Chapter the Only -True Villainy
*Recap*
Jasper grit his teeth, visibly getting angered by Tony’s comments, “You would do wise to hold your tongue.”
Tony shook his head, “Why? Do I upset you? Is it because I’m right? Or is it that you’re just too ashamed to accept the truth.”
Jasper reeled on him and yelled, “I AM KING!”
Tony yelled back with equal volume, “NO! NOT HERE!”
Tony became visibly distressed and clutched Jaspers shoulders as the seven mares gazed at the scene, “You give this up,” he gestured to the room, “Give all of this up. Give the princesses back their titles, drop this charade and you come home.”
Jasper shook his head and turned away once more, “I’m not hearing this.”
Tony became both saddened and angered, “Jasper look at you! This being king is destroying you! Just listen to me for once,” tears were in his eyes, “I don’t want to lose my best friend to a hunk of metal and a gem stone.”
Jasper reeled around and struck out with his hand at Tony, “SHUT UP!!!!!”
Everyone froze at the sound of flesh tearing. Tony gasped for breath as he glanced down; blood stained the entire stomach area of his clothes. Jasper noticed the hand he had struck with was his left hand. He pulled back and stood frozen as Tony clutched his gushing wound, Tony stared with confusion at his friend. Everything then moved in slow motion as Tony dropped to the ground…unmoving. Jasper still stared in shock as Twilight ran over to check Tony; tears began to fall from her eyes.
“He’s dead.”
Tony’s blood pooled around him in a puddle as Jasper stared in disbelief at the scene before him. Tony’s lifeless body and he standing there, alive and breathing. The sound of Brazen Ponies entering barely registered with the human king.
Sunset Shimmer then yelled, “ARE YOU HAPPY NOW!? HE WAS ONE OF THE ONLY BEINGS IN THE UNIVERSE WHO CALLED YOU FRIEND AND YOU MURDERED HIM IN COLD BLOOD!!!!!!!!”
Jasper glanced at his hands and then turned his head to glance at his reflection in a Brazen Pony. What he saw made his blood run cold, sunken and sleep deprived eyes, bloodied hands and gleaming armor. Truly what he saw was a demon from hell, some form of gruesome gargoyle that had once been human. Something inside his mind finally crashed, the shattering pained him to the point of his breath leaving him for a moment.
*End Recap*
His realization had to be shared.
"You did this," Jasper whispered, almost inaudible, eyes looking towards the ground.
"What?" Twilight asked, her tone as cold as ice, tears still staining her muzzle.
Jasper looked up to Celestia; his expression full of pain, anguish, and something else she hadn't seen before: pure hatred. The Princess was in shock. Nopony had looked at her like that, not even Nightmare Moon!
"YOU DID THIS TO ME," Jasper seethed, barely containing his rage; spittle flying from his mouth.
Twilight started,"Now wait just a-"
"NO! THIS IS CELESTIA'S FAULT!! IF IT WEREN'T FOR HER-"
"But-"
"If it weren't for her," Jasper interrupted; Twilight backpedalled from the insane thing in front of her. "I wouldn't be here."
"If it weren't for you and that stupid gauntlet-"
"IF CELESTIA HADN'T HAVE TAKEN ME HERE, NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE EVER HAPPENED!! IF SHE HADN'T HAVE TAKEN TONY HERE... t-then he wouldn't have d-died. His death was her fault... HE DIED BECAUSE OF HER!!!"
"Thou tries to push thine own blame on Us?!?!"
"The blame is on me? THE BLAME IS ON ME??" Jasper said with a twisted laugh, and then pointed a finger at the white alicorn with malice. "The only one who should be blamed is Celestia."
The doors burst open, pulling everyone's attention to three Day-guards wielding deformed spears, panting from exertion. "Princesses," one shouted. "We've found Chrysalis and the black drake. They're being sent to a prison camp as we spea-"
"THAT'S IIT!!!!!" With a mighty cry, Jasper leaped towards Celestia, hands reaching above and behind his head as a sword formed in his grip, ready to smite the being he most hated, activating the Gem of Ages to gain strength that would rival a furious dragon.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Schink THUD
Everyone stared in horror at the blade, dripping with blood. Jasper fell to his knees, staring at the sword; the sword that pierced his own gold armor, its hilt covered in a lavender aura. His own blade fell from his grasp. He looked up to the white alicorn with a smile that would rival Discord's insanity; a smile that screamed 'I win!'. He looked to Twilight, and coughing blood, he croaked out, "I knew you had it in you-*cough cough*-Twilight. I always knew.... you were a-*cough*-mon...ster." Jasper fell back into a puddle of his own blood, a creepy smile frozen on his face; his eyes glazed over.
Everypony present had no idea what to do. Total shock was plain over all their faces. Twilight turned back to face the group, blood splattered across her muzzle, tears flowing from her eyes. Without a word, she pushed past her friends and her teacher, then stumbled out the throne room, a trail of bloody hoof-prints left in her wake.
Pain clear in their eyes, Twilight's friends tried to go after her, only to be stopped by a reluctant Luna.
"Thou friend is in much pain, and will require some time alone."
With an understanding nod, the five ponies trudged out of the blood tainted room.
Celestia, staring at the dead body before her, mumbled a few choice words, cursing the boy she "saved".
Luna walked up to her sister and asked, "Ist there any way We can fix this accursed mess?"
Celestia answered, head hanging in despair, "For once, I have no answer."
~~~~~~~~~~~
The door to Golden Oaks Library opened with the ring of a bell, five figures walking in.
"Welcome to the... Oh, hey girls," Spike said, clearly worn from stress and little sleep. "I'm sorry. I've tried everything; even offering books won't get her to come out! She-she hasn't eaten anything for days..."
"Ha! An egghead that doesn't want a book. What next, a-"
"Rainbow Dash!"
"Heh-heh, I-I'm sorry." There was an awkward silence when everypony realized that Dash just apologized to Fluttershy.
"*Ahem* As nice as it is knowing that Twilight has such a noble dragon like yourself watching over her, I believe you deserve some rest, Spike"
"But I'm not ti-*Yawn*-tired at all." Spike was then gently levitated into his bed, and promptly fell asleep.
Rarity smiled sweetly, " You really are a sweet little dragon."
"So," started Rainbow." how are we going to cheer up Twilight?"
Applejack said,"If there's anypony that'll make Twi' right as rain, it'd be Pinkie Pie. Speaking of which, where is she?" At this, everypony looked around for the jolly pink mare. Then they heard shouting coming from upstairs. The group all rushed to Twilight's room, and found Pinkie being levitated out the door. The party mare was unceremoniously dropped, and the door promptly slammed in her muzzle.
Pinkie had lost her iconic poofy mane; her colors dulled. It was a truly pitiful sight. On the verge of tears, she said, "I-I've never failed making a pony smile. Never..."
Applejack angrily nocked on the door. "Twi', you'd better open this door right now, or so help me, I'll break it down!"
A muffled, "Go away!" reached them.
"Suit yerself." Applejack bucked the door off the hinges.
The only way you could describe the room is that it was a mess. Books were strewn across the floor, streamers, confetti and cake was smeared across the walls, and ink spills dotted the floor like land mines. The bed sheets were torn and stained. The broken door laid in a heap near a window.
"Go away. I don't deserve friends like you!" Twilight said, slightly less muffled. She was buried under a pile of wrecked pillows in the corner.
"Why don't you deserve us?" asked Rainbow. "You're the coolest egghead I know!"
The group all helped uncover her, throwing the pillows off to who-knows-where. "Because-*sniff*- because..." Twilight was on the verge of crying.
"Because why, dear?"
Then the dams broke. "Because I-I-I'm a monster!" Twilight sobbed, memories of all that happened recently overwhelming her: the chaos, the dead ponies, the insane grin permanently plastered to Jasper's face. She would never forget that moment; that she actually killed him.
One by one, the five teary-eyed ponies walked over to Twilight, enveloping her in the warm embrace of a group hug. From the depths of the hug, barely audible, Twilight repeated, "I'm a monster. Monsters don't deserve friends."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Near the sleeping drake stands the case that the Elements of Harmony reside in: The Elements had all lost their shine and luster, looking more like painted rocks than gems. Cracks started to show on the Element of Magic, with light seeping through them. After a blinding flash, it disappeared. Without their sister, the other Elements changed back into the dormant stone spheres.