Cessation
Sweetie Drops wrestles with her own failure as the Equestrian Freedom Fighters are culled by Task Force Centaur. The final vestige of old Equestria dies with her.
It wasn't supposed to be like this.
Equestria wasn't supposed to lose. They were not to be conquered, especially by a gaggle of hairless apes with self-destructive tendencies.
Failure was an impossibility to the chosen people, that was an undeniable fact of life that the Church of Harmony taught to all its true believers. A universal constant instilled to all born of blessed pony form and consciousness.
Harmony could never be truly smoted. The sky may split, the oceans boil, their Goddesses struck down or shown their true wickedness, but then the people would rally together and turn the tide against the human mongrels that dare to extinguish the sole light of righteousness in the universe.
The Equestrian Freedom Fighter were that lingering spark, the very last breath of a once beautiful civilization that will rise again like a phoenix from the ashes. Loyal to the core they embodied the very essence of the venerable Princess Celestia's Equestrian ideals.
Through faith and fire, they valiantly fight against overwhelming odds, bold underdogs destined to bring down a blighted regime, firmly girded in the belief that no matter what may come they will undoubtedly triumph in the end and all will be right once more because they are the good guys in the winding story of life...
...Unfortunately, that same belief has been strained and tested far beyond its breaking point.
It had been eight years since their inception, eight years of righteous rebellion; bombings, political assassinations, kidnapping and ransoming, information warfare, anything they could come up with really, and they've barely been able to do any lasting damage to their human foe nor were they any closer to deposing Twilight, the traitor, and reclaiming Equestria for its rightful people.
They've had next to nothing to show for all their arduous years of blood, sweat, tears and devotion save for ridicule on the world stage, scorn from their own kinfolk and a long list of dead freedom fighters that continues to grow beyond what was acceptable. Equestria and the vast majority of its people remain firmly in humanity's cloying grasp, hopelessly swayed by their alluring temptations and vices, ignorant of the permanent stain that mars its perfection.
To further rub salt into the wounds, Princess Celestia, she who is above all, had been put on a sensationalist show trial before a kangaroo court then coldly murdered for all to see not two years earlier, an atrocious tragedy that had irreparably crippled the morale of the EFF whether they were willing to admit or not.
Some members, even those with will of iron, had killed themselves immediately once the sheer magnitude of the reality set in for them, their sudden departure from this world often signaled by a single thundering crack of a firearm or wet gurgle of warm blood pouring out from their exposed jugular.
Venerable Princess Celestia, the last and most almighty of the true Goddesses was gone along with whatever hope there was at bringing her back to the homeland, of restoring her rule. Vaporized into ash by foul human invention then callously scattered to the four winds, never to be seen ever again. They were now truly alone in a world without her love, protection and judicious guidance.
The solemn vigil held in her honor did little to assuage the gnawing sense of dread that continued to fester underneath. Doubt was growing rampant as their failures piled up. They couldn't sit by as the godless masses celebrated the death of their Goddess, punishment for such crimes must be meted out swiftly and mercilessly.
Thus, it was hastily decided that they would go ahead with their plan, Operation Queen's Fall, and have Twilight assassinated as soon as possible in order to regain some semblance of control over their shadow war. It was as much a sign of desperation as it was fanaticism that they were willing to go such lengths on a whim in order to achieve their goal, but the benefits of their success would no doubt offset the drastic cost in their mind.
Unfortunately, misfortune once again spat in their faces as their assassination attempt had not only failed but was so as a direct result of sabotage.
Trixie Lulamoon, initially believed to be a bitter soul who joined the cause out of personal vendetta against Twilight, had revealed herself to be a mole working under her the entire time at the most crucial moment of the plan, foiling yet another of their desperate endeavors. She had used her alleged bitterness to garner sympathy and earn the trust of the EFF, who in turn trusted her with their wealth of secrets.
It was a masterful con that had everyone fooled and paved the way for subterfuge and intelligence gathering with none the wiser. And though Trixie paid the ultimate price for her duplicity, perishing like the treacherous scum she was, her efforts had guaranteed that the EFF were hamstrung at almost every opportunity while she was still alive.
Time and time again their efforts were thwarted. With each mounting loss their numbers and morale dwindled, their capacity for retaliation all but cut off at the knee.
But still, they resist in the face of annihilation.
They resist because the only other option is to lay down and die.
Sweetie Drops, stalwart leader of the Equestrian Freedom Fighters, frantically paced around the suddenly all-too-claustrophobic confines of her ruined barricaded office as the nightmarish cacophony of death and devastation echoed all around her. Every so often there would be a muffled explosion overhead followed by tremors that caused various objects in the room to rattle, sometimes off their perch, and flecks of dirt to sprinkle atop her like rain.
She looked a complete and total mess. Her fur was matted and soaked with sweat, the dark rings around her bloodshot eyes gave her a ghoulish appearance; she was a mare at the end of her ropes.
Several radios nearby hissed with either white noise or the panicked screams of the dying. A wall of black and white monitors surveying the many labyrinthine tunnels and divided sublevels of the EFF headquarters displayed a multitude of grisly scenes as her comrades fought futilely against the enemy before being cut down like wheat before a scythe.
"Bulwark Team, Rampart Team!" she cried into one of the radios. "Hold the line, we can't let the Green Sector be overrun! If they break through, they'll have unfettered access to the rest of the facility! The survival of the Equestrian Freedom Fighters hinge on your resistance! The cause is all that matters, Equestria is all that matters, remember that and fight on! Don't give those Godless bastards an inch of ground!"
A pegasus visible on the monitor where the Green Sector was located fumbled with his own radio, he was hunkered down with several others behind makeshift barricades who were all preoccupied with holding off the waves of black armored humans and ponies threatening to overtake their position. He had the radio pressed up against one ear and a hoof over the other to muffle the ear-splitting roar of the Browning machine gun beside him.
"Chief Sweetie Drops!" The pegasus addressed in a panicked voice, nervously looking over his shoulder in sporadic intervals. "This is Flip Tricks of Bulwark Team! It's not looking great! We need reinforcements yesterday! We can't keep this up, we're gonna ge-!"
His pleas were cut short as the unnerving hiss of a plasma blast echoed across the air. A single bolt of superheated plasma streaked across the air, illuminating the room along its wispy trail before striking the unfortunate earth pony manning the machine gun, taking off the upper half of his head in a single blow and leaving only a horrid, melted stump in its wake.
The gunner's corpse convulsed in his death throes; hoof still pressed up tight against the trigger of the machine gun. The weapon swung wildly from the recoil, whipping over to the side and riddling the others behind the barricade in a hail of bullets, wounding or killing them outright from the friendly fire. Flip Tricks fell into the latter category, eating a buffet of lead before a stray bullet ricochet off the wall and destroyed the camera, killing the feed as well.
"Flip Tricks?! Flip Tricks!?" Sweetie yelled as her blood pressure spiked, causing a vein in her neck to bulge and throb under the stress. "Come in! Bulwark Team? Rampart Team?! Somepony answer me, Celestia, damn it! Graaaah!" She angrily slammed a hoof against the blank screen, cracking the glass of the monitor before she started pacing back and forth again.
Task Force Centaur, the irksome joint counterterrorism unit born of human-pony cooperation, had at long last discovered their secret mountain headquarters. They struck with the force of a hurricane dead set on wiping them all out once and for all. Between their superior weapons, advanced tactics and sheer body count facing them head on was a death sentence.
The EFF's only hope of keeping the lingering spark alive was to flee and establish a new headquarters somewhere else, start all over again. It pained everypony to have to leave the Macintosh mountains, a place rich in historical and cultural significance spanning all the way back to Equestria's turbulent beginnings, but desperate times calls for desperate measures.
They can find a new home to rebuild and restart their crusade; somewhere, anywhere was better than lands tainted in the human filth. Even the most remote of locations were starting to grow in appeal.
The situation was undeniably grim.
And yet, throughout it all, Sweetie Drops continued to hold onto her faith and convictions like a lifeline.
She did not falter when the Equestrian Secret Service tasked her with routing out traitors and dissidents.
She did not falter when Equestria's borders had been compromised by the human invaders.
She did not falter even as Canterlot, the beating heart of the country, was strangled by the hands of the enemy.
She did not falter then; she will not falter now.
This had to be a test, she rationalized. Yes, there was no other plausible explanation for the EFF's miserable state of being.
The siege upon their mountain headquarters by the deplorable humans was all a divine test set upon them by the true Alicorns themselves from high above in the verdant fields of Elysium as a way to measure their faith and loyalty.
A trial by fire to ensure that the Equestria reborn and reshaped by their hooves would be led by capable loyalists with a strong moral compass and ironclad devotion to home and hearth. The population that would come thereafter as a result would undoubtedly be truehearted, unlike their untrustworthy predecessors.
Surely, they would succeed where all others have failed.
Surely, fate would not be so cruel to deny them their rightful victory...
"S-Sapphire Team! Come in, Sapphire Team!" Sweetie Drops called into one of the radios, her eyes glued to the many monitors. "Come in, Sapphire Team! Do you read!?" She swallowed thickly nervously waiting for a response only to hear nothing but worrisome static.
She had sent out several recon teams the moment the attack began, they were tasked with checking to see if the emergency escape routes were still usable.
The blasted Thalmann generators had been set up en masse around the mountainside, their eldritch touch was capable of being felt even through several meters of solid rock. Escape through magical means was impossible now. The multitude of periphery escape tunnels were their only hope of survival for the freedom fighters as this very well may be their last stand. A thought that would've been appealing before, were it not for the haunting truthful finality that it'd entail.
"Sapphire Team! Come in, Sapphire Team!" Sweetie repeated, her nerves steadily fraying with each agonizing second. "Report! What's your sta-!?" she was interrupted by another rumble, followed by telltale drone of a sonic rainboom in the distance. She braced herself against her desk, screwing her eyes shut as she was pelted by loose rocks and dirt clods. It feels as if the entire room was ready to collapse in on itself any minute now.
Rainbow Dash was undoubtedly giving it her all up there, that must've been her third or even fourth sonic rainboom pulled off in the past few hours. It was only through sheer grit, determination and Celestia's benevolent grace she hadn't ripped herself apart from the g-force pulling off such a prodigious maneuver repeatedly within a short time frame. Truly she was worthy of her hero moniker. Sweetie couldn't help but wonder if that alone would be enough to ward off the task force.
"Venerable Princess Celestia, she who is above all, I, your most humble of daughters, loyal to Equestria and all it encompasses, beseech to you; please watch over your loyal flock. Grant us the strength to resist these foul invaders so that we may continue to foster your great work..." Sweetie mumbled rapidly as she righted herself, reaching for the radio again. She fiddled with the settings, checking to make sure it was still on the right frequency.
"Sapphire Team, report in. What is your status?" she spoke in a demanding tone, voice trembling with traces of fear and anxiety. "Come in, did you find the escape tunnel?"
"-apphire team, reporting in! We're at escape tunnel D of the Red Sector, Chief Sweetie Drops!" a feminine voice replied, her voice hoarse and exhausted.
A flicker of hope twitched in Sweetie's chest, a hope she prudently pushed aside until she was absolutely certain things will work out.
"There better be good news," Sweetie growled, unable to keep the edge out of her voice.
"It's no good!" the voice replied, she sounded defeated and full of despair. "The tunnel is collapsed, just like the rest in the sector! We think the initial bombardment got to it before we did!"
"Grr... Damn it all!" Sweetie screamed, resisting the urge to smash another monitor. Collecting what little composure she had left she continued speaking. "Move on to the next sector! One of these damn tunnels has to be intact, it's our only method of escape!"
"We'll try, chief. But with the way things are going the odds of finding one in working condition aren't looking very- Wait, what! Aaah-!" the voice on the other end let loose a shrill scream before gunfire blared from the speaker. Eerie buzzing followed shortly after. Sweetie Drop could feel her heart sink into the pit of her stomach as the radio dropped out of her hooves.
Sapphire Team was the last of the recon team she was able to keep in contact with. The others, Emerald, Ruby, Diamond, Topaz and so forth had gone quiet as well, all assumed to be either captured or killed.
Ruby Team in particular had fared the worst. Sweetie bore witness to their demise through the monitors, watching as the constant bombardments from Task Force Centaur from outside caused a cave in at Yellow Sector, burying them alive underneath several tons of rock and dirt. It was a horrible way to die.
There was nothing left now save for fighting a losing battle in what could best be argued to be pest control than a glorious final stand. Everything they had fought and bled for over eight long years had proven in the end to be completely and utterly useless.
"No..." The sobering realization hit Sweetie Drops and it hit her hard.
They had failed.
This was it. The end of all things good and pure in the universe was rapidly approaching. The final spark of hope snuffed out in the choking darkness of cruel fate.
"No..." In a twist of irony, the Equestrian Freedom Fighter's mountain headquarters, their bastion from the tainted world beyond, was about to become their tomb.
"NOOOOOO!!!" Sweetie Drops lost whatever sense of steadfastness she had left and gave into the despair that had crept its way into her soul, letting out a primal roar that was full of anguish. Raising herself up on her hind legs she proceeded to slam her forelegs repeatedly against the top of her desk in a blind rage.
"No, no, no!" she punctuated each word by bringing her hooves down onto the table with enough intensity to cause solid mahogany to split and crack. "This can't be it; I refuse to acknowledge this outcome! We are ponies of Equestria! The strong, the righteous, the herald's friendship and harmony!" She shouted towards no one, perhaps at herself. "I am faithful, the freedom fighters by my side are as well! We live to spread light through the darkness as is our holy charge!"
Throughout it all she wore an expression of hopelessness and directionless fury, unable to process the storm of emotions swirling about in her weary mind. The stark reality of the EFF's impending doom had already begun to override her own once-unshakeable beliefs and it sent her into a deranged frenzy. She desperately tried to make it make sense, but no amount of mental gymnastics could justify denying what was happening all around her.
After only a brief minute of mindless pounding she stopped, her hooves were cracked and sore. She panted heavily as hot tears poured down her cheeks in long unbroken streaks.
The dream of Equestria's grand revival was dead. Perhaps it was always meant to be a dream; sweet, comforting and ephemeral. Forever faraway and out of reach.
In her turmoil, through the tears and despair she laid eyes upon a small statuette of the Alicorns resting on a pillar in one corner of the room. Though it was covered with dirt it had miraculous stayed upright despite nearly everything else in the room being flung to the ground by the tremors.
She immediately moved from her desk and threw herself before the statuette, prostrating herself before an inanimate object no holier than the desk she was beating at prior.
"Oh, blessed Alicorns of Equestria. Venerable Cadence, Flurry Heart, Luna and Celestia! Forgive me, I have failed you!" she groveled pathetically underneath the blank uncaring gaze of her stone Goddesses, quivering like a newborn foal. "I tried my hardest to lead your most loyal flock to triumphant glory, to restore the old Equestria in your name, but it was not enough! We stand on the precipice of destruction, assailed at all sides by verminous humans and our traitorous kin! There is nothing we can do!"
She wept silently, head pressed against the floor unable to even meet the eyes of her deities. But it was at her lowest, both physically and mentally that she received an epiphany. Or in her eyes, a divine revelation.
"...No, I am wrong. There is still something we can do," she muttered darkly, rising from her spot along the floor as she wiped her face of tears and snot. "The Earth is finished. The terrible rot that has befallen our people has spread too far and too deep to be reversed. I accept that. But there is still one other place left for your loyal children to go home to..."
Wordlessly she trotted back over to her desk and hastily pulled open one of the drawers, rattling the contents within as she did. In it was an unloaded Webley Mk. VI revolver and some loose ammunition rolling about. It was one of the many 'modern' firearms former princess Twilight helped to develop that were distributed among the Royal Guard and Equestrian Secret Service prior to the invasion.
She picked it up and began slowly loading it with .45 ACP pistol rounds, one bullet at a time. Once it was fully loaded, she closed up the gun and gave it a hard stare. It was still in fantastic condition. She had kept it all this time in spite of her disgust toward guns, having never actually fired it during her time in the service or as leader of the Equestrian Freedom Fighters. She had never gotten the chance to.
Now, she did.
Exhaling she turned around, picked up the radio and sat herself down before the glowing wall of monitors, revolver tightly gripped in her hoof watching with silent reservation as Task Force Centaur savaged every nook and cranny of the headquarters, leaving behind a long trail of dead ponies wherever they go.
She noted how they moved with unnatural haste and fought with cold precision; breach, shoot, move, breach, shoot, move, all done with eerie robotic efficiency. It was only a matter of time before they succeed in their mission.
Until then, however, Sweetie was determined to give her friends the glorious end they deserve.
"Attention, all freedom fighters," she spoke into the radio. Calmly at first but the more she spoke the more powerful her voice became. "This is Chief Sweetie Drop, your fearless leader, with a priority message broadcasting on all frequencies. If anypony can hear me, listen and listen well.
I order you all to resist!
Stand firm and resist with all your heart and soul!
Resist as you've been ever since the Conversion War!
Resist as you've been when Equestria was invaded!
Resist as you've been ever since our beautiful country was sold out to the monkeys by that purple traitorous bitch!
Resist now!
Resist always!
Resist, resist, resist!
We will not give in to the human filth or their traitorous allies!
We will not allow ourselves to be captured and tried for the crime of helping those less fortunate than us!
We will not let our end be one of silence and complacency!
If we are to die here and now, our flame snuffed out, then let it be done so through our unending efforts in the great cause, the Equestrian ideal, in the name of Equestria and her benevolent Goddesses, Cadence, Flurry Heart, Luna and Celestia!
This is my final order to you, my dear friends, my beloved family, my steadfast brothers and sisters-in-arms!
Take comfort. Though the homeland is lost, the home within remains open to all her loyal children!
May I see you all at the fields of Elysium! Happy and free among those once lost!
Equestria stands, now and forever more!"
Sweetie Drop concluded her impassioned speech by tossing the radio at the wall, shattering it into scraps of plastic and primitive circuitry. She then aimed her revolver at the monitors and fired off five shots in quick succession, destroying most of the equipment and rendering them useless. She didn't need them anymore, nor will she allow it to be used as a means to track down the others.
With adrenaline coursing through her veins she then directed the revolver at the barricaded door, heart rapidly beating in her chest as she impatiently awaited the enemy to come.
It didn't take long for them to show up at her doorstep, announcing their presence with angry shouting and bashing themselves against the door. They no doubt heard her speaking through the channels and sought to have her captured. Taking the leader of the Equestrian Freedom Fighters and having her be tried just like Princess Celestia had been would no doubt satisfy their leaders.
Several shots rang out, multiple holes appeared across the door and the miscellaneous furniture holding it firm. They'll make it through soon, assuming they didn't decide to just pop a grenade in and call it a day.
Sweetie's hooves shook uncontrollably as she desperately tried to keep the revolver pointed at the door. Blood pounded in her ears, her chest heaved up and down as she struggled just to breathe properly. Her bravado had all but evaporated during these final tense moments and the anticipation would likely kill her before the enemy does, or...
"I..." she swallowed thickly, pupils dilated, throat dry and coat soaked with sweat. "I... I won't let you take me!" she boldly proclaimed, a manic smile stretching across her face that was followed by nervous giggling. "Ah-ha-ha-ha! Yes! I won't let you take me alive you backwards monkey people!? Do you hear me?!" Without hesitation she turned the revolver on herself, pressing it firmly under her chin.
"I-I will not give you that satisfaction!" she bellowed, tears flowing freely, face grotesquely contorted between emotions of fear, sorrow, hysteria and joy of all things. "Venerable Alicorns, scions of harmony! Your servants are returned to you! Let us build a new Equestria in the kingdom within!" her hooves tightened along the revolver's handle.
"EQUESTRIA STANDS, NOW AND FOREVER MORE!!!"
The trigger was pulled.
A shot was fired.
The walls were colored with a sickly crimson hue.
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11755768
I am genuinely curious as to what makes our cultures and ideas infectious in her eyes?
Truly a broken, zealous mind to the end. Normally I would say that I hope she finds the peace in death that she didn't have in life.. But remembering her sins, I sincerely doubt it. Excellent chapter. Also an idle thought below, feel free to ignore it.
Bit of a darker thought but.. Is anyone else curious as to what a chapter of the EFF, fallen Princesses, and Celestia meeting the gods of Earth would be like? Morbidly curious myself, either to see how they would react or how they would be punished..
The rightful end of an unhinged fanatic.
And thus Sweetie Drops falls finally, and so comes the end of The terrorists. Glad to see them come to an end.
This and "The Reservation" on the same day. What an excellent day for Post Conversion Bureau stories.
(... There's a not insignificant part of me that would love to make a fic based on this world, with all these ponies deaths leading them to the afterlife, or rather, judgment for it. And their final states of absolute and complete shattered denial.)
11762819
And then along came Zeus.
11762858
And now that song is in my head.
I hope in death Sweetie will finally learn the truth about everything. Being sent to hell along with her freedom fighters, where they will meet Celestia being punished for her sins and she herself would be made to admit all her lies to the loyalist and the true reason why they came to earth, thus revealing why they didn't just go back to their planet.
I could never imagine why nopony would question that more loudly. If humanity is such a loss caused to them. Then why not just go back to their planet? What's the point in fighting a war when they could just leave.
I seriously wondered why Bon bon never thought of that once after all the death and destuction.
And boom goes the fanatic zealot... Kinda hoping when she reaches whatever afterlife, she goes; "*gasp* There's no light... THERE'S ONLY FIRE!"
"A futile struggle doomed from the very start?"
static.wikia.nocookie.net/ultrakill/images/4/46/King_Sisyphus.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20220222191609
"She's just like me FR"
based trixie
11762819
I am actually thinking about that right now! Though, I do wonder how such a thing can happen if placed into the story. I assume it has to be multiple chapters for different deities/religions, because placing the Judeo-Christian god YHWH next to someone like the Greek god Zeus is logically impossible. (Isaiah 45:5-6; Acts 17:24-25; 1 Timothy 1:17) Granted, the author (or someone) can just ignore it and lump all of Earth’s deities into one place and meet the equines, but I’m sure it will be a mess, to say the least.
As a Christian, I have a decent idea of how it would go down between the Lord and the evil/fallen ponies.
11762851
You read that story, too? Neat! It’s another gem for post-Conversion Bureau stories.
11763014
Choice and The Reservation serve as excellent compliments to each other.
Choice focuses on the big picture stuff. The thoughts and experiences of the movers and shakers of the world. Leaders, scientists, diplomats, etc. It also gives insight into some of the most pivotal moments of the conflict.
The Reservation is very personable and tells the tales of everyday ponies and how the fallout of the conflict colours their lives. Banality, desperation, survival and apathy.
11763024
Agreed! I think that’s why I resonate a lot with The Reservation. The regular (or once important) folks who had to deal with the horrors of the Conversion War and the aftermath of the conflict. Besides some stories from The Negotiations-verse and The Reservation itself, I don’t think I’ve seen that from any other fan-fiction of TCB.
Even though I’m currently on break from something important, the thought of the story makes me want to read it all over again! Thanks a lot for that! I especially wanna see this new chapter you mentioned. Oh, and good work on your story, And So I Left. You deserve those 1k+ likes!
Blessings!
-Davidtin, user of Fimfiction since 2021
You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this and let me tell you, it was totally worth it.
Glad to see another chapter. I love seeing Sweetie's fall into madness.
A long-awaited update! Especially since I was gone from the online world for so long!
I straight up enlisted in the Air Force, got to BMT, graduated, and to tech training in-between updates lol
11763531
Congratulations!
11763539
Thanks!
Intense. And a shame. I like Bon Bon, but she was too deluded. She couldn't accept the truth even though it was slapping her in the face. Applejack knew they were the villains in this war, at least.
Theory, Sweetie Drops/Bon Bon sold her soul to Celestia long ago, before they even came to Earth. She canonically worked as a special agent for the Equestrian government, I doubt her hooves were squeaky clean. My guess… by the time she gets to earth, Equestria is all she has left inside of her… mindless propaganda that even she believes, because anything less would make her realize just what she’s become.
11763036
I think another reason is that there's a key difference in Reservation aside from most TCB stories. A good amount of the non-pony population is actually quite alive. Which adds in a nice angle of not just having to repair things with humans who they invaded, but also formerly friendly races who are now are wary at best around the ponies, and downright hostile at worst.
Another amazing chapter!
And thus ends the life of Sweetie Drops. A crazed zealot to the very end.
Side note: I hope we get a chapter with Braeburn in the future.
Thank you for finally updating this story, I've been waiting for it for a long time.
11762819
I considered a sort of afterlife judgement chamber, basically one-on-one scenes between the various ponies and a mysterious interviewer, with a position pretty much like St. Peter's in Christian mythology (i.e. asks about your good deeds and bad ones, then passes final judgement). I realized the biggest issue with said fic would be a reception similar to that of the Divine Justice chapter of Fallen - i.e. the religious factor would prove more divisive than entertaining, especially since said figure would have an unimpeachable moral compass or would otherwise come off as the author's mouthpiece.
The idea of humankind's gods confronting the ponies in the afterlife would raise different concerns; I mean, are they all correct? Is there a collective committee of gods? How would the afterlife work, given the contradicting opinions of different religions?
11762904
I don't think it would matter to Sweetie Drops. She was a Celestia fanatic through and through, which is why she was so eager to purge Equestria of heretics, traitors and faithless and never once questioned her actions. If there was any doubt at all in her mind, she quashed it long ago. If her worldview proved to be less than perfectly correct in all things, it would destroy her.
"Blessed is the mind too small for doubt." - WH40K quote
(Speaking of which, I can easily see this version of Sweetie Drops being a fanatical Puritan Inquisitor in WH40K, which should speak volumes about her mad dedication).
Regarding just going back home, two things.
1) At the start of the war, Celestia had ruled unquestioned and uncontested for centuries on end. Nobody thought to question her. And for the majority of the war, there was no question of whether the ponies could win the war, but when they would win the war. Equestria was pretty much like pre-WW2 Imperial Japan, having never been beaten in a war and thus being absolutely certain they could not lose. I mean, they beat back Night Mare Moon, Sombra, Discord, Tirek and more, and humans didn't even have magic to fight with!
2) They actually did try to go home during the last year of the war, when it was clear the humans were going to crush them otherwise and the war was clearly lost. By then, of course, it was too late; the Elements of Harmony wouldn't work without Fluttershy, and anyone who did question would face the wrath of the Equestrian Secret Service, who were all narrow-minded fanatics to a pony.
11762795
The simple questions of "Why?" and "Why not". Basic Socratic discourse would absolutely destroy Equestria's narrow-minded ideology. For instance, a pony would say loyalty is a good thing, to which one would say, "Well, is it a good thing to be loyal to a bad king? Were those loyal to Sombra good? And what of those who tried to rebel against him, were they disloyal?"
Similarly, the concepts of scientific study and research, investigative journalism, philosophical discourse, etc... all exist inside Equestria, but only as pale imitations of those concepts in human culture. Yes, many human societies also try to crack down on sources of dissent and free thinking, but those are generally seen as bad examples of societies and governments, why is Equestria so reminiscent of them? Celestia's "perfect society" is just a straitjacket, designed as a golden cage to keep the ponies docile and obedient. Any attempt to think outside the box Celestia made for everyone would reveal some uncomfortable truths in Celestia's grand design, and then Equestrian society, Celestia's millenia-spanning project and grand opus, falls apart, or at least changes beyond her ability to control it. Bear in mind, Celestia is rather narcissistic in this version (it takes a certain kind of person to create an entire religion around themselves to be worshipped as a god, compare Twilight's and Cadence's discomfort with the idea as mentioned by Spike in Rest).
11764239
You have a fair point. As I said it was just an idle thought, but I thank you for taking the time to reply. I am sure many people would probably write their own versions of such an event based on their beliefs, though many more would enjoy such stories/chapters just to see the ponies realizing they were wrong and being punished.
In any case I hope that I didn't offend anyone with my thoughts.
11764254
In a way, they already have been punished. Luna died a horrible, agonizing death (being tough and sturdy is a blessing as an alicorn, but not when it means you're tough enough to temporarily live through and feel a massive barrage of bullets rip you apart), Cadence was roasted alive by a nuclear blast with her daughter and her subjects, Celestia ended up hated and reviled for all time before being executed as a war criminal. And while she was ultimately forgiven, Twilight had to shoulder the burden of knowing what she did and what she allowed to happen, not to mention accept that her own legacy is tainted as well. Furthermore, while Shining Armor's death was quick if messy, his reputation has been completely destroyed postmortem (in the end, he was leading armies through population centers and causing mass death and suffering). Everyone else who followed Celestia now has to live with the knowledge of what they've done or allowed to happen, and that their loved ones ultimately died for nothing.
It's just a matter of if you think they've been punished enough. And any judgement here gets subjective, as some will believe that ponies like Luna and Shining Armor were punished enough by their deaths, while others will insist they have yet to pay their bloody debts.
She tells them to resist, only to end up killing herself rather than fight.
11764815
It’s a familiar song and dance isn’t it?
Okay, given how it was originally planned to be revealed in Rest that (and I'm paraphrasing here) there technically isn't an afterlife, and anyone who dies outside of their home universe would effectively cease to exist, the fact that even excluding all the blatant terroristic shit, Sweetie Drops still thinks she's going to Pony Heaven is a grim form of comedy.
Especially since I still personally see that as being canon.
11763903
Ah, I believe that’s one of the reasons why I like The Reservation a lot. From characters such as Gallus the griffin being a patrol guard to Claudia the changeling working for Elon Musk, there are more than a handful of non-ponies, and that is pretty neat!
11764239
Unfortunately, it’s almost inevitable for such a thing to be divisive, especially when it concerns religion. If I ever write down such a scenario, it will be from a Christian perspective (since I’m a Christian), and that is probably a sort of stumbling block for those who are atheists or of other religions. At least those who take extreme offense at the Judeo-Christian God being the supreme deity over Earth (and maybe even the multiverse, if someone wants to go that far).
Another interesting point is the issue of universalism. As many pointed out in days past, especially in the comment section of Rated Ponystar’s Fallen, it will be very confusing to those who try to harmonize (lol, get it?) all of the different religions because a supposed god said that he (it?) is all of their deities simultaneously. Also, this doesn’t include the issues about the afterlife, like you’ve said.
If I do use the idea of a higher power being the same from Earth to a different world, it will probably be similar to C.S. Lewis’ children's book series, The Chronicles of Narnia, where Aslan is literally the Lord Jesus Christ in the body of, well, a lion.
Of course, just like 11764254 said, it’s more or less idle thinking about a scenario where a god or gods judge multi-colored equines that tried to wipe humanity from Planet Earth. Unless one wants to strain his or her brain to the limit about that, nobody should think too hard about a fanfiction that is based on another fanfiction whose foundation was created by Lauren Faust, lol.
-Davidtin, user of Fimfiction since 2021
11764967
Actually, it was specifically mentioned that there was an afterlife of sorts - to those souls who die within their own universe.
The lack of an afterlife, however, is still a valid interpretation as it would mean that ultimately, in this cruel, uncaring universe, we're all everyone has, and we need to work together instead of trying to kill each other. Which makes Celestia's whole friendship and harmony spiel wring especially hollow given her mad genocidal crusade that served no-one, not even her own inflated ego.
11764880
I'm guessing it's the whole "I'm too important to be captured", which is what the humans would definitely try. Plus, an old Webley (and congrats on sneaking in the "mess Webley" joke here) probably wouldn't do too much to an armed and armored SWAT/Counterinsurgency task force team, so best to just make it quick for herself.
But yeah, still makes her a hypocrite. Then again, it's not like the EFF aren't full of those.
11765009
It's also a bit controversial because... well, as Celestia said in Divine Judgement, where were they when the bad things happened. Also, despite them mentioning that the Sun could have been saved, they gave no clue as to how. My opinion, though, is that Harmony did give clues, but Celestia was so full of herself she either blinded herself to them or denied the evidence in front of her. I mean, non-ponies using the Elements of Harmony? Ridiculous!
11764408
I've kinda been speculating on what exactly might have happened to Candace and Flurry Heart if Cadence had actually surrendered the Crystal Empire to the humans before the nuclear missile was launched. I'm guessing that since Cadence was the one who fired the crystal cannon at Rome and Mecca which killed hundreds of thousands of people, she would probably be put on trial after the war. As for Flurry Heart, I personally don't think that she would be put on trial since she never directly participated in the war as far as I know. I can see Cadence possibly facing life in prison, which would probably be very hard on Flurry Heart, her father dead and her mother in prison for life. There's also the fact that the Crystal Pony race wouldn't go extinct.
What do you think? A plausible scenario, or highly unlikely?
11765013
That's one way to interpret it and it is appropriate. I was going for same situation with Rainbow Dash wrestled with at the shore to give off the vibe for Sweetie Drops circumstances, both were psyched and prepared for whatever may come, there was a big speech and a hoorah, only for the reality of the situation be beaten into them and force their hooves.
Sweetie was prepared to fight to the death and spurred on her fellows with the opportunity to 'earn their place' and moving the goalpost to make peace with everything quite literally dying around her to salvage some semblance of their belief structure, only for nerves to lose out in the end and she wanted out rather than get a few shots off first. For all her ironclad devotion and beliefs a very real primal reaction to call it quits crept in at the last second and put the kibosh on whatever martyred end she was hoping to achieve.
11765053
Canonically speaking, Rated PonyStar said that had Cadence survived the war, it would have depended on Flurry Heart; if Flurry Heart survived, Cadence would retire from the public eye, and take her daughter and raise her in privacy. If not, Cadence would have taken her own life.
Granted, that would depend on Cadence's actions and how said surrender unfolds. Basically, Cadence would have to keep Celestia and Twilight in the dark until the time of her surrender declaration to the UN, because Equestria sure as hell won't let them go peacefully, and then we'd have pony-on-pony fighting as the Crystal ponies try to keep the Equestrian forces out while the UN manages to cobble together a rushed relief force and land in the Crystal Empire. Cadence would definitely threaten to use the Crystal Cannon, but only as a bluff, since she'd probably feel sick and guilty about using it in the first place and wouldn't dream of using it on fellow ponies (especially considering her beloved in-laws live in Canterlot, so she definitely won't be able to use it there). It would then depend on whether or not Celestia can successfully call her bluff.
Afterwards, assuming a successful UN landing and establishing FOBs to hold off the Equestrians, Cadence's status would have to be resolved after the war. Yes, she was a participant in genocide, yes, she used a weapon of mass destruction on civilian targets, but by letting the UN in and giving them a foothold in Equestria, she made the war end faster. My guess is, Cadence would be allowed to resign and placed under house arrest to raise her daughter in solitude. Flurry Heart would not be put on trial because a) she's a minor and b) she has clearly not committed any war crimes, so once she became of age, she'd be allowed to go free.
11765370
True. Though to use Dawn of War analogies, Sweetie went out like Eliphas, begging a higher power to help her as her forces crumble around her, and if I were in her horseshoes, I would have gone out like Gorgutz (sans the getting away alive bit): wiring the whole base to blow and taking as many traitors and filthy apes as I can with me.
Yeah, faith is no substitute for logic.