Soul Recovery

by Conglomerate

Ride Together, Die Together (Rewritten)

Princess Celestia sighed, she had not expected this to happen so soon. This was ridiculous! Twilight had just become an alicorn! Right when they were just having tea in the castle too, discussing the very topic itself!

Oh well, these things happen, she might as well start cleaning up.

Looking down, Princess Celestia could see Twilight lying on the floor at the bottom of the staircase, wings splayed and legs limp. Her neck was bent in an unnatural angle, and her face was frozen in shock as her eyes took on a glossy sheen.

Sighing once more, Princess Celestia picked her up in her magic and reset her neck, a sickening crack echoed throughout the staircase. Princess Celestia winced a bit, but continued going about 'fixing' Twilight's body, smoothing down her feathers and straightening her mane.

Once that was done, she walked back up the staircase with Twilight in tow, and began heading towards a spare room to keep her in. Upon arriving, Princess Celestia casually dropped the body on the bed and sat down.

"Now all we do is wait,"

---

Rarity was the last to arrive at the train station, having packed an enormous amount of dresses to take on their trip to Canterlot. If only she had more time to prepare, getting the invitation from Spike on such short notice made her have to choose only ten dresses!

The rest of her friends were already there, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were just standing, Pinkie Pie was bouncing, and Fluttershy looked worried.

"Do you really need to bring that much Rarity? We're just going to see the Princesses." Rainbow Dash quipped,

"It never hurts to be prepared darling, besides, I have to look my best whenever I'm in Canterlot." Rarity retorted.

"Hah! I don't need any dresses to look my best, I'm completely awesome!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed,

"I beg to differ, darling," Rarity stated,

"Then beg!" Pinkie Pie interrupted, popping in between the two.

"What?" They both asked.

"You said 'I beg to differ', but you didn't actually beg. Why are you saying you're going to beg if you don't beg?" Pinkie Pie explained.

"It's an expression dear, I'm not actually going to beg, darling," Rarity said after a moment.

"Hmph, I'd like to see that" Rainbow Dash muttered,

"ALL ABOARD! PONYVILLE TO CANTERLOT!" The conductor shouted,

"Looks like our train is here, did we all bring our elements?" Applejack asked,

A plethora of nods and affirmatives came from the other four ponies gathered.

"Good, let’s get going," Applejack finished, trotting towards the train.

Following her, the rest boarded the train as well, and upon finding their respective seats, the train departed.

"Do you know why the Princess invited us all to Canterlot? And why do we need the Elements? I hope we're not going to have to do something dreadful, I just styled my mane this morning." Rarity wondered.

"Ah have no idea, Spike just came by with the letter and train tickets. Ah'm a little confused about needing the Elements though." Applejack said.

"Ooh Ooh! I bet we have to reform another villain like Discord! Who is it going to be this time? Chrysalis? Sombra? Or even Nightmare Moon again!" Pinkie Pie shouted.

"I hope not," Fluttershy said quietly.

"Pinkie, Princess Luna is already reformed, why would we have to do it again?" Rainbow Dash asked,

"I dunno!" Pinkie Pie replied, flagging down a snack cart.

"We'll just have to see when we get there darling." Rarity piped up.

---

The train ride passed without incident, and without further conversations. The five ponies soon arrived in Canterlot, the dazzling city rising around them once again, oblivious to the new arrivals.

"We should head straight to the castle ah reckon," Applejack took the lead.

Nopony disagreed, though Rarity sighed a bit in disappointment.

"Wait a minute. Do we have Twilight's element?" Rainbow Dash asked,

Everypony froze, and began searching through their bags and luggage. No Element of Magic came up.

"Oh I do hope Twilight has it with her, or else we might have to make this whole trip again." Rarity said,

"It's not so bad! Those snack carts had a lot of good stuff!" Pinkie Pie said with her mouth full, managing to spit crumbs all over the ground in front of her.

"Pinkie, that's gross, finish eating before you speak. Besides, I could make that trip in about ten minutes anyway. It won't be a problem." Rainbow Dash boasted.

"You just might have too, though I hope it doesn't come to that," Rarity said,

"C'mon now, let’s not keep the Princesses waiting." Applejack stepped up, beginning to walk towards the castle.

The rest soon followed, and the Elements began their journey to the castle. The city seemed relatively calm that day, so there weren't any interruptions as the five made their way through the streets.

"Do you think this has something to do with Twilight? The Princess didn't mention her in the invitation, isn't she supposed to be here right now?" Rainbow Dash began.

"I hope she’s okay," Fluttershy mumbled,

"She's probably fine, though it is a little strange there was no mention of her in the invitation." Rarity added.

"Ooh! Maybe it's a surprise! And when we get there Twilight is going to show us her wicked awesome new alicorn powers!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed,

"That doesn't sound right, why would we have to make a trip all the way to Canterlot just to see Twilight? Although, I'm not complaining about being here." Rarity said, gazing at all the wonders passing by.

"We'll just have to ask the Princess when we see her, Ah've noticed she can be a little vague sometimes." Applejack said,

"It doesn't exactly put her in a good light does it." Rarity noted,

The rest of the trip was quiet, with only the sparse conversation piping up every once in a while.

They soon arrived at the castle doors, the guards immediately letting them in without question. Standing in the throne room were both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Princess Celestia looked a little worried, while Princess Luna was smiling a bit.

"My little ponies, thank you for coming on such short notice, but this is an important matter, we need your help." Princess Celestia began.

"What do you need us to help with, and where is Twilight? Isn’t she supposed to be here?" Applejack asked,

"That is why it is so important, dear Applejack. This matter is about Twilight."

"What do you mean? Is that why she isn't here right now?" Rarity asked.

"Before I reveal what has happened, I should educate you a bit about ourselves, and alicorn biology. There is a reason we live for so long, it is because we are immune to death." Princess Celestia explained,

There was a round of gasps, but no further interruption.

She continued, "Alicorns are removed from the mortal coil, and while our bodies can still technically die, our souls cannot, meaning we are free to come back again and again."

Silence remained over the group, before eventually somepony spoke up.

"Does that mean…?"

"Yes my little ponies, Twilight has unfortunately died." Princess Celestia answered.

Fluttershy and Rarity both fainted, while Pinkie Pie's hair went flat. Rainbow's wings drooped, and Applejack took off her hat.

"But do not fret, for Twilight will not stay dead. As I have said before, alicorns can come back from beyond." Princess Celestia reassured the group.

"Then why isn't she back yet?" Rainbow demanded,

"That is why we need your help, for some unknown reason, Twilight's soul has not yet returned to her body. While it is not unheard of for the process to take a while, problems begin to arise if it takes too long." Princess Celestia explained.

"How do you expect us to help? What can we do to bring Twilight back?" Applejack asked.

"Since you are her closest friends, you are the best suited to go and recover her soul. To do this, we need to send you beyond the mortal plane, and into the Domain of the Dead."

"B-But we aren't alicorns! How will we come back?" Rarity exclaimed,

"That is why you have brought the Elements of Harmony, they shall act as your anchor to the material world, allowing you to be brought back similarly to an alicorn."

"How will we know where to go? Will we have a guide?" Rainbow asked.

"Unfortunately not. We cannot go with you, our duties prevent us from leaving this plane for an extended time. You will have to do this alone. That does not mean we cannot provide any assistance, Luna holds some power in the Domain of the Dead, and carrying her mark will allow you places that others cannot normally go."

"How does Princess Luna have power in the dead world?" Pinkie Pie piped up.

"It is quite simple really,” Princess Luna joined in, “I was offered a job as the Reaper of Souls over a thousand years ago."

"That, and you 'visit' the Domain of the Dead far more often than I do." Princess Celestia said, nudging her slightly.

Princess Luna glared at her, but didn't press the issue. Then she turned to the Elements bearers, her horn began to glow, and they were quickly enveloped in a blue light. After some time, it faded, and each pony looked themselves over, revealing a crescent moon branded onto the bottom of their front hooves.

"Simply show that to any who stand in your way, and they should stand down, but do not go flaunting it around, as it may attract unwanted attention." Princess Luna explained.

"Allow me to explain where you will be going as well. There are three layers to the Domain of the Dead. The first is the neutral area, where all new souls end up, including yourselves. There you will be judged on your actions and either be sent to the good area, the bad area, or stay in the neutral area. I have faith that none of you will end up in the bad area, but be warned, there are many ways to enter it, but only one exit." Princess Celestia explained.

The other ponies shivered a bit,

“But what about Tartarus?”

“Tartarus is reserved for the living.” Princess Luna began, “It holds those whose punishment extends past their lifetime, or those that defy death…”

“Oh.”

Princess Celestia nodded, then continued, "The good area is where you will most likely end up, but be warned again, as while you can leave at any time, most who go there find that they do not want to come back."

"So we just have to go in there, help Twilight come back, and then come back ourselves? Sounds pretty easy to me," Rainbow Dash spoke,

"It may be very easy, or it may be very challenging. There are many unknowns in this situation, I advise you to be both cautious and quick." Princess Celestia finished,

"When…” Fluttershy trailed off, “When do we go to the 'Domain of the Dead'?"

"We will begin the process now, stay safe my little ponies." Princess Celestia answered, her horn glowing.

Princess Luna joined in, and both sisters' horns began to glow brighter and brighter. A white circle appeared around the five ponies, complex designs folding inwards from the border. Tendrils of white light swirled around them as they began to float upwards.

"One last thing,” Princess Luna tacked on quickly, “Try not to take longer than two days to come back. Your corpses will begin to decay after that, and we do not want to have to deal with the smell," Luna called out quickly.

"CORPSES?!" All five of the element bearers shouted as the light enveloped them completely.

With a bright flash, their souls were sent flying out of their bodies and upwards into the sky.

...

"That was remarkably easy sister," Princess Luna eventually spoke up,

"What was?"

"Convincing them to leave the material plane, we did not even have to show them Twilight's body!"

"Hmmm. That is worrying, perhaps we should have a talk with them about it when they come back. For now however, we have to deal with these," Princess Celestia said, gesturing to the five now lifeless bodies laying limply on the floor.

"Can we not just put them all in the same bed?" Princess Luna asked, exasperated,

"I suppose we could, but you still have to help me move them,"

"Ughh, fine." Princess Luna said, lifting up both Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, who managed to remain smiling, even in death.

"Thank you."

To Be Continued...