Starlit Knights

by BlackRoseRaven

Poisoned Triumph

Chapter Thirty: Poisoned Triumph
~BlackRoseRaven

The lie of victory lasted only ten minutes. Ten minutes during which Scrivener Blooms and Luna had never run harder or faster, pushing through pain and exhaustion. Ten minutes in which they crossed an entire town to reach their encampment. Ten minutes too long… ten minutes too late.

The door of the Pegasus wagon was open, creaking quietly in the faint wind, and Ross was a crying, sobbing mess in the corner, clutching the Element of Kindness in shivering hooves and shaking his head wildly as he rambled wildly… and Fluttershy hung from one of the rafters, her eyes closed, her features almost peaceful, her neck bruised from the noose she dangled silently by. And Scarlet Sage, their little filly, was gone… all that was left was her doll.

Scrivener and Luna stared at Fluttershy’s dead body, shaking their heads in disbelief, and then Ross looked up from his corner and shrieked: “She made her do it! But it wasn’t her, because she was always a good girl… but she cut her and made her do it and I don’t know why I don’t know why oh god…”

“Scarlet Sage…” Luna whispered, tears forming in her eyes… and then she looked silently towards the bedding where their filly had stayed, before she frowned at the sight of her doll. Slowly, she stepped towards this… and then she picked it up, staring at the mane and tail, her mouth going dry.

They had turned almost completely white, except for a single red dot that was clearly blood. But it tinged the mane scarlet where it touched… and Luna snarled slowly as Scrivener stared over at her with horror, before the earth pony turned and scrambled out of the wagon as Luna followed a moment later, the two shooting back into the street, charging back into the town as Scrivener thought in what felt like lunatic delirium: Wise Horse’s plans… Wise Horse… William Isehorse… he got to Scarlet Sage through blood somehow…

Luna snarled, breathing steam, her eyes glowing as Nightmare Moon screamed inside of her for vengeance… and without slowing, without stopping even as they reached the juncture, Luna leapt up the stairs and smashed through the door of the emporium, roaring in a voice that shook the shop: “Old unicorn, come out… Nightmare Moon wants to ask a question!”

Scrivener Blooms gritted his teeth as he followed her into the shop, looking back and forth as Luna glared around the room, breathing hard… then immediately headed for the stairs, the earth pony following her up to the room above, Luna cursing as she shoved her way past shelves of boxes and stock before Scrivener frowned a bit as he walked past her, pushing his hooves against the far wall. Wait… I remember this room being much bigger years ago…

Luna glanced at him sharply as he gave her a look, their eyes glowing as they traded thoughts and memories… and then she and Scrivy positioned themselves several feet away from the wall, before they lowered their shoulders and leapt forwards at the same time, smashing into it and ripping a hole through a thin, fake wall and staggering into a hidden office beyond that was lit by a single lantern in the far corner. It was long abandoned… but there was a letter sitting on the desk, and a red robe hung from a hat-rack, along with a glimmering platinum amulet that symbolized the eclipse.

Luna snarled in fury as Scrivener stepped forwards, looking down at the letter with grit teeth… and then he shuddered, clenching his eyes shut, dropping his head forwards as Luna looked up, pain and despair ripping through their bodies before she closed her eyes and whispered: “Read it, husband. Read it, my beloved… it hurts so badly, but… we cannot run from this. And we must save her if we can… we must.”

Scrivener Blooms looked down silently, and then he closed his eyes before forcing them to return to the letter, hating how much had happened, so fast, so suddenly: how they suddenly had answers, they had done what they had been ordered to do… and had been left with a Pyrrhic victory against a terrible monster that had now become nothing more than a brutal failure.

Then Luna stepped up to his side, pressing silently against him… and Scrivy swallowed thickly before he looked down at the parchment, reading in the faint light of the lantern: “‘Luna and Scrivener Blooms, I have faith that you’ll find this. Just as I have faith that even though what Ekleíp excavated in Silver Hoof proved to be a Tyrant Wyrm, that even though it almost eradicated the entire cult before we could finally force the bloodless beast to succumb and negotiate, you will destroy it. I know it will not be without cost, and I know that even more than losing your friends… what I will be forced to do to ensure that you come to me, to ensure that you will help us, Luna, will hurt even more than making the Dead Dolls, and purposefully misleading you and your husband, confusing you just enough to send you on that wild goose chase after ghosts that don’t exist, looking for answers in all the wrong places. It hurt as much as pretending to be one of these ‘proud’ unicorns, and supporting ponies like Bramblethorn to ensure I could live here in the privacy my aims required. And I cannot tell you how much what I have done hurts me… how much I know it must hurt you… but this only makes this betrayal sting all the harsher, does it not?

“‘I am sorry I had to resort to these methods. That you felt the way you did about us… but I also understand. Ekleíp has not done a good job of coming across as anything less than hostile. In part this is because we did not know what to expect… in part, because many Blood Seers think the only way to get through to another is power. They did not understand that I was not interested in Nightmare Moon to use as a chained monster, as we have so many other creatures… I determined these prophecies may hold a rare truth because of your mind.

“‘Luna, Scrivener Blooms… come to me, come to the Black Baroque. I have left a map for you… but come alone. We cannot tolerate any interference at this juncture, and time runs short for us both. That is why I was forced to lower myself to this despicable act of kidnapping your daughter. That is why I have been forced to act as I have. Rest for the night if you must, but leave. Leave before the sun’s rise, leave before you set the moon. Leave alone… the Black Baroque is well-defended, and I do not want more pointless death. Please, I beg of you. Help Ekleíp. Help bring this corrupt and shrouded world around to rebirth. I will be waiting, with all your answers. I am Wisehorse, Blood Bishop of Ekleíp… and I know that one way or another, you will come to terms with what must be done. It is all for the greater good.’”

Scrivener Blooms closed his eyes, lowering his head silently as Luna shivered a bit, looking at him for a few moments… and then she dropped her face against the side of his neck, whispering: “We must save Scarlet Sage… we must not allow another pointless death to occur. Scrivener Blooms, oh… has all this been in vain? We have tried to do good and… and we have killed most of our friends. We are the cause… and Scrivy, thy mind…”

“My mind is fine…” Scrivener closed his eyes with a weak laugh, even as Luna drew back with a tremble and a worried look. “Besides, the… the dead have far more importance than my mind. Heaven’s Horses, Luna… that… that was a Tyrant Wyrm?”

“Yes, that was a Tyrant Wyrm. If memory serves me correctly, it was a Dictator. Very powerful, with many of the capabilities of its terrible kind, but thankfully not a Brood Vizier… we were underprepared as it was.” Celestia’s voice said calmly, as if she had always been there, and Luna and Scrivener Blooms both gazed miserably towards the majestic ivory equine as she stood quietly on the other side of the hole they had knocked in the wall, gazing silently in at them. “Friends have died… and your daughter was taken. I’m sorry, sister. Let me help. Let me come with you.”

“Sister, there… are other things to be done, Canterlot will be in chaos without thee, and… we have been asked to go alone.” Luna looked down silently, and then Celestia shook her head slowly, the sapphire winged unicorn snarling a bit as she looked up at her with teary eyes. “We must, though! We cannot risk Scarlet Sage being-”

“And if you go alone, you two will be at the mercy of Ekleíp. I will not allow that. I won’t lose my entire family to Blood Seers.” Celestia said quietly, leaning forwards silently, and Luna and Scrivener Blooms both closed their eyes, bowing their heads forwards, trembling like children in their despair. “Besides… if you go alone, and he is able to coerce even one of you into a trap or chains or get a touch of your blood, it’s all over. He could simply kill Scarlet Sage out of hoof if he wished. He won’t dare hurt the foal if there’s more than yourselves present… and Equestria… doesn’t need me to be a pretty Queen, sitting uselessly on the throne. What’s in the best interests of Equestria is halting Ekleíp… if their presence is aiding in any way to bring monsters like Tyrant Wyrms back towards the surface, then they must be stopped at any cost.”

Celestia stopped, lowering her head and closing her eyes as she smiled faintly. “I also already promised that I would go with you to the Black Baroque… and this is not just about you, my little sister, even if you are at the center of these events. We must… let the others decide for themselves. My first instinct is to tell Twilight Sparkle to stay here, to hold down this place… but… I cannot. Not even to keep her safe. It would destroy her, after everything she’s lost, if I told her to stay out of this war now.”

“I… I know, sister. Do not forget, I too was a Valkyrie…” Luna laughed a little… and then she grimaced as Scrivy twitched beside her, feeling the sting of his mental pain. “And there is no point in trying to sneak out, not… not with us in such a foul state. I am weakened, and my husband is still… poisoned with knowledge, however thou has soothed his mind. And… I thank thee for it.”

“Scrivener Blooms showed a remarkable ability… he threw the beast’s own words back at it, saving one of us from having to recite the Verses ourselves. Your link with him is truly powerful… more than that, Scrivener Blooms… you are truly powerful.” Celestia halted, looking down into his eyes quietly, studying him as she added softly: “Do not feel weakness for what happened. Knowledge can be terrible… and the Tyrant Wyrms feed off sadism, pain, and destruction. They… they are not simple ‘evil.’ They are ‘wrongness,’ embodied.”

Scrivener Blooms only closed his eyes tightly, however, hanging his head, and Luna looked silently at him as Celestia hesitated… but then allowed the subject to drop as instead she said softly: “Come now. Twilight Sparkle… I believe she needs you, and that you two need her company as well.”

The two nodded, but Luna first turned around, heading back to quietly roll up the letter, looking silently for a moment at the map beneath this: hand-illustrated, tracing a careful route through the Gray Mountains… into the terrible place three adventurers had once trekked… and only two had come out, wounded and weary, with objects that had ended up being far more curse than they were blessing.

She shook her head slowly, rolling this up as well as her horn glowed and tucking both silently beneath her armor as she turned around. The three made their way slowly back outside to find Scutum waiting for them, the male bowing his head respectfully before he hesitated and silently held up a glittering necklace with a ruby, lightning-bolt shaped gemstone inset into solid gold metal backing: the Element of Loyalty. “One of those… revenants, before they all just… laid themselves down… it gave me this. A Pegasus. Why would the hell would he give me this?”

“Because the Elements of Harmony cannot lay dormant at this juncture… and Rainbow Dash saw something in you, or the Element of Loyalty reacted strong enough to you… that he decided to put faith in you, to wear it, Scutum. But it will only work if the others accept you in their heart as rightful inheritor… and the bonds of friendship these six ponies had… they were very special. Very deep.” Celestia replied quietly, closing her eyes and nodding slowly. “To be accepted by them… it would prove a daunting, difficult task.”

Scutum frowned a bit at this, looking silently down at the necklace before he began to shake his head… but then Luna stepped forwards and said quietly: “I am no bearer of any Element of Harmony, but Scutum… I accept thee. Rainbow Dash was bolder than thou can imagine, stronger than thou can ever know, and a true friend. None can replace him, and there were none more loyal in all of Equestria, from sea to mountain to all that lay between. But if he chose thee, Scutum, gave this to thee before… laying down to go back to sleep, as he well-deserved… then I accept thee. I would not defile Rainbow Dash’s last wishes out of my own pain, and the pointless wish to have him back once more… when already I unfairly awoke him once from the grave to stop the vile thralls of the Tyrant Wyrm.”

She stopped… then looked silently at Scutum as the unicorn bowed his head and closed his eyes, squeezing the end of the Element of Loyalty tightly. “Scutum. Thou art better than North Neigh. Celestia and I, and possibly others, will be journeying to settle the score with the monsters that have killed our friends, desecrated our country, and spilled blood in the name of a foolish, insane goal of ‘salvation.’ Will thou join us?”

Scutum bowed deeply to them, closing his eyes as he murmured: “Champion Luna… your honored ladyship, Queen Celestia… if you will have me, then I will gladly follow you, to Helheim and beyond if it’s required. There’s… no point, no honor in staying here, not anymore, not after everything that’s happened. I live to serve.”

“I am glad to hear it. But we must return to camp… and Luna, I will set the moon when it is required. You and Scrivener must rest… I have not needed to exert myself nearly as much as you two did.” Celestia said softly, gazing at them with compassion, and the two gazed up at her with faint smiles before Scrivy twitched and Luna grimaced a little, looking at him worriedly.

The four made their way silently back to camp… and found Rainbow Dash’s body laid out beside Fluttershy’s, Rarity, Spike and Twilight silently gazing over their dead friends as Applejack quietly cried on Rainbow Dash’s chest, his armor damaged and cracked, but looking at peace… as serene as Fluttershy looked despite the bruises around her neck.

The bodies of other Starlit Knights were laid out as well, here and there… and in the distance, Aleksandr and the surviving minotaurs stood in the snowy fields, singing a solemn, rumbling song as they burned the bodies of their fallen brethren in one enormous pyre. And around this funerary fire also stood several ponies… and discarded weapons and armor, and Luna realized silently that as well as foreign minotaurs, Equestrians burned in those flames… as brothers, as honored friend, as the minotaurs sang for their dead.

Then Applejack looked up… and she snarled before storming forwards, shoving Scutum roughly and shouting: “You, you grave-robbing bastard, that thing there is Rainbow’s! And you… Luna… god, how could you? How could you? We trusted you… and then, ain’t enough Rainbow Dash died, you… you made him walk and dance just like a p-puppet for… for…”

She clenched her teeth, shivering… then she straightened suddenly and slammed a hoof into Luna’s face, making her wince to the side and stagger as Scrivener hissed in pain, all eyes watching silently… before Luna slowly looked into Applejack’s eyes, then stepped forwards and hugged her tightly, whispering: “I am sorry, Applejack. Thy rage is well-deserved, and thou may have all the blows thou wishes at me later. But there is still much to do.”

Applejack shook her off, shoving her backwards, opening her mouth… and then Big Mac silently stepped forwards and touched her shoulder, shaking his head slowly, and AJ shivered before she dropped her head against his chest and whispered: “God… it just… it ain’t fair…”

“Nope.” Big Mac said quietly, wrapping a foreleg around her and squeezing her gently close, and then he tenderly kissed his forehead and murmured softly: “Come on, little sister. Let’s go and talk a little, okay?”

Applejack looked up at him wordlessly, and Big Mac gave her another gentle squeeze before he quietly began to lead her away, not looking back over his shoulder, as sure and confident as ever despite the minute trembles that ran through his frame, despite bowed head and sorrow that radiated from his body… and Applejack followed after him silently, breathing hard, trembling as her cowboy hat threw deep shadows over her face.

Luna watched her go… and then she winced as Scrivener Blooms twitched again before the male cursed weakly and grabbed at his face, half-turning to the side… and gritting his teeth as he saw Pinkamena leaning by the doors, studying him silently. Yet he saw more than just the pony there… he thought he could see a transparent outline next to her, something that flickered in and out of reality… and Pinkamena herself, it was like looking at somepony in a costume, like he knew that if he grabbed, he ripped, he tore, he pulled, there would be something else there, staring at him from beneath the surface…

Pinkamena grinned at him… and he saw the mask of it: saw instead the way her glowing blue eyes, framed in unshed crimson tears, sparkled with pain for him even as she said softly: “Just like me now, huh? I don’t know whether to laugh or cry for you, Scrivener Blooms. Don’t worry… you get used to the evil eyes. Being a Djavol isn’t the worst thing in the world.”

Scrivener only managed a short, broken laugh in return, his voice a little high-pitched, a shiver running through his body as Twilight looked at him worriedly… but then Luna reached up and squeezed his shoulder gently with a hoof, calming him before the winged unicorn gazed across at Pinkamena and said quietly: “My husband requires rest, so do not excite him tonight… please. And Pinkamena… we must… tend to our dead. Will thou join us? They were thy friends as well.”

Pinkamena quieted at this, and then she walked slowly forwards as Ross snuffled weakly by Cowlick, half-collapsed on the ground beside her as he stared miserably down at Fluttershy, the Element of Kindness clutched tight in his hooves as Cowlick rubbed soothingly up and down his back. The dull-pink pony’s eyes slid to this, and then she strode over to him, Cowlick wincing and Ross looking up with a whimper at the terrifying earth pony… but she only reached down and quietly touched the necklace before asking in a surprisingly-gentle voice: “Why do you have this?”

“F-Fluttershy… after… after she… did the bad thing, she… she took it off… she gave it to me. The other Pegasus ran but I didn’t run, I tried to tell her no, not to do it, but Scarlet Sage told her to do it and she couldn’t stop… she said she couldn’t stop… the… the rope was around her neck and she got up and she…” Ross shivered violently, dropping his head forwards as Rarity clenched her eyes shut, tears leaking down her cheeks as Spike hugged her fiercely around the neck and buried his face against her with a weak sob of his own. “But she took it off. She wanted down when the filly was gone, but I couldn’t get her down, but she took it off and gave it to me and looked at me and closed her eyes and oh g-g-god…”

He trembled wildly, breathing hard in and out, hugging himself fiercely, and Pinkamena studied him for a few moments… then she gave a brief nod before glancing over her shoulder, saying softly: “Well ,why the hell not? Makes more sense than me… Princess Sunshine, Nightmare Moon, what do you two think?”

Luna only shook her head slowly, saying quietly: “I am no judge, and not worthy to guess. Celestia, sister… thou and Twilight Sparkle are the most knowledgeable upon this subject. But if my hoof is forced and my opinion must be given… then aye. In her last moments, Fluttershy gave Ross the Element of Kindness. Coincidence? Accident? Destiny? What pony can know?”

“Everypony can use the Elements of Harmony. Everypony.” Twilight murmured softly, and then she trembled a bit and rubbed at her face, whispering: “We’re not special because of some gemstones. We’re special because of the bonds between us… because of the choices we make. No one can replace our friends, but if our friends… chose others to help us… we have to respect their wishes.”

“We’ve lost… oh, Twilight…” Rarity whispered, looking across at her with a shiver as Spike looked up, rubbing compulsively at his face as his emerald eyes stuttered. “The Starlit Knights have fallen apart. Three… three of us, half of our group of friends… are gone. What are we going to do now? Are there more monsters like that? What… what will become of this place?”

“Those are questions best saved for after tonight, Rarity… what you must attend to first is saying your goodbyes to your friends.” Celestia said gently, and the ponies looked silently up at her as Luna hung her head and Scrivener closed his own eyes, even as another shudder ran through his body. “If you will allow me the honor, then please… permit me to help. They are not just my subjects, who I chose for this mission… they are friends. And for giving their lives to help Equestria… to help me… to help my sister… I would like to honor them. Not as a Queen… as an equal. As the warrior I once was.”

Twilight Sparkle bowed her head, trembling a little as Rarity gazed silently up at her and Pinkamena nodded slowly, before the dull pink pony turned and headed into the wagon. She returned a moment later with several sheets, head bowed as she said quietly: “Come on, everypony. Just follow along with me and I’ll show you what to do… and Princess Sunshine and Nightmare Moon can handle all the rest.”

For a moment, the others could only watch silently as Pinkamena draped one of the sheets out before stepping carefully over to Fluttershy’s body… and then Twilight Sparkle stepped forwards, shivering even as she did so, reaching down to silently grasp the Pegasus as she whispered, as tears ran down her cheeks: “My poor little girl…”

They wrapped the dead in sheets, as the remaining, shellshocked Starlit Knights gathered to watch, Celestia lowering her head and murmuring prayers that Luna mouthed the words to, feeling old and older memories blending together. She thought of Sleipnir, and even of Ignominious, and so many others lost and dead… all because of the lunatic, cruel ideas of ponies who had become obsessed with impossible shadows.

The minotaurs came to them, without needing to be asked… and Applejack and Big Mac rejoined them to watch as Aleksandr gently, respectfully picked up Rainbow Dash. He cradled the Pegasus’s body gingerly, as if he was asleep instead of dead, the minotaur’s head high, singing what sounded like a low, rusty lullaby in his own language as behind him, another minotaur carried Fluttershy. Applejack, Rarity, Twilight Sparkle, Spike, Ross and Cowlick all came next… Scrivener Blooms and Luna strode side-by-side after them… and following last, Celestia strode silently. The end of the procession… but not the last pony by far to follow, Scutum and others striding silently into the fields and watching at a respectful distance as the minotaurs quietly laid the bodies down in a wide circle of glimmering ashes spread through the melted frost. Then the warriors stepped back, and dropped to kneels, reaching one hand forwards into the ashen circle to rest it amidst still-warm embers, whispering quiet prayers not to any god, not to nature… but gentle pleas to the spirits of the departed themselves, to find their way to rest and comfort they had well-earned.

The clouds had parted overhead, leaving them bathed in ivory moonlight, the sheet-wrapped shapes pallid and dull amidst the almost-shimmering living… and the few silent Pales that stood almost unnoticed here and there. Ghosts that joined the congregation, and yet even as Celestia stepped forwards and turned around to gaze silently over the crowd, she only accepted them with sorrow in her eyes, as she said quietly: “This is the time to say your final goodbyes. To see their faces, one last time.”

Pinkamena stepped quietly forwards, not needing to be told, walking silently into the ashen circle… and she gently brushed the sheets back from the features of one Pegasus, and then the other. For a few moments, she stood between the bodies, gazing at them both… and then she smiled faintly, flicking her straight mane to the side as she whispered: “Take care of yourselves, huh? Too bad we won’t be going to the same place… but for once I’m not jealous. Keep each other company in the Vale of Valhalla or paradise or… or whatever, okay? And… keep an eye out for sissy for me.”

She leaned down, kissing Fluttershy’s forehead tenderly, before she straightened and glanced over at Rainbow Dash, adding softly: “And… it’s a little late but… you were a good guy. I liked you, a lot.” She halted, then reached out and gently patted his cheek before she flicked her mane back again, turning around and striding slowly out of the circle even as she murmured: “Don’t come talking to me as often as sissy does though, huh? And try and keep her out of my hair.”

Pinkamena quietly brushed through the crowd, striding silently away… and for a moment, there was a lull before Applejack stepped forwards, striding to Fluttershy first, trembling as she reached down and touched her chest. “Honey… you were brave. I… I can’t imagine how brave you must have been. They all think the world of me but I’ve always had Big Mac to fall back on, and so much to protect, so much to fight for. I can’t imagine what it must have been like for you… I can’t imagine all that strength, despite how shy you acted. Thank you, so much… for being my friend. For showing me there’s more to strength than… attitude and pride and trying to make everypony do what you say.

“And… Rainbow Dash…” Applejack rubbed at her face, trembling as she strode carefully around to the other body, leaning down and gazing at his silent, still features. “I loved you. I still love you… I’ll always, always love you. I can’t believe… you did what you did for me. I can’t believe that we… got married, that we were together for what felt like so long and so short all at once, that… we… we were thinking of so much. That you and I… that time… that time I’ll always treasure. I’ll never, ever forget you… I’ll never, ever stop loving you… and I’m… I’m so p-proud… of you…”

She clenched her eyes shut, dropping her head against his chest, giving a single harsh sob… but then she forced herself slowly to straighten despite her shivers, before she smiled weakly as she reached up and pulled her hat off, silently placing it against Rainbow’s chest as she whispered: “Y’always liked this, didn’t you? Always… bothered me about it, wanting to wear it, and I always told you to go get your own even after we were married. Well… take it, Rainbow Dash. You earned it… and you… you wait for me. Don’t… don’t you go getting in any trouble until we’re together again, you hear?”

She laughed weakly, even as tears fell from her eyes, dripping, sparkling over Rainbow Dash’s features as she leaned back, looking down at him… and then she dropped, impulsively hugging him, pressing her face down against his neck for a moment before she slowly forced herself to straighten again. She clenched her eyes shut as she walked slowly back to Big Mac, who quietly wrapped his foreleg around her and squeezed her compassionately close, the earth pony trembling as she leaned against her older brother… and next, Rarity and Spike approached.

They looked down at Fluttershy, and Rarity smiled weakly, lowering her head, coiled mane falling over her face before she whispered: “Never, ever, did I meet a pony who had such grace. Such beauty… and all so natural. And I see why… like everything else, the greatest things come from harsh tempering. The most beautiful, worthwhile treasures are forged under pressure, under flame… I’m only so glad to see that you never… were broken or marred by it. I was so… so honored to have known you.”

“We both were… I… remember that first day in Ponyville. You were too shy to talk to Twilight but… you saw me, and wanted to know all about me.” Spike laughed a little at this, smiling faintly as he gazed down at the silent body. “You were asking all kinds of questions and… you were so interested… and… no pony had ever really been… interested in me before. It meant… it meant so much to me. It meant so much…”

He closed his eyes tightly, and then shook his head briefly before carefully making his way around to Rainbow Dash, Rarity following slowly as the dragon gazed down at the Pegasus and murmured softly: “And you were always one of the guys to me, Rainbow. You were always someone I could… talk to, and who understood me. Who was there to make me laugh, or back me up when things went wrong. I admired you… I still do. You charged headlong into that monster, fearless, reckless, courageous and… I… I just hope… I can be half as brave as you. Help everyone… half as well as you. I think… you were my best friend.”

He shivered and lowered his head… and Rarity smiled weakly, shaking her head slowly as she murmured: “I think you helped us all more than you’ll ever realize, Rainbow Dash. With everything you did… with everything you were. Loyalty… that word… can never describe enough who you were, what you really were: you went beyond loyalty. You went beyond honor. Thank you… so much.”

Rarity leaned down, kissing his pallid cheek quietly… and then she slowly straightened, trading a silent look with Spike before they quietly made their way out of the circle of ashes. And finally, Twilight Sparkle walked slowly forwards, looking from one body to the other before she bowed to them, tears leaking from her eyes, trembles rolling through her form.

“I’m sorry it all came to this… I’m sorry I… couldn’t save you.” she murmured, shaking her head weakly as she looked slowly from Fluttershy to Rainbow Dash. “I’m sorry… but I won’t… I promise I won’t cheapen your memories by making this about me, or what could or couldn’t be done. Instead, I’ll remember you both… I’ll always, always remember you both… Rainbow Dash, brave and strong… Fluttershy, loving and wonderful and beautiful, so… so beautiful. So good to me… so much better to me than I deserved.”

She closed her eyes tightly, laughing weakly. “Friendship… even now, though, I feel… like you’re still there. I don’t know how… or where… or why. I don’t. I wish I did… I wish I knew what to believe in. But I know that no matter what… you’ll both always be there.” She lowered her body slowly, laying in the ashes as she rose her head, gazing silently from one corpse to the other as she whispered: “I can’t give up. I want to, so badly… I don’t think anyone ever really understands that. That I’m not… some inexhaustible well of wisdom, that I’m not nearly as strong as… either of you ever were. It’s not myself that’s ever kept me going… it’s other ponies. Other people. My friends… and even now, I feel you both supporting me, telling me to keep going. To see this through… maybe it’s wishful thinking but I look at you both and I know… what you’d both want. To see this through until the very end… for the people we love, and cherish. To help others who deserve it… kindness and loyalty. You… were the best of us.”

She closed her eyes… then slowly, forced herself to her hooves, trembling as if it was a monumental task before she turned around, stained with ashes from the circle as she slowly strode towards Luna and Celestia, before gazing silently from one to the other… and then closing her eyes as she turned around and sat between them, Luna and Celestia gazing quietly down at her as she whispered: “Life ends so suddenly, so fast. So painfully, too… life’s too short for grudges, or for regrets. You never know what could happen next… I just…”

She lowered her head forwards, trembling, as Celestia gently wrapped a foreleg around her… and Cowlick quietly walked into the circle before them, the female smiling faintly down at Dash’s body as she sat down with a quiet grunt beside him. For a few moments, she only looked at him… and then the pierced earth pony shook her head slowly and leaned down, kissing his forehead quietly. “Isn’t usually like me to be all girly… hell, most ponies think I play for the other team when they take a look at me. But we always got each other, didn’t we? I always knew you were just you and you… you knew that I was just me. I liked that… I liked that we could say things to each other that other ponies would murder one-another over. I liked that… a lot.”

She closed her eyes, then slowly rose her head to look towards Fluttershy, adding in a soft murmur: “Fluttershy, I didn’t know you… near as long or well as I did Dash. But I know he had nothing but respect and admiration for you. I know everypony here adored you… I know I wish I’d gotten to know you better, and I know… you always treated Ross right. I appreciate that. So… I hope wherever you are… you’re safe and sound and comfortable, and you don’t have to worry anymore about… all those anxieties that bothered you in life. Be safe. Be well. The both of you.”

Cowlick looked down at Dash, lingering for a moment… and then she slowly turned away and strode out of the ashen circle. A few other ponies came forwards, but they had little to say, paying their respects, a few leaving tokens of affection: the rare flower that could be found, small trinkets, in one case an autographed Wonderbolts poster from a Pegasus that smiled weakly at Rainbow Dash’s body before moving silently on.

Luna, finally, strode forwards into the ashes, Scrivener Blooms beside her… and they looked quietly at the bodies for a few long moments, before the winged unicorn glanced toward her husband… and Scrivy nodded slowly before he said quietly: “Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash… thank you for being there. For being this awkward poet’s friend through thick and thin… for helping Luna, and never, ever giving up. Death is hard, but… there’s always hope. Whether we rise to Paradise, or lay sleeping in the earth… it can bring peace to us. And you both deserve peace… you both deserve to know that your deaths will not be in vain. You will not be forgotten, never, ever, by us… what we’ll always remember is that you laughed beside us, and comforted us… you were always there for us when we needed you, you helped… watch out for us, and for our daughter. For our friends, and our families both… that’s what we’ll remember. Death can’t take away your stories. Death can’t steal away the meaning of what you did.

“And I want you both to know… we’ll respect your wishes. We’ll push forwards, and end this, for your sakes’ as much as Equestria. And I know what you’d both want to hear isn’t that we’ll seek vengeance for you both… but that we’ll save everyone else we can save.” Scrivener halted, closing his eyes and bowing his head forwards… and Luna nodded silently, before she straightened slowly.

“For thou, Rainbow Dash, we will do it with honor and integrity. And in thy memory, Fluttershy… we shall do it with compassion, and grace.” Luna said softly, looking from one to the other… and then she smiled faintly and nodded once, whispering: “And know I am sorry that this has come to pass, and that I could not… save either of thee from the menaces that have occurred. I wish that I had fought harder, and done better for thee. I wish that I had been wiser… and that the cost had not been so high. But know that even now, thou give me faith… and thou have humbled me, and Nightmare Moon inside me. We bow our heads in respect to thee… in our hearts and minds, thou shalt always be loved.”

Slowly, Luna and Scrivener both knelt… and behind her, the rest of the gathered bowed deep as well, even Celestia kneeling low. Finally, Luna and Scrivener withdrew quietly, and Celestia strode forwards, standing at the edge of the ashen circle and closing her eyes, her prayers, her last words to them silent as she breathed slowly… and then lowered her horn forwards.

It glowed faintly, silently pulling the sheets back over the faces of the departed, sealing them both inside their cloth cocoons… and then she stepped slowly backwards as her horn continued to glow, golden and radiant beneath the light of the moon as she said softly: “And now, we release these souls, we sanctify their bodies, we wash them in cleansing, purifying fire. May they sleep well… may they find their path to the Vale of Valhalla unbarred and unblocked. May they rest forever, in eternal slumber, in comfort and peace. May they never again know hunger, or be left wanting, or feel sorrow’s cruel sting…”

Celestia slowly arched her back, raising her head high… and the circle of ashes glowed quietly before golden flames spread upwards in a swirl, spiraling slowly inwards, spilling over the bodies and blanketing them from sight as they crackled quietly in the bitterly-cold air, spreading warmth and heat and radiance that mixed mellifluously with the rays of moonlight washing down from above like a melody of sight. “May your dreams come true… may you all be welcomed and rewarded in the Vale of Valhalla for everything you have done for our world, our country… our friends and family.”

The golden flames built higher, burning, iridescent, holy; their light illuminated the faces of the living ponies, bringing beauty even in sorrow, and lit the Pales that stood here and there standing silently amongst their number like they were made of luminous crystal, making them all-but-glow with beauteous, virtuous light. They stood, living and dead, around the pyre of the fallen… and as they gazed into those terrible and beautiful flames, all were forced to reflect on the cost of the battle… and how even their triumph would not come without a terrible price.

Scrivener Blooms shivered and pressed his face down against the bedding in their apartment, a blanket over his body, Luna silently, slowly massaging his back as Twilight and Celestia sat and looked down at him: one with compassion, the other with a tremble of fear as Luna grimaced a little every now and then. Their armor lay discarded, and Celestia had even thrown off her crown, leaving her standing in only her peytral plate as the violet pony asked quietly: “Is he going to be okay, Luna? I… I mean… you’re…”

“We are connected in mind, body and soul, Twilight Sparkle… and we feel one another’s pain, one another’s emotions… but this is not just about that. This is deeper… and the corruption from the Tyrant Wyrm preys specifically upon Scrivener Blooms. It has spread into him… not like infection, but more subtle than that… like a sentient shadow, that no matter how you run from, or where you turn, always follows. Always blankets… always stays in thy mind and covers thy gaze.” Luna whispered, continuing to slowly, soothingly rub up and down Scrivy’s back as the male twitched a bit and closed his eyes tightly, looking humiliated as he trembled weakly. “Celestia, art thou sure…”

“I could soothe his mind, sister, yes… I could calm him through magic, but it would only delay the effects, and possibly worsen them.” She stopped, then looked quietly at Luna, softening as the sapphire winged unicorn clenched her eyes shut. “Let the mental battle run its course. None of us here doubt in him… and you have nothing to be ashamed of, Scrivener Blooms.”

“Crying like a child… rollicking in misery after others have died… no shame there at all…” Scrivener mumbled weakly, and then he grimaced as Sammy skittered in front of him, wincing visibly at the sight of the pseudodragon: just like with Pinkamena, he could see… something else. Not just a skeleton… but a shade of the blue-eyed, red-scaled little pet that had once been, as Sammy chirped worriedly at him. “It’s… oh my head…”

Scrivy reached up and grabbed at his skull with a quiet curse of pain, and Twilight shook her head slowly before she silently stepped forwards and laid down, curling herself on one side of Scrivener Blooms… and he closed his eyes, feeling her body through the blankets, shivering a bit again. When he looked at her now, he saw a strange glow about her, and her eyes were so deep, like entire worlds… and he twitched violently before burying his face against the bedding with a curse as terrible images and shadows ripped through his mind, as he heard whispers of the Black Verses in his head… but beneath it all, he could still feel Luna’s love, Luna’s dedication, Luna’s touch… and it was all that kept him sane, as he murmured: “The Tyrant Wyrm…”

“Strange, the subject thou seeks answers for, the stories thou wishes to hear, when thou art already suffering enough. Scrivener Blooms, thou art an awful, horrible masochist.” Luna chastised quietly, even as she pressed down against his back gently… and then she nodded with a soft sigh as she glanced across at Celestia, saying quietly: “’Twas not what I had expected. Had I understood what we faced, I would have gone to battle it alone. Had I understood…”

She shook her head slowly as Sammy whimpered and skittered across the floor, then murmured: “The Tyrant Wyrms… came in many shapes, but all were awful. All could match the fiercest dragon… and all knew the Black Verses. It is not simple magic… they are words of a lost, forbidden language, prayers and sick praises to that which they glorify in. Words of awful power… words that let them attack the minds of their victims, and exert influence and control over even the strongest-willed. That allow them to summon up emotions, feelings, images, memories so vivid, so painful that… thou saw for thyself what they did.”

Luna closed her eyes, and Twilight shivered, whispering: “Even from far away, I… my mind was filled with… awful things. It felt like pressure, like… pain… like… endless malice. But… Scrivy… then…”

“Because he is a poet.” Luna smiled a little, glancing up, and Twilight frowned at this as Scrivener laughed dryly against the bedding. “Sister and I… to a point, are immune to the Black Verses. We have been… exposed to them. We have spoken them, and understood… a little of them. My immunity must have been passed on to Scrivener Blooms by our mixed souls… but moreover, was enhanced by two things. One, Scrivener’s grasp of words… his respect for them. That words have great power… that spoken or written, words can have devastating, terrible effects, and the knowledge that one does not always need to understand a word… to know its meaning. Two, was another thing I have always admired about him… his ability to acknowledge that in pain, and in darkness… there can still be beauty, and there can still be… lessons worth taking from even the worst of evils. That even evil… can be understood, and even guided.”

“I’m evil.” Scrivener Blooms mumbled, and Twilight looked at him softly as Celestia gazed down at him quietly, Scrivy raising his head and laughing weakly as he looked up at the ivory equine quietly. “I’m… sorry. I… this isn’t from Luna, I want you to know that. This is from me… from… whatever’s inside me. I always had myself convinced, arrogantly, that I was just better able to process things at a distance than everyone else… but now I see the truth. I’m evil. I’m sadistic. I’m even worse than Pinkamena… because the reason that these horrible images of torture, gore, and mutilation haven’t driven me insane is because some… awful, corrupt, dark part of me… almost…”

He clenched his eyes shut, dropping his face forwards against the bedding as Twilight gazed at him silently, trembling a little, before Celestia leaned down and said softly: “Calm yourself, Scrivener Blooms. There is no need to be so sad… there is no need to suffer over this. Your mind is confused and filled with shattered images and broken feelings. The only thing the Tyrant Wyrms hold as sacred is their Black Verses, which tell the stories of their kind, of their ‘beliefs,’ if a lust for destruction, for consuming and corrupting everything around them to their image, can be called belief… and with courage, you used that against them. As my sister fought death with death… you blasted evil with evil, countering its words, using the very knowledge it tried to torture and destroy you with to interrupt and confuse its own speech. Without your aid, Scrivener Blooms… more would have died. More would have fallen.”

Scrivener Blooms was silent as Celestia gazed down at him quietly, saying softly: “We all make mistakes. We all do awful things… but it is our choice what we do with the powers we are given, is it not? I am supposed to be the ultimate icon of good in Equestria, and there is more innocent blood on my hooves than most Equestrians would believe. And my little sister is supposed to be evil… but she has saved more lives than I ever did, and likely ever will. Scrivener Blooms, do not lay in self-doubt and self-inflicted misery… angst does not suit you.”

Scrivy smiled a little at this, and Luna laughed quietly as she slowly rubbed up along her back, Twilight closing her eyes before the winged unicorn leaned in and kissed his cheek softly. “She’s right, you know. But I… I have to ask… did… you learn anything from its mind? Did you understand what it said, was that how you knew that…”

She fell quiet, and Scrivener closed his eyes as Luna lowered her head, before the sapphire winged unicorn cleared her throat and forced herself to look up, saying quietly: “The Tyrant Wyrm forced countless years of knowledge of torture, pain, desire, and destruction in its own memories into Scrivener’s mind… filling up that thankfully-empty space.” Luna smiled faintly down at him, knocking quietly on the back of the equine’s skull, and Scrivener couldn’t help but laugh weakly… but weak or not, all the same it helped drive back the awful shadows in his mind, helped neutralize some of the corruption wreaking havoc through his brain with enough force to make even Luna twitch now and then. “Scrivener learned much… enough to understand when it spoke to us. Enough to know…”

She shook her head slowly, then glanced up as there was a quiet knock at the door before it opened, Cowlick hesitantly leaning in and smiling faintly as she said softly: “Sorry to disturb you all… but… I know you wanted to hear right away if we found anything. We… like you asked, Luna, we checked out that place on the map, the fountain that… Rainbow Dash…” Cowlick closed her eyes and took a steadying breath. “That was marked on the map. Me and Aleksandr and his boys. I didn’t think anything was wrong – except for the fact those unicorn assholes are still hiding away in their goddamn houses instead of coming out to at least thank us for everything we did for their sorry, undeserving selves – and then Aleksandr started smashing the fountain up with his hammer. I thought he was just going crazy, and I wasn’t about to stop him either way, but then he broke the ice apart and started hauling it up and…”

She shivered, shaking her head, and Luna said softly, unsurprised: “How many dead ponies did thou find?”

“I’m not even surprised you’re not surprised.” Cowlick looked up grimly, shaking her head slowly as Celestia’s eyes darkened. “No less than a dozen of them, frozen, obviously ritual sacrifices from the symbols carved into their bodies. Aleksandr found something he referred to as ereticheskie is’ma on these weird-carved gemstones he smashed up… he made me remember those words when I was coming to tell you. Very serious guy, but way smarter than I gave him credit for at first, I’ll tell you that. And a lot… a hell of a lot… of respect for Rainbow Dash.”

She stopped, looking down… then she glanced up as Luna murmured: “Then the pieces fall into place. The Dead Dolls were given to the Tyrant Wyrm by Wisehorse to ensure that it could feed upon the souls of those lured by them… and the Tyrant Wyrm was guided here by a sacrificial beacon. In this dark and awful place, after all, who would notice one more black spot amidst the decay?”

She shook her head, then grimaced and asked distastefully: “And Swiftly Wing, the outlaw? Was there any sign of her?”

“Fled and gone. Ross said that the moment Scarlet Sage went…” Cowlick grimaced a little, but Luna only shook her head and gestured for her to go on, despite the pain it brought her and Scrivy. “The moment she got… strange… Swiftly got scared and ran away, abandoned them both. And Ross… Ross didn’t know what to do. One moment she was a harmless little filly, the next… Fluttershy is…”

She shivered, and Luna looked down as Twilight closed her eyes, a shudder going through her body before Cowlick looked up and asked finally: “Don’t take this the wrong way, but… if… Scarlet… I mean…”

“She was controlled, Cowlick, ‘twas not her fault!” Luna said forcefully, and Cowlick winced back before Celestia reached a hoof up to touch Luna’s shoulder, the starry-maned winged unicorn gritting her teeth before she sighed and murmured: “’Twas not her fault. Wisehorse must be ancient and powerful, and is far, far more cunning than I had ever anticipated… he dyed the mane of the doll he gave us with his own blood. He used his own blood to poison Scarlet Sage, to taint her emotions and force her to do his bidding… while he probably waited in a safe place, knowing that we were engaged with the Tyrant Wyrm.”

“If he and his Blood Seers were able to battle and suppress the monster, we cannot underestimate them… we have never fought a Tyrant Wyrm that willingly worked alongside another race before. The few rumors of alliances we heard were always short-lasted and quickly-broken… all the Tyrant Wyrms crave is destruction, after all.” Celestia added softly, and then she nodded to Cowlick as the earth pony quietly excused herself, leaving the four in silence.

Finally, Twilight leaned against Scrivener Blooms as she gazed at Luna and Celestia, asking softly: “But… what… was it? Discombobulation was terrified of it, I’ve never seen him so… serious, so scared. He kept saying to stay out of the fight, and that his powers would be useless against it… said that you two were our only hope to stop it.”

Celestia smiled faintly at this, Luna lowering her head… and then Scrivener Blooms sighed softly as he whispered: “Who knows? Even with all the knowledge in my mind… most of it is just horrible, scattered images of terrible things. There’s… the emotions are alien. Aren’t even emotions, really… they’re just hunger, and anger, and the Black Verses…” He clenched his eyes shut, shuddering a little, and Luna laid her body slowly down overtop his, embracing him silently, fiercely around the neck before the earth pony murmured: “They’re like machines. Like those gun turrets… programmed to destroy everything in their path. And that makes me think that… the only reason a Tyrant Wyrm would work with Wisehorse… is if he really did intend to bring Ragnarok. Really did want to bring that chance to destroy the entire world… to burn and purge it all into nothingness…”

Scrivy clenched his eyes shut, a shudder rolling through his frame as more terrible images sparked through his mind, smelling charring meat, hearing the clank of chains and rumble of earth and awful screams… and then he opened his eyes and shook his head briefly, shivering for a moment before he looked quietly towards Twilight Sparkle… and smiled faintly despite himself as she reached up and touched his cheek quietly. “This is what Pinkamena meant by seeing beneath things… Horses of Heaven, I don’t blame her for being such a jerk all the time. Everything… seeing what lurks beneath…”

“It’s okay, Scrivy.” Twilight said softly: simple words, but they were soothing all the same, and Scrivener closed his eyes, resting his head down against the bedding before Twilight looked quietly towards Luna and Celestia, asking quietly: “And about tomorrow… about… going. To end all this…”

“The Black Baroque is not a great distance from here… if we leave in the morning, we should arrive before nightfall… assuming there are not too many threats upon the road. I see now why thou did not wish to risk telling me its location, sister…” Luna glanced towards Celestia, smiling faintly. “’Tis not so deep in the mountains I would have been hesitant in the pursuit. And like as not… had I gone chasing…”

She shook her head slowly, then glanced up with a frown as there was another knock at their door, before Cowlick once more stuck her head in grimaced, muttering: “Sorry to disturb you again, and… even sorrier to tell you this, but… Queen Celestia, Champion Luna… Twilight and Scrivy… North Neigh’s leaders are here. They… want to have a word.”

Luna gritted her teeth at this, but Celestia only nodded calmly, saying quietly: “Tell them we will be a moment…” She paused, glancing towards the open window with a frown, looking out at a small cluster of unicorns standing nervously outside in the pale light cast from the streetlamps. “Sister, shall I attend to this alone?”

“No, no…” Scrivener Blooms murmured, and Luna sighed quietly as he fidgeted beneath her before she winced and stepped aside, Twilight Sparkle apprehensively climbing to her own hooves as Scrivy stood… then nodded and lowered his head, saying softly: “Luna and I… should be there too. But afterwards… a little sleep is in order. I’m… at least I’m too exhausted to get into another brawl with Brambles.”

Celestia nodded slowly… and she led the way outside, Luna following quietly and tossing nervous glances to her husband, as Twilight brought up the rear behind Scrivener’s dragging hooves. They were all tired, all exhausted, all beaten, and when Scrivy looked up at Celestia, he could see flares of red amidst the glowing white shape that seemed to both be above and below the immense winged unicorn’s body… and he shook his head sharply, trying to dispel his nervous thoughts as they stepped outside and into the road.

Celestia and Luna both stepped forwards, gazing silently, imperiously down at Bramblethorn, Caprice, and a few other unicorns, as Scutum stood off to the side… and when Celestia glanced towards him, he saluted her sharply before saying in a crisp, calm voice: “Queen Celestia, Chancellor Bramblethorn and Mayor Caprice wish to extend their condolences and congratulations. I have already officially resigned my post, however, so I cannot speak further for them. Which they should both know, as well as the rest of the council.”

He glared at them, and then, near the back, Glitzy Gem leaned to the side, waving a hoof and calling eagerly: “Scrivener, Scrivener Blooms! You remember me, right? Tell your beautiful friends you remember me, we were foals together and-”

“Shut up.” Bramblethorn said moodily over his shoulder, and immediately the unicorn petered to a halt and flushed, hiding back amongst the congregation before Bramblethorn swallowed as he looked forwards, gritting his teeth and grinding them loudly together as he looked over the four, Luna gazing at him coldly and Celestia looking down with imperial expressionless. “Your… highness… it was brought to our attention that you arrived earlier. It was also brought to our attention – the unicorn council’s, that is – that… you and your… your… subjects-”

“They are not my subjects. They are my friends… they are my family.” Celestia said softly, meeting Bramblethorn’s eyes… and he quailed back a bit from her: her stance hid no malice, her tone was cordial… and yet all the same, the feeling in the air was clear: the winged unicorn was not to be trifled with. “I was not the one who saved you… yes, I aided them, but that was all it was. Assistance. They have suffered for you… and they have also suffered under what you have done to them. If you are here to thank anypony, thank them… or leave.”

“W-Well, it’s just an honor, a real, a true… honor… to see you…” Caprice said quickly, stepping forwards as Bramblethorn looked down in dull disbelief. “I mean… Queen of Equestria, in our little town! I… the moment we heard, of course… and… a-and if we had known, really, that there was… violence… going on, well, you know, you can be sure that we would have-”

“Do not lie, worm.” Luna said coldly, narrowing her eyes and silencing Caprice with a squeak. “Thou, in mania, accused Scrivener Bloom of being a sorcerer and… casting some dubious hex upon thy fetid little speck of a town! And thou hast done nothing but protect thyself… in fact, we know the vile machines thou has equipped thy elitist little snobbery microcosm of a unicorn village with were programmed to fire at anything not unicorn nor Pegasus, including myself!”

“Is this true?” Celestia asked quietly, and when Caprice only whimpered and shrank back, the other unicorns that were with her shuffling awkwardly, the ivory equine said softly: “I want those machines dismantled and destroyed by the time I return. I believe we will be making a special detour through this village after we have taken care of business in the mountains tomorrow… just as I believe that when I return, you will all be working in conjunction with the earth ponies, not enslaving them to your will.”

“But why?” Bramblethorn burst out, stepping forwards and looking up at her… and what made it more terrible was that it wasn’t anger, or hatred… it was honest confusion, tinged with despair, as he looked towards Scrivener and said sharply: “They’re… weaker than us! They are less than us… we can do anything, anything, their kind can do… but better, faster, and with even greater ease! This is only natural order!”

Celestia looked at him quietly… and then she stepped forwards and tilted her horn downwards only slightly, the faintest of glows surrounding it… and surrounding Bramblethorn, hefting him into the air as he began to flail weakly, gargling quietly as bands of pressure encircled his body as she said softly: “Then I am superior to you. Do you not see the flaw in your reasoning? You can lift a rock… but I?” Celestia glanced with distaste towards the abandoned building, and it rumbled, windows cracking, wood shattering, as the entire structure shook and then began to slowly rise visibly upwards, boards tearing as it ripped free from the ground. “I can move mountains if I wish to. You can light a candle? I can move the sun, and cover an entire world with its glow. You can speak harsh words and kick around those who believe themselves beneath you… but I can speak calmly, and intelligently, and in the past bent even dragons to my will through soft conversation and unstoppable strategy.”

Celestia’s eyes flashed, and the rumbling, floating abandoned building was dropped, crashing down and half-collapsing in on itself in a burst of snow and dust, chunks of glass and broken board falling down the front of it as the roof caved in slightly and Celestia flicked her horn downwards, tossing Bramblethorn down to the frozen road. He bounced once with a grunt of pain, flopping stupidly onto all fours, then stared up with horror as she stepped slowly forwards. He skittered backwards, rasping weakly, the unicorns staring up at her with terror as she shook her head and gazed over them with disappointment and contempt. “I did not expect things to be so bad here. To be so isolated, so trapped in old, barbaric ways… the earth ponies, the Pegasi, and the unicorns need each other. They have always needed each other and will always need each other… because despite our differences, we are still all only ponies. Working together is essential to our survival… proving that we are superior because some are blessed with powers others do not is pointless.

“You all remind me… of the pony I once was. Perhaps that is why I feel such contempt for you… but if I was able to change, perhaps it means there is hope.” Celestia said softly, looking slowly back and forth over the unicorns, and Luna glanced at this admission with surprise… but Celestia only gave a faint smile to her sister before she returned her eyes to the unicorns. “There will be soldiers, weary, and wounded staying here. It would reflect well upon North Neigh if they received aid while staying here and recovering from what they just survived. It would also be beneficial if you would leave us in peace for the rest of the night: I understand having questions and desiring answers, but I believe you will afford us this courtesy, won’t you?”

“I…” Caprice glanced nervously at Bramblethorn, and he only nodded tiredly, the mayor swallowing a bit before she bowed quickly to Celestia and turned, quickly trotting away with a wince.

The other unicorns followed… all except Bramblethorn, who stood and looked silently at Scrivener Blooms as Scrivy looked quietly back. Celestia excused herself with a silent nod, and Twilight hesitated before following her, Luna and Scrivy standing in the cold, frost-covered road across from Bramblethorn before the unicorn strode suddenly forwards, halting in front of him, looking down at the earth pony with misery in his eyes as he whispered: “Why didn’t you just stay gone, slave hoof? I would have preferred to have died than see this day come, after I gained so much, so fast…”

“Wisehorse. William Isehorse… he helped you get into power here, didn’t he?” Scrivener Blooms looked quietly at the unicorn, and Bramblethorn nodded with a snort of disgust. “What did you do for him?”

“I don’t have to answer to you. I’ll never, ever answer or bow my head to you again…” Bramblethorn hesitated all the same, however, and it wasn’t just at the glare Luna favored him with. Nor was it remorse… it was something else, before Bramblethorn muttered in a half-prideful voice: “Fine, you want to know? Helped him set up his shop. Introduced him to other unicorns, and showed him around town. Then, once I was elected, I got him the deeds for a few landmarks he was interested in, like the old fountain. In return, he told me I’d never have to worry, that he’d always watch out for me. And unicorns, unlike slave-hoofs, keep their word.”

Scrivener Blooms looked silently at his father… and then he shook his head slowly, and without another word, he turned and left, Luna following after him, leaving Bramblethorn standing abandoned by all on the cold road, not even seeming to understand how alone he was.

Comments

[NotATree]

Death is a topic not often done well in stories. I think that has to do with the writers love for his or her creations, or in the case of fanfiction they love the character that has been made for them. I think this makes it harder for writers to kill off something they've helped give life to. This is why death is a tool of great power if done correctly or a train wreck into a daycare center if done wrong. You have achieved death in this story. What I mean by that is that you have given your audience an emotional attachment to your characters, and then you killed them. That emotional attachment is what gives their deaths and their pain meaning. I will be honest I was shocked and deeply saddened by the death of Fluttershy, it hurt me to realize that after all she had survived under her mother and the bravery she had shown in defiance to her fears that she brought low through trickery and deceit.

[drc123456]

I hate you so much for killing off pinkie rainbow and fluttershy and for thos u will undoughtedly kill off in the future but I applaude you to because you did it so well I hope the rest of this series is just as good

[Narcosis]

Crying into my soup
12
You play with our emotions so well, so perfectly
I hate it in times like this

[Okami1197]

man i was listening to the radio and when i got to the aftermath of the battle the song 'Let Her Go' came on it finished the mood for me

[Uncr3at1ve]

I'm going to be honest, this chapter made me legitimately cry for a story for the first time in over a year. Sadness... sure, but I haven't had tears actually leak onto my face in a long time, it felt... releasing. Now, back to reading I guess.

[TheVirtuousOne]

Well fuck.... you made me actually cry this time, I think thats cool though since much don't phaze me, means you did it right

[Vendable Sheik]

I need to preface this by saying that one of the biggest things that gets to me in stories is main character death but especially the death of any of the Mane Six. Stories where they start already dead (such as Fallout Equestria) I have no issues with.

That being said I am now finding it incredibly difficult to continue reading this. Yet I've already gotten nearly 3 books into this series and the side of me that loves reading is detesting the idea of abandoning this fic but I sit here in horror right now. You've killed not one, not two, but three of the Mane Six so far. Pinkie Pie's death wasn't a huge shock to me since the chapter title basically told me something was going to happen to her. But now Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy too? Rainbow had been through so much to get herself the body she wanted at last and the relationship with Applejack she longed for and she is snuffed out and after all Fluttershy had been through, including thinking she was going to die earlier on from Sol Seraph, she is killed. It makes all that they suffered through feel pointless to me. I am pretty much now under the impression that Twilight is going to be the only survivor of her original group of friends by the end. If not by the end of this book then the end of the series. I don't know. It was just so sudden and Rainbow Dash was sudden enough but Fluttershy was so surprising right at the beginning of this chapter.

You are a great writer and I've fairly well enjoyed these stories so far but still. I'm not sure what else to say right now. I think I just need time. I think the reader side will win out on this one but...my god it hurt to read the beginning of this chapter right after finishing the last one.

[Yami Vizzini]

Well, at least Bramblethorn had the sense not to call Celestia an abomination to her face.

...What, why would I have anything else to say after the last couple of chapters? Just... you know, monsters, and battle, and... I'll just curl up and go to a happy place now....
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Especially after we already got to go through Fluttershy apparently dying before.

(One of the worst parts is I half-saw a comment that warned that Rainbow and Fluttershy joined Pinkie in death, not that it doesn't hurt all the same. The other worst part is I'm not even confident I can present Sol Seraph as a Complete Monster anymore- not that she isn't literally one, but the heinous standard is too damn high!)

[Revan]

Half the Elements are dead. Only three remain.

[cometstarling]

fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck

[thaecrasis]

Damn...