Case Report: Final - May 15th
Submitted by: Verdant Vines
Location: Canterlot
Date(s): May 9th through May 15th
Case: Ponyville Mass Disappearance (#3467)
Classification: Top Secret
The following is a summarization of events following the final recovery of survivors from Ponyville on May 8th. It is meant to be an overview of events leading up to the closing of this case.
Pendant, unconscious in Canterlot, awoke at roughly the same time that those in Ponyville recovered on May 8th. Over the days that followed, Lantern, Pendant, and other patients and professionals within the same hospital did not report any shared dreams. Pendant and Lantern, however, are still experiencing nightmares reflective of their trauma. They are undergoing counseling until they are cleared to return to active duty.
Daily patrols of the town continued until May 12th. No additional survivors were located through patrols, and no bodies of any deceased were found either. All those that were in Ponyville on April 16th that have not been found, either in Ponyville or throughout Equestria, are to be considered missing.
All survivors underwent medical treatment and psychological screenings on-site. Once cleared and well enough for transport, they were moved to hospitals in Canterlot and Cloudsdale as needed. On May 12th, any patients still in severe condition were moved into Ponyville General, where they are still being treated. All patients will be offered physical therapy and psychological counseling as needed.
All those that were considered suspects before recovery of survivors began were subjected to additional psychological evaluations and questioning. All were cleared of intent to cause any further harm and were moved to general triage by May 10th.
To date, the town of Ponyville has not been opened up for permanent residency. At time of writing, plans are to begin moving back residents that are considered well and mentally sound by May 31st. This will allow time to repair infrastructure and building damage, and catalog which residences and possessions are to be passed on to the families of those missing and which are to be marked as unowned. However, citizens that have recovered are allowed into the town to collect any personal belongings, provided that they agree to be escorted.
None of the nightmarish visions mentioned in previous journals or by those working on the case were experienced following May 8th. While many survivors and those working on the case still report odd dreams and nightmares, they are all visible to Princess Luna.
No further communication was received in Solace’s journal by Twilight Sparkle or the individual that wrote the threat to Princess Celestia. The journal has remained in Princess Celestia’s custody under her request.
Official word of the events began circulation on May 11th. A summary of the strange events leading up to the town’s disappearance are all included, along with mention of the creatures and the place they came from. Any information about the possibility that these creatures are all ponies themselves has been left out of the official story. The timeline of the investigation and recovery of survivors was also made public, though mention of Twilight Sparkle’s role in the events has been omitted. Instead, Princesses Celestia and Luna have taken the lion’s share of responsibility.
There has been no restriction on survivors to share their experiences, and many have been interviewed by a variety of newspapers throughout Equestria. We have offered, until the town reopens, to provide room and board for all patients removed from hospitalization.
In addition to psychological evaluations, mature citizens have been approached for questioning about their experiences. Information is being collected and cataloged in the event that similar occurrences happen in the future.
For now, no additional evidence has been located, and the case is considered closed until further evidence is brought to light.
Signed,
Verdant Vines
Head Investigator
Case #3467
Jesus Christ. Can't help but feel a lingering foreboding that this is not all there is to the story. Maybe that's similar to how the survivors are feeling. That quote in the papers from someone saying a monument is like giving up sounded to me a fair bit like Rainbow Dash.
But yes, I can't set aside a lingering tension! This doesn't feel like a resolution to me yet, hahaha.
....It's not over...
So they're just going to consider Twilight the villain here, in the case reports? Typical fed types. Completely ignoring the fact that without this 'villain' they would not have gotten anyone back at all. Ungrateful sods, the lot of them.
WE. WON’T. LEAVE.
This was more then a little unsettling. Good story. But unsettling.
Loving the fact I can't decide if something to going to go to hell or not. A common theme throughout this entire entry has been the idea of trauma, and lasting scars... As much as an all out murderfest would be 'satisfying' in a way, I cannot help but feel that the real damage will just be the lasting scars and PTSD for all involved. Technically having won, but also having lost so much.
Oh man, things appear semi-settled so far. That can only mean things are about to go real bad real fast. I’m still wondering where the Apple family is. It’s concerning not one of them has turned up...
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From my reading of Applejack's story AJ accidentally killed them all while delusional, burried them in the empty graves and then was taken herself. If this is the case I doubt that they will return.
Oh man, this is keeping me on edge literally until the final words. I'm expecting something bad to happen, but an ambiguous ending that leaves us with a lot of unanswered questions would be very in-character for this series.
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Do you remember the ending of AJ's journal? She hallucinated that they were being attacked by monsters, but the monsters she killed trying to defend her family turned out to be her family... AJ killed Big Mac, Granny Smith, and Applebloom. Then fell into despair, and told RD and all the others at her farm to leave her.
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Indeed. It’s not over yet.
The fic is still marked as “incomplete”, but even if it wasn’t - this doesn’t feel like a resolution. So either it does get wrapped up in this story, or there has to be a sequel.
Has it ever been hinted at as to where the scarring came from?
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Yes I do remember, more or less. But I suppose what I wonder is the fact that their graves were empty and there was a comment about a filly with a missing leg in this story (which I assume is Applebloom, I don’t recall another).
Either way, Applejack’s status and the bodies of the Apple’s is what I meant. I wasn’t clear about that I guess. Tho personally I’m not 100% convinced they are dead, I don’t have anything to back it up it’s just a nagging suspicion.
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The graves were empty because none of the dead citizens were sent back. And the filly found missing a leg was Silver Spoon.
Wonder what the posting schedule is going to be like now that we're more out of sync! As of now, 5:30 PM PST, we haven't yet had any new chapters posted yet – I wonder if we'll continue seeing some events synchronized to the day (such as maybe today getting SOME events in hindsight that happened on the 10th, tomorrow some on the 11th, even though we know some of the story afterwards since we now have chapters referencing as far in the future as the 15th). Just a thought – no way to know yet! But I can't help but feel it odd to break the release pattern so intensely. Yesterday, we did get some reference to what happened on May 9th, so it was still partly synchronized.
OH GOD I JUST REMEMBERED ––– IN APPLEJACK'S JOURNAL. The secret messages... Apr 24:
"Just because it seems in sync
Doesn't mean the needle's not skipping"
OH NO. We think WE'RE in sync, or we THINK we've been in sync with the chapter dates... but the needle has perhaps been skipping for us as well as for them?
Thoughts about where this is going: In AJ's Apr 22 entry, she ends it with "I pray they make it back safely" and that's specifically referencing Spanner and Sugarcane. The hidden message replies, "They will, but not as themselves." Well, now we're here, and it seems like Spanner, Sugarcane, and Rainbow Dash all escaped a lot of the worst of it – at least, that's what they are claiming, saying they supposedly left Sweet Apple Acres an hour before being recovered.
It seems quite clear based on the solved cypher at the end of AJ's journal that the secret messages were written by Twilight after she "gave in" – the secret message at the end referencing being foolish to give in, but that it didn't last forever and they found new clarity, which appears to echo what Twilight herself says about giving in but returning to her senses.
But uhhhh, slight problem. In the very first story, Twilight finds AJ's journal, appearing to still be herself, and BURIES THE JOURNAL. AND THEN, our resident investigators found that journal buried exactly where Twi's journal said she buried it!
ALSO. HOLY CRAP, the whole thing with Twilight finding empty graves that theoretically belonged to Applejack's dead family, if the journal is to be trusted?? WELL, in Glimmer, the last secret message written into the letter from Vines to Clover reads, "We will not stay buried," which is a LITTLE OMINOUS IF YOU ASK ME in light of the actual literal empty graves. Sure, it could just be an unconnected metaphor talking about how the ponies who were taken and turned don't want to be forgotten, but that specific wording is, uh.... suspect to say the least, hahaha.
THEORY, I want your thoughts please, fellow readers.
This chapter ends with:
We have had no additional chapters for the last couple days, yet the story remains incomplete. This was planned of course; Flash mentioned in a comment on the first chapter that he would release chapters daily for a week or so, and indeed, chapters were released daily for a week.
So, what if "the case is considered closed until further evidence is brought to light" is for us? Flash always hides puzzles in these, and as far as I know, there have been very few hidden messages or cyphers or anything hidden in this one so far. What if we are meant to find further evidence and bring it to light, and then the case will no longer be closed?
Sounds a little nutty, sure, but I'm getting very suspicious of what the audience role is meant to be in this one. I can't put my finger on it, but I STILL feel like there are patterns hidden in the lists of reclaimed survivors.
Thoughts?
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I also put up a blog tagging the story saying the finale was a bit delayed. Apologies if you're trying to find a puzzle to solve, but there's not.
Last bit should be up tomorrow, hopefully.
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Whoops, lol. Nevermind. Flash has a journal saying there's been a minor delay of a day or two hahaha.
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Hah, I noticed that myself RIGHT before you responded! Thanks for the response, friend. I love this story, clearly, hahaha. It gets the cogs turning and keeps my brain alive. :)
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It's all good. They were fun reads.
Is the next few chapters going to be the ending?
I remember reading "A Fleeting Light" sometime in 2013 and a "Glimmer of Hope" a few years after. Then I recently discovered that the next two stories exist and now I'm sitting here reading both late into the very dark night (and slightly regretting it now ).
I never been more satisfied seeing this story reaching it's conclusion and tying up all loose ends after many years. I can't wait to see the ending. Seriously, good job in sticking with this.
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"I pray they make it back safely" was about two guards who went to Trottingham, not about Spanner and Sugarcane.
And "They will, but not as themselves." referenced to how these guards were transformed week later.