this chapter.

She says she loves Twilight, and then she says that she couldn't ever love Twilight. I leave it to you to decide which was her one lie.

As for Twilight surviving, the issue is that the dagger ruined her soul, destroying their immortality and severely crippling their magickal power. Twilight's mana basically bled out of her in a failed attempt to mend her injuries. It would take very powerful magickal intervention from an outside source to save her, and since Celestia's mana was already severely damaged due to her soul being melded to Twilight (and the fact that Celestia cannot naturally regenerate mana), The Empress opted not to potentially waste her life trying to save a woman who wouldn't live much longer anyway, and a woman who, in her eyes, betrayed her.

Hope that clears some things up

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I can confirm that Celestia did not use any arcane manipulation to sway Twilight. She legitimately charmed and wooed Twilight over the years.

What you're seeing is the last moments of a arrogant, selfish girl who's terrified of dying as she lived, unknown, unloved, and unimportant. The "real" Twilight has always been a coward, and when faced with death, she tried to latch herself onto whatever sense of peace or comfort she could find.

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alrighty

I hate you, I hate you, damn it Lewd. Why do you have to be such a gifted writer, why do you have the gifts of knowing that true great stories don't often have happy endings, and that someone becoming enraged and sad at the end of the book can be true signs of how great that work was. Obviously I'm conflicted but I can't argue with your writing skills and knowledge, and I'm sure whenever you do make a published version of this there'll be countless more people enraged and sad at this ending but somehow still really happy they read this story.

Please consider adding the tragedy tag.

Still trying to cope with the emotional swing that had me lying awake for hours after finishing the last chapter last night...

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I suppose tragedy is appropriate here, huh? I've never written a tragedy before (not intentionally anyway) so I guess it just never occurred to me.

Hopefully this doesn't reflect too poorly on me, but I take your sleepless night as a victory, and a badge of honor.

Thank you for coming along on this journey with me.

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I don't know, I reread the story after finishing it a long time ago, I feel like it lacks something more to make it a true tragedy.
For example, that everything that happened, from the murder of Celestia's father, the death of Luna and the betrayal of Twilight/Pinkie, is part of Discord's plan (like the flap of a butterfly's wings creates a storm on the other side of the world ), that at the end of Celestia, by time or the sword, Discord will appear before her and reveal that his plan was always for her to be the one to cause all the pain and suffering to her loved ones and her people, that in the end she was her best and greatest accomplice, that the only time she could be defeated was by finding forgiveness, but her anger blinded her even with the evidence of innocence.
That in the end everything was and will be her fault.

and an extra addition to the wound by showing a world of what could have been, where she could have had a family (Luna, Twilight, Cadence, etc), a world of peace and harmony, I don't know, something like that.

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I don't know if that's necessarily more tragic than what I wrote. It's just kinda a different thing.

I think the story of a weak and defenseless girl trying desperately to protect the woman she loves, first by enduring abuse and then by gathering power of her own, only for that abuse and power to eventually push that love away, is pretty tragic on its own. Then you consider the fact that her love unintentionally destined Twilight to a cursed end, with no afterlife to look forward to and no way for them to have peace together even in death, and I think that's more tragic than some angry god fucking with Celestia in ways that doesn't really have anything to do with our main character