Ruin

by RB_

Preparations

Sunset stepped through the portal, a sleeping bag under each arm. She walked over to the corner of the library, set her load down, and turned back towards the portal. It was only then that she noticed the room’s other occupant.

“Hey,” Ember said. She was sitting in one of the chairs, her scepter leaning against the table beside her.

“Oh, hello,” Sunset said. “You’re still here? I thought you were heading back to the Dragon Lands?”

Ember waved a claw dismissively. “Changed my mind. They’ll be fine without me. For a little while, anyway. And if Garble tries anything, I’ll just put him back in his place like I always do.”

“Huh,” Sunset said. “Well, alright then.”

“So,” Ember said. “You guys figure anything out from your little experiment or whatever?”

“We think so,” Sunset said. She explained what they’d learned.

“Sounds like a bunch of pony magic mumbo-jumbo to me,” Ember said, once Sunset had finished. “So that’s why our gems have gone bad?”

“That’s our theory,” Sunset said. “It’s probably because the innate magic within the gemstones is being drained.”

“That’s… bad, right?” Ember asked.

Sunset nodded. “Without the innate magic of gemstones, you might starve. Eventually.”

“Great.”

“You’re always welcome to come to our world,” Sunset said, intentionally not thinking about how she would hide actual living dragons from the rest of the human populace.

“Are there a lot of gems on your side of the mirror-portal-thingy?”

“Well, uh… no. They’re pretty hard to get your hands on, actually. And they wouldn’t have any magic in them, so…”

“Then I think we’ll stay here. That mirror thing’s too small for most of us, anyway.”

They lapsed into silence. Sunset went back through the portal, and reemerged a few moments later with two more sleeping bags under her arms.

“What are those for?” Ember asked, as Sunset put them down with the others.

“Camping,” Sunset said. “We’re planning an expedition to the Everfree Forest.”

“Is that the forest on the edge of town?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“There’s a set of powerful magical artifacts hidden there,” Sunset said. “We think we might be able to reverse what’s happened to Equestria with them. Maybe.”

Ember raised an eyeridge. “You don’t sound very confident.”

“It’s the only hope we’ve got.”

Sunset went back through the portal, then reemerged with the last of the sleeping bags. She set them down in the corner, then dusted her hands off.

“You know,” she said, ”if you’re going to stick around… would you come with us? The forest is dangerous, and I’d feel a lot more comfortable with a dragon backing us up.”

Ember was silent for a few moments.

“…You say these magical doohickeys of yours can fix things?”

“That’s what we’re hoping.”

“Alright,” Ember said. “Then I’m on board. When are you heading out?”

“A couple days from now.”

“Not that that means much to me, what with the sky the way it is,” Ember said. “But okay, I’ll wait for you. After that, though, I’m going back to the Dragon Lands.”

Sunset smiled. “Thank you, Ember.”

Ember snorted. “Don’t thank me yet. Wait until after everything’s gone back to normal.”

“Will do.”

---

Starlight was on her way to the tent when someone called out her name. “Starlight?”

She turned around.

“Hiya!”

“Pinkie?” Starlight said. She was momentarily surprised; Pinkie looked a lot more like her normal, cheerful self. And hadn’t she still been in the gym when she left, curled up in her sleeping bag as seemed to be the norm these days? But then it clicked. “You’re the human Pinkie, right?”

Pinkie nodded. “Yep!”

“Oh,” Starlight said, a little disappointed. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m searching for my other half,” Pinkie said. “Have you seen her?”

“Your other—oh, you mean your counterpart? She’s in the gym.”

“Coolio-doolio!” Pinkie said. “Thanks, Starlight!”

She headed off down the hall. Starlight turned back to the entrance, hesitated for a moment, checked her watch, and finally turned around. Curiosity had gotten the best of her; she headed off after Pinkie.

“Hey,” she said, once she’d caught up. “What do you want with your counterpart anyway?”

“Sunset told me she’s in a bad place right now. I thought I might try to cheer her up a little!”

Starlight bit her lip. “I’m… not sure that’s the best idea.”

Pinkie turned her head to look at her. “Why not?”

“Well,” Starlight said, “we’ve all tried talking to her, but… I think she just wants to be left alone.”

“Maybe that’s what she wants,” Pinkie said. “But that doesn’t mean it’s what she needs.”

“Still, I don’t think—”

“I can’t hurt her more than she’s already hurting,” Pinkie said, cutting her off. “So is it alright if I just try?”

Something about the way Pinkie said those words caught Starlight off guard. She fell a few steps behind.

Soon enough, they reached the doors to the gym. Pinkie pushed them open and walked inside, scanning the crowd for her double.

“Over there,” Starlight said, pointing to their little group.

“Gotcha,” Pinkie said. She waded into the crowd, Starlight following closely behind. They reached the others pretty quickly. Applejack and Rainbow had gone off somewhere, leaving Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie. Pinkie was curled up in her sleeping bag.

“Starlight?” Rarity asked, when they were close enough to hear. “I thought you were…” her voice died. “Pinkie?”

“Human Pinkie,” Starlight explained.

“Oh.” Rarity nodded. “I see. Still getting used to that.”

Human Pinkie stepped carefully over the mess of blankets on the floor and squatted down beside her other self. She put a hand on Pony Pinkie’s shoulder, causing her to start. Her head snapped up.

The difference between the two was night and day. Human Pinkie was smiling and perky. By contrast, pony Pinkie looked like she’d been through the wringer. Bags hung under her eyes, her hair was matted down in several places, and looking at her face it was hard to imagine she’d ever smiled in her life.

“Hiya, other me!” human Pinkie said. “Can we talk for a minute?”

Pony Pinkie said nothing, just nodded after a few seconds.

“Great!” human Pinkie said. “Let’s go over to the corner, okay?”

Pony Pinkie slowly extracted herself from her sleeping bag, and the two walked carefully over to the corner of the gym, out of earshot.

“Two Pinkie Pies,” Rarity said. “I never would have dared to imagine it before I came here.”

“Did she say what she wanted?” Fluttershy asked.

“She said she just wanted to talk,” Starlight answered. “To cheer her up.”

“Well, I certainly hope she succeeds,” Rarity said. “Celestia knows none of us have been able to get through to her.”

They continued to watch the two Pinkies. Human Pinkie Pie seemed to have a lot to say, pony Pinkie looking small in comparison. So engrossed were they that they failed to notice the new arrivals until they had already arrived.

“Hey,” Rainbow Dash said, walking up behind Starlight. “What’s going on?”

“The human Pinkie Pie is having a little chat with our Pinkie Pie,” Rarity explained.

“Really?” Applejack said, joining their little group. “Huh.”

“Anyway, Starlight,” Rainbow said. She thrust a large roll of paper towards her. “We got the map done. And we talked to Zecora. She made some notes for you.”

“Really?” Starlight unfurled the map. It was very detailed. “That’s amazing. This’ll be a big help.”

“Anything we can do to support you guys, we will,” Applejack said.

Starlight rolled the map back up. She looked back at the two Pinkies; it seemed as though they were wrapping up their conversation.

Pony Pinkie began to cry. Big, racking sobs. Human Pinkie held her arms out.

The two Pinkies hugged.

“Well I’ll be,” Applejack remarked.

The two continued to hug for a few moments more, then pulled back. Pony Pinkie wiped her tears with her forearm.

The two headed back over to the group.

“Pinkie,” Starlight said, gently. “How are you feeling?”

“It hurts,” Pinkie said. “But… I’m okay.” She sniffed. “I’m so sorry, everypony.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Rarity said. “We’re just glad you’re back.”

They all hugged, with the exception of the human Pinkie, who smiled, turned, and began to walk away. Starlight, noticing this, broke from the group hug and ran after her.

“Wait!” she said, and the human Pinkie turned around. Starlight caught up with her.

“Yeah, Starlight?”

“What did…” Starlight said. “What did you tell her?”

“Oh, not much,” Pinkie said. “I just gave her a little pep talk and told her that it was okay to feel sad, but also that it’s easier if you share that sadness with your friends.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it,” Pinkie replied. “What can I say? I just know myself pretty well.”

And with that, she turned and walked away, leaving Starlight alone.

---

A day passed. Now, it was Saturday, and the place was the tent.

Their little expedition team had been assembled. The six of them stood in their protective gear, looking to all the world like soldiers marching off to war. Well, if a bunch of teenagers in homemade hazmat suits could be called soldiers. It reminded Twilight a lot of the last time they’d assembled a team to go through the portal. She hoped against hope that this one wouldn’t end the same way. Or worse. They wouldn’t have the mercy of an open portal home this time, if something were to happen.

Twilight took a deep breath. Too late to turn back now.

“I must say, when you asked me to make these suits, I never imagined I’d be one of the ones wearing them,” Rarity remarked, looking herself over. “Not exactly my most fashionable work, but function over form, I suppose.”

“Well, I for one think they’re pretty awesome,” Rainbow said. “It’s like something out of a sci-fi movie!”

“I’m more of a ‘detective thriller’ person, myself.”

“Alright, everyone,” Sunset said, standing in front of the rest of the group. “Let’s go over this one more time.”

“I think we all get it already,” Rainbow said. “We go in, we find this forest place, we follow the map, we get the Elements, and then we head back to the portal.”

“Right,” Sunset said. “But remember, we can’t keep the portal open while we’re there. Twilight and Starlight will re-open the portal every day at three o’clock until we’re back. We won’t be able to communicate with them, so it’s important that we all make it back by then. You all have your watches?”

They nodded. They were just cheap analogue watches, but unlike digital ones, they would survive going through the portal.

“But please, try to make it back as quickly as possible,” Twilight said.

Sunset nodded. “Now, the Everfree is dangerous. We don’t know what we’ll encounter in there, so it’s important that we all stick together. No matter what you see or hear, do not wander off from the group; that’s the number one rule. Got it?”

“You don’t have to tell us twice,” Applejack said. Everyone else nodded, including Fluttershy, who seemed to be nodding more aggressively than the others.

“Good,” Sunset said. She turned to Twilight. “I think we’re ready, then.”

“…You’re absolutely sure you want to do this?” Twilight asked her.

Sunset nodded. “It’s the only way.”

Twilight let out a breath. “Okay.”

She sat down at her desk.

“Starlight, everything green on your end?”

Starlight looked up with a start. “Oh!” she exclaimed, then quickly scanned the monitor in front of her. “Yes! Everything’s good over here.”

“Okay,” Twilight said. She double-checked her own monitor. “Alright,” she said. “Discharging capacitors… now!”

She pushed a key, and the Can-Opener sparked to life. The portal was ripped open once again.

“Okay, everybody,” Sunset said. “Be careful on your way through; it can be disorienting.”

She turned to Twilight and Starlight.

“Wish us luck,” she said.

Twilight swallowed.

“Good luck.”

Comments

[Wild Stallion]

“Then I think we’ll stay here. That mirror thing’s too small for most of us, anyway.”

Well, that's one awkward conversation out of the way.

The two Pinkies hugged.

Aww! Nice to see Pinkie getting some comfort, before everything goes topsy turvy.

“Good luck.”

And so the adventure begins!

[nighters]

do you think pinkie pie earth pony magic and knowledge about rock farming could grow gems to be bigger? or unsoured a gem as a test?

[FanOfMostEverything]

They were just cheap analogue watches, but unlike digital ones, they would survive going through the portal.

Huh. I missed that part. Or I just don't remember it. I wonder what's causing that.

Also, I find myself worrying about the structural integrity of the castle. I don't know how sound that crystal is without magic reinforcing it... and that's saying nothing of any covert bites Ember might have been taking out of load-bearing elements.

Still, at least the Pinkies provided a moment of hope and healing. Here's hoping things don't go as poorly as they could. (Trying to stay realistic in my optimism.)

[Shiny Kelp]

...Aaand I just realised I reached the last current chapter.

F***.

Another great fic to throw to the Tracking pile. Hopefully this one actually finishes at some point!

[RB_]

11361907
The Can-Opener is like a mini EMP machine. Any unshielded electronics that pass through the portal it opens get fried.

11362152
Getting pretty close to finishing it! Just a few chapters left to write on my end, so don't worry.