The End
They left us.
Those who flew above the sky. Those who never wondered why. Those who knew they’d one day die. Those who kissed what is goodbye. But who never really missed it.
Them. They left us.
And what is Equestria without them? Nothing so terrible. The forests are still green and the fields are still golden. The towns are still quaint and the cities are still beautiful. Ponies are still happy. They play and they work and they party together, and they think that, life is good.
But they don’t wonder if it might be otherwise.
Starlight was one of the first to go.
Such an impassioned rant to which she’d launched. “Twilight!” she cried. “We can create a perfect society. Equal, but without oppression, unbroken, but with individuality. Where the strength of one does not equate to the weakness of another.”
Such plans she had, for spells that let ponies use each other's magical talents, for schools that could teach every unicorn to be a wizard, for academies that could make every pegasus an ace, for machines that would free earth ponies from manual labor.
“That’s nice, Starlight,” Twilight said, and she sipped her tea and read the morning paper. Rants like these were not so unusual from her often-troubled apprentice. Her head was in the sky.
“Fine,” Starlight snapped, gathering up her charts and graphs and little balsa-wood models. “If you don’t want to hear it, I’ll go find somepony who does.”
“Mmmhmm. Good luck.” Twilight waved with her mug as Starlight stormed out. She slammed the door behind her, and was never seen again.
But did Starlight not often vanish, sometimes for weeks at a time? She’d been gone for days when the next creature disappeared, and nopony was yet alarmed.
Gallus rounded a corner. “Headmaster Twi... uh.” He caught himself. “Your Royal Highness, ruler of Equestria, Twilight.”
“Just Twilight is fine,” she smiled. “Did you need something?”
“Check it out!” In a flash of green light, he transformed into a perfect mirror of Twilight. Then of Rainbow Dash. Then of Smolder.
“Oh, hello, Ocellus.” Twilight offered a nod. “I’m sorry, I didn’t recognize it was you. You know you really shouldn’t impersonate creatures like that.”
“No no. It’s Gallus.” In another green flash, Gallus transformed back into himself. “I realized there’s a way for any creature to learn changeling magic.”
“You’re putting me on.” Twilight smiled. “Is this a prank?”
“No, I’m…” Gallus paused. “I’m serious.”
“Okay.” She played along, her tone gently humoring. “How did you come by this amazing discovery?”
“We were… all of us, that is,” he pointed every which way, “studying the magic of friendship. A lesson about empathy, and seeing things from the perspective of others. And I thought, I don’t really know what the world is like for a dragon. Or a diamond dog, or a mare. And I thought, wouldn’t it be cool to be able to see things that way? To actually know what somepony else’s life is like? And there was that magical… friendship rainbow thing.”
In a flash of green, he transformed into Rarity. “And now I can do this! Cool right?”
“So, Gallus really wants to know what life is like as a mare?”
On Rarity’s white cheeks, the red flush stood out clearly. Her ears folded back, and her tail tucked between her legs. Humiliation was written upon her every feature. And in a green flash, she turned into Ocellus.
“Ha ha, you got me,” she snapped, before storming off.
“I was just asking!” Twilight called. “I didn’t mean to…” But they were out of earshot.
Later, Twilight ran into Ocellus, who had no memory of their conversation. Gallus was not seen again.
Scootaloo had gone mad, they said. Well, her friends didn’t say that. But her friends would support her no matter what.
She had gone to Zecora, and from her received the secrets of a potion that could make wood as hard as steel. Harder than steel. “Strength flows not from saw or mill; but from the builder’s strength of will,” she said.
And from twigs that never bent or broke, she built a tower. First a play tower, then a modest structure, then a small home. Then, a staircase. A spiral staircase that looped in around itself, made from the treated wood of the Everfree Forest, one twig at a time.
“A ladder to Cloudsdale,” she said. “So I can visit without help.” And ponies laughed, until the tower exceeded fifteen stories, and still showed no signs of tumbling.
One day, Celestia came to Ponyville to see Twilight, and saw the tower in the distance. At Celestia’s request, they investigated, and they found Scootaloo at the bottom with a little pile of twigs. She dipped them one at a time in a cereal bowl she had filled with Zecora’s bubbling liquid.
“A tremendous achievement,” Celestia said.
“You’re so bright,” Twilight agreed.
“But I’m afraid it needs to come down,” Celestia finished. And Scootaloo demanded to know why.
“It is unsightly,” Celestia explained. “If your will were to falter, or if Zecora’s magic should fail, the tower could fall on Ponyville and cause great injury. It would get in the way of passing cloud homes. It would increase earth pony and unicorn tourism in Cloudsdale -- which in turn, equates to more uncautious ponies falling to their deaths every year. And it is useless. You can get a pegasus friend to fly you to Cloudsdale any day, can you not?”
“I don’t want to get a friend to fly me to Cloudsdale,” Scootaloo snapped, her little crippled wings buzzing behind her. “I want to walk there on my own four legs.”
“Why?” Celestia asked.
“Because nopony has ever done it before.”
And Celestia smiled her beatific smile, and said, “You are a brave and heroic creature, my little pony, but that is not reason enough to endanger my other subjects so. Sometimes, we must give up a little of what we want, so that everypony around us can be happy.”
Scootaloo argued. She ranted and raved, screamed and cried, but Celestia would not be moved. She extracted a promise, that the tower would come down that night.
And so, after Twilight and Celestia were gone and the sun had set, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo set the tower on fire. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom hugged their friend.
And by the time the fire brigade arrived, Scootaloo was gone.
Rainbow Dash was one of the last to go. By then, Equestria was in a panic.
Trixie was sobbing that Starlight had left her. The school was in lockdown, for the number of students who had vanished into thin air. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle could say nothing about where Scootaloo had gone, only that, “she left,” and that they did not think she would be back soon.
“Twilight,” she said, “I want to fly to space.”
Twilight stared at her—furrowed her brow and peaked her ears. “I don’t think this is the time for that.”
“Time Turner said it should be possible.” She lifted a bundle of equipment she’d been carrying over her back. “He made a special flight suit that should withstand extreme cold and low pressure. And a breath mask, so I can… breath. Breathe? Yeah, breathe.”
“Rainbow, ponies and creatures are disappearing and we don’t know why.” She shook her head. “We really need to focus on the problem in front of us.”
“There’s always a problem in front of us. I want to fly to space.” She fiddled with her special flight suit a moment. It looked bulky, made from hardened plates and thick fabric. “The problem is, as I get higher and the air gets thin, my wings will become less effective. I need a speed boost of about a hundred-and-fifty miles per hour to make the last leg. I was thinking you could come up with a spell.”
“No, Rainbow.” Twilight sighed. “I get it. You like flying or whatever, and space is the best flying. But how can I justify spending time on things up in space when we have very real problems down here on the ground?”
Rainbow swallowed. Her wings flapped awkwardly. “I don’t understand.”
“Why do you want to go to space so bad?”
“Because it’s there.”
“Rainbow!” Twilight hissed, drawing a hoof down over her face. “Do you really think, in the middle of a crisis, that’s a good enough reason?”
“It’s the only reason,” Rainbow said. “I mean. It’s the only reason that matters. Life can be good or life can be bad. Ponies can be happy or miserable or whatever. But I’ll always be the first pony who went to space.”
“You think you going to space matters more than the happiness of everypony else in Equestria?”
Twilight’s tone made the intended answer sufficiently clear that Rainbow did not dare contradict her, but nor would she lie to her friend, and so she said nothing. “What if you die?” Twilight pressed. “High flying like that is extremely dangerous.”
“It would be safer if you’d help me.”
“No, Rainbow,” Twilight snapped. “I know you’re a pegasus, but get your head out of the clouds. We have real problems.”
When it was time for Rainbow’s flight, only a half-dozen ponies came to see her off: the unicorns who made her flight suit, the earth ponies who made her mask, and one pegasus who wanted to be her. Not Scootaloo. She hadn’t returned. But Rainbow went off without her.
From her castle, Twilight saw a blue streak ascend into the heavens. A brilliant, circular rainbow radiated around her as she entered the last stage of her ascent. Then the rainbow faded, and the blue streak became a white streak. Then a white dot.
A new star appeared in the sky.
Then, that star faded away into nothing, and seconds later, all the other stars faded with it, and Equestria’s sky was black.
And what is Equestria without them? Nothing so terrible.
The forests are still green and the fields are still golden. There are many ponies who appreciate them, who work in them, who take pride in how friendly they have become. There are no ponies who wonder what might be there instead of forests and fields.
The towns are still quaint and the cities are still beautiful. They don’t change much. Neighborhoods remain unaltered for decades and houses stand for centuries. The cities have character, ponies say, like they were living creatures. Nopony starts protests or social movements or drones on about public transportation. And if the sewers overflow sometimes, that’s just life.
It doesn’t happen often.
Ponies are still happy. They play and they work and the party together, and they think that, life is good. Life is better, even, without anypony to drone on about social justice or utopian theory or class warfare or heroic deeds or the honor of the nation. What good did that ever do?
Equestria is simpler, without the stars. The day is bright and the night is dark.
And it will stay that way forever.
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- Zontan · 1.2k words · 19 2 · 389 views
- TheDriderPony · 1.8k words · 18 1 · 477 views
- Syke Jr · 2.5k words · 54 2 · 1k views
- Flashgen · 3.7k words · 59 5 · 1.2k views
- ROBCakeran53 · 1.7k words · 97 9 · 1.3k views
- Hopeful_Ink_Hoof · 1.6k words · 70 2 · 1.5k views
- Undome Tinwe · 1.2k words · 43 3 · 564 views
Stats
Page generated in 0.242 seconds
Total duration
948 users online
475,716 hits today, 2,139,894 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
I really love your style, GaP. Twinging melancholia and nostalgia meddling within determined characters.
This piece felt a bit like Gardez's recent work on The Archetypist.
It would be interesting to see if anyone has clued in to what they've lost.
Damn, I’m not sure of the underlying meaning behind it all, but it certainly had the feeling down pat. Really great job!
As long as there are ponies like that, and if any like them keep being born, there will be stars shooting from Equestria into the void.
A very surreal story, but one with a great message that you can take away from it. Doesn't hurt that it's beautifully told as well.
9787042
I think the implication is that your "if" is false.
9787087
Which is ridiculous if you take the story at all literally.
So the idea is that everyone with ambition suddenly becomes a massive narcissist and fucks off to Galt Gulch, I guess? And then dies on the way because they never contact home to gloat about how much better they have it now.
An unedited piece from you is still an amazing piece of work.
This is so confusing...
This would have been amazing if you'd said you spent two days on it. For an hour, it's nothing short of breathtaking.
9787281 The stars are a metaphor for people who excel in life, who shine the brightest because they see possibilities beyond the boundaries of what people think is or what should be, and then push through those boundaries. Without visionaries, without explorers who write their own stories, our world would be a much more dull and drab place.
"and totally unedited"
Er.
Hm.
...Given the circumstances, I think I might be better if I don't do my usual Thing here. :)
But I thought I'd let you know.
[reads]
Interesting, unsurprisingly. :)
And I don't recall seeing that many things I've have pointed at for the Thing, either. :)
Huh. Vaguely reminds me of a (much longer) book that I've read. Though at least this story had a... less bad ending than the book, where everything increasingly went to tartarus as all the smart people left. (And of course, the more who left, the worse things got, and the worse things got the more who left, sort of a feedback loop almost, until the end where all the smart people had left to their own hidden place and everywhere else was, uh... very not good.)
9787098
No, they just went to
Base Yavinthe Land of Misfit Toys.And in the
Galaxy'sNorth Pole's darkest hour, they will return withHan SoloYukon Cornelius andChewbaccaa reformed Abominable Snowman andPrincess LeiaClaryce andLuke SkywalkerRudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and SAVETHE REBELLIONCHRISTMAS!img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-static/static/2014-12/4/13/enhanced/webdr06/enhanced-352-1417718484-8.jpg?downsize=700%3A%2A&output-quality=auto&output-format=auto&output-quality=auto&output-format=auto&downsize=360:*
"His mitochloridian levels are off the scale!"
Bruh.
What... what the hell did I just read? *Claps in entertained confusion*
9788006
It's actually an admirable piece of work. But why it is, or even that it is, you might not get on first reading.
The author is obviously having some misfortune in his life. He feels misunderstood and mistreated. So he writes to express these feelings and to make the reader feel them too. He succeeds. But that's just self-pity--which is, to be fair, no more than what's expected in this case.
However there is more to this than self-pity. And it isn't what's expected.
What's unexpected is that he invites his accusers--those he feels have misunderstood and mistreated him--to his pity-party, and lets them speak their piece. As if that weren't enough he lends them the voices of the show's best and wisest characters, not to subvert these characters but to give the reader some sympathy with the points they are making. And as if that weren't enough, he leaves the reader pretty much convinced that these characters do have their points.
But they don't have all of them. The author has one too. Not the sine qua non, but a valid point and a necessary one.
This is a good artistic choice because it creates aesthetic tension, which is an artistic virtue, in the story's narrative and theme. But it is also a good ethical choice because it is virtuous to consider your opponents' points thoughtfully and sympathetically, and credit them with being right when they are right.
These choices would be laudable if they were made by an author at peace with the world, and with leisure to consider his options. But they weren't. They were made by a man still smarting from a serious rebuke. And they were made in an hour's time.
That, by God, is admirable.
9788185
...I liked Southpaw's explination better
9788224
Oh yes, Southpaw's reading is what's happening in the story. But it's not all that's happening.
Hi there! I'm going to read your story and JUDGE IT!!
(Now it truly is the Aponycalypse)
9787879 How high are Saitama's midiclorian levels?
9787098 Well, to be fair, I am a titanic flaming narcissist. But can you blame me? I mean, have you ever met me? I'm ME!! I'm a big deal!
I REALLY get Vegeta. We're both too good for this world.
And there was much rejoicing from all who appreciate actual characterization.
And to rip this fic's concept to pieces in one sentence:
How did the world work before there were beings with minds capable of thought?
A tree stands atop a mountain for 5,000 years, noticing nothing, accomplishing nothing but producing more seeds now and then. Does this imply it has no value? Is it a bad thing that it cannot lead a protest and beat up an old man in a wheel chair? One could easily take all the worst works of a creative mind and craft the argument that the tree is the superior being and should be what all should aim for, as it does no harm to anything and instead creates shelter and food for many other forms of life.
You see, this is the epitome of the arrogance of humanity (ponmanity): they assume the universe needs them. In fact, humanity comforts itself in purpose and meaning... when we have no idea what any of those concepts actually are, or even if they truly exist. If one has faith that they do, then there's no concern of them vanishing suddenly, for to exist they must be inherent to the very structure of the cosmos. If they don't exist... well then, boink everything that moves and then die, cuz nothing matters!
This is the one true dichotomy: there is either meaning, or there isn't. No other option exists.
You may now worship my brilliance. (What, you expected Alondro NOT to troll? Sheesh, wise up!)
9788185
Um...
I feel like I just got an hour of therapy for free.
Thanks man.
9788257 Right, I distilled it down to an essence, which I do feel is a bit of a crime where stories are concerned. I'm glad that you filled in the blanks. I was going to say more, but I think I'll leave it at that.
To push up against the boundaries imposed upon us by be they from society, life circumstances, or the uncaring world we find ourselves in, and to push past them, is quite a bit of what it means to be human. Or in this case, pony. Creature. Whatever. Because we can.
The rest of what it means though, is to help each other. To deal together with our struggles and burdens, of society, or life, or the uncaring universe. To help out friends, even if it isn't glamorous. Because we care.
To do the first without the second, to seek progress without heed of consequences, is to leave the world broken behind you.
To do the second without the first, to seek stability at the cost of progress, is to bind the world so tight that nothing breaks, even when it needs to be broken.
Pure chaos is a cacophony. Pure order is a monotone. To get Harmony, you need both. Because we should.
And sometimes yes, it's quite okay that the stars are gone.
9788185
You know. Comments are magic after all. I didn't truly understand what this was all about and why it was written, until you mentioned 'a serious rebuke'. That got my attention, and then suddenly I actually checked the author's name. Oooooh, it's THAT guy. Third wheel/Courtesan/rest of that rambling inconsistent mess. THAT guy. Well, without you I'd move on and lowkey kept wondering.
Me: I don't understand... So it must be philosophy!
That's the obvious choice for something seems vaguely impressive but unfathomable!
Also, *confused sadness*
9788488
Don't mind if memorize this wonderful comment for myself.
9788185
9787401
My understanding has been increased considerably. Thank you.
(Just confused about the "serious rebuke" bit, though.)
9789069
Hey.
They party together?
I liked this story. Although, I imagine, a significant number of people in the fandom—myself included—are content to live in a world without stars.
9788185
It seems I've missed some meta context.
Doesn't Luna have anything to say about the missing stars?
And I would've thought Twilight would be more interested in Gallus' discovery.
And no, Rainbow, the middle of a disaster is NOT the right time to ask Twilight for help going to space!
Why do you hate Twilight?
I want to be clear and seperate this from the rest of the story, which is very well written and applies a creative premise really well; it's honestly just confususing. You don't hate her, and she's always in-charator. But she's always used to illustrate something wrong with the world, and I'm not sure why.
EDIT unless Twilight wasn't supposed to be exactly wrong, which just means that I am not a smart man.
9787098
I thought they were being kidnapped by some force.
Celestia didn’t reply, so Luna turned to face her on the balcony. She could just see Celestia’s face, a white oval turned toward the sky.
“Look,” whispered Celestia, and Luna lifted her eyes to the heavens. (There is always a last time for everything.)
Overhead, without any fuss, the stars were going out.
9790408
I don't hate her, but as a princess, she's a great narrative tool to represent the status-quo.
9789069
That's an interesting reading. It's plain to see what you bring to the text.
9790436
I wanted to do something from The Demolished Mare, but nothing occurred.
Anyway yours is better.
And they shall be led by Princess Applejack, leader of all background ponies.
9790470
her becoming a princess was a shakeup of the status quo
Well, that was utterly terrifying. There are few worse fates than complacent stagnation.
9790470
Restores the diarchy after a millennium of Celestial rule.
Reveals the existence of a race of emotional parasites to public knowledge.
Becomes a princess herself.
Opens on-demand connections to other universes.
Establishes positive relations with nations that have spurned Equestria for decades, if not centuries.
Literally rewrites the book on modern education.
Replaces the God-Empress of Ponykind on her Golden Throne.
Suffice to say, Twilight isn't my first choice for representing the preservation of the status quo.
9792869
Every now and then Twilight likes to be cast against type.
Just to keep from getting in a rut, you know.
9793575
True. After all, the alternative would be preserving the status quo!
9788185
Just to let you know - more than once in the past GAPJaxie has presented a scenario where his views are on one side and reasonable-sounding counterarguments in the mouths of beloved characters on the other, and then said outright that there was not supposed to be any real moral ambiguity.
9792869
Yeah - she's kind of the face of the new wave in Equestria. (Well, the moderate new wave, not the sorts who would suggest crazy things like not being run by a princess.)
9795388
Could you give me some examples, please? With links?